"I'm sorry, I can't let you pass without any notice from the generals"

"This Sir is the leader of the black guards, he has the right to move toward the sixth floor"

"I received no such notice, until I do they cannot pass, if they require anything you can go in their stead and get it"

The guards blocking the checkpoint to and from the sixth floor were adamant on keeping YuJu and his two followers from going up no matter how much Mustela tried to persuade them

"Sir, I dearly apologise, it seems they haven't informed the guards here of the new guard section, I have no authority over them, only a general would be able to let you in at this point"

Mustela apologised to YuJu but was truthfully happy inside, if this guy was to be taken to the sixth floor it should be done by one of the generals

"Hmm? What are going on about, let's get going"

YuJu's voice sounded insistent, much more importantly though his voice came from behind the guards

"You! Are you trying to breach the checkpoint?!"

The alerted guards instantly took out their weapons or bore their fangs, claws, or branches, ready to attack at any second

"Breaching the checkpoint? He already told you I am of the black guards"

"And we said we have yet to receive a notice, until we do you are not to pass!"

"Sir, please don't try to breach the point, it is better to wait for the notice or request a clearance if you're in a hurry"

Mustela tried to persuade YuJu as well, if a fight happened he would also take part of the blame for being a bad guide

YuJu didn't even look at them and kept walking

"This isn't my problem, I received notice that I am part of the black guards and have the right to go up, whether or not you received it as well is none of my business, priority goes to my thoughts"

He said plainly causing veins to pop on the guard's forehead for those words were unreasonable

"Stop! Else we would have to use force!"

Those words finally got YuJu to stop in his tracks, the guard however didn't feel good about that at all with the tingling sensation coming from behind, even the growls of the little hound made him shiver for some unknown reason

"Ho? Force you say"

Turning slightly to the back he gave a dangerous smile

"I don't mind fighting you if you force the issue, anyway when I kill you it's going to be the fault of those who failed to send the notice in time"

'Ah shit shit shit" The guard cursed in his mind, he had indeed received notice that the black guards came to be and who were the members but he was under orders from general Latvia not to let them in, he also wasn't allowed to tell them this piece of information as they would feel that she was targeting them

'What the hell am I supposed to do'

He panicked and so did the guards under him, just the aura of the female swordsmen was scary enough much less the leader who he was starting to lose sense of, hell, even the little hound looked quite menacing with black mist now seeping out her body

"I- I am telling you we haven't received the notice yet, please wait until we do, I will send someone right now to ask for it if you wish"

"Nah, you can use force instead, or let us pass, your choice"

Turning back to the front he walked leisurely, his back wide open, but none of the guards felt like they could hit him for some reason

The aura from the back became even more prominent as it swayed like a flame, it caused merely an itching sensation but they didn't believe for a second that was all there was to it

Everyone clenched their mouths in hesitation, to attack and be wiped out or possible shown mercy, or to hold their ground and tell him that they were under Latvia's orders instead

'I'm not giving up my life for some struggles between the higher-ups'

The leader of the guards didn't take too long in making his decision, after all he valued his life more than his job, sure he was a guard but that was only for convenience sake, only a handful took their jobs on with the mindset of being ready to die

"We have received it! We have received the notice!"

The admitting voice rang out, but not from the leader, it was a flabby owl that came to the standoff screaming those words

"They just sent in the notice for the black guards, please read it, captain"

The owl dropped a scroll to him which he opened with haste

'Ah, thank god she was paying attention'

It wasn't the notice, they already had that, it was orders from Latvia to put up this show and let them pass without any further obstruction

"It seems you are indeed from the black guards, You may pass the checkpoint, we apologise for the problem"

He tried to sound sincere but received no response from them at all, they just walked up without another word

"Thank you, captain, we have troubled you"

Mustela gave a nod in appreciation and went after the troublesome fellows, they haven't even gotten into the sixth floor and trouble was already brewing, just what storm will they cause when they do meet the Genus Insania

…..

Slice!

"Eee!"

"I don't understand why they keep attacking us knowing they will die"

"Lust for blood, they are crazier than the beasts outside of Hortus due to the crave for blood instilled in them"

YuJU explained to Ellis while walking by the now dead body of a red hare under Mustela's feet

"Won't we get in trouble for killing like this?"

"This is the Genua Insania territory, like you've noticed most of the occupants are either wild beasts or your everyday blood-sucking fauna, these guys have no sense of discipline and they split the floor into small territories as they fight each other, by the end only a few would be left so us killing some would go unnoticed"

She didn't want to tell him that wild beasts and civil beasts all looked the same to her

"What happens when only a few are left?"

"They could be moved to the seventh floor were the stronger beasts reside, meanwhile the floor would be filled once again with new fresh blood to continue the battle for the best bloodline"

"Sir, may I take a moment of your time?"

Mustela suddenly interrupted their conversation with a slightly worried face

"What is the matter?"

"It's about the next floor Sir, we're about to get there and so we can't keep killing them, they aren't common rabble like these fellows you see and if we start massacring them then the leaders would be alerted and would find trouble with us, major trouble"

He also wasn't able to kill half of the occupants of the seventh floor at all but there was no need to report that was there

"So?"

"So I would suggest you and the miss hide your blood scent slightly, I am sure they are being attracted due to it"

"We aren't the ones attracting them"

He replied, assured of his answer, after all, they weren't actually vampires and thus leaked no smell

"Your not?"

"No, she is"

He sent a glance toward Anput who had been staring at the back for a while, her eyes stuck to the red hare's dead body at the back, perhaps in hunger

Looking toward her as well and were she was staring at Mustela turned his eyes back to YuJu and Ellis, clearly asking if they took him for a fool

"Sir…."

He wanted to ask if he was joking but the serious eyes he received made him unable to say those words out loud, after all if he did then wouldn't he be insulting one of the black guard's capabilities? Even though she was merely a hound…

'Oh well, I already knew this was going to be a disaster anyway'

Hoping he could at least keep his life was all he could do as he stepped on the stairs leading up to the seventh floor

"Follow Anput, do not leave her side"

YuJu suddenly said before he dashed forward and disappeared out of sight

"?"

Mustela was confused as to why he would suddenly leave them alone, he was even more reluctant to walk through this dangerous place now without the mysterious man's protection

'There is still the swordswoman, right? He wouldn't leave her to die I'm sure of it'

For someone who even had his hound made into a black guard, he could tell the man was quite attached to his servants, what he didn't know was them being literally attached to them, now more than ever

"Wuwu? WU!"

Anput said to the air and dashed forward with not an ounce of fear

Ellis followed without doubt since she was already informed of this beforehand while Mustela followed the redhead who he considered a shield when in reality the current her would lose to him nine out of ten times

"Wu!"

Anput suddenly said before drifting to the left slightly

"Wuwu!"

She called out once again and stopped for an entire five minutes while sitting her ears were perked up as if waiting for an order

And an order she received for she readily dashed toward the right and didn't proceed forward until a long distance was crossed

'What the hell is she doing?'

Mustela wondered, even Ellis didn't know what was going on and was only told to follow Anput's every step

'Left! Left! Left!'

Repeating the new order in her head over and over Anput made sure to keep saying it until she fully changed direction, only then did she run while focusing for any new orders

'Go slightly right'

'Slightly right! Slightly right! Bone?! Slightly right!!!'

Ignoring the big delicious bone she followed her master's orders to the letter, as to how she knew how much slightly was it was because she could feel a vivid measure for the distance coming from his thoughts directly

"GUAAAA"

A roar was suddenly heard in the distance sending goosebumps down all three's back, the enemy didn't try to hide his overwhelming energy that they felt it even from this distance

"Should we slow down?"

Mustela asked, he might as well be talking to a wall though with Ellis both not understanding him and fully intent on following Anput as she was ordered making the worried man nervous, this was one of the beasts that he couldn't beat yet they kept running toward it without slowing down even slightly

Much further ahead than the trio was a large black iguana with two horns on its head cackling with rancid flames, the smell coming from its mouth was even worse, it was to the point YuJu held his breath every time the stupid beast roared

'Slow down slightly for now, wait for my orders to speed up'

He ordered through his mind link with Anput, a link he discovered while they were walking on the lower floors

'Hmm, I wonder which activated this superior link, her new skill and insight or her constant deathly state'

He wondered again, a question he couldn't stop thinking about, if it was insight then it was replicable and would make it easier for him to have Ellis reach this state faster but if it was her unique state of being then he could only be happy about the convenience of it

'She sure is a fast learner'

At the beginning, she only sent him mood like thoughts but in this extremely short time span she learned how to say simple words, this made him look forward to the day the little fellow could speak fluently, even though it was just in thoughts