“You know, considering everything else that happened while we were away, it’s nice to see that this place hasn’t changed,” Yang said as she entered The Pit, Yin, and Soze right behind her.

“How would they even change this place?” Soze asked.

“I don’t know…chairs and tables maybe?”

“Perhaps when the builders are done making homes they could try their hands at digging?” Yin suggested. “Perhaps they could turn this place into a kind of amphitheater?”

Yang and Soze glanced at the archer skeptically.

“As impressive as that sounds…that would be really over the top.”

Yin shrugged. “I was just making a suggestion.”

“Yeah, a bad one.”

Yin gave her sister a smack on the arm. Even at full strength, Yin could barely make her sister flinch. Yang chuckled at her sister’s response as they sat down on an empty patch of grass.

Soze frowned as he noticed that the grass wasn’t as soft as usual. “Maybe they should do something to remodel this place. The grass is starting to die out.”

“Maybe,” Yang looked around. Most of the grass in the area, which was once a vibrant green, was starting to yellow and wither from how often people were crushing it and blocking out the sun. “Or maybe not. People might decide to sit somewhere else if the grass gets worse, which could give it the chance to grow back.”

“But this is where we still make announcements,” Yin reminded her. “It’s not as though we have another space for that.”

“Yeah…” Yang paused for a moment before shrugging. “Whatever, we have more important things to deal with than a bunch of grass,” Yang said as she shoveled a heaping spoonful of stew into her mouth.

“Such as?” Yin asked. Yang didn’t respond, and when Yin glanced at her sister she saw her staring blankly at her stew. Her eyes were wide and she was clearly stunned by the taste. Yin chuckled at the sight. “Yang?”

“Huh? Wha-sorry,” she sputtered through her full mouth.

“Do you need a minute kiddo?” Soze said with an amused expression.

“Fuck off,” she said with a slight blush. “So maybe I was a little hungrier than I thought.”

“It’s quite alright.” Yin blew on a spoonful of her soup. “The quality of Aman’s cooking has certainly improved since we left,” she said as she took her first sip. The soup itself had a deep taste from the different root vegetables used for the broth and contrasted nicely with the slightly bitter taste from the leaves that were floating in it. ‘And he used dandelion to make this? A common weed?’

“Anyway, what were you saying, Yang?” Soze asked as he began eating his own food.

“Oh, right. I was just saying we’ve got a lot to do for the next raid right?”

“Not really,” Soze said, rubbing his chin. “Prepping for the first raid was intense mostly because the Workshop needed to make a bunch of new equipment. Then the Kitchen needed to rush to make enough rations for everyone.”

“Oh, so then are we more or less ready?” Yang asked, surprised.

“...I guess?” he said uncertainly. “Obviously not right away, like even if we don’t need to make most of our equipment from scratch again, almost all of it needs some kind of repairs.”

“I know about that one,” Yang sighed. “My armor was practically in pieces after everything went to shit. I showed it to Rika this morning and they didn’t even pretend they could repair it.”

“Fortunately only you and a few of the guys you pulled out of the fight have equipment that was damaged,” Soze said. “Logistically speaking I think Rika and the others can handle it, and the same goes for Aman and the Kitchen.”

“Indeed,” Yin said, wiping her mouth after she finished her soup. “Now that they’ve revised their facilities providing for the entire expedition should be much easier.”

Yang looked at the two, mildly surprised. “So what, is everything basically handled already?”

“If you’re asking about what we need to do for the raid, then yeah, there isn’t anything for us combat-focused players to do,” Soze explained. “There is some stuff I want to work on for the next two weeks, but aside from doing more hunting none of it has anything to do with the raid.”

“You’re talking about that village to the south?” Yang asked as she swallowed another mouthful of stew. “I remember hearing you say something about it on the way back.”

“Yeah, I want to take care of that sooner rather than later, so I’ll need to go around and start asking who would be willing to go.” He rubbed his face. “But with this whole thing with the huts going on I’m not sure if anyone will care.”

“Actually, if it’s quite alright I wouldn’t mind volunteering for that,” Yin said, surprising Yang and Soze.

“You want to go?”

“It’s unexplored territory, Sis,” Yang said, her voice thick with concern. “It could be crazy dangerous.”

“Ah yes, because participating in these raids is so conducive to my health,” Yin smirked.

“You know what I mean,” Yang rolled her eyes. “You were doing well during the raid. Well, aside from when…”

“When we discovered that I may have been traumatized by The Monster?” Yin asked flatly.

“Um…yeah.”

“Perhaps, but to be blunt it wasn’t exactly an enjoyable experience, even ignoring that revelation. I acquired enough experience points to fall behind the rest of you, at least for a while, so I think I will try my hand at exploration this time.”

“Soze?” Yang turned to the older player, her eyes pleading. “Can you say something to her?”

“Honestly I’m fine with her going.”

“Seriously?!”

Soze shrugged. “She has always been one of the better hunters, and the only reason that ever seemed to change was when we started fighting the Iron Ants. She’s also proven to be more level-headed than some people,” he said pointedly.

Yang deflated at his words. “...Alright, do whatever you want.”

“If you’re worried you could come with me.”

Yang shook her head. “I’m still the best Tank in the village. I’m needed in the raids.”

“She’s right,” Soze said through a mouthful of food. “We’re probably going to stick with the same strategy as last time, and there aren’t that many people willing or able to wear the helm for an extended period.”

Yin hummed in understanding. Using the Monsterous Helm in such a conspicuous way put a target on the back of whoever was wearing it. Even if the Iron Ants weren’t smart enough to notice that something was wrong the fact that it stopped any weaker enemies from approaching made it easy for them to be surrounded by only the strongest Warriors present. Considering that most players were still getting used to fighting Warriors one-on-one, holding out against several of the giant ants was near impossible.

“Some of the other Tanks were talking about giving it a shot on the trip back,” Yang said. “But I’d still rather be there in case things go south again.”

“I understand,” Yin said softly. “And I promise I’ll be careful during my trip.”

“You’ll need to put together a team first,” Soze reminded her.

“I was thinking of petitioning Maxie and her friends. When we last spoke they seemed to have little interest in the raids.”

“How long do you think it’ll take?” Yang asked.

“You would know better than us. How far away did the end of the valley look?” Soze asked.

Yang shrugged. “Maybe as far as Ziege Basin? It’s hard to say.”

“Then I shall see if Maxie would be interested in a two-week expedition.”

“Okay, so while Sis is handling that, what will the rest of us be doing?” Yang asked Soze.

“At this point? All we can really do is hunt,” Soze said as he finished his food. “Since we have the time I suppose we could try going after a Demon Bear, but I’m still a little hesitant about that.”

Yang hummed and nodded. “Last thing we need is to bring another one close to the village.”

“Would it be so bad as long as everyone is warned ahead of time?” Yin asked.

“Maybe? I guess most of the players that joined the raid could hold their own against a nameless bear well enough.”

“...It’s worth considering, but I don’t want to leave the village while this whole situation with the huts is going on.”

“You’re still worried about that?” Yang chuckled.

“Yes!”

Yang laughed at Soze’s exasperation as Yin shook her head at the interaction.

“Well I guess that means no bear hunting,” Yang said. “Unless another one wanders closer to our side of the valley.”

“It has happened a few times, though not with any consistency,” Yin noted.

Soze hummed in acknowledgment. “So all we can really do right now is wait and see what happens…” He put his bowl and utensils into his inventory and stood up. “Well, the day isn’t getting any longer. I’m going to look around. See if anyone else needs anything.” He glanced at Yang. "I'm guessing you'll be going back to fighting for a hut when you're done?"

Yang was about to nod but paused suddenly, as if she had just remembered something. “Actually Soze…I wanted to ask you some questions.”

“Questions? About what?”

“Your Unique Skill. I want to see if I can force the system to give me one.”