The time is not necessarily night. Is it darker than normal? Most definitely. But the crystal in the ceiling is still emitting a soft glow, producing a bit of light that those who have not lived all of their lives in a dungeon would consider to be equivalent to moonlight. Not enough to see more than a couple feet in front of you, but enough for those with [Night Vision] or a similar racial ability to see rather clearly.

Thus, Gejans, having lived all of their lives in a dungeon, specifically in the part always shrouded in darkness, find the lack of light not a problem for hunting. Which is why several hunting parties are currently scouring the forest, fighting the predators of the night, leveling, and of course, searching for the centaur named Alba, a supposedly pure white female centaur with the ability to control monsters and beasts.

But, Darrow, one of the leading Gejan, a now level 61 [Captain] and 92 [Gejan Guard], can't help but find the search to be very difficult.

Not the searching itself exactly, but the constant battles against monsters that just keep swarming his position... are making it very difficult to search.

“Haha, it's like fighting a swarm of desbats!” he yells with a smile, his shield slamming into a snakelike monster with claws for hands and two very sharp fangs, the only part that could penetrate his Berosus skin armor. Of course, even those attacks are always stopped by his own scales. Hence he hasn't felt the dizziness that some of his companions have reported to feel after being bitten.

Apparently, poison is like eating rotten meat. Or at least, that's what the commander had said. He also said that too much of it can kill someone, and something about natural poison resistance.

Well, Darrow can't exactly remember what he said, he just knows that they are leveling fast. In just a week of searching he had gained three levels. Progress which could normally take years to achieve is being accomplished in such a short period of time. Clearly, the commander knows what he is doing.

“[Captain] Darrow, can we please rest? Not all of us have the stamina to fight for several hours straight.”

Darrow turns and looks towards the speaker and then to the rest of his squad. Ten gejan, six of them designated as tanks, three as fighters, and one as scout. The scout might not have the [Scout] class, but she possesses a class that fills a similar role.

“But then the other squads might find the centaur!” he whines aloud.

Which is true, they could. And that is something Darrow would like to avoid, given that the commander has said he will give out better enchanted weapons and armor to the [Captain] that finds her.

The scout, or better yet, [Hunter], rolls her eyes, “Then why the fuck when I tell you there is a group of monsters nearby, you immediately rush to that position? Would it not be better to go around and search instead of wasting time killing everything?”

The other members, looking as ragged as her, nod to her words.

“But…”

“[Captain], err, we don't have any skills to regain stamina as efficiently as your [Stamina Parasitism] skill. We might have [Second Wind] or [Minor Stamina Regen], but that's not nearly enough to keep up with the pace you set,” one of the [Warriors] says.

Darrow can only frown at the mention of his recent skill. [Stamina Parasitism] allows him to regain a bit of stamina everytime he kills something. And considering he has been killing things constantly, it might be the reason why he does not feel exhausted.

He sighs.

“Fine, we will take a break, and then we will continue on.”

At his words, more than half of the Gejan sit down, one even just falling on the ground from exhaustion.

He nods.

“Five minutes and then we continue on.”

Groans about it being unfair are released from the group as Darrow looks into the deep forest, a ready smile on his face. His armor dripping red from all the blood he had shed today.

***********************************************************************************************

On another end of the forest, two groups had combined and have been traveling rather deeply into the forest while ignoring most fights.

Lilly walks through the underbrush, her weight creating deep prints in the ground while Tessa walks beside her, creating little sound. In fact, for someone without [Enhanced Hearing] it would be practically impossible to hear her move.

“I’m so Jealous Tessa. Other than that one time, he never called on me to mate. He always calls you.”

Tessa chuckles, “Maybe it has something to do with your strength, and the fact that you broke his hips,” she says teasingly.

“But but there are other positions!”

“Ha. I saw you masterbate. You flail like a mating gorgerat. You can't control your body.”

Lilly groans aloud. She had fucked before, but none had ever been able to finish. Heck, many of her potential mates, those that hadn’t minded her short size, stopped immediately as soon as their scales started cracking.

Quasi was different. His bones broke but he still kept at it. He just kept thrusting and thrusting. Eventually, by the time he had finally came, she was sore and exhausted. She’d had twenty orgasms, one right after the other.

It was only the following morning that she found him missing with Tessa and Thorous unconscious next to her.

“Look on the bright side, at least you are willing. Thorous is just constantly avoiding him now.”

Lilly nods slowly, “You think she hates him for taking her virginity?”

Tessa stops, her hand extends, touching some leaves “I… I don't think so. At first I thought that was the case, but I think she is instead very scared. You've heard about how every girl nearby gets horny while Quasi is turned on?”

Lilly nods, “Yea, he just radiates it. I can barely keep myself from jumping at him.”

“Well, my mom says it is because of his aura. It is so strong that he transmits his feelings to those around him when he feels strongly about something.”

“Ohhhh, so you think she isn't sure that she wants him? She’s scared that she was manipulated?”

“Yes, but personally I think she actually does want him. When I saw Quasi teaching her to dance, she looked very happy and interested. She was enjoying herself and it didn't feel like Quasi was using his aura at that moment.”

*Sigh*

“Well, I know I want his kids. You too right?”

“Yea. I just hope we can have his kids. I have been holding his sperm in my sack and I would have tried to fertilize one of my eggs already, but I don't want him to move forward without me. Maybe when we get out of the dungeon I will.”

Lilly nods, “Yea, that sounds smart. We are constantly moving. Caring for an egg would be dangerous right now.”

“Still, I really wa-”

Tessa stops talking and looks around, her [Enhanced Hearing] picking up something moving towards their location very fast.

She extends her hand and points.

Lilly unsheathes her weapon, a bony whip created from the first floor boss’s tail.

Behind them, the rest of their team unsheathes their own weapons. They consist of a mixture of various types and classes.

“Its moving above, on the treetops,” she exclaims, pointing.

The group is ready and waiting. A moment passes, and then a monster that looks like a black panther lands upon a treetop, its eyes stare at the party with unexpected intelligence.

Lilly flicks her arm and the whip extends, but misses the beast as it jumps to another tree. The tree branch it was sitting on explodes, ripping it apart.

The monster bears its teeth from its new branch, revealing a yellow crystal toothed mouth.

“Its an Awakened,” Tessa’s words echo through the clearing, sending a tingle of readiness through the group’s spine. Awakened are powerful monsters with abilities that make them extremely dangerous. It is preferred to fight one with either a large group or a couple of second tier classes.

The monster growls at them, before jumping to another tree and running way. It was smart enough to realize that its safety would not be guaranteed if it attempted to fight them.

“Its gone,” Tessa says as the sound of the monster moving away goes quiet, and then completely disappears.

A breath is released from many of the group as she turns to Lilly, “I think we should go back now. It is getting a bit late.”

The two ladies turn and make their way back, retracting their steps, while looking out for any hidden predators on the way.

__________________________________________________________________

The final group, a group similar in composition to the other groups, have found themselves in a complicated predicament. The six tanks, three fighters, and the scout are standing still, simply watching the scene in front of them unfold.

A dance if you will.

A bloody dance of death.

They gaze steadily, mesmerized, eyes locked on Thorous as she moves through twenty beasts, all rushing for her scales, but unable to reach her at all.

While at the same time, her twin bloody blades shimmer from the moonlight being reflecting off them into the dense vegetation around her. Vegetation that will feed extremely well considering the ample nutrition covering the ground.

Over thirty corpses surround Thorous, while another twenty will soon join them.

Monsters jump into the fray. They slash, bite, or spit poison at her. But everything misses by the smallest of margins. They are always so close to harming her, and that is what drives them on. Even after obtaining so many wounds that any normal monster would’ve tried to retreat, they still continue their futile attacks. And they will continue to do so until they die.

Because, in the end [Distracting Dance] only ends when the user stops dancing. And so far, Thorous has not, and therefore neither have her unwilling partners.

It is only after another ten minutes that the last of the monsters falls upon the floor, having died from an innumerable amount of wounds. They died slowly, falling only once their bodies were no longer able to support themselves due to a lack of blood

Finally, the dance ends, but all of the Gejan that had witnessed it stay silent. Their minds digesting what had happened.

Approximately fifty monster corpses, all with levels exceeding eighty. Having died to only one individual.

Thorous snorts, frowning as she gazes at the corpses around her. She had hoped combat would make her feel better, and it did. During it. But now that it has ended, her thoughts turn back to Quasi.

She makes a fist and punches a tree, denting it. Does she have feelings for him? Is it her Gejan instincts that want him? Or was he manipulating her?

Questions without answers clog her mind. Frustration, angst, anger, confusion… moist.

*Slam*

Her fist impact the tree again, denting it further.

“Why does this not make sense!!!”

Her yell echoes loudly, those watching stay silent, unwilling to interrupt the [Captain].

*GGGRRRROOOOOWWWWWLLLL*

And then, from the tree tops, a sound is heard. They all look up.

A monster with black skin gazes down, its four limbs perfectly stationary on the tree. Its yellow slitted eyes gaze down, calculating, watching. It opens its mouth slightly, revealing yellow crystal teeth.

Its eyes gaze from left to right. The monster is weighing its options, reasoning with abnormal intelligence. Few would be able to read its thoughts, but most would agree that they do not look good.

“[Analyze]”

“Level 127 Awakened DirePanther.”

The scout quickly exclaims, followed by a gulp.

The monster turns and looks towards the one who had spoken.

The level of the monster is unnaturally high, but that isn't too big a problem. Monster levels aren't scaled as class levels. Which is why most of the group does not fear its high level. No, what they fear most is the awakened part. An awakened monster obtains significantly improved prowess in combat.

On top of that, they also tend to be pack leaders.

Which is why many Gejan begin looking around them, searching for others of its kind.

Except for one.

Without missing a beat, Thorous unsheathes her blade in an instant, “[Wall Walking],” she yells before jumping to the base of the tree and running up it as though it were flat ground. Her new skill quickly taking her to the monster where she slashes out.

But the nimble direwolf merely jumps to another branch, growling back towards Thorous.

“You are mine!” she yells before jumping forward. The branches sway slightly under her feet. But the beast dodges again, jumping to another branch. Thorous does the same, eventually turning into a chase. The Gejan on the ground grow perplexed before realizing that their [Captain] is rushing away from them.

“Get back here!” she yells as her troops begin to spring into action, attempting to catch up to the pair.

_____________________________________________________

Thorous, in the back of her mind, knows that following this monster is a bad idea. That all her training from her father would clearly tell her that she is being baited.

Unfortunately, she is quite angry right now, and also very confident. At the moment, her skills allow her to take on large amounts of foes on her own. Only elites can truly stop her.

A couple minutes go by as she slowly gains upon the monster. And then, the monster stops a moment to give her a look, before jumping down.

Thorous smiles, jumping forward, aiming for the branch the monster was just on.

But before she lands, the branch moves on its own, away from her.

Her eyes widen before she slams hard into the ground. Thankfully, her stats make it so that her body does not break from the impact. Unfortunately, the roots under her rise up, twisting around her body, embracing her from every direction. Her arms and legs become tied as her weapons are forced out of her hands.

She looks around, finding several dozen Treants lifting themselves out of the ground. Monster trees. She had walked into a forest of them without realizing it. She had fallen into a trap.

Panic strikes her as she attempts to move, but her strength is too low to break free and her skills are useless in this predicament.

“Ohhh, it seems Sirius brought company.”

The words enter her ears and Thorous’s struggles stop. Her gaze moves to the origin of the sound, where she finds her.

A centauress with pure white fur. She is small, petite, and her hand rests upon the Awakened Direpanther’s head. The monster purrs at her touch. The rumors seem to be true.

“You are Alba. We have been searching for you.”

The centauress frowns as her gaze turns to Thorous. An angry gaze.

“Searching? You enter my forest and slaughter my people? I know your kind Gejan. The last time your kind moved through here, I lost many of my friends! And now, again I sense your kind slaughtering.”

The words cause Thorous to stop as she attempts to understand. Those were hers? Why are they attacking?

“They attacked me!” Thorous voices aloud.

Alba snarls.

The treants tighten their hold, her scales begin to crack.

Thorous screams.

“Because I had not tamed those yet. I have moved all of mine, but many future friends are dying now.”

Just as Thorous feels the pressure increase, it stops just as suddenly.

“[Captain]!”

They yell, her squad had finally shown up. They stop, staring at the monsters and at Thorous who is unable to move. They take a step forward.

“Stop you fools, she is too strong. Get the commander! He will avenge me.”

Hearing her words, the squad stops.

And then they hear Thorous scream.

“If you run, she dies.”

The words come from Alba’s mouth as her gaze sharpens. Thorous stops screaming. The pain lessens.

Alba looks to Thorous, smiling.” So you have someone leading you?”

Thorous spits forward, aiming towards Alba, but misses by several feet. ”The commander will have your head. You cannot stop him.” she says.

Alba raises an eyebrow, “Really now? I sincerely doubt that. He is probably a Gejan only moderately stronger than you.”

“Ha,” Thorous laughs.

“He is not Gejan. He is different. Better, stronger, smarter. He has already defeated a centaur army and struck fear into the hearts of most [Herdmasters] already.”

She snorts, “Lies. Fabricated lies. Those old shits are too stupid to fear anything.”

Thorous smiles, blood seeping from her mouth, “They call him the Kitsune Patriarch.”

And then, to Thorous delight, she watches Alba’s expression change to bewilderment. Unfortunately, it doesn't take long before that same expression turns into a smile.

“The Kitsune Patriarch. Amazing. So he does exist. Grampa was right,” she mumbles under her breath.

Her head swerves to the confused Gejan waiting with weapons unsheathed. They are unsure what to do. Thorous told them to run, but if they leave, she dies.

“You all will send a message to your commander. Tell him to come to me unarmed. I will speak with him. But if he does not show up in a day…”

Thorous screams, her bones crack, blood spews from her mouth.

“Then she dies.”