With Medley held hostage, there wasn't really anything we could do. Most likely, any attempt in rescuing her would cause her undoing.
("Damn… At this rate I should probably just take Fina and run.") [Solace]
I glanced at Fina's position within the cave, but she was nowhere to be found.
("Huh? Where'd she go?") [Solace]
I looked back at the kobold and noticed a slight change in the background.
("Wait, isn't that…?!") [Solace]
There crept Fina, sneaking up quietly with a knife in hand. Just as she entered range, the flash of her knife silenced the kobold in an instant. It's body fell to the ground, allowing Medley to run free.
"Medley, are you okay?" [Fina]
"..." [Medley]
The girl stared at Fina silently, eventually turning away while muttering to herself.
"You could've done that sooner." [Medley]
("Bruh.") [Solace]
The only word I could say that continued on from my past life. "Bruh", a word that I could use whenever I found someone saying or doing something stupid.
("Does she have no conscience? Fina literally just- nevermind, I'm not even going to rant.") [Solace]
I felt very unsatisfied with the outcome and attitude directed towards Fina, but the person herself didn't seem to mind.
"Should I dismantle it?" [Fina]
"Oh, let me handle that." [Jai]
The bulky student made his way over to the kobold's corpse and bent down to one knee. From then on, I kind of wanted to cover my eyes since Jai took out a knife and proceeded to dissect it. A few minutes passed and the only thing left was bones and a few scraps of flesh still stuck to it.
("...If I was capable of puking, I'm pretty sure I would be right now.") [Solace]
I didn't even want to think about it any further, but I couldn't help wondering where they stored the body parts. There wasn't a large sack any of them carried, or any sort of carrier, so where did it go?
"Hey, Nash. Just checking, but did the kobold look kind of… skinny to you?" [Jai]
"Hm? What do you mean?" [Nash]
"When I got a closer look at it, the kobold looked kind of skinny. Like… how do you say… starving?" [Jai]
"Do you mean malnourished?" [Nash]
"No clue, but let's go with that." [Jai]
And that was how I learned who was the dumb one of the group.
"That's strange… Kobolds would have already left this place if there wasn't any food." [Nash]
Nash held a hand to his chin and seemed to go deep in thought.
"There are only a few instances where dungeon monsters become malnourished. When the environment changes drastically or a greater predator appears." [Nash]
"A greater predator? What rank would it be?" [Jai]
"Considering that kobolds are about rank D, a creature that can oppress it would be ranked C and up." [Nash]
The color drained from Jai's face. It seemed that he understood something I didn't.
("Rank C means that they're stronger than rank D. Considering how that previous kobold was level… 12? Rank C must be a much higher level right?") [Solace]
I think it was due to the fact I haven't encountered a stronger opponent before, but I didn't even feel a hint of anxiety.
"We should probably withdraw. This place requires a higher ranked party for investigation." [Nash]
He looked to Jai and Fina who nodded in agreement, but Medley didn't seem very happy about it.
"We're leaving? Just like that?" [Medley]
"We have no choice. I would rather we leave now with no injuries than delve further into unknown dangers." [Nash]
"I refuse." [Medley]
Medley crossed her arms with an unhappy expression, as if she was trying to make herself tougher.
"Medley, please." [Nash]
"No. Our career is riding on this." [Medley]
("Career?") [Solace]
I recalled back to the talk Ross had with Fina about majors, which gave me a gist of what she meant.
("Perhaps completing this dungeon will give her credits or something?") [Solace]
"Medley, we can just do it another time. It's better to be safe than sorry." [Nash]
Nash tried to plead with her, but she didn't budge.
"Mind if I interrupt?" [Fina]
"Shut it. This doesn't involve you." [Medley]
"...With all due respect, I am a temporary member of this party. Therefore, the actions of this group DOES involve me." [Fina]
"You…" [Medley]
Medley glared at Fina with hostility in her eyes, but Fina remained unfazed.
"I believe that it will be best to exit the dungeon." [Fina]
Seeing as all three party members were against going further into the dungeon, Medley chose an option I didn't expect to happen.
"Fine then. I'll do it myself." [Medley]
She turned around and delved further into the dungeon.
"Medley!" [Jai]
Following in her footsteps, Jai also vanished into the darkness.
"Damn it…! Fina, go back and inform Ross. Jai and I will try to bring Medley back." [Nash]
He ran into the darkness after giving Fina a command, but she simply waited.
("What is she doing?") [Solace]
"Any time now…" [Fina]
("Any what now?") [Solace]
A howl and a scream came from the cave, and Fina began to go in.
("Wait, don't go!") [Solace]
As much as I wanted to tell her to stop, I couldn't. Seeing as how I was basically going to be dragged along, I strapped on my metaphoric seatbelt and decided I was going to be taken for a ride.
("I being forced into other people's messes....") [Solace]