It was nearly lunchtime when Raven and Fuwa had finally dressed after flirting all morning on the bed, they held hands and left the room while smiling and talking about non-important things, Raven complained about how much Fuwa loved food over her, which caused the martial artist to panic and the cat to smirk. They strolled through the inn's hallway, laughter echoing between them as Fuwa tried to defend her love for food.
"Look, it's just… food is important, you know?" Fuwa stammered, cheeks tinged pink "A martial artist needs to keep her energy up!"
"Uh-huh" Raven smirked, giving Fuwa's hand a playful squeeze "And here I thought you'd rather spend your energy on me"
Fuwa's face turned crimson, and she gave Raven a gentle shove "Stop teasing me!" she whispered, laughing.
They made their way downstairs, where the aroma of freshly cooked food greeted them, only adding fuel to their lighthearted banter. But as they entered the common area, the lively mood quickly dimmed. The inn was abuzz with tense whispers, and a few adventurers huddled together, expressions dark. Raven looked around, different adventurer groups were hanging there, most of them had mithril or orichalcum plates on their necks, but the ambiance was so damn grim.
"Hey, what's happening?" Raven asked openly looking at Fuwa.
She shrugged and looked around, as they sat on an empty table a waitress noticed them and walked towards them to take their order.
"Hey pretty legs" Said Raven looking at the waitress earning a sharp gaze from Fuwa, Raven just laughed nervously "What's going on? It looks like a graveyard"
The waitress, a tall woman with a weary but kind expression, glanced at them with a hint of unease. She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear and sighed. "It's… well, the rumors are spreading fast. Crimson Dawn's team went down hard in that cursed castle dungeon" She looked around, and some of the adventurers around just looked towards them "They all survived, but they are in terrible shape, wounds all over their bodies"
Fuwa and Raven shared a worried look, Fuwa even forgot about hitting Raven for being flirtatious with the waitress. Fuwa looked as if some kind of childish dream had been shattered, the ideal figure she had in her mind had bitten the dust.
Raven's brow furrowed, her tail twitching uneasily "Sounds like they bit off more than they could chew"
Fuwa gripped Raven's hand tightly "If even Crimson Dawn struggled... maybe we should rethink this..."
Raven looked at her with conflicted emotions inside of her, for one side she didn't know them to even feel pity, but, it's true they were one of the best adventurer teams that should be out there, after all, they were of the max rank.
"For once, I think you are right" Raven said looking at her right in the eyes.
Fuwa's expression softened with relief as Raven acknowledged her concerns "Then... maybe we should just wait. We can still train and get stronger here first. The dungeon isn't going anywhere..." she suggested, squeezing Raven's hand reassuringly "We can prepare properly, so we're not walking into a our deaths"
Raven nodded, though her usual mischievous smirk was absent "Yeah, better not end up like Crimson Dawn. But I'll need more than training to stay sane in this town…" She gave Fuwa a playful nudge "You're sticking with me, right?
Fuwa chuckled, her tension easing "Of course. You'd probably get into trouble without me around"
The waitress returned with their food, setting down two plates of steaming stew and a basket of warm bread "Here you go, girls. And… be careful out there" she said, casting a wary glance around the room "You two seem smart... just don't be reckless, okay?"
Raven and Fuwa both smiled and nodded before they started to eat their food, of course, Raven just wanted to leave this damn town and go somewhere safe, it wasn't her kink to die for glory or fame. At least, the food was delicious, the place had high standards, and it was a shame they didn't have the pocket to live a life of luxury like this.
The tavern door rang when it opened and entered the scene three familiar faces, Mia, Sophia and Minato entered the tavern while chatting between themselves, Sophia was the first to notices and she pointed towards the two girls.
"Minato look!" She exclaimed all happy, her elf ears moving up and down from the happiness.
"Yo" Exclaimed Raven moving her hand.
"What a surprise, didn't expect to meet up again so soon" Said Minato smiling.
Fuwa and Mia looked between themselves and smiled, it was as if they were communicating without the need for words, the martial artist looked so proud of herself and the priest brought her hands together, as if she was congratulating her.
"Yeah, did you guys come for the dungeon?" Asked Raven, when Minato nodded to confirm it the cat girl simply smiled sarcastically "Forget it" She said moving one hand from one side to another.
Minato raised an eyebrow, his curiosity piqued. "Forget it? Why? You two came all this way too, didn't you?"
Raven crossed her arms and leaned back, smirking "Yeah, but you might want to talk to Crimson Dawn first. They went in, and it... didn't go so well. The whole team came out beaten and broken" She let her words sink in as she gestured subtly toward the tense groups of adventurers around the room, actually Raven didn't know how much of it was true, but it was a powerful tool to dissuade fools.
Sophia's cheerful expression shifted into something more serious "Wait, Crimson Dawn? They're, like, top-ranked! Are you saying even they couldn't handle it?"
"Exactly" Fuwa nodded, her expression unusually grave "Raven and I were just talking about training up first. We've heard enough to know it's no ordinary dungeon. That place sounds... out of the ordinary, and too dangerous to just go inside"
Mia, who had been silently observing, finally spoke up "I think that's wise" she said, casting a wary glance toward the inn's darker corners "If Crimson Dawn had trouble, we might need to consider other tactics. Rushing in blind wouldn't help anyone"
"And whatcha been up to?" Asked Raven all cocky and smug for some reason, she and Sophia had this strange stare between them and Fuwa didn't like it so she moved closer to Raven.
"We went to the capital" Answered Minato "We were about to depart to the northern territories, but the king invited us to accompany him here, tons of important figures are being reunited here, it seems the dungeon is the real deal"
Raven raised her cup with a smirk "Cheers to being cautious for once" She shot Fuwa a playful glance "Doesn't mean I'm going soft, though."
Fuwa rolled her eyes but clinked her cup against Raven's, her lips quirking in a fond smile "I'll believe it when I see it"
As their cups collided a loud sound was heard in the town... someone who used to be alive was thrown against the outside of the building collapsing a wall, dying in the instant by the force of the impact. Loud screams were heard outside, the people inside the dungeon, most of them adventurers took up their weapons after witnessing the corpse, the small town was under attack.
"Who!? The demon king army!?" Asked someone at a table.
"Impossible!" Said someone else.
"That's not it..." Said Minato, his holy sword wasn't shining, it was able to sense demons nearby, this was another thing.
"Come out!" Squaked a voice "Come out and play!" The voice was awfully cheerful "I have an important message for the leader of this mob!"
Raven, Fuwa, Mia, Sophia, and Minato, alongside many adventurers, went out of the tavern, and from other buildings, a small crowd was building around a figure. It was a figure wearing colorful clothes, her arms and legs were fully covered in pink, orange, and green robes, and she was wearing a full-body suit of pink and yellow colors, that revealed her curves, her face covered in a theatrical mask with a sad expression.
"Oriaaa?" She moved her hands near her face and moved as if she was radiating happiness "I'm so happy! So many have come to hear me out!" She pointed towards the half-exploded corpse that had broken through the wall "I hope you are good listeners, not like the jerk"