Chapter 26

The mole dropped three cards. Diya only glimpsed the first of them—a monster card, before Yukiho pocketed all of them. The artwork lacked the same detail as Eirkh's card, leaving him to wonder whether it was one of lower quality or strength. Diya had no interest in the card. Given the beast's nature, he doubted it would give his soul's powers any desirable upgrades.

The party leader wasn’t interested in the hide and didn’t want to waste time on skinning. However, she and Koki removed the mole’s frontal claws and piled them onto Hina’s back. Dandelion fluff burst from the slender Japanese woman's hands and floated around her. They danced in the cavern’s air currents for a moment before drifting into the gaps between the claws.

“Not the most useful ability in a fight but gets me porter jobs.”

“That’s a shame,” Diya said. “Weight control could turn into a powerful ability. With the right upgrade, you could do so much with it. What are the keywords again?"

"Multiply, Cloud, and Lighten Load. Multiply is essentially a summoning spell, while the other two are utility-focused. Life would've been so much easier if Gaia gave me at least one defensive or offensive spell." Hina sighed. "Cloud's blinding and choking abilities are excellent for disabling foes. It pissed off my party too much on the first floor and they kicked me out. But I reckon if I find upgrades that help me control it, or improve its effects, I could use it for stealth or something similar."

Diya shot her a sympathetic smile. He liked Hina. She had proven herself as honest and trustworthy. It didn’t sit well with him that Mei and Yukiho had run when Koki fell. They belonged to the same clan. As far as he knew, it meant they were blood. He couldn’t imagine leaving his family behind. When he turned back to help him, Hina had followed. Diya believed she deserved better. Gaia must’ve seen something special within her to give her a plant soul.

It bothered Diya that Koki hadn’t confronted his party members about their abandonment. He sat silently with Mei and Yukiho, nibbling on a bread roll. Using her augmentation and summon in combat had tired out Mei. So, they were taking a moment to eat, hydrate and rest before continuing. Diya had doubts about the group. The fact that he had to negotiate for compensation beyond passage bothered him.

No wonder they were struggling to find a rock climber.

“Try to get in good with them Hina,” Diya said, lowering his voice. “Since you’re of Japanese descent, I think they trust you. Work the idea of accompanying them into the second interval into compensation. Offer to carry all of their loads and show how you can help them profit by carrying more loot to hubs for sale.”

“I can’t get past floor five without Upgrading my soul though,” she replied, matching Diya’s volume.

“Exactly. If you prove yourself as an invaluable member of the party, they’ll want to keep you around. You might be inexperienced, but you know other Climbers and the city. Am I right?”

Hina nodded.

“If you can prove yourself as an asset, they’ll sort out an appropriate upgrade for you. If the party gets overwhelmed, show them the power of Cloud. Use them to train in combat and get stronger, but watch your back. Once you’re comfortable, part ways with the party and make your own way. Yukiho and Mei ditched Koki back there. If things get scary, they might do the same to you.”

Hina readjusted her pack’s straps and glanced at Yukiho warily. “Why are you telling me this?”

“Because we’re in the same boat,” Diya said. “We both have seemingly unfavourable souls. It's how you nurture the dandelion fluff and build your deck around it that'll matter at the end of the day. I’m fortunate enough to have trained and nurtured skills that let me overcome my apparent shortcomings. You, on the other hand, have a soul with a unique ability and are good at getting along with strangers. If we want to climb, we have to use the tools at our disposal.” The Itos started packing their belongings away and getting back on their feed, so he hurried the conversation along. “I don’t want you stuck in this interval forever, working for climbers that treat people like commodities.”

Hina fell silent as the others approached. “We were just discussing your fighting style, Diya,” Yukiho told him. “Koki says he never thought axe play could be so graceful. He’d like to know where you learned to fight like that?”

“My father is a former climber that’s been up to the seventh interval and a sword master,” Diya answered, changing his mind about keeping his background a secret. “He serves as a noble house's arms master and teaches the nobility swordplay. I’ve been their sparring partner all of my life. They learned to defend against a variety of weapons using blades. It was up to me to train in such weapons..”

Yukiho translated the information for Koki. The young man nodded and bowed to Diya, speaking a few words. “Koki would like to thank you for saving him. It was a brave thing you did, risking your life for someone weaker and less able.”

Diya returned the bow. Mei’s fighting style had been all flash and little substance. She had displayed some impressive marksmanship by hitting the mole in and around the nose, and her acrobatic skills were on point. However, her display, when mounting the mole came across as fool-hardy and poorly thought out. Koki, on the other hand, had near-perfect form and flawless technique. Diya believed the young man would match him in a duel but lose to Alexander. As a result, he deserved respect.

Mei smiled at Diya and passed a couple of comments. Hina’s right eye twitched, and Yukiho didn’t translate. Instead of bowing to the young woman, Diya gave her a polite nod. The smile disappeared from her face.

Yukiho didn’t seem to care that their way back was blocked off. She claimed that her ancestor had constructed the shrine not far from a door. The party wouldn’t need a way back if they made it to their destination. Mei, Yukiho and Ito took the lead. The fox soul continued to provide illumination with its wisps, and Diya watched them entranced.

Hina filled Diya in on the information she had gathered while talking to the Itos and through eavesdropping. Mei was the clan head’s niece. Because of her reputation as an experienced defender of their mountain and accomplished climber, the Ito clan hired Yukiho to guide Mei to find the best foundational upgrades for her soul. As the second son of a branch family, Koki didn’t have such luxuries. He lucked out with his frog soul but would have to fend for himself as far as protection was concerned.

The clan rules dictated Yukiho couldn’t help in combat unless her wards’ lives were in danger. If she did interfere, any cards gained from the battle would go to the clan, not Mei or Koki. The latter had expressed his displeasure that Yukiho had broken the rule for Mei. While on the first floor, the trio had come across a tribe of yeti. They had built a village around the shrine and worshipped it.

Mei had foolishly attacked the yeti since they had laid claim to the structure raised by her grandfather. Koki had gone in to save her but failed to get close. Yukiho had no option but to get involved. She slaughtered the yeti and gave the tribe shaman’s monster card to Mei. As a result, the summon gained the power to create frostfire and deepened Mei's link to the fox. Using the said link, she also had little control over the frostfire. Her physical augmentation, which previously only increased speed and agility, now let her infuse body parts with a burst of strength.

Because of Yukiho's interference, Koki believed Mei's rewards were undeserved. The Ito Clan would've benefited from the card more. Hina suspected Yukiho wanted Koki dead, so no one would ever find out about her breaking the rules. It would affect both women's standing in the clan.

"Wouldn't surprise me if the clan leader instructed her to help Mei get powerful no matter the cost—" Mei whispered as they walked far ahead of the Ito trio. She glanced at them before continuing. Only Mei had enhanced hearing, and she didn't speak any English. "—even if that involves eliminating Koki. If the branch family is getting too strong, the clan head might also be looking to eliminate their heir." Mei sighed. "The shogunate gives clans with Climbers too much leeway. They have more power than samurai and feudal lords now."

"It makes sense, I suppose," Diya said. "Only individuals with souls and tempered bodies can stand up to the monsters dropped by the leviathans. If left unchecked, I've heard a single nest can destroy an entire country."

The party encountered collapsed tunnels and broken bridges as they continued deeper into the second floor. Diya couldn’t do much about the former. For the latter, he helped the party cross using ink vines, the launcher card, his grappling hook and exceptional climbing skills. Yukiho helped keep them on track, using landmarks and signs left behind by previous clan members. Diya discreetly fell behind during breaks and sketched them. He intended to document as much as he could about the pilgrimage. The employment contract didn’t stop him from doing so. If he found something of interest, the FTF would want to know.

While venturing through a forest of bioluminescent mushrooms, the party found themselves face to face with a group of armed troglodytes. They had axes, spears, and clubs and were dragging a cow-sized mole behind them. Mei reached for her bow, and all hell broke loose. Unlike the ground-floor troglodytes, the specimens on the second floor were over six feet tall, and their freakishly long arms bulged with muscle.

Hina didn’t fall back with Yukiho. She pulled out a mace as big as a femur from inside her coat and stuck to Diya’s side. Mei’s soul didn't stand back this time but entered the fray. Its frostfire wisps slowed troglodytes or set them ablaze. The panicked creatures thrashed, putting the sapphire flames out only to be left covered in frost as she activated her augmentation, and half a dozen frost-fire wisps blinked into existence around her. Koki dashed into the charge, breaking apart the monsters’ wild formation. Diya had confidence in his skill against human-sized opponents, so he used it as an opportunity to guide Hina instead.

“Release your soul and use it to lower your mace’s weight,” he told her. “Practise releasing the dandelions just before you land your blow to maximise momentum.”

Much to Diya’s surprise, Hina proved herself as a quick study. As the battle unfolded, he stuck close to her side, putting down troglodytes that tried to flank her. It took her a couple of tries before she got the hang of it, and before long, Hina had opponents almost twice her size staggering from her blows. She over-extended a couple of times but used the two dozen released dandelions to keep her body light and agile. Diya could foresee Hina doing incredible damage using a heavy two-handed weapon. Of course, she’d need some training, but her excellent reflexes gave him hope.

Diya kept an eye on Koki, too. Yukiho would undoubtedly help Mei if she got in trouble, but he worried Hina’s hypothesis was correct. Koki didn’t need any help, though. He danced around the troglodytes, severing limbs and destroying weapons with ease. Diya couldn’t help but feel jealous. A weapon like Koki’s katana proved far more potent than his axe. However, the core in the pommel appeared like a permanent fixture. He guessed the weapon would most likely only last until the third interval. Following which, he’d need a new sword or employ a skilled artisan to upgrade it with a new core.

Diya had stepped away to fell a slingshot user when Hina got overwhelmed. The troglodyte dual-wielding clubs went berserk when she dropped the last female in the monster group. He charged at her, swinging wildly. Due to the troglodyte’s incredible reach, Hina could do nothing but retreat in a cloud of dandelion fluff. It took experience and confidence to respond to such an attack, so Diya had no option but to throw his axe. It struck the male’s shoulder, throwing him off-balance. Diya charged in, casting Frozen Ink lance, and plunged it into the creature’s neck. Since his body lacked tempering, the head didn't kill the creature. Instead, it staggered, roaring and swinging at him. Diya rolled backwards, taking his axe with him and leaving the spear behind. He hoped the jagged frozen head would damage the creature's insides.

While the monster focused on Diya, Hina landed a clean blow on the side of its head. It crumpled like a tower of cards. Then the pair took helped the party take down the remaining troglodytes.

Diya got to the cards from the giant troglodyte before Yukiho could. It featured a tier-one variation of Burst of Strength, another Territorial Awareness, and one that involved mining. While the party finished off the remaining troglodytes and collected cards, Diya swapped Burst of Strength for his inferior version. Given Yukiho and Mei's behaviour, he didn't feel bad about the deception. Yukiho snatched the stack of cards from him as soon as she spotted him holding them.

Worried that the noise and scent of blood would draw unwanted attention, they carried on with their journeys without rest. A deep scratch marked Mei's left arm, and she had ripped her yukata. Yukiho applied a scentless salve to the wound. Hina had also earned a couple of trophies but didn’t get such service. Diya gave her a sip of the healing concoction in his flask, and she accepted it graciously.