[Shrubley, the Monster Adventurer] Chapter 127 – Majora-ly Strange

The going was much harder than any of them thought it would be. There was a reason few people traveled between the Outer Ring and the borderlands. The influx of mana that flowed out from the Outer Ring, held in check by the towering Oulstand Mountains, was more than most people could withstand.

Mundane Rankers had the most trouble, but levels could help ease the burden. This proved to be little more than an annoyance to the monsters, but Konko was struggling every step of the way. Despite the levels the girl gained from the recent Dungeon, she was still far behind the rest of the monster adventurers.

Eventually, Miranda used Hush essence to mask their presence and silence their movements from the surrounding feral monsters and beasts. They could not afford to delay any further in reaching the next Dungeon to stop their unknown opponent.

Miranda had her suspicions, but she didn’t dare speak them aloud. Whoever was pulling the strings here was more formidable than she had thought.

If their opponent truly had free rein within the Dungeon Dimension, even a Steel Ranker like herself might be powerless against that enemy.

With the time warping abilities of the Dungeon Dimension, even a Copper might find a way to surpass the Limit of Steel. Those that rose to the upper reaches of attainable power could shatter mountains with an errant technique.

What should have been a simple trek through the countryside, picking up contracts and training her disciples, turned out to be something far more.

Not for the first time, she looked at Shrubley, wondering if he had somehow caused it. As if he was a magnet for big events.

It would be just like Halbert, she thought to herself. That man often stood at the eye of the storm without realizing it. Things just happened around him, for good or ill.

Shrubley was turning out to be his father’s son in more ways than one. Already she could see the power and drive he brought to every encounter. The oddly immature yet endearing playfulness he approached most fights with.

Only recently had she seen a darker side of him, when the little soul shrub’s friends had been threatened. Then she saw his true power come to the fore.

She had never seen such a ferocious display of swordsmanship mixed with essence used. Even Halbert would have struggled to combine the two so fluidly. Shrubley had incredible potential trapped in that weak soul shrub body of his.

It was a shame that he was stuck in such a weak form. If he could be reborn as a core race, or evolve into something more fitting, he would be a truly terrifying opponent.

What most people didn’t know was that essence abilities grew new imprints entirely based on their actions. A person who was skilled and capable with a blade would get more powerful imprints along that line. While a person with weak skills but strong magic, would be imprints that empowered their magical side.

The fact that Shrubley continued to walk that line between physical and magical was a testament to his duality.

Miranda had a lot of time to think while she blanketed their progress with Hush essence, keeping them hidden from the monsters that lurked just out of view.

Had they been a properly sized caravan, they would have been left largely unbothered by the monsters. These were weaklings, driven out to the edges of the Outer Ring because they could not hack it further inland.

They would only take on fights they thought they could win, and though the Countess was Steel, she was also in the presence of Mundane, Copper, and Bronze Rankers.

To a monster’s senses, she might seem like a mother with weak children. Children that any cunning monster could pick off for an easy meal. And if they all swarmed the singular Bronze, they could likely kill Shrubley too.

The potential for such a leap of power for the one who defeated the Bronze would likely be too much of a lure. Such was the way of the world of beasts.

And so, despite the complaints, Miranda kept them blanketed throughout the day and night. They made good time without being ambushed or attacked every 100 yards. Even with Konko slowing them down, they were able to crest the Oulstand Mountains and make it into the very edge of the Outer Ring.

While wielding Hush essence over an extended period of time, affecting so many creatures was immensely draining, Miranda possessed considerable stores of mana. More than usual for a Steel Ranker. No ordinary High Steel vampyr would have been able to resist the painful bite of the sun’s harsh light.

With the night coming on in full, Miranda’s powers grew, and through that rising strength, she could take a more direct approach to protecting her party members.

Hush mana worked fine, but a raw display of power would work better and serve to scare off the monsters besides. During the day, her powers were muted, and she could not risk the chance that a monster might mistake her for an Iron.

But a Steel?

That was another matter entirely. Empowered by the night, Miranda shrugged off her Hush essence and flared her Steel aura. She made sure to place a hand on Konko’s shoulder, protecting her from its effects.

All around them, monsters bayed and howled with fear. The scurrying of countless claws over the rough, scree-ridden ground echoed across the peaks of the mountains.

When all was said and done, the night seemed downright peaceful. Miranda let go of her aura and released Konko’s shoulder.

The girl shook her head. “My head hurts,” she muttered.

“That’ll be the higher mana density,” she told her. “You’ll get used to it and it’ll help you advance faster once you do. For now, take it easy, drink plenty of water, and make sure to take deep, even breaths.”

Shrubley marched ahead, feeling more alive than he could remember in recent months. “This higher density mana is great!” he said exuberantly.

“It does feel like I could use it better,” Cal said. “And I’m not even Copper yet!”

“That’s because you’re nearing the precipice,” she told him. “The Dungeons have elevated your levels considerably, bringing you closer in to the power of a Copper than you would otherwise be. While Shrubley over there, has been effectively breathing in thin mana this entire time. Most Coppers struggle to advance to Bronze outside of the Outer Ring.”

“Shrubley was able to because he’s amazing,” Cal said confidently.

Sose snorted. “More likely it was the Dungeon.”

“Dungeonley did help me,” Shrubley agreed. “He is a good soul. A good dad to Dungeonette.”

Sose groaned and put his paws on his muzzle.

“Wassat! Wassat!” Slyrox cried out, kicking and punching the air. “Slyrox in jail! Slyrox did not do crime! Slyrox is muchly innocent, Slyrox was not even in town that day! Slyrox is inno–where is Slyrox?”

“You’re in my chest,” Cal said, having patiently waited during the outburst.

“Oh. Muchly thankings for hand-lending,” Slyrox said. Then, just to be sure. “Slyrox not in jail?”

“No.”

“You saw nothing,” she said bluntly.

“Nothing at all,” Cal agreed, readjusting his bones so she could slip out. “Glad of you to join us. And thank you for not trying to break free. My bones surely would have broken.”

“Slyrox been having bingly-bang-pots of dreams. Eye-peeking into world of wonders.”

Konko looked at her curiously. “I… what?”

Everybody shrugged. Not even Shrubley could interpret what Slyrox said sometimes.

Cal put Slyrox’s backpack on her and readjusted his bones again with a deep sigh of relief. He cracked his back a few times, adjusted it a bit more, then cracked it once or twice again.

Grumbling, Cal stepped up beside the Countess. “Could you help me, please? I would be immensely grateful.”

Without thinking, Miranda reached out and gripped his spinal column. A sickening series of cracks erupted as she bent his spine back into its proper S-curve.

Cal shivered with relief. “Ah, so much better. Thank you!” He threw his arms around the Countess in a hug, much like Shrubley would have done.

Before she realized what she was doing, she was patting his head affectionately. Once realization took over, she gently pushed him away. “Enough of that.”

Sose snickered behind a paw.

“What class did you pick?” Shrubley asked Slyrox, excited to finally find out.

“Slyrox is Champion!” the koblin declared, putting her mitts on her hips. “And Slyrox’s prime essence is Comet! Muchly strong in world of wonders.”

“Were there metallic monsters in your dream, by any chance?” Cal asked.

Slyrox nodded energetically. “Yes, many! I big-fisted them all.”

“Don’t… say it like that,” Miranda said wearily.

“But is what Slyrox did!” the koblin complained. “Muchly fisting all around!”

“You do realize that by telling them not to do it, they do it more,” Sose whispered to the Countess. “In that way, they’re just like me.”

“I am beginning to realize that, yes.”

“Could you fist me?” Shrubley asked Slyrox.

“Yes!”

Miranda put her face in her hands miserably. Even Konko looked uncomfortable.

“What about Cal?” Shrubley asked.

“Slyrox already fisted, is why his back so bad.”

Please, no, Miranda thought to herself.

“Can you fist that rock?”

“Muchly!” Slyrox bounded over the stones and, with a glowing blue fist of Comet essence, crashed her mittened hand into the stone, shattering it into rubble. “Get fisted!”

Smudge giggled in his dress.

They talked and chatted about Slyrox’s new essence. Comet essence was one of the legendary types that Mistress Ceasewane had told them about when she was explaining prime essences.

Everything felt just a little better with her around, Miranda thought sadly. She dearly missed her teacher. This was supposed to be a simple trip where they gained the rest of their essences and made it to Pandaemonium. I’m not cut out to be saving anybody.

It never occurred to her that maybe that was how Mistress Ceasewane felt as well. That she never was ready to teach or pass on her knowledge to others and that… just maybe, she was playing everything by ear too.

More than anything else, Mistress Ceasewane was a Grade-S fibber. She could make it seem like the sky was green, and the grass was blue without breaking a sweat.

At least I have Shrubley to rely on. He’s all about being the hero, she thought, belatedly realizing she was depending on a soul shrub. While the rest of his kind might never attain even Copper, Miranda was starting to wonder if he would surpass even her.

Breaking the Limit of Steel suddenly became all that more important. She did not want to live in a world where their roles were reversed.

The Outer Ring felt like coming home to Miranda. The heavier mana made it much easier to move her Steel Ranker body, and she suspected the same ease of motion was happening to Shrubley right now too.

Before long, they came upon a strange town nestled within the mountains. A large sprawling thing with stepped farms and roaming goats surrounding the town. Every so often they saw the glowing lights of a farmstead, but they were nothing compared to the incandescent glow of the town itself.

Miranda eyed those goats, wondering if one of them was going to rip some flaming gas. Fortunately, they appeared to be normal goats with ordinary, non-explosive flatulence. Unlike Taamra’s.

I don’t remember there being a town here, Miranda thought. It wasn’t as if she had come this way often, but most towns were down in the plains or at least up on the plateaus. The mountains were filled with monsters and pests of all sorts.

It would take a very daring and, above all, foolhardy populace to make a town in the Oulstand Mountains themselves.

The mana currents that formed between the peaks of the mountains and the confluence of heavier and lighter ambient mana concentrations would create hectic weather patterns and miniature monster incursions without warning.

What could be worth all that?

As it turned out. Clocks.

The town made no effort to hide itself from wandering travelers. Instead, it seemed to shout out its name from every rooftop, every eave, and every tower.

There were countless clocks of every shape and size. Some were big enough that they could read the time nearly half a mile off, and others seemed to track more esoteric things. Weird shapes and sigils that Miranda couldn’t even guess at despite her occult background.

The most curious thing about the town, however, wasn’t the clocks. Though those were particularly odd.

It was that they had no walls.

A paved road led straight through an arch with a massive clock hanging at its apex.

No sooner had they stepped into the town square than a young man in an elaborately expensive suit with a top hat danced out from behind the arch and greeted them.

“Hello fine travelers! Welcome to Clocktown!”