<Nocturnal Harmonia>

[Bloodedge]

Igris felt the second wave of Bloodlust wash over him as Yugi's eyes flared crimson once more. The oppressive fear aura pressed against his will like a cold wind against stone—intense, insistent, meant to break lesser minds. For the first time in the fight, the knight's single remaining eye flickered. The crimson glow dimmed noticeably, the runes on his armor pulsing erratically as though struggling under the weight of the skill. His movements slowed. The gauntleted fist descending toward Miko's head lost a fraction of its momentum, the strike still heavy but no longer the crushing hammer it had been. The blow landed on her shoulder instead of her skull as she released her grip and rolled away, the impact driving her downward with bruising force but not shattering bone. The floor cracked beneath her, dust rising in a small cloud. Igris straightened slowly. The greatsword remained embedded in the floor where he had left it. He lowered his raised hand, gauntlet unclenching. The crimson mane hung limp, ichor still dripping from the ruined eye slit. His breathing grew heavier, the cracked breastplate rising and falling unevenly, the once-steady rhythm faltering under the stat reduction. He took one step back, stance widening to steady himself. The remaining eye shifted from Miko's guarded position to Yugi rising from the rubble. No attack followed. No lunge, no swing. He simply stood, armored form swaying slightly, the weight of centuries pressing down on shoulders that had carried far heavier burdens. The Blood-Red Commander waited, silent, the chamber's silence broken only by the faint drip of ichor and the distant hum of Miko's lingering mana.

He had taken the hit.
His strength had waned.
But he had not fallen.
Not yet.

So then... it was time to force his fall. Yugi wasn't fully healed yet, but he had little choice but to mount an offense. Bloodlust obviously took effect this time; Yugi even had a visible notice from the System alerting him to that fact. "Sure would be nice to get an alert when it fails!" he complained to the System and its administrator ─ wherever that entity was. A full sprint carried Yugi past Miko, his steps light and agile as opposed to the mighty, crushing footfall of their opponent. When he passed the brown-haired girl by, he gave a very simple response to her question about dancing. "This one isn't gonna be a dance. Bloodlust worked, so Big Red over here's looking bankrupt! You know what that means!" he shouted. Nimble feet had Yugi appearing behind Igris soon after that, and Sharingan had him knowing exactly where to strike. Yugi's right fist clenched until nails drew blood from his own palm. That same fist would be driving into Igris's back with all the force Yugi could muster, hitting the point right behind that original abdominal wound. "GET'CHO PAPER UP!" he exclaimed, once more falling into that inside joke that was quickly becoming commonplace for the activation of Black Flash. Yugi's strike was true, powerful enough to knock the commander forward ─ directly toward Miko.

[Apollymi]

Yugi's eyes flared and the skill Bloodlust actually activated. If Miko had any issues telling, she could tell by the time the strike hit her shoulder that it didn't have the sort of strength she'd been adjusted to. In fact, by the time she'd worked herself back into the standing position she saw it, a hint of retreat. The one guarding the throne was a man who moved in silence. His power was felt with every motion and his silent presence carried centuries of experience. Still, that wouldn't stop what was about to happen, a chip in the armor, a bleeding god... these were once insurmountable obstacles, things of impossibility made possible through long term struggle. Broken bones, lungs free of air, a heart almost pierced through. All of it culminated in a single moment the acknowledgement of the red haired knight, having an incoming currency problem.

That hit of Yugi's would send the Blood-Red Commander reeling in Miko's direction. The girl kept her low post, hearing the movements. Miko prepared herself, and smirked deviously. She aimed a straight jab right at the broken armor over his chest, fully intending to send that red tainted knight back to the person who'd just harmed him. "GETCHO PAPER UP!" she chirped with all the respect a statement like that could carry. Such a hit was a full Black Flash willing to spark across his physical form and do the highest damage her body could manage. No matter how long it would take they could continue this push towards ending the last bastion standing between them and victory.

[Bloodedge]

Igris staggered forward from Yugi's strike, the Black Flash detonating against his back with a thunderous crack that shattered more of the crimson plating. The force drove him toward Miko, boots scraping furrows in the stone as he struggled to maintain balance. The single remaining eye dimmed further, the glow flickering like a dying ember. Miko's uppercut met him head-on. Her Black Flash slammed into the fractured breastplate with a resounding boom, dark energy exploding outward in a burst that cracked the armor wide open. Shards of crimson plating flew, ichor spraying in a thick arc from the widened wound. The knight's body rocked backward, knees buckling for the first time as the blow drove him off his feet and sent him crashing to one knee. The greatsword remained embedded in the far wall, untouched. Igris's gauntleted hands pressed against the stone floor, fingers digging in as he forced himself up. The crimson mane hung limp and matted with ichor, the helm cracked along the right side. His breathing came in ragged, labored rasps—each inhale rattling the broken armor. He rose slowly, unsteadily, to his full height once more. The single eye burned with unyielding focus, fixed on the two Players. Blood—dark, thick—dripped steadily from the wound in his chest, pooling on the floor beneath him. Igris raised his fists in a guard, stance wavering but still wide. He took one shaky step forward, then another, armor groaning with every movement. The runes along the remaining plating flickered weakly, the glow fading.

He did not speak.
He did not fall.
The Blood-Red Commander pressed on, slower now, each step a testament to will alone, refusing to yield until his body could no longer carry him.

Sadly for Igris, the Players both had more than enough of being battered into paste by some knight with a fancy title. Yugi had launched Igris forward with a Black Flash to the back, and Miko sent the knight back in her partner's direction with another Black Flash to his wounded torso. Igris managed to get himself up... but Yugi didn't like the idea of him staying up. Injured or not, Yugi hadn't stopped those swift movements. "No! Fuck that!" he shouted at the commander who tried to recuperate. A charge at Igris's rear resulted in Yugi leaping overhead, snatching that ichor-stained mane with his left hand while vaulting over Igris's shoulder. When he reached the ground in front of Igris, he still hadn't let go ─ following through with all of that momentum to jerk downwards and slam Igris face-first into the stone floor. "PUT YOUR MOTHERFUCKING HEAD BACK DOWN!" he shouted angrily as stone crumbled under the high-velocity impact of Igris's helm.

[Apollymi]

Miko and Yugi were rather suddenly involved in a very active bit of combat. Unlike the earlier moments of this fight, they'd managed to find their own rhythm this time. Their previous attack worked in a way Miko couldn't have imagined something in this battle working when they'd first arrived. Blood-Red Commander Igris had been forced down to one knee by the combined efforts of Yugi and Miko. Both of them had managed a great deal with the Black Flashes they'd used. But the Blood-Red Commander was resilient, he managed to work himself back to his feet. He was slower, he was weaker, but he was still willful. That simply wouldn't do.

It seemed that Miko wasn't the only one who thought this way. As Yugi hopped up immediately. He grabbed the knight by his mane, pulling his head back towards the ground as he said something quite meme related. His struggle was heroic, chivalric and all other manner of things. But they were both fed up with the amount of beating they'd taken of this overpowered boss. When his head went down, Miko was jumping up to land with both her little booted feet were clanging against the metal at the back of his head. Her arms were extended in a T fashion for balance and she'd put all the power of her legs, thighs and rump onto his head. "Keep it down♪!~" Miko chirped, before she hopped off the knight to take a different side of the beastly knight as they continued their barrage.

[Bloodedge]

Igris's helm struck the stone floor with a resounding crash, the impact shattering the already cracked visor and sending fresh cracks spiderwebbing across the crimson plating. The force drove his head down, the single remaining eye momentarily obscured by dust and shadow. The crimson mane splayed across the ground like spilled blood, ichor pooling beneath his face. He did not remain down. With a low, grinding groan of metal, Igris pushed himself up on one gauntleted hand. The other hand pressed against the floor for leverage, fingers digging into the stone as he forced his body upright once more. The armor creaked and protested with every movement, the breastplate hanging open in jagged pieces, dark ichor seeping steadily from the wounds beneath. He rose to one knee, then to his full height—slower than before, stance wavering, but unbowed. The crimson mane hung matted and heavy, dripping with ichor. His single eye burned through the shattered visor, fixed on Yugi and Miko with unwavering focus. Igris raised his fists in a guard, gauntlets clenched. He took one unsteady step forward, then another. The greatsword remained embedded in the far wall, forgotten. He had no weapon now but his own armored body and will. He lunged at Yugi first—right fist driving forward in a straight punch aimed at the chest, left following in a hooking strike toward the jaw. The blows were slower, weaker than before, but still carried the weight of an armored knight who refused to fall. The crimson glow in his eye flickered, dimming further with each labored breath. He pressed on, silent, relentless, forcing them to meet him or be crushed under what remained of his strength. The Blood-Red Commander would not yield until his body could no longer carry him.

The attempt was fruitless. The way Igris was moving now, Yugi's Sharingan and body could both keep up with the knight's movements. That straight punch aimed at Yugi's chest was sidestepped before Yugi weaved under the hook aimed at his jaw. "You wanna fuckin' box now?!" Yugi asked tauntingly. At this point, he was merely keeping track of time. As he was rising from beneath Igris's evaded arm, he saw the System display counting down the final milliseconds of Black Flash's cooldown. "Hmph. Wrong league now bitch," he teased. "GET'CHO PAPER UP!" he shouted again. This time, he delivered a haymaker to Igris's abdomen, once again targeting the wound he and Miko had been working on since they first dealt damage to the commander. He added lightning once more, and the ensuing eruption of black lightning proved powerful enough that the weakened knight was rocketed into the very throne he sat upon during the Players' arrival. "Quick, twerk on his fucking face!"

[Apollymi]

Igris was one who would stand as soon as he could. Of course, Miko felt a minor bit of satisfaction hearing the cracking of armor pieces to go along with everything else happening. Still, Igris didn't speak, but the groaning of his armor as he tried to get back up. He got back up eventually but Miko could hear the struggle but after the beating they'd taken she almost didn't care. Almost. Still, they wouldn't be lightening up. Still, much to the Blood-Red Commander's credit, he was standing once again. He was even attack, albeit without as much fervor as he had before.

A weakened state was far easier to manage by Miko's own account. And obviously much easier for Yugi to manage as he danced around fists and questioned whether or not he was trying to box. Well, it seemed like that might have been the original thought, but soon enough Igris was being pushed all the way back to the throne which he'd risen from in the first place. Another well timed Black Flash had that happening and Miko was running up ready to try again. "I might... he deserves to see some cheeks before the end♪~" Miko joked whether or not she was actually going to shake ass for someone being turned into a corpse, she wasn't sure. "Still, I reserve the right to twerk on your face♫~" Miko flirted earnestly as she jumped and aimed another punch at that same spot on the man's exposed chest as if it was her intention to make sure he didn't get back up. "GETCHO PAPER UP♪!~"

[Bloodedge]

"Fuck that. I died and didn't get to see shit," Yugi complained about the lack of 'cheeks' before his untimely demise, if it could be called such. Either way, Miko apparently reserved the right to twerk on his face. "And fuck reservations! Execute!" he replied before the next segment of their combo ensued.

Igris crashed into the throne with a resounding crash, the obsidian seat cracking beneath his weight as armor and stone gave way. The impact shattered more of the crimson plating across his chest, fresh ichor spraying from the widened wound. The single remaining eye dimmed further, the glow flickering like a candle in wind. He pushed himself up slowly, gauntlets pressing against the broken armrests. The crimson mane hung matted and heavy, dripping with ichor. His breathing rasped through the cracked helm, each inhale labored, each exhale wet. Miko's uppercut landed true. Black Flash detonated against the exposed chest with a thunderous boom, dark energy exploding outward and cracking the remaining armor wide open. The knight's body rocked backward, slamming against the throne's backrest once more. The runes along the plating flared one final time, then faded to dull embers. Igris rose again—slower, unsteady, one gauntleted hand braced on the throne's edge for support. The other hung limp at his side. He straightened to his full height, stance wavering, the crimson eye fixed on Miko and Yugi with unyielding focus. He raised his fists in a guard, trembling but resolute. He took one shaky step forward, boots scraping the stone. The greatsword remained embedded in the far wall, forgotten. Igris did not speak. He did not yield. The Blood-Red Commander advanced once more, slower now, each step a testament to will alone, refusing to fall until his body could no longer carry him.

Igris kept standing, but the Players would keep putting him down as many times as it took. Several minutes would pass. At times, Igris was punched with Black Flash into the throne. At other times, he was jerked by the mane, perhaps kicked, perhaps thrown. Various attempts for the knight to rise ended in failure. Black Flash was used every fifteen seconds by the Players ─ so much that they both leveled the Skill and reduced their cooldowns to seven seconds. Now, they stood at the precipice of victory. Fatigue was high, mana was low, but they were both ready for one final strike against a knight commander who could rise no more. Yugi already had his fist prepped for another attack, but he'd yet to deliver it. No... this was something to do cooperatively. "Just... fucking... die already..." he spoke through labored breaths. "You ready to end this thing?" he asked Miko.

[Apollymi]

Apparently, Yugi had died and didn't get to see someone shaking ass. "I mean, if you'd opened your eyes a bit earlier there would have been tits on your face," Miko offered haphazardly. She'd only recently grown those so she still wasn't really used to them being on offer. Beyond that point, Miko apparently didn't need a reservation she could simply execute the plan of twerking on his face. "UNDERSTOOD! BOX IT♪~" Miko chirped willing to commit to the idea of at some point twerking on a man's face.

Meanwhile, they were progressing, murdering the Blood-Red Commander Igris was taking quite a long amount of time. Actually, they went through several combinations several different rounds and had multiple minutes pass while they whittled down that knight's life force. If nothing else, he was resilient beyond belief. Miko almost felt bad for continuing to beat him up so much, but... he'd also handed them their hardest won victory so far. Both were running on fumes and they still had another 4 hour timer which hadn't even begun to tick down while they were trading blows with Igris. Oh well, they'd be on their own last few hits by the time Yugi spoke up properly again. "Haaah♪~ Yep, ready! Double KO?" she assumed though the upward inflection remained. Regardless with the time of their Black Flash going all the way down to seven seconds they could easily hit the blood night at the same time. "GETCHO...." Miko started like it was a true incantation, pulling her fist back and preparing to launch herself forward once more to attack in time with Yugi.

[Bloodedge]

Igris knelt at last, one gauntleted hand braced against the cracked stone floor, the other hanging limp at his side. The crimson mane draped across his shattered helm like a tattered banner, ichor pooling beneath him in a widening stain. The runes on his armor had faded to dull embers, the breastplate hanging open in jagged pieces, revealing the dark void beneath. He lifted his head slowly. The single remaining eye met theirs—dim, but still burning with that unyielding focus. The knight's breathing rasped through the broken visor, each inhale wet and labored, each exhale carrying the faint metallic tang of blood. Igris pushed himself upright with visible effort. Armor groaned and cracked further as he rose to one knee, then to his feet. His stance wavered, boots scraping for balance, but he straightened to his full height. The greatsword remained embedded in the far wall, untouched. He raised his fists in a final guard, trembling but resolute. He took one unsteady step forward. Then another. The crimson eye fixed on Yugi and Miko, unblinking, the knight's silence unbroken even as his body betrayed him. Igris stopped two paces away. He lowered his fists slightly, shoulders sagging under the weight of centuries. The crimson glow in his eye flickered one last time, then dimmed to a faint spark. He did not speak. He did not raise his hands again. The Blood-Red Commander stood motionless, waiting for the end he knew had come.

The time had finally come to put the Blood-Red Commander to rest. The way Igris was moving now, the final strike from both Players would undoubtedly end him... and it seemed Igris himself knew that. That hesitation from Igris was not the same experienced, calculating pause as before. This was very different. This was an inability to continue with a worn-down body, and a silent admittance of defeat waiting for the finishing blow. Yugi would deliver it. Miko would deliver it. Mention of a 'double K.O." by Miko had Yugi nodding, fully prepared to join her in delivering the two finishing blows at once. Miko started; Yugi continued. "PAPER..." he joined, drawing back that fist. After a second of hesitation, he threw the fist forward, aiming at his side of Igris's shattered chestplate. When it connected, that would be one of two Black Flashes meant to end it all. "UP!"

[Apollymi]

It had felt like hours since the first entered the chamber for this boss. Every second feeling like it was drawing on a piece of eternity, like a workout being struggled through at every step. By the time the momentum of the fight had changed, both Players were exhausting themselves, just to keep Blood-Red Commander Igris from working up the momentum to retaliate. Each use of Black Flash, every recycled minute of Bloodlust and every combined movement... was weighing down on them. But at the very least it was showing more on the Blood-Red Commander.

Eventually, he was barely making it back up off his knees. His helm had been cracked. His head forced to the floor at some point. His armored body which initially seemed to shake off every attack regardless of the power behind it, was finally struggling, staggering showing the full wear and tear of their combined assault. It'd not been pretty to witness. The Players knew their 'teacher' had been right to say their 'hands' were mediocre after facing off against the destructive force that was Igris. Even so, they were now the ones standing, dominating. Eyes glowing with malicious intent as a combined attack started with the full intent of ending the Commander's life. Obviously, he wasn't the type to surrender, he sought death in this day. There would be no protagonist simply talking him into using his strength for him, and so when the chant started Miko had taken her side of their enemy fist draw back, and by the time Yugi joined they seemed, so perfectly attuned to each other. 'Paper' as spoken by him followed the same tone and cadence but at a deeper pitch and by the time they were to say up together, a melodious harmony was reached. "UP♪!~" that high note resonated a black flash connected on Miko's side of this absolute unit of a Knight at the same time that Yugi released his. Both would be standing side by side, Miko herself wary waiting as the force of their hit should have shattered everything left of that beast, causing the light in his remaining eye to finally dim for good.

[Bloodedge]

Igris stood at the precipice of his final moment. The combined Black Flashes struck true—two dark explosions of energy slamming into the shattered breastplate from opposite sides. The crimson plating exploded outward in a shower of shards and ichor, the runes flickering one last time before extinguishing entirely. The force lifted him off his feet, driving him back against the obsidian throne with a thunderous crash that cracked the stone beneath. His helm tilted forward, the crimson mane falling across his face like a shroud. He did not rise again. The single remaining eye dimmed slowly, the glow fading to nothing. The gauntleted hands fell limp at his sides, the greatsword still embedded in the far wall, untouched. The Blood-Red Commander knelt there, slumped against the throne he had guarded for centuries, armor broken, ichor pooling beneath him in a widening stain.

Silence fell over the chamber.
The knight's chest rose once, twice—then stilled.
Igris did not move.
The Guardian of the Shadow Throne had fallen.
The trial was over.

[LEVEL UP!]
[LEVEL UP!]
[LEVEL UP!]
[LEVEL UP!]
[LEVEL UP!]
[LEVEL UP!]

Six times, the Players leveled. The throne's guardian, the honorable knight, had been sitting on that throne for ages. Now, it seemed he'd sit there forever... or until the Players had to actually claim said throne per the job-change quest's requirements. Sadly, Yugi didn't feel refreshed at all after gaining six levels. What a waste. "Haah. Haah. Goddamnit. Somebody should give me so much head after this. Call SumMom... or Ashikaga Himeko... or fuck it, call Mai Valentine for all I care!" he groaned. Yugi had both hands on his knees, supporting his weight against his own legs. The 30 total points he'd gained would be distributed posthaste to prepare for something he could now see in the System readout. 4:00:00:00 was now visible. They'd already been here for half an hour, but the timer was only just appearing after the Blood-Red Commander's death. Luckily, he also saw something else: a separate cooldown for Concubine summoning. "Shit. Trial's about to start. I don't think it's worth gambling. What do you say I call in some healing first?" he asked of Miko. At the same time, he was picking up a Rune Stone spawned directly into the Players' Inventory from the fallen commander. Seeing its name and making some mental connections, Yugi decided to crush the stone immediately. "Oh fuck yeah!"

〔SYSTEM NOTICE — SKILL UNLOCKED〕

Skill Acquired: Ruler's Hand (LV.1)

Description:
You can control objects without touching them.

Effect:

• Telekinetic manipulation of small to medium objects within line of sight
• No mana required
• Strength and range limited by Perception

System Remark:
The power of the Ruler awakens.
Command the world with will alone.
Use it wisely, vessels.

But then, there was another notification. . .

〔SYSTEM NOTICE — SKILL UPGRADE〕

Skill: Ruler's Hand (LV.1)
Upgrade Detected.

Thread Bind rune memory has been integrated.
Skill resonance complete.
Evolution triggered.

Skill Upgraded: Ruler's Hand (LV.2)

Description:
You can control objects without touching them.

Effect:

• Telekinetic manipulation of small to medium objects within line of sight
• No mana required
• Strength and range increased (medium to larger objects now possible)
• Improved precision and multi-object control (up to 3 objects simultaneously)

System Remark:
The memory of binding threads has strengthened the Ruler's grasp.
Command more.
The shadows yield to your will.

[Apollymi]

It took so long but the last moments of Blood-Red Commander Igris were finally upon them. They'd hit him with everything they had, it was messy and unorthodox but they'd actually made it all the way through. Miko couldn't take her eyes off the Knight in his last moments. In truth he deserved a great deal of respect and she would have personally enjoying having a man like that on her side, rather than having to end him. Oh well... there was nothing they could do but receive the levels at the end. "Ugh, 6 levels and no refresh might be the worst showing of being a dick ever!" Miko complained. Still, she immediately opened her status screen and threw stats into place. Never again would she be caught without a fully leveled kit as it popped. As usual, Yugi had gone onto a tirade about wanting so much oral pleasure after his day. He named three very famous individuals, two of whom Miko had on a different list of her own that last one though, would have her flippant reply. "We all know that annoying voiced pillow princess doesn't give head!" Miko said only to pause. "Where did I learn that term? Was it F-list?" she muttered softly, still believing in her own words.

Beyond that point she could now see it, that timer had popped so it was indeed Brainface's plan to have them fight the boss, and then deal with all the minions afterwards. "Healer first for the restore is best. I do still have bit of Mana Drained energy stored up, I could give it to you or digest it myself and take the first turn..." Miko offered either as a option knowing they could be trusted to handle some smaller waves. Upon checking her own cooldowns she saw that Megiddo was up again. "I got AoE up alright, the cool down for Megiddo starts at cast!~" Miko explained. Still there was something else, a skill rune was used and she started hearing information about it, only to immediatley hear it be upgraded by their use of Thread Bind. "SUGEI! I"M GONNA BE ABLE TO DO SOMETHING AWESOME!~" Miko asserted immediately. Just as she was about to explain though... a phone call was being issued.

One Shidou Makima had been waiting, none too patiently for the last three hours. She'd been looking at her System phone and wondered if a call could work with the pair had disappeared from her very office. Three hours in, she figured if nothing else, she could try this method of contact and check on her newest pets.

[Bloodedge]

Yugi was heaving. The fight against Igris had taken everything he had, and then some. Yugi found himself in dire need of fellating from someone, perhaps even multiple women, from a long list of individuals he'd never met. According to Miko though, one particular person he'd mentioned surely didn't partake in such activities. Yugi scoffed dismissively. "Of course she doesn't. I looked into the leaks of her OnlyFans, and she doesn't even go full nude. Doesn't mean I couldn't get the head," Yugi retorted confidently. As for where Miko learned that term, he didn't have a clue. F-List, surprisingly enough, wasn't something he bothered with. With only a shrug as response to that question, Yugi went back to stat allocation ─ just to hear Miko agree that summoning Tae first would be optimal. She also offered the mana taken from Igris in the final rough moments of that fight, in case he wanted to take on combat first. "I'll take it. Your full mana recovery is more valuable. Pass me your swords, drop Megiddo, and get to 100% before we switch," he suggested.

Yugi's stats were established, and Ruler's Hand would do much more than replace his sacrificed Thread Bind ability. He was preparing to select Takemi Tae as a summon, but just as he was pressing the button in the System interface... his phone rang. "Good boy~" it said. Yugi didn't reach for his phone; he instead decided to answer that call within the System. "So... how long did you actually sit there wondering if it was too early to call? Is this an 'either they answer, or they died' thing? Because the truth might be both," he said the moment a connection was made. At the same time, he'd still be pressing that button to summon Tae.

[Apollymi]

Miko found herself with vocabulary she didn't remember saving. That being said, she'd been absorbing a lot of deviant material unconsciously for a long time and consciously for the last couple of days. The knowledge that one like Mai Valentine, likely wouldn't 'give head' as they put it, wasn't even unknown information. Yugi claimed to have looked into leaks of her OnlyFans and found that she didn't even post nudes for pay. "That's stupid, she could just be an Instagram Model if she's going to be like that..." Miko thought aloud. "Oh I'm not doubting your skills or even visual taste, just wondering if one of those hits actually turned your brain to mashed potatoes~" Miko decided. That particular woman was far too stupid, though she supposed if he was going to be keeping her mouth filled he likely saw a potential win in such a situation. Beyond that point the offered mana from Blood-Red Commander Igris, was taken along with the idea that Miko pop Megiddo and hand over her weapons to keep it going. "Sou ka, done deal♪~" Miko said easily, she extended her hand to the lad pressing it against his chest and the textured fabric she'd chosen for him, and... began the transfer via touch to him directly, of specifically the HP and Mana she'd stolen from Igris.

Meanwhile, stats were being allotted and a phone call was being accepted. A sounding of good boy would lead to Makima hearing the lad's voice a hint of relief untensing her brows as she heard him speak. "Four hours is about the right amount of time for the competent completion of a Dungeon, so long as it wasn't full of some new thing we don't know about. Though admittedly I wasn't sure if this would work, I thought it best to check on you two, before a boss room could be entered or something like that..." Makima said gave a little smirk and a casual eye roll as something else quite odd happened. A young doctor who looked a bit like a punk, wearing a short black dress and some spike heels that wrapped up her legs revealing dark painted toes was soon standing in front of the pair. She seemed to be surprised, she was sure she'd been writing notes hovering over a desk. "You know... it's a good thing I'd just left a patient to wait on samples or this would be really awkward," she managed looking at both individuals quickly. "Do I even want to know?" she wondered seemingly genuinely concerned. She could see mana, flowing out of Miko's palm directly into the lad. She also saw a room large and showy that looked like it'd been battered. Both of the Players, dressed differently, with more advanced bodies than she'd last seen them with, looking worse for wear, and a dead knight against a throne. How did they summon her here, and why were they alone? There were so many questions and so little time.

[Bloodedge]

Had Yugi's brain been turned into mashed potatoes? Absolutely not. He was fully aware of the faults found in the one they discussed, and fully confident in his ability to deal with said faults. "I'm one of two confirmed people who can become stronger in this trash world. If she ever popped up as a route for me, it'd be Bad End City!" he announced. With the abilities they had and the way the System worked, Yugi figured the majority of his routes would become categories to mark off a bucket list. Maybe he'd invest in that F-List site after all? He'd mull over it briefly while Miko made contact with his chest, delivering a fair amount of energy and health to get him started properly.

Before much consideration could be given on that topic however, Yugi had a call from Makima and the summoning of Tae. Makima took priority, as she often would. The chairwoman commented on the standard time taken for competent Gate clears. Yugi didn't know how long it had been for them thus far, but he assumed at least 3 hours overall. "Well, everything's ass-backwards here. This isn't a Gate," he said before anything else. Yugi didn't bother with much explanation before the arrival of Tae, who appeared with about as much confusion as he expected. Did she want to know what was going on? Possibly not, but both she and Makima would be finding out soon enough. First, he enabled a video feed to Makima's phone. Her acceptance would place the image of Makima on a floating screen for all who were present. "Alright, here's the bullshit. This is the Job-Change Quest. We finish this, we get new classes in the System based on how we perform. We've got three objectives," he said, offering the list while holding up one finger at a time. "Survive a four-hour onslaught. Defeat the Throne Guardian. Claim the throne," he listed slowly, as if to imply the issue he definitely had with the order they were told. With that, Yugi pointed toward the throne. "That throne. That guardian. And the four-hour countdown that only just appeared. No potions. No healing from levels. Nothing but the ability to summon certain companions, which only just became available by the way, one at a time in twenty-minute rotations. By the way... those fucking guys!" he added, drawing attention to an army of knights the likes of which they'd encountered before Igris... albeit with more High Knights, archers taking positions in the rafters, and mages. Yugi's Sharingan scanned the area quickly, but even he couldn't get a count on the enemies accumulating. "So, we need healing. Her first; I'll handle the waves in the meantime. Shouldn't be a problem. What are the chances I die twice today anyway?"