<Nocturnal Harmonia>

[Apollymi]

Yugi and Maki were becoming a bit closer, through a combined effort in a fight. Still, she'd incidentally seen his eyes and wanted to question them, but wouldn't as they were obviously a point of secrecy. Still, it seemed he was willing to share such a secret and she could only nod. "That's cool... I have way more questions than I'm comfortable with," Maki claimed. Well, mostly she wanted to have the general conversation of fangirling. Perhaps she just hadn't wanted it enough. No matter, what she did want, was this push forward. The rest of the plan came together naturally and both of them were soon airborne. The lad in question took a hit of poison but he seemed relatively unbothered. The spun and then Maki was sent back down, a smirk crossing her face as she was tossed with a bit more effort towards the creature. "Ryokai~" she claimed that naginata of hers would be used to perform a hard sweeping strike to the creatures head. She fully intended to crack that exoskeleton and her physical fitness became a point of obviousness as she twisted herself around to fall out of the way for the follow up attack.

While a trio had moved on to clearing a centipede, the other group was barely making headway. Sato Kenta could claim all he wanted that the little creatures weren't a problem but in an open space they were way to free to move. Miko was behind the ice mage, giving encouragement and listening to the ants slipping by. She wondered if that other healer had properly gotten out of the way, given the few that were slipping by. 'I wonder if this is a part of the plan?' Miko held a certain curiosity but she put it away and aimed an precise water jet from that staff she still had active at the ant nearest her form. She wasn't afraid but she knew the mage in front of her would be. Miko was willing to take Yugi's words about this man at face value, if he was going to set himself up to be a hero, he'd likely sacrifice her or the mage to make his 'hardass' point from earlier, with the assumption that the swordsmen wouldn't catch up and that she wasn't strong enough to damage the ants herself. But she was, and if she used her real catalyst she'd probably do so easier but it wasn't the time for that now, she was keeping the water staff out as support, so she could help with the accuracy of fired off icicles.

[Bloodedge]

The length of conversation Yugi would have with Maki was to be determined, but he was sure it would be quite time-consuming. Since a route appeared, he also figured it would lead to far more interesting places. Beyond that, Maki would be a very interesting sparring partner if he needed such a thing. They were currently of similar strength, both with strange mana situations attributed to them. For the moment, he could call her a proper peer... but that would only last so long. The first stepping stone to advancement came after he flung Maki toward the centipede, where her naginata formed a nice crack in its shell. Yugi stared at that crack as he descended afterwards, chanting one thing mentally. 'Activate Skill: Fatal Edge,' he thought. The crack in that centipede's skull was glowing brightly the way he saw it... and Yugi had a wonderful idea. "Watch close! I think it's gonna be awesome!" he announced. Yugi's chokuto was aimed downward for Fatal Edge's decisive strike, adding channeled lightning to its blade. Ah, but there was one more thing. 'Activate Skill... Black Flash!' he chanted mentally. The System acknowledged every command made in Yugi's mind, triggering a critical strike from the downward thrust. If that and the lightning weren't enough, the activation of Black Flash automatically channeled through the lightning itself. The ensuing mana explosion from the centipede's head caused a large surge of lightning that had become black in color, cackling out around Yugi as he landed on the insect's head. He didn't seem affected by that venom at all. In fact, his physical stamina was steadily rising instead ─ which let Yugi flip himself off the falling creature's head. He pulled his hood into place, and landed in a squatting position, still drenched in venom.

[LEVEL UP!]

At the same time, Team 1's Mage was distracted by that ant passing him by. Kenta was a better Tanker than that, wasn't he? It looked like things would become rather dangerous for their alleged E-rank Hunter, but then... she struck it with a water jet. The Mage followed her initiative, wasting one Icicle Lance to at least freeze the creature where it stood. "I got it!" he exclaimed. Kenta didn't like that. The girl was supposed to be endangered, that he might abandon the Mage and be the savior of their weakest member. Ah, but he could still manage something. As if he didn't know the others were liable to make less progress forward, Kenta advanced more quickly to create more space between himself and the others. The centipede attacked him directly, but his shield was large enough to hold its jaw open in an effort to fend the giant bug off. From there, he'd be swinging that axe at its teeth while leaving the others to fend for themselves. Ah, but he couldn't afford to look back. Kenta couldn't realize those three were doing fine without him, both males even taking position around the E-rank. The Mage was even aiming his wand over Kenta's shoulder. Shaky though it was, he was trying to resolve himself ─ trying to aim an Icicle Lance right into the insect's open maw. "I-I... can't steady a shot!"

[Apollymi]

Yugi and Maki were doing quite a good job together. Both of them seemed to be helping towards the progress of downing that particular creature. After making that official first strike Maki fell towards the ground landing and righting herself while Yugi took up the next part. He claimed she should watch because something awesome was about to happen. And in truth she was quite curious about the 'Pupils of Hunter Gojo' and boy did Yugi do a good job of cementing several ideas. The combination of skills he used was crazy. It looked liked something straight out of a manga panel. "Sugei!~" that was it. There was nothing more that Maki could have said as black lightning and a critical strike hit a creature and took it down. He wasn't wrong, it'd fallen in two strikes in epic fashion. The lad had even managed to put on a hood and land in style still covered in venom. "That was totally awesome!" mentioned Maki, of course it confirmed several things. This lad was not, under any circumstances, an 'E-rank' of any kind of standard order. He'd definitely earned the title of Gojo's apprentice in whatever way and she absolutely made the right choice following his lead in this. If nothing else, his strength spoke for itself and if you could be strong and flashy well, all the better. Her eyes were sparkling as she wondered over the progress of the others in the background.

That level notification and the sound of chirping birds let Miko know exactly what was happening in the distance. Given their forward progress and the actions of the mage, she could assume he was getting more comfortable. He'd get her first address as his type really needed to know they were doing alright, technically speaking with his decreased range he could use a bit more encouragement. "Hai♪~ You really did. You just gotta hit stuff in your own comfort range, and have a little confidence. Trust yourself a little more~" Miko encouraged him on a personal level. She'd continue what she did, even as Sato pushed forward and put space between them. Obviously, this situation wasn't going according to his plan so he'd decided to change it again. "One of the centipedes has been taken down. It's looking like progress is being made~" Miko said encouraging her own group, by speaking of overall success. Clearing up the Dungeon Break was a group effort after all. The males having taken up their spots, Miko was between them, she heard the complaints of the Ice Mage who couldn't steady his own shot and offered more assistance in the form of guidance and words. "It's okay. Listen to me..." she offered her voice as a point of calmness. "Take a deep breath and relax let the mana flow naturally, down your arm, into your finger tips and into the wand. Eyes on the target, arm steady.... follow this and exhale♪~" she gave him soft words, drowning out everything else, and raising that water staff. Another jet stream of water steady into that open mouth with pressure and her own body and an extended arm aiming to help steady the man beside her. If he couldn't do it on his own, she'd help... and the stream of water would add spread to an icicle once it was fired.

[Bloodedge]

There were some tough exteriors out there in the world. One form of tough exterior Yugi enjoyed was the type that appeared in girls like Maki. Those types made it that much more interesting when the 'girly' interior was revealed. Perhaps he'd acquired himself another fangirl after that maneuver? Yugi didn't have much experience with those in reality; it was a nice thought. He bowed with a flourish, deciding there was now ample opening to accept that 'Steel & Shadow' route. It seemed they were also the first to take down a centipede. Team 1 were currently struggling against theirs, and... well, he'd lost visual on Team 3 some time ago. Team 2 had even been reduced to two ─ three if one counted a trembling spearman. Oh well; Yugi was more interested in accepting the compliment of Maki's outburst, along with her route. "Figured you'd think so. Team 1 should be done in a minute. We'll have an opening to form a decent group after that. I... lost track of the other group, but the third centipede is still way over there. So..." Yugi paused there, placing himself back-to-back with Maki once more. There was still some fodder to deal with while they waited. "Time to kill, time to chat?"

The Mage of Team 1 had managed to be of use. He'd have the nerve to be a little happy about that later, when the lives of himself and others weren't at stake. Still, he'd gladly accept Miko's encouragement. "Hai!" he said. Hearing that one of the other centipedes had been felled before his own team could manage one, Kenta became a bit antsy. How could that happen? He'd taken the best group, the best general setup for tackling insects! If only they'd listened. Obviously he had more lessons to teach whenever they got their act together and worked to take down this centipede. Luckily, the Mage was working on steadying himself with Miko's additional advice. He breathed deeply, slacked his shoulders slightly, and focused mana through his arm. The wand he carried began feeling more like an extension than a tool. After a few moments of deep breathing, he exhaled... and released. "Icicle Lance!" he shouted as ice formed a spearhead to shoot over Kenta's shoulder. The Mage's aim still wasn't perfect; that shot did clip the corner of Kenta's oversized shield before joining the water stream Miko sent along. Nevertheless, it was effectively launched into the centipede's open maw. Kenta felt the chomping insect's jaw weakening by the moment, as though it were dying slowly. "Finally! It's going down!" he exclaimed, stepping onto the monster's tongue to push that shield against the roof of its mouth and further stretch its jaw. "Did I do it?!" asked the Mage, who'd closed his eyes right after releasing the shot.

[Apollymi]

Yugi did have a certifiable fangirl in this young woman, though she likely wouldn't show it outwardly. No, instead they could happily stay rooted in their victory and she'd appreciate his ability to be both competent and flashy. "Hm? Really? I figured if they were close to done it was likely the swordsman and maybe your friend. That Ice Mage was squinting and I know why people do that..." Maki stated of her understanding of the situation playing out over there. As for the third team, she sighed, "I'm not surprised that team hasn't made any headway... no real range," she offered her own understanding of the situations that were playing out as she ended up back to back with the lad again he claimed he might want to kill time and chat. "Hai hai, kill the small stuff and chat, give the rest a safe place to regroup," she offered. "And chat I guess, I will say it's pretty obvious you aren't E-ranked, if anyone has a brain, are you on clean-up?" she wondered why the pair had bothered with something as annoying as an insect Dungeon Break.

The Ice Mage was on his way. Miko figured he could likely use a catalyst upgrade and some glasses, but that would be fine. She also made a mental box to talk about what she noticed from this one, and the other healer, both didn't seem to understand mana flow as mages, and both were not getting the most out of their catalyst. If nothing else. Perhaps Makima wasn't aware of the underlying issues people like Miko had the time in her training dungeon to work through. That didn't matter though, she'd managed to talk the man through the build up and firing of an easier Icicle Lance which though it clipped the shield of Sato, the attack found its home in the creatures mouth, it was slowly dying Miko could tell, but she'd rather they finished it off and moved out. "Hai hai♪~ Great job. Eyes open when you shoot though, it'll help!~" Miko chimed as she kept up her own firing into the mouth of that creature as well. "Can you hit another one, or do you need a bit more time?" Miko wondered over things like cool downs and mana pools for more normal people. She knew herself to be approximately B-ranked currently but she also had quite a few cheats. Even her current precision blasting wasn't costing her much by way of mana. "Nii-san, are we about clear back here? A finishing blow can give us time to head towards Team 2 to regroup..." Miko gave the general outline of her plan, fully intending to abandon this area for now, given the sheer number of creatures they'd not managed to take out.

[Bloodedge]

It seemed Maki had a good grasp of the situation surrounding Team 1. A bit of missing information was to be expected, though; Yugi had a slightly different assumption about that Mage-type Hunter. "Swordsman?" he questioned initially, only to make a point of some hidden truth. "The mage is probably useful. That girl I came here with is specializing in magic. She'll get him right if she's come out of her shell by now. Looks like it's down for the count," he observed, straining just a bit to scan across the field. Yugi had an easier time glancing over when airborne, but he was in no rush to get back up there just yet. Besides, there were lesser creatures to kill and conversations to have. Keeping lightning channeled through his sword, he pressed against Maki's backside to prepare a lunge. Before that however, her first question came around. "This isn't cleanup. It's more... field testing. Officially, this is our second raid... but that's not what you really want to ask about, is it?" he asked, finally pushing off the lass to strike at an ant ─ one that seemed a bit more panicked than before. "Huh... weird."

The first centipede was finally falling limp by the time Kenta extended its jaw. It sounded like the others were planning another strike, but he had other plans in mind. Kenta's reinforcement activated once more while Miko further advised the ice caster, questioning his ability to fire another shot. "Hai! And uh... I can fire more. I haven't been through half of my mana reserves yet. I'm a B-rank you know!" he asserted timidly. Already, the young man was working toward charging another lance. At the same time, the swordsman was breathing heavily, still trying to keep stable after slashing through the cold mist so frequently. "Mostly clear back here... but the spiders are starting to become more of a problem. Keep alert," he advised of the group. Kenta was stepping further into the dying centipede's mouth by then, letting it close aggressively around him. A few moments later, he'd be bursting through the creature's head. Blood sprayed, fragments of the centipede's shell flew, and Kenta... relished in the show of it. "Rrraaaaagh! This is what an A-rank is made of! You follow me!" he shouted. The mage looked over at that display simply because it was so attention-grabbing, but his eyes shifted toward Miko's blind side again. Spiders really were becoming an issue. So many were actively attacking this way and that way, seemingly indiscriminately against ants and Hunters alike. One in particular had its thorax aimed at their group's E-rank. "Watch out!" he warned. That pre-charged Icicle Lance was aimed quickly and fired with decent enough precision to pierce the spider. Sure, it didn't look pretty... but he did manage to stop its attack in time.

[Apollymi]

It would seem a slight variable came into play about the small girl he'd appeared with. According to the lad, the swordsman wasn't what he considered, and the girl, if she came out of her shell would probably make the mage useful as a magical specialist. "Sou ka, well that's the rest of the confirmation. An E-rank mage definitely wouldn't be worth much of anything out in the field. Stillt he swordsman is a decent guy. I've seen him around he also lives in the area..." she confirmed of that man, who was someone she knew in passing but not personally. She also saw him as a viable target to still be alive regardless of anything else happening. The girl making that mage useful would indeed speed things along, what was more, apparently they weren't on cleanup, they were instead testing their skills actively only two official Dungeons deep. "Wow, that's still pretty impressive," she said swinging her naginata outward for a sweep which also had her seeing a strange moving ant, which wasn't injured by conventional weapons. "Well, I'm not trying to be nosey or anything but how do you have an actual Sharingan? I thought you might have been active learning but that's entirely different!" she said seemingly excited. She thought her own family's oddities were among the more extreme but this was crazy.

Miko While the first centipede was still falling, there was the matter being discussed between Miko and the ice mage. He apparently had a pretty reasonable store of mana, given what she'd seen him do so far she could probably get him using his it more effectively and get him working a bit better. "Sou ka, that's good to know. The third centipede hasn't fallen yet, and you could have a pretty important role to play in a bit..." Miko said, she'd noted that Sato Kenta had gone into the monster's mouth but it was already mostly dying, still she could hear those sounds and something else, but it was so fuzzy, it sounded like static, what was that? She also still had her ear open for the top-knot swordsman who claimed the spiders were becoming more active. "Hai!" Miko confirmed. Just when she was about to address it the loud sound of Sato bursting from the creatures head occurred. "Ewww..." Miko managed finally just the same that ice mage was saving her. Her attention was high but that spider was definitely coming for her. "Shit. Thanks, you're awesome. Don't worry about me so much, though. We... have a huge problem headed our way," she said to that bit. She'd started completely ignoring Sato Kenta, tuning him out, aside from looking at him covered in monster guts and frowning. "They're coming we need to move now!" Miko claimed. She wasn't following Kenta, no she was beginning to lead the way back towards Yugi's group, while quick shooting a few spiders on her way. That static like noise had to be the spiders and she definitely didn't want to be here when all of them rolled out.

[Bloodedge]

Yugi didn't have any proper examples of what E-ranks might be in this world, but he presumed they were barely superhuman. An E-rank Mage might have been the Hunter equivalent of a kid with a squirt gun. "Damn that's trash," he thought aloud. As for the 'swordsman' who apparently lived in the area, Maki's comments made Yugi believe Team 1 would be alright ─ or at least Miko would have someone capable of working alongside her at that end. If he was a decent guy, there was less concern for anything hinky as well. "Good. He'll probably be part of the next offense," he commented. The ants he and Maki were taking down seemed... wrong. They weren't taking the initiative to attack. No, they were... seeking shelter? Where were the spiders? He'd been seeing less of them for the past minute or so. Whatever the case, Maki's true curiosity was indeed related to the Sharingan. "The 'how' part is a little wonky. I always had good eyes. I got powers, trained my perception a bit, and boom. Sharingan. Call it Active Learning Plus. Premium subscription shit, y'know?" he joked. "My turn! Two questions. Does anybody know what the boss of this Dungeon is?" he asked, leaving it to only one question for the moment despite having a second loaded.

With Kenta bursting through the centipede's head, Team 1 could easily confirm their victory condition. Of the three remaining members who Kenta thought were under his supervision, the swordsman was the only one who had real words for his outburst. "What were you going to do if you burst a gland in there and coated yourself in venom?" he wondered. Of course, no answer was expected, nor was one given. Kenta's 'subordinates' seemed ready to move along already. The swordsman was content to act as Miko's melee force at the time. The mage, after everything he'd been through thus far, would of course follow the lass and whatever instructions she had. "Right behind, Boss!" the mage said. "What's the situation?" the swordsman asked. All the while, the spiders were gathering and taking note of all who offended them most recently. People like the ice mage who'd so recently assaulted one of their own were becoming prime targets. "Oi! Where are you going?! Our target is dead, group up and get to rendezvous!" Kenta tried to order, though the two remaining males from his team were still sticking closely to the brunette.

[Apollymi]

It was trash. Maki knew that more than most, the way awakenings work, if a mage didn't awaken at at least B-rank they probably wouldn't get any real work. Even in lower ranking Dungeons it'd be better to find a C-rank or something similar to do the majority of the mana related damage. "It really is, I basically have E-ranked mana and if Shidou-kaicho used that alone as a marker I wouldn't be able to work at all," Maki explained of the amount of difference between such things. With the information that this was their first official day, she figured they hadn't encountered a lot of people and wouldn't have any idea of what the outlook for a normal E-rank was. "I was hoping he'd be there at the end. Until I knew for certain that you were capable, I figured he'd most likely be my partner for this," Maki observed of the swordsmen. While they cleared the area, there was a remarkably low number of spiders and the ants didn't seem to be actively engaging. Still she was clearing them in waves keeping a certain radius around them relatively clear as she listened to Yugi's explanation of his eyes. "Sou ka, that's pretty badass. Also a bit unfair, but, you're actually working your way through it and not resting on it, so I can respect it," Maki confirmed of her own type understanding, with Yugi having a 7 percent increase in their Intimacy as they spoke and worked together in this moment. As for the lad's questions she'd answer them though he only asked one immediately. "No idea. When the call went out about the Break, it only said it was an Insect Dungeon... the scouting report belonged to a private Guild so it may not have been shared publicly they owned the rights to it and all," she said casually explaining a bit more of how it worked. "Next..." she added while another swing made her brows furrow.

In the moment after Kenta burst through the mouth of that creature, everyone still alive and present seemed to be a bit dissatisfied by the display. The only one who had words was the swordsman, who questioned what the man would have done if he'd envenomated himself with his display. There was no reasl answer but the point was clear, it was a stupid thing to do, for no apparent reason. The two Miko cared most about were with her as she began her movements towards the other centipede. As for the question posed by the swordsman Miko had an answer. "There are spiders descending here. Like the whole nest worth, so many it sounds like static," Miko confirmed for him. But of course, Sato Kenta was yelling about a rendezvous and all that like he was still in charge here. But Miko wasn't having that, lives were on the line and she didn't have time to play his game. Miko had a passing message. "Sato-san, this place is a death trap, and so is everything forward from here. We're meeting up with the other damage dealers!" Miko exclaimed. He could do what he wanted, but she wasn't going forward into a spider lair without some real damage dealers. "Nii-san, if we go the path the ants came from we'll mostly be unbothered, we can get back to group two with relative ease, just keep an eye out for the spiders coming," Miko claimed.

[Bloodedge]

Maki went on to explain that she possessed mana equivalent to that of an E-rank. Her status as something higher was a matter of skill, allegedly... but Yugi imagined there was more to it than that. It seemed like mana levels were as much a matter of defense as they were one of offense. Someone with actual E-rank mana shouldn't have been capable of damaging B-rank creatures, he rationalized. "Sou... ka?" Yugi said. He'd put that thought away for later ─ another of his long-term observation topics. For now, he'd settle for continuing their assault on ants and the curiosity of disappearing spiders. "Insect Dungeon, ants, spiders, giant centipedes in ascending order of threat level. Two centipedes down, ants acting weird, spiders... hiding?" he rambled. Yugi would proceed to shuffle through his own thoughts between one kill and another, only to realize how many spiderwebs were present in this field so recently opened. It was far too many. There were far too many spiders compared to the number of ants. There were three centipedes who could have been mini-bosses, but... what for? "Oh god-fucking-damnit! Last line of defense under half strength, call back the army..." he muttered while kicking an ant's corpse off his blade. "Second question: date later? Separately, realization: the ants are bottom of the food chain, centipedes left alive for defense, spiders the main creature under... I'm guessing a spider queen boss who just called the kids back because two of the three guard dogs were put down."

While Yugi was finally piecing together the likely boss of this Dungeon, Miko was warning her companions of a coming spider-related threat. The swordsman with her couldn't hear the static she spoke of... yet. Even so, he completely believed her. "You haven't led us astray so far. Unlike that moron," he said about Kenta, who was standing atop the fallen centipede in absolute disbelief. "Fine! Go out there and get yourselves killed then! I'll be nice enough to regroup with the good few left, and we'll try to recover what we can for your families to keep!" Kenta yelled at the fleeting trio. He'd also be leaving the area, headed toward the original meeting point. At the same time, the swordsman was clearing their path of ants as they drew closer to... whatever remained of Team 2. "Don't worry about me. You two keep yourselves alive. The second team had a B-rank fighter with a good reputation for clearing Dungeons. She should still be alive, if nothing else. Probably killed their centipede too."

[Apollymi]

The young woman known as Maki was a person who only boasted an E-rank amount of mana. Even so her physical conditioning was well beyond normal even for Hunters. "Seriously, my brother is a way better example, all muscle no mana is most of the family at this point," she explained quickly. It seemed though the lad was in active thought. The hierarchy of bugs wasn't something she was familiar with, but she couldn't find fault in his thought processes given what she'd observed already. "That is pretty high up on the angry realization list," Maki said as she swept out the area. What was his other question... a look of surprise crossed the girl's face. A blush occurred under the glasses on her face, which she paused to push up for a second before speaking. "You can't just slip that in there like that..." she said. "But if we make it out of this... I'll give you my number," she said almost sheepishly. As for his actual realization, apparently the spiders were being called back and all was going to be that way. "I hope whoever is left doesn't aim to go further then..." she mentioned. Technically speaking where they currently were was pretty safe.

Speaking of aiming for safety, Miko had no intention of going forward with Sato Kenta as the 'leader' of a group. Too many lives had been sacrificed today, she didn't plan to add hers or anyone else's from this point forward. The swordsman reaffirmed his faith referring to the other man as a moron, "I just don't want anyone else to die today," Miko claimed. She didn't think she was the best fit for leader, she just knew she was a better fit than that man. "Sayonara..." Miko said while heading out. She and the two men she were with were apt to move. If that man didn't die, he was about to go through something terrible. All those spiders were converging and she had no desire to be near them without some real damage on hand. What was more as they got a move on, Miko was listening, the swordsman claimed that the B-Rank fighter from the other group had a good clear record and likely was still alive, Miko nodded, given the reference to a girl she made an assumption based on the looks. "The naginata one, with the glasses. It's her and my partner then... assuming the other guys also went stupid," she said having a pretty good idea of what could have happened given Yugi's personality. All the while she was running and shooting ants out of the way. They weren't really trying to stop them but she didn't want them getting hurt. Another couple of snaps occurred as well as she barriered up the pair once more. She had to keep everyone fit enough to run. It wouldn't take too long to get back in a formation like this. "Two Fighters, a mage, me on healing, Nii-san with his sword and hidden technique... that should be fine for a boss rush after the centipede," Miko thought aloud while she ran. Still there were spiderwebs near the area they were entering as she approached she shouted to the other man. "Webs ahead, but so are our other people..." she claimed as they made their way forward.

[Bloodedge]

The Zen'in family was attributed mostly with great physical bodies, but little to no mana. That information wasn't making things any less strange to Yugi. He'd much sooner believe it had something to do with compression, depth within the vessel, or even repurposing that wouldn't show on mana-reading technology. Yugi knew himself and Miko to have plenty of mana for B-ranked individuals presently, but they didn't truly register at all without trying. He also couldn't discredit the idea of there being other Systems somewhere out there in the world. He'd keep thinking about that as more information came along. Perhaps he'd even study Maki directly? Though clearly flustered from his date offer, Maki did agree to share her phone number with him. A quick glance into the System showed a solid 32% Intimacy. "Awesome. We should have reason to finish everything pretty soon. We'll definitely make it out," he assured.

Meanwhile, Miko and her crew were making some headway toward that pair. The swordsman nodded agreement when Maki was described by the girl. She claimed her partner would still be around too. Based on what they'd seen of her, it was easy to believe he was also ridiculous in some way. Her further explanation about the group they may have to work with confirmed her partner was a Fighter-type Hunter, which would be rather useful. They didn't have a Tanker, but the swordsman had faith. Even more faith was harbored by the mage, who was content to follow any instruction Miko gave at this point. "I'll do whatever I can to help! Tell me what to do and I'll do my best!" the mage declared. He was behind by a little bit, not having much physical ability at all. Ah, but he was feeling better than ever ─ not nearly as tired as he expected to be after a few minutes of running. Maybe it was motivation? If only he realized the truth. As they drew closer to the others, the swordsman had something strange come to mind. "Wait... you said you can heal? How good are you? Can you restore body parts?" he asked. There was something he'd been incapable of doing due to the lack of healers present. If anyone remaining could restore a limb, or even some digits... he could be much more useful. While he wondered that, Yugi saw the trio approaching ─ but also a veritable sea of spiders in the distance from whence they came. "There they are. Oi! Did Dickhead bite the dust already?"

[Apollymi]

The lad was obviously one of the thinking types, and Maki had no problem with this given he was also actively using his body as needed. She couldn't fault him for any curiosities he maintained, she figured everyone had them given the newness of this entire situation. They still didn't fully understand the criteria of awakenings nor the truth of special cases. Still, after recovering from being asked on a date, it seemed he had a great deal of faith in the completion of this Dungeon. "Glad you're so confident. That loud mouth Tanker guy had me a bit worried," she said truthfully. She was only here because this had spawned near where she lived, she had no desire to mess up her own completion rating because of something like this.

Meanwhile, Miko and her two followers were moving at a pretty fair pace. Miko was willing to keep thinking a bit longer so as not to put the burden of full planning on her partner. Even so, it seemed she'd gained a follower in that ice mage, at a comfortable companion in the top-knot swordsman. That ice mage claimed he'd do his best and that was the kind of energy that Miko needed. He also took instruction well even if he thought she was weaker than he was. "Hai hai, that's good to know~" Miko chirped. She was running with relative ease, but she'd note the breathing of the others. That mage probably should commit to a bit of gym time. If she hadn't put a Veil on him, she'd assume he'd be even further behind. Still as they ran and put more distance between them and the sea of spiders, Miko heard a question from their resident swordsman, how good of a healer was she? "I think I am pretty decent. That spell I use most often does a bit of healing and regen for surface level injuries," she shared as she ran. "I got another spell today but I've only tested it once, it seems to work best if I understand the parts I am healing... I've never tried regenerating or reattaching limbs, but I did rearrange someone's guts today after accidentally knocking them loose," Miko explained. She didn't know if that would help him, but if he didn't do anything too extreme she was confident in her ability to at least make sure he didn't bleed out. She blased out a thin coating of spiderwebs for them to all run into and she stood at the edge ready to shoot behind her resident mage in case anything was chasing him specifically. As for Yugi's question she scoffed. "I fucking hope so... that guy is such a fucking shit," she said not fully able to relax until everyone necessary was inside this new boundary and they could plan accordingly. "That was mean... but he claimed he was going ahead to the rendezvous point, when I got us running this way, to get away from the spiders, which sound like fucking static when there are that many. I think he was butt hurt no one was listening to him or paying attention to his manly displays," she quickly said to Yugi. Seemingly unsurprised that he was fine and that the green haired girl now looking towards that area was also surprised.

[Bloodedge]

"I bet he did. If it came down to an altercation, though..." Yugi paused for a moment there, turning to scan Maki once more. He simply wanted to confirm some thoughts about the girl, and a quick once-over did exactly that. "Yeah, you could take him," he decided. Kenta didn't seem like he'd be able to strike someone like Maki with that build and weapon choice.

During the journey to regrouping, the swordsman with Miko had reason to be hopeful. If the brunette could heal even enough to keep a severed limb or digit from bleeding out, there was something massive he could do. It seemed she had the ability to restore someone's scrambled organs. That sort of healing could surely be used for his purpose. "That's pretty strong healing ability. Almost what I'd expect of an A-ranker," he replied. "Wait, is that why I've been feeling so much better? Have you been doing something this whole time?" the mage wondered. In a moment, they were close enough to begin discussions with the other group... all two of them. When Yugi addressed Miko about that annoying Tanker, she could only hope the man died. "Hmm. Probably gonna be something to deal with later. There won't be anyone at the rendezvous point unless Team 3 ran back without doing shit. More importantly..." Instead of speaking on the matter, Yugi merely tilted his head toward Team 1's rear. He didn't need Sharingan to see that massive swarm now. In fact, there was something much bigger slowly rising at its center. "Spiders are born from sacs. One sac could have tens of babies, or hundreds... or even thousands. Those sacs don't really get any bigger than the mother, so..." He saw no point in finishing that clause. A bit of basic math would let everyone know what he was getting at while gesturing toward that growing hill in the distance. "Oh, and I can do black lightning now by combining Skills. Couldn't think of a good time to mention that, so... yeah."

[Apollymi]

Apparently, Maki's thoughts about the A-Rank Tanker who'd started all of this, were understandable. Even so, Yugi had the belief that if it came down to an altercation she could win, she gave it a bit of thought and nodded. "Probably, he is one of those 'Rank Elites'. He focuses too much on his own power, he doesn't consider what other people have going on, just what he thinks," Maki said having a pretty good understanding of that man's personality. More so than she knew, given his mistaking that Ice Mage for a Fire Mage.

Speaking of those three, Miko and the swordsman were conversing about her healing ability. She didn't have a lot to go by, as far as seeing other healers and knowing what the tops would be capable of. She had only what she could do for herself, the words of Gojo and those more experienced than her to go by. "Sou ka, I had no basis for knowing that part. I do know I can do alright if I understand though... why is your hidden technique something that's gonna need me?" she asked of the man as they approached. As for her Ice Mage, it would seem he had quite a few things to say, he'd noticed he was feeling better and wondered if it was Miko's doing. "Hai, I have a protection spell I can use on people. It does only little things, a little healing, a little regen, a little status resistance... I just want people to be safe. Don't rely on it, but I am trying to help," Miko asserted. Such was her personality. "Still, I can hear you breathing, you might want get your base stamina up, you don't want to figure out how well you run only in an emergency," she offered the man that bit of kind advice.

As they found their way into the spot safe enough to regroup. Miko saw her partner and that green haired girl and sighed in light relief. Coming to a stop she took a breath and let all the mental stress leading up to this moment wash over her. She felt infinitely better with a couple of solid fighters on hand. And Yugi had something to say about the abandoned Tanker after Miko's outburst. "Older me problem. Are you two okay? Anyone need healing or anything before I decompress for a second?" she asked first and foremost causing Maki's brows to rise. "Iia, I'm good just the normal work amounts but I didn't take any damage," she offered the girl. A snap occurred and a Veil wrapped around her, if only to promote regeneration and a bit of wellness. Yugi likely didn't need it given his own abilities but she'd left the offer open enough while she took a few deep breaths and calmed herself down a great deal. All the while she was listening to the issue with the spiders and looking back. "Ah, there are so many and that one has to be huge. No wonder it sounds like static to me," Miko said as she stood up and stretched, quietly thinking that such a thing would be great for farming levels. What was more, it appeared that Yugi had been making magical discoveries and had done something rather interesting, "Sugei♪~ That's fucking cool♪~" she said about the black lightning which was way cooler than anything else. "I figured out that I can use my own magic to boost even another Hunter's magic and elemental magic combinations work. Oh and silent casting too♪~" she shared her discoveries.