Ch 24-25

One thing that Ryou realized when his theory that Quartz would eventually be able to change form became correct, was that she would need clothes- Magic clothes to be precise. Unfortunately, the only place he knew where those could be acquired was Castle Town.

Fortunately, one fact that Ryou had forgotten was that Almond was now Lord of two villages, one that had a tailor who was not only able to weave magic clothing but also had the necessary equipment to do so. Not only that but unlike what Gentlewood insinuated, Almond knew how to manage, and lead a village by example, so both villages were now doing much better then they were previously. So if such an esteemed leader wanted to abuse a little of that power to give Quartz free clothes, Ryou would not have any objection, especially since magic clothing was expensive.

What Ryou definitely objected too was what came after.

"Explain to me again how this is in any way, shape or form considered proper battle gear?" He asked tiredly. The Bow Hero could feel the beginnings of a headache.

"It absorbs the little lady's magic to augment its defensive capabilities Yuusha-sama." The tailor explained patiently.

"I get that… What I don't understand is why does it have frills? Why does it need frills? It has frills everywhere!" Ryou exclaimed, both of his hands motioning towards the newest addition to his party.

"Because it's aesthetically pleasing." The tailor answered with a small smile on his face. No doubt the man felt proud of his work.

Ryou's hands when for his temples rubbing them lightly, "Look... I won't proclaim to be a fashion specialist, but that isn't the point," the Bow Hero interjected.

"Of course it is!" The tailor lowered himself on one knee, in front of Quartz, hands raising as if presenting a masterful artwork." Look at her, she's beautiful!"

Ryou resisted the urge to groan out loud. It wasn't that the dress wasn't cute, Quartz would make a killing in any Cosplay convention, however, that didn't mean it was a something one should wear in battle.

This! This crap right here is why Motoyasu, and Ren think this is a game! Adding a little more force to his fingers Ryou continued to rub his temples and took another look at Quartz. The girl seemed content in ignoring the ongoing debate, choosing to instead spend her time admiring her new dress.

She looks like a soul reaping Gothic Loli she even as those wings to add to the look… I just have to steal L'Arc's scythe now…

Eyes turning towards the ceiling, Ryou wished for some divine intervention, or some form of enlightenment that let him understand the inhabitants of this world, "Rish please say something…" Ryou pleaded towards the ceiling.

Receiving no answer for a few seconds he turned towards his partner, "Rish..?" He questioned with a frown. Rishia's eyes almost looked glazed, and slowly following her line of sight Ryou finally understood what had enamored his partner so, and dread filled him.

"No!" He shouted. The shout made everyone inside the store jump, even a couple of costumers who turned to look at him startled.

"No! Nope! Not happening! Never!" Ryou announced shaking both his head and crossing his arms in front of him forming an 'X', before cutting the air in front.

"But...But its a Usapil costume!" Rishia said, turning towards him, her eyes almost sparkling, with what could only be her very best puppy eyes look.

Regrettably for his partner, Ryou had a younger sister, who besides being an even bigger Otaku then he was, had mastered that look to perfection, so to avoid being bankrupted every time he spent the day with her, he had developed quite the resistance.

Shaking his head, Ryou was quick to lunch an ultimatum, "Rishia, if you buy that I'm changing your nickname to Weirdo!"

"Fueee! W-W-Weirdo!?" The girls shuttered almost in shock.

"Yes, weirdo!" Ryou declared, nodding his head seriously, "Look…Everyone and their mother know, I hate my title, and most of what comes with it, but the very least we should do is look the part. Do you know what we would look like if someone in my party wears that?!" He finished pointing towards the abomination displayed in the corner.

"We would look pretty." Quartz supplied helpfully, looking up to him.

"No Quartz…" Ryou denied slowly, "…we would look like a circus! And we are not supposed to look pretty, we are supposed to look intimidating." Ryou explained.

The small girl blinked a couple of times, then took another look at her dress, one hand gripping the hem.

"Is Quartz intimidating?" She questioned, still clutching her dress.

The Bow Hero, crossed his arms, pondering before nodding. In dragon form, the small girl had been a sight to behold.

"A little bit?" Rishia supplied in a small voice. Ryou strategically ignored her tone since it was obvious she wasn't getting her costume.

"Without a doubt Quartz-chan!" Almond added from his place in the corner of the shop.

The girl continued to play with the hem of her dress, nodding slowly. "Is Quartz pretty?" She questions lightly.

Is this a trick question?

"Yes, Quartz your pretty," Ryou admitted, wondering where the small dragon was going with her questions.

"Quartz-chan is very cute…" Rishia followed after a moment later. Her voice still possessing a trace of disappointment.

"It is as my darling daughter says! So worry not Quartz-chan!" Almond once again added.

The girl nodded once more, and standing on one foot she twirled around, the skirt dancing with her, before coming to a stop, "Quartz is pretty… But she is still intimidating, so she can get the dress right Onii-shama?"

Said Hero just let his shoulders dropped slightly at the dragon's reasoning. Flawless logic right there...

In the end, Quartz got to keep her black dress. Quartz could change into dragon form so there wasn't that big of a problem even if Ryou wasn't all that happy, though, the costume that Rishia wanted, Usapil or otherwise was where he drew a line and put his foot down. The only way he would even consider such a thing would be if the stats on it completely surpass the ones on her current armor, and as it stood they were much worse.

A few hours later the party observed the entrance to the Northern Cavern, and Ryou let a breath he didn't know he had been holding. Even if they had much more time he hadn't been able to make nearly as much progress as he wanted. Between watching over Quartz, and everything else he was starting to feel a little restless, especially since the wild-life around Northern Village was mostly tame.

"Quartz since you're still new to this I want you to stay in the back, and let me, and Rish deal with anything that we come across," Ryou commanded while approaching the grand entrance. The entrance itself, a giant hole, in the face of the mountain, one of many that set the boundary between, Melromarc, and Faubley.

The small girl nodded, following along. That had been something that Ryou was truly grateful for. Unlike Filo, Quartz was surprisingly obedient, if it didn't involve the topic of food, and rarely showed much in the way of emotions, unless she was getting petted. Another thing was that she was incredibly intelligent. Ryou knew Dragons were supposed to be full of wisdom, but Quartz had learned how to talk just by hearing them in dragon form, and that happened in days.

Turning to his partner, Ryou saw that she had come to a pause a little behind them a slightly apprehensive look on her face.

"You okay there Rish?" He questioned.

Rishia shook her head slightly, and tried to put on a determined expression, however her apprehension still shined through, "Y-Yes, it's just that father, and the other kids always told scary stories about this place…" She admitted, and Ryou understood the feeling.

It's like that old abandoned house in your neighborhood, the one that spikes the imagination of every child, and is some times a stage for imaginary horror stories…

"It's fine Rish. You aren't a child anymore, nor are you weak." Taking another look, at the entrance, he couldn't completely erase the small spark of apprehension, at what might lie beyond in its deeps. "Besides if worse comes to worst, I'll just teleport us out…" Ryou finished. That would be a last-ditch solution, because of the cooldown, but served as a pretty good emergency escape if needed.

"Right." She said looking slightly more reassured.

"Already, let's check this place out." And with that Ryou took a tentative step into the cavern.

Taking a few steps, he waited for his vision to adjust. What lay before him, was expected if slightly disappointing. The hole opened, into a rather big open area, mostly filled with grey rock walls. Parts of mining equipment half-buried in the gravel, underneath their feet were visible, but nothing Ryou could use to unlock a new bow.

"Would it be too much to ask for a stick of dynamite or two?" Ryou questioned out-loud, kicking the head of a pickaxe out of the gravel. His eyes, following the long walls of stone, that showed signs of having been stripped mine.

"W-Why didn't you absorb some of the explosive powder from Lute village?" Rishia questioned, coming to a stop near him.

With a pointed look, his status window came into view, "I did, it didn't unlock anything." Ryou said. Scrolling down his inventory, he finally found what he had been looking for, and placing his hand forward he brought it out. Mostly black, with a circular glass panel around it, it looked like a completely normal item, if it weren't for the bluish marking on it.

Human-powered Oil-Lanterns, this is what efficiency looks like. According to what one of the merchants had explained, they were magically powered mostly. Ryou had been surprised, that they work on a very similar concept as normal lamps. Gathering magic from the user, to power the light spell imbued, before circulating it back to the user, that way the expenditure would be minimal.

Handing one to Rishia, the girl was quick to strap it to her hip. That was another plus of the Magic Lamps, they didn't need to be completely in contact with the user, to draw magic. After also handling one to Quartz, the small girl, tilted her head, as the interior sparked to life, the light illuminating her face. Her eyes shining with childlike curiosity, as she waved the lamp around, her eyes following the light.

Ryou watched, as she continued, twirling around with the lamp, her eyes glued to the light, "Are you some kind of dragon-moth Quartz?" He questioned in a joking manner, patting his lamp, and it too burst into life.

"Fuee, Ryou that's mean…" Rishia chastised him however, it was clear her mind wasn't in it, as her gaze moved from one side to the other, watching the shadows cast by Quartz Lamp with apprehension.

The dragon girl came to a stop from whatever dance she was doing, "It's so pretty Onii-shama, it reminds Quartz of stars." Then her eyes left the light to look at the Bow Hero, her head tilting in confusion, "…Quartz is Quartz, and Quartz is a… dragon?"

Why did you state it as a question? Don't tell me she's having an identity crisis, a little more than a week after being born… Ryou wondered in amusement, moving slowly into the depths, " That's nice and all, but stop playing with it. Not only was it expensive, but if you break it, we don't have another, so take care of that one."

"Okay…" She answered, her eyes still followed the light very few seconds.

Slowly their lights illuminated, the other side of the entrance area, and Ryou came to a spot near three distinct tunnels. The left one seemed, to go up at a steep angle. The other ones were also angled, but much less severely, and when deeper, probably into lower levels.

Nothing like an old classic way of choosing things like these… Eeny, mini, miny, moe, screw me over wherever I go… Ryou singed in his head, finishing in the middle path.

"Well let's go that way…" Ryou said motioned with his hand towards the chosen tunnel. With a flick of his wrist, he griped his Great Fanged Bow. Rishia soon followed suit, pulling her rapier out.

After walking for a few minutes, down the tunnel hardly big enough to fit Quartz in her dragon form, Ryou decided to break the silence, the darkness, and the atmosphere itself slightly getting to him, "So Rish, since your such an expert in mining, care to tell me what should I be on the lookout for?"

The girl in question jumped a little, at being addressed, lightly biting her lip, her eyes moving towards him for a second, before they returned to the front, "M-Mithirl veins or deposits are easy to i-identify… They shine, with a metallic blue tint…" She paused, eyes moving towards the walls, for a moment, "You could try using your digging s-skill, but…" She trailed off, looking upwards.

Ryou's eyes also went upwards, and he clicked his tongue, "Yeah, I get what you're saying, this doesn't look like the most stable of tunnels, for me to be poking random holes in…"

His own knowledge about mining and cave exploring wasn't the best, but the stone ceiling above them didn't look all that secure.

"But seriously Rish, where did this interest in mining came from?" Ryou questioned, taking a short glance at Quartz, who seemed to be sniffing the air, before nodding to herself.

"L-Like I said, there were these stories a-about this Cavern, and even if it was scary, t-there was a part of me that was curious, but since we were forbidden from coming here, I just tried to find i-information about it…" She explained, eyes lowering slightly.

So you decided to study every bit of knowledge you could get your hands on to satiate your curiosity… Your such a nerd Rish…He commented mentally, almost fondly, before his eyes come back to the front, and the Bow Hero came to a stop.

In front of the group stood another intersection that branched off into what looked like five different tunnels, all looking the same, in Ryou's eyes.

"I figured this would happen…" Ryou murmured mostly to himself, yet his voice echoed slightly. Opening his Status window he noted that his mini-map was showing only a displaced image almost like static.

How convenient… The moment I need it, it doesn't work…

"R-Ryou we should mark the way, or we will get lost…" Rishia advised, a small tremor still present in her voice.

"Drilling shot!" The arrow flew from his bow, and hit the ground in front of them, creating a swallow trench nearly three meters long. Eyeing the now newly made trench, Ryou examined it for a few seconds, before he unleashed a second shot straight down, at the beginning of the trench. leaving a slightly deeper hole at the beginning of the trench.

"Like this, we will know what way we came from," Ryou said, walking over the trench, and continuing through the middle tunnel

They kept walking for over half an hour, passing other multiple intersections, the air was mostly stagnant, and the only sound besides small talk about mining was their breathing and the gravel beneath them.

Finally in what fell like forever to Ryou, light could be seen at the end of the tunnel of one tunnel, however since the air was still mostly stagnant, Ryou doubted it was an exit. A couple of minutes later his suspicions were confirmed, however, what he saw took both his and his party member's breath away.

Exiting the tunnel, the cave opened in a big open area, far bigger than the initial area. Stalagmites made of pure crystal were present in every inch of the high ceiling, the strangest thing however were the countless green-blue lights coming from everywhere, lightning up the entire cave.

"Fuee! It's beautiful!" Rishia whispered breathlessly.

Ryou couldn't help but agree, his eyes locking on the small crystalline lake in the middle.

It's almost like we entered an alien planet, "It really is amazing…" Ryou whispered, taking in the sight. He doubts that he would ever see such a sight in his old world. Almost like the night sky, only underground.

The movement broke Ryou out of his reverie, and he saw Quartz approaching one of the lights, from the corner of his vision before picking it up. Deciding to investigate what was giving off the light he approached the girl, yet to his complete disbelief, a second later she shoved whatever it was into her mouth, before, munching on it with a few crunching sounds.

Both him and Rishia were stupefied at the sight, mouth dropping open.

The small girl wiped her mouth, with the back of her hand. "Tastes weird…" Her soft voice echoed in the cave.

"Quartz… What the hell did you just eat?" Ryou asked slowly. Something that gave out that kind of light could not be healthy in Ryou's mind.

"It was a weird shiny thing with lots of legs Onii-shama…"

Lots of legs..? What? Ryou questioned, before approaching one of the lights and crouching near it. Observing it, he saw it was what looked like a beetle, with a semi-transparent oval area in its back, where the light passed shine through.

Throwing the dragon girl a slightly disgusted side-look, Ryou was ready to chastise her, however, Rishia beat him to it, with a look that matched his. "Quartz-chan you can't eat that! You have to be careful what you eat, or you'll get sick…" Rishia explained, crouching near the girl.

The small dragon girl tilted her head in confusion."But Onee-shama. How will Quartz know if it's tasty?" The Dragon girl inquired, eyes peering intensely towards Rishia.

"T-That's… Y-You..." The green-haired girl turned towards him for help seemingly at a loss.

Ryou raised an eyebrow before shrugging like it had nothing to do with him. "Ask your Onee-sama, she's the expert."

Rishia, mouth dropped lightly, looking even more lost, "Fuee… I don't… I'm not… I think this is something Ryou should teach." She said, in an attempt to shift the responsibility back to him.

Ryou shook his finger towards his party member, "Nope! She's your responsibility to Onee-sama, so have fun!" Ryou chirped in a happy tone. He could already see it, Quartz grabbing all kinds of critters, and invertebrates, before asking Rishia if they were tasty.

Rishia did try to fight back the decision a little, but between Ryou's pointed look, and Quartz hopeful one, it had been a losing battle from the start.

With that issue settled, Ryou brought the beetle near the yellow gem in his bow. Like any item, it was vacuumed, and the expected warning window appeared.

[Bio-luminescent Beetle Bow- Common - Sealed- Equipment Bonus - Night Vision Bonus (Small) - Special Effect - Bio-luminescent Light Emission]

"Change Bow: Bio-luminescent Beetle Bow!" Ryou ordered. A second later he had to squint his eyes. The bow had changed into a light green one, with small transparent crystals, that seemed to emit the same light as the beetles, only hundreds of times far more intense.

See, you morons… This is why you should try everything you can… His new bow, while not strong, or even something that could be considered combat-oriented was definitely beyond useful.

The bow also gave a boost to night vision, and that was where some strategic thinking came into play. Even if Ryou could see more or less in almost pitch dark, his partners couldn't or at least Rishia wasn't able to, but now with this new bow, the problem was more or less solved. Such a thing would be a bonus if they wanted to expand their grinding time on occasions.

Well, those two only think in game terms, so perhaps they are even sure that they will respawn if they die…

Rising, Ryou aimed the bow down, to get the light off his eyes, before ordering, "Alright let's check this place out."

His party fawned out, and Ryou took look at the crystal formations in the ceiling. A moment later an arrow found its target, breaking it in pieces, that fell down on the ground. Picking a small piece of crystal, hardly bigger than his hand, Ryou observed the gemstone. On closer inspection, he could see that it didn't reflect the light from the beetles, but the crystal itself shined with a soft blue glow.

[Blue Mascgite Crystal]

Never heard of this… Probably some kind of magical crystal, if the way it is shining is of any indication… Ryou considered before letting his Legendary Weapon absorb the new material.

[Mascgite Bow - Common- Sealed - Equipment Bonus +3 Magic, Magic Defense Bonus(Small), Magic Effectiveness Bonus (Small), Special Effect - MP Bonus(Small), MP Cost Reduction Bonus(Small)]

So it is a magic crystal, and if I take the abilities from the bow into consideration, It's probably a good idea to save some of them for future upgrades, especially for Rish... The Bow Hero decided before picking a few more crystals and shoving them in his inventory.

Exploring the rest of the vast area, Ryou was starting to feel slightly weary, they had gone pretty deep without either opposition nor mithril something that he found strange. He had expected even a couple of monsters.

Approaching the other side of the area, circling the small lake, Ryou converged with his party peering into another tunnel that continued into the depths.

"Onii-shama something smells bad in there," Quartz said, her little nose scrunching up at a smell Ryou couldn't detect.

"Does it? I can't really…" Ryou stopped for a second, peering into the tunnel, "... What's that sound?" He asked confused. It sounded familiar but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"A pig? Here?" Rishia wondered out loud slightly confused.

It finally clicked in Ryou that was what he was hearing, although that only added to the confusion.

How did a pig end up in this place? Might it be the legendary pig-man?

Slowly making his way into the tunnel he motion for the others to follow. As Ryou walked deeper the sound became clearer, a mixture of grunts, and snorts, definitely what one would expect from a pig.

The tunnel then made an almost ninety-degree curve, a soft light emanating from just beyond sight. Ryou made a stopping motion with his hand, before taking a peek. He grew slightly annoyed though when Rishia also peered from behind him and shot them a look when Quartz joined the fray.

Walking into plain sight Ryou examined the creature not even five meters away from him, for a moment before giving voice to the thoughts of everyone present.

"You… Are by far the ugliest thing I have ever seen in my life…" Ryou accused, his face scrunched up in almost disgust.

The creature seemed to turn in his direction for a moment, before returning to munch on the black goo on the ground.

Not only is it ugly but it's also an ass apparently...

The creature while sounding exactly like a pig looked nothing like it if anything it looked something straight from a horror story. About as tall as Ryou was, it stood on four legs, in a dirty green color. It had no eyes from what the bow hero could see, what he could see however was that half of its oval body was nothing but a giant maw for of spiky teeth. On the other end, were four tails, or tentacles like protrusions, waving in the space. Three of the tentacles ended in a flat shape, with one side full of spikes. The last one ended in some kind of bulbous like organ, that flickered with yellow light.

Looking at the flickering light, Ryou, "I wonder if this is a terrestrial version of a fish from the abyssal zones…" Ryou muttered, aiming at the monster.

"Onee-shama is that tasty?" Quartz questioned, a finger on her lip eyeing the creature.

"Fuee… I don't think so." Rishia answered slight hesitantly. Her eyes also on the monster that was far too comfortable ignoring them.

Ryou continued to eye the monster, his bow lined up with the creature's body for almost half-a-minute, before he lowered it a moment later. Taking one hesitant step, Ryou slowly made his way towards the creature, until he was in touching distance.

"R-Ryou what are you doing?" Rishia questioned. The green-haired girl had followed him until she was halfway between the curve, and the monster, her arm slightly raised in his direction. Quartz tilted her head, right next to her still eyeing the creature.

This is really triggering me… Extending his hand, Ryou poked the creature's body a couple of times. It's skin both soft and hard at the same time, a strange mixture. Tilting his head in confusion, the Bow Hero rested his palm on the creature, feeling it breathing. The Eldritch Pig, only turned its maw slightly, before returning to eat whatever black substance it was eating.

"This is freaking weird," Ryou said. His palm still resting on the creature's body, his eyes traveling towards the tentacles on the back.

"Y-Yes it is! The fact that your petting that monster, it's very weird!" Rishia exclaimed incredulously.

Frowning, Ryou shook his head slightly, "That's not it Rish. This thing isn't aggressive at all, Why?" The Bow Hero wondered. Every single monster he had come across had been aggressive towards humans, even Usapil's had no problem trying to attack people, yet one of the most menacing creatures he had come across, Quartz withstanding, was passive.

"I don't know… Quartz-chan come back here!"

The small dragon girl completely ignored Rishia's order and came to a stop near Ryou crouching. Raisin her small hand she also poked the creature with her finger a few times. "When are we going to eat it Onii-sama?" She asked a moment later, her eyes skin on the creature.

"Is that all you think about?" Ryou muttered, lowering his arm to the side.

Finally finished with its meal, the creature turned around. Ryou leaned lightly back, as one spiky tentacle passed near his face. The creature slowly made it's way down the tunnel, the flickering light slightly illuminating it.

Alright then, take me to your leader… Slowly, Ryou began to follow the creature, motioning with its hand for his team to follow, "Come on let's see where this guy is going."

Rishia fell into step with him an instant later, almost tripping in the gravel." Fuee… W-Why are we following it?!" She whispered, her eyes going from the flickering light in front of them, to the Bow Hero's face.

Ryou shrugged his shoulder, but his lips went up a little, "This guy picked my interest that's all."

"T-This is definitely a b-bad idea…" She said, but her voice sound resign.

"There's nine, out of ten chances that your right Rish…" Ryou allowed. He knew that following something out of a horror story was bound to end badly, but maybe something good would come out of it.

The party continued to follow the strange passive creature in silence after that, through a myriad of tunnels. It wasn't until they crossed into a new tunnel, that Ryou realized, that the cavern walls, had been slowly changing in composition, if before they were made of mostly common stone, now the entire tunnel was made from white rock, something that seemed to affect how the light reflected, even the ground was filled with white stones, of different sizes, but most of them somewhat round.

Probably marble… Crouching on the ground, Ryou grabbed one small piece of white round rock. The Bow Hero inspected the rock from various sides, with an inquisitive look. From what he knew of geography round rocks mostly came from the effect of water eroding them, yet there were no signs of an underground river having passed through the tunnel, especially since the walls didn't show any type of erosion.

Bringing the small rock to his bow, he raised an eyebrow when nothing happened.

"I was expecting to unlock a Marble Bow, maybe with a stone crafting skill attached to it or something…" Ryou muttered, throwing the stone to the side.

Rishia watched the stone path as it hit the side of the tunnel, "Stone crafting… I might have some books back home if you're interested…"

Ryou turned to Rishia exasperated, "Rishia, I can't read yet remember? Besides I was jokin..!"

Squeal!

The cry from the pig almost agonizing echoed within the tunnel, followed by a sound almost primal of something being torn apart. Ryou turned wide-eyed, to the front, only to catch the last flicker of light amid the darkness, before it was extinguished.

Eyes narrowing, he raised his bow, to flash some light an instant later towards where the pig had been.

Jesus… The Eldritch Pig, or what was left of it had been torn apart, into something that had almost no resemblance. Blood splattered on the walls near it, running down in small rivulets, staining the white wall in red.

"R-Ryou…" The fearful whisper came from slightly further behind, but Ryou refused to take his eyes off the front. However, try as he might he couldn't find the culprit.

Where are you, you bastard… Eyes on the tunnel in front of him, that was mostly straight, he found no traces of what had killed the passive creature. Raising his eyes to the ceiling proved to be just as fruitfulness.

I remember this feeling though… Ryou concluded as every hair on his arm stood to no end. The feeling of being hunted.

"Onii-shama, this place smells bad. Everywhere smells bad…" Quartz noted.

At the sound of the dragon girl's voice, Ryou turned to look at her, flashing his bow down the where he had come.

It happened in an instant. The moment he had turned, he felt a shiver go through his spine, and without hesitation the bow hero dove forward. His eyes lock with Rishia's, whose expression changed into one of horror.

Son of a Bitch! Ryou hissed, as plain bloomed from his back, a burning sensation expanding from the middle of his back until his hip.

Touching down, Ryou rolled on his back, gritting his teeth trying to ignore the pain, as he aimed.

"Flame Shot!" The flaming arrow detonated on the creature's torso before his eyes could register what had he hit, leaving only a flaming pair of pale humanoid legs, hardly attached.

The sound of metal clashing with something had him turned his head slightly, and he found his partner blocking a claw with her rapier, her arms shaking from the effort of keeping the creature at bay.

A moment later, a small barrage of arrows, punctured holes in its side, one severing a pale clawed arm. The arm dropping to the ground, a strange appendage, that separated at the elbow, forming another new arm.

The action gave Rishia time to find her balance. The other clawed arm swung, but the green-haired girl weaved under it, her rapier coming forward, stabbing the larger humanoid creature in the chest. Blood squirted from the new puncture wound, and the girl pushed the rapier deeper with both hands, as the monster screeched. A whooshing sound echoed, and a new hole appeared in the monster's faceless visage courtesy of Ryou.

Rishia took a look a the Bow Hero, her eyes widening slightly. Grabbing the handle of her weapon with both hands, she lowered into a stance, "As source of thy power, I order thy. Decipher the laws of Nature, and cut the air in front of me!".

Ryou knowing what followed lowered himself parallel to the ground.

"Faust Wind Cutter!" The tip of the rapier shined brilliantly, as she swung it in an arc in front of her, a translucent scythe of wind following after, bisecting another humanoid monster, as cutting deeply into a second.

Coming to his feet, Ryou took in the front of the tunnel were Rishia had shot her spell. Clenching his teeth, he quickly aimed, "Rapid Flame Shot!"

Three flaming arrows flew towards the three imminent threats, detonating in domes of fire that filled most of the tunnel in front of him.

"Fuee! Ryou stop! You'll bring the entire tunnel down!" Rishia shouted in panic, as a couple of white boulders fell from the ceiling, courtesy with his skill.

Shit, she's right… But where the hell are these silent hill rejects coming from? Ryou demanded mentally looking towards the front as the fire dissipated, leaving only charred remains.

A crashing sound, had him look backward, and he saw one of the faceless creatures slamming into the ceiling. The Impact so great that it burst open, blood raining down on the ground and on Quartz who still had her fist extended upwards.

Turning towards him the small girl sent him a wave, that would have been reassuring if she wasn't coated in blood. An instant later a shadow appeared behind the girl, a claw coming for her head, yet even before he could begin to issue a warning, her tail lashed out, without even looking, she slammed it into the creatures mid-section, and the monster blurred, disappearing into the darkness, followed by a crashing sound echoing in the distance.

With no more present threats, Ryou surveyed his surroundings, from side to side," Did one of you see where they came from?"

"Fuee! No… One moment they weren't there, the other they just appeared out of nowhere!" Rishia exclaimed, mimicking Ryou, eyes searching for signs of more monsters.

"Onii-shama, there's more…Many, many more…" Quartz added, sniffing the air with a slight frown. Both her small fists and her hair raked with dark red.

Do they come from the ground, or are they just invisible? Ryou wondered, backing away until he was near Rishia. Still locking every inch of the tunnel from clues, the Bow Hero put his brain into overdrive trying to understand where the monsters had come from.

According to Quartz, there's more, we just can see them… The moment he thought about it, Ryou was hit with another thought. Crouching he placed his hand on top of one of the monsters, willing his bow to absorb it.

[Marble Horror Mimick Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - 6+Attack, Hiding Bonus(Small)- Special Effect - Monster Lure, Monster Attraction Range Bonus(Medium)]

"Marble Mimick…", Ryou muttered, his eyes widening, as he lowered his gaze to the ground. Kicking one of the small round rocks lightly, he watched it rolling on the ground before it came to a stop. A moment later the rock shook a little by itself, before coming to stop. Head moving slowly, eyes on the ground, the Bow Hero took in the countless amount of round stones just in his immediate area. Bringing his bow he pointed it further down the tunnel, eyes on the ground, repeating the action in the opposite direction, another shiver crossing his body.

Shit… "Their hiding as rocks, their mimic type monsters!" Ryou warned, raising his bow, and backing away towards a wall.

"Ryou, if what Quartz's saying is true, we have to leave!" Rishia pleaded, also backing away towards the wall.

His back hitting the marble wall, Ryou gave his surrounding a quick look, before taking a side glance to the dragon girl, "Quartz get over here slowly. Rishia blow any rocks near us with your Wind Blow spell!"

Quartz slowly made her way, carefully sidestepping the suspicious rocks. The moment she reached them, Rishia how had been chanting her spell, released it in a cone in front of them aim at the ground. The wind spell blowing every rock near them, along with kicking up a dust cloud.

There's no way every single rock is one of them because if that's the case there are hundreds, if not a thousand of them… Ryou rationalized, Bow lock on the dust cloud as it slowly dispersed.

"Okay, I'm going to try something, Quartz get ready to sneeze," Ryou ordered.

The small girl inhaled, her cheeks puffing, as Rishia griped her rapier tighter.

Here goes nothing…

"Change Bow! Marble Horror Mimic Bow!" With the com and, a pure white bow materialized in the bows heroes grip, the arc of the bow finishing in two appendages eery reminiscent of the monster's arms.

A moment passed, and Ryou felt his hopes rising, only to be completely dashed, the next second.

"Hell no! Teleport: Northern Village!" The scream came out of his mouth, along with a tilt of his head, as a claw impaled itself right next to it, and in the next moment, his vision was filled with blue.

As the blue light disappeared, and the gates of Northern Village came on again into sight, the Bow Hero took a deep breath, to calm himself. Feeling some weight on his shoulder, he took a look, his face morphing into one of disgust, as he took note of the extra appendage still clapped in it. Grabbing the severed arm, he almost threw it into the distance before resigning himself, and let it drop to the ground.

The Bow Hero let himself drop on the grass, taking note of his party members. Rishia had already taken a seat and looked no worse to wear if a little out of breath. Quartz, he had to hold a small snort at the sight. The small Dragon Girl also looked fine, not counting having a severe claw between her teeth, and was shaking it rapidly, growling almost like a rabid dog.

"Well, that ended in failure," Ryou commented airily.

"T-That was scary…"She commented. Her eyes were still wide. Taking a breath she shook her head. "...It c-couldn't be helped though, there were too many."

I could have dealt with them if I was alone… The traitorous thought crossed the Bow Hero's mind. The Marble Mimicks move rather slowly and didn't appear to capable of jumping, so it would have been easy for him to jump onto the ceiling with his gripping skill, and take them out one by one if needed.

Almost immediately had the thought crossed his mind, Ryou shook his head almost furiously. It wasn't that his party members were slowing down, quite the contrary, it was fate once again locking him in a situation that he had been at a great disadvantage.

"Well, at least we know what we are dealing with… Now we just need to figure out how to deal with a thousand enemies without the usage of unreasonable amounts of explosives…" He rationalized out loud, having his hand lazily in the air.

"Fuee! We are going back?!" Rishia exclaimed in horror.

At the sound of her voice, Ryou lifted himself into a seated position, to look at the green-haired girl, before scoffing light, "Well obviously. I'm not leaving without getting that mithril, isn't that the entire point why we went there…"

"Onee-shama is scared," Quartz interjected, waving the severed claw in the air.

Turning to look at the small girl, Rishia eyes fell on the appendage for a few moments, "Fueee! Of course I'm scared! There's no reason to take that risk when it isn't even worth it!" She continued her voice a pitch higher.

Ryou closed his eyes for a brief moment, the Shadow Maid words still very much present in the corner of his mind.

"Because you were hesitating!"

"You are the wisest, and the most prudent of the Four, there's no doubt about it, but you were poking the ground in front of you with a stick before stepping on it!"

"I saw you! I'm almost always following you! You were even afraid of stepping out of Castle Town! You have the potential to be an amazing ally and the strongest among the four of you for sure, but there's a fine line between being cautious and being a coward, and guess to what side you were leaning towards?! How can we trust a hero to save us, if he's even afraid of his own shadow!"

Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes again, "Rish… I understand where you are coming from, I really do but…" Another deep breath, "...but this is something I have to do. We have to do."

A frown made itself apparent in her face, as she questioned, "Why?"

Ryou took a moment, before replying, "Because among the four legendary heroes… I'm the biggest coward of them all." The Bow Hero admitted, releasing a chuckle a moment later, one hand rubbing his face.

"It doesn't matter if I try to cover it up with nice words like I'm being prudent, or I'm being logical, in the end that's the harsh truth. It also doesn't matter if the other two somewhere in their mind think they there immortal, or if Naofumi is just touched in the head… No, perhaps because he is the Tate-no Yuusha, he figured it's a given that he is going to get hurt… Maybe that's part of the reason why I was chosen to be the Yumi-no Yuusha. To have the ability to just stay out of harm's reach…"

Rising off the ground, Ryou dust himself. Taking the frown on his partner's face, that appeared to have gotten more severe, he continued, "Rish I already told you the story about what happened in my first week here."

Rishia nodded slightly, "T-The wolves…"

"Yeah, with the wolves… The same thing happened with Gentlewood, and with the Chimera at the wave… Unless I'm not given a choice, my first instinct is always the same." Looking upwards towards the sky, his lips turned down, "That's who I am, but in there lies the problem… This place… The fact that I'm the Yumi-no Yuusha, and this world will not allow me to be me, that's why I have to change… That's why even if it's dangerous we have to do this. Perhaps you're right and its a meaningless risk, and it might not be worth it, but it's still something we have to do."

Slowly the Bow Hero turned towards Northern Village gates.

"Think of it this way. At least we know what we are dealing with now, so let's pull resources, and figure out how to deal with this situation." The Bow Hero finished. Making his way into the village, he came to a stop by the sound of Rishia's voice.

"A-And if we can't?" She took a breath, eyes rising to look at the Bow Hero's back. "Find a way to deal with it, I mean."

"Then…" Ryou's eyes narrowed, as he clenched his fist. "...I'll just brute force my way through them if that's what it takes..."

Fuuee… Ryou somehow this feels like cheating…" Rishia said, her tone almost disappointed.

Now three hours after the party had returned from their failure in the Mithril Mines, Ryou had come up with a couple of ideas that needed testing. One of those ideas led him to have Rishia bring out her college days alchemist set out of the storage.

Shaking a beaker like glass container, Ryou eyed the bluish solution, before replying, "Put a sock in it, Rish. You know that I can only translate simple stuff, so it would take me all week just to get the process of making Magic-Recovery Potions down."

The girl bit her lip, returning her gaze to the book, "Still it doesn't feel right…" she murmured.

Ryou pored the liquid into three smaller flasks, covering them with the lid."Damn honor students and their ethics," He whispered in annoyance.

"What?" She questioned.

"Nothing. For now, I'm taking a short cut until I can read, and it's not like we have all the time in the world to do this the right and proper way." Ryou explained.

Grabbing the two flasks from two different groups he eyed them both. One had blue clear liquid, the other very much the same besides the small leaves that could be seen floating within.

[Magic-Recovery Potion]

"You said that if we filter them, and then add the leaves it would boost the potency right?" Ryou asked.

The girl clapped her hands and nodded, "Yes, it says so in the book."

Taking another look at the other potion, Ryou focused on it.

[Magic-Recovery Potion]

Its the same thing, yet I can appraise the quality of the herbs, and I know that Naofumi could somehow see the difference in quality in different things, that's why he knew he was getting scammed by the church of the three heroes… Its the same with monsters levels, I kind of remember that he could also see their levels, but for some reason I can't… I'm missing something here, Ryou realized annoyed.

"Onii-shama I'm back." Quartz greeted taking a seat on a chair at the table.

"So, how did it go?" Ryou asked, expectantly.

"Quartz sneezed these many times," she replied opening both hands, eight fingers raised. " Then everything was spinning, so she stopped."

Ryou let out a small laugh, "Quartz your suppose to breathe, between shots or you'll pass out from lack of air." He replied.

Opening his party menu he took in his smallest member MP bar, which was down to a little more than halfway.

She can arguably fire fifteen breaths at full MP if I take into consideration passive MP regeneration. That's more than I was expecting… Ryou considered.

Grabbing a flask, he handled it to Quartz, "Here drink this." Ryou said.

The small girl eyed the potion, shaking it slightly, before gulping it down, her MP Bar rising back to full.

"Fuee, you want to set them on fire?" Rishia questioned, finally understanding the need for the potions.

Ryou inclined his head slightly, "It's a possibility, as long as it doesn't outright explode, and we avoid getting surrounded we're good. But before that, I want to visit Gentlewood's Blacksmith, might as well look for an apothecary while we are at it." Ryou proposed, shoving another vial into his inventory.

"There is one if I remember correctly..." Rishia added, closing the book.

"Good. I want to figure out a way to assess the quality of my potions. I know for a fact Naofumi can do it, so it's an ability from the legendary weapons, but maybe there are other ways." Ryou explained, finally finished with his task.

Going around the table he patted Quartz on the head and motioned her to follow him with Rishia catching up a second later.

"You could have asked Naofumi-sama…"

Ryou shrugged, opening the main door, and letting Quartz pass. "Never came up, so I forgot about it."

Rishia fell in silence after that, content in just following the Bow Hero and the small dragon girl who had a light spring in her steps, as she crossed the dirt roads of Northern Village.

When they reach the gates a thought crossed her mind, one she vocalized, "Ryou… Are we walking all the way to Gentlewood?" She asked. The Bow Hero could probably run all the way there, but she couldn't.

"Of course not," Ryou replied amused.

That only served to add to the girl's confusion, "Then how?"

Ryou's eyes settle on the small dragon girl, a small smile on his face.

Quartz tilted her head to the side, her eyes meeting his. "Hmm?"

"Fuueeeeeee!" Rishia screamed in panic.

"Now this is traveling in style! Who the hell needs overweight Chocobos when you have a dragon!" Ryou announced in glee.

"Please Quartz-chan slow down!" The green varied begged from her place behind Ryou, her grip tightening around his waist.

Ryou glanced behind him, enjoying the dust cloud Quartz was leaving behind, as she dashed forward, the trees zooming by.

"Ohh come on Rish, live a little will you," Ryou said with a smile, turning to the front and patting the dragon on the back.

Feeling the go-ahead, Quartz appeared to shift gears, lowering her head and folding her wings.

"Fuueeee! I'm more worried about living too little!" Rishia screamed back, before she blinked, raising her hand, one finger pointing to the front. "Quartz-chan look out!"

The dragon in question released a breath like a scoff before she lashed with her hind legs. A moment later she was sailing through the air, ignoring the two screams on top, one of fear, another of excitement.

Touching down, the dragon turned her head around to look at the carriage behind her. However, it was the creatures pulling the vehicle that made her come to a stop, her yellow slitted eyes narrowing.

"Kweh!" Almost in a choir, the filorials started squeaking, pulling on their reins, their feathers rufling in a sign that screamed aggression.

Quartz flapped her wings in agitation, rearing her head back. A roar came the next instant, and the Bow Hero had a feeling that Quartz had infused it with magic, his eyes widening when both filorials toppled over, and the poor traveler, was pushed inside the carriage by an unseen force.

"Stupid birds…"

Quartz's voice echoed inside the Bow Hero's mind, his fist flying to cover his mouth, head lowering to hide the silent laugh that threatened to escape.

"Quartz-chan!" Rishia rebuked, jumping out of the dragons back.

Crouching down near the Filorials she placed a shaky hand on top of one, releasing a sigh a moment later, "They are just passed out from shock…" She then turned her head towards the dragon, eyes filled with disapproval. "... Quartz-chan why did you do this?"

"They were annoying," The dragon answered her voice mostly bland.

Rishia mouth dropped slightly, before she shook her head and went to check on the traveler who was still sprawled on the floor of the carriage.

"Quartz we have to go apologize to that man," Ryou whispered to the dragon, still trying to suppress the smile on his face.

"Why? Quartz doesn't feel sorry, and neither does Onii-shama…"

Ryou's hand once again went to cover his mouth, even when his other chopped the dragon lightly on the head, "Quite you! Don't say anything or your sister will be nagging us for the rest of the trip." He admonished in a hushed tone.

On one side I'm dreading the moment she meets with Filo... On the other I'm curious to witness the chaos that will be unleashed upon this world…Ryou admitted, his eyes moving from the downed filorials that were breathing heavily to Quartz who was still looking at them with half lid eyes.

After they had thoroughly apologized to the traveling merchant, although only one particular member in the party truly meant it. The trio made their way to Gentlewood village, making their first stop at the apothecary, a run down shop that had seen better days with withered wood shelves that almost threatened to collapse under the weight of their merchandise.

Now Ryou watched as the owner, inspected every potion the Bow Hero had produced and separated them into groups.

"This is quite the varied assortment you have brought me, Yuusha-sama." The man commented, inspecting a bottle of Soul-Healing Water with a serious expression. Releasing a sigh, he placed it down near three others.

Arms crossed over the counter, the Bow Hero's eyes moved from the bottles to the man's face. "I have been meaning to dip my hand into potion brewing, not just healing ones." Eyes once again moving down to the different groups, Ryou straightened himself, rolling a shoulder. "I take it you have been separating them in order of quality, right?"

The man nodded absently, picking another bottle and bringing it to eye level for closer inspection. "Indeed... Like I said, a very varied assortment you brought me… Some of them are definitely worth a good coin."

Ryou hummed in thought. He had no doubt they were worth something, but he also had to take into consideration that his, and the man's notion of value were different.

"Can I ask, how is it that you can differentiate from them… In quality I mean?" Ryou asked in an offhand manner.

The apothecary, lowered the bottle blinking at the Bow Hero a couple of times, "You just develop an eye for it. It would be pretty bad if I couldn't tell the quality of a potion. What merchant doesn't know the value of the merchandise he is supposed to be selling?"

The owner's tone had come out slightly condescending, but Ryou ignored it.

Quality..? Value..? Ryou wondered, staring blankly at the wall behind the man. Then with a side look, he opened his inventory. In an almost mechanical fashion, the Hero delved into it, bringing out a single copper coin, before placing it gently against the yellow jewel on his wrist. There was a familiar soft yellow glow.

Pling…

[Copper Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 1 to Appraisal Skill - Special Effect - + 1 to Appraisal Skill]

I can't help but to find a trace of irony, in the fact that just a few hours ago I was thinking about how you should try everything… Well better late than never… Ryou released an almost exasperated sigh. This would be another thing he needed to work on, the small stuff, it had always been the small stuff that tripped him.

Reaching for a random Healing Potion, the Bow Hero brought it up close to his face, opening the Status Window.

[Generic Healing Potion - Quality - Good]

Reaching with another hand, Ryou proceeded to grab a brownish solution, before also inspecting it.

[Soul-Healing Water - Quality - Medium]

Well, that neatly solved my problem, worth the trip at least… Ryou concluded, placing the potions back on the counter, before repeating the latest process with a silver coin.

[Silver Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 2 to Appraisal Skill]

He decided to stop there. A gold coin would be a pretty big hit on their current finances, especially since the resulting bow would probably follow the same theme.

Grasping another potion from a random group, Ryou shook it lightly, watching the liquid swirl inside, "What quality would you say this one is?"

The apothecary didn't even raise his head, too busy asserting the quality of another concoction, as he replied, "That would be a normal quality Magic-Recovery potion…" He replied in a tired tone.

Ryou brought the flask closer to analyze it.

[Magic-Recovery Potion - Quality - Medium]

It checks. Taking into consideration how the village was a few weeks ago one can never take things like this at face value… Ryou considered, taking a look behind him.

Rishia appeared to be reading some dusty old tome in the corner, her eyebrows furrowed, has she tried to decipher the content. Eyes moving to the next section, he found their smallest member, eyeing what seemed to be remnants of monsters preserved in flasks, her face one of curiosity.

Probably wondering if she can eat them… Ryou snorted at the thought. The sound of glass hitting the counter had the bow hero turning around, as the older man finished his assessment.

"For someone who is just beginning, this is far above what I would expect. A lot of them are of good quality…" The owner trailed off, eyes moving to the ceiling, as he scratched his chin, "...I would say, you are already ready to delve further if you wish."

"What would the next step be?" Ryou questioned. He had the three primary if arguably most useful potions down, so the only thing he could think off would be anti-poisons, or weed killers like Naofumi.

"Well, antidotes for mild poisons would be the next step, along with other more conditional if less used formulas. However…" The man trailed off, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"What?" Ryou questioned confused.

Releasing another breath, the man eyed him for a moment. "Word has it, that the Yumi-no Yuusha-sama as acquired himself a dragon, or so our new lord says."

Ryou, turned to look at the side, watching as Quartz's head perked up, before he returned to look at the older man.

Almond knows no discretion it appears,"I have… Why?"

The apothecary shifted under the Bow Hero's neutral stare, before nodding to himself, "I never touched such a thing, but every apothecary worth it's salt knows that dragon fluids are quite amazing in the production of potions, to varied effects, so maybe…"

Ryou's face contorted up in slight disgust. Dragon Fluids..? His gaze moved down to look at Quartz that had made her way next to him. "Quartz do you know anything about this? Like if your spit as healing properties or something."

The small girl shook her head slightly her white long hair waving with the movement," Quartz doesn't know..."

She was just born a few days ago… Ryou concluded, his thoughts broken by an awkward cough.

"Errr… Yuusha-sama?" The apothecary questioned confused, eyes moving from Quartz to him, and then back to the small girl.

Right… "This is Quartz. She's the dragon Lord Almond mentioned…" Ryou explained patting the girl on the head.

The man blinked slowly, "...Yuusha-sama, no matter how you put it, I can only see a little gi…" The man trailed off, eyes widening, as Quartz pointed to the side, her tail waving lightly near the tip of her finger.

"Quartz is Quartz, and Quartz is a Dragon?" The small girl half announced, half questioned.

Why does she keep stating it like a question? Shaking his head the Bow Hero continued, "Well it's like she said. It would be kind of awkward to walk around town with a nine-meter-long reptile trailing behind right?"

The man blinked a couple more times, before regaining his composure with another awkward cough, " Yes well, as I was saying, dragon fluids are very good ingredients in potion brewing and are even used in alchemy, so maybe you could move in that particular direction."

"Dragons are very sought after by adventurers, since the materials are very valuable, even in making weapons or armor…" Rishia added joining the conversation from the side.

Hi, I'm Ren, the Sword Hero, and I will be slaying your dragon as you sit back and sip some tea for the remainder of the afternoon, never mind the fact that, I will leave the body behind, something that will contaminate the entirety of the surrounding areas, but have no fear, my fellow Hero will be here in a few weeks to clean up after me, also… Naofumi you bastard how dare you steal my reward! An ugly snort escaped Ryou's mouth as he remembered those particular events.

Reaching with his hand, he grabbed a green-tinted potion.

[Generic Healing Potion - Quality - Good]

Prying the bottle open he lowered it to the small girl's level, who took a couple of sniffs at it

"Quartz, spit in here please," Ryou ordered.

"Yuusha-sama! You know that is not the correct proce..!"

Pthew…

Raising the bottle, Ryou closed it back before shaking it vigorously for a few seconds. After he stopped, he brought it up to closer inspection. The liquid inside remained green but now seemed to emit a soft pale glow.

[Dragon Blessed Healing Potion - Quality - Medium]

It probably went down in quality because I made it in such a half-assed manner… Ryou concluded, handling the potion to the apothecary, who's eyes widened in surprise.

"This..! Even if the quality lowered, this is a superb healing potion, among the strongest I have seen!" The man exclaimed in awe.

Ryou doubled over the counter moving closer to the man," Superb you say? How much do you think I can sell it for?"

"This one, probably worth five to ten silver, but if you used the correct procedure and increased the quality, you could probably sell it to upwards of thirty silver." The man explained, admiring the glowing flask.

"Thirty silver you say…" Ryou contemplated, rising to full height, as a small grin appeared in his face. Even if he were to low-ball it, he would still be able to make quite a good amount of profit with little to no investment besides some time, and patience. Not only that but he could keep stock of potions that possessed amazing quality.

Turning to the small girl he patted her on the head once more, "Good job Quartz."

"Quartz doesn't understand, but she was praised… Yay." Quartz cheered, and even if it came out rather monotonous, Ryou knew she meant it.

Holding out his hand, the owner placed the potion back in Ryou's grasp. A moment later the Bow Hero brought the potion to his jewel.

[Dragon Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Health Bonus(Small) - Health Recovery Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Bonus(Small) - Dragon Healing Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon Healing Items Efficiency Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Items Range Effect(Small)]

The stats aren't particularly amazing, but that's a lot of bonuses… Ryou admitted mentally.

The Bow Hero then proceeded to repeat the process, with the other potions, and the action resulted in two similar themed bows, along with a third one called Dragon Blessed Bow, that while unlocked, had a higher-level requirement to use then he currently possessed.

Now to increased our stock… Grabbing most of the high-quality potions Ryou proceed to pry them open one, by one, lowering them so Quartz could spit on them. It wasn't until the third one, that his partner's voice reached him.

"Fueee! I'm not d-drinking those potions!" Rishia exclaimed, backing away until her back hit a shelf.

"Ohh yes you are," Ryou stated seriously, shaking the concoctions, as they gained a soft glow.

"Fueee! No! That's like an i-i-indirect kiss!"

Ryou's face twitched, and very slowly he returned the potions to their place on the counter, as he turned to face Rishia, with an expression that seemed like a mixture of confusion, disbelief, and exasperation. "That's… what you're worried about..?"

The green-haired girl shrunk, face lowering, but Ryou still caught the small blush on her cheeks, before it was hidden by her hair, as she nodded.

Blinking a couple of times, Ryou asked slowly, "Rishia… How old are you again?"

If anything the girl looked even smaller, her hands clapping in front of her. "S-S-Seventeen?" She answered hesitantly.

Ryou blinked a couple more times." Okay then…" Then he returned to shaking the potions, with a blank look on his face.

Indirect kissing? Not the fact that its spit, nor the fact that it comes from technically a week and a few days old Dragon slash little girl, but Indirect kissing? Ryou knew that such notions had mostly died a long time ago in his old world, and the few mentions you would find of such a thing would be in anime, so he never considered the fact that his partner no matter how shy, would be bothered by it.

She as a problem with indirect kissing, but doesn't have one when her imagination pictures what I do, or don't do with a whore? Riiiiiight…

Finally done with the half-baked alchemy process, Ryou grabbed three Dragon Blessed Magic-Recovery Potions and threw them had Rishia. The girl clumsily grabbing them out of the air.

"Fueee! No! I refuse!" She stretched her arms, holding the potions at arm's length as she feverish shook her head.

Ryou's face showed exactly how unimpressed he was with the situation, "Rishia your going to drink those potions when you need to or so help me, I'll make you…" He let the threat hang in the air.

"Fueee…" Her expression still looked rebellious, even as she brought the potions closer to her.

"…and about that indirect kiss stuff, well… You joined a Yuusha's party, of your own volition I might add sooo…" Ryou straightened his shoulders, his face looking into the distance beyond the display window, "...sacrifices have to be made for the world's sake, and this is yours, live with it."

Rishia looked stunned as the realization hit her, and Ryou continued to look out the window, trying to suppress the smile that threatened to come out, even when light laughter reached him, courtesy of the owner who found the entire situation hilarious.

Quartz tilted her head, confused, looking from one person to the next, finally resting on Rishia.

"Onee-shama… What's an indirect kiss?"

"You could have mention that you were interested in blacksmith… I have a few books about it…" Rishia said from her place behind him, as the trio made their way back to Northern Village at a more mild pace.

I wonder if there is a topic she doesn't have books about… Ryou wondered, clicking his tongue. "You seemed to be proposedly forgetting about the fact that I still can't read." He replied annoyed.

"All the more reason to learn quickly!" Rishia interjected excitedly.

"You really are a nerd aren't you Rish?"

"I-I'm a what?" The girl asked.

Holding in a sigh, Ryou shook his head as he recalled his the visit to the blacksmith.

The first thing Ryou had done, had been something he should have done in Castle Town, and that had been copying every bow in stock, even when Rishia complained that it felt like they were stealing. As fate would have it, Ryou's intervention in dealing with the later corrupt noble had prevented the shop from closing, being borderline bankrupt at the time due to not having any costumers, Gentlewood applying insane taxes to donate towards the church of the three heroes being the main cause. As a thank you token the owner had allowed Ryou to copy every bow he had in stock with a smile.

Unfortunately, the selection had been less than stellar as expected from a village out in the middle of nowhere. Pretty much every bow he had unlocked had been nothing but a stat booster, with the small bonus here and there, though some of them gave a small increase in damage against some fauna or another, something that while mildly surprising should have been expected since most of the bows he had copied were for hunting purposes. Among them however was one that caught his attention and brought a familiar skill to the table, that he would try out the moment they returned to the village.

Besides that, he had also questioned the blacksmith in his art. Sure they could always rely on Erhard for weapons and armor, but Ryou had a feeling that thanks to his legendary weapon he could master blacksmithing to an even higher level.

Not only that, but if I work with Naofumi in the future he should have accessory crafting down to an art form, so this will compliment it... Nothing wrong with covering all our bases…

He had also liked to play games where one could go down into the depths of the earth to gather materials and ores to make better equipment, something that also applied to his new reality, far more then he realized if the blacksmith and Rishia's words were to be taken into account.

According to the Blacksmith, one staple of this world were magic metals - metals that due to having been naturally infused with magic, were far more resistant than their normal counterparts, and were able to not only hold magic better but could be enhanced to an even higher degree. Mithril was one such metal, stronger then steal and could hold a lot more enhancements than other more common magic metals. Above Mithril, stood Adamantium, another mythical metal that Ryou recognized. There were also others, mentioned in old tomes, and legends, though their existence was doubtful to some.

The way the man had explained it, was simple. The deeper one went, the denser ambient magic was, therefore the more it would engrave itself into the surrounding minerals. That also went along with a theory that Rishia had heard about in her college days, called Energy Convergence Theory. Scholars around the world of Melromarc had a consensus that while magic could be used to influence gravity, it still obeyed it in some ways, as did other unseen energies. As such, the deeper you went, the more condensed those energies were, and the materials you would find would be of higher quality. On the other hand, those very same energies also tended to mutate, and empower any monster in those depths, sometimes to such a degree that even the most intrepid of adventurers would not dare to explore them.

Who would have thought there would be a scientific reason behind why monsters on deeper levels of a dungeon were always higher level, and more dangerous… Ryou wondered. If such cave systems were unexplored, then they would probably make for amazing grinding spots if incredibly dangerous.

It also explained why the Marble Mimicks had been able to take more punishment than anything on the surface. While Ryou had been able to easily one-shot the monstrous creatures with skills, he still remembered that one of his normal shots had hit the monster in the torso, and it still remained standing, the same with Rishia's stab. While such a difference might not be very noticeable, taking into consideration that since he had began to work on the other strengthening methods he had been able to obliterate everything he had come across on the surface with ease, it probably served as a good indicator that the monsters in the Northern Cavern were far stronger, even just a couple of hundred meters under the surface.

Back home there were cave systems that extended ten times that depth and those were the explored ones… While I have my hands full with everything going on, going cave delving in other places might be a good thing to consider somewhere down the line… Filing those thoughts for later, Ryou's mind changed to another line of thinking.

Specialized Gear...

While he wanted the ability to be able to make specialized gear for his party, it hadn't been until Rishia had commented about dragon materials that a particular question appeared in his mind.

Why had Ren gone there in the first place?

While the answer could have simply been a mission from the adventurers guild, Ryou remembered Naofumi mentioning Ren and his minions had harvested materials from the dragon.

That led to another question. Why did the Sword Hero needed materials in the first place? Not only that but from what information he had been able to acquire, the Sword Hero had a habit of deploying his party members to certain zones to farm even more materials.

It couldn't have been to sell, he also doubted it was to absorb them in order to unlock new weapons and somehow Ryou didn't think the Sword Hero had been using them to produce equipment for his entire guild, or at least not entirely.

After some thought, he had concluded that the Sword Hero was more than likely using the materials to create Weapons… Swords for himself to be exact.

And since it was him that gave away the information about the automatic crafting system, then it's likely he is using it… There was another line between reality, and games there. More then likely the Sword Hero had not unlocked the recipes to create such weapons, but on the other hand, there was no line of coding that stopped him from just placing the materials for a weapon from the game he played, into the crafting menu and create it.

Maybe because he believes it, even if something was stopping him from creating said weapon without the recipe, he might be able to bypass it by the belief that it will work regardless…

Once again Ryou realized how linear the two heroes thought. Initially, he had the notion that the heroes had disregard Naofumi's way of doing things entirely, but that wasn't the case. Motoyasu and Ren did use it, but they were only scratching the surface of what could be done, focusing only on absorbing the very best materials. The same went for the copy system, they had been only focusing on copying the best weapons, ignoring every other more mundane one.

Well that being said, it's not like I am using them to their full potential either...

"The same applies to this third method of acquiring weapons for sure…" Ryou mumbled in an inaudible tone, the corner of his mouth twitching.

It would be easy to just throw the materials into the crafting system based on recipes from their memories, but that was a mostly static system that hardly allowed for variation. While if one were to take those materials, and try crafting something by hand, there would be a lot of possible outcomes, and even if nine out of ten weapons ended up being sub-par variations of the one he wanted to create, they would still have equipment bonuses worth mastering.

"This world gives you a lot of ways to strengthen yourself, but to truly become strong you have to delve into it and try everything that you can…" Ryou wondered out loud.

"That way you will be able to figure the one that fits you the best…" Rishia continued from the back.

Ryou chuckled lightly, "Not exactly what I was talking about Rish, but your not completely wrong either… One should try everything he can, but without forgetting about his strengths."

"I wonder if I should also try other things?" She pondered looking upwards.

"I think your calling is magic though. Aren't you working on that mysterious spell too?" Ryou asked with a raised eyebrow.

The girl looked at him with a wishful expression, and nodded slightly, "I am, it's just…" She paused."...I also thought magic was the way to go, but maybe that is not so…"

Ryou hummed looking towards the dirt road, "What brought this sudden bout of doubt so suddenly?"

"It wasn't sudden… I am always thinking about it, and watching you try so many different things got me thinking that maybe there's something that I might be even better at then magic…"

"Well if you want to try something, your free to do so of course, just don't waste away your potential on something that might set you back". Ryou advised.

Yes Itsuki you ass, I'm looking at you…

" I won't!" She promised from the back.

"That being said, I did saw that stunt you pulled at the mine, where you used your rapier as a focus for your magic, so there's that." Ryou shot her a grin.

"It doesn't work with every magic, but I can do it with some of them, it makes them more concentrated… I think…"

"Still it's good that you're branching out."Ryou paused, his eye watching the orange hues that were slowly taking over the sky."Something that might be better suited for you then magic huh?" Ryou pondered out loud.

You only see this kind of talent this girl possesses once every hundred years…

A small smile broke in Ryou's face as the memory hit him, "Well it's a long shot, but I might have an idea…"

"Fueee! Really! What is it?" She questioned excitedly, pressing herself against his back.

"Calm down Rish… It's just an idea, besides it's something it will probably take a while to learn, and it's not like your moving in a bad direction so it can take a back seat for now…"

"I still want to know!" She replied with a hint of impatience.

"Too bad I don't feel like sharing right now," Ryou explained with a small smile.

"Fuee! Your being mean!" Rishia accused.

"Onii-shama is being mean to Onee-shama..." Quartz voiced in their heads.

"When was it, that I ever said I was a nice person? It's your own fault for thinking otherwise…"

"Air Strike Arrow!" A shout herald the release of the skill. A green shining arrow, coated in a mantle of wind hit a tree, tearing it apart, and continued forward unpaused, disappearing into the forest followed by a loud booming sound, and a wind wave that threatened to rip the remaining trees off the ground.

The wave finally subsided, along with the sound of trunks falling unto the forest floor as Ryou surveyed the damage that his new skill had unleashed.

"It's official, I'm now part of the Air Strike Squad it seems…" Ryou murmured slightly annoyed.

Once more the Bow Hero felt he was being bullied by the spirits above. The Air Strike Shield had been a staple of Naofumi's arsenal, so Ryou had decided after the wave to absorb a piece of rope just like the Shield Hero had done in hopes to unlock a similar themed skill. The endeavor resulted in failure. He had indeed unlocked a rope themed bow, but it was just a stat booster, providing a measly plus two to agility, and no skills or special effects to speak of.

He couldn't help but feel a little angry, that he had to come all the way to Northern Village, and copy a Bow to unlock the skill.

[Gryphon's Feathered Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 5 to attack, + 5 to agility, Air Strike Arrow Skill]

Not only that, but compared to Naofumi's version, this one seems a lot less versatile…

Flicking his wrist, Ryou willed the bow back in bangle form, and dusted his hands," Well that's, that… Since my new skill hardly adds anything new, guess our plan remains the same".

"You're going to have Quartz-chan flood the tunnel with fire then?" Rishia questioned with a tilt of her head.

Ryou nodded, eyes going for the small girl seated beside Rishia, "You heard that Quartz, you're on barbecue duty, so I expect you to roast those…" Ryou trailed off eyes still on the small girl.

Versatile..? Thinking Linearly..?

"Quartz, come over here," Ryou ordered with a motion of his hand.

The small girl hopped on her feet and made her way next to him, "Yes Onii-shama?"

"Just give me a second…" Once more the Gryphon's Feathered Bow materialized itself in his grip.

Pointing completely upwards, Ryou lowered himself on one knee, "Air Strike Arrow." With the command Ryou's new skill came into existence, the arrow held back by his fingers.

Turning his head slightly Ryou addressed the girl, "Quartz I need you to listen to me seriously or this might end up very badly for me," Ryou paused letting his warning sink."I want you to gently, and I do mean gently release your fire breath into my arrow okay?"

The girl blinked twice curiously, then puff out a soft stream of flames aimed at the arrowhead. The flames circled the front of the arrow before melding with the entire projectile, releasing small streams that licked the Bow Hero's face, producing an almost uncomfortable amount of heat but not damaging him in any way.

[Combination Skill Unlocked - Dragon Flame Strike Arrow]

"Well cringy name aside, it works."Letting go of the arrow, the new flaming projectile flew into the sky leaving a trail of fire until it burst into flames far above the tree line.

Pulling once more, another Air Strike Arrow materialized.

"Quartz do it again, but at full power now," Ryou ordered. Ignoring the worried exclamation from their third member, Quartz puffed her cheeks before releasing a raging torrent of fire.

Fire surrounded the Bow Hero, yet once again there was no damage besides the uncomfortable sensation of heat. The torrent swirled around, melting into the arrow that nearly quadrupled in length.

"Dragon Flame Strike Arrow!" Ryou shouted. The over-sized arrow flew into the sky like a firework, before detonating similarly to his flame shot, only creating a far bigger sphere of fire that illuminated the entire area.

Wonder why all my fire-based skills do that sphere of condensed flames thing instead of straight-up exploding…

Small embers rained down on the party as Ryou smiled at the prospect of destruction that they could now unleashed."Well, that's another weapon to our arsenal."

"It was amazing, but…" Rishia commented coming to a stop near him, eyes upwards watching the last of the embers falling.

"Yup, this one would collapse the tunnel one hundred percent guaranteed…" Ryou allowed.

"What if you don't add fire to it, but something else?" Rishia proposed.

"Like what?" Ryou asked.

Biting her lip lightly, Rishia's eyes moved to the ground for a couple of seconds, before she raised her head, "Can...Can I try something?"

"Sure knock yourself out," Ryou replied with a shrug. A moment later his new skill came for the fourth time into existence.

Turning his head slightly to the side he watched his partner expectantly.

Rishia eyed him worriedly, "Please don't move." She paused taking a deep breath and pointed her rapier at the arrowhead, eyes closing in concentration, "As source of thy power I order thy. Decipher the laws of Nature, and cut the air in front of me. Faust Wind Cutter!"

From the tip of Rishia's rapier, a thin white stream like beam shot forward, hitting the arrowhead, making the projectile shine brighter, and a soft humming sound began to emanate from it, as the wind around the Bow Hero picked up.

[Combination Skill Unlocked - Gale Cutting Strike Arrow]

"Urgh, once more, not even going to comment on the name…" Ryou murmured, wondering why his legendary weapon had the naming sense of a twelve-year-old.

Lining his bow with the forest in front of him, Ryou released the new projectile, almost losing his footing courtesy of the gust of wind the action released. The arrow flew forward engulfed in a miniature tornado. tearing the ground under it, the next instant the project hit a tree like a flying wood chipper, tearing, and grinding at anything in its proximity before it disappeared out of sight.

"Well, that one might be usable against those bastards since it doesn't explode," Ryou commented dusting his shoulder of the splinters.

"Fuee it worked, but… It's still dangerous to shoot in the tunnel…" His partner countered shedding her rapier.

"We'll see. We still have one day until my teleport cool-down resets so let's keep trying to come up with strategies and trying out new combinations. Next time we're going to get that Mithril for sure." The Bow Hero concluded, making his way back towards the village gates, the two girls falling in step with him.

Next Chapter: Horrors in the Depths

Bow List

The following list of bows includes only the new bows that Ryou as unlocked since the begining of this arc to avoid confusion.

[Giant Sloth Bow - Common - Sealed Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, Stamina Bonus(Small) - Special Effect - Attack bonus (Small), Agility penalty (Small)]

Bow from the Giant Sloth, Side Note, Stamina is not the same as SP, its literally a bonus to physical conditioning.

[Dragon Tamer Bow I - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Small), Dragon Maturation Correction(Small)]

Acquired from Quartz Egg Shards

[Dragon Tamer Bow II - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Medium), Dragon Maturation Correction(Medium)]

Acquired From Quartz Feathers

[Dragon Tamer Bow III - Common - Awakened- Equipment Bonus - Dragon Growth Correction (Large), Dragon Maturation Correction(Large)]

Acquired with some of Quartz's Blood, following Ryou trying it out with Rishia's Blood.

[Comrade Bow - Common - Awakened - Equipment Effect- Comrade Growth Correction (Small)]

Acquired From Rishia's Hair

[Comrade Bow II - Common - Awakened - Equipment Effect- Comrade Growth Correction (Medium)]

Acquired From Rishia's Blood

[Bio-luminescent Beetle Bow- Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Night Vision Bonus (Small) - Special Effect - Bio-luminescent Light Emission]

Acquired from The Bio-Luminescent Beetle, Besides improving Night vision, its special effect works like a spot light.

[Mascgite Bow - Common- Sealed - Equipment Bonus + 3 Magic, Magic Defense Bonus(Small), Magic Effectiveness Bonus (Small), Special Effect - MP Bonus(Small), MP Cost Reduction Bonus(Small)]

Acquired from the Mascgite Crystal found in the Northern Cavern, its a pure Magic based Bow

[Marble Horror Mimick Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 6 Attack, Hiding Bonus(Small)- Special Effect - Monster Lure(Small), Monster Attraction Range Bonus(Medium)]

Acquired From the Marble Mimicks, its special effect attracts monsters in the area.

[Generic Medicine Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Medicine Efficiency Bonus(Small)]

Acquired by Absorbing a Generic Healing Potion, gives a small boost to healing items in general.

[Magic-Recovery Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Magic Regeneration Bonus(Small)]

Acquired by Absorbing a Magic-Recovery Potion, gives a small boost to healing items in general.

[Soul-Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - SP Bonus(Small)]

Acquired by Absorbing a Soul-Healing Potion, gives a small boost to Ryou's SP pool.

[Copper Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 1 Appraisal Skill - Special Effect - + 1 Appraisal Skill]

Acquired by Absorbing a Copper Coin, gives a level to the Generic appraisal Skill, this stacks with more specific appraisal skills.

[Silver Coin Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 2 Appraisal Skill]

Acquired by Absorbing a Silver Coin, like the last it increases the appraisal Skill, but by a factor of two levels.

[Dragon Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - Health Bonus(Small) - Health Recovery Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon Healing Items Efficiency Bonus(Small), Dragon Healing Items Range Effect(Small)]

Acquired by Absorbing a Dragon Blessed Healing Potion, It boosts the effectiveness of dragon based healing items, along with their range, also unlocks the recipes to be used on the automatic-Crafting System.

[Dragon Magic-Recovery Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Magic - Magic Regeneration Bonus(Small), Dragon Magic Bonus(Small), Dragon Magic Recovery Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon Magic Recovery Items Efficiency Bonus(Small)]

Acquired by Absorbing a Dragon Blessed Magic Recover Potion, It boosts the effectiveness of dragon based magic recovery items items, and gives a small boost to MP regeneration, also unlocks the recipes to be used on the automatic-Crafting System.

[Dragon Soul Healing Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - SP Bonus(Small) - SP Regeneration Bonus(Small) - Dragon Sp Recovery Items Crafting Recipes Unlocked - Special Effect - Dragon SP Recovery Items Efficiency Bonus(Small)]

Acquired by Absorbing a Dragon Blessed Soul-Healing Potion, It boosts the effectiveness of dragon based SP recovery items items, and gives a small boost to SP regeneration, also unlocks the recipes to be used on the automatic-Crafting System.

[Dragon Blessed Bow - Status Unlocked - Requirements - Not Met]

Unlocked after absorbing all three primary dragon based potions, it as an higher level requirement than what Ryou current possesses, though it still falls under the category of Dragon Healing Items for most part.

Bows Copied From The Blacksmith

[Maple Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 3 Attack]

[Oak Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 2 Attack]

[Fir Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - 3 Attack]

[Long Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, Long Range Precision Bonus(Small)]

[Composite Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 3 Agility, + 3 Attack, Attack Speed Bonus(Small)]

[Yew Hunting Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Agility, Small-Sized Animals Damage Bonus(Small)]

[Steel Hunting Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Attack, Medium-Sized Animals Damage Bonus (Small)]

[Feathered Hunting Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - +3 Agility, Damage against Flying Enemies (Increased by 5%)]

[Short Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 4 Agility - Special Effect- Attack Speed Bonus(Great)]

[Gryphon's Feathered Bow - Common - Sealed - Equipment Bonus - + 5 Attack, + 5 Agility, Air Strike Arrow Skill]

The only one truly worth mentioning, It comes with the Bow Hero's Air Strike variant. Ryou's Air Strike Arrow, boost both piecing capabilities, and the ability to tear things around it, and it detonates in an Air Explosion. As shown it can be used in conjunction with Quartz's Fire Breath, for a change in element and additional destructive capabilities, or with Rishia's Wind Cuter Spell to greatly enhance, both the damage, and the area of effect, it does lose the ability to detonate in a shock-wave.