☀️ Arselia and Akonia

- I'm glad. - Having confirmed that the image before his eyes matched Aiyano's words, the Lord sighed with relief. - Don't worry, - he nodded towards Bors, - these monsters, with a teacher at the peak of his power, are no match.

- And not just him. Well, okay; the main thing is not to relax until it's all over. As we can see, it's not just about dry numbers; you can expect anything.

- Thank you for your kind words, Miko-sama, - the young man bowed politely, - if something were to happen to you or the instructor, this world would lose a great deal.

- Thank you too, Matthias-kun.

- Heh. - Bors instinctively reached for the cigars in the first slot, but found only an empty space left by the used amethyst. - You yourself wield your sword quite well, Miss Aiyano; it's clear that Sonata's lessons were not in vain.

- Yes... This wasn't how her first time was supposed to be, - Aiyano sighed, patting the katana hilt sympathetically. - Although, to be honest, this time shouldn't have happened at all. Well, what can you do.

- It's not for nothing that we have the highest intelligence in our group, - Yun blushed slightly and looked away, - but no thanks are needed... If you weren't here, who would I show my drawings to?

- For example, to the whole world at some exhibitions or in museums. Not the worst dream to strive for.

Of the two, Tenok looked much more traumatized by what had happened. The young man ran to the lake and began to wash off the mysterious white liquid, as if he had forgotten that just a few minutes ago, embers and tentacles had emerged from the same body of water. Fortunately, the reinforcements were in no hurry to take advantage of the swordsman's recklessness.
- Thanks, - Bazhena said, accepting the handkerchief, and then smiled slyly, - hey... It's been a while since we hugged, I think I'm missing Aiyano's energy. - With her arms spread menacingly, Bazhena began to approach her friend.

"Calm down," the priestess decided, granting him a certain degree of trust. - "This is not something that can really undermine the will of an imperial warrior. It might even be better as a first step - who knows what he would feel when his hands were first covered in the blood of the enemy."
- Oh!... - Her right hand rested on the katana hilt, her left spread a stack of ofuda like a fan. - We have a serious task here, so let's not... do any of that... Okay, let's see what we have?... - Coughing and backing away, she moved somewhere behind the others, pretending to deal with important matters (but not forgetting to secretly watch to see if she was being ambushed).

- Okay, - Gnimud placed four lokums next to Tenok, deciding not to touch the young man, and fed Bazhena from his hand, - it's ready. Do you happen to need something to eat?

- No, thank you. This place doesn't make me feel hungry...

- And in the second or third phase, would it be less terrible? - Sonata put her hands on her hips and frowned, but then smiled. - Before we proceed to the next stage, I want you to share your spiritual protection with each of the participants in the operation, can you?

- It would be terrible, but it wouldn't be completely terrible, as it would be in the very first clash with the entire group of apprentices following you, - without blinking an eye, she easily and with complete seriousness refuted this bait. - I don't want to think about what that would do to their morale and how it would affect their actions... So I was ready to bet a lot on your salvation. Try not to get into trouble again. Let's keep our eyes open and our ears sharp, - after hesitating for a few seconds, she realized that she had just applied it to both of them, but didn't emphasize it. - ...I can. I was going to protect the little ones, and leave you and Bazhena and Kayasa until it's necessary; you need it much less. But now I realize that it won't hurt you either - this is a nasty place, who knows what might happen in a moment. Just remember that Kamiasama-tachi's patience is not infinite. Perhaps we should also think about what Kayasa-kocho can give us right now. Stone skin? Strengthening?... Mental protection, some resistances?... I'm not sure how long it will take, but we probably shouldn't be discovered by the golems yet, - she glanced uneasily at the far end of the cave.