<~> Chapter 75Yefen sighed. "As much as I'd like to keep talking about this we probably shouldn't wait much loo introduce you to the others. I just didn't want to follow the priests directly out. Besides, I need a drink."

  Without warning, he suddenly stood up and started walking out the door. Caught off guard the six of us quickly got up, dropped s in his tent and ran to catch up with him. Yefen is not big and slow, his strides were so long that we almost had to jog to catch up. The first pce we were headed was to ahat looked like some kind of outdoor kit.

  Tarklin elbowed me, "He's always been like that, super impulsive. You could be having a serious versation and then suddenly he whips out a set of did the drunk around the fire. Yefen's a great guy, you trust him." I notiora nodded her head in agreement but didn't say anything further.

  Yefen stopped in front of a woman wearing a long brown coat and light armor underh it. She stood in the ter of a makeshift kit, grills and tables loaded with ingredients and younger looking hands ing things up and washing dishes, presumably after the dinner we missed.

  "This is Aquil, the woman in charge of food and provisions. She doubles as our quartermaster when she isn't w on our dinner. Don't piss her off if you want to eat, you wouldn't want the head cook skimping on your rations."

  Aquil smiled rge. "Don't introduce me like that, you'll make me sound like a tyrant. I'm Aquil, o meet you folks. There was rumoing around about the ones who destroyed this dungeon. This you lot?"

  I nodded. "Yes ma'am. My name is Lilith and these are my friends, Bel, Torien, and Man."

  She snerked. "o be so formal with me 'ma'am.' But it is earning you some points. Keep up that respectful attitude and we won't have any problems. I'm good at keeping track of who's gohrough the ration line before so don't try to py games with me, if there's a when everyone is done you have seds but I wouldn't t on it. I hope you already ate tonight because you already missed dinner."

  I shrugged. "We were in a hurry to get here so we havee but the four of us still have some dry rations in ."

  "Sorry to hear that."

  Yefen cut in. "These four are leaving tomorrow Aquil, they won't join back up with us for a while yet but I figured it would be good to introduce them to everyone first." The rge man grabbed a bottle of alcohol from one of the chests. Aquil gave him a stink eye but didn't say anything before fog ba us.

  Aquil turned and looked at each of us. "Makes sense. Well it was nice meeting you four. We talk again ter once you join us on a more perma basis."

  I nodded. "Of course. o meet you Aquil."

  We were led away from the kit area to metal covered wood wagon. Sitting in a chair outside of it was a short and stout man, or dwarf? with a dark bck beard and a grumpy looking expression.

  Yefeured troup. "Samuel, these are some new recruits that will be joining our dueam iure." Yefen turo us, "This is Samuel, a dwarf that primarily takes care of our armory. If you break your ons ahem repced, or you ools to take care of your equipment, Samuel is the oo talk to."

  Samuel replied in a deep smooth voice. "o meet you four. If you need any help with your equipment talk to me. I don't really have the tools to craft you a neon in the field but minor repairs and maintenance work should be no problem. If you snap your sword in half I give you a new o try not to make a habit of it. This equipment will e out of your cut ter and they ain't cheap to lug around. If you o sharpen your stuff you borrow a grindstone, or I do it for you for a tip. Any questions?"

  I shook my head and looked to my party who didn't have any questioher.

  "Good. See you around." The dwarf lost any i he had in us a back to whatever it was he was w on.

  Yefeook us around and introduced the four of us to half a dozen other people that stood out in my mihan the first two. I'm det at remembering faces but terrible at remembering names and after the first few people I stopped trying to remember for the most part. I'm sure we'll have the ce to reintroduce ourselves at a ter date. After the parade of people Yefen decided to introduce us to, he escorted us to ay tent not too far away from the a.

  "Since you were suddenly dragged out here to py hostage with the Tamin church humans, you probably weren't expeg to be on a night duty tonight so you take this tent to sleep. I know it's not big but we don't have separate aodations for your servants. I hope you all don't mind," he said nodding to Torien and Man.

  "That's alright Yefen, thanks for the tent." I turo the adventurers sent to guard us. "Shall we set up a night watch?"

  The two of them awkwardly looked at the colrs around the necks of the catgirls. and I decided to cut them off before they got the wrong idea. "I wouldn't mind taking a wat the middle of the night but Bel takes some time waking up so she should probably be on first watch. Should we go in pairs?" I asked.

  Nora shook her head. "No he two of us will stay awake to guard you. You go to sleep if you want. We'll sleep after we get back to town tomorrow. It's too much of a risk for us to sleep."

  I felt like it was a bit unfair to sleep while the two of them were up all night, especially since sleep barely helped me much. I also didn't want to be vulnerable in this situation, it's not that I didn't trust our escorts, I do, it's just that I felt like proteg my friends was my job. I felt responsible for their safety.

  "Then I'll stay up with you two. I don't need a lot of sleep and I'd rather stay aware of my surroundings uhe circumstances." I turo the rest of my party. "You three get some rest, it will be better if you are fresh in the m."

  There was only a slight hesitation before the three girls agreed and started climbing ient. Tarklin pulled up a few chairs a by a small mp while Nora brought s back from Yefen's tent before heading off to survey the surroundings. We sat there quietly for a while, the camp never pletely slept. It was quiet for the most part but lots of people were still walking around, w on things, or patrolling the area.

  It robably half a bell ter when Tarklin decided to speak. "That priestess, what's your deal with her? You were watg her a lot and she was staring back at you like a hawk."

  I shrugged. "I don't know why she would be watg me but she... has crossed paths with Bel before. The situation is plicated. Once I saw her looking at me so ily I couldn't help but look back at her too on the way here. I don't hold any hostilities towards her if that's what you're asking but I wouldn't mind having a private word with her and Bel."

  Tarklin shook his head. "Best not. I'm not sure what your circumstances with her are but she's in deep. I've seen it before, she's sucked into the Tamin church's crazy ideology bad. She's the worst kind, pletely bought into their lunacy. That other padin that was talking to Sir Yefen," he snickered before tinuing, "he's more of the pragmatic type. He's doing it for the money or the prote, I doubt he gives two shits about their crazy beliefs. That's why the two of them are paired together, one is a zealot, the other is a realist. They're both loyal to the church but for vastly different reasons. A beastkin like you won't get anything out of the woman."

  I sighed a his words sink in. I'm not sure what to do. I'm not sure what Bel wants. With everything happening we haven't really had a ce to talk. And even if we were able to have a moment aloh the three of us, what could it possibly aplish? The adherents of the Tamin church seemed like psychos, Bel was already affected by being around this woman, trying to get them in the same room might just make everything worse... Well, if it's what Bel wants I'll try to make it happen. If she doesn't say anything about it I'll leave it be. I feel like it's pying with fire if I try to get involved before being asked.

  I turo Tarklin. "Thanks for the advice."

  The handsome elf smiled at me. "No problem. It's my job as your elder to put you young ones on the right track."

  "How old are you anyway?"

  He puffed up his chest. "I'm sixty-two!"

  "Huh, youhan I thought. I expected you to be like... five hundred or something."

  He ughed. "That was a joke. I'm rather young for an elf, way too young to be anyone's 'elder.' Five hundred is quite areme guess too though, only the oldest of elders in the elf vilges make it to five hundred. Not impossible but quite rare. Surely I don't look that decrepit."

  I smiled. "Of course not, I just have no frame of reference. I'm pretty sure you're the first elf I've ever had a proper versation with."

  "Oh?" he said with a huge grin, "in that case I should tell you a little abo—"

  Tarklin was cut off by a sudden shouting at the edge of the camp, ing from the dire of the dungeon. Faster than I could perceive Tarklin was on his feet with his sword drawn fag towards the noise. I unzipped the tent of my friends and ushered them out. It hadn't even been a full bell sihey id down but with all the shouting they were all wide awake already.

  By the time I turned around Nora was back. "A demon was chasing the Tamin church team out of the dungeon. They looked bloodied. The adventurers by the gate were still fighting them when I came back."

  "Is anyone hurt?" Bel asked.

  "Probably. It was a big demon," Nora replied.

  "Lilith..." Bel turo me, the question not needing to be said.

  I nodded. "Lets go help. Bel is a healer, she probably heal the injured."

  Nora shook her head, "It's too dangerous, our job is to protect yo—"

  "Please!" Bel cried.

  Nora's eyebrows furrowed, she turo Tarklin before turning to me.

  I nodded. "Let's go help. We'll stay out of the fighting but we should at least see if anyone needs healing."

  "...fine." Nora didn't look happy about it but she decided not to fight the sensus.

  Tarklin and Nora stood at either side of the four of us as we walked through the camp. It seemed like pandemonium, tents were on fire, people were running around with buckets of water or ons. It was chaos. However, despite the frenzied array of people frantically running around, it didn't seem like anyone anig. Everyone was moving with a purpose, this was the differeween a group of civilians and a group of adventurers.

  When we could finally make out the entrance of the dungeon we could see two dread knights, a shadow horror, and dozens of dark shadowy monsters we hadn't run into when we were in there. A giant corpse id on its side, spears still pinning it to the ground. All six of the Tamin church adherents were up and fighting alongside the adventurers but the rge group looked like they were slowly being overwhelmed even as more adventurers joihe fray.

  Demons were spilling out of the dying dungeon.

  "Fuck," Nora said quietly. "Draw your ons. So much for staying out of the fight."

  Saine

  Hello! Sorry for the cliffhanger! Not much to say so see you ime!

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