“Mei to your left!” Shizuku yelled out as she blocked the rock tiger’s stone claws with her blood sword. Spark flew as Shizuku did her best to hold her ground. The rock tiger was strong, very strong.  On top of its strength was also its weight. When combined, it was like a mountain smashing down on Shizuku.

Mei was not having an easy time either. A wood boar had appeared while they were fighting the rock tiger. Wood boars were plant-based animals with wooden tusks and leaves for fur, but one thing they were good at was binding their prey. Unlike other boars that eat their prey, wood boards were much different. They used their vines to constrict and capture their prey. When fully captured, the wood boar would use a special kind of vine that sunk under the skin of its prey and would release a toxin. 

This toxin would slowly melt the insides into a liquid, which, in turn, the wood boar would then drink through the roots. The process was normally slow and very painful for the prey. They would be alive the entire time their body was melting from the inside out.

Mei was currently smashing vines left and right. She was doing her best not to waste too many movements. She knew if she did, she would end up running out of energy before Shizuku could come and help. A wood boar was not something she could kill on her own. For melee, it was almost impossible to get too close. But her strength was still lacking when it was matched up to Shizku’s was still lacking. This meant that with Shizuku struggling under the rock tiger, she would have already died by now. So she could only keep the wood boar busy for the time being. She hated knowing that she was lacking. But she was also happy that she was at least of some use to her Master. She was willing to give her life to protect Shizuku. The girl who had taken her out of the darkness and did not look down on her even if she looked like a monster herself.

“I am getting sick of this! Micro Bloody Spears!” Shizuku yelled out while waving her hand and spraying blood all over. Her blood formed microscopic spears that shot forward and pierced the very atoms that made up the rock tiger's body. The Rock tiger began to roar out in pain as it fell backward and began rolling around. It was enough to kill it directly but enough to finally make it feel pain. This gave Shizuku a chance to form a proper sword.

When they first entered the room, they were instantly attacked. And Shizuku, who had just come out of a safe room, was not expecting to be attacked almost instantly. This was a deadly mistake that could have gotten them killed. Luckily, she was able to form a sword. While not the best, it was still better than nothing. But now, with the rock tiger rolling around in pain, she had a chance to form a proper sword. She jumped up, doing a front flip over the rock tiger, and slashed down, cutting straight through its two front paws and slicing it right down the center of its body. 

“Damn…. I need to be more careful.” Shizuku knew she had gotten too arrogant. This was a good lesson for her. While she did get slashed once in the process of her struggle, it had long healed. 

“Mei!” Shizuku turned and rushed to Mei’s side. She broke up her blood sword into mini blades, all shaped like a crescent moon, and sent them flying. “A Hundred Crescent Slash!”

Shizuku had been naming all her moves. Some names sounded cool, while others were just so-so. But she did it in order to gain a better image of what she was trying to do since blood manipulation needed a good image in your mind. 

The vines were diced up and fell to the ground, giving Mei the chance she needed to rush in. Mei slammed her fists down in a fiery rain. Her hands moved so fast that Shizuku could only see the afterimages. 

“Finally! They are dead.” Shizuku let out a sigh of relief. “We have been down here a week. We should head back for now.” 

“You do not plan to reach level 20?” Mei asked.

“We have only gained 2 levels since entering the dungeon this time. It seems we are about to reach the maximum level of this place. So, it will probably take us another month or so to reach our goal. I think we should be more prepared as well. The rock tiger and the wood boar were quick and snuck up on us. If we get caught off guard again or have to face more than one of these monsters, we will need some kind of plan to deal with the situation.” Shizuku explained.

She was now level 18 and had gained a lot of resources because they had made it a habit to clear each floor of its monsters before heading to the next. With the current loot, they should have around ten gold or more. At least, she hoped. These were to be all her travel funds, so she had been saving up every copper she could so she would not be struggling on the road. She had Mei to take care of as well. And her cute fox girl couldn’t be left going without.