—-- Hikari —---
[Physique : 1000+ (-100) ]
[defense : 1000+ (+100)]
[mana : 1000+ (-200)]
[mind : 1000+ (+100)]
—- Wyvern scale x king salamander armour (infused) —--
[defense + 850]
[mana + 530]
[physique + 450]
[wyvern skin + 130]
[Heart of wyvern + 110]
[weight : 1.1 ton]
Black wyvern skin suit.
Her salamander suit on the inside reinforces her muscles.
The pieces of wyvern scale embedded in her armour hummed quietly with energy.
They passively create a barrier along her armour.
The giantess knight stood at the ledge of the world.
The abandoned city of Carla.
A gust of strong wind pushes her hair back.
She looks into the distance.
The streams of zeppelins transport a constant stream of goods to and from the lands afar.
She focuses on arming herself.
Straps a belt of throwing knives around her waist.
Another row, right above it.
A row of ballista bolts.
She counts them.
50 throwing daggers. At least 100 rounds of ballista bolts.
A lighter calibre than what she was used to.
Her short bow strapped to her thigh.
She takes a deep breath.
The training with Ella the previous night.
The Gurdel elixir from Herdial.
Her mana flow was stable.
She breathed steadily.
Her body is in good shape.
The extra rations were filling.
Her sores feel better.
She wriggles her toes in her boots.
Her new boot soles felt more comfortable.
She could move her feet more easily.
The bindings felt tight.
But it felt like they cushion the train of her just standing on her own weight.
At her knee height, knights put on their armour.
Light hide armour.
An outer cloak coated in grey salt.
They strapped on pieces of crossbow bolts.
More shots for their weight than muskets.
Some of them did have muskets.
Shot barreled ones.
Holding up a longer weapon drains stamina.
A cart of blanket sized cloth pieces.
Stopped beside her boots
They were of a light blanch color.
Hikari furrows her eyebrows.
"This is?"
"More layers of protection. Treated by grey salt. Don't worry about the color. The mist entities sense your mana presence rather than by sight. The light color making you easier to spot is not going to give you a tactical disadvantage it would normally do. It's an advantage in fact as it makes allied troops easier not to shoot you."
Ria and Rey stood atop a platform. They were at Hikari's chest height.
Hikari puts on the cloth pieces.
They were weightless compared to the rest of her armour.
Another cart. This time, they were made with her familiar weaving and telekinetic runes.
"I had to delay your new outfit for this. But I thought a bit of head protection is more important right now. It's not like there's plot armor to protect your exposed head like in the novels."
A flick of her finger.
The pieces floated up towards her head.
Hikari wraps her long pony tail around her neck.
The pieces formed a cloak that covered her head down to her shoulders.
Ropes wrapped under her armpit to fasten the cloak in place.
The wind blocks.
The cloak shields her nicely.
"This is nice too."
She looks up at Ria on the platform.
Her lady blushes at her.
Hikari leans towards her and whispers.
"My lady."
"Oh-." Her lady was startled.
"Come closer."
"Hm?"
Hikari leans closer still.
Her chest presses against the platform.
She lowers her ear.
Her lady walks to her.
She whispers.
"There's a lot of treasures down there in the abyss since it hasn't been exploited in a while. Not human made relics but natural resources. If you stumble across a mana vein. Do not bring anything back as we'll have to share it. Keep it to ourselves. We can come back for it once the raid's over."
Hikari lifts her head.
Her usual poker face.
Her lady smiles at her innocently.
"Ahem."
Rey clears his throat.
A pair of RazenHeir knights pushed a board.
A sketch of the depths below Carla.
Markings using colored pins.
A sketch of city ruins on the right.
The area on the left is marked as a base area.
A snaked path through the middle.
He points to the map markings.
"See the red dots, Hikari? Destroy them."
An awkward silence ensued.
His eyes met Ria's.
Hikari was in the background.
He felt like the ground was shaking as the giantess blinked at him.
An annoyed look appears on Ria's face.
"What? Is that all?"
"Well yes, what else do you need to know?"
"I thought you were a general. What monsters will she face down there? What route does she take? How long will she be down there? How will she be supplied?"
Rey scratches his head.
"Well… I think Hikari can figure it out herself… from my experience… she is more than capable of making those decisions."
"Is this how you run your armies? I didn't realize you were such an arm chair general."
"Well, yes actually. Taking direct command of your army is very difficult. Especially when communications are difficult, which is very true down there in the mist. But being a general is mostly about equipping and supplying your troops properly you know which I have done quite sufficiently."
"You mean 'we' have done quite sufficiently. Don't hoard the credit for yourself."
"Would you like to be a general too? I can promote you to captain. Perhaps a recommendation letter for praetor? I apologize that I can't make you a general myself."
"Thanks for your concern but I'm quite happy where I am. You're still the general. Make up something. Hype us hype with a speech would you? You have to earn your keep somehow."
"Ugh.. Fine."
Rey fishes a wrapper out of his pocket.
Boin. The platform shakes.
Rey almost loses his balance.
The giantess leans towards the platform.
Her giant moons rest on the stone.
Rey walks towards her.
He unwrapped the item.
The giantess's mouth opens.
Rey gulped.
It was large enough to swallow him whole.
The tongue sticks out like a carpet.
He tosses the piece of chocolate.
In it goes.
He tries not to think of what happens if he misses.
The mouth closes.
No jaw movements.
Her giant eyes closed blissfully.
"Sure glad that I have just come back from the capital. At least the yield on the cacao farm hasn't dropped. Even more lucky that the place hasn't been mobbed yet."
"Not bad. So you do have a bit of generalship after all."
"Is that what you look for in a general?"
"Hm. Perhaps not. You appear to be more of a gentleman."
"Wow. That's a rare compliment from you. I'll happily accept it."
"Don't get used to it."
A soldier pushes a cart towards them.
"Ah, there it is."
Rey holds up a lantern with both arms.
It glowed faintly with a gentle greenish yellow.
"Glow lanterns. Not a particularly creative name. It offers some warding from the mist. But most importantly, it allows us to track your position from the observatory."
Hikari puts a chain around her neck.
Click.
Ria clips the lantern onto it.
It glowed just slightly brighter in response to Hikari's mana.
More lanterns.
Soldiers fastened more of them to her body.
Hikari glowed like a festive tree.
"Perhaps this is a good idea for a dress."
Ria quipped.
Hikari nudges her gently with her finger.
A Razenheir knight carries a chest.
A pair of lodge stones.
Ria clips one of them to Hikari's neck chain.
She holds the other in her hand.
A bit of mana.
The lodestone in her hand turns green.
The lodgestone on Hikari's neck turns green.
She tries again.
The lodestone in her hand turns yellow.
The lodestone on Hikari's neck turns yellow.
"I should have gotten a pair before you went into the wyvern peaks. I couldn't sleep for nights while you went missing. Try it. Green means you're fine. "
"Yes, my lady."
The lodestone on Hikari's neck turns green.
Trivial magic for her.
The lodestone in Ria's hand turns green.
Her lady smiles.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
The bell rings.
The troops lined up.
The elevator platform had been loaded with supplies.
Thud. Thud.
Hikari steps onto the platform.
The crates stacked beside her boots.
The remaining troops squeeze onto the platform.
She turns and looks at Ria.
Her lady waves at her.
The sound of the elevator mechanism cranking.
Down they went.