Caelus leaned back in his chair, his guild card resting between his fingers as he stared at it like it might suddenly change again if he looked long enough.
"…So it's just dungeons for now?" he asked, glancing up.
Cypher sat across from him, one arm resting on the table, the other lazily holding a drink. "For D-rank? Yeah," she replied. "Clear monsters, gather materials, repeat."
"I mean I know I've always dreamt of this but..." He exhaled softly. "…That sounds… boring."
She let out a quiet scoff. "Then rank up."
He raised a brow. "Does something special happen once I do?"
"Well C-rank is where it starts changing. Villages, towns, sometimes cities. Real requests." She paused to a bit to take a sip of her drink before she continued "if you're high enough you could even be summoned on really important request like protecting royalty"
His motivation slowly returned. "…So not just dungeons anymore."
"Nope," she confirmed.
"Well what are we waiting for" He stood up from his seat grabbed Cypher by the had and ran
——-
The days that followed blurred together faster than he expected.
One moment they were inside a dungeon, sprinting down a narrow path while a massive boulder rolled after them.
"CYPHER DO SOMETHING!" Caelus replied, tears rolling down his eyes
"STOP TALKING AND RUN!" Cypher responded, already ahead of him, not looking back while he stumbled and pushed himself harder just to keep up.
____
Another moment, they were deep inside a different dungeon, surrounded by the nest of insect-like monsters.
He raised his hands, conjuring up flames that burst outward while Cypher moved through the rest like a storm mostly using her fist
"…You don't hold back at all, do you?" he muttered at one point, watching her drop the last one. She glanced at him.
"There's nothing wrong with that." She replied while holding one of the creatures head
"Of course not...but..." he paused as he looked at her completely covered in the creature's guts from head to toe "never mind" he let out a sigh
_____
It wasn't always fighting, another they stood in front of a chest.
Caelus crouched slightly, staring at it with excitement in his eyes.
"…This feels like a trap," Caelus said.
"If you know why, why are you still trying to open it," Cypher replied, arms crossed.
"Because? There's still a chance it isn't ." He said as he reached towards it, the second it cracked open, a thick green gas burst out, spreading fast.
Caelus got hit directly on this face which caused him to fall unconscious. Luckily wasn't too close so she didn't get affected, so she caught him mid-fall, slinging him over her shoulder like a bean sack, then turned and ran out of the room.
_____
They returned to the guild at night, completely exhausted after taking on multiple quests that day
Caelus dropped into a chair with a long exhale, his shoulders finally relaxing after a long day of working towards ranking up, while Cypher walked off without a word and came back with two mugs of beer like it was routine. She set one in front of him.
"If you're already exhausted from this how are you gonna cope in future," she said, taking a sip
Caelus didn't respond, he just groaned really loudly when suddenly, he heard a familiar voice
"Looks like someone's busy."
Caelus turned to see Eina standing there, and for the first time an outfit completely different from her work outfit.
He straightened slightly. "…Eina," he greeted.
"Hi Caelus," she replied, "Good evening Miss Cypher"
Cypher gave a small nod in acknowledgment but didn't say much, already halfway through her drink.
Eina shifted her gaze back to Caelus. "How's it been so far? No major issues, I hope?"
"…Depends on what you count as 'major,'" he said with a quiet laugh. "But nothing I couldn't handle."
Cypher let out a small scoff at that. "You almost got crushed by a trap this morning."
"…I handled it," he shot back, turning completely red
Eina let out a soft laugh, clearly amused as she pulled a chair and sat down with them. "Mind if I join you, would love to hear about your recent adventures"
"…Not at all," Caelus said quickly.
From that moment they ate, gisted and drank a lot specifically Cypher
The guild was loud like always, voices overlapping, laughter, arguments, deals being made, the only difference was that for once, Caelus didn't feel out of place in it.
He leaned back slightly, watching the room, then glanced at Cypher. She didn't look intimidating right now but completely normal, a little tired and a little relaxed which was strange because not long ago, he had genuinely thought she was terrifying.
He waved Eina goodbye as soon as he noticed Cypher was on the verge of collapsing from being drunk
_____
The street was cooler and quieter than the guild, the sounds fading behind them as they walked. Cypher was a step ahead at first, then slowed slightly. Caelus noticed almost immediately.
"…You good?" he asked.
"I'm fine," she replied. They walked a few more steps.
Then she stopped
"…Cypher?" He stepped closer, she suddenly fell unconscious face first on the floor "CYPHERRRR!!!!"
Left with no other option, he carried her on his back. As he walked back to his inn, his thoughts drifted again.
Back to that moment in the cave
"…It just… disappeared," he muttered quietly.
"…What the hell are you rambling about?" She asked half awake
"…Nothing." He shook his head lightly. "…Just——." Before he could finish his sentence she had dozed off again
Eventually they arrived at the in, he escorted her to her room before heading back to his room and jumping on the bed in exhaustion
"…C-rank…" he muttered under his breath while staring at the ceiling "Got a busy day tomorrow" he muttered, completely wrapping himself in bed sheet and letting sleep take him
____
The next few days passed the same way and eventually
"…C-rank?" he screamed in excitement while Cypher and Eina applauded like they had just witnessed a magician perform a trick
He let out a slow breath, staring at it for a second longer before a grin finally broke through.
"…So we're done with dungeons?" he asked.
Cypher pushed herself off the wall. "…Not completely. But now?" She glanced toward the exit. "…We start going out."
Caelus slipped the card into his pocket, the excitement he had when he first arrived in this world returned once more