Arwin’s thoughts drifted as Rodrick led them in search of their next potential monster for Reya. Her refusal to kill the monster echoed dimly through the halls of his mind. It wasn’t like the lizard was really worth thinking about, but he couldn’t get it out of his head. He’d killed thousands – probably more, if he was honest with himself – of equivalent monsters. And, despite everything, Arwin didn’t regret any of the kills he’d made. They’d been done to save himself and to protect others. It wasn’t the fact that he cared about the lizard’s life either. He hadn’t been exaggerating about its intelligence. The monster wasn’t anywhere near smart enough to understand what had happened. Really, calling it a monster is a rather odd choice. Lillia is a monster as well – a demon. And yet, there’s no more relation between her and that lizard than there would be with me and a dog. I’d have put the lizard down if it had been me that was fighting it, and I likely still would now if it tried to attack me or stood in my way. But… perhaps it is worth adjusting my thinking a little more. Not all the monsters I encounter are going to be as soulless as this one. Some may have some degree of intelligence, and if the Adventurer’s Guild is not my ally, then am I truly their enemy? “What’s wrong?” Anna whispered, moving closer so her voice wouldn’t carry too far into the forest. “Is something happening?” “Nothing like that,” Arwin said with a small smile. “I was just lost in thought. Reya’s an interesting one, isn’t she?” “The way you say that makes it seem like you’re older than she is. Are you her brother or something?” Arwin’s body tensed and the urge to rush into the fight gripped him, but he restrained himself. The Mesh wouldn’t recognize Reya’s work if he ran in to save her. She needed to handle this on her own – and he needed to trust that she could do it. And that’s not to mention the way she must be feeling. Ever since she threw her lot in with me, I’ve been bailing her out of trouble. She doesn’t feel like she’s in control of herself, and if I step in again here, that feeling may cement itself even further. “Aim for weak points!” Arwin called out. “You can’t break its scales with the dagger, so bide your time until you have an opportunity to strike! Don’t overextend too early.” If Reya heard him, she gave no acknowledgement. She bounced from foot to foot, watching the lizard warily and prepared to jump out of the way of its next attack. Even though she had no experience fighting monsters, only a fool would have said that she wasn’t used to combat. She moved with the grace of a street urchin that had grown up dodging pursuing guards their entire life, and while that wasn’t enough to put her toe to toe with some of the rogues Arwin had known in his years, it was more than enough to give her a fighting chance against a lizard – even if she didn’t have a class. The monster lunged, snapping at Reya and trying to strike her with its long claws. She dipped to the side, then lunged as it tried to regain its balance. With a cry, Reya brought the dagger’s point down toward one of the monster’s bulging eyes. It twisted its head at the last second, and the loud scrape of her dagger against the scales ground through the air. The blade shattered from the force of the impact. Arwin took a step forward, but Reya wasn’t done yet. She threw herself out of the way, discarding the broken remains of her dagger, and ducked behind a tree a moment before the lizard’s tail smashed through the trunk, sending splinters and dust flying everywhere. The tree pitched forward and crashed to the ground with a resounding thud. Reya dashed out from behind it, leaping into the air and throwing herself straight at the lizard’s head in display of either stupidity or bravery and possibly a mixture of both. Arwin felt the Mesh tingle in his mind as Reya ripped a dagger free of her belt. He only had an instant to look at it before Reya plunged the weapon into the lizard’s eye with all her might and momentum, functionally sheathing it within the monster and snuffing the tingle in his mind before it could reveal any information. The monster let out a screech of pain and Reya launched herself off its body, narrowly avoiding a tree branch as she hit the ground, holding her arms close to her chest to avoid breaking anything. She rolled several feet and thunked to a stop against a tree, scrambling to her feet the moment she stopped moving. The lizard let out a hissing scream, thrashing and spitting as blood dripped down the side of its head and splattered against the forest floor. “Don’t rush to finish it!” Rodrick warned, his expression just as scrunched in worry as Arwin felt. “Take it slow! You’re on the right track!” Reya’s breath came out in short, adrenaline filled pants. Her hands and limbs twitched as her brain sent furious signals to them, but she forced herself to stay still and watch the monster. The lizard was far less patient. It let out a scream and charged toward Reya. Its steps were lopsided and heavy, but that didn’t stop it from closing the small gap between them in just seconds and lurching in an attempt to take her down with it. Reya dropped to the ground, and the lizard hurtled over her head like a scaly missile. It slammed into a tree, shattering it, and rolled across the ground in a flailing mess of limbs – and then it vanished. Arwin blinked, then looked to the others. They looked equally as confused. There was no sign of the lizard. If it wasn’t for all the destruction in the area around them, it would have been as if it had never been there. “What the hell?” Arwin asked. “Where’d it go?” “Are you okay, Reya?” Anna asked. “I’m fine,” Reya said, pushing herself up to her feet and frowning as she fought to catch her breath. She squinted into the forest. “What happened?” Arwin walked in the direction the lizard had gone, his sword held at his side and ready to spring into action. He couldn’t place exactly what was causing it, but the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. He inched closer to where the lizard had vanished, peering into the darkness, and froze as the breath caught in his throat. There was a huge hole, roughly the size of a house, in the middle of the ground. And, looking straight out of it were two large green eyes, each the size of a shield. Glistening gray scales made up the draconic body surrounding them, and the tip of a forest lizard’s tail stuck out of a mouth chock full of pointed yellowed teeth. Arwin’s skin tingled as the Mesh identified the creature before him, but he barely even needed it.