I Stopped Simping and the Heroines Lost Their Minds

Three days after accepting the Obsidian Hand contract, Squad 7 moved through one of the narrow tunnels beneath Glassjaw Warren.

Pale crystal veins gave off just enough light to reveal the uneven floor and the sharp stone crowding both sides of the path. Arthur had little room to draw Whisperwind, forcing him to remain only a few steps behind Felix.

A low hiss came from the darkness ahead.

”Contact front,” Felix called out, raising his kite shield as he stepped into the narrowest part of the tunnel.

A Glassjaw charged out of the darkness with its plated head lowered.

Felix raised his shield but did not brace for a direct collision. He waited until the creature was almost on top of him, turned his body, and angled the shield across its path.

The Glassjaw struck the steel and veered sideways. Its own momentum carried it into the cavern wall.

Arthur stepped out behind Felix. A pale mana arrow formed against Whisperwind’s string. He kept the draw light, settled the string beside his jaw, and released.

Arthur stepped out behind Felix. A pale mana arrow formed against Whisperwind’s string. With the tunnel restricting his movement, he kept the draw short and released.

The arrow struck the seam beneath the crystalline jaw. The lower plate cracked and snapped upward.

Emily crossed the remaining distance before the creature recovered. Instead of winding up, she planted one foot and drove a short punch into the cracked plate.

The crystal jaw broke with a sharp crack. The Glassjaw dropped without shaking anything loose from the ceiling.

Emily looked at the dead reptile and opened her hand once inside the padded glove.

”That was easier.”

Arthur lowered Whisperwind. ”The ceiling also appreciates your personal growth.”

Felix stepped away from the carcass and brushed several crystal chips from his shield. One fragment had punched through the leather guard covering his forearm.

”It barely entered,” he said when Chloe caught his wrist.

Chloe opened her field kit and guided him toward the nearest crystal vein for better light. ”That is why it will be difficult to find after I close the wound.”

Felix wisely stopped arguing.

Chloe washed the cut, removed the shard with her forceps, then checked the wound a second time before placing her palm over it. A faint healing glow closed the shallow injury.

She dropped the bloody fragment into an empty vial.

”Now you can complain.”

Felix tested his arm. ”The treatment was professionally adequate.”

Chloe looked at him.

”Highly professional,” he corrected.

Before they continued, Chloe tore several strips from a spare cloth, dampened them with water, and handed one to each squad member.

”Cover your mouth before Emily breaks another one,” Chloe said.

Emily accepted hers. ”You make one controlled punch and suddenly everyone has expectations.”

They moved deeper into the Warren. As they passed a dense cluster of crystal outcroppings, loose stone shifted beside Arthur.

His Perception caught the movement just before a second Glassjaw burst from a hidden burrow.

There was no room to draw. Arthur lowered Whisperwind, pulled a dagger, and jammed the crossguard between the creature’s open jaws.

The Glassjaw clamped down and drove him backward. Arthur struck at the hinge beneath its jaw, but the reptile kept pushing until his back hit the cavern wall.

A padded hand caught the armor behind its neck.

Emily dragged the creature away from Arthur, slammed it onto its side, and brought her boot down on the cracked plate beneath its jaw.

The Glassjaw stopped moving.

Emily turned and crossed her arms. ”Say it.”

Arthur brushed the cavern dust from the front of his armor. ”Say what?”

”Say that I just saved your life because you aren’t strong enough to push a lizard away.”

”I had the jaw hinge isolated,” Arthur argued, resheathing his dagger. ”The situation was developing.”

His wrist ached beneath the temporary wrap, but the joint remained steady. The leather near his thumb felt slightly looser than before.

”You were getting crushed,” Emily corrected cheerfully. ”Say it.”

Arthur sighed, adjusting his leather wrist wrap. ”Thank you for removing the lizard, Emily.”

”You’re welcome,” she beamed.

They pushed into Sector Four, the deepest chamber of the Warren. The tunnel opened into a wide, glittering cavern lined with massive crystal nodes.

A Matriarch rested among the largest crystal nodes. It was twice the size of the other Glassjaws, with a smooth shell covering its back and sides.

The creature rose when Squad 7 entered and turned toward them with a deep hiss.

”Spread out,” Arthur ordered.

He formed a mana arrow and fired at its flank. The shot struck the shell and skittered away without leaving more than a pale scratch.

Arthur moved toward the right side of the chamber. ”We need to crack the armor first.”

The Matriarch charged.

Felix waited until the Matriarch was almost on top of him. At the final moment, he stepped away from the center of its charge and caught the side of its snout with his angled shield.

The shield redirected its head just enough. The Matriarch missed Felix and crashed into a crystal pillar behind him.

The collision sent crystal dust rolling across the chamber.

Chloe pulled the damp cloth over her mouth and waved the others toward the clearer side of the cavern. Felix and Arthur covered their faces as they repositioned. Emily was already circling beyond the thickest part of the cloud.

The Matriarch recovered and whipped its heavy tail, searching for a target.

Arthur formed another arrow against Whisperwind’s string, but this one carried almost no real force.

He released Mirage Shot toward the Matriarch’s right side.

The false attack flashed across the cavern like a fully powered arrow. The Matriarch turned its armored flank toward it, exposing the thinner, segmented plates along its left side.

”Emily!” Arthur shouted.

Emily was already moving. She stepped into the opening and drove one short punch into the segmented plate.

The crystal split beneath her glove, exposing the softer flesh behind the Matriarch’s front leg.

The Matriarch shrieked and twisted its head toward Emily.

Felix intercepted from the side and caught one horn against the upper edge of his shield. He planted the lower rim against a broken crystal ridge and forced the creature’s head upward.

The angle held for only a breath, but that was enough to expose the pale section beneath its jaw.

The raised head exposed the pale section beneath the Matriarch’s jaw.

Arthur settled the string beside his face. He kept his shoulder loose, drew in one smooth motion, and released.

The mana arrow crossed the chamber and entered beneath the jaw.

The Matriarch shuddered, tore its horn free from Felix’s shield, and collapsed onto the cavern floor.

Silence fell over Sector Four.

Felix stepped back, leaning heavily on his shield. Emily shook out her hands, and Chloe hurried over to check Felix’s arm for any new fragments.

Arthur lowered Whisperwind and flexed his right hand. The wrap had kept his wrist steady, but the leather near his thumb had stretched and one line of stitching had begun to pull.

Brunhilda would have something to examine when he returned it.

Emily walked over while Arthur inspected the damaged wrap.

”I still haven’t heard a proper thank-you.”

Arthur looked up. ”I thanked you.”

”You thanked me for removing the lizard. You did not acknowledge that it had you pinned against a wall.”

Arthur pulled a chisel from his bag and crouched beside the nearest marked node. ”I had limited room to work.”

Emily followed him toward the crystal deposit. ”You had no room to work. The lizard took it.”

”I am tactically specialized.”

”Whatever helps you sleep at night, Vance.”

They secured the required mineral samples, marked the intact crystal nodes for the Obsidian Hand mining teams, and began the long walk back toward the surface.

They emerged from Glassjaw Warren shortly before sunset with the samples secured and every squad member still walking.

Arthur had barely stepped into the open air when his interface chimed.

Blue screens appeared in front of him as the completed dungeon run registered.