5.33 – Saviors II

5.33 – Saviors II

Realizing she was staring, Leah jolted, her eyes flicking up to meet the stranger's—away from that metal cup. That sizable cup. Between a woman's legs.

To her side, Elliot gave one slow whistle, vocalizing Leah's—and probably everyone's—thoughts on their new arrivals. Adam elbowed him hard, to which Elliot let out a little oomph, then stiffened when he realized what he'd done. Leah sympathized, at least with how he'd been unable to control his initial reaction. The squad of five was ... quite the sight.

Slowly, she forced her brain to start working again.

What had the woman asked?

"Tenet?" Leah repeated dumbly. "No. We're not from Tenet." The question confirmed that their party was, though. It felt a bit ridiculous that Leah and her squad could ever be mistaken for a Tenet team. They didn't look the part, where this team very much did, based on the quality of their gear—or just the way they carried themselves. Even if the gear was ... rather strange. "But we're not independents either. Ether Deep."

The woman tilted her head. She obviously didn't recognize the name. Leah couldn't say she was surprised.

"It's a non-sanctioned academy." Top delvers like the ones from Tenet tended to be in their own little world. That they didn't recognize smaller schools came as no shock. "You five are Tenet, then?" she asked, just to make sure.

"Yeah. First years."

Leah's brain slowly started to catch up. To make the conclusions she should already have if she hadn't been so flustered from the catastrophe earlier. And the very strange attire of the Tenet squad.

Leah wasn't necessarily happy to have run into them, but all things considered, it was good news. It meant Leah and her team weren't in as much danger. Why would a Tenet squad rob them? Even at first glance, she could tell they were fully geared out. There might be some profit to be made, but not much, not by the standards of Tenet students. It wouldn't be worth the effort.

Plus, their Academy had a reputation to maintain. While mostly unenforceable, delver-against-delver combat was illegal. Laws still applied down in the dungeon. Just, they were more for show than anything, because how could they be enforced? Most Tenet students wouldn't risk the trouble for such a paltry reward.

Then, another realization hit her.

Not only was their arrival not another disaster compounding upon their first ... but maybe Leah and her team had found salvation through random chance.

Had they found someone who could help?

Leah dismissed the idea as soon as it occurred. These were Tenet students. Why would they care? Those rich bastards never concerned themselves with anything besides what directly benefited them.

When Natalie finally faced back to Leah, Leah had braced herself for the inevitable answer.

"Okay," Natalie said. "Obviously, we're going to help. And we're not taking your gear for it. We're not assholes."

The words didn't quite make sense.

"But," Natalie said, seeming awkward. "We don't want to share experience, either, if that's fine. So can you guys just follow behind us? We don't want four more people to split it with."

Leah stared.

Natalie cleared her throat. "Sorry, we know that's kind of rude. But we're rushing for level three. Tenet's competitive."

Leah stared some more.

Their only condition was that they wanted to make the trap even riskier? By turning down their help and doing it alone?

Tenet students ... were really something else.

"T-That's fine," Adam stammered out, finding his voice where Leah couldn't. "That's, uh, yeah, no problem."

"Perfect," Natalie said, seeming relieved. She hefted up her warhammer, resting it on her shoulder. "Well, clock's ticking, it sounds like. We shouldn't waste time. Though, they'll be fine, I promise. The dungeon made those keys for a reason. It's kind of a jerk sometimes, but usually somewhat fair."

"Hopefully there's a boss at the end," Sofia, the white-haired fighter—with a collar around her neck?—added. "This seems like that type of situation. Lucky us. I thought we weren't going to find one today."

A boss?

They would be lucky to find a boss?

Leah and her team, and most squads, avoided them like the plague. Sure, bosses came with guaranteed loot at the end, often better than average, but the risk wasn't remotely worth it.

Yeah. Leah was certain now. Tenet students were completely insane.