Dungeon Raider System

Chapter 87 : Extra 1

"Am I really that incompetent or am I cursed?" Miss Dragonfang pouted as she shook a glass full of scoth in front of her while the person beside her comforted rubbing her back in small circles.

"It's not that, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose, that's all." Phlox said as she kept rubbing her friend in the back. They were at their favorite pub having a drink but, even if Lizzy Dragonfang looked drunk she had yet to take the first sip from her glass.

Phlox knew the reason why she was so depressed and she also knew there was nothing she could do or say to make her feel better, but she had to at least try. "Besides, I think it went well, all things considered."

"You call having a member of your party dying and another surviving by miracle going well?" She was, of course, referring to Atomic's death and Medusa's grievous wounds. It had been a week since the incursion she organized to hunt the skinwalker and, even though the newbies under her command managed to kill the creature, she still considered it a loss.

"I'm just saying it could have been a lot worse. If Luna wasn't studying to become a doctor, by the time you got there Medusa would have been already dead."

"I know Alright! It's all my fault." Dragonfang started crying again. "Why did I even leave the army? I'd rather be pushing papers all day than seeing good people die all the time."

"Did you hit yourself on the head? Don't you remember how it was? It wasn't just a few students the ones who died on this year's army incursion, lots of soldiers died too!" Phlox was about to mention their deceased partner, the one that perished trying to rescue Sam near the campfire during the army incursion, but that would only make things even worse and she decided against it.

Contrary to Miss Dragonfang, Phlox didn't come from a wealthy background. When she joined the army she didn't even have a trait and had to work hard for even the chance to get one. Because of this, leaving the army before serving at least ten years would have been impossible for her. The army invested on her and that made her their property until she paid them back.

It was only thanks to Miss Lizzy Dragonfang's influence that she was allowed to leave with an honorary discharge and for that, Phlox was really grateful. So grateful, in fact, that she was willing to put up with Dragonfang's antics.

Lizzy Dragonfang was always playful and charismatic, she loved to pull pranks on people even when she was part of the army. But now Phlox couldn't recognize her, it was like she was a whole different person.

"Maybe I'm just not cut out to be a leader." Dragonfang said, expecting Phlox to tell her otherwise.

"I think so too." Phlox sighed and she put a handful of chips inside her mouth. "You get way too involved."

"I do not!" Dragonfang replied.

"I still think it was a bad idea to go after the skinwalker. I mean, the kids were traumatized and giving them closure wasn't necessary a bad thing, but all things considered I think you should have just let go.

It's just like now, instead of owning your mistakes and carrying on, you mope about them for way too long." Although Phlox didn't want to make her suffer, she didn't want to enable her weak behavior.

"You don't understand how it is."

"I think it's you who don't understand how real world is. People die all the time, it hurts, but we can't linger on those feelings. I know you have money and can afford to quit the military on a whim and work whenever you want to, but if we don't find a job soon I'll be screwed." As grateful as she was towards her friend, she needed to work but Dragonfang was in no condition to go on incursions.

Phlox would have been fine with anything, even scavenging. "If I had a trait as strong as yours..."

"That's all there is to it, you're just jealous of me. If I could pass my trait to you I would do it without a second thought. Being an ascended has brought me nothing but trouble!" Phlox's words were spot on and deep inside Dragonfang knew it. She knew she was sheltered, but accepting that fact was too difficult for her since she always thought everything she did was to help others.

"How can you say something like that!? I've been with you for a long while, I've put up with all your moping and whining, even though you should be the one comforting me!"

Up to that moment Dragonfang never stopped to consider Phlox's feelings. It wasn't that she was being selfish or anything like that, it was just that Phlox always seemed so unfazed by death and failure that she relied on her too much. Hearing those words from her former subordinate and current companion really hurt Dragonfang and she finally understood where Phlox was coming from.

She had been so worried about the newbies she had completely forgot about Phlox. It wasn't that she wasn't affected by their failures. Just like her, she was struggling, the only difference was that she couldn't afford to give up.

It somehow reminded Dragonfang about the evolved archaeology student, Uriel, who despite being the weakest of their group was also deemed by their companions as the core member of their party.

She remembered how Luna, Medusa and Sam said they would only join her party if Uriel joined too. At first she didn't understand it because they didn't seem to have known each other from before, and yet, they all trusted him.

But now she got it, she finally understood what made Uriel so important for them because it was the same for Phlox. The reason was their mental fortitude. Even in the face of danger Uriel didn't cower nor did he take a step back and that gave the rest of the group the confidence to keep going forward. They must have thought that if someone like him can brave through misfortune, then so can they.

And here she was, whining in front of someone who had it much worse than herself. She understood now how much they both depended on each other.

"You're right!" Dragonfang slapped her cheeks and stood up. "Let's call it a night and prepare for an incursion!"

"Heck yeah!" Phlox's purple hair waved in the air as she followed Dragonfang to the exit leaving their drinks untouched.