Dimensional Descent

Aina pulled her sword out quickly.

She didn't quite understand what was happening. Shouldn't Invalids be creatures of instinct? They shouldn't have any intelligence or sense of comradery. Something like signaling one's allies was a distinctly human trait. Sometimes beasts of higher intelligence would engage in such matters as well. But, Invalids? That should never happen.

'It didn't become energy?'

Aina was shocked once again. The Invalid before her collapsed, but it didn't disappear into energy she could absorb. Just what was happening?

Aina's heart seized. Did she make a mistake? Was it not an Invalid at all?

No, that was impossible. Its eyes, its aura, its demeanor, it all screamed Invalid. So, what was happening exactly?

Aina didn't believe that she would make such a rookie mistake. Plus, what existence other than an Invalid could shriek like that even after having its head pierced through?

Aina was certain, it hadn't been a shriek of pain or unwillingness. It had no emotion behind it all, it was completely hollow and without conscience.

'I need to move.'

Aina thrust these thoughts to the back of her mind, taking a glance at the wall the 'Invalid' had been scratching at.

If Leonel had been there, he would immediately recognize the Tier 5 Black Ore embedded into the wall. It wasn't very valuable, but it wasn't worthless either. At the very least, it could sell for a couple kilograms of Black Urbe Ore.

'I don't have time to dig it out and it doesn't seem like a very high level ore either.' Aina nodded to herself. 'Run.'

felt it was unfortunate that she had placed herself in such a difficult situation for such a worthless Ore she couldn't even mine, but there was

back in

time to run and create new markings on the wall. And, if she got lost in these tunnels, there would be no one to come out and save

was really a signal as she thought, then it likely meant that there were more Invalids on their way. If she was correct, then her arrows wouldn't mean much if anything to them.

confidence, only to come to a

all of them with their backs facing her. But, they all simultaneously rotated their heads in her direction as though they were

her

go forward?

would force her to forget her initial plans entirely. There was no way she would be able to keep a mental map of where

many diverging paths. If it wasn't for this, there was no way that Aina would only meet these Invalids on her way back and never even sense them during her

her

only meant that she had been very lucky not to run into them on the way here. If that was the case, there might very well be even more if she headed in deeper

faint red hue covering her blade and her

she shot forward,

they were as fast as Fourth Dimensional humans, their joints would often bend at odd angles as though they were double jointed

how to walk on their own two

good thing for her. The less coordinated they

Without even bothering with the remaining two, she shot by the gap she created after the Invalid toppled over,

minding the noise she might make. As long as the Invalids she came across continued to

corners, almost lamenting her previous actions. Why couldn't she had traveled in a straight line before?

more Invalids. Many were alone, allowing her to easily bypass them. But, a few came in groups of two and three. Still, it wasn't

How were there so many Invalids here? Why did none of them

couldn't fathom how there were so many here. The more she ran into, the more she began to question how