Yay! The story is finally going to move forward again, right?
Now that our party was assembled, we could finally start our dungeon expedition at the castle. Well... the Queen had other plans.
"We need to go out and hunt monsters, and then, when we sell everything at the guild, everyone will be amazed by how much we caught. Then we'll escort a caravan and get attacked by bandits. Solve the case of the mysterious monster that's been attacking people..."
The Queen kept listing everything she still wanted to experience as an adventurer.
"My Queen, our priority is the Prince's training. Please remember how important that is," Sabrina intervened.
What's so important about my training anyway? Isn't this just another one of the Queen's roleplay sessions? Find out in the next chapters.
"Ah, yes, yes. Very important. Straight to the dungeon, then!" the Queen quickly changed her mind.
I'm not gonna lie, I was really curious about what exactly made the Queen change her mind so easily. But no way I was about to start digging for information.
"Aww, you two aren't going to share your little secret with us?" asked the elf.
And for once, I thanked whatever god had put that elf into my life.
"You can't be that nosy, sweetie," the Bear grunted.
"Isn't it obvious?" Mary added. "Everyone knows a Queen would want a strong and manly husband."
I will never get used to her saying things like that while wearing a nun outfit.
"Curiosity killed the cat. Now move it, let's get to the dungeon," the Queen shut down the conversation.
And so, we headed for the dungeon.
"My Prince, you'll take the front line. Sabrina, you'll stay close to the Prince but let him handle all the fighting. Your role is just to navigate the dungeon and avoid traps. Help him with crowd control if necessary. Ted, you guard our rear. I, Mary, and Sylph will stay in the middle. I'll protect them and support the front by debuffing enemies. Sylph will focus on buffing the frontliners, and Mary will heal anyone who gets hurt," the Queen laid out our strategy.
She really looks HOT when she takes on that bossy commander attitude. But I didn't have much time to daydream about her because the first enemy showed up.
A goblin. Again, a goblin.
I stepped up, determined to finish it off in a single blow. Except... this goblin was way stronger than I expected. Seriously, how did this goblin get so tough? Or... am I just getting weaker? Maybe both?
"Arthy's seen better days," Mary commented.
Yeah... I had to admit, struggling that much against a single goblin wasn't exactly my best performance.
"My Queen, isn't buffing the Prince's enemy a little too cruel?" Sabrina pointed out.
I knew that goblin felt way too strong!
"Did I really buff him that much?" the Queen tried to defend herself.
"Sweetie, that tune you're playing... that's a debuff, ain't it?" the Bear asked from the back.
"Ah, my bad!" said the elf.
Damn elf. With allies like these, who needs enemies? By the time I finally managed to beat the goblin, I was already out of breath. And that was just the first enemy.
"Tired already, my darling? I could give you a massage," the Queen offered sweetly.
"No, my Queen, we must keep going," Sabrina quickly intervened.
When it was just me and the Queen, things were so much more fun...
Our expedition continued, and little by little, the party started getting more in sync.
Sabrina was always serious and professional, so for her, this was as easy as a walk in the park. The Bear really knew how to guard the rear. The Queen remained a chaotic element, but when things got serious... well, she's the strongest being in the world, so for her, this was just child's play.
Only Mary hadn't had much to do yet. In the early levels, none of the monsters were strong enough to actually hurt us. Seeing that Mary hadn't had her chance to "join the fun," the Queen came up with a solution.
She drew her sword and, with a single graceful and precise move, cut off my left hand.
She CUT OFF my hand. MY HAND. SHE CUT IT OFF.
"Haaaaaaa!" All I could do was scream in pain and shock.
"Ah, Mary! Quick, the Prince got hurt!" the Queen said with the most innocent face you could imagine.
"Are we really safe here?" the Bear whispered to the elf — who couldn't answer because she was laughing too hard.
"My Queen, I don't know any healing spell strong enough for a wound that serious," Mary said, genuinely worried.
"Ah, my bad," the Queen said again, still with that innocent look. Then she snapped her fingers, and my hand was healed. Whew.
Am I going to survive many years of this marriage...? My relief didn't last long.
"Give me your paw, my Prince," the Queen ordered, holding out her left hand while holding a dagger in the other.
I handed her my hand obediently. I won't lie — this bossy side of hers really gets me going.
She took my hand and made a small cut on my arm.
"Oh no, the Prince clumsily cut himself again!" she announced with fake innocence.
"Don't worry, my Queen, I'll heal him!" Mary said, catching onto the Queen's little game and happily playing along.
Even after Mary healed me, the elf still couldn't stop laughing. The Bear looked traumatized. Sabrina stayed silent, like all of this was just... normal.
"Yay, now everyone's really taking part in the fun! So, what's next?" the Queen said, satisfied.
"Up ahead is a treasure room guarded by a Boss, my Queen," Sabrina pointed out.
"Perfect! Our first boss fight!" the Queen cheered.
Will our heroes survive their first boss battle? Of course they will — and you all know it!