"Move!" I shouted, more to myself than to the voice outside.
In a panic, I threw my weight against the center timber of the barricade, yanking it aside just enough to create a gap. A blur of sunset-orange fur and tanned skin dived through the opening, tumbling onto the stone floor.
Before I could even slide the beam back, three frenzied wolves tried to force their way in.
Rose was already there. She didn't just fight; she carved. Her long, venom-tipped legs were a blur of shadow as she shredded the lead wolf, her Multi-Strike triggering twice in a row. I didn't let up either, rapidly spamming Icicle Lance into the bottleneck.
The fox-girl scrambled to her feet, gasping for air. Her amber eyes were wide, darting between me and the giant spider currently defending the entrance. She looked like she was having a hard time processing why a monster was fighting alongside a human, but she didn't have time for a breakdown.
"Get back!" I yelled.
Once the immediate threat was dead, Rose shoved the heavy boulders back into place, re-blocking the path. I fumbled for a mana potion, draining it in one go. I glanced at the girl—she was tiny, barely reaching five-foot-two, with a fluffy tail that was currently puffed out to twice its normal size.
Where did she even come from?
The wolves continued to pound on the wooden wall. The wood groaned under the pressure; I knew it wouldn't hold forever. I took one second to steady my breathing, then went back to work. I fired through the gaps in the timber, while Rose stabbed through the openings, her legs acting like spears.
It was an endless, exhausting horde. The only thing keeping me from losing my mind was the fact that I wasn't alone. Rose was a wall of steel and silk beside me.
We fought for hours. My mana was a constant red line until, suddenly, the fox-girl stepped forward. She began channeling a spell, her hands glowing with a soft, ethereal light.
[NOTIFICATION: Received Spirit Fox Blessing]
Effect: MP and MP Recovery increased by 20%.
Duration: 20 Minutes.
I felt the rush of energy immediately—the mana in my veins felt cooler, more abundant. She turned her magic toward Rose next. My companion didn't just grow faster; she became a blur. Rose was now dropping wolves in a single hit instead of two.
We became a trio of destruction.
By the time the sun finally began to peek over the horizon, the frantic scratching stopped. The frenzied howls faded into the distance as the remaining monsters slunk back into the deep woods.
[SYSTEM MESSAGE: Congratulations on surviving the Blood Moon. The next Blood Moon will occur in three months.]
"That's it?" I muttered, leaning against the cold cave wall. "No reward? No 'Great Job' gift?"
The only reward was the literal mountain of wolf corpses. I had spent the night looting as I fought, ending up with dozens of MP and HP potions—most of which I'd already consumed just to stay alive.
I turned to look at the fox-girl. Now that the adrenaline had faded, she had simply collapsed. She was fast asleep on the cold floor, her chest rising and falling in a deep, exhausted rhythm.
She was clearly a high-tier support, but what was she doing out here alone? And what kind of hell had she run through to be this tired?
I looked at Rose, then back at the sleeping girl. "Well," I whispered, "I guess we have a roommate."