Chapter 33

Tina and I didn't get to kill a single... Single monster on the way back to the surface. Shenhe literally bitch smacked Silverbacks, and Hard Armored hard enough across the face that their necks got broken to say nothing of lesser monsters like war shadows, goblins, and kobolds having their heads explode like a firework put into a watermelon.

"You guys can get the monster stones... They aren't worth anything to someone level four and above." She spoke quietly as we looked between her and the pile of corpses that was a 'monster party' the dungeon attempted to use to distract Shenhe long enough to have a small squad of war shadows attack us.

But the dungeon was fucking wrong on the level of Shenhe as she spoke softly. "Astralize the ice of my soul. Visions of Antiquity!" Her spell conjured an ice clone of herself which then split off and past us as a blur that tore through the war shadows, while Shenhe finally used her spear as she dashed forward and as she rapidly spun her spear in a simple circle she became a wood shipper to the monsters sending chunks of monsters everywhere, and painting the dungeons walls red with gore.

"We are good Shenhe," I said drily as a loud slapping noise rang out as a chunk of a goblins torso that got caught in the roof fell down with a wet splattering noise in the pool of gore.

Shenhe frowned and said with some frustration. "I don't mean to ruin your dungeon dive... But I really want Alfia and Materia cured, Alfia is a... Rival." She said with a nod to herself and her eyes landed on me as she spoke again. "Do you... Need money for the materials?" She asked tilting her head to the side and asking me with honest curiosity.

And in that moment I knew I could rip Shenhe off to the ends of the earth and so long as I said it was for Alfia's cure. I knew she would accept it without issue.

I wasn't a saint. I could use some funds right now as Hephaestus rightfully wanted me to earn the majority of my materials.

So I took a breath and said honestly. "I could in fact use some funds to finish acquiring the materials needed to make up Alfia's own elixer... I already used all my previous stock in making Materia's so I am all tapped out for now." I answered and without a single blink Shenhe's hand went to her waist and before I could react her palm was just in front of me with a fist-sized coin purse in her palm.

"I carry five million Valis on me at all times. In case I need to rush to buy an elixir... Is this enough?" She asked plainly and my face twitched at the sheer ease she offered it.

But it seemed that wasn't the answer she was hoping for and then she used her other hand to take my own and then put her coin purse in it. "Thats fine. Use this five million for now to acquire the material you need... Then I will go into the dungeon and acquire fifteen more million in valis by the end of the day." She said confidently and I tilted my head to the side in confusion.

"How are you going to get that much in one day? No matter how strong you are, you cannot get past the Water City by the end of the day?" I asked in some interest.

She smiled a small thing but it was all the scarier as she chuckled deeply and spoke. "Ohhh... The Zeus Familia has once again called dibs on the Goliath. It would be a shame if it snapped its neck when it trips coming out of its spawning."

-

There was no discussion... Shenhe quickly escorted us up to the surface, and without another word, once we reached the surface she spun on her heels and returned back into the dungeon leaving us gaping at her strutting into the dungeon.

'Hate for her to leave... But love to watch her go.' I thought with a small smile as I took my eyes of the sight of Shenhe's bouncing waist as she strode back into the dungeon as I looked down at Tina and said bluntly. "Well, today was a thing... Well let's get back and ask Tsubaki for help with the taming." I said and Tina nodded hurriedly.

On the way home, we hit up the adventurer shops and I restocked on lesser potions I could fuse into better products while I also picked up healing salves and other medicinal things to make stronger elixirs for Alfia's own healing potion to cure her magical super cancer. "Is there anything else we should get?" I asked partly to myself.

But Tina still threw out 'helpfully' "More pallum grade illegal aphrodisiacs?" 

I looked down at the short stack... Paused at the thought of for whatever reason fusing that perverted shit into my would-be dragon mount and quickly shook my head as I said flatly. "No, Tina... Bad, don't be a pervert." 

Even as my short little hellion gave me a small scowl I did realize I needed something though. "Come on... You are right though. We do have something to get past the Red Light District." I said with a wry smile.

I had the power to fuse all things I could physically get my hands on, into something better than the sum of all its parts... And Orario was the largest city in the world of Gekai. Actually, to put it correctly, it was the literal center of the world and that wasn't an exaggeration, it was the literal statement of fact as the dungeon popped up in the middle of the world.

"Tina. We are going scavenging in the city dump past the Red Light District." I said seriously and Tina looked up at me with her face scrunching up.

"Jake... That's where poor people's corpses are tossed." She stated, I nodded. She continued with her eye twitching. "Jake, the worst scavengers, even worse than the street rats of Daedalus Street live there."

"Are you going somewhere with this Tina?" I asked dryly and she sighed muttering.

"You are going to be called a 'bigger, biggus, and other things by the pallums. And other small races that are forced to scrounge there." She said with no infection in her voice and my eye twitched at that hard R she used in calling me a 'bigger'

I looked at Tina and I said flatly. "Then I am going to kill a pallum. Now let's go, we have the materials for Alifa's elixer but I want materials for making other weapons and enchanted objects." I finished clapping my hands and began walking towards the Red Light District with Tina muttering how this was a terrible idea.

But all I could think about was punting another one of those damned racist midgets, that seemed to have a bone to pick with me for some odd reason.