The party continued with their introductions while walking. Mei and Koki didn’t talk to Bunty much due to the language barrier and chatted with Hina instead. Bunty and Yuhiko walked ahead of them, discussing the tower. Unlike her younger clan members, she didn’t wear traditional Japanese clothes. She wore a shirt, knee-long cape, and baggy trousers tucked into plated boots. Her lack of a weapon didn’t concern Bunty since a detailed black tattoo covered her forearm.

“You don’t have to worry too much about monsters,” Yukiho told Bunty. “Mei is the clan’s best marksman. I sent a letter to the family when she exited the ground floor with a fox spirit. I bet they’ll be ecstatic. She upgraded with a century-old Core on the first floor and will make light of most monsters.” She lowered her voice before continuing. “Koki got a beast spirit too, but it’s a frog. He’s not particularly pleased about it and hasn’t found a decent core for it yet. Don’t worry, though; his sword and spear-play are formidable.”

“What about you?” Bunty asked. “Won’t you help if monsters attack?”

“Only if their lives are in danger. This is their pilgrimage. I’m here to keep them alive, not help them climb or get their Cores. My pilgrimage will continue from the sixteenth floor after I have finished my duties. Mei and Kiko can choose to follow me as equals or return to Japan and help protect our mountain from the beasts.”

“I was asking about your spirit—”

“Oh. I’m sorry.” Yukiho laughed. The long scar running across her nose right eye and nose did little to detract from her appeal as a woman. Bunty could feel the strength and power in her. It was enticing and terrifying at the same time. “It’s been a while since I’ve spoken to people outside of the clan. I often forget that I’m an unknown.” She rolled up her sleeve showing off a wrinkly spiral in the middle of her tattoo. “My spirit is my cape. I’ve nurtured it to grow and harden while increasing my speed and agility. If something gets the jump on us, I’ll pull you out before the rest. We can’t continue the pilgrimage without your skills, after all. Mei and Kiko will oversee Hina’s protection.”

“My spirit isn’t upgraded, but I’m trained in multiple battle forms,” Bunty told her. “I’m not too concerned about my protection, more getting an idea of how we’d function as a party. Furthermore, Hina said you’d be open to negotiating loot distribution.”

“We aren’t too keen on that front,” Yukiho said. “Whatever Cores we find goes towards upgrading spirits, paying for supplies, repairs and tools, or for the clan’s protection. However, we were desperate for someone with rock-climbing abilities, so we put it out there as an option. What are you looking for, and what more can you contribute?”

“Besides my combat skills, I’m a practised trapper too. I don’t know if you’ve heard of the nightmare wolf, Akarai—”

“Akarai?” Her eyes widened. “That monster terrorised my party a decade ago! We used to prefer larger pilgrimage groups back then, and two of us fell to its terrible maw. That included a member of the main family. They were furious! I didn’t think the name would catch on.”

“I don’t believe in coincidence or fate, but I reckon this might be it,” Bunty said. “My traps help put him down. One of my former party members landed the killing blow and got an almost identical canine as his spirit.”

“Considering what Hina told us about you, I’m inclined to believe you Bunty. Let’s move on to what you’d like to negotiate.”

“Let me help trap and kill beasts along the way. If we’re travelling through unfamiliar territory and Koki hasn’t upgraded his spirit yet, things might get hairy. If we find a decently aged Core with size alteration, poison, or decent summoning capabilities, I’d like to claim it.”

“I’ll happily agree with the terms as long as you accept that Kiko gets priority,” Yukiho said. “His spirit has offensive augmentation as the major focus and summoning is as the minor. Poison would be ideal for a frog spirit, whether it be for a summon or augmentation.”

“I understand,” Bunty said. “Telekinesis will do too, but it’s unlikely we’ll come across beasts with such powers until the next interval. I’m happy to give Kiko first pick, of course. If we come across any century-old Cores that he can’t or won’t use, I’d like to consider it.”

“You understand how rare and expensive those are, yes?”

“I do. At the same time, I’d like to express that I have the means to climb the tower alone or hire escorts for protection. Passage is sufficient pay, of course, but it’s not something I’m desperate for like Hina. The reason I agreed to help you is because I need a decent Core for my spirit.” Bunty summoned his pen and showed it to her. Yukiho’s expression didn’t change as she studied it. “You require help overcoming the obstacles people and Gaia have put in your way. It’s a decent trade, don’t you think so.”

Yukiho nodded but didn’t say anything more. Bunty guessed that when she said they’d be open to negotiating, the party meant monetary compensation. They’d spent close to a month meandering around the second floor and were getting desperate. As a result, they had no option but to accept his request. They were still travelling through the populated parts of the floor with rest stops for miners and travellers. So, Bunty had them stop and add his requests to the employment contract before continuing. Hina didn’t appear particularly pleased with the move, but Bunty needed to protect his interests.

With the formalities out of the way, Bunty took the time to study the second floor. Explorers had spent years exploring it but had never found an outside. It was all a network of tunnels and caverns. Bioluminescent plants illuminated parts of it, while the rest sat in darkness. The party crossed streams that glowed bright blue and bridges with nothing but black underneath as they travelled away from the floor’s hub.

It was a couple of hours before Yukiho warmed up to Bunty once again. She was leading them along the original pilgrimage path and had encountered a collapsed staircase. Bunty climbed the rockface free hand and found the connecting tunnel hidden behind a collapsed boulder. It meant the route wasn’t completely lost. Bunty dropped his rope and helped them climb up before continuing their journey.

The path didn’t have any lighting, so Mei took the lead. She summoned a red-skinned fox, and it manifested a trio of blue wisps. Bunty recalled seeing a similar creature on the ground floor during his earlier hunts. As far as he remembered, they were sweet, friendly beasts. Many parties considered them nuisances as they’d steal food or pick at monster corpses, but Bunty didn’t mind them. Mei had either befriended one or landed an impossible shot with her bow.

Koki’s spirit was an even greater mystery. He had never encountered a frog on the ground floor. He guessed they lived in the swamps to the east of the ground floor’s hub. There were no records of frog monsters in the area which led him to believe the spirit came from critters that explored the area. Bunty couldn’t imagine how Koki got his spirit, and it prickled him that both had beast-types. He refused to believe it was just luck at play. Beast spirits were a rarity. The Ito clan likely had methods for guaranteeing spirit-type, and it wasn’t fair to keep such things secret. Baba had taught him that that life wasn’t fair, so he kept his mouth shut.

“How are you planning on nurturing your spirit?” Yukiho asked when she caught him staring at the fox. “People think tool spirits are easy to upgrade since they’re compatible with most Cores, but finding something decent is a pain, isn’t it?”

“I don’t know,” he said. “It’s got an odd combination of focuses. I checked out a couple of Cores from the first floor but the spells on offer, though powerful, won’t work well with my style. On top of that, I don’t know what to do about inanimate summoning. I’d either like something to grow the pen into a spear or anything that makes the ink poisonous.”

“You’re that confident in your spear play?”

For a moment, Bunty considered disclosing his family background but decided against it. More than often, people would ask why he didn’t carry a sword as a sword master’s son. “I’m trained most martial weapons. Stave weapons are my favourite, but they’re not ideal when in cramped spaces or for climbing.”

Yukiho’s eyes wandered down to the axe hanging from Bunty’s belt. “I can’t help but wonder why the tower gave you a pen,” she commented. “I’d advise keeping your options open. With tool spirits, it’s often advisable to find something that goes best with your spirit. It won’t essentially match your previous training, and you might very well have to learn a new form of combat or adapt your style.” Yukiho ran her fingers along the inside of her cape as she spoke. “I entered the tower as a marksman like Mei. Once you get to the third interval, ordinary arrows are pretty useless against the beasts. So, I had to relearn everything from scratch.”

Bunty knew there was truth in what she said, but he didn’t have time to relearn anything. Eirkh’s Core sat in his vest’s inside pocket, and the temptation to use it rose once again. He knew he wouldn’t find anything as powerful. However, the hope of finding a decent base for his spirit kept him from using it. Bunty would be willing to settle for something weaker as long as it gave him a decent inanimate summon or utility spell. Then Eirkh’s Core could build off it into something formidable.

Mei froze ahead. She and the others fell into a crouch, and Yukiho followed suit. The fox spirit’s tail dipped between its legs, and it padded backwards. A soft scratching sound echoed down the tunnel. Bunty drew his axe for security as the others fell back towards his position. The blue wisps flew up and down the tunnel, but they couldn’t see anything. Then the ceiling behind them collapsed, and a giant mole fell through the hole.