My ability to help the girls in a fight was extremely limited. I couldn’t use any mana. More than that, I didn’t know what Salicia could see, so if I started showing off all kinds of skills, then she would become aware that I was strange. Thus, I was very limited in what I could do. I could only help the girls by equipping one or two supportive jobs. I didn’t even dare unequip the first job that I was expected to have, Dark Priest.
To fool Calypso, I had concocted a story in which I used to be part of the church. I had joined as a child but was ultimately disgraced. Calypso had bought the story quickly, even giving my small chest a pitiful look. It was true, as a woman, I didn’t have a large chest, but I hadn’t even considered that. As the church found women with large tits closer to the mother goddess, it made sense that as I grew up and didn’t form an appropriate rack, that I would fall from grace. Sadly, my feminine body turned out to sell the story of my fall from grace a little too perfectly.
Dark Priests essentially came from Priests that had aided those considered evil. Changing the jobs, resurrecting, or extensively healing bandits, murderers, or miasmic creatures was a quick way to unlock the Dark Priest job. Most Dark Priests had to start as normal Priests, otherwise, they wouldn’t even have those skills. I did not know if that meant Calypso had been a priestess once. I know that I didn’t need to be a Priest to unlock Dark Priest. Any given job had many ways to unlock it, and what would unlock it for one person didn’t necessarily mean it would unlock it for another. It wasn’t just your actions, but your innate talent that also had to be factored in. At least, that’s what some books claimed.
As I watched the girls fight through the dungeon levels, I also had to acknowledge their growth over time. Lydia, Celeste, and Terra had all been sent into the untamed Wilderness west of Aberis to map out the location of nearby dungeons and gain experience. They had leveled and gained many skills of their own. Plus, they had learned to work together, and not depend on me as much.
As the three girls that had been with me the longest, they made up the offensive and defensive core of my group. Lydia was the quickest. She was responsible for identifying threats and would often make the first strike. Celeste’s powerful wind magic made her my strongest damage dealer, able to cope with large groups of enemies. Terra was naturally our greatest defense. It was important that these girls had faith in their abilities, and didn’t depend on my stat boosts to feel like they could protect themselves and the party. That was one of the main reasons I had sent them out.
Of course, that didn’t mean Miki and Shao were unimportant. However, Miki’s roles were supportive like mine, and Shao had long learned to depend on herself in the gladiatorial ring. With everyone working together, we had made our way to level five. Although the sun was still out and bright in the dungeon, I was pretty sure the sun would be setting on the surface. On that note, level one had a day and night cycle, so it looked was optional.
RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWR!
“It’s the level five boss!”
“Is that a Tyrannosaurus Rex?” I asked in disbelief. “Why are we fighting a Tyrannosaurus Rex?”
“Terra!” Lydia shouted.
Terra created a wall of earth, causing the T. Rex’s charge to be blocked. She had simultaneously created steps that Lydia used, climbing up and leaping onto the T. Rex’s head. One sword slammed into the dinosaur’s eye. The T. Rex threw its head back, trying to toss Lydia off. The result was that he had completely exposed his neck.
“Celeste!” Lydia cried out.
Celeste flew up and then threw out a series of wind blades, hitting the T. Rex’s neck, nearly severing his head. With a massive crash, the dinosaur died like that. A level five boss wasn’t a threat to the party as it currently was.