Chapter 259: Rowdy Boys

“Thank you so much for saving my idiot brother from that wirehair gorilla!” Maribelle exclaimed, extending a single pinkie claw for Will to shake. Despite her size, The tip was sharp enough to cut him if he handled it poorly.

“Barely a nudge, Miss. I’m sure he could’ve beaten it on his own.” Will said, shaking her claw.

Maribelle gave quite possibly the poshest laugh Will had ever heard, a sort of burbling guffaw that no human could possibly imitate without a staggering amount of money and drugs.

“You’re far too modest, Mr. Oh. A Wirehair gorilla would’ve torn little Aggy limb from limb. He’s a bit of a runt, you know.”

Just based on context, Will had guessed that Maribelle probably wouldn’t believe Aguilion’s story, so he flipped the script.

Aguilion couldn’t say anything or else he’d be in even more trouble for lying to his sister.

The young green dragon gave a whine of suppressed frustration and fixed Will with a blistering stare.

What do you want from me? Will thought, meeting the green dragon’s gaze. She was never going to believe anything good about you. Aguilion’s sister was at least twice his size, and more coordinated to boot.

And twice the size means eight times the weight. Maribell could probably bat Aguilion around without much effort.

“Mmyes, I try to look out for him, since we came from the same clutch and all, but if things continue like this, I’m afraid little Aggy will have to go down a floor during the migration. It’s a shame but if he can’t make a living here, it’s for his own good if he moves somewhere more…suitable for his talents. I personally am going to try my luck with the eligible bachelors on the 15^th Floor. Where winners go.”

Kind of a bitch isn’t she? Will thought, meeting Aguilion’s gaze again.

Aguilion nodded.

Maribelle, having missed that quick exchange, polished her shiny pearlescent claws against her chest, preening.

“Well, if you do have to go down a Floor, I know a dragon down there who’s in the market, as it were.” Will said. That might even be a bit of an understatement. ‘Desperate and willing to kidnap if necessary’ might be more accurate.

Maribelle gave that burbling laugh again.

“Indeed. One of the diseased runts from the 13^th Floor would be a proper match for my brother. But that’s all beside the point, I find myself rather more interested in our little guest. We so seldom get visitors.”

“What about that nest of Climbers to the east?” Aguilion asked. he had to be talking about Carrie Envar and her Stronghold.

“Oh, don’t remind me of them.” Maribelle said, fanning herself off. “Watching them desperately struggling to survive turns my stomach. No, this young woman here is much more interesting. What business do you have here? And please tell me it’s not something as pedestrian as ‘getting to level 60’.”

This was a tee-up if Will had ever heard one.

“It’s getting to level sixty.” Will replied. “Also, I’m male.”

“Oh!” Maribelle gasped, throwing a house-sized paw over her forehead. “Such shallow motivations. To reduce the majestic 14^th Floor to a mere source of XP. It wounds my very soul.”

“The Floor is quite beautiful.” Will said.

“That’s it!” Maribelle said. “I’ll take it upon myself to show you the natural wonders. Then you couldn’t possibly deny the love welling up inside you.”

Love for what? Will thought, glancing at her brother. The green dragon shrugged.

“Wait…did you say male? But you’re so much taller than your companion! And you’re so much stronger. I would’ve sworn…” Maribelle leaned down and put her enormous eye at their level, glancing between Will and Brianna.

“Sexual dimorphism among humans causes males to be larger.” Loth commented as she arrived beside them, carrying her barrel by the straps.

“How scandalous. How do they prevent the males from destroying their eggs, then?”

“They keep the eggs inside their body until they hatch,” Loth said. “If the male tries to destroy them, then the female often dies. There is only a single egg at a time and no second clutch. After the baby hatches, humans are hardwired to protect them communally due to the baby’s rarity and its inability to protect themselves.”

That’s a weird way to put it.

“Fascinating, and you are…” Maribelle mused, peering down at Loth.

“Loth the Luminary. Technically a kobold, but I’ve taken on a few draconic traits through a passive Ability.”

Loth unfolded the wings cloaking her body.

“Marvelous. As tiny and deformed as you are I’m sure you’ll be the most powerful Climber of your age. I would expect nothing less from someone who pays homage to our form.”

“I shall endeavor to meet your expectation.” Loth said, bowing.

“But enough talk!” Maribelle said , waving off the conversation. “We’ve only got a short time before you die, so we must make the most of it.” Maribelle snapped her fingers together, the opalescent claws making a faint ringing sound.

“…What was that?” Will asked.

“Let’s show you around! First stop, the falls! Quick, climb on!”

She placed a house-sized paw in front of them.

Will shrugged and hopped on, along with the rest of the Party, save the real Travis, who shook his head and made a big X with his hands from where he hid invisibly.

Well, I’m sure he’ll be fine. Travis had a knack for preventing monsters from noticing. This being a case-in-point.

Will was fairly sure that dragons had some ability to sense Miasma, so they should be able to tell Travis was using an Ability, but it was good enough to turn their attention away from it.

Maribelle’s claws closed down around them and she took off with a thunderous snap of her wings, instantly catching the air.

From Will’s point of view, he could see miasma coalescing around her wings, somehow providing extra lift.

I don’t think something that big could fly it if didn’t use magic for it somehow.

Will slipped out of Maribelle’s claws and flew alongside her right wing, adding a quick sketch to his legend. The miasma’s shape looked like a close cousin of the terrain solidifying ability of Aspect of the Immortal Serpent. A few differences, but extremely similar.

Wait, that’s what it is! Will hastily made a quick note. The shape of the miasma was much more spread out and skeletal, missing much of the density and several portions that his Ability would have.

It’s because it’s only targeting the air! Will realized, mentally overlapping the shape of his own Ability over this one.

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Her wings couldn’t affect the dirt or anything else, they only worked on air, which was a narrow application of his Ability, which created a cut-down, skeletal version of his own ability, with many gaps.

But on the other hand, it looked like she was using it effortlessly, and it only seemed to take a tiny fraction of the Miasma That Aspect took.

Plus, if my guess is correct, then this might be a key to decode which strands of miasma mean what.

If that means ‘air’, and this means ‘compression’ and this means ‘terrain’, then…

Will flew alongside Maribelle, taking furious notes. A more efficient, slimmed-down version of his own Aspect was a great find, and possibly a model for how to recreate the effect without needing the Ability.

Will was especially fascinated with the organic way the strands appeared from the major joints in her wings, coalescing into extra lift, then fading into nothing. Will took notes.

“And here we are!” Maribelle said. “And-wait, where did he go? Did I drop him? did he die already!?” The enormous purple-blue dragon stared at her open palm, then down at the ground and behind her.

“Did I sit on him?” Maribelle exclaimed in something of a panic, craning her neck to peer underneath herself.

“I’m right here.” Will said.

Maribelle blinked, looking up at Will, who was hovering above her.

“I can fly. I was just admiring your wings.” Will said.

“How indecent,” Maribelle said, tucking her wings in tight.

“We can all fly, actually,” Brianna said, shapeshifting wings. She, Loth and the fake Travis all took to the air.

“But I thought that…Humans don’t have wings.”

“Most Climbers above a certain proficiency will create their own techniques for advanced travel.” Loth said.

“True, that lordling to the east can fly, but she’s the only one. Your whole Party can fly?”

“I’m a Lordling a few Floors down, and this is my Party,”

“Hmph. Tell me you don’t need a ride next time. I was getting excited about carrying you around all by myself.” Maribelle grumbled.

“I can’t fly as fast as you, Maribelle,” Loth said placatingly.

“Me neither.” Brianna said.

“Just you, then?” Maribelle asked, giving Will a side-eye.

Is she competitive?

“Anyway, this is what I wanted to show you,” She said, gesturing to the waterfall beyond.

It was a steaming waterfall erupting from a massive tree, gushing out of its side, smelling faintly of herbal medicine. The water poured down into a small lake formed from a pair of roots that made a basin large enough for even Maribell to take a dip inside.

“…Huh.” Was all Will could say. He’d never seen anything like it.

“Did the taproot strike a spring?” Loth mused. “And then the water forced its way through the trunk, which found a weakness in the side of the tree and spilled out.

“One of the great wonders of the 14^th Floor! the sap-spring waterfall! Bath here and the sap and oils dissolved into the water will make your scales more lustrous than- hey!”

Loth was already diving in.