Three days had passed since Jax and the Vixens received their new weapons and armor.
Three exhausting days.
Jax had insisted they train in full equipment from sunrise until nightfall—no exceptions.
At first, the Vixens thought he was overreacting.
Then training began.
Fire blasts erupted from hidden angles.
Wind pressure slammed into them without warning.
Illusions distorted terrain and visibility.
Pressure plates triggered traps beneath their feet.
Ambush simulations came in waves.
Jax gave them no room to relax.
And absolutely no mercy.
"AGAIN," he barked after Bunny got caught by a pressure snare.
Llandra loosed arrows while rolling behind cover.
Nyxian cracked both whips through incoming spell constructs.
Zee reinforced barriers while scrambling to reposition.
And through all of it—
Jax kept getting distracted.
Not because the armor was failing.
Quite the opposite.
It was because some of it barely looked like armor at all.
Llandra's dragon-scale outfit protected nearly every vital point while somehow still looking closer to a battle bikini than military gear. The crimson-and-black plating curved perfectly around her body without restricting movement in the slightest.
Bunny's armor somehow managed to make a giant warhammer-wielding bunny girl look both adorable and terrifying at the same time.
Nyxian's was the worst offender.
Or best.
Depending on perspective.
Her armor had formed around her into something resembling an armored corset layered with flexible dragon-scale plating and dark enchanted fabric.
It looked decorative.
Seductive.
Dangerously impractical.
It absolutely was not.
Every piece possessed Light as a Feather enchantments alongside layered reinforcement magic. The armor moved like silk, weighed almost nothing, and amplified physical ability instead of restricting it.
Strength.
Speed.
Vitality.
Endurance.
For Zee, additional mana enhancement flowed directly through Sanctaris and her armor together, dramatically increasing spell stability and regeneration.
And somehow—
the armor repaired itself.
Small scratches slowly sealed over time like living scales reconnecting.
The first time Bunny noticed it, she screamed loud enough to alarm everyone nearby.
"MY ARMOR IS HEALING."
Nyxian was even more terrifying.
During sparring, she discovered Lilith's Kiss absorbed traces of energy from struck opponents.
That energy restored both her stamina and minor damage to her armor.
Naturally—
she became insufferable afterward.
"I'm basically immortal now," she declared dramatically while lounging across a barricade.
"You are absolutely not immortal," Llandra replied immediately.
Nyxian pointed at her own chest proudly.
"My boobs regenerate."
Jax nearly inhaled wrong.
Zee quietly covered her face.
Bunny blinked thoughtfully.
"…That's actually kind of amazing."
By the second day, the Vixens stopped trying to get used to wearing the armor.
Instead—
they began learning everything it could do.
Weapon recall.
Impact balancing.
Mana flow amplification.
Environmental resistance.
Movement optimization.
The armor had become less like equipment—
and more like a second skin.
Something made specifically for them.
None of them had ever owned gear remotely comparable.
Most enchanted armor was heavy.
Restrictive.
Expensive.
Uncomfortable.
This felt…
alive.
The dragon-scale layers shifted naturally with movement. Reinforced joints flexed perfectly. Mana flowed smoothly through every piece without resistance.
And during all of it—
Jax never slowed down.
"Your enemy doesn't care how expensive your gear is," he said while casually hurling a compressed wind blast directly at Bunny's face.
She blocked it with World Breaker.
Barely.
"Your equipment exists to keep you alive long enough to make the correct decision."
Nyxian groaned dramatically while laying face-first across the training yard dirt.
"I miss being weak and attractive."
"You were never weak," Llandra replied while drawing another arrow.
Nyxian lifted her head slightly.
"…That was actually very supportive of you."
"Don't make it strange."
Jax pointed toward the field.
"Again."
And they did.
Again.
And again.
And again.
By the end of the third day—
none of them doubted the equipment.
And none of them doubted Jax.
The morning of departure arrived quietly.
Jax checked out of the hotel shortly after sunrise, handing over the suite keys while the staff gathered nearby.
The employees had clearly grown fond of the group over the past weeks.
Especially after the absurd amount of gold they tipped with.
"You all come back safe now," one waitress said warmly.
"We'll miss you," another admitted.
The manager looked emotional.
And exhausted.
Apparently defending nightly noise complaints from half the inn had become increasingly difficult.
Nyxian looked entirely unapologetic.
"That sounds like a management problem."
The poor woman looked moments away from tears.
Outside—
the carriage waited.
Even after seeing it several times already, the Vixens still found themselves staring.
The polished black-and-crimson frame gleamed beneath the morning light while enchanted reinforcement lines shimmered faintly beneath the surface.
But it wasn't the carriage drawing attention this morning.
It was what pulled it.
Two enormous creatures stood harnessed at the front.
Draft Behemoths.
At least that was the official name according to Barb.
To Jax?
They looked like horses that had spent their entire lives lifting mountains.
Twice the size of normal horses.
Broad-chested.
Thick-legged.
Covered in faint natural mana markings that pulsed rhythmically beneath armored hide.
Each exhale carried visible heat into the morning air.
Bunny stared openly.
"They're HUGE."
"Reliable though," Barb said proudly while patting one of the beasts. "Tireless. Calm temperament. Expensive enough to make grown merchants cry."
"Worth it?" Jax asked.
Barb looked offended.
"Absolutely."
According to the guild's estimates, the journey to Crystalshire would take roughly a week.
Another week to return.
The Mana Bulb harvest itself could take anywhere between seven and fourteen days depending on weather, competition, and monster activity.
Most adventurers stayed temporarily within Crystalshire during gathering season.
Trade routes existed between towns—
but distance and monster activity made consistent transportation dangerous.
Altogether?
The guild expected this assignment to occupy nearly a month.
The Vixens loaded the carriage efficiently.
Clothing disappeared into closets.
Supplies filled storage cabinets.
Weapons secured themselves onto enchanted mounts.
Other supplies vanished directly into System Storage.
The interior still felt absurd.
Instead of cramped benches and wagon rattling—
they had couches.
Bedrooms.
Bathrooms.
A kitchen.
A dining room.
Actual space.
Bunny immediately threw herself dramatically across the living room couch.
"So THIS," she declared proudly, "is how rich people travel."
Llandra quietly organized supplies into one of the large closets with Zee assisting nearby.
Nyxian ignored all responsibility entirely.
She walked straight to the bar.
Grabbed a bottle.
And poured herself a drink.
"It's a long trip," she announced confidently. "Preparation is important."
Echo appeared beside her in a flicker of purple shadow before immediately climbing onto her shoulders like an accessory he fully believed he was.
Jax boarded last after personally checking the rear storage systems.
That was when he noticed Brannic and Merriweather waiting nearby.
Brannic stepped forward first and clasped Jax's forearm firmly.
"Safe travels, lad."
Merriweather floated closer and wrapped both tiny arms around him in a hug.
"Take care of our girls."
Jax nodded once.
"I will."
The Behemoths finally lurched forward moments later.
The carriage shifted gently.
Then began to roll.
Solmere slowly disappeared behind them.
The first day of travel buzzed with energy.
This wasn't training anymore.
This was real.
Their first official mission as a registered party.
Officially—
they were simple herb gatherers.
Unofficially?
Every single one of them knew the truth.
Crystalshire Cave awaited.
Magical caves were anomalies according to scholars.
Living ecosystems fueled entirely by concentrated mana.
The magic itself shaped environments.
Spawned monsters.
Attracted beasts.
Even completely cleared caverns eventually repopulated.
That was why dungeon raids existed.
Why records mattered.
Why rankings mattered.
Crystalshire Cave was infamous.
An A-rank dungeon.
The fastest successful clear on record belonged to an S-rank party two years earlier.
Four days.
Most successful groups required seven to ten.
Many never returned at all.
The cave did not care about confidence.
It did not care about preparation.
It tested everything.
As the carriage rolled onward beneath open skies, laughter echoed softly through its halls while excitement simmered beneath every conversation.
None of them said it aloud.
But all of them felt it.
Their lives were about to change.
And somewhere beneath Crystalshire—
the cave waited.