Endless Horde: Through the Eyes of a Godking

Per his request, Erica had not been made aware of what he did for her and her team.

She was, however, informed of what transpired. And to say that she was disappointed with herself was an understatement. Now, here she was, mopping at a corner of a room with a clouded expression.

"Erica~~!!" One of her teammates called out to her, pouting as she marched where she was. "Come on, quite sulking. We're not blaming you at all. Give me a smile, please?"

"That doesn't really make me feel better." Erica sadly pointed out. "I think I'd actually prefer if you guys were mad at me. After all, my carelessness caused you to lose your lifespans."

This...this is what she was mad about. In this team of hers, Erica was designated to be their support; someone who's supposed to look after them and make sure that they would safely return from their mission.

It was her task to do a check-up and see if they got any infections whatsoever right before returning to civilization. The fact that she completely missed the Slickthieves attached not only to her but to her team as well, filled her with so much disappointment aimed at herself.

"We can make up with those using Longevity Extending Elixirs!" Another one of her teammates chimed in. "Our Bossess even footed the bill since their sensors also missed the Slickthieves, in their eyes, they're also at fault. Don't let this burden you too much."

"But...but..." Erica sniffed, feeling really miffed about the situation.

This is where their leader came in. He squatted next to her and patted her head like she was a kid.

"Not everything was your fault, Erica. To be honest, none of us expected that we would miss the Slickthieves. You did the procedure correctly, you used all the tools you have available. You didn't drop your guard and the equipment themselves didn't sense them. You did your best. It's not your fault that our tools failed us."

"But some unknown guy managed to do what I and those equipment couldn't," Erica whined. "Not to mention, he did it using Symbols only. I feel so inadequate, especially after seeing how he did it so easily."

Now, nobody could help her with this. And well...that's probably fine, for the most part at least...

Erica had seen the tools that were used to diagnose and cure them. At first, she was skeptical about them seeing that they're mere array disks but the moment they were used, all of her doubts vanished like snow under the summer's glare.

She had seen how they work face to face. She saw how those little disks managed to reveal the unseen parasite attached to every single one of her teammates, something she failed to completely notice even with all of her equipment used.

Erica also saw how those things not only diagnosed them correctly, but they also managed to capture the Slickthieves without fail and fanfare. The capturing part was the most impressive part because it is well-known in their circle just how challenging that can be.

Yet once she got permission to decode the unused array disks, the feeling of inadequacy got more stronger. She almost couldn't believe how simple the cure was. It was even more unbelievable how nobody had ever thought of it before.

Erica was also an experienced Scribe, you see. She knows her way around Symbols and more often than not, it's her task to make arrays and formations for her team.

And it's precisely because she's a Scribe that the disappointment she feels towards herself is greater. After all, if she were to be honest, she should've known this beforehand.

"Do they really not say who made these?" One of her teammates asked while playing with the array disks on his palms.

"They're tight-lipped about it." Their Leader replied. "All I know is that, whoever that person is, they're VVIP, so we can't go around snooping for his identity."

"Oh? If that's the case, then isn't it completely fine?" Another one of her teammates chimed in. "VVIPs are a rare breed anyway. It's not surprising that they're skilled. Acala wouldn't give them that much authority for nothing, after all."

Erica pouted but deep down, she felt much better after hearing that statement. She agreed with that. VVIPs are just built different. They're not just geniuses, they're bonafide monsters. In a good way, of course.

"What's important is that we gained a lot from this experience." Their Leader stated. "Erica, since you managed to decode that thing, I'm assuming that you can study it and make the same ones yourself."

"...already did." Erica sniffed, presenting the array of disks she created herself while she was sulking earlier. "They're not that hard."

"Awesome!" Their Leader exclaimed. "With those, we now have more edge against those pesky Slickthieves. We can also capture some of them just in case to provide more samples for the researchers."

"Oh, they're gonna have a field day with all of that." One of their teammates added on the side. "I caught the news that the samples that were collected earlier were already being dissected by those mad scientists. There's already a demand for it."

"Which means that at some point, we will have to return to that place. Either by doing missions that involved that place or by collecting more samples. So it's a good thing that Erica now knows how to make them." Their Leader added.

"Still, we were lucky this time." He said solemnly, "Our losses could be recouped, but now I'll be expecting us to be more careful moving forward. Always keep your guard up whenever we're out on missions because if you don't, then you might never return home. Is that clear for everybody?"

"Yes, Leader!" The rest of the team chorused.

"Good. Now, let's rest. I'm still sore from our last mission, not to mention sleepy too." Their Leader groaned.

"Wait! Wait! Don't tell you all would be sleeping here?" Erica exclaimed.

"I mean, what's so bad about an impromptu sleepover? It's not like this was the first time." Their Leader shrugged as he unceremoniously changed into his sleeping attire.

"Wow, you made that decision like this was your home!" Erica exclaimed in disbelief.

"Give it up, shorty! Like it or not, we're crashing here. Now why don't you be a good host and build us a fort so we can all sleep together?" One of her teammates chuckled after seeing her disgruntled.

They argued for a bit but ultimately, Erica lost. Her teammates will indeed be sleeping here. They absolutely do not care about her disagreement.

Deep down, she knows why they're doing this. It's their way of looking after her. They've been a team for more than five years now and nobody knows her more than her teammates do.

They've been through thick and thin together. They're people whom she could trust her life with. Aside from a few secrets of her own, the rest are completely known to her team.

And because they know her the best, they know that they can't leave her alone tonight. Not when she's still feeling down.

They know Erica's tendency to self-sabotage whenever she's met with failure. That could extend to a destructive streak that would prove fatal to her health overall. It happened once or twice before and the results were horrible.

This is why they've never let her be by herself when times like this occur. If they're with her, she won't slip into those thoughts because they'd be there to stop her.

Erica was of course aware of this. And frankly, she doesn't say this a lot but she's thankful that they're looking after her.

Ding Dong!

The sudden sound of her doorbell interrupted their act of building a fort in Erica's living room. Erica frowned and made her way toward her door to see who was it.

Peeking outside, Erica visibly shook in panic after seeing Cedric standing outside her door. She hurriedly checked herself in the mirror and attempted to 'fix' her appearance. She tried her best to look presentable at the very least before gingerly opening her door to greet him.

"Oh, hi Cedric! Wasn't expecting you at all, haha!" Erica laughed awkwardly. "What's up? Anything I could help you with?"

"Well, I just thought that I should see how you're doing because earlier you seemed...really lethargic. Here, I made you some food. This should make you feel better...I think. Wait, have you eaten yet?"

"Y—,"

"Actually, we haven't yet!"

Erica's eyes widened as she saw her female teammate right beside her, answering his question for her. She secretly pinched her side, causing her female teammate to wince ever so slightly but not to an obvious degree.

"That's great!" Cedric smiled, and Erica once again lost herself momentarily after seeing that. "Oh, I'm Cedric by the way. Erica's neighbor. I'm assuming that you're her friend?"

"Yes! My name is Chrissy, nice to meet you too Cedric."

"Likewise." Cedric then handed them a tray, which Chrissy readily accepted despite Erica's secretive aggression to the act. "Enjoy and good night!"

"You too, Prince Charming!"

Chrissy then closed the door before he could say anything back. Erica glared at her and was about to give her a piece of her mind, only to be reminded that her teammates saw how she acted right before opening her door.

Suffice to say, Erica almost didn't survive the whole night of continuous teasing from her teammates.