Chapter 288 Arriving At The Border
Mark called out his Inventory. The Moonlit Feline stared with glittering eyes at the three Underling Evolution Pills that appeared on its Master's palm.
'I'm still unsure how Evolving will go for my Underlings now that I'm outside the Dungeon. Also unsure about how I'll be able to make more of these...'
[Your Title "Evolving Monster" shrugs.]
"Right." Mark chuckled in a low voice.
The Moonlit Feline walked closer to the Underling Evolution Pills.
'For now, I'd better use them. They might help... Fill the gauge necessary to fill before Evolution, or something.'
The Moonlit Feline reached forward with its front paws while keeping its backside up and its tail swaying.
"Ready..." Mark closed his hand around the Underling Evolution Pills and prepared to shoot them one by one like marbles. "Go!"
The feline predator jumped towards each Underling Evolution Pill and caught them with its mouth before any of them could reach the ground.
The white-scaled Monster lay on the ground with its arms spread to the sides while Krista cracked the Underling Evolution Pills with her teeth.
"Time to get some sleep-"
Mark's whispering was cut short.
Every muscle on his face and neck twitched.
The sleeping Princess on his body had turned around.
And as she did, her right arm was extended up.
The Monster's eyes were wide open.
It had clenched its fists and contracted every muscle that covered its body.
It kept its mouth wide open. And in doing so, fought back against its every instinct.
The Monster's heart beat so powerfully that it felt like it could explode at any second, as the Princess's hand lay between its jaws.
Its arms and legs trembled to fight back the urge it had developed.
The urge to snap its jaws shut.
The urge to close its mouth and lacerate with its fangs.
Siiiigh-
The sleeping Princess stretched both her arms up, and the Monster remained frozen with its mouth wide open.
The next second, the back of her limp left hand fell on the Monster's nose.
With her back on his stomach, the Princess stretched some more, kicking his legs with hers.
Mark remained unmoving for a minute.
With his mouth wide open, he didn't dare move a muscle.
'Capricious...'
Mark let his neck twist to the side.
He lay his right cheek against the ground and brought his right hand to his face.
With a push of his thumb, he slowly pushed his chin up, shutting his jaws.
'Even in her sleep.'
Mark closed his eyes.
Its right palm covering its shut mouth, the Monster went to sleep.
...
Mark's eyelids twitched.
It was dawn.
Elisa had moved around quite a bit in her sleep, but he could feel her arms and head on his body.
She lay on her side, with her arms crossed over his stomach and her head on her left arm.
Mark could also tell that the Moonlit Feline was close, as its white pelt tickled the side of his head from time to time.
Assuming that Elisa getting this close to him at night was mostly due to the toxic mushrooms she had consumed the day before, he wasn't sure what to do.
Go back to sleep? Feign sleep?
Why?
So that she could wake up and move away before he could wake up.
Mark thought that it was a childish thing to do. That it was a childish thing to even think about.
But he didn't dislike it.
In Elisa's presence, he felt that he could allow himself these kind of thoughts.
He could allow himself to be-
'Huh?'
It happened again.
Tap-
Mark's left eyelid rose ever so slightly.
She was awake.
And she knew that he was too.
"Morning." She said suddenly before tapping his stomach with the tip of her index finger for a third time.
"Morning."
"Care to explain this?" Elisa asked as the tip of her index finger lay on his stomach.
"Explain... What?"
"Did you sneak up on me while I was asleep?"
"That'd be difficult." Mark chuckled. "Since... You're on top and everything."
"Mm. So you took advantage of the fact that I was under the influence to get closer?"
Mark raised his eyebrows dismissively.
"You know that's not what happened."
"Yes..." Elisa bent her left elbow and raised her head off her arm, letting it rest against her palm instead. "I know."
Their gaze moved towards Krista, whose mouth was wide open as she let out a long yawn.
Feeling refreshed, the Moonlit Feline stretched its limbs and back. It felt so good that its body shook at the peak of each stretch.
They remained silent for a bit, and Elisa's gaze moved towards the tip of her index finger which lay on Mark's stomach.
The tip of her index finger drew a small circle in one continuous motion.
"Should we get going?"
The Princess raised the tip of her finger slightly off him.
"Yes." She answered before tapping the center of the circle she had drawn.
It was only a couple of seconds later that Elisa pushed herself off, stood up, and stretched her arms upwards as she yawned.
The white-scaled Monster scratched its cheek before pushing itself off the ground.
"The border, huh?" Elisa whispered after calling out her Inventory.
The Elven Light Armor Set she had grown accustomed to appeared and covered her body.
She took the Timeworn Elven Daggers out from their sheathes and swung them a couple of times.
"Nervous?"
"Does I look nervous?"
Mark shrugged in response.
Elisa swung her Timeworn Elven Daggers for a bit longer before putting them back into their sheathes and extending an arm forward.
The Wind immediately started moving according to her will.
"Can't sense anything. But don't let your guard down." She warned as she turned towards him.
"Yeah. The border..." Mark cracked his neck. "Some kind of Boss Room, right?"
"You can see it that way."
The Moonlit Feline climbed up the white-scaled Monster's body, and the three were on their way.
The trees around them grew scarcer and scarcer.
Once the border could nearly be seen, what alerted them was,
"Huh?" Elisa stopped. "Sounds like..."
"Women?"