The Princess Of Cremia

"WHAT?! You can't be serious!"Axe slammed her fist against the table, causing it to flip over and shatter on the ground. The muscular woman breathed heavily, rage and utter disbelief filling her eyes. If it weren't Mattilda standing in front of her, Axe would have had no hesitation in using her weapon. 

"Now, calm down, Axe. It really is the best offer, I—"

Mattilda couldn't even finish her sentence. The hot-headed warrior was boiling. Axe not only disliked other warriors, but she was also known for hating the royal family that ruled over Cremia. Nobody truly knew the source of Axe's hatred, but the lonely warrior made no effort to hide it.

"The best offer?! The best offer?! Out of all possibilities, you want me to team up with that self-righteous damsel?!" Axe hissed menacingly, her raspy voice echoing through the entire room.

Mattilda was calm and reserved most of the time, but even she didn't endure everything. With a frustrated groan, she walked up to Axe, her face covered in an annoyed expression.

"Listen here! You know how hard it was to even get permission for this?! I did this for you! So your egotistical self has the chance of becoming a Diamond-Class Warrior! And you're making this whole drama because you still can't get over what happened years ago?!" Mattilda yelled, breathing heavily in ragged gasps. 

Silence.

Axe's expression shifted into an emotional and hurt one. Her green eyes flickered with deep pain, and her hands shook heavily. It wasn't until now that Mattilda realized she had gone too far.

"A-Axe, sorry. I was just..." Mattilda, the black-haired beauty, couldn't even find the right words. 

"Where?" Axe asked, her muscular arms crossed, and her heavily used iron axe reflecting the sunlight that shone through the window. The lonely warrior wasn't angry anymore... but she wasn't happy either.

"Where is she now?" Axe asked again, her tone becoming more strict.

"You mean the princess?" Mattilda asked, full of disbelief. Her black, luscious hair was smooth and silky, even after her short outburst, and her purple eyes had the same mischievous glare as always.

"So you are doing it?" Mattilda smirked teasingly. 

"Don't mention it. Just tell me where she is so I can finish these ten dungeons as fast as possible with that damsel." Axe scoffed, her voice slightly annoyed.

To the lonely warrior, the task with the princess was merely a means to reach Diamond-Class. Axe wasn't planning on seeking any kind of friendship with the princess of Cremia… quite the opposite.

I will make sure this damsel knows her place so I can work in peace, Axe thought to herself with a slightly amused smirk.

"Axe, don't even think about doing something evil! Mattilda knew Axe's expression all too well. "You don't have to become friends with her, but at least try to be nice. If the princess feels bullied, she can withdraw the contract, and with that, you won't have a chance of reaching Diamond-Class."

The black-haired beauty spoke calmly but with a strict undertone.

Axe didn't like the way Mattilda could see her intentions and thoughts that clearly. The fact that the princess could sabotage her Diamond-Class promotion was even more frustrating than dealing with the princess herself.

With swift steps, Axe headed towards the door and stopped in the doorframe, looking back at Mattilda.

Mattilda smirked.

Axe didn't need to say anything because the guild receptionist with the black hair and pretty face already knew what Axe wanted to know.

"She is upstairs. In Adrian's room." Her voice was soothing, like music.

Axe answered with a simple nod and left the room, leaving the shattered table and Mattilda alone.

As Axe went upstairs, she saw a man in a black robe with broad shoulders walking downstairs, almost brushing against her. Something felt off, but the red-haired warrior couldn't wrap her head around why that strange guy even bothered her.

For now, she pushed the thought aside. Dealing with creepy guys in the guild wasn't her job, after all. She wanted to fight in the most dangerous dungeons in the kingdom—nothing else.

She hesitated to knock on the door of Adrian's room. She had never respected any kind of formalities—especially not for a royal damsel.

Her hand twisted the doorknob, and the office of Adrian, the guild master, filled her sight. It was a bland room, furnished with only the essentials. Perhaps it was slightly larger than the average office in the Warriors' Guild.

Then, her eyes widened for a brief moment...

A blonde woman in clean, polished armor sat on a chair, looking at Axe with a respectful and determined gaze. Her skin was smooth and pale, her eyes as blue as the sky, and her lips were full and luscious. Her body was slim, feminine, and athletic.

The princess was the type of woman who turned heads no matter where she was.

"You must be Axe? Mattilda told me about you."

The princess's voice was sweet and respectful. She stretched her perfectly manicured hand toward Axe and nodded, an ambitious gaze on her symmetrical face.

"I will try my best to keep up with you."

It was almost as if the princess looked up to the lonely warrior.

Is she... mocking me? Axe mused.

She looked at the princess's hand, her own not moving an inch. With a deep sigh, Axe crossed her trained arms, secretly enjoying the confusion flickering across the princess's expression.

"Listen here." Her voice was raspy and strict, leaving no room for discussion. "I promise you, you'll be safe in every dungeon. But don't even try to help me. Stay back and let me handle everything. Understood?" Axe snarled.

The princess had heard rumors about Axe being hostile, but she certainly hadn't expected… this. She pouted her full lips and huffed in a way that was almost adorably frustrated.

"So you expect me to stand still and do nothing?" she asked, crossing her arms over her voluptuous chest. "Perhaps you didn't know, but I am the princess of Cremia, and I—"

"Shut up and follow me. Dungeons won't clear themselves." Axe grunted, already standing in the open doorway. 

The princess rolled her blue eyes in annoyance and followed Axe, keeping a somewhat respectful distance.

"So, Damsel, have you ever fought in a dungeon before?" the lone woman asked thoughtfully as the lively streets of Cremia slowly faded into the background. Axe had no intention of wasting time—her goal remained the same: to clear the ten dungeons as fast as possible.

"My name is not Damsel, you know. I am Silvia van Cremia II," Silvia explained proudly, a hint of royal articulation sneaking into her voice. It created a stark contrast to Axe's raspy and direct way of speaking. 

"And yes, I have fought in a dungeon. And before you ask—I did well, thank you very much." Silvia's arrogance made her words sound even more prestigious and proud. But Axe didn't react to her tone in the slightest.

"What rank?" Axe asked directly, her gaze fixed on the towering main gate of Cremia.

"W-What?" The princess blushed awkwardly at Axe's question.

"The dungeon you fought in. What rank was it? And while we're at it—how many people were with you?" Axe smirked. She already knew that, no matter what the princess said, it wouldn't come close to the level of the dungeons she was clearing. 

"It was a Silver-class dungeon... with four people," Silvia murmured, her blue eyes drifting toward the ground.

Most warriors started n an Iron- or Bronze-class dungeon. Only the best of the best could survive their first time in a Silver-class dungeon. Under normal circumstances, this would have been an achievement—something Silvia could be proud of.

But Axe wasn't a normal circumstance.

"We will be entering Platinum-class dungeons—just the two of us. I usually go alone, so I don't expect anything from you. Just let me do my job, and after ten dungeons, we'll never have to see each other again," the red-haired woman grunted as they left the town of Cremia, stepping into the nearby forest—the first area where dungeons could be found. 

Silvia knew that Axe wasn't wrong. It was well known that the muscular woman, with her iron axe, was on a completely different level of strength—outperforming even some Diamond-class warriors.

Whatever the princess had seen in a dungeon before, it wouldn't even come close to what she was about to witness in the ones Axe cleared.

"How do you even determine the rank of a dungeon?" the princess asked curiously, her elegant steps sinking into the wet, green moss covering the ground beneath them.

"You don't. A good warrior can feel the magic inside a dungeon. The stronger the magic, the higher the rank," Axe explained, surprisingly calm. "I thought a royal princess would learn such things?"

...And just like that, her calmness was gone. 

Silvia huffed and pouted once again. Quickening her steps, she closed the distance between herself and Axe.

"There are things more important than that! I've learned a lot—more than you ever could, thank you very much," the princess said with a frustrated sigh, her blue eyes glaring at the red-haired woman.

"If you say so." Axe didn't even glance back at the princess.

Her green eyes were locked onto the dark cave before them. Her breathing grew shaky, her pupils flickering in anticipation as goosebumps spread across her athletic arms. She couldn't suppress the psychotic smile creeping onto her face—this was always her reaction when she found a dungeon worthy of her class.

The Platinum-class.

"Are you seriously planning on going inside? Didn't you just come from a dungeon before you met—hey, wait!"

It was as if Axe hadn't even heard Silvia's words. Her athletic body moved swiftly into the dark cave, marking the entrance to the dungeon.

Her strong hand tightened around the iron axe on her back, the damaged metal catching the flickering glow of the torches along the cold stone walls. Sunlight was no more—only the dungeon, the darkness, and the countless monsters lurking within, waiting for a warrior foolish enough to stumble inside. 

If Silvia had ever possessed even a shred of courage, it was now completely gone. The princess struggled to keep up with Axe's fast and determined steps.

She stumbled over loose stones, anxiously clung to her sword, and kept glancing over her shoulder, double-checking for any monsters that might sneak up on her.

She secretly envied Axe's composure.

How can she be so focused? Silvia wondered. Isn't she scared?

GROAR!!!

A small green goblin, wielding a surprisingly clean sword, leapt out of the shadows—straight at Silvia. The creature raised its arm, preparing for a menacing strike.

"AXE, HELP ME!?" Silvia's instincts took over as she openly pleaded with the experienced warrior for help.

With a skilled swing, Axe sliced the goblin clean in half, purple blood splattering onto the ground. The creature's body was perfectly bisected, yet Axe hadn't even broken a sweat. She simply shot Silvia an annoyed look, raising a red eyebrow.

"You know, these goblins are usually enemies in Bronze-class dungeons. You could've handled that yourself. Not that I expected you to, of course." 

The princess was still stunned by the speed of Axe's reaction. But slowly, realization set in.

Silvia remembered the desperate tone in her own voice as she had pleaded with the brutish, mean warrior for help.

"I-I just wanted to see if you live up to your name..." she lied—badly.

Axe couldn't hold back and let out an amused chuckle. "Whatever you say, Damsel."

"I am not a—" Silvia was cut off. Not by Axe, but by a deep, menacing roar echoing from deep within the dungeon.

"What... was that?" the princess asked anxiously.

Axe smirked. She gripped her axe so tightly that the handle nearly splintered. Her dense muscles tensed and flexed, and her expression was one of... happiness?

At that moment, she looked no different from the bloodthirsty monsters lurking in the depths.

"That..." Axe's breathing quickened, like a child waiting for a long-anticipated present. "Is the reason this dungeon is Platinum-class."

The deep roar came again, even louder this time. Whatever its source was, it was coming straight for them.

Axe's smirk widened.

"This will be fun!"