I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 179: A Different World
"What do you guys think about Claudia being our manager?" Arthur asks the next morning at breakfast.
They are all sitting at the new dining area, enjoying their morning routine together.
"Well," Julian responds while smearing an excessive amount of butter on his toast. "I think it’s great. She’s smart, quick on her feet, resourceful, and fearless. Our manager should be fearless. I agree."
"I know all that," Liam says, "but I’m worried about our magic. Does she need to know about it? If she does, would she want to learn? What if she has good, or even great, magic resonance? If she doesn’t know, is it fair to her? She’s protecting us, yet we’re not being completely honest with her."
"Wow," Julian comments. "Looks like someone is really thinking this through."
Liam glares at him. "Of course I am. She’s my sister."
Theo puts scrambled eggs on his toast. "I think she’ll be a great addition to Rhaenas. And I do believe it’s essential that she knows our secret. She’s not... what do you call it... a blabbermouth."
"Of course she’s not," Liam replies. "You really think so?" he asks Theo.
Theo nods. "Yes, I do. And I love how she shut all of us up." He laughs. "We need someone like that. Someone who isn’t afraid to challenge us."
"Or Arthur," Julian adds, winking.
The five of them laugh.
"Okay then," Arthur nods. "It’s settled. I’ll invite her to our morning training session. She needs to see what we can do."
Everyone nods.
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"Thank you for the opportunity, but I don’t really need to see you guys train. I’m not interested in fighting in dungeons, and I’m not good at it," Claudia says when she arrives at the gym.
"You’re not going to fight in dungeons," Arthur replies, ushering her inside. "But you still need to see us. It’s important."
Claudia looks confused, but she doesn’t argue and enters the gym with him.
Inside, the rest of Rhaenas are already prepared.
"Morning, peeps. Today we’re running a level eight," Arthur starts. "As per our test with Mr. Monfort. I’ve already replied that we can do it tomorrow."
"As you can see, we have a special guest. I’ll make a formal introduction. This is Claudia Monfort. From now on, she’ll be our manager. She’ll handle most external relations for us."
Arthur turns to Claudia. "You’re here because we want you to understand what we’re capable of. And I don’t need to say this, but whatever happens here stays with the six of us."
Claudia nods. "Of course. How you train is your secret."
"Thea, you’re responsible for Claudia," Arthur assigns.
Theo nods.
"As usual," Arthur continues, "Liam and I will handle offense. Julian is the shield. Maeve is our eyes and healer. Thea is our backup."
Everyone nods.
"Okay, Jules. Pick a hard level eight. No injuries."
Theo steps beside Claudia. "Don’t be surprised. Stick with me and you’ll be fine."
Claudia smiles. "I can see Arthur giving you the easiest job. He’s a great brother. Keeping you involved while making sure you’re protected. If you’re here protecting me, how dangerous can this level eight dungeon be?"
Theo laughs.
Julian is already at the control panel, his fingers tapping rapidly.
Gradually, the gym blurs and transforms into a night dungeon.
Claudia, who has never entered a dungeon before, is stunned.
"Oh wow! This is Hologram Battle? I’ve heard about it, but I’ve never seen it. This is amazing!"
Then she notices something else.
The other five are completely silent.
She turns to her right, where Theo should be, but she can’t see anything. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎
There is no light.
"Thea?" Claudia whispers. She doesn’t know why she does.
"Here." Theo answers, touching her shoulder. "I’m right here." His voice is calm, normal.
Suddenly, several light bulbs flash on, illuminating their surroundings.
Claudia looks around in amazement. "It looks like we’re in a different world."
"We are in a different world," Theo comments.
"And what are those lights?" Claudia asks, watching the floating glow. "They’re shaped like... tulips? Are they tulips?"
"Yes," Maeve answers. "I’m surprised you can see their shapes. You have good eyesight, Claudia."
She turns to Theo. "I’m changing the light orbs’ shape. That’s fine too, right? I figured this is a good way to practice my light magic."
Theo nods. "Yes. That’s actually a good idea. I don’t know why I didn’t think of that before. You guys can change the shapes into anything. It’s a form of practice, like Maeve pointed out."
Magic?
"What are you talking about?" Claudia asks. "Magic?"
Theo only smiles. "Just observe for now and tell me what you see. I promise I’ll explain later."
Claudia blinks at Theo, then shifts her attention back to the tulip-shaped lights.
"Are those...?" She squints. "There’s no string or anything holding them up."
She frowns. "Are those tulips part of the dungeon? Are they haelions?"
"Nice deduction, sis," Liam replies, keeping his eyes on their surroundings. "But nope."
"Incoming," Julian says.
"From this way," he adds, turning to his left.
"And this way," Arthur says, taking position to Julian’s right.
Liam faces the opposite direction.
"Oh, and from the front too," Julian adds, shifting again.
"What’s coming?" Claudia asks. Her heart is pounding. She’s both excited and anxious. She knows this is only a simulated dungeon, so she’s safe. That’s why she isn’t afraid.
"The haelions," Theo confirms. "They’re coming."
Maeve summons more tulip-shaped light orbs around them, making sure there are no blind spots.
"Maeve’s doing a great job," Theo says, "but use your mana too. Sense your surroundings. Feel where they’re coming from, and how many."
Claudia frowns.
Something feels off.
Why is Thea, the weakest among them, giving instructions? And why does everyone seem to be listening?
And what is this mana?
A faint sound catches her attention.
"What’s that sound?"
It grows louder.
"It’s buzzing," Julian says. "They’re getting close."
"Buzzing?" Maeve sounds disgusted. "You mean insects?"
"And judging from the sound," Arthur says from the right, "there are a lot of them."
Arthur isn’t wrong.
The buzzing starts faint, then grows louder and louder until it becomes deafening.
The next second, giant wasp-like haelions burst out of the darkness and attack.







