The Monster Girl Heroines And The Hero Hub

How long had it been? Was Dorthaunzee coming back soon? I wasn't sure how much longer Elma could hold on for... My fears were probably getting the better of me.

"I'll be okay, Fainn," Elma said as she smiled at me from beneath her sun hat.

I looked over, surprised. Her smile was as warm as the sun above her.

"Won't you walk with me?" she asked, extending her hand toward me. I got a good look at the white sundress she wore as she pulled me along the sandy path flanked by verdant grass.

The sky was bright and blue, and the wind was warm. The emerald ocean opened up before us at the end of the path, and Elma ran down to the shore. She dipped her feet in and waved at me. At that moment, my heart hurt.

"In a dream... You can always feel things more than you ever could when awake," I said as I looked at the sky. I turned on my heels and went back the way I came. "I need to wake up."

I crossed the black door as I made my way back up the path.

"I'm not opening you. This is my life now--"

I stopped in my tracks and held my head. "Huh? Why did I say that?"

The dream world started shaking as I looked over my shoulder at the black door at the edge of the sandy path.

"I know that I'm not supposed to open you... but when exactly did I start knowing that?" I narrowed my eyes at the door as feelings started welling up within me. "Did I dream of you before arriving at the Hero Hub? I... I don't think I did..."

"FAINN!"

That sudden call--Svilran's voice--it gave me the 'oomph' I needed to wake up. The dream shattered, and I opened my eyes. I looked around quickly. Elma's hand was in mine, she was still in bed--her breathing rough--and I was still at her bedside.

"Fainn!" I looked to my right and at Svilran.

"Ahh--"

My eyes moistened, and I tried to hold back tears.

"D-Dorthaunzee!" I called.

She responded with a proud thumbs-up. Svilran stood behind Dorth and held her shoulders.

"Our little Dorthaunzee did it, Fainn! She succeeded! We have enough for the <Infirmary>!"

I opened up the Build Menu. "Yes!" I called, excitedly selecting the building from the list. "I'm building it nearby!"

"Go for it! I'll start getting Elma ready--"

"Wait! The Build Time! It's four hours! I don't want to wait four hours!"

Svilran groaned as she pressed her fingers against her head. "Build Time?! I totally forgot! Raargh! Sacrifice points! We'll sacrifice points! If we want it built now, we need to sacrifice any points. For every hour we want cut out, we need 100 points. This function is possible with SR buildings and lower!"

I looked at Elma. We were so close. I didn't want to risk anything anymore. Her scars--they had gotten darker with no sign of stopping. I didn't want to risk it anymore!"

"We can't give up the Resource Development points because the facility'll need them. We'll sacrifice 45 of the Build Points, 200 of the Terraforma, and 155 of the Upgrade points. Is that okay, Svilran?"

She gritted her teeth but nodded. "I don't want to risk Elma any further, either! Do it!"

I committed our decision, and the facility was built outside the dorm. I picked up Elma and ran with her down the stairs with Svilran yelling at me from behind to not drop her. I ran out of the dorm and found the <Infirmary>. It was a simple, white and square building with many windows.

I ran inside and was greeted by white walls and white floor tiles--it looked very clean.

"Come on, where do I go, where do I go?"

A light went off in my head. Before me was some kind of reception area with a desk sitting in front of empty space and a chair. This room was tiny, but to the left and the right were doors. Beyond those doors was the bigger space with beds. According to what I was receiving, there were four beds in this <Infirmary>.

I ran through the door on my left and found one of two empty beds. I quickly placed Elma on the bed, and as soon as I did, an interface appeared before my eyes--the Infirmary Interface. There was a loading circle--it was telling me it was 'Diagnosing.' It was going to take a few minutes. While it was doing that, Svilran and Dorthaunzee ran in.

"You haven't acquainted yourself with the functions yet, right?" Svilran asked. "I'll quickly do that while you keep an eye on Elma."

"Yeah..." My eyes were glued to the screen. It was only at 48%, but it was already giving me info I could access. "'Body reacting to the acute absence of substance--Nochfall Ichor."

That name, Nochfall Ichor, was clickable, so I pressed on it, and read out the new info.

"Nochfall Ichor has been determined to nourish a body in place of natural means. It is addictive and is prone to causing a body to become dependent on it. Be careful with this substance. Upon its absence--" I went pale. "Upon its prolonged absence, the Nochfall Ichor processed by the body and stored in the spine--Ichorstrait--activates and begins attacking the body as it absorbs the trace amounts of residual Nochfall Ichor absorbed by certain cells."