My Yandere Wives are Transcendents

Chapter 172: Another Floor: Faunmia

Arlyne O's POV

/Heal/

/Heal/

/Heal/

/Heal/

"..."

Everyone stared blankly at my brother as his handsome face transformed into an unsightly, swollen mess, akin to a pig.

"pfft----ha---"

Someone struggled to contain their laughter as my brother's face and body became riddled with blisters.

"I'm sorry, we managed to counteract its deadly poison, but it seems there are some side effects we can't cure at the moment" Kyra stated with her normally radiant aurora night-sky eyes clouded in the gloom.

"I'm sorry" Kira added in a saddened tone.

In response to their apologies, I shook my head vigorously, stating, "No, it's not your fault, Your Highnesses. I'm very grateful for saving him from certain death".

"...hmm"

"...mm"

Both of them nodded silently, seemingly unsatisfied with the assistance they had provided.

'Sigh'

I sighed deeply and shifted my gaze to my brother, who looked back at us with an awkward, albeit unrecognizable smile?....or at least, I assumed he was smiling since even his lips were swollen.

"I'm sorry"

Hearing his apology,

"Ouch"

I smacked his head and said with a deadly tone, "Shouldn't you be more aware of your surroundings, Mr. 9-Star Ranker?"

"Ahaha..." My brother merely chuckled, shrugged it off, and stood up.

He then declared, "This room must be a trap. Let's move on before we encounter anything more dangerous" as he pointed at the plain surface which had a treasure chest.

Everyone nodded and proceeded forward.

On the way, Simon struggled to suppress his laughter, but after a prolonged effort, he burst out,

"Hahahahahahahahah"

Hearing his laughter, I covered my face, attempting to stifle my own amusement. It was hard not to find humour in the fact that my handsome brother had suddenly transformed into....'this'....hahaha.....as much-hahaha-as I was worried, I also felt-hahahaha-ridiculous to see his face.

"Do you have a problem?" My brother inquired in a stern tone.

"Ahaha..." Simon, who had been laughing heartily, suddenly felt a surge of killing intent and quickly covered his mouth.

"Hmmm." My brother nodded and began walking. However, his steps appeared somewhat unsteady.

'Maybe he's just tired?' I thought.

After an hour of walking, we reached a dead end and encountered a set of stairs.

"Stairs?"

Simon mumbled as he moved closer to inspect them.

At that moment, I cast a worried glance at my brother, who was breathing heavily.

"Brother, I think you should le--"

Before I could finish my sentence, my brother interrupted me, saying firmly,

"I'm sorry, Arlyne, but I can't....I can't afford to lose my rank, and I have a feeling this is more than just a 'Training Program'".

Observing the competitive fire in his eyes, I inwardly sighed.

'I'm not entirely sure about him losing his rank since he's only Rank-15, but this "Training Program" keeps coming up as a hint when Aadya talks about it,' I thought, nodding in agreement.

Everyone ascended the spiral staircase.

After reaching the platform, we.....

"!!!"

Everyone raised their eyebrows in shock.

It was the same floor as before...the same never-ending brick walls, the same narrow path...but this time, the atmosphere was changed...dark mana leaking from the walls.

/Barrier/

"Kiiiikk"

"Ahhoohh"

Hundreds of black humanoid monsters or Faunmia glaring at us....or rather, at my brother, who was still unconscious. Their expressions weren't angry but instead had a strange, animalistic, lustful look...a horny look that was similar to animals.

My eyes landed on my brother who seemed to pass out from my attack and Simon seemed to turn normal as his blood drained from his face when he saw them.

I slowly stood up and whispered to Simon to back off.

We retreated cautiously, dragging my brother by his leg...'He deserves that,' I thought as we finally reached the stairs and began to descend. Our eyes remained fixed on the monsters, which, for some reason, didn't move an inch.

"..."

"What was that?" Theo muttered in disbelief, while Simon already glared at my unconscious brother.

"You can purify them?" Theo suddenly asked the princesses, to which Kyra nodded.

Before I could let out a sigh of relief, she added,

"But I don't think it's possible to kill many of them without help from another team".

"...Heh, I thought so" Theo remarked after a moment.

"...sigh, Well, let's take a rest here" I suggested as I sat down and asked the princesses to check on my brother.

"He is fine; it's just the side effect of the poison," Kyra said with a sad smile.

"We should break his bracelets" Theo suggested seriously.

"Yes, I think he turned one of them" Simon chimed in with a furious face.

We unanimously agreed not to speak about what happened to him, but he started to irritate me more.

"..." I knew they were right, and yet, I couldn't possibly eliminate my brother after seeing his serious face, 'He really does not want to leave'.

I glanced at Simon, who sending death glares at my brother....'Should I?'.

I contemplated for a second and asked, "Princesses, what do you think?"

"Whatever you choose," Kira, who had been silent until now, said.

"He was fine... it seems they were attracted to the side effects caused by the poison," Kyra said with a frown.

"Fine... huh?" Hearing that word, I looked at Simon and Theo and said firmly, "I am sorry, but I cannot leave my brother."

"HUH? What you--"

"....I see," Theo looked at them with an indifferent gaze before glancing at the twins and nodding.

Simon's voice abruptly stopped, and he looked at Theo with a disbelieving gaze.

Feeling his gaze, Theo said, "We are the ones who formed a team with them, so whatever they decide, it's up to them."

Theo's words were firm as if he expected no rejection.

"rrrrrrr"

Simon gritted his teeth in anger and swallowed his words.

"I will take care of him," I said firmly, preparing the shackles for my brother when...

"ggrrrr"

I jolted and shifted my gaze to the source.

My brother was growling in his sleep.

"ggrrr"

A collective sigh of relief escaped us, as his sounds eerily resembled those of the black humanoid monsters.

"BBOOOOMM"

"???"

Then, a deafening noise shook the ground, as if something massive was being demolished.

We all turned our attention to a brilliant flash of light in the distance.

I couldn't help but wonder who or what could be responsible for such devastation.

'Someone is fighting?' I wondered.

'Tuck, Tuck, Tuck'

"Run!!" Theo immediately shouted.

The sound of approaching footsteps descending the stairs made me realize the impending danger. Without hesitation, I promptly hoisted my unconscious brother onto my shoulders and ran, pulling the twins along with me.

We sprinted relentlessly, increasing the distance between us and the ominous marching sound. After some time, the noise gradually receded, and we eventually slumped to the ground, gasping for breath.