Porter Johann's Heroic Facade
“P-Porter…? Shouldn't there be a fork in the path around here?”
The Priest glanced around anxiously, her voice trembling. In the pitch-black cave shrouded in heavy darkness, the only light came from the glowing necklace she clutched.
If they held their breath, they could hear the faint scuttling of small rodents—or maybe monsters.
“Huh... you're right.”
Johann replied with an innocently oblivious expression. The Priest didn't suspect a thing.
She's not just kind—she's a bit naive, too.
He'd already sized her up, but this confirmed it. Perfect for manipulation.
“Did we take a wrong turn...?”
“Looks like it. This is bad.”
Johann scratched his cheek, feigning distress just right. Thanks to his high Deception skill, the Priest couldn't read his true intentions. Even without acting, her lack of perceptiveness wouldn't have caught on anyway.
“What do we do? We should head back to where the Hero and the Mage are...”
Before she could finish, something lunged at her. Johann yanked her toward him by the arm.
“Squeak!”
It was a rat pup—but no ordinary one. In a high-difficulty dungeon like this, nothing was ordinary.
“A rat the size of a man's head, huh.”
Its glowing blue eyes gleamed menacingly—a massive rodent.
“It's a Bloodrat...”
The Priest swallowed hard, her body stiffening.
Bloodrats weren't the strongest monsters here, but with no frontline fighters, that was the problem.
She had zero combat ability herself. And she couldn't expect much from a porter.
“Let's run for now.”
“Y-Yes!”
Johann took the lead again, gripping her arm and pulling her deeper into the cave. The Bloodrat pursued.
“Squeak! Squeak!”
Monsters saw backs as prey. The Bloodrat eagerly chased, its agility outpacing the Priest's pace easily.
“Pardon me.”
Johann scooped her up princess-style.
“P-Porter!?”
“This'll be faster.”
Securing her safely, he dashed off on swift legs. He could flick a Bloodrat dead without effort, but this was too good an opportunity. Time to plant some flags with the Priest. No way he'd pass it up.
He shook off the Bloodrat quickly. But now they were even deeper in the dungeon, where monsters lurked that made Bloodrats look like jokes.
About ten of them.
Johann scanned with Darkness Radar. None could threaten him. They hid silently in the shadows—unlike Bloodrats, most monsters here had patience.
Waiting for us to slip up.
He set the Priest down. She pressed a hand to her pounding chest, steadying her breath with monastic breathing techniques and reciting scripture. Her mind calmed swiftly—thank goodness.
“Hah... Porter, thank you for saving me.”
Expressing gratitude to her benefactor was second nature. Johann shook his head nonchalantly.
“No need. Just doing my job.”
It sounded familiar. She knew why.
The Hero said the same thing.
Early in joining the Hero's party, after her string of dumb mistakes in a dungeon, he'd saved her and brushed off her thanks just like that. Unlike the strict monastic brothers, his kindness had made her fall hard.
She looked up at Johann. It was impure to think it, but he was way more handsome than the Hero. Not that the Hero was ugly—the Porter was just stunning.
What am I thinking!? Judging by looks—against scripture!
She shook her head, recalling calming verses.
“Anyway, seems we've gone even deeper. We need to figure out how to get out of here.”
Johann surveyed the surroundings. They were well past the dungeon's midpoint—farther than her prior scout with the Hero's party.
“Uh... can't we just go back the way we came?”
“Monsters like that Bloodrat might be stalking us.”
“Then what now?”
Her hands trembled around her staff. No matter how she calmed herself, the enveloping darkness cast shadows in her heart.
With the Hero and Mage, she'd press on fearless. But not now.
“Priest?”
“...”
“Priest!?”
She jolted at his raised voice.
“Y-Yes!! S-Sorry! I was lost in thought...”
“Don't worry too much. I'll protect you.”
He rolled up his sleeves. She gave a wry smile.
“Porter... thank you. If you hadn't been there earlier, I'd be in real trouble. Even now, I'm just baggage.”
Self-deprecating gratitude. He shook his head.
“Baggage? You're a valuable party member. You have healing powers, right?”
“Yes, but I'm still inexperienced.”
“To escape, we'll need your power. Together, we'll make it back.”
She forced a smile—awkward from tension, but a smile. Otherwise, she'd cry.
They're about to strike.
The watching monsters stirred. Darkness Radar caught it. She still hadn't noticed their stealthy approach.
Ssssslither!
Thorns whipped from behind Johann—an ambush from the dark. Without Darkness Radar, it'd be a birthday surprise. But spoiled, it was boring.
“Dodge!”
He shoved her aside. As she tumbled back, thorns grazed his robe.
“Ngh!”
His brown robe tore. The vines pressed triumphantly.
Tank hits on purpose—tough gig.
Priest behind him. To rack up points, he couldn't dominate—had to barely win, painting the “I sacrificed for you” picture perfectly.
“Porter!”
Her cry echoed. He twisted, deflecting the next strike—but not fully; his upper robe shredded, revealing light leather armor beneath.
“Tch! For a plant!”
The attacker: a man-eating flower with thorny tendrils—the same as the Hero fought earlier.
“Watch for pollen! It causes hallucinations!”
As warned, it shook violently, spewing powder. Nepenthes-like with jagged teeth—grotesque, dancing like a zero-to-hero idol. Nauseating.
Air Pocket.
He manipulated wind into a barrier. Pollen couldn't pierce.
Swoosh!
Vines whipped again—AoE CC then heavy lashes. Solid tactic. Average adventurers couldn't break it.
Johann leaned aside, dodging, then charged the stem. It bared teeth, spewing ominous green acid from its pouch—sizzling corrosively on the ground. Nasty hit.
Slow.
Twist past, close in. Six thorns converged. Five dodges came to mind, but he took it.
“Gahhh!”
“Porter!!!”
He flew airborne. She gaped, fists clenched, stamping. Hope shattered at his crumpled form.
Ssssslither!
Thorns turned to her. Like a hamster facing a snake, she froze, staff gripped, mind blank. Eyes shut.
“Not a chance!”
Johann's voice rang.
Thud!
He body-blocked the strike. Crashed into the wall.
“P-Porter!?”
“Hahk...! Hahk...! Priest, I'll protect you no matter what.”
Gulping ragged breaths, he vowed. Even he admired the performance—slightly overacted, but that's acting's charm.