[center][h1][color=Silver]R H E I N[/color][/h1]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/rJwvCWH.jpg[/img]
[i][color=Silver]Nap-time Knight[/color][/i]
[/center]
[hr][hr]

The leader of the Shabu Shabu Party alternated between the use of regular attacks and bursted slashes, faring more than well enough against the tentacles that assaulted his person. In fact, one could say it looked like he wasn’t having much trouble at all, only really appearing somewhat distressed as he became more and more covered in blue slime. Slicing through yet another tentacle, Rhein sighed as the limb once again reformed itself and re-entered combat. As he deftly dodged and parried the whip-like tentacles of the Slime, Rhein overheard Grimhildr shouting at Saffron, who had once again decided to refrain from helping any further than he already had. Hell, the one way he had helped required Rhein to do the heavy lifting.  At this point, though, the eyepatched “gentleman” had already known what to expect of the Blood Mage, so all he could really do was shake his head. At least, competition aside, the other party was doing something to distract the creature, managing to catch its attention by bombarding it with heavy fire from their Prowlers or the ground fighters they deployed just moments earlier. 

As Grimhildr ran past Rhein, the tentacles that had been attacking her whipped after the Dragnan girl in pursuit, which really just kinda meant that Rhein was [i]also[/i] in the way of the strike. Slamming the Fragarach sword back into the shield, Rhein’s eye narrowed as multiple tentacles came to strike simultaneously. With a click of the sword trigger, the blade was once again pushed out of the casing as Rhein spun on his heel, a burst of the mana-steam erupting as the swordsman released an arc of energy off of the blade, his rotation causing it to create a full circle around him as it launched in all directions, cutting through the tentacles. Feeling satisfied with himself, Rhein resheathed the blade only to once again be slapped into the dirt, apparently forgetting that the Slime was capable of restoring its limbs while he was patting himself on the back. 

Meanwhile, as tentacles were beating down on Rhein, the rest of the fight raged on. Due to the combined effort of everyone involved, it appeared that the Slime was actually being beaten back, heading back towards the forest as it was barraged by shells and spells. The Slime was caught unawares by the Beastlady who lurked in the trees, waiting for her moment to strike, and this negligence would be the gelatinous monstrosity’s downfall. The ensuing shower of blue goo and the resultant cessation of strikes from the Slime allowed Rhein to pick himself up from the ground again, which led him to see the form of Estelle plummeting from the sky and landing in a pile of the Giga Slime’s gooey chunks. For a moment, Rhein actually looked genuinely concerned, but quickly reverted back to his usual lax expression as he jogged his way over to the remains of the Giga Slime. As he passed the unconscious Estelle, he quickly glanced at her to see that she was breathing before looking to see that the other Hunters were already working on collecting the Giga Slime’s broken core, which was about the size of a baby elephant. [color=Silver]”Hey, I dunno what the rules are, but don’t you guys think we should get the core? After all, my friend over there got the finishing blow.”[/color] he suggested, prompting a look from the bespectacled Eldrin man from earlier. 
“I might’ve considered it if you and your comrades hadn’t tried to harm us. But I’m afraid that you have all put me in a mood that doesn’t inspire good will.” the man stated, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Rhein rolled his eyes, more than a little annoyed that  this guy had lumped all of them into the same group. He hadn’t done anything!

[color=Silver]”Uh-huh…. But, y’see, it isn’t like we all had a hand in that, yeah? Hell, I even told ‘em not to go to crazy about it. Maybe a few little love taps like ‘Hey, get a load of this thing, right?’. Real chummy sort of stuff. Not my fault they went overboard.”[/color] Rhein retorted, shrugging his shoulders. The Eldrin pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration with the eyepatched Party leader.
“I suggest you all take your leave now, before I [i]make you[/i] leave. I’m being kind now by even allowing you to make a case after your subordinates attacked us.” the Eldrin growled. Rhein noted the lance that the man carried over his shoulder, taking into account that it was a rather long weapon. Specifically, some model of Dash Joust, which usually had some sort of thrusters for greater penetrating power. The guy wasn’t exactly wrong to be a bit mad, but it was annoying. 
[color=Silver]”Oh? How’re ya gonna do that?”[/color] Rhein replied, obviously provoking the Eldrin man, who appeared to be the leader of the other Hunting Party. Within a split second, a gust of wind rushed by Rhein, but the Shabu Shabu Party’s resident Nap Expert didn’t flinch as the long joust rushed by his head. The Eldrin had decided to give a warning strike, which grazed Rhein’s cheek, drawing blood. 
[color=IndianRed]”Now, now, Cornelius, let’s all calm down.”[/color] a voice chimed in, soon being shown to belong to the mustachioed Horvin from earlier. [color=IndianRed]”The boy is right. Their group did finish the beast off. And I’m not one to let someone leave emptyhanded after the risky move that Beastgirl pulled off.”[/color] the Horvin stated. Rhein always felt that it sounded strange being called “boy” by a Horvin, since they always kind of looked like children themselves. Mustache or no mustache. But apparently the diminutive man’s words worked. Sighing, the raven-haired Eldrin known as Cornelius turned back to Rhein, still looking a bit pissed.

“Alright. I am willing to let you have [i]half[/i] of the core for your troubles. Be lucky that sir Mathis has reminded me that your friend laying on the Slime has not done anything to upset us. Unlike the rest of you.” the Eldrin remarked, beginning to annoy Rhein further with his tone. Frankly, Rhein was already starting to check out of the discussion, so he was glad to at least get something out of the exchange without much work on his own part. 
[color=Silver]”Yeah, yeah. Whatever, Corni. I’ll have to measure the core to make sure ya don’t stiff us, though.”[/color] Rhein retorted, hooking the Fragarach onto his back as he walked back towards Estelle. Still unconscious, and harboring pretty nasty burns on her arms, Rhein shook his head as he muttered under his breath. Placing a hand over the beastlady’s burned arms, a calm, green wave of healing energy spread from Rhein’s palm as the healing spell took effect, repairing the damage that had been done from the explosion. [color=Silver]”Making me have to go ahead and play medic, huh? What an irresponsible gunner.”[/color] the eyepatched man commented, mostly to himself. 

[color=Silver]”Oi, Grim! You think you can carry ‘Stelle back to that old rustbucket of ours?”[/color]