[h2][center][b][color=ed1c24]Novak[/color][/b][/center][/h2]
[i]So that's what she meant by peak human,[/i] Novak marveled as he watched the outcome of his improvised attack.  The chair struck with more force than he had anticipated, shattering upon impact and knocking the bird into a wall.  The strange creature was still alive but it appeared to be concussed from the blow.  The same could not be said for the other bird, which was lying in a pool of its own blood, slain by the black-haired girl.  A moment later, the second bird was also dead by her hand, cleanly decapitated by her katana.

[i]She might be a good candidate to learn from if I need to know how to fight,[/i] Novak observed.  He didn't want to spend his power unless it taught him something very useful, and it was already clear that in this world, knowing one's way around a sword would be invaluable.  He could worry about it later, however, when he had spare time to gauge whether there were better options and figure out just how his powers functioned.

"... A shame there isn't a cooking fire, at least these wretched fowl could have served a purpose in death," commented the swordswoman.  It was at this point that Novak realized that his hearing had returned, to his great relief.  It'd have been a great inconvenience for this fine new body to be afflicted with sensory loss so soon after receiving it.  Unfortunately, just as things were starting to look up for the group, the floor began to rumble ominously.  Novak didn't know what it was, but it was a potent reminder that there were there worse fates than hearing loss...

[i]Is that the guardian that the goddess warned us about?  We need to get out of here.[/i]  

The black-haired woman was already helping her animal-eared companion, who seemed to have gotten the worst of the bird's screech.  Perhaps her strange ears were more sensitive to that awful shriek.  It occurred to Novak at this point that he didn't know anything about them, not even their names.  If the situation weren't so dire, he'd ask them right now, but it seemed like they'd need to focus on simply surviving.

With this in mind, Novak rushed to the exit, stopping at the doorway.  Not wanting to risk figuratively jumping out of a frying pan and into a fire, he cautiously peered outside.  He looked around for any sign of danger that might await them outside, such as more of those birds or any other strange creatures, and perhaps whatever was making the ground shake.

[@VitaVitaAR][@Rune_Alchemist][@PKMNB0Y]