Burned a bit to begin with

The dim hallway quickly opened up into a large dark room, presumably the first chamber Fiorayne would have to navigate. On the other side of the pitch black expanse was a pair of creaky old wooden doors, framed by two small scones, which did nothing to illuminate the purpose of the room itself. The most Fiorayne could make out were hunched, spiky shapes, motionless and silhouetted against the faint flame. Raising her shield, flimsy as it was, she cautiously stepped into the room, and froze as she heard a faint click from the tile underneath her feet.

"Aha!" As the torches around the room roared to life, Fiorayne realized what the array of spikes and ridges she had previously been squinting to see had reminded her of, as she gazed on the newly revealed visage of a Rathalos! Not a real one, just as the quest-giver had said, but a statue hewn roughly from red stone, wings spread with a brazier clutched between its talons, and its mouth open in a silent roar. The room was lined with identical idols, most positioned along the walls of the room and facing inward, but a handful of them stood throughout the middle of the room, gazing back at her as she stood in the entrance.

"Hm. Hardly intimidating, though I can admire the craftsmanship," Fiorayne remarked. She waited, ready to dodge if need be, but the statue ahead of her was as still as could be expected. Slowly, she lowered the shield-- only to whip it right back up as she turned to the left, a growing glow and a rush of wind giving her a scant second's warning as a statue to her left send a fireball screaming straight towards her! Fiorayne skid slightly from the **** of the blow, but was quick enough to roll out of the way as a spark grew in the throat of the nearest statue and it too breathed a gout of flame onto the spot she had been seconds ago. The Royal Knight scanned the room, seeing fireballs cast back and forth by the statues lining the chamber, and was mentally charting the fasted path to the exit, when an acrid smell filled her nostrils.

Looking down at her hand, she saw what she had feared from the quality of the crude replica of a real shield that she had been issued by her bothersome benefactor. Whatever it was made of couldn't take the heat, and was melting into a foul smelling heap around her hand. With a grunt, she darted further into the room and chucked the ruined shield aside, her glove stuck into the material being sacrificed alongside it, to take a second and final hit for her as she ran ahead. With fireballs about to slam into her on either side, she drew her sham of a sword and lunged at the statue ahead of her, plunging the blunt blade into its throat and melting its maw shut before it could fire on her. Nearly across the room, Fiorayne paused for one second... two seconds... and then ran for it, timing her burst of speed just well enough to slide underneath the last lineup of gargoyles, shielding her face from the heat with her remaining glove, which she quickly tossed back into the room to be consumed by the sparks that had just managed to catch it.

"Hmph. As I said.... hardly much of a challenge. Onward!" Fiorayne affirmed, mostly to herself, as she stood and dusted herself off. As near useless as they were, sacrificing her weapons meant she was well and truly disarmed now, and that thought wasn't helping her remain brave in the face of this ridiculous endeavor, even as she opened the wooden double doors and walked ahead to the next segment.

Rolled a 5!
Outfit durability: 23/28 (Chestplate, headband, lower body armor, boots)