Her hand shook as soon as the parasol had pierced the young girl. Both of her hands did, as she had never killed a young child with souless eyes, never killed them without knowing their backstory. This time, it was regret of hers that she really wanted to know, who was the child and why did she kill the boss? Why did she kill someone who protected me?
What other cruelty from humans should I face?! That even a child took away my last hopes...The anger and revenge dwelled up upon her nerves as she dropped the body from that level. The words of advice she had said, it still echoed against her ears, and the word senior...like the younger version of herself had come back to warn her. Clenching her fist, she walked towards the only safe exit left.
But unfortunately, it was sealed and even after trying multiple times, it didn't snap. Another dead end of her life, and she was forced to live through it. This time, she would die in the blazing fire like how her life was already up in flames the similar look of it. The roof above her head collapsed and she shut her eyes. But even after so long, there was no burning sensation against her skin.
"You may open your eyes, you are safe." The voice that sounded almost like a royalty or a higher up was speaking. Lady Gray's eyes jolted awake as she stared at the bright glow of golden hue around a mythical looking woman with a single wing as her fingers gleamered with a sphere that surrounded the two people and kept them away from the fire. "Haven't you ever wondered how you suddenly got an elemental magic animal asking you to be it's master, one week before this happening?"
A fear crept up her arms as she tried to crawl backwards, only to be blocked by obstacles. "I don't know why that tiger came to me and offered me the ability to control metals. It's useless at the end because it couldn't save me from the fire." She spoke while standing up and knives surrounding her back as her short hair flattered around her face.
The woman laughed, "you know not many people get chosen to keep an elemental magic animal. The tiger not only allows you to control metals, you can control anything you put your mind into." She spoke while lowering the knives that acted as her defenses. "Also, I was the one who chose you to take care of this element. You know very well that the young girl who you just killed, she too has an element, one I am very interested about."
"What does this have anything to do with that girl? She is dead." Her eyes narrowed and looked upwards, showing the edges of her iris and making the stare look fierce. The one winged creature smiled as she walked forward and towards the small gap still left for them to view from. "In any reality, do you think an Earth human can be dead in a universe they don't belong?"
"What?" Lady Gray's eyes widened as she stared down at the girl who was bleeding from the head and the wounds. The blood spilt around like water and she seemed motionless for a very long time. "But she doesn't look alien to me."
"Of course she won't because you both are still humans. Not much difference there is between you, that you both share." The woman walked away as she faced her with a new expression and the face seemed to tick off the last nerve. "Now, I want you to do something in return for me. That is if you want to do it. I won't force it against you."
"No." The answer that left her own mouth sent shivers down her spine, since she was clearly not the one saying so. "I will do as you told. I will do whatever you want me to do as long as that girl stays dead." But she didn't want the girl to suffer again, her voice and mouth both kept going, not with her willingness. She wanted to stitch it up like fabric so nothing else can leave her mouth.
"Great! Because that's what you are going to do next. Take her core away from her, and give it to me at the end of the day. I don't want to hear excuses, and kill her off completely. Not a single piece of her should stay alive the next time." The woman grinned, it was all her doing and the words were completely forced out by the look of her face.
The control over her mind slowly eased out as the sphere condensed on the outside. The small circle on top of the one-winged creature's hand, flickered as so did the protective barrier. Seeing this, she snapped broken the glass-like texture and immediately, the flames erupted high above them as Lady Gray found herself being fully engulfed by the flames. The warmth around her exponentially increased as her eyes reacted to the flash and immediately shut.
The air around her cooled down faster than a second. Panting for breathe, with her eyes blocking any view from her, she found herself knealing on the grass, watching the girl who she was now vowed to kill, suddenly held out a hand. Due to being a very far distance away, she observed without being found. No pair of eyes glanced their way and it felt as if they were invisible.
With a simple hand gesture from the girl, and the flames inside all subsided at once. She was in fact a powerful magic user, but her origins were really suspicious. What is it about the girl that makes a guardian so mad and want to chase behind them? Is that girl, someone who was once a villain? Does she have an intention to tear this world apart? Who even is she?
Several questions popped up in her mind as she watched her walk away as blood droplets trailed her footsteps. She was in fact badly injured, but what level of endurance allowed someone to walk around acting like they didn't fall from the fifth floor, and just got caught up in a small explosion instead. I don't know if I am right, but this girl might have suffered training from the military or even has a bloodline filled with them, because how else, can someone be fatally injured...and still be alive.
Her curiousity suddenly depleted and her eyes diverted to look at the glittering tiger masks and a set of clothes that matched the idea of her element. "Now, you will have to be in a disguise to walk around and stalk that girl if you want to kill her. If you have observed very well, she is a very powerful person and also intelligent to come along with." The woman spoke as a hand covered in golden hue, handed over a bluish grey mask.
"Not only that, she has the support of multiple other people. Even the more powerful one, leader of the torture Cell, they don't want to let any information about her expose. So don't trust your gut at most times, and I will let you know when is the best time to kill her. If you fail, you will die at her hands." With the last words, the woman got wrapped in her golden hue and the wing wrapped around her face as she fell backwards and dissapeared into a crack on the ground.
Even minutes after her dissappearance, she stared at the ground with a blank mind and then finally glanced at the mask. I want to kill her, fulfil the promise...because I want to know about her. Why does a kid have to be an underboss at this age?
Those memories flashed before her eyes all at once as she hung in the air with the last bit of consciousness, grabbing onto the last strand of life, just to look at the girl's face one last time. Her souless black eyes, they seemed sorrowful as her hands held the strings that was killing her. Her last thoughts, they echoed back and forth inside her mind as she recalled the scene just a second ago. A smile popped up onto her now paling face.
Of course the guardians are chasing her because she is way too powerful to deal with. She is intelligent enough to fool everyone and knows the loophole between situations. I am jealous, why is she so good at this thing and I failed miserably? Her eyes look souless and filled with stories left untold, but why didn't I get to hear it? From no one's mouth?
Tears welled up her eyes as she let her face fall down and closed her eyes. Maybe I was born to suffer the torture of humans and their cruelty. But at least the girl won't as long as she dies.
***
"This place is getting boring!" Puppet continuously complained as Aefia's steps slowed to inspect the small corners of the cave. Items were layed around at every inch and she was collecting them while identifying their advantages. "Come on! I will sell them brand new to you for free! Just leave them and I want to return to the real world! This place is...exhausting." It softly yawned.
"Hang on, busy buddy." She answered while flinging a test tube in the air, it was filled with a suspicious liquid coloured a deep burgundy. "I am not sure I can trust you enough to buy something for free from you. You tried to scam me multiple times and every time, if I scolded you for doing so, you would just dissappear and not come out." They both knew this was a must happen scenario and silenced out.
"Well at least I give you fresh products. You don't know how long it has been laying on the ground like that. I guess games really are a weird thing that teaches humans to collect on the smallest resources if they can. I am telling everyone to take your devices away." It crossed its arms and turned away. It's faces changed into a frown as Aefia let out a laugh with no smile.
"You think that's funny. You are a worse joker than Lewis." She spoke while checking her inventory for details on the things she had now equipped. It looked like a resources shop itself, which were stocked up all by collecting every type of poison and ailments. Thinking they will all have a use in some point of her life, she didn't care about throwing them out so soon either.
[Item number: 657
Item name: King Cobra's Venom
Uses: Can only be used as a defensive tool as a buff to cut off battle time.]
"I thought you said it won't be of use, I can use it on an aggressive animal to calm them down within a short time it seems." She tapped her chin while closing her inventory and glancing sideways to where Puppet was now shivering in place. "I didn't know a system illusion could be prone to the cold? Are you starting to become a live form again? Because then that would mean my magic energy is in huge danger."
"What! No! I don't know what's up with you but why does it feel like you are about to kill me like you did to the Tiger element back there! You are certainly a creepy creature, I should say this!" It started complaining as it turned around to face her, and this time, it got goosebumps. "Why are you opening the lid of the snake poison! What is wrong with you! Why are you so serious in trying to kill me!" It shoke it's head around like a cat while looking for a way out.
"What makes you think I was about to use it on you? I was just inspecting it, and how does it show I have any intention to kill? You are not my enemy." She shrugged while putting back the lid and throwing it up in the air. Then as if recalling a certain fact, she lifted her face towards Puppet while scratching the back of her head. "Oh wait! You are my enemy. Especially when you disturb me, and that's one reason I had you stay beside Helio. But it seems you have a bad image to everywhere you go now, including to her lady."
Her face turned angry but in a short while, she calmed down as if there was a realization within her that said everything depended on this little floating creature inside this dungeon. If it weren't for it, she was sure to have died again in that confrontation between both the woman and the tiger. Her hands reached her forehead as she apologized and added no other words expect, "just monitor my surroundings and health."
The sudden change in her facial expression, it was bone chilling and alerting. It is always a rare occasion except before a major conflict, that she would do this and once it was done, it would stay on until she was successful in whatever revenge she wanted to take. "You know, I understand-" Puppet opened its mouth as she used her hand to cover it and sneaked behind a wall near the next entrance to the opposite room.
Immediately, it glacnced up from her grip as it caught her looking down to the ground with shocked eyes like she did when something unexpected happened. What happened this time around, there was no telling, because she was abnormally silent and only her face spoke for the situation she just saw.
What...was that! Aefia's thoughts got scrambled up and her mind ached suddenly, because the shock was intimidating enough to scare her from setting foot inside the parameters. What was the problem, Puppet couldn't ask, because its mouth was being covered and it was slammed against the wall. With her other hand, she covered her own mouth as her eyes widened with no redness at her iris.
Footsteps echoed towards them, and it was certain who it was. Before long, her gaze fixated towards the woman with the golden shine trailing her and her holographic wet footsteps. The ancient weight scale was absolutely unmistakable and the woman turned around with a crown levitating above her head.
"Hello, Aefia. We finally meet."