17: A Deeper Mystery

"It is done."

Those were the words that Defolta uttered after finally performing the deed of euthanizing the ones who were held as prisoners by the Evil Witch Matilda. She then took a seat shortly after and leaned against the bloodied wall, feeling quite exhausted by the gruesome ordeals that she forced herself to go through.

"Defolta, are you going to be, okay?" Nekowa, her partner and only friend so far in this world, went down at the girl's eye level with a concerned look on her face.

"I'll be alright, don't worry about me." Defolta assured the cat, "For some reason, my Mind did not deteriorate when I killed Conrad, unlike the times with the children. I guess I hated the bastard for suggesting in killing them and the Avenger skill took effect as a result, ultimately leading to my sorry little ass passing the Mind check."

"You sure got a lucky break there; I give you that." Nekowa joined the girl by her side, "So, what's our next move then? Are we really going to proceed even deeper?"

"Of course." Defolta's voice brimmed with conviction despite the terrors that haunted her, "My gut tells me that I might regret it for the rest of my life if I don't get to see the fate of the other prisoners here. It's the least that I could do to honor and send them off to a proper farewell, a far cry from the horrible end that they endured."

"I see, very well." Nekowa nodded, "But if I sense for even a moment that your life or mind is in jeopardy, then we are retreating back, no questions asked, are we clear?"

"Crystal." Defolta smiled and agreed with the cat's terms, "I'm counting on you to stop me from doing anything stupid, mom."

"Please don't call me that." Nekowa felt scandalized by what she was called which prompted a laugh from the girl.

***

True to Conrad's words, the pair never encountered anything that may prove to be a threat to them whatsoever. A great sense of relief washed over them both, and to make the situation better, the usual message of Sanity declination that the System oh so love to constantly remind was not resurfacing any longer. Perhaps it's all about the state of a person's mind and as long as Defolta would remain firm and mentally strong, then she would have very little to worry about.

Nevertheless, it still never pays to remain alert and, the horrors of the dungeons do not always necessarily come in the form of some sick terrifying grotesque of a monster that would always want to eat you, but rather, the experience and a bunch of moral dilemmas that one was willing to do, all for the sake of self-preservation.

But thankfully, this dungeon perhaps was considered a tutorial level of sort, a mere taste of the horrifying things to come. But if this dungeon was the easy mode of this world, then Defolta could only dread of what otherworldly terrors that the other dungeons has got to offer, with the most painful of death likely on their bargain sale.

Not to self, Stay away from fucking dungeons as much as possible. If there is nothing to gain or save, then there's no point in risking her life or sanity, unless of course if the rewards heavily outweigh the risks and if she was strong enough as well.

Logically, she does not need to be alone in future dungeon delving scenarios. A competent party member or two may as well spell the difference between life or death. Still, her original point firmly stood, and she would still stray far fucking away from all of it.

"I guess we are here."

A good 10 minutes of walk and the two finally arrived as pointed out by Nekowa. It was another door, similar to the one the first one that they entered. However, unlike the previous door, this one sported even more blood stain, and the foul stench of rotten flesh was even a lot stronger compared to the first. 

Fortunately for both of them, this part of dungeon-delving was to be their last. Before their arrival here, they explored every nook and cranny of the area. What they saw were a collection of dead-ends and a couple of abandoned rooms and other prison cells.

The smell was bearable to an extent, but regardless, Defolta and Nekowa both still have to cover their nose in reflex at how repulsive it really was.

"Your Sanity declines with each passing moment."

"And there it is. I knew it's too good to be true." Defolta commented upon seeing the System message while her heart skipped a beat, "Yup, I really hate this feeling of self-weakness."

 "Should we back down?" Nekowa suggested with Defolta's mental health and safety as her number one priority, "I won't fault you if we leave this place right here and now."

Mind Check (15), Success.

"I appreciate the concern, Nekowa…" Defolta responded, "But I really won't forgive myself if there are still people in there alive and I let fear take control over me and run away instead of saving them."

"Spoken like a true Magical Girl." Nekowa felt proud despite her concerns, "Regardless, your life is still more important, and I won't have any Magical Girls under my watch dying ever again."

"Trust me, I value my life way more than you think." Defolta said confidently, "If shit goes aflame, then I have no problems deltaing the fuck out away from all of this. Even if I fail, then I can at least try again, but I can't very well do so if I'm dead, can I?"

"Yeah. Oh, how I wish more of the Magical Girls back home have the same mentality as you. They would have been alive at the very least." A sad tone played on Nekowa's voice.

"My condolences for them." Defolta simply said and Nekowa appreciated the gesture.

With every fiber of her resolve kicking in, Defolta pushed the door open as a new world of terror laid bare before their very eyes.

As soon as they entered the room, the sight of mutilated corpses and grotesque monstrosity greeted them. The bodies of the dead prisoners were all chained to the wall while some were bound at tables that were located nearby, no doubt a subject of the horrifying experiments that was conducted by the evil Witch.

Defolta had a minor headache from witnessing all of this, but thankfully, she passed the mental check and was still standing with her composure intact.

The entire place was of no doubt, the laboratory that housed Matilda's inhumane experimentations of blood. Various lab apparatuses were all in full display at one table, arranged meticulously in preparation for another of the Witch's experiment which thankfully shall not come to pass this time around.

"Matilda is really too evil to be left alive." Defolta said with utter disgust, "Thank God she breath her last."

"I've seen many of the atrocities that villains back in my world did." Nekowa's breathing was uneven, and she eyed away from the ghastly displays, "But this one easily tops them all."

"Fucking hell, and not even a single one is alive." Defolta muttered with disappointment as she tried to look for any survivors but found none. It was pretty obvious since everybody inside this lab was mutilated to the point of no return, "The bitch really spared no expense in her evil, huh."

"Hold that thought." Nekowa interrupted as she found something that caught her interest, "I think I found something… someone."

"Someone?" Defolta's interest was piqued.

What they both now saw was something that was definitely out of the ordinary.

Lying deep at the left corner of the lab was a small metal cage that was heavily isolated from the rest of the lab's wretched contents.

Upon closer inspection, the pair could not believe their eyes when they finally got a glimpse of what was occupying the cage.

"A girl?" Defolta whispered under her breath.

A brown-haired child sat with her legs tuck inside the cramp cage as she returned the duo's gazes with her own alive yet eerie violet eyes.