Clock - 2

"Inari… so worried… about what, that mere thing?" Her voice was slow. She drawled it out like some sort of poem. But it was weirdly angelic.

Like some sort of angel was serenading me to sleep with sarcasm and insults.

"Why?" 

"Why what?"

"Why me, we both know that there was no way this was a coincidence." I glared back at her and then back at the figure in the shadow of the canvas. 

The figure stalked forwards and with a wave of its hand it grew in proportion to the swing. A devilish figure that seemed to grow only greater with every single second.

But it was as if she could care less about the monster that appeared outside of my vision.

"Silly… oh' so silly, it was a coincidence. A mere coincidence." 

I could not believe that. No matter what she did, there was always a plan. I didn't even need to know her that well to know that.

She was quite public about it, that was if you were able to observe her as I did. 

And it was not like that, I had no crush, nor romantic interest. It was purely a curious desire. One sparked by the fact that she could match me, a reincarnated soul, in academics.

I was desperate to know how, beyond her merely being a genius. As even the greatest of geniuses had some sort of secret, some sort of studying about them that gave them that prodigious understanding.

And being the curious one I was I had an interest in the only genius I could find. Emilia. But what I had found was exactly what I had wanted, yet the but was only because I could not replicate it.

For all the research I had done, for every step she took, I found out that it was all meticulously planned. Every interaction, every word. It was all rehearsed and enacted in exactly her way.

And it was for that reason that I could not believe her. There was no way that she had not intended for us to end up like this. Hell, I could not even put it past her to have enacted Alex's betrayal.

The shadow moved once again but this time it clawed at the ground, a sort of move that brought screams of pain and pleasure to those that had been stuck in between.

I grimaced and stood up on shaky legs. I curled the cloth that had hung to my side around my fist and in the other I reinforced the dagger I had been given.

A moment later and a hand was placed over my covered one.

I looked down and found that usual smirk to be even greater than before. She stood too, and even though we were of about the same height she towered over me.

In presence.

Then with a cut she slashed at the cover. 

"KUAK" The goblin roared and its malignant body strode forward.

"A variant… goblin priest, of the faith of some god of toxin, yet to be discovered." She whispered out, but the way her waist moved, the grace in her step as she dodged the swing of the claw.

It drew the attention of even those that had been suffering in their tortured existence.

"They give their bodies to their god and in return gain the ability to grow in strength according to the toxins they take. All the god asks for… all he will ever ask for… is their growing sickness."

I watched as she dance around his back, her sword cutting spots into the goblin. All as he roared in defiance, his head swiveled around like some chair.

All to meet the sword once again.

"These variants… they stand no chance against soft force, a dance that takes advantage of their bloated bodies, as all have."

She once again strode to its back and with one last swing chopped the pus ridden hand off of the goblin.

"KUAAAAK!" He yelled in pain but that did not stop him as he grabbed the hand that had been chopped off and began to gnaw on it.

"Once a limb or body part has been chopped off… they begin to eat it in order to take back the toxins that have flown from their blood and into the limb." She smirked and raised her sword.

A chill rose over the place and all over the sword she held. It brought forth a chunk of cold mana. All over the sword.

"It is not ideal as fire would be best… but ice will do as long as the wound cuts enough."

With those lasts words she cut and the head that focused solely on gnawing on the arm was flung from its place.

A moment later and the body fell too. There was no sign of life in it.

And with swift movements that maintained her grace, she cut into the body and stole the crystal within.

It shone a toxic light. 

"Ah" I gasped out.

I caught the crystal in my hand and gaped at her.

"Take it as a signing on gift, you're being drafted congratulations…"

…

…

…

"What?!" I practically yelled out.

"Those instructions on how to kill the goblin…" She stopped for a moment and I filled in for her.

"Yes, it was quite obvious, what about them has to do with this."

She smirked, something that was becoming quite common.

"It has everything to do with this."

I shook my head, I probably could understand if I gave it another minute of thought but she took that shake as an admission of unknowing.

"Who else but you could keep up with that, others would only know that they should use fire."

"Yeah, well others are idiots." I said it without thinking but it made sense now.

"Makes sense right…" She drawled out and I could only sigh and agree.

All the while following her towards some unknown location, she seemed to know where she was going at the very least. 

It couldn't hurt to follow the one that might let me out of here. I still held my anger towards Alex, but this girl. So charming, so strange, had captivated my attention. 

The way she had bulldozed into here, had taken command so easily. It was fascinating, and I could put my revenge on hold, after all I knew his academy, I knew his name and face. There was no hiding.