131-135

131 Straight to the Freya Forest

After Kiruya's clumsy display, Her, Clara and Wolfy went to grab their mounts so they could start making their way to the Freya Forest.

"Lucky you found me otherwise getting into the forest would have been a pain." Kiruya was leading her mount alongside Clara who was leading the other 2 mounts.

"Why?" Clara thought it would be easy seeing as Shaman was expected to come to the forest at some point.

"Ah well it's just a million traps and high tier beasts that live in the outskirts of the forest, so the only way to get in is either through a special teleporter or have someone like me to guide you. Otherwise, you would be the beast's dinner." Kiruya casually explained why, and Clara went a little pale as they would have most likely died if they went headfirst into the forest.

"Well thank you, we probably would have died if we just went in by ourselves." Clara was grateful that they had met Kiruya, and she slowly began to trust her a bit more.

"No worries, it isn't as bad as I make it sound but you need to be at least tier 7 or above. You might make it out alive as a tier 6 but I wouldn't recommend trying it." Kiruya blushed a little and fidgeted at Clara's thanks.

Clara regained her colour thanks to the adorable reaction from Kiruya and was tempted to give her some head pats.

They continued to chat and walk down the street towards the inn with their mounts behind them.

**

.....

Shaman thought she was making progress, seeing as her words affected Elysia greatly. However, unbeknownst to Shaman, Elysia was crying for a different reason.

'I'm so sorry Shaman, I… I don't think I can change.' Elysia was conflicted as she wanted to change for Shaman, but Elysia's will would not budge. It felt inconceivable for her to change, and this inner conflict had caused Elysia to cry.

"It's okay, we can take it slow, I will be making sure to reward you for any progress you make." Shaman figured an incentive would help Elysia, especially considering they haven't had a chance to enjoy themselves recently.

"I… Th-thank y-you." Elysia stuttered since she wanted to say something else but instead went along with it.

They then continued to embrace with Shaman patting Elysia, waiting for her to calm down and everyone else to return.

**

Clara found out she could send a message through Rea to let Shaman and Elysia know that they had arrived, making her wish she had a system much earlier as it made everything so convenient.

Soon after her message Shaman and Elysia came out of the inn with Elysia having slightly red puffy eyes.

Clara could guess they talked about Elysia's issue, which made Clara happy that Shaman did not back out and went through with the talk. Kiruya seemed to notice but saw that they were holding hands, so she figured nothing major happened and that Elysia was just having a moment.

"Alright, we have our mounts, just follow me and I will take you through the forest. It should only be a few hours since we are close to the border." Kiruya jumped onto her lizard mount and waited for everyone else.

"That's a lot quicker than the several-day trip of boredom that we endured to get here." Elysia was happy to hear that it was only a couple of hours since the trip to get to the town had taken them a couple of days, even with the best mounts they could find while in a hurry. It also didn't help that Shaman refused to do anything on the trip when they rested since Clara was around and Shaman didn't want to make her uncomfortable.

"It wasn't all that bad, although it would have been nice to encounter some beasts to kill some boredom." Clara did not find the trip all too boring as she had spent most of the time trying to think of a new name for Wolfy once he got a human form.

"Did you end up coming up with a name?" Shaman allowed Clara to think of a name as Shaman knew her way of naming things was rather unique.

"I was thinking Leo, he's got your blue eyes, his silver fur which shows the mixing of his original black fur and your white plus, imagining him as a human just screams the name Leo." Clara explained her thought process and when Shaman looked at Wolfy, she could understand what Clara meant when it screamed the name Leo.

"Sounds good I'll use that unless you think of another name." Shaman was happy with the name and although Wolfy did not express it his tail was once again a traitor, wagging back and forth in excitement.

"Aha, well seeing as Wolfy likes it so much I think I will rest my brain." Clara got on her mount with Wolfy and was ready to go. Shaman and Elysia did the same and Kiruya, seeing that they were ready, got on the move as well.

*

In an open grass field with no trees in sight, 3 lizard mounts were speeding along the unpaved path.

"WHEN YOU SAID A FEW HOURS, I THOUGHT AT REGULAR SPEED NOT FULL SPEED." Shaman was currently yelling as they were pushing their mounts to their highest speed and the wind made it hard for them to speak.

"SORRY, BUT I'M SURE YOU WANT TO GET THERE AS FAST AS YOU CAN SO JUST HOLD ON FOR A BIT LONGER." Kiruya wasn't wrong but everyone struggled to hold on, which made the trip far less enjoyable.

Clara had it the easiest as Wolfy was able to hide in Clara's shadow allowing her to focus on herself. Shaman on the other hand had Elysia holding onto her waist for dear life, which only made it harder for her.

*

Finally, after a few hours, Kiruya slowed down as they had reached the edge of a forest. The trees were massive, towering over the group like skyscrapers. Their width was bigger than any tree Shaman had seen in her own world, reminding her she was in a fantasy world.

'Damn, I would have thought Elfhiem would be the one with the big trees, not the fox realm which is owned by a she-wolf.' Although Shaman had thrown her expectations away, she still could not help make comparisons to her world and the fantasy books she had read.

'Freja though does remind me of one of my favourite novels. It had a ruthless Empress who built her empire in a forest against and waged war against the humans.' Shaman thought back to her time before she got transported and could not help relate it to one of her all-time favourites.

"Okay now that we are here, make sure you follow me closely, otherwise you might attract the beasts. And before you ask, the safe path is this small because we do not want to interrupt the wildlife as it will serve to hide our presence." Kiruya was feeling more confident as they were getting close to her home, far and away from the human settlement that always kept her on her toes.

"What about the mounts?" Shaman was wondering what Kiruya was planning, since she hopped off her mount, suggesting they walk on foot from here.

"We are going to let them free in the forest, they are better here than being used by the humans." Kiruya quickly responded and started taking off the saddle.

Everyone found it reasonable so they began to do the same.

Kiruya smiled as it was nice to see that they understood how she felt and even though the mounts may be hunted and killed by other beasts it gives them a chance to be free rather than remain in captivity.

"It Shouldn't be too long of a walk, so let's get going before it's nighttime." Kiruya could see the sun getting close to the horizon so they needed to avoid wasting any more time before it gets too dark.

Everyone nodded and they all followed Kiruya's lead hoping they would not be killed.

*

Shaman and Elysia were holding hands with Clara and Wolfy behind. Kiruya was at the front, weaving through the trees and bushes. They had been walking for over an hour without saying a word as they were afraid making too much noise would attract attention.

It had also become darker as the sun was setting and the thick trees did not allow for much light. Their pace had been slowed because of this, but thankfully Kiruya had pointed to a cave that was dug in the ground, looking more like a slide.

"We jump down here and we should be safe." Kiruya whispered and everyone nodded. Shaman however was still worried, as Kiruya said "should be safe", meaning that there might be something down there. However, Kiruya had jumped in first without any hesitation and seeing how she went in so confidently, it had to be somewhat safe for them to go as well.

"Well here goes nothing." Shaman jumped into the hole followed by everyone else.

They all started to slide down the cave hole till they saw a light at the bottom and a red pool. Shaman was confused by what she saw, wondering if it was a pool of Kiruya's blood, but was unable to react in time to stop herself and fell straight into the pool.

An instant later, Shaman found herself suspended in the air at what appeared to be some sort of extravagant hall. After a moment, the suspension ended, dropping her to the ground and landing her on her back. Shaman turned over in pain, holding her back and grumbled over how marble wasn't the softest place to land.

Soon Elysia, Clara and Wolfy appeared in the air and landed next to Shaman, all getting the same treatment.

"Well, if it isn't my cute little princess and her friends." A woman's voice echoed in the mansion's hall grabbing everyone's attention.

132 She isn't yours!

Shaman looked down the hall where the voice came from and her eyes landed on a blonde she-wolf on a throne. The she-wolf wore the clothes of an emperor made from expensive black cloth and embroidered with gold. Her grey eyes gave her this dead and intimidating look as if she had no interest in the scene before her.

The hall was rather impressive but not too big, looking more like a mansion than an actual palace. 2 flights of stairs were on either side of the hall with a small balcony just above the throne. There was also a red carpet that went from the door behind Shaman to the Throne indicating this hall might be the manor's front reception room.

Around the throne were women of varying races all dressed in rather provocative clothes. The women consisted of a brown-furred cat girl, a red lizard girl, a white-furred wolf girl, a black-furred dog girl and a snake girl, each of them sitting to the sides of the blonde woman.

Kiruya could also be seen standing by the throne but was not as close as the other women were.

Shaman instantly knew who this was and only 2 words had come out of her mouth upon seeing her.

"Ah shit." Shaman got flashbacks to how Freja treated her when she was younger and was scared that Elysia was going to do something stupid.

"Is that all you have to say to your dearest Freja?" Freja leaned forward smirking, placing her head in her hand. Everyone except Shaman was too afraid to say anything as Freja had an intimidating presence that made it seem like one wrong word would court death.

"No, but I don't know if getting dropped from the roof deserves a proper hello." Shaman got up from the ground standing on the red carpet looking rather annoyed. She knew that Freja would not harm them so Shaman was more willing to talk back.

"Oh don't be so dramatic. You should know I don't like people that don't pay me respect." Freja suddenly raised her other hand and the red carpet Shaman was standing on turned into blood. The blood then wrapped itself around Shaman pulling her towards the throne in front of Freja.

.....

Shaman's confidence was slowly being crushed as she stared into the dead eyes of Freja and was scared of what she was going to do.

"Ara~ you have not grown much since the last time I saw you." Freja put her hand under Shaman's chin. Shaman's missing confidence was replaced with defiance from having her height called out to her.

"Not my fault, just you wait, I will be taller again soon." Shaman pouted and tried turning her head away to get out of Freja's grasp.

However, as Freja was playing with Shaman, fire arrows came flying toward them.

Freja did not move a muscle, yet suddenly the flames of the arrows turned black and stopped in mid-air. The arrows then turned around and shot back at Elysia, who was the one to shoot the arrows to begin with.

The black flamed arrows were too fast for Elysia to dodge, but it was not directly aimed at her but the ground right in front of her. Elysia fell back with cold sweat running down her face as she thought she was going to die.

"Looks like we have a feisty one, reminds me of that hot-headed Himeko." Freja had let go of Shaman and released her from the blood. The blood surprisingly did not stain Shaman's clothes which she was thankful for.

Freja got up from her throne, Showing her height was around 5'7, making her taller than Shaman and slightly shorter than Elysia. Freja then began to approach Elysia who started to back away out of fear.

Shaman could do nothing but facepalm as this was the exact scenario she did not want to have. The women around the throne were the opposite and were giggling to themselves as they watched the scenario play out in front of them.

Clara and Wolfy had gotten up and watched Freja slowly approach Elysia, worried about what Freja might do.

Elysia tried crawling faster but a blood wall appeared behind her and when her back touched it she felt herself get stuck to it, preventing her from moving.

Freja leaned down, getting her face really close to Elysia's and also grabbing her chin.

"Now what made you attack the Empress?" Freja stared intently at Elysia awaiting an answer.

"I.. T-that is my g-girlfriend you were touching." Elysia struggled to get the words out as the pressure she was feeling from Freja made it hard to speak.

"Oh? Girlfriend you say, what a shame and here I thought I was going to be able to keep you." Freja smirked and gave Elysia a quick kiss on the forehead before using a bolt of black lightning to go back to her throne.

Elysia's fear had turned into anger thrashing around as the kiss was going too far and now all she wanted to do was kill Freja.

"Quite the handful of a girlfriend you have there Shaman, are you sure you're okay?" Freja looked at Shaman who had the look on her implying this wasn't the first time this has happened.

"It's a work in progress." Shaman shook her head to hopefully tell Freja that she was indeed having a hard time.

"Well let me know if you need some help, I have always treated your family as my own." Freja winked telling Shaman that Freja got the message.

Elysia continued thrashing around, unable to break the blood wall even with her fire. However, at least she was slowly starting to calm down after letting out some of her frustrations.

"So is that demon girl over there also your girlfriend? Because seeing how the fox girl is reacting I doubt it." Freja was rather curious about the demon girl and figured she might be a runaway.

"She is not my girlfriend and her name is Clara. Also, the wolf next to Clara is Wolfy and the fox girlfriend that you have just angered is Elysia." Shaman introduced each of her party members.

"Hmm, so I can keep the demon girl?" Freja looked intently at Clara causing her to blush and look away.

"No! You are not keeping anyone." Shaman knew exactly what Freja's intentions were and she was not going to let her party members be taken away.

"Hahaha, I'm only kidding, how else are you meant to build up your own harem if I take them all." Freja leaned back on her throne with a smile and waved at a maid which was her sign for some wine.

"I don't want a harem, I only want one person!" Shaman wanted to hit Freja over the head but she knew exactly how that would turn out.

"Then why won't you let me have Clara?" Freja had backed Shaman in a corner making it hard for her to refute Freja.

"Tch, If I let you have her, Clara will probably never be seen again plus she has more important things to take care of than be your plaything." Shaman refused to back down but she was running out of things to say back.

"We will see about that." Freja was just about to get up again but then the maid returned with wine saving Clara from any torment.

'Thank you maid whoever you are.' Shaman was relieved as she did not want Clara to go through the same teasing Shaman went through.

"Better hold her close tonight, you're lucky I won't do anything for now." Freja took a sip of her wine and Clara who was listening was now completely red as she imagined sleeping in the same bed with Shaman but also wondered what Freja planned to do.

"FREJAAAA!!!!" Shaman disregarded it would be pointless and she went to bonk Freja anyway.

Freja covered her hand in a black flame and grabbed a hold of the ice club that Shaman created on her hand and melted the ice. Shaman retracted her arm in defeat, not bothering to try again.

"Hmph" Shaman crossed her arms and turned her head looking at Elysia who seemed to have calmed down.

"How cute, I would love to talk to you more but that will have to wait till tomorrow, so go rest up in a spare room upstairs." Freja had also released Elysia who by then had given up on breaking free. After watching the back and forth, Elysia came to think Freja was more of a family member of Shaman than a potential threat.

"Kiruya, take them to their rooms then come meet me in mine, I have a reward to give you." Freja ordered Kiruya and she started to blush as she knew exactly what Freja was going to do to her.

"Also one more thing, if you hear any noises, I am not sorry fufu~." Freja clicked her fingers and a pool of blood appeared under her and the harem members, teleporting them somewhere else.

"This bitch." Shaman rolled her eyes as she now wondered if it was going to be a sleepless night.

"Aha, sorry about her but not much we can do." Kiruya was still blushing, but she still held it together.

"I know but damn did she have to tease us like that." Shaman felt like she was always on an uphill battle with Freja regarding how she treats Shaman and her friends.

"Anyway let me take you to your rooms, Freja has a lot of things to discuss with you regarding your family." Kiruya let out a little more information which had caused Shaman to get nervous as the part of her soul belonging to this world's Shaman trembled.

Shaman nodded and she quickly went to Elysia to help her up and make sure she was okay.

Elysia seemed calm and was able to stand despite feeling paralysed when Freja was in front of her.

"If you are able to control yourself next time, remember I will reward you." Shaman was on her toes while whispering into Elysia's ear causing her to blush, but also giggle at Shaman because of how she was struggling to reach her ear.

Shaman stared blankly at Elysia for a moment before turning away without saying a word, walking back to Kiruya.

"Oi, I didn't mean to laugh." Elysia followed Shaman and Kiruya who began to walk up the stairs while shaking her head. Clara and Wolfy were right behind Kiruya, with Shaman catching up and Elysia chasing her.

They all followed Kiruya to their new rooms which will be their new base of operations for however long they needed.

133 Questionable noises

Kiruya led the group to their rooms with Shaman and Elysia sharing a room together. Clara got her own room as well as Wolfy, although he opted to sleep in either Clara's or Shaman's room since he was rather uncomfortable being alone.

"Don't forget Freja will be waiting in the throne room tomorrow and if you have any questions you can ask any of the maids. Now with all that said I have some b-business to attend to." Kiruya started to blush, so she quickly bowed and speeded off down the hall to Freja's room.

Everyone was a little embarrassed to say anything as they knew what was going to happen and began to wonder if they were going to hear anything.

"Anyway, do you want to hang out in our room for a bit Clara or did you want to settle in yours?" Shaman however instantly regretted saying that as Elysia's aura completely changed.

"Maybe another time, I just want to sleep, it has been a while since we have had a proper place to stay." Clara could see Elysia's change and opted for the second option.

"Aha, fair enough, see you tomorrow." Shaman let out an awkward laugh and Elysia went back to her usual self.

"Clara, if you're going to sleep, is it alright I stay in your room, I'd rather not hear mother go at it while I'm trying to sleep." Wolfy, wanting to escape the noises and have a peaceful night's sleep, hoped Clara would allow him to stay in her room.

"That's fine, see you two tomorrow." Clara allowed Wolfy to stay and she quickly waved to Shaman before entering her room with Wolfy.

Shaman blushed a little at Wolfy's comment and felt a bit awkward since he will be getting a human form soon, making it hard to see him as a familiar anymore.

.....

"Heh well, should we take advantage of the time we have alone?" Elysia leaned into Shaman's ear showing clear intentions of wanting some "endurance training."

Shaman thought about it for a moment, wanting to hold off on doing anything so she could use it as an incentive, but her urges took over. Without saying a word Shaman grabbed Elysia's hand and rushed into their room.

Because of the height difference between Shaman and Elysia, it felt awkward for Shaman to take the lead so she let Elysia have her way.

Once they were in their room Elysia pushed Shaman onto the bed restraining her arms and leaned in for a kiss. They shared a deep passionate kiss making all the thoughts Shaman had about stopping disappear, caving into her desires fully.

Elysia let go of Shaman allowing them to get undressed, but as soon as they started to undress a voice could be heard.

"Frejaaannnw~!!!!" A loud moan of the empress' name echoed in their room instantly killing the mood between Elysia and Shaman.

Shaman and Elysia stared at each other waiting for the next moan, but nothing came, so they tried to continue. Yet as soon as their lips were about to connect, another moan could be heard.

"Okay, this isn't going to work." Elysia let herself fall beside Shaman.

"It isn't the most motivating when you can hear a certain cheetah girl that seemed so innocent moan." Shaman was able to tell that it was Kiruya and even if she couldn't tell by the voice it was quite obvious.

"I swear when I get the chance I will pay back Freja for all the torment she has given us." Elysia clenched her fist in the air as she was still rather annoyed with Freja for touching Shaman.

"Hey, no need to be so angry, just be grateful we have a nice place to stay." Shaman took a look around the room as she was too distracted before and she was rather impressed.

The room had the same theme as the hall but it was rather cozy having a small fireplace at the opposite end of the room with a black couch in front of it. A massive window that took up a large portion of the wall was next to the bed with a windowsill seat. It had long become dark and they could no longer see the outside. The bed was black and gold contrasting with the white walls of the room.

A door which was most likely the bathroom was in the corner of the room right by a small kitchen. The small kitchen allowed them to make their own meals if they wanted to. Otherwise, they had access to a crystal with the text "call maid", which suggested they could call a maid to bring them food.

"I guess you are right, we can try again tomorrow night? Let's just hope they don't continue for much longer." Elysia crawled into bed along with Shaman.

"We will see. Hopefully, this doesn't go all night long, as initially, I didn't think it would be a real problem, but I guess that was my first mistake." Shaman in the end thought the rooms would be soundproof enough to insulate any loud noises, but her fears of a sleepless night were becoming a reality.

"Well let's try to get some sleep." Just as Elysia spoke another moan could be heard and all they could do was sigh and cuddle each other hoping to sleep. However, the moans of Kiruya echoed throughout the mansion without any hint of stopping.

*

"It's nice how you can turn off and on the soundproof magic circles. I guess it's for when you want to sleep because I can only imagine the maids having a hard time sleeping." Clara had just heard Kiruya and found by the entrance a crystal in the wall that enabled the soundproofing and it even had a timer so it would disable in the morning.

"Wish I had this when we were at the human city apartments." Wolfy felt like he was living in a dream as having a way to soundproof the room would have been a blessing for him.

"Well at least with this we won't hear Freja or Shaman so let's enjoy this sleep while we can." Clara climbed into bed while Wolfy decided to take refuge on the couch and they were able to get a peaceful night's sleep.

*

The next morning came with the morning sun shining between the trees of the forest through the window. The light was not enough to wake anybody but Elysia and Shaman were already awake.

The moaning had only stopped by sunrise and although they were able to sleep throughout the night they had been woken up repeatedly.

Shaman sat up feeling like she hadn't slept and looked out the window.

"Morning already? Hopefully, I can get some decent sleep." Shaman fell back and snuggled back into Elysia who had already gone back to sleep in order to try to salvage some of the hours they lost.

Sadly Shaman was unable to get any more sleep as a knock on the door was heard just as she was about to close her eyes.

"Shaman, Elysia, Freja wants you to come to the throne room to talk so please be out there in the next 30 minutes. I also have some new clothes for you so let me know if they don't fit." An unfamiliar voice spoke, who they assumed to be a maid was coming from the door requesting their attendance.

"Okay, we will be out soon." Shaman responded and knowing that Freja would take advantage of them if they went back to sleep, she quickly got up.

'Let's avoid getting toyed with first thing in the morning.' Shaman got up and opened the door to get the clothes. She grabbed them and the maid quickly left, however, Shaman noticed something by the door.

A crystal on the wall with the label underneath saying "soundproof."

A wave of anger and frustration went through her, then sadness and disappointment followed up by hollowness. Shaman felt empty and she fell to her knees realizing that everything could have been avoided by a single switch.

"An important discovery, but at what cost." Shaman wanted to bash her head against the wall but a little part of her was glad.

'At least I can still use sex as a reward for Elysia.' Shaman tried thinking somewhat positively but also at the same time it was hard not to be annoyed.

'Although it could work, this is only a short term fix, I have to come up with a better way to get Elysia to not be crazy.' Shaman concluded that having an incentive would only last for so long and it really wouldn't fix all the issues.

'I might need to get an expert opinion on this and ask Freja but honestly, her ways may not be as nice as I would like them to be.' Shaman considered asking Freja for help seeing as she knows her way around the woman but was also afraid that it may be advice that would harm Elysia.

'Just ask her, no need to dwell on it, but that will have to come later, I need to get Elysia up, the last thing I want is Freja barging into our room.' Shaman got up and walked to the bed. Just as she was about to wake up Elysia, the door was suddenly kicked in.

"Sorry I couldn't wait, I have no time to wait for you to have your morning session, you can do it after we talk." Freja broke into their room unannounced, not caring what Shaman or Elysia were doing. Freja wore a loosely buttoned-up white shirt with a pair of black pants and black boots, a lot more casual than her emperor clothes.

Shaman could only stare in annoyance and disbelief as she watched Freja walk in and sit down on the couch.

"Well come on I don't have all day, come sit down, I have some important news to tell you."

134 Imprisoned

"You could have at least let us change into our new clothes." Shaman did not appreciate the intrusion and hoped Freja would leave.

"By all means, change clothes, just know I will be watching." Freja smiled and Shaman had nothing to say back. All Shaman could do was clench her fist in frustration and let out a sigh of defeat.

"Do you want me to wake up Elysia? She seems to be out cold though." Shaman looked at Elysia who was fast asleep and surprisingly wasn't woken up by Freja's abrupt entry despite being kept up all night by Kiruya.

"Leave her be, you can catch her up later." Freja sounded like she was in a hurry so Shaman took a seat and waited for Freja to explain.

"So, how much do you know about your parent's situation?" Freja got straight to the point and Shaman instantly became anxious, worried about what she was going to find out.

"All I've learned from Himeko is that they are trapped in the palace surrounded by dark magic and there has been no way to weaken or get inside it. The last thing I remember was my mother sending me through a teleporter and she looked very distressed about something." Shaman explained everything she knew and even added one of the first memories she obtained after arriving in this world.

"So Himeko pretty much explained most of it, looks like she isn't just a mind-controlling freak after all." Freja murmured this sentence but it did not escape Shaman's ears which had got her curious.

"So Himeko does use mind control? I haven't been able to really figure out what it was since she had been captured, possibly by the pope." Shaman also realised that Freja would know more about Himeko and who the pope might be.

"Captured by the pope? I will address the mind-control issue in a moment, but tell me, did this guy have red crystal eyes and blonde hair?" Freja's face turned serious and when she gave that description, Shaman instantly got goosebumps.

.....

All she could do is nod as the flashbacks of the pope's red eyes staring straight at her terrified her.

"His name is Klaus and judging from the look on your face you have met him." Freja looked to the side as if reading something before looking at Shaman.

"When we were exiting the dungeon, he was after Clara but thankfully thanks to Wolfy's shadow skills we were able to hide our presence and Klaus mistook us as ambient mana from the dungeon." Shaman could not be any more thankful to Wolfy because without his skill they would have been killed or worse, become a slave. Freja raised an eyebrow at the mention of the use of shadow skills but she did not question it.

"You are safe here so don't worry about any unwanted intruders in your room." Freja smirked and Shaman stared at Freja with an unimpressed look as she was doing exactly that.

"Anyway, let me explain the mind control. The Ado family has been in possession of a relic for as long as the history books go and it is this relic that caused the mind control. Nowadays we call it a cursed object and by linking your soul with the item it gives you that ability. As for Himeko, it is the Eden of control that gave her the ability to manipulate the mind and is one of the most dangerous relics we know of."

"There is an unknown amount of these relics and the Ado family are the only ones known to find one. However, there have been rumours and information floating around that other families around the continent have got their hands on one."

"Now I am not interested in them but seeing as Klaus has captured Himeko, it must mean he got the Eden of control which makes this a serious problem." Freja got straight to explaining the cursed object and how this may be a much bigger problem not just for Freja but the whole continent.

"Knowing Himeko she probably used her rebirth and is currently in the demon lands recovering, but now that Klaus has the relic Himeko may not have been able to escape yet." Freja spoke to herself and Shaman was surprised to hear that Himeko had a potential way to escape.

"The last time we saw Himeko was when we encountered the pope and she had a collar like she was being kept as a pet." Shaman quickly jumped in as she was still unsure if Himeko would have been able to escape.

"Really? Himeko as a pet? Pffft that woman has too much of a will to be controlled, she will probably be able to break free when she is alone and use her family skill [phoenix rebirth]." Freja broke out in laughter as imagining Himeko a tier 10 like herself sounded impossible.

"Sorry, sorry, it was just too funny to imagine, but don't worry right now she could be a tiny bird in a cave recovering. It may be years till she regains a body, but if you get the chance, find the cave to see if she escaped." Freja could see it was taking a moment for Shaman to process so she took out a glass of wine from her space ring.

"Wait so Himeko could be fine all along and the whole mind control thing, she tried using it on us, why should we trust her?" Shaman was confused as it seemed like Himeko wasn't all that bad but she found it hard to associate the word good with mind control.

"This is something she can't control, it's a passive effect, and she has to regularly monitor the relic just to make sure it is not negatively affecting you. So I understand if you don't trust Himeko, but know she had your best interests in mind." Freja was a bit annoyed at Himeko for not explaining the mind control to Shaman but not much can be done now.

"But what about Clara? Himeko used her powers on her and it was only just recently she was able to gain back her memories that Himeko locked away." Shaman struggled to understand Himeko and she wanted to trust Freja's words, but it was hard to see Himeko in a positive light.

"So there is something more special about her. Sadly I do not know why Himeko had Clara but it probably involves why Himeko has a cave in the demon lands where she can recover without being disturbed. You'll have to go ask her yourself as I am not privy to that information." Freja was starting to understand Shaman's point of view and her interest in Clara has spiked.

"I- I need time to think, let's move on to my parents." Shaman needed to talk to Clara and Elysia as this information drastically changed her point of view.

"Yes, we got a little sidetracked. Although I do not have much more information than what Himeko told you, I do have some good news." Freja had a slight smile and she took a sip of wine before talking again.

"They are alive and well, but they seem to be trapped in some form of time magic, freezing their bodies, which I can only assume is the work of the dark magic barrier. Time magic isn't an affinity a person can just have, so a sacrifice must have been made to create such an effect." Freja shared her findings and Shaman felt a wash of relief from within her soul.

"Don't get your hopes up yet, but for now we can assume they are alive and whoever did this, which was most likely Klaus, doesn't want your parents in the picture for whatever he plans to do." Freja brought the situation back to reality as although they were alive there are still too many unknowns.

"I understand, but still Is there anything I can do?" Shaman felt a bit useless as she lacked the power to be at the forefront.

"Well this was also the other reason why I am here, I want to hire you and your friends to go out on missions for me." Freja could see the excitement on Shaman's face but also dread.

'Wait but if I'm hired, I am going to go through more of Freja's teasing. Still, this place is too nice to leave, AHHHHHH' Shaman was agonizing over it in her head as this was a good opportunity, but since it was Freja, Shaman was unsure if it was a good idea for her sanity.

'I shall have to accept my suffering just so I can live in comfort.' Shaman internally cried as she could only imagine the torture of what was to come.

"F-fine, but this still doesn't mean you get to touch anyone from my group." Shaman wanted to specify that she isn't allowed to go near her members.

"Excellent, I make no promises so enjoy it while it lasts. I will come back later as there are still a few things to talk about, especially Elysia's family and Wolfy. Also, make sure you are not doing anything too spicy, otherwise, I might join you." Freja winked at Shaman before quickly disappearing in a flash of lightning.

"Oh, you BITCH!" Shaman already regretted being hired by Freja but there was no turning back now.

135 Barrier

Although Shaman did not seem to enjoy the teasing, it was rather the opposite as it was a nice break away from the stressful situations she has constantly been through.

'It's hard to tell whether Freja is joking or not, so I better not let my guard down just to be safe.' Although Shaman considered it joking, just from last night's vocal performance, Shaman did not put it past Freja to follow up.

'I should warn Clara, but right now the bed is calling and seeing as we have a bit of free time.' Shaman wanted to relay the information to everyone, but her bed looked too good to turn down.

'I'm going to sleep.' Shaman placed the new clothes on the couch and crawled back into bed into Elysia's embrace.

***

In a room that looked like a study that had a massive window behind a desk appeared Freja standing in front of the window. Books lined the walls head to toe with varying topics and on the desk could be seen some books alongside experimental technology that resembled parts of an engine.

"Pffhaha, thank you cutie~." Although Shaman was unable to hear Freja she thanked her for calling her a bitch.

'Now that Shaman is safe, the only thing that remains is to free her parents. I should pay a visit to the research team at the barrier.' Freja opened a blood portal and a system menu came up.

[Choose your location]

.....

Shiroi palace

Barrier lab

Kiruya's bedroom

Marsh's bedroom

…

Different locations appeared on the menu and Freja clicked onto the barrier lab, activating the portal. The blood began to swirl and Freja walked into the blood portal, shortly after she walked in it closed without leaving a trace.

*

In an underground lab, many hawk beastmen were examining a black smokey barrier. The barrier that held Shaman's parents had also reached underground which made it easier to study it without attracting attention. The room did not have much else aside from ancient books and notes scattered across the many workspaces.

The hawks had great vision and an innate ability to be able to see things almost as if through a microscope. With this ability, they can examine the barrier and read parts of the magic circle maintaining it through the flow of mana. Currently, what occupied most of their time was decoding the runes and learning how to arrange them in order to recreate the circle.

A red magic circle lit up at the end of the room and a blood portal opened up. All the hawk scientists quickly lined up before Freja walked through.

Freja stepped through the portal. She appeared before them wearing her usual black and gold emperor clothes. Everyone was intimidated by Freja but they also adored her. Although she had the presence of a harsh ruler she was always fair and as long as you went by the rules you would be treated with respect.

Everyone in the forest knew not to get in the way of Freja as those who have tried to oppose or fight her have not been seen since.

In contrast to the harsh personality she projected on the outside, Freja was quite the wild one on the inside of which the general public was mostly unaware. Although, she was a common subject in many outrageous rumours spreading among the empire's women.

The rumours claimed among other things that many women of the empire have been taken by the empress, but the majority of the populace found it unbelievable. Although she was known to have many women by her side no one thought she would dare touch another person's woman.

Freja in reality did not care for what people thought of her and she did what she wanted without being ashamed or worried about her people's opinions. However, when it came to ruling and getting work done she was deadly serious. Those who have worked with her know that everything must be done to perfection and she won't accept anything that is below her standard.

Each of the hawk scientists hired for their great eyesight was nervous as they were given a very important task of decoding the dark magic that surrounded the palace. They had made progress but it was slow and if things didn't speed up it may be too late by the time they finish.

Freja walked up to the line and the sound of her boots echoed throughout the room. Everyone could feel the pressure and they hoped the work they had done was good enough for the empress.

Freja reached the end of the line where one female hawk was holding a clipboard with all their new findings. Freja grabbed the board while slowly caressing the hawk's hand causing her to blush and look away.

Freja smirked and walked back to the middle of the line while reading their discoverings.

"So far we know it's a time barrier and that only certain types of people are allowed to enter the barrier without being affected by the time-stopping effect."

"And the only new discovery we have made in the last month was a sentence that indicates a condition for activation? This pace is far too slow, you guys need to put your foot on the accelerator otherwise, the next thing your eyes will only be seeing is pitch black!" Freja did not yell but everyone could tell she was angry.

Freja did not show it but she was enjoying seeing the fear on their faces and had only sounded angry so she could see their reactions. She stood by her statement that things were slow but she knew they were working their hardest so she couldn't blame them for the slow progress.

*Sigh* "I will try to see if I can hire more people, but keep working, I don't want to see any of you resting till you fall over from exhaustion." Freja walked back through the blood portal tossing the clipboard back to the female hawk.

Some of the hawk scientists fell to the floor as they were holding their breath the entire time. The pressure of just being around the empress was exhausting. Although they were threatened it had motivated them to work harder as all they wanted to do was meet the empress' expectations.

***

"Hehe~ now that Shaman is asleep and no noise to stop us, surely I can help myself." Elysia had woken up and saw that Shaman was fast asleep in Elysia's arms.

Elysia got Shaman on her back and went under the sheets so she could have her afternoon meal. But once again Elysia was interrupted as someone knocked on the door.

"Hey, it's Clara, did you guys want to look around seeing as we have some downtime." Clara was at the door and Elyisa felt like exploding, even though she had forgotten the fight she still couldn't bring herself to like Clara.

Shaman had woken up from Clara's voice and sat up letting out a yawn.

"Sorry, what was that? I just woke up." Shaman was still a little dazed and hadn't realised where Elysia was

"Did you want to hang o-"

"AHH~" Shaman yelped, cutting off Clara as she felt something lick the inside of her thigh.

Shaman quickly lifted up the sheets to see Elysia between her legs.

"Elysia! What the fuck are you doing!" Shaman was not expecting Elysia to be so feisty in the morning, especially with someone at their door.

Clara who heard the yelp started to blush as she could only imagine what Elysia was doing to Shaman.

"Hehe~ let me continue." Elysia was hoping she would drive Clara away but Shaman seemed to have other plans.

"Elysia, not right now I have something important to tell everyone. Freja came by this morning while you were asleep with information about Himeko and my parents." Shaman would have let Elysia continue if it was any other situation.

"Hmph." Elysia pouted and she retreated her assault for now.

"Sorry Clara, let us get changed first, then there is something you need to know about Himeko." Shaman hoped Clara hadn't run away, and the latter replied she would wait.

"Phew, come on Elysia we have some new clothes to try on." Shaman patted the pouting Elysia before leaning in.

"Tonight I promise, just hold on a bit longer." Shaman whispered into Elysia's ear before jumping out of bed to try on the new clothes.

Elysia's face went red and her mood instantly went back to normal.

'Hehe~' Elysia was feeling happy and she got out of bed to change.

*

Shaman had gotten changed, although it was a battle and a half as Elysia still tried to pounce when Shaman was half-naked but was dodged. Shaman eventually had enough and tossed Elysia in the bathroom to change in peace.

Shaman had gotten into a rather similar casual outfit with a pair of black shorts that were embroidered with gold on the sides. A pair of black thigh-high socks were given to Shaman leaving a small bit of her thigh exposed. Shaman's last piece of clothing was a baggy long-sleeved white top that had a black collar. Although the sleeves were not long enough to cover her hands, She found the body of the shirt goes way past her hips.

'For a different world they have similar clothes to mine, don't tell me Freja is also another person that has been transported here.' Shaman knew there were others but had no way to tell. The influence of her world is everywhere making it hard to tell how much of it originated from her world.

'I guess I could try to see if she has a system.' Shaman figured any person with a system must have been either transported from her homeworld or knew someone who was, just like Elysia and Clara who have been granted a system.

Elysia, who had been shoved into the bathroom so Shaman could change, jumped out in her new clothes.

She was given a black skirt which may have been considered too short as it was dangerously close to showing off her underwear. However, it was countered by the pair of black stockings making the skirt less dangerous. Elysia was given a blood-red shirt that matched her tipped hair and eyes. Elysia upon jumping out did a twirl showing off her outfit and giving Shaman a good view.

"Looking amazing as always. Clara! You can come in now." Shaman complimented Elysia and called for Clara who was sitting just outside the door with Wolfy.

'I wonder how Clara is going to react.' This was Shaman's burning question as she knew Clara was rather conflicted.

'Let's hope for the best.' Shaman hoped Clara would lean towards trusting Himeko as if what Freja said was true, Himeko was never there to harm them and she might have had a good reason to kill Clara's parents.