121-130

121 What happened

Shaman expected Clara to come to talk to her, so she was not surprised.

"Sure thing, but I'm so fucking hungry right now so do you mind me eating while I listen?" Shaman could feel herself starving and was desperate for food.

"Pffhahaha, it's okay, I don't mind at all." Clara found the rather small Shaman very cute, trying her best not to pat Shaman who was still adorably hugging her.

Shaman quickly released Clara from the hug and looked around for Elysia, who would usually prepare something for her. Seeing that Elysia was asleep next to her and that she didn't prepare any food, Shaman reached into her inventory and pulled out her favourite instant noodles. Shaman activated the magic circle on the bottom, cooking the noodles almost instantly. Wanting to try something new, she also added the small eggshell pieces to her noodles.

Clara looked at Shaman a bit weird for adding shells into her noodles but nonetheless, she ignored it.

"Alright, I'm ready." Shaman was ready to listen and sat patiently in front of Clara.

"I shall begin." Clara took a deep breath before starting her story. She still planned to withhold some details from Shaman till she knew she could 100% trust her but she did not plan to lie to her about anything.

"As you can see, I'm a demon which is no surprise but you're probably wondering why I am here in a place like this when I should be in the demon lands. Well, the story I told you back then about where I came from is mostly true but in an entirely different context. Me and my parents were on a small trip away from the demon capital. Although we were in a dangerous part of the demon lands, my parents were strong enough to protect me if anything happened."

"While on this trip a powerful demon beast appeared. This was not an uncommon occurrence, and normally my parents would have handled it without much difficulty, however, they ran into an unexpected development. While fighting the beast a stranger approached and came to their aid. It was Himeko, who for some reason made her way to the demon lands, even though that should not have been possible at the time."

.....

"My parents were weak when compared to Himeko, and were shocked when she managed to kill the demon beast with a single blow. Having always been curious about the outside world, they saw it as an opportunity and tried to approach her. Mind you my memory of these events is quite vague. I was only in my early teenage years, and what followed all seemed to happen so quickly…" At this point, Clara started getting a bit emotional and Shaman who had been happily eating her noodles while listening had stopped to hear the next part.

"My parents went out to meet with Himeko, just to talk. I was left behind and could only watch from a distance. It looked like negotiations went well, they shook hands and at one point my father even went down on his knees to beg for something. I couldn't hear any of what was said, but it was clear they wanted something from Himeko." Clara's voice started to tremble a little.

"My parents came back waving goodbye to Himeko and lead me back inside the little cabin we were staying at to have a meal. While we were eating, Himeko was not talked about at all which was rather awkward, but after finishing my meal I felt myself getting dizzy and I could feel the air getting hot. My parents stared at me with a smile, until suddenly the house was engulfed by flames. The same flames Himeko used just a few minutes prior. T-the l-last I saw of m-my p-parents w-was of them b-burning….. A-a-alive. S-somehow I'd been transported outside the house, appearing in H-himeko's arms. I searched for the cabin, only to f-find it being ravaged by a pheonix. L-last thing I r-remember was seeing the s-silhouettes of my d-dying p-parents…. Before I was knocked out." Clara began to cry as the scene of her parents played on repeat in her mind.

Shaman had put down her noodles and Shell combo and hugged Clara, although a little awkward as she was now shorter but still brought her some relief.

"I have no idea what my parents talked about but I just know Himeko killed my parents and I don't know if I should just hate her or try to find out why." Clara seemed to finally break into a full-on cry and hugged Shaman back tightly.

'Clara still seemed to withhold some information, especially about her parents. It seems like she isn't ready to explain everything just yet.' Shaman picked up on how vaguely she described her parents and it seemed like Clara was not from just any random demon family.

*

Shaman let Clara cry it out and sadly the rest of her noodles got soggy becoming unpleasant to eat.

In the end, Clara broke away from the hug, wiping her eyes and nose.

'I can't believe I cried, I guess saying it out loud has a different effect than just remembering it.' Clara had not planned to cry but her emotions got the best of her.

"Sorry for that ugly display, there is also something else I wanted to talk about." Clara felt a little embarrassed and could not help but apologize.

"It's okay Clara, my ears will always be available so you can keep going." Shaman gave a genuine smile which caused Clara to feel reassured and warmed her heart.

"Thank you, but it looks like someone is finally waking up." Clara's face went a little cold seeing Elysia moving around and beginning to wake up.

"Wash your face." Shaman then sprayed some water with her finger on Clara's face.

Clara flinched back from the unexpected splash of water and pouted a little as it was uncalled for.

Shaman noticed Clara's cold glare and decided to break the tension by spraying some on Elysia as well, giving them both equal watery treatment.

'Seems like Clara has a distrust for Elysia, she also seemed like she wanted to talk about something else and I can only imagine it's about Elysia's attitude. Urrggg what a headache.' Shaman realised that Clara wanted to ask something about Elysia as the conversation had completely died when she woke up.

"Gosh, my head hurts, what the hell happened." Elysia sat up holding her head.

Clara felt relieved as Elysia did not wake up in a rage and had seemingly forgotten what happened when she went into a crazed state.

"Morning sweetie~ or evening, do we even know the time in this place?" Shaman looked around for any indicators but there was nothing.

"Pffhaha, good morning, evening or afternoon, whatever time it is." Elysia giggled and responded covering all phases of the day.

"Well it doesn't really matter anyway, all I know is that you should go evolve." Shaman figured that making Elysia evolve it would allow her and Clara to talk more.

"Oh yeah you're right, I guess I will do that since we have nothing better to do." Elysia blindly followed Shaman's suggestion and pressed yes to evolve.

"Goodnight." Elysia's voice trailed off as she laid back down and the egg started to form around her.

"Well, that was quick." Shaman didn't expect Elysia to instantly start evolving but now all she could think of is how hungry Elysia will be when she wakes up.

"What did Elysia press? She just pointed at the air and suddenly became like that." Clara was confused by Elysia's gesture.

'Ah shit.' Shaman expected Clara to find out sooner or later but she was still unsure how she would tell Clara.

'Maybe I can play it off.' Shaman figured she could act a little dumb or make up a reason for why Elysia would make a gesture.

"You can't fool me, you know exactly why she does it." Before Shaman could answer, Clara already guessed that Shaman knew and was thinking of a way to cover it up.

"Aha, well it would take a very long time to explain and it isn't something that I would say is normal in this world." Shaman was unsure how she would explain it as Clara would not understand any of the gaming terms she would use to explain it.

'What a situation I found myself in, at least with Elysia I was able to show her.' Shaman then realised something.

'Why don't I give Clara a system, am I still able to do that Rea?' Shaman had never seen the grant system in her status or inventory so she assumed it was a 1-time use.

[You still have it and lucky for you Clara is currently eligible for a system]

'So that means she is willing to follow me.' Seeing that Rea was giving the okay, it seemed Clara trusted Shaman enough to join the group.

"So Clara, instead of trying to use words to explain what is going on, I am going to show you." Shaman then told Rea to send a system prompt of the grant system to Clara so she could read over what it would entail if she accepted.

'The terms and conditions are a bit harsh, almost like a slave, I wonder if I could change it if Clara doesn't agree.' Shaman thought back to how it was a contract that enslaves the person

'This sounds like a slave contract and why do I like the sound of it.' Clara's imagination ran a little wild causing her to blush.

Shaman saw this and she could not believe her eyes.

122 Clara's system

Shaman looked at Clara blushing and thought she was seeing things.

'What kind of stuff has she gone through to be into becoming someone's slave.' Shaman's imagination ran a little wild causing her to slap herself as she should not be thinking about Clara in such a state.

The slap had also made Clara realise that she was blushing and Shaman clearly saw it.

'Shit, what the hell is wrong with me, I have been enslaved since I was like 13, don't tell me something has awakened in me.' Clara felt rather ashamed but tried to ignore it as much as she could and continued to read.

[System]

[By agreeing to have the system, you must pledge loyalty to Shaman and must uphold loyalty at all times. If you are seen as an enemy or no longer trustworthy the system will be stripped away and all the power obtained from the system will be taken away, reverting the user to their state before they got the system. The user must also stay in contact with Shaman, otherwise it will be seen as an act of betrayal unless the user is gone for a sufficient reason]

[By getting a system you will be able to manually evolve, have a personal inventory and assign your stats. The system will also assist the user in creating new skills as well improve the person's overall power]

'This really is a lifelong commitment and if I choose to accept, I would really have no other choice but to follow Shaman for the rest of my life.' Clara started to slightly blush at the thought but quickly dismissed those thoughts.

'Why do I keep thinking about that, I'm starting to be like Elysia….' Clara took a moment to think about what she just said as a realization just occurred.

.....

'AHHHHHH, I'm becoming just as bad as Elysia, these feelings are just gratitude and appreciation for Shaman nothing more.' Clara scolded herself a little as she was becoming part of the very problem she was trying to fix.

'Okay enough about Shaman, I realise now that these feelings are not what they seem.' After thinking about how Elysia turned out, Clara was not fond of the thought of pursuing Shaman with her current feelings.

'Anyway I think I will accept this system as although it sounds rather dreadful, I don't ever see myself ever betraying Shaman and it seems like she has some control over the contract, so maybe changing the contact details might later be possible.' Clara considered asking for one small change as having to always be in contact sounded unreasonable and did not want to accidentally lose the system just because she was away.

"Hey ShaSha, are you able to change having to always be in contact to not be so strict, because of potential reasons I may be gone for a long extended period of time." Although it mentioned it would not be taken away if there was a sufficient reason, Clara did not trust it.

Shaman, who was still in a little daze because of her imagination, was brought back to her senses by Clara.

"Oh, yeah sure, not an issue." Shaman was still a little flustered and quickly asked Rea to make a change hoping that it was possible.

[Alright all done, I made the changes to accommodate Clara's requests since they were reasonable.] Rea gave the confirmation, surprising Shaman, who didn't expect she could change it so easily but was nonetheless thankful.

Clara saw the changes appear on the small floating screen and was more than happy to accept.

[If Shaman is aware that the user is going to be gone for an extended period of time all system rights will not be taken away unless Shaman deems the user untrustworthy]

Clara clicked the yes button underneath the small contract. Expecting to feel something, she braced herself, but surprisingly nothing happened. There was no pain and nothing seemed to have changed, leaving Clara confused.

"Uhhh, Shaman, is there meant to be something I should be feeling?"

"No, nothing should have changed physically, if you want to test the system try saying status." Shaman was finally calm and was glad to see that Clara accepted the system despite its rather unfair conditions.

"Status." Upon speaking the words a black screen with purple outlines and text appeared.

[Clara ????]

[Race: Human/demon]

[Age: 23]

[Level: 108]

[Tier 5]

Clara was able to see details about herself and was intrigued by her last name and level.

'It seems even though I know my last name the system doesn't recognize it.' Clara was unsure if there was a reason or it was protecting her privacy.

[Hey there Clara, it's me Rea the system helper, to answer your question it's because you are yet to discover it so until then it shall remain hidden.]

Clara looked around frantically as she was trying to figure out where the voice was coming from.

[I'm in your head dummy.]

"Wait what?" Clara was still confused and Shaman who was watching could not help but giggle at Clara's confusion.

[Hello, from inside your head, it's Rea your assistant] Rea was seemingly having fun toying with Clara but it came to an end.

'Wait you're in my head and you can hear my thoughts?'

[Yes]

'So the thing about my name means that what I know is not actually my real last name?'

[Yes]

'Can you tell me?'

[No]

'Damn it, well I have a few guesses as to why but there is no use in thinking about it till I return to the demon lands.' Clara wanted to see if she could get information but in the end, attempting to coerce this mysterious entity seemed futile.

"Done talking to Rea?" Shaman figured it was time they began to discuss whatever Clara had to say but Shaman already guessed it was going to be about Elysia.

"Oh yes, she was rather weird, didn't know you had someone always talking in your head." Clara rubbed her head as it was weird for her to hear voices other than her own.

"Well you get used to it, plus she doesn't really talk a whole lot." Shaman realised that even though Rea had a voice, she never really participated in conversation when it would have been fine to do so.

"I guess so, anyway I needed to talk to you about something concerning Elysia." Clara got straight to the point and even though Shaman was expecting it she could not help but feel a bit annoyed.

"I'm going to be blunt, Elysia is crazy and it's not looking good for her. While you were asleep I challenged your relationship by telling her how I saw it and she snapped." Clara did not want to hide the fact that she and Elysia fought.

"Wait, she attacked you?" Shaman was surprised as she did not expect Elysia to already be so far down the yandere path.

"Yes, I knocked her out but I'm afraid she will only get worse if things continue." Clara was feeling nervous as she was unsure how Shaman was going to act but she at least believed she won't be attacked.

"Fuck." Shaman could already feel the stress build up as it was something she feared if they ever got another female member. Since Elysia had not really shown her possessiveness lately, Shaman hadn't been giving it much thought.

Shaman let out a sigh as it seemed she's been neglecting the subject for too long, which was now sowing conflict in their group for no reason.

"You don't need to say anything more Clara, I'm well aware of Elysia's temperament. I should be able to handle it but it's going to take time." Shaman did not want Clara to get involved as she believed it will only make Elysia worse.

"But I want to help, are you sure you can handle it on your own?" Clara was happy to hear Shaman was understanding but she was also worried Shaman might not be able to handle it on her own.

"Yes I'm sure I can handle it, but I don't want you getting involved and seeing you get hurt." Shaman knew that if Clara was going to help she would most likely get attacked again.

"That's not the right thing to do, you can't bear it all by yourself and you don't need to worry about me, I can defend myself." Clara was starting to get annoyed with Shaman.

"You're the root of the problem, if you don't get any outside assistance Elysia may never get out of the hole she is in!" Clara did not want Shaman to go through it by herself since the situation was so complex that treading alone would be a death wish.

"I KNOW! But that's the exact reason why I don't want you to get involved, if you get involved it could ruin our friendship and I do not want that." Shaman was getting emotional and started to tear up.

"I…. fine, but if I see that you need any help, you can't stop me from helping." Clara noticed that Shaman was tearing up and decided to give up the conversation as continuing would only make it worse.

"Fine." Shaman turned her head to hide her teary face. She understood where Clara was coming from, but still wanted to keep Clara out of the mess which was Elysia.

123 Looming threat above

The tension was high between Clara and Shaman even though they had good intentions the trust between them still had not fully developed. Shaman also felt her relationship with Elysia was none of Clara's business. Doubly so considering that, with Clara being Shaman's only other female friend, she would surely earn Elysia's wrath for her interference.

Shaman did not want to imagine a scenario where Elysia lashes out at Clara, creating more conflict between them. Clara on the other hand wanted to help but at the same time understood why Shaman was not willing to let her help.

'Will Shaman be able to do anything on her own?' This question plagued Clara's mind as Shaman is the target of the obsession and as such would find it very hard to influence Elysia's mind.

Shaman let out a sigh as there was no point in staying upset or frustrated about the situation.

"Anyway, I will talk with her while we travel to the fox realm." Since they had a bit of travel ahead of them Shaman figured to use that time to have a proper chat with Elysia.

"The fox realm? Will I even be able to enter it seeing as they only let beastmen enter freely?" Clara never got permission from Himeko to leave the city, so of course she never even attempted to enter the Fox realm, and thus wasn't sure about its rules.

"Well you are not classed as a human anymore, I'm more worried about your position in demon society." Shaman was worried since demons seemed to be a rather rare race and from her knowledge are only allowed to stay in their territory.

"Oh, that shouldn't be an issue, I can change the colour of my horns, which is one of the main indicators of what kind of demon we are, but I don't know if other territories can tell the difference." Clara then changed the colour of her horns to purple to match her eyes.

"Now I should be seen as a low ranking noble in demon society." The new purple horns suited Clare and gave a more noble look to her.

.....

Shaman stared at the horns, becoming suspicious of Clara's identity again. This couldn't possibly be an innate skill, as if all demons could do it, how could their horn colour hold any social meaning.

"Hmmm? Did you want to touch them?" Clara could read on Shaman's face that she was suspicious of Clara, but Clara had no way to explain it without revealing her identity.

"Oh? May I?" Shaman understood Clara was trying to change the subject, but she definitely was not going to turn down touching a demon's horns.

"Sure." Clara leaned forward a little so that Shaman would be able to properly reach her horns.

Although Clara was being considerate, seeing her having to lean forward for Shaman was an unfortunate reminder of her shortcomings. Still, this did not deter her from touching the now purple horns on Clara's head.

Shaman reached out, lightly touching them, making sure she does not harm Clara.

'Oh wow, it's super smooth.' Shaman was fascinated by the horns. As someone who came from a humans only world, she still had the feeling of everything being unreal.

"It looks like you have to marry me now." Clara had a grin on her face waiting for Shaman's reaction.

Shaman took a moment to think about what Clara had just said before responding.

"Well, that was my plan anyway." Shaman moved her hand under Clara's chin, but upon realising what she was doing she quickly backed away.

'AHHHH, what the fuck am doing, what came over me?' Shaman was bright red and Clara was not faring any better as she had frozen on the spot.

'I- I…. what is this feeling?' Clara had not expected Shaman to react like that and it sent a new sensation through her body.

"I-I'm sorry about that, I have no idea what came over me." Shaman apologized as it was the only thing she could do.

"I-its okay, I- ummm kinda lik- no never mind let's just move on." Clara was too shy to admit anything even though her face said everything.

"I think so too." Shaman was of the same opinion and although knowing what Clara was about to say, she did not want to make it any more awkward.

*

Shaman and Clara split apart from each other to do their own thing while waiting for Elysia to wake up.

Shaman had gone and spent all of the attribute points she had accumulated.

[Attributes]

Attribute points: 1060 -> 0

Vitality: 400 -> 600

Agility: 500 -> 650

Intelligence: 560 -> 710

Strength: 550 -> 750

Dexterity: 500 -> 710

Defense: 450 -> 600

Once again the feeling of using all her attribute points was bliss as the surge of energy and power flowed through her.

While Shaman was enjoying the feeling of levelling up, Clara had been playing around with the system and putting a lot of her belongings in the inventory that was provided.

'This is so convenient, I no longer have to deal with such a tiny storage ring anymore.' Clara looked at the storage ring on her hand and could not help but be baffled by the size difference.

Clara was celebrating for all the uses of the system since it made life easier and thanks to the guidance of Rea she was able to understand anything she didn't quite get.

*

A few hours had passed and the boredom was high amongst the 2 girls while they waited for Elysia.

To pass their time the peacefully sleeping Wolfy had been attacked by the pats of both Clara and Shaman. Wolfy was confused about what was going on but was weakened by the wonderful patting he was getting.

"Pffhaha he is so cute~" Shaman grinned while patting Wolfy and watching his failed attempts to resist.

"His silver fur is so soft, how the hell does he keep it like that?" Clara was rather jealous of how soft his hair was and couldn't stop patting it.

"No idea but I am not complaining." Shaman had no idea how Wolfy was able to keep such hygienic standards but it was something she did not need to know.

"Should we change his name to Silver instead of just Wolfy since he is more of a vicious wolf than a cub now?" Clara was reminded how basic his name was and figured it might be good to change it.

"Hmmm, it's really up to him if he likes the name, but I have to agree I like it and it represents all the silver fur he has been getting as he gets stronger." Shaman figured the silver fur that was showing was due to him being a moon wolf and the distinct features of that race will be shining through soon.

"Let me think about it, I am not entirely sure if I can let go of Wolfy but Silver does sound a lot cooler." The pats had eased off and Wolfy was able to somewhat think straight.

"That's understandable, take as much time as you need." Shaman then gave one last pat before standing. Clara had stayed next to Wolfy, Changing her position to slowly pat along his back.

Shaman looked over to Elysia and could see that she was finally waking up from her evolution.

"Finally." Shaman walked over to Elysia's egg and waited for her to break free.

***

High above the sky of Ebonscale stood a woman and a man that wore the same clothes as the pope but in black.

A system window could be seen in front of him presenting him with a list. The man scrolled it as if looking for something.

"Ah, here it is." The man pulled back his hoodie revealing his blonde hair and red blood eyes.

The pope clicked on his system, then quickly yanked on the chain he had in his hand pulling Himeko closer.

"Ah~"

"Tch what a dirty dog, anyway let's get this damned cursed object and little demon girl." An enormous spear made of pure black shadows was created above him and was aimed directly at the tower in the middle.

"I don't sense anyone in the building." The pope then launched the spear at light speed devouring the tower in a matter of seconds. Instead of the tower getting blasted to pieces, it was absorbed into the black shadows cleanly erasing it from existence.

"Come along now trash you have an item to give me." The pope began to descend to the ground with Himeko as the screams of civilians and the shouting of guards could slowly be heard in the background.

'Hmmm I don't sense the demon girl anywhere in the city, did Himeko plan for this.' The pope was using his mana to scan the entire city but was unable to find the demon girl.

"Tch." The pope clicked his tongue and out of frustration kicked Himeko in the face. However, Himeko did not wince or complain, but instead looked like she was rather enjoying it.

"Show me where the cursed item is so we can get out of here before people arrive." The pope put the hood over his head. Like a sniffer dog, Himeko began leading the way to the cursed object.

With the tower gone, only its empty base remained, in which Himeko quickly found the stairs leading down below ground level.

The Pope and Himeko climbed deep underground until finally reaching a door that required a special insignia to open.

"What good little puppy you are." The pope reached into his inventory and pulled out Himeko's insignia and slotted it into the door.

The door slowly opened to reveal a small spinning ball that had red glowing engravings.

"HAHAHA, this dark aura, it's the exact thing I need, one down and 5 more to go." The pope started to become ecstatic.

"The Eden of control is now in my hands, it's unfortunate that I cannot forcefully control people quickly with the item but this will definitely make the process much easier." A sinister grin appeared on the pope as he looked at Himeko who was already under his control. But with the added cursed object there was very little chance that Himeko may ever be free of his control.

'Good job my love, remember this is all for the greater good of this world and never forget your mission.'

124 Death

Shaman watched Elysia slowly break free from her egg anticipating some physical changes to have taken place.

Elysia sat up stretching out her body and upon seeing Shaman in front of her reached out to hug her. Elysia wrapped her arms around Shaman's waist giving her a tight hug. Shaman returned the awkward hug and put her arms around Elysia's head.

Elysia however felt this wave of hunger flow through her, so she turned her head biting down on Shaman's arm.

"Ow, you bitch." Shaman out of pure reaction stepped back and slapped Elysia in the face.

Elysia fell back and was now completely awake, Clara who was watching could not help but giggle at what she saw. Shaman grabbed her arm and used [heal] as a bite from a tier 5 fox girl did some damage.

Elysia held her face where she was hit and looked at Shaman healing the bite that she caused.

"Wait, I did that?" Elysia was still confused about what happened and why she was slapped in the face.

Wolfy let out a sigh as it was the stupid shenanigans that would occasionally happen between Shaman and Elysia.

"Yes you did and it bloody hurt." Shaman had finished healing the small bite mark on her arm and stared at Elysia with a bit of annoyance.

.....

"Aha, sorryyy." Elysia scratched the back of her head.

"Now go eat something before you try having another taste." Shaman squinted her eyes at Elysia waiting for her to get some food.

"I mean I can eat yo-"

"No!" Shaman knew exactly what Elysia was going to say so she was cut off before she could finish speaking.

"Hmph." Elysia turned her head and opened her inventory to pull out some food to eat.

Elysia pulled out one of Shaman's instant noodles because she did not have the energy to cook her own food. It went against Elysia's pride in her cooking, but she had no other choice but go for the easy option.

Shaman let out a sigh and although she did not need to be as aggressive, with everything that was going with their relationship, her patience was becoming thin.

'I need time to think, I don't usually get annoyed but there is so much to think about that I feel like I could explode.' Shaman could feel things were bottling up within her and she needed to release some tension.

'I would love to have some time with Elysia, but she is one of the main reasons why I'm like this.' Shaman considered some alone time but she did not know if she could forget about the arising issues with Elysia.

Elysia devoured the noodles and her egg only to grab another cup of noodles, making quick work of that one as well. After eating, Elysia finally stood up and finally noticed something about Shaman.

"You're so short now Shaman!" Elysia, unable to control her urges, ran up to Shaman and hugged her. Shaman, who was still stuck deep in thought, was suddenly attacked by Elysia's chest.

As if Elysia stole Shaman's height, Elysia was now 6'1″ putting Shaman at eye level with Elysia's chest.

"OI! You stole my height, you vixen!" Shaman noticing that Elysia had reached Shaman's previous height could not help but complain.

"Awww, look at you, you are so damn cute." Elysia then started to pat Shaman's head which had distracted her for a moment before realising this was not the time for head pats.

"Enough!" Shaman then pushed away Elysia's chest causing her to yelp a little and fall to the ground.

Shaman's face was red from being smothered by Elysia and although Shaman wasn't complaining, she was not in the mood.

"Oops, I got a little carried away." Elysia lowered her head as she could tell Shaman was getting a little annoyed at her.

*Sight* "It's okay, maybe later because right now we need to get out of this place." Shaman did not want to be too harsh on Elysia, but they've spent too much time in the dungeon and needed to get a move on.

Elysia nodded and stood up again, suppressing the urge to hug the now small Shaman in front of her.

'Why does it annoy me to see them like this. AHHHH! I feel like bashing my head against the wall. There is nothing between me and Shaman.' Clara was internally fighting her feelings as she realised that it would be selfish and stupid of her to try anything.

'Only time will tell what will happen between them so I just need to wait and assist only if asked.' Clara came to terms with the current state of affairs, which had helped subside the feelings she had.

While Clara was busy with her internal struggles, the slow pats she was giving Wolfy became more vigorous and intense. Wolfy, taking advantage of this new pace, turned on his back and got satisfying belly rubs from Clara.

'This is bliss.' Wolfy was enjoying every moment till Clara finally stopped. A little sad that Clara had stopped her pats, he turned his head to find that the others had started to move towards a nearby doorway.

'Oops.' Wolfy got up and quickly caught up.

*

The group went through the doorway near which they had been resting, as it was the only visible exit besides the roof they could take.

Shaman slowly opened the door and upon peeking in she saw a stairway lit up with torches.

"YES! Looks like we have a way up." Shaman was happy to see that they did not have to use their mana to get to the hole in the roof. The group began to ascend the stairs constantly going up in a spiral.

"Let's hope there aren't any traps." Elysia was examining the wall testing for any secret button that might activate a trap.

"Don't go feeling around, do you want us to potentially die." Clara had slapped Elysia's hand off the wall as she rather not find out.

"Aha don't be so paranoid." Elysia had reached out again feeling the wall but this time the brick pushed in. Elysia's heart sank as she realised she may have just fucked up badly.

"You got to be fucking kidding me." Clara could not help but facepalm as the one thing that Elysia thought was not going to happen, happened.

"Shit." Shaman instantly looked around trying to see what Elysia had done and expecting something to fly at them, instead the wall began to open up.

"A secret passage?" This was the first thing that came to Shaman's mind as she saw another set of stairs that lead straight up.

"Well, I guess we can't say no to some extra loot and speaking of loot did we get anything from the boss?" Elysia's feeling of dread had turned into excitement now that she may have found a secret passageway.

"Sadly nothing except for his core. We did not get any items, but hey at least we have some funds for when we reach the Fox realm." Shaman was a little disappointed that there were no rewards, but there wasn't much they could do about it.

"Damn, well let's hope the next dungeon we try, the boss will drop an item." Elysia was optimistic and did not dwell on it for too long.

"Anyway, let's see where it leads." Shaman walked in first with everyone following and they began to make their way up the stairs.

*

Without even realising it, the secret passage had taken them straight to the dungeon entrance and the group found themselves approaching the exit.

"Huh? Isn't that where we came from?" Clara was the first to point it out as she recognized the dungeon doors ahead of them.

"Ehhhh? Wait, you are right, how the hell did we end up here?" Shaman was confused at how seamless it was and wondered if it had to do with the weird magical property dungeons have surrounding them.

'Seeing as dungeons can have different instances like a video game, a shortcut to the start after the boss does not seem too far-fetched.' Shaman decided not to think too much about it and just appreciate the convenience it gave.

"Anyway, let's get the hell out of here." Elysia didn't care and just wanted out of the dungeon already so she quickly opened up the door.

However, when Elysia opened the door a wave of pressure washed over the group, enveloping them with fear and causing goosebumps all over their bodies.

Shaman quickly realising that they were all in danger quickly grabbed Elysia by the collar and Clara by her hand, pulling them all into [Shadow walk]. Wolfy had also copied Shaman and entered [Shadow walk] on his own.

A short moment later the entrance of the dungeon was completely blown away by a pure black javelin. The feeling of fear had turned to a feeling of certain death as a man in full black appeared in front of them.

Thanks to [Shadow walk] they became undetectable by any normal means and were able to observe without being found.

"Tch I thought I felt the demon girl here." The man spoke in a cold tone and his red eyes glowed slightly staring directly at Shaman as if he could see her.

125 -Classified-

[SHAMAN! WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT MOVE] Rea had screamed out in everyone's head in clear distress.

[WARNING]

[-Classified- presence detected]

Shaman noticed the ominous messages from the corner of her eye while staring back at the unknown man. His overwhelming presence paralyzed her, and even if she wanted to move, she doubted she could.

The man's eyes could only be described as a pair of precious jewels and the slight glow made them more imposing. At first, Shaman thought he was staring straight at them, but on the second look, she noticed the reflection of a system interface in his eyes.

'Wait, so there are others?' Shaman then looked at the attire of the man and noticed that it was rather similar in fashion to the clothes from her own world.

'Wait how long has this man been here for?' More questions kept appearing in Shaman's head, but her thoughts were put to a halt as a magic circle appeared in front of the man's eye.

Without giving any time to react the man moved as fast as light and stabbed into the ground with a pure black spear exactly where Shaman was hidden. No damage had been done to Shaman or anyone else but the action itself had terrified the girls and Wolfy. Because of how the skill [Shadow walk] worked, it allowed them to bend and move wherever there were shadows. Since they were still in the dark they were able to bend around the spear and avoid being forced out.

"Hmm, seems like it's just the dungeon, not a pest." The man was convinced that no one could see or hear him and the mana in the ground was just a part of the dungeon.

.....

This also indirectly answered why Rea did not want them to move as it seemed she had done something alongside the effects of [Shadow walk] on her end to mask their presence.

However, what shocked them even more, was when they saw Himeko on all fours come around the corner.

"Oi, you stupid dog, I said stay back." The man then kicked Himeko, launching her back, but instead of groans of pain, out came moans of pleasure.

The group was speechless and even Clara, who had a genuine distaste for Himeko was unable to help but be mortified by what she was watching.

"I need to head back to the capital, I have no time to be chasing a small hint of the demon's girl mana." The man began to walk away from the entrance while picking up the chain connected to Himeko's collar, dragging her along the ground behind him.

He then vanished in a flash of light fleeing Ebonscale and leaving Himeko's hometown with its dungeon entrance destroyed. The confusion had died down as the cries of the people went quiet and fear turned to curiosity about what just happened.

All the guards had headed towards the tower making the destruction of the dungeon gate go unnoticed for the moment.

[He is gone, you can come out now] Rea sounded out of breath, clearly exhausted from what just occurred.

Shaman moved away from the black spear that was slowly fading away and deactivated [Shadow walk]. Everyone came out from the ground and only then realised they were still holding their breath, each of them starting to gasp for air. Clara was leaning back on her hands, Elysia was laying on her stomach, Shaman was on her back and Wolfy was on his side.

All of them were still shaking and could not believe they were not caught by the man.

"Who the hell was he and why was Himeko like that?" Elysia was the first to speak but nobody had an answer. Shaman had her guesses as going by his attire alone, it likely meant he was yet another person that was transported to this world.

"I have no clue, but looks like he is after me." Clara noticed that he was looking for a demon and her being the only demon that was close to Himeko, it could only mean her.

Shaman had shut her eyes to let everything sink in, trying to think of who the hell he was.

But it was pointless as nothing on him indicated who he was other than his red jewel eyes.

"Ahhhhhh, there is no point in thinking, let's just be grateful we are alive." Shaman was sick of thinking and wanted to move on.

Everyone fell silent, letting themselves recover before heading out.

'It's so nice to just not think about anything important.' Shaman was enjoying the 5 minutes of peace, letting her mind relax. However, this would be rudely interrupted as guards could be heard rushing to their location.

"Although we won't get in trouble, I'd rather not deal with them." Clara could easily clear their name but seeing as she wanted to cut ties, it was better if they fled themselves.

"I guess we should make a break for it and leave for the fox realm now." Shaman let out a sigh and got up from where she was standing.

"Alright everyone, get close, I will use [Shadow Cloak] so we can get out of here, hopefully without being spotted." Shaman offered both of her hands out to Elysia and Clara. They both grabbed a hold of Shaman's hand while she activated [Shadow Cloak]. Elysia stared at Clara, not fond of the idea that she was also holding Shaman's hand. Clara brushed this off as she was not allowed to address Elysia's issues on her own.

'Grrr, I wish I could do something but I don't want to annoy Shaman even more than she already is.' Internally complaining, Clara had an opportunity to respond to Elysia's behaviour but she wanted to respect Shaman's decision.

Pulling them up from the ground and adjusting her grip, Shaman then began to move out of the dungeon.

Shaman peeked out of whatever was left of the door and spotted guards coming from the left.

'Right it is.' Shaman quickly dashed to the right, pulling Elysia and Clara along. Wolfy had followed using his own [Shadow Cloak], preferring to use his own mana than be a burden on Shaman.

Shaman continued down the street till she reached an alleyway and quickly entered.

Luckily the guards seemed to have not noticed anything, meaning the girls were safe for now.

"Alright now we just need to actually get outside the walls." Shaman knew they could easily climb over, but since they were making a straight dash for the fox realm, a mount of some kind would be much appreciated.

"We could try stealing a ride?" Clara figured by taking advantage of the current chaos they would be able to take a mount with relative ease.

"Good idea, let's head to the edge of the city and see if we can get ourselves a ride." Shaman was all for the idea. They all began to move using the backstreets to avoid any attention.

They had finally reached the barn where most of the mounts were kept which was also conveniently next to the city gate. The place was rather quiet as the majority of the people were inside and guards were too distracted by the destruction of the middle tower.

"Now let's hope we can actually get entry to the fox realm with no issues." Shaman could already see the confusion she might cause because of her tail colour.

"Well, we should find a place to stop and pick up some supplies before we go." Since they were on a long trip Elysia wanted to make sure they had enough supplies for the coming days.

"Once we set out I will have a proper look at the map and we will see." Shaman agreed with the idea but this had also reminded her of a potential issue. The tail colours of Shaman and Elysia are unique so going there would expose their identity right away.

'Looks like me and Elysia need to find some hair dye to make sure our defining tips are not noticed .' Shaman looked at her black-tipped tail realising the implications it had and the questions it may raise.

126 Reflection

The group had successfully stolen 2 mounts. One for Shaman and Elysia, the other for Wolfy and Clara. They had also stolen an entry badge just as a precaution, but they were unsure if they had to just possess it or there was something special about the badge that allowed them to enter cities.

Since they were not really on the run and only needed to get out of Ebonscale, they also figured they could abandon the mounts before entering a new town or city if need be.

Shaman was on the red lizard mount looking at a map with Elyisa hugging her from behind. Even though Shaman found it quite comfortable, her face still revealed a troubled expression. Clara and Wolfy were on a green lizard slightly behind Shaman's mount. Clara was looking off into the distance lost in thought while slowly patting Wolfy.

All four of them were close enough to talk, but nobody did as they were still processing what happened at the dungeon entrance. Shaman was able to think through it quickly and was waiting for the others to be ready as she had a few things to talk about. In the meantime, Shaman was making sure they were heading in the right direction.

They travelled in silence till finally, Clara spoke up.

"So does anybody have any idea who he is? He mentioned the capital so it might be the church." It only made sense to Clara that it was the church since Himeko always had a bad relationship with them. It also wouldn't have surprised her if this was their way of getting rid of Himeko, turning her into a pet.

'She has a strong will and likely has manipulation powers from the cursed object. Surely she couldn't have been controlled that easily.' Although Clara did not like Himeko, seeing her act like an animal did not sit right with her.

"I think you are right, seeing how strong he is it wouldn't surprise me if it was the pope himself. however, seeing as he uses dark magic he seems more like the leader of an underground organization that does the church's dirty work." Shaman found it hard to believe it would be the pope because of his use of dark magic.

"That sounds very likely and since dark magic is taboo, the pope being able to use it doesn't sound right as he should only have light magic." Clara knew that every pope must have light magic in order to take the role of pope.

.....

"Well if the pope is so powerful wouldn't he be able to hide his dark magic? If anything, since he is so powerful, couldn't he just do whatever he wants anyway?" Elysia had raised a much simpler solution which made Shaman and Clara reconsider.

"We know what his face looks like so we just need to find a picture or recording of the pope to check if it's the same person." Shaman saw no point in theorizing whether it was the pope or not, when the best option was to find a picture or some form of recording of him in the next human city they visit.

"Fair enough, so what about Himeko, what are our thoughts?" Clara was rather curious about what the others had to say about Himeko's situation.

"Honestly I have no words, it's a bit hard to think she would be in such a state and knowing her I'm sure she is fighting it but, I don't think she will ever be normal again." Shaman felt sick thinking about the things that must have been done to Himeko for her to end up like that.

"I'm more or less in the same boat, I haven't properly registered what happened to her, and I'm fine staying that way." Elysia was trying to avoid thinking about it and since she was not attached to Himeko, she found it easier to brush off what happened. Wolfy had responded with a simple nod agreeing with Shaman and Elysia.

"Although we are not fans of her, I think we should try to save her when we can. Still, by the time we are powerful enough, she might be too far gone." Clara still needed answers about her parents and Himeko was the only person who knew.

"Well it's worth a shot, plus I would like to know why she was brainwashing everyone around her." Shaman also had her reason to save Himeko and if they were gonna wait till they were strong enough, Shaman was sure she could hold her own against Himeko.

"I will do whatever Sham wants." Elysia was falling asleep as she had already lost interest in the topic and in the end only really cared for Shaman.

"I guess we just have to leave it for now." Clara wanted to do something but they were powerless and without getting to a higher tier it would be impossible to save Himeko.

"Unfortunately yes, so let's just focus on ourselves for now." Shaman knew that they had to get stronger, but as for how long it would take, she had no idea.

***

The pope appeared in front of a dungeon throwing Himeko by the collar inside.

"I will be coming back later, make sure you behave." The pope slammed the metal door shut and a locking sound could be heard.

Himeko was left alone in the room and as if some pressure was released she gained back some light in her eyes.

Himeko's head suddenly began to burn with pain as if something was being ripped out of it. She screamed out and her screams echoed out in the dungeon.

Himeko rolled around the room holding her head, wanting the pain to stop. Suddenly Himeko's mana exploded and the seal that was holding her mana core broke.

Flames bursted out from Himeko, engulfing the entire room in fire. Himeko let out another scream but this time it sounded like a screeching phoenix. Slowly Himeko's body was turning into a phoenix causing the flames around her to become more violent.

During this transformation, the pope teleported back into the room with an aggravated look.

"Those bastards clearly didn't put on a tight enough leash on you." Cursing the torturers that were responsible for breaking Himeko's will, now making him have to deal with a disobedient pet.

"Good thing I got this new toy on my recent venture." The pope smirked as the pain Himeko was experiencing was the pain of her being disconnected from the cursed item making anyone under her control free.

"Now let's see how long you can last." The pope knew it took a few days in order for the item to take effect and once complete he would be able to directly manipulate the person's mind.

"YOOUUU SCUMMM!!" Himeko's eyes were full of rage as she stared directly at the pope's eyes.

"Oho~ look at you, so active after being forcefully removed as the owner of the cursed object." The pope attempted to walk closer but was stopped by a wall of flames.

Usually, flames would not affect him, but these flames were different. Because Himeko was partly taking the form of a Phoenix, the flames posed more of a threat to him.

"Tch looks like I can't have any fun." The pope's face went cold as if all emotions were cut off.

A light sword with dark streaks running through the blade appeared in his hand. He had combined his light and dark element creating something which was never thought possible.

[Sword of Light and Dark]

[Skill type: Taboo]

A system menu appeared in front of him showing some details of the skill.

'Urg so many skills, having to look through a list just to find the right one is always a headache.' The pope had run into the issue of too many skills and had to always rely on a system list to remind him what skills he had.

Himeko used the time to transform fully into a Phoenix and took flight into the air.

The pope kept his indifferent look and waited for Himeko to make the first move.

Under Himeko's command, the flames filling the room started swirling around her, only to surge forward a moment later, converging around the pope. Soon he was encased in a ball of flames and Himeko tried condensing the ball to crush and also burn him.

As expected, the pope was able to easily dispel the ball and walked out without a single burn mark.

"Oh, come on, you can do better." The pope had a sadistic look as if something inside him had switched.

Taking it as a challenge Himeko charged forward, diving headfirst into the pope. The flames around her body were growing becoming more chaotic and the closer she got to the pope the faster she got.

"Hot-headed as always, when will you learn going headfirst against me will only lead to your loss." The pope raised his sword and the dark magic inside began to spew out.

"Your time being sane ends here."

127 Family skill

The pope's sword was ready and he began to slash downwards toward Himkeo. Everything happened in an instant as the power of 2 tier 10 titans were about to clash with each other.

The pope expected to directly hit Himeko but to his surprise felt her presence disappear from in front of him and appear behind him. Himeko had taken advantage of the ability to teleport with fire and was able to instantly move around the room as long as there was a spark of flame.

The pope was able to quickly turn and strike where Himeko was but the same thing occurred. Himeko kept teleporting around the pope making sure there was always fire in the room to teleport to. Unfortunately, Himeko was unable to get close because the pope's reaction speed was too fast leaving them in a stalemate.

During this time the pope had been looking through his skills to break the loop. After finding the right skill he activated it through his system. Suddenly a ball of darkness appeared above him sucking in the flames like a black hole.

Himeko quickly teleported to the other side of the room with a bit of flame she left as a backup.

Because Himeko had transformed fully into a phoenix, she could no longer speak but instead, let out a loud screech.

"I wanted to make you a human pet, not an actual pet." The pope let out a smirk and his little joke pissed Himeko off.

'Tch, this bastard really needs to burn in the deepest part of hell, if only I didn't do a full transformation I would love to give him my words of encouragement.' Himeko could escape but because of her pride and pure hatred, she could not let herself leave without putting up a fight.

'If things don't look good I might have to use that.' Himeko had a way out of this predicament if things got worse but her pride would not let her leave.

.....

Himeko's head suddenly began to hurt as the memories of her torture ran through her head. She was having a hard time focusing on the battle as her will to resist started slipping again.

The black hole remained in the air while sucking away the fire, making her teleporting strategy useless. The pope then pulled out the Eden of control and began to slowly walk toward Himeko.

He had managed to sever the connection with Himeko, allowing him to become the owner of the cursed object. Taking advantage of the object's power, he tried to put Himeko under his control but due to how weak it was and how long it takes, it was not enough for Himeko to fall.

Himeko felt the pope trying to take control of her but thanks to the cursed object's limitations it only gave her a headache.

"Too bad, looks like traditional ways are always the best." A glint of insanity filled the pope's face as he vanished from where was standing.

Appearing in front of Himeko he swung his sword straight down aiming for her head.

With barely any time to react and no way to teleport, Himeko managed to just barely avoid his sword. However, because of the dark magic that ran through the light blade, dark tentacles came out of the blade grabbing a hold of Himeko.

With Himeko being restrained, the pope managed to grab her by the neck. The pope's hand started turning black from the searing heat, but nothing mattered to him as he strangled the phoenix in his hand. The feeling of bloodlust was slowly taking over him as all he wanted to do was squish the bird's head.

Himeko struggled to breathe, yet even with her increased size, she still couldn't loosen the pope's grip on her neck.

'You don't want to kill her do you?' A female voice rang out in the pope's head causing him to let go of Himeko. The bloodlust had slowly receded and he was back to his normal calm state.

'Almost lost myself in battle again.' He looked up to the roof for a moment before looking down at Himeko who was struggling to regain her breath.

The pope had crushed her neck making it very hard to breathe and leaving Himeko on the verge of falling unconscious.

"Looks like the almighty Himeko has fallen again, what a shame. Surely it is just easier to submit to me?." The pope squatted down and grabbed Himeko's head pulling it close to his.

"I have the right collar just for a disobedient little Phoenix." The pope pulled out a red collar which was fitted with a black gem in the centre.

Himeko recognized the black gem and fear began to fill her mind.

The black gem was a taboo item created from dark magic, the potential of which is known to every person of power. It was even listed as an item that needs to be destroyed on sight as its capabilities are what made it so dangerous.

The black gem itself was able to extract the mana core of a person, permanently disabling their use of mana. Himeko, seeing this gem, knew she had no chance of surviving and activated her hidden skill.

Slowly the flames of her body grew brighter and brighter creating a blinding light that even the pope couldn't look at.

"This bitch, what is she doing now, how hard is it to just kneel before me." The pope was becoming aggravated and the bloodlust was coming back.

The pope felt his grip on her suddenly vanish as well as her presence.

Suddenly the light vanished and Himeko was nowhere to be found in the room.

The pope instantly began to use all his skills related to sensing mana and people but was unable to find anything.

"You can't be fucking serious." The pope was in disbelief as there had been many magic circles around the dungeon preventing teleportation and the destruction of the room.

The pope continued to search around the room but the more he looked the more annoyed he got till eventually he snapped.

The entire stone room which was reinforced by magic circles began to crack. The pressure exerted on the room increased by ten folds causing the room to almost fall apart. The magic circles that surrounded the room were preventing the it from caving in on the pope.

Because they were deep underground not much was felt above ground, but all the people working for the pope underground were subjected to the intense pressure and ended up passing out.

'Calm down dear, no need to get worked up, she couldn't have gone far.' The same female voice rang out and with its soft tone was able to convince the pope to let up the pressure.

'You're right she can't be far, once she is collared she is going to have to go through something worse than hell as punishment.' The pope was able to calm himself down a little but unless he got results the chances of an outburst were high.

'Now go, she must be outside.' Listening to the voice the pope quickly headed outside to search for Himeko as well as a way to let out his anger.

**

Somewhere out in the wild amongst some mountains was a cave that was blocked off by a metal black gate that possessed the golden symbol of the Ado family. The cave was surrounded by dead nature with no signs of life to be found. Above the cave resided a volcano which explained the dead landscape.

The gate began to slowly open revealing a blinding light from within the cave. After some time had passed the light had diminished leaving the cave in darkness.

Inside the cave was a small altar and on that altar was a tiny orange bird.

This orange bird looked like a tiny phoenix but it did not possess its iconic fiery look.

The gates that were opened slowly began to close, shutting out any light. The cave became dim and the small orange bird stayed in its slumber unmoving.

***

"When the hell will we arrive at the next city, I need to buy some ingredients and I don't want to be eating instant noodles for the next couple daaaaaays." Elysia was acting like an impatient child and Shaman could not help but be reminded of her little sister. The continued complaints annoyed Shaman, but reminiscing on her sister brought back memories.

"Oh shut up, we will get there eventually." The sudden flashback had also caused Shaman to answer as she would to her sister.

"I- sorry." Elysia could hear the annoyance in her voice and apologised straight away.

Shaman let out a sigh and patted Elysia letting her know it was okay.

"We should almost be there so just hang in there for a bit longer, plus it's hardly been a day, don't tell me you used all of our stock back in the dungeon." Shaman wasn't sure why Elysia was complaining as they should have a rather big stockpile of food that Elysia can cook.

"Aha about that, I may have actually brought recipe books rather than the food itself." Elysia slowly put as much distance as she could between her and Shaman.

Shaman sat in silence for a moment before finally responding.

"El-ys-ia~~ I think you have some repenting to do." Shaman turned her head to Elysia with a smile.

128 Kiruya

In the middle of nowhere, High on their mounts and surrounded by trees, the group continued on the gravel path towards the fox realm.

Shaman was currently glaring at Elysia, the same person who thought it was a better idea to get cooking books rather than the food to cook the recipes.

"Uhhh… I'm sorry." Elysia was unsure what Shaman was going to do but knew it was not going to be anything good.

Shaman slowly closed the gap between her and Elysia while encasing her hand in ice, forming it into an icy club.

Elysia's eyes widened as now she knew exactly what was going to happen and had no way to escape unless she wanted to be left behind.

'Damnit, why did we have to be on a mount…' Elysia could not move any further down the mount's back without risking falling off.

Shaman was now in range, and she slowly lifted her arm into the air, ready to strike Elysia.

"I love you." Elysia tried one last thing before Shaman bestowed judgment on her. Unfortunately for Elysia, it was not enough to shake Shaman and she finally swung down bonking Elysia on the head.

The ice bat upon impact had shattered, but nonetheless still hurt like hell for Elysia. Shaman had also accidentally knocked out Elysia causing her to almost fall off the mount. Shaman caught Elysia just in time and pulled her in close, then laid her out in the middle of the mount so she would not fall off.

.....

"Oops, I may have a little bit too much strength." Shaman's pent-up stress and frustration caused her to have no restraint, making Elysia take the brunt of it. Even if it was overkill, Shaman needed some relief and Elysia was the unfortunate victim.

Elysia could have used her flames but found it futile to even fight back against Shaman as she would have won anyway.

Clara and Wolfy, who were watching from the other mount, could not help but chuckle to themselves quietly.

Shaman let out a sigh, quickly checking Elysia's health just to make sure she didn't almost kill her and thankfully she still had most of her HP.

Shaman climbed back to the front of the mount. She noticed that by now they were no longer surrounded by so many trees and was able to see a town ahead of them.

'Oh? This place seems sketchy but seeing as we don't have much proper food left it might be worth stopping for a quick look.' Shaman was also unsure if her map even had every location marked so a small town not being on it seemed plausible. Shaman has started getting more confident in her strength, believing she could handle most people as long as it's not the man from before.

"Hey Clara, should we stop by this town to stock up?" Shaman looked over to Clara wanting to hear her opinion.

"I don't see why not, it's not like we are fugitives although it feels like it." After running away from Ebonscale they had this feeling of being wanted, although that wasn't the case at all excluding the cult and potentially Elysia's family.

"Let's hope there aren't any knights that want to kidnap us for their secret underground rituals." Shaman quickly muttered out a few words which caught the attention of Clara.

"Huh? Rituals?" Clara had yet to be briefed about the whole cult situation and was rather confused.

"Oh, I haven't really told you about our situation have I." Shaman realised this and began to explain it to her while they approached the small town.

*

"What the hell? So you're saying that guy from before is most likely the leader of this whole thing and wants fox girls to perform a ritual?" Clara was a little shocked at how big of an operation was going on just underneath their nose.

"Again it's just a theory that he is the leader. Honestly, I'm surprised Himeko hasn't filled you in on our situation." Shaman thought she remembered Clara being informed but wasn't quite sure.

"Aha she might have, but honestly small memories like that, I have probably forgotten. I was under such heavy influence by the cursed object that only bigger events like meeting you stuck." Clara felt there was a gap in her memories as she found it hard to recall anything that wasn't important to her at the time.

"That makes sense seeing as it was basically controlling you and we didn't really know you when we told Himeko, so it was expected you wouldn't care." Shaman found it reasonable and did not question it.

"Indeed! Also, it looks like we have arrived." Clara gestured to look and as Shaman hoped for, it looked like a rather normal town.

"Seems like they have no mount barn and we just have to leave our mounts in a safe spot." The town did not have any massive buildings and looked like a normal suburban town.

Shaman looked over to Elysia and could tell she was just sleeping so she lightly punched her in the stomach causing her to shoot up awake.

"AHHHH!" Elysia looked around frantically trying to get her bearings.

"We are arriving in town so stop screaming otherwise people will get the wrong idea." Shaman could already tell problems were going to occur.

"Huh? We are here?" Elysia looked over and could see the town right in front of them finally putting the pieces together. Shaman let out a sigh as the urge to use another ice bat was growing.

"Oh sweet, let's hope I'm not kidnapped again." Elysia making a similar comment caused Shaman and Clara to chuckle a little as they had conveniently just talked about their situation.

'I shouldn't be laughing but that was too well-timed and too casual to be taken seriously.' Shaman wasn't sure if her friends would take it in good humour, so she avoided making any dark jokes.

The group then slowly entered the town.

*

The small town's architecture resembled that of Britain in the 1900s, with many houses lining the sides of the roads. The roads were big enough for both decently large mounts and people to walk side by side without any issues.

Unlike a city, one could enter the town without going through any guards. No wall surrounded the town, which allowed for easy expansion and unlike a city, there was no central building that clearly belonged to the mayor or city lords.

'Seeing as there are always wild monsters out and about, I'm surprised they don't have any walls. I guess with the rise of magic circles, the concept of walls must be for the older cities that have been around much longer.' Shaman assumed that the town was surrounded by defensive magic circles so if any monsters approached they would be killed, or if not, at least alert the right people to take care of it.

The group continued through the town on their mounts without any issue, but they still got the occasional stares as it wasn't every day the locals saw new people entering the town.

"Well, at least the looks are not hostile and just curious eyes." Elysia felt a little weirded out by all the stares and wanted to shoot their eyes out for looking.

"Don't worry about it, Elysia, it looks like we can secure our mounts in this open space." Shaman could see the look on Elysia's face and could tell she was planning something irrational. Shaman also pointed to a gap in the buildings which looked like it was meant for mounts to go in.

"Let's head over and see then." Clara was itching to stretch her legs as sitting on a mount all day was getting stifling.

They headed over to the open space which had shelters meant for mounts as a sign at the front told them everything.

*Mount drop off and Pick up.*

"Well, this is definitely the place." Shaman and Clara entered the drop-off and parked their mounts in the designated spot.

They were attended to by a man and were told they can come back to get their mounts but if they did not return in the next week the town would be allowed to assign the mounts to new clients.

Shaman found it fair as they only planned to stay for a day so there were no issues.

Once they settled their mounts they walked back to the main street till suddenly Shaman crashed into somebody.

A dark brown furred cheetah girl had accidentally walked right into Shaman causing them both to fall to the ground.

Shaman was a little shocked by the sudden crash but was able to quickly grab a hold of the Cheetah girl and brace her fall.

They landed on the ground with Shaman holding the cheetah making sure she did not get hurt.

The Cheetah girl with great speed quickly got off of Shaman who had braced her fall, her face completely red from the embarrassment of what just happened.

Shaman got up from the ground and was able to finally get a better look at the girl in front of her.

She had brown skin as well as beautiful mid-length dark brown hair, her tail and ears were the giveaways that she was a cheetah as they had the same black dots all over them. Her eyes were a coffee brown and filled with hesitation, revealing her to be a rather shy person. She wore a normal white shirt with thin black stripes and black jeans.

The Cheetah and Shaman both were the same height making Shaman instantly connect with the cheetah on a personal level as she had found someone who shared her suffering.

"I- uhhh… I'm sorry." The cheetah girl lowered her head expecting someone to yell at her.

"Oh, it's okay, are you hurt anywhere?" Shaman quickly opened up the girl's status, but to her surprise, it was anything but normal.

[Kiruya]

[Unable to inspect, please level up to see her stats]

129 Well connected

Shaman was a little shocked that she couldn't see the cheetah girl's status, as it could only mean that she was stronger than Shaman. The confidence she had before about holding her own had dwindled and she was now a little cautious about the girl in front of her.

"Oh, yeah I'm fine." Kiruya uttered in a quiet voice, glad that the people she bumped into were nice. Kiruya looked up and was able to now get a clear look at Shaman.

"Wait, you're the one." Kiruya muttered to herself, with Shaman barely catching what she said.

"The one?" Shaman was confused, causing her to go on high alert, quickly positioning herself to pull out Kotetsu at any moment. Elysia, Wolfy, and Clara had also readied themselves waiting on Kiruya's next move.

Kiruya noticed she had caused them to put their guard up and began to panic.

"Oh no, don't get the wrong idea, uhhh how do I explain this? Hold on, we can't talk about it here. We need to go somewhere private." Kiruya fumbled with her words, trying to explain herself as she was rather intimidated by them and did not want to fight.

"If I may ask, why?" Shaman realised they were in public and making a scene would not be in their best interests. Letting out a sigh of relief, Shaman also saw how Kiruya panicked, and clearly, she did not have any ill intent towards them.

"Umm… Oh, I know, Here I will tell you one word." Kiruya looked around for a quick moment before leaning in a little closer to Shaman whispering a word.

"Freja." Kiruya quickly pulled away, and Shaman's eyes widened.

.....

Wait, if she knows Freja, she might be able to get us to the Freya forest.' Shaman, not wanting to miss this opportunity, decided to trust Kiruya, hoping it wouldn't backfire.

"Okay, lead the way." Shaman understood why it would be better if they spoke privately, and this would also test if Kiruya is someone they can trust.

Elysia, Clara and Wolfy were curious why Shaman was so quick to follow the cheetah, but they assumed whatever she was told was enough to earn her trust.

Kiruya was a little shocked but was also happy that she seemed to have found the right person, so she nodded and gestured to follow her.

Kiruya walked off at great speed, causing everyone else to quickly jog after her.

'I guess she isn't a cheetah for nothing.' Shaman was a little taken aback by her speed, but it was no surprise that she was this fast.

The group awkwardly jogged after the fast-walking Kiruya till they reached what looked like an inn. The building was nothing special and looked like the rest, except for a small sign hanging over the entrance of said inn.

Kiruya turned around and saw that the party had resorted to jogging after her, and even then they were barely keeping up, making her feel bad since she didn't mean to go so fast.

"Oh, I didn't mean to walk so fast, my bad." Kiruya let out an awkward laugh and looked down at the ground.

"Don't worry about it." Shaman laughed it off, and a relieved look could be seen on Kiruya's face.

"Follow me, we will talk once we are inside my room." Kiruya then entered the inn and the rest followed.

They walked in without any issue, with the reception lady not even batting an eye.

'If that is the case I wonder if we can just hole up in one of these rooms without her noticing.' Shaman found the behaviour odd and lazy, so her first thought was to see if they could get a free room, as sneaking in would not be an issue.

They went up the stairs until they reached the top floor, and Kiruya pulled out a small card. She then put the card up to the door handle, causing a few magic circles outside the room to deactivate.

'I see why she isn't worried.' Shaman could clearly tell there were self-defence magic circles on the door, making the receptionist's attitude understandable. So, unless they were strong, there was no way of getting into the room.

Shaman did consider her [spatial rift] but decided against it as it would have been a hassle to always use it if someone wanted to leave or enter the room.

Kiruya welcomed them in and the room was that of a typical hotel, nothing grand, just a basic room.

Kiruya walked over to a small desk, pulled out the chair and sat down facing the bed while gesturing for everyone to come sit down on the bed.

Shaman and Clara sat down on the edge, but Elysia had jumped on the bed behind Shaman and hugged her from behind. Wolfy took the end of the bed and laid down, looking at Kiruya to make sure she wasn't doing anything suspicious.

Shaman was a little embarrassed by Elysia's display of affection as she had only just met Kiruya and did not want to make her uncomfortable.

Kiruya wasn't affected at all and began to speak, paying no attention to what Elysia was doing.

"My name is Kiruya, and there is one thing I want to confirm. Is your name Shaman Shiroi?" Kiruya's voice was shaky, showing that she was nervous.

"Yes, I am." Shaman nodded, and Kiruya let out a sigh of relief.

"Okay good, I didn't get the wrong person." Kiruya leaned back in her chair, relieved that she hadn't screwed up.

"Okay, but can you explain what's going on?" Clara was still very confused and wanted answers.

"Oh yes, sorry, let me explain. I don't know how much Shaman has told you, but Freja, the Empress of the Dark Forest, assigned me to keep a lookout for Shaman here and bring her there." Kiruya quickly became more confident and explained the situation, but only Shaman knew who Freja was, leaving everyone else still confused.

"The dark forest? I thought it was called the Freya forest." Shaman was confused as to why it went under a different name.

"Oh well, that's because the Empress wanted to name it after herself. Its name slightly differs, but that's just the way she wanted it" Kiruya looked off to the side and spoke in a low voice, ashamed of the reason why.

Everyone stared blankly at Kiruya, as the impression of Freja now was that of an egotistical ruler.

"Anyway, you will understand when you meet her. I need you guys to come with me back to the fox realm and into the dark forest." Kiruya wanted to change the topic as she could feel the judgement from all of them.

"Well, we were heading there anyway, but I owe an explanation of what my relationship to Freja is to Elysia and Clara." Shaman could tell they were still confused as she hadn't explained why she knew Freja.

"I will go get myself a mount while you explain. Have this key to the room and I will come back once I am ready to leave." Kiruya got up quickly and passed Shaman a spare room key.

Kiruya quickly left the room with her own key, leaving Shaman to explain her connection to Freja.

'Let's hope we are not kidnapped, but judging from Kiruya's attitude up to now, I would say it's safe to say we can trust her.' Shaman was still not sure if it was a good idea, but seeing as she had memories that supported Kiruya, it was hard to think Freja would do any harm to them if they went with Kiruya.

***

In a dimly lit room, a beautiful hot blonde she-wolf was in bed surrounded by 6 gorgeous women of different races. Each of them was asleep looking exhausted as if they had gone through an intense "training" session.

The blonde woman was none other than Freja. She opened her grey eyes, scanning the room, smirking at the sight of all the women around her.

She noticed a blinking crystal at the door indicating she had gotten an important message. Not wanting to wake the girls, she slowly moved them off of her and weaved her way out.

Unfortunately, one of the girls was woken up by Freja and grabbed a hold of her waist.

"Frejaaaa~ Don't leaveeee~." The girl was still half asleep, trying her best to not make Freja leave the bed.

"Oh Marsh, don't worry darling~, I will be right back. Now be a good girl and head back to sleep." Freja had turned and held Marsh's chin while giving her a kiss on her forehead.

She had used a little bit of mana with her kiss to knock Marsh out, causing her to fall back into bed, allowing Freja to be free.

Feja got out of bed and quickly changed into a white shirt and a pair of black pants and boots. She walked out of her room into a hallway and towards a set of stairs that led into the main hall. The place itself was more of an expensive mansion than a palace and was decorated with depictions of wolves and many treasures Freja had collected.

Upon entering the hall, a noble lizardman was waiting in the lobby with a furious look on his face. A maid who was clearly trying to get him to leave was being completely ignored till eventually the lizardman had enough and was about to shut her up.

Before the lizardman could even move, he found himself being crushed to the ground, causing the floor to slightly cave in. The maid, who had shut her eyes waiting to get hit, realised that she had been saved and was happy to see who it was.

Freja was standing on top of the lizardman with her foot planted on top of his head. Her face was cold and dead, but her bloodlust could still be felt, sending chills down the lizardman's back.

"You damn she-wolf, stealing and fucking my wife." His voice shook while he spoke as he felt death slowly approaching.

"Oya~ I think you don't understand the difference between someone begging me and forcefully taking them." Freja increased the weight on her foot and began to crush his head.

Freja continued to enjoy the moment, listening to the groans of pain from the lizard till she got bored.

"I'd be willing to let you live if you get on your knees and use that tongue for its rightful purpose of licking my boot." Freja raised her foot so the lizard could speak.

"What… about my wife." The lizard's voice was raspy as he felt like he was on the verge of death.

"Her? Well, of course, she will still be in my bed." Freja smirked as she could see the look on the lizard's face turn into dread.

"Fuck y-" Before he could finish, Freja stomped down on the lizard's head, killing him instantly.

*Sigh* "Looks like that's another corrupt noble down, now to look at this message I got." Freja gestured for the maid to clean up the body and walked towards a glowing crystal that sat on a circular desk. Freja picked up the crystal and absorbed the mana inside, getting a stream of information sent directly to her mind.

"Seems like I have to reward a little cheetah once she comes back fufu~" The crystal in her hand had crumbled to dust and Freja left the hall to prepare for the visitors she will be having.

130 Rough fall

Shaman explained to Clara her connection to Freja, clearing up any doubts Clara still had.

"I can see why we can trust Kiruya but again we should not let our guard down till we meet Freja." Clara's opinion aligned with Shaman making it easier to go along with Kiruya to the fox realm.

"Good, also while we have a little bit of free time can you go get me and Elysia some hair dye? Just a white and black one." Shaman winked and moved her head towards Elysia to indicate she was going to have that talk now.

"I will also catch up with Kiruya and grab our mounts. Wolfy, you're coming with me." Clara got up from the bed and gave Wolfy a light tap on the head to get him up. Wolfy had nothing better to do so he followed Clara's lead.

"Stay safe." Shaman waved at Clara and Wolfy.

Clara waved back as she exited the room with Wolfy.

Shaman could feel her heart rate rise and her anxiety spike as she never had to deal with this kind of problem. Although she felt fine talking about it with Clara, when it came to actually doing it she could not help feeling extremely nervous.

Shaman was doubting herself, imagining how things could go wrong or how Elysia might explode and the relationship they have built up would be ruined. She struggled to start talking as if something was holding her hold back.

'Ahhh, just do it, the worst that could happen is her being mad for a while, she is too obsessed to break up with me anyway.' Shaman was able to reassure herself but still found it difficult to speak.

.....

Elysia, still hugging Shaman from behind, finally spoke up before Shaman could, now that Clara was far enough away from the room.

"Now that we are alone how about we have a little bit of fun, it's been forever since we last did anything~." Elysia whispered into Shaman's ear sending shivers down her spine.

"Fufu~ I can already feel your heart beating out of your chest." Elysia moved her hands over Shaman's chest which had not changed even after her evolution.

Shaman had almost fallen into her desires but the lingering thought of the issues Elysia was causing kept Shaman from caving in.

"No, we can't, we have something to talk about Elysia." The anxiousness that held Shaman back faded away as she gathered her resolve.

Shaman moved Elysia off of her and sat in the chair that Kiruya was in.

"Huh? What's the matter, Shaman?" Elysia was confused by Shaman's action and began to worry. Her thoughts instantly went to Clara and her eyes filled with murderous intent.

"It has nothing to do with her, so calm down. Otherwise, I might put a leash on you just so you don't kill someone just because you decided to jump to conclusions." Shaman knew exactly who she was thinking of and formed a small ice bat indicating she was ready to hit her over the head again.

"Hmph." Elysia turned her head and pouted as she had no good argument to counter Shaman.

"Good, now listen to what I have to say." Shaman felt her throat tighten as her nerves were starting to get to her.

Elysia turned her head back looking grumpy as her mood had been ruined.

"Elysia, this has been something I should have discussed with you much earlier, but I didn't see it as a real issue at the time. You need to stop being so obsessed with me." Shaman went straight to the point hoping Elysia wouldn't overreact.

"WHAT!?" Elysia shot up to her feet right in front of Shaman. Due to the sombre mood, Elysia took it to mean Shaman was planning to break up. Her thoughts had gone wild again and she went back to thinking Clara was the reason behind it.

"Hold on, let me finish before you start jumping to conclusions again." Shaman glared at Elysia to sit back down since Shaman noticed that Elysia had misunderstood what she was trying to say.

Shaman slowly gained her confidence making it easier to speak her mind.

"I-." Elysia was at a loss for words so she quietly sat down on the bed.

"Now what I mean is, you have to control yourself more. You overreact at the smallest things even if you don't show it, if I mention Clara's name you get this murderous look as if you plan to kill right then and there." Just like Shaman said, at the mention of Clara's name, Elysia's eyes turned red again.

Shaman's point was proven so she stared at Elysia till she realised what she had done.

"…." Elysia looked down to the floor as she realised she was guilty as charged and was unable to argue back.

"I love you Elysia, but this can't keep happening. You have to trust me otherwise you might make a mistake that I won't be able to forgive for." Shaman's expression became a bit depressed as it was not something she wanted to think about, but it was a possibility.

"I- I'm sorry, I will try to work on it, but it's so hard for me as you have given me everything that I have lost and I don't want to lose you." Elysia's voice went quiet.

"All the more reason why you should show more restraint, then that way you won't lose me." Shaman got up from her seat and hugged Elysia.

"Thank you." Elysia hugged Shaman back and tears began to form.

'I don't think I can change Shaman.' Elysia wanted to say these words but she did not have the courage to, so all she could do was cry.

**

"Alright we got the dye, now let's head over and get our mounts." Clara put 2 bottles of dye in her inventory and started to walk towards where their mounts were.

The entire town shared the same architectural style with stores having big windows at the front showing what they were selling. Clara had wanted to go in to buy some things but she didn't want to spend any money.

*sigh* "Maybe next time." Clara walked off in defeat as her urge to save won over the urge to buy.

"Shouldn't you have a lot of money since you worked for Himeko?" Wolfy found it hard to believe that Clara wouldn't have some money since she was one of the closest people to Himeko.

"Aha, about that. Himeko never gave me any money, she just bought me things and I did everything for free." Clara felt a little cheated but there wasn't much she could do about it now.

"What a shame, Shaman is too stingy with her money so she won't get anything more than what she needs." Wolfy had seen things in cities that he wanted but knew Shaman was the type of person to always go for the cheap option unless there was no such option available, all that despite having plenty of money.

"Well once we start killing higher tier monsters we will be able to make a living for ourselves so that should not be a problem for us soon." Clara thought about how much the tier 6 and 7 cores would be worth and she could already see the amount of gold she would be making.

Wolfy had also thought about the riches they could obtain, hoping once he gets his human form, he'd be able to go out and buy all the expensive meat.

Wolfy and Clara were both stuck thinking about the riches they were going to earn when they noticed Kiruya speeding across the street.

"Is that Kiruya? What is she doing here?" Clara was confused about why Kiruya was in the shopping district of the town but guessed she was getting supplies before getting a mount.

They watched Kiruya walk swiftly through the street till suddenly her foot got caught on the uneven ground. Before Kiruya could react she was already falling face-first to the ground.

Clara and Wolfy watched as they saw a cheetah girl fall flat on her face and drop everything she was carrying.

Feeling defeated, Kiruya stayed splayed on the ground as she endured the pain of falling on stone face-first.

The people around her had completely ignored her and continued to walk past her as if nothing happened.

After getting over the shock of what happened, Clara quickly ran to Kiruya and made sure she was okay. Wolfy, however, went and got the things Kiruya dropped, which were some food and a couple of toiletry items.

"Kiruya, are you okay?" Clara lifted Kiruya off the ground to check if she had hurt herself badly. Luckily there were no visible cuts and just a red mark on Kiruya's face.

"I- I'm fine." Kiruya sounded like she had just been defeated and had lost all will to live.

"Come on, you have to take us to Freja can't have you dying out here on the side of the street." Clara found Kiruya's reaction rather funny as it seems like this isn't the first time she had fallen in this town before.

"Ah yes, Freja, hehe~" Kiruya's mood brightened and she quickly got up from the ground.

"Hurry, let's go, we can't keep her waiting." Kiruya patted Wolfy as a thank you for picking up her things and grabbed her bag. They all walked off quickly to go pick up their mounts and finally head to the Fox Realm.