[S2] Chapter 32: Family

MIKO

"Miko? Hey, wait... Miko?"

I can't stand Krystoff, whether he's talking or not. His presence is just annoying, and right now, hearing him say my name straight up disgusts me.

"What do you want?"

"You realize that the houses are moving and cutting us off, right?"

"What do you think? You've noticed it… maybe I did, too?"

"Perhaps we should stop walking and think about how to proceed."

I am very fond of the idea of simply ignoring him.

"We don't have time. Wace has disappeared, Kayla and Maisy have been separated from us, Luna is probably dealing with the dungeon creator, and we haven't heard from Lilith, Jora, and Kajsa since the beginning of this stupid mission."

"Understood."

"Good."

I sigh and try to get rid of the tightness in my chest, but no matter how I breathe, it doesn't seem to disappear. It definitely doesn't help that I can't get Kayla out of my head. I just want to be with her again.

As I look ahead, I notice how a family restaurant's building slowly but surely shifts into the center of my view while other houses block any other path. What kind of ridiculous game is this? If I get my hands on the mage responsible for this, I'll give them a good beating.

We arrive in front of the restaurant, and I draw my sword. Krystoff and the three other mages from his guild follow behind me. The efficiency of our stealthy approach is questionable, but it's better than storming in like a bunch of idiots.

I take one step in front of the other before my legs simply stop moving. A moment later, I can feel my whole body going numb, so I can't even avert my gaze.

The place seems to be empty until a person walks into my field of vision. She has long white hair, pale skin and is wearing a black dress. In her hands, she is carrying a tray with food on it. Every step she takes seems deliberate and gentle, but despite her graceful appearance, the aura she radiates is absolutely terrifying.

It seems as if she doesn't notice us, and I get an uncomfortable feeling from just looking at her. Finally, she sits down at a large table by herself. Suddenly, she raises her head, and our eyes meet.

Slowly I regain a sense of feeling in my body, but I am still as if I am frozen in place. It seems like I haven't blinked once since I arrived here, so I squeeze my eyes shut tightly and enjoy the feeling of not having to see anything for a moment.

I open them again and find myself sitting at the table, facing that white-haired woman with bright red eyes.

"It's nice of you to keep me company. Are you hungry?"

Her voice is not too high or too low, and it rings through my ears as if she had spoken directly into my mind. My whole body tingles and I can't manage to say a single word, so I just shake my head instinctively to respond to her question.

"It's all made of mana anyway. It probably tastes of nothing," she giggles softly and pushes the tray away.

Wait a minute. I've rarely been so slow on the uptake, but now that I realize it, I find it uncanny how much this woman looks like Lilith. The long white, slightly wavy hair, her eyelids, her nose, everything reminds me of her.

"Who are you?" It's hard to explain how difficult it is for me to get these words out.

"The creator of this place, or dungeon, as you people like to call them."

Not the answer I was looking for, but still reassuring to know that she was here with me and not with Kayla. I don't know what she's up to, but I realize the difference in our abilities and power, so it makes no difference to me to worry about that.

"Tell me about yourself. What's your name, where are you from?"

What is this? A little interview so we can get to know each other? I realize that the best thing for me to do is to go along with everything she says, but I don't get the point of it.

"I'm Miko, and I don't really know where I come from."

"Who are your parents?"

"I don't know."

"Sounds depressing to know so little. But someone must have been there for you, someone who raised you."

Her smile seems friendly, but her intense eyes bore right into me. I can't help but get the feeling that she hates my guts.

"Just jealousy, nothing else. You have given me no reason to hate you, Miko."

Did she just read my thoughts? What kind of magic is that, anyway?

"May I tell you a story?" she asks.

"Can I refuse?"

"Not really."

"Go ahead, then."

"In a small village, two sisters once lived with their parents. The place was plagued by crime and ongoing conflict due to its proximity to a demon realm. The girls' parents were penniless and unable to do anything about their situation until they realized that their daughters were born with the ability to use magic. With this realization, it was clear that their children could possibly experience a better life. Noble houses literally fought over mages to have them at their side. But the parents had other ideas, other priorities. They decided to sell their two children to demons. These demons, although they possessed mana, could not use magic, which is why they took in humans to train them and abuse them for their own purposes."

It's not that I feel particularly sorry for her, but the beginning of this story alone makes me think that I won't like where it's going. Although she could be making up the whole thing, her voice and facial expression seem anything but fake.

"The sisters lost everything but not each other. In the land of demons, they were neither revered nor despised because the only goal of the lord who bought them was to raise them as weapons."

At the end of her last sentence, she looks down briefly as if she is remembering something nice. This reaction, coupled with what she said, sends shivers down my spine.

"After many years passed, a war between demons and humans began to emerge, and it would not be long before these witches were used for the first time. Meanwhile, the mood in the neighboring human kingdom was better than ever because the youngest daughter of the ruling family had just celebrated her fifth birthday and had been tested for her magical aptitude, which revealed that she would become one of the most powerful witches of the last few centuries."

It's unsettling how she keeps glaring at me while she continues to tell me her story. But there's no need to say that to her. After all, she is able to read my mind.

"The demon lord was livid. He would have loved to win the girl over for his own forces, but that was out of the question. Nevertheless, he had a plan to use her for his own good. He instructed the older of the two sisters to infiltrate the royal family, make contact with the youngest daughter, and kill her. This would cause the people to lose their shining ray of hope, and the morale of their rulers would break."

A sickening feeling of unease is stirring within me. If I could, I would get up and leave. I don't want to listen to her anymore. I don't want to know the end of this story.

"The sisters said goodbye. They didn't know how long they would be separated, but killing a child would hardly take that long, thought the younger one who was left behind. Four whole years passed without any progress being made in the mission to end this little girl's life."

The thought of killing a defenseless child... disturbing.

"In the end, the war started before the older sister could reach her goal. The plan had failed, but the two sisters would soon meet again. Full of joy, the younger sister killed the enemies to bring about this reunion. But unfortunately, some horrible news started to spread. The little girl, that noble brat, the princess who was supposed to die, had disappeared without a trace. Together with her magic teacher, who had appeared about four years ago."

Although this has nothing to do with me, it is sad to hear that someone has had to experience so much suffering.

"But of course, it has to do with you. After all, you took my sister from me."

She's lying.

"It's simply hilarious. She's bothered to take away all your memories but not give you a new name. At least that made it easier to confirm that it was you. Plus, you really do look the spitting image of your mother."

I feel like I'm going to throw up. I need to get out of here. I have to go.

"Oh, that's annoying." the white-haired witch whispers, averting her eyes. At that moment, Krystoff appears behind her and starts an attack.

With her attention focused on him, I also regain control of my body. I jump up. My legs are weak and shaky. Krystoff fires a barrage of close-range attacks, reinforced with magic, at her, but she blocks everything with subtle hand movements.

"Let's get out of here!" I yell.

I don't see us winning this one. Our only chance is to get together with Lilith. If anyone is strong enough to defeat this witch, it's her. When Krystoff makes a move to walk past her, she simply lets him go. I'm sure that if she wanted us dead, we would already be.

"What is your goal?" I ask her, standing at the restaurant's exit.

"For now, giving the demons time to dispose of their princess. But it seems they are failing miserably."

"Why don't you help them?" I don't want to encourage her, but rather, I want to understand her.

"This is not my fight. It's my fault that you didn't realize what I'm here for personally."

I don't have time to really think about her words, so I turn around and leave the building without looking back. Krystoff and his three colleagues are all fine, and we head back down the street from where we came from.

"What is that?!"

I look in the direction Krystoff is pointing, and despite everything that has happened here, I find it hard to believe what I see. Gigantic pieces of the city are flying in from all directions. The puzzle that makes up this dungeon is being put together before our very eyes. Paths that were previously blocked are now open again, so we're picking up speed and trying to find the others.

What is striking, besides the many familiar-looking streets, are the corpses of demons scattered everywhere. These were apparently nowhere near the level of the creature that carried the dungeon core, which Kajsa and I fought against in the white space.

Nevertheless, it's dangerous here, and I'm worried about Kayla. I don't know who's with her or how she's doing, so I can only hope that everything is fine.

A brief buzzing in my ear almost scares me to death before a voice follows that I haven't heard in what feels like an eternity.

"Can you hear me? Luna here. It seems like the dungeon is back to its original form. If possible, fire the magic signal to confirm your positions."

I immediately gather mana in my hand and shoot a ball of rainbow-colored mana in the direction of the sky. Almost simultaneously, three more orbs explode. Without knowing which one belongs to whom, we head for the one that is closest to us, and after just a few seconds, Wace and Luna run toward us. It doesn't take a minute for Jora and Kajsa to join us as well.

"Where is Kayla?" I ask as my heart sinks.

"I don't know. All the signals from just now came from the people present. Maisy, Kayla, and Lilith didn't send any." Wace declares, looking as though he has reached the end of his strength.

I'm just about to put my finger on my earpiece to press the microphone button when I see two people running towards us. It's Kayla and Maisy, both unharmed but looking devastated, exhausted, and fed up with life. I walk up to them and take Kayla in my arms as we reach each other.

"Are you alright?" she whispers in my ear before carefully disengaging herself from my hug. I look at her somewhat skeptically. I think I'm the one who should ask her this question.

"Yes, everything's fine."

"Have you spoken to everyone?"

"Huh?"

"Did you check everyone's voice? I told you the dungeon master can create replicas of us."

"The message never arrived."

Without making a big deal of it, I slowly turn around and look at our assembled companions. I feel a shiver run down my spine when I realize that Luna is staring in our direction. I activate my microphone and speak quietly into it.

"Luna? Can you hear me?"

I keep my eyes on her as I wait for a reaction. A broad grin spreads across her face.

"Why are you whispering? I'll be with you in a moment. Is everything okay?"

Before anyone can fully realize what is happening, the Luna in our midst dissipates into mana.

After that, we check the identity of each person present before the real Luna joins us. With her here, I'll begin to briefly recap my encounter with the witch who created this dungeon without elaborating on the story she told.

During my explanation, I notice how concerned Kajsa appears, but I don't feel confident enough to ask her about it.

"Do you know who this witch is?" Jora finally asks, glancing directly at Kajsa.

"I think I do."

A clearly audible clenching of teeth from Kajsa, followed by a sound that resembles a growl, ends the conversation. I follow Kajsa's intense stare and once again get to look at the white-haired witch.

"Ayma," Kajsa calls her and takes a deep breath.

"I'm glad you're doing fine."

"Why are you here?"

"I was wondering the same thing about you. Is it because of those annoying seals they put on you?"

Ayma, Lilith's sister, snaps her fingers, and without paying attention, I feel a massive burst of mana fly past me until it hits Kajsa. I look over at her as she starts moaning in pain while holding her head.

"What have you done?" Kayla yells at her.

"I took off those awful shackles that prevent her from acting freely."

"Nobody asked you to do it!"

"Why should I have to be told to do something good? Shouldn't that be a basic human behavior?"

As Kayla and Ayma argue, the nauseous feeling I had earlier in the restaurant creeps back. My head starts to hurt as if something is trying to force its way out.

"Miko, are you okay?" Kayla's worried expression almost hurts more than my head.

I force a smile onto my face and nod. "Everything's fine."

"Now that I've done my first good deed, I'm in the mood to keep going. How about it, Miko? Interested in getting your memories back? The seals on your brain look tricky, but if I work really hard, I might be able to pull it off."

"Don't answer her," Jora whispers at me.

"I didn't intend to," probably.

"Why are you whispering? I can't understand anything like that." Ayma pretends to be offended and takes a few steps towards us.

"Stop right there, or I'll attack."

"Wasn't that your plan anyway? But we do not need to do that. I just want to talk to Lilith." Ayma says as she continues to walk towards us.

I activate my mana flow and form a sword in my right hand, I believe her when she says she wants to avoid a fight, but I still have to be prepared.

"Miko, please don't. I don't want to hurt you."

"I thought you hated me."

"I did hate you, but I realized you were just as much a victim."

"What is she talking about?" Kayla asks while I don't dare take my eyes off Ayma.

"Not now." I couldn't, or rather didn't want to talk about her story just yet. That I am supposed to be from the other world as well, that I used to be a princess. It also annoys me that I currently assume that she told me the truth.

"What do you think? Will my sister have the mercy to show herself?"

"This is my last warning. Stay still." I've never seen Jora like this before, and when he activates his mana flow, I shudder a little.

"It's actually quite exciting to receive such threats. But somehow, the way you talk is getting on my nerves." with these words, she takes another step closer to us.

With a quick arm movement, Jora shoots an icicle at Ayma, which hits her but dissolves into a drizzling cloud of snow, slowly trickling to the ground.

I'm not sure if she created a barrier around her or if she simply transformed the mana from Jora's magic. Whatever it was, her reaction time was almost more impressive.

"Don't interfere if you don't have to," Jora says to us, takes off his jacket, throws it to the ground, and turns his attention to Ayma, who is only a few steps away from him.

"This ends now."