Chapter 3. Happily Ever After – Part 2.
The young innkeeper really hated her life. Here it was, the event in Atlas City which drew more people here than all of the town's attractions all year long, and her establishment was still half-empty. She knew one thing for certain: If she ever met the bastard again who sold the business to her, she would shove the contract along with the man's claims of an 'advantageous location' down his throat.
"I'm sorry, is the inn open for business?" someone asked, snapping the innkeeper out of her melancholic stupor. She glanced up from behind the counter and saw a man and a woman, along with a younger child looking at her curiously.
"Of course, of course!" she let out a forced laugh. "Don't be fooled by all the quiet here, this is actually one of the best places in town! Comfortable rooms and great food for a reasonable price!" She turned to the woman, who stood the closest to her. "Just tell me your name, madam, and I'll give you three a room right away!"
"We'd like two rooms, please," she corrected. "And my name is, well… Nadia! That's right, Nadia Ul Kept!"
The child looked at her incredulously. "But mom, that's not your real name--"
"Sssh!" the woman chided him, and then hastily smiled at the innkeeper. "Can we have our keys now?"
"O-Of course." She wrote the name into the guestbook, and handed the keys over. As the trio disappeared in the corridor leading to their rooms, she could still hear the woman's older looking companion ask in a tired voice:
"Is this all truly necessary?"
"I know what I'm doing!" she responded, declaring the end of the argument.
The innkeeper watched after them for a while, then shrugged and went back to plotting her vengeance; she really was in no position to pick her customers, after all.
The lieutenant peeked cautiously around the corner, his good eye set on the expensive inn on the other side of the road.
"So you're sure they took a room in that place?" he asked the shabby beggar next to him. The underfed man nodded vehemently.
"Yes, sir. I saw the girl; she looked exactly how you described her, 'no chest and a big mouth'. She went in there yesterday late at night with a priest and a very young child in tow. I didn't see them coming out since then."
"Not on foot, that is," the mercenary muttered. "Alright, here's the gold I promised, now beat it!" He tossed a coin to the beggar, who quickly hid it between his palms and ran away.
"Listen here you sissies!" he addressed his slightly crispy-looking team, huddled together in the narrow alley. "This time, we are going to do it right, or you'll have much bigger problems than your pants being on fire, got it? There will be no more stupid overrun attempts; we're going to surround the sorceress slowly and carefully. There will also be no more panicking after being hit by a spell; if you take punishment, try to give some of it back instead of crying for goodness sake--" He noticed his men gazing at him with a look of surprise and fear on their faces. "I said there will be no more scaredy cats, do you hear me?!"
"B-but boss, behind you--!" one of the mercenaries stuttered.
The lieutenant turned around – and stared right into the face of a grinning figure in a priest's clothes, who was hanging in the air upside down; only his dangling cloak touched the pavement.
"Greetings, gentlemen. How do you do?" the strange man said jovially. "Snooping around the inn, aren't we?"
"Eh, another sorcerer?!" the lieutenant snarled, drawing his sword. "I had more than enough of you lot for one day!"
Before he could swing his blade, however, the priest disarmed him with a flick of his hand, turned around in the air, and pushed the man to the wall by his neck, all in less than a second. The rest of the mercenaries were frozen in shock.
"Oh, I fear your day is only going to get worse!" the priest smiled unnervingly, his open eyes taking on a dangerous glint. "I am not a sorcerer, but a mazoku; currently a very moody, bloodthirsty mazoku in fact." Crackling, pitch-black energy appeared at the tip of his staff to emphasize his words. "Right now, I would be quite interested in torturing you until you beg of me to kill you. What do you say to that?"
"H-help?" the lieutenant whimpered.
The other man closed his eyes and dropped him to the ground.
"Why thank you, you cannot imagine how much it means for me to hear that," he beamed, as if the mercenary leader just answered correctly to the million dollar question. "Now let us get down to business. You are the men of this Baron of Evil, correct?"
"Y-Yeah, we are," the lieutenant answered unsurely, "What do you want with him?"
He recoiled in fright as the priest waggled a finger in front of his face.
"That is a secret," he said mysteriously, "but one could say that whatever your master's intentions are with that girl you seek, I think you and I do share some common goals."
Lina chewed solemnly on her fifth steak; Nellie was just picking at her food. After the mazoku priest's abrupt departure several hours ago, the child's mood visibly deflated, and they have spent the time until dinner doing nothing worth of mention.
The sorceress was completely in the dark about what has gotten into Xelloss; the only person she had seen capable of pushing him into such a fit was the dragon priestess Filia, and even that required a day or two of exposure before the mazoku's patience wore thin. She understood that the priest must have been frustrated by his futile attempts to frighten Nellie (although why exactly he wanted to do that so badly was also beyond her), but his reactions looked way too much overboard.
It's probably for the best though, she thought. There was a good reason why Xelloss barely visited us back then: All this parenting stuff must feel hugely boring to him.
"I'm not hungry." Nellie pushed the plate away sulkily.
"I won't have any of that, young lady." The sorceress put it back where it was with a resolute move of her hand. "Food is not something to be taken lightly; you must eat healthy stuff regularly or you'll never become a beautiful sorcery genius like me."
"But--"
"You should listen to her, Nellie-chan, Lina-san does have your best interests in mind."
The sorceress did a double take as she identified the voice's origin: Xelloss sat at the other end of the table like he was there from the beginning – he even got himself a cup of coffee from who-knows-where.
"Uncle Xelloss!" Nellie suddenly brightened.
"So, how was your day while I was away?" the mazoku asked with an innocent smile. The girl was about to answer when Lina interrupted her.
"Hold it right there! What made you come back so fast?" she demanded. "When I heard your usual excuse about 'paperwork', I could have sworn we won't be seeing you until we reach Karthon at the earliest."
"That was by no means an excuse, Lina-san." The priest held up his hands. "I do have an ongoing mission concerning paperwork: I need to find certain papers belonging to certain manuscripts and burn them, as you already know."
"Yes, and I also know you didn't answer the question," the sorceress rewarded him with a flat look.
"Which question? Oh, that little accident before was nothing, I certainly overreacted a bit." Xelloss whisked his hand dismissively. "Water under the bridge, really."
Despite the mazoku's best efforts, Lina was getting increasingly certain that she was seeing a bright, blinking neon label over his head with the words 'UP TO SOMETHING' written on it in huge bold letters. Still, she was also sure that she won't be able to pry anything out of him for the time being.
"Okay, glad to have you back, I guess." She shrugged nonchalantly.
"Say, do you have something planned after dinner?" Now it was the priest's turn to ask. "I have found something in town which will surely interest you – Nellie-chan especially."
"Really?" The little girl's eyes widened, and she lunged at her plate like she had not seen food for days.
"Sorry, Xel, but we're leaving town," Lina said while she leaned back in her chair, hoping to throw a wrench into his plans, whatever they were. "This inn is run by shameless bandits and we wasted too much time here already."
"But Karthon isn't so far away, and an afternoon won't make much of a difference," Xelloss argued patiently. "And frankly, I am certain that once I tell both of you the details, it will become impossible for us not to go there."
I'd like to see that, the sorceress thought confidently, folding her arms.
She really should have known better.
Oh, damn it.
Lina wandered lethargically towards Atlas City's main square through the dense crowd with Nellie and Xelloss in tow, and glanced tiredly at the giant poster pasted on the side of a larger building:
Atlas City's First Annual Fairy Tale Festival
The priest was right, she had to admit; once the little girl heard the news about the event, their fate was sealed.
At least now I know what those strange things were about in the morning, she thought, but this knowledge offered little consolation. Xelloss was definitely trying to do something which they would probably all regret, and at the moment they were doing exactly what he wanted, which the sorceress did not like one bit.
"Thank you!" Nellie grinned from ear to ear as a man dressed as a giant mouse with the text 'Poulsbo Bakery' on his back handed her a chocolate-covered muffin. She devoured it in two bites, and set her sights on a stand with the sign 'Catch the Magic Fish' on top of it. "Grandma, let's go there next!"
"If we stop by every single stand, we'll never get to the main attractions at the town square, you know." Her words falling upon deaf ears, Lina turned the way the girl was pointing. "…Eh, whatever, let's do it."
At least if I can win some big prize for her, we might get out of here faster.
Many children were waiting by the stand with their parents, so they had to get in line, leaving the sorceress time to look around. The game offered here, she knew, was not about catching real goldfish: This variant used unmoving wooden fish with a brass loop on their heads, so they were not all that difficult to catch with the fishing rod given to the player. What really mattered was the hidden number which was written on fish's belly – each of the prizes lined up on the stand had a unique number written on them, and the player would win the one for which he caught the corresponding fish; these ranged from really expensive things to gewgaws not even worth a copper piece.
Lina eyed the four feet wide circular pond next to the stand thoughtfully as she gave the five copper price to the owner.
"Here you go." The middle-aged woman handed a small fishing rod to Nellie. The girl was about to throw the line in to catch the nearest fish right away, when the sorceress put a hand on her shoulder.
"Hold your horses! We wouldn't want to settle with any kind of prize, now do we?" She winked at her. "How about we go for that one?" She pointed to the top of the stand, where a giant teddy bear, almost as big as the child herself, gazed proudly at the people below with a piece of paper holding the number 1 pinned to its fluffy chest.
"Oooh…" That was all Nellie could say as she stared at the humongous toy.
"Okay, just wait a moment, let me devise our strategy." Lina leaned closer to the priest. "You know which fish is the number one, right?" she whispered.
"Naturally." Xelloss nodded.
"And what do you want in return for that info?" the sorceress asked, putting her merchant skills at the ready to strike an acceptable bargain.
"Far more than what you'd be willing to pay, Lina-san." The mazoku ruined her hopes with an evil smile. "It would be cheating, after all."
"Spoilsport," Lina murmured with an annoyed look. "But you know what? I'll do it anyway." She looked over the swarm of fish one last time, and turned back to the child. "Nellie, go around the stand to the other side of the pond and catch that fish right at the opposite end."
"Okay!"
"I'm sorry, but it isn't allowed to circle around," the owner said quickly, trying to block the girl's way.
Hehehe, gotcha!
"What are you talking about?!" snapped the sorceress. "We can choose any fish we want, right? It's not our fault the fishing rod is so short that we can't reach it from here!"
Somewhat intimidated, the women let Nellie through, who shortly returned with the fish in her hands.
"Which one is this, grandma?" She held it up for all to see: the number written on it was none other than a big bold '1'.
"That number just won you a huge teddy bear, sweetheart," Lina said with a grin while Nellie proceeded to jump around, squealing in joy. Small gasps could be heard from around the stand as the owner reluctantly went to find a ladder to get the main prize off the top.
"How do you like that?" the sorceress asked Xelloss, forming a victory-sign with her hand.
"Not too bad, Lina-san," the priest admitted. "But you didn't really know where it was, did you?"
"That's right, but it was also more than just a guess," she said proudly. "That prize attracted a lot of people here, so it was natural that the owners would've wanted it to be given away last. Still, what really decided everything was the woman's reaction. If she didn't panic the way she did, I might have told Nellie to pick a different fish instead--"
"Cheater! She's a cheater!" a young voice yelled from behind them. "I'm sure she has a spell she can catch that fish with!"
"Now Val, I've told you it isn't nice to shout or point at people like that," a more mature sounding female spoke from the same direction.
"Look, it's Nina!" Nellie exclaimed as she turned towards the voices. Although Lina could not know, the person standing a bit farther behind in line indeed looked exactly like one of the heroines in Xelloss' story. A boy with roughly seven years of apparent age stood by her, his clothes plain but well-kept; his shoulder-length fair hair flew by his face irritably as he snapped his head back to glare at the sorceress. She recognized a third familiar face behind them too: An older man with shining blond hair and stark features, dressed entirely in white, and wearing an expression which unmistakably told everyone that he would rather be somewhere else.
"Well I'll be… Filia, Val, and--"
"--Milgazia-san, of all people." the priest finished her sentence, looking equally surprised.
"Ah, h-hi! It's been a while since we've last seen each other, hasn't it, Lina-san?" the girl identified as Filia quickly put on a friendly smile.
"No kidding," Lina said cheerfully as she walked closer to the trio. "It was over five years ago, right? Val sure has grown a lot!"
"Quit making fun of me! We both know I look just like when we last met!" the boy pouted.
"She only tried to compliment you. Speak to her with the respect she deserves," the blond-haired man spoke in a calm but firm voice, which caused Val to immediately shrink back a bit. He then turned to the sorceress. "It is good to see you, Lina, even if I would have preferred our reunion in a less… bustling locale."
"You know how it goes, me and bustling locales are drawn to each other." She grinned. "What brings you here, Milgazia?"
"He just came to accompany us," Filia answered instead of him. "You know we visit Milgazia-sama and his people every few years or so, and we thought it would be nice if we… ehm, stopped by at the fair on our way back, right? It's a unique occasion after all, right?" She shot a quick, almost pleading glance towards the man, who blinked perplexedly for a moment before slowly nodding.
"Really?" The odd interlude did not escape the sorceress' notice.
"No," Milgazia closed his eyes, "the truth is that we are being hunted by a legion of mazoku and our only hope was to take refuge in the city. They might still find and kill us, though," he said grimly.
As Lina's horrified expression showed, that certainly was a reply she did not expect.
"W-What?!" she blurted out.
"I was merely joking," said Milgazia, although his tone and expression did not change at all.
"Ah, Milgazia-san's sense of humor is just the same as ever!" Even though he was only a couple of steps away, Xelloss made a point of teleporting right into the man's face, making him flinch. "And with both of you pretending I'm not even here; the common courtesy of the golden dragon priesthood never fails to amaze me."
"Mom, the raw garbage is here," the boy whispered to Filia just loud enough for everyone to hear, causing the mazoku priest to twitch ever so slightly.
"Not now, Val, he's having a bad day," Lina warned him, but only got an annoyed growl in return.
"Who asked you, cheater?" Val hissed. "There's no way you could have won that prize without doing something fishy! You should give it back!"
"My grandma is not a cheater!" declared Nellie, slowly making her way towards the others, somewhat preoccupied with trying to balance the huge teddy bear on her head.
Her words made everyone quiet, although not exactly because of what she wanted to say.
"Grandmother?" Milgazia repeated unsurely. "But how would--"
The heads of both dragon priests turned abruptly towards the mazoku.
"Xelloss, you fiend!" Filia yelled at him, sounding on the verge of hysterics. "You actually forced yourself on Lina-san decades ago?!"
"Hey, what the heck are you talking about?!" The sorceress snapped, but the priestess apparently did not even hear her.
"So everything I've heard about you two recently were just a cover for your debauched desires?!" she shrieked. "You monster!"
Milgazia did not say anything, but the intense, hateful stare he regarded the priest with spoke volumes.
"I don't know about you, Lina-san, but I very much preferred Officius-san believing us to be married instead of this," Xelloss commented with a pained smile.
"Mom, how about we call him 'the perverted raw garbage' from now on, huh?" Val fanned the flames with glee.
"EVERYONE SHUT UP!!" Lina roared with such intensity that all people in a twenty-feet-radius of the stand grew silent, and now stared at the sorceress questioningly. "Ah, just a small family matter, move along now!" She waved towards the onlookers with an embarrassed look, before turning her attention back to Filia. "She's got nothing to do with Xelloss, so get that outta your heads. Then, um… Let's make a deal, okay? I won't ask why you're really here so you can stop making excuses, and you won't ask about Nellie; I'll probably tell you everything the next time we meet anyway. How about it?"
"…All right," the priestess replied reluctantly. "We were, uhm, about to head towards the… the masquerade contest, so I guess we'll see you all later."
"What's a masquerade, Uncle Xelloss?" Nellie asked the mazoku, looking happy to have stumbled upon some part of the conversation which finally made some sense to her.
"People will be competing on who has the best costume, I presume," the priest answered readily. "Considering the theme of the fair, I guess everyone will try to impersonate a character from fairy tales."
"Wow, that's great! Who will you be, lady?" the little girl asked Filia, who blanched and started stammering once again.
"M-Me? No, the one who'll be taking part is actually…" She glanced at Val, who began to desperately shake his head. "… actually… Yes, Milgazia-sama!" She pointed at the other golden dragon. Milgazia made a face like he just suffered a heart attack.
It's your own fault, I told you both to stop with the spiel, Lina thought, nonetheless feeling a bit sorry for the older dragon. What does Filia want to hide this much?
"Grandma, grandma! Let's go with them! I wanna' see it, please!" Nellie begged the sorceress.
"I'm somewhat interested myself," Xelloss added cheerfully. "I'm sure Milgazia-san will dazzle us with a most memorable performance."
"It looks like the matter is settled then." Lina smirked at the priestess. Her increasing eagerness to find out the Filia's secret made her forget all about Xelloss' supposed plan, and the bunch continued towards the main square in high spirits – at least as far as the humans and mazoku were concerned.
The town square was jam-packed with people, to the extent that made the surrounding streets look deserted. Vendors, artists and other attractions were all around, but the biggest tumult was right at the middle, where a large wooden stage has been built to be used for the plays performed and contests held at the fair – and which was currently occupied by the participants of the masquerade competition. A four-feet tall set, depicting various scenes from famous fairy tales, has been placed at the back, and the contestants showed their costumes before it to the three-man jury, who sat in comfortable chairs right in front the stage, surrounded by countless people – the only reason they were not trampled yet was a batch of city guards who kept the onlookers at bay.
"Nnngh… Whatever happens, Nellie, don't let go of my hand, or you'll be lost in a jiffy," Lina grunted as she pushed her way through the crowd to get to the side of the stage, with Xelloss and the dragons right behind her. It was there where all the contestants gathered – the mass of people made it impossible to follow any kind of signup procedure, so they all just stood in line to get to the stage one at a time, where their names were written down by the jury.
One such contestant was on the stage even as the sorceress got close enough to make out what was happening. Dressed in a green overall with a fake mustache (Lina had no idea which story that was), he waited for the jury's decision, shifting his weight between his two feet anxiously.
"Not bad, I guess," the first of them, a fifty-something looking man with a long graying beard snorted, holding up a sheet of paper with '5' painted on both sides.
"I for one miss any real effort in this," the second judge, a woman with dark hair a narrow, shifty eyes held up a '3'.
"Your style rocks, man, work on it a little and you'll rule!"The third one, a cheerful young man grinned showing as much of his glittering white teeth as possible, and voted a '7'.
What a bunch of weirdoes, Lina thought as they finally arrived to their destination.
"Get ready, Milgazia-sama, once he comes back here, you'll go next!" Filia pointed at the man with the green overall who slowly, dejectedly trudged off stage, and shoved the older dragon towards the stairs at the side.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?!" a man dressed as a giant crab shouted – he was supposed to be next in line. "Wait for your turn, damn it, I've been standing here for hours!"
"I'm sorry, but this is a matter of life and death!" the priestess pleaded. "Please let us go!"
Life and death?!
"Hmph, make up something better next time and get back in line!" the man growled, snapping his pincers threateningly.
Filia's brows furrowed. With a move which made several nearby men blush, she reached under her skirt and pulled out a giant black mace. "I do not want to resort to violence, but I will if I must. Please let us through."
The crab immediately took a few steps back, knocking several other contestants over. "I-I guess I can still wait for a while."
"My, Filia-san is really taking this seriously," Xelloss marveled.
"You think?" The sorceress stared at the priestess incredulously. "Wait Filia, shouldn't Milgazia, you know, get his costume on first??"
"He… He doesn't need one!" she responded hastily.
"Filia, this is getting out of control," Milgazia whispered to her as she pushed him up the stairs. "What do you expect me to do?"
"Anything, Milgazia-sama, as long as it makes the little girl satisfied!" she whispered back, her voice clearly desperate. "I know Lina-san is only here because of her, so then they'll surely leave! The dedication will begin here around sundown, and if Lina-san finds out anything about it… I don't know what will happen, but it's going to be terrible." She shuddered.
"You may have a point," the older dragon muttered, and began walking towards the center of the stage with resolute steps.
"Go, Mr. Milgazia!" Nellie yelled after him – she managed to clamber up to one of the slats to get a good view of the events. "Hey, don't you want to see him?" she turned towards Val, who stood a little farther with his back to the stage.
"No," came the sulky answer. "It's stupid, and I always hated costumes."
"But he's not wearing one!" the little girl insisted. "Plus, he's your mom's friend, so that makes him your friend too, right?"
The boy mumbled something under his breath. Then, after a moment of hesitation he turned around, and climbed up next to Nellie. "But I still think it's stupid," he declared.
Meanwhile, the golden dragon arrived before the jury.
"So, I hear from your fans over there that your name is Milgazia." the female judge said. "Milgazia who, exactly?"
"Just Milgazia." he replied evenly. "My full name would be impossible for you humans to write down or pronounce."
"Us humans?" the third member of the jury snickered. "You waste no time getting 'in character', huh? Totally hardcore!"
"Well, Mr. Just Milgazia, what kind of otherworldly being are you supposed to be?" the woman continued in an unamused tone. "All we see from you at first glance is that you're very… white."
Milgazia straightened, took a deep breath, and spoke to the judges in a proud, eloquent voice:
"I am a golden dragon, the son of the mightiest ryuzoku race in the world. By title, I am also the Supreme Elder of my kin who once served the cause of Aqualord Ragradia. In the War of the Monster's Fall one thousand years ago," he gestured towards the audience, "I battled the horde of mazoku alongside your ancestors, and from then on I strived to lead my people towards a future of peace and unity. In this long journey we face many enemies and hardships," he glanced towards Xelloss for a moment, who waved back to him cheerfully, "but we won't ever give up, and in the end I know we will prevail. This is the only advice I can give to you, humans, as well: persevere, and you will ultimately find that which you seek!" He ended his speech with a louder, dramatic exclamation.
Silence followed his words; the only sound that could be heard from around the stage was Filia's enthusiastic clapping.
"That is nice and all, my boy," the older judge said after a while, stroking his beard, "but if you're a dragon, shouldn't you have a tail, scaly skin, or something like that?"
"I have currently assumed a human shape," Milgazia informed him. "I could transform, but the stage would not support my weight and it would likely scare many people here."
"I see," the old man said with a scowl. "How original."
"He's in human form… Hahaha, that cracks me up!" the third judge howled with laughter.
"Anything else you want to say?" the woman deadpanned. "I mean, aside of the fact that you were too lazy to make yourself a costume?"
"Well, I…" the dragon seemed completely lost in the face of the jury's hostility. He turned to the side to look at Filia for aid, but she was just making exaggerated, flailing gestures with her hands which he could not comprehend – the one thing he understood from them was that it was too early for him to step down. Turning back to the annoyed jury, he forced himself to smile, and said, "In that case… I can tell a few jokes…"
A tiny slap could be heard from a few feet away, as Val agonizedly buried his face into his palm.
"My goodness, most impressive work, Milgazia-san!" Xelloss greeted the dragon as he walked down the stairs of the stage, looking slightly worn. "Who would have thought that it's actually possible to get a negative score in this competition?"
"That was low, Xel," Lina muttered disapprovingly, but her voice was drowned out by the yell of a very angry and frustrated Filia.
"Shut your mouth, mazoku!" She pointed her mace at the priest, although her attempt at intimidation was much less successful this time. "Milgazia-sama did everything he could! It's not like you would have been any better off!"
"You think so, Filia-san?" Xelloss said in a challenging manner. His human projection blurred for a second, then solidified again. Not wanting to make a stir, the mazoku let his hair, body and clothes remain the same, but Filia, who was looking straight at him, saw her own face, framed by the priest's shoulder-length dark hair, smiling deviously back at her.
"What do you think?" as he spoke, the priestess was shocked to hear the sound of her own voice as well. "Do you still have doubts that I could convincingly play the part of, let's say, the short-tempered and self-righteous golden dragon named Filia Ul Co--?"
"No, don't say it!" she gasped, tackling the surprised mazoku to the ground, and putting her free hand over his mouth; her eyes darted over the crowd in panic.
"Oh dear, if I had known that your name recently became a curse, Filia-san, I would have been more careful," Xelloss somehow managed to say unhindered, with his voice and features now returned to their usual state, before he slid out of the dragoness' grip with ease.
Nellie watched the quarrel between the two with a wondering look. "Why do Uncle Xelloss and Miss Filia fight like that?" she asked the boy next to her.
"Because your uncle is a sadist who likes to pick on people." Val made no effort to hide his distaste towards the girl's supposed relatives. "A sadist and a cheater; I guess he and your grandmother really deserve each other."
"Aww, why do you keep saying that?" With a new, surprisingly naughty glint in her eyes, Nellie smiled at him. "You wanted to get that teddy bear from the stand, too?"
"No!" the boy denied a bit too vehemently. "I am a century old ancient dragon, not some immature kid! I don't need childish stuff like that anymore--!"
The girl jumped down from her perch and grabbed the huge bear she left there leaning against the woodwork of the stage.
"Here, you can take it." She offered the enormous stuffed toy up to Val.
The boy was rendered completely speechless for a moment while his face turned bright red.
"Ahm…T-Thanks," he muttered weakly as he took the bear from her hands.
"Next contestant, please!" the female judge's impatient voice sounded from beneath the crowd. "We don't have all day here!"
The man in the crab suit, who spent the last few minutes staring at Filia's mace with increasing curiosity, now took an uncertain step forward – but immediately stepped back when he saw the brown-haired sorceress approaching the stage.
"Lina-san, don't tell me you want to take part as well…?" Her squabble with Xelloss made the dragoness even less able to contain or hide her anxiety, and now she sounded positively scared. "You also have no costume, and you saw how dreadful Milgazia-sama fared!"
The sorceress turned her head back as she climbed the stairs to look at the priestess. "I don't want to make the same mistake," she said with confidence. "But you know, after I thought about it a bit, I realized his idea wasn't that bad at all. It just needs a little tweaking and victory is guaranteed! There is a prize for the winner of the contest, right?"
"I… guess so," Filia admitted with some reluctance.
"Then it's as good as mine!" Lina exclaimed, and continued towards the center of the stage.
Sorry, but after all the insanity you pulled off, I'm not going anywhere until I get to the bottom of this. She smirked. And judging from your outbursts, time seems to be on my side.
"You can do it, grandma! Show 'em!" Nellie cheered. Xelloss stepped closer to the stage as well with an expectant look on his face, and watched the sorceress with an intensive stare.
"What are we going to do, Milgazia-sama?" the priestess spoke to the older dragon, her voice wavering. "It looks like they don't want to leave anytime soon!"
"How about telling them the truth?" Milgazia said with a sigh. "Hearing it from you won't be as bad as Lina finding it out on her own, you know that."
"But--" Filia stammered. "But I--"
"Mom, mom!" The dragoness was more than happy to let herself be distracted by the confused-sounding Val.
"What is it, dear?"
The boy held the big bear in his arms, and kept looking at it like it was some horribly cursed artifact. "Nellie gave this to me; what should I do?? She probably lured me into a trap, and now I am obliged to her and everything… I don't want to be her boyfriend!"
While the priestess laughed for the first time that day and tried to calm the young ancient dragon, Lina stood before the jury with a confident posture and an arrogant smile in place.
"Howdy!" She waved to them.
"Greetings, lady. Tell us your name, please," the bearded man asked.
The sorceress' smile widened.
"It's Lina Inverse," she stated simply.
"He asked about your real name, but whatever," The female judge wrote 'Lina Inverse #14' to the bottom of her list. "Come a little closer, will you?"
"My, would you look at that…" The old man rose from his seat as he gazed at the intricate black and white patterns on the sorceress' clothes in wonder. "Magically enhanced, fire-resistant fabric – this outfit must be worth a fortune!"
"And those shoulder guards look pretty funky too, whoa! She's not joking around," the third judge added.
A wave of murmurs ran through the crowd, as the onlookers tried to get closer to the stage to look at the unique 'costume'.
Well, you know what they say: it can't get any better than the real thing, Lina thought with satisfaction as she basked in the attention.
"Yes, it's a pretty decent effort, I admit," the other woman folded her arms. "But the clothes aren't everything: Her hair, for instance, looks pretty boring."
Lina's smile faltered considerably.
"Well, I must say that I'm also somewhat partial to the blond, curly Lina Inverse who appears in the Legend of the Orihalcon Golem," the older man nodded. "I think it would look better here, too."
"Not to mention her figure gives Lina's character a really flat twist, if you know what I mean," the young judge snickered.
"Excuse me?!" the sorceress bellowed.
"Now don't take it too hard," the old man spoke as he saw her darkened expression, "your costume does look outstanding for such an amateurish competition like this one." One of Lina's eyebrows twitched. "All in all, from what we have seen so far, you can easily win with it. So go on, Miss Inverse, don't fret; just show us what you can do."
Who's fretting?! These people piss me off! And what did he mean by 'showing what I can do'? Do they expect me to act like… myself?!
She let out a long breath, trying to calm herself down.
Very well, I guess I can do that. If they want some famous Lina Inverse lines delivered by yours truly, they're going to get them!
Putting her arrogant smile back into place, the sorceress pointed at the crowd, and spoke with cheerful determination:
"Where monsters rampage, I'm there to take them down! Where treasure glitters, I'm there to claim it!" She punched a clenched fist into the air. "Where an enemy rises to face me, victory will always be mine!"
While the audience did not break out in applause, her words made the crowd somewhat noisier, which Lina interpreted as a good sign.
That felt kinda nostalgic. She put her hands behind her head contentedly. Please send the bouquets of roses to my dressing room, thank you--!
"Now that was simply pathetic," the second judge snapped indignantly.
"Eh?" the sorceress leaned forward to get closer to the jury. "Sorry, could you say that again? I almost thought I heard something about being pathetic--"
"You heard it right!" the other woman answered in a spiteful voice. "There is no way someone like Lina Inverse would say those famous lines so horribly!"
"No kidding, man!" the third judge piped in. "Don't you know what kind of a gal Lina Inverse is? She's full of this… this raw energy that blows your socks off! She's a typhoon! A hurricane! Pure emotion, baby!"
"And as much as I hate to say," the old man took up the word, "your performance sounded more like that of a woman twice my age reminiscing about 'the good old times', if anything."
"W… Wu… Wa…" Lina stammered. "WHAAAAAT??!!"
"Perhaps you think otherwise?" the female judge smirked provocatively.
"You bet I do, you stuck-up, arrogant snobs!!" The sorceress roared. "What do you know about me, seriously?! You think you've read a few bedtime stories and now you're omniscient?! Who gave you the right to--" While she proceeded to yell the jury's head off, one of her supporters also gave voice to her displeasure.
"They can't talk to my grandma like that! They're being mean, aren't they, Uncle Xelloss?" Nellie asked the mazoku furiously.
"Lina-san needs to learn, if she hadn't already, that what she is and what people think of her are two very different things," the priest answered with a carefree smile. "She only suffers what she brought upon herself."
"But why are you so happy about that?" the child said, sounding slightly hurt. "You and Grandma Lina like each other! Do something!"
"What is the matter, are you bored perhaps?" Xelloss retorted, ignoring her words. "Don't worry, I did not forget about you. We're going to have lots of fun very soon – or one of us will, at least." He threw a wicked grin in the girl's direction.
Nellie stared at the priest in disbelief for a second, than sadly hung her head.
"You're still mad at me, right?" she muttered. "And at Grandma Lina, too…"
"I would appreciate it if you'd leave Lina-san out of this," the mazoku said, his voice becoming somewhat irritated. "I see no reason why your infuriating persistence to annoy me would have anything… to do… with…"
His words slowly died away; Xelloss stared off into space, his eyes widening.
"Persistence?" he whispered. "No, t-this cannot be right." He looked from the little girl to the raging sorceress and back, and for the first time Nellie saw genuine consternation taking hold of his features. "Impossible… Could it really be that--"
With a sudden movement, he leapt onto the stage.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" Filia called after him, looking up from her talk with Val just in time to see the mazoku make his way towards Lina.
"I made a mistake, and now I will attempt to correct it," the priest said without turning back.
Meanwhile, the sorceress was about to put a literally explosive end to her tirade.
"--And another thing! Do you want me to show you what a 'pure emotion', 'raw energy' Lina Inverse would do if you treat her like this?! Take a darn good look!!" Gritting her teeth, she cupped her hands in front of her chest. "Darkness beyond twilight, crimson beyond blood that flows--"
"That is as far as you will go." A wooden staff with a red jewel on top of it was thrust in front of her face, startling her enough to halt the incantation.
"What do you want, Xelloss?!" she sneered. "Can't you see I'm bu--…--sy…?" As the sorceress turned her head towards him, the gathering red mass of energy between her hands instantly blinked out, in reaction to her surprise.
The mazoku was wearing a mask. It was a very simple one made from a colored sheet of durable paper, attached to his head with a string - but while such things were available in hundreds of variations all over the fair, Lina was pretty sure this particular type was not sold anywhere: it depicted the terrifying, demonic face of Dark Star Dugradigduin unnerving detail; the only thing which ruined effect was the fact that the Demon Lord on the mask seemed to be sticking its tongue out at her.
"All will end right here, right now, Lina Inverse," the priest spoke in a deepened, overly dramatic voice. "I will fulfill my desire to rebuild the world from the ground up, and this time I will not let you get in the way. In fact, I am going to prove to you that the previous one-thousand-two-hundred-and-thirty-four occasions when you foiled my plans were nothing but simple coincidences!"
Some chuckles could heard from the crowd; the sorceress just stared at him with eyes bulged.
"Xel, w-what are you --?"
"Silence! I will not allow you to tarnish my reputation any longer!" the mazoku's voice became even more out of proportion. "It is already bad enough that Death Fog and Chaotic Blue are talking among themselves about how incompetent I am, and calling me, the very essence of evil and darkness, certain names behind my back." He shuddered theatrically. "Most horrible names, such as 'Dark Star, the shining beacon of hope'! Or 'Dark Star, the friend of all living things'! Or even 'Dark Star, the humanitarian'! Oh, the inhumanity of it all!"
Sounds of laughter came from all around the audience as the priest pointed an accusing finger at Lina.
"But this will end now!" he shouted. "There is no way you can escape my inescapable plan! I waited patiently for the moment when you are the most vulnerable: you already foiled two world-threatening plots this week, meaning you must feel at least a little tired! Now, prepare to taste my vengeance, which will cut into you like knife into a bowl of jelly!" He pointed his staff at the sorceress, raised his other hand into the air as if assuming some kind of ballet posture, and yelled, "GIANT FIERY SHOWER OF DOOM!"
A puff of smoke rose from the ground next to Lina.
"Ah, she evaded it!" Xelloss cried out, putting his free hand to his chest – needless to say the girl standing right in front of him was too dumbfounded to even move a muscle. "But be still, my heart; it is only to be expected from a sorceress of such 'raw energy' to dodge my attack! The next one, however, will surely be your end!"
Another puff of smoke appeared, now several feet behind her.
While many of the onlookers, Nellie included, were now rolling on the floor, the trio of dragons witnessed the scene with jaw-dropping bafflement.
"It's official: the raw garbage has gone nuts," Val said to no one in particular. All Filia could do was to nod.
What neither of them noticed was the man in the crab costume, who for the longest time paid little attention to the events on the stage – what he still kept staring at was the dragoness and her mace.
"Can she be her?" the man whispered. "It's a long shot… but there is no harm in giving it a try, I guess."
"Excuse me, Miss Filia – that is your name, right?" he said, cautiously stepping closer to the priestess. "Can you tell me why you included that purple elf into the 'Tower in the Snow'?"
"You mean the elf of mysteries?" Filia spoke absent-mindedly without thinking or turning her head; her eyes and thoughts were glued to the surreal scene on the stage. "The characters in my stories are usually inspired by people I know, and there was a--" Her eyes widening in realization, she quickly put a hand to her mouth. "Oh, no!!"
She instantly knew it was too late. The crab-man stumbled back a step like he was hit by something, but then he shouted in an ecstatic voice:
"It's really her, I can't believe it! Everyone, she's here! Filia Ul Copt, the Queen of Fairy Tales is right here!!"
The dragoness screamed.
In the same moment, Xelloss' fifth 'ultimate devastating attack' resulted in yet another small, harmless cloud of smoke somewhere in the sorceress' vicinity.
"Unthinkable! How can someone be capable of such skill? You are but a mere human!" the priest moaned with the credibility of the worst ham actor. "No, don't say a word, Lina Inverse! As I look into your eyes, the eyes which know neither fear nor hesitation, I can already tell: Their never wavering will alone can bring me to my knees. Don't look at me! Ah, I cannot endure the pain!" He dropped his staff, raising his hands bitterly towards the sky. "All my plans are for naught, evil never stands a chance – oh, what a cruel and unfair world do we live in, indeed!"
He ended his over-the-top monologue by toppling down to the stage like a log, and remained there, unmoving.
The sorceress suddenly felt that all eyes were on her, expectantly waiting what she would do next.
"What are you looking at?!" she snapped perplexedly at the audience. "I didn't do anything!"
The crowd once again broke out in laughter, and shortly afterwards, in thunderous applause. Hearing this, the mazoku removed his mask and slowly got off the ground. He smiled gently at the sorceress.
"Great punch line, Lina-san," he said. "I didn't overdo it too much, it seems."
"W-What did you do just now, exactly?" the sorceress stuttered.
"By myself? Nothing." Xelloss winked at her. "This is a two-person show, after all. Now, for instance," he took Lina by the hand, "we shall bow."
With that, he leaned forward, the sorceress hesitantly following his lead, while the audience's cheer magnified many fold.
"Holy moly!" the third judge exclaimed. "I don't know what that was, but it looked totally radical!"
"Astounding! I finally understand!" the older member of the jury said in awe. "What we thought was bad acting, the catchphrase, the yelling and now this – it was all actually a parody of Lina Inverse and her unrealistic and silly legends! It's pure genius!"
"Group scenes were not allowed by the competition rules," the female judge started sternly, but then gave a sigh."However, I have no choice but to bow before such an exceptional talent at humoresque."
She held up the paper depicting ten points; the two other members of the jury quickly followed suit.
"Making a fool of myself wasn't really what I had in mind," Lina muttered, scratching her head. Still, as she looked towards the priest, a tiny smile appeared in the corner of her lips. "Regardless, I gotta hand it to you, Xel. I've seen you fooling around a few times, but I can't believe you did that."
"Hmm, perhaps I can't either," Xelloss replied cheerfully, but the sorceress could also hear a strange kind of restraint in his voice. "Still, I just realized that we may not be on speaking terms with each other for a while, so I think it was worth it." He knitted his brows slightly, and spoke in a lower voice, almost to himself. "It is startling how I mixed up the two of you. I only have one possible explanation, but the chances for that are simply ridiculous… I guess I will find out soon enough."
"Xelloss, what the heck are you talking about? Stop speaking in riddles for once!" Lina said hurriedly; the rare melancholy in the priest's tone was beginning to make her truly worried.
I knew he was planning something! But what??
"Oh my, look, it seems Filia-san has become a grand attraction herself!" The mazoku turned towards the side of the stage without answering. Against her better judgment, the sorceress glanced in the same direction – and when she snapped her head back, Xelloss was no longer there.
"Darn it!!" She stomped her foot in anger.
"Wow, that's one crazy trick, he just blinked out like that!" the younger judge commented. "If I didn't know all about the stuff you can pull off on stage, maybe I'd say he really is a mazoku!"
I guess these people are better off stupid – the truth would probably overload their brains, Lina thought with disgust as she hurried down the stairs of the stage.
"Let me through before I blast you away, damn you!" she growled, edging through the mass of people who surrounded the dragoness. "Xelloss might have gotten away, Filia, but you won't! I had enough of secrets for today; I want to hear what is going on here right now!"
"T-This is not what it l-looks like, Lina-san!" The priestess had to struggle to even turn her face towards the sorceress. Men and women of all ages were clinging to her, yelling, and shoving all kinds of books into her face, from small paperbacks to bigger, hard covered ones – what all of them had in common was the writer's name on the cover, 'Filia Ul Copt'.
"Filia-sama, I can't believe I finally get to see you!" one of them squealed. "Sign my book, please!"
"Mistress Filia, I grew up on your stories!" another one yelled. "And you're still so young! Is what the rumors say really true? Are you the incarnation of Aqualord Ragradia?"
"You're the greatest writer ever, Filia!"
"Miss Ul Copt, marry me!"
Not what it looks like, she says? What does this look like, exactly??
Tried as she might, Lina couldn't get close – the priestess was surrounded by an impenetrable living wall. She thought about fulfilling her earlier threat and scattering the crowd with a loud Burst Rondo, when the voice of the older dragon stopped her.
"Filia is the author of several successful fairy-tale anthologies." Milgazia stood next to Lina; his eyes were on the struggling dragoness as he spoke. "She was invited here by the organizers of the fair to take part in a dedication event later today."
"…You're joking again, right?" Lina let out a small forced laugh.
"I am not." The dragon elder shook his head. "It all started with the so-called 'bedtime stories' she told Val; while such things aren't known to our kind, the boy lives mostly among you, so he requested it. And obviously, during the last century Filia had plenty of time to hone her skills as a storyteller."
"One day, a neighbor heard Mom telling me one of the stories," the young ancient dragon joined the conversation; his disinterested expression suggested that he was seeing such a scene for the umpteenth time. "She told her that she should write them down, and then made a copy for herself. The people in town liked the stories so much that they began copying them among each other, and a little later those papers reached a real printing house in Zephiel City. Things went kinda insane after that."
The sorceress stared at the surrounded golden dragon with her mouth hanging slightly open.
"I understand what you're saying, but… Filia, a writer??" she whispered. "What are her stories about?"
Both Milgazia and Val fell suspiciously silent. As she looked from one to the other, the sorceress spotted a book on the ground; someone must have dropped it in their haste, and now it was already trampled over by countless fans. Filia found a tiny crack in her organic prison just in time to see Lina reach down, dust it off a bit, and open it at the table of contents.
"No, stop!!" she screamed, using her draconic strength to thrust a dozen people aside, and ran to the sorceress. "Lina-san, there's nothing interesting in it, I swear!" She sounded like she was pleading for mercy. "Please, please don't read it!"
"Oh stuff it already; I'm only checking out the story titles!" Lina replied as she skimmed through the page curiously. "Let's see… The Adventures of Mina the Sorceress." She grinned. "Hey, that's what Nellie was talking about earlier! …The Girl Who Slew Monsters with Her Laugh – wait, is that Naga?? … The Princess and the Grumpy Chimera... What do you know, it's Amelia and Zel! This is great! And the next one is… uhm…"
She slowly raised her head from the book, her eyes fixed on Filia, who shrunk back instantly.
"The Greediest Sorceress in the World?!" she read the words in disbelief. "The Fearsome Dragon Spooker?! ... The Two Adventurers Who Ate So Much That They Exploded??!"
"Please believe me, Lina-san, I didn't know these tales would end up like this!" the dragoness wailed. "They were just small, innocent bedtime stories, honest--" Her sentence ended abruptly as she heard a sound she never thought she would.
Lina was laughing. It was not an angry, ominous cackle either, but honest, unbridled mirth.
"Hehehe, they exploded!" She slapped her forehead. "Haha, that's a good one!"
"Y-You mean you're not mad?" Val asked incredulously.
"I don't know, it's kind of endearing for some reason," the sorceress admitted. "You know, when I was travelling around with Naga, it almost happened for real. I forced myself to eat even more than usual, hoping to pick up some weight here and there. It felt like I could explode at any moment, but I never got heavier by a pound, hehe!"
Milgazia gave a pleased nod. "You see, Lina has no problems with it," he told the priestess. "It looks like there wasn't any reason to be so nervous after all."
"Although, Filia," there was something dangerous in Lina's smile now as she looked at her, "if I had found my name written in there too, we'd be having a very different conversation right now, I hope you know that."
"Or maybe there was," the older dragon quickly corrected himself.
"Y-Yes, Lina-san, I u-understand," Filia stuttered, still in fright, but her voice noticeably calmer with the sense of imminent doom gone.
"Anyway," the sorceress said as she closed the book, "I think I know someone in our company who'd appreciate your work more than any of us. Did you hear this, Nellie?" She glanced around, looking for the girl. "Filia is a fairy tale genius! Maybe you should ask her to tell you a few-- Hey, where is that kid?"
She spun around a few times, but to no avail; as far as her eyes could see in the dense crowd, Nellie was nowhere to be found.
"She was there right next to the stage when Mom was run down by all those people," Val spoke unsurely, glancing from the teddy bear in his arms to the spot he mentioned, which was now empty save for a few bystanders.
"Come here sweetheart, this is not the time to play games! Nellie!" Lina yelled worriedly, not receiving any answer. Her eyes were frantically scanning the crowd over and over in vain; she could not see farther than twenty feet or so, and even that view got more and more obscured by the incoming second wave of Filia's fan army. The sorceress gritted her teeth. "Alright, that's it! BOMB DI WIND!"
An immensely powerful gust of wind boomed forth of her extended arm, depositing those in its way on the other side of the town square. The stage creaked painfully in the sudden hurricane, the set tumbling over; sounds of people screaming and cursing filled the air. The city guards stationed next to the stage tried to make their way towards Lina, but she blew them away with a second casting of the spell, and repeated the process until most of the square's center was empty. While it was not obvious at first glance, she had more in mind than just making room: She manipulated the spell's form so its effects never extended below her shoulder line, meaning those of lower height remained unaffected.
Come on Nellie, you have to be here somewhere!
To her disappointment, however, the area she swept clean was indeed almost completely empty. Only a couple of Filia's books littered the ground, dropped by their owners during their sudden trip through the air. Some of the pages were even torn out by the wind, but as the sorceress looked over the scene once more with growing anxiety, she noticed a piece of paper among them which looked somewhat out of place.
After she ran to it to pick it up, her suspicion was confirmed: the sheet was slightly creased and its edges were purposely blackened to achieve an aged impression – this piece was never part of any book. Scribbled on it hastily were just a few lines of barely legible text; as she began to read, her eyes slowly narrowed into ruby-colored slits.
To Mina the Sorceress,
We got your kid. If you want to have her back, you have to take her from us. You can find our base not far from here at the Pleasantlyrich Estate. Come if you dare.
Yours faithfully,
The Baron of Evil
As she finished reading, Lina noticed the two golden dragons peering over her shoulder, while Val tried to lean in from the side.
"Nellie was kidnapped??" Filia whispered, looking aghast.
"Is this Xelloss' doing?" Milgazia asked, only half-heartedly trying to hide his anger.
"Judging from how he just disappeared, it sure looks like it, but this ugly-looking letter isn't his style." The sorceress crumpled the paper in her hands furiously. "I didn't pay enough attention, damn it! All this stuff about Xelloss being moody, Filia being secretive, the fair and the oddball contest made me totally forget that these guys were still looking for Nellie! And by coming to this square full of people, I actually served them the perfect opportunity on a silver platter! Stupid, stupid, stupid!!"
"Lina-san," Filia stood in front of her, "let me go with you. I know where the Pleasantlyrich Estate is, the three of us passed by it on our way here."
"You know where they are?" The sorceress' head snapped up in surprise.
"Yes, but that's not all. You saw the greeting on the message, right?" The dragoness' looked her in the eye, her tone determined, all previous anxiety gone. "It wasn't addressed to you, but to Mina the Sorceress – the main character of one of my stories. Whoever they are, the kidnappers want something from me as well."
"That could be true, but our names are awfully similar," Lina argued. "The whole thing was written down pretty quickly from the looks of it… it could have been a mistake."
"I don't think it was," Val piped in. "After Mina defeats the trolls of the Evil Overlord, the bad guy sends her a very similar letter to lure her into a trap. Even the paper looked old and creased just like in the story!"
The sorceress still did not look convinced, but Milgazia cut short any further attempts at debate.
"Lina, we better decide things quickly, it looks like you've managed to anger the local human authorities," he said, gesturing towards the stage. While they have been arguing, several units of city guards had arrived as reinforcements, and were using the wooden structure for cover as they edged closer, swords drawn.
Like that stage would stop any of my spells… No, forget it. There are other people I want to take out my anger on right now, anyway.
"As long as you'll get me to the kidnappers, I don't care about the details, so lead the way!" Lina declared quickly.
"Right! Milgazia-sama, please look after Val," Filia asked the older dragon as she closed her eyes and spread her arms, her face becoming lined with effort.
"Of course, don't worry. We'll meet you at the inn in the evening." Milgazia gave a small reassuring nod to the dragoness and put his hand on the boy's shoulder.
"Hey wait, I want to go too--!" Before Val could finish, the two disappeared in a flash of golden light.
In the same moment, the priestess let out a robust yell. Her form began to shine brightly and grow, while the sound of her voice became echoed and louder – no longer the voice of a human, but the roar of a dragon. The guards halted their advancement, and watched in terror as she spread her two enormous, scaled wings, covering half of the town square in shadow.
I don't know about Val, but Filia had grown bigger since I've last seen her like this.
"Hop on, Lina-san," the dragoness' voice boomed as she leant her head down to the ground. "I've never been within the estate itself, so I can't teleport us there – I might have to search a little from the air to find it."
"Who'd want to miss a ride like that?" Lina grinned and jumped on Filia's back, grabbing on to the fine, hair-like scales on her head to steady herself. The priestess flapped her wings, creating yet another windstorm, and slowly took off the ground.
Half of the guests of Atlas City's First Annual Fairy Tale Fair looked on in both awe and fear as the great golden dragon disappeared into the sky – the other half just cheered on like mad.
"Wow, look at that! Filia-sama is a real dragon! Isn't she dreamy??"
End of Part Two.