The bamboo forests surrounding Yamatai Village were rustling with an unusual activity as large groups of soldiers and monsters were methodically combing through the area. Some of them were wearing the conic hat typical to the region of Yamatai, but others were wearing the standard Noah heavy armor, and a few of them were even using the pouched jackets used by Grangold's engineers. While they weren't holding their weapons at the ready, the ambiance was heavy thanks to recent events.
Taran himself was one of the soldiers dispatched by Grangold in hope that his experience with makinas could help should they suffer an unfortunate encounter. Deep down, he was concerned that said experience would prove as useless as it did these last months. It hadn't helped him much when a brainwashing spell affected the whole region, nor was it useful when the Succubus Queen blitzed through Gold Fort not long after, reducing him to a moaning mess in the blink of an eye without even touching him. His makina mastery only proved passably useful when spiders had swarmed Grangold, and it had done nothing for him when those otherworlder succubi attacked Lady's Village. They helped afterward when they had to restore order, but today… he hoped that he wouldn't need to resort to them.
He was accompanied by a pair of local guard just as competent as him, and a kitsune kunoichi was scouting ahead of the group for any sign of monsters. After a while,they arrived in sight of a wooden cabin into a very small clearing. The kunoichi raised her hand, and they stopped. They could only hear the reassuring faraway sound made by other patrols, and Taran hoped that the monster's additional skills would warn them of any ambush. He occasionally kept an eye on the sky to make sure that no monster would come from above when a snark-filled chuckle brought his attention back to the ground.
"You really think watching the treetop will help?" The old Noah guard spat on the ground before looking at him again, visibly amused. "Even if you have an eye on them, those succubi can get on top of you and finish you before you realize it. Innuendo intended."
Taran groaned. "Samuel, if you spent more time in the arena to fight than to get laid, maybe you would be able to react in time and not be another one of your champion's toy."
"As if I would care… I'm fine with enjoying any opportunity I can get. You should learn to do the same before you die." Samuel simply laughed good-heartedly again.
The kitsune in front of them gestured for them to come closer. She made a series of hand signals to indicate them that the house was empty, but that they should still remain careful. Taran readied his gun while his other partners readied a spear and a katana. At least, they still treated this place as a threat with a level of discipline expected from decent soldiers. The kunoichi made several quick symbols with her hands, and the door slowly opened in an ominous creek. Taran and his partners waited for a minute, and once they were sure that no monster would rush them like some sort of vengeful spirits, they entered the cabin one after the other. When Taran finally entered the place, he gagged: a pungent, perfectly identifiable smell reached his nostrils. He could only appreciate that his partners kept their composure as they examined the scattered furniture around.
"It smells like rancid fuck." The old guard looked displeased, but barely nonplussed by the smell. "Like a beast in heat jumping some people. Probably a horny marauding monster exploiting the vulnerability of an unwary group." He turned toward his partner from Yamatai. "You said they were nearly sucked dry and traumatized?"
The guard nodded. "They kept muttering about a horny purple demon-beast punishing them for their lust."
Taran frowned. "I already heard about that. Some guild mercenaries hospitalized in Grangold were also madly ranting about an identical purple beast that violated them."
And pushing them on the info only got him terrified whimpers. He still remembered how some of his friends looked utterly broken despite being just as strong-willed as any elite soldier. The sight of emaciated, barely functional humans was one he would not forget anytime soon. While they were rapidly healed on a physical level, rehabilitating them on the mental one was going to take months.
"I hope they're the same… And by that I mean that there's only one of these around. I don't know if she got woken up by that recent mess or if she just decided to stop being subtle, but a beast roaming around freely like that is bad news." The guard frowned. "She attacked random, isolated targets far from each other, so it's not just a monster guarding its territory… Something tells me that she's not quite just a dumb beast if I can say so…"
The kitsune clapped once. She showed the intact door, then the insides of the room: wooden splinters were scattered around in an inward arc, with bigger ones visibly coming from a table. Samuel snickered under his breath.
"So our evil beast is kind enough to oh so gently fix the door that she destroyed… I wonder why she didn't fix the rest of the furniture as well?"
"Because she didn't need to." Taran walked outside. "The cabin has no windows. You can't see anything from the outside. If the door was still missing, then someone would have noticed and quickly discovered them. Instead, we only heard about it when her victims recovered and ran to Yamatai Village, leaving her all the time to flee."
The kitsune nodded in agreement. She then pointed at a stairway that descended into the darkness, then at her nose before crossing her arms.
"Awww, someone's bothered by the smell?" Samuel chuckled again before his smile decomposed. "I… actually understand why. I'm not sure I want to go down myself if it's only to get bathed in that smell."
"It's part of the job." Taran sighed before stepping forward while fiddling with a magic crystal. "I guess I'll do it myself then, if you can assure me there are no traps…"
The kunoichi soberly nodded again. As he slowly descended, Taran wondered why their kitsune companion didn't talk. The other ones he saw back in Grangold were able to, even if they were gloomy partners. Right now, she just looked ridiculous.
The basement itself was exactly as he expected: a dug-out cave permeated in a stuffy sickening sexual scent, furniture that looked like it got ran over, and some dried-out fluid stains best left unidentified. Once he was sure that nothing or nobody would come out from the walls, he climbed back up under the inquisitive gazes of his partners.
"There's nothing worth mentioning down there. It stinks. Fuck happened. Nothing remains. That's it."
His companions looked almost disappointed to not have discovered something more scandalous. "Let's join back the others and report."
The remainder of the mission went out unremarkably as Taran and his team returned to the bulk of the group. Nobody had seen any other sign of unusual monster attack or another otherworld monster altogether. He himself only distractedly followed the debriefing session even when they were told that the monster in question had been captured by the hero Luka and his companions after another epic battle. He only felt his brain reconnect when they were given free permission as it identified the possibility to drown itself in sake.
He ended up sitting at a table outside the pub with Samuel, the remainder of their team gone for their own reasons as the two men started enjoying the oriental alcohol.
"That's the stuff…" Taran smacked his lips as he discovered the unusual taste. "Forget Grangold's fancy cocktails, this is where it's at."
"I admit it…" Samuel served himself another drink that he instantly gulped down. "I prefer that over that old red Noah wine. And after spending half the day scouring the region clean of monster marauders, we deserve that."
"Yeah… Wait, I thought it was to make sure that no one could spy on Yamatai and its surroundings for whatever reason?"
Samuel shrugged. "Doesn't matter. We got paid either way." He served Taran again, almost making the latter's drink overflow. "Drink up, and forget about it."
Taran accepted the offer, but his mind still held on this difference as if it was the most precious information in the world. The region had slightly suffered from the invasion from the Land of Night, but it was months ago and had been mostly quickly dealt with… Was that an after-effect, or the forthcoming of worse news?
The new quickly traversed the whole world from word of mouth. As the story was repeated and spread through Sentora, it became distorted more and more, whether it was for the sake of sensationalism or simply because of bad understanding. It ultimately mattered little, as its metamorphosis reached its final stage at the same time it entered the mouth of Iliasburg's inhabitants. Naturally, it was the first subject of conversation in the general store as the men and women going on with their daily lives shared any gossips. Two men wearing thick brown travelling coats, hats and backpacks were trying to whisper to one another, but they were so enthusiastic that everybody around could hear them. A blond woman wearing a white cotton dress was distractedly listening to them while browsing the inventory in front of her.
« I swear, I heard it from Amy who heard it from a friend who heard it from a soldier of Grand Noah! A whole house was found filled with nothing but the bodies of dead young people!"
"No way… and nobody could save them? What about the legendary hero Luka?"
The first man shrugged. "He and his team investigated. They said the responsible was duly punished." The man suddenly chuckled. "It's a shame. I would have loved to see her myself!"
Eri smirked slightly. It sounded good for business. Besides her weaving and merchant activity, she was also doing some Battle Fucking on the side, challenging men's endurance for a small sum of gold. Some people saw it as prostitution, but she didn't care. They always ended up seeing her eventually. She focused back on the order of the day and finished her own purchases before she decided to strike small talk with the merchant.
"Did you get news about the small Vampire Girl that had been here for the time? Even if she wasn't skilled, she was pretty cute…"
The merchant smiled. "Ah, she decided to strike out and follow the hero Luka a long time ago already. Still, she had sent me a letter to thank me for being the very first person to teach her anything and offered me this." He showed a lightning amulet hanging around his neck. He then looked up with a grimace on his face. "Then I heard that she's become the Vampire Queen's personal financial advisor after she helped her open a pub, and she made a deal to get a share of profits from the Yamatai Night Festival happening this year in exchange for her assistance. The girl came quite a long way from when she simply sold the trash she found on the ground. I guess she met a lot of people thanks to her travels."
"Wow…" Eri was impressed. She hesitated to do the same, but systematically hearing about the ongoing crisis in the world made for so many cold showers. Whether it was the unusually numerous monster attacks or the anomalous weather, there was no way she could safely go out alone on her own.
Maybe I will be able to travel the world if I become stronger or find some protection… I wish I could do like that vampire and join the hero. But there's no way he would invite someone like me.
The woman packed her items and returned to her home with an additional load of soaps and rags. The con of her side activity was that her living room required more cleaning than one usually would. When she returned to her home, there already were a few men waiting in line to "challenge" their endurance. Eri giggled. Some of them were regular customers now. After entering, she quickly set up her tools for her later work before her challengers worked up themselves too much and made her fights too easy. Once she found her place presentable, she peeked outside with her usual smile.
"To whom first?"
The men in question nearly came to blows before they managed to find an agreement to not inconvenience their favorite lady, making Eri giggle again.
The morning ended up being like so many others in her life, as she alternated between both activities. She was finishing lunch, happily humming over a cup of tea while when some commotion between a man and a woman on the porch of her house attracted her attention. The discussion happening was so loud she could easily understand everything, and it sounded like more than the usual banter between a married couple.
"I'm not doing it for the pleasure, I swear! Stop treating me like some sort of depraved pervert!"
"But you are a depraved pervert, Luka-boy! Don't try to deny it, I can say what you did in the Yamatai Hot Spring…" The feminine voice was music to Eri's ears, even if it was filled with a surprising anger. "I'm disappointed that you would try to deceive little me and use it as an occasion to get intimate with one of my colleague!"
"First, the day had been organized by Mephisto and Sonya, so if you want to blame someone, blame them. Second, I did spend most of the day socializing with the other guys, so I didn't lie. And third, I didn't know about Erubetie until I saw her! And besides, you never told me that you were colleagues. Why did neither you nor Undine tried inviting her? She'd be a powerful ally!"
"Don't try changing the subject. You still said yes. Don't lie. I see it in your eyes."
The man sighed. "Look… I just took the better of the opportunity after an… uncomfortable revelation."
"Like what you're doing today?"
"Yes… Wait, no! I came here because I learned about her from Amira, I never talked to her and want to leave no stone unturned. Maybe she has an interesting reward as well."
"You could as well say I'm bad… What you're doing is beyond insulting. Is it because of the marriage cake prank?"
"I swear not! And besides, I wasn't the one who suffered the brunt of it…" The man released another longing, beleaguered sigh. "Look… you're the one who decided to bodyguard me when Alice and the others remarked that I had become too much of a juicy target to be left alone. So you're kindaaaa…"
"Kinda what, dear Luka-boy?" Eri shivered. That one sounded more dangerous than the usual jaded housewife. That was one person that could kill you with her voice alone.
"Nevermind. It's just a story of five minutes anyway. Can you wait outside?"
"Fine. But if you're not back in ten, I will break in, get you out myself, and give you more than you will ever beg for." A few flapping noises followed that last sentence, and Eri didn't feel quite as cheerful as she usually did.
What's going on between those two? They're… unusual. I should pass up on him but... no, I'm sure it will be fine. I can't tell why, but I don't think I'm at risk...
The door opened to reveal a young-looking but surprisingly weary purple-haired hero. His armor was more richly decorated than anything she ever saw on the Ilias continent, and yet it looked surprisingly practical. His blue, tired eye still seemed to shine as he smiled gently as he hailed her. Eri quickly recovered her smile. She had no doubt that he was the hero Luka, and felt giddy from his presence alone.
"Greetings! Are you here for the battle fuck challenge? That will be twenty gold, and if you hold out for five minutes, I'll give you this wind pendant!"
The hero nodded and pulled up a few coins. Eri grabbed them and flirtily giggled as she brought a finger to her mouth.
"Good! I'm quite confident in my mouth skills, so I'll make short work of you!"
Her confidence quickly wavered as she felt her opponent easily hold against her. While he did look pleased by her work, she ultimately lost.
That was sloppy of me…Is it because I am nervous? No, I already had a few other wives from Iliasburg threaten me directly, I'm used to hear couples fighting over more stupid things.
"Oh well, it's my loss I guess…" Eri got up and walked to a sealed box containing said reward. It had been a long time since she last gave one of her wind pendant. Deep down, she was impressed by the stamina of the hero. The man was a bonafide veteran, a far cry from the incompetent guards hanging around or the occasional pervert of Pornof playing pretend to end up prey to a monster.
"You wouldn't happen to be looking for additional helpers?"
Eri started sweating heavily as her brain caught up to her mouth. She castigated herself: a powerful hero like him would certainly have no use for a lowly merchant like her.
"I am. Are you interested?"
The merchant went wide-eyed. The hero had just offered her an opportunity to travel the world as if it was the most natural thing. Even as she was inwardly elated, she outwardly remained calm and accepted with a trembling voice.
"Yes! But I'm not much of a fighter, so you will have to take care of me."
"It won't be a problem… I have a lot of friends who can help you."
Eri felt slightly disappointed at the idea that the hero wouldn't always be the one accompanying her, but she quickly accepted it as she joined him. She would still have the opportunity to travel the world and see its natural beauty as she'd accompany renowned warriors in their quest to defend the world… Right?
As she stepped out of her house on this new adventure, Eri was instantly greeted by a slightly familiar vision: a woman was standing in front of the house, her arms crossed and an angry pout on her face while her foot was repeatedly tapping on the ground in impatience. The difference that separated her from all the others were that this one had long purple hair, red eyes, two demonic horns around her head, a blue cape, and a sexy outfit of extremely high quality. All those little details made so many warnings that utterly terrified the poor merchant girl. In the beat of an eyebrow, the monster's apparent anger completely faded and she was instead playfully smirking with a hand in front of her mouth.
"Oh? Luka-boy already made a new friend?" She giggled before bowing. "But where are my manners? My name is Alma Elma. Nice to meet you."
"N-nice to meet you too." Eri bowed back, slightly impressed. She knew that the hero had powerful companions, but she didn't know that he was actually accompanied by someone would could only be the succubus queen. If anything, it alleviated the weight of her defeat.
At least, I understand why he held out so easily. I cannot compare to someone like her.
However, the monster's presence felt surprisingly reassuring. Eri had always heard that the more powerful monsters were marauders that only lived to force sex on everyone they came across, but this one felt like a comforting big sister. Then the succubus invited her to walk by her side as the trio left the city.
"You look so stressed…" She giggled again. "Don't worry, I'm suuuuure you will fit in just fine and people will take good care of you."
"T-thank you."
To her surprise, they stopped right outside of the city. The hero pulled out a small castle model, and as he fiddled with the item, they suddenly found themselves in front of a large castle guarded by two large golems. Eri's mouth was slightly open agape in shock as she was completely swept by the majesty of the place.
Such a large castle… And he always has it in his pocket? Wow… just… wow…
Before they could enter, a quartet of succubi briskly walked out of the castle with their weapons at the ready. Eri recoiled slightly in fear, but even she could easily tell that they had another issue to focus on. A blue haired one who was only wearing white gloves, stockings and ribbons to cover her modesty and who was wielding an exaggeratedly large sword noticed her and briefly stopped.
"'Sup. Luka got a new recruit?"
The hero Luka and Alma Elma nodded in sync. "Yes. Eri, meet Morrigan. And you… who's acting up again? Myusca or Musette?"
"Neither for once! Musette's all prim and proper, and Myusca's entertaining everyone at the bar!" The succubus nonchalantly scratched her back with her oversized weapon in a display of strength and dexterity that left Eri floored. "It's Cassandra. And Cassandratwo. As it turns out, that little pep talk our demon hunter gave them has been a little too effective, aaaand they decided to stir some shit in Monte Carlo because they thought it would be easy picking. The mafia's a bit overwhelmed, and those chickenwings consider that it's a dump too far from their holy city of San Ilia to step in! So… Yeah, Mysteltainn and her posse decided that it was a good excuse to shake some rust in good faith, and I wouldn't mind getting in a scrap myself."
Luka massaged his face while Alma Elma was looking utterly jaded. "Be careful… Don't mess them up too hard."
Morrigan started stepping toward the exit as her companions showed signs of impatience. "Hey, you're not one to talk after what you did to Liru and Len." When the blue-haired succubus looked at her, Eri felt herself pinned by her raw power. "And you, you better be careful about her! That girl can mess someone up hard and make them like it. Just ask our lizards!"
As Morrigan was leaving, Alma Elma shouted over your shoulder. "They tried to steal our clothes, and I'm not the one who… nevermind." The succubus queen threw her hands up in defeat and reassumed a gentle smile. "Please ignore her. She's an idiot."
The hero grimaced, but made no attempt to deny their companion's opinion. Eri herself was now extremely confused. Her brain raced to rationalize the random encounter.
They're just companions of the hero dealing with a repeat troublemaker, nothing more… And all those beautiful women… they're all gravitating around him because monsters are naturally attracted to power and he's kind and good-hearted enough to accept any help they can offer. And besides, can you afford to turn such people away when you have to save the world?
When they pushed the door, Eri felt overwhelmed by all the bustling activity inside. Monsters, humans and even some angels were discussing, shopping, and going on with their daily lives. While she could barely identify most monsters, she did recognize the familiar faces of Teeny and Vanilla. Even if she had seen them only for a few days back in Iliasburg before they joined the hero, she still remembered the small monsters. They were firmly standing amongst monsters who could visibly swallow them in a single gulp, silently testifying to their growth.
"Greetings, my dear hero!" Eri flinched in surprise as a pair of human legs with the upper body of a snake jumped in front of them. "I shall inform you that great trouble is brewing once more!"
"Yeah, I know Cassandra and Cassandra are causing troubles in Monte Carlo… But Morrigan and the Cursed Swords are already on it. Everything should be good again once they're done."
"If only!" The strange monster's tongue clicked, making Eri's partners flinch to her surprise. "However, my network informed me that a new house to take care of all those rejuvenated fishermen in Port Natalia has been created for a dubious purpose."
The hero raised an eyebrow. "And… this is bad because?"
"The construction has been decided by Meia, with the support of Nemea, and is staffed by themselves with the support of Lona and a few of her friends."
Alma Elma and the hero looked at each other. Eri tilted her head in confusion at their frozen mortification. Then they jumped again like loaded spring, the succubus suddenly rushing outside like a gust of wind while the hero was interacting with an immobile red-eyed maid.
"Lady Laura, Jessie, I need your help for Meia again. Teeny, can you guide Eri to Sonya or Mephisto to see the last details?" The hero apologetically turned toward her. "Sorry to abandon you like that, but… I have to go!"
Eri comprehensively nodded as Luka rushed out with two powerful mermaids on his tail: the hero was called by his duty. It was natural that he would delegate more menial tasks to his followers and subordinates. Besides, even if the small lamia barely arrived to her waist, being accompanied by someone familiar amongst all those strangers felt surprisingly reassuring. The small monster stopped in front of her and bowed respectfully before exclaiming herself.
"Oh hey, it's lady Eri from Iliasburg! How have you been doing? Did you decide to join Luka as well?"
"Good, and… yes, the hero invited me to join him on his adventures."
Although right now I wonder if it was a good idea. All this rushing… maybe I'll get used to it?
"Please follow me, we have to see some last details and I need to show you around a bit."
Eri carefully observed her surroundings as they started making headway through the large castle. She hoped to learn more about the more intricate details of the inner working of her future residence. So far, the place was not-so-different from Iliasburg. Several monsters were huddled around counters that were used for sales, a few blacksmiths were working in a small armory, and a large number of humans, monsters and angels were eating around large tables covered with food as a team of cooks was persisting in keeping those covered. The extremely cosmopolitan nature was the biggest difference from her home town, and Eri still had difficulties at accepting the idea that monsters were the most numerous inhabitants around the place.
Is he actually building himself a harem? No, of course not… But even though… there are so many monsters and so few other human men. And they're so varied. There are a few of those fox girls from yamatai, that scorpion girl is definitively from Sabasa, there are elves too and that mandragora comes from Talus Hill… And where do those angels even come from? I didn't even know there were still a few on the world."
"Impressed?" Teeny chuckled. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll quickly fit in!"
Eri could only gulp, her mouth feeling dry. The elation of joining something great beyond human dream was mixing with the apprehension of dealing with people that were able to blow mountains in her daily life.
Calm down… They joined the hero so even if they look a bit rough, they're certainly nice people...
Even then, it didn't stop her from feeling uncomfortable as an oni with a kanabo bigger than her approached them. The monster wasn't showing any hostility, but her savage look made her look like a bandit.
"Hey there, Teeny! You didn't happen to see Hakunen pass by recently? I'm looking for him."
The small lamia shook her head negatively. "No. You can try asking Magatsu."
The oni growled. "Aaargh! She won't tell me anything since the festival! Nevermind. In that case, do you-"
"Master Luka left to deal with another troublemaker, the mute heroes are currently resting with their own companions, and Lest is on the road training again."
"Dang it! Who am I supposed to get between my legs then?! I can't approach any of the guards, even they have their own lovers!" She growled. "How was I supposed to know that Izuna was actually in love with Pilate and not just treating him as her boy toy?"
Teeny shrugged. "By asking her first."
"Whatever… I'm gonna eat." The oni turned toward Eri with a big smile. "Oh, and welcome aboard."
"T-thanks." Eri answered. As they passed by the oni, her attention was attracted to the monster's back. Several talismans and visibly still fresh gashes were covering her behind.
A human would be dead with less than half of them… And she's ignoring like that it's nothing?
Wait, her conversation… what happened exactly? Is it some rivalry between monsters or… something else more terrible?
As they approached a set of stairs leading to the upper floor, a strange noise reached Eri's ears. The sound's regular tempo brought the idea of music, but one that was done by makinas while a mechanical voice was singing in a high pitched voice. She hesitated to progress for a second, but quickly followed when she saw that Teeny was waiting for her. However, nothing in the world could have prepared her for the scene happening upstairs.
Holy shit.
The room was somehow artificially darkened and only illuminated by multicolor lighting spots that were spinning around. Large, blocky makinas placed at seemingly random places were responsible for the sound that Eri had been hearing. The air was also feeling unbearably stuffy, and a strange mist was covering the ground. Eri doubled with care to make sure she wasn't disturbing anything as she tried to keep track of her guide in those hellish conditions.
Eventually, she arrived in front of a sight she simply couldn't comprehend: several monsters were dancing on a stage in front of a large crowd that was enthusiastically shouting and jumping around. Most of the spotlights were focused on the dancers on the stage. Eri could see a large nine-tailed kitsune clad in a scandalously short black dress with assorted gloves and leggings flanked by two powerful-looking succubi wearing the same outfit, and four more succubi behind them. The seven of them were shaking their hips left to right with each hand on the side of their head, all while singing happily.
What…
Eri was completely hypnotized by the scene. Only Teeny gently tugging on her sleeve made her move. Her eyes remained stuck to that spectacle for a while even as she distractedly followed the lamia away from the scene. She only managed to clear her mind when she was brought to the more subdued room behind, where a black snake-like witch straight out of a fairy tail was sitting at a table reassuring a red-haired man who was holding his head between his hands.
"Don't beat yourself over that, Kazuya, nobody's holding any grudge against you for that one. You just turned them into the usual troublemaker, and at least, they're not further wrecking the Pocket Castle! If anything, everybody's impressed that you at least managed to make them stop hitting each other. Their attempt to conquer the world now…" The witch made a theatrical dismissive gesture. "It will pass them soon enough. Don't worry about it."
"Even then…" The man sighed. "I feel like I brought a disaster."
"A disaster that was always waiting to happen! Don't worry about it… I'm more curious about your..." The witch was checking in the direction of the scene. "Nemesis' latest little game. I've seen some strange leisure, some strange dances, some strange rituals, but this… this is new. And you're telling me that this setup and the… caramel dance are regular form of entertainment where you come from?"
"…Yes." The man sounded deeply ashamed. "I don't know why Daji thought it would be a good idea to bring that here… I understand why it looks ridiculous."
"Well, I prefer that over… anything that she's been doing for the last months and the current mess our two Cassandra is creating. And besides, she's keeping both Est and Myusca busy, so it's a win in my book."
Wait… the trouble earlier was created by some of the hero's companions?! This is a joke, isn't it? …Or he's just following that adage keep your friends close and your enemies closer… And that witch… she's making herself look deliberately evil to destabilize people… that must be it. No nefarious people would actually want to look that... villainous.
Said witch finally noticed them when Teeny cleared her throat. Her yellow snake-like eyes and smile didn't reassure Eri in the slightest.
"Ah, my apologies, I was so busy I failed to see you." She removed her hat and bowed. "I am Mephisto, the administrative manager of this place. I suppose our hero Luka made you an interesting offer to join our venture."
"Yes." Eri was sweating bullets once again. The heavy ambiance change was starting to reach to her. "…if it doesn't cause anyone trouble, that is."
Mephisto answered with a small raspy laugh.
"Please, don't worry and let me welcome you to the Pocket Castle. As rough as our companions appear, I guarantee you that we will take good care of you and make sure that you fully enjoy your stay among us. You may feel like a stranger, but I assure you that soon enough you will be one of us. Teeny, please show her around so that she becomes familiar with her new home."
Eri remained immobile during the yoma's small speech, a nervous smile on her face.
…Is she meaning what she's saying, or is there a hidden significance behind her words? There's so many double senses… even that man looks confused.
Still, she started following the small lamia again once. They hadn't even left the bar when a deafened explosion shook the place. While Eri dropped down in a yelp, Teeny barely took notice.
"Ah. Chrome didn't succeed with her new makina creation." She held out her hand to get Eri up. The latter welcomed it, and was surprised by the strength the lamia used to help get her up. Eri spent a minute clumsily dusting herself up, slightly shaking all the while.
"…Is this a common occurrence?"
"No." Teeny shook her head negatively to Eri's relief. "They've been calming down since… the incident. We don't want to talk about it."
It must really be shameful if they don't want to talk about it… What kind of horror did they actually unleash on the world?!
Teeny suddenly stopped as they arrived in front of a library protected by a strange, floating rune. Even the usually stoic small lamia looked scared. "…We're going to pass on visiting the library today. I don't want to risk disturbing Vinum."
Eri simply didn't react. Whoever that Vinum was, she could only pray that she would never disturb her. A few more rumbles echoed through the ground. Upon seeing Teeny's lack of reaction, Eri concluded that it was likely nothing or another occurrence too regular to worry about. As they approached a large set of stairs leading back to the first floor, Eri recognized the sound of a battle in progress.
"There's a barrack with an arena under us. People often use it to train and to solve their disagreement, unless there are too many people in which case they book the colosseum."
Before Eri could ask for more, an elf flew through the stairway to hit the floor's ceiling, leaving a small impact before falling on the ground. The monster's arm was twisted at a weird angle, and the elf repositioned the limb in a sickening crunch without a scream.
"Damn it… That damn cupid's arrows hurt like a bitch… Doesn't matter! Let us get some of that knight you hypocritical whores!"
While Eri was once more dumbfounded by the scene, Teeny was more jaded than anything.
"For all their talk, angels are just as horny as monsters… Anyway! Let me show you the labs before we end our tour."
Eri spent the remainder of the visit in shock. She didn't even react when a giant cupcake asked if she could eat her. Teeny had casually shoved the monster aside before bringing in Eri forward.
"-And this is your new room! They're always furnished, but you're free to change it as much as you like, so don't hesitate. Also, if you need anything, I'm always available at the entrance."
Eri entered the room after thanking Teeny. The girl was deeply rattled. The hero's offer to join him on his adventures through the world sounded too good to be true… and she discovered that it indeed was. Several of his companions were the dangers that had been scouring the road. The more reasonable ones were somehow tolerating their pranks. And for a weakling like her, the chances of survival looked slim.
"…I made a huge mistake."