White Rabbit loved traversing spacetime. Few could claim to have ever seen the things she had. She had watched worlds die and be born anew, seen countless heroes and villains battle to the death, and bore witness to great leaders making the same mistakes over, and over, and over. Seeing such things would make anyone a pessimist, but not White Rabbit. She always had a smile on her face and an optimistic outlook on things. Nobody, except those close to her, knew why. There was someone out there who she believed in wholeheartedly. She knew the fate of the universe, and only he could change it.

"You seem chipper. Did something go well?" Reaper asked. The Spirit of Death was oddly attractive for someone so feared. Humans had always depicted Death as a dark figure wielding a scythe with black robes to cover up his skeleton body. They were half right. Reaper did indeed wield a powerful scythe and wore a dark robe, but her body was not skeleton-like, and she was female, not male. Reaper looked quite human, really. Her bright red hair stood out in the dark void of Hades, and her violet eyes seemed to shine as they stared at White Rabbit.

The Spirit of Time flashed a wide smile. "I spoke with Luka yesterday!" She announced giddily.

"Hmm… I see." Reaper looked uncertain. "So what brings you here?"

"I just wanted to warn you. Freshen up a bit, he should be here any minute…"

"Here!? You mean he's coming to Hades!? How!?"

"I gave him this key!" White Rabbit said, twirling said key in her hand as she showed it to Reaper.

"…You gave him the key that you're currently holding…?" Reaper asked.

Reaper could clearly see the moment when White Rabbit realised her mistake. "Shoot! I forgot to give it to him! It was all because of his friends. They were all talking to me at once and I… Damn it."

Reaper sighed at her friend's antics. "Just give him the key now then. He couldn't have gone far."

White Rabbit nodded. "Let's see… He just picked up the Heavenly Bandits… What's next?"

"In the True History, he went to Happiness Village with Alice, but something tells me he'll do something different this time around."

"Let me check." White Rabbit used her magic to see time itself and settled in on the present day. She found the young hero walking through a dark cave with the others.

What is he doing there? Does he have business to attend to at the Nameless Slums?

Whatever. I'll just have to drop this into his pocket unnoticed.

White Rabbit shivered, not only due to the mild cold of Hades, but also from seeing Luka travelling with both Ilias and Alice. No matter what world it was, no matter which Luka, this had never happened before. Not once. It was simply not possible.

There must be some sort of explanation for this… Did he fall and hit his head? He shouldn't have been able to choose that… I still find it hard to believe…

But the real question is: Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Chaosisation will spread quicker, but not by too much. If we stretch the definition of travel with, Ilias did sort of accompany Luka on his travels in the True History. We should be able to handle the uptick… And if Luka can help both Alice and Ilias to change… Then… Perhaps…

"Something on your mind?" Reaper asked. White Rabbit had been thinking to herself for well over three minutes.

The Spirit of Time shook her head. "Nope! Or.. Actually, there is. I sort of forgot to tell you but…" White Rabbit audibly gulped. "Well, Luka sort of somehow managed to get both Ilias and Alice to travel with him at the same time."

Reaper's stoic expression shifted ever so slightly in shock. "That's… What? How?"

"I know, right? I couldn't believe it myself at first either, but I went out and checked for myself. They really are both travelling with him."

"That is… impossible. Or at least, it should be. If Luka travels with both of them at once, there's no telling what might happen. What will Alipheese do, or Ilias? The Apostles, the Alliance… They all might intervene." Reaper muttered.

White Rabbit nodded. "Something tells me we shouldn't just force them apart." She added. "I don't know… It could end up being a good thing."

"A good thing? How?"

"Well, I know it'll make The Choice harder, but he'll still have to make it regardless. There's just no getting around that. But I'm betting that if Luka does manage to make Ilias or Alice just a little bit nicer… Well, I suppose it is just speculation…"

Reaper thought about it for a moment. "…Is this worth risking the world—The entire Universe on?"

"…I don't know." White Rabbit said. "But something has to change. I don't want to see that ending anymore."

Reaper frowned. "…I know. Neither do I."

After a few moments of solemn silence, White Rabbit shot up. "Alright, no point in dwelling on it. I'm going to go give him the key. I'll be back in a jiffy!"

The Spirit of Time hopped out of the room through a freshly conjured portal. Reaper's frown stuck around for far too long. She knew how things were fated to end. She had seen it many times before. Hope was the only thing that kept her going now. The Hero Luka was the only one who could change it. Everything rested on his shoulders, a burden heavier than any had carried before, and he had no idea.

"Hehe, you're supposed to be a hero?" The monster asked, giggling. "You're way too weak to be one of them!"

Luka's swing just barely missed. The dog girl's short claws scratched at his skin, but they could barely cut through the surface. The monster was awfully small, even shorter than the hero himself, but she was agile. She danced around Luka, swiping at him from behind, then from the side. He simply couldn't keep up.

And with a quick sweep of the boy's legs, he was on his back, unable to stop the monster from mounting him. Once she had him fully restrained, she twisted his wrist, forcing him to drop his sword. Before she could go any further, a club smashed into her side, sending her flying a few feet.

"Get off of him!" Sonya shouted afterwards. "Luka, get up!"

The hero rose, but not without great effort. "Damn it," he muttered under his breath. "I can't keep losing to such weak monsters…"

Alice slithered next to the hero. "Stop moping! Come on, we have to get through this damn cave."

Luka clumsily pulled his sword from its scabbard. The monster retreated, now outnumbered. "W-Wait!" She insisted. "We can talk about this, right?"

Sonya was usually an advocate for peace, but after fighting so many monsters, she had no patience left for this one. Their excursion through the Irina mountains had not gone to plan. Going over the mountains would take far too long, and going around was impossible. Thankfully, their was a cave which cut through them, a handy shortcut. Or so they thought.

Monsters, monsters, monsters. They had fought at least two dozen by the time they neared the exit. The Heavenly Bandits were all defeated, and Luka was on his last legs. Ilias and Alice acted tough, but they too were barely standing straight. Sonya was the only one left with any real fight in her.

We are not losing here! We're so close too!

Sonya raised her trusty club. The weapon was far from special. Lazarus had given it to her as a gift, but Sonya could tell he didn't spend much on it. Even now, parts of the club had splintered. Still, she was grateful.

"Back off, pup. We have places to be."

"Pup!? Who are you calling pup!?" The dog girl asked. Sonya only had to raise her club to make the monster go silent.

"That's what I thought. Now scram!"

The monster got on all fours and ran away with her tail, quite literally, tucked between her legs. The priestess scared off any other monster who tried to attack the group, leading them out of the cave safely. They welcomed the fresh air as they stepped outside.

"Phew… Being in a place that dark for too long can really mess with you… Seriously, I thought I saw a ghost or two in there."

Alice suddenly looked away, trying her best to hide her expression. Luka noticed this, but said nothing.

"Now then, it should be about a mile south of here," Sonya said. "The Nameless Slums… It doesn't sound like the nicest place to visit."

Luka agreed. Although he had lived on the Ilias continent his whole life, he had heard little of the village hidden by the Irina mountains. Its poor location made it an unlikely destination for traders, and its crop yields were barely enough to sustain it.

Who even thought to start a village here in the first place…?

Well, whatever. We might as well get going. If we don't get back to Iliasburg soon, Amira might go missing again.

The scenic views of the Ilias continent seemed to be just a touch less vibrant after Luka passed through the Irina mountains. Perhaps the area got less rain due to the nearby mountains, he thought, though Luka didn't know an awful lot about geography in the first place. He was sure someone like Ilias would know, but he didn't feel like troubling her with his irrelevant questions.

…Ilias… It's still unbelievable. Is it really her? Can it even be her? I'm not sure…

But she can't have just come out of nowhere, right? She's not just some angel who fell out of Heaven and hit her head on the way down, that's for sure.

The Nameless Slums were all their unfortunate name promised and more. Luka had never seen such a downtrodden village. Though the hero had only visited three villages in his lifetime—Iliasville, Iliasburg and Enrika, when he was very young, though he did not remember it—even he knew that this was highly unusual. Even stranger was that the village was still occupied. He was sure that by now people would've wisened up and hit the road in search of better pastures, but not these people, apparently.

"Welcome!" The local guide said. "We don't get many visitors here. So, what are you guys planning to do here?"

"We're… Here on business." Sonya said.

We probably shouldn't tell him that we're really here to figure out where all those phoenix feathers are coming from… Judging by looks alone, I highly doubt any legitimate business has set up shop here. And if it is the work of criminals, then who knows if this guide is in on it or not.

"Business, huh? Not much of that happens here, not anymore…" The guide looked sad for a moment, as though he was thinking of better times. "Uh, anyway, head on in. If you can't find anything, just ask me!"

Luka couldn't have predicted just how poor the village truly looked from the inside. At least half of the people living there were wearing little more than rags, with most of them slouching around by ruined houses or walking aimlessly. The sight made him ever more grateful for his luck in being born into a well-off family, thanks to his father's surprisingly profitable career as a hero.

"Jeez, I feel bad for that guy," Sonya whispered as they walked further into the village. "He must've lived here before this village turned into… this."

Luka got a good look at the village before turning to Sonya. "You think it used to be better?"

"Unlikely," Ilias butted in. "I've never heard of such a village before. It's no wonder that it's in the state it is. Not only does it have a terrible location, but it also lacks any proper churches or temples for me… They were doomed from the start."

"Hmph. As if. From his reaction, we can clearly tell that this village was prosperous until recently. I bet that you did something to stop that because you didn't want a village that didn't follow your faith to succeed." Alice said.

"I've had just about enough of you, Monster Lord. One more sly comment and I'll end your hideous bloodline here and now."

"Oh yeah?" Alice asked, drawing her rapier. "We'll see if you can! Tamamo has told me all about you and what you did to my kind. I'll get revenge for all of them!"

"Whoa! Stop it, Alice. Ilias, you too! Aren't you supposed to be older than the world itself!? Act like it!" Luka shouted. "Sonya, help me pull them apart!"

Sonya grabbed the small goddess, forcing her away from the Monster Lord. This was the fourth time they had started fighting today, and the priestess had just about enough of it.

"Just… calm down, won't you?" Luka asked, holding Alice tightly, so as to not let her escape. The monster stared at Ilias in anger before sighing.

"Fine…" Ilias muttered. "Luka, I hope you will come to your senses soon and abandon this damn snake before it's too late… If things are fated to happen as before, then it might already be too late…"

I can't let them get too close… I won't let her steal my hero from me again.

"Too late…? What do you mean, Ilias?" Luka asked.

"Eh? Oh, ignore me… I'm just… tired. Come, we've been on our feet all day. Luka, go buy us some rooms in the local inn." Ilias commanded.

The hero looked at her dejectedly. "Really? We only just got here, and it's barely midday. We'll sleep after we finish our mission… Besides, I think we should really head back to Iliasburg if we're going to rest. Something tells me that this village wouldn't have any five-star inns…"

"Don't judge by appearance! Who knows, there could be a diamond in the rough here! Jeez, it's like you didn't even bother to read my holy texts." Ilias said. Luka suddenly went silent. "…You did read them all, right?"

"I… was busy. I spent most of my time either training or running the inn…" Luka said. "S-Sorry."

"Are you serious!? The Luka I know had learned every word off by heart!"

"Hmm," Alice smiled. "Good job, Luka. You know how to manage your time well. You're not nearly as dense as I thought."

Alice's smile was oddly warm. Luka had never seen it before. Though her compliment also had an insult mixed in, it still brought a small smile to his face.

"Gah!? No, this…. Not again!" Ilias blurted out. "L-Luka, you must know some of my texts, right!? H-How about Johannes 12:4? Everyone knows that one!"

"It's… Um… Something something, don't judge a book by its cover…?"

Ilias barely stopped herself from tackling the hero down right there and then in anger. Thankfully, Sonya suddenly spoke up. "Though shalt not judge another by their looks, unless they have the blood of Alipheese, for their appearance shows their true intents."

"…That's it," Ilias said. "That's exactly it."

Luka chuckled. "Well, it certainly sounds like something Ilias would say. Hey, Sonya, how much time did you spend training to become a priestess exactly?"

The ginger-haired girl shrugged. "It didn't take that long. A few months at most… I spent most of my day either learning from the Head Priest or from Uncle Lazarus."

"And yet she still had time to learn off my holy texts… Unlike someone else…" Ilias muttered under her breath.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Luka said. "She was forced to learn them when she became a priestess… probably."

"Actually, I knew it before I started doing that," Sonya said. "Seriously, Luka, we live in one of the most faithful villages in the world. Heck, our village even has the Ilias Temple. You could've asked any of the priests for one of their copies of the holy texts."

"That's…" Luka blushed a little. "Ahem, anyway… We should get going. Ilias, we'll check out the inn later, alright? For now, let's start tracking down the supplier of all those phoenix feathers… It'd be a good idea to ask around first."

"No, no, no! Did you not listen to a word Sonya said!? I referenced that text because it directly relates to our current situation! Though this village might look bad on the outside, it could be really good! It's not our place to assume. Unless it's a monster."

Haah… Ilias is really stubborn, isn't she? Well, it shouldn't take too long. Let's just go check out that inn already… Maybe Ilias is right. It could be nice… But even if it is, we're not going to sleep there. Just a quick nap before continuing on.

"Here he is!" White Rabbit said, sneaking behind the hero stealthy. Luka and the others were oblivious. Even Ilias was fooled by the spirit's magic. She placed the key to Hades into Luka's back pocket before hopping away, straight into a portal, unnoticed.

The hero, unaware of the new item in his pocket, stared at the local inn with mild disappointment. It was more of a shack, really. It was a step up from sleeping in a tent, but not a big one.

Ilias sighed. "Damn it…"

"What a waste of time… Let's move on," Alice said. "We can rest later. We need to find the supplier of all those phoenix feathers, without alerting her. They might flee if they knew we were here."

Sonya was excited. Information gathering was her forte. When she was a little girl, she often dreamt of becoming a master spy. Lazarus said it was foolish as she was brutal at sneaking around, but Sonya never completely abandoned the idea.

"We should split up," Luka suggested.

Ilias and Alice won't work together so…

"Alice, you're with me," He said. "Ilias, you stick with Sonya. Alice and I will check out the bar and ask around there. Sonya, you and Ilias should ask the locals. But try to keep a low profile."

Sonya nodded. Ilias looked a bit jealous as Alice and Luka walked off.

"Alright… Ilias, try not to insult them, okay?" Sonya pleaded. "We have to be friendly, but not suspicious."

"Hah! Don't try telling me what to do, priestess. I'm your goddess, you realise? You're supposed to listen to my commands, not the other way around!"

Sonya rolled her eyes. "Let's just get on with it." She looked around for the most viable source of information, which she determined by their appearance. The majority of the people appeared to be homeless, which gave her one huge advantage. Sonya had money.

"Excuse me," She said. "I wanted to ask you something, kind sir. Do you know—"

"Argh, I don't have the money! I already blew it all earlier, go ask someone else!" The man said. He was slumped over, lying against a wall with a drink in his hand. "Aren't you too young for this kind of thing anyway?"

Sonya was confused. Ilias got onto her tippitoes so she could whisper into the priestess' ear. "He thinks you're a prostitute,"

"Eh!? As if!" Sonya raised her club. "Listen up, old man! You better get your eyes checked, 'cause I am a priestess, not a… not a prostitute!"

"Don't get lippy with me," The man retorted. "If that outfit is what passes for divine and holy nowadays, then maybe you guys are the ones who should get your eyes checked!"

Sonya facepalmed. "Haah… Look, would you just listen to me already? I'm not trying to offer you any service, I just want you to answer a question."

"If it'll get you to fuck off and leave alone, then shoot,"

So rude…

"I was thinking about buying some phoenix feathers, but they're quite dear in all the shops I've been to. I heard that you can get some good deals around here, but I don't know who sells them."

The man looked at the girl suspiciously. "Is that so… And what would a young girl like yourself need with phoenix feathers? Do a lot of fighting?"

"As a matter of fact, I do." Sonya huffed. "Look, if you tell me where to go, I'll give you this," The priestess held out a small bag of gold.

The man grabbed the bag, using his hands to inspect the gold inside. "Hmm… Go to Don Dahlia, you should find her in a tent just north of here, right next to the inn. If not there, she has a house near the pond. But don't tell her I sent you. G'luck, youngin',"

Ilias wanted to get away as fast as possible. "Alright, we got what we came for, let's go."

"Well I'll be. An angel in the flesh… Don't see many of you on the surface. Now that I think about it, you look a bit like Ilias. Whatever happened to her anyways?"

"It's none of your business," Ilias said, walking off. Sonya followed. "What a rude person… Humans like him are the reason angelic punishment is a necessity."

"That's not really fair," Sonya pointed out. "You have to consider the upbringing he might've had, he's probably lived in these slums his whole life. I mean, imagine what you might be like if you were raised here."

"Hmph. I'd be as perfect as ever," Ilias said. "You humans always get so caught up in justifying evil. Would you say the same thing about him if he attacked us?"

Sonya sighed. "Let's just move on… I think I see the tent he was talking about just ahead."

Don Dahlia's tent was not what one would describe as grand. It was fairly large, with enough space inside to stretch one's arms fully, but not enough to live in comfortably. The inside was nothing special, though it did have an expensive-looking carpet.

"Huh? Who the hell are you two?" Don Dahlia asked. Sonya's expectations of what the woman would look like proved to be spot on. She had a similar hair colour to Sonya, but she was a bit shorter and wore far more revealing clothing. Her jeans were ripped around her hips, and she wore an odd chain around them. To top it all off, she had skull earrings.

"We're… customers," Sonya said. "How much for a set of three?"

"Hmm… What are you, some sort of priestess? And what about you little… angel? Are those wings real?"

Don Dahlia approached Ilias. The little goddess backed up into the corner. "G-Get away from me, d-don't touch my feathers!"

The don plucked one of Ilias's feathers. "Well would you look at that… These would go for a pretty penny. Soft and warm… Say, how about you and I head back to my place, angel?"

Ilias's hands sparked with divine power. "Back off, human. And give me that feather back!"

"Nah," Don Dahlia said, lifting the feather just out of Ilias's reach. "Tell ya what, even though you two are super suspicious, I'm willing to cut you a deal. I'll give you three phoenix feathers in exchange for… ten angel feathers."

Sonya looked over at Ilias. The goddess shrunk in fear. "N-No, we have the gold to pay for it."

"Hmph, you either pay me in angel feathers or we don't have a deal."

Ilias shook her head. "I refuse! I'm not an object you can pawn off, I'm the goddess of all creation!"

The angel ran outside, leaving Sonya alone with Don Dahlia. "Damn it… Isn't there any way we can still make a deal?"

"Not without those feathers." The don said, her hands on her hips. "Hell, I'll even cut you a deal. Let's make it even… A 1 for 1 offer, three phoenix feathers for three angel feathers, deal?"

Even just three feathers, plus the one I already have, should be more than enough to get me out of this dump. I'm sure there are some scientists who'd like to research those feathers, or perhaps a mage would like to take a look at them… Hehe, my ticket out of here is close at hand…

Sonya sighed. "No… I should go catch up to her before she gets herself caught up in something…"

"Just remember our deal," Don Dahlia said as Sonya left.

The priestess had to search everywhere for Ilias. She eventually found her standing just outside one of the less run down houses. "There you are," She said. "Why did you run so far!? It took me ages to find you!"

Ilias turned around. "Took you long enough! We've been waiting here for you."

Sonya turned the corner. Luka and Alice were already inside, investigating the furniture, the open books on the table, and just about everything else they could see. "Nothing…" Luka sighed. "That guy in the bar said there was a building near here which nobody lived in, but one Don Dahlia often frequented. We should check it out next."

Sonya turned to look at Ilias. "Why aren't you looking inside with them?"

"Hmph, as if I'd ever go somewhere so filthy. A girl like her probably hasn't cleaned this house since she moved in." Ilias explained. "Besides, why do something when you have two servants to do it for you?"

"You say that now, but I doubt you'd call Alice your servant to her face," Sonya said. "Well, whatever. Let's just go back to asking around, I'm sure we can pick up a trace of those feathers again."

"No need. I swiped this from that criminal while she wasn't looking." Ilias said, showing Sonya an old, but not rusted key. "There's probably a safe in here that it opens, or perhaps some sort of cellar."

Haah… If only I still had my clairvoyance. I could find where those feathers were coming from within seconds…

Alice and Luka stepped back outside. "Well, that was a waste of time," The Monster Lord said. "That girl did have some peculiar tastes… Other than that, it's nothing to be suspicious of. The source of those feathers must be someone else."

Sonya shook her head. "No, it's definitely her. She even offered to sell us some in exchange for Ilias's feathers. Speaking of, we borrowed her key."

Luka inspected the object in question. "Hmm… Well I didn't see anything this could open inside… What about that building I mentioned earlier?" The hero pointed to a nearby structure. "Let's check it out…"

The group approached. The building had bars in its windows, and its door was chained up. Luka inserted the key and, with a twist, it opened the lock. The hero drew his sword as he entered, being careful not to trip on the uneven floor.

Luka pulled up his cape to cover his mouth. The air was stuffy, and he had to suppress a cough. "Ugh… Let's not spend any more time than we have to in here…"

Alice agreed. Suddenly, her magic picked up something. "There's someone in here with us… And… Can it really be…? They're so rare though… Well, it would explain where she was getting the feathers from…"

"What is it, Alice?" Luka asked.

"In that pot, over in that corner," Alice said, pointing. Luka walked over to it. It was oddly warm, and he could hear something inside…

"Huh…? Why is the door open…?"

Luka nearly jumped. He and the others hid behind a half-wall as the newcomer entered. "Whatever…"

Sonya recognised the voice—It was Don Dahlia. "Hey, Mini, you can come out now."

A small monster girl flew out of the pot. Her feathers were reminiscent of a fire, with eyes as blue as the ocean. She had a great big smile upon seeing the don. "Don! Are you sure it's safe to come out, really!?"

"Only because I'm here," The don said. "Without me around, someone would've snatched you up long ago. Now then, let's get to business,"

"Luka," Alice whispered, tugging at the hero's cape. "That's a phoenix girl. They're extremely rare… and powerful too. Even all four of us together might not be enough, even if she is very young."

Sonya looked disgusted. "How despicable… She must be pulling that kid's feathers off and selling them for a profit. She's sick."

Luka agreed. Unable to control himself any longer, he jumped out of his hiding place. "Unhand the child, Don Dahlia!" He shouted, pointing his sword at her.

"Huh? Who're you?" She asked. "Some upstart hero? If that's the case then… Mini, these are the bad guys I told you about. Go beat 'em up."

Mini's eyes flashed with joy. "Really!? So if I take them down, I won't have to hide anymore?"

Don Dahlia paused for a second. "Uh… We'll talk about that later. Hmm… Tell ya what, I'll even lend you a hand." The don raised her fists. "With the two of us together, they won't stand a chance."

Luka and the others got ready to fight. "Be careful of the phoenix," Alice said. "Her fire magic is likely very powerful. I know some water magic myself to counteract it, but I can't control it very well, especially not in this form…"

"Let's get 'em!" Mini said, diving straight into the action. She used her surprisingly sharp talons to scratch Luka's face. A small trail of blood appeared on his cheek. The hero retailed with a quick, precise strike with the blunt end of his sword.

"Owww…" Mini moaned. Don Dahlia slipped past the two, leaving them to their own devices.

"What'd'ya say, you three versus me? Think you can take me on?" She asked. "I've gotten in some pretty tough brawls myself, against people much bigger than I am."

Sonya readied her club. "Hmph, you don't look so tough!"

Alice agreed. Deciding to not waste the opportunity, she attempted to trip the don up, using her tail to swipe under her legs, but the girl jumped over it, using her time in the air to kick Sonya across the face.

"What the heck? Were those… martial arts?" Sonya asked.

"Indeed," Ilias said. "She's better than I thought. But she can't take all of us on at the same time."

The Goddess of Light brought forth some of her divine power. A spark of electricity temporally stunned the don, leaving her open for a relentless barrage of attacks from Sonya. Alice, deciding that Ilias and Sonya could deal with the don alone, slithered over to Luka.

Mini had pinned the hero down despite weighing far less than him. Some of his clothes were marred with flames, and his face had a few more scratch marks than before.

Tamamo told no word of a lie. Phoenix girls are as powerful as they are rare. Even this child is giving us trouble… which means she would make for a great ally after this. She's just misguided. I'm sure once she learns the truth, she'll be glad to join us.

Alice leapt towards the phoenix, aiming her rapier right at the monsters centre. Mini dodged the attack, which freed the hero, allowing him to get back on his feet. "Luka, this is probably her first fight… She's attacking using her instincts, which means all we need to do is outsmart her." Alice suggested.

Luka nodded. "Right… but… How exactly do we do that?"

Alice groaned. She should've known better than to rely on Luka for help. "You just keep her distracted, and don't get beaten this time. Stay on your feet, and use whatever means necessary to keep her at bay."

"A-Alright," Luka charged towards the young monster, meeting her talons with his sword. Alice slithered behind the monster, unseen and unheard.

Tamamo only gave me one lesson on Phoenix girls, but it was a memorable one… Though they might seem at first as simply a more powerful fire-based variant of a common harpy, they actually descend from dragon-kin. Which means she should have similar weaknesses to them…

Alice's weakest element had always been water. She knew that well. Her second weakest was ice, but she had at least a moderate amount of control over it.

Ice and Earth are effective against dragons, along with pleasure, of course. Using Earth in an enclosed building like this one would take too much mana, so Ice should do the trick.

The Monster Lord pushed over a nearby pot full of water with her tail. Using her magic, she froze the water. Then, it was simply a matter of hitting her target. She flung shard after shard of ice into the young monster, who could only dodge so many before getting hit.

One of the icicles flew right by Luka's face. "Whoa… That was too close." He turned his attention back to the matter at hand. Mini had been struck by two of the icicles, grounding her. She was panting, her skin paler than before.

"C-Cold…" She said.

Not wasting the chance, Alice threw some water onto the harpy, taking it out of yet another pot. Mini tried to fly, but the extra weight kept her down, not to mention the cold. "F-Freezing! D-Don… Help…"

Don Dahlia looked back. "Hmph… Damn it. I'm not holding up so well over here either," She said, fending off yet another attack from Sonya and the others. "Retreating wouldn't do us any good either so… I'm outta here!"

Luka breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the don leave. "Well, that wasn't too bad… But you were pretty tough, phoenix."

Mini looked close to tears. "D-Don!? She abandoned me…"

Sonya felt bad for the monster. "H-Hey, it's okay… Tell ya what, why don't you come with us? There are a few people I think you would get along with. Plus we could definitely use your skills in battle…"

Luka agreed. "She's right, you know. Despite being so young you're a really good fighter."

Mini smiled. "Uh, okay!" She shook the water off of her, not unlike a dog, before flying into the air. "What are we waiting for, let's go!"

"She's energetic," Luka said. "Well then, let's head back and report this to Amira."

The hero held out a harpy feather. "Wait a second," Ilias said. "I sense an unusual structure nearby, just a bit south of here… I sense a great power inside too…"

Alice just wanted to get back to Iliasburg and rest. "A great power? No thanks, we barely took on a human and a kid phoenix. We'll be just asking for trouble if we go there."

"Shut up, Monster Lord. Don't question me… There is no life inside, but there is still power… Which must mean… weapons. Luka, I command you to investigate this structure with me."

"Uh… alright," Luka said. "Strong weapons would definitely come in handy. Besides, a good traveller makes sure to explore everything in an area before he leaves."

"And who told you that?" Alice asked.

"Uncle Lazarus did. He's been around the entire world, you know? He even went to Hellgondo once. Though he doesn't really like to talk about it… Anyway, let's get going."

"This is… Impossible." Ilias said. "It's hard to remember something from so long ago but… No, there's no doubt about it. This is definitely Mithra."

"Mithra? What's that?" Luka asked. They were standing just outside the castle. The bricks were clearly ancient, with debris scattered along the base of the tall castle walls. It wasn't a very large castle, but it had stood the test of time well.

"It was made over a thousand years ago by myself and Alipheese… A rare instance of us working together, even if it was in both of our interests. It contains over a dozen extremely powerful weapons that were used in the Great Monster Wars. Before that, they stood as mere decorations."

The group stepped inside. Twenty pedestals, arranged in a ring-like formation, were located in a grand room in the very centre of the castle. Each one held a display for a weapon that was no longer there, with a golden plaque beneath.

There was the Piercing Moon Spear, dedicated for the quick. The Dark Thunder Scythe, dedicated for the sharp, and so on. Each display was empty, which worried Luka. "Do you think somebody got to them before us?"

"I doubt it," Ilias said. "Any human who tried to wield one of these weapons would've died on the spot from its immense power. No… I believe the castle is the only thing that remains here now… But this is unusual. I don't remember the castle ever being on my continent… It was on Sentora, right beside the Navel of the World…"

Alice sighed. "What a waste of time… Let's just head out of here already. If I was to hedge my bets, this castle appeared when the great disaster struck and that's all there is to it. The reason we haven't heard of it before and that there are no research teams here is because of it's location. Nobody would want to go through those slums just to check out some rumoured ancient castle."

"Probably, but it's still pretty wild," Sonya said. "And it's probably a good thing that there are no weapons left. I agree with Alice, we should get going."

Luka got the message. "C'mon, Ilias. You can think about it later, for now, we all need to get to sleep. We've been on our feet all day."

Ilias took one last look at Mithra's displays before turning. "Right… Hey, leave some of the food for me this time. Alice had more than her fair share last time."

The group huddled together as Luka used the Harpy feather. Just before the teleportation finished, he noticed something in his pocket.

Huh…? Who put this key here…?

Sorry for the big gap between updates. I've finished my other fanfic (A Dark Past), and I can now focus more of my attention on this fic, so it shouldn't happen again… hopefully.

Here's a link for the MGQ Fanfiction Server. It's just as it says on the tin. I'd imagine most of you reading are already in the server or have at least already seen a link before and decided not to join, but just in case; AJH28z223S