“Hey, the sacred flames are out!”

“Hm, could some new creatures have passed by?”

“Well, Kavfyra, didn't you guarantee us that, at most, we would encounter the undead?”

“Did we meet anything else?”

“Well, that zombie from the other day. I saw that there was something else behind it.”

“Are you referring to the elusive feline specter?”

“Haha, come on, let's not joke. The Wand of Hierarchy would reveal the threat.”

“Shh! There is movement. Be ready.”

I listen to the voices that stop. These are five distinct individuals. They have different vocal registers.

Except for that last «Shh!», they do not seem worried. Although perhaps I was wrong to replace their fires with mine.

Those were sacred too… I hope I didn't disrespect them.

I am kneeling on the soft moss in the center of the camp. I have an excellent view of the chasm and the path.

This way, they will see me, and I will see them. No scares, no unpleasant surprises. We should be able to complete a peaceful welcome.

Here, the first blade emerges from the darkness, reflecting the light of my [Will-o'-the-wisp].

Ci-cin, Ci-cin!

The sword stops in mid-air. Its bearer is still in the shadows.

“Well, why did you stop Fulzo?”

“There, er… The fires have turned blue!”

“What?”

“Noble Kavfyra, I also heard bells!”

Oh, you stupid wagging tails! One day, I will remove those stupid bells! No, they are a gift from my father. I could never…

In any case, I have to act.

I jump up and wave. “Hey! Hey! Are you adventurers?”

There is a moment of silence. A whispered conversation arrives, confused due to the excitement of the speakers.

If they talk to each other, I don't understand!

“Who. Who are you?”

“Huh?”

“AH! Right, right! You're not a monster, are you?”

“Hmm, depends what you mean… I'm a Bakenekro, a class of Eldritch Entity.” I try to stick my head out, but there's no way: what's in the dark is in the dark.

Their chatter continues. Then it stops. The sword moves up and down in the illuminated area as if it had a life of its own.

“And tell us, what kind of creature would a Bakenekro be?”

“Um, can't you see me? I resemble humanoids, but I am a fundamental part of the System. At least I think so—”

“Yes, we see you. But we don't understand your words. What is your relationship with the undead that disseminates here?”

The disseminates undead around here? Do they mean Gron's zombies? Maybe Gron itself?

Hmm.

“In truth, I am the guardian of this place. I am often confused for a goddess.”

The voice changes. “Goddess? A goddess would never have your monstrous appearance! Don't lie. As a priestess of the beautiful gods, I cannot accept such lies. Not even if uttered by an unintelligent monster.”

Ci-cin.

«Fsss!»

“This is quite offensive… but I imagine you are confused. Please come to your camp, I will explain to you. And you will explain to me.” As a courtesy, even if I am not in the presence of a deceased, I bow and lower my ears.

Maybe this way, I can ease this unfair hostility towards me.

“Mpf. After all, we have no choice. Fulzo, move forward. I will cover you with the necessary spells. If she fights you, she will have no hope.”

While bending over, I perk up my ears and head to peek.

With small steps, a one-eared elf with dark skin and black hair emerges from the darkness. He wears a white leather suit, with metal plates on the shoulders and knees. The sword turns out to be a saber, and he keeps his eyes on me.

I've seen people like him: a former warrior, a hunter, an adventurer. He does not hide his impairment. Despite the trembling fear, he obeys his superior with discipline.

Other elves follow behind him. I recognize them as Gron's group.

I identify the [Cursed priestess]. Kavfyra, with the red tunic and gold shield, carries a sickle on her back and short brown hair.

Her skin is pale, and even her face, with hard features, does not resemble Sylviette's. So, it's true that they belong to different ethnic groups.

I'm a little mortified, if they had been from the same community, I could have used Sylviette as a cultural mediator.

Above all, it is clear that everyone looks at me askance, apart from who I believe to be Fulzo.

I'm still bent over as they take their positions in the camp. Six in total, including a hunchbacked figure covered in a dark red habit.

They are all very tall, at least two spans taller than me!

I sit up and flap my ears. The supposed Fulzo looks at Kavfyra.

The [Cursed priestess] looks around and then looks at me smugly.

“Are these fires your work?”

“Um, yes… I heard you were talking about sacred flames, if so, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disrespect you.”

“For a beast, you know language and magic, it is clear that you are not comparable to the beasts of my world.”

“Hmm, could you not be rude? Let's introduce ourselves. I am N, and, as I have already told you, you can consider me a guardian goddess of this land.”

The elf frowns and blinks as if upset. Exhales.

“This land, according to the belief of the beautiful gods, is the land promised to the Righteous among the elves. It is unthinkable that a hideous creature like you could be its guardian.”

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“Noble Kavfyra, I don't want to say, but—”

“Shut up, Fulzo. You aren't hired to interrupt me.”

“I ignore your umpteenth not-so-nice comment… it's clear that, if you are here thanks to Astral journey, some of you own a cosmic root ring.”

My words strike a chord, and the elves' faces change in amazement.

“How do you know about cosmic root rings?” The hunchbacked individual, covered by the hood, emits a trembling voice.

“Ugh, of course, it's a strange situation! You are the invaders of my house, and you even expect to interrogate me!”

I scratch my head with my hand. I don't know what to say. One thing is clear to me now: Fulzo and the other mercenaries are not a problem…

…but these people in your red tunic seem to have it out for me a priori. What can I do if their gods aren't true? Hmm, I have to think of a way to turn this around.

“Of course! Everything is clear.” Kavfyra ducks behind the golden tower shield she holds. “You are a monster that inhabits this land. You waited for us all to go to the Sanctuary before you struck because you know that we cannot escape from the abyss.”

Ci-cin.

«FSSSS!»

“Stop that!” I tap my heel on the ground. “This is the realm of the dead, and you living should not be here. If I don't force you away, it doesn't mean I deserve to be treated like that. I am the Empress here, and I ask you to be more respectful!”

“Lightning chain!”

A chain of light starts from the center of the shield and…

[Dispel]

…dissolves.

The other elves, including the hooded one, release the hilts of their weapons and raise their hands in a sign of surrender.

Only Kavfyra has pulsating veins running through her face, full of anger.

“Kavfyra, right? Let's get things straight. You living elves are no threat. Being at level thirty is a high specialization for you. In a shorter life, it is hard to reach my level. I want to talk, but I know how to defend myself. The Underwasteland is my home, and I will not bow to invaders.”

Maybe I exaggerated a little. I just want to end it here, and instead, I got a nasty reprimand.

If hostilities cease, I will apologize.

“Ha, ha-ha, hahaha, hahahaha!”

The elves look at Kavfyra. She bursts into uncontrollable laughter.

“Hm?” I hold out a hand.

“Stop! You think I don't understand!? Of course! Of course, it is! First, we lose men in the sacred area, and now a high-level beast attacks our camp! Of course, this is evidence of the beautiful gods!”

Sigh.

Sometimes, I have to be very patient.

“Look here, prr.”

“Huh? The ghostly feline! So, it exists!?”

Gron passes me, climbing onto a small coral bush. “I don't want to say. But I already don't like you. Lasted weeks, you have dispersed at least four of my zombies. I called N hoping she would kick you out, but she's too good to do what needs to be done.”

“Gron, what are you talking about? I—”

“Do not listen. I have known scoundrels in my past life, and fanatics are the worst. They pretend to be good and beautiful, but there is no word you can say to them. So…”

“So, nothing.” The supposed Fulzo takes the initiative and grabs Kavfyra by the shoulder. “Kavfyra, you may have engaged us, but now kneel and show respect.”

“HUH?”

“No insistence, I checked with the hierarchy wand. Mark this N as superior, look.” Fulzo shows Kavfyra a wooden wand with a glowing tip.

Kavfyra's eyes widen, and she drops her shield, which makes a dull thud.

Then, they all kneel. Gron turns to me, and I think it's equally perplexed.

None of them do anything.

“Um… everything okay?”

Fulzo raises his head. “Forgive us, goddess of this land. We have disrespected you, and we await your wrath. We know that with the Astral journey, our bodies are safe. Therefore, we reveal to you that inside the sanctuary. You can give us eternal torment if you wish. Please just—”

I shake my hands quickly. “No, no, no! What are you saying!? Get up! I judge the dead, only the dead! So please stop, you're making me very uncomfortable!”

I approach and pick up the first elf I come across. She is a young woman who looks away and tries to prostrate herself again.

In the background, I hear an amused laugh. “Prrr, if you don't want all this reverence, pass them to me. The Great Gron always needs admirers of its adventures, haha!”

♦

Great Gron aside, I finally convinced the team to stop with that pantomime.

They argue among themselves while I walk outside the camp. I look at the walls and the ivy and push myself to the edge of the abyss.

The absolute darkness no longer intimidates me. I know the creatures that lurk there. And I know what to fear and what not to fear. In this case, it's just a chasm like many others in the dungeon.

Gron is on my shoulders and warms my neck with its soft fuzz.

Turning around, I notice Fulzo coming towards me. He doesn't carry a weapon, not even on his belt, a sign that he doesn't want to fight.

“Sorry, we kept you waiting. Our clients struggle to accept reality.”

“Uh, no problem. I'm happy we finally made things clear. Can you accept reality?”

The elf smiles at me. Maybe because of the missing ear or the body size, but his presence evokes curiosity in me. I would apprehend what type of experience he carries with him.

But a greater curiosity act on my body.

Fulzo must have noticed that I looking at Kavfyra and the hunchbacked hooded man.

“Goddess, are you still offended by the misunderstanding from before?”

“No, call me N, please. No offense, I'm just curious.”

“Please follow me to camp. We decided to explain everything to you. So, you can decide about us.”

♦

“I am Kavfyra Immeriu. Priestess of the beautiful blood god, Ivykku.” Kavfyra keeps her head down as she talks to me. The rest of the brigade is on their knees around her.

Sitting in front of them I wonder about those names. I know of no «beautiful gods», or beings named Ivykku.

Sylviette herself has never spoken to me about anything like this. It is inevitable to think there is no correlation between the two elven cultures.

Sigh.

“…we came here using an ancient sacred artifact. The Dome of the Garden. As you can guess from the name, it is a structure built with wood from the cosmic tree and allows those who occupy it to undergo the Liminal journey, activating the status of Astral journey.”

“So, you don't use bramble rings?”

“No. There are no such rings anymore. In any case, we didn't think of invading the house of another deity. Our belief was to arrive near the Garden of Good and Beauty.”

Kavfyra's story is simple. Based on their wrong beliefs, they embarked on a completely useless journey.

However…

“There are two things that are not clear to me. Why come only now, and why not go back once you discover the reality? In short, the Underwasteland is nothing like the Garden of your Legends.”

Kavfyra shakes her head and grimaces, while the hooded man makes a high-pitched noise that I do not understand.

“The fact is that before we came here, we discovered the Dome inside an ancient ruin.” Fulzo gets my attention by scratching his chin. “Kavfyra hired us to find the dome, and, seeing that the legends did not lie, she extended the contract to reach the garden.”

“Really?” I look to the [Cursed priestess].

“Yes. When I came here and found this place… I couldn't accept it. I couldn't, and so I tried. Ivykku is said to shine behind the darkness, so this abyss.”

I nod.

It is unclear what the [Sacred Explosive] is for, but maybe it is just part of the equipment. In reality, I don't even care.

“Clear, clear. But I can assure you that there is no Garden here. I'm sorry but it's the truth.”

“Sure.”

“What will you do now? I mean, are you going to go back or—”

“We won't go back.” The hooded man grinds his teeth as he says those words.

The adventurers turn towards him. I sense the tension in their postures. They are afraid of offending me…

…I feel sorry for them. I would be kind, but instead, I come off as threatening.

Only Kavfyra remains with his head down as if waiting. Waiting for something I cannot understand.

“Why?”

“Because even if it is not the promised garden, we must find a home for our people. Our world is on its last legs… despite the defeat of the armies of the Half-demon, all that remains is desolation and disease.”

I look at Gron. It says nothing.

I scratch my ear.

The [Half-demon] makes me think of an old enemy. Now that I think about it, someone else is also an elf and is not from Sylviette's planet.

I could call him back…

Ugh, my head hurts. I do not understand.

…but there has not been any die-off of elves recently… yes, a few elves now and then, but no extinction numbers.

Something does not add up to me.

“Sorry if I question your word. But when you mean your world is on its last legs, do you mean everyone is dead?”

Kavfyra raises her head and looks at me with red eyes. “No, worse. They are massed with magic; everything starts from the illness, and then I don't know.”

From illness and then I do not know.

It seems like an unpleasant thing. Having never been ill, I do not know what sick people feel.

But I cannot lie to these people.

“Even if you found a way to come here, you would die. The dungeon only seems livable because you are in astral form. If you transported yourself like you do with the equipment, you would freeze, and then there is no suitable atmosphere.”

Silence falls.

My tails twist and unravel among some ivy bushes and coral. I know no one can notice, but it is like when I blush; It is a sign that I am nervous.

“N, thank you for listening to us and sharing your knowledge,” Fulzo stands up. “However, we will continue to search the area beyond the chasm. Not only does the magic not work there, but the disease does not spread. Even if we don't find a home. We will search for a cure.”

Ci-cin.

“Oh!”

Fulzo extends a hand to the [Cursed priestess]. Kavfyra grabs it and helps herself up.

“So please don't get in our way. You are not a deity of our belief, but we were wrong to wrong you. So, if you wish to punish us… do it now.”

I admire those words, for that resolution not to give up.

In the past, I also did not give up. I can understand that. Hope does not go away until it is too late.

I could never punish these people. I only judge the deceased. This is my job.

And then guiding them to the structure does not require much effort from me. We will spend time together, and maybe I can discover something new.

After all, I have been putting off the decisive excursion to this land for a long time. Together as a team is better than alone.

I will finally be part of a party! Awa!

Therefore.

Ci-cin.

I stand up and put my hands on my hips. I puff out my chest and look at the guests' faces. One by one. And I smile at them.

“Let's start again. I am N, Empress of the Underwasteland, and although your search is desperate, I promise you my help in getting to the great structure of the Sanctuary!”