Lost in her thoughts, and focused on the Traversa matter, Velvet climbed the stairway for the supposedly last time, a box in her hands.

Weighless, odorless and silent. Whatever was inside was completely sealed, unless she forcefully opened it.

She wasn’t going to, but it was an existing option.

“Um.” Velvet suddenly said, stopping.

The stairways that filled the First Tower were ‘divided’ on two sides. The inner part and the outer. Mages walked up by the outer zone, and down by the inner zone. That way, no one crossed someone else’s path.

Not annoying someone else was basic courtesy, after all.

Since Velvet was going up, she was walking in the outer zone. That much was clear and obvious.

Now, it seems it wasn’t as clear and obvious for someone else. Namely, the mage that was right in her path, forcing her to stop and look up.

White platform sandals, tied up to the mage’s ankles by ribbons in X shape, reaching the knees, with nothing else except a simple, short white dress, tightened in some places by belts. Even the big, loose sleeves the girl wore were tied up by belts at the end.

In her head, purple long hair tied up in two ponytails and big, round pink eyes.

“Hi!” The girl said, cheerfully.

As she said those words, Velvet's chest tightened, as she held herself back from jumping backwards, away from that girl.

Until now, she had mostly interacted with young mages, too young to be a real threat, and most of them in a similar situation as her. And, of all of them, she’d usually held the upper hand in "creepiness", due to her bloody Esca.

Not that many teenage mages had more than five victims on their hands, after all.

So, until now, she had never been on the other side, the side of those who confronted a bloody Esca.

More intense than hers, more imposing and more scarier.

Whoever that girl was, she was a murderer, a mage's hunter, and more blood dripped down her hands than Velvet would see in her life.

She didn't know any previous information that made her reach such damning conclusions, but she didn't need to, feeling it through her own Esca.

That was the cross corruption. The primal fear mages felt when going against those who preyed on them.

It took Velvet two seconds to recover her composure. Two seconds that the girl could’ve used to kill her, even when she didn’t.

Probably because they were still in a public space, anyway.

“Hey.” Velvet ended up answering, refraining herself from adding ‘You are kiiinda in my way’.

The girl nodded exaggeratedly. “My name is Cheron!”

Okay?

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“Okay..?”

When Cheron didn’t respond, and just simply stared at her, Velvet sighed, her previous feelings of fear a bit subsided. “Cheron… what else?”

“Hmm? Something else?” Cheron seemed lost in thought, looking upwards and bobbing her body side to side. “Does everything need an else?”

“Not everything, but names usually do. What if there’s another Cheron, how will we know that-”

“Then I will eat her. That way, there will be no more other Cheron. No elses.”

Now that’s a way to solve problems. A very cost-efficient way, since you save money on food. Velvet thought, forcefully smiling at Cheron. “I see.”

Giving the strange meeting and conversation for finished, Velvet sidestepped to the left, as to continue her errand.

As did Cheron, stopping her again.

“I think you are on the wrong side.” The girl said. “This is for going down”

“I know.” So she moved to the right.

As Cheron did, again.

“Are you copying me?” Velvet remembered those times when she did the same things to Nebura and Doireann. Did Cheron believe herself to be some kinda Karma deliverer? Probably not.

“Am I? I could be, yes!”

“Hope you are having fun, then.” Velvet said, before quickly jumping towards the left.

Cheron imitated her, sidestepping, but now, before reaching the left side, Velvet turned, going right again, and crossing Cheron, gaining the high ground.

“Oh.” Cheron muttered, tumbling around, close to falling.

Now, if Velvet didn’t have such a horrid premonition, she would’ve pushed the wobbling Sheron down the stairs, just for the laughs.

But the part of her that screamed that she would lose her hand if she did so was pretty damn convincing.

“Not the best footwear to play pranks on a stairway.” Velvet mocked, referring to the platform sandals, almost a palm tall that Cheron wore.

Eventually, Cheron recovered her footing, grabbing on the railings, or well, laying against them, since her hands were covered by sleeves and tied.

She looked up at Velvet, her non reflective eyes betraying her cheerful tone. “Oh, I thought you were going to that side, but then you went to this side! Hahaha!”

“Yes, that’s a feint.” Velvet explained.

“A fent?”

“Feint.”

“Fint.”

“No. Ef-i-ai-en-ti.”

“F-e-i-n-t.”

“Yes, feint.”

“I see!” Cheron nodded. “I didn't know that was a thing until now!” She laughed, unnerving Velvet. “I’m learning so much from you, it's great!”

I already figured out you were following me from the stair dance, you didn’t need to confirm it… Velvet thought.

That being said, if Cheron was showing up, it was probably because she couldn’t enter the pocket dimensions, and was getting anxious when Velvet didn’t instantly come out.

Even so, do your job better! What kinda spy are you?! Just wait for a bit! Velvet screamed inwardly, criticizing Cheron. You are either stupid or overconfident, probably both!

The overconfidence was deserved, though, since Velvet felt in danger every time Cheron moved, even if it was to not fall down the stairs.

She almost understood Creftalia now. Almost.

But, as dangerous as she was, an enemy you could see was miles better than the one you couldn’t.

“Well, your learning will have to wait until I finish working.” Velvet said, stepping up the staircase.

“Oh. Wait.” Cheron said, attempting to go after her.

So Velvet ran, not looking back until she reached the door, opened and entered, and, even then, she only allowed herself a small glimpse of Cheron’s situation.

She was still in the middle, left to eat dust.

Strength and speed are two different things, and she seems pretty slow. Of course, it can be all an act, but… she played way too perfectly someone tripping down the stairs. Velvet mused, closing the door behind her.

Looking at the hand pressed against the door, she saw it trembling slightly.

What a way to be spooked right before the actual spooky thing. She sighed, turning around and facing the penultimate pocket dimension.

It was a closed room, with unpainted walls, and a small, box sized hole.

By box sized, she means that the box she was holding fit perfectly. In a way, that hole was made for it.

So she went towards it, and pushed the box inside.

“For Alchor.” She said, taking a step back once the box passed to the other side.

“You have 5 minutes to get ready for whatever Tristan asked you.” An ambiguous voice said from the hole, before it closed, replaced by a wall.

So now it was Velvet and the door she came from, surrounded by unpainted walls.

Clearing her throat, she started setting up the artifact.

It looked like a dodecahedron with changing faces. Like a bigger brother of the rubik's cube, but bronze in color, with sigils in some faces, strange letters in others and some others being plain.

Velvet didn’t need to do much. Once the artifact was set down, it started spinning on its own, searching for the back entry of the Traversa’s pocket dimension.

While it did that, Velvet readied herself, concealing her appearance and changing her clothes.

A white suit, with white gloves, white shoes and a white, plain mask. For the hair, she modeled the spell to make a blonde bob cut that reached her shoulders.

Lastly, for the hat, she put on a white bowling hat, with a bronze ribbon.

Yes, she could’ve just gone with the typical black cloak and face shrouded in shadows, but…

Where was the fun in that?