“This should be it.” Aella mused, arriving at the entrance of a cave with her group following closely behind her. Unfortunately, the entrance was far too small for Aetherion to enter, so she moved forward on her own.
Seraphina quickly jumped off of her dragon, attempting to follow Aella in, only for Blair to put her foot down.
“No, Seraphina! Even if that girl is capable of protecting you, you have no way of seeing in that dark cave! You could hurt yourself!” She said sternly.
Seraphina paused in her tracks, turning to look at her mother. “Don’t worry, Mama! Even if I’m not as good as Aella, my senses are really good too, you know! I won’t hurt myself.”
“That’s not the is- And she’s gone.” Blair let out a sigh.
Her daughter had run away before she could argue her case. She was about to follow her in, only for Indigo to stop her.
“You said it yourself. It’s too dangerous. Sera can’t lose her parents because we trip and break something important in a place with no medical care.”
Doubt filled Blair’s mind. Despite knowing he was right in this case and she knew that Aella was more than capable of keeping Seraphina but she still didn’t trust that girl. Aella’s personality and apparent maturity aside, if she wanted to harm Seraphina, what exactly could they do to her?
They’ve seen her power firsthand, and thanks to being a Naturalis, she would be even stronger after defeating that Miniboss.
…
Back in the cave, Aella explored the many twisting corridors, making a mental map of the layout as she moved in the direction of the Mana. Very easily did she find what she was looking for as it was the only area with light. Exuding an otherworldly glow, the soft light of a pool of mana cast intricate patterns across the walls.
Around the pool were dozens of different flowering plants, which also collectively gave off a large amount of mana, causing Aella to frown as she approached.
“It’s not terribly pure. These plants actually managed to trick my senses. How intriguing.” Aella sighed, her eyes reflecting the vibrant hues of the magical water as she knelt down, reaching out a hand to touch the liquid and promptly placing it in her mouth.
|
|
|
|
Impure or not, the human body was highly efficient at using and maintaining energy. That’s why sapient species tend to keep evolving into humanoid forms or find some way to take them when resting, after all.
This impure mess of a pool was a perfect example of that. Even if she was just a child right now, a single lick of the stuff was capable of sating her growing hunger and thirst, even if it didn’t help much in the regeneration of her vital numbers.
|
|
“I broke through a small layer? Has it always been this easy? How long has it been? Centuries?” Aella questioned with surprise. As far as she recalled, it took around a week's worth of time spent practicing to even break through one Phase. “Does Spirit and Strength make it easier?”
Granted, it did take Aella longer than most to cultivate. She simply didn’t have the time to dedicate until much later in life, so she had to look at her information with a grain of salt.
“What’s been centuries?”
“AAH-” Aella jumped back, her eyes widened in confusion as her thoughts were interrupted by Seraphina’s arrival.
“Okay, 1. How did you sneak up on me? And 2, never do that again, please.”
Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!
Seraphina tilted her head in uncertainty. “Uhm… You were too deep in thought?” She answered, not paying much mind to it. She was more interested in the scene in front of her. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered, her voice filled with awe.
Sitting herself against the wall while contemplating Seraphina’s first words, Aella nodded in response to her second. Certainly, a scene like this must seem like it came straight out of a dream to a normal child like Seraphina.
“These plants… They’re all alchemy ingredients. It’s a shame we don’t have a way to carry them with us.” She mused.
“Eh? Alchemy? Do you mean like those medicines that Dragons use to strengthen themselves? How do you know they’re Alchemy plants?” Seraphina asked curiously, her eyes sparkling.
Aella was beginning to think that her eyes were capable of refracting light in such a way, giving them a permanent sparkle at this point. “The internet.” She lied straight to Seraphina’s face.
Aella had worked in Alchemy for a long time. With enough experience, one learns how to identify the unique magical properties that alchemical ingredients have. Unfortunately, none of these were plants she recognized. To figure out what they did, she’d need an entire lab and a way to transport them of which she had neither.
“Hey, Seraphina. Can you guide your Parents here? This water is capable of sustaining us while we can’t find food.”
“Eh?! Really?”
Aella simply nodded; Seraphina quickly tried it herself, the thought of Aella lying not even crossing her mind.
Somehow, her eyes managed to light up further before she ran off to grab her parents.
“Is it part of her traits from being a Naturalis? It’s a shame I’ve never seen a real Fallen Angel to compare. Apparently, members of that tribe were annihilated…”
And Aella’s interest in that topic fell there, opting to look at the new skill she got.
|
|
|
|
|
|
“So is it rare because I needed to deal 96% of the damage on my own or is it rare on top of that already dumb condition?” She asked, expecting Stormy to answer or something.
Speaking of Stormy…
Looking up from her status panel, Aella wasn’t sure if she wanted to scream or say that she was used to her newborn dragon’s antics as it was eating all of the herbs it could.
“Stormy, if you die from poison, I swear on the name of all the Gods I’ve killed!” She scoffed, rushing over to scoop the little dragon up. “Come on, spit it out! Stormy, I’ll have you know I advocate for beating kids as a form of discipline.” Aella paused all movement, fully expecting Seraphina to return with her parents as she said that.
|
Glaring at her little gremlin child, who chirped at her happily, Aella clicked her tongue.
“You win this time, brat.”
Before long, Seraphina returned with her parents in tow. Blair and Indigo exchanged wary glances, their eyes flickering between the mana pool and their daughter’s excited expression.
“What is this place,” Blair asked, thinking she was hiding her suspicion well.
With little care, Aella gave the same explanation she gave to Seraphina, prompting Blair to ask how she knew all of this. Aella once again gave the exact explanation of “The internet.”
Blair very clearly didn’t like that answer, and it seemed like she wanted to call Aella out on her crap that instant, but she couldn’t refute Aella’s answer at all. She was a businesswoman, she knew exactly what this place was, and she knew that it was public information. She had nothing on Aella.
Seraphina nodded with Aella, taking her side, confirming that she tried it herself causing both of her parents to grow terrified for a few moments. Despite their reservations, they didn’t want to get in the way of Aella, who was protecting them for absolutely free because they were hungry.
The little fallen angel also made sure to bottle some for Aetherion, making sure the big guy wasn’t left out.
“If we’re ready, we should get going. I’d like to find my parents before something bad happens. Or we manage to clear the boss. Either should keep them safe.”
“Yeah! Let’s keep going!” Seraphina cheered, just enjoying the journey.
Indigo was just happy his daughter made a friend, and while Blair obviously had her reservations against Aella, couldn’t deny the girl’s… Well, everything. Her drive to protect her parents, the drive to get everyone out of this dungeon, not to mention her courage and intelligence.
Even if Aella had all of these things, goals, and talents for all the wrong reasons, that was something Blair didn’t need to know.
‘Hmm… Physical torture sucks, but I can’t seem to say the same for this mental torment I’m causing…’ Aella grinned maliciously as she walked behind the group. The moment any of them looked back, her smile became what you’d expect from an innocent 8-year-old girl.