As the little girl regained consciousness, a deep, smoky aroma roused her senses. Even with heavy eyes, the little girl recognized this familiar scent. After all, it was all the meat she had eaten for the past couple of weeks.

Eh? Where am I?

She rubbed the back of her head. Though she had gotten used enough to the hard surface to fall asleep on it, it seemed impossible to prevent the terrible headache she got upon waking up.

Ah... the temple. I must have passed out again. Come to think of it, this happened too after our Battle in Ealdton...

Strange.

I've never been one to pass out even after a long, hard day... Does that mean I'm pushing Sylphia's body way past her limit? But it doesn't make sense... I was tired, yes, but I not to the point of losing consciousness.

Her eyes flickered.

Could it be similar to that magic sickness Letty mentioned? I didn't feel sick until much later though...

"And so," Ruth's excited voice was the first thing that entered her ears. "we went exploring out to the mushroom forests near the village, and we found this giant mushroom sapling! Well, it was a sapling, but it was almost as tall as Miss Sylphie! Hahaha!"

Geez, these guys are so noisy.

Rika and Letty chuckled. The redhead with a mushroom cap on her head then said, "Ah, it was, wasn't it?"

"Yeah," Ceressa said, "but the important part was, its cap was just Rika's size, so we had Ruth here chop the cap off of it and brought it to the dryer back in the village."

"That was terrible of you." Ruth frowned. "Demonbane was already in bad shape and you still made me chop that thing... It was almost as hard as wood!"

"Geez, stop whining about that already! They lent you that Mythril sword eventually, didn't they?"

"Well, that's right." Ruth scratched his forehead. "But a sword is one thing - what I really want is a set of mythril armor!"

"Too bad, nothing they can lend will even fit you."

"Guh...!" He clenched his fist. "I know…!"

"Hmm..." Ceressa poked her temple with her finger. "The siths are actually pretty nice to us... don't you think they're more likely to let you have one?"

"Not going to happen," Sylphia said.

She rubbed her eyes as she stood up, eyes half-closed. 

"That's all going to the Home Guard," she continued, "so they could actually have decent gear."

"Sylphie! You're awake!" Rika beamed a smile her way. "I was worried when you collapsed in Miss Letty's arms all of a sudden…"

"Ah… so that's what happened?" She scratched the back of her neck.  "Thanks, Letty."

"Mm-mm." The girl in the baggy robes shook her head. "I'm just glad you're okay. You must have been really tired."

"Yeah... I suppose so."

Letty smiled. "I'll go fetch some food for you."

"Ah, thanks."

As their Master left the temple, Sylphia and Rika's eyes met.

The redhead, still wearing the mushroom cap to cover her head, grinned and greeted, "Good morning, Sylphie."

Uwah... it really looks terrible on her. I get why she's wearing it but...

"Good morning. I see you're wearing that ridiculous hat again."

"Ah!?" She pouted and pulled down on both ends of her cap. "Geez, It's just for our stay here, so leave it alone..."

Sylphia sighed. "Fine, fine."

"So, what are you planning to do now, Sylphie?" Ceressa said, leaning back against the cave wall as she sat.

"Hmm..." She placed her hand on her cheek and tilted her head upwards. "Well, I'm planning to end the war between the siths and kobolds."

"Uh... huh..." The archer raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"What do you mean, 'why'?"

"Er... well, I was thinking, since we're all here, we should all bug out of this place. Hell, why d'you even lead us all the way back here when we could have escaped right after the battle?"

"The siths are exhausted you know. We're exhausted. And the exit's too close to the mushroom forest. Even if we beat the kobolds back, a good few hundred was still able to escape. And I'm guessing that your army wasn't even the entire population of the kobold village?"

"Hm? Of course not."

"I figured. They're still able to harass us with such numbers. So stay put for a while. We'll be out soon."

"Ehhh..."

"Besides, escaping is one thing - but what happens after we leave?"

Ruth, Ceressa, and Rika looked blankly at each other.

"I'm saying, if we leave these monsters alone, what will happen to the village above ground?"

They flinched.

"S-Sylphie..." Rika said, leaning her face closer to Sylphia. "you think... the siths and kobolds will attack the village?"

"Well, not right now, no..." Her eyes narrowed. "But, let's say some people come down here. Or if some siths or kobolds come above ground. What will happen?"

"Hm..." Ruth grunted. "If these monster tribes decided they wanted to attack the village above ground, I'm not sure if even the entire adventurer's guild could stop them. It might escalate into a Kingdom-wide crisis."

Ceressa nodded. "I think so too."

"The reverse is also bad. If some other band of adventurers come in here, gung-ho about taking easy treasure, they might not be so lucky... The kobolds think you betrayed them, after all." She lifted her finger to emphasize her point. "They think humans betrayed them."

The three flinched again.

"They're not likely to hold their blades against a human ever again."

"Ugh, damnit!" Ruth slapped leg. "We didn't even betray them...!"

"Well, that's what they think. And after what happened, you probably can't convince them otherwise."

Ceressa then looked to her and asked, "So, what do you suggest?"

Taking a deep breath, she answered, "First, I want to control the kobold population. No matter what happens, if they reproduce so fast as to completely outnumber the siths, then a battle for resources will be inevitable."

"Um..." Rika raised her hand. "Speaking of resources..."

"Hm? Yeah?"

"Well... we overheard from the kobolds... when food started to get rationed out, it was because all of their farms were destroyed by the siths."

The three of them turned their eyes to Sylphia.

She flickered her eyes at first, and then, her lips tilted to one side. "Mm. I ordered them to pillage all of those farms."

Rika sighed and muttered beneath her breath, "I thought so…"

Ceressa raised her voice. "And why the hell did you do that!? Now it's guaranteed the food in the dungeon won't be enough both tribes!"

"That's the point."

"Huh?" She raised an eyebrow at her remark.

"You saw what sort of village it was, right?" She pointed her thumb over her shoulder. "The one outside the dungeon."

"Dellwick? Yeah, it's a farming village."

She snapped her fingers. "Exactly."

"Huh...? I'm not following, to be honest. Just skip to the point."

She sighed. "Simply put, I want the monsters to start trading with humans."

"Eh!?" All three of them jolted.

"Are you serious!?" A fired up Ceressa got up on one knee, as if she was ready to strike at any moment.

In response, Sylphia put her arms up and flailed them at her. "I'm totally serious!"

Just as tensions sparked between the two, Letty returned to the temple with food in hand.

"Umm... what's happening...?" she asked.

Seeing her, Ceressa quickly simmered down. "Ah, it's nothing."

"Geez…" The little girl rolled her eyes.

"Ah, and here you go, Sylphie." The scribe handed her a plate of, as expected, mushroom and fish.

"Oh, thanks!"

It won't be long now, I can finally eat something else...

"So, um... why were you shouting at each other...?"

"A-ah..." She scratched her cheek and glanced at a fuming Ceressa.

"Listen to this, Miss Letty!" The hot-blooded archer said.

"E-eeeh...? Mm." Letty meekly nodded as she took her seat. "I'm listening."

"Sylphie says she's going to make the monsters trade with Dellwick! That's absurd, isn't it!?" She jabbed her finger into Sylphia's forehead. "As her Master, please drive some sense into this brat!"

"Hey!" She swatted away Ceressa's hand . "Who are you calling a brat!?"

"Why, the precocious little kid who gets the most absurd ideas, of course!"

"I'm a Fairy, mind you! I'm probably older than you!" She then poked her finger into the woman's flank.

"Hgyaa!" she shrieked.

"On second thought," She then drew a condescending smirk on her lips. "maybe not."

"How old are you, then, Miss Sylphie?" Ruth asked. "If I can recall, Ceressa's-"

"S-shut up!" Ceressa then gave him a quick jab, driving her fist into his unarmored flank just below his armpit.

"Agh!" He flinched.

Finally, she crossed her arms and turned away. "Hmph!"

"A-aha ha ha..." Letty let out an awkward laugh. "A-anyway, Sylphie, why did you suggest that the monsters should trade with Dellwick?"

"Ah, it's simple, really." Sylphia raised a finger. "If things go on as they are, it will only end in one way - both tribes will be destroyed."

Letty swallowed her breath.

"I probably don't need to ask anywhere but here. You guys- what do you think you'd do if you had a village of monsters were found near your home?"

"E-eh...?" Rika clasped her hands over her chest.

Ceressa muttered, "I'll probably file a clearing request with the guild..."

"You would, won't you?" said Sylphia. "Of course, you would. Who knows what the monsters would do if they got out of their dungeon?"

Letty's shoulders fell.

"But-"Her  eyes narrowed. "What if that village of monsters had a reputation for trading peacefully with your village? In other words, if you knew, as we do, that these monsters were, in some way, civilized?"

"Oh...?" Ceressa rubbed her chin.

"Ah!" Ruth then lifted his head. "I see... that's the difference...!"

Upon hearing this, Letty immediately perked up, her eyes taking a bright sheen. "C-can... can we really do that...?"

Sylphia grinned. "We can."

However, the three from the Adventurer's Guild remained apprehensive.

Hmm... it's not like I need to convince them of my plan, but it would be nice if they don't try to hinder me, either...

"Guys!" Rika looked to them with a twinkle in her eyes. "Let's trust Sylphie! I know she can do it!" She then clasped Letty's hand. "You think so too, right?"

"E-eh...? W-well..." Their Master covered the shy smile on her lips as she averted her gaze.

"What makes you so confident, though?" asked Ceressa. "Sure, it's pretty impressive what she's managed to do with the siths, but... this...?" She let out a heavy sigh. "People... don't like monsters. That's just a rule."

"I know she can!" She declared with utmost confidence.

"Why!?"

She pumped her fist in the air and proudly declared, "Because she's the Legendary Hero!"

"Gff-!" Sylphia choked on the fish she was in the middle of chewing.

"Ah-" Rika quickly covered her mouth.

But their three companions had clearly heard what she said.

Each of them turned their eyes towards the little girl.

Their gaze pierced right through her, like she was being stripped bare in their mind.

She sighed. "Rika..."

The loose-lipped girl scratched the back of her head. "Ehehe... sorry..."

Rika and Sylphia both knelt heads-down before their other companions.

"So, let me get this straight." Ceressa said. "You are the Legendary Hero of Londinium?"

Sylphia nodded.

"You!?" Her eyelid twitched.

"W-well, if you don't want to believe it, that's fine, isn't it?" the little girl motioned her arms around as she replied, "Let's just say that was a joke and..."

Ceressa grumbled.

"Guh..." Sylphia's brows fell.

I don't really know what you want to hear anymore...

"But," said Ruth, "shouldn't the Legendary Heroes possess enough power to defeat the Demon King? That's what I was told, at least... But Sylphie, or, I should say, Miss Sylphia...? Isn't really..."

"C-could..." Letty stammered, "could you have been holding back all this time...?"

"No, no, no!" Sylphia shook her head. "If I had any kind of power, I'd have saved Rika in an instant!"

"Well..."

"But it's true!" Rika said. "I was there. We saved Ealdton together! Right?"

The scribe froze. "E-Ealdton...? Did you say... you saved Ealdton?"

"Ah, I heard that from the guys at the guild." Ruth said.

"Hm?" Ceressa cocked her head. "What is it?"

"Ealdton was attacked by a huge army of bandits recently, and the Heroine saved it."

"Eh!?" Letty gasped.

"What, this brat did!?"

"Well," Sylphia scratched her head. "that was more Rika than me, to be honest..."

"W-wait, Ealdton!?" Letty looked at them, with frantic eyes, and said, "Did you say Ealdton was attacked!?"

"Huh? Ah, yes." said Ruth.

Letting out a strained breath, she then fell to her knees.

"M-Miss Letty!?" Ruth quickly ran beside her and helped her back up.

"I... I'm from Ealdton..." She said, with eyes glazed over.

"I-is that so...?" He slung her arm over his shoulder and propped her up until she was able to stand on her own.

"I..." she mumbled beneath her breath, "I need to go there as soon as possible... I need to know if my grandma's safe...!"

"Hm? She should be safe." Sylphia said. "The townspeople managed to get to safety before the bandits could get to them, and a bunch that were taken, we saved." She then glanced at Rika. "Right?"

"Mm!" Rika smiled. "Aberdeen and the guys took care of them while you were passed out!"

"A-ah..."

Did you really need to mention that?

Letty let out a sigh of relief.

"W-wait..." Ruth looked at Rika. "when you said before... that you used to be a town guard, you meant that you were in the town of guard of Ealdton!? And the ones who saved it from the bandits, at that!?"

"Mm!" She nodded proudly. "I left my hero's badge with my parents back home, though. I don't want it to get tarnished!"

"Geez..." He rubbed his forehead. "I would never have guessed we were adventuring with a couple of celebrities..."

"Somehow..." Ceressa said, with her lips stretched downwards, "I still can't believe it."

"Ehehe..." Rika giggled.

"Anyway... hup!" Sylphia finally got off her knees and, patting away the dirt off her dress, said, "I told you my plan. I don't care if you don't want to go along with it-" She then pointed her fan at the three of them. "Just don't get in my way."

Ceressa clicked her tongue. "I really can't believe that brat is the Legendary Hero...!"

Ruth patted her on the shoulder and said, "Well, don't worry about it."

Letting out a small chuckle, Rika took Sylphia's hand, and said, "Of course, I'll help you, Sylphie!"

"Alright!" Sylphia grinned, flicking her fan open over her shoulder. "I knew I could count on you!"

"Ehehe!"

"Well, if Rika is in, then shouldn't we back her up?" Ruth nudged his partner. "We're a party, after all. And if Sylphie is really the Heroine, it'll work out somehow!"

"Tsk." Ceressa sighed. "Well, if it's just to look after Rika, then sure... I'm not too sure I can leave it all up to this little brat, after all..."

"Eheeeh...?" The smug heroine crossed her arms, leaning back against a wall. "Despite what you say, you're actually pretty nice, aren't you?" With a loud snap, she closed her fan. "You actually want to help out too, don't you?"

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The corners of her mouth twitched. "Shut up, before I change my mind!"

Suddenly, a deep, bellowing voice squealed, "Ohoo!"

"W-w-what!?" Ceressa leapt back, swivelling her head around them and drawing her twin daggers. "Who the heck was that!?"

"Ah." Sylphia unfolded her fan again and spoke to it, "What the heck was that about?"

"Little girl!" Sebastian said, "You never told me you were the Legendary Hero!"

Ruth, Ceressa and Rika all winced as they listened in on their conversation.

"Yeah, so?" Sylphia said.

"Well, that's amazing, isn't it!? It's like we were fated to meet! The Legendary Hero, and a Living Weapon! It's a fantastic combination, isn't it!?"

She sighed and, wiggling him flippantly around in her fingers, said, "If only the Living Weapon was actually usable as such..."

"Don't be like that! You just need to feed me more blood to make me powerful!"

She clicked her tongue.

Just how much blood do you think I've already fed you, huh!? At this rate, I might make all of humanity as your blood sacrifice and it still won't be enough!

"U-um... Miss Letty..." Ruth whispered, "Have I gone insane, or is that fan talking with Miss Sylphie...?"

"Ah, aha ha ha..." Letty held her hands over her chest. "That's Sebastian, a Living Weapon, apparently... He's a fan, though. When we were taken to the sith village, we met him as the sith God and...."

She scratched her cheek as though she herself couldn't believe what she was saying.

"Um, somehow... Sylphie made a deal with him to convince the siths both of us were Gods as well, and... um... one thing led to another, and here we are..."

"Eeeh...?" Ceressa winced.

Meanwhile, Rika's eyes glimmered. "Really!? That's so cool!"

And, lastly, Ruth sighed. "Sounds like you had an exciting time..."

Letty giggled. "Mm. Though it was pretty exhausting, trying to keep up with Sylphie's schemes..." She then looked down at her fidgeting hands and muttered, "...but it was fun."

He grinned. "That's what's important, right? So, what do you think? Ready to get back in the saddle and go adventuring on the regular?"

"E-eeeh!? No, no, no...!" She shook her head so hard that her long hair of purple-tinged silver whipped from side to side. "A-adventuring... really is too much for me..." Then, she tilted her head and left a timid smile upon her lips. "behind a desk, and a stack of papers, is where I belong."

"Is that so?" He chuckled. "Well, if that's what you want, I'm more than happy to to support you in any way!"

"Mm." She nodded. "Thank you."

In the meantime, Sylphia and Sebastian have finished bickering.

"Oh, oh, and speaking of which, I almost forgot-" said Sebastian.

"What?" Sylphia said, her brows still furled from residual anger.

"I've finished digesting the last of the blood you let me drink, and I feel great!"

"Heeeh..." She slowly turned her head away from him. "Good for you, then."

"Yeah!" His face turned to a bright yellow, his eyes curved upwards. "And now, I think I can finally power up!"

"Eh... good for you th-"

It took her a moment to register his words, but when it finally came through,  her head snapped back like a rubber band.

"Really!?" she screamed with great anticipation.

The conversation between the girl and her fan echoed within the cramped cavern.

Of course, their companions listened in, if only due to their proximity. But even amongst them, one seemed particularly interested.

"U-um...!" Eyes ablaze with the passion for learning, the guild scribe pulled a small handbook from within her mantle and began to scribble in a frenzy. "I-I'd... like to observe how a living weapon grows in strength... There aren't any recent records of such an event, and it would be great if I could write something about it...!"

Snickering amongst themselves, Ruth and Ceressa jumped in.

"Oh, nice! I wonder if the fan will turn into a sword when it powers up!" Ruth said, jabbing his elbow into his partner's arm.

"Hmph," Ceressa sneered, "if that's the case, then little Sylphie here won't be able to use it anymore."

His eyes gleamed. "Oh right! I-in that case, can I possibly have it, Sylphie!? I-I'll dish out some money, if you want!"

Sylphia winced.

"Oho...?"  Sebastian said with a condescending tone, "what's this? Not long ago, you couldn't wait to get rid of me, and now you want to keep me, huuuuh?"

Her eye twitched. "Shut up and evolve already or you'll be skydiving over the cliff for the rest of the afternoon."

"Eeek!" Sebastian screamed, "No! Anything but that!"

In the meantime, Rika snuck up to Sylphia and stacked her head on top of hers. After listening to their conversation, she snickered, then said, "Sylphie, if your fan turns into a sword, can I have him?"

"Oh!" Sylphia snapped her fingers. "That's a good idea. That way, we can use whatever his power is, and I don't have to deal with him anymore."

"Ah!" Ruth clutched his head. "I forgot about Rika! Gaaaaah!"

"Don't sweat it..." Ceressa patted him on the shoulder.

"Uuu... well, at least I have Demonbane..."

"Err... right..."

Hmm... evolution, huh?

"Ah!" Sylphia clapped her hands. "In that case, I'd like him to be a gu-"

Just then, Sebastian began to shine with a blinding radiance.

"Uooooooooooh!!" The fan screamed.

"Uwah!?"

Sylphia held Sebastian away from her body but refused to throw him away.

"What the hell is happening!?"

"So... this is how a Living Weapon evolves!" Letty panted as she jotted down every detail at top speed.  

"No, no, it should be fine," Ceressa said, reassuringly.

But as she said this, she pulled along Ruth, Letty and Rika. The four thus skipped away and hid behind the corner wall of the entryway. There, they peeked half their faces to watch the spectacle unfold in safety.

"Gnnnnn...!" Sylphia grumbled.

Pre-adding insult to would-be injury, Ceressa yelled with a smug grin, "Just hold on to him like that, little bra- err, Sylphie! We're here for you!"

"Damn you!" She screamed back as tears collected around her eyes.

The light grew brighter and brighter. So bright, in fact, that even though Sylphia had shut her eyes, her eyelids were not enough to ward off the sheer brightness.

But the light would go brighter still.

Despite clenching her eyelids as tightly as she can, she was still blinded by the outpour of light from the evolving weapon.

"Oooooaaaaaahhhhh!" Both her and her fan's screams mixed together, forming a sonorous wail that echoed out of the temple.

After a while, the screaming subsided.

Then, the light followed.

As the temple returned to its calming serenity, the adventurers one-by-one opened their eyes.

The dim glow of mythril crystals jutting out of the walls once more illuminated the interior in a cool yellow-green tone.

Sylphia's arm felt heavy. It must have been a full minute since she held Sebastian away from her, after all. But she accepted that pain - it was proof that, at least, her arm was not blown off, as she had feared.

She could have thrown him away and escaped with her so-called friends, but knowing the curse would activate, she figured that it might be better if Sebastian exploded in her hand, rather than on her waist.

What... happened?

She examined her fan. His appearance was largely the same - wooden frame and all. All that had changed was that, all of a sudden, there was a new accessory hanging down from her hand. A fluffy white ball hung down from a velvet-red strap, threaded into the pinhole at the base of Sebastian's frame.

What is this? Is this the evolution?

Shaking her fan, she asked, "Hey, you still alive?"

"Of course," he answered, "I am a living weapon, after all."

"Heeeey!" Ruth called out, "You two okay?"

Finally, the others leapt out from the corner. Apparently, they further protected themselves behind Ruth's shield the entire time.

Tsk! You traitors! I'll get you for this!

She glared at Rika, at whom she directed a particularly large amount of animosity.

Especially you! I trusted you, you know!?

In reply, her redhead knight just stuck out her tongue and scratched the back of her head.

Guh! I'd never forgive you if you weren't so cute.

She turned again towards Sebastian, "So, what new power did you get?"

"Hmm... let me check..."

Sebastian went quiet for a short while.

Sylphia swallowed her breath.

If it's a power I can use... then I can finally stop being helpless on my own! Come on! Give me something good!

Suddenly, Sebastian's eyes grew intense.

"Ha!" He grunted.

In an instant, a cloud of green dust exploded out of Sebastian that annihilated into bright sparkles just as quickly as they appeared.

"Eh!?" Sylphia froze. "W-what's happening!?"

At that very moment, the atmosphere turned heavy. A strange wind flowed in from the narrow entryway, collecting at their feet and formed a swirling vortex.

Letty looked frantically around them. "C-could it... The living weapon's new power... is magic!?"

"Some form of wind magic, at that!?" Sylphia pumped her fist inwards, "Nice! In that case, even I might be able to-"

Before she could even collect her thoughts, the winds suddenly shifted.

Like stirring a whirling glass of water in the opposite direction, the vortex annihilated and, in its place, a cushion of warm air rose upwards.

"-use..." Sylphia felt the blood rushing to her cheeks.  

Before her eyes, each of the girls' skirts fluttered upwards, revealing that which was never intended to be seen.

In their moment of realization, their faces lit up like incandescent lightbulbs.

She tried placed her hands over her cheeks, attempting to cover her eyes with her fingers, but her appendages refused to extend out. It was only then that, Sylphia felt a draft coming up from beneath her. The moment her eyes turned downwards, she, too realized.

Her own skirt lifted up, forming an oscillating ring above her waist.

Guah-!?

Her entire body trembled.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaa!!" All four girls screamed as they bent down, pushing their skirts down against the wind.

Sylphia's heart pulsed so hard that it felt like it was about to blow her chest open.

W-wha...!?

Amidst their panic, Sebastian roared out in laughter, "Gaaaahahahaha! Did you see that my boy!?"

Ruth flinched. It was at that moment that he finally closed his eyes and, turned away.

"It's the secret garden," he continued, "filled with flowers you'll never see again in your entire lifetime!"

"S-s-shut up!" he said. "D-d-don't involve me in this!"

Sylphia clasped her hands over her mouth.

Guh! I-i-in a way, he's right...! Rika aside, this would probably be the only opportunity I'd ever get to see Letty's... Letty's...!

Her cheeks burned up.

Uhyaaaaaa!! No waaaay...! I never expected her to wear something like... oh God...!

Finally, the wind subsided.

And after an awkward silence, the first to speak was a fuming Ceressa.

"Hey!" She shook her fist and screamed, "What the hell was that!?"

"Oho?" Sebastian's lecherous eyes rolled smugly upwards, "It's the plain white girl. How can I help you?"

Then, as if to tease her, the fan turned plain white, erasing even his face.

Ceressa's temper finally boiled over.

"Gaaaaaah!" she screamed, prying Sebastian out of Sylphia's hands.

"Ah- hey!" The little girl yelped, but did nothing. Deep inside, she knew that whatever was coming - he deserved it.

"Hohohoho," Still, Sebastian taunted her with his smug tone, "please don't handle me so roughly, my master won't approve of it."

Sylphia's eyes glazed over. "No, no, go ahead, I don't mind. Do whatever you please."

"Huh!?" He gasped. "M-master!?"

That's right... Sylphia nodded. I will be forever grateful for what you have shown me here today, but men - real men, take responsibility for their actions.

I wish to respect that.

She nodded.

Therefore-

Finally, she gave him a thumbs-up and said, "Good luck, Sebastian."

His face turned abyssal blue. Perhaps its dark hue reflected the depth of his despair. She could only guess.

"Ohooo..." Ceressa said, with a foreboding voice. "Whatever I please, huh...?"

"Gwaaaaah!" he screamed. "Wait, please, I'm sorry!"

"It's too late for that!" Grasping both ends, She lifted Sebastian overhead.

Eh?

"Ah! Ah! Noooohooooo!"

Wait, she might actually break him in half...!

The little girl tried to stop them at the very last second, but she was far too late.

"Oryaaaaaa!" With a ferocious scream, Ceressa brought judgement upon him. As though she were splitting a twig, she smashed his stem square on her kneecap.

Or, at least, that appeared to be her plan.

"Hngff-" The archer's face contorted. "Gyaaaaah!!"

She fell down, tossing Sebastian behind her.

"Ow! Ow! Ooooow!" Cluching her knee, she rolled back and forth on the ground in pain.

"Eh!?" Rika ran over to Ceressa. "Are you okay!?"

But for the moment, she was too preoccupied to respond.

"Uuuuooooooooohhh!" Sebastian, too, let out an agonizing scream as he flew in the air. He bounced off a wall before falling onto the ground in front of Letty.

Sylphia snorted and flashed another thumbs up.

Nice, Sebastian.

In the meantime, Letty crouched down and examined the sobbing wreck of a living weapon.

"Hmm..." She rubbed her chin. "It seems living weapons have a magical property that makes them tougher than they would normally seem... very interesting."

"Huh?" Sebastian said, recovering from his agony rather quickly, "Oh! Oho! It turns out miss black lace would be the one to see my real value?"

Black lace-!

Just hearing it conjured once more the memory burned into Sylphia's mind, flushing her entire face bright red once more.

Just like before his face then shifted into a deep black, with white threads weaved elegantly across it.

Letty's gaze sharpened. "Yes... very interesting."

She then picked Sebastian up and lifted him overhead.

"Eh?"

"Very... interesting."

With empty eyes, she bashed him, repeatedly, into the dirt.

"Oof! Agh! Ahh! Arrgh!"

The impact threw up clumps of dirt and, slowly, dug a shallow hole at her feet.

Her grip soon loosened and the next thing she knew, Sebastian was flying out of her hand. "Ah-"

"Aaaaaahaaaaa...!" His face soon morphed into a caricature of crying eyes with a stream of tears flowing straight down.

Next, he landed by Rika's feet.

"Urgh... uuuugh.... save me..." he said with a dying voice, "pink stripes..."

Rika smiled.

"Uoh! An angel!?"

"Hup!" She then stood up and kicked him off the ground, sending him flying once more.

"Aaaaahahahahaaa...!"

Sebastian screamed bounced from wall to wall and, finally, crashed right in front of Sylphia.

The little girl crouched down and poked him as though he were a dead animal laying on the side of the road.

"Heeey." She cocked her head."Still alive?"

He coughed. "Guhuh... no... pa-"

"Hmmmm?" she said, with a menacing smile on her face, "What was that you were about to call me?"

She then rubbed his face against the dirt.

"L-little girl...!"

"Mm!" she nodded. "Well, I don't know what proper use I can get out of that new power of yours, but I guess you're stuck with me either way. So let's get along from now on, eh?"

She giggled.

"Partner!"