"Ridiculous…” Carmine shook her head after hearing the dungeon’s conditions.

“I will not allow you to so easily take m-my dungeon’s stuff!” She said, pushing her fingers together while shooting me a stubborn stare from behind the pillar.

I didn’t know why I was getting the look at all since it was Carmine who was talking to her. Maybe she had decided that I was the head of the group or something. Honestly, I didn’t really like the attention at all. I’d much rather Carmine handle this, but ever since she had seen the Bandit King, she had become quite demure. I tried to put on a reassuring smile and equipped my charm up as backup.

“Of course, please, let us know the riddle.”

For some reason, when I leaned toward her and smiled, the girl, or whatever she was, became even more flustered, hiding the rest of her face behind the pillar. I couldn’t even really say what she was. Was she the lore itself given sentience? Was she a spirit connected to the lore strongly? She seemed to have much more of her mind than the previous times. Karr had been quite crazy, as was the Necromancer. Even Astria who was technically a living creature entrapped by the curse as opposed to a broken soul had very little of her mind left until we forced her to face the truth.

“V-very well!” she finally looked back out, straightening her dirty dress. “Then, I will give my question. I fly when I’m born. Lie down when I’m alive, and run when I’m gone. What am I?”

Stolen novel; please report.

“I like riddles!” Celeste said excitedly, fluttering around. “Can I answer it? Can I answer it?”

“Um… sure…”

“I don’t know!” Celeste declares proudly.

“You brat. It’s a snowflake!” I bonk her on the head.

“Geh!” Celeste rubs her head. “Master, what’s a snowflake?

I wanted to be angry at her, but it was spoken from a girl who had been locked in a dungeon for twenty years, so you couldn’t become too angry. Rather, I felt really sad that she had never even seen the snow before. Come this winter, I would definitely show her snowflakes.

“So! The answer ‘I don’t know!’ is incorrect!” Terra announces.

“The answer is a snowflake! I don’t know isn’t even an answer!”

Terra shook her fists. “You… f-fine! In that case, best two out of three!”

“Hey… that’s not what we agreed to!”

“Then don’t be so confusing the next time you answer!” She sniffed, acting a bit like a spoiled child.

“Fine…” I sighed. “Give us another one.”

“Very well…” She recovered from her tantrum and put on another mysterious look. “Voiceless I cry and wingless I soar; toothless I bite and mouthless I whisper. What am I?”

“Ooo… ooo… I know!” Celeste raises her hand excitedly.

I shook my head and chuckled. “Of course, you’d know. The answer is the wind! As a Sylph, it’d be embarrassing if you didn’t catch this one.”

Celeste froze, and then put her hand back down. “Oh… that answer is way better…”

“Celeste…”

“Ah, Master, please, not the head. That’s where my thoughts keep disappearing at!”

“So, you admit it!”

“Grrrr….” Terra hit the ground and it shook slightly. “Best three out of five!”