“Okay this is just confusing.” Nathan sighs.

“Well. If one of those answers was wrong it has to be the last one.” Harry asserts.

“Are you sure about that? Do you think there is no way to spin one of the first two ones into a nontruth?” Simon questions.

The rest of them fall into thoughtful silence.

Kallion speaks up first.

“There are several ways, but the most likely case right now, taking into account the circlet’s mysterious disappearance and the circlet scene that was probably deliberately shown to us, is that the circlet lets someone -or something- else control the wearer's movements. That would make it plausible for the first and second answer to be correct. That's my current hypothesis.”

The rest nod thoughtfully and after a short pause to collect his thoughts he continues.

“We just don’t know who. And we only have one more subject left to question. We can try to ask, but unless the Lady was complicit, there is not a high chance she knows anything about that. But maybe she knows some things about the father, it seemed they were decently familiar with each other in that first scene. Allea, that means we depend on you to ask the right questions.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Replica nods seriously.

They stick their heads together and discuss their questions some more, so as to get the best information they can out of their three remaining questions. After a good amount of discussion that gets into more and more minute details of the whole process of truth finding.

I appreciate how engaged they all are. It is genuinely gratifying after seeing some other delvers barely engaging with my challenges. Having some more perspective on the way people outside view dungeons, I was in a pretty weird place, mentally.

Apparently we are some kind of goddess-given trial grounds for humanity, according to their priesthood. I don’t particularly feel like some divine or semi-divine entity, but well, I cannot deny that my instincts demand I present delvers with challenges to overcome.

But that doesn’t feel great when people only half-ass it. The bards that have been coming in lately have been decently attentive, but the adventurers accompanying them were kind of a hit or miss. Many didn’t successfully resolve the mystery.

I am brought out of my introspective and reminiscence by the delver’s final questioner stepping up to the mirror.

Simon and Kallion are whispering something fierce and watching her intently, as Replica steps up. It’s understandable, I guess, considering she’s not really on their team as it were, but she fully intends to help them, so they needn’t worry. Though, to be fair, one or two groups have already been stopped from advancing by her or one of her siblings intentionally phrasing questions wrongly or just outright wasting them. This mostly happens when the group appears disrespectful or rude, though, and there is no risk of that.

Replica arrives in front of the mirror with long, assured strides, still looking very much in character. The swirling mist forms and the real Allea comes up behind the mirror. As the mists clear, the two women smile at each other with identical faces, and the room quiets in anticipation.