After a few days of preparation, it was time to leave Umbrine’s town.
Obviously, Violet disagreed and clung onto her storage chest, obstructing the pawns who packed her belongings.
She was driven by nothing but the preservation of her immediate comfort. A stark contrast from the young woman she had been once.
A long time ago, purpose and determination pumped in her blood, pushing her to seek out trials and endure suffering. But that purpose was never truly hers. And all it left was a gaping wound in her heart.
Now, there was no future, no hope or dream left in her life. Desire only brought her unbearable disappointment and pain. Would freedom alleviate her grief? Maybe, maybe not. This question never passed through her mind, since her brain was devoid of all long-term thoughts.
Her depressed state also reflected on the way she carried herself. Her body moved lifelessly, as she wearily dragged her limbs around. But when it came to grabbing the servants by the hips and wailing grievances, she managed to muster a surprising amount of strength. “Don’t kick me out, pleaaaase!”
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496249998778441/t285.jpg]
But Violet’s rebellion couldn’t last long. Umbrine bribed her with magic ingredients and wine, so she reluctantly agreed to leave her gilded cage.
Violet had researched summoning magic during her imprisonment. Perhaps she only yearned for a companion, but as a result, she had refined her original summoning spell to an unimaginable degree, beyond anything that the mage guilds could come up with.
It was just a small spark of curiosity, but it was enough to keep the dying flame of her heart alight.
Even Umbrine was morbidly curious about the result that the centuries old research of a supreme earth mage would bring about. However, she had no doubt that it would be a catastrophe for the locals. Still, she happily gave Violet the summoning ingredients if it meant getting her out.
And thus, Violet was on the starting line of another journey.
In the books she read, journeys were usually about youths full of vigor with room for growth. They fought for survival and bloomed to adulthood. But Violet? She was a hopeless leftover of society going to exile, a parasite who lived comfortably except for the threat of getting caught by the mage guild. She already came to terms with her sickness and defects and had little room for mental growth.
‘I’m already perfect as I am.’ Violet nodded with delusional contentment.
So rather than a dawn to her new life, it felt like her final trip towards the end.
She followed Umbrine to the caravan, full of bitterness. She had enjoyed bothering everyone while she could, though.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496484699439154/t183sunset.jpg]
The members of Violet’s relocation gathered during the sunset, emerging from a discreet exit of the underground network of Umbrine’s Dungeon. They formed a small expedition guarded by a few elite soldiers. They would travel under the cover of night to avoid the attention of the surrounding factions, while intimidating wandering monsters with powerful manticores.
Umbrine and Violet walked side by side, talking about the details of the mission.
“If you were thinking about sneaking back in, don’t.” Umbrine’s mouth relentlessly spouted ruthless remarks.
Violet grinded her teeth in annoyance. “Sure.”
Looking at the dimming sky, she made a secret vow. “I swear upon the stars. I will return and empty her castle, starting by the wine cellar.”
“You said that out loud.” Umbrine sighed.
“Oh…” Violet paused, then smiled. “So?”
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496250430799934/t286.jpg]
“In case you forgot, your mission is to keep the crystal mine safe while we dig an underground network through the mountain to reach you. When that happens, you’ll be able to enjoy the entertainment of society again. But until then, you’re out of civilization.”
There was no plumbing, heating, or food storage already available in the wild. It meant that Violet would have to redo everything from scratch.
Yet, she shrugged, having already experienced isolation in the witch hut, and she would start over with Lorely again. Perhaps, they could befriend another group of random passers-by like the harpies. “Sure, I’ve been a harpysitter. I can be a minesitter too.”
“Originally, the mission was supposed to be much more difficult. You had to conquer the trueborn tribes scattered around and tunnel from your side, but we can’t expect much from you. So, feel free to slack off.” Umbrine sighed.
“Ha, I shall take you up on that offer. I’ll keep about twenty pawns to hunt and guard the mine while I nap in boredom.”
“Are you fine going without any trueborn population? It’s more convenient for the relocation, but aren’t you scared of running out of pawns?”
Stolen novel; please report.
“I’ll come back to beg for money.”
Umbrine grimaced. “Can’t you just take the harpy flock off my hands? The ones who came with you.”
Hesitant, Violet lingered on her words. “Are they… still alive? I mean, the ones I know must be either very old or very dead.” They had stopped exchanging letters, and the harpies probably didn’t earn enough to get the medical care to live that long.
“Yes, they are. I took care of the first generation. They’re just old plucked grannies now. I’m sure they’d enjoy your trip.” Umbrine treated everything relating to Violet with utmost caution. Who knew what a hazardous beast like her could do when agitated or cornered? That was also why she didn’t rip Violet out of the cell by force.
Violet sighed in relief, but she lowered her head. “I don’t want to make them go through hardship again. They’re better off at your place.”
Lorely, Milia, and Shaki saluted the sovereigns when they reached the convoy.
Violet gazed at Lorely with a troubled expression. She wanted to set her free already. So many years had passed during her isolation that she wasn’t sure if the days they had spent together were real or just a senile dream.
At this point, their time together was a tiny fraction of their life. Such a small fraction was almost meaningless. The separation was long enough to make them complete strangers. How much did both of them change?
Lorely misinterpreted Violet’s uneasiness and locked arm with her. “Mistress! Are you scared for your life? Don’t worry, I’m with you now!” She grinned.
The harpy looked as jovial as ever, so maybe Violet was worrying for nothing after all.
“Oh, I don’t think I’m scared about my life…” Violet smiled awkwardly. Even when she lived in the comfort of her prison, it was hard to say that life was fulfilling. Survival? For what? For the hope of experiencing better days? Violet already lived centuries, she wasn’t getting scammed by hope anymore.
Milia, the minotaur rook, looked way too excited about the trip. She flexed her biceps and offered reassuring words that no one asked for. “Rest assured, I will protect you!”
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496250695024660/t287.jpg]
Umbrine chimed in. “No, you won’t. The escort will take care of that.”
“Huh? Oh… Then don’t worry, I’ll help conquer the locals when we arrive…?” Milia's smile stiffened.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496250934116352/t287b.jpg]
Supposedly, she used to be a fighting sport champion in her previous world and took pride in that. Understandably, she was dying to find out how strong she could become in Hekalys. Umbrine chose her for her great potential after all.
But Violet also shot down her hopes. “No, no, no. We’re going to lay low and sleep all day.”
“Huh?” Milia’s smile faded, as a foreboding uneasiness made her sweat.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496251458396160/t287d.jpg]
…
And sure enough, two weeks later, when they were all settled in the crystal mine, Milia’s smile twitched as she held a pickaxe in front of a partially dug out tunnel.
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496251219312711/t287c.jpg]
She threw the pickaxe down and ran off. “Let me ouuuuut!”
[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/829306210750300210/1137496249705168917/t072b.jpg]
Violet gazed at the minotaur running across the dungeon with a sneaky sadistic smile. ‘Heh, first time?’
She suffered during her imprisonment, and felt vindicated to inflict it back to Umbrine’s rooks.
Was Milia overqualified for guarding the mine? Possibly, but it was understandable from a sovereign point of view. They didn’t hire anyone but the cream of the crop. And since Milia and Shaki were the newcomers, they were assigned to the safest task that needed to be done.
‘Ha, this feels good.’ Violet especially enjoyed Milia’s distress with vicious jealousy. Indeed, Milia was acknowledged and respected for her skills. She enjoyed the attention of sovereigns like Umbrine, and radiated confidence and contentment. It was the opposite of Violet’s life of being treated like some magical nuclear waste.
Anyway, all that mattered to Violet was to perform a summoning spell.
But practice and theory were very different. She would need months of preparations, running experiments to check that all parts of her theory were reliable. If she ran into errors, she would need even more time to correct her theory. This process could take from a few months to multiple years, and she had to put all her focus to avoid wasting any magic resource.
It was especially frustrating to run into difficulties at every basic step, like setting up a magical cauldron and its heating magic system in her room.
While Violet dedicated herself entirely to summoning, she disregarded the management of her empty dungeon town. Surprisingly, her heart was a little regretful, torn apart by the impulse to serve the monarch properly and the desire to see her spell through. However, the Monarch never gave her any attention, so it was a vain impulse.
At first, the rooks fared well on their own and got along pretty well. Lorely was kept up to date about the recent events in their mysterious home world.
They all tried to perform their duties as much as they could.
Milia would return exhausted and empty handed from her hunts. “Argh! Where the fuck do they hide? I can’t catch any of them!”
Lorely welcomed her back. “You did your best. Don’t worry, you can just leave the hunting to me.” Each species had their strengths and weaknesses, harpies being better at scouting and hunting than minotaurs.
Milia’s eyes shot open. “No! No no no! I won’t be able to go outside! I don’t want to mine all day!!”
“Sheesh, of course you can take a walk outside, just don’t go too far.” Shaki shook her head.
“No, I already know the entrance like the back of my hand.” Milia whimpered.
Lorely pat the distressed minotaur.
But their relationship eventually deteriorated. Milia bottled up her resentment towards Violet, until she couldn’t bear the mine any longer.
It was after Milia returned slightly wounded from a failed hunt, that she openly confronted Violet.
“It’s all because of you, damn coward. If we just all went out and conquered the locals-”
Shaki covered her friend’s mouth and restrained Milia with all her strength. “I’m sorry ma’am. She’s been stressed out.”
Violet snorted. “Yeah? Well if you’re unhappy, you can just break the contract with Umbrine and fuck off.”
Milia lost her composure at the provocation. She broke off Shaki and raised her hand to bitchslap the heck out of Violet, but a warning from her blessing seemed to pop up in her sight. She stopped herself and paled, she couldn’t risk losing her status as a rook after just starting.
Simultaneously, Lorely tackled Milia. They both were sent tumbling in locked embrace.
“Ack, what the fuck was that for?!” Milia hissed.
“You! How dare you raise your hand at mistress?” Lorely shouted, grabbing Milia’s neck chain and shaking it in outrage.
“That coward deserves it. But you’re pretty brave to fight me when you’re so weak.” Milia pulled Lorely’s hair and shook it.
As a harpy hag, Lorely was too light and her strength was too lacking to win in any grappling contest, even though she had the maximum level of blessing. Her weapon was shock hit-and-run tactics.
On the other hand, minotaurs had unparalleled strength and could win a clash of strength even against manticores.
Lorely yelped as she struggled to break free.