[Because she's the only one on our side strong enough to protect it.] The system answered, but Eva's glare didn't subside.

“How the hell does she even have it in the first place?” Eva asked, raising an eyebrow.

‘Didn't Neil say he gave it to the pink twins to protect it? So how the hell did the system have it?!’ Eva wondered, staring at the system screen suspiciously.

[You want answers to your questions?] The system asked.

“Of course, I do!” Eva replied. A lot of things weren't adding up.

[Don't worry, one day I'll answer all your questions.] The system stated calmly.

“Annoying system!” Eva spat with crossed arms.

_________

“Aurianna, you're finally awake!” Kiana gasped with a happy expression. She had been starting to worry if Aurianna was actually alive due to how deeply she was sleeping.

“I said I just needed some sleep, you know,” Aurianna stated nonchalantly. Seeing Kiana's tears made her make an ugly expression and distance herself from the mermaid.

“How much time do we have left?” Aurianna asked curiously.

“Well, you fell asleep for eleven hours, and we have two days left, so we've got 37 hours remaining.”

“That's good. Also, take this,” Aurianna said, retrieving something from her inventory and handing it to Kiana.

Kiana's eyes widened in surprise to see what was in her hand. A beautiful crystal headset with a microphone, perfectly shaped to fit her head size.

“What is this?” Kiana asked, looking at Aurianna with a confused expression.

“Something to help with your bard powers,” Aurianna answered calmly.

“How did you make this?” Kiana asked, staring down at Aurianna since she was much bigger and taller than her.

‘It has too many mana circuits to be a normal weapon,’ Kiana thought. When she focused her eyes, she could see numerous connected mana circuits. Weapons like this sold for over a hundred thousand gold. Just the thought of that made Kiana hold the headset with care.

“My sister made it,” Aurianna answered.

“Where is she?” Kiana asked with a confused expression since there was no one here apart from them.

“She’s up here,” Aurianna answered with a cheeky smile, pointing to her head.

Kiana stared at Aurianna with a blank expression, thinking, ‘Yep, she's definitely crazy.’

‘Ahhh, my life is in the hands of a crazy woman,’ Kiana thought, her eyes filling with tears which she slowly wiped away.

“Why are you crying? Do you not like it?” Aurianna asked with an annoyed expression, and seeing it as a glare, Kiana became extremely nervous.

“No, no, I love it! These are just tears of joy, you know!” She claimed, and Aurianna's face brightened up a bit.

“I see. Well, with the time we have left here, I'll teach you how to use it, and you can learn the rest,” Aurianna stated.

“Oh…” Kiana said, nodding.

“Yes, you need a way to amplify your powers, or you'll die whiles we are fighting stronger enemies, or solving any weird puzzles given to us,” Aurianna stated, and Kiana gulped because she knew Aurianna was right.

“Place it on your head,” Aurianna instructed. Kiana did as she was told, and as she expected, the headset fit her perfectly.

The crystal felt cool and slightly tingly against her skin, and she could sense the mana circuits activating as soon as it settled in place.

‘This feeling!’ Kiana gasped as she felt her mind open.

“Now, close your eyes and focus on the flow of your mana,” Aurianna instructed. “Feel how the headset channels it. It should enhance your bard powers.”

Kiana did as she was told, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She concentrated on the mana within her, feeling it surge through her body and into the headset.

“Now try using it,” Aurianna instructed, stepping a few meters back to watch Kiana.

As if it were natural, Kiana could see musical notes floating before her. She reached out to touch them, and as she did, she began to sing a lovely song.

‘As I thought, her voice can cause debuffs. Magic words, huh?’ Aurianna thought with a smile.

“I'll leave her to practice more. For now, I'll just sleep normally,” she mumbled before lying on the ground and drifting off to sleep.

____________

“Aurianna,” Kiana called out gently.

“Yes, Kiana,” Aurianna responded, quickly opening her eyes.

“I think I've gotten used to this thing. Thank you,” Kiana said, her face flushed with gratitude.

Aurianna sat up and looked at Kiana, who was sitting next to her. “No need to thank me. If you don't get stronger, you'll die. And I'm not going to get stuck here just because you died,” she chuckled.

“Waahhhhh, so you see me as a burden?” Kiana said, her eyes welling up with tears.

“Because you are! Now shut up!” Aurianna snapped, and Kiana immediately stopped crying, stifling her tears.

“Yes, ma'am…” she mumbled.

“Hah, what did I do to deserve dealing with a crybaby like you?” Aurianna sighed, shaking her head.

“I'm going to sleep again. Keep on practicing. We have no idea what will happen in the next trial,” Aurianna stated.

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“Alright, I shall train my best! I shall not disappoint you!” Kiana said enthusiastically.

“Eva, can she really not come with us?” Aurianna asked curiously.

“I don't want to bring anybody who's not you or Leila!” Eva replied, her voice clearly reluctant. Aurianna had been trying to convince her back in the training grounds, but Eva didn’t seem to budge.

“Come on, Eva, I need this mermaid to survive here, you know? Can't you make an exception? If you're worried about betrayal, I doubt she can do that when she has received my mark,” Aurianna said with a confident grin.

“Hmmm, I guess I can, but she can only stay a few hours less than you because of her weak level,” Eva stated, finally conceding to Aurianna's wish.

“I'm fine with that!” Aurianna said with a light chuckle.

“Hey, Kiana!” Aurianna called out.

‘She's done talking to the ghost,’ Kiana thought, staring at Aurianna with a bewildered expression.

“We’re going somewhere to train. I won't say where or how because those angels could be watching us, so don't freak out when we get there, okay?” Aurianna explained.

‘I wonder what she's blabbering about,’ Kiana wondered, staring at Aurianna.

‘Well, I’ll just listen to her,’ she decided, finally paying attention to Aurianna, though she had missed most of what Aurianna had said.

“So lie down and sleep, okay?” Aurianna instructed, and Kiana did as she was told.

“Eva.”

“Yes, I've sent her there. This is a copy,” Eva stated, and Aurianna watched as the body before them breathed more steadily.

“Heh, thank you,” Aurianna said before laying down herself.

_______

“Ahhhhhh!!!!!!” Kiana screamed at the top of her lungs when she saw herself surrounded by spiders. The force of her scream caused some of the spiders to be torn apart by the sound waves, but others came crawling towards her.

“Scram, fiends,” Aurianna spat coldly as she appeared beside Kiana.

Sensing that Aurianna was too strong for them, the spiders hissed in anger before retreating into the dark forest.

“Aurianna, where are we? What is this place??” Kiana asked, clearly frightened and confused.

“Let’s say it’s the place of another servant of mine,” Aurianna stated proudly as she rubbed her nose.

“Who’s your servant, dumb child?!” Eva yelled, picking a pillow from her space and throwing it at Aurianna through another open space, hitting the girl’s head.

“Ahh, Eva, no need to be so rough. You’re not just any servant, but my right-hand maiden,” Aurianna cooed as she held the pillow and smiled at Eva.

“Humph, better!” Eva huffed.

‘Wait, that woman was actually real?!’ Kiana gasped in shock, finally hearing the supposed ghost’s voice for the first time.

‘And all this time I thought Aurianna was crazy. Aurianna, I’m so sorry…’ Kiana thought, beginning to tear up once again.

“Aurianna, where are we???” Kiana asked, still crying. “How am I able to breathe without water?!!” She gasped and began to panic even more.

“Aren’t mermaids amphibious?” Aurianna asked, staring at Kiana.

“Wait, we are…” Kiana answered, suddenly realizing.

“Idiot!” Aurianna scoffed.

“Wahhhhh, Aurianna, I’m scared!!” Kiana rushed to Aurianna’s side and picked her up.

“Eva, could you teleport us to Aquarius?” Aurianna asked while in Kiana’s arms.

“Sure,” Eva agreed.

“Where are we going?” Kiana wondered.

“To your new teacher,” Aurianna said with a cold smile.

‘We’re suddenly underwater. Wait, what is this place? It looks like a throne room?!’ Kiana wondered, looking around.

“What are you doing here, brat?!” Aquarius asked with a displeased expression as he sat on his throne, being served food by fish people who seemed like maids.

“No need to be so hostile. I brought you a new student,” Aurianna said calmly.

“Who’s she?” Aquarius asked, glaring at Kiana, who shuddered under his gaze.

“A royal mermaid from my world. Isn’t this the type of royal race you kept comparing me and Leila to? So now I brought one for you to train,” Aurianna sneered. “I want her to be strong enough so she doesn’t die,” she added.

“Wait, Aurianna, are you going to leave me with this creepy guy? Please no, I am still confused about what is happening?!” Kiana asked Aurianna telepathically, and all Aurianna did was give her a thumbs up, causing the life of the mermaid's face to drain immediately.

“Fine, I don’t mind training her. What is her class?” Aquarius wondered curiously.

“She’s a bard,” Aurianna answered, and Aquarius was silent for a while.

“A bard, huh? I can work with some other Sea Rulers who specialize in such types of skills. But what do I get in return for training her?” he asked with a cold smile.

“Do you want to mess with Eva?” Aurianna asked with a cheeky smile.

“So cocky to flaunt that bitch’s name!” Aquarius growled, his expression full of displeasure.

“Well, it's the only name that keeps your attitude in check,” Aurianna chuckled mischievously.

‘These two are strong. Their pressure is suffocating,’ Kiana thought, feeling the oppressive aura as Aurianna and Aquarius slowly released their power, causing the area around them to tremble.

“Wait, Aurianna, isn't there a possibility of me dying?” Kiana asked worriedly, looking at Aurianna.

“Don't worry. Since you became my servant, anytime you die, you'll automatically revive,” Aurianna said with an evil smile.

“Whew, that's good,” Kiana sighed in relief, but a sudden realization struck her. “Wait, you mean I'll actually die!!!” she gasped.

“Duh, this is a world full of monsters after all,” Aurianna said with a grin.

‘Brother, I didn't sign up for this!!’ Kiana began to tear up.

“Well, I'm leaving you both. Don't worry, when your time is up, you'll go back to the real world,” Aurianna stated before disappearing from Kiana's sight.

“Nice to meet you, Kiana,” Aquarius said, appearing before her.

‘How the fuck does he even know my name? This is so scary!!’ Kiana cried even more.

_________

“You brought the mermaid today?” Leila asked, leaning on Aurianna's head as she sat down.

“Yes, she has to get stronger after all,” Aurianna stated calmly.

“Heheh,” Leila chuckled.

“You guys are training with Kleizorn today, huh?” Carol asked, standing beside them with her arms crossed.

“Yes, he promised us,” Aurianna replied.

“Humph, annoying bastard. He's lucky we ended up in a tie,” Carol snorted.

“There’s no need to be so salty, Carol,” said a middle-aged humanoid who came beside her. He had an elegant mustache, six pairs of eyes on his face, and a sharp spider fang. On his back were eight sharp spider legs that constantly moved. His skin was entirely black with some green hues. He was Kleizorn.

“We are old friends, after all, so there's no need to treat me like this,” he chuckled, placing his arm over her shoulder. Behind him, Elizabeth stood biting her nails and glaring at Carol.

“Since we are from the same world, we must be nicer to each other,” Kleizorn chuckled.

“You two are from the same world?” Aurianna asked, clearly surprised.

“We are. We met when we were little monsters and grew up to be world threats. Ah, my proudest days,” Kleizorn reminisced with a smile, while Carol looked at him with a frown.

“And if I'm right, you two were caught by Eva?” Leila asked, looking at both Kleizorn and Carol.

“Yeah, when she used to work for the Regals,” Carol stated, scratching her thick hair.

“Eva used to work for the Regals?!” Aurianna gasped in suprise.

“She did, handling anything they deemed a threat,” Carol said coldly, remembering Eva's cold gaze the first time they met.

“Why would Eva work for the Regals? She told me she despises them,” Leila wondered with a frown.

“Oh, she does. But to achieve her goal, she was willing to bow her head to her enemies,” Carol stated calmly. ‘I thought she was stupid, but she’s extremely patient and can endure being next to her own enemies,’ Carol thought with a light smile.

“Oh, how did you know all of this?” Aurianna asked curiously, ‘Why won’t Eva tell me about her past?’ she wondered, feeling a bit jealous and she began pouting.

“Eva and I are somehow like friends, despite our differences. I’ll never forgive the way she beat me up the first time we met!” Carol grumbled, clenching her fist. Just thinking about that day and the extreme fear she felt caused her to grit her teeth.

‘I can understand why she was patient. Those Regals are fucking monsters,’ Carol thought, recalling the memory of witnessing a Regal compress her world into the size of a fist and devour it whole, with the words “Tier One” written in its rainbow coloured eyes.

“Though she has changed a lot ever since she met you two,” Carol blurted out, staring at Aurianna and Leila.

‘I guess they remind her of her daughter,’ she thought and reluctantly sighed.

“Silly Eva,” she chuckled, walking up to Aurianna and Leila and playing with their cheeks, being careful with her nails.

“Hmm, is there something on our face, Carol?” Aurianna asked.

“No, you’re just too squishy!” Carol declared, playing with their cheeks more.

Aurianna and Leila giggled as Carol continued to pull their cheeks. “Hey, stop it! That tickles!” Leila exclaimed, trying to swat Carol’s hands away.

Carol laughed, finally releasing their cheeks. “Alright, alright. But you two really are something special. You’ve brought out a side of Eva I never thought I’d see in a very long time. Humph to think that old hag can smile like that.”

Aurianna smiled warmly. “Well she is important to us, so I want to understand her better. She just won't tell me more when I ask!” Aurianna yelled in frustration, crossing her arms and staring at the sky since she was aware that Eva was listening in.