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Rating:

Not Rated

Archive Warnings:

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive WarningsGraphic Depictions Of Violence

Category:

Gen

Fandom:

Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime)

Characters:

Rey Alaraph (OC)Louis ArnebLye BatenkaitosRoy Alphard

Additional Tags:

POV First PersonDysfunctional FamilyThe Gamer Ability (The Gamer Webcomic)Fluff and AngstThe gluttonies are terrible childrenThe Author Regrets EverythingWhy Did I Write This?This was entirely an excuse to fit as many self-indulgent things into one fic as possibleSpoilers for Re:Zero season 3Lots of struggling to change canonDescent into MadnessNot Canon CompliantThere is more than one playeroc is a fourth gluttony siblingprobably the most 'normal' but compared to the others that's not saying much

Language:

English

Stats:

Published:2024-10-28Updated:2026-01-07Words:246,117Chapters:58/?Comments:1,238Kudos:848Bookmarks:113Hits:41,077

A Dog in the Cradle of Od Lagna

TheGimbler

Chapter 7

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Rey Alaraph LVL 33

Race: 25% Demi-Human (dog)

Affiliation: Witch Cult (Sin Archbishop), -99% Reputation with non-affiliated members.

Magical Affinity: Yin, Earth

Health: 570/880

Mana: 330/1,740

Exp: 2400/3300

STR: 122

-The weight of your blows, the ability to exert force in numerical form.

VIT: 44

-Your constitution, the vitality you carry in numerical form.

DEX: 73

-The litheness of your body, the speed at which you can actively react to in numerical form.

INT: 174 (+50 for one week)

-Puzzles, memory, knowledge in numerical form.

WIS: 101

-Understanding, thoughts, and the ability to comprehend in numerical form.

LUK: 6

-Chance, and the odds it's in your favor in numerical form.

190 Stat points allocatable!

22 levels for a single quest. The difficulty wasn't the highest, all things considered.

Right?

It wasn't difficult at all. All I needed to do was let Louis hold my mind together, teach me ways to cope, and sort all the memories that were mine and not mine into different parts of my brain. It wasn't hard.

All I had to do was lose her and I'd end up okay. How incredibly easy it was, losing the one person I'd come to know as my sister.

And I got 22 levels for it! Wasn't that just fucking swell?

I'd gotten a flesh body, and was laying on my back in a dark room. A flesh body, while I left my sister back in the Cradle. Alone. She was against what I said and did, which I didn't care about. I was planning on forcing her to come with me, so of course she'd get a little mad at me. But now she was trapped in there by herself.

I had the Yin Sword, I can open up the Cradle again. I didn't know where the Cradle actually was , but that was fine! I had all the tools I needed, I just needed to talk to her again! Once more, and she'd understand! She'd put that nonsense away and we'd be able to eat together and venture around the world, disappearing from the public eye as Sin Archbishops!

Right?

It'd all work out. It all had to work out.

00:03:43

The clock continued to count down, and I sat up, eyes steeled and mouth downturned in a frown.

I had no time to think. When the Act started, something would happen, that much was obvious. Whether a whole bunch of quests appearing that I had to partake in, or an invisible wall blocking me, I didn't want to be here.

But Louis– Louis would be left alone without anyone on her side. She was a 'Villain,' just like me!

Remember what I told you.

The Plot isn't exactly the most kind to Villains.

"Damn it, Xyxycyyc!" I snarled, jumping to my feet and rushing out of the room.

I was met with a long corridor, made of stone. Laid stonework to mimic bricks conjured the walls, and the floor was no different. I was rushing down them in an instant, looking for something. For someone. ANYTHING I could change to fuck up this stupid fucking Act!

I passed by several rooms, each empty or filled with… corpses of mabeasts? I didn't care, I rushed past them without paying them any mind.

Milestone hit!

Congratulations! For reaching 100 in STR, you have the choice between!

"Fuck off!" I growled, immediately ignoring the system popup. I hate it. I hate the damn system. The fucking thing lied to me. It said I could bring Louis with me, and then it turned out I never had a chance to do it to begin with!

Fuck off, fuck off, fuck off, I don't care about your damn milestone or rewards!

I was trapped in this Act as a villain, and so was Louis. If it was allowed to play out without any change, then what Xyxycyyc warned about would come to pass. The consequences be damned, I wasn't about to let this happen without me throwing a wrench into the Plot!

If I merely ran and left my sibling to her fate, then what kind of sister would I be?!

00:02:14

Then, I finally found something undoubtedly important.

I could smell it. My nose, superabled, was assailed by a powerful scent. The smell of life, of something other . Whatever it was, it wasn't the dusty, dead, empty corridors I'd awoke to, which meant I was going to ruin whoever that scent belonged to.

A doorway opened to the outside. Stars were twinkling in the sky, the moon on the horizon shining like a beacon.

There, standing on the balcony, was a figure. They stiffened as I ran through the doorway, looking over their shoulder at me with wide eyes. It was a woman, with lengthy brown hair tied up in a ponytail. Her green eyes had three red irises in them, but that gave me no pause.

I felt the Witchfactor of Gluttony tense as the aura of the woman washed over me, a vague sense of familiarity. I didn't know the woman, I didn't even know where I was, but my Witchfactor still felt strange upon laying my eyes on her.

"...Mother's key?" The woman whispered in astonishment, looking at me with wide eyes.

[Stat points: 190 → 0]

[STR: 122 → 312]

Her surprise was enough. She didn't move out of the way, nor did she do anything but gape like a fish, even as I barreled towards her in blind frustration.

Whoever this woman was, she was important to the Act. I was going to throw a wrench into the Act as soon as possible, and my stats all filtered into my strength, and I prayed it was enough.

Everything froze, and a yellow pop up appeared in front of me.

Plot (Re)quest!

Don't–

"Fuck off!" I shouted, not even bothering to read through the consequences of my actions.

My hand met her chest, and I shoved her with all my might. With strength unbefitting my frame as a small girl, I pushed the woman through the banister and into the open air. Her startled eyes met mine for only a moment before the pull of gravity dragged her downward.

And she fell, fell, fell out of my sight into the darkness surrounding the building I was in.

I breathed deeply, feeling a shudder race up my arm and into my torso. And I stepped up to the broken banister, looking down into the darkness with a blink. It was a far, far fall to the bottom. Thousands of feet at the least from where I stood, and…

I looked up.

…I was perhaps only at the midpoint of the tower. The Sage's Watchtower, it seemed. The building on the easternmost edge of the world where the Sage, Shaula, resided.

"...Ah," There was a pause as I considered the woman I pushed off the tower. "...Nah, that couldn't have been. But if it was… Nah, no way. Though, throwing the Sage off the tower would certainly mess the Act up, wouldn't it?"

+16,294EXP!

You have leveled up!

You are now level 38!

75 Stat points allocatable!

The sudden EXP increase certainly caused my brow to raise in surprise. Pushing a regular woman off a tower to her death would probably not amount to much EXP. Killing a legendary figure known for great exploits by pushing her off a tower would certainly be anticlimactic, but two things bothered me.

The first was that the Sage, Shaula, wasn't known to be a woman. Especially not one dressed like she was going to the beach.

Second was that getting only 16k EXP for killing one of the so-called Three Heroes seemed… rather cheap. Don't get me wrong, I'll take all the EXP I can get, especially if it was so easy, but this was someone said to have been one of the key figures in defeating the Witch of Envy, Satella. If I killed Satella, would I only get 48k EXP? Highly doubtful.

I breathed in the cold air of the outside world, not feeling it quell much of my inner angst at all. Killing someone on sight, no matter how important they were, and I barely felt bad about it at all. In fact, I didn't know if I was going to be wrathful or spitting on her corpse if it turned out I didn't change the Act before it started. I could've gotten EXP for simply pushing her off the tower, she might not even be dead. I really hoped she was, though, since I don't think I could take a fight.

00:01:32

I sighed, leaning against the banister with a groan, feeling no indecision for what should be a hard choice for me to make.

In case there was a strange bout of forgetfulness, I died because I botched a backflip and broke my neck. I was at the age where adults generally 'started' their lives, where freedom is gained to do whatever it is that you wanted. My second life as Rey had been for a month or so, and I was in a coma for a large portion of that month.

Now, in a dangerous situation where no one would blame me for running away to start a new life where I didn't break my neck, I'm staying still. Here, within this tower where Act VI would be starting in a mere minute, where the sub-objectives included defeating fucking Reid Astrea, another of the key figures that defeated Satella, who had far more feats to include in books of history. Oh, and another said I needed to die for it to happen. If that didn't clue you into how dangerous this thing was going to be, then there was no saving you.

And yet, I stayed anyway. Because Louis was here. She was in danger, same as I, and I didn't want to leave her alone to face it.

That simple fact alone left me standing wistfully at the broken banister, having murdered the woman who stood here not two minutes before. Some place in my heart, I accepted all atrocities I'd be committing by staying here. I didn't care how many people I needed to manipulate or hurt for Louis' sake.

"Family-Dining…" I muttered, echoing Louis' words about my own gluttony. "Throwing away everything else but family. Discarding any of my potential relationships or happiness, so long as they remain safe and happy." I put a hand on my head, feeling a slight headache at the thought. "Though I hope it doesn't come to that."

I watched the clock slowly tick downward.

"I didn't even hesitate throwing all my points into strength." Another sigh escaped me. "My stats are completely one-sided now."

My strength now fully eclipsed my other stats. And I could feel my muscles straining under my skin, pulsating with raw power. I wouldn't be surprised if I looked down and saw clear muscle definition on my arms.

Somewhere within my egregious sense of self, which only continued to flicker wildly, I recognized my strength would probably be nothing compared to those who would stand in my way in the coming Act.

00:00:05

Yet, I didn't flee. I refused to. I am not a coward who would abandon her family, even if they were monsters who ate the people around them.

00:00:01

00:00:00

Commencing Act VI: The Hall of Memories…

You have changed the setup of the Act! (1/1)

You have gained 5 instant Level-ups!

You are now level 43!

Allocatable stats increased per level! (15 → 20)

165 Stat points allocatable!

For changing the setup of the Act, you are able to see one of the main quest rewards! Please choose one of the main quest targets to see its reward.

"...It actively rewards me for screwing up the Plot?" I muttered in disbelief, eyes wide at the text in front of me. "But I thought it hated me doing that. Wait, what?" I scratched the side of my head. "Why would it give me a sub-objective that goes against whatever the system is trying to achieve? That seems awfully inconvenient."

I looked through the Act information again, muttering its name aloud.

I didn't quite know exactly what a reward for the mainline quests would entail. If Natsuki Subaru looped 10,000 times, then would I get what was offered, or only one of the 'Villains?' An NPC wouldn't be rewarded in the same way I was, most likely. It would be split amongst the players.

"...Two-Thousand-Five-Hundred." I said aloud, curious about what the offered reward would be.

Cause Natsuki Subaru to loop! (0/2500)

Reward: The Plague Sword of the Ten Swords of Power

My eyes bulged at the offered prize. The third greatest reward was one of the Ten Swords of Power? What about those above it?! What the hell else could be so much more valuable than such an overpowered weapon?

But that only meant that it'd be incredibly difficult to achieve this 'loop' 2500 times. Most likely… it meant time travel, didn't it? A loop. Maybe even a gameplay loop of some sort, where Natsuki Subaru had the ability to loop time. What it meant, technically, was defeating Natsuki Subaru in 2500 different ways where you couldn't make counterplays to his strategies. I didn't know what it meant if you killed him, but I assumed he'd have enough state of mind to rewind time after puncturing his chest. Crushing his skull… it was possible that would end the Plot entirely.

What the hell am I even thinking at this point. I wanted to get Louis out of this Act and into safety.

But another sword of power. If I had that, it'd make many things so much easier in the future. You have extraordinary sword talent, don't you? If you wielded two swords of power, just like the Blue Lightning in Vollachia, you could reach the heights of the four great martial powers.

It was tempting, I'll admit it. If I had the Plague Sword in addition to the Yin Blade, there wouldn't be many in the world capable of putting up a decent fight against me, especially if I care about leveling. A system capable of increasing my attributes, as though everything around me were a game. Quests with rewards, even if it meant I had to puncture the chest of a young man about my age in my first life over two thousand times. Family-Dining. The act of doing any amount of heinous actions if it meant protecting my family, even if it were to increase their chances of happiness only a tiny bit.

It was clear what my stance on this was. Natsuki Subaru, in the memories I never made, you look to be an upstanding, nice guy. If it was to protect your family, I'm sure you would kill thousands of people. Please, accept me forcing you to loop over two thousand times. Maybe… Maybe he'd do it if I just explained myself to him. If he could loop with a thought, then it was possible he'd humor me with the amount of loops I wanted.

If I grew strong enough, then none of my siblings would ever be able to pull themselves away from me. We'd be able to eat together, free from doubts and unhappiness.

I could see it, as clear as the nightfall around me. A single light in the middle of the desert below. A carriage carrying a cabin full of protagonists and supporting characters.

The Augria Sand Dunes were on the easternmost edge of the world, the breeding ground for many different mabeasts. It was odd, but… I felt a kinship with the desert below for some reason. My witchfactor barely moved within my belly, and hardly pulsed with a raging hunger. If anything, I truly wanted to jump into the ocean of sand and feast upon the creatures below.

I swallowed preemptively, forcing my mind away from the thought. When I walked past the room full of mabeast corpses, I didn't realize how hungry they were going to make me. Pieces of meat I wanted to scarf down, even though I didn't feel hungry in the traditional nutrition-seeking sense.

I wasn't hungry, though I hungered greatly.

And that was when something odd happened.

Cause Natsuki Subaru to loop! (2/1)

Reward: 5,000EXP

Cause Natsuki Subaru to loop! (2/5)

You have leveled up!

You are now level 44!

185 Stat points allocatable!

I stared at the popup.

Five thousand EXP for… standing around?

More than that, what do you mean he looped already?! The guy clearly used his reset button whenever he said the wrong word to his girlfriend. Did he have no shame at all about resetting everything for a retry at talking to someone?

That, or the mabeasts got to him. I chuckled at that, shaking my head at the absurdity of Natsuki Subaru being unable to handle a few mabeasts after he killed both the White Whale and Great Rabbit. The last one was unconfirmed, but he had the merit, so I'd be inclined to believe him.

Maybe I didn't even need to do anything over the course of the Act. Letting him loop all willy-nilly would suit my needs just fine.

Regardless, the carriage was approaching the tower, where I was, and I hadn't explored it much at all. With a quick whirl, I walked back into the tower, before beginning to rush about, looking through every room I could find and committing it to memory.

[Stat points: 185 → 0]

[DEX: 93 → 278]

With STR, it wasn't as starkly noticeable. Tripling my DEX, however, I immediately felt the world slow around me, and I launched through each corridor like I was a bullet in human form. I felt so full of energy, like something clicked in the deepest parts of my being and my muscles started to work properly for the first time since I was born. My long, dirty blonde hair whipped around my face as I sped through several different rooms, and I knew how Louis must've felt as she dashed around me at startling speeds. The control over my body felt so good.

It was equally as pleasant and addictive as my increased awareness, though I doubt it'd ever work the same in Lunar Eclipse with Memories of a Second Life.

Speaking of–

Milestone hit!

Congratulations! For reaching 100 in DEX, you have the choice between the following two perks!

Body Fluidity:

Sometimes, there are people born with the capability to contort their bodies in strange ways like it's completely natural. Double jointed limbs, tendons that can stretch forever, a lithe body that can dance like it was a liquid instead of being made of something completely solid. If you choose this perk, your body will be capable of these oddities.

Bullet Time:

In a moment of dire need, it feels like everything slows around you, and your mind sharpens to a degree capable of understanding such speeds. This is not what this perk gives you. Quite literally, everything slows down around you but you. You're not exceptionally fast, everyone is just slower than you are.

Oh, these were going to be hard choices, weren't they? I had a choice in a STR perk that I ignored, and WIS was right behind that as well.

While the obvious choice was Bullet Time, it also didn't specify how much it'd slow down time. If it were 20% or higher, I'd consider it more, but without a direct answer, I couldn't choose it in good conscience. Body Fluidity, on the other hand, gave me a few intriguing ideas I could put into motion with my Skin of Titanium. I was already kind of a freak, so I didn't have any qualms with a body incapable of feeling tight around my tendons and ligaments.

Body Fluidity selected.

As I raced around the tower floor, I came across stairs that stretched upward, to a floor higher than the one I was in, and filed it away in my mind for later. I didn't have too much time to rush around and explore every nook and cranny of the damn place. I wanted to be there when the protagonists arrived so I could pretend like I owned this place. In a way, I planned to supplant the woman who I pushed off the tower.

I found another staircase, this time leading downward, and quickly descended, launching down without a care in the world. Even if I tripped and fell, or jumped down ten or twenty steps, I wouldn't take any damage. My body could stretch and be pulled in every direction without snapping, and my flesh was impervious to most forms of casual harm. I could fight in a way most others couldn't, only evading or worrying about the most powerful of blows and absorbing the lighter strikes meant to ward me off.

Worrying about how I was going to fight, so soon after thinking about my mindset, wasn't exactly the greenest flag. But failing to bring Louis with me meant there would always be conflict. I wasn't naive enough to assume that true conflict wasn't possible with the protagonists.

I was a villain, and they were not.

As I raced down the stairs, another popup appeared.

Milestone hit!

Congratulations! For reaching 100 in WIS, you have the choice between the following two perks!

Observe:

You ever want to see the stats of things other than you? Those damn NPCs and their strange abilities and– Oh, wait, nevermind you can see they're just bluffing about it. With this perk, you can see levels, stats, and perks that those around you have!

The Heart of the Mind:

The wind blows a terrible fortune. You taste the death beneath your feet. You say a word, but your deepest self truly means different. Love and hate are so close together, it's only natural you don't understand that you confuse one for the other. Don't lose your way, strive for the end with all your heart.

I could… perhaps understand the differences between the two. Observe was a convenient ability that had flatly stated every benefit. The Heart of the Mind did no such thing, and instead gave me some mumbo jumbo about the innermost self and heart and whatever.

The difference between a game, and a life, perhaps. Observe NPCs, see them as nothing but numbers and EXP to be reaped, avoiding the strongest, or challenging them for a challenge quest. Understand your heart at all times, even if you want to hide the truth from yourself.

Both of them were undesirable to me. Both of them were undeniably beneficial.

…

I chose neither. The window disappeared, and I could easily bring it up again to choose one of them as a perk, but I don't think I'll ever do that. It… certainly scared me, in more than a few ways.

I wouldn't become a monster that only saw stats and EXP to gain. But I've already become a monster that pushes someone who had done me no wrong to their death simply because I didn't want the Act to progress naturally. If I had my heart beating in my mind, then I don't think I'd be able to ignore that like I was.

So, I discarded any ideas about choosing either perk. Maybe one day, I'd pick one if I desperately needed it, but for now, they were out of sight and out of mind.

Milestone hit!

Congratulations! For reaching 100 in STR, you have the choice between the following two perks!

Adrenaline Rush:

You're flooded with chemicals that allow you to push your body beyond its limits for a few seconds in times of dire need. This effect is limited to three times a day, and the bonus to STR is +70%.

Fisticuffs Extraordinaire:

You like punching? I certainly do. Your arms exert more force when striking, and the blunt force damage you deal is 20% higher than without this perk! Whether it's in a bar fight, a struggle in the dirt, or a duel between martial arts masters, your ability to punch hard will never disappear. Unless you somehow lose both hands. Then you're toast.

Okay, this one was much more obvious. Thankfully, I had an easy choice among the perks offered to me.

Adrenaline Rush selected.

I was gearing up to be a swordswoman. Though I wasn't above using my fists, the end goal was to be good enough with the sword that I didn't need to punch at all to defeat my enemies. And a 70% STR buff in times of dire need sounded like it could save my life in the right circumstances.

And with that, I'd chosen all of my perks through the milestones I'd reached. Except VIT, that was definitely something I needed to touch upon, otherwise I'd probably die from a light scratch. Even now, with the additions to my VIT from leveling up, I was sitting at a small 52 VIT. The attack from Adelheid stabbing through Roy's leg dealt over TWICE my max HP, meaning she could kill me in a single attack on my calf.

After my physical stats got all of my allocatable points dumped into them, my next priority was dumping into VIT and hoping for a helpful perk that let me soak up damage, or, at the least, give me more HP or something.

There was no reset button for my stats, so I was stuck with what I spontaneously dumped my points into.

And I reached the bottom of the stairs, far too many steps down from where I started. There, in the wall, was a massive metallic door, large enough for more than one carriage to roll through uninterrupted. And, to the right of that door when facing it, was yet more stairs downward.

This tower extended even into the ground? Who built this damn thing? It was usually attributed to the Sages prior to Shaula, and the watchtower was for them specifically, but it certainly didn't feel quite right for it to have existed prior to Shaula. The normal understanding was that it was for watching over the Evil Sealing Shrine where Satella's sealed body was, which meant the tower should've been created after Satella was sealed.

I decided not to think about it, and instead waited for the protagonists to arrive.

I was seated on the steps of the stairway as I heard a knock ring out from the door, muffled voices speaking in confusion behind it. I watched as the door shuddered a bit, then opened soundlessly, like it was freshly oiled and newly made, instead of being weathered from centuries in the desert. There was magic at play.

The door continued to swing, and I was met with the startled faces of several people I recognized, though they didn't know me.

Natsuki Subaru, the protagonist of this story.

Emilia, another protagonist. The one someone might call the main heroine.

The great spirit, Beatrice.

Julius Euculious, the Finest Knight who had his name eaten by Roy.

Ram, sister to Rem, who was seated before them in a wheelchair with her eyes closed and in a coma, having been eaten by Ley more than a year ago.

A girl I didn't recognize, with lavender hair and black coat. No, I did recognize her. She was… a girl from Arlam village, someone Rem had met. I remembered having to rescue her in a forest after a mabeast attack. She was a strange addition, which kept me on guard.

And there was Anastasia Hoshin, who was a royal candidate like Emilia.

Behind them was a dragon carriage, pulled along by two ground dragons. One black and another green.

I discounted them immediately, looking back at the eight of them with a blank stare.

Tense, they stared back.

"Why are you here, Natsuki Subaru?" I asked with a tilt of my head. His eyes widened at the mention of his name, and those around him had similar looks of wonder and amazement.

"W-well, uh," Subaru stuttered, clearly caught off-guard. "Sorry for the intrusion, but… we're– I'm here for help regarding her." He motioned to Rem's comatose body. "The others have their own problems they're seeking assistance for."

"Clearly," My eyes raked over Julius and Anastasia knowingly, though my show had briefly touched upon the others there. The two I singled out stiffened, but slowly relaxed from my lack of animosity. "You seek assistance, but you're here."

"We've come to speak with the sage," Anastasia stepped up with a confident gait, her posture relaxed and professional. "Ya don't suppose that… you are the Sage, right?"

"Feel free to search for anyone else in this place," I shrugged. "If you can find them, feel free to ask them questions about your nonsense problems."

"Non–?" Subaru flubbed, a glare on his features, but he was reeled back by a hand on his shoulder. Emilia gave him a pleading look, and he nodded stiffly.

Emilia turned to me with a quick bow, "Sorry, we're tired from our journey to this place. It's been rather dangerous. Would it be possible for us to find sanctuary here?"

"There's no need for formality," I got to my feet with a yawn. "And yeah. Feel free to come in and drag in all the sand you want. It's nice that the wind has been blowing in the particles since you still have the door open."

"A-ah!" Emilia turned back with a gasp. "Sorry! I forgot about that like a dunce!"

"Gyan," Julius' voice echoed through the room, and the knight waved in the dragon carriage. The ground dragon pulled it through the great doors, and the knight seized the handle and closed it shut after. He turned back to me, "We thank you for your patience."

"It's fine," I remained still, looking over them in contemplation. "How long do you plan to stay? Not too long, I hope."

"Until we get some answers," Subaru said. His voice was a tone of challenge, as though daring me to deny him.

"Subaru, don't be rude!" Emilia lightly swatted him, and Subaru coughed.

"Right, right. My bad. I'm just tired," He sighed, turning back to me. "Sorry about that, loli sage."

I stared at him in concern. "...What?"

"Bah, don't worry about it," He sighed. "No one ever gets it."

"I'm sure few can understand your mind," I shook my head. "You are capable in a way few are. Though… quite eccentric."

"Hey!"

"She speaks the truth, Subaru," Julius said with a cool smile, much to Subaru's ire.

"Don't you start, too!"

"So, you are truly the sage, I suppose?" Beatrice spoke aloud, getting to the point directly. "The all-seeing, all-knowing sage of the Watchtower, Shaula? A little girl?"

"I see self awareness is a lost art," I said dryly.

"That's–" Beatrice began, blinking slowly. "...You are correct. Betty didn't think about it."

"That you're also a little girl?" Subaru questioned, looking down at her.

"Betty doesn't think about it like that, in fact."

"Ri~ght, and I think of myself as a super amazing guy."

"--You are free to stay," I decided to cut in before this petty argument could get any worse. "The miasma of the desert is leaking through the door. If you go up or down from the base floor, it cannot reach you."

The scent of the miasma was beginning to bend my nose, and I began wishing I didn't have a super nose to smell it with.

"Ah, right!" Subaru slapped a hand on the side of his face. "Shoot! Where can we put our dragon carriage?!"

I stared at him in bemusement. Admittedly, seeing him do his little act around me was funny. I kinda liked him.

"There's not much room above," I motioned above myself, up the stairs I was seated on.

"Down there, huh?" He looked at the stairway to the side, leading downward. Subaru's gaze returned to me, "And how are we supposed to get it down there? How many steps are there?"

"Not my problem at all," I turned around and began ascending the stairs back to the living quarters from before. "I'm sure you'll figure something out."

I left them by themselves, truly uncaring of what they'd do to get the carriage down there. Also if there was even room for them to store their carriage. I never lied during our talk, just subtly poking at them to make them assume things that weren't true. Pretending to be the Sage, Shaula… Was perhaps possible for a time. I certainly couldn't say anything about who I really was.

I snorted, making my way up the stairs. I wonder how long it'll take for them to turn on me and try to tear me apart for committing the sin of being born in this rancid place.

-x-X-x-

Subaru watched the girl walk up the stairs with a frown. "Damn loli."

"The sage is said to be greatly distrusting, Subaru," Julius calmly offered his insight. "We're lucky she didn't do anything more than greet us and allow us sanctuary within the tower."

"...Were there any records about the sage being a girl?" Beatrice asked, a strange tone in her voice.

"There are many records of many different things, Lady Beatrice," Julius answered. "...It's possible for them to be right, and for them to be wrong. What is true, however, is that the sage has lingered within this tower for four centuries. If there are indeed no other people within these walls, then we must accept the truth of her appearance."

Beatrice merely continued looking at the stairs where the blonde-haired child had walked up. "...Betty simply thinks she's seen her somewhere before."

Julius gave her an odd look.

Notes:

this chapter about sums up the respect I have for Shaula as a character

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Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime)

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Rey Alaraph (OC)Louis ArnebLye BatenkaitosRoy Alphard

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Published:2024-10-28Updated:2026-01-07Words:246,117Chapters:58/?Comments:1,238Kudos:848Bookmarks:113Hits:41,077

A Dog in the Cradle of Od Lagna

TheGimbler

Chapter 8

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Let me review my intentions in playing an act as the 'Sage'.

I want Natsuki Subaru to loop 2500 times to acquire the Plague Sword.

I want to get Louis out of the Cradle of Od Lagna.

I want to survive, along with my family, and escape.

If they assume I'm the Sage, then I have some kind of alibi for actually being here. The worst case scenario would be them figuring out my identity as a Sin Archbishop and then capturing me. If that happened, there's no telling what I would go through and everything I want to do would end up as smoke in the wind.

I took a deep breath, reaching the top of the stairs, the floor where I pushed that woman to her death. Death…

Considering how to gain EXP in this game, I never gained anything from defeating threats. Only through quests and the like. Granted, I never killed anyone at that point, but that didn't mean I'd gain EXP through murder either. Pushing her off resulted in EXP, there was a clear connection there. But I also completed a sub-objective in changing the setup of the act. I got a clear reward for that, too, in that I could see what the reward for one of the mainline quests were.

Was it possible she survived, and I merely got EXP for pushing her off, not exactly to her death? If someone like that survived slamming into the ground at terminal velocity, she would have no trouble at all ripping my head off.

Something… Something was wrong. I couldn't explain it, but the unbearable gnawing in my gut was feeling more and more voracious. The only greater desire than Gluttony that one might have was the need to live in order to eat at all. Was that because I made a mistake that may cost me my life?

I ran my hand along the stone wall I walked beside, picking up another scent in my nose. I followed it, mouth watering. It smelled delicious, and I felt so, so hungry.

I recognized where I was being led to, and entered the room with the slain mabeasts and their corpses. Their wonderful, meaty corpses.

There was no point in holding back.

"That sucked."

"That's because Barusu hates physical labor and would prefer the beautiful Ram to do his work for him. Pathetic."

"That is not what happened!"

I heard the voices of the protagonist and his groupie venturing up the stairs, and I coughed weakly, mouth full of meat. Mabeasts were absolutely disgusting, it was like swallowing vomit from another person's mouth but it was cold and all you could feel is the sludgy texture. I still voraciously devoured it, all to abate the feeling in my stomach that was never quite sated.

They turned the corner, looking curiously into the room I was in, and paused, seeing me on all fours and eating through the ribcage of the monster, blood over my face and on my clothes.

I coughed weakly, eyes wide and mildly embarrassed.

"...Is that all you had to eat for these, uh, four hundred years?" Subaru asked, finger scratching the side of his jaw. "I hear mabeasts are disgusting."

I quickly chewed and swallowed with a grimace, feeling the vomit-tasting slop slide down my throat. "That. Is an apt description."

"Well, I'm sure we wouldn't mind sharing some of our provisions with you," Subaru offered before getting elbowed by Ram.

The pink-haired woman crossed her arms and snorted, "Offering charity so soon, Barusu? We don't know how long we're going to be staying here, and offering our limited provisions to…" Her critical eyes lingered on me for a moment, scanning through the cleaned bones of several mabeast carcasses. "...Such an extreme-mannered girl would be wasteful."

"Ram, don't be such a worrywart!" Emilia's happy tone came from behind them as the half-elf walked into view, poking her head through the doorway and spotting me. Her eyes widened at my sorry sight and she placed a hand on her lips in worry, "Oh, you've only been eating these? I'm sorry! You can share with us, there's no problem with that!"

"...Thank you," I offered a shy thanks, getting to my feet and scratching the back of my head. "I'll tone down the amount I eat, or supplement the extra bits with…" I looked down at the mabeast corpses, still wanting to eat more. "...Anyway," I looked up at them. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"We came to the Sage's Watchtower to get information," Emilia helpfully explained. "To talk to the Sage and get their wisdom on a few rea~lly big problems we can't solve without them."

I scanned over them in interest, seeing some hope in their eyes. Except Ram. Her gaze remained flat on my blood-stained clothes.

"I see," I stood to my feet and nodded. "Then you want to talk to me, is it?"

"Well… You're the sage, right?" Subaru blinked. "...Right? You don't have a boss or something higher in the tower?"

"That would be very amusing," I shrugged. "You're free to search for one."

"No, no!" He quickly raised his hands in surrender like I was getting angry at him. "That's fine! If you can give us insight, we'd greatly appreciate it."

"My knowledge is…" I thought for a moment. "...Well, I don't consider it very impressive. But I've come to find out that my self-evaluations have been lacking as of late."

I walked up to him, gazing into the eyes of the protagonist. The man who would be my enemy and would eventually stand in my way.

He stared back with wide eyes, soft but weary of my approach.

"...You have rather kind eyes."

And I found myself not wanting to hurt him.

"So, it's about time we spoke," I breathed softly, sitting amongst those who journeyed to the Sage's Watchtower on the easternmost edge of the world. "You have questions and want whatever answers I can give you."

"Mhm," Anastasia hummed in agreement, sitting up straight. "We have a few questions for ya. Some… issues have arisen and we need the Sage's knowledge on how to fix 'em. But you should know them already, right? Bein' all-seein' as you are."

"All-seeing," I smirked. "I wouldn't say that exactly. If you're talking about seeing people, knowing issues that arise in every country, and being able to 'know' secrets that have never been stated aloud, then maybe I could be called that. If I were to look, I'd know, but I only have two eyes, so to speak."

"I see…" Anastasia frowned, not quite understanding the bullshit I was spouting, but the sages were said to be secluded and untrusting. Whatever eccentricities I did or embodied could easily be explained away as that.

"Then…" Subaru frowned, motioning to the comatose Rem, who had been carried up the stairs from the fifth floor where the door was. "Could you… Would you please cure Rem? Is that possible?"

"Cure, huh?" I looked her over, even though I knew exactly what was wrong with her. "The Authority of Gluttony is quite the ability."

"You already know?!" Subaru exclaimed in surprise and he leaned forward in anticipation. "Then, a cure–?!"

"Isn't possible." I shut him down immediately, and he froze.

A look of pure misery fell over him, and he slumped, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists, "Nothing? There's nothing we can do to wake her up?"

"I never said you couldn't wake her. A cure implies there's something wrong with her," I raised a hand, regaining his attention. I glanced at Ram, who was staring at me with incredible intensity, equally invested in my answer. "Gluttony is a strange ability, even I don't know everything about it or the limits of its applications. However, wherever the girl's soul and memories are, it's within Gluttony. If you were to capture its holder, then perhaps extracting her from it would be possible."

"So it's back to those bastards…" Subaru muttered darkly, and the rest of the group had similar looks on their faces.

Calling my siblings bastards in front of their littlest sister was a bold move. Though, compared to the hatred they held for them, my irritation was hardly a factor.

"Then, I suppose the same goes for me?" Julius asked, a frown on his lips. "If I wanted everyone to remember me, then I must extract that from Gluttony?"

"It's possible nothing can fix it," I had a genuine interest in the topic at hand.

If I were to vomit up the names and memories they desired, would everything suddenly click back into place like a machine that lost one or two gears? Or would it have already become overgrown and incapable of slotting in the same way? Either way, I wouldn't know until I vomited.

"Is that so?" Julius' posture weakened considerably, eyes downcast.

Usually, at a time like this, someone would probably give him a pep talk about looking to the future. Though, judging by the dark and weak expressions on every member of the group, that wasn't going to pass.

"Hmm~? What does that matter?" Nevermind, the girl whose name I didn't know spoke, looking more bored than anything. "If the Sage-Sama can't give a deeper explanation than what we know, then doesn't that mean we just have to find that Gluttony guy~?"

"If we could find them then we wouldn't be here without them," Subaru bit harshly, making the girl shut her mouth. "Grasping at straws is something none of us want to do. Bringing a sample to the Sage would instantly boost all chances of success, but we don't have anything like that at all."

"Gluttony…" Beatrice muttered to herself, looking at me strangely.

I met her stare with a dark look, quickly massaging my features into a more neutral expression. She wasn't exactly perturbed, but she was struggling with something. She had something not connecting with her, which made her discomfort obvious to me.

Beatrice had seen Louis, hadn't she?

And I, being Louis' sister, looked a hell of a lot like her.

Oh well, I didn't want to eat her, but I would probably… have to.

Have to?

What?

My hand came to rest on my temple, a headache beginning to settle in my brain. That was too sudden. I shouldn't have come to that conclusion so quickly based on a mere feeling in my gut. I didn't feel this way in the Cradle, but the Cradle had the ability to suck all life from you with the lack of anything stimulating there. Was I being overstimulated?

An animalistic mindset lingered within me. Gluttony at its purest form. Eating what needs to be eaten, and eating whenever the opportunity presents itself.

I am Rey Alaraph.

I am not the Sage, Shaula.

Saying that I was would surely crumble my mental state. My memories of 'me' only persisted because they were Rey Alaraph's. Whatever memories I pulled up were nothing I lived, so just drop the whole thing.

I wasn't going to eat a spirit girl because she was confused as she looked at me. More than anything else, I wanted to get Louis out of the tower, wherever she was.

"--Sorry, what did you say?" I looked up at Anastasia, who was talking.

"You– Hah," She sighed in exasperation, deciding not to point out my blank stare. "There's a group of people within Priestella that were transformed into flies through an Authority. Is there any way of curing them?"

"Authorities are troublesome," I said noncommittally, looking through my memory bank through all the examples I could find. Roy usually worked with Capella Emerada Lugunica, the current holder of Lust, so finding many examples of her authority at work was easy. A majority of them were her using it on Roy when he acted out of line, which caused me to grit my teeth in anger. "I see. Lust. That's a difficult question."

"Ya already knew what Authority it was?" Anastasia said in wonder. I suddenly remembered that this was supposed omniscient knowledge to all of them, so me knowing what was never explained must've seemed divine.

"Perhaps…" I hummed in thought. "Perhaps there's a chance for a mixture of Yin and Yang magic reversing the time on their bodies, returning them to how they were prior to their transformation. Though, there's no telling how it'd affect their Od."

"Tampering with Od," Anastasia leaned in, a look of concealed interest on her face. "Are you good at that?"

"I've heard of techniques of shinobi from Kararagi that manipulate Od, and the curses from Gusteko can achieve similar effects of influencing the spirit," I continued, giving her a flat look. "If the Od of the transformed people hasn't changed, then it's possible to separate it from their body, much like through Yin magic, and tinker with their flesh until they return to being human."

"You… are speaking of the Evil Sealing Stones, aren't you?" Julius asked, troubled. "Much like the magic currently restraining the Witch of Envy, correct? You would use that on civilians?"

"You ask for my knowledge, and I have offered it to you," I shrugged. "I don't care what you do with it. Not at all."

"So then… this was a bust?" Subaru frowned, face contorted in hesitation. "There's… nothing else here?"

"There is n–"

Plot Quest!

You have taken over the duties of the Sage, Shaula, and are now tasked with guiding the protagonist through the tower! Just don't be angry when she asks for her job back.

Quest: Lead Natsuki Subaru(MC) to the third floor, Taygeta, and tell him to take the trial.

Reward: 500EXP

Failure: Death.

You cannot decline this quest!

I stared blankly at the sudden popup, several questions lingering in my mind, and a brief spark of outrage burrowing through my heart at being unable to decline it. This was either an Act-specific change to the quest system or because I pushed the woman off the tower.

I didn't have a choice, and the pitiful reward was probably also because I ignored the Plot (re)Quest. Shit.

"There is." I rubbed my face. "You want a reward? Something to do? Some hope? " I got to my feet.

"Follow me."

And then I did nothing for several hours.

I brought them into a room with a giant floating pillar, and pointed at it, clearing my quest and getting a whopping 500 EXP.

Then I sat in the corner and watched as they fretted over the pillar and started the 'trial.' Which was met with several groans, which I didn't quite understand but I accepted without any fuss. Surprisingly, all of them were content with grappling with the challenge I presented to them, which left me standing around with nothing much to do.

If they completed the trial, 'Touch the brightest of the heroes destroyed by Shaula,' then perhaps a path forward would open. I didn't understand the tower at all, which left me in the same place as those around.

Sometimes they asked me what heroes I destroyed, but I just shrugged in silence, which left them content since that'd defeat the purpose of a trial. I wasn't actually Shaula, but I imagine she would've done the same.

Most likely, anyway.

I felt a pull in my stomach, and I winced, placing both of my hands over my belly. A stomach ache? Was this what Gluttony was always like? Xyxycyyc was an asshole for giving me a perpetual stomach ache. Fuck that guy.

Without another word, I walked off, leaving them to the trial. None of them called after me, and Subaru was muttering something about stars as I left, but I didn't pay it any mind.

I walked down the stairs, thinking about… pretty much nothing, admittedly.

So I absent-mindedly waltz downward, following only the ache in my gut. Surprisingly, I walked straight past corpses in the mabeast room, though I began salivating despite the flavor being… less than satisfactory.

I stepped below the fourth floor, reaching the fifth where the door to the desert was.

I grasped the handle, and pulled it open.

The silent, dark expanse of sand beckoned me forward.

The witchfactor pulsed hungrily, feeling a call within the desert.

A call?

Wait, I was being lured?

I stopped, eyes wide, before looking around in wariness. I had gone several hundred meters from the door of the tower. The miasma of the desert around me was filling my nose with the scent of overpowering rotten spice, making my eyes water as it attacked my sinuses.

There was a hiss, and a few clicking noises, and I looked over to see a giant piercing red eye.

"WHOA?!" I shouted, jumping back in surprise at the monster.

The shadows hid its form well, and I could only stare at the monstrosity's red eyes, six of them on its chitinous face. Its massive hands clicked together, curved claws at the end of its arms, and a rattle was poking over the top of its head, subtly shining with white light.

It was enough for me to recognize the creature for what it was. A titanic scorpion that was easily larger than a minivan.

I gulped in fright, my witchfactor no longer pulsing with the need to be here.

You little ankle-biter!!

An angry voice shrieked in my ears, making me wince and hold my head at the sudden sound. The scorpion snapped its claws with the crack of a whip.

You pushed me off the tower and I hit my head! I'm going to sue you for assault!

"I did–" I paused, suddenly remembering what the cheap quest said. Something about the Sage being angry and wanting her job back. "...You're not dead."

Astute observation, ankle-biter thief attacker! I hit my head badly and woke up later! Haha, you thought the mighty Shaula would be done in by a little fall?! Tough luck, reroll for better odds!

"You hit the ground at terminal velocity and only got knocked unconscious?!" I coughed in disbelief, sand getting in my mouth from me leaving it slacked. "I– I don't suppose you'll let bygones be bygones…?"

Nope! Prepare for the Shaula Special, runt!

Surprise Quest!

Quest: Survive the wrath of the Crimson Scorpion!

Rewards: 2,500EXP, Gain the respect of Shaula(NPC)

Failure: Get hit by the Shaula Special.

You cannot decline this quest!

"XYXYCYYC!" I cursed the name of the Admin as the Scorpion laughed haughtily.

Muahaha! Fear me! You have Mother's Key, so I won't do you in, but you deserve a spanking!

I had no time to respond before I was slammed by a claw and launched away.

Notes:

holy shit it's the crimson scorpion guys run for your lives

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Work Header

Rating:

Not Rated

Archive Warnings:

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive WarningsGraphic Depictions Of Violence

Category:

Gen

Fandom:

Re:ゼロから始める異世界生活 | Re:Zero Starting Life in Another World (Anime)

Characters:

Rey Alaraph (OC)Louis ArnebLye BatenkaitosRoy Alphard

Additional Tags:

Language:

English

Stats:

Published:2024-10-28Updated:2026-01-07Words:246,117Chapters:58/?Comments:1,238Kudos:848Bookmarks:113Hits:41,077

A Dog in the Cradle of Od Lagna

TheGimbler

Chapter 9

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The difference between being struck by a fist and a car was the impact being spread across the body. If someone's finger was tough enough to survive stabbing into hard material, it'd have much greater penetrating power than a fist, which had greater penetrating power than a car.

In other words:

-230HP!

Holy SHIT, that HURT!

I coughed and gasped, holding my stomach as I struggled to regain my breath. I would've died for sure, had I not had my Skin of Titanium. The wide claw had spread its impact all across my body, and yet I still incurred damage. If that was a fist, I wouldn't have survived at all to complain about it.

She was strong. Too strong. The quest I got was just to survive, not defeat. I had no chance, not even the system thought it was possible.

Haha, take that, munchkin!

The scorpion gloated as it chittered over, its massive legs thumping as they carried it. Even the wide expanse of the desert couldn't silence the sound of its weight.

"Shit– Shit!" I swore, reaching my hand into the shadows and drawing the Yin Blade. The scimitar proudly allied itself with my cause, nearly blending into the darkness around us in the dead of night.

[In the dead of night.]

[+100% DEX!]

[Dex: 273 (+273) → 546]

[-30% to all opponents stats!]

Mm? What the, what the?

The scorpion loomed over me, audibly confused.

What did you just do? Are you cheating? Cheater!

"Don't go making shit up!" I complained, turning to face her with a flat expression. "I didn't want to fight you, but you've forced my hand."

You pushed me off the tower, jerkface!

The scorpion swung its titanic claws at me again, but my increased DEX reached a sufficient level. I ducked underneath, bending in a strange manner that most would assume to be impossible for a human body.

She made a noise of surprise as I swung the scimitar upon her head, right between her eyes. It glanced off her armored body with a ZING, and I stared at the unblemished carapace of her body. Even the Yin sword in its most beneficial light was unable to scratch her?

No, it was me, wasn't it? My sword skill was lacking. I needed to get better at slashing and stabbing, to find a more proficient angle to actually damage the stronger beings of the world. Slashing, itself, was the scimitar's strong suit, yet against an armored tank, it wouldn't benefit me at all. It was bad at piercing things.

Hey~! You attacked me! Just accept your punishment, ankle-biter!

And I was assailed again by another claw, which I quickly leapt over. Bounding off the claw and into the air, deciding against combat at all.

Unfortunately–

Haha, you think the mighty Shaula hasn't fought against ankle-biters before? I know all your tricks!

–I was slammed by her tail, knocking me to the side and into a dune.

-241HP!

WARNING!

HP is 99/1,040! If it drops below 0, you will die!

I was going to die. I was going to die. I was going to die.

"No way…!" I coughed, feeling the sand around me gently restrain my limbs. Blood seeped from my mouth, and the taste of iron made me feel nauseous instead of hungry. "No– Not like this–!"

Lunar Eclipse! That'd help, right? Right?

"D-dona!" I shouted, seizing control of the sand around me and launching it haphazardly to the sides.

-10Mp!

I got to my hands and knees, sword lingering in my clenched fist, before I heard more thumps. My heart thundered within my chest, and I looked up at the six glowing red eyes of the Sage, Shaula.

Yep, yep! You understand it well, don't you? The best thing to do is give up and let ol' Shaula here kill you and take your Key when Master comes back and present it to him! He'll surely praise me for helping him out! It's not even in the contract, no sirree!

" A-ahh…? " I whimpered. " No… No, not like this… I– I don't want to die… "

Mmm? The scorpion tilted her head, her tone confused. Then why are you here, ankle-biter? You pushed me and didn't think about the consequences? Typical. Ol' Shaula doesn't care one way or another, though!

My heart pounded harder and harder, and I felt tears begin to well up in my eyes. " No– No– No– I don't want to… I didn't know– I didn't know! "

The uncaring gaze of the sage remained unmoved.

" Please– Please just forg– Shut up, Solar Eclipse has already started, tsu." My cracked and shattered tone was swallowed by an uncaring void, an unnatural force seizing control of my limbs.

My stomach clenched, and the Witchfactor of Gluttony expanded within, my flesh rapidly altering and growing. And there, stood against the Sage, Shaula, was a bare-chested man, muscles throbbing all over his body.

[Your status has changed.]

"Don't mind our little sister, tsu," He spoke in a boastful tone, a grin upon his features. "She doesn't like to think. A bit, ah, reckless, you might sa~y."

The scorpion violently retched, stepping back.

EWWWWWWW! What did you just do, nasty little ankle-biter?! Gross~!

"L-Louis?" I asked in disbelief, feeling someone else moving my body around and altering it.

"Hey, Rey," Louis' tone was casual, but there was a jaded unhappiness deep within, owing to my attempt at forcing her to come with me. "Getting into trouble so soon? Such a troublesome little sister, unable to pick battles she has a chance at winning, tsu."

"You can win this?" I quickly asked, hope budding within my chest.

"No~pe. We're running out of here, tsu." With that, another pulse extended through my body from my witchfactor, and we were a frail-looking older man.

[Your status has changed.]

"Leaper!" Louis shouted, and we were suddenly running across the desert, back to the tower. It was a shockingly fast pace, zooming through the endless sands back to the extraordinarily tall spire that laid within it.

Louis looked down at the Yin Sword, palmed in her hand, and hummed, "Not a bad sword, sister. Though we don't exactly know where you got it. Up to explain, tsu?"

"I can explain if you get us out of here safely!" I promised, feeling immense relief from getting help from my sister. With her at my side, we could make it through this.

No~pe!

A white stream of light zipped past us, drawing a line in the sand that melted and bubbled with heat.

Louis stopped, surprised at the nigh-instant attack, and looked over her shoulder at the scorpion. She followed us rather quickly, and at the tip of her scorpion tail, was a shimmering white light.

"...She could've killed you in a single blow, had she been serious," Louis surmised, a hint of strain in her tone. "Yang magic, it seems, tsu. Powerful, quick, and far too easy to fire. It's easy. So easy. We say it's easy because it's easy. It's easy, isn't it? We're telling you it's easy, tsu."

No-longer-ankle-biter ankle biter! You really think I'd let you waltz out of here like it's takeout season at Donny P's?!

Louis flatly muttered, " This one makes no sense, tsu. "

"Donny P's sounds really fucking good right about now," I said immediately after, feeling hungry and to try and lighten the mood from our impending demise.

"You also make no sense!" Louis snapped, taking a deep breath to calm her frustration.

Just accept the Shaula Special, ankle-biter! Shaula rumbled as she stomped forward, reaching us in a matter of seconds.

Louis parried her titanic claw just enough to dodge underneath it. In her hands, the Yin Blade flowed and ebbed, scoring several hits with every exchange they did.

Yet, Shaula's carapace refused to scratch.

"This isn't working," Louis muttered, and I felt a pulse from the witchfactor.

[Your status has changed.]

Suddenly, we were wrapped in muscle again. Shaula stabbed her stinger towards our chest several times, but Louis deflected it with her hands, swerving side to side. She spun around a particularly devastating stab, and took a large step, hand cocked back to slam her palm into Shaula's scorpion head.

"Palm of the Fist–"

Nope, nope! Not this time!

Shaula's scorpion mouth opened, and Louis swore, "--Shit!"

A stream of white light launched out of Shaula's mouth, and Louis fell to the ground, evading what would've met her shoulder and erased her limb. However, she failed to recover in time before Shaula slammed a claw into Louis' body.

-1,290HP!

And slammed it into her again.

-1,293HP!

And again.

-1,312HP!

And again.

-132HP!

[Your status has changed.]

"You really– kuh, had to pick a fight with something like this, sister–?" Louis coughed weakly, her body changing to be that of Beli Heinelga, the Carnivorous Beast. It didn't matter much, his body was in tatters. The steadily changing statuses from Solar Eclipse had given us much more HP, but it didn't matter in the end with Shaula being such an overwhelming opponent.

She was still at only 70% of her total status, which made it all the more upsetting.

Now then!

The scorpion pulled her claws back and looked down on my crumpled body, groaning in the sand with blood spilling from several lacerations.

The Shaula Special, ankle-biter!

And then Shaula jumped into the air, her gentle arc aiming right for where we were prone in the sand.

[Your status has changed.]

"Leaper!" Louis shouted.

[Your status has changed.]

She placed her palm on Shaula's head, the scorpion's eyes widening at her sudden appearance.

"Palm of the Fist King!" My sister roared, and a powerful shockwave shot into Shaula's head. Her carapace cracked and splintered, the impact drilling through her physical defenses and into her brain.

OWWWWW!!

Shaula screamed, landing where we had been just moments before. Her mass flattened the sand around, sending it into the air as a plume.

Louis hit the ground, in a similarly bad shape, and groaned. "This– Doesn't bode well at al~l, tsu."

"I'll take over!" I seized control over my body from Louis, feeling a pulse from my witchfactor as my body returned to the dark-skinned girl I'd come to be.

[Your status has returned to normal.]

I coughed out blood, feeling my organs burn within my body, but Shaula was already beginning to stir from her head injury. I couldn't let her recover at all.

"Do you even know what you're doing, tsu?" Louis asked from my lips, her concern barely noticeable.

"Fighting won't work, and if she tries, I'm going to die no matter what tricks we pull. Right now… I'm incapable of even running." I lamented pathetically, feeling a deep sense of weakness at my inability to do anything. "You can't beat her, can you?"

Louis was silent.

"...Thank you for trying to help me, sister," I coughed weakly, though I tried to smile through the pain. "I'm not strong enough to achieve any goal I've set for myself yet. So please, wait for me."

"Hmph," Louis scoffed. "Sure, whatever. Not like we have anything better to be doing right now, tsu. Don't die, Rey."

"No promises," I waved her off, and I felt the connection I had with my witchfactor falter a bit, Louis having depossessed me. I turned to Shaula, who was groggily standing up, cracks in the carapace on her insectoid head. I waved at her, "Heyyy, so can we not fight anymore?"

Shaula glared at me, despite being a scorpion.

You hit me really hard and pushed me off the tower–! Ooooo, then you're surrendering to the great Shaula, mmm? You've given up on running and defeating me?

"Yeah," I nodded, sitting in the desert sand and coughing weakly. "You beat my ass. If this continues, I'm going to die. My life might flash before my eyes in a few minutes or something, I don't know."

Fufu, all expected! That means you're coming with me, ankle-biter! Be grateful for Shaula-Sama's great and temperate mercy!

"You said you wouldn't kill me earlier, so it's not like I thought you wouldn't have some," I groaned, wiping the blood from my lips. "This is going to be so difficult to explain to everyone in the tower."

…There are people in the tower? Other than you?

Shaula stared at me.

"...yeah?" I looked up in confusion, seeing the still Shaula hovering anxiously. "They showed up maybe ten minutes after I pushed you off the tower."

OH HECK! Shaula launched a claw at me and picked me up between her pincers, making me wince from her putting pressure on the bruises. I haven't explained the rules and other stuff yet! Master's gonna be so pissed at me for not killing all of them sooner! I don't want to be a mindless killing machine quite yet!

"Mindless killing machine?" I asked through gritted teeth. "Rules?"

Yeppers! If they damage the tower or disrespect the library, then I'll turn into a murder machine and kill all of them! Including you!

"Uhh," I blinked, remembering how I pushed her through the railing and broke it. "Did– Did I not damage the tower when I pushed you, though? How are you mindless right now?"

That's because you have Mother's key. She's exempt from the rules!

"That's convenient."

Yep!

"...Is it possible for me to heal before being brought into the tower or do I not get a say in this?" I asked weakly, already assuming the answer.

You're staying right where I can see you, ankle-biter! Oh, but you can go into the green room for a bit so you're not dying. That's all fine and dandy.

"I appreciate it. A little. And what do you mean by your Mother's Key? I don't have anything like a key."

In your soul, silly! You got the same one she had, but she ate something nasty and got sick or something. I dunno, she doesn't come down from her perch often.

"The witchfactor?" I looked down at the scorpion with a frown as we reached the door to the tower. Her free claw poked the door and it swung open, free for her scorpion form to waltz in. "So then… it's a kind of identification, too?"

Dunno what that means, but I can smell you really well and call you to me!

"Oh, great," I groaned. "You did lure me into the desert to beat the shit out of me."

You can do the same with the rest of my kind, all the beasties and whatnot. I'm too smart to fall for that goofy stuff, anyway.

"...Huh."

That was a piece of information I quickly stowed away into my brain.

"So, are you going to go back to your… human form?" I asked, looking into Shaula's eyes.

I can't. It exploded and now I have to regrow it.

"That's an ominous choice of words," I noted as Shaula began walking up the stairs. Her claws had to be crossed or they'd drag along the walls since she was quite wide.

I dunno why you think that, ankle-biter. You can probably grow stuff too. Mother did. She grew me for Master.

"Ri~ght," I didn't have anything to say to that. I had no idea how deep witchfactors and authorities actually went. "You do realize that those in the tower will be really scared of the giant scorpion."

Bahhh, fake news. I'll sue you for libel and slander and allat jazz.

"Ugh, why do you talk like that?"

Like what? I'm just talking. Talkity talkity, talk talk. What more could you wish for?

"Whatever."

I went quiet, waiting for the inevitable sight of one of the protagonists or supporting characters to see a giant scorpion holding my battered body.

Annnn~d, nope.

As we entered the fourth floor, there wasn't a person in sight. It was a strange thing, but I suppose they must all still be doing the trial on the third floor? I wasn't sure, but I hadn't been gone for more than ten minutes at that point, so it was possible.

Admittedly, even after hearing Shaula's grating voice and her explanation that I wasn't the sage which would be outing my cover, I was looking forward to seeing the shock of the protagonist and how he'd freak out over seeing a giant scorpion.

Alright, in you go!

Shaula cheerfully tossed me into a room with vines covering the doorway. They quickly opened to accept me into the room, and I grunted upon hitting the grassy floor.

[A water spirit is healing you! 10HP/Minute]

"That's– Kah! Convenient…" I rasped into the grassy floor, feeling a soft warmth begin covering my body.

Alright, I'm going to go kill everyone. See ya, ankle-biter. Also, if you're not here when I come back, I'm going to Shaula Special you!

A bead of sweat fell down my temple at the thought of being crushed by a flying scorpion. "Right– I'm– I'm just gonna sit here, then."

Sweet! Be back in a flash! Or a jif? A jiffy flash? I could go for some jif right now…

The thud of the scorpion's legs echoed as she left to go explore the rest of the tower. With any luck, she'd loop Subaru a few times. And if I truly had a problem with that, then I couldn't do anything about it anyway.

I groaned, "What is my life."

Quest Complete!

Quest: Survive the wrath of the Crimson Scorpion!

Rewards: 2,500EXP, You have gained favor with Shaula(NPC)

You have leveled up!

You are level 45!

20 Stat points allocatable.

"So these books…" Julius muttered, looking upon the pages of a man he once slayed. "...They are the lives and memories of the dead?"

"A book of the dead," Subaru said, placing a book he found of a young witch back where he pulled it from the shelves. He turned to those present, that being Emilia, Julius, Anastasia, Meili, Beatrice, and Ram, and said, "These books may have the answers we need. There's a possibility there aren't any here as of now, but…"

"If we slay Gluttony," Julius' eyes narrowed. "We may be capable of using his memories to figure out a way to restore my lost name and the consciousnesses of his victims."

Subaru nodded. "Yeah. It may not be the answer we sought after, but it's an opening. If what the Sage said is true, then we need to capture at least one of them alive while killing the other."

"Mmm," Meili looked bored, looking around with a huff. "If you're all suspicious, why don't you just kill~ her? Reading a book would be far easier, no~?"

"Assaulting the Sage is a grave crime, Meili," Julius gently scolded her. "And suspicion isn't what we have. There's a chance she may be hiding things from us, but for one stated to be untrusting, is that unexpected?"

"I guess not," Meili shrugged, sitting on the floor.

They stood within a library, wide shelves stretched for corridor after corridor, filled to the brim with books. Large chandeliers dangled from the ceiling lighting up the entire area very well, and the checkered floor was clean, without a speck of dust.

"Betty's feelings on this won't change," Beatrice shook her head with a sigh. "She's seen her somewhere before. Recently. But… she just can't put it together quite yet, in fact. Sorry."

"Nothing to be worried about, Beako!" Subaru flexed his arm with a wide grin. "You'll figure out why she's bothering you in no time! Besides, if it was truly all that bad, you'd have put it together by now, right?"

"...True, I suppose."

"These books are a good step," Anastasia frowned, evidently a bit disappointed with the reward for passing the trial set by the sage.

"...But it's not a direct source of information, as you hoped?" Julius supplemented, a look of uselessness on his face. He couldn't help his lady.

Anastasia shook her head, "It's not a bad thing. Just not what we were lookin' for when we came to the tower."

"Then we just have to go talk to the sage again, right?" Emilia tilted her head. "If there's one trial, there should be two more. And if this one gave us books, maybe the next ones will, as well?"

The purple-haired candidate sighed, hand on her head. "Maybe. Nothin' else to do but ask and turn in for the night."

There was a loud bang on the door right at that moment, causing everyone to tense. Julius drew his sword immediately, tensing as the sound came from the door again. It rumbled again and again, causing tensions to rise even more.

Emilia stepped in front of Subaru, and Beatrice took his hand. Anastasia stepped behind Julius, looking worried.

The only ones who hardly seemed perturbed were Ram and Meili. Ram, because she had her wand out and was crouched low, fully prepared. Meili, because she looked more confused than anything, somehow sensing what was on the other side of the door.

The lock clicked, and the door slid open.

Standing far too large to enter the library, was a giant black scorpion, piercing red eyes sifting through all 7 of them. There was a buzz of energy, and spells were on the tips of everyone's tongues before the scorpion looked at Subaru.

There was a lull.

It then chittered loudly and pushed into the door, paused as it began creaking, then took a few steps back and continued chittering. The giant thing was practically bouncing in place, eyes remaining locked on Subaru. Other than that, however, it didn't do anything.

"Meili…?" Subaru questioned, looking down at the purple-haired little girl, who was looking at the mabeast in wonder.

"AH?" She startled, looking up at Subaru with wide eyes. "No-no, I didn't bring it here! I didn't even know there were scorpion mabeasts out there! It's just really excited for some reason. I swear I didn't bring it~!"

"Could you make it— go away?" Subaru asked tentatively.

There was another pause, the scorpion sitting still like it could understand what he was saying, before it bounced twice as fast as before, sticking its gargantuan head through the doorway with a constant chattering noise, solely focused on Subaru.

"Umm…" Meili squinted. "It's– No, she's, really against that idea."

"She?" Ram slowly looked at Subaru, a look of judgment on her face.

"Not right now, Ram!" Subaru pleaded, and the oni merely shook her head in disapproval, which somehow hurt worse.

"Meili, could you just–"

"She doesn't want to," Meili shrugged, looking at the plugged doorway. "She wants Onii-Chan to walk over there so she can pull him out of the library."

"...It–" Subaru began before the scorpion hissed at him. " --She! She! She, wants to get me? Why?"

Meili tilted her head at the scorpions chattering. "...Dunno. She likes you a lot. Says you… own her? Onii-Chan?" Meili gave Subaru a weird look.

"No, I don't own a massive scorpion mabeast!" Subaru defended, despite the glances in his direction. "And she can't even get in, can she? The library is holding her back?"

"Mmm…" Meili listened to another chatter. "Breaking the library is off-limits, she says. Something about killing you all if you disrespect it?"

There was a pause, and Anastasia hesitantly slid a book back into its respective space.

"...So is she gonna move?" Subaru whispered.

The giant scorpion lingered right in the doorway, practically vibrating.

"That doesn't appear to be the case," Julius slowly lowered his blade. "...We may be stuck here until the sage returns."

The scorpion vibrated even faster at the title mention.

Meili blinked slowly.

"Huh," She hummed, hearing what the scorpion was saying. "That's odd."

"What is?" Emilia asked politely, not taking her gaze away from the scorpion.

"She says that the sage…" Meili stopped, thinking for a moment. "...is her owner."

The scorpion nodded immediately, a very human action.

"...You think it'd kill her to tell us she had a massive scorpion hanging around," Subaru groaned, losing most of the tension in his body. "That loli is going to be the death of me."

Notes:

Reid next chapter maybe.

also the current stats. I should probably get in the habit of putting these somewhere

Rey Alaraph LVL 45

Race: 25% Demi-Human (dog)

Affiliation: Witch Cult (Sin Archbishop), -99% Reputation with non-affiliated members.

Magical Affinity: Yin, Earth

Health: 99/1,060

Mana: 1,820/1,820

Exp: 494/4500

STR: 345

-The weight of your blows, the ability to exert force in numerical form.

VIT: 53

-Your constitution, the vitality you carry in numerical form.

DEX: 272

-The litheness of your body, the speed at which you can actively react to in numerical form.

INT: 182 (+50 for one week)

-Puzzles, memory, knowledge in numerical form.

WIS: 112

-Understanding, thoughts, and the ability to comprehend in numerical form.

LUK: 6

-Chance, and the odds it's in your favor in numerical form.

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Chapter 966 - a dog 7-9