Inside the storage bronze mirror lay a boundless sea of clouds.
Coppelia stood upon solid ground as layers of clouds drifted past her feet. A golden sun hung suspended at the horizon, its rays dyeing the surging cotton-like mists with warm hues.
However, Coppelia had no time to study the scenery within this space. Lying at her feet were the unconscious black-robed researcher and Kelvin.
She had brought them out solely to extract intelligence, yet now they remained motionless.
Startled, Coppelia immediately crouched down, probing beneath their noses with her fingers. The pads of her fingers felt a faint but continuous flow of air. They were still breathing.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
A sensation of slight pushing and crowding came from her abdomen. She looked down to see that the Moon Spirit still had its head buried deep inside the hole in her abdominal cavity, revealing only its rounded rear half and two long braids, which swayed gently to some silent rhythm.
Only then did she realize she was still stark naked. She grabbed her exquisite dress from the pile nearby, but after a single glance, she put it back down. The dress was tailored to fit perfectly; it would crush the Moon Spirit burrowed inside her stomach.
Her gaze turned to Kelvin lying on the ground. Reaching out, she deftly stripped the black coat and trousers off him and pulled them onto herself. The clothes were somewhat too large for her; both the sleeves and trouser legs extended well beyond her limbs.
She fastened the buttons one by one, but the fabric immediately bulged over her abdomen, pushed out by the Moon Spirit.
The Moon Spirit seemed uncomfortable being wrapped in the cloth, twisting restlessly inside and causing the surface of the clothes to ripple with irregular bumps and movements.
Coppelia had no choice but to undo the buttons again. With one hand, she gently pressed against the Moon Spirit inside the clothes to soothe it, while with the other, she took its two long, exposed braids and coiled them loop by loop, securing them at the side of her waist.
After a moment, a signal seemed to come from the outside world. Coppelia felt a slight pulling force, and the vision of the golden sea of clouds began to blur.
The next instant, she returned to reality, standing in an underground cavern.
The air was cold and damp, heavy with the scent of soil and minerals. Three Moon Spirits floated around her; one of them was just loosening its braids from around the bronze mirror.
Coppelia caught the falling mirror. With a shift of her will, Amos's Bow, emitting a faint pale-blue glow, appeared in her hand.
Unable to use elemental reactions at the moment, this was her only means of attack.
She turned to the three Moon Spirits. "Scatter and check the outside. If you find anyone, or if monsters approach, come back and tell me immediately."
The Moon Spirits bobbed up and down in response, then transformed into three streaks of white light, shooting into different forks of the cavern before vanishing.
From the depths of the cave came the faint sound of running water. Dim light, filtering in from unknown sources, barely outlined the rough contours of the rocks.
Coppelia followed the sound of the water and found a stream not far away.
She stood by the water's edge and shook the bronze mirror.
The unconscious black-robed researcher and Kelvin appeared out of thin air, crashing onto the wet, rocky ground.
Coppelia leaned her bow against a rock and tucked the mirror into her pocket. Walking to the cavern wall, she pulled several lengths of tough, old vines from the crevices of the wet stones. Returning to the two men, she bound their wrists and ankles tightly with the vines, tying them in dead knots.
Then, she dragged the black-robed researcher alone to the edge of the stream.
Crouching down, she scooped up a handful of ice-cold stream water with both hands and splashed it onto the researcher's face.
The water droplets flowed down his cheeks and into his neck. The researcher's body jerked violently. He made a choking, rasping sound in his throat, his eyelids twitching rapidly before snapping open.
He was dazed for a few seconds, then felt the tightness of his bound limbs. By the dim light of the cave, he clearly saw Coppelia squatting before him, her brown hair draped over her shoulders and her eyes ice-cold.
His body began to tremble, his teeth clattering together with a sharp clicking sound.
"You... ask whatever you want!" His voice went off-key with fear. "I'll say anything! I'll tell you everything!"
Coppelia paused. She hadn't even done anything yet.
But a smile devoid of warmth quickly surfaced on her face. "Just to prevent you from trying to trick me with lies, I need to take a few measures."
As she spoke, she reached out and grabbed the researcher's bound left hand, accurately pinching one of his index fingers. She pressed her thumb against the knuckle, positioning it to snap the finger backward.
The researcher's trembling escalated into violent shuddering.
"Ask! Just ask!" he practically screamed.
Coppelia held the pressure but did not snap it. "Where is Columbina?"
"I don't know! Really!" the researcher said urgently. "She is handled personally by the bigshots above!"
"Is this Khaenri'ah's territory?"
"No... No!" The researcher shook his head, flinging off the water droplets on his forehead. "This is just a secret research base. It's located... under the Scarlet King's territory! Deep underground!"
Under the Scarlet King's territory? If Columbina was so important to them, why not send her directly back to the Khaenri'ah homeland? Unless... the thing they intended to do was so dangerous they didn't dare conduct it on their own soil.
"Is the Scarlet King involved?"
"No!"
"What do you want to use her power for?"
"An... an experiment." The researcher swallowed hard. "I really don't know the specific details! I only vaguely heard a bit—it has to do with the Three Moons... that's really all I know!"
Three Moons. Experiment. Combining this with what she knew of Khaenri'ah, a godless nation, their goal was surely to utilize the power of the Three Moons to acquire power from the Abyss.
"Have you already obtained the power of the Eternal Moon and the Rainbow Moon?" Coppelia pressed, applying slightly more force to her fingers.
The researcher hesitated for less than a second.
Coppelia simultaneously applied pressure in the opposite direction with the thumb and forefinger gripping his digit.
"We have! We have!" The researcher's features twisted in pain as he shouted repeatedly. "They definitely got it long ago! Otherwise, why would they come here to do the experiment!"
They already had the power of the Eternal Moon and the Rainbow Moon, and now they had obtained Columbina, who represented the Frost Moon. The experiment was likely about to begin.
Coppelia's grip tightened. "How long until the experiment starts?"
The researcher answered without the slightest hesitation, as if afraid his finger would break if he spoke too slowly. "Three days! Just three days left!"
In the subsequent interrogation, the researcher answered every question asked, but revealed no further critical information. Coppelia judged that his knowledge was indeed limited.
She released her hand, then raised her palm and chopped cleanly against the back of the researcher's neck. He didn't even make a sound before fainting again.
Dragging the limp researcher, she threw him back beside Kelvin. As she moved, she rapidly organized her thoughts:
Khaenri'ah definitely has a way to block Columbina's teleportation ability; otherwise, she would have come to find me long ago.
Columbina's importance goes without saying; the combat power of this base will definitely not be weak. It's impossible for me to break through frontally and save her alone.
But given the experience of escaping just now... perhaps I can have the Moon Spirit carry the bronze mirror and infiltrate, find Columbina, and use the same method to bring her out.
She looked down and gently stroked the Moon Spirit powering her through the rough black fabric. Since this Moon Spirit could find me safely, it shows that the people in the base aren't wary of Moon Spirits yet... It's an opportunity.
Her thoughts came to an abrupt halt.
From the shadows of the cave ahead, a white light approached rapidly. It was one of the Moon Spirits she had sent out for reconnaissance. It floated back to the unconscious Kelvin and bobbed up and down urgently.
Something is approaching!
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