“Taula?”
I whisper while turning around.
Something’s clearly strange about her. No, not just strange, everything about her feels different. Almost like she’s not a person…
“Rust Struna Hartnicks! That is Araysla.”
Yells Zwei, still in Taula’s grasp while struggling and moving its limbs. It keeps beating its limbs against each other, but nothing happens.
“Be quiet. You sure went around causing a lot of trouble for me despite being a lowly demigod, didn’t you homunculus?”
Whatever it is that looks like Taula laughs loudly.
I can’t help but feel fear when I look at the pure evil on her face.
The one called Araysla teases Zwei while holding it tighter, and despite being purifying light, Zwei faints from the pain.
Araysla then continues to tighten her grip, until the purifying light body is crushed and ripped in half, as Zwei lets out a silent scream.
And as the bottom half of Zwei’s body is falling, Araysla catches it with her other hand, holds it between her fingers, and slowly raises it above her head.
She lifts her head, exposing her white throat, before opening her mouth wide and swallowing the bottom half of Zwei whole.
I can see it disappearing in her mouth and passing through her throat.
Araysla starts licking the fingers she was using to hold Zwei’s lower body, and reaches towards Zwei’s head.
“Now let’s crush the head. You will provide nourishment for me.”
She grabs Zwei’s head between the palms of both hands, and her fingers sink into it like she’s squeezing a piece of fruit.
“Guuu! Hart… Nicks… Take…”
Between Zwei’s anguished cries, it stretches its arm towards me for some reason.
I see it, and reflexively reach out towards it, but…
Zwei’s head is crushed, and Araysla positions her mouth below it.
Zwei’s upper body is torn apart, and the purifying light that has been turned into a muddy fluid flows into Araysla’s mouth as though it was being sucked into it.
But just before it enters Araysla’s wide open mouth, I manage to touch what’s left of Zwei’s arm.
That acts as some sort of trigger, and I feel like I’m being transported somewhere.
Suddenly, I’m in a completely different place. But I remember this place that’s white all over.
“Is this…?”
“My sanctuary, the world in a bottle. You have been here before, right?”
Zwei appears in front of me, looking as big as the first time I saw it.
“Zwei! Is that really you?”
I brace myself without thinking.
“No, this is a remnant of my consciousness. The real me has already returned to the nothingness. Rust Struna Hartnicks, this is nothing more than a hastily put together shadow to give you power. Once its role is finished, it will disappear.”
“Power?”
Zwei’s shadow lowers its head deeply, and continues.
“Yes, Rust Struna Hartnicks. I want you to stop Araysla, and I will give you all my power as a demigod to do it. A blood relative of the Hartnicks vessel should be able to take it. Now give me your hand.”
Says Zwei, as it stretches its arm towards me.
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