39 - fics I read - LIGHTREADER

Main Content

Archive of Our OwnArchive of Our OwnHi, TheBrimmedHat!PostLog Out

FandomsBrowseSearchAboutWork Search

tip: lex m/m (mature OR explicit)

Due to the incredible support of the community, we've welcomed 7,623 new members and raised US$314,539.76 during this drive. Thank you so much! (We also accept donations year-round, so you are able to donate whenever is convenient for you.)

Actions

Entire Work ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Chapter Index Edit Bookmark Mark for Later Comments Share Download

Work Header

Rating:

Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warnings:

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive WarningsGraphic Depictions Of Violence

Fandoms:

Characters:

Tanya von DegurechaffEmilia (Re:Zero)Reinhard van AstreaFelt (Re:Zero)Roswaal L MathersNatsuki SubaruCrusch KarstenRem (Re:Zero)Petelgeuse Romanée-ContiRegulus CorneasBeing X (Youjo Senki)

Additional Tags:

CrossoverOpen for suggestionsOther Additional Tags to Be AddedIllustrationsMild GorePost-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSDPoliticsMagicCross-Posted on FanFiction.NetAuthor Is Sleep DeprivedOne Day I will probably rewrite this but who knowsCanon-Typical ViolenceMysteryMemory Loss

Language:

English

Series:

Part 1 of Isekai Adventures of a Salaryman Next Work →

Stats:

Published:2021-04-07Updated:2022-08-24Words:132,758Chapters:67/?Comments:1,654Kudos:1,699Bookmarks:279Hits:99,080

Tanya starts from Zero

A_Morte_Perpetua_Machina_Libera_Nos

Chapter 37: A sinking feeling

Notes:

Fun fact: I edited this chapter until I got exactly 66666 words.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 37

"Rem, look at me." Tanya commanded with barely hidden irritation. "Can you tell us any more details?"

At this point she didn´t even care that Crusch´s whole army was listening in. She just wanted to get this over with.

"I am afraid not, Lady Tanya. My sister´s and my Synaesthesia allows only for strong emotions to be shared between us. But this... terror is absolutely uncommon for her!"

Of course.

Even after two weeks the stupid magic of this land managed to boggle her mind. Telepathy, really? But asking how that was biologically possible was a futile endeavour until she could get her hands on a good neurosurgeon. What mattered was the overarching situation at hand.

A strong emotion was technically not enough to warrant immediate concern, but she could be labelled as "heartless" or "irresponsible" for potentially letting her ally be endangered. With Rem gone the only maid left at the mansion was Ram which meant that she was unlikely to leave the building because she had double the duties to attend to. Whatever was happening to her therefore occurred in Emilia´s vicinity and could be dangerous to her wellbeing. If she could help it then she would not risk letting unintentional harm come to one of her greatest assets.

On the other hand Lord Roswaal had directly ordered Tanya to leave his domain. Infringing on his business and disregarding his request despite enjoying his hospitality would be a grave insult to the strongest magician in Lugnica. Their young alliance stood on shaky legs momentarily and would not survive such an incident unscathed.

Well, she had technically left his sphere of influence already, but he hadn´t clarified when she was welcome to return... Yes, it was a flimsy excuse, but noble politics worked that way. If she had stuck to the international wartime law like it had been intended and not like it had been worded then a great many victories wouldn´t have been made for the fatherland.

But did she even want to return the Mathers estate? Reinhard was waiting for her and would undoubtedly worry for her safety. Furthermore she was in a hardly presentable state at the moment which she was ashamed to have completely forgotten about until now. Clothes mattered little to her and Tanya had learned that especially on the battlefield a less strict expectation rested on how you looked. There had been meetings she had attended with still blood-soaked hair or once even with an open wound. Time was precious after all.

Maybe Rem´s sister had a mood swing or fell down the stairs or had been scared by a children´s story. Thousands of relatively innocent possibilities existed that would explain what she was feeling, but there also remained the small chance that it was something actually serious. Roswaal should have left the house a few hours ago so Emilia and Rem were alone and vulnerable. Bandits or assassins could be attacking or the mansion was burning down...

Damn it! Even if it was the slimmest of possibilities; she couldn't abandon her business partner just after they had sealed the deal. Her investment had been too great to throw it away like that. Tanya knew what the "sunk cost fallacy" was from the Chicago School of Economics yet she also knew the value of always staying careful and suspicious from a lifetime of war and poverty.

In the end the screaming instinct at the back of head that was sensing something afoul prevailed. Caution won her internal debate and she turned towards Crusch once more.

"Excuse me Lady Karsten, but I seems that Lady Emilia could potentially be in trouble. I am acting on a hunch and was consequently not prepared for this situation. I would be deeply thankful if you could - upon arrival in the capital of course - send a messenger to the Astrea household and inform my knight Reinhard that I am sadly needed here for a while longer. Telling him about Subaru´s and my exploits in defeating the White Whale would also be greatly appreciated."

Crusch nodded and Tanya slightly bowed her head to show her thankfulness. Not too much though! They were both on equal standing in the royal selection so subservience would damage her reputation. Tanya might not own the title of duchess, but she had the support of the sword saint which could even be seen as superior.

"It is no problem at all. Would you mind if we could discuss some things at a later date? A lot has happened today and it would be wonderful if we could speak about it properly in private."

Oh joy. Another event she would have to worry about now. She had not enough coffee to deal with this shit.

"Yes, surely. I will certainly find a way to arrange an appointment next week."

"Somehow." she thought with a strained smile.

"Well, then... I would say it has been a pleasure, but so far this day has been nothing but stress really. Let our next reunion be under less bloody circumstances."

Her focus shifted from the dead whale to the nearby maid.

"Rem, make the ground dragon ready. I dearly hope your senses are deceiving you and that we are just wasting a few hours of time here, as much as that pains me to say."

After she had herded her two useless guards away from the carriage (Seriously, one of them was shaking from the sight of the White Whale alone! She would need to have a word with Reinhard about how he trained his servants.) she hastily redressed inside with clothes from her luggage.

When she stuck out her head from the cabin again Subaru was making small talk with the old man who had thanked her and Rem had finished whatever she had been doing. Smart of him to socialize with an influential person who believed to owe him a debt on top. Nonetheless this was not the time for making political connections.

"Come on! We have no more time to lose. Rem do you still feel the same emotions from Ram?"

"Yes. Sister is still afraid."

If the girl was not lying to her then that was worrisome. Roswaal´s maid could have made the whole synaesthesia-ability up without anyone being able to disprove it. It was a very convenient timing to receive the "vision" in front of as large of an audience as possible so that Tanya couldn't ignore it. Alas, she had already made a decision and she would run through with it.

Routinely checking her mana reserves revealed that she had expended more than one half of her energy. That wasn´t good. Whatever spells she had casted while under the influence of the accursed Type 95 computation jewel had been more costly than necessary. Her natural regeneration would most likely be enough to bring her back to sixty or so percent, but it still angered her that she had lost so much control. Oh, how she hated that bastard who had robbed her of her freedom time and time again.

Where was he anyway? She had asked herself that question many times already and her nervousness continued to grow. There was no use in asking questions without answers so she disregarded her worry until the moron showed himself to her.

In a stroke of ingenuity she let one of her guards and Rem switch position. This way he would have at least contributed something meaningful to her journey. Also Rem was freed from steering the carriage which allowed her to heal some of Tanya´s deeper wounds. She didn´t even really bleed anymore as far as she could tell, but she needed to look not like corpse if possible.

Hours went by as Tanya tried to fall into what she called "half-sleep" to recover even the tiniest amount of energy. Rem had reverted to a tense silence and Subaru was uneasy himself which served Tanya just fine.

Suddenly her peace was abruptly ripped apart by the sound of the ground dragon screeching and the coach coming to a startling halt. In a flash she blew the door of its hinges and catapulted herself outside. Artificial drugs slowed her perception temporarily to a crawl and she registered the remains of the driver to her left. His head was clean blown off which would explain how he hadn't been able to make a sound of warning.

Even worse, the ground dragon appeared to be injured with a large icicle sticking out of its hind leg. Immediately her cerulean glowing eyes scanned the environment for hostiles. At first glance they appeared to be nine strange hooded figures on this side of the carriage. Probably more of them were waiting on the other side of the road as well so she would need to be quick.

For a moment she considered nonlethal takedowns, but decided against it when they had clearly shown to possess murderous intent and did not even attempt peaceful negotiations. They had lost their right for human decency the moment they had made an attempt on her life and a rather poor one at that.

Her combat knife slid into her hand and began to shine with green energy as the mage blade formula refined the already sharp edge to near monomolecular levels. One jerk of her arm and the nearest combatant´s head left his shoulders. A twist to the side saved her from impalement from two impossibly fast thrown daggers and she was already near her next victim. His speed surpassed the reaction time of a normal human, but his steel knife was no match for her blade which cleaved through the attempted block like butter and found its destiantion in his heart.

It was a small wonder that these people could even see her coming with their impractical cloth masks. Their uniform was not familiar to her in the slightest which made sense considering they were likely part of a criminal organization. But she still wanted to know who they were and what they wanted.

Her question was answered by the comically slowed down voice of Rem who shouted: "DIE WITCH CULTISTS!" with impressive hatred from behind her.

Oh no.

That wasn´t fair.

How did her luck manage to get even worse? The most feared terrorist organization in the world was coming for her now. First the White Whale and now the damned cult! She really should have brought Reinhard with her on this trip.

Notes:

Shorter chapter, because I procrastinated yesterday and had to write everything today. I could wait for tomorrow, but that would destroy my schedule and rob me of motivation. *shrug*

Also I can die happy now. The great "SugarcaneSoldier" gave me kudos on my work! I was acknowledged by one of my idols!

Also also it has been a while and I wanted to ask you all if you had any wishes or ideas for scenes that you want to see in the future?

Actions

↑ Top ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Edit Bookmark Comments (11)

Kudos

MrArana, 3Fallin, Radi_Rom, RANE_Erasmus, Gaddoge, shadownutria, 0niros, AdvocatusDiaboli, Who_the_unknown, Alone_In_An_Alley, Ainza, Cephalon_Silver, KonoDio106, Sprinkler_fule, Talented_Daylily, MightyShadow, Urielmkn, aiglas0209, Cocotbb, 0eNrx, Lingmiaomiao04, Imagod08, Lrndng, Luca0000006, Gaderer, EDG017, LoboDeDiamante, Amrysse, Hedgewitch_making_moonshine, skitdvd, boingaloing, Red_delvina, I_Want_Yuri_123, mrsadness, FrostedBrake, migjang0604, quatris, ChillyNights, Zhent, KiZaKiTenGi, R8D2C4, Pwie_Lover777, LunitasPandemonium, Dragon1008, Vandarue, Ally1012, miyako13, KatiroTheDeadCat, Marzek, Zentos, and 585 more users as well as 1064 guests left kudos on this work!

Comments

Post Comment

Comment as TheBrimmedHat

Plain text with limited HTML ?

Comment

10000 characters left

Footer

Customize

Default

Low Vision Default

Reversi

Snow Blue

About the Archive

Site Map

Diversity Statement

Content Policy

DMCA & TIDA Policies

Site Status

Policy Questions & Abuse Reports

Technical Support & Feedback

Donate or Volunteer

Development

otwarchive v1.10.0.1

Known Issues

GPL-2.0-or-later by the OTWMain Content

Archive of Our OwnArchive of Our OwnHi, TheBrimmedHat!PostLog Out

FandomsBrowseSearchAboutWork Search

tip: hetalia f/f sort:kudos

Actions

Entire Work ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Chapter Index Edit Bookmark Mark for Later Comments Share Download

Work Header

Rating:

Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warnings:

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive WarningsGraphic Depictions Of Violence

Fandoms:

Characters:

Tanya von DegurechaffEmilia (Re:Zero)Reinhard van AstreaFelt (Re:Zero)Roswaal L MathersNatsuki SubaruCrusch KarstenRem (Re:Zero)Petelgeuse Romanée-ContiRegulus CorneasBeing X (Youjo Senki)

Additional Tags:

Language:

English

Series:

Part 1 of Isekai Adventures of a Salaryman Next Work →

Stats:

Published:2021-04-07Updated:2022-08-24Words:132,758Chapters:67/?Comments:1,654Kudos:1,699Bookmarks:279Hits:99,080

Tanya starts from Zero

A_Morte_Perpetua_Machina_Libera_Nos

Chapter 38: Fear and determination

Notes:

A day late and short, because my darling mother insisted that we go to a concert over the weekend. I just couldn´t say no *shrug*

Chapter Text

Chapter 38

Subaru thought, like most of the time, what the hell his life had become. A few weeks ago he had lived a boring, disappointing, lonely life of failure and to defeat only to be abruptly become confronted with the harsh and often bloody reality of an entirely different world. Now his uneventful days had devolved into a mixture of mortal fear and magical excitement. He couldn't say if that was an upgrade or not.

Regardless of what he did the world seemed to hate him for some reason. He had been stabbed, burned, beaten, crushed, skewered and so many more things that he didn't want to think about. His nightmares got worse every night and what did he receive for his troubles? More pain. More regret. More proof of how worthless he was.

Well, sometimes it seemed to also go pretty great for him. Emilia had grown to trust him in the short time that she knew him (and didn´t that thought sting?), Rem obviously cared for him on some level and now he even had an opportunity to become a knight. A real knight! How cool was that! Finally he had chance to become strong so that he could properly protect those he cared about. And save him a lot of dying of course, a selfish part of his brain added.

Everything appeared to going well until Rem-chan had a strange vision that bad things were going on at the mansion. He had been fully prepared to convince Tanya of the need to return, but she had already decided to go back and check on her own. She really was a good friend for Emilia even if she was a bit strange sometimes. (She couldn't hold a candle to Roswaal in this aspect though.)

That left the question open, what on earth could have happened to Ram. Another Wolgram attack? Or worse, the crazy murder lady from the capital had come to enact revenge? Or maybe –

Multiple things suddenly seemed to come about at the same time. The carriage stopped and threw him out of his seat, Tanya absolutely demolished the door and the ground dragon screamed loudly. When he gathered his senses Rem had already leapt out of the other side and brandished her giant Morningstar that she had pulled from an unknown place. (He had obsesses many sleepless nights over where she hid that damn thing and he had no clue.)

If that had not been enough to trigger his PTSD then the well-known phrase "DIE WITCH CULTISTS!" together with the rattling of chains did the job.

All he could think was: "She´s gonna kill me! She´s gonna kill me! Gonna kill me killmekillmekillmekillmekillme..."

His whole world was being consumed by fear. He had died many times, but none of his deaths had been as shocking as the ones at the hands of his friend. It had hurt. It still hurt so much.

He was snapped out of his panic attack by the gentle shaking of his shoulder.

"Hey, it´s alright. They're all dead Subaru. They can´t hurt you anymore."

Rem´s voice caused him to flinch despite the soft tone of it. Yes, she was right. He really was pathetic, wasn´t he? Instead of helping he had hidden inside the coach. She must think of him as such a loser and he could understand that. He was a loser after all.

He forced himself upright and exited the cabin with still shaking knees. The familiar scent of his blood (not his not his nothisnothis) permeated the air and he nearly had a second panic attack. When he shook the terror from his head and regained his balance he noticed Tanya kneeling down on the ground and examining a dead cultist.

"If they attacked us here on the road then they are likely already at the mansion. Rem can you still feel your sister?" she asked.

"Yes. But our connection is weakening for some reason. We must hurry."

The little girl thoughtfully cleared her large knife and sheathed it in one smooth motion in her boot.

Why were all the cute girls in this world ice cold killers? It just wasn´t fair!

"Indeed. However, this ground dragon is in no shape to run again. I am going to scout ahead while you try to heal it. Together with my remaining body guard you should be able to protect Subaru from harm."

He might have nearly had a nervous breakdown just now, but his pride as a man couldn't take that insult without protest.

"Hey! Don´t look down on me!"

The tired glare he received felt like he had barely avoided significant harm to his person. Scary.

"Stay alert. We don't know how many more of them are hiding in these woods. Rem I trust you r combat experience. Retreat if necessary and don´t lose your cool. Your lives have number one priority for now. Don´t die on me."

With these words she crouched low and blasted off into the sky, leaving only a dust cloud in her wake.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rem was alternating between furious and incredibly worried. The filthy witch cult that had cost her family so much dared to encroach onto the only the place that she could reasonably call home. They wanted to take everything away from her sister and her! Again! Did their wretched cruelty know no bounds? She wanted to slaughter every last one of them and make them suffer in the worst ways imaginable! Her blood was boiling at their mere scent!

But like Lady Degurechaff had said, she could not allow herself to be lost in the bloodlust. Her sister and Lady Emilia needed help! Getting them to safety was more important than vengeance at the moment. She also had to take care of Subaru.

While he was her personal hero who had gifted her the world, she was under no delusions hat he was weak. He could – no, he would grow, because he wanted to, but it was sadly not enough at the moment. She would need to protect him for the time being and she would be lying if she said she didn't like the idea of that. Now she had the opportunity to repay the kindness he had shown her and assist him in becoming the most awesome person he could become. He would be truly glorious, of that she had no doubts.

Her hero proved surprisingly adapt at keeping the ground dragon still while she removed the icicle stuck in its leg.

"Mana of water, heal his broken body." she intoned and concentrated on patching the wound up as good as she could.

She was no master healer like Lady Beatrice and it showed. Undoubtedly their mount would be able to move again, but its speed would be greatly reduced. With her Oni strength she would probably be capable of outpacing the animal at its current level if she hadn´t two other people to worry about. The remaining guard of Lady Degurechaff was of no concern to her and she would have left him behind without a second thought.

Subaru on the other hand would not come to any harm under her watch. She knew that she would never be able to forgive herself if he got murdered by cultists while she ran away. Simply picking him up and carrying him all the way to the mansion would tire even her out eventually. And fighting the vilest and most threatening organization in Lugnica exhausted was bound to get her killed.

Not that she cared that much about her own life, even though her treasured Subaru had shown her its value, but her loved ones simply took priority. Rem would gladly sacrifice herself if it secured the safety of her sister or her hero. Dying before they were absolutely out of harm's way though was not acceptable.

So she begrudgingly readied the carriage and urged the crippled ground dragon on as much as she dared until the beast collapsed from pain or exhaustion.

Her darling sister was in danger and disgusting cultists had invaded her home. She would not stand for this!

Actions

↑ Top ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Edit Bookmark Comments (7)

Kudos

Comments

Post Comment

Comment as TheBrimmedHat

Plain text with limited HTML ?

Comment

10000 characters left

Footer

Customize

Default

Low Vision Default

Reversi

Snow Blue

About the Archive

Site Map

Diversity Statement

Content Policy

DMCA & TIDA Policies

Site Status

Policy Questions & Abuse Reports

Technical Support & Feedback

Donate or Volunteer

Development

otwarchive v1.10.0.1

Known Issues

GPL-2.0-or-later by the OTWMain Content

Archive of Our OwnArchive of Our OwnHi, TheBrimmedHat!PostLog Out

FandomsBrowseSearchAboutWork Search

tip: buffy gen teen AND "no archive warnings apply"

Actions

Entire Work ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Chapter Index Edit Bookmark Mark for Later Comments Share Download

Work Header

Rating:

Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warnings:

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive WarningsGraphic Depictions Of Violence

Fandoms:

Characters:

Tanya von DegurechaffEmilia (Re:Zero)Reinhard van AstreaFelt (Re:Zero)Roswaal L MathersNatsuki SubaruCrusch KarstenRem (Re:Zero)Petelgeuse Romanée-ContiRegulus CorneasBeing X (Youjo Senki)

Additional Tags:

Language:

English

Series:

Part 1 of Isekai Adventures of a Salaryman Next Work →

Stats:

Published:2021-04-07Updated:2022-08-24Words:132,758Chapters:67/?Comments:1,654Kudos:1,699Bookmarks:279Hits:99,080

Tanya starts from Zero

A_Morte_Perpetua_Machina_Libera_Nos

Chapter 39: Running out of patience

Notes:

#FuckPuck

EDIT: 14.000 Hits!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chapter 39

Things were not looking good. When Tanya arrived at the small village near the mansion the streets were already painted red with blood. She lowered her altitude and touched down on the ground to properly take in the destruction. A little bit of investigation would be necessary to accurately judge the strengths and weaknesses of her new enemy.

Men, women and children all seemed to have found their unfortunate ends in equally brutal fashion. Some were cut in half or disembowelled. Others had their necks twisted or their limbs ripped off. The cause of these injuries appeared to be blunt force which was disconcerting to say the least.

Curiously a few corpses on the town square were either totally crushed or had obviously been thrown high into the air. That was clear to see, because their ribs and faces had been destroyed from the impact and their blood had splattered in a pattern that was impossible to fake. A few even laid on nearby rooftops or were now imbedded into the walls of the surrounding houses.

Seeing as not all casualties had occurred this way the logical conclusion was that some members of the cult were significantly stronger than others. If through magic or pure physical strength remained to be determined.

Satisfied with her findings Tanya wiped her bloody hands at the shirt of a little child and stood up to survey the massacre one last time. It truly was a shame for all these innocent, productive members of society to be wasted. These hopeful children would never gain the chance to prove themselves and take control of their own fate like she had. Instead their last living moments had only been filled with agony and the knowledge that that they would be undone by a moronic and utterly brainless terrorist organization.

Tanya had always been a rational person and as such had accepted the reality of her eventual death early on. But when she left the living world (for the final time) then she intended to do so on her own terms. Not to please Being X or her employers. Her death should be one of natural causes and without regrets. She wanted to leave a better world behind where all her work had been completed and all her affairs were put in order. A world where she had done her best to spread reason and progress to uplift the entirety of civilization.

Furthermore, Visha had shown her that life was also what you shared with others. If possible she would like to die with her closest friends and confidantes by her side and a smile on her lips. Emotions were rarely beneficial for anybody, but without them a life would ring hollow. Tanya was more than the sum of her work after all. She lived for the small pleasures like a freshly brewed cup of coffee or the gentle summer breeze against her skin and she just worked really hard to secure herself these indulgences. Life was precious for her so she fought constantly to keep it. Years of war and poverty had taught her that enjoyment could be found in the simplest things, yet was so easily missed if you were unobservant.

The children of Irlam village would never grow up to understand all that.

They had died for nothing.

Not for their ideals or out of their own free will.

Not for the good of humanity or even their own country.

They had not ended their existence full of satisfaction or a sense of accomplishment, but with terror and confusion.

What a pity.

War had forced Tanya to do many atrocious things, but she regretted none of them. She could say in good conscience that she had always done her best to minimize the loss of life by quickly and decidedly turning the tide of war. Never had she received pleasure from the loss of human capital (with the sole exception of Mary Sioux; that bitch could rot in hell). Yes, she had seen many a dead child and family, but their demises had always served a purpose. They had been unfortunate casualties that got in the way to bring peace.

This slaughter of the small village was the opposite of that. Here these none combative civilians had been the target without reason or restraint. An act of senseless violence, of war in a time of relative peace. It was absurd, revolting and unforgivable.

The witch´s cult had been active since centuries ago if the stories she had read were to be believed. They acted from the shadows without agenda or goal. Only the sowing of discord and chaos counted for them. Members who joined allegedly even gave up their minds in order to serve the jealous witch better. Perhaps this witch was Being X´s sister? She certainly sounded like the bastard.

If there was one thing that Tanya truly hated then that were people who contributed nothing to society and excused their parasitic exploitation with the divine right to do so. Charlatans and madmen who hid behind petty lies and leeched of the accomplishments of their betters. Scum who wanted to receive without giving in return. Priests, communists and now also these cultists. They were absolutely worthless and the whole system would in fact be better off if they would just disappear over night.

Sadly such lowlifes rarely had the curtesy to remove themselves so people like her would be forced to do that for them. In her first life as a salaryman she had managed human resources and laid off those with no potential or willingness to change. In her second life she had taken a more... direct approach in disposing of them.

That trend would continue it seemed.

As long as these crazed murderers threatened the people of this country, Lugnica would know no true peace. There was no negotiating with religious fanatics, she could attest to that from experience. If they had completely and willingly given up their freedom of choice then they counted no longer as humans in her eyes. Where she had resisted they had fallen. Without individuality they were no sentient beings worthy of respect any more, they were just obstacles. The only option of dealing with them would be to exterminate them all.

With violence on her mind and now fresh out of mercy Tanya took to the air and rushed in the direction of the Mathers estate.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Emilia was shaking. She couldn't remember if she had ever felt as afraid as in this very moment. Absolute fear was flooding her veins and made it near impossible to think. Puck was not responding to her call and she was perhaps for the first time in her life completely and utterly alone.

In the morning she had said goodbye to Tanya and Subaru and the mansion had already felt empty after their departure. Who would she talk to when they both were not present? Roswaal had always too much work to do, Beatrice didn´t leave her library and Ram mostly ignored her. The only other person available was Puck, but for some reason he had refused to leave his crystal.

Then a few hours ago they had heard strange sounds from the nearby village and Ram had gone off to investigate only to return a few minutes later out of breath and bloodied.

"The witch´s cult is here." was what she had said.

Witch

WITCH

Even after years of hearing that word it still sent shivers down her spine. Would she never be able to escape the shadow of the devilish half-elf that looked like her?

Why were these cultists here? She hadn't done anything to anger the cult. In fact, she hadn't done anything to anger anybody! She just wanted to live a quiet life with her friends and help people! Was that so wrong? Was she perhaps really cursed? Because her luck never seemed to get better.

Well, that wasn´t entirely true. She had Roswaal who provided for her and Subaru... Her dear, silly, stupid, fantastic Subaru. He always had an idea regardless of how terrible it was. He would make her laugh and strike ridiculous poses in one moment and in the other he would listen to her and tell her pretty lies. Really, how could anybody believe that she was beautiful? She looked like the stupid witch!

The one person who had ruined her life without the two of them ever meeting. Emilia´s appearance only brought her scorn or disgust from the citizens and she was tired of it. Even at the royal selection event the councilmen and the audience had insulted her. They had only really stopped when Tanya had made her debut...

Out of all the royal candidates she was the one who had actively approached her with respect and constant friendliness. Puck had told her that some of it had been faked, but that she also played that charade with everybody. Tanya appeared like a person who would not easily open up on her true feelings and who could honestly blame her after what she had been through? (Emilia would never admit it to Tanya, but the images she had showed at the royal selection still haunted her nightmares sometimes.)

She had even been willing to form an alliance and help her with freeing the elves of Elior forest. Also... Tanya was simply adorable. The urge to hug her had somehow grown over the last week until she couldn´t hold back anymore. She simply had to squeeze her one las time bfore she made the trip back to the capital.

All in all, Tanya and Subaru were shaping up to be the two best friends imaginable. One of them was dependable and the other was approachable. The thought of finally having real friends terrified and excited her in equal measure. What could she do for them so that they wouldn't leave her? How could she properly show her gratitude? What did friends do in their free time? It was all so confusing, but also exhilarating.

Sadly, none of them were here at the moment to help her with her current predicament.

She was all alone.

Again.

"P-Puck, come out. I-I´m s-scared. Please. If I offended you s-somehow... I´ll d-do anything! Please!" she begged for the hundredth time. Her contracted spirit remained silent. She could feel the connection to him. He was obviously sleeping. But why wasn't he waking up! Why!

Suddenly anger overtook her. Everybody was leaving her behind and she had enough of it. If Puck didn't want to answer her then fine! That dunderhead should not complain the next time she refused him sweets or a belly rub!

If she could only rely on herself at the moment then she would just do it herself! The damned witch´s cult thought they could make her cower in fright and invade her home? Well then they had thought wrong! They would be the ones begging for their lives and after everything that they had indirectly put her through she was not in the mood to grant them their wishes.

Her legs hadn´t stopped shaking, but instead from fear they were now quivering from anger. When she slowly rose from her hideout in the barricaded room that Ram had locked her in, her eyes had darkened. What once had been a bright shade of purple was now nearly looking like black to an outside observer.

Ice began to crawl up the walls of the room and turned the air she was breathing into mist, but she didn't mind. The rapidly dropping temperature escaped her notice altogether. Raising one hand and drawing on the vast power of her elven magic she shot out twenty large shards of ice that ripped the barricaded door to splinters and carried on to obliterate the wall on the other side of the hallway.

She would not be weak.

She would not be powerless.

She would not suffer wretched murders in her home any longer!

Her shoulders' tensing was the only warning before she broke into a sprint that would put most athletes to shame. Due to her elven heritage she was significantly stronger and faster than the average human. Even without training she eclipsed almost everybody she had come across in physical power. A fact that she normally made sure to hide careful in order not to unsettle or outright frighten the people around her. They were hostile enough when they thought of her as a weak little girl after all.

Corridor after corridor blurred right past her as she strained her hearing to pick up any sound from the possible intruders. The mansion was eerily silent until her senses picked up rumbling from the floor beneath her. (Those pointy ears were not just for show.)

Instinctively more icicles formed in the air behind her and floated there like a giant halo. The air became unbearably cold for a normal human and large sheets of ice soon covered every surface in her immediate vicinity. Anybody else would have likely frozen to the floor had they tried to walk where she did, but to Emilia it was not a hindrance at all. Rather, the ice made her even faster, because she could slide on her feet to gain continuously more momentum.

Had she been thinking clearly she would have never attempted such a stunt, but in her boiling fury she ignored all the restrictions and limitations she had set for herself. For that reason she continued to speed up and up along the linear hallway until she created a enormous shield of ice in front of her and simply used it to burst through the wall at its end. Ice and stone exploded into a cloud of debris and deadly shrapnel, but again she paid it no mind.

Down the stairwell and to the left and she arrived at the door where she still heard loud sounds originating from. She was about to pulverize the barrier in her way with her magic when to her mild surprise Ram threw it open from the inside and tumbled out of the room. The distraction only lasted for half a second though before her razor-sharp icicles streamed into the room and pierced multiple purple robed silhouettes, pinning them to the tapestry.

Rem was still staring at her in shock and Emilia finally noticed that the maid had blood all over her clothes. Way more than last time she had seen her. Judging from the body parts strewn around the room it was safe to assume that she had not held in combat.

"L-Lady E-Emilia... Why a-are y-you here?"

The arctic temperatures were causing Ram to violently shiver and her teeth were loudly chattering against each other. Emilia had to make an active effort with her fire magic to melt the ice and raise the temperature so that the pink-haired maid wouldn´t freeze to death.

"I'm done with hiding. They will regret ever coming here." she growled.

Ram shivered again, but not because of the cold.

Notes:

Disclaimer: Not everything happens at the same time btw :)

Just wanted to let you know so you don´t get confused.

Also, I measured that I can write roughly 3000 words per day if I do nothing else. If any of you are writers... how much literature can you produce in one day?

I´m just curious how slow/fast I am comparatively.

Actions

↑ Top ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Edit Bookmark Comments (17)

Kudos

Comments

Post Comment

Comment as TheBrimmedHat

Plain text with limited HTML ?

Comment

10000 characters left

Footer

Customize

Default

Low Vision Default

Reversi

Snow Blue

About the Archive

Site Map

Diversity Statement

Content Policy

DMCA & TIDA Policies

Site Status

Policy Questions & Abuse Reports

Technical Support & Feedback

Donate or Volunteer

Development

otwarchive v1.10.0.1

Known Issues

GPL-2.0-or-later by the OTW

Chapter 1651 - 39