"How do you plan to cut it? We don't have my hatchet anymore," I asked the blonde while she healed my arm with her flame.
"The same way as now. I'll use my hands."
Milaine stepped away from us and knelt in front of the sandworm. Her flame grew brighter; her hands turned almost white.
Then she began slicing the flesh with her nails—specifically the mouth area that still held a few remaining teeth.
After the encounter with the Moderator, most of the sandworm was a deformed mass; it looked more like clay than a worm.
God, it smells awful.
Livia retched while I pinched my nose. I wasn't going to use Sigil to turn off my sense of smell. I wasn't sure whether burning a sense would be permanent or temporary, and I wasn't about to find out.
I watched the acid burn Milaine's hands, only for them to regenerate even faster. Surprisingly, she was fast. Very fast. It didn't seem to hurt, judging by how she kept her face neutral.
When she finished with the mouth section, several teeth—bigger than me—fell and boomed across the cave. She gathered the meat into a pile near one of the craters that still held some magma.
Then she turned to us and gave a small smile.
"Food's ready," she said.
Livia stepped away and started vomiting.
"Not funny," I said.
I stared at the pulpy mash with its anomalous texture. Bit by bit, the ground beneath it began to sink.
'Fuck me, it looks horrible.'
Milaine sat cross‑legged in front of the mound and grabbed a chunk with her hands.
"I need to eat this or I'm going to faint," she said as she chewed and swallowed.
For a moment I saw her lips burn, but it lasted only an instant before they regenerated. I also noticed the shadows beneath her eyes start to fade, and her pale skin regain some color.
'Is this chick actually a monster?'
Milaine stopped eating and looked at me for a few seconds. She glanced at the mound, then at her hands. The blood on her hands and mouth burned away, leaving her clean. Then our eyes met.
"Bring Olivia. I'm ready to heal you both once you eat," she said.
I gave a small nod, set my books down, and turned to look for Livia, who was finishing up vomiting into one of the magma craters.
"Hey, Liv, you okay?" I asked, kneeling to catch her in case she slipped.
"Yeah… I'm just a little dizzy," she said.
"Are you sure? You don't have to act tough if you're really not okay," I said.
She wiped her mouth and looked toward the crater, trying to smile.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just really don't want to eat that," she said.
'Then don't eat it,' I wanted to say, but didn't.
There was nothing else to eat here. According to the old man, most creatures on this planet are made of magma and rock. The sandworm was one of the few exceptions.
It was this or starve and dehydrate.
I went back to Livia and hugged her from behind, pulling her away from the crater.
"N‑no… I'm dirty," she said, squirming a little.
"I don't care," I said, refusing to let her slip from my arms.
"I don't want you to associate me with a bad smell, Leo," she muttered, surrendering to the hug.
"Livia, I'm literally bleeding inside. I must smell worse than you. I'm the one who should be afraid you'll associate me with a bad smell."
"I'd never do that!" she blurted, turning to face me. Determination returned to her big blue eyes.
I smiled.
"Okay, okay. I got it. Come on, let's go. Try using your Gift on our food" I chuckled.
"Uuuh, Leo, don't be mean," she said, glaring at me, eyes half‑closed and lips trembling.
I don't need Legemens to know she wants a kiss.
Still holding her, I brushed her hair aside and kissed her forehead.
"When your mouth doesn't reek, I'll kiss you for real again," I said, letting her go and standing up.
"Ah! So it does gross you out!" she said, mock‑offended, as she stood and followed me.
[The Goddess Who Doesn't Believe in Friendship is clapping proudly, slowly, so she won't be found.]
[The Goddess Who Enjoys Battles is calling for the Goddess Who Doesn't Believe in Friendships while dragging the body of the God Who Would Do Anything for Money]
Ugh, does that idiot have no survival instinct?
[The Goddess Who Dislikes Gods is looking at you.]
'And then there's this one… well, at least she doesn't seem to be doing much. I still shouldn't let my guard down. After all, she knows I'm a Witch… I just hope she doesn't know about the coven.'
We headed back to where Milaine was waiting. We sat near her; this time Livia hurried to sit in the middle. I ended up at her right side.
"Whenever you're ready, Olivia," Milaine said.
Livia blew out a breath, patted her cheeks, closed her eyes, and went quiet.
Seconds passed. Then a couple of minutes. Neither Milaine nor I spoke. Livia frowned, chin resting on her hand.
'Wow, it seems like it's actually hard for her to find the answer this time.'
After several minutes, Livia finally opened her eyes, now with an intense gold on them, and a crystalline golden dome formed around us.
She let out a sigh and relaxed.
"Notice anything different?" she asked.
'Something different?'
I checked my status window, but didn't see anything. Not even a notification.
'Is it because my Instinct isn't working?'
"Yeah," Milaine said. "I got a notification about a mental attack. What did you change, Olivia?"
"Mental attack?" I asked.
"I see… um, I changed how the brain interprets taste and smell… I flipped them," Livia said.
"Taste? So it tastes good now?" I asked, leaning in to smell the meat pile, which now had a rich grilled‑meat aroma.
"I think so," Livia said, leaning in to sniff me.
I copied her without thinking. She smelled nice now, like flowers, maybe.
Milaine gave a small sniff, then put her hand back into the pile and took another bite.
"Holy shit. This is delicious," she said as her flame healed her mouth.
"Even if you tell me that, it's hard to process when I can see your face melting," I said.
Milaine moved quickly to stand between Livia and me. She stepped behind us and set a hand on each of our backs.
"Just try it and see," she whispered.
I glanced at Livia out of the corner of my eye; her hand had slipped onto my thigh the moment Milaine boxed us in.
Livia met my gaze. We spoke at the same time.
"You first."
Even so, Milaine shoved our faces toward the meat.
I opened my mouth to complain, but my tongue touched the flesh. There was a flicker of pain, instantly erased by Sigil.
Then came the taste.
Seasoned meat: a little salt, maybe cumin, a touch of pepper. The texture was perfect, tender and warm.
The smell wrapped around me, my mouth watered, and my stomach growled. Finally, a comforting warmth, like a hug, washed over me. Milaine's white flame.
'Damn, that feels so good.'
I started licking the meat, and before I knew it I was chewing and swallowing. Beside me, Livia was the same. Except she took small breaks to blow on her mouth.
"Ah, ah, ah—spicy, spicy! But it's so good I can't stop eating!"
A shiver ran through my thighs, then my crotch, as I watched Livia lick the meat with that much desperation.
"Keep eating, my girls. Eat and grow strong," Milaine whispered. Another shiver jolted through me.
Something in the way she said it sounded maternal but alluring at the same time. Almost sexual.
I wanted to get mad, but I couldn't. There was no reason. The whole thing felt too good. Even Surreal.
[You have obtained a new Innate Ability: Acid Resistance]
[You have obtained a new Innate Ability: Decay Resistance]
[You have obtained a new Innate Ability: Fire Resistance]
[You have obtained a new Flaw: Minor Kink — Sitophilia]
[You have obtained a new Flaw: Minor Kink — Sadism]
[You have obtained a new Flaw: Minor Kink — Mommy Kink]
'Ah. Fuck me…'
[The Goddess Who Doesn't Believe in Friendships is giggling a bit too loudly]
[The Goddess Who Enjoys Battles breaks the wall and drops the God Who Would Do Anything for Money]
[The Goddess Who Doesn't Believe in Friendships is screaming for help]
***
After an hour, we finished eating what was left of the worm. Milaine burned away the remaining blood on us.
We also collected a few tooth fragments long enough to use as weapons. We'd have to thank the Moderator for that.
We were now sitting in a circle inside one of the tunnels the worm had dug. We could also see the section of the cave ceiling that had collapsed from here.
"We'll sleep here. Sandworms never pass through their own tunnels," Milaine said.
"And tomorrow?" I asked.
"Tomorrow we leave the cave," Milaine said.
"But what about the sulfur? What if we run into beetles? Are you sure the cave isn't safer?" Livia asked.
Milaine glanced at her.
"I don't know when, but the ruler of Vulkris is going to awaken. Once that happens, nowhere will be safe," she said, pointing into the dark. "Sulfur levels will spike in places closest to the planet's core, and the lava will rise too. The surface is our best option."
"I can heal contamination with my flame, and now that we have resistances, we should endure better. But we won't survive what's coming on our own. We have to find more survivors," Milaine said.
'Survivors… the other Witch is with the survivors too.'
"But even if there are survivors… how many made it through the eruption?" Livia asked.
"I'm not sure, maybe eight to ten thousand are still alive. But more will die tomorrow," Milaine said.
"Where will we go?" Livia asked.
Suddenly, my future self's words rang in my head.
Don't stay in the cave too long. No, nowhere. Keep moving. You have to get as far away from the volcano as you can.
"Far from the volcano," I said.
Milaine looked at me and nodded with her usual neutrality.
"Yes. Volcanoes are monster‑generation points. The farther we are, the better," she said, standing up. "I'll take first watch. Get some sleep."
She leaned against a wall, watching the section of the cave that opened to the outside.
I glanced at the books with me. It was time to contact Violet. I couldn't keep going without my Instinct. I had to deal with Undetermined.
"Leo? Are you going to sleep?" Livia called.
"Ah, no. Not yet. I'm going to read for a while," I said, lifting the violet book.
Livia's eyes turned golden again; she whispered something I couldn't catch, then looked at me.
"Um… Leo? Are you going to read the purple one?" she asked.
"Eh? Yeah, why?"
"I think you should read the green one," she said with a smile.
'The green one?'
I looked at the green book, the one I'd been ignoring until now.
"Why the—?"
Livia cut me off with a quick kiss on the lips, then ran off giggling to talk with Milaine.
I watched her for a moment before turning back to Violet's book.
"Well, I guess the other Witch can help me too."
Without thinking much, I set the green book in front of me and cast Sigil.
***