Watching this scene filled with 'warmth,' Fíliya felt not a single ripple in her heart. She immediately turned and began to explore the surrounding stone walls.
Solitär, too, cast a subtle glance at the idiotic master-and-subordinate pair, then walked around them and headed toward Fíliya.
"What are you doing."
Solitär asked, watching as Fíliya pressed her ear tightly against the stone wall to listen. She couldn't help but ask.
"Looking for a hidden... Shhh..."
Fíliya pressed a finger to her lips, signaling for Solitär to be quiet.
So Solitär fell silent, though she was somewhat puzzled. Why doesn't Fíliya just ask me? she wondered. With her power, she could find any hidden passage just with Mana Detection; there was no need for all this trouble.
"I knew it! The moment I came in, I felt something was off with this wall. From its overall structure, there had to be a hollow space here. Listening to it now, it's just as I thought. There's the sound of wind behind it."
...
Seeing Fíliya's ecstatic expression, Solitär hesitated. She debated whether she should mention that she had already detected the extra space behind the wall with her own senses long ago.
"Hmm, let me look. The mechanism should be around here."
Still looking thrilled, Fíliya began feeling all over the surface of the wall. After a moment, she called out loudly to Solitär.
"Found it, it's right here."
With that, Fíliya gently pressed the mechanism she had found, which was disguised as one of the stone blocks in the wall.
With a loud rumble, a straight corridor appeared before her.
"Sniff, sniff..."
Fíliya quickly took a small step forward, stood in the middle of the corridor, and began sniffing the air.
"Ah, I love this musty smell. Let's go, it's harvest time."
Saying this, Fíliya turned back and grabbed Solitär's wrist.
"Hey, you two over there, stop clinging to each other. That's enough. If anyone saw you, they'd think we were some kind of strange organization."
After taking hold of Solitär, Fíliya shouted over in the direction of Aura and Linie.
Once Aura, looking embarrassed, walked over with Linie, Fíliya finally led the three demons into the hidden room.
"Fíliya, if you were looking for a hidden room, why didn't you ask me? It would have been much quicker."
In the end, Solitär couldn't contain her curiosity.
"Mm, I knew you'd ask that. Of course I couldn't ask you... If I knew where the secret was ahead of time, it would take away most of the fun. You see, I didn't even bother using my senses; I relied purely on skill and instinct."
Fíliya said casually. Her words reminded Solitär of that night, when the moon was large and the moonlight was brilliantly clear.
Yes, she remembered Fíliya saying it back then too. That the most boring magic in the world... was Future Sight. So that's what she meant.
A smile finally graced the corners of Solitär's lips, for she felt she had finally begun to understand Fíliya's way of thinking.
Before long, the group of one human and three demons reached the deepest part of the hidden room.
Immediately after, three large treasure chests appeared before them.
"Hah... It's finally time."
Fíliya's tone was genuinely excited, as this was the first time she had ever experienced the thrill of opening a treasure chest. It was the fulfillment of a small dream she once had.
Fíliya's eyes shone with excitement. Without another word, she strode directly toward the chests.
Then, she was pulled back by Solitär.
"Fíliya..."
Solitär's tone was one of exasperation, and even Aura and Linie wore expressions of confusion.
"Fíliya, it's obvious. All three of these chests are Mimics. Your hopes have been dashed."
"Don't say that!"
Fíliya turned her head, unwilling to accept it.
"Do you know? The magic to 'Identify Mimics' only has a ninety-nine percent accuracy rate! That means there's still a one percent chance of finding a real one. We have three chests in front of us, so that's a three percent chance of finding a real treasure chest! Besides, these chests are from a hidden room. Surely this labyrinth wouldn't be so treacherous as to put fake chests in a secret room, right? If it is, I'm going to leave a bad review."
...It was the first time Solitär had seen Fíliya make such an expression. She exchanged a puzzled look with Aura.
Humans really are unwilling to face reality when they suffer a major blow, she thought. Even Fíliya is no different.
Thinking this, Solitär took a small step forward and stopped concealing her presence.
The torrent of mana that erupted from her was powerful enough to nearly shatter the roof of the entire hidden area... but even so, the three chests before them remained completely unchanged.
As I thought, it's no use. Any other low-level Monster would have been frightened away by the immense mana of a greater demon, but Mimics are so unintelligent they don't even know what fear is.
Solitär shook her head and retracted her mana.
Because a Monster like the Mimic was simply too primitive, Solitär had no interest in it and consequently knew very little about them.
"Hmph, could this mean they're all real treasure chests? Since they're inanimate objects, they wouldn't be frightened by Solitär, would they."
Fíliya's eyes held a fanatical gleam. Although the others had repeatedly told her they were three Mimics, it was clear she was still trying to delude herself.
"...Feels like she's gone off the deep end, huh?"
Aura pinched her nose, expressing her disdain for Fíliya's refusal to accept reality.
Fíliya's reaction was both unexpected and deeply satisfying to her. Although Aura didn't know what she had won, she felt like she had. It was a thrill akin to successful revenge.
I can't believe a few Mimics are enough to drive this woman mad. If I'd known, I would have gathered a bunch of them. Maybe I could have finally beaten her... Aura thought to herself.
"Alright, it's time to open the chests."
Fíliya paid no mind to what anyone else said. She was a very 'me-first' kind of person and had to remain firm in her convictions.
So, she took a deep breath, stepped forward, and crouched down in front of one of the chests.
Her expression was solemn. She first pressed her ear to the seam of the chest, listening carefully. Then she placed both hands on its surface, stroking it gently... her eyes filled with an expression of tender affection.
"Heh, I know. You've been waiting for me here for a ve—ry long time, haven't you? Mm, you're all good children. Don't worry. Even if everyone else calls you Mimics, I will not abandon you."
As she spoke, Fíliya slowly moved her hand to the lid's seam and, with a heave, threw it open.
And then... she was swallowed into the Mimic's stomach.
_____
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