As Mel stepped out of the
[ Good job, Host! Excellent acting. I'm very proud of you! ]
"Of course!" The Witch widely smiled at the 'System'. "How's Lila?"
[ All well and good! Gluttony, Saria, and of course, the Saintess had zero suspicion of the poor hostage! Ah, and I prepared a decoy for your human form so that it would stall long enough till the next sunrise! ]
"Hehe. Good work." She grinned. "Come to think of it, it's all thanks to the Saintess, letting a Witch like me go so easily... what could she possibly be thinking?"
[ Mhm. Of course. The Saintess is the embodiment of pureness, virtues, and righteousness itself! How could she bear to see an innocent victim harmed in front of her eyes?! ]
How shameless. I like it.
"If you say so!" She tipped her hat up to face the panel. "I would have appreciated even more butter-up afterwards, but now, please work a little more, my partner-in-crime."
[ Of course! The Host is... oh.]
The Witch nodded, facing a dark tunnel ahead with shadows twisting and writhing. Cold trinkets of necklaces, pickaxes, and lanterns were abandoned around the entrance, as if to run away from something within.
[ The Host is currently at the abandoned Ruins, I see! ]
"Mhm. Anyone within a 200m radius of us?"
[ None! I can detect further if you like! ]
"Alright. I'll trust you on that." She turned to Nyxia, the purple-haired maid, hanging her head humbly. "My pet. Lead the way."
The cat maid nodded, her tail swaying idly as her careful steps led ahead, ready to perform her duty like in her regular spy operation.
Yet Mel tugged her maid's sleeve, smirking. "No requests?"
Nyxia glanced at her Master with a confused expression. "I... may I be clarified what request, Master?"
Mel's finger sank further into the sleeve. Her pet has always been too diligent. Too subservient. Too obedient.
She deserved a reward occasionally, and a Master must offer that excuse.
"How inconsiderate," Mel smirked. "No words of comfort or offer to keep your Master warm in such a cold, damp cave?"
No blushes, but Mel watched how the maid's cat-ears coiled, her tail circling in the air like a brain's engine turbocharging.
The maid uttered. "Uh-um. Please. Tell me exactly what to do, Master."
"Eh? That's boring." The Witch purred, her fingers lightly thumbing around Nyxia's wrist. "Why don't you tell me what you want, Nyxia?"
The maid's grey eyes shuddered, her ears now perking up in realisation. Her master, the one she swore to serve loyally without second thought, was flirting with her.
Mel admired the faint blush across the maid's cheeks, the tail twitching in a quiet anticipation. That's right. She knew her maid was clever enough to take the hint. Plus points!
The Witch's admiration grew when the maid took her wrist off her Master's grasp, willingly without her order.
But not before stretching her hand out again, her gaze was cast downward, not with humility, but with an uneasy, almost excited embarrassment.
The maid muttered nervously. "Shall-shall we hold hands, Master?"
The Witch pressed her finger to her chin. Everything, the deepening blush, the twirling purple cat ears, and the golden cat irises that flickered with joy. Everything is perfect except one more thing.
"Nyxia." Her hand clasped around Nyxia's. "Call me 'my Lady' from now on."
Rolls off the tongue better. More elegant-sounding. More intimate.
The Witch ticked off the three checklists in her mind, before enjoying the catgirl's lingering purr, as if mustering up the rest of her courage. "I-I understand... my Lady."
"Mhm. Try and get used to it, alright?"
She tightened her hand onto Nyxia's. The catgirl maid's grasp was less soft, but lighter and clumsier than Lila's. The maid's skin was buttery smooth, as if perfectly fitting into Mel's fingers.
It is not her illusion. Nyxia was a voidling molded for her preference. Hers alone.
A possessive chuckle escaped Mel as they walked side by side into the cave.
She promised her maid that she would be her equal. Whether Nyxia would end up her lover or remain a servant, it is her duty as a Master to respect her judgement.
As a selfish Witch, however, she never planned not to sprinkle in a few touchy hints here and there.
------------------
As Mel expected, the cave was cool and desolate with shadows clinging to the walls. Abandoned equipment was scattered across the floors, souvenirs by their dearest and most beloved enemies, the Witch Cultists.
The Witch and Maid strolled, as Mel noticed how deliberately slow the maid's step was. Caution? Nervousness? Fear for the Witch of Wrath?
No, Mel was not dense enough to conjure up excuses. She held back a snicker, glancing at the maid's trembling lips as if to hide her guilty feeling.
They both wished to savor the quiet moments, the cave's shadows their only witness as the space between them slowly closed in. Some teases were better left unsaid, some silences were better left respected, and Mel determined this is one of them.
Though the cat maid remained competent, not forget to explain correctly. "This cave was recently dug by the Cultists, claiming to have sensed a weird energy signal from one of their leaders."
Mel swung her hand casually, already treating this as a half-date. "Weird energy signal? Perhaps from the Rift?"
The maid nodded. "From the interrogation, journal entries, and some accounts by the black market informants and witnesses, it can be deduced that the Rift, or rather the energy emitted from it, attracted the Cultists' attentions."
"Mhm. It's highly likely... no, given the scale of that slash, it is almost certain that an Awakened Wrath was inside it. And yet..."
Mel frowned, a little flustered by Nyxia's report. While it can be certain that an Awakened Wrath is inside, it couldn't be explained why she was awakened so much earlier than expected, when it usually required at least one or two more decades otherwise.
At least, without the 'help' of other witches.
The maid, sensing Mel's unease, tapped the back of the Witch's hand. "Ma...Uh, My Lady. It would seem the cultists, too, did not have any contingency plan against Rift. Whatever emerged, they must not be able to control her, either."
Mel's brow perked up, chuckling. "Don't worry. I'm intrigued, that's all." She appreciated the reassurance!
But Wrath is more curious than terrifying for her now. And given the
Readjusting her seduction strategy, they arrived at the end of the cave, with a small, empty hole carved out, its depthful darkness speaking of an emptiness that once contained something dangerous.
Her gaze met the Maid's, who nodded. The empty hole is where the Rift used to be.
She stretched her unoccupied hand, sweeping over the mud's surface before pausing to examine.
Her finger was now clouded with
Mel's eyes squinted. The Rift was literally slashed open, bringing with it an Awakened Wrath in the process.
However, investigation is not what she is mainly here for.
"
She's here to track down Wrath herself.
Mel had no plans to confront an awakened Wrath herself yet. But following her scents? At least that can be allowed, right?
After that, any suspicion or inconsistency? Just ask the Witch herself! And she's sure it would be all fine afterwards!