- POV General -

It had been 10 minutes since the three sisters and Theo had been walking in the galleries under the village but still no sign of life, neither of the kidnapped women nor of the creature. It was very dark, the smell of wet earth was everywhere and confused the others, but they continued to advance cautiously. Except for the sound of their footsteps, nothing else seemed to sound as if they were alone in the world, lost in the bowels of the earth.

It was a real labyrinth, the tunnels intersected in every direction and without a good sense of direction, the place they had come from would be difficult to find. Sometimes, small empty rooms had been dug where nothing in particular was stored, which almost made one think of a small goblin nest. Led by Freya, who was in front, the group finally arrived at a particular recess.

All along they had been following what they thought were the footprints of the Doppelganger, but the truth was that they still hadn't come across it. It had disappeared with Jane since it jumped into the well and for the moment was nowhere to be found no matter where they went. That said, in front of those leading the investigation, the entrance to a hidden and rather interesting place loomed in the form of a rather old wooden door.historical

"A door ? Here ?"

As Kira was surprised to find this here and let it be known, Freya placed both hands on its surface before pushing gently, opening the place. It was a small room, the walls were made of dirt obviously and everything was dirty but surprisingly laid out to everyone's surprise. Dusty bookcases were here and there, a cracked wooden table where parchments were sitting and above all, a mountain of technomagical and mechanical objects.

The room was dimly lit with a few moonstones using the surrounding mana to glow, but looked abandoned. Was this really the case ? The group felt as if they had been all around the galleries and yet they came upon this unexpected discovery. While Kira and Theo, driven by curiosity, began to inspect the room, Kira slowly approached Freya who had remained at the door.

"This is the work of humans."

"Without a doubt yes. I knew it, there is something more behind it"

The she-wolf didn't know what it was yet, but the more time passed, the more her suspicions were confirmed at the rate of new discoveries. A Doppelganger who liked to kidnap women ? But according to the information given by the Mayor, this had already been going on for three months...it was too much. Not to mention this little room resembling a research laboratory that such a creature could never have built on its own.

"There has to be a passageway that leads somewhere else...look everywhere."

Just outside the doorway, a small, almost invisible puddle of water was going inward but none was present outward. The Doppelganger had obviously been there meaning the doors had been opened recently but where was it ? It shouldn't be that hard to find, it was just a matter of finding a suspicious draft, even a weak one, and Kalaa and Kira knew that right away.

Holding out her palm, the fox girl in human form created a mass of silver and blue lightning while the former Goddess of Time formed a block of ice. Concentrating, Kira placed her hand on it, making sure not to make too much noise, using the power and heat of her lightning to melt it. As water formed, a thick vapor was born from the meeting of these two elements, plunging the room in a cloud of white smoke.

"Eh ? We can't see anything anymore !"

"Shut up a little and wait, will you ?"

In complete silence, the group waited and as the fog gradually dissipated, a particular current pushed it to the right. Over there was an old library that soon revealed itself as the passage Freya had just mentioned. Without waiting, Kira would push it open to discover a second, smaller but definitely workable door for them...it was here.

"Cliche but it works"

"Let's be careful."

Crossing the passageway quickly, they all found themselves in a mana-dense room, a bit larger where the same things were scattered all over the place. The floor was made of stone, the walls were made of dirt, and even though it was dusty, someone had passed through there a while ago. Books, scrolls, grimoires, blueprints, there seemed to be everything, Freya and her companions would soon discover something unexpected.

"Look..."

"But this is..."

In a large, ceiling-high tank filled with water and sitting on a magic circle filled with mana, the one they had been looking for was in a deep sleep. The creature they had followed was motionless, its body made of water in a humanoid form that didn't look like anything. It was certainly there, but there was still no sign of young Jane or even the other women who had been missing for three months.

"The top of the tank is connected to the fountain if I'm to believe the type of stone that is right there on the ceiling. Which means...we're right in the center of the village but several feet underground."

"Yes. Every night of the full moon, it must swim to the top of its glass prison before emerging, capturing its victim to return here through the abandoned well...but why ?"

"And more importantly for whom ?"

Suddenly, as everyone watched the room with questions, toward the back, the sound of a door opening echoed in the form of creaking. Instinctively, Freya, Kira, Kalaa, and Theo hid, while they figured out who had just arrived so suddenly. The room was dark and the various structures made it difficult to see, but the distinct sound of footsteps could be heard by all, accompanied by a threatening voice.

"Who goes there ? Could you be those adventurers Fred hired ? How could you find this place ? GET OUT AND SHOW YOURSELVES !!"

The light of a lantern danced across the ceiling gradually approaching their hiding place as they remained as silent as possible. The footsteps were getting closer, the voice that was female kept talking and threatening them not without giggling with more than palpable pleasure. Without warning, Freya then pushed the young boy from behind one of the bookcases to his surprise, coming face to face with the mistress of the place.

"Oh~? Is that you, my boy~?"

"M-Ma'am Bertah ? W-what does this mean ? You...You're the one who's been responsible for this all along ? W-Why ?"

Theo had come face to face with an older lady whom he knew well as she was the village baker known for her divine breads. She had a teasing smile on her lips, a large black shawl over her shoulders, shining black eyes and gray hair. He froze, never would he have thought the sweet Ma'am Bertah could be here as she lifted her shoulders while justifying herself, dropping her guard.

"And yes it's me haha~ clothes don't make the woman~"

"W-Why ?"

"Oh well, a youngster like you can't understand. I've spent the last three months making the perfect elixir of youth with the help of this monster I'm holding on to. My water magic helped summon it and now it serves as my hunter when it awakens and brings me back subjects to help me in my research."

"S-So...my mother, my sister a-and Jane...you..."

"Well yes, they are among those I chose for their beauty to use their mana and finish what I started. Don't see anything personal little one, it's just the simple wish of an old grandmother hahahaha~"

"WHERE ARE THEY ??"

"STOP ! Don't move if you don't want them to disappear permanently. They're all in another room and this button I'm holding here allows me to decide their fate, so don't be a smart ass. Stay where you are and put on the handcuffs that are at your feet and don't forget...the fate of your mother and sister is in my hands, kid"

The old Bertah still wore that satisfied smile and hadn't noticed the presence of the other three as she watched Theo shackle himself. Freya, Kira and Kalaa had taken advantage of their conversation to sneak to the back of the room, where she had come from, the door having remained ajar. Giving a sign to her little sister, the she-wolf indicated for her to stay and watch over Theo as she disappeared behind, followed by Kalaa.

"You won't get away with this...l-let my family and the others go and maybe the Lord won't punish you too harshly."

"Sir Clayton ? PFFHAHAHAAHAHA~! Boy, without him all this would not have been possible at all. Why do you think this all started exactly three months ago right after the Day Of Delivery ? Do you honestly believe that I, an old baker, could have come up with all this material on my own ?"

"Y-You mean that..."

"He and I are nurturing the same project ! Aaaaw~ immortality~ And thanks to my research and his means I am finally about to get younger ! Sir Clayton has promised me to turn a blind eye to my activities in exchange for convincing results. I only have to hide this to the village and since you know everything...you won't leave here."

Tying Theo up with a rope after making sure he couldn't run away, Bertah pushed him onto a seat and then tied his feet to a table. Focused on him and too excited about her plan, she still hadn't seen the young silver-haired woman. Kira, as silent as her shadow was ready to act at the slightest suspicious movement while her two sisters had found the prisoners.

Behind the door was a single room that looked more like a cell made for experiments in an almost unsanitary state. Dozens of women were handcuffed to the wall, passed out from an individual magic circle under each of them. They were all connected to some sort of machine that worked by their mana, which it drew from to send it into a vat of water creating a liquid that flowed by drops.

"It looks like a magic alembic but...it's all nonsense"

"Tch, is this how a human thinks to make an elixir of youth or immortality ?"

From the first glance, Freya and Kalaa had realized that what Bertah was trying to do was not so simple and more importantly, that she was making a mistake. All her device was doing, while very interesting, was draining these poor women of their mana bringing them closer to certain death but no more. What she thought was an elixir of rejuvenation was merely a condensation of their energy and drinking it would prove dangerous rather than beneficial.

Detaching the alembic without breaking it before sending it to her Storage of Chaos, the she-wolf stopped the extraction process while her sister froze the captives' handcuffs to break them. The mechanism connected to the button was also deactivated, intended to send a mana signal into the room and activate the circles more intensely in order to kill them within a minute depriving them of their life energy. The project was stupid but the devices were ingenious.

"Still, the more I observe, the more this reminds me of much of the science I knew on earth...how interesting~"

The Empress in human form was both pleasantly surprised by these rather clever mechanisms serving a most stupid idea. That said, she who wanted to learn more about Vancesia's inventions, she was served and intended to take as much as possible with her. The women had been found and now out of danger, all that remained was to arrest the culprit in the other room and the mission would be over.

Although for Freya death was a well-deserved solution, she was no longer on her territory and what happened next was not her responsibility. It didn't matter if the Lord was involved or not, it didn't matter what was going to happen to the Doppelganger, it was no longer their problem. The fake group of adventurers had kept their word and now the most important thing for them was to cross the village and continue their journey south.

"Eh ?"

Stepping out of the room with the utmost silence, the two sisters froze in amazement, discovering the old Bertah passed out on the floor. Theo had been freed and Kira stood proudly by his side with one of her bare feet on the back of the person she had obviously struck down. As Freya and Kalaa approached, the young woman looked up before justifying herself, scratching the back of her head half embarrassed half proud.

"Aaaah sorry but when I heard her say she was throwing her magical waste into the fields and it was devastating them I couldn't help myself. All that wasted food, it made my heart hurt...and then I heard you in the distance saying that everything was good teehee~"

The baker smoked slightly, her hair spiked and almost black as her face on the ground made a face. She had been quickly neutralized and once they ere sure the room wasn't full of other wacky traps. The job had been done and even though the night was not yet over, the mystery had been solved. Shrugging her shoulders with disinterest at the fate Bertah had suffered, Freya loosened her hair before speaking.

"Well...it's over it seems."

The pact had been fulfilled, and no matter what the fate of the baker, the Doppelganger, or the Lord, the Elysium group could continue on their way. Like true adventurers they didn't care about the consequences of their discoveries and only wanted payment. Thus, the mystery of the village ended around midnight in secret tunnels and a room where a whole lot of research and informations were that Freya was planning to steal.

___

FULL STATUS

Names : Freya / Lucifer Nightshade

Age : 0 year old / Mentally : 25 years old

Sex : Female

Course: Ice Demon Wolf of Chaos - Adult

Race : Imperial Demon

Titles :

- Demon Goddess of Primordial Blood and Death (former - until all powers are recovered) - 30%.

- Wrathful Lucifer (7th Sin) - Master of the uniques Sins Demons (to unlock it, please gather the other 6 - 3/6 - (locked)

- Dragon tamer

- Ruthless slayer

Level : 45/70

Exp needed for next level: 0 / 46 000

HP : 170 000 / 170 000 MP : 85 000 / 85 000. BLOOD : 100 / 100

Strength: 660

Defense : 660

Agility : 666

Endurance: 663

Speed : 662

Intelligence: 660

Charisma: 500 (imperial she-wolf)

Attribute points to allocate : 0

Married to : Gaya Nightshade

Daughter : Shiro Nightshade

Twins (son & daughter) : Tyle & Alta?s Nightshade

Little sister : Kira Nightshade (Greedy Fox)

Big sister : Kalaa Nightshade

Empire (menu)

Subordinates: 5865 (keep growing)

Humans killed: 153

Souls: 0/3

Elements: Ice / Chaos (Freya) - Blood / Death (Lucifer)

Skills (all):

Attacks :

- Demon Claws (Lvl 5)

- Bite of hell (Lvl 6)

- Infernal ice spikes (Lvl 6)

- Fighting techniques (Lvl max)

- Mastery of the katana (lvl max)

- Demonic Empress aura (lvl 7)

Défense :

- Ice demon wall (Lvl 6)

- Demonic Cloak (lvl 5)

- Pain Resistance (lvl 6)

Attack/Defense :

- Domain of the Ice Empress "Frozen Wrath" (lvl 4)

- Death Gaze (lvl 1)

Others :

- Humanoid form

- Demonic form (linked to the title so incomplete) - 30%.

- Ice creation (Lvl 6)

- Detection and control of mana (lvl 6)

- Storage of chaos (Lvl 4)

- Devouring Chaos (Lvl 5)

- Master of Souls (lvl 3)

- Lucifer's Threads of Blood (lvl 3)

- Healing Blood (lvl 3)

- Analysis

- Telepathy

Passives :

- Commander (lvl max)

- Natural Aura of the Ice Empress ]