Rising Tensions

At the end of a massive hall lined with stone archways more than thirty meters tall, a circular dais supported a ten-meter tall statue of a beautiful woman with wild hair that ran to her ankles, goat-like horns, and a pair of bat-like wings.

Similar to the throne room of Fort Necross, the gallery-like hall housed large, stained glass panels depicting various scenes. However, unlike those found in Fort Necross, each panel depicted the same person, a woman with violet-purple hair whose appearance matched the statue at the end of the hall.

Disturbing the silent ambiance of the hall, a series of spheres resembling black holes burst into existence near the base of the statue. From within, a group of seven people was unceremoniously tossed out onto the thick red and gold carpet that ran the length of the hall.

"Oh, God..."

Feeling as though his insides had been reorganized, Paul placed his hand against the square base of the statue and bent over. As he did, Kishirika, appearing unaffected by the teleportation, exclaimed, "Don't you dare! At least go behind one of the columns...!"

As hilarious as it would be to see Paul throw up, Kishirika didn't want him vomiting on or around her statue. Fortunately, Ganyu immediately made her way to his side, icy blue light emanating from her palm as she gently caressed his back.

Feeling much better, Paul exhaled a sigh of relief before rising to his full height and smiling back at the always-reliable Adeptus.

"Thanks...I owe you one..."

Returning a smile of her own, Ganyu resisted the almost instinctual urge to say she was just doing her job. Paul 'owing' her generally meant they would be spending more time together, so she didn't mind allowing him to accrue a debt...

"Bleeeeeh~! Now isn't the time to be getting all lovey-dovey, fools. This place might be safe, but there are enemies just beyond those doors. Get your heads in the game...!"

Though he exhaled loudly through his nose, Paul ultimately nodded his head in response to Kishirika's words, replying, "Right." before directing his attention to Zhongli, Ei, Yae, and Sayu.

"Sayu will take point and scout ahead. Zhongli, I want you to focus on defense and keeping everyone safe. Ei, you're our trump card against powerful foes, so stick back and only take action if it looks like the rest of us can't handle it..."

Focusing his gaze on Yae, Paul briefly paused as he had never seen her in action. He knew she was a Catalyst-user, however, so he quickly regained his senses and said, "I'll be acting as the forward Vanguard. I want you to provide support alongside Ganyu."

Pulling out a bamboo fan from her sleeve, Yae popped it open to cover the lower half of her face as she remarked, "Oh, my...don't tell me you intend to take on all the enemies on your lonesome? Is it not our duty to protect you...?"

With his brows furrowed, Paul replied, "I am well aware of that...however, I can't just sit back and allow myself to be protected. I know it's the right thing to do, but what manner of man would I be if I spent my days hiding away and indulging myself?"

Unable to contain herself, Yae narrowed her eyes and playfully replied, "A wise and competent one~?"

Though she suspected her lifelong friend was just playing around, Ei's expression became serious as she muttered, "Yae..."

Snapping her fan shut, Yae revealed an alluring smile as she said, "Oh, come now. Our Master is well aware that I'm simply teasing him. Besides, I'm more than happy to sit back and enjoy the show. My hair gets all puffy and disobedient when I use my powers."

Inserting himself back into the conversation, Paul interrupted what Ei was about to say, stating, "It's okay, Ei. I'd rather be a courageous idiot than a competent coward."

Shifting his attention to Kishirika, Paul said, "You don't have to fight, but I expect you to give us accurate directions..."

Adopting a toothy grin, Kishirika gave a thumbs-up gesture and answered, "Just leave it to me. This chamber is part of the castle's inner sanctum, so my private quarters aren't too far away. From there, we can enter a secret passage that connects to one of the throne room's antechambers."

Furrowing his brows, Paul asked, "Weren't you able to reach your room during your previous visit? When's the fighting supposed to take place?"

Maintaining her smile, Kishirika replied, "Calm down, Mr. Courageous. As I told you before, there are Magic Armors and Anti-Magic Golems guarding the throne room. Once we take care of them, we'll be able to enter inside. However, that's only the first step. To regain control of the castle, we'll first need to activate six crystals, each protected by a powerful Guardian."

Voicing the thought in nearly everyone's minds, Paul asked, "Isn't that a little...convoluted?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Kishirika replied, "I don't know; I find it rather novel. It prevents random and ambitious fools from taking over the castle and keeps invading Heroes occupied long enough for us to mobilize our forces and come up with a solution."

Though Kishirika's statement left him with more questions than answers, Paul shook his head and said, "Whatever...for now, let's just head to your room and get this party started."

Beating Yae to the punch, Kishirika covered her grinning mouth, narrowed her eyes, and replied, "Oh, my~" in a playfully seductive tone.

Rolling his eyes, Paul took the initiative to head towards the large double doors separating the gallery from the adjoining corridor. Sayu had already disappeared to God knows where, but he wasn't too concerned about her. She was technically still a child, but her stealth and infiltration skills were beyond comprehension. Back when they were playing hide-and-seek in the subsurface tunnels of the Strife Zone, she managed to remain hidden for three whole days, even when he eventually got worried and employed the assistance of the entire Service Corps...

After pushing open the massive, nearly 20cm wide stone doors, Paul and Party emerged into a corridor with a checkered, black and white floor. The ceiling was much lower than the gallery, but there was still around 10m of headroom, disregarding the areas with ornate black chandeliers emitting pale, ghostly blue light.

Though he didn't spot any enemies, Paul immediately became suspicious of the statues lining the interior side of the hall. However, upon activating his Demon Eyes of X-Ray Vision, he quickly confirmed they were ordinary statues. Well, as ordinary as statues of Kishirika posing could be...

Showing a complete lack of caution, Kishirika chimed, "Not bad, are they? I held a contest a few thousand years ago to see if anyone could capture my beauty in sculpture form. None were able to, but these were the ones that came the closest. If you look closely, you can even see the outline of my nipples on a few."

"..."

Instead of responding to Kishirika's words, Paul carefully observed both ends of the corridor before deactivating his X-Ray Vision and questioning, "Didn't you mention there were enemies waiting for us just beyond these doors?"

Raising her brows, Kishirika retorted, "What, did you think they would be lined up in a formation, spears at the ready? This is still within the inner sanctum. There are a few teleportation traps and anti-theft measures in place, but most of the enemies are waiting outside."

"..."

Though he didn't completely lower his guard, Paul released the vice-like grip he had on the hilt of his sword. Kishirika had told him that it would take a Party of A-Rank Adventurers to take on a single Magic Armor, so his tensions were high. He was confident he could fend off two or three, but there were purportedly hundreds roaming the castle's interior. Even with his tremendous stamina, he could still be overwhelmed if the enemy was well-coordinated.

Pointing toward the shorter end of the corridor, Kishirika said, "My room is in that direction. We'll take a right at the corner and continue walking until we reach a topless statue near the end of the hall. If you trace your finger around the left nipple in a counterclockwise motion, the wall behind it will open to reveal a hidden chamber containing a teleportation pad. We'll use that to reach the corridor connecting to my room."

Resisting the urge to smack his head, Paul took a steadying breath before walking in the direction Kishirika had indicated. There were no enemies on the way, so it wasn't long before they reached another life-sized statue of Kishirika performing a seductive pose in little more than a corset, panties, and stockings...

Seeing the lifeless expression on Paul's face as he stared up at her statue, Kishirika elbowed him in the ribs, a broad, teasing smile on her face as she asked, "Well, what are you waiting for? Get on up there and give 'em a good rub."

Instead of responding to Kishirika's words, Paul activated his Demon Eyes of X-Ray Vision to ascertain if there was actually a mechanism connected to the statue's nipple. Kishirika immediately clicked her tongue as he did, muttering, "Boring..." before pressing down on the statue's left pinky toe. As she did, a section of the wall next to the statue emitted a brilliant white before appearing to dissolve away completely.

"The door will remain dematerialized for twenty seconds. If it reappears while someone is crossing over the threshold, they're going to have a bad time."

Seizing the initiative, Kishrika stepped through the rectangular hole and into the circular chamber on the opposite side. Fortunately, just as Paul was about to suggest they wait for Sayu to arrive, the tanuki-garbed girl abruptly walked past him, entering the chamber and checking it for traps.

"..."

Amused by Paul's befuddled expression, Yae exhaled a soft chuckle as she linked her arm through his and teased, "Right this way, Master. Now's not the time to be getting distracted."

"Right..."

With Yae practically pulling him into the room, those waiting for Paul to enter had just enough time to do the same. Ei was the very last person to do so, and her braid nearly got snagged as the wall materialized at nearly the exact moment she crossed over.

Realizing that his focus was diminishing, Paul attempted to give himself a light smack, but Yae beat him to the punch, channeling a thread of Electro Energy into his body. It wasn't painful, but it was more than enough to get him back in the appropriate mental state as the pink-haired woman issued an amused chuckle and subsequently released his arm.

Though her brows briefly furrowed when she saw the interaction between Paul and Yae, Kishirika didn't comment on it. Instead, she motioned to the complex magic circle engraved into the foundation and revealed, "This was previously an emergency escape passage, so it only permits a single person to pass through at any given time. There's also a built-in delay, so we'll need to wait around five minutes between activations. If you attempt to activate it before then, it will send you someplace completely random."

Speaking for the first time in quite a while, Zhongli remarked, "That's quite the useful function. It gives the person attempting to escape a chance to relocate or sends their pursuers somewhere else entirely. Quite the useful function, indeed..."

As if she hadn't heard Zhongli speaking, Kishirika kept her focus on Paul as she added, "It doesn't matter, but I'll leave it to you to determine the order in which we pass through. There's another concealed chamber on the other side, so there isn't any real danger of an attack."

Nodding his head in affirmation, Paul shifted his attention to Zhongli and asked, "Mind going ahead? I would send Sayu, but I'd rather be safe than sorry..."

Placing her right hand over her heart, Zhongli offered a courteous bow as she replied, "As you will, Master Paul." before rising to her full height and stepping onto the teleportation pad without a moment of hesitation. The moment she stepped into the very center, a projection of the circle carved into the floor rose from the ground, seemingly erasing Zhongli's body as it rose just past the top of her head before promptly disappearing...

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