13

Chapter 13: Beginning of New MadnessSummary:

Tanya, Mary, and Souka track down the kidnapper. However, this plot goes deeper than a simple snatch and grab. Hold on now, something's off about all this... and hey, who's this guy?!

Notes:

My creative juices are really flowing right now. I've got a lot of good ideas for this story. Buckle up!

Enjoy!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Tempest sits at the center of the continent. We are surrounded on all sides, though the situation is not nearly what it was in the Empire. Tempest has friends, not tentative allies.

Dwargon in the north, with its undefeated army. Blumund in the west, with its surprisingly competent adventurers. Milim's and Carrion's kingdoms in the southeast, though not officially allies yet, would doubtless assist us at their Lords' command.

Tempest does not want for companionship.

But it also does not want for potential enemies.

The Holy Empire Ruberios in the far west, the Kingdom of Ingrassia, and the Kingdom of Falmuth all subscribe heavily to the beliefs of a monster-hating religion. Furthermore, with the rise of the Jura Tempest Federation at the continent center, I've little doubt that Falmuth is frothing at the decline in trade. It would take little to incite them to action against us, though I've seen no evidence of such an outcome at this point in time.

In terms of threat level, the first two are far enough away that it would too much trouble for them to mount a serious conflict. Meanwhile, the third is weak by comparison. Thus, it's not Ruberios, Ingrassia, or Falmuth that worries me.

The domains of the Demon Lords Frey and Clayman sit to our south and eastern borders respectively. Milim was surprisingly tight lipped about them, so I don't have as much info as I'd like. But, from what I gathered anyway, they seem to be of a similar level to Carrion. If push comes to shove, Tempest can take them on just as well.

No, in truth there is only one nation I've identified that would be truly concerning, should their gaze turn hostile. A conflict with them would almost certainly end in Tempest's demise.

And, naturally, it was to that area that our friendly neighborhood kidnapper decided to flee.

East from Tempest, and then northeast, and then north.

To the city where this whole madness began anew. 

If I'd known what this would grow into, I would have gone and hid in the mountains. Maybe then I could actually enjoy a peaceful existence.

…

…No, I'd probably trespass accidentally on some monster's territory, leading to the two of us forming an unintentional rivalry. And it'd be with an Ice Wyvern or a Mammoth Yeti or some other equally ridiculous monster combination bullshit. Because honestly, that's one of the more plausible things that could happen at this point.

When did my life become so weird?

Probably when I found out reincarnation was real… twice.

Fucking hell, I'm tired of this.

-=-=-=-

Late Morning

Northern Training Field

Tempest, Jura Tempest Federation

"Crestwater Slash!" A scarecrow's head was cleaning lopped off. Mary darted past, quickly raising her sword overhead.

"Water Ring!" She jumped forward and flipped, water spinning around her vertically like a buzzsaw.

Mary landed, the scarecrow falling it two pieces behind her. She carried on.

"Whirlpool Crash!" A twisting spin accompanied by a liquid cyclone, cutting multiple scarecrows at multiple heights.

"Roaring Rapids!" A marvel of footwork and speed, countless diagonal slashes rushing across enemies like a raging river.

"Unrelenting Tide!" The combination of all of the greatest qualities above the above moves, with the user darting back and forth, across and behind and back again, crashing around their foe like the tide moves back and forth along the beach.

Not even the smallest debris was left after this move, the unrelenting tide sweeping it all away.

Mary skid to a halt, her chest heaving and liquid water dripping down her limbs and blade. She slashed her katana down, water droplets peppering the grass below.

Even as she caught her breath, the scarecrows behind her slowly began to repair themselves, each one a marvel of magical engineering resulting from the combined efforts of Kaijin, Vesta, and Rimuru.

Within a scant few moments, they had all become whole again. Except for the last one. Unrelenting Tide, combined with her Unique Skill, ensured that much.

"Excellent work, Mary!" Hakurou praised, standing off to the side. "You should take a break now. You've been at this since sunrise."

"One more run through, and I will!" Mary called back. "I'm going to use the modified forms this time!"

Hakurou nodded. "Giving that blade of you're the run through today, aren't you? I understand. When the sword calls to you, to not answer would be a travesty."

"Yeah…"

Mary held up her katana.

"You can't keep borrowing weapons. You'll need a blade of your own. One that suits you personally." Degurechaff smirked. "Though, you'll have to wait some time. Kurobe is busy making me one. First come first serve."

Degurechaff… thanks. She ran her fingers along the blade, the metallic green magisteel shining in the late morning sunlight. Even if you were kind of a dick about it. This sword is perfect.

It was, as all of Kurobe's works were, a marvel of blade-making and magisteel craftsmanship. An average length katana of purely refined magisteel, "one of his best works ever" the Kijin had proclaimed.

The handle was wrapped tightly in warm brown leather, topped and ended with a deep cobalt diamond shaped tsuba guard and a magisteel pommel of the same hue. The blade, silver upon it's being finished, had turned a metallic lime green, matching her eyes and magic.

Apparently, magisteel has the ability to evolve and change, thanks to its high level of magical affinity. It grows in accordance with its user's magic and subconscious will. At least, that's what Kurobe had told her as the blade shifted in her hands into what it was now.

Alright. Mary sheathed her blade, turning and mentally prepping herself for another run through. Let's make good use of you!

"Modified Style." She crouched, her grip tightening. Instead of water, heat burned the air around her, "Wildfire-!"

"Oi!"

Mary tripped, landing face first in the dirt. The flames around her fizzled out.

"Ah, Tanya!" Hakurou raised a hand in greeting. "What brings you here? You and Mary's session isn't for several more hours."

"Urgent business, Hakurou. I'm taking Mary with me on a mission outside of Tempest. I hope you don't mind too terribly if she misses the rest of training today."

"Oh no no, don't worry about it. Mary has become quite the swordswoman, you know. She can afford a break or two."

"Is that so?"

Footsteps approached her position.

"Are you practicing your Earth magic or something?"

Mary picked her head up, glaring daggers at the other woman.

"Fuck off."

Any threat Tanya might have felt was largely mitigated by the blush and dirt on Mary's face.

"Alright, as amusing as this is, chop chop. Up you get." Tanya reached down, grabbing the back of Mary's white button up and hoisting her to her feet.

"H-hey!" Her blush grew.

"We have a mission to get to, and we're on a time limit." Tanya started to walk away, "Follow me. We're going to pack as quickly as possible then head out. If you aren't ready in time, I'll leave you behind."

"I- huh?"

"Did I stutter?" Tanya paused in her step, glancing back, "We're going to save some people. Isn't that your thing?"

Mary blinked.

"Let's go." With that, Tanya began to leave once more.

Mary glanced down at her sword. The blade, which had become partially unsheathed from her aborted slash attempt, shone brilliantly. And, at the base of the blade, the symbols engraved just above the hilt stared back at her.

守る, Mamoru. "Protect".

"Okay."

She sheathed her blade all the way, rushing the catch up with the other woman.

-=-=-=-

Just Past Noon

Near Northeastern Border

Great Forest of Jura

"Stop squirming."

"I'm trying!" Mary snapped.

Tanya sighed, the wind carrying it away.

"This is as uncomfortable for me as it is you. We're almost at Souka's location, so just deal with it."

"Easy for you to say!" Mary tightened her grip as a particularly rough gust of wind brushed past them. "Fuck!"

"Oi, lighten up a bit," Tanya said, "You're practically crushing my ribs. Not all of us are freaks of nature with supernatural strength."

"Forgive me for being nervous, okay!" Mary did not loosen her grip at all, instead pulling herself closer against Tanya's back, "I can't fly anymore! This is a bit stressful!!"

"You're the one who chose to piggyback!"

"I wasn't going to let you carry me like a sack of potatoes! Again!"

Tanya sighed again.

The two made for an odd sight, to say the least. One practically wrapped around the other, her legs and arms clamping in a vice grip. The other flying under her own power, her face featuring one of the most blank expressions you might see on a human person.

It didn't help matters any that, since Mary was on Tanya's back, that meant she had to wear both of their travel packs. As unfortunate as it was for everyone involved, this was the fastest way to reach their destination.

Mental note: learn teleportation magic. Tanya winced, as the handle of Mary's sword dug into her side. Preferably sooner rather than later.

It would have been a lot easier – or at the very least, more comfortable for both parties – had Mary been able to fly herself over. Unfortunately, no matter how much control and how varied the magic Mary had been able to grasp over the past three months, flight remained a concept of the mind.

With that being said… she had far from stagnated. In fact, Mary's growth over the last three months could only be described as "exponential".

Seriously, adding the other elements is a great step forward. She's really coming into her own. Maybe I'm just a better teacher than I thought? Do I actually have a talent for this or something- ?

"Lady Tanya!"

Ah.

That would be Souka, then. Souei had been out of range for a while now.

"Souka, I hear you. We're nearly at your location. What are we looking at?"

"There's large house in the center of a square-shaped clearing . The targets entered approximately ten minutes ago and haven't moved since."

"Keep monitoring them. Our ETA is-" Tanya blinked. Huh. "About 10 seconds, give or take."

"Understood!"

Tanya cut off the communication.

"Hold on!" She yelled back.

"What-" Mary's own yell cut off, the piggybacking duo dropping faster than an incredibly heavy rock.

So, really fast.

Wind blasted by them, Tanya's ponytail slapping Mary in the face multiple times. The former paid it no mind, while the latter tried desperately not to get any hair in her mouth. In just a couple seconds, they had touched down, directly next to Souka's position behind a tree.

"Souka." Tanya called, stepping towards the Dragonewt. She paused, "Oi, get off."

Mary did not need to be told twice. She practically fell off the other woman's back, crawling over to a nearby bush immediately after.

Tanya and Souka both elected to ignore the sounds of puking.

"Lady Tanya, I'm glad you're here."

"Just Tanya is fine. We haven't had the chance to work together yet."

"We haven't!" Souka saluted, "Sir Souei speaks highly of you, so I will do my best to prove myself to you!"

"Right, right." Tanya resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "I'm sure you'll do fine. Now, tell me exactly what's going on here. Who's our kidnapper? You say they haven't moved since arrival?"

"That's right." Souka nodded, getting right to business. "The culprit is a humanoid male of above average height. Other than two medium-sized horns protruding from the side of his head, he appears relatively underwhelming."

"Really?"

"If he's so unassuming," Mary walked over, wiping her mouth and replacing her canteen at her side, "Then how did he kidnap a Tempest citizen in broad daylight?"

"I'm not sure." Souka admitted. "My first glimpse of him was afterwards, when he was already fleeing with Gobgala."

"He ran here, right?" Tanya asked, frowning, "He must have a form of boosted vitality or speed. Anything else?"

Souka shook her head, "That's everything I know."

"So, we have an unassuming kidnapper who arrived at an external location and hasn't moved since." Tanya thought for a moment. "Logic dictates he's waiting for someone. A boss, or another transporter."

"We should probably split up, right?" Mary said, pulling Tanya's and her travel packs off her back and dropping them. She rolled her shoulders at the loss of weight, her gaze fixed on the house. "Someone should find Gobgala and someone should deal with horn guy."

"Someone should also be a lookout. Just in case he bolts." Souka added. "Or if whoever this guy's waiting for decides to show up soon."

"That works." Tanya nodded, "Souka, can you use Shadow Movement?"

"Yes."

"Perfect. Then you'll focus on Gobgala. Get her out and back over here. I'll go in loud and upfront, and focus on the man himself. And you," Tanya patted Mary on the shoulder, "Will be the lookout. If our guy somehow gets out of the building, cut his legs off at the knees and cauterize them. I'd like to interrogate him on his boss, and I can't do that if he bleeds out."

"Huh." Mary blinked, before shrugging, "I can't help but feel I've been desensitized to blood and violence, because that's fine by me. I'll make sure no one gets in or out."

"Well, he's a kidnapper."

Mary paused, "Yeah, that's it."

Tanya squeezed her shoulder briefly, before letting her hand drop.

"One more thing. Souei."

The Body Double in question popped out of her shadow at her call.

"Sir Souei?!" Souka jumped.

Tanya shot her an unamused look. 

"It's just one of his Body Doubles. Relax."

"Oh… right. Aha…" Souka shifted, a hint of color rising to her cheeks.

"Ma'am." The Body Double in question inclined his head.

Tanya nodded back, "Hop into Sue's shadow and back her up if necessary."

"Understood." He did so immediately, disappearing as quickly as he'd arrived.

"Oh, that's a little weird." Mary said, twisting to look behind her, "My shadow's a little darker now. Neat."

"If you put enough people into one shadow, it turns so black that it draws in light." Souka said.

"Really?" Mary blinked, "Is there a limit to that?"

"Well, it depends on the size of-"

"I'm all for pleasant small talk, but let's not dawdle anymore than we already have." Tanya interrupted. She stretched her arms as high as she could above her head, then bent over after a few seconds, touching the grass with her palms.

"Right."

"Sorry!"

Tanya straightened up with a satisfied groan.

"We're a bit too close to the Eastern Empire for my tastes. We don't exactly have jurisdiction there, so let's try to handle this as quickly and quietly as possible."

She adjusted her outfit, tugging her green overcoat and tightening its belt slightly from where they'd been ruffled by Mary's hold during their flight over. Gloves were pulled tighter, her forearm bracers cinched and secured, and her goggles pulled down to hang protectively around her neck.

The blackened magisteel along the knuckles,, length, and rims of these accessories respectively, along with silver leather grip of her sheathed sword, gleamed in the scarce beams of sunlight bleeding through the forest canopy.

Beside her, Mary adjusted her own matching black overcoat and the short white cloak thrown over top. She'd "borrowed" the former from Rimuru few weeks ago as the season started growing colder, though she'd had Shuna alter the color to be much darker in shade. The cloak, meanwhile, had been a gift from Hakurou.

Underneath, loose black pants fed into knee-high lace-up white boots. Her sheathed katana rested on her left hip, a white belt holding both it and her pants tight around her waist.

…Okay so maybe she'd felt a bit left out, considering that everyone else had unique, one-of-a-kind outfits. Sue her. She was allowed to want to look cool.

Regardless of intent, Souka, clad in her usual attire, couldn't help but feel they looked ready for war.

Appropriate, considering the future beyond this point.

"Well now, let's get this party started, shall we?"

-=-

Gobgala had never been more terrified in her life.

To be perfectly honest, when a member of Lord Rimuru's Executives had approached her, asking if she wouldn't mind wearing a magical tracer at all times, she had agreed in less than a heartbeat.

She hadn't really thought about why she was being asked to wear one. Her friend had disappeared, sure, but she had probably just run away, went off in search of something more interesting. Gobara was flighty like that.

But apparently fucking not!

Gobgala resisted the urge to scream through her gag. It hadn't worked the entire trip over, when she'd been slung like a sack of potatoes over this disgusting kidnapper's back. Neither had thrashing, or kicking, or going limp.

It was better to conserve her energy, Gobgala figured. Then, she could wait for the right moment, and… then she could… she could do something.

The plan was a work in progress, admittedly. This was far from her strong suit. She sold flowers, for fuck's sake. She needed some serious time to think about this, otherwise nothing would come of this. Nothing good, at least.

And besides, it's not like the answer to her problems would just come crashing through the front door-

SMASH

Gobgala blinked. That came from downstairs.

There was no way-

Someone materialized out of the shadows next to her.

"Don't scream." A winged woman, someone Gobgala vaguely remembered seeing at some point or another, cut her gag off with a kunai. "We're here to rescue you. Come with me."

Gobgala's world faded to black, the shadows rising up around the both of them.

The last thing she saw before being engulfed was the floor in front of her caving upwards, her kidnapper's body flying through and hitting the roof above.

Ha! Take that you-

And they were gone.

-=-

Tanya jumped up through the hole in upper floor she'd made with her opponent's body. Blood dotted the magisteel of her gloves and forearm bracers.

It wasn't hers, it hardly needed to be said.

The man groaned pathetically, his body dropping and hitting the wooden floorboards with a wet thunk. Tanya strolled forward.

"Let me ask you again."

The man pushed himself up, his arms shaking at the effort. Tanya paid this no mind, instead balling her fist and backhanding him across the room. He slammed into the wall, the wooden paneling splintering.

Tanya strolled casually towards him, her expression blank.

"Who's your boss?"

"Fuck you!" The man spat at her, a tooth accompanying it. He got to his knees, lethargically swinging something that might resemble a punch had it been thrown by a toddler. Tanya sidestepped, the man's weight carrying him straight back to the floor.

"Charming." Tanya leaned down, gripping the man by the hair and pulling so they were face to face.

His nose was crooked, and more than one tooth had been knocked loose, with blood dripping from both features. At the sight of her, his expression contorted, resembling that more of a beast than a man.

"Listen, I'll make it really fucking simple for you. Tell me about this operation you're working with, and you get to keep your life." She paused, "…Minus a few teeth. But hey, a potion can fix that right up. So, get to talking." Her grip tightened, the man pained groan shifting into a muffled bellow, "My patience, while great and far more than what it should be at this point, is ultimately finite. I want answers. Now. Before I-"

The man's expression shifted.

Tanya blinked, letting go and backing away slightly.

His expression had shifted. Literally. And it was still doing so, the flesh and bones of the man warping and stretching, minutely at first and then openly and rapidly in grotesque fashion.

Well, this is new.

His nose and jaw elongated into a snout. His horns grew three times over, with his skull and body reshaped themselves to match, sharp snaps and cracks of reshaping bones accompanying it. A sort of black fog crawled along his skin, red script and veins of energy pouring down his limbs and torso.

This is oddly… Nier-esque. Tanya unsheathed her sword with a burst of space magic, eyeing the shadowy monstrosity before her with mild curiosity. A shadow Minotaur. How quaint.

The beast, for it was certainly not a man by this point, bellowed at the top of its lungs. The sound echoed through the house, shaking building to its roots. He fell forward onto all fours, his fists splintering the wooden flooring, though miraculously not breaking through it.

Tanya sighed.

He's bullheaded, that's for certain.

This house they were in was large and empty. Both floors had no furniture to speak of, and in fact consisted only of two open rooms stacked atop one another, with a center column going through the middle of each.

Thus, it ended up being that thanks to her opponent's transformation, there was very little room to properly maneuver. Certainly, enough to dodge and to swing her sword, but not near enough to fly or run away.

Not that she needed to. Her opponent likely wasn't smart enough to abuse his size advantage.

And even if he was…

A blur. The flash of magisteel.

Shink

It hardly mattered. He had already lost.

"Moo?" The beast blinked, as all feeling in its limbs disappeared. The world tilted, then seemed to spin. His body hit the floor with a wet thud, his arms and legs hitting right after.

Tanya landed silently, whipping her sword downwards and sending any errant blood droplets splattering harmlessly to the side. Then, she turned, watching as the same black fog from earlier spewed from the minotaur's dripping stumps.

Interesting. She walked up to its head, staring at it in undisguised interest. After transforming, he seems to consist mostly of shadows and some form of magical energy. Yet, he still bleeds. Is blood the conduit for the energy, then? His flesh is almost entirely transformed, so that seems most likely.

"Sorry about that." Tanya crouched, pressing a hand against its head to keep it down, "I only meant to get your legs, but you're weaker than I expected. Now, about that information."

Realization struck. Her face deadpanned.

Can he even talk anymore? Tanya leaned a bit closer. I think he would have said "Ow!" or "Bastard!" or something, but he just bellowed like a bull. Even now, he's just grunting and snorting.

She sighed, standing back up. 

That's unfortunate. Would potions work? Well, it won't matter anyway if he can't transform back, since he can't talk like this. Damn. Without more info, we're basically back at square one, which means I'll have to track down another lead-

A sharp chill went down her spine. Her instincts screamed: MOVE!

Tanya dove to the side, rolling into a crouch. Her hair fell down around her, framing eyes that shone in a frenzied teal light.

"Ah, dammit…" A figure rose from next to her former position, the fabric of her hair tie falling to pieces through his fingers. "Your reflexes are something else. That's pretty cool, blondie."

Spiky white hair ran to his shoulders, the upper parts sticking upwards obnoxiously. His face was perfectly symmetrical, almost unnaturally-so, with aristocratic features and an utter lack of markings being the only thing outstanding about them. A pitch-black cloak secured with a golden chain covered most of his form, obscuring everything underneath except blood-red slip-on shoes and the ends of loose black pants.

Who is this? I didn't hear them. Or see, or smell.

Blood pounded in her ears. Tanya rose, pushing her hair back as best she could.

Where did they come from? Did they get past Sue, or just appear inside? They have almost no presence; I didn't sense them until the last possible moment. If I'd only been a nanosecond slower, I'd be…

"I see you've met one of my pets." The person crouched down, brushing a hand between the minotaur's horns. The motion was methodical, smooth. Almost… caring, as he caressed the fur atop the beast's head.

"It is a shame what's you've done to him, but I will forgive you for such a transgression. He was an old prototype, anyhow. His purpose has more than been fulfilled."

"Who are you? And how did you get in here?"

"Oh, where are my manners? I am…" He grinned, "Just kidding! You don't need to know me. In fact, forget you ever met me at all. That is, if you wish to live a long life."

I hate smart enemies. Tanya tightened her grip on her sword. Whatever. If you won't tell me, I'll force it out of you. You seem-

Her eyes widened.

"Oh, I apologize for this. I've been told that my abilities are not the most sightly of occurrences."

The flesh underneath his hand bubbled, ripples spreading across the Minotaur's massive shadowy body. The red runes from before coalesced, the black fog flowing like water up into the man's palm. A hissing sound filled the room, the beast unable to even bellow as first it's head, then it's torso, and then lastly its dismembered limbs were absorbed.

The man stood then, the only indicator of his deed being the blood-stained floorboards beneath his feet.

"Oh, that's nice." He licked his palm, a smirk peeking out from underneath his hand, "I do love the feedback on that. It's like coming home."

Yeah, gross. I would never have forgiven myself if this person had gotten the jump on me.

"Well now, I am in a much better mood after that. And my head has returned to me a bit more." He knocked the side of his head lightly with his fist, a dopey smile on his face, "I can't actually let you live, now that I think about it. Sorry!"

In one smooth motion, he crouched, extending his arms with the palms facing her.

"Since you're going to die, it's only polite to answer one of your questions from before. I am the future image of perfection, Nin! I will strike you down for your surveillance! And you are?"

"Perfection? Don't make me laugh." Tanya held her sword out to the side. "You're just some guy with a freaky ability and a complex. Don't think so highly of yourself."

"No no no!!" Nin frowned, "Your name! Tell me your name! We have to do this right! Go on, try again, quickly!"

Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous.

"Fine then."

But I'll play along.

Tanya held her sword up with a two-handed grip, the tip of her blade pointing towards the ceiling.

I shouldn't use fire in here. Not unless I want to bring this wooden shack down on my own head.

Water swirled along the blade, smaller spikes slicing up and down the cutting edge like a liquid chainsaw.

"I am Tasha, a Hero of the Western States." Tanya grinned, her irises glowing with the teal of TLE Level Two. "You've been kidnapping monsters, and I want to know why. If I have to force you to tell me, then so be it."

Perfection? Really? That's an astoundingly arrogant claim. If anyone wishes to claim themselves so high and mighty just like a certain "God" once did, I will gladly step in and humble them by force. It's a matter of principle.

"Yes! That's good, that's great! Yes!!" Nin laughed, his tone far too warm for the current circumstances, "Now, it's time for you to die!"

He bolted forward. Tanya prepared herself, only to blink as Nin fell through the floor.

No, that's not it.

Tanya spun and slashed outwards, deflecting Nin's grasping hands. Sparks flew, with Nin's maniac grin only growing as they were knocked backwards.

So that's how it is: Shadow Movement.

Tanya dashed forward, slashing diagonally. Nin caught the blow on his forearm, the blade stopping halfway through the flesh. Without even flinching, he punched his other arm forward.

Tanya ducked, yanking her sword out and leaping backwards.

"Nice trick!" Nin's grin widened almost unnaturally. "I haven't been cut since I was born!"

"Good for you."

Tanya quickly glanced down. Her Water Chainsaw Art had collapsed, leaving her blade wet and magicless.

Too much of an aura requirement. Water Arts aren't for me; even this improvised form doesn't last for long.

Nin disappeared again. Tanya threw up her active barrier without a second thought, her foe slamming against it and bouncing off not a second later.

Is this really Shadow Movement? It's different, somehow. I'm not sure.

A fist crashed against her barrier, slight cracks forming across the surface. Tanya dismissed her sword into the sphere of space magic she'd earlier pulled it from. 

It's not just that ability. Everything about this person is odd. Their magical presence is so… slimy, and varied. Like overlapping layers of ectoplasm. Or something.

She dispelled her barrier as Nin charged in again, tripping up his timing. A palm strike sped clumsily toward her face, and she dodged, smashing her knee into the other's gut.

Spit flew from Nin's mouth, several sharp cracks ringing out. Tanya pulled back slightly, before slamming her knee back up. A shockwave ruffled her and Nin's hair, the latter crumbling. Tanya brought her leg down once more, before snapping out with a kick, sending Nin into the opposite wall.

Well, that was easy. Tanya lowered her leg. Now, I just need to-

Her knee buckled. Tanya stumbled, hissing in pain as she shifted her weight back to her good leg. Blood soaked into her pants, a rip in the knee showing a bloody patchwork of shredded tissue.

"The hell?"

Coughing drew her attention back up. Nin pulled himself from their hole in the wall, brushing off shards of wood and shredded fabric. His grin hadn't diminished in the slightest.

It was starting to piss her off, in truth.

"I managed to brush against your knee as you kicked me." Nin wiggled his fingers, sounding so unbearably smug that Tanya had to resist the urge to kill him then and there, "I meant to blow your leg off, but your internal magic shielded you. You really are cool, Tasha. I like you."

He undid the clasp on his tattered cloak, tossing it carelessly to the side. Underneath sat a loose-fitting long-sleeved tunic and pants, both matching the simplistic color scheme of before of blood-red and black.

"I'd love to have such a cool pet as you. Prepare yourself!" Nin rushed forward, arms and palms extended in Tanya's direction.

That regeneration is no joke. It'd be a lot of trouble to capture him alive.

Tanya grimaced, raising a hand as well. Magical energy swirled in front of her palm.

Fuck it. If you die from this, it's your fault. Level Three-

"Lightning Wheel!"

The smell of ozone. A loud crack. A flash of light.

"Urk!" Nin stumbled back, his arms bisected at the elbows.

Mary flipped one more time, landing on her feet between them. She brandished her katana, the brilliant green magisteel flashing as electricity sparked along its length.

-=-

Art by me, @tanjaded

-=-

Tanya took the opportunity to pull a flask from a pouch on her belt.

"Hey. Is this the kidnapper?" Mary asked, eye fixed on the (literally) stunned and bleeding Nin.

"No." Tanya wiped her mouth and replaced her flask, a glow enveloping her knee. "I'll explain later. Don't let him touch you at all."

"He won't get close." Water replaced the electricity, a controlled cyclone whirling around Mary's sword and torso.

"Also, we want him alive." Tanya sheathed her own blade, "They have important information regarding the kidnappings."

"Understood."

"I don't think so!"

Nin crouched, holding their shortened arms out. Black mist flowed with their blood, ghostly tendrils snaking out and brushing against their severed forearms. Then, with a wet snap, the tendrils reeled in and slotted the appendages in place. Red script crawled around the slashed area, black and red weaving the ragged flesh whole again.

Their healing is odd too. Tanya frowned. That's not normal regeneration. The feeling is all wrong. The magic… what is this?

"I got most of what I came here for, you know. The Goblina is a small loss. More of a nice little bow on top of it all." Nin flexed his healed limbs, clenching and unclenching his fists, "I didn't have to fight. But I thought it was necessary. Can't have someone learning too much, getting in my way and all that. It could even be fun, testing my might!"

"Sue, get ready." Tanya stepped forward, standing at Mary's side.

Mary nodded silently.

"But fuck it! I think we've had a lot of fun, wouldn't you say?" He spread his arms wide, palms parallel to the floor. For the first time since his arrival, the backs of his hands were openly visible.

A flash of inky black caught Tanya's eye then.

Are those... tattoos?

"That being said, I didn't sign up for a two-on-one. I believe all the fun here has run dry."

"You aren't going anywhere!" Mary brandished her sword, water swirling with a barely restrained violence, "Don't even think about moving!"

"Pardon me? You… Hehe… AHAHAHA! I like you! You're bold! Arrogant!" Nin cackled harshly, before slamming his palms against the floor, "But no! There's only one person that gets to tell me what to do, and they sure as shit ain't you, sister!"

Red bolts of electricity crackled under their hands, the floor almost seeming to flow away.

"Take this warning as a gift: dare to interfere in Xerxes, and you will meet your death!"

He said some interesting things just now...

Cracks darted across the floor, and the entire house shook, the walls and ceiling beginning to cave in. The center column splintered, then shattered completely. The floor rolled beneath them, the wooden boards bending unnaturally.

And he might say more in the future.

The corner of her mouth quirked up.

"Well, alright then." 

Tanya's barrier sparked to life, engulfing her and Mary just as the floor collapsed. The ceiling crashed down on top of them immediately after, sending a cloud of debris and dust into the air.

-=-

"Tanya! Mary!"

Souka flew overhead, gaze darting nervously across the wreckage.

Come on, come on…

"Tanya! Ma-"

There!

A large chunk of roof toppled over, a blue, semi-transparent sphere of magical expanding outward. It continued for a few more seconds, pushing away debris in circle until a large space had been cleared. Then, it faded.

"Well, isn't that just inconvenient?"

Tanya ripped a scrap of cloth from the knee of her already torn pants leg. She reached up, tying her hair back up into her usual ponytail.

"I could have got him in time." Mary sheathed her sword, a disgruntled look on her face.

"And been skewered by a shard of ceiling immediately after, no doubt."

"I would have been fine!"

"That's not the point."

"Then what is the point?" Mary's hands tightened into fists. "We could have ended it right here! Even if I got injured, skewered, or whatever, we would have him right here in front of us!"

"Do you think risking your own life for someone else's makes everything okay?"

"H- what?"

"It's something Shuna told me." Tanya's gaze burned with something unreadable. "It's fine to want to help people, but be reasonable. We've already saved one person today. Does risking loss of life and limb mean that much to you?"

"Well, no, but-" Mary blinked, her anger deflating. "it's just, who knows how many people he's going to kidnap now? How many more lives he's going to ruin? Were the three Goblinas from Tempest not enough?"

Tanya did not respond, her attention turned elsewhere. As this was going on, Souka landed nearby, walking carefully across the semi-cleared area. She stopped in front of them, waiting quietly.

"Do you trust me?" Tanya said, breaking the silence. "The both of you?"

Mary and Souka blinked.

"Against the wishes of everyone I knew in our previous world, yes."

"Of course, Lady Tanya."

"I told you, it's just Tanya. And if that's the case, then I need you to think for a moment." Tanya continued to speak, even as she began to wander away. "If we captured or killed him, what good would have come from it?"

Tanya paused and leaned down, tossing aside some debris, before shaking her head and moving on. After a few steps, she bent down again, moving a section of roofing the same height as her to peer underneath.

"Did he seem like the type to give in to torture? Are you even okay with that sort of thing? Are either of you confident that we could have held him for long anyway?"

No. Maybe. And no. Those were the answers. Mary and Souka remained silent, watching her work with equal measures of bemusement.

"At that point, our only option is to kill him. If that were the end all, be all of this, then I wouldn't have even hesitated. But I didn't kill him. I could've formed my barrier and tackled him, but in fact, I let him get away. Why is that, you think?"

Tanya reached under another section of debris, this time a large partially shattered chunk of floorboard. She heaved, tossing the errant piece that was twice her size off to the side.

The sight underneath put a grin on her face.

"You think he has more worth to us alive. Right?" Mary offered, walking forward to stand at her side. Her eyes widened, "This is…"

"That's right." Tanya crouched down, touching her gloved hand against the pool of the minotaur man's blackened blood. Near the edge of it, Nin's abandoned cloak middled in the liquid, its fringes drenched.

"This is our lead."

Now, it's true that Mary Sue had improved exponentially over the past three months. Sword training with Hakurou in the mornings, accompanied by magic training with Tanya in the afternoon a few times a week. Her progress would need to be described with kilometers instead of meters. Her work ethic was something to be admired, it should be said.

But as hard as Mary Sue worked, so too did one Tanya von Degurechaff match her effort, step for step. As Mary improved her swordplay and widened her skillset with the application of other types of magic alongside her own Unique Skill, Tanya worked inward. On refinement.

Her physical limits with the TLE had improved, that was for certain. However, that hadn't been her focus. Not by a long shot. Instead, it was the untapped potential of Formulaic Casting that took most of her attention.

Formulae-based magic had been dreadfully shortsighted in her previous world, with the majority of the magical understanding focused on warfare. There was only so much you could do with a barely developed field, and formulae themselves did not allow for much creativity in their application. The rules of magic in that world were based on the numbers, and the numbers were absolute. In other words, magic was limited by a mage's understanding of formulae.

In a world where most mages required a computation orb to compute formulae, this was undoubtedly the most severe of limitations.

But where others saw limitation, Tanya saw freedom. As long as she could figure out the formulae, the numbers… almost anything was possible, and at a degree of exactness and precision fundamentally impossible anywhere else.

Tanya had always been good with numbers. Her calling had been in Human Resources two lives ago, but numbers had always spoke to her. They were the epitome of rationality. Numbers did not lie; they simply were.

That meant magic could be treated the same way.

"Our foe isn't as smart as he'd like to think he is. He gave too much away. And with this,"

The formula rose to mind effortlessly. A variation of the mana signature detection spell, modified and evolved. Her magic rose to the surface, running down her hand and across the pool, multicolored sparks running alight across the dark surface.

"I can find him again." She stood. "Souka!"

"Yes!" Souka rushed to her side. "What do you need?"

"How fast can you get Gobgala back to Tempest?"

"I can use Shadow Movement, but having her side-along will slow me down somewhat." Souka frowned, "It shouldn't take more than a half an hour, though."

"Do it. Then return to us. Sorry, but I need you under my command for a bit longer."

"There's no need to apologize!" Souka saluted, "I will fulfill my duty."

"Good. Now go."

Souka darted off to the tree line, presumably to where she'd hidden Gobgala. Tanya paid her no further mind.

"Body Double."

"Yes." Souei's double materialized from Mary's shadow, landing in a crouch.

"I'm going to have you go ahead of us and do a little scouting. It goes without saying, but you don't want to be seen. Not where we're going."

"And where are we going?" Mary asked, one hand on her sword hilt and the other on her hip. Her expression deadpanned. "Also, why do I get the feeling I should've packed more?"

"Weren't you listening? Our little kidnapper friend told us exactly where he was heading." Tanya raised a hand, pointing to their left. In other words, north. "In fact, it's right there."

"Really?" Mary turned.

Just barely visible over the tops of the forest, a large stone wall stood proudly in the distance. It ran a considerable length to the east and west, before curving in. It was far enough away that the edges could barely be made out at all, with any minor details other than the stone greasy color completely invisible to the naked eye.

"Wha- is that a city?" Mary paused, recalling what Nin had spat out before collapsing the house, "Wait, that's Xerxes?"

Tanya nodded. "The southwestern city of the Eastern Empire, sitting just past the boundaries of the Great Jura Forest." She said, "It was destroyed a few hundred years ago by the Storm Dragon, Veldora."

"Well, they clearly rebuilt it."

Tanya ignored her for a second.

"Body Double Souei. Go ahead of us. Keep in contact, and report back if you find anything relevant. Please and thank you."

"Understood." The Souei clone nodded, vanishing into his own shadow.

No hesitation. Perfectly efficient. Such a brilliant coworker I've found myself with, even if it's just his clone.

Tanya gestured for Mary to follow, quickly making her way to stand outside and away from the former house turned wooden wreckage. Mary watched her step lightly through the rubble for several seconds, waiting until the other woman had made it to the grass before simply leaping outside the debris-laden area in a single bound.

She landed lightly next to Tanya. Tanya gave her a bemused look, before shrugging.

"Now, it goes without saying that we shouldn't step on any toes while we're there. I doubt the Eastern Empire's leadership will view us in a kind light."

"So, we won't let them know we're coming. Duh." Mary snarked, before letting out a sigh. "Honestly though, it's always empires. Why is it always an empire? Germanian, Eastern… can't we get trouble with a republic next time, or even a just a regular old kingdom?"

"Don't jinx us." Tanya warned.

"Right, right."

A breeze blew lightly across the clearing. A leaf landed in Mary's hair, another landing on her shoulder. She brushed them off. Neither spoke for several moments, standing in comfortable silence.

"Oh, one more thing." Tanya turned, placing her hand atop Mary's head. "You've improved. Nice work back there."

Mary blinked, color slowly rising to her cheeks. She looked away.

"…Thanks."

"Also, you might want to step back." Tanya dropped her arm, spinning back towards the wreckage.

"…Why-"

Mary jumped, as bright blue flames engulfed the collapsed building. Waves of heat roared over their position, licks of fiery cobalt caressing the air. A smell quite similar to a campfire, albeit it a very large one, brushed against their noses. 

Mary turned, the blue flames illuminating the flat look on her face.

"Really?"

"What?" Tanya hid a smirk under her hand, "We don't want to leave behind any evidence. Is something wrong with that?"

"I think I liked you better when you didn't make shitty jokes." Mary narrowed her eyes. "You're an asshole."

Tanya raised an eyebrow at that, before gesturing wordlessly at her own left arm.

Mary held back a wince. "…Fair enough."

They continued to banter in intermittent spurts after that, waiting patiently for Souka's return.

And all the while, completely unaware of what awaited them in the city of Xerxes.

~OPENING: SCYLLA RISING ARC~

-=-=-=-=-=-

Known Skills List

Tanya:

Common Skill: Thought Communication

Extra Skill: Magic Sense

Extra Skill: Magic Aura

Extra Skill: Voice of the World Communication

Unique Skill: Formulaic Casting

Unique Skill: Tetrabattery Limit Enhancement

Mary:

Extra Skill: Magic Sense

Extra Skill: Magic Aura

Extra/Intrinsic Skill: Physical Enhancement

Unique Skill: [What Could It Be?]

Notes:

Regarding the Eastern Empire, I'm taking heavy liberties (I'm making a bunch of shit up) with it. I haven't read the webcomic. All I've got is the wiki and the stuff I came up with for the sake of this arc. So, in the AU of this fic, the city that borders the Great Jura Forest is Xerxes, the southwestern city.

I'll probably explain Mary's Unique Skill at some point during this arc, but for now I'm going to keep alluding to it vaguely and let you all assume what it does. Also, her outfit is basically Kanao's from Demon Slayer but with pants and a navy blueish black jacket.

One last thing: Nin has a last name. It's a pun. Guess, if you like. Right, now that's actually all for this chapter. Next time: "The City Where It All Began".

Thanks for reading!