SPIES

Sharone and the group arrived, and the girls immediately surrounded Sharone when they entered their room.

There was silence in the room as they all stared at Sharone.

"So, are we gonna talk about what happened?" Koniko asked.

Sharone was visibly hesitating, then took a deep breath.

"That person was a vampire," she said.

"More specifically, a spy sent by my stepmother," she added.

"Huh?" the others said in confusion.

"The presence of a vampire within the kingdom is a breach of the non-aggression pact signed by both nations. If anyone gets to know about this..."

"That's not the issue," Koniko said.

"What do you mean that's not the issue? This could lead to war," Rey said, clearly distressed.

"Calm down, Rey," Klara said.

"I don't really care about war between nations. What's concerning is the fact that Kojo still isn't back yet," she said.

"True. Kojo does have a menacing amount of Arcana. Could this be a coincidence, or could the vampire have chosen a time when Kojo wasn't around in order to get closer?" Lin wondered out loud.

"If so, then that means that they've been observing us for some time now, but for how long?" Sasha asked. There was silence.

"Before we do anything, we need to know where Kojo is."

"But how are we gonna contact him?"

"Well..." Sharone said, lifting her hand.

"I made a contract with Kojo when we first met, so..." Sharone said.

"What do you mean you made a contract?" Klara asked.

"Well, he saved me from some men in a forest, and he seemed like a good person. Besides, his blood was saturated with arcana; I couldn't resist," she said, blushing and touching her face.

"You're acting strangely perverted," Sasha said.

"We're getting off track here," Lin pointed out.

Sharone sighed.

"I'm going to broadcast his voice into your minds," she said as a magic circle formed under them.

"Oh yeah, I just remembered that Kojo cast magic on the jewelry he got us the other time," Adriana said.

They all stared at her.

"What?"

Klara smacked her on the head.

"What was that for?" Adriana said, rubbing that spot.

Sharone ignored it and focused her energy. She sensed Kojo's soul and mentioned his name.

Kojo, who was fighting a Golem, was surprised and looked around to see who was calling him. The Golem swung its club at him, but he made a stone wall and jumped back. He then began to assault the golem from all sides.

(It's Sharone)

"Huh?" Kojo wondered as he ducked under the golem and blasted it upward with an explosive land mine. The golem jumped back in order to avoid the explosion.

"Tch. Its reaction speed is really annoying. The monsters in the tower are surprisingly strong. Well, the stronger, the better," he said as he ran on its arm. It made a swing at him, but he jumped over and knocked it back by firing bullets of compressed air at it.

"How is she doing this anyway?"

(Your souls are bound through the contract)

"Wait, what contract?" Kojo asked in surprise.

(The one you made when she drank your blood when you met)

"Eh?"

Sharone called him again.

"Yo?" Kojo responded as he continued to battle the golem.

"Where are you?" she asked.

"I'm in the tower's 89th floor," he responded.

"It's a long story; I'll tell you about it when I get back."

"When will that be?"

"I don't know," Kojo said, catching the Golem's club, the force cracking the ground under him.

"There's something we need to tell you," Sharone said.

"Um," Kojo looked up at the golem that was trying to crush him.

"Okay."

"There was a vampire tailing us."

Kojo then frowned.

"A vampire? That can't be good," Kojo thought to himself and clenched his fist, breaking the club and causing the golem to fall backward.

"Um, Sharone, why would she send someone after you?" Klara asked.

"I don't know," Sharone said.

Kojo sensed she was hiding something. He opened his mouth to ask but decided against it, deciding it was better to leave that until he'd returned.

"But have you figured out why they're after you?" he prodded. "The Queen must have some motive for wanting to take you back after you'd escaped."

There was silence in the room for a while.

"You need to tell me what being vampire royalty is like. I hear their wine is the best," Sasha said. Sharone's eye twitched. Lin pulled Sasha's cheek.

"Stop distracting her," she said sternly.

"So what happened to the spy?" Kojo asked.

"They got away," Sharone said.

"This is gonna be troublesome," Kojo said as he punched a hole in the golem's torso and ripped out its crystal core. He sensed Sharone's nervousness.

"Hey, don't worry, I won't let her take you away, okay?" he said reassuringly.

"Thanks," Sharone said.

"So, I'm kinda stuck in the Tower of Babel, and I'm only going to get out if I clear the entire trail, so I'll be gone for a bit," Kojo said with an awkward chuckle.

"How is that even possible?" Sharone asked.

"Well, I started off on a high floor and realized that I can't climb down because for some reason, all the paths I take lead up," Kojo said.

(And you just so happen to attract strong monsters every 5 minutes.)

"I thought releasing my arcana would scare them off."

(Side eye, Kojo, side eye)

"I have to go. Please be safe," Sharone said.

"I will. Bye," Kojo said, looking into a pool. Suddenly, tentacles shot out of the water and pulled him under.

"Bye," Sharone said with a sigh. Sasha put a hand on her shoulder.

"You can rest easy. No one's gonna come after you with us around," she said with a smile. Sharone put her hand on hers.

"Thanks," she said, looking at the others.

Nighttime

Outside Dia'mon

A hooded figure limps through the woods and then glances back at the castle. A breeze blows the hood off, revealing the face of a girl with pale skin and jet-black hair.

"I have to inform the queen," she said, clutching her side.