This maid outfit was the most clothing Liri had worn since she'd reincarnated.
She felt hot as she sat on the edge of the Duchess's bed. Literally. Her skin was strangely warm.
She didn't know if that was due to the layers covering her or, perhaps, if it was because she was nervous, or, maybe, something to do with the after-effects of the sex she'd just had.
[The God-King...] She thought. [So, he's going to be sent a letter about me. I'm not too sure I like that.]
She realized that the element of surprise was one of her biggest advantages. No one else could see her Soul Rating, so the people around her didn't have much of a clue about how strong she actually was.
If she did anything now, here, in this town, that would change. Even if the humans didn't get a truly accurate estimate of how strong she actually was, just knowing that she was powerful would at least partly do away with that advantage.
However, it seemed like it was something she'd simply have to accept, as there was another reason she was nervous.
[Arisa, Cait... I have to get them out of there.]
Unlike her, those two were not going to receive any type of "trial" period. It was more likely that the only reason they hadn't been killed already was that there were other executions the Duchess and the humans wanted to get through before they moved on to these two new arrivals.
That meant that Liri had some time to work with, but she didn't know how much. Only that it was probably running out as she sat here.
[I can't afford to wait too long... I have to try to break them out soon. So, how do I do it?]
The elephant in the room was, of course, her inability to use Mantras. Despite the Duchess's warning, she still had no clue what was actually causing that.
She could, however, rely purely on physical force if she needed to. And, well, it seemed like she was going to need to.
[If I have to punch my way out of that prison then, I guess that's what I'll do. It seems like the only thing I can do.]
She began pacing back and forth.
[Come on, Liri. These are the same people who took down your village. This is the chance you've been waiting for. It's their turn to spill some blood.]
---
"So, uh... I can go in?" Liri asked.
"Uh..." The guard looked Liri up and down. Holding back a laugh, he nodded. "Sure," the guy replied. And, well, he and his friend just stepped aside.
As far as getting back into the prison was concerned, that was that.
For once, Liri found herself being thankful for the appearance of this body Alteria had crafted for her.
The guard stepped to the side and Liri walked past him, moving down the set of cold stairs as she made her way back to the cell she'd originally been sharing with her friends.
As surprised as she was, she could guess that the main reason the guards weren't worried at all about letting her into this place was that she really did just look that soft and weak. Was that part of why Alteria designed her like this? Probably.
Though, Liri couldn't say she truly understood what Alteria had in mind when it came to bringing her here. Aside from wanting to breed her race out of extinction, anyway.
Anyway, once more, there was that element of surprise at play.
[As soon as I get started with this, after I break them out and we leave the mansion, the element of surprise is going to be gone. Hopefully, things will work out, though.]
"Liri!" Arisa yelled out.
The two guards standing in front of her and Caitlyn's cell turned toward her, hands on their rifles.
"Hold on, hold on," one of them said, "don't get too close."
One of the guards who had let Liri pass spoke up from the stairs before she could respond.
"Don't worry, she's the Duchess's new fuck toy," he shouted from the top of the stairs. "Duchess said she's to be unharmed until the God-King lets her know what to do with her. Till then, just treat her like a stray dog or something."
[...] Liri took a deep breath. [Well... When you put it like that, it's enough to make anyone angry, isn't it?]
"Is that right?" One of the two guards here asked. "Still. Coming in here like this is not-"
Before he could finish, Liri punched his throat.
"Cegk!" The guy let out a choked noise. Liri put quite a bit of her strength into that, holding back just a little so that his body wouldn't slam into the metal bars behind him. The guard to his right gasped, but his throat was smacked as well before he could call out what was happening.
Both of them fell to the ground without alerting the guards atop the stairs, and Liri crushed their necks in quick succession.
Soul Rating Gained: 100
Soul Rating Gained: 100
Soul Rating: 3150
"I knew you would-"
"SHHHH!" Liri interrupted Arisa. "Quiet," she whispered, pointing at the other officers.
As she'd noted before, breaking out her friends would likely result in being unable to hide her true power any longer. One way or another, that was going to happen, but she wanted to delay that for as long as she could.
Caitlyn blinked, staring down at the fallen guards and then up at Liri.
Then, she shook her head, walking forward.
"I don't know how you just did that, but grab their keys. The sooner we're out of this place, the better."
Liri did as Caitlyn asked and searched through the bodies of the fallen officers. Finding a set of keys, she tried some of them out until, eventually, one opened the cell.
"Come on. We need to get the hell out."
"What are we going to do after that?" Liri asked just as quietly as her friends walked out.
"I..." Caitlyn's shoulders dropped. Her dejection was noticeable. "Originally, I thought that it would be best to try to break all of the elves stuck here on our own. However, getting ourselves out of here will be difficult enough. It may be best to escape, then head back to the settlement and see what we can do from there. Can you use your powers?"
"No," Liri replied. "My strength is still here, but I can't use my Mantras."
"Then... Agh!" Silently, she gave a frustrated groan. "That means the other dungeon, where all of the other elves are, will also be carrying the same effect. I really hate it, but we're going to have to leave the town and come back with a better plan. And, maybe, bring some help."
"Help?" Liri asked. "What do you mean?"
"... There's a settlement to the southwest. Where the elves from Diosia have been taking refuge." Although she said that, Caitlyn looked sad to come to that conclusion. "If we leave, it means that some elves will die before we can rescue them, but... I made a mistake. Because you saved me back in the woods, I overestimated you. Now, though, this feels like the best plan, to me."
"You don't think I can save them?" Liri asked.
"Liri," Caitlyn said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "You are strong. I recognize that, and I thought so back there, and I see what you can do. But, trust me, the Inquisitors are not to be trifled with. I don't want to leave my people behind, but, I think we should make sure we are ready before challenging them. Especially with this *thing* preventing us from using our abilities."