On top of the mountains that marked the center of the continent, there was a peculiar figure drawing lines across the ground. The figure was affixed with an attire that could only be described as pinstripes that sprawled from the neck to the shins, the exaggerated greens the hue of vomit. The jacket around their torso was adorned with pauldrons that covered the figure's shoulders. The pinstriped bottoms that marked the ends of their ensemble were akin to slacks, though the shirt and pants were bound into a one piece. Pitch black greaves on hung below their shins, completely covering their feet. The moonlight reflected across the dark boots and the equally dark helmet, proving to all that cared enough to pay attention that the two pieces of equipment were indeed metallic.
The lines shined bright white and faded a bit, a good ten percent of the lines disappearing. Inside the helmet, the face of the figure was creased into a frown. The spell they had activated had taken up a bit more energy than what Valentine had expected. Their eyebrows creased a bit before a tinny hum sounded in the place around them.
"Ah...I need a vacation. I really hate my job." The humming hung in the air, circling Valentine's body that remained in the center of the sigil engraved into the mountain's ground. Their finger prodded at the sigil a bit, glowing white mana enveloping an outstretched pointer finger.
"The Rosetta Stone has been drawn perfectly, like always. So why has it taken much more energy than the one percent I allotted it. Those slovenly gheckla aren't very strong at all, more than half of power was actually meant to transport the more fit ones." The figure felt a headache coming on. Although they had put much more energy into the sigil than the job required, Valentine was still a bit ill at ease.
"If I can't send all of them over to that measly little cyclops tribe, it won't be much of a problem. I'll only get paid a bit less, that's all. If they can't handle all of them in one fell swoop that'll be their problem, I already got my deposit anyways." Valentine dispelled their concerns and sat in wait for another command. The metallic hums that circulated the figure danced along the air, a strange symphony that existed only for Valentine.
—-
"Ugh, the mana quality is so much lower outside of the beach...I feel so tired." A feminine voice made itself known to the world, escaping from its owner's mouth in a slight drawl. The utterance was a strange mix of fatigue and cheerfulness, the latter sounding a lot more obvious.
"You don't deserve to be able to say that. I'm carrying you." A solemn voice replied to the one proceeding it, the bearing of which was so serious it bordered on unnecessary. The guy sounded like he was responding to a eulogy instead of the feminine voice that was loaded with exhaustion.
"And who's fault is that? It's not mine you know~" A playful counter crept into the ears of the serious voice's owner, who gnashed his teeth in frustration. He sighed before rebutting the young woman on his back, not wanting to let her get the last word.
"Lady, if I didn't pick you up you would never have let me hear the end of it. Ever." Although the serious voice started out confident, it slowly devolved into acceptance. The young man didn't talk very often so he was a bit unskilled at wordplay. All he could do was point out the obvious and hope that it would take effect. To absolutely no one's surprise, the young woman acted as if she couldn't even hear him, whistling in a bid to prove her innocence. The serious youth sighed.
"Shit, you're talking a lot today Nevus. Imagine if the boss were here right now—he'd be fucking amazed." A mischievous voice remarked accordingly, it's owner disguising a curious observation with a veil of annoyance. The profanities that came with his words were just an icing on the cake, an addition he used quite often.
"Teta, you should really watch your mouth a lot better, okay? I don't know why you have such a bad attitude all of a sudden..." Lady mumbled a bit, hoping that Teta wouldn't take notice of her words. There was no such luck.
"You're right. I should be much better than you two, I don't even feel the mana difference." A snicker. The imp it belonged to had a countenance somewhere in between the emotions of glee and concern. He could never help himself from such an easy joke, it went against his very being.
"That's because you don't have any." Nevus pointed out.
"Exactly. Where'd all that fancy sitting lead you in the end? Exhausted the second we leave that beach. Saddening, really." The snickers continued, before stopping abruptly. The moonlight shined down upon the three imps that were no longer obscured by trees, a grey man standing right before him. The man's eyes took in each of their appearances before nodding to himself.
Teta grew up a lot from when Alban had lost saw him, in fact, all of the imps did. Teta was the only one that retained his childish face though, his features becoming even more dainty and beautiful than before. He still had a bob that outlined his face, his brown hair tickling his red neck. His skin remained just as red as it was when Alban had first met him, and so did his irises. That was where the similarities to his previous form stopped, however.
His previous red claws were now covered by a black chitin that practically oozed sharpness. The chitin extended down to his forearm, his claws becoming much more pronounced and sturdy. The chitin became his feet and part of his legs as well, extending up from his soles to just beyond his knees. Teta also had a pair of wings that were currently folded up against his back, the wingspan being more than enough to carry him up into the air. The wings themselves slightly scaly at the the top but red like his skin near the bottom. He stood at a 5'5 ft tall.
Next was Nevus, whose changes were not as pronounced as Teta's. He had started tying his pitch black hair back into a ponytail with two fringes at the front to prevent it from obscuring him as he moved. The black markings on his skin will extend even further along his body, while his claws degraded into a mere set of sharp nails. But the needle at his side rejoiced at Nevus' change, the scratches that marred it's surface were now only superficial and didn't harm it at all. Nevus stood at a height of 5'7 ft, and he carried himself with a refined mien.
Last but not least was Lady, whose silver hair was now tied up in a disheveled casual updo that she called a french knot. Which was odd because she didn't even know what a "French" thing was. It just sounded right, and the hairstyle similarly reflected her lively and loose demeanor. It also showed off the three horns that she was so proud of. Her head changed from it's brown shade and turned into a more peach color, but the rest of her skin from the neck down remained perfectly brown. The most pronounced change was the small buds of plants that were strewn across her leftmost arm at all times. These plants were no accessory, they were actually a part of her body. She had complete control over how they bloomed, usually switching around the colors to whatever she felt like. She stood the shortest, only being 5 feet.
His inspection done, Lark brought his gaze back to Teta, who was glowering at him. Before he could even ask why, the imp in question let his thoughts be known.
"You finished glancing us over? That's good, cause I got a little question I'd like you to answer. Why the fuck do you smell like boss, and why is he not with you?" The utterance was spit out in a growl, the mischievous bearing of the imp fading.
"He's to the south. I can bring you all there, if you wish." Lark didn't wait for their reply and started walking towards the mountain that loomed in the distance. Anything to get those voices to shut up again.
'Why can't my life ever be easy?' Lark slag out a long sigh.