"You keep looking up there, acting strange. You've also been mumbling in your sleep lately, and I even caught you passing out earlier... I'm worried about you—just what have you been doing?"
Karin remained unreactive despite the firece glare shot her way. She kept a sincere attitude and didn't waver from the role she set for herself.
She continued to watch as the fake ignored her and turned her gaze upward, a trace of desperation ladening her eyes.
For a moment, she considered her pychic magic—perhaps it could influence Ana—but she simply couldn't be sure of the drawbacks to her possession ability or Ana's ability to resist it, and so she reluctantly chose to rely only on stacking pressure against her.
At the same time, she wasn't sure what Elech was going to do nor how long it would take him to act, so she could only sow chaos with words, which she often did rather deviously as a child...
This was part of her forte.
"Alark mentioned to me that Elech is looking for Ana; I've also guessed that she's been teaching you... Have you... seen anything strange? I can't shake the feeling something huge is going to change around here."
Karin crumpled her face in intense rumination, selling just how much she believed herself.
She didn't miss the sickly pale complexion coating Ana's face as she suddenly turned away; however, Karin couldn't quite relish in it; instead, she only felt that Ana was ruining Syrin's cute appearance.
It was clear to her that Ana had given up on putting on her act right now, mumbling to herself as if connecting various ideas in her mind and completely ignoring Karin's words.
To her, even if she were using Alark somehow, there was simply no way Ana would waste any time in confronting him with the ambiguous risk of Elech over her head.
She would push herself into a corner as far as her paranoia would allow.
Karin gloated quietly to herself—this was very nostalgic for her. The riskiest thing she'd ever done was infiltrate the central Human city of the second layer, using her illusions to create chaos while she stole knowledge...
A sudden reminder that she needed to plan which ones to take with her.
Without even a word of response, Ana rushed past her, and Karin turned with a strictly feigned surprise.
"Hey, hey! Where are you going?!"
Karin poured energy into her voice; it was loud, but her heart wasn't in it. Instead, Karin quietly decided to herself that now was the time to finally and fully reveal her psychic magic. She would need to talk to Johan along the way, so she would use it to carry others' belongings.
Belongings... she could only assume that Syrin was able to perform a suitable contract—maybe the spatial magic was theirs.
'Extremely lucky...'
Was all she could think to herself.
Currently, all of the elders that mattered were busy, and the last, Bael, wouldn't think anything of it as long as they moved inconspicuous items first.
Migrating fast is the specialty of all races in the fold... so it would be the least of their worries here.
At the same time, it was lucy that Elech, despite not being the active curator, was so overbearing in his control; this meant that even if anyone noticed anything unusual, they wouldn't think anything of it until it got out of hand, and by then, it would already be too late.
Karin followed up the tower staircase, preparing to make the first move.
It was now up to Ana to take the crystal; only then would they cross the line of no return.
...
My mind spun, and blood rushed to my head, smearing my vision.
A sudden cold afflicted me as my nerves shot back into action. Without thinking, I reached up to defend myself, only becoming aware of the faint stinging against my cheeks after doing so.
I shot up with a startling vigour at the sound of a high-pitched whelp cutting into my ears, my vision clearing.
Luminous purple eyes resemblant of the violet star outside caught my gaze, and I focused to see Rena's worried face just before me.
_I must have startled her; she's lightly rubbing her arm—I must have slapped it away._
A short frown crossed my face, and I looked around.
Her mouth shallowly parted, she looked as if ready to speak yet she couldn't form the right words.
She reached out tentatively but backed away, then again and again, but with less energy each time.
_She's worried, and expressing it is difficult for her._
"I'm alright."
I smiled calmly and tapped her on the shoulder; the gesture felt right in the moment.
She awkwardly caressed her hand.
"You fainted again."
Her voice was tinged with a painful worry.
_I feel guilty..._
_I felt like I could understand how Karin felt, but we have the opposite problem: I can tell she wants me to stay, yet I'm trying to push Rena to leave—she definitely would have to go out on her own once I ditched this body._
The memory of that lanky demon flashed through my mind_—_and her reaction with it.
I couldn't help but sigh while standing properly.
_I'll be free to do whatever soon._
_For some reason, my perspective is different from both the Demons and the Angels... I guess my common sense is more uncommon than I thought._
"It seems like it..."
_It's a cold response, but I'm not sure I can comfort her._
Rena isn't stupid, and she seems to have a deeply fearful belief in this doctrine. At the very least, I can use it to mentally prepare her; she doesn't look like someone who'd hide in denial.
Rolling my shoulders, I shook my head, adjusting myself to this body's subtle yet significant shift in mood.
I hid my frown.
_I can only ignore this ever-growing discomfort upon returning; every time I come back, I understand more clearly how these summonings affect my perspective._
__—_I thought I was just good at acting, but a part of it must really be the body itself._
_How infuriating._
_Hah, at least things are moving now—the end is in sight._
"Are you sure you're okay?"
Her words surprised me, and I tilted my head to look at her again.
She reached over and grabbed my arm this time, throwing away her own discomfort.
_The unconcealed care and gratitude she's directing at me are so clear in her gaze._
Suddenly, it became... more real to me, and an emotion welled from within that I couldn't describe.
There was a layer of guilt woven into the seam of that complex feeling; I had to look away from the reflection in her crystal-clear eyes that hid nothing.
_I want to be immersed in it, to feel it, but that reflection tears me from my own heart._
_This little journey is so short, but it is her story—her life—perhaps the most important one she's ever had, and I'm treating it like a game—trying to direct her and not being genuine._
Is it right for me to shy away and protect her from the loss of my absence? Or am I protecting my own feelings?
_Again, I don't want her to die at my side, but acting this way makes only me comfortable with it._
_Being fake is so tiring..._ _But I've come to a decision._
_I'm going to leave, but I'll treat her true to myself._
_Hah, I've hesitated for too long; that conversation with Karin has tired me out I think._
"I'm good, for now."
I smiled at her, and she smiled weakly in return.
Rena continued slackly holding onto my arm, gripping at the gap between the gauntlets and arm guards.
We began walking forward, approaching the end of this monotonous tunnel that felt far too small now.