The steps Naya took were heavy; she had no idea what to expect inside the vast garden, even with her enhanced senses.
Her walk was pleasant, with the soft sound of her footsteps on grass and the gentle breeze blowing through her hair. She'd want to stay for a long time if this were a regular location.
She had to remind herself this was the home of a vile Witch who committed untold atrocities to reach 3rd circle.
The garden was eerily perfect, not a noise as far as Naya could detect, with only her own sounds reaching her enhanced ears. Unlike the silent forest, where she occasionally heard a distant animal or insects, this place was the true meaning of silence.
But Naya noticed one flaw.
--The tree. --
"Yes." Naya nodded, looking at the tree that dominates the land in the distance, "It doesn't cast a shadow, despite how large it is."
--Yup. Try as she might, the Witch can't possibly create a perfect reality - she is not a god.--
To ensure it was in the right direction, Naya looked around, but nothing else stood out in the endless gardens other than the massive tree. It seemed like all her effort went into making it.
Naya started the walk to the tree, and it was slow. The silence quickly made her uncomfortable and cemented that the garden was fake.
The flowers were of colors not present in the real world; at least, Naya doubted they were. Such as ones dyed in pink and others pitch black. It came together to make the place feel wrong.
While she knew she was getting closer, she couldn't help but marvel at the vast space.
--It's not as impressive as it looks. I guarantee once you get far enough, it distorts.--
[I know, but still, it's a nice spot.]
She eventually reached the beginning of where the tree roots jutted from the ground and stopped before it.
Naya reached her hand out to touch the root, but nothing happened.
--The reality Devil pretty much allows her to create her own world. While it's impossible to predict the extent of the Devil's powers, imagine what it would be like if it manifested in the real world.--
Naya rubbed the root and looked at it with a longing look. "How long does it take for that to happen?"
--Devils start at nothing when they contract with Witches, so it could take centuries of uninterrupted progression, maybe even longer. That's why the entire world does not actively hunt them; it's hard to go unnoticed for that long.--
Naya nodded, and then the tree root suddenly shivered in her hand; it felt like she was touching a massive worm made of hardwood.
"Disgusting!" She snapped her hand back.
The pulse from the shiver quickly extended until it reached the base of the massive tree. The ground began to vibrate, and the sound of quaking earth filled the silent garden.
Naya snapped her head around her; she heard the rumbling in each direction and felt the ground rumble beneath her.
"What's happening?!" She yelled.
--I don't know!--
It was then that the roots of the tree began to slowly move.
They gradually curved upward in the ground, sending massive amounts of dirt and rock toward Naya as they emerged.
Naya jumped back with all the force she could muster, kicking up a cloud of dirt of her own as she launched herself backward.
When she got a comfortable distance away, she watched as the roots slowly finished their upward curve.
In the distance, she saw the tree lift itself into the air, chunks of grass and dirt falling from it.
When the movement ceased, the tree roots looked like spider legs as they rose the tree high into the air, creating an expansive space underneath it.
The garden returned to its total silence, only the occasional noise of rocks falling from the roots and tree.
--Theatrical.--
"Is she inviting me in?"
--Probably.--
Naya focused her vision on the newly opened space below the tree, and her eyes widened.
Below it stood a beast she had never seen nor heard of before, even in any of the books she read in Aleria.
It had an unnaturally tall human body, but an eagle replaced the head with silver eyes glaring directly in Naya's direction as if challenging her. It wore a suit of what Naya guessed was steel armor, though colored pitch black, and below it had the feet of an eagle as well.
Sprouting from its back was a pair of broken wings, one side only bone while the other was full and pitch black to match its simple armor.
"Welcome to my home, Elf." A mature, deep woman's voice echoed across the garden.
Naya looked upward, "I will kill you."
The Witch's lightly chuckled, "I wonder what trickery allowed you access here... It's no matter; you will feed me just like the rest."
--She fears you. --
"Wait for me, vile thing; I will kill your pet first," Naya said and began to march forward.
"With pleasure~." The Witch said in a singsong tone as her voice faded.
Naya waited a moment for the voice to fully fade, then began her trek once more.
The man and eagle hybrid didn't make any moves as Naya quickly made her way to the opening.
While she didn't know what sort of creature it was, it appeared to be purely physical, and Naya intended to dedicate much of her power to shatter the Witch's hope of survival.
--Don't overdo it, we have no idea what's on the next floor.--
[I know.]
The Witch was watching and listening, so Naya spoke with Lia in her head.
Naya picked up her speed and launched toward the tree. Fast, but controlled to not go fast enough to showcase too much of her power.
Upon reaching the opening, the creature stirred, prompting Naya to pause. She wasn't sure what it could do, but she believed it would prove no trouble.
With a slow and deliberate motion, the beast raised its massive head, parting its monstrous beak wide open. A deafening screech erupted from its throat.
Naya was briefly stunned; the Witch must have known how good Elven hearing was. However, the effect she expected didn't happen, and Naya found her hearing gone right as the screech started.
It was Lia's doing, an unexpected twist that momentarily startled Naya.
[You...] [you can control my body?] The shock of Lia being able to exert control over her body was not a pleasant one.
--I'm sorry, but your eardrums would have shattered. --Lia's tone sounded guilty.
[Thank you. ]Naya tried to shove away her discomfort.[ But we will discuss this later.]
--Ok.--
Naya was surprised that she didn't refuse; she wouldn't have been able to do anything about it.
Her attention went back to the tree.
The creature ended its shriek and tipped its head back down to look at Naya's ears. It tilted in bewilderment, clearly shocked that its ear-piercing shriek did not damage her.
The Eagle's eyes flooded pitch black, and its beak opened, "How?!" the Witch's now angry voice came through.
"You're weak," Naya said dismissively. [So she can control the beast?]
"Elf!" The Witch yelled, and the black eyes became silver once again. The creature closed its mouth and launched itself toward Naya.
Blade-like talons snapped from its fingers, reaching a foot in height.
Naya kicked off the ground and jumped to the right in a lightning-fast sidestep. [Predictable.]
The creature's claws struck the earth with a resounding boom, gouging a deep crater into the ground, and its claws pierced the dirt up to its wrist.
With its hand still buried, it twisted its body and slashed with its other at Naya, standing next to the crater's edge.
However, Naya was already gone, another sidestep, and she dawned a sardonic grin, "Weak, slow. This is what a 3rd order witch can do?"
"I will skin you alive, Elf." The Witch's voice sounded hysterical, this time coming from the world around her.
--This thing is the bulk of her defense.--
"That's right, that's how you things should sound." Naya immediately quipped.
The creature tore its hand from the earth and hurled itself at Naya.
It slashed quickly with both arms, haphazardly swinging its arms, but Naya effortlessly danced between each swing, movements as efficient as a flowing river.
She weaved from left to right, with a purple trail forming from her glowing lines.
It continuously attempted to slash but ripped through empty air each time.
The creature realized how fruitless it was to fight Naya physically and stopped moving.
Frustration evidently seeped into the creature, and it ceased its physical barrage. Its gaze fixed skyward, and another deafening screech threatened to fill the air, prompting Lia to shield Naya's hearing again.
It continued screeching while its only working wing unfurled from its body, and it squatted to launch itself into the air.
Naya closely watched it. She had been disappointed in its strength thus far; it appeared to be a pure physical beast, and even without her boosted abilities, she didn't think it would stand a chance.
As it launched into the air, the creature aimed its wing at Naya.
With a swift motion, every feather on the wing detached and rained down like arrows aimed squarely at her position.
Naya dashed to the right and continued moving as the rain of arrow-like feathers pierced the ground following her.
When the hail ended, she leaned down to pick one up; it was hard as steel and had sharp edges, "That's it?" she tossed it aside.
--A pity, but you need to stop toying with it. Sophia and her group might be here soon, and you won't have the chance to kill the Witch alone.--
The creature curled its body and launched itself down.
Fruitless as it was, it aimed its legs where Naya was standing.
The impact reverberated through the air, a resounding boom that echoed in every direction. Shockwaves were sent out from the impact point along with clouds of dirt and thrown rocks.
Even though Naya had swiftly evaded the creature's strike, the impact force caught her off guard. A gust of wind ruffled her hair, a testament to the overwhelming power of the attack. [Too bad I'm your opponent.]
--That things physical abilities are absurd. Make sure you ask where the Witch got it before you kill her!--
It jumped out from the crater it created, whipping its head until it stopped on Naya.
The feathers stabbed into the ground, shivered, and levitated into the air. Countless feathered blades moved at once to float around the creature in a circular formation.
Naya wasn't expecting magic, but she didn't know how the creature's skill worked. She wasn't sure if she could dodge so many coming at her at once. She'd certainly try.
--That's not a spell; it's an ability, something engraved onto its core.--
The many feathers began to whirr as they accelerated around it and became like a solid black circle as they reached high speeds.
Naya had an idea and raised her right arm with a victorious smile; she would shatter the Witch's hope here.
She saw that the lines on her arms had decreased to her elbows, a sign of their constant usage to boost her physical capabilities. She didn't want this fight to continue any longer.
The creature did not let her cast in peace, and it whisked its hand outward. The black circle surrounding it launched forward with the sound of steel clanking together.
Naya sidestepped and looked where the circle passed; it had effortlessly cut a half cylinder into the ground.
[Wow, I wonder how strong it would be with both wings.]
--Very powerful.-- Lia spoke as if certain of the things past prowess and with a nostalgic tone.
The creature swung its arm toward Naya again, and the black circle whizzed over to her, still digging into the dirt and flinging it around.
Naya kept sidestepping but knew it was time to end the battle.
While keeping up her movement, she pulled on the Wild Arcana within her core.
With her arm again raised, Naya felt the Wild Arcana running up her arm and relished the feeling.
As the Arcana reached her fingertips, her purple lines brightened considerably, and the Arcana came out from them to drip into the air around her.
With a thought, the Arcana coalesced into a large purple sphere before her.
She had to focus on dodging the saw-like feathers and keeping the ball steady, and she found it took way more effort than she thought.
--I can help you.--
[No! This is nothing.] She wasn't sure what kind of help Lia could offer, but either way, she did not want it.
She sped up to gain a small distance to cast her ability and stopped.
Naya quickly willed the sphere to take shape, and it bubbled and hissed, threatening to leave her control.
The sphere condensed and expanded in a flash and became a simple, long shard. It looked brutal, as if Naya took a long chunk of rock, thinned it, and dyed it purple.
"Die, beast."
Naya grabbed the spear-like object and jumped to dodge the feathers one last time.
She placed a foot back and another forward. Next, she leaned back and positioned her arm into a throwing pose.
With as much strength as she could muster, Naya twisted her body forward, throwing the object directly at the beast.
A reverberating boom that sent out shockwaves throughout the opening beneath the tree. Clouds of dirt and rock launched far in every direction. The wind, much more potent than when the thing landed, made her have to brace herself.
The feathers dropped to the ground with metal clattering noises when they neared her, which assured Naya of her accurate hit.
She walked to the impact point. It had become a massive crater, and she smiled to herself when she mentally compared its size to the one left by the creature.
Naya's smile vanished, and she widened her eyes in shock at the sight in the crater.
The creature was standing in a different position, and many of the feathers were left behind and had formed a near-perfect circular shield where the spear would have impacted. The feathers fell to the ground, most cracked and shattered as they hit the dirt.
[What an absurd defense.]
--More like he used his feathers only to buy a fraction of a second to dodge the spear.--
[Still, it dodged my attack.]
The creature stood up and looked around at the destruction around it.
It didn't show signs of wanting to continue the fruitless fight, with its arms at its side and its now featherless wing curled back.
The glare in its eyes wasn't there anymore; instead, it seemed intelligent and stared at her as if contemplating.
It was observing Naya. Specifically, it eyed her ears, and its eyes gaped slightly.
The eyes that were once a blank silver had specks of gold in them, though they faded with time rather than by any magical means.
--That thing is- --Lia stopped herself.
[What?]
Its beak opened, "Elf." Its voice sounded deep and gravelly. "Your... kind..." it struggled to speak as if it hadn't spoken a word in a long time.
It continued, "Gone... for many centuries...we waited."
Naya crossed her arms. "What are you?"
It appeared to have suddenly broken out of the Witch's control without any resistance as if it were natural. Now, it spoke as if it had some connection with her people. But she had never heard of anything like it.
"Gryphil."
--A Garuda.--
[You knew?]
--Yes.--
[You...] Naya stopped herself but was getting fed up with Lia's secrecy; the occasional slips on Lia's part made it worse. Her being from Naya's Mother would only let her get away with so much.
Lia remained silent.
"Elf, your kind... abandoned our lord..." Its voice was getting steadier as it continued.
Naya's eyebrow quirked, "I don't know what you're talking about... I've never heard of your people."
"It's been... centuries... maybe longer... our history was not passed down." It looked disappointed, its eagle eyes briefly despondent as if looking far away from her.
"Are you a servant of the Witch?" Naya uncrossed her arms and stepped forward, closely watching its eyes.
If it wasn't, Naya wouldn't kill it. In fact, she thought it'd be more interesting to rip it from her grasp.
"Witch? Absurd. I am the guardian of this space." It gestured to the space around it.
Naya snorted. "Guarding a Witch's garden."
"No. I guard the King... But enough of this, you have proven beyond my capability, and you may advance to see his tomb." It suddenly got on one knee with a clang as it hit the ground, and it bowed its head toward Naya, "I can only request that you bring his final words to Yialraien."
Naya was taken aback, and she glared at the Garuda, "How do you know that name?" her voice took a cold, commanding tone.
--The head of the Tribunal and the closest to Aleria herself. Also the oldest Elf in existence.--
The Garuda looked up at her as if she were stupid. "Of course, I know it... Yialraien is the closest friend of my master... The King of Solaris and the Elven Progenitor, what could be a better combination?" It then shook its head. "But alas, it was not meant to be."
--Solaris...--
[Elven Progenitor...the first Elf? ]Naya stared at the Garuda with newfound interest. [There's still much of my species I apparently know nothing of. ]She had also never heard of Solaris, and the thought of someone being close to perhaps the mightiest of her race wasn't something she took at face value.
The Garuda didn't wait for Naya's response; it stood up in a hurry and clapped its hands once.
Its silver eyes began to glow a bright white, and a white beam of Arcana spiraled out of its eyes and touched the ground.
It made a sizzling noise as it spread out in a single horizontal line and then rose upward, creating a white rectangular door on the ground.
--This is truly tragic; he doesn't realize where he is - Some kind of mental magic. --
[Can I free it? ]
--Oh? Feeling like a hero today?--
[I want to hear more about my people and this Solaris; you are useless.]
--I... --Lia seemed stunned by Naya's harsh words. --No, you can only help him by killing the Witch. --
"You may pass. My King is calling for me, so I will enter slumber. Remember my request, I beg of you." It bowed again.
--Go now. The so-called calling is probably the Witch trying to regain control.--
[I know.] Naya stepped through the white door just in time to hear the Witch's murderous shout. "You ba-"
She didn't catch the last of it since the white door instantly vanished when she stepped through it.
Rather than a long floor, what greeted Naya was an endless hallway of red. The ground, walls, and ceiling were dyed in a crimson shade.
Different paintings lined both sides of the wall in golden frames, depicting the heads of individuals from all races, and the ceiling had golden chandeliers spread evenly to illuminate the hall.
Down the hall, Naya could see many doors placed in random parts, and she knew this would be far more annoying than the garden.
"Now, I will kill her."