Naya hated cramped spaces, and the long hallway before her seemed only wide enough to fit three of her.
The paintings lining the walls didn't help; it felt like they were all watching her.
She didn't want to be caught off guard by anything, and her worry was that the paintings were some sort of trick.
Naya moved slowly through the halls, and the noise of her shoes hitting the hard ground seemed amplified, the clacking noise assaulting her enhanced ears with every step she took.
Each painting lining the walls looked so lifelike to her, and even though she didn't have a taste for art, she could tell they must have taken a long time to make.
[There are so many of them; how many years has she been painting them? What a waste of talent. ]Naya sighed. For an Elf, being able to use magic was crucial to Elven Society, but the other races weren't as magically inclined, so she wondered why they would take the path of a Witch, especially when they had another talent, such as painting.
--You're assuming she's the one painting them. She might just be a collector; it's not like becoming a Witch removes appreciation for the smaller things.--
[Makes sense. ]Naya nodded. [But I wonder why give in to a Devil; magic isn't as necessary for the lesser races.]
--You have no idea what sort of place Toral is. --Lia's spoke with some vexation.
Naya tried to recall the name but came up empty; she knew she was about to be embarrassed. [I don't know what that is.]
--Of course not, because your people abandoned it centuries ago and don't even pass down the history of your own world. --Lia spoke with irritation and in an accusatory tone.
Naya wanted to retort; Lia's blaming attitude annoyed her, but a realization hit her: that was her first time hearing the name of the world. She believed she had a good memory and wouldn't forget something that important had it been taught.
--I'm sorry. It's not your fault, Nayalisia. --Lia sighed woefully. --The state of the world isn't anything like- wait, stop. --
Naya halted, and her eyes widened in shock; she saw the same thing Lia observed.
The painting to her right was of someone she knew. Someone she had only met yesterday, the noble human male whose flattering tone annoyed her. The resemblance was uncanny; it had his unruly blonde hair and blue eyes, his face of arrogance, and his head tilted up as if looking down on Naya.
[What does this mean? ]She asked, but Naya had some ideas forming in her head. One of them shook her. [She... ]
--All the people she has killed, probably...--
Naya took another look behind and in front of her; the walls of paintings went on as far as she could see on both sides. There were hundreds of them, maybe more.
Though she didn't care much for the lives of the lesser races, she couldn't keep down the righteous anger at the number of lives sacrificed to the Witch's devil.
[Deplorable, disgusting thing.]
--She must have been doing this for a very long time.-- Lia didn't sound too disturbed by it; she seemed more surprised by the paintings than their number.
[These are the type of things you defended.]
--I am not going to argue with you here, Nayalisia! --Lia raised her voice.
Naya harrumphed but didn't continue. Seeing these paintings reaffirmed her previous belief that all witches were evil and that she would feel no remorse for killing them.
--You don't even remember this boy's name.--
[So-]
Lia interrupted.-- Nayalisia, do not pretend to be on the side of some so-called justice; you only care about Witches because it is your mission. You do not care about the people she killed.--
Naya's ears perked up in anger. "You know nothing of me! You're just some stupid tool for Mother's quest. I did not ask for you!" She punched the picture of the boy, easily ripping the paper and slamming her fist into the wall behind. "You do not have the right to lecture me!"
--Nayalisia. --She spoke with a dejected tone. --I only want you to do better than those that came before... If that means making you angry, then so be it.--
"It seems I've upset you; that painting was brand new, you know?"
The Witch's voice echoed across the hallway, and Naya snapped her head forward. "Come and face me!" she spoke with agitation.
The only response from the Witch was her echoing laughter that filled the hall, and it seemed amplified in the space.
Once the laughter faded, the Witch spoke one more. "That boy had some skill, but my pet made quick work of him; he didn't even have a chance to beg." The Witch chuckled darkly. "Which was quite the pity, isn't it?"
The Witch had clearly misunderstood Naya's anger. But still, the arrogant tone she spoke in and the amplified cackling grated her, and she was already upset.
"You like these paintings? Fine."
Naya didn't wait for the Witch to respond.
She tugged on the Arcana in her core and called it forward. While doing that, she spread her arms outward in a T shape with her palms opened at both walls.
"Don't you dare!" The Witch fruitlessly commanded, her tone swapped from arrogance to desperation.
Naya's lip raised slightly in a light smirk.
The Arcana reached her palms, and she pulled it out into orbs in her hands.
Once the orbs were of a decent size, her lines shrunk even further, but she paid it no mind. She took inspiration from the Gardua and willed the orbs of Wild Arcana into purple blades attached to her palms.
The newly formed blades instantly pierced the two paintings adjacent to Naya, and once she felt them connect with the wall...
Naya burst forward toward the first door in the distance.
The sound of her agile footsteps filled the hall but was drowned out by ripping paper that flapped as tens of paintings were torn clear in half in Naya's wake.
"YOU BITCH!" The Witch's voice shed any sense of normality as it reached a higher, shrill pitch. "I WILL RIP YOU APART!"
Naya stopped once she neared the blue door that stood out in the hall of red.
The purple blades disintegrated when she arrived at the door, turning into a purple mist and vanishing in the air.
"DON'T GO IN THERE!"
"Wait for me; nothing you have can save you." Naya turned the knob and entered. She slammed the door shut behind her.
The Witch stopped shouting.
The moment the door opened, Naya grimaced when the scent of paint exploded in her face.
The new room was a large square, with empty canvases scattered across the walls and a single chandelier on the low ceiling. The floor was brown hardwood, the walls were a dull grey, and both were covered in splatters of different paints.
In the center was the figure of a halfling girl, a mix between a dwarf and a human. The girl had short red hair, pointed ears barely poking out, and was about half Naya's height. She was lying on the floor with a palette of paint next to her head, her arms resting over it. She wore a set of blue overalls over a white shirt covered in dried paint.
Besides the paint all over her body, the girl looked well cared for.
The halfling was woken by the sound of the door slamming shut, and she slowly rose while she rubbed her eyes.
Naya was taken aback and wasn't sure how to respond.
The girl yawned. "Is that you, Madam Carla?" She spoke with a higher-pitched, childlike voice.
She sounded barely in her teens, and Naya's heart sank at the thought of what the Witch was making her do.
"Y-you're not Carla!" The girl jumped up and sprinted behind the easel that held up a blank white canvas.
She poked her head out.
The girl had azure-colored eyes, the same blue as a clear sky, and Naya couldn't help but stare.
From behind the canvas, the girl reached into her pockets. She pulled out a paintbrush, only to widen her eyes and move her head to the ground beside Naya.
Naya looked down and saw a sketchbook.
"Wait, don't touch that!" The girl yelled but didn't dare to jump out and grab it.
Naya leaned down and picked it up.
"Hey! I said not to touch it, you-" The girl stopped and looked to Naya's ears in shock. "Elf!" She animatedly jumped back.
Naya couldn't think of this halfling as anything but a victim of the Witch, given how she behaved in this short time. "What's your name, girl?"
"R-Rula." She stuttered nervously. "Miss, are you a real Elf?"
"Of course."
"Wow!" Rula jumped from behind her cover and ran up to the Naya; all defenses vanished as if they were never there.
She ran circles around Naya, looking closely at every part of her. She stopped next to her right arm and poked it. "What are these lines, Miss Elf?!" Excitement tinged her voice.
The touch almost made Naya reflexively lash out.
She shook her head and crossed her arms. "Rula, why are you in the Witch's tower?"
Rula looked up at Naya and tilted her head slightly with one eyebrow quirked. "Witch's tower? This is Carla's place. Carla isn't a Witch; she's a Duke!" She ran over to her black canvas and patted it. "I paint for her!"
[So she's the one responsible for the Witch's twisted hobby.]
--Probably unwillingly or unknowingly.-- Lia's tone sounded like she wanted to forget the last argument, and Naya mentally agreed, for now.
Rula continued with excitement. "She sends an image into my head and asks me to paint it! She says it's of famous adventurers, which is awesome! I've made hundreds!
Naya stared at Rula's honest expression. "Why do you paint these pictures for her?"
She ran back to the front of Naya and looked up at her, "She sends money to my family!"
"She... pays you?" Naya doubted her ears. There was no way Rula's family received any payment from her work. She thought Rula was quite stupid, even for a lesser race.
Rula's suddenly looked dejected, and her speech slowed. "Yeah... but I wanted it! That way, my Dad can stop doing dangerous things for gold!"
"How long have you been painting for her?"
Rula contemplated for a bit, then shrugged. "I forgot, but I painted so many. I think my family is surely rich now! A couple more, and I'm done!"
--This poor girl. Nayalisia, you must take her with you.--
Naya eyed Rula carefully. "You paint for an evil Witch," she observed Rula's expression for signs of deception. "And you aren't even positive she sends the gold."
"Carla isn't evil, and she proved she sent the gold!"
"Fine." Naya handed Rula her sketchbook. "Come with me, Rula."
"No! I need to make more gold!" She had a fanatic look in her eyes as she snatched her book from Naya's outstretched hand.
--She's definitely hiding something.--
"You stupid halfling!" An idea struck her. "I'll give you ten thousand gold coins if you come with me!"
Lia's sudden laughter filled her head, and her ears twitched.
--You just offered her enough to buy a mansion!--
Rula looked at her skeptically. "That sounds like waaay too much!"
Lia's laughter intensified. --Luckily, she's just as bad!--
Naya cleared her throat. "I meant to have you make 10 masterpieces for me, each for one thousand gold; you can come back if you want when we're done."
--Brilliant recovery. --
"Oh!" Rula looked excited but still doubtful. "Well..."
"Elves don't lie," Naya spoke with a cold tone.
"Right! Dad said before that Elves are super strict!" Rula tapped her chin a couple times. "Okay! I'll come with you, but after we talk to Carla, see if she's okay with me stopping!"
"You ann-"
--Bring her with you; not like you can leave her in the room when you kill the Witch. I'm pretty sure this tower will collapse.--
Naya sighed and uncrossed her arms. "Fine, let's go."
Rula was already standing beside her, ready to leave.
"Nothing to bring with you?" Naya asked.
"Just my sketchbook and my paintbrush!"
"Fine." Naya looked around the room; the corner had a comfortable-looking bed. It was odd that the Witch seemed to treat the halfling well.
Naya walked back to the door with Rula at her side. Now, she would have to ensure no harm to the halfling, whom she found an odd desire to protect.
She was also positive that when Rula saw the Witch, she'd know she wasn't lying.
--It's not odd; you're not as heartless as you pretend to be.--