When Sophia closed the gate after Naya went through, she waited until she couldn't feel Naya and Rula's presence, then opened another.
She hastily stepped through it, no emotion on her blank face as she took a final glance at the deconstructing tower.
"A pity, Carla. Sanctum would have treated you well."
Gone was her playful nature; she had a duty to carry out, not for Sanctum, not for her position, but for herself and the thousands of lives lost in the neverending hunt.
Killing Witches wasn't something taken lightly, and although Sanctum had forgotten its ultimate purpose, she had not.
She stepped through the portal.
A realm of pitch black, where multicolored lights flickered in the distance.
Everyone else who entered here would be robbed of movement in a state half-frozen, where only their vision worked.
[I wonder if Naya was shocked by it. ]She smiled at the thought, her cold facade breaking.
She can only send people here if they step through her portals willingly, as per the laws of the place.
She stood motionless, but she could move her body freely; she just didn't want to yet.
Sophia's thoughts drifted back to the Elf, to Naya.
An enigma, a profound mystery in her otherwise dull life.
An Elf outside of Aleria? Absurd. At first, Sophia wanted to believe she was an emissary sent to aid in the fight against Witches.
But Elves don't care for the mortal races anymore.
When Sanctum was at its peak, they tried a century ago to request aid, but they refused.
It begged the question, what was Naya, an Elf who looked no older than 25, doing there, in a nameless Village in a remote part of Rella?
The first thing she noticed in the chief's home was the minuscule light within Naya's core, lighting up occasionally.
Sophia had seen that light before.
However, Elves couldn't be Witches; they were the ultimate form of mages, and they were never born with the innate ability to contract a devil.
Naya was speaking with something, and given her reactions, she resisted even speaking at the meeting.
So Sophia teased.
She couldn't help it, and the shocked expression on Naya was terrific.
However, It showed her instantly that Naya was just a normal girl like all the other races, at least when it came to emotions. She wouldn't be the cold and ruthless Elf like those passed down in tales.
The meeting continued, and it was apparent to Sophia how much Naya detested being there.
So she didn't stop her when she left and just hoped Naya wouldn't resist meeting her later.
She was ecstatic when she received Naya's acceptance, even if it seemed forced. After all, Naya was an Elf; even if Sophia didn't like her, she would need to meet.
After the boring meeting, Sophia left instantly through a portal and appeared a slight distance from Naya. She didn't want to show her magic then, even if it didn't matter to an Elf.
She moved quickly and caught the last words of Naya, likely speaking to whatever the voice within her was.
They were discussing Witches.
She had to resist the excitement. Could Naya really be out on a mission to hunt witches? Did the Elves finally care for their plight?
So she walked up and teased again.
It was spoiled by the voice, clearly, but Sophia enjoyed seeing Naya's reaction.
However, she was happy to reinforce the belief that Naya was not like the Elves in tales.
Sophia stood in the void, stuck in her reminiscence of just a day ago.
She was embarrassed by her behavior, too. She couldn't resist and called Naya beautiful but then messed up. She knew she did when Naya reacted as such.
She knew why; who would enjoy a trait of theirs being credited to their species? She didn't mean it like that, and she instantly knew it was a stupid thing to say.
But Sophia couldn't help it; she hadn't been around someone she actually wanted to get to know in ages.
Everybody knew who she was; she couldn't trust anyone who tried to get close to her.
But an Elf would not care in the slightest.
Sophia felt like a normal person when she spoke with Naya, as briefly as it was.
When Naya said she could kill devils, Sophia was stunned, and a blazing fire of hope engulfed her heart.
Her own Mother died fighting witches, her brother died fighting witches, her father became a Vampire so he could fight witches, and her sister was in the United Academy so she could fight witches.
The emotions she felt then were too difficult to control, so she hugged Naya.
Sophia broke from her thoughts and shook her head. [I was too hasty. Naya clearly did not like being touched, or she wasn't used to it. ]
She would try to move more slowly next time, lest Naya start to hate her. But she only did it that time due to uncontrollable emotions.
Still, her face brightened, remembering the blushed girl in her embrace.
[She was so cute, her ears were so cute. Gods, I can't help myself!]
She wanted to see Naya again and tease her, to see those long ears twitch.
Moderately, of course, Sophia didn't want Naya to push her away.
[Naya obviously doesn't know much of anything about our world; maybe I can be the one to teach her about humans.]
Her thoughts went back to the tower.
Sophia recalled Carla, the witch who was meant to be under Sanctum's care.
Naya informed her of a lot. A devil appearing outside the body with the ability to speak before the 5th circle, a Kingdom working with Witches, and another Elf roaming the mortal world.
Something was happening in the world, and Sophia didn't like it.
She recalled how gravely Naya's arms were injured and again found herself reminiscing about the Elf.
She recalled Naya's annoyance. Sophia didn't mean to look at her with pity; nobody would like that.
But those were her true feelings; she couldn't help but see Naya as another young lady similar to her.
Still, she wouldn't do that anymore; Naya was obviously powerful. The Garuda said as much.
She knew she needed to stop acting overly familiar; even if Naya seemed not to hate her already, there would be a point where it went too far.
[I already messed up a couple of times.]
She found the thought of making Naya hate her to be a terrible one.
She also found herself missing Naya a lot more than she thought. It made sense; that girl would be the only one she could speak with normally.
Sophia could ignore Naya was an Elf, and Naya didn't even know what Sanctum was.
And Rula, but she just seemed uneducated and still a child. Though a cute one that Sophia felt terrible for.
Sophia considered her next steps.
She had sent Naya and Rula to a peaceful frontier city where they could get the hang of the Adventurer's Guild before moving on. The quests there should not be too dangerous.
[Should I report to Sanctum? But maybe I can work with Naya and won't need them anymore.]
Sanctum was useless to her now; they only cared about political struggles and magic. She found herself reporting back less and less.
[Those old fools really will cause a Faction War.]
But she doubted anything Naya told her would spur them into action, other than that Naya was an Elf. It was too far gone; they were too embroiled in politics.
Even then, Sophia found the idea detestable. [I will not sell her out like that.]
So it was settled. [Maybe I'll join the adventurers guild, too. I've been wanting a job change.]
She thought about it, and as tempting as it was, Sanctum would not let her go so easily. Still, they couldn't stop her either; she would just do both.
Sophia stretched and opened another portal. [But first, let's at least report the dead witch. I'll say I killed her for you, Naya.]