Part 1 –

A downpour of water extinguished the blazing forest. What was one a place teeming with life and vibrant flora, was reduced to a charcoaled graveyard.

The scorched trail that led to the only remaining village crackled with blackened trees and their burnt branches.

Slowly, the Demi-humans from the forest wandered through the place they once called home.

Denial. Hatred. Grief. Despair.

Their families and friends who died in the forest couldn’t even have a proper burial. Only ash and dust remained of them.

Exrite kept herself silent on this matter. Not a word had left her ever since Yellow rescued the captured Demi-humans from the cramped wagons and caravans.

Her mind was dazed for the longest time as she busily tended to the injured. Using a combination of pain-numbing [Healing] magic, along with proper bandaging and other techniques Yellow showed to her; Exrite somehow managed to keep up with the demand.

Their wails and silent sobs filled the crowded deck while White, Frosty and the Demi-human mages casted water magic over the forest. Uru tried to help them earlier but gave up when she failed to form even a drop of water.

As a Demon with intense heat-generating abilities, it would be odd for her to be able to use water-related magic in the first place.

Khaos also helped Exrite and Yellow tend to the Demi-humans. He’d crack jokes and lighten up the mood, garnering a few laughs from some.

And every time Exrite heard that – she’d smile; and the strange tingling near her Eye of Despair would faintly disappear.

But that wasn’t why she didn’t say anything.

In fact – the grieving Demi-humans didn’t hit her as hard as it did to Frosty or Khaos.

Her upbringing in Enthile made her numb to this, although it didn’t mean that she couldn’t find sympathy or feel compassionate towards them…

… Compassion…

“It’s ok. Everything will be fine.”

“Don’t worry about anything. You’re safe here, so please stop crying.”

“It’s all going to be alright.”

Exrite refused to say those words.

That way of showing compassion was cold and fake in her eyes. At least in this situation.

After what they’ve been through – how can anyone tell them that everything’s going to be fine? That they can forget about the loved one who died? About the home they lost?

… how can anyone tell such a tasteless lie?

Exrite was brought back to the night of her escape from the unholy prison. Her suffering and despair was abruptly interrupted by a breathless ‘researcher’. She could never see the figure’s face through her groggy eyes.

But what they said was as clear as day.

She remembered their words better than the names of her sisters.

“Everything will be fine.”

Rage. Hatred. Insanity.

How could anyone tell her that after everything she’s been through?

How could she believe those words if she didn’t know what they meant anymore?

A quiet sigh left her lips before she gently smiled.

The brief episode of the Eye of Despair didn’t inflict much onto her, apart from bringing back that painful memory. As she continued to tend to the Demi-humans, she wondered if this was only the beginning of its resurgence.

She made a mental note to remind the others when things start to die down.

* * *

Afterwards, when the forest was entirely extinguished and the Demi-humans were tended to, it would be time for them to consider their options.

Black made it clear that the Demi-humans had the choice of either staying here to rebuild their home, or, come with them to Saicry.

Yellow felt obliged to ensure that they understood the dangers of remaining here, and how much safer it was back in the ever-expanding city. But no matter how much she tried to convince them, there were many more who opted to remain in the village – their home – than to flee to the Golden City.

It was regrettable, but there wasn’t much she could do.

Through a system of pullies, a giant metal panel and the manpower of a hundred or so Demi-humans; Yellow managed to safely descend with them into a clearing.

Although ‘safely’ was a bit of a stretch. True to the Commanders motto; safety was the least of their concerns.

The greyish platform had no handrailing, so it was a straight plummet off the edge if anyone strayed to closely. Because of this, multiple trips were required to completely disembark the Demi-humans from the airship.

Khaos’ heart would skip a beat whenever the sound of tension came from the thick thread he mightily held.

While the airship hovered a good fifty metres in the air, an accident would most certainly prove fatal. With this in mind, Khaos gave it his all and fiercely sweated whenever he saw the thread sway in the wind.

“Relax, relax~ You’re so tense, Khaos.” A gloved hand gripped his shoulder as Black’s voice rung in his ear. “You’re not the one who’ll fall if you suddenly let go, you know?”

A small frown formed on his face as he turned to the black-attired woman beside.

“I’m more scared of this weird string breaking than me letting go.” Khaos deeply mumbled.

Unlike Exrite who could speak with the Commanders semi-freely, or his sister who spited them every time – he had no idea how to talk with them.

He felt like if he said something – anything wrong, then he’d be killed on the spot. It left him in a dangerous spot, where Black loomed over him like spectre ready to cut him down at a moment’s notice.

And for that; his grip tightened around the thread.

Black made a mused face for a moment as she slid her hand away from him and brought it to her chin.

“You’ll break it for sure if you keep tightening your hands like that, so stop it or I’ll fire couple rounds into you.” She tapped her holstered handgun and watched the giant man gulp in terror. “But I’m surprised. You’ve never heard of Octanid thread before?”

“T-that’s the first time I’ve heard anything like that. What kind of a creature is it?”

“It’s basically a thread from a giant fucking spider. Not easy trying to keep the abdomen intact without getting all that green goo all over you. But you can’t complain about something that’s like naturally made steel cable.”

She nodded to herself, leaving Khaos dumbstruck.

“Ah~ I probably confused you with that little rant. I’ll leave you alone so you don’t end up breaking any of my toys. I’d hate to have to stay here any longer.”

A cunning threat was interwoven in those departing words as she made her way Exrite and Frosty, who were chatting away with a small group of Demi-humans.

The squeaking of her leather boots piqued the twitching ears of the young group of Demi-humans. Without any delay, they made space for Black to enter the fray with utmost respect.

Before they dispersed; a few salutes came from them. The strange gesture left Exrite wondering if it was something Black and White taught them.

She stood about a metre from them, carrying an air of impossible uncertainty. Frosty’s gaze narrowed towards the soulless woman before she asked:

“What do you want from us?”

Her guard was tuned up to the maximum. Exrite however, was relatively calm in her presence. Their goals aligned nicely, and Black wouldn’t dare to harm her.

If she was in her original body however, then that’s a different story.

Black, sensing Frosty’s hostility, brought her empty hands to the side of her face and smiled smugly.

“Nothing, nothing~ I just wanted to check up on my allies is all. No need to be so cold all the time, Frosty.” Her voice was a jarring contrast to the purple eyes that calculated every breath they took.

It was suffocating.

“We’re friends in arms in this endeavour, so at least look like you’re on our side. I’m sure the last thing we all want is a disorganised mess and internal conflict while in the Shallows.”

Black’s voice held a hint of seriousness towards the end.

Indeed. The last thing anyone would want is the group to start fighting amongst themselves in such a dangerous place.

“… Yeah. Of course...”

Frosty reluctantly agreed, but there wasn’t a chance that she’d trust them with her life.

They were beings without souls; weapons that held no regards to those they killed. She had no doubts that the moment they became enemies, they’d turn their backs and mercilessly slaughter them.

There was no way she could trust these weapons.

But Exrite thought otherwise. While she detested their ideology of ‘friend and foe’ and to ‘live for battle’, she didn’t think that Black was inherently a bad person. Neither White.

It was a gut feeling that she didn’t quite understand just yet. But so far, her intuition hadn’t failed her. If anything, seeing Phase genuine smile was more of a farfetched thought than the Commanders showing some form of… heart?

Exrite didn’t really know any other word to substitute it.

She sighed as Black turned to her with folded arms.

“Anyway, I just wanted to thank Exrite for putting that [Barrier] up. No need to be so tense like your brother.”

“Eh? Thank me?” Exrite said with a stupid voice, causing Black to chuckle.

“She wouldn’t have had to do that if it weren’t for your oversight with the explosives. You should’ve known just how powerful that amount of explosive powder was if Exrite was able to figure it out.”

Frosty spoke with scorn and painfully grit her teeth.

A hand glossed over the handgun, instilling immediate fear into Frosty as she took a heavy step back.

“You’re pretty brash for a Frostbitten. Let me remind you that I’ve only been in this world for no longer than two months, so I don’t quite know the ins and outs of every little thing in this place. Sure, I packed too much explosive powder into the payloads, but it worked out in the end, correct?”

“… you gambled the power of those explosives knowing that you risked killing your own crewmembers if things went wrong?”

“Hmhm~ and it worked. But that’s not to say that I’m pleased with the results. If Exrite wasn’t here –“ She suddenly grasped onto the girl’s shoulders with a pleased face. “– then we would’ve lost a good majority of our loyal crewmates. No matter the size and value of a pawn, an ally is still an ally. But sometimes you have to ignore the means and focus on the ends.”

She intently stared into the contrasting eyes of Exrite, drawn into the gear-like iris.

“We’re not humans to cling onto useless things. But then again, do humans really care about the means in the first place?”

Exrite sighed, knowing what she was getting at and managed to shake herself free. The question was left unanswered, leaving Black to playfully hum and slowly remove a glove.

While she began to inspect the resistive Exrite, Frosty slowly stormed away with a bitter expression and joined with Uru and Khaos.

Needless to say, the two knew exactly why she looked like troubled child. After all, it was the same face she made when Uru first wanted to join their party.

Uru, and Khaos surprisingly, weren’t as untrusting towards the Commanders as she was.

Khaos was more scared of them than anything, and Uru realised just how much of a glorious asset they were to her own goals.

And besides; she’s worked with more diabolical individuals in the past.

As a soft breeze swept by, Khaos began to slowly reel back the thread alongside the Demi-humans.

“Frosty, I find it hard to believe that you’ve made it this far with only trusting a handful of people. At this rate, I don’t think you even trust yourself.”

Uru’s voice carried some ridicule as she sternly eyed the black-haired woman.

“Give me a break. I’m not so stupid as to trust them with my back.” She growled, harshly folding her arms.

“Ho? That’s humorous considering that I’m on your side. Or maybe you’ve finally opened up to me.”

“Huh? I don’t trust you either… well…” She pondered for a moment and made a strained face before softly sighing. “… maybe not completely…”

Uru lit up for a moment. To hear Frosty say that was a miracle in more ways that one, since the stubborn girl had her walls made impossibly thick.

And it’s been like that ever since her capture in Enthile.

Khaos, while pulling back many handfuls of thread, muttered:

“Sis, can’t you be honest with yourself for once?”

For a moment, Frosty considered striking him, but didn’t want to risk him letting go of the thread. Once again, the scorn towards Black resurfaced.

“I can’t even begin to trust someone who’ll willing put their friends in danger. Uru… you saw how big that explosion was. If Exrite wasn’t here, then what would’ve happened to everyone on the deck?”

“I think you’re misunderstanding something here. I, for one, didn’t expect the explosion to be that massive from something barely larger than Khaos. It was an unfortunate oversight, but it could’ve been avoided if they were more knowledgeable of this world. Like Exrite for example. Before they even exploded, she was already chanting because she knew of its destructive power.”

“That’s ridiculous! You’re telling me they created a weapon like that and didn’t know how powerful it was!?”

Frosty lashed out in a fit of frustration, garnering the attention of the deck including Exrite and Black. The woman in question only grinned and shrugged before continuing her talk with Exrite.

Strangely, a few Demi-humans were also partaking in the conversation. Their vibrant smiles only further infuriated Frosty.

If they knew how close they all were to being blitzed alive – could they still smile like that in front of her?

Recomposing herself, she sighed looked up at Uru.

“Ignorance is a blissful, isn’t it? Reminds me of when an Empire somewhere along Endo was going through an awful famine. They began offering rewards to lucky winners, promising a better life than those who starved. And the next thing you know, there’s food everywhere in the Empire when the lucky winners suddenly disappeared.”

It took a second for Khaos to realise what she said, whispering: “Yeah… I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“They looked so happy eating the flesh of the ones they once –“

“Uru… what the fuck does that have to do with any of this?” Frosty interjected. The mere thought of that reminded her of the disgusting souls she devoured thus far.

A devilish grin formed on the Demon’s face.

“What I’m trying to say is that there are others much more sinister than the Commanders in this world. If you’re having issues trusting someone like Black and White, then I can’t imagine you venturing the rest of Six Point. Your perception is skewed Frosty. If your version of trust is to have every little thing alike, then you’re mistaking it with a blood-vowed marriage.”

“Call it whatever you want. I’d rather know that I’m safe rather than have to constantly fear that someone’s going to stab me in the back.”

“Then how do you think Exrite feels? Surely somewhere along the way there were times when she didn’t want to reveal herself as the Exrenity or the Maiden of Time. Do you think she hadn’t thought about the possibility of betrayal?”

Frosty paused for a moment as the words refused to flee from her lips.

She was right. If there was anyone who would have the hardest time trusting others, it would be Exrite.

But that wasn’t the case with her at all. While Exrite wasn’t open with her secrets, she wasn’t as tight lipped about as well. The biggest risk would come from Bailey and Allen…

However, she refused to believe that they would ever leak such important information…

Because she trusted them.

And she didn’t know why.

Frosty stayed there for a while as she pondered the thought, leaving Uru in silence as she quietly hummed a small song to herself.

The pullies attached to the side of the airship began to rattle as the platform drew nearer to the deck. The thick coil beneath Khaos nearly reached his calves as a gratifying look spread across his face.

As the last of the thread fell underneath him, the sight of gold crept over the ledge. He thought it was Yellow at first, but the longer he stared, the sooner he realised just how wrong he was.

From the golden-long, pony-tailed hair to the strange loose robes they wore – this person devoured his attention alongside Frosty. In return, the two orbs surrounding him seemingly stared at them both with an odd silence as Yellow and the other Demi-humans wandered on board with relieved faces.

“… Sis… you can feel that, right?”

“Yeah… I know…”

As if sensing the identity of the figure ahead, the two made minimal exchanges as they became utterly awed. An instinct kicked in, one that they didn’t fully understand, but somehow knew what it trying to tell them.

“Oh…? Now this is a nice surprise.” Milk pleasantly hummed.

The figure was undoubtably a Frostbitten.

* * *

Part 2 –

The airship resumed its journey to Saicry once again. This time, with a few new faces on board. Within the pristine black and white hall, a strong fragrance of sweet tea and bitter coffee filled the air with a delightful atmosphere.

A pleasant clamour resounded from the group who sat around on various furnishings or explored the vast hall with broadened eyes. Yellow wandered across the beautiful structures and crossed a large pale archway with a vibrant smile.

“It’s so beautiful! This must’ve taken Black forever to make without her powers! Ha~!”

It was the first time she had entered the hall, so her excitement was understandable. Although Milk would wryly smile whenever she randomly called out to him.

“Milk! Look at this! Isn’t it amazing!?”

After taking a sip from his tea, Milk softly smiled at Khaos and Frosty.

“Sorry about her. Yellow tends to get noisy whenever she visits new place.” He politely spoke.

There was a calming air about him that the Frostbitten siblings couldn’t put their finger on. Something about his forever-sealed eyes and the mystical dual tails and tall ears made it seem like he was a mythical creature. The divine red and gold drapes of his loose robes only helped to reinforce the thought.

And not to forget about the two beautiful orbs that hovered beside him.

From only a single glance, they could tell that Milk wasn’t any ordinary Frostbitten.

As he returned the cup onto the table, he began fixing his posture before returning to the conversation that was briefly interrupted by Yellow.

“Hm. Now, where were we? Ah. Right. We still haven’t formally introduced ourselves, have we? My apologises. I got wrapped in the excitement of meeting another Frostbitten. My name is Milkazako Exri, a pleasure to meet you two.”

He politely lowered his head and softly smiled.

“Haha! We should be the ones saying that!” Khaos happily nudged the smiling Frosty beside. “I never thought we’d ever get to see another one of us so soon! The name’s Khaos Eccent, but you can just call me Khaos.”

“What else is he going to call you, moron?” Frosty mumbled and nudged him back, never breaking away from her pleasant smile. “Anyway, I’m Frosty. Sorry if this idiot’s being too loud.”

She considered Milk’s tall, fox-like ears that looked irresistibly fuzzy. Surely, those were many times more sensitive than humanoid ears.

Milk slowly shook his head and assured them that it was fine.

“That’s fine. It’s always nice to see and hear happiness around these parts, so I don’t mind. Especially after a pillage like that.” He hummed and brought the teacup to his lips. “Hm. I’m sincerely glad that they’re willing to rebuild their villages, but I’m afraid that they’ll be invaded again. Hope isn’t always hope sometimes, you know.”

As he took a sip, he suddenly jolted and nearly spilt the tea on himself.

“Oh, sorry. I went off on a little tangent there. Being alive for more than a hundred years really does a number of things to you.”

Through his shut eyes, he seemingly stared at his distorted reflection before humming: “Well, let’s get into the story of why you’re here in the Cryo region. If you’re excited meeting another Frostbitten like myself, then I’m sure you have plenty of questions to ask.”

‘Plenty’ was an understatement for what Khaos had prepared. After searching through countless libraries for anything about his ancient race – there was no way that he wasn’t going to ask every little thing he could.

Expecting that this was the case, Milk politely asked for another cup of tea before the lengthy session. Frosty sighed and nudged Khaos, whispering “Don’t overdo it.” before leaving for the living quarters.

Along the way, she allowed her surroundings to sink in when she realised that Exrite and Uru weren’t here.

“Hah… just what do the Commanders want with her this time?” A long sigh left her.

Following the pristine, vastly spacious corridor, she couldn’t help but wear a bitter face. The tapping of her black boots against the reflective floor softly echoed with each step she took towards the automatic door at the end.

And just as she was close enough to set off the door’s sensors – someone suddenly mashed their head against her.

“O-ouch! Hey, are you ok – wait, Exrite?”

“Ack… sorry Frosty, my bad.” Exrite groggily held onto her head before thanking Uru for catching her.

A small laugh came from an accompanying Black, who steadily wiped her fingers with a crimson-stained cloth. It went without saying that Frosty immediately knew the origins of that soaking mess, and slowly clenched her fists.

“Something the matter Frosty? You looked like you were in a hurry when you walked through.” Black hummed before shoving the handkerchief into a vacant pocket. “Are you going to get some rest before we make it to Saicry?”

“No, I was just going to brew some more tea.” Frosty didn’t want to say anything more and began walking past her nonchalantly. “Please excuse me. And Exrite – “

Before entering the black and white-chequered door, she abruptly froze and sharpened her gaze.

“I don’t know what they’re showing you, but please be careful with your Eye of Despair. We’re not in the Capital anymore, and you only have us to help you.”

“Wait –!”

Exrite’s voice betrayed her mid-shout as Frosty disappeared into the kitchen.

A brief silence followed, which was suddenly broken by Black’s unrestrained sigh.

“Tsk. To think that someone as brash as her is a Frostbitten. So she can trust a Demon more than a Colour like myself? Tell me, what kind of a shit bias does she have against me, Exrite?”

They began to make their way into the hall, Black leading with long, agitated strides.

From her ruthless nature as a weapon, to the inner reaches of her beliefs of mercilessly slaughtering those who were deemed her enemies – the reason was painstakingly obvious.

However, no matter how Exrite saw it;

Uru was similar to Black and White.

So why was Frosty able to trust her more than them?

The only answer she could come up with was:

“I’m not so sure. Between you and Uru, I don’t see why she can’t trust you even a bit. We’re all trying to reach the same goal, after all…”

“That doesn’t help much, but it’s something. What about you Uru? How on Earth- I mean, how the hell did you manage to get on her good side?”

A Yellow in the nearby distance widely waved at Black while hoping on a foot. The sight washed her with a strange warmth as she couldn’t help but to softly grin in return.

“Frosty was just as harsh on me when we first met. The respectless woman didn’t fear that I could obliterate her with the lift of a finger, although I did admire that part of her. I believe it was a combination of three things – “ Uru hummed.

“Showing her the advantages of having me by their side, allowing time to slowly thaw the ice, and, most of all – “ She suddenly swooped behind Exrite and wrapped her stomach with both hands. “My love and respect for my beloved Maiden of Time.”

Exrite, who was forced to stop in her tracks by the iron grip, softly sighed and mumbled: “Did you really have to hold me just to make your point?”

“I can see the first and second method working, but I’m not from this world so I don’t know the true significance of the Maidens apart from their unfathomable power… hm. Yeah. I’ll give it some time and see where that takes us.”

In between her steady strides, she suddenly stopped and looked over her shoulder with a soft smile.

“Please let Frosty know about my intentions. A poor girl like her should never have to close her heart away from the world.”

It felt like the world suddenly froze for a second as a strange warmth filled the room.

Exrite could only feel sincerity from those words.

It was surprising to say the least. Even Uru’s image of the woman shattered.

Who was supposed to be weapon driven to solely kill those that stood in her way, spoke with resounding compassion.

After what felt like an eternity, Black fixed her Otherworldly peaked-cap before walking off into the hallway beyond. Along the way, Milk greeted her and was responded to with a pleasant nod.

A confused Khaos was left in front of a smiling Milk who assured him:

“Hm. She’s not as bad as you think. She’s ruthless, murderous and laughs at death and suffering alike, but she still has a heart if you search deep enough. Hm. That what I can see, at least.”

Khaos wanted to ask how he could ‘see’ but brushed the thought aside. For all he knew, those floating orbs could’ve been his eyes…

Wait… there’s no way, right? That can’t be real… right…?

The longer he thought, the more convinced he was of the fact. An eerie chill ran down his spine as he slowly bit into a biscuit.

“Hm? Did you find something on my face that I happened to miss?”

“N-no! I was just thinking how cool those orbs are.” He managed to save himself with an awkward laugh. “I-is that some kind of magic?”

“Magic you ask? I’m not so certain myself, but it does allow me to see. You could call these my eyes in a sense.”

Khaos maintained a straight face, no matter how much he wanted to wryly smile and shrivel up into a ball.

With Yellow calling out Milk’s name in the distance and Frosty returning with the newly brewed tea – their journey to Saicry would continue without any further interruptions.

Until –

A terrible crash erupted from the entrance of the hall. Before all eyes could gather towards the source, a sudden shriek left everyone but Milk and Yellow utterly dumbfounded.

“Yellow!? Get down from there! If you break that balcony then Black will throw you off the side of the airship!”

Out of everyone that could’ve possibly scolded Yellow for her perilous behaviour, no one in their wildest dreams expected it to be a blue-eyed White.

She stormed through the hall with an annoyed face and climbed a set of stairs up to the childish Yellow. The troublesome girl walked on the pristine railings like it was a tightrope and happily stared down at White like nothing was wrong.

“Woah~! Your eyes are back to normal White~!”

“My eyes have always been normal!” A vein popped on the side of her head. “Can you please get down before you end up breaking the balcony.”

“I’m not that heavy you know. In fact, I think I’m the lightest out of all the Colours~!” Yellow proclaimed before dropping in front of White.

Her large, bouncing bosoms made it hard for White to believe that was the case. Without a second to spare, she clasped Yellow’s face in between her palms and distorted her cheeks.

“White~! Stawwp~! Ywou awways dwou thwis~!”

White loudly sighed.

“I do this because of you. You’re always acting before you think, and then you complain about getting in trouble afterwards.” She ceased tormenting her and released her iron grip. “Honestly, can’t you stay put for a second?”

“But I can’t help it in a place as amazing as this~!”

White quickly gave up on trying to convince her otherwise and sighed again. The girl was a Demi-human at heart, so her instincts would always come before thought.

As annoying as it was, that was also Yellow’s strong point. Against someone like Blue, who could calculate every variable in a battle, risked the chance of being bamboozled by Yellow’s instinctual behaviour.

It took a while for her to realise all the attention she garnered. From Exrite to Frosty, everyone stared up at her with broadened eyes; apart from Milk of course.

He simply sat there enjoying the fresh batch of tea.

With a hand on her hip and the other awkwardly scratching the back of her head, she whispered:

“… I guess I haven’t told them about my sane-self yet… what to do, I wonder.”

* * *

The clamours and pandemonium surrounding White and her impossible personality change lasted until the Golden City was finally within reach. The faraway sun had settled beyond the horizon, and in its rest, rose a supermassive moon.

No matter how beautiful the vast expanse of Cryo was, nothing could compare to Saicry.

The lands in this part of Cryo weren’t flat like the plains and consisted of many hills and outcropping rock formations. Mountainous structures were a common sight, often overgrown with luscious vegetation. And among them, were golden plants that beared glistening fruits.

It became clear as to why this place was called the Golden City, apart from the yellow roofs that were inspired by Asian architecture from Earth, according to White.

The golden plants illuminated the lands beneath, leaving the group breathless as they watched from above, including Khaos surprisingly.

The city itself resided deep within the secluded landscape, teetering just at the towering edge of the Shallows. A single, massive lake slept at the base of the city and housed a lively harbour.

Parts of the city were built into the surrounding landscape, while a single pathway cut through the city and led to perhaps the most strange-looking palace Exrite had ever seen. It followed the same patterns as most other buildings, yet it dwarfed them with its sheer size and splendour.

Exrite couldn’t help but to hold her breath and drown in the spectacular sight.

“This mist… is that from the Shallows?” Khaos asked, averting his eyes from the plummet below.

“Look all around you. The mist comes from all the high waterfalls here. But this is nothing compared to the Shallows.” White answered.

Indeed, many large rock formations housed splendid waterfalls, although Exrite wondered how the constant stream of water arrived up there in the first place. She’d often trace the outcrops back into the thick, foggy wall of the Shallows where they disappeared entirely.

She suspected that the elevation must’ve been incredible within the Shallows. For a moment, she felt sorry for Khaos and softly smiled to herself.

An assortment of chatter and cheerful laughter roused across the deck. The Demi-humans celebrated their return, even if most of them had been gone for less than a week.

But the newcomers were drenched in tears and clinging onto one another, before eventually –

“C-Commander White.” A small voice came from behind the woman, prompting her to turn with a curious face.

“Yes? Something you needed?”

At first, it was one Demi-human. And then, more and more began to crowd around her before it became a sea of Demi-humans.

It seemed like they all were feeling the same thing.

The familiar single-bunny-eared girl squeezed her hands together and mustered all the courage she could find to utter one thing:

“Thank you.”

Her voice nearly broke, becoming a whimper towards the end as a tear ran down her cheek.

White was taken aback for a moment, before suddenly:

“Thank you.”

“Thank you so much!”

“You saved us all, thank you so much!”

“T-thank you… thank you for saving us…”

Heartfelt cries and whimpers surfaced from the Demi-humans. Many were from the disastrous event, while a few were surprisingly from other rescue operations.

Like the bunny-eared girl, who was brought in before they met with Exrite in the Capital.

“Really… there’s no need to thank me. If anything, it’s Yellow and Black you should be thanking.” White softly sighed and took in the warm sight.

Yellow began immediately hugging those around her, comforting them with smiles and her invaluable warmth.

She’d cry: “There there~! You’re safe here in your new home with all the rest of us~! So cheer up and welcome home~!”

Amid this, Exrite went to comfort the sobbing bunny-eared girl with a gentle head-pat.

“It’s been tough, hasn’t it?”

Her voice, her warmth… her ticking touch… all of it only caused the girl to shudder as she silently wept and held dearly onto Exrite’s hand.

“I’m sorry… I-I know I shouldn’t be crying but- I’m sorry...”

‘Tough’ probably couldn’t even begin to describe what she had been through. The girl’s eyes hid underneath a veil of hair as she quivered and sniffled.

“It’s ok to cry. There’s no person in this world can tell you otherwise. Whether it’s a God, a Maiden, the Exrenity or myself – only you can decide that. So – “

Exrite’s voice softened as she stared off into the distance with motherly eyes.

“Cry your heart out.”

The fragile arms of the malnourished Demi-human wrapped themselves around her waist. A damp patch formed on Exrite’s chest as the girl bawled into her.

For a moment, an image of the girl surrounded by her loved ones flashed before Exrite eyes…

This is her memory, isn’t it? It’s nothing like the dreams where I’m stuck in their perspective… but that doesn’t matter… it must’ve been hard for her, to lose everyone she’s loved…

Exrite allowed the girl to hold onto her for as long as she needed while she delved into a reflecting thought.

… If only I could cry like that.

Frosty watched them with soft eyes and began re-evaluating the Commanders. Sure, they were undeniably cruel, ruthless and posed every risk towards them.

But if they weren’t like that – Then what would’ve happened to the Demi-humans present?

The thought left her in perpetual dissonance. No matter how much good came out of the bad, she still couldn’t come to trust them. The face she made while mused made Khaos chuckle light-heartedly and wrap an arm over her shoulder.

“Still not being honest with yourself, Sis?”

“Huh? Do you want to get thrown off?”

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding… but honestly, the world really is too big to make it your enemy. I don’t know about you Frosty, but I don’t mind pairing up with them on this journey.”

Frosty kept silent and listened to his voice.

“To beat the Maiden of Realms, or any Maiden’s going to need a lot more strength than we have right now. With all the strings they’re pulling, I don’t think they’re dumb enough to betray us. And besides – we all have the same stupid goal at the end of the day.”

He laughed as Frosty stared at the emotional Demi-humans with silent eyes.

“… but… what if we get betrayed again?”

“We won’t. If Exrite trusts them, then so do I. I’ve never doubted Exrite, not even for a second with her decision.” He spoke with an iron voice and stared at the motherly figure tend to the bunny-eared girl.

After everything Exrite had been through, she still managed to stand upright with a bright smile; and Khaos couldn’t help but to wholeheartedly admire her.

To be killed countless of time.

To be thrown into the role of the Exrenity and the Maiden of Time.

To be ordered to fulfil the impossible.

To be told that the future was nothing but bleak…

Exrite held her head high and strove to battle the odds, no matter how weak she was. And that alone, made her the strongest person Khaos ever had the pleasure of meeting.

He remembered that one fateful night and laughed again.

Frosty was left in deep thought. No matter how she saw things, she couldn’t help but to fear a betrayal down the line.

Not as enemies, but as friends.

Uru delightfully hummed to herself and devoured the view of the city. After a thousand years, Saicry had changed so much that she couldn’t believe it was the same place.

The old song from her homeland left her lips while she watched a glowing boat row across the massive lake. It steadily floated into the moon’s calm reflection, bathing in its pale light.

In this benevolent city, they would have to stay here for the next day or two before they could head into the Shallows.

But until then, there was much preparation to be done.