Part 1 –

There were no words that could describe the ominous heaviness in Exrite’s chest. Following the incomprehensibly large wall of fog towards the north, the strange sensation would hit her whenever she stared at its endless reaches.

No matter how far she drew her head back, she could never find the top.

The group was armed and geared to the teeth. Most if not all of their goods were comfortably carried by an armoured Khaos, which included a weeks supply of food and water, as well as spare bullets for Exrite.

The only thing missing was a giant sword for Khaos.

While their goal was to only meet with the Biomech and the Maiden of Realms, they didn’t know what would happen afterwards. It was best to prepare ahead just in case of some abnormal event.

After travelling through the maze of towering rocky monuments north of Saicry, they eventually entered a spacious forest. Life here was barren, and the only ambience was the sound of their scrunching footsteps. It was bizarre, since the area beforehand was teaming with life and other strange creatures.

A foreboding air lingered, but none of them seemed to be inflicted with fear. Only confidence remained, although Exrite pondered on her surroundings.

She examined the trees with sceptical eyes before looking back at the fog wall, which now bared the protruding barks of impossibly massive trees. Like pillars they stood, and like guards they remained and blocked off any entry into the Shallows.

“This forest is tiny in comparison… is the entrance is to the north?” Exrite was baffled momentarily.

“We could just squeeze in here if we wanted to. But~ why make it harder for ourselves when we can just travel outside? Travelling north here and inside there makes no difference until we reach our preferred entrance.” Black answered with a hum.

“Right...”

Exrite trailed off and continued to monitor their surroundings. All she needed was animal-like ears and she could be passed off as a Demi-human.

A part of her wanted to ask if she could return to her original body, but she quickly remembered the little conversation she had with Black and Uru regarding last night. Among the powerful individuals of the group, Exrite stuck out like a sore thumb. Being in her original body would burden everyone within the Shallows.

A human could only go so far, even if it was the Exrenity.

And Exrite despised that. No matter how determined she was to push through, she couldn’t deny her inherent weakness as a human in the grand scheme of things.

But holding off from trying would only continue the vicious cycle.

Lost in thought, Exrite failed to notice Frosty waving a hand in front of her face.

“- ite.”

“Ex… ite.”

The whisper caught her attention, and when she finally snapped out of her trance –

“Exrite!”

She jolted to the sudden voice, which caused her to take a step back and nearly stagger onto a following Uru. Regaining her senses, she stared into Frosty’s worried eyes and blankly blinked a couple of times before Frosty let loose of a long, tiresome sigh.

“Really… can you please fix your habit of spacing out? I couldn’t tell if it was the Eye of Despair eating at you or you were just staring blankly like an idiot.” Frosty quietly complained with an annoyed face. “You’ve been doing that a lot recently. And it’s scary since you mentioned that the Eye of Despair last manifested only two days ago.”

Her voice grew softer towards the end. Despite tightly folded arms and annoyed expression, Frosty held a warmth that caused Exrite to lightly grin.

“Ah, right… yeah, sorry about that. I’m fine. I was just wondering when I can finally return to my original body, that’s all.”

It sounded like she took a jab at both Uru and Black.

Although it wasn’t her intention to; the two couldn’t help but to have their interests piqued. Particularly Black who had never seen or heard Exrite sound even remotely irritated.

Well, that’s if she excluded Uru’s ‘suggestive’ handling of her.

And speaking of Uru – the dark-skinned Demon suddenly matched her pace beside her and quietly whistled a song, while Black mischievously smiled to herself.

“I trust that you’d do the same for us as well, Frosty?”

“Huh? Do what?” Frosty responded on reflex.

“Look out for us, what else? You can’t afford to be picky in the Shallows~” Black wagged her finger teasingly as she turned her head back, revealing her cheeky yet sadistic smile.

It pissed Frosty off more than it should’ve, but she managed to contain herself with a low grumble. Back and forth headbutting between the two was a common sight. Like Uru, Frosty was entirely on guard with Black, but surprisingly not so much with White due to her more ‘normal’ personality.

An hour soon passed, and the forest hadn’t changed in the slightest. However, the towering trunks grew spacious with every tree they passed, along with the weathering of its impenetrable armour.

Along the way Black brought the topic of Exrite’s human body up, considering it was on Exrite’ mind earlier.

“Sooo… Exrite –” Black rested her hands behind her head and delightfully began. “I’m struggling to understand something, so help me out here. You’re a Maiden, correct? Well – in body at least.”

The question struck Exrite with confusion. The rhetorical question only garnered a simple: “Yes.” from her.

Black drew her chin into the air and hummed.

“Hmm. Now, correct me if I’m wrong – but aren’t the Maidens one of, if not the most powerful and influential beings in this world? And there’s only six of you to boot.”

“From what I know, that’s right.” Exrite easily agreed, accompanied with a shallow nod of approval from Uru.

“Then tell me, Exrite – why the fuck do you want to go back to being a human? A Maiden outclasses that lesser race in every way, shape and form.” Black suddenly spoke with a sadistic glimmer in her purple eyes.

Human were fallible, whereas the Maidens were perfect. No one in their right mind would ever desire their old, imperfect race once they had the taste of a Maiden’s absolute majesty.

However – Exrite thought otherwise.

Such luxury and power was nothing but intoxicating. If she embraced every bit of it, then she’d undoubtedly come out as someone or something worse than Black, Uru and the red-eyed White combined.

Exrite was fully aware of the fatal flaws a human and herself, and it didn’t help that she had the Eye of Despair.

Because she was a human; she was entirely corruptible...

But that body was all that was left of herself – of Exrite and even Frost.

Angered by Black’s statement, she narrowed her eyes drilled them into the woman’s back.

“Sorry Black, but I’d rather keep what’s left of me in tact than to ditch it and lose myself.” Her anger was blatant, but not to the point that it was threatening in any way. However – it was certainly enough to surprise the others.

Especially Black herself.

She didn’t laugh at her, but instead pondered for a moment before dropping her hands to the side. As someone who had already given up her humanity, she couldn’t help but to pity her.

“Hmph. Then show me how long you can remain human for, Exrite. I love twists, but sooner or later, you’ll come to realise just how much of a liability it truly is.” She sternly spoke and turned her head halfway to meet with Exrite’s gaze. “I’m not saying this to spite you. I’m saying this because I know what the fuck happens when you desperately cling onto humanity.”

Her gloved hands suddenly tightened into balls as she sighed.

“But that’s your choice. And at the end of the day, I’m just a Colour who was dragged into this world by the Maiden of Realms for no apparent reason.” She concluded and stared ahead.

Exrite quietly winded down and let loose of her own sigh. A lingering anger remained, but it wasn’t because she despised Black.

Upon seeing her curled hands, Exrite refrained from saying anything more.

“Sorry about her.” White sincerely apologised before nudging Black. “Look, you were the one who wanted to avoid internal conflict. I get what you’re trying to say, but I think Exrite’s fine as she is. You probably do as well to a certain degree, since it was you who believed that she could take down Realm in the first place.” White scolded the woman, causing Black to tap her handgun.

“Yeah, I did say that. But never as a human. Anyway, let’s stop this useless conversation. We’re almost there.”

She pointed ahead at a single giant tree that grew just outside of the Shallows. Without the fog obstructing its height, they all admired the towering canopy that dwarfed the entire forest.

There was no doubt in Exrite’s mind that it easily carried more wood than all the trees of the forest combined. As majestic as it was – the group was far more concerned of the endeavour that awaited on the other side.

“Double check your stuff guys.” Khaos reminded.

It seemed like it was only Exrite who checked on gear.

Two handguns, a crossbow, an ammo pouch and a dagger rested comfortably on her waist, while a sword clung on her back.

She didn’t know if she’d actually get to use the blades, but she kept them on just in case she found herself in close combat… although –

Octanid armour… I doubt a sword, let alone a dagger would do anything to one.

She would have to rely mostly on her magic and long-ranged tools.

There was nothing but silence as as they reached the base of the staggeringly large tree.

But that silence soon shattered.

Without any warning, Black suddenly thrust her handgun towards the fog wall and fired a hailstorm of bullets. The multiple dry explosions startled Frosty, causing her to wince as Black relentlessly pulled the trigger for a full thirty seconds.

Afterwards, when the firing ceased, she turned to the others with a wicked smile.

The broken air smelt of toxic fumes and chemicals, while a sizzling hiss left the barrel of her black handgun.

“Preparations are all done~! Now, I’ll be surprised if there’s anything left standing on the other side.” She wildly announced and slowly approached the fog wall.

“… that’s insane.” Frosty muttered to herself. “You can at least check what’s on the other side before you rain hell on them. I don’t see a soul in there, so we’ll be fine if we just pass through.”

Indeed. There wasn’t a single soul on the other side. Her confirmation caused Black to hum and poke an arm into the fog wall.

“My bad, my bad. I went a bit overboard, but you know – it’s never a bad idea to shoot blindly into enemy territory. Even if you think its safe.” Black shrugged with laugh. “I haven’t been bitten or cleaved at yet, so it’s perfectly safe~”

Afterwards, Black stepped into the fog and was consumed. Her being disappeared from the world, sparking a gulp from Khaos and bewildered faces from Uru and Exrite.

Frosty carefully watched White approach the cloudy wall with an impenetrable air of confidence. She suddenly paused just as a hand reached for the Shallows entrance, the grass ceasing its quiet scrunches.

“Just because you can’t see the enemy, doesn’t mean that they’re not there. We’re living creatures as well, but we don’t have souls do we Frosty? Who’s to say that there aren’t other creatures that exists without souls in this world?” White spoke without ever turning back.

“Anyway, let’s go. You’ve already made it this far, so there’s no point in giving up now.”

“I’d be an idiot to give up here of all places. This doesn’t even come close to the suicide mission those damned Gods gave us.”

An ember suddenly sparked in her crimson eyes. The motivated Frosty was the first to confidently join with White. As much as it pained her to cooperate with the Commanders – she realised that they too had their own impossible goal they needed to accomplish.

For better or worse, they were allies with a common goal.

At least for now.

Relief sunk into Khaos as he slowly smiled and shook his head.

“Haha... I think I just lost a couple years off my life. All this dumb tension’s going to kill me one day. Really, can’t we all just get along?”

He complained to the remaining Exrite and Uru, rubbing the back of his neck tiredly.

“Give it some time. I’m sure last thing on your mind after our battle was becoming acquainted with me.” Uru ceased her whistling as she brushed a hand against Exrite’s cheek.

The girl remained still and stared at the backs of White and Frosty with gentle eyes.

“Mhm. Trust doesn’t come easily, especially for Frosty. Seeing her like that brings me back to when I first met with her.” Exrite quietly reminisced and chuckled to herself. “But I don’t think anyone can blame her for the way she is. Trying to trust people who can kill and manipulate others like its second nature isn’t the easiest thing in the world.”

“So long as its not directed to yourself, then it’s fine, isn’t it?” Uru stroked her cheek with a thumb. “And if it bothers you, then just remember that you’re a Maiden, Exrite. With your power, you can control everyone in this group –“

“Uru.” Exrite sternly interrupted her, pulling her eyes away from the chatting White and Frosty. “Stop. I don’t need you to fuel my ego. I want you to remember this, Uru – so long as I’m Exrite, I will never put myself above anyone.”

The Demon sensed Exrite’s blood suddenly boil through the thumb that rested on her soft cheek. Her indomitable demeanour amused the Demon, although she couldn’t help but to admire her stance.

“If that’s the case, then what are you going to do about your powers as a Maiden? Will you toss that aside because you want to cling onto being a human?”

“I never said that, Uru. I’d be insane to not use my powers to its fullest extent.” Exrite corrected her, drilling her contrasting eyes into the golden pupils of the taller Demon’s.

Her pride slowly ate at her the longer she stared down at Exrite. As a Demon – as a race that could never mimic the majesty of a Maiden – it was a crime to even think about looking down at one.

But dropping her height would only further anger Exrite.

It left her in an odd spot, although she strangely didn’t mind.

Since Exrite – the Maiden of Time – ordered her to treat her as an equal; a part of her thoroughly accepted it. After all, it allowed her to physically touch and embrace her beloved Maiden.

Unknowingly being drawn closer and closer into Exrite’s eyes, she failed to notice a hand that suddenly patted her snow-capped head.

“Uru… I understand that you’re a Demon, and you don’t want someone like me as your Maiden – but I didn’t want this in the first place either… and I still don’t know why I was made to be Maiden of Time. Sorry.” Exrite softly patted her head and smiled.

“… if it was the ancient Maiden of Time who made you her next of kin, then I’m trusting that there’s a reason behind that.” Uru snapped out of her trance and denied it ever happened with every ounce of will she could muster. “As strange as it sounds, I never had any major qualms with you being the Maiden of Time, apart from your rigid stance on challenging your inevitable fate as a human and the Exrenity… but I also don’t dislike that part of you.”

Uru returned a smile and gently dug her thumb into Exrite’s cheek. The soothing ticking left her in a state of euphoria, eventually causing her to forget about Khaos who stood beside White and his sister near the fog wall.

“… that’s another year off my life.” He sighed, shaking his head. “Exrite, Uru – let’s go!”

“Yeah, we’re right behind you!” Exrite exclaimed with a confident smirk.

Uru returned to whistling her pleasant song as she let Exrite free and walked with her to the others.

No matter how deadly the Shallows was, Uru had no qualms that their strength would easily trample over whatever creature dared to confront them.

It was only the end that irked her with a sense of uncertainty.

No one knew what would happen when they finally reached the Biomechanical Gardens – where the Biomech and the Maiden of Realms apparently awaited.

With this in mind, they disappeared into the fog and took their first step into the Shallows.

* * *

A sea of boundless trees stretched off as far as they eye could see. Compared to the one outside, these were easily twice its size, and the endless canopy above was enshrouded with a thick, foggy ceiling. A gentle mist cascaded the nearby distance, concealing the true vastness of the Shallows.

No step was ever the same. From overgrown fungus that would strangely point their upside-down mushroom caps towards them, to the tangled roots that strangled human-sized rocks.

Exrite remained vigilant. No matter how breathtakingly splendid the magical forest was – she couldn’t ignore the danger that lurked in every direction.

Multi-headed snakes alongside living vines rested on the trees around them, ensnaring whatever poor creature dared to tread underneath their branches. In the distance, she could already see giant webs hanging from tree to tree, and the occasional Octanid that seemed to freeze and cautiously watch them.

As they continued to follow Black into the magical forest –

A sudden flurry of spines shot from a nearby tree the moment Khaos’ shadow was cast over a cluster of suspicious tiny holes. They fired faster than anyone could react to, and their silence made their onslaught all the more deadlier.

However, none managed to scathe even a single hair on them.

Exrite’s [Barrier] cut them short as they violently littered the ground. The clinking of the translucent [Barrier] startled Frosty, causing her to take a cautious step closer to Exrite.

“You can’t let your guard down at all here, huh? Thank goodness for your [Barrier]. I don’t want to end up like a pin cushion again.”

Earlier, just after Black warned them about the meddlesome spines – they wounded up trampling on a small family of them. The merciless onslaught managed to hit everyone, although to a minimal effect.

That’s if they disregarded Frosty. She didn’t have impenetrable garbs like Black and White, nor was her skin tough and resilient like Exrite, Uru and her brother’s.

Within seconds, her entire back was riddled with the toxic spines. Had Frosty been a human, then she would’ve undoubtedly died on the spot. In the best case, she would’ve been left permanently in a vegetative state.

Frostbitten boasted near total toxic immunity, so only the aching pain and swollen wounds on her body remained.

A depressed sigh left Frosty’s lips upon remembering the painful experience.

“So much for only bringing a cloak and robes along.”

Exrite couldn’t help but to chuckle at that.

Deeper and deeper into the forest, they followed Black through tree after tree. The path didn’t seem to change at all, nor did their surroundings. An air of unease quickly began to spiral around them.

“Black, are you sure we’re heading the right way?” Khaos asked, fixing the strap on his plated shoulder.

The woman pulled out a colourless compass from one of her deep pockets and observed the pointing hands. It spun uncontrollably, but when she focused it on locating herself or White, it resumed perfect function.

“Hmm. What if I were to say that I don’t have any idea on where we’re going?” She hummed with a sadistic grin.

“H-hey. That’s not funny. You’re joking, right?” Khaos’ low voice sparked a small a small laugh from her. “R-right!?”

“Nope. I don’t have a clue on how to get there. We’re just walking aimlessly right now~”

“Huh? Excuse me?” An annoyed Frosty raised a brow.

“Black, can you please not?” Even Exrite grew irritated. “You wouldn’t mindlessly lead us into the Shallows without a method to your madness, correct?” She sighed, hoping that was the case.

Thankfully, it certainly was. However – it was far from what she expected.

“Exactly. If only you all put the same faith in me like Exrite.”

Clearly, Black was being annoying for the sake of it.

Even White felt like drilling a bullet straight into skull. The woman knew how to get on people’s nerves, no matter the situation. It was only Uru who seemed unfazed by her nonsense.

“Joking aside, it actually don’t know how to get to the Biomechanical Gardens. But – that’s not say that I don’t have a method of getting there.”

“So if you don’t know the way, then what kind of method do you have?”

Frosty’s question sparked Black to pull out a ceramic fragmentation grenade from behind her dark mantle.

Exrite had a bad feeling about this.

“Normally, a cute little Biomech comes around and leads me to their home. But the problem is – they don’t know that we’re in the Shallows right now. So –“

Black stored away the compass before she fired a bullet at the tip of the fuse wire, instantly igniting it. The dry explosion caught the attention of a distant pack of giant wolves.

Among them however, one lifelessly fell with a chunk of its skull blown off.

“Let’s make some noise!”

The pale-furred wolves were easily twice the size of Khaos, but they were still no match for the woman’s devastating blow. As if in a fit of rage, the wolves charged at them with no semblance of strategy, only wishing to avenge their fallen.

However – the tragedy only continued. The live grenade was thrown straight into the centre of the pack and exploded in a brilliant flash of light and gore.

No matter their size; their mere flesh and pelt could do little to protect them from the shrapnel that tore them from flesh to bone.

A lone wolf was propelled forwards, landing a few meters away from the group. It whimpered in agony, yet it growled in fury. With what little life it had left, it tried to drag itself forward with its front paws, for its hind legs were stripped of meat.

“What pitiful creatures.” Uru spat as Black fired a bullet into its head to finish it off. “For wolves, I’m surprised that they didn’t run away after you fired that first shot. How bizarre.”

“Hmhm~ it’s much better than I expected! Maybe a little too strong for humanoids and the like, but it works well for bigger targets.”

Black was enthralled by the power of her grenade. While it couldn’t be compared with Uru’s explosive orbs, it was impressive for something that required no mana at all.

The cracked and icky mess it left behind was sickening, yet they couldn’t help but to be awed. Soon, the air carried the foul stench of blood and charred meat into their nostrils.

White began finishing off the other wolves that barely clung onto their life as an act of mercy, while the others began to arm themselves. With the explosions and ear-splitting gunshots – they expected that the Biomech wouldn’t be their only company.

Seeing this, Black couldn’t help but to eagerly grin.

“Haha. I’m glad you guys are thinking ahead! I half-expected you guys to bitch at me for killing those wolves!” She laughed.

Exrite quickly unloaded her crossbow and stowed it away before pulling out her cobalt handgun. There was no way that a one-handed crossbow was going to do anything to pack of wolves, let alone an Octanid.

With this in mind, she carefully took aim and centred herself within the group while casting a [Hybrid Barrier] to cover her back. Prepared and staring down the iron sights of her handgun, a leaping Octanid suddenly rushed into her line of fire.

And with the pull of the trigger, the dry explosion marked the beginning of their one-sided massacre.

* * *

Part 2 –

A silent disruption piqued the ears of a lonely Biomech child. Roused from her rest, the child pointed their nose across the broken stone bridge that connected their secluded island with the Shallows.

She idly sat on the cracked edge of the bridge, motionlessly staring across at the thick wall of trees. The howling wind threw her silver hair in front of her as it violently rocked her body.

Crumbled remnants of the stone platform she teetered on slipped into the harrowing depths below, forever disappearing into the darkness.

If she was any closer to the edge then she would’ve plummeted off.

And she wouldn’t be the first Biomech to be met with such an unfortunate fate.

Silently, the Biomech girl rose to her feet and began traversing the perilous bridge. It seemed like she had confirmed the origin of the disturbance. She nonchalantly navigated through the cracks and empty spaces at a reasonable pace until the world around her suddenly quivered and morphed into a new reality.

The bridge was now a massive, ancient log that exhibited an age far beyond perhaps even time itself. Moss, plump fungi and jutting bark riddled the walkway. But the Biomech didn’t seem to care.

Fear among other concepts of emotion were far too abstract for the Biomech children to consciously comprehend. Often times, it would lead them to their deaths, or allow unhinged curiosity to lure them into the jaws of a monster, should they ever dare to leave their sanctuary.

But that was rare. Often, the inhabitants of the Shallows left them alone, whether because they were partly machines and therefore inedible, or for some other unexplained reason.

She climbed down the end of the log, placing her hands and feet into roughened grooves of the bark. Once down, she resumed her journey into the Shallows, lured by the popping and explosions deep within.

Not even the hammering waterfall beside could drown the sound.

Slowly and steadily, she traversed through the magical landscape with her eyes wandering both near and far. The world outside of her little sanctuary was beautiful, as always – and it filled her heart with a sense of solidarity.

If the girl could smile, then she would’ve had the most pure smile plastered across her face.

Eventually, after some time, she finally pinpointed the sound as it grew more and more defined and coarse. The sound of rupturing explosions from the strange weapons of the Colours caused her to begin a slow trot towards them.

Brushing by many shrubs and nearly tripping over tangled roots – she suddenly stopped by in place and watched the figures in front of her with docile eyes.

As always with meeting with Black – she was surrounded by chunky limbs and hole-infested corpses of various monsters. The other strange figures caught her eye as they gallantly fought against a handful of creatures, using magic and weapons she couldn’t possibly comprehend.

Save for the firearms; courtesy of her time spent escorting Black and White to her home.

It seemed as though they were finishing of the last of the hostile creatures.

“How annoying!” Uru charged a pale orb in her left hand and flung it at an encroaching that rapidly charged at her like a spinning boulder.

With nothing left to lose, the creature thought of taking the Demon out with it, but to its dismay – the orb utterly obliterated its main body, flinging metal scraps of its armour into the surroundings like shrapnel.

Green goo gushed from its crimson, pulsating innards as a vile stench stung her nose.

She could only tolerate so much of the creature’s impudence.

“Even tiny insects know how to bow and grovel in the presence of a Demon!”

“Tch. The creatures here aren’t used to having a predator, so it’s only natural that they don’t understand the concept of surrendering.” Black scorned, her voice nearly drowned by gunfire as she finished off an Octanid with a devastating blow to its flailing tentacled eye. “Not that it matters, anyway.”

Despite the size of the bullet and the handgun itself, the destruction it delivered was, for some reason, beyond Exrite’s handguns.

It mused Exrite in fascination as she poured a few bullets into a sneaking wolf amongst the vegetation. Her aim was impeccable, and when the wolf suddenly darted into a full sprint – she managed to land a lethal shot which pierced through its eye, killing it instantly.

Pleased by her work, she turned to Khaos who was in the middle of wrestling with giant wolf on the ground. He pried his fingers into its vicious jaws and snapped them apart as if he were unzipping a bag.

The mangled sound of bone and whimpering as he threw the wolf aside caused White to immediately mercy kill it with a stab of her pale blade.

“That’s some impressive strength. Their bites can rip through the armour of the Octanids like its nothing, and you were able to pry its jaw in two.” White offered a hand to the fallen Khaos and brought him back onto his feet.

“Hah! This strength is a speciality of mine.” He laughed whilst dusting himself. To his surprise, not a drop of blood had stained his black armour.

He turned to Frosty.

“Sis, how’re you holding up?”

“Don’t worry about me!” Frosty cried as she traded blows with a giant two-headed snake.

These creatures were called Dakes, and were vastly renowned for their speed and dexterity throughout the Vevillan region. It could easily tear through a group of B-ranked adventurers in the blink of an eye.

However – Frosty was able to keep up with its rapid, oscillating attacks. The blade of her ethereal scythe would explode with blue sparks every time it met with their razor-sharp fangs.

It also wouldn’t be strange if it was in fact the Dake that was trying to keep up with her attacks. In the onslaught of blow after blow that shook the air, one of the heads suddenly crashed into where Frosty was.

For a moment, the Dake thought that it had devoured her whole until it felt a sharp pain on its necks.

But that pain was short lived.

Blood violently sprayed like a geyser from its gruesome wound, coating the vibrant flora in a putrid mess.

Frosty had lunged to the side before the two headed creature could realise it.

And with only a clean cleave, both heads were decapitated. It lifelessly fell onto the roughened ground with a quaking thud as its body quivered in death.

Frosty painfully grimaced to a sudden vile taste that obtrusively violated her taste buds.

“Ugh… why does it taste so damn awful?” Her complaint reached no one.

She trudged back to the group, carefully navigating through the field of disembowelled corpses. Thankfully, these were monsters – creatures with the sole existence to feed, indiscriminately kill and reproduce.

To feel guilt or regret was complete and utter insanity, even for Frosty’s standards.

Amongst the cracking and snapping of skulls and tissue underneath Black’s leather boots, the group failed to notice a soft pattering that slowly approached.

“Hmm~ Not a bad standoff, if I do say myself. While it wasn’t as smooth as I would’ve liked to be, I think we did a wonderful job.” Black proudly waved her gun and grinned.

“I thought the Shallows was going to be much more harder than this. Were all the harrowing stories just a lie or something?” Khaos deeply muttered.

“I don’t think so. If it were a normal human or anyone else, then I doubt they’d survive here by themselves. Plus – we’re not really any ordinary group.” Exrite softly folded her arms. “But you’re right. I also didn’t expect them to go down so easily.”

“Hah! Finally admitting that your human body is worthless?” Black playfully teased.

Upon sparking an annoyed frown from Exrite, the woman laughed.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding. Realistically, even a human with a couple tools and gimmicks can survive in here for at least an hour before being overwhelmed. But in a group like ours, that might actually be able to do something~”

It was just as she said. Apart from surviving the poisonous spines, there wouldn’t have been much of a difference in the fight if she was in her original body.

Even as a Maiden, Exrite maintained a supporting role and used ranged tools first before magic. But because she was a Maiden – using firearms and tools over magic was a waste.

The handguns and crossbows should be left for her original body, which needed the extra firepower to make up the difference in strength.

A sigh quickly left her as she drowned in the simple thought.

“I hope you all realise that we’re still in the outskirts of the Shallows.” White stated, wiping her blade with a pale handkerchief. “From what I’ve heard from Milk and the Princess, this place is supposed to be four to five times larger than Cryo. For all we know, there could be a few curve balls lurking in the deeper parts.”

“Precisely. Although I sincerely doubt that would be an issue for us.” Uru spoke with absolute certainty.

Further mused, Exrite wanted to ask something. However, a small, monotone voice suddenly spoke from behind Black.

“I’m here.”

“Hmm?”

“Huh?”

“Eh?”

“Ho?”

“Hah?”

“What?”

An assortment of confused voices slipped from each of their lips as they immediately turned their attention to a silver-eyed girl. She stood with an emotionless expression, wearing silver eyes that barely held an ember of light.

From the silver hair, child-like appearance and ancient, torn drags – a unanimous conclusion was met.

This was undoubtedly the Biomech child Black spoke about.

“Ah! So you’re finally here, little one!” Black rustled the child’s hair with a gloved hand. “Perfect~ see, I told you I had a method up my sleeve!”

The child remained docile, her eyes scanning the unfamiliar faces that Black brought with her.

That was until her gaze landed on Exrite.

“… Ticking…?”

Confusion struck the Biomech – who failed to comprehend the strange sensation she felt towards Exrite.

“Ticking? Oh, I think she’s talking about you Exrite.” White relayed and smiled at the child. “I’m surprised you can hear that all the way from here. I wonder if it’s because you’re a living machine.”

“I don’t know.” A monotone reply left the girl’s mouth, promoting Black to release her and click her tongue.

“Still emotionless? You got here pretty quick this time around, so maybe you were excited to see me.” She hummed.

The girl only responded with:

“Excited? Is that what it was?”

“Maybe~ or did Realm and Auga send you?”

“No. I walked from the Biomechanical Gardens out of my own free will.”

Exrite didn’t know what to make out of the emotionless Biomech. From her speech to her eyes and lack of self care – it all irked and rubbed her the wrong way.

But she couldn’t put her finger why.

“Then you’ll easily follow the way back for us, right?”

The girl slowly nodded, her blank stare never changing the slightest. However, her eyes were glued onto Exrite.

The ticking entranced her, and when Black asked to lead the way, she seemingly struggled to part her eyes from Exrite.

Slowly but surely, she began to lead the group away from the blood-coated battlefield. Their trail on the uneven road began once more, and with it, came a deafening silence.

It was as if the nonchalant mood of the Biomech was lathered onto them.

Seeing a Biomech in person should’ve been an exciting experience for the group. However, the emotionally deprived Biomech made it seem like she was more of a machine than a living, breathing person.

Deeper and deeper into the Shallows they went, exploring spectacular sights and strange creatures that were oddly passive and left them alone.

Exrite assumed that it was because of the Biomech.

For hours they walked. Time never seemed to move in this place, and every direction was just a thick layer of trees and mist. Then, as they passed through a small series of lakes and dancing serpents – a faint crashing sound came from the distance.

It was the sound of a waterfall.

“We’re close now!” Black exclaimed in enthusiasm, sparking smiles and sighs of relief from the group. “It’s only a matter of getting out of the forest!”

“We’re leaving the Shallows?” Frosty asked with surprise.

“Just the forest. You see, there’s a place in the Shallows that breaks away from the mainland and isn’t enshrouded by fog. The landscape also drastically changes from then on.”

“And that place is the Biomechanical Gardens, right!?” Khaos rocked his fist in excitement.

With the exit drawing near, and the crashing waterfall becoming more predominant, they eventually left the forest and were greeted with a sight unlike any other.

There was no fog in this vast space, however – the landscape beyond the island was filled with nothing but a thick blanket of fog. So thick in fact, that not even light could penetrate through.

“… it’s gorgeous...” Frosty lost her breath, wandering in the small clearing before the chasm with a gaped mouth.

Everyone felt the same, entranced by the beauty while Khaos fought his inner demons regarding the perilous chasm ahead.

Gentle laughs, light chatter and the soft scrunching of grass followed the little Biomech who led them to her home.

Past the overhanging waterfall that spanned higher than the giant trees and across the fallen log of an ancient tree – resided the secluded Biomechanical Gardens.

The place where the Original Biomech and the Maiden of Realms awaited their arrival.