Micchi Versus the New World - Chapter 93

Alt link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KnUU57bFo-28iZJlZjpmcozG59LZ977mGzMX8yyQ5Cg/edit?usp=sharing

Chapter 93

"As much as I don't want to be Ririko's gopher, we need that flower. She's the only one who knows the location of the artifact that can pinpoint demons," I said.

"Agreed." Anya nodded, sitting cross-legged with her eyes shut in thought. "Those monsters show up whenever they want, and it seems like there ain't a single kingdom that's found where their hidey-hole yet."

After the flower fiasco, we came back to our small cabin in the village to figure out what to do next. The fire provided a nice, toasty atmosphere, insulated by the layer of snow piled on the roof like an igloo. It was a pleasant relief from the frigid climate of Mou'nan. Even here, however, the cold seemed to have followed me in.

"I'm sorry, everyone. It feels like I brought you out here for nothing. I was sure my research was correct…" Naka's ears and tail drooped apologetically.

Anya patted Naka so hard, the beastling jolted forward. "Ain't your fault, kiddo. We all saw that mountain covered in snow. No way anyone should've gotten in there. Right, Micchi?"

"Right." I frowned, searching for someone else to blame.

"I brought tea! Please, help yourselves." Fade delivered a tray of hot tea for us to drink, handing each of us a cup.

The room quickly filled with a fragrant aroma. But right now, I was hankering for something else to take the load off.

"I still find it hard to believe… that you are ordering one of the Eighteen around like a servant." Naka couldn't take her eyes off Fade.

"Servant?" Fade repeated indignantly. "Ha! I am no—"

When I threw him a look, he quieted down and shrunk in size.

"I-I serve my Lady Micchi…" he stammered.

We might have hit a roadblock on Ashanti's Grace, but that wasn't the sole reason we came out here. There was still the matter of Lyria's Trial. After losing Sacchan, I needed more power. Chika and now Ririko were proof that I was still weak. Weaker now without my weapon.

As I gazed into my empty hands, it still doesn't feel real. I'd sometimes clench my fist and close my eyes, then open them hoping Sacchan would still be there.

Maybe Anya noticed that a cat's got my tongue, so she brought up the trial to Naka in my place.

"We're looking for another one of the Eighteens— Lyria. Caught wind that one of her trials is here. You got any research on that?" Anya asked the relic-hunter.

"The Goddess of Battle and Glory?" Naka glanced up, eyes filling with interest. "I have heard that one such trial exists toward eastern Mou'nan, hidden like every other vault. However, many people have gone in search of it and never returned. Lyria doesn't play games when it comes to testing one's strength."

"Oh? First this bitch goddess had my curiosity, now she's got my attention. It true that completing the trial makes someone stronger?" I asked.

"No one knows for sure, but…" She turned to Fade.

The god shrugged. "How should I know the inner workings of a battle-crazed lunatic? No one knows what Lyria has hidden inside her pet project vaults she calls trials."

"Maybe this will help?" When I pulled out the worn tome of Kain's cucked ghost of an ancestor kept inside the underground mansion, Naka recognized it immediately. I tossed it over to her, and she flipped through the pages like a bookworm, seemingly able to understand the weird tangle of words.

The beastling fetched a notebook of her own and began turning page after page, translating Lyria's tome.

"Well, aren't you a learned fellow?" Fade remarked, smiling as Naka picked up another book to help her translate. "Perhaps the first mortal capable of understanding godspeak."

"Whatcha got for us?" Anya leaned in to look over the notes, but Naka was shocked by what she wrote.

"Oh… In short, it says Lyria's Trial is hidden at the deepest part of a mountain crowned as the highest peak of Mou'nan. There's only one mountain in this entire kingdom that towers over the rest— Grishant," Naka said.

Right under our noses.

"Back to Ririko empty-handed, huh." Anya grinded her teeth.

If we did, it would definitely end in a fight. Ririko's got our numbers on speed dial. One step in that city, she would know. Especially with all those stupid Glamour Guards.

"Or maybe not," I said. "That caked up cunt hasn't stepped out of Grishant in who knows how long. Naka can give her any old-looking flower, then we take a dip at the bottom of the lake."

"W-What? There's no way I'm going to lie to Fashion Queen! Do you know what she will do to me? Mascara doesn't do well on my skin. I'll break out again!" Naka cried.

"We need to buy time. Once we clear the trial, count on us to be strong enough to dethrone Ririko. You don't wanna keep living under that clown, do ya?" Anya asked.

"You help us, I give you the Celestial Bell. How's that sound?" I offered.

"What? A god such as myself is not something to be traded like knick-knacks!" Fade protested.

"Having a god at my disposal can help me better find relics…" Naka seriously considered the trade.

"Hey, I'm still here! This is perhaps the most demeaning thing you can subject me to!"

"It's a deal." She agreed to the plan.

After putting Fade back into the Celestial Bell, we exited the cabin to find Thume next to our carriage.

"Alright, so what's your deal?" I asked the giant, who guarded Ashanti's vault and came back with us to the village. He sat at the entrance to the village, currently ankle-deep in snow with children playing on him.

"Well… My duty was to guard the goddess' vault, but since it is empty, I have nothing else to do. Since you carry the only known material god, I was hoping to join you," Thume said.

"I kinda like the big lug. Maybe we bring him back with us to fuck shit up?" Anya suggested.

"You know how much work keeping a pet around? Kawa's a goddamn handful. You think taking care of a giant suit of armor is going to be easy?" I glared at her.

"I am self-sustaining. My diet consists of latent magic in the air," he said.

"He's self-sustaining," she repeated after him.

I put a hand to my face and sighed. "Whatever. Let's just go."

We arrived back at Grishant to a squad of Glamour Guards waiting for us at the first ring. Upon seeing our approach, one of them, a beastling harpy, flew to the peak of the mountain to presumably tell Ririko about our return.

The self-proclaimed Fashion Queen was carried down by a freezing gust. She wore a moisturizing mask of green cream that made her look like a goblin.

"Just in time! Do you have my flower?" Ririko asked, strutting up to us just as the guards surrounded our carriage.

"Here it is, my queen." Naka handed over a bioluminescent flower picked from a cave on the way back. It glowed blue for some reason explained to me earlier by her, but I'd forgotten by the time we got here.

Ririko pinched the step between her two fingers and quietly stared at it.

"Y-You will want to carefully brew it into a potion to drink, so says the inscriptions on the plaque we found within the vault," Naka continued.

"It's real. We even brought the bastard guarding it." I thumbed over my shoulder to Thume. "You got your thing. Now where's the relic's location you promised us?"

"Hey, hey. Take a chill pill and learn some patience, will you? Once I can confirm this really is the real deal, I'll have my best alchemists make me the potion to drink. Then I'll give you the clues. Until then, enjoy the sights and try my fashion booths set up in Grishant. Ta-ta~" Ririko flew back to the peak of the mountain, her absence cuing the guards to leave us alone.

Feeling faint, Naka sucked in a deep breath and leaned against Thume's leg.

"Now that we got Ririko off our backs, it's time to check out the lake," Anya said.

"Yeah. You guys sit this one out. The rest of the way is on us." I nodded to Thume and Naka.

Anya and I made our way down to the lake, where several beastlings were fishing. The cavern extended much further down. It seemed to be where the water was mostly coming from, not the snow melt dripping from the top of the mountain.

"Hey!" one beastling yelled. "Y'aren't trynna scare the fish away this time, are ya?"

The two of us grinned, then dove straight into the water, much to their dismay.

The lake was a lot deeper than either of us expected and quickly grew dark. Glowing seaweed was our only source of light, but it only illuminated an arm's length away. Eventually, something caught my eyes. I poked Anya and pointed to the side of the rocky surface. Sticking my hand through revealed it to be an illusion.

We swam through pitch darkness, slowly running out of air in our lungs. I was about to give up and go back, but Anya grabbed my hand to push us through, resurfacing into another cavern connected to a corridor similar to the one we saw in Ashanti's vault.

"Fuck my ass. It's really here," Anya gasped.

"You have entered my Trial," a thunderous voice bellowed. "Complete it. Claim my gift. Be warned: only one may receive it."

"One, huh?" I muttered.

Did that mean I had to fight Anya for it at the very end? Could I still trust her?

We walked to the other end of the corridor and came out into a gargantuan room with walls so high, that my neck ached from looking up. Sharp corners led to a hallway, to more sharp turns and more hallways.

"Aww, you've got to be kidding me. I hate mazes," Anya groaned.

I pressed a palm to the wall.

"In that case, whaddya say we bash our way through?" I smirked, punching a hole through the wall.

"Blasphemy!" Lyria boomed, causing even the Celestial Bell to vibrate with Fade's fear. Complete my Trial as it is intended, or—"

"Or what, bitch? If ya got something to say, then come down here and say it to my face! We're coming to get your shit one way or another, so you can try to stop us," I dared the goddess.

"Let's get this party started." Anya chuckled, cracking her knuckles to set the dragon tattoos on fire.