[First Person POV: Eden]
"Argh..."
Groaning, I slowly opened my eyes, feeling a terrible headache that made me instinctively grab my head in pain.
"What happened?" I mumbled, massaging my temples as I sat up on the ground.
The first thing that caught my eye was the enormous dead body of the World Serpent lying in front of me, motionless and devoid of life.
Then, my gaze shifted to the new accessory lying on my wrist.
"A bracelet?" I muttered, reaching out to touch the bracelet adorned with small runes.
The runes were so tiny that I had to strain my eyes to make them out, worsening my headache.
On instinct, I attempted to channel Star Energy through the bracelet, and the runes began to glow as it transformed into the familiar shape of the chain I knew.
"Argh... Damn it," I quickly halted my experimentation as another wave of intense headache washed over me.
'Edda?'
[Yes?]
'How much time has passed since I fell unconscious?'
[Eight hours.]
"Ahh... Fuck it," I cursed as I rose to my feet, making my way toward Aeloria and Grace, who remained unconscious despite the passing time.
"Grace?" Stepping closer, I crouched down beside Grace and gently attempted to wake her up.
"Hmm... No..." She whispered in her sleep, curling herself into a ball and refused to wake up.
"Grace, wake up." I shook her shoulder lightly, prompting her groggy eyes to open.
"Eden?" She mumbled, gradually sitting up on the ground, her blonde hair dirtied by rolling on the ground still looked beautiful.
"Are you alright?" I asked, my headache easing slightly.
"Y-yes, I'm fine," she replied, nodding her head.
Having confirmed that Grace was alright, I shifted my attention to Aeloria, who lay on the ground beside me.
"....."
Ignoring the rise and fall of her massive breasts with each breath, I retrieved a bottle of water from my inventory and emptied its contents onto her face.
"Argh... cough... cough..." She spittered, breathing heavily and coughing as she woke up, her expression filled with confusion.
Her gaze shifted to Grace, who appeared unharmed, then to me, and finally to the bottle in my hand.
"Can't you wake me up properly!?" she shouted, glaring at me.
"I tried, but you didn't wake up," I lied smoothly, disregarding the strange look Grace was giving me.
"W-what happened to it?" Grace asked, her gaze now fixed on the dead World Serpent.
"Dead. I killed it," I replied honestly.
"Stop with your boasting," Aeloria scoffed immediately, while she used her hand to dry her face.
I shrugged, choosing not to respond.
"Anyway, we need to get out of here. I'm sick of this place," Grace mumbled, her gaze fixed on me.
"What?" I asked, tilting my head in confusion.
"You have many things to explain, mister," she replied, staring deeply into my eyes.
"I know, I will," I promised, scanning the area.
There are too many things I want to investigate in this place, but for now, I just want to leave.
I have too much to figure out rather than wander around here.
Unconsciously, my hand drifted to the bracelet on my other wrist.
"What's that?" Aeloria asked curiously, eyeing the bracelet with interest.
Now that I examined it closely, it does indeed look beautiful.
"A gift after killing that beast," I replied, my gaze fixed on the bracelet.
"Don't lie!" Ignoring the girl's shouting, I touched the bracelet.
I don't know why, but its name came to mind involuntarily.
Starforge Chain.
My curiosity got the best of me as I infused a little star energy into it and willed it to transform into a ring.
And, as if accepting my will, it began to change shape, moving towards my index finger and turning into a beautiful ring.
"Woah, how did you do that?" Aeloria asked in surprise, moving closer to inspect the ring.
I let her examine it while I pondered something.
Looking up, I tried to focus on the ceiling of the vast expanse.
There, I spotted a small rune placed at the ceiling.
"Can you do it again? Eden? Eden!"
"Hmm..." I hummed, pulling my wrist away from Aeloria, who was urging me to change its shape again.
"Don't do it then jerk! Simp!"
Ignoring the girl I looked up.
If my guess was correct, we could pass through that opening.
The one opening that threw us into in this place had already closed, and last time it opened because of my blood.
But I highly doubted someone would think about using blood to open it again and I am not even sure any other blood will work or not.
So, this place was safe for the time being, as well as the monster's body.
'It can come in use later.'
Having made up my mind, I infused mana into the ring-shaped chain, making it larger and thicker.
"Step back," I instructed, and both of them, understanding that I was up to something, gave me some space.
As I willed the tip of the chain changed it a sharp nail like, then I rolled the chain in my hand, accelerating its speed with each roll until it spun faster and faster.
When I felt the speed should be enough, I threw the chain and simultaneously infused it with Star energy, increasing its length.
*Boom!*
The chain got stuck at the ceiling without much problem.
"Huppp..."
I tried to pull the chain, testing it a few times before looking at Aeloria.
"Grab my hand," I said, mustering the most beautiful smile I could manage and extending my hand to her.
"Why?" She asked, eyeing me suspiciously.
"Just do it," I replied, still smiling brightly.
After hesitating for a moment, she grabbed my hand.
"You shouldn't have," I replied, grinning, as I firmly held her hand and willed the chain to shrink.
"No way!" Squealing, the girl tried to pull away from my grip, but it was already too late.
"I hate youuuuu!"
The chain pulled me toward the ceiling as I dragged Aeloria with me, ignoring her protests.
The ground soon became distant as we speed toward the ceiling.
And before we knew it, the small opening was just beside me.
"Don't look down, Aeloria," I teased, glancing down at the girl who was clutching at my hand with both of hers.
"One... huff... day... huff... I will get my revenge, Eden Morton!" she growled at me, her eyes filled with anger.
"Yeah, good for you," I replied, my eyes shifting toward the runes placed at the opening.
"Hmm, aren't these the same runes that were at the entrance?" I mumbled as I studied them.
"Ahkk... What now, jerk?" With Aeloria still clinging to my hand I lifted my hand with her, touching the runes.
"You can always wrap your legs around my waist, you know?" But before using Star Energy to open it, I asked Aeloria.
"Shut up, stupid!"
Ignoring her reply, I simply used Star Energy to break the runes.
Moonlight shone upon us, and I pushed Aeloria upwards as she released my hand and grabbed the ceiling walls to make her way outside.
As Aeloria moved outside of the opening, I willed the shape of the chain to change again, loosening it from the wall, and I began to fall.
{Space Wrap}
I arrived beside Grace, who looked at me with surprise.
"So I didn't feel wrong that time," she said, and I shrugged in reply.
"Ahh!" She squeald as I picked her up.
"Is it necessary?" she asked as I held her up in a princess carry, her soft and light body sticking close to me.
Unlike before she wasn't trying to move away or doubt me, she was just asking for the sake of it.
"Absolutely."
{Space Wrap}
Once again, I used the space wrap, and as the space distorted around me, I found myself beside the ceiling, grabbing the opening with one hand.
I helped Grace out, and after she moved, I also made my way out.
Once again, the moonlight shone upon me as I surveyed the destroyed city in front of me.
Most of the buildings had been razed to the ground, while I could see a camp at the far end of the city, with a few guards patrolling the area.
Glancing back, I confirmed that the opening was no longer present.
"Let's go," Aeloria said, taking the lead.
Grace and I followed behind her.
"Isn't it Lady Aeloria."
"It's her, contact the captain; we found them!"
The guards soon recognized Aeloria as they approached us, questioning our whereabouts.
The number of guards increased as we neared the camp, and strangely enough, they were wary of me.
Ignoring them, I looked forward and sensed the presence of four people.
"Grace!" Sophia and Geilna ran toward Grace, embracing her tightly.
"Aeloria!" Angelina hugged Aeloria, tears pooling in her eyes.
"..."
Ignoring their reunion, I focused on the last person.
He stood there, gazing at me with conflicted emotions.
My so-called father was here.