Dreamland

“No, you won't sell my blood as an advanced mana potion!”

My tattoo-fairy did not agree with my potion plans to become rich. I was sorry to realize I'll have to stick with grinding magic monsters or go back to the old tested method of raiding cities.

We were on the road. I was inside the carriage with a still KO Tina. Probably, it was her mana exhaustion that was keeping her longer in this state. She leveled. I know, I felt it as soon as I took her in my arms. She was occupying the bench and I had her head on my lap. I was feeling better keeping my hand on her shoulder, feeling that she was still alive. That self-immolation accident could have ended up pretty badly.

However, she succeeded in what she wanted to do. Her tenacity surprised me.

As I could no longer annoy White Flower with my mana potion plans, I had to think of something else to spend my time with. I was daydreaming about school. I know, I am here in a game world, and all I can do is think about school?

The Lynx was running around through the wilderness, probably improving his diet, whilst Spartacius was riding on the coachman's bench together with Alice. I wondered what were they talking about, this coach was really too well insulated.

“So you told her to shoot the soldiers?”

Alice turned and looked Spartacius in the eyes. He tried to explain himself.

“Cala said that I was drunk!”

She shook her head:

“That was her excuse for the guard, but we both know you wanted to test her!”

He sighed:

“Yes, true.”

“Did you plan to kill the guards?”

“No! Of course not. The moment Noviel would have raised her bow, I would have told her to stop. I only wanted to know if she would do it!”

“And what did she do?”

“She said NO, a big no, and she went away!”

“And you let her go?”

“What could I have done? The guards jailed me together with the guys who started the brawl. That's when I heard from the merc of another guy that she committed suicide. The stupid merc had not been arrested. He then told the guards that I ordered her to shoot them. After that, they locked me in the tower!”

Alice took a deep breath.

“How did you get the idea to tell her to shoot the guards?”

He raised his shoulders:

“I read about it. It was titled: the best way to find out if the merc is on your side, above all others. If Cala would tell you to kill them, would you do it?”

She clicked her tongue at the horses.

“Cala would never tell it just to test me!?”

He raised his shoulders again. Alice turned towards him:

“What do you think she thought when you told her to kill them?”

“Well, she did not have to kill them, she simply had to...”

“But did she know that?”

“What do you mean?”

“Did she know she did not have to kill them?”

“No, that would have ruined the idea of the test?”

“Exactly. Noviel had to believe that her new master, with which she had a contract to act by his orders in any fight, ordered her to kill some of her older friends just because he was annoyed. You know that rogues from the camp come to this town when they have their free days to relax? And you know what Manchua the priest says? That demons come to this world and kill us spawns for their amusement!?”

He tried again to protest with a bit of a heated voice:

“But I did not want her to kill them!”

Alice shook her head. She spoke calmly with a sad voice:

“She did not know that. She probably thought that she had made a contract with the devil that wanted to use her to kill for his amusement. What else could she think?”

“I... I... This did not cross my mind...”

His face was becoming pale.

“But,... but... did she really think that?”

Alice raised only a brow.

“Do you think I am a demon?”

She shrugged and sighed:

“I know you are a silly kid!”

“I am not a sill...”

“You did a stupid action. It did surprise me after what you did for Ayra.”

“It was just a test... Nothing... should ...”

She raised her shoulders, but he added:

“I did not think it through. It sounded so simple on that blog!”

“Blog?”

“It is how the information is spread in my world. In the other world. It is like writing on a table that anybody can read.”

“Oh. You must have a lot of tables, or is it difficult to make one?”

“No, we do have a lot. Almost anybody can make one.”

“It was bad advice.”

“But, this is just a game...”

“Is it? Maybe it is, nevertheless, I was very disappointed. I did not expect that from you. You are lucky you are still alive, you know I could have killed you for what you did?”

She said that with the same calm voice. He raised his eyes, looking into her eyes, and sighed:

“I'm sorry!”

She looked at him and sighed:

“I am not sure who I am angrier with! With you or with that hothead Noviel. How could she not come and talk to me? How could she decide that taking her life was the only solution? Hothead! She is even worse than Cala!”

She sighed again. He laughed:

“You seem to know Cala well!”

She turned to look at him.

“I know her since she was eighteen. I was sixteen at the time. That was ten years ago. That was more than ten thousand fights ago. Don't you think I know her?”

He visibly hesitated. Then he whispered:

“Do you know that Dolores does play Cala only since maybe a year ago? Somebody else was playing her before. You see, it is just a game...”

Alice turned towards the horses and clicked her tongue. She did not answer. A tear ran on her cheek.