Taming The Villainesses

(EP-316.2) Destined Rivals #2

316 – The Twins Are Destined Rivals #2

Narmi once again took the lead, seeming to enjoy the thrill of danger. She pressed her body against the wall, skillfully slipping into the passage. Soon, her voice echoed from inside.

“It seems safe to come in!”

“Alright, I’m going.”

I moved forward and squeezed through as well. When I finally crawled out of the narrow passage, what I saw was crystals sparkling all around.

And my face, reflected in their angular surfaces, looking strangely distorted.

It’s kind of creepy.

“This way!”

Ahead, I could see Narmi waving to me. I took a step to follow her when—

Kwang-.

“Euk!”

Something suddenly struck my nose, halting me in my tracks. I realized the ‘path’ I saw ahead was actually a reflection on the crystal surface.

“Theo, over here!”

“No, this way! Come here!”

“Don’t listen to them! This way!”

“What are you copying me? I’m the real one!”

What’s this?

Reflections of Narmi appeared all around, with each one saying different things.

Completely confused, I tried to turn back, but the surroundings were filled with crystals. I couldn’t tell where the way back was.

I was trapped in this strange crystal cave!

Of course, it’s not a big problem.

“Lady Narmi, be careful—shards may fly.”

With a simple spell, I could easily shatter these crystals.

Rank 3.

—Rupture.

I sent vibrations through the crystal. Shattering sounds echoed as cracks webbed through. Soon, the various Narmis making a lot of noise disappeared along with the fragments.

Once everything had settled, I noticed Narmi lying on the ground. Had she been caught in the shards? Feeling a chill run down my spine, I rushed over and tapped her cheeks.

“Lady, are you alright?”

“Ugh, what is this…?”

“Ugh, what is this…?”

Then—

In a corner a few steps away, someone else started to get up.

I felt dizzy when I saw it. There were two people with the same face and the same clothes!

They finally faced each other and turned pale with shock.

“Y-you’re—!”

“Y-you’re—!”

What was going on? This surreal sight was making me feel dizzy, as though I were dreaming. However, they seemed to grasp the situation faster than I did.

“You, are you Narmi?!”

“…Are you… Unnie?!”

* * *

“This is strange. Really strange.”

Mirna.

She touched the face of Narmi, who looked exactly like her. Narmi, too, touched Mirna’s face and hair, trembling as she muttered, “I don’t understand what’s going on!”

Narmi said.

“We look exactly alike. It’s as if we split into two people…! I wonder if our moles and scars are the same? Check for the mole under the chest.”

“N-Narmi! Sir Theo is here!”

“So what? It’s just us two.”

I turned my head away, giving them some privacy.

As I looked away, I heard a rustling sound and then Narmi’s cheerful exclamation, “Wow, it’s exactly the same!”

“The mole on our soles too!”

“That’s right.”

While they were busy examining each other’s bodies, I took a moment to calmly assess the situation.

So, when I destroyed the crystal cave, somehow Narmi and Mirna appeared in front of me with their own bodies—that’s how I could summarize it.

The two were originally twins, so it’s not unusual that they look identical. But it’s very surprising that they, who had shared one body, now have two separate ones.

“So, Lady Mirna, could you explain what’s going on? Do you have any idea how this happened?”

“Um…”

Mirna shook her head at my question.

“I don’t know either. I was surprised when I suddenly came to and found myself lying here. I’d like to hear how this happened.”

I see.

So, Mirna doesn’t know either.

I then explained to Mirna what we had experienced. When she finished listening to the story, Mirna nodded and said.

“The temple of Mount Bilfos is considered a sanctuary among primeval hidden realms. Perhaps the mysterious energy contained in this place manifested in this way.”

It was difficult to explain.

But it was clear that it wasn’t normal.

A serious situation where the twins split into two.

How do we return them to their original state…

Then, I paused.

Did we really need to merge them back together?

Originally, Narmi and Mirna had faced countless problems because they shared one body. But now, with them separated into two people…

Wouldn’t most of the problems between them be resolved?

“This is amazing! I can’t believe it! Unnie and I are separated!”

Narmi started jumping around. Mirna, who had been deep in thought, seemed to snap out of it at her boisterous behavior and opened her mouth with a rather stern expression.

“Narmi, you should behave with dignity.”

“Hm, this is my body. I can do whatever I want with it, so why should you care? Don’t you realize we’re completely separate now?”

Narmi looked incredibly carefree.

But Mirna tried to maintain her composure.

“Narmi, such a strange thing is bound to have some cost or consequence. I’m sure the cause is somewhere in this cave. We need to figure it out and return back to normal.”

“We’ve finally become two, and you want us to go back? No way. Do it yourself!”

“…D-Did you just call me ‘you’?”

It looks like this adventure was going to be much longer than I thought.