Alicia Rain (2)

“…Haa, haa, haa. Bastards.”

Alicia, wearing a dress torn below the knees, panted and spat blood-tinged saliva.

The den of the stone beasts had turned into a slaughter site.

Between the wide cleft in the rocks, four cubs and one adult beast lay dead.

All were killed by Alicia.

The number of cubs, originally nine, had decreased thanks to her earlier efforts.

When Alicia was first captured, the cubs had been the size of small puppies—now they had grown significantly.

Over the past twenty days, Alicia had her flesh torn off during the day and partially healed each evening.

She couldn’t believe what was happening until the second day.

It was only on the third day, when her wounds started healing, that she attempted to escape—only to be dragged back in vain.

After repeated failures, Alicia changed her strategy.

Rather than escape, she began killing the cubs while the adult was away.

First, she tore off all the lace dragging from her dress.

She cut the skirt that reached her ankles short.

This led to more flesh being torn off, but since she always healed, the pain faded by the tenth day.

At first, with her body still recovering and no technique or finesse, even killing one cub was a struggle.

Despite their rocky appearance, they were still small and pitifully childlike, making it hard to hurt them.

Thinking and doing were worlds apart.

Once, she dragged a cub outside the cave and hit it once—then trembled with fear and guilt.

When the cub snarled and barked, she apologized.

Lacking a suitable weapon, she once tied a cub with torn dress scraps and left it far away.

The adult beast didn’t notice until three cubs were gone.

Only when the fourth vanished did it begin searching. But after being eaten daily, Alicia felt no remorse.

Killing five cubs, Alicia learned the beasts’ weaknesses and how to fight them.

Even with experience and the resolve to have half her body torn apart, killing the adult wasn’t easy.

She repeatedly wanted to run.

But knowing she’d only be dragged back and devoured again, she charged in like a madwoman.

No—maybe she really had gone mad.

Even now, Alicia couldn’t believe this was reality.

“They’re all dead, those bastards.”

Alicia muttered a curse she would’ve never uttered twenty days ago.

She gathered the corpses scattered throughout the cleft and threw them into one corner, then finally lay down in peace.

It wasn’t fainting from fear or pain—this was the first time she rested after a hard-won battle.

It felt good.

Though fear and revulsion toward violence lingered, it felt good to have done something on her own.

She had accomplished it without anyone’s help.

What now?

She wished she’d return to where she came from—just like how she fell here—but the world around her remained unchanged.

One thing was clear.

She had to survive here, somehow.

[Benedict Calendar Year 358, April 1st]

Even hell had day and night.

During the day, blazing heat poured from the red sky.

Each breath was filled with suffocating heat.

Night was only slightly cooler than day—not enough to call it pleasant.

At night, darkness faintly shaded the red sky.

Between rock clefts, valleys, and desert dunes, shadows fell and limited visibility.

It wasn’t safe to move in unfamiliar areas.

Though the sun disappeared, the heat lingered subtly.

Through the crimson landscape walked a wanderer with a massive spear strapped to her back.

Her head and face wrapped tightly in long cloth, she crossed dry heat into a path layered with humid warmth.

Her arms, where sleeves had torn, were also wrapped in fabric.

In contrast to her heavily clothed torso and legs, her skirt ended a hand’s width above her knees.

Over her ragged clothes, a leather waist guard layered like a skirt protected her sides.

Every movement across the barren land made clanking noises.

She seemed to carry more weapons besides the large spear.

The spear exaggerated the smallness of the wanderer’s body.

Alicia, walking through the scarlet landscape, came to a halt.

She lowered the cloth covering her mouth and pulled something large and candy-like from her leather pouch.

The mana stone, shining with bright blue light, gleamed with magical presence—but Alicia paid it no mind.

She chewed the cool candy-like stone busily.

Each crunch of her jaw echoed with a crisp cracking sound.

At the end of the path stood a dark castle.

Surrounding it were elegant fences and gates, twice the height of a person.

The vines on the gate looked refined—oddly graceful for hell.

Gripping her spear, Alicia charged at the castle.

With a crash, the elegant gate shattered.

She didn’t stop running.

The entrance to the castle creaked open ominously.

Still, she ran.

True to its exterior, the hall inside was massive.

A grand chandelier illuminated the central ceiling.

Opposite the entrance, a raised platform and stairs sparkled with hanging chandeliers.

Atop the platform sat a man with slanted eyes, smiling.

With his unnaturally long eyes, he might not even be human.

His dark, seared skin glowed like one roasted in hellfire—akin to the dark-skinned people of the Southern Continent.

His deep mahogany eyes shimmered as he opened his mouth, flashing sharp, jagged teeth that confirmed his inhuman nature.

“Welcome, visit—!”

Alicia hurled her spear at his forehead mid-sentence.

A black symbol, unreadable, was etched there.

The spear shattered the mark and impaled his skull.

Thud!

Before his body even fully collapsed, Alicia climbed the stairs.

By the time she reached the platform, the corpse had toppled.

“Rest in pieces, you bastard.”

Alicia retrieved her spear, glancing briefly at him.

The master of the western hall of hell—lord of West Alik Castle—crumbled into dust from the forehead down.

Watching him disintegrate, Alicia sifted through the ashes and picked out a mineral the size of her fist.

She didn’t miss even the fingertip-sized shards.

“Not bad.”

Dusting herself off, she stashed the small pieces into her pouch.

Tossing the large raw mana stone in the air and catching it, she nodded with satisfaction.

She shoved aside the man-shaped remains with her spear and pulled a tattered leather map from her satchel.

“Gotta go for the head. Next stop… East Castle? What was it… East… Noah… Castle?”

If the lord of West Castle left behind a stone this big, then surely the East Castle’s lord would too.

Satisfied with her haul, Alicia tossed and caught the largest stone again.

Having spent all her strength, she decided to rest.

But before lying down next to her spear, she chose to handle one more thing.

She tossed the raw stone into the air—

And smashed it with her spear.

Crack!

The dull husk split apart, releasing brilliant light.

The mana stone glowed with intense red energy as Alicia reached toward it.

Rejoicing to be back in the world, the stone should’ve dimmed and landed in her hand.

But her hand remained empty.

The light did not fade.

“…Wait. Just a sec…”

Alicia’s vision spun into darkness.

Space twisted—she was falling or flung into the void.

It was a return.

Probably.

“Wa-wait… aaaaaaaah!”

Those were Alicia Rain’s final words in hell.

Alicia opened her eyes within deep blue velvet.

The gold-embroidered fabric was warm and soft.

And heavy.

Her violet eyes trembled with unease.

From beyond the large room, faint footsteps climbed stone stairs in the hallway.

Alicia immediately shut her eyes.

She tried to pretend to sleep—then snapped them wide open.

Whoosh—she roughly threw off the antique quilt and sat up.

Looking around, Alicia muttered,

“…I’m back?”

Sliding down from bed, she slowly looked around.

The luxurious, elegant surroundings she’d never consciously appreciated before were now vivid.

She’d once lived here, intimidated by her family’s great power.

Now she realized she’d been treated like a true lady of a northern noble house.

“If I’m here, that means…”

The footsteps stopped, followed by a knock.

Knock, knock, knock.

Alicia turned her head toward the sound.

People who once existed only in memory now lived and breathed before her.

She might be able to see them—speak to them again.

“Young Lady.”

A calm voice came from beyond the door.

It was Daisy’s voice—once feared and rigid in Alicia’s youth.

Alicia forgot how to breathe for a moment.

It was truly Daisy’s voice.

“……”

It was such a strange feeling.

For some reason, memories of being eaten alive in a foreign place scrambled her thoughts.

The voice made her want to cry, laugh, run to the door.

But her body didn’t follow her heart.

She only hesitated—uncertain whether to open her mouth.

She just wanted to slap her own cheek and confirm this wasn’t a dream.

“Lady Alicia?”

At the silence, Daisy’s voice grew gentler.

“Daisy…?”

Alicia whispered toward the closed door.

“Are you awake? I’ll come in now.”

Surprised by Alicia’s voice, Daisy returned to her usual stiff tone.

The door opened slowly.

Time seemed to stretch into eternity.