Anne's Diary (2)
Swooooooosh-.
Gentle waves rippled along with the calm breeze.
The fox, inhaling the salty scent unique to the sea, lifted her closed eyelids.
Warm air brushed against her cheeks.
"..."
What came into view was none other than the vast, endless ocean.
It was a nightmare she had become far too accustomed to.
The setting, as always, was a prison built on the sea.
"Sigh..."
A sigh of exasperation escaped her lips.
The girl, whose crimson hair had momentarily fluttered in the wind, leaned against the old iron bars and sat down.
The rusted iron lever groaned.
Creak.
Ignoring it, the fox hugged her knees.
The water level lapped at her ankles.
Because of this, the lower half of the fox's body was submerged in the sea.
Of course, perhaps because it was a dream, her clothes didn't get wet, but each time, the girl wore a complex expression.
It was a kind of sense of loss.
'It's too... quiet.'
Once she realized it was a dream, she kept wanting to wake up.
Because it was a terribly lonely world.
The alien warmth of the sunlight.
Perhaps it was a deception.
-Irene.
-I can no longer stay by your side, my apprentice... and you shouldn't either.
-So, this is goodbye.
-Please find a shining star.
As always.
The voice she missed the most brushed past her ears at the loneliest moment.
The fox, chewing on the faint memory, shook off the remaining bitterness.
A kind of dark adaptation.
Waves drowning in silence.
The fox waited silently again.
For this nightmare to end.
For the sickening sense of loss to be filled.
***
It seems she dozed off for a moment.
Perhaps it was the lingering effect of the sleep magic. She lost consciousness.
Irene came to, a headache washing over her.
"..."
An unfamiliar ceiling came into view.
A prison where darkness flowed thickly.
It was truly regrettable that whether she opened or closed her eyes, she was still trapped behind bars.
A chill rose from the hard floor.
Her shoulders trembled from the cold.
She hadn't felt it due to the extreme tension, but the girl's body had already grown cold.
The fox swallowed a whimper that escaped her.
It would have been better to stay in the dream, knowing this would happen.
It was warm and the wind was blowing.
Ridiculous thoughts crossed her mind.
Just as she was sitting there listlessly, passing the time.
"Hey... Fox Sister!"
"...?"
"Over here! Over here!"
Someone called out to the fox.
As she looked around at the unexpected voice, a small hole in the wall caught her eye.
It seemed to be someone trapped in the cell next door.
A hand was waving between the closely spaced bars.
"Are you finally awake?"
A young girl with a youthful face.
At most, she could have been fifteen.
She smiled bashfully when their eyes met.
"I was worried because you were unconscious for so long, but I'm glad you woke up!"
"You are..."
The one who warned her to pretend to be asleep earlier.
The fox stared blankly at the girl.
"Nice to meet you! It feels like it's been ages since someone new came to the cell next door!"
The girl smiled, seemingly fascinated.
She soon put aside her cheerful demeanor and abruptly extended her hand through the bars.
"My name is Anne! Let's get along, fellow test subjects."
"Test, test subjects...?"
"Yes!"
The girl nodded vigorously.
Faced with this bizarre scene, the fox was once again at a loss for words.
***
Kidnapped by an unknown group.
At first, her mind was in turmoil and everything went dark, but Irene was able to gather information little by little.
Thanks to the voice calling out to her from the next cell.
"Sister! Do you have any more questions?"
The girl named Anne.
The cheerful child chattered on and on.
Whether she was concerned about the new test subject or not, most of her explanations were about the facility.
Sometimes she would answer the fox's questions.
"Hehe... but there's still a lot I don't know."
Of course, her answers weren't very clear.
That was to be expected, since the girl was also trapped behind bars.
She scratched her cheek, seemingly embarrassed.
"It's just things I've overheard."
"Things you've overheard...?"
"Things I heard from someone, or experienced myself... things you learn when you've been locked up for a long time."
"How long have you been here?"
"About seven months?"
It wasn't in-depth information, but it was enough to grasp the situation.
The fox organized her chaotic thoughts.
In summary, it was like this:
'Baob, the continent's largest dark mage organization.'
The identity of those who kidnapped Irene.
The main building was a facility they had prepared for dark magic research.
And the prison where the fox was currently staying was a space where materials to be used in experiments were kept.
It was truly a den of evil.
'Slave traders... and now a cult.'
A chuckle escaped her lips involuntarily.
She had barely escaped becoming a slave, and now she was about to become a monster.
She even felt like she was being played by fate.
The fox bit her lip as she sat there.
"Just in case you didn't know... it's better to be obedient during the experiments."
"Why?"
"...There's a demon."
According to what she had heard, escape was next to impossible.
The personnel managing this place were all dark mages.
Especially the head of the research institute, who was a master of his craft.
With a single gesture, countless test subjects would be torn apart, and all those who had tried to resist before had met the same end.
Anne called the head of the research institute a 'demon.'
"The demon kills test subjects for fun."
If the experiments don't go as planned, he kills.
He kills even when it's not an experiment.
He kills if you act arrogant.
He kills if your eyes meet.
He kills if he's in a bad mood.
He kills, enjoying the screams of the test subjects.
"That's why I told you to lie down... If you stay still and hold your breath, he might just ignore you."
The head of the institute seemed more interested in slaughter than research.
His faith in God was just an excuse for killing; essentially, he was a monster who enjoyed blood.
Not a single ray of hope could be seen.
"..."
A desperate situation.
Irene had a blank expression, but she couldn't hide the trembling in her pupils.
A terrible sense of exhaustion weighed down on her shoulders.
Her head throbbed as if it would split open from the headache.
As she pressed her fingers to her forehead,
Suddenly, the hand that had been sticking out between the bars offered her something.
"Sister, take this."
"...What is this?"
"It's a blanket!"
The girl handed her a piece of old rag.
It was worn and torn, in a sorry state, but the girl insisted it was a blanket.
The eyes that met hers smiled brightly.
"You've been shivering this whole time. It might not be very warm because it's all worn out, but cover yourself with it."
"You're lending it to me...?"
"I don't need it because I'm always warm!"
"...Thank you."
"Heehee."
Anne reacted as if she was happy.
It might be a bit rude to say, but the fox thought she wasn't normal.
Had she gone mad from becoming a test subject at such a young age?
'How can she be so cheerful in this situation...?'
Pushing that thought aside, she draped the blanket over herself.
The grimy hand that had handed her the piece of cloth, the somewhat stiff texture enveloped the fox's shoulders.
Nevertheless,
She was still cold.
***
How much time had passed?
It felt like about three days had gone by.
During the few days she spent in the dark mages' lair, the fox experienced a hellish landscape.
Things she saw beyond the bars.
-Ugh, ack, uhh, cough...!
-No, no...! No!! Stop, stop it!!!
-Plea, please, please...! I beg, I beg you...!
-Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!
-Something's growing in my stomach, in my stomach!! Something's eating my insides!!
Screams echoing incessantly.
The cries she heard from time to time made her imagine what was happening at the end of that hallway.
There were also screams mixed in that weren't human.
Whether they were truly the cries of something not human,
Or the cries of something that had 'become not human,' she didn't know.
-Kyaa! Aaaaaah!! Stoooop!!!
A low shout brushed past her ears.
Many test subjects headed to the laboratory, but the number returning to the cells was significantly smaller.
In the past three days, 47 had left and 2 had returned.
Even those who returned couldn't walk properly.
One of them even had parts of their body grotesquely transformed.
-Click! Keeeeeek!!
The spider-like distorted face was horrifying.
Irene was confined to the cell farthest from the laboratory, but
Even then, the raw noises faintly reached her ears.
She had to suppress the urge to gag several times due to the surging nausea.
"..."
The fox was still alive.
The dark mages hadn't touched Irene.
To be precise, it was closer to saying they couldn't.
Because the demon himself had said he would personally handle her in a week.
-I will experiment on this one myself.
-A fox beastkin... what a fantastic sacrifice.
The demon had said with a sticky gaze.
In the end, the other followers had no choice but to back down, licking their lips.
The scope of her life narrowed down to a week.
Now, Irene could only wait for the time to come.
There was no hope in sight.
At first, she had thought about fighting back, but her mind changed after facing the head of the research institute.
The demon's level was simply overwhelming.
At least on par with a professor at Galimar.
A single incantation could wipe out all the test subjects.
"..."
She eventually lost her spirit.
The fox swallowed her silence.
Just as she was sitting quietly, leaning against the wall,
"Sister."
"..."
"Do you know this? It's really amazing."
"...?"
Anne peeked through the bars.
Perhaps worried about the pale-faced fox, the girl tried to divert her attention.
"Time flows differently here than outside."
"What do you mean...?"
"Literally."
The girl shrugged lightly.
"One time, the demon was completely drunk. He was bragging about it as he walked down the hallway..."
He said this place is some kind of special land.
He said it's where the body of a dragon is buried... Honestly, I don't remember the details.
I just remember him saying that the time axis around here is distorted.
"He said a week here is only a day outside."
"A week... is a day?"
"It's been three days since you came here, but it probably hasn't even been a few hours outside."
"..."
The fox stared with blank eyes.
Anne, who had been explaining, scratched her cheek awkwardly.
"Of course, believe it or not. Honestly, it sounds too far-fetched. I've never heard of such a place. Maybe if it was land outside the Empire's territory..."
"..."
"It must have been the demon talking nonsense because he was drunk."
Anne muttered softly.
The girl furrowed her brows for a moment, but then she smiled bashfully.
It was a transparent smile.
"But if you think about it like this, it gives you a little bit of hope."
"Hope...?"
"Yes, hope."
If only a few hours have passed, someone must be looking for you, Sister.
Maybe it's okay to hope for a miracle?
"Who knows! Maybe someone will appear like a knight in shining armor and save us."
"..."
"Didn't you have anyone like that around you?"
"...I don't know."
The fox averted her eyes slightly.
She responded indifferently, but at the same time, a face flashed through her mind.
Deep blonde hair and narrow eyes.
Why was she thinking of him now?
Irene unconsciously bit her lip.
'...It would be foolish to rely on him.'
He was someone who only saw her as a toy, after all.
He would probably get over it easily if she disappeared.
He would just find a new toy.
The fox gave herself a suggestion.
Don't give him your trust.
Just like it's always been.
'I'm just... fine being alone like this.'
The fox chewed on her painful monologue.
But.
"You should be safe."
The fox didn't know.
That forces capable of destroying an entire nation were moving to find her, who had disappeared.
White eyes gleamed in the darkness.
"If you're not safe... I don't know what I'll do."
A pure white banner fluttered.
A sinister group, filled with murderous intent, was traversing the night sky.
To retrieve the fox.
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Her character has been utterly butchered.
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