Beyond the Eternity

Unlike the rest of the group, Miyuki navigated the mansion with surprising ease, despite its layout having been distorted by an unknown power.

Those especially the fallen would have deemed it impossible for a child to survive under such circumstances.

However, no law, forbidden or otherwise, decreed that a child couldn't endure in a ruined world.

Besides, unlike those who had been consumed by the story, Miyuki was far from helpless.

Narrowly avoiding certain death, she slipped through a concealed doorway, moving from one shadowed corridor to the next. Her movements were guided not by instinct alone but by the silent presence of a shadow that seemed to watch over her.

For reasons beyond her comprehension, the shadow appeared to be protecting her from the mansion.

Miyuki's gaze lingered on the shifting form ahead of her, its darkness rippling like a living veil. That was the same back that held an untold story.

'I don't understand. Why is she helping me?'

A thought struck her, unbidden.

'Wait… why did I start calling 'it' a 'she'?'

At some point, Miyuki had begun to see the shadow as a girl, a child like herself. Though she didn't know why, it felt right, as though the shadow carried a loneliness she could sense but not name.

Its form mirrored that of an eight-year-old child, and its behavior only reinforced the image. For all its uncanny presence, the shadow seemed lost and alone.

She felt as though she was staring at her own reflection.

How different was she, really, from that lonely shadow?

Click!

A sharp sound echoed, jolting Miyuki's out from her reverie. She turned her gaze toward the shadowy passage ahead.

It felt as ferocious as the jaws of a beast, waiting to completely devour its prey with a single misstep.

It was cold. It was calculating. But every beast had their own flaws and weaknesses.

Is it another trap? Which one is it this time? Is that sound for the arrows or the monsters?Nôv(el)B\\jnn

The house was a labyrinth of intricate mechanisms designed to unleash a variety of deadly traps.

Sensors detected movement, activating cogwheels that calculated direction, culminating in steel arrows firing from hidden muzzles.

Lingering too long invited an arrow to pierce your body. Taking a specific number of steps triggered the same fate.

But the real danger lay in what followed. While participants focused on dodging the relentless arrows, another mechanism unleashed shadow wolves from the darkness.

In essence, the arrows were merely a distraction. The true threat lurked within one's own shadow.

Miyuki glanced over her shoulder, watching as her shadow twisted unnaturally across the floor.

The shadow wolves had slipped into her shadow sometime ago, yet they showed no intent to attack. There wasn't even a hint of murderous intent.

Instead, they shifted restlessly, as though scanning for threats to protect her from.

She chuckled softly.

'They're rather funny, aren't they? They remind me of my pet cat. My cat...'

The thought stirred a painful memory, and Miyuki's expression faltered.

That cat had been her mother's final gift before her passing. It was a cherished reminder of a love that now seemed like a distant dream, but she had sacrificed driven by her own selfishness.

How could she ever justify such a selfish act? What kind of person had she become to commit such a sin?

Miyuki shook her head forcefully, banishing the thoughts before they could take root.

'This isn't the time.' she muttered, turning her attention back to the shadow wolves.

In all honesty, the wolves had already been tamed by her. Through the use of her "magic," she had managed to claim them as her pets.

But what she had done was far more intricate than simple taming.

The shadow wolves were not ordinary monsters. They were constructs, born of another being's magic rather than natural terrors. Thus, they didn't fall into the category of creatures that could be tamed through conventional means.

Rather than taming the shadow wolves, she was overpowering the magic that controlled them.

By overwhelming the unknown magic with her own and 'rewriting' it, she could turn beings that were otherwise untamable into her loyal pets.

However, the power of the 'Sisters' wasn't to be underestimated.

They're yet to attain the 'status' of a Heroic Constellation or reached the Fourth Cycle progression within the «Path of Mysteries», they were still beings with centuries worth of experience. The fact that eleven-year-old Miyuki, with no experience of her own, could effortlessly overpower their magic was completely unnatural and illogical, in every sense.

Perhaps it had something to do with her Magic Potential, Star Contract or maybe both, but Miyuki herself knew nothing of that.

As far as Miyuki was concerned, she had tamed the shadow wolves and used them to navigate traps or detect any hidden enemies lurking within the shadows. With them by her side, there was no need to overthink or take unnecessary risks.

The thought process of an eleven-year-old child was rather simple.

The small shadow paused, pointing ahead toward the path. It communicated with Miyuki by projecting its thoughts directly to her.

[Traps... Ahead...]

Miyuki responded briefly, "What kind of traps?"

[... Arrows...]

"Any other traps?"

[... Noooo...]

"I see. Thank you, you've been a great help."

[Hehehe... Friend... Good Friend...]

The shadow's featureless expression seemed to shift, as if smiling.

This wasn't the time for it to be acting cute. Miyuki couldn't help but think that it was a rather silly shadow.

'Let's forget about that. Let's take care of the traps first.'

Miyuki pushed all unnecessary thoughts aside and focused, expanding her senses to detect any sound amidst the silence.

Walkers with the Caster Attributes were sensitive to the changes in external mana flow.

But it was incredibly difficult. It wasn't easy to pick out the sounds she needed among the dozens of small noises, like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Miyuki frowned, concentrating even harder.

Plop! Plop!

She heard droplets of an unknown liquid, probably water, dripping somewhere from the ceiling.

Rattle! Clink!

The faint sound of steel arrows being reloaded into the traps reached her ears.

There were many other noises as well, but Miyuki focused on narrowing them down.

Time passed, and then—

Creak!

A squeaky sound pierced through the chaos. It was definitely a cogwheel, rusted from years of use.

'That's it!'

Miyuki pointed in the direction of the sound and commanded one of the shadow wolves to leap toward it.

Like a trained hound, the dark creature sprang from her shadow, morphing into a deadly spear as it shot toward the ceiling. Moments later, a broken mechanical device and a cascade of steel arrows fell to the ground.

Once its task was complete, the shadow wolf swiftly returned to Miyuki's shadow, as though it were returning to its true home.

(N/B: Tck. Tck. Tck. Isn't this bastard rather rude? It's not even paying rent.)

'Yes! Finally, I can see them!'

Miyuki Kuroi's eyes sparkled.

She had been struggling for a long time to pinpoint the traps' exact locations, often only managing to avoid them by sheer luck. Now, however, she could locate and evade them with precision, and perhaps even dismantle them altogether.

She no longer needed the small shadow's assistance to evade the traps.

Swish!

The sharp sound of steel arrows slicing through the air echoed as they emerged from the stretching darkness.

"Over there. Two arrows this time," Miyuki noted, already sensing the turning of the cogwheel that triggered the traps.

With a swift motion, she commanded the shadow wolves to transform into small projectiles, using them to intercept and dismantle the rapidly approaching steel arrows.

The steel arrows were obliterated without resistance, consumed by the shadow wolves, and the trap mechanism was destroyed in the crossfire.

Once again, the shadow wolves returned to Miyuki's shadow, as though they had never left.

Feeling a surge of confidence, Miyuki moved forward eagerly, but with caution. She followed the small shadow deeper into the passage.

Thwish! Thwish!

With each step, steel arrows poured down on her without mercy.

In perfect order, the arrows targeted her temple, neck, heart, abdomen, and knee. In a normal scenario, evading all of them would have been nearly impossible. Fortunately, Miyuki had her loyal shadow wolves, who shielded her as though she were their queen.

The best part was that Miyuki didn't need to give them direct orders.

The shadow wolves were excellent hunters, capable of acting on their own. Their only flaw was that their intelligence was limited to that of a wild animal at best.

But they could carry out any orders they were given.

As Miyuki continued her cautious stride, a thought resurfaced in her mind.

"Ah, that's strange. Why are the traps only targeting me and not the shadow?"

For a while now, she had noticed that the traps seemed to activate only for her, while the shadow remained untouched.

Unless the shadow willingly positioned itself to protect her, it was completely ignored by the traps.

It was as if the house couldn't sense the shadow's presence at all. Or perhaps it was simply because she, not the shadow, was the true intruder.

They soon arrived in an empty hall.

It was spacious, similar to the Entrance Hall, but distinct in its design. The walls were lined with countless mirrors. At the far end of the hall, a grand staircase spiraled upward to the next floor.

Miyuki's eyes darted around, scanning the space.

'A mirror room? This wasn't here before.'

No matter where Miyuki looked, all she could see were reflections of herself and the small shadow.

The small shadow's voice echoed in her mind through thought projection.

[... Soldiers...]

Miyuki frowned. "Hmm. Where?"

[... Mirrors...]

"Which one? There are so many."

The small shadow raised a translucent hand and pointed toward a mirror on the right.

Miyuki scanned the area and picked up a glass bead from a nearby display shelf. Without hesitation, she hurled it at the indicated mirror.

Shatter!

The mirror exploded into shards, scattering across the floor in glittering fragments.

At that exact moment—

Clang!

The sharp sound of slamming glass echoed through the hall, quickly followed by the thunderous crash of heavy footsteps reverberating through the space.

From the broken mirror and others around it, dozens of dark soldiers emerged, with imposing knight armor glinting ominously. They charged forward with deadly intent.

As expected, the soldiers ignored the small shadow, focusing all their full attention on Miyuki.

But Miyuki had been ready for this from the start.

She commanded sharply. "All of you, attack!"

With a fearsome growl, the shadow wolves emerged from Miyuki's shadow, twisting into ferocious, monstrous shapes as they launched themselves at the advancing knights.

The wolves attacked with savage precision, claws rending through steel and their fangs tearing apart their enemies. The knights were consumed without uttering a single sound.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Amidst the chaos, one knight managed to slip past the wolves and lunged at Miyuki with a spear.

Left seemingly defenseless, Miyuki froze for an instant, the weapon mere inches from her neck.

But the shadow wolves were never far. One had remained within her shadow, lying in wait. With a subtle flicker, it manipulated the darkness around Miyuki, transforming it into a spear-like weapon. The shadow spear emerged and pierced through the gaps in the knight's armor.

The soldier staggered as black spikes erupted violently from its body, shattering It from within. With a resounding crash, the remains clattered to the floor, and dark must emerged.

Meanwhile, the rest of the shadow wolves continued their assault.

Although the knights' armor was thick and formidable, it posed no challenge to the wolves. Their fluid, ever-shifting forms allowed them to adapt and bypass the armor with ease. They flowed like living shadows, finding every vulnerability and exploiting it mercilessly.

Puok! Puok!

One knight raised its sword in a desperate attempt to fight back but was overwhelmed by a barrage of shadowy strikes from all directions. It crumpled to the ground with a dull thud.

That knight was the last of them.

The hall was now littered with shattered armor and the fading remnants of the fallen soldiers. The twenty knights that had emerged from the mirrors had been annihilated in less than two minutes. Just like that, the shadow wolves returned back into Miyuki's shadow.

The small shadow, standing quietly to the side, observed the scene with a peculiar sparkle in its eyes.

Miyuki caught its gaze and asked gently, "Is something wrong?"

[... Nothing...]

"Is it really nothing?"

[...]

The small shadow averted its eyes, fidgeting with its fingers in what could only be described as an embarrassed gesture.

[... Sorry... You were... really cool...]

"Ah, so that's what it was."

Miyuki chuckled softly.

Indeed, the shadow was simpler than she had thought, endearing in its own way.

She turned her attention to the staircase ahead. The upper landing was obscured by thick darkness, an ominous shroud that seemed to swallow the light.

"Is it safe to go up there?"

[... Yes...]

"Will I meet everyone if I make it through?"

[... Not that simple...]

The small shadow shook its head solemnly.

Miyuki sighed. She had expected as much, but hearing it confirmed by the shadow dampened her spirits nonetheless.

It looks like she would be busy for a while.

"Alright. Let's go."

The small shadow nodded and motioned for her to ascend.

As Miyuki placed her foot on the first step, the darkness seemed to ripple in response. When she reached the top of the staircase, the blackness engulfed her.

She raised her flashlight, slicing through the darkness to reveal the path ahead.