"Ow ow ow ow..."

  Mina crawled out from beneath the Dark Tentacle's legs, covered in some strange, viscous slime. Fortunately, she didn't seem to be injured.

  "The tentacles must have cushioned my fall..."

  She wiped her slimy hands on the body of a car that happened to be parked nearby.

  Looking around, she saw the whole area was in an uproar. People were fleeing in every direction, and police sirens wailed in the distance.

  "Oh no! Everything's gone crazy!"

  While Mina stood frozen in panic, Arc grabbed her by the wrist.

  "Let's go, Mina! Follow me!"

  "Wait! Where are we going?!"

  With Arc pulling her by the arm, Mina had no choice but to run—out of the hospital and into the streets beyond.

  After that, Mina lost track of where they went. They cut through strange back alleys, pushed through patches of woodland, and kept running. She guessed they'd covered at least two kilometers.

  Naturally, Mina had been hospitalized for a reason. Before long, her weakened body gave out, and Arc had to carry her on his back for the rest of the way.

  Eventually, they arrived at an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town.

  The place was a ruin—windows shattered, ivy creeping up the walls, and the rusted remains of old machinery scattered across the floor.

  "This way, Mina..."

  Arc made his way deeper into the factory and pulled back a tattered sheet. Hidden behind it was an old wooden door.

  "It's a little rough, but bear with it. On the bright side, they'll never find us here."

  "Never mind that—I'm dying of thirst. Do you have anything to drink?"

  "All I've got right now is water... but if I boil some, I can make green tea or black tea."

  "That sounds nice... but right now I just want water."

  They'd been running nonstop, and her throat was parched. Driven by nothing but the need for water, Mina stepped inside.

  "This is the hideout?"

  The interior was surprisingly clean. Small as it was, there was a bath and a toilet, and a single bed sat in the back room.

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  "Not bad, right? You can take the bed in back. I'll sleep on the sofa."

  "Look at you being a gentleman."

  "Well, yeah. Your mother asked me to do this. She told me to have a safe house ready, just in case something happened."

  Hearing that made Mina's chest tighten. Her mother must have foreseen that a day like this would come.

  "Anyway, sit down... Want some water for now?"

  Mina gave a small nod and lowered herself into a nearby folding chair. The moment she sat down, all the strength drained from her body.

  "So this isn't a dream after all..."

  "Afraid not."

  Mina let out a long sigh and leaned her full weight against the back of the chair.

  "...I wish it were all just a dream."

  She pressed her sleeve over both eyes.

  "Mom..."

  The fabric grew slightly damp.

  "Hey, Arc. Tell me... everything you know."

  Arc nodded in silence.

  "The truth is, you and your mother are very special people."

  "Special?"

  Arc nodded again.

  "Your mother's real name was Lady Lilia. She was the daughter of Queen Lilisia, ruler of the Demon Realm."

  "The daughter of the Demon Queen?!"

  Mina cried out in confusion.

  "So my mother was... a demon?"

  Arc nodded proudly.

  "And not just any demon. With magic, with a blade—no one could match her. She was a true master. And I was the only one she ever accepted as her personal attendant."

  "Huh, so you must be a pretty impressive demon yourself."

  "You could say that."

  "...Haaah..."

  "What's wrong?"

  Mina's shoulders slumped.

  "Hold on a second, Arc. Does that mean... the attack the other day—was it because of my mother?"

  "What makes you think that?"

  "Well, she was a princess of the Demon Realm, right? She must have made some serious enemies."

  Arc shook his head.

  "It's a long story, and I won't get into it now, but your mother wasn't to blame. That much I can say for certain, so please believe me."

  Mina felt a pang of frustration at not being told the whole truth.

  "Not every person is purely good or purely evil, right? The same goes for those called demons and angels. And besides—"

  Arc turned to face Mina squarely, his expression serious.

  "You grew up with your mother, didn't you? You should know better than anyone what kind of person she was. At the very least, she was no criminal."

  That put Mina somewhat at ease. Her feelings were still complicated, but for now, she decided to let it go.

  "By the way, Arc... what exactly is the treasure those men in black cloaks were looking for yesterday?"

  "I'm not entirely sure, but I think the answer will become clear once we reach our next destination."

  "Then let's hurry up and go!"

  "Easy there. There's an order to these things. Before we can go, there's something we need to get first. Any idea what that might be?"

  Now that he mentioned it, something did come to mind.

  "Could it be... the key?"

  "Exactly."

  "Everyone kept saying I had the key, but I have no idea what they're talking about."

  "Well, it doesn't look like a key at first glance. Even you might not have recognized it. To put it bluntly—it's a card. A tarot card."

  "A tarot card?"

  It took her a moment to remember, but eventually it came back to her. Her mother had indeed given her a full set of tarot cards once.

  "But Arc, those cards were in the house when it burned down. They must be nothing but ash by now."

  "Don't worry about that. A magical artifact doesn't burn in a mere fire. What I'm more worried about is whether those black-cloaked thugs got to them first..."

  "That's terrible! We have to go right now!"

  Mina sprang to her feet.

  "If we search through the ruins, we might still find them!"

  "Hey, hey—don't get so worked up!"

  She grabbed the hand of Arc, who was still sitting comfortably in his chair.

  "M-Mina! At least drink some water first!"

  As the two of them went back and forth, the black ring around Mina's neck suddenly flared with a searing heat.

  "Ngh—!"

  "What's wrong, Mina?!"

  Mina dropped to her knees.

  "The collar..."

  "Is it tightening?!"

  It had only been one day—why was it constricting already?!

  Mina groaned in pain, and the face of that loathsome old man in the black cloak rose unbidden in her mind.