The next day…
-
The bright morning sunlight filtered through slitted curtains.
At the very top of the Verdelith Castles 'main mansions' central tower, on its highest floor, the seventh floor, in the middle of the massive circular room, a large bed was drowned in pillows, blankets, and super cute plush toys!
Mm, it was here where the small green-haired tyrant started to stir…
Petra's tiny tail twitched beneath the blankets, and following a groggy hum, she opened one of her big black eyes. She stared up at the ceiling for a long time, her expression blank.
"…Mm!" She mumbled.
Petra rolled to her side, then the other, and then again, and again, and she continued to roll back and forth in a foolish attempt to get herself up.
A moment later—
She dramatically sat up… then flopped back down, returning to her back…
She gave up!
"…Five more minutes," She grumbled to the void.
Five minutes passed…
Ten minutes passed…
Fifteen minutes passed…
Tock-tock-tock!
A clearly impatient knock came from the distant door!
Petra rolled over to take a look, whipping her hair over her face in the process.
She blinked.
Then, in a very cute call, she yawned, "Enter…"
The door opened.
Lilly walked inside, with Luna close behind.
As they stepped forward, they passed through a narrow beam of morning sun that fell from the window.
They reached the edge of the massive circular bed and paused.
They exchanged a look.
Petra was still buried beneath a mountain of blankets and pillows, and only the top of her little green hair was barely visible.
Then, without a word, they began to move! swoosh!
They circled the bed slowly, like twin predators preparing to pounce.
Deep within her small fortress of pillows, Petra felt it immediately.
Her head snapped to the left!
No!
Her head snapped to the right.
Mm!!
Her big black eyes darted back and forth as the twins shifted positions around her, their footsteps softly shifting against the wooden floor. She tried to track them both at once, uncomfortably twisting beneath the blankets, her unseen tail flopping wildly as she adjusted her angle.
—!
Luna bent her knees slightly—
Swoosh!
Petra's head whipped toward her! She narrowed her eyes…
Luna lunged!
Petra bipped and rolled sideways, nearly tumbling off the edge of the bed in her attempt to evade, but—
That was her greatest mistake!
From behind—
Lilly smiled sweetly.
"Hup!" With a single devastating tug, she ripped the vast majority of the blankets away in one clean swoosh!
Petra: "!!"
Cold morning air flooded in! Petra froze, then shivered violently.
"Betrayal!" she screeched over her shoulder!
From the front, Luna advanced, her expression mercilessly calm. One by one, she stripped away the remaining pillows, then lifted the last from Petra's arms as if disarming a barricade. This maneuver had been refined over countless mornings of relentless resistance.
For several seconds, the only sounds in the room were muffled protests and the unmistakable rustling of a small tyrant being physically stripped from her nest!
"Unhand me!" Petra flailed.
But it was too late.
Within mere moments, the last of her defenses had fallen…
She was hauled upright and 'deposited' onto the floor, wobbling slightly as her bare feet met the cool wood surface.
Her shoulders drooped in defeat.
"…This is oppression," she muttered under her breath.
-
Five minutes later, Petra stood in the center of the room with her arms slightly stretched out while the two twins went to work.
Lilly stood behind her, brushing her long emerald hair, while Luna moved efficiently in front, helping Petra step into fresh clothes, and yes—Petra really was just that lazy…
Once she was fully dressed and properly 'prepared'—
It was finally time to deal with her hair!
The twins exchanged a grim look.
After yesterday's field test, which fortunately didn't happen in their testing hall, Petra had suffered a devastating disfigurement!
Mm, no, she didn't…
But one side of her hair was indeed shorter than the other! Because of this, she needed a new style, at least, she would need a new style for a few weeks.
They began experimenting, switching between dozens of hairstyles before finding a few they liked.
-
Dun-da-da! First up, the teacher's bun!
Lilly, from behind, gathered Petra's hair near the back of her head and twisted it into a tight, painfully 'refined' bun. A few soft strands of hair fell over her face, giving her a suspiciously scholarly air.
Petra looked at herself in the mirror.
Her brows furrowed.
"I look too responsible…"
Dun-da-da! Rejected!
-
Next, the spiked-back bitch!
With a bit of cream and a questionable amount of confidence, the twins swept back her hair and let it flare up near the back. It gave her a sharp, delinquent-like edge that clashed violently with her tiny, childish face and naive expression.
Petra studied her reflection.
"Mm, too aggressive…"
Also—
Dun-da-da! Rejected!
-
Then, the good old-fashioned high ponytail!
It was simple, clean, and practical. The ponytail sat high on her head and swayed energetically when she tilted her face.
Petra blinked.
Petra blinked…
Petra—
"…Too boring!"
Bang! Definitely dismissed!
* * *
Finally, the twins tried something different…
They gathered her hair into a single thick braid, weaving it carefully with their small hands and letting it fall over her right shoulder in a way that hung down in front of her chest.
Petra blinked.
She turned slightly as the braid swayed back and forth.
"…Mm?"
After a comically inserted drumroll, and a painfully long pause—
Clap! Approved—!
* * *
With drowsy steps and the distracted duo, Petra moved down the tower—
-
On the sixth floor, Petra found Wind fast asleep, her head flopped across a mapping table. Her drooling face had her chubby cheek pressed firmly against a half-finished map of the Cellistan Continent, which she had already started to investigate.
Even when sleeping, her hand still rested on a sextant.
For such a grumpy girl, she looked… unexpectedly cute at a time like this!
-
On the fifth floor, they passed through Petras' private medicine garden. This was a place that was meant to split the top of the tower from the bottom. It was a 'lovely place' that contained all of Petra's most poisonous pals… erm, at least, the deadliest of her dudes.
As they left, several carnivorous creatures slowly turned their heads to follow her retreating figure.
The leaves rustled as if whispering among themselves…
-
On the fourth floor, Jillian was already wide awake! Mm, of course she was, after all, she barely slept…
Petra found her curled up tightly in her oversized scarf. She sat on a simple chair with her knees pulled up against her chest, her eyes locked onto a hovering ball of indecipherable light, completely detached from reality.
She didn't even notice the descending Petra.
Looking at this strange ball of light…
Even Petra had to admit that she had a hard time following some of Jillian's experiments!
-
On the third floor, the library, Petra passed Dorthy, who was asleep at a desk with a book spread open and covering her face, and Bell, who was not far away, quietly writing a novel in her spare time.
Petra only learned recently that Bell loved to write!
She was currently creating a series she called 'Echo's of the History Walker'…
As she wrote, Bell would occasionally look up and glance at Dorthy, before returning to her work. She did this from time to time, seemingly paying attention to her 'partner's' condition.
Petra didn't disturb them…
-
By the time Petra reached the second floor, the rich scent of food had filled the air.
Then—
Swoosh! Her speed dramatically increased!
* * *
Some time later…
-
The dining hall of the main mansion was warm and lively.
The long table had already been set, and everyone was eating as spilling steam rose from several fresh dishes. Luna's cooking wrapped the room in a comforting cradle, while the deer maid poured tea, the raccoon maid hoarded the bread, and the fox maid stretched across the table in an attempt to reach the salt and pepper. Mell sat upright, Levy was talking with Rose, and everything was perfectly peaceful.
Mm, until—
The deer maid casually mentioned something mid-conversation—
"When I was young, I was separated from my family. I'm actually a descendant of a very special 'Sika Deer' tribe from the distant 'Twin Continent'. After that, I was taken from place to place, until my father eventually found me and brought me to the Cross Continent to hide from… 'those people'. When my father died in an accident, I was later captured by Black Market slave traders, and after that—"
As she spoke, all the girls listened.
In particular, a certain paranoid schizo found something strangely familiar in her words…
Petra's ears twitched, and her big black eyes peeked out from over the top of her breadstick as the deer continued explaining her backstory.
After a few minutes of listening, Petra finally understood why her internal alarm had started to ring!
Petra raised her little hand, signaling the beast maid to pause.
The deer blinked.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
Petra slowly lowered her savory stick.
"…Could you repeat the first part?"
The deer maid, whose name was actually Elowen, repeated her words…
"After that, I was taken from place to place, until my father eventually saved me and brought me to the Cross Continent?"
"Not that one, before that…"
"When I was young, I was separated from my family?"
Petra's eyes narrowed.
Very, very slowly, she raised her hand.
"…Question!"
No one even bothered to stop eating…
"Who here," Petra asked very, very carefully, "was unwillingly separated from their families… or doesn't have one left?"
Silence…
Then, one by one—
Their hands went up…
The deer maid, the raccoon maid, the fox maid, Rose, Lira, Mell, Dorthy, Bell, Wind hesitated… then raised her hand slightly. Levy raised her hand enthusiastically, and even Soryn paused… then slowly lifted her hand as well…
Petra stared at the forest of fingers.
"…What the fuck?" She jumped up on her chair!
"Am I some kind of orphan catcher!?"
No one answered her, because they all had the same thought…
Petra slowly turned her head, scanning the table like a general counting his casualties.
"Is this what I've become!?"
She cursed—cutely!!
In her head, Petra couldn't help but panic! One had to know that an orphan was the most common seed for a future protagonist! Seeing so many hands rise at once made her feel as if she had accidentally gathered an entire minefield of potential main characters!
Shit!
Petra had bought a bunch of background slaves, how could she have known that it would come back to bite her in the butt!
Who knew how many of these girls had their own mini arcs!?
Frustrating!
Very frustrating!
Luna gently passed the new piece of bread in her hand.
Petra accepted it!
Nibble nibble nibble!
"I didn't sign up for this—nibble—this has to be some kind of joke—nibble-nibble!"
Unfortunately, it wasn't… Nibble!!
* * *
Later that morning—
Petra wandered aimlessly through the Verdelith Castle…
Some time had already passed, and Petra was lost in thought.
During this time, she found Lilly in a sunlit corner of the tailoring room, carefully stitching a new dress for someone. She used a strange silver and green thread to stitch the little bit of fabric that had been draped across her lap as she worked in silence.
On the second floor, Luna was in the kitchen, humming softly while experimenting with a suspicious spread of strange spices. Several pots simmered, while something purple bubbled in the background. Petra couldn't help but wonder who it was for…
In an eastern wing workshop, Petra pestered Mell, who sat at a long table covered in tiny mechanical components. She adjusted the alignment of a delicate clockwork bird, her brow furrowed as the new arm she had yet to get used to was slowly being trained.
-
Seeing all this, Petra nodded solemnly, then moved on…
For some reason, today, she was struggling to find her victim.
Everyone was just too busy!
How rude!
Mm, she continued to wander…
In the Combat Hall, Rose was casually punching a reinforced training doll hard enough to shake the walls, and at the same time, just off to the side, Lira could be seen practicing archery, firing arrows in rapid succession with no regard for her own elegance. Petra had noticed that ever since leaving the resort, Lira had spent quite a lot of time refining her marksmanship.
Mm, moving on!
On the third floor, in the library, Dorthy had returned to her half-asleep state after eating, this time sitting in a chair, and once again with a thick book drooping over her face. Bell sat nearby, scribbling intensely into a notebook with the expression of someone writing a tragic masterpiece or a deeply unnecessary romantic subplot. Petra even felt like she could see the drool dripping down her chin…
Petra continued to hunt.
Not long after, she found her way to the backyard.
In the poison garden behind the mansion, Poya toddled through the poisonous plants, happily rearranging her misplaced mushrooms with the help of the three poison elves. At the same time, nearby, Noah was attempting to discreetly bathe in the secluded bathhouse, only to glance up nervously the moment Petra's shadow periodically passed.
Finally, Petra found a female servant to follow for fun!
The castle felt alive.
-
After a bit more time to laze about, Petra finally got bored and called everyone to the Grand Plaza!
One by one, they gathered beneath the Emerald Ghost Tree.
After fifteen minutes, once they were all present—
Petra placed her hands on her hips and declared loudly,
"…We're bored!"
Silence…
She continued, "It's time to go out!"
The responses were a mixed jumble of grumbles…
Petra frowned, then—
After a long and slightly dramatic struggle, consisting primarily of Petra insisting, pouting, and escalating her, erm, 'not so loud volume', she finally succeeded in mobilizing her people!
She spun on the spot dramatically!
"Let's go to the Beast Garden today!" (The zoo…)
* * *