From Human to Skeleton: Revived with Infinite System Crystals

"I suppose that does make sense, but I have been lucky to have such trusting friends. You are the first vampire lady I have met who does not wish to cause me harm. So I guess I will take what I can get," Todd chuckled.

As Nana, Todd, and Sanguina approached the castle gates, they saw two guards engaged in a discussion. Nana walked up and greeted them, "Good morning. I am looking for the King and Lady Elithira."

Both guards gave her a bow and replied, "Good morning, Lady Nanako. I believe they are still in an important meeting. We were instructed to have you and your party wait in the lounge in the west wing if you don't mind."

Nana rubbed her head, feeling a bit impatient. "Well, I don't mean to be pushy, but I kind of do mind as we don't have all day."

Sanguina, watching the interaction closely, muttered, "Hmm, something smells off..."

"Smell? What does that even mean?" Todd asked, puzzled.

Sanguina's eyes narrowed as she tried to place the familiar scent. "I can't quite make it out, but it's a scent I recognize. Something isn't right here."

Nana glanced at Sanguina, sensing her unease. "What do you think we should do?"

An old voice cracked behind them, causing Nana to turn around. She saw the inn lady walking toward them with a cane. "Oh, do not worry, children. Everything is being taken care of. Please, wait just a little longer. I will go ahead and escort you to the west lounge and get some fresh tea going while we wait.

I am sure it won't be much longer."

Find your next adventure on empire

Nana, confused, asked, "Shouldn't you be running the inn right now?"

The inn lady waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, I took the rest of the day off and let an intern finish up, so don't worry about that."

As she approached the guards, they both saluted her and said, "Welcome in, Grand Lady Rima."

Dismissing their salutes with a gentle wave, she replied, "Oh, no worries about the formalities. You've both been standing guard for a long while. Thanks for the hard work."

The guards nodded, and Nana, Todd, and Sanguina exchanged curious glances as they followed Grand Lady Rima. Sanguina's eyes narrowed slightly, still uneasy about the situation but choosing to follow along for now. Internally she thought "If things go bad I mean I can just go killing people and retrieve Tys finger for myself''

As they walked toward the west lounge, Nana whispered to Todd, "Grand Lady Rima, huh? She seems to have some influence around here."

Todd just shrugged. "This place has too many titles, but it's whatever, I suppose."

The group walked through the halls, passing paintings and various trinkets that lined the walkway. The grandeur of the castle was evident in every detail, from the intricate designs on the walls to the soft glow of the lights illuminating their path. As they approached the west wing, they entered a large room furnished with elegant purple and white furniture.

The walls were lined with shelves filled with books, creating an air of sophistication and knowledge.

Sanguina, surveying the room, thought to herself, "Impressive for low mortals. They've amassed quite a collection here."

Grand Lady Rima motioned for them to sit. "Please, make yourselves comfortable. I will prepare some fresh tea."

They all sat down in silence, with Todd remaining standing. "I don't want to break any furniture," he said, keeping his hands clasped together.

Nana kept her hands clasped together with her eyes closed, deep in thought. "What could be going on right now... If Elithira hasn't returned, then what could that mean? And why are they so adamant about keeping us here?"

"Hey Todd, come here real quick," Nana said, opening her eyes.

Todd slowly walked over to where she was sitting and asked, "What's up?"

"Do you still have that mark on your wrist?" Nana asked.

Todd took a moment, then looked at his wrist. "A mark?" he said before remembering. "Oh, yeah, I completely forgot about this. Such a weird process after they convicted me for damaging stuff along with Ty. Why do you ask?"

Before Nana could respond, Rima came walking in with a tray of tea on a silver platter, complete with cups and a kettle. "Don't worry," she said, placing the tray on the table. "The King should be finishing with that woman shortly. He usually finishes his plans on time."

Everyone stayed silent as she walked around, handing off the tea to everyone. When she handed the cup to Nana, Nana moved her hand quickly to the right, grabbed Rima's wrist, and pulled up her sleeve. "I knew it!" Nana exclaimed.

"Why the hell do you have a clover pattern on your wrist?!" Nana demanded.

Suddenly, Nana felt an intense pressure around her as a wave of air smashed into her face, throwing her against the wall. Her head banged against it, dazing her.

Rima's voice turned sharp and menacing. "Didn't anyone teach you manners, you damned brat?!"

Todd sprang up from his seat as Sanguina remained seated with her eyes closed, not moving an inch.

"Wait, this doesn't make any sense! The clover pattern is supposed to be a sect against the kingdom!" Todd shouted.

Seconds later, 20-30 guards began to flood in. Rima, her demeanor now sinister, continued, "All you had to do was listen to my instructions, and things would have gone so much smoother."

"Just drink the tea, let the poison put you to sleep, and then we kill you all in your sleep. It would have been such a simple process, but no!" Rima's voice dripped with venom.

Sanguina, still sitting with her eyes closed, remained motionless as Todd demanded, "But why are you, someone with a clover field tattoo, assisting the kingdom?!"

Rima sneered, "Trust me when I say this is all for the name of Legato, so he may live!"

Suddenly, she dropped the tray of tea, which crashed to the floor. Todd noticed that the kettle remained floating in the air.

"Don't tell me her gifted weapon is a tea kettle?!" Todd exclaimed, bewildered.

Nana thought to herself, "The word Rima sounds familiar, but I can't put my finger on it." As she tried to recall where she had heard the name before, Rima waved her old hands across her chest, and the floating kettle shot out a stream of green hot liquid from its spout, striking Todd in the mouth. He gagged for a moment and shouted, "Ahh, that burns!"

Spinning slowly to face Nana, Rima performed the same action. Nana, still gripping her head, struggled to react in time. The hot tea shot from the spout, and Nana instinctively brought her wrist up to block the attack. The scalding liquid hit her wrist, causing her to wince in pain.

Nana turned to Sanguina who was still sitting as she had not moved an inch still since the start of this as she called out "Hey, could use your help a bit, im not trying to kill anyone!"

Suddenly a loud thud hit the ground as she look at Todd he broke to two knees before succumbing to the floor."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"To-Todd!" Nana shouted, panic rising in her voice. "What did you do to him?!" The answer flashed in her mind, her stomach sinking as she remembered Rima's talk about putting them to sleep with her tea.

Before she could react, the door burst open. A burning hot red bat streaked into the room, colliding with Rima from behind. The force severed her arm, sending the kettle spinning into the air before the bat snatched it.

The guards encircling the room drew their blades, some wielding unique, threatening weapons. Nana's heart pounded as she took in the scene, her eyes darting from one guard to the next.

Sanguina remained seated, her hands beginning to glow with an intense light. She clapped them together, the sound echoing through the room. "If you all wish to die, step forward and try to stop us. Just know your death will be on you and no one else."

Nana watched as Rima crumpled to the ground, the kettle still spinning in Sanguina's hands. The glow from Sanguina's eyes intensified to a fierce red. Nana could feel the heat radiating from her.

'She looks furious,' Nana thought, her own fear mixing with a sense of awe.

"Sanguina, what are you planning?" Nana asked, her voice filled with concern.

Sanguina's eyes glinted with anger. "I did some recon work and found that neither the King nor Elithira are in the throne room. They were both likely teleported away. I also suspect they never planned to give Ty's finger to Elithira. I'm not sure what the angle is here, but I'm beyond pissed off. I've been nothing but nice to these people."

The guards, steadying themselves, watched warily. One of them drew his blade and charged at Sanguina, water swirling around his weapon.

Sanguina sidestepped gracefully, her movements fluid and precise. With a flick of her wrist, a bloodied bat zoomed past the guard, piercing him through the chest. He fell instantly, his weapon clattering to the ground.