Chapter 310 Meeting each other
<Elysia POV>
"At least you weren't lying that you were sealed." Stepping off the insignia, I walked down the rocky path towards the red magic circle that illuminated the entire room. Alice sat in the middle with chains tying her to the ground, making it impossible for her to make any movements except for her head.
"Why would I? I just want to be free of these chains and the world." It felt weird to hear Alice's voice outside of my head. It certainly proved they were the same person as dungeon Alice. Although their voices were slightly different, it was close enough for me.
"I can still read your thoughts and my protection is still in effect, so don't do that weird thing. We may be underground, but Alucard does have access to this room." Alice was right. I may be in a hidden place, but I can't get complacent yet.
"I understand. Is the magic circle safe to walk on or am I going to have to kill you from here?" I stood right before the glowing circle, not daring to touch it just in case there was some kind of trap waiting for me.
"I don't know, but I recommend not getting any closer. Plus I don't want to ruin your impression of my beautiful self." Alice's pride shone through, but little did she know I could see her clearly. Unlike her dungeon counterpart, Alice had blood-red hair and was much more voluptuous, which I could easily see because the clothes she had were all ripped from years of wear.
"Geh, did you have to think that? Let me stay pretty in your mind!" Alice clearly didn't want to be seen in such a rough state, but that was too late. However, I couldn't deny this kind of scene was hot. If Shaman was in this kind of situation I would definitely take advantage of it.
"Stop it with the lewd thoughts! I, the great Alice, will not be taken advantage of by my offspring!"
*Sigh* "I'm not interested in you Alice. My one and only is Shaman so don't get it twisted. Also, you look great for someone who has been locked away for a hundred years so I have no idea what you're talking about." The state of her clothes may have made her seem haggard, but a more careful look revealed she looked completely fine with no damage or dirt on her body.
"R-really? I haven't seen what I looked like so I thought I was just a complete mess." Alice tried to look at herself, but her own body proportions blocked her view, not to mention the inability to turn her body wasn't helping things.
"Yes. Can't you see through my eyes anyway?" I'm almost certain Alice had the ability to see what I was seeing, so I don't see why she wasn't making use of it now.
"Oh yeah, you're right…" Alice shut her own eyes and after a few seconds, she opened them again.
"Phew, I still look the same as I did. You can keep this image of me in your mind." Relief washed over Alice's face knowing that she was still good looking. I shook my head, finding that this vampire's pride in her looks was way over the top.
"Ahem, now that you are here, I guess there is only one thing left to do." Alice made eye contact with me, turning the conversation back to our original goal.
"Indeed, but is there anything else you want to talk about or tell me before I do? There is no special procedure to inherit your power?" If this is going to be the last time we talk, then I should at least try to get as much information as I can.
"Still thinking ahead… Unfortunately, there isn't anything else I can tell you. I've told you everything that would be important to you unless you're keen to hear my 2400-year-long story, most of which I don't even remember anymore." Alice looked down, feeling bad for not having any more useful information. Her infatuation with her partner made her blind to many events in the past and she hardly bothered with any events unrelated to the Dhalia family.
"As for passing the inheritance, once I lose all of my mana the chains' pain negation effect will be gone as wellI think you can see why I want to die as soon as I pass on everything to you." Alice bit the bottom of her lip as she still withheld some key details, but I wasn't going to pester her about it. I could guess from what she was implying that her death would be very painful if we didn't do it her way.
"However, there is one thing I want to ask you."
"Oh? Go ahead." I didn't think Alice would have any questions or requests, but the least I could do was hear her out.
"It's a wild experiment, but once I give you my powers, I want you to see if you can bring the other Alice out of here. There is something called a blood contract that allows you to put any being under your command. If you die, they die, and they can be teleported to your location at any moment. Of course, it costs mana for the teleportation, but I think you see where this is going."
"At any rate, no need to worry about how to use it. Since you're a part vampire, you will be able to instinctively do it." Even without said instincts, I had the system, so not knowing wasn't an issue. Still, I appreciated Alice quelling any concerns I may have.
"Hmm alright, I will try. I'm curious what will happen. and it wouldn't hurt to have a little companion." It didn't hurt to try. Besides, seeing as it's some kind of contract, I could probably manipulate the details to fit my preferences.
She also proposed a very unique idea that didn't seem possible yet might just be crazy enough to work. If I could convince the other Alice to enter said pact, then I might be able to take her outside the dungeon. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever heard of anyone bringing a living dungeon dweller outside.
Corpses were able to easily pass through, but for someone alive like Alice, there haven't been any successful cases.
"Thank you. Even if you fail, I'll be happy knowing you tried." Alice smiled, showing a feeling of contentment on her face.
"You've provided more help than I ever expected, so I should be thanking you instead Alice." We had been stalling for long enough so I summoned my brand-new bow and loaded it with a fire arrow. My hands shook as I considered Alice a friend, but this is what I must do to free her and help the world.
I also took this chance while I prepared my shot to take a photo of the magic circle with the system, as someone back in the demon lands might be able to decode it.
"Hmph, of course, I, the great Alice, would help her own kin… Now put me to rest and save the other Alice for me."
"Wait!!!" Right before I could let go of the string, a sudden yell came from the elevator. Spinning around on my feet, I pointed my bow at the source, ready to kill whoever it was. To my surprise, it was the dungeon version of Alice.
"Alice!?" Me and the restrained Alice spoke in unison, confused as to how the hell she made it down here.
"Please don't kill her! I heard everything!" As she ran down the rocky path, she almost tripped over, but she caught herself and slid on her feet until she was right in front of me.
"What is your intention here? Answer me before I shoot an arrow into your head!" It was an empty threat, as this Alice was no doubt much stronger than I was, but I still wanted to be in control of the situation.
"T-tell me, what is going on? How is that person me? What is this dungeon thing you mentioned and… what was that about taking me out of it?" Alice looked at me with confusing and pleading eyes that wanted answers.
'I can use this to my advantage. This might be my chance to convince her to leave.' It was poor timing, but this very well could be a blessing in disguise. I hadn't inherited Alice's power yet, but it might make it easier to convince Alice if she speaks to her older self.
*Sigh* "I knew I should have been more careful. The one person I couldn't sense was myself since we are technically one and the same."
"W-woah you do sound like me." Seeing the two Alices talk with each other felt awkward, as they had the same voice. If I wasn't seeing the two versions of Alice facing each other in front of me, I would have though Alice was talking to herself.
"I'll explain everything so sit tight, Elysia." Lowering my bow, I stepped to the side letting the younger Alice talk to her older self. I didn't know what kind of outcome would come from this, but I hope it wasn't a mistake for young Alice to come down here.
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢