I was no longer in a corridor, so that was nice. However, now I was following Elaya as she led me in a specific direction. On-the-rails dungeons were the worst. At least, the dungeon can give me the illusion of choice by making it a maze with multiple paths. Then again, I supposed it was better than a giant open location like the Twilight Dungeon, where you had to repeat the same task fifty times and it was mostly filled with large empty fields.
I shook my head. For a second there, I was mistaking this life for a video game. Although, I did gain levels, go on quests, and defeat monsters. I also had gotten here by slipping into a video game. The choices I made were ultimately what I had when I appeared here. However, I refused to believe this world was just some elaborate game. I had experienced far too much to believe that.
Thankfully, Elaya’s lesson didn’t appear to be anything like we were living in a simulation. If that was suggested, I didn’t know if I could cope. Instead, she took me to a nearby lake that was adjacent to the mansion. She took a step to the side and then gestured to me to continue. I had a feeling the second I turned my back on her, she’d disappear on me again. Still, I decided to humor her and keep walking. I approached the shore of the lake, curious what she was trying to show me.
That’s when I started to hear singing. It was a gentle, haunting song that seemed to echo across the lake like a sound in a cave. I scanned the lake until I found a rock that seemed to be jutting out of it. Standing on that rock was a lonely-looking woman. As soon as I recognized her, my eyes popped open. It was the Siren! This was the singer who had been my mid-level boss. Her singing could manipulate others, and even induce the dead to fight for her.
Her song was extremely dangerous. Once someone listened to it, it was already too late. However, the song didn’t seem to be affecting me. I realized that was because the song wasn’t directed in my direction. She was facing away from me and seemed to be beckoning someone from another shore. I looked in that direction to see a dock that must have been part of the mansion. There was a woman wearing nothing but a night dress slowly being lured out to sea.
This was the very essence of a siren. They could call out to people, leading them to their deaths. Their song would cause someone to lose their wits. Sailors would crash their boats along the rocky shores and people would be lured out where they would end up drowning. This exact act seemed to be happening to that woman, and that woman was none other than Fifi. With the dungeon skill Eagle Eyes equipped, it wasn’t difficult to get a vivid view of the scene, despite my distance from them.
Time must have passed again, although it couldn’t have been more than a couple of months. Fifi was halfway down the dock, moving toward the Siren, who was beckoning her. I glanced at the rock outcropping that the Siren was standing on, and I realized I could see bones floating around the water at her feet. The Siren was trying to kill Fifi!
The sourc𝗲 of this content is free(w)ebnov(𝒆)l