金瓶梅第2部

⟬ The Trap Path. ⟭

"Watch out!!!"

"Huh?"

Hearing her master's shout, Mina's turned back-- but it was too late for her to ⌈Mana Ward⌋ the animated vine.

"Too slow, girlie!" Krysaos growled, reaching out his arm to intercept the attack. The thick, fibrous tendril latched onto his coat sleeve and its sharp thorns dug into his skin through the thick cloth.

Mina's heart thrummed painfully in guilt.

It looked... so painful...

"⌈Crescent Wave!⌋" She swiped her hand upward, lopping off the vine with a cutting water spell.

However, a wave of a different kind washed over her-- one of mana fatigue. As soon as her master was free, she felt her levitation falter and gravity take hold.

"Whoa! I got'cha!"

Her hero... her Chosen One... Captain Krysaos of the Neptune's Revenge managed to catch her in his arms. Keeping with his momentum, he began sloshing through the muddy water-- getting them both away from the hostile foliage.

"Gotta keep you in good condition, Mina!" He shouted, "You're my only ticket outta here, y'know."

Those words might have been hurtful... if she wasn't fully aware that Krysaos better spoke through his actions rather than his words. It wasn't the first time he'd risked himself to protect her-- and he'd already done so several times in the past few bells.

Mina had been trying her best to conserve her mana, but the various dangers of the Trap Path seemed endless.

She was not in good condition-- not in any sense of the word.

She was, however, in good spirits, having Krysaos so close to her. She nuzzled into his warm chest as he princess-carried her to safety.

"I'll... be fine, Master."

"Quiet! For now!" Krysaos heaved between gasps for breath. "I'm. Trying! To run!"

Mina nodded quietly as she hooked her arms around her master's neck for support. Krysaos had been beaten and battered by the trials and tribulations of the Tree God's Forest... and it was obvious just by the state of his clothing.

His right sleeve was coated in thorns, he had open slash-wounds on his chest and back; and the material on his right shoulder was lacerated from a fight, long ago. His knees were visible through holes on his trousers... and even his beloved tricorne hat had its front tip lopped off.

He looked nothing like the noble hero that she was created to serve.

Yet, Krysaos... was a hero, nonetheless. It was the noble heart that beat in his chest that made it so.

...Sir Tycon had given her explicit instructions before they entered the Tree God's Forest.

Mina-- as both Krysaos' Lieutenant and his closest guard and confidante... was ordered to *only* assist Krysaos if he faced mortal danger.

Sir Tycon and Krysaos had returned her enchanted tiara to her. If she donned it, her mana issues would become nonexistent... and she'd even gain limited access to Third-Circle water spells despite her Iron Rank. With that kind of power, she could render the various dangers of the dreaded Trap Path harmless.

It was just... disheartening as a servant for her actions to be so limited. She was supposed to support her master, not inconvenience him.

More than once, Mina told Krysaos to... to ignore her-- to allow her to be injured. She was a mana-creation... and even if her physical body was completely destroyed, she could restore herself over weeks and moons or years as long as the Heart of the Ocean remained undamaged.

Krysaos, however, was human. If he took an injury too severe, he might lose the use of a limb... or even die.

Ultimately... Mina agreed with Sir Tycon's assessment. Though she'd do anything for her master, she realized what was best for him over years and decades.

It wasn't smooth seas that made a skilled sailor. It was the cruel gods that governed the seas, the hungry Abyssal Sea Wolves, and the loneliness of the deepest, darkest depths.

For Krysaos to grow into his role as Chosen One, he had to face his challenges and overcome them by his own ability.

Master's life-goal was to fight the sea god.

Even though Mina was created by the Lake Goddess, she was still technically a daughter of the ocean.When the time came, she feared that she'd be powerless to directly assist him against the sea god.

...But gathering the allies and resources to fight the sea god took time.

And in that time... he could grow exponentially...

...Would it ever be enough?

Krysaos slowed his pace... "We... uggggh-- we should be safe here..."

He gently placed Mina down onto the dirt.

She took a deep breath and folded her tail beneath her to sit... "Thank you, Master... I... I should be fine to continue after a few minutes."

"Good to hear," Krysaos sighed as he plopped down beside her, back to the wall. "I'm... I might take more'n a few, myself."

Mina swept her purple hair behind her shoulders as she examined her surroundings.

It was an odd clearing, devoid of traps and summoned creatures-- but so too grasses and greenery. The brick construction that Krysaos rested against was odd to see, considering they were in such a remote location.

Mina's eyes gravitated to a nearby sign, a single passages displayed in several languages.

One was written in Aquan...

"Master..." Mina pursed her lips, "This is... a warning?"

Krysaos lazily rotated his head to stretch, "That the trap path is dangerous as f*ck? Yep. Already knew that."

Mina took a breath through her nostrils. Master was right... a written warning was largely redundant, considering everything else they'd faced.

"Master... how are your injuries?"

"I'll be fine, thanks."

Her master had the horrible habit of lying as easily as he breathed... but Mina had learned that it was useless to argue with him over it.

Krysaos had reached for the last healing potion on his bandolier. His hands shook as he tried to unstopper it-- and there were tears of pain at the corner of his eyes.

She could never tell him that, though... Though she tried and failed to protect him with her magic, she could at least protect his pride.