***

“This…is too much…for the Prinzessin…” Fischl groaned, her legs trembling with fatigue.

She was obviously trying to keep up with their pace, but her stamina wasn’t as good as theirs. Neither in battle neither in everyday life.

Climbing stairs would drain her energy to the point where she wouldn’t be able to fight properly.

“Gah, I can’t keep up with them…”

Even without Iris on her back, she was struggling to keep up. Sweat rolled down her face while she panted for air.

Finally, after what seemed like eternity, they reached the summit of the staircase.

“…And here we are.” Yomite sighed upon reaching the peak, he then tapped Lisa’s shoulder, causing her to snap awake. “Hey…Lisa. Are you alright? You don’t look so good.”

She had been pale since before they arrived at the Spiral Abyss and now she looked even worse, if that were possible. She barely reacted when Yomite woke her and merely nodded.

“Mhm…quite short of a nap. My eyesight is a bit blurry.” She blinked several times, adjusting herself until everything was in order again.

“Also, I believe I told you to call me ‘Teacher’ or “Master” from now on, yes? Call me Lisa in private.” Her voice came out more demanding than it usually did, almost as though she were scolding him.

Yomite rolled his eyes, knowing full well that was just her way of teasing, “Whatever you say,” He replied nonchalantly and helped Lisa climb down from him.

Once she stood upright once more, he gave her a pat on the back to make sure that she would stay standing, “You okay? Are you still sick? Do you want me to carry you some more?”

“I’m fine,” She took a few tentative steps forward and finally stopped completely, “Just…just give me some time to get used to this place. It’s full of foul mana and dark magic which makes my skin crawl. I need to adjust my senses first.”

Her words made sense, so Yomite didn’t push it any further.

He glanced behind him and saw Barbara panting heavily with Lumine standing beside her, both of them leaning against the wall.

“You finally made it! Paimon was getting bored!” Paimon who was floating next to them, smiled brightly, “See? Paimon told you walking up the stairs wasn’t so hard! You two were just bad at it! Hehehe!”

“You know…Paimon…I could really go without your attitude…when you are floating the entire time…”

Barbara revealed a sweet smile, yet she also hid some rage beneath. Her patience wore thin.

‘This little fairy was talking and making fun of us the entire time we were climbing the stairs…If I hear one more mockery from her side…I think I’ll snap her neck.’

Barbara finally seemed to have had enough, if only briefly.

She raised her hand towards Paimon with a frighteningly blank expression on her face, as though she weren’t really there at all, but was merely an empty canvas.

It wasn’t long before she flinched and turned away, shaking off whatever trance she’d been in before she snapped back into reality.

“Barbara?”

A look of concern crossed Paimon’s face, and she quickly to made her way over to Barbara’s side to check on her, placing her small hand on her arm gently.

“Barbara? You don’t look so good! Paimon is worried about you. Are you alright?”

“I…I’m fine.”

“Paimon…stop talking…please…my ears are ringing…” Lumine had the same expression as Barbara as they stared at the sprite, who was still flitting about excitedly.

Though she didn’t share Barbara’s thoughts of hurting her, she also had enough of listening to Paimon’s endless prattle, so she turned around and began focusing on her breathing instead. “Breathing in…Breathing out…”

‘What was I…about to do to her just now…?’ Barbara thought to herself, trying her best not to let fear consume her as the adrenaline, and the murky feeling slowly left her body.

‘I really need a break.’ She sighed softly, resting her head against the wall behind them.

Eventually, Barbara was able to calm herself down sufficiently so that her breathing could even out, and her hands no longer trembled violently.

But she found it hard to forget the feeling, or get rid of the terrible memory of what she’d almost done just now.

She took a deep breath, allowing the cold air to fill her lungs, and tried to think of nothing else except for the task at hand, getting stronger to overcome her sister in at least something, and proving to Yomite that she was useful enough to keep around.

Yomite had noticed how exhausted and disoriented everyone but him and Paimon was, so he decided that they should rest and recuperate.

The others agreed with him, so they settled down in a relatively secluded part of the platform they had just climbed.

The platform wasn’t that wide, but it was big enough to fit around ten people comfortably so they didn’t have a problem to spread out.

‘Come to think of it, would the magical pot work here?’ he thought to himself and pulled out the teapot, setting it on the ground beside him. If it could lighten up, maybe they’d be able to rest in a more comfortable place.

As expected, it worked and immediately once he opened the lid, white smoke filled the area, obscuring the vision of everybody else. It enveloped everyone within seconds, making the platform seem like a cloudy day from outside.

“Hoh? This is interesting” Lisa seemed surprised by this new development, her eyes wide as she glanced back towards Yomite, “You surprise me again and again…Is this an artifact of some sorts?”

He laughed at her comment and gave her a quick nod, “Yeah, you could say that. It’s a pocket dimension of sorts which I obtained as a gift…or rather…reimbursement…We can relax in it for the time being.”

All of them soon found themselves in the middle of a grassland, the area within the magical teapot.