Chapter 628: Now we need to get to the bottom of the problem.
Daniela opened her eyes suddenly.
Air rushed into her lungs like a choked thunderclap, and for a mont she just stood there, breathing deeply, every rib protesting the sensation of sothing burning inside. The last mory still burned: the emptiness, the reflection, the blade, the tallic taste of devouring sothing not made of flesh.
She was standing.
At least, she thought she was. Her body trembled as if it weren’t entirely hers. But when she looked up, she realized: everyone was looking at her.
A circle ford in silence, filled with eyes that varied between fear, doubt, and a hint of barely concealed relief.
Strax was the only one who didn’t look away. His posture was rigid, arms crossed, as if any movent from Daniela could force him forward. Beside her, Frieren still had her hand raised, magic wavering in blue runes that flickered as if unsure whether to extinguish or attack.
Kali retreated step by step, her hands trembling slightly, as if she’d witnessed sothing she’d never be able to describe in words. Bellatrix seed amused, a mocking smile tugging at the corner of her mouth, but her eyes assessed her as if she were facing a wild animal that might spring at any mont. Bellatrix was pale, and Rogue had set the blade down without relaxing her posture.
Daniela arched an eyebrow, looking around. Her voice was hoarse, scratchy, but filled with that carefree tone that always erged when soone else expected weakness:
“…Okay. I slept for five minutes and you hold a funeral vigil around ?”
No one laughed.
She sighed, tossing her hair back, trying to straighten her posture. “When did you get here, anyway?”
Strax answered first, his deep voice, sharp as ever, but with a hint of tiredness around the edges:
“Just now.”
Daniela narrowed her eyes, glancing at him sideways. “‘Not long ago’?” she repeated, shaking her head. “You sound like I just took a short nap. But I’m pretty sure I just fought half the hell inside my head.”
No one answered.
She then shifted her gaze to Frieren. The mage was watching her intently, and it was impossible to ignore the twitch at the corner of her mouth, nor the uncomfortable glint in her clear eyes. Frieren looked like soone who had seen sothing forbidden—and perhaps she had.
Daniela tilted her head suspiciously. “Why are you looking at like I have two heads?”
Frieren took a mont. She opened her mouth, closed it. Finally, she took a deep breath and replied, in a whisper thick with disbelief:
“Because you… ate.”
Daniela blinked. “I what?”
Before she could insist, Strax intervened, his voice hard, cutting through the air like a blade. “You devoured a mind control rune. Or sothing like that.”
A heavy silence fell.
Daniela turned to face him, confused. “Is that… a big deal?”
Strax didn’t answer imdiately. He just stared at her with that intensity that seed to pierce through bones. And it was at that mont that Daniela realized: everyone was staring.
Kali, wide-eyed. Bellatrix biting her lower lip. Rogue keeping her hand near the blade. Bellatrix, smiling as always, but with a curious glint. Even Frieren seed unsure whether to move away or closer.
Daniela threw up her hands in exasperation. “Hey! Don’t look at like that! I’m the victim here!”
The comnt broke the weight for a mont, but not in the way she intended. Bellatrix laughed first, a hoarse laugh that echoed through the air. “Victim? You?” She wiped the corners of her eyes with her fingertips, still laughing. “Victim of a feast, perhaps.”
“Shut up,” Daniela snapped automatically, but weakly. “I didn’t ask for this.”
Kali took a hesitant step. “But you… you really absorbed everything. Not just the reflection, but the entire spell.”
“Yes, because if I didn’t, I would have been trapped there forever!” Daniela countered, crossing her arms, her tone sarcastic, but her eyes restless. “What did you want to do? Stand there and cry until I disappeared?”
“You don’t understand,” Frieren interrupted, her voice shaky but firm. “No human—no living being—should be able to do that. There must be consequences.”
Daniela huffed, rolling her eyes. “Great, another reason to bla for surviving.”
She began walking, slowly circling the group, and noticed how everyone instinctively made room. Her gaze fell on Strax again. He hadn’t moved, but the tension in his shoulders was visible.
“So I fought a psychopathic version of myself, devoured a spell, almost exploded into a dragon in front of everyone…” Daniela summarized with a wry smile. “…and now I’m the monster in the room. Is that it?”
No one denied it.
She sighed, bringing her hand to her forehead. The tallic taste of blood still seed trapped in her mouth. The mories of the fight in the abyss weren’t just images: they were etched like scars.
But, on the outside, Daniela smiled again. A crooked, defiant, almost tired smile.
“Well then. If anyone here has the courage to say I should have lost, speak now.”
Silence. The only responses were averted glances.
Daniela approached Strax, facing him head-on. Her green eyes still glowed like embers, but behind them lay the question she didn’t want to voice.
He stared at her for long seconds, until finally murmuring, softly, but enough for everyone to hear:
“You’re back. That’s all that matters.”
She blinked, surprised. Not by what he said, but by the way he said it.
His voice wasn’t just hard. There was sothing broken, sothing too relieved to fit within a warrior’s face.
Daniela looked away, uncomfortable with the intensity. “So… are we okay?”
Strax arched an eyebrow, as if it were obvious. “No. But you’re alive.”
Bellatrix laughed again, and this ti even Cassandra cracked a nervous smile.
Daniela sighed and raised her hands again. “Okay, okay! But seriously… if I start glowing green, they’ll tie to a tree. Deal?”
Daniela sighed and raised her hands again. “Okay, okay! But seriously… if I start glowing green, they’ll tie to a tree. Deal?”
“Daniela.” Strax’s voice cut through the air like a blade.
She froze. His tone held no anger or sarcasm. It was simply direct, firm, and heavy. The kind of voice that left no room for jokes.
“Stop this nonsense.” He stepped forward, his shadow looming over her, larger than any aura he could muster. “We don’t have ti for this.”
Daniela arched an eyebrow, her crooked smile returning, but dull. “‘Nonsense’? I just ate magic like it was dinner. You’ll excuse if I need a minute to play it cool.”
“One minute is all you’ve got.” Strax interrupted her again, curtly. His gaze never wavered, and everyone could feel the tension spreading through the room like a rope stretched to its maximum. “Now we need to get to the bottom of the problem.”
The air grew thicker.
Daniela narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “What problem?”
Strax took his ti. He took a deep breath, as if even speaking was more of an effort than it should be. Finally, he said:
“My mother.”
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