Scarlet

Before I can ponder on the subject any more, I feel something shifting under the blanket, making me blink for a moment before I move the thick and rather comfortable blanket to find Tar curled up next to me. And that sight alone makes me smile.

It takes a moment, but the tanuki’s eyes slowly open as I begin petting him, my smile growing a little bit in the process. And as soon as his mind registers that I’m awake, he exclaims in my head “Scarlet!!” and rushes straight at me, jumping into my arms where I hold him to my chest. “You’re awake!!!”

Yep. And I had another dream of White erasing my memories before.

Tar raises his head to look me in the eyes as he asks, “Really? What was it about this time?”

Well, it was the first time I met Belle back when I was just five years old. And apparently she didn’t just erase my memories this time, but also her own. She comforted me when I was feeling upset and anxious before just erasing both of our memories and vanishing.

“Really?” he mutters, his confusion coming along with the words into my head. “I wonder why she would erase her own memories as well…”

Me too. But before that, do you have any idea where we are? Or how long I was asleep for that matter?

Oh. And who it is that’s been pacing outside of this curtain back and forth since I woke up?

The tanuki blinks at me for a moment before floating out of my arms and landing on the bed itself as he says, “Oh… right.”

Several seconds pass with the only noise being that of the pacing, any other noise outside of this room being completely blocked off with what I can only assume are extremely powerful soundproof walls.

So, are you going to tell me?

“I’m just going to say it outright,” Tar says, tensing up ever so slightly. “You’re on Tartarus.”

I blink at that. Then stare at him for a few seconds.

Then I lie back down on the pillows again to stare up at the canopy.

Oh.

“It’s my fault…” Tar eventually says, sounding regretful as he climbs on top of me and looks down at my face, a sad look on his own. “It was the only way to save you. I had to do it.”

Do what?

“I had to get your father,” he answers before glancing at the curtain.

Wait, so was the blood lycan who entered the Class V Fracture my-

“No, they weren’t,” Tar says while shaking his head and lying down. “They were a subordinate of his. He never actually came to Earth personally. Just took control of his subordinates body instead.”

My eyes widen in shock at the subtle mention of a skill powerful enough to take over someone else’s body from another world.

“Oh, but don’t worry. He can’t do that to you, even if he wanted to,” Tar says, sensing my distress. “He has that skill etched, so you have a much weaker version of it even if the only thing it does for you right now is make you immune to that sort of thing.”

I open my mouth but fail to find any words to say. So I close it again.

“Scarlet?” he asks while reaching out and touching my face with his paw. “Are you okay?”

Y-yeah, I am. But… if he has a mythic skill that powerful, then he can only be…

“Yeah…” Tar mutters, turning to look at the curtain again. And I do the same, only to frown as I remember that I’m lying down on my hair. Which is one of the only things I dislike about having such long hair and why I almost always sleep with it in a braid.

A few seconds pass as I stare at the curtain where someone – most likely my biological father – is still pacing back and forth nonstop.

“He’s been doing that since you were brought here,” Tar says, sounding slightly amused. “Hasn’t left the room since and has been jumping at every single slight movement you’ve made. Although he refuses to open the curtain because it might ‘disturb your rest.’”

That has me raising a brow and quite honestly questioning if my conclusion as to his identity is correct or not.

“No, he’s… actually, just open your System messages,” Tar says, making me frown. “They’ll explain it rather clearly.”

And so I let my System messages free.

{Level 252 Changeling defeated. A significant EXP bonus is awarded for killing a creature over seventy-five levels above your level. Almost all of the EXP has been extracted as a penalty for barely assisting in killing a demon.} x4

…

{Level 401 Changeling defeated. A massive EXP bonus is awarded for killing a creature over one hundred levels above your level. Almost all of the EXP has been extracted as a penalty for barely assisting in killing a demon.}

{Level 251 Demon Vanguard defeated. A significant EXP bonus is awarded for killing a creature over seventy-five levels above your level.}

{Thirty Skill Points are awarded for killing three being of higher Classes than yourself in less than a year.}

{Twenty-five Skill Points are awarded for assisting in killing at least two hundred and fifty beings of a higher Class than yourself.}

{Twenty Skill Points are awarded for taking enough damage to kill most people your level ten times over and surviving.}

{Ten Skill Points are awarded for killing three being of higher Classes than yourself.}

{Ten Skill Points are awarded for surviving a petrific miasma poisoning.}

{Ten Skill Points are awarded for having at least twenty-five percent of your body petrified and restored.}

{Five Skill Points are awarded for killing your first Arachne.}

{One Skill Point is awarded for killing a demon.}

{Congrats, you have leveled up to level 183. Three Free Points have been awarded to you and your stats have been updated.}

…

{Congrats, you have leveled up to level 196. Three Free Points have been awarded to you and your stats have been updated.}

[Skill ‘Pain Diffusion’ has leveled up to level 11.]

[Skill ‘Blood of Ruin’ has leveled up to level 2.]

[Skill ‘Null Magic Field’ has leveled up to level 10.]

[Skill ‘Metallicized Blood Claws’ has leveled up to level 17.]

[Skill ‘Life Drain’ has leveled up to level 17.]

[Skill ‘Blood Regeneration’ has leveled up to level 13.]

I read through them all, finding the messages to be quite satisfying, but I also don’t see what Tar meant by ‘it’ll explain it rather clearly.’

That is, until a System notification plays out after the messages.

System anomaly recognized upon fracture crossing.

Resources diverted towards determining source…

Source confirmed.

Anomaly’s true name was interfered with by a system user known as the White Knight of Humanity.

True name has now been returned to normal.

Anomaly has been repaired.

System resources returning to appropriate responsibilities.