Artemia: Journey To The Thirtieth Floor

34. Yuki's Sword

"Hey, does any of you think there's a mechanism around here?" Freya asked as she rummaged in the snow, trying to find anything that may reveal the item we were looking for.

I slowly shook my head as I tried to feel the presence of the item more. "Please take a step back," I said when I finally found it.

They exited the ring that surrounded the place where the fight from earlier took place to give me freedom so I could perform a spell. I placed my palm on the snow, trying to locate the thing that Yuki had left behind. Ah, wait. I might be doing it wrong. I'd been feeling its power since earlier, but I couldn't exactly make out whatever its appearance might be. The thing had some type of...inexplicable influence on me, which I couldn't describe. It seemed to be attempting to lure me in, which I found to be irritating.

With a single push of my palm on the ground, all of the snow vanished into thin air. My eyes were drawn to a case that had a snowflake mark on it. I took a few steps back with a grimace on my face, unwilling to touch the case no matter what. Perhaps I was overthinking things, but I had the impression that touching it would be a terrible idea. The desire to examine it comes from somewhere deep inside me, most likely Yuki and Shiro's spirits. But I couldn't because a gut feeling was telling me otherwise.

"Ivory, are you okay? What's the problem?" Dylan asked as he held my shoulders to stop me from walking backward.

"This thing..." I whispered, my voice hushed.

"Why? Is it, by any chance, something horrible?"

"I think so..."

Upon hearing my conversation with Dylan, Freya and Blake came up to me to find out what was going on. After they saw what I saw, the three of them didn't show any violent reactions. I believe I was the only one who could detect its sinister presence. I swallowed the lump in my throat and turned my back on it, unable to stand the discomfort any longer. But as soon as I did so, my vision became fuzzy, and I had to stop walking. My thoughts were jumbled, and the only thing that came to me was the image of a warrior.

"Stop...tormenting me..." was the last thing I managed to utter before everything went black.

"Hey..." a familiar voice said as I opened my eyes.

"Shiro...?" I asked, astonished. When I confirmed that it was really him, I went in for a bear hug, almost crying out of joy. "You f*****g jerk!"

He chuckled because of my reaction. "Please accept my apologies, Ivory. I didn't have a choice."

"Hey, is she here?" I asked, my gaze moving gently across the room.

"Hmm? Who?" he teased.

I glared at him. "Yuki. Is she here?"

"Don't bother looking for her. She's back in her deep slumber because you begged her to come to rescue us. After casting that one spell, Princess Yuki had reached her limit. It seems like your body is still not strong enough to bear the full power of the white tigress."

I was the first to break the embrace, fumbling with my fingers. Yuki seemed to have done all she could, but I was disappointed that she could not save Shiro. I despise myself for being so narrow-minded in that situation. I hoped I could see her, even if it was just for a while, because I wanted to express my regrets to her. Because of my insecurity, I had a negative opinion of her on a few occasions. Considering how Yuki was lying dormant inside me, I'm pretty sure that she knew about those opinions of mine.

She has to be someplace in this vicinity. I was just staring at Shiro before I rose to my feet and began to look around, wondering where Yuki may be. We're probably inside a portion of my mind because of how empty it is. I mean, Shiro is here as well, so I'm pretty sure that Yuki should be somewhere around here too. I started going in a certain way since my instincts led me in that direction. Though I wasn't sure whether Yuki would be there, I decided to take a risk and see what happened.

"It's her..." I mumbled to myself when I spotted a bed of flowers. Ah, it's her! There was a lady that looked like me. She was dressed in white and was lying on a bed of cotton-like stuff. "Yuki..."

"She's not going to wake up," Shiro told me.

"I get the impression that I am staring at myself."

Shiro patted the back of my shoulder, so I looked back at him. "Ivory, there's something I've been wanting to tell you for quite some time."

"Oh? What is it?"

He took a long, deep breath before speaking. "You and Princess Yuki are not the same people. But it appears that many people point out your resemblances despite knowing that you are not her. I merely wish to assure you that this does not imply that you are regarded as the princess. Ivory, you are yourself and not anyone else. I was concerned that you might slowly lose your identity if such occurrences continue happening. Therefore, I decided to tell you this myself."

"Mm. I know that..." I muttered under my breath as I stared at Yuki once more.

Shiro heaved a sigh of relief. "I am glad."

Yuki possesses exceptional beauty, which lends her the appearance of a vulnerable princess rather than a fierce warrior. But this is most likely because she is now imprisoned inside my imagination. Her physical body is where I'm currently residing, and it's in a very bad state...probably as a result of the innumerable fights that she and I had gone through together over the years. Yuki was perhaps the leader of the resistance that I have seen in my dreams, so I'm pretty sure that she was a monster on the battlefield.

Still, when she's relaxed and contented, her attractiveness is undeniable. So this is what I look like while I'm fast asleep. I couldn't help but crack a little grin at the idea. It's a little ironic, to be honest. Perhaps I just needed a better mirror whenever I felt insecure...which is Yuki. Seeing her gave me the impression that I had a lot of wonderful things in me, and for that, I am glad once again.

"It's time for me to apologize..."

I took a deep breath and knelt on my hands and knees as if I was praying. Shiro must have been panicking since I kept hearing gasps from him, but he quickly regained his composure. That served as a prompt for me to utter an apology to Yuki. Aware that our minds are linked, I relayed everything I wanted to tell her through that connection of ours. When I was done, a little grin slowly formed on her lips.

She must have accepted my thanks and apologies since she seemed considerably calmer when I left her. I smiled as well, pleased that I had been granted the opportunity to meet her, even if it had only been for a little moment. Not only that, but I was able to clear up several misunderstandings between the two of us. When I wake up, I will probably feel far better than I did before.

"Uhm, I think I should wake up by now?" I said after a short period of stillness.

Shiro seemed sad after hearing what I had to say, but he managed to crack a charming smile, something he refused to show everyone else. Because he's so adorable, I couldn't help but smile as well. I really wanted to see more of his cute side, but I guess I'm being a little selfish by wanting to see more of him. And besides, I had previously had the opportunity to talk with him in-depth for the final time.

I smiled as I ruffled Shiro's hair, making it look disheveled, unlike his usual formal look. "Please continue to provide guidance to me. If you believe I'm making judgments that are...rash, please advise me to pause and think about it again. You are well aware of my poor decision-making abilities."

"I'll do it. But I want you to try and make decisions without my help," Shiro joked, a sliver of a grin on his face.

"Hmm, I'll give it a go."

When I felt like I had no choice but to leave, I took a few steps back and smiled sadly. Shiro was waving his hand at me, and his grin was reflected in mine. Then I looked down at my feet and closed my eyes, prepared to wake up from this dream. But I wish I could have stayed a bit longer. Although I think that it's too much to ask.

"Ivory is awake!"

When I opened my eyes, I was welcomed by the screams of my companion. Oh, I must have been unconscious for a lengthy period of time. There was a barrier of warmth around us. Freya was holding my hand as if she were trying to help me recover. Meanwhile, Dylan and Blake are on high alert, as if they were trying to keep us safe from some unknown threat.

"What's wrong?" I asked as I held onto my head because of the pang of pain that I felt.

"It's getting close to nightfall," Freya replied.

"What?!"

"That's beside the point! Are you feeling alright?" she asked, her voice filled with concern as she examined my body for any possible injuries.

"Yes, I am! I just got dizzy for a while. What happened to the quest? Why aren't we getting out of here? We can't afford to be here for very long, right?"

I was terrified that the monsters would come after us if we didn't leave right away! I panicked! Not only that, but it's getting close to nightfall! I instantly rose to my feet and began searching for the case that we had discovered at the peak. When I first saw it, I rapidly absorbed it using the small capsule Kalix had given us. According to him, this would reduce the size of everything to the extent of a five hundred milligram pill in size.

After taking everything in, I quickly placed our belongings into our inventory. Freya and Dylan did the same thing, who were now in a state of panic. Blake, on the other hand, continued calling for Yukina. It would be necessary to fly towards Kalix's base if she refused to go! I think that my body won't be able to take any hard fighting after Yuki came out to use my body, making it far more dangerous!

"Yukina!" I shouted, hoping that she would hear me from here.

I clenched my jaw in anticipation of using my superstrength to flee rapidly. Blake remained behind me, still trying to yell for Yukina, but he was also getting ready to leave the mountain. Dylan was about to use water to travel while Freya planned to use the three of us by connecting her body to ours using a few vines.

As soon as Yukina didn't show up, I called it quits. The sun will set in a few minutes, and the nasty beasts will begin to appear one by one as the sun sinks lower in the sky. As the shadows started to materialize, I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat while fear was beginning to take over me. Damn, it seems like we're in for a gory night.

Yukina emerged just as the sun was about to set, and the hounds charged at us, turning them into statues in the process. Even though blood was streaming from her gorgeous face, she seemed to be alright. We got on her back in a hurry, which nearly cost me my life. Her back was being chewed by a dog, who was attempting to eat the scales! We should all be grateful that Blake quickly killed it.

I muttered a curse beneath my breath while shaking my head in disbelief. This is why I should never let my guard down, even if I am under the protection of another person. That being said, I had to stop thinking about it since Yukina was moving too quickly. I felt like I was about to be swept away at any minute! I'm grateful that her scales are quite durable...

"Calm down," Blake told me in hushed tones from behind them.

"I am calm."

"Something must be upsetting you, am I right? You're a little antsy."

"No, I'm not," I told him, firmer this time.

When Blake brought it to my attention, I recognized that the item we had discovered was still affecting me badly. My lower lip twitched as I shifted my gaze away, attempting to shake it off. Blake was about to prod us because he was concerned, but when he realized that we had arrived, he decided against it. We hurriedly returned to the ground floor and insisted that Yukina get treated immediately. It seemed like she was unhappy with her surroundings...

"Hello, and welcome back! How did things turn out?" Kalix greeted us with a sly grin on his face.

Before handing him the capsule, I smirked a little bit. He reduced the size of the image to its original proportions. His greedy intent was leaking from his fingers as he ran his fingers through the case, which made my brows furrow. But it appears that he was aware of my hostility. Smiling, he placed it on a cart and pushed it towards a room with the help of his hands.

Even though I was wary of him, I decided to follow him. And then we arrived at a location that appeared to be something that could only be found inside a museum. There was a crack in the ground that looked like a snowflake had been there. It appeared to be eerily familiar. Ah, it was the same as the one I found on the mountain.

"Isn't that similar to the one on the summit? The one below the case?" I asked as I stared at it. That was barely noticeable, but I was able to see it clearly.

"Yes, it is," Kalix replied as he tried to hide a smirk. "But this is the original. That one was created by Kasai, who used it to store his memories. Blake is the one who is supposed to be able to unlock it. But since Kasai's sword is nowhere to be found, it's not possible. Anyway..." Kalix said as he took a step back.

When he ordered me to hold the hilt of the sword, I was taken aback. f*****g jerk! My body began to heat up, and my vision began to become foggy. I couldn't understand what was happening, but I saw the sword being struck on the ground. The moment that happened, my mind went haywire.

"Wait...help me..." I pleaded as I reached for Blake's hand.

But it was all too late...

"Yuki..."