Fractured God

“Hmm, I assume the others are exploring the area?” Elizabeth asked.

“Yeah, they brought Kevin along with them to explore the rest of the dungeon… though with how big it is I'm not sure if they'll get through it anytime soon.” He said as he got up from the pillar.

She grabbed his shoulder. “Where do you think you're going?” She firmly asked.

“(Why are you treating me like a criminal?) Uh, is something wrong Elizabeth?” He asked as he brought his derriere back down on the pillar. He didn't know why she was so suspicious of him leaving but he sure as hell wasn't going to resist her.

“(I guess he should be fine as he isn't unconscious, but now I feel even more encouraged to keep an eye on him.) I'm just curious where you were headed.” She asked in a substantially less aggressive tone than the former statement.

In a rare mistake from Elizabeth, she seemed to have forgotten he no longer posed a great threat anymore. Did her encounter with the drake leave a lasting impact on her?

“Oh, I guess you probably don't want me running away again. Don't worry, I should be able to give you some explanation in advice about those sorts of things from now on. (Right?)”

(“Sure, do whatever.”) They responded. (“Sigh, what a disappointment. That group sounds somewhat interesting but I can't imagine you'll be encountering them anymore and based on their skills they're likely just pawns.”)

(“What are tal-”) The drake paid no attention to Tibaut’s prattling and continued on.

(“I really believed you would have been of use to me. Farewell, experiment. I don't think there'll ever be a time I'll need you again, but I will keep you in mind if I need a pawn to be sacri-”) They stated before fading away.

“Huh!?” Tibaut exclaimed.

Elizabeth gave him a suspicious glance.

“Uh, I think I just got dumped?”

He told the words he could remember them saying before they vanished.

“Is this true?” Elizabeth looked conflicted by his statement. He had potential and he was genuinely a major help to him. But with that thing, his potential skyrocketed to the same level as her. It'd be a massive loss if that thing truly did leave before he could tame them but the benefit of a more manageable Tibaut wasn't to be underestimated.

Before they could discuss more about it, Elizabeth turned her head to one of their seemingly sleeping companions.

“(It seems we will have to discuss this later.) Are you not going to greet me, Tina?”

She flinched and immediately gave up the ruse. She picked herself up off the floor and looked towards them.

“Aren't you two chummy as always?” She remarked as she strolled over. “Didn't feel the need to wake the rest of us up?”

“I was just discussing matters with Tibaut, but apparently his rendezvous here proved unsuccessful,” Elizabeth added.

(“Whoa, I don't think I've seen her lie so blatantly in person before. She really does have a poker face.”) Tibaut thought.

“Yeah, yeah, he's your ace. You could done that stuff after we saw you were well. I mean I didn't trust those potions down here that much so this was kinda nerve-wracking.”

“Nerve-wracking? I guess with my state, that would make sense.”

“Not just that. I mean, the fact you didn't even make so much as a peep for over a day really kinda dampened the mood.”

“Hmm? A day, you say? (I assumed it was longer than my Goddess stated but I assumed it was no longer than an hour or two… A whole day?)”

She quickly turned to Tibaut. “Then how long has Ruby's group been gone? You said they left not long after I was brought here.”

“Well, that doesn't mean they don't come back every so often.”

She pressed her finger against her head.

“Tibaut please be more clear with details like that, a miscommunication like that could lead to unforeseen problems in certain scenarios.”

“Ah, my bad.” He said before slightly bowing his head.

Tina looked around the room and noticed the two pale women playing around with the angel statue on the gate.

She clicked her tongue and looked away. “They're still here?” She muttered under her breath while walking closer to Elizabeth.

The two noticed the discomfort on her face and came down from the gate.

“You're shitting me!” He exclaimed.

Tibaut quickly got up to stop them, wrapping an arm around each one of them and trying to push them back. They half-heartedly struggled against his resistance, moving closer each time Tina backed further away.

“I hate these bitches.” Tina commented loudly. She was already on her way to the exit, but seeing Elizabeth calmly sitting down must have made her realise how silly she'd look running away from them.

She cleared her throat and walked over to Elizabeth, sitting in the spot Tibaut formerly occupied.

“I'm surprised you're so cool with those things, Liz.”

“As long as they don't attack, they're neither here nor there for me. I do feel sympathy-”

“Don't tell me you're sympathising with those things? They're essentially dead bodies walking, shouldn't we just kill them to put the girls at peace? I remember Tibaut saying their original personalities being affec-”

“Tina, are you saying that because you mean it or did something happen when I was unconscious?”

Last she checked, Tina didn't seem too perturbed by these women, even going as far as to believe she could have taken one down if they tried hard enough. Now, she very clearly had fear for them. What was with this change in attitude towards them?

“....” She remained silent. She held her hand against her mouth, looking down. It was obvious she was trying to make up an excuse of some sort based on her silence.