A grin split the Rabbit’s face, worn by another. “I’m so glad you decided to visit me.” It let out a sigh. “I was so worried you’d die before I could get to you.”

In one swift motion, the false Rabbit pressed on Valeriana’s neck, making a small cut and immediately pressing its lips on the wound – locking eyes with me all the while. Alarms rang in my head, the seal screaming at me to move; however, there was very little I could do as the sharp weapon still hung close to her throat.

My mind whirled, exploring every possibility. The piece of candy I took earlier had already been consumed. I could take another; destabilize the cave’s ceiling and consequently the monster itself. I could send a stone spike through its head.

However, all my plans fell short as Valeriana’s hands dropped to her sides, her body going limp. With a plop, the masquerading monster removed its lips. It felt like a lifetime, yet it had been but a second.

“Oh, calm down, the kitty is fine. It’s just a little sedative,” It admonished.

The monster gracefully dropped down, keeping the sharp appendage hovering above the swaying girl while two more enveloped her and dispelled the cloak of shadows – revealing its body.

It stood, slightly shorter than Valeriana, just as slim. Dark skin accentuating the blood-red eyes; four pitch-black jointed limbs sprouting from its back, only one unoccupied – the dim coating creeping up its body creating different a map of shades of darkness. If it were not for the lamp, only two red beads would be swimming in a sea of nothingness, Valeriana floating in the air.

I was frozen in place, unable to move nor act, partially due to fear, but mainly because of the accursed seal constantly screaming in my head. Nothing could guarantee no harm would come to my mistress. I had no idea what I was dealing with, and neither did the seal.

“You said you were looking for me, specifically?” I asked in an attempt for it to lower its guard.

The horror rolled its eyes, still wearing the Rabbit’s alluring face. “Yes, Eddy, and I’m not taking any chances this time.” Two crimson irises narrowed. “You’ll do what I say, or I’ll spill some cat blood.”

“I see,” I spoke, ignoring the seal's sirens. “What do you want me to do?”

The pseudo-Rabbit smirked and moved to the far end of the cavern, touching and brushing against the cave’s rough walls. With a hiss, the grey dull stone disappeared, replaced by a curtain of emptiness – a void, absorbing every bit of light and reflecting nothing.

With the same smirk across its face, the ominous being stepped towards me. I mirrored each step in a different direction, hand above my dagger as it finally stood where I was. The monster plunged down its free appendage, a squelch resounded through the cave, followed by it letting out a sound of disgust.

“Ugh,” It cried, “I felt my leg dulling. What in Lugardana’s tits is that cloak?”

The limb jerked furiously, sending the cloak flying to the wall with the dead girl’s body alongside it.

Red eyes shot me an annoyed look as their holder walked back to the open portal. “If you’re not here in five seconds, I’m putting the kitty down.” And stepped through.

I didn’t have to think twice. The monster needed me alive for something, and that, at the very least, would keep us alive for a while. It was either an inevitable scuffle now or the possibility of a chance in the future. I didn’t favor walking into the unknown, yet I did not have much of a choice – the seal preferred the prospect of what’s to come over the inescapable maiming of its beholder.

My vision darkened for a moment. The sight greeting me was rather peculiar; the monster stood at a safe distance, hands-on its hips still holding Valeriana in the air. There were no traps, no bindings, nothing, only the Rabbit’s red impatient gaze.

A quick scan confirmed several things; we were in a building, the only one in a large area, surrounded by an open field, with no one but us here; however, I was not sure – I had been wrong not long before.

The room looked like a mash-up between a kitchen and storage; a wooden table occupied the middle, surrounded by four chairs, as small bizarre gadgets laid on top; shelves and cabinets covered the walls embellished in more small trinkets and a family picture?. An Elf holding hands with a beautiful dark-skinned woman, similar in tone to the exposed monster’s skin; however, without the added legs or the armor attached.

Had it brought us to its home? Or was it simply masquerading as another still. I was wholeheartedly confused. I was expecting chains, wails, and maybe some torture devices, but we were brought to a house with a very homely atmosphere.

A groan resounded, the supposed homeowner unhappy with my scrutinizing.

“Lovely house,” I noted.

“As if I needed an enlightened’s opinion.” It scoffed.

A suspension sprung in my mind, and confirming it, I asked, “So, only fellow demons then, huh.”

“No.” A grimace spread across the Rabbit’s face. “And enough chitchat, sit down so we can get this over with.”

“We can talk a bit,” I replied. A clear effort was taken to stay clear from me. “There is no need for violence; I wouldn’t want this beautiful house destroyed. How about you tell me what you want so we can reach an agreement?”

“You want to negotiate? I have the kitten here.” The demon spoke, swaying Valeriana in the air, the sharp edge following closely. “I can slit her little throat any moment I desire to.”

“And what happens when she’s dead?” I asked with calmness contrary to the state of my mind. “You lose your leverage, and I do everything within my power to kill you or die trying.” I shrugged.

“I do want you, Eddy, but I don’t need you.” It smiled, amused. “I can simply look for another.”

I called the bluff. “So all of this work would be for nothing? The disguise, the dungeon. You’re willing to start from scratch again while I’m literally standing in front of you.”

“You know… I made Sanne so I could wander freely. I wasn’t aiming for you; in fact, I was after a different outsider, but unfortunately, they had to die before I could reach them.”

My brows creased in confusion. “Outsider?”

“Intruder, Interloper, hero, you can call it however you like.”

I stiffened. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

With a roll of its eyes, it replied, “Oh, you can drop the act. I know you’re not of this world. I told you, you’re not the only failure brought here.”

I contemplated denying it further but ultimately gave up. “What do you want?” I bluntly asked.

The demon leered at me. “I want you, hero – put in your place, with a collar around your neck, groveling at my feet.”

I paused for a second and replied, “Sure.” Met with the Rabbit’s blank look, I continued, “And I want my companion returning back, safe and sound.”

“You’re willingly trading your freedom, your life for her?” The demon befuddled. And at my nod, its mouth opened and closed again, only a quiet murmur spoken afterward. “I knew men were stupid, but… I guess it doesn’t matter where you come from.”

“There is no reason for me to drag her into this. She has helped me more than you can imagine. I would be dead without her by now,” I summarized, “Also, you clearly want me alive, so I’ll deal with whatever comes next on my own.”

“Why are you so calm?” Red eyes squinted at me.

I shrugged. “How much do you know about me?” I received silence. “You’ll find out when you’re my master then.”

“What?” It shouted incredulously. I stared back, confused.

“Mistress. I’ll be your Mistress. Do I need two large lumps of fat to be recognized?” She hissed. “Do you not see this!?” Waving her limbs, together with the girl held. “All Arachnes are females.”

“I’m sorry?” I apologized, somewhat hesitant. How was I supposed to guess a shapeshifter’s gender? “I’m not from around here, as you said.”

“Whatever,” The demoness scoffed. “The portal can only be reopened again tomorrow.”

“Well, if you’re willing to take an oath to return her back tomorrow alive, unharmed, completely unscathed, and unhindered, I’ll swear on fully cooperating to becoming your slave.”

She took a second, organizing her thoughts. “I swear on Lugardana’s name,” A grimace appeared at the mention of the goddess, “to return the Beastkin-”

“Valeriana.” I interrupted.

Through gritted teeth, she continued. “Valeriana tomorrow back to the dungeon alive, and completely unharmed and unhindered, only if you swear on surrendering and not resisting the seal whatsoever.”

It was a gamble. I had waited for her to speak the oath herself since I had no idea if it worked on demons or not. However, as I voiced my agreement, the air around her shimmered, and for a mere second, I felt a new presence around me.

With the vow established, I placed all my weapons on the table, even going as far as to dump a couple of mana-candy from my storage.

Turning to the Demoness, I was met with a satisfied grin and a body falling onto me. A hand behind her knees, and another her head, I fell onto the ground, holding onto Valeriana.

“Hold onto this, for now, I’ll be right back.”

And so I did as a pair of eyes stared at me intently, asking a myriad of questions.

“Everything is going to be fine. You’ll be back by tomorrow, and I’ll find my way to you. I’m not done with the village; hell, I have barely even started.”

Her gaze got more intense. I could see her lips twitching, trying to utter a word, yet nothing came out. I kept an arm under behind her neck as I shifted her, leaning her upper body onto me as I freed my other arm.

I ran my idle hand through my hair, releasing some of the tension. Valeriana was still staring at me, both guilt and accusation dancing in her eyes. Somehow, I could understand her thoughts.

“I haven’t told anyone before to avoid situations very much similar to what we’re in right now. And since you never asked about my past, it was simply convenient.”

To my surprise, a tear leaked through. Brushing it away, I started fumbling with the blonde hair in my lap – more to my own comfort than hers. I doubted she could even feel this.

Everything was getting more and more complicated. Why was I comforting my current master while waiting for my next one to arrive?

A groan broke me out of my brooding. “Can you not?” The Arachne spoke, throwing a collar my way. “Here, wear this.”

A leather collar covered in ornamental green gems resembling an eccentric chocker than a symbol of servitude. I shot the Demoness a weird look; I was not fond of this particular… taste.

“It’s the only one I have.” She frowned. “I told you, all of this is sudden. I was even working on a whole new disguise to lure you in. Now hurry up. It should only take a few hours for it to charge.”

I complied, the weird leather piece hanging from my neck. A speck of curiosity invaded my mind, asking what would happen if I injected some mana into the collar; however, I snuffed out the thought – I was still under oath.

“So, how did you know about my otherworldly status?” I asked, still holding onto Valeriana.

“The Thaçeen, a locating stone,” The spider-demoness gloated.

“How could a stone know that?”

“It’s made to find trespassers like you. Fortunately, you happened to be the closest one.”

“So there are others like me. Why were we summoned then? Why are people getting sucked into this world?” I asked.

“No idea. Probably the goddess fucking up again,” She spat.

I nodded, feigning agreement. I contemplated asking again why I was needed, but I held my tongue, doubting I would get an answer. An invisible pressure was building up, uncomfortable silence coupled with a piercing gaze from below.

Yielding, I released a sigh as I started rambling on. For some reason, I was getting better and better at understanding her silent stare.

So I spoke of history, mythology, technology, and snippets on every other major subject, and not only Valeriana was intently listening but the Arachne as well. So much so that she had interrupted me a few times already.

“How is that possible? How would any of these inventions work if your world had no mana!?”

“Energy conversion. Mana is an easier substitute for almost all of them, though. I haven’t encountered any electricity yet, but it’ll be surely discovered sooner or later.”

The Demoness carefully weighed my words, sinking deep into thoughts. The obvious interest was easy to note, could be a useful bargaining tool later. As more time passed on, our captor moved onto the table and busied herself with the gadgets on top, and If the swarm of questions following is anything to go by, she was experimenting with the concepts I mentioned.

It was honestly a little insulting, the absolute faith in victory. Valeriana’s paralysis was diminishing bit by bit, it was only a matter of time until she was back on her feet, but I doubted it would be soon enough.

So a little plan formed in my head. I hadn’t stopped talking, babbling on about movies and tv-shows; however, I was not idle. I had bought two newly bought daggers and a very, very expensive cure-it-all potion for debuffs.

“Is the chain glowing yet?” The Arachne asked, not looking up from the item in her hands.

“Yes,” I answered. Valeriana had regained some control now, barely able to twitch a few muscles. “She’s starting to move; you’ll have to paralyze her again; she's not happy with our agreement.”

“Yes, yes,” She replied dismissively, pulling out of her work. “Now, come here so we can start.”

Taking a deep breath, I laid Valeriana flat on the ground, and started my play – stashing two daggers underneath her. The potion was small enough to fit in my palm. Swiftly uncorked, I cupped the limp girl’s face with both hands, placing my forehead on hers while inclining her head slightly as the bottle’s content dripped into her mouth – resting in her cheek.

“When the seal is implanted and only then, swallow it,” I whispered, only a slight movement separating her from full recovery.

I was stretching the limits of my oath fairly thin; however, I had yet to break it. The Arachne’s foot tapped the wooden floor impatiently. She stood, holding a silver ring adorned with a gemstone similar to the ones on the collar.

“Repeat what I say, human.” She spoke. “I, stating your name, lend my soul to Isanani. I shall follow her every will, command, and desire faithfully and without question.”

As the words left my mouth, mana seeped from the collar through my nape, digging into my flesh and attempting to touch my very core. An agonizing minute later, it finally reached my manapool – attempting to plant its roots.

The mana-tendrils quivered and drew back. Another was occupying my center, unwilling to relinquish its possession. The defeated invaders angrily lashed out, damaging the surroundings and themselves in turn.

The Arachne shrieked, “You already belong to another!” She cried, “Worthless!”

Four black blades rushed my way, diving. I had somehow fallen on my knees, my body refusing to move – too injured by the backlash. I laid there, awaiting the inevitable, yet it never came.

Four razor-sharp tips fell onto the ground, Valeriana holding a dagger in each hand. The furious Beastkin kicked the crazed demon back as she continued to shriek and convulse.

I could hear my name being called, but I could not answer. So Valeriana stood defensively in front of me, daggers in hand as we watched the Arachne cramping up.

The twitching finally settled, and a mutter could be heard. “No no no no no,” The Rabbit’s face was no more. “It can’t be possible.”

The melted remains of the collar trailed down my neck. A quick glance at my manapool showed the destruction, alongside a new connection sprouting outwards.

“Stand up,” Valeriana ordered the frantic Demoness.

I erupted into a mad cackle as I saw the hunched figure slowly and stubbornly rising. It seems I had a new roommate.