"Nero! Wake up right now!" [Cetilla] screamed as she shook the sleeping Cat.

Opening my eyes, I was met with a messy Cetilla. She's half naked, and looks like she just got ran over. Five times. It was a bicycle gang deciding to absolutely wreck their prized bikes against her face. She's shaking. Me, that is. She's still shaking me, with quite the frantic look on her face. This is not a pretty look, Cetilla. A lady like yourself… Ugh~ At least PRETEND to be a noble! I know for a fact that Veronica Vellisroi did not raise you as such. What on earth, is the meaning of this?

"What's wrong?" [Nero] asked flatly.

"She's coming! I can sense her! She's almost here, and she's about to leap into the Chasms! WE'RE GOING TO BE CAUGHT!" [Cetilla] screamed hysterically with tears streaming down her face before she began to weep.

"Grab my Candy, my Broom, and my Lantern before jumping on my back." [Nero] ordered Cetilla with a voice filled with determination as he began to grow into his largest form… The 'Halloween Cat M (Four-Tailed)'. To which, Cetilla frantically began to scramble about as she collected the items before leaping onto his back and grabbing hold of his fur for dear life.

I started off by running through our little tunnel before leaping down into the Chasms. If Lily's still standing around at the top of the Chasm while debating the jump, she's probably forgotten that idea by now. No doubt, she saw me with her own eyes as soon as I leapt from our tunnel. Well, she saw a very large, four tailed black Cat with ominously flaming purple eyes. Which also happened to have a half nude redhead on its back. Lily can see in the night, just as well as the rest of us around these parts. There's no doubt that even if this Chasm is freakishly deep, she can still see through the darkness of it all. She probably saw my eyes, at the very least. I'm not really going to stick around to find out, though. I may be fast in this form, but outrunning Lily through this dead end Chasm arena with only one exit is not my intention here.

After finally landing on the ground, Cetilla screamed something about her jumping from the top. She's definitely coming, now. I think Cetilla literally woke up from the fear of Lily's haki. This is no joke. She might be even stronger than I thought. Just who is that Loli, to be scaring my potentially Tier 6 or above Catkin friend to this degree?! I was thinking such things as I quickly ran as far as I could away from the Harpy Den. After making it around 500 metres, I cast my [Hallowed Gate] and ran through it immediately. I quickly noticed that a large collection of dead Fish was amassed across the pavement. I didn't have a chance to put them all in the fridge from last night. After reaching the Wailing Keep through the combo gate, I cancelled that beautiful gate before sprinting through the obnoxiously long Throne Room at full speed. I'm way too tired for this. I'm starting to feel like… Dizzy or something. This is new...? I don't think I've ever felt this limited by my lack of SP. I guess I've never really tried to do anything very physically demanding while I was tired? That may be it.

After getting out of the Throne Room, I continued on through the Foyer, and completely ignored all of my companions' varying reactions as I relentlessly ran north. After reaching the old Bandit Camp area, I began to change back into my smallest form, the 'Halloween Cat XXS (Basic)'. The result? A slightly dismayed Cetilla grabbing hold of two pieces of fur on my very tiny back, before shying away after realizing that she was back on the ground. Ignoring her expression, I asked that she please begin to pass me some Candy from the half empty bucket. And so, I began to eat Candy. I ended up eating 17 pieces, before I had refilled my MP. Okay~ I began to frantically cast [Disguise]. I say that, but I literally just tried to create a piece of level 509 clothes. I mean, yeah. I can do that. I normally don't, because I would prefer to have a full set of clothes... And oftentimes, I don't get a piece that I would actually enjoy wearing. It's like that. I can't sacrifice style over stats. It's just not in me, okay?!

Thankfully, this time; I managed to get a piece that I actually wanted. I had Cetilla test it for me and check her status to see how much it rose. I left my entire outfit in that tunnel. It was all so sudden. Could not be helped. This new piece, was a level 352 knitted purple fleece armband, bestowing a cool 352 M./P. DEF. I'm pleasantly surprised. No, I'm literally freaking beside myself right now. This is a wonderful addition to my outfit. It's even in one of my colors! It was meant to be... For me~ When I finally upgraded my set to a mostly level 20 outfit, I was unable to procure any fleece armbands. It was a tragedy. There were absolutely none of them! I checked! I ended up just ditching my old ones, and never looked back. Well, I actually still have my entire old outfit sitting inside of my Treasure Chest. But now, of all times; such a high stat piece for one of my favorite accessories appears out of thin air! I'll never leave you again! We'll be besties for resties, fleece armband gang!

Well, I suppose we can never be too safe. Thinking such, I asked Cetilla to carry my things once more. There's about a third left of my previously half empty bucket of Candy. The worst part about this whole ordeal, is that my next shipment with Clive is supposed to be tomorrow. Lily has been a total pain. If my operation were a clock, consisting of several small cogs working together… Then Lily is a whole kitchen sink just whipped straight into it. Anyways, I transformed back into my largest form and am once again carrying the half nude Cetilla. Well, she's really just grappling onto my back as I run. Where are we going? To the Dragon Mountains, of course! They're practically straight to our east, albeit slightly to the south.

After running for a couple of minutes, we had easily made our way past the Lost Kingdom's borders. As we were approaching the actual border, It was clear to see… That these were not your average Mountains. They're like… Hot, and stuff. Scorching, even. There's a clear path leading in from the Lost Kingdom into the Dragon Mountains. It's a path that bends and twists around several of the Mountains, but it's a path. I have no idea where it leads, but I'm following it. The ground here is literally molten rock. If it weren't for the casual lava seeping through parts of the ground, it would probably be pretty dark and gloomy around here. The Mountains are tall, and they're all relatively close together. It's strange. There isn't a lot of ground to really pass through, this path is narrow for me who is in a large Cat form. I'm essentially 8 times the size of an average Cat. I still look like a Cat, though. Well, I have four tails and also flaming purple eyes... But I'm a Cat.

I'm getting sweaty just being here. I'm kind of a Fire Elemental, or at least a sub Fire Elemental… But this is hot, even for me. Cetilla literally fainted on my back. I can tell, because she fell off. Thankfully, she's got a dead man's hold on my items. I was able to kind of just nibble on the top of her sloppily equipped outfit and carry her that way. We're going back. This is too much. Christmas Clansmen could never. I have a hard time believing that Easter Clansmen could even manage this. It would probably require a certain kind. Maybe Kendra, the Kitsune could survive it? We weren't even like a minute into travelling around the Dragon Mountains before Cetilla was down for the count. It's a sad day, indeed. Cetilla might just never have a chance to meet a Dragon... Shucks. Maybe I could convince one to take a trip towards the Lost Kingdom, and like… Meet her halfway? Maybe.

I hope that Dragons are nice. I really want Dragons to be cool. That would be great, Hunky Beefcake. If you could just manage ensuring that Dragons are pleasant, that would be fantastic. I was thinking such things as I carried Cetilla back into the Lost Kingdom. I'm exhausted… My MP is still low, so maybe I should go take a peek at the Wailing Keep? See if Lily gave up or returned there? She doesn't appear to be following me out here, at the very least. I really doubt that I could put up much of a fight right now if things go sour, but I can cast [This is Halloween] if absolutely necessary. It's still the day time. It's sometime during the afternoon. I'm currently on the northeast side of the Lost Kingdom, passing by the Caterpillar… Tunnels? They have a complex home. I don't know how to define it. We're passing by it, anyways.

It's kind of near the opposite end of the Delhn Lake from which we usually swim. I decided to take a quick rest near the Lake and sit on the sand by the beach on the northern side of the Lake. It's kind of nice. I'm having a fine time, except I'm utterly exhausted. I spent around 15 or 20 minutes just kind of… Sitting there. I'd better keep it moving. I might just pass out myself if I stay here. Sadly, Cetilla's grip seems to have finally failed. She dropped my items. I suppose you leave me with no choice. I'll just spend all of the MP on a [Hallowed Gate], and sign Cetilla off from this mission. She's fought valiantly, but alas… Only I seem to have been destined to survive escaping Lily's torment. I was the only one who could escape her, throw her off, briefly venture around the Dragon Mountains, and remain conscious to later tell the tale. It's too inconvenient to stay like this. In Cat form, without clothes… Without proper capabilities to carry my Lantern, Broom, or Candy for the journey while also somehow managing to bring Cetilla… It's just impractical. I need my Human form if I'm to continue like this.

Actually, why don't I just try my fabled 'Halloween Catkin S (Cat)' form?! The never before seen model! Oh my gosh! It's been here this entire time! Will I truly feel nude if I have a full coat of fur?! Let's try it out! After changing my form, I felt utterly disappointed. I feel like I'm literally just a boy, wearing a Cat costume. Or intense body makeup, mixed with fur. Or, I'm just a Cat that somehow managed to grow rather large and also learned how to stand on two paws. I'm still in a child's form… Of this. I'm still indecent. It's just… Furry. I also have four tails in this form. There's no way that I can handle it like this! I still need clothes. I suppose that it's good enough for me to at least carry my stuff with me as I drop Cetilla back off at the Wailing Keep. I'll only need to access the Throne Room and Treasure Room, anyways. Yosh! Thinking such things, I grabbed my Lantern and cast [Hallowed Gate] while spending the remaining amount of my MP. It was worth 32 MP. Weak. It still shone as radiantly as ever upon being summoned, though. That Hallowed Gate. Always knows how to make an entrance, that guy.

I decided to ride my Broom and carry my items. I'm still carrying Cetilla by a strap for her costume. It feels strange to ride my Broom while nude. It's uncomfortable, to say the least. I've done it a few times, but right now it just feels even more strange. It's because I don't feel overly cold or anything even though I'm mentally aware that I'm nude and flying through the open air. I bet that if I actually were to wear clothes in this form, I'd probably feel too hot or constricted. There's really no benefit to having a form like this, especially in modern times. I'm starting to feel bad for a lot of the citizens of Reygid. They're acting as though it's totally fine to be domesticated, but is it? Is it really? Wouldn't you prefer to like… Live in a Safari or something? Maybe I'm just biased.

I was thinking such things as I flew above and beyond the allegedly trick blood fountain, ignoring the plethora of dead Fish, and the supplies required in order to begin cutting down trees. Heading through the other Hallowed Gate and returning to my Treasure Room, I placed Cetilla to lay down on my bed before I began scavenging through my Treasure Chest. I'm procuring my old, trusty level 15 set of clothes! Getting dressed didn't take nearly as long as it does for my new outfit, and I began to feel a desire to revert back and wear the old duds longer. I quickly snapped out of it when I remembered to rip my new level 352 knitted purple fleece armband, for a staggering 352 M./P. DEF. from the sleeping Cetilla's wrist. After obtaining it, I was filled with guilt as I chucked one of the old ones back into the Treasure Chest before placing it on my arm and reverting back into my 'Halloween Catkin S (Human)' form. After placing the new armband on, I decided to overlook my status.

Name: Unnamed Monster (Nero Miki)

Race: Cat (Halloween)

Weapon: Lantern (Delhn Glass, Siberite Tourmaline Lantern)

Mount: Broom (Cerberus String Emberwood Broom)

Class: Halloween Cat (Sub Class: Witch/Tamer)

Level: 70

HP: 350/350

MP: 1918/2530(+1130)

SP: 46/100

FP: 72/100

P. DEF: 509

M. DEF: 473

STR: 280

INT: 1232(+532)

DEX: 210

LUK: 70

AGI: 744(+324)

Titles:

[True Halloween Cat+2], [From Another World], [Fish Mongerer+2], [Master of Disguise+2], [Mana Guzzler], [Candy Mongerer], [Master of Time], [Witch of War]

Abilities Learned:

[Flying Broom+2], [Soul Merge], [Clansmen Capture+1], [Hallowed Gate+2], [This is Halloween+1], [Wailing Keep+1], [Language Comprehension+1], [Shapeshift+2], [Barrier+2], [Daily Candy+2], [Claw Fishing+3], [Disguise+4], [Recovery by Sleep+2], [Enhanced Meditating+3], [Swim+2], [10 Minute Makeover], [Pumpkin Bomb+1], [Bonus Mana], [Time Skip], [War Meow]

Awesome! That one piece is practically as good as my entire level 20 set. It's ridiculous. Maybe I should honestly just stop trying to mass produce clothes? Have I outsourced the need for Coins? Am I finally powerful enough to just supply for myself and the new age, self proclaimed Monster Knights with ease? I suppose that I still require enough Coins to feasibly be able to have all of the Wood cut down within the areas surrounding the Goblin Village refined into properly shaped planks and stuff. I'll also need to commission a Blacksmith Forge like Vigi's indefinitely in order to refine any minerals obtained from within the Chasms. Obviously, both of those businesses will be able to easily pay for themselves eventually... But I want to use the first materials received in order to properly shelter the Harpies and Goblins. It's coming out of my pockets to start the business venture, and it's honestly never going to make its way back into my pockets. I have absolutely no intentions of turning a profit from these actions. It would also be nice to get an even better Broom from Gretel and Rosina. I suppose that I'll always need Coin. The Cat's Costumery Clothing Brand shall live on! Viva la Costumery!

Feeling complete, I placed my full bucket of Candy down and added it to the others. I decided to keep the one that is currently only a third full on me. I'm now returning back to the Delhn Beach through my Hallowed Gate. Closing it, I ascended quite high in the sky via my Broom and began to slowly approach the Wailing Keep. To my dismay, Lily is still there. She's sitting by the fireplace with Lillian, Kendra, Rita, Rustle, Cloaked Monk, and his special someone. It's the day crew. Lily is sprawled across a log, looking utterly spent. She looks how I feel. She's draped across the log, laying on her back, with one arm covering her eyes as the other hangs off the side. One of her legs is laying on the log, while another is also hanging off the side. I can literally see drool seeping from the edge of her gaping mouth. Jeez. We night creatures shouldn't be doing so much during the day. This is ludicrous. If it's like this, I might as well take Cetilla with me. It's not the end of the world. I don't even think Lily will notice if I just fly straight past her, through the front door of the Wailing Keep right now. I'm doing it. We're doing it. Cetilla didn't lose because Lily also lost her consciousness.

As I began to descend, I kept a steady eye on Lily. The others don't seem to have noticed me either, probably due to a lack of MP. As I was beginning to pull open the massive, black steel doors to the Wailing Keep… The doors creaked and Lily almost woke up. Thankfully, I survived and was able to make my way back through to grab Cetilla. The others at the fireplace noticed me, but also noticed the deranged look on my face and probably decided that it would be for the best to just remain silent. Thank you. Extra Goldfish for the day crew. It's on me. I mean, it's actually on the pavement of Halloween. Oh Well~

After obtaining a certain Christmas Catkin and recommencing at carrying her via costume strap, I began to fly off through the Throne Room, out the Foyer, and into the skies. I left the doors open, so I didn't need to go through the ordeal of opening them without being able to keep an eye on Lily. I simply flew as fast as I could while also still having a whole 3 MP. Honestly? I'm moving quite slowly. This is a pain. I'm way too tired for this! After finally reaching our familiar tunnel, filled with all of our abandoned clothes… I put Cetilla back down once more before I transformed back into my Cat form and went to sleep. I didn't bother getting undressed. I'm sleeping in my clothes regardless.

***************

Nyahhhhh~ I'm still exhausted. This is the worst! I'm having a horrible time. If it weren't for that brand spanking new, knitted purple fleece armband; I'd probably be ready to cry. I'd better spend my MP to avoid another fiasco like that. This time, I'm just going to create a ton of pieces. Clive's shipment can not be too small. The Cat's Costumery Clothing Brand endorsement with his establishment is literally all that I've got going for myself right now in terms of profit. I can't mess this up by arriving with a lacking quantity of inventory. I have a lot to pay for meow~

This is getting ridiculous. Maybe I should just bite the bullet, and face Lily? She has single handedly thrown me off of my A-Game for like three nights if I let this continue any longer! She's getting in the way of literally everything that I have been working to achieve. I was thinking such things as I got myself untangled from the mess of level 15 clothes and scrambled around in order to get dressed in the set of level 20 pieces after having returned to my Human form. Surprisingly, I managed to finish getting dressed before Cetilla had even woke. I'm starving. I guess I'll just spend my current MP on clothes while aiming for level 10 pieces. Aiming for level 10 pieces only costs me 40 MP each. It's kind of manageable to create a decent number of them without Candy, but just barely. It would probably be optimal for me to focus on level 5 pieces, but it's fine. As I sat there, I was able to create 51 pieces. I counted. The last piece may or may not have forced me into sitting around for a few minutes, but it's fine. Now that I had been fully redressed while also having my new armband, I decided to overlook my status once more.

Name: Unnamed Monster (Nero Miki)

Race: Cat (Halloween)

Weapon: Lantern (Delhn Glass, Siberite Tourmaline Lantern)

Mount: Broom (Cerberus String Emberwood Broom)

Class: Halloween Cat (Sub Class: Witch/Tamer)

Level: 70

HP: 350/350

MP: 510/2546(+1146)

SP: 62/100

FP: 39/100

P. DEF: 611

M. DEF: 579

STR: 280

INT: 1248(+548)

DEX: 210

LUK: 70

AGI: 744(+324)

Titles:

[True Halloween Cat+2], [From Another World], [Fish Mongerer+2], [Master of Disguise+2], [Mana Guzzler], [Candy Mongerer], [Master of Time], [Witch of War]

Abilities Learned:

[Flying Broom+2], [Soul Merge], [Clansmen Capture+1], [Hallowed Gate+2], [This is Halloween+1], [Wailing Keep+1], [Language Comprehension+1], [Shapeshift+2], [Barrier+2], [Daily Candy+2], [Claw Fishing+3], [Disguise+4], [Recovery by Sleep+2], [Enhanced Meditating+3], [Swim+2], [10 Minute Makeover], [Pumpkin Bomb+1], [Bonus Mana], [Time Skip], [War Meow]

Welp. Can't say that I didn't see it coming. Crowli's prized P. DEF is only 160. I'm now almost 4 times more sturdy than Crowli, the Tier 6 monster. If that's true, then I'm technically as sturdy as a Tier 8 Crowli. It's kind of a big deal. Creation Magic is no joke. Especially for I, who has ridiculous amounts of MP. Disguise Sama definitely isn't one to be trifled with. The thing about [Disguise] is that it probably wouldn't be anywhere near as effective if I didn't commit myself to overusing it. It definitely wouldn't be anywhere near as effective if I weren't constantly using Time Magic on myself, either.

I was thinking such things as I decided to ditch the sleeping Cetilla to go and cast a new [Hallowed Gate] at the waterfall. It ended up taking me around half an hour to do the trip both ways, but it was an uneventful trip. Boring. I asked Cosmo and Wanda (Tier 1 Scarecrows) to handle watching the gate, and I also asked Fred and Daphne (Tier 2 Scarecrows) to handle carrying all of the Fish littered from within Halloween back into the fridges or freezers of the Wailing Keep. I stuck around for a bit after summoning the gate in order to steal the first few Fish of the night for Cetilla and myself. I say the first few Fish, but I think I slept in. The Moon seems too high in the sky for this to be the start of my evening. No doubt, I overfed the lochness monster tonight. Mreh. I'm too tired to really care. I ended up impaling all of my Fish with a stick. Raw Fish Kebabs! My favorite! Kidding....

After I had bid my farewell to Cosmo and Wanda, I made my way back into the Chasm with my Fish. I obtained 6 of them. All for us. Arriving at a certain tunnel nearing the bottom of the Chasms, I was met with a slightly irritated Catkin. She's just upset with me for not taking her with me. I understand that I totally forced her into caring about this whole 'avoid the Loli' quest, but literally all that I did was go to the waterfall. I didn't want to wake her for something so minor considering her condition. Being overheated really isn't so bad of an ailment. If you could even call it an ailment, that is. But when you actually pass out due to how hot it is? What then?! I don't really know how serious it was, as this is a game like world. I certainly wasn't about to just jerk her around and wake her up or anything! I'm sorry, whose fault is it? Mine?! That you lost consciousness near the Dragon Mountains?! Mid quest?! What, am I supposed to just sit around and wait for you to magically wake when I'm THIS hungry?!

I was thinking such things as I ate my Fish and passed her share over. To which, she bitterly accepted. I'm forgiven, I think. I must be. We ate our meal in silence, and I started to believe that we were both on the same page. We must get this quest over with. Lily needs to go. There's not enough room for two Lolis in my life. Yeah. I suppose that Cetilla is technically a Loli. Be that as it may, at least she doesn't wear pink frilly dresses. Nor does she have actual ringlets in her hair. She doesn't skip as opposed to walk. She doesn't really hum, either. Lily is just annoying. She's got to go! I'd probably get rid of Ben, the Bear if I could as well. Unfortunately, we're stuck with him. He represents the Bears of the Lost Kingdom. It is what it is. Taking a glance at Cetilla after I had finished eating, she nodded with a grin. Yep. We're ready to kill Lily. We're motivated. She's forced our paws into braving the elements of these Chasms for far too long.

Taking a stand, we looked around for a brief moment before beginning to grab our things. I have my entire level 15 outfit beside me, as well as a pile of level 1~10 clothes, but we're going to ignore those. We're just taking my bucket of Candy, and my Lantern. The bucket which is a third full. Let's go! We're off to see the wicked~ The horribly wicked blonde… Flying to the Wailing Keep took us around 15 minutes. While we traveled, I was eating the almost empty bucket of Candy. It's okay. I was able to attain 168 MP out of it. I'm meow at a whopping 680 MP. Only 170 of it is actually usable, though. I'm definitely rushing into things, so I'll wait from above for my MP to more properly refill. After around half of it replenishes, she will probably notice me. Even so, I'll still have Cetilla and my Clansmen to back me up. Cetilla's just about as troubled by that girl's presence as I am, after all. Turns out, Cetilla wasn't afraid of Lily. She was just afraid of being caught after having spent all that time suffering in the Chasms trying to avoid her. I feel you, sister. We're definitely in sync right now.

Lily ruined my schedule for starting the Farm in the Lost Kingdom. Lily ruined my Time Skipping schedule for Rei and Milton. Lily ruined my sleeping schedule, as well as my comfort while sleeping. Lily ruined my meal times, and is now forcing me to eat food raw. Actually, I could probably just go cook my Fish near the Harpies… But still! Lily ruined my schedule for ascertaining just how much time I am currently skipping on a daily basis. She even ruined the feasibility to just go and get Candy as I please. Now, I'm forced into limiting my MP every single time that I want to enter my own Keep! This is just ridiculous! She's ruining my entire life at this point. She's literally just here to be a thorn in my side. The worst part about it is that if I were to actually just put up with her presence, there's a high chance that she would still end up doing half of those things. She was willing to wait around on me to appear for this long, she even went out of her way in attempts at finding me. She's almost certainly going to be more than willing to follow me around every single night as I perform my nightly tasks. She's the worst.

I was thinking such things as I bitterly glared at the Loli who was otherwise minding her own business while also continuing to intrude upon the gathering of my companions outside near the fireplace which I should have been sitting at. Tsk. I rescind my statement. The worst part about it is that she's very clearly enjoying herself amidst my companions. I miss social time. Cetilla and I mixed together usually leads to business. We need companions to lighten the mood. Sadly, the vast majority of my Clansmen are busy roaming the seven seas in search of the Forsaken Isles. Even if it's for our own personal amusement... I'm almost certain that Cetilla would not appreciate me skimping out on the workforce which has a primary end goal of resurrecting her childhood best friend. It can't be helped. Taking a deep sigh, I continued to bitterly watch a particular Loli.

After around two hours of sitting there, waiting for my MP to recover or for her to notice us, a small group of cloaked individuals approached the campfire. There are 6 of them. Hey! I recognize those fine cloaks anywhere at this point! Those are Elven cloaks! I don't get Human visitors. Don't ask me why. They're probably the Elves coming to represent the Council of Vanheim. I kind of forgot about them. Huh. Should I go and receive them? I'd be forced into being noticed by Lily before having fully regenerated my MP. I currently have 458 MP capable of being spared. It's not very much. It's definitely not enough to fight Lily, but maybe if I have the help of the Elves? Oh? The Elves have taken it upon themselves to eliminate the Loli even without my interference. I suppose that they can't allow a Demon to live or something?

It might be in my best interests to watch how the battle plays out. It should help give me a better understanding of just how powerful Lily is, as well as the Elven Council(wo)men. Even then, I don't know how powerful either of them are, so it's going to be a show of which abilities seem the most impressive. Nyah~ Cetilla seems interested as well. I guess it's settled. We'll be observing this match. Probably out of respect for my companions, Lily's first move was a long leap out towards the western side of the Wailing Keep. She's now quite far away from the fireplace. The Elves are following, as are we. From a very high distance above, that is.

Two of the Elves were able to fly on a ray of light. They're standing on it as if it's a surfboard. I think that might be cheating. That's cheat magic, and you know it! After they had all caught up to Lily, various forms of Light Magic attacks began to rain down upon her from various directions. It really just feels like Light Magic and mobility is all that the Elves have going for them. I guess it's probably effective against a Demon, so it doesn't really matter. Even so, Lily is fast. She's dodging all of their shots. Slowly, the Elves have begun to surround her. The cool thing is that when their Light Magic misses, if another Elf is on the opposite side of the circle then they can take the missed attack and launch it back in order to attempt at hitting Lily again. It probably lessens the amount of MP spent to cast the ability. Perhaps the Elves are choosing to use basic Light Magic attacks in order to offer this opportunity to save the cost in fighting? They're already well aware that Lily is hard to hit? It's possible. They're Elven Council(wo)men, or at least one of them is. I suppose it's also possible that they're choosing to use low rate magic as a means of causing Lily to lower her guard before they call out the big guns.

After a few minutes of Lily expertly dodging their attacks, she was finally hit. It looked like it hurt. The ray of light flying past her totally impaled her arm. It burned away at any flesh that it made contact with in an instant. Yikes. Lily is continuing to evade them with an actual hole in her arm. She's bleeding everywhere. After around half of a minute, she finally stopped evading for a split second before using some type of magic. A red aura began to emanate from around her, and shortly after… The hardening blood laying around her feet began to rise from the ground before whipping away at her enemies. The blood is magically… A whip. She's not even really touching it, it's just attacking the Elves ruthlessly as she dances. Originally, she was evading; but now she's just… Dancing. All of the Elves died posthaste, aside from one. The Elf that lived had used a sort of light barrier on itself for protection. I say that, but it really just looks like a violently bright light emanating from within her. Yep. Her. She has long blonde hair, but her hair seems lighter than Lily's. This is the first female Elf that I have encountered. What a pleasant surprise. She has the body of an adult. She might actually be quite old. I have no doubt left in my mind. She's the Councilwoman sent to meet with me. The others were probably just her retainers. Poor things, to have died in such a way.

After around five minutes of Lily dancing to no avail, she seemed to have gotten bored as she stopped and turned to face the Elf. The Elf took very little time to wait, and suddenly a cage of light appeared and fell from the sky… Trapping the Loli within it. Lily immediately tried to escape from the barred cage, but her hands began to burn as she touched the bars. She was trapped. Except, rather than wait around… She began to contort her body in a very strange way and managed to slip out of the cage. I say strange way, because it almost appeared as though she split her body into two pieces. It stayed together, barely… But she was ripping apart her body as she contorted her way through the bars, while keeping it attached at weird angles as she did it. After a portion of her ripped body made its way through the bar, it healed before another piece of the body began to rip in order to continue to fit through the bars. Wait! Hold on, just one moment! I need a second! I need several seconds! Too bad for me, Lily is not waiting around. After contorting and ripping her way out of the cage, she suddenly grew black wings from her back. She's flying away, at an immense speed. She's heading south, probably fleeing back to the Demon Kingdom. Oi! I don't have the MP to keep up with you right now! It's unfair, but she's escaped. I suppose that I'll settle for an Elf, instead. Just what is Lily, anyways?!

I kind of just idly sat by as I watched this Elf's retainers all die. I suppose that I should play it off as though I were in desperate need of her help, or something. I'm horrible. I can't help it. I didn't know that the Elves would die. I had assumed that they would all be Elven Council(wo)men, capable of handling themselves. I hadn't the faintest of ideas that the great City of Vanheim would only be willing to allocate just one Councilwoman to come and meet with me. I was expecting three, at the very least. You know, a group capable of actually stopping me in the event that they decide Halloween isn't a Clan worth mentioning? So, obviously... When such a frightening opponent appeared while I knew full well that highly capable Elves would be arriving shortly… I decided to let the capable Elves handle it. Eh? That fiend most certainly was NOT welcomed at my fireplace. She was intruding at my fireplace. There's a difference… Nope. Not really feeling like a very convincing argument. I guess that I'll just apologize. It genuinely is my fault. I should have helped fight, or something.

"Greetings, my name is Nero. I am the True Halloween Cat. This is Cetilla, one of my closest of companions. I welcome you to my not so humble abode, the Wailing Keep. Though the circumstances are clearly unfortunate, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." [Nero] kindly greeted as he descended to the level of the Elven Councilwomen.

"...My companions are now dead." [Elven Councilwomen] said flatly as she failed to make eye contact with a particular Halloween Cat.

"I'm quite sorry for what happened to your friends." [Nero] apologized sincerely as he lowered his pilot hat and removed his purple aviators.

"Then you had something to do with it?" [Elven Councilwomen] barked back, clearly aggravated.

"I knew that she would probably be strong, but I didn't know how strong. I also did not know that your companions would be so powerless." [Nero] admit as he sighed.

"Powerless?!" [Elven Councilwomen] screamed.

"Kind of." [Cetilla] replied flatly, as if she were bored of the topic at hand.

"To be frank, I had presumed that several Councilmen or women would be arriving here to meet with me. I hadn't the slightest notion that there would only be one, joined by 5 evidently weaker individuals. I was intending to intervene if things got too out of hand, but they all died immediately and it went against my expectations." [Nero] explained with a nervous smile.

"...I see. I'll have you know, that the Elven Council does not usually leave Vanheim. You were lucky that I even came here. With my companions now dead on arrival, it's even less likely that we will return." [Elven Councilwomen] exclaimed after letting out a long sigh.

"Oh? Isn't that a good thing?" [Cetilla] asked Nero with a slight giggle.

"It's certainly not a bad thing… I'm still hoping to meet with Lemmispire again, however." [Nero] replied casually before sighing as he explained the shortcoming.

"Ahh~ Right! We can't forget about that guy…" [Cetilla] burst out excitedly as if just remembering before grumbling to herself.

"...By the way, my name is Laura Pralini." [Laura Pralini, Elven Councilwomen] finally introduced herself.

"Laura, huh? It's still nice to meet you, even if the circumstances are poor. Please remind me. What did you come to ask about, again?" [Nero] greeted Laura once more before begging the question.

"...On behalf of the Elven Council to the great City of Vanheim... I, Elven Councilwomen Laura Pralini request full knowledge as to your reasoning behind the attack against the Castle of Reygid City." [Laura Pralini] cleared her throat, before taking a knee and raising one arm to her chest as she asked.

"...Please rise. Uhm… Reygid's King was my reasoning. He sent a certain Templar to retrieve and bring us to his Castle. I asked the Templar for the King's own reason behind summoning us, and due to his response… I refused. I refused on account of there being some discrepancies in his reasoning for summoning us as well as for our own safety. As I'm sure that you're already aware, I have a lack in trust for the upper echelons of several locales. Vanheim included. When I refused, the Templar began to attack me and my companions. He slayed one of us in a mere moment, and at which point; Cetilla lost her wits. Amidst the madness, the Templar and his fellow Kingdom Knights captured another of our companions. We retreated, and decided to come back the very next night in an attempt at rescuing our captured friend. And so, we did. Our friend's rescue was the attack on Reygid City's Castle." [Nero] explained as he recalled the instance after scratching his head for a moment.

"Hmmm… What discrepancies?" [Laura Pralini] asked while furrowing her eyebrows.

"Well, a little while ago… I'm not sure if you noticed, but there were over 100 enslaved Scarecrows residing in the Beastkin Kingdom. As far as I can tell, almost all of the Scarecrows alive on this entire continent were enslaved at one point by Reygid's Farmers. They were being treated horribly. They weren't given proper shelter, pay, nor food. The Scarecrows are all Halloween Clansmen, and as the current Leader to the Halloween Clan; I felt it my responsibility to help them. So, I went to save the Scarecrows and freed them all from the Beastkin Kingdom. While doing so, I also happened to meet Cetilla; but that's another matter. After saving the Scarecrows, I learned of their original purpose in being enslaved within that Kingdom. There were a lot of Crows on this continent, and they were all starving. In order to appease their hunger, they would ravage the Farm fields. In order for the Farmers to protect their crops, they needed the Scarecrows to fight off the Crows. Crows also happen to be Halloween Clansmen, and so I decided to save them as well. The King of Reygid wanted to question us on behalf of the missing enslaved Scarecrows. Don't you find it strange that he cares about missing Scarecrows when his citizen's fields no longer have any need to be protected by them? What's more, to try and kill us due to our refusal to even see him within his literal Castle while his logic is flawed; only further proved my point. His intentions were not pure." [Nero] explained before concluding with a serious expression.

"...I understand your reasoning, but Kings are not accustomed to being rejected. Normally, any King would probably deem you guilty if you refused the summoning. Invading his Castle was not the correct solution." [Laura Pralini] exclaimed rationally.

"Rei needed to be saved." [Cetilla] sighed as she rolled her eyes.

"It was the quickest. I would not stand idly by as I awaited the potential torture of my captured, innocent companion. You may not agree with my methods, however my methods worked. We saved our companion from their tyrannical clutches." [Nero] agreed with Cetilla before looking to the Elf as he finished his statement.

"...Fine. As much as this has been a pleasure, I'm leaving." [Laura Pralini] said flatly before she turned to take her leave.

"Farewell~" [Cetilla] called as she waved.

"Oi! What about these dead Elves?" [Nero] called out exasperatedly.

"I don't have the strength to carry them back with me. Please take care of them." [Laura Pralini] replied weakly without making eye contact with the two Catkin as she continued on her way.

Hmmm… I'll handle it. It's my fault that they're dead. Okay~ Giving one look at Cetilla, it seems that she's caught on. She's got that smile. Let's do it tomorrow. I'm tired. Yeah. We're in sync. I ended up calling on Mr and Mrs Scarecrow to carry the five dead Elves back into the Throne Room. I also called on Fred and Daphne to do another sweep of bringing Fish from Halloween into the fridges and freezers of the Wailing Keep. I even asked Wendel to wake me at dawn. I didn't want to wake up to Mr Scarecrow. His voice just isn't the right one to wake to. I can handle the Crows, but Scarecrows are another story entirely. I quickly said 'good evening' to the others at the fireplace before I continued on my way to the Treasure Room. They seemed somewhat upset to see me disappear again so soon, after basically going missing for the past several days; but it can't be helped. After finally arriving to my Treasure Room, I got undressed before returning to my smallest Cat form and going to sleep. In my bed. Wonderful.

***************

"Wuaaaaaaaaaaa~~~~" [Wendel, the Weeping Angel] sang loudly.

Oh... My lord! Waking up to opera isn't enjoyable, either! Stop! We're not doing this again. It's Crows, Werewolves, or nothing. I was thinking such things as I cancelled my Hallowed Gate and cast [Daily Candy]. Good morning~