Chapter 4: Repaying a Debt

“Lilith, what about the ability you promised!?” Dounia screamed internally.

“Hee hee, beg me~” Lilith replied, seemingly completely unconcerned with Dounia’s fate. “Say ‘Please, Lady Lilith… Lady Lilith is the greatest~'”

She mimicked Dounia’s tone perfectly, and Dounia felt blood rush to her head.

“Grr…”

‘This evil goddess!’

‘I really don’t want to yield to her… but, being burned at the stake must hurt a lot…’

Afraid of pain, Dounia suppressed her inner shame and closed her eyes.

“P-please, Lady Lilith.”

“Ahem~” Lilith crossed her legs, tilting her chin up slightly.

“Lady Lilith… is the greatest,” her voice grew quieter toward the end.

‘Damn it, damn it, damn it!’

‘To think that I, who’s never lost a battle of words, would see a day like this!?’

‘I’ll pay her back tenfold, no, a hundredfold! Damned goddess!’

“You chose this yourself, you know~”

Lilith’s mocking laughter echoed in Dounia’s ears, and time seemed to freeze along with her consciousness.

When she opened her eyes again, Dounia was standing alone by a serene lake, back in her original form.

“This is… the Mindscape,” Dounia murmured.

Every person who attempts to acquire extraordinary abilities must first enter the depths of their own mind to awaken their own power.

The lake water was clear and translucent, reflecting the sky above and the surrounding coniferous forest.
It also reflected her own handsome face.
This would likely be the last time she would see her original appearance.

“Why did I used to look like such a pretty boy…? Could it be that I really have the constitution of a holy femboy?” Dounia couldn’t help but roast her past self.

In the reflected world beneath the lake’s surface, the beautiful face of the delicate girl grew clearer, while the handsome face gradually faded…

This would probably be the last time she would see her original appearance, just as Lilith had said… this was her own choice.

The delicate girl’s brow was slightly furrowed, as if she were burdened with worries.
She crouched down and reached a hand toward the lake’s surface.

Drip.

Like a single drop of water hitting the spot her finger touched, ripples instantly spread across the lake.

Crack, crackle.
The lake’s surface began to shatter like a mirror, and countless fractured shards shimmered with a mysterious light, as if they were portals to another world.

‘Looks like I have to jump in…’

Dounia took a deep breath, pinched her small nose, and jumped.

A dizzying sense of weightlessness immediately assaulted her.
She scrambled to grab onto the nearby ground, but as if sensing something, she looked up.

A transparent spiral staircase made of rhombus-shaped crystals floated in the air, sparkling like stars.

Starlight drifted downward, falling into her palm, a cold sensation spreading from it.

A massive amount of information flooded her mind, and a name appeared before Dounia’s eyes— “Mirror Weaver”!

Mirror Weavers are the weavers of the reflected world.
Using mirrors as a medium, they can manifest the unique powers of the reflected world!

The air suddenly became thick and filled with a cold liquid, and she was pushed out of this space.

“Hah—” Dounia opened her eyes, grasped Violet’s hand which was resting by the bed, and gently lifted it.

“Please look into my eyes.”

As if moved by her gentle tone, Violet’s weak eyes, like a shallow lake, reflected a glimmer of light.

“Three, two, one.”

‘Mirror Shift!’

This was her only ability now.
She had to temporarily transfer all of Violet’s symptoms into the reflected world!

Within the pale pink eyes, the black jade-like rhomboid pebbles rapidly turned transparent.
The golden threads also faded quickly, and both vanished completely in a matter of seconds.
Violet’s pale lips also became visibly rosy and full!

Fia gripped the handrail of the hospital bed tightly, her excitement palpable.

Violet blinked in surprise and looked at her own fingers.

“It’s all gone…?”

The medical staff all wore expressions as if they’d seen a ghost, looking at Dounia in astonishment.

“See? I told you my blood was useful~” Dounia puffed out her chest proudly, tilting her small head up at Fia. “Chief, I didn’t let you down, did I~”

The pride in asking for credit was real, and so was her effort to maintain a confident persona.

Now that Violet’s symptoms were alleviated, Fia would surely have to keep her alive for the time being, as long as she could keep this lie going.

Fia gave her a sharp look, and Dounia’s heart quivered, feeling as if a bullet had just pierced her heart.

“Arrange a new room for her. She’s a temporary member now.”

“Also, about what happened today, I don’t want to hear it from a single soul, understand?”

Her icy tone made the consequences of speaking out crystal clear.

“Understood…” everyone replied fearfully.

Fia gave Dounia one last warning glance, then, without another word, pushed the hospital bed and left.

“Phew—”

Only after Fia had departed did the forced smile on Dounia’s face gradually disappear, her palms slick with cold sweat.

The younger guard patted Dounia’s shoulder, her expression a mix of complexity and relief.
“I didn’t expect you to have a trick like that up your sleeve…”

‘The possibility of her being a Follower of Pleasure has greatly increased.’

In this world, no one who could obtain extraordinary abilities was a normal person.

The older guard walked up, her head lowered.

“I will take you to your new room.”

Dounia followed the guard to the door of her new room.
The guard took out a silver keycard, hesitated for a moment, then pulled a worn-out wallet from her pocket and handed both to Dounia.

“This is about a month’s salary. Please forgive my previous actions. I was just following orders… I had no choice but to do what I did.”

Dounia raised an eyebrow and glanced at the female guard with a smile.

‘She’s a bit rigid, but she knows how to handle things.’

“Then be more careful next time~ Otherwise, a month’s salary won’t be enough to get rid of me~”

She didn’t forget to add a teasing remark before taking the keycard, swiping it, and walking into the room.

The room was about twenty to thirty square meters.
The walls seemed to be made of a special alloy, with a matte texture that gave off a faint metallic sheen.

A double bed, a set of a desk and chair, a wardrobe, and besides that, only a large dumbbell that she would never use.

“A ‘cell’ designed to prevent ability-related damage, huh…” Dounia laughed self-deprecatingly. “Now I’m truly a temporary member of the Anomaly Bureau.”

Dounia sat on the bed, a soft sensation coming from beneath her.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, a satisfied smile on her face, and patted the soft bed a few more times.

“At least it’s much better than the last cell… and there’s a private bathroom.”

Dounia looked at the tattered white robe she was wearing, which resembled a rag, and pattered over to the wardrobe, pulling the door open with a clatter.

Two gray Anomaly Bureau uniforms and two sets of towels were on a small shelf at the top.
The clothing rack below was empty.

Dounia slipped off the tattered white robe and changed into a gray uniform.

To her surprise, of the two uniforms, one came with trousers and the other with a short skirt.

The ordinary NPCs that the game developers skipped over usually appeared as black silhouettes, their faces unseen, a classic money-saving move.

Dounia’s hand involuntarily reached for the short skirt…

In truth, she was also very curious… whether she would look good in the Anomaly Bureau’s uniform skirt.

“Curious my ass!” Dounia stomped her foot fiercely, grabbed the trousers, and put them on in a huff.

‘This must be Lilith’s scheme.jpg’

‘Trying to make me fall in love with my current self and completely forget the pain of losing my brother? Impossible!’

After changing, a fuming Dounia lay down on the bed with no intention of going out.

She knew very well that she was still considered a “prisoner,” only receiving preferential treatment for now because she could treat Violet’s illness…

Dounia stared at the white ceiling, starting to worry.

The “Mirror Shift” ability granted to her by the “Mirror Weaver” wasn’t as effective at treating illnesses as she had just demonstrated.

Generally speaking, the real world and the reflected world had a relationship of mutual interference and influence.

“Mirror Shift” could indeed temporarily remove Violet’s symptoms, but the illness of the Violet in the reflected world would continue to worsen, eventually reaching a critical point and “reflecting” back onto the Violet in the real world.

If you compared the effect of Soul-Loss to a bleeding effect, untreated continuous bleeding could lead to massive hemorrhage, hemorrhagic shock, and various other symptoms.

“Mirror Shift” granted the subject the ability to temporarily not bleed in the real world and for their condition not to worsen, but it still couldn’t prevent the ultimate outcome of death.

Everything in the reflected world would eventually be reflected back into the real world!

“When that time really comes… Fia will probably capture me and torture me every day…” Dounia shivered.

Having expended a great deal of mental energy, she was gradually growing tired.
Dounia’s eyelids grew heavier and heavier… until they closed completely.

Beep.

The door swished open, and Violet, still in her patient gown, peeked her head in and snuck inside furtively.

She first skillfully locked the door from the inside, then slowly walked to the bedside.

Poke, poke—

Standing by the bed, Violet poked Dounia’s cheek.

“Mmm…” Dounia made an indistinct, rather cute sound.

A smile tugged at Violet’s lips.
She tiptoed onto the bed and hugged the small girl who had saved her from her illness.

Dounia’s eyes fluttered open slightly.
In her daze, she only felt something fluffy rubbing against her chest, which was a little itchy.

“Thank you, Dounia…”

Dounia’s body trembled, and her entire face instantly turned bright red.

But faced with Violet’s actions, she didn’t dare move a muscle and could only continue to feign sleep!

Because Violet, and the game’s protagonist, were both hardcore lesbians!

“No, sister! You’re still sick, is it really necessary to make such a move on your savior!?” Dounia screamed internally, growing desperate.

Not to mention, the original Violet was the protagonist’s secret love, the ultimate unrequited love who died and became a permanently unavailable limited edition.

If Fia, who was somewhere in the Anomaly Bureau, discovered Violet was missing, came looking for her, and saw this scene, ten thousand lives wouldn’t be enough for her to die!

“Help me—!” Dounia wailed in her heart.

At that very moment, as if someone had truly heard her call.

With a soft beep, the locked door didn’t swish open, but instead got stuck.

A series of rapid, urgent knocks followed.

“Open the door.”

Fia’s furious voice came from outside.