《Mausoleum of Nature》 Chapter 1. Snow, Ears and Tale It was winter at the railway station. The old wooden terminal without windows or doors was covered with a thick layer of snow. On the platform, on a wooden bench, sat a girl in a white-blue fur jacket with a hood, from under which hung several strands of white-yellow hair. White-yellow fluffy ears with rounded tips peeked out from the holes on the top of the hood, and a tail of the same color peeked out from behind the fur shorts. A dinosaur covered with blue and white feathers and with a long tail watched the girl from behind a thick coniferous tree that grew on the platform. The train hasn''t stopped here for a long time. The railway track was hidden under the snow, from under which protruded the tops of coniferous trees. ¡°She has such cute ears and a tail,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°I would like to add her to my collection of characters.¡± ¡°Why are you following me? ¡° the girl looked at the dinosaur. ¡°Do you want to eat me¡±? The dinosaur paid attention to her legs. They were naked, fat, with short feet. ¡°There¡¯s so much meat in these legs,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°They¡¯re probably delicious.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t get on the train,¡± the girl looked at her legs. It is snowing. The girl disappeared. In the distance, a rectangular object appeared which approached the platform, shoveled snow and broke young trees in its path. It was a train consisting of a metal locomotive and several wooden cars. The train stopped in front of the dinosaur, scaring it away. The doors of the carriages automatically opened. Fear quickly gave way to curiosity ? the dinosaur became interested in what was inside. He jumped into the carriage, but soon regretted it. What he saw scared and surprised him at the same time... ... The dinosaur woke up and felt something holding him by the tail and trying to throw him out of bed. This creature turned out to be a girl with long, disheveled black hair wearing a gray T shirt that started just below her shoulders and ended just above the middle of her hips. ¡°It was a dream?¡± the dinosaur guessed. ¡°I finally met a girl with ears and a tail, and I could be with her, but now I¡¯m home.¡± The dinosaur felt that he was missing something important. ¡°Tuot, get up,¡± the girl said. The dinosaur ran its claw through the air. A blue translucent screen with several buttons appeared in front of him. ¡°For what?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°It is too early. Halankuo, don''t disturb my sleep.¡± "I finally did it!" the girl shouted joyfully. ¡°What did you do?¡± ¡°You forgot? I told you a long time ago that I¡¯m working on creating my own character. I recently brought it into the real world.¡± Tuot''s gaze settled on the girl''s thick thighs. ¡°Meat,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°Why do I see him everywhere?¡± ¡°Are you thinking about food again?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°How do you know what I¡¯m thinking?¡± Tuot opened his mouth in surprise and bulged his eyes. ¡°You''re staring at my legs.¡± ¡°Sorry. They look tasty.¡± ¡°There are still pieces of meat in the refrigerator in the kitchen. You can eat.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not hungry yet. Show the character first. An event like this happens very rarely and I want to see it.¡± ¡°Come to my room. I''ll show you there.¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t it be shown here?¡± ¡°Look what¡¯s on your walls. The character should not see them.¡± The walls of the room were almost entirely occupied by virtual posters with images of girls with ears, tails, horns and paws of animals of various species. They were dressed very strangely. One was wearing only stockings, another was wearing a fur bib, the third was wearing metal shorts, and the fourth was wearing a fur jacket with a hood. There were girls without clothes ? in this case, their chest and crotch were covered with long hair that hung from their heads. ¡°These are my favorite characters from games,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that it¡¯s impossible to meet them in reality.¡± The rest of the room looked normal a small wooden table against the wall, a closet in the corner, a small round window. Tuot was so engrossed in looking at the posters on the walls that he did not notice Halankuo leaving the room. The dinosaur tried to get off the bed, but could not resist and fell to the floor. ¡°This is how my morning usually begins,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I¡¯m not fully awake yet to walk normally.¡± ¡°Walking normally¡± in Tuot¡¯s mind meant staggering from side to side, but despite this moving forward. The dinosaur left the room and found himself in a darkened corridor with log walls and several wooden doors, after which he walked to the nearest door and looked at a sign with red glowing symbols. ¡°This is the wrong door,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I always confuse it with the door to Halankuo¡¯s room, so I had to make these inscriptions on the doors.¡± The door to Halankuo''s room was next down the corridor. Tuot pushed her and found himself in a room with smooth wooden walls. Halankuo sat on the windowsill and looked out the window. ¡°You came so quickly,¡± the girl said. ¡°I thought you would be lying in bed for a while longer, thinking about girls with ears and tails.¡± ¡°I hope Halankuo didn¡¯t tell anyone about my preferences,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Among people this may be considered something bad.¡± Halankuo lowered her legs to get off the windowsill. Tuot noticed this and turned away so as not to think about food again. The dinosaur knew about the existence of a program in which you can create a character and then transfer it to the real world. Such characters were called transferred. There have been very few cases worldwide of characters being successfully transferred from a program to the real world. After all, this required that the created character be compatible with the real world. Halankuo ran her finger through the air from top to bottom. A virtual screen appeared in front of the girl, on which there were many icons. Halankuo clicked on the coffin icon. A program window appeared on top of the screen, almost completely covering the previous window. Stolen novel; please report. On the right side of the program window there were many buttons with icons and black symbols on them. On the left side of the program window there was a character model. She was a girl with long gray hair and two gray metal horns on the top of her head, with metal bracelets on her arms and legs. The lower part of her face was covered by a black metal mask. ¡°This character has such pretty horns,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But you can¡¯t tell Halankuo about this, otherwise she¡¯ll make fun of me again.¡± ¡°This is a program for creating characters and bringing them into the real world,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It¡¯s called ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. ¡°There are a lot of buttons,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Not every living creature will be able to understand such a program. ¡°I was able to figure it out,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°But you can¡¯t. ¡°I have enough games. There is no such complex interface¡±. ¡°It is specially made so complex that the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± cannot be used by just anyone. It''s a joke. In fact, such a complex interface is needed so that the program can not only create a character, but also prepare it for transfer to the real world. Before a character appears in this world, it must be converted many times and tested for compatibility with our natural system. If the character is incompatible with the laws of nature, he simply will not appear from the program¡±. Halankuo pressed the circle button. A low glowing silhouette with horns appeared in the middle of the room... ... The glowing silhouette slowly disappeared from bottom to top and revealed parts of the character¡¯s body. The short feet materialized first, then the gray metal ankle bracelets. Tuot looked at the silhouette and could not believe that this was happening in reality and not in the game. ... The lower parts of the legs and knees were completely freed from the glow. Tuot opened his mouth and imagined what the hips would be like. Fortunately for the dinosaur, they were thick, although slightly covered by a gray metal skirt. ... The character¡¯s torso was freed from the glow. A gray metal corset appeared which contained the lower part of the chest. The upper part was not covered with anything, which pleased the dinosaur. ¡°This doesn¡¯t exist,¡± thought Tuot. ¡°Perhaps my dream is still going on?¡± Tuot opened his mouth, stuck his finger in and bit it. The dinosaur felt pain and then looked at the character. His body was already completely freed from the glow. Gray hair reached his bare shoulders and then ¡°went¡± behind his back. There is a gray metal collar around the neck. The lower part of the face is hidden behind a black metal mask. Above her are closed eyes with long eyelashes. Two straight gray metal horns protruded from the top of its head. ¡°The horns on her head look very cute,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I wonder what they are made of.¡± The horned girl opened one eye, and then closed it and turned away from the window. Tuot lowered his head. His gaze settled on the character''s thick and almost bare legs. Tuot imagined one of these legs in front of him on the table. The dinosaur opened his mouth, but realized in time that there might be something wrong here. ¡°This is Kyotyoryon, the spirit of metal,¡± said Halankuo. ? It''s inedible. ¡°It¡¯s bad,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I hope at least her horns turn out to be real.¡± ¡°The character¡¯s body is made mainly of metal,¡± Halankuo continued. ¡°Because of this, she weighs a lot, which is why she had to be made so low.¡± ¡°Are the horns real?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°You can touch it if you¡¯re not afraid.¡± Tuot approached the horned girl, and she felt it. She opened her eyes and released short blades from the bracelets on her arms. Tuot jumped back. His tail pressed against the wall. ¡°Halankuo, she wants to do something to me!¡± shouted the dinosaur. ¡°She can¡¯t do anything yet,¡± Halankuo smiled. ? Therefore, he won¡¯t do anything to you. Don''t be afraid of her. Tuot''s limbs trembled with fear. Despite this, a short, curved sword appeared in his hand. The dinosaur tried to hold it, but could not ? its fingers unclenched and the weapon fell to the floor. ¡°Creator, who is this?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°This is my friend and pet,¡± Halankuo explained. ¡°His name is Tuot. He won''t do anything bad to you.¡± ¡°Is he evil?¡± asked the spirit of metal. ¡°No,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°He''s just stupid.¡± The blades ¡°went¡± back into the bracelets on the character¡¯s hands. ¡°I¡¯m not stupid,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Halankuo is trying to make a fool of me in front of a creature that is seeing me for the first time.¡± ¡°I¡¯m stupid too,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I still have low intelligence indicators.¡± ¡°And Tuot has had low intelligence since childhood,¡± Halankuo thought. Kyotyoryon looked around and noticed a small round window. The spirit of metal tried to approach him, but could not stay on her feet and fell to the floor. Halankuo approached the character and tried to lift her, but this turned out to be impossible the metal body weighed too much. ¡°Are you not in pain?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°What do you mean it?¡± Kyotyoryon rose and knelt down. ¡°I forgot. You are not a living being. You can''t understand it¡±. ¡°What does ¡°not a living being¡± mean¡±? ¡°Living beings are created by other living beings, not living beings are created artificially. There are several types of inanimate creatures: robots, battle dolls, characters that were transferred to the real world from the program¡±. ¡°You created me, creator. Therefore I am alive¡±. A squeak was heard. A small screen with a red frame and an inscription made of red symbols appeared near Halankuo. ¡°Tuot, I need to go to the kitchen,¡± Halankuo turned to the dinosaur. ¡°Food is being prepared there. Can you stay here with Kyotyoryon? I''ll be back soon.¡± Halankuo left the room too quickly. The dinosaur did not have time to answer. Tuot began to closely examine Kyotyoryon. Her appearance seemed strange to him, but attractive. He still couldn''t believe that this creature was created in the program. The dinosaur approached the spirit of metal and touched one of the horns on her head with its hand. ¡°Are your horns made of metal?¡± asked Tuot. ¡°Yes,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°I am the spirit of metal. Therefore my horns are made of this stuff. This is good¡±. Tuot pulled the horn, but it did nothing. The horn remained in place. ¡°These horns grow from her head,¡± thought Tuot. ¡°In herbivorous living creatures, horns also grow from the head, but they are made of bone. Metal is too artificial a material for this. But her horns are made of metal. It looks like she''s not really alive.¡± Suddenly Tuot felt pain in his arm. The dinosaur looked down and saw Kyotyoryon trying to pull out the feathers attached to his wing. ¡°Why are you doing this? ¨C asked Tuot. ¡°I¡¯m trying to pull this thing out of you,¡± the spirit of metal answered. ¡°You¡¯re trying to pull the horn out of my head.¡± Tuot let go of the character''s horn. But it was too late ¨C Kyotyoryon pulled out the feather from the dinosaur¡¯s wing. Tuot screamed and ran out of the room into the corridor, and then reached the kitchen. Halankuo stood near a stove with metal rods on which pieces of meat were fried. The girl was wearing only a black apron and a red helmet with a transparent shield on the front. Tuot again paid attention to the girl¡¯s hips and stopped feeling the pain. This time they were completely open. Tuot imagined the lower part of his friend''s body, which lay on the table, fried and smelling delicious. The dinosaur felt full, although he had not eaten anything today. But soon the dinosaur''s thoughts were interrupted by pain in the lower part of his body. Tuot realized that he had been grabbed by the tail again. ¡°Halankuo, something grabbed me by the tail!¡± Tuot shouted to his friend. ¡°We have a terrible creature!¡± Halankuo turned around and then laughed. The dinosaur turned its head back and saw Kyotyoryon standing behind him. ¡°I¡¯m not scary,¡± Kyotyoryon answered instead of Halankuo. ¡°Tuot¡¯s brain is too small,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°There are some things he can¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°So you grabbed me by the tail? ¨C asked Tuot. ¡°Yes,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°I wanted to touch it to find out what it was made of.¡± ¡°Release the dinosaur, Kyotyoryon,¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°He''s just stupid. The spirit of metal released Tuota''s tail. The dinosaur felt that it was free and took refuge in the corner of the kitchen. ¡°Stupid, but not evil,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°Creator, I don¡¯t want to be inside the program. There is nothing there¡±. ¡°Nothing at all¡±? Halankuo was surprised. Halankuo was interested in how the characters live in the editor, where apart from them there is only black space without any surroundings. But she didn¡¯t understand how the characters felt in this space. Kyotyoryon went to the window and looked out of it. From there there was a view of the town, behind which the blue-green outlines of the mountains could be seen. Tuot took advantage of the fact that there was no one else in the doorway and ran into the corridor. ¡°I want to go there,¡± Kyotyoryon pointed out the window with her hand. ¡°I want to know what is there¡±. ¡°If Kyotyoryon goes out into the town, someone might find out about her,¡± Halankuo thought in fear. ¡°I need to figure out how to stop this.¡± ¡°There are many dangerous creatures outside the window,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°They can kill you¡±. ¡°You will protect me¡±. ¡°I cannot. They are very strong¡±. ¡°Then why do you live here? You haven''t been killed yet¡±. ¡°I set her intelligence stats too high,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°She can determine that I¡¯m lying. It¡¯s too bad I can¡¯t increase Tuot¡¯s intelligence stats.¡± ¡°How does this window open?¡± asked Kyotyoryon. ¡°You can¡¯t go out through the window. You need to go out the door¡±. ¡°What happens if you go out through the window?¡± ¡°You will fall from a great height and be injured¡±. ¡°I won''t get hurt. I''m made of metal¡±. Kyotyoryon touched the glass with her palm. ¡°Solid,¡± the metal spirit thought. Kyotyoryon raised her leg vertically and then lowered it onto the glass. Halankuo heard the sound of breaking glass, stopped cooking and immediately ran to the window, but did not have time. All that was left of the window was the window opening, and the glass lay on the floor in the form of fragments. The girl released lightning from her hand onto the fragments, and they were thrown into the corner of the room, after which she walked up to the window opening and looked down. Kyotyoryon was lying on the paving stones in front of the house with her eyes open and not moving. Chapter 2. Signal Halankuo ran behind the back of the house, where Kyotyoryon jumped. But the spirit of metal was no longer there. ¡°Where has she gone?¡± thought Halankuo. ¡°She couldn¡¯t have gone far.¡± The girl summoned a virtual screen and entered the program in which she created the character. A window opened in front of Halankuo with a map of the town and a red dot that was slowly moving towards the forest. ¡°It¡¯s good that ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡± can determine the location of the character,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Even though Yenekit is a small town, even in it you might not find the creature if it gets lost.¡± Halankuo ran along the gray cobblestones across the block and stopped at the nearest building. Suddenly she realized that she was standing barefoot on the paving stones, and that she was wearing only an apron and a helmet with a shield. ¡°This is not the first time I go out into the street wearing what I wear at home,¡± the girl thought. ¡°It¡¯s good that most of my clothes are in inventory.¡± Halankuo swiped her finger through the air and brought up her interface, then pressed the button with the T-shirt on it. A new screen appeared on top of the old screen ¨C with icon buttons in the form of different items of clothing. Halankuo chose buttons featuring shorts, boots and a T-shirt. Black shorts, a T-shirt and a pair of boots appeared in the air in front of the girl. Halankuo touched the T-shirt with her finger, and it moved onto her, and the apron and helmet disappeared. Then the same thing happened with shorts and boots. Kyotyoryon reached the end of the town. Behind the path paved with gray-red stones, a coniferous forest with tall cone-shaped trees began. ¡°These pillars are somehow strange,¡± the character thought. ¡°They are made of a different material than my metal. And there are a lot of these pillars. I need to cut them.¡± Kyotyoryon entered the forest and found herself surrounded by thick tree trunks, the crown of which began somewhere high. The spirit of metal wanted to climb a tree, but some force forced her to go deep into the forest. Soon Kyotyoryon found herself in a small forest glade. Among the sparse grassy vegetation lay the bodies of several people who slowly disappeared. In the middle of the glade, a black and white penguin was sitting on a huge stump. Protruding from the top of his large head were two metal sticks with transparent balls at the ends. ¡°These things on his head are made of my metal,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°You have to touch them.¡± The spirit of metal ran towards the creature on the stump. The penguin looked at her with large black eyes without pupils. The balls on the tops of the sticks turned yellow. Kyotyoryon approached the creature and touched one of its sticks with her hand. The balls turned red. An electric discharge appeared between the sticks, which soon struck the character. Lightning flashed through the body of the metal spirit. Kyotyoryon began to writhe, let go of the creature¡¯s wand, and then fell to the ground. This saved her from further electric shocks. The bodies of people completely disappeared. Halankuo came to the glade and immediately noticed the body of her character, which was lying near a stump. A wrench appeared in the girl''s hand. ¡°This creature is not like the animal that lives in our world,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°What if this is a character that was created in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±?¡± Halankuo pointed the wrench at Kyotyoryon''s body and moved it closer to her, but then something strange happened ¨C the metal spirit''s body hung in the air and then headed towards the penguin. ¡°Give me back my character!¡± Halankuo shouted. ¡°Taikuron will find his other half,¡± a voice sounded in Halankuo¡¯s head, similar to the voice of a robot bird. The girl noticed that the penguin did not move its beak. He also had no legs. ¡°He speaks to me through thoughts,¡± Halankuo guessed. ¡°Who is he?" The body of the metal spirit landed near the tree stump. Halankuo could no longer control him with the key. ¡°Taikuron will take you and find out where his other half is,¡± the voice said a second time. Halankuo felt her body no longer obey her. The wrench fell from her hand. Halankuo tried to move at least a finger, but her hands hung motionless. The girl''s body rose above the glade and headed towards the penguin. Suddenly Taikuron looked to the side. His attention was drawn to a man wearing a black helmet and black leather clothing. Halankuo''s body fell to the ground. The girl felt that she could move again as before. An electric discharge appeared between the sticks on Taikuron''s head, which began to increase in size, after which it transformed into linear lightning and was directed towards the man in the helmet. A large rectangular-oval shield appeared in the man¡¯s hand. Lightning hit there and disappeared. The shield was covered in a blue energy aura. Then a translucent energy copy of it separated from this aura and quickly flew towards Taikuron. The penguin continued to sit on the stump and did not even try to dodge. He simply looked at what was coming towards him. A copy of the shield hit Taikuron and knocked him off the stump, and then returned to its original place ¨C in the aura. A blue energy aura completely surrounded the man wearing the helmet. But the battle was over. Taikuron leaned out from under the stump, and then rose into the air and flew into the forest. Halankuo stood up and looked around. The wrench rose from the ground and moved into her hand. Kyotyoryon was still lying unconscious near the stump. Halankuo walked up with her back to her and pointed the key at the man in the helmet. ¡°Who are you?¡± the girl asked. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± The man took off his helmet. His head was covered with brown hair that almost completely covered his ears and forehead. ¡°Don¡¯t attack me, please,¡± the man said. ¡°I¡¯m Yueret, an ordinary guy from an abandoned village. I was walking along the road from the station to the town, and this creature attacked me. I was just defending myself.¡± ¡°I wanted to defeat him myself,¡± Halankuo frowned. ¡°This creature attacked my character¡±. Then Halankuo noticed that she had said too much. She didn''t want to tell anyone that she had created a character and brought it into the real world, because she was afraid that someone would be interested in it. The girl was very modest and was afraid of attention. ¡°Who was attacked?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Halankuo replied. ¡°Go where you were going. I do not want to distract you¡±. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°You remind me of someone. But I don''t remember who exactly¡±. Halankuo looked at Yueret''s face. It seemed familiar to the girl, but she could not remember where she had seen it. ¡°I don¡¯t remember you,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Perhaps you have confused me with someone.¡± ¡°Perhaps,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°Sorry¡±. Yueret turned away and was about to go, but he was stopped by the ringing of metal that rang out in the glade. Halankuo turned around and saw Kyotyoryon next to her. The spirit of metal hovered over the glade in a different form - without legs, with an egg-shaped helmet instead of a head and metal blades instead of hands. ¡°Why did Kyotyoryon take on her battle form?¡± Halankuo thought in fear. ¡°What''s wrong with her?¡± The girl pointed the wrench at the spirit of metal, but did not have time to take control of it. Kyotyoryon flew to attack Yueret. The guy managed to cover himself with a shield and was able to deflect the blow of the blade. An energy copy separated from the shield and threw Kyotyoryon to the opposite edge of the glade. The spirit of metal stopped, but did not fall. She was still floating in the air. ¡°There are some strange creatures in this place,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°Perhaps I shouldn¡¯t have decided to go in search of my robot for shopping at the store.¡± Halankuo pointed the wrench at Kyotyoryon and stopped her. Yueret slowly moved towards the road and disappeared behind the trees. The girl called up the interface, entered the program and pressed one of the buttons. The character''s body was covered with a white light aura and soon turned into a glowing silhouette. A few moments later, Kyotyoryon sat in the glade in almost human form. Halankuo exited the interface along with the program and approached the character. ¡°Why did you attack that person?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to do this, but it seemed to me that it was necessary. Something forced me¡±. ¡°Let''s go home. That strange creature may still be out there somewhere¡±. At that moment, Taikuron was hovering above the forest at a bird''s eye view and watching what was happening in the glade. Halankuo took Kyotyoryon''s hand and walked along the road to the town. The spirit of metal looked at the trees that grew in the forest. There was no expression of any emotion on her face. The spirit of metal simply looked at everything she saw. ¡°What it is?¡± Kyotyoryon pointed to the nearest tree. ¡°The pillars are made of a material that is not similar to my metal. Sticks made of the same material stick out from the pillars. There are needles sticking out of the sticks¡±. ¡°This is a tree,¡± Halankuo explained. ¡°It consists of wooden material. And the needles are antennas, thanks to which the tree lives¡±. ¡°Lives?¡± asked Kyotyoryon. ¡°So if you destroy the antennas, the tree will not be able to live?¡± The spirit of metal released a blade from the bracelet on her hand, and then used it to cut off several needles from a tree branch. ¡°No need to cut the tree!¡± Halankuo shouted. ¡°It''s not that easy to kill him¡±. ¡°I understood,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I will become stronger, and then I will kill the tree.¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t understand simple things,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°It seems I was wrong when I thought she could think like a human.¡± Halankuo called up the interface, entered the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± and pressed the button above the character image. Kyotyoryon''s body began to glow, and then blink, and soon disappeared. Halankuo returned to the town, but immediately noticed that there were no people there at all. The streets, lined with stone and wooden houses with several floors and narrow red roofs, seemed quiet and cozy. ¡°Probably there are no people because it¡¯s morning,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°This happens often in Yenekit.¡± Halankuo remembered what she saw in the glade ¨C the bodies of people who lay on the ground and disappeared. Then she did not attach any importance to this, as she was busy saving her character. But now the girl felt terrified. ¡°This is how the bodies of those who are already dead disappear,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Perhaps the town¡¯s inhabitants are dead?¡± No, it''s too weird." The girl approached her house. There were no people there either. The town was so quiet that the cries of birds in the forest could be heard. ¡°Maybe my parents disappeared like that too,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°We need to tell Tuot. Something strange is happening in the town.¡± Halankuo returned home and found Tuot in her room. The dinosaur was sitting on the floor and playing a game on a virtual screen. ¡°Tuot, I need to tell you something,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Don¡¯t bother me, I¡¯m playing,¡± the dinosaur answered. ¡°This is serious. People have disappeared in the town¡±. ¡°It''s a joke?¡± ¡°No unfortunately. The town is very quiet and there is no one. And in the forest I saw a penguin with antennas on its head¡±. Tuot minimized the virtual screen and looked at Halankuo. His lower jaw hung open and twitched several times. ¡°What''s happened?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°You look scared¡±. ¡°I have a bad memory, but I remember that day well,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°That was the day your parents disappeared. I went into the forest and saw a penguin with antennas on its head near the river. It spoke to me using thoughts.¡± Halankuo sat down on the bed next to the dinosaur and bowed her head. ¡°I remember something like that too,¡± said the girl. ¡°Eight years ago, in the village where we lived, almost all the people disappeared, including my parents. I never thought that this would happen again¡±. ¡°Halankuo is probably sad now,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°So I won¡¯t talk to her today.¡± Tuot left the room. Halankuo did not notice this immediately. When the girl recovered from the memories, her pet was no longer in the room. Halankuo began to worry. Tuot remained the only close being to her after her parents passed away. ¡°Has he really left home?¡± the girl thought. ¡°He certainly has a small brain, but he¡¯s not so stupid as to leave home now.¡± Halankuo entered the dinosaur''s room. ¡°Tuot must be here somewhere,¡± the girl thought. ¡°He couldn¡¯t go anywhere. He is very cowardly." Halankuo looked under the bed and found only a pillow with a picture of a girl with cat ears wearing only a blue apron. ¡°There is nothing else in this room,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°He couldn¡¯t hide under the virtual posters.¡± Halankuo walked around the entire apartment, but Tuot was nowhere to be found. The girl sat down on the floor in the corridor and called up the interface. ¡°Something serious has happened,¡± the girl thought. ¡°We need to write to Tuot.¡± Halankuo clicked on the horned elephant icon. Several chats have opened. The girl chose one of them and began typing. After sending the message, Halankuo remembered her character and entered the "Mausoleum of Nature". The Kyotyoryon model stood motionless in the character window, like a character in an online game. ¡°I¡¯ll get you out of there,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Be patient a little. Everything will end, and I will definitely free you.¡± ... Tuot found himself in the city center, in the city square. In front of him stood a tall stone column with the head of a three-horned dinosaur. Along the edges of the square there were four-story stone buildings with red roofs and small windows. ¡°How did I end up here?¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°I just wanted to go to the kitchen or living room to wait for Halankuo to stop being sad.¡± I didn¡¯t want to go outside.¡± The dinosaur looked around. There was not a single creature around. It was quiet. ¡°We must go back,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°If Halankuo notices that I¡¯m not at home, he¡¯ll worry.¡± Then I¡¯ll have to go even longer without talking to her.¡± The square was the intersection of four streets that crossed the city from beginning to end. The dinosaur walked along one of them and noticed a girl with red hair that covered most of her face near a wooden building. ¡°At least one living human remains in this city,¡± Tuot thought joyfully. ¡°But her hair is an unnatural color. Maybe this is not a human? ¡± The girl raised her head. Her hair fell back a little and revealed her face. Tuot noticed eyes that looked at one point, did not blink and sparkled in the sun. Then he noticed her costume - her torso was wrapped in a piece of white translucent fabric from the middle of her chest to the middle of her thighs, and screws connected her knees and elbows. ¡°This is definitely not a human,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°This is a battle doll. I saw them in the game.¡± ¡°What are you doing here, chicken?¡± the doll asked. ¡°I¡¯m not a chicken,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°You''re confusing me with someone¡±. ¡°It''s dangerous here. The signal source is somewhere nearby. ¡°What is the signal?¡± ¡°This is a virtual signal. If a being senses a signal, it may obey it and go to its source¡±. ¡°Did I really end up here because of the signal?¡± Tuot thought in fear. ¡°Did people in the city disappear because of the signal?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yes,¡± answered the doll. ¡°Get out of here. Otherwise you will be erased like these people¡±. Tuot turned and looked at the square. Near the column, a penguin with antennas on its head hovered in the air. The dinosaur recognized him immediately. It was the same creature that he saw when Halankuo''s parents disappeared. An electric discharge ¡°ran¡± between Taikuron¡¯s antennas. A purple aura surrounded the doll''s body. Her head bowed and her hands hung as if lifeless. Tuot was scared, but he could not run away. Something held him in place. The dinosaur realized that it was obeying the signal that the doll was talking about. The doll''s body rose to the height of the second floor and moved slightly forward ¨C to the edge of the square. Taikuron released lightning from the clot that formed between his antennas. The doll''s body flew to the side and dodged the attack. Lightning struck the edge of the building and broke off a piece of the wall. The sound of a falling stone scared Tuot greatly. Fear indicators reached a high level and exceeded the level of signal. Tuot was able to move and ran along the street away from the square. The doll opened its eyes and looked at Taikuron with purple pupils. The penguin''s body began to move backwards towards the nearest building, but soon stopped. Taikuron turned his head to the side and looked at the doll. The two creatures'' gazes met. Their bodies stopped moving, but then scattered in opposite directions. Chapter 3. Lightning Generated by the Power of Thought Tuot stopped in the middle of the street, saw an open door and ran inside the building. The dinosaur found itself inside a cave-like cafe with stone tables, seats, columns and ¡°icicles¡± on the ceiling. At one of the tables sat a man wearing a gray jacket with a hood and holding a glass of green liquid in his hand. Tuot felt scared, but he could not move. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, I don¡¯t eat birds,¡± the man said. The man''s voice seemed familiar to Tuot. The dinosaur realized that this situation would not end well and tried to leave. But when turning back, he could not stay on his feet and fell to the floor. ¡°Toot, is that you?¡± a voice came from the depths of the hall. ¡°It¡¯s me,¡± the dinosaur answered. ¡°I don¡¯t need to do anything!¡± Tuot rose to his feet and looked at the man who was sitting with his back to him. Apparently, he identified the dinosaur by sound. ¡°You once took some money from me in a game,¡± the man said. ¡°And you didn¡¯t return it. For this I wanted to kill you. ¡± ¡°This is virtual money,¡± Tuot objected. ¡°Yes, but they can be used in the real world. You are my friend, that''s why I didn''t kill you. ¡± Suddenly the fear left Tuot. The dinosaur recalled this man. ¡°Are you Itinit?¡± Tuot asked, although he knew the answer to this question. The man turned around. Tuot saw his face, brown hair that peeked out from under the hood, and was now sure that this was his friend. ¡°It¡¯s strange that you still remember my name,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I haven¡¯t been in Yenekit for over a year.¡± ¡°When they joke about my memory, for some reason I don¡¯t feel offended,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Do you know what¡¯s happening in the city now?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°There¡¯s a penguin with antennas on its head and a doll,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°And there are no local residents¡±. ¡°Do you know why they aren¡¯t there? ¡°No. I can guess though. Is the penguin with antennas on its head somehow related to their disappearance?¡± ¡°Yes. How do you know? ¡± ¡°I saw him in the village the day Halankuo¡¯s parents disappeared. Then all the local residents disappeared, except me, Halankuo and a few other people.¡± ¡°The penguin with antennas on his head is called Taikuron. You probably won''t remember his name, but just know that he has a name.¡± ¡°He talks to me as if I¡¯m stupid,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But I¡¯m not stupid.¡± ¡°Taikuron can extract the data of living beings from their bodies, which causes living beings to disappear,¡± Itinit continued. ¡°To do this, he takes control of creatures using signals that come from his brain through the antennae on his head. I think the local residents who disappeared will be restored within a month after their memory cards are found.¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t they all disappeared?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°You and Halankuo, for example, stayed. But there are few of them. These are mainly children, who are usually not affected by the signal due to the fact that their brains are not yet developed. The signal affects different creatures differently. It depends on the level of feelings. When a creature''s level of feeling changes dramatically, the signal can take control of it. I have been studying signals that can control creatures for many years. For this I traveled a lot around the world. I recently returned from the coast of the continent¡±. ¡°It is far?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s very far from here, on the opposite end of the continent. Sorry I haven''t written to you for so long. I have lost access to my account. And when I created a new one, I couldn¡¯t find your account on the network.¡± Itinit swiped his finger through the air and summoned a virtual map. It depicted two large pieces of land in yellow ¨C one in the northern part of the map, and the other in the southern part. The rest of the map was occupied by water ¨C it was indicated in blue. Water spaces separated small areas of land ¨C islands. Tuot sat down on a chair on the opposite side of the table to better see the map. Itinit touched a piece of land at the top of the screen; it began to increase in size and soon occupied the entire map. ¡°This is the Northern continent,¡± Itinit said. ¡°We live on it. I hope you haven''t forgotten this¡±. ¡°I remember something like that,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°Only two civilized species of animals live on the Northern continent ¨C humans and dinosaurs. And there are no people on the Southern Continent because they died out there¡±. ¡°You remember something. I already thought that when I return, I will have to teach you from scratch¡±. Itinit pressed his finger on the Northern continent. This section of the map has been zoomed in and detailed. Models of mountains, plains, rivers, lakes and cities appeared on it. ¡°I studied how local robots are made,¡± Itinit said. ¡°They are not like ours there. Local robots can fly and swim.¡± Itinit summoned a virtual screen and showed Tuot a photo of the robots. One robot looked like a cross between a boat and a log; the other looked like a tree with many branches. ¡°But the purpose of my trip was not only robots,¡± Itinit continued. ¡°I saw a creature that was transferred from the virtual world to the real world¡±. ¡°I saw it too,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°And now I know that there is nothing good in this.¡± It can only drag me by the tail.¡± ¡°For some reason you weren¡¯t surprised. Shall I show you a photo of this creature?¡± An image of a girl with long brown hair appeared on the screen. On the top of her head were dog ears covered in brown fur. The outfit was a sleeveless black fur dress that started in the middle of her large breasts and ended in the middle of her thick hips. There are brown fur bracelets on the arms and legs. Tuot opened his mouth in surprise and accidentally showed the sharp rows of his teeth. ¡°Do you like her?¡± Itinit smiled. Tuot looked out the window and then at the screen. ¡°No, it¡¯s an another species,¡± the dinosaur answered. ¡°I''m not like that.¡± In fact, in Tuot¡¯s room, almost all the walls were occupied by virtual posters with images of similar girls. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°It¡¯s a mixture of man and dog,¡± Itinit said. ¡°In our world, the appearance of such creatures is impossible. But in the virtual world this is reality. It sounds strange, of course.¡± ¡°Where did you see this creature?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°She was in the database of the library of one city on the coast of the Northern continent.¡± ¡°I thought you saw them live and took these pictures.¡± ¡°Unfortunately, I did not see these creatures. These photographs are many years old. Where they were made and by whom are unknown. ¡± Itinit touched the model of the city on the bay. The map section was further detailed. A three-dimensional map of the city appeared with streets, blocks and a central square in the middle. Along the shore of the bay there is a strip of land occupied by forest and a port with ships and cranes stationed there. From the north, a gray line ¨C the railway ¨C entered the port from the land side. On this line, on the outskirts of the city, there was a station with a long platform and a large stone station. ¡°This city is called Tohsonun,¡± Itinit said. ¡°It is the largest on this coast of the mainland. Even the train station here is made of stone, not wood¡±. Tuot opened his mouth again in surprise. ¡°Are train stations made of stone? ¡° the dinosaur couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°There are many amazing things in the world. You can''t even imagine how diverse the world is.¡± Tuot looked out the window. From there was a view of the places where the dinosaur had walked for many years. A narrow street paved with red- gray stones. The houses on this street had red roofs and colorful walls, near which crooked deciduous trees grew. It was not far from this place to his house. The dinosaur lived in the next block on the same street, only straight, tall coniferous trees grew there. The city consisted of six small blocks, built up with two-story and three-story houses. On its outskirts there was a river that separated residential areas from the railway station. The city was so small that even Tuot remembered every street. During the time that Tuot spent in this city, he visited its surroundings, and had a rough idea of what this part of the world looks like. But Tuot knew what the rest of the world was like only from pictures and videos on the network. The dinosaur was interested in what cities, rivers, mountains, and forests looked like in other places, and was especially interested in whether animal girls actually lived there. ¡°How did you get there?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°I went by train,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°How long does it take to get there? ¡°A few days.¡± ¡°So much?¡± ¡°Do you know the size of our continent?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either. But it''s very big. It''s hard to imagine, but it''s true.¡± Tuot thought about it. For the first time he wanted to go somewhere. The distant coast of the continent seemed mysterious, but the long road there scared him away. ¡°Is it possible to get there faster?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°It¡¯s possible,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°In our world there are flying machines. One of these things can fit several people. You can get from here to the coast on it in less than a day. Taking into account additional refueling, of course. A flying machine has a small fuel tank, so they cannot fly such a long distance without replenishing fuel.¡± Tuot opened his mouth, but this time with joy. And again he showed his sharp teeth. ¡°Don¡¯t be happy,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Flying on such a vehicle is very expensive. And there are none in this city. He''s too small. Therefore, we have two options - either by train for about two days with a transfer at one station, or by ship with several transfers. ¡± ¡°The ships are very slow,¡± Tuot said. ¡°And they can make you feel sick. And I can''t stand on my feet well.¡± ¡°Do you want to go to the coast?¡± ¡°I want to, but I doubt that I¡¯ll get there alive.¡± ¡°Are you so impressed by the girl with ears and a tail?¡± ¡°No!¡± Tuot¡¯s limbs and head began to tremble. ¡°I do not like them.¡± ¡°Even if you like them, I don¡¯t blame you.¡± Tuot felt uneasy. The dinosaur looked around and then tried to hide under the table. Itinit got up from the table, looked at the city map and saw a yellow dot on it that was quickly moving along one of the streets. ¡°It looks like he¡¯s close,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Who?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Taikuron,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°His signal had an effect on you. It''s good that you were just scared.¡± ¡±Is the door closed?¡± ¡±Closed. But that won''t help. Taikuron can pass through walls and doors. ¡± Tuot looked at the locked front door. He expected to see part of the penguin''s body come through the door. The dinosaur''s heart was shaking like never before, and this made its limbs tremble more than usual. ... Two metal antennas with transparent balls appeared from the ceiling above the central part of the hall. Itinit noticed this, closed the map and the screen, and then summoned a virtual joystick in the shape of a circle. After pressing several buttons, the area around the table was surrounded by a blue translucent energy barrier. The virtual joystick has disappeared. A penguin''s head appeared from the ceiling. The balls on its antennas turned red. ¡°What did you do?¡± Tuot asked from under the table. ¡°I created a barrier so as not to be exposed to Taikuron¡¯s signal,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°And so that you don¡¯t be afraid.¡± Tuot crawled out from under the table. Taikuron had completely emerged from the ceiling and was now floating in the air. Two blue translucent energy balls with lights inside appeared around Itinit. They flew chaotically around their summoner before leaving the barrier and flying towards Taikuron. The table standing near Taikuron rose up and covered the creature. But the balls went around the obstacle and headed towards the target. The penguin looked at one of the balls, and it stopped in the air. The second ball attacked the enemy from behind, but Taikuron was able to dodge. The second ball collided with the first. There was an explosion. Sparks flew in different directions and then disappeared. The hall filled with smoke. A blue energy ball with a snowflake inside appeared near Itinit, and then flew towards the enemy and disappeared into the smoke... ... The smoke gradually cleared. Taikuron''s head, covered with a layer of ice, hung down from the ceiling like antennas. ¡°He climbed into the ceiling and left only his head outside so that the freezing ball could be aimed at him,¡± Itinit guessed. ¡°If he climbed all the way into the ceiling, the ball would not see the target and would remain near the ceiling.¡± The ice layer was destroyed by lightning that appeared between the Taikuron antennas. Then the penguin climbed out of the ceiling, turned upside down and began to float in the air in the middle of the hall. ¡°He¡¯s too unbalanced,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°He avoids even homing skills. What to attack him with?¡± A small ball of electricity appeared in front of Taikuron, surrounded by lightning that appeared and disappeared. ¡°He uses the power of thought to create electric balls,¡± Itinit turned to Tuot. ¡°Summon the lizard.¡± ¡°For what?¡± the dinosaur could not understand. ¡°This skill can destroy a barrier. Without it, we will be influenced by its signal. Therefore, you need to prevent him from applying this effect with the help of your lizard.¡± ¡°A small purple semicircular shield with a black symbol appeared on one of Tuot''s arms, near the elbow.¡± Tuot touched the claw on his upper paw to the symbol on the shield. A white luminous silhouette of a creature up to half human height appeared in front of the dinosaur... ... The silhouette turned into a yellow lizard with a short tail, which stood on its hind legs. Several small electric balls appeared around Taikuron. The lightning around them united into one network and surrounded the summoner. ¡°I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d see this,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°He is now using a skill that can extract the data of beings from their bodies. Use the lizard.¡± A yellow aura appeared around the lizard, from which waves of yellow energy spread in different directions. The barrier around Itinit and Tuot began to blink, but this did not last long. After a wave of yellow energy from the lizard, the barrier returned to normal. ¡°A little more and the barrier would have disappeared,¡± Itinit looked at the barrier wall. ¡°And then we would be left without protection from the signal.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think that this lizard would be useful to me,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I once learned this skill by accident, and then forgot about it. It removes negative effects and prevents them from being applied.¡± At some distance from the electrical network around Taikuron, clots of lightning began to appear, which gradually turned into balls. Lightning bolts flew from them to the old balls, but then disappeared. ¡°It looks like he doesn¡¯t have enough energy to expand the electrical network,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°It looks like he¡¯s spent a lot of energy recently.¡± The distant balls again became clots of lightning and then disappeared. The balls on Taikuron''s antennas turned purple. ¡°The color of the light bulbs on his antennas has changed,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°He is trying to maintain the existing network, so he concentrates energy in his head.¡± The lightning between the balls became thinner and gradually disappeared. The lights on Taikuron''s antennas turned red, then purple again, but after a few moments they lost color. The electric balls turned into small, barely noticeable clots of lightning, and then disappeared. Taikuron closed his eyes and fell to the floor. Itinit summoned a virtual screen. The barrier began to blink, and soon disappeared into thin air. Itinit brought his finger to the button with the image of a sphere, but did not have time to press it. Taikuron''s body instantly disappeared. ¡°What?¡± Itinit was surprised. ¡°He spent the last of his energy teleporting. I wanted to catch him, but he ran away. ¡± The lizard stopped generating energy waves and then disappeared. ¡°He will return?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°Definitely not in the near future,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°Taikuron has spent a lot of energy, and to restore it he needs a lot of time, probably more than a month. So don''t be afraid. Go home.¡± Tuot''s limbs were still trembling. But despite this, the dinosaur went outside and looked around. It was very quiet outside. Tuot walked along the red-gray paving stones to his house, opened the entrance doors and walked up the stone stairs. The door to the apartment was not locked. The dinosaur entered the corridor and saw Halankuo lying face down on the floor. Chapter 4. Friends are not Food Halankuo was wearing only a long T-shirt that covered her buttocks and some of her thighs. Tuot touched his owner''s eyes with his upper paws and opened them, but Halankuo did not wake up. ¡°Is she really dead?¡± Tuot thought. ¡°This is bad for people. But... I''ve been looking at her delicious meat for so many years. Now I have the opportunity to taste it.¡± Tuot summoned the interface and entered the inventory. It contained several knives of different sizes. ¡°Halankuo is your friend. Friends are not food,¡± the dinosaur remembered the words of Halankuo¡¯s mother. ... There was thick fog in the coniferous forest. A small dinosaur with a long tail, covered with white-blue feathers, hid behind a tree and trembled with fear. He was afraid that someone would come out of the fog and do something bad to him. Footsteps were heard. The dinosaur tried not to move, because it could be detected by sound. The animal thought that someone would accidentally bump into him and it would end badly. But the steps were no longer heard. The dinosaur looked out from behind the tree. Suddenly he felt something holding him by the tail and not allowing him to move forward. The dinosaur screamed loudly and jumped - so he tried to free himself. ¡°Don¡¯t scream, I won¡¯t do anything bad to you,¡± the dinosaur heard a human voice. Unlike other people, this voice was high-pitched. The dinosaur did not understand human language, but this voice did not seem dangerous to him. The dinosaur turned around as best he could and saw that he was being held by the tail by a human child with long black hair in some dark clothes. ¡°I¡¯m lost,¡± the child said. ¡°Do you know how to get out of the forest?¡± The dinosaur did not understand what the child was saying. But he felt that they were trying to force him to do something. ¡°I really don¡¯t want to go to people,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°But this child has me by the tail. I''ll have to go somewhere. Maybe then this being will let me go.¡± The dinosaur walked towards the exit from the forest. The child followed him and held the dinosaur by the tail. Along the way there were trees that suddenly appeared out of the fog. The dinosaur went around them, but sometimes did not have time and hit its head on the trunk. After some time, a small dinosaur and a human child came out onto a stone road that led down into the river valley... ... The forest is over. A palisade appeared, behind which a wooden house could be seen. ¡°We came to the village,¡± the child said. ¡°I''ll be home soon. Want to go with me? You will be my pet. I really like birds. They walk so funny. I have long wanted to have my own birdie.¡± The dinosaur did not answer anything, because he did not understand anything. ¡°You seem to agree,¡± the child said. ¡°Now you are my birdie. I will call you Tuot. My name is Halankuo.¡± ... Tuot took the knife in his hand and began to cry. He felt sad at the thought that he would eat someone he had been with since childhood. ¡°Halankuo is my friend,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I can¡¯t eat it.¡± Kyotyoryon came into the kitchen. ¡°Stupid dinosaur, the creator doesn¡¯t wake up,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°I pulled her by the hair, but she didn¡¯t wake up.¡± Maybe it needs to be pierced with something? ¡°She called me stupid, but at least I¡¯m not a chicken,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°It¡¯s good that she didn¡¯t think of piercing Halankuo earlier.¡± Tuot put the knife back into his inventory, hidden the interface and ran into the corridor. Halankuo was still lying on the floor and did not move. Kyotyoryon approached her creator and knelt down. A short blade appeared from the bracelet on her hand. ¡°What happens if you cut off her head?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°She will die,¡± answered Tuot. ¡°Forever?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What if you cut off your arm or lower arm? Tuot realized that the ¡°lower hand¡± was a leg. The dinosaur imagined Halankuo''s leg, separated from the body, and remembered that recently he wanted to eat it. ¡°Maybe we should cut off the leg and eat it?¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Her character doesn¡¯t mind... No, I shouldn¡¯t think like that. Friends are not food." ¡°What will happen?¡± Kyotyoryon pointed the blade at the dinosaur. ¡°Blood will flow,¡± answered Tuot. ¡°And she will die.¡± ¡°This is bad. I am not allowed to cut anything.¡± Kyotyoryon touched the eyelid of one of Halankuo¡¯s eyes with her index finger and opened it. But the girl did not wake up. Kyotyoryon smiled faintly and looked at Tuot. ¡°If you insert this thing here, the creator will not die?¡± the spirit of metal brought the blade to Halankuo¡¯s eye. ¡°She won¡¯t die,¡± Tuot answered. Kyotyoryon tried to thrust the blade into Halankuo''s eye, but missed and hit him in the forehead. A scratch formed and blood came out. Halankuo opened her eyes and screamed loudly in pain. ¡°Sorry, creator, I missed,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I wanted to get to this place.¡± Kyotyoryon pointed her index finger at her eye. Halankuo stopped screaming and looked at the character. ¡°It¡¯s an eye,¡± said the girl. ¡°You can¡¯t poke anything sharp there. If an eye is damaged, it will not be able to see.¡± ¡°You have one more eye,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°You will be able to see with one eye. Why do you need two? One eye can be pierced.¡± Halankuo wiped away the blood that had flowed from her forehead with her hand, and then covered one of the character''s eyes with her hand. ¡°This way you will see with one eye,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°I understand why two eyes are needed,¡± said Kyotyoryon. ¡°One eye is missing. The second eye is not superfluous. I just wanted to wake you up, but you didn''t wake up. Then I decided to cut you.¡± Halankuo removed her hand from the character''s face, went to the bathroom and returned from there with a towel on her head. ¡°I was just fast asleep,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°Yesterday I freed you, and then I wanted to sleep. Apparently, this is due to the fact that I was not the one who slept at night. If it weren''t for my character, I might not have woken up. It''s a joke.¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°And I thought that you died, and I already wanted to try your meat,¡± Tuot admitted. Halankuo stroked her own thigh with her hand. ¡°You¡¯re hungry,¡± the girl said. ¡°Go to eat. But first, take the food out of the package. ¡± ¡°I¡¯m not stupid,¡± Tuot objected. ... A few years ago, Tuot came into the kitchen, took out a package of meat from the refrigerator and looked at the packaging. There was a block with symbols on it. Among these symbols, the dinosaur found a line with the name of the animal to which this meat belonged. ¡°It¡¯s good that this is not an animal of my species,¡± thought Tuot. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to eat the meat of one of these creatures like me.¡± The dinosaur opened its mouth and threw a bag of meat into it. A few moments later, he realized that he was chewing the meat along with the packaging. ¡°First I had to get the food out of the package,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°The packaging is kind of tasteless¡±... ¡°What do you mean ¡®slept¡¯?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°This is...¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°I was charging.¡± ¡°You should have connected to electricity,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°She doesn¡¯t run on electricity,¡± Tuot said. ¡°Halankuo is alive.¡± ¡°Am I not alive?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°No,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°You are an artificially created being. In this world, there are living beings that come from an egg or from the belly of another creature, and non-living beings that someone created. These are robots, action dolls, characters transferred from the program.¡± ¡°I want to be alive,¡± Kyotyoryon objected. ¡°I want to be a normal being. Creator, am I alive?¡± Halankuo didn''t know what to answer. She understood that Kyotyoryon was not a living creature, but she did not want to offend her character. ¡°Creator, answer!¡± Kyotyoryon shouted. The spirit of metal looked at Halankuo and did not move. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Halankuo replied. ¡°Because you were created in the program, you are no worse than other creatures.¡± ¡°Is it true?¡± drops of transparent liquid appeared from Kyotyoryon¡¯s eyes. ¡°Can she cry?¡± Halankuo was surprised. ¡°This is not mentioned in ¡®Mausoleum of Nature.¡± Tuot walked up to Halankuo, grabbed her hand and pointed with his free hand towards the kitchen. ¡°Kyotyoryon,¡± Halankuo addressed her character. ¡°Go to my room. I need to talk to Tuot.¡± Kyotyoryon began to walk along the corridor, but could not stay on her feet and fell. The character had to travel the rest of the way to Halankuo''s room on all fours. ¡°She¡¯s still very clumsy,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°She reminds me of Tuot as a child.¡± ... A small dinosaur that looked like a bird approached the stockade. He was held by the tail by a little girl wearing a long T-shirt that reached her knees. ¡°Mom!¡± the girl shouted. ¡°I came!¡± A robot buyer with a black shell on skis drove up to the fence. ¡°Mom¡¯s not here right now,¡± the robot said in a thin machine voice. ¡°Dad¡¯s not here either.¡± ¡°So, no one will know that I went into the forest,¡± Halankuo was happy. The dinosaur saw the robot and tried to run away, but the girl was able to hold him back. ¡°I found the birdie,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Now she will live with us.¡± ¡°Should I put the bird in the refrigerator?¡± the robot¡¯s shell opened. ¡°No! It cannot be eaten! He will be a pet. Like a dog. Now I''ll throw it to you. Catch him!¡± Halankuo threw the dinosaur over the fence. Tuot had the opportunity to free himself if he could fly. But the flightless dinosaur ended up on the other side of the fence and then inside the shopping robot. Only his tail protruded from the open shell. Halankuo climbed over the low palisade and found herself in her yard. The girl often ran into the forest when her parents were not at home. The forest, the view of which opened from the window of Halankuo''s room, attracted the girl. It seemed to her that something interesting and unusual was hidden there, and perhaps even alive. Birds often sat on the branches of trees that grew in the yard. Halankuo liked to watch them from the window, but could not catch them. ¡°The birds are flying away from me,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I need to feed them and then try again.¡± Halankuo left the grain in a blue energy capsule on the windowsill. The birds saw the food and knocked on the window. The girl laughed at them, but at the same time she felt sorry for the poor stupid birds. Halankuo opened the window and the birds pecked the grain. But when the girl tried to catch the birds, they flew away. Now Halankuo was happy. Her dream came true... ... Halankuo and Tuot gathered in the kitchen. Tuot told his friend what happened to Taikuron. ¡°So you can go outside,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°I want to go for a walk with Kyotyoryon. Show her the city.¡± ¡°And me?¡± asked Tuot. ¡°You can come with us. You are my pet.¡± *** Yueret reached the central square, where four roads converged. Red glowing arrows and symbols appeared on the stone column. ¡°The store is over there. There¡¯s even an arrow pointing there,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°There must be a robot buyer. But why are there no people here?¡± Yueret approached a gray, one-story building with several wooden doors and small round windows. All the doors were closed. Near the edge of the building, a man noticed a girl with long red hair lying face down on the stone sidewalk. ¡°What happened here?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Why are there no people in the town?¡± The girl didn''t answer. A purple energy aura appeared around her. Yueret realized that something was wrong with her and summoned a large rectangular-oval shield. The girl''s body assumed a vertical position, but her eyes remained closed. After that, she rose up and hung in the air at the height of a two-story building. A window broke out of the store building and flew towards a person along with the glass. Yueret covered himself with a shield, around which a blue energy aura appeared. The window reached the aura and went back into its opening intact. The wind has noticeably increased. Pieces of stone, doors and windows with intact glass began to break out of the buildings that stood on the square. A blue translucent protective barrier in the form of a sphere appeared around Yueret. Stones, doors and windows touched him and flew away. Suddenly the wind died down. Objects stopped moving in the air. The girl sank to the ground. The protective barrier around Yueret disappeared. The square was strewn with stones, intact windows and the remains of doors. ¡°Who are you?¡± Yueret asked. The girl opened her eyes. Yueret saw them: violet glowing pupils, sclera that glittered in the sun as if made of glass. ¡°This is a battle doll,¡± the guy guessed. Yueret felt a severe pain in his head. It seemed to him that his head was going to explode. The guy let go of the shield and fell to his knees. The pain subsided a little, but blood began to drip from my ears. A whistle was heard in the air. A small metal arrow hit the doll in the forehead and got stuck there. The doll noticed a girl with shoulder-length brown hair near the window at the edge of the square, wearing large black headphones with short antennas. Her large breasts barely fit into her purple T-shirt, and her wide hips barely fit into her black leather shorts. On her legs were black stockings that ended in small purple sneakers. In his hands is a small purple bow with an energy string of the same color. ¡°Yueret, this girl wanted to kill you,¡± the girl said. ¡°I told you that you shouldn¡¯t talk to other girls.¡± Yueret looked at the girl. The pain in his head lessened and the blood stopped flowing from his ears. ¡°Unana,¡± Yueret turned to the girl. ¡°I told you to stay home.¡± ¡°You are my older brother,¡± Unana answered. ¡°I can¡¯t leave you with other girls.¡± The doll took off, hung in the air above the square for a while, and then disappeared. Unana approached her brother. ¡°Does something hurt you?¡± the girl asked. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°My head hurts a little, and there was a little bleeding from my ears, but it¡¯s stopped now.¡± A pink arrow surrounded by a red energy aura appeared in Unana''s bow. The archer pulled her energy bow and shot her brother in the head. Yueret no longer felt pain in his head. ¡°Where is the robot?¡± Unana asked. ¡°You followed him, and met some woman.¡± ¡°I knew that my little sister was very jealous,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°But I didn¡¯t think it would be that much.¡± ¡°The robot may be in the store,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°I approached the store, but couldn¡¯t get inside because the doors were closed. And then the doll attacked me.¡± ¡°Maybe you pestered her, that¡¯s why she attacked.¡± ¡°I just asked why there are no people in the town.¡± ¡°For some reason I didn¡¯t notice that there were no local residents in the town,¡± Unana thought. Due to the doll''s actions, a hole appeared in the wall of the store building. Unana and Yueret entered it. In the large hall there were shelves with goods. Among them, on the floor, lay a creature that looked like a black beetle with a shell like a turtle. ¡°It¡¯s him,¡± Yueret said and approached the creature. ¡°This is our robot.¡± Yueret walked up to the robot, summoned a virtual screen and pressed a few buttons. The shell opened. Inside were several bags of food and a bottle of water. ¡°It seems like nothing is missing,¡± Yueret said. ¡°We need to take the robot and leave here. I don''t know why there are no people in the town, but this is not normal. Let''s go to the station. If we don¡¯t return home, our dog will not be able to stand it and will go looking for us.¡± ¡°He said ¡®our dog,¡¯¡± Unana was delighted. ¡°Yueret, you are such a good big brother.¡± The railway station was located on the outskirts of the city, near a mixed forest. It consisted of a wooden one-story station building, a stone platform and one rail. Inside the station building there was a large hall with a high ceiling, in which several rows of round light bulbs were mounted. In the farthest part of the hall, a virtual scoreboard hung in the air with an inscription of red glowing symbols. ¡°So the trains were canceled due to the invasion of dolls,¡± Yueret read the inscription. ¡°They were sent on another branch. We''ll have to go there." The guy left the station building and went to his sister. Unana sat on a bench and looked at a squirrel that was running along the rail. ¡°There are no trains here,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I already understood that,¡± Unana said. ¡°This squirrel knows that the train will not arrive, so it is not afraid to run along the rail. Wild animals understand this. They are smart, but we are not. Otherwise we wouldn''t be here.¡± Chapter 5. Someone Scary Tuot woke up with pain in the back of his body. The dinosaur looked up and found Kyotyoryon on the bed, pulling a feather from its tail. ¡°Stop it,¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Do not do that.¡± ¡°If I hadn¡¯t done that, you wouldn¡¯t have woken up,¡± Kyotyoryon explained. ¡°I don¡¯t sleep as soundly as your creator. By the way, where is she?¡± ¡°She left somewhere. She said that we are going to the park today.¡± Kyotyoryon stopped pulling the feather, and then turned her back. Her clothes were gone. A back with a very prominent spine opened up in front of Tuot, which turned into thick buttocks and thick, albeit ¡°inedible¡± legs. At the sight of these body parts, the dinosaur should have felt hungry, but this did not happen. When Tuot found out what Kyotyoryon¡¯s body was made of, he lost gastronomic interest in it. The character ran her finger along her spine. Cracks appeared in those places, and soon the skin on her back burst. Kyotyoryon pulled out a metal spring from there and then fell face down on the floor. Tuot stood with his feet on the bed and looked at the character with a slack jaw. ¡°This thing holds the things that hold me,¡± Kyotyoryon explained. ¡°It needs to be lubricated so that I can walk without falling.¡± Tuot closed his mouth and looked at the door so as not to look at Kyotyoryon. ¡°This spring is its spine,¡± the dinosaur guessed. ¡°She¡¯s the spirit of metal. I shouldn¡¯t be surprised.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask your creator about this?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°She disappeared somewhere,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°That''s why I''m asking you. I want to walk and not fall.¡± ¡°Some people have to fall all their lives,¡± Tuot felt sad from this thought. At this time, Halankuo was sitting at a table in a cafe with Itinit and drinking green liquid from a straw in a glass. ¡°So you still managed to transfer the character into the real world,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I don¡¯t even understand how I did this,¡± Halankuo admitted. ¡°When I gave you ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯, I didn¡¯t think that you would succeed. I thought it would be like a game for you. You will create a character in the editor and stop doing it.¡± Halankuo summoned the virtual screen and entered the "Mausoleum of Nature". In one of the program windows there was a full-length figure of Kyotyoryon in human form. ¡°She¡¯s cute,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°Yes,¡± Halankuo agreed. ¡°She looks a little like a bird, especially in her combat form.¡± Halankuo pressed one of the buttons. Kyotyoryon''s human form was replaced by a sharp helmet with a beak that hovered above a metal torso with blades instead of arms. ¡°I¡¯m so glad that I finally created a metal bird,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°But it¡¯s very difficult with her. She perceives everything differently from living beings and does strange things.¡± ¡°It would be amazing if a character who was summoned from another world did what humans or dinosaurs do.¡± ¡°She''s too strange. She wants to cut or stab something. She doesn''t understand what her actions can lead to.¡± ¡°She is the spirit of metal. You yourself chose this type of character. It was necessary to choose the spirit of wind or lightning. Creators can give characters their own abilities.¡± Halankuo finished the liquid, and then left the table to the bar counters and put the glass on it. ¡°You haven¡¯t dressed again,¡± Itinit noted. Halankuo looked down and noticed that she was only wearing a long gray T-shirt that covered her buttocks and a little of her thighs. The girl summoned her interface and clicked on the gray oval icon. The screen became a mirror, in which Halankuo saw a girl with disheveled hair. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°There are no more people in the city. No one will laugh at me if I walk around the city like this.¡± ¡°Almost all the local residents have disappeared,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I, you, your character and Tuot are left in the city, maybe someone else.¡± Halankuo returned to her original place. ¡°I want to talk about Taikuron,¡± said the girl. ¡°What do you know about him?¡± ¡°Something,¡± Itinit looked at the ceiling. ¡°Taikuron was most likely created in the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡±. ¡°In the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡±? Who created it?¡± ¡°Unknown. Information about him periodically appears in various sources. They say that Taikuron attacks living beings and extracts their data. Then eight years ago, Taikuron appeared in your village. Do you remember this?¡± ¡°Yes. That day I woke up and found that my parents were gone. I woke up Tuot, and we went to look for them. But instead of our parents, we saw a penguin in the distance with antennas on its head. He was floating in the air above the village. This continued for a few moments and then the penguin disappeared. I thought I imagined it. Tuot got scared and wanted to run away. We left the village and ended up in this town.¡± ¡°It looks like Taikuron extracted your parents¡¯ data, which is why you didn¡¯t find them. Taikuron wants to find his second personality, so he uses signals to attract other beings to him. If Taikuron doesn''t find what he was looking for, he simply gets rid of the data.¡± ¡°How do you know so much about him?¡± During one of the expeditions, I met a creature with antennas. From this creature I learned a lot about signals. Every creature has signals. Usually the signals are not transmitted outside the creature''s body. But if you insert an antenna into the body, the signals will be transmitted over distances. That creature had antennas in the form of horns. They were made from an alloy of metals. Halankuo''s heart began to beat faster. The girl turned away so that Itinit would not notice anything. ¡°Kyotyoryon¡¯s horns are also made of metal,¡± Halankuo was frightened. ¡°But it¡¯s not transmitting a signal yet.¡± I¡¯m afraid she¡¯ll become like Taikuron.¡± ¡°The creature with horns told me about transferring a character from the virtual world to the real one and gave me the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature,¡± Itinit continued. Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Why did it do this?¡± Halankuo was surprised. ¡°This is weird.¡± ¡°I dreamed about this creature, and I decided to find it. It turned out that it was sending signals to my brain while I was sleeping. The signals caused dreams in which Taikuron and this creature were. When we met, it said that it was hiding in a secret place because its antennas were transmitting signals to other creatures, and that was why it was lonely. The creature simply wanted to talk to those to whom it sent signals.¡± Halankuo sat down at a table near Itinit. ¡°Is it possible to restore my parents using the data?¡± the girl asked. ¡°It¡¯s possible, if the data turns out to be valid,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°About eight years have passed since then. Data can be stored for up to 15-20 years, sometimes more. You can try to get your parents back if you want. You still have time for this. You need to find the place where the data is stored and extract it from the storage medium. Typically the data is stored in energy memory cards.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me about this before.¡± ¡°You were too small for this. You recently turned twenty. I could try to search for the data myself, but I don''t want to. These people are your parents, not mine. So you can do it yourself if you want.¡± ¡°Of course, I want to find the data. I want to meet mom and dad again! Do you know where to look for data?¡± ¡°In the places where Taikuron was. He doesn''t have enough space in his inventory to store memory cards. Often he throws them away after the data has been copied to his memory card, which is built into his brain. You can try looking for memory cards in your village.¡± *** Yueret and Unana left the station and walked along the stone paved road along the river bank. A dense mixed forest began. The road led down. A small river appeared, noisily flowing through numerous rapids. A virtual frame appeared above one of the coastal stones, with an inscription of red glowing symbols inside and an arrow that pointed to a large coniferous tree between the stones. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± Yueret said. ¡°There should be a boat parking area here. We will take a boat and sail to the railway station, where trains leave from.¡± Yueret was right. Behind a large tree on the river bank there were several boats. Near one of them, on a stump, sat two girls dressed identically: a metal corset worn over a black T-shirt, a metal skirt that reached mid-thigh and dark blue boots. The only difference was the color of the hair on their heads - one was purple, the other was green. The lower parts of their faces were covered with masks that matched their hair color. ¡°These are dolls,¡± Yueret guessed. ¡°Why do you think so?¡± Unana asked. ¡°Look at their hair. People don''t have hair colors like that. Also, they are in armor. People don''t wear armor.¡± The dolls were arguing among themselves about something. ¡°You couldn¡¯t,¡± the doll with purple hair said. ¡°It¡¯s not I who couldn¡¯t, but you who couldn¡¯t,¡± the doll with green hair answered. ¡°You couldn¡¯t do it at all.¡± ¡°And you couldn¡¯t do it even more than at all.¡± Unana fell to her knees laughing. The dolls looked at her, tilted their heads to one side, then to the other. ¡°It''s someone!¡± the doll with green hair said. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s someone,¡± the doll with purple hair confirmed. ¡°And someone else,¡± the doll with green hair said. Unana got down on all fours and began to laugh even more. ¡°What''s happened?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Why are you laughing?¡± Unana couldn''t answer. She was too busy laughing. ¡°Someone talking,¡± the purple-haired doll said. ¡°And someone is unknown, speaking or not,¡± the doll with green hair said. ¡°But someone is the first to laugh.¡± Yueret moved a little closer to the dolls, and they froze in place. ¡°Who you are?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°I have a name,¡± the doll with purple hair answered. ¡°And I have a name,¡± the doll with green hair answered. ¡°That¡¯s good,¡± Yueret covered his mouth with his hand. ¡°But what exactly are your names?¡± ¡°Good,¡± the doll with green hair answered. ¡°Cute,¡± the doll with purple hair replied. Yueret turned away and laughed. ¡°What are your names?¡± Yueret asked after he stopped laughing. ¡°Suturu,¡± the doll with purple hair answered. ¡°Aibi,¡± the doll with green hair answered. Unana approached the dolls. She tried to hold back her laughter, so she smiled. ¡°My sister and I want to sail to the same place, but we cannot control the boat,¡± Suturu said. ¡°Someone and someone, do you also want to sail somewhere?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°I can control the boat. Maybe¡­¡± Yueret approached the boat and then touched its bow. A yellow virtual control panel with many buttons appeared in front of him. Yueret clicked on some of them. The boat moved and reached the water. ¡°I hope I can figure out the controls,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Unana must not find out that this is my first time operating a boat.¡± Suturu, Aibi and Unana approached the boat. ¡°Someone and someone, let¡¯s get on the boat,¡± suggested Suturu. Yueret climbed into the boat and sat near the bow, where the virtual control panel was located. Unana sat down next to her brother. The dolls were located on the opposite side of the vessel. The boat pushed off from the shore and floated downstream. The dense mixed forest on both sides of the river gave way to swamps on one side and a high bank with coniferous forest on the other. The river became wider and the flow slowed down greatly. For a moment, part of the body of a gray creature appeared from the water. Unana noticed him, pushed her brother a little and pointed to the place where the creature appeared. ¡°Did you see it?¡± Unana asked. Yueret looked at the water. The head and back of a lizard, covered with gray scales, emerged from the water. ¡°It¡¯s a cold lizard,¡± Yueret explained. ¡°These animals are rare. They are small and not dangerous to people.¡± The cold lizard swam closer to the boat. Unana began to closely examine the animal. ¡°Can I pet him?¡± Unana asked. ¡°It¡¯s better not,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°He won¡¯t bite you, but he¡¯ll get scared and might tip over the boat.¡± The cold lizard dived into the water and never reappeared on the surface. Unana frowned and turned away. Gray-green swamps with low vegetation opposite the low shore gave way to lakes with dark blue water. The river widened even more. On the high bank a large gray stone house with two wooden towers and round windows appeared. ¡°I want to go there,¡± Suturu pointed at the house. ¡°I want to go there too,¡± Aibi repeated. ¡°I want more than Suturu.¡± ¡°No, I want even more,¡± Suturu looked at her sister. ¡°It could be dangerous there,¡± Yueret warned. ¡°Why do you want to go there?¡± ¡°What¡¯s inside me wants to go there,¡± Suturu said. ¡°Very. It wants to go there as much as my stomach once wanted to eat.¡± Unana took the headphones off her head and hung them around her neck, after which she laid her head on her brother''s lap. Yueret stroked his sister on the top of her head. ¡°I want to eat,¡± Unana said. ¡°I only ate this morning.¡± Yueret used the control panel to make the boat stop on a high bank. The opposite low bank was cut by channels that connected the river with the lakes. The ground there was wet, and there was no place suitable for accommodation. The dolls ran along the path that led through the pine forest to a house with towers. Yueret summoned a robot buyer from his inventory, opened its shell and took out food from the store. Unana opened one of the bags and began to devour its contents with a loud slurp. Yueret didn''t pay attention to how loudly his sister was slurping. He was used to his little sister eating with the sound of a very large animal. The guy was more interested in the forest that adjoined the shore. It consisted of old coniferous trees, under which ferns grew. The lower parts of the tree trunks were covered with dark green mosses. Low tree ferns grew near the water. But I didn¡¯t have to look at the forest for long. The dolls came running to the shore and grabbed Yueret by the hands. ¡°There¡¯s someone scary there,¡± Aibi said. ¡°Like you, only scary,¡± Suturu added. ¡°I told you it could be dangerous there,¡± Yueret said. ¡°And you went there.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to go there,¡± Suturu said. ¡°But something inside made me want to go there.¡± ¡°We have to leave here,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°Until someone really scary came out of that house.¡± ¡°Get in the boat,¡± Yueret suggested. ¡°Why?¡± Suturu asked. ¡°It''s fine here.¡± ¡°But you saw someone scary in the house,¡± Yueret objected. ¡°Yes, there was someone scary there,¡± Suturu confirmed. ¡°Come with us,¡± added Aibi. ¡°Otherwise he will come here.¡± ¡°It seems it¡¯s better not to argue with the dolls,¡± Yueret decided. ¡°They don¡¯t understand anything. I¡¯ll have to go into the house.¡± A path led to the entrance to the house, which abruptly turned into a road consisting of gray-pink stones. On the porch there were two stone columns that once supported a canopy. The wooden door was open. Yueret and the dolls entered the house and found themselves in a large room with a high ceiling, which was covered with cobwebs. The floor was stone and very hard, but broken in some places. Light entered the room through small round windows on the walls. This was enough to see a little of the interior. There were doll heads with bulging eyes hanging on the walls. A stone staircase at the end of the room led to the second floor. The dolls reached the middle of the room, stopped and held hands. Yueret summoned his shield and moved closer to the stairs. There was silence. The house seemed to be completely abandoned. But as soon as Yueret took a few more steps in the direction of the stairs, the sound of some metal object was heard on the second floor. Yueret retreated to the dolls. Heavy footsteps were heard on the stairs, which gradually became louder... ... A man with a gray metal carrot instead of a nose came down the stairs. He was wearing black pants, boots and gloves, a black metal vest over some dark clothing with a hood with strands of black hair sticking out from under it. His eyes stared motionlessly at one point, like those of a doll. A long purple tongue hung from the open mouth. Chapter 6. Logic of Artificial Intelligence ¡°I knew that you would bring him here,¡± the man with a carrot instead of a nose addressed the dolls.¡± ¡°You¡­¡± Yueret opened his mouth. ¡°Are you talking?¡± ¡°My name is Kuttanai,¡± the man with a carrot instead of a nose introduced himself. ¡°I am the creator of fighting dolls. I''m wearing a mask. I doubt you''ll want to see my face. Without a mask, my face is much scarier.¡± Yueret was very surprised that a creature with a carrot nose and a hanging tongue could imitate human behavior, so he could not answer anything. ¡°It was I who sent a signal to the dolls so that they would block your robot buyer in the store and thus force you to personally come to the city,¡± Kuttanai continued. ¡°After that, the dolls should have brought you to me.¡± Suturu and Aibi stood motionless and looked at their creator. Now they looked even more like dolls. ¡°You have a little sister,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°You live in an abandoned village outside the town.¡± ¡°How do you know about me and my sister, and where I live?¡± Yueret felt alarmed.¡± ¡°I have a creature that monitors your actions,¡± Kuttanai answered. ¡°This is a robot buyer.¡± Yueret panicked for a few moments. ¡°Was that little robot that goes to the store watching me?¡± Yueret thought. ¡°I bought it at the store. There were no cameras on it. How did he do it?¡± ¡°Do you know how a living creature becomes a doll?¡± Kuttanai asked. ¡°The data in his brain is being replaced. Anything that is not useful to the doll is removed. Anything useful is added. Therefore, the doll cannot think like a person or a dinosaur, and feels almost nothing.¡± ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why these dolls can¡¯t remember names,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°I like your little sister,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°I want to make a doll out of her.¡± Yueret looked at Kuttanai''s mask, his protruding tongue and motionless eyes. He had no doubt that this man was capable of what he was talking about. ¡°Unless you want your little sister to become a doll,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Do something for me. Find one creature that ran away from me many years ago.¡± ¡°You were able to find me,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Why can¡¯t you find some creature?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t control dolls within a large radius of my house. The greater the distance from me to the dolls, the lower the control over them becomes. But I myself cannot leave this house. Someone blocked me here.¡± ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why these dolls stand motionless,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°He controls them well here. As the boat passed his house, the dolls suddenly wanted to go there. Then they could move, but they could not resist the urge to get into the house. And he had little control over the doll that attacked me in the city, so it could act independently. But how does he give a signal to the dolls? Is it through the nose? Is his carrot an antenna?¡± ¡°Do you agree?¡± Kuttanai asked. ¡°If you don¡¯t agree, I¡¯ll make a doll out of your little sister and add it to my collection.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Yueret thought, because only now did he realize what situation he was in. ¡°Looks like we''ll have to run away from here. I hope he doesn¡¯t leave the house and can¡¯t haunt us.¡± ¡°I don''t agree,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°Then I will turn your little sister into a doll right here,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°She will come here now. Don''t leave here.¡± Yueret''s shield was covered in a blue aura. A short blue energy spear appeared in his free hand. A wrench the size of a short sword appeared in Kuttanai''s hand. Yueret threw his spear at the enemy. Kuttanai put the wrench forward. The spear turned in the air and flew in the opposite direction. Yueret had to cover himself with a shield to avoid damage. A blue translucent copy separated from the shield and flew towards the enemy. Kuttanai deflected it with a wrench and it flew back, but was deflected by the shield and flew back at the enemy. Kuttanai repelled the attack again. The scene repeated itself. This continued several times, and at some point Kuttanai did not have time to repel the attack and was thrown back by a copy of the shield to the wall. Yueret released a blue beam of light from his hand, which pierced through Kuttanai and held him in place, then reached the wall, pierced it, went outside the house and rushed into the sky. Kuttanai''s carrot nose began to emit an orange glow from within. The dolls looked at Yueret. Weapons appeared in their hands ¨C a short sword for Suturu and a small ax for Aibi. The dolls approached Yueret, and he had to create an energy protective barrier around himself and stop shooting a beam of light from his hand. Kuttanai was no longer tied to the wall, but a large hole appeared in his stomach from which no blood was dripping. ¡°I forgot about the dolls,¡± Yueret thought, but it was too late. Kuttanai drew a symbol in the air with a wrench. A white luminous silhouette of a man curled up in a ball appeared in front of him. The dolls collided with a barrier and stopped. Yueret looked at Kuttanai and noticed that a girl with long pink hair and closed eyes was hanging above him, surrounded by a pink energy aura. Instead of clothes, her body was wrapped in chains. The girl''s mouth opened. Her tongue became a source of bright red light, which burst out and turned into a pink energy beam. ¡°This is healing energy,¡± Yueret guessed. ¡°Each type of energy has its own color depending on its properties.¡± The pink beam hit the hole on Kuttanai''s stomach, but did not pass through it. The hole began to quickly get smaller and soon disappeared. The tongue in the girl¡¯s mouth stopped glowing and turned gray. Kuttanai again drew a symbol in the air with a wrench. The girl turned into a glowing silhouette and then disappeared. ¡°It was my little sister,¡± Kuttanai explained. ¡°I made a healing doll out of it.¡± ¡°He¡¯s crazy,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°To do this to your sister...¡± The sound of a door opening was heard. Unana entered the house with a bow loaded with a purple energy arrow. ¡°You''re in trouble again,¡± Unana said angrily. ¡°Such a cute girl came to me,¡± Kuttanai noted. ¡°Do you want to become my doll?¡± Unana looked at the carrot-nosed man and felt fear and disgust. The girl shot at him with a bow, but the arrow hit Suturu, turned into an energy rope and tied her up. Yueret removed the barrier and threw Aibi against the wall with his shield. Kuttanai aimed a wrench at Unana, but was thwarted by an energy spear thrown by Yueret. Kuttanai had to knock the spear aside, as a result of which another hole was formed in the wall. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Yueret ran to his sister and grabbed her hand, after which they ran out of the house and headed to the river. The boat was still standing on the river bank, and next to it was a robot buyer with an open shell. Yueret looked at him and stopped. ¡°Why did you stop?¡± Unana asked. ¡°This robot was watching us,¡± Yueret answered. ¡°And he passed on information about us to that person with a carrot nose. But this robot also went to the store and bought groceries and everything else for us. I don''t know what to do with him.¡± ¡°Leave him here,¡± Unana suggested. ¡°There¡¯s no time to think now. We need to get away from here.¡± Yueret and Unana got into the boat, after which it floated down the river. *** Halankuo opened the door and froze in surprise. Tuot sat astride Kyotyoryon and tried to push the spring back into her back. ¡°You made friends so quickly,¡± Halankuo noted. ¡°I asked the stupid dinosaur to lubricate that thing in my back,¡± Kyotyoryon explained. ¡°I¡¯m not stupid,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°I was able to lubricate the spring, but I can¡¯t put it back in.¡± Halankuo smiled. She found this situation funny. ¡°It¡¯s not funny,¡± Tuot said. ¡°This thing doesn''t go back in.¡± ¡°The spine can be inserted through the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature,¡± Halankuo said. The girl summoned a virtual screen, entered the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯ and pressed several buttons next to the character¡¯s image. The spring began to move. Tuot let go of her and jumped back. Kyotyoryon torso began to wriggle up and down. The character¡¯s face was distorted by a terrible grimace, but at the same time Kyotyoryon did not make a single sound. Soon the spring stopped. The skin on the character''s back grew together within a few moments. ¡°Now we can go to the park,¡± Halankuo said. Kyotyoryon sat down on the bed and then stood on the floor. ¡°Now I can stand upright and not fall,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°Stupid dinosaur helped me. He''s not evil. He is good.¡± ¡°He¡¯s actually not stupid,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°He just doesn¡¯t understand something.¡± ¡°Being stupid is good,¡± Kyotyoryon looked at Tuot. ¡°If a creature is stupid, it means it¡¯s new.¡± ¡°This is the logic of artificial intelligence,¡± Halankuo noted. In the middle of the day, Halankuo, Tuot and Kyotyoryon left the entrance of the house. Halankuo looked at her feet and saw black boots on them, which were replaced by gray stockings above. ¡°Strange,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I didn¡¯t forget anything from my clothes. This is very unusual for me.¡± Halankuo lifted the bottom edge of her T-shirt, but saw only bare thighs there. ¡°I knew it,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I still forgot to put on shorts.¡± Halankuo entered her inventory and summoned black shorts, which instantly appeared on her. ¡°Halankuo doesn¡¯t look appetizing in clothes,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But her character looks quite edible. But actually it is not. There is nothing edible inside it. There''s not even blood there. And instead of meat, there is a mixture of metal with some kind of filler.¡± The park was on the outskirts of the city, two blocks from Tuot and Halankuo''s house. ¡°Creator, there¡¯s some kind of blue liquid there,¡± Kyotyoryon pointed to the side. ¡°This is a river,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°It consists of water.¡± The park was divided by a medium-width river with rapids and embankments on both banks, which consisted of gray paving stones and boulders near the water. Kyotyoryon ran to the river and stopped near the boulders. She looked at the fast water and tilted her head in different directions. Soon Halankuo and Tuot approached the character. ¡°Where does this water come from?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°From a hole in the stones, which is far away from here,¡± Halankuo explained. ¡°Why doesn¡¯t it end?¡± the metal spirit asked. ¡°Eh...¡± Halankuo looked up. ¡°There is a lot of water in the place from which this river flows. Also other rivers flow into this river, which flow out of other holes in the stones.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make sure the water doesn¡¯t flow,¡± Kyotyoryon frowned. It was the first time Halankuo noticed any emotion on her character''s face. Previously, Kyotyoryon''s face was almost motionless. Only the lips sometimes moved when speaking. ¡°Where is the place where this river flows from?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°Do you really want to destroy the river?¡± Halankuo was surprised. ¡°Yup,¡± the spirit of metal answered. ¡°The water flows by itself. I need to block it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s impossible,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°You can¡¯t do anything to the river.¡± Kyotyoryon looked at Halankuo and frowned even more. ¡°Where is the place where this river flows from?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tell,¡± Halankuo answered. Kyotyoryon looked at Tuot. ¡°I won¡¯t tell either,¡± the dinosaur answered. ¡°If the river stops flowing, the town will be left without water.¡± ¡°Why water?¡± the spirit of metal asked. ¡°Living creatures need water to drink and rinse their skin,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°But you don¡¯t need water.¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the river. ¡°So I¡¯m not alive?¡± the metal spirit asked. ¡°I don¡¯t need water. And living creatures need water.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°You are alive, but not like us.¡± ¡°I look at the water and see from which direction it flows,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I¡¯ll go in this direction and find the place where it flows from. I will destroy the river and its water will stop flowing.¡± Kyotyoryon jumped onto a stone that was in the water near the shore, and then jumped onto a neighboring stone. ¡°Summon the wrench,¡± Tuot said. ¡°The wrench won¡¯t reach her,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°She''s too far away.¡± ¡°What to do? If I jump on stones, I will lose my footing and fall into the water. I can become covered in an energy aura, and then I can move normally. But I can''t stay in it for long. We''ll have to go to the bridge.¡± ¡°This way we will lose a lot of time. But now we have no choice.¡± Kyotyoryon was already standing on the opposite bank of the river. Tuot and Halankuo ran to the bridge, which was located on the outskirts of the park... ... They caught up with the character outside the city, in the forest, at an intersection with several signs. The spirit of metal looked at the inscriptions and could not understand what the red glowing symbols meant. ¡°Why are you following me?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°I don¡¯t want anything bad to happen to you,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It''s dangerous in the mountains. There are creatures there that can attack you.¡± ¡°I can defeat them,¡± the metal spirit answered. ¡°I''m not in any danger. I will find the place where the water is flowing from and make it flow to another place. If you bother me, I will have to cut you.¡± The spirit of metal looked at Halankuo and Tuot with wide open eyes. Her eyebrows trembled and her mouth was wide open. Kyotyoryon was breathing heavily. It was clear that emotions were not easy for her. Halankuo, unlike her character, although she experienced some feelings, did not show them. She did not expect that her character would develop so quickly that she would begin to show feelings and make decisions on her own. A short blade emerged from the bracelet on Kyotyoryon¡¯s hand. The spirit of metal ran to attack its creator. Halankuo wanted to summon the wrench, but did not have time. The spirit of metal appeared near her and tried to strike with a blade, but Tuot blocked her path and parried the blow with a short curved sword. Halankuo summoned a wrench and aimed it at Kyotyoryon''s blade. The spirit of metal slowly withdrew its own hand with the blade, and then independently retreated a few steps back. Kyotyoryon took on her battle form and then rose to the height of a medium tree. A metal spear appeared next to her. The spear flew towards Halankuo, but the girl deflected it to the side with a wrench. Kyotyoryon noticed this and flew to attack the creator. Halankuo turned a wrench on her character. Kyotyoryon hung in the air, and then was forced to fall to the ground. A metal spear appeared behind Halankuo, at a distance of several human steps, and immediately flew at the girl. Tuot noticed this and fought it off with his long tail, on which a metal tip appeared during the attack. Halankuo summoned a virtual screen. Kyotyoryon noticed this, created a blade in the air and threw it at Halankuo. The girl stopped him with a wrench, but lost control of the character''s body. The blade hung in the air. Kyotyoryon flew further into the forest and disappeared behind a tree. Halankuo threw the blade aside with the key and then walked forward. Tuot followed her. A tall, thick coniferous tree slowly began to fall to the ground with a creaking sound. Halankuo noticed this and stopped him with a wrench. Tuot became covered in a green energy aura. Halankuo straightened her hand with the key. The tree rose into place and then collapsed in the opposite direction. Kyotyoryon flew out of the forest in combat form and tried to strike her creator with a blade, but Tuot covered Halankuo in time and deflected the blow with a shield. ¡°It¡¯s good that the aura increases my speed and stability,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°Without her, I would not have been able to react so quickly.¡± Tuot threw the spirit of metal back to the trunk of the nearest tree with his shield. Halankuo released lightning from her hand, which approached Kyotyoryon and surrounded her, and then turned into a large oval-shaped electric cage. The character tried to get out of there, but touched the electric bars and received an electric shock. ¡°Forgive me,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to use it, but I had to.¡± Kyotyoryon returned to human form, but she was still shaking from the electric shock. Halankuo entered the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯ and then touched the image of the character with her finger. The electric cage has disappeared. An open metal coffin appeared between Halankuo and the metal spirit. The character''s body rose slightly above the ground, and then moved into it. Lightning no longer struck Kyotyoryon, but she screamed loudly. The character understood that he would soon find himself in a world, in which there was nothing, ¨C where one could neither hear, nor see, nor feel. A metal lid with an image of the skull of a three-horned dinosaur appeared above the coffin. Kyotyoryon''s screams stopped. The spirit of metal in human form appeared in the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯. Chapter 7. To beat the rain It was night. A boat with a yellow glowing ball on its bow was floating along the river, and then suddenly stopped. Small white lights appeared in the darkness ahead. ¡°There¡¯s a station,¡± Yueret pointed to the lights in the distance. ¡°We have arrived.¡± Brother and sister went ashore. Yueret took the yellow glowing ball from the bow of the boat. It illuminated the surrounding area within a small radius, but it was enough to see the road. Yueret and Unana walked along the path to the place where the fires were burning. This place turned out to be an almost abandoned railway station without passengers or staff. The wooden terminal has almost rotted, and all that remains of the canopies are dilapidated wooden poles with lanterns, from which that same light emanated. ¡°You''re scared?¡± Unana asked. ¡°No,¡± replied Yueret. ¡°I''m not afraid of darkness.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of the dark either. Almost. But this place looks abandoned. Do the trains stop here?¡± ¡°They are stopping now. But this station has not been used for a long time. Trains on the line, which is now closed, were frequent. I hope the train comes. Otherwise, we will have to sail on a boat somewhere further.¡± It was very quiet at the station. Only the sounds of the wind broke the silence. Unana and Yueret sat down on what was left of the wooden bench. ¡°What will happen if the dolls chase us?¡± Unana asked. ¡°Will they be able to catch up with us?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Yueret answered. ¡°The dolls do not completely obey that scary man with the carrot nose. He said that the greater the distance from him to the dolls, the less control he had over them. This was noticeable in the actions of the dolls. Now we are at a great distance from his house. And he himself cannot pursue us. He can''t leave his house. Even if he lied ... No one followed us while we were sailing along the river?¡± A white clot of light appeared from the direction of the river. It gradually increased in size and became brighter. It was noticeable that something was approaching the station. ¡°There¡¯s something there,¡± Unana said quietly and pointed to the clot of light. ¡°These are not dolls,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°The dolls shouldn¡¯t get here.¡± Yueret summoned a shield, and Unana summoned a bow with a loaded arrow. The source of the light turned out to be a robot buyer that moved along the ground on skis. Unana noticed this and withdrew her weapons. Yueret acted differently: his shield was covered with a blue energy aura. ¡°What do you want to do with him?¡± Unana asked. ¡°He seems nice.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what he will do,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°He was watching us. I don''t want him to continue doing this.¡± ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± ¡°I don''t know. The man with the carrot nose told me this.¡± ¡°Do you believe him, this weird being? A normal person wouldn''t wear that thing where his nose should be.¡± ¡°Maybe he''s not human. When I hit him with a beam of light, no blood flowed from his wound. He is obviously not alive.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s strange to believe him. It¡¯s unclear who he is.¡± ¡°He somehow knows the place where we live. He knows about your existence. He wanted to make a doll out of you. ¡± ¡°He offered me to become his doll. I didn''t pay attention to it because I was scared.¡± The robot buyer approached the remains of the platform. He was now about ten human steps away from Yueret. The lid on his back opened. ¡°You forgot your groceries,¡± a thin machine voice was heard from the robot. ¡°They will spoil if they are left in me.¡± Unana tried to approach the robot, but Yueret grabbed her hand and did not allow her to go further. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t approach him,¡± Yueret said. ¡°What about the food?¡± Unana was indignant. ¡°The food will spoil if we don¡¯t pick it up.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go to him myself.¡± ¡°Did he just bring groceries?¡± Yueret thought. ¡°Did he come here himself? Or was he sent by a man with a carrot nose?¡± Yueret slowly walked up to the robot, took out bags of food and a bottle of water and brought them to his sister. The lid on the robot''s back closed. Yueret then returned to the robot, called up the interface through which it was controlled, and pressed the down arrow button. The robot dragged itself back and disappeared into the darkness. ¡°I sent him to the town,¡± Yueret said to Unana. ¡°That way we¡¯ll get rid of him for a while.¡± I don''t know what to do with it yet. I''m not sure if he was following us.¡± ¡°You¡¯re clever,¡± Unana said. ¡°You didn¡¯t believe some weird being, but decided to check it yourself.¡± Unana hugged her brother and pressed her large breasts against him. Yueret felt something warm and soft, but did not know what exactly his sister pressed against him. He looked into the darkness and wanted to see the train that would appear from there... ... A large white ball appeared in the darkness, which gradually grew larger until it turned into a rectangle. The whistle that a train usually made while moving along the rails was heard. The glowing rectangle turned out to be a wooden train, which slowly approached the almost destroyed platform and stopped. The doors of the carriages moved aside and opened the passage. Unana and Yueret made their way inside and sat down on the nearby wooden seats. The brother and sister were so tired from the journey that they did not notice the absence of passengers in the carriage. For them, only one thing was important - to return home. The train has left. Unana leaned against Yueret, closed her eyes and began to fall asleep. Yueret noticed an inscription of red symbols near the window and touched it with his finger. A yellow translucent screen appeared on the window, where the route diagram with stops, arrival and departure times was indicated. The blue arrow on it showed the location of the train and the direction of its movement. It was night. A doll with long red hair, eyes closed and arms down, covered in a purple aura, landed at the door of a large stone house. The doll raised its head and then opened its eyes. Her pupils turned purple. The wooden door opened with a creak. The doll entered a large room with a high ceiling covered with cobwebs. Light entered through small windows on the walls, on which hung the heads of dolls with bulging eyes. Footsteps were heard on the second floor. The doll''s pupils turned black. A man with a carrot nose slowly descended from the stairs at the end of the room. ¡°It¡¯s you, Ikte,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Did you come here on my signal?¡± If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°Yes,¡± answered the doll. ¡°But I will not obey you. Thanks to the signal, I found the place where you are. I haven''t been here for so long that I forgot the way here. Although I am a doll and cannot experience feelings, I still have one feeling. I can''t come to terms with what you did to me and our little sister.¡± ¡°I had no choice,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Yuehei was sick and couldn¡¯t walk. Now she can fly and heal someone herself. I gave her what she was missing. Then I turned you into a doll so that what happened to Yuehei would not happen to you. I even made myself into something like a doll. I like to make dolls out of living beings. The dolls feel almost nothing. If a living being experiences feelings, he becomes unhappy. Once upon a time, I received a signal that made me think about turning a living being into a doll. I worked on it, and the signals I received told me how to do it correctly.¡± Ikte looked at the window in the wall. The pupils of her eyes turned purple. The window separated from the wall and flew towards Kuttanai. A wrench appeared in the hand of the doll creator, with which he stopped the window and then returned it to its place. Ikte looked at the other wall. A piece of stone separated from it, fell to the floor, broke into many small pieces, which then attacked Kuttanai. The man with the carrot nose released white and pink lightning bolts from his hand, and pieces of stones were broken. A large piece of stone fell from the ceiling above Kuttanai and flew down, but was stopped by a wrench and thrown aside. Ikte closed her eyes and rose almost to the ceiling. Kuttanai aimed a wrench at the doll, but was unable to control it. He was prevented by a piece of stone that separated from the floor. Kuttanai looked around and noticed that small pieces of stone began to separate from the walls, floor and ceiling and slowly move towards him. ¡°Ikte decided to use her strongest skill,¡± Kuttanai guessed. ¡°This could be a problem for me.¡± Kuttanai''s nose antenna turned orange. The heads of the dolls separated from the wall and flew to Ikte. ¡°It¡¯s her skill, Intuitive Storm, that moves objects with the power of thought,¡± Kuttanai thought. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t work near Ikte itself. I remember this.¡± The dolls'' heads reached Ikte, crashed into her and exploded. A cloud of purple smoke formed under the ceiling, from which Ikte''s body fell. Kuttanai ¡°picked up¡± his sister¡¯s body with a weapon and then pulled her towards him. The wrench grabbed the doll by the throat. ¡°If you move objects with your eyes, you waste a lot of energy,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Therefore, it is better to use the key.¡± ¡°You just don¡¯t know how to concentrate well,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°Why know something if it doesn¡¯t help you? I don''t want to kill you because you are my older sister. So get out of here.¡± Ikte''s body escaped the wrench''s grip and flew towards the front door. The doll with its eyes closed left the house, became covered in a purple aura and took off. *** Tuot woke up and saw posters with animal girls on the walls. It''s an ordinary morning for an ordinary dinosaur who likes animal girls. But then something went wrong. A metal hand with sharp claws crawled out from under the bed. Tuot got scared, screamed and jumped to the window. The hand went back under the bed. Tuot tried to open the window, but it was locked. ¡°I don¡¯t remember the password for the window even in my room,¡± Tuot thought in fear. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to go out through the window. I have to run through the door." The dinosaur looked at the door and noticed Kyotyoryon¡¯s head crawling out from under the bed. ¡°Did you scare me?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Not me, but my hand,¡± the spirit of metal answered. ¡°I learned a new skill because I gained experience during the fight with you in the forest.¡± ¡°Do you gain new skills based on your experience?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± ¡°Like characters in games,¡± Tuot thought. Tuot went to the door to leave the room, but it suddenly opened. Halankuo entered the room with a bun in her mouth. The dinosaur immediately drew attention to the girl¡¯s hips, because she was only wearing a long purple T-shirt. Halankuo said something unintelligible. ¡°I know that you¡¯re inedible,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°I uh uh ahh,¡± Halankuo took the bun out of her mouth. ¡°Why are you looking at my legs instead of food? I took it on purpose so that you wouldn¡¯t stare at them.¡± ¡°I accidentally saw meat,¡± Tuot turned to the window. ¡°If I see meat, I want to eat it.¡± ¡°This is not meat that can be eaten,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°This is my meat. I hope you didn''t try to eat me while I was sleeping?¡± ¡°No,¡± Tuot lied. ¡°Friends are not food. That''s what your mother said.¡± ¡°Mom,¡± Halankuo looked down. ¡°Don''t talk about it. I came to pick up Kyotyoryon. We''ll go somewhere. You will have to live without us for a while.¡± ¡°Where will you go?¡± Tuot asked. Halankuo opened the virtual screen and wrote a message to Tuot. The dinosaur heard the notification sound, opened its screen and saw a red circle in the lower right corner. The dinosaur clicked on it, and a screen with chats opened in front of him - lists of icons with names and text fields opposite them. In one of the chats there was a message: ¡°I want to find data to restore my parents, so I¡¯m going to the village. I am writing this message because Kyotyoryon cannot read. She doesn¡¯t know the purpose of the trip, and it¡¯s useless to explain to her.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I won''t disturb you.¡± Kyotyoryon crawled up to Tuot on her knees and tried to grab his tail with her hand. The dinosaur heard the ringing of metal that the character''s body made when moving, and activated a green energy aura. Kyotyoryon crawled back and leaned her back against the wall. ¡°Kyotyoryon, now we will go by train,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It''s not evil?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°No,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°He¡¯s made of metal, just like you.¡± Kyotyoryon ran up to her creator and grabbed her hand. ¡°Not so fast,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Wait until I get dressed.¡± The city was still quiet and there were no people. Halankuo and Kyotyoryon entered the cave cafe. Itinit was sitting at one of the tables and reading the text on the virtual screen. ¡°Do you want to check what thing you forgot to wear?¡± Itinit tried to guess the purpose of the visit. ¡°No,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°I found a mirror in my interface, so I can look into it. That''s not why I came to you. Look who is standing next to me.¡± Itinit turned away from reading, looked towards Halankuo, and then covered his face with his hand. ¡°Why did you do this to Tuot?¡± Itinit said slowly. ¡°This is not funny, Itinit,¡± Halankuo frowned. ¡°This is my character, which I created in the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯ and transferred to the real world. Her name is Kyotyoryon. She is the spirit of metal.¡± Itinit minimized the virtual screen, stood up from the table and took a few steps in the direction of Halankuo and Kyotyoryon. The spirit of metal hid behind its creator and looked out a little. ¡°She¡¯s afraid of you,¡± Halankuo explained. ¡°I¡¯m not scary,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°I just wanted to check whether this is really a transferred character or not. I only saw her in the program. How can you prove that this is not a person in disguise?¡± Halankuo whispered something in Kyotyoryon¡¯s ear. The spirit of metal came out from behind its creator. The character''s body was covered with a white opaque aura, from which it soon freed itself. Kyotyoryon was no longer wearing clothes, and her hair hung in long strands in front and covered her chest, stomach and crotch. Kyotyoryon turned her back to Itinit, which was not covered by her hair, and then ran her hand along her spine. The skin at the point of contact cracked, and Kyotyoryon removed part of the spring from her back. ¡°Now are you sure that this is a real character from the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯?¡± Halankuo asked. Itinit could not answer. He looked motionlessly at Kyotyoryon. ¡°What happened to you?¡± Halankuo asked. Itinit approached the metal spirit and touched the spring with his hand. Kyotyoryon tried to leave, but Itinit grabbed her by the hair and began to run his fingers through it. The guy then let go of his hair and ran his hand over the character''s thigh and buttocks. Halankuo noticed this, entered the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± and forced the spring to disappear inside the back, after which the skin in this place was restored. ¡°Now I believe,¡± Itinit looked at Halankuo. ¡°She is real.¡± ¡°It¡¯s time for us to go,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°We can¡¯t be late for the train.¡± ¡°Do trains already go to our town?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°After Taikuron disappeared, the train was restarted through Yenekit station,¡± Halankuo replied. ¡°That¡¯s what it says on the railway company¡¯s network page.¡± ¡°But the inhabitants of the city have just begun to be restored,¡± Itinit went to his table and sat down on it. ¡°There may be no passengers here, and the train won¡¯t stop.¡± ¡°The train will stop,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°I bought two tickets.¡± Kyotyoryon''s body was covered with a white opaque aura, from which it soon freed itself. The spirit of metal was back in her costume. ¡°Kyotyoryon is already dressed,¡± Halankuo noted. ¡°She has a good sense of time.¡± ¡°Unlike you,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°Did I forget to put something on again?¡± Halankuo made an angry face. ¡°One stocking,¡± Itinit pointed to the girl¡¯s leg.¡± Halankuo looked at her legs. The purple stocking was really only on one leg. ¡°That¡¯s okay,¡± Halankuo smiled. The spirit of metal and her creator left the cafe and headed down the cobblestone street. After two blocks the town ended. The road, which was a continuation of the street, led down into the river valley, to the railway station. A light rain began. Halankuo and Kyotyoryon hid on a bench under a canopy that stood on the platform. Drops of water beat against the canopy and dripped onto the paving stones with which the platform was paved. ¡°Something is falling from above,¡± Kyotyoryon pointed with her hand at the raindrops falling from the canopy. ¡°It''s raining,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°It''s water from the sky. It is needed to replenish the world''s water supplies.¡± ¡°Without this water that falls from above, the water in the world will disappear?¡± Kyotyoryon walked to the edge of the canopy and put her foot under the raindrops. ¡°This water flows somehow weakly,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°I hope I can beat her.¡± Blades emerged from the bracelets on Kyotyoryon¡¯s hands. ¡°Don¡¯t do this,¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°You can''t beat the rain.¡± But Kyotyoryon was not convinced by these words. The metal spirit blade moved towards the raindrop. Chapter 8. Scary Doll Yueret opened his eyes and realized that he was in his room. His little sister lay next to him. Unana had no clothes on, and only a white blanket somehow covered the girl¡¯s chest, stomach and crotch. The sister''s arms hugged the pillow, and one of her legs lay on her brother, bent at the knee. ¡°Unana, wake up!¡± Yueret slightly pushed his little sister. ¡°You have your own bed in your room. Why did you come to me again?¡± Unana did not wake up. A brown puppy that looked like a bear cub crawled out from under the bed and pulled the blanket off the girl. But this did not help awaken Unana. Then the puppy jumped on the bed and began to lick her face. Unana opened her eyes, moved the puppy closer to her brother, and then sat down on the bed with a pillow in her hands. ¡°Kimchan woke me up again,¡± Unana said in a sleepy voice. ¡°He¡¯s lucky he¡¯s inedible.¡± The puppy jumped off the bed and ran out of the room. ¡°We need to feed him,¡± Yueret said. ¡°We''ll have to go to the kitchen to cook.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid that something bad will happen today,¡± Unana rested her chin on the pillow. ¡°What could happen today?¡± ¡°Have you forgotten what happened yesterday?¡± ¡°Was there anything special yesterday?¡± ¡°It would be surprising if you remembered.¡± Unana told her brother about how he went to look for a robot buyer and what it led to. Yueret got out of bed and looked out the window. ¡°They can come.¡± ¡°It''s because you got involved with other girls. I warned you.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t allow me anything, although you are a little sister, not an older one. I can''t do anything. Because of you, I am forced to live outside the city in an almost extinct village.¡± ¡°There are a lot of people in the city and it¡¯s noisy. And it¡¯s quiet here; there are a lot of wild animals that you can touch, like this pillow.¡± Yueret went to the kitchen and started frying meat on the stove. After some time, Unana came into the kitchen. Clothes appeared on her. These were large black headphones with antennas that the archer often wore on her head. ¡°You came early,¡± Yueret said. ¡°The food isn¡¯t ready yet.¡± Unana sat down on the floor next to the low table. Her breasts pressed against the edge of the table and expanded to the sides like jelly. ¡°I was lying in bed, and then I smelled the smell and came here,¡± Unana said. ¡°Is this squirrel meat?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± replied Yueret. ¡°I feel sorry for the squirrelies, but they have delicious meat. What are their names?¡± Yueret took the meat package and placed it on the table in front of his sister. At that moment, a puppy ran into the kitchen and grabbed the packaging with its teeth. Unana did not want to give her portion to the dog, so she grabbed the opposite edge of the package with her hand and pulled it towards herself. Kimchan growled and pulled the prey towards himself, but Unana somehow managed to snatch the object from the beast¡¯s mouth. Kimchan approached Yueret with a loud bark. ¡°It¡¯s a good name,¡± Unana read the text on the package. ¡°I wonder how they take their meat from them.¡± ¡°They cut off parts of the body that contain a lot of meat, or simply kill them,¡± Yueret answered. Unana touched the headphones on her head with her hand, and then began to twirl a strand of hair around her finger. Kimchan tried to jump on the table to get to the package, but Unana stopped him with a hand movement. The puppy left the kitchen barking loudly. ¡°It¡¯s sad,¡± Unana said. ¡°The squirrels are probably being killed. They are too small. They have nothing to cut off.¡± Yueret took the package from the table, opened it and placed a piece of squirrel meat on the metal bars of the stove. ¡°Yes, they just kill squirrels,¡± Yueret confirmed. ¡°Now I¡¯m cooking two squirrels ¨C one for myself, the other for you. I have already fed Kimchan. Usually one animal is enough for us if it is large, but the squirrels are too small, so there are two of them.¡± ¡°It''s good that they are so small. If you eat a bear, you will become fat.¡± ¡°Why eat a whole bear?¡± Unana laid her head on the table and yawned. ¡°First, you eat one piece,¡± the girl said. ¡°Then another piece. Then again. And soon your belly is completely full, and you eat more and more. There comes a moment when you realize that you''ve eaten like a snake. And then you gain a lot of fat, like a bear.¡± ¡°You can stop eating when you feel that there is already something in your stomach.¡± ¡°No. When I see food, I eat it completely. I can''t accept the fact that some of the food will go uneaten.¡± After breakfast, Yueret decided to check the area around the house for dolls. The house was surrounded by a palisade twice as high as a man''s height. A narrow path of gray stones led from the wooden fence to the house, along the sides of which there was an alley of low coniferous bushes. In front of the entrance to the house, near a covered porch with two wooden columns, grew two tall coniferous trees with black bark, a sparse crown and light green needles. ¡°I hope the dolls don¡¯t come here,¡± Yueret thought. There really was no one near the porch and gate except for the flying beetles above the bushes. This was not enough for Yueret, and he decided to go around the perimeter of the house. On the opposite side of the house, Yueret noticed a doll in a green mask, with green hair, standing near the window and jumping up and down. This doll seemed familiar to Yueret, but he could not remember where he had seen it. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Yueret asked. The doll looked at the guy and moved a little away from the window. ¡°You are someone,¡± the doll said. ¡°I¡¯m Aibi. I saw you yesterday. You brought me on a boat to my creator. He sent me and my sister a signal and ordered to bring someone to him, but not you, but someone else.¡± Yueret remembered where he saw this doll and the man with the carrot nose. ¡°I refused,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I don¡¯t want to do what that guy with the nose told me...¡± ¡°I can¡¯t resist the signal,¡± Abi explained. ¡°I will have to bring someone else to my creator; otherwise the signal will torment me.¡± A doll with purple hair that looked like Aibi came out from behind the house. ¡°Did you find someone?¡± Suturu turned to her sister. ¡°No,¡± Aibi answered. ¡°It is not the same someone. We need someone else.¡± Unana ran out from behind the house with a bow in her hands. She was wearing black shorts and a yellow T-shirt. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°What are they doing here?¡± the archer said angrily. ¡°I warned you, Yueret. You better not talk to other girls.¡± ¡°Someone else came,¡± Suturu said. ¡°This is someone we need.¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s that same someone,¡± Aibi confirmed. A small purple shield appeared on one hand near Suturu''s elbow, and a short sword appeared in the other hand. The same shield, but green, also appeared near Aibi¡¯s elbow, and in her hand instead of a sword there was an ax. A purple energy arrow appeared inside Unana''s bow. Yueret summoned a shield, which was almost instantly surrounded by a blue energy aura. A purple aura appeared around Suturu, after which her body rose to the height of the roof of the house. A purple energy circle with a design inside appeared in front of her. The doll touched the center of the circle with its hand, and it began to rotate slowly. Soon, purple energy darts began to fly out from there and aimed at people. A blue protective barrier covered Yueret and Unana. Energy darts hit him and disappeared. ¡°You can shoot from the barrier,¡± Yueret said. ¡°He doesn¡¯t miss attacks only from the outside.¡± Unana fired a purple energy arrow from her bow, which flew behind the house. A few moments later, an arrow appeared from behind the opposite side of the house and then flew towards Suturu, but hit the doll''s shield and disappeared. ¡°This shield attracts attacks and absorbs them,¡± Yueret guessed. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have advised Unana to shoot from the barrier.¡± Aibi stood on the roof of the house and looked at what was happening below. Unana noticed this and shot a white and blue electric arrow at her. But this time the arrow was also absorbed by the doll''s shield. Unana ran out from under the protective barrier and took cover behind the wall of the house. A large purple energy bow with a charged spear-sized arrow of the same color appeared in the air in front of the archer. ¡°The dolls can¡¯t see me here,¡± Unana thought. ¡°They won¡¯t be able to notice when I shoot.¡± The energy bowstring tightened. The bow released an arrow that began to replicate itself in flight. The arrows instantly multiplied and were directed upward. Then the stream of arrows split into two parts: one part flew to Aibi, the other to Suturu. Aibi covered herself with a shield, but there were too many arrows, and the shield was very small. Several arrows hit the doll in the torso and made through holes in it, and one hit the leg and smashed it. Aibi couldn''t stand on one leg and fell from the roof. Suturu noticed a stream of giant arrows quickly approaching her. The energy circle in front of the doll stopped firing darts and began to expand. It soon turned into a translucent protective barrier that surrounded Sutura. The arrows reached the barrier and disappeared, but their flow did not stop. Part of the stream of arrows that hit Aibi headed towards Suturu and was absorbed by the barrier. The barrier increased slightly in diameter and became darker. Soon it burst and released a large amount of energy, which spread in different directions. Suturu began to fall down. Yueret fired an energy beam from his hand, but the doll absorbed it with its shield and landed on its feet. The flow of arrows stopped. The large energy bow Unana had summoned disappeared. The archer knelt down and leaned against the wall. A pink energy aura appeared around Aibi. The holes on her body began to disappear, and her leg was restored. The doll rose to its legs and walked behind the house, where it met Unana. ¡°Someone, come with me,¡± Aibi suggested. ¡°You will become like me. It doesn¡¯t hurt.¡± Unana shot a red arrow with a burning tip at the doll. Aibi covered herself with a shield. The arrow touched the shield and disappeared. Aibi closed her eyes and then opened them. Her eyeballs filled with green fluid, obscuring her pupils. ¡°What''s wrong with her eyes?¡± Unana was scared. ¡°If I become a doll, will the same thing happen to me?¡± The doll tilted its head. Several drops of liquid came out of her eyes, which reached the ground and destroyed the herbaceous plants on it. Aibi looked at Unana, and then released one stream of green liquid from each eye. The archer jumped up and found herself on the roof of the house. The green liquid ended up on the tree trunk and began to corrode its bark. ¡°This is acid,¡± Unana guessed. ¡°I hope it didn¡¯t hit me.¡± Unana examined the clothes. On the side of the shorts there were holes of various shapes and the remains of a green liquid. The archer took off her shorts and threw them down. Aibi stood near the wall of the house and did not understand where the enemy had gone. Because of the acid that covered her pupils, she saw the world through a green film. But she couldn¡¯t look up, because acid was constantly leaking from her eyes and could get on her face. Therefore, the archer''s shorts easily fell on Aibi''s head. The doll did not understand anything, but decided not to do anything. Soon, acid seeped into the surface of the shorts that touched the top of her face and created a hole. The shorts gradually dissolved in the acid, but the mask dissolved along with them. Soon, only separate parts remained of the shorts, which fell to the ground along with the remains of the mask. Aibi closed her eyes and opened them a few moments later. There was no more acid in the eyes. The doll saw a purple energy arrow flying at it and covered itself with a shield. Unana jumped from the roof and fired another arrow from her bow, but this time it was electric. Aibi covered herself with her shield again, and then threw an ax at the archer. The doll''s weapon flew past and then hung in the air. Aibi extended her hand forward, but the ax did not want to return to her. From behind a thick leafy tree that grew near the house, a doll with red hair came out, surrounded by a purple aura. She looked with violet pupils at the ax that hung in the air. ¡°You did it,¡± Aibi turned towards the red-haired doll. ¡°Why are you bothering me? Can''t you feel the signal?¡± ¡°I feel it, but I can resist it,¡± answered the doll with red hair. ¡°I¡¯m Ikte. I¡¯m your creator''s older sister. This signal brought me here. I used it to find out what you were doing.¡± ¡°The creator ordered us to bring someone to him,¡± Aibi pointed her finger at Unana. ¡°Do not disturb me.¡± The ax flew towards Aibi and stuck in her forehead, opposite the bridge of her nose. ¡°You are a very scary doll,¡± Aibi said. ¡°I¡¯ll have to use my very best skill against you.¡± Aibi tried to pull the ax out of her head, but couldn¡¯t. Her body no longer obeyed her, and was soon thrown against the wall. ¡°There should be another doll here, with purple hair, your older twin sister, Suturu¡± Ikte said. Ikte stopped looking at Aibi and stepped aside a little. Aibi took advantage of this, ran behind a tree, and soon came out with an ax in her hand. Ikte looked at Aibi, but nothing happened. ¡°I lost concentration,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°I need to focus on the enemy.¡± Aibi hit the ground with her ax and created a small crack in it, which quickly expanded and filled with acid. ¡°Run away,¡± Ikte said to Unana. ¡°It¡¯s very dangerous here.¡± Unana ran to the place where her brother was supposed to be. Yueret stood between two trees, covered in a blue aura, with a shield in one hand and a sword in the other. A few steps away from him stood Suturu, covered in a purple aura. The doll held a sword in one hand and a small shield in the other. Suturu crouched down and hit the ground with her shield. This action caused a shock wave that traveled across the ground within a radius of twenty steps. Yueret surrounded himself with an energy barrier. The shock wave reached the walls of the barrier and lost its strength. Unana noticed the doll''s attack and hid behind the nearest tree, but the wave did not reach her. The barrier has disappeared. A copy of it separated from Yueret''s aura and flew to Suturu. The doll noticed the attack, but it was too late. The energy copy of Yueret threw Suturu towards a thick tree. The doll hit her head on a thick trunk and fell to the ground. The aura around her disappeared. ¡°Finally, you were able to protect yourself,¡± Unana came out from behind the tree. ¡°I didn¡¯t even have to interfere.¡± ¡°I was surprised by this myself,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°But you would hardly help. You look like you''ve lost almost all your energy. It''s amazing how you can stand.¡± After these words, Unana noticed that she had almost no strength left. The girl really could barely stand. The confrontation between Ikte and Aibi continued near the house. The doll with green hair swung an ax. Several bubbles rose from the acidic puddle. ¡°These are bubbles with acid,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°If I shoot lightning at them, they will explode. But I won¡¯t be able to stop them with my eyes. There are too many of them.¡± Bubbles flew towards the enemy. Ikte closed her eyes, lowered her hands and rose to the height of the roof of the house. The bubbles reached the edge of the roof and burst. The acid got onto the edge of the roof and left several holes. Several bubbles rose from the acidic pool and flew towards Ikte again. ¡°She won¡¯t be able to reflect many objects with her gaze,¡± Aibi thought. ¡°My acid bubbles will appear again and again until they hit the scary doll.¡± This time the bubbles rose higher. Ikte disappeared behind the trees. The bubbles burst over the roof. Drops of acid scattered in different directions and left behind many holes. Ikte disappeared, appeared behind Aibi, and then released lightning from her hand. Aibi turned around and managed to cover herself with a shield, which absorbed the attack. ¡°This is the very, very shield,¡± Aibi thought. ¡°He himself aims at the enemy¡¯s attack.¡± Aibi swung her ax, but no bubbles came out of the puddle. The acid doll felt that it could no longer move its weapon. Aibi looked at her opponent and noticed that he was looking at her weapon with eyes with purple pupils. ¡°The scary doll has scary eyes,¡± Aibi thought. Ikte looked away. The ax was no longer under her control, so it fell to the ground. The acidic puddle and bubbles disappeared. Suturu came out from behind the trees and approached her sister. ¡°We¡¯re leaving here,¡± Suturu said. ¡°You and me?¡± Aibi asked. ¡°Yes. The creator said: ¡°If you can¡¯t handle it, I will send someone else.¡± ¡°We''ll have to go. This doll is too scary.¡± ¡°Do you want to leave?¡± Ikte¡¯s voice was heard. Suturu and Aibi noticed that a doll with red hair was approaching them. There was no longer any aura on her, but her pupils still emitted violet light. ¡°Yes, we¡¯re leaving now,¡± Aibi said. Aibi moved her fingers and the ax returned to her. ¡°You must answer the question,¡± Ikte said. ¡°If you answer, you can leave.¡± ¡°I agree,¡± agreed Suturu. ¡°I agree even more,¡± Aibi repeated. ¡°Who exactly did you come for?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°For someone,¡± answered Suturu. ¡°For someone,¡± Aibi repeated. Yueret without an aura and his little sister, who could barely stand on her feet and leaned on her brother, came out from behind the trees. ¡°This is someone!¡± Suturu pointed her hand at Unana. ¡°This someone else is shooting from a bow,¡± Abi clarified. ¡°Why does Kuttanai need this girl?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°Who is this?¡± Suturu and Aibi asked at the same time. ¡°This is your creator,¡± Ikte said. The dolls looked at each other. ¡°Does the creator have a name?¡± Suturu asked. ¡°Only I, Suturu, have a name.¡± ¡°And I have a name, Aibi,¡± Aibi added. Chapter 9. Living and Non-living After Suturu and Aibi left, Yueret finally noticed Ikte and summoned a shield. A blue aura surrounded his body. ¡°You are also a doll,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Did that man with a carrot nose send you too?¡± ¡°Not really,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°I came here because of the signal, but I did not obey it. I am Kuttanai''s elder sister.¡± Yueret remembered a girl with pink hair, wrapped in chains, who was summoned by a man with a carrot nose during the battle. The guy felt creepy, but his sister was even creepier. Unana hugged her brother tightly. ¡°He transformed his older sister into a doll too?¡± Yueret¡¯s sword fell out of his hand, and his aura disappeared. ¡°Yes,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°Kuttanai partially turned even himself into a doll, that¡¯s why he looks like that. The little sister obeys his signal. But I don''t obey because I''m an older sister. When a doll is older than its creator, it may resist his signal.¡± ¡°So he did something to himself,¡± Unana thought. ¡°That¡¯s why I was so scared when I saw him. But this doll is also a little scary. She¡¯s kind of lifeless.¡± Unana sat down on a stump near the house to rest, but quickly realized that sitting without the shorts that had died in the battle with the acid doll was too uncomfortable. The archer opened her inventory and found a suitable item in it. Unana chose it, and a moment later the girl''s large buttocks were almost completely covered by a black short skirt that went well with a yellow T-shirt. Unana returned to the house. In the kitchen, she found her older brother and a doll with red hair, sitting on the floor opposite each other and talking about something. ¡°There you are,¡± Unana said. ¡°Yueret, can I talk to you?¡± Yueret approached his sister. Unana took her brother by the hand, dragged her into the corridor, and then stopped near the door to the room. ¡°This doll can be dangerous,¡± Unana warned. ¡°She¡¯s not dangerous,¡± Yueret objected. ¡°She doesn¡¯t serve that creature with the carrot.¡± ¡°What did you do with her?¡± ¡°I was talking. I asked her about dolls and that creature with the carrot.¡± ¡°What she said?¡± ¡°I think you¡¯d better ask her about it yourself.¡± Sister and brother returned to the kitchen. Ikte was still sitting on the floor and looking into the doorway with motionless, shining eyes. Yueret positioned himself on the floor near the table. Unana sat down next to her brother and pressed herself close to him. ¡°Repeat what you told Yueret,¡± Unana said. ¡°Once upon a time, me, my little brother and my little sister were people and lived in a village on the river bank,¡± Ikte said. ¡°Now only one house remains from her, the one in which my little brother, Kuttanai, lives. Our parents died and we were left alone. After that, my little sister fell ill and could not walk. Then my brother felt the signal. Through this signal, he received a message that said that a person could be transformed into a doll. If this is done, the person will not get sick and will become almost immortal. My brother agreed and received a program that can transform living beings into dolls.¡± ¡°Where did he get this program?¡± Unana asked. ¡°What is it name?¡± ¡°Mausoleum of Nature,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°Where he got it is unknown, possibly received via signal. After some time, Kuttanai decided to turn his little sister into a doll. I was against this. I took away his access to the program and created a character in it, which I then transferred to the real world. Then Kuttanai attacked me, defeated me and transformed me into a doll, and then transformed my little sister a doll. I had to make my character run away. But my brother thought it was his character. After all, it was created in his account. Kuttanai wanted to find a character to add to his collection. I was able to resist the influence of his signal because I am older than him. I ran away. My brother made several more dolls, including Suturu and Aibi, who attacked you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s creepy,¡± Unana said. ¡°Your brother is crazy.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand whether this is creepy or not,¡± Ikte closed her eyes. ¡°I feel almost nothing. Dolls cannot have feelings. Although this is not entirely true. They can experience some feelings, but only the most primitive ones. It all depends on what exactly was changed in the brain. In order to make a doll out of a person, you need to replace some neurons in the brain with artificial ones, which were created in the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯. In this program it is also possible to create characters and transfer them to the real world, as I did.¡± ¡°Will they be like dolls?¡± Unana asked. ¡°No,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°Characters can experience feelings like living beings, but at the same time they have the characteristics of non-living beings. Characters are artificially created and not born, do not eat food that living things eat, have a body created from non-living materials, they think differently. But these are not dolls. This is something between living and non-living beings.¡± Unana shuddered and pressed herself even closer to her brother. Yueret patted his sister on the head. ¡°Something terrible is happening in the world,¡± Unana turned to her brother. ¡°First I saw dolls with non-living eyes, then that scary man with a carrot nose. Now they tell me that there are some characters that are created in the program and transferred to the real world. They probably look terrible. I think you can create any monsters you want in the program.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Yueret agreed. ¡°Unfortunately, the world is disgusting.¡± Unana laid her head on her brother''s lap and closed her eyes. ¡°Why don¡¯t these dolls call other creatures by name?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Suturu and Aibi can¡¯t remember names,¡± Ikte said. ¡°When they were made into dolls, their brains were altered too much. And their new brains can''t remember names. Each doll has its own brain, with its own parameters. Therefore, I don¡¯t know exactly what was done with them.¡± ¡°It¡¯s no wonder why these dolls are so stupid,¡± Unana said. ¡°They won¡¯t come back again?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll be back anytime soon. Kuttanai will not send them again if they have not completed the task.¡± Evening came. The bright light of the setting sun ¡°peeped¡± through the kitchen window. Unana went to her room. Yueret closed and locked the gate and front door, and then returned to the kitchen. Ikte was lying on the floor, face up. Her eyes were open and shining under the rays of light from the window. ¡°Get up,¡± Yueret said. ¡°You don''t live here.¡± But Ikte did not move. Yueret walked up to the doll, sat down and touched its hair with his hand. ¡°Her hair feels like real hair,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°If it weren¡¯t for her eyes, this doll could be mistaken for a human.¡± Unana appeared on the threshold of the kitchen. ¡°That doll is still here,¡± Unana said. ¡°It needs to be thrown away.¡± Stolen story; please report. Yueret stopped touching Ikte''s hair, turned around and looked at his sister. The girl was wearing a black top with a cutout on the chest and short black shorts with cutouts on the sides. ¡°I came, and she was lying here,¡± Yueret explained. ¡°She¡¯s still lying there,¡± the girl noted. ¡°Or... It¡¯s not lying...¡± Ikte''s body rose up and assumed a vertical position, with his arms and head hanging down. The doll''s eyes closed. A purple aura appeared around her, after which the doll rose slightly above the floor and slowly flew towards the exit from the kitchen. Unana, who was standing on the threshold, stepped aside. The doll''s body flew out into the corridor and then stopped near the door. Ikte''s eyes opened. The front door flew out of the doorway and hung in the air above the porch. Ikte''s eyes closed. The door was no longer held in the air, and it fell down. The doll''s body flew out of the house, approached the fence, and then flew over it and headed towards the forest. Yueret and Unana went out into the corridor and saw an empty doorway from which a fence could be seen. The front door lay next to the porch, without any damage. ¡°She didn¡¯t put the door in place,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°I thought something bad would happen because of her,¡± Unana said. ¡°That¡¯s why I wanted to throw her out of here before it¡¯s too late.¡± A brown puppy that looked like a bear cub came to the porch. Unana walked up to the pet and took him in her arms. ¡°Kimchan,¡± Yueret said. ¡°For some reason I forgot about him.¡± The puppy licked Unana''s cheek. ¡°We must not forget about our pets,¡± Unana said. ¡°If you forget about them, they will get hungry and eat someone.¡± ¡°You think about food too often. And you even become fat.¡± Unana let go of Kimchan and then looked at her stomach. The girl''s face immediately became sad. ¡°You haven¡¯t become fat yet,¡± Yueret said. ¡°If I continue to eat, I will,¡± Unana objected. ¡°But I can''t stop eating.¡± ¡°You can eat little.¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t eat enough, I won¡¯t have enough food. It''s very sad to see food and realize that you won''t be able to eat it all.¡± ¡°Even if you become fat, you will remain my little sister.¡± ¡°But I''ll be fat. Do you like fat girls?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think about it. I''ve only seen them network, except for you, of course. And sometimes I saw him in the city when I was there.¡± ¡°Did you like them?¡± ¡°No. I have a little sister. She is the only girl for me, because I don¡¯t know any others.¡± ¡°This is good,¡± Unana thought. ¡°This is sad,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°I remembered that I drew something today,¡± Unana said. ¡°Should I show you?¡± Unana opened the virtual screen and showed it to her brother. The ¡°device¡± depicted Ikte lying in a coffin and holding her head in her hands. Her legs lay on the sides of the coffin. ¡°I think dolls should look like this,¡± Unana smiled. *** Old, almost worn-out paving stones led Suturu and Aibi to an intersection with a wooden post in the middle of a mixed forest. ¡°What is this?¡± Aibi pointed to the pole. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Suturu answered. ¡°I don¡¯t know more than you.¡± A red glowing frame appeared above the pillar with an inscription made of glowing symbols of the same color. ¡°What is written there?¡± Aibi asked. ¡°I can¡¯t read,¡± Suturu replied. ¡°But when I was a human, I could.¡± ¡°I also knew how to read when I was human,¡± Aibi said. ¡°But when I became a doll, these symbols became incomprehensible to me.¡± Red arrows appeared in the frame next to the inscription, pointing to the right and left, to where the roads passed. Suturu and Aibi went straight. The paving stones behind the pillar seemed long abandoned, with herbaceous plants between the stones. ¡°It seems to me that this road is strange,¡± Aibi said. ¡°It seems to me even more so,¡± Suturu said. ¡°And it seems to me more than to you, because it seemed to me earlier than it seemed to you.¡± Suturu could not accept the fact that her little sister was somehow better than her. Aibi did not want to give in to her older sister, because she knew that she was only a little older than her, which means she was not such an older sister. Rivalry was the only human thing they had left. There was the sound of water. The road led the dolls to the edge of a canyon with almost vertical walls, at the bottom of which flowed a small stormy river. A penguin without legs, but with antennas on its head, hovered over the opposite side of the canyon. ¡°What is it?¡± Aibi pointed her hand at the creature. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Suturu answered. ¡°Let''s come closer and take a look.¡± The dolls walked to the edge of the cliff and looked down. The water at the bottom of the canyon flowed quickly through numerous rapids. ¡°Can we jump over?¡± Aibi asked. ¡°No,¡± Suturu answered. ¡°It''s too wide here. It''s better to use flight.¡± ¡°I have little energy.¡± ¡°Me too, but I will fly.¡± ¡°I''ll fly better than you.¡± Purple energy auras appeared around the dolls, after which they took off and headed towards the opposite side of the canyon. Penguin paid attention to them. The dolls stopped and hovered over the canyon. The energy auras disappeared from their bodies. ¡°Taikuron liked you,¡± a voice was heard in the heads of Suturu and Aibi. ¡°Taikuron wants you.¡± Suturu and Aibi fell down. Their bodies hit the rocks at the bottom of the canyon and were scattered into pieces. Suturu''s head fell into the water and was carried away by the current. Aibi''s head got stuck between the rocks. The dolls'' arms and legs disappeared under the water, but soon surfaced and were nailed to a narrow strip of shore between the rocks and the river. Taikuron looked at the remains of the dolls at the bottom of the canyon. The balls on his antennas turned purple, indicating that his brain was working hard. A screen appeared next to the penguin in a purple frame with many cells, empty and with dark silhouettes. Parts of the dolls'' bodies rose from the bottom of the canyon and gathered in front of the screen, and then disappeared. The faces of Suturu and Aibi appeared in place of the silhouettes on the screen. *** Kyotyoryon tried to hit the raindrops that were falling from the canopy with her blade, but missed. ¡°They¡¯re running away from me,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°I can¡¯t hit them.¡± ¡°I told you don¡¯t do this,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It¡¯s impossible to beat the rain if you beat the drops with blades.¡± Kyotyoryon''s blades went back into the bracelets. ¡°How is that possible?¡± the spirit of metal asked. ¡°It¡¯s not possible,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°Rain is not an enemy. Opponents can only be other creatures.¡± ¡°If rain is not an enemy, does that mean it doesn¡¯t exist?¡± ¡°Not quite.¡± Halankuo was tired of the strange questions her own character asked her. But the girl had to answer them so that Kyotyoryon would not go to look for answers somewhere else. A red luminous frame with an inscription of the same symbols appeared above the entrance to the station building. ¡°Here is the announcement,¡± Halankuo looked at the inscription. ¡°Now the train will definitely stop at this station. It''s good that we bought tickets.¡± A beep was heard. A train made of wood and metal arrived at the station. Halankuo and Kyotyoryon entered the carriage and sat down on the double wooden seat. Kyotyoryon looked around the interior with curiosity and noticed at the end of the car a rubber humanoid statue with long hair and two bull horns on its head. ¡°Who is this?¡± Kyotyoryon pointed at the statue. ¡°It¡¯s just a statue of a fictional character,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Someone left it here. She''s non-living.¡± ¡°Like me?¡± ¡°No. She is completely non-living. She cannot move or speak. She just stands there and does nothing.¡± Kyotyoryon approached the statue and touched different parts of its body. ¡°She does nothing,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°So she is completely non-living. This means she is even more lifeless than me!¡± Kyotyoryon returned to Halankuo and sat down on the seat next to her. ¡°It¡¯s good that there is someone who is more non-living than me,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°But that¡¯s not enough for me. I want to become truly alive.¡± ¡°It seems to me that this is impossible,¡± Halankuo warned. ¡°Perhaps,¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the statue. ¡°She can¡¯t do anything, but I can.¡± The train traveled through coniferous and mixed forests, crossed narrow rivers and swamps. The terrain did not change much - it was mainly a plain, surrounded by low mountains, which either approached the railway or moved away from it. Soon a wide river appeared from the train window, surrounded on both sides by coniferous forests and sandbanks. The train approached the shore and almost stopped. Beams of light shot out from the projectors on banks. They connected in the middle of the river and formed a blue translucent energy bridge. ¡°There, the banks of the river are fighting with each other,¡± Kyotyoryon pointed her finger at the window, through which part of the energy bridge could be seen. ¡°The banks of the river don¡¯t fight,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°They created the bridge using energy beams. The bridge is needed so that the train can cross the river.¡± ¡°A train can¡¯t travel on water?¡± ¡°Cannot. The train is too heavy. He will drown.¡± ¡°Will I drown too?¡± ¡°Yes. That''s why you''re on the train.¡± The train drove slowly along the bridge and soon crossed it. ¡°I won¡¯t drown again,¡± Kyotyoryon pointed her finger at the window. The stations where the train stopped were small and consisted of a shed and a platform. On the platform of one of the stations stood a stone statue of a girl with bull horns, very similar to her rubber counterpart from the train. ¡°What is this?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Why is she here?¡± Halankuo turned towards the spirit of metal, but did not notice her. The girl looked at the open door of the carriage and saw Kyotyoryon, who came out onto the platform. Halankuo ran out of the carriage, caught up with Kyotyoryon on the platform and grabbed her hand. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°The train will leave now.¡± ¡°I want to touch it,¡± Kyotyoryon pointed with her free hand at the stone statue. ¡°It¡¯s better not to touch her. It may be dangerous.¡± ¡°This is a non-living statue. You said that the statue is non-living and does nothing, but now you say something else. I do not trust you.¡± A short blade emerged from the bracelet on Kyotyoryon¡¯s hand, stabbed into Halankuo¡¯s hand, and then disappeared back. Halankuo screamed loudly. A stream of blood came out of her wound. At that moment the train left the station. Chapter 10. Door, Ears and Tail Tuot was lying on the bed, playing a game on the virtual screen, and heard the notification sound of an incoming message. In his free time from everyday affairs, the dinosaur worked. He went through dungeons in an network game, killed the monsters living there, extracted money from them and transferred it to his network account. ¡°Someone is writing to me at the wrong time,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I can¡¯t be distracted when I¡¯m busy with such an important matter.¡± The dinosaur did not click on the notification, but continued to play. The next day, in the morning, Tuot remembered that he had forgotten to read the message that had arrived yesterday. The dinosaur logged into his messenger account and saw a message from an unknown user. ¡°I will come to you tomorrow in the middle of the day,¡± the message said. Tuot became worried. His limbs began to tremble erratically. The dinosaur could not stay on its feet and fell to the floor. ¡°This is Itinit,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But why would he write from another account? And why come to my house? He never came to my house, but now he decided to come. Does he really want to check if I have posters with animal girls?¡± Tuot replied to the message and then looked at the walls of his room. There was almost no empty space on them - virtual images of human females with ears, tails, horns and paws of animals of different species hung everywhere. ¡°I can¡¯t remove them,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°To do this, I need to log into the apartment¡¯s account, and only Halankuo has access to it, and she is not at home right now. Itinit wrote yesterday that it will happen tomorrow. Does this mean he will come...Today?¡± Tuot went to the kitchen. Everything looked decent here - a stove, a small table and no strange creatures on the walls. ¡°I need to somehow get Itinit into the kitchen so that he doesn¡¯t enter my room,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°True, then I¡¯ll have to not let him out of the kitchen, because I don¡¯t have access to Halankuo¡¯s room.¡± The dinosaur soon realized that his plan would not work. ¡°I don¡¯t have to open the door,¡± Tuot decided. ¡°But Itinit can blow it up.¡± While the dinosaur was thinking, an alert heard from the front door. ¡°He has come,¡± Tuot was frightened. ¡°Should I open the door?¡± Tuot brought up the virtual screen and saw a notification about an incoming message. The dinosaur clicked on it. The message was from Itinit''s previous account: ¡°Sorry, we can¡¯t meet today. I''m playing.¡± Tuot felt terrified. He realized that it was not his friend who wrote to him yesterday. The dinosaur ran into the bathroom, summoned a blue energy door lock with several buttons, and used it to lock the door. ¡°There are no windows in the bathroom,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°That¡¯s why no one can get in through the windows. The bathroom is the most protected place in the apartment. It is located in the center of the apartment and is surrounded on all sides by internal walls.¡± A second an alert heard. Tuot sent a message to Itinit: ¡°Someone sets off the alarm. That''s not you?¡± Soon Tuot received a response from Itinit: ¡°No. It''s definitely not me. Maybe is Halankuo? But it¡¯s unlikely that she returned so quickly.¡± The third alarm sounded. ¡°What should I do?¡± wrote Tuot. Several alerts were heard in a row. After this, scratching sounds were heard, which were supplemented by blows. ¡°Hide somewhere. I will come to you. I¡¯ll save the game and come,¡± a message came from Itinit. The sounds of impacts became louder. Soon, cracks appeared along the wooden door. The sounds of drilling were heard. The tip of the weapon, covered in an electrical aura, penetrated one of the cracks and cut a circular hole in the door. The sounds of drilling stopped. A round fragment of a door with sawdust fell on the floor of the corridor. A small round ear covered with black fur peeked out of the hole in the door. Then the top of the head appeared, covered with black hair with a second ear. This strange creature tried to crawl through the hole, but could not, and returned back. The sounds of drilling resumed. A ring fell onto the floor of the corridor: a fragment of a door, but of a larger diameter. At this time, Itinit went up to the floor where Tuot''s apartment was located and saw the butt of a human dressed in gray-purple shorts with a black tail hanging from there, and thick bare legs that floundered in the air. ¡°If Tuot had seen this, he would have thought that this creature had no head,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°But I know that the head is behind the door.¡± Itinit walked up to the creature that was stuck in the door and pulled its tail. There was a cry on the other side of the door that sounded like a dog barking. ¡°Now it¡¯s clear what kind of creature this is,¡± Itinit guessed. ¡°Tuot is very lucky. He''ll finally see one of the girls he likes.¡± Tuot sat on the floor in the bathroom and read the correspondence with Itinit. His long tail reached to the sink. Drops of water from the faucet dripped from time to time onto the tip of the dinosaur''s tail. But Tuot did not pay attention to this. He was too worried. "I came. There''s nothing to worry about here. Open the door,¡± a message arrived from Itinit. ¡°Is there anyone there besides you?¡± Tuot sent a message. ¡°Yes. There is some strange creature stuck in the door. I don¡¯t know what this is. Go see for yourself.¡± The message from the friend did not look suspicious. Tuot summoned a virtual lock to unlock the bathroom door. The dinosaur was still afraid to leave his shelter, but he was wondering what kind of creature was stuck in the door. ... The door to the bathroom opened. Tuot left there and slowly walked towards the entrance. There he saw something strange: a large hole in the door, from which protruded the upper body of a girl with black hair and small ears with rounded tips on the top of her head. The girl was holding in her hand an icicle covered in an electric aura. Tuot didn''t believe what he saw. First, he summoned a virtual screen, pressed a few buttons, and made sure that he was not currently in the game. After that, the dinosaur approached the door in one leap, touched the ears on the top of the girl¡¯s head and suddenly realized something. ¡°This is... An arctic fox girl,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I dreamed of a similar creature, but she looked a little different.¡± The girl closed her eyes and whined. Her body relaxed, the icicle in her hand disappeared, and her legs and tail began to hang behind the door, as if paralyzed. ¡°They¡¯re real, and so cute,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I wonder if she also has human ears.¡± Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Tuot touched the hair on the side of his head and felt something fleshy with his claws. Then he parted the hair in this place and saw a small human ear that fit snugly to the head. ¡°There is one human ear,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°And if there is one, then there is a second. Does she really have four ears?¡± Soon, Tuot discovered a second human ear. With his second hand he continued to touch the animal''s ears one by one. The girl continued to whine with her eyes closed. At this time, Itinit stood on the other side of the door and looked at the tail, which wagged from side to side. ¡°Open the door and get her out of here,¡± Itinit said. But Tuot was too busy with the animal girl¡¯s ears. His friend was tired of waiting. He grabbed the tail with his hand and pulled it down, then let it go. The girl opened her eyes and screamed. But after Itinit let go of her tail, she closed her eyes and mouth and continued to whine. ¡°What are you doing over there?¡± Itinit shouted. ¡°I¡¯m trying to stop touching her ears, but I can¡¯t,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°My hands don¡¯t obey me.¡± Itinit paid attention to the bare legs that were adjacent to the tail, and understood what needed to be done. His hands touched her feet and began to tickle them. But the girl still continued to whine, as if she didn¡¯t feel anything. Then Itinit pulled her by the tail, but this time he did not let go. There was a loud groan. Itinit realized that he should not stop there and began to twist her tail like a rope. The groan intensified. Tuot could not withstand such a strong sound, so he let go of the animal ears and ran into the room. Itinit heard the dinosaur''s stomp and realized that his actions had brought results. He let go of the girl''s tail, summoned a virtual screen and sent a message to Tuot: ¡°Open the door! Otherwise I¡¯ll beat her out along with this creature!¡± Tuot left the room and walked to the front door. The girl with ears on top of her head looked at him. ¡°I¡¯m looking for a being named Tuot,¡± the girl said. ¡°Why do you need him?¡± the dinosaur was scared. ¡°He is my network gaming friend. I came here from the Southern Continent. Where is Tuot?¡± ¡°He''s standing in front of you.¡± The little animal girl opened her mouth and widened her eyes in surprise. ¡°I¡¯m Etinnei,¡± the girl introduced herself. ¡°If you are that Tuot, then tell me your nickname in the game.¡± ¡°You¡¯re Etinnei? Are you the same little fox girl who has a mushroom weapon?¡± ¡°Yup. There was no arctic fox in the game, so I chose a fox. If you remember my character, then you are a real Tuot.¡± ¡°So you wrote to me that you¡¯ll come today?¡± ¡°I wrote from another account because I couldn¡¯t log into mine.¡± ¡°Why did you break the door?¡± ¡°I decided to surprise you. We haven''t met in real life yet, so I wanted to meet you in a special way.¡± ¡°We really met in a special way,¡± Tuot agreed. ¡°Nobody has ever come to me before.¡± Tuot summoned the door lock, unlocked the door, and wrote a message to Itinit. The door opened, and Etinnei was forced to hit her head against the wall. The door no longer interfered with Itinit, but a new obstacle appeared - the legs of the animal girl, which blocked the passage. Itinit bent them and went into the apartment. ¡°Help me,¡± Etinnei asked in a plaintive voice. ¡°You climbed through the door yourself,¡± Itinit replied. ¡°So get out yourself.¡± ¡°I thought I¡¯d get through.¡± Tuot''s gaze settled on the legs of the arctic fox girl. One of them touched the opposite wall of the corridor, and the second remained bent at the knee. ¡°She not only has cute ears, but also legs,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°And they look tasty. I don¡¯t even know what to do with them: look at them or eat them.¡± ¡°Tuot is staring at her,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°He said that he doesn¡¯t like girls like that. Now I definitely know his secret.¡± Tuot noticed the tail that was sticking out of the hole in her shorts. The dinosaur''s mouth involuntarily opened. ¡°Her tail is like a toy¡¯s,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°She¡¯s the cutest animal girl I¡¯ve ever seen. I think I can forgive her for the broken door. As long as she is in this position, I am happy.¡± Tuot summoned a virtual screen and took several pictures. ¡°I¡¯ll put these photos on the ceiling above my bed,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°When I wake up, the first thing I will see is her.¡± But Etinnei''s growl made Tuot distracted. The dinosaur closed the virtual screen and realized that it was necessary to free his friend from the door captivity. Tuot grabbed Etinnei by the legs and began to pull her back. The animal girl made a sound that sounded like something between the cry of a cat and a bear. Soon, Etinnei''s upper body fell out of the hole in the door. Tuot was thrown back several steps. The dinosaur fell to the floor and pulled his girl along with him... ... Tuot lay on his back and held Etinnei¡¯s legs in his hands. The arctic fox girl was lying face down on the floor, and her tail was on the dinosaur''s head. Tuot tried to remove her tail from his face, but due to poor coordination of movements, the tail ended up in his mouth. Itinit summoned a virtual screen, pointed it at the lying Tuot and Etinnei, and took several pictures. ¡°Thank you for saving me,¡± the animal girl said quietly. Tuot could not answer. His mouth was occupied by his tail. *** Halankuo woke up in a room with walls made of logs, on a wide bed near a rectangular wooden window. The girl was without clothes, but covered with a blanket to the middle of her chest. Halankuo tried to get up, but could not. Some force seemed to hold her on the bed. Then the girl summoned the wrench and pointed it at the door. But nothing happened. ¡°I have so little strength that a wrench cannot open the door,¡± Halankuo guessed. Soon heavy footsteps were heard behind the wall. Yueret and Kyotyoryon entered the room. ¡°You¡¯re alive again,¡± Kyotyoryon smiled. ¡°I wasn¡¯t dead,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°I was just sleeping. I don''t have the strength to get out of bed. I can''t even move things with the wrench.¡± ¡°You lost a lot of blood,¡± Yueret explained. ¡°My little sister shot a healing arrow into the wound, but was unable to restore the blood. It cannot be restored using skills. Therefore, you will remain in this state until your blood is restored.¡± ¡°If this is true, then thank you,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Where I am?¡± ¡°In my house in the former Village of the Forest Fire,¡± Yueret answered. ¡°My village must be somewhere nearby,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°When I feel better, I¡¯ll go there.¡± ¡°Creator, I didn¡¯t want to take your blood,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°The blood will be restored.¡± Kyotyoryon went to the window and looked out of it. ¡°I think I saw this man in the forest,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°His name was Yueret. Probably". Yueret approached Halankuo and began to examine her. The girl didn¡¯t like it, but she couldn¡¯t do anything because of her weakness. ¡°Are you a real human girl?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°Is this your first time seeing a human girl?¡± ¡°Yes. I live in an extinct village, so I only know one girl. This is my little sister. She doesn''t let me talk to other girls when I''m in town. I only saw them at a great distance. I''ve never seen it this close.¡± Yueret touched Halankuo''s hair with his hand and then stroked her head. The girl felt pleased and did not resist. ¡°My little sister is not like you,¡± Yueret said. ¡°She looks like me, but you don¡¯t. You look like one girl I was friends with as a child.¡± ¡°Maybe this is the boy who taught squirrels to fly?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why, when I met him in the forest, he seemed familiar to me.¡± At this time, Unana tried to open the door of her room, but could not. Kimchan ran near her and tried to get out. ¡°They closed us,¡± Unana told the dog. ¡°It¡¯s impossible to get out of here.¡± But the puppy did not understand the girl¡¯s words and began to scratch the door with its claws. Unana noticed this, but did not react. She was more worried about her older brother, whom she could not get to. ¡°Yueret locked me here on purpose so that I couldn¡¯t stop him from being with that girl,¡± Unana thought. ¡°He also closed Kimchan so that he wouldn¡¯t interfere either. We need to get out of here.¡± The archer looked at the small round wooden window. It overlooked the inner part of the courtyard, in which several coniferous and deciduous trees grew. Unana''s room was on the second floor, but the archer did not want to jump out of the window with the dog. Unana summoned a backpack from her inventory and placed the puppy in it. Kimchan tried to get out of there, but got entangled in the complex system of internal pockets. He was only able to get his head and neck out, while the rest of his body remained in the backpack. Unana opened the window and put the backpack on her back. A purple aura appeared around the archer, after which she jumped out of the window. When Unana''s feet reached the ground, the aura disappeared. The archer took off her backpack and freed Kimchan. The puppy barked joyfully, began to wag its tail and run around the girl. Unana walked around the house and stopped at the entrance. The door was locked. The archer ran her finger along the door, and a blue energy door lock with a password field appeared in front of her. Unana touched the field with her finger, entered the password, and then pulled the door handle. The door opened. Unana and her pet entered a wide corridor with gray walls, from which there was an entrance to the kitchen and several other rooms. At the end of the corridor, a wooden staircase twisted in a spiral led to the second floor. Unana walked slowly down the corridor. Someone''s voices were heard from the room opposite the kitchen. They were so quiet that it was impossible to determine what they were talking about. Unana stopped in front of this door and tried to open it manually, but the door would not open. Then the girl summoned the door lock, unlocked the door and turned the handle. ... At the end of the room, near the window, a girl with long black hair was lying on the bed. Yueret stood next to her and looked out the window. ¡°Yueret, why did you close me?¡± Unana shouted. Yueret turned around and sat down on the floor in surprise. ¡°Unana, how did you get here?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Unana answered. ¡°I wanted to check what you were doing with this unfortunate girl.¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Your brother told me that you saved me. Thank you.¡± Unana blushed and turned away. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to save you,¡± Unana explained. ¡°But Yueret forced me. Therefore, it was he who saved you, not me.¡± Unana approached her brother and led him out of the room. Halankuo summoned the virtual screen to watch something and began to fall asleep... Chapter 11. Release of Fear Halankuo was prevented from falling asleep by the sounds of heavy footsteps. The girl opened her eyes and saw in front of her a doll with red hair. Her black shiny eyes looked out the window and did not blink. ¡°I¡¯m Ikte,¡± the doll introduced herself. ¡°Don''t be afraid of me, I''m not human. I am a battle doll. It was I who found you at the station and brought you here, and now I brought you food.¡± ¡°So this is what battle dolls look like,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°She reminds me of someone. But I haven¡¯t seen fighting dolls before. Why does her appearance seem familiar to me?¡± Ikte ran her finger through the air and summoned a tray of food, which moved to the table next to the bed. Halankuo looked at the piece of meat in the package, the pine cone with seeds, and the bottle with green liquid and realized that she was too weak to eat. ¡°Thank you,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°But I can¡¯t eat.¡± The doll''s attention was drawn to the wrench that was lying on the bed next to Halankuo. ¡°Can you move objects with this wrench?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°A little,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°But now I can¡¯t do it at all, because I don¡¯t have the strength.¡± ¡°How does she know what this wrench is used for?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°This doll scares me.¡± ¡°Where did you get this wrench?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°From my parents,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°What''s wrong with that?¡± ¡°My little brother has the same wrench, only bigger. He can move objects with it. This is our similar ability. But I don''t need the wrench. I can move things with my gaze. This is more effective, but puts a lot of strain on the eyes.¡± The pupils of Ikte''s eyes began to emit a purple glow. The wrench rose from the bed and hung in the air. ¡°I thought only I could move objects,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°And this doll can do it even without a key.¡± ¡°Is that girl with metal horns a character that was transferred from the program to the real world?¡± the doll asked. ¡°How did she know?¡± Halankuo was scared. ¡°I only told Tuot about this. Did he really tell someone or write something online?¡± ¡°You can see from it that this is not a person, but not a doll either,¡± Ikte said. ¡°She has strange clothes. It looks like a costume for some event.¡± ¡°How do you know so much about the transferred characters?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°I once created a character in a special program, and then transferred him to the real world. This character had the features of a wild animal and a human. It seemed interesting to me then. In our world, one creature cannot combine the characteristics of different animals. I wanted to create a creature that would have characteristics of a human and a wild animal. ¡°What was the name of this program?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember anymore. I used my brother''s account to create the character. Now I have neither an account nor a character, but, unfortunately, I have a little brother.¡± Halankuo looked at the doll''s face and realized who it resembled. The girl''s heartbeat quickened. ¡°I hope it¡¯s just a coincidence,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Mom couldn¡¯t become a doll.¡± *** Tuot, Etinnei and Itinit sat at a small low table in the kitchen and ate meat in dough. ¡°Why did you really come to me?¡± Tuot addressed his friend. ¡°Can¡¯t I come just like that?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you. In the game there was a game character instead of you.¡± ¡°Somehow I can¡¯t believe it,¡± Tuot doubted. ¡°You did too much to find me.¡± ¡°Uh...¡± Etinnei scratched her hand behind the arctic fox¡¯s ear. ¡°There is one reason. I began to hear voices in my head. At first I thought I was just playing too long. I haven''t played for several months, but the voices haven''t disappeared. I realized that this was unlikely to be related to the game. Then I began to see a penguin with a horn on its head. I saw this creature everywhere I was. I closed my eyes, but it didn''t help. I continued to see him. And then it started talking to me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you see him now?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°I don¡¯t see,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°The last time I saw him was about a month ago. I want you to help me. I read online that there is a way to extract the creature from the brain. But I don''t know who to turn to.¡± ¡°Are you a character transferred to this world from the program?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°Yup,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°It¡¯s obvious,¡± Itinit laughed. Etinnei put the hood on her head so that the arctic fox''s ears began to peek out of the holes. ¡°I thought I looked like a human,¡± the animal girl said. ¡°Don¡¯t these ears look like part of a costume?¡± ¡°They look like it,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°But only for those who don¡¯t know about animal girls.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Tuot said. ¡°You have cute ears. They are small and fluffy.¡± Etinnei looked at her friend. For a few moments, the Arctic fox girl tried to understand what the dinosaur said, but then suddenly she understood. The next moment, the girl with a smile on her face fell on the dinosaur, knocked it to the floor and began to lick its face with her tongue. ¡°Stop doing that!¡± Tuot shouted. ¡°Don''t eat me! I''m inedible!¡± Etinnei stopped licking Tuot, and then got off him. The smile disappeared from her face and tears appeared in her eyes. ¡°Sorry,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to do anything bad to you.¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I was afraid that you might eat me.¡± ¡°Can I continue to tell you?¡± Itinit asked. Tuot and Etinnei agreed. ¡°It¡¯s really possible to extract a creature from your brain,¡± Itinit said. ¡°There is a small, almost uninhabited island off the coast of the continent. One of my friends lives there. He can extract creatures from the brain.¡± Etinnei smiled, clasped her hands together and closed one eye. ¡°I can¡¯t go there alone,¡± the girl said in a childish voice. ¡°Can you come with me?¡± If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°You came here on your own,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°Why can¡¯t you go there?¡± ¡°Going to a familiar creature is not scary, but going to a stranger is scary,¡± the eared girl explained. ¡°You will really need an escort,¡± Itinit said. ¡°If you go to my friend alone, he might do something bad to you. It will be more reliable with us. And getting to this island is not easy. There are no trains going there because there are no towns or villages there. You''ll have to travel by ship, and you still need to get it somewhere.¡± ¡°Do you seriously want to go with her?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Are you kidding?¡± ¡°It¡¯s true,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°I¡¯ll go with her. This is serious. If the creature is not removed from her brain, she will go crazy. We don''t know how much time we have. That''s why we leave tomorrow.¡± ¡°Itinit wants to go with Etinnei?¡± Tuot was scared. ¡°What should I do?¡± I¡¯m scared to travel so far, but I still want to look at these ears and tail.¡± At this moment the dinosaur became uncomfortable. He didn''t want to ask his friends to take him with them. ¡°I... I... can I come with you?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Of course,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I¡¯ve long wanted to go somewhere with you in the real world. Earlier in the game, we traveled through game locations. And the real world is much larger and more interesting than the game world.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve known her for a long time, so you¡¯ll keep an eye on her,¡± Itinit said. Evening came. Itinit went home, and Tuot found himself alone with Etinnei in his room. ¡°You have your characters from the games on your walls,¡± Etinnei noted. Tuot was terrified. He let his girlfriend into his room, although he was very afraid of this. The dinosaur could not understand how this happened, because just recently they were sitting in the kitchen. ¡°It¡¯s because of my bad memory,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I accidentally entered my room and forgot about it. Now Etinnei will know about my preferences and will tell someone in the game.¡± ¡°I thought you had such characters hanging on your walls,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°Why did you think that?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°You play animal girls. It means you like them. I play characters like this too.¡± Tuot''s fear instantly disappeared. The dinosaur was no longer afraid that his hobby would be judged by his playmate. ¡°Go to your account,¡± Etinnei suggested. ¡°I want to see your girls with ears and tails.¡± Tuot sat down on the bed. Etinnei followed him. ¡°You¡¯ve seen my characters,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°Not everyone. There are others there that you didn''t show me.¡± Tuot summoned the virtual screen and touched the game icon with his finger. A loading bar with the game logo appeared on the screen, which quickly filled up. It then changed to a character selection screen. In the cells, which looked like vertical coffins, there were five animal girls. The first character had long black hair, dog ears and a tail. The girl was wearing a sleeveless gray armor dress that reached mid-thigh and black boots that reached her knees. The animal girl held a frying pan in her hand. The second character looked like a girl with a horn on her forehead and cat ears on the top of her head. Her red hair was braided into two ponytails that reached down to her knees. In each hand the girl held a long fork. The only clothing the character wore was a yellow fur bib and yellow fur shorts. The third character was a lizard girl with three straight horns on her head, wearing armor with blue scales, and holding a black wire in her hand. The fourth character was a fox girl with long yellow hair that covered her chest and crotch. The only clothes she wore were stockings, and her weapon was a large spoon. The fifth character was a black silhouette with the horns of a cow on his head and the tail of a snake. It was clear that it had not yet been completely created. ¡°Who should I choose?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°They¡¯re all cute,¡± Etinnei frowned. ¡°Of course, not as much as me, but for a character in the game it will do.¡± Tuot looked at his friend and remembered the dreams in which there was an arctic fox girl who looked like her. ¡°I... have to tell you something,¡± the dinosaur said with difficulty. ¡°That my ears and tail are cute?¡± Etinnei smiled and closed one eye. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Why not cute? I''m not a human...¡± ¡°I am not talking about that.¡± Tuot looked at his friend. She was similar to the arctic fox girl he had dreamed of, but with some differences. Etinnei''s hair was black, and peeked out from under her gray-purple hood, although the hood had cutouts for ears. The hood was attached to a fur top of the same color. On the hips are gray-violet fur shorts. ¡°I dreamed of an arctic fox girl who looked like you,¡± Tuot said. ¡°But she was wearing a winter jacket.¡± ¡°Like this?¡± Etinnei asked. A white-blue ball appeared in the arctic fox girl¡¯s hand, from which icy vapors emanated. Etinnei''s body turned into a white glowing silhouette, which then disappeared. In front of Tuot was an arctic fox girl with white and yellow hair that peeked out from under her hood, wearing a white-blue jacket and blue fur shorts. ¡°That''s her!¡± Tuot shouted. ¡°Where did Etinnei go?¡± ¡°It¡¯s me,¡± Etinnei explained. ¡°I change my appearance when the weather changes or when I use ice skills.¡± The ball in the Arctic fox girl''s hand disappeared. Etinnei returned to her previous state. ¡°You really look like that arctic fox girl from the dream,¡± Tuot said. ¡°But I¡¯m not sure about that, even after I saw you in those very clothes. Maybe I forgot something and got it wrong? I have a bad memory.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never been to a train station,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°The first thing I remember is that I woke up in a wooden coffin that was floating along the river. There were forests all around with trees with very large leaves, not like the ones that grow here. Then my coffin was washed ashore by the current. I left it and tried for a long time to understand where I was.¡± ¡°Where is this place located?¡± ¡°Now I know that this place was on the Southern Continent. In the area where I found myself, there was not a single civilized creature, only wild animals. I hunted them with the help of the skills that gradually appeared in me. It was warm in that area, so I didn''t need to have a house. When it rained, I hid in my coffin and slept there. Then my coffin rotted. It turned out that the tree was rotting from water. I went to the mountains and took refuge in caves there. I don''t know how much time has passed, probably a lot. I didn¡¯t feel time, and I didn¡¯t even know what it was. After all, I haven''t changed at all. Then I swiped my finger through the air and discovered the interface. I was able to go online, where I watched videos, pictures, and read texts. For some reason I knew how to read, although I had never studied it. Then I started playing games online. There I met civilized beings.¡± ¡°Have you communicated with wild animals?¡± ¡°It is impossible to speak the same language with them. They don''t know how to speak with words. I played with them, cuddled them and fed them. And they fed me.¡± ¡°What did you feed?¡± ¡°Meat and fruit. I don''t eat grass. And I eat the rest. For me, even inedible objects are edible.¡± Etinnei took the pillow that was lying on the bed and smelled it. ¡°Don''t eat this!¡± Tuot shouted. ¡°I wasn¡¯t going to eat it,¡± the girl answered. ¡°I''m not hungry. I smelled it to understand what it was made of. But I didn¡¯t understand. Why do you need this item?¡± ¡°People put it under their head and sleep on it.¡± Etinnei laid down on the bed and put a pillow under her cheek. ¡°This item is so soft and pleasant to the touch,¡± Etinnei closed her eyes and smiled. ¡°My cheeks like to lie on it. What''s its name?¡± ¡°Pillow,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°Have you ever seen a pillow?¡± ¡°I did not see. In fact, I haven''t seen most of the items in this room. But I can guess what they are for.¡± ¡°Why is that wooden object needed?¡± Tuot pointed to the closet. ¡°Looks like the coffin I slept in. It is needed to hide.¡± ¡°There are clothes stored there that don¡¯t fit in the inventory,¡± Tuot smiled. ¡°What is that item at the entrance for?¡± The dinosaur pointed to the door. Etinnei sat down on the bed and looked where Tuot was pointing. ¡°This is an obstacle,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°It¡¯s meant to keep other creatures out of the room. I''m stuck in it.¡± Tuot opened his mouth and began to shake his head. The dinosaur found it funny. He accidentally poked his claw at a character with black hair and dog ears and started the process of loading the location. *** A long boat floated slowly along a wide river with high rocky banks covered with mixed forests. In the boat were a man with a carrot nose and a dinosaur with gray feathers and a long tail. ¡°I can¡¯t even believe that I¡¯m free,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to free you,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°But I felt a signal, and it made me do it.¡± ¡°You did the right thing, Ustumut. I thought that I would never be free. My home was locked down with passwords that were too complex. But you were able to somehow pick them up.¡± ¡°I have a password database. With its help, passwords are easily selected.¡± ¡°These passwords acted strangely. They didn''t let me leave the house. Other creatures could leave him, but I could not.¡± ¡°It''s because the passwords blocked you.¡± ¡°Who could have done this?¡± ¡°Previously, only a few creatures in the world were capable of this. I don¡¯t know how it is now. I slept in some hole for a very long time and woke up from your signal.¡± The flow of the river accelerated. The rapids were approaching. The dinosaur used the interface to make the boat land on the shore. Kuttanai and his companion got out of the boat and climbed up the rocky slope. From the slope of the valley there was a view of a wide river with dark blue water, high cliffs and endless mixed forests on the opposite side of the reservoir. ¡°I remember this place,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°I stood here and thought about how to help the people close to me. I didn''t want to lose them. My little sister was ill. She was suffering and I couldn¡¯t come to terms with it. Then I heard a voice. He told me how to make a doll out of a living being. At first I didn''t want to do this. But I could not calmly watch the torment of my little sister. I cut her head open and changed her neurons. So she became a doll, stopped getting sick, was able to fly and even heal other creatures. But sometimes I feel like I did something wrong. Previously, she could rejoice, moan in pain, cry, but now she feels nothing. I made her non-living...¡± Chapter 12. Right of a Little Sister Kyotyoryon was walking near the house and accidentally noticed a brown puppy, similar to a bear cub, who was going somewhere about his business. ¡°People eat meat,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°If I catch this animal and cook it, my creator will be very happy.¡± Kyotyoryon came up behind Kimchan and grabbed his tail. The puppy moaned pitifully, but the naive character did not suspect anything. The spirit of metal brought Kimchan to the kitchen. Unana was sitting there at the table in a pink robe, with headphones on her head, eating something. When the archer noticed how an unreasonable character was holding the archer''s pet, she lost her appetite. Unana stopped eating and summoned her weapon, loaded with an ordinary arrow. ¡°Let the dog go!¡± Unana shouted. ¡°I want to cook it,¡± Kyotyoryon answered calmly. ¡°I want to fry meat for my creator so that she can become alive again.¡± ¡°But why cook the dog? In particular... my dog.¡± ¡°Is it your dog? I didn''t know. Then cook it yourself.¡± Kyotyoryon threw the puppy to Unana. The archer threw her bow and tried to catch her pet, but could not. Kimchan fell to the floor and groaned even more. ¡°I won¡¯t cook Kimchan,¡± Unana frowned. ¡°My dog is not food.¡± The archer picked up the crying puppy from the floor and left the kitchen. Kyotyoryon looked at the cooking stove. ¡°Now I have no meat,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°I can¡¯t cook anything and help the creator. I''ll have to look for something else.¡± Kyotyoryon came out of the kitchen and met Yueret in the corridor in a gray robe with a hood. ¡°This is what I need,¡± the thought flashed through the head of the spirit of metal. Kyotyoryon grabbed the man by the hand and dragged him to the kitchen. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°I¡¯ll cook you,¡± Kyotyoryon tried to smile, but instead made a terrible grimace. ¡°Why? Are people edible?¡± ¡°People also have meat. I want to cook you for my creator. She lost a lot of blood because of me. That''s why I want to correct what I did.¡± ¡°I don''t think she''ll like human meat.¡± Kyotyoryon let go of Yueret¡¯s hand and turned away. ¡°I already tried to cook the dog, but your little sister didn¡¯t allow me to do it. Then I saw you. I thought I could cook you. You have meat in you, and there is more of it than in that dog. I wanted the creator to be happy. She will eat the meat I prepared and she will feel better.¡± Yueret patted Kyotyoryon on the head. It seemed to the guy that the hair of the metal spirit was harsher to the touch than his sister¡¯s hair. ¡°Let¡¯s cook some other meat, that people eat,¡± Yueret suggested. ¡°Your creator will definitely like it.¡± Kyotyoryon turned to Yueret. Tears sparkled in her eyes. ¡°She can cry,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°I thought she was like a robot, because she¡¯s non-living.¡± Yueret took out a bag of food from the refrigerator and placed it on the table. ¡°We will cook a bear¡¯s paw in the dough,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Bear meat is very nutritious. This food will help your creator recover quickly.¡± Yueret summoned the interface, took a knife from his inventory, and swiped it through the air. A virtual kitchen control panel appeared in front of him with white buttons on which dishes and cutlery were depicted. After pressing a few buttons, a metal grill on a stand appeared on the stove. Yueret took a clawed bear paw out of the bag and placed it on the grill. After this, a fire began to burn under the grill. ¡°So this is how they cook meat?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°Yea,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°You didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think about it. I just wanted to cook the meat.¡± ¡°You can also summon such an interface.¡± Yueret gave the spirit of metal a knife. Kyotyoryon ran her blade through the air. The same table as Yueret''s appeared in front of her, but with additional gray buttons on the sides. ¡°What are these buttons?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°I do not have them. There are some strange signs on them.¡± ¡°These are the buttons to control my metal. Somehow I know what they are, but I don''t know how to use them. There are a lot of metal objects in this room, which is why these buttons appeared here. I wonder what will happen if you click on them?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t!¡± Kyotyoryon did not listen to Yueret and pressed one of the additional buttons. The metal grill doubled in size, causing the bear''s paw to fall straight into the fire. Yueret pressed several buttons on the control panel. The fire went out. The grill with the stand has disappeared. The bear''s paw remained lying on the flat stone surface of the slab. Kyotyoryon turned away and tried to hold back her tears, but she couldn¡¯t. Drops of water from her eyes fell onto her chest and then disappeared into her corset. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have pressed that button,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I¡¯m bad.¡± Yueret hugged the metal spirit''s shoulders and then stroked her head. ¡°You are not bad,¡± Yueret said. ¡°You will learn to cook. It just doesn''t happen as quickly.¡± ¡°Is it true?¡± Kyotyoryon turned to face Yueret and accidentally pressed her chest against him. Yueret felt something soft but cold through his robe. ¡°What is her body made of?¡± the guy thought. ¡°It looks like Unana¡¯s body, but inside it¡¯s filled with something else.¡± Yueret lowered his hand lower and touched Kyotyoryon¡¯s thigh. It was also cold, but at the same time hard. The guy drew attention to the character¡¯s horns, which were located opposite his neck. ¡°Is it really metal?¡± Yueret thought. ¡°Now I understand why she is so cold. Unana is not like that. Unana is warm.¡± ¡°You will succeed,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I don¡¯t know how it happens in creatures like you, but people can learn. At first they don¡¯t succeed, then they succeed a little, then they succeed even more. Gradually people learn something and then can do it well.¡± Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Kyotyoryon hugged Yueret and pressed her chest even closer to him. The horns of the spirit of metal came almost close to his neck. Unana entered the kitchen wearing a black T-shirt with a cut-out chest and short purple shorts that did not hide part of her buttocks. And then Unana noticed Kyotyoryon and Yueret, who were hugging. ¡°Yueret, why are you doing this?¡± Unana was indignant. ¡°It''s not even a human. This is an artificial creature that does not feel anything.¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to calm her down,¡± Yueret explained. Yueret stopped hugging the character and walked over to the stove. The guy had to explain to his little sister why Kyotyoryon was crying and what she was trying to do for his creator. ¡°That¡¯s understandable,¡± Unana said. ¡°But what you do with your little sister cannot be done with other girls.¡± ¡°What not to do? Should I not hug her?¡± ¡°Yeah. Only I can hug you, because it is my right. This is the right of a little sister.¡± Yueret turned away and continued cooking, but this time on his own. After some time, the bear paw in the dough was ready. Yueret put it on a tray and gave it to Kyotyoryon. ¡°You can take it to your creator,¡± Yueret turned to the spirit of metal. Kyotyoryon took the tray and went to the room where her creator was. Halankuo, wearing a long T-shirt, stood near the window and looked out of it. ¡°Creator, can you walk already?¡± the spirit of metal asked. ¡°She began to worry about me,¡± Halankuo rejoiced. ¡°Kyotyoryon appears to have features like living beings. I chose some characteristics for her, but I didn¡¯t think they would develop so quickly.¡± ¡°Yes, I can walk,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°But my strength has not yet fully recovered.¡± ¡°I brought you a bear¡¯s paw in dough,¡± Kyotyoryon said joyfully. ¡°This will help you regain your strength.¡± ¡°Thank you. I haven''t eaten bear meat for a long time.¡± ¡°You lost a lot of blood because of me. I want you to become the same as before.¡± ¡°Nothing. This happened by accident. It''s not your fault.¡± ¡°Not your fault?¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°So I cooked the meat in vain?¡± The character threw the tray on the floor, and somehow it did not tip over. The spirit of metal made an angry face and left the room. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have said that,¡± Halankuo thought and pointed the wrench at the tray. Kyotyoryon went into the yard and looked at the surrounding objects for a long time. ¡°I want to cut,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°The trees are good, they shouldn¡¯t be cut. I need to find something to cut.¡± Kyotyoryon walked along the fence and noticed a robot that looked like a beetle with a shell like a turtle. ¡°This thing is made of metal,¡± Kyotyoryon guessed. ¡°That means she¡¯s mine, because I¡¯m the spirit of metal. All the metal in the world is mine.¡± The spirit of metal approached the creature and tapped it with the bracelet on its arm. A metallic sound was heard. Kyotyoryon smiled and raised her hand up. The robot also rose up and then froze in the air. Kyotyoryon tried to move the robot to the side, but it was as if something was holding it in place. The metal spirit grimaced and tried again. But the robot continued to hang motionless in the air. ¡°This is a robot buyer. You shouldn¡¯t treat him like that,¡± a voice came from behind Kyotyoryon. The spirit of metal turned around and saw a doll with red hair, which was looking at the robot with eyes with purple pupils. ¡°Don''t try to control him,¡± the doll said. ¡°My abilities take precedence over yours. You can move objects that have a high metal content. I can move objects that contain metal in any quantity.¡± Kyotyoryon, of course, did not understand the phrase she heard. But the character was offended. The spirit of metal did not know the meaning of many words, and often did not understand what was said to it. The doll carried the robot into the house, into the kitchen. Unana and Yueret were sitting there at the table, eating something. ¡°I¡¯ve come,¡± a thin ¡°machine¡± voice came from the robot¡¯s body. Yueret noticed the creature arriving, stood up from the table and summoned a shield. ¡°Tell your master that I won¡¯t help him!¡± the guy shouted. ¡°I don¡¯t serve Kuttanai,¡± the robot answered. ¡°The doll named Ikte can confirm my words.¡± ¡°It serves me,¡± Ikte¡¯s voice was heard from the corridor. A doll with red hair came to the kitchen threshold. ¡°But that man with the carrot said that this robot serves him,¡± Yueret objected. ¡°It was like that at first,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°But then I subjugated the robot to myself. My little brother thinks he still controls him. But the robot is not a doll. It cannot be controlled by signals from the brain that are transmitted through the antenna. Artificial intelligence is very independent. That''s why Kuttanai created dolls rather than robots. They are more obedient.¡± The shield in Yueret''s hand disappeared. The guy sat down on the floor and looked at the robot. ¡°I¡¯m sorry that I thought you were the servant of that man with the carrot nose,¡± the human apologized to the robot. Unana finished eating and noticed a robotic buyer standing near the threshold of the kitchen. The girl remembered how he came to her at the station at night, and felt alarmed. Unana crawled to her brother on all fours and hid behind him. ¡°I have news,¡± the robot said. ¡°Kuttanai can now go outside his home.¡± ¡°What?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°Did someone guess the password? Suturu and Aibi cannot do this.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who did it,¡± the robot answered. ¡°I just saw Kuttanai near the river. There was no one with him.¡± ¡°Kuttanai couldn¡¯t unblock himself,¡± Ikte said. ¡°What you say is difficult to believe.¡± Yueret heard what the doll and the robot were talking about, but could not understand what happened. The guy hugged his little sister and tried to support her at this difficult moment. ¡°I need to check the information that the robot provided,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°If I feel that the signal has strengthened, then Kuttanai has truly become free.¡± Soon Unana released her brother and went to the refrigerator. Yueret realized that everything was fine with his sister and went to the exit of the house... ¡­ It was raining. Halankuo stood on the porch and looked at the raindrops that fell from the awning onto the paving stones. ¡°In this weather, it is better not to go to your former village,¡± Yueret turned to the girl. ¡°Why?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°The road there passes through a living village. There were only old people left there. It''s better not to go through this place. Local residents do not like people walking on their territory.¡± ¡°Is it possible to walk here?¡± ¡°Nobody lives in this village except me and my little sister. Therefore, there is nothing to be afraid of here. It''s better not to go there, especially in this weather. There are no good roads to your former village, only paths that get wet from the rain.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so worried about me,¡± Halankuo blushed and turned away. Yueret felt something grab him by the ends of his hair and lift him up. The guy screamed and tried to free himself, but he couldn¡¯t. ¡°Kyotyoryon, let him go,¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°I¡¯m testing a new skill,¡± the voice of the spirit of metal was heard from behind Yueret. ¡°I wasn¡¯t able to grab a creature with a metal hand before, but now I¡¯ve succeeded.¡± Kyotyoryon actually stood behind Yueret and held him with a metal hand from the back of his neck. ¡°Let me go,¡± Yueret groaned. ¡°Now my younger sister will come, and...¡± Unana appeared behind Yueret with a small black bow in her hands, loaded with a white-blue arrow. The girl had an angry facial expression. Kyotyoryon looked at Unana and released Yueret. The metal hand went back to the neck. ¡°You are with her again,¡± Unana said. ¡°I warned you that because of other girls, something bad could happen to you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°I just told our guests that it¡¯s better not to walk through that very village in this weather.¡± ¡°Scary stories usually start like this,¡± Unana¡¯s face stopped looking angry. ¡°Let''s go into the house. The doll wants to talk to us.¡± The brother and sister went to the kitchen, where a doll with red hair was sitting at the table. ¡°I have bad news,¡± Ikte said. ¡°I checked the information from the robot buyer. And it was confirmed. Looks like someone hacked the passwords that kept him from leaving the house.¡± ¡°Will he come here?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°Kuttanai might try to take your sister away. He collects dolls simply because he likes them, although battle dolls are designed for battle.¡± ¡°It¡¯s disgusting,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I don¡¯t want to meet him again. He''s disgusting.¡± ¡°And creepy,¡± Unana added. ¡°After the release of Kuttanai, I felt that the signal strengthened,¡± Ikte said. ¡°My little brother¡¯s nose is constantly transmitting a signal. Previously the signal was weak. Only dolls and robots felt it. Now the walls of his house no longer block the signal, and even people at a distance can sense it. And if they can feel it, they can fall under its influence.¡± ¡°Can the signal affect living beings?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°But the signal can only control those living beings that have a low level of feelings. It¡¯s even easier with dolls, because their level of all feelings is as low as possible. While Kuttanai was locked in his house, I could resist the influence of the signal because I am older than him in age. But now I''m not sure if I can resist the signal. If the signal gets stronger, I may obey it. That''s why I need to leave here.¡± Unana smiled. The archer had long wanted the guests to leave her house, and she was left alone with her brother. Ikte went out into the corridor where Kyotyoryon and Halankuo were standing. ¡°I can deliver you through the air to your former village, if you agree,¡± the doll said. ¡°But I can only take one person with me.¡± ¡°Kyotyoryon can fly in battle form,¡± Halankuo twirled a strand of hair around her finger. ¡°You¡¯ll just have to take me. But how will you deliver to me?¡± Ikte''s pupils turned purple. Halankuo''s body rose to the ceiling and hung there. ¡°It¡¯s a little scary,¡± Halankuo noted. ¡°But if you don¡¯t lift me too high, then I will agree.¡± Chapter 13. Larva That Eats Roots Ikte left Halankuo on a cliff overlooking a river valley covered in fog. From here you could see the silhouettes of nearby trees and a building. Kyotyoryon sank to the ground next to her creator and took on an almost human form. ¡°This is your village, creator?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°I can¡¯t understand,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°Everything is foggy here. Let''s go down.¡± Kyotyoryon took the creator¡¯s words too literally and jumped off the cliff. Halankuo knew that nothing terrible would happen to her spirit, so she began to look for a path to descend. But the path has long been overgrown, since the village was abandoned for many years. Despite this, Halankuo managed to find a relatively flat slope and descend to a tree with heart-shaped leaves. ¡°Creator!¡± Kyotyoryon¡¯s scream was heard from the fog. ¡°I found the entrance!¡± Halankuo carefully walked towards where the voice of her spirit came from. Soon Kyotyoryon was found. She was standing on a paving stone slightly overgrown with plants near the remains of a wooden house. ¡°There is only one street in my village,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°This is its beginning. My house should be at the other end.¡± Kyotyoryon ran along the only street covered with old, almost collapsed paving stones and disappeared into the fog. Halankuo ran after the character and caught up with her near a stone pillar with the head of a three-horned dinosaur, which stood near the entire house. The building looked like a residential building, but there were already trees growing on its roof. ¡°This is definitely my village,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°I remember this pillar.¡± Kyotyoryon reached the end of the village, where the last intact house stood. There she tripped over a stone that protruded strongly above the surface and was supposed to fall, but instead she took on a fighting form, rose to the height of the roof of the house, flew forward a little, returned to human form and landed on her feet. ¡°She can already do something,¡± Halankuo noted. ¡°It looks like I didn¡¯t walk with her in vain.¡± In ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± it is written that when a character performs some actions, he learns, gains new skills and improves old ones.¡± Halankuo approached the last house at the end of the village. The wooden fence had long since rotted and did not prevent entry into the yard, but the vegetation that was densely overgrown in the yard interfered. Along a path of stones, which was not very overgrown, Halankuo approached a porch consisting of rotten boards, two wooden columns and a leaky canopy. The entrance to the house was closed by an old but strong wooden door. Halankuo climbed onto the porch carefully, so as not to fall through due to the rotten boards, and then ran her finger through the air near the door handle. A virtual lock with a code field appeared in front of the door. The girl entered the code and turned the doorknob. The lock disappeared, after which the door opened. Halankuo entered the house and found herself in an almost dark corridor. The girl turned on the light using the interface and was surprised at what she saw. The corridor was entangled in numerous layers of cobwebs that blocked the passage. Halankuo had to remove the cobwebs with a wrench and several bolts of lightning to get into the kitchen. In the kitchen, near the wall, there was a low round table with an empty bottle and a wooden bowl on it. There was almost no light coming through the single round window due to the thick layer of cobwebs. Halankuo no longer remembered where her room or bathroom was. The girl left the house and saw Kyotyoryon, who was standing on the path and holding in her hands a purple translucent energy card with a black rod inside, which emitted a faint glow. ¡°This is it, data storage card,¡± the girl rejoiced. ¡°Of course, it¡¯s unlikely that this is the same card I was looking for, but what if I get lucky?¡± ¡°Where did you find this?¡± Halankuo pointed to the card. ¡°In the bushes,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°I was walking along the road and felt that there was metal somewhere nearby. I picked this thing up because there''s metal in it, which means it''s mine. I¡¯m the spirit of metal.¡± Halankuo walked up to Kyotyoryon and touched the card with her hand. The card stopped glowing and then disappeared. A moment later, the metal spirit''s eyes stopped blinking. Kyotyoryon dropped her hands and fell to the ground. Halankuo crouched down and looked at her character. The spirit of metal laid on its back and looked at one point, like a doll. *** The railway station was shrouded in thick fog. Tuot and Etinnei were sitting on a bench under the canopy and holding hands. ¡°Where is Itinit?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°I can see almost nothing here. In the city there was better visibility.¡± ¡°You also see almost nothing?¡± Etinnei sniffed the air. ¡°It smells like water.¡± ¡°It''s fog. Have you never seen him?¡± ¡°I saw it. But I thought that the transparency of the air in my eyes had decreased.¡± Tuot noticed the silhouette of a man in the fog. The dinosaur let go of his girlfriend''s hand, stood up from the bench and jumped back. His heart began to beat faster. ¡°Tuot, there is no need to summon on the aura,¡± Itinit¡¯s voice was heard. The silhouette began to approach Etinnei and Tuot, and soon turned into Itinit. Tuot recognized his friend and calmed down. ¡°I hope the train won¡¯t be canceled because of such thick fog,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Will we be able to see him?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°The train has lamps, and they glow,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°But even if we don¡¯t see the train with the lamps, we¡¯ll definitely hear it. At this time, only one train arrives at this station.¡± After some time, a long beep was heard. Then several yellow rays of light ¡°pierced¡± through the fog. Itinit took out three blue-green energy cards from his inventory and gave two of them to Tuot and Etinnei. ¡°Click on the big circle on the card,¡± Itinit said. Etinnei pressed the large circle in the middle of the card. A frame appeared above it with a diagram of the train and the location of the passenger. ¡°With the help of this diagram you can find your carriage and place,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I don¡¯t understand where to press,¡± Tuot complained. ¡°You know how to play games,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°But you can¡¯t figure it out.¡± Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°It¡¯s a game, there¡¯s a touch screen,¡± Tuot objected. ¡°But here it¡¯s somehow unclear.¡± ¡°Just click on the circle in the middle of the card,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Which circle?¡± Tuot brought the card closer to his face, but could not understand where the circle was. ¡°Look at him from the side,¡± Itinit advised. ¡°But you don''t have to look. Our places are located nearby. If we find one place, we will find the rest.¡± Tuot removed the card from his face and moved it to the left. ¡°I see!¡± the dinosaur shouted. ¡°I found it!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t shout,¡± Itinit said. ¡°The cry of a dinosaur can frighten people, especially children.¡± Tuot became scared. He did not like human children because of Halankuo, who tormented him as a pet as a child. The carriage consisted of a corridor and small compartments, each of which had four shelves and a small table. At first, Tuot was afraid that the compartment door might crush his tail, but when he entered there, he realized that there was enough room even for a long-tailed dinosaur. ¡°The rooms in this carriage are almost the same as on the ship,¡± Itinit said. ¡°They are designed for long journeys. You can sleep on these shelves.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never traveled in such cars before,¡± Tuot said. ¡°The trains I traveled on had only carriages with seats.¡± ¡°I hope you can survive here for at least a day,¡± Itinit said. ¡°But if you survive two days, you will arrive in Munmut.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t stand even half a day in this room,¡± Tuot said. ¡°It¡¯s still normal here,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°I traveled from the Southern Continent in a large dark box for several days.¡± ¡°What were you doing there?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°What I usually do,¡± the animal girl answered. ¡°I played games, watched videos and pictures. I had access to my interface, and therefore to the screen. But the network did not always work.¡± Tuot laid down on the shelf and noticed that it was too short for him. His tail hung over the shelf and almost touched the wall. ¡°Why are these trains inconvenient for dinosaurs?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Trains are made by people,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°There are many more people than dinosaurs. Their sizes are more compact. But you don''t need to worry. You fit in this room. And if something doesn¡¯t fit, it¡¯s a tail, and your tail won¡¯t break.¡± Tuot found that nothing bothered him. The room, although it looked small and cramped, now seemed like some semblance of housing. The train slowly left the station. The fog gradually dissipated, and it was already possible to see something in it. Etinnei sat near the window and looked out of it. For her, the landscape outside the window was something new and unusual. Coniferous forests that covered the plains and mountains in almost continuous masses, rivers with gray-blue water through which the train traveled on energy bridges, pillars with glowing virtual symbols ¨C all this was so different from the landscapes of the Southern Continent that it seemed to her like another world... ... Etinnei was so carried away by the views from the window that she did not notice Tuot, who was looking at her with interest. The dinosaur still did not believe that such unusual and beautiful creatures as this arctic fox girl existed in reality. But what surprised him most was that this was his playmate. Ever since Tuot first logged onto the network and saw images of animal girls, he had dreamed of meeting one of them. And now the arctic fox girl was sitting in front of him, like a character in a game - she was sitting, but did not notice that he was looking at her. The movements of the train, which was moving quickly along the rails, rocked Tuot. The dinosaur began to fall asleep... ... Tuot found himself on a cliff, near a crooked coniferous tree. From there was a view of a narrow river that had not yet frozen. Only rare ice floes floated with the current and carried away the cold lizards. Across the river, a snow-covered coniferous forest stretched to the horizon. Tuot went down to the river and saw a cave in the rock on the shore, covered with a thin layer of snow. There was an oblong wooden box in it, and in it was some kind of creature. The dinosaur came closer and realized that this box was actually a coffin, and the creature was a girl with white-yellow hair and small animal ears on the top of her head. The rest of the body was covered with snow and therefore not visible. ¡°This is an arctic fox girl,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°Is she real?¡± The dinosaur approached the coffin and looked at the girl¡¯s face. Her eyes were closed, and no breath was coming from her nose. ¡°Is she dead or just frozen?¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I wonder what she¡¯s wearing.¡± The dinosaur scraped the snow that covered the girl¡¯s body with its upper paws and saw a furry white and blue jacket, fur shorts and thick bare legs with small feet. ¡°If she¡¯s dead, I can eat her,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Her meat looks very tasty!¡± The girl opened her eyes and grabbed Tuot''s feathers with her hand. ¡°I¡¯m not edible,¡± the girl said. Tuot looked at her and stepped back a little. His tail reached the wall of the cave and did not allow him to retreat further. The girl''s body was covered with a white-blue aura, assumed a vertical position, rose above the coffin, and then landed on a layer of snow. ¡°Are you cold?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°No,¡± the animal girl answered. ¡°My legs feel almost nothing.¡± Tuot looked at the girl¡¯s legs and imagined how the severed leg lay in front of him on a plate. ¡°Do you want to eat me?¡± the girl asked. ¡°No,¡± Tuot turned away. ¡°Then why are you looking at my legs like that?¡± ... Tuot woke up and realized that he was lying on a shelf in a train compartment that was going somewhere. The dinosaur looked out the window and remembered that yesterday he got on the train with his friends and went to another city. The train was traveling along a high embankment among the swamps. Low coniferous trees grew on hummocks surrounded by puddles of brown water. Tuot woke up and saw Etinnei, who was sleeping on the bottom bunk opposite. She curled up into a ball and held her own tail in her hand. Itinit was sleeping on the shelf above. ¡°I again dreamed of an arctic fox girl who looked like Etinnei,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Maybe it was Etinnei herself? But this is impossible. I haven¡¯t seen her before, so she couldn¡¯t have appeared in my dream.¡± Looking at the scenery outside the window made the dinosaur want to sleep again. Tuot tried to resist this, but could not... ... Tuot woke up and discovered that this time he had not had a dream. The dinosaur was still on the train, but the scenery outside the window had changed greatly. Instead of forests and swamps, a gray rocky plain appeared, covered here and there with thickets of thorny bushes. Tuot has never seen an area without trees. This landscape seemed lifeless and even scary to him against the background of the cloudy sky. Etinnei also looked out the window. Itinit was not in the compartment. ¡°Do you know why there are no trees here?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Perhaps there is a creature here that feeds on tree roots?¡± Tuot suggested. ¡°I read about him somewhere. But I don''t remember where exactly.¡± ¡°In the game we played. There is a desert there that was formed due to a giant larva.¡± ¡°Exactly, so this larva came here from the game?¡± Itinit entered the room and interrupted the stupid conversation. ¡°Congrats!¡± Itinit said. ¡°You survived. We''ll be arriving in Munmut soon.¡± The train approached a wide river, along the banks of which grew narrow strips of forest with thorny green trees. A blue translucent energy bridge appeared between the platforms on both banks. The train moved slowly along it. ¡°Why do trees grow on the river bank?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Isn¡¯t there a larva there?¡± ¡°Apparently, the larva is afraid of water,¡± Tuot suggested. Etinnei looked at Itinit. She doubted that the larva could have gotten here from the game and was waiting for a refutation. ¡°These are not trees,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°These plants have no wood. They are hollow inside.¡± ¡°Their insides were eaten by a larva,¡± Etinnei was frightened. The train crossed the river and drove slowly through stone warehouses with numerous boxes, after which it arrived at the railway station. A large stone terminal with a dome stood next to several tracks, adjacent to covered platforms with columns. ¡°We will have to go out soon,¡± Itinit said. ¡°We arrived. When the train stops, follow me.¡± The train stopped. The doors of the carriages opened and passengers began to get out. Itinit led Tuot and Etinnei out of the train and into the station building. Inside, the station looked like a huge cave with stone icicles hanging from the ceiling, which emitted a white glow and illuminated the room. Several corridors led off from the cave in different directions. Itinit led his friends through one of them and soon all three found themselves on the bank of a wide river, near a stone platform. Across the river, the city began. Towers and pyramids stood in even rows along the shore, and behind them could be seen even larger buildings of the same shape. ¡°This is one of the main entrances to the city,¡± Itinit said. ¡°In order to get to the other side, you have to cross the river.¡± ¡°Do we have to go to the city?¡± asked Tuot. ¡°It looks too big. You could probably get lost there.¡± ¡°We need somewhere to spend the night,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°We still need to eat.¡± Etinnei looked at the city with bulging eyes and did not move. ¡°What happened to you?¡± Itinit asked the arctic fox girl. ¡°Is there a real city across the river?¡± Etinnei sniffed the air. ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°Have you seen such cities yet?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m talking about,¡± Etinnei moved her ears on top of her head. ¡°I saw similar buildings, but it was in the game. What are the buildings from the game doing here?¡± Itinit smiled. Etinnei turned her head in his direction, but without her torso. ¡°The buildings in the game are just virtual models,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°They are not necessarily related to real objects. If you were transferred from the program to the real world, this does not mean that everything in the real world was transferred from the program.¡± Etinnei scratched her hand behind the arctic fox¡¯s ear. ¡°I was scared,¡± the animal girl explained. ¡°I thought we were in a game.¡± Itinit turned away so that no one would see his smile. ¡°Etinnei is so naive,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°She¡¯s a good fit for Tuot.¡± Chapter 14. Refrigerator Girl Two platforms on different banks of the river were connected by a flow of energy that formed a bridge. ¡°This is an energy bridge,¡± Itinit said. ¡°You can walk on it, although you may feel like you could fall through it.¡± ¡°This bridge is similar to those on which trains travel across rivers,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°He won''t disappear?¡± ¡°It operates constantly,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Of course, it is possible to turn it off, but it is not easy to do. This is done very rarely.¡± People and feathered dinosaurs with long tails walked across the bridge. They walked on it as if on the ground, and did not pay attention to the fact that it was translucent. ¡°The main thing is not to look down,¡± Itinit warned. ¡°The bridge is made of energy. If you look down and see water, you might feel like you''re going to fall into it.¡± Itinit entered the bridge and turned around. Tuot and Etinnei stood at the edge of the stream of energy and looked at their feet. Tuot stood with one foot on the surface of the bridge and felt a slight vibration. ¡°The main thing is not to go to the edge of the bridge,¡± the dinosaur thought. But then he saw other dinosaurs walking across the bridge. He realized that it was even more difficult to fall on this bridge than on a paved road because of the smooth surface. There were simply no objects to trip over. Etinnei carefully stepped on the edge of the bridge with her foot, but did not feel anything. Then she crouched down and touched the surface with her hand. ¡°The bridge is shaking a little,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°But the surface is hard. This is weird¡±. ¡°You can walk like a human,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°You won''t fall.¡± Etinnei looked down. There, through the translucent surface of the flow of energy, water could be seen flowing in the river. The Arctic fox girl got scared and jumped back beyond the bridge. ¡°This bridge is too high,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°And there¡¯s water below. You say the bridge will not disappear, and I believe it. But for some reason I''m scared.¡± Itinit approached Etinnei and took her hand. ¡°Let¡¯s go together,¡± Itinit suggested. ¡°You won¡¯t fall with me.¡± Etinnei felt that with this man she would not be so afraid. The Arctic fox girl stepped on the edge of the bridge and followed Itinit. At first, Etinnei was able to not be afraid. But in the middle of the bridge, she accidentally tilted her head down and saw through the translucent surface of the stream of energy the water that flowed in the river. Fear immediately returned to the animal girl. Etinnei tightly squeezed Itinit''s hand and looked at the cloudy sky. With the help of the guide, the Arctic fox girl reached the end of the bridge, stood on the platform and looked back. From here, the bridge didn¡¯t seem so scary, although Etinnei didn¡¯t want to cross it one more time. Across the river there was a city built up with tall stone buildings in the shape of pyramids and towers. A wide straight street, paved with gray stones, led from the bridge deep into the city. ¡°At this distance, the city looks even more like the city in the game,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°Very similar,¡± Tuot agreed. ¡°Maybe this game was developed in this city?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t find information on the network about the place where the game is being created,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°Of course I didn¡¯t find it,¡± Tuot said. ¡°In fact, this is classified information. The developers are afraid that players will find out their location and do something to them.¡± There were few passersby on the outskirts of the city. But at the nearest intersection there were suddenly more of them. They walked the streets in groups of several and even in whole crowds. It was the first time Tuot had seen so many dinosaurs. In this city, he saw for the first time any dinosaurs other than himself. He had parents as a child, but he didn''t remember them. The first memory that Tuot had was meeting Halankuo in the forest. The further Etinnei went into the city, the more surprised she was at what surrounded her. Every building, every stone on the road aroused curiosity in the arctic fox girl. As she walked past one of the buildings, she accidentally noticed in a large open door a warehouse with large wooden boxes on which sat a beetle-like robot. Etinnei became interested in this being, and she entered the doorway... The robot disappeared behind the boxes. Etinnei''s body began to emit a white glow, and soon turned into a small arctic fox, the size of a large puppy. In this form, she walked up to the boxes and smelled them. Etinnei smelled a faint smell of metal at the opposite end of the warehouse, where there were large wooden boxes, and there was an exit to another street - from there, a white light emanated from a wide doorway. The Arctic fox ran there and stopped near the boxes. The smell of metal intensified sharply. A beetle robot emerged from behind the boxes, walking on six legs, and then ran away into the street. Etinnei ran after him, but the robot was no longer on the street. The arctic fox girl returned to the warehouse, took on an almost human form, and then went outside. It was a wide street with gray stone sidewalks and tall white stone buildings with sharp tops that resembled statues of coniferous trees. The street was separated from the sidewalks by alleys of tall green thorny plants. Crowds of people and dinosaurs walked here, but they did not pay any attention to the animal girl. Etinnei looked around to find Tuot and Itinit, but on such a busy street it was impossible to see anyone. The Arctic fox girl returned to the warehouse and sat down on one of the boxes. ¡°I¡¯m lost,¡± Etinnei guessed. ¡°This city is too big for me. Maybe write to Tuot? How will he find me? I don''t know where I am. Maybe I should look in the interface?¡± Etinnei ran two fingers through the air. A virtual map of the world appeared in front of her in a yellow frame, with nothing on it. ¡°Nothing is shown here, like in a game,¡± Etinnei became restless. ¡°I thought the interface would have a normal map.¡± But soon objects appeared on the map, including a red dot in the middle part of the Northern Continent. Etinnei touched her with her finger. The map area around the point has increased. The name of the city appeared above the dot, written in black symbols. ¡°Munmut,¡± Etinnei read the name of the city. ¡°This name was said by Tuota¡¯s friend, who took me across the bridge. I need to zoom in to find special objects. Otherwise, Tuot won¡¯t find me.¡± Etinnei zoomed in on the image with a movement of two fingers. A detailed map of the city with three-dimensional models of buildings has appeared. The Arctic fox girl''s attention was attracted by a tower with a spike on top in the central square. Etinnei instantly forgot about Tuot and Itinit and now wanted only one thing. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°I wonder what it looks like?¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°I need to see.¡± Etinnei left the warehouse and walked towards a tall tower with a shiny spike on top. The street led the arctic fox girl to a huge square. The tower turned out to be a gigantic monument with a sparkling gray spike at the top. This building stood in the center of the square and was visible from all the streets that faced it. Etinnei looked at the top of the monument and could not move. The arctic fox girl never thought that such a structure existed somewhere in the real world. It seemed to her that such objects could only exist in games. From the other end of the square there were cries similar to those of birds. Etinnei turned around and saw a crowd of dinosaurs standing near one of the buildings and talking about something. The arctic fox girl felt anxious and realized that it was better to leave the square before it was too late. Etinnei went down the path through the block and found herself on the embankment of a wide river. On the opposite side of the river there were white-yellow tower buildings, and on the very bank there was an alley of tree-like green thorny plants typical of Munmut. Etinnei approached the river and noticed that the water in it was light blue. Several energy bridges were generated across the river; some of them were visible in the distance, and one was located near the place where the Arctic fox girl was sitting. Etinnei did not walk across the bridge, so she walked along the shore and found herself among giant tree-like plants with sword-sized thorns. A path of gray stones ran along the shore, near which there were stone benches with awnings. Above the entrance to this place hung an inscription in a red frame, consisting of glowing symbols of the same color. ¡°Park,¡± Etinnei read. ¡°The game also included a park. But there were trees there.¡± Two dinosaurs sat on one of the benches and ate meat. Etinnei was walking by and accidentally overheard their conversation. ¡°I remember when he was a puppy,¡± one dinosaur said. ¡°He was so funny.¡± ¡°He ran after us,¡± the second dinosaur added. ¡°It was fun to be with him.¡± The first dinosaur stopped eating meat and looked at the river. ¡°Why do we eat it?¡± asked the first dinosaur. ¡°Because I want to eat,¡± the second one answered. Etinnei realized that these dinosaurs were eating the dog and was very scared. ¡°I need to go faster,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°What if they find out that I¡¯m an arctic fox and eat me too?¡± The animal girl ran deep into the park and sat down on a bench with a canopy. ¡°If these dinosaurs eat dogs, maybe Tuot eats dogs too?¡± Etinnei was even more frightened. ¡°It¡¯s unlikely that Tuot will eat me, but he might bite off my leg.¡± The arctic fox girl''s eyes opened wide, her mouth opened a little, her arms and tail dropped, and her legs closed. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, refrigerator girl,¡± a thin voice in Etinnei¡¯s head said. ¡°Your friend will not eat you.¡± The arctic fox girl noticed a white and blue penguin with a metal horn on its forehead near her. ¡°It¡¯s you again, Minniges,¡± Etinnei answered mentally. ¡°I understand that, but Tuot is a dinosaur. What if he wants to eat me?¡± ¡°Then ask him,¡± the voice answered. ¡°I''m afraid to hear the answer.¡± ¡°Do you want ice cream?¡± Etinnei drew attention to the transparent light bulb that ended Minniges''s horn. She really did look like an ice cream cone. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to eat it,¡± Etinnei answered mentally. ¡°You try,¡± Minniges answered mentally. ¡°Such a good refrigerator girl, who combines ice and electricity, should not be afraid. Maybe ice cream will help you a little.¡± Minniges''s horn turned white-pink. Then his translucent energy copy separated from him and moved to Etinnei. The little beast took it in her hand and brought it to her mouth. Etinnei''s tongue touched the ice cream cone. The arctic fox girl felt the cold and sweet taste of ice cream. But the pleasure was short-lived. Soon the girl felt pain and pulled the ice cream out of her mouth. But there was no more ice cream. It was her finger that was the ice cream. ¡°You deceived me, Minniges,¡± the arctic fox girl turned to the being in her head. ¡°It''s not real ice cream.¡± But Etinnei did not hear the answer. The animal girl looked to the side, but Minniges was not there. And then she remembered that she was lost. ¡°Where is Tuot? Where is Itinit?¡± Etinnei was scared. ¡°It seems I went too far and didn¡¯t notice it.¡± Etinnei opened the virtual screen and wrote a message to Tuot, and then laid down on the bench, curled up into a ball, grabbed her tail with her hand and closed her eyes. The virtual screen slowly disappeared into thin air. ¡°Tuot will find me,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°In the meantime, it¡¯s better to sleep. I''m far from those dinosaurs. I hope they don''t eat me.¡± Etinnei closed her eyes and almost fell asleep, but then she heard footsteps and in one jump found herself on the path. The arctic fox girl opened her eyes and saw Tuot, who had almost approached the bench. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, I won¡¯t eat you,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°I don¡¯t eat beings like you.¡± It became easier for Etinnei. Now the arctic fox girl was sure that her friend would not eat dogs. ¡°Why did you ask?¡± Tuot asked. Etinnei opened the virtual screen and logged into her account. In a chat with Tuot there was a message: ¡°Do you eat beings like me?¡± Etinnei closed the virtual screen and turned away. Her tail pressed against her buttocks and her ears twitched several times. ¡°I wanted to write where I am,¡± the arctic fox girl explained. ¡°But I wrote this instead.¡± Tuot sat down on the bench and lowered his head. After some time, he noticed Etinnei''s legs, but quickly turned away. ¡°What if I want to eat her?¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°I don¡¯t want Etinnei to know what I think about her.¡± ¡°Is what you said true?¡± Etinnei grabbed a strand of hair with her hand. ¡°Yeah. Why are you asking?¡± ¡°Did she really read my mind?¡± the dinosaur was scared. ¡°I heard two dinosaurs talking about eating their dog. I thought that you also eat dogs and I was scared of it.¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t read my mind,¡± Tuot calmed down. ¡°I want to confess something to you,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°Did your character in the game eat fox meat?¡± the animal girl suggested. ¡°No. I didn''t even think about that. I wanted to say that... I want you.¡± ¡°Do you want to eat me?¡± Etinnei looked at her friend in fear. The tip of an icicle appeared from the sleeve of her fur top. ¡°I want you in my collection,¡± Tuot explained. ¡°You¡¯re the first real animal girl I¡¯ve met.¡± The icicle went back into the sleeve. Etinnei climbed onto the bench with her legs. ¡°What does it mean to ¡°my collection¡±? How is in the game?¡± the animal girl asked. ¡° ¡°I will place your images in my room,¡± Tuot explained. ¡°And I will admire them.¡± ¡°Do you like me?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°But I''m not a character in the game.¡± Etinnei got down on all fours, and then took the form of an arctic fox and jumped onto the bench. Tuot noticed the small furry animal next to him, screamed and jumped off the bench. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid,¡± the arctic fox said. ¡°It¡¯s me, Etinnei.¡± Tuot turned his head in different directions, and then took a step forward. ¡°It looks similar,¡± the dinosaur noted. ¡°I¡¯m actually Etinnei,¡± the arctic fox said. ¡°I took on my animal form.¡± ¡°Why did you do this?¡± ¡°I did this so you wouldn''t see me in battle form.¡± ¡°Is this your battle form?¡± ¡°I can use skills in the form of an arctic fox human.¡± ¡°It''s clear. Are you against the fact that I like you?¡± ¡°No. But you''re too into animal girls. As long as it didn''t affect me, I didn''t care. But now I''m embarrassed.¡± Etinnei returned to her previous appearance, but got up from the bench and walked up to the low thorny bush. ¡°Maybe we can just be friends?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°You are my friend and friends...¡± ¡°Are not food?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°If you think about it, it sounds right. If you eat a friend, you won''t have him anymore.¡± ¡°Yes. If I eat you, I will regret it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not my fault that I look like this.¡± I didn¡¯t create myself.¡± ¡°Who created you?¡± Etinnei returned to the bench and began dangling her legs in the air. Tuot looked at the river so as not to look at his friend. ¡°I want to know,¡± the animal girl said. ¡°But I can¡¯t remember anything. It''s like I have no memories except those from the Southern Continent. I don''t know how I ended up there. I want to know this. But I can¡¯t remember, although I try.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know anything about your past either,¡± said Tuot. ¡°That''s why I can''t help. But if I have a dream in which you will be, I will tell you about it.¡± ¡°Will you really tell me?¡± ¡°Yes. I''ll tell you everything I see and hear. And I''ll share the meat if it''s there.¡± ¡°How do you get meat out of sleep?¡± ¡°No way. It''s a joke.¡± Etinnei looked at her friend angrily: ¡°Do not joke so. I believed it.¡± Etinnei pressed herself close to Tuot. The dinosaur tilted its head and saw the small fluffy ears of an arctic fox that peeked out from behind the white-yellow human hair. Tuot carefully reached out to one ear and accidentally touched it with his claw. Etinnei opened her mouth and let out a weak moan. The Arctic fox girl''s tail slapped the bench several times. ¡°I see that you have already found Etinnei,¡± the voice of Itinit was heard. Tuot turned around and saw his friend. ¡°I thought it was too difficult for you,¡± Itinit said. ¡°But you did it.¡± ¡°Of course I did it,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I know how to use the navigator in my interface. I was actually just walking around the area and saw this park and thought Etinnei might be there.¡± ¡°That explains why you found her,¡± Itinit said. ¡°While you were looking for Etinnei, I found the hotel. We can spend the night like civilized beings.¡± ¡°Is there a pillow there?¡± Etinnei stuck out her tongue and began wagging her tail. ¡°Why do you need a pillow?¡± Itinit suspected something strange. ¡°Not for sleeping?¡± ¡°Of course not,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I won¡¯t sleep on a pillow. I will gnaw on it. What else can you do with a pillow? I have the teeth for this.¡± Etinnei opened her mouth and showed her sharp teeth, more like the mouth of a predatory animal than a human mouth. Chapter 15. Island of the Stone Statue The gray-blue ocean, on which small ice floes floated, seemed endless. Only a small cone-shaped mountain, which from a distance could be mistaken for a rock, peeked out of the water. But it was an island. At the peak of the mountain there were ruins of buildings with stone columns. At the highest place, on a massive stone pedestal, stood a statue of a humanoid creature wearing a helmet that looked like a dinosaur skull with three horns and a beak. A humanoid being in dark clothes with a hood approached the ruins, from under which strands of black hair peeked out. His face was covered by a mask with motionless bulging eyes and a metal carrot instead of a nose. The being approached the statue along the broken road. A girl with red glowing eyes came out from behind the remains of a stone wall. Her weapon resembled a mixture of a sword and a spear. The costume consisted of a black helmet with two cutouts on the sides from which two black horns protruded, a sleeveless black fur dress that reached mid-thigh, and black fur boots in the shape of hooves. Long strands of black hair peeked out from under the helmet, falling over her chest, curving over it, and then hanging down to his knees. ¡°Don¡¯t be surprised, Ayika, it¡¯s really me, Kuttanai,¡± the being with the carrot nose introduced himself. ¡°I was released from my home.¡± ¡°I recognize you,¡± the girl said. ¡°You look the same like before. You look disgusting like before.¡± ¡°Disgusting? You don''t like dolls.¡± ¡°The dolls are non-living.¡± ¡°If your creator had heard you, he would have been petrified forever.¡± ¡°My creator will wake up and punish you for what you did to living beings.¡± And release will not help you. You will no longer be able to log into your account in the ¡®Mausoleum of Nature¡¯.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I came to you. You have the login information for my account.¡± ¡°If you get them, you can create new dolls. That''s why I won''t give you the data.¡± ¡°Why? I am not doing anything bad. I relieve living beings from suffering.¡± ¡°You transform living beings into dolls, and they stop really living. They simply exist.¡± Kuttanai looked at the statue. Ayika noticed this and frowned. ¡°Now he is just a statue that I am not afraid of,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°His horns don''t even emit signals. If you don''t give up your data voluntarily, I''ll have to force you to do so.¡± A wrench appeared in Kuttanai''s hand. Stone pillars emerged from the ground around the carrot-nosed man, blocking his legs and preventing him from moving. Then a stone ball flew towards the doll maker, but was stopped by a wrench and exploded in the air. A cloud of gray dust filled the ruins. Ayika rushed to attack Kuttanai and tried to hit him from the side with the blade of her spear-sword. Kuttanai blocked the blow with a pink and white electric spear that appeared in his hand free from the wrench. ¡°Give me the data, and I won¡¯t do anything bad to you,¡± Kuttanai suggested. ¡°You can take them after my death,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°Okay,¡± Kuttanai agreed and pointed a wrench at the girl. The cloud of dust cleared. The electric spear in Kuttanai''s hand disappeared. Ayika''s body went underground and appeared on top of a dilapidated column. Kuttanai directed the wrench at the stone pillars around him, and made them go underground one by one. Ayika crouched down and touched the top of the column with her weapon-free hand. The ground beneath Kuttanai''s feet began to shake. Cracks appeared in it and quickly grew larger. Kuttanai pointed the wrench at the ground below him, and one of the cracks stopped growing. Ayika closed her eyes. A black aura appeared around her body. The cracks continued to grow, and the enemy could no longer influence them. A purple aura appeared around Kuttanai, thanks to which he rose above the ground. A white-pink bolt of electricity appeared in his weapon-free hand, from which a white-pink lightning bolt then flew out. Ayika jumped back. Lightning struck the column and destroyed it. ¡°Give me the data and I¡¯ll leave here,¡± Kuttanai suggested. ¡°I guard this island, these ruins, this statue, because they are important to me,¡± Ayika thought, who was hiding behind the wall. ¡°Here is a statue of my creator. I don''t want this man with a strange nose to destroy these ruins and this statue. But I also don''t want him to turn living beings into dolls. That''s why I have to end him. I can''t hit it from the ground. Looks like I can only use my most powerful skill.¡± The black aura around Ayika increased several times. Many small stones rose from the ground into the sky. When they reached a great height, they began to attract each other and form a single large stone. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to lower these stones with the wrench,¡± Kuttanai thought. ¡°The wrench can only control one object. When there are many goals, this ability becomes useless. I will have to use my strongest skill too.¡± Kuttanai raised his hand with the wrench upward and then looked at the sky. Thunder roared. A beam of light shot from the sky and illuminated Kuttanai''s body. A powerful white-pink lightning passed through this beam and struck a man with a carrot nose, after which the beam disappeared. His aura changed from purple to electric pink-white. More lightning bolts flew from the sky. They knocked down some of the stones, which gathered over the island into a single stone ball. Sometimes lightning struck the ruins and destroyed them even more, but for some reason did not hit the statue. Ayika tensed. Her aura increased in diameter. The stones that rose up gradually became more numerous. Now lightning could not break the stones and the ball itself, which was forming over the island. Kuttanai realized that his most powerful skill had become useless and stopped using it. Lightning stopped flying from the sky. The electrical aura that surrounded him disappeared. Kuttanai landed on his feet and looked up. A huge stone ball the size of a significant part of the island formed above the ruins. Small stones no longer rose up. Kuttanai pointed the wrench at the ball. ¡°Now I won¡¯t let it explode,¡± Kuttanai thought. ¡°Now it¡¯s assembled, so I can control it with the wrench.¡± A giant stone ball hovered in the air above the island and did not move. Ayika stood on all fours and grimaced from tension. Her aura could no longer increase. It had reached her limit. The girl clenched her fist and tried to explode the stone ball in the air, but she couldn¡¯t. But Kuttanai also could not move the ball from its place. It turned out to be too big to move. The most his wrench could do was keep the ball from exploding. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Ayika could no longer maintain her skill. The girl had almost no energy left. Her aura began to diminish and soon disappeared. Small stones began to break off from the ball, fall down and disappear into the air. Kuttanai lowered the wrench and walked through the ruins in search of the enemy. He found Ayika lying face down on the ground near the almost destroyed wall. Kuttanai pointed the wrench at the girl and turned her over on her back. Ayika''s eyes were closed, her mouth was open, and her black tongue was hanging out of it. The girl was not breathing. ¡°It looks like she¡¯s dead,¡± Kuttanai thought. ¡°Now I can pick up my data, enter the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± and find the character.¡± Kuttanai opened his interface and pressed many buttons. His long tongue turned into a blue translucent energy hose, which penetrated into Ayika''s mouth. The girl''s eyes opened and became blue without pupils, and her body was surrounded by a blue energy aura. Energy from Ayika¡¯s body began to flow into Kuttanai¡¯s body through the hose, and a blue energy aura was also transferred to him. After a few tens of moments, the process stopped. The hose went back into Kuttanai''s mouth. The girl''s eyes returned to their original form and closed. *** Unana woke up and felt something slippery touch her feet. The girl turned around and saw Kimchan, who was sitting on the bed near her legs. A blanket and pillow lay on the floor. Unana had no clothes and his hair was disheveled. ¡°Why are you waking me up like that?¡± Unana asked in a sleepy voice. ¡°I don''t like tickling. I''ll wake up and feed you, just a little later.¡± The puppy jumped off the bed and left the room through the open door. ¡°I need to close the door so that the animals don¡¯t wake me up,¡± Unana thought. ¡°I¡¯m so sleepy now that I can¡¯t do anything. I can¡¯t even put a pillow and blanket on the bed.¡± Unana laid down on her side, but almost immediately realized that lying without a pillow was uncomfortable. The girl had to get out of bed, take the pillow and put it back. Kimchan came out from behind the door and began barking. ¡°Can¡¯t Yueret feed you?¡± Unana asked. The puppy did not answer. ¡°Am I talking to a dog?¡± Unana guessed. ¡°I need to wake up.¡± Unana went to Yueret''s room. The door to it was closed, but the girl summoned the door lock and entered the room. But her brother was not there. Then the archer began to open all the doors in the house, go into all the rooms, open closets, look under the bed, but Yueret was not there. The only creature that Unana met was Kimchan, who was sitting in the kitchen near the refrigerator. ¡°It looks like Yueret is not in the house,¡± Unana thought. "I''ll have to feed you.¡± Unana opened the refrigerator, took out a piece of meat and put it in the dog''s bowl. The puppy ran to the bowl and began to eat. ¡°Maybe Yueret is in the yard?¡± the archer thought. Unana left the house, walked around its perimeter and sat down on the porch. Yueret was nowhere to be found. At this moment the girl began to worry. She began to have bad suspicions. ¡°He ran away,¡± Unana thought. ¡°He left me and went to that girl with the wrench. We need to catch up with him before he goes too far.¡± Unana summoned her interface, went into her inventory, and touched the buttons with icons for clothing and shoes. A black T-shirt with a cutout on the chest, black shorts and gray boots appeared in the air and moved onto the girl. ¡°Yueret, I¡¯m coming to you,¡± Unana mentally addressed her brother. ¡°I hope that girl with the wrench doesn¡¯t do anything bad to you.¡± Heavy footsteps were heard coming from the house. ¡°Kimchan definitely can¡¯t stomp like that,¡± Unana thought. ¡°I checked all the rooms. Is there really someone in the house?¡± The sounds of footsteps became louder. A dog squeal was heard. Unana left the porch and stopped near the wall. A dinosaur wearing gray plate armor came out of the house, holding a short, curved sword in one hand. With his other hand he held Kimchan''s tail. The puppy squealed loudly and tried to bite the dinosaur, but he did not have enough flexibility to do this. A small black bow with an ordinary arrow appeared in Unana''s hands. ¡°Let the dog go!¡± Unana shouted. The dinosaur only now noticed the girl with the bow. ¡°This is my prey,¡± the being answered. ¡°I will eat it.¡± Unana released the arrow. The dinosaur fought it off with his sword. ¡°You will come with me to the house of my master, who will transform you into a doll,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°My name is Ustumut. I am master Kuttanai''s battle doll.¡± ¡°I would rather die than become a doll,¡± Unana thought. ¡°Yueret, it¡¯s time to protect me, just like I protected you.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t go with you,¡± Unana answered. ¡°Let go of the dog and get out of here!¡± ¡°I will eat the dog later,¡± Ustumut decided. ¡°I will deal with you first.¡± Ustumut threw Kimchan over the fence. The puppy whined loudly and then ran into the nearby forest. ¡°Why don¡¯t you want to come with me?¡± Ustumut asked. ¡°Becoming a doll is not scary at all. Part of your brain will be removed and replaced with an artificial one. Your eyes will stop moving. No tears will fall from them. You won''t feel hungry. You won''t have to eat.¡± ¡°For some reason you wanted to eat the dog, although you are a doll,¡± Unana noted. ¡°You contradict yourself.¡± ¡°I eat in order to feel the taste of food. I don''t need food to live because I don''t live. I exist. If you become a doll, you can eat whatever you want, whenever you want, and not get fat.¡± ¡°Maybe becoming a doll isn¡¯t so bad?¡± Unana thought. ¡°Although not. If I can¡¯t worry about Yueret, he might end up with some undead girl who will hug him.¡± ¡°Be like that yourself,¡± Unana answered. ¡°But I don¡¯t want. Give the dog back and go away.¡± ¡°Then I will have to grab you,¡± Ustumut said. ¡°This is my master''s order. I obey a signal that makes me do its bidding. Therefore, I cannot leave - neither of my own free will not in any other way.¡± A white-blue ice arrow appeared inside Unana''s bow and flew towards Ustumut. A small purple semicircular shield appeared on the dinosaur''s freed hand. The arrow hit him and partially covered it with an ice crust, after which he disappeared. Ustumut shook his shield, and the ice crust crumbled. ¡°This is a weak skill,¡± the dinosaur noted. ¡°Of course it¡¯s weak,¡± Unana confirmed. ¡°I don¡¯t want to fight you. I want you to return the puppy and leave.¡± ¡°It¡¯s impossible to convince me,¡± Ustumut answered. ¡°I obey only the signal of my master.¡± A white-purple electric arrow appeared in Unana''s bow. Ustumut responded by being covered in a green energy aura. The archer released an arrow. An energy copy of it separated from the dinosaur¡¯s aura and flew towards the enemy. The arrow hit the dinosaur replica, bounced off it, turned over and flew back to the bow. Unana jumped to the side and dodged her own arrow, which then reached a nearby tree and disappeared. The arrow left only a black mark on the tree bark. An energy copy of the aura flew towards Unana and pushed her. The girl fell to the ground. The copy flew back to its owner and merged with him. Ustumut released a green energy harpoon from his tail. Unana tried to rise, but at that moment the harpoon wrapped around her and pulled her towards the enemy. ¡°My master said that you will be the best doll after his sisters,¡± Ustumut said. Unana became scared. She didn''t want to become a doll and lose her feelings. It seemed to her that along with her feelings she would lose her brother. The archer shot an ordinary arrow at Ustumut''s leg. The dinosaur screamed in pain. The energy harpoon released the girl and then disappeared. Unana fell to the floor, rolled towards the wall of the house, and then ran into the corridor. While Ustumut was screaming, Unana closed the front door and then locked it with a lock. After that, the girl ran to the second floor, to her room. Ustumut went up to the porch and tried to pick the lock. ¡°Modern codes are different from the ancient ones,¡± Ustumut thought. ¡°Technology has gotten a little better over the years. But it¡¯s still a door lock.¡± The code entered into the lock worked the sixth time. The dinosaur turned the handle and the door opened. ¡°Leave the house!¡± Ustumut shouted. A fiery arrow flew out from behind the house. It hit the dinosaur in the tail and set it on fire a bit. Ustumut screamed loudly, jumped up and ended up on the edge of the roof. The fire on his tail went out. But the roof turned out to be uneven. The dinosaur lost its balance and fell to the ground. ¡°This house itself attacked me,¡± Ustumut decided. ¡°The creator didn¡¯t warn me about this.¡± At this time, Unana closed the window in her room. Her bow with an energy string hung behind her. ¡°This will distract him a little,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I hope Yueret will come and deal with him.¡± *** Yueret stood in a mixed forest on the slope of a mountain. He didn''t understand how he ended up here. ¡°I was worried about Halankuo and decided to go to her, went to the station, but then somehow ended up here,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°I hope I didn¡¯t go far from home. Unana is probably already worried about me.¡± Yueret went down the mountain and saw a river valley, along the bottom of which a small river flowed. A railway in the form of one rail ran next to it. The mountain slopes were covered with mixed forests, but there were almost no trees at the bottom of the valley. ¡°I remember this place,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°If you walk along this railway, you can go to the station, and from there you can go home.¡± Yueret wanted to go down into the valley, but instead went up the mountainside. ¡°Why do I go up?¡± the guy thought. ¡°I wanted to go in the other direction.¡± Then Yueret remembered Ikte¡¯s words that not only dolls, but also living beings can feel the signal. ¡°She said something about actions that are not characteristic of a certain being,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°Is the signal really affecting me?¡± Yueret sensed that Halankuo was in danger. If he returns home now, something terrible could happen to her. The guy stopped and thought. ¡°This signal forces me to go to Halankuo,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°But I have to go home. Unana is waiting for me. She might be in danger. I won¡¯t forgive myself if something bad happens to my little sister because of me.¡± Chapter 16. I Would Become a Doll After being hit by a flaming arrow and falling from the roof, Ustumut could not understand where he was. The dinosaur stood and looked around until he heard heavy footsteps from behind. Ustumut turned around and saw in front of him a guy dressed in a black jacket, pants and boots. In one hand he held a large rectangular-oval shield, in the other a short sword. ¡°What did you do to my little sister?¡± the guy asked. ¡°Nothing yet,¡± Ustumut answered. ¡°But I want to do it. My name is Ustumut. I am master Kuttanai''s doll. I sense a signal and it compels me to bring your little sister to my master. She should become his doll. You are her older brother?¡± ¡°You guessed it right,¡± the guy said. ¡°I am Yueret, Unana¡¯s older brother. I don''t want to fight with you. But it seems to me that you won''t leave.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Ustumut answered. ¡°Even if I want to leave here, the signal won¡¯t allow me.¡± A green energy aura appeared around Ustumut. Yueret responded by activating his aura. The dinosaur pushed off from the ground. A moment later, he was behind his opponent and struck him with his tail. Yueret was saved by a protective barrier in the form of a sphere that automatically appeared from the aura. Ustumut ran to the fence and turned around. On his sword-free arm, a small purple oval shield appeared with a black symbol in the middle. The dinosaur touched him with its claw. A luminous silhouette of an egg appeared near Ustumut, floating motionless in the air. ¡°Looks like he has a plan,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°This dinosaur is not stupid, despite the fact that he is a doll.¡± Soon the silhouette turned into an egg with a black shell and dark blue veins, which began to stagger. The cracking of shells was heard. The veins began to glow and released a wave of dark blue energy in a radius from the fence to the house. The protective sphere around Yueret began to flicker. ¡°This egg imposes a negative effect that reduces defense,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°He definitely has a plan. But I don¡¯t have one.¡± The first wave was followed by a second. Yueret''s protective barrier became almost transparent. ¡°I still have the shield,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°It doesn¡¯t require energy. Maybe I can somehow hold on a little longer and this egg will disappear. No, the plan is too bad. But there is no other.¡± After the third wave of dark blue energy, the protective barrier disappeared. Ustumut swung his sword several times. A symbol consisting of air currents appeared in the air and flew towards the enemy. Yueret covered himself with the shield. The wind symbol struck the shield and pushed Yueret back a little. The egg released a fourth wave of energy. Yueret''s energy aura became almost transparent. A clot of whirlwinds appeared in Ustumut¡¯s hand. The dinosaur pointed it at the enemy and released it. A powerful stream of wind erupted from the clot of whirlwinds and hit the enemy. Yueret completely hid behind the shield, but this did not help. The guy was carried by the wind to the wall of the house, and the shield disappeared. ¡°I need to deal with the egg first,¡± Yueret decided. Yueret released a blue energy beam from his hand, but did not hit the egg, since Ustumut covered it with himself. The beam hit the shield on the dinosaur''s arm and absorbed it. The fifth wave of energy has passed. Yueret''s aura had almost disappeared. The guy realized that his aura would soon disappear, so he ran to attack the egg. Ustumut parried several blows from Yueret''s sword with his weapon, but did not notice how a light beam from the enemy''s hand hit the egg. The egg began to flicker, but released one last wave of dark blue energy before disappearing. This was enough for Yueret''s aura to disappear. Ustumut noticed this, pushed the enemy away with his shield, and then released an energy harpoon from his tail. Yueret felt that he would not be able to activate the aura again due to lack of energy. So he simply summoned a shield and covered himself with it. But this did not help. The harpoon wrapped around Yueret¡¯s body, lifted him off the ground and threw him over the fence. Ustumut entered the house and headed to the second floor. The dinosaur stopped near the door to Unana''s room and then hit its head on the door, causing several cracks to appear in it. This was followed by several more head blows, and the door shattered into several pieces. Ustumut looked around the room, but saw no one. The dinosaur did not wait for someone to appear there, and went to the first floor. At this time, Unana was sitting under the bed and did not move. The bedspread, which reached the floor, completely hid her from anyone who could enter the room. After the dinosaur left the room, Unana crawled out from under the bed, went to the window and opened it. Yueret stood below him and looked up. ¡°He has finally come,¡± Unana rejoiced. ¡°A little more and it would be too late.¡± Yueret noticed his little sister looking out of the window. ¡°Unana, jump!¡± Yueret shouted. ¡°Where have you been?¡± Unana asked. ¡°I''ll tell you later. Jump!¡± A purple aura appeared around Unana. The girl jumped from the window and landed next to her brother. Yueret grabbed his sister by the hand and dragged her into the bushes near the fence. ¡°We must run,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I thought you would fight a dinosaur and defeat it,¡± Unana suggested. ¡°This dinosaur is very strong. He can summon an egg that reduces defense.¡± ¡°Are you scared of him?¡± ¡°Yeah. This was the first time I saw such a negative effect.¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s fight him together.¡± ¡°This is dangerous. If they capture you, they will make you a doll.¡± ¡°I don''t want to be a doll.¡± ¡°Then we have to run.¡± ¡°And leave the house to this dinosaur, which is not even alive?¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Yeah. If you become a doll, you won''t need this house. It will mean nothing to you.¡± The brother and sister walked along the fence to the emergency exit, opened the door and walked out onto a stone path that led into a mixed forest with tall trees. ¡°Where is Kimchan?¡± Unana asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Yueret answered. ¡°I didn¡¯t see him.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t leave without him. Kimchan can get to that dinosaur and it will eat him. He himself said that he wanted to eat Kimchan.¡± Yueret and Unana began to walk along the fence and look around. Near the forest they saw a brown puppy sniffing the ground. ¡°This is Kimchan,¡± Unana rejoiced. ¡°It has been found!¡± Unana ran to the puppy, took him in her arms and went into the forest. Yueret followed her. *** Kyotyoryon was lying on the bed with her eyes open and not moving. Halankuo sat on the floor next to the spirit of metal in front of a virtual screen with the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± open. The girl went into different sections of the program, but was never able to find out the reason for her character¡¯s malfunction. There was the sound of an incoming message. Halankuo minimized the program, logged into her messenger account and saw a message from Tuot there: ¡°I''m not at home. I went with Itinit to the coast and now I am in Munmut.¡± If Tuot had been at home, Halankuo would not have believed him. But now the girl took this information seriously. She was surprised that Tuot would do such a thing, but the character bothered her more. ¡°Why did you go there?¡± Halankuo wrote. At this time, Tuot and Itinit were in a hotel room playing a game on virtual screens. Tuot heard the sound of an incoming message, minimized the game and read it. ¡°It¡¯s a secret,¡± Tuot wrote. ¡°When I get back, I¡¯ll tell you.¡± Itinit heard the sound of an incoming message. The guy minimized the game and saw a message from Halankuo: ¡°I have a problem. My character stopped moving. But it is impossible to translate it into its original form. What to do?¡± ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t play yet,¡± Itinit addressed Tuot. ¡°I need to go.¡± Tuot opened his mouth wide in surprise and began to move his head back and forth. ¡°Where are you going?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you,¡± Itinit said. ¡°But it¡¯s important.¡± Itinit closed the virtual screen, left the room, and then looked around. When he was sure no one was watching him, he opened the virtual screen again. ¡°Did you move the character back into the program?¡± Itinit wrote. ¡°No. Kyotyoryon really doesn¡¯t like being inside the program. I promised her not to move her there again. If I do this, she will be offended by me,¡± Appeared the answer from Halankuo. ¡°This may be the only way to fix the character. If you move it into a program, reboot it, and then move it into the real world, it should work.¡± ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°This has already happened to my character.¡± Halankuo looked at the motionless Kyotyoryon and imagined her as the doll she had seen before. The girl created the character out of curiosity, and at first did not consider the transferred creature to be alive. But gradually Halankuo realized that she had become attached to this strange creature, which thinks like artificial intelligence, at the same time has its own character and often comes to strange conclusions. Halankuo wanted her character to be the same as before. ¡°If I do what Itinit advised, Kyotyoryon will not like it when she wakes up,¡± thought Halankuo. ¡°And if I leave her in this form, she may remain only a shell, albeit a real one.¡± *** Yueret, Unana and Kimchan entered an abandoned village. The old paving stones were overgrown with plants, but they were still walkable. All that remains of most houses are wooden walls. Young trees grew on the roofs of the few surviving houses. ¡°They won¡¯t find us here,¡± Yueret said. ¡°There are no local residents left in this village, so it¡¯s safe here.¡± ¡°For some reason I don¡¯t think so,¡± Unana was too scared, so she didn¡¯t believe her brother. The village consisted of two long streets located along a small rushing river. Beyond the river one could see rocks covered with dense mixed forest. On the other side of the village there is a gentle slope of the mountain, overgrown with bushes. ¡°Where were you this morning?¡± Unana looked angrily at her brother. ¡°I accidentally ended up in the forest not far from here,¡± Yueret explained. ¡°Then I realized that I had been influenced by the signal.¡± ¡°Is it coming from the carrot of that scary being?¡± ¡°Don''t know. But I was able to resist the signal and returned. I don''t want the signal to affect you the way it affected me. Therefore, we need to run from here to where the signal will not affect us.¡± ¡°It acts somehow strange. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn''t.¡± ¡°This happens for some reason. The doll seemed to be talking about this.¡± Yueret remembered that when he was under the control of the signal, he was worried about Halankuo. ¡°I remembered,¡± Yueret said. ¡°The signal affects those whose feelings change. Each sense has a scale that fills depending on the creature¡¯s experiences. By default it is hidden and very difficult to see. If the feeling level is less than the signal level, then the signal can take control of the creature. When I was worried about Halankuo, my level of concern for you decreased, and my level of concern for Halankuo had not yet increased enough to exceed the signal level. Therefore, the signal was able to control me.¡± ¡°I thought you went to that girl with the wrench,¡± Unana frowned. ¡°If the signal worked as you said, then you were trying to choose between me and Halankuo?¡± Yueret realized that Unana was about to get angry, and took a few steps back. ¡°If she thinks like she just said, the level of her feelings will change, and the signal will be able to control her,¡± Yueret was afraid. ¡°But it won¡¯t be possible to deceive my younger sister, who knows everything about me.¡± ¡°No,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°I was more worried about you than about Halankuo. Therefore, I was able to free myself from the influence of the signal. Halankuo is my childhood friend whom I forgot, and you are my little sister. You are more important than her.¡± Kimchan stopped near one of the surviving houses and began to bark. Brother and sister approached the puppy. Yueret then walked to the door and slowly opened it. The old door creaked open. A corridor with shabby walls appeared, which ended in a door with several holes. Yueret tried to enter the house, but was stopped by Unana. The girl held her brother''s hand and did not allow him to go further. ¡°You can¡¯t go there,¡± Unana said. ¡°It could be dangerous there.¡± ¡°I believe Kimchan,¡± Yueret said. ¡°He found something and wants me to go there.¡± Unana grabbed her brother''s hand with her other hand and pulled him back. Yueret tried to free himself, but he failed. Then he walked back, and then turned around and pushed Unana against the wall of the house. The girl hit her head and was forced to let go of her brother''s hand. Yueret entered the house, opened the second door and found himself in a room in the middle of which stood a stone coffin on a stone pedestal. Kimchan ran up to the pedestal and began barking. Yueret slowly approached the coffin and saw in it a stone statue of a girl with long hair, from under which ¡°bull¡± horns peeked out, in a short sleeveless dress, with hooves on her feet. ¡°What is it?¡± Yueret thought. ¡°And why is it here? This is the first time I''ve seen this. This is a statue of a very strange creature. It looks human, but the horns indicate that it is not human. Maybe this is a character from some game?¡± Yueret summoned his interface, took a few pictures of this statue, and then left the house. ¡°It¡¯s really better not to go there,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Unana, I shouldn¡¯t have listened to you.¡± But Unana was not near the house. Yueret looked around and saw his younger sister in the distance, walking towards the exit of the village. Yueret ran after Unana, caught up with her and grabbed her hand. The girl turned around and looked angrily at her brother. ¡°Leave me alone!¡± Unana shouted. ¡°I would rather become a doll than go with you! I don''t want to be with the one who killed mom and dad!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t kill mom and dad,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I just didn¡¯t find them. But I will find them. I don''t want you to become a doll.¡± ¡°It happened so. I''m sorry. I just wanted you not to stop me from entering that house.¡± An arrow appeared in Unana''s free hand. She plunged it into her brother''s hand, which was holding her hand. Yueret felt pain in his hand, screamed and let go of his little sister''s hand. Unana ran further and disappeared behind the trees. Yueret tried to pull the arrow out of his hand, but felt pain and stopped. Blood came out of the wound. Kimchan approached Yueret, grabbed the feather of the arrow with his teeth and pulled it out of the guy¡¯s hand. Blood flowed even more from the wound. Yueret began to lose strength, and realized that something urgently needed to be done. The guy summoned his interface, entered his inventory, took out a bandage and bandaged the wound. By evening, Yueret found himself sitting under a tree. His hand almost stopped hurting. His strength returned a little. The guy summoned a virtual screen and wrote a message to Ikte, in which he told about what happened. Yueret knew that he himself could not cope with a dinosaur doll and a younger sister who was offended by him, so he hoped for help from someone else. Soon an answer came from Ikte: ¡°Show me your location.¡± Yueret pressed the button with the spear tip icon at the top of the screen... ... Ikte sat on a stump in an old mixed forest with an open virtual screen in front of her. ¡°That girl shouldn¡¯t become a doll,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°She¡¯s his little sister. Little sisters are always special to older brothers. I can help these people, but I can''t risk it. I must not be controlled by the signal. I can''t feel the signal here, but closer to Yueret''s house I can feel it. Looks like now I''ll have to keep avoiding the signal until someone finishes off Kuttanai. Now I can''t do anything with it. I tried several times before. But every time it didn''t end in anything. Although I did not obey the signal, I was able to defeat Kuttanai even in a weakened state. Back then the signal was much weaker than it is now. All I can do is flying to Yueret''s house and guard it. Maybe I''ll meet an old friend there. Kuttanai must have sent his smartest doll there. It will be interesting with him.¡± Chapter 17. Ice That Makes Fall Asleep The snowy coniferous forest on the steep mountainside was covered in thick fog. Drops of water fell from the tips of the branches onto the snow and made holes in it. The upper part of the creature''s head with small white-yellow fluffy ears appeared from behind a thick tree. ¡°I see ears,¡± a voice said from above. A girl in a blue-white fur jacket with a hood, from which those same ears were sticking out, ran out from behind a tree and hid behind another tree. Instead of ears, a white-yellow fluffy tail now peeked out from behind the tree trunk. ¡°I see a tail,¡± a voice said from above. The girl came out from behind the tree and yawned. Her bare legs, covered on top with white-blue fur shorts, stepped on the snow as if they didn¡¯t feel it. ¡°I don¡¯t want to play hide and seek anymore,¡± the animal girl said. ¡°Let''s go to the peak of the mountain. I''m interested in what''s there.¡± The fog cleared a little. A path appeared, made of gray-pink stones, which led up a steep slope through another forest area. The girl walked up to the path, sat down and touched the stone with her hand. ¡°Someone paved a road here,¡± a voice sounded in the animal girl¡¯s head. ¡°This island was probably inhabited before. You should be careful, Etinnei. If there is a road, there may be those who walk along it.¡± The higher Etinnei rose, the more the view of the surrounding area opened up: spaces covered with snow-covered coniferous forests were visible in the distance, and then disappeared into the fog. The trees became lower and the distance between them increased. Closer to the peak of the mountain, the trees gave way to coniferous bushes... ... Etinnei has reached the peak. It turned out to be flat, treeless, but covered with the ruins of stone buildings and columns. From here the surroundings were no longer visible. They were hidden by the thick fog that remained below. There, in the center of the ruins, stood a statue of a humanoid creature in armor. Instead of a nose, it had a beak, and feathers protruded from where ears should be. There are two large horns on the forehead, and a small horn just above the beak. Etinnei looked at the ruins with interest, and then took a few steps forward. ¡°What is it?¡± the animal girl pointed to the statue. ¡°Nothing special,¡± the voice in her head answered. ¡°It¡¯s just ancient ruins and a statue.¡± Etinnei noticed a girl with red glowing eyes and a strange weapon resembling a mixture of a sword and a spear on top of one of the columns. She was also dressed strangely. On the head is a white helmet with two cutouts on the sides, from which two black horns protrude, below the neck a white-blue sleeveless dress to the middle of the hips. On her feet are white-yellow fur boots in the shape of hooves. Long strands of yellow hair peeked out from under the helmet, falling over her chest, curving over it, and then hanging down to her knees. ¡°So this island is inhabited,¡± a voice said in Etinnei¡¯s head. The horned girl ran her weapon across the snow. A snowflake the size of a person emerged from the trail that appeared and flew to Etinnei. A long icicle emerged from the sleeve of the arctic fox girl... ... The snowflake reached the arctic fox girl, but was broken by an icicle covered in an electric aura. Etinnei ran back and hid behind the nearest wall. The arctic fox girl was seized with horror. Her eyes bulged and looked at the snow, and icy vapors came out of her mouth. ¡°She will appear now,¡± Etinnei heard a voice in her head. ¡°Be ready.¡± A horned girl appeared from under the snow right in front of Etinnei and pierced her with her strange weapon. The animal girl turned into an ice statue, after which it crumbled... ... Tuot screamed and realized that he had woken up. His hotel room was dark. But the dinosaur was not afraid. He remembered that he turned off the light in order to fall asleep faster. Tuot left the room into the corridor and went to the balcony. From there was a view of the city at night. Towers and pyramids were illuminated in different colors. The dinosaur couldn''t take his eyes off them. ¡°It is beautiful here?¡± Etinnei¡¯s voice was heard. Tuot looked to the side and saw an arctic fox girl standing nearby and looking at the city. ¡°Of course,¡± Tuot replied. ¡°There are no such views in my hometown.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t in the places where I lived either,¡± Etinnei looked at the city and didn¡¯t blink. ¡°I decided to see what this city looks like at night, so I came here. It seems to me that I won''t be able to leave here.¡± Tuot looked at Etinnei''s tail, which was wagging from side to side, opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue. The dinosaur summoned a virtual screen and tried to take a photo, but was unable to because his hands were shaking. Soon a trembling took over his entire body. Tuot could not stay on his feet and fell to the floor. His virtual screen closed. Etinnei heard the sound of a falling object and turned around. Tuot was lying on his back. ¡°What happened to you?¡± the arctic fox girl asked. ¡°Nothing,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°I just couldn¡¯t stand it. You''re too cute.¡± Etinnei walked up to Tuot, knelt down and licked the dinosaur''s face with her tongue. Tuot began to groan, pushed his friend away, rose to his feet and retreated to the exit from the balcony. The arctic fox girl looked at Tuot with a sad look. Tears came out of her eyes. ¡°Why did you push me?¡± the girl asked. ¡°You don¡¯t want to be friends with me?¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to offend you.¡± Etinnei wiped her tears. ¡°Do you really want to be friends with me?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°I have four ears, but you don¡¯t have any. We are not right for each other.¡± Tuot grabbed his head with his hands and did not feel his ears there. ¡°I really don¡¯t have ears,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°But it is not important. Friendship doesn''t depend on how many ears you have.¡± Etinnei rushed at Tuot and knocked him to the floor, after which she began licking his face with her tongue. The dinosaur tried to resist, but his girlfriend did not understand this and was not going to stop. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. Tuot became covered in an energy aura, and only then did Etinnei notice it. The arctic fox girl got off the dinosaur and looked at it for a few moments. This was enough for Tuot to get up from the floor. Etinnei rushed at her friend again, but missed and fell face down on the floor. ¡°Today I had a dream in which you were,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I need to tell you about this.¡± Etinnei got down on all fours, then sat on her knees, stuck out her tongue, and began wagging her tail from side to side. ¡°What was I doing there?¡± the arctic fox girl stuck out her tongue. ¡°Tell me!¡± Tuot talked about what he dreamed about today. Etinnei scratched behind her ear on the top of her head with her foot, and then stuck her own tongue back into her mouth. ¡°I can¡¯t sleep,¡± a voice was heard in Etinnei¡¯s head. ¡°You think too much.¡± A white and blue penguin with a horn on its forehead that looked like an ice cream cone appeared in front of the arctic fox girl. ¡°I¡¯m trying to remember what happened on the island with the ruins and the statue,¡± Etinnei replied. ¡°But I cannot¡±. ¡°You don¡¯t have enough memories,¡± Minniges¡¯ voice rang out in Etinnei¡¯s head. ¡°But I have a backup copy of them. They are stored on a memory card inside me. I''ll take them out and show you. Just don''t be scared if you see something scary. Are you ready?¡± ¡°Yes. I want to know my past.¡± Minniges disappeared. Etinnei felt that she was getting cold and at the same time wanted to sleep. A wooden coffin filled with ice appeared near the Arctic fox girl. Her eyes closed, her body rose above the floor, and then moved into the coffin. Tuot noticed this, made a loud bird screech, and then ran off the balcony. Etinnei''s legs were covered with ice, from where it began to slowly spread up her body. The arctic fox girl''s hair changed from black to white-yellow, and the gray-purple fur top with sleeves was replaced by a white-blue fur jacket with a hood... ... Etinnei, in her winter form, stood on the seashore, in a snow-covered coniferous forest. The arctic fox girl''s bare feet stood on an ice floe that had washed ashore. Etinnei did not feel the cold, only a slight coolness, but she felt the wind blowing in her face. ¡°The weather is good today,¡± a voice in Etinnei¡¯s head said. The arctic fox girl turned around and saw Minniges in front of her. ¡°The Island of the Stone Statue should be visible from here,¡± Etinnei thought. In the middle of the sea was a snow-capped mountain with steep slopes. But the path to it was blocked by a gray-blue sea with a large number of white ice floes. ¡°Almost nothing is known about this island,¡± Etinnei touched the arctic fox¡¯s ears with her hands. ¡°I want to know what¡¯s there. Let''s go there.¡± ¡°It¡¯s dangerous there,¡± Minniges replied. ¡°We can¡¯t go there.¡± Etinnei turned away and closed her eyes so as not to see her companion, but Minniges appeared before her even in this state. ¡°Don¡¯t forget that I live in your head,¡± Minniges said. ¡°Only you can see and hear me.¡± ¡°Are you afraid that something will happen to me?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Yes, I''m afraid. If something happens to you, what will happen to me? I never left you. I looked at the world through your eyes and heard through your ears, refrigerator girl. I''m not sure I can live like an ordinary being.¡± Etinnei reached out to Minniges and stroked his horn on his head, which looked like an ice cream cone. In reality, the arctic fox girl was stroking the air. ¡°Do you want ice cream?¡± Minniges asked. Etinnei took her finger into her mouth... ... It was a sunny summer day. Etinnei, in her summer form, was climbing the mountainside, along a path of stones. The forests remained lower down the slope. On both sides of the path grew low coniferous trees and shrubs that almost spread along the ground, and herbaceous plants that did not form a continuous cover. The empty space between the plants was occupied by gray-black stones and black earth. From the peak of the mountain there was a view of the gray-blue sea and on the other side there were ruins of buildings with columns and a statue of a humanoid creature with a beak and three horns on its head. ¡°I wonder what creature is depicted in the form of a statue,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°I have never seen such creatures.¡± ¡°This creature does not necessarily exist in reality,¡± Minniges replied. ¡°Perhaps this is a fictional creature.¡± Etinnei took a few steps towards the statue. From behind a half-destroyed wall, a stone ball the size of a human head flew at her. The arctic girl dodged. The ball flew off the peak and exploded in the air. ¡°Is there really someone guarding this place?¡± Minniges¡¯ voice sounded. On one of the columns stood a girl in a black helmet, from the holes in which two black horns protruded, with long brown hair, in a short black fur dress without sleeves and black fur boots that looked like hooves. In her hands she held a spear-sword. ¡°Run away from here, refrigerator girl,¡± Minniges¡¯s voice was heard. ¡°This is the spirit of the cow that guards the ruins and the statue.¡± The horned girl pushed off the ground with her feet, found herself near Etinnei in one leap and raised her weapon to strike. A large icicle emerged from the arctic fox girl¡¯s sleeve and parried the blow of the spear-sword. ¡°Don¡¯t touch me,¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°I came to look at the peak of the mountain. I was wondering what was here.¡± ¡°No one should climb to the peak of this mountain,¡± the horned girl answered. ¡°I am Ayika, the guard of these ruins. It looks like you are also a character created in Nature''s Mausoleum. Who is your creator? My creator is here.¡± The ice icicle from the Etinnei sleeve crumbled. Ayika pointed the blade of her spear at the statue, which stood on a stone pedestal among the ruins. ¡°Is your creator the statue?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Now yes,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°But he used to be like you or me. I have been guarding it and these ruins for many years. And I''m waiting for my creator to return.¡± ¡°Get out of here, refrigerator girl,¡± Minniges¡¯ voice was heard. ¡°This girl is just like me,¡± Etinnei answered mentally. ¡°She¡¯s not dangerous.¡± ¡°She attacked you. You shouldn''t trust her.¡± ¡°She''s good. She won''t attack me again.¡± Ayika scratched Etinnei behind the arctic fox''s ear, then took off her hood and stroked her head. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen creatures with features of different species for a long time,¡± Ayika said. ¡°Who is your creator?¡± ¡°Who is the creator?¡± Etinnei could not understand. ¡°I don¡¯t have a creator.¡± ¡°This cannot be. People with the ears and tail of an arctic fox cannot exist in this world. You were definitely created in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature.¡± ¡°What is the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±? This is a place where there is nothing. I don''t want to remember this. It''s good if you don''t remember what it is. ¡°I don¡¯t remember having a creator. It seems to me that I have always been.¡± ¡°How did you get here? My creator specially settled on this island because it is very remote from other territories and there are frequent fogs, although there is no fog today.¡± ¡°My coffin floated ashore on a neighboring island. I travel in it. I''m interested in finding out what is where and what it looks like. I also wonder if it¡¯s tasty or at least edible.¡± ¡°I also have a coffin. Can you show it?¡± Etinnei summoned a wooden coffin using her interface. Ayika jabbed her spear at him, but the blade was stopped by an ice barrier that suddenly formed around the coffin. ¡°I don¡¯t remember,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°Only Minniges is with me. He lives in my head...¡± ¡°This happens with characters. Sooner or later, an image appears in their brain from the generation of thoughts, which turns into a character. My creator knew this, so he copied me in the form of statues. When the image of a new character appears in my head, another statue appears in the world.¡± ¡°Like the statue of your creator?¡± ¡°Yes. My creator cares about me even after he turned into a statue. If I am killed, I will be reborn from one of the statues. I don''t know which one exactly. But my data will be transferred there.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have statues. But I have Minniges. He talks to me and tells me what to do.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t he warn you that it¡¯s better not to go to the peak of this mountain?¡± Etinnei looked down and made a sad face. ¡°He warned me,¡± the arctic fox girl said. ¡°But I was interested in being here. I always look around all the places I go.¡± ¡°As you can see, there are just ruins and some kind of statue here,¡± Ayika looked at the statue of her creator. ¡°There''s nothing interesting here.¡± ¡°But this is a statue of your creator. Is it not interesting to you?¡± ¡°It means a lot to me. One day it will crack and crumble. My creator will be the same as before. Then we will be together. But you shouldn''t even think about this place and this statue. Forget what I told you and go back to where you came from.¡± Ayika stuck her spear into the ground. Etinnei was thrown into the air and then transferred to the coffin... ... Tuot and Itinit came to the balcony and saw there a coffin with an ice statue of Etinnei, which was surrounded by white ice steam. ¡°What''s happening?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°It looks like her passive skill,¡± Itinit guessed. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, nothing will happen to your friend. Soon it will melt. I went to bed.¡± Itinit went into the corridor. Tuot looked at the frozen Arctic fox girl and wanted to approach her, but he remembered the dream and did not want it to come true. The dinosaur just stood there and looked at his friend, but this time he didn''t think about food. He just wanted Etinnei to be the same. Morning has come. The sunlight illuminated the girl''s face and neck. A few drops of water fell on the floor of the balcony. Tuot heard them and noticed that the ice was slowly melting. The dinosaur felt such joy that he approached the coffin and tried to break the remaining ice, but received an electric shock. Lightning pulsed inside the ice, and some of it came out through cracks. When there were many cracks, the ice statue crumbled. Etinnei''s hair turned black again, and her fur jacket was replaced by a fur top with sleeves and a hood. The arctic fox girl opened her eyes. The coffin disappeared and her body rose to the ceiling before collapsing to the floor. Chapter 18. The Smartest Doll The train drove through dense deciduous forests. In the distance the outlines of mountains could be seen, shrouded in gray-blue fog. Etinnei curled up on the cot under Itinit and slept. Tuot looked at the Arctic fox girl and was glad that she did not notice him. ¡°We will soon arrive in Tohsonun,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Tuot, stop staring at it. Of course it are cute, but looking at them too often is somehow strange.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not strange,¡± Tuot summoned a virtual screen and took several pictures. ¡°You said it were cute. So you like it too?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Etinnei¡¯s voice was heard. ¡°About local landscapes,¡± Itinit lied. ¡°Are these mountains and forests really cute?¡± ¡°When I woke up, I heard something different,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°Perhaps it seemed to me. I hope they weren''t talking about me.¡± The mountains were getting closer and closer. Along with the mountains, the fog was also approaching. The forests became more dense. Low tree ferns and deciduous shrubs appeared under the trees. The train entered a tunnel. For a few moments there was darkness, but soon the previous landscape resumed outside the window. Etinnei looked out the window with interest. The train turned to the side. From the windows there was a view of the gray sea, to which the mountainside descended, covered with light green deciduous forests, shrouded in a layer of fog. Etinnei opened her mouth in surprise and stuck out her tongue. ¡°This is the sea?¡± the arctic fox girl asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°This is one of the coasts of the Northern Continent.¡± ¡°So this is what the sea looks like, like in a game,¡± Tuot thought. The speed of the train decreased. Stone pillars and several rails appeared from the windows, diverging in different directions. Soon the station itself came into view: a gray stone building in the shape of a pyramid stood in front of a spacious platform covered with a giant canopy with columns. The station had several entrances from the platform: in front of each of them there were two stone statues. Tuot was the first to get off the train, walked up to one of the statues and began to examine it. It was a creature in a dress-armor, with a helmet on its head, from which two horns protruded, and a spear-sword in its hand. The lower part of the face was hidden by a mask. ¡°This statue looks like a girl with horns from a dream,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°It¡¯s probably just a coincidence.¡± ¡°Are you interested in statues now?¡± Itinit¡¯s voice came from behind the dinosaur. ¡°I¡¯m not that perverted,¡± Tuot objected. ¡°What creature does this statue depict?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Itinit came closer to his friend. ¡°But these statues have been here for a long time.¡± Etinnei walked up to Tuot and looked at the statue. ¡°This creature was in the memories that Minniges showed me,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I think her name is... Something like A... Maybe Minniges remembers?¡± But Minniges did not answer. Inside the station there was a gigantic hall with thick gray stone columns. On the walls there are huge virtual screens with train schedules and a real-time route map. ¡°You can get lost here,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°I won¡¯t get lost,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I find my way by smell. So I can''t get lost.¡± Tuot and Itinit looked at Etinnei somehow strangely. The arctic fox girl remembered that she had recently gotten lost in the big Munmut and she felt embarrassed. On the other side of the station there was a large area covered with paving stones. Several paved roads led from it to the town. Tohsonun began with small wooden houses that stood along the road. Several stone pyramids peeked out from behind them. The rest of the town was built up with tall, rectangular stone and low wooden houses. The town approached the seashore almost closely and was separated from the water by piles of boulders against which the waves crashed. ¡°I¡¯ll go to the ships¡¯ parking lot,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I need to find the robot ship I reserved. Wait for me here.¡± Itinit walked along the shore towards the silhouettes of ships in the distance. Tuot and Etinnei sat on the boulders and began to look at the sea. ¡°The sea looks so scary and delicious at the same time,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I want to try it. I wonder what kind of water in this sea is warm or cold.¡± ¡°Are you afraid to check?¡± Tuot asked. Etinnei tried to touch the water with her foot, but did not dare. ¡°A little,¡± the arctic fox girl answered. ¡°On the Southern Continent I touched the water several times, and it was warm. And here I am afraid that the water will be cold. My feet don''t get cold, so I decided to touch the water with my foot first rather than my hand. But I couldn¡¯t do even that. Maybe try again?¡± Etinnei plunged her leg knee-deep into the water and then pulled it out. ¡°The water is warm,¡± the arctic fox girl said. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have been afraid.¡± Tuot brought his foot to the surface of the water and then slowly plunged it into the water. The dinosaur froze for a few moments, and then took its foot out of the water and crawled back a little. ¡°This water is cool,¡± Tuot said. ¡°You deceived me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m an arctic fox,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I¡¯m better adapted to the cold than you.¡± Etinnei saw her reflection in the water, smiled, folded her hands together at chest level and began to wave her tail from side to side. A new idea appeared in her head. ¡°If I freeze the sea, then I can walk on ice,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°It will be fun¡±. Etinnei touched the water with her foot. A white glow appeared between the surface of the water and the foot, from which icy vapors spread in all directions. Etinnei''s body was filled with white light, which soon disappeared. The arctic fox girl''s hair turned white-yellow, and her clothes changed to a blue-white fur jacket with a hood and fur shorts. ¡°Her hair became the same color as in the dream,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°And even the clothes are like that. Something is definitely wrong with these dreams. They can¡¯t just be a dream.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. The white glow with fumes turned into a small but thick ice floe. Etinnei stood on it and pushed off the coastal stone with her second foot. The ice floe floated a little from the shore and began to spin in place. ¡°I thought that the sea would freeze at least to the horizon,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°But I was mistaken. I only had enough strength for such a small piece of ice. But this is even more fun. I can ride it.¡± Because of her thoughts, Etinnei became distracted and therefore began to lose her balance. The girl staggered on one leg and then fell into the water. But she could not drown: an ice crust appeared around Etinnei, which kept her body on the surface of the water. A few moments later, Tuot noticed that his girlfriend was chest-deep in water, and she was surrounded by an icy ¡°lifebuoy.¡± A green energy aura appeared around the dinosaur, after which it turned backwards. A green energy harpoon emerged from the tail part of the aura and headed towards Etinnei. Tuot wanted to grab the arctic fox girl by the hood, but instead the harpoon grabbed her by the ear and pulled her to the shore. Etinnei opened her mouth, widened her eyes, and then moaned loudly... ... The ice around Etinnei cracked. The harpoon almost instantly pulled the girl ashore and then released her. Etinnei''s moans became quieter and then stopped altogether. The arctic fox girl curled up into a ball and put her hood on her head. The aura around Tuot disappeared. Passers-by did not notice what was happening on the shore. They were not surprised either by the arctic fox girl who stood on the ice floe, or by the dinosaur launching an energy harpoon from its aura. ¡°Did it hurt?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yup,¡± Etinnei¡¯s voice was heard from under the hood. ¡°Aren''t you mad at me?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I hurt you.¡± ¡°Not you, but your skill.¡± ¡°But I used it.¡± Etinnei turned to Tuot. ¡°It was it that hurt me, not you,¡± the animal girl said angrily. ¡°It''s your skill that''s to blame. I hate it. If I see him again, I will destroy him. And you are not to blame for anything. You''re good. You are my friend.¡± ¡°It¡¯s good that the characters from the program think like this,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Otherwise I would already be dead.¡± Etinnei''s body was again filled with white light, which then disappeared. The girl''s hair turned black again, and her winter clothes were replaced by summer ones - a short gray-purple fur top with a hood and shorts. ¡°Can you once again call upon the skill that brought me to shore?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Do you want to destroy it?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yup!¡± ¡°I can¡¯t summon him. It is cooldown.¡± Etinnei looked at Tuot angrily and then turned away. ¡°You will summon it later, when the cooldown ended,¡± the animal girl said. ¡°It¡¯s good that she believed,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I hope she forgets about it and doesn¡¯t force me to call the harpoon again.¡± Etinnei touched the injured ear. It still hurt a little, but no damage could be found. ¡°I hope everything is okay with the ear,¡± the arctic fox girl said. ¡°The arctic fox¡¯s ears help me hear better. You cannot rely on ordinary ears, which are located on the sides. They hear almost nothing. I don''t understand how people live with normal ears.¡± *** Ikte in a purple aura, with closed eyes and lowered hands, flew over endless mixed forests. Suddenly, the remains of a village appeared among the forests. The stockade surrounded the area with trees, bushes, open areas and a house in the middle. The doll landed near the wooden gate, after which it opened its eyes and looked at the gate. The gate opened with a creak. The doll entered the yard. The door to the house was open. Ikte approached the porch and was about to enter the house, but heard a rustling somewhere nearby. The doll walked along the path and accidentally discovered a dinosaur with a long tail in armor, who was trying to hide behind a bush. ¡°You hid yourself well,¡± Ustumut,¡± Ikte said. ¡°I didn¡¯t notice you right away.¡± Ustumut looked at the doll, rose from the ground and retreated a little towards the fence. ¡°Ikte, what are you doing here?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°I came here to find Yueret¡¯s little sister,¡± the doll explained. ¡°Her name is Unana. Do you know her?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Ustumut answered. ¡°Your little brother ordered me to bring Unana to his home. He wants to make her a doll.¡± ¡°Get out of here.¡± ¡°I can''t. This is my master''s order.¡± ¡°And I am your master¡¯s elder sister. My orders take precedence over your master''s orders.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re his doll. You must obey him.¡± ¡°I shouldn¡¯t. I am immune to his signal due to the fact that I am his older sister.¡± A short curved sword appeared in Ustumut''s hand. ¡°The signal orders me,¡± the dinosaur explained. ¡°I can¡¯t resist him. If you are against my master''s orders, I will have to destroy you. In this case, the status of his older sister will not save you.¡± A green energy aura appeared around Ustumut. Ikte''s pupils turned purple. The doll looked at the dinosaur and tried to focus on it, but could not. Ustumut jumped to the side and avoided the attack. The dinosaur appeared behind Ikte and hit her with its tail. The doll''s body broke into two parts: the upper one flew towards the fence and hung in the air, and the lower one fell to the ground. ¡°He¡¯s too fast in this energy aura,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°I don¡¯t have time to keep track of him.¡± Ikte looked at the lower part of her body and moved it towards her. A few moments later the doll was already on its feet. Ikte looked towards the enemy and saw a purple egg with black purple veins. Next to it stood Ustumut with a short curved sword in one hand and a small semicircular shield on the other hand. The egg released a wave of black and purple energy. Ikte noticed that it was more difficult for her to move. ¡°This egg emits waves that reduce speed,¡± the doll guessed. ¡°He specifically called it so that I wouldn¡¯t have time to catch him with my gaze.¡± Ikte tried to focus her gaze on the egg, but was forced to distract herself in order to dodge the clot of wind. Ustumut in a purple aura appeared in the air at the height of the top of a tall tree. A clot of wind formed in each of his hands and flew towards the doll. Ikte released a pink and white lightning bolt from her hand, which collided with the clots of wind and destroyed them. Ustumut flew to Ikte. The doll noticed this and released lightning towards the dinosaur. The lightning hit the shield and disappeared. The dinosaur landed behind Ikte and hit the doll with its tail. Ikte managed to stop the tail with her gaze and direct it in the opposite direction, but then she could not concentrate and let go of the tail. The dinosaur flew over the doll''s head and landed behind her, and then released an energy harpoon from its tail. Ikte did not have time to turn around, and was grabbed by the hair with a harpoon. Ustumut rose to a bird''s eye view, picked up the harpoon along with the doll, and then threw it into the nearest forest. The stone path passed through a mixed forest. Unana stood on it and looked deep into the forest. Her attention was attracted by a squirrel that was running along the trunk of an old thick tree, and then along the branches. When the animal disappeared behind the leaves and did not appear again, Unana suddenly realized that she was lost. The girl felt uneasy. But after a few moments, this feeling gave way to confidence. ¡°I must go,¡± Unana thought. ¡°Otherwise Yueret will catch up with me and kill me.¡± Heavy footsteps were heard. Yueret came out from behind the trees onto the road with a short sword in his hand. Unana was right. Yueret really came to her with a weapon in his hand, clearly not just to talk. A black bow with a purple energy string and a dark blue arrow appeared in the girl¡¯s hands. Yueret noticed his sister and stopped. ¡°Are you coming to kill me?¡± Unana asked. ¡°No,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°I¡¯ve come to take you home.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re not going to kill me, why did you summon the sword?¡± ¡°I need a sword to cut branches in the forest. This road is very overgrown. It is difficult to cross it without a sword.¡± Unana looked at the sword and noticed several leaves on it that stuck to the blade. The girl frowned and pointed her bow at her brother. ¡°You deliberately glued the leaves to the sword to deceive me,¡± Unana said. ¡°You''re going to kill me. You once killed our parents, and now you want to kill me.¡± ¡°Our parents abandoned us themselves,¡± Yueret answered. ¡°Perhaps they sensed a signal and left. I looked for them, but didn''t find them. I hope they are alive and come back to us someday.¡± ¡°No, they are not alive. You killed them. And now you want to kill me. Therefore, I will be forced to kill you.¡± Unana released a dark blue arrow at her brother. A shield appeared in Yueret¡¯s weapon-free hand and was immediately covered with a blue energy aura... ... The arrow hit the shield and turned into a dark blue mark. The shield''s aura became almost transparent. Dark blue fumes emerged from the mark, which completely destroyed the aura. ¡°It was an arrow with a negative effect,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°It destroys energy. The dinosaur I fought had the same debuff in the same color. Unana knows me too well, so she used this arrow. I didn¡¯t think that my little sister would be the most difficult opponent for me.¡± Unana released an ordinary arrow. Yueret threw down his shield, summoned the interface, and pressed the circle button. A blue translucent protective barrier appeared around the guy. The arrow hit him and flew off into the forest. A purple aura appeared around Unana. The girl jumped and hung in the air, and then fired a series of purple energy arrows at her brother. The arrows hit the protective barrier and were absorbed by it. Several clots of energy appeared inside the barrier. ¡°This energy accumulates inside the barrier,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°If Unana shoots energy arrows at the barrier, the energy from the arrows will accumulate and not come out. When there is too much energy, the barrier will explode. I can take it off, but then I will be left without protection, and they will kill me. But if I continue to take refuge in the barrier, then I will explode along with it. What should I do?¡± Chapter 19. Fear at first sight Tuot woke up in a cabin with two bunks, a table between them and a round window in a wooden wall. Itinit sat on the bed opposite and looked at the virtual screen. ¡°Where are we?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°On the train,¡± Itinit smiled. Tuot looked out the window and saw a gray sea to the horizon. ¡°Trains can¡¯t float on water,¡± the dinosaur objected. ¡°Now they can,¡± Itinit smiled even more. ¡°New model trains do not sink in water.¡± ¡°Where do they get energy from?¡± ¡°Electricity comes from sea waves. There is a built-in power plant inside the train that converts wave energy into electricity.¡± There''s something wrong here. ¡°Of course. We are on a ship. But we are not on an ordinary ship. It''s a robot ship.¡± Tuot looked out the window. An island appeared in the middle of the sea, covered with light green deciduous forests. ¡°We are at sea, not far from the coast of the Northern Continent,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°But don''t be scared. We are still not far from Tohsonun. You fell asleep and that''s why you don''t remember anything.¡± ¡°Yes, this often happens. There are times when I wake up and can¡¯t remember what day or time of year it is. And only by the posters on the wall can I determine that I am at home.¡± ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why he really needs these posters,¡± Itinit guessed. Itinit minimized the virtual screen and looked out the window. The island began to increase. The ship was slowly approaching him. ¡°Have we arrived?¡± Tuot asked who was also looking out the window. ¡°There¡¯s something wrong here,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°We must sail to another place.¡± Itinit left the cabin and found himself in a corridor with ten doors on either side. At the end of the corridor there was a massive wooden door with a virtual sign in red symbols. Itinit walked up to it and pushed it. The door opened. Itinit entered a cabin with a large thick glass instead of a wall and an orange virtual control panel in front of it with many buttons. ¡°Why are we sailing in the wrong direction?¡± Itinit thought. ¡°Perhaps there is an error in the program?¡± Itinit touched one of the buttons on the virtual control panel, but it did not respond. ¡°The control panel is locked,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°I can¡¯t change course. Even if I could, it wouldn''t help much. I don''t know how to steer a ship. I only know how to press some buttons. We can only hope that the ship will not crash on the coastal rocks.¡± The ship entered a small bay and stopped near the shore. Itinit ran into the corridor, from there onto the deck and saw a shore with large stones against which the waves were beating and a deciduous forest behind them. Soon Etinnei and Tuot climbed onto the deck. ¡°What''s happening?¡± the arctic fox girl asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°For some reason the ship stopped near this island.¡± From behind the trees, a humanoid creature came out onto the shore wearing a black-purple plate vest, worn over some dark blue clothing, black pants, boots and gloves. His head was covered with a purple hood, from under which strands of black hair hung. ¡°I don¡¯t want to scare you,¡± the hooded being looked at Etinnei. ¡°I just want to take my character.¡± The arctic fox girl happened to look at this creature, noticed a gray metal carrot where the nose should be and turned away. She was seized by a strong fear that affected her limbs. The arctic fox girl could no longer stand on her feet. She fell to her knees and saw her reflection in the water. Suddenly Etinnei understood why she was so scared. She was afraid of this creature on the shore at first sight... ... Etinnei in winter clothes with white-yellow hair lay in a wooden coffin in a room partially covered with snow. The door was ajar, allowing light to enter the room. Near the wall, a virtual screen with a program in a blue-green frame ¡°hung¡± in the air. In the program window there is a full-length model Etinnei in a winter look, and around her there are buttons in the form of snowflakes with black symbols. Standing next to the screen was a girl with long black hair, wearing a purple fur jacket, black skirt, fur stockings and boots. ¡°Everything is fine, Etinnei,¡± the girl said. ¡°Now you can come out of your container.¡± Etinnei sat down and bent her leg at the knee, but could not get out of the coffin. ¡°Creator, I can¡¯t get out of the container,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°Try,¡± the girl answered. ¡°You¡¯d better get out of your container on your own. Of course, I can help you do it, but then you won''t learn to do it on your own.¡± The virtual screen has disappeared. The creator left the room. Etinnei bent her other leg at the knee, and then dangled her legs over the edge of the coffin... ¡­ Evening came. It became dark outside and in the room, but Etinnei was still sitting in the container. Her legs were hanging over the edge of the coffin. ¡°I have to do this,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°But I can¡¯t decide. I¡¯ve never stood with my feet on anything other than my container.¡± Etinnei fell asleep and woke up only in the morning. The doorway glowed with bright light. The room became light again. ¡°What is there, beyond the exit from the room?¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°I can check this, but to do this I need to go down from the container to the floor. But it may be cold, and there is nothing on my feet. What if I freeze? Maybe it¡¯s better to stay in the container?¡± So for the first time Etinnei became interested in what was behind the visible obstacle. The arctic fox girl looked at her feet. Suddenly she realized that they didn''t feel anything. ¡°I¡¯m not cold now,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°Perhaps if I stand with my feet on the floor, I won¡¯t be cold either. But I still can''t decide. Something is holding me in place.¡± Etinnei lowered one leg a little, then the other and stopped. ¡°If I try, I will someday get out of the container,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. By the morning of the next day, Etinnei''s legs had almost reached their goal. The Arctic fox girl made the last movement, and her feet landed on the floor. Instead of cold, Etinnei felt only a slight coolness. ¡°The floor is not cold,¡± the animal girl was happy. ¡°Perhaps I can leave the room.¡± Etinnei finally got out of the coffin, but was unable to stay on her feet and fell. The Arctic fox girl''s hands touched the floor, and at that moment she felt how cold it was. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°The floor is cold for my hands, but not for my feet,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°This means you need to stand on your feet and walk on them, and not crawl on all fours.¡± Etinnei stood up and walked towards the exit of the room. The animal girl is staggering but did not fall again. Soon she reached the door and then looked outside... ... Bright sunlight illuminated the snowdrifts and ¡°made¡± them shine. A young coniferous forest began near the house. The branches of the trees were covered with a thick layer of snow and hung down under its weight. Etinnei left the building and walked along a well-trodden path through the forest. With every step, the arctic fox girl stood stronger on her feet and swayed less. In the forest, Etinnei saw a thick tree with black bark, which stood alone in a forest clearing surrounded by young trees. The arctic fox girl looked up and saw that there were no needles on this tree. Thick branches that were located high from the ground were covered only with a layer of snow, on one of the branches hung the head of a human with long yellow hair. Etinnei stopped and began to examine the head. Large open eyes stared motionlessly at the animal girl, and the open mouth looked black, without teeth or tongue. Etinnei did not understand anything. After a few dozen moments, the spirit of the arctic fox felt something strong appear inside her and quickly spread throughout her body. Etinnei ran further through the forest and looked around. There were ordinary trees around, without heads on the branches. ¡°I don¡¯t want to look at that head,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°I want to find the creator and tell her about this.¡± The forest is over. Etinnei came to a large stone two-story house on the bank of a wide river. The animal girl approached the open door and looked inside... ... It was a large room with a high ceiling, a stone floor and small round windows on the walls. At the end of the room there is a stone staircase that leads to the second floor. Etinnei went up to the second floor and found her in the same room as on the first floor, but with several doors on the side. One of the doors was open as an entrance. Etinnei approached this door and then entered the room... ... There was a large round window in the wall. Near him is a bed on which a girl was lying with her eyes closed. Her long red hair was neatly styled and reached her knees, and her body was wrapped in a white translucent cloth. The girl''s face seemed familiar to Etinnei. ¡°She looks like my creator,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°But for some reason her hair is different.¡± Etinnei approached the bed and could now better see the girl¡¯s face. ¡°This is definitely my creator,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°Finally, I found her! I need to tell her about the head on the tree.¡± Etinnei knelt down and licked her creator''s cheek with her tongue. The girl''s eyes opened and looked at the character. This look made the beast girl feel uncomfortable. ¡°Creator, what happened to you?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Your hair is red, but it was black.¡± ¡°Get out of here,¡± the girl looked at Etinnei and did not blink. ¡°My little brother transformed me a doll. I won''t explain to you what it is because I don''t have time for that. Leave before my brother returns.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t leave, creator. You look scary. Why did he do this to you?¡± ¡°Go away. My brother is very scary.¡± Tears came out of Etinnei''s eyes. The arctic fox girl turned to the wall because she could no longer look at her creator. The doll''s pupils turned purple, and a purple aura surrounded its body. A virtual screen with a program in a blue-green frame appeared in front of the doll. The doll pressed several buttons. A wooden coffin appeared near the bed. ¡°This is the container in which I was lying,¡± Etinnei guessed. ¡°Why is he here?¡± Heavy footsteps were heard. A humanoid creature wearing a purple jacket with a hood, pants and boots entered the room. On his face was a mask with a metal carrot where his nose should be, and a long blue tongue hanging out of his mouth. ¡°Ikte, are you okay?¡± the man with the carrot nose asked. ¡°I hope becoming into a doll helped you.¡± The doll looked at Kuttanai and threw him towards the wall with her gaze. ¡°I feel like you¡¯re okay,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Now you don¡¯t have a headache. It''s a pity you won''t be able to be happy about this.¡± Etinnei looked at Kuttanai and felt energy being released inside her, although in reality the animal girl¡¯s head simply turned away. ¡°My eyes cannot look at him,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°My head turns away on its own. Why is this happening?¡± A wrench appeared in Kuttanai''s hand. Ikte noticed this and rose to the ceiling to prevent the enemy from pointing the weapon at herself. ¡°I¡¯m not going to fight you,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°I¡¯ll just take your character. It was created on my account, which means it belongs to me.¡± Kuttanai pointed the wrench at Etinnei and began to pull her towards him. Ikte was able to catch the character with her own gaze, and the animal girl¡¯s body stopped in the middle of the room. Etinnei accidentally looked at Kuttanai and noticed his creepy nose, blue tongue and eyes that did not move and shone strangely. It seemed to the character that something dangerous emanated from a creature with such an appearance. Etinnei turned away. Her eyes closed. The arctic fox girl felt her body move backwards and then lie down on something hard... Etinnei''s eyes opened. The arctic fox girl noticed that her body was lying in a coffin. A moment later, a lid appeared over the coffin, after which the coffin flew out the window and broke it... ... Etinnei found herself on a rock between the ship and the shore. The arctic fox girl knew that she should not look in the direction of the scary man with the carrot nose, so she looked at the ship, where Tuot and Itinit were standing on the deck. ¡°Did you specifically lure us onto the ship so that this being would take Etinnei?¡± Tuot asked his friend. ¡°Are you with him?¡± ¡°No,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°I ordered this ship before. He already took me to that island, and this creature was not there.¡± Tuot activated his energy aura and jumped onto the stone next to the arctic fox girl. ¡°I won¡¯t leave without Etinnei,¡± Tuot said. ¡°Why are you disturbing me?¡± Kuttanai asked. ¡°This is my character, not yours.¡± A short curved sword appeared in Tuot¡¯s hand, and on his other hand, near the elbow, a purple semicircular shield with a black symbol appeared. Kuttanai summoned a wrench. The dinosaur jumped forward, flew over the water to the shore and ended up next to the man with the carrot nose. Tuot''s sword and Kuttanai''s wrench almost met. Tuot tried to move his hand to strike, but he couldn¡¯t. The force of the wrench tightly constrained his movements. Etinnei tried to overcome her fear and fired lightning from her hand at the man with the carrot nose. Kuttanai was forced to redirect the wrench from the enemy to the arctic fox girl''s lightning. The lightning was stopped by a wrench and sent back to Etinnei. Tuot struck with his tail, and Itinit launched an energy ball with a spark inside at the enemy. It is a trap. If Kuttanai parries one of the attacks, another will overtake him. But Kuttanai disappeared. The ball exploded and Tuot was thrown into the water by the blast wave. ¡°The ball exploded because the target disappeared,¡± Itinit guessed mentally. ¡°He knows how to counter homing skills.¡± Kuttanai appeared on the highest rock. Tuot jumped from the water onto the ship. There was no longer any aura on him. Etinnei dodged her lightning, fell into the water and found herself in an ice crust. The defensive passive skill that was meant to prevent her from drowning became a trap for her. Kuttanai pointed the key at the arctic fox girl, took her out of the water and began to pull her towards him. Tuot released an energy harpoon from his tail and intercepted Etinnei. Kuttanai lowered the wrench. The harpoon pulled Etinnei towards Tuot. Kuttanai swung the wrench. A white luminous silhouette of a man curled up in a ball appeared in front of him. After a few moments, the silhouette turned into a girl with closed eyes and long pink hair. Instead of clothes, her body was wrapped in chains. ¡°This is my little sister, Yuehei,¡± Kuttanai introduced the girl. ¡°She¡¯ll take care of you. I need to talk to Etinnei.¡± Kuttanai turned a wrench on Tuot and threw him into the sea. He then pointed the weapon at Etinnei and pulled her towards him. The arctic fox girl could not move. Kuttanai''s skill completely hampered her movements, and fear paralyzed her vocal cords, making it impossible for her to call for help. Kuttanai disappeared behind the trees and dragged Etinnei''s body through the air. Itinit jumped from the ship onto a coastal rock to catch up with the man with the carrot nose, but could not go any further. The pink-haired doll that Kuttanai had summoned opened its eyes and looked at Itinit with purple pupils. *** Halankuo was sitting on the floor in front of the window of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. The full-length model of Kyotyoryon was in its own window on the left side of the program. The character looked like there was nothing wrong with him. The girl touched the character appearance button with her finger. A white luminous silhouette of Kyotyoryon appeared next to the program window, which slowly descended to the floor. Soon the glow disappeared and the silhouette turned into a character with his eyes closed. After the metal spirit''s feet reached the floor, she fell to her knees and opened first one eye and then the other. Halankuo felt joy, which then turned to anxiety. The girl was afraid that Kyotyoryon would not understand her decision and would be offended. ¡°I was again where there is nothing,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°Did you send me there?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Halankuo answered. ¡°But I was forced to do it.¡± You''re broken.¡± ¡°Is it broken?¡± Tears appeared from Kyotyoryon¡¯s eyes. ¡°Am I broken like a robot? Am I non-living?¡± You stopped moving. I sent you back to the program and then summoned you. I didn''t want to keep you there. ¡°I was bored and lonely there. There is nothing. It''s dark and empty. You told me you wouldn''t send me there again.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was forced to do this. If I hadn''t done this, I wouldn''t have been able to fix you.¡± ¡°If you hadn¡¯t taken me there, I would have corrected myself. I didn''t need to be moved there!¡± ¡°I''m sorry. I won''t do that anymore.¡± Tears streamed down the metal spirit''s face and fell onto his chest. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°You say one thing and do another.¡± Halankuo didn''t know what to answer. Her character was too stubborn to trust the creator''s words. Kyotyoryon got up from the floor and took a few steps towards the door, but tripped and fell. Halankuo silently looked at her character and understood that she should not help her, because then Kyotyoryon would treat her even worse... ... The girl was so immersed in thoughts that she did not notice how her character approached the window and broke it with a blow from the bracelet on his hand... Chapter 20. The One and Only One Kuttanai carried Etinnei to a forest clearing, stopped near a large gray rock and lowered the wrench. The Arctic fox girl fell to the ground, covered with sparse grassy vegetation. ¡°You are well made,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Your design combines colors and shapes well.¡± Etinnei rose to her feet, but could not raise her head. The appearance of a man with a carrot nose instilled fear in her, which only intensified from his voice. ¡°You could be a good doll,¡± Kuttanai continued. ¡°It¡¯s a pity, only living beings can be turned into dolls.¡± Suddenly, Etinnei heard a sound similar to the cry of a bird, which was accompanied by a sharp pain in her head. The arctic fox girl fell to her knees. ¡°Help me, refrigerator girl,¡± a voice was heard in the animal girl¡¯s head. ¡°I don¡¯t want him to get me.¡± Etinnei looked to the side and saw next to her a penguin with an antenna in the form of an ice cream cone on its head, hovering in the air. ¡°I can¡¯t, Minniges,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°I''m scared. I''m so scared that I can''t use my skills to fight.¡± Minniges disappeared. The pain and screams in Etinnei''s head stopped. Kuttanai turned a wrench on the character. ¡°There¡¯s something about you,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°I''m feeling it.¡± Kuttanai made a circular motion with the wrench counterclockwise. A blue energy gear appeared between the creatures, after which Kuttanai repeated the movement with the wrench. Etinnei''s eyes closed and her mouth opened. A cloud of white energy burst out from it, which turned into a white glowing silhouette of a penguin. The energy cog disappeared. Etinnei fell to the ground. The silhouette turned into a blue and white penguin that lived in the brain of the arctic fox girl. The light bulb on Minniges''s forehead, which looked like an ice cream cone, turned white and blue and opaque. A white and blue aura appeared around the penguin, releasing icy vapors into the air. Tuot came out of the forest in a green energy aura. In one hand he held a short curved sword. At the elbow of the second arm was a semicircular purple shield with a black symbol in the middle. ¡°You¡¯re late,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°I¡¯ve already pulled the character out of Etinnei¡¯s head. Now I have two new characters instead of one.¡± ¡°Why do you need Etinnei?¡± Tuot asked. It was created in my account in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± program, that''s why this is my character. And the character from her head is also mine. Tuot did not understand Kuttanai¡¯s words, but understood that Etinnei should not get to him. He saw how his girlfriend was afraid of this strange creature. The dinosaur did not share many of the feelings of other creatures, but he understood well what fear was, because he himself often experienced it. ¡°Etinnei is afraid of him,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I don¡¯t want this girl with ears and a tail to be afraid.¡± She may be a different species, but she feels fear the same way I do.¡± Previously, Tuot was afraid of everything that could somehow threaten him. But now the fear for her playmate was stronger than other fears. The icy vapors around Minniges began to spread in all directions and turned into an icy fog. Tuot summoned a yellow lizard, which a moment later was surrounded by a yellow aura. The icy fog reached Tuot and slowed his movements. Luckily for the dinosaur, the lizard released a wave of yellow energy from its aura, after which the negative effect disappeared. The radius of the icy fog had decreased and now covered the area around Minniges himself. Kuttanai pointed the wrench at Etinnei and made a clockwise circular motion. The blue energy gear appeared in front of the wrench again. Kuttanai repeated the movement with his weapon. Etinnei''s body rose above the surface of the earth and hung in a vertical position. Her mouth fell open. Minniges'' body turned into a glowing silhouette, and then into a white cloud, which moved into the mouth of the arctic fox girl. Etinnei fell to the ground unconscious. Tuot released two long energy feathers from the tail part of the aura, which then flew towards Kuttanai. The man with the carrot nose pointed a wrench at one of the feathers and redirected it towards the rock. The second feather approached Kuttanai, but only damaged the edge of the mask. ¡°He can only hit one thing with his weapon,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Now it¡¯s clear how to attack him.¡± Etinnei opened her eyes and immediately felt fear, which reminded her that somewhere nearby there was a scary person with a carrot nose. The arctic fox girl got down on all fours, looked around and noticed a yellow lizard that was releasing waves of yellow energy from the aura around itself, and then disappeared. Tuot again attacked the enemy with energy feathers from the tail part of the aura, but this time there were several times more of them. Kuttanai responded with several lightning bolts from his hand, which collided with the feathers and destroyed them. ¡°He can still attack several objects, but with the help of a skill,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°So I need to try something different.¡± At that moment, the dinosaur noticed the arctic fox girl, who was kneeling and looking at him. Kuttanai pointed the key at Etinnei. The animal girl fell face down on the ground, and then abruptly rose to her feet. Her eyes emitted an orange glow, and part of an icicle appeared from her sleeve. ¡°What''s happening to her?¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Is this the skill of this carrot-nosed guy?¡± The icicle became covered in an electrical aura and was then released at Tuot. The dinosaur covered himself with a shield. The icicle hit the shield and broke. ¡°Etinnei, I¡¯m not an enemy!¡± Tuot shouted. ¡°Don''t attack me! Attack him!¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t hear you,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°She is under my control.¡± Tuot looked at Kuttanai and noticed that he was holding a wrench pointed at the arctic fox girl. ¡°What happens if I make him point the wrench in the other direction?¡± an idea appeared in the dinosaur¡¯s head. ¡°This should work.¡± Several icicles flew towards Tuot, through which electricity passed. The dinosaur jumped to the side and dodged them, but then noticed an icicle sticking out of its shoulder... You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ... Etinnei stood behind Tuot and pierced his back with an icicle. A moment later, the icicle was surrounded by an electric aura, which sent a current through the dinosaur¡¯s body. Tuot began to shake. His tail rose sharply and threw Etinnei along with the icicle into the middle of the clearing. This worked. The current stopped hitting the dinosaur, and its body returned to normal. Etinnei landed on her feet. A white-blue ball with icy vapors around it appeared in her hand. The girl''s hair turned white-yellow, and her clothes changed to winter ones: a white-blue fur jacket and shorts. ¡°In games, such a skill usually freezes the enemy,¡± Tuot guessed mentally. ¡°I wonder if they freeze me, will I stay alive.¡± Etinnei extended her hand with an ice ball, and it flew towards the enemy. Tuot noticed this and jumped to the side. The ball flew into the forest and crashed into the trunk of the first tree it came across. Ice formed at the site where it hit, which quickly spread and covered the lower part of the trunk. Moments later, the ice cracked and then shattered. Tuot attacked Kuttanai with energy feathers again. The carrot-nosed man released lightning bolts from his free hand and destroyed the feathers, after which he lowered the wrench. Etinnei''s eyes became the same. The girl fell to her knees and lowered her head so as not to accidentally see the face of the one she was afraid of. Her hair turned black and her clothes became summer. Tuot approached his friend in several leaps. ¡°Are you okay?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°I¡¯m scared,¡± the arctic fox girl answered. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to stay in the aura for long. It uses a lot of energy. And without an aura, he will quickly kill me. I need your help.¡± ¡°I can''t. I''m scared of him.¡± ¡°Now is not the time for that. We need to act.¡± Etinnei looked at Tuot. A clear liquid, reminiscent of tears, flowed down her face from her eyes. ¡°Sorry,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°The only thing I can do is tell you how to defeat him.¡± The conversation was interrupted by lightning released by Kuttanai. Tuot reacted in time and blocked it with his shield. ¡°His carrot-shaped nose works like an antenna and sends signals to the brains of other creatures,¡± Etinnei explained. ¡°If you cut off the nose, it won¡¯t be able to send signals.¡± ¡°How did you know that?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°He sent a signal to my brain, and I understood where it came from.¡± Tuot had to block another lightning bolt from Kuttanai. ¡°We can freeze it and then cut off the nose,¡± Tuot suggested. ¡°You won¡¯t be able to get close to him,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°And I won¡¯t be able to freeze it. If I''m scared, I can''t use skills.¡± Kuttanai aimed the wrench at Tuot. The dinosaur realized that he wanted to control him. So he quickly ran towards the forest, then turned around and ran to attack the enemy. Kuttanai tried to capture the dinosaur with the wrench, but due to his fast movement, he was unable to do so. Tuot approached the enemy at a distance of several steps, after which he began to run around him in circles. The man with the carrot nose tried to stop him with the wrench, and even launched lightning, but did not hit the target. ¡°I can¡¯t do it anymore,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°A little more and my aura will disappear. I''ll have to attack now.¡± Tuot approached Kuttanai and hit him in the face with his tail. The carrot-nosed man held the key in front of him, so Tuot''s blow was stopped along with the dinosaur itself. Tuot stopped moving. His tail was one step short of reaching the tip of Kuttanai''s nose. ¡°You fought well,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°You could make a good doll. But I already have a similar one. So I''ll just throw you out.¡± Kuttanai turned the wrench to the side. Tuot''s body flew to the edge of the clearing. *** Itinit''s body ¡°hung¡± in the air above the coastal stones and could not move. Yuehei is flying motionless over the shore and looked at him. ¡°What should I do now?¡± Itinit thought. ¡°This doll can control objects with her gaze. Taikuron had a similar skill. Then the energy barrier saved me from his ability, but now I can¡¯t use it. I can''t do anything at all now. I can only think, see and hear.¡± Itinit began to examine the doll: pink hair down to her knees, chains that did not hide her figure with large breasts; a thin waist and wide hips, but covered her nipples and crotch; purple glowing eyes against the background of a cute doll face, thick short legs, one of which is bent at the knee. ¡°She¡¯s perfect,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°Finally, I can look at a girl and not hide it. I simply have no choice. This is the only thing left for me. It''s actually good that it happened this way. Now I¡¯m ready to be in this state for as long as she makes me.¡± Then Itinit remembered that a person¡¯s eyes can interact with the energy of the surrounding space. ¡°I once read on the network that you can use your eyes to summon an interface,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°I didn¡¯t believe it then. Now this can be checked, but I don¡¯t want to. I want to look further at this beauty.¡± ... Itinit did not know how long he spent in this state. But the moment came when he was tired of just looking at the doll, and wanted to touch it. The guy blinked one eye and closed the other at the same time. The faint outline of a virtual screen appeared in front of him and disappeared almost immediately. ¡°It works,¡± Itinit thought happily. ¡°I need to focus.¡± Itinit repeated what he had done before. A virtual screen with icon buttons appeared in front of him. ¡°Now I just have to figure out how to press these buttons,¡± Itinit thought. But he didn''t have to think long. A red frame appeared around the button Itinit was looking at. When the eye moved to another button, the frame moved there. Itinit found the button he needed, and then closed one eye. The button began to flash red, after which the screen disappeared. Itinit fell on a stone near the shore and looked around. A blue translucent energy barrier in the shape of a sphere appeared around him. ¡°Inconvenient controls, of course, but it works,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°As long as I¡¯m in the barrier, she won¡¯t be able to control my body. I will have to fight her like I fought Taikuron.¡± Several blue energy balls with lights inside appeared around Itinit. A red translucent energy barrier in the shape of a sphere appeared around Yuehei. ¡°Judging by the color of the barrier, it can heal those who are in it,¡± Itinit mentally guessed. ¡°It doesn¡¯t work like mine. It does not protect, but restores.¡± Balls with lights flew at the enemy, passed through the barrier, and exploded near the doll. Smoke filled the barrier, but after a few moments it cleared. Itinit saw Yuehei without arms and part of her leg. The barrier filled with pink gas and became opaque. A few moments later, the barrier became the same, and the doll completely restored its lost limbs. ¡°I thought so,¡± Itinit guessed mentally. ¡°The barrier restored the doll. But at the same time it is clear that the enemy¡¯s skills pass through the barrier. This means that I need to use a very powerful skill that will destroy the doll to such a state that it will take a long time to recover. I can do this and not be afraid that I will kill her.¡± A stone pot appeared above Itinit, which soon began to fill with blue energy. Yuehei noticed this, disappeared along with the barrier and appeared high in the sky, also along with the barrier. ¡°She thinks that my special skill will not reach her,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°I hope the Comet of Pity will blow her apart, but not kill her. It¡¯s good that she¡¯s a doll.¡± The pot stood in a vertical position with the hole facing up. Blue smoke poured out of it, filling the barrier and then extending beyond it. A blue energy comet burst out of the pot, leaving a trail like a beam behind it. Yuehei looked at the approaching comet, but did nothing. The comet entered the doll''s barrier. There was an explosion that turned the sky over the coast blue. The doll''s barrier disappeared. Parts of Yuehei''s body fell from the sky onto the shore. Itinit saw the doll''s head near the water''s edge and smiled. But he soon regretted it. A pink aura surrounded Yuehei''s head, after which she rose from the ground and hung in the air. Then the same thing happened to the rest of the body. Yuehei opened her mouth filled with pink energy. Her body parts flew up to her head and began to come together. ¡°What should we do with her?¡± Itinit thought in despair. ¡°Even without a barrier, she can heal. Maybe I should just give in? Then I will look at her again and do nothing. Maybe this is better?¡± Yuehei restored her body and chains, then closed her mouth and disappeared. Itinit noticed this and looked around to find her. But the doll did not appear anywhere. ¡°She ran away,¡± Itinit was frightened. ¡°She didn¡¯t like me?¡± Itinit removed the barrier and jumped onto the shore. Suddenly the guy noticed that something soft and pleasant was pressed against him from behind. He turned his head to the side and saw a strand of pink hair blowing in the wind. Itinit was scared, because he realized who it was. But the doll¡¯s touch was so pleasant that the guy forgot his fear and closed his eyes. ¡°A girl is hugging me, even if she is non-living,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°I never thought this would happen. Now I¡¯m sorry to die.¡± Itinit felt something heavy wrap around his neck, and there was no more touch from the doll. The guy touched his neck and realized that there was a chain hanging on it. Itinit looked up. Yuehei hovered in the air above the shore and held the end of a chain in her hand. The guy felt the chain tightening and squeezing his neck, but continued to look at the doll. ¡°I will admire her to the end,¡± thoughts flashed through Itinit¡¯s head. ¡°I finally met her, the one and only one. She hugged me and I realized that under different circumstances we could have been together. But, unfortunately, we are enemies.¡± The chain that Yuehei was holding began to be covered in a white-pink electric aura from beginning to end, and spread to the chains that covered the doll itself. The last thing Itinit saw was a doll with pink hair, covered with chains that glowed with something bright. Chapter 21. Fear and Ice - Volume 1 end The fear inside Etinnei intensified. The Arctic fox girl saw the creature she feared most approaching her. ¡°I like you,¡± Kuttanai said. ¡°Let¡¯s go with me.¡± Etinnei remembered a carrot-antenna instead of a nose, a blue hanging tongue: all this even then inspired great fear in her. The arctic fox girl was very afraid to see this face again. ¡°Are you that much afraid of me?¡± Kuttanai asked. ¡°I¡¯m your creator¡¯s brother. I''m almost like her.¡± Kuttanai pointed the wrench at Etinnei and pulled him towards him. The Arctic fox girl''s neck touched the edges of the wrench. Etinnei closed her eyes so as not to see the face of her opponent. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t open my eyes,¡± the animal girl thought. ¡°If I open them, I¡¯ll die of fear.¡± Etinnei''s body hung in the air under the force of gravity of the wrench. Her arms and legs were shaking, and her hair was blowing in the wind. Sounds similar to the cries of birds were heard in the animal girl¡¯s head. Etinnei realized that it was Minniges screaming in her brain. Kuttanai pulled the arctic fox girl''s body closer to him. Etinnei felt it even though her eyes were closed. The fear inside her increased so much that now she could not think. Her mind was completely occupied with fear and anxiety, causing the bird calls to stop. Kuttanai brought Etinnei''s body almost close to himself. The nose-antenna almost rested on the girl¡¯s chest, the most protruding part of her body... Tuot rose to his feet and found that he no longer had an aura on him, and Kuttanai was holding the arctic fox girl by the neck with a wrench. It seemed to the dinosaur that this was the end. He could not save his friend. Tuot used to think that animal girls only existed in games. There he could talk to him and even control them. But meeting them in the real world is impossible. But despite this, Tuot dreamed of meeting at least one such creature. And one day a miracle happened. An arctic fox girl came to Tuot and broke through the door of his apartment. ¡°I can ask Halankuo to create an account for me in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± and create a character similar to Etinnei,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I still have her photos. If I do this, then I will have an arctic fox girl again.¡± Kuttanai''s nose touched Etinnei''s chest. The arctic fox girl''s body was covered with a blue opaque aura and began to radiate coldness. The air around her filled with white steam. A wave of white-blue energy began to emanate from Etinnei¡¯s body, which hit the man with the carrot nose. Kuttanai''s nose quickly became covered with ice, which then spread to his face. The carrot-nosed man didn''t even have time to react, and within a few moments, his body turned into a white ice statue. *** Ikte stood in the middle of the forest and felt that there was no more signal. ¡°So Kuttanai reached Etinnei, and her defense worked,¡± the doll thought. ¡°This passive skill ¡°Fear and Ice,¡± I added to my character to protect her from my little brother. If he touches Etinnei, he will turn into an ice statue.¡± Tuot hid behind a tree, but decided to look at Etinnei one last time. The dinosaur saw the frozen Kuttanai and the blue silhouette of Etinnei hanging in the air, surrounded by icy steam. ¡°What happened?¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Someone froze the man with the carrot nose. Is this really Etinnei? So I can do something too.¡± Tuot gathered all the energy he had. An aura surrounded his body, and the end of a harpoon appeared from his tail. Then the harpoon began to lengthen and flew towards the frozen enemy... ... The harpoon flew past Kuttanai and cut off his nose, after which it disappeared along with the aura of its owner. Tuot saw a metal carrot on the ground inside a transparent piece of ice. ¡°It worked,¡± Tuot thought joyfully. ¡°Now Etinnei is in no danger. I hope I meet her in the game, because we will never meet again in life.¡± Tuot fell to the ground unconscious. *** Ustumut came out from behind the trees and noticed a doll with red hair. ¡°You are here,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you hiding?¡± ¡°Why?¡± Ikte answered. ¡°This is no longer relevant.¡± Ustumut looked at his curved sword, at the shield that was attached to his elbow, and then at the doll. ¡°The signal has disappeared,¡± the dinosaur noted. ¡°What should I do now?¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°I don¡¯t feel the signal anymore either. If he disappeared, it means someone cut off your master''s nose.¡± Ustumut''s weapons disappeared. The dinosaur walked along the path towards the abandoned village. Ikte could only stand in the middle of the forest and look at him with her ¡°glass¡± eyes. *** The barrier around Yueret disappeared. Unana landed on her feet and aimed her bow with a new energy arrow at her brother. ¡°Why am I doing this?¡± the girl thought. ¡°Yueret is not to blame for what happened to our parents. Why did I try to kill him? Now my brother will hate me.¡± The bow and arrow in Unana''s hands disappeared. The girl knelt down and began to cry. Yueret approached his sister without weapons or aura, crouched down, and then hugged her. ¡°Don¡¯t cry,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I won¡¯t hate you.¡± Unana looked at her brother. ¡°Are you reading my thoughts?¡± the girl asked. ¡°No,¡± Yueret smiled. ¡°I just spent a lot of time with you, so I know you well. Let''s go home.¡± ¡°Let''s go. Will we definitely get there? Won''t we get lost?¡± ¡°No. We will definitely be home. And we will eat squirrels.¡± ¡°Squirrels are tasty.¡± Unana smiled. Brother and sister held hands and walked towards their village. *** Itinit woke up and looked around. At the entrance to the forest, he noticed a doll with pink hair floating in the air, with which he fought. Yuehei turned around and looked at Itinit, and then he smiled. ¡°When she looks at me, I want this to last forever,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°I want her not to leave. But if she leaves, I''ll wait. I will think about her every day.¡± Yuehei slowly flew into the forest. Itinit touched his neck and did not notice either the chain or traces of it. The guy slowly got up from the ground and went into the forest to get the doll. Yuehei flew to a glade surrounded on three sides by forest and on one side by a large gray rock. The arctic fox girl''s body slowly became covered with ice. Next to arctic fox girl stood an ice statue of Kuttanai. On the opposite edge of the glade, near the trees, a dinosaur lay and did not move. The doll approached the ice statue and then opened its mouth. Her previously gray tongue became a source of bright yellow light, which erupted outward and turned into a beam of yellow energy. The beam illuminated Kuttanai''s frozen tongue and then penetrated inside. From the yellow energy, the ice statue turned yellow-white, after which it became covered with cracks... Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ... The yellow light in the doll¡¯s mouth disappeared along with the beam. Her tongue turned gray again. The ice broke. Kuttanai''s body began to fall to the ground, but Yuehei stopped him with her gaze. Then the doll, along with her brother¡¯s body, rose to the height of the surrounding trees and flew out of the glade. Itinit approached Etinnei. The arctic fox girl was lying on the ground with her eyes closed and not breathing. Ice completely covered her body, except for her head. ¡°Sorry, arctic fox girl,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°I cannot help you remove the creature from your brain.¡± The ice continued to spread up the arctic fox girl''s body and covered the ends of the hair that were in contact with the frozen torso. Itinit felt weak, fell to his knees, then collapsed face down on the ground and lost consciousness. The ice spread down his neck, then up his hood and hair. Soon he reached the ears on the top of his head. The arctic fox girl''s body turned into an ice statue. *** Halankuo sat near the broken window and looked at the information about the character in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. ¡°This program can track the character¡¯s location,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I can find Kyotyoryon.¡± Halankuo touched the window with the map with her finger. A new window opened above the program window - with a map of the surrounding area. There were two dots on it: a blue one at the site of an abandoned village and a red one, which moved along the gray line. ¡°The red dot shows the location of the character, and the blue dot shows the location of the creator,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Kyotyoryon moves along the railway towards an abandoned railway station. There are no trains there, so she walks. I¡¯ll have to go there right now before Kyotyoryon goes too far.¡± Halankuo ran out of the house wearing only a long T-shirt. The girl noticed this only on the threshold of the house, but for her it was no longer important. She wanted her character too much back. Outside the village, a coniferous forest began, through which ran old paving stones, partially overgrown with vegetation. The thick old trees were so tall that they could not be seen in full. There were almost no bushes, young trees or herbaceous plants, only ferns grew here and there. The road ended near a wooden bridge over a narrow river. The trees here were already much lower. Thickets of bushes with small round dark green leaves appeared. Halankuo crossed the bridge and found herself on a path that led up the slope. The trees became even lower, and the forest became denser. After some time, the forest gave way to a scorched wasteland with rare herbaceous plants and shrubs. ¡°It¡¯s too bad I don¡¯t remember the way,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°I haven¡¯t been here for a very long time.¡± The girl opened the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± and looked at the map. The red dot mark of Kyotyoryon was already located near the abandoned railway station. The blue dot of Halankuo''s mark was closer to the red dot than at first, but there was still a significant distance between the dots. Halankuo moved on. A dark green forest with spiky tops of coniferous trees appeared on the horizon. ¡°The abandoned station is located in that forest,¡± the girl recalled. The path led further into the forest. The trees on the horizon grew taller. The dark green outlines of the trees on the horizon became more and more like an ordinary forest. The path abruptly stopped at the edge of the forest and was replaced by a glade overgrown with moss and ferns. In the middle of it was an old rusty rail. Halankuo climbed onto the rail and walked forward. At first the girl thought she would fall, but her strong desire to find Kyotyoryon helped her maintain her balance. The rail led Halankuo to a small railway station surrounded by sparse coniferous forest. It consisted of a one-story wooden building with a flat roof, several wooden benches with canopies and one platform, near which there was one gray rail. The girl opened the window of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± again and looked at the map. The red dot mark of the character was very close to the blue dot mark of the creator. Halankuo approached the wooden station building. The windows and door were boarded up. The girl walked around the perimeter of the building, but did not find the character. ¡°Where is she?¡± the girl was scared. ¡°Does the map show the character¡¯s location incorrectly?¡± Halankuo walked up to the platform and looked at the rail that ran across the entire station. Kyotyoryon was lying on it with her eyes closed. The metal spirit''s hands were folded together on his stomach, and his legs were closed tightly to each other. Halankuo summoned a wrench and aimed it at the character. Kyotyoryon opened her eyes and kicked the wrench out of her creator¡¯s hands. A metal hand appeared from behind Kyotyoryon¡¯s back. The wrench turned over several times in the air and fell into the character''s metal hand. Kyotyoryon instantly rose to her feet and pointed a new weapon at the creator. ¡°This hand can attract metal objects,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°I forgot it.¡± ¡°You won¡¯t be able to do anything to me anymore with this thing,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°Give me the wrench,¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°I won¡¯t give it back. He is made of metal, and I am the spirit of metal. That means this thing is mine.¡± ¡°Okay. You can take it for yourself, just come back to me. I will not keep you in the world from which you came.¡± Kyotyoryon turned the wrench to the side. Halankuo staggered, but stayed on her feet. ¡°You don¡¯t know how to use this thing yet,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°If you come back to me, I will teach you.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t come back,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go back to a place where there¡¯s nothing.¡± Kyotyoryon tried to throw Halankuo away again with the wrench, but only moved it back a little. The girl was able to resist again. ¡°Forgive me, Kyotyoryon,¡± Halankuo lowered her head. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to cause you anything bad.¡± Tears appeared from Halankuo''s eyes, and then flew down, falling onto her T-shirt in the chest area and leaving wet spots on it. ¡°I won¡¯t forgive you,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± Halankuo looked at the spirit of metal. Kyotyoryon aimed the wrench at her creator''s feet and forced Halankuo''s body to take a few steps back. ¡°I won¡¯t forgive you!¡± the spirit of metal shouted. ¡°Forgive me,¡± Halankuo lowered her head again. ¡°I won¡¯t forgive you!¡± Kyotyoryon pointed the wrench at the creator''s head and turned it. Halankuo''s body flew towards the station building, but landed on its feet. ¡°I want to live normally, like living beings,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I don¡¯t want to be your pet or your character that you can keep in that dark place. I want to live, not exist in a world where there is nothing.¡± Halankuo thought about it. All this time, she treated Kyotyoryon like a character from a game. But Kyotyoryon was a real character, which Halankuo did not understand. The girl wiped her tears and stopped crying. ¡°You won¡¯t bring me back,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°Now the train will arrive and I will leave here.¡± ¡°There are no trains here,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°This railway is abandoned.¡± ¡°I summon it. And he will arrive. When we go by train, I noticed that it was made of metal. Then I realized that I could summon him.¡± ¡°You can''t summon a train. You don''t have this skill yet.¡± Blades emerged from the bracelets on Kyotyoryon''s hands. The metal hand with the wrench went back into the niche in the characters back. Kyotyoryon jumped onto the platform and then ran towards her creator. Halankuo released lightning from her hand, which quickly turned into a large electric wrench hanging in the air. One of the hands of the spirit of metal found itself between the horns of the key, and it was immediately struck by a powerful bolt of lightning. After that, the wrench disappeared, as it gave up all the charge for the attack. Kyotyoryon''s hand, which was shaking from the current, separated from the body and fell to the floor. ¡°She got rid of her hand so that the lightning would not pass further through her body,¡± Halankuo mentally guessed. ¡°She¡¯s smarter than I thought.¡± Kyotyoryon ran to attack again. Halankuo was able to dodge, and the hand with the blade pierced the wooden wall of the station building. A bolt of lightning appeared in Halankuo''s hand. The girl tried to point her hand at the enemy, but did not have time. A blade emerged from the bracelet on Kyotyoryon¡¯s leg. The character raised his leg up, and then struck with a leg armed with a blade... ... The blade stopped near Halankuo''s neck. Kyotyoryon''s body stopped moving. ¡°What happened?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Why did she stop moving?¡± ¡°I really regret that this happened,¡± a voice in Halankuo¡¯s head said. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to leave you and Tuot.¡± This voice seemed familiar to Halankuo. After a few moments, the girl realized who it belonged to. ¡°Mom,¡± Halankuo was surprised. ¡°It''s you?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± the voice answered. ¡°Parents must protect their children even after death. I''m glad I was able to protect you. Right now I''m just a data set. I do not exist in material form.¡± Halankuo remembered the memory card that her character found in the village. ¡°I gave you some of my abilities,¡± the voice continued. ¡°Now you can move objects with your eyes. Like a wrench, just with a sight.¡± ¡°Thank you, mom,¡± Halankuo smiled. ¡°I will definitely find you and save you.¡± ¡°You won¡¯t have to look for me. I already live in your brain. If you want to ask about something, you can ask using thoughts. Now we must act. Use what I gave you.¡± Kyotyoryon''s body flew off the platform. The metal spirit could have fallen, but it took on a fighting form and began to hover over the rail. The wrench fell out of the niche in the characters back and fell onto the surface of the platform. Halankuo didn''t know that her pupils began to emit purple light, but she felt that if she looked at an object and concentrated on it, she could move it to another place. A metal spear appeared near Kyotyoryon, which then flew towards Halankuo. The girl looked at it, but lost concentration. The spear flew to the side and hit the wooden wall of the station. ¡°I understand that I won¡¯t be able to control all these spears if they fly at the same time,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°What should I do? I can pick up a wrench and use it, but I won¡¯t have time to do it.¡± ¡°Look at the one who calls for spears,¡± a voice in the girl¡¯s head sounded. Halankuo looked at the character. Kyotyoryon was flying in the air, so it was not easy to focus on her. But even one moment of control over the enemy¡¯s body was enough. The spears disappeared. Kyotyoryon took on human form and then landed on the rail. Several metal copies appeared around Kyotyoryon. A whistle sounded. Kyotyoryon looked towards where the sound came from. Halankuo took advantage of this and looked at the character. The body of the metal spirit rose slightly above the rail and hung in the air. A train appeared from behind the forest. Halankuo tried to move Kyotyoryon to the edge of the platform, but was unable to due to the pain in her eyes. The girl closed her eyes, and the pain began to decrease. Kyotyoryon found herself on the rail again. A black and red train with one locomotive and one carriage arrived at the station with a loud whistle and stopped in front of the spirit of metal. Kyotyoryon jumped onto the roof and reached the closed hatch. A metal arm extended from a niche in the character''s back and forced the metal hatch cover to move aside. Halankuo opened her eyes and looked at the character. The girl understood that Kyotyoryon would now leave her, but she no longer tried to stop her. Halankuo understood that she herself was to blame for this. Kyotyoryon jumped into the hatch, after which the lid closed it. The train whistled and then moved forward along the single rail and left the station. ¡°You know, mom, creating a character was interesting,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°I looked at the birds, at their movements in the sky and on the ground, and at one clumsy dinosaur. I wanted to create a metal bird and see if it could fly. Only I didn¡¯t know that the bird would be cramped in the cage and would want to fly away to freedom.¡± Volume 2. Eternal Dream in Reality - Chapter 22. Puppy That Looks Like a Bear Cub The lone rail had been rusting for many years in the dense deciduous forest. The old station has long since rotted away. In its place now grew bushes and ferns, and between them stood thick and tall tree trunks with large double leaves. It seemed that the train would never travel along this railway again. But the day came when this place heard the train whistle again. Thickets of ferns, bushes and young trees parted and allowed a black and red train with one locomotive and one carriage to pass. But the train could not travel further. The rail ended. The hatch cover on the metal locomotive opened. The head of a girl with long gray hair, from under which two straight metal horns protruded, peeked out from the hole. The lower part of her face was covered by a gray metal mask. It was not a person, but the spirit of metal. The being looked around, after which it jumped out of the hatch and landed on a layer of yellow fallen leaves. The metal skirt, which covered thick thighs to the middle, swayed with a ringing sound. The metal corset, in which there was little room for large breasts, also began to move with a characteristic sound. The only thing that did not ring was the bracelets on her arms and legs, which fit too tightly to the girl¡¯s limbs. The being turned towards the train and with a movement of its hand made it go in the opposite direction. When the train left and the metal clothes stopped ringing, the girl heard a noise behind the trees and went in that direction. A blue background appeared behind the tree trunks. The noise intensified. Soon the forest ended, and a huge expanse of water opened up to the horizon. It was separated from the forest by a strip of sandy shore. The source of the noise was soon discovered. It was made by sea waves that slowly hit the shore. ¡°This water makes a lot of noise,¡± the being thought. ¡°There is too much water. I can''t cut it. Maybe I¡¯ll find a place where there¡¯s less water and cut it?¡± The metal spirit went along the seashore. The landscape did not change: the sand, which on one side was bordered by a deciduous forest, on the other, was washed by the sea. But the coast did not end. The spirit of metal approached the water, but felt that her foot had stumbled upon something soft. It was the head of a girl with blue hair down to the lower edges of her cheekbones. Her eyes were closed and her mouth was sewn shut with black thread. ¡°Is this head alive or already dead?¡± the horned girl thought. ¡°Is it separate from the body or connected to it? I need to check.¡± The spirit of metal grabbed her head by the hair and pulled it up. The head was pulled out of the sand and found itself hanging freely in the hand of the horned girl. ¡°Put my head back,¡± a voice was heard. ¡°It''s charging.¡± The spirit of metal noticed that someone was approaching her. She turned around and saw a girl come out of the forest with a short shovel in her hand. ¡°Is it charging?¡± the spirit of metal asked. ¡°Yes,¡± the girl answered. ¡°The head is charged from the sun.¡± The horned girl tilted her head to one side and then to the other. ¡°Is the head alive?¡± asked the spirit of metal. ¡°No,¡± the girl answered. ¡°It¡¯s made of plastic, but it looks like a real head.¡± ¡°Can it fight?¡± ¡°Yes. This is a weapon. Why do you ask?¡± ¡°I¡¯m wondering if this head is dangerous for me or not.¡± ¡°Do not worry about it. This is my weapon. I could use it against you, but I won''t.¡± ¡°Are you evil?¡± the spirit of metal asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± the girl answered. A metal hand came out from the back of the metal spirit''s head. The girl stuck a shovel into the sand, and the spirit of metal sank there up to her knees. But the force of attraction of metals turned out to be stronger. The shovel escaped from the girl''s hands and moved into the metal hand. The head, which was lying on the sand, moved into the girl¡¯s hand, and was now directed at the horned creature. The eyes and mouth began to emit a white-blue glow. A blue and white lightning shot out from her mouth, which then struck the metal spirit and caused her to convulse from the electric shock. Then the shovel returned to its owner, and the metal hand went back to the back of the horned creature''s head. ¡°So you control metal,¡± the girl guessed. ¡°Who are you, girl?¡± The lightning released the spirit of metal, after which she climbed out of the sand and looked at her opponent. ¡°I am Kyotyoryon, the spirit of metal,¡± the horned girl introduced herself. ¡°I¡¯m alive and good. And you''re dead and bad.¡± ¡°In a way, you¡¯re right,¡± the girl agreed. ¡°I¡¯m really not a living being. I am a battle doll. My name is Sitihi.¡± Short blades emerged from the bracelets on Kyotyoryon¡¯s arms. The spirit of metal ran to attack Sitihi and tried to pierce her with a blade, but the doll fell into the sand. Kyotyoryon noticed the disappearance of the enemy and stopped. The sand under the feet of the spirit of metal began to rise and soon bound her feet. Kyotyoryon tried to free herself, but fell face down on her large breasts. The sand rose to her neck, wrapped around it and became hard. Sitihi rose from the sand near the spirit of metal and put a shovel to her neck. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I deceived you,¡± the doll said. ¡°I had to use head against you.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not really evil?¡± a thought flashed through Kyotyoryon¡¯s brain. *** Unana woke up and realized that she was in her room under the covers. ¡°Yueret,¡± the girl thought. ¡°Why did you send me out of your room? I wanted to sleep next to you, like when I was a child. Yueret, you¡¯re bad.¡± Little time has passed. Unana threw off the blanket and almost fell asleep. But the thought of her older brother, who did not allow her to sleep in the same bed with him, bothered the girl and did not allow her to fall asleep. ¡°It¡¯s time to go to the kitchen,¡± Unana thought. ¡°There will definitely be something edible there.¡± The girl slowly lowered one leg to the floor, hugged the pillow, and then let it go. After some time, the girl¡¯s second leg was on the floor, which means that the most difficult period of that day was over. But a surprise awaited Unana in the kitchen. The refrigerator door was open, and its contents lay nearby. The girl came closer and noticed a dog-like tail behind the refrigerator. Unana carefully walked around the refrigerator and saw between it and the wall the creature to which this tail belonged. It turned out to be a girl with brown dog ears, wearing a short brown fur dress. She looked fearfully at Unana with large red-brown eyes. A small black bow with a white-blue arrow immediately appeared in the archer¡¯s hands. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­¡± the girl with ears and a tail said in a moaning voice. The appearance of the discovered creature was so pathetic that even Unana decided to put away her weapon. ¡°I... I didn¡¯t want to...¡± the animal girl continued to moan. ¡°Don¡¯t ¡­¡± The bow and arrow disappeared from Unana''s hands. The beast girl noticed this and tried to run away, but was caught by the tail by the archer''s hand, after which she screamed in pain and stopped. ¡°How did you get here?¡± Unana asked. ¡°No way,¡± answered the animal girl. ¡°I... I... was... here.¡± ¡°Yueret definitely brought her here and didn¡¯t tell me!¡± Unana was scared. ¡°Yueret, you must answer for this.¡± Unana let go of the dog girl''s tail, and then summoned a bow with a white-blue arrow. But the little animal girl no longer tried to escape. She rolled over onto her back and then crawled to the wall and pressed herself against it. ¡°What is your name?¡± Unana asked. ¡°Ki... ki...¡± the animal girl tried to answer. ¡°Kim...chan...¡± ¡°Kimchan?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± ¡°That was my dog¡¯s name.¡± ¡°It''s me¡­¡± ¡°Are you Kimchan?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± ¡°Why do you look like that?¡± ¡°I cannot... constantly... be in the form of an animal... This is my original form.¡± Unana noticed the brown fur collar and bracelets on the animal girl''s arms and legs, which indicated that it was a pet. ¡°I see,¡± Unana thought. ¡°It¡¯s good that Yueret didn¡¯t bring her. I wonder where he is.¡± *** Yueret and Halankuo sat on a rock near a small stormy river with rapids and looked at the low waterfall on it. There was a mixed forest around with old thick trees, under which only moss and few ferns grew. ¡°We were already here as children,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°The air here is so fresh. I wish I could be here forever.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be forever,¡± Yueret answered. ¡°Unana will come and see me with you. Then I''m finished. She is very jealous.¡± ¡°She''s worried about you.¡± ¡°Yes. But she doesn''t like other girls. I hope she doesn''t know about this place. ¡° ¡°Only you and I know about this place, like in childhood. Now it seems strange to me that I could forget you. Now the memories are coming back to me, and it''s so strange to relearn everything.¡± ¡°There is so much information in the world that there is not enough memory for everything. Maybe buy memory cards?¡± ¡°Are there really memory cards for storing the memories of living beings?¡± ¡°No unfortunately. But maybe someday they will appear. Then I''ll buy it.¡± Halankuo laughed. Yueret looked at the girl and remembered his sister. He was too used to Unana, so when he saw any girl he immediately remembered her. ¡°She¡¯s so cute, like Unana,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°If she were my little sister, it would be good. I would have two cute little sisters, only one would be kinder.¡± But soon Yueret realized that with Unana this was even theoretically impossible. Then he rose to his feet and looked deeper into the forest. ¡°Are you that afraid of meeting your little sister?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°Not that much,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°I just remembered something. I found a horned statue in an abandoned village not far from here. Do you remember when we were children we often walked through all sorts of ruins?¡± Halankuo wrapped her hair around her finger and thought. ¡°I remember something like that,¡± the girl answered. ¡°But then we were children, and we were interested in everything new. I don''t know how it will be perceived now.¡± ¡°I¡¯m interested to know what kind of statue this is,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Last time I didn¡¯t have time for this because I was looking for Unana.¡± ¡°Okay. Let''s go if your sister isn''t there. I don''t want to meet her.¡± The path to the abandoned village ran along the river. The terrain gradually rose, the river became thinner and faster, and the shore more rocky. Finally, the river turned into a stream, and the path turned in the opposite direction from the reservoir... ... Yueret and Halankuo found themselves on the only street of the village, of which little remained. Only the remains of wooden walls, here and there peeking out from behind the trees, indicated that someone had once lived here. ¡°We have arrived,¡± Yueret said. ¡°All that remains is to find the house where the statue was.¡± Yueret began looking for an abandoned house among the thickets of trees, bushes and ferns, and quickly became convinced that it was not easy. Halankuo followed her friend, and soon they found themselves at the other end of the village. ¡°I guess it just seemed to me,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Sorry¡±. ¡°This place is located between our villages,¡± Halankuo looked at the branch with wide double leaves. ¡°I was here, but I don¡¯t remember this place. Too much time has passed. Maybe you really saw the statue, but it was a long time ago?¡± ¡°It was a few days ago. Somewhere here there was a house, and in it laid a statue with horns. I remember this.¡± Yueret noticed a fallen tree, behind which stood some kind of wooden structure. The guy came closer and realized that this was a house. Halankuo walked up to Yueret and noticed it too. A wrench appeared in the girl''s hand. Halankuo pointed it at the fallen tree and moved it to the side. A view opened up to an old wooden house with windows without glass. The door lay on the remains of the porch and served as a bridge. Therefore, Yueret and Halankuo easily entered the corridor, and from there into the room. An open stone coffin was located in the middle of the room, on a stone pedestal. In it laid a gray stone statue of a girl with two horns on her head. There were several cracks on her face, one of which reached her neck. ¡°I saw a similar statue in a train carriage,¡± Halankuo said confidently. ¡°This is not a human.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Such a coffin was the vessel for the character in ¡°Mausoleum of Nature,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°There were several types of vessels. For Kyotyoryon I chose a metal coffin. This statue may be a creature transferred from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. But I can''t tell Yueret about this. He shouldn''t know about the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. If Itinit finds out that I told someone other than Tuot, he will close me in such a coffin and leave me like that forever.¡± A short sword appeared in Yueret''s hand. Halankuo''s heart rate increased. ¡°Don¡¯t do anything to this statue,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Do you think she¡¯ll come to life?¡± Yueret smiled. ¡°No. But doesn''t it seem strange to you that the statue lies in a stone coffin in a wooden house in an abandoned village?¡± ¡°It seems. So I decided to show it to you. I need to take a photo.¡± Yueret ran his finger through the air. A blue translucent virtual screen with several icons appeared in front of him. Yueret pressed the camera icon. Another window opened above the screen, with an empty black frame, inside of which there was an image of the room ahead, and several round buttons at the bottom of different colors. Yueret pressed the red button. The frame turned red for a moment and then returned to its previous black color. Yueret then repeated this action before closing the screen windows. ¡°Now we can go back,¡± Yueret said. Just as Yueret finished his sentence, a loud crack was heard. The longest crack on the statue''s face quickly lengthened and reached its chest. The remaining cracks on the face widened, and then several pieces broke off. White light began to emit from the ¡°wounds¡± that formed. Yueret grabbed Halankuo''s hand and tried to drag her towards the exit of the house, but was stopped by the girl''s wrench. ¡°Wait,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°I¡¯m interested to see what it is.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want anyone to save me again,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°If Halankuo saves me, I will be ashamed, because she is not my sister.¡± The statue slowly rose above the coffin. The stone crust that covered it crumbled into pieces. Halankuo deflected one of these pieces with a wrench, and the second with her gaze. But there were too many pieces. Luckily, Yueret summoned a blue energy barrier around himself and his friend. The pieces hit its walls and fell to the floor. The statue turned into a white glowing silhouette of a man with two horns on his head. Soon the body of a girl in a translucent black helmet, from which two black horns protruded, with long brown hair, and a short black fur dress without sleeves, ¡°hung¡± above the coffin. On her feet are fur boots in the shape of hooves. Yueret ran out of the house. Halankuo caught up with him on the path in the middle part of the village. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°I have to catch up with her,¡± Yueret didn¡¯t even turn around. ¡°She was the one who killed my parents.¡± Yueret ran out of the village and disappeared into the forest. The horned girl climbed out of a large stone on the top of a mountain covered with a coniferous forest, and noticed below, in a meadow near the river, a man in black clothes and a helmet, with a short sword in his hand. ¡°He¡¯s stalking me,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I sent him a signal to leave me behind, but he misunderstood it. I''ll have to move underground again. I hope this skill has already recharged.¡± The girl went underground and emerged a few moments later on the top of the opposite mountain. Then she looked around and realized where she was. ¡°I forgot that I can¡¯t move long distances underground,¡± the girl thought. ¡°If this continues, this man will catch up with me. And I¡¯m still too weak to fight him.¡± Yueret approached the mountainside and stopped. ¡°I have to go home,¡± the guy thought. ¡°Unana is waiting for me. I can''t leave her in danger. This is more important now. If someone comes to Unana and does something to her, I will not forgive myself.¡± The horned girl came out of the forest into the meadow. Yueret noticed her and activated a blue energy aura. ¡°She¡¯s already close,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°A little more and I¡¯ll be able to catch up with her. Unana, wait for me. I will come to you with the head of this creature, and you will pat me on the head like an older brother.¡± A translucent energy copy of the aura separated from Yueret and flew towards the enemy. The horned girl did not notice this and was knocked down. Then the copy of aura swung her sword and tried to hit the enemy, but the girl went underground. ¡°Hey!¡± Yueret shouted. ¡°Why are you hiding?¡± Halankuo came running into the meadow with a wrench in her hand. The girl was breathing heavily. ¡°Yueret... Go away... From here,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It¡¯s... She didn¡¯t kill your parents.¡± Yueret looked at Halankuo and noticed her eyes. The girl''s pupils emitted a purple glow. The guy felt a slight pain in his head, and remembered how, when he first met the doll, he also had a headache. ¡°Your eyes glow like a doll,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Even the face is similar.¡± Halankuo sat down on the ground. The girl''s breathing gradually returned to normal. ¡°What?¡± Halankuo could not understand. ¡°Which doll?¡± Yueret approached his friend. The aura around him disappeared. ¡°I saw one battle doll with eyes like that,¡± Yueret said. ¡°She can move objects with her gaze. Perhaps you can do this too?¡± Halankuo''s pupils became normal. ¡°No, I can¡¯t,¡± the girl lied. ¡°It seemed to you. Today is a difficult day. Go home before your little sister finds you. She may forgive you, but if she sees me with you, she will try to kill me.¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± Yueret agreed. ¡°Unana is like that. I''ll have to go home. Nothing is more important than a little sister.¡± Chapter 23. How to catch a lizard Tuot woke up in the cabin with pain in his tail. The dinosaur looked up and saw Etinnei in her summer form, sitting on the edge of the shelf and stroking its tail with her hand covered in electricity. Lightning was transmitted from the hand to the tail, and further along the dinosaur¡¯s body. ¡°Don¡¯t do this,¡± Tuot asked. ¡°I will die¡­¡± Etinnei removed her hand from her tail and looked at her friend in fear. ¡°Sorry,¡± the arctic fox girl looked down and almost cried. ¡°I just wanted you to wake up.¡± ¡°I woke up. What happened to you after the battle with that terrible man?¡± Etinnei sat down on another shelf and grabbed a lock of hair with one hand and her own tail in the other. ¡°I woke up and noticed that I couldn¡¯t see well and I was cold,¡± the animal girl explained. ¡°I was completely covered in ice. I broke the ice with electricity and began to see clearly, and warmed up. But I didn¡¯t understand where I was. Minniges came to me and said that I had become ice cream. Then I met Itinit, who found you. He said you''ve run out of energy and need to rest. We took you onto the ship and sailed to some island.¡± Tuot opened the virtual screen and clicked on the blue triangle. A window with a map of the area opened above the screen. The blue dot, which showed the being''s location, moved across a gray-blue background. The dinosaur zoomed out with his finger and saw a piece of dark green land. ¡°We will soon sail to the island,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°Is this the same place?¡± ¡°Better ask Itinit,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I know how to chew a pillow, but I don¡¯t understand anything about this.¡± Tuot left the cabin and headed to the forward compartment, where the ship was controlled. There he found Itinit sitting in front of his virtual screen. ¡°What are you doing?¡± the dinosaur suspected something. Itinit pointed his hand at the screen, which showed a girl with pink hair, covered with metal chains instead of clothes. ¡°She¡¯s beautiful,¡± Itinit admitted. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that she¡¯s the younger sister of that strange being with a carrot nose, more precisely, without a nose.¡± ¡°Did someone cut off his nose?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°When I came to the clearing, he was already without a nose. This beautiful girl took him and flew away somewhere. It''s a shame she''s a doll. But I do have one image. I extracted the memories from my brain, and this is the picture I got.¡± ¡°Can people get images out of their brains?¡± ¡°She paralyzed me with her gaze, and I looked at her for a long time. My admiration was so strong that it left an image in my brain that became this picture.¡± Tuot remembered seeing Kuttanai frozen in the glade, and then gathering his last energy and releasing the harpoon. ¡°Did I really cut off his nose?¡± Tuot was surprised. ¡°This cannot be. I''m not capable of this. A man with a carrot nose is too scary an opponent. It''s amazing that I fought him. Apparently, the desire to protect someone important to me is stronger than fear. It''s good that no one saw this. You can¡¯t tell anyone about this, otherwise people might react badly to it.¡± A series of rocks appeared through the large panoramic window at the front of the compartment. ¡°Is this the island?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°But we will not stop at this shore. There is a bay between these rocks. We''ll stop there.¡± ¡°Are there cities or villages on this island?¡± ¡°No. But there are several buildings there.¡± ¡°What is this island called? It doesn''t have a name on the map.¡± ¡°Island of Energy Mushrooms.¡± ¡°Are there mushrooms there?¡± ¡°Yes. There are a lot of mushrooms, but they are energetic.¡± Tuot wanted to say something, but couldn¡¯t. The dinosaur opened and closed its jaws several times with bulging eyes. It ended with Tuot''s limbs trembling and he had to sit on the floor to avoid falling. ¡°I won¡¯t go there,¡± Tuot said when he could speak. ¡°Mushrooms are dangerous.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°They are not like those in games¡±. ¡°I¡¯m afraid they will cause an earthquake.¡± ¡°It''s not scary. You just need to jump over certain areas of land.¡± ¡°What?¡± Tuot fell to the floor and began to make sounds similar to the cries of birds. ¡°I forgot that you have poor coordination of movements,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°But you can use energy aura.¡± Tuot rose to his knees. ¡°If I activate the aura, I will spend a lot of energy,¡± Tuot explained. ¡°I may not survive the new exhaustion of my body. I need rest to recover.¡± ¡°You¡¯d better master skills that don¡¯t require an energetic aura,¡± Itinit advised. ¡°They use a lot less energy, although they are more difficult to master.¡± ¡°You are right. I have too little energy to use aura. So far I only have one skill that I can use without an aura. This is summoning of the yellow lizard. It''s good that I listened to your advice then.¡± Tuot tried to remember how he got this skill... ... It was a sunny summer day. At sunrise, Tuot walked along old paving stones through a coniferous forest. The dinosaur heard the cries of birds that chirped furiously in the treetops, and this made him anxious. Unlike people, Tuot understood what they were saying. ¡°Birds discuss what they see,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°They are watching me so that they can attack and eat me later. But if I tell Halankuo about this, she won¡¯t believe it.¡± Soon Tuot reached a lake into which a small river flowed in the form of a waterfall. The banks consisted of piles of stones, surrounded by forest and thickets of ferns. Tuot climbed onto one of the stones and looked at the water. It was cloudy and nothing was visible in it. ¡°There are no fish in the water,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°I promised Halankuo that I would catch fish, and she promised to cook it. But I don¡¯t know how to hunt underwater.¡± Tuot summoned the interface, went into his inventory, and took out a brown wooden stick with a hook on the end. ¡°I bought this thing from a network store,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°It was written there that it was a fishing rod. I figured if this thing caught fish, then I wouldn''t have to buy fish at the store. I don''t like going to the department where fish is sold. They are alive there and can bite.¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Tuot lowered the end of the fishing rod into the water and waited for the fish to be caught. But no fish were caught. Evening came. The sun was setting below the horizon, making it pink and very bright. Tuot could not stand it and took the fishing rod out of the water. There was nothing on the hook. ¡°They sold me several pieces of meat along with a fishing rod,¡± the dinosaur remembered. ¡°At first I didn¡¯t want to buy them, but then I decided to buy them to try. I''ve already eaten two pieces, there are two more left. I need to use the meat before it¡¯s too late.¡± Tuot went into his inventory, selected a piece of meat, and then attached it to the hook. The juicy piece of red meat that glistened in the bright setting sun whetted the dinosaur''s appetite. Tuot did not notice how the bait ended up in his mouth, so he was very surprised that the meat on the hook had disappeared somewhere. ¡°I took meat out of inventory,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°Why isn¡¯t he there? Where is it?¡± But soon Tuot felt the taste of meat in his mouth, and realized that he was eating the very bait. The dinosaur got scared and opened his inventory again. ¡°It¡¯s okay, I have one more piece left,¡± Tuot reassured himself. ¡°The main thing is not to eat it.¡± This time everything went well. The bait was attached to a hook and lowered into the water. Soon the fishing rod began to twitch. Tuot tried to remove her from the water, but to no avail. Something heavy held the fishing rod by the hook and resisted. The dinosaur activated a green energy aura to improve coordination, and then pulled the fishing rod upward. The head of a large lizard with yellow scales appeared from the water. ¡°Looks like a cold lizard,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But why is it yellow? Cold lizards should be gray. It looks inedible.¡± Tuot pulled the animal completely out of the water. The size of the creature was about half the size of an average person, and the head was even larger than a human. ¡°I¡¯ll show it to Halankuo,¡± Tuot decided. ¡°She knows better how to cook all sorts of strange beings so as not to get poisoned.¡± The dinosaur opened its inventory to drag the lizard there, but suddenly a yellow energy aura surrounded its body, from which waves of yellow energy then began to spread. The bait, in the form of a piece of meat, which the animal''s teeth grabbed onto, disappeared. The lizard fell from the hook into the water. Despite this, waves of yellow energy continued to emanate from the creature''s body. The water in the lake became clear, and Tuot was able to see the lizard slowly swimming underwater near the shore. An energy harpoon emerged from the tail of the dinosaur''s aura. The energy wave affected the harpoon, and the part that was under water disappeared. ¡°These waves of energy remove negative effects,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°That¡¯s why they are yellow, like the lizard¡¯s aura itself. Now it¡¯s clear why the lizard is yellow. But how can I catch her?¡± Soon Tuot noticed that there were small gaps between the waves. A truly ¡°big¡± thought appeared in the dinosaur¡¯s small brain. A wave of yellow energy separated from the lizard''s aura. The harpoon plunged into the water, pierced the animal''s neck in one swift movement, and pulled it ashore. The yellow aura disappeared, and the creature''s body began to emit a white glow... Tuot closed his eyes so that the bright light would not disturb him, and when he opened them, he saw a small stone coffin at the end of the harpoon. The dinosaur brought the caught object closer to itself and noticed a carved image of a lizard on the lid. ¡°This thing looks like a case for that creature,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°But why did it hide there?¡± While the dinosaur was thinking, the lid opened at the touch of a harpoon. A virtual yellow translucent memory card with an image of that same lizard flew out of the coffin. Harpoon threw the coffin and it disappeared, after which it automatically pulled the memory card towards the dinosaur. ¡°There is a skill inside this card,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°I wonder which one exactly?¡± Tuot touched the image on the map with a clawed finger. A window appeared next to the object, in which there was a lizard''s head and a block with text. ¡°This skill summons a lizard that removes negative effects,¡± the dinosaur read the text. ¡°To learn it, you must fulfill the following requirements: have a shield, summon an energy aura and use it in battle on the same day you learn the skill. Before this day, you need to feel fear for several days in a row. In battle, you need to get a negative effect that causes damage.¡± The sun had almost disappeared below the horizon. Tuot finally understood the meaning of the text he read. ¡°This skill is too difficult to learn,¡± the dinosaur decided. ¡°I can¡¯t risk myself just so I can summon some lizard.¡± It''s better to sell it at a network auction. Maybe there will be a fool who will agree to learn this skill.¡± Tuot put the card in his inventory, looked around and got scared. The forest became almost dark. It seemed to the dinosaur that glowing eyes would appear among the trees, and then some monster would crawl out of the darkness and bite off its paw. ... Tuot ran out of the forest and only came to his senses near the door of his apartment... The next day the dinosaur came to the cave cafe. Itinit sat at a stone table and looked at the virtual screen. ¡°Good for you,¡± Tuot remarked. ¡°You live in such a delicious place. Is there free food here?¡± ¡°Once upon a time there was,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°But its supplies ran out a few months after the cafe closed. Food doesn''t appear on its own.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you have a skill that restores food?¡± ¡°No. Although there are healing skills that can restore limbs, but I don''t have them. I''ve collected a lot of skills, but haven''t found any that restore anything other than physical damage. I even had to freeze my parents to save them from old age. They are in the refrigerator in my inventory.¡± ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why I haven¡¯t seen them for several years. I thought they left here.¡± Tuot took out a memory card with an image of a yellow lizard from his inventory and threw it on the table in front of Itinit. ¡°I found this,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°How much can it be sold for?¡± Itinit looked at the map and did not answer for several dozen moments. He then touched the surface of the card and read the description in the pop-up window. ¡°Why don¡¯t you want to learn this skill?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°Look at the conditions for studying it,¡± Tuot explained. ¡°They are impossible.¡± ¡°Why are they impossible? You have a shield. You can summon an aura. You can use the aura in battle on the day you learn the skill. You''ve been feeling scared for the past few days. You are constantly afraid of something. But you will have to try hard to deal with the negative effect. You can attack Halankuo. She will give you an electric shock.¡± ¡°This is the main reason why I want to get rid of the card. I am afraid of pain.¡± ¡°Then I have no choice.¡± A blue translucent ball with a lightning bolt icon inside appeared above Itinite''s head. Tuot noticed this and instinctively became covered in an energy aura, and a small shield with a black symbol appeared on his elbow. The ball quickly reached the dinosaur, but hit the shield and disappeared. Tuot tried to escape, but noticed several energy balls with the image of lightning near him. The dinosaur realized that it was too late. The balls exploded and shocked Tuot. The dinosaur fell to the floor. Electrical discharges passed through his body. The limbs moved independently, and the jaw opened and closed. Smoke came from the feathers. The card flew towards Tuot and landed on his shield. The black symbol turned yellow, and the image of the lizard disappeared from the map. The card then disappeared, after which the symbol on the shield turned black again. *** Unana led Kimchan, in almost human form, to the outskirts of the forest outside the village. The dog girl was trembling with fear, and the archer smiled evilly. ¡°Why... Why have you brought me here?¡± Kimchan asked. ¡°To kill,¡± Unana explained. ¡°If you are left alive, you will harm Yueret. I can''t let my big brother get hurt. So I''ll have to do it. I''m sorry.¡± A small purple bow with an energy string, loaded with an ordinary arrow, appeared in Unana''s hands. Kimchan tried to run away, but because of fear, she lost her balance and fell. Unana pointed her weapon at the dog girl. ¡°I wonder what color your blood is?¡± the archer frowned. ¡°Now I find out.¡± Unana pulled the bowstring. Kimchan looked at the archer and closed her eyes. The beast girl no longer tried to run or resist... ... Unana released an arrow. Kimchan''s body was engulfed in flames and rose to the height of two human heights. The arrow hit the ground. ¡°Sorry,¡± Kimchan said. ¡°I didn''t want to do this. I don''t want to fight you.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t want to fight, leave,¡± Unana said. ¡°I can''t. You and your brother are my masters. I should be with you.¡± A white and blue arrow appeared in Unana''s bow, surrounded by white vapors. Kimchan opened her eyes, saw an arrow flying at her and closed them again. The animal girl¡¯s body moved higher. The arrow hit the branch of a nearby tree on the outskirts of the forest and froze it. A white and blue arrow appeared in Unana''s bow, surrounded by white vapors. Kimchan opened her eyes, saw an arrow flying straight at her, and then closed her eyes. The animal girl¡¯s body moved higher. The arrow hit the branch of a nearby tree on the outskirts of the forest and froze it. ¡°She¡¯s too high,¡± a purple energy arrow appeared in Unana¡¯s bow. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to reach her with arrows that fly straight.¡± Unana fired an energy arrow upward. Kimchan stayed in the air with her eyes closed, surrounded by a fiery aura. She didn''t seem to be trying to shy away. But as soon as the arrow approached the beast girl, her body quickly flew forward. The energy arrow changed its trajectory and flew after the enemy. The animal girl''s body accelerated and now resembled a comet. The arrow lagged far behind the target and then stopped. Kimchan''s body finally turned into a comet and fell in the forest on the horizon. ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to fight,¡± Unana guessed. ¡°And her body defends itself on its own, without orders from the brain.¡± The energy arrow in the sky disappeared. Unana looked at the bow in her hands and became afraid. ¡°I wanted to kill my pet because I was worried about Yueret,¡± the archer let go of the weapon, and it disappeared into thin air. ¡°This is too much even for me.¡± Unana ran into the forest, above which a column of smoke was already visible. Chapter 24. Island of Energy Mushrooms The ship entered the bay. The mountain slopes, dark from coniferous forests, were partly covered in shadow and partly illuminated by the sun. In the middle of the island, opposite the middle of the bay, rose a mountain with steep slopes and a flat snow-capped peak. Tuot went up to the deck and saw Etinnei there, who was examining the surroundings with curiosity. The Arctic fox girl smiled and wagged her tail from side to side. ¡°Have you never been here?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I don¡¯t recognize anything that¡¯s here. And Minniges does not appear to give me my memories. He''s probably scared.¡± ¡°This is after that incident on the island with the man with the carrot nose?¡± Etinnei stopped smiling and raised her tail. ¡°Don¡¯t talk about this creature,¡± the arctic fox girl asked. ¡°He¡¯s so creepy that I couldn¡¯t even look at him.¡± ¡°He¡¯s really scary,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But I noticed that he uses a wrench to manipulate objects in the air, like Halankuo. Is he really related to her?¡± Etinnei looked at the mountains that were approaching and began to smile again. ¡°Look, Tuot, there¡¯s an ice cream-mountain!¡± Etinnei pointed to the white peak of the mountain in the middle of the island. ¡°Does it look like ice cream?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Isn¡¯t it similar?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a volcano. They often come in this shape. It has a white top because there is snow or ice. This is not ice cream.¡± ¡°I know what a volcano is. It is hot inside and should not be eaten. Snow and ice can be edible.¡± ¡°Do you eat ice?¡± ¡°Yup. I can even create it. But I can''t make ice cream. But Minniges can. True, his ice cream isn¡¯t real, but it¡¯s delicious.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You suck your finger and it tastes good. But when you bite your finger, it becomes painful. Then you realize the ice cream wasn''t real.¡± ¡°Can only you see ice cream?¡± ¡°Not only me. Minniges can also see.¡± ¡°But Minniges lives in your head. Can anyone besides you two see this?¡± ¡°I don''t know. I didn''t show the ice cream to anyone. Every time Minniges treated me to ice cream, I forgot that it was not real, and only remembered it when I bit my finger. But despite this, I am grateful to Minniges for the delicious ice cream and want to try it again. This is ice cream that cannot be eaten, but which you can enjoy forever.¡± Etinnei looked at the sea and saw behind the deck of the ship a white and blue penguin with a translucent horn on its forehead, which was floating in the air. ¡°Would you like some ice cream, refrigerator girl?¡± a voice sounded in Etinnei¡¯s head. ¡°Yup,¡± the animal girl answered mentally. ¡°Are you okay?¡± ¡°Yes. I still live in your head. Thanks to you, I wasn¡¯t completely taken out of you. So I decided to share some ice cream with you. Do you really want him? It''s unusual. You can''t eat it.¡± ¡°I''m glad I can try it again. Your ice cream is very tasty. I hope one day I can eat it for real.¡± Minniges''s horn began to emit a blue glow. Soon, an ice cream cone appeared in Etinnei''s hand. The Arctic fox girl licked it and felt a cold but sweet taste in her mouth. But only Etinnei saw the ice cream. Tuot looked at the Arctic fox girl and saw her licking her index finger. ¡°Now it¡¯s clear how Etinnei eats ice cream,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°She doesn¡¯t notice that it¡¯s her finger. Good for her. She can get food when there is none. But I have to not eat, even when the food is in front of me and it¡¯s real, because food might be my friend.¡± The shores of the island were approaching. The mountains now overhung the bay and cast shadows into the water. On the shore, between coastal stones and a coniferous forest, the head of a mammoth, covered with brown fur and surrounded by a purple energy bubble, was floating in the air. ¡°There¡¯s someone there,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°And it flies.¡± Tuot saw the creature on the shore, closed his eyes, turned away, after which he opened his eyes and looked at the shore. ¡°It¡¯s real,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°I was afraid that a creature like Etinnei¡¯s had also appeared in my head.¡± Itinit climbed onto the deck. ¡°What''s there on the shore?¡± Etinnei pointed with her sleeve at the strange creature in the bubble. ¡°A character,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°Like you, only without legs and arms.¡± ¡°It must be hard for him to live,¡± the arctic fox girl¡¯s face became sad. ¡°No, he¡¯s okay,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°Legs are needed to walk.¡± ¡°And to scratch behind the ear,¡± Etinnei looked at her legs. ¡°I will refrain,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Otherwise they¡¯ll know what kind of food I like.¡± ¡°He flies, so he doesn¡¯t need legs,¡± Itinit continued. ¡°And he doesn¡¯t need hands either. He moves objects through the air.¡± ¡°How is Taikuron?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Do you remember him?¡± the smile disappeared from Itinit¡¯s face. Tuot remembered how antennas came out of the ceiling in the cave cafe, and then the head of a penguin poked out of there. The dinosaur shuddered. ¡°I don¡¯t want him to come,¡± Tuot said. ¡°He won¡¯t come here, will he? That is, it won¡¯t fly.¡± ¡°Why would he fly here?¡± Itinit thought. ¡°Taikuron is looking for his other half. If she''s not here, then he shouldn''t be here either.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Nothing,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°It doesn''t matter.¡± Tuot did not want to tell his girlfriend what happened in the cafe in Yenekit. But then he remembered how, during the battle with Kuttanai, he saw a creature similar to Taikuron. Then the dinosaur was busy saving his girlfriend and himself, so he did not attach any importance to this. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. ¡°Maybe I imagined it?¡± Tuot thought. ¡°There was coldness coming from that penguin. He has different abilities than Taikuron, but he also has an antenna. Are these creatures somehow connected? Maybe tell Etinnei about this? Although no, I won¡¯t. This is too scary.¡± The ship landed on the shore. Itinit jumped to the ground in front of the creature in the energy bubble and bowed. ¡°I no longer hoped to see you again, Myuryuri,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Do you remember me?¡± ¡°As long as my barrier is intact, I will remember you,¡± the creature answered. ¡°Let''s leave from here. Although this island is secret, it is better not to walk on the shore. The ship will sail away to the underwater parking lot. He''s a robot, so nothing will happen to him.¡± Myuryuri slowly flew towards the forest. Itinit, Tuot and Etinnei followed him. ¡°Do you know this creature?¡± Tuot asked his friend. ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°His name is Myuryuri. He taught me how to use energy barriers.¡± ¡°Like this?¡± Tuot was surprised. ¡°Something¡¯s wrong here...¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s all right,¡± Itinit laughed. ¡°I just grew up on this island.¡± A road of horizontally lying logs led up the slope through a dark coniferous forest. Thick old trees stood like pillars and covered with their branches the faint light that penetrated the cloudy sky. Here and there along the road there were small ferns and blue translucent mushrooms. ¡°Itinit, why does this mushroom glow?¡± Tuot asked his friend. ¡°This is an energy mushroom that is found only here,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°It feeds on the energy of the surrounding space.¡± ¡°This is strange,¡± Tuot remarked. ¡°This is the Island of Energy Mushrooms of,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°There are a lot of strange things here. Therefore, do not be surprised.¡± Etinnei walked up to the glowing mushroom and sniffed it, then licked it. The mushroom burst and released a wave of blue energy, some of which went into the arctic fox girl''s mouth, and some of which scattered into the air. ¡°Tuot, he disappeared,¡± Etinnei¡¯s voice said. Tuot turned around and saw his girlfriend sitting on a log and crying. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Tuot said. ¡°If you fall behind, a big mushroom will come and eat you.¡± Etinnei instantly found herself near Tuot, grabbed him by the tail and followed him. ¡°I was joking,¡± the dinosaur admitted. Etinnei let go of her friend''s tail and cried even harder. Suddenly, Tuot felt something heavy fall on his head. The next moment, a brown tail hit the dinosaur''s face. Tuot jumped back and activated a green energy aura. A girl with brown dog ears and a tail landed on the log path between Tuot and Etinnei. ¡°Why are you scaring the animal girl?¡± the dog girl asked. From fright, Tuot did not know what to answer. The short, curved sword that had almost appeared in his hand disappeared, but the aura remained. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, Tuot,¡± Itinit¡¯s voice sounded. ¡°This is not an enemy.¡± Tuot turned his head to his friend. The aura around him disappeared. ¡°Do you know her?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°Of course he knows!¡± the dog girl shouted. ¡°He is my creator, and I am his favorite character!¡± Tuot looked at the new animal girl. Short brown hair almost blended into the long triangular ears on top of her head. Red-brown eyes stared motionlessly at Itinit. The mouth and eyebrows froze in a tense state. The chest, which barely fit into the brown fur top, was still moving due to inertia after landing. Thick, ¡°edible¡± legs were spread wide apart, and the tail, which protruded from the hole in the furry shorts, was raised up. There are brown fur bracelets on the arms and legs. ¡°Creator, you promised to return my little sister!¡± the dog girl shouted. ¡°Where is she? I can''t smell her!¡± The dog girl sniffed the air and then turned to Etinnei. ¡°But you brought some new animal girl,¡± the dog girl continued. ¡°For some reason she has small ears. Poor girl, how can she hear with such ears?¡± ¡°I¡¯m an arctic fox,¡± Etinnei explained. ¡°That¡¯s why I have such ears.¡± The dog girl approached Etinnei, got down on all fours and began to sniff her. ¡°You smell tasty,¡± the dog girl said. Etinnei widened her eyes and took a few steps back. Her tail rose up and an icicle emerged from the sleeve of her grey-purple fur top. ¡°I¡¯m not going to eat you,¡± the dog girl said. ¡°Do not be afraid of me.¡± The icicle went back into the sleeve, and the tail hung. Etinnei looked down at the log under her feet. ¡°You brought the wrong animal girl,¡± the dog girl approached her creator. ¡°I need my little sister. She looks like me. This one is not similar.¡± ¡°Your sister is on a mission,¡± Itinit explained. The dog girl tried to jump at her creator, but was stopped by a blue energy translucent wall that appeared in front of Itinit and threw her back. ¡°Be patient for a little while, Noru,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Kimchan will return when the mission is completed.¡± The dog girl lowered her head, stood on all fours and whined. *** Evening was coming. Unana walked slowly through the forest and breathed heavily. The archer had almost no strength left, because she had been walking all day in search of her pet. ¡°If I find her, I won¡¯t try to kill her anymore,¡± Unana thought. ¡°I just want to find her. Yueret will not forgive me if his puppy disappears.¡± The archer accidentally came to a thick coniferous tree and sat down near it to rest. ¡°Night will soon come,¡± Unana looked at the rays of the setting sun that made their way through the branches of the trees. ¡°It¡¯s good that I¡¯m not afraid of the dark.¡± I''m only afraid that Yueret will come and not see me. He''ll think the dolls or someone else stole me. Now I won¡¯t have time to return home, and I won¡¯t be able to. I can barely walk.¡± But soon strength began to slowly return to Unana. The girl looked up and saw something brown among the many thin branches. ¡°Bear!¡± this thought made the tired girl jump away from the tree almost instantly. ¡°A bear is too big to climb trees,¡± Unana guessed. ¡°There''s something different there. Maybe it''s a little bear? I need to cuddle him.¡± Unana walked up to the thick tree and looked up again. Something brown turned out to be hair and dog ears that stuck out from under it. ¡°This is not a bearry,¡± Unana sighed. ¡°This is some other animal. But it''s high. How can I get close to it and touch it?¡± The girl looked at the branches, of which there were many, but they were all thin. ¡°I could rise with the help of an aura,¡± Unana thought. ¡°But now I don¡¯t have the strength for this.¡± The girl looked at her hands. ¡°There is a lot of resin on coniferous trees,¡± Unana thought. ¡°It¡¯s tasteless and makes your tongue stick to your teeth.¡± The archer entered her inventory and then selected the button with the glove icon. Soon the purple gloves moved to the girl''s hands. Unana jumped, grabbed the lowest branch with her hand, and then momentarily activated her purple aura and used it to jump a little higher than usual. The archer''s feet were on a branch, and her hand grabbed the brown creature... ... There was a dog squealing. Something big and fluffy attacked Unana. Already on the ground, on a layer of fallen pine needles, the girl finally understood who this creature was. It was her pet, Kimchan, who was sitting on Unana¡¯s stomach and looking at her in fear. ¡°Are you... not in pain?¡± Kimchan asked. ¡°My back doesn¡¯t hurt,¡± Unana answered. ¡°But if you don¡¯t get off me, my belly will burst and stain you with blood.¡± Kimchan immediately jumped to the side and looked warily at her owner. Her tail was raised up. ¡°I¡¯m not going to kill you,¡± Unana said. ¡°Do not be afraid of me.¡± But the dog girl did not believe her cruel owner. She tucked her tail and hid behind the nearest tree. Unana rose to her feet, summoned her inventory, returned her gloves to their place, and then began to look for her pet. ¡°Where are you?¡± Unana said quietly. ¡°Kimchan, come here. I won''t do anything bad to you. And I won¡¯t kill either.¡± Unana began to cry and fell to her knees. She no longer had the strength to look for the missing dog. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to kill you,¡± the archer said. ¡°I¡¯m just really worried about my older brother. I thought you might hurt him because you''re a girl. If he hangs out with other girls, he could get into trouble. Other girls won''t worry about him or protect him because they are strangers to him. The younger sister is your own. He will be safe with his younger sister. That''s why I want to be the only girl for Yueret.¡± Unana felt her last strength leaving along with her tears. The girl began to fall down, but suddenly felt something soft and warm. That something turned out to be a large brown animal. Unana even mistook him for a bear, but she could no longer jump away as before. The girl closed her eyes from fatigue and realized that she would not return home again, not only today, but in general. There was no longer any strength to resist the beast. But sleep never came. The hot air and the sound of fire made Unana to wake up. The girl was sitting astride a large brown dog, which was surrounded by a fiery aura, and smoke was coming from its tail. The animal was flying over a mixed forest at high speed, like a comet. The sun has not yet set below the horizon. Several clearings appeared in the middle of the continuous forest. On one of them stood a large wooden house - the only building in the radius to the horizon. ¡°This is my home,¡± Unana immediately recognized the place where she lived. ¡°But why is this dog carrying me there?¡± And then the girl began to guess who this fiery dog ??really was. As soon as the house appeared directly below them, the animal tilted its head down and quickly collapsed to the ground... ... A small crater appeared in the ground near the house. Kimchan sat nearby in almost human form, surrounded by a fiery aura and looked at the results of her fall. From the dog-girl''s face one could assume that she was very surprised by the appearance of such a strange depression in the ground and did not understand where it came from. Unana stood on the roof in a violet aura, which gradually dissolved into the air. ¡°It¡¯s good that the passive skill worked,¡± the archer breathed heavily. ¡°Otherwise I would have crashed.¡± This was the last thought in Unana''s head. The activation of the aura drained the girl''s last strength. She instantly lost consciousness and fell from the roof to the ground. Chapter 25. Energy That Forces You Fly Kyotyoryon opened her eyes from the bright white light. ¡°Don¡¯t shine, you¡¯re bad,¡± was the first thing that came out of the mouth of the spirit of metal. The light disappeared. Kyotyoryon saw a head above her with blue hair reaching to the lower edges of her cheekbones. Her eyes and mouth were closed. ¡°I saw you on the shore,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°You''re not a real head. I''ll cut you.¡± The spirit of metal tried to move her hands to activate the blades made from metal bracelets, but her hands did not obey her. Then Kyotyoryon raised her head a little and saw that she no longer had arms and legs. They lay side by side, separate from the body, on a gray stone surface, nearby stood the doll that Kyotyoryon met on the seashore. ¡°Why are my arms and legs not with me?¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°Did they leave me?¡± One of the legs moved and then began to move towards its former owner. But she couldn¡¯t return. Kyotyoryon was struck by a current discharge, and the spirit of metal was forced to abandon the idea of ????returning her limbs. ¡°I took you apart,¡± the doll said. ¡°I want to know who you are and what you are made of.¡± ¡°Why do you need to know what I¡¯m made of?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°I do different things,¡± Sitihi pointed to the head above the character. ¡°Your head is bad. Pick me up and let me go!¡± ¡°I can''t. I don''t often come across creatures like you.¡± ¡°I am the spirit of metal. I''m made from my metal.¡± This explains why you have so much metal in your body. It consists of metal, filler and covered with human skin. Such creatures do not live in our world. It means someone created you.¡± The doll thought. Instead of asking the character, she tried to figure it out on her own. ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about my creator,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°If she asks me, I can stab her so as not to answer. But now I can¡¯t do it.¡± Luckily for the metal spirit, the doll didn''t ask her a question. Instead, she aimed a small wrench at Kyotyoryon''s head. The character''s neck began to rotate along with his head. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°I unscrew my head,¡± Sitihi explained. ¡°I need to take it apart and see what¡¯s inside.¡± Kyotyoryon¡¯s torso was engulfed in a white glow, but soon disappeared. The character tried to take on a combat form, but when disassembled it did not activate... ... The spirit of metal felt a crunch somewhere below, and then saw its torso, which was lying on a stone platform. *** Halankuo stood on the balcony of her old house. From here there was a view of the river valley with steep forested slopes that turned into low flat mountains. But the girl was not interested in the view from the window. She looked at the virtual screen with ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. On the map that showed the character''s location, the red dot was located on the southern coast of the Northern Continent. Halankuo moved a section of the map closer with her fingers, and it became more detailed. The railway ran close to the coast and ended in the forest near the bay. This is where the red dot was located. There were no settlements or any signs of civilization around, except for the railway, only green forests, mountains and rivers. ¡°Kyotyoryon is now near South Rail Bay,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°There used to be a port there. It has long been abandoned because civilized beings have never managed to colonize the Southern Continent, which is on the other side of the sea. I hope she''s okay.¡± *** Unana woke up in her room. A thin blanket with the image of bear cubs covered the girl''s entire body, except for the upper half of her chest and head. The first thing the archer noticed was her older brother, who was sitting on the edge of the bed and looking at something on the virtual screen. ¡°Yueret, you¡¯re alive,¡± Unana noted. ¡°I thought that girl with the wrench ate you.¡± The brother closed the screen with a movement of his hand, and then looked at his sister. ¡°I see you¡¯re fine if you say that,¡± Yueret said. ¡°But now you better think about yourself. When I came home, I found you on the ground near the house. Did you accidentally fall out of the window?¡± Unana had to talk about what happened to her and Kimchan. Of course, she hid the fact that she was trying to kill the unfortunate pet. ¡°Maybe you dreamed about it?¡± Yueret asked. ¡°Kimchan is an ordinary puppy, and animal girls do not exist. In the real world, unlike in games, there cannot be creatures with traits of different types of animals. Maybe you were playing a game where there was a dog girl, and then you fell asleep and dreamed about it?¡± Unana breathed. She realized that convincing her brother would be very difficult. There was barking. A brown puppy that looked like a bear cub came running into the room and pulled the blanket off Unana. The girl remained naked, but did not react to this. But Unana reacted to the puppy itself. The little prankster held the edge of the blanket in his teeth and wagged his tail as if nothing had happened. ¡°You see, Kimchan is an ordinary puppy,¡± Yueret said. ¡°You dreamed it.¡± ¡°Why did I fall from the roof then?¡± Unana frowned, puffed out her cheeks and looked at her brother. ¡°You were just shooting with a bow,¡± Yueret suggested. ¡°Or you decided that you could fly. When I was a kid, I would throw squirrels off the roof and try to figure out whether they could fly or not.¡± ¡°But I''m not little. I''m big!¡± Unana raised her upper body and sat down on the bed. Yueret looked at his sister''s chest, which jumped a little, as if trying to prove her owner''s words. ¡°It¡¯s still too early for you to get up,¡± Yueret said. ¡°You fell from a great height and hurt yourself a little.¡± And then Unana felt a sharp pain in her back, after which she lay down on the pillow. The girl¡¯s breasts ¡°spread¡± to the sides, as if showing how bad her owner was. ¡°You¡¯ll have to lie down,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I¡¯ll bring you food.¡± Yueret left the room. Unana looked at the puppy, which was lying on the floor on a blanket, looking at her and wagging his tail. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Maybe she¡¯s an ordinary dog?¡± the girl thought. ¡°It would be good if it was just a dream. But I''m afraid that''s not the case. If this is not a dream, then Yueret is in danger.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t tell Yueret everything, I¡¯ll sell you to the dinosaurs,¡± Unana said. ¡°They eat dogs.¡± The puppy transformed into an almost human form. ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± Kimchan answered. ¡°We can¡¯t let anyone find out... who I really am.¡± ¡°But I know,¡± Unana objected. ¡°I... I''m very ashamed of this... I''m sorry... Let''s not tell anyone about this. I''ll bring you food.¡± ¡°Where will you get it? Will you steal from the fridge?¡± ¡°I will hunt squirrels and birds.¡± ¡°Then Yueret will know about this meat and ask where it comes from.¡± Besides, I don''t know how to cook. I¡¯m the younger sister, so I only eat. Let''s do this: you will watch Yueret and tell me what he is doing. You will definitely succeed.¡± ¡°Okay. I... will watch... your older brother.¡± ¡°Just do it without him noticing.¡± Footsteps were heard outside the door. Kimchan heard them and turned back into a puppy. The door opened. Yueret entered the room, summoned his inventory with a movement of his hand through the air, and pulled out a tray with a clawed piece of meat and a small bottle of green liquid. ¡°Bear meat?¡± Unana immediately recognized the delicacy. ¡°Did you hide it in the refrigerator?¡± ¡°It was in a secret slot,¡± Yueret explained. ¡°Bear meat is very valuable. It must not be left unattended.¡± Kimchan also noticed the meat, looked up and began to bark. ¡°I need to feed the dog,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°I completely forgot about it.¡± The puppy jumped up to get the meat, but it was not big enough for this. Yueret gave the tray to his sister, who immediately pounced on the food. Then the guy grabbed the puppy by the scruff of the neck and carried him out of the room. Unana quickly finished her food, patted her belly, and then opened the virtual screen and clicked on the wooden stick icon. Another window appeared on top of the screen, most of which was occupied by empty space with cells. ¡°Now I know what I¡¯m going to draw,¡± Unana giggled. After some time, an image appeared on the screen of a girl with dog ears and a tail, similar to Kimchan, who was sitting in the refrigerator and holding one of her legs, separated from her body, in her teeth. ¡°This is what a real dog girl should look like,¡± Unana smiled. ¡°It¡¯s a pity, Yueret, you don¡¯t see this.¡± *** The road of logs led Itinit and his friends to the top of the mountain. It turned out to be not snow-covered, but covered with frost. From here there was a view of a giant basin, covered with dark coniferous forests and surrounded by flat mountains, and a blue-green lake in the center. ¡°This is a volcano crater,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°We need to go down.¡± ¡°The slopes here are too steep,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°I don¡¯t want to walk down.¡± The dinosaur was right. The slopes were not just steep, but almost vertical. Despite this, single crooked coniferous trees and shrubs grew on them. ¡°I would jump there,¡± Etinnei went to the edge of the cliff. ¡°I wonder if I can walk on this slope. I was able to through the energy bridge.¡± ¡°This is not an energy bridge,¡± Itinit grabbed the arctic fox girl¡¯s sleeve. ¡°If you make one wrong move, you¡¯ll fall down and...¡± ¡°What?¡± Etinnei looked thoughtfully at Itinit. ¡°Well, I fall, and what happens?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t even know what could happen to her,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°But it¡¯s better to talk her out of it, just in case.¡± ¡°There is a cable car for the descent,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°It is there.¡± A blue energy arrow appeared in front of the horned mammoth''s head, pointing to the edge of the cliff. There stood a small wooden gazebo with a domed roof that ended in a spire with a transparent ball at the end. ¡°Does it fly?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°You¡¯ll see now,¡± Itinit turned away to hide his smile. Myuryuri approached the gazebo. A virtual control panel with several buttons appeared in front of him. The first button on the left was surrounded by a red border. ¡°He activated the screen without moving,¡± Tuot stopped and froze in surprise. ¡°How is this possible?¡± ¡°No way,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°He just can do this.¡± ¡°This is strange,¡± Tuot looked at his friend. The conversation was interrupted by the sound of an incoming message near Itinit. The guy stepped aside and opened a virtual screen. The source of the sound turned out to be a letter from Kimchan: ¡°Creator, the evil girl found out who I was and forced me to keep an eye on my older brother. What should I do?¡± ¡°You have to keep an eye on them anyway,¡± Itinit replied. ¡°If you are discovered, turn into a dog and pretend that nothing happened.¡± ¡°I can''t. The girl with the bow threatened to send me to the dinosaurs, and they eat dogs.¡± Noru approached Itinit and he was forced to close the screen. ¡°What are you doing over there?¡± the dog girl asked. ¡°Are you texting with someone?¡± ¡°With a friend,¡± Itinit lied. ¡°He lives far away.¡± ¡°Did you answer him so urgently?¡± Noru doubted. ¡°Something¡¯s wrong here.¡± Etinnei approached Noru and touched one of her ears with her hand, and thus saved Itinit from answering. Meanwhile, Tuot watched as the red frame moved on its own to the next button, and then to another, flickering, after which a long text input field appeared in front of the control panel, and below it was a screen with many buttons with different symbols. The red frame also moved independently along these buttons until it activated one of them... ¡­ The virtual screens disappeared. A purple energy aura surrounded the wooden gazebo, after which it rose slightly above the ground. Purple energy filled the ball on the roof, from which a thick energy rope stretched somewhere down. Noru heard these words and immediately found herself near the gazebo. Itinit and Etinnei followed her. Only Tuot remained standing in place with his mouth open. Etinnei noticed that her friend was not going to the gazebo, and went up to him. ¡°You need to go there,¡± the arctic fox girl pointed to the gazebo with her sleeve. ¡°|I have a very long tail,¡± Tuot said. ¡°The tail does not interfere with traveling in transport. You yourself said that friendship does not depend on how many ears you have.¡± These words made Tuot move. The dinosaur looked at its girlfriend. The arctic fox girl looked at him with a cute, dissatisfied face. ¡°Let¡¯s go there,¡± Etinnei again pointed to the gazebo with her sleeve. ¡°If you don¡¯t go, I won¡¯t go either. I will go on foot.¡± ¡°With this cute arctic fox girl, I¡¯m even ready to fly, although I don¡¯t know how to fly,¡± the thought flashed through Tuot¡¯s head. Inside, the gazebo was the size of half a railway carriage. Two rows of wooden benches stood opposite each other, like in a park. Above them are large rectangular windows. As soon as Tuot and his girlfriend entered the gazebo, the door, which consisted of boards, closed. The dinosaur turned around to check if its tail was caught, but everything turned out to be fine - the tip of the tail was inside the carriage, and not outside. Tuot already thought that the hardest part was over, when suddenly the gazebo began to move. From a strong push, the dinosaur fell on its back and saw in front of it the tail of an arctic fox in black summer coloring. The next moment the tail was replaced by a fragment of a thigh. Tuot instinctively opened his mouth, raised his head, and then tried to bite off a piece of flesh. ¡°Do you want to eat?¡± Etinnei¡¯s voice came from above. The tasty-looking meat was replaced by the head of an arctic fox girl in a hood, from under which strands of black hair hung. ¡°I can ask Minniges to give you ice cream,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I don¡¯t want to eat,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°I want to get up.¡± The end of an icicle appeared from Etinnei¡¯s sleeve, along which an electric discharge then passed. Tuot remembered what would happen if he was hit by such a weapon, so he did not wait for it to be used and activated a green energy aura. This helped. The dinosaur was on its feet almost instantly. The icicle disappeared into the sleeve of the arctic fox girl. Tuot sat down on the bench opposite which Itinit and Noru were sitting. The dinosaur''s tail fit completely on the seat, and there was still some room left. Etinnei took advantage of this, sat down near the tail and began to examine the feathers on it. Why is the water there such a color? ¨C Tuot asked. ¡°No rivers flow into this lake,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°Only a few streams that flow over the stones. In ordinary lakes, the water is dark due to the fact that rivers bring there a lot of all sorts of impurities.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t understand anything,¡± Etinnei moved her ears. ¡°The tail has only feathers. There are no impurities.¡± The gazebo slowly moved forward and down. The windows overlooked the steep rocky slopes of the crater, covered with groups of coniferous trees. Soon the edge of a lake with blue-green water appeared. Laughter was heard. Etinnei looked away from her tail and turned her head in the direction of the source of the sound. The laughter came from Itinit. Noru sat nearby and looked at her creator with her mouth slightly open, as if she was growling. ¡°Why do you find it funny?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°We are talking about the color of the water in the lake,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°I see,¡± Etinnei wiggled her ears. ¡°My ears just hear themselves, no matter what I¡¯m doing. I can''t disable them.¡± ¡°This is what happens when you have four ears,¡± Tuot thought. The lake outside the window has become larger. The gazebo had dropped significantly and was now flying at the level of the treetops. From here the slopes of the crater seemed like a real mountain range. ¡°Are we inside a volcano?¡± Tuot just realized this now. ¡°It won''t explode?¡± ¡°This is a water volcano,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°It¡¯s crater contains water, not lava.¡± ¡°Are there such volcanoes?¡± Tuot was surprised. ¡°If there are animal girls, then there are water volcanoes.¡± Noru looked angrily at her creator, showed her teeth and growled like a big wild animal. ¡°Okay, I won¡¯t talk about animal girls,¡± Itinit promised his character. Noru hid her teeth, smiled and laid her head on the creator''s lap. Her tail began to hit the bench. A wooden palisade appeared through the windows of the gazebo, behind which the blue roof of the building could be seen. The gazebo stopped near the stockade, after which the gate inside it opened and let this strange type of transport through. Chapter 26. Residence of the Spirit of Mushrooms The gazebo stopped in the middle of the fortress courtyard, formed by a wooden palisade and several buildings. The purple energy aura around her disappeared, after which the doors opened. ¡°We have arrived,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°You can go out.¡± Noru was the first to leave the gazebo, and then turned around. Itinit walked towards her, followed by Tuot and Etinnei. ¡°I will accompany you further,¡± Noru smiled. ¡°The spirit of the mushrooms instructed me to bring you to her, because I am the cutest on the island and I have ears and a tail.¡± ¡°You have too high an opinion of yourself,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°You made my ears and tail yourself,¡± Noru touched her dog ears with her hands, and then stroked the tail. Etinnei noticed this and began to repeat the movements of the dog girl. Tuot noticed both, and did not know where to look. ¡°There are too many of them,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°I never thought that I would see two animal girls at once. It''s good that there is no third one here. I just can¡¯t stand this.¡± This sweet scene ended with Itinit walking up to his character, grabbing her by the hair and dragging her towards the entrance of the largest building in the fortress. That helped. Tuot focused on his friend and managed to stay on his feet. Soon Etinnei got tired of stroking her own tail, and she noticed that Itinit and the dog girl had already left, and Tuot was standing in front of her with his mouth open. ¡°Let''s go,¡± Etinnei grabbed her friend by the tail and followed Itinit and Noru. Tuot barely had time to move his paws to avoid falling. Soon he and his girlfriend found themselves at the entrance to a wooden house with thick white columns that resembled the trunks of dead trees. ¡°There are mushrooms here too,¡± Etinnei noted. Here and there on the columns there were blue, green and purple translucent mushrooms glowing. ¡°Don¡¯t touch them,¡± Itinit warned. ¡®Otherwise¡­¡± But it was too late. Etinnei touched the purple mushroom, it burst and released a cloud of energy that surrounded the arctic fox girl and began to lift her above the ground. ¡°That¡¯s why the spirit of the mushrooms doesn¡¯t like alien creatures,¡± Noru said. ¡°They don¡¯t know how to behave on this island.¡± ¡°You won¡¯t punish her, will you?¡± Itinit asked. A fiery aura appeared around Noru. The next moment, the dog girl¡¯s body turned into a comet, soared into the air, reached Etinnei, which was already above the level of the roofs of houses, and returned to the ground. An arctic fox girl without a purple aura was lying in the arms of a dog girl. ¡°Of course I won¡¯t,¡± Noru licked Etinnei¡¯s cheek and received the same answer from the arctic fox girl. ¡°She¡¯s a beast girl, and pretty too. Animal girls are the cutest!¡± ¡°Even the animal girls themselves admit this,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Some miracles are happening to me. My dreams are coming true¡±. Noru let go of Etinnei and looked at Tuot. ¡°She¡¯s looking at me,¡± the dinosaur thought joyfully. ¡°Now she will ask you to scratch behind her ear.¡± ¡°But if you touch the mushrooms, I will fry you and eat you,¡± Noru turned to Tuot. ¡°Actually, dinosaurs eat dogs, and not vice versa,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°That¡¯s why I don¡¯t like them,¡± Noru explained. ¡°At first you¡¯re a cute little dog for them and then om-nom-nom.¡± Etinnei remembered the conversation between the two dinosaurs on the Munmut waterfront. The arctic fox girl felt uncomfortable. ¡°I don¡¯t eat dogs,¡± Tuot said. Noru looked at the dinosaur incredulously. ¡°It¡¯s true,¡± Etinnei confirmed. ¡°That''s my friend. He doesn''t eat dogs.¡± Noru looked at the arctic fox girl and smiled. ¡°If you say so, then you can be trusted,¡± the dog girl said. ¡°I¡¯ll make an exception for this dinosaur. But I won¡¯t allow myself to be stroked on the head or scratched behind the ear.¡± ¡°This animal girl doesn¡¯t love me,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°I won¡¯t be able to scratch her behind the ear. But nothing, now I know that I¡¯m not the only one who likes creatures with ears and tails.¡± Noru walked up to a large wooden door that consisted of two halves, summoned a large blue energy door lock and entered the code into a special field... ... The door lock disappeared along with the field. The door slowly swung open and opened a passage into a dark space. ¡°What''s there?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°When you enter, you will find out,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°Don''t you know what''s in there?¡± Tuot looked at his friend in surprise. ¡°Oh...¡± Itinit answered. ¡°This place looks different every time. This is the residence of the spirit of mushroom. She can look like anything.¡± These words made Tuot scared. He remembered his very first dream, in which an arctic fox girl similar to Etinnei told him not to board the train. Then he entered the train and saw something terrible there. The dinosaur did not remember what exactly he saw, but he remembered the fear and surprise that he felt then. ¡°I won¡¯t go there,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I don¡¯t have to go in there, do I?¡± The dinosaur felt something heavy fall on its back, after which it noticed thick bare legs in front of it and immediately realized who they belonged to. ¡°Get off me, Etinnei,¡± Tuot asked. ¡°You¡¯re heavy, and your paws look tasty. I may eat them by accident.¡± The arctic fox girl crossed her legs on the dinosaur''s stomach so that he could not see them, and then wrapped her arms around his neck. ¡°I won¡¯t go there without you,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I''m scared. Suddenly there is something there. Moreover, you can be ridden.¡± Tuot felt something warm on his back. Etinnei tried to press her whole body against her friend, and the warmth from him penetrated through the feathers. ¡°My animal girl is lying on me,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°Why am I scared? I should be happy. If I will die, at least with the character I dreamed of.¡± Tuot took a step towards the dark space beyond the door and found himself in a wooden train carriage with Etinnei on his back. Large rectangular windows overlooked a very wide river that resembled a long lake or bay. In the distance, silhouettes of mountains could be seen on both sides of the reservoir. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°I was afraid it would be a train,¡± Tuot¡¯s heart was beating quickly. ¡°And it happened. I hope that at least it won¡¯t be what happened in the dream.¡± Etinnei grabbed the dinosaur''s head in her hands and turned it towards the door at the end of the carriage. ¡°There¡¯s something there,¡± the arctic fox girl said quietly. Tuot looked in horror at the door, which did not open. The dinosaur felt as if its heart had moved to his belly. ¡°There¡¯s nothing there,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°It seemed to you...¡± ¡°There¡¯s something there,¡± Etinnei repeated. ¡°I hear it with my ears, which are in the right place.¡± A dark silhouette appeared in the window at the top of the door. Tuot summoned his weapons: a short curved sword and a semicircular shield, but was unable to activate the aura due to the fact that Etinnei was on his back. ... The door opened. On the threshold stood a mushroom the size of a person, with a purple cap from which two black horns protruded. ¡°Mushrooms shouldn¡¯t travel on trains,¡± the thought flashed through Tuot¡¯s head. ¡°Why?¡± a strangled voice was heard from the door. Tuot and Etinnei looked at the mushroom stalk. A large round hole appeared in it, similar to a mouth. ¡°This creature talks,¡± Etinnei noted. The mushroom has moved forward a little on its stalk. Two small ones appeared above the large hole, emitting a blue glow. ¡°He even has eyes,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°We need to run away from here.¡± The dinosaur turned around and ran in the opposite direction from the mushroom, to another door that led to the next carriage. But right in front of the door, a hat with horns appeared from under the floor. Tuot had to stop and then slowly retreat to the middle of the carriage. The mushroom has completely come out from under the floor. The ¡°mouth¡± and ¡°eyes¡± appeared on it stalk again. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be afraid of mushrooms,¡± a voice came from the mushroom¡¯s ¡°mouth.¡± ¡°They can''t walk, fly or hit you.¡± ¡°Ordinary mushrooms can¡¯t,¡± Tuot agreed. ¡°But... You''re not like that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a spirit of mushrooms,¡± the mushroom admitted. ¡°My name is Sanachan. I can''t harm you. You don''t see me, but my projection. This is a specially created space that is isolated from the world. I created it to communicate with other beings. My antennas are emitting too strong a signal. Therefore, no one can be near me.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t exist?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°Yes and no,¡± the mushroom answered. ¡°My real body is in another place, which is isolated from the real world. You only see my image here. You can touch me if you don''t believe me.¡± Etinnei pointed the sleeve of her fur top at the strange creature and shot an icicle. The mushroom did not react to the attack. The icicle went through the stalk of the mushroom and broke on the seat behind it. ¡°You don¡¯t exist, but you seem to exist,¡± Etinnei moved her ears on the top of her head. ¡°It¡¯s not clear.¡± ¡°But you are in the same position,¡± a voice sounded from the ¡°mouth¡± of the mushroom. ¡°You are traveling on a train, but in fact you are in a house, which is located in the crater of a volcano on an island in the middle of the sea.¡± Tuot looked out the window. The wide river was finally crossed and showed its shore. The mountains no longer looked like silhouettes. Now these were ordinary mountain ranges, covered with dark coniferous forests, which stretched along the coast and in some places dropped steeply above the water. ¡°Are these places outside the window also unreal?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yes,¡± the mushroom answered. ¡°It''s just a background. This is necessary in order to fill the space. You don''t want to talk to me in the dark, do you?¡± Etinnei shuddered and jumped to the floor. The Arctic fox girl felt anxious, but soon this feeling disappeared. The train entered a cave and stopped. The doors opened. Itinit and Noru entered the carriage. ¡°Sorry for being late, spirit of mushroom,¡± Noru said. ¡°I came to the wrong stop, and then I saw the train and flew after it.¡± ¡°This space works well,¡± a voice sounded from the hole on the mushroom¡¯s stalk. ¡°I didn¡¯t hope that you would find the train, so I showed up here myself.¡± ¡°My hair almost caught fire when I was flying astride her,¡± Itinit admitted. ¡°But you were able to get on the train,¡± the spirit of mushroom objected. ¡°It means you created a good character.¡± Noru pressed herself close to Itinit and placed the top of her head under his chin. ¡°I need to pet you,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I know.¡± Itinit put his hand on the top of the dog-girl¡¯s head and ran it through her hair several times, and then began scratching behind the ear. Tuot noticed this and immediately forgot about the talking mushroom with horns and that he was on a train that did not exist. ¡°Itinit has his own animal girl,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°Almost like mine. I hope that Etinnei will one day agree to become one of my favorite characters, no, my most favorite character.¡± Tuot turned around to find his friend, but did not see either the arctic fox girl or the mushroom with horns... *** Kyotyoryon noticed how her torso rose from the table and then hung in the air. The arms and legs remained in the same place. The spirit of metal looked down, did not find any body parts there, and realized something. ¡°This evil doll tore my head off,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°I need to put it back in place.¡± The spirit of metal looked at her hand, which was lying on the table, and imagined a blade coming out of the bracelet on it. One of the fingers on his hand moved, but nothing else happened. ¡°The hand is moving,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°But that¡¯s not enough. I can''t move things through the air like the creator. But I will do it, even if I don¡¯t have such a skill. I am the spirit of metal, so I can do whatever I want with my metal.¡± At this time, Sitihi was moving Kyotyoryon¡¯s torso through the air with a wrench and did not notice that the hand on the table began to move. But this was noticed by the weapon-head, which was looking at the table. ¡°It¡¯s moving,¡± the head said. ¡°Don¡¯t bother me,¡± Sitihi replied. ... The metal spear flew into the back of the doll, but was intercepted by the head and taken in the teeth. ¡°The doll is not only evil, but also stupid,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°Her separate head is smarter than her. Maybe this doll just appeared recently?¡± The head unclenched its jaws. The spear fell out of her mouth and fell onto the table. Only then did Sitihi pay attention to the foreign object. But it was too late. The spear rose into the air and then pierced the doll in the neck. Sitihi immediately lost control of the metal spirit''s body with the wrench, and it fell to the floor. This won¡¯t kill me,¡± the doll looked at Kyotyoryon¡¯s head in the air. ¡°I''m not a living human.¡± ¡°Get me together,¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°I haven''t finished studying your body yet. I don''t understand how it works. When I understand, then I''ll collect it. In the meantime, you will remain in a disassembled state. You are not a living being, so nothing will happen to you.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m alive,¡± Kyotyoryon looked at her hand, which was lying on the table. This time she managed not only to move her finger, but also to release the blade from the bracelet. However, he didn¡¯t want to go back. ¡°I did better this time,¡± Kyotyoryon noted. ¡°If I try, I will collect myself.¡± Sitihi pointed the wrench at the metal spear that protruded from her neck and pulled it out. Kyotyoryon noticed this and caught a piece of her metal with her gaze, but could not move it to another place. Strength began to leave the character. The spirit of metal felt pain in her eyes, and then her head seemed to be filled with something heavy. Kyotyoryon''s eyes slowly closed. The spirit of metal tried to resist this, but could not. *** Unana woke up from something cold that touched her cheek. ¡°Yueret, don¡¯t be like a dog,¡± Unana tried to open her eyes normally. In response, a thin dog bark was heard. This sound made the girl open her eyes wide and notice in front of her a brown puppy that looked like a bear cub. ¡°It¡¯s you, Kimchan,¡± Unana said. ¡°I dreamed that Yueret became a dog and was rolling me on his back.¡± The puppy took on an almost human form. ¡°I... I kept an eye on your brother, as you ordered,¡± Kimchan said. Unana''s heart rate increased rapidly, causing her chest to sway. The skin on the girl''s face turned a little red. ¡°What is he doing?¡± the archer asked. ¡°He... he... cooked food, cleaned, caught squirrels,¡± the dog girl answered. ¡°There are no other girls with him,¡± Unana thought joyfully. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine.¡± ¡°He also went to the forest,¡± Kimchan said. Unana stopped rejoicing and began to worry again. ¡°Did you follow him in the forest?¡± the archer asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Kimchan answered. ¡°But I couldn¡¯t get close. He walked along some road and then returned back.¡± ¡°Which road?¡± Yueret tried to go to that girl with the wrench, Unana thought. ¡°There... Abandoned village... House...¡± Kimchan answered. Unana remembered how, together with Yueret and Kimchan, when she was an ordinary puppy, she ran away from a dinosaur doll. Then she tried to stop her brother from entering the abandoned house, but he pushed her and entered. ¡°This is not that girl,¡± Unana thought and calmed down a little. ¡°But it¡¯s not good that Yueret is trying to go to such places. Who knows who he might meet there?¡± Footsteps were heard outside the door. Kimchan almost instantly took on the form of a puppy. The next moment, the door opened and Yueret entered the room with a tray on which lay a plate of fried squirrel and a glass of green liquid. ¡°I brought a squirrel,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I caught it myself not far from home. The unfortunate squirrel fell into a trap, and I decided to save her.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want such a squirrel,¡± Unana frowned. ¡°I was joking. This is a squirrel from the refrigerator. I let that squirrel go.¡± Unana took the tray and smelled the food. The puppy tried to grab the meat, but met an obstacle on its way in the form of the girl¡¯s breast and buried its nose in it. ¡°By the way, for some reason Kimchan is not growing,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°She¡¯s been living with us for over a year now. During this time, dogs grow to large sizes. Something is wrong here.¡± The puppy jumped off the bed and left the room. ¡°Sometimes it seems to me that it understands human speech,¡± Yueret said. ¡°It¡¯s good that it¡¯s just a dog.¡± Unana looked at her brother with her mouth full of food and nodded. Along with her head, her chest also nodded, as if confirming the words of its mistress. Chapter 27. Ice Penguin and Arctic Fox Girl Etinnei sat on a wooden seat near the window and looked at the views that opened out of it. The train was traveling along an icy road across the sea. In the distance, snow-capped mountains could be seen, which came closer and then moved away. ¡°Why is it winter there?¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°It was summer just recently.¡± Etinnei noticed the white-blue sleeve of her clothes and realized that she was in a winter look. Instead of a gray-purple top with sleeves and a hood, the beast girl was wearing a white-blue fur jacket with a hood. ¡°Tuot, there...¡± Etinnei turned her head towards the middle of the car, but instead of her friend she found a white and blue penguin with an antenna in the shape of an ice cream cone on its forehead. ¡°Do you want ice cream?¡± a voice rang out in the head of the arctic fox girl. ¡°I don¡¯t need ice cream,¡± Etinnei answered mentally. ¡°Where are Tuot and the others? They disappeared¡±. ¡°Ice cream must be kept in the refrigerator so that it does not melt. Your mouth is best suited for this, refrigerator girl. That''s why I live in your head.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll eat ice cream later. Now I need Tuot.¡± Etinnei got up from her seat and walked towards the wooden door at the end of the carriage, but was soon stopped by Minniges, who appeared right in front of her and almost touched the Arctic fox girl''s mouth with his horn. ¡°Don¡¯t go there,¡± a voice was heard in Etinnei¡¯s head. ¡°My ice cream will melt there. You don¡¯t want the ice cream to disappear like your friends?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I want ice cream, but I also want friends.¡± ¡°Choose ice cream. It tastes better.¡± The light bulb on Minniges''s antenna touched Etinnei''s lips. The next moment, the ¡°ice cream cone¡± entered the mouth of the arctic fox girl... ... Etinnei felt pain and found herself sitting on the floor in the middle of the carriage with a finger in her mouth. Summer has come outside the window. Mixed forests grew on both sides of the train, and there was no more snow and ice. The arctic fox girl looked at the sleeve of her clothes and realized that she was in summer uniform. ¡°I need to find Tuot,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°He must be somewhere on the train.¡± The arctic fox girl got up from the floor and walked to the wooden door at the end of the carriage. Unfortunately, the door was closed, and Etinnei did not know how to open it. ¡°There¡¯s nothing here that could open the door,¡± the animal girl thought. ¡°Maybe I should go to the other door?¡± Etinnei turned around to go to the opposite end of the carriage, but saw there a white and blue penguin with an ¡°ice cream cone¡± on its forehead. ¡°Minniges, I don¡¯t want ice cream,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°I want to open the door and get out of here.¡± ¡°You better not open this door,¡± the penguin¡¯s voice said. ¡°There¡¯s someone there.¡± ¡°This is Tuot?¡± ¡°No, is not your friend. There is someone there who can take me from you.¡± Etinnei felt horrified. The arctic fox girl fell to her knees, looked at the floor with bulging eyes and raised her tail. ¡°Is this the same person with the carrot nose?¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°But how did he get here?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not him,¡± Minniges replied. ¡°But it also wants to take me away from you.¡± The horror inside Etinnei gave way to a little anxiety. The arctic fox girl tried to get to her feet, but fell face down on the floor. Luckily, her large breasts and fur top saved her head from being hit. ¡°I wanted to get rid of you because I was afraid of the voices in my head,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°I don¡¯t want a flying penguin suddenly appearing in front of me and offering me ice cream.¡± ¡°But you like my ice cream,¡± Minniges¡¯s voice answered. ¡°If I don''t live in your brain, no one will feed you such tasty ice cream¡±. ¡°Somehow that ice cream always ends up being my finger.¡± ¡°That''s because you eat it.¡± Etinnei placed her hand on the nearest seat and then rose to her feet. ¡°It¡¯s my fault that you appeared,¡± the arctic fox girl thought. ¡°I thought about cute animals too often when I lived on the Southern Continent. I wanted to have such an animal. But instead of a normal animal, you appeared. I''m sorry.¡± The light on Minniges'' antenna turned yellow. ¡°Other animals don¡¯t have ice cream, but I do. Other animals can''t freeze you, but I can. Only ice can be beautiful. After all, ice is purity.¡± ¡°So you were the one who froze me on the island?¡± Etinnei asked mentally. ¡°No, it was something else. But I froze you while you slept in your coffin.¡± Etinnei remembered waking up in a coffin on the hotel balcony. Then Minniges put her to sleep to reveal part of her memories. ¡°You keep part of my memories,¡± the animal girl noted. ¡°Yes,¡± Minniges replied. ¡°I¡¯m like a memory card. If you get rid of me, you will lose access to old memories.¡± Etinnei sat down on the seat and looked out the window. The train was traveling across a large river on water without an energy bridge, like a ship. ¡°I can¡¯t get rid of you,¡± the arctic fox girl remarked. ¡°If I let you be extracted, I won¡¯t be able to remember anything important. I also want to meet the creator and ask her why she created me. Without memories this is impossible. But I can''t hear the voices in my head anymore. They appear suddenly and scare me. You also read my thoughts. I can''t think like normal beings. I''m afraid to think, but I can''t help but think. Thoughts appear in the head on their own and do what they want. And you read them. It is good for other creatures to live. Nobody reads their thoughts. What should I do?¡± Minniges appeared in the reflection of the window. ¡°Get out of here, refrigerator girl,¡± the penguin¡¯s voice was heard. ¡°Together we will find your creator and ask why she created you.¡± The train had passed the river and was now moving overland, through deciduous forests with tree and common ferns. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. An icicle emerged from the sleeve of Etinnei''s top, which was then surrounded by an electric aura. The arctic fox girl brought the weapon to the glass and began to cut a circle on it. ... The cut piece of glass fell out of the window. The wind hit Etinnei''s face, knocking the hood off her head. The animal girl''s hair now almost merged with the ears on the top of her head, making her look more like a human. The forest became denser. The trees became taller and there were more ferns. Lianas and blue glowing mushrooms appeared and grew on the trunks. Etinnei jumped into the hole, but only went halfway. The arctic fox girl''s hips are stuck in the glass. ¡°I cut the hole too small again,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°I need to go back and cut more.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no time, refrigerator girl,¡± the voice of Minniges said. ¡°It¡¯ll be here soon.¡± ¡°But I won¡¯t get through any further.¡± ¡°Use lightning. You''re a refrigerator girl. Refrigerators, in addition to cold, have electricity.¡± Etinnei activated her electrical aura. Cracks ran along the glass from the hole to the edges, which broke it into many fragments... *** Halankuo walked around the village and tried to remember something from her childhood. The girl was wearing only a long T-shirt that reached her upper thighs. In this form, Halankuo was afraid to appear in the city because she did not want to stand out. But here, in the abandoned village, there were no people which mean that only wild animals could pay attention to it. ¡°Mom, I can¡¯t remember anything,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Maybe you remember something?¡± The voice that Halankuo heard at the station did not answer this time. ¡°Perhaps it was my imagination,¡± the girl decided. ¡°I was so afraid of losing Kyotyoryon that I heard my mother¡¯s voice.¡± Halankuo felt that she had stepped on something hard. This item turned out to be a brown, unopened cone that lay under a coniferous tree on the site of a former fence. ¡°What if I check it out?¡± a thought appeared in Halankuo¡¯s head. The girl picked up the bump and then looked at it intently. The lump moved and then rose slightly above the palm. Halankuo opened her mouth and opened her eyes wide, but did not notice how her pupils began to emit purple light. The girl¡¯s surprise was interrupted by a rustle in the bushes that grew in place of the rotted fence. Halankuo stopped looking at the cone, and it fell on what was left of the paving stones. The pupils of her eyes turned black again. A medium-sized animal ran out of the bushes and disappeared into the thickets on the opposite side of the former street. ¡°It¡¯s just a hare,¡± Halankuo felt alarmed. ¡°Someone scared him. Is there really anyone in the village besides me?¡± The girl went home and looked around carefully. There were only trees and bushes around, barely noticeable beetles sometimes flew through the air, and birds shouted something in the trees. Halankuo returned home and walked up the old stairs to the second floor, where her room was located. Without the cobwebs, the house seemed inhabited, and only the old creaking boards reminded that it was abandoned. ¡°I wonder how Kyotyoryon is.¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Is she still there, near the sea?¡± The girl opened the door to her room, in which there was only a wooden bed, without a blanket or pillow, looking like a bench, and opened the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature.¡± On the map, on the southern coast of the Northern Continent, near the bay, there was no longer a red dot. ¡°She¡¯s not there,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°But where is she?¡± The girl began to carefully examine and zoom in on different parts of the map, but there was no red dot anywhere. ¡°She disappeared,¡± Halankuo felt alarmed. ¡°Was she destroyed?¡± The girl closed the card with a movement of her hand and entered the character window. In the place where Kyotyoryon stood in full-length, almost human form, there was now only a white silhouette. ¡°They didn¡¯t destroy her,¡± Halankuo stopped feeling anxious. ¡°But she is in some unusual state. Maybe this is the result of a mistake in her brain?¡± Halankuo closed the program, then sat down on the bed and looked out the round window, which overlooked the mixed forest. ¡°I let her go myself,¡± the girl thought. ¡°Why am I so worried about her? I was wrong. She left because of me. I can''t follow her and disturb her. If I do this, she will consider me an enemy and will cut me.¡± Halankuo lay down on the bed, looked at the ceiling and closed her eyes. ¡°Taikuron will find his other half,¡± a voice said in the girl¡¯s head. Halankuo opened her eyes and saw the head of a black and white penguin with two antennas hanging from the ceiling. The girl immediately remembered him. It was the creature she saw on the day her parents disappeared, and then in the forest when she was looking for Kyotyoryon. The penguin''s head disappeared into the ceiling. Halankuo ran out of the room and went to the first floor to leave the house. ¡°Taikuron is looking for his memory card,¡± a voice was heard in Halankuo¡¯s head. ¡°Taikuron knows that my memory card is here somewhere.¡± The penguin''s head appeared from the wall near the exit of the house. A wrench appeared in Halankuo''s hand. ¡°Why do you need this?¡± Halankuo pointed the weapon at the penguin. ¡°In order to find my other half,¡± Taikuron answered mentally. ¡°The lightning must be together with the ice so that the ice cream does not melt.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know where the memory card is.¡± ¡°Then why do you want to attack Taikuron? Taikuron is not dangerous. It just extracts data from creatures and then transfers it to memory cards. Taikuron doesn''t destroy anyone forever. He only needs his other half.¡± ¡°Mom, what should I do?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Tell me please. It will kill me.¡± Again there was no answer. Instead of her mother''s voice, Halankuo heard the voice of a penguin: ¡°Are you talking to someone? Do you have someone in you? Taikuron wants to check it out.¡± Halankuo took a few steps back, but continued to point the key at the penguin. Taikuron has completely come out of the wall. The round lights on his antennas turned yellow, and then a current ran between them. ¡°Run,¡± Halankuo heard the voice she heard at the station. At that same moment the girl ran to the kitchen, opened the window and jumped out... ... Halankuo found herself in the thickets of ferns that grew along the wall of the house. ¡°Don¡¯t run away from Taikuron,¡± Halankuo heard a voice in her head. ¡°He will find you anyway.¡± Halankuo ran through the fern thickets and found herself in a dense mixed forest. One of the edges of the T-shirt, which covered one of the hips, caught on a bush branch and stopped the girl. But Halankuo did not notice this and continued to move through the forest. Already near the river, where the forest was old and not dense, Halankuo noticed that one of her thighs was now open, and her T-shirt was torn from the side to the middle of her torso. But such trifles did not bother the girl. She was interested in one thing - how to cross the stormy river that flowed along the outskirts of the village. There used to be a bridge here, but now only wooden supports on the banks remain. ¡°I went to the wrong place,¡± Halankuo thought in fear. ¡°We have to somehow get to the other side. It will be here soon.¡± Halankuo shot lightning from her hand into the lower part of the trunk of one of the trees, and it bent over the river with a loud crack. The girl climbed onto the trunk and walked along it to the other side. ¡°Taikuron told you that you would not leave him,¡± a voice sounded in Halankuo¡¯s head. The sudden appearance of a voice frightened the girl even more. She staggered on the log and almost fell into the water, but at the last moment she was able to maintain her balance, after which she looked around. Right in front of her, above the river, a black and white penguin ¡°hung¡± in the air. The round indicator lights on its antennas were red, and weak electrical discharges passed between them. ¡°Taikuron wants to know what¡¯s inside you,¡± the penguin asked mentally. ¡°Why do you need this?¡± Halankuo asked mentally. ¡°Taikuron believes that what is inside you may be connected to the memory card he wants to find.¡± ¡°He shouldn¡¯t know what¡¯s inside me,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°What to do? I can''t tell him and I can''t fight him. Maybe you know, mom?¡± ¡°Taikuron has realized what is inside you,¡± the penguin¡¯s voice said. ¡°It¡¯s even better than a memory card.¡± Halankuo''s heart rate increased and she staggered again. Fortunately, the girl was able to maintain her balance again and even pointed a wrench at her opponent. ¡°Can he read minds?¡± Halankuo guessed mentally. ¡°That¡¯s why he speaks to me through thoughts. I didn''t think about it.¡± ¡°Yes, it is capable of this,¡± Halankuo heard a familiar voice that did not belong to the penguin. ¡°I deliberately didn¡¯t talk to you so that Taikuron wouldn¡¯t find you.¡± ¡°What should I do?¡± Halankuo asked mentally. Lightning began to coalesce between Taikuron''s antennas. Halankuo tried to move the penguin, but instead she froze in place. ¡°I can¡¯t give you advice,¡± mother¡¯s voice answered. ¡°Taikuron will read this quickly. Do what you think is necessary. Remember the new abilities you have.¡± Halankuo remembered that she could move objects with her gaze. The girl looked carefully at Taikuron and tried to focus on his white chest. The penguin''s body moved a few steps back, and the electrical discharge between the antennas disappeared. Halankuo felt that she could move again, pointed a wrench at Taikuron and moved her hand to the side. The penguin''s body flew to the nearest tree that stood on the shore, passed through the trunk, and then disappeared. ¡°He has become intangible,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°I let him go.¡± I need to concentrate better.¡± Taikuron appeared above the trees. Lightning began to accumulate between its antennas again. Halankuo concentrated her gaze on him, but nothing happened. ¡°Why isn¡¯t anything happening to him?¡± Halankuo got angry. ¡°Your skill doesn¡¯t affect it.¡± ¡°He deliberately rose so high that you could not reach him,¡± the mother¡¯s voice explained. ¡°But in this position, he also cannot control you with his eyes.¡± The clot of lightning increased and then turned into a ball from which an electric beam burst out... Chapter 28. Her Name is Halankuo An electric beam passed through a fallen tree trunk and turned it into ashes, which fell into the water. Halankuo managed to jump back and hide behind a thick tree that grew on the shore. The girl tried not to think about anything, because by her thoughts the enemy could determine her location. A cracking sound was heard, which gradually grew louder. Halankuo knew what this sound was, because she herself used electrical skills. The tree behind which the girl was hiding almost instantly collapsed to the ground. The electric beam began to move further and demolished several more large trees, after which it disappeared. Taikuron flew across the river and stopped over stumps and tree trunks. The electric ball between his antennas disappeared and the balls changed color from red to yellow. One of the trunks rose slightly above the ground and fell into the river. Then another trunk moved in the opposite direction from the river and fell on the mountainside. ¡°Taikuron must find her to extract the data,¡± the penguin thought. ¡°But Taikuron doesn¡¯t see her. She hid.¡± The penguin sank to the level of the treetops and slowly flew forward along the river valley. The abandoned village, hidden by the forest, was left behind. The river widened a little, the mountain slopes retreated from it, and the flow became slower. Suddenly Taikuron noticed a very thick coniferous tree and stopped. The balls on his antennas turned red again, and an electric discharge began to accumulate above his head... ... The electric beam cut off the tree, but instead of falling, it flew towards Taikuron. The penguin did not expect this and was thrown back by the flying trunk, and then nailed to the ground by the already falling trunk. From the forest, white-blue lightning flew towards Taikuron, surrounding him, and then taking the form of a large electric cage. The penguin looked at the trunk and tried to throw it away, but the bars of the cage kept it inside. A powerful current discharge appeared between the antennas, which soon suddenly disappeared. Taikuron looked away from the trunk that was crushing him and noticed a girl with long black hair who came out from behind the trees. She was wearing a black leather dress, black boots, one stocking, and in her hands was a wrench. The pupils of her eyes emitted a purple glow. ¡°It¡¯s you,¡± Taikuron thought. ¡°You separated Taikuron and his other half.¡± The girl''s figure blurred a little in the penguin''s eyes, after which her clothes changed: instead of a dress, a long T-shirt with a cutout on the thigh appeared, and the stocking disappeared. ¡°My name is Halankuo,¡± the girl said confidently. ¡°I didn¡¯t separate you, but I can do it.¡± ¡­ After Halankuo heard the sound of the electric beam, she found herself in a different place. There was the same forest around, only the view of the valley changed a little - the mountains retreated from the river and it widened a little. ¡°I made you move to a safe distance,¡± Halankuo heard her mother¡¯s voice. ¡°From here, Taikuron won¡¯t be able to read your thoughts.¡± ¡°Is this teleportation?¡± Halankuo asked mentally. ¡°Does such ability exist?¡± ¡°I converted your body into data and transferred it. This is a little different from the usual air element skill.¡± ¡°This creature will be here soon. What to do?¡± ¡°I have a plan. In open confrontation we will lose to him. Taikuron is a very strong character, but fortunately he is as inexperienced as he is strong. So we will have to use everything we have to stop him.¡± ¡­ Halankuo waved her free hand through the air and summoned the window of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±, with a dark silhouette on the left and many buttons on the right. After pressing the button with the image of the sphere, Taikuron¡¯s body, along with the tree trunk, began to emit a white glow, but the penguin managed to send the last thought to the enemy¡¯s brain: ¡°Taikuron will find his other half. Taikuron will be whole.¡± The penguin''s body and the tree trunk that crushed it turned into a white luminous silhouette and then disappeared. In the window of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±, a full-length image of Taikuron appeared in place of a dark silhouette. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Mausoleum of Nature could trap characters,¡± Halankuo noted. ¡°What should we do with him next? It''s scary to wear it inside the program. What if it gets out?¡± ¡°Send it to the memory card,¡± her mother¡¯s voice answered. ¡°It wanted the memory card, so let it have it.¡± *** Unana walked along the path that led to an abandoned village. Black leather shorts covered her wide hips; a low-cut purple top somehow held her hefty breasts, and blue stockings, gray boots and headphones with small antennas on her head completed this cute look. The archer reached a wooden post, almost hidden among the trees, and then stopped. A brown puppy, looking like a bear cub, ran out to meet her. ¡°Kimchan, don¡¯t be afraid,¡± Unana said. ¡°Yueret is not here.¡± The puppy turned into a dog girl. ¡°That... there... There¡¯s nothing else there,¡± Kimchan said. ¡°Yueret took her, Unana thought. ¡°Now he has a girlfriend. Perhaps this is not even a living person, but some kind of doll. I need to find the place where he hides her.¡± Unana and Kimchan went to the abandoned village and soon reached it. The only wooden house stood with an open door, which somehow held on. ¡°That... it¡¯s not there,¡± Kimchan said. ¡°There''s only a coffin there.¡± ¡°What?¡± Unana thought. ¡°It¡¯s a box for storing dolls, like in the game.¡± The archer entered the house. The wooden door that closed the entrance to the room lay on the floor. In the middle of the room there was a stone pedestal, and on it a stone coffin. Unana cautiously approached him and looked ahead. The archer expected to see the remains of a doll or a person there, so she was afraid that there would be someone lying inside. But inside were only fragments of stones and a pile of stone dust. ¡°Yueret destroyed this creature,¡± Unana sighed. ¡°Apparently it attacked him and he had to do it. But why are these remains made of stone and not bone or metal? Was Yueret attacked by a statue?¡± This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Did you see who was lying in this coffin?¡± Unana asked her pet. ¡°No... No... No,¡± Kimchan answered. ¡°When I was here before, I smelled the smell of stone. I didn''t see who was lying there. I was in puppy form.¡± ¡°These remains are similar to what they cover statues with. But the statues cannot move.¡± Kimchan scratched behind her ear with her foot, and then tucked her tail. Unana looked at her pet and imagined her in a stone coffin, dismembered into pieces. The archer touched her headphones so as not to think about it. ¡°The statue is no longer a statue, probably,¡± Kimchan said. Unana looked at the coffin and noticed next to it a lid with stone symbols partially covered in dust. ¡°Something is written here,¡± the archer thought. ¡°I have to look.¡± Unana walked around the coffin and then sat down. The girl''s hand reached out to wipe away the dust and read the symbols, but did not reach the goal. Unana felt something pulling her in the opposite direction. This something turned out to be Kimchan in the form of a large dog, similar to a bear. Unana was unable to resist such a large animal, and was carried out of the house within a few moments. ¡°Why did you interfere with me?¡± Unana asked. ¡°There''s something written there.¡± Kimchan returned to her almost human form, and then grabbed her hostess¡¯s hand. The dog girl looked at the archer with enlarged eyes, full of fear and trembled. ¡°It... is coming here,¡± Kimchan said. ¡°Who¡¯s coming?¡± Unana looked around, but didn¡¯t notice anything. ¡°I can¡¯t hear anything even with these headphones. They have special antennas that improve hearing.¡± ¡°I feel the energy moving here. We must run.¡± Kimchan turned into a big dog. Unana believed her pet and climbed onto her back. The dog was covered in a fiery aura and flew forward like a comet... ... Black bull horns appeared from the ground in the middle of the street. Then the upper part of the head came out, wearing a black helmet, with eyes that moved from side to side and were looking for something. The creature''s gaze stopped at the roof of the house, which was visible from behind the trees. The lower part of the face and neck came out of the ground. Long black hair hung from under the helmet and went underground with his head. ¡°The coffin is in place,¡± the creature with horns thought. ¡°But there¡¯s no one here anymore. I hope that whoever tried to do something with my coffin is already far away and the signal will not affect him. It would be very bad if the signal attracted other creatures here.¡± The head disappeared underground, after which it appeared again in front of the entrance to the house. This time the body continued to move upward, and soon the creature completely left the earth. ¡°I must remember my name,¡± the creature thought. ¡°After being reborn, I forgot to read my name on the coffin lid. I hope no one has read it before." The creature entered the house and quickly reached its coffin. The lid was lying on the floor, and the symbols on it were partially covered with dust. The creature ran its hand over one of the symbols and freed it from dust: ¡°Ayika,¡± was written on the coffin lid. *** Etinnei fell down and found herself in a coniferous forest with tall trees with narrow crowns. ¡°I¡¯m not on the train anymore,¡± the Arctic fox girl thought. ¡°Did I escape from there?¡± Minniges did not answer. Etinnei turned around and saw a train traveling in the distance. The animal girl looked in the opposite direction and noticed a purple mushroom cap with horns coming out of the ground. An icicle came out of Etinnei''s sleeve. The mushroom cap completely emerged from the ground, and then moved. Several purple energy mushrooms appeared in the air, which landed on the ground around Etinnei and settled there. An energy circle appeared under the Arctic fox girl¡¯s feet, from which a bright purple light emanated. Etinnei noticed the danger and tried to jump back, but instead something threw her up. The Arctic fox girl''s body was surrounded by a purple energy aura, which slowly lifted her up. ¡°This is my space,¡± a voice was heard from below. ¡°You won''t be able to leave here.¡± Etinnei looked down and noticed the same mushroom with horns, with a black round hole on the leg that served as its ¡°mouth.¡± An icicle from the sleeve of the Arctic fox girl flew towards the enemy, but instead of the target it hit one of the purple energy mushrooms, turned in the opposite direction and then returned to the summoner. Etinnei caught an icicle. The energy aura disappeared from the Arctic fox girl¡¯s body. The animal girl began to fall down, but a step from the surface of the earth she stepped on another energy mushroom, which then burst. Etinnei''s body was again surrounded by a violet energy aura, which raised her to the height of the treetops. ¡°In fact, you are inside my residence,¡± the mushroom said. ¡°Your body is now lying there, in the energy capsule.¡± ¡°Bring me back to earth,¡± Etinnei asked. The Arctic fox girl''s body began to slowly descend. When there were only a few steps left to the ground, the aura around Etinnei disappeared. The animal girl landed on her feet. ¡°Soon you will leave this place,¡± the mushroom said. ¡°But first I¡¯ll extract the character from your brain.¡± Etinnei lowered her head and heard a cry similar to a bird. Soon he connected with the flow of her own thoughts, which is why the Arctic fox girl could no longer think. ¡°It looks like you have doubts,¡± the mushroom said. ¡°The creature inside you is trying to resist. Now he controls your feelings, and then he will completely subjugate you.¡± Etinnei looked at the mushroom, but no longer understood what it was saying. ¡°You¡¯re not ready yet,¡± the mushroom said. ¡°You have to learn to suppress the being inside you, otherwise it will suppress you. You will become just a shell for him. You will become like a doll.¡± Etinnei looked at the mushroom and no longer noticed it. Soon the animal girl stopped hearing the sounds of the outside world. All she heard was the penguin''s screams in her head. *** Kyotyoryon woke up and saw in front of her a wooden ceiling with thick logs. The spirit of metal raised her head and noticed that she was lying on a wooden table, but this time in assembled form. There was no one around her - neither the doll nor her head. Kyotyoryon released the blade from the bracelet on her hand and then brought it to her face. ¡°I¡¯m assembled,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°Now I¡¯m whole. I need to get out of here before the stupid doll comes back.¡± Kyotyoryon jumped to the floor, and then went to the only round window, which for some reason had no glass. It had a view of a low stone tower and a leaky wooden platform on stilts. Kyotyoryon did not think long and jumped out the window. The character''s heavy body broke through the dilapidated wooden surface of the platform and fell into the water... ... Kyotyoryon opened her eyes and noticed that she was hanging above the platform. Ahead was a large wooden ship with round windows similar to the one she jumped through. The inspection of the surrounding space was interrupted by a lump in my throat. Kyotyoryon opened her mouth and a small stream of water came out. ¡°You are quite stupid,¡± a voice came from below. ¡°Apparently you were created recently.¡± Kyotyoryon stopped vomiting water, and then turned her head down towards the source of the sound. Sitihi stood on the sandy shore, near the wooden platform and looked at the sea with her motionless eyes. She held a shovel in one of her hands, and the other was pointed upward. ¡°I''m not stupid anymore!¡± Kyotyoryon shouted. ¡°I¡¯m not new anymore!¡± ¡°You can¡¯t understand what happens when a creature jumps from a ship window onto a wooden dock.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t crash. I''m tough.¡± Kyotyoryon''s body sank to the shore. The spirit of metal turned around and noticed a head behind it, from the mouth of which hung a black rubber tongue, surrounded by a blue energy aura. ¡°Are you the one holding me?¡± Kyotyoryon frowned. The tongue began to quickly curl up and returned to the mouth. The head moved through the air towards Sitihi, who grabbed her by the hair. ¡°This head won¡¯t be able to answer you,¡± the doll said. ¡°But once upon a time it answered. This is my little sister''s head. Once upon a time she also became a doll, but she did not come to terms with it and cut off her head. Now her body lies in some place, and her head is with me.¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the head in the doll¡¯s hand. In the open mouth and eyes the light, the source of which was the tongue, had not yet gone out. Tears appeared in the eyes of the spirit of metal, after which she fell to her knees and turned away so as not to see the lifeless head of the doll. ¡°Why do you carry it with you?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°My sister wanted to see the world,¡± the doll answered. ¡°Now I¡¯m fulfilling her wish.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s just her head. This is not your sister.¡± ¡°That''s her. It looks the same.¡± ¡°But she doesn¡¯t even talk. This head is not alive.¡± ¡°You could talk when I unscrewed your head, but my sister can¡¯t. You are not like dolls.¡± Kyotyoryon rose to her feet and looked at the doll with wet eyes. ¡°I¡¯m alive,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°But the dolls are not alive.¡± Sitihi looked at the head in her hand. The light went out in her eyes, and now they looked like ordinary doll eyes. ¡°Sister, can you hear me?¡± Sitihi asked. ¡°If you hear, show your tongue.¡± The head showed no signs of life. She still looked at her sister with doll eyes. Sitihi stuck the shovel into the sand and then pressed the nose of her head with the finger of her free hand. The mouth opened and the long rubber tongue that had previously held Kyotyoryon in the air fell out. You see, she¡¯s alive,¡± the doll turned its head towards the spirit of metal, while its body remained in the same position. ¡°You helped her,¡± Kyotyoryon noted. ¡°She didn¡¯t open her mouth herself.¡± Sitihi pressed her finger against the nose of the weapon-head again. The tongue returned to its place and the mouth closed. ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± the doll turned its head to the side. ¡°The head is not alive. I need to find her body. Then the head will be able to talk.¡± Chapter 29. Because She is an Animal Girl Kimchan brought Unana to the fence, threw her off her back, and then took the form of a puppy. ¡°I hope this something will not haunt us,¡± Unana thought. ¡°We have gone far. If the creature Kimchan spoke about comes here, Yueret might guess something. We can¡¯t let Yueret know where we were.¡± The puppy barked and ran into the yard. Unana followed him. Fortunately for the sister, her brother was not at home. The archer came to the kitchen, opened the refrigerator and took a cake from there. ¡°I need to eat it while Kimchan is looking for Yueret,¡± Unana thought. ¡°It¡¯s big, but there should be enough room in my tummy.¡± The archer put the cake on a low table, sat down on the floor, took a spoon from her inventory and began to eat. Halfway through the cake, she suddenly realized that she had run out of space in her stomach and that food would soon begin to fill her throat. Unana laid down on the floor and stroked her belly with her hand. ¡°I couldn¡¯t handle the cake,¡± the girl thought. ¡°But nothing, I¡¯ll rest and try again.¡± Unana did not understand how much time had passed. When the space in her stomach began to free up and the girl was able to sit again, she discovered that there was nothing left of the cake. ¡°Kimchan,¡± the archer guessed. ¡°Did she really come back so quickly?¡± Unana crawled on her knees along the floor and noticed a brown dog tail peeking out from behind the refrigerator. The girl approached the most important place in the kitchen and noticed her pet in almost human form, sleeping in a ball on the floor. ¡°If it weren¡¯t for my tummy full of food, I would have forced you to return my cake,¡± Unana thought. ¡°Although, the two of us are protecting Yueret, she probably deserves her share too.¡± *** The train arrived at the station on the lake shore. It was very reminiscent of the end station of the cable carriage, where the gazebo stopped. But instead of coniferous trees, tree ferns grew here. ¡°This is the place,¡± Tuot said. ¡°We¡¯ve already been here.¡± ¡°We returned to where we were going,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°This train took us through the virtual landscapes of the Northern continent.¡± Near Itinit, the sound of an incoming message was heard. The guy got up from the seat and walked towards the exit of the carriage. ¡°I have to go,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Someone is calling me.¡± ¡°You can reply to the message here,¡± Tuot said. ¡°I can¡¯t answer messages here,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°The messenger does not work in this space. I will have to leave the residence.¡± ¡°Master, take me with you,¡± Noru looked worriedly at her creator. Itinit looked at his character, and then turned his gaze to Tuot, who was looking out the window in fear. ¡°You can¡¯t be with me,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°You are accompanying this dinosaur and the Arctic fox girl. By the way, where is she?¡± ¡°She¡¯s lost,¡± Noru bowed her head and looked at her tail, which hung over the seat. ¡°Today I will leave you without meat,¡± Itinit said. ¡°You''ll eat a dinosaur. It''s big and tasty, I guess.¡± Tuot immediately stopped looking out the window and jumped on the spot. ¡°Actually, dinosaurs eat dogs, not the other way around,¡± Noru objected. ¡°I was joking,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°You can''t eat this dinosaur. He is my friend. Don''t offend him and find the Arctic fox girl. It''s time for me to go.¡± The doors opened. Itinit exited the carriage onto the platform and found himself in the courtyard in front of the residence. ¡°Here is a message from Halankuo,¡± Itinit opened a virtual screen. ¡°Did something happen to her character again?¡± But the message said something else. Itinit read it and fell to his knees in surprise. ¡°Halankuo caught Taikuron,¡± Itinit was shocked. ¡°What? I and Tuot couldn''t catch him, but this girl, who has two skills and a wrench, somehow caught him. Maybe she was joking?¡± Itinit''s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of another message. ¡°I will send you Taikuron,¡± Halankuo wrote. ¡°No need,¡± Itinit answered almost instantly. ¡°If transmitted over the network, he will be able to escape. Keep it in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. I¡¯ll come and pick him up myself.¡± *** Meanwhile, something strange happened in the carriage. The doors closed and the train went in the opposite direction. ¡°What''s happening?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Why is the train going backwards?¡± ¡°It¡¯s too early for us to go out,¡± Noru looked down and stroked her tail with her hand. The train climbed the side of the crater, which was covered with tree ferns and large blue, green, pink and purple energy mushrooms. Then the rail turned sharply downward, and the train rolled down the slope towards the sea. Tuot felt anxious. He was traveling on a train that does not actually exist and that is going to an unknown destination. The only thing that calmed the dinosaur a little was a cute dog girl who sat on the opposite row of seats and carefully stroked her own tail. The train reached the bay and drove across the water. The mountains, covered with forests of tree ferns with dark spots of coniferous trees, moved further and further from the window and visually became smaller. ¡°Don¡¯t look out the window,¡± Tuot heard the dog girl¡¯s voice. The dinosaur turned around and saw Noru, who was sitting in her previous place, but now covering her eyes with her hands. ¡°Why?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°We are forbidden to see where the Island of Energy Mushrooms is located,¡± answered the dog girl. ¡°This is a secret place. Nobody knows how to get here.¡± ¡°But this is an artificial space. This is not a real island.¡± ¡°Not real?¡± Noru was surrounded by a fiery aura. The dog girl removed her hands from her face, but her eyes remained closed. ¡°These are the memories of the spirit of mushroom,¡± Noru explained. ¡°This island is shown as it once was.¡± ¡°The trees on it are different.¡± The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Yup. Previously, this island was located in a different place. It was warmer there, so ferns grew there. But then the island began to drift north, and coniferous trees appeared on it.¡± ¡°Is that possible?¡± The fiery aura around Noru became larger and brighter, but for some reason it had no effect on the wooden seats. ¡°You¡¯re a stupid dinosaur,¡± the dog girl said. ¡°The spirit of the mushrooms has a skill that can move pieces of land.¡± ¡°Uh...¡± Tuot¡¯s jaw dropped. The island remained far beyond the horizon. The fiery aura around Noru disappeared. The dog girl opened her eyes and saw a dinosaur looking at her with his mouth open. ¡°He wants to eat me,¡± Noru was afraid. ¡°The Arctic fox girl said that he doesn¡¯t eat dogs, but suddenly this doesn¡¯t apply to dog spirits like me?¡± The dog girl looked at the dinosaur with her eyes bulging in fear, and the dinosaur looked at her with his mouth open in surprise. None of them knew what to do next, so they did nothing. In this form, Tuot and Noru arrived at the station in the middle of a deciduous forest. The doors opened and a large blue energy mushroom jumped into the carriage. The end of his hat reached the level of Tuot''s belly. The mushroom made several jumps, after which it stood between Tuot and Noru. The dinosaur and the dog girl were distracted from each other and turned their attention to the new passenger. Inside the translucent mushroom cap was a miniature Arctic fox girl, curled up in a ball. Tuot and Noru immediately recognized her as Etinnei. The mushroom cap began to sway left and right, and then stretched upward and almost reached the ceiling... ... An explosion occurred. The carriage was filled with blue energy, from which the windows flew out, and then returned to their place intact. Noru and Tuot were carried to the ceiling, and then returned to their original places. The mushroom was gone, and so was the blue energy. In his place stood a girl in a rubber purple dress from the shoulders to the middle of the thighs, in stockings of the same color and boots. On her head was a large purple hat, from under which strands of blue hair hung. Above the hat, from which two black horns with blue energy veins protruded, Etinnei¡¯s body ¡°hung¡±, curled up in a ball and surrounded by a purple aura. The arctic fox girl''s eyes were closed, her tail covered the lower part of her face, and in her hands she was holding a purple energy mushroom, which was the source of the aura. Tuot recovered a little from the shock and stood up from the seat. A short curved sword appeared in one hand, and on the elbow of his other hand a small purple semicircular shield with a black symbol appeared. ¡°What did you do with Etinnei?¡± the dinosaur asked. The girl in the hat looked at Tuot with blue glowing eyes. The dinosaur felt terrified and automatically became covered in a green energy aura. ¡°Nothing,¡± the girl answered. ¡°It¡¯s too early for her to extract the character from her brain.¡± ¡°You¡­¡± Tuot began, but was unable to continue due to fear. The dinosaur remembered that he had seen this creature somewhere, but did not remember where exactly. ¡°This is the spirit of mushrooms, Sanachan,¡± Noru finished. ¡°This is her other form, almost human.¡± ¡°Like the characters from the program?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°I forgot what it¡¯s called...¡± ¡°Mausoleum of Nature,¡± Sanachan continued. ¡°Yes, I''m a character. I saw you somewhere, but I don¡¯t remember where.¡± The spirit of mushrooms touched the edge of the hat and pulled it aside, as if it were rubber. ¡°It seems like it was a dream,¡± Sanachan said. ¡°But I can¡¯t remember anything else. And I also dreamed about this arctic fox girl.¡± At that moment, Tuot remembered where he saw this creature... ... The dinosaur entered the train carriage. A purple hat with two black horns peeked out from behind the wooden seat. Tuot felt both fear and surprise. ¡°What is this?¡± a thought flashed through the dinosaur¡¯s head, but immediately dissolved in the brain. The hat rose slightly above the seat. Now pair of blue glowing eyes were looking at Tuot. The dinosaur tried to move, but he couldn''t. Even the aura did not appear, although usually it would activate automatically. The hat and eyes hid behind the seat. Tuot already thought that he had imagined it, but then he saw how the edge of a blue rubber dress appeared from the side from behind the seat, along with part of the thigh. ¡°These are mushrooms with meat,¡± this thought made the dinosaur wake up... ... Tuot ¡°returned¡± to the carriage. The spirit of mushrooms sat on the seat in the same position in which she was in the dream. One of her legs, covered by the edge of a blue rubber dress, hung from the seat, and half of her face with a blue glowing eye looked at Tuot. Etinnei was lying on the opposite row of seats next to Noru. The energy mushroom was no longer in her hands. ¡°I often dream,¡± the spirit of mushrooms continued. ¡°There are many different places and characters. Sometimes they come in the form of stories, sometimes in the form of pictures. I''m already used to it and watch them like videos.¡± ¡°You...¡± Tuot said. ¡°I saw you in my dream.¡± The mushroom girl touched the headdress with her hands from opposite sides. The middle of the hat swelled and caused the horns to move. ¡°It¡¯s because of my antennas,¡± the spirit of mushrooms explained. ¡°They transmit these dreams to different creatures in the world.¡± ¡°Do these dreams appear in your brain on their own?¡± Tuot asked. The mushroom girl let go of her hat and laid her head on the edge of the seat. The middle of the hat returned to its original position and the horns stopped moving. ¡°I don¡¯t know where they come to me from,¡± Sanachan answered. ¡°I tried to track it down, but I couldn¡¯t find out much. Maybe you can help me?¡± Tuot tried to understand what the mushroom girl said, but could not. ¡°You¡¯re saying something strange,¡± the dinosaur admitted. ¡°Strange things are happening here. This is too much for me.¡± ¡°So the signal hasn¡¯t reached your brain yet,¡± Sanachan said. ¡°I¡¯ll have to send it in a dream.¡± The train arrived at a station near the lake. This time, instead of tree ferns, there were coniferous trees growing there. ¡°So your journey has ended,¡± the spirit of mushrooms looked out the window. ¡°We¡¯ll meet again, dinosaur.¡± The spirit''s body turned blue and translucent, and then burst. The carriage was filled with blue energy, which pushed all the creatures in it out... Tuot, Etinnei and Noru found themselves in front of the entrance to the residence. The dinosaur and the dog girl stood on their feet, and the arctic fox girl lay on the black and gray volcanic paving stones. ¡°Where is the train?¡± Tuot tried to comprehend what happened. ¡°What?¡± Noru looked at the dinosaur in surprise. ¡°There was no train. This is an illusion inside the residence.¡± ¡°That''s right. But everything was so real there.¡± ¡°You need to rest. You can go to the hot springs while you''re at the volcano.¡± Tuot looked at Noru, who was stroking her own tail due to inactivity, and imagined her and Etinnei chest-deep in water. ¡°Am I really going to be in the same pool with such cute characters?¡± the dinosaur couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°The hot springs are there,¡± Noru pointed to the side. ¡°If you don¡¯t find it, you can ask the head in the bubble. And I will take the Arctic fox girl into the house.¡± ¡°Won''t you come with me?¡± Tuot was surprised. ¡°Eh? Why should I go with you?¡± The dog girl looked angrily at the dinosaur and showed part of her front teeth. ¡°Because you are an animal girl,¡± Tuot answered. Noru caught fire, after which a fireball appeared above her head, which gradually increased in size. ¡°No need, he is good,¡± Etinnei¡¯s voice was heard from behind the dog girl. Noru turned around and saw the Arctic fox girl, who was kneeling and yawning. ¡°He said that...¡± Noru began. ¡°I heard,¡± Etinnei joyfully looked at the dog girl and began wagging her tail. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the hot springs together. I want to know how hot they are. If they are too hot, I will cool them down.¡± The fire around Noru and the ball disappeared. Noru looked down. Her tail dropped down. ¡°Sorry,¡± the dog girl said. ¡°I was wrong. If you think we should go to the hot springs with this dinosaur, I agree. Only he will sit in a cage like a bird.¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult for a bird to sit in a cage,¡± Etinnei scratched the arctic fox¡¯s ear with her foot. ¡°I don¡¯t know if Tuot can stand it. He''s good; he just really likes girls with ears and tails.¡± Noru looked at Tuot. The dinosaur trembled with all its limbs, as if it was proving the words of its girlfriend. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll go together,¡± Noru agreed. ¡°I just need to take my master. He will protect me. I wonder where he went.¡± Noru opened the virtual screen and wrote a message to Itinit. ¡°While he answers, I will take you to the hot springs,¡± the dog girl said. Noru led Tuot and Etinnei from the wooden ¡°fortress¡± to the shore of the lake, where the gazebo moored. Now she wasn''t there. ¡°The creator stole the carriage,¡± Noru noted. ¡°He left somewhere again. I need to catch up with him.¡± ¡°Why do you think it¡¯s him?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°This house can¡¯t fly wherever it wants?¡± But Noru did not hear the Arctic fox girl¡¯s words. She activated her fiery aura and took off like a comet. Tuot and Etinnei were left alone on the shore of the lake. ¡°How to find hot springs now?¡± Tuot looked around, but did not find any buildings except those that were behind the palisade. Etinnei craned her head and sniffed the air in front of her. ¡°It smells like water here,¡± the Arctic fox girl noted. ¡°But it is different from ordinary water in rivers and lakes.¡± Etinnei came closer to the water and stumbled upon something solid and invisible. ¡°There¡¯s something here,¡± the Arctic fox girl said. ¡°Don¡¯t touch it!¡± Tuot shouted. But it was too late. Etinnei stood on all fours and touched an invisible object with her hand. ¡°It¡¯s soft and moves on its own,¡± the animal girl said. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t smell.¡± The object in Etinnei''s hand began to take shape. It turned out to be an energy mushroom with a blue leg and a purple cap, which ¡°grew¡± on the shore of the lake. ¡°It''s a mushroom!¡± Etinnei screamed with joy. ¡°It is of different colors. I wonder what it tastes like. I haven¡¯t tried these mushrooms yet, I¡¯ve only touched them.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do this...¡± Tuot tried to stop his friend, but again he didn¡¯t have time. Etinnei tilted her head towards the mushroom cap and closed her eyes. The Arctic fox girl''s lips met with vibrating energy... ¡­ Etinnei was thrown towards the gate. The mushroom cap changed color from purple to orange. A stream of steam escaped from the lake, which then dissolved into the air. Bubbles appeared on the surface of the water. The lake was gradually enveloped in a fog of vapor. Chapter 30. Glass Eyes and Colorful Hair Noru caught up with Itinit on the shore of the bay. The guy stood near the ship and did something on the virtual control panel. ¡°Creator, are you leaving again?¡± the dog girl asked. ¡°You just returned recently.¡± Itinit turned around and saw his character in front of him, surrounded by a fiery aura. ¡°I forgot to warn you,¡± the guy answered. ¡°There were problems with the ship.¡± ¡°Even the ship doesn¡¯t want you to leave here!¡± Noru was indignant. ¡°Put out the fire, otherwise you¡¯ll burn.¡± Noru showed a truly angry dog ??grin, but still deactivated her aura. ¡°I want to be with you, creator!¡± the dog girl shouted. ¡°And I want to be with my little sister too. But I don¡¯t want to be with that dinosaur.¡± ¡°There¡¯s also an arctic fox girl there,¡± Itinit reminded. Noru turned away. Her tail slapped her buttocks several times. ¡°I will let you go only on one condition,¡± Noru turned sideways to the creator. ¡°You will return with my little sister.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Itinit sighed. ¡°Just let me fix the ship.¡± Noru stuck out her tongue. The next moment, she tried to jump on Itinit, but was stopped by a blue energy wall. *** A hot fog, which consisted of steam, tightly enveloped the lake and its shores. Tuot looked around and saw nothing but his own hands with wings. ¡°Etinnei!¡± the dinosaur shouted. ¡°I don¡¯t see you!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see you either!¡± the voice of the arctic fox girl came in response. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, I¡¯ll find you by smell.¡± A few moments later, a small creature jumped onto Tuot''s shoulder. The dinosaur noticed a fluffy white and blue tail wagging in front of its face. ¡°Etinnei, something attacked me!¡± Tuot shouted. ¡°It¡¯s me,¡± a voice came from next to the dinosaur. ¡°It speaks with your voice! It''s because of the mushrooms. It was like that in the game.¡± ¡°There weren¡¯t energy mushrooms, but electric mushrooms.¡± ¡°What?¡± At that moment, Tuot realized that the creature sitting on his shoulder was his playmate, just in a different form. A few dozen moments later, an arctic fox girl in almost human form and a dinosaur sat on the shore of the lake and held hands. ¡°Do you know what the creatures do at the hot springs?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°They boil themselves in water. The water is hot.¡± Tuot looked at his girlfriend¡¯s thick bare leg, which hung over the water, and imagined it cooked on the table. ¡°Do you want to cook yourself?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°No,¡± Etinnei took off her hood and shook her head, as if she was blowing out her hair. ¡°I was just answering the question.¡± ¡°I''m sorry. I don''t eat dogs, really.¡± ¡°I believe you. If you ate dogs, I wouldn''t exist anymore.¡± Etinnei looked at her friend, stuck out her tongue and closed one eye, but Tuot did not see this because of the steam, which was growing more and more. ¡°Minniges opened access to my memories,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°I saw my creator, although I don¡¯t remember much anymore. I want to find her and ask her something.¡± ¡°Is she human?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°At first she was a human and she had black hair, and then she became a doll and her hair turned red.¡± ¡°It¡¯s kind of creepy.¡± ¡°Yup. I''m afraid that when I meet my maker, she will still be a doll with red hair.¡± ¡°But you change your hair color when you change your form from summer to winter.¡± ¡°Yup. But I can change this as I wish. Not always, of course. When I use ice skills that emit a lot of cold, my hair turns blonde. This is so as not to stand out among the ice. But the doll cannot change her hair color.¡± ¡°Do you want her hair to return to its previous color?¡± ¡°Yup. It''s too scary. But I also want to talk to her. I want to ask why she created me. I''m afraid she created me for...¡± ¡°Why?¡± Etinnei did not answer. Instead of words, a groan was heard in the steam mist, similar to the groan of dogs. ¡°What''s happened?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that she created me for that creature with a carrot nose,¡± Etinnei continued. ¡°He¡¯s her brother.¡± Tuot shuddered and almost fell into the hot water. The dinosaur remembered that creepy creature in the mask with a long tongue that didn''t fit in its mouth and a metal carrot nose. ¡°I fought him,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But I can''t remember how the fight ended or where he went. Maybe Itinit came and he got scared.¡± Etinnei also did not remember everything that happened on the day of the meeting with that creature, so she was afraid that he would come again. It seemed to her that a gray metallic carrot would appear from the fog and behind it a terrible mask with a hanging tongue and motionless eyes. Someone''s silhouette appeared in the fog. The anxiety inside the arctic fox girl reached its maximum. The end of an icicle appeared from the sleeve of her top, which then became covered in an electric aura. The silhouette was approaching. Etinnei jumped back and spread her legs wide to quickly retreat further, but then fell to her knees. The icicle in the sleeve of her top disappeared, as if dissolved in an electric aura. Fear again prevented the arctic fox girl from resisting, as when she met Kuttanai. But the silhouette was not a man with a carrot nose. It was the head of a mammoth in an energy barrier-bubble. It was the same creature that met the travelers on the shore of the bay. ¡°Finally, someone has visited our hot springs,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°Did someone tell you about them, or did you just stumble upon the mushroom and try to eat it?¡± The anxiety level inside Etinnei had dropped significantly, but the feeling had not left her completely. ¡°Isn''t this mushroom meant to be eaten?¡± the Arctic fox girl asked. Stolen story; please report. ¡°This mushroom is not for eating,¡± Myuryuri answered. ¡°It is a lever that activates the hot springs. Instead of a bottom, this lake has an energy barrier that isolates the water from the bowels of the volcano. If you press the cap of the mushroom, the barrier under the water disappears. Hot water from the bowels of the volcano flows into the lake from underground channels and heats it up.¡± Etinnei noticed a bright orange light in the fog. That was how the cap of the lever mushroom glowed. ¡°It''s too bad you can''t eat it,¡± the Arctic fox girl said. ¡°It''s so big. I thought if I ate it, I would be filled with energy.¡± ¡°There are special energy mushrooms for food that grow on the island,¡± Myuryuri explained. ¡°Such mushrooms are small and not orange. Orange is the color of object activation.¡± ¡°I''ve seen blue, green, and purple mushrooms,¡± Etinnei admitted. ¡°How are they different?¡± ¡°The color of the mushrooms indicates the color of the energy,¡± Myuryuri replied. ¡°Purple energy is associated with the element of air, so it allows you to fly.¡± ¡°That''s why I was flying when the purple mushroom exploded and a purple aura surrounded me,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°Blue and green energies are pure. They are not connected to any element. But they have different properties. Blue energy can protect objects and create connections between them. You saw it on the cable car. And green energy changes the characteristics of objects that surround it. For example, it can increase speed and stability. It is often used by dinosaurs to better stand on their feet. They are very clumsy, so the green aura is especially important for them.¡± As if to prove the mammoth head''s words, Tuot jumped out of the fog in a green energy aura, with a short curved sword in one hand and a small semicircular purple shield on the elbow of the other arm. Etinnei became interested in looking at the green aura, so she approached her friend. It also vibrated and was translucent, like blue, and at first glance, differed only in color. ¡°I saw her before, but I couldn¡¯t see her,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°I wonder what it tastes like.¡± The Arctic fox girl opened her mouth, closed her eyes and tried to grab the edge of the aura with her teeth, but it suddenly disappeared. Tuot noticed his friend in time, so he got rid of the aura and the weapon so as not to harm the furry creature. But the price of this decision was too high. The dinosaur staggered, and then fell on its back. ¡°This is what happens when there is no green aura,¡± Myuryuri said. Tuot looked up and saw the mammoth''s head in an energy bubble. ¡°Where am I?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°I was just sitting on the shore.¡± ¡°You are still at the hot springs,¡± Myuryuri said. Only now did Tuot regret agreeing to go to the hot springs. He imagined them as they were shown in games. A naive dinosaur decided that he would sit in a pool with the characters he liked, but instead he talked to the head of a horned mammoth in an energy bubble. ¡°This is not how I imagined the hot springs,¡± Tuot felt sad. ¡°Today, the hot springs are free for you to enter,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°To activate the hot springs, we specially placed an invisible energy mushroom so that no stranger would detect it. But it didn''t help.¡± ¡°Why are you hiding the hot springs?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°The spirit of the mushrooms had a dream where a stone fell into the lake and broke through the barrier,¡± Myuryuri explained. ¡°A statue of a stone bird emerged from the water, and the lake dried up. After that, the island sank into the ocean.¡± ¡°These dreams are strange,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°Where do they come from?¡± ¡°It would be better to ask the spirit of the mushrooms itself about that,¡± Myuryuri replied. ¡°In the water of these springs, you can see the dream that it sent to your brain.¡± Etinnei crawled to the water on all fours and sniffed it. A white and blue penguin with a horn on its forehead appeared before her. ¡°It¡¯s very hot here,¡± Minniges said. ¡°Let''s get out of here.¡± ¡°I can''t get out,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°I wonder what would happen if I went into the water.¡± ¡°You''d melt, and I''d melt with you.¡± ¡°I''ll just stick my paw in there. Nothing will happen.¡± ¡°Don''t do that, refrigerator girl.¡± Minniges disappeared. Etinnei did not listen to her brain neighbor, stuck her foot in the water and heard a loud bird cry, which deprived her of the ability to think. *** After the food left Unana''s stomach, she looked at Kimchan, who was lying on the floor near the refrigerator, and remembered her brother. ¡°If Kimchan is like this, then Yueret is not home,¡± the archer thought. ¡°This dog is hiding something from me.¡± Unana sat down on the floor and leaned her back against the wall. A small bow with a purple energy string and a white and blue electric arrow appeared in her hands. ¡°This will wake her up,¡¯ the archer pulled the string. The arrow flew out of the bow and hit the dog girl''s tail. A plaintive dog groan was heard. Lightning flashed through Kimchan''s body, instantly lifting her to her feet and then knocking her to the floor. ¡°Where is Yueret?¡± Unana asked. Kimchan didn''t answer. The dog girl writhed from the sudden impulses, and foam came out of her mouth. ¡°It seems the charge was too powerful for her,¡± Unana thought. ¡°I should have released the bowstring a little earlier.¡± Lightning gradually disappeared from Kimchan''s body, and she trembled less and less from the electric shocks. But the terrible grimace on her face frightened Unana. For the first time, the archer felt that she had done something bad to someone other than her brother. *** Yueret and Halankuo were sitting on a fallen tree trunk that lay on the river bank. ¡°You called me so urgently,¡± Yueret said. ¡°I didn''t even warn my sister. If we don''t hurry, she''ll be here.¡± ¡°I caught the creature that made my parents disappear,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°Eh?¡± Halankuo opened a virtual screen and showed the model of Taikuron in the inventory window. ¡°I saw something similar when I was going to the city,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°But I''m not sure it was him. My memory is bad, so I might confuse him with someone else.¡± ¡°This creature was in Yenekit,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It spoke to me through my thoughts. And this creature I caught spoke to me that way too. And their abilities are similar.¡± Yueret looked at Halankuo. The girl was wearing only a long T-shirt with a cut on her thigh. ¡°Your clothes are torn,¡± Yueret noted. Halankuo didn''t react to this. She was looking at the model of Taikuron and seemed very worried. ¡°It seems to me that even from there it will be able to send signals to my brain,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It''s very scary when you hear a voice from nowhere.¡± ¡°You need to get rid of it,¡± Yueret suggested. ¡°It''s dangerous to keep such a creature inside the program. What if he gets out?¡± ¡°That''s why I asked you to come here. Stay with me a little longer so I won''t be so scared.¡± ¡°I can''t be with you all day. Unana is waiting for me. If she doesn''t wait, she''ll come here and shoot electric arrows at you and me. They hit painfully.¡± Halankuo grabbed Yueret''s hand and looked at him with fear. ¡°I can¡¯t sleep,¡± the girl said. ¡°I imagine a creature with antennas. I can¡¯t hear its voice now. But I¡¯m afraid that if I close my eyes, that voice will sound in my head again.¡± Halankuo snuggled up to Yueret. The guy felt something warm and soft touch his shoulder. ¡°Unana isn¡¯t like Halankuo,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°When she pressed herself against me, I didn¡¯t feel so pleased. But Halankuo is so gentle. I feel sorry for her. Poor girl... It¡¯s not her fault that she met such a creature.¡± Halankuo laid her head on her friend''s lap and closed her eyes. Yueret put his hand on the girl''s head and began to stroke it. ¡°It''s like I have a kind Unana,¡± Yueret smiled. ¡°I would like a little sister like that.¡± Yueret was so deep in thought that he didn''t notice how much time had passed. The guy bowed his head and began to fall asleep himself, but then he saw something foreign in the background. Yueret was overcome with fear, which made him suddenly raise his head. In front of him stood a doll with green hair, in a green mask that covered the lower half of her face. ¡°Someone, have you seen someone with horns like that?¡± the doll put her hands to her head and showed the horns with her index fingers. A rectangular oval shield appeared in Yueret''s hand, which was then surrounded by a blue energy aura. ¡°That''s the doll that attacked my house,¡± Yueret remembered. ¡°What''s her name? Oh... Well, never mind. There must be another one somewhere.¡± ¡°I came here on a signal,¡± the doll continued. ¡°Then my signal disappeared. I don''t know where to go. So I just came where the signal said.¡± ¡°It doesn''t look like this doll is going to attack,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°But it''s better to leave here with Halankuo.¡± Yueret grabbed his friend by the shoulders and forced her to get up from his lap. Halankuo opened her eyes, saw the doll, and somehow ended up behind her friend. ¡°Your sister has become so scary,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°It¡¯s not her,¡± Yueret replied. ¡°It''s some doll.¡± ¡°You are some, and I am Aibi,¡± the doll introduced itself. ¡°I want to find someone like that.¡± Aibi imitated the horns on her head with her hands again. Halankuo felt alarm. ¡°She''s looking for Taikuron,¡± Halankuo thought. The girl noticed an open screen next to her. Either because of her stupidity or because of the angle of her vision, Aibi didn''t notice it. Halankuo reached out to close the screen, but she heard heavy footsteps behind her and was forced to turn around out of fear. A doll with purple hair and a mask of the same color that covered half of her face stared at the open screen with a model of Taikuron with motionless eyes. ¡°You''ve already found someone,¡± the doll with purple hair pointed to the screen. ¡°Here it is.¡± Aibi walked up to a fallen tree trunk and turned her head in an unnatural position to the side. The doll''s body remained motionless. ¡°Yes, it is someone with horns,¡± Aibi confirmed. ¡°But why is it there?¡± ¡°I don''t know why there is someone with horns,¡± the doll with purple hair said. ¡°We need to ask it.¡± The doll with purple hair walked up to the screen and tilted her head to the side. ¡°Someone with horns, why are you there?¡± The Taikuron model did not answer. ¡°Someone with horns doesn¡¯t answer,¡± the doll with purple hair looked at Aibi. ¡°You¡¯re stupid, Suturu,¡± Aibi said. ¡°We should free someone with horns, and then ask why it is there.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the stupid one, Aibi,¡± Suturu objected. ¡°We should ask why there is someone with horns, not free it.¡± While the dolls were arguing, Halankuo closed the screen and, together with Yueret, disappeared behind the trees. Chapter 31. Comet That Fell from the Sky Yueret led Halankuo by the hand along the road through the mixed forest. The village was far away. ¡°Where are we going?¡± Halankuo asked. Yueret himself did not know where they were going. ¡°If we go to my house, Unana won¡¯t like it,¡± the guy thought. ¡°But if I don''t come home, Unana will look for me. I can''t leave Halankuo. What should I do?¡± The forest ended. The path ended abruptly. Steep slopes descended to a small, green swamp that had once been a lake. ¡°It seems we''ve gone a bit wrong,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°I wanted to go out onto the road to my village and figure it out there...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not worth it,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°You need to go back to your sister. She''s definitely scarier than these dolls.¡± ¡°She''s right,¡± Yueret thought. The guy looked at the swamp and noticed a gap in the thickets of ferns along the shore. ¡°There¡¯s a path there,¡± Yueret pointed his hand towards the swamp. ¡°Eh¡­¡± Halankuo tilted her head and didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°Let¡¯s go there. We need to get away from the dolls. Then we can think about what to do next.¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°As long as there¡¯s no signal coming from Taikuron, the dolls won¡¯t be able to detect it.¡± Yueret and Halankuo descended to the swamp, then passed through thickets of ferns and found themselves on a narrow stone path that ran along the shore and further along a gentle slope. Beyond the swamp basin, the mixed forest began again. The path became wider and soon joined another path, at the crossroads stood a wooden post with a virtual sign on top. Red glowing symbols in a frame of the same color conveyed something to the travelers. The train station is over there; Yueret read the symbols and then pointed to the side. ¡°I¡¯ll take you there and put you on the train. You will be able to get to the city. The dolls will not follow you. They cannot read, so they will not be able to buy a ticket or find their seat.¡± Yueret opened the virtual screen and clicked on the train icon. A schedule appeared on top of the screen in the form of a table filled with symbols. ¡°There''s a train to Yenekit soon,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°We need to go to the station urgently. But first you need to change clothes.¡± Only now did Halankuo discover that she was wearing only a long T-shirt, torn at the hip. ¡°In this form they will pay attention to me,¡± the girl was afraid. ¡°I need to dress like I usually do.¡± Halankuo opened her inventory and selected several icons in the form of shorts, a T-shirt, boots, and stockings. ¡°Am I dressed normally now?¡± Halankuo asked. Yueret looked up at his friend: black boots, grey stockings, black leather shorts, which were almost completely hidden by a long black T-shirt. ¡°Too much black,¡± Yueret noted. ¡°It''s so I don''t stand out,¡± Halankuo replied. ¡°Besides, it matches my hair color. Okay, it''s a joke.¡± ¡°It''s normal for Unana to dress like this,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°But Halankuo doesn''t want people to stare at her.¡± Yueret looked at Halankuo, who walked ahead, and then looked at the trees, or looked back to check if they were being followed. ¡°Halankuo is cute, and not just kind,¡± thoughts flashed through the guy¡¯s head. ¡°But my sister is only sweet.¡± Soon the forest parted, and a wooden one-story building with a roof covered with moss appeared, similar to an abandoned village house, but much longer. Nearby there were benches with awnings and a rail that emerged from one wall of the forest and another. There were no creatures at the station. The silence was broken only by the cries of birds that came from the trees. ¡°Sit on the bench, I''ll buy a ticket,¡± Yueret suggested. ¡°No, I''ll go with you,¡± Halankuo objected. ¡°What if those dolls appear there?¡± Halankuo grabbed Yueret''s hand, and he had to take her into the station building. ¡°It¡¯s as if Halankuo were my little sister,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°When I was a child, I often took Unana by the hand to the train station to buy tickets. I wish I had such a kind little sister.¡± A doorless rectangular arch opened into a hall with log walls overlaid with virtual screens, small round windows, and a few benches. Yueret walked up to one of these screens, selected the right button, and a few moments later a blue energy card appeared in the air. ¡°Here''s your ticket,¡± Yueret said. ¡°Take it.¡± ¡°Is it okay that you bought it for me?¡± Halankuo reached out for the card, but soon pulled it back. ¡°Now''s not the time to think about that. Take the ticket. The train will be arriving soon.¡± Halankuo touched the card with her hand and it moved into the inventory that appeared next to her. ¡°I can¡¯t tell her that I bought a ticket because she reminded me of my little sister when I was a child,¡± Yueret thought. ¡°Unana wasn¡¯t always so angry and jealous. She was kind as a child, albeit stupid. In Halankuo, I saw the Unana of my childhood, who had grown up.¡± ¡­ Yueret mentally transported himself to the past¡­ ¡°Yueret, get up!¡± a thin voice rang out. Yueret opened his eyes. In front of him stood a girl, half the height of a human, with a large head covered with long brown hair, and large eyes of the same color. ¡°There, a bear''s paw crawled out of the refrigerator,¡± the girl pointed to the doorway. ¡°Unana, you dreamed it,¡± Yueret objected. ¡°Bear paws cannot walk without a bear.¡± ¡°I am afraid to go to the kitchen. What if the bear will assemble and attacks me?¡± Yueret had to get out of bed and head to the kitchen to check his little sister''s words. The refrigerator was open. The bear''s paw lay unpacked on the floor. Yueret crouched down to examine the object in more detail and find something suspicious, but suddenly he heard heavy footsteps behind him. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°The bear came for his paw?¡± Yueret felt alarmed. ¡°Maybe Unana didn''t imagine it?¡± Yueret turned around, but there was no one there. A short sword appeared in the guy''s hand, which was then covered in a blue energy aura. ¡°Maybe I imagined it?¡± Yueret thought. ¡°The bear whose paw was taken does not know where it is. He might even have been cut into pieces and died because of it. If such an animal is cut into several parts, it will not come together. It definitely seemed like it to me.¡± The sword in Yueret''s hand disappeared. The guy turned away from the entrance to the kitchen and began to look for the packaging, but heard heavy footsteps, which this time were accompanied by a growl. Yueret turned around abruptly and saw his younger sister standing in front of him with a package in her teeth. The girl frowned and growled as much as her vocal cords would allow. ¡°Don''t growl, little bear,¡± Yueret smiled, and then stroked his sister''s head. ¡°Why weren''t you scared?¡± Unana stopped growling and asked in a human voice. ¡°Because I¡¯m big, I have a big head, that''s why I''m clever.¡± Unana grabbed her head with her hands and then "measured" her brother''s head. Yueret laughed. Unana left, but soon returned with headphones on her head, which she had to hold with her hands to keep them in place. ¡°Now I have a head like yours,¡± the girl said. ¡°I¡¯m clever too.¡± Yueret didn''t laugh anymore. Since then, Unana often wore headphones on her head... ¡°How awkward I feel now,¡± Yueret thought, looking at Halankuo, who was looking at him from the window of the wooden carriage. *** A red-haired doll wrapped in a white translucent cloth and surrounded by a purple aura landed on the top of a mountain. From there, a view opened up of the sea and the coast covered with forests of tree ferns and double-leaf trees. ¡°Ikte, he¡¯s not here,¡± a sharp voice, like a bird¡¯s came. A dinosaur in armor made of gray metal plates landed next to the doll. ¡°I know, Ustumut,¡± Ikte replied. ¡°I just want to check. Maybe I''ll find something I need.¡± The doll jumped from the top and slowly landed on a path among the tree ferns. The sound of the sea waves could already be heard here, which drowned out the sound of the wind on the top of the mountain. Ikte flew towards the noise, which gradually grew louder. Soon the doll flew onto the sandy shore, where sea waves washed away the sand and left behind wooden planks. ¡°There is still something left here,¡± the doll noticed. ¡°The port must be in that direction.¡± The doll looked to the right and noticed a large structure in the distance. As she moved towards it, the structure turned out to be a wooden ship, which was partly in the water and partly on the shore. There was something else next to it that was hard to see. Ikte closed her eyes, lowered her hands, and almost reached the ship, but then she heard the sound of a flying beam of light¡­ The doll''s body dodged the beam of blue energy, and it disappeared into the sea water. Ikte''s head turned back and her eyes opened. There on the shore, near the forest, stood a doll with blue hair with a shovel in one hand and a head in the other. The head''s eyes were filled with a bright blue light, with no pupils visible. ¡°Who is your creator?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°What creator?¡± the doll with a shovel and a head asked. ¡°I don''t have one.¡± ¡°But you are a doll. All dolls have creators.¡± ¡°I don''t have a creator. Go away from here. I live here, and you don''t.¡± The doll pointed its weapon head at Ikte. Two blue energy beams shot out from its glowing eyes. Ikte flew to the side and thus dodged the attack. ¡°I just want to ask if you know of a creature called Kuttanai. Maybe he was here?¡± In response, the doll tried to stick the shovel into the sand, but stopped a short distance away. ¡°Do you want to talk?¡± the doll with the shovel asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°I spent a lot of energy flying here. I don''t want to fight.¡± The doll turned its weapon head to the side. Ikte realized that it was not going to fight and deactivated its aura. The dolls approached the ship and then climbed aboard using a wooden platform-lift, which was attached to the vessel with blue energy ropes. ¡°This ship is what remains of the port,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°But apparently, nothing else remains. Too much time has passed.¡± The doll led Ikte into one of the cabins, where there were two old wooden benches, the boards of which were missing. Despite this, the dolls sat on them and looked at each other. ¡°You look like my sister,¡± the doll looked at the weapon-head. ¡°But it''s not her. My sister is headless, and you have a head.¡± ¡°This doll is right,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°She is definitely not like Suturu and Aibi.¡± At this time, Kyotyoryon was walking through a forest of tall deciduous trees and tree ferns, thinking about how to destroy them all. ¡°There are too many of them,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°I can¡¯t do it in one day.¡± ¡°Are you lost, girl?¡± a voice similar to a bird was heard. Kyotyoryon remembered that voice. It was the voice of Tuot, the pet of her creator. Therefore, the spirit of metal hid behind the trunk, and then looked out from there with a blade from a bracelet on her hand. The voice came from a dinosaur wearing armor made of gray metal plates. ¡°It looks like my creator''s pet,¡± Kyotyoryon guessed. ¡°Maybe she sent it after me? I need to kill it before it takes me.¡± The spirit of metal began to examine the creature and realized that it would not be so easy to kill it. ¡°It has plates almost everywhere that make it difficult to cut him,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°But they are made of my metal. I must take them off. My metal cannot be worn by anyone but me.¡± The blade hid in Kyotyoryon''s bracelet. The spirit of metal extended her hand forward. One of the armor plates on the dinosaur''s belly separated and slowly flew toward its "true" owner. ¡°What are you doing?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°Undressing you,¡± Kyotyoryon explained. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°This is to cut you. Your clothes prevent you from being cut. I also don''t understand why you wear my metal on yourself. I should have the metal, because I am the spirit of metal.¡± The plate reached Kyotyoryon and stuck to the bracelet on her free hand. ¡°You see, this metal chooses me, not you,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I am the spirit of metal, and you are an ordinary bird.¡± ¡°I am not ordinary¡­,¡± the dinosaur objected. ¡°I am a doll. My name is Ustumut.¡± Kyotyoryon "took" another plate off the dinosaur''s belly, and it had to hide behind a tree to keep its armor from being completely stripped. ¡°It''s not named after my creator''s pet,¡± the spirit of metal noted. ¡°So it didn''t come from her. Maybe I shouldn''t cut it?¡± Kyotyoryon lowered her hand, and then shook her other hand with the bracelet. The two plates that had stuck to it returned and took their place in the armor. The confrontation did not end there. The spirit of metal saw a tail covered with gray feathers sticking out from behind a tree and ran towards it. But this dinosaur was not Tuot. As soon as Kyotyoryon approached it, a green aura appeared around its tail, and from it an energy harpoon emerged, which wrapped around the character''s waist and lifted her off the ground. ¡°Let me go!¡± Kyotyoryon screamed. ¡°I just wanted to pull out one feather from the tail. I wanted to see if it looked like the feather of the first dinosaur or not.¡± Ustumut looked out from behind the tree and found Kyotyoryon waving her arms and legs, trying to free herself from the harpoon''s grip. The dinosaur then looked at his hands, surrounded by green energy, and then back at the harpoon and the character. ¡°Now I understand where this aura came from,¡± Ustumut said. ¡°Don''t be afraid. My aura activates automatically when there is a threat. Did you want to pull out the feather?¡± ¡°Yup,¡± Kyotyoryon stopped waving her limbs and looked at the dinosaur. ¡°You won''t be able to do that. The passive skill activates the aura, and then the harpoon or something else.¡± ¡°This is an evil skill. Can''t it be turned off?¡± ¡°It¡¯s impossible. It''s activated in the brain.¡± ¡°Where is this thing?¡± ¡°It''s in my head.¡± ¡°I need to cut off your head. Let me go, I''ll do it!¡± Ustumut scratched his head with a claw, and then turned it first to one side, then to the other. ¡°Without a head, I can''t eat,¡± the dinosaur replied. ¡°Although I don''t have to eat, I do sometimes. Maybe I''ll let you go, and you won''t cut off my head?¡± Kyotyoryon had to agree. The harpoon carried the spirit of metal to a thick tree fern and left it at its trunk. *** The fog formed by the evaporation cleared a little. Tuot noticed Etinnay, who was lying on the shore and saying something. The dinosaur approached her and was able to make out the words: ¡°Minniges... No need...¡± What are you talking about? Tuot asked. ¡°I''ll eat your ice cream, just don''t scream,¡± Etinnei continued. The arctic fox girl looked up and didn''t blink, like a doll. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you, Etinnei?¡± Suddenly the fox girl woke up and looked at Tuot with her tongue hanging out. ¡°It¡¯s okay,¡± Etinnei replied. ¡°Minniges just won¡¯t let me get into the water.¡± ¡°Maybe you should get rid of him?¡± Tuot suggested. ¡°Then I will forget everything I knew. I will forget the game I played and where I met you. And I will forget you. That is why it cannot be extracted, but sometimes I want to do so. Minniges began to interfere in my life. It seems that this head is too small for him. That is why I will have to get rid of him someday, but not now.¡± The conversation was interrupted by a noise that quickly grew louder. Tuot and Etinnei looked up at the sky, grey with fog, and saw a red-orange light there¡­ The light fell sharply into the water and left behind a fiery trail that slowly dissolved into the fog. A huge wave of water rushed onto the shore, almost covering Tuot and Etinnei, but then returned back to the lake, contrary to the laws of nature. It happened so fast that Tuot didn''t have time to get scared or react at all. The only thing he noticed was a blue energy barrier in the form of a wall that "hung" in the air in front of Myuryuri and which apparently repelled the wave. Noru''s head emerged from the water, with smoke coming from it. ¡°At first I thought that my creator''s dream had come true,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°But it was only a comet that fell from the sky.¡± Noru looked at the creature in the bubble and showed a dog-like grin. The next moment, the animal girl flew out of the water in a fiery aura to attack the offender, but again hit the energy barrier. Chapter 32. Dream in the Hot Springs Tuot saw a dog girl above him, falling head first. The dinosaur was delighted, as he had long been looking for a way to get such a character. Tuot activated his aura. An energy harpoon grabbed Nora''s leg just as her head was about to touch the rocks on the shore. ¡°I caught her,¡± the dinosaur rejoiced. ¡°Now she will agree to become almost my character, like Etinnei.¡± ¡°Let me go, chicken!¡± the dog girl shouted. ¡°I''m not food!¡± Tuot looked at the captured "prey" and saw the end of the harpoon, which grabbed the lower part of Noru''s leg and held her in that position. The character''s tail hung down, revealing a view of her fleshy thighs. Tuot''s mouth automatically opened and released his tongue, which began to frantically dangle in the air, as if it wanted to touch the food. Noru puffed out her cheeks and frowned. A few moments later, her body burst and left behind a clot of flame, which then dissolved into thin air. ¡°Noru exploded?¡± Etinnei looked at the empty space where the dog girl was. ¡°She hates dinosaurs so much that she decided to destroy herself?¡± But the Arctic fox girl was worried in vain. A flash of fire passed between her and Tuot, and soon the dinosaur was swimming in the lake, though not of his own free will. Noru fell on the shore right in front of Etinnei and smiled. ¡°What did you do to Tuot?¡± the arctic fox girl asked. ¡°I sent him to the hot springs,¡± Noru explained. ¡°I suggested he go, and he agreed.¡± ¡°I think you were too rough with him.¡± Noru patted Etinnei on the head and laughed. ¡°He''s a dinosaur,¡± the dog girl said cheerfully. ¡°That¡¯s the way to go with them, until they eat you.¡± ¡°But Tuot is a good dinosaur,¡± Etinnei objected. ¡°He caught me by the leg and looked at me like he wanted to eat me.¡± Etinnei remembered Tuot''s harpoon pulling her out of the water in Tohsonun when she was stuck in the ice. ¡°I promised that I would destroy this skill if I saw him again,¡± the Arctic fox girl thought. ¡°But I forgot about it. It happened too quickly, and I didn''t have time to understand it.¡± Etinnei looked around, but there was no longer a harpoon or aura. Tuot himself was floundering in the water far from the shore and could not even call for help. ¡°Let''s get out of here,¡± Etinnei suggested. ¡°It''s hot here.¡± The animal girls walked away from the lake and headed into the courtyard of the wooden fortress. Soon they were sitting in a cafe with wooden columns covered in moss and vines. ¡°I like this place,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°Can I eat a green energy mushroom here?¡± ¡°The energy mushrooms?¡± Noru wiggled her ears in opposite directions. ¡°Are they edible?¡± ¡°The creature in the bubble said so.¡± Noru laid her head on the table in the shape of a mushroom cap and stopped wiggling her ears. ¡°They are indeed edible,¡± the dog girl answered. ¡°But only for Myuryuri. It feeds off energy. But we, living beings, cannot do that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s bad,¡± Etinnei looked at the wall, in which even the window was in the shape of a mushroom. ¡°But then what can you eat here?¡± Noru ran her finger across the middle of the table. A virtual screen appeared above it, with cells containing images of dishes. ¡°Is this all edible for me?¡± Etinnei licked her lips. ¡°Food for the animal girls in a red frame,¡± Noru said. ¡°I don''t know the rest.¡± The red frame was the first one on the left, and it contained a bird''s leg. The frame was flickering and indicated what the selected cell represented. ¡°Actually, it should move,¡± Etinnei touched her finger to the next cell, and the red frame moved to it. ¡°I didn¡¯t know¡­¡± Noru moved her ears. ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°I play a game, but I forgot what it¡¯s called. So I often have to poke buttons on the interface.¡± ¡°You''re smart.¡± ¡°I''ve discovered things like this a lot. But this is too easy.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It''s too obvious. Don''t you know what the red frame means?¡± ¡°Eh... Itinit told me. I just press buttons and don''t think about what any symbols mean. I do, I don''t think.¡± Etinnei chose the cell with fish. A wooden plate appeared on the table with a flat fish covered in blue-green scales and an open, toothy mouth. The being''s gray eye stared motionlessly at the ceiling. ¡°It looks kind of scary,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°Is it really edible? What if it bites?¡± ¡°Try it,¡± Noru stuck her finger in her mouth. ¡°I''m scared. Let''s have you try it.¡± Noru pulled her finger out of her mouth and then stuck it in the fish''s mouth. The being''s eye began to glow green and its tail began to move. ¡°She''s alive!¡± Etinnei climbed onto the seat with her legs to escape. ¡°Eh...¡± Noru scratched the back of her head with her foot. ¡°She just has something that glows.¡± ¡°Is it an organ?¡± ¡°Itinit told me that such fish live deep in the ocean, where it is very dark. That is why they light their eyes to see.¡± Etinnei summoned a mirror from her inventory, then looked into it. ¡°My eyes don''t glow, only in the dark and only a little,¡± the Arctic fox girl noted. ¡°You live on land,¡± Noru stroked the dog''s ears with her hand. ¡°It''s light here.¡± ¡°But it''s dark at night.¡± ¡°I always have light. I have a fiery aura that illuminates everything in the dark. I also have simple lights, but I can''t use them normally to shine. My little sister can. I want to ask her, but Itinit won''t return her to me.¡± ¡°Did he take her somewhere?¡± Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Noru stuck her finger out of the fish''s mouth and it opened. Inside were pieces of boneless meat. The dog girl put one of them in her mouth and ate it. ¡°The last time I saw Kimchan was over a year ago,¡± Noru explained. ¡°I was playing with her, but then Itinit came, grabbed my sister by the hair and dragged her to the ship. I ran after her, but Itinit promised that he would return her soon. But then he went missing and when he came back, he came back with you, not Kimchan! At first I thought that he had confused the animal girls, and I got angry. But then I noticed how cute you are and I was happy.¡± Etinnei put a piece of fish meat in her mouth. ¡°It''s edible,¡± the Arctic fox girl noted. ¡°I didn¡¯t know Itinit was like that. He seemed good to me. He helped me cross a scary energy bridge.¡± ¡°What?¡± Noru stood up and looked at Etinnei in surprise. ¡°Did someone come up with this?¡± ¡°They are on the railway,¡± Etinnei explained. ¡°When a train goes across a river, it goes over a bridge like this. I saw a bridge like this across a river in another city.¡± ¡°Is it blue?¡± ¡°Yup. It''s also a little transparent. You can see what''s underneath.¡± ¡°It¡¯s scary.¡± ¡°Yup. But Itinit helped me cross this bridge. Have you never seen energy bridges?¡± ¡°No. I never left the island. Itinit said that dinosaurs live there, and they eat dogs. That''s why I''m so afraid that my little sister will be eaten!¡± ¡°Dinosaurs don¡¯t live everywhere. There are places where they don''t live.¡± ¡°Let''s go there!¡± Noru looked at Etinnei with her tongue hanging out. The dog girl was so obsessed with desire that her hair caught fire. Soon she was engulfed in flames, which fried the fish. ¡°It''s not that simple,¡± Etinnei warned. ¡°We''re on an island. How will we travel?¡± ¡°What will we fly on?¡± Noru was surprised. ¡°I will take the form of a big dog and fly like a comet.¡± ¡°And I''ll sit on your back?¡± ¡°Yup.¡± The flames around Noru disappeared. The dog girl returned to her seat and looked out the window. ¡°Only...¡± Noru said. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I have enough energy to reach the earthen place. I imagined myself falling into the sea with you, and we drowned together.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why you need to think first and then do,¡± Etinnei smiled. The animal girls'' dinner ended with pine juice and sawdust cake, after that, Etinnei couldn''t get out of the table and fell asleep. Meanwhile, Tuot sat in the hot water near the shore with his eyes closed. ¡°The water is so warm,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°It''s a pity Etinnei isn''t here.¡± Tuot imagined his girlfriend next to him, who emerged from the water and shook her head. The dinosaur felt happy despite the fact that in reality he was sitting in the lake and dozing¡­ There was a sound of bubbles and then a splash of water. Tuot opened his eyes and saw a purple mushroom cap with black horns emerge from the water. The dinosaur tried to activate its aura to quickly get to the shore, but it failed. The hat rose completely out of the water and showed what was underneath it... It turned out to be the mushroom spirit that Tuot had met in his dream and on the illusion train. ¡°Eh?¡± Tuot could not understand. ¡°Why are you here? Can you really leave your shelter?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t leave it,¡± Sanachan answered. ¡°You just fell asleep, and I took advantage of that to talk to you.¡± ¡°Did I fall asleep in the hot springs?¡± ¡°Yup. But don''t be afraid. You''ve already drowned.¡± Tuot opened his mouth wide and let out what was probably his last breath. ¡°I wanted to say that you haven¡¯t drowned yet. When I talk to someone through dreams, there are distortions. So don''t pay attention to it.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°I wanted to talk to you about the source of dreams.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°We are well compatible. My signals penetrate your brain well.¡± ¡°No, I don''t want a mushroom girl,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I only like girls with ears and tails.¡± ¡°I''m not going to become your character,¡± Sanachan grimaced. ¡°Mushrooms, unlike animals, don''t have a master. We''re only interested in information. Endless streams of data that constantly flow into the brain and form neural networks. All information about the world comes to me, but cannot be deciphered.¡± ¡°I don''t understand anything,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°It''s not scary,¡± Sanachan replied. ¡°Your brain doesn''t receive as many signals as mine does. You don''t have antennae, and you don''t have a lot of neural connections in your brain.¡± ¡°Are you reading my thoughts?¡± Tuot realized it only now. ¡°In dreams I can do this. But in the residence I can''t. You see and hear me because my virtual copy entered your brain during sleep via a signal. When a being sleeps, its level of feelings is low, so the signal can easily enter the brain.¡± ¡°This is already a little clear. Now I know why, out of fear, I was able to resist the signal of one creature with antennas on its head.¡± ¡°Are you talking about a penguin with antennas on its head?¡± ¡°Yup. You read my mind correctly.¡± ¡°This doesn¡¯t always work out. That''s why I want to talk to you.¡± Sanachan pulled her hat over her upper face with her hands, causing her blue eyes to disappear under the headdress. ¡°I want to tell you about my dreams,¡± the spirit of mushroom said. ¡°I¡¯ve been seeing them for so long that I don¡¯t remember when I started dreaming about them. Over the years, I¡¯ve systematized the information about them and deduced patterns.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Can you explain it more simply?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll just show you¡­¡± Sanachan pressed her finger on the convex center of the hat, after which a virtual screen appeared above the mushroom spirit''s head, and in it was an image of a hill, above which floated the skull of a three-horned dinosaur with a clot of blue energy inside. The hill was surrounded by a forest of tree ferns. ¡°It looks like that creature in the bubble,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°The resemblance is not accidental,¡± Sanachan explained. ¡°Myuryuri appeared in my brain due to the influence of such dreams. Then he had to be extracted from there.¡± ¡°Now it is clear why Myuryuri looks so strange,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°It could not have appeared naturally. This type of creature does not exist.¡± ¡°This skull moves in a circle, but it makes no sounds,¡± Sanachan continued. ¡°And it is not the only strange creature.¡± ¡°It¡¯s better not to show it,¡± Tuot objected. ¡°I¡¯m afraid to imagine who will be there next.¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t show you, you won¡¯t be able to find it. These creatures definitely exist somewhere. Signals come from them. They have horns. And the horns are antennas.¡± ¡°When you say that, I understand.¡± Sanachan sank into the water, leaving only her hat on the surface. ¡°How I envy someone who has a small brain,¡± the spirit of the mushrooms thought. ¡°Many thoughts and different signals do not come to them at the same time.¡± The image on the screen changed. Instead of one mountain peak, another appeared, with ruins of buildings and the remains of columns. The skull was replaced by a statue of a humanoid creature with a helmet-mask that covered the top of his head and was a smaller copy of the skull from the first image. ¡°It''s the same skull,¡± Tuot noted. ¡°Exactly,¡± Sanachan returned from under the water. ¡°It is the same skull. There used to be dinosaurs of this kind in the world, but now even their remains are not found. So I don¡¯t know what kind of creature it is and why I dream about it.¡± ¡°I saw him somewhere. I think I had a dream about an arctic fox girl where there was such a statue. I thought the fox girl looked like Etinnei, but I wasn''t sure.¡± ¡°These are just images. The image in a dream can be very different from the image in reality. Only if you process the data from many dreams can you get some kind of approximate image, like on the screen.¡± ¡°That animal girl is not Etinnei, but just a collective image?¡± ¡°It is unknown. It took several decades and many dreams to obtain these two images.¡± ¡°This is longer than I have lived,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°These dreams torment me. I have been trying to solve this mystery for a long time, but so far I have only two images. Because of the signal from my antennas, I cannot travel freely around the world.¡± ¡°Did you ask Itinit to help? I can hardly cope with this.¡± ¡°I need any help. Itinit is already doing what he can.¡± *** Yueret approached the wooden fence behind which his house could be seen and sighed. The journey from the station had been long and difficult. But that was not what worried him. Yueret was only thinking about whether his younger sister would look for him or not. Suddenly, a head with dog ears appeared from behind the fence. Due to fatigue, Yueret mistook it for a bear. The guy instantly became covered in a blue energy aura and summoned a sword and shield. ¡°Has the bear finally come for its paw?¡± that was the first thought in Yueret''s head. The guy carefully looked over the fence and noticed a brown puppy there, similar to a bear cub. ¡°It''s you, Kimchan,¡± Yueret guessed. ¡°I already thought it was a bear.¡± The guy instantly stopped being afraid, but then he heard a growl behind him. Yueret turned around and swung his sword. The blade, covered in aura, stopped in front of his sister''s face. ¡°Where have you been?¡± Unana asked, as if she wasn''t afraid of the sword in front of her. Yueret deactivated the aura, recalled the weapon and shield. ¡°Sorry, I didn''t mean to,¡± Yueret took a few steps back. ¡®What didn''t mean to?¡± Unana was worried. ¡°Your friend made you kill the squirrel?¡± ¡°No. I was just walking through the forest and noticed the dolls there. I had to go another way.¡± ¡°That''s what I thought,¡± Unana thought. ¡°Yueret can''t be left alone.¡± Unana grabbed her brother by the hand, led him into the house, and then closed the door. The puppy ran after them, but did not make it to the entrance and remained on the porch. ¡°Were these the same dolls that attacked us?¡± Unana asked. ¡°I don¡¯t understand,¡± Yueret lied. ¡°The dolls are all the same.¡± ¡°Where were they going?¡± ¡°Not here.¡± ¡°You better not go outside the fence. All sorts of creatures walk there.¡± Yueret noticed the top of a head with brown ears of some animal in the round window of the corridor. ¡°There¡¯s something there,¡± Yueret pointed to the window. Unana recognized the dog¡¯s ears in the window and became frightened. ¡°It seems to you,¡± little sister lied. ¡°You are too tired. Go to sleep.¡± Only on the threshold of his room Yueret realized that he had never seen bears or their tracks in the vicinity of the village, and began to suspect something. Only extreme fatigue helped him forget about it. Chapter 33. Because of Stupidity Halankuo got off the train and found herself at a busy station, with many people on the benches and platform. ¡°I haven''t seen so many people in a long time,¡± the girl thought. ¡°Has the city''s population really been restored yet?¡± Halankuo suddenly became happy. Even though she knew almost no one in the city, she was still glad that he was returning to normal life. Yenekit really was alive. There were no crowds of people on the streets, but the rare passers-by made Halankuo think that they were looking at her. Modesty prevented the girl from making new acquaintances, so all her friends were from childhood. ¡°You know, Mom, Yenekit is alive again,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I hope I can restore you and Dad soon, just like these people were restored.¡± ¡°Don''t hope,¡± a voice inside Halankuo said. ¡°Right now you need to think about how to get rid of Taikuron.¡± ¡°I will write to Itinit that I have arrived in Yenekit. He must come to me, so he must know where I am. But first, I must find my house.¡± Halankuo walked around several blocks, but did not find her house. ¡°All the houses in the city are so similar,¡± the girl admitted. ¡°I forgot where I live.¡± ¡°Look at the interface,¡± her mother''s voice suggested. ¡°I don''t remember where this tab is. I''ll write to Itinit. Maybe he''ll answer.¡± Halankuo went to the park and sat on a bench. There were almost no people there, so the girl wasn''t afraid that someone would look at her. The river that flowed through this place reminded Halankuo of her character. ¡°This is where Kyotyoryon ran away from me for the first time,¡± Halankuo recalled. ¡°She wanted to block the water so it wouldn¡¯t flow, and she ran out of town. I and Tuot caught her then. Because of my stupidity, I sent Kyotyoryon to the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. If it weren¡¯t for that, she would be walking with me now and saying funny things.¡± Halankuo opened the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. The red point was still near the bay. ¡°What is she doing there?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Maybe she was captured and is being taken apart?¡± ¡°You can check,¡± a voice in the girl''s head was heard. ¡°I can''t just go there. What will I tell her? Apologize and explain that I''m guilty? I can''t do that. And Kyotyoryon won''t understand. She''s too different from people.¡± Halankuo''s thoughts were interrupted by an incoming message notification. The girl opened the virtual screen and saw a message from Itinit. ¡°He''s already here?¡± Halankuo read the message and was very surprised. ¡°That''s too fast. What did he use: teleportation, a flying machine, although, it''s probably almost the same thing.¡± Halankuo left the park and walked down the city street. Suddenly she remembered that she had forgotten where to go. ¡°He wrote that he was waiting for me at his caf¨¦,¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°But where is it? I¡¯ve almost forgotten Yenekit these days. Too much has happened.¡± ¡°Just walk around the city and you will find it,¡± the voice suggested. ¡°Yenekit isn''t that big, just a few blocks.¡± ¡°I can just walk down any street, and sooner or later I''ll come to where I need to go.¡± Halankuo walked along several streets and on one of them she noticed the entrance to a cafe, which for some reason she immediately recognized. The door was locked, but there was no sign on it. Despite this, Halankuo was sure that she had come to the right place. The girl ran her finger from top to bottom, summoned the door lock, but couldn''t do anything else. She didn''t remember the password. Halankuo was about to write to Itinit, when suddenly the door opened, but there was no one behind it. The girl went inside and stopped near one of the tables. The door closed. There was no one in the "cave" hall. ¡°I didn¡¯t recognize you right away,¡± a voice was heard from the back of the hall. ¡°This is the first time I''ve seen you fully dressed.¡± A man came out from behind a column, and Halankuo recognized him as Itinit. ¡°Someone helped you, you obviously didn¡¯t dress like that yourself,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Uh...¡± Halankuo turned away. She felt awkward. ¡°The main thing is that it¡¯s really you. I had to check it. It''s very serious.¡± Itinit and Halankuo sat down at the table. Itinit swiped his finger down through the air and summoned a virtual screen with cells, most of which were empty, but some were filled with images of food. ¡°The menu isn¡¯t big right now,¡± Itinit admitted. ¡°But there doesn¡¯t seem to be anything here that¡¯s inedible for you. What will you have? No need to pay.¡± ¡°Juice from tree needles,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°I don¡¯t have time to eat right now.¡± ¡°Me too,¡± Itinit pressed the icon of a glass with green liquid twice, after which two portions appeared on the table. ¡°Show me. I want to see it.¡± Halankuo opened the "Mausoleum of Nature" and entered the tab, which contained an image of Taikuron in a blue-green character frame. ¡°It looks like it,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°How did you catch it?¡± ¡°Uh...¡± Halankuo blushed. ¡°I was just lucky.¡± ¡°How was it really? Unlike Tuot, I know that luck doesn''t exist.¡± ¡°What can I tell him and what can''t I tell him?¡± Halankuo thought. ¡°Itinit is my close friend, but I don''t really trust even him.¡± ¡°The one who helped you get dressed helped you,¡± Itinit suggested. ¡°Do you have a friend?¡± ¡°I found my mother''s data,¡± Halankuo explained. ¡°Kyotyoryon found the memory card. I touched it, and it disappeared. Later, it turned out that the data had been transferred to my brain.¡± Now you''re like the character from "Nature''s Mausoleum," where you can hear voices and talk to them? ¡°Uh... Mom sometimes talks to me. But most of the time, I can''t hear anything.¡± ¡°That''s good. She understands that you can''t be disturbed without reason. Now we need to extract the data from your brain and transfer it to another body. Your mom''s body is gone, so we''ll have to find another one.¡± The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Will it look like mom?¡± ¡°We can find a doll that''s related to her and replace the data in her brain with your mom''s data.¡± Halankuo remembered the doll in Yueret''s house that looked like her mother. For a moment, she even thought that it was her mother. Then she was frightened by the glass eyes and colored hair of the doll. The girl was afraid that her mother had become like that. ¡°This is too creepy,¡± Halankuo turned away. ¡°Mom shouldn¡¯t become like them.¡± ¡°Then you can create a doll from scratch,¡± Itinit suggested. ¡°She will look just like your mother.¡± ¡°Then I agree.¡± ¡°But I can''t do that. You''ll have to go back to an island with me. There lives a creature that fully controls the functionality of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. This plan is risky though. Taikuron shouldn''t be near you. If he gets out of your inventory, he''ll be able to attack you again. It won''t forgive what you did to it.¡± ¡°My mother did it. More precisely, I did it together with her. Taikuron attacked me because he read my thoughts and realized who was in my brain. It said that she divided it.¡± ¡°She split it? So there''s another part of Taikuron somewhere. But I haven''t heard of it.¡± ¡°This creature seemed to be whole, although it had no legs. It was a strange creature.¡± ¡°Yes. But we will soon be able to find out. I''ll transfer it to my inventory now.¡± Itinit opened his inventory and then pointed his finger at the image of Taikuron. The character model left the screen along with his finger and was transferred to Itinit''s inventory. ¡°I didn¡¯t think this would happen,¡± Itinit looked at the image of a penguin with antennas. ¡°I couldn¡¯t catch it for so many years. It''s strange to see it in such a state now.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t it get out of there?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°No. This is the inventory of the "Mausoleum of Nature ", not my own. It won''t escape from there.¡± ¡°For some reason I don¡¯t believe you.¡± ¡®Taikuron lived in the same inventory, only on your account, and did not escape. I was afraid that you would release him by accident, so I found a flying machine and flew here. I was in a real hurry.¡± ¡°Show it.¡± Halankuo had never seen flying machines in real life. They reminded her of artificial birds that moved using pure blue energy. ¡°I left him outside the city,¡± Itinit admitted. ¡°Such large objects do not fit in my inventory.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go there,¡± Halankuo looked at her friend. ¡°And we¡¯ll fly to the island.¡± ¡°So you agree to fly to the island?¡± ¡°Of course, I want to fly on an artificial bird! I''ve liked birds since childhood.¡± ¡°That''s why your character looks so strange. By the way, where is she?¡± Halankuo told her friend about what happened to Kyotyoryon. ¡°Did you try to look for her?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°You can track the character¡¯s location in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Halankuo looked down. ¡°I saw the location of Kyotyoryon. But I can''t go there. I don''t know what to tell her. I feel like it''s my fault for sending her to the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± back then.¡± ¡°It''s my fault too. After all, I was the one who advised you to send her there to fix it.¡± ¡°No,¡± Halankuo looked at the door. ¡°It''s not your fault. This was not the first time I sent Kyotyoryon to the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. She said there was nothing there, and that she didn''t want to be there.¡± ¡°I''ll think of something. But first, I need to finish one thing.¡± *** Ikte, in a purple aura, jumped from the ship and landed on the sandy shore where Ustumut was already standing. ¡°Did you find out?¡± the dinosaur asked. ¡°That¡¯s not certain,¡± the doll answered. ¡°We need to check. The part that connects the antenna to the brain is a very rare thing. I hope we''re close.¡± ¡°Are we going to float on this ship? It doesn''t look like one that can float.¡± ¡°No. It can''t float. It''s just a doll''s house. I''ll have to find a ship that floats. I can fly, of course, but I don''t have enough energy to fly across the Intercontinental Sea.¡± ¡°How did it get there?¡± ¡°I''m trying to find out. But right now it''s more important to find that thing before Kuttanai does. What did you find?¡¯ ¡°I¡­ I¡± One of the fern trees that grew on the edge of the forest began to move, and then fell to the sand. From the forest flew a creature without legs, with a metal body and blade-like hands. Above all this hung a helmet with a beak. ¡°Here,¡± Ustumut pointed his hand at the spirit of metal. ¡°This is what I found.¡± ¡°How will this help us?¡± Ikte asked. ¡°This is the spirit of metal,¡± Ustumut explained. ¡°It can find anything that contains metal.¡± ¡°That thing is very small,¡± Ikte said. ¡°Can she find it?¡± ¡°Activate your eyes,¡± Ustumut suggested. Ikte''s pupils began to emit a purple glow. Kyotyoryon immediately flew towards her, but was stopped by a glance, after which she was thrown back to a fallen fern. Kyotyoryon transformed into an almost human form, and then looked at Ikte. ¡°My metal is in your eyes,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°Give them to me.¡± Ikte''s pupils stopped glowing. But Kyotyoryon didn''t understand it. Several metal needles appeared around the character, which soon flew towards the doll. Ustumut had to activate his aura and also summon a shield and sword. One of the needles was deflected by the tail, another by the sword, and the rest hit the shield. ¡°See how she feels metal?¡± Ustumut asked. ¡°I didn''t think such creatures existed,¡± Ikte noted. ¡°Is she from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±?¡± Kyotyoryon heard the doll''s last words and remembered a dark place where there was nothing. There it was impossible to sit, lie, move, see, or hear. There, the character was floating in zero gravity and wanted only one thing: to get out of there. ¡°She wants to take me back to where there is nothing,¡± Kyotyoryon''s limbs trembled. ¡°She came for me.¡± The spirit of metal ran into the forest. Ikte activated her pupils, but the target was too far away and soon disappeared behind the trees. Ikte activated the purple aura, flew up, and then headed into the forest. Near the fallen fern, Ustumut blocked her path in a purple aura. ¡°Don¡¯t waste your energy,¡± the dinosaur said. ¡°Otherwise you won''t find that thing.¡± Ikte threw Ustumut aside, but she couldn''t move any further. The energy harpoon grabbed her by the waist and held her in place. The doll looked where the harpoon started. The trail led into the forest. Ustumut, in a green aura, was hiding behind a thick fern trunk that grew at the edge of the forest. The vegetation hid the dinosaur well, so the doll could not see it, and therefore could not attack. ¡°Ustumut, you have defeated me once again,¡± Ikte admitted. ¡°Go look for this creature yourself if you won''t let me.¡± At this time, Kyotyoryon reached the rail, which ran along an almost overgrown clearing. ¡°I need to call the train,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°I¡¯ll ride it somewhere far away, where I won¡¯t be hunted.¡± Kyotyoryon touched the rail with her hand and sent an impulse along it. ¡°The train has not gone far,¡± the spirit of metal noted. ¡°It¡¯s already heard me.¡± Kyotyoryon took her hand off the rail and looked around. The forest had become dense. Thickets of ordinary ferns alternated with the trunks of tall trees with double leaves. The sound of sea waves could be heard in the distance. After a few dozen moments, Kyotyoryon ran her hand along the rail and felt a vibration. ¡°The train is already moving,¡± the spirit of metal noted. Kyotyoryon sat down on the ground. The thickets of ferns almost hid her. Only the tips of the metal horns peeked out from behind the vegetation. ¡°Now it''s clear what plants are for,¡± the spirit of metal guessed. ¡°They''re for hiding. I''ve hidden, and no one will find me. I''ll wait for the train, and then I''ll leave here.¡± ¡°Are you hiding from someone?¡± a familiar voice was heard. Kyotyoryon immediately realized who it was and looked out from behind the fern leaves. This creature turned out to be a doll with a weapon-head and a shovel, which was sitting on a thick branch. ¡°The doll with glowing eyes wants to take me,¡± Kyotyoryon complained. ¡°Why?¡± Sitihi asked. ¡°I don''t know. But I accidentally heard her talking about the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. That doll is evil.¡± ¡°What do you mean "evil"?¡± ¡°She wants to put me in there.¡± ¡°I understand. I''m not evil. I just unscrewed your head to find out who you are.¡± ¡°You¡¯re evil, but not like evil like a doll with glowing eyes.¡± ¡°But I didn¡¯t put you anywhere. On the contrary, I twisted your head off.¡± Suddenly, Kyotyoryon''s body rose slightly above the ground and slowly flew to the side. Sitihi jumped to the ground, stopped it with a shovel, and then turned her head towards where the metal spirit''s body was heading. Between the trees, a doll in a purple aura "hung" in the air, with glowing purple pupils. ¡°Why are you interfering with me?¡± Ikte said. ¡°This creature will go with me.¡± ¡°Is this your character?¡± Sitihi asked. ¡°No,¡± Ikte answered. ¡°But not your character either. You have no right to keep him here.¡± ¡°You are evil!¡± Kyotyoryon shouted. ¡°Let me down!¡± Only now did the spirit of metal realize what force was holding her in the air. ¡°She is against it,¡± Sitihi said. ¡°I won¡¯t let you take her. I have told you too much. Go away.¡± Ikte turned her gaze from Kyotyoryon to the doll''s shovel, and pushed it aside. The spirit of metal fell to the ground. ¡°She can only control one object with her gaze,¡± Sitihi noted. ¡°This ability seems very strong, but it is weak in this.¡± Ikte turned her gaze to Kyotyoryon and tried to pull her towards herself, but Sitihi again put out the shovel and held the body of the metal spirit. Ikte realized that she could not simply take the character, so she changed tactics: she closed her eyes and rose a little higher. The wind immediately strengthened and began to bend the tops of the trees. The forest was engulfed in a storm. Winds blew from all four directions at the same time, but did not touch each other. In the center of the skill, only slight movements of air were felt. ¡°Wait here,¡± Sitihi addressed Kyotyoryon. ¡°Don''t go anywhere.¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the doll with the shovel in fear. The spirit of metal thought that if this creature could not cope, she would be taken away and sent to a place where there was eternal darkness and no way out. Sitihi stuck a shovel into the ground and then fell into it. Soon, she instantly jumped out from under the ground behind Ikte, and then swung the shovel to strike at the neck. Chapter 34. Metal Bird One of the trees tore itself out of the ground by its roots and threw Sitihi aside, saving Ikte''s neck. The doll with the weapon in the form of a head had to land and stick a shovel into the ground, and then fall into it. The wind gradually died down. The torn out trees returned to their place. Ikte sank to the ground and opened her eyes. Sitihi emerged from the ground and tried to strike the neck with the shovel again, but did not have time. The red-haired doll''s head turned back very quickly and stopped the blade of the shovel with her gaze. Sitihi was thrown into the ferns. Ikte''s head returned to its original position, after which she began to look for the spirit of metal. ¡°Why is she nowhere?¡± Ikte thought. ¡°She was here.¡± An arrow whistled. Ikte looked up and noticed several metal darts that were rapidly approaching her. The doll had to deflect them with lightning bolts from her hand. ¡°She''s hiding somewhere,¡± Ikte guessed. ¡°She''s deliberately trying not to show herself so that I don''t take control of her.¡± A short metal spear flew out of the forest thicket and almost reached the doll''s head. Ikte was able to stop it at the last moment. A purple aura surrounded the doll, and it flew up. In front of her was a view of a large deciduous fern forest and part of the coast. ¡°This will make it harder for her to attack me,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°Although she can''t be seen from here either, so I won''t be able to capture her with my gaze.¡± But the doll was wrong. A metal blade appeared next to her and cut off a lock of hair. Ikte looked at it and then threw it towards the sea. ¡°She can create weapons anywhere,¡± Ikte guessed. ¡°She doesn''t need to see me to do it. It''s as if the weapon itself senses where the enemy is and aims at it.¡± At this time, the metal train with the wooden carriage had already arrived at the place that Kyotyoryon had indicated. The spirit of metal jumped on it, opened the hatch and tried to get there, but something pulled her in the other direction. It was a green energy harpoon that attacked from behind the trees. Kyotyoryon tried to cut the harpoon with the blades from the bracelets on her hands, but they simply passed through it. The harpoon pulled the character off the train, but was then cut off by a blue beam of light. Kyotyoryon noticed a Sitihi with a weapon head, whose eyes and mouth were glowing blue. ¡°Run away,¡± the doll suggested. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with him.¡± Kyotyoryon looked around. The harpoon had not appeared again. ¡°You¡¯re not evil,¡± the spirit of metal looked at Sitihi. ¡°Come with me.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± the doll answered. ¡°Why?¡± Sitihi tried to say something, but she was interrupted by several energy feathers that flew out from behind the ferns. A blue energy ball emerged from the weapon head''s mouth, which soon turned into a round energy barrier. The feathers hit him and disappeared. ¡°If you stay here, they''ll take you,¡± Sitihi said. ¡°I don''t know what they need you for, but you definitely don''t want to go there.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the ground, which was covered in sparse grass and moss. ¡°Then go. It will soon be too late.¡± Kyotyoryon suddenly realized that this doll was not as bad as it seemed at first sight. The spirit of metal did not want to part with this creature, with whom she had only recently become well acquainted. ¡°Why am I being forced to do this?¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°I cannot decide for myself what to do. I am too weak. I need to become strong to decide. Then I can be with this doll. She is not evil. She is good.¡± ¡°I will return to you,¡± Kyotyoryon promised. ¡°We will meet again.¡± Sitihi didn''t answer. She didn''t think this character''s intentions would come true. She didn''t even understand why she was trying to protect a creature she had only recently met. Kyotyoryon jumped onto the roof of the train, lowered her feet into the hatch, and looked at Sitihi once more. The doll stood surrounded by an energy barrier and looked around. At some point, she accidentally met Kyotyoryon''s gaze and realized why she was trying to protect her. ¡°Little sister,¡± Sitihi thought. ¡°I couldn''t protect you that time.¡± For the first time since Sitihi became a doll, she felt something. It was a long-forgotten feeling that made a living being afraid and act. The doll''s eyes became lifelike, human, for a moment, and even blinked. But this state did not last long. An energy harpoon flew out from behind the trees, and Sitihi had to cut it again with a beam from the weapon-head''s eye. Kyotyoryon hid in the train, after which the hatch cover closed. The train silently went along the only rail deep into the forest. Sitihi looked around. The forest was silent, as if no one was there. But after a few moments, there was a cracking of branches and someone''s footsteps. Sitihi fired two energy beams from her weapon head''s eyes. A heart-rending cry, similar to a bird''s, was heard. An armored dinosaur, surrounded by a purple aura, rose above the trees. Sitihi noticed it and fired two more beams, but missed. The dinosaur noticed the attack and sent a clot of wind in response. Sitihi stuck the shovel into the ground and fell in. A clot of wind reached one of the tree ferns and blew it up along with the surrounding trees. At this time, Ikte hovered above the forest and tried to see the enemy. Finally, she noticed something moving between the trees and dropped down to the treetops. The doll flew to where the object was moving. Soon it left the forest and headed along the sandy seashore. The object turned out to be a train with a metal locomotive and a wooden carriage. Ikte flew towards him, but suddenly felt her strength leaving her. The purple aura around her began to flicker, and would soon disappear. ¡°Ustumut was right,¡± Ikte thought. ¡°Even if this is the same metal creature, I no longer have the strength to pursue it.¡± The doll closed her eyes and then sank to the ground between the trees, her aura dissolving into thin air. *** Itinit led Halankuo into the forest, where in the middle of a clearing stood a covered boat with windows, four metal wings on the sides and a long tail. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°This is¡­¡± Halankuo froze in surprise. ¡°This is a real metal bird! It''s so big.¡± ¡°This is the simplest flying machine,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°They can be bigger.¡± ¡°That thing won''t fly. It takes too much energy.¡± ¡°You can''t fool me. You''re too good with technology.¡± Halankuo blushed and turned away. ¡°It¡¯s as if ten people looked at me at once,¡± the girl thought. ¡°It¡¯s good that there¡¯s no one else here except him and me.¡± But Itinit paid no attention to his friend. He noticed the voices coming from the flying machine and approached it to hear them better. ¡°This is not possible.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s not possible. But you can do it this way.¡± Itinit looked through the window on the side of the flying machine and saw two dolls with green and purple hair, respectively, standing in front of an open blue virtual lock and trying to enter something into the text field. ¡°This is transport,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Animals are not allowed.¡± The dolls looked away from the castle and turned their attention to the new creature. They did not notice Halankuo, who was far away from them, having hidden behind the trees shortly before. ¡°You are an animal, I am Aibi,¡± the green-haired doll introduced herself. ¡°I¡¯m Suturu,¡± the doll with purple hair introduced herself. ¡°We want to open this thing. Does it fly?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°But I fly on this thing. Why don''t you take the train?¡± ¡°I wanted to, but they didn¡¯t let me in,¡± Suturu answered. ¡°They didn¡¯t let me in either,¡± Aibi repeated. ¡°They told me that beings with colored hair are not allowed on the train,¡± Suturu continued. ¡°They also said, ''Maybe you''re dolls?''¡± Aibi finished. ¡°Aren''t you dolls?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°Only dolls have hair that color.¡± ¡°I''m a fighting doll,¡± Suturu agreed. ¡°I''m a fighting doll, too, only better than this one,¡± Aibi said. ¡°Why are you better?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°I''m a newer doll,¡± Aibi explained. ¡°Suturu is a little older than me.¡± ¡°Some stupid dolls I met,¡± Itinit guessed mentally. ¡°They must have had their brains heavily modified. I wouldn''t be surprised if they can''t read or write.¡± ¡°We want to fly to find one creature,¡± Suturu said. ¡°Where?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°Up,¡± Suturu pointed her finger at the sky. ¡°Maybe that creature is flying there, but it¡¯s invisible from here.¡± ¡°These are strange dolls,¡± Itinit thought. ¡±I should show them to Myuryuri. There''s definitely something wrong with them.¡± Itinit opened the inventory of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. Next to the cell that contained the Taikuron model, there were several more empty cells. ¡°There''s not much room in this thing,¡± Itinit said. ¡°You better get in here.¡± The dolls looked at each other, and then tilted their heads first one way, then the other. ¡°I agree,¡± Suturu said. ¡°I agree even more than Suturu,¡± Aibi said. Two blue translucent energy balls emerged from the cells. ¡°These balls will fly to you,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Try to burst them.¡± The balls slowly approached the dolls. Suturu was the first to point her finger at one of them and disappeared. A clot of blue energy appeared inside the ball, which soon turned into a smaller copy of the doll''s head. Aibi noticed this and repeated her sister''s action. Soon, her smaller copy of the head also appeared inside the ball. The balls returned to the screen. Next to the cell with the Taikuron model, cells with the models of Suturu and Aibi appeared. Halankuo, who was hiding behind the trees, approached Itinit. ¡°What did you do?¡± the girl asked. ¡°I moved these dolls to the inventory,¡± Itinit said. ¡°They''re kind of strange. I need to study them.¡± ¡°Are you going to do something with them and Taikuron?¡± ¡°I''m not going to. But they could be useful to someone.¡± Halankuo hesitated to tell her friend about the dolls who were looking for Taikuron. Although these creatures seemed similar to her, she was not sure that they were exactly them. Itinit unlocked the door with a virtual lock and then opened it. Inside, next to a large black chair, a blue translucent virtual control panel with many buttons and a screen appeared. ¡°You''ll have to wait for me,¡± Itinit looked at the chair. ¡°I''ll be back soon.¡± Halankuo hoped that she would be able to fly on this metal bird, but she did not dare tell her friend about it. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll still be able to fly this thing,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I have very important business. Now you can interfere with me. Move away so that you don¡¯t get hit by the wings.¡± Halankuo returned to the edge of the clearing and felt a gust of wind. The flying machine flapped its wings and slowly rose above the forest. ¡°Here it is, the same metal bird that I was striving for,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I created my character, but I never got to ride it.¡± Halankuo looked at the flying machine, which rose upward with each flap of its wings, and her mouth opened in surprise. The girl remembered how, as a child, she tried to ride Tuot. The unfortunate dinosaur almost took off then... ¡°You don¡¯t want to fly, birdie,¡± little Halankuo thought. ¡°You''re the wrong bird. The right birds fly.¡± The girl looked at the frightened dinosaur, which had climbed onto the palisade, and was trying to stay on it. ¡°You''ve already climbed the fence,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°So you can fly. Maybe I should throw you from the second floor or the roof?¡± Tuot leaned back and was about to fall, but a green energy aura suddenly surrounded him. The dinosaur jumped to the ground at the last moment and landed on his feet, not on his back. ¡°What is this?¡± Halankuo was surprised. The girl approached the pet and extended her hand to the aura. Halankuo''s finger passed through the energy and touched one of the feathers. ¡°It''s transparent,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I wonder if it''s edible.¡± Halankuo didn''t have time to try it. The aura began to shimmer, and then disappeared... ¡°How stupid I was,¡± twenty-year-old Halankuo thought, watching the flying machine in the sky. ¡°I tried to do something that doesn''t exist in the world. So I wanted to create a character. Of course, it didn¡¯t look much like a bird, but I did it. I hoped to fly on Kyotyoryon¡¯s back when she gained experience. But I didn¡¯t think of her as a living being, just as I didn¡¯t think of Tuot that way when I was a child. Tuot seemed like a living toy to me then. But I grew up and realized that he was my pet and my friend. I tried to get a non-living toy, so that at least it would be my bird that I could fly on. But I failed again. And now I saw a real non-living bird that doesn¡¯t mind being flown on, but it also flew away from me.¡± ¡°If you want to fly, you can summon a purple aura,¡± a voice sounded in Halankuo''s head. ¡°I can''t even summon a normal blue aura. How do I activate a purple one?¡± ¡°The way you were able to move objects with your gaze.¡± Halankuo opened the interface and entered the tab with skill icons. Among the round gray cells, one stood out, with a black silhouette of a man. Halankuo clicked on it, and the silhouette turned blue. Another cell immediately appeared under it, with the same silhouette, but black. Halankuo clicked on it, but nothing happened. ¡°You must first master the normal aura,¡± the voice explained. ¡°The purple aura is formed when pure energy combines with air energy.¡± ¡°I don''t know how to activate the aura,¡± Halankuo admitted. ¡°Can it be summoned with the power of thought, like an electrical aura?¡± ¡°It activates itself when you are in danger. Then you can summon it with your imagination.¡± Halankuo remembered Tuot, who was saved from falling off the fence by an energetic aura. ¡°Why do different conditions need to be met to master the skills?¡± Halankuo asked mentally. ¡°Why is it so difficult?¡± There was no answer. Halankuo watched the flying machine go, and then left the glade. *** When Yueret fell asleep, Unana left the house and started looking for Kimchan. The girl was wearing a purple top that hung on her chest, short black shorts with large cutouts on her hips, and in her hands was a bow with a charged white and blue electric arrow. ¡°Where does this dog go?¡± Unana thought. Unana thought. ¡°I''ll teach it a lesson so it knows it can''t show itself to Yueret like that.¡± Kimchan was found behind the bushes, near one of the trees. She was sleeping in the form of a dog girl, curled up in a ball, and holding her own tail in her hands. Unana pointed her bow at her pet and took aim. ¡°Where should I shoot?¡± the archer thought. ¡°It doesn''t hurt too much to shoot at the legs. It''s scary to shoot at the head. And it''s too... cruel to shoot at the tail...¡± Unana''s hands began to tremble. Soon the archer realized that she wouldn''t be able to shoot. The bow with the electric arrow disappeared into thin air. Unana looked at her pet''s satisfied face and smiled. ¡°Maybe I should tickle her?¡± the girl thought. Unfortunately for the pet, a place for tickling was quickly found. It was the dog-girl''s heels, which were peeking out from under the fur bracelets. Unana quietly approached Kimchan, crouched down and stretched out her hand towards the target... A plaintive dog groan was heard, but Kimchan did not wake up. Unana giggled, and then began to tickle the middle of her pet''s foot. A long bark was added to the groan. Kimchan stretched her head out, but her eyes remained closed. ¡°Au-au-uaau...¡± Kimchan said. ¡°No need, little sister...¡± ¡°What?¡± Unana was surprised. ¡°Does she have a sister?¡± For a moment, Unana felt sorry for her pet, but the funny dog ??moans in her sleep amused the girl and made her move on to something more. The archer reached her other hand to the dog girl''s other foot and began tickling the middle of her foot. This time, something seemed to switch inside Kimchan. She was almost instantly covered in a fiery aura, and in a vertical position, she flew head first, like a comet. Unana was no longer laughing. The girl looked at the leaves that were swirling in the air, and her hair and chest swayed along with them, as if expressing the feeling of confusion of their owner. Chapter 35. Creature That Reads Minds The grey, bird-shaped flying machine landed on the rocky bank of a fast-flowing river. Mixed forests grew around, covering the slopes of the surrounding low mountains. ¡°I haven''t been here for a long time,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°This place has changed a lot. There are no houses here anymore, but the river, the mountains and the forests are still the same.¡± The wing-like door of the "metal bird" slid aside. Itinit jumped onto a rock and saw his reflection in the water. ¡°It¡¯s good that I haven¡¯t changed either,¡± the guy thought. ¡°When I left here, I looked the same, although a lot of time has passed.¡± Soon Itinit noticed another shadow in the water, and then heard the sound of a burning fire. The guy looked up and saw a comet that flew across the river and fell in the neighboring forest. ¡°I didn''t even have to call Kimchan,¡± Itinit immediately guessed who it was. ¡°It was not for nothing that I gave her the "Comet of Joy."¡± Itinit ran his hand across the water. A few moments later, a blue energy platform appeared on the surface of the river, reaching the opposite bank. ¡°I once crossed the river in this place with its help,¡± Itinit remembered. ¡°It''s good that the river has not widened, otherwise the platform would not have been enough.¡± Itinit stepped onto the platform and crossed to the opposite bank. Beyond the rocks, the mixed forest continued. Pointed conifers alternated with deciduous trees with the same crown shape, but with double leaves. ¡°It''s better not to walk under these trees in the fall,¡± Itinit recalled. ¡°The fruits fall to the ground and stink. I almost died in a forest like that once. It''s a good thing they''re banned from planting them in cities.¡± The forest "rose" up the steep slope of the mountain. Itinit stopped at the foot and sniffed the air. ¡°There¡¯s smoke in that direction,¡± the guy thought. ¡°I''m just in time. Just a little more, and the smoke from the comet will clear.¡± Itinit followed the smoke trail and found his character in one of the trees. Kimchan was hanging upside down on a thick branch and trying to free herself. ¡°You''re stuck again,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°I told you not to fly over the forest.¡± Kimchan looked at her creator and let out a pitiful dog yelp. ¡°I... I... didn¡¯t want to,¡± the dog girl answered. ¡°It just happened. Soon Itinit and Kimchan were sitting on the opposite bank of the river near the flying machine.¡± ¡°Tell me,¡± Itinit began. ¡°Have you managed to find out anything?¡± ¡°Yup,¡± Kimchan answered. ¡°I have collected a lot of information. Now can I go home to my sister?¡± ¡°It depends on what information you have collected.¡± Kimchan hit the air with her hand, like an animal hitting with a paw. A virtual screen appeared in front of her with many icons of different colors and shapes. The dog girl chose the most inconspicuous of them: an icon in the form of a gray lock. A second window appeared above the first. It showed a girl with brown shoulder-length hair lying on a bed, hugging a large pillow with her arms. This item covered the middle part of the body, and served as something like clothing, because she, of course, had no clothing on. ¡°What is this?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°I pressed the wrong button,¡± Kimchan blushed. ¡°I¡¯ll press another one now.¡± ¡°No need. Who is she?¡± ¡°She is my mistress. She''s cute, but she likes to punish.¡± ¡°Did she do anything to you?¡± Kimchan blushed even more. The dog girl didn''t want to tell her creator about how Unana tried to kill her. ¡°No, she fed me squirrels and bears,¡± Kimchan answered. ¡°Don''t worry,¡± Itinit said. ¡°There''s no shame in eating bears.¡± Kimchan closed the screen with Unana''s image and then clicked on the white padlock icon. A screen appeared with an image of a stone coffin in a wooden house. ¡°It looks like something from a museum,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°I found this in an abandoned village,¡± Kimchan admitted. ¡°There was something made of stone there.¡± ¡°Do you have a photo of what was there?¡± Kimchan swiped her finger across the screen. The image of the coffin changed to stone fragments on the floor. ¡°That''s all I saw in puppy form,¡± Kimchan said. ¡°I could have changed into another form to see, but I was afraid I''d be found out.¡± ¡°Was there anyone else there?¡± ¡°Yup. It was one of my masters.¡± Itinit looked at the forest and began to think out loud: ¡°The coffin is stone, and the house is wooden. It''s strange. It looks like it appeared there by accident. I need to go to that village and study it.¡± Kimchan pounced on the creator and knocked him face down on the stones. ¡°You can''t go there!¡± the dog girl shouted. ¡°Then you¡¯ll have to go to your master and ask him,¡± Itinit said. ¡°He¡¯s taller than you, which means he saw what was in the coffin.¡± Kimchan climbed off Itinit and jumped back. ¡°It is forbidden!¡± the dog girl shouted. ¡°Then they¡¯ll reveal me-me-me. Better to go where the coffin is.¡± *** Unana finally came to her senses and realized what she had done. ¡°I didn''t know that Kimchan''s ability was activated,¡± the girl thought. ¡°How can I find her now? She could have flown very far away.¡± The archer approached the fence and noticed a large hole in it with edges blackened by fire. ¡°If Kimchan is found, I will not punish her,¡± Unana decided. ¡°I will forgive her everything, even how she woke me up, even the food she ate from the refrigerator, although no. I will not forgive anyone for the food, not even Yueret.¡± Unana stuck her head into the hole and found that it fit completely through it. ¡°What should you tell Yueret when he notices a hole in the fence?¡± the archer thought. ¡°I could say that a bear has come, or dolls. He''ll believe it. I hope a real bear doesn''t come here.¡± The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. *** After the hot springs, Tuot felt hungry. Myuryuri took him to the entrance of the cafe and flew away somewhere. The dinosaur entered the room and found himself in a large hall with several tables. At one of them, Etinnei and Noru were sitting, their heads resting on the table. Tuot carefully approached Etinnei and saw her face. The arctic fox girl was lying with her mouth open, her tongue hanging out. ¡°She was poisoned by something,¡± Tuot decided. ¡°You can''t eat in this cafe.¡± The dinosaur touched the arctic fox''s ear with his hand. In response, Etinnei let out a short, barely noticeable moan. ¡°She¡¯s alive,¡± Tuot guessed. ¡°I wonder if I keep touching her ears, will she wake up.¡± The dinosaur touched his other ear with his other hand and began to tickle it. Etinnei opened her mouth and let out a long moan, louder than the previous one. ¡°She won''t wake up,¡± Tuot was displeased. ¡°Maybe I should touch her tail?¡± The dinosaur stopped touching her ears and stuck his head under the table to look for her tail. He soon found legs that didn''t reach the floor, and behind them, an arctic fox tail. ¡°Why are you touching her?¡± Noru''s voice was heard. ¡°Do you want to eat her?¡± Tuot was startled by the sharp sound and instinctively pulled his head out from under the table. ¡°I''m trying to wake her up,¡± the dinosaur explained. ¡°That''s not the way to wake her up,¡± Noru said. ¡°I''ll show you how to do it.¡± The dog girl stroked Etinnei on the head and then under the chin. The Arctic fox girl opened her eyes. ¡°You ate too much,¡± Noru said. ¡°You can¡¯t sleep in a place like this.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Etinnei yawned. ¡°There¡¯s even room for your head.¡± The Arctic fox girl pointed her finger at the table. ¡°This is a table for eating,¡± Noru explained. ¡°You can''t sleep here, because you''ll become food yourself.¡± Etinnei looked around and noticed Tuot standing behind her with his jaw dropped. ¡°It''s you,¡± the Arctic fox girl sighed. ¡°I thought Minniges was trying to get me to eat his ice cream again.¡± ¡°It needs to be taken out,¡± Noru said. ¡°If someone else is living in your head, it keeps you from sleeping.¡± ¡°I''m used to it,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°And it doesn''t interfere with my sleep too much. In fact, I wanted to get rid of it, but I found out that I would lose some of my memories. They are stored in Minniges.¡± ¡°Can''t you take the memory card out of it and insert it into your brain?¡± Noru suggested. ¡°What?¡± Etinnei was surprised. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Information is stored there,¡± Noru said. ¡°Itinit told me.¡± ¡°Itinit told me something like that, too,¡± Tuot recalled. ¡°There is a memory card in the brain of any creature. The most important data about the creature and its memories are there. If the creature dies, its memory card leaves the body.¡± ¡°I don''t want to forget you,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°You can forget a dinosaur, but you have to remember me,¡± Noru said. ¡°I''m an animal girl.¡± Tuot turned away to leave the caf¨¦. ¡°Tuot is my playmate,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°He¡¯s like¡­¡± Tuot paused. He wondered what his friend would say about him. ¡°Like¡­,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°Like a talking animal.¡± ¡°Well, at least I¡¯m not a pet, as Halankuo says,¡± Tuot concluded. ¡°On the Southern Continent, I met animals with feathers, but they couldn¡¯t speak a language I could understand,¡± the Arctic fox girl continued. ¡°I tried to teach them to speak their language, but they couldn¡¯t say anything. Not a single word! I wanted to talk to them so much. Maybe that¡¯s why Minniges appeared in my brain. I once imagined something between a penguin and a seal¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± Noru jumped up and her eyes widened. ¡°Show me it!¡± ¡°I can''t,¡± Etinnei looked down and moved her tail. ¡°Only I can see it. It lives in my brain.¡± ¡°I know,¡± Noru said. ¡°But I can look into your brain and see.¡± Tuot remembered seeing a penguin with a horn on its forehead when he was fighting Kuttanai. He hadn''t paid much attention to the strange creature at the time, as he was thinking about saving his friend. ¡°I don''t want to,¡± Etinnei replied. ¡°You''ll be able to read my thoughts.¡± ¡°Are you afraid I''ll find out something?¡± Noru asked. ¡°I''m afraid you''ll read my memories before I see them,¡± Etinnei replied. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid,¡± Noru patted the Arctic fox girl on the top of her head. ¡°Even if I look at your memories, I won¡¯t tell you anything. I''m just interested in seeing the creature you''re talking about. I can''t imagine how it can exist in this world.¡± ¡°As if one could imagine beast girls in this world,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°It''s a good thing I didn''t say that out loud.¡± Etinnei twitched her ears and touched her cheeks with her hands. ¡°If I agree, Minniges will be against it,¡± said the Arctic fox girl. ¡°He was against being taken out of my brain and said that I might be left without memories. That''s why the mushroom spirit said that it was too early for me.¡± Noru also moved her ears, and then stroked her tail. ¡°Do they move their ears when they are thinking about something important?¡± Tuot mentally suggested. ¡°Can this creature read your thoughts when it doesn¡¯t appear?¡± Noru asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Etinnei replied. ¡°Minniges speaks to me with thoughts. I answer it with thoughts. At that moment it reads them. But when Minniges doesn¡¯t appear, I don¡¯t know if it can do that.¡± ¡°If he can read your mind even when he''s not there, that''s really bad,¡± Noru said. ¡°He could know everything you''re thinking.¡± Etinnei felt fear for the first time since she was on the island and met the scary creature with the carrot nose. Then the arctic fox girl could do nothing. She even had to close her eyes to keep from getting worse. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?¡± Noru asked. ¡°Do you see a creature in your head?¡± ¡°No,¡± Etinnei replied. ¡°It just scares me that someone can read my thoughts at any time.¡± ¡°You can ask that creature,¡± Tuot intervened. Etinnei looked at her friend. The sight of a large flightless bird with a long tail and a sagging jaw calmed the arctic fox girl. She was no longer so afraid. ¡°I don''t know when Minniges will appear,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°It comes when he wants to. I can''t summon it with the interface.¡± ¡°So he knows what happens to you when you can''t see it,¡± Tuot concluded. ¡°Minniges can read my thoughts whenever she wants?¡± Etinnei felt afraid again. ¡°That''s why it''s best to extract this creature,¡± Noru said. ¡°I''ll talk to Itinit. Maybe he knows how to extract the memory card from that creature so you don''t lose your memories.¡± Etinnei looked at Nora and smiled. Tears came out of the Arctic fox girl''s eyes. The next moment she threw her friend to the floor and began to lick her face. *** The metal train with the wooden carriage stopped at the fallen trunk of a tree fern. The hatch opened, and the spirit of metal in human form jumped out. ¡°This tree is bad,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°I need to cut it.¡± Blades emerged from the metal spirit''s ankle bracelets. The character jumped off the train and landed behind the trunk. The next moment, the trunk fell to the ground in three separate pieces. ¡°The creator gave me good things to cut with,¡± Kyotyoryon looked at her feet. ¡°It''s a pity I couldn''t cut off her head with them then. I wanted to see if my metal could cut off the head of a meat creature.¡± Kyotyoryon returned to the train, and it was able to continue on its way. ¡°Maybe I should go back to the creator and cut off her head?¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°I wonder what will happen if I do that. Will she die right away or not?¡± But then Kyotyoryon remembered how Halankuo sent her to the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. The metal spirit''s mood changed dramatically. ¡°I can¡¯t go to the creator,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°If I go back to her to cut off her head, I might not cut off her head. The creator might send me to that place again, but she won¡¯t take me away from there. I¡¯ll stay there forever.¡± Kyotyoryon sat in a chair in front of a large panoramic window and watched the train travel through the forest and cut down small trees along the way. ¡°This is a different railway,¡± the spirit of metal noted. ¡°When the train came the first time, it was already cutting through all these poles.¡± Kyotyoryon closed her eyes, then touched the metal wall of the train with her hand and tried to stop it. But the train kept going. ¡°It moves by itself,¡± the spirit of metal guessed. ¡°I cannot order it. But that is wrong. It is my train. It is made of my metal.¡± Kyotyoryon opened her eyes and then ran her finger through the air in front of the window. A large virtual control panel of blue energy with many buttons of different shapes opened in front of the character. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to press,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°Before, I just imagined it moving, and it moved.¡± The spirit of metal pressed the round button at the bottom of the screen. The train slowed down, but continued moving. Then Kyotyoryon began pressing other buttons. When pressed, they became bright, but nothing else happened. Kyotyoryon stood up from her chair, walked over to the hatch, closed her eyes and extended her hand towards it. ¡°Hey, open up,¡± the character''s face grimaced. ¡°Hey, please!¡± Soon, Kyotyoryon couldn''t stand it any longer and opened her eyes. Luke remained closed and didn''t even move. ¡°Why won''t you open?¡± the spirit of metal shouted. Luke didn''t answer. Kyotyoryon turned her gaze to the window. A massive mountain was approaching, covered at the top by a forest of ferns with steep slopes on which bushes grew. At the bottom of the mountain, a dark opening was visible, towards which the train was approaching. It turned out to be a tunnel. The train entered it, causing darkness inside the locomotive. Kyotyoryon felt threatened, jumped to the window and released a short blade from the bracelet on her hand. But there was no need to break the window. The train left the tunnel and continued on its way through the fern forest along the high seashore. The train''s speed dropped sharply. The path was again blocked by a fallen tree trunk, but this time a girl in a helmet with black bull horns sticking out of the holes stood on it. She was standing on one leg, which ended in a black fur boot-hoof, and the other leg was bent at the knee. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen her before,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°I wonder what it¡¯s made of.¡± The girl looked at the train with glowing eyes and seemed to be pulling it towards her. Soon the distance between the objects was reduced to a step. The girl stretched out her leg, bent at the knee, and stopped the train with her hoof-like boot. Chapter 36. Hidden Ability Kyotyoryon realized that she had to leave the train and ran to the door of the next wooden carriage, but it was locked. Then the spirit of metal noticed a small round window next to the door and kicked it. The metal bracelet hit the glass, but could not break it. ¡°Don''t try to get out of here,¡± a voice was heard next to Kyotyoryon. ¡°I blocked the train with a signal.¡± The spirit of metal turned to the source of the sound and saw in front of her the same horned girl who had stopped the train with her foot. ¡°Who are you?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°You were there. Why are you here?¡± ¡°I''m Ayika,¡± the girl introduced herself. ¡°I''m a character from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature,¡± just like you. It looks like there are more of us.¡± A short metal spear appeared near Kyotyoryon. The combinations of words "Mausoleum of Nature" frightened her and made her think of a place where there was nothing and where it was impossible to get out on your own. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go where there is nothing!¡± Kyotyoryon shouted. ¡°I¡¯m not going to send you there, and I can¡¯t for technical reasons,¡± Ayika explained. ¡°It¡¯s too boring there. It¡¯s good that my creator doesn¡¯t keep me there.¡± Kyotyoryon calmed down a little. The metal spear disappeared in the air. ¡°Sorry for sneaking in here,¡± Ayika continued. ¡°I need to get to one place. Can you send a train there?¡± ¡°This is my train,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°It¡¯s made from my metal. Only I can decide where he will go.¡± ¡°You don''t decide this. From the very beginning the train was heading towards me. This is a robot train; it has the lowest level of senses, so it easily obeys the signal.¡± ¡°Does this signal make my train go where I don¡¯t want it to go?¡± ¡°The signal travels into the air from my brain through the antennas. You have them too. Don''t you know about this?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have any antennas! I''m normal.¡± ¡°Then what¡¯s sticking out of your head? Are these metal horns?¡± ¡°Yes, horns! They are metal, because I am a spirit of metal. Your horns are metal too. But for some reason they are yours and not mine.¡± ¡°These are antennas. They are connected to the brain.¡± Kyotyoryon touched the horns on her head with her hands. ¡°I don''t feel anything,¡± the spirit of metal admitted. ¡°There is no signal.¡± Ayika approached the character and touched one of her horns with her hand. ¡°You have no connection between your brain and antennas,¡± the horned girl explained. ¡°Although there should be.¡± ¡°Am I wrong?¡± Kyotyoryon took a step back and found herself at the door. ¡°Most likely, you have this ability blocked. Each character has some hidden ability that the creators put into them. It only works when the character is in serious danger.¡± ¡°The creator gave me ability and didn''t tell me about it?¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°The creator is really bad.¡± ¡°If the ability is hidden, it is probably too early for you to think about it,¡± Ayika said. ¡°Better take me further. I want to get to one place, but there is water there. I can only move underground. I can¡¯t do anything underwater.¡± Kyotyoryon remembered how the train she was riding with the creator crossed the river on an energy bridge. ¡°Is there a long thing there that glows?¡± the spirit of metal asked. ¡°It''s on top of the water.¡± ¡°Yup,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°That thing is an energy bridge. It''s very long there. It''s so long that you can''t see the end of it.¡± Kyotyoryon imagined a blue stream of energy emanating from the stone platform and extending beyond the horizon. ¡°I want to see that thing,¡± the metal spirit said. ¡°So you agree to take me there?¡± Ayika asked. ¡°Yes. I want to know where that thing ends.¡± Ayika walked to the front window. ¡°You can make the train move yourself,¡± Kyotyoryon noted. ¡°But why are you asking me?¡± ¡°I can make the train move towards me because of the signal,¡± Ayika explained. ¡°If I get on the train, it will not move.¡± Kyotyoryon closed her eyes, touched the wall of the train with her hand, and it slowly moved forward. The high bank gradually descended, and soon turned into a gorge, along the bottom of which flowed a narrow river. The train tilted, and then quickly rolled and found itself near the mouth of the river. The rail continued all the way to the shore, where the river joined the sea, and then ended abruptly at a large rock. Here the trees gave way to isolated herbaceous plants with spiny leaves that grew on the sand. The train stopped. The stone turned out to be a flat platform with symbols carved into it. ¡°This is the thing where the energy bridge begins,¡± Ayika raised her leg and pointed her "hoof" at the platform. Kyotyoryon jumped out of the train through the hatch and immediately approached the new object. ¡°There is some metal here, but it is not enough even for my fingernail,¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the nails on her hand, which were shining in the sun. ¡°There should be a glowing road coming out of here, but I can''t see the hole. Where does it come from?¡± Ayika approached the platform. ¡°Where is the hole?¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the girl with bull horns. ¡°It''s not there,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°This platform hasn''t been used for a long time and has fallen asleep. It needs to be activated.¡± ¡°Even this stone thing can sleep, but I can''t,¡± Kyotyoryon was offended. ¡°The creator made me like this because she doesn''t want me to sleep.¡± Ayika ran her finger over the platform and summoned a virtual screen in a yellow frame, inside which an image of a yellow lock on a black background appeared. ¡°The platform is locked,¡± Ayika said. ¡°I need to remember the password.¡± The horned creature stood with its hooves on the rail and closed its eyes. Kyotyoryon looked at the screen and pointed her finger at the image of the lock. A password field appeared on top of the screen. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°This thing prevents the stone thing from showing a hole,¡± the spirit of metal guessed. ¡°I need to cut it.¡± A short blade extended from the bracelet on Kyotyoryon''s arm. The next moment it touched the field, but did not cause any damage. Instead, a small table with various symbols appeared under the field. ¡°It can''t be cut,¡± Kyotyoryon made an angry face. ¡°My metal has no effect on it.¡± Kyotyoryon walked around the platform, but did not see a hole in it. ¡°The hole did not appear,¡± the spirit of metal frowned. ¡°Hole, appear!¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± a voice was heard behind the spirit of metal. Kyotyoryon turned around and saw Ayika standing in front of her with her eyes open but not glowing. ¡°I¡¯m summoning a hole,¡± Kyotyoryon explained. ¡°But one thing is preventing it from appearing.¡± ¡°You need to enter a password there,¡± Ayika explained. ¡°Move away. I think I remembered it.¡± Kyotyoryon took a few steps to the side. Ayika approached the screen and entered several symbols into the field. The lock turned green, after which it disappeared along with the field and the screen. A rumble was heard underground. The platform began to shake, and then moved slightly in different directions, resulting in a rift with a blue glowing clot of energy. ¡°It''s been many years since I last used the energy bridge platform,¡± Ayika recalled. ¡°The creator did a good job with it. It can''t be activated by someone else.¡± ¡°This thing glows,¡± Kyotyoryon noted. ¡°Will a beam fly out of it now?¡± ¡°Not so fast,¡± Ayika replied. ¡°The energy needs to accumulate first.¡± ¡°How do you know how to turn this thing on?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell strangers about this,¡± Ayika thought. ¡°But I have to answer something. This creature is too curious, so it won¡¯t just leave me alone.¡± ¡°I can open locks,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°Sometimes I can¡¯t remember the password.¡± ¡°What is password?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°These are the symbols that open the lock.¡± ¡°The lock won¡¯t open without them?¡± ¡°You didn''t succeed. No one has yet come up with a way other than entering a password.¡± ¡°I will. I will break locks with my metal.¡± ¡°She is too ambitious and naive,¡± Ayika guessed. ¡°That means she appeared recently. Once upon a time, when the creator was not yet covered in stone and could talk to me, I dreamed of something that could not be. Then I thought that I could do everything. But then it turned out that I can¡¯t even help my creator.¡± The energy clot inside the rift grew larger, then turned into a beam that went beyond the horizon, expanded, and took on the familiar outline of an energy bridge. Kyotyoryon immediately paid attention to it and forgot what she had said a few moments ago. ¡°Through this glowing road, you can see what¡¯s beyond it,¡± Kyotyoryon noted the bridge¡¯s translucency. ¡°I need to check it out.¡± The spirit of metal jumped onto the edge of the energy bridge that came out of the crack in the platform. A blade extended from the bracelet on the character''s hand, but she couldn''t use it. Kyotyoryon felt a strong vibration that made her legs tremble. The spirit of metal staggered, then fell to her knees. The vibration intensified and began to shake the character even more. ¡°You shouldn''t have done that,¡± Ayika said. ¡°There''s a very strong vibration in this place due to a powerful flow of energy.¡± But Kyotyoryon did not hear Ayika¡¯s words because she could not think. The spirit of metal tried to get out of the bridge, but could not because of the strong vibration. The blade on the bracelet went back, after which both bracelets began to emit a white glow. Kyotyoryon screamed and looked up at the sky. It seemed so close to the spirit of metal, as if it were a few steps above her. The next moment, Kyotyoryon stopped feeling the vibration. Only a light wind blew in the character''s face and fluttered her hair. ¡°It''s not hitting me anymore,¡± Kyotyoryon guessed. ¡°I need to go back and cut it.¡± The spirit of metal looked down and found a small stone with a blue beam of light coming from it and a huge expanse of blue water. ¡°Why did it turn over?¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°I need to put it right.¡± Soon, Kyotyoryon noticed a gray wing with metal feathers that started from the bracelet, from the place from which the blade usually extended. The same thing happened with the bracelet on her other hand. ¡°I took such things out of the dinosaur,¡± Kyotyoryon noted. ¡°But they were made of a different material, and these are made of my metal. They turn space upside down. I need to put them back.¡± The spirit of metal still did not understand what was "hanging" in the sky above the coast. Space seemed upside down to her. Kyotyoryon mentally sent a signal to the bracelets on her hands. The wings should have retracted, but instead the spirit of metal began to descend to the shore. ¡°Why isn''t it working?¡± Kyotyoryon frowned. ¡°I cancelled this thing. It was supposed to go back.¡± Here Kyotyoryon remembered Ayika''s words about hidden abilities: ¡°It only works when the character is seriously threatened.¡± When there was a distance of several human heights left to the ground, Kyotyoryon finally figured out something. ¡°It wasn''t space that flipped,¡± the spirit of metal thought. ¡°It was me that flipped.¡± Kyotyoryon''s feet landed on the sand. The wings folded and turned into long blades, which then slid into the bracelets. ¡°It seems you have awakened a new ability,¡± Ayika approached Kyotyoryon. ¡°Now you can fly.¡± ¡°What?¡± Kyotyoryon looked at the sky. From here it seemed far away, and the clouds were very thick. ¡°Was I upstairs?¡± ¡°Yes. Didn''t you understand?¡± ¡°At first I thought the shore had turned over, but then I realized that it was me who had turned over.¡± ¡°She definitely appeared recently,¡± Ayika noted. ¡°The creator said that I am a metal bird,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°And they fly. So, I can become like them?¡± ¡°No,¡± Ayika touched her horns with her hands. ¡°I didn¡¯t become a cow, although I have horns and hooves. And the only bird thing you have is your beak, and that''s on your mask. And the wings you got now.¡± ¡°Are these wings? They are made of those things that birds have, but they are made of my metal. But why did I get them?¡± ¡°You have fulfilled the condition necessary to unlock the skill.¡± Kyotyoryon again remembered Ay?ka''s words about hidden abilities. ¡°This luminous road attacked me,¡± the spirit of metal looked at the energy bridge. ¡°I thought I''d break through it and see what was inside.¡± ¡°Blue energy lets objects pass through it, but vibration protects it from this,¡± Ayika said. ¡°That¡¯s why you can walk on the energy bridge without falling through.¡± ¡°And the train won''t shake?¡± ¡°No. The vibration is too weak to affect the train.¡± ¡°The first time I rode a train on a glowing road, I didn''t feel anything.¡± Kyotyoryon remembered what she had said to Halankuo at that moment. Thoughts about the creator made the character worry, but when they left her heavy head, Ayika was no longer there. ¡°I need to leave here while this horned one is gone,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. The spirit of metal returned to the train, jumped on it, opened the hatch and got inside. Then she touched the back wall of the locomotive with her hand to make it go in the opposite direction. But instead, the head of that very "horned one" appeared from the door that led into the carriage. Kyotyoryon jumped back a few steps in surprise. Ayika came out of the door as if it was made of air. *** The bird-shaped craft landed on a paved road that ran through the abandoned village. It was the only suitable place to land, as the surrounding area was covered in dense mixed forest. The door of the "metal bird" slid aside. Itinit came out and pulled his character by the hair. ¡°No-o-o-o, creator!¡± Kimchan screamed. ¡°I''ll come out myself!¡± ¡°You can only eat by yourself, especially my lunch from the inventory¡±, Itinit smiled. ¡°I didn''t want to. My tongue went there by itself.¡± ¡°So your hair also ended up in my hand by itself.¡± Itinit pulled the unfortunate creature out of the flying machine, then let go of her hair. Kimchan almost instantly crawled to the side and looked at her creator with a guilty look. ¡°Forgive me, creator,¡± the dog girl howled. ¡°I won''t do it anymo-o-u-u-re!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t howl. Someone will hear,¡± Itinit said and thought: ¡°Next time I¡¯ll grab her by the tail.¡± Kimchan turned into a puppy and then disappeared into the bushes. Itinit went after her and soon heard a thin dog bark near the only intact house in the village. ¡°This is too suspicious,¡± Itinit thought. ¡°There''s almost nothing left of the other houses, but this one is still standing.¡± Itinit walked up to the porch. The wooden door lay nearby without any damage, but there was nothing inside. Only a pile of gray dust lay in one of the rooms. ¡°Is this really the right house?¡± Itinit asked. The puppy barked in response. ¡°It¡¯s as if there¡¯s another whole house here,¡± Itinit somehow understood the dog¡¯s barking. The puppy ran up to the pile of dust and then looked at its owner. Itinit understood the animal''s hint, summoned the inventory, then pointed his hand at the pile of dust and dragged it into one of the empty cells. "I need to study these remains," Itinit thought. "Perhaps they belong to the creature that was here." Itinit went to the exit of the house, but near the threshold he heard Kimchan barking. The guy looked around, but did not notice anything suspicious. Only gray-brown wooden walls made of planks and logs, typical of houses in the countryside. But the barking did not stop. Itinit left the house. The sun ¡°hit¡± the guy right in the face, and he stretched his hand forward to cover it, but soon felt a vibration near his index finger. Itinit covered the sun with his other hand and noticed a girl in a purple aura in front of him, who was slowly descending to the ground. One of her legs touched the guy''s hand, and the other was bent at the knee. Itinit had seen a lot in his not very long life, but this was the first time something like this had happened to him. He didn''t understand anything, he could only watch. The girl''s figure was illuminated by an aura that emphasized her contours. Short black shorts covered her thick legs from above. Her breasts were so large that the unfortunate purple top only covered them. Black headphones with antennas, worn on brown hair that reached her shoulders, completed the image... The hand turned palm up under the vibration, and the girl''s foot landed right there. The vibration increased, and with it a feeling of heaviness. Itinit looked at his hand and noticed that the small foot fit completely in it, as if it were its slot. Chapter 37. Bridge across the Sea The girl with the headphones on her head pushed off from Itinit''s palm, did a somersault in the air, and then landed on the path. The purple aura around her disappeared. Itinit''s ability to think returned. He immediately noticed the girl''s chest, which was swaying after landing. "What big ones she has," this was the guy''s first thought. "How can she fly with them?" A small purple bow with an energy bowstring of the same color appeared in the girl''s hands. She pointed it at Itinit, after which a white and blue electric arrow appeared there. "You touched me," the archer said menacingly. "Only my older brother can touch me! You are not my older brother." "You are right," Itinit replied. "I am not your elder brother." The archer drew her bowstring. "I am your uncle," Itinit continued. "My name is Itinit." The girl opened her mouth, but could not say anything. The bow in her hands disappeared. ¡°Your name is Unana,¡± Itinit continued. ¡°You live with your older brother in a neighboring village, which is almost abandoned.¡± ¡°Where from...¡± Unana was finally able to say something. ¡°I¡¯ve been following you for a long time. Your father asked me to do this.¡± Unana fell to her knees. The girl was breathing heavily and looking at Itinit. ¡°Do you know dad?¡± Unana asked. ¡°I knew it once,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen him for a long time. He is still my older brother.¡± ¡°How is Yueret?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Unana stood up. The girl was no longer afraid of this man, as she felt that they had something in common. "You must be unhappy without your brother," Unana suggested. "Um...," Itinit answered. "I haven''t seen him much. He''s much older than me." Unana looked at her uncle with a sad look. It seemed that she would soon cry. "How old are you?" the archer asked. ¡°Twenty-five or twenty-six,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°I don¡¯t remember exactly.¡± ¡°Almost like Yueret. He''s twenty-four. You''re a little older than him, although you''re his uncle. And your memory is bad.¡± ¡°Yes, people''s memory is not very good these days. There is too much information, and the brain has limited space.¡± Soon Itinit and Unana were already sitting on a log that remained from one of the houses. Kimchan was hiding in the bushes in the form of a puppy and spying on them from there. ¡°Why did dad leave?¡± Unana asked. ¡°Did he tell you about this?¡± ¡°No,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°He just came to me and told me to look after you and your brother. Then I started watching you.¡± ¡°You''re lying.¡± ¡°No. He didn''t tell me anything about it. I myself am trying to find him and understand why he left.¡± ¡°And you didn''t find anything?¡± ¡°Not yet. The world is huge, and there is too much information in it. And although it can be found online, it takes a lot of time.¡± ¡°Do you know anything about mom?¡± ¡°They most likely left together. That day, your father said that I should take care of you and Yueret, which means your mother was also gone then.¡± Unana lowered her head. Tears fell on her chest. Itinit noticed this and stroked the girl''s head. Unana noticed this and snuggled up to her uncle. "That''s what Yueret does when I cry," the girl remembered. Itinit was thinking about something else. He felt something warm and soft, and then noticed a part of her breast that was sticking out from her top. "She''s like a pet," Itinit noted. ¡°She¡¯s so tender.¡± Unana took off her headphones and then laid her head on Itinit''s lap. Her breasts were no longer pressed against the guy''s torso, but instead rested on his hips. "Pet my head," Unana said. "Yueret always pets me." Itinit had to do what the girl asked to calm her down. He had told her about her father himself, so he felt guilty about it. Kimchan watched this scene from behind the bushes and, in surprise, took on an almost human form. The dog girl did not expect this from her creator. "He used to pet only me and my older sister," Kimchan thought. "But now he''s started doing this to a human. This is wrong. She doesn''t even have ears on top of her head. I need to go to the creator and tell him about this." Kimchan moved forward, but then stopped. There was a rustling sound in the leaves, which fortunately Itinit and Unana did not notice. ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± the dog girl was trembling with fear. "The creator said that I shouldn''t show myself to strangers. And the mistress said the same thing. If I go out, they''ll notice me and do something to me." *** The train was traveling on an energy bridge over a blue-gray sea. The shore of the mainland had already disappeared over the horizon, and the new one had not yet appeared. Kyotyoryon watched all this from a chair in front of a panoramic window at the head of the train. The spirit of metal was so surprised by the sight of endless water that she could not look anywhere else. "When will the water run out?" Kyotyoryon waited. "It''s not running out. If it doesn''t run out, I''ll get off the train and cut it." But she didn''t have to leave the train. Soon the outlines of mountains appeared in the distance. Kyotyoryon felt that she wanted to go there and got up from her chair. ¡°Wait,¡± Ayika warned. ¡°We haven¡¯t gotten there yet. These are just silhouettes of mountains. It''s still a long way to the Southern Continent itself.¡± ¡°What is this?¡± Kyotyoryon pointed at the front window. ¡°Is it angry?¡± ¡°No. Continents are not evil or good. It''s just land. It''s a lot of land. You can walk on it, and under it, too, and through her¡­¡± ¡°I can¡¯t go through the ground.¡± ¡°But I can. It''s my special ability. My element is earth, so I can fall underground and hide there.¡± Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°And go through the doors? I saw you go through doors.¡± ¡°Yeah. These are the same skill. It''s called "Dark Exit." ¡°Is it because it''s dark in the ground?¡± ¡°Yeah. But my eyes glow, so I can see underground.¡± Kyotyoryon frowned and turned away. ¡°You¡¯re lucky,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°You can go underground, and then come out and strike unnoticed. But I can''t do that.¡± ¡°You have other abilities,¡± Ayika said. ¡°You can look at them in your interface. Maybe you''ll find something interesting.¡± ¡°What is interface? The creator said something about it, but I didn''t understand anything.¡± ¡°This is the screen that¡¯s yours.¡± ¡°Is it mine? Is it made of my metal?¡± ¡°No. It is a reflection of the energy that the creature emits.¡± ¡°The creator did so,¡± Kyotyoryon ran her finger through the air. A virtual screen appeared in front of the spirit of metal in a blue-green frame with many buttons with symbols of different colors on them. "This is your interface," Ayika explained. "Press that round button in the center.¡± ¡°Press the big button?¡± Kyotyoryon asked. ¡°Yeah. It says "Skills" on it. Can you read?¡± ¡°I can a little. I don''t know all the symbols.¡± Kyotyoryon touched the largest round button in the middle of the screen with her index finger. Another window of the same size appeared on top of the screen, with many circles. Most of them were gray and dim, but some glowed brightly and had symbols. Between the circles were gray lines that connected the circles into a bird-like shape, with a head at the top, wings on the sides, and a tail at the bottom. ¡°This is the center of your skills,¡± Ayika explained. ¡°It looks different for every creature. Yours looks like a bird, and the skills themselves are gray, perhaps because of the connection with metal.¡± ¡°I am the spirit of metal,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°Yeah. This is also written here, from above. The characters from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature" are spirits that are created in virtual space from the reflection of the creator''s energy, which enters the program and generates a new creature.¡± Kyotyoryon, of course, did not understand anything, but she heard the mention of the creator and turned away. ¡°I don¡¯t want to be something that comes from a creator,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°This is how the Mausoleum of Nature works,¡± Ayika explained. ¡°This program can''t generate a character from just anything. In order to get a character, a connection between it and its creator is needed. Therefore, a character always inherits part of its creator''s abilities, albeit in a distorted form.¡± Ayika approached the Kyotyoryon interface and began to examine it carefully. "All the skills here are related to metal," Ayika noted. "You have weapon creation activated, combat form, ¡°Clutch Claw¡±, and ¡°Iron Wind Wings." ¡°Where is this skill?¡± Kyotyoryon pointed her finger at a dull grey circle that had no markings. ¡°These skills are not available. They haven''t been activated yet. I can''t even read their names. It looks like your creator has blocked them.¡± ¡°Then unlock them.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± I don''t have access to that account.¡± ¡°The creator hid my abilities from me so that I couldn¡¯t cut her,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°If you want to know their name and description, then contact your creator.¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡­ The blade from the Kyotyoryon bracelet appeared near Ayika¡¯s face. ¡°I will not return to where there is nothing,¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°And you will not make me.¡± ¡°What persistence,¡± Ayika thought. ¡°Someone was definitely trying to do something to her.¡± Kyotyoryon looked out the front panoramic window. The silhouettes of the mountains were growing larger and more detailed here and there. The outlines of treetops appeared on the slopes. The train slowly rolled along the translucent energy bridge, as if on a rail, and gradually approached another continent. "Soon?" Kyotyoryon asked. "I can''t wait any longer.¡± ¡°Be patient a little longer,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°We¡¯re not going to a neighboring city, but to another continent.¡± ¡°It''s a long time. This glowing road should have been built in another place.¡± ¡°This place has the shortest distance between the continents. Usually, the journey from one coast to another takes a very long time.¡± ¡°It''s a long time. Why couldn''t you fly there?¡± ¡°This method doesn''t suit me. If I take a flying machine, it will be noticed. And I wanted to leave the Northern Continent unnoticed.¡± The mountains grew even larger and began to become massively detailed. Treetops now covered many of the slopes, and the mountains themselves became blue-gray. "The train is going too slowly," Kyotyoryon decided. ¡°I need to make him go faster.¡± The spirit of metal reached her foot to one of the walls. The train sped up. ¡°Don¡¯t do that,¡± Ayika warned. ¡°The train could go off the bridge and fall into the sea.¡± Kyotyoryon didn¡¯t want to fall into the water, so she moved her foot away from the wall. The train slowed down. The end of the energy bridge appeared from the front window: on a peninsula, beyond which high mountains were visible. Their distant peaks were covered with white glaciers, and their slopes, with dark green forests. The peninsula looked like a flat rock, rising high above the water and going far into the sea. From it to the coast led a narrow rocky road, similar to a bridge, but this time stone. The stone platform was located on the edge of the peninsula, and seemed invisible from afar. The energy bridge ended in an opening right inside the rock. The train slowed down and then stopped. Ayika walked to the front window, passed through it and found herself on a cliff. Then she turned around and looked at Kyotyoryon, who was sitting in a chair and looking at the fern forests on the coast. At that moment, the energy bridge under the train disappeared and it fell into the sea. *** Large snowflakes slowly fell on the branches of the coniferous trees and turned them white and dark green. Some of them landed on the ears of the arctic fox girl, which stuck out from the holes in her hood. Etinnei stood near a wooden bridge over a shallow canyon, at the bottom of which a river flowed that was not yet completely frozen. Ice floes were slowly carried away by the current and sometimes washed up on the narrow banks near the stone walls of the canyon. Etinnei looked at the opposite end of the bridge, covered in ice. Behind it, a forest with frozen, pointed conifers that resembled statues was visible. Etinnei took a step towards the bridge. The foot that didn''t feel the cold emerged from under the snow, and then stepped on it again, but didn''t go in completely, because it bumped into something. Unfortunately, Etinnei''s low sensitivity didn''t allow her to understand what she had stepped on. Therefore, the Arctic fox girl took a step with her other foot... Etinnei saw a gray sky in front of her. Snowflakes fell on the arctic fox girl''s face, but didn''t melt. "Why is there a sky there?" Etinnei thought. "Did I fall?" The arctic fox girl raised her head. Snowflakes fell from her face onto her white-blue jacket. Etinnei saw a small drift of snow in front of her, moving. "There''s something there," an icicle appeared from the arctic fox girl''s sleeve. "I need to get out of here before it comes out." Etinnei rose to her feet, but did not have time to escape. The snowdrift grew higher, and then exploded. The snow ¡°attacked¡± the animal girl, but was stopped by a shield in the form of a white and blue snowflake, which covered her. Etinnei looked out from behind the shield and noticed a purple mushroom cap with black horns, which were covered with blue-green lines. "Is that a mushroom?" the Arctic fox girl became curious. "Is it edible?" "Don''t eat it," Etinnei heard a familiar voice. ¡°You better eat my ice cream.¡± The Arctic fox girl turned around and saw her brainmate in the air. "Don''t bother me, Minniges," Etinnei said. "I can decide for myself what to do." ¡°Ice cream tastes better than a mushroom,¡± the penguin replied. ¡°It¡¯s made of ice, so it¡¯s better for you than a mushroom that the earth gave birth to. Ice is a part of you. The earth is not your element.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve had ice cream before. It¡¯s delicious, even though it¡¯s not real. But now I want to try a mushroom. I¡¯ve never had one.¡± ¡°Ice cream fits into your mouth better than a mushroom. It¡¯s even shaped for that, but the mushroom¡¯s cap gets in the way. It won¡¯t fit in your mouth; it¡¯s so big and has horns.¡± ¡°I can bite off a piece of it and break off the horns. I don¡¯t have to eat it all.¡± ¡°But you don¡¯t even know if it¡¯s edible. What if it¡¯s poisonous? Look at its color. It¡¯s purple. That¡¯s the color of poison.¡± Etinnei looked up and saw a grey-purple sky, from which snowflakes were still falling. "No. This is the color of an overcast sky. Like the one above us now. It is the color of air and pure energy." Minniges did not answer. Etinnei opened her mouth, swallowed one of the snowflakes, licked her lips, and then looked towards the penguin, but he was no longer there. "Is something bothering you?" a voice was heard from the side. Etinnei turned to the source of the voice. Where there was a snowdrift, Sanachan stood in almost human form. "I don''t know what to do," Etinnei admitted. "Minniges tells me one thing, and I want another. My head is all mixed up." "If only she knew what it was like to have a ''messed up head,''" Sanachan thought. "She only has a character in her head, while I have all the thoughts that exist in the world. They torture my brain every day, especially at night. I can''t sleep. But others sleep instead of me." ¡°Choose what you want,¡± Sanachan answered. ¡°The character in your brain is not you. It is another creature.¡± ¡°Minniges makes me doubt,¡± Etinnei looked at the snow. ¡°It looks like you¡¯re not ready to get rid of it. I will not force you. But if you feel bad, fall asleep and I will come to you.¡± ... Etinnei woke up and saw Noru''s face in front of her close-up. The dog girl looked at her friend and licked her lips periodically. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°I¡¯m protecting you from your dinosaur friend,¡± Noru answered. ¡°I¡¯m still trying to wake you up. You''ve been sleeping for two days.¡± Etinnei tried to get to her feet, but since she was not fully awake, she could only sit up. Around there were walls made of logs, with round windows built into them, and several wooden chairs. ¡°Two days?¡± Etinnei became worried. ¡°Why so long?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Noru began to wrap a strand of hair around her finger. ¡°Maybe the mushroom spirit came to you in a dream and made you sleep for so long. That happens to me.¡± Etinnei remembered a dream she had recently had. "Did you have any scary dreams?" Noru leaned towards her friend. "Like an empty fridge or one filled with mushrooms instead of food?" "No, nothing special," Etinnei replied. "I just talked to the mushroom spirit. Where is Tuot?" Noru leaned back and then turned away. A small smile appeared on her face. Chapter 38. Stones and Metal Halankuo sat on the bed in her apartment, looking at a virtual screen with an open map of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. ¡°Kyotyoryon is near the coast of the Southern Continent,¡± the girl thought. ¡°What is she doing there?¡± Halankuo felt anxious. For the first time since the character''s escape, the creator wanted to meet her. "If something bad happens to her, it will be my fault," Halankuo thought. "After all, I created her." "Go to her if you''re so worried," a voice was heard in the girl''s head. "Just don''t get too close, so she doesn''t notice you." "But Itinit asked me to wait for him. I already agreed to fly with him. I want to fly on a metal bird so much, but Kyotyoryon worries me more." "You need to think. You can''t make decisions like this just because you''re worried about another being. Maybe this feeling will pass quickly." "This feeling passes, but sometimes it comes back to me. And each time it''s stronger." Halankuo closed the "Mausoleum of Nature" and headed to the kitchen. There she saw a window with cracked glass and remembered how Kyotyoryon had jumped into it. The girl went into the corridor, sat down on the floor near the entrance, and then opened the map of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature.¡± ¡°Kyotyoryon is too far away,¡± Halankuo suddenly realized. ¡°I could use the train, but even that would be too far. Kyotyoryon left by train on an abandoned railway. I can¡¯t do that.¡± "Well... You could sit in a train car and control the locomotive with a wrench. But that''s not a good option either. I''ll run out of energy before I get anywhere. And I''m unlikely to find another abandoned train. Kyotyoryon was just lucky." "Then fly there." "I can''t ask Itinit for that. He uses the aircraft for important purposes." *** The metal locomotive detached from the wooden carriage and disappeared under the water. Kyotyoryon managed to jump out of the hatch and landed on the carriage, which was floating on the surface. ¡°My metal cannot float,¡± Kyotyoryon guessed. "But this thing underneath me can." Luckily for the character, the waves carried the carriage to the shore. Kyotyoryon immediately ran to the tree ferns that grew near the sandy beach and formed a dense forest with vines and bushes. ¡°There are so many pillars and ropes here,¡± the spirit of metal noted. "I used to want to cut them if I saw them, but now I don''t want to. There are too many. I can''t handle it." Kyotyoryon looked at the sea. There, by the shore, lay a wooden carriage turned on its side and washed by the waves. The energy bridge that had recently passed over the water was gone. "I feel little metal," Kyotyoryon thought. "The train fell into the water, so I don''t feel it. Why?" The spirit of metal remembered Ayika''s words about the connection with the elements. "I can only feel the metal that is in the air or touches it," Kyotyoryon guessed. "My ability doesn''t work underwater." Kyotyoryon walked along the shore, but found no entrance to the forest. There were simply no paved paths, trails, or anything to move around. A dense fern forest with vines and bushes stretched almost to the horizon, where the mountain peaks were visible. Only a narrow strip of the shore was free of thickets and suitable for movement. Kyotyoryon reached the mouth of a small river, and was forced to stop. Water turned out to be an insurmountable obstacle for the spirit of metal. "There are no roads," Kyotyoryon thought. "I can''t even feel the rails. There is less metal here than in my fingernail. I can''t even call a train to leave here." Then Kyotyoryon remembered that she could fly in her almost human form. She looked at the bracelet on one arm and waved it. A long blade extended from a hole in it, then opened up and turned into a metal wing. "It worked," Kyotyoryon''s eyes widened in surprise. ¡°Will I really be able to fly again?¡± The spirit of metal waved her second hand. A second wing extended from the bracelet. The character''s body lifted off the ground and began to rise slowly. ¡°I saw how birds flap their wings to fly,¡± Kyotyoryon thought. ¡°Maybe I can do it too?¡± On one side, there was a view of the endless sea, on the other of equally endless forests that rose up the mountain slopes on the horizon and went somewhere far away, to where the view ended. Only the river broke this monotony. It ran like a thin ribbon through the endless forest massif and got lost in it. "It''s good that the creator and her stupid dinosaur are not here. No one will stop me from destroying the river." The spirit of metal flew over the river. The thin ribbon of water became even thinner, and the banks higher. The first mountain range appeared, more like hills than mountains. The river flowed from there, and soon left the canyon. Kyotyoryon began to descend, and flapped her wings to fly further. This helped only for a few moments, after which a forced landing on the edge of a cliff followed. "These wings are evil," Kyotyoryon looked at the bracelets that the wings folded into. "They are from the creator. She specifically gave me this ability so that I could not fly normally in this form." Kyotyoryon looked down. A narrow, turbulent river with many rapids was squeezed by high cliffs on which young tree ferns and bushes grew. "The water flows from top to bottom," Kyotyoryon noted mentally. "If I go higher, I will find the place where it flows from. There I will cut down a large tree, and it will block the water." Kyotyoryon went upstream along the edge of the cliff and saw a waterfall on the river ahead and high cliffs along the edges of the canyon. "I won''t get through there," the spirit of metal noted. "I can go around this thing, but then I won''t know where the water is flowing from. I must see where it is flowing from." The character''s body was engulfed in a bright white glow. Soon Kyotyoryon was already hovering above the ground in battle form. Behind the waterfall, the river turned into a small lake, into which several springs in the form of small waterfalls flowed from different sides. The reservoir was surrounded by the upper parts of the mountains, covered with forests of tree ferns, but without vines. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Kyotyoryon noticed a dinosaur skull with two horns on the forehead and one above the beak above one of the mountains. The character was immediately interested in it. The spirit of metal reached the mountain, after which it took its previous form. The skull was the size of Kyotyoryon herself in battle form. It was filled with blue energy, which made its eyes and mouth glow. In this form, it slowly moved from right to left and up and down at the same time. Kyotyoryon looked at this thing and could not tear her eyes away from it. The character''s limbs stopped moving for a few moments. The spirit of metal froze with her arms spread wide and her leg bent at the knee. But the paralysis was interrupted after a helmet with bull horns appeared from under the ground in front of the skull. Kyotyoryon sensed danger, instinctively jumped back a step and released short blades from the bracelets on her hands. The helmet with horns belonged to Kyotyoryon''s recent acquaintance. She had fully emerged onto the surface and looked at the spirit of metal with her red glowing eyes. ¡°I thought you drowned,¡± Ayika admitted. ¡°I¡¯m glad I didn¡¯t kill you.¡± ¡°The train didn''t fall by itself?¡± Kyotyoryon was surprised. ¡°Yes. I threw the train off so you wouldn''t follow me. Changing the properties of objects is a good ability, but it can only be used once a day. I didn''t want you to come here. But you came.¡± ¡°Am I not allowed to come here?¡± ¡°Yes. This skull is specially located on the Southern Continent because no civilized beings live here. No one will find it here.¡± ¡°I just wanted to know what that thing was hanging over the mountain. It looks like a head that has had its clothes taken off.¡± ¡°This is one of the servers of the "Mausoleum of Nature". It contains data about characters and their creators.¡± Kyotyoryon''s eyes widened in surprise, and then she took a step back. The blades were hidden in bracelets. ¡°I...¡± the spirit of metal said. ¡°Was I there?¡± ¡°Yes and no,¡± Ayika answered. ¡°You were inside the program, and its data was located on the server.¡± Kyotyoryon remembered the darkness that surrounded her inside the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. Then the spirit of metal found her in a hopeless situation, and only a miracle saved her every time. A short metal spear appeared near Kyotyoryon. "I want to destroy this thing so that I won''t be sent there again!" the spirit of metal felt something begin to move inside her. The spear flew towards the skull, but met an obstacle on the way in the form of a gray stone column summoned from underground, and fell to the ground. But Kyotyoryon was not going to give up. The spear tried to rise, but was blocked by stone spikes that suddenly appeared from the ground. Kyotyoryon realized that her attack had failed and tried to free the weapon with her mind, but to no avail. The spikes dragged the spear underground. "The server is forbidden to attack," Ayika warned. "It contains the data of all characters, including yours. If you destroy one of the servers, the Mausoleum of Nature will work worse and your creator will not be able to help you when needed." Kyotyoryon remembered how Halankuo had placed her in that terrible place, and then said that she wanted to fix her so much. The spirit of metal felt something growing inside her and trying to break out. ¡°I don¡¯t need help from the creator,¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°I need to destroy this head with horns.¡± The spirit of metal waved her arms. Wings emerged from her bracelets, lifting her to the height of a medium tree. "Did she guess that it was harder for me to get her from the ground?" Ayika thought. "Or is it just a coincidence?" Several metal needles appeared in front of Kyotyoryon and flew to the server. Ayika touched the ground with her hand. The previously summoned column rose higher and covered the skull. The needles hit the column, fell to the ground, and it absorbed them like a spear. Kyotyoryon noticed this and frowned. "It''s too big," the spirit of metal thought. "I need to hit this horned thing from above with something heavy." Kyotyoryon imagined a large hammer above the skull. The next moment, a large blacksmith''s hammer appeared in that place, made entirely of gray metal, hanging blade down. Ayika noticed the appearance of a new weapon and covered herself in a black elemental aura to better repel the attack. But the hammer did not attack. It moved slowly above the skull, as if choosing where to strike. "It seems she can create metal objects out of thin air," Ayika noted. "But that requires a lot of metal. Where does she get it from?" The hammer stopped and then began to fall. Ayika touched the ground with her hand and summoned four columns from there. A moment before the hammer would have reached the skull; a stone roof appeared above the columns and covered it. The hammer was thrown upward, after which it fell again and struck the roof. A piece of stone broke off the roof surface, and the hammer fell to the ground and disappeared into it. Kyotyoryon felt that her wings could no longer support her. The spirit of metal had to take on a combat form in order not to fall to the ground, where the fate of her own weapon awaited her. A gray metal crossbow the size of the character herself appeared in front of Kyotyoryon. Ayika carefully watched the enemy and tried to understand where the metal weapon was coming from. And soon the answer was found. From the lower part of the spirit of metal, which was hidden by armor, a long metal arrow the size of a spear flew out. It flew to the crossbow and loaded it. The preparation for the attack did not end there. Gray particles appeared around Kyotyoryon, which then dissolved into the air. The next moment, a multitude of metal needles appeared in a large radius above the skull. ¡°She throws out metal particles from her body,¡± Ayika guessed. ¡°They combine with the particles in the air and transform into weapons. Usually it is unnoticeable, but now there are a lot of metal objects.¡± The needles flew at the skull from all sides at once. Ayika summoned additional columns that completely blocked access to the server, and then walked through them and hid inside the resulting shelter. The needles hit the stone walls and fell to the ground. "She''s bothering me," Ayika thought. "I''ll have to finish her off. And she was the only creature in many years with whom I managed to have a normal conversation." It was the turn of the huge metal crossbow. The thick wire that acted as a bowstring tightened and then pushed forward a long, sharpened crowbar an ¡°arrow¡±. A loud whistle was heard. The ¡°arrow¡± sank into the ground near one of the columns. ¡°It didn¡¯t even hit the columns,¡± Ayika thought. ¡°Something¡¯s wrong here.¡± The giant metal crossbow disappeared. Kyotyoryon sank to the ground and took on her original form. "She spent too much energy creating the weapon," Ayika looked through the gap between the columns. "Now I can attack her." A crack ran through the column that stood in front of the "arrow." The next moment, it crumbled and opened up space for an attack on the server. "Did she throw this spear into the ground on purpose?" Ayika realized the enemy''s plan too late. "Did she really think of that?" Kyotyoryon could barely stand on her feet, but she watched the enemy''s actions. She saw the column crumble and realized that the right moment for an attack had arrived. The spirit of metal raised her hand and aimed it at the skull. A sharp crowbar burst out of the ground and flew towards the target. Ayika immediately understood where this "arrow" was flying. ¡°I can¡¯t let her harm the server,¡± the thought flashed through the head of the character with bull horns. ¡°So I shouldn¡¯t run away like I usually do.¡± ... A sharp crowbar froze in the air above Ayika''s head, near one of the horns. Kyotyoryon looked at her opponent and did not understand anything. "Why?" the spirit of metal thought. "I did everything right." ¡°If it weren¡¯t for my horns, you would have ended up in the server,¡± Ayika admitted. ¡°It¡¯s good that you don¡¯t know what a magnet is.¡± ¡°What is a magnet?¡± Kyotyoryon fell to her knees. ¡°It¡¯s a thing that attracts ordinary metal. My horns are made of a special magnetic metal. If you knew that, you could shoot an arrow at me and I wouldn''t have time to defend myself.¡± ¡°I want to destroy that head without clothes. I don''t want to be there again.¡± ¡°Even if you destroy this server, there will still be a few left.¡± But you won''t be able to find them.¡± A short blade extended from the bracelet on Kyotyoryon''s arm, but after a moment it went back. ¡°I¡¯m out of charge,¡± the spirit of metal guessed. Kyotyoryon tried to get to her feet, but instead fell on her back. "I must find my metal," Kyotyoryon decided. "It will be able to charge me. But there is almost none here. I only feel the horns of this horned one." Kyotyoryon turned her head and saw Ayika in front of her, who was kneeling on one knee and holding her hand on the surface of the earth. The spirit of metal realized that the enemy was using some kind of skill and imagined a short metal blade in the air. A moment later, it materialized, but then just as suddenly disappeared. Kyotyoryon felt the ground beneath her begin to move. Stone walls rose above the character, and then began to move towards each other. The spirit of metal realized that she was about to be crushed¡­ ¡­ Kyotyoryon let out a scream that echoed throughout the surrounding area. The stone walls pinned her arms to her body and slowly moved on¡­. ¡­ On another continent, in Yenekit, Halankuo heard a loud squeak that made her wake up. She knew what the sound was, but she didn''t think she would ever hear it. The girl opened the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. The background on which the model of Kyotyoryon stood was flickering with a red glow, and the screen was vibrating. Chapter 39. Prey from a Dream Halankuo looked anxiously at the screen with the character in the "Mausoleum of Nature ". "It''s because of me," the girl thought. "I have to go to her. But I won''t have time..." Fortunately, the background in the character window stopped flickering. The screen vibration stopped. The model of Kyotyoryon now stood on a normal black background. For a few moments, Halankuo could not understand what had happened. Then the anxiety left her, and the girl opened the map. The red dot was on the coast of the Southern Continent, near a peninsula that jutted far out into the sea. "She''s gone too far," Halankuo noted. "There''s no civilization on the Southern Continent. There may be many terrible creatures there that haven''t been studied yet. One of them could have attacked Kyotyoryon. I need to fly there. Otherwise, Kyotyoryon may not exist because of me." "Are you sure?" a voice rang out in the girl''s head. "It''s too far." "Yeah. I''ll ask a friend to help me fly there. Kyotyoryon needs to be saved urgently." Halankuo opened the inventory, took out clothes and shoes, and then went to the door, but it did not open. "I did not close the inventory," Halankuo guessed and turned around. Two cells were "hanging" in the air: one with black boots, the other with gray shorts. Behind them was a large inventory window. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing the system doesn¡¯t allow you to leave the house with your inventory open,¡± Halankuo sighed. ¡°Otherwise, I would leave the house in just a T-shirt again.¡± *** Kyotyoryon woke up on the seashore and saw a large crab with a red shell and claws crawling next to her. "It''s covered in armor," the most ordinary thoughts immediately appeared in the metal spirit''s head. "It''s hard to cut." Kyotyoryon tried to move her hand, but she couldn''t. Her body wouldn''t obey her. The spirit of metal looked around and realized that she was too close to the surface of the earth, so close that her chin was touching the sand. This saved the crab from the foolish creature. Only Kyotyoryon''s head was sticking out of the sand, so she couldn''t stab anyone. "Where am I?" Kyotyoryon looked towards the forest. ¡°There are too many of these sticks to get through here. That means I''m where I was. I need to go back to the head without clothes and cut it. The main thing is that there is no horned one there. It will get in my way." Kyotyoryon transformed into a battle form and with one upward movement broke out of the sand. "You can''t go there," a familiar voice was heard. A doll emerged from the water with a weapon-head in one hand and a shovel in the other. Kyotyoryon recognized it immediately, returned to its original form, and landed on the sand with its feet. ¡°You were almost crushed,¡± the doll said. ¡°I sunk you underground and took you to another place. She won¡¯t haunt you here.¡± ¡°You¡¯re that doll with the head...¡± Kyotyoryon said. ¡°You¡¯re evil, but not very.¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m Sitihi,¡± the doll answered. ¡°It¡¯s good that you haven¡¯t forgotten me. I have not forgotten you either.¡± ¡°Why did you come here? Did you follow me?¡± ¡°I followed your train back on the Northern Continent. It seemed to me that my sister''s body was on the other side of the sea.¡± ¡°You said something like that... Now I will remember...¡± Kyotyoryon grabbed her horns with her hands, but after several dozen moments she let them go. ¡°I remembered,¡± the spirit of metal answered. ¡°I wanted to go with you. But now I can''t. I need to destroy the horned head without clothes. There is a place there where there is nothing. They can send me there. But I don''t want to go there.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t go there,¡± Sitihi said. ¡°They almost crushed you there.¡± ¡°Then I discharged. Now I am charged and can cut anything.¡± Sitihi stuck the shovel into the sand. Kyotyoryon jumped up to avoid falling into the knee-deep sand, waved her arms and activated the wings from her bracelets. ¡°You don¡¯t know where to go,¡± the doll said. ¡°I found it last time, so I¡¯ll find it this time,¡± Kyotyoryon answered. ¡°I know what¡¯s in front of this place.¡± The spirit of metal turned toward the forest and mountains that were visible on the horizon. "If you go there, I''ll cut off your head," Sitihi pulled the shovel out of the sand and raised it. "I''ll cut off with this sword." "I can''t walk without a head," Kyotyoryon thought. "I''ll have to not go there." *** Unana opened her eyes and realized that she was lying on a log near the paving stones, worn out in some places and overgrown with herbaceous plants and moss. Around her grew a normal forest of coniferous and deciduous trees, but something was wrong. The archer looked around and noticed the wooden ruins of a house across the path, hidden by bushes and a tree with double leaves. "This is an abandoned village," Unana guessed. "What am I doing here? I''ve never fallen asleep in a place like this before." The girl stepped one foot onto the moss that grew near the log. It was wet and cool. Unana immediately remembered how she had gone looking for Kimchan and almost spent the night in the forest. "I came here to find Kimchan, but I didn''t find her," the archer remembered. "Instead, I met a man who introduced himself as my uncle and said that my dad had asked him to look after me and Yueret. What nonsense. How could I have such a dream?¡± *** Itinit and Kimchan sat in a flying machine that was moving over low mountains covered with mixed forests. ¡°It¡¯s good that she didn¡¯t see you,¡± Itinit said. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to reveal myself too early.¡± ¡°M-i-i-i-i ght have been possible to take off her clothes,¡± Kimchan suggested. ¡°Then she will understand for sure that she fell asleep and did not meet anyone.¡± ¡°And where should I put it?¡± ¡°You can take it with you¡±. ¡°She will guess even more if she doesn¡¯t find in her inventory the very clothes she was wearing.¡± Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. ¡°The owner''s clothes don''t fit in her inventory. Every day she dresses in something new.¡± ¡°I hope she doesn¡¯t suspect anything anyway. Let her think it was a dream.¡± The roofs of buildings appeared behind the mountains. From the air, Yenekit did not look like a city, but like a castle without walls, which someone had placed on the flat top of a mountain. Itinit pressed several buttons on the blue translucent control panel. The "metal bird" stopped above a clearing on the flat top of the mountain opposite the city and began to land. ¡°Why did we come here, creator?¡± Kimchan asked. ¡°Is this a cunning plan?¡± ¡°Yes, too cunning,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°A friend of mine, a dinosaur, wants a dog girl. I will give you to him so that he can cook dinner.¡± A dog groan was heard from the back seat. Itinit turned around. Kimchan was crying and shaking with fear. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, it¡¯s a joke,¡± Itinit stroked the character on the top of his head. ¡°Actually, I promised to take someone to our island.¡± ¡°It''s not a dinosaur?¡± ¡°No. The dinosaur is already on the island.¡± Kimchan''s eyes widened in fear. Instead of words, a bark mixed with a groan came out of the character¡¯s mouth. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, he won¡¯t eat your older sister,¡± Itinit laughed. Kimchan stopped barking and touched her chin to the back of the chair in which her creator was sitting, but soon regretted it. The aircraft landed in a clearing, and the dog-girl''s head was almost carried away to the ceiling. The door opened. Kimchan fell out of the cabin. Itinit managed to grab her by the hair so that the unlucky character did not hit his head on the hard rocky surface of the mountain peak, although covered in moss here and there. ¡°Let go-o-o-o!¡± the dog girl howled. ¡°I didn''t do anything...¡± Itinit put the character on his feet, like a toy, and landed next to him. "She should be here," Itinit said. "Do you feel anything?" Kimchan stretched her head out, sniffed the air, and then wiggled her ears. "Someone is coming here," the dog girl said. "This creature has an air element. ¡°So far it seems correct,¡± Itinit confirmed. ¡°But this creature is somehow different. It''s as if it''s not one, but it seems to be one.¡± Kimchan pressed herself against Itinit. ¡°Creator, will you protect me?¡± the dog girl looked at the guy with a sad look. ¡°Actually, a dog should protect its owner,¡± Itinit objected. ¡°You are my creator, not my master. My owners are Yueret and Unana. You said so yourself.¡± ¡°It was a cover for your mission.¡± Kimchan looked down and whined. Moments later, tears fell onto her breast. Itinit had to hug the dog girl and stroke her head, then take a sausage out of his inventory and give it to her. It worked: Kimchan grabbed the prey with her teeth and carried it behind the flying machine. Itinit looked carefully at the edges of the clearing, but no one came out of the forest. The guy tried to hear at least something, but he only heard the loud chomping of his own character. Itinit opened the virtual screen to write to his friend, but did not have time to enter the messenger. Kimchan finished the sausage and returned to the creator. ¡°There,¡± the dog girl pointed with her hand to a tree with double leaves on the outskirts of the forest. Itinit looked at the place. After a few moments, the leaves on the lower branch of the tree began to move. A girl with long black hair appeared from the forest, and Itinit recognized Halankuo in her. ¡°She¡¯s alone,¡± Kimchan noted. ¡°Did you imagine something scary?¡± Itinit smiled. Kimchan didn¡¯t answer. Instead, she hid behind the creator¡¯s back, and then disappeared in the form of a puppy behind the flying machine. Halankuo noticed her friend and approached him. ¡°Sorry I¡¯m late,¡± Halankuo looked at the moss beneath her feet. ¡°I don¡¯t know this place very well.¡± ¡°Nothing,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°I recently arrived. Now I can take you to the island.¡± ¡°I want to tell you something.¡± Halankuo turned her back to Itinit. It was obvious that this conversation was not easy for her. ¡°I recently saw a red background on the model of Kyotyoryon,¡± the girl admitted. ¡°Then it disappeared.¡± ¡°The red background appears when the character is no longer quite alive,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°It''s okay. You can create a new character.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want another character. I''ve been thinking about Kyotyoryon a lot lately. If something happens to her, it will be my fault. Because of my actions, she left me.¡± "I shouldn''t have given Halankuo advice," Itinit thought. "Now I''m involved in this too." ¡°Is she still alive?¡± Itinit asked. ¡°Yea,¡± Halankuo turned to her friend, but still looked down. ¡°It¡¯s on the northern coast of the Southern Continent. It¡¯s very far from here.¡± Itinit looked at the ¡°metal bird,¡± behind which a dog¡¯s tail was visible. "I can''t fly to the Southern Continent now," Itinit thought. "I need to hand over Taikuron and the Myuryuri dolls urgently. Flying so far with Taikuron could be dangerous. Theoretically, he can''t get out of the "Mausoleum of Nature" since he''s on the server, but if some kind of error occurs, he could free itself." White clouds moved slowly across the bright blue sky. They gave Itinit an idea. "What if I send Taikuron and the dolls through the net, and fly to the Southern Continent myself?" the creator of the dog girls thought. "Of course, that''s unreliable. If Taikuron gets out again, we won''t be able to catch it. That time was too lucky. What should I do?" *** The wooden gazebo transported Tuot to the top of the mountain. From there, a view opened up of the gray-blue sea, and behind him was a crater with a lake in the middle. ¡°I don¡¯t see anything,¡± Tuot looked around. ¡°Where is she?¡± ¡°You won¡¯t find her that easily,¡± a voice came from the gazebo. A mammoth head with horns flew up to Tuot, surrounded by a blue energy barrier that looked like a bubble. "Sometimes you can catch anything from the sea," Myuryuri said. "If you dreamed about it, it might be here." Tuot took a few steps toward the sea and saw a steep slope that ended abruptly in sheer cliffs. Behind them, right at the water''s edge, stretched a strip of black sand beach. "I''ll fall here," Tuot said. "Use your aura," Myuryuri advised. "I''ll fall on slopes like these even with my aura. Can''t a flying house go lower?¡± "You can''t fly there." "Why?" "You''ll find out for yourself. Good luck.¡± Myuryuri went to the gazebo, after which the gazebo flew along the purple energy rope, which had not yet disappeared. "Even Itinit did not throw me like that," Tuot thought. "It''s good that I at least know how to use a fishing rod." Tuot walked along the ridge of the mountain to find a suitable place to descend. But on the steep rocky slopes of the volcano, only coniferous trees and bushes grew, which here and there formed a forest. The dinosaur noticed a large, spreading tree with thick branches and a trunk. It was a conifer, but, unlike most trees, it seemed strong. An idea appeared in Tuot''s head. A green energy aura surrounded the dinosaur. A few moments later, an energy harpoon emerged from the tail of the aura, which wrapped around one of the tree''s branches, after which it transferred Tuot to a stone in the middle part of the slope. Ahead of him was a forest that covered the lower part of the slope. There were no thick trees here, and it was impossible to use a harpoon. "In the dream, I was already standing on the shore," Tuot realized that he had gone down to the wrong place. "But how did I end up there?" The harpoon let go of the tree branch and returned to its owner. An idea came into the dinosaur''s head again, even stranger than the previous one. Tuot pushed off the rock he was standing on with the harpoon and flew up over the forest. He soon began to fall, but still managed to fly over the lower part of the slope and land right on the edge of the cliff. From here, there was a view of the shore with black sand, washed by low waves. "Now all that''s left is to jump onto the shore," Tuot looked down. "But there''s nothing to grab onto." Soon, a descent was found. It turned out to be a ditch, along which a stream flowed from the forest. It broke through the rock, came out onto the sand and flowed into the sea. Tuot, without an aura, went down into the ditch, which resembled a miniature model of a canyon, and walked along the stream. Soon, the dinosaur was already standing on the black sand and looking at the waves that were noisily rolling onto the shore. "This sand is black because of the lava that once flowed into the sea," Tuot thought. "I read about it online in a dream. It''s somehow strange to see it in reality." The dinosaur summoned his inventory, pulled out a wooden stick with a hook on the end and a rubber human head covered in black hair. "How do you put this bait on?" Tuot thought. "There are no holes. Oh well." The dinosaur put the head''s mouth on the hook and then threw the end of the fishing rod into the water. ¡°I wonder which lizard will be caught this time, the purple one or the red one.¡± Tuot reasoned mentally. It looked very strange from the outside. The dinosaur, with its mouth open, was shaking its head from side to side and holding a fishing rod in its hands. Luckily for Tuot, it didn''t take long to wait. The fishing rod became heavy and then pulled the dinosaur into the water. "This lizard is too big," Tuot suspected something was wrong. "Maybe it''s not a lizard at all?" The energy harpoon sank into the sand and managed to keep its owner from falling into the water. The fishing rod bent and then straightened sharply... ... A small oval stone coffin with spikes on top was thrown out of the water onto the shore. The end of the fishing rod was hidden in an oblong protrusion at the front of the coffin. Tuot tried to pull out the fishing rod, but it did not move. Then the dinosaur went to the front of the coffin and noticed a connector carved into the stone with a hook sticking out of it. "It even has a mouth," Tuot noted. "I hope it doesn''t have eyes." But the dinosaur''s expectations were not met. Above the "mouth," two round holes appeared which began to emit a blue glow. Tuot dropped the fishing rod, jumped back and was covered in a green aura. The dinosaur''s limbs were shaking with fear, and he couldn''t even summon a weapon. Luckily for him, the coffin didn''t attack. Instead, a blue virtual screen appeared above him with an image of a lizard with blue-green scales and several buttons: in the shape of the animal''s head, paws, body and tail. At that moment, the dinosaur realized that he had found what he was looking for. Fear left him, and his limbs gradually stopped shaking... Last night, Tuot had a dream in which he went fishing and used Etinnei¡¯s head as bait... Chapter 40. Only One Creature After waking up, Tuot immediately rushed to look for his friend with fluffy ears. The dinosaur ran along the corridor of gray-brown logs and somehow miraculously found the right room. Etinnei was sleeping with her head, and Noru was sitting next to her, looking angrily at Tuot. ¡°What have you forgotten here, chicken?¡± "My head..." Tuot answered the first thing that came to mind. "I''m not a chicken." "I''d look at you without a head.¡± Tuot imagined a feathered dinosaur with a long tail and no head walking on the ground, and he felt scared. But the sight of the sharp dog ears that adorned Noru''s head made the fear recede. "Why are you looking at me like that?" the dog girl frowned. "Do you want to try?" "No," Tuot replied. "I came to check that Etinnei was okay.¡± ¡°She¡¯s just sleeping. Why are you so worried about her?¡± ¡°I had a dream in which I attached Etinnei¡¯s head to a hook and caught a lizard.¡± ¡°You need to talk to the spirit of the mushrooms. Lizards don''t live in the sea.¡± ¡°I know. This is no ordinary lizard.¡± A small purple semicircular shield appeared on Tuot''s elbow. The dinosaur touched the black symbol on it with his claw. Soon, a lizard with yellow scales appeared in front of Tuot. Noru noticed the summoned creature and immediately found herself in front of him. The lizard looked at one point and did not react in any way. "What is this?" Noru asked. "Is it alive?" ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Tuot answered. "It doesn''t say anything. It just emits an aura that removes negative effects." Tuot touched the symbol on the shield again. A yellow energy aura surrounded the lizard. Soon, a wave of yellow energy spread out from it in all directions. ¡°This aura is yellow,¡± Noru noted. ¡°It is associated with the element of earth.¡± ¡°Itinit said something about this,¡± Tuot recalled. ¡°But I don¡¯t remember.¡± Noru put her hand on the lizard''s head to pet it. The creature¡¯s eyes filled with a yellow glow, and another wave was released from the aura. ¡°It reacts,¡± Noru said. ¡°Can¡¯t she do anything else?¡± ¡°The skill description says that it can only activate the aura and release waves of yellow energy,¡± Tuot explained. ¡°It''s something between a creature and a skill.¡± ¡°Cool!¡± Noru''s eyes "lit up" with joy. ¡°You¡¯re lucky that you have this skill.¡± ¡°But I had no luck with other skills. I can only use skills related to pure energy, but it runs out quickly.¡± ¡°No wonder. Your tail is too long. It takes a lot of energy. Do you want to give up your aura?¡± ¡°No. Without an aura, I''m too clumsy. But I can''t use an aura for long. Last night, I dreamed that I caught a lizard that restores energy. If I had one...¡± ¡°Huh, go and catch it! If you dreamed it, it must be true. I often learn important things from dreams. For example, what kind of food I''ll be yum-yum today.¡± ... Tuot stood in front of the lizard-shaped stone coffin and couldn''t believe how lucky he was. "Is this really the same lizard?" the dinosaur thought. ¡°But suddenly I open the coffin, and there¡¯s nothing there. I doubt I''ll get a lizard again. Last time was an exception." Tuot raised his finger to the lizard-head button, but did not press it because of a sudden attack of anxiety. "What if there is something scary in there. It is better not to open the coffin. Maybe it is better to leave here?" Tuot did not press the button. The anxiety lowered, but did not completely leave the dinosaur. "Maybe it''s empty? Nothing will happen. I''ll just press one button." Tuot put his finger to the lizard-head button again, but he couldn''t press it. The anxiety had reached such a level that it made the dinosaur change his mind. Tuot turned to run, but noticed the head of a horned mammoth in a bubble above the rocks, and stopped. "There''s something there," the dinosaur pointed at the coffin. ¡°That¡¯s what I need, a blue-green lizard that is connected to the element of water and can restore energy,¡± Myuryuri answered. ¡°Thank you. I have been looking for it for a long time. Now I will explore it.¡± Only now did Tuot realize that he was wrong. ¡°The coffin isn¡¯t empty,¡± the dinosaur thought. "What I was looking for lies there." Tuot turned around and reached for the button he wanted to press, but he couldn''t this time either. A blue energy wall appeared between him and the screen. The dinosaur was thrown back a few steps. ¡°This lizard is too imbalanced for you,¡± Myuryuri said. "It needs to be explored." Tuot looked toward the coffin. A blue translucent energy barrier in the shape of a sphere covered it from above. "There''s a barrier here," Tuot said. ¡°It''s disturbing me.¡± "That''s to keep you from opening the coffin and activating the lizard," Myuryuri said. Tuot began to understand something. "That..." the dinosaur looked at Myuryuri. ¡°Did you do it?" ¡°Yes,¡± the creature in the bubble answered. ¡°You don¡¯t need that lizard. With it, you can have energy without running out.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I want.¡± ¡°It''s unbalancing. I can''t allow that.¡± Tuot looked at the coffin inside the barrier and realized he had to act. The harpoon from the tail of the aura struck the barrier. The barrier began to shimmer, but did not disappear. The harpoon struck again. The barrier became almost transparent, and the third strike finished it off. Tuot took a step towards the coffin to press the button on the virtual screen above it, but he was too late. The screen was cut by a blue energy beam, after which it shimmered and then disappeared. Tuot turned around and saw an energy "bubble" in the air, inside of which was a ball of the same color with a bright blue clot in the middle. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. "This is an energy eye in a bubble," Tuot thought. "This is the ability of that creature." A blue energy beam shot out of the "pupil" of the "eye". Tuot instinctively summoned a shield on his elbow. This saved the dinosaur from being cut - the beam hit the shield, after which its energy was redirected back into the "eye". Energy began to accumulate inside the bubble that surrounded the "pupil". A few moments later, the "eye" burst and released a cloud of blue energy that dissipated into the air. "This shield can attract attacks," Myuryuri noted. "Where did you get this?" Tuot looked at the shield and thought about it. This weapon had been with him for so long that the dinosaur did not remember where it came from. ¡°It was in the inventory,¡± Tuot answered. "Why are you stopping me from getting the lizard? You helped me get here." ¡°I didn¡¯t know where this lizard was,¡± Myuryuri explained. "I wanted you to lead me to it, just as your dream led you here. If it weren''t for that dream, you wouldn''t have known that the coffin with the lizard was somewhere here." Suddenly, Tuot realized that he had been tricked. The holes on the coffin''s "head" stopped emitting a blue glow. Now they were just black bulbs. Only the fishing rod continued to stick out of the "mouth". Tuot tried to pull out the fishing rod. This movement again activated the coffin''s "eyes", and then the virtual screen above it. Myuryuri noticed this and decided to interfere. One energy "eye" appeared on the right and left of him, in which energy began to accumulate... ... Two energy beams flew at the screen, but the dinosaur had already pressed the button in the shape of a lizard''s head. The screen disappeared. The beams flew over Tuot''s head and disappeared into the sea. The lid of the coffin moved aside. Tuot looked into the vessel and saw a lizard with blue-green scales, which was lying on its stomach with its eyes closed. The beams above the dinosaur''s head disappeared. The energy "eyes" discharged and began to accumulate energy again. "How do I activate it?" Tuot glanced at the creature and its coffin. "This skill isn''t mine yet. That creature in the bubble might get in my way." In his haste, Tuot didn''t notice how he ran his finger over the creature''s body. A screen with two windows appeared above the coffin. One of them showed an image of a lizard with blue-green scales standing on its hind legs; the other was a text field with black symbols. ¡°Why are there such requirements here?¡± Tuot was mentally indignant. "I need to lose all my energy. I will¡­ die." Meanwhile, the energy in the "eyes" near Myuryuri accumulated and came out in the form of beams. Tuot did not notice the approaching danger, as he was busy, but his shield automatically aimed at the beam and reflected it back into the "eye". The second beam flew past the dinosaur''s other wing and cut off several feathers. Only then did Tuot turn away from the screen and look at his opponent. Myuryuri was still "hanging" in the air above the cliff and did not even try to move towards the coffin. "It is not approaching the shore," Tuot noted. "It said something about not being able to fly there." A third energy "eye" appeared above Myuryuri, several times larger than the previous ones and purple in color. The "bubble" that surrounded it was equal in size to Myuryuri''s own barrier. Tuot remembered the words of the mammoth head about what the color of the aura meant. "This eye is connected to the element of air," the dinosaur guessed. ¡°It¡¯s scary to imagine what he¡¯ll use to attack.¡± The purple "eye" filled with energy, which hid the "pupil". The "bubble" grew in size, and then burst. A cloud of energy formed in the air for a moment, from which something round and purple flew out. Tuot jumped back, but the projectile reached him and stopped. The dinosaur saw in front of him a purple energy eye the size of his head, which was surrounded by a circular flow of wind. "Why isn''t it moving?" Tuot thought, but then looked at his hand. The small shield on the dinosaur''s elbow blocked the wind flow and did not allow the "eye" to pass further. Tuot realized that he was lucky and felt relieved. But this feeling was deceptive. The "eye" became brighter, and the wind flow around it was stronger. First, it pushed Tuot back a few steps, and then threw him far back. The dinosaur''s body flew over the mouth of the river and almost fell, but then a purple "eye" appeared in front of him. Tuot instinctively covered his breast with his hands, and this saved him. The "eye" hit the shield again and was stuck in place for a few moments. Tuot raised his hand with the shield. The "Eye" flew up, then fell and exploded over the dinosaur''s back. Tuot was thrown forward by the blast wave. At that time, beams from small blue "eyes" shot at him, but they missed. Tuot saw Myuryuri in front of him and released the harpoon. It managed to hit the enemy, but stopped in front of the bubble and went back into the aura. Tuot began to fall and almost landed, but suddenly something threw him into the air. At first the dinosaur did not understand anything, but then he looked down and saw a purple energy "eye" with a vortex around it. ¡°So that''s what you can do,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°So-so. I almost fell asleep. It''s not interesting to play with you.¡± "Was he playing with me?" Tuot was scared. ¡°I barely managed to dodge his attacks.¡± The purple "eye" that had a vortex exploded. Tuot fell to the sand, but landed on his feet due to the active aura. ¡°I was hoping to fight you seriously,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°But I don¡¯t think you can defeat me. There was only one being on this island who could break through my barrier. That was my creator. But I can¡¯t meet her again. I¡¯d like to ask her how she did it.¡± Tuot felt his strength leaving him. He no longer consciously perceived Myuryuri''s last words. The aura around the dinosaur disappeared, and then he fell to his knees and closed his eyes... ... It was sunset. Tuot stood on the seashore. This was the very place where he had found the coffin with the blue-green lizard. The same cliffs, behind which steep slopes with coniferous forests and sparse woodlands were visible. The same black sand on the shore. But there was one difference: the day was already ending. The setting sun was shining brightly in his eyes, causing the dinosaur to cover itself with a wing. "Where is the lizard?" Tuot thought fearfully. "I need to take it before that creature in the bubble takes it." The dinosaur looked around, but there was no lizard or coffin. "I''m too late," Tuot realized. "He took the lizard." The dinosaur ran to the rocks to climb them, but quickly realized that he had little strength left. "It''s useless," Tuot thought. "Even if I catch up with him, I won''t be able to get the lizard back. It is much stronger than me. I never thought such creatures existed. Even against a man with a carrot nose it wasn''t so hard to fight. Of course, I wouldn''t have beaten him in a fair fight, but I could hold out for a while. And against this creature, it''s impossible to fight at all." "Why do you think so?" a voice was heard. Tuot noticed a purple mushroom cap with black horns in the sand near him and realized who it was. ¡°Is that you, the spirit of mushrooms?¡± the dinosaur asked. The mushroom cap lifted and Tuot saw the lower part of a face that looked like a human''s. Now he was sure that it was Sanachan in front of him. "Myuryuri is an unusual creature," the mushroom girl said. "But even he has weaknesses." "Can you tell me about it?" Tuot asked. "It''s pointless. Information is only useful to those who can use it. You can''t yet. You lack the knowledge and experience." "Halankuo called me stupid too," Tuot thought. "Maybe that''s true?" "You''re not stupid," Sanachan looked at the sea. "You just can''t understand what people understand. But it works the other way too. What dinosaurs can understand, people can''t understand. "So I can get the lizard back? It was taken by...¡± ¡°Myuryuri. I know. I can read your mind. Unfortunately, you can''t yet. This opponent is not for you. Find someone easier.¡± ¡°But he took my lizard, which I saw in a dream.¡± ¡°Don''t worry about it. Summoned creatures choose who they will contact. If you dreamed of a lizard, it means that it chose you and Myuryuri will not be able to use it.¡± Tuot felt joy, opened his mouth and gulped in air... ... The dinosaur opened his eyes and saw in front of him the head of a girl with red-brown eyes and black hair, among which small rounded ears stood out. ¡°Etinnei, your head...¡± Tuot immediately recognized his friend, or rather, her head. ¡°What''s wrong with it?¡± Etinnei touched her arctic fox ears with her hands. Only now did Tuot notice that the fox girl''s head was attached to her neck, which was attached to her body. Below the neck was a gray-purple fur top, in which something large was hidden. "It''s in place," Tuot noted. "I didn''t see your neck, and I thought that your head was hanging separately." "I can''t do that," Etinnei touched her cheeks with her palms. "But that creature in the bubble is flying.¡± ¡°Where is it?¡± ¡°I don''t know. Noru and I found you on the shore. You didn''t wake up. I was afraid that you went there in your sleep, but then Noru said that it was impossible. Because of this spirit of mushrooms, everything is confused in my head.¡± ¡°Have you seen her?¡± ¡°Yup. Noru said that on this island she often comes in dreams.¡± Tuot raised his head and noticed that he was in a room with gray-brown log walls and a round window. Etinnei was on all fours, looking down at his friend. "What do you have hidden in front of you?" Tuot pointed his hand at the animal girl¡¯s breast. Etinnei crawled a few steps away, sat on her knees, and then ran her finger through the air. An interface window appeared in front of the character. ¡°I¡¯ve wanted to ask you for a long time,¡± Etinnei sighed. ¡°But I forgot. They¡¯re soft, but warm. I don¡¯t know what they¡¯re for.¡± The arctic fox girl entered her inventory, and then clicked on the icon in the form of a gray fur jacket. A window with cells opened over the main window, in which there were clothing items: a white and blue jacket, shorts of the same color, and two empty cells. Etinnei touched the middle of her top with the finger of her other hand and dragged it into the cell, after which it disappeared and left the arctic fox girl¡¯s chest in its original form. ¡°It¡¯s a lot, but it¡¯s inedible,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°I was hoping that she put a piece of meat there, and there is what the other animal girls have.¡± The dinosaur turned away, but it was too late. The door opened behind Etinnei, and a fireball flew out. "Don''t eat her, chicken!" a dog barking was heard outside the door. Chapter 41. Empty World The "metal bird" flew over mountains and plains, rivers and lakes. Almost all the space free of water was occupied by forests. At first these were mixed forests typical of the Yenekit area, but then they were replaced by forests of deciduous trees with small groups of tree ferns. Gradually, the tree ferns became more and more numerous, and finally they almost completely occupied all the space on land. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Halankuo,¡± Itinit looked at his friend in the back seat. ¡°We¡¯ve already flown halfway. Now we''re over the southern part of the Northern Continent and soon there will be a sea.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid that Taikuron will run away,¡± Halankuo looked down. ¡°Don''t be afraid. If he escapes, I''ll get a notification.¡± The mountains became lower, and now looked more like hills. The rivers that flowed between them, on the contrary, widened. Halankuo opened the "Mausoleum of Nature" to see the location of the character. The red dot was on the northern coast of the Southern Continent, near a narrow peninsula that jutted out into the sea. "She''s still there," Halankuo calmed down a little. "We should make it in time." A huge blue space appeared ahead, almost merging with the sky. The mountains gave way to a shore with yellow sand. ¡°We¡¯ll stop here,¡± Itinit said. ¡°But¡­¡± Halankuo objected. ¡°The "metal bird" is running out of energy. It needs to save it up. The best place to do this is on a sandy beach.¡± The anxiety inside Halankuo grew. The girl was looking at the red dot on the map, and did not even glance out the window, which offered a view of the coast and mountains in the background. The girl did not feel something cold touch her cheek. But Itinit noticed, heard a barely noticeable dog groan and turned around. On the top of the chair sat a brown puppy, similar to a baby bear, touching the girl''s cheek with its nose. Itinit turned back to the virtual control panel, which was located below the panoramic window, and smiled. "It will be funny if Halankuo doesn''t find her," Itinit thought. "It was not for nothing that I sent Kimchan to watch those two." The "metal bird" hung over the shore and began to descend. Kimchan felt that she would soon fall and hid behind the chair. At that moment, Halankuo finally began to perceive something other than the dot on the map. "How long does this "bird" take to charge?" the girl asked. ¡°It varies,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°It depends on the sun. If it''s a sunny day, then very quickly, but now there are clouds in the sky, so it will take longer. But by the end of the day we should be on another continent.¡± The "metal bird" landed on the sand and spread its wing-doors. Itinit was the first to get out of the flying machine and looked at the back seat. Halankuo got up from her chair and carefully stepped onto the sand. The area around her seemed unusual to the girl, a little frightening, but interesting. Instead of the usual coniferous and deciduous trees, tree ferns with large leaves that fanned out at the top grew on the sand. The tallest of them barely reached half the height of the northern trees, but they seemed no less strange for that. ¡°Is this a tree fern?¡± Halankuo pointed at the forest that bordered the shore. ¡°Yes,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°They grow here because of the warm climate. You¡¯ve noticed that it¡¯s gotten warmer, haven¡¯t you?¡± At that moment, Halankuo felt hot in her boots and stockings, familiar things that she often forgot about. Soon, these items of clothing were already in the virtual inventory. ¡°Now I recognize you,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°Do I forget to put something on that often?¡± Halankuo looked at the sand. ¡°I only saw you in full kit a few times in the summer.¡± Halankuo turned away and blushed, imagining that people could pay attention to her without her noticing it. Kimchan took advantage of this, leaving the flying machine and disappearing into the forest. "She''s up to something," Itinit noted. Halankuo tried to think about something else and remembered her character. The girl again opened the map of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. The red dot was slowly moving from the coast inland along the river. "She''s going somewhere," Halankuo noted. ¡°We may not make it in time.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°The screen didn¡¯t turn red, which means everything is fine.¡± ¡°Well... I don''t want the screen to turn red again.¡± ¡°We will find your character, maybe even alive. That is, not alive, but existing, she is not a living being. But what will you do then?¡± Halankuo closed the "Mausoleum of Nature", sat down on the sand, and then looked at the water. The noisy sea waves did not surprise the girl, although she saw the sea for the first time. Halankuo looked at the endless body of water as if it were a familiar view from the window, because now she was not interested in anything except her own character. ¡°I thought about this,¡± Halankuo admitted. ¡°And I decided to tell Kyotyoryon the truth. I don¡¯t know if she will understand me. I just want her to know why she came into this world and why she is the way she is.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you want to return her?¡± Halankuo didn¡¯t answer. She looked at the waves that rolled one after another onto the sand, but she wasn¡¯t thinking about the sea: ¡°After what I did, I can¡¯t want Kyotyoryon back.¡± Itinit didn''t ask anything else. He figured out why Halankuo was silent, because he had also created a character once. ¡°With the creatures from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± everything is very complicated,¡± Itinit said. ¡°This world is not suitable for them. They cannot live here normally. But they don''t want to go back either. It seems to me that another world should be created for them.¡± ¡°How,¡± Halankuo looked at her friend. ¡°I don''t know. I don''t even know if it''s possible. But the "Mausoleum of Nature" somehow appeared. So, creating a new world is also possible.¡± Halankuo pulled her legs up to her body then hugged her knees with her hands. ¡°The world that exists in the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± is too empty,¡± the girl said. ¡°There''s nothing there. It''s good to create a character in it, but it''s unbearable for the character to exist there.¡± Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°That¡¯s why Kyotyoryon left you.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Halankuo lowered her head, and her elbows, knees and hair hid her face. Itinit understood that his friend was in a bad way now, but he could not help. The problem seemed insoluble. "I hope the sun will appear from behind the clouds and charge the "metal bird" faster," Itinit thought, looking at the flying machine. "Right now, this thing is the only thing that can somehow help Halankuo." The round light on the "head" of the "metal bird" was flickering with a violet glow. "The eye is already glowing, but not very much," Itinit thought. "But we just got here, and the sun hasn''t shown up for long yet." Itinit looked at the sky. The sun was moving out from behind a cloud, and would soon appear completely from behind it, but a chain of other clouds was moving towards it. ¡°If this continues, the ¡°metal bird¡± will not have time to charge before the end of the day,¡± Itinit thought. "It''s simply not designed for long flights without charging. And there''s nowhere to charge it here. There''s no civilization here at all, just its remnants." Itinit remembered Kimchan, who had fled into the forest. He went behind the back of the flying machine so that Halankuo would not see him, entered the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± and opened the map. "What is that dog doing there?" Itinit frowned. "Looks like I''ll have to save her. I hope nothing happens to the ''metal bird''." Itinit peered out from behind the flying machine. Halankuo was still sitting in the same position and did not see what was happening around her. Itinit made sure that his friend did not see him, quickly walked into the forest and disappeared there. At that moment, the light on the ¡°bird''s'' head¡± stopped flickering and now constantly emitted a bright blue glow. The forest was dense. Under the tree ferns grew ordinary ferns, half the height of a man. Itinit summoned an oblong black object from his inventory, which was then covered in a blue energy aura. "I never thought I''d need this thing again," Itinit smiled. "It''s just a lever from some old robot, the very first models. But now it''s a sword." Energy was released from the lever''s aura and took the form of a blade. With this tool, moving through the forest became easier. Soon, Itinit came to a sandy bank of a river with shallows, which looked more like a stream after a heavy rain, and noticed four small stone pillars: two on each bank. "There used to be a bridge here," Itinit guessed. "Here are signs of civilization, albeit a former one." Crossing the river turned out to be quite simple. Itinit ran his hand through the water, as a result of which a blue energy platform connected the banks, replacing the missing bridge. On the other bank, the same fern forest continued, but the terrain began to rise. Itinit opened the map of the "Nature''s Mausoleum" again and looked at the red dot on it. ¡°She¡¯s on a mountain not far from here,¡± Itinit noted. "It looks like there''s something interesting there." Making his way up the slope turned out to be a little easier. Itinit noticed a path of gray stones, with severed fern shoots and bushes lying on either side. "Someone was here recently. The leaves haven''t even dried up. But it''s unlikely that Kimchan did it. This dog doesn''t cut, it burns." The path led Itinit to the flat top of the mountain, where walls and foundations of buildings were visible among the tree ferns. "Kimchan must be here somewhere," Itinit thought. "If the ruins weren''t so overgrown, I would have found her already." Itinit swung his "sword" and cut the trunk of a tree fern in front of him. A half-destroyed wall appeared, behind which a cracking sound could be heard. Itinit ran his finger through the air and made a synchronized movement with the ¡°sword¡±. A few moments later, a round blue energy platform appeared at his feet. The crackling stopped. Despite this, Itinit stood on the platform, and it raised him above the level of the wall. The source of the crackling sound was a dog-girl in almost human form, who was stuck in the bushes and trying to get out. ¡°There you are,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°Why did you run so far?¡± ¡°There,¡± Kimchan pointed to the next wall. ¡°There¡¯s something there. I can feel the energy. I tried to get there, but I got stuck.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you destroy these bushes with fire?¡± ¡°I tried. They don''t burn.¡± Itinit freed the character from the tree "tentacles" with one movement of the "sword". Kimchan took the form of a puppy and ran to the place behind which "there is something". A few moments later, a thin dog bark was heard from behind the wall. Itinit went to the source of the sound, cut several fern trunks along the way and entered the empty doorway. Kimchan stood in front of a bush with oval dark green leaves and barked. Itinit realized that there was something behind it. After another blow from the "sword", the bush fell apart into separate trunks. In front of Itinit and Kimchan stood a small metal coffin with a carved horn on the lid. "It looks like a vessel from the "Mausoleum of Nature", Itinit guessed. Kimchan responded with an affirmative bark. "Maybe I should open it?" Itinit looked at the puppy. "Au," Kimchan agreed. Itinit ran his finger over the lid of the coffin, which brought up a small blue virtual screen with two buttons: in the form of a horn turned upwards and a horn turned downwards. ¡°Open and close,¡± the guy guessed. "This is a vessel for some object. Looks like I didn''t study at school for nothing." Itinit touched his finger to the button with the image of a horn pointing upwards. A field for entering a password appeared in front of the screen, and under it a small translucent keyboard with symbols. ¡°Do you know the password?¡± Itinit looked at the pet. Kimchan ran her paw through the air to "draw" a symbol. ¡°For some reason, you¡¯re smarter in this form,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°I hope the answer is correct.¡± Itinit clicked on the symbol that Kimchan depicted. The password entry field disappeared, after which the screen dissolved into thin air. The coffin lid moved to the side. Inside lay a straight, gray metal horn. ¡°It¡¯s an antenna,¡± Itinit guessed. ¡°It¡¯s better to take it and give it to Sanachan.¡± Kimchan didn¡¯t answer. Instead, she looked toward the neighboring mountain, and then at her creator. ¡°Is there someone there?¡± Itinit understood. ¡°We need to get out of here.¡± ¡°Au,¡± Kimchan answered shortly. Itinit transferred the coffin to his inventory, and then walked back the same way. On the seashore, Halankuo''s anxious thoughts let go. The girl finally noticed the waves and sand, although she had been looking at them for a long time. "So this is what the sea looks like," Halankuo thought. "I''ve only seen it in games and videos before. I wonder if the water there is actually salty." The girl approached the water and was immediately "attacked" by a wave that rolled onto her legs. "The water is warm," Halankuo noted. "It feels like it was heated up. Near Yenekit, even the rivers are much colder." The girl opened her inventory, took out a glass and filled it with water. "Don''t drink water from the sea," a voice sounded in Halankuo''s head. "There are all sorts of animals there..." "I''ll just try it. I want to know if the water is salty or not." The girl brought the glass to her mouth and touched the water with the tip of her tongue... ... Halankuo saw a lot of stars in front of her. For a moment, the girl realized that she would soon die, but suddenly woke up on the sand: "I''m alive. I wish I had listened to my mother." Halankuo rose to her feet, then took a bottle of green liquid from her inventory and took a few sips. ¡°The juice from the conifer needles saved me,¡± Halankuo sighed. "Now I will always listen to you, mom." The voice did not answer. Halankuo looked down and saw a glass on the sand, which the waves had washed up on the shore. "I have to pick it up so that no one would know what I was doing," the girl was frightened. Halankuo crouched down to pick up the glass, but did not have time. A wave rolled onto the sand and "took" the "prey" with it. Halankuo had to take a few steps through the water to get the glass back. The girl calmed down a bit, but then she saw a brown puppy on the shore, similar to a bear cub, and screamed in surprise. The animal disappeared into the forest with a loud bark. Halankuo went out onto the shore, after which she put the glass back into her inventory. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that such furry dogs lived here,¡± the girl thought. ¡°I should ask Itinit about this. Where is he?¡± Halankuo didn''t have to wait long. A man came out of the forest, very similar to her friend, and the puppy was running next to him. ¡°You...¡± Halankuo could barely say anything. ¡°Yeah,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°I didn¡¯t tell you. This is Kimchan, my pet.¡± ¡°Do you keep it in your inventory?¡± Halankuo suggested. ¡°How did you guess?¡± Itinit called up the inventory window. ¡°Pets are kept at home. But you don''t have a home. You live in a cafe that your parents left you.¡± ¡°Well, Kimchan is something like Tuot.¡± "This animal is strange," Halankuo looked at the puppy. "I don''t know any dogs that look like this. Of course, they look different when they''re babies, but definitely not like this." "Is this your character?" Halankuo looked at Itinit. "She just revealed Kimchan?" Itinit thought in shock. "Unana and her older brother didn''t know about it for over a year, even though Kimchan wasn''t growing." Kimchan was also shocked. She looked at the creator, then at the girl and did not understand anything. "Okay, I don''t have to hide this from Halankuo," Itinit decided mentally. "Yes, Kimchan is my character," Itinit confirmed. "How did you guess?" ¡°Actually, I had a character myself,¡± Halankuo explained. ¡°I can tell just by appearance that this is a creature from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature.¡± ¡°Yes, you can¡¯t be fooled.¡± The conversation was interrupted by the barking of a puppy. Kimchan looked at the forest and tilted her head to the right and then to the left. ¡°It looks like someone is coming here,¡± Itinit noted. ¡°Kimchan sensed someone¡¯s energy.¡± A cracking sound was heard in the forest. The fern trees that grew on the edge of the shore began to move, and then fell onto the sand. Chapter 42. Snow Shield Itinit grabbed Halankuo by the hand and pulled him towards the "metal bird". The flying machine was already surrounded by a purple energy aura, which meant that it was ready to take off. A dinosaur in gray plate armor jumped out of the forest, surrounded by a green energy aura. In one of its hands, it held a short curved sword, which it had previously used to cut vegetation. The dinosaur stopped and noticed the flying machine, which was almost off the ground. An energy harpoon emerged from the tail part of the aura. The "metal bird" took off. The harpoon almost reached it, but it couldn''t catch on because of the fiery comet that "accidentally" flew past. The dinosaur jumped back to the edge of the forest. The comet landed on the sand and took the form of a dog girl in a fiery aura. A clot of wind appeared in the dinosaur''s free hand, but it didn''t have time to attack. Kimchan rushed at the enemy and flew around him several times. The contact between the wind clot and the fire aura caused an explosion. Kimchan, in the form of a comet, rose into the sky and took her previous form there. The fire and smoke soon dissipated. At the site of the explosion stood a dinosaur, surrounded by a purple aura and a whirlwind. Kimchan noticed that her opponent was unharmed, turned into a comet and flew at him. The dinosaur jumped towards the sea. The comet landed a step away from him and exploded¡­ The ¡°metal bird¡± flew towards the Southern Continent. The coast quickly moved away, and the mountains remained somewhere on the horizon, ahead stretched only the endless gray-blue sea. "Kimchan will hold him back," Itinit said. "Aren''t you scared?" ¡°I¡­was scared a little,¡± Halankuo answered. "But you''d better think about your character.¡± "Nothing will happen to Kimchan. She''ll come back when she''s done.¡± Suddenly, the "metal bird" slowed down and then stopped. Itinit looked at the screen that showed the image from behind and saw a doll in a purple aura near the tail. "There are two of them," Itinit guessed. Halankuo looked at the screen with the doll and recognized it as Ikte, whom she had met earlier in Yueret''s house. ¡°This doll can move objects with her gaze,¡± Halankuo warned. ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why we don¡¯t fly any further,¡± Itinit said. ¡°That means we¡¯ll have to hide the ¡®metal bird¡¯ from her.¡± Itinit pressed the button with the image of a round shield on the control panel. A purple translucent energy barrier appeared around the "metal bird". Then purple energy began to accumulate inside it, which gradually hid the flying machine. It worked. Ikte stopped seeing the object in front of her, and the "metal bird" broke forward. "It won''t catch up with us?" Halankuo asked. ¡°She doesn¡¯t have enough energy,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°No creature in the aura can fly across the Intercontinental Sea.¡± ¡°What does she want?¡± ¡°I don''t know. Maybe she confused us with someone else.¡± ¡°You''re lying.¡± ¡°Yeah. How did you guess?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not Tuot.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not possible to deceive her,¡± Itinit realized. ¡°Maybe I should tell her about the antenna?¡± Luckily for Itinit, Halankuo noticed a burning comet moving parallel to the "metal bird" in the window and forgot about the doll. "Here''s Kimchan," Itinit said. ¡°I need to let her in here somehow.¡± "The metal bird" stopped, but this time because one of the buttons was pressed. The wing-shaped door moved to the side, and a dog girl plopped into the back seat, smoke coming from her. ¡°It didn¡¯t even... didn¡¯t... didn¡¯t explode,¡± these were Kimchan¡¯s first words after reuniting with the creator. ¡°Who,¡± Itinit asked. ¡°Dinosaur...¡± the dog girl frowned. ¡°I set him on fire, but nothing happened to it. Then I flew at it and exploded myself, but missed.¡± "That''s not surprising," Itinit said. "It has an energy aura that is unaffected by elemental skills." "I couldn''t..." Kimchan lowered her head. "Don''t worry," Itinit said. "You''ll meet your sister soon." Kimchan raised her head, looked at her creator, and let out a weak dog-like groan. ¡°But first I need to take this girl to the Southern Mainland,¡± Itinit pointed his hand at Halankuo. Kimchan finally noticed Halankuo, who was sitting next to her in the back seat. The dog girl buried her nose in her hair and began to sniff it. ¡°A lot of current passes through her hair,¡± Kimchan determined. ¡°She has the element of air.¡± ¡°Well done, Kimchan,¡± Itinit praised. ¡°It¡¯s not for nothing that I made you a dog and not a cow.¡± ¡°There¡¯s also someone else in her,¡± Kimchan said. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of energy inside there.¡± "She found out about her mother," Halankuo was frightened. ¡°What should I do?¡± The voice inside the girl did not answer. ¡°Mom doesn¡¯t want to be noticed,¡± Halankuo thought. "I shouldn''t think about it either. What if this creature can read minds, like Taikuron?" But Kimchan just laid her head on the back of the creator''s chair and moaned quietly with her eyes closed. This dog girl didn''t seem like a dangerous creature to Halankuo, like a penguin without legs, but with antennas on its head. *** Noru was on all fours in front of the burning building, howling like a wolf. Etinnei was peering out from behind a huge snowflake the size of herself. Tuot was even further away, covering his face with his wing. "What''s going on?" the dinosaur asked. "She''s happy that her house burned down," Etinnei explained. "I offered to put it out, but she refused." "Why? It''s her house.¡± ¡°I don''t know. I can''t go there. It''s too hot. Soon the snow shield will disappear and I''ll melt. Let''s get out of here.¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Tuot agreed. Not only was it hot for him, but it was also impossible to look at the bright flashes of light. Etinnei and Tuot walked out of the courtyard through the open wooden gate and found themselves on the shore of the lake. It was no longer boiling. It was now an ordinary body of water. Only the blue-green color of the water indicated that it was a crater lake. ¡°I never thought such places existed,¡± Etinnei admitted. ¡°These mountains look like mountains, but they are not really mountains.¡± ¡°Yes, these are the slopes of a crater,¡± Tuot said. ¡°But to understand this, you have to go up.¡± Etinnei looked at the steep slopes from left to right, where coniferous trees and bushes somehow held on, and then turned her gaze to the lake. The expression on the Arctic fox girl''s face became unusually serious. ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid that the one in the bubble will come back?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°I¡¯m a little afraid,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°But it already took the lizard. It''s unlikely that it will attack me again.¡± ¡°It¡¯s better to leave here. If this is happening, we can''t stay here.¡± ¡°How can we leave? We''re on an island.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll freeze the water and we¡¯ll walk across the ice to where the land doesn¡¯t end.¡± ¡°This is naive, even for me,¡± Tuot thought. Etinnei sat down and saw her reflection in the water. ¡°It seems to me that there is too much water there,¡± the Arctic fox girl said. "I can''t freeze it." ¡°It¡¯s good that she figured it out quickly,¡± Tuot noted. "But I''d better check," Etinnei changed her mind. "What if I can do it?" A white-blue icy aura appeared around the Arctic fox girl. Then Etinnei stepped onto the surface of the water. An icy crust formed under her foot. ¡°Look, Tuot!¡± Etinnei turned to face her friend. ¡°The water is frozen!¡± But Tuot noticed not the ice crust under the Arctic fox girl¡¯s foot, nor her ears and tail, but a head with green hair that emerged from the water. ¡°There is something there...¡± Tuot pointed his hand to the side. Etinnei looked around, but by that moment the head had disappeared under the water. ¡°There was something green there,¡± Tuot said. Etinnei stepped onto the surface of the water with her second foot. An ice crust appeared under it, which joined with the crust under the first foot and formed an ice floe. ¡°It worked,¡± Etinnei rejoiced. "Now I can reach the other shore." The Arctic fox girl went forward. The water froze from contact with the icy aura and formed a kind of "bridge". In the middle of the lake, Etinnei turned around and waved to her friend: ¡°Come here!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll fall,¡± Tuot answered. In fact, the dinosaur was afraid of the head that was peeking out from under the water, because stability on the ice was partly determined by the energetic aura. ¡°It could just be my imagination,¡± Tuot thought. ¡°But it¡¯s better to believe it. What if it wasn¡¯t just my imagination?¡± Etinnei felt sad that her friend didn''t want to go to her, but then the arctic fox girl saw an icy path that formed from the contact of the elemental aura with the water. The character''s mood instantly improved and the tears that came out of her eyes by inertia did not fall anywhere. Etinnei turned around and walked to the opposite bank. "You don''t need my ice cream anymore, refrigerator girl," Etinnei heard a voice in her head. ¡°It looks like you learned to cook it yourself.¡± The arctic fox girl looked around, but there was no one nearby. "Minniges, where are you?" Etinnei asked mentally. "Why don''t you show up?" There was no answer. The arctic fox girl began to worry. "Minniges left me?" Etinnei thought. The ice path gradually melted. First the very first ice near the shore disappeared, and then the neighboring one. Etinnei noticed this and released a blue and white freezing ball from her sleeve. The first part of the ice path was restored, but soon disappeared. "To make ice cream, you have to keep it cold all the time," Minniges'' voice was heard. "That''s why I live inside you. You are cold and electric, like an ice cream refrigerator." Etinnei turned her head to the side. This time she saw a penguin with an antenna on his forehead in the shape of an ice cream cone. "Minniges?" the Arctic fox girl was happy. "Are you with me?" "It''s a good thing you haven''t learned how to make ice cream, so I can live inside you," the penguin replied mentally, with his mouth closed. Etinnei smiled. For the first time, she was glad that this strange creature lived in her head, suddenly appearing and offering ice cream. "Don''t give me to the mushroom," Minniges asked. "I won''t," Etinnei promised. The penguin dissolved into thin air. All that remained of the icy path was an ice floe on which Etinnei stood. But the Arctic fox girl didn''t care. She walked forward, toward the shore. The animal girl didn''t notice how the head of a doll with green hair in a mask of the same color emerged from under the water. Her eyes were closed. When there were about ten steps left to the opposite shore, one of the doll''s eyes opened. It was completely green, without pupils. A stream of green liquid shot out of it at Etinnei. The arctic fox girl heard the cracking of ice behind her and turned around. Right in front of her, a snowflake had shattered ¨C a passive ability that had recently protected Etinnei from the heat of the burning house. The animal girl finally noticed a head with green hair in the water, with green liquid slowly flowing out of its eye. The other eye remained closed. Etinnei was scared and bowed her head so as not to see the scary creature. The ice floe under the character''s feet gave way to rocks on the shore. The arctic fox girl jumped back in fear and did not notice it. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, refrigerator girl,¡± Etinnei heard Minniges¡¯ voice. "She''s non-living." Etinnei noticed a translucent silhouette of a penguin near her, which soon dissolved into thin air. The doll''s head was no longer in the lake. An icicle emerged from the arctic fox girl''s sleeve and then became covered with lightning. "Maybe I imagined it?" Etinnei began to doubt. "But Minniges found out about it, so it wasn''t an illusion." Soon the arctic fox girl heard footsteps behind her and was finally convinced that it wasn''t an illusion. A headless body in a metal corset, skirt and boots was slowly moving towards the shore. Etinnei shot an icicle at it, but it was blocked by a small shield that suddenly appeared on the elbow. The body stretched out its arm. A doll''s head with green hair emerged from the water near the shore. Half of the face from which the eye was flowing was no longer there: its place was occupied by a black void. The other half with a closed eye and half a mask remained intact. The arctic fox girl turned away, but saw Minniges nearby, who was looking at his opponent: for the first time; the penguin did not pay attention to his mistress. "Minniges isn''t afraid," Etinnei thought. "And I shouldn''t be either. She''s not alive. Her body is artificial. She''s just a doll." While the Arctic fox girl was thinking, her enemy was covered in a pink energy aura. The head snapped back into place, after which half of the face was restored almost instantly. "Why are you protecting it?" the doll asked. "It''s someone, and I''m Aibi." "What?" Etinnei couldn''t understand. Aibi opened her eyes. This time they were the usual doll eyes: shiny, motionless, but large. ¡°Give me your brain,¡± the doll offered. ¡°There¡¯s an ice penguin in there.¡± ¡°How does she know about Minniges?¡± Etinnei was frightened. "Someone told me to bring your brain," Aibi continued. ¡°If you don¡¯t give me your brain, I¡¯ll shoot acid at you, and it¡¯ll kill you. The main thing is not to hit the head.¡± "I can''t give you my brain," Etinnei replied. "I''m alive, unlike you. I''m not a doll." "If you can''t, I''ll help you. Do you agree?" Silence fell. Aibi and Etinnei looked at each other and didn''t know what to say. Finally, the Arctic fox girl heard a voice in her head: ¡°Don''t give me to her. I don''t want to unite with it." "With whom?" Etinnei asked mentally. "I don''t understand what you mean." "My other half wants to unite with me. It sent this doll." "What other half? You were whole from the start." "From what start? Do you even remember what happened in the beginning, refrigerator girl?" Etinnei tried to remember when she first "met" Minniges, but she couldn''t. ¡°I don¡¯t remember exactly,¡± the Arctic fox girl admitted. ¡°It was a year ago, or two, or more. I don¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t remember because that part of your memories is stored on my memory card. I didn¡¯t show them because I didn¡¯t want to scare you. Then you won¡¯t eat my ice cream anymore, but you¡¯ll cry until you melt.¡± Tuot saw what was happening on the other side, but he couldn¡¯t get there to help his friend. So he decided to go around the lake, but soon came across a purple energy circle with a pattern inside that was ¡°hanging¡± in the air. The dinosaur immediately jumped back a few steps, activated its aura, and summoned a sword and shield. But the circle did not attack. Instead, it rose above the ground and released a wide beam of bright purple light. Tuot covered his face with the shield to avoid looking at the light, and then jumped to the side. A white silhouette appeared in front of the circle inside the beam. Tuot realized that he had to run, but at the last moment he became curious about who would emerge from the beam of light. The dinosaur lingered for a few moments. The beam became dim and then disappeared. The silhouette turned into a doll with purple hair and a mask of the same color that covered the lower half of its face. She immediately looked at Tuot with her large, motionless eyes, and then slowly walked towards him. "It''s a doll," the dinosaur guessed mentally. ¡°She has purple hair. Previously, I had only seen the doll next to that nosed one, but never so close.¡± A sword appeared in the doll''s hand, and on the elbow of its other arm, a small purple oval shield with a black symbol. "She has a shield, almost like mine," Tuot noted. "Where did she get it?" The doll stopped ten paces from the dinosaur and pointed her sword at him. "You are someone I don''t need," the doll said. ¡°But you¡¯re making it difficult to catch the right one. If you continue to do what is not necessary, then I will do what is necessary.¡± ¡°She¡¯s even worse than Halankuo¡¯s character,¡± Tuot thought. "But I like the way she talks." "Who are you?" the dinosaur asked. "Are you a doll?" ¡°I am Suturu,¡± the doll introduced herself. ¡°And this is my sword and shield. Get ready to take them, chicken.¡± ¡°I am not a chicken. I am Tuot. But my sword is not against receiving your sword, and my shield is your shield.¡± Suturu activated a purple aura. The energy circle from which she appeared began to spin and released purple darts. Chapter 43. The Girl no One Talked to The purple energy darts reached Tuot, but hit the shield on his elbow and were absorbed. "Your shield can eat energy too," Suturu noted. ¡°Just like mine.¡± Tuot looked at his shield. The symbol on it was now glowing green. The dinosaur''s aura became very bright and almost opaque for a moment. Then the symbol on the shield "went out" and became black again. ¡°Now it¡¯s clear why I feel a little better,¡± Tuot guessed mentally. ¡°If something energetic hits the shield, it absorbs it, and if it¡¯s something elemental or just an arrow, it reflects it.¡± "Hitting you with energy is not very good," Suturu continued. "I will hit you with lightning." "Why is this doll talking about its plans?" Tuot was surprised. "Although for me it is even better this way." The energy circle above the shore disappeared. And then Tuot realized how wrong he was. "She can hit me with elemental skills, but I can''t hit with energy skills because of her shield," the dinosaur was scared. "What should I do?" An electric aura surrounded the blade of Suturu''s sword. The doll stuck it into the ground, and then rose to the height of a medium-sized tree that grew on the shore of the lake. Weak lightning flew from the sword in different directions. Tuot''s harpoon attacked it, but then retreated, because a rain of electric darts fell on the dinosaur from above. Tuot dodged the attack, and then looked up. Suturu was standing in the air, shooting white-blue darts from an electrical circle with a lightning pattern inside. The dinosaur jumped to a tree on the shore and hid behind it. The next moment, several holes appeared in the trunk, through which the electric darts passed, and then disappeared into the water. Tuot touched the symbol on the shield with his claw. A white glowing silhouette appeared in front of the dinosaur, which soon became a lizard with yellow scales. "I hope at least this will work," Tuot thought. "I''ll hold out for a while, and then the dog girl will come and burn this doll. But I hope in vain. She doesn''t love me, so she won''t help." Tuot grabbed the lizard with the harpoon, and then quickly ran to a nearby tree. The next batch of electric darts flew past the dinosaur, but hit the lizard''s head and thereby activated its yellow aura. Tuot hid behind the tree again. This time there was no attack. "I''m not hitting," Suturu thought. "Someone is too far away." The doll approached the tree behind which the enemy was hiding, and then dropped to the ground. Tuot noticed the enemy approaching, flapped his wing, and released several energy feathers. Suturu was not prepared for the sudden attack, but her shield absorbed the feathers. The symbol on the shield began to glow like Tuot''s, but purple. The aura became opaque for a moment due to the excess energy, but the electric circle remained unchanged. "The absorption only affects energy skills," Tuot watched the enemy from behind a tree trunk. "Elemental skills are not strengthened, although the energy for them becomes greater." Suturu directed an electric circle at a tree, from behind the trunk of which a tail in a green aura was peeking out and waves of yellow energy were periodically emanating. Tuot noticed this and ran behind the trunk of a nearby tree, but did not have time to hide behind it... Most of the electric darts were deflected by the shield, but a few hit the dinosaur''s legs. Only a wave of yellow energy from the lizard removed the current and saved Tuot. The electric circle in front of Suturu disappeared and then appeared above the tree behind which Tuot hid. The dinosaur did not notice this and remained standing. The electric circle assumed a horizontal position and then shot lightning downwards. The tree was cut into two vertical halves, but remained standing. Suturu extended her hand to the side. The sword that was sticking out of the ground returned to the doll. It had already lost its electric aura and did not scatter lightning. "Lightning hit someone''s shield," Suturu guessed. ¡°But now someone won¡¯t be able to hide. The trees won''t be able to help him anymore." The doll was right. Tuot ran out from behind a split tree with a yellow lizard held by his energy harpoon and ran at the enemy. Suturu filled her blade with lightning and threw it forward. Tuot parried the doll''s sword with his shield and continued to run into the attack. Suturu caught her weapon, and then flew up sharply so that the enemy wouldn''t reach her. Tuot noticed this and hit the ground with his shield. The black symbol on it began to emit a purple glow, after which a purple circle appeared under the dinosaur¡­ ¡­ A powerful stream of air lifted Tuot up. The dinosaur''s aura changed color to purple. Suturu did not expect this, and was soon attacked by the enemy. Tuot touched the doll''s shield with his shield, and then pressed it. The opponents flew down¡­ ¡­ Suturu''s body fell to the ground and broke. The mask on her face cracked, and her head, without it, rolled toward the lake shore. Her arms and legs ended up under different trees, and her torso remained where he fell. Tuot stood in front of the remains of the torso and watched as the sword in the electric aura pierced the doll''s stomach. Electricity ran through the torso, causing it to twitch as if it had a head and limbs. Etinnei woke up in a wooden coffin floating down the river. Tree ferns grew along the banks, with single grassy plants with scaly leaves growing between them. The arctic fox girl looked at the water and suddenly noticed something dark in it. She stuck her hand in to check what it was, but she didn''t get anything. Something dark disappeared into the depths. There was a noise of water. Rapids began on the river, and the coffin got stuck in them. Etinnei scrambled onto the nearest rock, but then fell backwards. Fortunately, ice formed on the surface of the water, which softened the fall, and then carried the arctic fox girl to the shore along with the coffin. "That thing worked again," Etinnei thought. "The water always turns hard when I fall in." Suddenly the Arctic fox girl felt warm. She looked at her arm and found the sleeve of a white and blue fur jacket instead of a gray and purple top. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. "When that hard white thing appears, my clothes change," Etinnei noted. ¡°Why?" The ice on the river disappeared. The fur jacket was replaced by a top. "Now the clothes are back. Why?" The arctic fox girl wanted to find an answer, but she couldn''t. She climbed into the coffin, lay on her back, and then ran her finger in front of her. A blue translucent virtual screen appeared above the coffin. "What is this?" The arctic fox girl began to examine the screen. It had several rectangles in a blue frame with symbols inside. "They look like my thing in which I sleep and float on the water. What happens if I touch them?" Etinnei poked her finger at one of the buttons. Another screen opened in front of her, this time with buttons in the form of black silhouettes of a jacket, a sword with a shield, circles. But the character''s attention was drawn to two buttons: with a white and blue snowflake and a blue and white lightning bolt. "Which one should I press? If I press the snowflake, will it snow? And if I press the lightning bolt, will lightning strike? And if I press both, will it snow with lightning?" Etinnei simultaneously touched the button with the snowflake and the button with the lightning bolt with her index fingers of both hands. But neither snow nor lightning appeared from the sky. Instead, an inscription of incomprehensible black symbols appeared on the screen, and then disappeared. "Why didn''t the snow and lightning appear?" Etinnei felt sad. "I did press the buttons. But something strange appeared. If my creator were with me, I would ask her. But there is no one here. I can''t ask anyone." The arctic fox girl climbed out of the coffin, took a few steps, and found that the screen had moved with her. "Disappear!" Etinnei shouted. But the screen did not disappear. The arctic fox girl waved her hand and accidentally moved it from top to bottom. The screen finally disappeared. Etinnei was happy for a moment, but then tears came to her eyes: "The creator abandoned me. There is no one to talk to in this place." The arctic fox girl walked along the river bank and noticed a large lizard with grey scales resting on a rock. "There''s someone here!" Etinnei rejoiced. "I can talk to someone!" ¡°I¡¯m Etinnei,¡± the animal girl introduced herself. "I have ears and a tail. Unfortunately, you only have a tail..." The lizard turned its head towards the character, but did not answer. Then it looked at the water, after which it quickly disappeared into it. "Why isn''t she talking to me?" Tears came out of Etinnei''s eyes. ¡°I talked to her, but she did not answer and ran away." The arctic fox girl turned her head to the side, saw the forest through her tears and decided to go there. The forest was filled with the cries of birds, which gave Etinnei hope of meeting a talking creature. On one of the trees, the Arctic fox girl found a small bird with a long tail, but she couldn''t even talk to it. The animal flew up and disappeared into the dense thickets of ferns and vines. Etinnei fell to her knees and screamed. Tears streamed down her face and fell onto her clothes. After a few dozen moments, the animal girl felt weak and fell face down on the ground. "At least the ground here hasn''t become hard. I guess it''s only the water that''s hardening." The Arctic fox girl stopped crying, but only because she had run out of tears. Evening had come. Etinnei regained her strength, and she went to the coffin, which still stood among the stones on the riverbank. "This place was made especially for sleeping in. There are still many animals in the forest. Maybe someone will talk to me tomorrow." The Arctic fox girl lay down in the coffin, curled up and closed her eyes, after which the lid covered her. The coffin moved from its place, rounded the rapids and floated further down the river. The next day, Etinnei woke up from the noise of water and looked out of her coffin. Her gaze "rested" on a stone wall that hung over the bank and was hidden in dense vegetation. But the source of the noise was behind. Etinnei turned around and saw how masses of water fell down a high steep cliff, forming foam below. "Where does this water come from?" Etinnei wondered. The beginning of the waterfall was not visible from the steep bank to which the coffin was attached, but this interested the animal girl even more. Etinnei stepped out of the coffin and stepped on the water, but it did not freeze. The Arctic fox girl''s foot plunged into the clear, cool liquid. "The hard white thing did not appear," Etinnei noted. "Why? Appear!" The arctic fox girl took her leg out of the water and was about to cry, but suddenly remembered the snowflake and lightning on the interface screen. Etinnei swiped her finger in front of her. The virtual screen with buttons in the form of lightning and snowflakes appeared in front of her again. This time, the animal girl only pressed the snowflake, and it lit up blue-white. The buttons on the screen disappeared, and then were replaced by round gray slots. Two of them had icons: a circle with a snowflake inside and an icicle. But most of the slots remained gray: these skills were closed to the character. Etinnei pressed the circle with the snowflake. A moment later, a white-blue clot surrounded by icy vapors appeared in her other hand. ¡°Can this thing make water hard?¡± Etinnei looked at her new skill. The ice clot grew a little and took the shape of a ball. Now it no longer fit in the little hand of the arctic fox girl, and she decided to test her guess... ¡­ The ice ball flew into the waterfall and crashed into the powerful stream of water. Etinnei saw that nothing had happened and almost cried. But then a miracle happened. The lower part of the waterfall was covered with ice, which began to spread quickly upstream against the current. Etinnei looked at the almost frozen waterfall and could not believe what had happened to it. The pure white translucent ice was so beautiful that the arctic fox girl could not look anywhere else. Etinnei was truly happy for the first time. She was no longer worried about being abandoned by her creator and not being able to talk to anyone. But the happiness did not last long. The water could no longer flow down, so it accumulated at the top and after a few dozen moments, one powerful stream swept away the monumental creation of the arctic fox spirit. Ice fragments and splashes of water hit Etinnei''s face. The arctic fox girl again felt abandoned by her creator and no one was talking to her. She returned to the coffin and cried until the next morning... ¡­ For several months, the coffin with the character inside traveled along the river system of the Southern Continent until it reached the sea. There was no longer any dense vegetation, only low coniferous bushes and mosses. The air was cool and the sky was gray. The seashore was covered with black sand, and black-white birds were wandering along it. "Maybe they will talk to me?" the animal girl was still hoping for a miracle. Etinnei left the coffin and went to meet her future acquaintances. The birds quickly noticed the new creature, but hurried to hide in the sea. One of them, dark blue and white, remained on the shore. ¡°Who are you?¡± the Arctic fox girl asked. ¡°I am Etinnei. I have a tail and four ears, but no one wants to talk to me.¡± The bird did not answer. It froze, waiting for the strange creature to act. Etinnei approached her new acquaintance and extended her hand to touch it. In response, the bird pecked the finger that appeared from her sleeve, and then followed its relatives. That day, Etinnei was left alone on the shore of the cold sea. The cries of a strange creature with four ears and one tail were heard across the flat coastal plain covered with moss, and reached the rocky mountain peaks on the horizon. That night, Etinnei fell asleep for the first time not in a coffin, but on cold black sand... ¡­ The next day, the Arctic fox girl woke up from something hot. The sand beneath her had warmed up in the sun, but the air was still cold. Etinnei climbed out onto the cool, damp moss that grew near the shore and felt relieved. Then she happened to look out to sea and noticed a dark blue and white penguin without legs above the shore. The top of his head was decorated with two antennae with transparent balls at the ends, and a thick horn protruded from his forehead, like an ice cream cone. ¡°Better not talk to it,¡± Etinnei thought. ¡°It won¡¯t talk to me.¡± "Why do you think that, refrigerator girl?" a bird-like voice sounded in Etinnei''s head. ¡°I¡¯m not a refrigerator girl. I am the spirit of the arctic fox." "Can''t you use ice and lightning? Only refrigerators can do that." Suddenly, Etinnei realized something. Her eyes began to tremble, but no tears came out of them. "You''re talking to me?" the Arctic fox girl felt joy. ¡°I don¡¯t understand you,¡± a voice sounded inside Etinnei. "Speak to me with your thoughts. I live in your head, so I can''t hear what you say with your mouth." "But I see you." "You will see me even if you close your eyes." Etinnei closed her eyes. The seashore had disappeared, but the penguin remained. "Why did you appear?" Etinnei asked mentally. "You wanted someone to talk to you," the voice answered. "Now I will talk to you." Etinnei opened her eyes and smiled. She was truly happy for the first time since leaving her creator¡­ ¡­ Etinnei stood on the shore of a lake in a volcano crater. Her opponent, the acid doll, looked at her with large ¡°glass¡± eyes and waited for an answer. ¡°I won¡¯t show you anymore,¡± a voice in the head of the Arctic fox spirit said. ¡°My ice cream will melt.¡± "Why did I forget you?" Etinnei asked her brain companion. "You were the first being who spoke to me there." "There you met me whole, with three horns. But then someone took two of my horns, and you forgot me." Etinnei looked at the green-haired doll standing before her. Now the Arctic fox girl was ready to answer. But they were not words. It was an icicle covered in an electrical aura. Chapter 44. Collect the Penguin Aibi had not expected such an answer, so she was not ready for the attack. Despite this, the doll''s shield attracted the icicle and broke it. "I don''t need an icicle, I need an ice penguin," Aibi said. "You''re confused." "I''ll give you ice," Etinnei answered. "Collect the penguin yourself." The arctic fox girl attacked with a white and blue ice ball from her sleeve. The shield protected Aibi again, this time redirecting the ball into the lake. The water near the shore turned into a large ice floe. Etinnei noticed this and lifted it above the lake with a wave of her hand. Aibi finally realized that her opponent had decided to fight and closed her eyes. Etinnei pulled the ice floe towards her, and then jumped on it. The cold from the icy aura that surrounded the arctic fox girl preserved the ice, and it did not melt. Aibi opened her eyes. Now they were filled with acid. The ice floe under Etinnei''s feet began to move in different directions so that the doll could not aim. But Aibi could not help but shoot. The acid completely filled the eyeballs and could get on the face. Therefore, two streams of green liquid burst out of the doll''s eyes, but only hit the coastal rocks. The ice floe carried Etinnei up, and then to the side. From there, the arctic fox girl shot several icicles surrounded by lightning, but they were again pushed away by the shield. "Her shield attracts everything that flies at her," Etinnei thought, frightened. "I won''t hit it..." "You''re a refrigerator girl, not an ice cream machine," Minniges'' voice replied. "Do what you were made to do." Etinnei noticed that the shield on the doll''s elbow was only facing forward, and the back was unprotected. A plan appeared in the character''s head. Aibi shot two more streams of acid from her eyes, but again missed the target. Then the doll decided to take a desperate step. She bowed her head, and the green eyeballs fell out of their slots. An axe appeared in Aibi''s hand, which she immediately raised up. The eyes did not reach the ground, but flew straight at the enemy. A snowflake-shaped shield appeared in front of Etinnei. The first eye hit it and exploded, but dissolved the snowflake itself. The arctic fox girl found herself defenseless against the second green eye flying at her¡­ ... An acid explosion occurred in the air. The green liquid poured onto the shore in several streams and in the form of separate drops and corroded the stones a little. The axe in Aibi''s hand disappeared. A pink glow appeared around the doll, but then it was interrupted by a flash of white-blue energy from behind. It was Etinnei''s skill. The arctic fox girl stood behind the doll and gradually froze it with her hand with a white-blue clot of cold. ¡°Has anyone dissolved in the acid yet?¡± Aibi asked. ¡°No,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°If it hasn''t dissolved, I won''t get the ice penguin.¡± ¡°Don''t worry. You''ll still have a chance to collect it.¡± The ice took over Aibi''s torso and limbs, and then rose up to her neck. The doll tried to say something, but couldn''t. Instead of words, a wheeze came from under the mask. "If she freezes, I won''t know what she was trying to say," Etinnei was scared. "Does the refrigerator listen to what creatures that eat ice cream say?" a voice sounded in the character''s head. Etinnei looked to the side and noticed Minniges in front of her, who was looking at her. The arctic fox girl turned her gaze to her opponent. Aibi completely turned into an ice statue and stopped making sounds. Etinnei let go of her own hand. The icy aura around the character disappeared. The arctic fox girl''s clothes changed to summer ones, and her hair turned black again. A bolt of lightning flew out of the sleeve of her top, breaking the statue into many pieces. "I hope she makes herself a penguin," Etinnei smiled. The arctic fox girl didn''t see that a blue energy "eye" was watching her in the sky, surrounded by a round, translucent barrier. A beam emanated from its "pupil", ending in a hole in the rock. "Refrigerator girl, get out of here," Etinnei heard a familiar voice. "What? I defeated this lifeless girl,¡± the spirit of the arctic fox answered. "Run! My ice cream will melt." Etinnei looked around, but saw no one. ¡°There¡¯s no one here,¡± the animal girl thought. ¡°It seemed to you.¡± "Taikuron has found his other half," a voice similar to Minniges''s said. "What did you say?" Etinnei did not understand. "What other half?" "Taikuron will cut your head open and get his other half." ¡°Answer normally, Minniges. Who is this Taikuron?¡± A crackling sound of electricity came from above Etinnei''s head. The Arctic fox girl looked up and saw a penguin there, similar to Minniges, but with black and white feathers and two thin antennas on the top of its head, between which an electrical discharge accumulated. "What..." Etinnei was shocked. "Why did you become like this, Minniges?" The lightning bolt grew and took the form of a ball, and then attacked the animal girl with an electric beam. The snowflake shield worked this time too, but was only able to stop the beam for a few moments. This was enough time to jump back into the water. Luckily for Etinnei, an icy aura activated around her, freezing a section of the lake and creating an ice floe. On it, the arctic fox girl was able to fly to the neighboring shore, where Tuot was. The dinosaur looked at the creature in the air and could not believe that it was real. ¡°It¡¯s here again,¡± Tuot said. ¡°Do you know it?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°This is Taikuron. I have met it before. It can walk through walls. We can''t handle it.¡± "Why does he look like Minniges?" Etinnei thought. "Minniges said something about another me. Is this it?" "Yes, this is another me," Minniges answered mentally. "It can read your mind. While we were talking, it read your mind and found out that I am in your head." "What should we do with it?" "Don''t let it open your door." The voice stopped there. Etinnei noticed the electric penguin disappear over the nearby shore.Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Tuot summoned a shield, and then a yellow lizard. Taikuron appeared above the creatures'' heads, and then attacked with lightning from a clot between his antennae. Etinnei was saved by a snowflake again, but this time it lasted longer. The arctic fox girl noticed the balls on the ends of the antennas that emitted a red glow, and remembered that the penguin from a recent memory had such balls. "Give me my other half," a voice sounded in both Tuot''s and Etinnei''s heads. An electric field appeared around Taikuron, from which several clots of lightning emerged. Tuot saw this and grabbed the lizard by the head in fear. ¡°This skill extracts data from bodies,¡± the dinosaur¡¯s eyes bulged. ¡°This is the end.¡± But Tuot was lying. He had specifically summoned the lizard to counter this ability, having already met it in the cave cafe of Itinit. The touch of the dinosaur''s paw activated the lizard, covering it in a yellow aura and emitting the first wave of yellow energy. Etinnei, unlike her feathered friend, decided to attack. An ice ball flew out of the arctic fox girl''s sleeve. The lightning bolts turned into balls, between which weak electric discharges then ran. The ice ball flew through one of these discharges and disappeared. Etinnei was surprised by this development, and released several icicles in a row from her sleeve. All of them dissolved into thin air as soon as they approached the area of ??effect of Taikuron''s skill. ¡°It looks like you¡¯re right,¡± Etinnei looked sadly at her friend. ¡°This is the end. I had fun playing with you both in the game and in life. Thank you, Tuot.¡± "She didn''t call me a chicken," the dinosaur rejoiced, but then looked at his opponent. "This is probably the best ending for me. I have a girl with ears and a tail next to me. I hope we''ll be together in the game, too." The goodbye scene was interrupted by a bright flash of fire. It threw Taikuron far away. All the electric balls and lightning between them disappeared. *** Halankuo looked out the window at the endless gray-blue sea. The girl forgot about the dog girl who was curled up on the same seat with her and sleeping, about her friend, even about her character. Now in front of Halankuo there was only the sea and glass. ¡°Soon there will be the Southern Continent,¡± Itinit¡¯s voice sounded. ¡°Look ahead. This can only happen once in several lifetimes.¡± But Halankuo continued to look at the sea. Soon the outlines of mountains appeared in the front window. Kimchan opened one eye, yawned, and then opened the other. ¡°Did you feel the energy?¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°There¡¯s too much of it,¡± the dog girl answered. "She keeps me awake." Voices nearby made Halankuo turn away from one window and look ahead, to the other window. The girl''s mouth dropped open and her eyes widened, like her friend and pet. A narrow rocky peninsula appeared, jutting out into the sea. Behind it, a shore with yellow-white sand appeared, adjacent to green forests. "This is the closest point of the Southern Continent to the Northern Continent," Itinit said. "This is some kind of peninsula. I don''t remember what it''s called. There used to be an energy bridge here that connected the continents.¡± ¡°I read about this somewhere,¡± Halankuo said. ¡°They tried to settle the Southern Continent.¡± ¡°But they couldn¡¯t,¡± Itinit continued. ¡°I don¡¯t know why. But even the southern coast of the Northern Continent is now abandoned. It would be strange if civilization remained on the Southern Continent.¡± The "metal bird" flew to the edge of the peninsula and continued moving towards the shore. Halankuo suddenly remembered her character and opened the map of the "Mausoleum of Nature". The red dot was in the mountains, near the source of the river. Halankuo showed the map to her friend. "The character may be in another place," Itinit warned. ¡°The map shows the location with a delay. Although I am surprised that it is shown at all. There is no civilization in these places, but ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± server obviously exists. This is weird.¡± "Does this program have a server?" Halankuo was surprised. "I didn''t even think about it. ¡°The server is not alone. There must be at least several. I tried to find a server before, but I couldn''t. For that, you need an antenna built into your brain. I don''t have an antenna. I can try asking one creature, but it hasn''t left its shelter for a long time because the signal is too strong.¡± ¡°You mean the horns?¡± ¡°Yea. Horns are a very bad thing. I wouldn''t want to have them.¡± The "metal bird" flew over the peninsula and then hovered over the sandy shore. Itinit tried to understand what had happened and found Kimchan at his feet, pressing one of the lower buttons with her hand. ¡°Let¡¯s g-o-o-o home, master,¡± the dog girl said. ¡°It¡¯s you who needs to go to the place,¡± Itinit objected. ¡°Why did you come here?¡± Kimchan looked at her creator with a stupid dog-like gaze and groaned. ¡°You¡¯re a dog, so you should know where your place is,¡± Itinit said. ¡°Uuu¡­,¡± Kimchan thought. ¡°Yes.¡± The dog girl changed into her puppy form, returned to the back seat and groaned loudly. Itinit immediately noticed this and turned to the character. ¡°We¡¯ll finish here quickly and return to your sister,¡± Itinit promised. Kimchan transformed into an almost human form in order to answer. ¡°Is that¡­ tru-u-ue?¡± ¡°In any case, I need to return to the island,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°I gave Taikuron and the dolls to one creature, but it still hasn''t responded. I''m sure it already has them, but for some reason it doesn''t respond.¡± ¡°It suffocated in own bubble,¡± Kimchan suggested. ¡°That explains everything,¡± Itinit agreed. ¡°But if you think about it seriously... But, now what''s more important is why we came here.¡± The "metal bird" flew a little along the coast, discovered a small river, and then moved along its current into the interior of the mainland. Halankuo saw low mountains with oval peaks covered with dense fern forests in the window, and forgot about her character again. There were no buildings or structures like those on the Northern Continent, only endless forests and endless mountain ranges that covered them. The river under the aircraft became narrow, entered a canyon and was interrupted by a high waterfall. Halankuo immediately noticed it and could no longer think. A new world opened up before the girl, completely opposite to the one she lived in. ¡°Creator, it looks like we won¡¯t be able to land,¡± Kimchan noted. ¡°Everything here is overgrown.¡± ¡°There is definitely one place,¡± Itinit said. ¡°But it¡¯s too special.¡± A gray flat surface appeared among the vegetation. The ¡°metal bird¡± flew up to her and began to descend. ¡°What is it?¡± Kimchan asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Itinit answered. ¡°But it¡¯s definitely possible to land there.¡± The flying machine landed on this strange place. Itinit left the "metal bird" first and looked carefully at the surface under his feet. It was a stone space that hung over the forest. Itinit approached the edge and noticed the column on which it was supported. "This is half a floor of a former building," Itinit said. "Be careful, you can fall through here." ¡°Creator, why did you stop here?¡± Kimchan groaned. Itinit turned around and saw the dog girl, who was dragging Halankuo by the hand. ¡°If it weren¡¯t for this place, we wouldn¡¯t have sat down at all,¡± Itinit said. ¡°The southern continent is wild. There are no equipped places for landing flying machine. And it is generally impossible to land on these semblances of trees that make up the forests here.¡± ¡°We could burn the forest and then sit down,¡± Kimchan suggested. "It''s a good thing I took Kimchan, not her sister," Itinit thought. ¡°Noru would have set the forest on fire first, and then thought about why.¡± "We can''t attract attention," Itinit explained. ¡°I have a feeling that we are not the only civilized beings in these places.¡± Halankuo finally remembered her character and opened the map of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature". The red dot was very close, on top of the mountain that hung over the ruins. "She''s there," Halankuo¡¯s heart rate increased. "I need to get to her without being noticed." "Don''t go there without us," Itinit warned. "It''s dangerous to get lost in this place." "But together we''ll be too noticeable," Halankuo countered. "If Kyotyoryon finds me, she won''t want to talk." "You''ll try to talk to her without being noticed?" Itinit suggested. ¡°I will somehow,¡± Halankuo answered. "Leave me alone. She''s my character.¡± Itinit wanted to stop her friend, but changed his mind at the last moment. Halankuo activated her purple aura, after which she descended from the ruins of the building. ¡°Creator, let¡¯s go home,¡± Kimchan asked plaintively. ¡°You promised...¡± ¡°Yes, but...¡± Itinit looked at the top of the mountain. ¡°I wanted to wait for Halankuo. Don''t you feel anything?¡± Kimchan turned away and moaned like a dog. ¡°I understand,¡± Itinit guessed. ¡°There¡¯s someone there, but you don¡¯t want to talk.¡± ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t want you to leave me again,¡± the dog girl said quietly. ¡°Come with me,¡± Itinit suggested. ¡°We¡¯ll keep an eye on Halankuo. You like keep an eye someone.¡± Kimchan turned to the creator with her mouth open, from which hung a long dog tongue. Meanwhile, Halankuo reached the mountainside. Dense tree vegetation completely hid her from any view. The girl again opened the map of the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡±. The red dot was near the blue one, for the first time in a long time. Halankuo closed the program and then slowly rose through the air to the top. When she was just a little way from the top, Halankuo felt a strong sense of unease and stopped. She suddenly realized that she was not ready to meet her character, but she could not return to the flying machine either. She had to carefully move through the tree ferns and vines to see the top of the mountain. Finally, near the very top of the fern, a view of the summit opened up. It was flat, but not as overgrown as the slopes. Most of it was occupied by the ruins of something resembling a fortress, with the remains of walls and buildings, but there were no creatures there. "I forgot that the map showed the location inaccurately," Halankuo remembered. "I need to get closer." The girl descended to the ground and then flew along the slope to the top. But there was no one there either. The ruins seemed abandoned. Halankuo opened the "Mausoleum of Nature" map again. The red dot was almost directly below the blue one. "Where is it?" the girl was surprised. "Maybe down there? There should be an entrance to the dungeon somewhere." After some time, the entrance was found. It turned out to be a dark hole in the rock, with partially destroyed stone steps leading to it. Halankuo took a step forward, and then screamed loudly... ... A doll''s head with blue hair, an open mouth and a long tongue appeared from the hole. Chapter 45. Survival Instinct Halankuo moved behind the ruins of the stone wall. The doll''s head disappeared into the darkness of the hole. ¡°Hey, head, where did you fly?¡± a voice came from the dungeon. This voice seemed to Halankuo similar to the voice of her character. ¡°Nobody, head just went in the wrong direction,¡± another voice said. ¡°I want to see what¡¯s there.¡± Heavy footsteps were heard. Halankuo had no doubt who they belonged to. ¡°Kyotyoryon is coming here,¡± the girl was afraid. "It would be a shame if she noticed me." The sounds of footsteps grew louder. Halankuo looked around and thought about how to move unnoticed behind some other obstacle. "Creator, why did you come?" the voice of the spirit of metal sounded. ¡°Now Kyotyoryon assumes that it is me, because the logic of artificial intelligence tells her so,¡± Halankuo mentally concluded. "If I don''t make any sounds, I can try to trick her." ¡°I told you I don¡¯t want to be with you,¡± the voice continued. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go back to where there¡¯s nothing.¡± Suddenly, Halankuo realized that this was a good time to talk to her former character. All she had to do was come out from behind the wall and show herself to Kyotyoryon. The girl really wanted to, but her survival instinct was stronger. ¡°Creator, come out,¡± the voice of the spirit of metal sounded. ¡°I¡¯ll finally cut you.¡± The footsteps resumed. This time, they grew louder towards the wall behind which Halankuo was hiding. "She has a good sense of metal, even in the smallest quantities," the girl guessed mentally. "I forgot about that." A horned head with long gray hair and a gray mask that covered the lower part of her face peeked out from behind the wall... *** Taikuron was thrown to the edge of the lake, but did not fall into the water, but stayed in the air. It noticed the flying fiery object in time and stopped it with his gaze. The comet stopped a few steps away from Taikuron, and then exploded. The penguin was thrown even further, to the opposite shore. Smoke came out of his antennas. Sparks slowly fell to the ground and into the water. One of them exploded and left a cloud of fire in the air for a moment. The next moment, Noru appeared in its place. ¡°Hide in the residence,¡± the dog girl pointed to the wooden wall of the fortress. ¡°It won¡¯t get in there.¡± ¡°Are you going to fight it?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°It¡­¡± ¡°Can walk through walls, read minds, move objects with it eyes,¡± Noru finished. ¡°Itinit told me about it. But I don''t remember it name. But it doesn''t matter. Finally, I''ll fight someone.¡± "She just wants to fight," Tuot and Etinnei thought at the same time. The dinosaur and the arctic fox girl ran to the gate. Taikuron looked at them, but he couldn''t do anything. The target was too far away. "Now it will disappear," Noru thought. A moment after this thought, Taikuron actually disappeared into thin air, and then appeared above the gate. Noru activated the fire aura, and then pulled her tail. The smoke on Taikuron''s antennas turned to fire. A moment later, the penguin exploded. A snowflake shield saved Tuot and Etinnei from the blast wave. But the gates were less lucky. They caught fire. Noru looked around and noticed a penguin above her, from which smoke emanated. "It didn''t destroy itself!" the dog-girl opened her mouth wide in surprise and stuck out her long tongue. "But I exploded it! Maybe I should try again?" Noru pulled her tail again. An explosion occurred where Taikuron had been, but the penguin himself remained unharmed. "The explosion didn''t work," the dog girl guessed. "If it had, the smoke would have disappeared from it body." Noru pulled her tail again, but this time nothing happened. "Cooldown," the dog girl thought. "I completely forgot about it." Taikuron turned to the gate, which not only wasn''t burning, but also had no damage from the fire. The Arctic fox girl and the dinosaur were not there either. "Taikuron doesn''t need you," a voice sounded in Noru''s head. "Taikuron needs it other half." The penguin flew towards the gate, but met a fiery comet. An explosion occurred, from which Taikuron flew out unharmed. The comet landed on the ground, after which it took the form of a dog girl in a fiery aura. "Eeeh?" Noru was surprised. "Do attacks really pass through it?" The dog girl''s guess was confirmed. Taikuron approached the gate and then passed through it. "That''s right, Itinit told me that it can pass through walls," Noru remembered. "That means he can pass through attacks too. How could I not have guessed this before? What should I do? Aaah..." Noru extended her hand forward. A small flame flared up in front of Taikuron, after which an explosion occurred. The penguin did not expect this and was thrown back to the lake by the blast wave. "It worked!" Noru''s breath caught for a moment. But the animal girl was wrong. A crack of lightning was heard above. Noru noticed an electric clot above her head, which turned into a ball before her eyes. The dog girl ran forward, but another clot appeared on her way. Noru''s body turned into a comet, which then abruptly moved to the side. Already near the fence, the comet turned back into the dog girl. Noru turned around and saw several electric balls behind her, which were connected by lightning. "It''s good that I''m not there," the dog girl thought. "I can''t let those lightings hit me; otherwise I won''t be able to fly." Soon Noru felt one of her arms twitch, and then noticed a weak electrical discharge moving around her elbow. "It touched me," the dog girl was scared. "It''s not dangerous, just a weak electric shock." Suddenly Noru heard the crackle of lightning near her, and looked around. The electrical clots surrounded her and quickly increased in size. The dog girl tried to turn into a comet, but couldn''t because of the current on her hand. The electric clots took the form of balls, after which they connected with lightning.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. Noru was trapped. Several lightning bolts struck her at once, causing every limb to shake along with her head. Her eyes partially popped out of their slots and saw Taikuron standing in front of her, surrounded by an electric aura¡­ ... On another continent, in a dense forest, the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± opened in front of Itinit. Noru''s model in the form of a dog girl stood in the character window, and the screen itself flickered with a red glow and vibrated. ¡°Sis!¡± Kimchan was scared. ¡°Why?¡± Itinit was surprised. ¡°Noru should be on the island now. There is no danger there.¡± The red glow on the screen disappeared along with the vibration as suddenly as it had appeared. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s a mistake?¡± Itinit asked. Kimchan growled, and then pounced on her creator. ¡°My sister is there!¡± the dog girl screamed. ¡°We have to save her.¡± ¡°But there shouldn¡¯t be anything there that needs to be saved from,¡± Itinit objected. Kimchan turned into a large dog the size of a medium bear, knocked her creator to the ground, and then growled. "Kimchan is acting strange," Itinit thought. "This is more typical of her sister." ¡­ In fact, Itinit was wrong. Noru was lying on the ground in front of the gate, writhing from the electric shocks. The electric balls were no longer in the air, and they did not attack the dog girl. Therefore, the screen of the "Mausoleum of Nature" no longer notified the creator of the critical condition of his character. But the danger did not go away. Taikuron was already standing at the entrance to the residence, unsuccessfully trying to open the door. Fortunately for Noru, it did not try to finish her off. ¡­ On the other side of the door was winter. Etinnei in winter form and Tuot were standing near the bridge over the canyon. ¡°I¡¯ve already been here,¡± the arctic fox girl said. ¡°Then I never reached that shore.¡± ¡°Were you scared to walk across the bridge?¡± Tuot suggested. ¡°Eeeh... I just woke up.¡± ¡°Was it a dream?¡± ¡°Yes. I always wanted to continue the dream, but it didn''t.¡± ¡°I noticed that. For some reason, dreams always happen in different places.¡± Etinnei approached the bridge, and it swayed. The spirit of the arctic fox did not dare to go further. ¡°Do you want to go there?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yes, but I can¡¯t,¡± Etinnei answered. ¡°I¡¯m afraid the bridge will fall down.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t walk across such a bridge either. Let''s go to another place.¡± Etinnei looked ahead. On the opposite side of the canyon grew a coniferous forest covered with snow. ¡°I want to know what is there,¡± the arctic fox girl said. ¡°Even though I am scared¡­¡± Tuot looked across the canyon and then down. The river at the bottom had not yet frozen completely. Ice floes were carried away by the current, they got stuck in the rocks and formed temporary rapids. The dinosaur became scared, but then he realized something: ¡°This location is not real. We are inside the residence of the mushroom spirit. I wonder where it is.¡± ¡°Let''s do it together,¡± Tuot said. ¡°If we fall, we will not die. This is not a real cliff.¡± Etinnei gave her hand to her friend and then looked at him. The Arctic fox girl smiled, but her eyes were still scared. Tuot activated his aura, took his friend''s hand, and stepped onto the bridge first. The long tail no longer disturbed him; it was now used for its intended purpose, to balance a body not designed to walk on two legs. Etinnei didn''t notice how she crossed the bridge. A snowy coniferous forest opened up before her, and her feathered friend was standing next to her. ¡°It looks like we did it,¡± the Arctic fox girl moved her ears. ¡°It''s so strange.¡± Tuot looked back. The scary wooden bridge, covered with traces of bird paws and "human" feet, swayed from side to side and creaked. ¡°I won¡¯t go there again,¡± Tuot said. ¡°Let''s go further. Maybe there will be something not scary there.¡± Suddenly, the dinosaur felt something grab him by the feathers on his arm and drag him into the forest. It was his friend. Etinnei was too eager to find out what was in the forest that she didn''t notice what she was holding her friend by. The forest was not dense, with thick tree trunks that went somewhere high beyond the white-green snow-covered branches. Under some of the trunks, Etinnei noticed snowdrifts of a strange round shape. The arctic fox girl approached one of them and stepped on it with her foot. "There''s something hard here," Etinnei whispered. The arctic fox girl let go of the feathers on Tuot''s arm. The dinosaur noticed that he no longer had an aura and fell into the snow. Etinnei destroyed the snowdrift with her foot. Under the layer of snow there was ice, inside which a blue mushroom was glowing. ¡°There¡¯s a mushroom here,¡± the Arctic fox girl opened her mouth in surprise. "I need to free it." "Don''t do that," Minniges'' voice rang out. "The mushroom is in the other refrigerator. It won''t be able to fit inside you." But Etinnei did not listen to the voice of her brain neighbor and hit the mushroom with an icicle covered in an electric aura. A crack appeared on the ice, from which blue energy began to emerge... ... The arctic fox girl was thrown back a few steps. Thanks to the snow that was under her feet, she was able to keep from falling. "The mushroom is gone," Etinnei looked sadly at the energy that was released in a stream from the ice floe and dissolved in the air. ¡°I was never able to reach it and lick it.¡± ¡°If this mushroom is surrounded by ice, this does not mean that it is ice cream,¡± Minniges objected. ¡°I¡¯m the only one who has real ice cream.¡± Etinnei looked to the side and found a penguin looking at her. The light bulb on it horn glowed a white-blue. Tuot saw his friend grab a frozen pine cone hanging from a lower branch and start licking it. "Is she hungry?" the dinosaur thought. "It''s a good thing I wasn''t there. I could have been that pine cone now." At some point, Etinnei stopped seeing Minniges'' ice cream in front of her and noticed what object she was actually licking. "The ice cream isn''t real again," the Arctic fox girl frowned. "I was hoping that at least in this place it would be real." Etinnei let go of the branch with the pine cone, fell to her knees and began to cry. Tuot hid behind a tree trunk and watched his friend from there. The dinosaur did not want to disturb the animal girl at such a moment. Tuot happened to look to the side and found a blue energy "eye" surrounded by a barrier that "hung" between the tree branches. The dinosaur immediately understood what it was. "This is the skill of that creature in the bubble," Tuot guessed. "But what is this thing doing here? This is the residence of the mushroom spirit, not him." The "eye" began to rotate, and soon "looked" in Tuot''s direction. The dinosaur hid behind another tree. The "eye" turned to Etinnei and began to accumulate energy inside itself. Tuot knew his friend was in danger, but he couldn''t tell her. He didn''t want to attract the attention of the creature that had defeated him without fighting at full strength. But Tuot couldn''t let Etinnei get hurt either. The problem resolved itself. The "eye" accumulated energy, then turned back and released a beam of blue light. Tuot was delighted and ran to his friend. Etinnei was still crying and did not notice the danger. "Let''s get out of here," Tuot suggested. The arctic fox girl looked at her friend with a sad look. There were no more tears in her eyes, because they had run out a few moments ago. ¡°Why?¡± Etinnei asked. Tuot told his friend what he had seen. The arctic fox girl looked around. ¡°I don¡¯t see anything,¡± Etinnei said. ¡°Maybe you imagined it?¡± ¡°Perhaps,¡± Tuot agreed. ¡°Let''s go somewhere else.¡± Etinnei went ahead and soon disappeared behind the trees. Tuot followed her. "What if I didn''t imagine what I saw?" the dinosaur thought. "I can''t leave Etinnei in danger. Otherwise, someone will grab her again." Tuot couldn''t forget that strange man with the carrot nose, although he tried. Then the dinosaur thought that he had lost the creature he had dreamed of meeting for so long. Etinnei approached the cliff, beyond which the gray sea was visible to the horizon. It almost merged with the sky. Only small ice floes that floated on the water served as signs of distinction. "It seems to me that I have already been here," Etinnei thought. "But I don''t remember when." "I can''t show you this," Minniges answered mentally. "Why?" "This ability is on cooldown. I can only retrieve my memories once a day. They are transferred to your brain, but deleted from mine." Etinnei''s mood suddenly improved. The animal girl looked to the side and saw the same penguin in front of her. "So you can give me all the memories?" Etinnei asked mentally. "No. Your fridge can''t hold that much ice cream." Etinnei felt sad. The arctic fox girl looked at the waves crashing onto the rocks below, and suddenly heard a bird cry from behind. It was Tuot who was making it. The dinosaur ran out of the forest, and only the activated aura prevented it from falling off the cliff. ¡°What happened?¡± Etinnei asked. ¡°There,¡± the dinosaur pointed to the sky. Etinnei noticed three blue energy "eyes" moving slowly above the treetops. One was in the middle and was the size of a small house, while the other two were on either side of it and were the size of a human head. ¡°What is this?¡± Etinnei was surprised. ¡°Eyes made of energy?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± answered Tuot. ¡°It seems I wasn''t imagining things. That eye transmitted a signal to the other eyes, and now they have arrived.¡± The "eyes" gradually filled with energy and became less transparent. ¡°We need to attack them before they accumulate a charge and release a beam,¡± Tuot suggested. Etinnei looked at the water at the edge of the cliff, noticed a narrow crevice between the rocks, and then activated her ice aura. "We''d better run," Etinnei suggested. "There is water everywhere", Tuot looked down, but saw nothing but water. "I can''t explain. Just follow me." Etinnei stepped off the cliff. Tuot tried to grab her friend, but was too late. The Arctic fox girl landed on the water, and it immediately turned into an ice floe from contact with the elemental aura. Tuot realized that Etinnei had not crashed, but he could not bring himself to jump. Behind him, the energy "eyes" were becoming increasingly cloudy and were about to shoot. ¡°If I crash, at least she will be with me,¡± the dinosaur looked at the barely noticeable tail of the arctic fox girl. "And if not, she will be with me too. Etinnei will be with me in any case. I have nothing to worry about. But for some reason I am worried." Tuot didn''t know what survival instinct was, so he wondered why he couldn''t jump from a high cliff into the water. Meanwhile, the situation was developing too unfavorably. The dinosaur turned around and saw completely cloudy energy "eyes" with bright blue pupils. Tuot realized that he had no choice. He activated his aura, and then took a few steps back... Chapter 46. Sister Connection ¡­ Tuot landed on the ice, moved back a little and almost fell into the water, but the aura helped him stay upright. Etinnei held her hand on the surface of the water and thus supported a large ice floe. ¡°Now we need to run there,¡± the Arctic fox girl pointed with her hand to a crevice between the rocks, the bottom of which was also filled with water. ¡°Do you think they won''t find us there?¡± Tuot asked. ¡°Yup.¡± ¡°She relies too much on circumstances,¡± the dinosaur thought. ¡°Even I understand that this is wrong.¡± Tuot looked up and saw three blue energy beams that flew over the sea and disappeared somewhere over the horizon. Etinnei walked across the water to the crevice between the rocks. The icy white-blue aura instantly froze the water under her feet. Tuot followed his friend across the formed ¡°bridge.¡± "I think it''s easier for them to hit us in this place," Tuot looked at the crevice between the rocks. "This is not the best place to hide.¡± ¡°They won¡¯t find us,¡± Etinnei waved her hand, like animals wave their paws. ¡°They are eyes, so they don¡¯t see us.¡± Tuot didn''t believe his friend''s words. He looked in different directions and tried to notice the enemy approaching. But there were only two rocks around, which stood in the sea near the steep shore. "I have an idea," the dinosaur said. "If the ''eye'' appears here, I know how to destroy it." Etinnei looked at her friend and noticed with horror how an energy harpoon emerged from the tail part of the aura. "It''s the thing that grabbed my ear," the end of an icicle appeared from the sleeve of the Arctic fox girl. "I promised to destroy it when I saw it.¡± Tuot remembered the incident in the city of Tohsonun, when his harpoon pulled Etinnei out of her own ice, in which the animal girl was stuck. ¡°You can¡¯t do anything with this thing,¡± Tuot answered. ¡°Why?¡± Etinnei couldn¡¯t understand. ¡°I¡¯ll just cut it.¡± The Arctic fox girl hit the harpoon with an icicle, but it simply went through it. "Why can''t it be cut?" Etinnei frowned. "Tuot, do something about it!" ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± the dinosaur answered. ¡°The harpoon consists of energy. It can''t be cut by weapons or ice. Energy can only be cut by energy.¡± ¡°So I won¡¯t be able to destroy this thing?¡± ¡°Yes, you can''t.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me about this right away? I thought that when I saw him, I would be able to destroy it...¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter now. Let me tell you the plan instead.¡± "I don''t want to. Tuot is lying. And this thing can''t be cut. First I want to destroy it, and then freeze you, and then talk." "How can I tell you what I want to do if I''m frozen?" Etinnei turned away and sat down. The ice floe beneath her feet widened slightly. ¡°Don¡¯t cry or the ¡®eye¡¯ will appear and pierce you with a beam,¡± Tuot warned. ¡°It won¡¯t appear,¡± Etinnei growled. A few moments later, a blue energy "eye" appeared above the rocks and began to accumulate a charge for a shot. "It''s already here," Tuot shuddered. Etinnei looked up, noticed the "eye," and then turned to her friend. Her cheeks were covered with a layer of ice, which her tears had turned into. ¡°Tell me...¡± the animal girl said quietly. Tuot told his friend how to defeat the energy "eye". The arctic fox girl rose to her feet and began to concentrate a clot of white-blue energy in her hands. Due to the elemental aura, the clot turned into an ice ball in a couple of moments. Tuot grabbed the white-blue ball with a harpoon, raised it above the rocks, and then threw it at the "eye" while it was "charging". The "eye" tried to dodge, but the distance between it and the end of the harpoon was too short. The end of the harpoon pierced the "eye" and left a freezing ball inside it, which filled all available space with ice. Tuot released several feathers from the tail part of the aura, but they were not destined to reach the enemy. A beam of blue energy, fired from an unknown location, hit the frozen "eye". *** Kyotyoryon continued to walk through the ruins and search for her creator. She felt the presence of "extra" metal, but did not understand where exactly it was. At this time, Halankuo was already in a dark underground corridor, illuminated only by the light from her aura. ¡°A good skill, Mom,¡± the girl thought. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that it can only be used twice in a row. Then the cooldown is half a day.¡± ¡°This is the first time,¡± the voice in Halankuo¡¯s head answered. ¡°I was able to use it up to five times a day.¡± Halankuo looked around to see where she was going, but then she heard footsteps coming from the far end of the hallway. The girl slowly walked in the opposite direction from the footsteps, and soon came to a dead end, where a stone coffin stood. She had to deactivate her aura to avoid being noticed, and then lie down in the coffin to hide. The footsteps grew louder. Halankuo closed her eyes, although she could not see anything in the darkness. She was simply afraid of being discovered: "If it is not Kyotyoryon, at least I will not be ashamed." The footsteps became louder and then stopped. Halankuo realized that someone had approached the coffin, opened her eyes and was ready to see the scary monster from the games in front of her. But instead of the monster, she saw the doll''s face glowing with a purple aura. "I found you," the doll said. "I brought you a head. But you still have a head. Has it grown?" Halankuo didn''t know what to say. She felt both scared and awkward. "Older sis, get up," the doll continued. "Let''s go home." "I''m not your older sis," Halankuo finally managed to say something. "You''re wrong.¡± ¡°She was not mistaken,¡± a voice sounded in Halankuo¡¯s head. ¡°This really is my little sister.¡±Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. *** After some time, Noru was finally able to get to her feet. Taikuron was still motionless "hanging" in the air near the entrance to the mushroom spirit''s residence. The dog girl decided to retreat somewhere far away until the electric penguin noticed her again... On the shore of the lake, Noru found a doll''s hand with an attached shield. "What is this? Is this an arm and a shield? Why is it separate?" The dog girl stood for a long time by the severed limb and stared at it and the shield until she realized something: "There''s some kind of symbol here. What happens if you touch it?" The dog girl extended her foot towards the black symbol on the shield, but then stopped. "Maybe it''s better not to touch it? What if it explodes?" But curiosity was stronger. Noru touched the symbol on the shield with her heel, and only then returned her foot to its original place. For a few moments nothing happened. The dog girl had already decided that it was just a strange trinket, when suddenly the symbol began to emit a purple glow. Noru jumped back and barked in fear. The shield with the arm rose into the air and moved to the body, from which the sword stuck out. A terrible picture opened up before the dog girl: the arm connected with the body, after which it began to move. Then the rest of the limbs flew in from somewhere and stood in their places. The head with purple hair arrived last. It was lying on the shore of the lake and therefore took longer to get there. But it also stood on the neck, after which the limbs began to move. "Is this a new experiment of Myuryuri? Has he decided to do something again to attract the attention of his creator?" But soon Noru realized that this was not the case: "Myuryuri studies energy. But this creature is not made of energy. It is made of something unknown." The doll tilted its head first to one side, then to the other, after which its body assumed a vertical position. Footsteps were heard behind one of the trees. Noru looked there and saw another doll, similar to the first, but with green hair and a green mask that hid the lower part of her face. ¡°Suturu, I collect myself together before you did,¡± the green-haired doll said. ¡°There are already two of them,¡± Noru thought. ¡°Who are they? Why are they here?¡± Suturu turned her head toward the green-haired doll, but her body remained in its original position. "Aibi, that''s not fair," the purple-haired doll said. "You can recover with pink energy." "What?" Noru thought. "Maybe Myuryuri is involved after all? But he hardly created these... I don''t even know what to call them." ¡°But you don¡¯t have acid,¡± Aibi objected. ¡°She makes me smaller.¡± ¡°You yourself asked the creator to give you abilities that I do not have,¡± Suturu said. ¡°That¡¯s because I don¡¯t want to be like you,¡± Aibi said. Long-forgotten memories simultaneously returned to the dolls'' heads. It was the day they met the strange man with the carrot nose... ¡­ That day, they were ordinary twin sisters returning home from school. Their hair was black, like humans, and their clothing consisted of yellow-brown dresses with sleeves, stockings of the same color and boots, the usual school uniform. The road led down the mountainside through a coniferous forest. ¡°Why are you smiling, Suturu, because school is ending soon?¡± one of the sisters asked. ¡°Of course, Aibi,¡± Suturu answered. ¡°Aren''t you happy? You can read, right?¡± ¡°Yup. I learned recently. But it''s difficult. There are too many symbols. Each symbol stands for one object. Why didn''t they make symbols that stand for syllables? Then there would be fewer symbols.¡± ¡°If they do this, then all schools will be closed and teachers will be left without work. Or children will graduate from school at ten years old. And we are twenty years old, and only tomorrow we will finish school.¡± The girls noticed a large stump near the road and sat down on it to rest. ¡°Why did mom and dad settle so far away?¡± Suturu and Aibi asked at the same time. It was indeed far from home. The sisters began to examine the places around and suddenly discovered a gray carrot in a layer of pine needles. ¡°I didn¡¯t know that carrots grew here,¡± Suturu said. ¡°They only grow near houses,¡± Aibi added. ¡°But for some reason this carrot is gray.¡± ¡°It¡¯s low in some substance that we were told about at school.¡± Aibi stood up from the stump, then walked over to the carrot and held out her hand. "You better not touch it," Suturu warned. "It''s probably inedible." "It is edible," Aibi answered. "I''ll show you now." Aibi grabbed the carrot with her hand. "It''s hard and cold," Aibi thought. "I need to get it out, otherwise Suturu will do this." Aibi pulled on the carrot and was quite surprised by what came out of the ground. It was a metal object shaped like an icicle, with a sharp end and a round base. "It''s not a carrot," Aibi sighed. "What is it?" Suturu asked. "I don''t know. But for some reason it was growing in the ground." "I knew right away it wasn''t a carrot. Carrots have leaves on top, and this thing has nothing." Aibi looked closely at the object and found a small hole with a faint blue glow at the base. Soon a short beam flew out from there, which then turned into a small blue virtual screen with an inscription of red glowing symbols. ¡°There¡¯s some kind of announcement here,¡± Suturu noted. ¡°This thing needs to be returned somewhere. There will be a reward for it.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve learned to read well,¡± Aibi noted. ¡°You read all the symbols correctly.¡± ¡°I''m almost done with school.¡± ¡°I¡¯m almost done with school too.¡± ¡°Don''t repeat after me.¡± The sisters argued for some time about who was repeating after whom, so they did not notice how a robot-buyer with a black shell, similar to a beetle, crawled up to them. ¡°Give me the antenna,¡± a thin machine voice sounded inside the robot. Suturu and Aibi screamed in surprise, got up from the stump and looked at the inanimate creature. ¡°Give me the antenna,¡± the robot repeated. ¡°My master lost her.¡± ¡°Which antenna should I give you?¡± the sisters asked at the same time. ¡°The one in your hand,¡± the robot answered. ¡°It''s long, metal, gray.¡± ¡°A-ah-ah... Carrots...¡± Aibi guessed. ¡°But it says on the screen that there will be a reward for her return.¡± ¡°The reward is too big to fit into me,¡± the robot answered. ¡°I¡¯m an ordinary robot buyer. I can only take the antenna, and for the reward you must come to my master.¡± "We need to go to the place shown on the screen?" Suturu asked. ¡°Yes,¡± the robot answered. ¡°Give me the antenna and I will lead you there.¡± Aibi held out the carrot to the robot. The lid on its shell opened, and a metal arm emerged, grabbed the antenna, and moved it into an empty compartment. ¡°Now you can take the reward from my master,¡± the robot closed its shell and crawled along the road on skis. Aibi took a step, but was stopped by her sister. ¡°This is somehow suspicious,¡± Suturu said. ¡°It¡¯s not written on the screen what the reward will be there.¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s just a secret?¡± Aibi suggested. Suturu did not stop her sister, but decided to go with her, so as not to abandon her... The robot led the girls to a large stone house, which stood on a hill away from the road. From here there was a view of a wide river, beyond which stretched a flat plain, partially flooded with water with islands of forest. "This is my master''s house," the robot said. ¡°Go into it.¡± The heavy wooden door was unlocked, so the robot was able to easily enter the building. Aibi followed him, and Suturu followed her sister. The three of them found themselves in a large room, more like a train station hall. The walls were decorated with heads of girls with multi-colored hair and bulging eyes that sparkled from the sunlight that entered the room through the round windows. This frightened Suturu, but aroused her sister''s interest. ¡°We have to leave here,¡± Suturu thought. "Otherwise, what happened to these girls will happen to us." "Why is their hair this color?" Aibi thought at that moment. The girls did not notice how a man in a hood and mask with a black hole instead of a nose came down the stairs. He took the "carrot" from the compartment of the robot-buyer''s shell and inserted it into himself. "Are you interested in dolls?" the man with the now carrot-nose asked. Suturu and Aibi looked from the heads on the walls to the robot''s owner. "They have hair that''s a color that humans don''t have," Aibi said. "That''s because the dye in their brain that colors their hair is altered," the carrot-nosed man explained. "They''re doll heads. I can make you the same hair. You want a reward, right?" ¡°Yes!¡± Aibi was happy. ¡°I would like green hair. And also green eyes, so that they match the hair.¡± ¡°Okay,¡± the doll maker said. ¡°What do you want?¡± The man with the carrot nose looked at Suturu. The girl wanted to grab her sister by the hand and run out of the house, but for some reason she couldn''t. ¡°I want to finish school tomorrow and return to my parents today,¡± Suturu admitted. ¡°In that case, your sister will stay here today,¡± the man with the carrot nose said. ¡°You can go without her.¡± Suturu decided not to abandon her sister again. That''s how they became dolls... ... Suturu and Aibi were together again. But now they were looking at the dog girl with fixed eyes, just as they had once looked at the man with the carrot nose. Noru was also looking at the dolls and suddenly realized something sad: "It''s not fair. They have a sister, and I don''t." Noru looked up. The next moment, a fiery comet flew across the sky, leaving a pink trail behind it. "Little sis," Noru rejoiced. "I have to meet her." The dog-girl''s body burst into a bright flame, and then lifted off the ground and flew into the air in the form of a comet... Suturu and Aibi watched the two lights fly chaotically across the sky. The dolls were drawn to the symbols formed by the comet trails. ¡°I think I could once read them,¡± Suturu said. "So could I," Aibi repeated. "I learned all the symbols, but now I don''t know a single one.¡± The comets made several circles, and then met and united into one bright fireball, which flew to the ground at great speed. Suturu and Aibi saw a huge bright mass of fire above them, which quickly covered the sky. The dolls pressed their shields together, and the symbols on them began to emit a blue glow... ... A large fiery comet fell to the ground and exploded. But the blue energy barrier formed by the sisters'' connection did not collapse... ... The smoke gradually dissipated. At the place where the comet fell, a dog girl stood in a fiery aura, with long white-yellow hair and two tails. Chapter 47. Promise Made in a Dream Suturu and Aibi looked at the new creature and did not understand why instead of two dog girls there was only one. The short white and yellow fur dress, which began below the shoulders and ended in the middle of her thick thighs, went well with the color of her hair and the fur bracelets on her arms and legs. Only the red-brown eyes with lights instead of pupils "resisted" the dominance of one color. "Finally, I''m whole," the dog girl sighed. "But soon you will not be whole." "Who are you?" the dolls asked at the same time. ¡°I didn¡¯t introduce myself?¡± the girl touched the dog''s ears with her hands. ¡°I am Noruluya, the spirit of the dog. I came because you were hurting the animal girls.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything to the animal girls,¡± Suturu admitted. ¡°I did something to someone with feathers.¡± ¡°That means I¡¯ll only destroy the green one,¡± Noruluya smiled. "I''m not green, I''m Aibi," the green-haired doll said. "And you''re someone with dog ears and two tails." ¡°This is my sister,¡± Suturu pointed at Aibi. ¡°She¡¯s Aibi, and I¡¯m Suturu. Don''t get confused.¡± ¡°Sisters cannot live without each other,¡± Noruluya smiled. ¡°So I will destroy you both.¡± "Sorry, Noru, Kimchan," the dog girl looked at the sky. Noruluya rose above the treetops. Two sparks appeared on either side of her, quickly catching fire and soon turning into fireballs. ¡°She created two balls because there are two of us, one for me and one for you,¡± Suturu guessed. ¡°Which one will you catch?¡± ¡°That one,¡± Aibi pointed with her hand. ¡°It''s for you, it''s for me. But if I catch it, he''ll burn or explode my body, and I''ll have to recover.¡± ¡°Therefore, it is better not to catch it, but to protect myself from it.¡± The fireballs flew towards Suturu and Aibi, but collided with the energy barrier that had saved them last time. Now its walls couldn''t withstand it. Two powerful explosions destroyed the energy shell, but did not harm the dolls. *** Itinit landed in the courtyard of the fortress at the entrance to the residence and immediately noticed the one he was looking for. A legless penguin with antennas on its head was motionless "hanging" in the air and did not pay any attention to the other being. "It wants to get into the residence, but he can''t," Itinit guessed. "I''m very lucky. The battle will be short." A clot of blue energy appeared in Itinit''s hand. Taikuron was surrounded by a barely noticeable square barrier, which began to shrink... But the electric penguin turned out to be no easy opponent. As soon as the walls of the barrier approached the antennas, the lights on them filled with a red glow, after which Taikuron disappeared. "Taikuron has already found own other half," a voice sounded in Itinit''s head. "Don''t stop Taikuron from getting to it." "But you can''t get in there," Itinit mentally responded to his opponent''s words. "You just hang in the air in front of the entrance and do nothing." "Taikuron doesn''t know how to get in. Taikuron tries, but he can''t." "I can tell you." "Taikuron knows about it. Taikuron will take what it needs itself." A crackling sound of electric discharges was heard above Itinit''s head. The guy looked up and saw Taikuron above him and two clots of lightning next to him. Itinit realized that the penguin was going to extract data from him. The guy knew that it was impossible to escape to the residence while Tuot and Etinnei were there, but he decided to try to deceive Taikuron. The clots turned into electric balls, after which lightning ran between them. Itinit jumped back, swiped his finger in front of him and summoned a blue square energy barrier. Electric clots continued to appear around the barrier, because they could not penetrate inside. Itinit knew that the enemy was reading his thoughts, so he could not think. But despite this, he did not give up, because he was already in a hopeless situation and got out of there in a battle with the healing doll Yuehei. Itinit created a blue translucent energy ball with a spark inside in his hand, and then released it. The ball passed through the wall of the barrier and crashed into the first electrical clot that came his way. An explosion occurred. The clot disappeared, and the lightning that flew out of it pushed the clot next to it. Itinit created one energy ball with a spark inside in each hand. They were enough to destroy all the electrical clots around the barrier, and the lightning that flew out of the latter even reached Taikuron, and he had to redirect it to the side. Itinit released two balls again: one with a snowflake, the other with a spark. Taikuron stopped the ball with a spark with it gaze, and tried to destroy the ball with a snowflake with lightning that formed between it antennas. The ball with a spark was stopped, but the ball with a snowflake dodged the lightning and crashed into its fiery brother. An explosion occurred, leaving behind a cloud of steam. It hid Itinit from the penguin''s view, and he took advantage of this to hide behind a fence. But Taikuron quickly spotted his opponent and emerged from the fence. It was a trap. As soon as the penguin''s head passed through the palisade, the walls of the barrier surrounded him and then closed in. Itinit stood next to him with his hand outstretched, unable to believe that he had finally caught this strange creature. The voltage between the antennas increased, and the lights changed color to purple. Several electrical clots appeared inside the barrier, which almost instantly turned into balls and released a multitude of lightning bolts. Itinit summoned a stone pot, similar to a plant pot, to place Taikuron in, but it was too late. The barrier was destroyed by the electromagnetic field. Soon Itinit had to create an energy barrier himself to protect himself from lightning and the enemy''s signal. Taikuron''s antennas began to generate current like crazy. The lights at its ends glowed with a bright purple light. This was the highest stage of the penguin''s brain voltage... Electric balls appeared all around the perimeter of the barrier in such large numbers that they soon began to collide with each other... "Taikuron will receive your data and find it other half," a voice sounded in Itinit''s head. The walls of the barrier gradually began to dissolve into thin air. Itinit realized that the enemy was using his most powerful skill to destroy the barrier and extract the data from his brain.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Last time, in Yenekit, there was a yellow lizard nearby that removed negative effects and prevented them from being applied. But now Itinit was alone before a force that seemed to leave him no chance. But Itinit did not give up. He aimed the pot at Taikuron, in which purple energy had been accumulating all this time. The walls of the barrier became less and less noticeable, and then began to shimmer... ¡­ A thick beam of purple energy shot out from the pot, quickly reaching Taikuron and turning his body into an energy silhouette. The barrier around Itinit disappeared, and for a moment he felt the urge to let go of the penguin. It was the influence of it signal. But the pot could no longer be turned. The purple beam slowly sucked the energy out of Taikuron and transferred it to the pot. The electric balls turned into clots and then dissolved into the air. "Taikuron will be whole again..." ... The area around changed dramatically. Instead of a volcano crater, Itinit stood on the bank of a wide river, more like a lake. A mixed forest bordered by a rocky cliff reached the shore. "This place is not real," Itinit guessed. "I am in the memories of Taikuron." There was a rustling of leaves. A gray-violet puppy, like a fox, with small rounded ears on top of its head, jumped out of the forest. "It is an arctic fox in its summer uniform," Itinit guessed. "This animal does not live in these parts. Why is it here?" "Etinnei!" a cry came from the forest. "Where are you?" A few moments later, a girl with long black hair, a black leather jacket, a skirt, and knee-high boots ran out of the forest. She was holding a wrench in her hand. ¡°Here you are,¡± the girl sighed. "Don''t run away from me. I won''t do anything to you.¡± A penguin with three horns appeared above the Arctic fox''s head: two of them looked like Taikuron''s antennas, and the third was on his forehead and looked like an ice cream cone. ¡°She wants to take me away from you,¡± Itinit heard Taikuron¡¯s voice. "If she does, you won''t be able to speak to me." The arctic fox''s body began to glow white. A few moments later, a girl with shoulder-length black hair, wearing a gray-purple fur top and shorts, stood in its place. ¡°I won¡¯t give it to you,¡± Etinnei answered. "It is my friend." "But he''s giving you nightmares," the girl with the wrench said. ¡°Yes, but...¡± Etinnei looked down. ¡°I want you to be able to sleep normally.¡± The lights on the penguin''s antennas turned yellow. A blue-white icy aura appeared around Etinnei, and she jumped back onto the river water and stood on the ice floe that had formed. The penguin moved behind her. The end of an icicle appeared from the animal girl¡¯s sleeve. The girl with long black hair pointed the key at the arctic fox girl and pulled her back to the shore. The penguin, which was above Etinnei''s head, remained in place, but it was also slowly pulled towards the character''s body. A loud bird cry rang out in Itinit''s head, but the penguin''s mouth remained closed. The lights on it antennas turned first red and then purple. It tried with all his might to stay in place, but it couldn''t. A shell with a horn on it forehead separated from the penguin, and then it was pulled toward Etinnei. Above the ice floe there was a body with antennas on the top of its head. The bird cry became louder. Now Itinit couldn''t stand it, so he fell to his knees and closed his eyes... After a few moments, the bird cry stopped. Itinit opened his eyes and noticed that he was standing in the crater of a volcano, holding a pot in his hands, from which a stream of purple energy was emitting. At the end of the beam was the barely visible silhouette of Taikuron. The creature''s energy gradually flowed into the vessel and accumulated there. Itinit no longer heard the voices in his head. "Did I really do it?" Itinit couldn''t believe what was happening. "I almost caught Taikuron?" The pot began to vibrate. Itinit realized that there was too much energy there to fit in it. Fortunately, Taikuron''s silhouette merged with the energy flow, and the beam returned to the pot. "I finally caught Taikuron," Itinit still couldn''t believe what had happened. "And I did it myself." The flow of energy was so powerful that it pushed Itinit back to the entrance to the residence. The pot in his hands disappeared. "Come out, it''s your turn now," Itinit looked up. Myuryuri appeared above the fortress courtyard. "So we meet," Itinit said. "Do you miss her too?" "How do you know?" the creature in the "bubble" asked. ¡°I sent you Taikuron and the dolls so that you could study them and understand how to use them. You did. But then you decided that we couldn''t handle these creatures and would call your creator.¡± ¡°Was that your plan?¡± ¡°What? Do you want to battle me?¡± ¡°Yes. Let''s do it.¡± ¡°But you won¡¯t be able to break through my barrier.¡± ¡°That means I¡¯ll die.¡± If she lets me die, then it''s her will.¡± Myuryuri disappeared. ¡°You don¡¯t want to battle me?¡± Itinit looked around. ¡°Why? I won''t even be able to break through your barrier.¡± A clot of purple energy appeared in the sky. But it wasn''t Myuryuri. It was a purple energy "eye" surrounded by a round "bubble." ¡°I¡¯m not interested in fighting you,¡± a voice sounded in the air. ¡°You are not like my creator. She is the only one who can break through my barrier. I do not want to battle with everything else.¡± ¡°You greatly underestimate the enemy,¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°I think my Eye of Hope is enough for you. If I go against you, the battle will end immediately after it begins.¡± Energy began to accumulate inside the "eye". Itinit extended his hand forward and surrounded the "enemy" with a blue square barrier-trap. "We will finally meet," Itinit smiled. ... A thunderstorm attacked a small village. Lightning flashed on the horizon. Rain hit the windowsills, and evil spirits walked behind the dark windows. That''s how it seemed to a little boy who hid under a blanket and carefully peered out from behind it. From there, all that was visible was a room with log walls. The boy tried not to look at the scary window. "If I fall asleep, I''ll dream again of an electric penguin without legs with antennas on its head," the boy thought. "And if I don''t sleep, lightning will strike, and a spirit will appear from it and take me away." The boy could only cover himself with a blanket and hope that the night, and with it the storm, would end. Then there would be no darkness outside the window, and spirits would not appear from the lightning. But sleep overcame the boy. Soon he closed his eyes and found himself on the shore of a lake surrounded by mountains. Coniferous forests grew on their slopes, and bright glowing green and blue mushrooms were visible under the trees. Because of this, the forest glowed with many lights. ¡°I¡¯ve never been to this place before,¡± the boy thought. ¡°I hope these mushrooms don¡¯t turn into that penguin.¡± The boy stopped near the nearest blue mushroom and began to examine it. Not only did it glow brightly, but it was also translucent. The boy had never seen such mushrooms before. He became curious about what would happen if he touched it. The boy''s hand touched the mushroom cap, which was vibrating weakly, and then passed through it and ended up inside the stem. ¡°Aren''t you afraid?¡± a voice sounded nearby. The boy turned towards the source of the voice and saw a mushroom with a purple cap in front of him, from which two black horns stuck out. "There''s no one here," the boy thought. "I must have imagined it." The cap of the horned mushroom lifted, and the boy saw a black hole on the white stem that looked like a mouth. "What are you doing here?" a voice came from the "mouth." "I don''t know," the boy answered. "I just didn''t want to sleep, so that the electric penguin wouldn''t come to me." "You''re already asleep if you''re here." The boy looked around. There was only a coniferous forest with glowing mushrooms and a lake surrounded by mountains. There were no creatures there. ¡°It won¡¯t come to you today,¡± a voice came from the ¡°mouth¡± of the horned mushroom. ¡°Why?¡± The mushroom cap began to move, and then rose above the stem. A girl''s head with blue hair and purple eyes appeared from the stem. The mushroom cap turned out to be her headdress. ¡°My name is Sanachan, I am the spirit of mushrooms,¡± the girl introduced herself. ¡°I protect your sleep from the electric penguin with the help of these antennas.¡± Sanachan touched her horns with her hands, and they began to partially glow with blue-green energy. ¡°These horns are antennas,¡± the spirit of mushrooms said. ¡°With their help, I transmit signals to the brains of creatures when they sleep and I receive information. Because of this, instead of a bad dream, you have this dream.¡± ¡°You also have antennas, like that penguin,¡± the boy noted. - But you''re not evil. ¡°I just stay up so you can sleep.¡± ¡°You can''t sleep?¡± ¡°Eeeh... It''s too early for you to know.¡± ¡°I... I¡¯ll grow up and make sure you can sleep.¡± Sanachan smiled. ¡°You are too small to talk about this,¡± the mushroom spirit said. ¡°When you grow up, we will meet and talk about how to bring back my dreams. In the meantime, go home. Children need to sleep. You are already sleeping, but you will sleep better without dreams.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll find you, spirit of mushrooms,¡± the boy promised. ¡­ Itinit clenched his fist. The barrier-trap slammed shut. The energy ¡°eye¡± disappeared, after which it appeared above the guy¡¯s head in order to burst. Itinit was saved by a blue translucent barrier that automatically appeared around him, and after the attack, it also automatically disappeared. ¡°I have already grown up, the spirit of mushrooms,¡± Itinit looked at the door of the residence behind him. "But I remember my promise. I will return your sleep." Above the courtyard, Myuryuri appeared again, and behind it, a large blue energy circle with round cells in which energy "eyes" of different colors were placed: blue, purple, pink, blue-green, yellow. ¡°Your eye couldn''t cope, and you called the others?¡± Itinit smiled. ¡°It looks like you overestimate me. One will be enough for me.¡± In response, the blue "eye" began to accumulate energy, but this time it happened too quickly, in a couple of moments. A blue beam flew out of the pupil. Itinit managed to create an empty energy ball and then jumped to the side. The beam hit the decoy and destroyed it, and then began moving towards the real enemy. Chapter 48. Dolls House Itinit looked at the beam of blue light and wondered what to do with it, but then noticed a higher priority threat: a purple "eye" that separated from the slot. Itinit had no doubt that this "eye" would explode, so he fired an energy ball with a clot of purple energy inside towards it. But the "eye" dodged the ball and headed straight for the enemy. Itinit swiped his finger through the air and summoned an energy barrier, which then formed into a sphere. A beam of blue energy hit it and stopped. The purple "eye" also reached the wall of the barrier and stopped moving. Itinite''s ball with the clot of energy turned around and flew towards Myuryuri. A pink "eye" activated in one of the cells, accompanied by a bright glow. The energy circle that connected all the cells changed color to pink for a moment. Three blue ¡°eyes¡± appeared in the empty cells, which almost instantly charged and released rays of energy from their pupils. Two of them missed, but the third was the thickest and hit the enemy''s ball. An explosion occurred near the circle with the "eyes". The blue "eye" that hit the target was itself destroyed. In response, the pink "eye" was activated again. The destroyed blue "eye" reappeared in its original place. Meanwhile, two "eyes": purple and blue, resisted the enemy''s barrier and quite successfully. Soon its walls began to flicker, after which it disappeared under the pressure of a blue beam and an explosion of the purple "eye", which left behind a small vortex with the remains of energy. Itinit was thrown towards the smoking remains of a wooden building that had recently burned down from his character''s fire. The guy managed to stay on his feet, but noticed that an energy beam from the blue "eye" was approaching him, followed by reinforcements. Itinit''s position became dangerous. Three beams were flying at him at once, cutting the ground in their path. ¡°Why did the spirit of mushrooms create it?¡± Itinit thought. "Did this creature really appear in her brain and then be extracted from there?" Itinit covered himself in a blue aura that enhanced his energy abilities, and then jumped back. A large ball of energy appeared in his hand with a clot of gray smoke inside. "If these are eyes, then I need to deprive them of the ability to see," Itinit thought. ¡°But it will be strange if Myuryuri does not bypass this restriction.¡± The pink "eye" activated again and restored the purple "eye" in the cell. Then the blue-green "eye" activated and colored the energy circle blue-green. "The pink "eye" restores damage, and the blue-green one replenishes energy. The yellow one should remove negative effects." The beams of blue energy were approaching. Itinit threw a ball with a clot of smoke towards them, and it was almost instantly destroyed. An additional cloud from the ball was added to the smoke that was emitted from the remains of the burnt house. What Itinit had predicted happened. In the thick smoke screen, the blue "eyes" stopped "seeing" the enemy and stopped attacking with beams from their "pupils". "Now I have only one chance. I need to destroy the pink ''eye'' so that it can''t restore the others." Itinit accumulated energy in his hand and created a large blue ball with a clot of purple energy inside using his aura. "If only I could hit it". Itinit released the ball with trembling fingers. The guy''s heart stopped for a moment. He took a mask from his inventory to avoid breathing in the smoke and looked closely at the gray cloud, although he saw nothing in it... ¡­ There was an explosion that cleared the air a little. A pink light appeared in the courtyard, and then a pink semicircle. "I missed," Itinit decided. "It was naive to hope for that. But I tried. Now I can only accept my fate." In fact, the attack was not a failure. The pink light was a healing "eye" that restored the lower, destroyed part of the energy circle along with the blue "eyes". Suddenly, Itinit saw a blue-green light that belonged to the eye that restored energy, and realized that he had given up so early in vain: "I need to attack it while he is restoring his strength. I still have a chance, but it is the very last one." On the shore of the lake, the confrontation between the united fire dog girl and the doll sisters continued. Noruluya released several fireballs from her aura at her opponents, but all of them were blocked by their shields. "I''ll have to go straight at them," the dog girl looked at her claws, engulfed in flames. ¡°Noru, Kimchan, I don¡¯t want to burn these stupid little sisters.¡± While Noruluya was thinking, the dolls went on the attack. Suturu summoned a purple energy circle, which began to spin and released energy darts. Aibi slammed her axe into the ground in front of her, causing a green acid pool to form, which released several acid bubbles. Noruluya dodged the darts and then took the form of a comet and circled around the dolls from the side. The energy circle, along with Suturu''s hand, moved after the enemy, but did not have time to aim. Things were no better with Aibi''s skills. The acid bubbles moved too slowly, so they stopped pursuing the dog girl and hung in the air. Noruluya tried to attack the enemies from behind, but stopped near a ditch of acid that suddenly appeared around the dolls. At the moment of the dog girl''s movement, Aibi swung her axe around herself and her sister, causing the acid pool to expand. Suturu aimed an energy circle at the enemy, fired darts, but missed. Noruluya disappeared and left behind a flash of fire. ¡°Aibi, you¡¯re not stupid,¡± Suturu looked at her sister. ¡°I didn¡¯t think you could stop someone on fire from approaching us.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not stupid either, Suturu,¡± Aibi answered. ¡°You were able to blow up someone who was burning.¡± Suturu looked up and saw a flash of fire, from which Noruluya appeared in a fiery aura. ¡°Someone who was burning didn¡¯t explode,¡± Suturu pointed upward. "Someone burning just disappeared." Noruluya stayed in the air for a few moments, and then made a rapid jump upside down. The dolls were scattered in pieces in opposite directions. The acid and the energy circle disappeared - there was no one to support them anymore. Noruluya was on all fours, breathing heavily and looking at the burning hair of one of the dolls. "What have I done?" the dog girl looked around and thought. ¡°I destroyed these doll sisters. Forgive me, Noru, Kimchan. I can no longer be with you."Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Noruluya looked up at the sky, exhaled deeply, and closed her eyes. The fire beneath the dog girl''s feet flared brightly, and then lifted her into the air. There, high above the island, she split into two comets that began to fall to the ground... ¡­Kimchan and Noru stood opposite each other with their mouths open and tongues hanging out, surrounded by fiery auras. Tears were simultaneously flowing from their eyes and then evaporating. ¡°Sistel...¡± Noru said. ¡°Sistel¡­¡± Kimchan repeated. The dog girls ran at each other, and when they met, their fingers intertwined. Their long tongues still hung out of their mouths, making it difficult to talk. But this did not bother the sisters. They understood each other without words. The fire on their bodies gradually died down. Noru and Kimchan stood on the shore of the lake and did not notice how the sun disappeared behind the slope of the crater and now emitted an orange glow from there. The sisters did not care, because now they were finally together. ¡°It¡¯s a pity that we don¡¯t have another sister with us,¡± Noru finally stuck her tongue in her mouth and was able to talk. ¡°She will always be with us as long as we are together,¡± Kimchan followed the example of her ¡°older sister.¡± ¡°Sorry, Noruluya,¡± the dog girls thought at the same time and looked at the sky. *** Halankuo looked at the doll''s lifeless face and couldn''t understand anything for a long time. Finally, some impulse in her brain pulled the girl out of her stupor. ¡°Who are you?¡± Halankuo asked. ¡°Your little sister, Sitihi,¡± the doll answered. "Let me talk to her," the older sister''s voice said. Halankuo felt her consciousness separate from her body, but not completely. She saw a doll in front of her with a head in her hand, a blue glow coming from its eyes and open mouth, she heard speech, but she could not understand it. The girl realized that she had changed places with her mother. A few moments later, Halankuo rose from the coffin and followed the doll somewhere. Her body did not obey her, and the girl felt like a spectator in a first-person game. Sitihi stopped at the opposite end of the dungeon, near a large stone door, and said something. "We''re going in now," Halankuo''s mother''s voice warned. "Don''t be afraid." Sitihi summoned a wrench, and then placed it on a slot carved into the door. Halankuo''s body placed its wrench on a similar slot nearby. After a few moments, a round light bulb at the top of the door, which had been invisible in the semi-dark room, activated with a blue glow. The doll and her "sister" removed the keys from the slots. The door slid open with a bang and revealed a corridor that gradually went underground and disappeared into the darkness. Sitihi took a step forward. Blue lights began to appear in the darkness one by one, uniting into two lines... The darkness dissipated a little. The lights turned out to be the eyes of the dolls'' heads, which were hanging on the walls between the stone doors. "This is our crypt," Halankuo heard her mother''s voice. "The bodies of our relatives who lived long ago are here." "Why are they here?" Halankuo asked mentally. "And the doll heads? What are they doing here?" "My little sister will tell you about that. She is a doll, so she understands them better than I do." Halankuo felt her consciousness return to her body. She lowered her head and saw her own hand in front of her, which finally moved as she wished. ¡°There are many doors here,¡± Sitihi said. ¡°I couldn¡¯t open them without you.¡± ¡°Does she still consider me her sister?¡± Halankuo asked mentally. "I didn''t tell her what happened to me," mother''s voice answered. "It''s too hard for a doll to understand. It would be better if you pretended to be me." Halankuo didn''t like pretending, but in this situation the girl decided to listen to her mother. "Are there dolls in these rooms?" Halankuo asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Sitihi answered. ¡°Their heads hang near the doors. Inside the rooms there should be coffins with the bodies of dolls without heads. If you don''t remove the head, the doll will move. That''s why they are stored disassembled.¡± ¡°Do they remove their arms and legs too?¡± ¡°Sometimes. The arms and legs don''t get in the way, but the brain is in the head. It''s too important for dolls.¡± Sitihi walked to the first door along the corridor, after which she looked at the doll''s head next to her. The face with the blue glowing eyes seemed indistinguishable from the face of the weapon head. If it weren''t for the pink hair that hung down and reached halfway down the wall, this head and the head in Sitihi''s hand would have looked the same. "It''s a healing doll," Sitihi explained. "She has pink hair." "The color of the doll''s hair depends on her abilities," the voice in Halankuo''s head suggested. "It can be the color of her aura and abilities, although not necessarily." Sitihi moved to the next door, and then looked at the head on the wall next to her. Her purple hair only reached her chin, which also distinguished her from the identical heads around her. "This doll can fly," Sitihi noted. "She has a purple aura, which means she has a special connection with the element of air." "All of our relatives are connected with the element of air," the voice in Halankuo''s head continued. Sitihi approached the next head. Red hair peeked out from under a metal, elongated helmet with purple feathers. ¡°This doll turned itself into a doll,¡± Sitihi said. ¡°It wears a helmet with feathers. It also has red hair that is not related to the elements.¡± ¡°Can people really do this to themselves?¡± Halankuo frowned. "Yes," Sitihi answered. "That happens sometimes. As you can see, there are many of our relatives here. They all became dolls, and then someone took them apart and put them here." Halankuo walked a few steps down the hallway, looking at the heads on the walls. Suddenly, she realized the horror of this place. All of these heads belonged to people who looked like her and her mother, who had become dolls, and right in front of her stood one of them, only it was not disassembled. This doll moved and spoke. ¡°Maybe we can open the door together?¡± Sitihi turned her head towards Halankuo, but her body remained in the same position. ¡°We managed to open the door to this corridor together.¡± Halankuo wanted to turn back and run away, but remembered that Kyotyoryon was looking for her on the surface. She was more afraid of a sudden meeting with her character than she was of the lifeless dolls. Halankuo looked at the door and noticed a carved stone slot for a wrench on the right. There was another slot on the left, and a round light bulb above the two. "I agree," Halankuo said. "Let''s open the door together." Sitihi approached her "sister", and they simultaneously applied their wrenches to the slots in the door. The light bulb activated with a blue glow, and the door slid aside. The doll was right. Inside was a room with a stone coffin on a pedestal, but with a closed lid. Sitihi pointed the key at the lid, and then pushed it aside. Halankuo turned away so as not to see the headless body, even if it was a doll''s. "Little sis, there''s nothing there," Sitihi''s voice sounded. "No head?" Halankuo asked. ¡°There is nothing. The coffin is empty.¡± Halankuo turned around. The coffin was indeed empty. "This is the coffin for me," the voice in Halankuo''s head explained. "I recognize it." Halankuo looked at the head in Sitihi''s hands, then ran out of the room and looked at the wall near the door. The head that should have been there was missing. There was only a metal rod sticking out of the stone wall. "What does this mean, mother?" Halankuo couldn''t understand. "I didn''t want to tell you our story, but I have to," the voice in the girl''s head answered. "Just don''t be afraid." Halankuo felt her mind separating from her body again. The dungeon disappeared into darkness, but soon the darkness was replaced by a village courtyard with a palisade and a sandbox, in which some object lay. "Halankuo" did not want to approach the sandbox, since she guessed what was lying there, but she approached, because she did not control her body. Fortunately, the scary object was not a doll''s head, but just the handle of a small shovel sticking out of the sand. "Halankuo" sat down on the sand and reached out her hand to the object she hadn''t wanted to see a few moments ago, but then she heard a scream and stopped: ¡°Sis, this is mine!¡± A girl half the height of an adult approached the sandbox. She was wearing a blue dress almost to her knees, stockings and shoes. Blue ribbons were braided into her long black hair. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to take your shovel,¡± ¡°Halankuo¡± took her hand away from the object in the sand. "Halankuo" looked at the ribbons in her "sister''s" hair and understood what it meant: ¡°Will you become a doll?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Sitihi answered. ¡°Mom says that my head is still small now. When it grows, Mom can pick around in there.¡± Sitihi looked down. A few tears fell onto the sand: ¡°I don''t want to be a doll. I don''t want my head to be picked around. But dolls have hair of a different color. They are beautiful.¡± "Halankuo" hugged her "sister". ¡°Let¡¯s run away when you grow up,¡± ¡°Halankuo¡± suggested. Sitihi cried for a while, then went to the shovel, picked it up and threw it over the fence. The surroundings changed again to darkness and that to a dungeon. Now Halankuo could control her body. In front of her stood her already grown-up "little sister", but in the form of a doll. ¡°As you can see, I couldn¡¯t save Sitihi from turning into a doll,¡± mother¡¯s voice explained. "Unfortunately, I can''t show you the next episode. It would be too much." "How is that possible?" Halankuo turned away to the empty wall. "Our ancestors were doll makers. This crypt is their repository. They turned their children into dolls when they grew up. I ran away from them so as not to become a doll, but Sitihi could not. I am very ashamed in front of her. It is good that she does not feel anything." Halankuo turned around and saw Sitihi''s face, whose eyes were moving slowly. Chapter 49. Rain of Fire Sunset was approaching. Myuryuri was "hanging" in the air above the fortress courtyard and did not attack. It was restoring energy with his blue-green "eye" and waiting for the smoke to clear. This was it mistake. A large blue energy ball with some kind of glowing object inside flew out of the smoke cloud. The blue "eyes" behind Myuryuri emitted beams from their pupils, but they were so weak that they only destroyed the energy shell itself. The object inside the ball turned out to be Itinite''s pot. It was already charged and glowing from the blue energy that was filling it. Myuryuri didn''t expect this. A powerful beam of blue light hit its own barrier. "How could he do that?" the horned mammoth head was shocked. "He hid his most powerful skill in a simple ball of energy, and I didn''t notice. Could he really fight me?" Myuryuri realized that he had greatly underestimated his opponent. It barrier shrank slightly under the onslaught of the thick blue energy beam, and then began to flicker. ¡°Is it possible that now my barrier, which cannot be destroyed, will burst? It''s unlikely that he has accumulated so much energy, but it''s better to believe it." The blue-green "eye" dimmed, but a yellow one activated in its place. The energy circle changed color again. Clots of yellow energy formed within the barrier. They disappeared shortly after they appeared, but stopped the enemy''s skills. The barrier stopped flickering, and then suddenly increased in size and threw the pot back... The cloud of smoke instantly blew away, and the pot dissolved into thin air. Itinit saw Myuryuri inside a huge blue energy "eye" with a glowing pupil. "It seems that this is his most powerful ability," Itinit only now realized how powerful an opponent he was fighting. "It turned own bubble into an ''eye'' and can now control the beam using the signal from the antennas." The blue aura that surrounded Myuryuri''s horns and tusks grew larger and reached the ''pupil'', a bright clot of energy in the middle of the barrier, from where a very thick beam then shot out... ¡­ Itinit hid behind the remains of a wooden wall that had not burned due to the high humidity. The guy no longer had an aura. All his energy had gone into filling the pot. The air began to vibrate and whistle. A few steps from Itinit, a beam of blue light as wide as a window frame flashed past and rushed toward the slope of the crater. Itinit felt a powerful influx of energy that fed the space around him. This, oddly enough, helped him restore his aura and jump back. But then it got worse. Itinit felt anxiety mixed with fear. It was a feeling he had never experienced before. The area around him was engulfed in darkness, which suddenly appeared and just as suddenly was replaced by a cave full of glowing energy mushrooms of different colors. Near the wall where there were no mushrooms, a mammoth head with horns and tusks was flying inside a round blue energy barrier. It looked at the entrance from the cave, from where a bright white light was coming. "The creator does not come," Itinit heard Myuryuri''s voice in his head. "She promised, but she does not come. Maybe she will come tomorrow?" Myuryuri flew to the entrance to look outside the cave, but one of the blue mushrooms got in it way: it released its cap, and it turned into a barrier. "Again, I could not get out of here," Myuryuri''s voice rang out. "How do I find the creator? I can''t leave here.¡± A clot of blue energy appeared near Myuryuri, which began to take on a round shape, but soon disappeared. "I can''t even concentrate energy," the voice in Itinit''s head continued. "If I could, I would break through this barrier and escape from here, and then find the creator." Myuryuri didn''t notice Itinit. Moreover, he even passed through it once, after which Itinit realized that he was in the memories of this strange creature. The white light in the entrance hole changed to orange, and then disappeared altogether. Night came. The cave was illuminated only by mushrooms. Itinit approached the barrier, passed through it, but ended up in the same cave, only this time Myuryuri was not alone there. Next to him stood a girl in a purple dress and a hat with black horns. "This is Sanachan," Itinit recognized the mushroom spirit and almost cried. "She came to her character." But Sanachan did not notice Itinit. She stood in front of Myuryuri and looked at the floor. ¡°Sorry, Myuryuri, for not coming to you,¡± the spirit of the mushrooms said. "It must have been a long time.¡± ¡°More than two thousand days have passed,¡± the mammoth¡¯s head answered. ¡°I counted how many times the light appears in the hole and how many times it disappears.¡± ¡°Yes? I didn''t count. I told you that I can''t come to you often. My horns emit a very powerful signal. It can be felt even on the mainland. That''s why I have to live in a special place that is very far from the rest of the world.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you take me with you? I asked you to...¡± Sanachan looked at Myuryuri. ¡°We can¡¯t be together,¡± the spirit of the mushrooms said. ¡°Because of my signal, I can attract someone. There are many dangerous creatures in the world that you don''t even know about. But they exist. If they sense where I am, they can come for me. That''s why you can''t be with me.¡± ¡°Creator,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°I will protect you. I will become the strongest, and then we can be together.¡± ¡°It''s not that simple, Myuryuri. But don''t worry. It was not in vain that I was gone for so long. I created an island in the sea where you can live with the mushrooms.¡± ¡°But mushrooms will not replace you for me, creator. They''re not you.¡± ¡°I created them with my thoughts, just like you. They are my characters in a way, even though they can''t speak or think.¡± Sanachan turned away, and then walked through the energy barrier that blocked the entrance to the cave. The barrier disappeared, after which the spirit of the mushrooms turned to its character and looked at him. Myuryuri flew up to the creator and saw a conical mountain floating on a gray-blue sea. ¡°This is your home now,¡± Sanachan said. ¡°It is very large. I hope you will not be lonely in it.¡± ¡°I will become stronger and be able to protect you, creator,¡± Myuryuri promised. ¡°Then we will live there together.¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. The cave and the mountain in the sea were hidden by darkness, and soon a stream of blue energy vibrated in front of Itinit again, breaking through the slope of the crater and going somewhere further. Itinit jumped back, but then heard a vibration behind him... The sound belonged to two blue beams that Itinit had not noticed in time. They were already a few steps away from the guy and were actively drilling the ground. Itinit realized that he was surrounded and there was no point in resisting. Suddenly, his hand itself pulled out an oblong black object from his inventory, the same robot handle with which he had recently walked through the forest on the Southern Continent. The handle took over the energy from the aura and turned into a sword, which stopped the beam. "I don''t need to battle anymore," Itinit thought. "I''ve done enough for her to come." But the hand with the "sword" for some reason continued to resist, and even deflected the beam back to the "eye". Other beams were coming from the side, and it was impossible to dodge them, because they were too long. The second hand also did not obey its owner and released a ball with a clot of purple energy to meet the enemy''s skills. One of the beams pierced the shell of the ball and released a clot of energy, causing Itinite''s aura to turn purple, and then a powerful stream of wind pushed him upwards... Itinit looked down and noticed how the beams on the ground almost connected, and realized how lucky he was, although he soon became convinced of the opposite. Myuryuri, inside a huge energy "eye", "hung" in the air above the fortress''s courtyard, and behind it, an energy circle with smaller, multi-colored "eyes" shone. "This is the end after all," Itinit sighed. "There is no point in dragging out this battle any longer." Itinit looked at the sky, which had become almost dark. The sun had finally disappeared behind the slope of the crater, and the stars did not appear from behind the clouds: "If she does not come, I will not see the sun anymore. When the purple aura disappears, I will fall. Forgive me, Noru, Kimchan. You will have to live without me. It is good that you have Noruluya." But the purple aura not only did not let the guy go, but also allowed him to slowly move through the air above the fortress. The pupil on Myuryuri''s barrier moved after the enemy, but could not detect Itinit due to the distance and darkness. At the same time, the creature itself saw something purple in the sky, but could not convey it to its "eyes". ¡°It¡¯s getting too dark,¡± Myuryuri mentally noted. "My barriers can''t see him without a light source, but I can see him. But that''s okay. I know how my skills work." The "eye barrier" around Myuryuri changed color. It was now a huge white lantern that illuminated most of the crater. The "eyes" on the circle received the necessary amount of light and focused on the enemy. Itinit realized that he was about to be cut by some beam, and decided to look at the dark sky one last time. But instead of stars, he saw bright flashes of light that appeared in different places and became larger. "This is "Rain of Fire", Noruluya''s most powerful skill. It seems that Noru and Kimchan finally met. Only together can they do such a thing." The sky burst into fireworks. At first, fiery comets simply exploded in the sky and sparks fell to the ground, and then a real "fire rain" began to fly. Blue energy beams shot out of the "eyes", but instead of hitting the enemy, they hit the comets and exploded them... Itinit watched as the clots of fire rushed past and understood that soon one of them would hit him. But the "fire rain" stopped as suddenly as it began. Itinit noticed a small light in the middle of the crater, which went out. "Noruluya," Itinit thought. "You were my first character. Thank you for supporting me even when you don''t have the energy yourself." Of course, "Rain of Fire ", like any elemental skill, did not harm Myuryuri''s energy barriers, but it did buy Itinit some time. ... The scary electric penguin no longer haunted the boy''s dreams. Now he waited with anticipation for when he would fall asleep, because there was a whole world waiting for him there, so different from this one. He could go there after a hard day at school, where they forced him to learn incomprehensible symbols, and where he could accidentally hit him on the head with a chair. Almost every night, the boy walked in the coniferous forest around the lake, played with glowing mushrooms and listened to the stories of the spirit in the hat with horns. Over time, the boy began to consider this place his home. One day, he fell asleep and found himself in a forest on the shore of a lake, but the spirit of the mushrooms was no longer there. The multi-colored mushrooms no longer glowed. They had turned to stone. Only one blue mushroom was still emitting a bright light. The boy approached it and pressed the cap with his hand. A screen with blue symbols appeared above the mushroom. "If you feel bad, call me," the boy read. ... The purple aura around Itinit disappeared, and he began to fall down. But before he crashed to the ground, he stretched out his hand, and... From the ground appeared that same blue mushroom, the last one that once upon a time had emitted light in a dream. Itinit''s hand fell on its cap, just like back then, in childhood. The mushroom began to vibrate, and threw Itinit aside, after which he landed on his feet. Energy began to accumulate inside the stem, and the cap glowed brightly, and then went out. Finally, the cap began to move and flew up together with small clots of blue energy, which scattered in different directions and began to slowly descend to the ground, like sparks from fireworks... The stem began to grow and soon took the form of a humanoid creature in a dress, with arms and legs, but no head. "She has come," Itinit could not tear his eyes away from the blue glowing silhouette. "I have waited so long for this. Finally, I will see her for real." The silhouette turned into a girl in a purple dress, stockings and boots, who stood with her back to Itinit. She was missing a head, but not for long: the mushroom cap that flew up landed on her neck. Then the cap was pierced by black horns with blue energy veins, after which purple hair appeared under it. The image was complete. ¡°You called me?¡± the girl turned her head to Itinit. The guy opened his mouth, but couldn''t say anything. All his feelings seemed to have stopped, and even thoughts almost didn''t appear in his brain. ¡°I know what¡¯s happening here,¡± Sanachan said. ¡°And I always knew. But I hoped that my character would be happy, because he has a home and creatures with whom he can be together. I''ll have to help it.¡± A purple energy circle with an image of a mushroom inside appeared under the girl''s feet. Sanachan turned her head towards the wooden fortress, which was burning from the comets that had hit it, and noticed a white glowing ball among the fire and smoke: "Myuryuri... I will not abandon you anymore." The purple circle under Sanachan''s feet exploded, endowed her with an aura and lifted her above the island. A purple energy crossbow with a mushroom of the same color appeared in the spirit''s hands. Sanachan aimed her weapon at the white glowing ball, pulled the mushroom stem with her hand like a bowstring, and then let go. The stem hit the cap like a string and made it shoot. Myuryuri noticed something flying at him, but it didn''t have time to react. The mushroom arrow hit the pink "eye" on the energy circle and exploded along with it. Myuryuri turned to the circle behind it and saw an empty slot in place of the healing "eye". ¡°It has disappeared,¡± the head of the horned mammoth thought. "Now I won''t be able to restore the barriers. Could it really be her...?¡± Myuryuri looked up and saw a girl in a dress and a hat with horns above it. She held a crossbow in one hand and pulled out a new mushroom arrow with the other. "Creator," Myuryuri recognized the girl immediately. "Why did you destroy my healing barrier?" "To help you," the spirit of mushrooms looked away. "I didn''t give you this island so you could release dangerous creatures and attack others. I gave you this island so you could have a home, and I populated it with creatures so you wouldn''t be lonely." ¡°But creator... Without you, I don¡¯t need this island. Now I''m stronger. I can protect you if your signal attracts someone dangerous.¡± ¡°We''ll check that now.¡± A mushroom arrow flew out from Sanachan''s crossbow. Myuryuri "responded" with three beams from his blue "eyes" and one from the pupil of his own "barrier eye", but they missed their target. The mushroom arrow hit the blue-green "eye" that was restoring energy. Myuryuri aimed the beams at the creator, but she simply disappeared, and then appeared behind her. The mushroom arrow appeared in her crossbow again, but this time a purple circle appeared in front of her. The arrow flew out of the crossbow, passed through the circle, and then multiplied: instead of one mushroom, there were five. They all flew into the cells of the energy circle, which was now quite close to them. Only one "eye", the purple one managed to escape. The pupil in the "barrier eye" around Myuryuri himself stopped releasing the beam and moved to the back, noticed the enemy''s attack and managed to pass on the order to only one of his "subordinates¡±... The purple "eye" dodged the mushroom arrow and flew through Sanachan in one motion. A round hole formed in the girl''s stomach, through which the mushroom arrow flew, reached its opponent and exploded along with him. "That''s something," Sanachan smiled. "But, unfortunately, it''s not enough.¡± A pink energy mushroom appeared in the girl''s free hand. Sanachan brought it to her mouth, grabbed the cap with her teeth, and then tore it off. The mushroom exploded and released sparks of healing energy. The hole in her stomach filled with pink energy, causing her body to fully recover after a few moments. ¡°I don¡¯t sleep so that others can sleep,¡± Sanachan extended her hand to Myuryuri. "But today will be different. We will sleep together." Chapter 50. Eternal Dream in Reality - Volume 1 end The energy circle with empty slots disappeared. The pupil inside the "eye-barrier" moved chaotically and tried to find it, but could not. "You destroyed the barriers on the Ring of the Four Elements?" Myuryuri guessed. "But you won''t be able to break through my barrier. You yourself said that it is impossible to break through it." "Did you believe it?" Sanachan smiled. "Your barrier is really strong. Even I don''t have the strength to break through it. But why hit it if you can do it differently?" A clot of dark blue energy appeared in the free hand of the mushroom spirit: ¡°Not everything is decided by strength.¡± Sanachan raised her hand up, released the clot, and it turned into a black mushroom with dark blue energy veins and a ring of energy of the same color around the stem. ¡°This mushroom will suck the energy out of me,¡± Myuryuri guessed. ¡°But I know what to do with it.¡± A beam of blue energy shot out from the pupil of the "barrier eye" and headed for the new formation above the opponent''s head. Sanachan realized this, summoned a large blue energy mushroom and put its cap towards the beam, like an umbrella... The cap opened, took the beam''s impact and blocked it. Myuryuri''s horns and tusks "lit up" with a bright glow, and then transmitted an additional charge of energy into the pupil along the energy threads. "You transmit a signal to the pupil," Sanachan noted. "By default, the beam is aimed at the first object it comes across. But with the help of the signal, you can change its direction. Why did I then, many years ago, see an image with antennas?" The beam from the pupil shifted to the side. Sanachan wanted to save her mushroom, but at the decisive moment, the purple aura that held her in the air disappeared. The spirit of the mushrooms began to fall down. ¡­ When Sanachan''s body was a few steps from the ground, a hidden purple mushroom came out. The spirit''s feet landed on the cap¡­ ¡­ The mushroom''s stem acted like a spring and pushed the cap out, and the cap threw Sanachan up and gave her a purple aura. Meanwhile, a beam of light moved towards a black mushroom with dark blue veins. Sanachan aimed a crossbow with a purple "arrow" at it in flight, and then pulled it back by the "bowstring". The mushroom arrow intercepted the beam and exploded. The beam disappeared, having fulfilled its purpose. The black mushroom with dark blue veins threw up its cap and released from its stem a multitude of dark blue energy spores, which began to slowly descend. The white light inside the "barrier eye" went out. For a few moments, it disappeared into the darkness of the night. Now its shell and pupil were purple, which immediately gave a hint to the enemy. "You are going to escape so that the spores do not absorb your energy," Sanachan thought. "But even if you go beyond the radius of the skill, you will not be able to leave the island." The energy around Myuryuri''s horns and tusks changed color to purple, and then transferred to the pupil. The "eye barrier" disappeared. The dark blue spores did not have time to reach it and continued to descend to the ground. Sanachan looked around. The island was hidden in darkness, and the cloudy sky did not allow the stars and even the moon to appear on it. "It''s good that I limited you to the boundaries of the foot of the volcano," Sanachan thought. "You can''t even get to the shore." The veins on the mushroom spirit''s horns were activated by a bright blue light. The glow was transmitted to his eyes, and the purple aura disappeared. Sanachan began to fall again. This time, a mushroom was waiting for her below, but not purple, but blue. It did not throw the spirit up, but gave her its aura. "I see. You decided not only to avoid my spores, but also to lure me into a trap." Sanachan''s horns and eyes "went out." The spirit jumped to the ground and immediately stepped on a purple mushroom, which threw her up and gave her its aura... Myuryuri, inside a huge purple "eye-barrier", waited for his creator on the lower slope of a volcano, which abruptly ended in front of a shore with black sand. It could not go further. An invisible barrier, through which attacks and other creatures passed, did not let the character through... "You should sleep," a familiar voice said from the nearby forest. "You''ve been too tired for now." Myuryuri quickly found the creator. Her purple aura glowed brightly in the darkness at the top of one of the trees. ¡°I don¡¯t want to sleep,¡± Myuryuri said. ¡°I want to live with you, creator. I want to live in this world, not in the world of dreams. That world is not real. It only gives hope, but does not fulfill wishes. It is dead, and I want to live in the living world, like other creatures. I want to truly live.¡± A blue aura surrounded Myuryuri''s horns and tusks, but it was thicker than before. The energy from them gradually began to be transmitted to the pupil, and clots of energy appeared in the "barrier eye". "I don''t want to use Eternal Dream in Reality, but there is no other way to save you," Sanachan pulled the edge of her hat with her hand. "If this world does not accept you, another will." The purple aura that surrounded the mushroom spirit''s body disappeared. A blue energy circle with an image of a mushroom in the center appeared under her feet, causing her eyes to emit a blue glow again. The air around Sanachan was filled with clots of blue energy, which quickly grew and soon merged into a single formation. The surface of the island turned into energy matter for a few moments. The air vibrated so much that it shook the trees. The glow emanated from everything: from the ground, the trees, the rocks, the sand on the shore and from the lake in the center of the crater a translucent column of blue energy rose up and disappeared into the black sky. But the glow disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. The darkness returned, but not for long. Multicolored lights "lit up" all over the island, in the forests on the slopes of the volcano, in the crater and on the coast. "The creator activated the mushrooms all over the island," Myuryuri thought. "She wants to use something very powerful." The ¡°wisps¡± really were energy mushrooms. Threads of all possible colors stretched from them to Sanachan''s horns and were fixed there... A thick blue aura surrounded the spirit of mushrooms, causing her horns and eyes to glow brighter. Meanwhile, Myuryuri''s "eye barrier" was filled with purple energy about halfway and partially hid the character itself. But Sanachan''s skill prevented it. Some force pulled Myuryuri to the wall of the "eye barrier", but was unable to pull it out. Sanachan''s aura expanded so much that a stream of energy rose from it. This helped: Myuryuri''s body, surrounded by the "barrier bubble", passed through the wall of the purple "barrier eye" and found itself without protection. The connection between the creature''s antennas and the pupil was interrupted, and the violet energy stopped accumulating inside the skill. The "barrier bubble" around Myuryuri turned yellow, after which clots of yellow energy appeared inside it. This canceled the attraction of the Eternal Dream in Reality, and the head returned to the ¡°barrier eye¡±. Sanachan concentrated even more energy in herself. Her aura became like a blue cloud, and an endless stream of energy was now rising from her hat. Soon her body could not bear it: her head was torn from her neck and stopped at the end of the energy stream high in the sky. The attraction grew stronger. Myuryuri was pushed beyond the "eye-barrier" again. "The creator did not destroy the barrier, but simply pushed me out of there," thought the head of the horned mammoth. "But I still have one more barrier." The yellow energy inside the "bubble barrier" continued to accumulate, and soon hid Myuryuri itself. The mushroom spirit''s skill no longer pulled it, but it couldn''t go back either...This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Meanwhile, Sanachan''s body was under too much stress from the excess energy: even the arms separated from the body. But the barrier in which Myuryuri was located was also completely filled with energy, causing it to come out in different directions in thin beams. The walls of the barrier flickered, as if they were ready to disappear. "I''m about to...¡± a thought flashed through the horned mammoth''s head. ¡°Explode?" At the last moment, Myuryuri switched the color of the barrier around it using the signal from the antennas. The walls turned pink and stopped flickering, and the yellow energy inside disappeared. But the effect of the yellow energy, which removed negative effects and prevented their imposition, no longer worked. Myuryuri was almost instantly pulled to the head of the creator, after which the walls of it bubble barrier ran into horns... ... An explosion of pink energy occurred above Sanachan''s head. Myuryuri''s head, without a barrier, began to slowly descend to the ground... The energy flow that held Sanachan''s head weakened and it slowly sank down. At some point she met her character''s head. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Myuryuri,¡± Sanachan thought. ¡°Your life is no more. But now you will have a new life. It will be life, not a dream.¡± But the character no longer understood anything. He reached the surface and dug his tusks into the sand on the shore, where he had never been before. The "Barrier Eye" was left without its owner, and was now doomed. At first it simply flickered, but then its walls weakened so much that they could no longer hold the enormous amount of purple energy... The shore along with the adjacent part of the volcano was blown away in a couple of moments. A passage formed between the crater and the sea. Water immediately rushed there and erupted as a huge waterfall inside the island. Itinit stood near the ashes and looked at the huge wave that was approaching him and sweeping away trees and remains of buildings in its path. Thoughts appeared in his head again: "Where is the "metal bird"? I must take Noru, Kimchan and fly away from here. Nothing will happen to Etinnei and Tuot. They are in the residence." But the huge mass of water was moving too fast. Itinit remembered where he had left the flying machine, but realized that he would not have time to reach it. Fortunately, a blue energy barrier in the shape of a mushroom surrounded him, and then a clot of energy appeared nearby. "It''s her," Itinit smiled. "She''s finally come to me." The clot turned into a mushroom, inside which the silhouette of a humanoid creature in a hat with horns appeared. "Stay here," a familiar voice sounded. "I''ll lower the lake." A blue energy circle with an image of a mushroom appeared under the creature''s feet... Noru and Kimchan, who were lying on the shore of the lake, suddenly woke up from the noise of the water and saw the translucent walls of the barrier in front of them. But something even stranger was happening in the lake. A large mushroom with a blue cap emerged from the center of the reservoir. Then a girl in a hat with horns jumped on it and pressed it with her weight. The cap flattened, and the water began to quickly go down. In a few moments, the lake basin dried up, and a bottomless abyss opened up before the dog girls. The huge wave that had already been hanging over the former lake passed through their bodies and collapsed underground. *** Tuot and Etinnei stood on an ice floe in the ¡°strait¡± between the rocks, looked at the sky and waited for the energy ¡°eyes¡± to appear, but they did not appear. "I won''t be able to maintain my aura for long," Etinnei admitted. "And without it, we''ll fall into the water." "I won''t be able to maintain my aura either," Tuot admitted. "A little more and I won''t be able to use energy skills. And without them, we won''t be able to hit them." ¡°You said that only energy skills work on energy "eyes". Why then was my ice ball able to freeze it?¡± Etinnei looked at Tuot with a curious look. Her arctic fox ears moved synchronously several times. "Eh..." Tuot answered. "There is water here, and fumes come from it. Pure energy absorbs a little elemental energy, but does not change color, because there is little elemental energy. But it was enough to freeze.¡± A clot of blue energy appeared in the air. Tuot aimed the harpoon at it and was about to attack, but the clot turned not into an "eye" but into a mushroom, which slowly descended into Etinnei''s hands. "It''s vibrating," the arctic fox girl looked at the new creature. "I wonder if it''ll knock my teeth out when I eat it." The mushroom vibrated more strongly. The cap moved and then flew up. Many small clots of blue energy flew out of the stem, which were attracted to the cap and created the silhouette of a creature already familiar to the dinosaur and the arctic fox girl. "The spirit of mushrooms," Tuot and Etinnei thought at the same time. Sanachan landed on the ice floe. The greatly thinned leg of the energy mushroom in the hands of the Arctic fox girl dissolved into thin air. "Don''t go outside," Sanachan warned. "It''s not quiet there now." "But..." Tuot tried to ask. "The energy ''eyes'' aren''t here anymore," Sanachan interrupted. ¡°Myuryuri took them.¡± "Why did they appear here?" Etinnei asked. "This is your space, not its." "I created this residence to communicate with Myuryuri," Sanachan explained. "So it can come here whenever he wants. But that''s impossible now, so don''t be afraid. Just wait." Sanachan was covered in a blue aura, after which her body burst and turned into an energy bridge from the rocks to the shore. ¡°Let''s go?¡± Etinnei extended her sleeve to her friend. ¡°What if I fall?¡± Tuot took a step back. ¡°It doesn''t matter. This place is not real.¡± ¡­ Noru, Kimchan, Itinit, Tuot, and Etinnei were sitting in a mushroom-shaped pavilion on the shore of a lake in the middle of a volcanic crater. It overlooked a steep slope on the opposite shore, covered in thick, dark-green forests of tree ferns and shrubs. ¡°This place looks different,¡± Etinnei noted. ¡°The whole island used to look like this,¡± a voice said from above. The creatures looked up at the ceiling and saw Sanachan''s head hanging from there. ¡°I want it to remain like this for my character, even if it¡¯s only in a dream,¡± the spirit of mushrooms continued. ¡°The island is now destroyed. I drained the lake, and the water went deep underground. But it won¡¯t last long. The island will soon disappear. You will have to leave it, and I will remain in this shelter with Myuryuri, because it only exists in my reality.¡± Noru and Kimchan looked sadly at the floor and let out a quiet dog groan. "You don''t have to worry," Sanachan shook her head. "You have a creator." Noru and Kimchan looked at Itinit, but he turned away toward the lake. "What happened to the lizard?" Tuot asked. ¡°She will be waiting for you on the ship,¡± Sanachan said. "Do you want her?" Tuot opened his mouth and shook his head with joy. Sanachan jumped from the ceiling onto a table in the middle of the gazebo. A wooden basket with several purple energy mushrooms appeared in her hands. "Eat one mushroom," Sanachan Tuot suggested. "It will help you meet the lizard.¡± The dinosaur carefully picked up one of the mushrooms, brought it to his mouth, but then looked at Etinnei, who was sitting next to him. Sanachan noticed this and handed the basket to the Arctic fox girl. ¡°I know that you wanted to try the mushroom, but you couldn¡¯t,¡± the spirit of the mushrooms tried to fake a smile. ¡°Now your dream will come true.¡± Etinnei stuck out her tongue and moved her tail. Her eyes trembled. Then the animal girl craned her neck, grabbed the cap of one of the mushrooms with her teeth and pulled it out of the basket. "I will come to you in your dreams," Sanachan looked at Tuot. "So you don''t have to be afraid. Eat the mushroom and go to your dream." Tuot looked at Etinnei. The friends understood each other without words and simultaneously swallowed the mushrooms. A purple aura surrounded their bodies, after which they disappeared. Sanachan turned to the dog girls, who took turns licking each other''s cheeks. ¡°I need to talk with your creator,¡± the spirit of the mushrooms said. ¡°Therefore, take the gift.¡± Noru and Kimchan looked at the sky, then at each other, but still took a mushroom each, bit off the caps, received an aura and disappeared. Itinit was left alone with his savior. ¡°They want to meet their third sister, so they look at the sky,¡± Itinit explained. ¡°Are you talking about your original character?¡± ¡°Yes. When I created Noruluya, I thought I would only have one dog girl. But then she got lonely, and another character appeared inside her, similar to her. Noruluya considered her little sister. Then I brought her to you, and you extracted her.¡± ¡°If I hadn¡¯t done this, Noruluya would have generated the character again.¡± This is how the brains of the creatures from the ¡°Mausoleum of Nature¡± work. ¡°Since then, Noru and Kimchan have not been able to meet Noruluya, but for some reason they remember her. And Noruluya only appears when Noru and Kimchan turn into comets and collide with each other.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Itinit. I didn''t want to talk about it¡±. ¡°Then let''s meet in the real world¡±. ¡°You¡¯re still too weak to withstand my signal level. We met recently, and you couldn''t say anything.¡± Sanachan took the last mushroom from the basket and handed it to Itinit: ¡°You were the only one who could find me, even in a shelter. I hope that you will be the first living being who can find me in the real world and talk to me.¡± Itinit took the mushroom, brought it to his mouth and remembered the beautiful doll with pink hair that nearly killed him: "I have no luck with the opposite sex. I couldn''t talk to one doll either. At least I can talk to you in this space." ¡°But you¡¯re lucky with the animal girls,¡± Sanachan smiled. ¡°You have two or three of them.¡± ¡°They are like pets.¡± ¡°And I¡¯m like a mushroom that is kept in a jar and will someday be opened to eat.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You already have a mushroom. Eat it first.¡± Itinit smiled, but still managed to put the cap in his mouth and bite it. The guy was surrounded by a purple aura, and he left the world of mushrooms. Sanachan was left alone and looked at the ceiling, where a clot of purple energy was glowing. The gazebo began to move and headed along the energy thread to the top of the crater, above which the head of a horned mammoth hovered inside a blue barrier. "Here we are together," Sanachan sighed. *** The rain fell from the sky. Unana stood near the wooden fence and cried along with the gray sky. The deciduous trees and one coniferous tree that grew in the yard had already partially turned yellow. ¡°Unana, go home, otherwise you¡¯ll get wet and get sick,¡± a voice came from the house. But the archer continued to look at the yellow-green forest beyond the fence and cry. The rain soaked through her few clothes: a short black T-shirt and shorts. ¡°I¡¯ll stay here, Yueret,¡± Unana said. ¡°I¡¯ll wait for it.¡± A guy in a blue aura came out of the house onto the porch with an energy umbrella in his hand. ¡°You¡¯ve been standing here for a month now,¡± the brother said. ¡°Kimchan won''t come. The dinosaurs probably ate her already. She''s a dog.¡± But Unana continued to stand near the fence and cry. Yueret approached his sister and tried to grab her hand, but suddenly heard a dog moan. A brown puppy, looking like a bear cub, ran out of an open door in the fence.