Gardenia’s Heart

It was like being trapped in the eye of a storm, tossed from side to side without a moment’s reprieve, their stomachs churning intensely with each jolt.

“L-Lady Lily, please stop! J-Just a few minutes of rest!”

As she double-checked that they were heading in the right direction according to the compass, Lily paused her run and turned toward the voice’s source.

Behind her, held aloft by Nia’s tentacles, were two adult women. The first was wrapped in bandages covering her wounds, and though her queasy expression was painfully evident, she managed to stay on her feet after the tentacles gently set her down—unlike the woman beside her.

“Ughhh...! Blegh!”

Abelia collapsed to the ground, propping herself up on her forearms, and promptly expelled the remnants of the protein bars she had eaten less than an hour ago in the tent.

“Lady Abelia! Breathe calmly, inhale through your nose, and exhale slowly through your mouth. Yes, just like that!”

Despite Cleomel’s desperate attempts to help Abelia, it took far longer than a few minutes for her to stop vomiting and finally manage to sit up.

“P-Please, Lady Lily, slow down a little... please.”

The black-haired woman could feel everything spinning around her, her obsidian eyes struggling to focus on anything in the forest.

“I tried to go easy to make the trip smoother, but you’re still feeling unwell? This is already the third stop we’ve made.”

“Lady Lily was already going easy on us?!”

Shouting in surprise was her mistake, as she immediately felt another wave of stomach acid rise to her throat and collapsed back to the ground.

Lily placed a hand on her hip, uncertain how to react, and sighed before speaking.

“We just passed the last beacon marked on my map, so we’re close to Caligo. We should be able to walk from here—!”

A shrill noise cut off Lily’s words, and she quickly readied herself.

(Seventy meters northwest, a group of three.)

Nia’s voice was quick and precise, and Lily immediately fixed her gaze on the indicated direction. Not even the dense fog could block her dark mana enhanced vision.

Scratching the massive tree trunks with their long claws as they moved, the weight of their steps caused the ground to shudder slightly under their massive paws, leaving visible, deep imprints in the earth.

The three quadrupedal creatures looked like nightmares made flesh, a grotesque blend of a beastly bear and some horned abomination.

Their skin was thick and scaly, with a rough texture, while large tufts of reddish fur hung from their backs and chests. Two twisted horns jutted from their heads, imposing, and their enormous jaws emitted a guttural growl that reverberated through the forest.

“I believe they’re Horned Bears. I’ve read that there are a few nests near Caligo.”

Lily noticed that Cleomel was looking in the wrong direction, likely unable to pinpoint mana signatures like Nia, who was using her mana-location ability. Yet, Cleomel’s ability to identify their foes purely from the sound of their growls and the tremor of their movements nearly made Lily whistle in admiration.

“Shouldn’t the city take care of this?”

”From what I know, they’re rarely seen. Horned Bears are a territorial species of monster, so instead of roaming across the entire forest, they stay within their territory and attack anything that comes near. The fact that so many of them have come this far likely means they’ve sensed something threatening their domain.”

Lightly scratching her cheek as she noticed Nia’s mischievous tentacle swaying beneath her cloak, Lily cautiously studied the three Horned Bears that were approaching. It was the first time since the labyrinth that a monster sought confrontation with Nia of its own will.

“So they think my beloved wife is challenging them for their territory~?”

Lily sang in a tone only Nia could hear, and Nia’s shy voice quickly reached her.

(If you talk like that, it makes it sound like I’m the bad person in this story.)

“It’s okay to be a bad person, as long as you’re my bad girl~”

Chuckling softly, Lily began to move forward just as Cleomel’s voice reached her.

“Lady Lily, Lady Abelia is feeling better now; we can escape!”

Out of the corner of her eye, Lily glanced at Cleomel. Though unarmed, Cleomel had adopted a stance that would allow any attack to strike her rather than Abelia.

“We’re not running.”

“Please, let’s retreat. Horned Bears aren’t opponents we can handle without a plan and a larger team.”

“Just wait a moment—I’m setting the table for a feast.”

Cleomel didn’t understand what Lily meant, but she lacked the strength to flee with Abelia. Left with no choice but to trust the silver-haired woman, Cleomel wrapped her arms even tighter around her lady.

After confirming the two were secure, Lily continued forward toward the three Horned Bears, holding neither her swords nor summoning an ice blade.

“You’re in the mood for a workout, aren’t you, Nia?”

At this point, she didn’t need to ask, as she could feel Nia’s excitement in the rhythm of her heartbeat. The girl, who had consumed the second Book of Truth and significantly increased her reserves of dark mana, was eager to test her new strength.

(I promise not to make a mess.)

The shy voice, carrying a playful tone, preceded the appearance of six tentacles beneath the dark cloak.

By now, it was clear they no longer needed to draw the monsters’ attention; the bears’ target was obvious as the first of them lunged with a powerful leap, extending its sharp fangs that could easily break bones.

But as its huge jaws snapped at Lily, they found nothing but empty air. The confused Horned Bear then realized that Lily hadn’t moved; instead, its own body was restrained.

In that fleeting moment that marked the start of the battle, all six purple tentacles wrapped around its limbs, lifting its body several inches off the ground. The powerful pull of the tentacles stretched its legs in every direction, so tightly that it couldn’t even raise its claws to cut them.

The situation had shifted entirely, and the Horned Bear’s once-threatening growl transformed into a desperate snarl for survival.

Lily, merely observing without interfering, watched as sharp black ice crystals formed and sliced through the air, aiming to pierce the Horned Bear’s thick hide.

“So just the impact alone won’t be enough, huh?” she murmured, noticing how the crystals were deflected by the bear’s dense, dark fur.

Bringing a hand to her chin in thought, she noticed in her peripheral vision that the other two bears had finally entered the battle.

At first, she assumed they’d try to rescue their immobilized companion, but what happened next was unexpected. Two sets of blue claws extended from their paws, slashing in Lily’s direction—even if it meant tearing into their comrade in the process.

A large, dark sphere wrapped around Lily, shielding her from not only the claws but also from the splatters of blood as the first Horned Bear’s stomach was shredded by its companions’ strikes.

(Unlike Ice Foxes, they don’t seem to know how to work as a team.)

Lily nodded in agreement with Nia, her blue and crimson eyes fixed on the Horned Bear now writhing in agony on the forest floor, bearing multiple wounds from its allies’ reckless attacks.

The sound of snapping branches and shattered wood echoed through the forest once more. Realizing the danger the tentacles posed, the other two monsters kept a cautious distance, studying how best to launch their offensive.

Watching the nearly three-meter-tall beasts circle the dense vegetation in search of an opening made Lily chuckle softly. Knowing they were accompanied by Abelia and Cleomel, Lily sensed Nia had also concluded that using portals would be best avoided here, so she was curious to see which strategy her beloved would choose.

“How about we detonate the ice crystals?”

Though a bit extreme, Lily had seen how effective this technique could be a few times before, so it might be a way to bypass the Horned Bears’ thick skin and fur.

(I thought of that first, but seeing how the bears’ claws work when they attack gave me a different idea.)

Nia dissolved the dark sphere and retracted her tentacles. The Horned Bears, waiting for an opening, didn’t hesitate; they charged forward, each step crushing everything in their path.

In front of Lily, who hadn’t moved since the start, two black ice crystals took shape. The prism-like crystals began spinning on their axes at high speed, each rotation building torque.

(The electricity in their claws appears to be an innate trait of their species. They’re amplifying the vibration in their claws with mana, creating something like high-frequency vibrating blades.)

Nia’s explanation ended just as the Horned Bears were mere inches from Lily, and the two crystals shot forward, slamming into each bear’s forehead just above their protective horns, launching them back a dozen meters.

For the first time, Lily moved, approaching the two bears, which were now digging their claws into the ground, desperately trying to repel the ice crystals. Their furious roars clashed against the sharp, ringing hum of the piercing ice.

A wide grin spread across her face as she watched the beasts lose their struggle against only two crystals. If this forest had a king, Lily wanted to make sure that the Horned Bears learned the hard way that the true ruler here was her wife.

The ice drilled in like a furious whirlwind, spinning relentlessly, each rotation tearing at the Horned Bear’s fur little by little. Within seconds, the crystals drove deep into the creatures’ skulls, halting their movement completely.

“Good job, Nia~”

Lily couldn’t help but stroke the purple tentacles beneath her cloak; she knew how much Nia loved trying out new techniques and, even more, how much she enjoyed being praised for her discoveries.

(Thank you, Lily!) With all six of her tentacles receiving affectionate strokes, Nia felt her mind melt with joy. (Would you like me to save any part for you to sell, Lily?)

The girl looked over the two Horned Bears that Nia had defeated and the first one that had been fatally injured by its own companions. Although she could make a profit by selling the horns or fur, she knew their priority was to keep growing stronger for now.

“Go ahead and eat it all, my wicked girl~”

Reluctantly, Nia’s tentacles withdrew from Lily’s gentle fingers and began enveloping the Horned Bears. In just a few moments, the three monsters were absorbed into her.

(Thank you for the meal~)

Satisfied with her beloved’s response, Lily didn’t rush her to reveal any skills she might have gained from her “meal,” and returned to where Abelia and Cleomel were. Although the battle had taken place in thick mist, the shock in their eyes made it clear that both women had witnessed much of it.

Abelia thought it best not to ask questions. She had seen bloodshed before and unfortunately had witnessed death, but the sight of the three massive Horned Bears slowly dissolving into a colorless liquid was too much for her mind to process.

Cleomel, however, had so many questions burning inside her that she struggled to hold them back. The knight, reluctantly helping Abelia to her feet, managed to ask in an apprehensive tone, “For Lady Lily to perform such advanced defensive and offensive spells... Forgive my question, but would you happen to be a one-star mage?”

Of all the questions she could have received after the battle, Lily was thankful that this one was non-problematic.

“I’ve never been to the capital or the mages’ tower to obtain that title. After all, crossing the Connection Bridge as a commoner is almost impossible,” Lily said, crafting a plausible excuse, since she couldn’t exactly reveal that her magical abilities came from her beloved wife and that, until recently, she was a simple resident of a nameless village.

“That can’t be; Lady Lily doesn’t know?” Cleomel’s eyes widened at what she thought was a perfect answer. “Higher-star mages can grant stars to those without them or to lower-ranked mages. Caligo has two two-star mages; if you meet them, you could be recognized as a one-star mage.”

“And what would be the benefit of that?”

Before Cleomel could respond, Abelia spoke up for the first time, “A mage with at least one star can travel anywhere in the country, which means you could cross the Connection Bridge freely, without paying anything.”