Dark Fantasy’s Extra Chapter 181

In Drang Basin, there was Vile’s old laboratory and a few surviving test subjects.

Originally they would all be hunting targets, but since they had less than a year left to live and made a plea deal with the Order, they were allowed to survive.

In exchange, they would be left with minimal surveillance since they were still Beasts.

“No one’s here.”

Though we arrived in 4 days instead of 5 from Cranion, there were no guards.

“Could they all be dead?”

Hilde asked.

“No, they probably just left. There are no signs of fighting or resistance.”

The Order must have reduced unnecessary personnel after entering war footing.

The only Beasts left in Vile’s old lab were the Wonderland bosses, but they would die on their own soon and had no intention to fight anyway.

Rather than watch them, it was more rational to redirect personnel where needed.

“That works well for us. Let’s go in.”

I led Hilde and Gerda inside.

Drang Basin used to be a place with large moonstone deposits.

Thanks to the moonstone’s power, Beasts didn’t invade Drang Basin, and conversely many great artists were born there, so it was called holy ground.

But after Vile took all the moonstone, what remained was…

“Graaaaah!”

“Shaaaa!”

Beasts blocked our path.

But just one mid-tier and a few low-tiers.

Probably just some wandering ones that happened to enter.

“Hmm.”

Hilde casually swung her Executioner’s Axe and split the mid-tier Beast’s head in two.

The head cleanly split open and the brain and fluid inside dropped down.

Impeccable skill with no room for concern.

And on the other side…

“Haah!”

Gerda rushed in with her dual swords and slaughtered the low-tier Beasts.

Like a wolf rushing into a flock of sheep, she swung her blades relentlessly, cutting through Beast hide and bone like tofu.

She must be wielding ‘Sami-in’ and ‘Finland’, the exclusive weapons she received upon being assigned as a mid-ranked hunter.

Sami-in had the remarkable ability in Blue Paper Moon to recover health when attacking, but the recovery amount dropped terribly above 30% health.

Finland had a similar effect, increasing defense and attack power, but likewise the increase amount was too small above 30% health.

No matter how you looked at it, they were weapons designed for berserker-style fighting while keeping health low, with poor stability.

But Gerda was originally an NPC meant to die fighting madly like that…

…No, let’s stop thinking of people as NPCs.

“Over already.”

The battle ended before I could lift a finger.

Hilde had already far surpassed my abilities, and Gerda was physically at least my equal with custom weapons from Workshop 1 rather than standard issue.

At least not wasting time is good.

We headed straight into Vile’s old laboratory.

The lab was much dirtier compared to before.

Though bloodstains and battle debris had been cleaned up, dust had accumulated from long neglect.

Plus with no electricity now, the lights were out and automatic doors didn’t work.

And deep underground, someone was already waiting at the entrance to Wonderland.

“It’s been a while.” 

Time Rabbit said, holding a lamp in the dark underground corridor with no lights.

“I thought you weren’t interested in us anymore.”

“I need help.”

“Help? Well, come in and tell me the details first. You’re always welcome.”

“The rabbit talks…”

“So cute…”

Hilde and Gerda who saw Time Rabbit for the first time watched him curiously.

We followed Time Rabbit inside.

And the moment we opened the lab door I’d seen once before, the entire scenery changed.

Clear blue sky and fluffy clouds.

A subtle warmth from the quaint buildings… or not?

Though the daytime sky I hadn’t seen in a while was welcome, everything else was different from my memory.

It used to feel like a fantastical fairy tale village, but now the overall atmosphere was gloomy.

“What brings you here?”

Queen of Hearts appeared and asked.

“It’s been a while… or…”

I tried to greet her but words failed me.

Queen of Hearts used to look cute like a large stuffed doll.

But now her cute dress was all tattered and the crown on her head had lost its shine.

Above all, half her face had turned pitch black.

“You’ve… changed quite a bit.”

Right. Their original lifespan was less than a year.

Several months had already passed so changes weren’t strange.

But Time Rabbit still looked fine…

“You’ve changed too. Are you still human?”

“For now.”

As expected, they could tell right away.

“What brings you here? I thought your Order didn’t care about us anymore.”

“I’m not here as an Order hunter… I came to save a friend.”

I explained the situation to Queen of Hearts.

That my friend, a sorcerer, had turned into a witch-like being, and we needed Mad Hatter’s watch again to turn them back.

“Go back. We have nothing to help you with.”

Queen of Hearts said.

“As you can see, this place won’t last much longer either. We’re barely managing to make our remaining lives somewhat better. Why do you think we stay in this fake world?”

“Then why not come outside? The electricity’s out anyway.”

“We can’t. The outside situation isn’t like before… That strange moon suddenly appeared and won’t set.”

“Isn’t that better for you? You might live longer by accepting the curse radiating from that moon.”

“We’re not ordinary Beasts. We were fakes without substance from the start. Why do you think I ended up like this? I was the first to go out and check when the sky changed like that. And this happened. The curse in my body leaked out instead.”

“Ah…”

That was an issue I hadn’t considered.

If Maia were here, she could explain the detailed reasons clearly.

Originally there wasn’t even a route to save the Wonderland bosses in Blue Paper Moon, nor any related lore.

“In some ways, it was better that we stayed here. If everyone had experienced that while living outside, none would have survived.”

“But isn’t it inconvenient?”

“Better than dying. And you’re not here for idle chat with me, right? You’re looking for something identical to Mad Hatter’s watch. But there’s nothing like that. There was only ever one. And even if there was another, we have no reason to give it to you.”

“That sorcerer friend is incredibly smart. Remember what I said earlier? She turned into something like a witch. In some ways they’re more amazing than Vile.”

“…So what?”

“She might be able to solve your problems.”

“That’s still just a possibility. No need to bet our lives.”

“That means… there is another watch after all?”

“What?”

“If there wasn’t, you would have just said there wasn’t from the start.”

Of course, I knew there was another watch from the beginning.

No, it would be stranger not to know.

“Isn’t that right, Time Rabbit?”

I turned to Time Rabbit who was being pestered by Gerda and Hilde.

Hilde was touching his long ears while Gerda was rubbing his fluffy tail.

They looked like friendly sisters like that.

“…That’s right. I have another watch.”

In Blue Paper Moon, Time Rabbit had a pattern of continuously applying debuffs while strictly focusing on running away.

Especially when his health dropped below a certain point, he had an annoying desperation pattern of taking out his watch to fully recover.

“Rabbit!”

“But Your Majesty. If there really is a sorcerer more excellent than Vile, they might be able to fix our condition.”

“But they might not be able to!”

“I’m tired of rotting away underground like this.”

“But what will you do if you give away your watch too?! What if that hunter fails?!”

“I choose to believe. Eugene has already earned enough of our trust. There’s no reason not to trust again.”

“This, this…!”

“And above all… myself, Mad Hatter, and Lizard Bill all want you to get better, Your Majesty.”

“…”

Queen of Hearts is Wonderland’s ruler.

With her strong sense of responsibility, she must have put herself on the line first to test the results when the magical phenomenon occurred.

“My friend’s abilities are the best, I’m certain. She can definitely help you.”

I spoke firmly, driving the point home.

“…Do what you want!”

Queen of Hearts turned her back and crossed her arms.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“Thanks.”

“I don’t need thanks! Prove it with results! Or I’ll punish you!”

“Of course.”

“Here, my watch.”

Time Rabbit took out a watch from his pocket and handed it to me.

It was an ordinary pocket watch that looked almost identical to Mad Hatter’s.

“I’ll use it well… But what about the others?”

“Bill’s been too scared to come out of the darkness since Her Majesty ended up like that. Mad Hatter stays by Bill’s side so he won’t be lonely.”

“They’re still close I see.”

“We’re family after all.”

“Family huh…”

“Don’t you have family?”

“Well…”

“If not, you should make one. Seems like you have plenty of women who could be your wife, pick one and have children…”

“Wait, why are we talking about this?”

“I’m being serious though? My family and I are siblings by blood since Vile created us. But since you’re human, to make family you need to…”

“That’s enough.”

“I can’t force you, but it’s still better to have one. It puts your mind at ease.”

“…”

“Ah, is saving your friend the priority for now? By the way, is this sorcerer friend a woman too?”

“Enough, just tell me the watch’s abilities. It’s the same as Mad Hatter’s right?”

“About that… unfortunately it’s a bit weaker.”

“Weaker?”

“Yes. But it’s not that much worse.”

“…I see. I’ll make good use of it.”

Though uncertain, it’s better than nothing.

At least there’s hope to cling to now.

“And please, make sure to save your friend. Otherwise I won’t be able to face Her Majesty.”

“Of course, I’ll definitely save Maia. And you all too.”

I gripped the watch tightly.

For Ozwald and Oscar’s sake too, and for Maia who had changed like that, I can’t fail.

“Let’s go everyone. We really have no time left.”

I led Hilde and Gerda outside.

Tomorrow, Thumbelina comes.