After an arduous day of work, I went to my quarters to rest. The next day, I went back out to the courtyard to see if the structure I made had already dried. When I arrived at the place, I found two little girls sitting inside the clay hole; they were playing a hand game with each other. They were roughly my height, had orange hair, gray eyes, pink skin, and wore rather battered dresses; they were also barefoot. They were identical to each other, so I assumed they were twins. I approached.
—Hello, little ones. What are you doing? —I asked kindly.
—Careful, it's the cockroach man. Don't speak to him —one of them whispered to the other.
—It's like the master said: ugly and an animal. He's gross —the other replied.
—I heard that —I blurted out, while both remained silent, sitting and staring at nothing—. Can you get out of there? You're inside my project.
—Is he talking to us? What do we do with this perverted stalker?
—We should call the authorities to take him away.
—Hey, you do know I'm right here seeing everything, right? —The girls stood up in unison.
—You should die —said one of the girls, pointing at me and locking her steady gaze on mine.
—Yes, the master doesn't like you being here. He says you're a nuisance —the other also pointed her finger at me.
Why would these two girls be saying those kinds of things? The situation gave me the creeps; I didn't know how to take it. There was something in their monotone voice and the way they pointed at me that didn't seem like a simple childhood prank.
—Since the master doesn't like you, we came to kill you —the two said at the same time.
Instantly, I stood on guard; I felt a real bloodlust coming from these two little ones. What the hell was going on? I blinked for a second and they were gone. I looked everywhere and couldn't find them, until I noticed a shadow on the ground that was getting larger at an absurd speed. I looked up, but it was too late: a kick slammed into my face, violently throwing me to the ground.
THUD!
I felt the taste of metal flooding my mouth; as best as I could, I got up. That kick had left me dazed, but the adrenaline started doing its thing.
—Who are you? Why are you hitting me? —I asked, trying to regain my balance.
—That doesn't matter, because you're going to die —the girls' voices sounded like a distant echo.
I regained my composure just as the same shadow from before projected over me. This time I wasn't caught off guard: I dodged the impact and, in a quick movement, managed to catch one of their legs. However, I had no time to celebrate; the other appeared out of nowhere and dealt a sharp blow to my stomach that knocked all the air out of me.
—Don't touch Anastasia! —shouted the one who hit me.
The other broke free from my grip with amazing agility, and both positioned themselves around me, cornering me like predators.
—Why do these kinds of things always happen to me? —I asked rhetorically.
In an instant, the two launched into a simultaneous attack. One attacked from above and the other swept from below; I managed to block the upper blow, but the lower impact was accurate and ended up knocking me down. While falling, one of them drew a dagger with a lethal glint and tried to drive it into my face. Out of pure instinct, I rolled on the ground and stood up immediately, feeling the air from the blade grazing my cheek.
—You guys are quite strong —I said, panting and trying to get my legs to regain stability.
Sweat began to run down my antennae. This was no longer child's play; if I let my guard down for a second, this pair of twins would open a hole in me before I could finish my fridge.
Again they lunged at me; this time they started running in circles around me. I was starting to get dizzy; it was almost impossible to follow them with my eyes at that speed. One approached and the edge of her dagger scratched my cheek.
However, in that moment of danger, something awakened. With an instinct that only an animal possesses, I detected the other approaching from behind. I moved faster than I thought possible in my entire existence: I grabbed each of their heads with my hands and slammed them against each other with brute force.
CRACK!
It was a blunt, dry sound. The twins collapsed instantly, completely unconscious.
—Damn... You two sure are problematic —I complained, panting, as I left them lying on the ground and wiped the blood from my face.
—They gave you quite a bit of trouble, huh? —said a familiar voice. It was Janeth.
—Have you been watching this whole time? Why didn't you help me? —I asked, notably annoyed.
—But you defended yourself like a total champ! —she mocked as she approached—. I wanted to see if what happened in the fight with the King wasn't just a stroke of luck.
She stopped in front of the girls and looked at them with a mixture of curiosity and contempt.
—I'll take these two little girls; I have a lot of questions too.
I jumped into the clay-lined hole I made the night before and checked it; wouldn't want those creatures to have ruined anything. Apparently, everything was fine, so I prepared more mortar and began to raise the upper part of the yakhchal. After a few hours, it was finished; I was able to move fast because it was small—after all, it's just for a test. Now I have to wait until tomorrow to do the rest.
As I returned to my room, a doubt kept spinning in my head: who the hell sent those girls? Who is the "master"? Why do I always end up in such strange things? I guess this life is just bizarre.
I reached my destination and, upon opening the door, I was surprised: the girls were sitting on my bed, tied up, and Janeth was leaning against the wall, waiting.
—What is supposed to be going on here? —I asked, genuinely concerned.
—These brats said they're only going to talk if you are present —the giantess responded with a smug smile.
—Yes, only our future husband can know our reasons —one of the girls blurted out with total nonchalance.
I froze. What do you mean, husband? What kind of joke is this? Where is the hidden camera to tell me I fell for it?
—What do you mean, husband? —I managed to articulate.
—Apparently, where they come from, if you defeat them in combat, you have to take charge of them by marrying them —Janeth explained, letting out a laugh—. It's the law of their tribe or something like that.
—This has to be a joke! Take charge? Me? Husband? They're children and I don't like kids! I'm not a damn pedophile! —I claimed, on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
—They're your problem now. Talk to them —Janeth said with total tranquility as she took a seat, ready to enjoy the show.
This damn demonic kingdom and its strange rules! First, they tell me that if you eat demon meat without being one, you're claiming the throne, and now it turns out that if I beat some girls, I have to get married? What sense does any of this make?
—Hey, don't look at us like that, you're scary! —one of the brats snapped. Apparently, in my panic attack, I had made a rather strange face.
—It's not like we want to be with an ugly animal that looks like a cockroach either! —the other exclaimed.
—Look, you little shits! I don't want to be in this situation either —I said, on the edge of a collapse. I took a deep breath, trying to keep my heart from jumping out through my antennae, took a chair, and sat in front of them.
—Let's start from the beginning: what are your names? —I questioned with as much seriousness as I could muster.
—I am Anastasia! —one said with a joy that, given the situation, was not at all appropriate.
—And I'm Petra! —the other followed suit with the same energy.
—Okay... May I know why you attacked me?
—We already told you before: the master doesn't like you. He says you're a nuisance —Anastasia replied, shrugging her shoulders as if killing someone were a bureaucratic procedure.
—And may I know who this so-called master is?
—He is our savior! He helped us when the war broke out and the tyrant Zoran took all the villages to form his kingdom —Petra announced with pride.
I remained silent for a moment, processing the information. Apparently, the "master" not only wanted my head but was the leader of some kind of resistance or rebel faction. To these girls, Zoran wasn't the imposing and reasonable King I met, but the villain who destroyed their homes.
—So you see me as an enemy? —I asked, trying to sound calm.
—Yes! You are the ugly bug who challenged the ugly Zoran, and the master didn't like it. Besides, he says your knowledge is dangerous —Anastasia stated, locking her gray eyes onto mine with a coldness that didn't fit her pink face—. And the master is never wrong.
My knowledge? I froze. Could it be that he knows something about my reincarnation? A hollow feeling ran through my stomach. What if that guy also hears voices? Could he be one of those "envoys" that King Zoran and Uuk talked about?
I had too many questions and no answers. If there was someone else who understood technology or knew that I didn't belong to this world, I was no longer just competing against the hunger of Divon, but against someone playing in my same league... and who wanted to eliminate me.
—Janeth, I think these questions are enough. Can you take them away? —I asked, feeling the weight of mental exhaustion.
—Yes, alright. They're going back to the dungeon —she replied with a bit of excitement.
With that said, they left my room. I was left alone with the silence and my own thoughts. What will become of me tomorrow? Will I be able to finish my projects before the world falls on top of me?
...................
[Main Quest: Kill the Leviathan]
[Time remaining: 2 years, 10 months and 10 days]
[Side Quest: Teach the Demon King a lesson]
[Time remaining: ???]