Of course, after the events, everyone wanted to know what "the five Cinder Tales" meant. Mona had an idea.
Mona: "The Forbidden Library might explain it… maybe…"
Kisa: "Forbidden Library?"
Mona: "In Delfgard there is the Forbidden Library…"
Diego: "Hmm?"
Charlotte: "I think I have heard of it. Alice told me about it."
Mona: "There has to be something there. It has all fairy tales and grimoires, and also events from the world of Grimm."
Two Ages: "What did I just hear?"
Mona: "Ugh… huh?"
Two Ages: "Forbidden Library?"
She was standing behind them.
Two Ages: "I heard that. You must not go there under any circumstances. It is dangerous."
Mona: "But… Miss Two Ages… please."
Nacht: "Kisa, you know what to do."
Kisa: "Oh… yes."
Kisa suddenly stood up and walked to Two Ages.
Kisa: "Miss Two Ages…"
She made an unbelievably cute face.
Kisa: "Please… we want to find something there."
Two Ages: "No."
Kisa: "But…"
Two Ages: "No. Your cuteness is not enough. Forget it."
Disappointed
Kisa: "I tried."
Mona: "Hmm…"
Two Ages: "Ahhh… fine. On one condition. I am coming with you."
Mona: "Ugh…"
Nacht: "Hmm…"
Diego: "Um…"
Charlotte: "Are you sure?"
Two Ages: "Better than no, right. You should actually be happy."
Diego: "Hmm…"
Nacht: "Alright…"
They nodded.
Two Ages: "Hehe. Then tonight at 20:00, okay?"
Diego: "Yes."
Nacht: "Mhm."
Charlotte and Mona: "Okay."
Kisa: "Hehe… okay."
In the evening
It was evening and they set off.
Two Ages: "Before we go there, I have to warn you. We must pass through the Schwarzwald, the most dangerous forest in Grimm."
The Schwarzwald. The mage, traveler, and researcher Marco Polo called it the Forest of Gray. In his book Schwarzwald and the Gray, he explained some of the Vinkas and monsters that live there.
Thirty minutes later
Two Ages: "We are here…"
Kisa: "Creepy."
Mona: "Oh no…"
Charlotte: "Hmm…"
They continued on.
Charlotte: "Why is the library called Theressa, anyway?"
Mona: "Good question."
Two Ages: "Kafka's wife was named that."
Franz Kafka, one of the most legendary mages, created this library. All grimoires, all fairy tales, and reports and events of the world of Grimm, at least most of them, are written there. Franz Kafka loved his wife very much. What he did not know was that she was the one who later turned into a jaw creature and starved him to death, five years after the library. And then she destroyed it.
Diego: "Whoa."
Clack clack
A sound suddenly came.
Two Ages: "Huh… quick, hide. Not a sound."
They hid, and a figure appeared.
Two Ages: "A woodcutter."
A woodcutter. Marco Polo described him as a gigantic Vinka. Smart Vinkas are called mutant Vinkas, Vinkas that represent the strongest fears. The woodcutter, as Marco Polo named him, represents the fear of horror. It is intelligent. Marco Polo himself said he followed him and saw what he does with his prey. First, he loves killing everything, whether woman, man, even children and the elderly. Then he enjoys playing with the corpses and sewing them together.
Kisa: "Ugh…"
Nacht: "Is… that basket…"
Diego: "Corpses."
Charlotte: "Ugh."
Mona: "Ghh…"
Corpses in the basket. Heads, parts like legs, feet, and arms.
Two Ages: "He must not see us. He is deaf, but he has a strong sense of smell and sharp eyes."
Woodcutter: "…Kill… must kill and eat… Drecul is hungry…"
Mutant Vinkas can talk too. They are very intelligent. The more intelligent, the more dangerous. Vinkas do not have to exist only from emotions. People who die and cannot rest might become something like that. Marco Polo believed many Vinkas have nothing to do with emotions at all.
He left their sight. They came out of hiding.
Two Ages: "Phew…"
Kisa: "That was terrifying."
Mona: "Yeah."
Charlotte: "No wonder it is called Schwarzwald."
Diego: "Mhm."
Nacht: "And there are more?"
Two Ages: "Yes. That is why I told you to be careful, and why I only allowed it if I come with you."
Kisa: "Are there many of those monsters?"
What they did not notice was that something was watching them.
"Hahhh… hahhh…"
Revenge
"Huh… hahhhh…"
Scratch
Charlotte: "Huh?"
Charlotte heard something.
Nacht: "I heard something too."
Two Ages: "Oh right. Charlotte, you were bred by Vinkas as well as fairy tales."
Charlotte: "Hmm… yes. I have their blood in me…"
Two Ages: "Their blood. That is strange."
Charlotte: "Yes. That is why my eyes are sometimes orange, sometimes violet. It depends. My human eyes are orange. The Vinka and fairy tale eyes are violet, or green for Vinka, green."
Nacht: "Is that not too much for a human?"
Two Ages: "True. Vinka blood is different from human blood. How did your heart handle it?"
Charlotte: "I was a baby, so my body got used to the milk. Also, the Eichenwald family is the only family that already has fairy tale blood in them. According to Alice, the first Eichenwald member, Jan Eichenwalde, was with an elf, which is also a fairy tale being. That is why many Eichenwalds had elf blood or fairy tale blood in them, and their eyes turned violet whenever they used their powers. Every Eichenwald has that."
The Eichenwald family had always been a very mysterious family. They knew nature and fairy tales well. They were strong. The first Eichenwald, Jan Eichenwalde, was so strong people called him the immortal mage. Even when his head was cut off, his body fought for three hours until he died standing, because his core was hit. He had Prirorda magiya (nature magic), sneg magiya (snow magic), ogon magiya (fire magic). He died at the age of 85. His wife, Ludica, was an elf and lived about 700 years. People also called her The Mother.
Charlotte: "That is how it is."
Two Ages: "I understand."
They kept walking.
Nacht: "Is it not strange… that this forest is so huge?"
Two Ages: "The Schwarzwald is as big as a large realm and two medium sized kingdoms."
Nacht: "Ugh."
Kisa: "Wow."
Diego: "And we are supposed to find this library in here?"
Two Ages: "Yes. Do not worry. We have a map…"
Kisa: "Hmm… huh?"
Kisa heard something… a groan, more like a pain groan.
"Uuughhhh."
Kisa: "Huh?"
She looked around, and then something liquid fell on her.
Splat
Kisa: "Huh?"
She wiped her cheek and looked at it. It was blood.
Kisa: "Ugh…"
Nacht: "Hmm…"
Splat
Mona: "What is that…"
"Uuuuughhh."
They looked up, and they saw it. A huge face, made only of flesh. Its eyes burned, and blood ran out of the flesh.
Two Ages: "Ugh… The Wailing Head."
The Wailing Head. Marco Polo described it as the greatest nightmare, a monster that followed him into his nightmares. It is weak and does nothing but groan and suffer, but its appearance is horrific. In his Schwarzwald description book, he said you must never kill it, no matter how much it begs. He never explained why.
Diego: "Ghhh… that will haunt my dreams."
Nacht: "Sometimes I feel like I never want to stay here long."
Mona: "Oh man… what do we do with it?"
Two Ages: "Do not kill it. Leave it. It is only part of a tree…"
Kisa: "But it is in pain…"
Two Ages: "Better than us being in pain. So… let's go."
They moved on.
Two Ages: "You must be careful. In the library there are four guardians who protect it."
Kisa: "Guardians?"
Two Ages: "They are the ones who protect the Forbidden Library. Or rather, they live there. According to Marco Polo, these beings appeared later. It is probably a home for them."
Diego: "And we have to defeat them."
Mona: "Do you know what they are called?"
Two Ages: "I only know the names. The Sleeping Man and The Foul. Then there is Lady Natalia, the Dancing Woman, and The Chair Man, also called the Sitting Giant."
Diego: "Marco Polo named them? Why is he even… is he still alive?"
Two Ages: "No. He died three hundred years ago because of his travels. His assistant and friend, Yuko, published those details, so the book was released. Marco Polo died at a young age. Whether he died in the Schwarzwald, or Borderland, or in Mondo Fantasma, the Spooky World, who knows. Anyway, let's keep going."
They continued.
"Huhhh… hahhhh… hahhh…"
Something was watching them.
Diego: "Ugh…"
Diego smelled something and warned them immediately.
Diego: "Down!"
They dropped down.
Crash
Something sliced through the trees.
Diego: "Ugh."
Kisa: "Huh."
Nacht: "Ugh…"
Charlotte: "What…"
Mona: "Look."
It was a strange creature. It was gray, had a split jaw, and cat ears.
"Grrrrr…"
Two Ages: "What is that?"
Diego: "Was there not something in that Schwarzwald book from Marco whatever?"
Two Ages: "I do not know…"
It looked at them and started to dance, in a weird way.
Two Ages: "I remember… this dance… it is… it is the Skin Cat… but in the description it looked different."
It ran at them.
Nacht: "Damn it, run!"
They ran. It chased them. It was incredibly fast. The Skin Cat, according to Marco Polo's description, is intelligent and very strong. With one strike it can split a boulder. It kills humans and all living things, either from hunger or from boredom, both are possible. It also loves to dance. It loves hunting its prey's fear.
Diego: "Ghh… damn it!"
Diego's fairy tale, Little Red Riding Hood, appeared. He transformed quickly into a wolf.
Diego: "Gaaaaaaaaaarrrrrr."
He attacked it.
Crash
Diego: "Grrrr."
Skin Cat: "Hahhhhhh…"
Diego: "Ghhhhhhh…"
It shoved him away and then started choking him from behind.
Diego: "Ugh."
Kisa: "No, Diego!"
Nacht: "Damn it…"
He quickly took his staff.
Charlotte: "I will help too."
Charlotte pulled out a sword, while Nacht shot ravens at the Skin Cat. The sword flew toward the creature.
Charlotte: "Ghh."
Fiching
The sword was cut in half.
Charlotte: "Ugh…"
Diego: "Ghhh."
Nacht: "The way it chokes him… no matter how intelligent a creature is… it sounds like it understands human combat."
Two Ages: "Enough. Asura… Labranthan!"
Hands rose from the ground, and each one had an eye in the center.
Gulp
Gulp
They emitted a confusing signal that made the creature nervous, and it fled quickly.
Crash
Two Ages: "Good. It is gone."
Nacht: "Hahhh."
Kisa: "Are you okay?"
Mona: "Man… that was close."
Diego: "Yeah. I am fine."
Charlotte: "Hmm."
Nacht: "Hey Charlotte… I do not fully understand… what your ability weapon is."
Charlotte: "Mine? Oh… I have three. It depends. As you can see, I have Herold and Roland. Similar to you, I have two fairy tale figures. Roland is the one who handles weapons. The weapons he made for me are the small staff, the daggers, and the puppets from the book Alice in Wonderland itself. It makes things from the book attack, beings or objects. Of course there is a limit to what I can pull from the book. Mostly I use the small wand or the daggers."
Nacht: "Object magic?"
Charlotte: "Something like that. Also, there are some objects I can only use once a day, like the toys, for example Minni and Finni."
Nacht: "Really practical. And you know close combat too?"
Nacht was interested that Charlotte also knew close combat.
Charlotte: "You do too. The difference is you have darkness element. I have cursed objects."
Nacht: "I see."
Charlotte looked at him, a bit red.
Charlotte: "Why… are you asking?"
Nacht: "Oh… just curious. It is practical. You also know forest magic."
She shook her head.
Charlotte: "No. I may come from the Eichenwald family, but I did not grow up there. So I am not good at it. Often the plants rejected me."
She turned around and showed her back. There was an ugly wound.
Charlotte: "And when it goes really wrong… they attacked me."
Nacht: "Ugh."
Charlotte: "Plants are living beings too. If they feel uncomfortable… they attack."
Nacht: "Um…"
Charlotte: "Hmm."
She blushed and covered her back.
Diego: "Wow… she is really pretty and has a pretty body."
Kisa: "Wow…"
Diego: "Why are you saying wow. You have an even crazier figure."
Kisa: "Huh?"
Nacht: "Hey… get a grip."
Mona: "Huh?"
Charlotte: "Hmm."
Charlotte wore a cropped outfit and a coat. She wore only a dark outfit, and the coat covered her stomach halfway.
Charlotte: "Hmmm… hahh… I cannot walk anymore, Roland…"
Roland appeared.
Roland: "Yes?"
Charlotte: "The broom."
A broom appeared. She sat on it and it moved slowly.
Diego: "Hey… that is unfair."
Charlotte: "Stop whining. There are some for you too."
She pulled out several.
Charlotte: "Here."
They rode them.
Diego: "Wow…"
Kisa: "So cool."
Nacht: "Hmm."
Mona: "I would rather ride on my dog Rufus."
Charlotte: "As you want."
Charlotte sat at the edge of the broom, her hands under her chin, leaning on her own hands.
Diego: "Hmm…"
Kisa: "How long until we get there?"
Two Ages: "Not much longer…"
Nacht: "There are not that many monsters here."
Diego: "Dude… do not jinx it."
Two Ages: "It is because most of them are not active at night. Also the moon is very strong today, so probably because of that. Marco Polo said sixty percent of the monsters cannot tolerate light."
Charlotte: "Hmm… Marco Polo… so…"
Kisa: "You, Charlotte."
Charlotte: "Hmm… yes?"
Kisa: "You are the second oldest of us…"
Charlotte: "I am only one year older than you. I will be sixteen soon."
Diego: "Hmm… this is getting boring. When do we land there."
Two Ages: "There."
Diego: "Huh?"
They looked forward. A huge building stood before their eyes.
Two Ages: "That is the Forbidden Library."
Nacht: "So it was not as far as we thought."
Charlotte: "Wait… something is wrong."
Mona: "Hmm?"
Nacht: "Yeah, I noticed too. There is something…"
Step… step
Diego: "Um…"
Nacht: "That has to be a joke."
Kisa: "Hahhh…"
Mona: "Ugh…"
Charlotte: "What… the hell… is that?"
A figure was sitting on a chair. It was gigantic. It had a pointed head, or rather a helmet, and a huge sword.
"Aaaagh… aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!"
Chapter 35.5
Outfit?
Kisa: "Wow… Charlotte… what a beautiful outfit."
Charlotte: "You think so… I think yours is good too."
Kisa: "You think so. I think yours is cool."
Charlotte wore a cropped red undershirt, not a T shirt, with a dark jacket and long pants.
Charlotte: "You think so… hmm…"
Kisa: "Right, Nacht?"
Nacht: "Hmm… yeah… yes…"
Charlotte: "…"
She blushed.
Kisa: "Hehe."
Charlotte: "But yours is good too…"
Kisa wore a T shirt and mid length shorts.
Kisa: "Oh… I bought this… I thought it would be cool."
Charlotte: "It looks good."
Nacht: "I really do not think girls…"
Nacht stopped.
Diego: "I do not understand either."
Nacht: "You would prefer they wear no clothes."
Diego: "Only… swimwear…"
Nacht: "Ugh… please just die."
Mona: "Perverted jerk."
Nacht: "What are you wearing?"
Mona: "Huh… like always…"
Nacht: "Hmm."
Diego: "Hmm…"
Diego and Nacht: "Boring."
Mona: "Shut up!"