The tent Aqua and Azure were sent to was nothing impressive, just black and white cloth stretched over a metallic frame, with only the bare necessities for temporary living.
By all measures, it was nothing but a normal tent, meant to be easily disassembled and carried. Aqua slowly opened the flap, which served as the entrance, letting Azure enter first before following shortly after.
Inside was surprisingly clean and spacious, with the roof open, allowing smoke from the central fire to safely exit the tent.
Two bedrolls were situated on two opposite sides of the tent, with sacks full of clothes already packed and ready to go sitting against the tent's metallic support.
"Feel free to pick something and change, Azure. I won't peek, I promise," Aqua teased as she looked over Azure's flushed face.
Azure shuffled for a moment before answering, "Lady Aqua, we are both women, and you already saw me naked!" she said, her cheeks flushed red as she turned her head to hide her embarrassment.
Adorable, I like how she pretends to be nonchalant about showing off her body. I will need to fix what that parasite did to her. Once the divine mark is gone, she will be perfect. Aqua smiled, her eyes fixed on Azure. To her, it was like watching a mirror image of her old self.
From her naive demeanor despite her position to what Aqua believed was the will of the divine implanted in her, it was truly a mirror, although on a lesser scale. She made Aqua's heart skip a beat.
"Well, I will need to see you if I am to apply the illusion properly and not botch it, so please undress and stand in front of me. You weren't this shy when you teased me back when we first met!" she exclaimed, a smirk adorning her face while she stared at Azure shuffling about.
Azure averted her gaze as she slowly removed her oversized armor, dropping it aside before removing her makeshift clothes, revealing a slender, toned frame that looked better suited to speed than raw strength. "Please be quick, being without armor makes me feel vulnerable."
Aqua smiled as she gazed over her, finally getting a proper view of her companion. To Aqua, the woman looked almost unfairly striking.
Until now, she had never had a proper chance to look at Azure. Her eyes were green, though her right eye had been overtaken by a divine glow. Her long white hair carried a faint minty tint.
What truly caught Aqua's eye was the divine influence. The green patches of Argusian skin had spread farther, creeping across more of Azure's elven skin and reaching over her torso and hips.
So the influence didn't just grant her a boon. That figures. The goddess likely wishes to make her into an Argus permanently.
Aqua thought about burning away the influence, but making enemies in an unknown world, more than she already had, would have been a disaster.
I will allow it for now. Once I learn which divine parasite granted her this, I will make plans. I'll make that parasite regret showing itself!
She chuckled in her mind, thinking of what she would do to the divine parasite that enslaved Azure.
And yet she could not act without information. Unlikely as it was, the parasite that granted Azure this blessing could be even more powerful than the Supreme Deity of her world.
Azure shifted under Aqua's gaze, suddenly unsure whether the woman was admiring her or studying something she intended to change.
"Lady Aqua, please don't stare that much!" Azure shouted, her face flushed completely red as Aqua delved into her own mind.
"Oh, sorry, Azure, I was just admiring your beauty. I will make an illusion now," Aqua responded as bluntly as she could. After all, it wasn't a lie.
Azure took a small step back before answering, her face as red as a tomato. "So you can even cast illusions, I'm impressed, Lady Aqua."
Aqua gently placed her hands on Azure's head. Her hands glowed with eerie purple and blue light as Azure's form shifted and changed.
It was a simple spell for a caster of Aqua's skill and power; after all, it was just a means to disguise two women and trick the senses of others.
Illusion had never been Aqua's strongest field. Her true proficiency lay in destruction, defense, space, and time. Still, no self-respecting caster survived by mastering only one branch of magic. If she had lacked even one defensive spell, the Supreme Deity would have killed her countless times.
Aqua let go of Azure and looked over her new form. Her hair had turned pitch black, her eyes had darkened, the green patches of skin had vanished beneath the veil of illusion, and her beautiful elven ears had rounded into human ones.
"Spin around for me, Azure." Aqua took a step back, making sure that the illusion was perfect.
Azure nodded before spinning slowly.
Aqua smiled. "Good. This should fool almost everyone we come across."
Azure picked up a clean uniform from the sack before slowly sliding it over herself while comparing it to the sensation of wearing armor. For her, this was something to wear only on official visits and celebrations, and yet she knew that she couldn't complain.
It seems that I accidentally made her look like Umbra. Aqua sighed. She missed her dear teacher a lot despite so many centuries passing since then.
Aqua considered placing the illusion over her clothing instead of her skin, but quickly decided against it. She did not know how good the Red Dawn's detection of illusion was, especially considering that she was not on her master's level.
With a snap of her fingers, her clothing was sent to the void storage.
Aqua didn't even register Azure's surprised expression and red face while she continued her thought.
Master Umbra could create false worlds indistinguishable from reality. Aqua had once struggled to maintain even a simple disguise, yet years of brutal training had taught her to shape false cities. Even then, she had never reached her teacher's level. Umbra could deceive reality itself.
She smiled as she thought of her master's power. Then her cheeks puffed up, and her expression soured.
But in the end, humans, no matter how powerful, can't live forever in the tyrant's world.
She picked up a uniform from one of the sacks and placed it on the nearby bedroll, taking in Azure's reactions while her companion tried her best not to stare.
Aqua chuckled as her own form changed under a purple and blue haze. She turned into a woman similar to Azure, but her eyes turned brown, and her hair was slightly shorter than the knight's.
She smiled as she checked herself before asking, "Hey Azure, could you check if everything looks good?"
She spun once, letting Azure look her over for a while. She looks so embarrassed!
Aqua let out a slight chuckle as she gazed at her companion's flushed face.
Azure closed her eyes as Aqua turned around and slowly put on her Golden Rose uniform.
"Lady Aqua, I have some questions if you don't mind," Azure asked while averting her gaze.
Aqua raised her brow before answering, "Go ahead, you deserve to know if we are to travel together on this rescue mission."
Azure took a moment to think before crossing her arms and asking, "What kind of magic do you use?"
Aqua understood where this question was coming from, but she couldn't understand what exactly Azure was asking. "What do you mean?"
"When your form shimmered earlier, and now when you threw your clothes into some kind of portal, it didn't look like you used any of the known casting methods," Azure replied.
She took a moment to pick her words before continuing. "Your physical ability, combined with your magical mastery, is abnormal."
Aqua was taken aback by the statement for a moment. "Abnormal? What do you mean?"
Azure took a moment to explain the four known casting methods: Somatics, Catalyst, Runes, and Prayer.
Aqua scratched her chin as she thought for a moment before bluntly answering, "No, these methods are inefficient and primitive; no self-respecting caster should use them unless the spell specifically requires them."
Azure gasped, her jaw agape.
"Then, Lady Aqua, how do you use your power?" Azure asked, shock and disbelief washing over her disguised face. She wasn't that knowledgeable about magic, but she knew enough to see the absurdity in Aqua's words.
Hmm, seems this world's understanding of Aether is limited. Aqua thought for a moment before answering, "All you really need to know is that your casters use the world's mana, while I use my own."
Azure rolled her eyes. "Mind elaborating?"
"Not now, there is a lot I could talk about, and we are on a clock to rescue your friend, are we not?"
"But," Azure said, but quickly interrupted herself. Aqua was completely right that they were on a clock. Despite her curiosity, she decided to drop the topic.
"Can I ask one thing?" Azure asked.
"Of course."
"Would others be able to learn your way of casting?"
Aqua nodded, then stepped closer and tapped Azure lightly above the heart.
"Anyone can learn it," she said. "Because it comes from here. In the soul."
Azure nodded.
"I will hold you to that promise. I am sure Sheira would love to learn more about your magic, too. She was always hopeless with it."
The knight chuckled and approached the tent flap. "Shall we?"
Aqua walked beside her, the illusion settling over them like a second skin.
A moment later, the two false humans stepped back into the camp.