We cut through the subterranean air like twin streaks of light, our wings beating in perfect synchronization as we ascended. With my massive, crimson blood wings leading the way and Evelyn's translucent blue-green slime wings tracking my every move, we bypassed the grueling, treacherous tunnels of the fifth mineshaft, rocketing all the way up to the familiar stone arches of the second mineshaft in a fraction of the time it had taken me to descend.
All around us, the structural landscape of the Caria Mines was undergoing a massive, silent transformation. Because of the Slime King's definitive death, the collective hive-mind network had completely collapsed. The remaining low-tier bio-slimes that he had systematically produced over the last six years were already beginning to lose their vibrant, illuminating glow; their membranes were turning a dull, sickly grey as they began to slowly decay into inert puddles of harmless water and organic sludge.
Luckily, Evelyn wasn't affected by this catastrophic cellular decay at all. Even though her genetic code had been heavily spliced with elite bio-slime traits to grant her those devastating powers, her core essence was still fundamentally human. The resilient, unyielding blood of Linera Rynd kept her physical body perfectly stable, safe from the curse of the parasite's demise.
As we glided through the cavernous upper tunnels, the heavy, toxic pressure of the deep mines began to give way to the cooler, fresher drafts circulating from the surface world. Evelyn flew close to my flank, her twin jade-green eyes wide with an innocent, almost childlike wonder as she looked up toward the ascending shafts.
"I can't wait to see the outside world, Eirene, I've only ever known the darkness, the damp stone, and the glittering jewels of the breeding grounds... I've never actually been out there. I want to see what the sun feels like." she said, her voice carrying a beautiful, breathless mixture of excitement and disbelief.
Hearing her words, a profound, emotional response rippled directly through our shared, intuitive bond.
Even though I was completely mute, my lone jade-green eye locked onto hers, crinkling with a deep, silent warmth. Through our closeness, I could physically feel the pure, radiant energy of her anticipation. Her biological chest core was no longer humming with the aggressive, volatile vibrations of a living weapon; instead, it was pulsing with a light, rhythmic beat that felt exactly like a young girl's heart on the eve of a grand adventure. The trauma of her six-year captivity was finally taking a back seat to the sheer, beautiful hope of a future with her family.
I gave her a firm, reassuring nod in mid-air, a silent promise that the world above would be everything she hoped for and more, as the distant, faint glimmer of surface daylight began to peer through the final exit of the Caria Mines.
We rocketed into the first and final mineshaft, the coal mines where the air grew thick with the familiar, gritty scent of soot and dust. But before the faint, beautiful glow of the surface entrance could completely welcome us, a sharp, echoing sound pierced the cavern.
BRRRRRRRRR…
It was the deep, metallic blast of a horn. The unmistakable horn of the Capital Knight Bureau Association.
My single jade-green eye dilated in instant panic. Nautilus must have quietly transmitted an emergency beacon or a tactical update to the surface the moment the Slime King's hive-mind collapsed, and the Bureau had immediately deployed an entire battalion of elite troops to secure the sector. Evelyn, entirely unfamiliar with the ruthless nature of the human military, didn't mind the sound and kept flying. But I knew better. I wasn't about to let the Bureau mistake my baby sister for a monster, capture her, and turn her into a laboratory experiment after everything she had just endured.
Acting on raw instinct, I shot forward in mid-air, grabbed the base of her translucent slime wing with my right hand, and yanked her down.
Both of us tumbled out of the air, crashing onto the coal-dusted ground in a chaotic slide, kicking up a massive, blinding cloud of black dust.
"Hey! Why did you do that?! Is something bothering you, big sister?"
Evelyn gasped, coughing slightly as she pushed herself up from the dirt, her jade-green eyes wide with confusion.
I didn't waste a second. Since I couldn't speak, I grabbed her wrist and firmly dragged her behind a massive, jagged boulder nearby, completely shielding us from the main pathway. I looked her dead in the eye, tapping my ears and pointing toward the tunnels ahead to signal that a massive search party was coming, silently commanding her to act natural and hide her wings immediately. Evelyn's super-intelligent tactical brain caught on instantly, she concentrated, and her translucent blue-green wings seamlessly dissolved back into her shoulders.
I frantically scanned our immediate surroundings for a disguise. Luckily, a row of abandoned, rusted minecarts sat just a few feet away. Stuffed inside them were several discarded, heavy canvas cloaks and tattered worker clothes left behind by the miners.
I lunged forward, grabbed a handful of the heavy fabrics, and quickly threw a dark, oversized cloak over my own frame. I pulled the hood low, perfectly concealing my tanned face, my hollow eye socket, and the terrifying lines of my Glasgow smile. The thick, heavy fabric draped over my back, completely obscuring my massive, bat-like blood wings and the slick texture of the tight bio-slime bodysuit. If the knights saw me now, I would just look like a battered, traveling mercenary… not the infamous Crimson Phantom, the legendary Winged Demon they were actively hunting.
Turning back to Evelyn, I shook out another large, weathered cloak. I wrapped it securely around her 5'3" frame, pulling the hood over her soft brown hair. I made sure the thick canvas tightly overlapped across her chest, completely blocking the faint, bioluminescent humming of her biological heart core and hiding every single inch of her sleek slime bodysuit from view.
Just as I pulled the final knot tight on her cloak, the heavy, rhythmic clanking of steel plate armor and the flickering glow of dozens of magic lanterns began to spill into the coal shaft. The knights had arrived.
The heavy clanking of steel boots ground to a sudden halt. The harsh, bright glare of a dozen magic lanterns swung directly toward our boulder, illuminating the thick cloud of coal dust around us.
"Hey! You there! Halt!" one of the lead knights bellowed, his hand instantly dropping to the hilt of his broadsword.
Perfecting the art of deception, I leaned heavily against the stone, forcing my body to sag and tremble to perfectly mimic a severely wounded, traumatized survivor. I slowly raised my single right hand into the light, and beside me, Evelyn caught on instantly, raising her hands as well. I deliberately tilted my head back, letting the heavy canvas hood fall away just enough to reveal my tanned face and my lone jade-green eye to the search party.
The lead knight took a cautious step forward, squinting through the gloom. The moment his lantern light caught my distinct features and the jagged, unmistakable scars of my Glasgow smile, his eyes went wide beneath his iron visor.
"Wait... hold your fire! That's Eirene. The elite bounty hunter. Nautilus personally sent her down into the lower sectors yesterday to handle the breach."
He quickly rushed over to us, his armor rattling.
"Eirene! Tell me what happened down there. Did the slimes attack you? Did you find the source?"
Before the knight could press me further for an answer I physically couldn't give, Evelyn stepped forward. She adjusted the heavy cloak around her frame, perfectly concealing her pulsing chest core, and looked up at the towering soldiers.
"My sister is mute, she can't speak to you." she said, her voice dropping into a flawless, sweet, and entirely innocent tone that would make anyone completely forget she was an S-rank slime.
The knights blinked in surprise, their lanterns shifting down to look at the hooded girl standing defiantly by my side. The leader furrowed his brow, looking between my scarred face and her gentle demeanor.
"Sister? Who are you? I didn't know Eirene was related to anyone, let alone traveling with family down here." the knight questioned, his tone a mix of confusion and suspicion.
Before Evelyn could think up a cover story with her super-intelligent brain, another high-ranking knight stepped up from the back of the squad, waving his hand dismissively to cut his comrade off.
"It doesn't matter right now, we gave our absolute word to Nautilus. We promised to hide Eirene's true identity from the Shadow Walker and the higher-ups in the Bureau, and that courtesy extends to her family. Whatever happens down in those mines stays between us."
He gave us a firm, respectful nod.
"You two girls... you're safe now. The plague is receding. Let's get you both up to the surface." the senior knight grunted, looking at our battered cloaks.
The knights formed a tight, protective perimeter around us, escorting us through the final, massive stone archway of the coal mines. As we stepped past the threshold, the suffocating darkness of the subterranean world instantly dissolved, replaced by a blinding, brilliant wash of natural daylight.
When I had first arrived at the Caria Mines, it was midnight. I had spent a grueling, non-stop twelve hours fighting through the depths of hell, but every drop of blood split had finally paid off.
The moment the rays hit the mountain path, a sharp, burning sting flared across my face. Because of my stupid sixth evolution, pure sunlight had become entirely lethal to my mutated, tanned skin. I quickly reached up with my right hand, gripping the edge of my heavy canvas hood and pulling it down as tightly as possible, casting my scarred face into complete shadow to block out the burning heat.
Beside me, Evelyn reacted in the exact opposite way.
"Wow..." she gasped, her voice filled with an absolute, breathtaking awe.
For the first time in her six years of life, she was seeing the world outside. Without a single care for the knights around us, she reached up and threw her hood completely back. The brilliant morning sunlight instantly bounced off her thick brown hair, illuminating her soft features. She tilted her head back, staring directly up at the blinding sun with wide, innocent jade-green eyes.
"Ah! It's so bright... it hurts my eyes, but it's so warm, Eirene. It feels amazing." she commented, squinting and rubbing her eyelids with a small, childlike pout, completely fascinated by the sheer intensity of the sky.
One of the escorting knights glanced over at her, catching the pure, unvarnished innocence of her reaction. He looked back at my hooded, silent figure and let out a soft, sympathetic sigh, entirely misinterpreting the situation. He clearly assumed that I was such a desperate, hard-pressed bounty hunter that I had been forced to bring my literal baby sister along on a suicidal S-rank mission. He had no idea that the baby sister in question could have vaporized him with a single thought.
We finally reached the staging grounds where a heavy, reinforced ironwood carriage was waiting for us. The knights opened the door, and I climbed inside, sinking heavily into the cushioned bench. Evelyn hopped in right after me, sliding into the seat directly by my side. She immediately pressed her face against the glass window, her eyes darting greedily across the sweeping green valleys, the distant mountain peaks, and the open sky.
The driver cracked the reins. With a steady, rhythmic clatter of hooves, the horse carriage began its long, winding descent down the mountain trails, carrying us away from the shadows of our past and straight toward the family waiting for us at home.
"You're safe now, Evelyn."