Chapter 80: Stage Three (fluffy style)

Chapter 80: Chapter 80: Stage Three (fluffy style)

Fluffy stared at the notification.

[Warning: Critical Condition]

[Your Master has requested that you enter Stage Three.]

[Would you like to accept?]

[Yes / No]

She blinked. Her eyes were blurry. Her body was broken. But she could see it. The words. The options.

Master. Master was asking her. Master wanted her to be stronger.

She pressed Yes.

The world exploded.

Dark energy erupted from her body. Shadowy aura surrounded her. It swirled. It crackled. It pulsed with dark light.

The elf stumbled back. Her eyes widened. Her mouth fell open.

"What..." she whispered. "What is this?"

Fluffy didn’t answer. She was focused. She was reaching. She was pulling open something deep inside her.

She found it.

The core of her power. The source of her shadow. The heart of her class.

She grabbed it. She squeezed it. She pulled it open.

Power surged through her. Raw, overwhelming power. Her senses sharpened. Her body strengthened. Her mana refilled.

She felt like she had been reborn.

She stood up. Her wounds were still there. But they didn’t hurt as much. Her mana was full. Her body was ready.

She looked at the elf. At her confused face. At her iron skin.

Fluffy smiled.

"Fluffy is strong now," she said.

The elf stared at her. "How... how did you..."

"Master gave Fluffy power. Master always gives Fluffy power."

The elf’s eyes narrowed. "Your master? The human?"

Fluffy nodded.

The elf laughed. A cold, bitter laugh.

"So your master gave you power," she said. "Power to fight. Power to kill. And you think that makes him kind?"

Fluffy tilted her head. "Yes."

"You’re wrong. He’s just using you. He’s making you stronger so you can fight his battles. So you can die for him."

Fluffy shook her head. "Master is not like that."

"How do you know?"

"Fluffy knows."

The elf sighed. She raised her hand. Metal formed around her.

"Then let me show you the truth," she said.

Fluffy focused. She reached into the shadows. She pulled.

A figure emerged. Dark. Shadowy. Formless.

It shifted. It changed. It took shape.

It became Daniel.

Fluffy stared at it. At its dark form. At its familiar face. At its kind eyes.

She smiled.

"Master," she whispered.

The shadow clone didn’t respond. It just stood there. Waiting.

Fluffy commanded it. "Pat Fluffy’s head."

The clone raised its hand. It patted her head. Gently. Softly.

Fluffy’s tail wagged. Her ears perked up. She was happy.

"Good," she said. "Now call Fluffy good girl."

The clone didn’t respond.

"Call Fluffy good girl," she said again.

Nothing.

Fluffy frowned. "Why won’t you call Fluffy good girl?"

The clone just stood there. Silent. Still.

Fluffy sighed. "Master’s clone is not as good as Master."

The elf stared at the scene. Her mouth was open. Her eyes were wide.

"What... what is that?" she asked.

Fluffy looked at her. "That is Master."

The elf blinked. "That’s not a human. That’s a shadow."

"It is Master. Fluffy made it."

"That’s not your master. It’s a shadow. A copy."

Fluffy shook her head. "It is Master. Fluffy imagined Master. Fluffy made Master."

The elf stared at her. Her expression was a mix of confusion and disbelief.

"Your master is a shadow?" she asked.

Fluffy nodded. "Yes. This shadow is Master."

The elf’s eye twitched. "That doesn’t make sense."

"It makes sense to Fluffy."

The elf opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.

"You’re insane," she said.

Fluffy tilted her head. "Fluffy is not insane. Fluffy is Fluffy."

The elf shook her head. She looked at the shadow clone. At its dark form. At its Daniel-like face.

"So your master... gave you the power to make shadows?" she asked.

Fluffy nodded. "Yes."

"And you used that power to make a copy of your master?"

"Yes."

"To... pat your head?"

"Yes."

The elf stared at her. Her expression was unreadable.

"You’re weird," she said.

Fluffy shrugged. "Fluffy is Fluffy."

The elf sighed. She looked at the shadow clone. Then at Fluffy. Then at the destruction around them.

Then she did something unexpected.

She sat down.

She just sat there. On the ground. Her iron skin still gleaming. Her metal weapons still floating. But she sat.

"What are you doing?" Fluffy asked.

The elf looked at her. Her eyes were tired. Sad. Broken.

"I’m tired," she said. "I’m tired of fighting. I’m tired of hating. I’m tired of everything."

Fluffy tilted her head. "Then stop."

"I can’t stop. I have to fight. I have to kill. It’s what I was made for."

"Fluffy does not understand."

The elf laughed. A bitter, hollow laugh.

"Of course you don’t. You’re too naive. Too innocent. You don’t know what it’s like to be used. To be betrayed. To be thrown away like trash."

Fluffy was silent. She listened.

"I had a master once," the elf said. "A human master. He was kind. He was gentle. He gave me gifts. He gave me compliments. He made me feel special."

Her voice hardened.

"And then he took everything. My family’s vault. Our treasures. Our heirlooms. He stole it all. And when I confronted him, he laughed. He said I was gullible. He said I was trash."

Fluffy listened.

"My family disowned me," the elf said. "They called me a disgrace. They said I brought shame to our name. I had nothing. No one."

She looked at Fluffy. Her eyes were wet.

"So I joined the ones who hate humans. The ones who want to cleanse this world. And I found purpose. I found family."

She paused.

"But it was a lie. They didn’t care about me. They just wanted my power. My talent. My iron skin. They used me. Just like he did."

Her voice cracked.

"I hate humans," she said. "I hate them all. But I also hate myself. For being so weak. For being so gullible. For being so..."

She trailed off. She wiped her eyes.

Fluffy was silent.

"Your master gave you power," the elf said. "He made you stronger. He gave you shadowy abilities."

"Yes."

"And you trust him."

"Yes."

"Why?"

Fluffy thought about it. She thought about Daniel. About the moment he freed her. About the moment he named her. About the moment he gave her meat. About the moment he called her his friend.

"Master is kind," she said. "Master is good. Master cares about Fluffy."

"How do you know?"

"Fluffy feels it. In Fluffy’s heart."

The elf stared at her. Her expression was unreadable.

"You’re lucky," she said.

Fluffy tilted her head. "Lucky?"

"To have someone who cares about you. To have someone who gives you power. To have someone who makes you stronger."

The elf looked down at her hands. At her iron skin. At the metal she controlled.

"I wish I had that," she said. "I wish I had someone who cared."

Fluffy was silent.

"I’m sorry," the elf said. "For what I said. For what I did. For trying to hurt you."

She raised her hand. The metal weapons disappeared. They fell to the ground. They clattered. They scattered.

She removed her iron skin. Her body returned to normal. Soft. Vulnerable. Her skin was no longer gray. It was pale. Pale and tired.

"I surrender," she said.

Fluffy blinked. "What?"

"I surrender. You can kill me now."

Fluffy stared at her. "Fluffy does not want to kill you."

"I know." The elf smiled. A sad, broken smile. "But I don’t have much time. I used a life-force crystal. It converted my life into mana. I have less than a week to live."

Fluffy’s eyes widened. "A week?"

"Maybe less. If I use more mana, it will be faster." The elf shrugged. "So you can kill me now. Or you can let me die. Either way, I’m dead."

Fluffy was silent.

"I’m sorry," the elf said again. "For everything."

She closed her eyes. She waited.

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[Magic castle = 5 bonus Chapter’s]

[space craft = 15 bonus Chapter’s]

[golden gachapon = 20 bonus Chapter’s]