Surviving These Unfair Scenarios [LITRPG - DIMENSION HOPPING]

Extra Chapter 14 - The Favor: Drake and Katya's side

After Katya had asked Drake to talk privately, the two of them walked away from the group and found a secluded place in the lobby where they would not be interrupted. It was a small, quiet alcove tucked away from the main lounge area, and a faint, ethereal glow from a nearby holographic tree, that nobody knew what the hell was doing there and where it had come from, cast long shadows around them. However, when they arrived, an uncomfortable silence fell between them.

They stood there, side by side, yet a chasm seemed to have opened up between them. They were both hyperaware of the other's presence, their own thoughts racing, but neither of them knew what to say. For a long moment, they couldn't even look each other in the eye, their gazes fixed on some distant point on the floor. The air was thick with nervousness until Katya, finally losing patience with herself, let out an exasperated sigh, shook her head with force, and forced herself to speak.

"So…"

The blonde said, her voice betraying a hint of her bad mood.

"What were those weird memories that got into our heads supposed to be?"

She would normally dismiss them as nonsense or simple illusions, but the problem was that with the memories had also come emotions and feelings. They did not override her current personality, but they felt as alive as if she had personally experienced them, and they were in clear conflict with her current emotions and feelings. For example, she did not actually hold Drake in high regard and had only learned to respect him a little very recently; if anything, she still disliked him getting close to Kazue. Yet, after the strange mixture of memories, she had clear, deeper feelings for the boy, feelings that went against her current ones of not wanting anyone other than Kazue near her.

The same thing was happening to Drake, who was quite baffled by what was going on in his head. Katya was nothing more than a teammate to him, and he could even say that at some point, her violent attitude toward other team members had made him angry. But now, he also had a deeper feeling inside him, accompanied by memories of things they had never experienced together. Two people who barely tolerated each other had acquired the memories of a past life in which they not only shared many adventures as both enemies and allies but also developed a very particular relationship.

It was very difficult to express, and neither Katya nor Drake was sure of their own feelings at that moment, as it was strange to have two sets of memories that were both theirs and not implanted.

Katya was the first to break the silence.

"Does this... change anything?"

She asked, her voice small. She was not willing to change anything about who she was, even with these memories that she had no idea where they came from. Drake looked at her, and his face was full of contemplation.

"I don't know."

He admitted. He would like to investigate where those memories came from, but for now, there were other, more important things to worry about.

"I don't know if it changes anything, but I can't deny that, whether I like it or not, there are things there that are… Complicated to say the least."

Katya looked at him nervously, her mind a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. Her old memories told her to lean in, to trust him completely, but her current self was terrified of that level of intimacy. She finally blurted out.

"W-What d-do you m-mean?"

Drake understood her hesitation.

"I think we should be friends."

He said with a sigh, trying to stay calm.

"We didn't get off on the right foot, and the truth is that until this moment, we were little more than strangers. But given everything we're remembering… The best thing to do, in my opinion, is to start over as comrades."

Katya sighed in relief, the tension in her body finally releasing. She turned her head away and said.

"I-I don't have a problem with that."

Her voice was still shaky with nervousness, but less than before.

"Just know that Kazue is still the most important person to me."

Drake could not help but laugh.

"I know."

He said gently, a soft smile on his face.

"But I would also like for you to eventually create your own memories with the rest of the team and consider them your friends, too."

Katya's cheeks puffed out in a pout in response, but didn't say anything, and with that clarified, Drake said he would return to his room.

But before he could turn to leave, he saw that Katya had extended her hand and was holding it out to him as if she wanted him to take it. Confused, Drake looked at her, who was totally flushed and still pouting.

"What's wrong?"

He asked nervously.

"If we're 'friends' now, then I have a favor to ask you."

Katya said, her voice full of determination,

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"What do you want?"

Drake asked, surprised.

"I intend to use my [Devil Summon Ticket] to summon the devil Bhaal and challenge him in combat so I can control him… And although my initial idea was to do it alone, after what just happened... well, I thought maybe I could ask for your help. I'm not sure if it will work, as the ticket clearly says the devil will only transport me and my belongings. But for some reason, I feel that it could work if I ask for it."

Katya explained, and Drake, for the first time, also had a slight blush on his face, but he did not hesitate to say yes and take Katya's hand, feeling that it was a little sweaty from her nervousness. The boy then felt many messages appear in his 'Supporter Chat', but he did not read them because of the strangely uncomfortable moment. Immediately, and again stammering, Katya said they would hurry up, she materialized her ticket and broke it, activating it and saying Bhaal's name out loud.

A system window appeared at that moment.

"Figures… Are you ready?"

Katya said, looking at Drake.

"I am."

The boy replied with a smile, which made Katya blush, frown and become very upset with him.

"Don't do that under these circumstances!"

Immediately, both of them disappeared from the place. Katya's hunch had been right, and Drake had been transported with her, due to the connection that had formed with their memories from the previous timeline, as they were certainly... "something" together.

In a flash, they found themselves in what appeared to be the interior of an enormous palace. The columns were made of a dark, polished marble, and the floors were of a gleaming gold. Torches lined the walls, casting a warm, flickering light that illuminated magnificent murals and strange artifacts. In this grand hall, seated upon an enormous stone chair, was the devil Bhaal.

He had dark, rich skin and a muscular torso, wearing a simple white tunic with a metallic breastplate. His head was adorned with a helmet that resembled the head of a fish, and his feet were also clad in armor that resembled the tails of a fish. He had two large fins that served as wings on his back, and in his left hand, he held a large cup filled with a dark, swirling liquid.

The devil did not look at all happy, and after a moment, the calm on his face disappeared to make way for a fury that made the place tremble.

"I cannot believe this humiliation!"

He roared, his voice shaking the very foundations of the room.

"Not only was I used by you, stupid woman, in the past without a formal pact or paying the price, but now you have come back and want to summon me again, despite my vow of revenge! It is unbelievable, illogical, and idiotic! I have never met a human with such an altered perception of reality! Now I will not only take my revenge, but I will make you wish you had never been born! You will beg for a quick death when I am done with you!"

However, the devil's grand words were simply met with mockery from Katya.

"Blah, blah, blah..."

She said, waving her hand as if he were nothing but a boring insect.

"I'm not here to 'summon' or to 'make a pact' with you. I'm here to deprive you of your freedom and bind you to me forever as my loyal minion!"

Bhaal exploded in fury. The water in his cup began to overflow, and jagged spikes of liquid began to emit from it as the devil's anger grew and he roared, a sound that shook the very foundation of the palace. Katya, however, was unfazed. With a calm, serene smile, she finally invoked two tulpas. One of them took the form of her classic living scythe, its obsidian blade humming with dark power, while the other, a swirling mass of shadowy energy, remained at her side for a moment.

Then, the girl made the [Chains of the Forsworn] appear in front of her, which were a set of black shackles with red, glowing runes. At the same time, she held up a [Treasure Fusion] card between the fingers of her free hand. A brilliant, spiraling vortex of energy erupted from the card, absorbing her second tulpa and the shackles. The energy coalesced in front of her, and when it finally faded, a new tulpa stood in its place.

It was the same bipedal insectoid humanoid with delicate, transparent wings. Its body, however, was no longer pale; its skin was a deep, unyielding black, covered in the same glowing red runes that had been on the shackles. And instead of its usual serrated arms, it now had two enormous, powerful shackles that were connected to its body by a series of glowing chains. It was a fusion of a living entity and cold, unyielding iron, a perfect and terrifying servant.

Katya took a combat stance with a huge smile on her face. She turned to look at Drake and asked.

"I'll ask again... are you ready?"

The boy responded by summoning his two sacred wings and a sword made of divine energy, which glowed brightly. He also took a combat stance next to Katya and smiled.

"Always."

He said, which made Katya's smile grow even wider. The two users and the tulpa then launched themselves toward Bhaal, who roared with ferocity as the water pouring from his cup grew in size.

—————

No one knows how much time passed, but at one moment, Drake and Katya's bodies suddenly appeared in the lobby, falling to the ground. Both of them had many wounds all over their bodies, but none were serious. However, they were so tired that they could not even move; they simply lay there, side by side, looking at the simulated night sky of the lobby, breathing heavily from exhaustion. They remained that way for a while, unable to move, until Katya was the first to open her mouth.

"Well... that was... fun."

She said with a dry voice, which made Drake laugh despite the pain.

"I certainly didn't expect things to turn out like this."

Drake said, groaning a little from the pain.

"But yeah, I admit that in a way, it was fun."

Both of them smiled as they looked at the sky and fell silent again for a while. After a few minutes, Katya finally talked again.

"You know... I'm having a déjà vu."

"Me too."

Drake replied, his voice a low murmur.

Neither of them moved, but at one point, their hands, lying beside them on the floor, grazed each other. It was a simple, accidental touch, a fleeting brush of skin, but in that brief moment, it was as if a jolt of electricity ran through them both. The feeling lingered, a confused warmth that was not their own, but a deep, comforting sensation from the memories of a life that was not quite theirs.

For a brief moment, their hands remained there, neither of them daring to move, a silent, unspoken question hanging in the air. Then, almost as if on cue, both of them pulled their hands back at the exact same moment and tried to sit up, the shared awkwardness of the moment a stark reminder of their complicated bond.

"I think we should go back to our rooms and rest."

Drake said with some effort.

"Yeah."

Katya replied, also with effort and some lingering pain.

"That's a good idea."