Crying Night

Nine: Assassin Archives' Administrator

After we passed the test, we fell for what seemed to be ages. What was this, Alice in Wonderland? Would the Administrator be the Queen of Hearts? What was at the bottom of this hole, a teeny tiny door?

This wasn't fiction, though. I had to live with the reality of falling down a long hole. But my friends fell with me, so I wasn't navigating an unfamiliar world alone. Even if they didn't get along, I thought this would be better than being completely on my own. Three heads were better than one, or so they said.

I hadn't thought of this for long, as I finally saw a light at the end of the hole. Taiyou and I made a perfect landing, and Teko landed on her butt.

"Ow... how do you guys land so well?" Teko rubbed her bottom as she complained.

"We train until we feel like dying, which you should do now that you decided to tag along with us!" Taiyou bragged to provoke Teko.

I almost reached my limit with these two. Why do they hate each other so much?

I opened my mouth to ask them the reason until I glanced at my surroundings. We were in the middle of an intersection of a medieval hallway made of stone. Spider webs adorned the ceiling, and dust caked the indents on the wall for torches. Somehow the torches were lit, but this hallway seemed to have been untouched for ages. How could the Assassin Archives be down here? Was this mysterious Administrator even human? And in the first place...where even were the Archives?

As if they heard my internal thoughts, all of the torches' flames extinguished. Immediately after all of them went out, only torches on our right lit up.

Was the Administrator showing us the way?

"Well, it seems the Administrator knows we're here." Taiyou let out a long sigh as he reached the same conclusion I did.

"Nothing left but to follow that path! I'll lead the way since you guys seemed so scared before!" Teko triumphantly laughed.

"We're not scared, just cautious! It's what being an assassin is about, you idiot!" Taiyou's and Teko's rivalry started to show again.

"ENOUGH! Let's just go!" My patience, which was already running thin, was now at its limit.

With a slight nod from the both of them, we began to walk down the corridor. My light blue eyes grew weary with frustration as Taiyou and Teko looked away from each other with a simple, "Hmph!"

The hallway seemed to extend for ages, but we finally got there after twenty minutes of walking. I gazed at the huge steel door, Taiyou and Teko beside me.

Somewhere along the way, Taiyou grabbed my left hand, and Teko grabbed my right. The sparks flew again, but this time with me in the middle. Luckily, they didn't bicker, so I didn't stop them.

"Let's open the door together." I sighed.

With the simultaneous knocks from before, I guessed right away that we had to open this door together. It was hard to believe we would have to everything in sync, and it was even harder to imagine Taiyou and Teko working together.

Much to my surprise, each let go of their respective hand and put both of theirs on the door. I also took my hands to put them on the door.

"Three, two, o—"

And we fell down. The door just opened by itself.

"Welcome-nyaa!"

"...Nyaa?"Taiyou and I repeated.

"WAS THAT A TALKING CAT!?" Teko screamed.

"I am the Administrator, Prulius Mintrodo Necat-nyaa. Since that nyame is long, just call me Prul-nyaa!"

"Prul...?" I repeated this cat's nickname, "Why are you here? Otou-sama died, didn't he?!"

"For a moment-nyaa. Our contract was nyullified at that moment, so I came here to hide from him!"

Yes, this cat was my father's familiar. As a demon cat, he didn't change at all. From his black fur to his white tufts of hair on his paws, from the white circle around his eye, to his two tails... everything hadn't changed. The only thing that did change was that he wasn't my father's familiar anymore.

"But that's not the point. I called you here to warn you, Tsuki-sama: your father is alive. He was reconstructed by the head of the Kusari family, and he is after your power."

"Huh? Why would that man do that...? And why is it bad that Otou-sama is alive? What is my power?!" I questioned Prul.

"They both don't want anyother war between the Moon and Sun." Prul's answer seemed simple, but it was a lot more complicated.

I hung my head. What is my power? Did that have to do with the "war between the Moon and Sun?"

Teko stopped my confusion from consuming me.

"So, if her father is alive, what about her mother?" She asked.

"She died. Kusari Gin still tried to revive her, too, but she was beyond saving-nyaa." Prul sighed.

I almost cried. Did my entire family really want me dead? Why?

Taiyou said nothing as I looked at him for answers. Fear spread all over his face.

"I can tell you don't know anything, so I'll lend you a book." Prul's eyes closed, and a large book flew into Teko's face.

The blow made her fall onto the floor.

"What was that for...?" Teko somehow still had consciousness.

"You're annyoying." Prul answered, then went on, "The book that flew into the annyoyance's face was the book you nyeed. You don't even nyeed to return it. Just keep it safe-nyaa."

"I will." I promised Prul.

"Contract complete." Prul said.

"Huh?" Taiyou finally broke his silence with that.

"I decided it would be better to go along with Tsuki-sama-nyaa! To keep her safe, and also to get back at that Chikara Mizuo-y'knyow." Prul explained his reason to form a new contract.

"Wait, wait, wait. Don't I need to summon you?" I still didn't get it.

"Nyo. I'm already in the overworld, so you only nyeed a promise, and then I serve you until you die-nyaa!" Prul smiled.

I don't get it, but I might as well accept it. I thought.

"So, what kind of cat food you need to eat? Do you also need a litter box?" Teko finally recovered from the book to her face.

"You're forgetting something, annyoyance," Prul started explaining, "I'm a familiar. I don't nyeed human-made food, nor do I nyeed to relieve myself. I just need some of my master's blood, and I'm OK-nyaa."

"Huh. That's convenient." Teko mumbled.

"Well then," I picked up the book that flew at Teko, "Shall we go, Prul?"

"Of course, Tsuki-sama!" Prul jumped on my shoulder, "Oh, and don't worry about the Archives. I'm still connyected to them."

And, with this short visit to the Assassin Archives, I gained a powerful familiar, a book, and knowledge that my family is my enemy. What else could be worse than that knowledge?

"I'm surprised that you were face-booked, annoyance." Taiyou mocked Teko.

Oh, there we go.