Chapter 7: Chapter 7

Rika was led inside and, from what she could tell, the building really was in pretty bad shape. Not only was the roof broken in several places, planks were nailed haphazardly to cover holes and some of the chairs and other furniture were in similar need of repair. Georgius led her further in and told her to sit on a chair in one of the smaller rooms, then went off to fetch someone else. Several footsteps could be heard not long after, an old woman now accompanying the alchemist.

"I just noticed I already forgot your name again. Sorry about that."

"My name is... Rika."

"Alright. Then, Rika. This is Catarina, one of the people here who takes care of the orphans. Catarina, this little lady is Rika, a noble of Alheim."

"Good day, little Rika. I heard that Georgius and the others found you out in the snow, and that you don't know how you ended up here. But that's alright, maybe your memory will come back to you later. Do you need anything right now?"

The old woman tried to make an inviting, gentle face. Her white hair and bushy, droopy dog-like ears betrayed her age, but her blue eyes were sharp and attentive. Her worn robes seemed old to Rika, but they did strangely suit her.

"I would like to have something to eat, please. If you would? And I require rest after this."

Catarina nodded twice, then set towards the kitchen. Georgius stayed for a little longer, sitting down in a chair next to Rika's.

"So, don't take this the wrong way, but... are you really alright? I think it would be better if Sister Leannah would give you a proper check-up. Ah, but she's still in the city for business... hmm..."

Georgius got lost in thought, but Rika just shook her head.

"No, no, please do not worry. I really just need something warm to eat and a quiet chamber to recover."

"Fair enough. Right, you just sit tight and wait for Catarina to return with some nice soup, she should lead you to some room upstairs afterward. I need to go and check the materials. Is that fine with you?"

"Yes, thank you for everything."

So said, the young man left to go about his business. Rika did not have to wait long for Catarina to return with a steaming bowl of soup. After providing Rika with a wooden spoon and smaller soup bowl of her own, she sat down as well. Also right next to Rika.

"It's probably lacking compared to a noble's usual palate, but it should be filling. Do eat up."

The kindly dogkin smiled again. Rika was not sure if the water with some small vegetable bits in front of her could really be called soup, but her hunger won out and so she ate what she could. But also not too much, that would be greedy and thus bad manners.

"Thank you very much, Miss Catarina."

She nodded respectfully, even if the food was really not nearly of the quality she was used to, which made Catarina give a more pleased smile than before. She noticed Rika's ears.

"You're such a polite girl, Rika. Say, are you an elf? We don't have many of those here."

"I am elven, yes."

"Hmhm. Now, I'm sure you need proper rest, so just follow me, yes?"

"What about the utensils?"

"I'll clean those up later. Besides, knowing the kids, someone else will eat the rest soon enough, haha."

 

So said, Catarina opened a door in the back which led to the stairs. Rika quietly followed her, shivering all the while due to the building's lack of heating. Catarina of course did not notice until they were already at the room's door at the very back of the hallway.

"Oh dear, do excuse me. My eyesight isn't so good anymore, so I didn't notice how torn your clothes are. You poor thing must be terribly cold, so let me get you something warm."

The gentle woman stepped into an adjacent room and came back with a bundle of cloth.

"Here's a thick wool robe you can wear. You can give me your own clothes and I'll stitch them up in the evening, yes?"

Rika did not see a reason to decline, so she stripped off her torn garments on the spot. Catarina was mildly shocked at this.

"Wh-What are you-? Little Rika, I meant that you can undress in your room..."

"Oh, please forgive me, I didn't... I did not mean to..."

"It's fine. A noble girl like you probably has servants that dress you, right? Haha."

Without a hint of shame, Rika - now naked - handed Catarina her clothes and took the wool robe in turn. The surprisingly heavy cloth was a little difficult to put on, but with a belt fit decently enough.

"*Yawn*... Oh, my apologies, but I must be more tired than I thought. I will retreat now. Thank you for everything, Miss Catarina."

In lieu of a curtsy she gave a deep nod. The heavy robe made it too difficult to even bow, in any case.

"Don't sweat it. Go get some rest, yes?"

"I will. Good night, Miss Catarina."

The two parted ways. Rika stepped into the dark room, just as cold as the rest of the building, but thanks to the robe it was more bearable than before. Inside were a bed and small desk; atop the latter sat a portable candle which she lit, brightening the place up to at least a dim state. She closed the door, then remembered what Jufu told her to do and so tapped her choker three times in quick succession.

[Yoooouuuu called?]

Jufu's voice had an odd inflection to it, but he did not keep that up for very long.

[Well, that was quicker than I thought. Guess they'll leave the big revelations and stuff for later, eh eh?]

"Jufu, please, I'm... I am very tired."

[*Sigh*, yeah yeah fine, I'll keep it short. Remember what I said earlier about healing you? I could do that now that we're alone, but you'll need to make a decision about it as well.]

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"What do I need to decide?"

[Well, two things. First of all, do you even want me to heal those scars? Because if I do that, there will be side effects. Namely that I'll have to make your body younger to essentially revert the damage.]

"I *Yawn* I don't see what would be so bad about that. Doesn't everyone want to be younger and healthier? Please do it."

[...I'd have thought you'd resist the idea more, but I'll take it. Here goes: Accelerated Reverse Ageing! Lolification Magic, go!]

The world around Rika suddenly turned into a strange whirlpool of impressions. She did not feel exactly as if she was spinning; it was more as if her view of things was repeatedly jolted back and the overlapping views disoriented her. Her surroundings grew in size, the ceiling in particular going further and further away from her. But it was not that the surroundings were growing, Rika herself was actually shrinking! Thankfully, the procedure did not take very long and, seemingly satisfied, Jufu finished the spell. His smugness was almost audible.

"I... what did you- what have you done to me, Jufu?"

Rika was still mildly disoriented, but when she looked at her arms to confirm that all the scar tissue was gone, it immediately occurred to her that her hands had become smaller, daintier. Closer to a girl barely more than half her age.

[I reversed your age, as per the spell name. Do you like it? I'm sure you've turned out ultra cute from this. Oh, look over there, there's a hand mirror on that desk.]

Unbelieving what she was hearing, Rika picked up the mirror and looked into it. While it was not easy to make things out in the dim candle light, she did notice how much... well, cuter her face looked. The robe around her body had become loose, so she readjusted it accordingly.

"This is..."

[Cute, right? Even I am impressed with the result. I can already imagine all the girls and guys who'll want to cuddle and pat you and give you cookies.]

"C-Cookies? ...Hm, well to be honest some cookies would be quite nice right about- wh-wh-what am I saying!?"

[Heh, sorry about that, but I had to adjust your mind a little to fit your younger body, or you'd suffer from some form of dysphoria. Believe me, that's some really unpleasant stuff. I want my host to have fun, so we can't have that, now can we?]

Rika barely heard half of Jufu's explanation, her own thoughts still stuck on cookies for some reason.

[Rika? ...Hello? Ground Control to cryokinetic girl, are you reading?]

"Wha- Oh, my apologies, I really must be more tired than I thought. What were you saying, Jufu?"

[I want you to have fun.]

"Fun is... nice."

[Mhm, and that's a good outlook to have. But I still need you to decide on something else. Can you do that for me?]

"If you give me some cookies- gah, enough with that, me! Ahem, what do you need me to decide?"

[Right, so. You probably already noticed this before, but I'm pretty powerful... buuut I can only give you a tiny amount of my power right now or your body gets overloaded. You know, the scars? I need you to choose an aspect of me and adhere to it. That way our connection can become stronger and you'll be able to use more of what I can do without me needing to take the wheel or side-effects. How's that sound? Could be really useful to take down Albert, don't you think?]

Rika fell into anger at the mention of her fiancé, and a newfound feeling of him being not merely awful but indeed creepy wormed itself into her mind to make her shudder in disgust.

"I hate him, he's the worst! If there's anything I need to do to kill him and avenge mom and dad... father and mother, I will do it."

[Heh. Good speech, girly. Aight, so here the options I can give you: despair, lust, pride, and wrath. Each of those comes with its own hang-ups and whatnot, but it's generally best to pick one that suits you. Compatibility and all that jazz, you know?]

"Those are... aren't all of those sins!? Jufu, why are your powers based around sins? ...Are you a demon?"

[Because I'm awesome, is why. Anyway, you already said you'd do anything, so just pick one. Personally, I don't think despair suits you at all. You want to avenge your parents, and despair is generally a hindrance. Wrath's also out, for the same reason - it would make you a ruthless terror and end up overshooting. As for pride... might work, considering you're an Imperial Princess and should have tons of pride, but those who use pride often become numb to the feelings of others by seeing them as their lessers. Which means lust could work best in your case. It's also in my opinion the most fun of the bunch. Ride the cock carousel or munch carpet, you do you same as you do others, and you get interesting magic out of it. Sounds like a good deal, no?]

Rika's thoughts were starting to become a blur. Jufu's manner of speaking, as well as the big amount of words was becoming too much for the freshly de-aged girl. But she knew, in her heart, that she had to choose an option now or Jufu would never make this offer again.

"Albert must die! That's all that matters! He must die! He must die a gruesome death! A dozen deaths, a hundred gruesome deaths!"

Like a mantra, she repeated those words over and over, until Jufu took control of her left hand and slapped Rika over her face.

"Ouuuch! What was that for!?"

[That was for you being silly. Just pick an option. Hint: lust would be the most fun for you.]

She stared into empty space for a moment, considering his words. But the choice, to her, seemed obvious enough.

"Alright, alright. Then... lust, please."

The smile on Jufu's face that did not even exist went so wide that Rika could practically feel it.

[Coming right up! Sadly I can't give you a cool soul gem for this contract, but I can still give you something nice. Undo your robe and look down, I think you'll like this.]

Rika did as told, the woollen robe sliding down her body. The still-cold room sent shivers through her body, but then a warm sensation started spreading out from slightly above her crotch. A strange pink glow shone out for a few moments and then dimmed again, leaving several bright pink lines in the form of a heart in place.

"This, my dear girly, is called a crotch tattoo. Not a terribly clever name, I know, but that doesn't matter. What does matter is that this is basically a mark for someone who chose lust magic; a lust crest, if you will. It will give you a pleasant tingle all the time and make your body more sensitive to feeling, well... good. It even dulls pain a bit. I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

She was at a loss for words. Despite the coldness of the room, she was feeling pleasantly warm. Her mind was swimming and both her hands wanted to move and feel herself up.

"J-Jufu... This is- I'm not... I don't..."

"It's fine, don't worry. Just go to bed, yeah? I guarantee you, you'll have a nice dream tonight. We can talk about the specifics tomorrow. And... Thank you. You don't know how much this means."

Finally overcome with sleepiness, Rika did just that. After picking up the woollen robe and snuggling herself into the bed, she finally fell asleep. Her dream was indeed a pleasant one... even though she would blush profusely the next morning.

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