"??"
"How strange!"
"Where am I now?"
The scene changed in an instant. The bizarre and terrifying turn of events made Xiado's eyes widen, and she cried out as she looked around in alarm.
"..."
She quickly realized that this seemed to be a gigantic ancient arena.
She could see towering walls all around her, with rows of spectator seats behind them, though there wasn't a single spectator. The ground beneath her was paved with rough stone slabs, covered in countless marks from blades and axes. The air was thick with an old, rotten stench, and even carried a faint smell of blood.
But she clearly remembered that she'd just been in Dragonbone Village... She'd apparently ignored Annie's advice and insisted on touching that arena model.
And then...
"Was I teleported here?"
"The moment I touched it..."
As she thought it over and looked around at this desolate, lifeless place that made her skin crawl, the clever Xiado quickly figured out what had probably happened.
"Annie?"
"Are you there?"
After standing still to observe her surroundings and think things over, Xiado decided it must be one of Annie's pranks—that Annie had teleported her here. She cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted:
"Hey!"
"Annie!"
"I know I was wrong. Hurry up and take me back!"
"Stop messing around!"
"I mean it!"
"You're freaking me out, messing around like this..."
As she shouted, her voice echoed through the empty, lonely arena. But... she never got a response!
"..."
So she waited a little longer.
"That's strange!"
"No one here?"
When she realized that something seemed wrong, her brows knitted together. A trace of unease crept into her eyes for the first time, and she found herself clutching the hem of her clothes.
"Hey!"
"Is anyone there?"
"Annie?"
"I..."
She was