At that moment, Tania seized Loki by the hair and stared straight into his eyes.

  “If you do not help us escape, you will learn what it means to suffer while still alive,” she said defiantly.

  “I doubt you could make me suffer more than I already have,” Loki replied, equally defiant.

  Tania ignited one of her hands in flames.

  “I can assure you—you will,” she said.

  “Pray, Tania-san, stay thy hand,” Susanoo interjected. “In this matter, Loki speaketh true.”

  “You too will take that idiot’s side?” Tania asked, surprised.

  “No,” the eastern god replied. “He is correct about the illusions. Yet this doth not mean he alone may flee this place. This spell is wrought of mist—a craft that mingles heat with cold. Thus, one who commandeth the element of water may discern the path of escape.”

  Susanoo drew his katana and slashed the air. At the point of the cut, another world appeared for an instant—blurred lakes and distant mountains shimmering beyond the veil.

  “I see now… I did not realize this illusion was born of mist,” Epona said in astonishment. “I have seen arts like this in Avalon, now that I think of it.”

  Tania formed droplets of water in her hand and fired them forward, but they failed to produce the effect she expected.

  “Only cutting water attacks may disperse this illusory mist,” Susanoo explained, as droplets emerged from the ground, merging into floating spheres of water around him.

  “Go forth!” Susanoo cried, and the droplets sharpened into water needles that streaked across the plain at great speed.

  For a brief moment, the true world revealed itself. Towering blue mountains crowned with snow rose in the distance, separated from the rocky land where they truly stood. A lake of impossibly pure, crystalline water gleamed in emerald blue, leaving them all in awe.

  Then the vision vanished, and once more the land became an endless green prairie.

  “There are thousands of kilometers in every direction. It’s impossible to cut through the mist in every quadrant to find an exit,” Epona said in frustration.

  “Susanoo, what if you make it rain blades like you did when we fought before?” Rodrigo asked.

  “A most excellent notion, Rodrigo-san,” the god replied. He spun his katana, and black clouds gathered overhead, darkening the sky.

  Rain began to pour in torrents across the plain. Spheres of water enveloped them all just as the raindrops transformed into blades, tearing through everything around them.

  Once again, the real world appeared before their eyes—nearly clear, though the rain obscured perfect vision.

  “Excellent, Susanoo. With this, we can find the exit of this labyrinth,” Tania said, giving him a thumbs-up.

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  “Good. We’ll split into four groups to find the way out,” Menrva declared. “I’ll go with Loki to prevent him from escaping again.”

  Epona stepped forward at once and raised her hand.

  “I would like Ana and me to watch him instead,” she said.

  Menrva felt rejection from the equine goddess and could not stop her expression from hardening.

  “You don’t trust me, Epona?” Menrva asked.

  “It’s… I… we have something to discuss with him,” Epona replied nervously.

  The two goddesses locked eyes for a moment. Menrva finally closed hers, turned away, and sighed.

  “Very well. I leave him to you.”

  Menrva and Bellona headed north. Anpiel and Susanoo went south. Meanwhile, Ana and Tania approached Epona.

  “You don’t trust Menrva?” Ana asked quietly.

  “To be honest… no,” Epona answered bluntly.

  Loki laughed softly.

  “I wouldn’t want to leave you with that trash,” Tania muttered.

  “That’s why I asked to go with Ana. She already defeated him once,” Epona said.

  “Fine, Epona. I’ll sacrifice myself and go with you and that man,” Ana replied dryly.

  “Good. Rodrigo, you’re with me,” Tania said. The young tannin nodded.

  “Ep, Ana—be careful,” Rodrigo said, giving them a thumbs-up.

  They returned the gesture.

  Tania and Rodrigo headed east, while Epona and Ana—who carried Loki on her back—moved west.

  The equine goddess and the Irish goddess flew over a massive lake. Despite the heavy rain falling upon it, the water remained blue and crystalline, as if incapable of reflecting the sky.

  “Loki, tell me—do you have some sort of arrangement with Menrva?” Epona asked.

  “Why should I speak when you treat me as a prisoner?” Loki replied sarcastically.

  “You don’t seem to understand your position here,” Ana said coldly. “You know I could kill you if I wished.”

  “Then you would never learn where Father Odin is,” Loki sneered.

  “I don’t give a damn about Odin,” Epona shot back.

  “Nor do I,” Ana added. “We’re only here to accompany Rodrigo in his search for his identity.”

  “Ohhh, so the two of you are following your man,” Loki mocked. “Are you fighting your jealousy—or did you decide to share such a specimen?”

  Epona tried to respond, but Ana cut in sharply. “He’s just our companion. Stop trying to sow discord between us.”

  Loki chuckled quietly as Epona turned red as a strawberry. Ana noticed, but said nothing.

  “Ana, look—at that enormous tree,” Epona said hurriedly, pointing at a tree whose crown could not be fully seen from below.

  “It looks as though the top of that pine rises beyond the dimensional barrier we’re trapped in. That could be the exit,” Ana said.

  They reached the colossal tree after crossing the great lake and gazed up at it. Indeed, its crown was impossible to see from the ground.

  “Epona, call the others. We’ll climb,” Ana said.

  Epona began communicating mentally with the group while both goddesses flew upward along the massive pine.

  “Look, Ana,” Epona said as they ascended. “There’s some kind of tunnel in the clouds above. That could be the way out!”

  The tunnel opened above the rain clouds Susanoo had summoned. Ana and Epona passed through just as the water bubbles protecting them burst.

  They emerged into a world of cloud seas, with enormous green islands floating majestically across the horizon—covered in trees, pines, lakes, and mountains. The sky was pale blue, filled with countless white clouds.

  “Who goes there?!” a voice shouted in alarm.

  At once, several gray wolves surrounded the two goddesses in a circular formation. Ana and Epona raised their hands immediately, signaling peaceful intent.

  “Who are you? How did you cross the lower world?” one of the wolves demanded.

  “It’s strange to see wolves talking,” Epona whispered to Ana.

  “And the one who turns into a human mare thinks talking wolves are strange?” Ana whispered back.

  “Answer!” the wolf barked again. “Are you allies of the beavers?”

  “We come from the other side of the continent, and we come in peace,” Ana said firmly, hands still raised.

  At that moment, from the opening behind them, a massive swarm of floating beavers burst forth, flying like a hive of bees.

  “Damn it, I knew it!” the wolf shouted. A full-scale battle erupted between wolves and beavers. The wolves unleashed shockwaves from their jaws, while the beavers hurled energy spheres from their tails.

  Ana and Epona fled the scene, taking advantage of the chaos.

  “I understand now. That labyrinth was built to prevent these beings from reaching this world,” Ana said as they took cover behind a rocky hill.

  “What do you think happened to Rodrigo and the others?” Epona asked anxiously.

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  The next part will be released Tomorrow.