I've Turned Into A Fox Girl?

Elysia spent the next 20 minutes explaining the dungeon that was in this underground city. She had inherited her ancestor's legacy while also destroying one of the Pope's main sources of mana for his summoning.

As for Alice, it turns out the dungeon was a snippet of the past in which she used to reside. It made me wonder if all dungeons were actually windows to some point in the past or snapshots of other worlds that I could have been transported to. There were so many possibilities… It really makes me want to enter this dungeon and see if a second Alice would appear.

So far, from my understanding, dungeons could have multiple instances of their biomes, and if a monster was defeated, they would simply respawn. However, if Alice was taken out, would that mean she couldn't respawn in the dungeon anymore? There was a lot I was curious about, but it wasn't a priority for me. I would still like to run the dungeon of course, as there may be something useful to me there.

Alice also did her best at a proper introduction, which was nice to see. I suspect it might be tough for her to get along well with everyone. Especially Silver, since he doesn't have that playfulness to him anymore and seems to see her as an immature brat. Himeko, though, seems to be already adopting Alice despite the 100-year age gap.

"So tell me what happened when you decided to go radio silent on us?" The food had arrived, so we all dug in, but I still wanted real answers about why Elysia turned silent. She froze in hesitation for a moment, before finally taking a bite.

*Sigh* "I already told you why, but I didn't tell you the whole reason." I knew there had to be more to it than just being stuck for nine months.

"Let's hear it then please... I don't want you to bottle anything up." It worried me that Elysia was evasive about the topic, possibly creating more problems for the future.

"I'll start with the easier stuff to explain."

***

<Elysia POV>

–6 months ago–

Standing above everyone who lived in this underground city, I looked down at them with disdain. Even though they were my own blood, they were worth less than a speck of dust to me.What's more, I couldn't shake this uncontrollable anger I felt ever since I found my parents in the basement.

I had convinced everyone here that I was going to lead them, but in reality, I was going to use them to satisfy my anger. I planned to murder every single one with my own two hands and erase my entire bloodline from history.

I wouldn't allow my future family to bear the burden of being associated with a Dahlia. I shall carry the atrocities that my family has committed all on my own and they will die with me.

"Time for the purge." I took a step off the building and floated to the ground. The crowd made way, forming a small empty circle for me. However, as soon as my foot made contact, a wave of flames set fire to the initial row of people. Screams filled the air as the crowd erupted into a frenzy, moving frantically about and setting fire to more people in a chain reaction.

Meanwhile, the many people burning to death were easily filling up my life essence reserves.

Chaos ensued as the crowd tried their best to run away, but I activated a large-scale magic circle that created a blood dome. The atmosphere turned grim as the light from the outside turned red, dying the crowd in shades of crimson.

Reality finally sank in for many and they all turned to me with fear in their eyes. To them, my eyes may have seemed devoid of emotion, but underneath was burning an all-consuming hatred.

I approached one who had tripped over trying to get away from me and picked them up by the throat.

"Ple-." Before he could get a single word out, I crushed his neck, killing him instantly. Blood dripped down my arm and spilled onto my face. I was relieved of my anger for a moment, but it returned as soon as I made eye contact with another.

Dropping the body to the ground, I approached my next victim and used my bare hands to pierce right through their chest.

*Cough* "W-why." The life left their eyes as they searched for some answer in my emotionless face, but they didn't deserve one. They were all going to die by my hands anyway.

One by one I killed every single one of my family members. Blood pooled within the barrier, rising to my knees, which served as a hiding spot for some. However, I hunted them even under the blood. I stabbed into it with my spear killing another person, adding to the amassing pile of bodies.

A few tried to fight back, but it was quite pointless. My grandfather never allowed them to train themselves, so none of them could even use magic, much less contest me in combat. All of them were indoctrinated into this belief that only the main family could be trusted with power.

It was a commendable act to fight back despite being brainwashed for obedience, but it was too bad they were related to me. Their attempts were futile, only resulting in more deaths, shattering the morale of those who remained.

Most had given up, sobbing at the sight of their dead loved ones.

"This is only a fraction of what I've gone through, be glad you get to die with them." None of them would understand what they took away from me, but they didn't need to.

I was indiscriminate about who I killed, determined to end the source of the very cruelty that killed my parents. If even one lives, then I risk all my efforts being wasted.

If anything, I am just fulfilling the royal order issued by Shaman's family. They were going to be killed either way, so I had no reason to feel bad for any of the young.

*

After hours of slowly murdering everyone, my entire body was coated in a layer of blood and I revelled in it. It was proof of my bloodline's eradication, soon to all be burned away without a trace.

A tall pile of bodies formed in the middle of my barrier and I sat atop it, scanning the area to make sure no one was left alive. Once I could no longer sense any more life below, I dispelled the barrier, letting the pool of blood flow through the city like a wave.

I noticed Alice, who had been waiting outside the barrier, speechless.She would have certainly been completely appalled by the rampant murder of her own blood if not for the fact she had no real familial relation with them.

***

After explaining the massacre, Elysia spoke in detail about the events that led up to it, which only added to the insanity of the situation.

<Shaman POV>

"She really did do all that. Should have seen the look in her eyes. It felt like I was looking into a black hole." Alice gave her own perspective at the end, but everyone was in too much shock to pay attention to her.

A part of me was terrified that Elysia committed genocide on her own massive family, and to think she didn't even spare the children... I understood she had a deep hatred for them, but to go to such an extreme was not something I saw coming.

She did explain how her parents were used in the experiment and how much of an ass her grandpa was, but did it justify killing everyone?

Elysia looked down at her hands, getting exactly the reaction she was expecting.

"Sorry if you don't see me the same anymore." It must have weighed on her how we'd react as she hastily got up and left the room before any of us could vocalise our thoughts.

I wasn't going to allow this to ruin our relationship, so I chased after her and so did Clara.

"Elysia, wait! We just needed time to think. It's a lot to take in, but I know my feelings haven't changed." Elysia halted her step in the middle of the hallway, hearing my words.

"I agree with Shaman. I… may not agree with how you dealt with things... Just tell me this,do you regret it?" I felt the same as Clara. We had no connection to this place or its people, so I didn't feel that anything was lost.

Elysia explained her feelings as she murdered them and, at a surface level, she was justified.

"I don't." Elysia clenched her fists, still refusing to turn around.

"Then it doesn't matter as long as you promise that nothing like this will ever happen again. I guess my father did put out the order to kill them all, so I'm sure you would be pardoned for any crime anyway." There was already a target on their heads, it was just morbid that it was Elysia, their own blood who did them in.

"I know." Elysia still refused to turn, and it was by this point that I understood what was going on. She had already convinced herself that we would hate her once we found out. Despite what we said, she still did some mental gymnastics, thinking our feelings had changed.

"It's okay, we still love you. Don't let the voice in your head tell you otherwise." I stood directly behind Elysia and wrapped my arms around her. She tensed up before relaxing, finally realising she was freaking out for no reason.

"We are still here for you, regardless of what you did. If you feel liberated that you got your revenge, then embrace it." Clara walked up to Elysia's side and held her hand tightly.

"Thank you, I needed that."