Defense specialization and the manor, part three.

For now... being attacked, but seems safe enough. Perhaps I should take a look.

Maple pushes through the tuft of fur, her head emerging. She scans the surroundings.

A sword is just now flying toward her.

The blade rebounds off the tuft, hovering in midair. After a pause, it turns again, moving toward Maple.

Wait! It’s not being thrown...

Maple understands that the attack does not leave openings from overuse. She narrows her eyes, searching for anything else.

Hmm. That ornate armor.

Maple focuses on the elaborate armor she had noticed earlier.

She sees it glowing with a pale blue light. It does not attack directly. It stands still, quiet.

Maple noticed, too, that the same pale blue light emanated from the flying swords and spears.

"Destroy that armor! — Full Armament Deployment!"

From the tangle of fur, black spars extended.

Each of the limbs, like arms and legs, bore a firearm or cannon—none excepted.

"Attack Initiated!"

As Maple opened fire, the floating swords and spears intercepted the projectiles, spinning at high speed to deflect them.

"Unbelievable... no—wait, that’s the Poison Dragon (Hydra)!"

The creature surged forward, swallowing the sword whole, as if the prior attack had been a test.

It pierced the ornate armor deep within, transforming the ground into a sea of poison as it consumed the armor from within.

The floating weapons fell to the earth. All that had attacked Maple vanished.

“Ah, even the chains are gone. Good, the wool’s done its job.”

Maple removes an item, sets the wool alight. The wool enfolding Maple vanishes in an instant.

Maple steadies herself, then leaps down to the ground.

“Here we go. Good, what’s here now?”

As Maple takes her first step, a pale blue light spills from the shattered ornate armor, rising into the air.

“What is this?”

Maple watches without urgency. The light gradually takes form, shifting in hue.

Floating in the air, the blue light fades to reveal a young girl.

She wears a dress of bright green, too vivid for the mansion’s atmosphere, long silver hair, green eyes.

The girl sees Maple and giggles softly.

Maple raises her shield in haste. A hand slips forward from behind.

She whirls around. A girl in bright red clothes stands there—identical in appearance.

“No. Give up that dangerous thing now?”

Maple’s shield and armor float upward. Enveloped in faint violet light, they vanish smoothly.

“Shall we play? Big sister?”

The girl in green spins in midair. A suit of armor, wrapped in pale blue light, clatters to life and floats upward.

“Shall we have fun? Big sister?”

The girl in red speaks. The ground warps. Walls collapse. Space twists and rewrites itself.

Hallways appear where none existed. Doors bloom on floor and ceiling. The mansion loses all resemblance to its original shape.

“Count to ten, and you’re done.”

They spoke in unison, then giggled quietly, dissolving into blue and violet light, slipping through the wall and vanishing.

They gave Maple not even a moment’s pause.

“Eh!? What? Wait—what!?”

Maple turned sharply, scanning the room. A pale blue armored figure advanced in perfect formation.

“Ah—no, the Poison Dragon—no, that won’t work either—right, Full Armament Deployment!”

Recalling she had pre-paid the cost with her Machine God, Maple activated her gear.

Gears and tubes sprouted across her body, extending weapons from their joints.

“Alright!”

“Told you it was dangerous. You’re using something reckless.”

“Using it.”

The room echoed with a voice as Maple relaxed.

Blue and purple light surrounded Maple. The deployed weapon shattered and vanished.

"Bad girl—"

"Punishment—"

With the words, spears wrapped in blue light and swords materialized suddenly from the floor and ceiling.