Level Up Family

The day was a wonderful picture for those in Ivanov; many travelers roamed the streets as they set off on various activities, some seeking adventure as others sought other affairs.

The time was approaching that of noon, the street even more bustling than its earlier hours as a familiar pair walked amidst the crowd.

"Mama, where are we going?" Little Rose asked with a curious set of eyes, the adorable little angel now being pulled by her mother with on hand as she looked up at her.

Ria scanned the surroundings carefully before she looked down at her daughter and spoke, "Do you remember that game I talked about?"

"A game?" Little Rose muttered with a hint of confusion on her face; she stunned up her cheeks and struggled to make a thoughtful look before her eyes flashed with realization.

Instantly, her face beamed with excitement as she spoke in a happy tone, "Yay game! Mama, I want to play that game!"

Little Rose smiled at this, rubbing her daughter's head as she replied, "That's my good girl, now come along, let's go play. Remember, do as I instructed while you search me; if you can find me before I finish my count, then I will give you the biggest surprise."

"Okay!" Little Rose said with eagerness, the adorable girl seeming to be ready to go on an adventurer.

Ria smiled at this before doing something that only the world's most irresponsible mother would do, she vanished, leaving behind the poor and helpless little girl in the middle of the crowded street.

Oddly enough, no one noticed when the beauty of her standard had vanished, but some soon realized that the girl was idly standing looking around with the appearance of a lost little girl.

Suddenly, a gentle-looking middle-aged woman with plump features who happened to see her walked over and stooped down before speaking.

"Oh dear, little one, why are you here by yourself? Where's your mother?"

A bit dazed, Little Rose snapped back to her senses; she looked at the strange old lady before taking a step back before speaking.

"M-mother said not to talk to strangers."

The middle-aged lady showed eyes filled with love as she spoke with the prize, "That's a good little girl, true you should never talk to strangers, but whenever you find yourself in a pinch, you must take aid from kind, law-abiding citizens. I can see that you're very smart and adorable, why not follow this old lady? I'll take you to your mother."

Little Rose showed an even more cautious look, taking another step back as she stared at the lady; she spoke while pointing her finger at her.

"No, you're a bad person, Mama said not to get close to a bad person! I'm going to tell Mama!"

Little Rose turned and ran towards a different direction after saying her words, the tiny and wobbly legs flapping through the crowd of giants, no different from a small chick in a dense of lions, it seemed as if she could fall over at any second and fall into demise.

"Oh no, where did this little angel come from?" A concerned woman said as she saw her running by her.

"Be careful; someone get that little girl to safety!" Another person said in alarm, seeing a savage-looking bull-like beast being ridden by a sturdy man, rushing through the street at full speed.

Oddly enough, the person riding the bull had a conical hat on his face, dressed in piles of dark-colored cloth that hid his features. As if he saw Little Rose, his eyes underneath his hat showed a sharp gleam as he vaguely urged the mount faster, pretending not to see anything.

"Nooo!" A woman cried out, seeing that Little Rose was now directly on the collision course.

At this time, Little Rose, who had been running, seemed to have noticed the mount at the last minute. No, it could be said that she wasn't even paying attention to anything; Instead, what she saw as something that her mother had taught her since young. A dark sinister energy flowing from the man as it seeped into her body, giving her both a slightly enjoyable but annoying feeling.

"That man is bad! I… I'm going to tell Dadda!"

Little Rose said as she looked at the man with her adorable eyes showing a tinge of anger; she saw that the bull was roaring towards her vaguely with every intent to destroy her, but rather than showing fear, little rose did something unthinkable.

With a sturdy pushed of her legs, her figure leaped forward and vanished at the very last second the mounter warrior was supposed to hit her. Naturally, no one seemed to have clearly noticed this scene as all they saw was the mounter warrior, running through her before continuing on its way as if nothing happened.

"Kyaaa!" A woman screamed as she fell onto her knees, closing her eyes as she feared to look at the situation.

Some other women and weak-willed men also looked away while sighing with pity on their faces. Still, this scene didn't last long as only after a little while did everyone find the situation a bit strange.

"Hey, look, she isn't there!" One person said with alarm.

"What? How?" Some person said as they turned to look at the scene more clearly, noticing that there wasn't even a sign of blood, much less a corpse, the eyes of everyone turning strange as they wondered if they just saw an illusion, all but one person.

The middle-aged woman, whose eyes were closed with a kind look, turned to face the direction Little Rose went. After a brief moment, her eyes opened as her face transformed entirely.

This wasn't a gentle look anymore, but a look of a seasoned predator, her eyes sharp and emotionless as she frowned when looking at the scene.

"Mission failed, send word to the second-team..." The woman said through a communication device with magical runes.

"Understood." A voice said from the device before hanging up.

The woman's eyes narrowed when staring fixedly in the direction, the bull rider vanished. The scene here though mysterious, taking a slightly dark vibe as everyone continued about their business.

***

A distance away from the previous location, Little Rose was now running through an abandoned alleyway. After a little while, her small body halted as she showed an exhausted look and flopped over onto her buttocks.

The pitiful little girl seemed to be in a bad state as she panted for breath. It took her a short while to get herself together. Picking herself up from the ground in a wobbly manner before she looked around her newfound location with wonder. However, after staring at the gloomy concrete walls, with suspicious stains, and even hearing the light sounds of distant and creepy whispers, she started to feel afraid.

"I want mama!" Little Rose said, not feeling so excited anymore.

She thought for a bit before her eyes flickered as she just remembered the rules of her mother's game.

"Mama said that if I wish for reallllly hard... I... I can find Mama!" Little Rose said with an innocent look on her face as she then closed her eyes, falling into a strange state.

Her breath turned longer, as she seemed as if she was floating. Instantly as if the world around her had transformed, everything had faded as a strange scene occurred.

____

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