Holy shit what

This is a suspiciously perfect turnaround.

I'm not sure what to think just yet.

[ø] "We should both go after the cat girl."

> "[Yukari's] plan is almost complete!"

Uh-oh...I don't like the looks of this...

[X] "We should both go after the cat girl."

> Hikari Theta helping you against Chen
> Cat Killing Chapter

A dead cat is fine too.

[x] "We should both go after the cat girl."

[x] "The maid isn't too tough, so I can get her while you take on the cat."

Well, let's kill the cat then.

I don't think Yukari made it too clear what Layla looks like, so there's no worry there.

The line "...I was spying on you for Big Mary, but it sounds like she's not really... nice." might mean that she's finding Big Mary/Yukari's plans not to be nice, that or Chen's.

I think in the end, Hikari/Theta will be a wild card in things.

No update today, but I'll be back tomorrow.

>>22181

Hooray!

>>22181

Hurry back.

>>22181

> update today or tommorow

> currently tuesday

Get back to work nigger, you missed your own deadline before the server crashed

>>22200

Yeah, I was exhausted and told myself "I'll be able to update tomorrow."

...We see how that worked out. In any case, writing here soon.

"We should..." Swallowing hard, you look between the two attackers. "...We should both go after the cat girl. She's controlling the maid, afterall."

"Alright!"

Hikari, or "Theta", nods as you she says that one word. A familiar grin spreads over her face as she points her wand at Chen, and it takes a moment for you to realize it's the same as Renko's.

A small light gathers at the end of the wand and spreads out, making a curtain between you and Chen. The curtain quickly fades, but Chen is left on the ground rubbing her eyes, now motionless. Eliza has also been temporarily stopped, if only because her current master can't see.

A small blast hits the maid and shatters one of her knees, crippling her. At the same time Chen stands up, having made a quick recovery, and flies at you once again. You panic and swing the wand at her, hearing a "thud" as it turns her away.

"...Ah!" Pointing at your wand, Theta laughs. "I've never seen that before!"

...The end of the wand has transformed into some sort of mallet. It looks almost exactly the same as before, only that two of the spikes have become the heads of the mallet. A little red covers the end of it and trails from below the mallet over towards Chen.

"I did that?" Not really asking anybody that question, you twirl the mallet in one hand and watch as a little blood falls onto the ground. "...I really did that?"

Theta ignores your question and flies towards Chen, trying to strike her once more. The cat girl manages to dodge while clutching her forehead and lunges back, drawing a red line across the magical girl's arm. The nekomata then rushes back at you once more, mad as ever, and you repeat your previous motion.

WHAM. Another blow, this time to the ribs. The girl falls to the ground and curls up into a ball, her mouth ajar from the pain. Guilt starts to take hold of you, making you feel sorry for doing this to the girl who's now at your feet. As you stand there feeling sorry for yourself, Hikari has made another lunge at the girl. A second blow to the ribs and she's reverted to her cat form.

The black cat lets out a couple low mews and hisses before turning tail and running off into the streets. "It was probably meant to be a threat", you think to yourself. With her gone, you start to relax, and the wand in your hand returns to normal.

"We... phew, we got rid of her." Theta grabs her scratches and heals them a little, though the lines of the wound can still be seen. "I think we were lucky to hit her like that. She seemed like she was ready to... Um, kill..."

She falls silent and sighs. You still feel as if you're in a daze or some kind of dream, though you know what's happening is arguably "real". Trying to sit reveals that you earned a few scratches on your legs, and in turn makes you realize that your arms have also been hit. They aren't too serious, but they aren't subtle either.

Theta puts one hand over the cuts on one leg and makes them a little less apparent, then does the same for your other leg and your arms. You thank her and then sigh once more, feeling somehow defeated by the whole experience.

"...Anyway, what are you going to do about those clothes?"

She points at your shirt, and you realize that, in addition to a few stains on the shirt, your skirt is almost entirely coated in the nekomata's blood. You try to wipe it off only to get your hands soaked.

"...I don't know. Maybe I'll sneak in and find some other clothes, or something like that."

Gripping the wand in one hand, you wonder if it could make you invisible. Nyom presses against your arm and shakes its head, as if reading your thoughts.

"Well, before you do that-" Theta points over at the injured maid, sprawled out on the ground. "We still have her to deal with."

You stand up and walk over towards Eliza. Without the nekomata around her, her body has started to fall apart again. She's really starting to look like a corpse, but her eyes make it obvious that she's still in there. She starts to cry and tries to move one hand, only to have the skin rip against the ground.

[ ] Leave her here.
[ ] Put her out of her misery.
[ ] See if one of the maids in the mansion can do anything.

[x] Put her out of her misery.

Let the dead have their rest.

[x] Put her out of her misery.

>>22202

[x] Put her out of her misery.

;_;

[x] Apologize for getting her involved, even if unintentionally.
[x] If she can still speak, take her last request(s).
[x] Put her out of her misery (unless something amazing occurs to you at the last moment).

[X] Put her out of her misery.

Free her soul.

[x] Put her out of her misery.

She made us promise not to hesitate in killing her.

[X] Apologize for getting her involved, even if unintentionally.
[X] If she can still speak, take her last request(s).
[X] Put her out of her misery (unless something amazing occurs to you at the last moment)

We better prepare as well. Ran will not be happy when she hears about this, and she's much more competent than Chen.

>>22217
>She made us promise not to hesitate in killing her.
She did?
...Oh goddammit.

...It's hard to watch her and not vomit.

You feel horrible for thinking that, but it's true. As you watch her laying there you remember what she had once said to you. Words about killing her... and not holding back when you do so.

Still, if holding back means just splitting her head open without any other care in the world, then it'd be impossible. Nobody could be that heartless, right? Not wanting to answer that question, you bend down and look Eliza in the eyes. She's still crying, but she also seems to be smiling faintly.

"...P... Promise."

She lifts up her left hand and holds her pinky out. The finger has started to decompose rapidly, and a bit of the bone is showing through. Seeing this, you decide to go ahead and grab the pinky with your own, and shake it.

"...Thanks."

Just saying something seems to take a huge amount of effort for her. The tears have apparently run out, and now all she can do is lay there almost motionless, still twitching every few seconds. Her eyes seem to be begging for something, and you think you know what it is.

"Hikari." You look over at the small girl and smile. "...Or, Theta. You should leave now."

She's too shaken to reply at first, but she manages to nod her head and hover off into the distance. You continue to watch her until she completely disappears from sight, and it's then that you feel that you can finish things. Raising the wand, you watch as it takes on a hammer shape once more. The hammer hangs over your head, and you tense up for a moment, until finally...

Splat. With a soul-crushing sound Eliza's brain is scattered on the pavement.

...Your knees give way, and it becomes your turn to cry. Not just for the person whose life you just ended, or for having to do that horrible deed. It's because of just how twisted and unfamiliar everything has become. The tears cloud your vision, and for a while the only thing you can see are a few lights that make up the mansion's windows. When your vision clears, the body has been mostly dissolved. There's still blood, though.

You just sit there for another minute, holding the wand-hammer in one hand and your head with another. A warm hand pats your shoulder, and you look up to see Hika- no, Theta. The twisted form that's been forced on Hikari.

"...Is she gone?"

You nod.

"...She's probably happy now."

Having said that, Hikari also sniffles and starts to cry. You pat her head, unable to say a word. The only thing you can do for now is sit and mourn.

...

She swallows hard, choking down the sobbing. It took a few minutes, but the corpse is completely gone, and only the blood from the incident remains. You stand to your feet and feel Hikari tug your skirt.

"...You need to go inside and get cleaned up." She sniffs once more, and you nod. "There's a magic that lets you be invisible, but it takes a lot out of you... So, I'll take you in."

She grabs your hand, and the end of her wand sparkles. Your fingertips become translucent, and the effect spreads up your arms and over the rest of your body. Nodding towards your companion, you brush a hand past your ghost familiar and walk towards the doors of the mansion.

The magic doesn't make you into a ghost, though. Peeking through the door shows no immediate life, so you slip through and bring Hikari with you. She pulls the door shut and continues to follow you as you walk to your bedroom, where she walks you into the room and waves one hand in farewell.

"...I'll see you tomorrow." She looks exhausted, but she still manages a smile. "Don't give up, okay? You need to make Big Ma- um, make Yukari pay."

You smile and nod, then ruffle her hair before shutting the door. The first thing you do is remove the bloody skirt and find a bag to put it in. After that the rest comes off easily enough, and you've soon gotten down to nothing but the panties you're wearing. At this point, you honestly don't think you could stay up to spend time with Mary. Maybe she'd understand in the morning.

[ ] Go to sleep as you are.
[ ] Put on a nightgown and go to sleep.
[ ] Dress back up and spend time with Mary anyway.

[x] Dress back up and spend time with Mary anyway.

Marypillow~

But Hikari turning on Yukari like that was a surprise, though it's one that Yukari will not be happy about, since it's the 2nd witch she raised that went against her. I might have remarked on this earlier, but I wasn't sure as I am now.

[x] Put on a nightgown and go to sleep.

Good to see that she's finally freed from Chen's control.

[x] Dress back up and spend time with Mary anyway.

You might get a dream where Eliza (and possibly Layla) thanks us if you sleep. Layla would probably attempt to warn us that Hikari's wand is 'evil' or something, but I'm not going to take the little kid's toy away unless she does something really bad with it.

Anyway, I think we should tell someone in the about this. Did Aoi ever tell Ren or Mary about the wand/flute being magical? They should also be informed that Hikari helped you fend off Chen. Mary would definitely want to know that that Eliza is not being dragged around like a marionette anymore.

Finally, since Chen attacked Aoi, Ren and Mary might be ambushed as well. Mary presumably knows some magic, but can Renko actually defend herself? I mean, Aoi only stepped out near the gate and got attacked, and no one in the mansion even noticed anything was wrong.

>At this point, you honestly don't think you could stay up to spend time with Mary. Maybe she'd understand in the morning.

But Aoi's exhausted, so start explaining and then just fall asleep as he's rambling. Cue curiosity while Aoi is defenseless and Mary's heart will asplode.

[x] Dress back up and spend time with Mary anyway.

Sad...

[x] Dress back up and spend time with Mary anyway.

A little late, but I caught up to the story last update. Took me long enough.

[ ] Put on a nightgown and spend time with Mary anyway.

Gattai da~

...I know this was tragic and upsetting, but the thought of Aoi in panties still makes me happy. In a bad/good way.

...You may have thought that, but it really wouldn't be a good idea to betray her trust right now. The search for clothes reveals pajamas you can wear, which you quickly change into. Rubbing your eyes, you walk down the hall and towards where you remember Mary being earlier. A knock on the door draws out a welcome, and you calmly step into the room.

"I was beginning to wonder what happened. You must have hid that... thing, far away from the house."

You're tempted to tell her about how you just hid it at the gate, but you're quick to catch yourself. If you told her where you put it, then that'd ruin the point of even hiding it in the first place.

"Yeah, I don't think I could even find it now." You sit on the couch and feel a light pressure as Nyom settles down on your lap. "There was a little trouble on the way, though, so it took longer than it should have."

"What kind of trouble?"

You freeze. Should you tell her what actually happened outside, or skip some of the details? You really don't want to explain the whole scenario to her, so you decide to go with the second option.

"You know that cat, Chen?" You wait, and Mary nods. "She showed up and harassed me. I got away though, so it's all okay."

"Did she see where you hid the knife?"

"...No, I don't think so."

You shrug, and your shoulders almost immediately fall back down. You really are tired.

Mary sighs her relief and grabs the remote, flipping to a channel with a strange game show. The people on it have to position themselves to fit through a wall that comes at them, and the whole audience seems to go crazy watching them. Mary scoots closer to you while you're thinking about how stupid it looks.

"That really was nice of you, though... I mean, I wasn't even sure if you'd go through all the trouble."

"Well, I did. I doubt you'll ever see that thing again."

Mary gets quiet again, and looks down at her hands. You turn your attention back to the TV just in time to see a man get dragged by the wall into a duck tank. You'd probably laugh if you weren't so exhausted.

"A-anyway... You're wearing pajamas now. Were you planning to go to sleep soon?"

"I figured they'd be okay to wear until I go to bed. They're really comfortable though, so I don't know when I'd fall asleep wearing them."

She nods, and you turn your attention back to the TV, again. This time someone almost got dragged into the water because their butt was stuck in the wall, but they managed to recover. You actually manage to chuckle at the scene, and feel the weight of sleep on your eyelids. You might fall asleep before you even know it, now.

"...Ah, A-Aoi, you're..."

You flutter your eyes a little and discover your prediction was dead on. You've fallen over from passing out for a second, and your head's landed in Mary's lap. The TV show is still playing, but the warmth from her lap tells you to just ignore it and go back to sleep.

[ ] Just go to sleep.
[ ] Rub your head in her lap first, then sleep.
[ ] Try to get back up.

[X] Just go to sleep.

[x] Rub your head in her lap first, then sleep.

It calls to me.

[X] Just go to sleep.

Comfy Mary pillow?

[X] Try to get back up.

> picture in >>22265

My "Uh-oh" senses are tingling.

[X] Try to get back up.

[x] Rub your head in her lap first, then sleep.

[x] Rub your head in her lap first, then sleep.

It has to be done. Mary~

[x] Try to get back up.

[X] Try to get back up.

[x] Rub your head in her lap first, then sleep.

Aoi is too cute, just hope we don't give Mary a heart attack or something.
Postan from a borrowed laptop across the country from home. Gotta keep up with AoD.

[x] Rub your head in her lap first, then sleep.

Feels good man.

>>22269
That'd be a cheap asspull of a move to do, so I wouldn't worry too much about it. That and Yukari doesn't even consider Aoi and Co. a big enough threat to her to try something like that.

And if I'm wrong you can say "Haha Told you so."

Called for lap rubbing. Expect an update soon.

...So warm, and... cozy. You relax and rub your head around a little, feeling at peace. Mary gasps quietly while you do this, but does nothing to stop you. Giving in to pleasure, you rub your head against her crotch once more and sigh contently. You feel a hand resting on your head as you fade into sleep.

...

Your eyes fly open once more, and your body is filled with energy. It's as if you were awake, even though you know you're still asleep. As you float in the open void, Layla takes a hold of your hands and brushes up against your lips, and you can feel as your consciousness relocates itself.

You reawaken to find yourself hovering a short distance from your own body. Mary has started to blush lightly, and has placed one hand on your forehead while you continue to use her lap as a pillow. It looks like it must really be nice, though you can't much enjoy it during an out-of-body experience. There's other things that are on your mind right now.

Turning about, you jettison yourself out the window, soaring into the sky over the mansion's grounds. Zipping around briefly leads you to the gate, where you hid the knife. A quick inspection reveals that it's still where it had been, though someone has moved the brick that concealed it while you were away. You replace the brick and look in all directions, unable to find any kind of lead on where you should be looking.

"Over here~" You turn to see a familiar figure waving a small fan at you. She smiles menacingly and continues to speak. "My plans have almost come to fruition, and you're just floating around like this, Layla..."No, perhaps I should call you Aoi for the time being?"

The woman starts to cackle in an incredibly annoying way, and you can't help but grit your teeth. Whatever her plan may be, it's definitely the greatest of your worries at this time. You rub your brow briefly and then turn an accusatory finger towards her.

"What are your plans, anyway? Do you want to exterminate the Han family, or what?"

"I wonder~" She cackles once more, and you swiftly notice how she's in a good mood. "Whatever I may be up to, it will soon come to pass! Are you excited?"

"Sure as hell not."

Spitting that out, you turn around and start to drift away. A series of muffled laughs mock you from behind your back and eat away at your attempt to leave coolly, causing you to turn around once more.

"...What's the point of doing all of this? Are you wanting revenge, or are you blood thirsty?"

"I'm thirsty for the blood spilt by revenge."

She starts to cackle loudly once more, and you can feel your restraint ready to give way. Someone who answers a serious question with twisted words doesn't deserve to be treated politely at all! Not to mention that this demon has been the problem all along. There's really no need to be polite, is there?

"Crawl back into your smelly gap and rot there! You make me want to puke!"

Her expression goes blank for a moment, but she then starts to laugh wildly at your attempt at an insult. She floats in midair and swings her legs wildly as she holds her stomach, tears starting to form at the edges of her eyes. If her victory is really this hilarious... Then you wish she'd clue you in on the joke.

[ ] Leave her and try to find one of her subordinates to talk to.
[ ] Ask her why she's being so indirect.
[ ] Tell her to go burn in hell.

[x] Ask her why she's being so indirect.

Usually in the moment of triumph, the villain reveals their master plan. But Yukari may be more Genre savvy than that.

[x] Ask her why she's being so indirect.

>>22278

Told you so.

> Aria of Deception: Cat Killing Chapter

And I still expect a dead cat by the end of this topic.

>>22285
But Mary wasn't actually Yukari though and we didn't get bad ended. That's what I was talking about. Now this is more or less to be expected.

[x] Ask her why she's being so indirect.

I want to go with the burn in hell option, but getting more information is more important.

[x] "So are you here to laugh like a dipshit, or is there somebody useful I can talk to?"

>The woman starts to cackle in an incredibly annoying way
Oh you.

[X] "So are you here to laugh like a retarded dipshit, or is there somebody useful I can talk to that doesn't sound like a blender full of gravel?"

>"She said that nothing could possibly change what will happen, so I've decided to get revenge for the time you embarrassed me!"

Her schemes are thus far advanced that she has no reason not to tell you. Other than to fuck with you.

[x] Ask her why she's being so indirect.

Updates. Updaaaaaaaaaaaates.

I'm going through a real tough time here. I'm totally unable to find a reason to keep writing this story to the end, mainly due to wanting to write the "second route", which would have less of the shit that makes me so tired of the current AoD. I'm trying to figure out a way to motivate myself further, but so far I have nothing.

...Any input would be appreciated.

>>22340
what would this "shit" be? I'm asking as to figure out a way to help minimize it.

>>22341

...Sorry, that was a pretty crude way to put it.

What I mean is all the drama and bodycounts that AoD has become. I miss the way I had it start off, and I can't help but regret making it this way.

I did think of a new alternative, though. What if I postponed this version and went ahead to write the new AoD, then came back later on and finished this version off?

>>22347
It would be acceptable to me. Personally I enjoyed it more earlier on and if you intend to go back and wrap it up later I can live with waiting for the ending.

Go ahead. I'll definitely read it.

>>22347
>What if I postponed this version and went ahead to write the new AoD
Please considering do this; I'd read the ever loving shit out of it. I love the way you started off so a return to that would be quite glorious.

>>22347
Echoing >>22349 and >>22350. It would be fun.

Do it!

If that's the general consensus, then I'll be reviewing the first part of AoD to try and really recapture the spirit of it. I'll be gone all of next week, so I'm not sure if starting it off this week would be such a splendid idea.

>>22353
you should wait until you're back.

>>22353

Will Yukari not be such a monster this time?

>>22353
I hope Mary didn't suffer as much as in your original idea compared to the current one.

I'm finally back, but I'll probably keep reviewing the first chapter for another day or two before starting the new AoD.

>>22380
Looking forward to it.

>>22380
Give up.

Write something better.

>>22402
lol no

First post should be up some time today.

>>22403
Why must you persist with this travesty?

>>22404
For the sole purpose of irritating you.