Hopping Celestial Fox

We advanced slowly and quietly despite the place seeming abandoned.

Firstly, we tried checking the various rooms connected to the castle’s hallway. To our surprise, none of them were locked.

The first room we checked had several bunk beds. Sheets and pillows messily littered the place. Dust and mold covered everything and the residual stench made me nauseous.

“Barracks…? Looks like they all left in a hurry, huh?” Frank muttered, pinching his nose.

“Look at all the dust. This place has to have been abandoned a long time ago,” Casey said, an odd uncertainty and trepidation in her voice. “That feels ominous…”

“It doesn’t feel right,” I added. “I guess the people here had to evacuate for whatever reason…? I just hope whatever the reason was, it’s not here anymore.”

There wasn’t much else to explore in the bedroom, so we swiftly left. The next few rooms we opened featured the same messily abandoned bunk beds and not much of interest.

“Hey, you alright…?” Frank asked. I thought he was addressing me for a second, but he was actually eyeing Casey, who was biting her lip and had a frown on her face.

“I… No, it’s nothing. Let’s keep going. Maybe we’ll figure out what happened here.”

We continued our search, passing by several more bedrooms, getting to the end of the straight path, and continuing after a turn. It didn’t take long until we arrived at a much bigger and open room that looked somewhat like the school cafeteria with tables and chairs strewn around in similar disarray to the bedrooms. Many chairs were knocked over and there were several board games and playing cards tossed around the place.

“Huh, this is like the relaxation room or something? Still as abandoned as ever though,” Frank commented.

Casey on the other hand was beginning to look decisively pale, however.

“Casey…?”

She shook her head.

“Let’s… let’s go up.” She pointed her shaking finger at the stairwell outside of the room I hadn’t noticed before and sprinted toward it.

The two of us exchanged a look of concern but followed regardless.

The upper floor looked just a tad more fancy than the lower one. There were several ornate plates lining the wall holding a pool of wax each. I could only assume these had once been candles used to light the place up. The doors had a more intricate design to them as well. Rather than being pure wood with a bit of metal for the handles, they all had lion-face-like shapes made of metal plastered on them.

“Wait, Casey!” Frank shouted after our friend, but she simply ran off, heedless of the rest of us.

We ran after her, alarm at her sudden actions growing with every second.

Casey barged into a specific room behind an especially fancy door and froze at the entrance.

“Casey! What’s wrong? Why are you going off like a crazy person?” Frank demanded after we caught up to her.

She didn’t reply. Instead, she slowly walked inside the room, eyes scanning it, her hands shaking.

This room seemed incredibly out of place. An ornate king-sized bed, a chandelier, a large wardrobe… This room clearly belonged to someone very rich. But just like downstairs, the room was clearly in disarray. The wardrobe was half-opened, the bedsheets were crumpled, and there was an open book on the table.

“Huh, fancy…” Frank muttered. “Feels so weird to have this right above these shitty barracks.”

Casey picked up a discarded book on the decorated table, leafed through it and her breath hitched. My worries only escalated.

“Casey? What’s going on?” I tried.

But her only answer was a weak mutter.

“There’s no way… There’s just no way…”

“Casey, seriously. What are–”

The book slammed on the table, interrupting Frank. Casey then proceeded to stomp her way over to the wardrobe, jerked it open completely, and reached inside to grab… a very fancy sky-blue dress.

She stared at it, mouth wide open, utter shock and bewilderment obvious in her features.

“Casey…?”

Finally, Casey slowly blinked, let go of the cloth, slowly turned to us, and swallowed.

“I…” Her eyes darted between us before stopping on me. “I… I think I know where we are.”

“Huh? Really? Where?” Frank asked, a sliver of hope in his eyes.

“I… I’m pretty sure this isn’t the game world.”

My eyes widened.

“Wait really? Then where are we?”

“That… Let me confirm one last thing and then I’ll tell you.”

Once again, the two of us exchanged a look, this one filled with confusion and intrigue.

Casey walked past us and left the room, this time at a much more relaxed pace – although her posture was anything but relaxed. We followed after her once again, still confused, but no longer trying to ask her questions.

She led us downstairs, back into the hallway, when Frank suddenly spoke up.

“Hey, actually, if this isn’t the game world, then isn’t it safe for Elyssa to join us?”

“Huh? Uh, yeah. I guess it is,” Casey confirmed.

“Let’s reunite the party, then!” Frank cheered as he looked at me expectantly.

I made a face but moved to open the portal anyway. From the corner of my eye, I could see Casey’s fingers nervously twitching, but she waited for me anyway.

I opened the portal and was immediately met with the face of Elyssa’s surprised expression.

“Ah, back already?”

“Nah, not yet!” Frank piped up from behind me. “We’re inviting you back into the party! Apparently this is a completely different world, so you should be safe here from the evil devs!”

Elyssa blinked.

“Is that so? Another world? How do you know this?”

“Well…” I glanced at Casey.

“I’ll tell you, but I want one final confirmation,” the girl said tersely.

That brought a frown to Elyssa’s face, but she climbed into the castle hall regardless.

I closed the portal behind her and we continued following Casey as we filled Elyssa in on what we had seen. She nodded to our observations, but didn’t say anything, her frown turning contemplative.

Eventually, we made it to another set of steps, these ones leading down. Casey didn’t waste any time in descending and we followed after her, soon finding ourselves in the castle’s cellar.

I expected this place to be where all the supplies would be stashed but it was completely empty.

“Weird… Did they take everything as they left?” Frank murmured.

“That doesn’t seem right,” Elyssa added. “From what you told me about the other rooms, it seemed like the people that used to be here were in a hurry.”

“Then why is this place so empty?” I asked. “You would think this would be the place to keep all their supplies.”

“The demons took it all,” Casey announced very matter-of-factly, which instantly put me on edge.

“Uh… right… demons, sure. So did the people here get attacked by demons? And that’s why they had to run…?” Frank didn’t seem any more assured by her words.

“Yeah… The demons didn’t stick around, though,” Casey replied before spotting something in the corner and beelining toward it.

A bit more reassuring. Although, we still had no idea how Casey knew all this.

The girl in question came up to a wall and carefully eyed it before she lifted her hand and placed a palm on it.

“Keraa Mustik, Bleraa Rustic!” she chanted.

To our surprise, the segment of the wall lit up as strange symbols appeared on it in an intricate circular pattern – a magical circle? – and then it promptly vanished like a ghost.

Casey took a deep breath and walked down the revealed stairwell whilst once again shakily murmuring, “There’s no way…”

The three of us stared… before following her.

After several minutes of walking through twisting tunnels – lit up with more glowing symbols on the walls – the tunnel finally widened into a room. There were several tables littered with stacks of papers, ink jars, quills, various metallic contraptions, and all sorts of other junk. It looked like the home base of a mad scientist. I couldn’t help but stare.

Casey walked to one particular table with a wooden stick – no, a staff? – on it, picked it up and squinted at it.

Then finally, she took a deep breath and let out a long sigh.

“Casey…?” Frank tried.

“Right. This confirms it, then.”

“Yes…?”

She turned to us, her posture rigid, expression serious.

“This castle is the Urlow’s Northern Frontier keep, bordering with the demon country.”

I blinked in confusion. That name felt familiar, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Uh, sorry. I’m not very good at geography. Where is that again?” Frank asked with a frown.

Casey gave us a wry smile.

“It’s a fictional place inside a fictional world… One that I personally came up with.” She took another deep breath and closed her eyes. “Guys… We’re not inside the game… We’re inside my novel!”