End of the World
It got dark. The moon rose in the sky and gently illuminated the sea's surface, making the mist surrounding the End of the World look even more mystical.
For several hours, the boat of the priests of the God of Baa had been sailing in the surrounding waters, circling the silent city. They had been waiting for a signal, but it hadn't come. Everyone on the boat was on guard because they knew that evil and monsters were strongest at night.
"Do you think it's going well?" one of the priests asked, looking towards the city, which, though quiet, was not at all shadowy in the darkness. The streetlights had turned themselves on, and some of the houses were lit up.
"No signal came. Not even our gracious God gave us a sign that anything was wrong," replied another who was watching the city with him. "Everything was probably going according to plan. I don't think the newly born Evil God is a rival to Primas Jason." He shrugged.
"True. The leaders were strong. Also, good always triumphs over evil," the first priest said, raising his shoulders confidently.
"Of course. But I hope the Evil God will be killed soon, and we can disembark. That city looks very interesting. It's just a pity I can't see the inhabitants. Do you think the Evil God has killed them all already?" the priest asked.
"Probably? Looks like they've been isolated for a long time. I'm sure it's the work of that nasty god too. I hope at least some survived... huh?" The priest fell silent and leaned forward.
The other looked towards the harbor as well. He saw that there was a figure standing on the pier, holding two glow sticks in his hands, which he waved to the right and left. The priests were confused and then frightened because their boat rocked more violently on the water, and they lost their balance.
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Lambert stood on the wharf, smoking quietly from his pipe and watching with slightly narrowed eyes the movements of the ship in the distance. There was still the problem of circling flies to deal with, but the number of inhabitants who could handle an enemy moving at sea was limited.
Fortunately, they had secured that too right from the start.
"Huff... huff..." Lambert heard heavy breathing and looked back at the tall Master Brasho, who was carrying a portable generator from his workshop. Even though it was portable, it was still a heavy piece of metal, so Brasho sagged under its weight and sighed heavily.
THUD!
Master Brasho dropped the generator on the pier and patted his tired shoulders. "That should do it," Brasho said as he bent down to connect the cables that were laid on the generator and then took the two long bulbs that were connected to the other end of the cables in his hands.
"Are you sure Maesto will notice, Master Brasho?" Lambert asked, taking another drag from his pipe and looking at the Kappa man.
"I'm sure. Everything was arranged in advance, Mr. Lambert," Brasho assured him and smiled.
With the toe of his boot, he switched on the generator, and both bulbs immediately lit up brightly, and Master Brasho began to wave them. Right, left, spread... he almost looked like he was dancing.
Lambert shook the ash from his pipe and began to refill it, feeling someone approaching and looking back only to see that Master Brasho's performance had attracted an audience of several End of the World residents. The Mummy duo were already sitting on a nearby rooftop, talking to each other in hushed tones and taking enthusiastic notes.
Not far from them, two oversized swans with gracefully curved necks landed on the water and watched the boat in the distance.
Two living skeletons sat on the edge of the pier, swinging their bony feet.
And more were coming, all waiting for the show.
"HHHMMMMM....."
A loud, melodious baritone carried over the night's surface. As soon as everyone heard it, they stopped talking and looked ahead. Brasho too stopped waving and turned off the generator. Everyone was quiet and just listened to the melodic humming.
"End of the World, End of the World, in this wonderful place, happiness and death will strip you to the bone~" A strong baritone began to sing, and the residents of the End of the World began to sway to the rhythm while they watched as the ship in the distance suddenly began to sway violently from side to side.
"My Liege, my Liege, touch my head and dig your fingers into my meat. It was my honor, my glory that I was worthy~" As the second verse of the song was sung, a giant orange tentacle, as thick as a man, broke through the dark surface of the water and instantly slammed into the deck of the ship, latching on tightly.
"Worthy, worthy!" The two swans stretched their necks and sang before turning in an instant into two beautiful maidens who danced on the water.
"In the shadow of twilight, where dreams intertwine, whispers of sorrow, a melody divine. End of the world, where secrets are hurled, In this wondrous abyss, where time begins to unfurl~"
More tentacles emerged from the sea and began to wrap themselves around the ship. They saw flashes of silver light hit the massive tentacles as the priests fought back, but they couldn't do much against the massive creature.
image [https://cdn.leonardo.ai/users/e70a625f-a29f-469a-912e-d78c50e456f1/generations/fda10682-5f7d-4963-b6f4-ce1a0f16aba9/Default_In_the_darkness_of_night_enormous_orange_tentacles_ris_4.jpg]
The deep voice didn't even falter as it continued to loudly sing the famous song for everyone in the End of the World. Lambert stopped watching after a moment and instead closed his eyes and listened to the song. He wasn't the only one who was deeply touched by the song; some couldn't help but join in the singing silently.
"My Liege, my Liege, in your gaze I find solace, In the depths of your touch, I find grace. Caress my brow, let your fingers meet, For in this final embrace, my spirit feels complete~"
Two swan women who gracefully danced an expressive dance befitting the song added their beautiful voices to the male baritone.
"In the dance of existence, we're but players on a stage, Lost in the symphony, of love and rage. End of the world, where destinies entwine, In this grand finale, where all truths align~"
The ship was already completely enveloped by the tentacles that were crushing it with force; the wood was cracking, and faint cries could be heard over the singing. Nearly everyone who had watched the sinking of the enemy ship joined in for the last verse.
"My Liege, my Liege, in your presence I stand, In the echo of your voice, I'll make my final stand. With honor, with glory, I embrace my fate, For in your kingdom, I shall await~"
CRACK!
The ship was cut in half at that moment, and the strong tentacles lifted them into the air before slamming them hard into the surface of the sea.
Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap.
Everyone started clapping to appreciate the Maestro not only in his songs but also his display of perfect destruction.
"Echm." Lambert looked at the tall Master Brasho, who was now standing next to him, an embarrassed scratch on his face.
Lambert raised an eyebrow questioningly, waiting as he seemed to want to say something to Brasho.
"So I was wondering... even before... could I buy you a drink, Mr. Lambert?" Brasho gathered his courage and did something he'd been thinking about for a long time but never mustered the courage to do.
But after everything that had happened and miraculously surviving the whole event at the End of the World, he decided he should take a little risk.
Lambert blinked once, the only indication that he was surprised by the sudden offer. He ran his eyes over him briefly before turning away and beginning to tap the ash out of his pipe in a concerned manner.
"Now is not quite the time, Master Brasho. But later... sure. Gladly." He replied, and Brasho smiled broadly, leaning over the shorter Lambert a little.
"Then I shall look forward to it."
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In another part of the city, a creature was moving quickly down the street. A blue-furred gremlin on roller skates rode down the street.
On his back hung a box that was almost as big as he was. Attached to the box was a pipe that ended in a funnel that was held by the Gremlin who used it to suck up piles of trash and spilled dirt.
image [https://cdn.leonardo.ai/users/e70a625f-a29f-469a-912e-d78c50e456f1/generations/0f93a334-3dcd-4c6d-8485-06c0264b7f44/Anime_Pastel_Dream_Ice_Gremlin_as_a_professional_roller_skater_2.jpg?w=512]
The Gremlin whistled while he did his work, but despite his carefree demeanor, his eyes scanned the ground carefully as if looking for something.
"Dad!" Gremlin's ears twitched as he heard the call and turned around.
Another Gremlin that was not much bigger than a Chihuahua was moving towards him, holding something triumphantly above his head in both hands. The smaller Gremlin had the same blue fur as his father, but his eyes were blue, and he took after his mother.
But the Gremlin boy was not whole. In fact, the entire lower half of his body had been replaced by a moving machine to replace his missing body part. On his head was an intricate-looking helmet that hugged the entirety of his head and was connected to the mobile machine underneath.
The adult Gremlin didn't know how it worked, but it made it so his son could move where he wanted with just a thought.
image [https://cdn.leonardo.ai/users/e70a625f-a29f-469a-912e-d78c50e456f1/generations/68de5169-3947-4422-a39d-a10e0e39c678/Anime_Pastel_Dream_The_Ice_Gremlin_a_master_of_the_roller_skat_7.jpg?w=512]
"Did you find it, Farr?" the father asked his son, waiting for his son to reach him.
Farr held up his hands in which he held a brown ball as big as a walnut. "Yes! I found Josille!" Farr reported happily, and his father took the ball from him. He examined it carefully and nodded in agreement when he found the scriptures carved on the surface.
"Well done. Now we just have to wait for a sculptor to wake up and make him a new body." Gremlin pocketed the ball. "Let's continue cleaning up. So far, only two of us from the janitorial crew are awake, so we'll have a lot to do."
"Yes, Dad!" Farr saluted and went on with his work. His job wasn't cleaning, but finding and salvaging anything else that could be used.
Gremlin's father looked after his son before turning away and whistling again as he vacuumed up the mess. It would go faster now that he didn't have to search for the shem.
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In another place.
Golden Piggy, still in her pig armor, carefully placed the golden statue on the ground and looked around. She was in the house belonging to the Sad Prince. Danann remained in place, trying to clean up the damage they had caused, which consisted of collecting all the gold she could.
Meanwhile, Gold Piggy accompanied the Sad Prince home and helped him move the new gold stash.
"Somehow they're getting more," Sad Prince remarked as he looked around the room, which was filled with various gold statues. While he looked around, he nervously washed his hands and peeled off more layers of gold.
Gold Piggy nodded in agreement, and honestly, it was quite a painful sight even for her eyes. There was so much gold it hurt her eyes. But this was probably a better solution than having him place the statues variously around his house so that all his victims were in one place.
The Sad Prince wished to keep them safe until one day he could figure out how to break the curse he had unwittingly placed on them. The statues were varied, large, small, animals, humans, and other creatures that were carefully placed there, but one statue standing on a pedestal dominated all the statues the most.
It was a full-figured, tall woman who, even when caught by the curse, retained a confident dignity. She wore tight-fitting clothes, a cloak, and a high crown that suggested she might be some kind of queen.
image [https://cdn.leonardo.ai/users/e70a625f-a29f-469a-912e-d78c50e456f1/generations/adbb09bb-c491-4e64-8f3e-69c59eb44774/Default_A_room_full_of_golden_statues_caught_in_motion_represe_3.jpg]
The placement of this statue clearly showed that it had some important meaning to the Sad Prince, but Golden Piggy had long since noticed that the Sad Prince was avoiding looking at the statue, so she didn't ask so as not to upset the young man.
Usually, but today was a rare day when Prince Xander showed up. The Sad Prince was the one who was in charge the most; the Mad Prince usually only appeared in critical situations that the fragile and innocent mind of the Sad Prince couldn't handle.
However, the Mad Prince was hard to handle, and even when he wasn't attacking his allies, it took very little to turn his anger on them. However, at the same time, he was the only one of the personalities that could control the curse.
There was no Happy Prince; instead, there was Prince Xander, but he almost never stepped out. Golden Piggy didn't know him very well. The only ones who really knew Prince Xander were Liege and Danann.
Golden Piggy asked her about it once, and Danann told her not to stick her snout in other people's business. But she revealed that Prince Xander was an original personality.
So Gold Piggy wanted to try her luck at finding out more about the Sad Prince's origins. She turned and looked again at the room full of statues before pointing to the statue of the dominant woman.
"Who is that, Sad Prince? She looks like a queen. Is it possible that she's your mother?" She asked cautiously. Though she was curious, she watched his reaction carefully, ready to back out of anything in case it upset him too much.
The Sad Prince twitched slightly, his eyes wandering around absently. "Um... um... I don't—I don't know... I don't remember..." He replied with the expression of someone who was lying.
Golden Piggy looked at him and sighed. This kid couldn't lie, not with such an honest face. "Okay. Let's go," she said, and they headed off.
She turned off the lights before closing the door behind her, and the room went dark and fell into silence.
But if anyone could read minds, they would have heard a lot of noise in the room.
"Hahahahhahaha!" mad laughter.
"Prince... prince... prince... prince...." Whisper.
"Aaaaaaaaa! Aaaaahh!" Screams.
"Why? Why? I don't want to. Don't..." Mumbling.
A new voice has joined the many inner voices today. "Ah. What's wrong? Where am I? Why can't I move? God Baa, please protect me!"
There was only one statue in the entire room that was silent. The golden statue of the queen looked sternly down at all the other golden statues who were lost in their motionless madness.
Stolen story; please report.
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Another place.
Archie squatted down, rubbing his shoulder, and then rested his elbows on his knees, staring at the group of priests in front of him. He had to be very careful not to kill them as he calmed down, and found that holding back was very tiring.
The group of priests lay or sat on the ground, their masks removed, some even with torn cloaks, but most notably, their faces were swollen and bruised. This was from the way Archie had beaten them very carefully and lovingly.
Not that they didn't fight back. Archie had a few minor injuries too, but mostly due to the fact that he still didn't know how to use his wings and powers, so many times he moved in ways he didn't really want to. Plus, if he didn't concentrate and got too excited, those damn wings started flapping on their own, and he was blown away like some piece of paper in the wind.
So if anyone had been watching the whole fight, they would have had the opportunity to see a swearing guy flying by, doing aerial flips several times.
Archie snorted to himself and looked over at the priests. "Now do you bloody understand your situation?" Archie asked. He had tried to explain things to them during the encounter, but they were very stubborn.
One of the priests lifted his swollen face and looked at him with one good eye. "You... traitor... How can you..."
Slap
Archie gave him a rather light slap, but to his swollen cheek, so it must have hurt quite a bit anyway. "Are you guys completely stupid or something? I've been telling you all along that Baa isn't a damn true god! He's the one who betrayed us!" Archie raised his voice at them.
"You want to die? Huh? Do you really want me to kill you? Because that's your only other option if you don't give up your false beliefs! Is that what you want? All right, then. Not that I care or anything!" He snorted in annoyance.
Silence fell over the group, and Archie ran his frowning eyes over them. Of course, he didn't want to kill them, but he had no choice. He also couldn't hate the Goddess for it because her decision was a reasonable one, and the fact that she'd granted him this was benevolent enough of her.
He was a former enemy, and she had allowed these people to stay alive here as well, albeit with some restrictions, but she had allowed it. So he had to convince them.
"Hm... so... do we have to stay here? Will there ever be a chance... to go home?" One of the priests asked.
"You! Do you want to betray too?" the first stubborn priest said angrily.
"You're the one talking! You are an old bachelor! I have a wife at home with a child on the way! I must think of them too!" the hesitant priest defended himself.
"I have elderly parents at home to care for," mumbled another priest.
"Faith is not something you can just throw away as you please!" The stubborn priest fumed.
"Why not? Honestly. What has Baa ever done for us? If I'm not mistaken, he never even spoke to any of you, did he?" spoke Archie. "This goddess may not be one of the Recognized Gods, but unlike most of them, she is so accessible to everyone. She even lives down here among her worshippers, not somewhere unknown. That alone makes her seem more divine to me."
Some of the priests began muttering to themselves, and Archie could see they were hesitating. Then he exchanged a glance with a stubborn priest who glared at him angrily. Archie realized that he probably wouldn't be able to convince everyone after all.
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Palace - next day
The night passed quickly. The residents of the End of the World rested or finished up work that needed to be done. Also, a funeral ceremony was planned a few days later to say goodbye to all those who had died during the raid. Fortunately, the whole matter didn't cause too many casualties.
Caila had returned to her back during the morning, having spent the night before with Hellcage, who was still recovering.
And she found quite a few people waiting for her. Well, mostly Archie, who looked tired and visibly in need of a wash, but there were about twenty strangers in black groves kneeling around besides him. Caila understood that they were probably priests that Archie had managed to convince.
She looked them over and saw that they were fairly thin, a few sneezing as if they had a cold and all looking nervous.
Caila then glanced at Archie. "I assume you took care of everyone not present?" She assured herself first.
Archie flinched when Caila spoke and looked up at her. "Yes." He nodded, looking stern. Caila could only assume it wasn't easy for the young man.
"Good. Well." She glanced at the group of people. "Do you give up your god willingly?" Caila asked, getting an affirmative answer from all of them, though some came rather hesitantly, but Caila acknowledged it anyway.
"Very well. I will release you from your bonds, and from then on, you will become temporary residents of the End of the World. What happens to you next will be up to you and your actions." Caila then found their lights in her Divine Space and removed the blessing of the god Baa from them. In doing so, Caila realized that this was not entirely beneficial to her.
She had to expend energy to remove the blessing, but at the same time, she gained nothing from it. If they became her followers, she could probably finally free herself completely, but this way she had the expense without any income. Hopefully, Archie would at least be grateful enough for this gesture of hers.
When everything was done, Caila turned to the ever-present Zenobe. "We are short of people in the service. With many of our residents still asleep, there is not enough manpower. Also, provide them with housing and basic necessities for a month before they settle in."
Zenobe pouted her lips and looked at the twenty former priests, wrinkling her nose in disdain. She thought Liege was too gentle with former enemies. "Yes, as you wish." Still, she intended to obey.
Caila sent them away and looked at Archie, who bowed to her and headed off as well, presumably to rest. Or maybe see to it that his former colleagues settled down. Caila was glad she had people to do these things and not have to worry about it.
Caila closed her eyes for a moment. "Lambert?" She opened her eyes and saw Lambert appear beside her a moment later.
"Yes, my Liege?" He asked as he bowed.
"Bring Monte. And prepare for me to leave the End of the World for a while."
Lambert straightened, his eyes fluttering with concern, but his voice remained calm. "You're leaving?"
Caila smiled inwardly, a little sadly. "Not personally. Hellcage has prepared an avatar for me. If I'm needed, I can return at any time."
Hearing that, Lambert relaxed and bowed again. "I understand. I'll get Monte."
Caila waited, considering things again. Hellcage said Bao was taken care of for a while, so they didn't have to worry about him for a while. In the meantime, he recommended taking care of Arzen, who was the weakest of the gods. It made sense that he didn't have as much power and as many followers, since this world didn't have as much fertile ground, so his faith was more of a second-rate one.
Baa would still be too big a bite for her, so it was better to eat Arzen first before trying to touch Baa. Caila agreed with that. She needed to know some things first, though.
Lambert brought in the boy Monte, who was looking at her with big eyes. He looked a bit like a guilty child who had done something and now was about to get scolded. Caila didn't know why he looked like that but decided not to find out now.
"Thanks, Lambert. Leave us alone." Caila said, turning to Monte.
"It's time for you to tell me about your people and Arzen," she told him.
Monte looked at her, calming down, but now he looked hesitant. Of course, he could see that Caila was not like Arzen. She had treated him well and even taught him personally and didn't ask for anything from him. She even fed him! Maybe he could tell her.
"I know what you're thinking. You're probably thinking I shouldn't turn into someone like Arzen. However, there's nothing I can say about that that will convince you. But I'm currently going to deal with that green god, so I need to know. You want me to save your people, don't you?"
Monte was silent for a few seconds before opening his mouth. "Yes," he agreed and then stammered as he began to speak.
Caila's eye twitched, and she quickly stopped him. She had forgotten that he wasn't that good at talking yet, so she did the same thing again as she did the first time to hear his inner voice, which had no trouble speaking.
"We're not allowed to talk from the moment we grow teeth. All those who work in the Domain get a muzzle that prevents us not only from speaking but also from eating. We can only take it off once every six months for feeding," Monte explained.
This surprised Caila; it seems the Butterfly Folk didn't need to feed that often. "We're starving. Once every six months is not enough," Monte immediately refuted her thoughts.
"It keeps us alive, but my people need food at least every four months to keep them full. But Arzen only gave enough so we wouldn't die," Caila frowned when she heard that. While she didn't feel the need to eat herself, she knew that torturing someone with hunger was a rather heinous act.
Monte paused as he hesitated again, but it was only for a moment. "We can create Prana. Through our stomachs. We have two stomachs. One for waste and one for Prana. As food passes through the digestive system, one automatically separates from the other. Our bodies are then nourished by the Prana, and we live longer. Whereas the waste we produce is very fertile," Caila listened, her gaze glazing over a little.
Now she understood why Lambert had taken Monte to a human prisoner that time and had him suck his blood. Just like the murderer Hellcage had captured. He, too, sucked his victims' blood. Now that she heard Monte, the dots connected. The blood was rich in life force. They're gonna get a lot of Prana out of it.
So what was Arsen doing? Because of the lack of believers, he decided to harvest the Prana himself? Through the butterfly people, but also in other ways?
"How will you get the Prana out then?" Caila wasn't sure she wanted to know, but she was curious.
"Some of us are designated as Feeders. Arsenic picks them out by their wings. The ones with blue on their wings are shown to be able to produce the most pure Prana. Because they have the best chance of their wings turning blue, and that is the sign of the new Mother. Mothers are the ones that can lay a new set of eggs once every hundred years and therefore have a better digestive system to nourish them all. Both women and men can become mothers. Gender doesn't matter," Monte's inner voice spoke very well. Better than she would have expected in a boy his age. Could he be extremely intelligent?
"Feeders are fed, constantly. Hoses are placed in their stomachs, which are then used to drain the Prana. They usually don't live very long," Monte explained how Arsenic gets the Prana out of the butterfly people's stomachs.
Caila controlled her face, but almost looked horrified. Arsen had literally made cattle out of these beautiful winged people.
She took a deep breath. "What about Poppy Island?" She changed the subject.
"I don't know. I've never seen it. I was born in the Domain. But they say it's the home of our people," Monte replied, and Caila thought.
While she understood now what Arsen was trying to do, she couldn't make out what had actually happened between the Butterfly People and the Wendigo. Hellcage naturally told her all about the Wendigo and their sudden strange enmity with the Butterfly People.
Hellcage explained to her that the two races once lived in symbiosis. The Wendigo who were physically stronger protected the Butterfly People who were weaker, and the slightest damage to their wings could be fatal to them.
And while the Wendigo needed only meat to feed, the Butterfly People needed blood. So they never had to argue about food. The Butterfly People in turn produced a rich fertilizer that the Wendigo used to fertilize the soil, which could grow better plants that in turn fed the animals and attracted them to their hunting grounds.
The butterfly people needed to be protected because their lives were fragile, and they were only born once every hundred years to a single Butterfly Mother, and how many new butterfly babies hatched depended on her ability to nourish the eggs.
Theoretically speaking, this race was literally on the verge of extinction. If, over the course of a hundred years, fifty of their race died, and then only once every hundred years, maybe fifteen new babies hatched... this race of butterfly people would naturally go extinct on their own.
So the symbiosis with the Wendigo made sense. But what would happen to them if they suddenly became enemies? What happened? Caila was fairly certain that Arzen had something to do with it.
Caila interrupted her conversation with Monte, reaching over and patting the boy on the head. "Don't worry, Monte. I'll take care of your people," she promised him and smiled.
"And you don't have to worry about me trying to take advantage of you. I can get enough Prana pretty well on my own. I don't need to do it through someone else," she assured him, only confirming to herself that Arzen wasn't good enough to be a god. And certainly not a god of Harvest and Plants.
Monte stared at her before he moved his eyes away and blushed a little.
"Good," he said quietly and nodded.
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Peril Harbor - House on 22nd Street
Marik stared. There were big dark bags under his eyes and worry in his gaze.
He hadn't closed his eyes all night, carefully watching what was supposed to be Hellcage. The dark stain had nestled on the altar and hadn't moved since. He had tried to talk to Hellcage, even tried to pray to Liege for advice, but for some reason, she hadn't answered either, and so he was left with nothing but worry.
Ellar returned home that evening, but though he showed concern at first, he then calmed down, knowing that Liege would surely not let anything happen to Hellcage, and went to sleep without worry.
Marik could only envy the placid bastard. He tried to go to sleep himself, but eventually found himself constantly checking on Hellcage. He knew he had no chance of sleeping with this, so he just settled into the chair by the altar and watched.
In the morning, Ellar came downstairs to find Marik sitting by a black spot with bloodshot eyes and dark circles under his eyes that made Ellar momentarily startle.
"Did you not sleep at all?" Marik asked, looking at the dark spot.
"What the hell do you think?" Marik gritted his teeth in response.
Ellar shook his head and went into the kitchen where he made them both a cup of coffee. "For someone who's always denying your relationship with Mr. Hellcage, you're acting like a caring wife," Ellar teased Marik. Of course, having lived with them, he already understood that Mr. Hellcage and Marik's relationship wasn't what it seemed. Still, he was infected by Hellcage's way of humor and enjoyed teasing Marik.
Marik gave Ellar a deadpan look and he quickly threw up his hands in surrender. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to tease him now that Marik had hot coffee in his hand and wasn't sleeping.
"We'll bring the kids tomorrow?" Ellar asked instead as he carefully sipped his coffee.
"Hm. Yes. We've asked for a babysitter for two days. So I'll go get them tomorrow morning. Hopefully Hellcage will be okay by then." He grimaced. "I think I'll have a hard time taming those little beasts on my own. Sometimes I feel like they only listen to me when Hellcage is around."
For a moment, there was only the sound of swallowing and slurping as they slowly drank their coffee before Marik asked, "How's it going with you? Any progress?"
"Hm. It's looking good. My paintings are selling more and more, and the demand is good. But mostly, they're only interested in new commissioned works. I'm thinking I might try to do an exhibition to attract more attention," Ellar explained.
"You're running out of time," Marik nodded, his eyes closing for a moment before he quickly opened them again and rubbed them. "Hellcage said you have a month to make it to Galeona."
"But I'm not supposed to raise suspicions either. These things need to be done carefully. And I have plenty of patience," Ellar smiled a little mysteriously.
Marik was about to continue the topic when he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head and stood up, seeing that the dark blob had finally started to move.
Ellar looked as well but didn't get as excited as Marik did. After all, he had faith in Liege not to let anything happen to Mr. Hellcage, so he kept calm and just took another sip of his coffee.
The dark spot began to move and lift up, slowly taking shape. Slower than normal. The dark spot rose up first and then began to form. Hellcage appeared, but...
Marik blinked, looking at where Hellcage's head was supposed to be. It was there, but it was all blurry and out of shape, and as he stared at it in incomprehension, he nearly fell out of his chair when two red eyes and a mouth appeared on Hellcage's body.
"Shit!" Marik cried out.
Even Ellar was somewhat stunned by the sight, and his chin dropped. He hadn't seen this before.
"Marik, language please," the mouth on Hellcage's body spoke in his typical voice.
"You!" Marik ignored the admonishment and instead stood up. "What happened to you? This wasn't the plan!"
Hellcage slowly adjusted his sleeves. "Nothing special. It just took a little more strength than I anticipated," he explained.
"A little? You were a bloody puddle all night!" A vein of annoyance popped up on Marik's forehead. "And you're saying it was nothing? Damn it!" Marik kicked the chair he'd been sitting on earlier, and it flew backward.
Hellcage turned to Marik, his new face showing a certain expression of discomfort.
There was a tense silence, with Marik's angry breathing being the most audible. Finally, Ellar cleared his throat. "Marik was worried about you, Mr. Hellcage. He's been sitting with you all night, keeping an eye on you," he revealed.
"You! Shut up! Why are you even still here?" Marik snapped at Ellar, angry that he had ratted him out like that.
He looked at Hellcage, his expression of discomfort turning into a cheerful smile. "Tck." Marik clicked his tongue and went to pick up the chair he'd kicked away to set it back up and sit on it. He folded his arms and grunted. "Don't think too much of it."
"My, my... very good. Marik, I'm not going to think anything at all about it," Hellcage said in a cheerful voice, and Marik wearily rubbed his temple and took a sip of his coffee instead.
"By the way, we have a rare visitor joining us today," Hellcage said and turned to the altar.
"A visitor?" Ellar asked, already thinking about heading back to his studio.
"Yes. Our beloved, glorious, and divine Liege." Hellcage reached into his body, and a moment later a body emerged from the darkness. Hellcage threw the boy's body onto the altar, which naturally he couldn't fit all of it on, so there it lay with his legs and head hanging down.
Marik jumped up again. "What are you doing with that child!?" He startled at the sight of the boy who was out of his senses.
"Calm down, Marik. This is just a vessel. An avatar ready for Liege," Hellcage waved away Marik's concerns.
Ellar was more excited about the news than Marik. "Liege is coming to us? Oh my goddess!"
Hellcage nodded and looked meaningfully at Marik. "See? This is the right reaction."
Marik gave Hellcage a deadpan look and made no comment. Unlike Ellar, he had already met Liege, and while it wasn't too bad, he found that he was definitely in no hurry to meet again. The relationship of god and worshipper at a distance suited him better.
"Now we just wait," Hellcage said, clasping his hands together in front of his body and rubbing them a little in excitement.
It was around noon when the blue light on the altar grew brighter. Ellar was on his feet in an instant, and Hellcage knelt down. Ellar followed a moment later, and Marik was the last to join them.
The boy's body jerked several times on the altar, and blue flames briefly burst from his eyes and open mouth. Marik stared and shuddered a little; it looked rather frightening.
But immediately afterwards, the boy's movements calmed down, and the eyes that had been rolled back into his head the whole time returned to their place.
Ludwig's eyes were naturally a beautiful blue all on their own, but now the blue color of his eyes seemed to be even brighter, making his gaze seem more intense than normal, but otherwise there was no change.
The boy tried to sit up, but the altar was too small, so he lost his balance and fell down. Luckily, Hellcage was nearby and quickly caught the boy, gently lowering him to the ground.
"Here, my Liege," he said, and the mouth on his stomach smiled.
The boy stood up and looked down at his feet for a moment, lifting one, then the other, before looking up. He glanced around the room and ran his eyes over Hellcage, Ellar, and Marik. The corners of his mouth twisted into a smile. "We all meet again," the boy said. Even his voice was still the same as before, but his expression seemed calmer and a little softer.
"My Liege. Welcome to Peril Harbor," Hellcage knelt down again and bowed his head.
Marik watched this and was a little doubtful, seeing nothing of the Liege he remembered from the castle in that boy. He just looked and seemed like a boy who had barely hit puberty.
Ludwig nodded. "Yes. Thank you." He lifted his hand and stared at his fingers, making a few fist clenches, and then tiny blue flames flared on his fingers.
Ellar saw this and smiled before lowering his head even further. This was enough for Marik. "I'm going to have to get used to this," Ludwig said. "I'll take a little walk and be right back," the boy said, taking a somewhat unsteady step.
Hellcage was on his feet in no time. "One of us will accompany you," he said.
"No. I can do it alone. Don't worry. I'll be right back," Liege, in the form of a boy, waved them off and headed off. All three men looked at each other but stayed put.
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Caila walked out of the house, looking around and suppressing her excitement. Finally, she could move! It wasn't her body, and she still felt a slight hint of disconnect, but it was still better than having to sit with her ass glued to the throne for ages.
Also, she could finally see the outside world! She had gotten used to suppressing her facial expressions, so even though she was taking in everything around her with her eyes, her face remained calm.
Slowly, with the first uncertain step, she strode down the street away from the house. As she walked more, her steps became more sure. After all, walking is something you don't just forget.
Eventually, she walked away at a fairly brisk gait, and some time later she stopped, looked back, and then checked her surroundings.
Once she was sure no one was following her she... started to run.
"Hahahaha! Yoohoo!" Caila let out her excitement and even jumped into the air happily. She landed precariously, but she didn't mind. She kept running.
"I'm finally free!" She laughed.
The people she passed looked back at her and looked puzzled. What was the child so happy about? Did he get pocket money or something? No one thought that the child was happy just to be able to walk, run, and jump.