Margaret "That act was very hectic, granny. Now both factions are chasing after them!"

Gala "Unfortunate, but some conflicts are inevitable... whether they are good or bad."

Margaret "What? Good conflicts? I've never heard of such a thing."

Gala "It's a concept the older generations coined. It refers to disagreements that ultimately benefit both sides, whether it's intentional or not."

Margaret "I... Errr... still don't get it."

Gala "Imagine this. You're a regular at the largest ice cream parlor in all of Wal'Tera. You know every flavor and every employee close to heart. One day, you boldly suggest to the manager to add a new ice cream flavor of your choosing."

Margaret "But isn't it rude to just tell the boss to add something?"

Gala "Exactly, which could cause conflict. However, because of their friendly relationship, they might find a middle ground that benefits both. The customer gets their favorite flavor, and the parlor gains a new trendy option for their ice cream."

Margaret "Is it trendy because the flavor is good?"

Gala "You're half right. You see since the frequent customer has tasted all the flavors, they would know what would taste good. The company would also know this fact and thought that perhaps the new flavor can draw in new regulars."

Margaret "I think I get it, but that only works with a long-established relationship. It wouldn't work with strangers."

Gala "Relationships are complex. They can take months or years to form, or sometimes they happen instantly. I've seen all three in my life, but that's a tale for another time. Shall we continue?"

Margaret "Yes, please, and thank you for the lesson, Grandma."

Gala "Hoho. Let's begin...

Somewhere deep beneath the earth of Origan, a pair of circular leafy lanterns emit a greenish glow, illuminating a silent room. A young woman's eyes flicker to life, and as she stands, sharp pains pierce her knees and shoulders. She takes a deep breath, trying to recall her memories, but they remain elusive... something deeply traumatizing must have occurred. Gwen clicks her tongue in frustration, recalling similar incidents in her past. Crawling out of the simple green king-size bed, she surveys her surroundings. The walls feel like soft petals, making her feel as if she is inside a giant, unbloomed flower. No exit is visible, but she spots a lone mirror across the room and approaches it. Gwen gasps at the sight of her transformed outfit.

Long, pristine white silky gloves cover her hands as she reaches forward to examine the details with glistening purple eyes. She is wearing a light purple sundress, but the skirt is shorter than usual, and only one sleeve covers her right shoulder. A strange flower head adorns the right side of her chest, its dark purple petals resembling spades forming a mesmerizing spiral. Her short hair, now styled in soft waves, features another flower head on the right side. Beneath her skirt, she wears simple black pants that flare out at the ends. A pair of organic flip-flops, crafted from familiar blue leaves, now covers her feet.

Gwen "I don't exactly hate it, but I do miss my silly Crocs. Now, how do I get out of here?"

She hears a soft banging against one of the petal-like walls and a familiar voice from the other side.

??? "Gwen?! Are you awake?!"

Gwen "Claire? Is that you on the other end—

The flower petals bloom, and her best friend leaps in for a hug, tears streaming down her face.

Claire "Oh my god! You're alright! Are you still hurt anywhere?!"

Gwen "Claire, I'm fine."

Claire "Are you sure? You were really hurt when they brought you here. Your knees and shoulder were gone! All your clothes were torn!"

Gwen "That... happened. I don't remember."

Claire "Hey, at least you're alright now. I also fixed your old clothes and stored them in the Uni-storage."

Gwen "Thanks... By the way, you dressed me up, didn't you?"

Claire "Yep! You... You don't hate it, right?"

Gwen "I like the purple and the flowers, but you know I don't appreciate dresses."

Claire "Come on, you still have pants under there, so your tomboy spirit is still intact. Besides, I'm helping you as my love rival. You look super hot. Kanji will love it!"

Gwen "R-Really... wait, how do you know that?!"

Claire "Well... I may or may not have done a bit of testing. By testing, I mean I just asked him what kind of dress he finds sexy."

Gwen "When did that happen?! I should keep my eye on you more. Anyway, enough about me. Let's talk about you. Your hair is black now... and feels thick, almost voluminous even."

Claire "Yeah, my hair was originally black before I dyed it pink. Then, I decided to go for a midnight style of fashion."

Gwen "I can definitely see that. Let me size up my competition."

Gwen begins to circle around Claire, scrutinizing her appearance. She notices Claire's hair is even wavier than her own, now cascading down to her mid-back. A few stray strands stick out, reflecting Claire's joyful and carefree nature. She wears a black A-line dress dotted with green stars and a sleeve made from a band of black flowers resembling roses but with an anomalous green aura. The outfit is completed with a pair of black heels.

Gwen "Where did you get all of these clothes?"

Claire "They are really good tailors in this village who have a lot of unused clothes."

Gwen "Neat. As for my judgment, those flowers and heels look really uncomfortable."

Claire "But do I look hot though?"

Gwen "I would be lying if I say no. It's almost as if you are trying to one-up me on purpose."

Claire "Maybe. Hehehe."

Gwen "Anyway, where are we?"

Claire "Oh, I forgot to tell you! This is The Great Village of Origan! Miraja! It's about 50 or 60 feet beneath the surface. There are like three secret entrances on the surface, and then you have to go through a maze to get here. I was surprised you were here before."

Gwen "So, I ended up somewhere relatively close then."

??? "Close indeed, child. Praise the All Mother that we rescued you in time before you bled out."

The pair turns around to see two elderly, short entities. Their upper halves resemble old humans, except for the gills on their necks and blue skin. One is a man with a yellow tail, and the other is a woman with a blue tail. Claire smiles at the sight of the old mermaid, while Gwen scrutinizes their appearance further. The old male has no hair but sports a long, flowing grey beard that reaches the floor. The old female has long, flowing grey hair. The pair wear a plain cotton green shirt and light pink spiky cone-shaped shells on their heads.

??? "Oh, how impolite of me. Let me introduce myself. I'm Zolma Maginez, chief of this village. This is my wife, Zara Marginez, one of the elders."

Gwen "My name is Gwen Fischer and this is Claire Monet. We are—

Zara "Two of the eleven heroes destined to unite Wal'Tera under one banner and bring everlasting peace."

Claire "Wooaaah!"

Gwen "How did you know?"

Zolma "Through prophets and prophecies. Tales passed down from generation to generation."

Zara "But we also recognize those who are blessed by The All Mother herself. You have met her, haven't you?"

Claire "Yeah! And she was so cool and kind too! By the way, her name is Neptunez."

The two elders shed tears of happiness upon hearing her words.

Zolma "You hear that, my dear? All my life, I never thought I’d see the day I finally hear The All Mother's true name."

Zara "Neptunez. A beautiful name befitting our god. Claire, Gwen, I might be asking much, but could you tell us all that our god has told you?"

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Gwen "I don't know about this."

Claire "Come on, Gwen. She never said not to tell them."

Gwen "Fine. The story goes like this...

Gwen begins to lecture the elders about the history of Abyssal Earth, Lord Kin, and his children, and the fight against Turgon.

Zolma "Zara, I might be having a heart attack."

Zara "Oh, you silly SeaMonkey. Hang in there."

Zolma "Alright... I think I've calmed down. That was a lot. It's quite something to learn that our god has siblings, let alone a father."

Zara "The All Mother fought bravely against that scourge. I fear if that monster exists to this day... Wal'Tera would have long perished."

Zolma "She was considerate of our race and survival, so she made a difficult choice. I understand now why she did what she did. I'm satisfied knowing that she did it to protect the universe."

Zara "Claire. Gwen. I, Zara Maginez, declare that you two are now rulers of Miraja!"

Zolma "I, Zolma Maginez, also declare that you two are now rulers of Miraja!"

Claire "Aw, sweet! That was easy—

Gwen "Hold your horses! I object to your offer!"

Zara/Zolma/Claire "What?!"

Gwen "How should I say this? This doesn't seem fair. What if someone else was meant to take the reins but then we came in and took it? I want to earn it fairly. Right now, we only know each other as strangers."

Claire "But Gweeeen!"

Gwen "No 'buts', Claire. I bet the others are going through a lot right now. I would feel guilty if we completed our role here that quickly."

Claire "... Yeah, that would be unfair. But we would level up first, and you can finally use your destruction power to break solid things. I think you would need it now since a certain someone is missing."

Gwen "What are you— Izzy! Has anyone seen her?!"

Claire "Sorry, Gwen. That was the first thing I did when I came here. No one saw her."

Gwen "Without her, I'm... I'll be honest. I'm not a good fighter and mostly rely on her for most issues in my life."

Claire "I can definitely tell. So, are we going to accept their offer or not?"

Gwen "Just do it."

Zolma "Excellent choice, dear heroes. Here, have these."

Gwen "These are crystals, and quite refined at that. I assume the triangle symbols over their surfaces explain our role in this society."

Claire "Wait, I want your pink one! I don't like this green color!"

Gwen "Okay, let's swap... unless these signify different positions?"

Zara "Do not fret. They both stand for 'Chief in training'. At this current moment, you two are the only ones who have these crystals."

Zolma "We used to have a son, but he has passed away."

Gwen "This might be distasteful, but can you elaborate more on that?"

Zara "He was a kind-hearted soul who gave his body and soul for anyone, both good and evil. My boy was someone who would see past their sins and sought redemption for all Walteran kind."

Zolma "It worked well in Origan, but he flew too close to the sun and tried to reach beyond. Zara and I did our hardest to stop him, but he escaped without our notice. We never heard from him again... We should have taught him the harsh realities of this world!"

Zolma slams his hand into the flower floor, nearly cracking it, startling the two heroes with his strength.

Zolma "... Sorry, let's go to a stable place."

Zolma and Zara begin their descent from the enormous flower bud, jumping from leaf to leaf, with the girls following closely behind. The group navigates through the town, passing by the townsfolk who greet them with smiles and waves. Claire watches the villagers with concern, noticing their frail bodies. Gwen quickly diagnoses that these people are malnourished. Despite this distraction, they reach the center of the village where a giant flower head, about ten times the size of a normal one, is embedded into the ground. The chief flicks his fingers, and all 32 muli-coloured petals unfold, revealing a sort of communion hall.

Claire "Woah! There are like a hundred tables here! Is that a giant pot?"

Zara "Yes, we stew our harvest and share the food among everyone here every supper."

Gwen "But there's nothing in there. Chief, is there a famine going about?"

Zolma "Stranger, no need to get involved unless you accept and crush those crystals."

Claire "Really? I thought they were like badges."

Gwen "Guess we have no choice."

Together, the heroes break the crystals, and strange white particles emerge from them before gathering above their heads.

Claire "Woah! Bestie, this is just like in a video game! There's a yellow triangle next to your full name and the title 'Chief in Training'."

Gwen "Likewise. I can also see the position of every Origen."

Zara "We can thank the All Mother... no, Goddess Neptunez for her blessing."

Zolma "Praise her power catalyst! Now, back to the topic. The famine started a few years back."

Zara "That was when the trade routes from other nations were completely sealed, all thanks to the rotten king's silver tongue."

Zolma "The tyrant of Ordan, Omnistar Greyborn. A being with a soul as dark as ink. Though, we aren't completely innocent either."

Gwen "A mutual conflict? Tell us more."

Zara "Thanks to Neptunez's catalyst, we are granted the ability to make anyone a friend regardless of history, as long as they respond kindly to our friendly gestures."

Claire "That's a really scary ability but I'll let it slide since you guys are very nice and cool."

Gwen "Ever since we met, your actions were never malicious. That power fits you."

Zolma "Befitting, but it is a bit unfair as many traders from other nations quickly fall for it. So we tried our best to make the trade fair for both sides.

Gwen "Do the other nations know about this fact?"

Zara "Yes, but fortunately, they didn't take action since it benefited both sides until...

Zolma "That tyrant decided to kill all the traders who were dealing with us and spread deceit to the leaders of other nations. With that came no trade and no imported goods for our people. We began to ration all we had, especially food."

Zara "As the years passed, our numbers dwindled despite some of the young attempting agriculture, which yielded next to nothing. Our population is now 12 times smaller. We were so desperate that we committed a taboo and ate our animal companions to survive. Fortunately, only one companion is sacrificed to sustain us for an entire year."

Zolma "It's been like this for a couple of years now."

Claire "What... What happened to the owner of the animal that was sacrificed?"

Zara "I'd rather not comment on that."

Gwen "Can you explain more about agriculture? Why is it so difficult to grow anything here?"

Zolma "I recommend you speak to our head farmer. Here's a map. My wife and I are going to discuss some plans. Feel free to explore our village."

Claire "Okay! Take care!"

Gwen unfurls the map and is surprised to see that the entire village is as perfectly circular. In the center stands a large town hall, surrounded by numerous giant flowers of varying heights. Four distinct buildings catch her eye— to the north, a stone dome touching the village's border labeled "Forge"; to the east, an enormous tower made of corals labeled "School"; to the west, an entrance to what appears to be a mine; and to the south, a large stone gate labeled "Farm". Along the circumference of the circle and between these main locations, tunnels branch out leading to various sites, each confidently labeled on the map.

Gwen "This is quite the efficient map."

Claire "Ooh! I want to check out the Forge!"

Gwen "We can do that later. We have a famine to fix."

Claire "Okie dookie!— Oh, aww!"

Gwen looks down to see a group of Origen children who can barely stand or speak due to hunger. Their tears tell the whole story.

Gwen "I know that look anywhere, Claire. Fine, just don't go overboard."

Claire's smile widens as she sits down on the floor, and the children mimic her actions. Playfully, she conjures 10 bandages and 10 syringes out of thin air, delighting the children who try to clap with joy. One child even attempts to chew on a bandage, but Gwen gently intervenes. Claire then transforms the items into bright orange orbs that envelop her body, replenishing her creation slots. Using these slots, she summons large hamburgers and hands them out to the kids. Half of them immediately start munching down, while the others grab the food and dash off, shouting, "For Papa and Mama."

Claire "I feel so good right now."

Gwen "Yeah, it almost feels like this is the first heroic thing we've done since the journey began—

[Congralutions! Aspect of Destruction! You have proven your first act as a Lord of Origan and earned a level-up! You can now destroy solid objects!]

[Congralutions! Aspect of Creation! You have proven first act as a Lord of Origan and earned a level-up! You have unlocked "Change", allowing you the ability to change the form and properties of an item at will without expending additional slots. Note, that this ability can change anything the user conjured via "Create" regardless of value. IT DOES NOT WORK WITH NONE CONJURED OBJECTS]

Claire "Yay! Now I don't need to do the whole absorbing bullshit to change to stuff."

Gwen "Yeah, I feel like your level-up was rather pointless since you found a loophole with 'Absorb,' but... it can be quite useful in combat."

Claire "What? How?"

Gwen "I'll explain later. Looks like we're here."

The girls see an Origen with a straw hat and an old tattered cloth shirt by the side of the gate.

??? "Newcomers, huh? We don't see that every day. Follow me... Oh, the name's Devin Codfin, Leader of the Farmers."

Gwen "Where are all the other farmers?"

Devin "They all gave up and left. Cowards, they are."

Claire "Why haven't you given up?"

Devin "Because I still believe that agriculture will save this village. I have a plan but not enough power. I've tried to convince others, but they won't join."

They travel down a tunnel into a large subterranean pool with clear light blue water. The girls can see large, almost potato-shaped bulbs at the bottom of the pool covered with dark green vines. Devin grabs a shovel and begins digging at the ceiling, revealing small holes.

Gwen "Those holes... there is oxygen coming through."

Devin "There are several places where we plant plants with great oxygen output, but they are all inedible. In fact, all the growable plants in Origan are inedible except for these 'Kelpalms.'"

Claire "They look huge enough. Can't you just harvest them?"

Devin "Eating those things before they're fully grown will cause food poisoning and a very bad one at that. Killed a good worker a few months back."

Gwen "What's so difficult about growing these Kelpalms?"

Devin "Well, fun fact. Under the right conditions, these plants can grow like crazy. They have two phases— the first phase is when the vines cover the core, and the second phase is when the core is exposed like it is now. During this 'Air Feeder' stage, the plant must not be submerged in water and needs lots of oxygen to grow further."

Gwen "I see some holes at the bottom of the pool. I assume that's where the water comes from."

Devin "Correct! They feed from the same spring, which I believe to be endless thanks to The Great All-Mother. During the Air Feeder stage, the previous farmers used to block the holes and drain the water with buckets. It was manageable at first, but then everyone grew frail and it became impossible."

Claire "Oh my! That sounds awful! Did you manage to harvest anything at all?"

Devin "None... not a single one. The so-called 'harvest' the chief mentioned is from wild plants salvaged from the surface, and those are all gone now. Anyway, after a while, the vines cover the core again, and then we have to fill the pool back up. We call this the "Drench" stage. Oh, the plants also grow incredibly fast when fed fertilizer during the Air Feeder stage. I discovered this in our last attempt, which is why they look so big now."

Claire "Oh my god! I can turn the bandages, syringes, and my new slots into fertilizer! And Gwen! Can't you remove the water after the holes are sealed?"

Gwen "Excellent idea, Claire. But remember, those healing supplies are for the group. We need permission first—

A ringing sound interrupts them, coming from the triangles above their heads.

Devin "It seems someone is trying to contact you. Didn't the chief mention that those crystals can also grant communication abilities?"

Claire "I did not know that. I wonder who it's from."

Gwen "Are you serious? There is only one person capable of doing this."

Claire "Kaney! Okay, Devin, farmer dude, you go plug up those holes while we ask for permission."

Devin "I'm not sure what's going on, but alright."

The word "accept" appears in their minds, and a holographic chat box materializes before them.