Chapter 5: Home Again

When three of us went back to my wooden shack, it's still high afternoon. The sunrays lit up the entire shack; making up a picturesque scenery.

Instead of the field of thin grasses before my feet, were a patch of flowers and other vegetation I didn't realize were present.

My sister, who led us the way the entire time, stood before the new field of assorted flowers. With her back onto me, the wind blowing her silver hair made her usual perverted vibe all gone, replaced by a solemn view, befitting that of a Goddess.

The maid, who tailed us both, also stopped behind me. She moved her hand forward and opened up her palm; ushering me to listen to whatever my sister had to say.

"Before we talk, I'm not sure if I could just solve it with an apology. Seeing as how you reply was very limited and along the way, I kept taking advantage of you.

Earlier, I want to indulge in you, since I haven't found someone like you for so long. Those who I can fully share my belief with—apparently even as I am, I still couldn't fully grasp my emotions.

Now I had enough and I think I had paid you back with all those services. If you still thought it wasn't enough, feel free to—I forgot you still hadn't gotten your voice back. So, feel free to contemplate until you could give me the answer.

So, I will ask you. Do you wish to be with me?"

I didn't think that question could be solved with a simple gesture. All I could do was tilting my head. It reminded me that I didn't even have much knowledge about body language in the first place.

"Mistress, it might be your order, in serious situations like these not to butt in, but may I speak up for her?"

"Go ahead."

"You see--since she couldn't speak right now--how about telling her to write or even draw pictures so we could communicate better?"

"Ah."

My sister made a shocked expression, before returning with an 'ahem'.

"Well! Apparently, I got much too used to talking directly, I had completely forgotten that method. In my world, we could chat with our minds and transfer our whole thoughts together. We can even have the best sex with it alone if our wavelength compatibility was perfect, it's an amazing experience!"

"...forgive us, little miss. You might notice my Mistress and me were such perverts."

So you guys were actually aware, or just Thea since she seems level-headed compared to sister.

I really want to communicate with them so bad. So I reached my hand out and wave my fingers aside from my thumb back and forth.

"I see, so you want the magic pen? Well, I didn't use it that much—it was still an ancient tool. Now, where did I put it, I wonder?"

"Mistress, if you kept losing motivation like this, she would think you're not even serious—her answers might be half-hearted too."

As Thea said this, I kind of notice how, the entire time, I just felt like sleeping.

"Well you're right...but in all honesty, I didn't remember where I last put them."

"Ah."

"What is it, Thea?"

"It's inside my uniform pockets all this time."

I was pretty curious about what use she had for such a tool if she could also talk with minds alone.

Wait, she should be able to, right?

Speaking of which; wouldn't it be better if I also did telepathy with them? I raised both my hands to my head and pointed it to both of them.

"Ah, you wish to learn how to talk with minds?" my sister made a wry smile, "Unfortunately, I didn't think your mind was ready. If I tried to connect directly, the influx of my mental power would short-circuit your brain, leaving you filled with a headache for an entire day.

Worse still, I tried it with a mortal and their brain instantly got fried. It's extremely dangerous so to start it, there's even a special incantation that you couldn't mutter in your mind—only accessible via certain consoles at my abode."

On a second thought, let's try the pen. I pointed towards the fountain-pen in Thea's hands and she gladly gave it to me.

"Here you go, little miss. I truly hope we can get along better with this."

Well, the context was right, that she was giving me a present—well nevermind. I didn't want to think too much right now.

"First of all, do you know how to write?" my sister put her hands on her chin and tilted her head.

I simply nod. I think, I still remembered the Alphabet and the English language in my memory. Compared to the other areas, the knowledge lingered fresh. Rather, didn't they talk to me in English too?

"Very well, simply pour some magic power into the pen and—hey Thea, so this what you've been doing for years now! Delete it! Ahhh...this was so shameful! You pervert! You're really a nympho!"

This was, a lewd hand-drawn comic book? A beautiful young girl looking like my sister and the maid that's just like Thea were doing some Yuri.

Inside a lavish mansion room, the maid was stripping herself down, sniffing a risque-looking underwear and rubbing her own slit. She was only down with her stockings and garter belt; kneeling down the floor and rubbing her skin against its cold surface.

"Ahh...Mistress...Mistress..."

When the maid was lost in her perverted fantasy with her mistress (also shown in the comic), the door sprang open and the said Mistress was looking at the maid with a bewildered expression.

"No...Mistress this wasn't what you think it's..."

"You're such a shameful maid. You dare to do it with my underwear, even though I didn't give you any permission. The one you should be sniffing is me!"

After that, they kissed each other, with the Mistress inserting her tongue first; followed by Miss maid going down sniffing her--

"Hey..stop...no reading...Thea...you bully...you too, Lil' sis..."

Sister was so cute doing girly pom pom on Thea's shoulders. Thea's also cute when she's being all playful and a tease. Sometimes I wonder who's the top or the bottom in here.

The sights of them chasing each other around, amidst this once-serious atmosphere truly melted something within me.

I found a comfortable place and sat on the ground; witnessing their merry antics.

"Haaa...haa..."

"Huff.....huff."

Both my sister and Thea were exhausted.

They said something about restraining their strength at the same level as a human's and complained about their lack of stamina.

It was Thea who had a bit more oomph in the end. After exhausting my sister, she went up to me and pushed a small, inconspicuous button on the pen; causing lights of various colors to enter her head.

The mere sight of it was pretty surreal.

"Backup has done! Now I'll pour my power in it and—delete! Here, it's all yours now. Don't think too much about my stash. Anyway, how's my hentai doujin, do you like it, little miss? I see you staring at it so intently a while ago."

I tried to write the alphabet, but before I managed to write one, my thoughts were displayed to both of them.

[I want to read more. It's pretty erotic.]

Hey, I didn't say that.

[You girls are very hot in the manga. Please include me in the next story.]

Is this pen broken?

I titled my head again.

"Whoops, sorry! It appears that, after using it to draw so many lewd comics, the pen got corrupted by my perversion, ehehe!"

Thea, you traitor.

[I want to make love with Thea, she's so cute.]

"Ufufu...me too, I wanna make love with little miss...only when your body was ripe though. You didn't even have a vagina right now."

Hey! That's wrong, I didn't think that. In the slightest bit, this kind of Thea wasn't cute at all.

I repeat, not cute at all.

[When I see my sister's body, I got all--]

I pushed another switch and cut off the shameful words before I would be overloaded with shame.

The said person was literally yelling 'noooo!' as the words were cut off.

"This was all your plan, Thea! You tried to get back from me earlier!"

"No, I'm not! The pen's corruption only made it voice the user's true desires, of the sexual kind, of course. It also inputted the message without any confirmation at all..."

"Does that mean, my little sister was..."

Damn it.

Just as I was about to slam the pen on the ground with all my strength, both Thea and my sister yelled.

"Stop! Don't do it, my sister! This was a valuable historical object.."

"Noo! This brought so many nice memories when I use it..."

In the end, we were back to square one.

On a side note, I might have forgotten something. Especially since I didn't need it for the longest time ever.

I went inside the house, leaving the two of them looking dumbfounded when I looked back.

From my storeroom, I took a charcoal maker. One of the tools I salvaged from somewhere. During my exploration of the plains, I sometimes encountered a ruined building that seems pretty familiar.

The tools were all showcased in a box; its backside or the insides contain how to use it, either in form of instructional pictures or the guidebook. I tested all the tools and brought home the most necessary one. \

Using the aura of the grasses to navigate my way, I could return back and forth without any hitch. As my only potential threat, the animals, I could kill easily.

Before I got the stove, I made do by rubbing my hands together to create a flame and roasted my stuff directly after dismantling the animals.

It wasn't long after I arrived, I manage to discover the stove along with the kitchen stuff; It's bit much too soon; I didn't even miss eating hunter-style.

The stove seems to be the most advanced tool, as it had a sophisticated reactor beneath and even after a long time, it's energy level did not seem to cease.

Going back to the charcoal maker, all I did was burning the wood; charcoals would accumulate on the pot below. I would take the pot, put the charcoal in a rectangular shaped wood container and clean the charcoal maker pot using the liquids from the underground plants.

Using a handmade wooden mortar I would soften the charcoal's surface and add a little bit of water; using a wooden spatula to mix them together. Wash all the utensils and it's done.

I sliced a small part of the unused wood with my hands and crafted a wooden stick which fit into my hand. It had a pointy end. To write, I would create a wooden board, made it rectangular shaped and in vertical length, just like a book.

Dipping the tip into the liquefied charcoal, I could communicate to some extent.

In my mind, I made a triumphant smile. Like I thought, the best way was relying on yourself after all.

"My little sister is so cute while working!"

"She's an earnest loli, my Mistress."

They sat beside me while letting out annoying grins.

Hey, I had enough of this.

I wrote [Would you please cut it out and listen to me?] on the board and showed them off. This handmade pen was perfect; even if my writing seems rather bad, as of this moment, it's already enough to convey my meaning.

"That's so nostalgic...when was the last time I wrote something?"

"You shouldn't be so lazy on this matter, Mistress. You need to revisit the past once in a while. More importantly, shouldn't you read what's written here instead?"

Stolen story; please report.

"....m'kay. [Wuld oyu lpease tuc ti tou nad netlis ot em?] what is this?"

"Mistress, I know you could read it perfectly. Stop teasing everyone."

"You're the one who started it, Thea!"

"It's all my hentai manga from long ago! Even I had forgotten about at one point...before I saw it again."

I became rather impatient, I want to show it to their face. Yet, I did my best to endure.

There was a bit of shift from the usual non-serious attitude as my sister went back on the topic.

"Ahem...now that you can communicate with us to some extent, what would you say?"

I wrote the next line, which caused both of them to gasp.

[What if I don't wanna be a Goddess or build a new world in the first place? Would you tell me that it's a fate I couldn't avoid? In that case, why even bother giving me a choice?]

"This was indeed difficult to answer. For someone who looks so cute and frail, you sure come up with unexpected things."

[Just answer me.]

"This was, in the slightest, not fate, but instead, an opportunity to change your fate. Look at your present condition when you lived at your own pace: are you happy and content, being completely ignorant about what's out there?

A lot of Gods coveted such an empty world to make it their own and forming their own multiverse, for the sake of gaining power. If your world wasn't close to my Multiverse and you didn't seem to have such potential, I wouldn't bother going so far like this.

It was simply because I watched you for so long before any other ones even took an interest, the other Gods would not dare to invade. If you refuse, you can fend them off for yourself. Even though it truly breaks my heart to say it, I do not want to force you to come against my will."

[Why do you care so much for me?]

I wrote again, this time, the pen in my hand seems to get heavier.

"I need you in my life to make me whole. Maybe it's quite foolish to say, I was brought here by the red thread of fate. I know I wasn't smart. I just followed what my heart told me:

Which is, making you my family."

[Why do I need to be your little sister then? What about me being your children, during the time we first met?]

"You're technically not my daughter yet. That aside, it's just like, you give the vibe of being my little sister."

Was the reason actually that trivial?

[What about being your lover?]

"My!" Thea began to blush.

"Of course it was possible, but starting out on the basis of a lover was very unstable. Do you believe there's something like eternal love? On the other hand, being a sibling and children was permanent. It was the bond that made up our multiverse so we could protect each other when the need arises.

That would be all. I think it's unwise to go in the details so soon. Just take it easy."

[I understand.]

Hmm...I unexpectedly got dumped. Probably since I brought this topic at some serious moment.

As the text already filled the board, I put on the same cleaning liquid from the plants and washed it clean. I dried the water using the leaf from my cupboard and began to write my next question.

[It seemed I have no choice but to accept. Now then, how do we go with building the World Tree?]

My big sis began to put on a pondering expression.

"About building the World Tree, you need to find out the answer within yourself."

[That's just similar to what you told me before this place got reset.]

"I will give you a hint, a World Tree was just one of its names. It's just something I could understand the most. Each deity had a different way to approach it.

However, as you see fit, this world used to live and flourish from a World Tree. As now this world belongs to you, the new one would grow from its carcass.

One way to build it was to continue the old legacy. It takes time and effort to shape a world once again from the scratch--you follow?"

[Yes.]

"The explanation got stuttered a bit since my perversion act up. Basically, I want to help to grow your own World Tree, by providing you with some human interaction--it works wonders for your growth. Even I used to be human too and so are you."

[What about Thea?]

The said maid had her face flushed when recounting her origins.

"Well, we from the Toilet race were created by the Human deities. So, yeah—we're basically the same except a few areas, I think?"

No, I don't think it was that simple.

[I get the gist of it, but tell me—do I need to build my World Tree to get my own form and voice? Why didn't you give it to me right away—wouldn't it be convenient for you instead?]

"It might work for others, but not for me. I want the ones under me to pave their own unique path."

[...and what does that have to do with building the World Tree?]

"Do you still remember the thing I told you on the first day. That the world was shaped by your belief?"

[Yes, I vaguely recalled it.]

"Based upon my understanding, every world consist of two parts: the Human and Mechanical deity.

The Mechanical deity was none other than the World Tree. Because we're originally humans, we are not proficient at performing the repetitive tasks to engineer everything—the World Tree would take care of it.

..and we, as Humans were tasked to do our best to build it our own way. In my case, it was pouring my Love."

[I just realize the correlation, but I was still lost about what it has anything to do with gaining my voice and form.]

"The World Tree, in my understanding again—was a part of us—the part of our world.

The world we build is the manifestation of our own belief.

It would only function with you around. When your belief and awareness grows, so will the World Tree and of course, your own world. Although, the reverse did not. It was simply a mark of one's growth after becoming a deity. When one severed the bonds, they would gradually lose power before returning to a mortal and finally died. So did the World Tree would be kept waning its power before its death."

[So are you saying there was once a Deity who resides in this world?]

"Should be, but their whereabouts were unknown. As a being wanes in power, it becomes especially difficult to track their presence—especially if I do not know their Name."

[In any case, what do you mean about my own form and voice? I think I was about to regain my speaking ability and I felt a bit hot on my body like it's about to change. Even if I didn't sense the World Tree at all. Does that mean, even in the earliest development--I'll get it back?]

"If my words earlier didn't make sense, the World Tree is just a symbol of your growth.

For the Form, it's the kind of body you truly desire to have and what you're most comfortable with—your ideal body. The flesh of deities cannot be harmed through mortal means.

As for the Voice, it generally refers to your ability to communicate. Telepathy and sharing thoughts were just a part of that.

It was just one of the many powers you have. Each deity will have a unique set of abilities, but the one they generally have are Voice and Form.

You should be able to bring your World Tree around when it had grown a certain point before you travel my Multiverse. With me and Thea around, it shouldn't take long to prepare.

When you get outta here, is where we finally begin nurturing those aspects."

[Hold on, do you mean, you won't be with me along the way?]

"Of course not. I only say to be with you until you can stand on your own, don't worry, it's not like you'd be completely alone, rest easy. I figure, having cute and kind seniors to guide you around will be helpful. Besides, it's not like I would let you be forever, I'll meet up with you from time to time. I just believe your growth will be faster if you don't just stick around me."

[I guess that makes sense somehow.]

"That means I'd be your senpai from now on."

When I took a bit of glance to see the maid due to her words earlier, she gave me a thumbs up.

The maid seems to really want to ruffle and stroke my hair, with those lewd hand gestures.

"Nah, you're coming with me, Thea..."

"Yes, mistress! Hehe..."

They're just like a stupid couple doing roleplays instead of an actual mistress and servant.

[I'm still a bit confused but, being a Deity seems to take a lot of work. I don't wish to exert myself too much.]

I had some kind of trauma about overworking it seems.

"Well, you're basically a God, you know—lil miss. However you work, it's up to you. The way your Universe develops didn't matt1er with how much you work, but how your work adheres to your personal ethos. I and Mistress also had our own way—but it's best if you find the thing that's meant for you."

[I will take it easy then.]

"Yes, that's the way it should be.", my big sis  "Anyway, it's about time for lunch, shall we eat?"

"I will prepare the stuff." Thea rolled her sleeves and begin to work.

[One more question. I'm still not really a Deity yet, but you guys are one right? Why do you still need to eat, sleep and especially have sex—like normal humans?]

"Well, we do not necessarily need it but, those pleasant experience of eating delicious food and enjoying life is what gave us the power to grow.

My heavy-duty work was already fulfilled by my World Tree. If I couldn't do my best on being Human in my own way; it means I didn't do my job well." my sis said it with such nonchalance, like it's a matter of fact.

[I see.]

Not long after, the Lunch was done. We ate peacefully, unlike the breakfast time.

The next thing my sister brought up was:

"We're about to live here. Shall we remodel the house then?"

Oh no.

"Of course, my little sister can just relax—we're imposing on you, after all."

Oh yes.

When I was relaxing in my bed, with Thea lending me her Astral Books, I forgot to say something through the wooden board.

Was there a deep meaning than love, on why they kept referring to me as a girl?

Why did sister say she love girls? Wasn't love usually between boy and girl? If I decide to be a boy, would she hate me?

Why was I much more attracted to be a girl and completely forget becoming a boy?

Even if I thought of myself as a girl, I felt no attraction to boys either. Even when I had a clear image of how a boy was like.

Although, there's a strange feeling of wanting to possess their thing at the certain moments, like that penis I felt curious when it pops up from a girl. In the first place, rather than referring to it as something solely a boy has, it's more like, some girls had them; some don't.

Countless questions swirled in my head. Alas, since they're all busy I'd just make do with reading.

There were already a good amount of books I had scavenged from those ruins, mostly storybooks, just to pass time when I didn't feel like watching the scenery.

Well then, I wonder what would Thea's collections look like?

I flipped the pages of her book, to see what scenery it would unravel, for me to enjoy and bask within it.