Note: the story is in the first person, but the infomine switches between that and third person
Lich ~ Elphegort, the Millennium Tree Forest ~
- The first scene is the black Rollam, or Lich who had been driven out of the forest, coming back to the forest uninvited to visit Held.
- Held, seeing Lich, isn't too happy.
- Lich says that Held looks like he's about to wither and die sometime soon.
- Held admits that he will soon leave the Ground World.
- But the world will no longer change due to the absence of the gods, as the people of this world, while still weak, have become independent.
- Held calmly asks Lich why he came, although a hint of anger is present in his voice.
- Lich tells him not to make a face like that, and that he's only come to say farewell.
- Part of it was because Held would leave soon, but Lich too was going to leave this continent, and fly across the sea to a forest on the island of Marlon, and make his new home there.
- Held didn't ask him why. It may have been that he already figured it out, or maybe he just didn't care at all.
- At least for Held, as long as Lich wasn't in this forest, there would be no worries that he would bother the other forest spirits.
- "...Are you talking about that guy (aitsu, gender-neutral)--are you talking about Michaela? Regarding what happened, that guy's at fault too. That guy left the forest of their own accord, so I simply taught them a little lesson in your place."
- "Oh? Is this an excuse?"
- "The outside world is not nearly as peaceful or simple as the Forest. It's a dog-eat-dog world, eat or be eaten. I'm just giving them a lesson as their senior--"
- "Be quiet!"
- Held says to Lich that he isn't part of the Forest anymore, and has no right to do so.
- Lich retorts that as he isn't part of the Forest anymore, he also no longer has any obligation to follow Held's orders.
- But Lich disobeying Held's orders had been going on for quite some time.
- Lich thought back to the time he created a mud doll and put the prince's soul within.
- That was decades ago, yet even now Held hadn't seemed to cool down about it.
- “You still haven't changed... you're still as blunt and boorish as always. I let you, who was unable to become a god and unable to become a demon, settle as a spirit in my forest, yet this is how you repay me!"
- "Hehehe... yeah. You're quite a caring, kind-hearted person. But... not everyone wishes for that kindness. If you really wanted everything to be calm and peaceful, you shouldn't have allowed in a malcontent (rebel? basically someone whose beliefs go against the mainstream)."
- "Malcontent... you may well be a malcontent, but at the same time you were one of us, and we once cared about you--"
- "Not just me, but even Seth--"
- "DON'T SAY THAT NAME!!"
- Held is actually quite afraid that the spirits around him hear this name and regain their memories.
- "Held... you are indeed very kind and caring, but you are also quite disgusting. You took from those spirits their unhappy memories... including everything about that ark."
- Held says that doing so makes everyone happy, and those extra memories are no longer needed for living in this new world.
- Lich asks Held why he didn't erase his own memories, then.
- Held does not reply.
- Lich accuses Held of being more selfish than anyone else, and he himself knows it quite well, which is why, even as a god, he is content to sit here as some old tree.
- Held doesn't want to speak to Lich anymore, and tells him to get out.
- Lich wasn't planning to stay long anyway, but just as he prepared to fly away, he noticed a small sapling next to Held.
- Lich became suspicious of the sapling beside the Millennium Tree.
- Held was going to lie about it and send him off, but Lich immediately figured out what that sapling was.
- Held had no choice but to admit that he planned for Michael(this instance is spelled Michael in the Chinese source?) to become his successor.
- The sapling was still young, so Michaela(but now he switches?) couldn't understand a thing they were saying.
- "But one day they will grow into a big tree... and take all your nutrients and knowledge, so when that happens, even the stuff about me will--"
- I said, while approaching the sapling.
- "Wait! Lich, what are you doing?"
- "--Oh, nothing. Just 'nipping it in the bud'." [Lich I hate you]
- Lich, ignoring Held's pleas, approached the sapling and made a show of being about to peck it.
- "Hey--!!!"
- --Hearing a shout suddenly from behind me, I suddenly stopped.
- A golden haired girl in a nun's habit came running, a stick in her hand. [SHEEEEEEEE]
- "Get away, get away!"
- The girl waved the stick around a bunch, trying to shoo off the Black Rollam bird about to peck at the sapling. [omg it's my good daughter you're doing so well, sweetie]
- (...Ugh.)
- The situation was helpless, so I flapped my wings and flew away.
- ...Looks like being helpless applies to me too.
- Doesn't matter if I'm a spirit or whatever, since to humans I will always just be a Black Rollam bird.
- Lich, flying away, suddenly realized that he had seen that golden-haired girl somewhere before.
- (...Hehehe, so that's it... I somehow chanced to meet you in a place like this-- O Daughter of Evil.)
- She and her brother... they were once things I liked to observe.
- For they are the miracle children--'Irregulars'.
- But by now... it's all pointless.
- My interest has transferred to other things.
[like ur bf Eater]
~~Scene 2~~
Lich ~ Marlon, the Column Forest ~
- Lich flew to a forest near Marlon's capital, Bariti. There a bear waved to him.
- That was my friend, Eater. ["friend", a-huh just like Michaela and Clarith (eyes emoji)]
- After Lich landed on Eater's shoulder, Eater asked him how the talk with Held went. Lich basically brushed off his question and asked Eater how his side of things were going.
- "The negotiations are pretty much done, and everyone here welcomes our joining."
- "Oh, that's very good."
- [note: Eater specifically uses "ore"]
- To be honest, if it were only me there'd be no need to live here, since if I needed rest I could just touch down on a branch anywhere.
- But Eater is different, since if his giant body were to be sighted by humans, some unneeded trouble would arise.
- I don't want to risk any danger to my dear friend who followed me out of the Forest and didn't mind swimming across the ocean to come to Marlon.
- "You've grown to become good at interacting with other people--no, other animals, eh, Eater?"
- "Heh."
- Eater laughed, embarrassed, while scratching his head.
- But soon his expression darkened.
- "What's wrong?"
- "They said there's one condition, which is that we have to resolve a problem for them."
- Eater told Lich that recently some strange humans have come from the village and have been tearing up the forest. They aren't hunters, either, but some sort of humans with skin so pale it's white. They usually show up after sundown, especially on full moon nights.
- "...Well, isn't it convenient that tonight is a full moon? Well, let us teach a little lesson to these bastards destroying the forest."
- "Oh! Go, me!!"
- "That's a necessity, since I'm the brains of this group. It's your job to beat up the enemies... but, as much as possible, try not to kill them, since that'll probably just complicate things more. Just beat them around a little, enough to get them to leave, but show some restraint."
- "Understood!"
- Well--
- These were all under the assumption that our opponents were indeed human.
- That night, as Eater said, a group of white-skinned people appeared in the forest. They had neither clothes nor weapons. The only difference was a woman in their center, clothed in black, with skin the color of normal humans. In her hand was a wineglass.
- (Bingo, we've found it. That which commands Gluttony--one of the Vessels of Deadly Sin!)
- While being careful not to be discovered by the enemy, I landed on Eater's shoulder, hiding in a nearby bush.
- "Eater. ...Eater, wake up."
- "--Hm? Oh. I'm awake, I'm awake."
- Replied the sleepy Eater.
- "The enemy have come."
- "Oh! Then, let's go!"
- "Yeah. But--there's a change of plans."
- "?"
- "There's no more need to show any restraint. Turns out the enemy is not human, but rather corpse soldiers."
- Lich told Eater not to kill the woman in the middle, only to knock her unconscious.
- So then Eater charged out.
- The woman, seeing Eater in his bear form, looked at him with both surprise and interest.
- "--Didn't think we'd run into a bear. And this is the first time I've seen one this big... But that's just fine. This is a great chance to test out the battle prowess of my corpse soldiers."
- The woman moves the glass around, commanding the corpses to attack Eater.
- In the end, most of the corpse soldiers had been hit by Eater and disintegrated within about ten minutes.
- The woman stood before him, hand on her hip.
- "Hmph! Useless little corpses."
- The woman still showed an eagerness to fight in her eyes, but at this time Lich started talking to her. He told the woman that it wasn't the corpse soldiers but rather she who controlled them, and that it seemed she hadn't been able to wield the Demon's power correctly. She wanted to test out her corpse soldiers, but had the bad luck to pick the forest where they were.
- "Who... who are you!? You can't be normal animals!"
- "That wineglass is wasted on you. If you hand it over then I'll show you some mercy--"
- "ANSWER MY QUESTION ALREADY!!"
- While screaming, the woman threw a dagger at me.
- I immediately leaned over to dodge, but unfortunately the dagger still grazed the feathers on my left wing.
- "! How dare you... how dare you hurt my beautiful feathers..." [Lich u pretty-boy]
- I felt the anger slowly welling up in my heart.
- "...Eater. Show her what we're made of." [uh oh he just tattled on u to his buff bf ur gonna get it]
- Eater flung the woman away with one swipe. She fainted, and the glass dropped from her hand and rolled into a clump of grass near her.
- "Hey, what's that wineglass?"
- "Within this vessel resides the Demon of Gluttony. He's your relative."
- "I don't know anyone named that."
- "Oh... right."
- His memories had also been wiped by Held.
- But, if he met "He" who dwelt within the glass, perhaps Eater could take his memories back.
- And besides, the ability of the glass to control the corpse soldiers was invaluable. If that power were to meld with his "Mud Doll" technique, then he would get one step closer to his goal of creating a new humanity.
- Lich called upon the one within the glass to show themselves, but what appeared was not what he expected.
It was not "Him".
- "--Who are you?"
- The voice from within the light asked me.
- But that was just what I was about to ask.
- "I should be the one asking you that!"
- "I am... the Demon of Gluttony--"
- "No! The Demon of Gluttony I know isn't like you--"
- "Oh... are you an acquaintance of that pig?"
- That was a teasing voice, a woman's voice.
- Without a question it could not have been from "Him".
- What happened?
- In the time we had lived in the forest--
- What on earth happened in the outside world?
- Eater, not really grasping the situation, started asking the light.
- "So are you the one who's my reh-luh-tihv?" [Eater I would die for you]
- "Oh, what a delicious-looking little bear--but no, unfortunately, I'm not your relative."
- "Then, who are you?"
- "I am the Demon of Gluttony. My name is--"
- --This was my first encounter with "Her".
- END