As soothing as it is to be nearly smothered beneath the combined weight of ones Servants, the creeping cold of the night makes it impossible to enjoy properly. Yawning with contented faces, the Servants retreat to their homes, and I to my cave.
Waiting for me is the Avatar of the Demigod of Plant, Yggdrasil. She really does look exactly like my mother, and I'm uncertain if I like it or not.
"Feeling better? I suppose we should have a chat regarding the path forward." Yggdrasil sits down next to me once I've gotten comfortable on top of my pile of pelts that serve as my bed.
"Why do you imitate my mother?" I ask, my tone perhaps a little too blunt. Yggdrasil seems unfazed, most likely expecting this question. "This form was chosen to maximize the probability of you being able to suppress the Malice within you to prevent it from attacking me." She pauses a moment, her brow furrows, as if she's contemplating something.
"After all, as the one that built the Divine Spring that let me be reborn, you're the only being in the World currently able to kill me." She admits with a sigh. I get the feeling that if Shadow's been awake, she'd have commentated something to the effect of "She wanted to keep that secret."
"If you'd allow me, I'd like to keep this form, for my own peace of mind. I... I still remember the pain of last time... And I think that as a Demigod, I'm not supposed to fear Death, yet I tremble at the thought of facing oblivion again." Yggdrasil fiddles with the edges of her sleeves, a shadow concealing her expression as she looks down.
A god that fears death...
"Uh, if you don't mind me asking, how... how did you die last time?" I ask, curious as to how and why someone would seek to kill a god. Her expression becomes distant, a hint of ice in her stare. She recovers though, shaking her head before responding.
"I suppose... It's better if you know, than to face the danger in ignorance." She takes a deep breath before she begins talking again.
"Before the birth of the Elder Dragons of Plant, Lightning, Heat, and Cold, there were five Demigods. Miraculous Souls born of an inanimate object deeply connected to those Elements bathed in Magic and Divine energy."
"I was one of them, and there were four others, though I never interacted with three of them on account of the stationary nature of my true form." She glances upwards, to the real her towering above the landscape.
"As a Demigod, I enjoyed being worshiped by humanoids as a bringer of fertility to the land, crops grown near me produced trice normal yields and the soil never seemed to run out of nutrients. Of course, that was the result of them worshiping me as much as it was a byproduct of my very existence."
"Then one day a stranger came to the city that had come to thrive around me. His countenance was twisted, dark, yet it held a certain allure to those weak of mind." Yggdrasil shudders at the memory of this stranger.
"I sensed immediately the danger lurking within him. It was ??????-" I cut her off with a sharp yelp of pain. My body, particularly the areas around the missing limbs, prickle with pain, as if the very cells of my body are trying to evacuate the presence of that name.
"Oh- I'm sorry! I- ... I'm sorry... Of course, you'd have a violent reaction to that- I'm so sorry." Yggdrasil flusters as she holds out her hands, a pastel green light emanating from her palms. Where the light hits my body, I feel a cool, soothing sensation, much like smearing aloe vera juice on a sunburn.
"I- I won't say that name again. I'll refer to it as the Malice, for they are one and the same." She finishes bathing my body in the calming light. I get the feeling that it reacted to something within me...
"So, Malice used to be, or is, a Demigod?" I ask her.
"Yes. The stranger was the maker of its Divine Spring. I've no clue as to the origin of the Malice, but from how it behaved at that time, it was akin to a poison. Already, it had made its maker seek out the other Demigods, infected their worshipers and rallied them against the Demigods."
"By destroying the Divine Springs that birthed them, they cut them off from the Divine, and slowly the Demigods weakened and withered to nothing." She shudders at the thought.
"But against me that wouldn't work. By my very nature, I am the antithesis to Malice. It brings ruin and death, spreading much like a virulent disease, I bring life and prosperity. I was able to defend against the effects of their poison, and in turn it tried harder to fell me." Tears start leaking from her eyes.
"It... it warped them... made them into mindless monsters... I... I couldn't bring myself to kill them, and my powers were unable to reverse the effects. They swarmed my body, stabbing, stinging, biting... It was too much. I was overcome by the Malice, and in a final effort to keep it from gaining control of me, I... I killed myself."
She takes a few gasping breaths, her breath shaky. "I- I'm sorry-" I begin, but she waves me off. "It's okay, really... This time- This time will be different!" She clenches her fist and puts on a confident smile, trying to give off an aura of determination. But I can sense the deep-rooted fear within her. What if this time isn't different?
"I don't know what's happened between then and now, but it seems the effect of the Malice still linger, even though it happened so long ago." Yggdrasil finishes, slightly dejected.
Hm... Would World Knowledge be able to fill the gaps? Provided it'll even work, with how I've been infected by Malice.
*...*
Is that a 'I don't have the information you want ...' or a 'we've cut you off because we don't want to infect the World System with Malice ...'?
*Although the presence of Malice and Hatefulness in monsters has been recorded for the whole of written humanoid history, much of the specifics on the true nature of Malice has been destroyed in the time after the All-War due to its close links with making Chimera.*
Ah- yes. I only have access to the knowledge humanoids have, so if they don't know, I don't know. Also, hey, nice to hear you again, World Knowledge.
*The Envoys told me to express jubilant joy at your recovery. They've been monitoring the situation closely, and were even ready to step in should the worst happen.*
Oh boy, so they were standing there with the gun trained on my head waiting for me to turn... Anyway.
"So, Millibelle, what's the plan now? I mean, after you've recovered, of course?" Yggdrasil asks, seemingly unperturbed by me spacing out talking to World Knowledge.
"Well, I have three criminals that Shadow's convinced to let her turn them into monsters."
"I'm sorry- What?"
"It's a little thing I've been cooking up, a way to get rid of the Social Titles you get when you join the Aurellium, a way to be free of them forever. Of course, the best thing would be to just end the Aurellium, but I heavily suspect that the chaos created from the power vacuum would be more trouble than it's worth."
I look down in contemplation. It is theoretically possible. Bind the Soul to the body, induce death and then revive it with Raise. Beforehand a strong source of Magic would be needed to be ingested, my blood would suffice, as anything much more potent could make them explode.
Then, by shaping the magic within the body, I'd be able to change the outcome of using Raise from just an Undead of some sort to any monster I'm aware of existing. I'd be manipulating the World System directly, so there would be a high chance of me being hurt as a result.
But if I can give these people a second chance at life, one free from the looming danger of retaliation from the Aurellium...
"I see... To think such a thing is possible... But I suppose little is impossible for someone able to cause the rebirth of a Demigod. I'd like to volunteer my aid. Much like you, those humanoids that are turned into monsters will be highly susceptible to the Malice. Using the sap from my body, that weakness can be eliminated." Yggdrasil smiles at me.
"To think, someone as capable as you being so kind to others..." I'm unable to properly identify the emotion she expresses. Is it love? Jealousy? Relief? Regardless, if we can pull this off, I'll be very happy.
We sit in silence for a few moments. Then Yggdrasil speaks again.
"If... if it wouldn't be too much to ask... could... once you're free to do so of course, could you revive the three other Demigods as well? I... I feel bad that I'm the only one brought back to life, and perhaps they're even able to tell us more about the Malice?" She once again fiddles with the sleeves of her dress.
I have a realization. What if the Demigods are needed for the Balance? Then reviving them would be a huge help for me as well. Though... I have this feeling that if I were to build their Divine Springs within my Domain...
"I'd have to consult with the King... After all, my role in the grand scheme of things is to achieve and preserve Balance. If I cause wars by doing this, we might just end up back at square one." I look her in the eyes. Flashes of anger and annoyance dance in her eyes for just a moment, but my Telepathy picks up on it still.
"I suppose so." She sighs finally. I yawn, it's already so late, and I'm still tired from, well, everything that's happened recently. "I'll let you rest, Millibelle." Yggdrasil smiles, causing flashes of memories of my previous life. It's awkward that she looks like mom, but I suppose if it makes her feel safer...
I contemplate this as I drift off to sleep.