" Hey boss lady , where is the library ? " Birch asked as soon as they arrived while wearing a suppressor " You'll have to wait for me to grant you access , most of the things inside are things that aren't within your knowledge , plus I have plenty of knowledge you would love to go through . "
' I might even have to start with the basic , there is still so much jargon I have to read through ' ' Are you happy now that you have a beast like him ? " Death asked ' Yes , I am " Lily replied and they walked through a door , leaving Beryl to eat his meal .
" Oh hello Emma " " I would like to ask about what Rate had told me " " I will attend to that after I give Birch access to my databases " Emma wondered who Birch was recognizing the different clothing style he has .
" I need to scan your biometrics " Argus told Birch in his language while Lily entered a room with Emma sitting at one of the chairs and a coffee table with some snacks between them .
" What is it that you want to ask about me ? " Lily asked in a stern voice , a great contrast to her good mood when she had recently acquired Birch " It's concerning your possession of abstract beings like Life and Death " Emma said .
" So Rate told you about it , I hope you didn't threaten him or anything " Emma felt the pressure Lily placed on her " No , I only asked because I got curious about you commander " " I hope you don't plan to take Life or Death away "
" Not at all I was hoping you would tell us how they were created " ' Looks like I'll have to fabricate more evidences if I want to keep anyone from taking either of them ' " That sounds very personal Emma , I don't think I want that to happen to them like some lab rat "
Emma could feel the increased pressure that Lily placed on her " It was just a request to see if you would like to contribute to the research " " I don't trust you descenders at all " Emma was confused by how Lily was like that " I'm only accepting your help because you are against the labyrinth "
Emma wonders if Lily has hatred against the labyrinth like losing a loved one " Did you lose someone ? " " Yeah my brother , but I don't want to talk about it " Life noticed Lily's memories .
" Seems you have nothing else to talk about " " Actually I wanna ask about the mythical beast that you saved , they were supposed to have fought against the labyrinth and we haven't been able to contact other survivors so how is it that you managed to gather so many ? "
' Damn we got caught ' Death thought " Simple , I decided to make a deal with the labyrinth to bring them back , I did it as a test to see if the Labyrinth would bring any of Rate's loved ones back and since it did it gave me hope "
' That's not what she did it for ' Death thought , while Life could hear Emma's thoughts and understood Lily's intention ' I see she must want to get her brother back and bringing the lost citizens of the frontline is to find a way to bring him back ' " So any questions ? "
" No that was enough commander " Lily continues to frown , but internally she was smiling at Emma's ignorance . As soon as she returned to the glass dome she checked on Life ' So did she thought what I expected ? '
" Yes , Emma now has an impression that you made a deal with the labyrinth to test if you could get your brother back . She understands that your rationale for siding with the descenders was personal and that Rate's genetic family species are brought back to show proof that you can receive your brother back "
" Now they won't think I'm allied with the Labyrinth " " but the Labyrinth will know you're lying " Death said " So what ? I'm close enough to the Labyrinth to be its ally " " Are you planning to have an insurance so that you get to pick the winning side ? " Death asked .
" Not at all , the thing about being between them both is that they see me as a tool to fight with the other , but the problem is that the tool is a person with unclear sides , both likely to defect their enemy . " " Can you explain why you are between them ? " Death asked .
" The descenders are cautious of me because I made a trade with the labyrinth for a personal reason , but don't have enough evidence to call me an enemy . The Labyrinth is also the same they know I don't like the descenders but they can't risk it because I'm so close to them "
" Because of that , both sides are willing to do what it takes to keep you as an ally ? " Life asked " Yes , but before they know it . I'll be much stronger " A screen appeared sounding " Are you busy now Mistress ? "
' Argus has been asking me that often even when I was at the possessors kingdom . It's getting annoying ' " No , What is it about ? " " The great fire wants to talk to you " " Tell her that the energy factory is on its way , you did update me that Terra already got there , didn't you ? "
" It's not about that , she request that you visit her " Lily sighed and called Doris to open the door for her to reach the great fire's home " So what is it that you want me to do ? " Lily looked at the burning bright sun .
" Papa " ' Wait this feeling ' Lily turned to the source of the voice to see the magic tree she was using to power the rings she gave the great fire " I've been planning to ask you , since when did I have a child with you ? She calls you father but cold person's like you should be the mother , isn't the right ? "
" Papa you're finally here with mama " " I heard that you were very busy and she's been like this for a while , so tell me why ? " Lily looked at the great flame " You know marriage right ? " " Yes ? " Lily revealed the red string that connects to the great flame .
" So uhm , dear spouse is there anything you need . Your food is already in the way " Lily said with a smile at the great fire " You think this is about me starving is it ? " the great fire asked , holding back their anger " I mean you're feeding our child well " " Yes but how is it my child too ? "
" There was a dead seed and I used your phoenix flames to resurrect the tree . I didn't think it would come to life " The great fire sighed " Then you should plant her elsewhere . I don't want to keep any child of mine locked in here "
" Then give me some time first I'll find a replacement for your rings . I'm sure the new genius I bought can let you fly to the sky " " No need , I have found great comfort under the cold embrace of the atmosphere and soil rather than the cold emptiness " " I hope you're comfy with the rings I gave you "
" I am " Lily thought about the great fire , thinking of how to take care of the great fire now that she had established their relationship ' I have to make it so that they can move as freely as they like '
Lily looked at the station , reading through whatever she could purchase ' Valley it's about that Reimor kingdom we've found , it seems to come from a time before " Life said ' What were they like ? "
' They were one of the candidates but were also overwhelmed by the Labyrinth . I've read the leftover souls and found enough to compile a quick history . " ' I'll get to it later " Lily told Life and selected her items " I'll take these "
Lily took a crate of elixirs ' This should be a lot , right Life ? " ' It is " they reached back home and Lily poured out all of the elixirs' contents into respective containers to allow Life to absorb it . She manifested her body and immersed her hands in the containers to assess the contents .
" Tell me about the results later " Lily looks at the book that Life made for her to read about the Reimor kingdom ' Alright I'll be reading for a while ' Lily reads the history of the Reimor kingdom and Life continues to study the elixir contents .
...
At dinner , Lily eats some food after taking a pill , having finished the history of Reimor kingdom " That was an interesting book " after finishing dinner , she turned to Life , her glow was much brighter due to the dense lifeforce she absorbed .
" So how's the purity " " the purity increases the more lifeforce there is " Life took a bottle showing the contents " This very expensive one has a very refined substance that pairs well with the contents , while still causing the effect of being brainwashed , There's even someone's cells here "
" Can you tell who it belongs to ? " Lily asked " Yes it is a living body the soul fragments are little , but I can make up some memories " Life replied " It also doesn't seem to have any connections to the previous owner to prevent it from being exploited and if we kill it Death could also get the memories "
Lily looked at Death's figure " Fine I'll do it " Life kills the cells and Death absorbs the flood of fragmented memories " Hmm this is an official from the descenders " " There's more over here " Life pointed at the number of bottles .
" What ? " " You gave me the souls of Reimor kingdom to make the history so you should at least relay the memories to Valley yourself " " Ugh fine " Death resigned to the task and it got dark " You finished yet ? " Lily asked playing with some toys .
" Probably finish it at morning , just go to sleep and stop bothering me " Death said while Life was also playing around with some . Lily smiled and went to her bed ' I wonder if there are more kinds of brainwashing in this world '
The next day , Death relays what he learned " So the supplier of the goods has another source of income , which is selling brainwashing opportunities to candidates " Death said " Impressive choice of business "
" The thing about this brainwashing business is that the research behind it is so perfect . It becomes hard to tell them between real or fake emotions " Death said " But the brainwashing gas I inhaled from Rate didn't affect me much , was that a low prototype ? "
" Ehh as far as I know , it was the best one , only the richer and more powerful could access them . It's also why the higher the cost of an elixir , the better the effect , the more expensive the cost of production and the more influential the brainwashing is "
Death shows images to Lily revealing who these corrupts are " This explains a lot about what the instructions tell you , seems practical , but it just ensures that the brainwashing is more effective . Think I could employ the same tactic on them ? "
Life thought about the abilities of Lily's residence " You risk getting yourself caught and I don't want to be contained and turned into a lab rat " " True true , there's that chance , they might even seize the great fire and the fire forms "
Breakfast came and Lily continued to discuss the dark side of the descenders " We can use this to view them how should I go with this then ? " " You would have to stretch out the purified land "
' Empowering the great fire could ensure their safety , Mother is also the same . the descenders aren't stupid to aim for either of them because of the value they have ' " Alright since , they have a business of brainwashing I'll have to make sure that it's profitable "
Lily starts exercising and gets a call from Emma " Answer the call " Lily quickly puts on her fake personality " What is it descender ? "
" I would like to ask how your resource mobilization works . It would be perfect material to send back to any other descenders who will come down to help fight the Labyrinth " Lily smiled hearing it , but continued with her fake stubborn personality .
" I suppose that much is fine , I have a lot of resources that are circulating . the only noteworthy one is that after I got those possessors I need for more lifeforce to continue powering my body's energy consumption , so it would be nice if you include that in your report too ? I want a discount for buying plenty "
" I will , but what about that giant dragon you call your child ? " " He eats a lot , I make him bring food up to his mother to make sure she's well feed . she's also the reason we have been catching some meteors from the sky "
' That explains a lot ' " What about that land beside your glass dome ? " " It's a small burning sun , as far as I can tell , they'll keep running for a while . And tell the other descenders this place ain't some tourist destination "
Emma jotted down the information on her notes " Yes I will . Thanks for the information " Lily closed the call as soon as Emma said her thanks " And thanks for spreading that information for me " Emma goes to the station and files the report .
Lily continues her exercise for the day thinking while learning about her residents' ability records and growth " What should I do with these ? It's risky enough to leave it out as evidence " Death showed the brainwashing content .
" I'll drink it then " " Why would you do that ? Didn't you ask Life to purify it just to avoid consuming it ? " Death said " That's true , but if I try to dispose of it in any ways , I could get caught . Also , it's insurance in the future "
" But won't it be bad ? " " No , Lily breathed the gas that would brainwash her into liking Rate , but only said it smells sweet " Life said " And I haven't thought about the smell although it was in the air yesterday , But I don't passively associate Rate with that scent at all "
Lily jogged past the contents and drank a bottle of one , making sure to fully consume it , pushing the contents to her mouth " Say Life can you tell the memories of the buyers that take those brainwashing opportunities ? "
" Yes , So that means you can get their information without separating the contents " " Good I'll take that " " But that means you'll have to act accordingly " " No problem I will do it " Lily continues exercising and receives a call .
" Commander , it looks like you're invited to a banquet " Emma said and Lily smiled " For what ? " " It's to congratulate you , but since they found that you openly destroyed another candidate they want to ask why "
" So you have a society up there ? " " Yes , it still functions normally " " That depends on what your normal is ... Are there schools up there ? What about the city infrastructure ? Is society good up there ? "
" Yes , the descenders are very united because of our fight against the labyrinth " " And you don't suspect the possibility of the bad side ? " Emma froze thinking about the moment she discovered the dark side of the descenders .
" No I do suspect it , but it's too cleverly hidden for me to be able to view it in its full form " " So there are a lot of suspicious characters ? Care to tell me more ? " Emma knew about some but decided not to tell her a thing and then Rate called " I have to get this "
Lily puts on her smile and sees Rate " Morning Rate , how are you doing ? " " Oh uhm I'm doing well Commander " Rate said " Don't be like that call me by my name . Is there anything you want to do ? " Rate looked at Lily exercising .
" I want to help you " Before Rate could continue , Lily interrupts him quickly " Oh no need " " But I feel useless here " Lily stops thinking about the possibility ' Life is it possible for Rate to detect that I've been feeling real emotions ? "
' Not possible " " Okay but don't be too discouraged when your help isn't good enough " Lily warned " Oh don't worry I worked hard for the past few days , to meet Argus's expectations "
Lily was surprised to here that " Wait , isn't that a lot of toll on your body " " Oh don't worry , it's nothing that requires me to exercise at all " " So what kind of skill is it ? " " Uhm it takes too long to explain but it'll help you recover fatigue "
Lily wiped her face with a towel and threw it away " Okay , I'll meet you at your bedroom then " the call closes and Rate scrambles around , he gathered some gemstones that his friends made for him , placing them in there right place to create the proper conditions for his spell .
' Mom says I need to get the right resources if I want to create this comforting dream environment ' the doorknob creaks open and Lily appeared with some normal clothes , surprising Rate for the lack of a mask .
" You're not wearing your mask outside ? " " Yeah I got better at the sealing art , maybe eventually I'll be able to get rid of your parents' seal and maybe your friends too " Lily said with a smile " Oh uhm thanks for the effort " Rate said , getting lost in the conversation .
" So , what was it that you want to help me with " " Oh it's mother's skill , It creates a dream environment based on the surrounding elements . I've pushed some minerals down there to properly replicate the environment , But do you want to go ? "
' I did just sleep , but then again I do feel a bit tired from exercising , it's very early , but I am curious about this dreamland ' " Okay " Rate guided Lily to his bed and she laid her head on his lap while his tail curl and rest on her stomach .
" So are you ready ? " " Yeah " Rate lowers his hands to above Lily and brought them both to dreamland " Won't they end up in an environment based on Lily's body ? " " Yes they will , her body has more mass than it "
...
Rate couldn't believe where they end up " Lily ? " Rate wondered if he had messed up the spell " Rate , there you are " Rate turned to see Lily wearing the same thing she wore when she was awake " Was this supposed to happen ? "
" No , I practiced the same thing to mom yesterday night . How did we end up here ? " " Valley can you here me ? " Death's voice echoed through the world " Oh looks like I can here Death here ... I'm fine "
" So Lif ... What's it like in dreamland ? " " Honestly more like a nightmare " ' Life reminded him didn't she ? ' " Maybe it has to do with your body ? I've read about this ability before and it's supposed to take elements around the target to create it . Considering your body's ability to contain several deaths I would assume that's the reason you encounter that nightmare "
Lily looked at the green radiant light above ' Thanks for explaining that Life ' " That should explain it " Rate was saddened to hear that and decided to consult with his mother about this " So , what did you expect it to look like ? " Lily asked .
Rate fidgeted with his fingers and created an illusion " This is what I thought it would look like " Lily looked at the colors of the grass and the soft-looking bushes " That looks comfy ... How about you try again later ? "
He sighed and nodded , undoing the dreamland and woke up . Lily opened her eyes , not seeing Rate above her and felt the tail leave her stomach " Huh that was fast " she got up and turned to see Rate fidgeting his fingers .
" Hey just because it didn't work the way you expected doesn't mean it's bad " " I guess " he sighed and Lily smiled " Don't put too much pressure on yourself , it's nice to know that you are working hard for me but I'd feel bad if you work yourself to death ... although that won't be possible so let's just say I hope you don't get yourself in a horrible state "
Lily leaves his room while Rate rushes to his parents room . Upon opening the door , he sees his father on the floor , trying to regain his strength " You're back , did it work ? " " I'm not sure " Rate said not confident with his ability to create the dreamland .
" It was different from what I showed you " " How ? " " It was a weird forest we ended up in " Rate said , recounting what he saw " And the abstract entities were able to communicate and tell us that it might be because of her body but I don't understand "
Melda looked at her husband " It must be like your father's art " " You mean her body has a much bigger space ? " Melda nodded and Rate thought about what that means " So doesn't that mean that her body has the variables that causes that kind of dream ? "
Melda nodded and Rate receives a call " She's calling " Rate said nervously " Answer it " " Hello , Rate " " Hello , Lily sorry it wasn't as comfy as I expected " " It's okay , but I would like to go to that dreamland again "
" Ehh why ? It showed a nightmare instead " " Yes , it showed the rest of my body . I'd like to explore that place " Rate thought very hard to see how that would be useful to Lily " So make sure you stay healthy Rate "
Lily waved her hand through the screen and the call ends ' I get what Scyan meant now , when he said that my body was warped because of some of my abilities ' she checked on the logs about her body , wondering about Scyan's notes of her body .
" A world inside , I guess that's his theory when he found it's pretty dense . I could further explore this later on when Rate is ready for another go " Later the day the descenders reported their work output from yesterday and found a message .
" Oh this is my fault " Emma said " Why what happened ? " Ava asked " I told the commander that she's invited to a banquet , but it seems she didn't go , I was supposed to tell her about the date but I forgot " Emma sighed disappointed by her neglience .
" It's even delayed to next week because they viewed it as insolence " Emma said " Ugh what is with those stiff geezers , she's new at the job , plus she might be busy today " Emma wondered if Lily closed her call early because of Rate .
' I'll have to send a formal apology hopefully they'll accept it ' Emma sent a letter apologizing for Lily . the receiver passes the letter on to spread the news to the rest of the descenders that manage the station's products and banquet .
" I suppose we can allow this one instance of neglect , they are still new " " Then we can leave a small punishment , we'll delay it by four days instead should be reasonable right ? " they all agreed and the banquet doors were closed to be prepared again for the next banquet .
" So it's going to take two days for Terra to get here . Call Birch and give him the original blueprints of the rings tell him I need him to replace the inner ring and upgrade the functions . It needs to allow the great fire to rise to the sky and allow them to eat some suns , although I'm not sure how that works ... whatever just send Birch to the great fire make sure he is properly briefed with it "
Meanwhile Birch reads the information about the great fire ' Woah I finally get to see how well my new knowledge works , it's good for confirming it's practical uses and I get to see a fascinating creature like this sun , I'm so glad she forced me to work under her '
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