Chapter 111-112
Chapter 111 – We played with the Ryukin!!
"Woah, this…"
I couldn't help but mutter in awe when I looked at Number 15 after modifying it.
The Golem now looked like a dark, muscular man.
It had handsome facial features and a tidy beard.
It was also wearing the clothes of nobles and the imperial crown was on its head, so it looked like the king of some country.
I had wanted to create a dashing middle-aged man who looked strong…but now, I was starting to think that we should just let Number 15 be our king.
"Huh? Who's this handsome man!?"
Not only Fule, but the other women of the island were very impressed by it.
Number 15 raised a hand to its chest and bowed beautifully.
"All of you. It is an honor to be the subject of such praise."
Not only was it handsome, but it had a nice voice. The monster girls were screaming with joy.
And since Number 15 had always acted like a butler of sorts, it was very polite.
Perhaps having Number 15 sit on the imperial throne instead of me wasn't really a bad idea.
I would just say that we both happened to be called Heal…no, they would never believe that.
In any case, the modifying of the Golems was going well.
They were currently in the forms of humans, but they could easily return to their Golem shapes. Or any other shape I told them to.
What was surprising to me, was while the Ryukin couldn't turn into anything larger than it was, it could go smaller, to a degree.
For instance, Golem Number 1, was very large.
But once I enveloped it with the Ryukin, it was able to turn into a human or any other monster.
This was incredibly useful.
Because their bodies were too big to move around in the tunnels.
Now they would be able to shrink down while moving towards the underground city, and then return to being gigantic when they arrived… Things would go much smoother now.
Of course, it was suddenly easy to lose track of them when they were smaller…
That being said, there was a limit to how much they could shrink. A giant Golem could not shrink down to the size of a dog or cat.
Upon seeing Number 1, Mappa also shrunk down with the Ryukin.
And he was also able to return to his original size.
It really seemed impossible for such a metal to exist.
"It's not as if their bodies are disappearing somewhere…how does it work?"
"That's what bothers you! You have stones that extend your life!"
Fule said. 'Well, that's true,' was the only way I could reply.
"So, Lord Heal. We're allowed to use the extra stuff, right?"
"Huh? Oh, of course."
"In that case…"
Fule covered herself in the Ryukin and changed her shape.
What started to appear in front of me was…
"Oh, it's Erevan."
"Really? How do I look?"
Fule said as she started to flex her muscles.
As they were father and daughter, their gestures were very similar… Perhaps Fule wanted big muscles too.
"Ah, Fule! Why are you copying me!! Damn it. In that case…"
Erevan poured a barrel of the Ryukin over his head.
After transforming, he was even more muscular than before. He almost looked like a Golem. However, his head remained the same size.
Erevan then flexed his new muscles in front of Fule.
"How's this!"
"Uh, it's kind of gross. Your head's too small."
And so everyone started playing with the leftover Ryukin.
Haines was one of them. He made Ashton touch the Ryukin and was trying to make him do something.
"Bu-but, Haines…I can't do that."
"You should always challenge yourself, brother. Besides, I want the young princess to rediscover the beauty of Kobolds."
"We could just leave it to nature… Oh, fine. I will test it…"
Ashton nodded somberly in front of Ril.
Then he covered himself in the Ryukin and changed shape.
"That's…"
A Kobold woman stood there. It was Ashton, only as a woman.
While looking very embarrassed, Ashton said to Ril,
"Ri-ril. Come over here?"
Ril looked at him with a confused expression.
"Ruff…"
Ashton's shoulders drooped, and Haines exploded into a fit of laughter.
Ril's reaction to things were becoming very honest… Oh, now Rienna was curious.
Rienna was standing in front of a barrel, and so I called to her.
"Why don't you transform into something too, Rienna?"
"Huh? Oh, I've already done that once. But…there is something I was wondering. Can I try using it?"
"What? Of course, you can."
I nodded, and Rienna used the Ryukin to transform.
Apparently, she was going to shrink.
What I saw…
"Rienna."
It was Rienna's original form.
When she was a short goblin.
She looked up at me as if in realization.
"Yes…things really do look different from here! You seem very big, Lord Heal."
"Huh? That's what you were wondering?"
"Yes. I used to think that you…were very handsome. Oh, uh, not that you don't look handsome right now!"
I laughed a little sadly as she tried to correct herself.
It was like she was saying that I was better looking before… Well, perhaps it was because she was starting to see how unreliable I truly was?
The only thing that had changed was her view.
So of course she would see me in a different light now.
When we had first met, Rienna was being tormented by a curse that shortened her lifespan. So much had happened since then.
Both to the island and me.
"Lord Heal… What did you think about me before the evolution?"
"Huh? Uh, indeed…"
I was very drawn to her.
Rienna was always cheerful no matter how dark the situation.
And that was something that hadn't changed at all.
I remembered feeling quite awkward when Rienna had first changed into a human.
Perhaps it was just a primal instinct, but I was very moved at the sight of Rienna in her new form.
But now that I saw Rienna in her original form, what I knew now, was that what made Rienna special was not her appearance.
As I stumbled for words, Rienna chuckled and said, 'You can be honest. I don't mind.'
Perhaps she thought I was going to say that she looked childish.
However, her smile hadn't changed at all.
Nor had the fact that I liked that smile.
I thought back on that time where the golden powder from the World Tree had messed with my head, causing me to say strange things.
Some of the things that I had wanted to say but couldn't.
"…I like you. Both now and a long time ago. From the moment we met."
I said it.
My head started to feel very hot.
On the other hand, realization came over her face, and she looked like she would cry.
However, she just laughed and said, 'me too.'
Her face was so bright that a certain thought entered my heart.
We should get married…
Definitely. Who knows when it will be. But I will give her a ring one day and there will be a ceremony.
…Of course, I couldn't be certain that she would really accept me.
After making this decision, Rienna stayed in her old form for a while, and we both watched as the others played with the Ryukin.
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Chapter 112 – The Hand of the King Stretches Forth!
In a Sanfaris navy warship.
Within the Admiral's room in the stern of the ship, two royals sat around a table.
One was a boy of only fourteen and had blonde hair. He now opened his mouth.
"Ah, to think that Heal really is still alive."
This delicate boy was the eighteenth prince, Oren.
He was the first prince that was born after Heal.
The man who answered him was in his twenties and had red hair.
"Aye, what an incredible will to live. I have to admit, I was shocked to hear the news."
He was Balpas, the eleventh prince.
He had a beard and shaggy hair. Those who saw him thought that he looked rather barbaric.
"Indeed. I never expected to be able to meet Heal again."
Oren said with great emotion. Then he looked at Balpas.
"So, what will you do, brother?"
"What will I do? I will do exactly as father said, of course."
As Balpas took a swig of beer, Oren looked at him with annoyance.
"Huh. In other words, you'll investigate the population and count taxes like some lowly official."
"Hey, hey, be careful with your words. I am your elder brother. You can disrespect Heal all you want, but I won't forgive you if you treat me in the same way. 'Sage.'"
"I'm not mocking you. I just don't understand why father had to send us to investigate. I am the 'Sage.' The most powerful sorcerer in the kingdom. And you are quite serious, in spite of appearances."
"Who knows? But it's probably because I get the job done. And you… Maybe it's because you served Heal a lot?"
"Served? Hardly. I was just playing. With Heal and with toys."
Oren said with a grin. Then he looked out of the window and to the sea.
"From what I hear, Heal himself has acquired some new toys. Hmm, yes… To think I will be able to see that face again. The way he'll look when his toys are once again… Hehe."
As Oren laughed to himself, Balpas felt a sense of unease.
He really did not understand why their father had sent them together, of all people.
Officially, Balpas was supposed to have the 'God Mathematics' crest. It was a crest that improved your ability with numbers, and was not very glamorous. And so Balpas was known in the palace as the head of the tax office.
However, it was really just a mask.
In fact, his real crest was 'Twilight,' which allowed him to erase his presence and the sound of his footsteps. He was the greatest assassin in the kingdom.
So he could understand why his father had sent him. He had been given secret assassinaion orders before. And he had never failed.
Oren had no idea of this. But Balpas was ordered to uncover all of Sheorl's secrets.
But why was Oren here as well…
It would make sense if they were going to invade the island.
While Oren was still young and often lazy, his skill in magic was among the best in the kingdom.
Surely he would have no problem defeating the likes of Heal.
However, this was just a mission to investigate.
Even in the palace, Oren was known to act with much cruelty. His blood was quick to boil, and he killed both humans and animals as if it were nothing.
There had been a pretty little bird that sang in the palace garden one day.
It was nothing to take note of. It was as common a sight as was possible. No one should have cared.
However, Oren was awakened by its song, and as soon as he got out of bed, he destroyed the bird with his fire.
But that was not enough to satisfy him, and he went on to exterminate every single little bird in the city.
Of course, word of this started to spread, and the king was forced to confront his son.
Oren replied that he wanted to ensure that his sleep was never disturbed again.
'I see,' was the king's reply. And the matter was not brought up again.
Balpas thought Oren a very disagreeable and eerie man.
However, as someone who lived mostly in the shadows, he did not care too much about him.
Still, things were different now that they were forced to work together.
The first impression one usually got when looking at Oren, was that he was handsome and appeared to be kind.
However, he would get angry at the most insignificant things, and do what he wanted without any regard for the consequences.
He was not a good fit for an investigation mission.
Why had his father sent him off with a man that was so different from him? A man who might do something that could make all out war inevitable?
Balpas could not understand it.
…Well, Heal wasn't exactly anyone's idea of normal either. He had just declared himself Emperor, after all. Things were really getting out of hand.
While Heal had not been the smartest, Balpas could hardly believe that he would do such a thing. Perhaps the island had caused Heal to lose his mind.
Besides, there was the matter of these monsters. It was definitely a mission like no other.
On Sheorl, Balpas would have no one to rely on but himself—why did his father always have to push the troublesome work onto him?
Balpas sighed and then opened his mouth as if to hammer the nail in.
"…I don't know what you are thinking, but you better stay out of the way while the grownups work. I want to return to the capital as soon as possible and drink with some pretty ladies. Brats like you should stay out of sight. Do you understand?"
"Yes, yes. We'll finish it as soon as possible. And then we can leave."
Oren said as he petted a bottle he had placed on the table. It was filled with crushed bones.
The warship was now only a day away from Sheorl Island.