Chapter 43
"I'm sorry~!"
Uwang.
Pastel cried heavily.
Tears fell drop by drop.
As a result of deceiving the demon and eating the black jelly, she got scolded severely. She had to listen to a lecture for nearly an hour.
At first Pastel triumphantly let the demon's lecture go in one ear and out the other, but as time passed she shrank smaller, her eyes reddened, and finally tears poured out.
Uwang.
Tears welled up and poured down.
"I'm sorry! I won't tease demon anymore!"
The demon flinched at her crying. His heart seemed to weaken rapidly as his gaze wandered aimlessly before he spoke properly.
『The problem isn't that, it's that you keep putting dangerous things in your mouth. Do you properly understand the danger? Rank of existence is connected to life's essence, so consuming it recklessly has bad effects on the mind.』
"I was wrong~!"
Pastel wiped her tears with both sleeves.
Uwang.
The demon's heart weakened more and he sighed.
『Think about the feelings of people who worry about you. When someone tells you not to eat something because they're worried, how do you think I feel when you act like you're falling then quickly put it in your mouth?』
"I was wrong! Bad child Pastel...!"
Uwang.
Pastel cried so much she got hiccups.
Hic hic.
The demon flinched and stopped lecturing.
『If you understand then fine.』
A fluffy towel was handed over as if to wipe tears.
Pastel took the towel but instead of wiping tears, she blew her nose sniff. After producing extra laundry, she received a new towel and properly wiped her tears this time.
Sniff sniff.
『Don't do it again next time.』
"Yes..."
Pastel nodded and went to wash her face.
The demon was arranging the bed. The blankets were cleared to make it good for lying down.
『Nothing can be done about what you ate, so we should start with meditation. Lie down. Since you'll fall asleep anyway, it's better to try meditating while lying down.』
Nod nod.
Pastel lay down properly on the bed. Red eyes looked down at her.
『It should be easier since you've done it before. Relax your muscle tension and maintain a comfortable state. Cut off thoughts and focus your mind on your body's sounds. Sink into unconsciousness.』
"Demon."
『What is it?』
"Cover me with the blanket."
Pastel looked at him as if asking for the blanket cleared to the corner.
『You're not sleeping. This is meditation.』
Ing.
The result will be the same anyway.
She hesitated but didn't voice her thoughts. Since she just got scolded.
『Now, close your eyes first.』
She closed her eyes properly and relaxed her body. She cut off thoughts and focused on the naturalness of unconsciousness.
Meditate, meditate, meditaaate.
Snooze.
Pastel fell fast asleep.
Hut!
I shouldn't sleep!
When she opened her eyes in surprise, it was the universe of her inner world.
The ominous black sun filled her vision. Rocks that couldn't become planets orbited around the sun.
Pastel floated in zero gravity. Her pink hair spread freely.
She raised both arms.
Wow, meditation genius!
Super ultra meditation genius who reaches inner world just by thinking while lying in bed!
Satisfied.
Pastel put her hand to her eyebrow. With a serious face, she examined the universe of her inner world.
There were more rock fragments orbiting the black sun than last time. This was the result of killing the wild boar and bandits and nom nomming their ranks of existence reflected in the inner world.
This amount should be enough to make Mercury friend and have some left over among the solar system family. I should quickly make a family for that ominous black sun.
Pastel moved both hands for the order and harmony of her inner world.
The rock fragments moved following her gestures. They collided and clumped together to form a rocky planet. The planet orbited close to the sun.
Pastel pointed at the rocky planet.
The planet closest to the sun.
That's right, that's right.
Mercury friend!
The first member of the solar system is complete!
Huk.
Pastel, moved.
Mercury completed one orbit around the sun.
Changes came to the inner world.
As if creating a solar system, Mercury's virtual orbit was drawn in a circle. When start and end points connected, the orbit was complete.
Though still weak, it was the appearance of a small solar system with sun and Mercury arranged.
Order and harmony arrived.
Pastel's mind tingled. Nature's principles awakened her mind. Clear enlightenment came.
Huk.
Enlightenment!
Enlightenment...!
She opened her mouth in shock then paused.
Pastel pressed her pink hair here and there with a puzzled expression.
Did enlightenment come?
I don't know.
She felt various parts of her body.
But something feels different somehow.
She stretched both palms forward.
She made a completely focused expression.
Psychic power beam~!
Nothing happened.
She made an even more focused expression and stretched her palms earnestly.
Psychic power beam beam~!
There wasn't particularly any change.
Ing.
This feeling of seeming to know something yet not knowing. Like an honor student's sense of agonizing over which answer to pick on a confusing test question.
In other words...
I have no idea!
Hehe.
Pastel laughed alone embarrassedly then looked around her inner world again. Rock fragments still remained.
According to the demon, since this consumed rank of existence had more proportion from the wild boar than the bandits, it seems BBQ friend had an excellent rank of existence.
Since there are rock fragments left anyway and Mercury friend alone is iffy, should I try making Venus friend too?
Alright!
She stretched out both hands. She controlled the rock fragments with will and gathered them in an orbit farther from the sun than Mercury.
Super fusion~!
The fragments collided and clumped to form a rocky planet. The new planet wrapped around Mercury's orbit to create a larger orbit.
Uwaa!
It's Venus!
Though this Venus was smaller than Mercury unlike in the real solar system, it was Venus anyway.
Hello, Venus friend!
Pastel waved enthusiastically.
Venus drew its orbit while circling the sun as if responding.
Uwaat.
Something something new enlightenment!
Really proper enlightenment...!
Suddenly an ominous crash sound came from Venus. Cracks gradually formed on its surface.
Huk?
N-no way.
Pastel's hands trembled.
You're not dying from lack of gravity like Mercury friend from before, right?
As feared, Venus crumbled with a crunch and returned to rock fragments.
Aah!
Venus friend!
Another solar system family member died!
Uwaa!
Her mind was ejected from the inner world.
Pastel jerked awake on the bed in shock.
"Huuk."
When she looked around, it was the inn room not space. Dawn light came through the window. Birds chirped tweet tweet.
Pastel rubbed her arms and shuddered.
After Mercury friend, even Venus friend died right after being born.
Complete nightmare.
She turned her gaze to the table, thinking to at least drink some water.
The demon sat in a chair staring without words with a serious expression. His face was deep in anguish.
"Uwaat!"
Pastel, who hadn't sensed his presence, startled greatly.
The demon flinched.
『Why? Did you have a nightmare?』
"You'll surprise someone sleeping if you stare like that!"
『Hmm? Didn't I always do this? Why now?』
"Anyway! My heart is going thump thump right now! Apologize to my heart!"
『I apologize.』
Completely insincere.
Pastel pressed her heart to calm it and drank water from the table.
Gulp gulp.
"Phew!"
She roughly wiped her mouth's moisture with her sleeve.
"I tried making order and harmony in my inner world like demon said but I can't tell the difference. Even though Mercury friend properly joined the solar system family, it didn't give me any beep enlightenment."
She pressed her index finger to her forehead.
"Enlightenment going beep beep!"
『...That's normal.』
Pastel's eyes went round.
"Beep beep?!"
Huk.
『No, it's normal that there's no enlightenment. You're not even apprentice knight-class yet except maybe in combat power. And the method of consuming others' rank of existence instead of building it yourself isn't normal. It's questionable whether you can achieve proper rank growth. Unless it's grotesquely twisted growth.』
Uwee.
"Then there's no change even though I got Mercury friend?"
Mercury friend, could you have been useless?
『That's not it either.』
The demon looked seriously. Then he stood from the chair and stretched out both hands.
『Excuse me.』
His hands grabbed both her sides. Then he suddenly lifted her up.
Her feet went whoosh off the ground.
Oing.
Pastel, flying!
The demon's face became serious as he lifted her easily.
『You're light.』
Huk.
Pastel, lightweight.
She was set down.
『Try jumping.』
Ing.
Pastel tilted her head then bounced lightly. Then her eyes went round.
"Oh?! Demon! Demon! My body feels light!"
Gravity felt light.
『Right. Something strange-』
"Yap! Yap!"
Pastel threw roundhouse kicks in the air. Her body moved easily to rotate and kicks struck.
『Abnormal agility-』
"Wow!"
Her body was completely light.
Pastel threw a few kicks then launched herself onto the bed. She bounced up and down on the bed.
"Wow! Wow!"
Bounce bounce bounce.
Pastel light as a feather...!
The demon watched disapprovingly. He grabbed the bouncing Pastel and sat her properly on the bed.
『Listen when someone's talking.』
"Ah, yes."
Obedient.
『Originally as rank of existence builds, nature complies and order follows, allowing strange phenomena to occur.』
"Like me?"
Body becoming light?
『Similar results to you but different. Originally this process is strictly speaking a phenomenon of nature responding to human will. It's identical to magic borrowing nature's power. That's why a knight-class swordsman's sword strike and an archmage's magic are essentially the same phenomenon.』
Red eyes gazed.
『But your state is different. Nature's order isn't responding - you're ignoring nature's order. Like how a body beyond human rejects food and only eats magic stones.』
"The result is the same as nature's order changing but the middle process is different?"
『Correct. Very strange.』
The demon became serious.
『A grotesque distortion. Behavior that ignores the world's order like an invader who came as they pleased rather than a being belonging to this world. Did your existence become twisted while consuming others' ranks?』
Uwee.
I don't understand what you're saying.
"What's the conclusion?"
The demon pointed at the magic stone knife on the table.
『Don't eat it again.』
Huk.
Black jelly prohibition.
Snack prohibition...!
Pastel who had already forgotten despite being scolded to tears was shocked.
Uwaa.
『Your answer?』
The demon looked at her suspiciously.
Uwat.
Pastel subtly avoided his gaze.
"Yes."
The demon looked even more suspiciously.
Uwaa.
She trembled then quickly changed the subject.
"Demon! Demon! I had an amazing thought! An amazing thought!"
『Tell me.』
She reached for the table. The knife flew to her hand.
She jumped up from the bed.
"Watch this!"
She floated the knife near her foot and lightly put her foot on it.
"Pastel light as a feather...!"
She put her body's center of mass on the knife. The knife went uweng~ and groaned under the weight but somehow managed to support her body weight.
Pastel floated in the air standing on the knife. Her eyes went round.
Huk.
This actually works?
Pastel, who had planned to fail roughly and try changing the mood by falling, was surprised herself and subtly checked the demon's reaction.
Mood change successful?
Strange light flickered in the demon's eyes.
『Hooh. Not just your body becoming lighter but the knife's power strengthened too. Should I say your power to force your will on the world has strengthened?』
He bent down to touch the knife then admired.
『Though magic stone fuel consumption will be high, very useful. Three-dimensional maneuvering should be possible.』
Pastel became triumphant instantly.
"Let's go practice right now!"
『Good.』
Oh yeah, didn't get scolded.
They moved to the inn's empty lot. The dawn air felt cool.
Pastel floated her body standing on the knife in the air.
"It's fairly stable."
『Try applying it.』
She kicked off the knife and jumped high. Her body soared. She moved the knife with gestures. When her body was about to fall, the knife flew to her foot. The knife pressed down under her weight before stably supporting her body.
"This is good! I'll try!"
She kicked off the knife again. Her body floated and just before falling, the knife returned under her feet.
Jump sounds rang out. The knife drew countless trajectories repeatedly. Continuous supports were created and jump sounds came in succession.
The pink form soared.
The silhouette passed the inn building and reached the sky.
Pastel spread both arms. Wind wrapped around her body. The village covered in dawn light was visible below.
Three-dimensional maneuvering.
Mastered instantly.
Oh yeah.