Chapter 54
Inside the universe of the inner world.
Pastel flew around the solar system sniffling.
Sun friend, Mercury friend!
Comfort me after being scolded by demon!
As if responding to her heart, the black sun burned ominously. It was a flame that would devour her mind.
Uwaat!
As her body was enveloped in flames and her mind went blank, Pastel flailed and fled.
S-Sun friend is excluded!
You seem like too difficult a friend for me to handle!
No, was the sun even a friend to begin with?
Isn't that my soul?
Ominous sun = Pastel's soul
Eeng.
Eeeng?
Pastel went eeng eeng at the unbearable reality and spun her body around, then just changed her thoughts.
How awkward must Mercury friend feel staying alone with such an unapproachable sun!
I need to hurry and make Venus friend!
Looking around, the consumed ranks of existence flew around in the form of rock fragments. There was quite a lot mixed together - the amount that failed to make Venus last time due to lack of gravity, and the amount consumed while catching cult members and monster birds this time.
Pastel crossed her arms and carefully recalled the real solar system.
Venus is bigger than Mercury...
She examined the rock fragments. If she scraped them all together it seemed like it could roughly become Venus.
Since it's the inner world anyway, shouldn't a level that can be intuitively accepted be fine?
She put both index fingers to her head.
Ms. Pastel, do you acknowledge this size as Venus?
Uwaa.
If you ask that~
Complete dilemma, complete dilemma.
She narrowed her brows and began serious thinking.
Meticulous calculations and cool-headed judgments continued endlessly.
Beep~!
A conclusion flashed!
Pastel brightly raised one arm high.
I'll acknowledge it!
An authority that can't be doubted at all.
I acknowledge it.
Oh yeah, it's acknowledged!
The excited Pastel reached out toward the rock fragments.
Venus friend, I'll make you be born soon!
She scraped all the rock fragments together and gathered them outside Mercury's orbit.
Hwaahp!
When she focused her mind, the fragments collided and clumped together forming a rocky planet. It became bigger than Mercury and gravity formed strongly.
At some point the completed Venus shone golden. A brilliant light like a gold bar. It shone alone despite not being a star.
Uwaat!
So dazzling~
Pastel squinted her eyes painfully.
It's gold that would leave teeth marks if bitten~!
The real Venus couldn't possibly be solid gold due to its atmosphere and geology, but for some unknown reason this feels acceptable!
As expected Venus should be golden!
Of course, since it's Venus (金星 - gold star)!
A golden color worthy of acknowledgment by a pure inner world.
You are indeed Venus!
I acknowledge it!
Acknowledge, acknowledge!
Pastel waved both arms and acknowledged vigorously.
Then she approached Venus as if entranced.
Huk, gold.
She spread both arms and hugged it. Since it was bigger than her body, it felt more like sticking to it than hugging.
Stick.
Venus friend.
Can I maybe bite you?
Of course I'm not doubting you're pure gold! I didn't have even a speck of wicked thoughts wondering if you might be gold-plated!
Just...
Pastel thought of excuses then smiled.
I just want to bite you!
She opened her mouth uwang-!
With the heart of a squirrel sinking its front teeth into a watermelon bigger than itself, she suddenly sank her teeth in.
Chomp.
When she removed her mouth, faint teeth marks were visible.
Huk, pure gold.
Are you perhaps 24K?
I fell in love at first sight! Marry me!
Pastel confessed her love and tightly hugged the gold lump pretending to be Venus.
We'll be together forever!
Suddenly Mercury passed nearby while orbiting around the sun. A lonely atmosphere was felt.
It was an atmosphere like feeling left out among friends and secretly going to the bathroom to eat lunch alone.
Ah.
Pastel flinched.
Sorry, Mercury friend.
The difference in treatment was too much...
She hesitated then separated from Venus. She rubbed away the teeth marks on Venus to restore it, then distanced herself.
She subtly checked Mercury's reaction then looked at Venus with a cool face. She crossed her arms and had a firm gaze.
Venus!
Though I'm very regretful to say this right after you were born, the solar system family is maintained by profit and loss calculations. You can only be accepted as family if you prove your value of existence. It means you have to earn your own living.
Pastel said this then subtly approached Venus and whispered.
But this is a secret...
I like you.
Whatever you do and whatever you can do, I like you.
Even if the mystery of the Milky Way disappears from this world and the wonder of the great universe vanishes, you'll be mysterious and wonderful.
So gold friend...
Pastel was speaking then realized her mistake and her eyes went round.
Ah!
I mixed up the name!
I got confused from having too many friends!
Is this the fate of a popular person?!
Is this the inevitability of a popular person...?!
Sorry, Venus friend! I absolutely wasn't thinking of you as a gold lump while speaking! You're a planet! I know! Don't misunderstand!
Pastel who felt very guilty quickly separated from Venus. She made a cool face and sent a firm gaze while crossing her arms.
A-anyway prove your value!
The solar system family isn't easy!
Venus seemed displeased and hesitated, then orbited around the sun once. A Venus orbit formed wrapping around Mercury's orbit.
A new order was established in the solar system. It was a form of two circles rotating while wrapping around a point named the sun.
Order created harmony and shook her mind.
Uwaat!
Enlightenment!
Enlightenment...!
Pastel opened her mouth in surprise then stopped just like that and slowly pressed her head.
Enlightenment...
I have no idea.
Eeeng.
It was like this when I made Mercury too, so there should be something different when I wake from meditation, but shouldn't some enlightenment really come normally?
Gaining power without enlightenment doesn't seem like a normal training method.
Something's strange like demon said.
This isn't training but...
She tilted her head and looked around. The ominous black sun burned in the empty space of the universe.
But it also seems weirder for enlightenment to come just because I, who am also the sun, drew some circles rotating planets around me.
Pastel folded her fingers one by one.
Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune.
Mercury, Venus and Earth?
Earth?
Just hearing the name makes my heart go thump thump.
Earth friend!
I feel like I can do anything with you!
She hurriedly looked for remaining rock fragments.
It was clean from using them all.
Gruk.
It's okay!
To begin with, rock fragments alone probably wouldn't be satisfying to make Earth. Earth made of pure rock fragments isn't Earth!
Shouldn't life live on Earth after all?
Life.
Living beings.
How do I make life?
Ing.
Life, life.
Male and female mating...
Mosaic beam~!
Eh.
Pastel who momentarily had an R-rated fantasy woke from her dream. She raised her upper body on the bed with a bright red face.
Uwa uwa.
Her eyes spun round and round.
Steam rose from her face.
The demon watching from a chair beside the bed opened his mouth.
『How was it?』
Pastel startled greatly.
Facing guardian right after lewd fantasy.
Uwaa!
"I didn't have any fantasies~!"
Panic panic.
Struggle struggle.
The demon was perplexed.
『Why are you like this?』
"Don't ask!"
It was an intense and firm shout.
Overwhelmed by the momentum, the demon was dumbfounded.
『A-alright.』
#
"Did something change?"
Pastel dangled. The demon held Pastel's sides and lifted her, carefully gauging her weight.
『Hmm, your body weight didn't become lighter like last time.』
"Heeh."
Disappointment.
『Don't be too disappointed. It's not necessarily good for a swordsman's body weight to become lighter. Though you're not simply becoming lighter since physical laws are being twisted for you, becoming detached from the world isn't necessarily good.』
Eeng.
"Venus friend might get kicked out of the solar system at this rate. Like Pluto."
Huk.
Poor Pluto friend.
No, should I call it number alphabet something now?
Poor number alphabet something friend.
『I can't understand when you talk about your own world.』
Red eyes pondered.
『Tell me about your inner world. If you feel a clear change occurred, there probably was a change. I'll try to deduce what kind of change.』
"Okay."
Pastel nodded.
The demon looked at her as if telling her to speak quickly.
Silence fell.
Ing.
"More importantly demon put me down."
Pastel who was still being held swung her legs.
"Should I talk in this state?"
『Ah, sorry.』
She was set down on the ground.
Pastel cleared her throat.
"There were amazing things demon couldn't even imagine in the process of Venus friend being born. Heaven and earth were created anew, living things were created, and all things were in harmony."
『Hooh.』
The demon listened with interest.
『Seems you liked the temple's stories?』
Eh.
It's a lie.
She subtly checked his reaction.
"It's a lie. I'll just, explain it briefly so it's easy to understand."
Ahem ahem.
She cleared her throat again and waved both arms.
"Venus friend was actually gold!"
Pastel made a realistic surprised expression.
"So we decided to get married! But it turned out it wasn't gold but a planet!"
She made shocked expressions and gestures.
"Sorry, Venus friend! Let's pretend our marriage never happened!"
『Hooh.』
The demon admired.
『You shortened it too much. I can't understand at all.』
Huk.
Pastel waved her hands earnestly.
"So, so! Venus friend wasn't originally gold, okay? But it became gold. Because, I acknowledged it! Venus is gold! I acknowledge it!"
『Hmm.』
The demon rubbed his chin and fell into thought.
Oing.
"Is there something? Some amazing reason for gold?"
『Gold is simply a reflection of desire. Literally.』
Uweh.
Embarrassed.
『It would be better to check your body condition one by one. Let's go out. Try throwing punches first.』
Pastel did actions one by one as the demon said. She examined her muscle strength by punching and kicking trees living on the sky whale, and checked her reflexes by cutting falling leaves.
There wasn't any particular difference, but she found a change when doing high-difficulty movements using magic stone knives.
『Hooh, your will has strengthened.』
The knives floated without hand gestures.
Oing.
Pastel blankly looked at the magic stone knives controlled just by thought as he said.
The knives circled around her body.
『Now that one hand isn't occupied, you can be a variable even against apprentice knight-class. No matter how strong an opponent, they only have two arms and one life.』
Pastel imagined a virtual enemy and took a stance, then swung her sword forward.
After normally exchanging sword strikes several times, she moved her will. The knives suddenly flew and stabbed the opponent who was fighting hard.
Stab!
Ugh!
Thud.
『Use it like that. It'll drive the receiving side crazy with anger.』
Uwee.
Pastel's feelings became complex and subtle.
This seems very bad manners...
She examined the knives.
The silver blade sparkled.
"Sh-should I apply poison too?"
Seems like it would totally suit it.
『Young Craft.』
Ah.
Is it a bit much after all...?
Pastel wiggled her fingers afraid of being scolded.
The demon spoke calmly.
『You thought well.』
A satisfied voice.
『I'll teach you how to make poison.』
Uwang.
"Yes, master!"