Chapter 182 - Our Children Have Changed (3)

3

"Bastards... Ignorant brutes who only care about muscles..."

The aspiring elf actor sniffled for a long while before returning home. Life must have felt terribly unfair, because the elf cried the whole way back.

"Where have you been wandering around until now?"

There was no escaping the scolding at home, either.

"Don't tell me you've been hanging around the theater district again."

"You're more than old enough to know better, yet you still haven't come to your senses. Child, those Cavefire plays or whatever they're called are all theater meant to brainwash the Earth Spiritfolk. Ultimately, they're telling people to serve and worship Kekereukker. What's so wonderful about that that it has you grinning and drooling?"

Unlike the Earth Spiritfolk, the elves built magnificent mansions and lived in luxury. The aspiring actor's family was wealthy, too. Among the fairy race, who took it for granted that they would be born merchants and live as merchants, this aspiring actor was an oddity.

"That's not true..."

The aspiring elf actor muttered while picking at dinner.

"Not a single Cavefire play tells you to worship Kekereukker... They're stories about the things Kekereukker worships..."

"What's this child saying?"

"No idea. Too quiet to hear."

"You're an adult now. We've converted everything we've spent feeding and clothing you into money and recorded it in a ledger. We won't adjust for inflation, and we'll waive the interest, so pay us back promptly. If you won't, get out of the house."

"How can our family care about nothing but money?"

The aspiring actor flared up.

"No, why is our entire race obsessed with making money?"

"Because making money is fun."

"It's no fun at all to me! What's so enjoyable about fleecing ignorant Earth Spiritfolk?"

"Reeling in suckers and fleecing them is the greatest pleasure there is. Anyway, are you going to repay the cost of raising you or not?"

"This race is insane."

The aspiring actor rose indignantly.

"Repaying your parents every penny they spent before you reached adulthood is a tradition and a duty? And everyone just accepts that as normal...!"

"Of course. We spent that money on you."

"You start with the midwife's fee on the day a child is born, then record everything they ate and wore that day in a ledger! Is it a disease? Does this race have some disease that kills them if they don't keep ledgers? Forget it. I'm sick of this damn house! I'll just run away."

The aspiring actor strode out of the house. Just as the elf was about to pass through the front gate, the family called from behind.

"Hey! Sonia!"

"What?"

"Even if you're leaving, you have to take your debt records with you! Here!"

The family brought over a cart.

Scrolls were piled mountain-high on it.

Every last one was a debt record.

"Once you run away, you're no longer family, so we'll start factoring in inflation and interest. Don't let it get you down. We'll charge you the lowest interest rate. Find a job with any merchant company and you can pay it off in just twelve years. Work hard and make money."

"Fuck, this goddamn..."

"From now on, every additional curse raises your interest rate by 1%."

"..."

"Oh, we've added the price of the cart, too. Somehow, I knew you'd run away one day, so I prepared it in advance. I picked a sturdy but inexpensive one, so be grateful. What are you doing, Sonia? Go on, leave."

Looking ready to cry, the aspiring actor pulled the cart.

RATTLE. RATTLE.

The wheels rolled with a mournful clatter.

The attendant spirit and I watched this sorrowful portrait of a young elf.

"Surely there isn't a complete lack of normal races in this world...?"

"Yeah. I already knew your Tower had an unusually large number of lunatics, but now even I'm starting to get nervous..."

Without any money, the elf couldn't afford even a shabby inn room. Sonia merely crouched beside the theater and fell asleep, using the cart as a windbreak. A sniffle. Pitiful sobs seeped into the street where moonlight softly lingered.

[Purchasing 'Appear in a Dream.']

[100 Race Points will be consumed!]

[You currently have 8702 Race Points.]

And now it was my turn to appear.

"Sonia."

I entered the aspiring actor's dream and spoke.

Unlike Gorke's or Uburka's, the scenery inside this elf's dream was... how should I put it? Rather vulgar. A lavish party venue. Hobgoblin servants with bulging muscles were fawning over the aspiring actor.

"We apologize, great actor Sonia. All this time, we failed to recognize your true brilliance as a genius actor..."

"Ahahaha! All muscle and no acting talent! Hurry up and pour me a drink!"

"Ugor. It is an honor to fill your glass, great actor Sonia..."

Incredible.

Who was most incredible? The Count, for corrupting the fairy race's subconscious this thoroughly. They had become fairies in the most sinister sense of the word—bewitching spirits.

"Sonia, Sonia. Come to your senses."

"Huh? What? What's some scrawny Conforming Human doing here?"

"I am the one who guides the Earth Spiritfolk. The one you call Kekereukker. Since your fairy race has joined beneath the Earth Spiritfolk's banner, you, too, rightfully fall within my domain."

"Huh?"

"Did you not cry out earlier today? You said you didn't care whether it was Kekereukker, the Great Cat, or even a devil, so long as someone would let you make your debut. Rejoice. I heard your miserable cries and descended here."

"What kind of bullshit..."

We spent a brief moment strengthening our friendship through fists.

"I'm sorry I failed to recognize you, Lord Kekereukker!"

"I forgive you. Gorke suspected I was a devil at first, too. In the end, he understood my sincerity and praised me. Living in this harsh world, you must never forget how to question others."

"Yes! Thank you for forgiving me, Lord Kekereukker!"

"From now on, address me as [Merciful and Kindly Lord Kekereukker]."

"What?"

Still kneeling, Sonia glanced up at me. That insolent look seemed to say, 'What is this new breed of moron?' I smiled gently and raised my fist.

"Why? Do you have a complaint?"

"N-no, nothing at all. Merciful and Kindly Lord Kekereukker!"

"Now you're ready for a little conversation."

I sat in a chair with a silk cushion and drank watermelon beer. What was this? It tasted like someone had blended cucumber into it. And it was oddly sweet, too... Why had my children gotten hooked on such a weird drink?

"Sonia, do not fear me. I merely wish to grant your wish."

"Y-yes..."

"So. You want to be an actor? I will make you one."

"R-really?"

"Of course. Really. This Kekereukker has never fed you any bullshit. But before I lend you my power, I must conduct a brief ideological screening."

Sonia blinked.

"An ideological screening...?"

"Of late, false stories have run rampant, misleading my many children. Kekereukker cannot help but feel wretched. I shall ask whether you are truly qualified to become the third prophet. Answer me."

I spoke solemnly.

"What sort of person is the Flame Emperor?"

"Uh..."

Sonia tilted their head.

"Well... a son of a bitch? According to the oldest Cavefire plays... Lord Kekereukker was living an ordinary life when, one day, you encountered an utterly vile bastard and came to a great awakening. That bastard's name was the Flame Emperor. Lately, more people have been portraying him positively, using the so-called [He Was Actually a Good Guy] approach, but I don't much care for it. There are sons of bitches in this world. And while you might be able to reform a person, you can't reform a son of a bitch..."

"Sonia."

I planted a hand on the aspiring actor's shoulder.

"You really have a bright future ahead of you!"

"W-what?"

I beamed.

"They say you can recognize a promising tree from its first leaves. Why, this child isn't merely destined to become a towering tree—here's a talent that could devour the World Tree!"

"Ah... yes..."

"How did such a good child arise among penny-pinchers like your fairy race, who know nothing but money? A lotus blooming in the mud, a black pearl formed in a shell. What a beautiful, fortuitous encounter!"

"I-is that so? Hehe. Everything you say is so true, I hardly know what to do with myself..."

Sonia scratched their head sheepishly. A warm friendship blossomed between us, transcending race and era.

"But how, specifically, do you intend to help me...?"

"Simple. I'll borrow your body for a little while."

There was an item I'd already spotted in the Civilization Shop.

+

[Person Possession]

Rank: A-

Effect: You possess the person of your choice. The original owner of the possessed body becomes a spirit and remains beside you. If the person dies, or if you declare an end to the possession, the spirit returns to its original body!

Cost: 2,000 Race Points

※This item can only be used if the person consents to the possession.

+

It was an upgrade to Animal Possession.

"B-borrow my body...? Gasp. Don't tell me...?"

"You little rascal, I don't know what disgusting thing you've imagined, but my heart belongs to Raviel alone."

"Ah... right. Of course."

"I simply mean I'll possess your body. I won't stay long. Only until I've made you a top-tier actor. Even before then, if you tell me to leave, I will."

Sonia's eyes shifted.

"Would I perhaps have to offer my soul in payment...?"

"Good grief, what would I do with your soul? Even after I possess you, your mind will remain intact off to one side."

"..."

"Say so if you don't want it. Plenty of Earth Spiritfolk would be delighted if I offered to possess them."

"N-no! That's not it!"

Sonia spoke in a rush.

"Please possess me! Merciful and Kindly Lord Kekereukker! I'll do anything as long as I can make my debut onstage!"

"Yes, that's the spirit! If there's something you want, you must achieve it, even if it means chasing it to the ends of the universe."

I bought the item at once.

[Purchasing 'Person Possession.']

[2000 Race Points will be consumed!]

[You currently have 6702 Race Points.]

"No regrets?"

"None!"

"No complaints?"

"None!"

"Good. Then I'll take that as consent and possess your body."

"C-come on in!"

WHOOOOSH!

A sound like a flushing toilet rang out, and my vision swam. I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them. The city came into view, and somehow it was already early dawn.

"Huh."

I repeatedly clenched and unclenched my fists.

Delicate hands.

The palms were white, as though they had never held a sword in their life.

"It's a little awkward... Well, better than the first time I possessed a lion. I'll get used to it soon."

"Good heavens, Great Cat."

A startled voice sounded inside my head. Sonia's voice.

"You really did possess me...?"

"Didn't I tell you? I've never fed you any bullshit."

"I-I'm sorry. Honestly, I half suspected this might be a devil's scam... There have been so many rumors lately about minds being devoured by devils, or sightings of bizarre monsters..."

I tried circulating aura through the body's energy channels. Was the fairy race naturally sensitive to aura? Or was Sonia unexpectedly talented? After cycling it four or five times, flames readily sprang up above my palm.

"G-good heavens."

Judging by that astonishment, perhaps Sonia hadn't been particularly talented.

"Impossible! The soul's fire, so easily..."

"Who's loitering out here at dawn?"

The theater door creaked open. The troupe director who had coldly driven Sonia away yesterday stood holding the doorknob. He looked as though he'd just woken up; perhaps he actually lived here.

"Ugor? What? You again?"

When our eyes met, the director looked thoroughly fed up.

"The auditions are over. All the parts for the next Cavefire play have been cast. There's no role for you, so please stop pestering me. You're a fairy anyway. You can live perfectly well without becoming an actor."

"Director."

I politely sank to both knees.

"I've run away from home."

"What?"

"Look at this cart. These are debt records my family handed me, billing me for everything they've spent feeding and clothing me. I said that even if I died, I'd die an actor, so they saddled me with these debts and threw me out. They say I must repay them, with interest."

"..."

"I truly have nowhere left to turn!"

I cried out passionately.

"I'll play a lackey. I don't care if it's a bit part. Please, just let me onstage! Look at my acting, not my muscles! I swear on the names of Kekereukker, Gorke, and Uburka that I will repay your faith in me!"

"Ugor, how did an elf like this ever come into the world..."

The Hobgoblin troupe director covered his forehead with one hand.

"... All right. I'll give you one final chance. But I can't simply give you a part because you ask for one. Prove you can captivate an audience even with those puny muscles."

"How should I prove it?"

"Perform something right here, on the spot."

The director sat on the ground and folded his arms.

"I'm making a special exception and allowing you another audition. You won't receive any further privileges."

Okay.

"What should I perform?"

"There's a role that serves as a gateway for every actor. How well they perform it determines their caliber. It's an old performance, but extremely difficult, and that makes it an excellent test of an actor's talent."

"An extremely difficult performance..."

The director spoke solemnly.

"[Raviel and Kekereukker]. Play the scene where Kekereukker reveals his heart as he confesses his love to Raviel."

Huh.

"Don't complain that I'm asking too much. As I said, you're already receiving an extraordinary favor. Quite a few troupe directors only allow Earth Spiritfolk to become actors."

I tilted my head.

"Uh... would that really be enough?"

"Showing your inexperience already."

The director snorted.

"Even seasoned actors struggle with the scene where Kekereukker confesses to Raviel. To Kekereukker, Raviel is a goddess, and he must draw upon every word in existence to extol this goddess's beauty. And he must mean every word. With the anguish of declaring he'll die if he doesn't love her this very instant—of truly believing he might die! It is by no means an easy performance!"

"Hmm..."

"Untalented actors try to get through the scene with sobs and tears. Bah! That's not it. Kekereukker isn't begging for love or clinging to it. He simply wishes to add to Raviel's glory by expressing his pure love for his goddess. To surrender his entire existence to another person. Anyone who hasn't experienced that cannot perform it."

Really...?

I was confident I could praise my beloved for 360 hours without a break.

Wasn't that the easiest thing in the world?

"Anyway, you're asking me to act out the scene where he confesses to Raviel, correct?"

"Yes. Though I doubt a penny-pinching fairy like you could understand love."

"Understood."

I drew a deep breath.

I pictured Raviel sitting before me, her chin resting on her hand.

Hair resembling a silver fox just about to settle into hibernation. Eyes narrowed as though she hadn't quite gotten enough sleep. Red eyes. A whispered breath: ["I'm sleepy."] ["Go on, try to wake me up, Gongja."]

Because you exist, I can love the world a little more.

"Raviel, my soul. My eternal red. Until I met you, I did not know the color red. I merely imagined that I knew it. But your eyes, those eyes. When I gaze upon your eyes at your side..."

I opened my mouth.

And exactly two minutes later, the director's expression changed.

"Impossible!"

The director sprang to his feet in astonishment.

"Th-this nimble tongue... This unbelievable confession of love... This demeanor, like a centipede-chicken desperately trying to charm its mate... E-everything is perfect! It's as though you're Kekereukker himself!"

That's right, child.

Daddy's here.