kscans

Chapter 127 - The Primeval Forest

"You guys again?!"

In the center of the decaying forest on the plains was a deep cavern. Passing through it, Little One found, as expected, a guardian and a Dark Magic Crystal.

After delivering her ultimatum to the royal palace, Little One had come to report the situation to the border town, and while she was at it, to inform Lean, only to be soaked by Lean’s tears of despair. With tears streaming down like a waterfall, Lean flapped his limbs pata pata and explained the situation to Little One. He told her how Dark had gone mad and was uncontrollable. How the Seaside Forest itself was in danger if things continued. And most importantly, that the Seaside Forest and the Plain Forest were connected by an underground cavern, and that even deeper below was a Dark Magic Crystal.

"You should have said so sooner!"

With a roar, Little One charged into the depths, only to freeze at the sight before her.

An immense number of bodies. Most were monsters, but human figures were scattered among them.

"Why.....?"

Chihaya and Dorfen, who had followed her, stood beside Little One as her eyes widened and her face stiffened. Chihaya’s eyes narrowed, his expression changing completely.

『.....My, my. A collection of sacrifices steeped in resentment.』

As if responding to that voice, Dark descended from a hole in the ceiling. Her eyes were murky, turbid, and crimson red.

《Oh my, welcome, O King.》

Dark chuckled, kukkukku, looking thoroughly amused. The children flying around her also watched Little One and the others, their red eyes glowing.

《Isn’t it wonderful? There is nothing left to bind me now. The power here will set me free!》

Laughing loudly, kekekekeke, Dark rubbed her cheek against the Dark Magic Crystal as if it were the most pleasant thing in the world. There was no trace of sanity in her ecstatic gaze.

".....Are you happy?"

With an indescribable expression, Little One asked Dark. Smirking at the question, Dark nodded emphatically.

《This will grant my wish..... All humans should just perish.》

Something shot out from beside the snarling Dark.

《No! We’re going to keep humans as pets!》

It was a person-like figure, formed from countless overlapping thin shadows. A palm-sized Dark Spirit. Seeing it flit around Dark, making a noisy kyan kyan commotion, Little One roared.

"You guys again?!"

The Dark Spirit nonchalantly dodged the piercing shout and shrugged with an unpleasant smile. At its "well, well" gesture, something inside Little One snapped.

She snatched the flying Dark Spirit out of the air and instinctively clenched her fist.

"Explain yourself!"

Terrified by her furious demeanor, the Dark Spirit blabbered out the whole story.

"So, basically, you showed her a dream and tried to make it a reality....."

Dark had been gathering bodies from the sea and offering them to the Dark Magic Crystal. What a mess.

Her heart exhausted and weakened, Dark had been taken over by the Dark Spirit. And at its command, she had continued to send the bodies she collected into the depths as sacrifices for the Dark Magic Crystal.

《That’s right, because isn’t it just pitiful! To lock a creature with wings in a cave! So I taught her a way to escape.》

The Dark Spirit shrieked kyan kyan.

"And that’s why you showed her a dream? What kind?"

Facing Little One's dry smile, the Dark Spirit puffed out its chest and snorted, fufun.

《A dream of soaring through the great sky. A dream of happily cutting through the wind with her children, swimming through the air.》

"And in exchange for granting that, you made her collect bodies? There are a lot of other monsters here, too. What are these?"

Fresh monster corpses, not yet decayed or dried out.

《I brought them from Castrato. It was a lot of work, you know!》

Little One gave the huffy Dark Spirit a light squeeze, silencing it. While the Dark Spirit let out a muffled shriek, Chihiro handed it to Cesare and gazed at Dark with a colorless expression.

"It’s been hard for you. What will you do?"

《What do you mean..... I will destroy the humans!》

As the giant swallow ground its beak, the Dark Spirit let out a scream.

《I told you, you can’t do that, mmmph!》

Little One cast a cold glance at the Dark Spirit being squeezed by Cesare, then approached Dark.

"Destroy them? And after that?"

《I’ll fly in the sky! So high, so fast. Aaaah! It will feel so good!》

Flapping its wings, Dark shook its head like a mad creature.

".....In a dream?"

《Huh?》

"All the Dark Spirit can do is show you dreams. Are you going to keep sleeping as if you were dead, and perish within a dream?"

That was right. Creatures possessed by a Dark Spirit spend most of their time sleeping, aside from the bare minimum of daily life. They never leave their homes, working, playing, and sleeping all within a dream.

《It’s not just any dream! It’s a dream where everyone is connected! We can talk, even have discussions! Let’s build a bridge, let’s build a ship, everyone is living so happily! Well, we spirits do the building. Isn’t it a wonderful world!》

".....You build bridges no one will cross? Ships no one will ride? Really?"

The Dark Spirit’s body flinched. Seeing this, Little One’s lips curled up in an exasperated smirk.

I thought as much.

You can say whatever you want. It’s all in a dream. It doesn't have to be real.

"That’s how it is, nyo. Dark. What is your true wish?"

《Humans do nothing good. It’s better to just sleep.》

"Right. And?"

《I..... I don’t want to sleep. I want to fly in the sky.》

"I know. But if this continues, you’ll probably only be able to fly in your dreams."

Dark’s eyes wavered greatly.

《But, I..... That’s not possible. That’s not what was promised!》

Letting out a roar of "Keeee," Dark glared at the Dark Spirit.

《I didn’t lie. I’ll let you fly. In your dreams.》

Dark stared at the Dark Spirit, which tilted its head quizzically, with an expression of disbelief, then hung its head powerlessly.

《No..... Then, what was it all for?》

As if she understood reality, sanity returned to Dark’s eyes, and their crimson color quickly faded back to black. Little One gently patted the drooping head and whispered softly.

"Let’s start over. You don’t have to obey the King of Claudia anymore, nyo. You can fly freely in the sky."

《O King.....》

As the swallow broke down sobbing, Lean, who had been following them, interjected with difficulty.

《Ah..... O King. The Plain Forest has decayed. I believe it will be difficult to revive it.》

Dark must have known this as well. It was because she had lost her forest that she had gone mad. But this was Little One. With a broad grin, she took Dark and headed for a certain place.

".....So, we need a new forest, nyan. Can we have this one, please♪"

"You..... eh? Are you a Lord of the Forest-sama?"

This was the Flowers Royal Palace.

Just as she had heard before, there was a magnificent forest behind the royal palace. A deep forest that rivaled even Queen's Forest. The fruit of Prince Marcello’s efforts, over a decade in the making.

"How about this place?"

Dark’s eyes went wide as she looked at the forest of Flowers.

《It is a magnificent forest. You would give this to me?》

From Little One’s conversation with the Lord, Prince Marcello gathered that Dark liked the forest. He hurriedly knelt and looked up at the giant swallow before him pleadingly.

"It is an honor to meet you for the first time. I am Marcello de Flowers, second son of the King of Flowers. I would be honored if you would deign to live in the forest of the royal capital, my Lord. We will welcome you with all our might!!"

Welcomed with a beaming smile, Dark nodded with a complex expression.

《.....I don’t trust humans. But maybe I can trust you.》

"Well, I am the Golden King, after all."

Little One casually came out to Prince Marcello. However, the gentleman showed no surprise, just a wry smile as if to say, "You’re only saying that now?"

Right?

Strike while the iron is hot, Little One thought.

She filled the forest of the Flowers royal capital with golden magic and began the process of establishing it as a Lord's Forest. Then she renewed her pact with Dark.

"I’m counting on you to look after Flowers, Dark."

《Well, I’ll help out as long as you’re alive.》

"In that case, we’ll be together for a long time, until Arcadia ends."

The swallow tilted its head at the giggling girl.

Unaware that Little One was destined to gain eternity and become an O-saki, Dark began to busily build her nest in her new forest. The madness had left her adorable children as well, and they looked like a truly happy Lord family.

All’s well that ends well.

Sent off by Prince Marcello, who bowed his head as if in prayer, Little One returned to Claudia to clean up the aftermath.

She turns disasters and hardships into opportunities. Today, as always, Little One is full of energy♪