"Give it back!"

"Nooo, it's mine now! You played long enough with it!"

"Maamii!"

I rubbed my temples. This shit show was going on for a while now—all over a weird toy. I will never understand how kids could be fascinated by something like that. 

A wicked smile flashed over my face before Asche suddenly interrupted my train of thought.

'Whatever you were thinking of right now, don't!' lamented a voice in my head. 

'Hey! Don't make it sound like they are dead already. And just so you know, I had no intention of doing what you are implying!' I said indignantly.

Silence. 

'Yeah, okay. Maybe I thought of it, but c'mon, they are just so annoying!' I defended myself. 

'Are you really killing people just because— No, forget it. Of course, you would. You are a monster, after all,' accused Aska. 

'That hurts. I'm not as bad as you might think,' I said, crying invisible crocodile tears. 

'You are right for once. You probably are worse!' 

I tapped my nose with my index finger, 'Correct, Sherlock!'

'Who?' the bound soul asked, confused.

'Nothing...' 

------

Listing to those kids wasn't all that bad in the end. At least they were blabbering and yelling so much that my understanding of their language improved significantly—young ones tend to use easier and more common words. Memo to self: develop a better earring...

I sighed, 'Say Aska, aren't you going to explore the surroundings a bit? You don't have to be in this carriage, you know? Just roam around a bit; you can just pass through the carriages' barriers; they can't stop you, way too weak.'

The spiritual being looked at me and deadpanned, 'The moment I leave this carriage, everyone is dead. So I'd rather stay, thank you.'

'You care too much about those toys. They don't even know you are here,' I commented. 

'They don't need to. Me doing something good has nothing to do with whether I am rewarded for it in the end. If I am, that's a boon, nothing more,' countered Aska. 

I snickered, 'Do you really think you could stop me if I intended to harm them?'

'Wouldn't this ruin your plans?' she asked.

I looked into a non-existent distance momentarily, 'I have time. Everything repeats itself anyway. There will be changes and different stories, but in the end, we are where we started. What happened this time is definitely new, but who says it won't happen again if I decide to destroy everything? So no, it wouldn't ruin it per se; it would only annoy me.

I was about to close my eyes for a bit when Aska said something that really irked me. 'Didn't you just tell me a few hours ago about some rules you must abide by? What suddenly happened to them? Did you lie?'

With a wave of my hand, everyone in the armored carriage became quiet. Their eyes became empty, and their every movement stopped—they simply stood still.

'What did you do?!' screamed Asche, outraged. 

I opened my hand, and after a few seconds, white luminescent energy gathered right above my palm. Its texture was like a weightless cloud that sadly could only be seen by people with the gift of soul magic or sight. 

Aska grasped, 'You had no right to do this! You took their souls!'

I split the soul cloud into two condensed balls and rotated them clockwise like yin-yang balls in my palm. 

'Why? Life and death—those two rules are mere tools to me. Death isn't a concept that applies to me. I'm dying yet undying. Even if I 'kill' something, as long as their souls are intact, I can recreate them, make them stronger, faster, better, or the same as before. Life is a plaything to me; bodies are simple puppets I'm able to use however I want. Life yields to me, death yields to me, kings yield to me, god yields to me," I spoke monotone. 

'Only because you can, doesn't mean you should! It's wrong; it's simple ethics!' Aska tried to argue frantically. 

I laughed, 'Ethics, you say? Tell me, Asche, is a golem summoned by magic alive to you? Is an automaton, made from ores and gears, alive to you?'

The former human looked baffled at me. She pondered for a few minutes before grudgingly answering, 'I can't give you a clear answer to that because I don't know. I can't even fathom the concept of souls. Where do they come from? How were they created in the first place? And—even if it's hard for me to admit it in this situation right now—is something that hasn't one really dead? Can a soulless being (re-)gain a soul? I can't tell. So my answer can only be maybe, nothing more.'

I mustered her briefly and said, 'I believe your words.' I let go of the weightless souls, and with a simple thought, they all returned to where they belonged. As if nothing happened, the quiet carriage returned to its former tohuwabohu. 

'Thank you...' whispered Aska. 

'I didn't do it for you. Your words reminded me of someone, that's all,' I said, shrugging off her gratitude. 

Contrary to what I had assumed, she nevertheless gave me a faint weary smile before phasing through the carriage wall as I had suggested, exploring our surroundings. 

I took a deep breath and looked at the ring on my finger, 'What am I even doing? Death yields to me? Don't make me laugh...'

 

---

 

At one point, I simply blanked out most of the voices around me. I already learned the basics; I wouldn't be able to learn much more about the language without books. At least the adults told the kids some stories that were useful to me. They weren't overly exciting, yet they told me something about the state of the empire and the folklore in this region. Aska was already back for a while, seemingly bored out, flying around in those empty woods. No monster would be dumb enough to come near me, feeling my aura. 

'Did something interesting happen outside?' I asked Asche. 

She shrugged, 'Nothing of importance. We are still deep in the woods, and from what I gathered, we still need a few more hours till we are at the next village, where we'll rest for the day. And in here?'

'Nothing that wouldn't have surprised me. Apparently, humans fucked up like always. As far as I understood it, some rather peculiar things transpired. The capital we're heading to is called King's Garden. It was founded by the twelfth generation of so-called heroes approximately six or seven millennia ago. After a while, it became the capital of the human empire due to its rich environmental mana. They lumbered the entire heart of the forest and found my hideout in the process—tsk, they didn't even search for it but found it by coincidence. Some heroes tried to get in but failed. Till now, nobody even scratched the barrier generated by my wards—a bunch of weaklings if you ask me.'

Aska snickered, 'I remember your wards; they are annoying, but nothing that couldn't be destroyed by sheer force.'

I throw my hands up, surprising the elf beside me, 'Right, right? They're making too much of a deal out of it. But still, the magic I used for my little baits, uh, I mean wards, is not very common among humans or most other races. You don't really count Aska, you know? Your ash magic is fairly annoying. Always disrupts the fine fabric between the magic lines and crystallizes it. Sadly, no capable ash mage was left after your death, so I could never experiment further on them to fix their errors.'  

'Oh?' started Asche, smirkingly. I didn't know you held my magic in such high esteem,' suddenly, a shit-eating grin appeared on her face, 'Wait, does that mean I'm the strongest and probably only ash mage there is right now in this world? Oh, the families will never see what's coming for them!'

I laughed in my mind, 'Hold your horses, Aska. We have not even reached the first destination of our journey yet, and you already talk about the destructions of those bastards that think I'm the evil incarnate.'

'But you are?' reminded the soul-being. 

'Might be true, but also rude of you to assume that! At least deny it or something. I'm trying to make some sort of bond with you here! Maybe even becoming best friends,' I spoke indignantly.

Asche rolled her eyes, 'Yeaaah, not gonna happen. We're forced business partners. I help you, you help me. Anyway, can you continue with what you've learned? I kinda wanna know about this place we're heading to.'

I sighed, 'You're such a killjoy, but fine. Okay, where was I? Ah, yes, the magic I used for my wards wasn't really practiced or well-seen in the human nations. Speaking of nations, it looks like most of the races split up and established their own territories. There seem to be some exceptions, but unfortunately, they—'

'You think they have a map in this carriage?' interrupted Aska me.

'With so many young elves here, I think they do,' I responded. 'Anyway, not everybody that lives or traverses in the imperial capital is human. There are also elves—as you can plainly see—, dwarves, and as I understood it, enslaved beast-kin. The reason for that is a treaty with the elven and dwarven empires; it's mainly about trade, borders, and mutual esteem. Humanity passed an anti-enslavement law to show its benevolence. Officially, if you get caught, you are sentenced to death. Unfortunately for others, the law only includes the two races. So yeah, beast-kin slaves.'

Asche moved through the carriage whilst studying the elves, 'It's sad that so many humans have a superiority complex. Even back then, I had to execute countless vassals because of their crimes against beast-kins. Is it because of their animal feature that they think they can treat them like that? Well, in that aspect, they are like those high-elves who think of themselves as the most beloved.'

I nodded, 'That's why I'm rather smitten with high moon elves. I have no idea how they got into such a bad condition. Some sort of ploy, I guess? Sadly most races, like the naga and lamia, called a truce with the humans. They don't care enough about those laughable monkeys to go to war with them and waste their time. Honestly, even I don't know what lamias or nagas do in their free time. Laying eggs and stuff, I suppose...wait, is it speciesist to say that? Hope not; I like these snakey women. Ohh, these tails, they can reach the dee—stop, stop, stop, let's not go down that rabbit hole.'

Aska rolled her eyes and gave me a look that clearly stated: 'Lamia, really? I'm not even surprised.'

I cleared my throat, 'Um, yeah, where was I? Right, races. From what I've picked up, the only ones in an all-out war with them are the Ninki Nanka, Taniwha, and the Ashen Realm, also known as the demon empire. That humans are in a conflict with demons is almost too stereotypical. Yet to piss off not one but two deep sea creature clans borders on suicide if you want to engage in sea trade. You don't fucking anger what crawls in the endless cold waters.'

Asche held her hand as if to speak up, 'Wait, aren't Nankas supposed to live in swamps? Oh goddess, they drained the swamps, didn't they? Those idiots.'

'Yeah,' I agreed, 'I have no idea why they would do that. Ninki Nankas were already gigantic, and now that they went into the sea because their natural biomes got destroyed, they probably will grow as large as leviathans.'

Aska shuddered visibly, and I could totally understand her. Even I hated the deep sea and the creatures that lurked there. I was not even sure that I could kill that part of the world off entirely if I decided to do so. Also, this region was her domain, and I still had a debt to pay. 

'Aren't you surprised that humans and demons are at war?' I asked Asche. 

She dismissively waved her hand, 'Nah, this shit was already brewing while I was still alive. I'm sure the capital profits quite well from the wars.'

The floating soul being wasn't wrong. War always seemed to have that site to it, and as always, it was just fucked up. Even back then, no matter how much technology they had. They were never happy, always hungry for what they couldn't have, stuck in their beliefs, and suppressed instead of accepting each other. And they really were surprised that we turned against them, laughable. 

Then I noticed that those were, again, things I wasn't supposed to recall. I was about to go into my inner world to fix that when suddenly, one of the elven women was asked something by the eldest kid in the caravan. As far as I could tell, she looked fourteen and was sponsored by Marika's company, allowing her to enter the Royal Academy, which would soon start its new semester. For an oppressed race like the moon elves, this was seemingly a way to somewhat overcome that oppression. 

"Auntie Kila, could you tell me the story about Eternal again? I have some specific questions about certain parts of the stories now that I'm about to enter the academy," asked the kid. 

'Oh, seems like Eternal made a name of her own!' snickered Asche.

Kila smiled, "Okay, okay. You want me to tell you the whole story again or only the parts you have questions about?"

"Hmm, only the parts I need!" answered the girl excitedly and continued, "Like, it is handed down that Eternal was an Origin, but where did she come from in the first place? The gods didn't summon her, so who did?"

"That is a tricky question, not gonna lie. Like me, other people from the Order of Amethyst are still philosophizing to this date about where the Origin originally came from. Unlike those reincarnators or heroes summoned from another world by the gods, Eternal is believed to be the first person that found her way into this world through a wild dimensional rift. These rifts are extremely rare, and in the history of our order, only two got documented. But who knows how many actually happened?" explained the elf. 

'Origin?' I asked myself. 'What are those supposed to be?'

"Wow! I didn't know about those rifts. That sounds kinda amazing. Couldn't we just also go through them and explore the other si—"

Kila stopped the teen mid-sentence, "If it were as simple as that, the humans or any other power-hungry nation would have done that already—yet they didn't. The Order speculates that those rifts are one-way only. But we also think there is a chance that it also works the other way around, but so far, we have no proof for that."

The elven woman stopped momentarily before she continued slowly, "The next thing I'll tell you is something you shouldn't blabber out to the wrong people. The human church might call you a heretic and burn you at the stake. But I will still tell you this for the sake of keeping this knowledge alive. Well, also, because I think you are a smart and responsible girl."

'What do you think of that?' asked Aska. 

'About Eternal being the first in this world? Kinda far-fetched, no?' I responded. 

Asche shook her head, 'No, not this. You are far older than her; how is that even supposed to be possible, then? I mean those rifts, are they real?'

I nodded, which the elf next to me caused to be somewhat irritated, again, 'They are, but Eternal didn't come through them. It must have been some of those other so-called Origins. Let's see what more that elf has to say anyway. Also, the aunt is phrasing her stuff like she would die any second now and suddenly needs to tell her niece something that could potentially kill her. Even I can see how irresponsible that is.'

Aska silently agreed but added, 'Maybe that is the point? Scaring her niece, so she would be careful even if she found human friends who might end up betraying her. I know this might sound paranoid, but she still could get sold as a slave if things go wrong.'

What Asche said made shockingly much sense. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to think about it much longer and instead focused back on the conversation between the two elves.

Kila went close to the elven girl and spoke hushedly, "We think the Origins never were chosen by the world, that they were just people who stumbled upon this world and gained powerful abilities. Some of us even think that the other Origins that are till this day paraded as heroes never even finished her off like the tales would suggest."

The girl's mouth was agape before she stammered, "B-but that would go against the t-teachings of all major gods! Against the System, against everything we know!" 

'System, I see. So that thing is common knowledge, after all,' I commented silently in my mind. 

Kila's face went severe, "There are reasons why we believe so—The Old Ones. The most ancient creatures known to us. Among them is someone they call 'The Forgotten One.' We believe them to be the first deity known to this world, even before what our order calls the 'New Gods'. Something big must have happened; otherwise, how is it to explain that in the many places on this continent, it is forbidden to worship them. Why is that single one unnamed? What happened that the name got erased and all known facts about it?"

"A-auntie, y-you kinda scare me," said the young elf, trying to avoid her aunt's gaze.

Kali sighed, "It's fine if you don't believe me yet, and I won't judge you for that. Just always keep an open mind for the impossible, okay?"

The girl nodded, and her aunt petted her head. "So, still have more questions, no?"

"A-actually, yes. D-do you have a theory of why our continent has the most variety of mana-beast? No other continent has such a large variety, and I know for sure that stuff like this will be a topic in the academy."

"Sadly, no. There are theories, but none that are proven or make sense. I ca—" began the aunt, but I interrupted them.

"Maybe I can be of help answering that particular question," I announced, smirking whilst I had swiftly moved directly in front of them, ignoring the narrow interior.  

"Wh-what? Did our honored guest listen to our conversation?" asked Aunt Kila meekly. 

"Indeed, I listened to everything, and you don't have to worry about me spilling anything. If anything, you piqued my interest. But before I satisfy my interest, I will give you some of my knowledge in return. How does that sound?" 

Kila shoved herself before the child with motherly care, trying to reflect any impending harm. 

I snickered. How pretentious that she thinks she could protect her when, in fact, they had all already lost their souls not long ago. 

Yet somehow, the sight didn't sit well with me. Caring for one another, what a time of waste. I simply ignored Kila's doing and returned to the original subject.

"You know, little one, I was there when the first mana beast got created, and the fools tried to overwhelm Eternal. And from what you've said, I think you might have a slight misconception about how old Mana Beasts truly are. They were there before Eternal, the heroes, and even before those creatures you call the Old Ones. But unlike what many would like to believe, Mana Beasts weren't a threat one had to be wary of; no, they were like herbs in a garden, just waiting to get harvested," I explained. 

Apparently, what I said unsettled the females deeply, Asche included. 

It was Kila who broke stuttering the silence, "H-herbs? F-for what purpose w-would one do t-that?" 

The fright in her eyes was understandable. Any being that might consider the variants of Mana Beasts that could destroy entire mountain ranges as herbs might have had a totally different purpose in mind. 

"Don't be naive. Just like I said, they were just like herbs. And what can you do with herbs?" I asked her, rolling my eyes. 

The younger girl answered this time, "Food, potions, ale, salves, and many other things."

I smiled, "Exactly, and what does every race do with herbs as well as with animals they keep around?"

"Cultivate," muttered Kila in disbelief. "Mana Beasts were cultivated. Every one knows what legendary things you could create with certain body parts of them. But for what would you need—"

I interrupted her again, "And that is the question and your answer of why there are so many Mana Beasts on this continent. As far as I know, this continent was where it all began and where the herbalist's end goal never was achieved. Those beasts were left to themselves until Eternal saw another kind of potential in them."

The young elf looked at me before slowly opening her mouth, "But isn't this cruel? The being left such a plague in this world. I mean, yes, many Mana-Beasts had no minds of their own and evolved, but there are those that have not and live on pure hunger and lust. Why leave something like that in a world it lives itself?"

"It stopped caring; it probably never did in the first place. Who knows what their goal was in the end. All that counts is that it failed," I answered indifferently.

"B-but how do you know all this, honored guest? This must have been—"

"—eons ago?" I cut off her sentence. "Yes, it was. I have witnessed the sad ending. I witnessed how their work, hope, and beliefs crumbled. Failure after failure until nothing was left but void. More beside me know of this truth; this Forgotten One of yours was probably one of them, like that lying witch and her."

'Wait, what? That bitch was there too?' shouted Asche. 

'Duh? That dimensional hopping demon was in the first row when it happened,' I responded. 

"Are you talking about Calypso?" asked Kali. I nodded, and her mouth opened wide, "YOU knew the mother of witches?"

I looked at her confused, "Knew? Did she die?" 

The woman went silent momentarily, "Oh, you didn't know? Her daughters turned against her. Nobody knows what exactly happened, only what they announced throughout the oracles sent by the gods." 

"I see," I muttered and said to Asche. 'Utter bullshit. I couldn't kill her. Her daughters don't even have a fraction of my power, so this is all just a big fat ruse. This bitch was probably up to something and needed an excuse to make herself scarce.'

"W-why are you smiling?" asked the girl. 

"She and I weren't on best terms. It's just exciting to see that someone managed to defeat her, whereas I wasn't capable of doing so. The world just gets more exciting every second." 

The horror my words caused in those elves was freaking delicious, and even if I didn't exactly answer the questions of the young one with my crypticness, for now, I wanted to know more about this world.

A wicked smile crept across my face. "So, would you two be so kind as to tell me of the major things that happened in, like, the last few hundred years?" 

Yes, YES! Tell me of all the changes, of all the things that I missed, of the so-called gods, of all the things I will bring destruction upon so that I can revel in their agony reflected in their faces when they noticed how powerless their divinity was against me.

Just wait for me, Anansi. This time, I will find a way...