Side Story Chapter 1. The Official Couple of the Worldview (Part 2)
“Agh! He’s a maniac!”
Among those invited was Moriphis Marcelion.
Still appearing as a fresh-faced young man who defied his 211 years, he wore a purple robe, the symbol of a Tower Master, and had his sky-blue long hair loosely tied, looking impeccably neat.
However, even with his dignified and elegant attire, the dog collar around his neck was not concealed. And this, combined with Moriphis’s inherent frivolity, suited him remarkably well.
“Pink Pope, please, for the love of all that is holy, take this choker off my neck!”
Moriphis, seated opposite me, leaned forward, thrusting his neck out.
“Perfect posture for beheading.”
I wholeheartedly agreed.
“Why? It suits you.”
“No, I admit that, but still……”
“Enough. Sit down.”
“Ugh!”
At my commanding tone, Moriphis’s backside immediately straightened onto the chair due to the collar’s coercive force.
As my Divine Power Tiers reached 9th Tier, widening the gap with 8th Circle Moriphis, his resistance weakened.
Of course, I possessed the even more powerful command skill, King’s Order, but it felt too luxurious to use on Moriphis. [The Architect of the Skyscraper of Trials says a dog collar is sufficient for a beast.] Moriphis grumbled.
“This leather choker is so tight and uncomfortable. Not to mention when I wash, and especially in summer, do you know how sticky it gets with sweat?”
“No, I wouldn’t.”
“Have mercy!”
“Releasing you from the mirror was mercy enough. What more do you want?”
Moriphis finally seemed to give up and changed the subject.
“Then… when will you return the custody of my adorable Beatrice, Esmeralda, and Catalina?”
“What can I do? They prefer the Duke’s Castle.”
I turned my head and easily spotted the small animal chimeras enjoying their afternoon in the Duke’s Castle garden.
Beatrice the Crow-tit was mingling amicably with the sparrows, drinking from the fountain, Esmeralda the Squirrel was diligently gathering nuts, and Catalina the Cat was being courted by some male cat.
“Don’t worry, I’m feeding them well with raw meat topped with blueberry jam and cream cheese.”
“Beatrice, Esmeralda, Catalina… please come back to me…”
“You seem lonely. Aren’t you researching chimeras these days?”
I had expected him to have made a new chimera and be carrying it around by now, but Moriphis had been alone all this time.
As soon as the topic of research came up, Moriphis’s eyes changed.
“Ah, these days I’m engrossed in bug research!”
“Bugs? I thought you only dealt with cute things?”
“That’s right. Originally, that was the case. But I found something interesting among the bug feed I had piled up for my experimental magical beasts!”
What he said before his discovery bothered me more.
“Ah, so magical beast feed is… bugs.”
“I pay attention to nutrition, so I feed them holistic-grade, no less!”
“But do we really have to talk about this at the dinner table?”
“It’s about magical beast feed. I’m just talking about food at the table. Anyway, hear me out!”
Regardless of his quirks, Moriphis Marcelion was a great sorcerer who had reached the 8th Circle and an excellent researcher. A discovery that made him speak with such fervor wouldn’t be trivial.
Indeed, Moriphis did not disappoint me.
“I found a very special bug friend in the feed. I even gave him a splendid, king-like name: Karls the 39,001st.”
Karls as a name is fine, but what’s with “the 39,001st” after it? It seems to be a dynasty rank (世) rather than an age (歲), but why is it in the ten-thousands when even ten would be excessive?
My curiosity about the seemingly baseless naming was immediately satisfied.
“It’s a friend I’ve killed 39,000 times! Karls is a bug that reincarnates while maintaining its ego and memories!”
“Huh? Really?”
“Huh? Really?”
The detailed story was like this:
A battle royale broke out inside a fresh bag of holistic-grade feed. It turned out to be the doing of one particular individual. This was enough to pique the mad wizard’s interest. – Oh, what a curious fellow! – Moriphis, who named the standout individual Karls, immediately began biological exploration. – Our Karls doesn’t like holy water baths. Oh, dear. Did he drown already? – He conducted various experiments.
In that process, Karls died off like flies, literally. However, death was not a rest.
Due to the powerful barrier placed in the laboratory, Karls’s soul was trapped within the research room and forced to reincarnate. And each time, Moriphis, with his ghost-like keen eye, found the reincarnated Karls.
“Hmm, usually, after about 100 reincarnations, one reincarnates as a better individual, but Karls was different. He kept reincarnating as lower species like house centipedes or cockroaches. When will he become a cute slime, tsk tsk.”
This point raised a question.
“Even after tens of thousands of reincarnations as a bug, he’s still a bug?”
“That’s right.”
“His past evil deeds must be extraordinary then? Perhaps a high-ranking demon reincarnated with memories?”
Perhaps it was due to the similarity the name Karls invoked. I briefly recalled Demon King Carpheios.
‘No way.’
There’s no way such a coincidence could exist. I chuckled. Meanwhile, Moriphis seemed excited.
“Oh, thinking that he has such rarity makes me even more motivated. I will continue to diligently kill Karls.”
“Okay, keep up the good work. Call me when he evolves to about a slime. I’ll come to watch.”
“Understood!”
Since we had discussed something gruesome, it was necessary to purify the mood with something cute. I watched the small animal chimeras in the garden.
Just then, the situation near Beatrice the Crow-tit was interesting. Some bird of prey tried to harm the sparrows, but it got scared by the transformed Beatrice’s roar and fled with its tail between its legs.
Around that time, the two remaining seats at the table were filled.
Suddenly, someone appeared, thrusting a large bouquet of flowers into my left face.
“Hello, Sister-in-law.”
“Ligares, why are you here?”
“Why, indeed. I came as His Majesty King Celestid’s representative.”
It was natural for Celestid, unable to leave the royal palace after his ascension, to send a representative. But.
“His Majesty wouldn’t have sent you, though?”
“Heh. I pulled some strings behind the scenes. It’s common in a royal palace rife with political intrigue.”
“Ah, so……”
“Yeah. So, take the flowers first.”
“Okay, thank you.”
I immediately tossed the received bouquet into my inventory.
“It’s distracting, so sit down quickly.”
There was a female knight pulling out his chair to help Ligares sit. Her red-gold hair was tied in two braids. It was the symbol hair color of the Lekandro family.
She bowed politely.
“Greetings, Your Holiness the Pope, and Lord Moriphis.”
“Sir Cheryl, it’s been a while.”
“The daughter of Marquise Lekandro has also arrived. Welcome, Sir Cherry.”
“It’s Cheryl, not Cherry, Lord Moriphis.”
“Oh, but Cherry is cuter.”
Seeing a vein throb on Cheryl’s forehead, I intervened.
“Moriphis, if you like cute things so much, should I put a name tag saying ‘Momo’ on your leather choker?”
However, Moriphis was too powerful to realize his blunder and shut up.
“Momo? Ohh, cute! I like it!”
“……Hmm, Your Holiness. It seems common sense doesn’t apply to Lord Moriphis.”
“So it seems……”
“Anyway, thank you for your concern.”
Cheryl went around to the opposite side of Ligares and sat in the remaining chair. It seemed she was also one of the people at this table.
Come to think of it, she wasn’t in her royal knight uniform today. This fact held significant meaning.
“You’re attending as Marquise Lekandro’s representative, then?”
“That’s right. The Duke also sent me a separate invitation, but today I am here to represent my mother. Congratulations on becoming Pope.”
“Thank you. By the way, it feels a bit empty without Sir Chez by your side, Sir Cheryl.”
As I spoke, I busily glanced around, searching for the light-brown haired knight.
Chez was at a table with Hestio, radiating a cheerful aura. Unlike me and Tesillid, they seemed to have drawn a good lot, which made me a little envious.
Just then, Cheryl let out a small complaint, as if suppressing a sigh.
“The presence of the other person filling his side is too great to feel empty.”
“Ah, right. There’s no time to feel empty.”
Cheryl and I furtively glanced at Ligares.
Since she ended up at the same table as the former prince, it seemed the cleanup duty fell to Cheryl. Of course, a superior rarely understands the hardships of their subordinate.
“Why are you looking at me like that, Sister-in-law?”
“Oh. Nothing. Eat a lot, Liga.”
It was when I slyly pushed a small plate of salmon canapés towards him.
“What? Liga?”
Suddenly, Ligares’s expression hardened.
“Did you just say Liga?”
The sharp tone changed the atmosphere at the table.
“Why the sudden anger?”
Right?
I tried to understand somehow. Just as I was guessing he was upset about being called a nickname without permission.
Ligares was an unpredictable fellow. This time, he suddenly blushed shyly. And then he said……
“Call me that again, Sister-in-law.”
“……What?”
“Call me Liga.”
“……”
“Brother doesn’t call me that. I like being called by nicknames. Hurry, Sister-in-law.”
“……Uh, okay. Eat this too, my Liga.”
I was dumbfounded but pushed an avocado dish towards him, and he ate it with satisfaction, smiling. I quietly whispered to Cheryl.
“Tell me if there’s anything he’s picky about. I’ll push it to him.”
“He generally dislikes most egg dishes.”
“Good.”
It was subtly amusing.
Ligares, who had mashed the boiled egg whites with a fork and swallowed them without chewing, cautiously asked.
“Um, how’s my brother doing?”
“He’s doing well.”
“Are you two fighting or anything?”
“What would we fight about?”
“It’s a relief that you two get along well. So, when are you getting married?”
Privilege for Possessors