Volume 1 Chapter 10 – Request

***Lynett***

In front of me, the Goddess narrowed her eyes, studying me carefully.

“Aileen…? That’s… an interesting name…” Yoko said, after thinking for a while. “You seem to know me, but I don’t know you. A Divine I’ve never seen… You must be a new Low God, am I wrong?”

Yes, you are. Not even close.

Without even waiting for an answer, she sighed. She raised her hand to her forehead, pinching the bridge of her nose. Closing her eyes, she was obviously having a headache.

“I’m already busy enough dealing with the other bastard… And now there is another Divine intruding on my territory…” She muttered.

Another? There is a second one?

“Seriously, what are the others doing? They’re becoming negligent with the rules we fixed…” Yoko opened her eyes, looking at me. “Child, who is the fool who created you without telling you about the rules? Who is your parent? Is it Naia? It must be her… That woman sure loves her children… She creates a new one every few centuries…”

“It wasn’t her. My parent is an elf called Azariah.” I responded casually.

“An elf…?” She repeated, raising an eyebrow. “Oh well, enough with the jokes. I’m not in the mood. Look there, since you obviously didn’t know about the rules, I’ll let it go this time. But you need to leave. You’re on my territory here, so unless you want to start a war, you can’t stay.”

“Eh? You’re kicking me out? How mean… After everything I’ve done for you… That’s not how you treat your mother…”

Yoko frowned. She looked at me with her eyes full of incomprehension, clearly not understanding my point.

“Mother…? What are you talking about?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

“You see I created you. I’m the one who gave you life, so technically, that makes me your mom, right?” I answered with a small grin.

For a few moments, she just looked at me, without saying anything. She tried to comprehend what she just heard, but her eyes were telling me that she thought I was crazy. Eventually, a weak smile played on her lips.

“Good one, child. But I don’t have a Parent. Is this about your name?” She asked. “I thought it sounded familiar… Aileen, the so called Goddess of All Creations, right?”

“Oh! So you know! Well, that makes things easier.” I exclaimed.

Hearing my answer, Yoko sighed heavily.

“I know it’s a ridiculous myth some of us invented trying to come up with a good explanation for the World’s creation.” She said with an irritated tone. “The Goddess of Light invented light, the God of Darkness invented darkness… But who created the Goddess of Light and the God of Darkness? Since we don’t know the answer, let’s blame it all on one supreme being. Seems a little easy don’t you think?”

“Eh? So you don’t believe in it…”

“Of course not. The World’s creation? Don’t know, don’t care. But I’m certainly not believing some crap about a fictional Goddess who never manifested herself for the past millenniums.”

Well… She has a point.

“Leave now, child.” She ordered, slowly losing her patience. “As a fellow Divine, I’ve received you with enough hospitality. But you abuse of it and start talking nonsense. Even out of respect for my colleagues, I will not hesitate to erase you right now if you keep going. Do not test my patience. Besides, I’ve been busy enough dealing with another trouble recently, I don’t need a second intruder. I’m serious.”

“I know you are. Yoko, you’re a pretty honest person, you don’t tell lies.”

“So you’ve heard about this. Your Parent tells you about me but don’t even bother to warn you about not intruding my territory?”

“Well, yeah, I do know a lot about you. You’re a Kumiho, your name means ‘Beautiful child’, but ironically, a variant of it also means ‘Wicked child’. You’re deceitful, impatient, stubborn and tactless but you also have a strong pride and you keep your promises. Those tails are your pride and if anyone dared to insult them, that would be enough of a reason for you to rip them apart.” I explained casually with a bright smile.

As I spoke, Yoko quietly listened. The more I said, the more her eyes widened. She was clearly not expecting me –who is supposed to be a new Low God- to know this much. However, she quickly regained her composure.

“Oooooh…? That’s a lot of very private information you have about me…” She said, as a grin appeared on her face. “Who told you about this? I don’t think even the other Divinities know this much.”

I smiled mischievously.

“Well, I even know all your secrets~!”

For maybe a split second, her grin disappeared as I saw her eyes twitch a little. But she did not react any further.

“… Nice try. But I don’t have any secret.”

“Really?” I felt my lips stretch wider. “Well, despite your personality, you actually love fluffy and cute things.”

Yoko’s face didn’t change. She had the same stoic expression with a grim line on her mouth. However, her fluffy ears kept twitching and her tails started to sway more violently behind her back. Yup, she’s definitely annoyed. But since she didn’t say anything, I continued.

“Not enough? You can’t swim and you hate water. You can’t stand the sight of dogs or anything similar. Cooking is one of your hobbies and you love sweet things. Especially ch-“

“STOP! That's enough...! Don’t say anymore…” She finally interrupted me, unable to hear anymore of her little secrets being unveiled one by one. “I… I don’t understand… How? I’ve never told anyone about these…”

She grabbed her head in her arms, probably trying to come up with a good explanation. Biting her lips, she stayed in that position for about two minutes. After that, she let out a heavy sigh and regained her composure. She looked up at me.

“I was wrong… I’m not sure of how you got a hand on this much information, but you know too much…. Way too much.” She smiled. “Sorry, after all, I guess I can’t let you leave alive~!”

…Huh? What did she say? She can’t be planning to…

“… Y-Yoko…? Wait…” I spoke.

But before I could finish, a huge pillar of fire suddenly erupted in front of me. Instinctively, I jumped backwards, barely evading the surprise attack.

That was dangerous! Such a strong magic… even if it’s me, it looks like it might hurt a little.

I turned my gaze to Yoko. Since she didn’t chant any incantation, if she hadn’t warned me, I wouldn’t have seen the attack coming. Crap… I had forgotten about this… She’s a Goddess too, she doesn’t need any incantations. This is bad. If she wants to fight, I’m going to have some serious troubles. Without any chants, I can’t predict anything. I won’t be able to tell what kind of magic she’ll use nor when she was going to use it.

Before I could think of anything, Yoko launched her second attack.

This time, it was a fireball. A huge fireball. It definitely couldn’t compare to the one my Aunt created a few years ago. It wasn’t just about the size. Yoko’s fireball was not only bigger than an elephant, but I could also feel an abnormal amount of mana in it, craving for destruction. When she aimed it at me, once again, I barely managed to evade the attack by throwing myself to the side. The fireball transformed everything on its way to charcoal.

“Yoko! Are you crazy? What are you trying to do?!” I shouted.

“Disposing of a potential threat that pissed me off.” She simply answered, as if it was obvious.

“That’s not what I meant! This is fire magic! We’re in the middle of the forest! Are you planning to burn everything?!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll hold back. Besides, as long as I’m here, it’ll only take a few years to grow back to its original state.” She shrugged.

“That’s not the problem!! And you call that holding back?! Besides, there are humans’ habitations not far from here! What are you going to do if one of your attacks reached them?”

“Who cares? Humans die anyway. A few thousands of death will not disrupt the balance of the World.”

She’s insane! What’s with her mentality? I get that for her, who is a Goddess, a few humans’ lives are worthless, but seriously! Is she planning to destroy the forest -who sheltered her for who knows how long- just because I blurted out a few embarrassing secrets?! Besides, that wasn't anything to be embarrassed about!

“Stop it! Wait! Let’s talk about this calmly!” I tried to reason her.

She didn’t listen. Without giving me a rest, she kept attacking as I kept avoiding, slowly transforming the surroundings into a gigantic fire, taking everything alive and casting it as confetti into the sky.

“Y-Yoko!” I tried to call her again.

Once again, it was useless. She completely turned a deaf ear, too absorbed in hunting me down. Damn it, she’s not leaving me the choice…

『Yoko, sit!』

In an instant, her attacks stopped, as her body fell on the ground, forced by an invisible pressure.

“…Heh…? What…” She muttered, confused. She tried to get up, but her knees wouldn’t obey. She suddenly turned to me. “W-What did you do?! My body… On its own…”

Finally having a chance to catch my breath, I stopped. I concentrated a large amount of mana for a few seconds, and then I leashed it out. A violent gust of wind swept up everything around me, immediately extinguishing the fire. I returned my attention to Yoko.

“Soul Magic. You know what it is, right?” I told her. “A powerful magic that directly attacks the spiritual essence of any being, regardless of their identity. The only thing you need is your opponent’s [True Name]. And if you have enough authority and if you meet the required conditions, you can use Mind Control, forcing them to obey. Because it’s a forbidden magic, I had a hard time to find information on it…”

“Are you kidding me?” She exclaimed. “Even if you know my [Name], you can’t use Soul Magic against me! I’m a Divine! I’m a Mid, you’re a Low, at most, we have the same level of authority! Besides, you and I are not bounded in any way! You can’t force me to obey!”

『Yoko, shake.』

I held out flat my palm, and with one word, Yoko lifted her hand and placed it in mine.

“Good girl.” I said, as my lips curled into a wicked smile.

“STOP THIS!” She shouted, indignant. “This is humiliating! Who do you think I am?! I’m a Goddess!”

Forced to realize the situation she was in, Yoko clenched her teeth, before letting out an exasperated growl.

“Damn it… So you can really use my [Name] against me… But you’re forgetting something, child. You also gave me your name. This means that you’re exactly in the same situation as me!” She exclaimed, as a grin slowly appeared on her face. “『Aileen, release!』”

I looked at her blankly for a few seconds, without doing anything. Ah… That proud smile… Sorry Yoko…

“Sorry, what?” I said, feigning ignorance.

Her eyes widened, her eyebrows raised high and her mouth dropped wide open.

“W-Why?!” She yelled. “It doesn’t work? It can’t be…! What did you do?! Did you lie to me? You gave me a fake name, didn’t you!”

“No, I didn’t lie. But sorry, I don’t think you have enough authority to use my [Name] against me…” I simply told her.

“What?! Lies! That’s impossible! As a Goddess, my authority level is already the highest! There is no way that you would have a higher authority level than me! Unless…!”

She suddenly stopped, as if realizing something. Her head slightly tilted down and her lower lip started trembling. She stared blankly at me, as her face turned ghostly pale, completely stiff.

“U-Unless… Unless you have enough authority to make the world itself obey to your orders…” She raised her hand to cover her mouth. “Holy crap… Y-You… You’re the Creator…?”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to say from the beginning!” I exclaimed.

“But that’s impossible…! Y-You really exist? Then you created the World…? You created me…? You’re my Parent?!”

“Yeah.”

“But you’re a child! This can’t be!”

“You keep calling me a child, but I’m not a child, you know?”

“What? What are you, fourteen? Fifteen?” She tried to guess, as she raised an eyebrow.

“Correct. But don’t let my appearance deceive you. Mentally speaking, I’m actually twice older than that.”

Yoko stared at me with her wide eyes for a few seconds. Her mouth flattened and her forehead wrinkled, I could see her eyes twitching. Did I say something wrong?

“… HOW DOES THIS MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE?!” She shouted. “You’re still at least a thousand times younger than me! I can’t believe this! My Parent is younger than me? This is a joke! A really bad joke! I refuse this!”

For a while, Yoko shook her head, muttering something I couldn’t understand. Wow… The denial is strong… Finally, she spoke up.

“Ugh… This is too much for my brain… I can’t absorb that much ridiculous information… I can’t think straight anymore…”

“That’s impossible.” I said with an indolent voice. “You are one of the smartest Gods I created. You should be able to understand this much.”

“It’s exactly because I do that I don’t want to admit it! Are you even aware of how ridiculous this whole situation is?!” She sighed loudly. “Wait… Let’s suppose that you indeed are the Creator… What did you come here for…?”

“Punishment.” I responded, as a smile appeared on my face. “You were quite a naughty girl recently, weren’t you? I’ve heard you’ve caused a lot of troubles. That’s a little irresponsible for a Goddess, don’t you think?”

“Haaaah?! You’re the one to talk! Where were you for the past millenniums? You abandoned the World and threw all your responsibilities on us! And now you come back, you actually dare to give me a lecture about a God’s responsibilities?!”

Hum… Once again, she has a point.

“I actually had a good reason.” I tried to defend myself. “You see, I created this world as a hobby, I didn’t think it was that important. But then I died and got reborn here.”

“A H-H-HOBBY?!” She repeated, as her eyes were about to pop out. “Our whole lives were just a hobby to you?! HAHAHA! I’m going insane! And to think some people dared to call me irresponsible! HAHAHAHA!”

She’s definitely losing it. Well, I can’t blame her. I wasn’t exactly very tactful, this time. When her nervous laughter finally subsided, she turned her gaze to me once more, seemingly worried.

“Forget about it… You said you died and got reborn? There is actually something that has the power to kill you, the Goddess of All Creations?”

I nodded. “Yeah. Something called cancer. Very deadly.”

Yoko narrowed her eyes, clearly not understanding what I was saying. I guess cancer doesn’t exist in this world… Well, not that I’m complaining.

“Anyway, what’s going on?” I asked her, changing the subject. “Why would you attack and kidnap humans? What happened to the forest? As irresponsible as you are, I don’t think you would draw attention on yourself without a good reason.”

“Hah? I told you already, I’m dealing with an intruder…” She answered, as she started massaging her temples, trying to get rid of her headache. “You know about the rules? Each god has their own area of jurisdiction and their own territory. We don’t meddle in each other’s business. That’s how we manage the World. But a couple weeks ago, this bastard showed up in my territory and he wouldn’t leave. So I’m just teaching him a lesson. Some humans were just unlucky and got caught up in it. Why would I even bother kidnapping a human to begin with? They’re stupid and annoying… they only bring troubles…”

“An intruder? So there really was another one… That’s a lot of deities out there!” I exclaimed.

“Exactly… And that’s the problem. For a Divine, having a territory is not just a matter of pride. It’s also about safety. You’ve seen it yourself: my presence alone in this forest generates too much mana and started to create a strong miasma. Having two gods in the same place can be dangerous. That’s why I’m chasing him out. Even if I have to use force…”

If that’s how it is, I can’t blame her. Even if her methods are a bit drastic, she may not be as irresponsible as I thought.

“Hum? But then… What about all the humans who have disappeared recently?”

“I didn’t kill them if that’s what you’re asking.” She answered with a disinterested voice. “I didn’t have the time to bother myself with them. When they got caught in the battle, they just panicked and ran away. But since the miasma is too thick around here, it probably weakened them. They must have lost themselves and fainted somewhere. But don’t worry; this forest has enough food for humans to survive in it. Once they wake up, they’ll find their way back to the city…. Eventually…”

“… That’s what happened…? What a ridiculous story…”

“I know. Humans have always been ridiculous.”

“That’s not what I-… Hum, never mind…”

Anyway, this is bad… I don’t have any reasons to doubt her words, Yoko doesn’t tell lies. But if what she said is true, then I’m going to have trouble finding Axis’ father. This forest is dense, and the miasma and the fog don’t help to orientate yourself. Maybe I should just wait for him to find his way back on his own…? But I promised Axis…. Ugh… So much troubles…

Thinking about it, none of that would’ve happened if not for the intruder. If he’s a Divine, then he should know about the rules. Yoko is not the one to blame in this. I need to fix this problem as soon as possible, before it starts to draw too much attention. I turned my gaze toward Yoko.

“Yoko, I’ll help you deal with the intruder. In exchange, I have a request.” I told her.

She looked at me with her eyes tight, full of suspicion.

“I’m not calling you mom. I’d rather die.” She immediately retorted.

“… You don’t have to worry about that… I’d rather not have you call me that either… That would be awkward as heck…”

I shook my head and stepped forward, as I placed my hands on her shoulders. When her eyes met mine, she stiffened up, not knowing what to expect from me.

“Yoko… Please become my friend.” I said.

Astounded, her eyes and her mouth froze wide open, in an expression of stunned surprise. She drew her head backwards, as if she just heard something ridiculous. I could easily imagine the sparks in her brain, desperately trying to connect the dots instead of just causing a short circuit. She looks like someone just insulted her mother –well, not me obviously.

But… Did I say something wrong?