Julius blinked his eyes and the odd, translucent screen that only he could see appeared again. He opened up the ‘Creation’ menu and a long list of things suddenly appeared.
There were icons of a few things but most of them were grayed out. The only thing he could make was a ‘Hatchery’, a ‘Fleshwall’, a ‘Homunculus Creation Pod’, and a ‘Fiend’s Dwelling’.
Julius already knew what all 4 could do because of the voice inside his head and the descriptions that were placed underneath each building’s icon on the screen. However, there was something more important that he noticed about the buildings.
“I can use other materials other than my flesh and blood as a tribute to create these things...dammit, why didn’t you―”
[You did not―]
“Never mind!”
Julius looked around the menu and saw that to create a Fleshwall, he needed the flesh and blood of any organism. The amount contributed would affect the size of the fleshwall.
If he used his own flesh and blood, the fleshwall created would follow the specifications that he wanted.
“Let’s just use my body as material for now…”
He was lacking any other option and just decided to use himself as a tribute. Julius imagined a fleshwall that could completely cover the entrance of the cavern. Pieces of himself separated from his body and it gathered in the middle of the cavern’s entrance to form a bloody sphere.
“Prince?!” When Eisha saw this, she immediately exclaimed in surprise.
“Don’t worry. It only hurts a little…”
The pain was rather bearable this time around since he had more energy inside of him. Once the sphere of flesh and blood gathered to a certain size, it suddenly expanded and covered the cavern entrance.
The inside of the cave immediately turned dark. Julius sighed because he forgot about this.
“Crap... Eisha, it looks like we’re sleeping in the dark for now…”
“I-It’s alright...but are you okay, Prince?” Eisha worriedly asked.
Julius nodded and waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. Thankfully, there was some lighting from a few crystals embedded in the ceiling overhead so it wasn’t pitch-black inside the cave.
Eisha helped Julius walk back to his previous spot by the water pool. Julius didn’t have to worry about the homunculus that he sent out earlier because all of the creatures he spawned who were not hostile could walk through any barriers he created.
In the darkness, Julius stared blankly into the air, he was going through the various menus and options that he could use.
[Creation
Repair - Repairs the host’s physical body. Requires 75 units of nutrients
Renew - Restores the host’s psyche/soul. Requires a tribute of 5 units of flesh and 5 units of blood.
Spawn Homunculus - Spawns one homunculus using 0.5 units of flesh and blood from the host.
Create Construct: Fleshwall - creates a fleshwall using 0.5 units of flesh and blood from the host.
Create Construct: Unknown Spire - ??? (Locked)
Create Weapon: ??? - ??? (Locked)
Generate Spell: ??? - ??? (Locked)
…
…
]
[Buildings
Hatchery (1) - Basic ‘housing’ building for the Fiends. It can be used as a place to rest and heal injuries. The full-healing function is usable once per day.
Creation Pod (0) - Homunculus Spawner. Spawns homunculi at a fixed rate as long as there are resources. Spawns 1 homunculus per day using 1 unit of flesh and 1 unit of blood. Requires 5x the resource for spawning to upgrade its functions.
Fiend’s Dwelling (0) - Building used to transform homunculi into Soldier units and their advanced counterparts. Requires 1 hatchery, 100 units of flesh, and 100 units of blood to build. Requires 5x the resources to upgrade.
Fleshwall - Basic defense building of the Forgotten. Can be upgraded after building a Research Hall
Unknown Spire - The basic defensive structure of the Forgotten. Can only be built on or into a Fleshwall. Can be upgraded after building a Research Hall
…
…
]
[Status
Name: Julius de Ephalerith
Race: Human (Fiend)
Lvl: 1 (0/1000)
STR: D+ (F+)
AGI: D (F)
INT: D (F)
Condition: Weakened from severe lack of nutrition and bloodloss
Skills: N/A
]
“!”
Julius skimmed through the system menus but eventually, he opened the Status menu and saw his status.
[You can periodically check your body’s status through this screen. Performing cultivation and training will improve your stats. All progress, good or bad, will be reflected through the status screen.]
‘I see… what’s this level thing?’
[It is the level of ‘access’ and ‘integration’ you have with the collective consciousness of the Forgotten. The higher it is, the more abilities you will unlock. You will also need to fulfill certain levels and conditions to create new buildings and units.]
‘Huh? Why would I need to create buildings and units?’
[It is preordained that the Fallen will come back no matter how many times they have been sealed. The only true way of ending their threat is by completely eradicating them which is our objective. Please check the objective menu for further details about our current objective.]
‘I thought all I needed to do was think and I’ll immediately understand?’
[After analyzing the host’s brainwaves and thinking patterns, it has been decided by Us that this is the most effective way to help the host.]
‘Okay then...what’s our objective now?’
[Objectives
Build 5 hatcheries
Build 2 Creation Pods
Build 1 Fiend’s Dwelling
]
‘Okay, but I’m not using my own flesh and blood to create them…’
Julius’s status already displayed that he was weakened from losing too much blood and having a nutrition deficiency. If he kept using his body as a tribute, he’d soon kill himself.
‘How will I be able to find the resources to build these things…’
While Julius had sunken deep into thought, over by his side, Eisha was re-examining her body. What she did earlier was rather odd so she wanted to check if something was wrong with her. However, she felt something odd about Julius’s body. It was turning cold and colder as time went by.
She looked around noticed that there was nothing inside the cave that could provide them with a source of heat. Eisha didn’t even notice that it was odd how her body didn’t feel the coldness of the cave.
They didn’t have a fire going or anything so Julius’s body temperature was slowly falling, he didn’t notice this because he was too busy being lost in thought. Eisha struggled for a moment before sighing. She got closer to Julius and sidled up next to him.
She spread open the mantle Julius had given her and took her Prince into her embrace. Her actions startled Julius for a moment as he broke away from his reverie. He was suddenly being hugged by Eisha underneath the mantle he had given to her and felt the contours of her soft body rubbing against his.
“E-Eisha?” Julius asked softly. He didn’t know why, but he was whispering. Maybe because it was the atmosphere inside the dark cave that caused him to whisper even though no one was around.
“What?”
“Uhm…”
Eisha’s eyes had adjusted to the dark somewhat so she saw Julius’s face blush a little. She knew exactly what she was doing but since it was dark, she thought it would be okay because Julius couldn’t see anything.
However, even though he couldn’t see, he could still feel. Eisha’s two large mounds were pressed against his body and although Julius felt much warmer, it was a little too stimulating for him.
“P-Prince’s body was getting cold...if Prince Julius continued getting cold, you might get sick or something…” Eisha tried to explain.
“I-I see…” Julius stiffly replied.
He was thinking really hard about something earlier but all his thoughts quickly left his mind with Eisha doing this. Julius was feeling a little naughty so he tried adjusting his body so that he could hug her back.
“Prince?”
“W-what? I just thought you’d be cold as well…” He couldn’t see clearly in the dark, but Julius could feel Eisha’s breath very close to his face.
He wanted to do something naughty but Eisha would probably scold him again. Also, even if he did want to do something, Julius could only see Eisha as a caring older sister and he’d feel guilty if he acted licentiously.
They turned silent in the next moment. Even though he only saw Eisha as his sister, Julius couldn’t help but feel fascinated at how smooth and soft Eisha’s body was. In his curiosity, Julius began stroking Eisha’s back and leaned his head on her shoulder.
In the darkness of the cave, as he felt the warmth of Eisha’s body, Julius felt calm and began thinking back about the events that had transpired leading to his ‘banishment’ to this desolate place.
He was leading a life of carefree luxury when suddenly, it was all flipped upside. He couldn’t help but release a breath that slightly tickled Eisha’s neck.
Eisha could feel Julius’s sentimental thoughts and began stroking his head soothingly. Her little brother had come of age already and he was now a proper adult, however, unlike normal kids, his coming of age was one of the worst moments of his life.
“...You’ve grown bigger, Prince…” Eisha suddenly said.
“Hm?”
“Eisha can feel your sentiments, Prince…”
“O-Oh…”
“It’s alright...even if the world is against you, Prince, Eisha will always be by your side…”
[If the world is against you, then you should take the world in your palm, crush it, and mold it into the shape you want!]
“...” Julius wanted to ignore the words inside his head and instead focus on Eisha’s soothing words but he couldn’t help but think about it.
“Crush it...and mold it into the shape I want…”
“P-Prince... Y-you can mold into any shape you want, but please don’t crush it...hauuh...”
“Huh?”
“M-my breast…”
Julius’s eyes had adjusted to the darkness so he could faintly see Eisha’s face when he looked up. She was blushing madly and when he repeated Eisha’s words in his head and looked down at the soft, squishy thing in his hand…
“...Uhhh, would you believe me if I said this was a mistake?”
“Would you believe Eisha if Eisha said it was a mistake that Eisha roundhouse kicked you in the face?”
“Ahaha, you’re funny Eisha! But this thing sure is nice and soft and squishy, yeah?” Julius said as he continued to softly grope Eisha’s breast. He molded her breast in his hand and he felt something hard poking his palm.
He didn’t know what it was so Julius decided to pinch it with his fingers and roll it in between his index finger and thumb. Eisha let out a softly suppressed breath before saying, “P-Prince… I don’t think this is the time for th-this…”
Eisha actually wanted to smack him on his head, but Julius’s fingers made her feel a bit good.
“S-sorry...”
Julius quickly let go and tried to move away but Eisha’s arms were wrapped around him.
“Thanks, Eisha, I didn’t know I was feeling that cold. I-I’m feeling a lot warmer now so you can let go!” Julius said, trying to brush off their previous exchange.
“...”
Julius could feel it, Eisha was glaring at him. Not only that, but the arms wrapped around his body were slowly tightening.
“E-Eisha?”
“Eisha is going to keep you warmer~”
“O-ouch?”
Before Eisha could get any more ‘intimate’, the fleshwall by the entrance of the cave suddenly opened up, and in walked the homunculus Julius had sent out earlier. The fleshwall closed behind the homunculus but the momentary light that entered the cave let Julius see an unforgettable sight.
“...holy s**t…”
“Huh? What’s that Prince?”
“Nothing, Eisha...anyway, do you mind letting me go?”
“Not yet, not until you’ve properly rested.”
“But―”
“Prince, please just rest! You’ve had a tough day―like, a really tough day. It’s just me here so you can drop the tough act!”
“...”
Julius remained silent. As usual, his maid knew her best. Julius was actually still in a high state of tension because of the events that happened which led to their current predicament.
He was chased out of his home and had somehow landed in an unknown area with just his nearly dead maid. Injured and abandoned with literally nowhere to go, Julius’s mind was high strung and he was pushing himself to stay calm when any normal child his age would have been freaking out right now.
“...Don’t get mad at me if I do something bad…”
“Eisha won’t...so Prince Julius should just go to sleep right now!”
“...”
Julius buried his face into Eisha’s chest and just closed his eyes while listening to her heartbeat. His sister was nearly dead just earlier and now she was alive and well. She was clearly okay because she even had the time to scold and worry about him.
The fact that she had almost died because of him...Eisha didn’t even think or say anything about that and instead worried for him and his wellbeing.
Eisha slowly leaned down and let Julius sleep on top of her. She began singing to him and the song loosened his tensed mind before he felt extremely drowsy.
The sensation of his horrible body condition that was reflected in his status menu finally kicked and Julius felt extremely exhausted and numb.
“E-Eisha...you’re...here, right? We’re not dead?”
“I’m here, Prince Julius...and yes, we’re not dead. We’re very much alive…”
“Good...this world...I’m going to crush it...and mold it into one that…” Julius trailed off as he finally fell asleep.
“...So that’s what you wanted to crush and mold... “ Eisha whispered. She stroked her prince’s head and said, “Then allow me to assist you, my Prince…”