I had been thrown into a cubicle white room—an indestructible room.
At first, I had sat there doing nothing, but as time slowly ticked by, I decided to test things a little.
I made a bone arrow and threw it against a wall… nothing.
The wall didn’t even scratch—a barely visible blue Mana film sprang to life on impact, protecting it.
The cube, like the bag, somehow cut my senses off from the outside world, making me more frustrated as my senses adjusted.
I tried a bone spear, but the result was the same.
I was about to try a Blood Bomb, when…
‘Grandpa… where’s Mom?’
I didn’t know where to start, so I decided to keep it short and truthful.
‘She’s dead.’
‘…Dead? But you promised to heal her. You said you’d protect her!’
‘She was—‘
I was cut off.
Another rage-filled thought.
‘You’re a liar! A liar!’
‘Somani, let—‘
‘Liar!’
‘Kid—‘
‘Liar!’
Somani kept shouting over me until he grew tired and buried his teary red eyes in his arm.
Finally, the kid allowed me to speak.
‘Somani, it’s not my fault nor yours.’
‘Then why did you say you’d protect her? Why?!’
I sighed internally—did it on purpose to show more humanity to the kid.
‘Somani, you and I made promises, which we fully intended to follow through, but circumstances had it that we both failed.’
‘I didn’t fail. You’re a lia—‘
This time, I cut the kid.
‘Somani! You promised your father to protect your mom and failed. That’s the truth. I also promised you to protect her and failed; that’s true, too. What’s important now is that we survive so that we can take revenge on those who wronged us… the Empire.’
‘…’
‘They are the source of all our troubles. They first invaded your lands, killing your father, and that wasn’t enough for them; they also took your family as slaves. Finally, they killed your mom. All in cold blood. Those whom we need to kill!’
Somani stayed silent for a long moment before he stood up and started touching the walls.
‘You’re not Grandpa.’
‘What?’
‘You’re a demon. A lying demon!’
The kid formed a Mana ball in his hand, then started feeding Mana into it.
‘Kid, you have to believe me.’
‘No!’
The kid shoved finger-thick Mana ropes into the sphere.
‘Stop! You’re going to deplete our reserves!’
‘No!’
For the first time, I saw Mana through human eyes as it formed a white, glowing sphere.
I tried to control Somani and stop him from wasting our preserves, but… I couldn’t control him.
It was then that it all hit me.
Somani had always allowed me to take control… There’s no hierarchy in Perfect Unity.
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‘Yes, demon! You’re right! I have always allowed you to take control whenever you liked, but no more!’
He heard my inner thought…
The ball continued to grow, from the size of a peanut to that of an apple. Its glow increased, too.
I was too shocked to say anything.
Somani’s ball continued to grow, but then he started to compound and condense it, keeping it apple-sized, but with a more pure glow; it was starting to look more like a crystal.
‘Goodbye, demon…’
Our Mana was completely spent, then…
Somani exploded the bomb on his head, the place he believed I resided.
BOOOOOOOM!
The explosion was the strongest to date, releasing enough white Mana and power that it filled the entirety of the room with dense energy.
Still, it didn’t manage to break through and only took to the contour of the room.
It lasted for long seconds, completely pulverising Somani’s body, but didn’t harm my floating soul and film.
Unfortunately, as I tried to escape with my small form, the white walls still denied me exit.
…impossible.
But then, as the explosion started to die down, I saw it: an inconceivably small tear. It mended before I could reach it.
A cell, then another, and another and like that, Somani came back from the dead.
The kid was shocked to see himself still alive, staring at his palm.
He reached for his core, intending to create another bomb, but his core had nothing.
‘It’s the immortal title… your new class title.’
Somani didn’t deem me worthy of a reply; he scoffed before sitting in a corner.
He’s going to kill himself when his Mana regenerates.
Somani smiled, hearing my inner thought.
Suddenly, a metal food plate appeared in the room.
The food looked more like a sludge than real food.
Reminds me of the slime.
Somani ignored the food.
I didn’t know what to say, think, or do. Each word had consequences, each personnel thought was shared, and each action could have an undesirable reaction. In the end, curiosity ate at my mind, so I asked.
‘How… how did you know that I’m not your grandfather?’
Somani ignored me, deathly staring at the opposite wall.
But then… I heard it. It was more like a whisper than a real thought.
Memories.
The kid has my memories!
I was shocked, but my annoyance overwhelmed that slowly abused emotion.
I was annoyed at myself for not having thought of that possibility.
I looked at the kid’s expression; it was the same—furious.
He can’t hear every internal thought, huh?
‘Since when, Somani? Since when did you have my memories?’
‘You… you didn’t even try to save her! I had my doubts, but to think you’re this evil!’
‘Somani—‘
‘Not only that! You had wanted to kill her from the start… for… for…’
Somani clenched his temples as he tried to recall.
Hm… it seems he’s memories gaining process is the same as mine.
The kid had probably been receiving memories since we united, but just like me, he had needed weeks to fully digest the memories and connect the dots.
And when his class upgraded… his mind grew.
His new mind was the catalyst; it allowed the kid to figure it all out.
‘Somani… let me tell you the truth. The entirety of it.’
‘Don’t bother, demon! I won’t believe you!’
I started from the beginning, ignoring Somani’s constant harassment.
I told Somani how I started as a cancerous cell—a cell that, through luck, gained thought, consciousness, and life.
‘A cell?’ Somani thought internally, but I caught it.
‘Yes, a cell. It’s the building block of all creation. It’s the foundation.’
I sent the kid an image of my world—the microscopic.
I told him how rough it was. How I barely survived the tentacles, and how, after growing, I gained Kamos’s memories.
‘Kamos, like your parent, died in the war… he was my first host.’
‘Hmph, you mean you killed him just like my parents?’
‘No, no… just let me finish the story, then you can decided wether I’m lying or not.’
‘And why should I do that?’
‘Because… because I care about you, Somani, not just as a host, but as a partner. I like you.’
That shut Somani up for the story’s reminder.
I explained to Somani how I took control of the cat. How I survived and trained in the jungle, and how I split my soul.
Then we reached the trench part.
‘The magus attacked, thinking I was a spy. I escaped, but wanted revenge, so I sent my new twin soul. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make the magus my host, nor any other human. I ended up settling for a kid… I settled for you by luck.’
‘Then, why didn’t you help Mom when the soldier attacked?!’
I wanted to tell the kid that that would’ve been pointless and put her in more danger, but…
I said I’ll only speak the truth, and that was a promise.
‘I didn’t care. I didn’t care for her, nor did I care if she suffered. All I wanted was to keep my host alive.’
Somani didn’t comment on that, although I noticed that he appreciated the truth.
I recalled to Somani how, after the separation, I contemplated the old man’s actions.
‘I didn’t understand why a human would offer kindness to another without receiving something in return. It… it didn’t make sense, and still doesn’t.’
‘Of course you won’t understand. A demon won’t.’
Although the response was still viper, I knew that Somani was starting to understand me more—his responses had been more vigorous.
Or he’s just getting tired from all of this.
The kid didn’t even say anything when I mentioned that the old man’s death was my fault, that I used [Identify], which had caused the magus to get angry.
‘And that was when you reached for me, and I accepted our perfect unity… it was the best decision of my life, and I’m not saying that to calm you, no, I’m saying this for me. Somani… you taught me a lot, and you’re the first being, outside myself, that I care about.’
Today taught me that Somani wasn’t part of me, nor was I part of him.
Perfect Unity… Two beings sharing a body, a mind, and a soul.
Somani’s eyebrows relaxed.
‘Somani, I know that you’re still thinking about ending your life, but, and I’m saying this because I care for us, ending your life probably won’t end mine, too.’
‘Then what do you suggest? I… I can’t keep living like this. I can’t keep living with a heartless demon!’
Although I knew that I was heartless, for some reason, that hurt.
I think the word in itself didn’t hurt, no. Breaking Somani’s expectation of me is what hurt… that’s unfixable.
‘I don’t have a suggestion, I have an offer. My ultimate goal is to grow more, to increase, and you… You want revenge. Revenge on me, I know, but your vengeance is more directed at the Empire—I can feel it. So, we fully unite. We kill the Noblesse and the Emperor, and through that, achieve our goals. What do you say?’
Somani closed his eyes, then got up and went to stand in the middle of the room.
My heartbeat increased as I felt the kid’s hesitance.
Agree, please.
‘I refuse.’
My heart dropped as my mind tried to think of a way to stop Somani from killing himself.
‘I have a better offer.’
What?
‘What may it be?’
Somani smiled, then spoke, but not through thinking. He really spoke.
“We take down the Empire and after that… we build a new one on its ruins. One built one justice, equality, and human rights. This is what I want. This is our goal, promise, and… contract.”
Mana swirled in the room, and at first I thought it was Somani, but seeing his shocked expression, I knew it was someone else.
Or something…
The System bears witness to the formation of a Mana Contract.
The Primus Magus Will has spoken to Mana, to the world itself. He desires an end to the status quo, and Manima Monofrom shares his desires, being, and fate—the end of the Empire and the beginning of a new, just state where the Monoform has grown as much as possible. This contract, if accepted, will prohibit both sides from acting against the Shared Desire and will require them to strive for its success.
Penalties:
-Minor offence: The offended side will momentarily gain a higher percentage of control over the Perfect Unity.
-Major offence: The offended side will momentarily gain full control over the Perfect Unity.
-Breaking the Contract: The offender will become subject to the desires of the offended, becoming a slave to their whims until the Shared Desire is fulfilled.
Primus Magus and Manima Monofrom, do you both accept the Mana Contract?
(Warning! The System itself monitors the contract and will be the one to decide whether to enforce an offence or not, and its severity.)
Silence stretched.
This contract… there’ll be no going back.
I didn’t immediately accept, and neither did Somani.
I was hesitant because my thinking process was still growing, and accepting such a bending contract… I could regret it later.
Plus, its terms are very broad. What does grow even mean? Is it general strength, or just level? Host numbers? Maybe we can change the contract, or—
‘Accept,’ Somani said.
‘What?’
‘Remember, I can somewhat hear your thoughts, so stop the deception and just accept, or…’
Or what?
Although I liked Somani, I wasn’t going to possibly destroy my future for him.
‘3…’
Through his inner thoughts, I could somewhat guess Somani’s intention: He’d kill himself when the count ends if I didn’t accept.
Is it worth it?
‘2…’
Argh!
There was a split. My mind refused; it didn’t want to agree on this contract without changing it or getting more information. My soul, which I believed was the source of my emotions, disagreed; it didn’t want me to fail Somani gain, to dash his hopes.
‘1.’
Somani started forming a Mana Bomb like the one earlier, and I knew with my remaining film mana, which was slower to regenerate than the new core, that [Immortal] won’t save Somani.
The heart or the soul… what should I choose?