A King of Beasts who has lived ordinarily never gets the chance to meet the previous King of Beasts. This is due to the system where, after the previous King of Beasts dies, the successor simply pops up from somewhere in the world. However, this aberrant species called humans seems to have used their king for various experiments and touched something major. I quietly observed the girl lying still before my eyes.
Her impression was that of an ordinary King of Beasts. In other words, an innocent and carefree face. If she were alive, she would probably be that lively. Though there's no way to know now that her eyes are closed.
'There is no consciousness. But my telepathy is resonating. The power as the King of Humans remains, though not complete. What's missing is consciousness. So the "power representing humanity" has disappeared, leaving an empty shell. For the King of Beasts, the collective will of beasts itself is consciousness.'
Messy gray hair hangs down past her pubic bone. The hair, unmanaged for two thousand years, was long and tangled. On her body, not wearing a single thread, small cuts and scars are densely packed.
Among them, five wounds stand out. One along the eye, one across the wrist, one across the ankle, one across the neck. And one in the center of the chest. Even though they were nearly healed, they were such horrific wounds that I unconsciously averted my gaze.
'These are traces of the five lords devouring the King of Humans. Rather than the act of eating itself, the meaning behind that act must have been important. Even so, they only took a portion of the power.'
So what should I do now? I slightly raised my head and looked up at Nebida.
"Um, Nebida. So what should I do?"
Nebida followed me and stepped into the lotus. Looking at the sleeping King of Humans, Nebida made a request to me.
"Before you is the King of the past. O King of the present, please awaken the eyes of the King of the past."
"What? You want me to wake the consciousness of an unconscious person? Me? How?"
"Since you are the King's other half, do you not sense anything?"
"Of course not. I'm not a cure-all, and I'm certainly no prince coming to rescue a princess, so how would I wake her?"
'If I use telepathy enough to achieve "synchronization," like I did with Tir, I could restore her consciousness. Then the previous King of Humans would read the "synchronized me" and recall herself. But this time it will be a bit dangerous. If our telepathies echo back and forth multiple times, the weaker vessel will break first.'
Wake her up? I can't do anything about someone who's lost her mind. I'm the King of Humans, not a cure-all.
Huh? Wait a minute. Could it be?
"It's classic, but should I try kissing her? Then she might wake up like a scene from a fairy tale, right?"
"Your jest goes too far. I cannot make such an irreverent request."
"I'm not joking. It's fine. I don't particularly have any aversion to kissing. And I've wanted to be the prince who wakes the princess at least once."
'To grant Nebida's wish, I'll need to expand my vessel a bit. I'll need time. Then should I grant someone else's wish first.'
I naturally knelt down and brought my face close to the girl. Hmm. While doing this, I feel like princes are a more barbaric species than I thought. Just kissing someone who's unconscious? Is that romance or barbarism?
Just before my lips touched hers. Ivy vines shot out from somewhere and snatched my arms and body. Even though they were just ivy vines, I felt pressure that seemed like it would squeeze my arms until they burst. I quickly gave up before my body actually exploded.
"Now that I think about it, if she's the King of Humans, she's another me, right? Kissing myself feels a bit repulsive. It seems narcissistic."
"Your Majesty knows best that it is not the correct method."
That's right. There's no way she'd wake up from a kiss. I do know that. Reality isn't a fairy tale. But.
"You can't tell me the correct method either! The only ways to merge different powers into one are taboos!"
The four taboos: Devouring, Grafting, Copulation, and Heresy. These immoral acts, called the origin and essence of black magic, refer to the four methods of merging different powers into one.
"Don't tell me you're thinking of grinding me up and feeding me to her as Devouring?"
"No. Devouring ultimately requires the one who eats to take that power. That too is not the correct method."
"You speak as if you've considered it!"
Saying such terrible things in front of a person! I almost became a special health supplement for the King of Humans!
"Huh? Wait. Then do I have to tear her apart and eat her? Savoring the taste of the King of Humans and swallowing her from head to toe—is that what you wanted...?"
"Can you handle it?"
"...Probably not. I mean, how can you eat a person? I don't have any weird tastes like wanting to eat a beautiful girl—and I mean in a gastronomic sense, not a sexual one."
'Anyway, you need me, Nebida. Then you'll have to listen to my demands too. Know that you can't just speak politely while ignoring me.'
But put another way, if it's in a sexual sense, I could eat as much as I want. I calmly knelt again and placed both hands on the girl's shoulders. I gently pushed her soft shoulders to lie her down and spread her curled arms. Through the vines covering her body, the girl's chest, looking constrained, revealed its presence.
Hmm. Maybe because she's the King of Humans. She definitely overflows with healthy vitality. As I reached out to liberate the chest trapped in vines... I felt the power that seemed like it would crush me again. Ivy vines and kudzu vines lifted me up like a toy.
Nebida spoke with a slightly terrifying intensity.
"What are you doing."
"What? If not Devouring, then Grafting or Copulation. You can't be hoping for a two-headed King of Humans. So that leaves Copulation, right? Is my process of elimination wrong?"
Copulation means sowing seeds to create a "mixed" existence. I mean, it's called a taboo, but it's actually something everyone does for the preservation of species. Of course, Copulation as a taboo involves something more magical... but essentially, there's no difference.
Then here. What if the half King of Humans impregnates the shell-only King of Humans? With that Copulation, couldn't a King of Humans be born!
"Aah, I don't really want to become a stallion, but~. It can't be helped~. I'm male after all, so things have built up a bit~."
"If you need women, I shall provide as many as you desire."
"No. Looking at it again, doing it with a female version of myself gives me a bit of a feeling. Isn't this a rather special kind of masturbation? Kissing felt a bit unpleasant, but Copulation might be okay?"
Nebida, who was about to get a bit worked up at the suggestion of violating her king right before her eyes, paused and fell into thought. That was because, despite being said like a joke, it was a surprisingly realistic proposal.
"That could become one method."
"This might be the answer! We're both the King of Humans, so why was I born male and she born female? This is the harmony of yin and yang! It means we should mix our bodies and become complete! Hehehe!"
'No. Strictly speaking, since a female remained in the world, I must have been born male. To represent the remaining side. Dogs and wolves are essentially different aspects of the same existence, but I am a being that appeared from gathering what the previous King of Humans lost. Copulation could be one method, but it would be much more difficult.'
Nebida, having calmly assessed the possibility, decided to save that method for now.
"That method too could become one path. I shall remember it."
"What? Remember? Can't we try it just as a test?"
"I must ask you to refrain, as the King's jade body must not be handled carelessly. If you need women, I shall bring out others."
"Huh? Could it be you, Nebida?"
At my joke for ice-breaking, Nebida spread both arms with a terrifyingly blank expression and asked back.
"Do you need it?"
"It's a joke. A joke. I'm too scared to do it."
Cold sweat streamed down. I waved my hands and turned my head, pretending nothing was wrong. Tsk, what a shame. It was a chance to find out what it feels like to do it with myself.
'With this, I have an excuse to meet other humans, the Archwitch or Shea. Nebida. I know what you're wary of... but don't worry. Your wish will be fulfilled somehow.'
I smacked my lips and turned my eyes away from the girl.
"If it's not Devouring, not Grafting, and not Copulation. The remaining method is the fourth taboo, Heresy, but that's too difficult. A manifestation of miracles through a mental image shared by the masses? I can't even attempt something like that."
Heresy is on a different level from the other taboos. It achieves the integration of power through a much higher-dimensional and spiritual method. The act of multiple humans sharing one mental image and accessing the power that image possesses. Integration not of the body but of the spirit—that is the fourth taboo, Heresy.
Education bordering on brainwashing. Unwavering faith among members. And a power with substance to gather that consciousness. Only when these three elements align can Heresy be achieved.
Honestly, with this level of effort, I'd say it's admirable, but if things go badly, it often kills more humans than the other three taboos. You can tell just by looking at how cult groups commit mass suicide or massacre whenever they're bored.
The earth arts of the Earth Mother Goddess Church or Druidism, etc. These are the reasons why ordinary humans can use the power of the Demon God, and also the reasons why Druidism and shamanism existed even before humans could understand the Demon God.
Ah. The faith of the Offering God or the Military Nation's signal corps could also be called a kind of Heresy.
"In the first place, she has no consciousness right now. How can there be a shared mental image with someone who has no consciousness?"
"Do not both Kings originally possess one mental image? The collective will of humanity, the most firm common mental image of all."
"Oh?"
Huh, that's true? Right. If both she and I are the King of Humans, we share the same mental image? Wow, Nebida. You're pretty amazing? I never imagined that!
'She hit the mark exactly. I don't know what method Nebida thinks I'll use, but this is enough to say she's revealed the answer.'
"To my knowledge, the two Kings are two halves split from each other. I surmised that if the two Kings are placed in the same space, there would be some reaction from both sides."
The speculation itself is fine, but there's something slightly lacking. I frowned deeply while pressing my temples.
"Hmm. To cause a resonance... she and I are slightly different."
"In what way?"
"It's hard to say what exactly. Well, my body is weak but my mind is sound, whereas she has no mind but her body is strong instead. At least there's this difference."
Nebida fell into thought after hearing my explanation.
'Is the King asking me to expand his vessel? This is the land of the World Tree. It's not difficult to expand a vessel with the overflowing vital energy... However, the King probably intends to do something with the power gained. It's an obvious move...'
No, I'm not guiding you! And I'm weak as a bug anyway, so isn't it fine to expand my vessel a bit! You're so suspicious!
'I'm not lying, Nebida. My vessel is much weaker, so the possibility of it breaking first is high, and if I break, your King will be difficult to revive. For your wish, my vessel must be expanded. What, are you anxious? But to gain something, you must also put something on the table.'
"And whatever you call consciousness. I feel like she and I are slightly disconnected. This is hard to explain, but even aside from the gender difference, I'd say we don't mesh well. I'd say it feels like a generational gap..."
At my mumbling, Nebida spoke as if realizing something.
"...A gap of two thousand years. In that time, the spirit ranks have also changed. The layers of spirit ranks must be increased to fill that gap. Your grace is boundless, O King. Thanks to the teaching you bestowed, I have found the answer."
"What? What did I teach?"
She figured it out herself and what? This is why I hate geniuses. My telepathy can't keep up with their ideas.
'I gave you a hint. You came one step closer to your wish, and I gained free time. A satisfactory trade. Don't you think?'
Nebida wrapped the girl in vines again and opened the lotus petals. The lotus bloomed once more. This time, Nebida bowed to me with sincere earnestness.
"Then please descend the mountain now."
That's right. I should go. I have to go, but... I looked at the girl with lingering reluctance. I feel like something was snatched away right before my eyes, so it's a bit disappointing.
"W-well, even if I'm leaving, just once..."
"Please go."
The vines grabbed me and dragged me away. Unable to resist, I watched the lotus petals closing in the distance. Tsk. What a shame. I could have done something no one else could...
'Next is... Shea is urgent. If I lose my arm forever, the wish of this life would be broken. I can't leave it like that.'
There won't be any need to use telepathy here for a while. That's probably for the best.
'Having my thoughts echo and be read again isn't great for deceiving myself either.'