"Hey, does that last one even count as an answer?"
"d.a.m.n that stupid Sage"s Wisdom. I had so many questions I wanted to ask it, but one was just wasted."
My mind was set. In order to defeat Soleste, my path of evolution was clear.
"Yes, it has to be this one."
[You have evolved into a Golden ArchLich]
My body was immediately bathed in a golden light.
"This… what"s this! Aggggh!"
At first I was incredibly happy to learn that I could speak, but what followed was an sudden wave of emotions, giving me a splitting headache. I held my head while rolling around on the floor in pain.
"My Lord!"
"Lord!"
The insects seemed very worried about me, but at the same time they feared my presence at such a deep, primal level that they couldn"t approach.
"Leave me! Now!"
I barked out, causing them all to flee the room in panic. All my emotions which had been suppressed since I first woke up in this strange world, rushed into my mind at the same time. The longing for family, fear of death… all my human emotions returned.
"d.a.m.n it! d.a.m.n it! Why now?"
I couldn"t understand, the life which I had been living and thought to have been quite nice, suddenly felt so incredibly bleak. I felt only suffering and rejection towards this world.
After a longtime of rolling around the floor in pain and sadness, I sat up with my arms hugging my knees, staring at the World Roots.
"Have my emotions returned?"
I finally understood why I had adapted so easily to the new environment and wouldn"t so much as blink when faced with countless deaths. As an undead, my feelings were completely suppressed. But an Arch Lich is considered a high ranking undead so they would have their own unique personality, opening the floodgates of my bottled emotions.
I looked at my hands which were only bones.
"My mind can"t seem to accept that this is now my body."
A fear of my new being, as well as all my recent experiences filled my thoughts. Also, the fact that I led an army of insects and was the owner of this strange territory wasn"t something my human mind could comprehend.
"d.a.m.n! I"m all alone with no emotional support, why did this have to happen now?"
The fear of everything that was new and strange left me weak and vulnerable.
"If I had been a human I would be crying, but I had no tears to shed."
I don"t know how much time had pa.s.sed before I chose to move. I had decided to see Gwyn and Ian, so I walked out of the termite nest and went towards the teepee.
"Ah… was this place always so beautiful?"
It felt like I was seeing the landscape of the Pit for the first time. As if I had been watching television in black and white my whole life, and suddenly it was upgraded to color. The world was bright and wonderful, which unfortunately only contrasted with my existence even more, making me gloomier.
"Ian…"
"Huh, Sir Johra? You can talk now?"
I nodded.
"Congratulations!"
"You still can"t come over, remember?"
"Well…but…"
I took a step back to avoid Ian who was rushing towards me.
Kueeeeek!
When Mallepi caught sight of me, he began rolling in my direction. These days, he had gained a new rolling skill and never missed the chance to show it off.
Puuuk
He finally arrived and b.u.mped into me.
"Hey little guy!"
I grabbed it by the tail and lifted him up.
"Kueek? Sluuurp
His tongue got to work and was furiously licking my face. I held him to my chest, feeling my affection towards it for the first time. Looking at Ian, I began.
"Well… I remember many things."
"Congratulations…oh?"
Ian noticed I was feeling anxious, that"s why her tone became questioning towards the end.
"Previously I was not myself, I had lost a lot of memories and emotions."
"Are you feeling ok?"
I shook my head.
"I"ve lost the absolute confidence in myself I used to have."
Ian and I shared a soul link, allowing her to glimpse the many complex emotions which I was facing. Her facial expression became complicated.
"But since I"ve talked to you, I feel a lot better."
Ian"s face became gloomy, she was suffering from our link.
"Sorry, I just remembered something I needed to do."
"Johra, wait a minute!"
But I didn"t respond, I left without looking back, leaving Ian in the teepee.
"I can"t burden Ian with these dark feelings."
Everything I thought about caused me pain, and it wasn"t something I wanted to force upon her because of our Master-Familiar bond.
I walked for a little while before arriving to her stream.
"Hey, Chompy came!"
Gwyn was still a bit upset, she wanted to stay in my skull but I had refused her because it was dangerous, that"s why she was still pouting.
"Well…Gwyn..?"
"Ohhh?? Chompy! Can you talk now?"
I nodded.
"Tch! Seems like I"m not needed then, was that what you came to tell me?"
"No Gwyn, I need you more than ever."
"Really? Do you need pretty me? Really? Ehehehehe"
Gwyn flew around me, sprinkling her golden pixie dust.
"Yeah, I felt like I was falling into a deep abyss because Gwyn wasn"t there."
"Yes Yes Yes! I will always stay by your side! But… I feel depressed when you try to push me away. "
"No, it wasn"t my intention, I just wanted to protect you."
"Why do you want to protect me?"
"Because you"re Gwyn."
"For real? Don"t go taking your words back later! I really liked it when you said you"ll protect me because it"s me! From now, I"ll never get upset, even if you scold me."
Gwyn who had been circling above began shouting loudly as she zipped into my skull.
"Chompy has now been promoted from my mount to my guardian! Hehehe… time for a little nap."
She cried playfully and then lied down, pretending to sleep.
"Uhm… Gwyn?"
Although it started off as a joke, she actually fell asleep.
"Huh… this guy. Still, I was worried she would also be influenced by my emotions because she had the mind reading ability."
Unlike Ian, Gwyn was like a bottle of sunshine, always positive, which helped relieve some of the burdens on my mind. Maybe It was just my newfound emotions, but her actions felt more exaggerated than usual, as if she was trying to cheer me up.
"Maybe not, such a childish mind couldn"t entertain such complex thinking."
Regardless, I had never felt such simple and honest emotions as when I spoke with Gwyn.
"Gwyn, my greatest fortune in this world might have been to have met you."
It was always Gwyn who saved me from the brink of darkness, so it was natural for me to appreciate her existence in my heart.
"So, let"s decide on a skill."
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