Chapter 15: Alas, the Truth comes out
"Psst, hey I think some other people got here first," Jason said quietly so as to not wake the others.
"Should we just go somewhere else then?" whispered Eve.
"Why would we do that?" exclaimed the proud little monkey. "With a swift kick from your humble servant, they will all be sent flying to another world!" he smiled.
"Nah, don't do that Karl. What if you get beaten black and blue again?" Jason said jokingly. "Remember how your last attack went? HAHAHHA"
"Trueee," Eve said, nodding in agreement.
"Hey...that was different," replied Karl defensively with a snort. "You guys are just monsters, no, more like anomalies. Whatever."
The Doom Monkey's face suddenly lit up with an evil grin. "WHAT IF I FEED THEM MY PURPLE MUSHROOMS AND THEN KICK THEM?" he shouted.
Hearing the obnoxious shouts of the little Doom Monkey, the three mysterious figures quickly woke up. Their faces had been obscured by enchanted veils, and their bodies were hidden by the obsidian black cloaks that wrapped around them.
"Y-You! Who dares to attack us while we're sleeping? Do you have no shame? No dignity?" one shouted in panic.
"Quick Elyon, the protection spell!" another figure yelled.
"On it!" replied the last.
Jason flicked the disobedient Doom Monkey's forehead before promising to punish him at a later date. Somehow, Karl always knew how to create trouble wherever he went, but since there were larger issues at hand, Jason pushed Karl's "reformation training" to the back of his mind. Before he could even utter an apology to the cloaked figures, Jason's eyes widened with shock as he saw:
"First Hidden Curse Condition: Hater must repeat his comments in front of said individuals."
Jason stumbled backwards in surprise. He had originally thought that the curse condition would only apply when he recognized the character he was talking to. But apparently, the "heavenly system," or whatever Nemesis used, did the recognition for him, and for the third time since he had been kicked into the Isles of the Gods, Jason's mouth began to move on its own,
"You stupid princess," the hate reader began. "Can't you see that your pitiful attempt to seek help from the Master of the Forest is not the solution? You know it as well as all the other readers do," he sneered.
"The Empire of Arwen has already been set ablaze by your brother, who is more talented, more vicious, and more cunning. All because your naivety led you to ignore your brother's plots, and you lacked the guts to confront him head on. And what did you do when your empire needed you the most?!?" he paused for dramatic effect.
"You ran, and while your country burned brightly, you turned away from the citizens who trusted you with their lives. THIS WHOLE MESS IS YOUR FAULT."
"How have you not realized this yet, you numbskull?!?" he continued. "Your brother bribed your retainers to trick you into taking on a pointless journey, making up a rumor about the Master of the Forest. Your father surrendered to the revolutionaries and lost his crown, because he believed that you were being held hostage! ALL OF THIS HAPPENED because you believed every bullshit word you were told. And now, even today, you are still hiding in the forest like the little pussy you are."
"P-Princess?" Karl and Eve responded quizzically. They couldn't see anything through the disguise, not even a single facial feature. 'What was he rambling about? Did he eat too many mushrooms again?' they wondered.
The three cloaked figures, shrouded in mystery, took a step back by surprise.
"What?" exclaimed the shortest.
"Don't listen to him, Princess! He's just trying to get into your head," exclaimed one.
"Ya! Don't worry. The Master of the Forest will help us for sure," said the other.
Jason, also, took a step back in surprise. 'Wow haha,' he thought. 'I guess I was actually pretty mad back then…Well, whatever. At least I got a few lives from it.'
As he turned to leave, he heard a shriek pierce through the air.
"Big Brother, behind you!!" Eve shouted.
"How dare you try to trick our princess?" the angry man yelled. "Die, you swindler!"
Jason swiveled his head and saw a yellow grenade-like object fly towards him at lightning speed. Knowing that his reaction time wasn't fast enough to dodge, Jason sighed and closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable notification. The grenade hit him square in the jaw and exploded around him.
A familiar sensation spread through his entire body as he jolted up in shock, jumping. His nerves tingled for a bit, and he felt a light cramp in his right foot, but as Jason rubbed his chin, waiting for the notification, he heard another shout.
"HUH?!? Elyon, are you sure you used the S-grade Paralysis grenade?"
"Ya boss. I'm…I'm not sure why he's still standing. Maybe it's not functioning properly?"
"Man, I don't know. Toss me one, let me check."
The taller man threw another yellow grenade at his friend, which exploded upon impact. The man convulsed and spasmed as his nerves overloaded with shock, and his mouth began to foam.
"NOOO!!" he screamed. "Iolas!!!!!!"
The Doom Monkey, who had been hanging on the branch of an Elderwood Oak, fell to the floor dying of laughter.
Elyon stared at Jason with a deathly glare and prepared to use his most powerful spell, chanting incantation after incantation.
"O Mighty Spirits of the natural world, please heed my call."
The wind blew harshly as thousands of red, blue, green, and white spirits representing the natural elements swirled around him in a beautiful rainbow-like pattern.
"Speak, Elf. What is your request?" asked one of the orbs.
"I humbly beseech you. Smite the perfidious being that stands before me with the might of the Spirit King!
His pointer finger wiggled at the black-haired hate reader, who stood confused, before him. The little spirits glanced in the direction of Elyon's finger and…cowered in fear, shaking violently.
Given that spirits were supernatural beings that had lived harmoniously alongside nature for thousands of years, they had the otherworldly ability to see the cycle of life and death.
With senses that extended beyond any natural perception of these concepts, the spirits had been blessed with the ability to visualize a person's character, their spiritual realm, and their connection to the Underworld.
However, not even the spirits could resist the man in front of them as they saw the number of lives the man had taken. With over three hundred and fifty lives taken by force, the black-haired teenager was covered with the scent of death, and his aura was already no different from that of a mass-murderer's. Hundreds of spirits scurried away in a rush, and just as quickly as the beautiful parade of elemental spirits came, it disappeared without a sound.
The lead spirit apologized briskly, saying, "Sorry for not being able to help you, Elf, but the man you wanted us to smite is just too deadly, and I can't risk the lives of my subordinates to fulfill your request." He took a second glance at Jason and shuddered with fear, before then scurrying away himself.
Elyon collapsed to the floor in utter disbelief. 'This man? Too dangerous? When have the spirits ever feared anyone before?' he wondered.
—
Hades howled with laughter, banging the armrest of his skull throne with his right fist in quick succession.
He had been asked to check on the teenager who was rumored to have 1) proposed to Nemesis, the Goddess of Retribution, and 2) have been given 900 lives, cheating death on multiple occassions but couldn't contain himself as he watched the little spirits flee from the young boy.
Given that lower spirits could only distinguish the smell of death on a person and not the cause, he was sure that the little fluff balls would explode in anger if they knew that his deadly aura was in fact, all due to Jason dying 353 times before!
—
Two minutes passed before the princess slowly raised her hand. Eve began to form her blood scythe, staring intently at the hooded figure, ready to pounce.
"Wait! Don't hurt Elyon. We surrender!" the princess shouted.
Hearing the sincerity in her voice, and still confused as to why the spirits had run away, Jason gestured for the person to sit down. As Elyon tossed his bag of grenades onto the ground and threw his daggers to the floor, the princess removed her veil enchantment, unmasking her face for the world to see.
Jason's heart beat wildly as he gazed deep into the princess's dark, emerald green eyes. She was a peerless beauty with long, pointy ears, beautiful dark brown hair, and a face that rivaled even the Goddess of Beauty herself. With an air of nobility, the twenty-year old princess removed her cloak, revealing a bow and arrow which she hurriedly threw on the floor as proof of surrender.
Though she was still wearing her leather armor, Jason's face immediately flushed red. If the beautiful woman still retained a bit of childish innocence through her soft facial features, her body was the complete opposite, mature and toned from years of intense training, with curves in all the right places. She curtsied before sitting down in front of Jason, as Eve, Karl, and Elyon quickly followed suit.
A few minutes of silence passed, and Jason regained his composure, finally remembering her name from the novel.
"Alea," he said gently. "I apologize for my earlier outburst, but you really should return home. Your father still worries greatly for you and continues to suffer at the thought of you being held hostage everyday."
"Why should we trust this guy?" Elyon said with a frown. "Just because he's strong doesn't mean that the shit he says is correct."
Jason ignored the unhappy elf beside him and continued, "But you can just directly contact the Spirit King, right? He will be able to verify the truth."
Alea nodded slightly. Indeed, the Spirit King had the power to see the all the truths in the world. 'But…,' she thought as she raised her eyebrows. 'How did he know all of this? Wasn't that information safeguarded by the Royal Family? Maybe he's just a royal elf in disguise. Wait...but he doesn't talk or fight like an elf either. How did he know about our journey?'
So far, everything the man had said about her was true. It was true that she had run away. It was also true that her retainers, Elyon and Iolas, had convinced her to come to the Curious Grove in search of the Forest's Master. Additionally, she had always felt the envious gaze of her brother whenever her father doted on her but…she was still distrustful of the sketchy man.
Placing her hand on her chest, she gripped her emerald amulet that hung beautifully from her neck and began to chant.
"O Spirit King, O Spirit King,
Lord of the forests and of the springs,
Please heed my cry and watch me sing.
DooDoo Ding. DooDoo Ding.
I wish to request you for something."
"Ediolus's daughter, what is it that you seek?" thundered a loud voice around them.
"I wish to know the truth," she replied firmly. "Is the Master of the Forest just a rumor? Did Elyon and Iolas actually receive payment from my brother to hold me hostage? And…" she said, gasping for breath before firing her final question, "did my father really surrender???"
"Ah, my pitiful princess," sighed a fluffy white spirit, hundreds of times larger than the ones Jason had seen previously, descended from the sky.
"Alas, the truth comes out."
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