Chapter 322 - The Wish (III)

After our trip to the Kingdom of the Deep Sea and knowing that our objective no longer exists, we decided to use the second plan that we came up with after the battle. We didn't go back to the Insect Kingdom immediately but decided to settle down not too far from it with a small vantage point that allows us to see what is happening with the kingdom while remaining hidden from the eyes of Lemis and whatever sorcery she was up to. With the skills of Lina in building while I designed what the temporary house would look like, we gained a new house that acted as our base and a temporary safe house. We also made a small watchtower which will allow us to survey the surroundings for any potential enemies since we are in the area where the jurisdiction is still on the area where the Lemis, the older sister demon is currently ruling.

It's currently the third day since we settled in the new base. I am still training Tina from time to time and spars with either Atlas, Gobu, or Lina. As for Lucia, she is training her fire abilities. After our battles under the sea, she decided that it would be also a good idea to gain a new element to master which would complement her fire ability. Due to her disadvantage in battle when we were fighting in the water, she barely managed to unleash her full power compared to when she was on land.

There hasn't been movement on the insect kingdom and it seems to be still doing fine even after the incident during the coronation. Of course, they know about the disappearance of the youngest prince, Prince Pierre, and the sudden silence of the royal family the past few days after the incident. Despite that, life goes on for all the insect people.

From time to time, I check into the insect kingdom while under [Stealth]. It was a good way to rack up SP on Ninja class while remaining undercover around the place. I also wanted to check into the palace but I decided to not risk it. As far as I know Lemis, she also has some skills that have a detection ability type since she can cancel stealth-type skills that would only work if the user is under stealth. Therefore, I didn't risk it.

...

"I'm back, how is everything?" I asked when I arrived back at our temporary base.

"Welcome back, Master. Everything was fine, nothing really major happened. The only thing I can report is that Gobu-san and Atlas-san along with the desert wolf pack hunted a Giant King Boar earlier. Gobu-san and Atlas-san already butchered the boar so we will be getting good meat for a meal for later."

"That's pretty great. I will assist later in cooking. Anyways, where is Tina?"

"She was outside earlier. I think she is currently hunting right now if I am correct."

"Alright then, once you are done with your current work, you can go and rest. Don't keep overworking even if you are a battle maid. You don't need to force yourself to keep cleaning and doing things much."

"Yes, Master. Understood. Would you like me to prepare the bath while you look for Tina-sama?"

"Ah, alright, please do so."

I scratch my head since Lina still can't stop her work even for a bit. A very dedicated maid and a welcome one for me. After putting down the vegetables I purchased in the market, I checked around the area for any signs of Tina. If she was hunting, she would stay nearby and will not stray too far from the base.

It took me a few minutes before I found her tracks. After following her tracks, I saw her resting in one of the branches of the trees. I also noticed that Cotton is with her and she is currently patting her. Tina noticed my presence and immediately turned her guard up until she realizes that it was just me.

"Oh, it was you. I thought it was an enemy," Tina sighed with relief before she put down the bow.

"You took up the bows and arrows?" I asked since this is the first time I have seen her use one.

"Yeah. I use one a long time ago. I was adept at using it in the past but I put it down since I wanted to learn more about swordsmanship and fencing. I thought my skills would have rusted a lot after not taking the bow and arrows a long time but I guess that my body still remembers it since I still have the same prowess back when I was still a kid," she then pointed the pile of Fanged Rabbits on the ground that she collected. It was wrapped around with the web made by Cotton allowing them to be bundled without being exposed to dirt and stuff while they are still not butchered.

"Woah, that's a lot of Fanged Rabbits...but why are they not butchered?"

"I suck at butchering them. I planned to bring them over Gobu and the others for them to butcher it properly. It would be a waste if I was the one doing the job, I might even destroy the pelts if I was not careful so I just gathered them in there."

"Well then, I will gut them so the others won't need to do extra work. Besides, I am pretty free right now. Anyways, have you thought about what you will wish to the heart?"

"..." Tina went silent after my question which made the atmosphere between us awkward. However, she answered a few seconds later.

"To be honest, I don't know what to wish for. It's pretty much a conflict for me. After all, over these years, I slowly became an atheist. I no longer believe in the blessings of the gods. I don't know but I felt everything was just made up. As much as I want to keep on believing, there are some things that made it odd that made me reluctant to believe they are real. Even with the evidence that the Primordial Sea God once roamed the seas and interacted with the merfolk, my mind still has some doubts about the "heart" and its usage."

"Is it because of the fact that it wasn't an omnipotent wish granter?"

"No. I think that wasn't the case. I believe that it was indeed a wish granter. After all, they said that it indeed came from the Primordial Sea God and it acts as a wish granter and protector of the seas. However, my doubts are on the Primordial Sea God themself."

"Huh?"

"You see, the Primordial Sea God is the deity of the merfolk. This god dwells in the sea and gives blessings to merfolk living in the sea. For the Insect Kingdom, we still believe in the two Primordial Goddesses, Life and Death. Now, my question is this, does my wish will be realized even if I am not merfolk? Will my wish go unheard once I tried wishing in the most crucial times? I am afraid of it. As much as I wanted to do it, the uncertainties of doing this seem to bear much more heavily on me. I don't even know if I can still make the most rationale decision on this."

I see. She has indeed got a point about it. The Primordial Sea God gives blessings to those who lives in the seas. That is why the Primordial Sea God left the "heart" for the sake that it can help the merfolk in times of needs.. As much as I want to calm Tina down, this indeed brings down a question which ultimately questions its function.