—– .𝒄𝒐𝒎
The Queen of Fairies smiled, quickly petting Nieve’s head.
“Dear, there is no problem. Things were away from your expectations; it is not your fault that this has happened because of her. We had already analyzed everything, and it even seemed as if Florie wasn’t being herself.” Said the Queen. “Is that right, Planta?”
The Queen looked at me as I nervously nodded.
“Y-Yes! That’s right, she wasn’t being herself, I was able to purify a darkness seeping within her body. There was also a curse I ended breaking. It seems she was being manipulated by the Snake Queen.” I said, quickly looking at Nieve while trying to relieve her.
“She was being manipulated?” Asked Nieve in confusion.
“W-Well, you were also able to notice it while fighting, right?” I asked.
“Y-Yeah, there was something within her…” Sighed Nieve.
“Indeed, just as I had suspected, Florie was being possessed by the Snake Queen.” I said. “Through the System Quests I had, I learned some insight about her and what had been happening to Florie. She wasn’t always herself, and she was being manipulated sporadically by the Spider Queen’s powers, most likely. The spread of the Curse Disease, the sabotage of the golems, and other things might had been caused by Florie when she was being possessed. Nieve, did you said that you found Florie in the forest?”
“Y-Yes, I found her years back in the forest…” Said Nieve.
“It might had been a set up by the Snake Queen then.” I said while quickly analyzing everything.
“A set up?” The Fairy Queen wondered.
“Yes… Probably the Snake Queen kidnaped Florie since she was a little baby and brainwashed her with her powers into becoming something like a servant or a slave… and then left her there so someone could adopt her later and then infiltrate the Fairy Country.” I said. “O-Of course, it is all just speculation but…”
“No, there might be some truth in such words. Perhaps it might had been like that… From what I remember, the Snake Queen is a very vicious and scheming creature. I do remember back then when… She used to not be evil, when she was my friend.” Sighed the Fairy Queen.
“T-The Snake Queen was your friend?” I asked in surprise.
“Isn’t that just a monster though?” Asked Titan.
“Well yeah, but in the past she was a guardian of the forest like many other big monsters. She governed the swamps and protected her people, the Lamia Folk. But those people had long ago gone extinct from this place, their bodies were very vulnerable to the change in environment, and the miasma that corrupted the Snake Queen killed them.” Sighed the Fairy Queen.
“The Miasma… Is it from the Demon King of Miasma?” I wondered.
“When he first appeared in the world he began spreading his Miasma everywhere… He infected many people, many friends, and made them turn against one another. It was an era of chaos. Now, thanks to the Immortals sent by the Gods, the resurrection of the Demon King is being kept at bay… Two other Lesser Demon Lords had been revived before him, but they were also slain at due time. Immortals, such as you and your two other friends, Planta, are the heralds of the Gods sent to protect the world. But sometimes, they act strangely and childishly, so we have grown to be cautious around them.” Sighed the Fairy Queen.
“S-So that’s a thing…” I said.
I feel like she was finally allowed to speak a bit more of lore, something the System wasn’t allowing her to do automatically. Now it seems that for the inhabitants of this game world, Players are seen as Immortals sent by the Gods to protect the world and them. I guess the penalty given by killing NPC make it so most Players never dare terrorize or kill NPC. This way, for the NPC, Players usually are seen as Neutral or Good, and never truly perceived as evil.
But that doesn’t mean Players can’t do tricks or things to the NPC, such as stealing from them or tricking them, so they gain bad reputation and might create a fear to them, like it happened here.
“The Snake Queen died once, and much like the Demon King, she had been revived almost at the same time he did, much like many of his servants. Although they are way weaker than before.” Said the Queen. “The Mushroom Hero defeated the three Evils when they were at their peak, so strong they were comparable to Level 150 Beasts.”
“L-Level 150?!” I asked. “I remember I defeated the Dark Shadow Crow King and the Evil Walking Mushroom King, but they were super weak… Like below Level 20.” I said.
“Yes, it is because they had already died, to regain their strength they were slowly attempting to devour this entire forest once more.” Sighed the Queen. “The forest of Beginnings is a very important are in this continent- no, the entire world, it is the core of the Verdant Continent, and the last area that might bring Life and Nature back to its once verdant beauty.” Sighed the Queen as she looked into the mirror. “I believe you might be the chosen one for such a task, dear Planta.”
“M-me?” I asked.
“Yes… But before that, defeating the Snake Queen is a priority.” She said. “She was always the strongest of the three, so her strength right now, even if weakened, might be very high.” She added, while looking at my eyes. “Do you think you’re ready to defeat it?”
“I… Well, tomorrow, maybe?” I said.
“Hm, I am not rushing you into this… I’ve already given you my gift, dear Planta.” Said the Queen. “If I could be stronger, I might be able to fight at your side, but at my current state, I am too weak and sickly. My Health is slowly fading away, sadly.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll find a cure and defeat the Snake Queen, Queen Titania.” I assured her, as the beautiful queen smiled sweetly.
“Thank you… You’re such a good person.” She sighed. “I will be… indebted to you…”
Queen Titania suddenly fell asleep.
—–