The Harvester

Three hours had passed since the preliminary Game and the contestants had gone through four others since; a puzzle room, a dungeon tower, a race, and a sports game on its way to conclude the morning. It was a rather unusual sport called JetBlitz involving ball play inside a sphere of water.

 

“This is boring…” Zialtra yawned as she flopped her arms on the table. “I didn’t come here for this lame crap.”

 

“What are you, a child?” Hans frowned at her.

 

“Shut up, you’re not enough to entertain me anymore.”

 

“How heart-wrenching and oh so cruel that is,” the boy deadpanned. “I will miss it.”

 

The Hunting Queen gave him a sulking eye. “Little bastard… you’re not sad enough.”

 

“A much distressing and shocking observation, I am sure. You will overcome it one day.”

 

“‘Overcome’, my ass!”

 

Azheim blinked at the sight of the duo’s bantering and leaned a bit closer to Rakna. “Your friend is really something… I’ve never seen Zialtra so easily led on before.”

 

“If I have learned something, it’s not to challenge Hans in a battle of wits,” the therian uttered.

 

“Yeah, it’s a lost cause,” Higure agreed with a huff.

 

Rakna was about to add something when a familiar presence entered his perception range. A small and soft smile appeared on his face, something that Kaelith and Nyx quickly noticed. He stood up and looked at them. “I’m going to welcome someone,” he said and flickered away in a flare of black and purple star energy.

 

Zialtra’s attention was immediately roused and she blinked at the empty spot before grinning. She whistled, “That’s gotta be one the best fast movement skills I’ve ever seen.”

 

Kaelith snorted as she refilled her drink. “Everything wolfy uses is of the highest tier. I would be more surprised if he used anything other than a rare skill or an inexistent one altogether.”

 

“Hmm… Is that so?”

 

“Though, if you’re interested in unique,” Nyx interposed and eyed Hans, who raised an eyebrow at her in response. “He does not fall far behind, even compared to Rakna.”

 

The Hunting Queen actually narrowed her eyes a bit at that and a few people at the table turned to look at Hans as if they had suddenly been allowed to acknowledge his presence. Both Kryas and Merlina were particularly severe in the way they looked at him. More subtly, King Gulon seemed to be rattling on its wielder’s back.

 

The azure-haired boy sighed and snapped the book he was reading shut. He looked up with a lazy mien and returned their stares, eventually glaring at Nyx. “Was that necessary?”

 

The Night Goddess crossed her arms and leaned back. “You still haven’t explained it,” she replied with a simple tone. “I gave you a pass because I trusted Rakna… but you didn’t think I was going to disregard it forever, did you?”

 

Astraea nodded to the side, agreeing with her words.

 

“Um, what is going on?” Allan raised his voice in confusion, voicing the thoughts of the rest of the people who were either not in the know or incapable of sensing the anomaly that was Hans.

 

“You know, I’ve always wondered since the first time I saw you,” Kaelith spoke up. “Every time my senses try to pick up on your presence, I feel nothing. But then, as if in a panic, a fake aura suddenly appears as if tricking me into believing nothing was wrong and that it was there from the start.”

 

The author quietly gazed at her.

 

“It’s like your existence itself is trying to deceive the world into being real.”

 

“Back in Zero,” Astraea continued and everyone looked at her. “When you died to Roias and came back to life… the truth is that neither is true. You never died; because you were never ‘real’.”

 

“Whenever you Rewrite yourself, you don’t modify yourself,” Nyx stated afterward. “You alter the doll you inhabit instead. The Hans we know is just that; a doll. But now… to whom is it a vessel?”

 

Hans clicked his tongue and took off his glasses, casually folding them. “Of course, a deity of your caliber would reach the correct answer,” he huffed derisively. “No… perhaps you reached such an answer due to him,” he uttered and waved at Cura, and most accurately, King Gulon.

 

Said creature opened its mouth and let out a chuckling growl. The Shark King narrowed his eyes and translated for his weapon, “You amuse me, Wailful One. Why not tell them?”

 

Hans rolled his eyes. “Truly, all of you are fools to willingly seek a bad dream,” he spat and rubbed his eyes as if to banish his weariness. “You already know who I am,” he told Nyx with a scowl. “You heard it well the first time.”

 

“Wailful Nightmare…” The Night Goddess muttered. “What does it mean?”

 

The ‘doll’ sneered and tilted his head at Astraea. “Why do you not ask her? She ought to know.”

 

The Star Entity widened her eyes and fidgeted at being put under the spot. “Well… it’s a myth… of sorts,” she stammered with a troubled countenance. 

 

“A myth?” Caer’s confused tone sounded. “Coming from you… that is hard to apprehend.” He, more than most people, knew what the knowledge of an incarnation of Egregore carried. There should not exist even a single ‘myth’ in the collective unconscious.

 

“It’s a story that has never been written anywhere,” Astraea looked down. “No one knows if it ever occurred, nor when it was ever first told. There exists no physical trace of it. Only voices and songs scattered from an era of which no vestiges remain,” she sighed.

 

“The myth of the Wailful Nightmare recounts the story of a boy meeting Fairies, and losing himself to their magic, mutating into an incarnation of humanity’s hopes and dreams achieved, but cruelly corrupted by those same humans’ despairs and nightmares. In his suffering, tears of blood dyed the earth as he brought humanity to its end, spurred into action by men’s desires for self-ruin. The Queen of Fairies ended his rampage with words that echoed far and wide.”

 

The angel cleared her throat and inhaled, “‘Ô Young Trig, Thy Dreams Wallow. Afeard Hast Thou Become of Dwale. Thou Hast Cast Blood in Thy Tears, Adrift of Fairies. Doth Thou Know the Price of Rectitude? Shackled By Dreams, Nightmares Fraught, I Brand You, Wailful Lurid.’”

 

Everyone fell silent after Astraea finished her narration. Those words meant scarcely anything to most of them, but they somehow couldn’t shake off this strange weight it put on their mind.

 

Hans grunted. “How unpleasant to hear that verdict again,” he shook his head. “As you can see, it is but a bad dream turned reality. You have your truth, so let me flounder in peace. If you wish to get details out of me, get the idea out of your head. This myth shall remain a fantasy for as long as I have a say in it. I made mistakes and learned my foolishness, that is all there is to it.”

 

No one at the table said anything for a while until Zialtra broke the silence.

 

“Where is that nightmare now?” She asked with no mirth in her tone and he glanced at her.

 

“Nowhere. It has never left. My true form was sealed away deep inside this doll,” he said candidly and turned toward Nyx. “You got one thing wrong about me. My Rewrite does not stem from the nature of my body, but the authority of my true form dwelling within.”

 

“…then why can you not die?”

 

“Because this doll’s life is tied to its creator’s whims, not myself,” he stated. “Will that be all?” He inquired and when no one came forward, he put his glasses back on. “Well then, you now can turn those nosy faces of yours to the ‘friend’ Xiorra is currently guiding here.”

 

“Eh?” Nyx was caught off guard by the change of topics and looked over her shoulder to see Rakna approaching together with someone she recognized but hadn’t seen in a while. “Lanata? You also came?”

 

As she said, walking next to Rakna was a beautiful young girl with long pink wavy hair and a bright shade of green in her eyes. The undeniably adorable sheep girl was carrying her long sword in her arms, hugging it as tightly as always. 

 

Contrasted to the last time Nyx had seen her, Lana was wearing a gray wooly sweater and a white long skirt with embroidered accents of wool. 

 

“Yes!” The sheep girl answered the goddess. “I heard Rakna was here so… here I am,” she admitted and then smiled awkwardly. “I did want to come this morning, but I, um, overslept,” she blushed.

 

“I was a bit surprised when I sensed you,” the therian nodded. “But it’s a good thing. It’s been quite some time after all. You’ve been doing well since your Trial at the Pavilion?”

 

“Mhm,” she hummed positively and then finally faced everyone, feeling a bit nervous due to being stared at. She could see that some of the people here were very strong… and a select few had wary and stunned expressions, which she returned with an innocent smile.

 

“H-hello, everyone!” She greeted them excitedly, if a bit shyly, as she skipped a few steps in front of Rakna. “My name is Lanata Ovis Venera, nice to meet you!” She said with a bow.

 

Unexpectedly, there were varied reactions to her introduction. Those that had come to the System at the same time as Rakna only saw the facts; a lovely girl with a cute demeanor. However, all the others except Higure and Ceresta paled as they fully registered her name. Ciel even went as far as squealing in fear and phasing through his chair.

 

“You…” Kaelith breathed shakily. “Is this the girl you said was your banker for a short time?” She asked Rakna who tilted his head at her.

 

“Yes, why?”

 

The vixen opened her mouth wide and even Kara conveyed a conflicted impression.

 

“Hm,” Rakna mused calmly, evaluating everyone’s reaction, even the one of Zialtra… whose wide and bloodthirsty grin at the moment could only mean a few things. “I suppose the stares sent our way earlier were not just because of me then... Lana, do you have a reputation of some kind?” He asked curiously.

 

“Hehe… well, I think?” The sheep girl sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. “Ah, but please don’t be scared, okay?! It’s not like I wanted to be famous like that… I couldn’t make any friends because of it,” she complained with a small pout.

 

Azheim’s lips twitched. “I don’t think ‘famous’ cuts it, young lady…”

 

“Try ‘infamous’,” Kaelith uttered with a small sigh. “Can’t you have normal friends, wolfy? For once in your life, please?” She almost begged. “We were barely just done with this ridiculous brat,” she pointed at Hans. “And then you bring us… that?” She deadpanned at Lana, who lowered her head with an apologetic whine.

 

“I’m sorry…” The poor girl apologized on instinct.

 

Nyx frowned at the vixen. “Is there something wrong with Lanata? I’ve met her before and there was nothing to be distrusted about. I hope this is not some sort of disparaging rumor.”

 

“I agree here,” Allan said with a small scowl. “What are you big guys so scared of? It feels like you’re bullying her more than anything.”

 

“Lanata Ovis Venera,” Kryas repeated with a dull tone, but sharp eyes. Said girl fidgeted at having her name called like that. “She joined the System six years ago. During her Tutorial, all participants of the same batch died by her sword,” he recounted and everyone shuddered.

 

Rakna’s eyes widened slightly, but other than that, he simply watched Lana look away with a sad look. That applied also to Nyx and Flavia whose expressions barely changed, as if such a tale was random trivia. Only Astraea, Allan, and Evelyn seemed a bit disturbed while Higure had a curious expression on her face and Marie failed to understand why it was a big deal.

 

Kryas noted those reactions to himself and chuckled. “This group is quite something,” he muttered as an afterthought and then focused back on the sheep girl. “Regardless, it does not stop here. She was not invited into any Guild for obvious reasons and thus advanced in solo.”

 

“However, a month later, alone, she decimated an entire Guild with members surpassing her by at least two hundred levels,” the Pavilion President uttered dryly. 

 

“By that point, she had already gained quite a lot of infamy. Some called her a demon, cursing her inoffensive and clumsy attitude, even when found covered in blood, as a malicious disguise. Two more months later, she wiped out so many Wilden in the 30th Plateau that Hosts began to only find corpses despite the System’s infinite lands.”

 

“Five months forward, she earned the genuine Title of Sheep Empress,” he said and glanced at the only other person here who had the title of Emperor. “Additionally, that promotion had come from killing two former Kings; both Sixth Ascent Hosts” 

 

“Similar occurrences happened over and over again everywhere she went,” he followed up. “But one of the most recent and striking ones was nine months ago. A Guild named Topaz went to war against her. In the fields of Old Eden, she fought hundreds of their members concurrently as well as their leader; Zenra Calna… the Top 89th Host at the time, with a level of 912.”

 

Kryas paused and allowed a mirthful smile to appear on his face. “Guess what happened.”

 

No one seemed about to deign him with an answer until Hans did so nonchalantly, “They all died without contest. The ‘Monster in Sheep’s Clothing’ left behind a sea of blood and, discovered after a subsequent investigation, every single member had died from one attack; bisected one way or another. The leader, however, was decapitated… and his skull split in two as well with perfect symmetry.”

 

Lana lowered her head even more at that, but Rakna knew it wasn’t out of guilt. The emotion she was currently exuding wasn’t remorse but merely simple shame. She was embarrassed; nothing more, nothing less.

 

“Well, uh…” Allan tentatively raised his voice, not knowing what to think. “That’s… impressive?”

 

Then, much to the shock of half the people present, Rakna softly patted Lana. “It’s fine. I don’t care about any of that. You’re still my friend,” he said with a gentle smile that roused a decent amount of jealousy from a few of the girls at the table.

 

Lanata looked up at him with wide eyes before breaking out into a cheerful grin. “Thank you!” She exclaimed happily and hugged him with one arm, still making sure not to drop her sword. Rakna let out an amused huff at her reaction.

 

“…did the cuteness get to his head? Is he okay?” Allan whispered to Flavia. “He’s acting like some kid who can’t see anything bad about his crush,” he mumbled but didn’t get an answer even after a few seconds. “Um… Flav—iiii!” He yelped in fear when the fork in the Chaos Witch’s hand broke into two pieces.

 

“You were saying?” She questioned with a dark smile and he raised his arms in defense.

 

“N-nothing…” He blurted out and scooted closer to Marie. “Save me!” He cried out mutedly to his girlfriend who rolled her eyes in exasperation.

 

“Don’t provoke a maiden’s love, idiot,” the lamia retorted.

 

“Oi, oi, little Majesty,” Zialtra playfully looked at Rakna. “Did you hear what Kryas said? The girl at your side is a bloodthirsty killer hiding under a sheep’s clothing… Though, I suppose there is some irony to be found in you being a wolf, eh?” She joked.

 

“Do you keep count of the number of people you have killed?” Rakna suddenly asked and she froze on the spot, unsure of what she was being asked. “This is not a trap question,” he added.

 

She raised an eyebrow. “I’ve never counted anything. Pretty sure I would have given up quite fast anyway.”

 

“Same here,” the therian said with a smile, and the Hunting Queen’s lips twitched upward. “I’m not much of an optimist, honestly. I don’t believe in the idea of finding good in people. There is or there is not; it doesn’t go much deeper than that.”

 

“…”

 

“Point in case, Zialtra Lanfor, both of us are much worse bloodthirsty killers than she will ever be.”

 

“Hah… Hahahaha!” The Boss of Trafford chortled at first before she burst into maddened laughter that earned her many uncomfortable stares.

 

And as she continued laughing, Rakna had an idea and turned toward Lana. “By the way, that does mean you’re not in a guild, right?”

 

“Eh? Um… yes, you’re right,” she nodded timidly.

 

“Then how about joining mine?” He asked and then heard someone from a neighboring table drop their cup on the floor. His companions were not much different while Zialtra just laughed louder.

 

“…be normal… please… just once…” Kaelith buried her face in her hands.

 

“Let it be,” it was Hans who amazingly came to the sheep girl’s defense. “None of you at this table have skills stronger than either Xiorra or myself when it comes to appraising others. Celebrate to have gained such a competent ally rather than waste your energy reasoning untenable opinions.”

 

The vixen stared at the azure-haired boy with murderous eyes before extending her empty cup to her mother. “Mom, another shot,” she said blankly and Kara giggled, raising the bottle in her hand and complying with the request. “And STOP laughing, you muscle-brained woman!”

 

Despite the complaint, Zialtra’s hilarity persisted for several more minutes.