Upon hearing the answer, Hirake just sighed in defeat, leaning back in his chair while looking at the ceiling thoughtfully for a while, a short while, before starting to speak.

  "Very well Lily, I think we can reach an agreement. I think you are not in a position to interact directly with people... You are very... Unpredictable? To say the least." Hirake said to the small, glowing flower on top of his desk.

  "Hmm... I never wanted to talk to you... You forced me to do this... I always wanted the same thing, my goal has always been and always will be the same, to survive no matter what happens." Said a delicate voice coming from the drop of water that floated just above the lotus flower.

  "I see, so let's start from the beginning. Do you know what Tieflings are? And why were there always so many people after your favor?" Hirake asked with his arms crossed.

  "No... I only know that you are colorful 'Humans', with horns and varied abilities, and I would also like to know why there was always someone wanting something from me." Said the voice coming from the flower.

  "Tieflings are beings that were born from the greed of humans. Legends say that many, many centuries ago a king who was about to lose a war, and be killed by his enemies, made a deal with a demon from the endless abyss. He offered everything, absolutely everything, from his body and soul, to his kingdom and all the people in it, everything as long as the demon could grant him a power great enough to destroy all his enemies, and so it was done." Said Hirake with sour eyes.

  "What was not said in the agreement was that the demon would not only take the souls and bodies of those who accepted the agreement, but that the children of their children's children would also be subject to the same cursed agreement. Their bodies changed permanently, assuming hybrid forms between humans and demons similar to their patron, their power was completely chained to their patron demon, forcing them into eternal servitude in exchange for power, and those who tried to escape the chains of this demonic agreement had their powers completely taken away, and since they did not have a patron to protect them, the Tieflings were hunted in the same way as demons and beasts, and with the death of the 12 calamities at the hands of the heroes more than 500 years ago, all Tieflings were practically wiped off the map, needing to hide in regions of high danger, or with few resources." Hirake said bitterly.

  "Hum... So, the Tieflings are a race born from the enslavement of humans." Said the melodious voice.

  "Yes, it is a shame in the history of the Tieflings, but it is part of our history, it has granted us many disadvantages for sure, but we have also gained things from it, such as our high elemental affinity, the magic of bloodlines and the ability to adapt to all types of energy." Said Hirake.

  "Interesting... So the reason those people tried so hard to talk to me was to get a deal... As a patron with me? That is irrational, I cannot see the logic in it. Why would a species that fought so hard to escape the chains of a patron be willing to crawl through the mud to serve an entity like me?" Asked the voice.

  "Well, as I said, we have advantages in doing this, the main advantage is certainly power, when we bind ourselves to a "patron", we can assimilate its energy almost perfectly, being able to directly receive energy given by that patron, we also gain power as our patron grows, we can use smaller versions of the patron's skills, in addition to having the "advantage" of becoming immune to spiritual attacks and soul damage. And as for the reason why many want you to become their patron, it's because of power, it's always about power, you may not be a goddess or anything like that, but you are strong enough to survive the black plague, and keep this place safe, something we couldn't do before... So many are willing to bend their knees to you if it means sitting on top of the pile." Hirake said.

  "The disadvantages are clear too, if our patron dies we cannot bind ourselves to another patron for the rest of our lives, our nature ends up being tainted by the patron's will and our souls become their property." Hirake said looking at the floating ball of water.

  "...I see where this is going, I will not be fooled again. Even if I become the patron of someone in this village, you were very vague about all of this, just because my death would mean the end of the patron agreement, it does not mean that you cannot seal or imprison me against my will while using me as a source of raw power, you also say that your souls become the property of the patron, but that means nothing to someone like me who has no interest in souls." The voice said harshly.

  "Ha, you really are suspicious of everything, aren't you? Well, about the point that we can seal it and use it as a "Power Source" - as you called it, that's not a smart approach, since sealing or imprisoning a patronus weakens its powers, which directly affects us. And are you sure you have no use for souls? Or do you just not know what to use them for?" Hirake said with his arms crossed as he looked with one eyebrow raised at the object on the table.

  "...."

  "I propose the following, I never wanted to have to take on this role, but if I need to do it to keep those I love safe, then I will gladly take on this burden. I need to become king, not to be the one who rules over everyone, or out of thirst for power, I need to be king so that we can start over as a species, without a defined leader, the power-hungry nobles continued to find ways to abuse their "Altoriness", and the commoners continued to refuse to live under our commands." Hirake said.

  "So you are just trying to find a way to re-establish the old political state of your nation? The monarchy? Why don't you try something different, like simply electing your leaders through voting, or eliminating those who cause you problems." Said the voice coming from above the table.

  "It's not that simple, Tieflings have followed the monarchy for centuries for a single central reason: Bloodlines. Some Tieflings are lucky enough to at some point in their family tree manage to mix with superior beings or those with high magical talents, such as dragons, elementals, spirits or demons, and from this crossing a Tiefling with a special bloodline is born." Hirake said.

  "What are... these bloodlines exactly? Is it something like the thing that left Kiiro blind since birth?" Asked the voice.

  "Hmm. Well, yes, bloodlines are magical characteristics transmitted solely by blood that grant skills, abilities, unique traits, and innate talents. But of course, bloodlines are not all good, normally the more powerful a bloodline is, the more downsides there are to these bloodlines, such as weakness, deformities, an increased rate of fetal deaths, and much more." Hirake said.

  "Hmmm... Interesting... Is there a way to create a bloodline on purpose?" The delicate voice asked.

  "I don't think so, at least I've never heard of it, it's more a matter of luck, blood purity, planned marriages and time." Hirake said with a heavy sigh.

  "Hmm... So what do you want from me? If you think I can create bloodlines just because I'm a "Nature Spirit" you're mistaken, I can give blessings, protection and bring prosperity. But I won't do anything beyond that." The small melodious voice said.

  "What I want from you is simple, I need no one to have doubts about my monarchy over these lands and my people, I want you to stop Suzuke and Selene's madness, and support my ascension to the throne, I also want an oath to never hurt anyone under my protection and to stop whatever Selene is doing on that pile of rocks." Hirake said with narrowed eyes at me.

  "No. I can help you rule these lands, I can offer you jewels, knowledge and every murmur and whisper I hear in every corner of these lands, but I will never swear not to hurt anyone unless you can guarantee that no one can hurt me, and Selene is out of the deal, you will have no power over her or her actions, I can guarantee that she becomes your ally, but she will never kneel to you or any other being besides me." The voice said in a cold way as the blue light began to change to a blood red tone.

  "Huff, Selene is too big a threat to me, she keeps putting wrong ideas in everyone's heads and turning me against the people of the village, but you have a point regarding the condition of not hurting anyone, since I cannot guarantee your protection under my care, may I suggest that you never start the attack or hurt someone without first announcing your thoughts?" Hirake said.

  "Hmm... That is acceptable. I can restrain Selene, she seeks to build a temple in my name, a place where she can lead her templars and sing of my glory. My temple carries with it the hope and faith of the wretched and lost, I can change the opinion of the simpletons who take Selene's words as the purest absolute truth, with the same ease that I can change the currents of water in a stream, you need them to hear what you have to say, and I can make them listen." Said the voice as the ball of shining water returned to its calm blue tone.

  The suggestion made Hirake frown, as if he was thinking deeply about the idea offered by the small voice coming from the lotus flower. "The idea of ??a temple is... complicated." Hirake drawled.

  "In my opinion, it's perfect, you want power, I have it all, even if people see me as a heartless monster or a destructive entity, all I need to do is dry up the lake, let everyone die of thirst, and soon they'll all be praying with their throats dry and their knees dragging on the ground, all desperate to be heard by me." The voice said coldly.

  At hearing this, Hirake's expression soured completely, before he dragged the chair closer to the table, and placed his hands on top of it. "Ha! Monsters will always be monsters, right? Would you really be willing to cause chaos just to show who has the high ground here?" Hirake said indignantly, slamming his fist on the table.

  "E-a-s-i-l-y. With my eyes closed and without feeling the slightest bit of remorse, but I won't do that, not yet. I may not like your presence here, but you've already messed with my things too much. I've invested a lot of resources and time in you only to throw it all down the drain, so I'm willing to lose a little to recover what was lost, but don't test my patience. You may be dangerous, you may be powerful, you may even be the "king" of this pile of worthless trash. I - only I - decide who stays and who goes." Said the voice as threatening gray clouds formed inside the house.

  Soon rain began to fall from the clouds, wetting Hirake who ignored it and continued glaring at the small ball of water, the sound of raindrops hitting the floor, furniture and objects in the room began to resound throughout the place, clothes thrown around the house were soon soaked by the rain, food was spoiled and furniture was ruined, but Hirake didn't care and continued to glare furiously at the lotus flower, even with his hair and clothes completely soaked.

  "Don't you think you're counting too much on luck, Lady? Even if you cut off the water I could simply dig until I find your main body, I could force you to do what I want and even kill you, so do you really think it's smart to threaten me and all my people like this?" Hirake said spitefully.

  "Try it if you have the courage; even if you reach me through sheer luck, do you really think you would escape with your life? And do you really think you could force me to do anything? What are you going to do? Torture me? Deprive me of sleep and food? You're naive, all I need to do is wait for everyone to die, if I somehow end up dying... well. You're the ones who lose the most, aren't you? Where are you going to run to? Back home? Oh! That's right, it was destroyed. Are you going to look for another place to live? In the middle of this lifeless place? The demon lord may be dead, but the damage is still quite intense, It will take decades or even centuries until the damage heals. The truth is clearer than water..."

  "I DON'T NEED ANY OF YOU, BUT ALL OF YOU NEED ME DESPERATELY."

  The voice said gutturally, making Hirake's frown deepen even more.

  "If you think I am a being devoid of intelligence, you are mistaken. Do not distort the situation in your favor. I am not here to negotiate, I only offered a simple deal: I will protect you, you protect me. Nothing more, nothing less, do not think that I will allow you to touch what is mine, or that your little joke will affect me. The only individuals that I care about in this place are Kiiro and Selene, the rest are nothing more than a bunch of unpredictable variables." Said the voice.

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  "And what do you expect?! That I accept the "friendship" of a creature with dubious intentions? If you want to keep your life safe, I need to keep the lives of all my subjects safe." Said Hirake.

  "And that's not my problem. What I need is someone that the people of this place respect as an authority. Selene plays an important role in the morality and spirituality of the people, but few blindly trust her words regarding political matters. Do you want to keep your people alive? Then stop complaining. You always complicate simple things - there's nothing to think about here. You need something I offer, I want something from you. It's a yes or no question, it's not complicated at all." Said the voice.

  "You wouldn't understand what it's like to have the lives of all your people hanging over your head, I worked so hard to get to where I am, I went through the trials of heaven and earth, I suffered betrayals, intrigues and conflicts born entirely from greed to sit on this throne stained with my blood and sweat. If you think that deciding the future of my people is as simple as deciding what to eat then our conversation is over." Hirake said, hitting the table and standing up.

  As Hirake stood up to leave, a sound of air being cut quickly reached Hirake's ears. Hirake quickly removed his rapier from the sheath at his waist and deflected a It's a yes or no question projectile which appeared out of nowhere projectile that was rapidly coming towards him.

  Sliding back and assuming a defensive position, Hirake spotted the lotus flower, now surrounded by violent currents of water flowing freely around it like air currents. Soon the waves began to take the shape of hands that rushed quickly towards Hirake. Hirake effortlessly cut down all the projectiles that came near him, but to his surprise, no matter how many he destroyed, more kept coming.

  "YOU ARE SO ANNOYING! WHY DON'T YOU JUST DISAPPEAR!" shouted a shrill voice that reverberated throughout the room.

  "HA! Finally showing your true colors, "Lady"? Wouldn't it be great if all your followers saw how violent and unstable the target of their adoration is?" Hirake said mockingly as he stepped away from the flower and carefully analyzed his surroundings.

  "UGH!!! SHUT UP AND DISAPPEAR AT ONCE!" The voice shouted, causing a shower of hundreds of magical projectiles to fall in bursts on Hirake. Hirake did a quick somersault backwards, moved until he reached a wooden shelf, and without delay Hirake quickly gave a heavy kick to the shelf, making it creak, knocking it to the ground with a loud thud.

  Hirake jumped over the shelf and hid behind it. He activated some kind of Skill that made a thin wall of yellow energy appear just above his head, Hirake, now sheltered, began to mutter some words while a rain of water projectiles of various shapes, speeds and sizes destroyed the entire house, furniture cracked as the water projectiles smacked their surfaces, bags were easily torn and dozens of dents formed on the walls of the house.

  As Hirake's first incantation finished, an arrow of yellow energy apparated in his hands and he seamlessly started the next recitation. Behind him the wooden shelf was basically being crushed by the water projectiles, breaking easily like unprotected glass on a day of granite rain. Even Hirake's mysterious energy shield seemed to be wavering as the flower continued to produce more and more projectiles without seeming to have the slightest intention of stopping.

  Without giving time for bad luck, Hirake finished his recitation, causing the yellow energy arrow to create a purple ribbon bow in its composition. Hirake then calmly closed his eyes as the energy arrow in his hand began to move and run through the air in impossible paths and directions. Upon seeing the energy arrow, the flower seemed to become furious, creating a large whirlpool of water around itself that quickly began to flood the house, in addition to intensifying the rain of magical projectiles.

  Unfortunately for the flower, the arrow cut through the air like a hawk after its prey, dodging any projectile that aimed to hit it as it tirelessly followed its path, towards the center of the whirlpool. The arrow then penetrated the whirlpool, immediately causing a shockwave that dissolved all the water projectiles, ending the storm of magical projectiles as quickly as it had started.

  Hirake then came out of his hiding place, dodging the rubble soaked on the floor until he found himself face to face with the whirlpool of water from before that now hovered over his desk.

  "You're strong, I'll give you that. But not enough to-" Hirake said before the whirlpool of water contracted momentarily before suddenly expanding.

  "Damn it!" Hirake barely had time, just managing to cover his face with his arms as the water tornado exploded like a depth charge, water ran everywhere, creating a wave that dragged furniture across the floor and ruined anything that could have survived the previous conflict.

  Looking up, Hirake could see the form of a woman, with her upper body fully formed, but her lower body just a mass of waves and currents of water. A lotus flower rested peacefully on the mysterious figure's forehead while in its water-made hands the mana arrow released by Hirake rested between the creature's strong grip.

  "You may be a good fighter." The figure spat irritably.

  "But I'm the best at magic you'll find in this pile of mud." The figure said, snapping Hirake's arrow in two, causing it to dissolve into a mist of crackling yellow energy.

  "You picked this thing up with your bare hands?" Hirake asked in disbelief.

  "I don't have hands, you idiot. My physical form is just a manifestation of my magical abilities and desires molded using nature as my vessel. You can't hurt something made of magic with magic." Said the creature.

  "He he he..."

  "What?" Asked the confused figure.

  "HA HA HA!" Hirake burst out laughing as he sat on the ground, completely unconcerned about being in a puddle of water and debris.

  "Are you an idiot? If you want a fight, we'll have a fight!" Said the creature, creating a ball of crackling energy around his hands.

  "Do you really want to waste your mana fighting me? And just to be clear, I didn't start this, you were the one who attacked me, I was just defending myself, but since I don't think we'll get anywhere with this anyway, then... I give up, you win, water lady." Hirake said, fixing his wet hair before taking off his boots.

  "Ugh-... Fine..." The creature said with a tired sigh as its body dissolved into the puddles of water below, the lotus flower with a single drop of water stained with crackling blue energy in its center emerged from the puddles on the floor.

  "I..." The thing began as it analyzed its surroundings.

  "Uhm... Damn. Would you, uh, accept jewelry as compensation for damages? I guess... I got too emotional." The flower said as it floated around the house.

  "Ugh... Sure, why not. You destroy my house, try to kill me, call me an idiot and then try to make nice?" Hirake said, throwing himself backwards into the puddles of water on the floor.

  "I can fix it, okay? And technically it was your fault for annoying me so much that I just freaked out." Said the thing.

  "I'll have the jewels, the biggest and juiciest ones you have." Hirake said without moving from the spot.

  "Ew... Do you eat those things? How do you eat something inedible?" Asked the voice.

  "We don't eat... We... We absorb them. When we consume them we can absorb their latent magical energy and convert it to our own energy source, increasing our MP reserves." Said Hirake.

  "Then what the hell do you want them for? You're a fencer, not a wizard." The voice said mockingly, as if stating the obvious.

  "Hey! What kind of prejudice is this? Just because I don't go around spitting spells left and right doesn't mean I don't have a trick or two up my sleeve, okay? And just for the record, the more MP you have, the faster your skills to activate, and it also allows you to use better skills." Hirake said.

  "Hmm... interesting..." The little thing said.

  "So... What do you want to do now, "Lady"? Are you going to go back to your dollhouse and fix your broken toys? Or are you going to stop playing house and hang out with the adults?" Hirake asked as he looked at the ceiling.

  "What a stupid way to make an allusion to our current situation! Hmm... But, okay. Here is my final proposal: I will accept being your patron and yours alone. If it creates a lineage then that's fine, I will extend it to your heirs. I will provide you with all the resources that I consider useless to me, things like pieces of metal, colored stones that I found over time, jewelry or fish meat. I will also promise to keep Selene in line, and all who come after her. They will offer you their magic and their labor for free, for everything you need. And in exchange they gain the best resources you have to offer and the protection of the crown. I demand that the templars of my temple be treated as superior to the commoners, and that the high commission of the temple have authority similar or equal to that of the nobles." Said the little voice coming from the thing.

  "Hmm... A little tortuous… But is it acceptable .Anything else?" Hirake asked after a brief reflection.

  "Yes, I am willing to offer the privileges offered by my magic, but for that I want a promise of marriage." Said the voice.

  "Oh? Promise of marriage? Do you want to marry someone from the village?" Hirake said with a big laugh.

  In response, a small wave rose up beside Hirake, wetting his face and making him choke on water.

  "Humf- Of course not, you idiot, it's for Kiiro. I have a serious commitment to him that I must fulfill, and it would be easier if I could focus on just one thing instead of several small things. I want you to have a daughter, and for her hand to be promised to Kiiro; if I can keep him close to you, his safety will be guaranteed." Said the voice.

  "Ha! First of all, what makes you believe that I of all people would have a child? And that I would casually sell them like merchandise? And honestly? Again with this whole making that child king thing? I must admit that Suzuki really is a hard-working woman." Hirake hissed.

  "Kiiro? King? What a stupid idea, kings are always the biggest and juiciest target for the greedy and insatiable. I want something like a lord or viscount position for Kiiro, and keep him safe in a house in the countryside until he dies of natural causes.”

  “Well, if you're going to be king... You're going to need heirs, whether you like it or not, because your heirs, whether they're the fruit of your own blood or not, are the only thing that will prevent everything you've built from crumbling with your eventual death, but whatever, as far as I'm concerned, I win either way. If you don't have children, I think it would be best to tie you to a more powerful family? Like that girl with pigtails perhaps?" The voice said more to itself than to Hirake.

  "Anyways, what I'm trying to say is that we don't exactly need to get along, or hold hands and be friends with each other, but the fact is: These lands are my home. You're just visitors to this place, but I'm not really territorial, I just prefer to maintain a state of peace within an acceptable margin. If you leave I won't lose anything other than time and renewable resources, and you know I can make your lives much harder if I want. But that's not what I want, you living in these lands is a nuisance, but it has its advantages. I gain many things from it too, like entertainment, food, new resources, and increasing my own knowledge." Said the small creature.

  "Hmm, I see... Wait a minute! You mean you can actually eat food?" Hirake asked, intrigued.

  "Of course, it's not the same as you guys, but I can absorb nutrients from the soil around me and use atmospheric gases along with sunlight or mana to produce the energy my body needs to stay alive. Although I can also use mana to keep my body healthy, but it isn't... Satisfying? Eating is something that brings me a lot of satisfaction." Said the thing.

  "A-timos-ferico? What would that be?" Hirake asked..

  "Oh! Well, the air around you?" Said the small voice.

  "So you eat air?" Hirake said a little confused.

  "No- Uhm... I only absorb a specific type of gas contained in the air, I can't say for sure if it's the same gas I know... But I can absorb it through my-... through my body, mix it with other elements and create a new resource." Said the thing.

  "Is that a kind of skill? And what do you mean by a gas? Like poisonous gas?" Hirake asked, visibly confused.

  "No, you idiot! How do I explain this... Yes, it's a skill that allows me to do this process, but imagine you filling a pot with stones of several different colors. You can "eat" all the stones without any problem, but your body needs a stone with a specific color to work, the others... they simply don't work. What your body does to solve this is to consume everything you grab, and filter only the good parts, leaving what can't be used behind. I do the same thing, but unlike you, who needs to "consume" these colored "stones" to separate them, I can separate them before "eating"." Said the small voice.

  "Hmm... I think I understand..." Said Hirake, a little confused.

  "Humf! Of course you learned, I'm an excellent teacher." Said the small floating flower, spinning in the air.

  "Very well then." said Hirake, getting up from the ground. "You don't trust me, but you're willing to help me, and I don't trust you, but you're the only one who can offer me the help I need. So we'll make a deal, but I have one request." Hirake said.

  "Of course, you can ask, as long as you don't expect the answer to be yes." The voice said.

  "Hmm. I want you to promise me that you'll never show yourself to anyone outside your temple again." Hirake said very seriously.

  "Oh? And why is that?" The little creature asked.

  "It's in both our interests. People tend to have more faith in things they can only see very rarely, and it would be good for me if you stopped showing up around here causing trouble." Hirake said.

  "Hehe.. Of course, I don't like it very much anyway. I only assume that "humanoid" form to make it easier to talk to you guys, normally I don't need anything more than a floating ball of water to talk to someone." The creature said.

  "Ha! Alright, then I guess we have a deal, lady"

  "Oh! What's up, we almost killed each other just now~ You can call me Lily, I chose that name after looking at the flowers in the lake for decades, well, Kiiro also kind of helped me with that.." Said the small floating flower.

  "Very well, Lily, I hope this goes well for both of us." Hirake said, raising his hand to the flower, before realizing that there was no arm to shake his hands.

  In response, the small flower let out a laugh, and soon after a bubble of water emerged from the ground below, slowly morphing until it took the shape of a perfect female arm.

  "I won't forget our promise, Hirake, and I hope you and everyone who comes after won't either." The voice said as it shook Hirake's hand with its wet fingers.

  "I promise." Hirake said.

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