Chapter 638: Chernobog

Sunny sent Chernobog’s mother a pitying glance as the lissome woman hunched over and clutched her aching hand, hissing out profanities that definitely did not belong in a sacred setting such as a temple.

Then again, her own son seemed to have been getting laid the night before, so perhaps being a little heretical was hereditary.

Eventially, her ire found its way back to Sunny, and he had to avert his gaze and quickly step back into Chernobog’s room after sweeping his eyes over what seemed to be a marble hall. He tried to force a smile.

It must have been quite hideous, however, since her glare only grew more deathly and dreadful.

"I’ll... be quick?"

"You will, if you know what’s good for you—!"

Sunny quickly cut her off by slamming the door in her face. Her scathing remarks were muffled through the door:

"—Degenerate, good-for-nothing, pandering, trifling, sinful, dog-like, scumbag, waste-of-flesh, perverse—"

By the sounds of it, she didn’t quite appreciate the gesture. Sunny sighed as he removed the archaic panties from his head, nose scrunched up as he wondered how he hadn’t noticed its presence for so long. He threw it at his temporary bed, the place of rest that originally belonged to his host.

Sunny reviewed the odd scenario the Simulated Universe put him in.

Firstly, he was a Temple Slave. Not just any Temple Slave, but the Temple Slave. The same malnourished slave that had lost his temple to the zealots of War, and was then imprisoned, and enslaved. That slave was forced to be apart of a slave caravan...

Except, that entire order of events never happened.

The Temple Slave, Chernobog, somehow managed to survive the Mountain King’s wrath, as well as the humanoid hazards that Sunny himself had faced in that damn Nightmare. That alone wasn’t impossible — Sunny had been able to pull it off, but he was amazing, so that was to be expected.

The fact that the temple was intact was far more astonishing. Perhaps he was missing something?

Or maybe the Simulated Universe wasn’t going for exact historical recreation?

Creative liberties, as some may call it?

In short, Sunny was in an anomalous version of history. This was all assuming that this scene was meant to take place after Chernobog was taken by the slave caravan, and not before.

Because... if it was before...

Well, that made things really weird. Particularly regarding what a kid was doing in a room smelling like this.

With panties on his head, most importantly. Sunny was glad he got that off.

Second, Chernobog had a mother.

That wasn’t something particularly surprising. In fact, as far as Sunny knew, having a mom was pretty normal. Supposedly, having a father was also not unusual, but nobody really cared about that now, right?

Once again, from what Sunny has observed, a mother and a father were typically accompanied by a son or a daughter. If they were feeling particularly sinful, then perhaps they had multiple of one, or even both. Yes, to have parents was a very human thing, was it not?

So why was Chernobog’s mom an identical copy of Sunny’s own mom?

Well... not identical. Clearly, Chernobog’s mother was, uh... not as skinny? Healthier? She was Ascended, and Sunny didn’t think he had to explain what that meant for her when it came to the looks department.

He grimaced. Despite his lack of untoward thoughts, this was starting to weird him out.

The point was that Chernobog, who was paralleled Sunny, had a mother who paralleled Sunny’s.

Coincidence?

’Of course not!’

It was [Fated]’s fault, obviously! This was clearly abnormal!

Now, he was stuck having to listen to a woman that reminded him of his mother as she Cursed her own child for his lustful ways. Speaking of...

’...I’ve got to be misunderstanding, right? Maybe... maybe this Chernobog guy isn’t a womanizer? Yeah... that makes sense!’

After all, the First Nightmare put the challenger into a body as similar to their own as possible. Chernobog, when he was part of the slave caravan, was basically an identical replica of Sunny.

If he made the leap in judgement and assumed that their personalities were similar...

Then Chernobog couldn’t have been getting any action last night!

After all, Sunny himself wasn’t a womanizer!

Sarcastically snorting at his own half-assed reasoning, he remembered that he was being watched. He quickly went into the wardrobe, pulling out what seemed to be a long tunic that went down to his thighs.

There weren’t any pants.

Sunny pursed his lips as he found naught...

But a loincloth.

In his embarrassment, he remembered that he was being watched. He glanced at the door, then lowered his tone of voice to a whisper.

"Uh... Miss Ruan Mei?"

Silence.

"Hello...?"

Silence.

"Hey!"

"Don’t ’hey’ me you scoundrel! Why, I oughta—"

Sunny let out what he believed to be a very masculine squeal as the voice of Chernobog’s mother permeated through the door. Had he ever been this frightened of a woman... ever?

...The answer was yes.

More importantly...

’Crap, she can’t hear me!’

***

Ruan Mei considered answering his cries. She really did.

Except...

No, not really. She hadn’t considered it for a moment. The data would be far more authentic if she refrained from giving Sunless any outside assistance.

That, and she was feeling just a little spiteful.

Ruan Mei was feeling rather comfortable in her chair, positioned only a foot away from the console. The screen displayed what seemed to... deeply edited footage, something that irked her greatly. She took a generous sip of her tea, allowing the delicate porcelain to brush against her lips as warm liquid trickled into her mouth.

The footage that she was supposed to receive was meant to be a direct, first-person perspective of the test subject. That was not what she got.

Instead, it was more accurate to say that Ruan Mei’s view of the situation was like a second pair of eyes above Sunless’ head. She did not see what he saw. Instead, she only saw everything objectively.

However, for an experiment like the Simulated Universe, which was meant to attract the gazes of the replicated Aeons in order to decipher the logic behind THEIR Primum Mobile — what moves the Aeons, and what restrains THEM — a subjective viewpoint was necessary.

Paths were not, and could not be objective.

It was not easy to irritate someone like Ruan Mei.

Ruan Mei was irritated.

It had been close to two years ago, when Herta had made her announcement. Through her puppets, naturally, since none were allow to see her true body. She revealed that she had found a singular test subject for the Simulated Universe.

And that said test subject would be the only one.

Naturally, Ruan Mei and Screwllum both objected. The Simulated Universe was meant to capture the essence of multiple Paths. How could a single test subject succeed in doing so? Humans were only so open-minded — at some point, they hit the boundary of their character.

Two Paths.

That was the amount of Paths a human being could tread, and that was also the limit.

In their initial plan, they would throw one of the test subjects into the Simulated Universe. If they had any success in attracting any of the simulated Aeons’ gaze, then that also meant that they had potential as a Pathstrider in the real world. That meant that they could run experiments both in the Simulated Universe as well as in other tests.

If they failed, they would be disposed of. Herta’s orders.

So, the idea of using a singular test subject was ridiculous. That would narrow down their avenues to only two Paths at most!

What Herta had told them next, however, had changed both of their minds instantly.

First, she said that the test subject should theoretically be able to emulate any Path.

That alone piqued their interests enough to completely retract their earlier objections. For people like them, who lived solely for the pursuit of knowledge, witnessing an anomalous existence was an opportunity that they could not miss.

Herta’s next words were even more pressing.

The test subject’s cooperation was a higher priority than the Simulated Universe itself.

Ruan Mei considered herself to be Herta’s friend — well, something similar, at least. It wasn’t difficult to realize that the puppeteering genius had her priorities elsewhere, handling something that was even more important than her own research. In the Genius Society, such a concept was practically heretical.

In truth, they were all self-absorbed social defects obsessed with their own success. She wasn’t afraid to admit such a simple thing.

As such, Ruan Mei couldn’t say she actually cared about what Herta did, but rather, whether Herta’s secretive business could help Ruan Mei pursue her own goals.

Sunless was the key to that.

Ruan Mei had tried to scan him. When she tried to shake his hand, the fingertip of her glove could retrieve all biological data. By dissecting that information, she could even figure out his metaphysical health — the state of his soul.

Unfortunately, Song Seishan got in the way of that. Ruan Mei had tried to probe her purpose in doing so, but failed. Not unexpected, considering she hadn’t really been trying. There was a time and a place for everything.

Then, Ruan Mei had tried to drug him. Both the tea and the slices of cake before her were laced with a drug that forced one to speak the truth. Of course, she had already drank the antidote beforehand. She wouldn’t dare let such delicacies go to waste... speaking of...

Ruan Mei set her teacup aside with practiced grace. She reached for a small slice of cake, its delicate layers arranged with the sort of precision one might expect from a particularly meticulous pastry chef. The fork passed through the velvety layers without resistance, catching onto the sponge in such a way that even a fisherman would be impressed. She brought the first bite to her lips, allowing the confection to rest on her tongue for a moment before tasting it properly.

Rich, but not overwhelming. A hint of dark chocolate, with a sprinkle of something floral hidden at the very back of her refined palate. The smooth cream and the layers of light sponge were baked in such a way that they seemed like they would melt at a fork’s touch. Or her tongue, to be precise.

A thin stream of fruit perserve introduced a tangy sharpness to the otherwise buttery richness, tiny specks introducing a crunchiness that provided a pleasant contrast to the soft texture. The aftertaste was especially lovely, similar to a well-composed hymn. Vanilla and almonds somehow managed to hide themselves long enough to flashbang her with nostalgia at the final moment.

Beautiful, was all Ruan Mei could think.

...Where was she? Oh, right...

Of course, Sunless refused her offer. No tea, and no cake. It was a little rude, honestly — didn’t he know that some Legacy Clans will declare war on you if you deny dessert?

Well, she got more cake to herself, so she couldn’t complain.

Ruan Mei then went looking for his biological profile, which should have been saved in the Simulated Universe.

And it was.

But it was locked.

Herta was hiding something from her, she realized.

And now, watching as she was forced to watch Sunless’ run of the Simulated Universe in the third-person, Ruan Mei wholeheartedly believed that Herta was not exaggerating when she said that he was far bigger than the Simulated Universe could ever be.

Why else would she go so far? In fact, everything was starting to come together.

Ruan Mei had wondered why Herta had hired two bodyguards — especially a princess from a Great Clan. If it was just Sunless, then sure, it was understandable.

But Ruan Mei knew that the price of a Great Clan’s assistance was steep, and that, admittedly, her and Screwllum were not worth it. That, as well as the unlikelihood that anything would happen to the Herta Space Station. The Antimatter Legion’s invasion that Ruan Mei had heard of was rare in and of itself.

So, what was Herta really trying to protect?

Between the lock placed on Sunless’ biological records, the third-person objective viewpoint she was forced to endure, Seishan’s random bout of protectiveness, his denial of her cake—

...Actually, that last one was just rude. Even if she drugged it.

It was simple, really.

Herta wanted someone to protect the Space Station. She also wanted to test the Simulated Universe, now that it was effectively complete. At the same time, she needed a way to protect her test subject, no matter the cost.

Seishan was that way.

There was an eerie glint in Ruan Mei’s eyes as she turned towards the console, watching as Sunless finally gave up on calling her.

Herta really went out of her way to set up all these hurdles.

Unfortunately, that only made Ruan Mei’s curiosity swell exponentially.

’...For now, the next best thing is to just use my eyes.’

He was naked, so that was convenient.

Ruan Mei leaned closer to the display, examining Sunless with the detached interest of a Biologist presented with an unfamiliar specimen. The pallor of his skin seemed more than unhealthy, possessing a stonelike quality that seemed to absorb the distinction between flesh and marble, though its texture remained unmistakably organic.

His eyes were odd, and would normally imply blindness. Their onyx surface did not reflect light as far as she could tell, appearing more like decorative, light-absorbing gemstones rather than an ocular organ. He had the proportions of an acrobat or gymnast, his muscles defined in such a way that was undeniable.

At the same time, Ruan Mei perceived what she believed to be a sign of malnutrition. Ascended males generally landed at far higher ranges of height — even just the average Awakened man, really. It was rare to find one that lacked in such a regard, but malnutrition in one’s formative years was the most common cause.

Any other signs of nutritional deprivation were nonexistent, of course.

More intriguing still was the tattoo winding across his body. It depicted a dark, lifelike serpent, its sinuous form coiling and wrapping around the entirety of his body; his arms and legs, as well as his torso. The scales seemed to shift and shuffle, as if it were alive. Its head rested near his heart, jaw stretched in such a way that two pairs of deadly, long fangs seemed to direct themselves at his cardiovascular muscle.

Ruan Mei’s gaze continued downward, however, and abruptly paused.

One eyebrow rose.

She leaned forward, frowning deeply as she studied the relevant organ. Then, in her head, she recalled the expected range of measurements.

Ruan Mei continued to stare.

’Is this... correct?’

She looked at her arm. Then at the console. Then back to her arm.

She made the necessary calculations in her head.

Once she was done, Ruan Mei limply sat back, fully sinking into her chair... and paled.

She... she really needed to note something down.