Chapter 571: What Still Can Be Done
With the most pressing discussion out of the way, Zombie reported everything that he and Kopia figured out by the empty lake - and confronted it with the information that Cranberry received from the ashen undead knight who was the remnant of the god of chaos, Love.
All the details matched - though that alone didn't mean that everything that the ashen undead shared was the absolute truth.
"What are we supposed to do then? Go to the phoenix and start my quest - or go find the remnant of the dragon god, War, to aid the piece of filth?"
The blue undead knight furrowed his brows and asked with a mixed expression - as if despite all that was said previously, he still couldn't accept the thought of actually helping his most hated person in the entire world across multiple lives.
"...yeah... so about the remnant of War..."
Cranberryflinched and looked away awkwardly...
"...oh for fuck's sake..."
Zombie merely looked at her and already knew what she was going to say since he expected it since the time that Monty became his subject...
"Baron is the remnant of the dragon god, isn't he."
The blue undead knight sighed looking down and shaking his head in annoyance.
"Yes... that's why I ask you to not try and recall him for the foreseeable future until we are certain that his role in Corvus's special quest has come to an end."
The red-haired nodded her head and reached out to take Zombie's hand.
"What are you talking about - I can still see his life signature right outside..."
The blue undead furrowed his brows and his eyes shone with a murky red light as he turned around and looked through the building's wall, to check n the red dragon who most certainly was there as he arrived at the village just a little bit earlier.
*CHOMP*
"...!"
Just as he did confirm Baron's presence - a sound of enormous jaws clapping together echoed through the sky outside and the dragon was pulled back so fast that he could as well be teleported away.
"...Cranberry..."
"Hu-puah...!"
Zombie scoffed and turned around instantly - just to grab Cranbeery's face with one hand and squish her cheeks so that lips formed a duck face.
"Is there ANYTHING that we still have even the slightest bit of control over?!"
The blue undead knight furrowed his brows and glared at the squished red-haired girl.
'Yhour huesth."
Cranberry responded in a muffled voice, not minding the blue undead playing with her at all.
"A what?"
Zombie scoffed and relaxed the grip on the red-haired girl's face but didn't take back his hand.
"Your quest - you literally are required to go to and discover the phoenix's lair by yourself or it won't trigger - though since Arion is clearly on Caramel's side, we can expect him to devour the distance between you and the cave at any point... Honestly, that wouldn't even be so bad but I will ask you anyway - do you want the two of us to go to the phoenix's lair and start your secret quest, mister proudest corpse / Capture target?"
Cranberry smirked and asked grabbing onto his hand and leaning against it playfully.
"...something tells me that I will have to school that cheeky pup about who he chooses to listen to..."
Zombie scoffed furrowing his brows and looking away angrily.
"About that - haa... - considering that he was taken back by his family and is now working together with Caramel, we can safely assume that the Gluttonys asked Sloths for help and got him the humanoid titan-class monsters to eat so that his curse would be broken."
"..."
The red-haired girl sighed and explained, making the blue undead turn back to her and stare in disbelief.
"Then getting him to turn back into a human isn't the secret quest?"
He asked in annoyance rolling his eyes actually done with this entire scenario.
"Of course not - that is merely the necessary step that's required for the secret quest's activation -do you want to hear more about it?"
Cranberry asked, tilting her head enjoying fooling around with the annoyed blue undead of hers.
"No - not at all. The less I know about it the less I will be bothered by the stupid shit they will pull of there."
Zombie scoffed shaking his head before he stood up and grabbed the girl's hand.
"I don't feel like waiting for the former wolf-puppy to use the powers of the avatar of glu..."
He said pulling the red-haired girl up from the sofa but then he furrowed his brows.
"Say. Is Arion the avatar already or just the heir?"
He asked curiously looking down at the prideful girl.
"...haa... that is a good question - since his secret quest is apparently active, I would assume that he is the avatar..."
Cranberry ended up responding while tilting her head with a cloudy expression.
"Only assume...?"
Zombie picked out on the hesitation in her voice and asked with a hesitant look in his eyes.
"It's difficult to say for sure with Gluttony family - after all they very rarely actually have the previous avatar die so that the title could be passed on - usually the heir takes the title for themselves devouring it with the Gula skill while leaving the previous user unharmed - the only exception from that was lady Goji who received her title after her father died during the battle at the border of our kingdom - but that's beside the point."
Cranberry shrugged her shoulders and waved her hand dismissively.
"The main point is that the devoured title takes time to settle in and become actually registered in the system that the user was changed - there have been cases of the heir's getting rejected and the title of the avatar returning to its original owner - or on very rare occasions - to straight-up move to a completely random person who was lucky - or unlucky - enough to be in the vicinity when the devoured title was being regurgitated."
The red-haired girl explained calmly.
"It's very similar to what my blood-related father and lady Goji did to pass the title of avatar of pride to the pice of shit who just happened to give birth to me."
She added as a bonus fun fact and smiled brightly after being reminded of the gruesome death that lady Raspberry had in the current playthrough.
"...I don't like the implications of that... but anyway, do you want to go with me or do you prefer to stay here while I will go visit our chicken friend from the previous playthrough?"
Zombie smirked too and asked, motioning with his chin in the rough direction of where the phoenix air was located according to his memory.
"And miss my favorite dinner? Why would I lose the chance to check out whether it remembers the first playthrough - I am kind of curious whether it retains the memory of being eaten as an egg?"
The scholarly part of Cranberry's personality showed up and the girl clasped her hands together with a cheerful expression.
"Khahaha! I wonder about that too! Also - I was going to visit it anyway - those aren't bad but I miss the sturdiness and the powerful feeling I felt from the boots of the phoenix."
Zombie nodded with a mocking smile and lifted his left leg showing off the armored shoe on a flat sole.
"Ha ha! Admit it - you just miss wearing high-hills!"
The red-haired girl laughed and pointed out while walking right up to the blue undead and looking up at this face while leaning against his jet-black armor.
"You aren't wrong there."
Zombie simply nodded and grinned cheerfully.