Angel of Eden 29
Angel of Eden. 29
Quietly observing through Maria’s eyes, I noticed a group of tourists approaching. The all-male crowd was thrusting communicators forward and snapping photos. Even so, taking pictures of Maria without consent felt wrong.
“Hey, hey, right? I told you it’s her!”
“It really is. She looks just like Lady Ophelia.”
“I think she resembles Lady Helenya more.”
“Could she be from the Drivyk family?”
They kept photographing her while edging closer.
‘Maria, wouldn’t it be better to avoid them?’
‘Avoiding them on purpose would look stranger. Besides, they’re not entirely wrong. This body carries the direct bloodline of House Drivyk, and the resemblance only makes suspicion more likely.’
‘But secrecy is secrecy…’
‘We should deny it outright. Dodging the question will only fuel more doubt.’
By then the tourists had surrounded Maria and begun firing questions.
“Excuse me, are you from Kensers by any chance?”
“It’s rather rude to ask that of someone you’ve just met.”
“Ah, my apologies. We’re tourists from Kensers. We thought you looked like someone we know and wanted to ask.”
“I am from Kensers.”
“Is your family name Drivyk?”
“No, I have no family name.”
“Oh, I see.”
Startled by Maria’s answer, they began murmuring among themselves.
“Wait, now that I look closer, she’s an angel. Could there really be an angel from the Drivyk line?”
“Why not? A distant branch of House Drivyk might have immigrated to Eden and become an angel.”
“That silver hair, the build, the looks… they’re definitely Drivyk traits…”
“Can we go now?”
“Look at her. What kind of angel acts so haughty toward tourists? I’m telling you, it’s the bloodline.”
“Really?”
Once they decided she was an angel, Maria’s words were ignored. This was bad. She was an angel, not Maria.
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way. I have a prior engagement.”
When Maria turned to leave, one of the men grabbed her arm and tried to spin her around. Of course, Maria’s body was far too strong; he only managed to hold on, unable to move her.
“Whoa, damn, how are you this strong? Come on, stay and chat with us.”
“Please let go. I told you I have an appointment.”
“An angel shouldn’t be so stuck-up.”
“See? I was right. That’s the bloodline talking.”
“So does that mean we can do whatever we want with Drivyk blood? Sounds good to me.”
This… Maria seemed to be in danger. The moment they realized she was an angel, they switched to casual speech and tried to drag her away. These men were trouble. Using force would only make things worse. What should we do?
‘Maria, can you escape?’
‘They’re stronger than they look. I can’t pull my arm free.’
Maria struggled to free herself, but another hand seized her other arm. While they grappled, a child’s shout rang out.
“Over there!”
Everyone turned toward the voice. A girl who looked like another tourist was pointing at them while speaking to an Eden police officer.
“Those men were trying to drag that woman away by force!”
“Thank you.”
At the sight of the officer, the men hesitated, released Maria, and backed away. Whew. The timing couldn’t have been better.
‘Thank goodness the police arrived.’
‘Yes, but that child…’
While the officer approached, the men clicked their tongues and shot Maria regretful glances. The officer glanced at Maria, then told the girl everything was resolved and left.
‘Maria, are you all right?’
‘I’m fine. But the way angels are treated really is awful. To be sacrificed for others and receive this kind of treatment… They’re called necessary, yet this is what happens.’
‘Well, angels can’t feel emotions, so they don’t get angry. No matter how they’re treated, they accept it. Maybe that’s why things have piled up like this.’
‘When I become Eden’s god, I’ll change everything.’
‘Huh? Become a god?’
‘Something like that. More importantly, look at that child.’
Following Maria’s words, I focused on the girl she was watching. It was the same child who had brought the police. She hadn’t left; instead, she was smiling brightly at Maria.
‘Why is she smiling at Maria?’
‘That child is a host. And a Queen.’
‘What?’
Startled, I examined the girl more closely. Despite her smiling face, her eyes weren’t smiling. The serious gaze fixed on Maria felt like careful observation.
The girl approached Maria with quick steps and whispered in a small voice.
“You’re a Queen too, right? It must be hard settling into an angel’s body.”
“What did you do with the host?”
“Hm? She’s asleep. Children sleep a lot. She was tired from traveling, so I put her to bed and took over.”
“You’re in symbiosis too?”
“Hmm, I suppose so? This child kept me a secret even from her parents and accepted me. She’s a good kid.”
The Queen smiled and looked around before speaking again.
“She’s still young, so she can’t lay eggs yet. But I’m taking good care of her, so she should be able to produce healthy offspring. What about you?”
“My host is good. Right now the situation isn’t ideal for laying eggs, so I’ve only been teaching her.”
“Oh? The host makes the eggs? That’s unusual.”
“Shall we move somewhere quiet? This is my first time meeting another Queen, so I’d like to talk longer.”
“All right. Where to?”
“Let’s go to a café.”
Maria and the Queen walked off hand in hand toward a café. Wait, what about the promise with Kate?
‘Maria, what about Kate?’
‘I already messaged her that we’d be a little late.’
‘Ah, I see.’
She must have sent the message through the implant while they were talking. Maybe my worries really weren’t necessary. From now on, I should just trust Maria completely.
Ah, that tingling pleasure again. While I was lost in the rush of pleasure that came from deciding to trust Maria, she and the Queen had already settled into a quiet corner of the café, ordered coffee and hot chocolate, and continued their conversation.
“My host is still a child, so I have to look after her a lot. I even accelerated her brain growth, so her head got smarter. Thanks to that, her grades improved and her parents praised her. She was really happy.”
“My host is so unreliable that I’ve taken over managing the body myself.”
“Pfft. What? The host handed over her body? Not just temporarily, but completely?”
The Queen was so genuinely surprised that she spat out the hot chocolate she had been sipping. Ah, it splashed on Maria’s face. Maria calmly pulled out a tissue and wiped her face as she spoke.
“My host is messed up in all sorts of ways. She’s a pervert who likes being dominated and controlled by others. Still, she’s cute, so I like looking at her.”
It was true, but that was harsh, Maria. I wasn’t that messed up.
“I thought you were just moving the body around like me for a bit. So that body is yours now?”
“I’m Maria. Call me Maria.”
“You even have a name? Don’t tell me the host gave it to you?”
“The host did. Don’t you have a name?”
“Oh my god!”
The Queen grabbed Maria’s hands and kept exclaiming in wonder.
“You received a name from your host and even took her body to become a Queen with a physical form? And it wasn’t by force, but through symbiosis? This must be the first time something like this has happened!”
“I am pretty amazing, huhu.”
“I’m jealous. I want a name too.”
“Ask your host to give you one.”
“Should I?”
Maria and the Queen were chatting pleasantly. Well, meeting a fellow Queen must have been especially welcome. By the way, even a child could become a host. Maybe if a larva chose a pregnant woman as a host, they could grow together? That might allow assimilation without rejection and enable true symbiosis. I should ask Maria about it later.
“Since your host is still young, if you train her well, it should be easy to lead her.”
“I’ve never thought of it that way. Sometimes it’s frustrating because she’s so young. Human children grow so slowly.”
“If you want to live in symbiosis with humans, you have to accept the inconveniences. They’re inferior to us in many ways. Still, isn’t it nice? Living in symbiosis with humans.”
“That’s true. I could never go back to controlling and parasitizing a host now. I love how this child accepts me completely as myself. Seeing her happy makes me happy too.”
The Queen looked genuinely joyful as she spoke. Even though their forms of symbiosis differed, she clearly expressed the joy of symbiosis.
“My goal is to build a nation with my kin who want symbiosis with humans. When I establish my country later, won’t you come? You won’t have to hide anymore.”
“Maria, you really are amazing. To even set a goal like that… I think I understand a little why your host entrusted her body to you.”
“Huhu, if you work hard too, you’ll earn your host’s recognition.”
So Maria’s dream was to create a nation where humans and Abaddon lived in symbiosis. I hadn’t even thought of that, yet Maria had already set goals and was making plans. Maria really was incredible. Ah, that pleasure again…
“When Maria builds her nation, I’ll convince my host and definitely come.”
“I’ll be waiting. I’m going to create a utopia for our kin.”
After speaking about her goal, Maria sipped her coffee while giving tips on how to train a host well.
“Humans are weak to pleasure. Show them the direction you want and reward them with pleasure when they follow. That way you can train them easily.”
“Aha, I see. Is that how you trained your host too?”
“My host submitted on her own. There are some issues I’m still working on, but she’s always been very obedient to my words.”
Hmm, but was training humans also part of symbiosis? It didn’t feel quite right.
‘Maria, training humans isn’t really symbiosis, is it?’
‘It’s training them for symbiosis. The more allies we have, the safer we’ll be from other humans. Hosts need to prioritize us, their symbiotic partners, over human relationships.’
‘Uh, is that so?’
‘Once the nation is established and stable, there won’t be any need to train hosts. Until then, please understand.’
‘Okay, got it.’
‘Huhu, you really are a good child.’
Once again, that sharp pleasure flooded my mind. Ahh, it feels so good. I’m going to… ugh.
‘Maria, I think I’m going to come!’
‘If you listen to me well, I’ll let you come as much as you want. Understood?’
‘Y-yes, ahh!’
The moment I answered, an even more intense wave of pleasure crashed over my mind. It felt as if my nonexistent body was trembling violently, and my consciousness grew hazy.
“I should get going now. My host is waking up and looking for her parents.”
“Is your host all right?”
“Following Maria’s advice, I’m making her feel good whenever she entrusts her body to me. Hehe, it’s cute how she can’t think straight and just thrashes in pleasure.”
“You’re doing well. Since she’s a child, it should be easier to train her.”
When I came back to my senses, Maria and the Queen seemed to be parting ways. So the Queen had started training her host too. She would make a good ally. The Queen waved with a bright smile on the host’s face and disappeared into the crowd.
‘Did the conversation end well?’
‘You’re awake. The talk went well. Now we have one more ally.’
Maria spoke as she headed back toward Kate’s shop.
‘From now on, I need to educate the children I create in advance. When the time comes, at the very least, all the angels in Eden must become our allies.’
‘Will you start breeding then?’
‘Elisha will get busy. You’re one of us now too, so you need to create good offspring.’
‘One of us? Am I Abaddon too?’
I was human, so being called kin felt strange. What did she mean?
‘Elisha is already the same existence as me, so I consider her kin. There just isn’t a proper word for it.’
‘Couldn’t we just use Abaddon as the species name?’
‘I don’t know what the others think, but in the nation I build, we’ll be called Abaddon. Yes, from this moment on, we are Abaddon.’
‘But why am I Abaddon too? I don’t understand what you mean by being the same existence as Maria.’
‘Elisha offered her human body to me, didn’t she?’
‘Um, the wording is different, but similar?’
‘Elisha has lost ownership of her body and only her brain remains. You can think of an Abaddon’s main body the same way—only the brain without a body. So aren’t we the same?’
Huh, was that right? If Abaddon only had a brain and I only had a brain, did that make us the same? But I was still human…
‘From now on, just think of yourself as an existence living attached to me, the owner of the body. Then you’re Abaddon too.’
‘I’m Abaddon too…’
‘I was planning to train you more calmly, but now that you know my goal, we need to settle this.’
As Maria continued speaking, my mind tingled with stimulation. Ahh, it feels good. I’m Abaddon, I’m Abaddon…
‘Yes, you’ll become an angel for us Abaddon. You just need to prioritize Abaddon over humans.’
‘Yes, I’m an Abaddon angel…’
‘For me. And for the Abaddon nation I will build. Anyone who lives in symbiosis with me must put Abaddon above all else. Isn’t that right?’
Maria’s words echoed deeper and deeper in my heart. Ah, Maria’s words seemed right. Yes, for the sake of the Abaddon nation, I had to prioritize Abaddon over humans.
‘Yes, that’s enough. Elisha just needs to serve me as an Abaddon angel.’
In my hazy mind, the pleasure Maria gave seeped in like water. Suddenly, thoughts of my master surfaced, but they crumbled away like sand swept by waves.
‘Now, Elisha, what are you?’
‘I’m Abaddon…’
‘Think again. What is your identity?’
‘I’m an Abaddon angel…’
‘Good. As expected of my symbiotic partner. You’ll serve me as your master forever and live together with me.’
‘Yes…’
Maria’s joy and satisfaction reached me as well. Thoughts of my master kept trying to surface from a corner of my mind, but they gradually faded.
‘Elisha, who is your master?’
‘My master…’
My master is Isabel— Aah!
‘Think again. Who is your master now?’
‘Aaaah! It hurts! Stop, Maria!’
Pain assaulted me again. Last time she had stopped, but this time she didn’t. I had to endure the pain for a long while and listen to Maria’s words.
‘You are my angel alone. An angel who serves me. So who is your master?’
‘Maria, it’s Lady Maria!’
‘Good, well done.’
The moment I answered “Lady Maria,” the pain vanished and supreme pleasure took its place. Hah, ahh, it feels so good. Pleasure really is the best.
‘What did you learn you must do for your master?’
‘I must obey, Master.’
‘Yes, since you obeyed your master, you deserve a reward. Go ahead, come as much as you want.’
‘Uhiit!’
With a clicking sensation in my mind, I lost consciousness from the overwhelming pleasure.