Chapter 38
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Gotta Chew the Black Jelly Real Good!
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"No way! No way!"
Pastel dashed across the deck.
Thud thud thud.
『Spit it out. Don't eat it.』
The demon in his suit chased after her.
"No way! No way!"
Pastel bolted away.
She chewed the black jelly fast.
Munch munch.
『Please just listen for once.』
The demon caught up in a flash and grabbed the girl.
His hands gripped her sides, and her body floated up.
Waaah.
Pastel ran with all her might. Her legs pumped in midair.
Whoosh whoosh.
Flail flail flail flail.
"Waaah! I'm running full speed, but I'm not going anywhere!"
Was this the demon's curse?
Waaah.
Scaryyy.
"Save Pastel!"
Angel! Angel! Guardian angel!
Pastel flailed wildly while held aloft. Her arms and legs thrashed about frantically.
Flounder flounder.
Squirm squirm.
The demon winced in mental agony as her limbs pelted him. He lifted the flailing girl higher into the air.
『Listen to people when they talk. Spit out that nasty thing. Hurry up.』
Waaah.
"No way! No way!"
Pastel shook her head vigorously. Her pink hair bounced around. Strands smacked the demon's face.
Good people said to ignore the devil's whispers.
Munch munch.
The black jelly was fully chewed.
Gulp.
The demon froze.
Pastel declared triumphantly.
"Pbbbt! All gone!"
Yay.
She'd become a good girl who didn't fall for the demon's whispers.
Whoa.
Pastel was totally good!
Hooray.
The demon let out a soul-crushing groan. He set the girl down gently.
『You really...』
"Pbbbt! Pbbbt! Pastel wins!"
Her little pink tongue stuck out mockingly.
Bleeeh bleeeh.
Pastel had scooped the black goo from the knife and popped it in her mouth before hearing the warnings.
Existence rank was tied directly to one's being—it couldn't be handled carelessly.
Especially ingestion, a direct act, could cause major issues and side effects. Mess it up, and your existence could destabilize, your mind shatter.
Even though this rank was mixed with demonic energy and processed for consumption, relying solely on the mana stone's safe-ingestion power felt risky. It definitely wasn't safe.
Pastel remembered just one thing from all that.
Gasp.
You could ingest existence rank.
Did that mean she could become super ultra strong?
And so she'd ignored the demon's order to spit it out, run away, and gulped down the jelly.
The jelly digested quickly.
Pastel's eyes went wide.
Oh?
Her mind floated blissfully.
Her brain tingled.
Twinkle twinkle.
A satisfying fullness filled the void in her soul, just a little.
Ohhh.
It felt like eating a meat pudding substitute.
Has the substitute food industry advanced this much?
Not as good as real meat pudding, but chow down a ton of this, and maybe her soul would be satisfied...?
『Little Craft?』
The demon approached and gripped her shoulders. His worried gaze met hers.
Guh.
Pastel jolted. She wiped drool from her mouth with her sleeve.
Whoa.
So tasty it made her lose her mind.
Maybe black jelly was meat pudding's buddy?
Gasp.
Besties.
Both cozy in Pastel's tummy together.
Whoa.
『Little Craft?』
"Y-Yes?!"
Pastel snapped to attention and looked at the demon. His hands reached out and squished her cheeks.
What what.
Her cheeks mushed every which way.
Waaaah.
Steamed bun Pastel...!
No red bean filling...!
『Dangerous after all. It's definitely straining your mind.』
The demon frowned.
『Existence rank should be built honestly through life. You can't achieve true realm by stealing someone else's.』
He eyed the mana stone knife.
『Best to discard the product. I'll collect it after the battle, so keep that in mind.』
"Huh?"
Pastel rubbed her cheeks, eyes widening.
"You're gonna throw away the existence rank we collected?"
『Terrible for the mind. Especially at your age when your ego needs to grow. You just experienced it and still wanna eat more?』
Uh-oh.
"That was just 'cause it tasted so good..."
Eep eep.
Hee hee.
The demon eyed her suspiciously.
Doubting gaze.
"I-It really was! It tasted amazing, and since it was my first time, I just lost it for a sec!"
The demon sighed deeply.
『Fine. You already ate it this time, no helping that. But no more, got it?』
Huh?
Déjà vu.
First time's hard, second's doable, third's...
Gasp.
Good Pastel thought nothing of the sort~.
Pastel whistled awkwardly.
The demon gave her a puzzled look before speaking.
『Since you ate it, better minimize side effects. I'll teach you how to use existence rank. Wasn't gonna 'cause it's bad for ego growth, but no choice.』
Whoa.
"Does that make me knight-level?!"
『As if. You're not even squire-level yet. Your base specs and senses are great, so fights are 50/50 though.』
Aww.
Pastel moved to the cabin.
She sat neatly on the bed.
『Meditate to enter your inner world. The ingested rank will clash with your inner self, so tame it well. Once you're in, you'll instinctively know what to do.』
"What do I do?"
『Inner worlds differ per person—no specifics. Just think order and harmony. Follow what satisfies your heart.』
Totally armchair theory.
Boo.
"How do squires do it?"
『Rewrite the outer world with your inner world. Then the world revolves around you.』
Super armchair.
Pastel pouted.
『Just meditate. You've got talent overflowing—you'll get it.』
Music to her ears.
Pastel closed her eyes.
Meditate, meditate.
Sleepiness hit.
Deep sleep, deep sleep.
Sweet dreams.
『...No sleeping. Enter with a clear mind.』
Okaay.
Pastel drowsed off to the demon's voice like a lullaby.
Drooozy, drooozy...
Snore.
Zzz.
She passed out cold.
The passed-out Pastel suddenly opened her eyes in her inner world.
She floated weightlessly in cosmic void. Her pink hair drifted every which way.
Gasp.
Meditation was this easy? Isn't it supposed to be for calm, composed people?
Am I a meditation genius?
Gasp.
Does that mean I'm calm and composed?
Mind blown.
Pastel was a calm and composed girl!
Whoa.
Gotta tell the demon later.
Aw.
Demon?
Oh right!
Time to explore the inner world like he said.
Pastel looked around in the zero-G.
Her inner world was space. Stars twinkled far off, Milky Way glimpsed beyond.
So pretty.
Pastel flew toward the galaxy, but it stayed distant. Just like real space—viewable through a telescope, unreachable.
Too far.
Where am I then?
Empty cosmic void?
Or a solar system?
She spun around.
A burning sun filled her view. A black-black sun lit the cosmos with paradoxical light.
Twisted essence and origin.
Something her inner self revealed.
Pastel flew toward it, mesmerized. No gravity pulled despite approach, but heat built.
Growing hotter until flames erupted on her body. They burned flesh and shook mind.
Her mind bleached white.
Waaah?!
Squishy mind flying away...!
Pastel Love Craft turning into plain Pastel Lovecraft...!
Pastel snapped out, flailed away from the sun. She shook off flames frantically. They died down; cold space cooled her.
She wiped nonexistent sweat from brow.
Phew.
Almost died mentally.
Space is pure cosmic horror.
Danger everywhere.
What to do with the nom-nommed existence rank in this deadly place?
Shiver shiver.
Pastel trembled, scanning around.
Existence rank, existence rank.
Looking closer, besides the sun, something else existed. Rock fragments orbited the sun via gravity.
Rock fragments?
Huh?
Are you the freshly ingested existence rank?
They felt alien. Like guests, not family.
Pastel furrowed brow, pondered, then nodded.
Demon's right—lone fragments in a bare solar system with just the sun feel discordant. For harmony, gotta be planets, obviously.
Planets?
Gasp.
Instant epiphany: how to welcome guests into family.
Am I a genius?
Hooray.
Pastel beckoned the fragments. They moved at her will through space.
Hyah.
Fragments collided, merged.
Smoosh smoosh.
All combined into one small rocky planet. Released, it touched the sun's domain and orbited close.
Woooow!
Sun and planet!
Harmony itself!
Pastel pointed at the sun.
Sun!
Pointed at the small planet.
Mercury!
She cheered.
Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto!
Uh?
Correction.
Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune!
We're family!
Hooray.
(Pluto: Sniff...)
Pastel shook off a distant planet's wail from her ears and gazed excitedly at her new pal Mercury.
Mercury orbited the sun.
Gasp, touching.
One full lap, and her inner world shifted.
Like forming the solar system, Mercury's orbit traced a perfect circle. Lines connected, orbit complete.
Order and harmony arrived.
Pastel's mind buzzed sharply. Nature's laws awakened her psyche. Clear insight dawned.
No way, is this...
Super ultra superpower acquired?!
Suddenly Mercury screeched.
Cracks spiderwebbed the planet; it crumbled to fragments. Insight whooshed away.
Aaah!
Mercury buddyyy!
Mercury buddy lacks gravityyy!
Pastel jolted awake on the bed in shock.
Gasp.
The demon paused mid-blanket-tuck.
『Well, not meditation at all, but you entered your inner world fine. Great talent.』
Red eyes regarded her.
『How was it? Sunny fields? Animals greeting you amid cherry blossoms?』
Pastel wailed.
"Demon! Demon! Mercury buddy died from low gravityyy!"
Waaah.
『What are you talking about?』
The demon looked baffled.
"Low gravity, so crumble!"
Waaah.
『No.』
Grace the merchant head smiled satisfied.
"Three pirate ships. We can use academy non-coms, so funding against the pirate ships lets us buy more contraband."
"Yeah..."
Pastel nodded weakly.
"Hm."
Folding fan poked her cheek.
"Milady, you seem down. If unsatisfied, speak freely."
"Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to worry you. Personal stuff, not your fault."
Pastel shook off Mercury grief.
"Got it."
Grace switched topics.
Papers spread.
"This is your full initial capital for the venture?"
"Yes."
"Nothing more? Max funds pre-contraband buy is best long-term."
"Compounding, yeah. But that's really all. Smuggling profits plus student council budget."
Grace tilted head.
"Given your smuggling runs, seems light?"
Pastel sighed explosively.
"Family went bust, no startup cash. Bought goods with council budget, snowballed to this."
Modest for founding a firm, but proud sum.
"Student council budget...?"
"My whole fortune once."
Pastel gazed afar nostalgically.
Chicken skewer-less days.
Sniff.
Grace looked perplexed.
"Craft Family secret funds?"
Aw.
"Pardon?"
"Family slush funds."
Craft Family slush funds?
Slush funds from a marquess house rife with betrayal and schemes?
Pastel's eyes widened.
No way such an evil family lacked them.
But she knew zilch.
Eeeek.
Grace more perplexed.
"Y-You don't know the locations? Unbelievable."
Waaah.
Shock.
Guhhh.
Pastel slumped in her chair.
Silence fell.
"No wonder..."
Grace sighed, cleared papers, pondered.
"Find at least one slush fund pre-venture for more contraband. Long-term wise."
Pastel wilted.
"I really know nothinggg."
"Hm."
Grace tapped her leg with fan.
"Don't know Craft fund management, but my sister the headmaid handled some, right?"
"Probably...?"
Grace's eyes gleamed.
"Then I know a spot. Sis visited unnecessarily a few times."
Huh?
Pastel straightened, focused.
"Where?"
"Camelot territory's apple orchard. Right next to Camelot manor."
Aw.
Camelot? Magic buddy Melissa Camelot's home?
"What's Craft link?"
Grace explained cautiously.
"Great-great Craft Marquess schemed it from Camelots, who held it generations. Said apples too tasty after pie. They got it back recently."
Gasp.
Craft Family's evil past exposed again.
Steal farm for yummy apples.
Pastel's heart thumped.
Family slush funds.
Buried in someone else's apple orchard...!
Gasp.
Thrill of the taboo.
"Let's grave-rob now!"