Chapter 577: The Parrot Speaks
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 577: The Parrot Speaks
After an immense effort, I succeeded in reattaching the Regressor’s arm. I decided not to dwell on how I’d managed it. It hadn’t been a pretty sight.
I had bound torn muscles, connected severed blood vessels, and forcibly shoved the bone into place to set it. The techniques, powers, and Qi Arts I used during the process were of such a high level they were difficult to put into words. I stitched nerves with the Lightning Spool, controlled blood flow with Bloodcraft, and used Qi Art to adhere the arm and keep it from falling off. The process consumed an enormous amount of elixirs and energy.
“Hah… hah… hah…”
Completely drained, the Regressor was drenched in sweat, barely clinging to consciousness. I uncapped a bottle of elixir and poured it into her mouth. Drinking it like this would halve the elixir's effectiveness, but the Regressor overcame that problem by drinking twice as much.
“Hh, hhh…”
My throat feels like it's on fire…
After swallowing the elixir, the Regressor gasped, feeling a burning thirst. Even without mind-reading, anyone could tell she needed water. I turned the bamboo tap, filled a cup, and brought it to her. She opened her mouth like a baby bird and drank the water I gave her.
Haa… ugh. Even after drinking water, my body is still burning. It feels like it's going to fall apart. I can't do anything but hold myself together.
She couldn’t even lift a finger yet. Given that she was also a master of Qi Arts and the procedure had been perfect, she would probably regain sensation in about a week and be able to hold a weapon in a month. But for now, the Regressor was as weak as she could possibly be.
I've never been this helpless during any of my regressions… Usually, if my arm was cut off, I'd just die. Right now, I'm in a state where I can't resist anything Hughes might do…
As that thought crossed her mind, the Regressor flinched and looked at me with frightened eyes.
Surely not, right? He’s rude, but he’s surprisingly good at respecting boundaries… But what if he takes advantage of my helplessness and does something… Wh-what do I do? If it's Hughes, how far would he…
What does she want me to do? Seriously. If I were going to seduce you, I would have taken my time from the very beginning. I’m not so shameless as to force myself on someone who doesn’t want me, you know?
No, no! It’s because I’m weak. Don’t even think about relying on him! It's a relationship that will disappear when I regress anyway. In the next timeline, we’ll have to meet again with me knowing nothing! If we get any closer, I’ll be the only one who gets hurt! It was always like that. My first love was like that too…
Well, well. Looks like you've had your fair share of romance during your regressions.
As she worked herself up, the Regressor suddenly sifted through her hazy memories.
Wait. First love…? When… did I have my first love…?
She’s regressed so many times that her memories are… It’s a little pathetic, really. As I was quietly reading her thoughts, a red fountain erupted from her shoulder. Blood was seeping through the stitches. Realizing it a moment too late, I shouted urgently.
“Huh? Shei-ssi, blood! You're bleeding from your shoulder!”
“Wh-what?”
“What are you doing? Focus! You’re losing blood!”
Her shoulder had turned into a blood faucet! Realizing her condition, the Regressor managed to stabilize her blood flow. With no energy to spare for anything else, she gritted her teeth.
…My head’s too dizzy to remember right now. I’ll focus for now. I can think about it after I’ve healed.
Just as I was dedicating myself to her treatment…
Knock, knock.
A knock came from the door. I tried to read the thoughts outside with my mind-reading ability first, but was bewildered to find there were none. Someone definitely knocked, but they weren’t human? A little wary, I cautiously approached the door.
“Who is it?”
There was no answer, but I could feel a presence. I opened the door carefully, and what appeared before me was a parrot. With red feathers and a blue tail, the parrot sat on a perch, bobbing its head.
“What is this.”
[What is this.]
“A parrot? Did it fly all the way up here? Or… a familiar?”
[Correct! Correct!]
The parrot chirped excitedly, spread its wings, and flew into the room. Looking around for a place to land, it spotted a familiar spot and settled down.
On the Regressor’s shoulder.
“Hey! Get off of there! What if it falls off? I barely managed to attach it!”
[Kyak? Then how about here?]
“Fine. Your head is better, at least.”
What do you mean, better! Get off! You’re messing up my hair!
The parrot found a spot amidst the Regressor’s hair. After clearing its throat for a moment, the parrot spoke in a screeching voice.
[King of Humans. I have come for an audience.]
“You say you’ve come for an audience, but you send a familiar? I’m not feeling the respect.”
[My apologies. But please understand. It is more comfortable to borrow Polly’s mouth than to speak directly.]
“Comfortable? Is speaking through a parrot even proper speech? Isn’t it more comfortable to speak with your own mouth?”
[Not really. What’s so difficult about talking? Even a parrot can do it, so don’t make a fuss!]
Is she speaking from far away? I can’t seem to read her thoughts clearly. It must be one of the witches, but who?
The parrot stood proudly atop the Regressor’s head and spoke.
[Humans are the most peculiar. Animals have the same blood flowing through them. Parrots can speak, and leopards use their heads to hunt. The only things humans do better than animals are jealousy, envy, filthy desires, and childish schemes. I would rather face an animal than a human. Wouldn’t you agree, King of Humans?]
Hmm. I get it. The misanthropy and love for animals dripping from her words.
This is the Great Witch.
I didn’t recognize her at first because of the different tone, but only the Great Witch would waste such dominion—the ability to conduct a sophisticated conversation through a parrot—so uselessly. Besides, it was unlikely any other witch would contact me before the Great Witch did.
Well, I sympathized with her words to some extent, but something was fundamentally wrong. I spoke.
“I don’t sympathize at all.”
[You don’t? Are you defending your own kind just because you are the King of Humans?]
“Not really. I’m just seeing things as they are. Do other animals not feel jealousy or envy? Do they not bare their teeth with filthy desires? Why make a fuss over things that all animals do?”
So everything good is something animals do, and everything bad is humanity’s fault? That’s what’s strange. The saying that humans are animals doesn’t mean humans are particularly evil.
“If anyone's being peculiar, it's you, isn't it? Great Witch.”
[Kawk, kawk-kawk!]
Struck by the truth, the parrot flapped its wings wildly. Red feathers fell onto the Regressor’s eyes and face. I snatched a feather that was about to touch her nose and spoke to the parrot.
“By any chance, are you afraid of humans?”
[N-No! Not at all! I'm not scared! They're just... difficult!]
“If you’re not scared, then come in person. No matter how well you handle familiars, you’ll have to see with your own eyes to grasp my true nature.”
From what I’d read when we briefly met before, the Great Witch had a considerable case of anthropophobia. To the point where she was closer to animals than to humans.
She was fine if the other person was a woman or someone she knew. That’s why she could converse freely with Nevida and the other witches. But it seemed she couldn’t do the same with me.
Especially since…
[…How do I know what the King of Humans will do to me!]
“I haven’t even done anything lately, yet everyone keeps accusing me of doing things. At least let me do it first so I don’t feel so wronged!”
If she was afraid of humans, she would naturally be afraid of me, the King of Humans.
Huh? Wait a minute. This might be useful. It's easier to use someone who's afraid of me than someone who ignores me, right?
I lifted my chin and asked in a haughty manner.
“So. What is your reason for seeking me out?”
The parrot ruffled its feathers uncomfortably, but it was just a parrot, so it wasn’t particularly intimidating. When I glared at it, the parrot flinched.
And the Regressor, frightened for no reason, shrank back. What’s your problem?
[It’s about the Divine!]
“The Divine?”
[Yes. Is it true that the Progenitor Tyrkanzyaka has become the Divine of Animals?]
“The Divine of Animals? She’s not really the Divine of Animals. If anything, she’s the Divine of Blood.”
At that, the parrot bobbed its head up and down and let out a cawing cry.
[Why, why?]
“What do you mean, why? A Divine is a Divine because they’re a Divine. If you’re asking me why she’s a Divine…? And in the first place, she’s the one who single-handedly created the vampire race. Is it really that strange? You became an Elder by receiving her blood, too.”
[That was for research! I was trying to uncover the mysteries of the Progenitor’s blood to become a Divine myself! But to think she would beat me to it…!]
Among the Progenitor’s thirteen Elders, the Great Witch was a little different. The darkness that loomed over the jungle and the teacher of all witches, the Great Witch was the head of her own faction. The Progenitor and the Great Witch had shared their treasures as equals. The Great Witch offered her knowledge, and the Progenitor, her blood. The two darknesses of the continent had colluded to become more complete.
But an Elder was still an Elder. In the eyes of the world, it must have seemed as though the Great Witch had joined the Progenitor’s faction. After all, the vampires who once ruled the world were far more powerful than a group of reclusive witches.
[Tyrkanzyaka…! How dare she be born before me! How dare she be stronger than me! And now she's even become a Divine? That's just too much!]
Perhaps that perception had left the Great Witch with a slight inferiority complex.
The parrot, which had been throwing a tantrum, turned to me and seethed.
[King of Humans, I heard that a Divine changes you.]
“That’s not limited to me. A Divine changes the world itself, so I am also affected.”
[Whatever! It’s basically the same thing!]
I don’t think you should gloss over that, but fine, I’ll let it slide for now.
[How can I become a Divine like Tyrkanzyaka? Tell me the way.]
“Why are you asking me?”
[The Divine is human. As the King of Humans, you must know!]
“Ask the Divine. It’s not like you and Tyr don’t know each other.”
[Then it would seem like I’m beneath Tyrkanzyaka!]
“But that’s the truth. What’s the problem? Whether by reputation or by accomplishments, it makes sense for Tyr to become the Divine.”
[What do I lack!]
“Dignity, charisma, strength, power, fame, looks. Oh, and age, too.”
[Shut uuuuup!]
The enraged parrot flapped its wings and took flight. It looked fierce enough to peck and scratch my face at any moment, but I am human. I will not be defeated by a mere lightweight bird. I snatched its neck in an instant and twisted its wings.
[Squawk, squawk! Let go!]
“You’re quite strong. Is it because you’re the Great Witch’s familiar? But I am not so weak as to lose to a mere parrot.”
[Let go of Polly at once! You haven’t forgotten that I am the Great Witch, have you! How dare you touch my precious familiar? You must not be afraid of meeting me again!]
“Oh? And what about you? You haven’t forgotten that I am the King of Humans, have you?”
The parrot stopped struggling. Its eyes darted around before it spoke defiantly.
[H-Hmph. All bluff, now that you’ve lost your power. I-I know. The King of Humans lost all his power and fell asleep…]
“And I’m currently consulting with Nevida to get that power back. And what? Are you asking if I’m afraid of meeting you again? Hey. Do you really want to meet me on bad terms after I’ve regained my strength?”
The parrot’s eyes darted around once more. It quietly folded its wings and retracted its talons, avoiding my gaze.
[…N-No.]
Nevida’s attitude was that as long as the King of Humans was revived, she didn’t care what happened afterward, but the Great Witch was different. She was cooperating with Nevida for her own purposes. She would want to maintain as friendly a relationship as possible with the King of Humans. Whether that King of Humans was me or not, well, whatever.
That was enough of a threat. I put on a bright smile and gently placed the parrot back on the Regressor’s head.
“Of course. I also wish to remain on good terms with you, Great Witch. After all, you are a friend to animals, which means you are a friend to humans.”
[Y-Yes. Thank you…]
“By the way, Great Witch. Why do you want to become a Divine?”
[Th-That’s… for… for revenge.]
“Revenge? Whose revenge?”
[Th-…at’s.]
“Pardon?”
Her speech was so garbled I couldn’t understand her. I guess I really needed my mind-reading. As I grumbled internally and asked again, a clear voice flowed from the parrot’s beak.
[For the vengeance of the World Tree that burned and fell. To honor the spirit of the blessed Maidenhair Tree.]
The parrot’s eyes fixed on a single point. With its feathers settled, the Great Witch’s parrot spoke with a calm and composed demeanor, quite unlike a bird.
[Now, I will shatter the last remaining World Tree, Metasequoia.]