The Demon Lord's Bride (BL)
Chapter 428: That time I became Doctor Doolittle in another world

Chapter 428: That time I became Doctor Doolittle in another world

Immediately, I straightened my back. "What should I do? What should I do?"

Amarein chuckled and pointed at my hand. "For now, finish that, and then we’ll have lunch first before continuing."

"Eeeh? Can’t we do it right away?"

It was something I had wanted to do ever since I saw Amarein do it before. Hmm...no--it was something I wanted to do since we boarded that airship, and I was disappointed about staying inside the cabin while taking off. Lesta told me about Druid’s fusion back then, and I was immediately intrigued.

And then, seeing Amarein and Halurean do it in front of my eyes...of course I would be impatient!

But Amarein shook her head with that firm smile resembling a governess. "Just like how I told you to absorb mana, you should also fuel your body. It will be bad if you feel hungry in the middle of the process and break your concentration."

Well...she wasn’t wrong about that. I looked up at the sun and realized now that I was hungry. As usual, the passage of time felt like a blur every time I did purification. As if responding to that thought, my stomach made a sound, and so did Jade, who was tackling my waist.

"Papa! Yummy ball? Yummy ball for Jade?"

The wide, round, innocent eyes looking up at me tickled my mischievous cell. "Jade knows not every mana sphere I make is for Jade, right?"

The green eyes dimmed a little bit as the line of the boy’s mouth bowed. "Oh..." and perhaps, because he remembered how the purified mana I gathered in the Human Realm always getting sent back to the environment, Jade nodded. "Okay, Jade understand..."

He said that, with a saddened look and voice. Aww...I felt bad, but it was adorable. And I was so proud! Jade managed to hold back and gave up without a fuss, even when he was clearly salivating for it. With a smile on my face, I crouched and ruffled the green hair with my free hand.

"But since Jade is such a good child, Papa will give you some."

The green eyes lit up again, and Jade jumped up and down with raised arms, even happier than before. "Yaay! Yaay!"

Well, I could understand his excitement. The purified mana I created in the Realm of Nature was tastier, the way Gluttony’s candy was tastier for the fairies. Perhaps that was why the fairies looked at us in intrigue, surrounding the mana ball on my palm while buzzing in curiosity.

"Hmm...what do fairies usually eat?"

"They are spirits, so the only thing they need to sustain themselves is mana," Amarein said while spreading the blanket for our lunch picnic. "Not that they need to ingest it in a special way. They just need to breathe in mana like we breathe in air."

"In that case...would it be alright if they try this too?" I pointed at the mana ball.

"I don’t see why not."

I looked at Jade next. "Jade, would it be alright if the fairies try it? Would Jade share?"

Whether it was because he had learned about the joy of sharing, or because he was in a good mood, Jade nodded without hesitation. "Yes!"

Not only that, Jade conveyed it to the fairies himself, and they buzzed in curiosity before perching on the boy’s head and shoulder as if waiting for a queue.

Ah, I’m so proud.

I condensed the purified mana that I didn’t absorb myself as much as possible so it became small and dense, and perfect for Jade’s hands. When it reached the size of an apple--a rainbow apple--I stopped and digested the rest for myself.

Jade, like a good but impatient boy, held up his palms to wait for the rainbow apple and when he held it carefully in his hand, he took a bite--literally like eating an apple. It was rather fascinating since I never fed Jade this purified mana ball when he was in human form before, so I had been wondering how he would ingest it. The bird Jade would usually roll around inside the mana ball or drown its head inside a smaller-sized one.

"Mmm!" Jade wiggled in satisfaction, and from what he told me next, the mana ball melted in his mouth like cotton candy.

Fascinating, isn’t it?

The fairies also took a bite in interest, but they didn’t have the same reaction as Jade. They just nodded repeatedly, and then went over to me and asked for some candy. These naughty children even nuzzled my cheek and fiddled with my hair as if coaxing me, which was funny considering all the scary stories about them.

But I knew they would turn hellish if I didn’t give them anything after they begged like this, so I gave them a small crystal of Gluttony candy each, and they happily ran around the lake while consuming the candy.

And that was how we were all enjoying our lunch under the bright sky and the freshest air that made Letta’s delicious food even more delicious. Ah...what a blessing it was; in this life where I could eat whatever I wanted to, I was surrounded by people who always gave me delicious food.

The delicious food and nice environment filled me to the brim with energy and I got even more impatient before we started the lesson.

So I asked her while we ate. "How are we going to do it, Aunty?"

"Obviously, you won’t do any fusion just yet," Amarein said as if reading my exact thoughts like Natha used to do. She immediately added before I could have the time to feel disappointed. "It’s dangerous to attempt it right away, no matter how proficient you are now at controlling mana."

She paused and had this stern expression, before speaking again. "You know what? I’ll start by telling you the danger it would pose."

Oh. I got a bit tensed and straightened my back in attention--while biting on my breadstick.

"During a fusion, you are essentially immersing yourself in the mind and soul of the animal you choose," she started. "The mana forming your body shifting to move inside the animal. Some demons like your dearest Nightmare could possess others, but that only extends to the soul. What we druids do, meanwhile, is move our whole being--body and soul--inside the contracted animal, and take over."

I nodded. That was why there needed to be consent between the druid and the animal about to be fused. It was about ethics, yes, but there was also something else.

"When you’re inside another entity’s soul, there are a lot of things that might go wrong," her voice became even sterner as she looked at me sharply. "You might become too immersed and think that you’re actually the animal, not the druid, and you end up never changing back."

Something suddenly came to mind. "Is there a druid who chose to just stay at that animal, like...intentionally?"

"There are, but you don’t want that, do you?" Amarein narrowed her eyes, and then continued after I shook my head swiftly. "There are also cases when the druid and the animal separate after fusion, but their soul switched."

I gasped; the breadstick in my hand fell to the blanket. "Wha..."

"There are also cases where the animal and the druid fused into...a different kind of entity; no longer an animal, no longer a druid, like--"

"A chimera?"

"Perhaps, whatever that is," Amarein smiled, probably enjoying my dreary expression. "But now you know how dangerous it is."

I nodded repeatedly, and then took a big gulp of fruit juice freshly made by Letta this morning to soothe my brain. I mean...I knew fusion was dangerous, but I didn’t know the extent.

"If...what if it happened to me?"

"That’s why I’m here," Amarein pinched my nose. "This is what an older druid should do when the youngling is learning. If the worst-case situation happens, I can secure you first and work to get you back to your original state."

"In that case...would the returning process be long?" I asked while gulping. "I mean...I have a wedding in twenty days..."

Amarein tilted her head and smiled deeply. "You shouldn’t miss, then."

Ugh--easier said than done. Was this her way of saying I better suck it up and learn little by little instead of being impatient?

Haa...I got it.

I nodded and faced her seriously. "So, what should I do first?"

I was ready for some rigorous training, but all Amarein said was...

"Converse," she gestured at the space around us. "The more you understand them, the easier it is for you to fuse. And after fusing, that understanding will give a distinctive identity that separates you and the animal you fused with, preventing you from getting lost in the other creature’s mind."

She pinched my chin then, leaning forward slightly to stare at me. "Especially my dear nephew who gets distracted too easily."

"I...I’m better at concentrating now!" I argued, which wasn’t a lie. I had better at concentrating ever since practicing that morning breathing exercise. Meditation, they said.

"I guess, but who knows?" she smirked, as if to challenge me.

Ugh--fine. I did still let my mind wander at times, and she did give me a promise of that approval letter to give to Natha, so she could say whatever for now.

And with this, my road to fusion skills began...

By talking to every animal I could find around the lake.

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