Epic of Caterpillar

“I never was able to properly thank them for everything they did for me. It kind of sucks to know that I will never be able to do so now.” He sighed.

“Oh… How long do elves live?” I wondered.

“Roughly five thousand years.” Said Luminous.

“That’s quite a lot…!” I said.

“Even then, they age and ultimately die of old age like all other races. I saw even the youngest girl slowly age until she became an old grandma… She… Since I hatched that this little girl always came to see me. Back then I was still learning many things, and I was childish and also very stupid. I often ended following her around and played with her, chasing her… But her parents made her busy, I think she was a former Princess of the Kingdom of the Elves.” He said, recalling the past.

“An ancient elf princess?”

“Yeah… Nonetheless, she kept visiting me each year, a few times per year, always bringing me meat and fruits, talking to me about her life, and smiling… I never truly realized how precious she was for me… That she was like my first friend… I… I never asked her what her name was… This might be… one of my biggest regrets.” Luminous said, as small tears began to flow from his draconic eyes.

“Luminous…” I couldn’t help but pity him a bit, as I expanded a limb made out of Divine Aura and Phantasmal Aura and petted his head.

“Well, don’t get sad that it ended, get happy that it happened… I know it sounds super cliché, but it kind of comes in handy in this situation. If you simply concentrate in the regrets, you’ll never truly get over it. Have you tried, perhaps, trying to research for her? If she was a princess of the elves, Elfina might know something. How about we ask her about this tomorrow?” I asked. “I bet you’ll get a surprise somehow.”

“Hah… You’re always quite cheerful, I don’t know how you exactly do it, I guess there’s just something on you that makes you this way.” Said Luminous with a mild smile.

“Well, I was just sad some moments ago but you cheered me up, so I did the same for you. It’s just giving you back the favor… Don’t worry, you’re not alone anymore, Luminous- Actually, you never were alone.”

“Hm… Perhaps…”

Luminous rested by resting his head over his arms and quickly decided to sleep for real. I also decided to take a nap and calm down for the night. We went through a lot of stuff after all, a little nap to recover is never a bad thing… Though I wish I could take one with my dear wives, all cuddling in bed to share warmth like we always did. It was special nice in very cold days…

Hah~ Well, if I keep thinking about that, I’ll never stop getting depressed. I’ll just close my eyes and let my body do the rest for now.

“Goodnight, mama.” Aquamarine whispered to me through telepathy.

“Ah, good night, dear. Let’s sleep for now.” I said.

“Mama… What’s is like to have a body?” Wondered Aquamarine.

“Well, you can turn into a Beast now, right?” I wondered.

“I can?!” He asked shocked.

“Y-You don’t realize the Skills you get?” I sighed.

“N-No…” Aquamarine seemed even more shocked.

“Well, let’s sleep and we see it tomorrow, alright?” I asked, as Aquamarine seemed to agree to my decision of leaving the investigation of his new Skill for tomorrow.

“Alright then!” Aquamarine seemed rather adorable as always.

“Have a nice sleep, dear master. I bet the sun will be beautiful and bright tomorrow~” White said.

“The night is relaxing, let’s rest.” Black said.

“Yeah, yeah, goodnight~” I sighed. I appreciated them always accompanying me, but sometimes they spoke a bit too much, especially now when I just wanted to sleep for god’s sake!

…Nonetheless, I really appreciate them, they’re like part of the family I had back in Genesis that came with me. Even though they’re the newest members, as they’re from there, they’re very special! Well, the spears were with for a long time through many challenges and I upgraded them a lot too, so I guess they could be said to be older.

And also Aquamarine was the pendant that my adorable and dear Rimuru gifted to me, which she crafted with all her love and care. And of course, it also contains the cute accessories and tiny gifts my baby Ailine gifted to me. And now he’s like a baby with such a personality, I can’t help but remember my adorable baby Ailine each time I hear his sweet voice. Ah~ I guess Aquamarine is really keeping me sane in this world. I don’t know what I would do without him, especially with his handy set of skills.

Oh well, for now, I should really just sleep already.

…

…

…

I slept so well and leisurely that I ended oversleeping. I was woken up by Luminous at roughly 10 AM. Wow, I really slept a lot. I was honestly quite tired after all that never-ending action of the previous day I suppose.

“You’re finally awake, come eat with the rest of us already.” Said Luminous.

“A-Alright… Ugh, I am not the best at waking up from bed though!” I complained,

“Good morning, Master.”

“It is a beautiful morning today, look the clear sky and the sun!”

“Mama, are you hungry? Eat lots!”

My dear Ego Weapons quickly greeted me with their words. Even Black was quite polite this morning, and White was as nice as ever, pointing the sky so I could see its beauty and cheer up a bit more. Aquamarine seemed to want me to eat, perhaps to compensate that he can’t eat…

“Sure thing! Also, I think you could eat too this time around, don’t you think, Aquamarine?” I asked him, as the pendant’s blue jewel shone brightly.

“Huh? What do you mean by that, mama?” He wondered.

“Use your new Skill [Beast Embodiment]! Maybe you can eat with it!” I said with a happy and cheerful voice.

“Ooooh! Right! I wonder what I could become!” Aquamarine said, quickly activating the skill.

The pendant flew out of my body as it gathered into a mass of blue light in front of me, suddenly growing in mass and slowly taking shape…

And it was…!