Chapter 1221: Three Paths
Leaning back on her chair, Shiro was completely silent while the mob of villagers shouted obscenities at her. Their cries of injustice and the supposed 'actions' she performed echoed across the lantern but Shiro didn't say anything.
She wanted for them to get everything off their chest before she tried to persuade them. After all, she doubted they would listen to her while still harbouring all this anger in their heart.
{Their slander is pretty annoying.} Nimue said as Shiro could see anger building up within her.
'Yeah I know. But they're just victims in this. From their perspective, I am indeed the person who caused all this misery in them. You know my personality, if I was in their shoes, it wouldn't end with just shouting obscenities.' Shiro replied.
Thinking back to this, Shiro envisioned herself standing in front of Aekari at this moment.
The moment she envisioned herself in this situation, killing intent threatened to burst out from within her. However, Shiro managed to control herself as the villagers would no doubt be traumatised by her killing intent. It was not something ordinary people could handle.
Shaking her head, Shiro swept her gaze across the now fatigued crowd who tired themselves out from all the shouting.
"I believe we should be able to have a normal conversation now? My only question to you is, if I'm the same person as the one who did all of this to you, why would I bother listening to you? Helping you return to your normal form after being melded together into those puppets?" Shiro asked as the villagers paused for a moment and started to discuss amongst themselves.
"And I know what you're also thinking. 'You look just like her', it's a little complicated but you can just think of us as two people who look the same. Now! With all of you finally calmed down, I hope you can answer some of my questions as to what you want to do from now on." Shiro said as she stood up and dismissed the chair.
Most of the villagers were still sceptical about her identity but the fact remains. She helped them and she's not doing anything to them right now.
Seeing that most of them have settled down and were willing to talk, Shiro smiled and clapped her hands.
"Fantastic. Now then shall we discuss your future? I have three paths that you can choose from. The first path is standard reincarnation. I can make it so that you return to the flow of life and be reborn. However, the process might be a little painful or soothing since I need to repair your souls." Shiro said as a door labelled 'Reincarnation' appeared next to her.
"Option 2 is revival. If you have any attachments to the current world and want to keep living, you may. I will reconstruct your soul and body so that you can live as you once did. Naturally, if you pick this, there is a chance you might be captured and transformed back to puppets since I can't guarantee anything. I'm not your personal bodyguard after all."
Finishing her sentence, the second door appeared with the word 'Revival' etched on the surface.
"If the first choice is reincarnation and the second is revival what's the third?" A voice called out from within the crowd. After all, there's nothing else beside reincarnation and revival.
"The third choice is for you to fight. I will revive you and then equip you with some special equipment to help you fight and survive. In return, you will work for me while I remain in this world. You will travel from place to place fighting puppets and giving the souls within a second chance at life with the choice of three paths. Essentially what I'm doing for you now." Shiro smiled as she could see some young men being interested in the third option but their fear was obvious.
"Naturally, if you work for me your safety is guaranteed. You will not die because I will give you a tiny goddess on your shoulder to protect you while you work~ I can't have my workers dying on me now can I?"
Snapping her fingers, a tiny Shiro appeared on her shoulder and gave the crowd a cute little wave.
"She is your own personal murder fairy if you run into danger and she will also help me keep an eye on you to make sure you are doing your work. Don't worry, I won't be peeking if you go to the toilet." Shiro joked to relieve some of the tension.
"The tiny fairy has more than enough power to keep you safe and kill puppets. If you run into anything stronger, it will send a message to me and I will send more of my power to help you survive the ordeal. If you doubt my power, just know I'm a goddess and I can kill anything and everything."
Seeing the cheerful smile on Shiro's face while talking about slaughter, some of the villagers couldn't help but shudder at her demeanour. In this aspect, she was no different to the 'Shiro' that turned all of them into puppets.
While the villagers decide amongst themselves which path they wanted to take, Shiro turned her attention back to real life as her little stunt should have attracted some unwanted attention. After all, if puppets were sent to monitor the situation and they suddenly disappear, she would investigate the location personally.
Peeking out from her lantern, the area was oddly quiet. As though there was nothing wrong with the location.
'Do you think they gave up and didn't care?' Shiro asked as Nimue shrugged her shoulders.
{It's definitely strange. There should be another wave of puppets at the minimum. But for there to not even be a speck of movement is odd.}
Furrowing her brows, Shiro excused herself from the lantern world. Kneeling down, she placed her hand against the ground and sent out a pulse of energy.
Detecting every living thing or construct above and below ground within several miles of her location, Shiro frowned as she realised it was only her and the puppets around this area. Nothing else 'lived' here.
Entering the lantern world once more, Shiro tried to get an answer from the villagers but their memory was hazy from their time as a puppet so they couldn't give her an answer.
"Excuse me." A voice called out as Shiro glanced over and saw a middle-aged man with scars around his arms.
"Yes?"
"My son is a scholar, he should know a lot about the world. Most of us are just farmers or hunters in the countryside so our knowledge is limited. If you go north and find the city of Hazel, my son is a student there. He should be able to help you." The man replied as he hoped Shiro could ensure his son's survival for the reward of knowledge.
"Hmm… I don't see why not. Usually, I would've asked you to seek him out yourself using path three if you're worried about his safety. But… I am in need of information regarding this world. Lead the way and I'll do what I can to ensure his safety." Shiro smiled.
Before the man could respond, a few of the other villagers tried the same tactic, proclaiming that their children are more knowledgeable than his. However, a silent warning glare from Shiro was enough to make them shut up. They didn't have the incentive to take the initiative, therefore they can seek out their relatives themselves by picking path three.
As the rest of the villagers finished choosing their paths, Shiro could see that many of the elderly chose to reincarnate as there were no relatives or attachments left in this world while most of the adults picked path three.
Naturally, there were also quite a few that picked path two for a myriad of reasons, but Shiro didn't care and respected their choices. She wasn't going to force them to fight if they didn't want to.
Taking care of those that wanted to be reincarnated first, it took till the middle of the night before she finished reconstructing physical bodies for the villagers.
While they set up camp, Shiro sat down and took a deep breath before sighing. While she wasn't fatigued physically, she was exhausted mentally.
'Most of the people that didn't want to fight are still going to travel with us for a little while so they can settle down in a city. After all, new puppets will most likely replace the ones that disappeared today and their safety is not guaranteed.'
{I don't get them though. Why choose path 2 when 3 guarantees their safety?} Nimue crossed her arms while observing the villagers.
'Well, some are just sick of fighting. Me and you are used to it, so our instinct is to choose path 3. But do remember that most of these are just civilians who worked odd jobs to survive.' Shiro chuckled as she thanked one of the villagers for bringing her some cooked food. She had brought out some supplies she had left some food in her inventory just in case she went on an adventure with Yin and it was more than enough to feed the villagers.
Keeping watch for the night, Shiro was glad the villagers managed to get a good night's rest after being tormented as puppets for so long.