Chapter 430: Wanting to be helpful

=...and that’s why you can’t turn animals into kaijin yet. Understand milord?=

Zhen Liu stared at Logos with his eyes wide and mouth shut, unsure of what to make of the massive information dump he was just given. Eventually though, he managed to focus his thoughts into two questions.

"Okay...first off, why did you give me a lecture as opposed to immediately downloading the information into my brain like usual? That’s how you guys normally relay this kind of information."

As soon as Zhen Liu mentioned this fact, Logos paused and had this look of shocked realization on his face.

=Oh yeah...we can do that,= Logos mumbled while his eyes trailed off into empty space.

Luckily for him, Pathos picked up the beat while he was zoning out.

<I think we’ve been hanging around the kids too long. We’re too used to actually teaching now as opposed to downloading stuff into your brain case now, milord. But since you pointed it out, we’ll make sure to download everything you need to know in the future.>

"Wonderful...," Zhen Liu trailed off, "Second question, are you sure what you just explained to me applies to...whatever this is?," Zhen Liu asked while waving his arm in the direction of the glass box.

As if understanding it was being pointed at, the robotic tapeworm spine spider woke back up and started walking in circles again.

"Y’all said I can’t turn mundane animals into kaijin because, and I am paraphrasing, injecting a desire core into an animal without the proper preparation was the equivalent of hooking up a flashlight to a nuclear battery?"

<That is correct, although I think our original example had more blood involved...>

"Right, so...this thing is clearly no longer a normal animal, it’s not acting as crazy as an abomination and it sure as hell ain’t an aether beast...I think. What’s stopping me from giving it a core and cutting it from that [Ultimate Desire] thing? You know, give it a desire that is a bit less...ultimate?"

<=Uh...=>

Both Logos and Pathos shared a look with another, one that Zhen Liu recognized as being the type of look figures of authority would share when they got asked something that they should’ve definitely have an answer for, but didn’t.

Zhen Liu stared at the two in disbelief, because there was no way he was the first Kaijin Lord to think about installing a core like this into some collateral damaged chaos mutant thing.

"Hold up, am I seriously the first-"

[Uh, director? Is now a bad time?]

’Huh? What’s up, Razorstella? You feel panicked.’

But before Zhen Liu could ask his question, he was interrupted by a sudden message and a wave of panic coming from his bond with Razorstella. Whatever it was, it probably wasn’t good.

[Well, we kinda got ourselves into a situation.]

’What kind of situation?’

[One involving Spring Brawler and your grandfather...at the same time.]

’What.’

[They’re having a heart to heart conversation,] Hurricroak added.

’What?’

[About...you...,] Frosttusk finished.

’What?!’

________________________________________________

As the PS Nimona made it’s way across the sea, it’s destination being Pearl Tusk’s sister harbor, a particular guest on board it was busy going over the story he had been regaled by the captain just a few days prior, all whilst leaning on the ship’s railing and taking in the sight of the passing sea.

"I was informed by the drydock that my ship would be ready for pick up the next day. When I arrived it had somehow transformed, from bow to stern, from a sturdy galleon that I’ve sailed in for years to this Dozing Salamander paddle steamer were standing on right now. I’m not entirely upset by the whole thing, because it’s still my ship and I’ll love it even if it suddenly changes on me, but I am confused on who did all this. I mean, I’ve heard of generosity, but this is crazy! Making matters weirder, my only clue on who done it? This single note, apologizing for breaking her in the first place," the captain had told Zhen Shi when he asked about how the former’s ship had suddenly transformed.

Zhen Shi was tempted at the time to tell the captain, his own encounter with the mysterious people who fixed the latter’s ship, but stopped when he recalled that it was still technically his own grandson that had done the deed.

’I suppose there isn’t a massive leap in logic between making puppets and making steam ships,’ Zhen Shi mused, ’especially ones as absurd as the ones Xiao Liu creates...wait, does that mean this ship might have one of those spirits he used on me?’

Back at the estate, Zhen Liu would often train not in the family training grounds, rather in an abandoned quarry that was still part of the property.

When Zhen Shi had asked Zhen Liu why he chose to practice his craft out there in the desert sun, the latter replied, "my puppets are bit too rowdy to have them practice in the family arena. Besides, the less people who know about what my puppets can do, the better to surprise them with later."

A completely reasonable response given how he had witnessed firsthand just how absurdly powerful those puppets were in a fight, especially when Zhen Liu could also use them to channel the aether art abilities he wasn’t normally capable of doing. Keeping such a thing secret made for a powerful trump card, but alas, a part of him did wish he could see how Zhen Liu managed to perform such feats with a careful eye.

Being patriarch meant having to juggle a lot of responsibilities in making sure the clan as a whole can prosper, while leaving very little personal time. Therefore, when he did get free moments to watch his family spar and train, he would normally just stop by the family’s internal arena so that he could save time on getting back to work.

There were a few rare moments though where Zhen Liu would practice in the arena with one of his puppets, but these sessions were always rather tame.

The boy would just go through some physical forms while having one of his puppets follow along. It was somewhat impressive to watch, given how radically different all of the puppets were built but were still somehow in perfect synch with their puppeteer, but it wasn’t the level of absurdity that he had witnessed when in battle. In essence, he knew when he saw someone holding back their power.

’Bah, enough thinking for now. Time to do some walks around the ship...maybe go see Zhen Wang about what to expect when we arrive to port...then contact Xiao Long about possible escape plans if shit goes south,’ Zhen Shi thought to himself as he moved away from the railings and back into the corridors proper, ’wonder what my kids are up to right now?’

Now, it may sound odd that Zhen Shi wanted to see firsthand what his fourth grandson could do when he did cut loose and used his puppets abilities at full power, but that was because of a recent re-evaluation of his heart.

After having been reminded of his beloved’s dying wish through a surprisingly spiritual encounter, Zhen Shi began to take a bit more of an active role in the lives of his children and grandchildren, beyond the usual capabilities of a patriarch...sort of.

He began to help train and teach the younger members of his family in a more direct manner, sharing with them his own insights and helping them improve their techniques if need be.

Zhen Shi had done this for Zhen Hai, Zhen Yue, Zhen Xing, etcetera, but he hadn’t done so for Zhen Liu yet.

Perhaps his fourth grandson didn’t need the help, but Zhen Shi couldn’t get the thought out of his head that he needed to assist the boy at some point in his lifetime.

Besides...he still needed to pay him back for the youth, the memories and the flower.

’And I will also need to figure out a way to make it up to his master, whomever they may-’

"Oh come on! Quit fighting so much! This bites!"

"Huh?"

Just as Zhen Shi turned the corner of the hallway, he came across the sight of a teenage boy in a sailor’s uniform, struggling to keep a hold of a surprisingly wild fishing pole.

’Hmmm. Looks like there are other poles near him...must mean he came in a group...but where are they?’

Zhen Shi was just about to shrug his shoulders and continue walking, leaving the boy to either break the pole or call for help, until he saw that the kid almost went overboard because of the fishing pole.

’Oh shit!’

Moving as fast as he could, Zhen Shi rushed over in an instant to make sure that the kid didn’t fall overboard.

"Don’t worry, boy! I got ya!"

________________________________________________

"SORRYLOGOSPATHOSBUTIGOTTAGORIGHTNOW,BYEEEEE!"

=Of course, milord=

<See you later, milord.>

Logos and Pathos watched and waved as they saw their lord leave the library as quick as a rabbit with it’s tail on fire.

Once their lord had left the premises, the two incorporeal beings turned their attention back to the mechanical spinal worm-spider. As they stared, the observed specimen continued to do their own thing.

<So...do you have any idea why our lord is going through so much effort to try and spare this UMA?>

=Huh? Why you asking me for, you’re the empathetic one. Also, what’s a UMA?=

<Unidentified Mysterious Animal, rolls off the tongue better than "Chaos Mutant Beast". Also, I’m asking you because you’re the one who’s been making notes on the guy, especially after learning what "psychology" was.>

=Ah...well, as far as I can tell, there are two reasons.=

<Oh?>

=One: He relates to the circumstances of this parasitic beast more than he’s willing to share with us.=

<Of course.>

=Second: He’s just that kind of guy.=

<Ah...is what he suggested actually possible?>

=That’s thing...I can’t calculate an outcome.=

<Really?>

=Really.=

<Huh...well then...here we go again...>