Side Note

Hello, hello, it's me, hanging upside down. So as it turns out, sneaking into a demon-infused city is apparently against their law. The fortunate thing is that it isn't punishable by death. Unfortunately, I'm the only one in our party who wears a skirt. Why am I always hung by the feet in these situations? All these people can see the fact that I don't do maintenance on the magic dagger I have. It's so rusty, blunt, and… uh… third adjective. Oh, and I guess I should also be humiliated because of the public showing of my panties and the marks Mel leaves. She's so naughty sometimes, and you guys don't get to see it. 

As for how we got captured… I have no idea. What I do know is that Sherry hung herself. I know at least that part because I was awake for it. 

"Hey, guys…" Rika calls out to us. I think she's at the other end. "How's it hanging?"

The three between us let out a collective groan. 

"Well, since we're stuck here, do you guys want to have girl talk?" Rika proposes in a casual tone, completely ignoring our current predicament.

"I do not wish to converse with you," Rio yells out, to the surprise of a nearby demon who was just walking by. "You annoy me, cretin."

"Ah, yes," Mel says with a sarcastic tone. Have I mentioned I like it when Mel is sarcastic? "This is the perfect time for girl talk."

"I don't want to do girl talk… all this hanging is making me kind of sick." Seriously… I do not like being upside down.

"I could really go for some cake," Sherry says in a joyful tone. "Do you think they will accept if I ask to duel a demon to the death for some cake?"

Mel looked like she was about to retort when horns suddenly started blaring, and loud marching could be heard nearby. The small crowd of demons watching us quickly knelt down at the sound of the horns, making way for a small, hooded figure followed by a flying sea snake, a medium-sized fly… and is that just a dude on a toilet? No, wait, that isn't a toilet. It's just the way he's sitting on his floating chair.

"The Overlord." Rika lets out a scoff. "To what pleasure do we owe you?"

"I wish to execute you." The Overlord held their hand towards us, causing the three demons around them to start collecting magic power. Oh man… this is a worse execution than the Chaos Storm… I wonder how she's doing. Surprisingly, however, the Overlord puts their hand down.

"But, I know Madeleine's odd ability to evade death." They aim their hand higher, letting out five saws of flame that cut the ropes that hung us. Wait, wait, wai- URK! Ow… my head. I looked up to glare like the other three (Sherry was smiling, for some reason) when they suddenly pulled down the hood to reveal that they were… a child! Oh my god, a child! A sheep beastkin child! A… wait, Merry? "Yes. It is me. The Abyss affects people differently. Apparently, it made me regress. But enough side talk, state your business."

"We're here for the God of Souls." Rika got up and brushed herself, then calmly addressed Merry. Finally, someone who does the talking! 

"Very well then. However," Merry pointed at me. "Only she and her lover may talk to the prisoner. I do not trust you or the mercenary."

Sherry waved her arms. "Do you trust me?!"

"Family is a whole different matter." Merry said to Sherry… man, their family sucks at names, now that I think about it. She then turned to me. "The prison is at the former location of the RO. You should know where it is."

Before Mel and I could go, Rika stopped me to tell me something. "Look into the Soul God's eyes, then tell him you want to see the Judge."

"Aye aye, captain!" And off Mel and I went.

"Hey, niece?"

"What?"

"If I fight Leviathan, can I get cake?"

"Haa… no."

Hi guys, it's me, future Mendass wrestling champion Madeleine. So… funny news. I am currently in a line. A very long line. A line filled with nothing but silent, boring folks, ever so slowly walking forward every now and then. This feels very familiar. You know, it feels like I'm supposed to gradually lose my sense of self while waiting in this queue, but it's not happening. I feel as full of thought as I did back when I read an entire library. Did you know magic wasn't even supposed to be a thing normal could use in Mendass? A former holder of "The Magician" apparently gave up his Sacred Power to give the masses magic. Wild, innit? Also, the God of Soul's eyes were a cool purple. He also had this:

"You… you are here again. Why?" Ooh, look, it's the cloaked guy who doesn't have a body except for hands. 

"Umm… shadow clones? Does that make sense?"

"Ah, so you're the one they are waiting for. Very well then, I shall take you to them." He gestures outwards, away from the line. "Follow me."

"Okie dokie." He walks off, I follow him, and eventually, we reach a singular door that looks like it leads nowhere. He opens it, revealing a room with chairs lined across its walls. On one half of the room are the Shadow Clones, who all seem to be playing a big game of Go Fish, while on the other half, right in the middle of the wall farthest from the group, is Cookie. Huh.

"This is the holding room for beings without true souls, thus meaning they cannot be judged." The Judge claps his hands, alerting the clones of our presence. "You are free to go."

They all jump up in joy, then one by one, make their way into my shadow, with each shadow clone entering making me feel slightly better. Like my soul is being made complete. That's neat. The only one who didn't come forward was Cookie, which I was grateful for. She did try to eat my soul.

As soon as the last shadow clone that wasn't Cookie returned to the Shadowrealm, I turned away, making my way towards two doors that I knew would return me to the living. Man… I really enjoy this whole memory thing. Before I could go further, the Judge grabbed my skirt, stopping me. I turned to him. "I will not take back Cookie."

"Oh, this isn't about her." He put his hand inside his cloak, fiddled around a little, and then took out a badge and an envelope. "Do you know a God by the name of Croen?"

"Skeleton?"

"Indeed."

"Yes. Yes, I do."

"Put that badge on him. He stole something from me, and that badge should return it to me."

"Coolio." I grabbed the badge and put it into my dagger dimension thing. "What's the envelope for?"

"The wedding invitation." Oh yeah, I invited him. "If you put my invitation in it, it'll teleport to me, meaning you won't have to die to give it to me."

"Got it!"

"Now, have a good day."

"You too!" And into the terrible door I walked.

Character profile: God of Souls

Sacred power: Soul Manipulation

Favourite city: Seoul

Description: The God of Souls. He's the one in charge of ensuring the safety of every soul in Mendass, which means he has a hard job since nearly 100,000 different people suffer from soul-related injuries every day. He tries his best, but many soul attacks fall under his radar. He's also supposed to stop the making of artificial souls. He is annoyed by Madeleine, due to her artificial nature and the fact that she technically birthed Cookie, a soul eater whose abilities superseded even his.

Chapter namesake: Overlord by Big Black Delta

pojlk

For some reason, the Judge of Souls being invited to Madeleine and Mel's wedding is a detail that stayed in my mind. That and the teleporter from chapter 2 that kidnapped the butler. Y'all remember that? The original joke was that I would resolve that at chapter 998... that joke sure got cut short.