Chapter 385: Shut Up and Stop Butting In (Subscribe Please)

"Does it feel good?"

"……Heh."

Herbert lowered his head, gently patting the centaur Young Lady on the top of her head, signaling that she could release him and get up.

"Get up, stop acting spoiled."

Under Sophia's persistent, devout pursuit of learning, Herbert reluctantly agreed to her request — to teach her how to serve, and gave her a personal demonstration.

That's right, Herbert took the stage himself, showing her what a lap pillow was, letting her rest her head on his leg.

"……Oh."

After being nudged, Sophia groggily opened her eyes, looking a bit dazed.

She didn't get up right away, but kept her previous posture, lazily resting on Herbert's thigh, nearly falling asleep.

"Ah, ha……"

Although a spirit body doesn't need sleep, she still couldn't help letting out a big yawn at this moment.

She was a little sleepy.

That was quite a rarity.

That bit of drowsiness earlier meant nothing to a legendary Heroic Spirit — they were warriors who could fight without rest until the very last moment.

But that little bit of sleepiness quickly faded, and her spirit became unusually full.

As if someone had pumped her full of…… chicken blood!

After recovering for a while, Sophia, though reluctant, got up from Herbert's lap, but still didn't fully stand.

Instead, she knelt before Herbert again, head lowered, devoutly saying:

"I already know what to do now!"

"Thank you for your teaching! Please let me do it next time!"

She could faintly sense that, after being soothed by her lord, some subtle changes had occurred in her spirit!

Although she still didn't know what this change meant, it was undoubtedly a generous gift from Herbert to her.

"Heh, are you satisfied?"

"Mm!"

Herbert opened his eyes, smiled at her, and nodded.

"That's fine, this is good."

When he was giving Sophia the lap pillow, he was clearly soothing her, but he himself had, rare as it was, slipped into a dazed state.

While comforting another, he was also comforting himself.

Especially since the special texture on the surface of a spirit body's form differed from the skin of other monster girls — a very rare and novel experience.

Herbert raised his hand and stroked the centaur Young Lady's ponytail, smiling as he encouraged her: "This was just a trial this time, let's try more in the future."

Although he had only just completed the very first step, he was already looking forward to the progress to come.

By every measure, she was a promising talent — he looked forward to her future development.

"Yes! I will definitely work hard from now on!"

After being praised, Sophia grew even more delighted, feeling that her efforts had been recognized.

Keep it up, Sophia!

You will definitely be able to satisfy my lord Herbert!

Because she didn't understand the true meaning of "serve," Sophia didn't find anything embarrassing or shy about the current atmosphere, and quickly adjusted her mood, returning to the main topic.

"My lord, how do you plan to summon the other Heroic Spirits?"

She had fully accepted the arrangement to increase the number of Heroic Spirits, and now began wholeheartedly plotting strategies for Herbert.

"Are you planning to go recruit those fellows directly?"

Joanna and Miss Mise didn't know the source of Heroic Spirits, and were still wondering how Herbert would get more.

But Sophia knew clearly that deep within the Misty Mountains, in the depths of the mist, there were still many, many Heroic Spirits like her.

Not to mention far away — right on the path leading deep into the Misty Mountains, there was a group of wandering Heroic Spirits still active.

They were lost lambs, in need of their lord's guidance.

Those fellows weren't that strong — the strongest among them was only about on par with her, or even weaker.

"My lord! Please let me go forth and convey your will, let them follow behind you!"

Sophia volunteered, but was waved off and refused by Herbert.

"Don't rush, I know you're eager, but hold your horses first."

Herbert smiled as he stroked Sophia's head, and said leisurely: "The ones I want to summon this time aren't that bunch — although they can be recruited directly, they'd still take more effort to control."

If he had wanted to recruit those wandering Heroic Spirits, Herbert could have done so from the start — no need to wait until now.

Although those fellows could be put to use right away, their wills still remained, carrying a certain risk of backlash, and weren't easy to control.

What Herbert needed now were sheets of paper pure and white as new, upon which he could paint freely — just like Sophia.

Compared to ready-made combat power he could use immediately, what he needed more now was loyalty to him.

Loy! Alty!

To get by in this world, among singing, speaking, joking, and acting, one must at least have loyalty.

【"So, you're just going to leave those fellows alone like that?"】

Miss Harmony God butted in out of nowhere: 【"How heartless of you! That's really too much!"】

Herbert:?

And I'm the heartless one?

Herbert couldn't help but roll his eyes, retorting in his heart: "Hmm? When my lord is speaking, children should butt in less."

Nie Nasha:?

【"……Huh?"】

The Goddess of Harmony was dumbfounded.

She had never expected to get such a reply.

A child?

Me, me?

"Yes, I'm talking about you. Stop interrupting."

【"……Fine, you win."】

Nie Nasha conceded.

She expressed her respect for Herbert's shamelessness.

At most, I tell bare-faced lies, twisting the facts just a little.

But you—everything you say doesn't even touch a single fact!

You really are something! (Thumbs up)

"Heh-heh, if anyone absolutely must interrupt, then it's only me."

Herbert said proudly: "Only I interrupt others; no one else interrupts me."

Better that I betray the world than the world betray me!

"No one is allowed to interrupt—let me be the one to interrupt!"

Nie Nasha:?

The Goddess of Harmony suddenly felt something was off, and asked suspiciously: 【"Wait, you've repeated that so many times—is there something hidden in your words?"】

"Heh, whatever could you mean?"

To her questioning, Herbert played it cool on the surface, but laughed silently within.

Isn't that obvious?

All those dumplings I wrapped were just for this bit of vinegar.

Otherwise, you really think you're a child?

After successfully sending the Goddess of Harmony away with a few words about "interrupting," Herbert continued explaining to Sofia: "They're not in a hurry over there. We'll deal with it later."

Although Herbert had no intention of subjugating that group right now, everyone knew it was only a matter of time.

Given his greed, the day would come when they too belonged under his banner.

Herbert released Sofia and rose to tidy himself up.

He glanced sideways at the centaur girl standing to one side, watching him impassively, and shook his head slightly.

Sure enough, she still didn't understand.

Still not as considerate as Fu Leimei—she didn't even think to come over and lend a hand.

If Fu Leimei were here, he wouldn't have to dress himself.

After finishing with his clothes and confirming there were no problems, he asked: "Sofia, do you still remember the shards of the Heroic Spirit Pool we went looking for before?"

"Of course. All three were occupied, and you said to leave them for now…… Oh! I understand! You mean that chimera!"

The slow-witted Sofia finally realized where Herbert's confidence came from, and said excitedly: "The shard it was occupying has already been recovered by you and Lady Valentina?"

"Mm, that's right."

Herbert smiled and nodded: "Valentina has already tossed that pool outside of Elda."

"I confirmed it in advance—it's still functioning normally. A few adjustments and it'll be ready to use."

As for Herbert's "investigation"…… naturally that referred to bathing in it with Valentina to confirm its self-cleaning ability.

"But is just one shard enough?" Sofia hesitated.

Although she had forgotten many of her "memories," some basic knowledge still remained.

She didn't think a single shard alone could restore the Heroic Spirit Pool's summoning ability.

Strictly speaking, she wasn't wrong to think so.

Relying on a single incomplete shard of the Heroic Spirit Pool naturally couldn't perform an operation like summoning new heroic spirits.

Otherwise, anyone who obtained a shard could command an endless stream of heroic spirit summons.

This is a high-end operation touching the domain of the gods.

Of course, whether it can actually be done depends on who is doing it.

If it were any outsider, they definitely couldn't summon a single heroic spirit from that shard—they could only obtain the pool water it produced.

But Nie Nasha is no outsider.

This is Her Heroic Spirit Pool!

"Of course it can be done……"

【"Well! Although it's still missing just a teensy bit~ it's already enough now."】 Nie Nasha said, cutting Herbert off before he could speak.

The interrupted Herbert paused, then said helplessly in his heart:

"Tch, you're interrupting again."

【"Hehe! Try and stop me~ I'll interrupt! I'll interrupt!"】 Nie Nasha frolicked about noisily inside Herbert's head.

Having carelessly lost a round just now, she was naturally taking back the stage now.

"Childish!"

【"I'm a child! I'll be childish! La-la-la~"】

"……"

After a moment of silence, Herbert finally chose to surrender helplessly.

"Fine, you win this round."

【"Ha!"】

Two clashes, one win and one loss — the two of them finally ended in a draw.

Sophia, an outsider, naturally had no idea about the little drama playing out in Herbert and Nie Nasha's minds.

In her eyes, Herbert had simply paused in thought for a while, then quickly returned to normal — nothing strange about it.

"That fragment is already enough for now."

Herbert didn't explain further. Just as he had said before, that was something he needed to handle himself; Sophia didn't need to worry about it.

Sophia only had to attend to him well, but he had far more to consider.

"Right, how many soul cores have you collected nearby like I asked you before?"

The soul core is the most important part of every Heroic Spirit. As long as the soul core isn't completely destroyed, they still have the possibility of resurrection.

Even if their new life might be entirely different from their past, one still couldn't say they were dead.

To summon Heroic Spirits, the Heroic Spirit Pool is an indispensable foundation, and soul cores are the materials that need to be expended.

Before leaving Aeldra, Herbert had instructed Sophia to collect every soul core she came across while patrolling outside.

Whether damaged or not, gather them all together.

Those damaged soul cores were useless to anyone else, but Nie Nasha could fuse them back together.

Sophia nodded and reported respectfully: "My Lord, I have already collected them all as you instructed."

"A total of just over three hundred, of which roughly two hundred are completely ruined soul cores, and another roughly one hundred still retain faint traces of soul."

"Oh? Three hundred?"

Herbert blinked at the unexpected number: "That's quite a lot! Well done."

By his original estimate, Sophia would have collected at most around a hundred, quite possibly only fifty or sixty.

He hadn't expected her to exceed his expectations by several times over.

It seemed she had taken the initiative to venture into some dangerous places.

She deserves a reward!

He had to reward her properly.

"My Lord, actually these were not solely my own doing."

Sophia did not claim all the credit for herself, and explained with her head lowered:

"It was the Mist Wraith Wolves led by Aite that helped a great deal. While roaming and patrolling the surroundings, they gathered up those soul cores."

"Three-quarters of these soul cores were recovered by them."

Oh!

So it was them.

If she hadn't brought up the Mist Wraith Wolves, Herbert would have nearly forgotten he still kept a pack of such little watchdogs around the house.

"Mm, not bad. You've all done very well."

Herbert praised them a couple of times and smiled in satisfaction: "With these soul cores, the summoning can proceed normally from here on."

He asked inwardly: "Nie Nasha, roughly how many can be summoned?"

【"So impatient!"】

Nie Nasha thought for a moment and said: 【"It depends on the quality of those soul cores, but roughly speaking, can the ruined cores yield one in ten?"】

She would take those damaged soul cores in groups of ten, fuse them back together, and shape out a new Heroic Spirit.

【"The ones with residual souls can probably awaken about half? Of course, I'm referring to the first awakening. If the remaining failures continue to be nurtured in the Heroic Spirit Pool, I estimate more can still be awakened."】

Twenty, fifty… roughly seventy could ultimately be summoned?

Although not a hundred, that number was already more than his initial expectation.

One had to remember, Heroic Spirits were a group of nuclear-powered workhorses who needed no rest, food, or salary, and could work endlessly on nothing but passion and faith!

Not bad at all.

"Sophia, if all goes well, by this time tomorrow, you won't be lonely anymore."

Upon hearing this remark, the ever-loyal centaur Heroic Spirit unusually rebutted Herbert: "My Lord, you are mistaken."

"Mm? Where am I wrong?"

Herbert turned his head with a smile, intending to ask where exactly he was wrong, but closed his mouth upon seeing Sophia's serious expression.

The answer no longer needed to be asked.

This clumsy centaur Heroic Spirit had already written all her thoughts on her face, held them in her eyes.

Then, Sophia spoke: "Ever since I met you, I have never felt lonely."

Herbert raised an eyebrow and asked: "Even if I left you here? You don't feel lonely?"

The centaur showed a faint smile, bowed to him, lowered her head deeply, and said softly:

"Never."

(End of Chapter)