"I find it impressive you know stuff like this Lolo... where did you learn about the inventory?" I asked Lolo. She explained that she was told... but Fuki and I were never informed about such a thing.
"What else is there? I wasn't told anything when I was summoned in." I asked Lolo, but she didn't seem to know. I guess it made sense there would be an inventory... I just never really thought about it.
I filled up the jar with my blood and Lolo handed me a ton of Zyphilia flowers from outside. Once I grabbed onto them and closed my hand, my inventory had filled up.
[Jar of Blood - 1]
[Zyphilia Flower - 6]
"Now... create a potion," Lolo told me. I looked at her like she was stupid.
"The inventory holds a lot of potential. When you're not wielding any weapons, you are in a passive, safe mode that allows you to do different things. I didn't bring this up because I didn't know you were a Hero before, but you have access to all unique tools within your inventory. You can craft and enchant at will, so long as you have the correct items in your inventory. You can craft potions without the tub." Lolo told me.
"Then why do you have a tub if you can make them in your inventory as well?" I asked Lolo. She smirked and laughed a little.
"To teach others of course! I'm surprised you're not more curious about the information I know as the First Magic Hero! Usually, when people find that out, they're drowning me with questions." Lolo explained.
"Is there anything different? Of course, I want to know things, but I also want to learn crafting so I can provide more as a hero... while we have the time, what were things like back when you were new to being a Hero?" I asked Lolo. She seemed prideful when she explained the things to me.
"Well... it was about ninety years ago when I was a Hero, so Olympia was just starting out and Sieve was born around that time. However, I was summoned in by this city, and they explained the situation to me... Anima, when I tell you about these things... you must be prepared to keep this knowledge to yourself until the day you die. Telling others about this will only bring misfortune." Lolo said. Her demeanor changed again, so I could tell she was serious.
"There is a higher society these citizens don't know about. Zyphilia, Dorrendale, Sieve, and Hecate, the major cities of Olympia, have no idea it's there. Gaia is aware of it, and so are most of the heroes. I'm referring to Prism. Prism, a collection of four individuals, controls Olympia. I spent my time as a Hero fighting Prism and holding them back from Hecate, but I see that doesn't matter now." Lolo explained.
"...do those four members have names or are we being purposefully vague so I ask more questions?" I asked Lolo. She sighed.
"Joro, Lord of Elements. Arthur, King of Heroes. Shimeru, Samurai God. Kire, Emperor of Monsters. Those are the four who run it all. Joro restricts the teachings of elements so he can reign above all, Arthur put a curse on the Heroes so you can't explain your summoning or other details to people who aren't Heroes. Shimeru is the one who introduced the political system unique to Hecate and Sieve. Finally, Kire is the one who put monsters into the world. They all have a hand in controlling this world to trap the people. Recently, Shimeru had acted up and accused us of being Demons to Sieve. That's when they acted to summon more Heroes in... and I see you're a victim of that. Is that enough history for you, Anima?" Lolo asked me. I nodded... that was a lot to take in.
A lot of interesting names as well. Shimeru, who seemed to be the whole reason I had to travel here, was the one that stuck out the most. Shimeru came up with the political system that attributed the 'Demon' title to people like Jerry, Albert, Henry, Claire, and even Lolo. They were innocent people who fell victim to Shimeru's influence. I couldn't just accept that... but would I even be able to beat him?
"Did you hold them back for long enough? You said you were summoned as a Hero to fight them... were you successful at all?" I asked Lolo. She went on to explain that she fought off a lot of them and even hit one of them with a permanent disability. That injury belonged to Arthur. Lolo never saw Shimeru or Joro, but she lost her fight to Kire and retired soon after.
"Where is Prism now? I mean... are they dead from old age? Still alive? Where did they go?" I asked Lolo.
"That's a wonderful question. Personally, I haven't a clue where they went... but it's not like they're completely untraceable. If Hecate fell and Shimeru was proud of his system, he would still exist within Sieve. A matter of where that would be inside Sieve... however... that's the confusing part. And then there's Kire, who I last fought where Gaia currently stands. The mana exposure in that fight gave birth to great grasslands and that was the end of Kire's last location. I believe they're still alive if Henry and I are still kicking." Lolo explained.
"Then... what do you recommend I do? Can I take them? What level were they? How can I prepare? You see... my main goal is to prove to Sieve that everybody isn't a Demon, but where do I start that? I thought I should gather evidence, but if Shimeru is in Sieve, then will I even be able to do that?" I asked Lolo.
"Depends how far you're willing to go. Hecate fell... why do you think that is? Hecate was under the same political system, but they fell due to some other influence. Now, the Kingdom is in ruins and everybody within it died. Are you willing to kill everybody in Sieve to prove to them we aren't Demons?" Lolo asked me.
"No. If I kill the people who suspect we're Demons, we're just proving our name to them. We have to do it peacefully, and I was hoping I could gather evidence of some kind. When I first learned about illusion magic, I wanted to transform in front of them to show them that Demons were really just humans." I admitted to Lolo. She complimented my plan but told me it wouldn't be enough.
"One of our jobs as Heroes is to do the right thing, no matter how many people it hurts. That's the sad truth. We work to admonish the dangers of the world as a whole, sacrificing as many people as it takes to save the future." Lolo told me.
"I refuse to live like that. The people of this world are far more important right now than the future of the world is now. I won't kill others for the hypothetical future that could be ruined by any slight pebble falling in the wrong place." I told Lolo. She complimented me again.
"So, you'll follow the same path as me. If you follow this path, you should build up your credibility as much as possible. Become somebody worth the title of Magic Hero." Lolo told me.
"One last question, before we continue the alchemy... who was the Second Magic Hero? This staff was left for me to grab and had skills in it that I could use. [Bullet], [Raise], and [Heal]. Shima gave me [Absorption]". I asked Lolo.
"Oh! You're talking about Falcon!" Lolo yelled out.