The answer was a terse no, and then the captain walked away with his squad, leaving me wondering why in the shade I had done that. It was an act of desperation I believed, of trying to make a way where there was none. The feeling, it was an odd sensation, echoed in my chest. It was a pretty serious throbbing.

Princess was distressed and desperate, and the new connection between us was letting me experience all of it as her royal guard. I followed the throbbing to find her. It was a pretty useful thing, unlike another that had only brought me hardship since the day I had acquired it.

I found her silently standing in a corner of the twenty-fifth floor, solemnly staring at the queen’s quarter. She made no movement when I approached her, but I felt her stirring inside. Maybe my presence calmed her down, but the storm boiling through our connection entered a period of rest.

Princess, I opened the dialogue and let it hanging as such. I wasn’t the right person for this kind of situation, but I had also gone through something like this. So even though I didn’t know what to say, I knew what not to say. And that was enough.

She looked at me with her big oval eyes and let the scents flow. What are you doing here? She asked.

I should be the one asking you that, Princess. I countered and picked over when she didn’t continue.

From what I recall, sitting back and lazing is the worst thing one can do when their heart is in a disagreement with their mind. It actually makes you go slightly mad.

She cocked me an eye and I gave her a smug shrug with my antennae.

How long are we staying here?

We’ll stay here as long as it takes. She said.

Then it’s alright. I commented, setting my perch beside her. I believe we’ll be leaving soon.

What makes you think so? She bit.

I told her the truth. Because your antennae have started waving above your head again and you are no longer desperate.

There was a lull in our conversation during which we watched a nurse throwing a tantrum over something or another, a soldier approaching a caretaker for water and being refused, the same nurse being abusive and being carried away by a bunch of young soldiers; and a pair of soldiers from the lower floors stopping to point at us, becoming amused over something, and leaving for the upper floors.

Maybe the spectacle amused her or calmed her, but she was the one to initiate the conversation next.

Do you think what we do matters in the larger scheme of things?

That’s rhetorical. I truthfully answered. All I know is that we both have a future here. You will be the secondary queen and I’ll be your royal guard, standing outside the entrance and identifying everyone who asks for your audience.

She passively waited, her heart struggling over something. I gave her the time she needed to settle her feelings. It took her a while, but it wasn’t long before she was decided. Then she went forward to blow away my perception of her.

I don’t want to be a secondary queen. She said and carried onwards without checking out my condition after that sudden shock that she had delivered me. I want to create my own city and rule a piece of land. I want to have children that call me their mother. I want to have wars with others. Expand my region. I want to do everything that a queen can do, and more. I want to create ties with the other species.

I want to grow flowers and have the bees cultivate them. They’ll give me honey and I’ll protect their flowers. And I want beetles to give us fertilizer. I want to ride the hornets, and use wasps for espionage. I want to have a tower made of a material so strong it can’t be broken into. I want to farm grains. I want to do all of that. None of which I can accomplish by becoming a secondary queen or by being here.

When she finished and looked at me I was standing tense, lone mandible stretched to the limits. My antennae were erect above my head and I was sitting on the ground with my rear legs bent and weight on the abdomen.

Her heart thumped with pure want. She had just told me her innermost desire, her dream. It was no time to be in shock. I had to say something. She was looking at me for a reaction. I gave a reaction; one that made her cringe with every sentence.

But-But what about the chamber you had me-the workers dig? You commissioned it! You asked the queen for permission and the union for workers. It was all you! Why would you ask it to be made if you didn’t want to use it?

She turned solemn; the spark of interest dimming. This connection between us was too bold and spilling. It was trying to make making me run away from her to save myself from her onslaught of emotions, but I stayed. I had to know her reason.

Do you think I asked it to be made? Why would I do it? It is all her fault. I felt her hatred. If her true desire was pure warmth, her hatred was a burning fire. The first princess made the queen agree, and even forced the construction on me so she could enjoy my suffering.

Why didn’t you tell me…? It’s not your place. I thought she would say it but she didn’t.

Now you know. She said instead. So what are you going to do about it?

I—

She interrupted me before I could begin. I was thankful because I had nothing to add to reduce her pain. I could do nothing to help her or me.

Forgive me. She scented. You don’t have to say anything. It isn’t a matter than can be solved anyways. The festival of rebirth is almost upon us. Finding out what’s wrong in the 47th city is important; not just for me, but also for the city itself. It’s the only way I can help the city before being bound to this one place forever. I want to at least do this one thing before the time comes.

My heart skipped a beat. I deeply truly wished I could help her someway.

My wish was heard.

The system reacted.

A suitable candidate has been detected to become Greed’s vessel. Would you like to proceed?

#ERROR#

Action can’t be completed.

Greed is at tier zero. No slots are available.

(Number of slots depends upon sin tier.)

I understood the intent, but not the reason behind its appearance. Why now? Had the system reacted to my desire? No, it was clearly talking about Princess TInbuji. I had asked for help and it had reacted. Everything was clear other than the last part.

Analyze: Greed’s vessel: As the master of Greed, you are allowed to have a few chosen subordinates. They will connect with the system under you, and will even have a chance to form their own shards of Greed and inherit some of your strengths.

There was nothing here that said she would be harmed. I could help her with this. I could help her connect to the system, and then, and then what? I wasn’t confident about the system myself, but to tow her into this… was the risk worth it?

I didn’t have to think about it right then. I couldn’t yet make her a vessel, anyway. But I could think about the problem so I wouldn’t hesitate to make the decision when the time came. That’s what I decided upon.

I also decided that we had enough of sitting around doing nothing for a day. Ask a worker to work hard and it will be spiteful; ask him to stop working and it will curse you on the spot. I had enough of the gloominess.

Want to go to the surface? I asked her, standing up, ready to move.

Why? What’s at the surface?

When I was still a digger —it stung differently to admit that my life was on a different track than the one I had imagined— I enjoyed leaving the narrow tunnels and the tight corridors to take out the trash and feel the wind on my face. The openness called me —though I hated the pit and still do.

Don’t us all. She mused. I had her attention.

So why don’t we go out for a bit? It will be a nice change of pace. I know you want to.

It’s all right. She said, but she was wavering. Her antennae were starting to return back to their dancing pattern. She needed a push, something to make up her mind. I didn’t have much to give, other than what she had given me herself.

Don’t be afraid. Her antennae rose sharply and head turned to face me. You taught me to look beyond the walls that society creates for us. Let me show you what I have found.

She finally agreed.

The plan was to go to the surface and fell the wind, but I changed the plan upon seeing the behemoth shadow cast by the tower. We climbed past the broken face where the dying scents of pain and resolve still haunted the surface, and to the very top of it. Princess was skeptical but followed without complaint. At the funnel-shaped top wind blew strong and hard. It forced us to latch onto the surface so we wouldn’t get blown off.

However, the experience wasn’t simply a struggle. It was excitement made real and joy brought into reality. It was a time and place away from the burdens of our society, where I was myself, and Princess was happy again.

A few seconds in and my sight was already being colored in different characters of multiple shades.

Stand your ground, soldier. Fight the wind! Try as it might, don’t let it force you to kneel, don’t let it blow you away. Hold your head high and fight the wind!

You have acquired a new skill: Aerodynamic.

You have acquired a new skill: Iron claws.

[Aerodynamic][Tier-1][Lv-1/10][Passive]

[Your body grows in a way that makes it easier for the wind to flow around you, making you aerodynamic.]

[Reward: You gain .1 points in the constitution for every skill level gained.]

***

[Iron Claws][Tier-1][Lv-1/10][Active]

[The skill improves our claw strength.]

[Effect: it activates when you clench your claws.]

[Reward: You gain .1 point in strength for every skill level gained.]

This … pretty dangerous. Princess scented. I didn’t… you… adventurous.

I am not! I scented out loud, but the wind blew most of it away. It was true. When did I have time for such scandalous endeavors? This was a spur of the moment thing; nothing more.

She came to my side and touched my antennae since the scented conversation wasn’t working. It’s beautiful. She said. The tower has always been here, but none of us ever stopped to think of it as anything more than a tool. I can almost see the whole world from here. Thank you for bringing me here.

I wished I could share her view of the world.

The world was a grey canvas for me. Only the center was colored in my sight where she stood: bold, and sleek; the colorless world against her vibrant self.

The rest of it was not more than an amalgamation of blurry lines and distorted sketches. My sight only worked at close range, almost only a few heads distance at best. I didn’t know if it would improve with time or not, but at that moment I would have given anything to see from the princess's eyes.

We promised each other to climb the tower every day, not knowing that our next time there would be the last time we would be seeing each other.

There beyond the reach of our society, we were two beings happy and free, and then Princess noticed something. Her olfactory senses were far sharper than mine, and so was her sight. It was no surprise that she was the one who found a group of ants approaching the city from a distance.

Not long after a gust of wind dragged some foreign scent along to the top of the tower, solving the mystery. Our guests from the 43rd city had arrived.