Rogue Villain-Chapter 418: Busy

"Hey, you two."

Mio stood behind Wilma and massaged the latter’s shoulder while she worked on an alarming pile of documents. So, Ackster stood behind Mio and massaged her shoulders. Both of them were startled by his sudden appearance.

But the only one who could surprise them like that was Ackster. And as soon as they realized it was him, they relaxed.

"Hubby!"

Mio exclaimed in joy, threw her arms around Ackster, and leaped into his embrace.

Wilma collapsed on the table in front of her and puffed out a sigh. That was all it took to topple the pile of documents and blow them onto the floor.

Ackster fished a paper out of the air and read it.

"I see the Creator isn’t just keeping himself busy. He’s keeping everyone busy."

It was a request for funds and resources for another project of the Creator’s. Not all of the documents Wilma had in front of her were from the Creator. However, advancing the civilization of an entire planet required a surprising amount of paperwork.

But it was necessary if the Guild wanted to take the lead. It was just that Wilma, thanks to her relationship with Ackster and now the Creator, needed to spearhead not just the operation but also the entire Guild. There was no one else who could do what she could.

Unfortunately, that meant she got all the work. She could delegate the minor and more tedious tasks to her subordinates or ask the rest of Ackster’s party for help. But there were things only she could decide, resources only she could control, and fates only she could read.

She had realized very quickly why The One Outside Time had created the organization and raised people to lead it in her stead. This shit was a lot of work.

"But I can’t see anything about the Celestial Realm."

Wilma glanced back at Ackster, the side of her face pressed against the wooden table.

"They haven’t made any moves since last time."

"I see. Have we made any moves?"

"Mastrax and Makkel were eager to look for a way there. Anatol offered a way, but Mastrax rejected her. So, no, not really."

Ackster nodded.

"That’s a relief. It means I won’t have to do anything."

Wilma raised an eyebrow.

"I’m not questioning your decision. But wouldn’t it be good to settle things once and for all?"

"Sure. But there’s no need to do that now. Besides, I think that they took my threat literally. As long as they don’t do anything, I won’t do anything. We might have entered a mutual non-aggression pact with the Celestial Realm."

Wilma’s eyes slowly lit up.

"Wasn’t it the other way, as well? We’ll respond in kind?"

Ackster nodded.

Wilma’s eyes started glowing, and she sat up. She turned around and grabbed Ackster’s hands, leaving Mio clinging to him like a koala.

"Do you think it would be possible to take it one step further?"

"You want to work together with the Celestial Realm?"

Wilma nodded.

"We’re working hard to strengthen the overall forces of Millmeria. But our only real fighting is limited to a handful of strong individuals. I know that you’re probably strong enough to deal with most threats. But I also know that you want to take it easy."

"The Celestial Realm, on the other hand, has an army that’s one step below our top forces, as well as their strongest gods. I bet the Creator would love to put the angels to work, too."

"Not to mention all the treasures that they have hoarded through the history of Millmeria. If we can put them in the Creator’s hands, I’m sure our technology will soar through the skies."

Ackster slightly nodded so that he didn’t bump against Mio’s head.

"I’ll see what I can do. But first..."

Ackster looked at Mio and grabbed her by the shoulders, holding her up and out at arm’s length so he could take a proper look at her and make her look at him.

Mio was a little shy, but she nodded determinedly.

"I’m ready."

Ackster returned the nod. He glanced at Wilma.

"We’ll be back in a little while."

Wilma waved Ackster and Mio goodbye without looking since she had already gotten started on writing down the plans for what they could do with the resources and manpower of the Celestial Realm at their disposal.

Ackster brought Mio to the place where they first met.

The glade where he had found the Doppelganger Slime in the shape of a goblin near a wild hound’s corpse poisoned by the same Poison Goblin it had mimicked and that Ackster had killed and almost died to looked very different. A lot had happened in the almost twenty years since Ackster was there last.

Still, Ackster and Mio knew where they were. It was the most fitting place for Mio to share some of her secrets with Ackster.

Slimes were varied and could be pretty amazing. But that wouldn’t explain Mio’s existence.

"I’ve been thinking a lot these few years about what to say, but now that it’s finally time, I don’t know where to begin."

Ackster sat down on a stone and patted his lap to invite Mio, who just stood around awkwardly to take a seat. Mio hesitated but eventually accepted the invitation.

Ackster wrapped his arms around Mio’s waist and leaned his head against the back of her shoulder. He closed his eyes.

"You can take it from the beginning."

Ackster felt Mio’s body slightly move as she nodded.

"Sounds good."

Mio swallowed audibly. That was as good a place to start a story as any.

But Mio was worried. She worried about a lot of things. What if her story changed what Ackster thought of her? What if he stopped hugging her, or the gaze in his eyes changed?

"I trust you, Mio."

Ackster didn’t need to say the rest. He didn’t need to say that Mio could trust him. No matter what Mio said, Ackster wouldn’t change the way he looked at her.

<Come out and face your death, my creation!>

Ackster frowned, fiery rage setting his eyes ablaze.