Mmh… A bit chewy, and lacking in fat… A bit like rabbit meat.

  The good thing about eating an elf is that, for the most part, elven species are born at least a bit stronger than the average human. In this case, these guys are clearly built for excessive agility, so in turn, their flesh is a bit more nourishing for me than that of a simple human.

  Still, the extent of the damage that I had to recover from wasn’t something that could be dealt with in just a single meal.

  Ridding myself of the rust had already been a pain in the ass, but now, I had to regrow my legs, my hips, about half of my chest, my right arm, and also mend a bunch of bumps and dents I had accumulated during my water adventures.

  I was a girl who needed to eat a lot.

  Since one of those patrolling elves was already killed, I might as well speed things up and raid the farm for all its worth tonight…

  My cover wasn’t yet blown, but it was only a matter of time. Since I did not desire to know how long my grace period would last, it was wiser to try and go back to full health as quickly as possible.

  It was especially bad because things like my music box had gone missing whilst I had been flung around and crashing into rocks. The only upgrade that added something to my body that was still with me was the copper wires, but they had taken a beating as well.

  The water had gotten to them a bit, and they had taken hits as well. So their efficiency in a combat scenario would be lower than normal.

  What a pain. I don’t even have the slightest clue where I am right now. My scheme to harvest negative emotions, negative energy, and food had been ruined by the intervention of some assholes, and to top it off, a knight with a most silly weapon had decided to shave off my limbs.

  Fate truly seemed to have a bone to pick with me.

  I, at the moment, had several bones to pick. Literally, I was going to eat all of the farm animals and not even leave their bones behind.

  Surely, if I devour them all, I should be able to go back to top condition…

  I waited for night to fall, and as per usual, I easily infiltrated the farm. There weren’t any fences or walls between me and this place, and the locks that kept the animals safe were just more food for me to enjoy.

  One by one, I emptied the pens of their occupants, first focusing on recovering my chest, then my hips and legs, before regaining my right arm.

  As it turns out, it was just that rust in particular was atrociously difficult to get rid of. Regenerating my body was much more efficient when I had access to plenty of flesh.

  In fact, I didn’t even need to eat the goats. I was in a pristine state after being done with the cows and sheep.

  I am back to being clothless though… Is this what this is about? Are they actually trying to rip my clothes away every time? That makes more sense. I can understand why they would be so interested in me that way.

  …

  I can just feel that you want to say something, Nara. I know that they don’t really want that. I am just joking a little bit, alright? Makes me wonder though… May I know if I can get myself some pretty forms?

  I think the Molten Form is quite pretty, with the way the steel shines and the bright metal

  You know I don’t mean it as just visually pleasing. I mean sexy! I mean, cute! I mean, like how I used to be as a human, a literal goddess in the flesh!

  Unfortunately, even something as small as this, I am not allowed to reveal at the moment, but there are many forms available, so the odds are that a least a few should have the qualities that you desire

  Those restrictions of yours are a bit ridiculous at times… What about my cute assistants–Or my new little sisters, I suppose now. I somehow have six younger siblings now. They got me good on that one, just switching from ‘Miss Nebulo’ to ‘Big Sis’ without even blinking.

  Anyway, what I mean is… Since they are ghostly manifestations, the clothes they wear are always the same and are like part of their bodies. Any way for me to dress them up in something else?

  What would be the purpose of such an action?

  Just imagine… Let’s say Poppy. Imagine her in one of those puffy dresses with a neck ribbon. See what I am talking about? I didn’t realise before because children are annoyances that should be culled, but aren’t girls adorable? If I had had a little sister from the start instead of a treacherous twin brother. I would have definitely dressed her up as a hobby.

  Mmh…

  Or like… Just picture Nessa in a sundress, all the boys would instantly fall in love and have their lives ruined from being unable to move on until they died of old age with their dreams unfulfilled.

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  Their undead-like appearance might get in the way, though, wouldn’t it?

  Heh… Maybe this could be fixed, too, if we can figure out a way to dress them up, then maybe we could figure out a way to make them look more alive as well.

  Well, they are spirits under your control, so their potential is tied to yours, and their strength is tied to yours. So it stands to reason that they might be able to alter their appearances, or that you will eventually gain the ability to do it yourself

  Sweet. I need some more hobbies to pass the time… And maybe we’ll get new souls that can be turned into ghosts like them, so we can grow the troop. Heheh.

  With a sudden movement, I broke the neck of a goat. Just because I was healed up didn’t mean I was going to waste perfectly good food that I could store up for some purpose that I would probably only acquire in the future. Also, it was tasty.

  I was not interrupted in the process, but as I was about to move and finish off the remaining goats before moving to the smaller animals that were still on the farm, namely, more poultry of several kinds, as well as some rabbits… I stopped myself for a moment and tapped my lower jaw.

  There was a reason why I had been singing lullabies to that young girl through her window, and it wasn’t to fill my metaphorical stomach. I was trying to experiment with the special conditions of creating ‘high-quality souls’. The reasons the quintet was so distinct, powerful, and had their own quirky personalities were because there was a strong ‘bond’ between us from the very beginning.

  A connection of sorts.

  It was difficult to manufacture such a thing, especially because… Well, I frankly didn’t care about other people all that much. I mostly just despise, hate, and look down upon others for the most part, and I don’t really leave my victims many chances to actually establish any sort of connection with me.

  I just kill them swiftly.

  But when that girl liked my singing, and thus, inadvertently earned herself the approval of the quintet for her superior musical tastes, I got an idea.

  I myself didn’t care about the girl. I was just pleased to have a distinguished spectator, but that frankly wouldn’t even give me pause if I were to get my hands on her. However, my quintet wasn’t as aloof as I.

  I like my ghostly little sisters. They like that clueless girl. Therefore, I should kind of have a connection with her as a result, right? And perhaps, if they really make friends, then maybe–A very small maybe–I could trick myself into kind of giving a little damn about that girl.

  Frankly, I only started to like the quintet because they are under my control to begin with. Otherwise, the highest level of affection I can have for the youth is utter apathy. I just happen to be a very good actress, and for some reason, from babies to teenagers, they all seem to naturally love me by default.

  This was why I regarded my time at Harvey’s Diner to be the most miserable days of my existence. For the entire day, I would be swarmed by them and have to pretend to be friendly. The worst part? I was incredible at that.

  The youngest would start acting like I was their mom, and the oldest would either admire or have a crush on me.

  I do not find having the attention of shrill-voiced, acne-ridden boys to be something worth being proud of. Might as well be proud of stepping in shit at that point.

  In any case… I judged those I considered children–Which means everyone below the age of twenty for me–Much like I judged puppies and kittens, based on how much I liked looking at them, and how willing I would be to scratch their heads.

  That girl who likes my singing? Very pettable head, very pinchable cheeks, is softspoken, and has an eye shape that makes her look like a slightly sad or bored puppy at all times.

  Ten out of ten, wouldn’t express disgust if she were to come walking toward me.

  So, the reason I was considering not slaughtering every animal on this farm is simply because I would like to try and make this girl into a potential seventh member of my little troop, and obviously, getting rid of her family's way of feeding itself and making money might put a dent in this plan.

  If I didn’t know your reasoning, I might have actually thought that you were being nice for the sake of it

  I think trying to invite someone to be part of my cute little group is a pretty nice thing… But speaking of cute stuff, do you not have a physical body, Nara?

  As far as I am aware, I am merely a system. I merely have a voice

  Could you… Gain a physical form?

  I do not know, why do you ask?

  To know if I’ll be able to dress YOU up as well eventually.

  Oh… I don’t know if it is possible, but I am looking forward to it!

  Mmh… A bit ironic that I am thinking about playing dress up when I myself am utterly in the nude. It's fine since my steel body doesn’t have anything to gawk at other than this utter superiority.

  I never really thought about it, but it really doesn’t look feminine at all. Not even a little bit, I mean… Is there something wrong with my steel body of murder and slaughter having slight curves?

  Maybe if I let flesh grow a bit here and there, it will give me a better silhouette?

  Outward presentation was important, and being smoking hot was possibly the greatest advantage one could be born with. Honestly, ever since I got access to the furnace and could get to see my human body, it made me realise that I missed my old looks a fair bit.

  Boy, I miss my abdominals.

  Having decided to spare the innocent farm animals, I crept up to the girl’s window and lightly tapped against the wood.

  Of course, the girl was sleeping at this hour.

  They were quite well-off on this farm. Their windows actually had glass instead of just wooden bars, but glass did not stop me from using ‘Forward Shine’ to take a look at the inside.

  The room was rather mundane. She was clearly a plush girl instead of a doll girl. There were plenty of them, and they were all meticulously arranged in good positions like trophies, but of course, the favourite of the bunch was the deer plush that she was hugging in her sleep.

  A plushy… A plush… I wonder if this could help me unlock that ‘Plush Form’ that I saw listed with the rest…

  Since the girl was already asleep, I decided to just leave for now.

  My ankle got stuck on something.

  “Ah… S–Seriously?”

  I was flung through the air and thrown into the forest.

  Seemed like it was indeed serious.