Civilization - Chapter 312 312 - Switch

[Queen of Spiders, Selino, has taken control of your body. Duration 00:59:59]

Opening my eyes, the notification from the system appears in front of me, informing me of the current situation. Selino has taken control of my body, but it is only for an hour. Surprisingly, there wasn’t a skill name or anything of that sort under my status screen about the switching ability, which makes me wonder how this was going to work, but it looks like it was not even a concern since we have now swapped.

Glancing around, I notice that my surroundings are different from when I was looking into my mind and observing Selino. A blank white space with nothing but a single dark indigo chair. It wasn’t even a luxurious chair, benefiting that of a queen, but a rather simple chair, something that could be built with a couple pieces of wood. Drawn to the chair, I make my way slowly toward it, hearing nothing along the way. Not even the sound of my own footsteps.

Glimpsing down, I realize that there wasn’t even a shadow underneath me. I am walking on a white surface, with nothing indicating that I am even walking on something, other than the feeling of my feet touching the floor. Reaching the chair, I didn’t immediately sit down, instead, I wander around it. Touching its cool surface, and feeling a surge of purple lightning sparking off the material.

Gulping down my saliva, I sit on the chair, as the purple lighting wraps around my body, sparking around like little tentacles. The feeling of weightlessness washes over me as the world spins, before a sudden change in my environment. I start to see, the cave again, but this time I wasn’t moving around it, Selino was moving around, just in my body.

“It seems you have found the ‘chair’ deary. You can finally see what I am seeing.” – Selino

Her voice resounds and echoes around me as if I am trapped in a room filled with speakers. Yet it wasn’t loud nor soft, it was just right.

“This was different from when I was watching you move around.” – Ian

“I guess there isn’t much on my mind. I prefer to do rather than think. Well, deary are you ready?” – Selino

“I can’t, not be ready, can I? You have control of my body now and all I’m doing is sitting here and watching you.” – Ian

“I know, I still wanted to ask. MIKKI! Can you hear me?” – Selino

Sitting down on a rock, Selino rests my head on my right hand, as a small white ball filled with fog appears in her hands. The fog clears, and I see myself in the ball, or at least my appearance. I knew who that really was, a spider under her control with the amazing ability to disguise itself. That ability is not only remarkable but also dangerous, potentially having the ability to start wars with nothing but a word.

“My queen, it seems the Union was a success.” – Mikki

Seeing myself bow almost 90 degrees inside a ball, felt surreal enough, without mentioning that someone else was in my body commanding that other version of me to do the action. Grasping my head, I feel a wave of dizziness as my thoughts muddle together. There were too many, different ‘me’.

“Yes, it has, and our plan needs to be set in motion straight away. I don’t have much time, after all.” – Selino

“Plan…? HEY! Selino! What is this plan you are speaking of?” – Ian

Shouting at the white space around me, I start to hear a soft chuckle, reminiscent of the first time I had seen, Selino.

“Don’t worry, deary. I’m just helping. We need to get to the Reaper’s Castle, don’t we? I’m just doing that, right… Now. Mikki?” – Selino

“As you wish, my Queen.” – Mikki

Confused and distraught, I carefully observe Mikki while gritting my teeth. There was nothing I could do now that I had swapped places with Selino. Whether I should have or shouldn’t have done it, there was no turning back. Instead, I should use this time to see what she can do as well as the abilities of her subordinates. Mikki looks to be someone who is quite close to Selino, which means he should hold a lot of power… Wait… What?

Looking through the ball held in Selino’s hand, I see Mikki pierce through his chest. Blood spurts to the ground and down the side of his mouth, but he still shows an expressionless face as he calmly bows once more to the ball. The moment he straightens up, his hand rips out a small red beating heart, wrapped in spider webs.

“May you achieve your goals, my Queen. Sacrificial Transfer.” – Mikki

Crushing the heart in his hands, Mikki faints to the ground, at the same time, my vision blurs alongside Selino’s as I faintly see my body collapse. Rubbing my head, as I feel a sharp jolt of pain, I start to panic. What just happened? Did Mikki just kill himself? Was that supposed to be some sort of teleportation? Trying my best to remember the last words, Mikki said, I figure out that the method Selino was talking about must be replacing Mikki with my body through some sort of contract or skill.

However, Selino is unconscious and I can still see this white space. Suddenly, a faint light flashes and my vision comes back alongside Selino. A pool of blood surrounds us, but the queen merely shakes it off before glancing at a copy of my body on the ground with a hole through its chest. Crouching next to it, Selino places my hand on the head of the corpse, causing its body to glow white faintly, before bursting into small glittering stars.

Replacing my corpse, a small blackish-brown spider can be seen floating in the pool of blood. For an unknown reason, I feel the strings to my heart tug tightly, my breath unable to escape out of my mouth as the spider is slowly picked up by Selino.

“You have done well, Mikki, my beautiful dear spider.” – Selino

While I couldn’t see Selino smiling with my own eyes, as our vision was shared, I could feel it. A faint soft smile spreads across my face, as she looks fondly at the small spider. Brushing the top of Mikki’s head, she holds him up in her palm, before letting him fall… straight into my mouth.

“WHAT THE F- SELINO!” – Ian

Jumping out of the chair suddenly, as my body couldn’t even react fast enough to her actions. I hold my head in such distraught, unable to comprehend what I just saw. She just ate, Mikki… After looking at him like how a mother looks at their child. Sitting on the ground, in disbelief, as I lean against the leg of the chair, I stumble through my words, trying to communicate with Selino.

“What? Why? Selino… What the? How? I… I don’t understand.” – Ian

“Don’t be caught up with every death, deary. He had accomplished his job. Nothing more, nothing less. In fact, I’m proud of Mikki for getting here. Come we need to finish the job he has started, or at least the job that you need to finish.” – Selino

Replying with a nonchalant attitude, Selino brushes the blood on my hands against my clothes. Despite her loyal subject dying in front of her, she has nothing to say or feel about it. Did she really think nothing more of Mikki than just a tool? Wait… Why am I even surprised about that? Did I start to humanize her, after conversing with her for a while? At the end of the day, she is still a monster who has served the Horde, killing other monsters and humans alike. Why would I even think she would care about one of her subordinates dying?

“… What is it that ‘I’ am meant to be doing?” – Ian

“Have you stopped thinking deary? Or was me eating Mikki too much for you?” – Selino

“I-” – Ian

“Regardless, I thought you would have figured it out already but no matter. We have traded places with Mikki, meaning we are in the Reaper’s Castle. Have you not looked at the blue screen thing? Ah, right. I’m in control of your body, so you can only see what I see right? Here you go deary.” – Selino

[You have entered the Reaper’s Castle through unconventional means, replacing a current raid member. You will now gain access to the Sub Event Quest.]

[Sub Event Quest – Reaper’s Castle

Objective – Defeat the Reaper

Reward – Unknown ]

“Defeat the Reaper… Selino, be honest with me. There is no way we can kill the Reaper as we are right now. What is your plan?” – Ian

“Nothing special. Just maybe a chat. Although, I will have to reach Skelly deary first.” – Selino

“Skelly?” – Ian

“The Reaper, of course.” – Selino

“Sigh… Lead the way then.” – Ian

“First, we need to get out of this room, it seems Mikki forgot to clean up the place before he transported us.” – Selino

Glancing around through Selino’s eyes, I notice that blue spectral creatures had started to slowly surround us. They had various forms, some being orcs, wolves, kobolds, goblins, skeletons, birds, and bats. Blue mist slowly drifts off their opaque body, as they silently step closer toward us.

“These monsters need to learn some manners. Deary, let me show you how royalty fights. KNEEL BEFORE ME! Queen’s Presence!” – Selino