Thanks for the Invite, I'm on Terra, and I'm a Parasite

"Huh? Every child?"

[Whenever I named the files for characters I had drawn before, I always gave it careful thought.]

[Like 01, 02, 03, or a1, a2.]

"What does that have to do with your children, hey?!"

[I treat every character I create as if they were my own child! Don't underestimate my passion for my work!]

Zuo Jian retorted.

"No, rejected! We have to give this child a name that suits her! Otherwise, she'll be too pitiful!"

[What pitiful or not... I already said she's just an advanced derivative...]

"Zuo Jian! You're being way too cold!"

[Cold... am I?]

He paused, not sensing anything strange.

But... seeing Laurentina like this...

There really were similar situations. Like how children gave names to their favorite toys when they were young.

He looked at the nun before him. Her expression was somewhat bewildered. She did not understand what Laurentina and Zuo Jian were arguing about. She only knew to obey every command of the First Consciousness Entity before her.

Because that was the meaning of her birth, as well as the purpose of her birth.

[But I really am not good at naming things. How about... I leave it to you?]

He shifted his gaze away. Like an adult ignoring a child naming her beloved toy, he turned his attention back to the people diligently working away.

He could leave the naming to Laurentina.

After all, this was merely a... clone.

Even if she possessed a fragmentary self-awareness, she still could not be considered—human.

She was only a being capable of carrying out his commands independently.

A puppet.

Somewhere Zuo Jian himself could not perceive, while Laurentina was working hard to think of a name for the new life before them.

Somewhere no one noticed.

Zuo Jian's way of thinking seemed to be... gradually changing.

Only... little by little.

...Like tiny cracks beginning to spread.

"Hmm, let me think... Got it!"

"Xiunati! How does that sound? Nice, right?"

"Xiu...nati?"

The nun paused, somewhat unable to understand its meaning.

"Your name will be Xiunati. After all, you are his child."

Laurentina smiled and stroked Xiunati's head.

Xiunati.

Its pronunciation resembled a word that

Laurentina thought suited Zuo Jian very well.

humanity

Meaning—human nature.

"Well, Zuo Jian? How's my talent for naming?"

[Xiunati... it sounds pretty good.]

As he spoke, he turned his gaze back toward the residents.

[Xiunati, they need guidance. Go help them.]

"Understood, First Consciousness Entity."

She stood up, then quickly walked toward the residents.

"By the way, can't we really take her with us?"

Laurentina suddenly found herself reluctant to part with her.

[Someone has to stay here. With memories related to the Seaborn bishop, and absolute loyalty, 0... Xiunati is the safest choice.]

[Besides, didn't you dislike her face? Why are you suddenly reluctant to leave her behind?]

"It's not that I dislike her face, okay?! I just don't like you turning into her whenever you run off on your own."

"By the way... you keep saying we can't stay here much longer. So where should I go next?"

Laurentina looked into the distance. Beyond the endless ruins lay a gray, hazy horizon.

[The next coastal country. Iberia's current situation is worse than we imagined. If I were a Hunter, I wouldn't keep going deeper into this country.]

[Choosing another coastal region would be more reasonable.]

[Anyway, there's only that place left—the coastal country closest to Iberia.]

"Victoria?"

Laurentina knew a little about landbound geography.

[Yes, Victoria. A nation with ports, and according to the books, one of the strongest countries in Terra.] (Note—Zuo Jian had obtained the first edition of the guide written by Kal'tsit. It was nearly a hundred years old. The one in Doctor's possession was the latest edition, published twenty years ago.)

(As for why the latest guide had been revised twenty years ago... Kazdel civil war: ? Why are you asking me?)

"That makes sense. A coastal country with a powerful national strength—the former means it's geographically close, while the latter means it's more stable than other places."

"Generally speaking, that's where we're most likely to find the missing Hunters..."

[That's right. Unless the companion you're looking for is an absolute disaster with directions, they generally wouldn't wander too far from coastal countries.]

"...Terrible with directions... Wait."

Laurentina froze, suddenly remembering something.

That masked shrimp-headed captain seemed to have that sort of characterization...

Then his teammates... probably wouldn't have the same problem, right?

No way, right?

"Pfft—"

"Girl, what did you say?"

The old farmer holding a fan nearly sprayed out his water.

"Lots of... sand, then walking, forest, damp—"

Skadi struggled to express herself with clumsy Flame Kingdom speech and gestures.

"Then, kept going, wilderness, lots of mines... snowing, then it kept snowing..."

"Then, arrived here."

The old man paused, then asked.

"Girl, how long have you been walking?"

"Don't know... When there were people, I stopped. When there weren't, I ran."

"...Good heavens, girl, you're incredible. You've practically walked all around this godforsaken Terra."

Painter and Farewell (Part One)

"So you intend to remain here with these residents and, under the guise of the Church, gradually guide them back to normal?"

Grand Inquisitor Dario looked at the indifferent nun before him. She nodded slightly.

"And you, Hunter?"

Laurentina leaned against a wall nearby, glanced out the window, and answered.

"I can't stay here forever. You know, Abyssal Hunters are always searching for their other companions."

"Is that so? In any case, on behalf of the Inquisition, I thank you for your dedication."

As Dario spoke, he gave Xiu Tina a slight bow.

"No need for thanks. This is merely... what I want to do."

..

"Teacher, does that mean the nun will stay here forever and help those residents?"

Irene watched the two figures gradually depart, then turned to ask Dario.

"She disguised herself as a member of the Church of the Deep, while establishing herself in the residents' minds as a nun, or perhaps a missionary."

"The residents are more likely to trust her than us. Or rather, other than choosing to trust that nun, we have no second option."

"Irene, do you think trusting them is the right choice, or the wrong one?"

Halfway through speaking, he suddenly turned and asked his student.

It seemed he was expecting Irene to voice her own opinion.

"...I think... they should be trustworthy?"

"Why?"

"Because, Teacher, didn't you say—if we fought them head-on, all of us together wouldn't be enough to beat that Hunter..."

"Ahem, Irene, get to the

point."

"Oh, right. So, so, I think that if they really meant us harm, there seemed to be no reason for them to tell us so much, nor any reason to warn us about the situation within Iberia and even the Inquisition..."

"And... when I met that nun before, I always felt... she didn't seem like a sinister person... When I spoke with her... I felt warm inside..."

"But when I saw that nun again just now, I suddenly didn't seem to have that feeling anymore. It's not that she looked like a bad person... It was just... um..."

"Teacher, did you feel that too?"

Irene turned to look at Dario.

He paused. Then he indeed realized that when he had stood before that nun just now, he had felt no emotional stir at all.

After pondering for a moment, he turned to Irene and said.

"It's because you've been studying the scriptures often recently, making your heart more steadfast."

"So that's it! As expected of the scriptures!"

Dario paused, seeing how easily his student had believed him. He did not know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Zuo Jian, are we really going to leave this child here?"

Laurentina held Xiu Tina beside her with some reluctance.

For some reason, the more she looked at that face, which somewhat resembled her own, the more pleasing it became to her.

It always felt like... some kind of connection to him.