Italics indicate thinking

Bold is for attacks

Stitchstix POV

I looked across the room and saw Entoma going about her business organizing a shelf. Lately she had been doing a lot more work than usual.

"Entoma my dear is everything alright?" I asked.

"…yes Master." She nodded.

"Entoma…" I walked up and touched her chin "You've been quite lately, you've always been a girl of few words but this is a daunting silence…it's the new lipbug isn't it? Do you not like it."

"It was a gift from you father of course I treasure it but…" she lowered her head.

"It's not cute enough for you is that it?" I smiled "I'm sorry replicating the same voice just wouldn't be possible, I tried to get one close to it but it seems I didn't meet your standards."

When a lipbug eats the vocal cords of a person and steals their voice that's that, the voice can't be recovered by conventional means, and if the bug dies the voice is lost forever.

With Entoma's old lipbug having been exterminated by Evileye's Vermin Bane I had to procure a new one, this voice was a tad more mature and had a deeper pitch to it than she was used to and I could tell she hated it.

"I suppose I can try and find a new one if that would please you." I said.

"…Master."

"Anything to make you happy my dear." I smiled patting her head a bit in a fatherly way "Is there a specific tone you had in mind?"

"No…don't." she shook her head "I will gather the cords on my own. The voice I want…is hers."

She pointed at the wall where I had marked the posters of the four remaining Blue Rose members I was seeking to break, Tia, Tine, Gagaran and Evileye.

"You want Evileye's voice do you." I hummed scratching my chin.

"She took my voice…so I want to take hers." She growled a bit "Would that be acceptable to you?"

"Hmm." I shrugged "I see no reason it can't be, the things I want from Evileye aren't connected to her voice, I can learn all about her without words, though I would ask that you allow me to ask any questions before the extraction."

"Of course Father." She bowed.

"Though I wonder, you find Evileye's voice cute?" I asked.

"…I suppose." She tilted her head.

"Entoma I don't want to disappoint you but, I worry you might find her voice unfit for you." I told her.

"Why's that?" she asked.

"Evileye isn't all she appears to be." I warned "So her voice may be the same, though that would require that I be able to confirm just what she is."

"The Blue Rose…they interest you Father?" she asked.

"All humans interest me in one way or another, but most so the strong ones." I bit my fingers "Don't you find them fascinating Entoma?"

"…No."

"I had a feeling you'd be that way." I laughed a bit "Well no harm I suppose, different views are part of what makes the world so interesting."

"Master I did have a question." She pointed over "This chest is new?"

"Oh that, yes it was a gift from Lord Ainz, apparently it is a memento from the fair lady." I explained "Seems he's been giving a lot of the Guardians old knickknacks and such of our creators, Aura got that bracelet and Shalltear was given Perorochino's encyclopedia…I would love to get my hands on that, though odds are I probably know the information in it front to back already but hey…"

"What's in there?" Entoma tilted her head.

"Nothing useful that I assure you." I hummed opening it up "See."

"It's…a scarf." Entoma looked at the white gray cloth in the trunk.

"Indeed." I picked it up and felt the smooth texture "A scarf made from the silk our Lady SomberEvening. A magic item she created Reacher."

I wrapped it around my neck, the pure white color seemed to clash with my naturally dirty bag skin of my doll from.

"Hmm…" Entoma nodded before reaching up and tucking it properly "There…it suits you Father."

"You really think so." I laughed "Well it does have one use."

I focused my magic a bit and the trail end reached up like an arm and pulled a book off a shelf.

"Long Reach that's the enchantment she placed on this item." I said "Hexes and Enchantments, the Fair Lady certainly had incredible skills."

Entoma nodded "Yes she was."

"Ah no use dwelling on the past." I sighed "We've got work to do my dear."

"Yes Father." Entoma bowed as a bug fluttered in.

"Is he now…" I hummed looking at it "Demiurge…you naughty boy. Here I thought I was the one doing the dark experiments but this, well now."

Entoma tilted her head "Master."

"No concern for you my dear." I smiled "Though in the future it might be, I'll need to keep an eye on that, the princess too."

"The Princess?" Entoma asked.

"Yes it would seem she's been getting a little too curious." I jumped up onto a desk to reach a high shelf "She found one of our poor bugs and plucked the wings right off the creature, now she's noticing them more and more, that girl…she's no ordinary human."

She's cunning…too cunning, if I misplay my hand she could learn things she's not supposed to, did my Mind Worm do this or…has she always been this smart, either way she's dangerous, I won't underestimate her like I did Blue Rose."

"She'll try and corner me, I need to stay a step ahead." I hummed.

AN

Thank you for reading. Feedback is appreciated. Feel free to message me any questions or concerns.

Anime's back (With a great opening too) so I decided to write a new chapter, it's a little more fluff but we should be starting Vol 7 stuff soon, I'm just about to dig into the book sometime this weekend (After I work two straight nightshifts.)

Till Next Time!