I Will Never Submit to Miss Grim Reaper - Chapter 401

Chapter 401: Momo’s Little Research Scholar

 

Overall, my first trip to another world was not a bad experience.

 

Although there was a slight deviation in the teleportation target, thanks to Xiao Mo’s various preparations and a bit of my own luck, my first day in the Lizardmen village went quite well.

 

I talked with Nida for a long time about my story with Xiao Mo, from how we met, to living together, and then how Xiao Mo used the forbidden teleportation spell to bring me to this world. I explained everything to her in the easiest terms possible.

 

Of course, I omitted the part about me being a hero and the things Momo had experienced with the hero.

 

I just briefly mentioned that Xiao Mo used a forbidden spatial spell to travel to Earth after defeating the Demon King, met me, who was innocent and ignorant, and then we became good friends and worked together in a café, sharing our various experiences.

 

As expected, Nida loved hearing stories about Earth. She was fascinated by Earth’s technology, history, and the diverse cultures of different countries and regions.

Especially… the various technologies of Earth.

 

“As expected of Lord Momo, to be able to skillfully use the forbidden spatial spell. I remember that magic is a ‘death spell’ that even dragons who have lived for tens of thousands of years cannot comprehend, yet Lord Momo used it successfully!”

 

“Huh? Earth’s technology? It can really achieve that level? Through a single device… everyone can connect to the internet, chat, and communicate even when thousands of miles apart, and there are flying airplanes, ships that sail on the sea… Why is it that Earth’s human history is only a few thousand years old, yet it has more advanced technology than us?”

 

“Mobile phones? Tools that allow you to communicate anytime and anywhere? Unheard of! If we had those here, Tam wouldn’t need to make a trip to the Dragon Forest personally…”

 

During this time, I also showed Nida my phone, letting her see photos of me and Momo, as well as some short videos of us working in the café. The little one was so amazed that her mouth was wide open the entire time, and she asked me to explain the principles behind it.

 

“To explain it would involve very complex electrical principles and philosophical concepts. Do you know the concepts of ‘and’, ‘or’, and ‘not’? Here are two fruit baskets, and one of them has fruit, which is ‘or’. If both have fruit, it means ‘one of the baskets has fruit and the other basket also has fruit’.”

 

“It’s like lightning magic. For example, here’s a metal rod. Normally, the metal rod has no electricity. When a lightning mage uses lightning magic on it, the rod becomes charged. The uncharged state is marked as 0, and if it has electricity, it’s marked as 1. Then we use two metal rods and set up a determining device. If one of them is charged, that’s the concept of ‘or’. If both are charged, that’s the concept of ‘and’…”

 

“You see, suppose this device contains tens of thousands… well, several billion metal units. We then electrify them, using various determining devices to judge the machine’s state. Through various logical processes, the machine performs tasks, with input and output devices…”

 

I used all my knowledge to give Nida a rough understanding of the principles of a “microcontroller”. Then I realized that this girl’s intelligence is genuinely high, she could actually grasp what I was explaining.

 

She is very different from the Lizardmen outside.

 

When moving things today, although the Lizardmen gave me a strong sense that “they are real, living beings”, I also had a strong intuition that “it’s unlikely I could really connect with them” because their attitude towards the world is vastly different from mine.

 

Nida is different. Though she is half-human, half-lizard, her intelligence and emotional quotient are frighteningly high, making her very out of place among the Lizardmen here.

 

This made me somewhat curious about who Nida’s mother was. According to Nida, her mother was a healer in a small adventuring party, similar to a “priest” or “nun.” I wondered if she might have had some connection to Gabriel’s Holy Heaven and the angel race.

 

Suppose—just suppose—Nida’s mother wasn’t an ordinary person either, but a half-angel or a priest with some angelic blood?

 

Living with Xiao Mo and Gabriel these past days, I’ve learned that the most intelligent race in this other world is the angel race. They are incredibly smart, quickly realizing that this world lacks faith. They invested heavily to build a flying continent, “Holy Heaven,” in the sky and, using their talent for light magic and large wings, almost monopolized the world’s faith.

 

The brain computational capacity of the angel race is extremely high. An angel who has lived for thousands of years has a brain computing power roughly equivalent to Earth’s computers, which is already terrifyingly powerful.

 

Additionally, on Earth, Gabriel is also the most interested in computer games and their principles. Although Fei Luo can also become a “game master” like Gabriel, Fei Luo isn’t particularly interested in games.

 

She prefers going out at night, meeting people in the city, and experiencing different lifestyles in various bustling places. Gabriel, on the other hand, not only plays games but also taught herself the basic principles of computers and learned hacking skills.

 

In just over a month, Gabriel claimed she could build a computer by hand if given the materials, demonstrating their inherent talent.

 

“So, Sister Diwu comes from a world without magic but with advanced science…”

 

“Hmm, I’ve been thinking, if we could combine science and magic, our world would definitely become better and more convenient. Since Earth has advanced so much with just science, if we integrate magic into science, wouldn’t our development be even faster?”

 

“But the biggest challenge in developing science here is people’s mindset. The ‘magic-only’ doctrine has been prevalent for tens of thousands of years. According to what you said, Diwu, scientific research requires a lot of initial investment and doesn’t necessarily yield immediate returns.

 

The most critical issue is that science doesn’t improve oneself directly, which is a fatal drawback. In the human world, having low magic abilities means you are weak, prone to bullying, and even death. Getting ordinary people to invest in scientific research and telling them it won’t benefit their bodies is likely to be met with reluctance. They’d rather dive into magic books and learn…”

 

“By the way, Diwu, your meeting with Lord Momo sounds so romantic, hehe. I’ve never met Lord Momo or been in love, but I think you’re the cutest, most beautiful girl in the world…”

 

Since the name “Diwu” might be sensitive here, I told Nida about my bond with Xiao Mo using a somewhat stream-of-consciousness approach. I mentioned things like frequently dreaming about each other and Xiao Mo saying she was a queen. This way, if Xiao Mo does take me to be a queen, it wouldn’t surprise this little Lizard girl too much.

 

Moreover, during our conversation, I discovered that Nida genuinely doesn’t care about the “Allied Hero” from back then. Initially, I thought this was due to Xiao Mo deliberately guiding public opinion. Now I understand the reason: the hero’s story wasn’t that sensational, and most related people have already passed away, so no one specifically recorded his deeds.

 

In Xiao Mo’s words, the hero was great. He rescued the little demon from the ruins, took her to a foreign land, fed her, taught her to speak, to be a person, and to use magic. He formed the Allied Forces to resist the demon race and was ultimately betrayed by the Lizardmen and killed.

 

For Xiao Mo, the hero was great, but for ordinary people six thousand years later, the hero is virtually “nonexistent” and not even someone passionate about obscure history would investigate. The key point is that the hero never publicly admitted to being the one who formed the Allied Forces, nor did he outright claim this “credit.”

 

Xiao Mo says that my personality is very similar to the hero’s. If that’s true and I put myself in his shoes, if I were the one who formed the “Allied Forces” back then, I probably wouldn’t have claimed to be the “leader of the Allied Forces,” a “historic figure,” or a “water magic expert.”

 

According to Xiao Mo, when the hero established the Allied Forces, she didn’t actually help much. At that time, the hero and his friends were somewhat like a “traveling party.” Before meeting Xiao Mo, the hero already had several friends. He took Xiao Mo to find those friends, and together they roamed the world, seeking allies and gradually forming the alliance.

 

So it’s hard to definitively say whether the hero was the “leader” of the team. One can only say that during that era, the hero was very kind and skilled in both water magic and martial arts, leaving a strong impression on people, but that’s about it.

 

From what Nida told me, in later history, people more often regard Xiao Mo as the “leader of the Allied Forces” rather than the hero’s party. The mainstream narrative now is that Xiao Mo, being a demon who was betrayed by her family and expelled by the demon race, could no longer tolerate the dark rule of the demons she had witnessed since childhood. She formed an alliance led by demons, uniting humans, dragons, angels, elves, beastkin, and other races, fighting for the world for thousands of years.

 

As for the Lizardmen’s betrayal, it was a minor event during a battle between Xiao Mo’s forces and the Demon King’s army, noticed only by particularly meticulous archaeologists. People don’t even have the concept of whether the Lizardmen betrayed the Allied Forces or an individual, let alone remember the hero of that time.

 

This is also why when the black dragon Fei Luo and the archangel Gabriel came to Earth and saw me turned into a little girl, they reacted so calmly. Thousands of years have passed, and even dragons and angels familiar with that history have moved on, not to mention ordinary people.

 

I personally feel that Xiao Mo might have “allowed” this to happen. She likely deliberately guided the world to stop discussing the “hero” of that time.

 

In those dreams, I realized that Xiao Mo was lonely, or rather… lofty. All kings are lofty, and they must be.

 

If people knew that the one who single-handedly exiled the Lizardmen, slaughtered all the traitors, charged into battle like an ice-cold Grim Reaper—Momo—actually harbored the affections of a young girl and did everything for her beloved over these thousands of years, Xiao Mo’s image in their hearts would certainly become quite nuanced.

 

So, Xiao Mo tacitly accepted this narrative, guiding public opinion to believe that the Grim Reaper Momo was once a member of the Allied Forces, who, after witnessing the betrayal of her friends and being a demon herself, turned dark in an instant, took over the command of the Allied Forces, and became everyone’s nightmare.

 

Gradually, as the ordinary people who experienced those events passed away, the existence of the “hero” also slowly faded away. No one knew that Momo was once a helpless little girl, that beneath her cold exterior was an incredibly gentle expression, or that after each victory of the Allied Forces, this terrifying “Grim Reaper” would silently come to the hero’s grave and leave a bouquet of flowers for her old friend.

 

I understood, everything made sense now. Then came the victory of the war, Momo building the royal city, preparing for my return. The hero died, on that snowy night.

 

“Beautiful…?”

 

In the thunderous rain, I got a little lost in thought after hearing Nida’s words. I stayed silent on the small bed for a while, looking at the purple clouds outside the window.

 

“Momo often tells me that whether a person is beautiful or not doesn’t depend on their appearance, but on their heart.”

 

Xiao Mo says she doesn’t really like creatures that are very beautiful on the outside but very dark on the inside—all creatures. For example, some kittens have very smooth fur and look beautiful, like little princesses, but their personalities are very fierce. They bite you until you bleed, and after smelling the blood, they keep going for your throat and neck, trying to kill you. Compared to such “beautiful kittens,” Xiao Mo says she prefers the ugly, but very affectionate ones.

 

“But I think your heart is beautiful too, Diwu,” Nida said, puzzled, in the dimly lit small room.

 

“Even though you’re a bit silly and don’t know how to protect yourself when encountering enemies, and you can’t change colors, today you helped us move things all day. When people gave you food, you would say thank you. That’s the first word you learned in our Lizard language, isn’t it?”

 

“Thank you?” I tilted my head. “Ari?(Thank you?)”

 

Yes, today I did many things with the adult, elderly, and young Lizardmen in the village. Moving things, counting livestock, helping cook, and washing fruits. These were all tasks within my capability and not tiring. In my opinion, this was expected.

 

“Those who do not work shall not eat,” as the saying goes. The old village chief, Nida’s father, had already given me such a large piece of roast meat. In my understanding, I should definitely do some work in return for their kindness.

 

As for the Lizardmen in the village… As Nida said, seeing me working with them, many people brought some of their homemade specialties to give to me.

 

It felt a bit troublesome to keep having Nida translate for me, so I specifically asked her to teach me how to say “thank you” in Lizard language, which is “Ari.”

 

“Ari, yes, that’s the word!”

 

“Diwu, let me tell you, when I used to go outside with my dad, we asked many humans to help us with things and saw many well-dressed young human ladies, but they never once said thank you to us. Everyone disliked us, calling us ‘long-tailed tribe,’ ‘big tongues.’ But you didn’t, Diwu. You are the only human so far who has learned to say ‘thank you’ in our Maha language!”

 

Huh?

I felt a bit embarrassed by what Nida said.

 

“I… just did what I was supposed to do.”

 

“That’s why I think you’re a very beautiful girl, Diwu, both inside and out. I’m serious!” Nida shook her big tail.

 

“I think Momo must have done so much because she saw your kindness, and she definitely likes you a lot, I know! According to historical records, Momo has never shown such gentleness. Maybe she’s only gentle with you?”

 

“No way…”

I felt even more embarrassed. “Momo… she’s always been like that.”

 

“Not at all! I may not know everything, but when it comes to understanding Momo, I know much more than you do!” Nida said proudly, like a little adult, patting her chest.

 

“I’ve studied Momo for at least eighty years. I’ve read all the records of her deeds at least ten times!”

 

“Really?”

I became interested. “Then why don’t you tell me what kind of person Momo is?”

 

“Hmph, now that you’ve brought it up, I’m wide awake.”

 

The little Lizard girl put her hands on her hips.

 

“Momo is a cold and ruthless, yet incredibly good to her own people, a versatile mage proficient in thunder, spear, life, and various forbidden magics. She’s also a half-demon and half-elf. Talking about Momo’s deeds could take three days and three nights!”

 

I covered my mouth and giggled, “Then just hit the highlights, like some of her embarrassing secrets.”

 

“Embarrassing secrets?”

 

“Like what Momo is afraid of, what her favorite color is, what food she likes, what animals she likes… I’m particularly interested in those.”

 

“Then you’ve asked the right person. Momo’s favorite colors are black and purple, but I’ll tell you a secret. There’s a rumor that Momo also likes pink, the cute kind of pink. People say that although she seems very cold, she’s still a girl at heart… but don’t tell anyone I said that, it’s just a rumor.”

 

“Her favorite food is a fruit called ‘danhua’ from here. Her favorite animal is a rabbit, the kind with long ears and pink fur…”

 

“Oh, I have a book that specifically studies Momo’s preferences. Wait here, I’ll go get it so we can look at it together.”

 

“……”

 

Outside, the night sang with the rain.

 

“Xiao Mo…”

 

I glanced at the window of the room again as I watched Nida’s departing figure.

 

“……”

 

Probably… after tonight, my notebook will be filled with many new entries.

 

“……”

 

……