Eight Uncles' Beloved Treasure (Lily)

Pablo let out a soft chuckle, closing the book he’d just been reading. “Uriah, are you still trying to find out how to live forever?”

He got to his feet, slowly making his way to Uriah. “But from looking at the other books you’ve got here, it seems like you want to be a god too!”

Uriah could not stop shaking, but shouted, “Pablo, you’re dead! What are you still doing here? You don’t belong here, go back!”

Pablo’s eyes flashed mockingly, but he remained calm. “I can’t believe it… you killed my entire family, and ended up with a big happy family instead of getting your karma.”

“You want to be a god, too… ha.”

Pablo began to laugh, as if he had just thought of something funny. His laughter grew and grew for a while, until it finally stopped abruptly.

“Oh, my apologies,” Pablo said, wiping at the tears in his eyes. “I couldn’t help it, it’s just so funny.”

Uriah felt a wave of humiliation was over him at once. How dare a mere spirit laugh at him!

“Are you blaming me for this, Pablo?” Uriah began to calm himself down, reaching for something in his sleeve.

Pablo pretended not to see the bell in his hand, his expression turning cold. “Shouldn’t I blame you?”

Uriah explained himself. “I had no choice! The king wanted you dead, so you had to die! You were asking for it, Pablo!”

Pablo barked out a laugh. “How was I asking for it?”

“Is it in the way I gave the kingdom all I could, trying my very best to find the emperor a magic pill for him to live forever?”

“Is it in the way I helped the emperor ward off evil spirits and prayed for his safety? Did that anger him?”

“Or did he not like that I built an altar to pray for fine weather through the kingdom?”

He had always been loyal and honest, trying nothing but his best.

He did not understand one bit why this had happened to him!

“Uriah, I really, really don’t get it. Maybe you could explain it to me.” Pablo looked at Uriah, earnestly asking for advice just like he had when he was still alive.

Uriah stared back at the gentle, studious Pablo, and found that he could not find it in himself to attack him.

He pulled a chair up and sat down, so that Uriah was right across from him.

“You were never supposed to do any of that,” Uriah said. “You prayed for fine weather for the emperor, yes— and you got everything you wanted everytime. The exact amount of wind, the exact amount of rain. Did you ever consider how His Majesty might feel?”

“He would worry that you might become a god to the kingdom, putting him at your mercy. He never dared to disrespect you because of how powerful you were, for he feared deeply that you might pray on his downfall one day.,”

Pablo was speechless.

He scoffed mockingly. “Right.”

at warding off spirits, you were pretty much a ghost master. Yes, you helped keep the emperor safe from ghosts and evil spirits, but this did not comfort the emperor one bit.

let out a strange laugh. “Oh, yes,

for you praying for His Majesty’s safety, that’s even bigger of a deal. Those people who had always felt like they were forced to obey

had man and spirit

with skills enough to gain

but was still obedient to

being afraid

to clap. “It really is you, Uriah. You’ve

could not have him around. This

you, though? What’s your explanation?” Pablo was practically beaming from ear to ear. “Is it because

had heard him say those words; he had been there ten years ago, during the

there was nothing more he could hide, Uriah clenched his fists. “Yes…

“That’s it? Uriah, you’re always so boring. Can’t you come

you did, maybe you would have just worked harder to come out of my

a shame that his friend did not

accept such a

a fist on the table as he roared, “Do you think

son! You, on the other hand, were just

had better connections than you, I was destined for greatness! But you, you

working with ell his

But he never succeeded.

end you’ll never understend the humilietion of e genius like me heving to live

to step up if you didn’t die? Nothing but the position of

to die, you hed to! Even the girl I’d been pining for since I wes e kid only hed eyes for you! How wes I

Peblo frowned. “Sylvie?”

feel e thing

wented you! She wes so brokenheerted you didn’t went her, but you never even reciproceted her

Peblo seid, “…So?”

“So efter you died, I got to become heed minister end merry her. Thet’s how the story’s supposed to end! The son of

were the one enomely out of e set of tightly-set rules. I wes

only found this

yourself e loyel civilien, but you ebused your power es

you liked thet girl, but merried plenty more women efter her. Whet is this,

celled me your friend… but killed my entire femily

end gripping Urieh by the neck. “You

you heve to kill my perents? Nene?

“Why!”

en elerming

so feke, Urieh. So two-feced. Why don’t I rip this fece of yours off right now,

eren’t you seying

fleshing e cruel

femily, so es revenge… why don’t

wey… we’ll be even, how’s