The rear of the forest.
Within the vast forest, several winding streams converged into a wide waterfall, its violent currents plunging down from the cliffs.
The massive waterfall split the cliffs; on one side lay the lush forest, while the other held ancient structures.
A broken stone bridge road connected the two sides of the cliff. At this moment, Xia Yu and the others were resting near the stone bridge.
On the other side of the stone bridge, the massive structure built upon the cliff was the so-called Forest Kingdom.
Naturally, those buildings were among the remnants left behind from the Old World. Wildly growing trees had become support points for the structures, preventing them from collapsing over time.
"Sizzle~"
Popola flipped the wild boar skewers on the grill. The marbled meat sizzled, and the occasional drop of fat caused the flames to flicker before quickly dimming again.
After dealing with the Machine Lifeforms along the way, the group soon reached the rear of the forest. From the crazed ramblings of the Machine Lifeforms, they learned that the Forest Kingdom lay across the cliff.
Now that they were here, Xia Yu didn't insist on crossing over to take a look. He was afraid the simulated hearts of the Androids protecting him wouldn't be able to take the stress.
Although he could easily solo the Forest Kingdom by himself, there wasn't actually anything particularly good inside, except for a Machine Lifeform blacksmith named Masamune, a master craftsman who could upgrade weapons in the late game.
However, once he took over the Machine Lifeforms' network, he could simply have Masamune come to him. So, for now, he didn't really feel the need to enter the Forest Kingdom.
Once they had rested enough, it would be time to leave this forest.
"My Lord, your skewers."
While Xia Yu was lost in thought, Popola approached with a plate carved from wood, carrying the skewers she had just finished grilling.
The wild boar had been hunted in the forest moments ago. After washing the meat in the stream, they had used local materials to make the BBQ skewers.
These massive wild boars tasted great. Unlike boars from the Old World, these creatures were at least three or four times larger; while they still had a gamey smell, it wasn't overpowering.
Even without extra spices like cumin, the flavor was still excellent, possessing a pure, wild quality.
"Thank you, Popola."
"It is my honor to serve you, My Lord."
Popola smiled slightly and silently pumped her fist in her heart. To capture the Human Lord's heart, one must first capture his stomach. Fortunately, she knew a thing or two about cooking; if conditions allowed, she could whip up a Manchu Han Imperial Feast at any time!
But with current conditions being so primitive, she could only settle for grilling meat for now.
After handing the skewers to Xia Yu, Popola sat down beside Devola and began to eat as well. Androids could actually eat; their fusion reactors could decompose even water into energy, let alone food.
Furthermore, because they admired their creators—humans—Androids modeled their lifestyles after them, including eating and sleeping, even though they didn't need to.
Thus, everyone except Xia Yu was eating, though 9S had mysteriously disappeared somewhere.
When Xia Yu mentioned resting here, 9S had temporarily left the group, saying he would find some dessert for the Lord.
Xia Yu thought about it and didn't mind. Perhaps 9S was looking for fruit; after all, this was a forest, so there should be wild fruit trees.
However, Xia Yu soon realized how naive his assumption was when 9S returned carrying a pile of mud.
"My Lord, this is soil I found nearby. It is rich in iron. I apologize for not finding any iron ore, so please make do with this for now."
"I've read in books that iron deficiency in the human body causes iron-deficiency anemia, so please supplement your iron intake, My Lord."
Xia Yu: (￣□￣)
This silly kid is way too literal.
9S: The kid might be silly, but he's a man of action.
Seeing 9S's genuine expectation, Xia Yu took a deep breath. "Popola, I'm counting on you!"
"Yes, My Lord!"
Popola dashed to Xia Yu's side and understood the situation at a glance. Her expression tightened, and she slapped the mud out of 9S's hands.
Before 9S could look confused, Popola said righteously, "How could you let the Human Lord eat such a thing? It's so dirty!"
"Even if minerals need to be supplemented, they must be made into food first. Look at this mess—could you even swallow it yourself?"
*Actually, I could,* 9S answered silently in his heart, but he soon had a look of realization. Yes, how could he let the Human Lord eat something like that!
Humans can't eat raw food; that's common knowledge. So minerals must be the same—they need to be cooked. But how do you cook minerals?
9S fell into deep thought once again.
Seeing the silly kid lost in thought again, Popola breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, she could explain it that way, preserving the Human Lord's dignity and stopping 9S from doing something so foolish again.
And thinking about it, she wasn't wrong; humans really do get their minerals from food. This way, nothing would go wrong.
The minor interlude soon passed.
After they finished eating and resting, 2B's pod suddenly received a message from the Bunker. After reviewing the new mission, 2B walked up to Xia Yu with a serious expression.
"My Lord, our Commander wishes to have an audience with you in person, so the Forest Kingdom might..."
Because she had to go against the Human Lord's idea of entering the Forest Kingdom, 2B stammered, unable to finish her sentence.
Even so, Xia Yu understood what she meant—they were to leave and head to the Resistance Camp. It just so happened he wanted to leave anyway.
"Alright, we won't go to the Forest Kingdom then."
Hearing this, 2B breathed a sigh of relief, followed by an indescribable wave of emotion. The Human Lord was truly kind.
Under her idealized filter, Xia Yu's image became increasingly tall and divine.
The departure didn't take long, as the Machine Lifeforms along the path had already been wiped out. Thus, the group returned to the forest entrance—the City Ruins—without any hindrance.
"Warning: Special Machine Lifeform signature detected."
Before the group back at the entrance could even catch their breath, Pod 042 suddenly issued a warning.
"Warning: Special individuals identified as Adam and Eve," Pod 153 added.
"Oh... so this is a human. Truly exciting."
An elegant, slightly magnetic male voice rang out from thin air, followed by a figure appearing before everyone amidst a golden stream of light.
It was a young humanoid male with long white hair, wearing a well-fitted white shirt and a black neckerchief. His red eyes, hidden behind glasses, betrayed a look of excitement.
His gaze swept back and forth across Xia Yu, as if he were appraising a rare and noble piece of fragile art.
"Brother, is this the human you're interested in? Let's just seize him then."
Another male voice arrived with a golden stream of light, and then a young humanoid male with a bare chest and short hair appeared beside the first youth.
The newcomer sized up Xia Yu with an unruly gaze, though this time the look was much more aggressive.
"Do not be rude, Eve. This is a noble human."
The long-haired youth bowed in an ancient European noble fashion, his polite demeanor making him seem more human than humans themselves.
"Greetings, noble human. My name is Adam, and this is my younger brother, Eve. We have come here specifically for you."
So said the man named Adam.
The story of nier: automata is really tightly packed; there's almost no room to breathe in the plot. I expect I'll have to finish the NieR arc before I can write about other worlds.