Finding Purpose In The Multiverse: Meta Essence Quest Mode

Rome City Of Order And Apples

Entry 159:

Linus Ozias POV:

This city holds both the beauty of natural history and the cultures that came about from its influence on the world. It feels calming in a way, as before my reincarnation or transmigration in this sense, I was of Italian heritage on my father's side. 

From where I'm looking, I can see every single building present, from the Colosseum to the chariot racing tracks. My grandmother on my father's side was a tough woman but one who truly cared, and while she mostly spoke Italian, she could speak English and worked as a nurse when they moved to America.

Although I do find it ironic that my father ended up marrying a woman of Polish descent, that is a little something I chuckle about to myself as I could not have asked for better parents or grandparents. Sadly, my grandfather on both sides of the family died before I was born, and my grandmother on my mother's side died around the same time, and all I had left was my grandmother on my father's side.

She was as stubborn as they came and wouldn't even allow any of her family members to help her cook the food even when she aged into her 90s, but eventually, her mind caught up to her, and she fell to Alzheimer's. It is a painful memory not to have a family member that you truly cared for, not to remember your name.

When she passed, I made it a goal to gather enough money to visit her old home before she moved to America, but sadly, my life ended before I could do so. I stand here near the beginning of it all. Now, as we walk through the streets, I simply stare and ponder. I still remember her final words. " Ti amo, mio ​​dolce mangiatore di meloni."

I chuckle internally as even after she began to lose her memories due to her Alzheimer's, she still remembered that time when, during a family reunion, I ate four bowls of cantaloupe before anyone else could eat any of it. My grandmother never let that go.

Mash, noticing my silence, asks, "You seem troubled, Ozias Senpai." I simply smile and say, "It is simply old memories, nothing of importance." Nero then jumps down from my shoulders and says, "Come now, this is not the time to be sullen. Let the great Nero show you all around us and the vibrancy of Rome!" 

The empress then walks up to a shopkeeper on the side of the road and says, "Hey, shopkeeper, I'm taking one of these apples." The man simply nods and says, "Please, take as you wish. Glory to the Emperor and Rome!"

The empress umu's in response and walks back to us and hands us each an apple and says, "Let these apples show the delicacies of Rome." We all nod and eat the apples as I say, "Thank you, your majesty." Nero then smiles as I say, "The people seem to love you."

The empress then slightly blushes and says, "Umu, well, it's because I am Nero Claudius, purveyor of the glory of Rome!" It would have sounded prideful if she did not stutter and blush while saying it.

Romani says [Who knew a Roman Empress could be so adorable.] Mash nods as we follow the empress. We see her people greet her fondly, and even some children run up to her, with the girls looking in awe at her blade.

 It is rather heartwarming as I say to Ritsuka, "Do you see this, my friend? This is why we fight to preserve beautiful moments like this, and while our hands may be dirty, it allows for the future to go by cleanly."

Ritsuka continues to chomp on her apple as she says, "I know, but it's still not something I can get used to, you know?" I nod as I continue, "It would be wrong to say that people can eventually get used to killing, but for others, it is a much more arduous task, but do know that not being willing to kill does not make one weak."

I mean, look at heroes like Spider-Man and Batman. They are well-renowned figures even if their philosophies are not ending their villains' lives on purpose specifically, as even some of their valence die accidentally.