Chapter 28: Why her?

Lylia stood before the huge crystal door once more.

Strange glowing scribbles ran across its surface, symbols that pulsed faintly, like they were breathing. She squinted at them for a good few seconds.

“…Yep. Still don’t understand a thing.”

With a small sigh, she reached out and touched the door. Just like before, it opened on its own, silent and smooth.

The moment she stepped through, her feet landed on soft clouds. The familiar brightness of the divine sky greeted her, and there, lazily sitting on his golden throne, was Him.

“Oh, you’re back already,” the god said, resting his chin on one hand. “How did it go?”

Lylia crossed her arms, recalling her recent encounter. “Well… I met the God of Magic. He was polite but… I don’t know. I feel like he's kinda... maybe sarcastic, but his face didn’t move at all. Like, I couldn’t tell if he was mad, bored, or just joking. He’s impossible to read.”

She then described her meeting more in detail.

Hearing the whole story, the god laughed heartily. “Ahaha! That sounds exactly like Azurel. I can picture it already.”

She tilted her head and smiled. “Then maybe I should be your disciple instead?”

“You already are,” he replied without missing a beat.

“Eh?” she blinked. “Wait, really?”

He grinned and raised a brow. “Do you not remember the book?”

“Ohhh…” she blinked, realization dawning. “Right. The book. The one that one shots everything. Thanks for that, by the way.”

“You’re welcome.”

Lylia clasped her hands together and asked, half joking, “Sooo… can I extend its effect?”

The god burst out laughing. “Pfft, hah! Good one!”

She chuckled awkwardly. “Haha… yeah… funny thing is, I’m actually serious.”

The god immediately stopped laughing. His silence was heavy.

Lylia raised both hands quickly, waving them nervously. “Just kidding! Please forget I said that!”

The god smiled with his eyes closed. “Haha, right?”

“Right…” she forced a laugh, thin, nervous, but polite.

“Now, now,” he said playfully. “I’m just teasing. But no, I won’t extend it. As I told you before, that book exists only so you don’t die right away like the past otherworlders. It’s a safeguard, not a crutch.”

“Not having this book in your first days there… actually sounds kind of scary,” she admitted with a wry smile.

“As the god of this world,” he continued gently, “it’s not my role to spoil my people, but to guide them. They must grow on their own. Having faith in me, following my path, that is enough. That faith is a strength far greater than any spell or blade.”

Lylia smiled softly. “That’s poetic. And yeah, I think I’m getting the hang of magic pretty fast, actually.”

“Oh really? I thought I was a bad teacher,” he teased with mock surprise.

Her eyes widened a little. “…Huh?”

It took her a second to remember, she’d thought that once. Because of Rai.

“Oh, uh, no! You’re great! Perfect, even! I never said that!”

The god chuckled, clearly amused.

She cleared her throat, quickly changing the topic. “Sooo… is it time for me to go back now?”

He leaned back slightly, voice softening. “Hmm. Do you really want to go back down this soon?”

Lylia smiled, tilting her head. “Aww, are you gonna miss me?”

He looked away casually. “Maybe a little.”

“Haha… well, if it’s fine, I’ll stay for a bit longer. You’re pretty easy to talk to anyway.”

“Oh? Then let’s chat.” He nodded approvingly. “You still have time.”

She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Now that I think about it, I actually have a few questions again.”

“Go ahead.”

“So… I don’t have a mission or something, right? Like, a reason I was sent here?”

“Not really,” he said with a shrug. “I haven’t thought about it.”

“…You what?”

“I said, I haven’t thought about it.”

Lylia blinked. “That’s… kind of weird.”

“Why?”

“Well, isn’t there usually, like, a purpose? A ‘defeat the demon king and save the world’ kind of thing?”

The god paused for a second. “…Nope. You can challenge the demon king if you want, but you don’t have to.”

“Oh, so I’m not actually the hero?”

“Not quite. But if you do get involved, you’d be a great help. You’re my mage, after all.”

Lylia sighed softly. “Yeah… well, I have a feeling that no matter what I do, I’ll end up in the middle of it anyway.”

A short silence passed before she asked one more thing. “Then… why me? Why was I the one chosen?”

“Don’t you remember?” He smiled faintly. “Ah, right, I never really explained that. There’s no grand reason, really. Sometimes souls get lost after death instead of moving to their proper afterlife. Rather than banish them, I just let them live again here.”

“So I’m one of those lost souls?”

“Pretty much. Otherworlders tend to shake up the world, so I figured, why not?”

Lylia smiled faintly. “I see. Well, I guess I really am lucky, then. I didn’t exactly want to die. I was still kind of young.”

“Young?” He raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that?”

She gasped dramatically. “Excuse me? For a god who’s lived for several decades, I was definitely young!”

He chuckled. “I meant from a mortal perspective.”

“Oh. Well, yeah, I wasn’t that young, but not that old either!”

He smiled softly as she laughed it off.

“Anyway,” she continued, “why do souls like mine even get lost in the first place?”

He pondered for a moment before shrugging. “Honestly? I don’t know either. I’m still a young god, so don’t blame me.”

“Sure, sure,” she said teasingly.

The god chuckled again. But then his expression softened, almost regretful. “Unfortunately, your time’s up.”

“Aww, already?”

He nodded slowly. “I’m afraid so.”

With a wave of his hand, the same white door appeared—the one she’d first stepped through when she was still a man.

“Before you go,” he said gently, “I want to thank you for your actions so far.”

Lylia blinked. “Huh? What do you mean?”

He smiled, faint and kind. “Just keep it up. It’s been fun watching you.”

She covered her cheeks shyly. “Ehe? You’ve been watching me?”

The god’s only response was a knowing smile.

Lylia laughed softly, meeting his gaze one last time. “Heh… fine, fine. Guess I’ll do my best then.”

She turned toward the door, gave him one last wave, and stepped through.

The door closed behind her, quiet, gentle, like a goodbye that wasn’t really an end.