ã€ŠHeaven&#x27;s Calling: Solving this Divine Mystery One Step at a Time!ã€‹


 Vol.1 Ch.1 - Heaven 2.0

    I look to my left.

    "....Hm?"

    I look to my right.

    "Huh."

    Then I look up.

    "Nothing."

    I then look down.

    "Whoa."

    Before me was a unique sight. The color White, its purity blinding. I was in the sky, it seemed. Or more like, above it. No matter where I turned my head, I only found blinding rays and shiny White colored buildings. My first instinct was to call it a town, or more like a Holy Kingdom. Nonetheless, the symmetric shape of all the plots of land was kind of disorienting. Quite literally blocks of land stretching out in all directions as far as the Eye could see, some taller than others, but all still strictly pertaining to their boundaries.

    "Whoa!?" Someone''s voice yelped behind me.

    "And you are?" I turned to face them, only to pull back in fear myself.

    The man''s face... No, that thing isn''t a man. It''s pure White, but not the kind of blinding White the rest of this freaky place has. This thing looks like a human jumped into a bucket of White paint, with the only thing making it even resemble a man being, well...

    "A-Ahem." I turned around for his privacy, "Cover yourself up, please."

    "Oh, well would you look at that, at least my thing''s still here." He looked down as if admiring it, "That being said, you''re no different, sweet cheeks."

    Sweet cheeks? Wait, don''t tell me... Eek! By the Gods, why am I naked as well!? What the hell, where are my clothes!

    "Looks like we''re joined by another friend." The guy turned to look at another pure White being.

    "AAAAAAHHHHHH!" The third guy screamed like he was being brutally massacred, "No! Stop, it hurts, arrrrgh!!!!"

    "..."

    "...Oh, it stopped. Phew." He looked at us confusedly before breathing a sigh of relief.

    "What happened to you?" I asked, still making sure to try and cover myself up with my hands as much as possible.

    "Honestly? No clue." He shrugged, "I was screaming, then I closed my Eyes, and now I''m here with you guys. By the way, where are we?"

    "Heck if I know." The second guy replied, "Hey, you think we died?"

    "Whoa, what?" I jolted, "No, come on. If I died, I think I''d remember it."

    "Then what do you remember last?" He refuted.

    "...Nothing."

    Yeah, come to think of it, I have no clue who I was before I opened my Eyes. I can talk, and I know basic stuff like how being naked is usually frowned upon, so I must''ve been SOMEONE before this... But who? Looks like these guys don''t know their past either, which makes it doubly¡ªscratch that, triply suspicious.

    "Why jump to death as your first answer?" The third guy asked, "It''s equally as possible that we were just created."

    "What do you mean?" I tilted my head, "You mean like we''re just born?"

    "Not we, but our souls." He explained, "When a baby is born, that''s its body. So, I ask, when does it become sentient?"

    "...When it gets a soul?" The other guy replied with tons of uncertainty.

    "Yeah, and so my theory is!" The third guy raised his finger up high, "While our souls wait to get properly implanted into our bodies, we just sit here!"

    "...Nah, no way."

    "Yeah, I agree, we''re definitely just dead."

    This guy''s theory is just way too stupid to be the case. Come on, souls waiting to get implanted into children? I mean, just look at this place! We''re in Heaven, through and through.

    "Believe whatever you want, but if I''m wrong...!" The third guy got hurt, so he decided to bet on it, "May God personally correct me!"

    "Yeah, you''re wrong." A divine voice called out from above us.

    "I was joking!" He sobbed.

    "New guests are left clueless regarding their whereabouts and situation... Okay." The voice sounded like it was jotting something down to be corrected later, "I guess that''s for Selz to fix later, for now though¡ªWelcome to Heaven 2.0!"

    "Heaven... 2?" I raised an Eyebrow.

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    "As in, the long awaited sequel to the massively successful Heaven?" The other guy asked as well.

    "When''s Heaven 3 coming out?" The third guy joked too.

    "It''s 2.0! With a point Oh at the end!" The voice roared, "And yes, the Heaven you may know of has gotten too cramped, so we had to upgrade. This is a complete overhaul on the system, fixing many bugs and exploits to hopefully give our believers the best post mortem experience possible! Rejoice, for you are the first three to get the opportunity to join us in this new and improved Heavenly Realm!"

    "Cool."

    "Sounds lit."

    "You guys... Sigh, alright. Well, that explains WHERE we are, but we''re still left with WHO we are." I noted.

    "Right, we''ll be sure to explain that to any future guests that may arrive with like a divine message or something, but for now, I''ll have to give you the basics." God stated, "Back in Heaven 1.0, there were humans that chose to meet each other here as angels and exact revenge upon one another. Imagine someone killed you, and you and your killer got placed in the same cell together. It doesn''t really make sense, right?"

    "Wait, you''re comparing Heaven to a jail cell?" The first guy frowned.

    "It''s just a metaphor!" God fussed, "Geez, you guys are annoying."

    "Wait, so why solve this by putting the killer in Hell?" The third guy made a valid point.

    Right? What''s this about some killer being allowed entry into Heaven? What''s even the point of Hell if that''s the case?

    "Ah, that''s because..." God was a bit embarrassed to reveal this to us, "Hell... doesn''t exist anymore."

    "Eh?" I cocked my head back, "Well what happened to it?"

    "I kinda-Err, ahem." He cleared his throat, "It just doesn''t exist anymore. We sealed it away, closed for business."

    This guy does not sound like a capable leader. So which one of the Four is he? Auros? Allucius? There''s just no way he''s Selzion.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "In essence, that''s why we came up with the solution to erase all your memories of the time you spent in the world of the living." God continued, "A fresh, clean slate where everyone can love each other without prejudice. It''s also why we made you all look the same."

    "Did you seriously have to do that?" The other guy asked.

    "Sadly yes, you humans really like to hate on others for being different." He made a point.

    "And what if I say I hate this girl here for not showing me her privates?" The first guy dared to point me out as the bad guy.

    "Wha-!? Then you''re a pervert!" I shot back.

    "Nah, that''s your business I think." God explained briefly, "We did our part to make you get along, but we''re not forcing you."

    "Ah, that''s fair." The guy stopped pointing, "By the way, I was just stating an example. I don''t care about your body."

    "As you should!" I hissed.

    I''m already hating the fact people like this aren''t shoved straight down to Hell. What were the Gods thinking? Ugh, whatever...

    "So are these plots of land like, ours?" I pointed down below.

    "One per guest." God explained.

    "Wait, what happens if there''s more guests than there are plots of land?" The first guy pointed out.

    "Impossible." God explained, "We have separated a plot of land for every possible human ahead of time. Every person that lived in the past, that is living in the present and that will live in the future. Indeed, time is irrelevant in Heaven 2.0."

    Holy crap, that actually sounded sick just now. Well, as to be expected of the Gods, they sure do know how to create worlds. But wait, if time is irrelevant, what about our natural sleep cycles? Seasons of the year? Does none of that apply up here? Days and nights, nothing?

    "You''ll figure out the rest later." The God sent us to sleep with just these words, "For now, let us fix any imperfections your bodies may have."

    "Imperf...?"

    Down, the Eyelids went. The sudden contrast from blinding White to pitch black was jarring, but I''ll admit it helped cure my headache a bit. Aches... Right, I faintly remember my bones kind of being sore while I was awake, but now while I''m asleep, they feel fine. Wait, how am I even conscious if I''m asleep? Does that mean I can wake up at any-

    "-time?" I opened my Eyes, only to find myself in a dark and dreary room, "This place is...?"

    Cramped, and kind of nostalgic in a weird, messed up way. The gray walls aren''t at all welcoming, and the giant saws and sawblades I''m surrounded by should be making me screetch in terror by now. However, I''m at peace with this. Why? Hm, I guess that can be attributed to the saws not being pointed at me.

    "Ack!?" I felt something tearing through my spine, "What the hell is-!? AAAOOGH!"

    A saw was behind me, and since I was bounded to stay in one place, I could neither see nor react to its spinning blades digging deeper into my back. This was a trap, I knew it. Gods, Heaven 2.0? What the hell was I thinking, believing that crap? Whoever made this elaborate thing must be one twisted bastard...

    "So why am I not dead?" I asked myself out loud, "Moreover, why am I still calm and at peace?"

    The steel from the machinery in front of me was so smooth I could use it as a mirror to look behind myself. A large yet careful robotic arm pried itself into my back and took the spine straight out. That was the last thing I saw before falling unconscious out of nausea once more. It was too grotesque for my Eyes to look at anymore.

    "...Ah, finally." I looked around to find myself lying on a comfy bed, "Looks like that was just a bad dream."

    I was in a Yellowish tinted room. It had some children''s toys around me, how odd. My body, it''s still White though, meaning I must still be in that Heaven 2.0 thingy. Damn, that means...!

    "Crap." I ran to find the nearest mirror in the room, only to turn around and see a large scar made of pure Gold straight down the middle of my back, "This... wasn''t a dream."

    It was then when the God''s words hit me for real. "Let us fix any imperfections your bodies may have." My body was stiff and sluggish before the saws, but now I could actually move and jump around as freely as anyone. That must be what he was talking about, he took out my no good back and swapped it out for a gold plated one. Sick.

    "So if I''m still in Heaven..." I turned to face the door of the room, "Does that mean this place is my house?"

    Exiting the room, I found a long hallway. Walking down slowly, I reached a staircase. Down there, I found the front entrance, from which I reached the yard outside. Indeed, I was in one of the plots of land, but there was one key difference.

    "Oi! You there, finally awake?" The first guy from back then called out to me from his own yard across from mine, "Check this out! The Gods gave me some sick gold plated scars!"

    "You''re still naked." I noted.

    "Same for you, missy! Ah, but bad news." He slumped forward, pointing to his nonexistent crotch, "Looks like they took away our privates..."

    Indeed, I was too focused on checking my back out in the mirror that I completely missed the front. I looked down and... Yeah, no nipples. Nothing down there either, guess the Gods found those to be imperfections as well.

    "And to think I was this excited about living in a world where I could freely ogle all the female angels scot-free..." He kept sobbing in his yard.

    "You really deserve to get Hell reopened specially for you." I smirked.

 Vol.1 Ch.2 - Initial Names

    "Hey, lady." He said as we walked through the crowded streets of Heaven, "Y''know I was thinking, isn''t it a bit difficult to just keep calling everyone "this guy" and "that guy"?"

    "Yeah, you''re right... guy." I agreed, "But what can we do? Just make up names for each other?"

    Thing is, we all look the same, and from my knowledge, there aren''t any clothing stores open yet. Even if we did make up names for everyone, it still wouldn''t help much in the grand scheme of things, ''cause we just passed by ten other females that look identical to me. It''s quite annoying, really.

    "Ah, well, we do have these unique golden scars and implants." I reached to feel my gold plated spine, "I guess that''s one way to differentiate one another."

    "So what, should our new names have something to do with those?" He asked.

    "A name based on our appearance..." I frowned, "That sounds like it''d get real unfair real quick for some people."

    "As in?"

    "As in¡ªImagine you had an ugly scar. You''d get an ugly name to go along with it and bam, bullied." I shivered, "Like if someone called you Self-Harmer."

    "Hey, what makes you think these cuts on my forearms are from that!?" He got defensive, "It could''ve easily been from someone attacking me or something."

    Yeah right, the guy''s entire forearm areas are covered in deep cuts and gashes, only covered up by golden scars. It looks cool from afar, but it''s easy to assume how people could draw out even wilder conclusions than what I did.

    "Definitely not." I shook my head, "Sigh, this might be tougher than I thought. Hey, by the way, where did you say we were going?"

    "To visit our third member." He explained, "Unlike us, he lives pretty far away from our houses."

    "And you''re sure we''re not gonna get lost?" I worried, "That God did say Heaven was near infinite in size, after all..."

    "Nah, I got it." He flashed me a confident thumbs up accompanied by a devilishly charming grin, "As long as I''m your guide, we''ll be there before you know it!"

    He said that, but we kept on walking through the crowded streets, one block after the other, and yet it seemed like we just kept going further and further into the wrong direction. I know this, because his pace started getting faster, and that previously smug grin started to ever so slightly twitch. He had his pride on the line, and sadly it seems like this guy''s pretty stubborn.

    "Should be there in a sec..." He looked around each corner we passed, "Hmmm..."

    "Look, do you know what his scars look like?" I reasoned, "Maybe if we asked someone if they saw him, then..."

    "Are you serious?! Just in this past hour, we''ve passed by thousands of people!" He yelled back in a panic, "Look, I got this. Just leave it to me!"

    "Dude, you obviously don''t." I grabbed his wrist, "At this rate, you''re just gonna get us lost as well. He definitely isn''t this far out, so..."

    "Let go!" He yanked back.

    "Chill!" I followed suit.

    The back and forth caused quite the commotion, eventually resulting in my loss if not purely because of his stronger body. Geez, not fair! The guys get super muscular bodies, meanwhile us girls have to deal with these slim little physiques that can''t even lift a rock properly!

    "Look, it should be just around...!" He paused the moment he turned the corner, "...Here."

    Gulping, he couldn''t believe his Eyes. Something strange and terrifying was in front of us, something we didn''t think could even exist in this place. A large, open yard that was practically taking up a whole 9 regular sized yards in a 3 by 3 area. It was like a golf course, almost, but it was completely flat. So basically, call it mini-golf.

    "The heck is that?" I squinted to try and get a clearer picture.

    "We traveled way too far." He finally admitted, "But damn, talk about unfair."

    "Yeah, didn''t the God say everyone got an equal amount of territory!?" I fussed, "Ohhh, next time that voice reaches us, I''m gonna give it a piece of my mind!"

    "Wait, maybe we''re misunderstanding things." He explained, "What if everyone DID start with an equally small yard, but there was actually a way to expand it?"

    "How?"

    "That''s what I wanna know too." He grabbed my wrist and ran towards the giant plot of land, "So instead of complaining, why not just ask the guy in charge of the estate how he did it!"

    This guy''s insane! How did he jump to such an outlandish idea all of a sudden? Does he want to die a second time!? If you find something out of the ordinary, you turn back while you still can, not rush in like a maniac!

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    "W-Wait, what if he''s a bad guy though!?" I pleaded for him to slow his rolls.

    "Then we''ll politely excuse ourselves." He stopped right in front of the large fountain in front of the mansion, "A-Ah, I think I get the size difference now."

    The front doors swooshed open with an almost frictionless motion to them. From there, two giant beings glided out. They had large robes on that covered their bodies from neck to toe, but even then you could see they were hovering a good meter or so above the floor. Two things immediately stuck out about their appearance¡ªThey were large, extremely so, with one being taller than the other by a meter and lankier, and the other still towering over the rest of us peasants with around 10 or so meters to his name. The second thing that stuck out...

    "Colors." I could only let my mouth open wide in sheer awe as I inspected their skin, "These guys have a regular skin tone."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "A-Ah!" My terrified guide quickly recomposed himself in front of the two titans, "Sorry to bother you! We were just passing by, looking for our friend, when we happened to happen upon your estate and well, we were wondering-!"

    "We were wondering nothing." I shut his trap, "Apologies again, we''ll be getting out of your hair soon."

    "Puah! We were wondering if you could tell us how you got such a large yard!" The bastard pried my hand off his mouth to shout, "And your skin, and your height! What''s your secret!?"

    "Zip it!" I kept fighting to keep him quiet.

    "Hmm..." The lankier giant merely looked on at our squabble, "Our secret."

    "Eep!" We both stopped and got dead silent to hear them out.

    "Well, if you must know..." The friendlier one chuckled, "Once you make the world you''re in, it''s not that difficult to expand your own little corner of it as you see fit."

    Eh? Make the world you''re in? Wait a second, I recognize that voice!

    "Y-You''re...!?" Both me and ol'' Golden Cutter stepped back in fear, "You''re the God from that time!"

    "Nice to meet you two in the flesh." He nodded with a kind smile, "By the way, the name is Prylos, God of Meditation."

    Ah, so that''s who he was. Right, then the person next to him must be Water God Allucius. Oddly enough, though I don''t remember anything from my past life, I do know of the old legends about the Four Gods. From those, Water God Allucius was said to have most frequently donned an annoyed frown on his face. Really matches the other guy.

    "And this is Selzion." Prylos patted his colleague''s shoulder, "The God of Knowledge."

    "Eh? No way!" My guide friend yelped.

    "Hrm... Indeed, it is as you see." Selzion finally spoke up, though through a muttered and angered grumble, "Now that you have gotten your question answered, please go away."

    Just like that, he flicked his wrist, and we were gently yet magically whisked away to the streets. Before we left completely though, I did muster up the courage to ask them one more thing.

    "W-Wait! We need your help finding the third guy!" I shouted.

    "...The third guy?" Prylos tilted his head before remembering, "Oh yeah, him! What about him?"

    "We kinda can''t differentiate between anyone since there''s so many similar looking people around." My friend complained, "Gets real tricky if you wanna look for someone in particular."

    "Is there any way to tell the difference apart from the scars?" I asked.

    The two Gods looked a bit troubled. It seems they didn''t anticipate this outcome at all, given they immediately Materialized some sort of Book and started writing something down in it. In the very next moment, everyone including us yelped as they felt a sharp stinging sensation hit the back of their palms.

    "Yeowch!" I whimpered, "What the hell did you just do!?"

    Looking down at the source of the pain, however, I noticed something peculiar. On my left hand was engraved a golden letter M, and on my right the letter G. What is this...?

    "There, should be enough to help you out." Prylos poofed the Book back out of existence, "These were your initials from back when you were alive. Use them to help you find the person you''re looking for."

    "Your friend''s initials are S.B." Selzion shooed us away as he turned to go back to their abode, "Now, off you go."

    "Thank-" The doors shut loudly as we blinked back onto the street, "...you."

    Well, that was certainly something. Did... Did the Gods just change the rules of Heaven? Just ''cause we asked nicely? Wait, forget that, the Gods! Wowee, we actually met two of them! They were so cool, incredible! I wonder where the other two are... No, never mind that, for now-

    "Meg." The guy accompanying me pointed at my hands, then me, "M.G... Sounds like Meg."

    "What? No, that''s totally wrong." I shook my head, "Those are just my initials."

    "Yeah, but until we figure out your full name, I gotta call you something." He stopped to think about it some more, "Meg, short for Megazoid."

    "The hell kind of name is that!?" I shouted, "Why not Gemma? It''s way prettier, and it''s still got a G and an M in it!"

    "...Fine, whatever." He kept his hands behind his head as we kept walking through the crowd.

    ...Suspicious.

    "Hey, what''re your initials?" I said with a wry smirk.

    "What''s it to ya''?" He got all shy.

    "Oh, come on~! I showed you mine!" I teased, reaching for his hands as he kept backing away, "Gimme paw!"

    "Ugh! Fine, stop!" He begrudgingly showed me the back of his hands, "L.G... Happy now?"

    "L.G..." I darted my gaze between the two letters before looking at him in the Eyes, "Elegy."

    "Whoa, that''s way too cool!" He gasped, completely left astonished by the fact I actually gave him a serious sounding name, "I was certain you were gonna go with the more obvious one."

    "Which one''s that?" I wondered.

    "Leg." He shrugged plainly.

    How the hell is that more obvious than just spelling out an L then a G? This guy''s a dumbass and a half, but at least I have a name whenever I think of the dumbest man in Heaven from now on. Elegy and Gemma... Yeah, I can get behind that.

    "That''ll be your nickname whenever you annoy me." I teased, "Leg."

    "Hell yeah! Leg n'' Meg, the golden duo!" He raised his arms triumphantly.

    "That wasn''t a compliment!"

    Right, but now we''re on the right track to find... S.B., was it? Well, there''s probably still a lot of S.B.s around, but it still narrows down our search by a ton. As for his name... I think we''ll decide on it after we find him. It''s only fair.

    "Seb..." Elegy murmured quietly to himself.

    "Why are all of your names so short and stupid?" I asked, "At least go for the full Sebas..."

    "Sounds fishy."

    ...I have a newfound hatred for this idiot in particular.

 Vol.1 Ch.3 - Passive, Agressive

    "Yo, we''re looking for a guy about yay tall." Elegy explained to a passerby, "Short hair, White body all over. You know how it is."

    "Any other defining features?" The passerby joked, "Does he perhaps have two arms and two legs?"

    "See, you get it!" Elegy opted to high five him, "Nah, but seriously. His initials are S.B., and he should have circles going straight around his abdomen area. Think hula-hoops, but golden."

    "Whoa, that last part is actually new and useful info!" I remarked.

    "Ah, so that''s what these letters are..." The passerby amusedly looked at his own hands, "But yeah, now that you mention it¡ªThere was a guy that fit that description just a few blocks that way. Real suspicious guy."

    "Suspicious?" We tilted our heads, "Don''t tell me he''s being weird."

    "Nah, not suspicious in that sense." He continued, "More like suspicious of everything and everyone else. He kept going from one person to the other, asking all sorts of questions about this place."

    Ah, so he''s just curious. Phew, when I heard suspicious, I''ll be honest, I thought this guy was doing something shady. Guess I was the one who jumped to conclusions.

    "Thanks a bunch." Elegy nodded, waving at the passerby as we left to go find S.B., "Damned asshole."

    "Whoa, where''d that come from?" I said with a surprised tone, "Don''t be rude! This guy just helped us and you''re calling him an asshole?"

    "You don''t get it?" He turned to me with a quiet voice, "He called the guy that was investigating this place suspicious. That''s totally off the mark."

    Eh? Right, it doesn''t really make sense now that I think about it. I mean, Prylos did say that Heaven 2.0 is a new thing, so obviously we''re all uninformed about it. Wait, that''s not all he said though...

    "Hey, we''re the first three guests in this new Heaven, right?" I asked with a suspiciously raised Eyebrow, "Then that means no one knows more than us, no?"

    "Looks like you''re finally getting the gist of what I mean." Elegy replied, "The rest of these idiots just accepted their new life way too easily without asking a single question. Normally, people would be acting like us and S.B., but everyone''s just so... at peace with it."

    We ought to reconvene with S.B. in that case, and fast. We don''t know if it''s possible to get hurt or even die in this world, but in any case, he''ll definitely run into the wrong person if he continues asking so many questions. Worst case scenario, the Gods might take notice of his antics and start targeting him as well...

    "Someone, help!" A lady ran away from the street we were headed towards, "A-A fight! A fight broke out!"

    "Damn, you think it has anything to do with our friend?" Elegy smirked.

    "Does it matter? I don''t care who''s fighting, but we should go check it out regardless." I replied, "Though for his sake, I kinda hope it isn''t S.B."

    With that, we ran full-speed towards the busy street. A scary phenomenon had occurred, no one was joining us on this decision. Even though a lot of people were around when the lady yelled for someone to come stop the fight, they all just shyly turned their heads and kept walking. The bystander effect was in full force.

    "Look at them. Cowards!" Elegy made sure to look at each person that turned a blind Eye directly as we passed by them, "Tch, when someone needs help, it should be second nature to do something about it!"

    "Maybe they''re scared of getting hurt themselves?" I reasoned.

    "I''d be afraid, too. Afraid of looking at myself in the mirror, that is." He loudly replied so that everyone could hear him, "See that, Gemma!? We''re the only ones with an actual heart in this place! Bahaha!"

    He''s mocking them. Trying to get under their skin and taunt them into helping the cause. It''s sneaky, but sadly it''s also not doing anything. The people, they''re just way too focused on self-preservation to even care about his insults. They''d rather be cowards if it meant they didn''t get hurt, I guess.

    "Which is why a better option would be to say this!" I raised my tone, "I wonder what kind of prizes we''ll get from the Gods for being such good samaritans!"

    "Prize?" All ears immediately twitched.

    "Was there such a reward system?" Whispers began to spread around us.

    "I didn''t know that!" The voices began to change their opinion on the matter, "Maybe... Maybe if we all went together, we could..."

    "Heh, they''re still not brave enough to go by themselves, but at least they''re considering it." Elegy praised me, "Good going."

    "Nah, it didn''t work." I clicked my tongue annoyedly, "No one''s following us yet."

    "It''s not your fault. These guys are a lost cause." He smiled, "Now, before anything, I gotta ask just one thing."

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    "Go on?"

    "What''s your power level when it comes to fighting?"

    Fighting? Wait, wasn''t the plan just to step in and break up the fight? Who said anything about putting our own skin in the game?

    "No, there''s just no way. Unless it''s with another girl, this dainty body just won''t cut it." I pulled the tiny flab of skin on my arm, "Guess the Gods accounted for racism, but glossed over gender-inequality."

    "Might be that they just expected everyone to get along." He shrugged in response to that, "But don''t worry, I didn''t intend on letting you get hurt. In fact, I''d rather we try and de-escalate the situation first and foremost. If they start throwing punches at us instead, I''d like you to step back and let me handle it."

    That actually sounded dependable for once. This guy sucks at negotiating, but I guess when the going gets tough, he really knows how to put your mind at ease. Ah, there they are.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    All the bystanders are watching them from afar, forming a bit of an empty circle for the two fighters to use as an arena. The scary part, however, is that the bystanders aren''t slowing down one bit to see what''s going on or even try to put a stop to it for that matter. They''re just walking along at their regular speed, with the only difference being that they''re deviating from their straight-lined path to accommodate for the fighters.

    "Like ants, what the hell..." Elegy grit his teeth, "Well, good news and bad news, it seems. Neither fighter has those golden hula hoops around his abdomen."

    Neither fighter is S.B., that''s bad. Or well, if you put it another way, that just means he''s not the one in danger. Can''t say the same for the fighter that''s getting his ass beat, though.

    "Ngah!" The one on top whaled on him endlessly, "Die! Die already! What the fuck!"

    "Please man, let me-UNF!" The angel at the bottom begged for his life to no avail.

    This is crazy. It can''t even be called a fight, the one on top is just out for blood.

    "Oi! Get away from him!" Elegy pulled him off.

    "Let go! This guy...!" He pointed to his victim, "I-Immortal! All of them! They''re monsters!"

    What? First you beat him mercilessly, then you claim you''re afraid of him? This dude''s genuinely insane.

    "No matter how hard I hit, no matter how many I hit..." The tortured torturer continued, "No matter the weapon, the method, they just never die! None of them!"

    "Pull yourself together!" Elegy smacked some sense into him, "Who the hell are you talking about...? Who are you fighting!?"

    The man, being held by Elegy from both shoulders, merely stared back blankly at him. He had a bewildered, somewhat defeated look on his face the moment he laid Eyes on Elegy''s skin color. Slowly, he lifted his pure golden arms and tightly grabbed Elegy''s wrists.

    "...You." He twisted with a tear down his Eye, "And you. And you over there. All of you, you''re all monsters!"

    "Ack!" Elegy yelped.

    "Stop!" I tried to run in between them, only to get Elegy tossed at me full force.

    "I woke up randomly without any memory of who I am, my arms are made of hardened metal, and I''m told to live among immortal beasts...!" The guy listed off his complaints, "I''ll find a way out of here! Even if it means killing each and every lost soul around me!"

    Crazy, insane, mental... All of these adjectives came to mind when I looked at his hollow Pupils. Shrunken Eyes, they saw only the worst in the situation. I can admit I get where he''s coming from about wanting to understand more about the situation, but that doesn''t mean he can just attack random people like it''s nothing! Didn''t think such a lesson needed teaching...

    "Hey, join the club." Elegy, surprisingly, lowered his guard as he got off of me, "Look, we''re kind of the same. Check it, I got gold arms myself."

    Showing off his golden cuts on his forearms to try and sympathize with the guy. It might work to calm him down, but I don''t think he''s okay with reason yet.

    "I''m not a White monster." He spat at Elegy, "My arms are golden, but I''m a human. I know I am!"

    This guy... Could it be that, because of his arms, he never saw his new body this whole time? I guess if anyone got placed in this situation without any context they''d be a bit spooked, but this is taking things to a whole other level. This guy''s just violent by default.

    "You don''t get it?" Elegy laughed in his face, "We''re all the same here! What makes you think you''re the exception!?"

    "I''m a human!!!" He shouted, fists ablaze as he lunged at Elegy.

    "Hmph." Elegy scoffed, mere moments before getting his face punched.

    "No!" I shouted, only to stop once I saw him keep smirking in spite of the injury.

    "Gemma, new info confirmed!" He said as he kept getting smacked around, "We''re immortal! I don''t feel a thing!"

    "Don''t feel pain...!?" I gasped.

    Right, the guy beating him up did say before that we can''t die in Heaven, but Elegy had no idea if that meant he could feel pain either! Did he just let himself get punched for no reason at all!? Dammit, Elegy!

    "H...T..." Elegy just barely made out the letters on the guy''s name, "Hate, let''s call you. I agree with you, Hate."

    "What the hell kind of name is that!?" I shouted.

    "Agree with what, you walking nightmare?" Hate clicked his tongue, raring his fist for another punch.

    "These guys ARE monsters. You wake up in an unfamiliar location without any past recollections, and your first instinct is to just not question it?" Elegy scoffed, "Disgusting, they deserve to get a punch to the face, honestly. Hell, now that I know you can only spook others, I might just join you in clobbering these guys."

    He''s choosing to join forces with the bully!? Elegy, don''t tell me I was wrong about you!

    "Hm..." Hate merely glared at him, using Elegy''s Eyes as a reflective mirror to take a gander at his own face, "I''m... also a White Monster. I figured as much, but damn did I not wanna believe it."

    "Took you long enough." Elegy smiled, dusting himself off after Hate helped him get up, "Something about this place is off, and me, that girl over there and another guy we lost track of seem to be the only ones around here that wish to find out more. Ah, and you, of course."

    "Glad to know I''m not alone. I was sure I was going crazy." Hate shook his head, "I beat up one of them, and the rest just looked on. I thought this was a nightmare..."

    You got that right. A nightmare for everyone involved, that is.

    "Elegy." I walked up to them.

    "Gemma." He nodded with a proud smirk on his face, "Meet our newest companion, Hate."

    "You''re not gonna ask for a better name?" I sighed at the poor guy.

    "Nah, I like it. It fits me completely, since I fuckin'' hate it here." Hate patted Elegy on the back, "And since this guy gave it to me, I''ll wear it as a badge of honor, haha!"

    Never in a thousand years would I have thought that this is how the fight would have ended. Isn''t the guy that got brutally beat up usually the one that joins the fray, and NOT the bully? Truly, an ass-backwards world this is. Wait, where is that guy, even? Ah, there he is, running away without even asking for an apology. What a mob character.

 Vol.1 Ch.4 - We Got A Runner!

    "Hey, did you see a guy with some golden hula-hoops around his waist?" I asked some randos as we pressed onwards through the crowded streets.

    "Ma''am, did you happen to talk to a guy with the initials S.B. recently?" Elegy did the same.

    "Hrm..." Hate got angry and blew a fuse, "Everyone, stop fucking ignoring us and tell us if you''ve seen an S.B. around!"

    Well, though rather crude, his methods were pretty effective. Everyone stopped dead silent as all heads turned to the three of us. Quickly, they all started examining their own hands, with those that sighed in relief being ones whose initials did not match our target''s very own. That being said, there was one guy that very much wasn''t calm in this situation. Frailly, he raised both his palms to show us, and with an audible gulp to break the silence, he confessed.

    "T-That''s me." He whimpered, "W-What do you... need?"

    "Nah, calm down. It''s not you." Elegy reassured him, "We need a guy with hoops around his waist."

    "Oh, phew." The scaredy cat then recalled something, "Ah, but wait, I saw a guy like that!"

    "Eh? You did!?" I jolted, "Well could you tell us where he is?"

    "Yeah, it''s him, right?" He pointed above and behind us.

    To our surprise, on the large tower above us did indeed stand a man with what looked to be two hoops around his waist area. He was on a rather tall plot of land, I''d say, but it probably wasn''t his, since he looked to be rushing to the top of it.

    "Yo!" Elegy shouted, "You, up there! Get down here, we''ve been looking for you, dammit!"

    "Hm? Crap!" The guy saw us and only sped up his ascent, "You''ll never catch me!"

    "What''s got him so scared?" Hate was just as confused as I was.

    "Maybe he doesn''t recognize us?" I thought, "From that high up, it can be pretty difficult to see Elegy''s scars, and he''s never seen mine before so he wouldn''t even know."

    "Still, what''s he doing climbing such a tall building...?" Elegy shook his head, "Never mind. We can ask him after we catch up to him."

    "Let''s go!" Hate picked me up so that I wouldn''t lag behind.

    Despite the name he was given, he''s a rather gentlemanly fellow. After getting dragged around everywhere by the wrist thanks to Elegy, it feels nice getting treated with some respect.

    "I''m not hurting you, am I?" Hate asked just to make sure, "My arms are pure gold, so I might not know my own strength."

    "She can run just fine. I have no idea why you thought to coddle her in the first place." Elegy retorted.

    "I''m fine, thank you for this, Hate." I smiled, "After walking for so long, I was getting kinda tired-"

    "Alright, that''s enough." He let me back down the moment we reached the staircase leading up the building, "My arms are getting tired, and if you can run just fine, then a couple of stairs are a cinch to you."

    Dammit Elegy, did you have to say that to the guy? Uuu, and just when I got myself comfortable...

    "What?" Elegy dared to even ask, "What''s with the glare?"

    "Zip it. Come on, let''s just go find S.B." I groaned.

    Climbing up the stairs was a hassle, I tell you. Whoever''s plot of land this was, I really should go have a chat with them about what they view their "dream house" as. Twists and turns come flying at you with each step taken, and at times it felt like the stairs were even moving beneath our feet. It was a dangerous climb, and one that I wouldn''t even have to worry about had Elegy just kept his damned mouth shut, mind you.

    "Halt!" S.B. stood at the very top, warning us not to take another step towards him, "If any of you so much as make another step, I''ll jump!"

    "Okay." Both Elegy and Hate took precisely one more step, "Come on, what''re you waiting for?"

    "E-Err, I-I meant the one after that! I''m serious-!"

    "Sure, go on." Elegy took one more step.

    "We''ll take as many steps as you need, but don''t let us down now." Hate added.

    These guys are being cruel again. I can''t help but feel they really don''t value other peoples lives at all. Maybe I got involved with some horrible people, after all... Oh wait, people can''t get hurt here, so that''s why. Haha, I''m dumb.

    "Hey, if you survive the fall, I''ll realign your limbs for you free of charge." Hate clanked his golden fists together.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    "Dumbass, he''ll live regardless." Elegy reminded him.

    "...Ohhhh! Yeah, yeah you''re right." Hate facepalmed, which I imagine is the equivalent of self-inflicting a concussion, "I totally forgot that part. Honestly, I just wanted to see him go splat after making us climb this far."

    "You sure you''re not the White Monster here?" I asked him.

    As the three of us enjoyed our lovely chat together in front of him, S.B. seemed to be weighing his options rather seriously. I think, somewhere in that head of his, he was genuinely debating whether or not to jump. In the end though, he chickened out.

    "Uuuu... Fine!" He shouted, making all of us stop talking to hear him out, "Okay, I''ll go. Dammit, why me...?"

    "...Go?" I tilted my head.

    "You made the right choice." Elegy stood in front of me as he put on his best authoritative act, "But before you go (wherever you''re supposed to go), mind telling us everything you know so far?"

    This guy, what''s he doing? Why''s he interrogating S.B. all of a sudden?

    "I''ll tell the Gods, but not his lackeys." S.B. glared at us, "Come on, just take me to them and-"

    "We got ways to make you talk." Elegy didn''t let him walk past us, knocking on Hate''s mighty metal arms, "Ain''t that right, Hate?"

    "Hrm." Hate merely stood there, his crossed arms speaking for themselves.

    At this point, I''m sure S.B is crapping his pants right now. Something about the way his Eyes shrunk back in fear, or maybe the fact that he''s shivering all over. This guy''s a scaredy cat, though that much could''ve been deduced from him not taking the plunge earlier to escape from us. Still, what''re these two aiming at?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You... The Gods DID send you, right?" S.B. asked just to make sure.

    "We''ll be asking the questions around here!" Elegy slammed his fist on the floor, for there was no table nearby, "Why did you run from us! What''s your secret you almost took to the grave!?"

    "Eep! That''s...!" He hid his face away as he confessed, "A-A shrine! I heard someone said there was a shrine if you left the residential area, so I was set off to go there!"

    "Heh, we know that much already." Elegy lied, slowly piling on the pressure as he walked back and forth in front of him with his hands behind his back, "Look, let''s just say we''re willing to cut you a deal if you tell us something about the shrine we DON''T know, got it?"

    Seriously, what''s with this scare fest? It''s obvious from his reactions that S.B. doesn''t know who we are. Like I said, he only met Elegy briefly after we got put to sleep by Prylos, so I''m not saying he should recognize us himself, but Elegy should just come clean and stop this confusing debacle so we can actually exchange info properly. No need to go all good cop, bad cop on him.

    "Really?" S.B.''s Eyes glimmered, "Are you gonna let me go if I tell you, then?"

    "That can be arranged."

    "The Gods won''t be mad at you?"

    "Let''s just say..." Elegy got close to whisper in his ear, "We aren''t their lackeys."

    At this piece of news, S.B. could barely keep from jumping for joy. In his Eyes, we were corrupt cops that were just about to switch sides and help him cross the border, but I can''t help but feel this is all so unnecessary.

    "The shrine is said to house the way back to the world of the living." S.B. revealed with a grin on his face, "If you go there, you''ll get a second chance at life. Or so they say, at least."

    "Who are they?" Hate raised an Eyebrow.

    "No one in particular. It''s just a rumor." S.B. shook his head, "One guy told me, another girl told him, another guy told her, and so on. But they say a seraphim was the one who initially leaked the info way down the line."

    "Seraphim?" I tilted my head.

    "Higher ranking angels." He continued, "If we''re angels, then seraphim are like one level above us. Above them are the Gods."

    Seraphim? I''ve never heard of nor seen any of those before. And what the hell, how come I''m not one!

    "What makes them better than us?" Hate asked.

    "They got wings that let them fly, some say they shoot lasers out of their Eyes. Basically super heroes." He shrugged.

    "What the hell, how come I''m not one!" Elegy voiced my inner concerns.

    "They say the more lawful and moral life you''ve lived down there, the better the odds are that you''ll be a seraphim here." S.B. explained, "Basically, we have no control over it. You''d have to be a saint if you wanted to have any chance at winning that lottery."

    "Hmm, okay..." Elegy was just about to let him go, but remembered an odd detail about his story, "But wait, you said this shrine was outside the residential area, right? But Heaven 2.0''s residential area spans near infinitely to accommodate everyone that has, is and will live, so what''s the deal?"

    Oh yeah, the Gods did mention that. Basically, it''s the rumor that there''s a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow, then. Since no one can actually reach the end of a rainbow, it''s essentially a fancier way of saying there''s no way to resurrect yourself.

    "It''s far out, but it''s not infinite." S.B. reminded us, "It''ll take time, but it''s not like I''ve got a time limit either. I''m willing to go if it means finding out who I was."

    "Ah, so that''s your real goal." Elegy smirked, finally revealing his cut up arms from behind his back, "And you planned to go there without your ol'' pals, S.B? For shame..."

    "Ack! Y-You!" S.B. was shocked once he found out, "What the hell, man!? I was seriously shaken up! I thought I was being chased by seraphim in disguise, dammit!"

    Yeah, that''s the expected response. I''d be mad too, Elegy was just wasting time with this little cruel joke of his.

    "Seriously, such a dumb prank..." I sighed.

    "Nah, it wasn''t a prank." Hate corrected me, "He did this because people reveal more when they''re under interrogation. In the off chance S.B. was planning on keeping secrets from you two, we''d make sure he said everything while he still didn''t recognize you."

    "Don''t trust anyone. I can respect that." S.B. nodded.

    "Hm? Nah, I just wanted to see him quiver more." Elegy shrugged, "Honestly, since we can''t die here, my goal was to make him so scared he would jump off after all, but I guess seeing him piss his pants is a good second place prize.¡±

    Scratch my previous statement, Elegy might just be the real fabled White Monster after all. Hate''s got nothing on his sadism. In any case, new party member has been added to the team! Input name?

    "I like that name already." S.B. smiled, "Esbee, it''s sweet."

    "At that point, we might as well call you BS." Elegy shot him an annoyed glare, "You''re such a pushover you might actually take it, too."

    "Quit bullying him!" I hissed.

    Esbee it is, I guess. That makes four, and with his addition we''ve also gained some pretty substantial info as well. More and more, we''re figuring out what makes this place run. It''s exciting, and if we also get to revive after, then that makes it all the more worth it!

 Vol.1 Ch.5 - The White Monster

    "Then, if we''ve got nothing else to do." I took the first step, "Onwards to the legendary Shrine!"

    As Esbee told us, there is said to be a shrine outside of the residential area. Going inside it will unravel the secret to getting out of Heaven 2.0 and reviving back down in the world of the living. With him on our team, that makes us a quartet!

    "Hurry it up, come on!" Elegy''s steps were faster than our own, "Pick up the pace!"

    "Where''s the rush?" Hate replied, "We''re going to the end of the dimension. It''s not like walking a step or two faster would change the end time all that much."

    "I''m sure it''d add up over time." I added, "Though I do agree Elegy shouldn''t be spending too much energy with his speedwalking. Tone it down a little, would ya''?"

    "I''m with Hate on this one." Esbee heaved a tired sigh already, "Huff, huff... Just walk at a leisurely pace. We''ll get there when we get there."

    "Oh shut up!" Elegy shouted at him, "Didn''t you say you were excited to find out who you were before you died!? With such a chillax attitude, you won''t even reach halfway!"

    Chillax, who even says that anymore? Elegy might just be someone from way back in the past, now that I think about it. Since there''s no past, present or future, it could be the case. Regardless, we decided on our pace with a friendly game of rock-paper-scissors, with Elegy representing our team, and Esbee representing theirs.

    "Haha! Paper always wins!" Elegy proudly raised his weapon of choice in the air.

    "Why''d you turn it upside down?" I asked in passing.

    "Don''t wanna offend anyone!" He shrugged, glancing at a random direction before continuing, "Now come on, double time!"

    "Uuugh..." Esbee and Hate groaned with a shared voice.

    As the losers of the game, they were forced to follow our pace. Or rather, follow Elegy''s pace, since I was kind of lagging behind him as well. Here we have a group of four casually jogging at a pretty accelerated pace straight through the endless crowd of Angels. We must''ve put on quite a show for them... is what I would say, if they even cared enough to pay us any mind.

    "NPCs everywhere, can you believe it?" Esbee shook his head.

    "NPC?" Hate turned to him.

    "Non-playable character, dude. Like in games and stuff." He elaborated.

    "Never heard of the term." I shrugged.

    "Same here, what game?" Elegy also drew a blank.

    "Did you guys die of old age or something?" Esbee vehemently defended his knowledge, "You''d have to be absolutely ancient to not know what an NPC is."

    "Maybe we are. You never know." Hate explained.

    "We don''t all come from your present, Esbee." I added, "My present might be entire generations apart from Elegy''s for example."

    "Yeah, even if we do revive, chances are we won''t even be able to meet each other back down in the living world." Elegy finished it off.

    Ah, that''s... I haven''t thought of that before. Right, though we''re friends up here in Heaven 2.0, there''s no guarantee we''ll stay that way once we resurrect. Well, I guess that''s just part of the process, no?

    "Right, but on the flipside." Hate smirked, "We might not only hail from the same time period, but there''s also a chance we''ve met each other down there as well. It''s not off the table, y''know?"

    "Yeah!" I immediately latched onto this theory, "Like, there''s no way our houses were close enough to each other for no reason, right? There has to have been a reason we met up here!"

    The other two stared back blankly at us before turning to each other and laughing after a brief pause. Their chuckles suggested they didn''t quite lean on the idea too hard, but I guess they didn''t despise it either.

    "Heh, I guess that''s fair." Elegy nodded meaningfully.

    "A little bit of optimism goes a long way." Esbee noted, "Now, could we stop for a moment? I need to take a breather."

    "Are you really that out of shape?" Elegy rolled his Eyes, "Don''t we like, have the perfect bodies now as angels?"

    "Perfect or not, I''m pooped." He bent over to wheeze and cough, "Maybe I wasn''t all that active as a human."

    "Hm, are you guys doing good?" I asked the other two, "Cause I''m fine, by the way."

    "Yeah, this was hardly even warm-up, to be honest." Elegy shook his head, "Not even winded."

    "And you, Hate?"

    "Fine n'' dandy." He gave a thumbs up, "Could go for hours."

    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    "Great!" Elegy hurriedly lifted up the dead tired Esbee and tossed him over Hate''s shoulder, "Then let''s continue!"

    "Wait, that''s not-!"

    "Woohoo!"

    There he went. Damn, he''s already gone¡ªIf we don''t hurry, we might actually lose Elegy in the crowd. Again, I feel bad for Hate, he''s being forced to use those golden arms of his to their fullest capacity, but if it means not having to wait for the sluggish Esbee to recover, then I''m all for it.

    "You doing alright?" I asked as we desperately tried to catch up to him.

    "Oh yeah, this is perfect." Esbee gave a content thumbs up.

    "Not you, asshole! She was talking about the guy carrying you!" Hate made sure to stretch him a bit over his neck as he carried him for that, "And yeah, I''m alright. How''re you holding up, need me to carry you as well?"

    "You''re already carrying your own bodyweight in Esbee, so I wouldn''t dare strain you more." I reasoned, "Besides, do you see me breaking a sweat? This much is easy!"

    "Oh cone on, you sure? You''re light as a feather." He guffawed, "Look, just let me know when you do get tired and I''ll have you switch places with this guy pronto."

    "Hey-ACK!" Esbee pleaded for his life the moment he tried to speak up, "Okay, I''m sorry! Just stop, you''ll tear off my hoops~!"

    It''s a kind gesture, but after seeing how Hate treats his passengers, I just felt like I could run forever. You understand, right? I''m saying I''d rather not get my spine cracked in half.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Beyond the initial streets of Heaven 2.0 lied a rather ominous gate. Its large and pointy spikes meshed perfectly with its tall stature to create the perfect feeling of "You''re not welcome here". Nonetheless, it was an obstacle that stood in our path, and from the looks of it¡ªThere''s really no other way around it.

    "So is this the end of the residential area already?" Esbee inquired, "But no, there''re more houses on the other side of the gate."

    "Maybe it''s the next town over or something." Elegy presumed.

    "Not town, but district." An angel that stood guard near the gate explained, "You are currently in G district. Beyond this gate is H."

    "Oh, and what''s the difference between them?" I asked.

    "I don''t know all the details, but the main one is this." He stomped on the cloudy ground beneath his feet, "You guys are allowed to freely explore G district, but you cannot do the same for H."

    Eh? Already we''re not allowed to go further on ahead? That was quick... My ass, like some random guard is gonna stand in the way of me and that Shrine!

    "You guys already set up national borders up here?" I joked, "It''s still just the first day of Heaven 2.0, dude!"

    "We did, now please leave." He continued stomping on the ground in the hopes of scaring us off.

    "Yeah, we''ll do just that-" Elegy began walking away.

    "Nah, we''ll waltz on through this gate." I stood up to the guard instead.

    Elegy looked panicked as hell by my decision. A cold sweat enveloped him as he rushed to whisper into my ear the plan he had in mind.

    "Just follow me, I got this!" He pleaded, "Gemma, we can just climb over the fence a couple kilometers from here, c''mon!"

    "That''ll delay the journey too much, plus we might not be able to find our way back to this super straight main road." I kept glaring at the guard, "So yeah, I''d rather you let us through here. It''s just a bit of sightseeing, nothing bad there."

    "Miss, I am not permitted to allow anyone to pass." The guard kept repeating like a parrot, "You are not allowed to explore district H, so please return from whence you came."

    He''s not budging. Guess my adamancy wasn''t impressive enough for him, after all. That''s okay though, I didn''t really expect it to be either. I''m not charismatic like Elegy, nor am I as threatening as Hate. I''d compare myself to Esbee, but he honestly seems like he''s worse than me. Well then, gotta think up some kind of plan...

    "But I am from district H." I pointed behind him, "My yard is just behind that one, see?"

    "You are not from district G?" He asked with a suspiciously raised Eyebrow.

    "Nope, she arrived here a few hours ago, actually." Esbee nodded along with me, "It''s actually a really funny story how we met. You see, she-"

    "All outsiders must be returned to their rightful spots." He stomped furiously on the ground.

    "Yeah, that''s what I''m saying." I sighed, "So will you let me through already?"

    "Outsiders who have escaped their district are subject to become victims of the White Monster." The guard kept stomping, "May God rest your foolish soul, Miss. Trust me, this will be just as unpleasant for me to watch as it will for you to experience."

    White Monster? Hey, that sounds familiar, don''t tell me you''re gonna sic Elegy or Hate on me? That''d be pretty difficult to deal with, but I think I could feasibly manage. Heh, as if. I thought the White Monster was just something Hate made up when he first woke up in Heaven 2.0, but I guess he must''ve heard it from someone else. And if that''s the case, then I ought to be wary.

    "Mhm, okay, sure, but could you just stop tapping on the ground so loudly?" Esbee popped a vein, "It''s really annoying me! Besides, how can you even make such an audible sound if you''re tapping on literal clouds? It doesn''t make any sense!"

    "The White Monster shall eat you now." His incessant tapping stopped abruptly, "Do not explore past this area until you are allowed to."

    "Allowed to? What does that-?" Elegy couldn''t even finish the question, "Hp!?"

    Behind us was a presence. I don''t know how, but we all felt it at the same time, given we all jolted when he did. The thing behind us kept staring at our backs in silence, not moving an inch nor even trying to announce its arrival. Its pained breathing resonated with our heartbeats to throw them off rhythm, and its breath''s nauseating stench almost made us throw up immediately. Just what in the world is that...!?

    "Watch ou-!" Hate turned around to shield us from it, but went silent the very next moment.

    "Hate...?" Esbee squeamishly craned his head before going dead quiet as well.

    "What is this?" Elegy kept staring at the guard in horror, either too wary or too afraid to follow our friend''s examples, "If I turn around now, what happens to me?"

    "You go to sleep." The guard said, staring not at us, but the White Monster behind us instead, "And you wake up. No harm can be done to angels, after all."

    "And if I decide to just make a run for it past you?" I glared at him directly.

    "No, there is no running from the White Monster." He elaborated, "For the moment I stomped my foot to summon it to get someone, it has already decided to follow you until you succumb. Turn around now, tomorrow, or in a billions years and it will still be there, waiting."

    "Gemma." Elegy gulped, "What''s the plan?"

    "We should be fine." I said in a shaky tone, "As the guard said... we can''t die."

    With a deep inhale followed by an equally disappointed exhale, we decided to call it quits for now. We made a lot of progress, but this is where our journey had to stop this time. Turning around, I was greeted to a single image. In the White visage remained but one lone object. A goat skull, peeking through the light. Its Eye holes pierced through my body, and I immediately dropped to the ground. The White Monster is a scary foe indeed.

 Vol.1 Ch.6 - Loop Back

    "...Ah, finally." I looked around to find myself lying on a comfy bed, "Looks like that was just a bad dream."

    I was in a Yellowish tinted room. It had some children''s toys around me, how odd. My body, it''s still White though, meaning I must still be in that Heaven 2.0 thingy. Owww, my head...

    "What the fuck...?" I trudged along to the mirror, only to find my face completely obscured in its reflection, "Why can''t I see...?"

    My body was White from head to toe still, and along my back was a golden spine. I couldn''t see my face in the mirror, or any reflective surface in the house for that matter. Water surfaces, shiny silverware, metallic appliances, they all showed my body properly, but whenever I aimed them at my face, it''d get blurry.

    "Yo! Finally awake, I see!" The guy from before called out to me, "Check it, golden scars!"

    This is one of the two other people that were with me while we were getting summoned into Heaven. That Divine voice said something about us being the first three guests to arrive. So the house I just left, and the yard across from me where he is... They must be our property, I assume.

    "Sick, look at mine." I turned my back over.

    "Whaaaat~? Your whole spine is golden!" He gawked, "Hey, quick question."

    "Shoot."

    "Can you see my face?" He asked.

    "...Yeah, you''re perfectly visible. Can you see mine?"

    "Yep, all good." He stood there in thought for a couple of seconds, "I can''t see my face. It''s blurry when I try to."

    So my assumption was right, he has the same condition I do. I wonder if this is supposed to be the case for everyone. Maybe not seeing your face is like a way to keep everyone humble or something. The Gods would probably have the answer for this, but it''s not like we can just find them roaming around, probably.

    "Hey, you." The other guy that was with us popped out of their house, "You''re her, right? The girl that was with us when we first got summoned?"

    "Yeah, so you guys met up already." I crossed the street to talk to them more easily, "Are you two living together?"

    "Hm? Nah, I just invited him over to chat a bit." The first guy chuckled, "We wanted to think up names for each other, since no one remembers who they were, and we think we came up with a pretty good solution."

    Oh? This is interesting, certainly calling everyone "this guy" and "that guy" will get rather stale and confusing after a short while, so I''m glad to hear it.

    "Lay it on me." I chuckled.

    "Gimme your hands." He showed his own, "On the back of everyone''s palms should be two letters. These are your past life''s initials."

    "And how do you know that?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "That''s... I dunno." He shrugged, "Going off of logic, I guess. In any case, we thought of basing our new names on this. For me, it''s Elegy, short for L.G."

    "Ah, I think I get it!" I smiled, "So since mine are M.G, then I should be Megan!"

    "It''s a nice name." The other guy gave me a thumbs up, "I chose Seebe, by the way. Y''know, S.B?"

    Seebe... I''m not gonna say it''s weird, since it''d be rude, but he definitely could''ve gone for something better... or just more conventional, for that matter. Couldn''t it have been Sebas, at that point? It''s at least a real sounding name, dammit.

    "N-Nice to meet you then!" I shook his hand with an awkward smile, "...Seebe."

    "Same here, Megan!" He smiled.

    "And you two, Elegy." I shook his hand as well, "May we remain good friends forever."

    "The feelings are mutual." Elegy nodded, "Welp, we solved the naming issue, but there''s still the thing about not seeing our faces."

    "She can''t see hers either?" Seebe sighed, "Bummer, but at least everyone else can see our faces, so it''s not like it poses a real issue."

    "The way you say that makes it sound like there''re more pressing matters to attend to." I giggled.

    "Yeah. A huge issue that''s way more important than us not recognizing ourselves in the mirror." He pointed to our bodies, "We''re walking around outside in the nude."

    "N-Nude!?" I covered myself up hastily.

    I totally spaced out and forgot about that part! Right, my body''s snow White just like the cloudy floor and pure sky, so it all kind of blended in! Geez, these guys are so gonna think I''m a pervert! ...Wait, no, everyone else is naked as well!

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "No need to cover up, the Gods took any spots that require a leaf, so to speak." Elegy explained, "That being said, it still feels kind of wrong to just roam around like this, so I''d really like to go find something to put on."

    "Maybe there''s a closet in one of our houses?" I figured.

    "Sure, I don''t mind checking." Seebe shrugged, "I mean, it beats roaming around these endless streets looking for someone selling clothes."

    "True that." Elegy agreed, "Besides, we might find out more about our pasts if we look through everyone''s houses."

    That''s... also very possible. Right, my house''s interior is Yellow, and it has children''s toys everywhere. I highly doubt everyone else has the same layout, so maybe your house in Heaven reflects what kind of person you were before death?

    "Hmm, it''d make sense..." I muttered, "If we''re in Heaven, then it''s obvious that everyone''s yard should be filled with the things they most wanted as humans. And if that''s the case...

    "Then we could also potentially find out our real identities!" Elegy finished my thought, "In that case, let''s go through my house first, since Seebe and I already started."

    "Let''s do it!" I put my hand out, "Team on three! One, two, three...!"

    "Team!" We shouted.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Entering Elegy''s house first, I was greeted by quite the sight. An empty, yet colorful interior. Nothing but four walls, a ceiling and a floor, but somehow, it still evoked a sense of vastness. Maybe it''s a trick with color theory. I dunno, I''m not an artist. Or maybe I am? Whatever.

    "Dude, what''s there to search?" I groaned, "What do you want us to put on, the Rainbow?"

    "I''d like to think my place is empty because I already got everything I wanted in my past life." Elegy smiled proudly, "Or at least if I think like that, I''ll feel less sad that I don''t get anything."

    "Hey now, I''m sure the Gods didn''t mean anything bad by this." Seebe comforted him, "Besides, there might be a hidden passage somewhere. Looking directly at all the colors does get kind of blinding, after all, so maybe that''s done intentionally to steer us away from the true treasures?"

    "This isn''t a dungeon, dude. It''s a cheap condo you''d get scammed into buying because the previous owner said it came furnished." Elegy sulked.

    "Just get on with the wall-hugging already." I pushed both of them to their own corners, "The sooner we touch every surface we can, the sooner we can actually start exploring something with actual furniture in it."

    As expected though, Elegy''s house bore no secrets within it. Just an empty house from ground floor to attic. It didn''t take long for us to finish up our search, and by the end our palms were actually left colored in all sorts of hues and colors. Guess that''s what we get for rubbing them on all the Rainbow walls non-stop...

    "Hey, maybe that could work?" Seebe suggested, "Bodypaint, I mean. They''re not real clothes, but since we don''t have any ero zones anyways, it''s a viable enough alternative."

    "I''d rather we search the other two houses for actual clothes." I shivered at the mere thought of such a perverse solution.

    "Nah, come on. Obviously I''d like that too." He continued, "I''m just saying, if we don''t manage to find anything..."

    "Then we''ll go look through someone else''s house." Elegy stated, "There''s gotta be someone that wanted some nice designer clothes during their lifetime, right?"

    At his sudden comment, Seebe and I just kind of stared at him in horror. He merely glanced back, confused why we reacted like this before it finally clicked in his head.

    "Ah, with their permission, obviously!" He dialed it back.

    "Phew, good." Seebe chuckled, "We thought you meant like breaking and entering."

    "Well, if push comes to shove..." He reasoned.

    "Elegy!"

    "What? It''s not like Heaven 2.0 has jails or anything. Nor laws, for that matter." He used that as a defense, "As long as no one gets hurt, who cares?"

    "The more you talk, the less I feel inclined to remain in your house." I backed away, "Come on, let''s just go to Seebe''s house next. For everyone''s sake, I hope you have a bed to sleep on at the very least."

    "Ohoho, you have no idea...!" He laughed at my comment.

    It wasn''t meant to be something to think about too deeply. I just said it in passing, but to think I would actually predict what his home looked like was pretty damn crazy. Once he took us to his house, Seebe had some trouble opening the front door.

    "Maybe it''s locked?" I figured.

    "Nah, just gotta... There!" He shoulder-tackled it a few times before it gave in finally.

    The reason the door wouldn''t budge originally was just as surprising as the rest of the interior. Hundreds upon hundreds of pillows occupied the cramped, cozy space. Each one had a distinct softness that made it different from the rest. No two pillows were the same, making it so you could essentially lay down anywhere and you''d always have the perfect resting spot.

    "Jackpot!" I dived right into the sea of pillows, "This is great! I love this place! Seebe, thank God you were sleep deprived as a human!"

    "We don''t know that for sure." He laughed, "Besides, that''s not all this place has. Let''s go upstairs."

    Upstairs? Nooo, but I wanna stay here~! Ah, but wait, can''t we just use the pillow casings to make ourselves some clothes? Is there even a reason to continue the search? Hmm, alright. I''ve decided!

    "O-Oi!? What''re you doing!?" Seebe shouted as soon as he saw me tearing up his pillow casings.

    "Making myself some decent clothes." I replied, tying the silky smooth baby Blue and torn up cloths around my chest and waist, "There. It''s still not at the level that I want, but at least like this I won''t be attracting any lecherous gazes."

    "Pretty sure you''re gonna be turning more heads with that swimsuit on than if you just went full nude like everyone else." Elegy noted, "In a society of nudists, the clothed are taboo."

    And now he''s a poet. This guy can be so annoying sometimes! It''s like whatever I think of, he goes and criticizes it just to do his own thing! Hmph, in that case, they can just stay naked like the rest of these weirdos, meanwhile I''ll proudly walk around with at least something covering me!

    "If you''re done with ruining my personal paradise, can we please continue on with the tour?" Seebe begged, "Upstairs we have the gaming room."

    "Oh, I love games!" Elegy smiled, "So what, does it have like a pool table? Table tennis? Maybe darts? Ah, chess is also super fun!"

    "...It''s got a GS5." Seebe craned his head back with a scowl, "And every game you could ever imagine pre-downloaded in it."

    "...Does that include chess?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    ".....Yes." Seebe rolled his Eyes, "Dude, do you even know what a GS5 is?"

    "Not a clue, but it has chess, so what are we waiting for?" Elegy rushed up the stairs, "Come on, let''s have some fun!"

    "Ah, hold up!" Seebe hurried after him, "Don''t touch anything you don''t know the name of! You might break something!"

    ...GS5, huh? I see, I have no idea what he means by that.

 Vol.1 Ch.7 - Sword & Letter

    "Dude, you suck ass!" Elegy kept blasting Seebe with insults, "How are you this bad!?"

    "More like how are you this good!" Seebe seethed with anger, tightly grabbing hold of the controller, "You don''t even know what a GS5 is, much less Mortal Wombat!"

    "I don''t really understand what the point of the game is, but I like how brutal the deaths are." I pointed out as I watched them from the sidelines, "Still, that''s pretty insane technology. I have no doubts in my mind that you''re from the future now."

    "Gah, fuck this game!" Seebe tossed the controller away before calming down, "Hm? Well, I guess if neither of you have ever seen a GS5, then that''s probably the case. You must be hundreds of years away from my time."

    "Hm? No, I know what a TV is, though." I pointed to it.

    "The screen?" Elegy tilted his head.

    Guess he doesn''t know what even that is. So Elegy''s the oldest out of us, but surprisingly, it seems Seebe and I aren''t that far away. Shame, it means Elegy and I could''ve never met as humans. As for Seebe though, it might still be possible.

    "Alright, we done here?" I lifted both of them back on their feet, "There''s nothing here but pillows and techno-games."

    "You mean video games?" Seebe raised an Eyebrow.

    "Yeah, that. Point is, no clothes here." I said as I twirled around in place, "Well, if you guys don''t want me to make pillow casing robes for you as well, that is."

    "We''ll pass." They both banished the thought.

    As such, we quickly left the house to go to our next and hopefully final destination¡ªMy home. Seebe said his place wasn''t that far away from our own, but he was totally leading us on. Don''t get me wrong, he''s not that far away, but it definitely would''ve made more sense for us to go to my house after Elegy''s. Guess he was just eager to get his ass beat in Mortal Wombat.

    "Phew, well, make yourselves at home." I showed them inside, "Right, to recap! Our goal is to find some proper clothes to wear so we don''t have to walk around everywhere naked."

    "Everyone else is doing it, though." Elegy pointed out.

    "I don''t care! It''s indecent as hell!" I shot back, "We are NOT leaving until we find something for you two to put on! Even if it means tearing the walls apart!"

    "Fine..."

    They were oddly unenthusiastic about this. Is it really the case that they''re just not interested in wearing clothes? They''ve gotta be kidding...

    "Hey, I found this." Elegy called for us to come over.

    "What is it?"

    "A cool ass sword." He barely lifted it to show us.

    "What the hell is that doing in a girl''s house!?" I jolted, "Leave it. Come on, continue looking around."

    "You sure? It looks pretty cool." He shrugged, "Hey, if you don''t want it, I can..."

    "No!" I took it from him, carefully placing it back on a wall rack, "It''s in my house, so it''s mine!"

    "Oh come on, we might need it to defend ourselves!" He sighed.

    "...The sword stays." I replied, "It just feels wrong to give it away."

    "Hrm..."

    For that moment, the air around us grew awkward, not to mention painfully silent. Elegy really wanted that sword, I could tell from his tone, but something about it... I feel like this sword must''ve meant a lot for me in the past. Maybe I was a warrior maiden as a human? Still, if it meant so much, why was it hidden away under a ton of trash?

    "Guys, there''s something here." Seebe called out to us once he found a small note, "Looks like... Yikes."

    "What is it?" I peeked over his shoulder, "Oh God..."

    A suicide note. What the hell? That''s a sudden change in mood. Wait, was I perhaps in a bad place as a human? This, then the sword... None of this is making any sense.

    "Wait, that''s good!" Elegy yanked it out of Seebe''s hands before skimming through it, "If it''s yours, then surely you would''ve signed it at the end, no?"

    "How is that the first thing you thought of?" Seebe grunted.

    "Duh, ''cause it''ll get us one step closer to figuring out who we were." He rolled his Eyes before reading it out loud, "Dear mom and dad, I''m sorry I was a horrible person, yadda yadda yadda..."

    "Wait, don''t just go yadda yadda!" I yelled, "Who the hell does that for a suicide note!?"

    "Unimportant, you''re already dead, aren''t you!?" He shot back without remorse, "Ahem, where was I? Tell my dear daughter that her lousy good for nothing father isn''t gonna be coming back this time. To my sisters, I leave behind the sword that will most probably have to be taken out of my carcass. Sell it, keep it, I honestly couldn''t care. It''s given me nothing but grief and loss, and at times I wish father would have never bestowed it upon me."

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    "This... doesn''t sound like a suicide note at all." I shook my head slowly, "It reads more like a sort of final goodbye."

    "...It''s time for me to go." Elegy bit his tongue as he finished reading the letter, "Yours truly... C."

    "...C?" I cocked my head back.

    "Megan, you know what this means, right?" Seebe glanced back with a pitying gaze, "You... You were a man in your past life."

    "No, you moron! It''s not hers!" Elegy lashed out.

    How in the world did he come up with such a conclusion? Seebe really deserved more disgraceful fatalities when he and Elegy played that fighting game. I was a man, he says... The nerve!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "It''s so obviously not a note from me." I sighed, "But it does hold great importance, since it''s inside my house. I might''ve been this person family member or lover."

    "In that case, that sword is also..." Elegy glanced behind him at the wall.

    We were all reminded of the bone-chilling sentence this person wrote in his note. "I leave behind the sword that will most probably have to be taken out of my carcass." If that''s the case, then maybe propping it up so proudly on display might not be as respectful as I had originally thought it to be...

    "Wait, if he left it to his sisters, and you kept the sword..." Seebe figured, "Then wouldn''t that make him your brother?"

    "It''s probably the case, but nothing is for certain just yet." I thought, "C... Whoever this person was, I hope he didn''t die shortly after he wrote this letter. The way he talked made it sound like he had a lot of regrets."

    "Regrets..." Elegy muttered.

    "Dude, you good?" Seebe waved his hand over his face.

    "Hm? A-Ah, yeah, let''s continue searching." He hastily started rummaging through the rest of the trash in the house, "If we''re lucky, we might find something else that''s useful!"

    "...Well, you heard the man." Seebe turned to me with a shrug, "Let''s continue at this pace."

    "Yeah."

    For the next hour or so spent searching, we didn''t so much as say a word to each other. It wasn''t like we had anything to say, and this was practically all my house had to offer in terms of useful info. That being the case, we did find a Red scarf on the ground that Seebe insisted on wearing.

    "Dude, you somehow look more naked." Elegy dissed.

    "Yeah, it''s like when you wear only socks." I looked away, "It just feels like you''re stating "Hey everyone! Look, I''m not wearing anything else!" "

    "You guys just don''t get fashion." Seebe crossed his arms and pouted, "This scarf would go perfectly when paired with an all black suit. Until then, though, I''ll just equip what I have."

    "Dude, what?" Elegy groaned.

    "Hm?"

    "Equip? It''s not a piece of armor, dammit!"

    "It is to me!" Seebe hugged the scar, rubbing it against his face lecherously, "This is destiny that we found each other! The scarf, it called to me, and I answered the call!"

    "Please, take it away from him." Elegy instructed me before going to the other room to continue searching.

    "Nah, I don''t even wanna touch it with a stick, much less my own hands." I backed off, "He''s successfully tainted it."

    "Heheh! Like a dog pissing to mark his territory!" Seebe laughed villainously, "Thanks for this, Megan!"

    "Y-Your welcome..."

    "Guys! I found it!" Elegy''s voice rang out from the other room, "Her name! Megan''s name is "

    My name? Wait, but we already searched that room, though? Gasp, could it be? Was there a hidden compartment somewhere? Heh, nah, more like we just missed it.

    "Well go on, then! Don''t keep us in suspense!" Seebe turned the corner only to scream the moment he looked at Elegy''s face.

    "What?! What happened!?" I tried entering, but Seebe''s hunched over body blocked the way, "Seebe, move!"

    Quietly, he trudged inside with but a few short steps. I ran through the doorframe, or at least I should''ve, but his body turned a full 180 degrees in the blink of an Eye, revealing a terrifying goat skull in place of his own face. I had less than a second to see Elegy''s face was the same from my peripheral vision. I wanted to run away, but my body refused to move. Something behind them called out to me.

    "Sleep now, child. The White Monster beckons thee..."

    "No, plea                "

    "            "

    "                               "

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "...Whuh?" I woke up in a Yellowish room littered with toys, "My body''s still White, so it must''ve been a dream. Ack, my face hurts..."

    Walking over to the mirror, I took a long hard look at my own body. I had on a poorly cut out baby Blue crop top and what I imagine is supposed to be a skirt. Really, whoever made this must be one lousy tailor... Regardless, I took my time exploring the house I was in. Unlike the bedroom, the rest of the house was pretty tidy.

    "Mn, something smells nice!" I felt the warm, savory scent wafting through the air, "Hey, it''s coming from the kitchen!"

    At the kitchen counter stood a man with a Red scarf on. He was making breakfast, or at least I thought he was, but the pan was empty even though the smell was so good.

    "Hm? Oh good, you''re awake. I thought you were dead." He smiled.

    "Sorry, who are you?"

    "You ask that as if I''d know my own name." He chuckled, "Well, my initials are S.B, so call me something based on that, Migu."

    "Migu?" I furrowed my brows.

    "Yeah, M.G." He pointed to my hands, "Says so right there. I woke up in this house, splayed on the floor with you in a similar predicament. I carried you off to the bed, and while I was at it, I took the liberty of giving you that name."

    "Oh, thanks... Sab." I chuckled bashfully, "So, what''s cooking?"

    "Mn? Oh, nothing actually." He lifted the pan up, "The pan just smells like food when you put it on the stove. I know, weird right?"

    "That is indeed weird... Ah, by the way, thanks for cleaning the house up." I looked around, "Now I know why the bedroom was the only thing left untidy, you probably just didn''t wanna wake me up."

    "Hmm, no. I didn''t touch anything but the pan." He shook his head, "It was like this when I woke up. By the way, what even is this place?"

    "Beats me. I imagine one of the estates the Gods promised us." I shrugged, "Let''s go check outside."

    "Ah, so he told you too?" Sab smiled, "Honestly, a house, a stylish scarf, and a nice smelling pan. The Gods really know how to treat their people right."

    "Heh, you got that right." I chuckled, "Even these raggedy clothes. They really outdid themselves with the top, haha."

    "Hold it, Migu!" He stopped me once I walked out of the front door, "Y-Your back..."

    "My back?" I checked the reflection of his Eyes, "W-Whoa, am I imagining this...?"

    "Golden spine..." He gawked, "Epic."

 Vol.1 Ch.8 - Changes in the Body

    "Eek!" I screamed the very moment I stepped outside, "E-Everyone is...!?"

    Naked! No one''s wearing clothes! What the hell is this place, is this how the Gods intended a perfect paradise to look like?!

    "S-Sab, uhh..." I turned to check his reaction, only for my Eyes to naturally wander down below his scarf, "Oh."

    "What? Stop looking at my crotch." He turned away slightly, "Looks like Angels don''t have any, but that doesn''t mean I don''t feel embarrassed by it."

    Wait, lemme just peek under my own top... Oh damn, I don''t have anything erotic on me either! So I guess he''s right, the Gods removed everyone''s private bits. Still, did everyone really find this out and immediately decide to just not wear clothes altogether? Are these guys just all nudists?

    "If you''re so embarrassed by it, why didn''t you find something more appropriate to wear?" I coughed, "Ahem, something more than a measly scarf."

    "Like I said, I woke up like this." He sighed, "And the same goes for you. I also didn''t find any clothes in the house either. Well, not like that was the main objective on my mind at the time, though. I was really digging the scented pans."

    He''s still going on about the pans? Geez man, get a grip, you''re buck naked in the middle of the street. Actually, he got all shy and timid while I was checking him out, but now that the focus shifted away from him, he''s just proudly keeping his hands on his hips. Guess seeing everyone else do the same made him feel more relaxed.

    "Hey, you two!" An angel from the house across from us hollered, "Where''d you get those clothes?"

    "Hell if we know. We just woke up with them." We replied.

    "Woke up with them...? Sigh, in that case, I''ll go look for a clothes store or something." He disappointedly left the scene, "See ya'' around."

    "Yep, bye." I waved him off, "Do you know that guy?"

    "How could I? I think he''s just the extroverted friendly type." Sab shrugged.

    That, or he just wanted some clothes over his skin. Wait, is this White stuff even skin to begin with? Hmm, pinching it doesn''t seem to hurt, and licking my hand seems to reveal we have no taste...

    "What are you doing?" Sab looked on with a horrified stare, "Do that when you''re alone! God, perverted much?"

    "Hm? Nah, totally numb." I pondered, "Sab, could you slap me real quick?"

    "So not only are you perverted, but you''re a masochist as well?" He joked, "Just what in the world did I get myself roped into?"

    "Just shut up and smack me." I groaned.

    "Okay, but like where exactly?"

    "Wherever, just make sure it''s a good, hard smack!" I urged him, "I think I figured out something super important about our bodies!"

    A tad apprehensively, he stood there confused for a while before shrugging and ultimately going for it. Grabbing me by the shoulders, he spun me around before hitting me on the behind at full force. The smack reverberated throughout the street, making everyone turn their heads to the source of the loud sound.

    "...Was that good?" He had the balls to ask.

    "Hypothesis... correct." I whimpered, "Our bodies don''t feel physical pain."

    "Why emphasize just the physical aspect?"

    "Because the pain from this embarrassment is still as strong as ever." I let out but a single tear, "What the hell was that!?"

    "What? You said I could hit you wherever, so long as I made it a good, hard smack." He tried defending himself from my fists, "Ow, no hitting back! Wait... Whoa, it really doesn''t hurt at all!"

    "Dammit!"

    This guy made a fool of me in front of everyone, and I can''t even fight back! Damn these invincible bodies! I wanna meet the God who made it so we can''t beat the snot out of each other! Err, well, now that I think about it, the guys here do look pretty buff. Maybe it wouldn''t be smart to allow us to feel pain, after all...

    "This isn''t fair." I turned my back, only to feel a rather sharp pain all throughout my back, "Gah!"

    "Oops, sorry!" Sab backed away the moment he heard me cry out, "Did that... hurt you?"

    "Yeah, like a lot!" I frowned, "What did you do?"

    "Nothing, I just... touched your spine." He explained, "Sorry, I just wanted to see how it felt like. I didn''t think it''d hurt..."

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    When he touched my spine, the one thing that was replaced in that Gray room to become golden... It hurt a ton. Could it be that our golden parts are the only ones that can feel stuff like regular human skin can? Then, if that''s the case, if I touched the hoops around his waist...

    "Heh. Phahahaha! S-Stop!" He giggled, "T-That tickles! Seriously, cut it out!"

    "Hmmm, so I was right." I readied my fist, "In that case...!"

    "OOF!" He fell to the ground.

    Hehe! Revenge feels good! I actually got a pretty good hit in on his rings! Okay, now that that''s settled, we should probably go look around the place. Maybe if we''re lucky, we might run into a clothes shop like that other guy said he was going to. Sab does still need some proper pants to wear, after all.

    "Come on, get your ass up." I lifted him, "Sab?"

    "Geez, you''ve got a mean punch, lady..." He whimpered, "Ooouuugh... That''s gonna leave a bruise."

    "Does gold even bruise?" I wondered, "If that''s the case, wouldn''t that mean your golden parts would get rusty?"

    I really did wind up pretty far for that one. It''s kind of making me feel bad seeing him in this sorry of a state. Wait, we ARE invincible, right? I''m not just talking about the White parts of our bodies, but the gold ones as well. He''s... gonna recover right back up in a couple moments, right?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Owowowow..." He trudged along the road, "Why, God? Why me...?"

    "Stop pretending it still hurts!" I began to sweat a little, "Come on. Admit you''re just doing that to make me feel bad!"

    "You think I''d be able to act the pain out this good?" He raised an extremely valid point, "Ouchie..."

    Oh no, I don''t think he''s actually making it up. Did I seriously hit him that hard? No, but he also touched my back, if just barely, and yet I was super sensitive to it. Maybe we''re numb on the White parts, but in exchange we''re hyper sensitive on the golden parts? That could be the case, but in that case, does that make our golden bits the angels'' lifeblood? Could you kill an angel if you attacked their golden parts enough times?

    "Sab, I''m sor..."

    "Oh hey, look at that house!" He ran full sprint towards it, disregarding any and all semblances of being in a wounded state.

    "I knew you were faking it!" I ran after him, "Get back here, time for seconds!"

    The house we reached was quite unique, in that it wasn''t even a house to begin with. Rather, it was a floating island. I know, why call a floating island a house? Well, it''s because it fit perfectly inside the boundaries of that plot of land, meaning that it was, by that definition, also someone''s dream house.

    "Wanna try asking the owner to check it out?" Sab looked up with an adventurous smile.

    "How would we even do that?" I grimaced, "We can''t even climb up there to begin with, much less find the owner and ask them for a tour."

    "Fair..." He slumped before getting an idea, "Oh yeah! Wait here!"

    Just like that, he ran back to the direction we came from. I don''t think the house we woke up in had much of anything of use for this situation, but I guess that''s why he''s the one running back to get it and not me. It only took a couple of minutes before he returned, frying pan in hand.

    "What''re you gonna do with that?" I raised an annoyed Eyebrow.

    "It''s still kind of hot from the stove." He waved it around until the absolutely stunning scent spread all across the street. Everyone had huddled up around us, confused yet enticed by the scent. Smartly, Sab had covered the "dish" with a lid, so the angels genuinely had no idea what it was that he was cooking.

    "Yo guys, I tried cooking something up with the food I found in the fridge." Sab raised the sought after pan high into the sky, "It turned out pretty good, so I''d like to make some for everyone, starting from that person up there."

    "What? Why from him?!" The crowd admittedly got a bit fussy over this decision.

    "Because it''s the easiest landmark to remember and use as a guide." He lied to get them to buy the story,

    "As Heaven''s first 5 star chef, I''d like to get everyone to try my food, and I''m afraid I won''t be able to give this banging dish to anyone until I got up to that guy."

    So that''s the plan, huh? Get everyone on your side with the promise of tasty food, and hope no one checks under the lid. Well, in any case, it worked, because soon everyone was not only calling for, but also demanding that the person on the floating island get down there and meet up with us.

    "Get down here!" One angel shouted.

    "Come on, we know you''re in there!" Another added.

    "Ah, everyone! There they come!" A third angel stood amazed as they saw the small dot draw ever closer, "...Eh?"

    From the island came down a magnificent being. One of golden feathers and a powerful aura. Their mere existence was something everyone felt deserved a large level of respect, and it didn''t take long for this divine presence to bless everyone with a clean landing.

    "...That''s certainly one way of getting my attention." The winged female glanced at Sab''s pan, "So, what do you want?"

    "W-Wings..." We gawked at her.

    "Hm? Yeah, don''t you know?" She flapped them up and down just to flex on us land mammals, "Seraphim have wings."

    A seraphim! ...Wait, what is that? So is she one of us or not? An angel, I mean. And if she is, how did she get those wings? In any case, she seems friendly enough to talk to, so while we have this opportunity, I''ll be sure to ask as much as I can.

    "How did..."

    "I earned it." She answered my question before I asked it, "Whilst I did start as an angel, I worked hard and became the Gods'' right hand."

    "So those wings are...?" Sab pointed at them.

    "A perk of being a seraphim." She smiled back warmly, "Apart from that, I''m allowed to keep my memories."

    "What does that mean?" I tilted my head.

    "Exactly." She smirked.

    "Ah, so you must know your past identity as well, right?" Sab expectantly raised the question.

    "Ah, that''s... n-no." She deflated, "But who cares! I''m living the life here! Whoever I was surely couldn''t have had it better than I do now, and these wings are the perfect proof of that!"

    Well, she''s not wrong. Humans, to my knowledge, can''t really fly, at least without the aid of technology. We don''t really have wings like that of a bird, so she''s definitely above her human self. Wait, how can I be so sure my human self didn''t have it worse than I do now in Heaven? What if I lived in poverty, or as a slave, or something even worse? She must probably be thinking the same way, in which case it''s smarter to just not find out your own past identity...

    "Next question. If you earned your wings through hard work and dedication..." Sab raised his hand, "How''d you climb up and down your own house before that?"

    "...Painfully." She admitted, albeit bashfully, "I-I kinda just jumped off the first time and only returned when I got my wings."

    Poor girl, I guess that''s one way to motivate yourself to climb up the ranks.

 Vol.1 Ch.9 - A Seraphims Wings

    "Well then..." I cleared my throat, only to get interrupted by the large crowd surrounding us.

    "Hey, we did our part, so give us the food!" They roared.

    "Oh right, I totally forgot." Sab placed it on the cloudy ground in front of him before turning to the seraphim, "By the way, miss, would you mind taking us to your abode?"

    "Yeah, I think that''s probably for the best." She giggled, flying over and lifting both of us right off the ground before ascending.

    It seems she figured out the truth behind Sab''s pan a while ago if she''s so willing to follow our lead. I''m glad too, because the moment those angels down below open the lid covering the nonexistent contents of the pan, they''ll be raising pitchforks before you know it. She really did save our skin with this act of kindness.

    "So Miss, your initials are F.O?" Sab peeked down at the hands she was holding us with.

    "Sab!" I scolded him, "Don''t be rude!"

    "What? I just wanna know what we should call her!"

    "Haha, no, it''s only natural to be curious." The girl chuckled, "Yes, those are my initials. But really, I don''t at all like how the Gods added that feature, so I just chose my own name instead."

    "Feature?" I raised an Eyebrow, "I''ve been wondering this for a while now, but how come you talk like you''ve been here longer than everyone else? Heaven 2.0, to my knowledge, is only on its first day still."

    "Oh yeah, you said too that you earned your wings." Sab recalled, "There''s no way it takes less than a day to do so, right? What''s up?"

    "...It''s not worth explaining." She brushed it off, "Rather, my name. You can call me Vastoria."

    She''s dodging the question like it''s some sort of virus. Hmm, fine, I guess I won''t press her on the matter too much. After all, Vastoria did just save us from the angry crowd down below.

    "Vastoria, eh? Vastoria F.O." Sab snorted.

    "Not everyone has to follow our made up naming scheme, Sab..." I groaned, "Vastoria, I think it''s a wonderful name. By the way, we''re Sab and Migu."

    "Ah, after your initials, how cute." She smiled as we landed on the island finally, "Right, we''re here. Please follow me inside the house, I''ll set up some tea and biscuits."

    F-Food! Did she just say that as a joke, or is she actually serious!? Wait, there''s actually food in Heaven 2.0? Ah, I guess it makes sense, it should be a paradise that contains everyone''s greatest wishes, so statistically there should be at least a few gluttons around. But really¡ªa frilly pink house on a floating island, serving her guests tea and biscuits... Vastoria is quite cute herself, I must say.

    "Wait here." She had us seated in front of the living room table, "I don''t get many guests, as you can imagine. Most people don''t even bother to look up and see the island, so what can I say? I''m rather excited to have you here with me."

    "The same goes for us." I nodded happily, "Thank you for inviting us."

    "Of course! If there''s anything else you would like to know, please don''t hesitate to ask." She practically skipped on over to the kitchen.

    What an adorable specimen! I bet she was popular with the guys. Hell, if she''s got me feeling butterflies in my stomach, then you know she''s doing something right! And those wings... Hey, I have an idea.

    "Right, here you are." She placed down our cups with cookies to go along with them, "Now, we can beg-EEP!"

    "S-" I gasped, "She squealed! Sab, did you see that!? It was so adorable, I just pinched her wing a bit, and she yelped like a puppy!"

    "Hey, when''d you switch from being a masochist to a sadist?" He had on a rather uncomfortable scowl.

    "M-Migu, please refrain from touching our golden bits so carefreely..." She tried to compose herself in front of us, "Angels and seraphim, though our white skin is numb to any pain or feeling, our golden bits are proportionately just as sensitive."

    "Wow~, really? I didn''t know that~" I played dumb, "Sorry, my golden part is kind of out of my way, so I never explored it. Hey, to make us even, would you like to touch mine?"

    Hehe, all part of the plan! She''s so sweet when she gets flustered like this, I''m really into it! Not to mention, she''s quite naive, so she''ll definitely accept my proposal! And now with this, I can get away with making her yelp like that by having her do the same to me! Ah, then again, it hurt pretty badly when Sab did it. Well, after hearing Vastoria''s adorable squeal, I''d say it''s well worth any pain she can deal.

    "Then, I''ll take you up on that offer." She decidedly reached for my back.

    Slowly, carefully, her finger approached it. It was obvious from the way she was squirming about that this was her first time. Granted, the same goes for me. Actually, the more she held off due to her own uncertainty, the more anxious the wait got for me. My body tensed up, my shoulders raised, and my Eyes shut tightly. In this moment, even my breathing became audible and ragged. I felt her finger finally scrape my most sensitive part, carefully tracing up each vertebrate until she reached the neck, from which she circled back around to the bottom. The sensation, there was no pain at all, unlike with Sab. She was gentle...

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    "Hmm..." I admittedly let out a soft moan.

    "S-Sorry, that must''ve hurt!" She immediately stopped, retreating back to her seat with a bright Red face, "I think that was more than enough to make us even."

    Meekly, she sipped her tea and stuffed her mouth full with biscuits. Maybe, could it be that she enjoyed it as well? Hehe, how cute... Ah, I forgot Sab was in the room with us.

    "Y-Yeah, you went too far..." He looked on with a bewildered look on his face, "S-So, to make it even, I think Migu should..."

    "No more back and forth!" Vastoria demanded.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "So, are all seraphim wings golden?" I asked as I victoriously took a sip of my tea.

    "Yes, we all have sensitive wings, if that''s what you''re asking." She sighed, "Every body part replaced or added in Heaven 2.0''s spare parts room is made of pure gold. That''s what the other seraphim told me, at least."

    "How many of you are there?" Sab inquired.

    "Oh, a bunch." She laughed, "Since all it takes is a bit of initiative, it''s quite easy to become one."

    "Then, could we also...?" I alluded to it.

    "No." She immediately declined, "Please don''t take it the wrong way. It''s just that the info on how to become one is classified. Of course, if you snoop around a bit for yourself, I''m sure you can join me."

    Damn, so close. Gaining wings would be an incredible asset to have, so I think I should make that my next assignment. As for Sab, he seems quite perplexed about another thing.

    "Apart from the wings, you don''t appear to have any other golden bits on you." He gazed at her body to no avail.

    "Now who''s being perverted?" I joked.

    "Haha, I can understand where the confusion comes from. Hardly anyone exists here without a single golden part on them, after all." Vastoria giggled, "Mine is on the inside. My heart."

    "A golden heart?" I tilted my head, "What kind of injury did you have prior to becoming an angel for that to get replaced?"

    "Who knows?" She shrugged, "Ah, but I do have one other golden part that you can actually see. It is a bit embarrassing, though."

    You had me at "Vastoria''s embarrassing secret". I wonder which part it is? There''s nothing on her body, so maybe it''s under her hair? A possible head injury on her scalp, it''s not as odd as you may think. Hmm, apart from that, what else?

    "...My right toe, it''s-" She bashfully raised it.

    Poke.

    "Eep!" She whimpered.

    "Stop sexually harassing the poor girl!" Sab smacked me on the back of the head, though it didn''t really do much, "Seriously, do I really have to be the voice of reason here!?"

    "It''s fine, we''re both girls, after all." I said with a smug yet dubious smile.

    "That excuse doesn''t exist in my time period." He groaned, "I don''t care if it''s a guy or a girl or a damned attack helicopter, don''t touch your host''s special places after they''ve invited you into their house!"

    "Attack helicopter?" Vastoria tilted her head, "In any case, I have to agree with Sab on this one. Migu, I know you like to joke around, but please don''t touch my golden parts so openly."

    "...So you''re fine with it so long as I touch the White parts?" I suggested.

    "No, that''s-! Hrmm..." She pouted, "Fine, not like I would feel it, anyways."

    Immediately, I stood up from my seat with a newfound passion coursing through my veins. With vigor unmatched, I paced towards her seat and gave her a big ol'' hug. She was caught off guard by my energy, so she jolted a bit once I embraced her. Nonetheless, she was right. Guess hugs kind of lose their meaning in Heaven 2.0, given I don''t feel anything from it...

    "Sorry, I had my fill." I backed away, only to notice the tears in her Eyes, "Vastoria?"

    "Sniffle... Ah? Sorry, I..." She broke down soon after, "I just remembered something. No, ignore these tears, they mean nothing."

    Really now? Usually, when a person starts sobbing after a hug, that means they must have really needed it. A golden heart, eh... Maybe her human counterpart didn''t actually have a physical complication. Possibly... they say a human can die of a broken heart.

    "We should get out of your hair." I awkwardly stated, "Gotta try our best to become seraphim as well! Ain''t that right, Sab?"

    "Yeah!" He raised his fist after he got up as well, "Vastoria, thank you for everything."

    "Y-Yeah..." She tried composing herself for us, but it obviously wasn''t working.

    "...We can stay until you calm down-" I suggested.

    "Migu, no. You''ve done enough." Sab lightly reprimanded me, "Give the girl some space."

    "I''ll be alright." Vastoria finally calmed down enough for the tears to stop, "Then, let me fly you down."

    "Meh, we''ll just take the leap of faith." I chuckled, "Not like we''ll feel any pain from it, much less die. Just rest up and calm down for now and once you do, come find us so we can hang out again!"

    "Again?" She inquired with a melancholy tone.

    "Yeah, another day." Sab waved before jumping off the ledge.

    "See you soon!" I followed suit.

    "Another... day." Vastoria muttered.

    The fall down to the ground floor took a lot less time than the actual ascent. Not dissing Vastoria by any means, but I guess it''s important to take note of the flight speed. From what I''ve gathered, seraphim wings seem to be better suited for horizontal movement more so than vertical, but she didn''t seem winded from the exercise regardless. Either she''s just in great shape, or it doesn''t use up any energy. If that''s the case, then traversing Heaven 2.0 must be a trivial task for seraphim.

    "Oop!" I landed face first onto the cloudy ground, "It didn''t hurt a bit, but it still feels scary. How''d it go for you, Sab?"

    "AAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHH-!" He screamed in agonizing pain, "DAMN MY HOOPS, THERE WASN''T ANY WAY TO AVOID THEM HITTING THE GROUND WHEN I FELL!"

    "Except there was?" I mocked him, "Why not just stick the landing with your legs?"

    Guess the bigger the golden areas are on your body, the more uncomfortable your life will be in this new world. Again, not really fair to give someone that got brutally mutilated a bunch of super sensitive zones, but the Gods work in mysterious ways. As for this guy, he got up after a couple of minutes. He''s lucky the crowd that was previously angry with us over the pan incident left us alone, otherwise I would''ve ran without him.

 Vol.1 Ch.10 - Meet Your Maker

    "Alright, we got our next goal!" I excitedly announced, "Become seraphim and gain our wings!"

    Thanks to Vastoria, we''ve learned a very valuable piece of info about this place. According to her, there is a way to earn a pair of golden wings that supposedly allow limitless flight. With their powers, we could make traversing Heaven 2.0 a total cakewalk. Not to mention, we could freely go and visit her floating island anytime! Biscuits and tea, with a side of teasing the lovely Vastoria!

    "Hehehe~"

    "Stop grinning like that, you''re making me uncomfortable." Sab scowled, "First you make her cry, then you laugh about it. You really are sick in the head."

    "What? You think she cried because of me?" I furrowed my brows, "Don''t be ridiculous. She just remembered something that made her sad. Nothing to do with us... I think."

    "Nothing to do with me." He corrected the sentence, "You on the other hand, the girl that sexually harassed her at her own home..."

    "You make it sound bad, but all I did was a bit of youthful teasing!" I argued, "Besides, we''re all angels here, with literally no private parts to speak of!"

    Granted, I do feel a bit bad about how far I took my jokes. It was all in good fun, and I''m sure she knows it too, but I guess from Sab''s perspective it might''ve looked different. Alright, next time I see her, I''ll be sure to properly ask her about it. And if she doesn''t forgive me... so be it.

    "Ah." I stopped as we were walking through the busy streets.

    "Oh." A familiar face wearing a bright Green pair of shorts did the same, "It''s you two."

    "Migu, mind filling me in?" Sab darted his gaze between the two of us.

    "It''s that guy, whose house is across from ours." I pointed out, "I remembered the scars on his forearms."

    "And you guys were even easier to make out." He chuckled, "You''re the only ones in this place with proper clothes on. Heh, well, apart from me, that is."

    It looks like he found himself a nice little clothes shop just like he wanted. Hmm, but if that''s the case, wouldn''t he have gone for more clothes than just that? Could he not afford anything else other than a measly pair of Green shorts? Wait, what currency does this place even use? Is it a bartering system? In that case, what could he have traded away? Gah, too many questions.

    "Oh these?" He noticed me staring at them, "The Gods gave them to me."

    "...The Gods." Both Sab and I heavily scrutinized the idea.

    "Yep, Prylos and Selzion to be exact." He smugly crossed his arms, "While I was out looking for a clothes shop, I happened upon a large mansion. Out of it came out two giants, who revealed themselves to be the Gods I mentioned."

    "And they were just... there?" Sab asked, "Like, physically?"

    "Well yeah. I mean, we ARE in Heaven after all." He shrugged, "So I asked them for some clothes and they pretty easily obliged."

    "Wait, they just listened to your request?" I cocked my head back, "Quit lying, come on now."

    "I''m serious! They did say however that this is all they can give me though, since any more would make the other angels jealous."

    Right, ain''t no one gonna be feeling envious about a measly pair of Green shorts. They look radioactive, for Gods'' sake! Still, if you can quite literally just go and meet the Gods at their abode, and what''s more even ask them for a personal wish, then that''s gotta be our next destination!

    "Well then, lead the way." I ordered, "If you want us to believe you, then that''s obviously the best way to go about it."

    "Ugh, I''ve been on my feet the entire day though." He groaned, "Let''s go tomorrow, ''kay? We''re next door neighbors, so it''s not like you guys won''t see me ever again."

    "Yeah, I''m pretty pooped myself." Sab agreed, "Let''s call it a day for now. Once we rest up properly, we can go see the Gods."

    These guys, are they hearing themselves right now? Prioritizing rest above meeting the literal Gods governing Heaven, what the hell kind of logic is that? Besides, we still don''t know anything about the Gods. What if their house''s location changes every day or something? Or maybe even every hour. We don''t know that, so we should use this chance while we can!

    "At least point me in the right direction, Greenie." I groaned, "You guys go back home if you want. I''ll go wish to become a seraphim."

    "The name''s Elle." He corrected me, "Elle G. Not Greenie."

    "Just tell me where the damned Gods are already!"

    Who cares about your name? Freakin'' Elle, isn''t that a girl''s name? Damned brat...

    Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    "...Whatever, it''s a huge house just down the road. Follow the straightest path, no detours." He explained, "You should see a huge plot of land, like 9 times the size of the rest of the houses."

    "And the Gods are really there?" I asked to reaffirm.

    "Can''t miss it." He waved me off before going back towards our houses with Sab, "Hey, you guys got a name?"

    "Yep, I''m Sab, she''s Migu."

    "Migu? No wonder she''s so grumpy." The bastard rolled his Eyes as I lost them in the crowd, "I''d be like that too if I had a name like that."

    The hell does that mean, asshole!? Damned Elle! ELLE! You''re telling me a guy like that is smack talking MY name!? Oh, he is so getting his forearms scratched for that! Or maybe I could pull his pinkie finger? That part''s golden, too.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hoo boy, okay..." I said after walking for what felt like half an hour at least, "He did say it wasn''t that near from here, but I feel like I totally missed it."

    Maybe I should turn back? Oh, but if I did that, I''d be way too tired to even make it back home, much less walk all the way back here again. It''d wear me out too much, and as much as I didn''t want to admit it, I was pretty tired as well from today''s turbulent day.

    "Just five more minutes... of walking, that is." I braced myself, "Come on, Migu! Walk now, so you can soar through the skies later!"

    And so it was. Walking at a pace of 2 steps a second, I had breezed through Heaven''s avenue¡ªyard after yard, block after block. I was dead tired by this point, but backing out would only take me further from my goal. Nah, I was in too deep. Quitting now would make all this effort worthless in the end. And just when I was reaching my limit, I found it.

    "Finally..." I smirked with a tired yet victorious melody as I encroached upon the vast yard, "You guys better not send me back empty handed, y''hear?"

    Just as Elle had described it, two giants had walked out of the spacious mansion in the center. Rather, they floated out of it. I guess Gods can just do that without the aid of wings. In any case, one was indeed taller than the other, but he was also super skinny. Their skin color too had immediately piqued my interest, as it wasn''t the regular shade of White I''ve come to expect. These guys really were unique, now all I could hope for was that they were amicable as well.

    "Speak." The lanky one said.

    "E-Erm..." I bit my tongue.

    "Out with it!" He demanded.

    "Eep!" I fell on my butt.

    "Selz, you''re scaring the poor thing." The buff, shorter one calmed him down, "You were the one who suggested we live among them, so no need to get so butthurt."

    "But this is the second time this cycle, Prylos!" Selzion (apparently) shot back in a fit of rage, "The second time one of them just waltzed into our abode, presumably expecting something out of it!"

    "That''s-!" I yelled.

    True, actually. I quite literally want something way out of my league, that being the rank of seraphim. Err, maybe I should change it to something more reasonable, after all? Even just asking them to tell me how to earn it would be plenty, I''d say. Yeah, we''ll go with that.

    "Okay, what do you want?" Prylos asked with a reassuring tone, "It''s okay, don''t be shy. He made this world for you, so he''s definitely not gonna bite, haha."

    "U-Uhh, uhm..." I stuttered before finally mustering up the courage to ask, "S-Seraphim, could you tell me..."

    "Too late." Selzion groaned.

    "Eh?"

    "You''re far too late for that, don''t you know the cycle is almost over?" He continued, "You won''t be able to accomplish that in time even if we told you."

    "Wait now, Selz. The angels don''t know about the cycles." Prylos whispered poorly enough for even me to overhear it, "A-Ahem, as my colleague said, though, we simply cannot hand such information out to you."

    "Speak as formally as you want, I''m not leaving until you tell me." I remained seated on the grassy lawn, "Of course, you could always just outright give me the rank."

    "Wait a second, you''re from before..." Prylos muttered something.

    "I''m tossing her out." Selzion flicked his hand, sending me flying out of their yard in a flash.

    "Unf! Whatever, I''ll just come back to bug you again and again!" I shouted from the street, "Actually, if you don''t tell me, I''ll just send the entire angel population to your doorstep with promises of any wish they want granted, then we''ll see who gets the last laugh!"

    As expected, threatening the Gods with solicitors was a surprisingly effective strategy of getting my way. In the very next moment, I was seemingly teleported right back at their doorstep, with Selzion angrily glaring down at me with his hands folded over. He was pissed.

    "What makes you think I can''t just delete you from existence right here and now?" He threateningly asked.

    "I don''t doubt you could, but I know you definitely won''t." I shrugged, sitting down on my butt as I figured, "If you really wanted to, you''d have done it already. But also, you guys bragged earlier about how this new and improved Heaven houses EVERYONE."

    In other words, if he deleted me, then he wouldn''t be able to pride himself on that anymore. He seems like a stuck up, prideful sort of guy, so surely he''ll take the bait. Besides, so long as Prylos is here to mediate the heat between us, I''m sure it''ll all turn out okay.

    "See? I told you, she''s one of the first three angels." Prylos reminded him nervously, "Look, you said it yourself, she won''t make it in time before the reset, so just humor her and send her off!"

    "Reset?" I tilted my head.

    "Zip it!" They both turned to shout at me.

    "Prylos, I appreciate your willingness to make everyone happy, but I just cannot tell anyone such an important secret." Selzion pouted, "After all that hard work to encrypt the quest line, for us to just allow someone who heard about the final reward to skip the entire thing is preposterous!"

    "Look, last time she asked for us to add in Name Initials." Prylos pointed at me, "This time she''s just asking for pointers on where to start the mission. It''s not like she''s asking for the rank directly."

    "Although I wouldn''t mind that either-" I noted.

    "Will you SHUT UP for a second!?" Prylos begged.

    "Got it." I zipped my mouth shut immediately.

    The two Gods bickered for a while after that. Though I couldn''t catch everything they said, I did get the feeling that they have met me before, and I''m not just talking about that time before me and those other two randos got our golden parts. I mean physically, in the flesh. Regardless, they reached a rather disappointing verdict.

    "The answer is no." Selzion turned back around to enter his house.

    "Sorry, you can ask for anything else but that." Prylos weakly smiled, "He seems adamant about that."

    "Okay then, tell me about the reset!" I smugly grinned.

    "Tch." Selzion stopped dead in his tracks, glaring back at me with a visceral hatred, "Must you always cause problems for us..."

 Vol.1 Ch.11 - Seize the Day

    "No means no-" Selzion was seconds away from slamming the door in my face when Prylos spilled the beans.

    "Every 24 hours, a being known as the White Monster makes everyone that''s still up and about go to sleep by force." He explained, "You then wake up without any prior memories. That''s a new cycle."

    "...WHAAAAAAT!?" I screamed.

    T-The... But the...!? Wait, so you''re saying-!? Augh, they really have a serious look on their face, so this isn''t even a joke! No, you can''t just toss that bombshell on me all of a sudden and expect me not to start panicking!

    "Why did you tell her!?" Selzion berated him.

    "What''s she gonna do?" Prylos shrugged, "It''d get her off our lawn, and besides, it''s already nearing the end of the cycle."

    "W-Wait, tell me how to avoid it!" I begged, "That monster thing!"

    "...Ahem, the White Monster has no weakness." Selzion cleared his throat, "Once you catch a glimpse of him, your face contorts to mimic its own. Then, whenever someone else sees you, they become the White Monster''s Apostle as well."

    "It''s like a highly viral plague." Prylos chuckled, "Ehe, in hindsight, it''s a really messed up way of resetting everyone''s progress."

    Hell yeah it is! Wait, how long has it been since I woke up? Ugh, even if I knew that, there''s no guarantee I woke up on the exact start of this cycle...! I need to go find Sab, but ohh, they''re too far away...!

    "Dammit, I don''t wanna get my memories wiped! Gasp, memories wiped..." I realized, "What Vastoria said! Seraphim don''t get their memories wiped, right!?"

    "Vastoria? And who is-?"

    "Tell me how to become a seraphim!" I demanded, "You said it''s already too late to try, so it won''t hurt to just reveal the secret to me!"

    "M.G, was it..." Selzion nonchalantly ignored me, "No, you cannot make it in time anymore. It would take anyone at least 5 hours before you can attain seraphim rank, yet there is not even an hour left before the White Monster''s curse consumes all."

    Shit! Stop making it sound so freaking scary! I don''t wanna have to go toe to toe with such a scary thing! I don''t wanna forget my memories of today! Sab, Vastoria, Elegy...! If I wake up tomorrow without even knowing their names, then... Wait, that''s it!

    "Thanks for nothing, idiots!" I ran under them and into their large house, "I''ll just handle it myself!"

    "Wait, get back here!" Prylos teleported me back.

    "Hmph, did you really forget who you are trying to oppose?" Selzion gave a smug smirk.

    "Hup!" I got back up on my feet to try again.

    "Nope."

    "Hyup!"

    "Nuh-uh."

    "Hop!"

    "Mn."

    "Hep!"

    Each time I got sent back, I would just bounce back and enter the house again. I never got any farther than I did the first time, most probably because they were expecting me to try it after stopping me the first time, but I did learn quite a few things about their house with this. Namely, it''s spacious, but completely empty. A large church like aisle, just without the seats, and in the central altar, something that looked to be a Book, though I couldn''t quite make it out exactly. If I can just make it to there...

    "Geez, stop already!" Selzion got annoyed and finally teleported me back one last time, grabbing my proportionately tiny body with an iron grasp, "If you wish to spend your last moments of this cycle annoying us, then you can rest assured that will not happen."

    "Ptu-!" I spat on the giant fist that held me tight.

    It''s already useless no matter what I do, the White Monster or whatever they called it will come for me way before I even make it halfway to Vastoria''s house, much less my own. I''m alone, and I can''t rely on my friends for help. Friends... I''ll forget all about them, and they''ll forget about me. I wonder, just how many friends did I forget before this? How long has this cycle gone on for? The Gods are extremely cruel for this...

    "You...!" Selzion squeezed me tight before tossing me up a bit to Materialize a Book, "Congratulations, you''ve proven yourself."

    "Wait, Selz, come on! No angel deletion, remember!?" Prylos panickedly pleaded.

    "Do you not see the disrespect being displayed here!?" He then Materialized a pen as well.

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    While I was in the air, I could properly make out the inside of their house. The Book on the aisle''s lectern was still there, indicating this wasn''t the same one he held in his hands. But this is good, my plan worked properly, and I might''ve just saved myself by annoying them! The moment Selzion Materialized a pen from thin air, I latched onto it as I fell. The momentum sent both me and the pen crashing down on the floor.

    "What''s she doing now?" He addressed me as if I was nothing more than a mere fly.

    Uuugh, t-the pen... Yes! It''s still clicked open! It''s huge, larger than my entire body, but the nib is just small enough for me to write a memo with! I don''t have much time, nor space for that matter. I can''t write everyone''s names before Selzion takes the pen away from me. I need to think...

    "Vastoria? No her name''s too damn long!" I said as I pressed my shoulder up to the nib, "Elegy? Sab? But they''re not really gonna be as helpful as Vastoria..."

    It was then when an epiphany hit me. The perfect thing to write before time ran out. I didn''t quite manage to write all of it, because in the next moment I was teleported to an empty space. A cold chill ran down my spine as I turned around to see it. A goat''s skull staring down my soul. I blacked out without even thinking about resisting.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    I woke up in some sort of house. The walls inside were Yellow, and the floor was absolutely covered with toys and other random junk. Two things immediately stuck out to me as I got out of my bed.

    "Why am I topless?" I glanced down, "Eh? Writing?"

    Guess I must''ve had one crazy party last night. Heh, just kidding. My skin is still White, which means that thing that happened with Heaven and the saws was real. In other words, if I check myself in the mirror...

    "Whoa, golden spine..." I gawked, "And this writing, are these... directions?"

    A line, or rather, some sort of map? Is this some kind of joke? Ah, I just realized I have no nipples as well. Holy hell, my head hurts, and nothing makes sense anymore... Too many questions, I think I''ll just go back to sleep. Plopping back down on my bed, I slept pretty soundly. The bed was the comfiest damn thing I''ve ever slept on, at least that''s what it felt like. It felt like a mother''s embrace, and the sheets were just the perfect warmth. Makes you not wanna ever get up, but something kept me from sleeping through the entire day.

    "These markings..." I kept peeking down at them, "They go from one shoulder to the other, directly over my collarbone. Tch, whoever wrote this must''ve really not wanted me to miss it."

    I rolled around in bed, trying my best to find a position that would naturally hide it away from me and make me forget, but the location of the ink made it impossible to not constantly stay within my field of vision. Closing my Eyes didn''t help either, because I just couldn''t rest easily so long as it was there.

    "Dammit, there''s gotta be a bathroom here!" I jumped angrily out of bed.

    Storming out of the bedroom, I stomped on over through the hallways, walked down the stairs, and finally found what most resembled a sort of bathroom. Slamming open the door, I turned on the faucet and grabbed what I think was a sponge for washing your body.

    "...Tch." I stopped, realizing the sheer stupidity of tossing away such a possibly important tip, "I should at least check this place out, first."

    It was annoying, but it had to be done so that I could get back to my beauty sleep. Memorizing the twists and turns on the mirror, I walked out of the house with a confident gait. A bustling street presented itself before me, and I found myself among the billions of yards and houses I had just a couple moments ago looked down upon.

    "Yo, where''d you get them pants?" A naked guy from across the street asked.

    "Pervert!" I flipped him off before walking away.

    Geez, to think these people exist even in Heaven... Oh right, where was I? The map said to go straight ten blocks, then left three blocks, and finally make a right. After that, I should be at my destination.

    "All these houses look the same..." I looked around nervously, "This is the seventh block... right? So then, 3 more before turning left? Or was it 4? It probably doesn''t matter too much... Probably."

    Though I knew roughly where to go, it was mostly my gut that led the way. The journey was long too, given I had to practically pass a whole 14 blocks in total, but this body is apparently in pretty good shape, since I didn''t even get all that tired. Granted, it''s just a bit of walking, but I feel like normally you''d get sore after the fifth block you passed.

    "This?" I made an uncomfortable face at the house that the map pointed to, "No, I''m sure I got the right one... No, trust the process, me!"

    Carefully, I approached the front door before knocking three times. No one answered the door, so I went to knock again. Still no answer, by this point I was about ready to leave. Still, it annoyed me that I had gone all the way here for nothing, so I just had to try a third time.

    "What!?" A livid voice piped up from inside, making me jump back in surprise, "Stop knocking already, you''re giving me a headache!"

    "U-Uhm, I was told to come here." I hastily explained, "Could you please just tell me if you were the one who wrote all over my body?"

    "Wrote all over-!? Ugh." He groaned as the doors pried themselves open, revealing a rather tired looking angel with large, golden wings that barely fit inside his house, "Okay, what the hell do you want?"

    "Did you write this on me?" I asked, pointing down at my chest, "I woke up like this and apparently it pointed me to your house."

    "I didn''t write jack." He frowned, "And that map''s on backwards, dumbass."

    "Eh?" I yelped.

    "See the giant house drawn way over there? That''s the Gods'' abode." He pointed to my right shoulder, "That''s on the other side, not here. You forgot to account for the fact the image gets reversed when you look at it in the mirror."

    ...Oh, in other words, I went the complete opposite way. Meaning, not only did I waste time walking all this way, but I have to now walk double the distance if I wanna make it to the real destination.

    "Got anything you don''t mind being broken?" I asked as a vein popped.

    "Even if I did, I wouldn''t let you." He sighed, "Shit, just get in."

    "I''m not entering a stranger''s house." I cocked my head back.

    "And I''m not gonna give you another opportunity." He merely walked back inside, leaving the door open as a way of inviting me in, "I imagine you didn''t have a spare piece of paper to jot the directions down on, given you ended up here to pester me with your body markings."

    "Don''t patronize me!"

    "Hm? Oh, sorry, I was gonna offer you a ride with my wings after writing the directions down on a proper sheet of paper." He turned around, waving said paper around with a maliciously compliant gaze, "But since you''re so independent and secure, I guess I''ll just back off."

    "...Sorry to bother you." I hid my face away in shame, gritting my teeth almost as tightly as I clenched my fists.

    I feel like I hit the jackpot when it comes to capable companions, but I sure as hell don''t appreciate his attitude...

 Vol.1 Ch.12 - Quicksave

    I wanna go back to bed~, but instead I''m standing here puffing my chest out for this guy in the middle of his living room. Ugh, what the hell, can''t he trace the damned directions any faster?

    "Okay, that ought to be enough." He tossed his pen away, ripping the paper off the clipboard before haphazardly pushing it onto me, "Here, you''re in charge of directions. You were precise enough to follow the wrong map, so I assume you know what you''re doing."

    "Would it kill you to be a little less rude?" I complained.

    "Yeah, it would." He glared back, "A random-ass broad is about to waste my entire cycle just so she could prove a hunch correct."

    Ah, when he puts it like that, I guess he is kind of justified. Still, have at least the decency to hide those annoyed feelings away, would ya''?

    "...Thanks for the map." I pouted, turning back to leave the house by myself, "Since I wouldn''t wanna bother you and your cycle or whatever, I think I''ll just go by myself."

    "Hm."

    With a loud flutter of wings erupting from the shoddy, small house, he zoomed through the air with his wings, capturing me within an instant. Before I knew it, I was soaring high above the air, with me holding the map, and him giving me a princess carry. Dammit, I said I''m gonna be doing this alone!

    "Let me go!" I thrashed around in his arms, "You said you didn''t wanna help me, right!?"

    "I never said that, I just said it''s a pain." He kept looking forward, "Still, sometimes in life you have to do things that get annoying. In fact, my time here has mostly been just that."

    "...How long have you been here?" I asked, "I just woke up today, but-"

    "You didn''t." He interrupted, "No one did. We''ve all been here since day one... Only difference is you don''t remember."

    I feel like this is turning out to be something way more serious than I first anticipated. To begin with, he just decided on his own basically to help this random girl that''s pestering him. Even his own identity is a mystery in and of itself. His wings, for example, and the fact that he seems to be somehow more experienced than I am, despite me being one of the first three people in Heaven 2.0...

    "By the look on your face, I''ll assume you don''t get where I''m going with this." He sighed, "Every day repeats itself endlessly here. Sure, you''re experiencing your first day, but to us seraphim, countless "first days" passed by before this one."

    "The days... repeat?" I glanced up at his face.

    "All angels lose their memories of the previous day, so that''s why you feel like you just woke up a couple hours ago." He continued, "We seraphim are the exception, since we retain our memories. Plus we get these nifty wings that are just all the rave these days."

    "So is that it?" I chuckled faintly, "You were just born in a better position than us common folk?"

    "Wrong, I worked hard and earned it." He grunted, "Something you don''t seem to be capable of doing, having to resort to using other people for your own benefits."

    "Ack, that''s it!" I struggled to escape his grasp, "I''m dropping down and walking the rest of the way!"

    "Hm? Okey-doke." He simply let go.

    "Wait, you''re supposed to argue baaaaack~"

    What a jerk! Ah, but I was kind of asking for it... Oops. A-Ahem, as I was seemingly falling to my doom down below, a bunch of other thoughts occupied my headspace. Nothing made sense at all. From the very start, actually. Like, who was it that wrote that map on my chest? And where does it lead to? This guy, I think he has more to do with what I''m searching for than meets the Eye. Right, I didn''t even catch his name? Wait, what''s my name?

    "Ugh, I just wanna go back to sleep..." I muttered as I was mere moments away from hitting the ground, "Dying in three, two, one... zer-WHOA!"

    "Right, sorry, but I kinda need the map." The seraphim flapped his wings smugly, having saved me by a hair''s breadth as he picked me up by the pits like one would a disgruntled cat, "You didn''t... drop it, did you?"

    "Of course I didn''t!" I hissed, "And don''t drop me like that next time! I thought I was about to die, dammit!"

    "No one dies in Heaven 2.0." He revealed nonchalantly, "And we only feel pain in the gilded parts."

    "Eh? W-Why are you telling me all this?" I asked honestly.

    "Because, you just might be the key to solving this mystery." He smirked, "Brace yourself, we''re landing."

    I was skeptical about that warning, given we were still hundreds of meters off the ground, but that was before I noticed the giant floating island we were fast approaching. Upon making it over the island, this guy just let me go a second time, though unlike last time, he didn''t pick me up in the last moment. Weirdly enough, what he said earlier wasn''t a lie either¡ªI was dazed, but my body retained no damage.

    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "Hey! Got a package for ya''!" He loudly called out to the owner of the estate, "Come out here, I think you''ll find it to be quite interesting!"

    "Who could have climbed up all the way here...?" A lady opened the front door before standing there in pure shock, "M-Mi...!?"

    "Looks like we got the right address." The guy lifted me back up on my feet before brushing off any dust particles that may have stuck to me, "Then, fellow seraphim¡ªPlease do reintroduce yourself to this little angel girl. She was just DYING to see you again."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "I-I don''t understand, how is..." The lady turned to him, "How is she, an angel, back here!?"

    "Oh, that one''s easy. I flew her here." He smugly replied.

    "And you are?" She raised an Eyebrow.

    "Also simple. I''m The Dethroned." He proudly announced.

    "...You seriously went with such a name?" She sighed.

    "I''d like to hear your name." He retorted, "Can''t be any better than-"

    "Vastoria." She blankly replied.

    "...Yet your initials are F.O?" He pointed at her hands.

    "Who cares about that!?" She hastily hid them away.

    Ah, so that''s what these letters stand for. People here actually choose their names based on them, I see. The Dethroned, he must''ve gotten than from D.T... How overly edgy, I expected something more regular. As for mine, hmm...

    "M.G, huh?" I inspected them, "Migu."

    "Hm?" Vastoria turned her head at that one before giggling to herself.

    "It''s not that bad..." I sulked.

    "Don''t nameshame, Vastoria F.O." The Dethroned advised.

    "Huh? N-No, I''m not making fun of you, just...!" She burst out laughing before revealing, "That name, you introduced yourself to me as Migu last time as well!"

    "So we have met before." I looked down, "Sorry about this, Vastoria, but I''m gonna need to ask you about some things."

    "Of course, in fact, I''m happy to oblige." She smiled, "To tell you the truth, I... I didn''t think we''d ever see each other again."

    She...? Wait, am I misunderstanding something here? Does she have the hots for me? Why is she saying that with such a warm, cuddly smile on? Is she just a bubbly person from the start, or could it be that we''ve shared a more intimate relationship before? N-Nah, I''m just imagining things, come on!

    "Ah, but first, let''s go inside for now." Vastoria invited us, "I don''t like keeping my guests on their feet."

    Entering the spacious abode, I had immediately realized the difference in style between hers and The Dethroned''s house. They were both seraphim, but one''s house was shoddy and on the verge of falling apart, meanwhile the others was a mansion on a floating island. You couldn''t get more contrast than that. I guess it really does just boil down to being whatever you wished your dream house to be like as a human. Regardless, we were seated in the living room, with tea and biscuits being served in just a few minutes.

    "Food?" The Dethroned inspected them with a great deal of suspicion, "Where''d you get these?"

    "From my pantry?" She raised an innocent Eyebrow, "It seems no matter how many times I take some out, whenever I open the pantry, a new pack shows up."

    "That''s incredible! Neverending biscuits!" I excitedly bounced on my seat, "Ah, right! Onto the questions!"

    "Before that, you are a seraphim as well, right?" Vastoria turned to The Dethroned, "Mister...?"

    "The Dethroned." He replied without skipping a beat.

    "Can we please shorten it?" She begged, "It''s way too long to say in casual speech.

    "You''re gonna shorten my name?" He got offended, "Fine, but don''t make it something dumb."

    "How about The?" I suggested.

    The Dethroned didn''t even reply to that one, nor give a snarky retort. He just craned his head back at me with a dumbfounded look that said "Really? You''re being serious?"

    "How about instead of it being the nickname, we omit it?" Vastoria raised a point, "Just Dethroned."

    "But then we lose the ominous aspect!" I rejected it.

    "That''s... actually what I was about to say." The Dethroned agreed, "Just way less childish."

    "Whose side are you on!?" I fumed.

    Listing off all sorts of nicknames to give to him, it took us a long while, but we eventually settled on one we all could agree with. It had this air of mystery and ominousness without being too long. Precisely, it''s none other than...!

    "Throne." He nodded, "Well, it loses its original meaning completely, but I can get used to it."

    "Throne it is!" Vastoria clapped happily, "D.T. Throne! Wait, D. Throne! Haha, Dethrone!"

    After smiling and laughing at her own joke for a bit longer than was necessary, she eventually composed herself enough to get back to business. She knew me from before, and I intend to find out just why exactly I was led back to her.

    "Right, the person who wrote all over your chest..." She revealed, "Was none other than you, Migu."

    "Me?" I furrowed my brows.

    "In hindsight, that much was obvious." Throne smirked, "Only a childish soul would make such poorly drawn doodles."

    "Grrr...!" I growled at him, but before I could attack, I was stopped by Vastoria.

    "Migu, you must have wanted to save your progress somehow." She continued, "I imagine you learned a lot of valuable info you just couldn''t let slide, so in drawing the map to me, someone who knows you from last cycle and has the memories of our conversation, you''ve essentially accomplished just that¡ªA checkpoint of sorts."

    Checkpoint, I see! I really am smart, aren''t I? Praise me more!

    "That being said, our next goal is to restore her progress for this save to full." Throne reasoned, "Tell us everything that happened last cycle between you two, and don''t skip a single detail. We could possibly uncover something helpful with this."

    "Everything?" Vastoria glanced at me, then hastily averted her gaze with a bright Red face, "D-Do I have to?"

    Oi, what the hell happened?

    "I wanna know how many crumbs fell on the floor back then." Throne kept pressing her for answers, "I wanna know each and every conversation word for word, got it?"

    "Gulp, o-okay..." She whimpered.

    Thus, for the next hour or so, she had blessed us with the story of yesterday-err, well, last cycle. To begin with, apparently I didn''t come alone that time, but rather with another guy named Sab. Then, she explained how a seraphim''s perks are earned, and then... O-Oh, oh my!

    "Y-You get the gist." Steam was coming out of her head by this point, "I don''t need to go too much into detail, right? It''s quite embarrassing."

    "Nah." I glanced at Throne so as to reaffirm it''s okay, "You heard the man, word for word!"

    "Uuuu~"

 Vol.1 Ch.13 - Square One

    "So then, what I''ve gathered from this..." I reckoned, "Is that you and I need to get married."

    "Stop!" She blushed.

    "As God is my witness, so it shall be!" I yelled, grabbing her hand before kneeling down on one knee, "Madame, we''ve gone through so much together! Verily, I see, you and I are destined to be, Vastoria!"

    "M-Migu, tone it down a bit-!"

    Pinch.

    "Eep!" She yelped the moment I made contact with her wings, the feathers rustling crazily as she struggled to regain her composure.

    Well, I can certainly see the appeal of teasing Vastoria. My past self definitely had a great vision, this is exactly as I imagined it to be! But though I call it teasing, I''m also not saying I would dislike the notion of us dating. She''s just my type, I''d wager!

    "Great, you two lovebirds can just continue on with whatever you''re doing." Throne got up from the sofa, "Meanwhile I''ll be getting out of the nest. Wouldn''t wanna, encroach on your honeymoon."

    "Hey, wait!" Vastoria flew in front of him, blocking the exit as she did, "Seriously now, no more jokes!"

    "Hm, divorced already?" He plainly replied, "Guess that''s to be expected with shotgun weddings."

    "I said no more wisecracking!" She shouted, "We need to figure out what exactly happened last cycle after Migu and Sab left my island."

    "You said this happened quite late into the cycle, right?" Throne sighed, realizing he still had involvement in this, "Depending on how few hours they had left, we can assume they couldn''t have gone far."

    "Wait, if our goal is to retrace my steps, then shouldn''t we go and look for this Sab guy?" I asked.

    Soon after that, the two looked at me with a troubled gaze before muttering something to themselves. Right, both of them share the rank of seraphim. In other words, even if something went amiss and I happened to lose all my memories, I can rest assured in knowing they''ll both rush to get me back on track. Though it''d probably get annoying, so if possible, I should look for a way to make it easier for them to give me the gist.

    "Then, let''s think things through first before just continuing in a random direction." Vastoria explained, "What would be the most likely direction she and Sab would have gone to...?"

    "If it''s late into the night, then I assume we''d have gone straight home, no?" I shrugged, "Even now, all I wanna do is get this over with so I can go back to sleep."

    "Seriously? We could be on the verge of a very important breakthrough, and your only thought is of your bed?" Vastoria asked.

    "You''re free to join me if you want." I merely suggested, "It''s a really comfy bed."

    Ah, I just realized how that sounded. Vastoria, I hope she doesn''t get the wrong idea-Aaand she''s blushing. This girl is quite perverted in her own way, no? I genuinely didn''t mean anything bad when I said that, but she just assumed I did. Hmph, how rude, I wonder where in the world she would ever get that image of me?

    "You''re both extremely stupid." Throne interjected.

    "What now?" I groaned.

    Before me, he held up the map we used to get here. Using his finger, he pointed to a small doodle of a house near the island we were at.

    "How could you have known to draw the Gods'' Abode if you''ve never visited it before?" He impatiently tapped on it, "After hearing Vastoria''s retelling of last cycle''s events, I''m certain¡ªYou live in between my house and hers, and the Gods live a few blocks after this island. In other words...?"

    "They MUST have gone to the Gods, then!" Vastoria continued the sentence.

    "Good, you''ve successfully grasped basic cognitive sense!" He praised her with an underhanded compliment.

    "Hey!"

    "Right, now that we have an end destination established, we ought to focus on one last pickle left in the jar." He paced around the room, "Why exactly were you at the Gods'' Abode, and furthermore, what could you have found out that made you so adamant about not wanting to forget it?"

    That''s... Whoa, he''s really given this whole thing a ton of thought. Honestly, I couldn''t care less, since right now I just wanna have peace of mind when I go back to sleep. Hm? Back to sleep? Now that I think about it, by the time I wake up, won''t it already be the next cycle? I''ll have lost all my memories, and I''ve already washed off the ink on my chest. If I just told these guys to not bug me after the fact, won''t I be free to enjoy an eternal life in Heaven, day after day? Yeah, I already sent them off on their mission, so they don''t really need me holding them back.

    "You two, I got a question." I raised my hand as a dutiful student would, "Can I go home now?"

    "Migu?" Vastoria''s gaze pierced my heart.

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    "Hm..." Even Throne seemed disgruntled before accepting it, "Well, we''re not forcing you to participate. It''s a very natural thing to expect from an angel, just throwing away your responsibilities and basking in what little time you have left."

    "You make everything sound so pessimistic..." I chuckled.

    "No, but... We can''t just leave you now!" Vastoria had a completely different opinion on this, however, "You''re crucial!"

    "How come?" I asked truthfully, "I can''t fly, I can''t retain my memories... Honestly, you''d have so much extra time on your hands if you just forgot about me and continued investigating on your own. Or quit if it''s a hassle, I don''t really care."

    "Migu..." Vastoria turned her back towards me, and in the next moment.

    "Couldn''t have said it better myself." Throne glared at me with an incredibly suppressed rage, "Have fun on your own. As per usual, we seraphim will be the only ones actually making a difference in this damned place."

    Without even giving me time to reply, time to think for that matter, he flapped his wings to send me flying out of the front doors. The force propelled me back so far I even flew clean off the island. Guess he must not have accepted my decision so easily after all, but at this point it''s too late to go back. I''ve made my choice.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Baaaaaaahhhh~!" I yelled, screeched for my life until the moment of impact, "Oomph!"

    Ah. Ah? Ah, alive. And surprisingly enough, I can stand up just fine. I just can''t get used to feeling zero pain, it''s kind of scary in its own way. Throne and Vastoria, will they be fine on their own...?

    "Tch, what am I thinking?" I looked up at the island, "They can only be better off now that they don''t have to lug deadweight like me around anymore. Huh?"

    From the island flew off 2 angelic beings. A female and a male seraphim spread their wings with pride as they soared through the skies above. No one around me seemed to notice or even care for them, it was just me that was staring up at the sky in shock. They were fast, I can only assume whatever they were doing, they had to get it done quick.

    "Y-Yeah, thank God I didn''t go with..." I gulped anxiously, "When Throne was carrying me, he wasn''t even half as fast, but now look at ''em go! Ha-ha, so cool..."

    Ugh, what''s wrong with you, Migu!? It was your idea to go away, so what''s with this overwhelming tightness in your chest!? Dammit, I thought we weren''t allowed to feel pain anywhere other than our golden parts! Hrm, gotta clear my mind a bit...

    "Elegy, wait up!" A voice called someone''s name out from behind me.

    "You!" A guy crashed into me full force, sending both of us tumbling to the ground in a jiff.

    "Augh, what the-!?" I darted my gaze between the two people looming over me.

    What''s this? Am I already getting jumped? I don''t remember doing anything bad to anyone, though then again they shouldn''t either. Do I have something they want? No, the only thing I have on me are my shoddily made shorts. Regardless of what they want, I won''t be going down without a fight!

    "Elegy, get off her now-!" The guy that was previously calling for him begged.

    "Back the fuck off!" I shouted, violently scratching up his forearms.

    "Yeowch!" He immediately jumped back, "Owowow! Oof, heheh, I deserved that."

    You deserved a lot more, jackass! Gods, that was scary! A man had me pinned to the ground, I was sure he was gonna start tearing my spine off! Thankfully his own gilded parts were somewhere easily accessible, otherwise I might''ve had a lot more trouble with him!

    "Sorry, I was just excited to see you." The guy smiled confidently, "I recognized those shorts of yours while you were falling from that sky island, so I just knew I had to say hi! Ah, but what happened to your top?"

    "...I-"

    "You damned moron!" The guy with him smacked the crap out of him for being a creep, "If you knew each other, you should''ve just told me beforehand! A-Ah, but even still, what made you think lunging at a frail girl the way you did was the right choice!?"

    Glad someone''s making sense here. His friend here sounds kind of rough, and those pure gold arms from the shoulders down aren''t making him look any less threatening, but when it comes to treating women, he at least has more sense than this moron.

    "By the way, I never said I knew this guy." I pointed out to his friend.

    "Eh?! Oh come on, don''t you remember!?" He weakly asked, "We saw each other this morning!"

    "...Mn."

    "Our houses are next to each other."

    "Not ringing any bells."

    The troubled look on his face suggested he was desperately looking for a way to clear his name with his buddy. The guy next to him was getting more and more suspicious, which only gave me more reasons to play dumb. Hm? What, of course I remember the guy, he''s literally one of the three people I''ve talked to today!

    "...Y-You called me a... a pervert." He whispered the final part.

    "Hm? A what now?" I teased, "Go on, I can''t hear you if you''re mumbling to yourself."

    "Elegy, so help me if you just assaulted a random girl...!" The other guy cracked his golden knuckles, which made quite the satisfying sound.

    "A... A perv!" Elegy finally raised his tone, albeit slightly, "B-But look, she was mistaken! I only asked her where she got her clothes from!"

    "Is that so?" The other guy turned to me to make sure he wasn''t lying, "Little lady?"

    "Yep, now I remember." I smirked at Elegy, "Back then, I didn''t think everyone was naked, so I called him a perverted scumbag."

    "Ah, wrong, just a pervert." Elegy corrected me.

    "...Missy, sorry for my friend here." The golden armed guy put his hand out for a gentlemanly handshake, "As you''ve already heard, he goes by Elegy."

    Ooh, a charmer! I''ll admit, what with only having listened to Throne''s incessant ramblings about how dumb and useless I am, it does feel rather nice to be treated like a proper lady sometimes! Shame he referred to that aggresive pervert as his friend, though.

    "Humu, I''m Migu." I returned the question with a giggle, eager to find out this kind man''s name, "And you?"

    "Hate." He proudly announced.

    "Come again?"

    "Hate, that''s my name. ''Cause I hate it here." He explained, "I guess the best way to put it is... I wanna find out what my real name was before I bit the dust, but until then, feel free to call me Hate."

    "Is that really the name you chose?" I still found it kind of hard to believe.

    "No, it''s the name ''I'' chose." Elegy interjected, "We beat the crap out of each other just a few minutes ago when we first met, so since he seemed to Hate everyone and everything around him, I gave him such a cooly apt name."

    "She doesn''t need to know that..." Hate seemed regretful of what he did.

    "Heh, can you believe this guy?" Elegy kept clowning on him, "He actually thought everyone around him was some sort of White Monster, and he was the only normal human left!"

    "Dude, shut up!" Hate was Red with embarrassment.

    I kind of wish Hate finished the job during their fight. Seriously, how do you NOT beat the crap out of an annoying guy like Elegy?

 Vol.1 Ch.14 - Tick Tock

    "Then, now that introductions are out of the way, I say we start this chapter off with a bit of infodump!" Elegy proudly exclaimed.

    "Infodump?" I tilted my head.

    "An infodump is a literary term that essentially aims to give the readers answers to some of the more prevalent questions in the story." He continued, "Thus, tell me where you got your pants."

    "Is it really such an important matter!?" I felt my Eyes popping out for a second, "Geez, look¡ªI have no clue. I woke up with them on."

    "Right, but you had a top on as well." He continued interrogating, "I don''t get it, wearing only one article of clothing actually makes you look more naked, so why would you...?"

    "I had my reasons!" I folded my arms with a pout.

    Well, I''m not exactly lying. Though, I don''t think it''d be appropriate to share with these guys what that "reason" is. Right, stating "I had a map doodled on my chest and had to show it to some guy in a shady shed" would probably freak them out. That, or they''d think I''m some kind of easy woman.

    "Wait, that makes no sense!" I slammed my foot on the ground, "What''s there to be "easy" about, even!? We have no private parts!"

    "She''s talking to herself..." Hate muttered.

    "Don''t worry about it, my apprentice." Elegy smirked, "People sometimes do that for the sake of adding flavor to the dialogue. In actuality, she''s just continuing an inner thought aloud."

    "Ahhh, okay!" Hate nodded along, "...Dumbass!"

    "No, not like that..." Elegy winced, "You have to let the readers read your inner thoughts."

    Like this, see?

    "...I don''t get it." Hate could only sulk in response to Elegy''s sudden silence.

    "Okay, you''ve gotten your oh so important answer regarding my clothes, so move along now." I walked past them, "I wanna go back to my home and sleep."

    "Wait, a-actually...!" Hate grabbed my shoulder to spin me back towards them, but quickly realized he used too much force, "S-Sorry! I don''t know my own strength with these!"

    "Wah~" I felt dizzy for a bit before giving a wavy thumbs up, "Ish guud..."

    "Ignoring my friend''s overbearing strength, we wanted to ask you to join us in our investigation." Elegy said with a conniving smile.

    "Is Heaven just filled with detectives or something?" I groaned, "No! I''m going back to my comfy bed to have a good cat nap and forget about all of this!"

    "Sleep is for the weak, don''t you wanna help our poor friend Hate find a way back to the human realm?" He gave a dumb sob story, "When we first met, he was super scared of the people around him. Absolutely wreaking havoc upon the people here."

    "Ahem, I think you''ve told that part already..." Hate lightly nudged him to stop talking, which of course sent Elegy barreling towards one of the houses around us, "Oops."

    "Ugh... Just for that, I''m gonna add that you kept whining about how the big bad and scary White Monster made you piss your pants!" Elegy shot back from the crumpling wall.

    "I did not!" Hate whimpered before turning to me, "Believe me, I don''t even have pants to piss in!"

    "Oh, I know." I smirked, "Ah, but now that you mention it, I''d be scared of the White Monster too."

    The White Monster, Vastoria explained it to Throne and me when we were in her living room. A being that most resembles a goat skull that makes everyone that sees it go to sleep, forcefully ending their cycle. Said person''s face contorts to mimic its own, so whoever comes across the body will have the same happen to them as well. If I woke up thinking I''m surrounded by such monstrosities, I''d be fighting for my life too. But how does Hate know about them, exactly...?

    "...You guys do know it''s a real thing, right?" I asked, "The White Monster, that is."

    "Get outta here!" Elegy sprung up from the rubble with a hardy laugh.

    Hoo, boy... Explaining all this to them was a hassle, but it was important to give them a heads up just in case. Besides, Hate doesn''t deserve all the flac he''s been getting from Elegy, so I at least wanna help with what little info I can provide. The way they took the info, much like their personalities, differed a lot.

    "Whoa, new info! Awesome, thanks lady!" Elegy tried giving me a hug, but I was quick to dodge it.

    "Oh Gods, no...!" Hate, on the other hand, was practically ripping his hair out, "S-So you''re telling me our time here is limited!? W-We''ll be sent back to the beginning forever and ever!?"

    "That''s what the seraphim told me." I shrugged, "By the way, those were the two that were flying over us just a few moments ago."

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    "Whoa, you''re like an information fountain!" Elegy kept hyping me up, "I wanna drink you dry! Ah wait, yeah I heard that one... Oof, scratch that."

    "Dude, shut up for a second!" Hate was having a panic attack, "Don''t you get what this means!? There''s no way I''ll ever be able to find a way to bring myself back to life unless there''s a way to do it in less than 24 hours! I''m finished, it''s over before it even started!"

    Boohoo, who cares? You''re already dead anyways, so what were you hoping for? Reincarnation, getting sent back to the moment of your passing? If it''s the former, then what''s the point if you won''t even retain any memories of either your previous life or this one up in the afterlife? And if it''s the latter, then what if you get sent back, only to find yourself in a casket buried deep underground? No one''s gonna be there to hear the bell, y''know?

    "Less than 24 hours..." Elegy too seemed demotivated, "But... there''s gotta be some way."

    ...Oh, geez! Stop giving me the puppy dog Eyes, you damned manipulators! Fine, I''ll help, but don''t expect this to bear any fruit! After all, we have like, what, 6 hours left?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "First thing''s first!" I commanded, "The rules! Number one, no backtalk!"

    "But what if-" Elegy raised his hand.

    "Shut up!" Hate hastily shut his mouth, "The leader is speaking!"

    "Thank you, private! Gold star for you!" I pointed with a thumbs up.

    "Mph! Sthmhbt!" Elegy barely freed himself, "What the hell, aren''t you MY apprentice!?"

    "Only in fourth wall breaking." He shrugged, "She''s the leader of our group though, since she knows the most."

    "You sure there aren''t any emotions mixed in there?" Elegy glared back at him.

    "Well, she did also loudly start explaining the rules..." Hate timidly twiddled his thumbs, "Usually the main character is the only one that does that, right?"

    "...Good point!" Elegy begrudgingly handed it to him, "Gold star!"

    "Awesome, you guys are really good role models!" Hate smiled like a kid being given candy for the first time ever.

    "Whatever, now where was I? Ah yes, rule number two!" I raised two fingers, "Do as I say, not as I do!"

    "Eh? Wait, really?" Hate cocked his head back.

    "Ahem?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "...O-Oh yeah, doy! Rule one!" He shut back up.

    "Good boy." I nodded.

    "Hehe~"

    This childish naivety is quite refreshing, I must say! Coming from a muscular man also makes it quite the funny gap. We don''t have much time at all, so people who ask too many questions and don''t listen to absolute orders are really tough to work with. Though I may sound unserious, we really are cutting it close if we wanna survive this without ever seeing the White Monster. We''ve got no time to waste.

    "To finish it off, rule 3." I raised the third finger before rushing off into a sprint, "Catch up to Throne and Vastoria! Got it!? Go go go!"

    "Whuh-Hold up, who are...!?" Elegy yelped.

    "Rule number one, dumbass!" Hate retorted.

    "Gah, shut up, I wasn''t talking back!" Elegy shot a glare before climbing on his back, "This was just a question, know the difference! Gods, do you want me to take away your gold star, apprentice!?"

    "Anything but that!" He whimpered.

    "Then hot foot it towards that direction!" Elegy commanded.

    "On it, excuse me, leader!" He quickly caught up to me, eventually scooping me off my feet as he carried both of us like the trooper that he is, "Now, where to!?"

    "Ah, this works. I''ve been getting carried a lot today..." I remarked, "Anyways, Throne and Vastoria are the two seraphim I mentioned earlier. They''re headed towards the Gods'' Abode, which is apparently a very important place."

    "Ooh, I''d wager if there''s any way to bring us back to life, then it''s gotta be that!" Elegy grinned, "Talk to the big bosses themselves! Hell yeah, they better not have forgotten about me!"

    "You''ve met them before?" I glanced back.

    "Heh, don''t freak out too much." He proudly pointed to himself, "But you''re looking at the first male angel in Heaven 2.0!"

    "Yeah, he mentioned that to me as well." Hate grumped, "I don''t believe it for a second. Anyone who''d make that claim is dead stupid-"

    "Eh? Wait, you''re that guy I met before?" I jolted before pointing to myself, "Well I''m the first girl in Heaven 2.0 as well!"

    "Whoa~! That''s so cool, miss!" Hate sang a song of praise for me.

    "No one likes a bootlicker, apprentice..." Elegy pouted.

    "You too, Elegy!" He turned back, "The only reason I didn''t believe you was because you were the only one saying it, but now that there''re two separate people, I can admit I was wrong!"

    "...Gold star, apprentice."

    "Hell yeah!"

    Okay, these two''s comedy act aside, isn''t this super important info? This guy, whose guts I previously hated to no end, is one of the two men that were in the sky overlooking Heaven 2.0. Yes, before we got our gilded parts. Makes sense I couldn''t recognize them, since even now those are the only ways to distinguish between two angels, barring our initials. But then, who exactly is Elegy? And the other guy, who is he...?

    "But why would the Gods choose you two?" Hate pondered.

    "Maybe ''cause we''re awesome and super cool and perfect beings without flaws?" Elegy surmised.

    "I can name ten thousand flaws about you off the top of my head." I shot back.

    "I only need one to deal equal damage." He smugly replied.

    "And that would be?" I suddenly felt something touch my back, "Eep! Don''t do that!"

    "I only have scratch marks and a pinkie." He looked all smug as he said, "You have a whole spine to look out for. Trust me, you don''t wanna start this."

    "L-Leader, quit squirming around." Hate bashfully reminded us, "Both my arms are pure gold, so carrying you is already ticklish enough for me. But with you moving about, well..."

    "On second thought, I''m running the rest of the way there." I immediately hopped off.

    "Aw, what? No way, now I just look like the jackass that''s abusing his apprentice!" Elegy demanded, "Dammit. Hate, I''m getting off as well."

    "I don''t mind carrying you guys if you get tired, just stop fighting while I''m doing it." He pleaded.

    "Nah, no way that''s happening." I groaned, "This guy flashed me before we had our privates removed, so I''m absolutely gonna make his life here his own personal Hell!"

    "You did the same, lady." Elegy sighed, "Ah, Somber too."

    ...Somber?

    "What?" He glanced back after that, "You know Somber, right? The guy that was with us?"

    "You''ve met him after that?" I furrowed my brows, "No wait, he named himself Somber? That''s such a cool name!"

    Cool name or not, why the hell isn''t this Somber guy with them? If you already found out each other''s identities, then why in the world aren''t you sticking together!? Ugh, we''ll talk about that later. For now, we just gotta keep running. Time is ticking!

 Vol.1 Ch.15 - Red Herring

    "Full transparency, my legs are killing me." Elegy announced, "Hate, I changed my mind. Lemme climb back on your back."

    "Absolutely not, stop abusing him." I shot back.

    "I don''t really mind though, as long as you guys behave." Hate complacently shrugged.

    "Behave? What are you, a kindergarten teacher?" Elegy scowled.

    "How should I know?" He glanced back, "Well, for what it''s worth, I hope we get to figure that out soon."

    They''re wasting their energy, talking like that while running. Our angel bodies seem to all have a set default stamina and strength stat, so though they are a bit faster than me, I can definitely hold out for longer. Dammit, I could''ve been sleeping in a long time ago by now, but here I am helping a bunch of random idiots I just met. Hate doesn''t even realize how slim of a chance we have of even making this sudden plan work!

    "...We will." I sighed after a brief pause, "If I recall correctly, the map said we shouldn''t be too far from the Gods'' Abode. If we hurry, we''ll definitely have enough time to chat it up with the Gods and work something out."

    "You''re so sure of yourself." Elegy asked, "Where''d this sudden blind optimism come from?"

    "You kidding?" I smirked back, "It''s the only thing we''ve got to work with!"

    We ran and ran until we eventually found a clearing in the endless sea of buildings and houses. No, rather than a clearing, it was just one giant yard with a large mansion in the middle. Just running from the street to the front entrance was taxing enough, so you could imagine the relief on our faces as the doors opened once we made it halfway.

    "You again?" A muscular titan clad in a large robe tilted his head, "Err, I-I mean...! Welcome, what is it you seek-"

    "Can we revive now?" Elegy immediately popped the question.

    "No." The taller, lanky giant standing next to the other one frowned.

    "What if we say please?" He continued.

    "Still no." The muscular one immediately replied.

    "Okay, then what if we write a 200 page essay documenting all the valid reasons why doing so would benefit the fate of the universe?" He remained adamant about this.

    "..."

    "......Hm?" The lanky one smacked the muscular one, "You buffoon! You can''t seriously be thinking about it!?"

    "N-No, it''s not that, Selz! It''s just-!" His friend quickly went defensive, "I mean it''s like, y''know? I kinda wanna see what they would think up. N-Not that they''d get their way after, of course!"

    "No revive, no hyper detailed essay." Elegy stood his ground.

    "Oh come on! Listen, how about we give you one single wish each if you do the essay, okay!?"

    "If the wish allows for us to revive." I chimed in.

    "We''ll give you seraphim rank?" He raised a tempting Eyebrow.

    "No-Wait, yes!" I went to correct myself, "Absolutely, we''ll take it!"

    "What are you doing!?" Elegy lightly shoved me, "That''s not what we''re after!"

    "Hey, anything''s better than nothing!" I squabbled back.

    "Silence!" The lanky God raged, "There will be no such thing! Seraphim rank is earned by those who are deemed worthy of it, not some amateur essays!"

    "...Don''t worry about him, he''s been having a rough couple of cycles." The muscular one whispered.

    I''ll bet. After having to deal with all the angels'' shenanigans and outlandish requests, I''d be cranky too. Especially since they probably just got done talking with Throne and Vastoria... Hey, wait a second!

    "Did two seraphim happen to come talk to you two just now, by any chance!?" I shouted.

    "You are the first to come by." Lanky groaned.

    "Aww, that''s kind of sad..." Hate slumped forward, "You''re like the grandparents who live super far away and can''t see their grandchildren. No one comes to visit."

    "...Right." Muscular glanced around before nodding, "In any case, if you have no more questions, we''ll be seeing you off now."

    "Of course we do!" Elegy immediately shot back, stopping the Gods from sending us away, "We hardly know anything about this place, after all!"

    "Hmmm..." Lanky groaned, "Then, what is it that you wish to know?"

    "Your names, for one thing." I added, "We get you''re Gods, but which ones? There''s Four of you in total, but we only see two."

    "I''m Prylos, and he''s Selzion." Prylos explained, "The other two are taking care of things back down in the World of the Living."

    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    "Ahem." Selzion cleared his throat.

    "And about this New Heaven, is there a way to leave somehow?" Hate mustered up the courage to ask, "Like, revive me as a baby or whatever. I don''t care, just bring me back to a world that I''m used to."

    "Is the aura of this world not already comforting enough?" Selzion raised an Eyebrow.

    Aura?

    "Yes, the very air of Heaven 2.0 was made to instill an overwhelming feeling of security and nostalgia." Prylos took over with the explanation, "There should be no way for any angels or seraphim alike to feel as if they''re not used to living here."

    "But I do!" Hate shot back angrily, "I hate it here! It''s boring, bland, everyone looks the same and no one wears clothes!"

    He''s really raging hard in front of the Gods. Frankly, I''d be too scared to raise my tone this much, but here he is absolutely whaling on them. Fearless, he''s a totally different beast than me or even Elegy, who can be seen taking a couple steps back just in case the Gods get triggered and he needs to run away. How admirable.

    "H.T..." Selzion''s Eyes glistened, "Is this truly how you feel?"

    "Yeah!" He waved his trembling fist in the air, "Send me back to the world I know! I don''t care what era I''m in, nor how rich or poor of a family I''m born into! Reincarnate me in the middle of a war, I don''t care! Just get me out of this godforsaken place!"

    ...Oof, calling Heaven godforsaken? But of course, he''s not just saying it to be ironic. His voice echoed through the air, he was being forward and earnestly spoke his mind. Hate is just a guy that wants things to go back to how they were, and the Gods seem to understand his pleas very much.

    "We''ve had many similar complaints from the other angels as well, H.T..." Prylos nodded, "This is Heaven 2.0, right? Our goal is to make your new lives as happy as can be, after all."

    "Of course, and that is precisely why..." Selzion approved, "We''ll look into adding a clothes store in Heaven 2.0."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Eh?" We couldn''t believe our ears.

    "Yes indeed, it seems you people dislike seeing bare bodies even with our censoring." Prylos nodded happily, "Which is why, starting next cycle, you''ll all be able to grab a free pair of clothes to your liking from the aforementioned stores."

    "Wait, is it even a store then if everything''s free?" Elegy wondered.

    "You''re asking the wrong questions here!" I berated him, "Dammit, we didn''t come here for clothes! We came here to find a way to help Hate!"

    "We understand that, M.G., however..."

    "Migu!" I corrected them.

    "...Migu, we understand your inclinations to help this particular angel out of... the goodness of your heart, I presume?" Selzion''s face shrunk into a scowl as he said the last part, "However, there is simply no way for anyone here to revive as you say. After all, Heaven 2.0 is beyond time."

    "There''s no way, you guys are making that up!" Elegy refused to believe it, "First of all, aren''t you Gods? Gods can literally do anything!"

    "We may have created this world, but it operates freely without our input." Prylos explained, "Kind of like programming a game."

    "Programming?" Hate tilted his head.

    "Guess none of you are from the technological era..." He chuckled.

    "Grr...! Then, if we can''t escape Heaven 2.0..." Elegy groaned, "We might as well be the best version of ourselves we can be. Tell us how to become seraphim!"

    Finally, he''s resorted to my plan! The Gods obviously don''t want anyone leaving, or who knows, maybe they''re telling the truth and really can''t resurrect anyone, but either way we''re just wasting time in asking them to send us back down. We should at least grab as much info as we can before the White Monster approaches us.

    "So, you wish to earn the rank of seraphim?" Selzion smirked, "Alas, none of you are even worthy enough to learn of the method to attain the rank, much less actually get it!"

    "You guys are really lousy Gods, y''know that?" Hate sighed, "I get the feeling you''re just purposefully wasting our time with all these empty promises about helping us."

    "..."

    "...Wait, you are!?" We jolted, "What the hell!"

    "Well now, we''re just passing the time with idle chitter-chatter." Prylos chuckled.

    "Uhh, yeah? Valuable time that we are very much running out of!" I yelled, "Ugh, useless pieces of...!"

    "Migu, where are you going!?" Elegy looked back as I stormed off in the opposite direction.

    "Let''s go, Throne and Vastoria aren''t here, so we''re just wasting our time here!" I yelled back, "Follow me!"

    "But-!" Hate spoke up.

    "Rule 1, dammit!" I ordered.

    Timidly, with a generous serving of hesitation and uncertainty, the two glanced back a few times between me and the Gods before ultimately leaving them alone. The Gods had this annoying, shit-eating grin on their faces as if they were gloating their victory over us. Ugh, how annoying!

    "Where are you even headed to?" Elegy asked.

    "Throne and Vastoria flew off in the direction of the Gods'' Abode, however they must have simply flown past it and aimed for somewhere else." I pressed on angrily, "As far as I''m concerned, our best shot is to just keep going in the direction they went."

    "But they''re a lot faster than us with their wings, though!" Hate complained.

    "Look, it''s this or resetting our progress and wiping our memory clean!" I furrowed my brows, "Hate, do you wanna give up, or do you wanna cling to what little hope we have left!?"

    "...Hold on tight!" He contemplated it before lifting both Elegy and me onto his back, "There, now we don''t have to match our pace!"

    "Hate, dude! I-I mean, this is faster, sure, but...!" Elegy worried, "Won''t that place all the burden on you?"

    "I roped you guys into my selfish wish." He smirked, "It only makes sense I do the most work, right?"

    Hate, he''s really trying his best to make sure he gets his way. Call it stubbornness all you want, but in my Eyes I only see a man that gets things done. At first, I said this entire plan is fueled by blind optimism, but now I''m not so sure.

    "Rather than blind optimism, it''s more like the power to press on no matter how small our chances are!" I pointed with my finger, "Onward, that-a-way-!"

    As if fate threw a messed up joke right in our faces, the very moment I pointed towards the direction we were headed to, a large gate had appeared on the horizon. Its bars were jagged and spiky, and it was closed so that none may enter nor leave. A singular guard remained on standby, ready to shoo away anyone that tried passing through without his permission.

    "Halt. Past this gate is H district." He stomped on the ground, "You are not allowed to pass through-"

    "Excuse me!" Hate ran him over like a speeding train as he made short work of the mighty gate, "Phew, that was terrifying. Running face first into a steel gate, I mean."

    "Y''know, we could''ve just hopped the fence..." Elegy reminded us.

    "Never mind that!" I ordered, "Don''t you dare slow down, Hate! Looks like we entered forbidden territory, so from now on¡ªDon''t stop until we find Throne and Vastoria!"

    This guy''s strength never ceases to amaze me. Hey, shouldn''t all the male angels here have an equal strength stat? Guess those gilded arms of his really do give him a leg up from the rest of the competition... Bahahaha, the Gods should''ve never made an enemy out of us!

 Vol.1 Ch.16 - Going Blind

    "From now on, we''re entering forbidden territory!" I shouted, "Don''t stop for even a second, Hate!"

    "Yeah, I heard you the first time?" Hate returned a puzzled gaze.

    "Oh dear apprentice, you''re still wet around the ears!" Elegy smugly explained, "If she didn''t give everyone that reminder just now, readers will have been left wondering what happened in the last chapter!"

    That''s... chapter? What''s he talking about? Looks like we''re not exactly on the same page after all, that Elegy and me. Hate, however, seemed to have gotten the gist.

    "So it''s like teasing what happens next chapter, but in reverse?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "Exactly, gold star!" Elegy patted his hair.

    "Guys, you might wanna focus on where we''re going." I reminded them, "That guard''s still following us."

    "By the Gods, come back here this instant!" He shouted with all his might, "Guests from one district are not allowed entry into any other so long as they don''t meet the requirements!"

    "Yeah, we kinda figured." Elegy joked.

    "Does the same apply for everyone?" I realized.

    "Yes!" The guard shot back immediately.

    "Even you?"

    "Everyone!"

    So he falls into that category as well. Hmm, thinking back on it, he was on the other side of the gate when Hate broke through. So in other words, as long as we rush through the next gate before the guard catches up to us, we won''t have to deal with him anymore! We''ll be out of his range of operation!

    "Gasp, turn right!" Elegy suddenly tugged Hate''s hair, "Down that alleyway, quick!"

    "What!? We have no time for detours, just keep going down the main road!" I refuted.

    "Migu, please!" He pleaded.

    His Eyes are serious. No, they''re begging me on their hands and knees. Could Elegy have found something that''ll help us? Maybe he''s planning on losing the guard. The alleyways here do get quite maze-like in nature... Okay, I trust him!

    "Hate, turn now!" I ordered.

    "Yes, ma''am!" He nodded, drifting sharply to the right as the guard lagged behind.

    "Right again." Elegy gave the directions, "Good, now keep going straight."

    "Aren''t you just sending us back from where we came?" I asked.

    "Shh, Rule 1!" He frowned, "Okay, listen carefully, Hate! When I give the orders, you turn right."

    "Okay!"

    Everyone was silent. Hate was focusing his all on running desperately away, and all I could do was look behind us to make sure the guard wasn''t hot on our tail. Surprisingly, it seems he really did get lost thanks to this surprise route Elegy thought up. Could he have come to the same conclusion as I did and let us go? No one said a word, yet when our hearts began to reverberate throughout the busy streets...!

    "...Now!" Elegy shouted.

    The sharp turn gave me whiplash, and as we cut through the tight alleyway and emerged on the other side, we were left in utter shock of what was in front of us.

    "Yeah, I knew my Eyes weren''t deceiving me!" Elegy proudly grinned, "The Gods really weren''t lying, they actually installed a clothes shop! They work fast."

    "This is why you made Hate run a full circle!?" I smacked him.

    "Ahem." A chilling yet ticked off voice demanded our attention, "Finally got tired?"

    "The guard!" Hate took a step back in shock.

    Damn you, Elegy! What in the world made me think letting you call the shots was a smart idea!? Yeah, now that I think about it, the guard isn''t dumb at all! He knew we''d have to re-emerge here eventually, so he obviously just waited for us to show up! Unlike Hate, he doesn''t even look winded, dammit!

    "Yo, is that clothes shop new?" Elegy gave the guard a friendly question.

    "It appears so-" The guard turned back for just a second before getting his neck grabbed at full force.

    "E-Elegy!" Hate and I jolted.

    When did he-!? Elegy was just next to me a second ago, grappling onto Hate''s head like a human necklace. To jump that fast from such a position and reach for the guard''s neck, he''d have to be even faster than Vastoria and Throne! Elegy, just what the hell are you...?

    "Ghack!" The guard struggled to breathe.

    "Golden throat. Someone must''ve strangled you to death." Elegy''s bone-chilling observation was quickly ruined by his jokey demeanor, "Or you might''ve just had asthma as a human, haha!"

    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "Ngh...!" The guard feebly tried reaching for the floor with his feet.

    "Not even holding your arms still, dude." Elegy smugly teased, "Here''s a hint: You should probably try freeing yourself with those instead of reaching for the ground."

    Despite his incessant teasing, the guard didn''t give in and kept trying to feel the ground beneath him once more. To discourage this, Elegy even cruelly lowered his arm, making it so the guard was this close to reaching the ground with his toe before once again hoisting him back up.

    "Come on, come on...! Bah, so close!" Elegy mocked him, "And... Up you go~!"

    "Elegy, that''s enough." I tried reasoning with him, "Let go of his throat, he might give us some useful information regarding our goal."

    "If I let go, he''ll capture us immediately." Elegy turned back to explain, "His throat''s the only part he feels pain with, his literal bottleneck. Sadly, talking is out of the question."

    "So what, you''re just gonna choke him out?!" Hate yelled.

    "That''s... Hm?" Elegy noticed the guard''s body going limp, "Oh, finally lost consciousness, have you?"

    The guard''s body remained lifeless in his grasp as the Eyes turned a deep Purple.

    "...N-No, wait!" Elegy panicked, letting the body drop to the floor, "Angels can die!? What the hell, man!"

    "Do Purple Eyes still mean death in Heaven 2.0!?" I panicked right next to him, "M-Maybe it just means he''s unconscious!"

    "...Wait, he''s-!" Hate ran towards us, but was far too late to stop it.

    Tapping repeatedly on the floor with his right foot, the guard, who was previously presumed dead, had slowly risen before our very Eyes. His Eyes, now back to their usual absorbent Black, looked on with pity.

    "The White Monster shall eat you now." He stated, "May God have mercy on your foolish souls."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "White Monster?" I recalled Vastoria''s story, "Crap, everyone close your Eyes!"

    "What for-?"

    "Just do it!"

    Though the street we were in was busy and loud, the moment I closed my Eyes everything went deathly silent. The guard''s words were neither mockery nor pity, they were genuine care. He sounded almost... sad, that he had to do this to us. That being the case, how exactly could he have just summoned the White Monster to get us? Does he, as a guard, have such authority?

    "You two, still there!?" Hate''s words resonated through the mist.

    "Read you loud and clear." Elegy replied, "Migu, what''s going on?"

    "The White Monster is near." I shivered, "You feel it too, right? The air just got colder, and an overwhelming sense of doom constantly looms over us."

    "Dammit, I''m gonna beat this damned guard up-!" Elegy raised his voice.

    "Stop!" I yelled, "Don''t move. The White Monster will put you to sleep the moment you open your Eyes."

    "B-But... I feel it getting closer to me!" Hate''s voice quivered, "What if it uses the fact our Eyes are closed to kill us!?"

    "We can''t die in Heaven 2.0." I calmly replied, "Do not, under any circumstances, open your Eyes. Most likely, the people around us, the guard included, have already fallen asleep."

    "...And what happens then?" Elegy asked.

    "Vastoria, my seraphim friend, she explained that everyone in Heaven 2.0 goes to sleep when that happens." I continued, "I don''t know the full details, but this usually signifies the end of the cycle."

    "So that''s it, huh?" Hate chuckled defeatedly, "We ran out of time..."

    Ran out of time? No, but... There''s still more to do, dammit! We didn''t even get the chance to see Vastoria and Throne again! We just barely made it to the next district over, so this can''t be the end! Once the White Monster eats us, we''ll lose all our progress and forget about all of this. It''ll be as if it never even was, dammit! Wait...

    "No, this isn''t the end." I realized, "Because we still have our memories!"

    "Right... Right!" Elegy''s voice cracked, "We managed to survive the White Monster even though it''s summoned because our Eyes are still shut!"

    "Nice save, Migu!" Hate seemed joyful as well.

    How long can we last, I wonder? When exactly does the reset happen, and does it include us if we''re still awake? The White Monster is still standing eerily close to us as we merely kneel one after the other in a line. If we got up and continued moving now, will it forcefully pry our Eyes open?

    "I think I''m starting to understand it now." Elegy surmised, "Possibly, and this is still just a theory, but if we manage to last until the reset happens for everyone else, we might be able to keep our memories for the next cycle."

    "So, you''re saying we should pull an all-nighter?" I joked, "Sounds childish."

    "Hey, it''s the best we got, right?" Hate laughed.

    The air was chilling to the core. I felt a mist grow thicker and thicker around me, and it slowly got more difficult to breathe. Unlike the warm and welcoming air that was previously present no matter where you went in Heaven 2.0, this time it was only becoming drearier. We were going directly against the grain, and it somehow felt like the White Monster was tempting us to open our Eyes.

    "It''s weird." Hate explained it, "It''s like if someone told you to open your Eyes underwater and keep them like that for hours on end."

    "Couldn''t have said it better myself." Elegy agreed, "Except it''s the opposite, ''cause in this case, opening your Eyes means instant loss."

    "...Tch!" I swatted it away from my neck.

    "What happened!?" The two panicked.

    "I felt it. Something was just breathing on my neck just now." I explained, "Be careful not to get spooked into opening your Eyes."

    I say that, but even I was mere milliseconds away from doing just that. In truth, while I was swatting it away, I happened to make contact with the White Monster. Just as described, it appeared to be a sort of goat skull. The dry, boney texture that was cold to the touch left behind a residue on my fingers that just wouldn''t dissipate. If I opened my Eyes, I could see what was on my hand, but that''d put me at risk of seeing the White Monster''s face.

    "...I''m opening my Eyes." Elegy resolved himself.

    "N-No, wait-!" Hate and I jolted before he piped up once more.

    "Don''t listen to it!" Elegy''s voice echoed loudly, "I never said that, it must have imitated my voice to trick you!"

    Phew, that was close...

    "Guys..." His frail voice called out, "You''re still there, right?"

    "Yep." I replied, "I was close to, but you stopped me from opening my Eyes in time."

    The reply was supposed to be joyous, but in the end it just became depressing. Moments later, a thud could be heard right between us. The source of the thud came from where Hate was positioned.

    "...Guess he fell for the bait." Elegy''s voice hesitated to admit it, "Hate got eaten."

    "Hate...!" I yelped.

    "It''s down to the two of us." He continued with a more solemn tone, "Remember, once the next cycle starts, Hate won''t remember who we are, but we still might if my theory is correct."

    "Yeah, for his sake." I nodded, "We absolutely mustn''t ever open our Eyes!"

    Hate... Sniffle, even if it means we''ll have to continue this journey completely blind! Even if it feels like someone''s constantly trying to pry your Eyes open by force! Even if it means waiting for Gods know how long until the reset... We WILL find a way to send Hate back to the World of the Living!

 Vol.1 Ch.17 - Whats Egress Mean?

    "Hrm..."

    " "

    "Tch."

    " "

    "You still there?" I bit my tongue.

    "Yep, still holding on." Elegy replied.

    " "

    Dammit, I can''t take it anymore! This beast, or whatever the hell it is! It''s been breathing down my neck for what feels like hours! The air is thick and suffocating, my body is unbearably cold, and the audible hallucinations have almost tricked me into opening my Eyes a handful of times. Yes, the White Monster has the ability to mimic others'' voices, beckoning us to open our Eyes and check. This is also how it managed to snag Hate...

    "We can''t go on like this..." Elegy''s voice grunted.

    "I already know the answer, but just in case¡ªThat was the White Monster just now, right?"

    "No, it''s me." He replied, "I''m not saying we should give up, but we need to try something other than just waiting. This is obviously not doing anything."

    Wait, that was actually Elegy? Hmm, I suppose just sitting around with our Eyes closed while it pesters us endlessly certainly isn''t amounting to much, but what other choice do we have? In theory, if we wait long enough without opening our Eyes, we should hopefully make it to the next cycle reset. Theoretically, that could be one of, if not the only way to retain our memories as we transition to the next cycle. Now more than ever, patience is a virtue.

    "I got a plan." He suggested, "I''m reaching my hand out, can you hold it?"

    "That''s..." I furrowed my brows, "Please put your hand up higher."

    "Here?"

    "Nope. Gah, geez!" I tightly grabbed his hand so he would stop squeezing unsavory places, "There, what now?"

    "Your hand''s pretty cold." He joked, "Don''t tell me I''m holding the White Monster by mistake?"

    "We''re all cold, dumbass." I pouted, still a bit peeved over him feeling up my ass, "What now? Whoa!"

    He got up. We were sitting on the cloudy floor, but now we''re both standing up. What''s he planning...?

    "If I remember correctly, and do correct me if I''m wrong on this." He pointed with the hand he held mine in, "The direction we were headed to was that way."

    "...Yes?" I asked as he began to slowly walk in said direction.

    "Might as well get a headstart, then." He trudged along carefully, "Make sure not to let go. It''ll be a real pain to find each other if that happened."

    "W-Wait, hold on." I refused to move from my spot, "We''re effectively blind, you know that. What if we''re wrong on this and we end up going in a completely different direction?"

    "Not like we''re under a time limit anymore, now that we have a way to escape the White Monster." He chuckled, "So long as we keep our Eyes closed during the reset period, we can effectively keep our memories from hereon indefinitely."

    Yes, but... Elegy, have you already forgotten about Hate? What the hell, so are we really just gonna leave him here? The entire reason I''m going on this journey with you two is to help him revive, so without him...

    "...You''re worried about him, huh?" Elegy solemnly promised, "Don''t worry, once we find those two seraphim friends of yours, we can just ask them to find and take him to us. Right now though, I''d like it if we tried running away from the White Monster."

    "I dislike this plan." I shook my head.

    "I''m not going alone." He said, "I need someone to keep me company so that I don''t fall asleep by accident."

    "Right, our Eyes have been closed the entire time." I remembered, "It''s actually surprising how we didn''t fall asleep on our own."

    "Wait, don''t tell me..." He sounded worried, "What if the reset only comes when everyone goes to sleep?"

    "What ever happened to optimism?" I smirked.

    "Migu, what if..." His anxious grasp got tighter, "What if we''ll have to continue the rest of this journey blind?"

    "Hey, calm down now..."

    "No, because!" He was panicking by now, "Our entire plan revolves around meeting up with the two seraphim so they can help us, but how the hell are we ever gonna find them if we can''t even open our Eyes to see!?"

    "Elegy, deep breaths!" I yelled.

    "You expect me to be calm about this!?" He violently shook me up by the shoulders, "Dammit, who''s to say they''re not asleep already!? The White Monster could very well have eaten them too!"

    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    He''s panicking. It''s one thing if it was just that¡ªAnnoying, but he''s roping me into his tantrum as well. I''m being shaken up and down, left and right, and now that I''ve seen just what kind of acrobatic feats he''s capable of from his surprise attack on the guard, I''m actually quite scared myself. He might not mean to harm me, but I''m trying my best not to accidentally open my Eyes from the whiplash.

    "S-Stop!" I grabbed him by the forearms, pushing him away.

    "...Grab my hand again." He said without hesitation, "Sorry."

    "Hrm... You really need to work on those emotions." I reached my hand out, only for him to grab me and yank me forwards, "H-Hey, I said I''m not leaving Hate here!"

    "Migu, let''s go." He quietly pleaded, "The White Monster... If there''s even a 1% chance that we can run away from it and not feel like crap, the please¡ªLet''s take it."

    "Elegy..."

    "Look, at this point I''m not even asking for the plan here." He truthfully admitted, "I''m doing this for my sanity. This mist is hard to breathe in, the White Monster''s presence is making me hear things I don''t wanna hear... It''s making me go crazy. Just a short walk, anywhere will do. Then we can go back to get Hate once the reset happens."

    "...Okay." I nodded, "Lead the way."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    As we walked through the now barren wasteland that once was the wondrous Heaven of legend, I caught myself constantly tripping up on the fallen bodies on the ground. They weren''t dead, just asleep, but Gods did they feel like they were. It felt... sickening, almost. And what''s worse, the cold mist around us was still present no matter how far we went.

    "Elegy, this isn''t working..." I weakly uttered.

    "No, it is." He replied with a resolute tone, "We just need to keep going."

    "For how long?"

    "Until the Monster gets the hint and leaves us be."

    He''s determined, I''ll give him that. But I don''t understand why he''s doing all this. Is he seriously just that bored of waiting? Must he always be on his feet, moving in whichever direction he deems fit for the occasion, just so long as he''s not standing in one place? Hmph, I can understand that reasoning to a degree, but it''s just not okay if it means leaving Hate all alone, eaten by the White Monster or not.

    "Hey, I think it''s getting easier to breathe!" His voice sounded excited for what felt like the first time in hours.

    "Blergh!" I gagged with all my might as I tried breathing in a heavier dose of air, "You liar! Are you trying to make me puke my guts out here!?"

    "I never said it was okay to breathe like normal." He sighed, "Just that it''s showing signs of getting easier."

    I wish you coulda'' told me that sooner... Ugh, my Eyes are all watery now because I gagged while keeping them shut. Ugh, it''s only gotten more difficult thanks to this. Dammit, Elegy...

    "Question." I noticed, "How long has it been since you heard an audible hallucination from it?"

    "The White Monster?" He said with a question mark at the end, "Now that you mention it¡ªIt has been a while since I heard it trying to throw me off with your voice. Maybe it has something to do with us holding hands?"

    "So since we''re this close to each other, it can''t believably trick us into listening to it." I shrugged, "Maybe you''re right. But still, so long as the air around us is cold and quiet, I ain''t opening my Eyes."

    "Yeah, same here." He agreed, "We can never be too sure."

    Still trudging along decidedly, only but one thought occupied my mind throughout the entire walk¡ªWhen''s everyone waking up? I assume that when they do, it''ll be safe to open our Eyes again, but when exactly will this moment arrive? We''ve been waiting an incredibly long amount of time now, and yet the White Monster still refuses to leave. Maybe Elegy''s earlier hypothesis is right¡ªPossibly, the White Monster will only leave once it is made sure everyone is sound asleep...

    "Hey, you think the White Monster affects the Gods too?" I chuckled just thinking about it, "Heh, now that''d be a sight!"

    "..."

    "...E-Elegy?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "......."

    "Elegy!"

    He''s still walking, leading the way for me to follow him, but he''s gone dead silent. Doesn''t even sound like he''s breathing honestly. Don''t tell me he''s... s-sleepwalking!? Wait, how could that even work? So if I wake him up, does he retain his memories or not? Hold on, I tried waking Hate up earlier and he didn''t budge, so is Elegy also...?

    "Elegy!" I shouted directly in his ear.

    "What!?" He answered back, scaring me so much my Eyelids twitched, "Geez, don''t scare me like that!"

    "Same goes for you, bonehead!" I angrily chewed him out, "Why''d you go so silent all of a sudden!? I thought you got eaten!"

    "Shhh!" He put his finger up to my lips.

    "Mph!" I heard him out, "What is it?"

    Slowly but surely, the now silent atmosphere around us had begun to revive itself. People were waking up, asking each other where they were and what had happened. Some even approached us, asking us why we were holding hands, why our Eyes were closed, etc... Did we... make it?

    "Phew, the air''s also gotten warm and happy again." Elegy chuckled, letting go of my hand as a sign that there''s nothing to be afraid of anymore, "We did it!"

    "Wooo~!" The audience of angels around us cheered, "What did you do, though!"

    "We beat the White Monster!" He shouted back to them.

    "...What''s that~!?" They cheered back confusedly.

    "A chump, that''s what it is!" He celebrated, prompting them to applaud us for our achievement.

    Those guys... Heh, they have no clue what we just went through. But I guess that''s fine, so long as they''re supportive. Right, this is the next cycle, and no one but us remembers what had happened in the previous one. We''ve learned one of, if not the most important pieces of information of all with this victory. The White Monster can be escaped...

    "Eleg-" I opened my Eyes, only to see a floating goat skull peering back at me in the endless void of mist, "N-No...!?"

    The beast, from the very start, it... It dealt with Elegy ages ago. I see now, it was never Elegy''s idea to get up and start walking... Nor was it his hand that guided me here. It imitated his voice to make me trust it, and lured me into a false sense of security when it imitated the thousands of voices of angels just waking up for the next cycle. I didn''t win one over the White Monster. I never even stood a chance.

    "My face..." I felt it contort to the same boney structure as that of the Monster''s own, "Don''t... Don''t you dare...! think... this is...! the end!"

    The Monster, having facilitated its victory in full, mocked my very being by waving the same hand I had held for hours now, as if to bid farewell to my current memories. My Vision grew dim, then went pitch black. This was goodbye to all of my accumulated knowledge. My... progress...

    "Ugh, my head." I looked around, "Yellowish room, White body. Cheh, guess that whole thing about Heaven and the saws wasn''t a dream after all... Eh, wait!?"

    Rushing to the mirror on the other side of the room, I quickly turned around to see it.

    "Golden spine..." I gulped, "D-Definitely not a dream..."

 Vol.1 Ch.18 - Reintroductions

    "Yo!" A man from across the street hollered, "Where''d you get those shorts?"

    "Shorts?" I cocked my head back in confusion before looking down, "Holy smokes, I didn''t even notice these!"

    "...So I take it you don''t know where you got ''em from." He crossed the street before extending his hand, "Nice to meet you, I''m..."

    "Don''t worry about names. I can''t remember my own either." I chuckled, "Hey, wait..."

    Much like the shorts, I was too preoccupied with the gilded spine that I totally skipped out on the rest of my body''s changes. Now that we''re shaking hands, I finally noticed them¡ªInitials on the back of each of our palms. Do they have some sort of significance...?

    "...Uhm..." He looked around awkwardly, "Y-You can let go now."

    "Hm? Oh!" I hastily pulled my arm away, "Sorry! I was just admiring your forearms. The golden slashes look awesome."

    Well, awesome sounds kind of wrong in this scenario, since he might''ve gotten them from self-cutting in his past life or something. Right, given what little I know so far about this place, it seems every permanent wound we had as humans was fixed with gold replacements. This must be what that Divine Voice mentioned when he said he''ll "remove any and all imperfections within us".

    "And if you think those are cool, wait ''til you see this!" He smugly showcased something surprisingly cute.

    "...Pfft!" I burst out laughing, "A golden pinkie!? What the hell kind of promise did you make!?"

    "Hahaha, I know, right!" He laughed with me, "...Hey, hold on a second? What''s this letter on the back of my hand?"

    Guess he finally noticed it too. I do wonder, maybe it''s the location of our house so we wouldn''t get lost? The God mentioned that, didn''t he? That each of us get a single house each. Maybe if we set up a table over New Heaven, with both the columns and row getting assigned a letter each, we could get like a coordinate system? Is that what they are? Hmm, but no¡ªIt''d make way more sense then to use numbers...

    "Oooh, I get it." He figured something out, "They''re elements! See, yours is M.G., so that must be Magnesium!"

    "Hm?" I raised an Eyebrow, "Nah, you''re tripping."

    "How come?" He defiantly folded his arms.

    "If that''s the case, genius, then what the hell kind of element is Lg?" I rolled my Eyes.

    "...Legium." He replied with a serious face.

    "Leg-!? Ugh, dude, come on." I turned around.

    "O-Okay, okay! I didn''t think anyone here would even know what the periodic table even was, so I kinda just winged it!" He admitted, "Look, it might be like... Gallium mixed with Lithium, I don''t know!"

    "What are you even babbling on about!?" I yelled before recollecting myself, "...Alright then, let''s just go with that, GaLi."

    "Wait, you want us to call each other by these letters?" He scowled, "I''ll be damned if I ever call a girl Magnesium."

    "Then shorten it to Maggie or something."

    "Nah, don''t like it." He kept thinking, "What about Megazoid?"

    "Where''d that come from?" I raised both Eyebrows in astonishment.

    "It just came to mind." He shrugged, "All jokes aside though... Magnes."

    "Like Agnes, but with an M." I smirked, "Real creative."

    "Hey, it''s better than Maggie."

    Thus, we somehow gave each other names. Strange, he''s a completely random person who just happened to be my neighbor in this new world, yet I don''t at all feel insecure about talking to him. It''s like we''ve known each other our entire lifetime. Well, technically speaking, we did, since our lifetime is only a couple of minutes by now.

    "Then-"

    "Fuuuuuuuuuuuuck!" A meteorite fell right beside us.

    Holy hell! Am I still alive!? Oh, oh good, I am... Wait, I''m unscathed too. This is quite the miracle... Wait again! That''s no meteor, it''s a person!

    "Are you alright, sir!?" GaLi and I ran up to check on him.

    The guy, a man with a similarly White body to ours, except with golden mechanical wings branching out from behind his back, had taken a good hard look at the both of us before getting up with a ton of grunting added in. Rude, we were just trying to make sure you were alright.

    "You..." He snapped his fingers in front of me, "What''s your name?"

    The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    "O-Oh, I don''t really..."

    "Yeah no shit, none of us don''t really have names!" He got fussy, "What''s the name you chose to go by, dammit."

    "...I''m not telling you!" I shooed him off, "Weirdo, what the hell are you gonna do with that information?"

    "I see. Well, you''ll be happy to hear I''ve already figured out what I needed to know just from your stupidly ignorant answer." He sighed, "It didn''t work."

    "Huh?" GaLi wondered, "What didn''t work?"

    "She-" He stopped himself mid sentence, "Never mind, Vastoria told me not to get her involved."

    "Who''s Vastoria?" I furrowed my brows, "Wait, are you sure you don''t have the wrong person?"

    "Yes, I''m sure." He made fun of my voice, "Well then, you two carry on chatting like the random nobodies you are. I''ll be getting out of your hair."

    Just like that, he spread his wings before flapping them once, causing us to get blown away by the sheer force of his wingspan. The man soared through the sky just as quickly as he fell from it, and in but a couple more seconds, he was gone.

    "Weirdo." I dusted myself off after getting back up, "GaLi, you good?"

    "That guy...!" He hastily jumped back up on his feet before sprinting away, "We need to follow him, now!"

    "Eh!? Why''d you wanna follow that douchebag?" I yelled back.

    "Wings, fool!" He turned back with a confident grin, "If an asshat like him can have them, then why can''t we!?"

    Hm? Oh? Oh yeah! Yeah, GaLi''s totally right! Once again, I was so preoccupied with the previous things that I totally forgot to ask him how he got those! Dammit, how long have I been asleep for? I feel like he''s totally ahead of the game when compared to me! Well, winged bastard, you''ll be happy to know I won''t let you get away! I''m getting those wings, and if I have to rip them off you, then that''s all the better!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Running with all our might through the crowded streets, I noticed GaLi being pretty rough when pushing aside all the other residents of Heaven. I understand he wants people to move out of the way, but surely that''s a bit excessive, no?

    "Move, sorry, coming through..." He barely even raised his volume as he pushed anyone and everyone to the floor, "Excuse me, sorry, won''t happen again, in a rush..."

    "Hey, hold on, you purposefully stepped in front of that guy just to push him!" I caught him.

    "What? No~" He slowed down just enough to let me take the lead, "But it is pretty fun, I''ll admit. C''mon, you try it!"

    Eh!? Of course not, what kind of a monster acts like that in Heaven of all places? I''m absolutely not gonna push anyone. Just gonna squeeze right on through. Ye-Ow! Hey, the least you could do is move to the side a bit, jackass! Geez, some peop-Oof! Woman, what the hell!? N-No, no matter how annoyingly blind these idiot bystanders are, I mustn''t stoop so low as to-Yeow!

    "Freakin'' move, dammit!" I got tipped over enough to shove a lady off my path, "...Whoa, yeah, that is fun!"

    "Right? And these idiots deserve it too, so you don''t even feel bad about it later!" GaLi laughed, "Okay, my turn now!"

    Thus, taking turns paving the way for each other, we found ourselves quite far from our starting position without even feeling like we covered a couple meters at best. This is quite the effective strategy at shortening down long travels. Ah, but now that the initial burst of fun has worn off, I do sort of feel bad for the innocent people I''ve pushed... Is what I would say if they didn''t constantly keep bumping shoulders with me. Dammit, piss off!

    "Ack!" One guy caught himself before falling on his face, only to officially become the first one to return the favor, "Who the hell''re you pushing, lady!? Take this!"

    "Magnes!?" GaLi stopped immediately so he could help me out, "The hell''s your problem, man!?"

    "My problem? She pushed me first!" The guy defended himself.

    Ah, well, I guess that''s true. Don''t give shoves if you don''t know how to take ''em. He''s pretty obviously in the right here, no matter how you slice it, though. I guess I should just apologize to de-escalate the situation.

    "GaLi, it''s okay. Look, I''m sorr-"

    "Bastard!" GaLi decked him in the face.

    "I said stop, dammit!" I pulled him away, "Crap, sir, I am SO sorry about this, I...! Eh?"

    "That... didn''t hurt a bit." The guy, having not even flinched at GaLi''s punch, seemed just as surprised, "Hey, hold still."

    "Huh? Me-DOOF!" GaLi fell to the ground the moment he got struck in the stomach, though just like before, he got up immediately after, "Eh? That''s...?"

    "Wait, do angels not feel any pain?" The guy turned to me.

    "Please don''t test that theory on me as well." I backed off.

    "Hm? O-Oh, no, I wasn''t saying that!" He explained, "Actually, I just woke up a few minutes ago. I have no clue who I am, where I am, or even when I am, so I was just walking around this place trying to get some information from the people around me."

    "And did you learn anything?" GaLi asked.

    "Nope, they just chalked me up as suspicious for asking questions." He slumped forward, "Sigh, if you have anything at this point, I''d gladly take it..."

    Hmm, well, he''s at least the same as us in that regard. Golden hula hoops around his waist though, it makes him look girlier. That being said, we could offer him the knowledge of the letters on our hands or even the reason behind our gilded parts. It''d only be fair to compensate him somehow for the scare...

    "Well, sorry to hear that, but we gotta go." GaLi was right about to take off, "Come on, Magnes, thr wings are waiting for us!"

    "Wait, chill!" I pulled him back by the wrist, "They can wait, how about we help this person first?"

    "What? Why?" He tugged forward in his own direction.

    "Because it''s the right thing to do." I then turned to the guy, "So, mister..."

    "Sab." He raised both hands, "At least that''s the name I gave myself based on these letters. It''s my assumption that they''re our initials from back before we died."

    "...Ooooh." GaLi and I realized, "Yeah, that makes way more sense than what we thought."

    "Yeah? And what''s that?" Sab chuckled.

    "Heh." I smugly pointed at GaLi, "Ask him, he''s the genius chemist here."

    "Chemist?" Sweet, naive Sab was still clueless, "Wait, so you remember your previous occupation!? Do tell me how you found out!"

    "Mgh..." GaLi was beet Red from embarrassment, "Just end the chapter already, geez! I promise to explain it to him off-screen!"

    "Chapter?" Sab kept pressuring him, "Off-screen? Gasp, wait, you play games!? Actually, I woke up in some sort of pillow fort with a GS5 in it that has tons of games pre-installed! If you want, we can go there and-"

    "Author, pull the plug, goddammit!" GaLi looked at some random direction as if talking to an otherworldly entity, "Don''t make the readers have to sit through this!"

    It seems our dear friend GaLi here has the case of the loonies. The moment Sab started pressing him for answers, he started going crazy. Maybe GaLi''s brain is golden too, you never know.

 Vol.1 Ch.19 - Context

    Previously, right as the two seraphim left Vastoria''s sky island...

    "Vastoria..." Throne grunted, "It''s better this way."

    "I know, it''s just..." She hesitated, throwing frequent glances at the angels below, "Migu, it feels wrong how she just suddenly left."

    "Does it? Because from her perspective, it was the only option that made perfect sense." Throne explained, "A girl wakes up without any memories in an unfamiliar world with scribbles on her chest. She follows the instructions on it until it leads her to people who understand what the scribbles mean. She did her part, and knows that she has no place with us on this mission. Really, I''d say this was the smartest thing she''s done so far."

    "How, though?" Vastoria still refused to believe it, "Does she not care about the things she may have stumbled across? Certainly, just hearing that she''s trapped in a loop should have made her want to break out, no?"

    "No." He coldly shot back, "Not everyone has to be painfully curious."

    His brisk yet truthful words cut Vastoria deep. For a man like Throne, pragmatic and efficient actions take precedence over emotions, hence his aversion to taking Migu with them to see the Gods. Granted, that wasn''t where they were headed anyways.

    "How long has it been since you became a seraphim?" Throne asked.

    "...13 cycles." She muttered, "Old enough to get used to it."

    "Whoa, you''re quite young!" He smirked, "As for me... 364 cycles."

    "Eh?" She raised her Eyebrows, "Has Heaven 2.0 existed that long?"

    "Way longer than that, I assume." He explained, "But if you were to convert the cycles into days, then you could say I''m just about to turn 1 year old."

    "One whole year..." Vastoria repeated, "It''s pretty hard to believe. Wait, you''ve spent this long with your memories intact, and yet you yourself have never bothered to talk with the Gods?"

    "Who says I didn''t?" He turned to face her, "They however just really dislike angels pestering them with questions and requests. Tch, damned idiots¡ªIf they''re so annoyed by us, then they shouldn''t have chosen an easily accessible house to settle down in."

    "Yes, I''ve visited them once before too." She giggled, "But they did change one thing recently that really surprised me."

    "Ah, you''re talking about the initials." Throne checked his own, "Yes, I do have to wonder what force drove them to finally make a worthwhile improvement. Guess they do sometimes listen to the community."

    "I hope they hear us out too, then." Vastoria prayed.

    "Right, about that." Throne flew straight past the Gods'' Abode, "We''re not gonna be going to visit them."

    "E-Eh!?" She yelped, stopping her horizontal movement due to the sudden confusion, "Wait, what do you mean by that? Hey, come back here!"

    "No, rather¡ªDon''t go stopping now!" He shouted for her to keep moving.

    "But...! We told Migu we''d go see them!" She reminded him.

    "Who cares about that girl, I got a better plan!" He pointed to yonder, "Have you heard of the Shrine, perhaps?"

    "The Shrine?" She raised a curious Eyebrow.

    "Surprised you don''t know about it. I''ve even heard some angels find out about its existence during their measly day-to-day research." He laughed, "There are rumors that if you go to the very end of the residential area, where no more houses are made for the denizens of Heaven 2.0, you will find a Shrine containing the secrets to revival."

    "Whoa, there exists such a place?" She excitedly listened in.

    "Oh it exists. In fact, I''ve seen it hundreds of times with my own Eyes" He then ruined her expectations, "But whether or not the Shrine allows for resurrection still remains a mystery."

    "Eh? But if you''ve been there, then surely..."

    "I''ve seen it, but I''ve never entered inside it." He corrected her, "That''s the issue¡ªEvery time I tried getting close to it, the golden parts on my body would get pulled back to my home, stringing me along with it."

    "Oh."

    "Like a magnet, I''d get sent hurling back the way I came." He sighed, "Which is why this time I''m gonna hope you''ll make a difference."

    "Me?" She tilted her head, "Why am I so special?"

    "Our wings aren''t attached to our bodies." He pointed out, "So they don''t necessarily string you along with them. Rather, they''re the ones magnetized to you, so to speak."

    "I''m... still not following." She admitted.

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    "Sigh, really? Nothing''s clicking yet?" He rolled his Eyes, "You have no naturally gilded parts, Vastoria. That''s what makes you my golden ticket, ironically enough."

    Vastoria was still left dazed by this reasoning. To begin with, she did have golden bits, two of them in fact. One was on her right toe, though it was rather small, and the other¡ªwhich was far more scary¡ªHer entire heart. Every time it pumps, she feels it like a loud drum. She''s grown accustomed to the vibrations caused by it, and though the heartbeats are loud, they do in fact do their job to make her so full of life. In fact, one could argue her golden heart makes her more alive than the rest of Heaven''s residents. Still, if there exists such a strong force that propels such a vital organ as her heart back to her house, then...

    "I''m sorry, but I can''t go." She stopped, "Please, find someone else to do it, I''m not the one you''re looking for."

    "Vastoria..." He turned to her with an annoyed tone, "I''ve been waiting for almost an entire year for someone as perfect as you to come along. There is absolutely no way I''m waiting for another chance to arise as good as this one."

    "No, but you don''t understand-"

    "No, YOU don''t understand!" He flew over and grabbed her by the hair, "You''re gonna fly with me to the end of the road. And when you do, you''re gonna enter that Shrine and tell me what''s inside."

    "Gah, s-stop!" She begged.

    The sudden attack made her heart rate skyrocket. Her mind was in total disarray from all the loud drumming going on from within her, and Throne himself could tell something wasn''t right. Nonetheless, he had done something that cannot be undone. If he lets her go now to check on her, she will undoubtedly fly away.

    "Vastoria." He instead tightly wrapped his arms over her own so that she could do nothing to fight back or escape, "You have no reason to refuse."

    "Let me... go...!" She yelled as he took off with her, "Migu, somebody! ...Help!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    They flew through the air at alarming speeds. Try as she might, Vastoria was simply too weak to free herself of Throne''s iron grip. She was both impressed and terrified of the speeds at which he maneuvered with his wings. Unlike her, a fletchling in comparison, he had practically an entire year to train with them until he knew what every single gear tiny minute did. Though she at first figured she''d have plenty of time to find a way out, she was no longer so sure.

    "S-Stop! You''re gonna kill me!" She tried wiggling herself free.

    "No one dies in Heaven 2.0. The Gods made it an impossible feat..." He recalled a past event, "Our skin cannot be peeled, our hearts cannot be stopped. We feel nothing, barring our gilded parts. Trust in me, what I''m doing cannot and will not harm you."

    "But I have golden parts!" She tried explaining.

    "Hm, unless my Eyes deceive me, maybe." He joked, "Listen, the Gods want us to remain in the dark until the end of time, how do you not realize that!? You have to admit, even if you did have golden parts, there might be no one else willing to go to these lengths but us!"

    "My heart''s golden!" She shot back, still struggling to gain her freedom, "Please, Throne! I don''t want to consider a friend of Migu''s my enemy!"

    "Her friend? You do understand she''ll forget all about me in just a couple of hours from now." He raised an Eyebrow, "Not to mention all about you as well..."

    "So what!? She''s still a friend!" She argued back, "It doesn''t matter if she forgets, because I still remember! And if there ever comes a day she calls me down from my island again, I''ll gladly welcome her back!"

    "Hm, how sweet. Truly, you''ve proved you have a heart of gold." He mocked.

    "What!? No, I didn''t mean it like that...!" She bit her tongue, "Throne!"

    By now, they had already passed the gate between G district and H district. In fact, they were already nearing the border to the next one after that. She was steadily running out of time, so she had to summon all her might for one strong flap of her wings.

    "Stop that." He course-corrected so that it wouldn''t make much of a difference, "It''s not doing anything, just annoying me."

    "That''s the point!" She flapped once more.

    Though her body was being restrained, her wings were not attached to said body. In other words, they could move as they pleased, so to counteract his forward flaps, she flapped backwards. This caused them both to fight over where they were headed, and the counterforces acting on one another led to them stopping their horizontal movement completely¡ªMerely flapping tirelessly against one another in a never ending row-off.

    "What are you trying to achieve?" He asked.

    "I don''t want to go somewhere I know will harm me." She retorted.

    "Well excuse me. I didn''t realize I was in the presence of the international wimp champion." He glared, "You''re not gonna believe this, but sometimes the good things in life require a bit of sacrifice."

    "And I''m saying I''m not willing to go through with it!" She shouted, "Unlike you, my golden parts are internal, y''hear!? You don''t know what might happen to me!"

    "...Say that again?" He stopped flapping, which briefly propelled them backwards a few hundred meters.

    "You heard me, my organ is-!" She stopped talking the moment she took a look at his mouth, "Ah."

    Having stopped fighting with her, he grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted her up so she could peer right into his mouth. Inside, a golden tongue sat uncomfortably, twitching at every drop of saliva that hit it. Previously, he had no visible golden parts on him, but Vastoria naively assumed it was just somewhere hidden away, like under his hair or behind his ears. This was The Dethroned''s secret he kept hidden from everyone.

    "Every sentence I utter, every word I speak makes me want to die all over again." He explained to her clearly, "Did that stop me from earning seraphimhood though?"

    "To earn the rank of seraphim, you''d have to do a lot of talking..." She realized as well.

    "Sometimes, not all times, but sometimes." He said with honest, tired Eyes, "You have to grit your teeth and bear with it. I don''t want to bear with having to deal with this stupid tongue, so my wish is to go to the Shrine. Vastoria, if there is even the smallest of chances that you''ll make it inside, would you please...!"

    "Stop!" She shushed him, "Don''t speak so much, it must feel horrible."

    "...Then?"

    "I''ll do it." She nodded decidedly, "I''m sorry for doubting you, Throne."

    "Vastoria...!" He smiled, "Then, you can fly on your own."

    "Mn, I dunno." She teased, "It was actually pretty fun going that fast without having to flap my own wings for a change. It was totally like a rollercoaster!"

    "A roller... Huh?"

    "I see." She sighed with an awkward grin, "So you''re older than me as a seraphim, but I''m older as a human. Geez, Heaven''s time system is messed up..."

    "Finally, we agree on something." He joked as well.

    Thus, though their journey got off on the wrong wing, so to speak, they had successfully managed to work through it in order to hopefully reach the Shrine and uncover the secrets that lie within it. For just a small amount, she thought, Vastoria had gotten a better understanding of the type of character Throne was.

 Vol.1 Ch.20 - Flight School

    The two seraphim, now having undergone a strange metamorphosis out of which they emerged mutually better friends, have decidedly went on to continue their journey to the mythical Shrine. It exists, according to Throne, however what lies inside is still as enigmatic of a mystery as it ever was. To make matters worse, it was nearing the end of the cycle.

    "Are you going that fast because you''re excited?" Vastoria inquired, "There''s no need to rush, not like we''re under a time limit anymore."

    "So now I''m not allowed to be happy for a change as well?" He glared back, "Let me have this, I finally might scratch this damned itch that''s been annoying me ever since I first laid Eyes upon it."

    "No, you can be happy, it''s just..." She found it difficult to explain, "The White Monster doesn''t go after us, y''know? Us seraphim, we..."

    "Yeah, I get it." He stopped her, "It doesn''t chase us, but if we were to even accidentally take a peep at its ugly mug, we''ll be put to sleep and sent back home."

    "But we still retain our memories." She retorted.

    "Kinda doesn''t matter when you gotta fly all the way back." He sighed, "Look, I don''t like seeing his hideous ass, so just please keep up with my pace and we''ll be there before even a single one of those morons down below go night-night."

    And of course by "those morons", he means the other angels. As Throne put it, the seraphim are the only ones except for the Gods that remember what the White Monster''s face looks like after seeing it. In a sense, the angels are lucky to get such a horrid sight wiped from their mind, yet these two have both been subjected to it countless times already. Maybe the same cannot be said for Vastoria, who has only been a seraphim for a few weeks, but for someone as "long-lived" as Throne, he has more than grown sick of it.

    "...Are you calling Migu a moron?" Vastoria raised a scornful Eyebrow at him.

    "Okay, I gotta ask." Throne got sick of her incessant defense, "What makes her so special to you? She looks the exact same as every other girl here, and even then you could''ve gone for a guy or something!"

    "Special?" Vastoria paused mentally, "What made you say that?"

    "You know, I wasn''t promoted yesterday." He groaned, analyzing her word choice very carefully, "When you flocked to defend your sweet little girlie Migu, you completely skipped past the supposed other guy that was with her when you two first met."

    "Eh?"

    "Sab, I believe it was." He scowled, "So you tell me, then¡ªHow come Migu ISN''T considered special in your Eyes when you only seem to run to her when you need an example of a kind being."

    "That''s..."

    "Ah, I believe I understand. You two engaged in a rather risqu¨¦ display of affection in front of this Sab person." He recalled the story she told earlier at the floating island, "What was it again? Touching golden parts? I wonder, could that be a form of masturbation for angels-?"

    "STOP!" She smacked him, speeding up significantly to hide her embarrassed expression, "That''s absolutely not what happened between us! A-And for your information, Migu and I are NOT in that kind of relationship."

    "Hm, that''s a relief." He smirked.

    "Tch, something about the way you said that ticked me off..." She clicked her tongue, "Even though we''re not, are you really afraid of two women being romantically associated with each other?"

    "Oh I''m terrified. Scared beyond angel comprehension." He said sarcastically, "Now move faster, come on. I''m about to say some really messed up shit about lesbians, so you best not hear it."

    "You''re actually the worst." She grimaced before zooming out of view.

    "Cheh, infinitesimally easier than taking candy from a baby." He grinned to himself, "Rile them up and they immediately speed up. I swear, humans are just like horses sometimes. Well, anything to get her sorry ass to get moving. We don''t have much time, I''m afraid..."

    As much as he boasted in front of the lovestruck seraphim about his homophobic bigotry, it appears he had not uttered but even a single word of disdain for the two''s hypothetical union. Throne cared not for such things, but it seemed to be the only way Vastoria was willing to fly faster towards their destination. Below them appeared more and more sleeping angels, which could only signify that their time was quickly running out.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Vastoria." He lagged behind her, "That''s fast enough, y''know."

    "Until you''ve apologized for all the hurtful things you said, I''ll be taking the front seat!" She stuck her tongue out at him.

    "I didn''t even say anything, come on!" He yelled, "Besides, you''ll tire yourself out and won''t be able to use those wings when you most need them later!"

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    "What do you care!?" She glared.

    It appears the young seraphim still disliked his earlier words against her and Migu. Though she did not truthfully consider herself enamored by the female angel, it was still a rather offensive thing to hear come out of her friend''s mouth. This is all to say that Throne was already on very thin ice, but this definitely made the cracks show. Absolutely, she was unwilling to fly at the same pace as him, no matter how much he would try to catch up.

    "You''re being dumb." He warned, "You''re forgetting that I''ve been using these wings far long than you have."

    "So what? You think that''ll change...!" She turned back, only to see he''s seemingly disappeared from her field of vision, "...anything?"

    "Peekaboo." He jumpscared her from above, flying at the exact same speed without so much as breaking a sweat, "I assure you, it does."

    Though she couldn''t see how he did it, Throne did in fact use a specific set of movements that optimized the efficiency of his flight. By lunging down, he accumulated a potential lift energy that also gives him speed caused by the natural gravity of falling. Quickly pulling back up, he maintains said speed whilst simultaneously avoiding as much drag as possible by adjusting his wings. This method of flying, that mimics how a paper airplane would go about it, requires a lot of concentration and skill to accomplish, but in exchange gives an incredibly speedy flight that barely causes his wings any stress.

    "Gah!" She panickedly jolted, causing her to fall a few hundred meters, "You... You moron!"

    "I guess women and I just don''t mix..." He shrugged, "I warned her not to go too fast, she got mad. I sped up to match her pace, she got mad. It''s almost like you don''t want me anywhere near you, miss."

    "Maybe ''cause I don''t?!" She hollered back, "And I''m not mad about that, why didn''t you tell me there''s an easier way to fly!?"

    "Easier, she says..." He repeated, "There isn''t a single easy thing about it, woman. You''re welcome to try, but know it took me over a hundred days to get to figure it out-"

    "I''m going for it!" She was already nosediving by this point.

    As it were, Vastoria was pretty much a complete newbie when it came to flying. Still, she was a studious type of girl, willing to learn from her mistakes and iron them out as quickly as possible. Once she reached a high enough downward velocity, she quickly used up all her body''s strength to redirect herself up. She managed, if just barely, but the hard part was yet to come.

    "Mngh...!" She found quite the difficulty spike ahead of her, "Gotta... keep... the angle...!"

    "Nope." Throne was thankfully there to grab her from the air before she lost control completely, "That''s not how you fly."

    "Oh come on, at least let me try until the end!" She got fussy.

    "And when would that be?" He got annoyed as well, "When you exhaust yourself completely? When your wings fall off? Or perhaps when you fall to the ground yourself?"

    "...What happens first." She replied with a strong nod, "But if I don''t make a mistake in learning, then can I ever truly say I learned it? You said it yourself, right¡ªIt took you a very long time before you managed."

    "Except I experimented during the start or middle of the cycle." He reminded her, "Meanwhile you''re going hardcore mode. One wrong move and you''re standing face to face with a wave of the White Monster''s Apostles. Of course you know, they won''t hesitate to stare into your Eyes deeper than I do my own empty vessel I call a soul."

    "So edgy... Have you considered dyeing your hair?" She suggested, "It''d really fit you."

    "Oh, and I assume piercings as well?" He played off the joke, "Sorry, but I''m not that far gone."

    Hearing his rather conservative beliefs, it appears Vastoria deemed this man to be quite old-fashioned. She wasn''t being serious, of course, but not once did she assume calling him an emo would be considered an insult. To her, it was just like any other brand of clothing¡ªAn outfit, a style, something to make you feel just a bit more unique than you already are. The more she talked with him, the more she understood the kind of community he was brought up in as a human. Or rather, the time period.

    "...Well then, time for round two!" She freed herself of his safety grasp before nosediving once more, "Woohoo!"

    "Vastoria!" He called out to her, "No more, dammit!"

    "I''ll get it right this time, don''t worry!" She reassured him, "Okay, now pull up in three, two... O-Oh no."

    Below her was a rather harrowing sight. The White Monster, or maybe just one of his Apostles, was holding a smiling Migu by the hand. She was cheerfully speaking to it as if it were a normal friend. Why, or rather¡ªHow? She should have redirected herself a long time ago by now, but in order to understand more about this upside down situation, she just had to get in closer.

    "Her Eyes are closed." She noticed, "Don''t tell me, is it tricking her into thinking she''s safe? That hand, it looks human despite the White Monster only being a goat''s skull and nothing more."

    Saving her was already out of the question. If she got too close to intervene, she''d get put to sleep in an instant. Regardless of what would happen to Throne after that, they would simply have to call it quits for this attempt. Vastoria was, by definition, the main cog meant to make this whole mechanism turn. She had a responsibility to bear, even if it meant leaving the one she held closely in her heart, the only one willing to hug her even when their bodies were completely numb to it. That was what Vastoria chose, but as she finally made up her mind, it was far too late to pull herself back up.

    "No, gonna crash...!" She braced herself, opting to close her Eyes just in case, "Oof!"

    The crash landing would have been lethal even for an immortal being, or at least that''s what it looked like. However, she didn''t feel a thing. Her heart rate was through the roof, though, so the palpitations did make her quite sick. Nonetheless, she was still there, awake. All she had to do was wait for Throne to find and scold her for this blunder, but only after they got back to safety.

    "Hmm..." Throne looked on from high above with a disgruntled expression, "I really don''t feel like I''ll ever understand women... Dammit, so help me if that girl made me travel all the way here for nothing, I''m gonna make her wish she never ascended to seraphim!"

    Closing his Eyes, the golden mechanical wings of his stalled much like the engine of a plane. Instead of nosediving as haphazardly as she did, he merely fell down, letting gravity do all the work for him. This would allow a smoother landing, but the hard part was still yet to come. Landing, securing Vastoria''s safety, flying back up... None of these could be considered hard for him. Nay, the difficulty only rises when he has to pull all these feats off completely blind.

    "Keep those Eyes closed, dammit!" He let out a thundering roar, "I''m putting a lot at stake here, and I hate gambling!"

 Vol.1 Ch.21 - Deductive Skills

    "Vastoria!" He called out to her in the Heavenly land devoid of all life.

    "Throne!" Her distant voice echoed from afar.

    Though he had to make a blind landing due to all the White Monster''s Apostles surrounding them, Throne had still managed to gauge the accurate distance between him and the ground to secure a clean and, more importantly, safe landing. Alas, he could only manage that much, for they appeared to have been separated by a huge wave of goat skull people. All of whom, mind you, utterly despise the scent of non-slumbering angels.

    "So, if you don''t mind me asking¡ªWhat exactly''s stopping you from spreading those wings of yours and just flying back up to safety?" He asked the obvious with an adequately snarky tone.

    "I can''t!" She shouted.

    "Why?"

    "I...!" She panicked, "I don''t know! For whatever reason, even though I''m commanding them to flap, I''m not moving at all!"

    Immediately, though he didn''t want to admit it to her, Throne understood what had occurred. As the one more experienced with making plenty of mistakes during his nigh endless cycles of flying, many a times did he make similar crash landings to that of Vastoria''s just now. In those moments, though, he could open his Eyes to see what had happened. A seraphim''s wings aren''t attached to them, but rather float auspiciously near their backs. Thus, they are prone to flying off on their own if too strong of a force hits them. In this case, he understood, she most probably lost them and has to find her wings in the endless sea of White Monster Apostles before she could regain her flight.

    "Good news and bad news." He floated just outside of the Apostles'' reach, "I know what happened to your wings, and it''s not permanent."

    "Oh, so two good news!" She smiled.

    "So you''re not even listening to me at all." He groaned, "You lost them, and due to the situation, you''ll probably only find them after being put to sleep by the Apostles."

    "...So two bad news?" She guessed.

    "Dear Gods..."

    She was still acting unserious about it, but this situation was extremely bad for a plethora of reasons. Before they could reach it, the Shrine that is, they fell among the thousands of Apostles and Vastoria lost her wings. Picking through them, his options were extremely limited and both very difficult to accomplish¡ªEither he finds Vastoria and flies her off to the Shrine, or she finds the wings and reattaches them. Again, they both have to keep their Eyes shut the entire time, lest they get put to sleep by the White Monster''s Apostles.

    "Remind me to tie you up on a leash the next time we try this." He smirked, gritting his teeth all the while, "Really, a dog would be more well-behaved than you."

    "I am NOT a dog!" She found the half-joke offensive, largely due to the fact it wasn''t a full joke, "Just come down here and help me! ...Ack, hey!"

    "Vastoria?"

    "It...!" She pushed one off, "It grabbed my arm just now! S-Stop it!"

    As was stated previously, the White Monster and its Apostles do not target seraphim by themselves, but it''s a different story if seraphim enter their line of sight. In other words, Vastoria was in even direr straits than they had originally surmised. These things will stop at nothing to get her Eyes open, be it peacefully or forcefully.

    "Tch, duck!" Throne ordered, flapping his mighty wings to blow the crowd away, "What''s the status?"

    "S-Still here..." She weakly raised her arm, "That wind force was incredible. You did the same to Migu back then..."

    "Still got her on your mind, huh." He carefully touched down, "Ack, to be young again."

    "You said that with a scornful tone, though?"

    "I meant what I said." He sighed, "Alright, is this you?"

    "Mn..."

    "Is it, or is it not?" He asked.

    "...You''re doing this on purpose." She pouted.

    "Oh, am I?" He kept poking around before getting a stern slap to the face, "Ow."

    "Touching a lady there is very inappropriate!" She reprimanded him.

    "Oh I''m sorry, was I touching your no-no place?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "I never in a million years would have assumed you to be a pervert, Throne." She glared, making sure to keep her Eyes from opening accidentally.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "I dunno what you''re talking about." He kept acting dumb, "But somehow, I feel like you deserved it for making me go through all this trouble."

    "Just shut up and fly us up." She complained.

    Doing as he was told, he flapped his wings once more before the Apostles got back up on their feet. Suddenly, the White Monster contested this idea by playing a familiar trick from before. Namely, voices formed all around them, all mimicking the female seraphim''s very own.

    "Throne, you there yet?!" One called out to him from below.

    "I''m still down here!" Another did the same.

    "Hey, you didn''t grab the wrong person, did you!?" A third one joined the discordant choir.

    Indeed, he was once again disallowed from leaving the premises. His adversary was a most cunning one indeed, and Throne knew that there was a pretty significant chance that even now, he wasn''t holding the real Vastoria''s hand.

    "You trust me, right?" The voice he previously lifted up with him asked, "The White Monster has the ability to mimic voices."

    "Yep, I know." He thought up a solution to this issue quickly enough, though.

    Hastily, he put his face up to the ladylike hand, so that nothing else could be seen apart from the White skin on it. This way, even if he opened his Eyes, he would not see a single goat skull in his field of vision. But that still wasn''t gonna reveal what he wanted to make sure was the case. Even if the skin was there, it''s already a known fact that the White Monster can and will mimic any angel''s body part to further trick its prey. He needed more proof.

    "E-Ew! Something slimy just touched the back of my hand!" Vastoria''s voice was irked by this, "What was that!?"

    "Hmm, I see." He nodded after closing his Eyes again, "My golden tongue is the only thing that can "feel", if you recall."

    "Ohhh, good thinking!" She excitedly praised him, "So now you know I''m the real-oop!"

    Immediately, without a second thought, he dropped the White Monster Apostle. How did he know the one he picked wasn''t the real Vastoria, then?

    "If you really were Vastoria, you wouldn''t have reacted to me licking you." He clicked his tongue, "Angels and seraphim alike feel nothing but numb in the White parts of their body."

    Thus, be it due to his quick thinking or rash actions, he successfully continued the search for his friend without having been tricked.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Now where is she...?" He looked around as if his Eyes haven''t been closed the entire time, "Okay, I got a better idea than whatever the hell I just did."

    Descending down into the endless pit of Apostles once more, he immediately got surrounded and before long, his wings were torn clean off by the horde. This was, however, all part of the plan.

    "Now then." He clapped his hands as if to get everyone''s attention, "I''m helpless and I can''t fly. What''s stopping you all from prying my Eyes open?"

    Though seemingly counterintuitive, what with purposefully putting himself in danger and all that, he did account for the worst case scenario. One thing that should be noted is that you cannot be put to sleep if you aren''t looking directly at the White Monster''s face. In other words, by getting every Apostle nearby to pile up on him, he had placed himself in a position where all he could see when opening his Eyes was the cloudy ground below them.

    "Even still, though, gotta remain careful." He noted, "Just for safe measure, my Eyes should only be barely craned open."

    Inching forward from underneath the dogpile, he kept scanning the ground under him until he stumbled upon someone who was standing up on two legs. This was another way to single out the real Vastoria from the fakes, because if he made himself the target, then obviously all of the Apostles would be inclined to attack him. Thus, logically speaking, the only person that''s passively standing on both feet then must be Vastoria. Alas, actually finding her under such hard to see through conditions wasn''t as easy as he made it out to be.

    "Vastoria, if I grab your leg, don''t get scared!" He shouted through the thousands of mimicked voices.

    "I won''t!" They all replied in unison.

    "Let''s hope that''s the case..." He groaned as he continued shimmying, splayed out on the ground.

    Moving under such pressure made even the lofty cloud floor feel like he was being squished by a vice. If he had even a single external golden part, he thought, then he would surely be in a great deal of pain. Ironically enough, though he most despised his gilded tongue, he was quite thankful for it this time. Finally though, after shimmying on the ground for what felt like way too long, he stumbled upon a pair of feet that were standing up straight. They were turned to the side, meaning whoever they belonged to wasn''t focused on him, the only one still awake apart from Vastoria herself, hopefully. Resolutely grabbing hold of them, he heard a pitiful yelp.

    "Eek! Get away, get away!" Her voice cried out.

    "Didn''t I tell you to not scream, idiot?" He chuckled.

    "Throne, is that you!?" She worried, "I''m totally surrounded by them! The Apostles, I don''t even think I can breathe through them!"

    "Alright, try and push through." He explained, "But don''t you dare open those Eyes, you hear me!?"

    They were completely surrounded on all sides, with the entire crowd of them practically remaining stuck to their bodies. Neither seraphim had their wings with them, and they were both desperately keeping their hands over their Eyes, covering them so that no Apostle could pry their Eyelids open and have them sent back home. For such a hopeless situation, one would even assume it''d be better if they just reset here and tried again in the next cycle, but giving up would be too much of a waste for them. Even now, as Throne desperately clung to her ankle, the only proof he had that Vastoria was truly real this time was pretty shaky. Just a few words and a hunch, nothing more to work off of. But it was his best shot yet. All he had to do was believe, which frankly if you asked him, he very much despises having to resort to.

    "I think I can... almost..." She finally managed to escape from the crowd, "There! I made it out!"

    "Good job." He lightly tapped her on the leg to signal he was still holding on, "Keep running, we don''t want them to surround us again."

    "Get up, then." She refused to run until he did so, "You don''t need to hold onto my leg anymore. You''re slowing us down."

    "Just run, dammit!" He ordered, "We''re not getting another chance like this!"

    Silently, with a rather scornful expression on her face, she kicked his hand off with a brisk kick. Opting to run away on her own in a random direction, she had seen right through the trick.

    "Throne would''ve insulted me more for getting us into this situation..." She nodded, still keeping her Eyes firmly shut as she escaped by herself, "And you are not him."

    For his sake, she hoped, he better still be awake. She no longer had the safety of the sky to rely upon, so until she either got jumped by another pack of Apostles or she made it to the Shrine by herself, she would have to continue the rest of her journey completely blind.

 Vol.1 Ch.22 - Apocalyptic

    Advancing forth, now all by her lonesome without a helping hand in sight, Vastoria finds herself in a rather difficult predicament. To begin with, her sense of direction has been completely scrambled, leaving her lost as she wanders aimlessly through the slumbering Heaven 2.0. To add to this, her friend Throne is nowhere to be seen, presumably already having been eaten by the horde of White Monster Apostles.

    "Throne..." She muttered as quietly as she could, "Tch! Not again...!"

    Though she was keeping her Eyes firmly shut still, her ears were more than capable of honing in on any of the surrounding Monsters. For all intents and purposes, we could very easily equate her current situation to that of a zombie apocalypse. If even one of them take notice of her, she will immediately become overwhelmed by their incessant attack. Thus, she must tread lightly through this no-walls maze, keeping a low profile as she tries to find a safe spot to open her Eyes.

    "Phew." She sighed in relief after the Apostles that caught wind of her left the premises, "This is pure horror. I need to find a vacant building or spot where I can safely scan my surroundings, but without Throne and my wings, I''m..."

    -Useless, is the word she wanted to use, but something strange kept her from fully saying it out loud. As if rejecting the mere notion of giving up, realizing it was now or never, she decidedly covered her Eyes to safely open them. Once she did this, she barely inched her palm away from her face, thus creating a sort of vizor blocking any and all direct line of sight with the Apostles.

    "No one''s around, thankfully." She trudged along carefully, "I can only look with my peripheral vision, but even just seeing a picometer of a goat skull there should give me plenty of time to quickly shut my Eyes again and course-correct to another direction."

    It was through this very method that she had successfully climbed atop one of the buildings that had an accessible exterior staircase. But it didn''t take long, however, for her to realize just what kind of mistake this plan was. Of course, attaining high ground gives you a natural viewpoint to reorientate yourself, but it also makes you an easy target to spot. Vastoria only remembered the issue with this after she had climbed up, though.

    "Ah, even with this, I can''t open my Eyes." She let out a self-deprecating chuckle, "If I do, I''ll definitely see a goat skull. Actually, what the hell¡ªNow I can only see more of them if I uncover my Eyes from here!"

    As she turned around to head back down, something very unfortunate had occurred. Two White Monster Apostles, having seen her climb up and deciding to follow her up there, could be seen blocking her only point of exit. Not only that, but below her was a large crowd of them forming, making it impossible for her to even jump down as an escape route. In every sense of the word, she had found herself cornered, and it seemed like there was truly no way out of this anymore.

    "End of the line already, eh~?" She let out a long, tired sigh, "But what do I do now? Just giving in to their demands and uncovering my Eyes feels lame, but trying my best to hold out for as long as possible feels like it''d be a waste of energy just the same."

    It was at that moment when an epiphany struck her. It was possible that the voice was just in her head, but given her circumstances, it could have very well also been an Apostle mimicking her voice. It was Migu, calling out to her to give her advice from the grave. Well, bed.

    "Vastoria~!" The spooky voice of the female angel advised her, "File their sandals flat~"

    "Mn?" She raised a questioning Eyebrow at that one.

    "Yeah, spill iced tea over ''em~" Another voice, this time of Throne himself, had uttered, "Let the dogs lick their remains~"

    "Somehow you''re actively demotivating me with those ideas..." Vastoria couldn''t help but admit, "What the hell, is this some kind of inside joke I''m not familiar with?"

    "...No, ooOooh~" The two voices quivered through the air, "We''re ghoOosts~"

    "Great." She thought, "Even more googlies to be wary of..."

    Understanding that by this point her fatigue was causing her to hear voices, she had reasoned there wasn''t much time left for her regardless of if she survived this encounter or not. Thus, she had concocted a plan in the nick of time, choosing to rip off a nearby water pipe and use it as a melee weapon. Shooing away the two Apostles was made a hundred times easier, but running down was still out of the question. Right now, she had the tactical advantage on this rooftop, since it had created a natural funneling system.

    "Alright, batter up!" She wiggled the pipe like a baseball bat, "I''ll knock all your blocks off, one by one, so form an orderly line!"

    The Apostles, not really having too developed of a cognitive sense, merely began climbing up the stairs anyways. Not because they understood her assignment, but because they wanted her asleep as fast as possible. She would position herself at the very top of the staircase, holding the bat high above her head with one hand and creating coverage for her Eyes with the other. Once she saw even the tiniest glimpse of their bodies (not their skulls), she would close her Eyes and swing.

    "Homerun! Homerun! Homerun!" She kept shouting, "Wait, is that really all the baseball terminology I know of? Uhh... Touchdown, I think!"

    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

    Slowly but surely, she was piling up bodies left and right. The unconscious ones were down for good, at least until the reset happened. But even still, catching a glimpse of their skulls would be her end. In order to clear the path for herself, she needed to just keep going like this without fault. Tired, but not yet fully dissuaded from seeing the journey through to the end. Vastoria was determined to make it to the Shrine. It was her promise to Throne, after all.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Haiyah!" She bashed the nth hundredth goat skull in, "Next one, come on!"

    "....."

    "No use keeping quiet! I know you''re eager to get to me!" She kept calling out for the next one.

    ".........."

    "Geez, I wasn''t promoted to seraphim yesterday!" She parroted Throne''s words, "The reset won''t come for another couple of hours at best! It''s 24 hours of straight nightmare fuel, after all!"

    "........"

    "I... got them all?" She lowered her guard for that split second, only to have her impromptu metal bat taken from her grasp in the very next moment, "Crap-!"

    Though curiosity was causing quite the stir in her mind, she had persevered so as to keep her Eyes tightly shut. Though she didn''t know this directly, she could still roughly guess what had happened.

    "You bastards... You realized climbing the stairs was useless, so you decided to flank me from the back!" She hissed, "Cluttering up in front of the building, you scaled the wall to get behind me."

    "                        "

    "Not gonna say anything back?" She joked, "So what now? Gonna force my Eyes open or wh-"

    Boof! A strong, dull metal pipe sound could be heard as it knocked her to the ground. As one could imagine, getting struck in the head by such a thing would have caused serious brain damage, if not immediate death if hit at the wrong spot. That is, if she were human, but since Heavenly Beings cannot die, get injured nor feel any pain for that matter, she was merely shaken up from it.

    "W-Whoa, hey now!" She still kept herself from opening her Eyes, "I thought the White Monster only stalked its prey and tricked them into opening their Eyes willfully!"

    "              "

    "Oof-!" She was once again smacked.

    At this point, she was beginning to suspect that whatever was clobbering her relentlessly wasn''t even a White Monster Apostle. Possibly, it could be another survivor or something to that degree. If this was the case, however, then her position could only be considered worse off. If she didn''t find a way to escape soon, she might accidentally take a peek at the pile of Apostle corpses splayed around her, causing a game over. Perhaps, she assumed, talking it over would be worth a shot.

    "S-Stop!" She begged, "I''m not one of them, I''m-Ack!"

    "                      "

    "Look inside your heart and realize this isn''t yo-Ough!" She kept trying, "Tch, let me g-Ow!"

    The mysterious being kept beating her senseless, and she had occasionally even felt her Eyes twitching open a tad bit, though her Eyelashes kept her from succumbing to the White Monster''s Curse. There was no punchline, she would have her journey ended here, by this unknown assailant. Just once, she figured, why not take a single peek at who it is. Maybe, she thought, maybe it is an Apostle after all? It could be good to know that they can adapt to your fighting style, but if it''s an actual angel or seraphim, she''d like to at least know who it is from the golden parts. As her Eyes slowly began to crane open, a powerful gust of wind sent the attacker flying off the rooftop.

    "Huh?" She stood up, only to get whisked away in the very next moment, "Wait, let me go! Who is-!?"

    "Ta-dah." His voice sounded as smug as ever, "Made you worried, did I? I hope so, maybe it''ll teach you to not screw up the journey from now on."

    "T-Throne!" She smiled, "But how!? Your wings, they got torn off!"

    "Unlike you, I don''t do rash things without having a way to undo them." He explained, "I got ''em back. Hopefully I didn''t make you wait too long, it''s surprisingly not that easy to find someone in a crowd with your Eyes closed."

    "...Wait, how can you be sure I''m not a White Monster''s Apostle trying to trick you?" She inquired, at this point so fatigued that she''s not even sure herself anymore.

    "I''ve already proven that." He revealed, "I''ve licked your hands twice by now, and you still haven''t said anything to protest against it. Unless of course, you did notice and you just like it."

    "E-Eh!?" She jolted, "Gross, pervert!"

    "Want me to drop you?"

    "N..." She weighed her options, "N-No, please fly us up."

    "Eager to finally see the world again?" He chuckled, "That''s okay, I am too."

    Flapping his mighty wings with all the reinvigorated strength he could muster, he had sent them both sky high. By now, they were far enough that not a single goat skull could be made out even if they looked directly below them. They were, after this long and scary battle, finally safe again.

    "Gods, I seriously hope this isn''t a trick..." She slowly, carefully craned her Eyes open to see the endless expanse in front of her, "Phew."

    "Hey, White Monsters don''t have wings, so you can be sure that I''m not one." He joked, "Me, on the other hand? I''ll make it a personal goal to kill that sunovabitch if it turns out you''re a White Monster Apostle after this... Ah."

    The two looked at each other''s faces with a calm and warm smile. For the first time in what felt like hours, they could properly open their Eyes again, and the first safe face to freely ogle was there, merely an arm''s length away. It was almost serene, the silence of their flight toward the Shrine. For an entire minute, they had stared deeply into each other''s Eyes, making sure not to look away or even blink for a second. This was a precious moment, one they wanted to be cherished above all else.

    "A-Ah!" She snapped out of it first, recalling their original purpose here, "Are you sure you''re flying in the right direction, Throne!?"

    "Heh, take a look for yourself if you don''t believe me." He pointed to yonder with his chin.

    "What''s that...? T-!?" She squinted her Eyes before they lit up, "The Shrine!"

    It was far into the distance, an entire hour''s worth of flying, even at their top speed. Still, it could be seen from this high up, meaning they had done it. They had successfully all but made it to their promised destination. The secrets hidden within await them, just as eagerly as the seraphim are rushing to get them uncovered. Soon, very soon, their sacred mission just might come to an end...!

 Vol.1 Ch.23 - Impasse

    "We''re fast approaching the Shrine." Vastoria smiled, "I''m getting kind of excited now."

    "And nervous, it seems." Throne glared down at her, "You''re shivering like crazy. Don''t make it any harder for me not to drop you."

    "You won''t." She giggled.

    "What makes you say that?"

    "You said it yourself, you need me for this~!" She stuck her tongue out with an innocent tease.

    "Hm..." He couldn''t really argue with her on that, "In any case, there might be a chance you get rejected anyways."

    Alas, there is no guarantee that even with Vastoria, the seraphim with the least amount of gold on her second only to Throne himself, they could pass the Shrine''s barrier. For one thing, there appears to be some sort of force field that detects a Heavenly Being''s gilded parts and thrusts them back to their homes. And since Heavenly Beings are connected to their gilded parts, it essentially makes the area inaccessible. They would need to find a pure White angel, unharmed by the previous world, and get them to ascend to seraphimhood on their own if this didn''t work. Such a backup plan could take them ages...

    "Let''s hope this works." Throne dangled Vastoria high above the Shrine, "Since the barrier appears to have a dome-like shape, I can safely remain here without getting sent back."

    "Yeah, but how am I gonna get down there then-?" She asked, getting cut off mid sentence by him letting her go, "Ah, no!"

    Throne, in all his genius, had assumed this to be the best and most optimal way to go about it. The Shrine was merely a small, one story stone building, completely different from the colorful houses of the residential area. Though they weren''t near any houses, there was still a possibility that the White Monster could get them if they descended down to the ground and walked towards it. "Heavenly Beings do not take fall damage" was his assumption, however he failed to take note of Vastoria''s specific case. Due to her golden heart, she doesn''t do well with stressful situations.

    "P-Panicking...!" She darted her gaze around so much it made her lightheaded, "Gotta calm down... Can''t land on my feet, I''ll feel pain that way...!"

    Verily, she had another golden spot preventing her from just sticking the landing like any other angel or seraphim. It was a small one, barely even noticeable unless you were for whatever reason really looking at it, but Vastoria had a gilded spot on her right toe. This tidbit of information made walking quite uncomfortable for her, hence her motivation to gain her seraphim wings as soon as possible. Nonetheless, if walking was made unbearable, then landing on it from this high up could possibly even make her heart explode. Some angels might say their gilded parts are extremely convenient, as is the case with Hate, but for her, the combo could not be any more poorly matched.

    "Dammit, landing on my head could snap my neck... No wait, is it even possible for the White parts to break?" She pondered, nevertheless opting for the safest bet, "Whatever! Vastoria, you can do this! Just... Just pretend it''s water!"

    Assuming the position of a diver leaping into the pool below, she had aimed for the smallest splash possible. Of course, divers do this to account for surface tension, which only occurs with liquids, however the aforementioned force field around the Shrine could very well be a solid, or worse¡ªA gas. Right now, she almost has to hope she gets rejected, otherwise who knows what fate might befall her.

    "Mngh...!" She braced herself, only to feel her descent begin to slow down to a halt, "Eh?"

    "Tch, of course." Throne clicked his tongue, "Alright, guess that''s my cue."

    Dashing down to a seemingly random spot in the sky, he braced himself to catch Vastoria before she got launched back to her home. He has been in her exact position hundreds of times before, after all, with the only difference being that he had no one to catch him. This time, however, things were different. Though he wasn''t even sure it could be possible to stop her from getting sent back, he would of course try his hardest to not let this attempt end early.

    "What''s going on...?" She looked around, only to get flung back at the speed of light, "Oop-!"

    "Didn''t think I''d ever have to play goalie in Heaven, but I guess here we are." Throne joked to himself, "Come on, catch this! Catch it...! Dah!"

    She was flung towards him so fast that he didn''t even get the chance to blink. He was afraid, and though he couldn''t feel his heart racing, he definitely wished to not have to see the outcome of this. He wanted to flinch, to dodge, or even just to have something to shield him from getting a girl flung at him at mach 1, but he stood his ground. It was either catching Vastoria, he reasoned in his mind, or going all the way back to square one to relive this nightmare from the beginning. The conclusion he came to in the end?

    "No more do overs." He breathed a sigh of relief as he held her in his arms.

    "That was..." She tightly held her chest, "Terrifying! I was sure I was going to be the first Heavenly Being to die in this world!"

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    "There''s no way that can happen..." He sighed, "Even if something like that did happen, you''d just wake up safely in your bed the next cycle."

    "Don''t try to play this off, you dropped me!" She sniffled as tears began to well up from her Eyes, "I trusted you..."

    "Vastoria..." He looked her in the Eye and said, "For the record, I didn''t drop you. I intentionally let you go."

    "That''s even worse!" She smacked him before apologizing immediately after, "O-Oh no, sorry!"

    "...Geez, you really are too sweet for this place." He chuckled, "Alright, let''s try something else."

    "Take me to the ground first!" She begged.

    "Yeah, that''s what I was thinking too." He nodded, "We''ll try to go in through the main entrance this time. Properly, as it was intended."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    With a few more flaps of his golden wings, Throne had safely landed a way''s away from the Shrine. It wasn''t too far, by any means, but just far enough where they didn''t enter the barrier. Slowly, they began to walk towards it.

    "Hm?" Vastoria noticed something peculiar, "Are... you seeing what I''m seeing?"

    "The Shrine." He furrowed his brows, "It''s disappearing!"

    Stopping to fly himself up a bit, he noticed that the Shrine only became invisible when they were on the ground. Otherwise, it remained there just as it always has. Touching down next to her once more, he explained his findings.

    "I think I get it. The Shrine isn''t disappearing, nor is it becoming invisible." He continued, "There appears to be a wall that refracts light around it, only visible from a bird''s Eye view."

    "Wait, you only found this out now?" She tilted her head.

    "What are you implying?"

    "I dunno, it''s just..." She struggled to find the correct words to not offend him by accident, "Didn''t you try to just walk in even once during your hundreds of earlier attempts?"

    "Mm..."

    "...Eh?" She was baffled, "Wueh!? Seriously, you never even once thought to do that!?"

    "Why would I walk when I can just fly in?" He looked away, crossing his arms with a pout.

    "Because you obviously CAN''T fly in!" She chewed him out, "...Pfft! Seriously, even I thought to land immediately after seeing how flying in didn''t work."

    "Just shut up and get moving." He complained, "You''ll see, we''ll just get our asses sent back to the start line anyways. Walking or not."

    Though he said this, things did in fact go right for them for what felt like the very first time since they left Vastoria''s floating island. As they approached roughly where they recalled the Shrine to be placed at, they could finally see the wall surrounding it in all its glory. It was large, dome like, just like the barrier. Presumably, the two were one and the same.

    "So the barrier is made of glass." Vastoria noted.

    "Or possibly ice." Throne replied, "The impurities give it away."

    Reaching out to touch it with his hand, he noticed that there was in fact zero resistance from the wall. Unlike previously, where they would get heavily punished for trying to swoop in from the air, this time it was just your regular, run-of-the-mill ice wall. Once he understood it was safe to touch, he did the only natural thing he could do next.

    "E-Eh, ew!" Vastoria gagged, "Just what is your fascination with licking everything, geez!"

    "Mn?" He glanced back at her, his golden tongue frozen and stuck to the wall, "Tholly, I''d lathel..."

    "Free your tongue first, I can''t understand a word you''re saying!"

    "...Haaa, haaa..." He breathed hot air from his mouth on it, eventually thawing the tongue off the wall before nodding in a scientist-like manner, "Yep, definitely ice. Now, as I was saying¡ªSorry, I''d rather not have a golden tongue either, but destiny had other plans for me."

    "I wasn''t blaming you for having it, I was blaming you for constantly using it..." She sighed, "Well, now that we know what it is, our next task is to figure out how to break past it."

    "Oh, that one''s obvious. Time to break the ice!" He smirked, punching the wall with all his might, keeping his form perfect as he made sure to use his whole body''s rotation to pivot the fist, "...Huh."

    "That definitely looked like it should''ve hurt..." Vastoria noted.

    "Yup, but we don''t feel pain, so I can try again!" He readied his fist for another punch, only to realize it didn''t want to clench itself, "Looks like you''re never too old to learn new tricks, huh?"

    "Don''t you mean: Even an old dog can learn new tricks?" She vaguely recalled the saying.

    "Yeah, that''s what I said." He nodded.

    "...Hey, did you just call me a dog again!?" She pouted.

    "Never mind that, we have an issue on our hands." He showed her his hand as it weakly dangled from his wrist, "It''s broken."

    "What? No way, we can''t get injured here." She cocked her head back.

    "Yeah, and I didn''t say I feel the pain." He bent all the fingers back in the completely opposite direction, "But as you can see, I think this wall presents one of the first exceptions to that rule."

    "My Gods...!" She looked on in horror, "W-Wait, so you''re saying...?"

    "It appears so." He nodded grimly, "We can''t fly into the Shrine. If we do, the force field sends us back. But if we''re here on the ground, the force field becomes a wall that can and will damage our bodies. Tch, let''s just hope this broken hand won''t stick around after the reset..."

    They had hit an impasse yet again, and to make matters worse, this one well and truly felt like there was simply nothing to do on their part. They had no tools to use, only one of them had a pair of wings, and if they tried just brute forcing through it with their fists, they''d eventually have nothing to hit it with.

    "What do we do?" He asked, "Thinking of calling it quits for this cycle?"

    "...No, not yet." She shook her head, "After coming this far, there has to be some way to break through."

    "Sometimes, even though you try your hardest..." He revealed his own thoughts on this, "It doesn''t mean things will work out in the end."

    "So you''re just gonna give up!?" She yelled.

    "On this attempt, yes." He resignedly replied, "Unless of course, you got a better idea?"

    "I''ll think of something!" She hastily stopped him from leaving, "Just... Just gimme a minute!"

    The ice wall remained firm in front of them. Unfazed by Throne''s previous attacks, standing there unchipped as if to mock them for even attempting such a brutish way of entry. Vastoria had to think of something soon, otherwise this attempt would have to come to an exceedingly disappointing end...

 Vol.1 Ch.24 - Wrap Back Around

    "I''m getting restless." Throne tensely tapped his foot on the ground.

    "Gods, just wait a minute!" Vastoria shot back, "In any case, weren''t you the one who said we absolutely can''t give up no matter what!?"

    "Did I?" He shrugged, "Well, even if I did, just admit that we have nothing else to do to get past this. We''ve exhausted all our options, and my hand''s bent over backwards in the worst way possible."

    They''ve thrown everything they had at this impenetrable ice wall, and yet have come out broken-handed. To review, they tried hitting it through the sky, as well as from the ground, yet the wall showed no signs of letting anyone enter. Throne is objectively correct in this situation, their best bet is to give up for now and return to the residential area to think of a better solution. But Vastoria was adamant.

    "I got it!" She approached the wall, sticking her tongue out to lick it, "Just like before, if we slowly but surely thaw it out...!"

    "Nope. You''ll rip your tongue eventually out if you try that." He pulled her back before she could start.

    "My tongue isn''t golden like yours!" She argued.

    "But it can still get damaged." He refuted, "Golden or not, rip a tongue out and you won''t ever utter a comprehensible word again. Remember, we still don''t know what happens to our damaged parts after the reset..."

    "Hm."

    Sitting down on the cloudy floor to think up another solution, Vastoria was beginning to feel her heart rate increase. The pressure was on, Throne was now mere moments away from flying off, with pretty high chances that he was gonna steal her away with him. If she didn''t think of something soon, anything even, then they''d have to go through this whole process all over again...

    "Got anything?" He asked calmly.

    "S-Shut up! I''ll think of something!" She angrily patted the ground next to her, "In the meantime, help me think!"

    "...You''re pretty childish yourself." He chuckled, humoring her as he sat himself next to her, both staring directly into the towering wall in front of them, "Did Migu perhaps rub off on you during your past encounters, or were you just like this from the start?"

    "Don''t bring her up now." She sighed, "My poor heart already has enough to deal with as is."

    "Vastoria..." He inquired, "Sigh, okay. You''re free to go."

    "Hm?" She raised her brows in astonishment, "Free?"

    "I only dragged you here because I thought you would be immune to the barrier''s force field." He admitted shamefully, "And well, now that I know you''re just as useless as me..."

    "I''m not useless!" She pouted, "And I''m not giving up either!"

    Her defiant tone suggested she was tired of his constantly changing opinions. At first he asked her for help in this case, then he forced her to partake in it until she obliged, and now that things are looking thin, he suddenly tells her to go about her days free of the burden? It made no sense, it was complete 180 after complete 180, and all those half circles made her dizzy! Now that she gave him her word that they would figure out the secrets of the Shrine together, there was absolutely no way that she would just choose to give up.

    "I''m not Migu..." She frowned.

    "Oho, first negative comment about your little crush I heard since we''ve met!" He teased her, "Now I know a miracle''s incoming."

    "I''ll bend your finger." She threatened.

    "Sure, if it makes you feel better about yourself, by all means." He handed her his hand, "Go wild. I don''t feel any pain in it anyways."

    "Ew, get it away from me!" She backed away, "Come on, stop!"

    "Heheh, eh? Vastoria." He called out to her, "Wait, stop!"

    "No, get away-!" She kept moving backwards until she finally opened her Eyes to look at him, "E-Eh?"

    The world in front of her was a cyan Blue. Throne was staring at her completely bewildered, and as she stood up, she noticed he was getting more and more translucent. As if vanishing into thin air, he was nowhere to be seen from her point of view, but his voice was still as clear as ever.

    "Vastoria! Can you hear me!?" He hollered.

    "Yeah!" She ducked back down to see him again, "Am I inside the-"

    "Vastoria!" He shouted, "If you can hear me, get out of there!"

    "I can hear-"

    "Vastoria!" He shouted, "Tch, dammit!"

    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Kicking the barrier, not even caring for the toe he broke off out of sheer anger, he stomped around in a circle with an increasingly hot temper. As it turned out, Vastoria had somehow managed to phase through the icy wall, despite having golden parts on her. Without even realizing it, she was right in front of the Shrine, but what really worried her was that Throne apparently can''t see nor hear her while she''s there.

    "What do I do?" She pondered, "If I step out now, I can inform him that I''m fine, but I might not get this chance again. What to do..."

    Eventually, she resolved to push onwards without him. In her mind, it was the sensible thing to do. Throne''s one and only goal was to find out what was inside the Shrines, and possibly find a way to return to the Living World. Regardless, he wasn''t the type to worry about his friends all that much, it seemed. If Vastoria stepped outside, he would be furious with her, so though it was cruel to him, she knew that it would be for the best in the long run. Now, separated for the nth time, she walked down the stairs of the Shrine, leading to the darkness below....

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Vastoria!" Throne kept shouting from the outside, "Dammit, how''d she do that!?"

    Attempting to hastily mimic her trick, he applied his rump bottom to the clouds below before sliding backwards, like a dog wiping his behind but backwards. This comedically ironic display was cut short, however, by him slamming his back into the wall. The surprise made him bite his tongue, resulting in a rather loud and painful scream of agony. He might not admit this to anyone openly, but in that moment, he was terrified.

    "She made it in and left me outside!" He slammed his fist on the wall, "What the hell makes her more qualified than me!?"

    There was no guarantee that she was even alive by this point. Through his Eyes, all he saw was her phasing into the wall, seemingly disappearing like a magic trick. That''s when an idea struck him like a metal bat, and he stood up before flapping his wings with a newfound vigor. In a flash, he was back above the Shrine, looking down to reveal his hunch was right.

    "The doors are open. She must have done that on purpose to tell me she''s safe and sound." He caught himself sighing in relief, "Dammit, so if she''s fine, why didn''t she take me with her!? Did she... Did she use me just to stab me in the back and revive all by herself!?"

    The misunderstanding was tragic, however all too reasonable to assume. He risked a lot to get her to this step, and yet the moment she found some miraculous way to bypass this impenetrable defense, she left him in the wayside. He was beyond livid, and yet she was happily traversing the Shrine by herself. The very thought of her just up and reviving down there and living a new and happy life in the World of the Living made him feel sick to his stomach.

    "Did I just get fucking cucked out of life?" He asked himself, "By a motherfucking woman!?"

    Opting to self-destruct in a fit of passionate rage, he stalled his wings for a bit before flapping them crazily through the air. Utilizing the speedier way of flying he had previously showcased to catch up to Vastoria''s flight, with the only exception being that he didn''t pull back on purpose, he had crashed into the barrier at full force. But if it was just that, then we couldn''t exactly classify it as a self-destruct now, could we?

    "Nah, if I did it like that, the force field would just send me back home!" He shouted, pulling back in the very last moment before he hit the ground to suddenly move towards the wall from a horizontal angle, "There! If I maintain this altitude, grazing the clouds as I ram myself towards it, I''ll be hitting the ice version of the barrier, and not the force field!"

    It was a moronically stupid idea to even think up, much less attempt. The ice wall harms those who hurt themselves on it, while the force field merely flings them back. By all accounts, this could well and truly be the only way to commit suicide in Heaven 2.0, and yet he was so furious that he didn''t care anyways. This was, in a way, just another attempt at reviving in the Living World for him.

    "Screw Heaven! Screw Vastoria, and screw the Shrine!" He yelled until his voice gave out, "I''ll die here and then we''ll see where the Gods place me! Heaven 3? Hell!? I don''t care, just so long as it''s not here, goddammit!"

    Alas, his time was coming to a close. The countdown had reached 1 second, and yet that was all it took for reason to repossess him. He pulled back as hard as he could, just barely managing to turn the ice wall back into the force field, as he flew at such tremendous speeds that he almost touched the Shrine just from the sheer speed alone. As he sat there in suspended motion, he couldn''t help but laugh at himself over this.

    "So if I had just flown a bit faster..." He smirked, "I might''ve even been able to join her... Shit."

    At the very next moment, the elastic bubble slung him back hundreds of millions of kilometers back to the residential area. Going so fast he turned into a flaming ball of fire, a meteor that refused to burn up due to the laws of Heaven 2.0, he eventually made it to a street near enough to his abode. The ground trembled nastily once he made contact, and every angel within a 5 kilometer radius was alerted of his appearance. The first to greet him, however, happened to be the one girl he least wanted to see now of all times.

    "Are you alright, sir!?" Migu and another male angel ran up to check on him.

    "You..." He snapped his fingers in front of Migu, "What''s your name?"

    "O-Oh, I don''t really..." She hesitated to answer.

    "Yeah no shit, none of us don''t really have names!" He got fussy, "What''s the name you chose to go by, dammit."

    His previously broken hand had completely healed up back to normal. In other words, there is a high possibility that the reset just happened. If Migu still knew her name, however, then he was actually considering asking her to rejoin the investigation. However, that was sadly not the case.

    "...I''m not telling you!" Migu shooed him off, "Weirdo, what the hell are you gonna do with that information?"

    "I see... Well, you''ll be happy to hear I''ve already figured out what I needed to know just from your stupidly ignorant answer." Throne sighed, "It didn''t work."

    "Huh?" The man accompanying Migu wondered, "What didn''t work?"

    "She-" Throne stopped himself mid sentence, "Never mind, Vastoria told me not to get her involved."

    Once everything had settled in his mind, and the rage had tempered, he realized just how stupidly he was acting just now. A man like him, throwing a tantrum after not being let inside the Shrine... It was more than just a pitiful display, so to speak. Vastoria may have betrayed him for her personal gain, but he was better than this. If nothing else, he was to respect her prior wishes of not getting the girl whom she was closest to, Migu, involved anymore. This was his way of returning his lost pride, and before he knew it, he was back to his usual calm demeanor.

    "Who''s Vastoria?" Migu furrowed her brows, "Wait, are you sure you don''t have the wrong person?"

    "Yes, I''m sure." He made fun of her voice, "Well then, you two carry on chatting like the random nobodies you are. I''ll be getting out of your hair."

    Flapping his wings once more, he returned to his run-down shack in the blink of an Eye. More planning was in order. The day would come where he sees that stone wall interior of the Shrine yet, but that day was not today.

 Vol.1 Afterword

    Greetings! Thank you for reading Volume 1 of Heaven¡¯s Calling. This is the final chapter of the first Volume, however the next one will be coming out tomorrow as per usual, so do not worry! To continue the tradition from my previous work, Transcontinental (go read it, by the way!), I will be ending every Volume of the story with a brief little chapter where I share my thoughts on it, explain some first draft changes and where I got my ideas for the whacky things that happen here, as well as just give the readers a bit more info about me as a person. So, let¡¯s get cracking!

    To begin with, why Heaven? And why the whole ¡°They made a sequel to it¡± gimmick? To tell you the truth, about two years back it came to me in a dream. I know, clich¨¦, but that¡¯s really what happened! In fact, the entire first chapter was just me retelling the entire dream from start to finish. Granted, in the dream I met the two Gods in front of their abode way earlier, but for narrative reasons, I had to add some more chapters before that in the real story. As for the characters, we¡¯ve a surprisingly large cast given it¡¯s only the first Volume, but I certainly hope they¡¯re not the only actors in this play! You¡¯ll find that the timeloop aspect will lead to many enemies briefly choosing to become friends for one cycle before completely switching sides in the next! It¡¯ll be exciting to experiment with what all I can get away with doing to these angels, but my sadistic author habits will have to be a topic for another time.

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    Migu, Meg, Megazoid, Gemma¡­ Urgh, whatever her name is! As you can tell, it can get quite annoying to have to constantly re-remember the names of all the characters because they keep choosing different ones each cycle, but that was in fact the point. This is also why seraphim most often than not choose a recluse lifestyle, simply because it gets annoying having to explain a stranger¡¯s entire life story to them every single day. Dementia is no joke¡­ Dementia is no joke¡­

    There are many mysteries to uncover about this place, such as what exactly the Gods are hiding in their home, what that weird Book was that M.G found during that one cycle, how to become a seraphim, what¡¯s inside the Shrine, and of course¡ªIs there a way to revive and go back to the World of the Living?

    With how Vast and expansive this world is by itself, I could write on and on about all these mysteries and more, but I believe I should mention that this series is projected to be 9 Volumes in length. So, expect great things, and know that they will probably come sooner than you think! In the meantime, there¡¯s an entire finished series waiting for you in Transcontinental, so why not check that out as well?

    Ah, that¡¯s it for now. Until next time, I hope to see you in Volume 2¡¯s Afterword, and hopefully by then we¡¯ll have gotten a bit clearer of a picture of Heaven 2.0. If not, then there¡¯s always Volume 3, haha! But I¡¯m getting ahead of myself. For now, look forward to Volume 2 releasing tomorrow with a brand new cover to boot! This is your friendly neighborhood Mikan Akai, signing out!

 Vol.2 Ch.25 - Problem Child

    "Come on, after that winged bastard!" I commanded, "Sab, you coming with or nah?!"

    "Hey, hold on a second!" He worried, "Where exactly are you going? Tell me that first!"

    "No time!" GaLi dragged him along by the wrist, "We''ll explain as we go, so hop to it!"

    "Bwaah, then you''re not even giving me a choice, dammit!"

    That flying douchebag almost killed us with that fall of his. He interrogates me and then gets mad and leaves, like that''s not suspicious enough to warrant us chasing him as is! His wings seem really useful, but more importantly...

    "That man, he knew me." I muttered.

    "Sure did seem that way." GaLi agreed, "So you were awake before today, huh?"

    "No, in fact I don''t remember anything after my talk with the Divine Voice." I replied.

    "Eh? Divine Voice?" Sab looked like he realized something, "Then, could you be...?"

    "Step aside, comin'' through!" GaLi kept pushing all the bystanders aside, "Come on, you two! Unless the dude with wings stopped by for some grub, then there''s no way we''ll ever catch up at this rate!"

    "Coming!" I hollered before turning to Sab, "We shouldn''t waste our energy on talking. Let''s focus on finding the winged guy first."

    "No, but..." He furrowed his brows, "You said you''d tell me more about who we''re chasing and why during the run, and now you''re telling me we''re not gonna talk at all?"

    "Ah, I guess we owe you that much..." I chuckled awkwardly, "Some guy with wings crashed next to us, asked me about my name, and then up and flew off."

    "That sounds... fun." He tried to piece together why this happened, "So you''re going after him why, exactly?"

    "He''s suspicious!" I exclaimed.

    "Yeah, but like..." He tilted his head, "Did he tell you to follow him or something? And even if you did find him, what''d that accomplish?"

    What a stupid question! It''d, uhm... Wait a second, this guy''s actually kind of right! The winged guy knew me, but it''s not like he really wanted anything else from me. There''s also that thing he said after I refused to give out my name... Does he even know me, actually? No, but I''d still like those wings regardless.

    "We told you what you wanted to know, so if you don''t wanna follow along, then by all means!" GaLi answered back for me, "But it''s answers you''re looking for, then I think the person we''re after is your best bet!"

    "Y-Yeah! You said you were doing your own private investigation of this place, so our goals kind of align!" I added, "Come on, Sab, don''t be a party breaker!"

    "Hm, I guess..." He pouted.

    Well, we said all that, but it looks like we couldn''t find out where our target was after all. He was flying at incredible speeds, to the point where mere running just could never even hope to catch up. By now, who knows where he went, so we eventually just gave up on it. I know, not very detective-like of us, but what other options did we have?

    "Ugh, khack! Whuh..." GaLi coughed and wheezed from the excessive exercise, "Let''s... Let''s just try and get wings another way."

    "And what would that be?" I asked, just as tired.

    "Well, there''s gotta be an order to it." Sab resolved, "Maybe it''s like a game. You can''t get the best equipment from the start, after all!"

    "Game?" I tilted my head, "Equipment?"

    "I think I get what you mean." GaLi glanced down at our bodies, "We really ought to find some equipment."

    "Well, it''s not like any of us have anything to hide." I shrugged, "Our private parts don''t exist anymore."

    "So why are you wearing those shorts, then?" Sab raised a suspicious Eyebrow at me.

    "Well." I thought about it as well, "I guess something''s better than nothing."

    "Guys, no need to argue." GaLi pointed with a wry grin, "Check it. She probably got that from that guy."

    We both turned around to see¡ªA clothes shop. Hm, what an odd thing to find in Heaven, but I guess it makes sense. Place a bunch of people together all of a sudden and tell them to walk around in the nude, and someone''s bound to dislike it. Guess the Gods aren''t as cruel as I originally thought. Stepping in front of the counter, we didn''t even get a friendly greeting in before the shopkeeper glared at us heavily.

    "Mgh...!" He gave the nastiest stink Eye he could, "Take those fugly covers off."

    "Eh? Yeah, I came here to get something better." I was surprised by his bold tone, "So like, is there a changing room somewhere or...?"

    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "Strip." His Eyes peered deep into my very essence, "Now. I''ll prepare something better for you in the meantime."

    I glanced at GaLi and Sab to see what they thought of him, but the shopkeeper just yelled at them as well.

    "Stop gawking at her, you morons! Don''t you know girls don''t like getting stared at while they''re changing!?" He yelled.

    "No one likes that, dipass!" GaLi wanted to argue, but Sab cut those two off.

    "Come on, give her some privacy." He covered both of their Eyes, "It''s already awkward enough as is, so no need to make it any worse."

    I was pretty uncertain about this, just changing out of my clothes in the middle of the street, but Sab''s words really did help me feel better. Looking behind me, the bystanders also don''t even seem to be taking glances this way, much less looking at me. I bet they wouldn''t even notice, and besides, not like they''d have anything to see if they did... Sigh, let''s just get this over wi-

    "Ghack!" I had a bunch of clothes tossed over me, "I didn''t finish changing, dammit!"

    "On second thought, just wear those hideous rags under my beautiful clothes." The shopkeeper suggested, "If I waited for you to make up your mind, we''d be here all cycle!"

    "Cycle...?"

    Well, that settles that, I guess. I got new clothes now¡ªA Red shirt with tan baggy pants. It feels... familiar, I guess? But I was expecting something more lady-like, like a dress or something.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "...What?" The shopkeeper kept glaring, "You''re in Heaven 2.0, not a damned ball. Comfort wins out in this scenario!"

    "I guess that''s true..." I looked over at the other two as they finished putting their clothes on too, "Looking good, you two."

    "Old timey, I like it!" Sab chuckled, "I feel like an adventurer!"

    "This has to be a joke..." GaLi''s irked expression gave away his disgust as he put on the frilly top, "You sure you didn''t switch mine and Magnes'' clothes, sir?"

    "You calling me an amateur?" The shopkeeper could hardly keep his laughter in, "The pink frills look girly, but pfft! T-They''re... They''re there for... Bahaha!"

    "Dammit, gimme something normal!" GaLi flexed once, tearing the clothes to shreds with the sheer power of anger.

    "Tch, you''re abusing the fact these clothes come free of charge..." The shopkeeper sighed, "Fine, this should be better, right?"

    Tossing the White shirt over his head, we inspected the inscriptions on it before bursting out laughing. The burly, frowning angel named GaLi gave us a nasty glare which completely contrasted with the cute little unicorn drawn on his shirt, with the words "I LOVE HEAVEN!" written in bold under it.

    "Hrnghh...!!!"

    "No! Don''t ruin that one too!" We stopped him hastily, "Look, it''s better than before, just wear it!"

    "...Over my dead body." He scowled, tearing it off with ease, "I guess the pants are normal at least. I''ll just take these thank you."

    With a tired sigh, we waved the shopkeeper off as we continued on with our walk. To recount, I had a Red shirt on with tan baggy pants. Sab had a bit of an old timey adventurer''s look, equipped with all sorts of belts and pockets¡ªAnd GaLi had Green trousers.

    "They kind of accentuate your butt." Sab inspected his behind, "You really should''ve just taken the shirt."

    "I''d rather die!"

    "Hm, whatever." Sab gave up, "If you wanna look like a male stripper, then by all means."

    "Well maybe I do!" GaLi pouted, crossing his arms tightly.

    Oof, that''s... He''s actually offended by it. What do I do? I''d step in to defend him, but it''s true that he should''ve just taken the shirt. Ah, but now that he''s like this, I don''t know... I guess I''ll try and let him off easy.

    "GaLi..." I patted him on the shoulder.

    "What?!" He shouted back.

    "Your..." I bit my tongue, tears streaming down my cheeks as I struggled to tell him.

    "Magnes...!" He turned around worriedly, "What''s wrong?"

    "Your...!" I sobbed, "Your butt really is distracting! I''m not even interested, but I can''t keep my Eyes away!"

    "You monster." Sab returned a stern look.

    "You guys are the worst!" He fussed, "Stop making fun of my butt!"

    "Stop having a big butt!" I shot back.

    Having taken a large hit to his pride, GaLi ran off in front of us in shambles. He was a strong man, yet his butt was stronger... Such tragedy! If only the shopkeeper didn''t give him such a tight pair of trousers! We truly do live in a society... Okay, enough about GaLi''s ass cheeks. Look at the bright side, at least they''re covered. Within every crack of darkness lies a ray of light. And I mean crack literally.

    "Yaaaahhhh!" A man flew by us, making us stop dead in our tracks.

    "What''s with everyone crashing near us?" I asked, more out of curiosity than fear.

    "Guess they must like us." GaLi joked.

    Alas, the man that flew past us and struck the nearby building wasn''t the main star of the show. No, that title belonged to the man that tossed him there. A burly, muscular man with arms of pure gold from the shoulders down. Appearance wise, he was the same as any other male angel around, but those arms really made him look tougher. Best not to get involved.

    "Hm? Mn... Oh!" The aggressive bro looked around before settling his gaze on us, "You next! I ain''t going down without a fight!"

    "Wah?! Fight!?" I yelped.

    "Incoming!" GaLi and Sab pushed me aside, both getting tackled in my stead, "Gah!"

    Immediately, the two fell to the floor dazed as he jumped on top of them. Brutally pummeling them to a pulp, they were helpless to even lift a finger against him, despite not feeling any of the pain you''d tend to expect from a beating of such magnitude. Scary! I would''ve jumped in to help them if I didn''t know they were immune to damage! ...Well, maybe I''d be too scared to do so.

    "No matter how hard I hit, no matter how many I hit..." The torturer continued, "No matter the weapon, the method, they just never die! None of them!"

    "Ghack, the fuck, man!?" GaLi shouted before getting a stern kick to the face.

    "Shut up, shut up!" The guy kept yelling, "You''re not humans, I''ve seen it! White Monsters all around! One good look at their hideous faces and you go crazy! Crazy, I tell you!"

    "Well thanks for the warning!" I stood in between them, "So in return for your generosity, let me enlighten you with what I know¡ªWe''re not whatever the hell those nightmares in your head are!"

    "Liar! Liar, I''ve seen them!" He turned to clobber me next, "I hate it here. I hate it so much, I wanna go back home..."

    Eh? Is this guy''s hatred maybe just misplaced? Maybe...

    "Home..." I muttered.

    "Yeah, sniffle." He calmed himself down, "But that place is impossible to go back to. I''m not dumb, I died and got sent here."

    "Same as us." GaLi muttered before getting stomped on, "Ghack!"

    "...Which is why I''m gonna make this my new home." The assailant declared, "And home is a place that houses none of you White Monsters."

    Hoo boy, we''ve got a problem child on our hands.

 Vol.2 Ch.26 - All Ears

    "Die!" He kept stomping on Sab and GaLi''s bodies, "I''ll make minced meat out of you, die!"

    "Ow, oof! H-Hey, you gonna just stand there or help us out!?" GaLi pointed me out of the crowd of onlookers.

    "What the hell do you expect me to do?" I shrugged, a tad peeved he''d even suggest such an unchivalrous idea, "Haven''t you ever seen a no-weapons dueling spar?"

    "No!" He kept shouting incessantly, "What the hell even is that!?"

    Oh, he''s never heard of it. Wait, how come? Everyone in the world knows that much, right? There''s always one on TV. Two people settle their differences by declaring a duel on one another. The one who declared it must abide by the rules set in place by the one who got it declared on him, simple as. Usually these are scuffles between friends that are non-lethal, but sometimes they might air a deathmatch with all sorts of weapons. Pretty chilling seeing a dead body there, but that''s the entertainment industry for you.

    "W-Well in any case, I wanted to say there''s a clear weight class difference!" I shakily retorted, "Dammit, now I sound like I''m making up excuses, but it''s a real thing!"

    "Rahhhh!" The livid enemy picked GaLi off the ground, dealing a barrage of blows to him as he kept standing on Sab''s limp, unconscious body... Wait.

    "Sab!?" I looked down before gasping, "Oh no!"

    We don''t feel any pain or damage on the White parts of our body, but our golden scars make up for that tenfold. In other words, the one I should be focusing my attention on saving isn''t the guy with a few scratches and a pinky, but the one with two giant rings on his waist that are getting stomped like crazy! Hold on a second, don''t tell me he died...?!

    "Stop it!" I ran it, wrapping my arms around the bulky enemy in a faint effort to try and get him to calm down, "We''re no monsters! We''re just like you!"

    "Shut up!" He tried pushing me off, but I stuck on pretty easily, "Monsters or not, you creep me the heck out, so as soon as I figure out how to exterminate your kind, you''re as good as gone!"

    Having realized that the flurry of blazing fists he delivered to GaLi''s face did nothing but consume his energy, the grudgeful angel thought to change his angle. Running off to the previously shattered building he destroyed, holding GaLi like a doll and having me wrapped around him like a sweater, the dude took the sharpest piece of glass and forced it down GaLi''s mouth.

    "No!" I shouted.

    "Mgwak!? Mn!"

    GaLi tried spitting it out, but it was too late. The man forced his mouth shut as he moved GaLi''s jaw for him. Up, down, up, down in an endless chewing motion. I was worried for his life, but looking at GaLi''s expression, it appears he was only acting to be in pain. Right, our insides must be invincible as well. I guess anything is fine so long as it''s not golden. With the wink he gave me as a signal that everything was okay on his end, I used the situation to let go of the man and try and grab a piece of rock. This, however, was the wrong choice...

    "Wanna try killing me back, ey!?" His terrifying smile oozed killing intent, "I''ll be taking that!"

    "Tch!" I gave GaLi the signal, "Now, do it!"

    With a confident nod, GaLi spat out each shard of glass one after another. It was painful just to watch, honestly. Seeing such small, razor sharp objects shoot out of a person''s pursed lips as if they were melon seeds... I''ll be honest, I was gagging heavily and even had to look away. But I couldn''t do so for too long, lest I miss the most crucial part.

    "AAAAAAHHHH!" Our opponent wailed in pain, immediately lossing his grip on GaLi as he inspected his golden arms, "W-What did you-!? How...?!"

    "Plot armor, bitch." GaLi dusted himself off as he spat out the remaining shards of glass, "Oh, and a little bit of prior research to really drive the point home."

    An angel''s biggest weakness is hitting their golden parts. In other words, the smaller the target is, the more prone they are to taking a battering. Given what we know about the reason behind them, it''s pretty darn unfair of the Gods to give the people who''ve suffered the least long-term injuries in the Living World the most overpowered bodies, but it served us good this time at least. Indeed, the enemy had two very large areas we could use as targets¡ªHis arms. I imagine getting finely crushed shards of glass shot at such high speeds at one''s weak point could practically paralyze them from the pain, so I gladly used myself as a distraction with that rock. It worked out great, and we somehow won the encounter.

    "Right, Sab!" I turned around to look for him.

    "You check up on his condition. I''ll stick around here and ask this guy some questions." GaLi smirked at the sobbing injured enemy, "I bet we''re gonna have a blast, you and I...!"

    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    "S-Shit!" The opponent was crying for his life, "I fucking hate this place! I fucking...! Eh?"

    Staring dumbfounded at the reflection of his face through his gilded arms, he must have finally gotten the memo we were trying to tell him. There is no White Monster or whatever he feared we were, and even if any one of us was it, then he''d be one too. For now, he just kept staring deeply into his arms, mouth agape and Eyebrows raised up to his hairline.

    "My face..." He muttered, "I can''t see my face."

    "...Go on, find Sab." GaLi shook his head at me, "I''m gonna have a real tough time getting any useful info out of this maniac, after all."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Sab. Sab?" I looked around the area he was last seen at, "Hey, did anyone see the guy that was just getting beaten up!?"

    Dammit, he was just here a minute ago. And the people around us, I recognize some of them while the maniac was stomping Sab and GaLi like crazy. They definitely should''ve seen him get up and move if that''s what happened, so why is everyone pretending like they''re none the wiser?

    "You!" I grabbed one but the shoulders, "I know you know who I''m talking about! Where is he!?"

    "Gah! I don''t know what you''re talking about!" The random idiot feigned his innocence, "Seriously, back off! If I saw him, I''d tell you."

    "But you did see him! And you too, woman!" I pointed out another one of the previous onlookers, "You were shouting for help while this was going on! If you wanted to be useful, you would''ve tended to the wounded guy!"

    Seriously, some help these guys are! GaLi and I managed to focus the assailant''s attention on us and get him away from Sab and them, so the least they could do is help Sab wake up or something! Ngh, he looked pretty bad back then... No, he''s gotta be okay! Those stomps to his hoops looked painful, but nothing he couldn''t handle! Just gotta keep on believing...!

    "I-I dunno anything about that." The lady bit her tongue, "Eep!"

    "You listen to me and you listen well." I threatened, firmly pressing on the golden spot on her left shoulder, "I don''t know why you''re hiding him away from me, but trust me, you don''t wanna make me your enemy."

    Feeling the pressure all too well on her shoulder, she immediately folded and spilled the beans. As it turns out, everyone here did in fact see Sab¡ªwhich is obviously the case¡ªbut it''s interesting to find out just how he disappeared.

    "He got taken away!" She blurted out as everyone urged her to not say anything more, "I don''t care anymore, I just wanna go home!"

    "Shut up, woman! You wanna get us killed!?" The angry mob berated her, "We were clearly instructed not to say a word to them!"

    "Let her speak or I''ll beat you up worse than that guy did my friends!" I shot back, "I know how to make angels feel harm, just as a warning."

    Hearing the truth in my voice, as well as finally seeing the pained expression on the woman''s voice, they understood all too well that this wasn''t a hill worth dying on. They were still unwilling to reveal anything themselves, but they at least let me talk to the girl in peace.

    "So, from the top, now." I turned back to the girl, releasing the pressure, but still keeping my finger pressed on her gilded spot, "No false information, please. You know what happens if you lie to me."

    "Y-Yeah, I know!" She was tearing up from the nervousness, "Y-Your friend! He was unconscious when you left him. A winged angel came by and took him away."

    "What?" I cocked my head back.

    "I''m telling the truth, so please don''t hurt me!" She squeaked, "I know it sounds crazy, but the angel really did have functional wings! They were made of gold and-!"

    "No, I believe you." I finally let her go completely.

    "...Phew." She calmed down.

    A winged angel swooped down and took him away... It''s gotta be that guy, right? The guy we were originally chasing before we gave up on that. He definitely knows something about us even we ourselves don''t, not to mention he''s overall a pretty suspicious guy. Well, this is a problem. If Sab got taken by the winged guy, then he''s as good as gone, and I mean gone gone. There''s no way we can ever even hope to catch up to him without wings of our own.

    "...Can anyone tell me where they went?" I turned to the nervous crowd.

    "Mn... That way." One guy couldn''t handle the guilt and finally pointed to a direction, "But you can''t catch a seraphim. Those guys are faster than light itself."

    "Seraphim?" I tilted my head.

    "The winged angels." The more knowledgeable ones explained, "They proved themselves worthy and completed the prerequisites of ascending to seraphimhood. If you''re keen-Eyed, you might even spot one or a few flying up in the sky on occassion."

    "And how do I get wings of my own?" I pressed them for clues.

    Surprisingly, this appeared to be as far as they were willing to stretch their knowledge. No one in the crowd knew the answer to my question, as signified by their absolute silence. Eventually, the woman I previously interrogated did give me something to go off of, at the very least.

    "No one knows for sure, but maybe you could start by asking the Gods." She suggested, "If you go to their Abode personally, I''m sure they''d be more than willing to help."

    "The Gods? Is it possible to see them directly?" I asked, "Not just their voices?"

    "Voices?" They seemed just as confused as I was, "I don''t know that, but they are very eager to help out anyone that politely gives a request. Surely they''ll know the answer to your question."

    "Great, thank you." I smiled, "So where is this Abode of theirs?"

    The cheery, triumphant air around everyone quickly wavered as they realized the dilemma they had handed me. Awkwardly, they all turned their heads to the girl I was talking to, expecting her to break the news to me. Weakly, she lifted her finger in the opposite direction of where they previously stated the seraphim took Sab to. I see the problem here.

    "Then... I guess I have a roadmap!" I giggled, "First I ask the Gods for a pair of wings, then I rescue my friend. Thanks, everyone!"

    "Of course. We''re sorry for not being of more use." One guy from the crowd apologized.

    "This is more than I could ask for." I turned around again, "Alright, I''ll go tell this to GaLi and we''ll set off on-Oh come on!"

    Now HE''S vanished as well! And not only him, but that insane assailant too! Did they get into another fight again? No, but we''re not so far that I wouldn''t hear them shouting and brawling. What the hell is going on in this place? Everything keeps getting messed up!

 Vol.2 Ch.27 - Unexpected

    The plan was vague from the start, I can admit that much. We sort of ran into a mysterious foe, whom we sort of followed until we lost track of him, when we sort of got into a fight with a brute, and now...

    "I sort of lost my entire party..." I admitted a tad bashfully to the shopkeeper.

    "Uh huh." He nodded along unamusedly, "And so your first instict was to go back here for another round of clothes shopping?"

    "I''m asking for advice!" I begged, "You sounded like you knew your stuff way more than we did, so surely you can tell me what to do next!"

    "I see. Well, in that case, I can recommend you this..." He pulled out a pair of devilishly stylish boots, "Brand new. Heh, not like any of my wares aren''t."

    "Whoa, and what do they do!?" I gawked at the shape of them.

    "You put ''em on." He explained.

    "Uh huh?"

    "And when you walk around or otherwise run somewhere..." He continued.

    "Mhm...?"

    "You''ll feel more comfortable than walking in those sneakers you''ve got on currently!" He finished the presentation off with a cheer, "...What? What are you looking at?"

    "Those are just normal boots!" I yelled.

    "Normal boots?" He gave a wry smirk before brushing it off, "Well yeah, I don''t know what you expected."

    "Dude, I expected they''d give me like flight or superspeed!" I rolled my Eyes, "Y''know, something to help me traverse the streets faster? I''m kind of rushing to chase after my friends!"

    "Doesn''t look that way to me." He crossed his arms after spotting me peeking guiltily at the cloaks on display, "Look, those bystanders gave you the best advice they could. If you want something done, you go to the Gods for help. That''s how I got this job, actually."

    "Does it pay well?" I tilted my head with a raised Eyebrow.

    "You tell me." He sighed, "How much did those clothes set you back?"

    "They were free?"

    "Exactly." He halfheartedly tossed the boots in front of me before shooing me away, "Now go on, you''re holding up the line. Go, save your friends or whatever."

    "O-Oh, yeah..." I glanced behind at the large line that formed behind me, "Thanks for the boots!"

    "Come back anytime. You''re my favorite customer!"

    "Really?" I smiled back excitedly.

    "Hell no. None of you are." He revealed to the crowd as well, "I don''t get paid."

    Poor guy, so is he just stuck in that shop of his forever then? No, but he said he asked the Gods for the job, so surely he can opt out whenever he wants to. And if he can''t, I guess I can try asking him if he needs help getting freed... After I save these two first. Sab, it feels kind of wrong to be actively going in the opposite direction of where he was taken to, but that can''t be helped. Once I explain the situation to the Gods, they''ll surely get things done quicker than I would alone.

    "Excuse me, which way to the Gods'' Abode?" I asked a bystander.

    "Mn." He pointed to yonder with his chin.

    Around 2-3 blocks later, and still no dice. So I asked again.

    "Where do the Gods reside?" I asked a woman.

    "Just keep going forward and you''ll see it." She smiled back.

    "Okay, thank you."

    Four more blocks, and yet I still couldn''t see anything that stuck out. Now I''m expecting like a palace of sorts, or even just something that looks more grandiose than the other houses around, but nope, still nothing. So, upon walking some more, I found myself in front of two large doors. They were huge, I mean, 15 meters high at the least! The Gods said everyone gets a yard with their dream house each, so I can''t help but feel happy for the person living inside. I knocked on the doors, and two large, non-White colored floating men came out.

    "You again..." The lanky one muttered under his breath.

    "Hey, I got a question." I shouted with all my might in case my standard voice couldn''t reach them.

    "Ugh..." He let out a long sigh as his muscular friend comforted him.

    "Selz, it''s okay. This is just the price we have to pay for timeloops."

    "Guys?" I shouted.

    "Yes, miss." The friendly, muscular one smiled down at me, "Ask awa-"

    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    "Which way to the Gods'' Abode?" I asked.

    "...Pfft." The lanky one couldn''t hold back his mocking laughter.

    "Ack, Selzion!" The muscular one nudged him, "You''re being rude!"

    "Oh come on, this is hilarious!" His friend replied through tears, "Prylos, I knew she was dumb from before, but this just takes the cake! Surely you agree?"

    Eh? Selzion, Prylos, as in...? The God of Knowledge and Meditation respectively!? Wait, so this is how they looked like all this time!? I knew their appearance was different than the others, but I just thought this was another case of seraphim powers or whatever! Like, gigantism or something. Ah, I was walking for so long I didn''t even notice I was at the finish line already! No wonder there were no other people around me.

    "So wait..." I looked up at them confused, "You guys really live in such a random spot?"

    "...Come again?" They paused their laughter.

    "This is the Gods'' Abode, right? I got the right address, no?" I looked at the house again, "Kind of underwhelming. No offense of course, but for something that''s literally praised as the House the Gods reside in, I expected more."

    "Your expectations don''t matter, Migu." Selzion groaned.

    "Didn''t even get my name right. My name''s Magnes." I smirked smugly, "And you call yourself the all-knowing God of Knowledge..."

    "I''m gonna do it!" Selzion had to be held back by his friend as he threatened me with a Book and quill, "I''ll erase her from Heaven 2.0, don''t try and stop me Pry!"

    "Calm down, meditate! Meditate!" Prylos begged him to stop, "Breathe! Count to ten infinite! No, make that a hundred infinite! Selz-!"

    Heh, these two are funny.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Mig-" Prylos corrected himself, "...Magnes, we would like to formally extend our apologies to you for witnessing our little outburst."

    "It''s all good. As long as you help me with my request." I smiled back innocently enough.

    "Ugh, she''s incessant." Selzion rolled his Eyes, whispering not so savory things not so behind my back.

    "Ahem! W-What makes you think we are able to do that, Magnes?" Prylos still tried desperate to stave away the awkwardness.

    "I heard you guys are the go-to fixer-uppers for any and all problems one might have in Heaven." I shrugged, "Was I wrong? Am I a bother?"

    "Ye-"

    "No, Heaven''s no!" Prylos shut his friend up, "Of course not, no one in Heaven 2.0 is a bother! Ha-ha, now... What exactly is ailing you, Magnes?"

    These guys also seem to know me from before. Or maybe they''re just confusing me with some brat named Migu. It wouldn''t surprise me, honestly¡ªWe all look the same, dammit. Ah, but this little interaction did teach me to stay away from the lanky and moody Selzion whenever I need help. Thank goodness Meditation God was here to save the day, otherwise I''d have been kicked out ages ago.

    "I''m here to report a kidnapping." I explained.

    "Wait, huh?" They seemed surprised to hear it, "N-Not...? Ahem, not anything else?"

    "Well, there is one other thing." I recalled, "Also a missing person''s report."

    "Oh my Us..." One facepalmed, the other breathed a sigh of relief, "Well then, we can manage that just fine!"

    "Really!?" I jumped for joy, "Great, then..."

    "It''s S.B and L.G. isn''t it?" Selzion asked with a confident smirk.

    "E-Ey, don''t go making things complicated again!" Prylos warned.

    "How...?" I stepped back with Eyebrows pointed up, "How did you know that...?"

    These guys, much like the winged angel, they''ve definitely met me before. We might have even talked, from what it seems, but I can''t remember anything about either of them no matter how hard I try. I was beginning to suspect something like this was the case, but their knowledge of Sab and GaLi proved it. If... If they keep quiet for even a second more, I''m gonna have to run away.

    "......." Selzion suddenly burst into laughter "Bahahahaha!"

    "E-Eh?" I jolted, but thankfully stood my ground long enough for him to give his explanation.

    "Seriously? Look who you''re talking to, dammit!" Selzion pointed to himself in between wheezes, "God of Knowledge, of course I know everything!"

    "Oh..." I felt a bit dumb for that one.

    "R-Right." Prylos too seemed relieved before composing himself again, "Well, we know who they are, and we can certainly get them back to their homes by tomorrow morning."

    "Wait." I realized, "You guys are Gods, right?"

    "The creators of this world and the next, yes." They confirmed.

    "You can create worlds, and Selzion at the very least knows everything, according to your words." I continued pacing about in front of them.

    "I really don''t see why you''re so suspicious about this." Prylos shrugged, "I mean yeah, good on you for being wary, but like, nothing to be afraid of with us."

    "Alright then, prove it." I dared them, "Prove to me you are to be trusted."

    "Ugh, we really ought to install a gate to our yard..." Selzion whispered to his friend, "Alright then, what can we do to convince the lowly angel to trust us literal Gods?"

    "What are S.B''s and L.G''s names?" I asked.

    "Heavenly Beings can only know their initials." He tried dodging the question.

    "Stop beating around the bush. You''re the all-knowing God, right? You know what I''m talking about." I glared at him heavily, "What are the names they chose to go by?"

    They messed up my name, but I could honestly believe it if they just genuinely got me mixed up with someone else. That being the case, they claimed they knew everyone, and they got the right initials, so this is my way of having them prove something for me. It''ll sound strange if I suggest it myself, but if they answer wrong, then I know it''s the truth.

    "...Ah, of course. You lot have decided upon extending those initials into full names for greater ease." He nodded, "Then, I can answer that. Sab and GaLi, was it?"

    "A-Ah?" I felt my Eyes pop out of my head as I glanced up at his face, "Y-Yeah..."

    "Then, could you please leave me and Selz be so we can go save your friends?" Prylos asked nicely, "We would like to chat, but since you asked us to and all, well... You get it, right?"

    "Y... Okay?" I was baffled, to say the least.

    ...He got it right? Wait, nonono, I wasn''t expecting that at all. Wasn''t I supposed to be trapped in a time loop or something? I woke up without any memories, people already knew me, the Gods despised me, they said they''d find these two by tomorrow (presumably when time would reset back to this morning)... Yeah, it all added up to mean I was in a time loop, so what gives? What the hell, I was sure I just cracked the craziest and most elaborate case known to man, but now I just look like a crazy person soliciting the Gods!

    "S-Sorry for not trusting you..." I lowered my head down meekly.

    "Hey, it''s okay." They smiled warmly, "We''re happy that such a smart and wary girl is with us in Heaven 2.0."

    Since I was told to leave, after all, I barely had any other option but to do just that. With a queasy feeling of shame hung over my neck, I left their large yard feeling embarrassed as hell. They even let me go after I started acting all defiant and bratty, can such good people even exist? Ah, well, I guess they''re not just any ordinary people, so to speak....

    "Then, what now?" I looked around the street for anything else to do, "Guess I can always go clothes shopping again."

 Vol.2 Ch.28 - Helpful

    "So yeah, they said they''d handle it." I finished recounting the events that occurred at the Gods'' Abode, "By the way, these boots are really comfortable."

    "Was there ever any doubt?" The shopkeeper smirked proudly, "I know my stuff. Ah, by the way, new batch of clothes just dropped a minute ago."

    Reaching under the counter, he scrambled around under there for a bit before finally yanking out a large pile of clothes, both male and female. All sorts of colors, fabrics, materials and shapes were picked through carefully until the shopkeeper finally landed on a cute little bracelet made of silver. Promptly placing it on the counter, he asked me about my thoughts on it.

    "Congrats on a job well done." He smiled, "Consider this a reward."

    "Whoa, thank you so much!" I put it on immediately, "Okay, what else you got?"

    At this query, he got a bit confused. With furrowed brows he replied with rather upsetting news.

    "That''s... That''s it." He shrugged, "That''s all you get this time. Come back later, when another batch comes by."

    "Ehh? Come on, I saw you discard a bunch of cool looking stuff just a minute ago!"

    "Yeah, ''cause they wouldn''t fit you." He sighed, "Now move, you''re blocking the next customer."

    Again, the same thing happened as last time¡ªI turned around to see a large group of disgruntled angels annoyedly waiting for me to leave. Having said that, though, I really want something else to go along with the bracelet, otherwise just this much wouldn''t warrant a visit. Tch, and he has the gall to call me his favorite customer...!

    "Alright then, I''ll just pick something out myself!" I said, dashing over the counter as the crowd gasped in shock.

    "You...! Get out of here!" The shopkeeper was furious with me, "It''s bad enough that I don''t get paid for any of this, but now you''re gonna trespass as well?!"

    "Oh come on, I moved out of the line, didn''t I?" I said with a smug grin on my face, "Which means you can just continue your business while I check out some clothes for myself. Seriously, I won''t take anything until I''ve shown it to you beforehand."

    You could tell he really wanted to contest the idea, but his hands were tied until he finished serving all the customers. With a long and begrudgingly slow sigh, he gave me the thumbs up accompanied only by the world''s most annoyed scowl.

    "Fine, just don''t get in my way." He turned back to the customers.

    "Hey, can we go in there as well?" One customer asked.

    "No!" The shopkeeper shot back, "She''s already a handful as is, I don''t need any more of you suckers causing a ruckus in here!"

    "But how come she gets special treatment!?" Another girl from the crowd crossed her arms.

    "She''s-!"

    "Humu!" I proudly puffed my chest out, arms akimbo, "I''m his favorite customer, that''s why!"

    "....."

    The crowd was speechless. Well, not so much speechless as they were just left without words. The difference between the two is pretty smal, but it does exist. See, one means they were surprised and in shock that I said that, staring with awe at what my mouth had uttered, meanwhile the other is just a bunch of loud, awkward silence. Of course, we''re talking about the latter here.

    "...What did I tell you about getting in my way?" The shopkeeper glared.

    "Sorry! I''ll be quiet!" I bashfully lowered my head as I sunk back into the dimly lit interior.

    After that, the shopkeeper duly apologized for my behavior and the customers seemed empathetic of his situation, at least. I thought I was being a smartass by doing my own thing and jumping in here, but who''d have thought it''d turn out to be so embarrassing. Well, the past is the past. Right now, I ought to focus on finding me something nice to wear before the shopkeeper changes his mind on this whole arrangement.

    "If possible, I''d really like to swap out this shirt first." I thought, "He seems to only want me to take one item at a time, so for now the baggy, tanned pants will have to stay. That really heightens the difficulty, though, since I have to choose something that goes well with them as well..."

    If you''d have asked me, there was this really good looking deep Purple loose crop top that I saw within the pile, but that just wouldn''t work with the pants no matter how you sliced it. Besides, wearing Purple has that stigma around it... In any case, I have to go for the second best option, then!

    "Hey, can I have this?" I meekly tapped the shopkeeper''s shoulder as he turned around.

    "Ah, great! Thanks for fetching it for me." He took it out of my hands and immediately extended it towards the girl at the front of the line, "Here you go, miss. The silverish Gray would go really well with your skirt!"

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    "Hey, I wanted-!"

    "Do you finally get it now?" The shopkeeper interrupted my backlash with his own, "I give everyone the exact clothes that befit them. Taking even one out of my inventory would mean stealing from someone it was specially tailored for."

    "E-Eh?" I stopped.

    "Don''t be greedy." He said, turning back to ring up the next customer, "Yes, for you..."

    Everyone gets one... Tch, dammit, he could''ve told me that sooner! So then, when he said I could do as I pleased in here so long as I didn''t bother him and his work, he was just faking it! If I can''t take anything, then what was even the point of keeping me in here? Hmph, don''t call me greedy, jackass...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Right, we''re back on track again." He seemed relieved that the bulk of the customers had left by now, "Hm?"

    "Hey, this is the clothes shop, right?" A new customer popped up right as he said that.

    "Yes, for you, I think-"

    "Here, sir!" I presented the naked man with a snazzy outfit, "We''ll go with a tighter marine Blue undershirt to accentuate the muscles, which''ll go really well with this fur coat I found in the back! As for the lower half, how about we go with some dark Gray shorts just to keep you well-ventilated?"

    "Hey, you-!" The shopkeeper wanted to chew me off for interfering, but the customer, to his surprise, loved my suggestion.

    "Oh, awesome!" He put them on immediately, "A-Ah, I don''t gotta pay, right? I was told it''s free?"

    "Yep, so long as you take what you get!" I waved him off with a smiled, "Have a nice rest of your day! Come back soon for the next batch~!"

    Hehe, another happy customer! Oop, the shopkeeper''s furious with me. Why though, I was just examining what types of clothes he gives to his customers before this, so I was pretty sure I nailed what he was gonna say exactly.

    "Did I mess up the order?" I asked apologetically.

    "Mn... No, I would''ve given him the same thing..." He grumbled, "But what if I hadn''t!? You could''ve gotten me into a bunch of trouble, not to mention¡ªDidn''t I tell you to not get in my way!?"

    "Trouble? With who?" I tilted my head.

    "With who, she asks... The Gods, dummy." He sighed, realizing yelling at me had little to no effect, "In other words, my bosses."

    "What would happen if something went wrong?" I inquired, "Like, what would you classify as getting into trouble?"

    "Honestly? No clue, since it never happened before." He prepared the next set of clothes, "And I''d like to keep it that way. Seriously, how you even got the right outfit first try is a miracle in and of itself..."

    "Is it though? I just did what you would do." I explained my thought process, "For newcomers, you seem to favor practicality over vanity, so you''d give the women comfy, well-ventilated clothes and the men layered clothes with a bunch of pockets."

    "Ah, that''s-"

    "Also, there''s a certain theme I''ve noticed in the clothes you hand out." I snapped my fingers, "Adventure! You really like the sort of unorthodox adventurer look, so the contrasting fur coat coupled with the shorts was the most obvious pick. Ah, but since those clothes don''t work well with each other generally, I had to make sure I got the colors to match well."

    "You... You really have a knack for this." He admitted, mouth agape with a slight chuckle.

    "What can I say? I''m just the best." I shrug with a smug pride in my voice, "Besides, I do feel bad for annoying you all the time. Helping lower your workload even just a bit might not mean much, but if it lets you take even the smallest of breathers, I''d say I''m happy."

    "Is that how you view it?" He asked.

    "Am I wrong?" I figured, "A job without pay is slave work. I''d take it to upper management and request a change if I were in your position."

    "But I like my job." He smiled warmly, brushing his hand gently on the wooden counter, "It gives me a sense of purpose. Something to do, I guess."

    This shopkeeper... He actually has a personality behind that store clerk facade. Why am I genuinely surprised? I guess I just thought he wouldn''t ever say anything good about me.

    "I guess it makes sense." I nodded back, "Hey, can I ask you a question?"

    "Ha, sure." He joked, "But just one."

    "No promises." I giggled, "You always wear those gloves, so I can''t quite see them¡ªWhat are your initials?"

    "Why would you be interested?"

    "I wanna call you something other than just "shopkeeper". Please, could you tell me?" I begged.

    "Hmm, nah." He shook his head, "I think that title suits me just fine. Names are a thing of the past in this world."

    "...My name''s Magnes." I kept trying to wear him down, "From my initials, see? An M and a G. A friend gave it to me."

    "It suits you." He chuckled.

    "I wanna give you a name as well." I clasped my hands together, "After all, it''s rude to not know your friend''s name."

    His gaze moved back and forth between my hands and my Eyes. For a moment, I was sure this was going to win him over, but in the end he just wouldn''t budge.

    "...Hell no, you''d give me a super lousy sounding name." He teased.

    "Argh, I wouldn''t!" I stomped my boots furiously on the ground, "Come on, take ''em off!"

    "Phrasing."

    "If you don''t gimme your initials, I''ll name you Peanut Butter!" I threatened.

    "Pfft." He cracked a smile at that one, "Do as you wish. Anyways, is that all?"

    "Hmm... Ah, yeah, actually." I nervously gathered up the strength to ask, "Would it be okay for me to help out around the shop on occassion?"

    "What?"

    "I like doing this, it feels natural." I explained, "It''s as you said, it gives you something to do, plus I get to help lessen your workload. So, can I stop by tomorrow as well?"

    "...I guess you don''t really like listening to people." He sighed, "Didn''t I tell you only one question was allowed?"

    "What? You were being serious?" I raised my Eyebrows, "Oh come on, Peanut Butter."

    "Don''t call me that." He slumped forward.

    "Then show me your initials." I stood my ground.

    "Magnes-"

    "Lalala, not listening!" I danced around him until he stopped me by grabbing my wrist.

    "Hm?"

    "Magnes, please leave the shop." He asked in a stern tone, "You''re trespassing."

    "E-Eh? Wait, but-!"

    "Thank you for the offer, you''ll be getting a discount on your next visit." He hurried me out of the shop, "Come back tomorrow..."

    "Ah, okay...?" I dragged my feet on the ground as I left the area, "Weird... Hm? Wait a second! All the items are already free, so what the hell does he mean by discount!?"

 Vol.2 Ch.29 - Naivety

    Meanwhile, on GaLi''s side...

    "So, do you get it?" He finished explaining.

    "...No. What am I supposed to get?" The guy that previously attacked them responded, "You didn''t even explain anything. Hell, you were just staring off into silence until just a moment ago."

    "Ack, I was addressing the readers, sorry." He apologized, "Did you guys have fun with Magnes?"

    "Who''re you talking to, dude?" His ex-adversary couldn''t take it anymore.

    "I''m breaking the fourth wall, is it really not obvious enough for you!?" GaLi shouted, "Geez, have you ever read a book in your life?"

    "No, never." He shrugged back, "I know that for a fact."

    "Nuh uh, you only claim as much because you don''t remember your past life." GaLi reminded him.

    "Remember or not, I know I never read a book before."

    The sheer lengths this person would go to in order to convince GaLi of this fact were damn near incredible. Had he not known any better, GaLi would have probably believed his word, but there was just no feasible way a person could have known they never read a book before if their memories were wiped. There''s no proof backing that claim up.

    "How, Haunt?" GaLi addressed him by name, "Please explain to me your train of thought, because I''m finding it hard to visualize-"

    "I can''t read." Haunt admitted, "Letters, words, sentences, they''re all no good to me. Why do you think I asked you to give me my name?"

    "Eh? Seriously!?" GaLi jolted, "I thought you just couldn''t make out the initials because your hands are the same golden color as them! You''re saying you don''t actually know how to read?"

    "Nope." He replied.

    "So then, that sign above the female shopkeeper." GaLi pointed out, "Can you tell me what it says?"

    "How could I?" Haunt sighed, "I''m telling you, I can''t read a single letter at all."

    "Oh..."

    "Yeah..." Haunt paused for a moment, "By the way, what does it say?"

    "Clothes." GaLi read what''s written on the sign out loud, "It''s a clothes shop. And speaking of, we ought to get you some. Being naked isn''t fun anymore now that everyone''s started wearing clothes."

    "Was it ever fun?" Haunt asked.

    "It felt liberating."

    Deciding to follow through with his suggestion, the two stand in front of the clothes shop to discuss what to buy. The Gods had only implemented the shops in the previous cycle, yet most every angel was already wearing a decent outfit by now simply due to the sheer number of locales. It was practically impossible to walk more than a kilometer in any direction without finding the first ever business of Heaven 2.0. Granted, even just calling it a business was a bit odd, seeing as everything was free and didn''t gain any profits from existing.

    "Yo, get this fine man a matching outfit." GaLi smiled at the shopkeeper.

    "Who''re you to boss me around?" She clicked her tongue.

    His crude manner of speech was an instant Red flag in the lady''s Eyes. GaLi, having gotten the wrong impression that all shopkeepers would do as you said regardless of how you addressed them, immediately felt embarrassed by his previous greeting. Begrudgingly, the girl still did as she was told though and turned around to rummage through her inventory. It was her job, after all¡ªA duty she had to adhere to.

    "Golden arms, huh?" The girl lightly mocked Haunt, "What the hell kind of gruesome death did you go through?"

    "That''s what we''re investigating." GaLi replied for him, "This guy here''s terrified of Heaven and just wants to go back to the Living World to find out his past."

    "Cheh, don''t we all?" The girl cracked a smirk as she tossed Haunt his clothes, "Talking about finding out our past, of course. Who''d wanna leave Heaven?"

    "I would." Haunt shivered, "It looks peaceful now, but I know the truth about this place. White Monsters come to eat you after a while..."

    "...Uhhh huh." The shopkeeper glanced at GaLi suspiciously, "This guy for real?"

    "I''m telling you, he''s Haunted by some voodoo bullcrap, and that''s apparently scaring him into wanting to go back." GaLi shrugged as well, "I''m just helping a poor tortured soul out. Unlike him, I like it here very much."

    As they were talking, Haunt had finished putting on his clothes, however he did need some help from the shopkeeper to do all the buttons. A White shirt coupled with Blue overalls. The classic farmer''s look, only really missing the strawhat to complete it. Once that was over, the shopkeeper turned to GaLi.

    "What about you, fella?" She leaned on the counter, "Gonna hide those tits from the world or are you just the perverted type?"

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    "Men can be topless without being branded perverts though." GaLi refused to put on a shirt himself, "Besides, I don''t even have any nipples to show off."

    "Who the hell gave you only half of an outfit, even?" She rolled her Eyes, "Look, momma''s gonna get you a nice, clean shirt, so promise to wear it from now on."

    "You ain''t my momma." GaLi glared.

    "Maybe I am." She joked, "That''s the beauty of this place, isn''t it? The random guy you passed by might just be the most important person in your life down there, but up here, you only think of them as a stranger."

    "...Tch, I sure hope we''re not related." GaLi groaned as he snatched the Purple T-shirt from her hands, "What kind of a mother dresses her son in Purple? Are you telling me to go die?"

    "Not all parents wish their kids the best, sweetie." She said with a venomous smile, "Looking sharp!"

    "Screw you. Come on, Haunt!" GaLi turned away, "This woman gives me the creeps."

    "Is that really okay to say to a girl?" Haunt looked back confusedly.

    "Suddenly you''re a gentleman now?" GaLi chuckled, "Wow, it''s almost like you''re not the guy that beat up our crew just a few hours ago."

    "Again, sorry about that..." Haunt apologized.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hey, I have a question." Haunt decided to continue off of the previous conversation with the shopkeeper, "What''s so bad about Purple clothes?"

    "Seriously? You''re even asking me that?" GaLi understood that Haunt truthfully didn''t get the deal with it, so he set aside his attitude and honestly explained, "Sigh, how do I put it? It''s not about the clothes, but anything relating to Purple in general. You''ve heard of Iros, right?"

    "Not ringing any bells."

    "Gods, how is a person with such lack of basic knowledge even possible!?" GaLi was shocked beyond words, "F-Fine, calm down GaLi, deep breaths..."

    "I''m sorry."

    "No, not your fault for being uneducated. For all we know you could''ve been a bum on the side of the road your entire life." GaLi finally seemed calm enough to explain the story, "Take a look at my Eye Color, please."

    "...Black?" Haunt tilted his head upon inspecting it.

    "Yep, everyone in Heaven 2.0 has the same Eye Color. Black has an even worse connotation behind it, but we''ll talk about that later." He continued, "If you can recall, down there in the Living World, we had people with all sorts of Eye Colors."

    "And Purple was one of them?" Haunt presumed.

    "Yep, but it was said to be a cursed color, only reserved for those who were doomed in life." GaLi said ominously, "Very rarely would a person with Purple Eyes live a long or even happy life for that matter. That''s why anything colored Purple was generally something to steer clear of."

    "Wow, I didn''t know that!" Haunt seemed interested to hear more, "Oh, but you said Black Eyes were even worse, somehow? What''s worse than that?"

    "Let''s put it like this, if someone has Purple Eyes, their own life is doomed." GaLi put it into perspective, "If someone has Black Eyes, then it''s said the entire family tree is doomed."

    "In what way, exactly?"

    "Well, y''see kid, you''d see people with Purple Eyes all the time." GaLi pulled him close over the shoulder, "But Black Eyes are so rare that they''ve fallen into myth territory. I heard it only happens once every couple hundred years, and when it does, a huge disaster befalls the world."

    "That does sound scary." Haunt agreed, "Eh, wait!? But if one Black Eyed person means a great disaster, and we all have Black Eyes...!"

    "Hm, I guess you''re right." GaLi nodded along, "Well then, that''s all the more reason to get you outta here before that happens."

    "But what about you?" Haunt was panicking by this point, "Aren''t you scared of what''s gonna happen?! ...Gasp! It''s the White Monsters, surely!"

    "Again with that? Seriously, I wanna meet those White Monsters you''re so scared of." GaLi didn''t take him seriously, "Don''t worry about the rest of us, Haunt. I can at least speak for myself when I say I chose to stay here."

    It was the truth, GaLi had no intentions of throwing any White lies in Haunt''s way. In truth, it seemed everyone but Haunt himself was enjoying the peaceful vibes of their new paradise, so they had no reason to ever even consider leaving. In fact, though they started off as enemies, GaLi now finds himself responsible to look after and help Haunt find a way back home. But he himself is already accustomed to Heaven 2.0¡ªHis new home.

    "Of course, you could make it a lot easier for the both of us if you just decided to stay here as well." GaLi half-joked.

    "Don''t make me laugh. I''d rather get eaten by a bunch of goat skulls than give up on reviving."

    "Why though?" GaLi looked down for a moment, "The World of the Living ain''t all that better, in my opinion."

    "You know so much, GaLi." Haunt replied, "You''re knowledgeable about all sorts of things, always curious to know more, and I feel like you have an answer to every question I pose."

    "I''ve still got a long way''s to go, though." GaLi chuckled, "I just like learning new things."

    "Me, on the other hand¡ªI don''t know anything." Haunt continued, "My name, my past, folktales about Eye Colors... Heck, I can''t even read, dammit!"

    "Guess those were the cards you''ve been dealt." GaLi shrugged.

    "See that? I don''t even know what you''re talking about!" Haunt yelled, "What cards!?"

    "E-Eh? Like... poker cards, I guess?"

    "What in the world is poker!?" Haunt shouted to the skies, "You have no reason to go back home. After all, you know enough to get by in this world. But not me, I''m dumb and uneducated. I can''t see myself surviving out here for longer than a day!"

    Finally, it had clicked in GaLi''s mind. The reason why Haunt was so adamant about wishing to go back to the Living World. It''s not that he was scared of any White Monsters or felt uncomfortable and out of place in Heaven 2.0¡ªIt''s that he felt unprepared. Most people carried this feeling of fulfillment in their souls as they wandered the streets of Heaven, but he still felt like he had unfinished business. A life yet to be lived, in other words.

    "Tch, can''t be..." GaLi muttered, "What the hell, a young kid definitely wouldn''t survive getting both arms lopped off..."

    "Hm?" Haunt turned around, "Did you say something?"

    "I-I...!" GaLi thought of a rather simple excuse to not reveal to him the truth, "Heh, I''m just bummed that I have to help guide you back to your life again, kid."

    "Ah, I didn''t realize I was bugging you." Haunt meekly turned his back to him, "I''m sorry, you don''t have to-!"

    "Oi!" GaLi hooked his neck with his arm, "Who said anything about that, kid? Look, so long as I''m around, you''re going home, got it?"

    "Heh, gotcha!" Haunt returned a warm smile accompanied by fistbump.

    From enemies to best friends, that''s how it was supposed to be. But GaLi could no longer see his relationship as such. Haunt was but a child, naive to the ways of this world and the previous one, and he needed to be guided. From then on, GaLi vowed to protect this kid, and send him off back to the cruel world he longed for with a smile on his face. Until then, he would try to teach Haunt as much as he could before that time came...

 Vol.2 Ch.30 - Tutelage

    With the newly learned tidbit of information regarding Haunt''s past, GaLi understood it was important to treat his situation with a bit more delicacy. It was merely a hunch, but all the signs pointed to it¡ªHaunt was a child, and a rather young one at that. For him to not know so many basic facts about the world, that could be the only explanation. However, nothing was for certain in GaLi''s mind yet. His primary goal remains the same¡ªTo help Haunt revive.

    "You''ve been awfully quiet." GaLi noted, "You do realize we don''t actually have to pause for an entire day in between chapters, right?"

    "Huh?"

    "Never mind."

    "No, I wanna know now!" Haunt was adamant.

    His eagerness to learn was another reason for GaLi to suspect his youthful age. Despite his violent outbursts that more often than not would lead to detrimental levels of damage due to his body''s strength, he is very much a meek giant when it comes to actually conversing with others. The fact that Haunt let GaLi do all the talking with the shopkeeper was another dead giveaway.

    "Hm... Alright, just for you, I''ll explain my secret!" GaLi leaned in close to whisper, "I can break the fourth wall."

    "The... huh?" Haunt tilted his head, "Wall?"

    "Heh, right. Didn''t expect you to get that anyways." GaLi chuckled.

    "No, come on! Explain it properly!"

    "Alright, alright..." GaLi finally obliged, "Let''s put it like this, imagine a knight."

    "The kind that slays dragons?" Haunt inquired.

    "Umm, yeah. Sure, the kind that slays dragons." GaLi furrowed his brow, "Imagine the knight fights a dragon, and then suddenly equates the size of the dragon with you."

    "Eh? The knight knows me?" He cocked his head back in confusion.

    "Nope, and he doesn''t have to. Because you know him." GaLi added, "In a story, when the character seemingly breaks the barrier between him and the audience¡ªThat''s called breaking the fourth wall!"

    A most delicate art. For one to attain such a skill, they would only have to be born with it... Or the author could just help them out from time to time. Of course, though GaLi is aware of his innate connection to the audience''s world, he doesn''t in fact have this ability. He is, by all accounts, just making it up and constantly staring into a random imaginary camera whenever he does try to break the fourth wall. He just nails it every time, that''s his true secret.

    "So who do you break the fourth wall with?" Haunt still found it rather hard to wrap his head around the concept.

    "Them." GaLi pointed at you with a smirk, "Wave, those folks are the author''s lifeblood."

    "I don''t see anyone?"

    "Neither do I, but they see us." GaLi waved at you, prompting Haunt to follow suit, "Hello, dear readers!"

    "Uhh, hello..." Haunt bashfully waved, "I feel like people are staring at us. Are you sure someone''s really there?"

    "Yep!" GaLi grinned, "Just beyond the fourth wall!"

    Having lightened the mood a bit with this little side tangent, at the very least GaLi had gotten more enthusiastic about their mission. Haunt was still very much just following along, but given his friend is in a cheery mood, it only made sense for him to let out a few chuckles as well.

    "I''m learning so much from you." Haunt smiled warmly, "Gosh, it feels like you and I come from totally different worlds."

    "Nah, we''re probably from the same world, I think." GaLi replied, "Rather, it''s the era that differentiates us. You must be... ancient to not know all this."

    "Maybe I''m just dumb."

    What was supposed to be just a lighthearted self-burn in Haunt''s Eyes here had in fact been taken very seriously in GaLi''s. No matter how you sliced it, there was just no reason for Haunt to be blaming himself for his ignorance. Whether he was a child or a homeless man remained a mystery, but in both cases you really only have his circumstances to blame. Thus, you could say GaLi got a little heated when he heard his friend say this about himself.

    "No no, that won''t do, kid!" GaLi chewed him off, "No apprentice of mine will ever talk badly about himself! If you lose hope in yourself, then tell me¡ªWho the hell''s gonna make up for it?!"

    "Uhh, calm down. It was just a joke..." Haunt backed away slowly, "Eh, apprentice?"

    "You''re goddamn right! I''m taking you under my wing, apprentice! From here on, I''m your, uhh...!" GaLi bit his tongue, "Right, I''m your fourth wall breaking mentor! Yeah, so you better listen well if you wanna learn my ways!"

    "Uhh, sure, I guess?" Haunt was still more or less confused, "Still, what''s that got to do with me having faith in myself? Ah, not that I don''t."

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    "As you should!" GaLi nodded along, "As for what it has to do with fourth wall breaking¡ªThe answer is everything! Self-confidence is the most important aspect of talking to beings higher than yourself!"

    "Alright, I get it. I won''t talk badly about myself." Haunt looked around embarrassedly, "So could you please stop shouting in the middle of the street?"

    There was no reason to be embarrassed, however. At least that''s what GaLi thought. For it was his ideology that one should always wear their beliefs on their sleeve if they wanted to make it come true. Besides, ironically enough, GaLi was merely masking his true intentions with this so that he could teach Haunt something truly important¡ªAfter all, the promise he made to himself to prepare Haunt as much as he could for the day he returns to the World of the Living was the most important goal of all. GaLi could just send the kid off to revive as is, but he wanted to go a step beyond that. He wanted Haunt to not only survive this time, but to thrive as well.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "About your friends..." Haunt recalled.

    "What, you''ve already apologized about that hundreds of times by now." GaLi sighed, "Seriously, kid. It''s okay, you were scared, I get it. No hard feelings."

    "Mnn, rather than that..." He shrunk into himself, "Was it really okay on your end to just leave them without any explanation?"

    Finally, the reader might be inclined to shout, they''re addressing this part of the story! Was it an error from the author? Did he finally come up with a somewhat plausible explanation for GaLi just up and disappearing from Magnes'' watchful Eye? Indeed, GaLi was more than happy to give the explanation in his stead!

    "Hrm, so suddenly you''re the one judging me..." He frowned.

    "E-Eh!? No, I just wanted to-!"

    "Pfft, calm down, apprentice. I''m just joshing ya''." GaLi cracked up at Haunt''s reaction, "Seriously though, it''s not like the three of us were that close, really. I mean, I only met the two of them for the first time a few minutes before I did you."

    "Oh..."

    "Yeah, so-Wait, that came out wrong!" GaLi immediately corrected himself when he noticed Haunt''s sullen expression, "That doesn''t mean I don''t consider you a friend, apprentice! R-Right, because the two of us bonded way more after we met than I did with those two! Yeah, that''s it!"

    "Oh." He sprung back up.

    "Phew. Right, so as I was saying¡ªThat girl had her own goal in mind. Looks like she wanted to learn a bit more about this place. Especially about the winged guy we met before that."

    "There are people with wings here?" Haunt''s hairs stood on end the moment he pictured it in his head.

    "Yeah, but it really isn''t as scary as you think. Dude''s just like any other, except that addition really boosts his ego." GaLi mocked Throne''s unfriendly nature, "Basically, that girl really wanted to figure out how to get wings herself, and that other guy... Hm, now that I think about it, I think she just roped him into her story the same way she did me."

    "So you two are victims?"

    "Nononononono!" GaLi burst out laughing, "Don''t phrase it like that!"

    Constantly, he was reminded that Haunt didn''t know any better, and that his words really were meant to be taken at face value. An innocent mind is good for the soul, but that also makes it prone to getting tarnished. It was wholesome in GaLi''s Eyes, to see that kid''s innocence proudly displayed to the world, and it was exactly that very same purity that he so desperately wanted to protect. He wanted to teach the kid how to be an adult, but not with the aid of dirty jokes.

    "What?" Haunt got a bit fussy as his mentor seemingly laughed at him, "Was it something I said? Stop laughing!"

    "Bahaha, nah! It''s just... Pfft, hahahaha! Oh Gods I''m a horrible person!" GaLi couldn''t control himself anymore, "Phew! Okay GaLi, calm down, he''s just a... just a... Phahaha!"

    "Grrr...!" Haunt pushed him as he spilled past his tipping point, "I said stop laughing!"

    The push, or in this case, the full on shove had sent GaLi directly to the ground. Once again, it seems his apprentice had proven the absolute strength his golden arms carried with them, but at what cost? A strongman''s body, when wielded by a child mentally, could only beg for trouble. Though he himself didn''t mind, as he did accept he had it coming to him, GaLi still wanted Haunt to learn that getting too hung up on others'' comments could end up costing him plenty in the Living World.

    "Oops! Sorry!" Haunt immediately ran to check on his mentor.

    "Heheh, no good, apprentice!" GaLi shook it off with a laugh, "Do you just shove anyone and anything when they think to chuckle your way or something?"

    "Urk..." Haunt slumped forward, "Not women."

    "Oh? We have a gentleman on our hands, then! I see momma taught you well!" GaLi''s Eyes gleamed, "Then, I got the hard part done for me already. Listen here, kid¡ªFrom now on, you treat everyone with the same respect you''d give to a woman!"

    With this order, GaLi wanted Haunt to learn that by treating others how you want to be treated is the simplest route to success in life. He noticed it before, but when Haunt lunged at Magnes that one time, he didn''t raise his fists. Rather, he merely wanted to grab her into his embrace so as to not seriously hurt her. The same could be seen with the female shopkeeper¡ªHaunt was meek and quiet, wanting only to respect her position of authority and accepting the first piece of clothing the girl picked out for him. It was made apparent from these exchanges alone that Haunt is someone very averse to the idea of roughhousing, badmouthing or otherwise disrespecting women, so just by extending that filter to men as well, he would surely have a lot easier of a time once the day came he had to separate from GaLi.

    "Ehhh, I dunno." Haunt, however, discarded the suggestion completely, "If I treat both men and women equally, then it wouldn''t really be called special treatment anymore, would it?"

    "Now where''d you learn a term like that?" Even GaLi was confused.

    "Life, I guess." Haunt shrugged, for he too didn''t know, "Maybe someone down there taught me."

    "...Anyways, I don''t care. As your mentor, you are to do as I say. No backtalk!" GaLi chewed him out, "So long as you''re under my roo-Well, jurisdic-Nah. Okay, so long as you''re under my guidance¡ªYou are to respect anyone and everyone equally!"

    "Harumph..."

    "What? What now?"

    "My mentor just told me to beat women, of course I''d be sad..."

    "No! I didn''t-!? Gah, dammit!" GaLi lost it at that one, "No gold star for you! That''s a, a WOODEN star! For pissing me off, you get a very bad, poorly made wooden star!"

    "Oh cool, thanks."

    "Don''t be proud of it! That''s a mark of shame!"

    "I love wooden toys though." Haunt tilted his head, "So, when am I getting it?"

    "Never! You don''t deserve it!"

    "Aww..."

    It appears that preparing a child for the world is not as easy as GaLi might have originally thought. At this point, he was even considering intentionally postponing the plan to revive Haunt just so he could properly cram all the tips and tricks he had to pass down to him. It ain''t easy being a new parent.

 Vol.2 Ch.31 - Energetic

    At the same time, inside the Shrine...

    "I hate everything." Vastoria limped down the stairs, "Stupid Vastoria, stupid! Why did I have to lose my wings? Ugh, how am I ever gonna get back home after this?"

    Here we returned to a rather regretful female seraphim. With her friend separated and her wings gone, she had no other choice but to painfully walk through each and every dark corridor of the Shrine. She wasn''t harmed in any way, but merely stepping on her right foot would cause her a great deal of discomfort. Gilded parts are awfully sensitive to the touch, after all.

    "Throne got what I was trying to do, right?" She tried to keep her mind off the discomfort by talking to herself, "I hope he gets here soon. I''d liked to have waited for him at the entrance, but he''d definitely just get mad at me for wasting the opportunity to explore."

    Now more than ever, the term "unfamiliar territory" applied itself to the Shrine Vastoria was in. She didn''t know the layout, the contents nor the rules of this dungeon, and for all she knew she could get teleported out any second. There''s also a non-zero possibility of finding a White Monster lurking around each and every corner of this decrepit cave. Still, progress had to be made, no matter how scare it was.

    "Light..." She squinted once she entered the next layer of the Shrine, "Oh, that''s convenient."

    Before her very Eyes, the labyrinth in front of her had seemingly began to twinkle like the night sky. One star illuminated the path, then another, then a third... But these were no stars. Nay, she was in a dungeon, aftera all, and inspecting the specks of light only revealed them to be tiny little crystals peeking out of the dungeon walls, floor and ceiling. She had reached floor 2 of the Shrine.

    "Fascinating... Whoa!?" She felt her balance betray her as she hugged the wall, "Ugh, guess that''s another thing to be wary of..."

    The more she walked, the twistier the place had gotten, and as she made her way deeper into the crystal cavern, it felt more and more like even gravity was beginning to shift. By now, she had already switched from walking on the "floor" to walking on the "left side wall". Whether or not it was really gravity or just the architecture of the Shrine remained a mystery in her Eyes. All sense of direction was robbed of her in such darkness.

    "Ah, there it is." She chuckled, "Finally, I was wondering when it was gonna make its appearance¡ªA fork in the road."

    Picking the fork up, she had pondered whether to keep it or throw it aside. Realistically, there was nothing to dine upon here, nor would she ever start to feel hunger given the fact Heavenly Beings couldn''t starve. Still, her hands were free, and this eating utensil proved to be the first piece of loot she could hold in her inventory. Who knows, maybe it''s an important key to solve a future puzzle or something.

    "All jokes aside, this place just never ends." She eventually stopped walking for a bit to take a breather, "I wish I had some shoes, dammit... I got so used to puffy clouds that these rigid rocks are a nightmare in comparison."

    At the very least, she reasoned, her path was a simple one. It was a bit disorientating, and she felt she was making a lot of twists and turns during her descent, but there truly were no branching paths, traps or the like. For now, so long as she found the end of the tunnel, there was nothing stopping her from potentially learning the secret to resurrection.

    "Phew, alright Vastoria. That''s enough rest for now." She hyped herself up, "Time to-Hrmph!"

    Shutting herself up the moment she heard something in the distance, she quietly tiptoed towards the next 90 degree turn. Behind this very corner was something that was alive. Breathing sounds, they were ragged, and frankly seemed almost in pain. From experience, she knew this sound all too well.

    "A White Monster..." She whispered to herself, "Oh no, oh Gods... What now?"

    This was it, the end. Her only paths were forwards or backwards after all, and due to the barrier encompassing the Shrine just outside, even the latter of the two seemed bleak. Right now, a goat skulled individual was within arm''s reach of her, and all she had to do was turn the corner for them to meet. Of course, her first instincts were to shut her Eyes and listen closely. The thing is, White Monster Apostles maintain a "passive until provoked" mindset towards seraphim. Even without her wings, it should still recognize her as such, meaning she could possibly just walk right past it, and it won''t chase after her. Thus, she steeled her resolved, gripped her fork tightly, and turned the corner.

    "Ghahh, haaaaaahhh..." The White Monster''s breathing began to speed up the moment she showed herself to it, "Ghack, hack!"

    "Mn..." She held her breath as she trudged past him.

    Slowly, carefully, she walked so quietly that not even a sleeping baby could wake up from her footsteps. By all accounts, there was no scenario in which the White Monster would have reacted to her. Tracing the wall next to her with her fingertips, she finally found the next turn. Success, she had made it!

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    "Stop..." It beckoned her over, "Please stop..."

    "L..." She bit her tongue, daring to reply to it, "Let me go about my way, please. I''m not gonna open my Eyes."

    "S-STOP!" It suddenly let out a blood-curdling screech.

    Vastoria had mere seconds to react. Turning around whilst still keeping her Eyes closed, she punted the fork straight at the White Monster in a last ditch effort. To her surprise, the sound of the fork impaling it came a bit later than expected. Contrary to her belief, it had not actually lunged at her. Still, its pained screamed awoke her to the truth.

    "AAAARGH!" The voice screamed, "AHHH GOD, WHY!?"

    The Heavenly Being that was in that corridor with her was not a White Monster.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Why, woman? Why!?" The man yelled.

    "What now?" She contemplated, "This... No, it has to be a trick. White Monsters mimic others'' voices all the time to get you to open your Eyes. You can''t trick me!"

    "Agh, wrong, you fucking idiot!" He chewed her off, "They only mimic voices you know!"

    "Oh, right..." She deflated.

    A blunder, there was no other way to call this situation. Vastoria had just attacked someone with a fork, and to make matters worse, she did it without even checking who that person was beforehand. In her mind though, she was more surprised with her blind aim than anything else. Really, for the man to be feeling the pain from getting a fork stuck in him must mean Vastoria perfectly hit his golden spot. Now, what could it be? She aimed kind of low, going off of the source of the breathing, so was it the face? The shoulders? The chest? Opening her Eyes, almost excited to find out, she was instead met with a gruesome sight.

    "Oh dear God!" She jolted, immediately switching gears to go back and help him, "Sir, y-you''re bleeding!"

    "No shit, you threw a fork at me!" He shot back angrily, "Take it out, dammit!"

    "N-No, that''s not what I''m talking about!" She still found it hard to believe, "You''re bleeding from your Eye!"

    "I said take it the fuck out already, geez!" He was practically screaming at this point, "It hurts like hell!"

    "B-But, your Eyeball isn''t..."

    Golden, is what she wanted to say, but just that mere fact scared her from vocalizing it. Here sat a wounded man in Heaven 2.0. Already, this was supposed to be a terrifying thought, but then you add in the fact that he''s bleeding. It''s been so long since Vastoria saw any blood in her life, she had almost forgotten that it was a thing. After all, she only knew of it from her time in the World of the Living. Carefully, she put her hand on the fork''s rear end.

    "A-Ah, you''re gonna dig out my Eyeball!" He held onto his face tightly, "Dammit, first my foot, now my Eye..."

    "Your foot?" She looked down, only to see a pool of blood where his left foot was supposed to be, "Oh Gods!"

    "H-Hey, careful while you''re holding the fork!" He chewed her out, "Okay, on the count of three, you''re gonna try and yank the fork out WITHOUT taking my Eye along with it."

    "Okay." She took a deep breath.

    "One, two..." He steeled his resolve before handing out the order, "Three! A-Ack, you didn''t pull hard enough!"

    "Four, five, six...!" She kept tugging and pulling to no avail.

    "It''s not a fucking gym workout, stop going to failure!" He begged before falling on his back, "Doof!"

    "Ah, got it." She breathed a sigh of relief as she held the bloody fork in her hand, with the black and White Eyeball stuck firmly on its prongs, "Yah!"

    "You moron, I told you to leave the Eyeball in!" He lunged at her with just one Eye.

    "Ew, stay back!" She started waving the fork in between them to set some distance, "Get away, get away!"

    "Gimme back my Eye, woman!" He took the fork from her before shoving the Eyeball into its socket.

    "Yuck..." Vastoria scowled before asking, "So, did it work...?"

    "Of..." He blinked a couple of times, "Of course it fucking didn''t."

    "You put it on backwards, eugh!" She couldn''t even look at the man''s face.

    "Hm? Oh." He rotated it like one would a bearing until, "Still nothing."

    "I''m somehow not surprised. Eyes can''t just get put back like that..." She still didn''t wanna look, "Sorry, I thought you were a White Monster."

    "What, is that like this place''s equivalent to rotted?" He asked, promptly popping the Eye out after he realized there was no salvaging it.

    "Rotted? No, they''re humans with goat skulls for heads." She explained the concept, "Look one in the Eye and you go to sleep until the next reset."

    "Eh? Just that?" He actually laughed, "Geez, you gouged a guy''s Eye out over a sandman goat thing?"

    "Don''t put it like that, you''re making it worse..." She sulked.

    "You deserve it! What the hell, now I don''t have both Eyes because of you!" He barked.

    But how, Vastoria pondered in her head. Taking another look at the Eye, it was White with black Pupils. Just like anyone else''s. He didn''t have any gilded parts on his body just like her, but he somehow still felt pain. Not only that, but he''s actually an amputee. He''s missing his left foot, something that should be impossible in Heaven 2.0. In fact, the only gold he had on him were the stitches going from the back of his neck to his forehead.

    "Quit looking at me all dumbfounded, surely you''ve noticed it too by now." He pointed out, "Inside this Shrine, we feel pain normally just like we would in the Living World. Actually, my head''s never felt better than now, so I imagine the Shrine flips the script and makes it so our golden parts are the only numb parts we have."

    "It''s inverted..." She put her hand over her heart, realizing it truly stopped hurting every time it beated, "Wait, your head-?"

    Wishing to inquire about it, she certainly didn''t expect the man to already be in the process of showing what he meant to her. Undoing the golden threads carefully, the man pried open his scalp like a vertical mouth, revealing the truth behind his being.

    "My name is Energy, taken from N.G, and I have a golden brain."

    "That''s..." She immediately booked it in the opposite direction, "Yaaaahhh! Gross, gross, totally gross! Don''t follow me~!"

    "...Crazy lady." He squished the scalp back in place with a smirk before realizing, "O-Oi, wait up! I can''t move without my foot, come back!"

 Vol.2 Ch.32 - Shrine Exploration

    "..."

    "......"

    "Mn..."

    "...Oh." He noticed her peeking around the corner, "You came back, good on you."

    "Sorry for getting scared and running off like I did." She bashfully apologized.

    "It''s okay, not everyone''s born to survive." He chuckled.

    The man seemed friendly, though his appearance was rather unnerving, to put it lightly. Though his body had no external gilded parts, much like for Vastoria''s case, his brain was made of complete gold. Not only that, but unlike Vastoria, he could undo the golden suture scars and freely show it to the world. This made her finally realize another key difference in his appearance when compared to the other male Heavenly Beings she''s seen.

    "You''re bald!" She pointed at his shiny noggin.

    "Hair don''t really work well with my situation." He replied grumpily, "Besides, who needs it? All hair''s good for is getting stuck in bad places and to give your opponents another thing to grab you by."

    "That''s... true." She finally lifted him up, helping him balance by placing his arm over her shoulder, "Energy, you said your name was?"

    "Yep, yours?" He asked, "I can understand if you want to keep it a secret."

    "A-Ah, no. I''m Vastoria." She hastily replied.

    "That your real name?"

    "Does anyone here know their real name?" She chuckled, "No, it''s just an alias, I guess. Gotta call me something."

    "Cheh, ain''t that the truth." He laughed as well.

    Once they got moving, it was a bit of a slow burner for a while before they got used to balancing on each other, but they eventually got used to it. Behind them Energy constantly left a trail of blood from his missing foot. It was terrifying for Vastoria to even look over her shoulder, and yet despite this he was as talkative as ever.

    "What brings you to this fine establishment?" He asked.

    "The Shrine? I... I heard of a rumor regarding this place." She quietly replied.

    "You''d like to revive as well?" He raised an Eyebrow, "It''s okay, you don''t have to look so surprised. Everyone that''s aiming for the Shrine believes that''s what awaits us at the bottom."

    "Rumors spread quick..." She noted.

    "It makes sense. There''s at least a trillion of us in Heaven now, so statistically, at least someone''s gonna get bored eventually and wanna leave." He explained, "Not me, though."

    "Eh? You don''t wanna go back?" She furrowed her brows.

    "You''re crazy if you think I''m going back." He shook his head, "Scavenging for food and water, hopping from one shelter to the next, fighting off hordes of rotted... Nah, in comparison to that hellhole, this is way better."

    Verily, not everyone''s experiences in the Living World were the same. Some were born in an era of technology, others in a more steampunk setting, and then there are the medieval times of course. Vastoria understood this all too well, and she obviously had no reason to judge him for this decision. After all, she herself only wanted to figure out the secret to revival so that she could help Migu and her friends.

    "Rotted... You keep mentioning that word in passing, but what are they exactly?" She gulped.

    "It''s what we call sick folks." He explained, "Poor bastards that got struck with a curse."

    "You mean down there or up here?"

    "Where do you think?" He groaned, "You ever heard of the Black Eye myth?"

    "That''s... No way." She found it hard to believe, "So, were you...?"

    "Course not." He shook his head, "When someone''s born with black colored Pupils, they say a cataclysm occurs for as long as that kid lives. I don''t remember my time in the Living World, but I do know how life was back while I was there."

    Each time a black Eyed child was born into the world, it was said to have cursed the entire next few generations that came after it. That being the case, there hasn''t ever been any recorded witnesses throughout history of such a person existing. In other words, it was just superstition¡ªA myth used to demystify the horrible events that would take place throughout the ages. Massive floods, famine, wars, and even more unexplainable things would befall the world. Energy, as it so happened, was born during one of these disastrous eras...

    "A plague befell the world, made people lose themselves." He explained, "They would start to feast on the healthy humans, and given a couple more years, barely a third of the human population remained."

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    "Geez, a plague that turned people into cannibals?" Vastoria shivered, "Scary..."

    "That ain''t even the worst of it." He continued, much to her dismay, "Their appearance grew disgusting over time. Their bodies began to rot off the longer they starved for, yet they would continue to attack relentlessly. They had human flesh on their minds and nothing else. Honestly, they didn''t even look like humans anymore..."

    "...."

    A terrifying dystopian reality. The world he lived in was the most accurate depiction of pure, unadulterated nightmare fuel she had ever heard of. In comparison, the White Monsters truly did seem like child''s play. Rotting cannibals that infected the world... And the worst part is that Energy lived through that. The fact that this is how he remembered the World of the Living means he''s never seen a "normal" world, or at least he''s forgotten about it. Of course, it all made sense now¡ªNo wonder he didn''t want to ressurect back into such a world.

    "So then, your brain being golden...?" She reasoned.

    "Don''t ask me." He shrugged, "Not like I''d remember."

    Of course, the story behind an angel''s golden parts was a mystery to everyone including the angel themself. For all he knew, he might''ve been eaten by the rotted, and he might''ve gotten that done by something else. He won''t ever find out the truth, but given the disturbing nature of the wound... He probably won''t ever want to.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "And then?" She looked down, "What happened to that?"

    "My foot? Heh, that wound''s recent, I''m afraid." He shook his head with a pained expression, "Stepped on a trap, got it lopped clean off during my descent down the Shrine."

    "That happened before I found you, then?"

    "Well it couldn''t have happened after, sunshine."

    The Shrine''s most noticeable effect¡ªThe swapping of the gilded and the White parts of a Heavenly Being''s body. Vastoria first witnessed this through Throne''s broken hand once he tried smacking the barrier just outside. In other words, these two were mostly reduced to their original human forms, in the sense that they could potentially get hurt like normal. Get hurt, or in this case, lose a body part. The only question that remained now was whether or not these wounds were permanent. What will happen to them once they leave the barrier? Once the reset happens, will the wounds carry over, or heal? Only time could tell.

    "H-Hey, watch it!" He stumbled a bit once she stopped dead in her tracks, "W-Whoa..."

    "You said this place was riddled with traps?" She pointed to the pressure plate just a few millimeters away from where she placed her foot, "This... wouldn''t happen to be one of them, would it?"

    "It would." He grit his teeth, "And coincidentally enough, it''s the same one that took my foot from me. Nice catch."

    Vastoria was petrified, this could have very easily ended her whole spelunking adventure just like that. Four centimeters, that''s how close she was to stepping on it. Energy explained how the trap would have worked¡ªOnce she stepped on the pressure plate, it would drop down just enough to make her foot sink to around ankle depth. After that, the surrounding floor tiles would''ve snapped together like a mouth, gobbling up her foot in one gruesome chomp. This would also explain why she never found any traces left of Energy''s foot when she found him lying up against the wall the first time.

    "This Shrine, it''s mighty clean despite the showy deathtraps it displays." He laughed once he realized this, "Maybe that''s the kind of thing we''re up against, maybe the Shrine''s endgoal is to eat us whole. I have to wonder, just how many of our brethren are trapped within these walls."

    "...Come on, not like we can turn back now." She scurried around the pressure plate before continuing down the stairs.

    "I know." He followed suit.

    Very soon, they had entered the next layer of the Shrine. Unlike the first floor, which didn''t seem to have any traps and mostly resembled a regular stone brick interior, and the second floor which seemed to be going for the crystal cavern feel and a tiny bit of traps¡ªThe third floor was ruthless from the start."

    "Jungle?" Vastoria looked around.

    "Gah, something''s coming! Look out!" Energy pushed her away.

    A giant bat. It was human size, yet it''s face most resembled that of a cockroach''s. A horrifying mixture, and one you definitely wouldn''t want to see lung at you full force. Vastoria got lucky with Energy shoving her to safety, but it did come at a mighty cost.

    "AAHHHH!" Vastoria screamed her lungs out as the ungodly creation feasted upon Energy''s body, "AAAAAHHH, NO! OH GODS!"

    He was dead. The beast went for the face first, almost as if it knew that would cause him the most disgust and fear. It also had the effect of not killing him immediately, meaning for a grueling 10 or so seconds, the rest of his body shook wildly to try and salvage its owner''s life. After a while, the mad flailing was reduced to mere reflexive twitches. After it was done, the headless body fell daintily splayed out on the floor in front of Vastoria.

    "Y-YAAAAAHHHH!" She screamed, for she soon realized she was next.

    As the bug bat craned its head slowly to its next victim, she feared even gazing upon its beady soulless Eyes. Shutting her own Eyes like never before, she felt liquid build up in her clenched fists. She was petrified, only able to squeeze the one thing she had on her¡ªThe fork. Her palm was bleeding wildly, but that remained the least of her problems. Hearing the loud, earblasting sounds of the insect wings flapping ever closer towards her, everything around her had seemingly stopped.

    "...A-Am I dead?" She peeked her Eyes open to see a wild sight, "Eh? I''m back in the crystal caves... W-Wha-!? Energy!?"

    "Vastoria." He looked directly at her with a bloodshot, wide open Eye, "What just happened?"

    They were alive, and Energy''s head was still attached to his body. They had somehow turned back the clock to just before the entrance to the third floor, and there was no crazy cockroach bat attacking them.

    "...Heh, hahaha!" Vastoria began to laugh at the absurd situation presented to them, "So that''s how it''s gonna be, huh!?"

    "Lady, what do we do?" He noticed her bloody palm, "V-Vastoria?"

    Regretably, she was still shaken up from the encounter. Even after she had returned to safety, she still tightly clenched the fork in her hand to the point where she bled. The bug monster was there, waiting to pounce on them and deliver the gruesome, horrifying death once more. They had no other choice but to go deeper, and it appeared that they had infinite retries, with each new floor reached serving as a sort of checkpoint. To make matters worse...

    "Don''t you get it, Energy?" She turned to him with a crazed smile, "Even if we killed that thing, this is only the very entrance."

    "...In other words, we''re only getting started." He sighed, only having the strength to accept their fate, "Meaning if we wanna reach the bottom, we better get used to seeing some real fucked up shit."

    "How many more deaths do you reckon we have left?" She asked.

    "Let''s try and avoid having to find out." He sat down before the staircase, opting to think up a proper plan to combat the monsters that lurked further below, "Not everyone''s born to survive."

    "But we are." She decidedly agreed, choosing to sit down with him and do things properly, "We are absolutely not gonna die a second time."

 Vol.2 Ch.33 - Extermination

    "What do we do?" Vastoria asked, "We don''t have any equipment, our only weapon is a fork, and somehow we''re supposed to fend off a large, human-sized cockroach bat."

    If they at least had a sword or something a tad more lethal, fhen maybe they would''ve stood a better chance the first time around. Nonetheless though, it wouldn''t have made too much of a difference because Energy was wounded. If they wanted to move past this beast, then they had to go about it another way.

    "I got an idea." Energy thought about it, "The monster, which part of your body did it attack?"

    "Which part?" She tilted her head, "Oh geez, I don''t recall..."

    It was her squeamish nature that made her close her Eyes to the world all too early. Having witnessed the gruesome demise of her new friend right in front of her, and knowing full well that she was next, in the end it just made her completely blank out in her final moments. Then again, since she couldn''t remember, it also didn''t disprove Energy''s hypothesis, just as much as it didn''t prove it.

    "I have a feeling it feasts mostly on gilded parts." He knocked on his head, "After all, it really mauled my face before I could finally croak."

    "Yuck, don''t remind me of that moment..." She whimpered, "But if it eats golden parts..."

    ...Then it must have gone for Vastoria''s chest, or rather, the heart of gold within it. This would make sense as well, since once she lost her heart, then she most probably didn''t live long after that anyways. This was a very valid assumption by Energy, hence why his next plan seemed extra crazy in comparison.

    "I''m gonna lure it with my golden threads." He undid his head again, "Once it''s busy eating those, we can run right past it and continue on."

    "Ah, don''t..." Vastoria weakly tried to stop him from showing his brain again, "Sigh, even if what you said is true, then what will we do if we run into another gold eating monster?"

    Of course, they only had one thread that was previously used to stich his head together, but there''s no way this is the only monster they''ll run into. To begin with, they have no clue how many more floors they''ll have to endure, and this is only the 3rd anyways. It''s best not to commit to too many self-sacrifices to make their way down the Shrine.

    "I don''t see you coming up with anything better." He pouted, "But don''t worry, my plan doesn''t involve us losing anything we currently possess."

    "Guess there''s no getting through to you..." She sighed, "Hm? Oh, I just realized."

    "What? What now?"

    "If it can sense our golden parts from within, then why would it ever go for a bit of thread when it can just beeline it to your brain?" She asked.

    After a long pause shared between them, he eventually brushed Vastoria''s worries off as he singlemindedly began walking down the stairs to the jungle layer. Though she wanted to call out to him, she was also too terrified of alerting the beasts that lurked just below. Timidly, she walked a step or two behind him, getting ready to run back up the stairs at any moment if something were to jump out at them.

    "Hey, stand in front." He ordered.

    "What the hell? No, it was your plan to begin with!" She shot back in a nervous whisper.

    "You can see double what I can, and you can sure as hell run a lot faster." He tossed her the thread, "Look, all I''m gonna ask of you is to dangle the thread through the door while you peek out to see when it notices you."

    "Isn''t that the most dangerous part of the job, though!?" She yelped.

    "Is it? Well lucky for me then." He chuckled, "You''ll be happy to know I''ll gladly take your spot in this plan, but then you''re gonna have to be the one to kill it with the fork."

    "...Come again?"

    "Yep, I like it!" He smirked, "I''ll lure it into the tight passage way we''ll come from, and when it gets its cockroach head stuck inside, you impale its brains out with the fork. Heh, originally I wanted me to have to do it, but since you''re so willing..."

    "N-No, I''m good!" She immediately backpaddled, "You do it, please! I''ll gladly be the bait!"

    "Heh, thought so."

    A few dozen steps later, and they could see the Green moss begin to show itself from around the corner. They had made it once more to the place where they previously died. This time would be different though, because this time they knew what was coming up. With a deep breath to steel her resolve, Vastoria just barely peeked out through the doorframe.

    "Do you see it?" Energy whispered.

    If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    "It''s..." She gulped, "It''s there. Hanging from the ceiling. Ugh, if that thing jumps at me, I''m screaming..."

    "If my theory is right, it definitely shouldn''t." He explained, "Until you show the thread, that is. The moment it even makes the tiniest of moves, you back off behind the wall, got it?"

    "Okay-"

    Grabbing her hand that held the threads carefully, Energy made sure to warn her once more for good measure. She was jumpy, shivering from the anxiety and fear, so he knew she probably didn''t fully understand his advice.

    "Listen to me carefully. The moment even a single muscle in that thing moves, you run the fuck back." He stated, "Don''t wait until it starts flying, by then it''ll be too late."

    "Hmph!" She yanked her arm free, "I got it the first time. Just be sure to really dig that fork in deep. If it starts squirming and thrashing, I might fall unconscious."

    "Wouldn''t want that." He joked, "Good luck."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Once more, she peeked her head out the doorway. Normally in these scenarios, one would expect a plot twist to the effect of "The monster was no longer there!" or something similar, but no¡ªIt remained firmly hanging from the ceiling up above. It had the body of a bat, of course, so it was to be expected that it wouldn''t change places for no reason. Quickly, she held out the golden thread through the door frame before hiding back behind the wall.

    "What are you doing?" Energy angrily whispered as he held the fork at the ready, "Quit fucking around and do what I told you to do."

    "I-I''m scared!" She got all teary-Eyed, "I don''t wanna do this, it''s gonna swoop in and attack me!"

    "That''s the point, dammit." He groaned, "You''re the bait, your job is to lure it in here with us."

    "And if it gets me before then?"

    "I guess we can try again." He shrugged.

    "And what if-!?"

    "Listen lady, as far as I''m concerned¡ªWe both died the first time it ate us a couple minutes ago!" He snapped, "Once someone dies, they don''t usually ever get a do-over of this magnitude! If you keep worrying about all the what ifs, then you''ll never last a day out in the wild! What if, what if... What if you do your job properly and we kill it with ease, huh!? Why didn''t you ask yourself that!?"

    A rather harsh lecture came from Energy, but it wasn''t unjustified. Vastoria was not built for high risk plans and life-or-death situations, at least going off of her personality. She just wasn''t that kind of person. Though it was regrettable, Energy was stuck with someone as gentle and skiddish as her for the duration of their Shrine exploration, so he at least had to make sure she did what was asked of her.

    "Sniffle... got it." She decidedly nodded before peeking out her head once more, "Okay, it still hasn''t moved."

    "Take out the thread." He whispered to her the next order, "And don''t pull it back immediately."

    Again, she took the thread out and dangled it through the door frame. Her Eyes were fixated on nothing but the gruesome abomination hanging above her. The beast, however, still hadn''t reacted.

    "Hmm, maybe if I...?" She tried dangling it in just the right way for the sheen of the gold to hit its face, "Almost... there..."

    "Vastoria, Vastoria what are you doing?" Energy called out to her in a panicked whisper, "Is it moving?"

    "It''s not... Ah!" She smiled, "It opened its-!"

    -Eyes, she wanted to say as she got pulled back by the one footed survivor. It seems despite her doing well up until now to quell her fear, she still failed to completely enact his orders. Energy told her to back off the moment that thing moved, and not a second after. This was not without reason...

    "Y...!" She shouted and screamed as the cockroach bat scurried through the tight passage they were in, "YAHHHH!!!"

    "Run back upstairs!" Energy ordered as he stuck the fork into the top of the abomination''s head.

    "But what about you-!?"

    "Just do it!" He said as he wrestled the thrashing beast.

    Without being given much of a choice, Vastoria quickly ran back to the crystal layer above. While leaving her friend to face off against the thing alone did feel like a selfish and cowardly decision to choose, the fact remained that she didn''t really bring anything useful to the table herself. At this point, she could only wait and see who would come up those stairs once the battle was over¡ªEnergy... or the cockroach bat."

    "...Hmf!" She felt sick to her stomach the moment she stopped hearing any sounds of struggle from below.

    Each second felt increasingly longer, and her head was chafing so much it felt like it was gonna explode. If she ran downstairs to check on the situation, there was a pretty likely chance that she would get eaten by the beast next. Likewise, standing here, powerless to do anything about the situation made her feel even more guilty. That''s when she asked herself what Energy would do, and the answer was more than clear.

    "Cowering alone up here won''t do anything." She decided to take the first step back down the stairs, "In any case, I should make sure he''s alr-AAAAAHHH!"

    "Oh, there you are." An angel completely covered in bloody insect guts emerged from around the corner, "You can come down now, it''s dead."

    "E-Energy!?" She breathed a confused sigh of relief, "Ehh, don''t scare me like that..."

    "Sorry. Ah, but you''re gonna need to wait a bit before we move on." He instructed her to follow him back down.

    "Why? What''s wron-?" She paused in horror the moment she saw it.

    The lifeless, mutilated carcass of the abomination that previously killed and ate them. It''s already disgusting head was unrecognizable, smeared onto the floor, walls and ceiling of the tight space. And the doorframe?

    "Completely blocked by the body..." Energy chuckled annoyedly, "So yeah, we can totally move forward now, but as a heads up, it''ll probably take me a while to push the body back out. Hope you don''t mind me using the fork for that."

    "N-No, please use whatever you can." She shivered once she saw all the brain bits still beating on its pointy prongs, "In fact, you don''t have to return it to me until you get it cleaned off somewhere."

    "Eh? You''re afraid of a little gore?" He made fun of her, "Come on, this much is nothing!"

    It was at this moment that Vastoria fully realized just how horrible this man''s living conditions were while he was alive. She was thankful that she had someone who didn''t at all mind getting dirty for their sakes, but she also couldn''t even begin to fathom why he had that childish grin on his face. Just for good measure, she reckoned, it''d be better if she stayed upstairs to wait until he''s cleared a proper path for them.

 Vol.2 Ch.34 - Unwind

    Around what felt like at least an hour of waiting, our traumatized female seraphim had finally gotten word from the fearless hero to come downstairs so that they may continue their journey. During her wait, she had gone back and forth in her head regarding continuing to wait upstairs alone or to just suck it up and help him speed up the process. In the end though, all that time spent mulling it over had only resulted in him getting it done without her.

    "That''s..." She saw the job he had done, "You... Did you dig a tunnel straight through its body!?"

    "Mm~hm!" He sang a tune, "With the fork!"

    "I thought you were just gonna push it out of the doorway!" She shook her head, "Nonono, I am NOT going through a bug-bat monster''s rotting body! Absolutely not!"

    "Oh come on." He grabbed her wrist.

    "No, lemme go!"

    "It''ll be fine. Over before y''know it typa'' deal!"

    "No, I''m seriously gonna slap you if you force me in there!"

    "Vastoria..." He sighed, finally letting go of her hand, "Shoot, okay. You win."

    "Phew... Fueh!?"

    If her only issue with this plan was that she didn''t wanna touch the yucky entrails, then all Energy had to do was lift her up and carry her through the manmade tunnel. It was a bit of a tight fit, but he made sure it was enough to easily pass through regardless.

    "Nnngah! E-Energy, please don''t make me do this!" She actually started crying, pleading him to stop.

    "Better tuck your head in, female angels got a fuckton o'' hair, and these guts are probably a bitch to clean off of it." He kept walking towards it, "Alright, ready?"

    "NoooooooOOOOOOO~!"

    She smushed herself as tightly as she could to avoid making contact with the fleshy tunnel as much as she could. Screaming at the top of her lungs from start to end as if she was getting stabbed to death, with closed Eyes and a weak heart, she somehow managed to survive the passage. Energy, however, was having fun teasing her after the fact.

    "Oh, I left the fork upstairs." He looked down at the teary-Eyed girl he held in his hands with a smirk, "Guess we gotta go back-"

    "Lemme go!!!!" She thrashed around, kicking her legs up and down to get him to drop her before that happened, "Wah!"

    Of course, this was merely a light jest from the apocalypse man. The fork was hidden in his other palm to sell the joke, and though it was his intention to carefully put her back down on the ground, her panicking led to his hands slipping and dropping her flat on her face. Something that most definitely must have hurt, given where they were currently.

    "Ptu!" She spat out the moss from the newly reached jungle layer, "Uguuu, I miss my tea and biscuits~!"

    "Hey now, sunshine, look on the bright side!" He helped her up with an apologetic smile, "Faceplanting on some soft moss is better than the hard crystals just a few steps ago."

    "Hmph!" She angrily pouted away from him, "Let go of my hand. I''m never trusting you again after this!"

    "Aww, seriously? C''mon, I was just bringing some light into the situation." He wouldn''t let himself leave her field of vision, "I''m sorry, sweetheart. I just wanted to fish out a smile on that face of yours."

    "Mn..." She frowned even harder after hearing that.

    "C''mon, one smile?" He kept pushing after seeing one start to form, "You''re not the brooding, grudgeful type and we both know it. You''re too damned sweet."

    "Mm... Nyeh!" She somehow curbed the smile in the nick of time by sticking a devilish tongue out at him, "Idiot."

    With their little dispute having been properly laid to rest, the two marched on into uncharted territory. After this long and arduous battle that mostly took so much time because of all the gut-digging, they finally felt like they were making progress. The ground felt softer to walk on, the Green and Yellow colors were bright and welcoming. Everything about the area felt good, but then there was the one anxious thought creeping about with every turn.

    "There might be more of those things in here. Be on the lookout." Energy warned her.

    "I swear, if we have to encounter even one more of those hideous things, or even any other equallt as gruesome monster for that matter..." Vastoria shivered, "I think I might just call it quits and head back."

    "Head back where, exactly?" He raised an Eyebrow at that, "We can''t leave the barrier outside the Shrine."

    "There''s gotta be a way out just as there was a way in." She refuted, "Once I leave, I''m not coming back. This was Throne''s idea from the start, so he can finish it for all I care."

    "Another seraphim?" Energy inquired.

    "Ye-" She paused for a second, "Wait a second, how come you know I was a seraphim?"

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    While yes, he did get that fact about them right, it''s not like she ever told him. Besides, she doesn''t have her wings with her, so he couldn''t have known no matter what. This little detail made Vastoria second guess everything she thought she knew about her newest alliance.

    "..." He remained silent, "...How else could you have made it all the way outside the residential area, brain?"

    "Eh?" The cogs turning in her brain stalled, "O-Oh, right."

    "Angels always have a single cycle''s length of a lifespan, so you could never have made it here in time without wings." He shrugged, "However long that may be..."

    "36 hours." She replied offhandedly, "12 hours of the cycle are free, the next 24 are when the White Monsters are released."

    "You counted?" He looked more so surprised than anything.

    "I mean, when you''re sitting far up in the isolated comfort of your floating island, you kinda get bored." She bashfully admitted.

    "F-!?" He jolted, "Floating island!?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You have a floating island for a home!?" Energy began asking rapid fire questions, "How''d you make it float!?"

    "Ah, I didn''t." She giggled nervously from the sudden stage fright, "The Gods made my house like that."

    "So how far up are we talking?"

    "Well, it took me a good 5 minutes to fly up every time." She thought about it, "Ah, but my friend, Throne? He can make it in under a minute!"

    "What the hell, lucky!?" He was practically salivatinf at the idea, "If that existed in the Living World... Damn, ain''t no way A SINGLE rotted would''ve ever made it there!"

    "Yeah, but the same goes for anyone without wings." She reasoned, "So really, you just want those."

    "...Hm, I see where you''re comin'' from." He nodded, "Yes sirree, they were a real blessing when I got mine. Really opened up your possibilities in the afterlife, even without the timer removal."

    Immediately, Vastoria''s gaze was preoccupied with his back. Though he claimed to be a seraphim, and the logic he gave that claimed that only seraphim could afford to be in the Shrine, he too didn''t have his wings either. Vastoria lost hers during the scuffle with all the White Monster Apostles, but what was his story?

    "...Quit looking at me like that. I had them stolen from me." He couldn''t even look her in the Eye from the embarrassment.

    "Eh? Stolen, by who?" She cocked her head back, not even sure it was possible to take someone else''s wings for yourself.

    "Angels, who else?" He groaned, "See that''s the issue with putting everyone throughout history in the same place at the same time, you get some real nasty barbarians in the bunch."

    "Yikes, so what happened exactly?"

    "Crazies called me over to help them with somethin''." He began explaining, "I swooped in to the rescue, fixing to fix if you get me. Turns out it was all a scheme to get me to lower my guard."

    "Oof, so they took them from you while you weren''t looking?" She asked.

    "Pheh, I wish!" He shook his head all too calmly, "Nah, they saw the stitches under my hair and thought to capitalize on that with the swing of a metal pipe."

    A metal pipe, the strongest weapon for giving people lifelong concussions. Few could survive the aftermath of that in the Living World, and so one could only imagine the sheer piercing pain that he must''ve endured with his sensitive golden brain. Of course, this is the price to pay for removing Hell¡ªPeople like that are allowed to freely walk around terrorizing Heavenly Beings under the guise of being one of them...

    "Eesh!" She scrunched up.

    "After they knocked my brain straight out my head, they tore off the wings and left me to die." Even he disliked recalling the event, "I think... I think I was dead in Heaven for that time."

    "Dead in Heaven? But isn''t that impossible?" She asked.

    "Well, I wasn''t really dead. More like suspended." He explained it, "I only saw nothing, felt nothing, heard nothing and smelt nothing. It was only when I awoke to a fellow seraphim screwing my brain back in place did I realize what had happened."

    "Thank goodness for them being there."

    "Not them, him." Energy took offense to that, "He''s my savior, and I''ll be damned if he ever gets mislabed as just some generous bystander."

    "Right, but who is he?"

    "He called himself..." Energy dropped a chillingly familiar name, "The Dethroned."

    The Dethroned, in other words, it''s him. The person that saved her current savior''s life was none other than Throne himself. Right, Energy did mention in his story that he was still new to being a seraphim, so it would make sense for someone with way more experience in the field to find and bring him back to life. Looking back, Vastoria did always feel Throne was the helpful old man type. The kind that guides the younglings until they can properly take care of themselves in the real world. Though, her mind was still occupied with the fact such a small world brought them together.

    "T-That''s Throne!" She smiled, hopping up and down excitedly, "My friend! The one waiting for me just outside the barrier!"

    "Eh!? The savior is nearby!?" Even Energy got surprised by this, "You sure you''re not confusing the two because they have similar names?"

    "I''m positive, they''re the same person!" She smiled, "Whoa, what a crazy coincidence."

    "I''ll bet." He agreed.

    "So then, he helped you get the wings back, right?"

    "...No." He looked away in a melancholy tone, "Those wings don''t belong to me anymore. And since I got struck behind the head, I don''t even have any way to identify who of the seraphim took them."

    "W-What?" She felt her heart drop for a moment, "But, the reset? Surely you got them back then, right?"

    "Huh?" He tilted his head back at her, "You didn''t know? Once a seraphim loses their wings, that''s it."

    "That''s... What?"

    "Your wings, once they''re gone... They''re gone." He looked at her with sunken Eyes, "Vastoria, is The Dethroned... taking care of your wings up there?"

    Her wings, the things she most needed of all in Heaven 2.0... They were lost for good somewhere on their path to the Shrine. It happened during the White Monster Apostles raid, they tore the wings off her.

    "But... But Throne told me I''d be able to retrieve them next cycle..." She started hyperventilating, "I-I thought they''d just be put back on me again! I thought...!"

    "Vastoria!" He shouted to calm her down, "...It''s in the past now."

    "In the... past?" She repeated in between sobs.

    "Right now, we don''t need our wings." He tried pointing out the positives of this, "They''d only get in the way. We should worry about the next few steps we take without focusing too much on the road we took."

    These were wise words. Words of someone who most probably survived for a long time in the plague-ridden Living World. She didn''t know for sure, but just going off of his tone and sincerity when he said that¡ªHe was most definitely speaking from experience.

    "Sniffle... I understand." She wiped away the tears, "Then, let''s get to the bottom of this Shrine. After that, we''ll look for our wings with Throne."

    "You know where he lives?" He raised an Eyebrow, "Heh, ''cause after he helped me put my noggin back together, he just kind of up and left."

    "Yep, we''re definitely talking about the same person, then." She giggled, imagining the situation in her head.

 Vol.2 Ch.35 - A Good Deed

    At the same time, in yet another corner of the afterlife...

    "S-Stop!" Sab begged for his life to be spared, "Have mercy, please!"

    "Even down to the very last second of this miserable duel, you still don''t show an ounce of a warrior''s pride." Throne scornfully gazed back into his Eyes, "Pathetic. The mere fact I didn''t kill you and be done with this three hours ago was mercy enough."

    "No, not like this...!" Sab yelled before throwing the controlling at the wall, "Man, screw this! And screw you too, how come you''re better than me at Mortal Wombat!? I''m the one with the GS5 here!"

    "Yeah. Well, it did take me a bit of time to understand the controls, but after that it''s just memorization." He said as his video game character brutally bissected his opponent, "Really, you just suck."

    When we last saw him, Sab was lying unconscious on the ground after Haunt beat him up to the brink of death. Well, that would be his condition if he wasn''t an angel invincible to all bodily harm, that is. Indeed, the moment Haunt left him alone to fight Magnes and GaLi, he was immediately back on his feet, when suddenly...

    "Gah!" Sab got swooped off his feet, "Wow, flying feels weirder than I imagined."

    "Zip it, I''m gonna need to borrow you for a second." The one that carried him away was Throne himself, "You''re not allowed to scream for help from your buddies."

    "Ehe~, anything you say, chief!" Sab returned an awkward smile, "Say, do I know you?"

    "You don''t."

    "Do you know me?"

    "I do."

    "HEL-Mph!" He got silenced immediately before he could scream.

    "I did say I won''t let you scream for help, but that doesn''t mean I''m your enemy... For now." Throne rolled his Eyes, "I needed someone I knew that would fit the bill, and you were the only one I could rely on."

    "Ahhh, gotcha~" Sab cooly nodded, "You sure you don''t got the wrong guy, though?"

    "I''m positive." He groaned back, "And Magnes or whatever the hell name she goes by now won''t let me do my thing without wanting to tag along too, so I had to steal you away like this."

    "I... can get behind that, she IS kind of a pain in the ass." Sab and Throne bonded a little over their shared hatred for the girl, "So, what do I gotta do?"

    Sab didn''t even ask Throne about how he knew Magnes'' name, because he could put two and two together. Logically, since Magnes and GaLi both roped him into following "an angel with wings", he assumed that Throne was said angel. He didn''t know the term they were looking for was seraphim, but that much was unimportant for the current situation anyways. Right now, his mind was fixated on one thing and one thing only¡ªHow long it''d take for them to get this over with.

    "You, my little test subject, are gonna get your wings." Throne gave him the overview, "And in return, all I''m gonna ask of you is to help me phase through a wall."

    "That seems... fair?" Sab still wasn''t buying it, "Although it can''t be that easy, there''s gotta be more to it."

    "Of course there''s more to it, you muttonhead." The seraphim shot back, "I just don''t feel like explaining it all to you while we''re flying."

    "Heh, then if it''s comfort you''re looking for...!" Sab deviously formulated his master plan, "Then why not take us to my home for some fun and games? Surely that''ll get you talking!"

    Which brings us back to the scene from the beginning of the chapter, where Sab angrily threw his controller in a fit of gamer rage.

    "Gah! Now I can''t play anymore!" He immediately regretted his outburst, "Crap, dammit!"

    "...Right." Throne just looked on at the huge dent in the wall caused by the now smashed to bits controller, "So, now that I''ve humored you enough, let''s talk business!"

    Holding his own healthy controller out to give back to Sab with an annoyingly triumphant grin on his face, Throne was ready to explain the plan to his newest ally in full. Trust was the bottleneck of their relationship, in his mind, and if he wanted a partner that wouldn''t just leave him to go explore the Shrine by herself, then he would need to put a lot of emphasis on it. Grumpily, Sab snatched the controller away before continuing to play singleplayer.

    "Go on." He frowned.

    "Nope. Leave the game while we''re having this conversation, I don''t want you missing anything important." Throne shook his head.

    "Dude, I''m not stupid. I can play the game and listen to you at the same time." Sab struggled with the CPU, "Ack, crap!"

    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "Sure doesn''t seem that way to me. Come on, we''re running out of time."

    "What''s the hurry?" Sab dismissed the warning with a scoff, "But okay, I''ll turn the game off once I''m finished with this match."

    Calmly, Throne waded through the sea of pillows splayed out on the ground until he reached the extension cable that powered the console and TV. With a single strong yank, he not only tore off the outlet, but the drywall around it as well. Now, Sab ought to listen without any distractions.

    "Dude..." Sab gulped, grabbing his chest as if to calm his racing heart, "Not cool, you''re gonna have to reimburse me for the damages!"

    "Is everyone I run into gonna be a complete idiot?" Throne facepalmed, asking himself a question that was very stupid and yet all too real.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Having taken away the one source of joy he had in the entirety of Heaven 2.0, the cruel and unforgivable Throne had finally gotten the poor Sab''s full, undivided attention. It was a goliath task, and it took all of Throne''s boundless strength to accomplish it, but by the Gods did he do it.

    "Fine, go on." Sab crossed his arms with a childish pout, "Explain to me your stupid plan or whatever."

    "Oh come on, you''ll get your house back the way it was first thing tomorrow morning, after the reset." Throne tried to quell the anger a bit, "Only catch is¡ªYou won''t remember anything that happened today, which is what I wanna fix."

    "...You''re gonna have to take me through everything you just said one by one." Sab finally started taking things seriously, "Reset? Won''t remember anything?"

    "I see someone''s ready to cooperate." Throne chuckled as he gave the brief rundown, "Every 36 hours, the day resets, and everything is brought back to how it was yesterday. This is called a cycle."

    "Ohhh, so that must be how you know me!" Sab guessed.

    "...Yes."

    He didn''t know him though, they never previously conversed. He did however hear of Sab from Vastoria''s stories, so he didn''t completely write him off as a stranger either. This form of familiarizing himself with new acquaintances serves the purpose of calming any and all worries they might have during their business venture. Throne figured a White lie here and there could only serve to benefit everyone in this scenario, so he played along.

    "So I take it you can remember what happens between cycles for the very same reason you have your wings." Sab reasoned.

    "And how''d you draw that conclusion?" Throne raised an Eyebrow.

    "Common sense and logic, I guess. You said everyone forgets, but you remember me from before, you said you wanted to make me remember as well, and before that you told me the goal was to get me a pair of wings too."

    Surprisingly, Sab was a lot more keen on picking up these details than the girls in Throne''s life. He hid the smirk cracking from the corner of his lip with his hand as he realized just what a find he ran into. Sab was a bit unserious, but he was extremely quick on the uptake. Not only that, but he could be so easily convinced to do as he''s told, that Throne felt he wouldn''t mind even failing this cycle and having to redo it from scratch. In fact, doing so almost felt more favorable, given he''d have more time and all.

    "You''re absolutely right. Angels that gain their wings are known as seraphim." Throne elaborated, removing his hand to fully showcase the excited grin he had on, "We''re allowed to keep our memories, and can move pretty freely around Heaven 2.0. It''s THE upgrade to get in the afterlife."

    "Yep, that does sound appealing." Sab mimicked his friend''s dumb smile, "And I assume getting said upgrade isn''t gonna be a walk in the park, then?"

    "It would be impossible for you to do alone with the little knowledge you have about it." Throne nodded, "But with a little bit of guidance from me nudging you in the right direction, you should become a seraphim just in time before the reset occurs."

    It was revealed to Sab that becoming a seraphim required a great deal of motivation. Motivation, and a clear goal to strive for. Since you were given everything you''d ever wanted in the afterlife, as well as a pretty large area to explore, most angels wouldn''t even think of dreaming bigger. It would be rude to the Gods who gave them this much, after all. But the Gods wanted to toy a bit with the ambitious ones, and give the most curious angels a chance to experience the full vastness of Heaven 2.0, so they made seraphimhood. Now, it was time for Sab to step up himself.

    "To become a seraphim, you have to do 100 good deeds." Throne briefly explained.

    "...H-Huh?" Sab did a double take, "That''s... That''s it?"

    "Wait, what do you mean that''s it?"

    "I-I mean I''m just saying it''s... It''s kind of like, underwhelming." Sab looked around the room, "You hyped this up to be this grand task when it''s really just helping out the town residents a bit?"

    "Yes, but you effectively only have 12 hours to do it." Throne shrugged, "And since you wasted a bunch of time running around and fighting other idiots, not to mention the hours of gametime..."

    "Oof."

    "Yeah, I''d say you only got like 6 hours left at best." Throne roughly approximated.

    "A hundred good deeds in 6 hours!?" Sab was shocked, "Wait, what counts as a good deed exactly?"

    "That''s the tricky bit¡ªFor it to count, you gotta mean it while you help someone." Throne warned, "If you''re just doing it to become a seraphim, then it won''t be a true good deed. Ah, but it ranges from helping someone with carrying something across the street to a huge mission."

    "So side quests, basically." Sab assumed.

    "Whatever those are, sure." The seraphim hurried his newest subject outside of the house, "Then, we better hurry if we want you to make it before the cycle ends!"

    "Wait wait wait! Do you seriously expect me to run around Heaven like a lunatic looking for people in need of help!?" Sab asked, "You can''t be serious, I''m never gonna make it!"

    "If you we''re alone in this, I''d certainly have to agree with you." Throne smirked confidently, "But with me around, you won''t have to run around anywhere!"

    Running behind him, Throne grabbed Sab quickly by the pits before flying off once more to the sky. Once having reached an altitude that was just high enough to grab everyone in the vicinity''s attention, yet just low enough for them to hear, Throne proceeded to advertise the two''s latest and greatest joint enterprise.

    "Ladies and gentlemen, we hereby declare to make anyone''s and everyone''s problems vanish into thin air with ease! If you have a wish you want to be made into a reality, then raise your hand and we''ll do everything we can to make that happen!"

    The hands, obviously, were more confused and unsure than eager. But eventually, given enough fly-bys and shout outs, they began to give into their curiosity and squeamishly raise them one by one. Six hours, 100 good deeds. It was a tight fit, but with this they could surely manage.

 Vol.2 Ch.36 - Unpunished

    "Hey, over here!" One guy raised up the courage to holler at the flying duo, "Oop!"

    Given their rather urgent time limit, they were all too quick to respond to the cry for help. Thanks to Throne''s masterful flying agility, they were on the ground in the blink of an Eye, with Sab ready to serve!

    "Yessir, what do you need?" Sab threw on his best charming businessman impression, "You name it, we do it!"

    "What''s the catch?" The suspicious bystander asked, "Like sure you say you''ll help me out, but with what?"

    Of course. It''s Heaven, meaning most anyone really doesn''t have anything they''d want to be changed about their current position. The angel had every right to be wary, or at the very least doubtful. Nonetheless, it ended up being Throne''s mature tone that drew the people in.

    "My friend here wants to help you folks out with anything that you may deem too annoying or impossible to get done yourselves." Throne showed Sab off to the crowd, "He''s a spiffy little monster, and at the end of the day, at the very least you''ve got nothing to lose. He isn''t doing this for the money."

    "Is there money in Heaven?" The crowd wondered amongst themselves.

    "Settle down!" Sab shushed them before they got off topic, "Look, point is¡ªIf there''s anything you want or need done, just ask. Anything! It can be as small as finding a lost item in the streets of Heaven to helping you track down someone you may have befriended but lost along the way. And heck, if you think of something even bigger than those, then by all means, suggest them!"

    The crowd still stared at the two with rather confused faces, but the first guy eventually shrugged and gave them their first task.

    "Could you find me a gun?" His demand came out of nowhere.

    "Yessi-WHOA!" Sab did a double take, "Y-You err, want a... gun? In Heaven?"

    "Yep."

    "Psst, mind giving me the rundown of what that is?" Throne whispered to him.

    "You don''t know...? Sigh, I''ll explain later." Sab shooed him off to continue the conversation with their first customer, "What are you even gonna use it for? I feel like I''m kind of obligated to ask."

    "You never mentioned I had to explain myself." The customer quickly lost interest, "Screw this, I''m gone."

    "No wait! We''ll get you the gun!" Sab brought him back, "Alright, I was being rude just now! Ours is a no questions asked business, haha!"

    "Great! So, when can I expect the delivery?"

    "You were expecting delivery?" Sab tilted his head.

    "Do you have some other way of giving it to me that doesn''t require you to go to my house?" He raised a valid point.

    This was the tricky part of starting a goodwill program like this. Any and all good deeds that require you to fetch something for someone obviously can only be considered done once the customer has obtained it. As is, Sab would have to remember everyone''s item individually, their house''s location, or their current location¡ªNone of which seem possible to memorize. Thus, he had to throw the idea away in the back of his mind.

    "Sure, what''s your name, then?" Sab kept on his marketing smile.

    "J.K., if you mean my initials, that is." The guy smiled, "Thanks so much for this. I really wanna shoot a gun, and you''ve made that possible!"

    "Haha, anytime friend." Sab patted the guy on the back, "Hey, we''ll come find you once we get ahold of one, J.K."

    "A moment, everyone." Throne yet again grabbed Sab like a cat and hoisted him high up into the skies, "Alright, is this gun thing an easy thing to procure, by any means?"

    "Depends on where you''re from." Sab shrugged, "In any case, I only agreed to get it for him to get him off my back. We''re not actually gonna be wasting our time doing fetch quests."

    "You''re not sounding very noble right now." Throne scoffed, "Really? Lying to the people you swore to help out? I can understand that it''s a bit difficult to track them down and give them the items, but while I was doing this, I couldn''t afford to say no to a single request!"

    "Yeah, but I can. And I will." Sab shut him up with a stern reply, "And you''re gonna help me, that''s what you promised."

    "...What are you planning?"

    "We act like we''re accepting every request they give us, but we''ll really only do the ones we can handle with ease. Pick the low hanging fruit, get things done."

    "That''s certainly efficient, but what''ll you do when the people you screwed over realize what you did to them?" Throne asked.

    "Let me just make sure one thing." Sab looked at him, "You said everyone without wings completely forgets the previous cycle, right?"

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    Finally, Sab''s ingenius plan resonated with Throne. He understood that Sab''s only goal was to get to a hundred, no matter what it took. Selectively choosing only the ones that took the least amount of time would indeed make them reach that goal faster. And since they''re short on time and don''t have any consequences, then they might as well do it this way. The scum''s way.

    "Now bring me back down." Sab glanced down at the crowd, "Our fans are waiting for us."

    "Heh, fans..." Sab stalled his wings to drop back down to the ground, "Now I see why you aren''t charging them anything. Ain''t no way this''d count towards the total if you did."

    "What can I say? I probably would''ve gone to Hell originally, but I heard that place closed down." Sab joked as they landed back in front of the needy crowd, "Alright everyone, form an orderly line and we''ll get everything done in a jiffy!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Fetch me a sword!" One guy proclaimed.

    "Gotcha."

    "I lost my hat somewhere in the crowd." Another lady pleaded, "If you could just find it for me...?"

    "Right away, lady!" Sab sprung to action, getting flown high above by his seraphim friend to scout the hundreds of crowded streets in the blink of an Eye, "Here you go!"

    "Wow, so fast!" She was ecstatic, "Thank you! Thank you so much!"

    "Cool! Okay, me next!" A third person appeared after her, "Could you find this one guy for me? His initials are Q.Q."

    "...Gotcha."

    For each commission that required simpler tasks like retrieving lost items or fetching easy to find items, the two would spring up from their positions to get it done before even a few seconds had passed. As for the tasks whose possibility wasn''t guaranteed, however, Sab would merely toss the customer a double thumbs up with a quaint "Gotcha". This little gag phrase also served as a signal for the elder Throne, who apparently hailed from an era widely considered by Sab as "primordial". His ignorance regarding items such as controllers, televisions, home consoles and even guns proved to Sab that he was dealing with someone who wouldn''t have even been an old man while he was alive. Essentially, each time he would say "Gotcha", it was an encrypted message to Throne that said "Don''t bother".

    "Right, as for my request...!" A timid girl kept stealing glances at Throne''s wings, "C-Could I maybe get flown around like you do? Only for a little bit!"

    "Haha, sure thing-!"

    "Gotcha." Throne interrupted the enthusiastic schemer, "Please wait a moment first, though. You can continue on with your day, I''ll be sure to find you when we''re a bit more free."

    "O-Oh, of course!" She anxiously yet contently nodded, "Thank you so much, it was always my dream to fly, but I guess even in Heaven not everyone gets equal privileges."

    "Yes, yes." Throne the glanced at an utterly appalled Sab, "What?"

    "A!? Ugh, let''s go up for a bit." He ordered Throne to fly them to the skies once more for a little chat, "Dude, what the hell? Why''d you gotcha her? That was the easiest one yet!"

    "It was for me, but you''re forgetting that we''re making you do all the good deeds." Throne rolled his Eyes, "It won''t count towards the total otherwise."

    "Ah..."

    Certainly, Sab had gotten a bit too ahead of himself with the current pace they were at. According to their count, he was at around 24 good deeds done after just an hour of work. Though they didn''t have the exact time, they could both very easily admit they were on a good pace. This isn''t even mentioning the fact they were pretty much saying "Gotcha" to every other customer. As it turned out, Sab had the right idea with his plan. Given the commissions they were given, they would have had around 50 had they actually done every single one, but by the time they''d finish them all, it would have already been way past White Monster time. This way was better¡ªThey had a lower number, but they had a lot more time, and the line was still stretching out way farther than they could see.

    "Alright, where were we?" Sab happily clapped his hands together once he got brought back down.

    "Yes, could you...?"

    "Hold it! Where''s my gun, man!?" The dude from earlier cut the line to ask.

    "Whoa, hey there! Haven''t seen you in a good minute." Sab tried to calm his nerves, "Didn''t we tell you? We''ll get it delivered to your home address by tomorrow."

    "But I never gave you my address!" He angrily shouted.

    "Hey man, back of the line is over there!" The guy that got interrupted shoved the gun hunter away.

    "The fuck? No one''s talking to you, jackass!" The gun hunter punched him back, leading to a full on street brawl.

    Having stirred up a rowdy commotion at the front of the line, the two had succeeded in halting Sab''s goodwill program completely. The previously neat and orderly line had now gone into complete disarray as everyone looked on at the volunteer workers that indirectly caused this to happen.

    "Crap." Throne merely looked on, "You two, stop that right now, we can figure something out for both of you!"

    "...Nah, leave ''em." Sab said after a brief pause.

    "What?"

    "Come on, pack up and fly me to the other end of the line. We''re moving." Sab suggested, preemptively lifting his arms up without any discreetness.

    "Oi, you can''t just leave! What about us at the front of the line!?" An angry lady that was supposed to come after the guys that were wrestling on the ground complained, "Just do their requests and move on!"

    "We''re not miracle workers. Ah, I guess we did kind of advetise ourselves as such, but I suppose that makes us liars." Sab looked back at the winged seraphim, "Come on, the line''s so long we''ll be way past our quota by the time this news reaches the other end. Throne, fly me to the other side."

    "You''re abandoning these people?" Throne couldn''t believe it, "People in need of help, people who are counting on us?"

    "On me. They''re counting on me, you said it yourself." Sab corrected him, "And as far as I''m concerned, I''ll help even a crazed arsonist get some fireworks and a bunch of oil if it gets me those wings. I think you''ll find that situation to be most favorable for you as well."

    Throne was taken aback, staring blankly at the angel he once thought of as naive and kindhearted. In reality, Sab was neither it seemed, ''cause from the very start he was ready to only use these needy angels as fodder for his own gain. A seraphim''s wings are crafted from the cheers of the ones they''ve helped, or so it is said¡ªBut for Sab''s case, Throne wondered, would they not be boos instead?

    "Hey, don''t you dare leave us!" The lady at the front of the line threatened Throne.

    "...Kid, you really are twisted in the head." Throne sighed, ultimately giving in to his demands and flying them to the back of the line, dozens of kilometers back, "Guess that makes me even more twisted for enabling you."

    "Good choice." Sab fell to the ground with a flashy landing himself this time around as he greeted this side''s customers, "Everyone, may I have your attention please! It hurts my soul to see so many people in dire need of help having to wait so long to see me, so for the next hour, you can consider the order... REVERSED!"

 Vol.2 Ch.37 - Punished

    "So, what''s up?" Sab proudly stood arms akimbo facing the line of people.

    "Yeah, I heard you guys helped out with anything, right?" The person now standing at the front inquired, "Does that include directions as well?"

    Directions. It was such a reasonable question to have asked, yet this was the first time they actually heard it uttered. The person here wanted to know where someplace was, so Sab obviously subdued his immediate answer and turned to ask Throne with nothing but his gaze.

    "Hm, yes. We can do that." Throne nodded, "What place are you looking for, exactly?"

    "Ah, I heard about this one place called the Gods'' Abode?" The guy asked, "Is it actually like, accessible? Or even existing for that matter."

    "Yes, it does exist." Throne got close to Sab and whispered to him the directions.

    "Mhm, got it." Sab nodded, "Go down that road there and keep moving forward until you find a huge yard with a mansion in the middle. Can''t miss it."

    Surprised by the fact Sab was the one giving him this knowledge and not Throne, the man was a bit weirded out, but he nonetheless thanked them before walking out of the line to finish whatever business he had planned with the Gods. That''s another happy customer, but they''ve still got a long way''s to go. Right now, they were only a quarter of the way to the end, and time was steadily slipping away from their grasp. If they wanted to make it in time, an added sense of urgency had to be administered.

    "Alright guys, new idea since there''s so many of you!" Sab clapped his hands with a friendly smile, "Anyone with a request that takes less than a few minutes can transfer over to my line! All the others, you guys stay where you are, and my friend Throne here is gonna deal with you. That sound good?"

    "What?" Throne glared at him, his wings standing at the ready, "Need we have a talk about this?"

    "We need not." Sab shot back in a quiet tone, "What we need is to speed things up. Time''s ticking, so just help me out here! You do those long missions at your own pace, and I''ll be doing the shorter ones on my own."

    Angered by these constantly counterintuitive shenanigans his test subject was pulling, Throne forcefully grabbed Sab before flapping his wings mightily to reach the skies. Though his methods were seemingly effective, their longevity was pretty weak. In other words, Sab was burning through his customers'' faiths at an extremely rapid pace, meaning if he kept making these rash, selfish decisions... He''d end up out of his so called fans before he could even hope to reach a hundred good deeds.

    "Nice plan, genius, if it weren''t for the fact you need me to help you speed up the missions in the first place." Throne chewed him out now that no one could hear them, "Seriously, I admire your willingness to pull any trick you can think of, but just stick to a goddamned plan, alright!? I''ve been nothing but tolerant because I trust you can do this, but you kept throwing goddamned wrenches every chance you could!"

    "Hey, what the hell do you mean I need you!?" Sab angrily shot back, "They''re ultra short missions for a reason, meaning they expect me to do it in a few minutes. Just like I said. Sure with your help I can turn those minutes into seconds, but what good does that do if we constantly have to worry about sifting through good and bad requests! Deny it all you want, but I''m saving time."

    "You''re wasting MY time!" The seraphim hissed, "And if this plan doesn''t work because of your dumbass constantly changing the script, then I just spent an entire cycle for nothing!"

    "You''ve got plenty of time! Infinite time, even!" Sab rolled his Eyes, "Besides, who cares if we don''t make it in time? You can always just find me tomorrow and try again next time."

    "Next time? Next time!?" Throne guffawed mockingly at the angel dangling under his arms, "You think there''ll be a next time? I got the entire human race as possible candidates to do the exact same thing as you did and I''m sure there are others that are way more amicable."

    Suddenly, Sab''s heart sank before he did. His Eyes sunk back in fear as he realized Throne''s surprising ultimatum. The stakes were not precisely defined before this, but they sure as hell got raised now. He now effectively had to fight seriously if he wanted to see the next cycle.

    "W-What?" Sab chuckled in confusion, "Wait, you can''t be serious?"

    "Oh I''m serious. The only question is¡ªAre you?" Throne continued his tirade, "Are you serious about getting your wings? Because the way I see it, either you go ahead and earn them properly before time runs out, or I go look for another angel while you rot in this endless cycle like the rest of these bastards down below."

    "Y-You''re gonna abandon me?" Sab''s desperate expression fully revealed to him the threat he was told.

    "Who knows, you might yet be useful even then." Throne laughed scarily, "Me and your replacement might just see you standing in line next cycle, asking for help."

    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Sab had gotten dizzy. The world spun wildly around him until his grip loosened, and for a short while he felt like he was looping in and out of consciousness. A strong thud jumpstarted his brain back up, and he only realized he fell back down to the ground in front of everyone once he saw Throne staring down at him cheekily.

    "Y...!" He bit his tongue, choosing to put on a fake smile for everyone''s reassurance rather than cussing out his latest traitor, "Y-You guys, my line starts here, remember?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "A-Are you okay?" His first true customer approached him carefully, "That fall looked crazy."

    "I''m a superhero just like that knucklehead over there." Sab joked, "I don''t have wings, but invincibility is a given."

    "Oh, cool!" She smiled back brightly.

    "...So, what do you need?"

    With his newest innovative idea, Sab had found a way to pretty consistently target only the minute or so long side quests. Throne did indeed play along with the charade, as it was still in his best interests to try and make Sab get his wings, but he was definitely being put through the more grueling work. Lifting heavy loads of objects, flying people around, transporting them, delivering and finding impossible items... All of these Throne had to do slowly, one at a time, but at the very least he was helping clear the way for Sab, who was now steadily advancing through the quota.

    "Hey, how many people have we helped by now, you reckon?" Throne inquired through encoded speech.

    "Heh, like anyone''d keep count!" Sab shot back with a half-joke reply, "But ehh, I''d wager... 62?"

    "What''s up with that?!" The crowd cheered and laughed, "If you''re guessing, then why such a specific number!?"

    Though they all enjoyed the joke he gave them, in truth it was anything but. The reason he was being so specific wasn''t just to get a laugh out of his adoring audience, but also because it was indeed the exact number of people he''s helped. This number didn''t account for Throne''s tally, just Sab''s¡ªHis was the only one that mattered, after all. In any case, their time was running out, but their numbers weren''t going up fast enough.

    "Alright everyone, if that''s what my friend here says, then let''s make sure to get to a hundred by the next half hour!" Throne hyped up the crowd, "Come on, come on! Rapid fire!"

    Though they were eager to get the countdown going, there was simply nothing to be done about the missions if they wanted to speed it up. Regardless of how fast they explained them, at the end of the day it all amounted to how easy they were to accomplish, and how fast Sab could accomplish them without the aid of Throne. For a small moment, just a small one, his conviction faded.

    "T-Throne, mind helping me out a bit?" He weakly asked.

    "Then who''s gonna help this side?" Throne caught him in his own trap, "You were the one who suggested we split up into two lines, so I don''t wanna hear anymore complaints!"

    "Can''t always take the easy way out, sonny!" A lady with an elderly tone laughed at that one, "By the way, can I get uhh..."

    The situation was messed up. The people were being high octane and rowdy, Throne wasn''t willing to help and time was running out. Sab was now fully panicking by this point. His brain felt like it had turned to mush, and he almost lost count a few times after that. Still, they had somehow made it to 95 after a few more taxing hours of good work.

    "Alright fellas, countdown time!" Sab was ready to hit the showers the moment he got his wings, "Phew, made it in time, eh Throne?"

    "..."

    "T-Throne?" He tilted his head as the jumpy seraphim zipped up to the sky for a better lookout spot.

    "Tch, you did good, kid." Throne looked kind of disappointed, "Really, I mean it. I almost feel bad for you after seeing all the work you put into all this."

    "Whoa hey, come on." Sab chuckled nervously, "What''s the deal? We made it, dude. Just 5 more!"

    "Five more, huh?" Throne shook his head with a defeated smirk, "You''ll be lucky to even find one anymore. I suggest you close your Eyes."

    Close his Eyes, that could only mean one thing¡ªIt was officially time bedtime for Heaven 2.0. Throne''s hunch was correct, as when he went up into the sky to scope out the far side of the line, he saw them¡ªDozens or so White Monster Apostles, and they were infecting people left and right. If they had any time left anymore, it''d be in the ballpark of seconds at best.

    "Crap...! Alright, come on everyone! What do you need!?" Sab shouted at the crowd, "Listen to me, close your Eyes and don''t open ''em until I tell you to! We continue as planned!"

    "What''s going on!?" They panicked, "Why should we close our...!?"

    One by one, the anxious voices died out until nothing but a deathly silence loomed around the air. Just when he thought there was no end in sight, however, Sab was relieved to hear a few voices call out to him in the silence and blindness.

    "What now, then?" They looked up to Sab and Throne with respect.

    "...Nothing, we continue with this charity event, but you absolutely mustn''t open your Eyes no matter what." Throne commanded, "Bad things will happen to you if you do."

    This advice was solid. It came from the heart, and had everyone''s best interests in mind when he told them that. They were scared, but they pushed on either to save themselves or because they figured out these two were doing this because they needed to. Either way, since it was only a few customers left, Sab and Throne could freely join forces to speedily get the last of their available requests done.

    "Is that all?" Sab asked once more to reaffirm, "Shit!"

    "What''s the matter? How close were we?" Throne asked, holding his breath as he listened intently for the answer.

    "...99." Sab laughed, his soul crushed by this devastating gut punch, "We were so close. We were..."

    "One off." Throne muttered before giving up and opening his Eyes, "Well, we tried. Sorry kid, I guess that means you''re fired."

    "T-Throne!?" Sab called out to the quietness around him, "Throne, you didn''t! You-! You can''t leave me here alone! Throne!"

    Throne had let himself get eaten by the White Monsters around them. One by one, the huge crowd of customers they had amassed turned out to be his greatest nightmare, as Sab was now completely surrounded by them with no way out. Slowly they approached him, grabbed his arms, legs, torso... He was getting pulled around as he screamed into the empty void for a saving grace, a second chance. This horror had only ended once the Apostles finally pried open his Eyelids, making it so he could well and truly stare directly into their cold, empty Eyes before being laid to rest.

 Vol.2 Ch.38 - Return

    And so, as the new cycle shone once more on Heaven 2.0, we return to our fourth wall-breaking hero sitting idly alone in his vacant house. Having gone through the reset as everyone else did, he obviously had no recollection of the previous day. He didn''t remember Magnes, Throne, Sab or even Haunt for that matter. A clean slate, that''s what he was reduced to.

    "...Hm." He looked around, "Shot through the heart~, and you''re to blame~"

    Singing absentmindedly as he got up to investigate the area, he found that the entire house interior was devoid of anything. Unlike the houses he had briefly seen from above before the Divine Voice sent him and the other two to sleep, he felt pretty jipped to find his house had absolutely nothing in it.

    "Welp, my body''s still White. Sweet new golden scars though." He looked at his scratched forearms, "Guess that means I''m still in Heaven 2.0. But if that''s the case, then what''s the big idea?"

    He felt offended, scammed out of a perfect afterlife filled with everything he could''ve ever dreamed of. That''s what that mysterious Divine Voice told the three of them, and yet this is it? Apart from the clothes on his body, there was nothing in here he could call his own. So, he left.

    "Mn... Yaaawn~!" A girl from across the street exited her own house at the same time, "...Yo."

    "Nice to meet you." He waved before approaching her, "Heh, I''d give you my name, ma''am, but I don''t even know it myself."

    "Yeah, same here." She explained, "Ah, but I-I did find these markings on my hands."

    Golden letters, they surely meant something. Of course, given what gold represented in this new world, it could very easily be a scar that just so happens to resemble a letter. But upon checking his own hands and finding two differing letters in the same spot and style, he was convinced they were something a lot more unique.

    "You reckon it''s somehow related to our names?" He asked, "Like, our initials?"

    "Whatever they are, I''m sure gonna put them to good use." She nodded, "Mine say M and G, so I''m gonna choose a name that fits that."

    "New name?" He chuckled, "I like that. Then, got something in mind?"

    The friendly smalltalk between new neighbors was a pleasant sight to anyone, and especially them. Both were reborn in an unfamiliar situation, an unfamiliar world... and they needed someone to talk to about their similar experiences.

    "Mnn, I''m leaning between Mage and Maggie." She weighed her options out for him, "I dunno. The first sounds more fun, but Maggie also fits a girl way better."

    "Well lemme tell you they''re both awesome." He reassured her, "Pick whichever one you like better, as for me..."

    "An L and a G..." She read what he showed her.

    "Or a G and an L." He suggested inverting the order, "Maybe it''d give us some more ideas that way."

    Names were a neccessity in a land where every male and female looked practically identical amongst their own respective genders. The only real thing differentiating them would be the golden parts¡ªScars from a past life, they speculated. In any case, without something like a name to go by they couldn''t even hope to do anything to progress. This was a good call to make.

    "...Gale." She thought of a fitting name for him, "If you like it, of course."

    "Hmph, Gale eh..." He smirked, "Like the wind, is that right? Well, Mage Maggie, I''m awfully thankful for blessing me with such a nice name."

    "You''ll take it?"

    "I''ll take it." He smiled warmly, "And you? Figure something out?"

    "Mage... Maggie..." She weighed it heavily over her head.

    Unlike his name, this choice was way more difficult to make. Gale had a nice ring to it, and it immediately came to mind once she heard the letters embedded within it. There was no second guessing herself when she suggested it, but for herself things were a bit different. Optimally, he would be the one to pick for her, given that''s basically what she did for him. This way even if she disliked the name, she could at least blame him for choosing wrongly. Still, he remained quiet for as long as he could, yet eventually he couldn''t take the indecisiveness.

    "...Hey." He calmly asked, "You don''t need to choose right now. Names, heck you can introduce yourself with a different name for each encounter, and it won''t change nothing."

    "That''s... Yeah, I don''t need to choose now." She calmed down once she heard him speak reason, "Still, what will you call me then?"

    "I''ll call you lady." He nodded, "Lady is a befitting title for anyone, but sadly not enough people use it these days. In a crowd, you''ll point me out pretty quickly that way."

    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    "Lady, eugh." She giggled, "Guess I better make up my mind on one pretty soon, then!"

    Thus, a pre-existing friendship was newly formed once more. GaLi and Magnes, now Gale and... lady (tentative). It was only natural that these two would cross paths particularly frequently throughout the cycles, given they were neighbors in the afterlife, but usually their first order of business would be to solve an issue or annoyance they were facing, like getting clothes or wings and the likes. This time, however, they were both pretty content.

    "Wanna walk around the area together?" She asked, "It beats going through this crowd alone."

    "You asking me out?" He teased.

    "Sorry, I''m into girls." She immediately shook her head.

    "...W-Wow." He was gobsmacked, to say the least, "Certainly didn''t expect that answer. And here I thought the worst a lady could say was no."

    "Trust me, there''s way worse I could''ve said." She joked smugly, "But I''m being lenient since you were so nice to me."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Walking throughout the busy streets of Heaven 2.0, there remained one irking issue that festered in Gale''s mind. He was unsure of whether to share it with her or not, given she might take it as him being creepy, but it was a genuine worry. Constantly, he kept glancing down at his clothes, and she caught sight of that pretty quickly.

    "Say, these clothes..." She meandered around the query.

    "Thank Prylos you noticed it as well!" He loudly let out a sigh of relief, "Where''d they come from!? Not being rude here or anything, lady, but did you wake up with them already on too?"

    "...Yes, I did." She was pretty surprised by his lively reaction, "Guess it''s better than being buck naked."

    "Oh, that goes without saying." He then thought about it, "But... There are some people passing by completely nude. You''ve seen them, right? Their...?"

    "Privates?" She insinuated, "Yep, they don''t have ''em."

    "Meaning we don''t either." He nodded, "But that''s not what I was getting at. I''m asking why some people had clothes and others didn''t."

    It was a fairly reasonable question to pose in this scenario. Seeing a naked person out in the streets, even if they didn''t have nipples or genitalia on their bodies, would certainly cause some level of backlash from the community. Of course, maybe the same wouldn''t be said if everyone wasn''t wearing clothes, but the streakers were very clearly in the tiny minority. The question remained¡ªWhy isn''t anyone reacting? Are there no laws or cops to put a stop to this?

    "The streakers, did you notice something odd about them?" She asked, "They''re all headed in that direction. Not one person without any pants is moving away from whatever that place has."

    "Well I''ll be..." He could hardly keep from grinning like a madman, "Were you a detective in your past life or what? Author, mark this down somewhere!"

    "Author?"

    "Don''t worry about it." He patted her on the back, "Good job figuring that out. Wanna go there and see what''s up?"

    "Yeah." She nodded, "It''ll be fun."

    Turning back around, they decidedly moved on to the location of every naked person''s interest. The line of nude yet seemingly well-behaved customers was incredibly long, to the point where they couldn''t even see what they were waiting for. Seeing as they were already here, however, they figured why not just stand in line themselves and figure it out.

    "I feel kind of weird doing this." She nervously squirmed closer to him, "Oddly enough, with everyone in line not wearing any clothes but us, it''s making me feel like I''m the one in the wrong."

    "Hey, hey, nobody''s in the wrong here." He calmed her down, "Besides, you''re shorter, so you can''t see it, but there are a couple of people in front of us that have some clothes on."

    "That''s..." She nodded, "Okay, I understand."

    Having taken a few deep breaths, she was ready to face the world once more. That is, if facing the world meant just idly standing in line until you got to the front, that is. Somehow, the air around them filled their minds with a sense of dread. A horrible, nauseating feeling that pried the nostalgic, happy feeling right off after a while. They were by all means burning daylight, but they didn''t exactly know why they were in a hurry. And then, like magic, the person working the counter snapped his fingers at Gale, releasing him from the trance.

    "You doing alright, sir?" The shopkeeper asked.

    "A-Ah, yeah." He nodded awkwardly, "Hey, sorry to ask, but..."

    "Yeah, no worries. You can come back after a while for more clothes, don''t gotta be naked to get my services." The shopkeeper joked, "Here''s some boots, your current ones look worn."

    "Boots?" Gale looked confused, "W-What? How much, I don''t exactly have..."

    "No one does. Money ain''t a thing in Heaven 2.0." The shopkeeper gave a bit of a sassy reply, "Consider it free. That''s what this shop is, by the way."

    "You... hand out free clothes to the people?" Gale couldn''t believe his ears as he put on the dandy boots, "You are a saint, sir. Thank you for these!"

    "Heh, just a normal shopkeeper." He smirked self-depracatingly at him, "Selling normal boots."

    "Normal boots?" Gale asked.

    After a short pause, the two men that had quickly managed to bond had shared a hardy laugh together. Sending his happy customer with a smile, the wide grin on the shopkeepers face quickly turned into dumbfounded horror once he saw the lady that was next in line. It was her, the girl that helped him out with the shop in the previous cycle. The girl that came to him for help. The girl... he considered dear.

    "M-Magnes...?"

    The girl, surprised by this sudden new development, quickly understood the assignment and acted accordingly. In short, this man knew her. Her name was neither Maggie nor Mage, it was Magnes. An odd name, but he knew her from before. What would happen if she told him the truth? If she said she couldn''t remember him? The mere idea scared her plenty enough to stray away from that future. Thus, she put on her best acting cap and played along.

    "I''m back." She grinned.

    "Y-You...!?" He backed off, shivering like a crazy lunatic, "How do you remember me? How!?"

    "E-Eh?" She didn''t expect the negative reaction.

    "You do remember me... do you?" He asked with a raised Eyebrow.

    "...Surprise~" She did little jazz hands to alleviate the tension, "So, mind explaining to me how I can remember... this?"

    This shopkeeper knew her. Even got her initials right. She didn''t know him, however she felt this was just the way to learn. Playing along would definitely be beneficial for her, so she had to use this situation as best as she could. Of course, she did have the small fear that he somehow mistook her for someone else. However, it was all too clear to be the case after he told her to take off her top.

    "Golden spine..." He nodded, "Yep, pretty wow."

 Vol.2 Ch.39 - Lying 101

    "Wow. Just... wow." The shopkeeper could barely even believe it, "But how can you remember me if the reset happened?"

    "...That''s what I wanna know." I played along for now, "Actually, I was hoping you could tell me yourself."

    Who is this guy? I was going for a walk with my new friend Gale here when this guy suddenly started glaring at me like one would a dead relative back from the grave. He knows me as Magnes... M.G, and he recognized something even I hadn''t noticed before¡ªThe golden spine along my back. Though I can''t exactly say I remember him, nor anything that might''ve happened before I woke up this morning, I think I could stand to benefit from him if I play my cards right.

    "Lady, what''s the hold-up?" Gale returned to pick me up once he saw I hadn''t followed after him.

    "Ah, Gale!" I quickly replied just to keep him from potentially calling me by the wrong name, "You should meet my friend, err..."

    Crap! I don''t actually know this dude''s name! Initials, initials...! Gah, his hands are behind his back, dammit! Ohh, I already outed myself, didn''t I?

    "Sigh, not gonna work, Magnes." He chuckled, "I told you a thousand times already¡ªI''m the shopkeeper, and that''s all you need to know."

    ...Phew, that was close. Guess even Magnes never found out this guy''s name. His secretiveness saved me... Ack, but now I have a different problem!

    "Magnes?" Gale tilted his head, "Wasn''t it-mgh!"

    "Ha-ha! It was, it was!" I nudged him, stomping on his foot to keep him from spilling too much, "It was the name I had in the previous cycle, glad you remembered!"

    "...Ah." He realized the moment he saw my expression, "So then, do you two know each other?"

    "I see you''ve already made friends." The shopkeeper smiled at me, "Lemme guess, Sab?"

    "N-No." Gale shook his head.

    "..."

    This is really nerve-wracking! Dammit Gale, all you had to do was say yes and he''d be off our backs! You moron, I should''ve just shooed you away the moment you came back for me! Ohhh, Selzion almighty, give me the knowledge I need to get through this...!

    "Really? Heh, then I can only assume it''s GaLi." The shopkeeper chuckled, "We never actually met before, but she kept telling me about you and that other guy."

    "Oh!" Gale reacted positively once he heard the same letters as the ones on his hands, "Y-Yep, you got it right!"

    Hold the phone, does this guy actually know us from before somehow? It''s already crazy enough that he got my initials correct, but then you factor in Gale''s too, and things stop becoming mere coincidence after that. Granted, he got Gale''s right on the second try, but that''s still pretty good. Who else did he mention, Sab was it?

    "Magnes!" The shopkeeper slammed the counter at me, making me jump back a bit, "We should discuss..."

    "Hey, come on, we don''t got all day!" The person standing behind me yelled, "I want my clothes, quit stalling lady!"

    "Be patient, this is important!" The shopkeeper slammed the counter again.

    "What was that!?" Everyone in the line took offense to that, "You bastard, gimme my clothes! That''s your job, innit!?"

    "I-It...!" The shopkeeper bit his tongue, "It is, but..."

    "Then you better ring us up quick!" They kept yelling.

    Nervously, the shopkeeper clammed up pretty quickly after they reminded him of his position. I guess he let slip his true emotions with that first diss, but hastily course-corrected once he realized that might''ve put his job at risk. With an annoyed mutter, he instructed us to move from the line.

    "Come on you two, in here." He pointed behind him, "We can talk while I work, just don''t touch anything."

    "Will that really be okay?" I asked out of respect.

    "Why so meek all of a sudden? Yestercycle you were practically covering for me the moment you set foot inside." He laughed.

    Whoa, was I... W-Was Magnes really that much of a spoiled brat? If he let her in, then the least she could do was sit still, geez. Nonetheless, Gale and I were ecstatic to hear we were allowed to stay, so we hopped over the counter and sat down on two of the chairs he brought over from the back. Even though it looks so small from the front, this place is actually super spacious once you enter. Dark Brown lacquered wooden walls and furniture with Red carpets, now that''s classy! As for the clothes, they were all down the stairs to allow for more storage. Like a supermarket, you''d go down and pick out clothes from the rows of isles before hopping back up to hand them over to the customers. His legs must be killing him.

    "Magnes, how do you still remember everything that happened before the reset?" The shopkeeper asked once more, "You''re neither a seraphim nor a shopkeeper yourself, so unless you figured out a third reason...?"

    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    Damn, guess that''s where he got me. No more outs for me, I used them all up just to get this far. It was fun, and I''m sure I found out a fair bit already from him, but there''s nothing I could say that''d make him believe me. Damn, I really wanted to find out what he means by all these terms! Reset, cycle, seraphim... I''d ask, but he''d see right through me. If only I could know more without getting found out.

    "Uhh, yeah?" Gale raised his arm, "Sorry, before that¡ªCould you just get me up to speed with everything? The two of us just met, so she didn''t have time to do it herself. Thanks."

    Gale, you''re a genius! Right, these two don''t know each other, so by asking himself, we can both get caught up to speed without me seeming the slightest bit suspicious! Nice one, Gale! Gold star for you!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Mhm..." Gale nodded along as I intently listened in, "Oh? Ahh..."

    "So that''s why she definitely shouldn''t be able to remember me. But she does." The shopkeeper finished the story by bringing us back to the original question, "What we wanna know is how and why that is."

    "Uhh..." I blanked again.

    "Wait, is it even important?" Gale covered for me just the same, "I mean, sure it''s weird, but from what you said we lose our memories every single day, right?"

    "Yeah?"

    "How long is a day?"

    "36 hours?"

    "And we''ve spent how long just with you telling us this?" He reasoned, "Not saying it''s wasted time, but we''re definitely under a time limit here. If there''s any way to reproduce what happened to her, then we should be getting on that ASAP instead of wasting time thinking about the hows and the whys."

    "That''s..." The shopkeeper and I stared at him in astonishment.

    "...What?" He looked back blankly, "Just my two coins."

    Actually, should I really be trusting Gale so much? He''s already proven how good he is at lying, but I think this is something way more serious by now. At this point I gotta wonder if he even knows I don''t actually remember anything, that''s just how convincing he sounded. Regardless, now that we know the problem, we really should look into figuring out a solution.

    "You mentioned there were two known ways of keeping your memories between cycles." I recalled, "Could you tell us more on those, please?"

    "Sure thing. I told you that in order to keep your memories you''d either have to become a seraphim or get a job." He elaborated, "Seraphim differ from regular angels because of that, sure, but also because they have large, golden wings that grant them flight."

    "Sick." Gale''s Eyebrows shot up.

    "But since she doesn''t have those, it''s obvious she didn''t take that route." He continued, "The Gods choose the angels at random when it comes to assigning jobs, so it''s most probable that that''s what happened. Ah, unless you came across a third option...?"

    "N-Nah, not that I know of anyways." I nervously shook my head, "Wait, how does one become a seraphim again?"

    "No one knows." He shrugged, "Or rather, only the Gods and those that became seraphim know the trials required for it. Insider information type of deal."

    "So it''s down to the third option..." Gale pondered, "Then, let''s go investigate a bit!"

    "Huh?" We both furrowed our brows at him, "Come again?"

    "You heard me¡ªIf you think she''s the only one to stumble across a way to keep her memories, then you''ve got another thing coming! I am NOT gonna be living my life in Heaven as a goldfish!"

    "Hmm... Well, I wish you luck on your travels, then." The shopkeeper turned around to continue his work.

    "Nope, you''re coming with!" Gale pulled him away from the counter, wrapping his arm around his shoulders, "C''mon~! We need a guy with your kind of knowledge!"

    "Then go find a guy with that kind of knowledge!" The shopkeeper tried prying himself free to no avail.

    "We already did, bud." Gale kept being rowdy, "It''ll be fun, where''s your sense of adventure?"

    "I got a job??" The shopkeeper shot back annoyedly, "You think I''m just gonna neglect that?"

    "....."

    "........"

    "..."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "MMMMPH!?!" A silenced shopkeeper tied up to his chair and gagged with some tape Gale found nearby cried out for help, "MMMMM!!!!"

    "Sorry, but no was the wrong answer to my question!" Gale smirked as he pushed him along the cloudy streets, "Excuse me, coming through! Man, this chair with wheels is really cool! Why didn''t I ever think of that?"

    "G-Gale!?" I trailed behind them, "What are you doing!? This is kidnapping!"

    "Kids can''t get jobs." He reasoned back to me, "He has a job, ergo he''s not a kid. Ergo, it''s not kidnapping. My hands are clean."

    "They''re dirty as hell from that bullcrap logic alone!" I shot back, "Geez, stop for a second and think this through!"

    "I did think it through." He calmly glanced back, "It''s either this or forgetting every single day over and over again forever more."

    "A-Ah..."

    Seriously, just who is this guy? Gale, he doesn''t hesitate, he just does things and they somehow end up being the right choice all along. He does think things through before he does them, at least sometimes, but most of the time he operates on instinct alone. He''s willing to bend the rules and even go against the Gods just to figure out how to keep himself alive, in a way. Does this aspect of his make him admirable... or utterly terrifying?

    "Coming through! Sorry!" Gale kept speeding through the streets until he hit a guy that refused to move, "Oof!"

    "Gale, shopkeep!" I ran up to the crash site, "You guys alright?!"

    "Uuuuughh... Wait, no ugh?" Gale looked more confused than hurt, "That didn''t hurt at all."

    "Mmmm! Mmm!" The shopkeeper, now seated sideways as he was still tied to the chair with tape covering his mouth, started shouting at us like a madman, "Mmm!"

    "Dude, quit screaming. You''re making me feel guilty." Gale joked before stopping dead in his tracks once he noticed the towering figure cracking its knuckles as it loomed over us, "Uh oh."

    "White Monsters!" A man with two golden arms from the shoulders down shouted our ears off, "Back off!"

    Smack! With but a single right hook, Gale got sent flying into one of the buildings. Once again, it didn''t take long for him to raise a thumbs up to notify that he was safe, but it also didn''t stop the crazed assailant from attacking me right after.

    "Ha-ha... You wouldn''t hurt a lady, would you?" I twiddled my thumbs, "Ghack!"

    Grabbing me by the arm before swinging me around himself, he sort of proved me right by merely tossing me away from him. He didn''t even toss me that far, ''cause I barely left the floor and didn''t even reach the nearest building, much less the one he punched Gale into. No, I got off with a light dizziness and hitting my butt on the soft cloudy floor. I gotta ask though¡ªDid it not hurt because of the floor, or is it the same thing as Gale? Can angels... feel pain?

 Vol.2 Ch.40 - Justify

    "Rrragh!" A random civilian tackled the golden armed assailant, pleading me to run, "Go on! I''ll try and hold him back!"

    "Mgh! Lemme go!" The brutal opponent whaled on the poor guy as a dozen or so onlookers joined in to help subjugate him, "Crap, back away...!"

    Stumbling away from the crowd that formed, I had anxiously ran to the building where Gale was. I wasn''t about to leave him behind, no way no how.

    "M-Mmf! Magnesh!"

    A shaken voice called out to me from the ground. It belonged to the shopkeeper, still tied to the chair despite being turned sideways.

    "Wait, come back!" He begged, "He''s fine! We can''t die or feel pain in Heaven 2.0, so untie me already! Hey!"

    I can''t! If I untie him now, he''ll be furious with us for putting him in this situation in the first place! If it was just that, then I wouldn''t even mind losing him given he wasn''t exactly willing to lend a hand in the first place, but if he somehow reported what we did to the Gods, there''s no telling what kind of trouble we''d be in... I gotta find Gale and find a chance to make our exit through the chaos.

    "Mn...!" I darted my Eyes inside the building he was supposed to be in, calling out to him in a shaken whisper, "Gale! Gale!?"

    "What?" He made me jump as he appeared from behind me unscathed.

    "Gyaaahhhh!!!" I screamed my heart out, "Dammit, don''t sneak up on me! Ugh, are you hurt?"

    "I''m fine."

    "Lemme see-"

    "No, lady." He explained to me, "I''m fine. Look, no wounds, no scratches, and I don''t feel even the tiniest bit of pain."

    No pain...? Really, so what that guy said earlier was true. We don''t feel any pain in the afterlife. That''s... crazy. I''m thankful, but I still feel scared despite that. We should probably get going as soon as possible.

    "Wait." He grabbed my wrist, "Aren''t you forgetting someone?"

    "We gotta leave him, Gale!" I shook his hand off, "He doesn''t wanna help us, he''ll just report us the first chance he gets."

    His face contorted into a difficult grimace. He really didn''t believe my words, but I''m not dumb. Besides, the longer we keep him around, the higher chance he has of finding out we were lying the entire time about me keeping my memories or whatever. I can''t rest easy knowing I''m with someone as dangerous as that shopkeeper.

    "...You''re horrie." Gale furrowed his brows at me before running off to get him, "Tch, hang in there bud! Imma get you out of here!"

    "GaLi!" He shouted, "Untie me, c''mon man!"

    "Tch, that idiot...!" I mustered up the courage to help as well, "Does he want to keep his memories or not?"

    "Hey, easy now, easy!" Gale undid the tape, freeing him from the chair, "Sorry about this, let''s get away from here."

    "Let''s go!" I nodded.

    We ran and ran until we could run no more. Gale was leading the three person caravan as he made headway for us. The shopkeeper was trailing closely behind him, and I made sure to lag behind him a bit to make sure the bastard didn''t try to make a break for it. That being said, he had plenty of chances to, yet this shopkeep didn''t even look back at me once. He just kept running, following Gale almost to the exact footsteps he made. Eventually, we settled down in front of a run down shed.

    "Phew... Phew!" Gale sighed in relief.

    "Ghack." The shopkeep cleared his throat, "Oh man..."

    "...We made it." I gulped.

    "No thanks to you..." The shopkeeper muttered under his breath.

    "Oh come on-"

    "The hell do you mean come on!?" He lashed out at me, "You drag me away from my post, get me into trouble and when shit hits the fan, you don''t even stop to untie me!?"

    "Hey man, it''s alright-" Gale tried intervening.

    "GaLi, stay out of it." The shopkeeper kept going, however, "...You lied about remembering the previous cycle, didn''t you?"

    He figured it out. Guess I wasn''t expecting anything else after dumbass Gale kept him around. Tch, I better hope he''s no snitch. For now though, I gotta stand firm.

    "Sigh, you got me." I raised my hands with a lighthearted shrug.

    "Are you giving me an attitude?" He kept frowning, "The Magnes I know...!"

    If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "I''m not Magnes." I interrupted him, "...Maggie. That''s the name I wanna have."

    "...Tch." He clicked his tongue as he continued his earlier thought, "The Magnes I know was kind and sweet. She did some things that annoyed me, but underneath all that she truly did just want to help out."

    "..."

    "You''re right, you''re not Magnes." He groaned, "You''re her opposite¡ªAct all nice and polite, then show your fangs when the going gets tough. Honestly, I gotta hand it to you. I never thought a person''s personality could change so drastically between cycles."

    The shopkeeper then proceeded to angrily pace around in circles, trying desperately to understand the situation at hand, and what his next choice of action was. Gale disliked what I did, and it showed on his face very much, but he wasn''t angry like the shopkeeper. He was just... disappointed. It hurt, moreso than the shopkeeper''s words ever could. It''s true that I''ve known Gale for a longer time, sure, but the difference between those two is marginal. Why do I feel this emptiness in my chest when I look into his cold, lifeless Eyes?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "...I''m going back." The shopkeeper ultimately made his choice.

    "No!" Gale stopped him.

    "Don''t worry, I''m not gonna say anything." He shrugged, "Not like I have anyone to report you to."

    "You don''t?" I tilted my head.

    "What''s there to report? We can''t get hurt, so it''s not like you almost killed me back there." He rolled his Eyes at me, "Besides, no police force in Heaven. The only semblances of authority are wannabe vigilantes like the ones that distracted that brute so we could escape and the two Gods currently overseeing Heaven 2.0."

    "Just two?" Gale asked, "Which ones?"

    "Prylos and Selzion. They actually have a shared house together not too far from here, but the gate they installed recently kinda makes it hard to approach them."

    Gods living among angels? In hindsight, it more than makes sense, actually. But I dunno, I always just kind of assumed they lived in an even higher plane of existence. Still, if there''s only two, then the rest are down in the Living World. I guess they figured two is more than enough, but I have to wonder if they take turns coming here or something.

    "Sheep, can I call you Sheep?" Gale abbreviated the title of shopkeep to something stupid, "I want you to come with us."

    "No."

    "Please!" He begged, "We need someone knowledgeable, we need you! If we manage to find a way to keep mine and Maggie''s memories, then the three of us can start over. We can help you with the shop, we can travel around, we can BE someone!"

    "Sorry bro, no hard feelings." He still disliked the idea, "I have a job to do, and I''m already behind schedule."

    "...Don''t you want Magnes back?" Gale asked.

    "Rude." I commented.

    Despite giving me a brief glare to silence me, the shopkeeper still stopped in his tracks to hear Gale out completely. I assume the absurdity of the question completely defused his earlier jumpy attitude and swapped it out with confusion. Hell, even I wanna know what he meant by this.

    "She''s not Magnes." He pointed at me.

    "But Magnes does exist in her." Gale argued, "Because if that kind girl existed just yestercycle, then she surely exists in this one as well. She just didn''t get the chance to show up."

    "...What are you on about?" He glared.

    "If we forget today, you might meet the Magnes you know in the future. Not guaranteed, but it is possible."

    "Then why bother-!?"

    "And what then? You''re gonna have these brief 36 hours together before you have to say goodbye to her again." Gale explained, "She might not come back the next cycle, or the next ten, and even if she did come back eventually, you might just find yourself stuck with another version of her that isn''t kind."

    "Ahem." The shopkeeper alluded to me, who was standing right beside them by the way.

    "You get it, right?" Gale explained, "You hate this version of her, but in Heaven 2.0 those who keep their memories have more than enough time to grow and mature. If you help us out now, Maggie can and will show the Magnes dwelling inside her. You won''t ever have to say goodbye again. Isn''t that better than what you had last time?"

    Gale''s using me as leverage again. He''s sly, and good at spinning the story to recruit people on his side, but the shopkeeper''s anything but dumb. He''ll see right through his schemes.

    "...You''re right." The shopkeeper surprisingly agreed.

    "What!?" I jolted.

    "I should definitely help Magnes keep her memories." He continued, "But this isn''t Magnes."

    "Sheep..."

    "Please don''t call me that." He sighed, "Look, I''m more than willing to go about it your way, but why keep this horrible version of her that left me for dead when I can just wait until the one I want to keep comes by?"

    As much as I hate to admit it, the guy''s right. If he really wanted to keep one version of me, there''s absolutely no reason for him to choose this one. Why go through the extra trouble of trying to make me become Magnes when he could just get her from the start? Gale''s lost this one.

    "...And how long are you willing to wait?" Gale asked.

    "How long?" The shopkeeper raised an Eyebrow.

    "You heard me." He continued, "Do you know the chances of everything that made Magnes into the person you saw back then happening again?"

    "It doesn''t have to be exact." He crossed his arms, "Even just a fraction of what she was would be enough. Hell, she might even be better than Magnes."

    He''s obsessed. I have to wonder what kind of perfect woman I showed myself as to him that he got so head over heels. Though I really want to, even I''m not that cruel to tell him I''m not interested in men. I''ll let another version of me handle it instead.

    "You still haven''t answered the original question." Gale was adamant, "How long will that be? Until you reroll the perfect Magnes, that is. Do you seriously trust your luck that much? Besides, with so many moving pieces in Heaven 2.0, the chances of you finding two people extremely willing to extend her memory banks are astronomically low."

    "Ohhh, he''s got you there!" I teased.

    "Let''s say you find her, a Magnes that''s the same girl you knew her as." Gale finished his case off contently, "You tell her everything, and in the end she says she''s uninterested in keeping her memories. What then? You gonna tie her up like we did you this time?"

    Again, Gale''s negotiation skills are so good that it''s actually scary. He can justify most anything, but not only that¡ªHe can make things look justified. Still, so long as I can get to retain my memories because of his exploits, then I''m all for it.

    "...Tch." The shopkeeper begrudgingly shook his hand, "Betting on safe is a scam, you know."

    "And betting with expectations is even worse." Gale said with a wide grin, "Welcome aboard, Sheep."

    "I..." Sheep let out an annoyed screech, "I told you not to call me that, dammit!!!"

 Vol.2 Ch.41 - Perfect Plan

    After some heavy negotiations between Gale and the shopkeeper, who was now given the name Sheep for some reason, Gale managed to convince him to join our team in order to help us escape the endless cycles of forget. The only reason he''s doing this is for me, or rather the person he remembers me as¡ªMagnes. I don''t mind though, so long as it gets us the help we need.

    "So, what exactly was Magnes like?" Gale asked as we trekked through the busy streets.

    "She was a handful." He chuckled warmly, "A steadfast wild girl with a heart of gold. She did get on my nerves a bit at times, however."

    "Sounds like I really pestered you." I smirked smugly.

    "Yep, I was handing out clothes to everyone as per usual, when you suddenly showed up with your friends and began asking questions." He recalled, "After you got what you asked for, the three of you left."

    "Us and that Sab guy, I assume?" Gale asked.

    "Yep, said you were chasing after a guy with wings." He glanced up, "Not long after you came back alone to ask me for help after your group got attacked by a brute and separated."

    "A brute?" I asked, "Wait, could it have been that guy we just ran into a bit ago?"

    A brute... That''s certainly one way to describe him. Those golden arms are no joke, he really did have enhanced strength when it came to smashing things into a billion pieces. Had they not been invincible, I don''t think either Gale or Sheep would have survived the encounter. I guess it makes sense¡ªIf everyone loses their memories, then events are bound to repeat in similar ways over and over. Just gives me more motivation to get out of the loops, in my opinion.

    "You stayed with me for the rest of the day in the shop." Sheep continued to reminisce, "No matter how many times I told you to not meddle, you still did. It made the monotonous job livelier, though, so I would be lying if I said it angered me."

    "Oho?" Gale teased, "So that''s where it all started, hm~?"

    "Started? What did?" He tilted his head.

    Gale didn''t have to do this now... or ever for that matter. Sheep hates my guts, but from what we''ve heard, he''s quite eager to be with Magnes again. It''s an uncomfortable situation for everyone, so I was much rather hoping we wouldn''t have to shed any light on that topic. Sheep too, he''s acting dumb to hopefully get Gale to back off, but he''s being incessant as usual. Guess I should just make everything clear so we can move on properly.

    "Sigh, he''s asking about us." I bashfully explained Gale''s words to him.

    "Oh, us." He furrowed his brows, "Yeah, that''s the first time I met you two."

    "N-No, I didn''t mean all three of us." Gale curbed his snickers.

    "Sheep, you can''t be serious." I lightly shoved him, "He was talking about you and Magnes, dumbass."

    "Magnes would''ve never called me that dumbass name!" He proudly crossed his arms and looked away with a pout, "She called me Peanut Butter, for your information!"

    ...Peanut Butter. That''s the name my past self gave you? Honestly, it fits, I''d probably think of the same thing if he asked me. It''s mad stupid though, so thankfully for him Gale came in with Sheep before that could happen. Not too large of an improvement, mind you, but anything''s better than freaking Peanut Butter.

    "...Peanut Butter?" Gale raised an Eyebrow.

    "I hated it too, but I guess it''s what I deserve for not choosing a name myself." He shrugged.

    "I see you still haven''t learned your lesson." I mocked, "Sheep."

    "Call me whatever you want." He acted like it didn''t bother him, but the Eye twitches all but gave him away.

    "...Sheep."

    "Hrm..."

    "Sheepy Sheep."

    "Hey, no fair! Quit adding to it!" He snapped finally, "Fine! You want a name, I''ll give it to you! From now on, call me-!"

    Swoosh! A terribly strong gust of wind blew through our street, knocking quite literally every person in its path. Getting back up to see what the source of that wind was, we weren''t at all surprised to see it was already long gone.

    "The hell was that?" Gale looked back.

    "Ugh..." Sheep kept lying on the ground, "Dammit..."

    "Hey, get up." I lifted him, "Do you know anything about that or not?"

    "Unfortunately, I do." He groaned, "Happens more often than you''d think. That was someone still getting the hang of their new wings."

    New wings? Wait, so it was a seraphim! Just like he said before, it''s a person that finished the prerequisites to become a seraphim, so now they have wings and can keep their memories between cycles! If it''s that, then we definitely can''t let a chance like that slip by!

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    "Then what are we waiting for?!" I hurried in front of them, "After that person!"

    Nope. Immediately after I finished my sentence, another gust of wind blew past us, but this time it wasn''t nearly as bad, albeit just as if not even faster than the previous one. The wings that created this second gust were way more experienced, possibly this could be a chase scene or something akin to that. Looking up, I could just barely make out a fast moving dot high above in the sky.

    "Ignore it." Sheep shook his head.

    "You crazy!?" I yanked him back, "This is our chance, I know it! If we manage to talk to them, they might tell us how to become seraphim!"

    Annoyed, Sheep blankly stared me down before sighing and turning to look at Gale. His gaze indicated he was asking for Gale to talk some sense into me, or at the very least take his side on this. Gale, however, knew what the right choice to make was.

    "Sorry, but I''m with Maggie on this." Gale shook his head, "It beats randomly wandering throughout the streets. This is a goal, an endpoint."

    "If we manage this, I''ll start calling you Peanut Butter." I thought to sweeten the deal.

    "Hrm..." He grumbled, "Fine, but don''t call me Peanut Butter!"

    "Oh I will." I teased, "I''m sure you''d like that."

    "No the hell I wouldn''t!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Come on, quickly!" I hollered as we passed by hundreds of alleyways and detours to get to where these two shooting stars were.

    After having changed course, the sense that there was no more turning back became all the more real the longer we ran. It took a damn long time too, and we were pretty winded from it, but eventually we found them¡ªTwo ordinary looking angels with large Golden Wings around them talking in front of a giant fountain in the middle of an open field. Well, I say open field, but in reality it''s just someone''s yard. It is pretty huge though.

    "Tch, lucky them." Gale tried squeezing through the metal bars, "They can just fly inside freely, meanwhile we''re stuck outside because of the gate. I''m gonna have to climb over..."

    "Wait!" Sheep looked terrified, "Don''t do it. Do you know what this place is!?"

    "No, how could we?" I asked a smidge angrily.

    Before he got to say what this place was, two giants exited the mansion in front of the fountain the seraphim were staying by. Hovering over to them in an eerie manner, the titans clicked their tongues at one of the seraphim before they could even say anything.

    "What are you doing here? Don''t you know why we installed this gate in the first place?" The muscular giant rolled his Eyes.

    "Sorry about him, he still isn''t used to flying." The more experienced seraphim covered for his friend, "I take full responsibility. He was unsure of how to land, so I guided him to the most open field I could think of."

    "And that place happened to be the Gods'' Abode?" The lankier giant inquired.

    T-The Gods!? Wait, there''s two of them, so are they Selzion and Prylos? The God of Knowledge and the God of Meditation live here... Phew, it''s a good thing Sheep stopped Gale before he could hop the fence, in that case! Otherwise we would''ve been in a huge heap of trouble. Let''s just listen in to their conversation from afar for now.

    "The lanky one is Selzion, and the other guy is Prylos." Sheep whispered, "They seem kinda pissed after what these two pulled, so let''s try and not get involved if we can."

    "Got it." Me and Gale nodded as we continued to listen in on them.

    "I just got my wings today, ha-ha..." The seraphim that started all this said bashfully, "Didn''t exactly have much of a tutorial on them..."

    "A tutorial. Hmm, would that be a good idea to implement?" Selzion was on board, "A way to get new seraphim accustomed to their powers."

    "Like a sort of training area where they can fly around without worry?" Prylos asked, "Is there even a point if every building just resets eventually?"

    "There is." Selzion inspected the large crater in their yard the seraphim had caused with his haphazard landing, "Our yard doesn''t reset."

    Their yard doesn''t reset...? Why though? Surely the all powerful Gods of this world can spare themselves the same privileges they gave to their subjects, no? Unless... there''s something they can''t afford to rollback. This is getting interesting.

    "Hm?" I looked next to me to see Gale on the other side of the fence, "H-How''d-!? What!?"

    "Shh! Look here, I bent the bars just enough for us to be able to pass through!" He whispered, "Come on, if we go around the back, we might be able to sneak inside the House of the Gods!"

    "You moron! Are you crazy!?" Sheep stopped him, "You wanna get us banished from Heaven?!"

    "I wanna see what I can find." Gale replied immediately, "Maggie, back me up on this."

    "...You heard it yourself, they can''t reset their own home." I glanced back at them, "I''d take that as meaning they have some kind of big secret that requires them to keep it permanent."

    "Ohh, I haven''t even thought about it like that!" Gale smiled, "So, got anything in mind?"

    "...I think..." I figured, "I think that''s where they set the rules of this place. Like a sort of control room. If we get in there, I''m sure we can find some way to keep our memories."

    "Magnes...!" Sheep weighed it over in his head, "...Okay, let''s do it!"

    Thank the Gods, finally! Geez, it always takes so much convincing before he does anything with his life... In any case, we didn''t want to waste too much time, but we also had to make sure we weren''t spotted. It''s a pretty open field, with pretty flat terrain, but given how far we were from the center of the yard where they were, we reckoned we could just barely pass by unnoticed if we stuck close to the ground and crawled. Did we look stupid? Yes. Did the people passing by the streets on the other side of the gate look at us weird? Certainly. But no matter how shameless it looks on the outside, we will absolutely enter that house!

    "So, that''s the case." Selzion''s voice echoed throughout the yard, "You wish to use those wings to visit the Shrine?"

    "Huh!?" The more experienced seraphim shouted, "How did you...!?"

    "We are Gods, we know and see everything." He continued as I suddenly felt a glare creep up on me, "We will not excuse this behavior, your wings are forfeit."

    "No!" The other seraphim shouted, "I just got these, dammit!"

    "Selz, wait." Prylos stopped him, "You two can keep your wings, but only if you do this one thing for us."

    "What is it!?" Both yelled, "Anything! You name it!"

    "A group of intruders is trying to sneak into our house." Selzion smirked, "I''m sure you''re both very well acquainted with them. Please see to it that they never pester us like this again."

    Uh oh, we''ve been spotted. I turned my head to the side, expecting an attack from the two seraphim, but before I could even blink they had already swept me away. Guess they''re really that eager to keep their wings. How annoying...

 Vol.2 Ch.42 - Moon Wading

    7 hours ago, right about when the reset occurred...

    Sab awoke in an odd and unfamiliar room. Though he tried desperately to recall the exact events before this moment, nothing in particular came to mind. His headache made it too much of a hassle to try. Still, the room he was in was run-down and vacant. After having raised his head to scan the surroundings briefly, he defeatedly let it drop down to the ragged pillow under him.

    "...What am I even doing?" He asked himself.

    After having failed to attain seraphimhood by but a single good deed, both he and Throne had gotten devoured by the horde of White Monsters. Throne told him what''d happen if he failed, and it seems that''s exactly what''s going on.

    "...Wait, that''s not right." Sab sat back up all confused, "If this is supposed to be the next cycle after I failed, then how come I still remember everything?"

    "Piece it together yourself, genius." Throne''s voice teased him from behind.

    "Bah!" He fell off the bed in surprise, "Y-You''re...!? You''re still here!"

    "Yep, so are you." Throne smirked, "Flex your back muscles for me."

    "Huh?" Sab confusedly obliged.

    "No, not your traps." Throne shook his head, "Your BACK muscles. Try and get your scapulas to touch."

    "...Okay? So, like this-?"

    Doing as he was told, he pivoted his shoulders in a way that made his back flex. What he didn''t expect to follow this maneuver was a bunch of loud crashing sounds. Turning around quickly to check on what it was, he continued to hear the loud noises, yet all he saw was an already destroyed room. Shelves and bookcases were on the floor, tables and chairs were turned upside down, but he couldn''t for the life of him see why this was happening.

    "...That one''s on me." Throne sighed, "I should''ve taken you outside before making you do that."

    "You''re saying this is my fault!?" Sab jumped back, which led to more stuff breaking, "Gods, what the hell is that!?"

    "You''re smart enough to figure it out, but I guess anyone would be in disbelief after our earlier close call." Throne smiled, "Okay, try to slowly move your scapulas as far away from each other as possible. I''ll urge you to go slowly though, wouldn''t want you to smack me away too."

    Still left confused by these seemingly weird orders, Sab did as he was told and carefully moved his back muscles accordingly. In his field of vision, two remarkably golden wings with a mechanical texture to them appeared from both sides, with a proud Throne standing cross-armed in between them. These wings, they weren''t Throne''s, he already had his own. In other words...

    "These are... mine?" Sab smiled widely, "Haha! My wings! We did it, man!"

    "Hey, watch it with the sporadic movements." Throne made sure to calm him down, "We''re in my house, so I''d like for it not to collapse, please."

    "B-But how!?" Sab still couldn''t believe it, "We were one good deed off a hundred, right? Did we miscount?"

    Back then, time had run out before they could reach 100 good deeds and turn Sab into a seraphim. The White Monster Apostles had them surrounded, and though they managed to squeeze out four more customers, the total they reached was only 99. As Sab sat there thinking of what else they could accomplish to get him his wings, Throne dejectedly decided it just wasn''t gonna work, so he opted to open his Eyes and get devoured by the White Monsters without any pushback. This left Sab alone to fend for himself, a task he simply could not accomplish, leading to him getting brutally forced to open his Eyes and get put to sleep by them. This was what had happened, so how was it that Sab had a pair of wings on him currently?

    "I''ve been wracking my brain thinking up reasons as to why that is too." Throne sat down with an uncharacteristically warm smile, "Both of us kept count in our heads, with frequent checks between us to make sure our count wasn''t off."

    "Yes, I remember that." Sab sat down as well, "So then, if it wasn''t a miscount, then what was the last good deed?"

    "Me." Throne pointed to himself, "It''s the only explanation."

    "Eh?"

    "Right, it happened when we just met." Throne recalled, "Back then, you remember the promise you made to me?"

    "I..."

    "Maybe you don''t even remember it, it was probably something you just said, but I guess that only serves the purpose of proving I''m right on this." Throne nodded, "You told me that as long as I helped you become a seraphim, you''d help me enter the Shrine."

    "Ah, I did say something like that." Sab raised his Eyebrows.

    Ironically enough, though he hasn''t yet even done it, this might very well be the only actual good deed in the total. No ulterior motives, no end goal¡ªSab just saw the despair in Throne''s Eyes and opted to help him find a way inside the Shrine. In fact, Throne knew that they had succeeded way before he woke up after the reset.

    "When I opened my Eyes, ready to give up..." Throne noted, "I saw you sitting there, cowering from all the White Monsters surrounding you. I saw those wings of yours fully spread out for the world to see."

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    "Wow..." Sab looked down in disbelief, "So then, that''s why I''m in your house and not mine?"

    "Yes." He nodded, "When I woke up today, I immediately flew to find you and took you back here. Actually, I was pretty anxious about your condition."

    "And why was that?"

    "You were asleep for an entire cycle." Throne replied, "I''m not sure if you''re just a heavy sleeper, or if this is standard for every newly turned seraphim, but you were lying unconscious in that bed for over 36 hours."

    "...And you watched over me for the entire duration?" Sab gulped.

    "...Hell no." Throne shook his head, "I''m not crazy. I went for a stroll around town to check out the new clothes shops around."

    "Oh." Sab slumped forward, "You do look dripped out, though. Did you at least get anything for me?"

    "Nope. One outfit per person."

    "Oh."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Okay, you''re all set!" The kind lovely female shopkeeper handed him his clothes, "Looking good, sir!"

    "T-Thanks, you too." Sab tried to give his best attempt at flirting.

    "...Sir-"

    "Okay, I''m sorry!" He ran away immediately after, "Thanks for the clothes, love you-ACK! I-I meant see ya''!"

    "..." Throne could only stare at him disappointedly in silence.

    "Phew... What?"

    "The hell was that?" He asked him with a frown.

    "I felt confident!" Sab tried to justify his actions, "I-I got new clothes, new wings... Honestly, anyone would feel like they could do anything after all that!"

    "So you decided to try your luck with the shopkeeper?" Throne facepalmed.

    "Yeah, so what if I did?" He crossed his arms, "Not like she''ll remember me by the next cycle anyways, so I can just try again later!"

    "...Shopkeepers keep their memories-"

    "NOOOOO~!!!"

    He was destroyed. This was the face of a seraphim who had just learned that his actions no longer have no consequences. At least if he''s gunning for the shopkeepers, that is.

    "Fine, I fumbled her, but there are other female shopkeepers around, aren''t there?" Sab looked around as if he''d find them nearby or something, "Surely there''s gotta be some."

    "I''m sure there are, but what''s the point?" Throne scowled, "No one here has any reproductive organs, and our bodies are numb. You wouldn''t ever feel anything anyways."

    "Your definition of love is genuinely concerning." Sab cocked his head back, "Even if our bodies can''t biologically reproduce, that doesn''t mean our souls can''t experience the joys of having a partner, right? Besides, stuff like holding hands and kissing are still possible, aren''t they?"

    "It''d literally feel like kissing and holding air!" Throne yelled, "Heavenly Beings don''t feel anything apart from their golden parts!"

    An overly mature middle aged man with a pinch of sarcasm in him and an overzealous yet inexperienced older teen. These two were seraphim, the second best when it came to ranking Heavenly Beings, sitting only below the Gods themselves. It''s already a miracle Sab managed to get his wings in the first place, but now the bigger question is whether or not that''ll be enough to get them inside the Shrine.

    "Already, we have everything ready, so let''s not waste any more time." Throne began to flap his wings.

    "Wait, hold on!" Sab pulled him back down by the ankle, "You still haven''t taught me how to fly, dude!"

    "Yeah, no worries. I''ll teach you on the way there."

    "Teach me now!"

    "That''s what I''m saying, geez!" Throne rolled his Eyes, "When you learn how to swim, your dad tosses you in the water to swim or drown trying. It''s the same thing here."

    "Ah, no??" Sab stepped back, "Hell no! What era do you come from, the fucking middle ages!?"

    "Certainly not. I just had a father that cared."

    "Mine did too!" Sab obviously couldn''t know for sure, "...Probably. B-But come on, at least teach me how to follow you first! The basics, at least!"

    Sab was adamant about this. Thus far, he only knew how to move his wings, but not nearly fast enough for them to get him to ascend off the ground. Given his technique, he knew for sure he''d get way too tired before he could ever even move an inch off the ground, much less actually make a controlled flight. He needed the guidance from Throne.

    "...Fine. Go on, let me see how you''d do it." Throne floated close by.

    "Hrngh...!" Sab pushed himself as much as he could, "Hggghhh...!"

    "You know, we don''t have anuses, but you might just be the first guy to shit himself in Heaven 2.0." Throne was ready to give up already, "No need to force it so much. You''re too tense."

    "But they''re heavy." Sab refuted.

    "They''re heavy, yes, but that just means they have good inertia." Throne explained, "Imagine your wings as if they''re sliding on ice."

    "Okay?"

    "The friction is practically zero, since they have a galvanic connection to your body."

    "Galvanic...?"

    "It means they''re not connected to your body, but you can still control them." Throne dumbed it down for him.

    "Oh, like bluetooth."

    "No clue what that is, but sure." Throne continued, "In any case, the near zero friction part is the important bit. Try shrugging, but keep your shoulders up after, okay? Make sure it''s explosive."

    Now having been given both the space and permission to spread his wings properly, Sab felt a lot more comfortable doing as he was told. Swinging his wings high above him, he quickly understood the intuitive nature of controlling them.

    "Great, now move your shoulders down a tiny bit." Throne added.

    "Ohhh! I think I get it!" Sab began to flap them, each time making his body feel lighter and lighter, "So tiny movements are enough, huh?"

    "That too, but in general you shouldn''t be using your shoulders." Throne warned, "It''ll tire you out way too quickly. Instead, you should learn to flex your back muscles only."

    "So what you''re saying is¡ªThis is the incorrect way."

    "It''s the more labor intensive way." Throne smirked, "But over time your body will correct that on its own. You''ll get the hang of flying with your back before you know it, but for now try to just lift yourself off the ground."

    Continuing to make tiny shrugs that sent his large wings up and down repeatedly, Sab gave himself a bit of a running start as he cleared the street. A tiny hop, followed by a lofty leap, then a super high jump. His wings slowed down the descent quite noticeably, making it seem like he weighed no more than a feather.

    "You''re still not flying." Throne looked a tad saddened by the failure.

    "Woohoo! This is fun!" Sab still kept on smiling however, "Flying or not, I''m liking these wings! Haha, it''s like I''m on the moon!"

    "Like you''d know what it''s like on the moon, come on."

    "If only you knew, Throne!" Sab smiled widely as he kept moon wading, "If only you knew!"

 Vol.2 Ch.43 - Remuneration

    "Woo! Look at me, y''all!" Sab reached higher and higher with each consecutive jump, "Gods, where have these wings been all my life?!"

    "I think you''re ready to actually use them for their intended purpose now." Throne smirked, his Eyes twitching occasionally, "We''re never gonna make it to the Shrine if you don''t learn to fly."

    "Nah, I''m good like this I think." He replied, "I feel way more confident when I''m not too far off the ground."

    It was slow, but in Sab''s mind, it wasn''t as if they were under a time limit any more. Hence, he was about ready for their journey to take hundreds of cycles if need be. They can stop at any moment to take a break, and pick up where they left off. So what if they can''t be as fast as Throne''s flying speed? Not like it''d change much in the grand scheme of things... Or at least that''s what he thought.

    "Well you''re not gonna feel confident when White Monsters start appearing again." Throne warned him with a tired sigh, "When that happens, you''re gonna wish you learned how to fly."

    "Eh? Oh, right. Those exist..." Sab rolled his Eyes, "Well, whatever! In that case, you''ll just carry me up with you like you did before!"

    "Actually, I can''t do that either." Throne remarked, "You said it yourself¡ªThe wings are heavy. I could maybe possibly hold you up a bit, but only if we somehow managed to sync up our wings perfectly so that we''re both flapping without them getting tangled up."

    "In other words: Sab, learn to fly." Sab understood the assigned task, "Ugh, I guess I have no other choice. I''ll try and fly for 10 seconds before committing too much."

    "Just remember to not use your shoulders as much, I imagine they''re already quite sore." Throne gave out his final tips before the first attempt, "Also, when you''re flapping, you don''t need to do so all the way. Apply just a little bit of strength into moving your wings, and their weight will do the rest of the work for you. Another thing to mention..."

    "Geez, who are you, my dad?!" Sab got sick of it as he started flying, "I get it, so stop distracting me!"

    Truth be told, he wasn''t bad, all things considered. It took him a few attempts to reach the first milestone of ten seconds of flight, but after that things only got easier the longer he extended the flight duration. This was because the longer it took, the higher his altitude would go, meaning he didn''t have to worry about accidentally bumping into the surrounding buildings. Conversely, however, the higher he got, the worse his landings became. Ascent was a piece of cake for him, the slowfall back down, however... Not so much. He didn''t have the fine motor skills down to do anything apart from stop moving his wings altogether and just fall down normally. After a while, he eventually reached the point of no return¡ªAn altitude he just couldn''t tolerate falling from anymore.

    "H-Hey..." He gulped, "We''re flying to the Shrine, right? I dunno the direction, so I''m following you."

    "Yep, you''re doing good." Throne praised him, "I told you it''s nothing too difficult. Just needed a bit of practice."

    "Right, about that..." Sab peeped down before raising his head back hastily in front of him, "Eek! Uhmm... Could you maybe help carry me down when we reach it?"

    "No, you''ll have to figure that out yourself, just like this." Throne seemed confused.

    "I can''t, I''ll get seriously hurt!" Sab whined.

    "You''re in Heaven, you can''t get hurt." Throne groaned, "We only feel physical sensations on our golden parts, remember? And as far as I know, your hoops are the only golden thing you have on you. Just don''t bellyflop and you''ll be fine."

    "I still don''t feel comfortable sticking the landing like a maniac."

    "Then roll out?" Throne tilted his head, "Here, like this. Look closely!"

    "No, wai-!"

    Diving down headfirst towards the cloudy ground below them, Throne''s speeds reached incredible velocity, to the point where to someone from the ground, he most resembled a shooting star. At this speed, there was no way any human would survive, much less escape unscathed. But Throne wasn''t a human, nor did he hit the ground with any golden part of his body. For him, he was blessed with only having his tongue be golden, meaning he essentially could only ever feel pain if he bit into it accidentally. Otherwise, he was free to do as many dumb flashy stunts as he wanted to¡ªLike the magnificent rollout that safely defused any and all excess potential energy he had previously accumulated during his fall. The crowd of onlookers all cheered and clapped for his magnificent performance as Throne looked up at Sab with a smug grin, waiting patiently for him to follow suit.

    "Uuu..." Sab disliked the pressure, "I-I can''t..."

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    He knew how to fly forward just fine, but anything else was still new to him. Sab could not strafe in the air nor could he go back, meaning he certainly couldn''t stop and stay in the same spot for an extended period of time. If he wanted to oblige, he would have merely stopped flapping his wings, but in continuing to go further and further away from the stationary, grounded Throne, he had shown to everyone the choice he had made without even so much as uttering a word.

    "Tch, guess he''s still scared..." Throne grumbled to himself before hurrying to catch up to his disciple in the sky, "Yo, kid! Calm down!"

    "I am calm!" Sab closed his Eyes and shook his head.

    "W-Whoa, hey!?" Throne noticed this, "Open your Eyes, idiot! You''re gonna...!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    ...Crash, is what he was about to say. After Sab realized he didn''t actually know how to do anything but keep moving forward with his wings, he began to panic. In that panic, he closed his Eyes so that he wouldn''t have to face the problem anymore. Sadly, this meant he couldn''t see that he was quickly tilting his body forwards, making him flap directly downwards instead of up. Unlike Throne''s rather fast but professional dive, this was more like a propelled missile getting continuously launched towards the ground at mach speeds. It took only a fraction of a second, and two mighty flaps for him to hit the ground headfirst.

    "MMMM-!" He tried to get his head unstuck from the grassy field, like an ostrich, "MPH!"

    "...Crap!" Throne noticed where exactly Sab had crash landed, "Nononono...! Wait wait wait wait wait...!"

    The Gods'' Abode. Out of all the places they could possibly have gotten themselves mixed up in, Sab just had to get stuck in the one place they would have to face punishment for ruining. The rest of Heaven 2.0''s buildings and yards were part of the cycle¡ªIn other words, they would reset along with the memories of angels. One of the few exceptions to this rule was the very Abode they had set foot on... Or rather, set head in. Throne practically zipped to the bottom before yanking his friend''s head free and trying to make a hasty, unnoticed exit. The doors to the mansion, however, opened as the hosts greeted them nonetheless.

    "What are you doing here? Don''t you know why we installed this gate in the first place?" The muscular giant rolled his Eyes.

    "Sorry about him, he still isn''t used to flying." Throne covered for Sab, "I take full responsibility. He was unsure of how to land, so I guided him to the most open field I could think of."

    "And that place happened to be the Gods'' Abode?" Selzion inquired.

    Thousands of alarms were going off in Throne''s mind. If he didn''t play his cards right, a mighty fine punishment would soon follow. Now if it was just a punishment for Sab, he wouldn''t mind all that much¡ªThe kid deserved it, after all. But the issue arose when Throne understood that he bore responsibility for this blunder as well. He had to be careful, test the waters and see how willing the Gods were to let this one tiny slip up go.

    "I just got my wings today, ha-ha..." Sab said bashfully, "Didn''t exactly have much of a tutorial on them..."

    "Shut up!" Throne muttered quietly enough for no one else to hear it, "I got this, so please shut up!"

    "A tutorial. Hmm, would that be a good idea to implement?" Selzion was on board, "A way to get new seraphim accustomed to their powers."

    "Like a sort of training area where they can fly around without worry?" Prylos asked, "Is there even a point if every building just resets eventually?"

    "There is." Selzion inspected the large crater in their yard the two had caused with Sab''s haphazard landing, "Our yard doesn''t reset."

    Throne knew this much already from previous cycles. Obviously, given his long lived life as a seraphim, he had already been to this place a good couple of times. One time, during his landing in front of the fountain, he too had to stop a bit unglamorously, thus he skidded across the grassy field. The next time he arrived, the skid marks still remained. They weren''t as noticeable, but they were there. He came to the conclusion that this was done to ensure the Book inside their home would never roll back anything written inside it... For that Book dictated the rules of Heaven 2.0 as they knew it.

    "So, that''s the case." Selzion''s voice echoed throughout the yard, "You wish to use those wings to visit the Shrine?"

    "Huh!?" Throne shouted, "How!? How did you...!?"

    "We are Gods, we know and see everything." He continued as he turned his attention to three lowly angels crawling along the grass patches along the inner edge of the gate, "We will not excuse this behavior, your wings are hereby forfeit."

    "No!" Sab cried out, "I just got these, dammit!"

    "Selz, wait." Prylos stopped him, "You two can keep your wings, but only if you do this one thing for us."

    "What is it!?" Both yelled, "Anything! You name it!"

    Though he was the one who asked, Throne had already ascertained what the task was going to be from the context clues and prepared to attack in advance accordingly. He saw who the three intruders were, and the only thing that made that fact worse was that he recognized one of them. It was her, without a doubt... Migu.

    "A group of intruders is trying to sneak into our house." Selzion smirked, "I''m sure you''re both very well acquainted with them. Please see to it that they never pester us like this again."

    Sab was slow on the uptake, but Throne was already at the three''s location. Swooping in like a hawk to lift all three of them off the ground, he made sure to flick his body up in the nick of time before he hit the gate and utterly destroyed it. That would be no good, in fact they were in trouble in the first place because of the property damage, so he kept that part to a minimum. He was tasked to scare these three so badly that they would never ever even think to set foot in the Gods'' Abode however, meaning he was essentially given the impossible task of transcending the memory loss. What he needed to instill wasn''t fear, but trauma¡ªAnd he was gonna do it no matter what, otherwise he would have to relinquish his wings to the Gods. A seraphim without wings is no different than an angel that can retain their memories.

    "No hard feelings, you three." Throne made sure to point this out as he flew them hundreds of thousands of kilometers straight up, "But I somehow feel my goals are definitely more noble than whatever you have cooking up in the pot."

    "BWAAAAAAAAHHHH~!" They all yelped, sobbed, cried and begged for their lives, "SPARE USSSSS~!"

    Angels versus seraphim. The embarrassingly one-sided battle begins...

 Vol.2 Ch.44 - Lost & Retrieved

    "What?" I looked around us, "Why am I in the sky? What''s going on!?"

    "From this distance, I''m sure you''ve heard what those numbskulls want me and my dear apprentice to do with you." The winged seraphim listlessly sighed, "Best just make things easier for everyone and accept your fates."

    "He''s right." Sheep could only think to agree, "We should have never tried something so reckless in the first place. We should accept the punishment properly."

    What? Giving up already, even though the dude''s outnumbered!? News flash, buddy¡ªThere''s three of us, and one of him! His other winged friend, his "apprentice" as he calls him, is sitting on his ass in front of the Gods, staring up at us dumbfounded as he wonders what he should do. This guy does have wings, sure, but it''s not like we have to worry about him dropping or otherwise hurting us, since we''re invincible. If we just tried, then surely...

    "Hmph." Gale pouted before masterfully grabbing the seraphim into a chokehold, "Ngah!"

    "W-What are you doing!?" Sheep panicked.

    "Come on, help us!" I ordered, seizing the opportunity to latch onto the seraphim''s left wing and stop it from moving, "Sheep, you do the other side!"

    "Mnn..."

    "Sheep!" Gale yelled at him, "Do as she says, dammit!"

    Begrudgingly, he decided to follow suit and hop on the other wing. Now the seraphim''s upper body was restrained thanks to Gale, and his wings were under our control. We had successfully commandeered him, but he wasn''t gonna let us go that easily.

    "Take us back!" Gale ordered.

    "Please, we can help you if you help us!" I begged.

    "Tch, you''re still saying that, Migu..." The seraphim appeared to have recognized me, "What''s your goal this time? Do humor me, and I might take the bait."

    Migu, that must be one of the names I chose in my previous cycles. A personality that crossed paths with him. Either he''s always been the calm and collected, amicable type, or he''s on friendly terms with Migu. Honestly, this entire time my past selves have been making my time here a breeze. Had it not been for Magnes, Migu and Gods know how many more came before them... I wouldn''t have made it past the start.

    "Stop trying to trick us!" Gale kept tightening his hold on him, "Just do as we say and no one gets hurt!"

    "...We need to get inside that mansion." I revealed after thinking it over a bit.

    "Wha-! Maggie!" Gale disliked my honesty with the opponent.

    "Hmph, so nothing new?" The seraphim chuckled, "I guess without Vastoria, you really have no other place to go."

    "Vastoria?" We furrowed our brows.

    "Never mind her. I''ll help you get inside." The seraphim obliged, "Those Gods, you''ve noticed it too, right? There''s so much they just... refuse to reveal to us. Frankly, it''s infuriating."

    He... He''s gonna join our side? Whoa, the power of past connections and a little bit of negotiation goes a long way, it seems. Not only that, but he''s also gonna help us get inside the mansion! What luck, maybe this was meant to be after all!

    "I agree, we don''t know anything about this place." Gale glared daggers at the seraphim, "Like you, for example."

    "Right, you expect us to just trust you with your word alone, when you don''t even give us many words to work with." Sheep agreed, oddly enough.

    "Is that so? Then, what do you wanna know about little old me?"

    "Your name." Gale continued, "Your goal, who that apprentice of yours is, and most importantly¡ªHow to become a seraphim. Give us those answers, and if we''re happy with them, then we''re happy with you."

    Gah, stop ruining the good atmosphere we had going on! ...No, it''s right of them to be wary. In fact, I was in the wrong for choosing to trust some random guy just because he called me by a name that matched my initials. I guess I got too carefree after Sheep. Seriously, this guy could''ve just made that name up completely! Migu, what kind of a name is that, anyways?

    "That''s a lot of questions. You sure I''m gonna be able to answer them all before we go splat?" He looked down at the approaching ground below.

    "You''d best start talking, then." Gale threatened.

    Was he in the army or something? Gale, he''s pretty darn capable once you factor in everything he''s done so far. That chokehold looks intense, though I think he forgot Heavenly Beings don''t feel any pain. Eh, but wait, then why did this guy tell us we''ll go splat when we hit the ground, then? Is he trying to trick us after all? But if that''s the case, then is Gale being fearless or does he know after all? Gah, I''m lost, so I''ll withdraw from the conversation for now...

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    "...The Dethroned, but you may call me Throne for short." Throne smirked, "My friend down there is a new seraphim. He just turned recently, so I wanted to show him the ropes since I helped him become a seraphim in the first place. Keh, the guy''s totally imprinted on me."

    "Keep talking." Gale didn''t let up even for a second, "What''s your goal?"

    "My goal? It''s not anything too special, in truth we just stumbled upon the Gods'' territory like you did." He continued, "You heard those idiots yourselves¡ªI only came after you because they threatened to take away our wings otherwise."

    "So why in the world would you be willing to help us sneak into the mansion?" Sheep seemed skeptical of him.

    "Because it''s something they don''t want." He laughed, "In my long life as a seraphim, not once have I seen anyone get let inside the mansion. You could maybe sneak a peek or two of the interior, but that''s as far as you''d go."

    So it''s curiosity, after all. I guess that works, he''s right that what we''re doing is definitely something that would be considered going against the Gods. In other words, what lies inside might just be stronger and more powerful than the perks of a seraphim. If we somehow manage to get inside and find the thing they don''t even want us to know about, then...

    "We''re running out of time, fellas." Throne pointed with his chin, "Choose wisely, but make it quick."

    "...Tch!" Gale let go, prompting us to follow suit as we freed his wings'' movement, "You better catch us, dipass!"

    "Of course!" The grin on Throne''s face turned demented, "Would I lie to you?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Having jumped off of him to allow him full control of his flight again, he thankfully followed through with his promise of keeping us from going splat by turning around and re-grabbing us with but a flap of both wings. We were now in the same position we were at initially when he caught us, only way more comfortable. There was no fighting back or trying to break free, because we trusted him when he told us he was on our side. For now, that''s the best we''ve got.

    "Hey, you never told us the last answer." Sheep remarked, "How do we become seraphim?"

    "Is that a necessary step to your end goal?" He answered with another question.

    "N-No, but it''d make things easie-"

    "Then no." Throne replied, "I don''t have to tell you that."

    "I knew this guy was bad!" Gale immediately began trying to put him in a choke hold again, "Maggie, Sheep! Same formation, quickly!"

    "Gale, come on." I groaned.

    "Stop embarrassing us any more." Sheep agreed with me.

    "...Y-You guys?" He darted his gaze between us and him, "Uhh, okay. Sorry about that."

    "Not like I felt anything anyways." Throne laughed it off.

    "You son of a...!"

    "Whoa, hey!"

    Gale''s being unpredictable, he''s like a bomb! One second he agrees to play nice, and the very next he becomes this rabid animal that attacks on sight! Doesn''t he know that when you give someone your word, no matter how much it hurts, you don''t take it back? Be responsible for once in your life, geez man...

    "I''m already super in the Red because I told Sab how to do it." Throne explained, "If I told you as well, I''m afraid taking my wings won''t be enough of a punishment for them."

    "Sab?" I tilted my head, faintly recalling the name.

    "S-Sab!" Sheep shouted, "Wait, so then he really did get taken by a seraphim that time! A-And that means that seraphim was you!"

    "You know the guy?" Gale raised an Eyebrow.

    "Yes, those two are acquainted." Throne alluded to me and this Sab guy, "But only faintly. Honestly, I wouldn''t be surprised if Sab hadn''t even noticed it was Migu trying to sneak in just now."

    "Magnes." Sheep corrected him.

    "Maggie." And Gale corrected him.

    How annoying, I wish I had just stuck with the same name throughout the cycles. I wonder what made me change my mind so much? Was it the people I met? Truthfully, I could never imagine any other name other than Maggie and my second pick, Mage. But I guess the world works in mysterious ways.

    So how are you gonna take us inside?" Sheep decided to continue working on our joint plan, "Are you gonna distract the Gods while we sneak in?"

    "That won''t work, they know and see everything." Throne refuted.

    "So, even this?" Gale asked.

    "...Crap, okay!" Throne shook his nerves away, "Fine, new plan! I drop you on the house, you bust in through the roof, and try to grab and investigate as much as you can before they catch you."

    "What!?" We yelped, "And what''ll happen when they catch us!?"

    "You better hope you find something that''ll save you before then, I guess." He grinned deviously, "Don''t worry though, I''ll be sure to buy you as much time as I can."

    "We''re kind of worried, though!?" Gale tried jumping off before we reached the Gods'' Abode, "Count me out, I''d rather try a safer approach-!"

    "Don''t you get it!? There is no safer approach!" Both Sheep and Throne lashed out at him.

    "...Once the reset happens, you''ll forget everything." Sheep spoke up after that, "It''s risky, but who cares anymore?"

    "Heh, if anything, I should be more scared than you." Throne reassured us, "After this, I''m definitely losing my wings, but as for you¡ªThe Gods don''t have anything to take."

    "Can''t they ban us from Heaven 2.0?" Sheep tilted his head.

    "No, nothing like that." He explained, "The only form of afterlife that exists is Heaven 2.0. In my time spent investigating, I learned that Hell isn''t actually a thing."

    Oh right, that''s something that Divine Voice told us at the very beginning. Me, and those two other guys. I guess it isn''t common knowledge among the rest of the angels. Damn, if I knew that was the case, I would have asked more questions while I had the chance.

    "Hell... doesn''t exist?" Sheep looked flabbergasted.

    "Oh yeah, I knew that." Gale recalled.

    "Hueh?! Where''d you learn that!" I immediately turned to him.

    "Never mind that, we''re running out of time." Throne pointed out the giant mansion not too far from us, "Point is, they have nowhere else to place you, and they pride themselves on housing everyone in here. You''re gonna be just fine."

    "Is that the case?" I chuckled nervously as I felt his grip on us start to slip, "Got any last words of advice, then...?"

    "Enjoy the show!" He shook his head with a smug smile, letting us drop down the thousands of kilometers it took until we hit the roof.

    To his credit though, as we were falling, he made sure to zoom past us to reach the Gods quicker. I''m sure the amount of time we''ll have to investigate inside the mansion will be miniscule, but at least he''s upholding his end of the deal to keep them at bay as much as possible. That did give the three of us the confidence we needed to dive ahead without any second thoughts. What''s inside this damned mansion, I just gotta know now!

 Vol.2 Ch.45 - Divine Hijinks

    "Brace for impact...!" Sheep yelled, blocking with his arms in a feeble attempt to not get anything in his Eyes.

    Now this may not be completely true, given I don''t remember my life as a human, but this is probably my very first time crashing through a house''s roof. I half expected us to just bounce off and slide down the sides, but the roof was surprisingly thin, causing us to feel the impact of the marble floor before we could even register a single roof tile. Given we didn''t feel any pain, just as we were promised not to, the three of us were all too quick to spring back up on our feet and dart our gazes around the forbidden holy room.

    "Looks more like a church than a mansion..." Gale noted.

    "What church did you go to?" Sheep raised an Eyebrow.

    "No, he''s right." I inspected the layout with all the rows of benches with the aisle dividing them going towards the altar, "It''s a church, Allucian style to be exact. But why would the Meditation God and Knowledge God live in a church that worships the Water Goddess?"

    "Maybe Allucius is the landlord?" Gale joked.

    "...Wait, did you just say Goddess?" Sheep did a double take.

    "Yes?" I nodded with a hint of confusion on my face, "Allucius is female."

    "Oh get outta here." Even Gale didn''t believe me.

    "Is this not common knowledge??" I took a step back, but they already stopped listening in favor of investigating the altar.

    Well, I guess I can''t blame them too much for their ignorance. They''re both from that era, before such info was widely known. Yes sir, Allucius is the only Goddess in the bunch. Makes me wonder if they still think there''re only Four Gods.

    "Geez, this place really is huge..." Gale looked around.

    "Then again, did you see how big those Gods were? Compared to them, Throne and Sab were tiny!" Sheep added.

    "Yeah, well their ginormous size is presenting an issue of equal or greater magnitude right now." I glanced up, "How are we gonna reach the altar?"

    The altar, something you could even go so far as to call the centerpiece that ties this whole place together. Usually, the altar is supposed to reach somewhere near your abdomen area. Enough for one to gently bow forward to give the Book or picture presented on it a gentle kiss. Any higher and kids wouldn''t be able to reach it, but any lower and the elderly would be breaking backs just to squat down enough. It''s the perfect height, but given it was made for two giants that easily surpassed 10 meters in height, it still towers over us to the point where even jumping up to reach it was farfetched (no pun intended).

    "A pair of seraphim wings would be really nice right now..." Sheep absentmindedly sighed.

    "Is there anything we could use to help bridge the distance?" Gale looked for a solution to the problem, "Like ladders or platforms to use as stairs?"

    Just then, we heard behind us an ear-piercing screech of the heavy double doors. Slowly, painstakingly, they were being opened from the outside. We were running out of time, and it seems the Gods have already caught on to our little investigative work.

    "Crap, what do we do?!" Sheep panicked.

    "...Hide!" I ushered them behind the altar just as the Gods angrily hovered inside.

    "Alright then, be sure to bring them here when you find the intruders!" Selzion''s voice called out to someone from outside, though he changed his tone into a far more bitter one the second the doors closed, "That idiot, does he really think we''d be fooled by his lies?"

    "Wait, he wasn''t telling the truth?" Selzion raised an Eyebrow.

    "...."

    "I kid, I kid!" The Meditation God chuckled to quell his friend''s anger, "Seriously though, he''s a smart one. I''m sure he knows we know that he''s lying about them escaping."

    Ah, so that''s the situation. I was beginning to wonder how Throne managed to hold them off for so long, so I guess that answers my question. He must''ve told them about how he lost us while we were wrestling in the sky. They''re all-knowing, so they saw right through our plan from the start if we are to believe what they said previously, but they still humored him instead of just turning around and catching us immediately. Are they trying to say that we''re not a threat to them? Well, when I look at how far we have to climb to reach our objective, I kinda have no other choice but to agree...

    "Hm." They silently floated down the aisle as Selzion clicked his tongue, "Argh, the roof..."

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    "Oh yeah, Throne must''ve dropped them." Prylos followed his subordinate''s gaze, "Dammit, if I had known they were gonna be like this, we should''ve just let them in ourselves..."

    Yeah, well, too late now, bucko. His voice, unlike Selzion''s, always sounds genuine too, which does make me feel bad, but we can''t afford to show ourselves now in a naive attempt to ask kindly to see what''s on top of the altar. For now, we have to hide like our lives depend on it. Scuttle away into the tightest corner we could find, like bugs. That''s our goal for now, at least until they leave again.

    "Alright, time to..." Prylos wanted to end things immediately.

    "Wait!" Selzion stopped him, however, "That''s no good. We should at least give them a fair game."

    "Fair in what way, exactly?" Prylos was skeptical, "We''re Gods, they''re puny angels. What possible handicaps could you give them that''d make us play evenly? We can always just snap our fingers and send them back to their homes."

    I... didn''t think of that. Is that actually something they can do? Well, I guess they are all-powerful Gods, so I shouldn''t be too surprised. Hold on though, it''s not like all hope is lost! We just gotta put all our hopes into Selzion''s persuasion and suggestion! Come on, man! Use that accumulated Knowledge you''re so famous for and give us a fighting chance!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Not a handicap, just a bit of fun." Selzion shook his head as he explained, "You''re right, they''ve already lost no matter how you slice it. A flick of the wrist and they''ll be forced to reset without any retained memories of today. But we can at least humor them and make them feel like they''re useful."

    "Eh? Humor them?" Prylos furrowed his brows, "Since when have you been the merciful type?"

    "Merciful? You call dangling the cheese in front of their faces before immediately yanking it from them at the very last second mercy?" Selzion tilted his head, "I would''ve called it something more along the lines of toying with ants."

    He''s quite cruel, the Knowledge God. I don''t even have to peek around the altar to see the annoyingly smug and sadistic grin on his ugly mug. To top it all off, he didn''t exactly give us any concrete help either. He just wants us to try because he knows it won''t make a difference.

    "Tch, asshole..." I muttered.

    "...He''s right." Gale sulked, "Even if we did find out what they were trying to hide was, they could just poof our memories back to zero by putting us to sleep."

    "No." Sheep shot back, "No, that''s not the case at all!"

    "Huh?"

    "I don''t have wings, but are you forgetting that I''m a shopkeeper?" Sheep refuted, "I can keep my memories of today! Gale, Magnes, if you can help me get up there, then we might yet have a chance!"

    Oh... Oh! That''s right, I totally forgot because he doesn''t have wings! While it''s true Sheep doesn''t have wings, he does still have the power to retain memories between cycles! In other words, neither Gale nor I have to see what''s inside necessarily, so long as that knowledge reaches his Eyes or ears! But we gotta act fast. The Gods jokingly poked their fingers through the bars, so we''re tasked with chomping them off in retaliation before they retract them!

    "From a rough estimate, it seems to be around 5 meters tall." Gale looked up, "We can''t move from this spot to find anything to stand on, so we''re gonna have to use each other."

    "We''re making a tower?" Sheep calculated it in his head, "If that''s the case, then Magnes won''t be able to handle my weight."

    "My body would crumple under your stature." I agreed, "Then, I guess I''m gonna have to be the one at the top."

    "Gale, hop on." Sheep didn''t hesitate to step into position.

    "Maggie, listen carefully." Gale glanced down at me from atop him, "The moment you find anything up there, toss it down if you can and/or shout what out what you see."

    Of course, once I climb up there''ll be no reason to keep quiet because the Gods will have spotted me already. No matter what I find up there, I''ll be sure to announce it so Sheep can hear. Sort of like our memory storage. After that, we''ll definitely get caught by them, but hopefully it''ll be enough for Sheep to work with in the next cycle. Grabbing the edge of the altar, I took a deep breath before pulling myself up and over with all my might.

    "...Ah." I looked up defeatedly at the two Gods snickering amongst themselves at me, "Crap."

    "Pfft! N-No, go on. What do you see?" Prylos waved the Book we assumed would be on the altar in his hands.

    "Seriously, even if we were that naive to leave the Book there, can''t you see its size? There''s no way you would have been able to flip it open with your body!"

    "Magnes! What do you see!?" Gale shouted from down below.

    "I-I..."

    "Oh, come on, don''t cry." Prylos felt bad, "Selz, look what your sadistic prank did to her, she''s got no more fight in her anymore."

    "Obviously, that was the point." Selzion replied, promptly taking the Book from him, "If we gave her this Book-GAH!"

    From the same hole we had made previously on the roof descended two brave seraphim who promised to aid us in our mission. They were so fast, and the inexperienced one''s flight pattern was so erratic that they genuinely surprised the Gods beyond what any prior knowledge could deal with. Throne hit the Book from Selzion''s hand like a fly would run into a window, except in the scenario it would manage to crack it. It wasn''t much, mind you, but just slightly enough to knock the Book to the ground with a random page opened.

    "Buzz buzz, idiots!" Sab played his part perfectly as he pestered the Gods, "Imma fly! The annoying Green type that buzzes loudly around you! Ghack!"

    "You should''ve never come back..." Prylos smushed him with his hands without remorse.

    "Pry, ignore him!" Selzion yelled, "The Book!"

    "Now''s your chance! Migu, read it!" Throne shouted as he got squashed as well.

    "O-On it!" I quickly peeked over, squinting as I hardly made out the one and only sentence embedded inside it from the altar, "The pro... protagonist''s...!"

    And scene. Really, when they said they could put us to sleep with the snap of a finger, I didn''t think they meant it literally. I didn''t get to read anything past that point, Selzion put us all to sleep before that could happen. This is the end for me, I guess. I didn''t get to become a seraphim or anything like that, so I guess it''s back to square one for me. However, Throne, Sab and Sheep still remember what happened today. I''m sure they''ll track me and Gale down again, we''ll probably have different names and personalities, but it''s not like we''re dead or anything. Though I am pissed we didn''t manage to win in the end, I do feel pretty at peace with this outcome. The rest, I leave to the ones that remain with their memories intact...

 Vol.2 Ch.46 - Nightmare Scenario

    Around that time in the Shrine, however...

    "Tchah!" Energy finished slaying another grotesque beast dwelling within the jungle layer, "Phew... Finally!"

    "Did we do it?!" Vastoria popped out of her cover, a small shield readily held in her right hand as a bead of sweat rolled down her brow, "We killed all of them, right? I didn''t miscount, did I?"

    "One at the entrance, two down the midway point, a whole camp of the freaks right after that one weird looking tree... And an ultra beefy one at the very end." Energy recounted their past battles, "It took a while to weed them all out, but I don''t think there were any more."

    Unlike the first two floors of the Shrine which were quite quick to pass through, the jungle layer had what appeared to be an infestation of the giant gold eating bat-cockroach monsters. This was also where they learned the main shtick of the Shrine¡ªIf they die in any way, they respawn at the very end of the previous floor. This way, their success was guaranteed so long as they stuck with it until the very end. Though regrettable, it was only to be expected that their deaths were quite numerous as they slowly advanced through this perilous layer, only managing to make the tiniest bit of progress at a time by going through countless iterations of trial and error. Now, they stood in front of the stairway to the fourth floor...

    "Alright, let''s move-!" Vastoria hurried down the stairway, but was quickly pulled back by her hair, "O-Ow!"

    "Sorry, I don''t have anything else to grab you by." Energy shrugged, "We''re not done yet. Don''t get reckless now."

    In truth, they had no way of knowing when the next "checkpoint" is. There was no visible or audible indication of when they had successfully crossed over to the next floor, meaning if they rushed through and died during their descent down the stairs or something to that degree, Energy worried they might get sent back to the very beginning of floor 3 again. By this point, they had both cultivated a strong sense of aversion towards bats and cockroaches alike after getting brutally eaten by them an immeasurable amount of times. He wasn''t willing to go through all that again.

    "Let''s proceed slowly." He warned her with a careful nod.

    "Sigh, okay." She obliged, albeit begrudgingly.

    Vastoria was just as, if not more traumatized by the flying nightmares of the jungle layer, but she had a different view on the situation. In her mind, staying here could only attract stray enemies that might have originally missed them, so she was really eager to just leave and reach the next checkpoint. Once they had that matter settled, only then could she feel at peace. Regardless, Energy has been an indispensable asset so far¡ªWith his trusty borrowed fork and a handful of survival skills, he was practically the sole reason both of them managed to make it this far. Basically, she knew his shots were the smarter ones to call.

    "You really are making the most of that fork though." She noted, "It''s a surprisingly good weapon, at least when it''s in your capable hands."

    "I''d much rather fancy a machete." He chuckled, "But when you''re in a pinch, no one''s asking you what you want."

    "True." She nodded in agreement.

    "...You got used to that shield we found pretty quickly too." He thought praising her back was in order, "Remember that time I got overwhelmed, and you swooped in to bonk that one bastard in the head?"

    "How could I forget?" She shivered, "It spewed out blood and organs all over my face..."

    "That just comes with the package."

    Their chatter was a welcome change of pace from the nonstop action of the jungle. Going down the stairs one step at a time had its perks as well, it seemed, for they could now properly take a breather before taking on the next threat. For all they knew, the next floor could be jam packed with those bug bats, or something even worse, yet they could also just as likely fall into a hidden trap and experience that painful death as well. Anything seemed possible, and yet they couldn''t be more relieved thanks to their latest victory.

    "Then again, is that one really worth the praise?" She recalled bashfully, "After it spewed out its brain juices on me, I fainted and got us both killed."

    "It''s the thought that counts." He patted her on the back, "You were brave that time, and that''s all that matters. Besides, now that you''ve got the experience, maybe next time you won''t faint."

    "For a guy that claims he survived the apocalypse, you sure are an optimist." She giggled.

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    "We don''t know if I survived or not." He joked, knocking on his noggin to allude to the fact his brain is made of pure gold.

    Again, an awkward silence had filled the air around them. She was being rude by forgetting that about him, and Vastoria was now worried she might have hurt him in some way. On the other hand, Energy couldn''t care less given it doesn''t matter at the moment. Whether or not he died of old age or by getting eaten alive by the rotted in the World of the Living is a mystery yet to be solved, but it''s not something he''s currently focused on. Their main priority is reaching the final floor and finding out what hides within it. After that, they''ll reconvene with Throne somehow and figure out what to do next.

    "Stop." Energy put his hand out to warn her, "I see something."

    "Gulp." She slowly hid behind him, "Eh? This is odd..."

    A nostalgic ray of light gleamed through the doorframe. This was where the next floor was supposed to be, but it looks more like the interior of the houses back at the residential area. What''s more, entering the room revealed an actual fork in the road.

    "This side looks like my bedroom." Vastoria inspected her lofty bed.

    "And this side resembles my own." Energy approached the heavily defended, hard to access concrete block with a bed on it, "Isn''t that interesting?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Given her fatigued and weary body, Vastoria saw no issues in opting to lie down on her own bed''s imitation. They were safe in this room, it felt comforting just to breathe in the fresh air, and even the blood and guts from the monsters up above seemed to have vanished as if they never were in the first place. Turning to her side with a carefree smile, she felt her Eyelids start to droop down ever so slightly. She was tired, but she didn''t mind taking a short nap for a minute or two. Surely, she reasoned in her head, Energy would wake her up when he saw she was slacking off.

    "Wait, we don''t know if that''s a good idea yet." Energy was quick to shake her up, but it was no use, she didn''t budge.

    He knew there existed heavy sleepers, despite how impossible that sounded in his head. But even with that explanation, she was just way too lifeless to be considered as such. He was starting to panic, Vastoria wasn''t waking up no matter what he tried.

    "Get up!" He rolled her off the bed, "Tch, dammit!"

    Propping her up against the wall before slapping her across the face a good few times, and even that didn''t work. The only thing that was going through his mind in this moment were curse words all directed at the easy to deceive girl. That, as well as a way to get her to snap out of it.

    "...Y-You''re not gonna turn, are you?" A scary thought occurred to him.

    In his lifetime, having someone die meant they weren''t long before they would turn into the rotted. Cannibal beings that feasted on fellow human flesh, their bodies impervious to any and all damage that wasn''t directed at the heart or brain. Just getting a smidge of their blood or saliva on your body would very quickly spell your doom, so your best bet was to always wear protective gear that was well-covered. In the apocalypse, clean water was scarce, but it was your lifeline. Regardless of how much you would protect yourself from getting infected, you would still have to take frequent showers. This was the reality he was used to, and now he is presented with the current situation¡ªGiven she isn''t at all moving, she might very well be in the process of turning. If that happens, he only has a fork and her shield to use against her. No clothes, no water to clean himself with, and barely even any equipment to deal with her in the first place.

    He knew better than to let panic overwhelm him, though. He was a survivor of this very horrid world he was taught by, he had to be. So, he acted fast before anything could happen. He pushed her to the floor, grabbed the pillow from her bed and placed it over her chest. This was how he was going to minimize the blood splatter. Vastoria was dear to him, but he had to survive regardless. They weren''t respawning anymore, so maybe even that was only exclusive to the third floor. She was dead, she died the moment she went to sleep on the bed. He had to accept that if he wanted to move on. So, he braced himself, making sure to keep his Eyes on the target no matter what, and struck through the pillow and through her heart with his trusty fork.

    "A-Ah..." He felt tears well up as he ran away to his side of the room, "N-No, I didn''t...! She wasn''t supposed to...!"

    All that calm and professional air to him had escaped him the moment he killed the innocent girl. His self-preservation and innate need to survive no matter the sacrifices led to him murdering someone he had quickly grown close to. In his heart of hearts he knew this was the right call to make. After all, humans would turn into rotted the moment they died in his era, so there was no reason for him to doubt the same would occur in Heaven as well. Hastily climbing up the corner of the block of concrete, he peeked down at the supposedly dead girl before a nauseating feeling hit him full force.

    "Her heart...!?" He couldn''t believe what he was seeing, "N-No blood! I didn''t penetrate it! B-But how?! I definitely stabbed through both the pillow and her ribcage!"

    He did reach her heart with the fork, but what he didn''t know was that her heart was made of pure gold. Given they were still in the Shrine, this meant her heart was invincible, and thus she was still breathing. Due to the rest of her wounds, however, her breathing was coarse and ragged. A simptom commonly associated with those that are about to turn...

    "It''s over! It''s over!" He paced around his bed a dozen times, "I can''t kill her! She''s unkillable! An unkillable rotted, my worst nightmare! Oh Gods, first you make me kill her, then you punish me with this cruel twist! You''re monsters, I knew it from the start!"

    And so there Energy was, cussing out the Gods atop his heavily fortified bed defense as Vastoria was bleeding out just below him. What was supposed to be a calm and carefree situation quickly got turned upside down because she had merely decided upon the innocent idea to take a nap. He could not kill her, she could not die. They were at an impasse, a stalemate. There was no next room, next floor, or anything to that degree. For all intents and purposes, this was the end of the Shrine. Two beds and a nightmare scenario to go along with it.

 Vol.2 Ch.47 - Go To Sleep

    Vastoria and Energy bested the dangerous pits of the Shrine. Managing to avoid the countless hidden traps set about in the second floor, as well as using what little loot they could find to their advantage against the gold-thirsty beasts of the third layer, they had finally managed to find solace in the fourth layer¡ªA seemingly peaceful house interior that most resembled their own rooms meshed together into one. Vastoria found it charming, thus she got the harmless idea to lie down for a bit to regain her strength. This in turn was nothing but a trap in and of itself, as it put her in an unwakeable slumber. Energy was distraught; hundreds of alarms began to ring in his head about her possibly turning into a rotted. Now, after failing to kill her before this could happen, he anxiously awaits atop the safety of his own bed defense for her next move.

    "...Ah!" He jolted once he saw what he thought was a finger twitch, "Sigh, just my imagination..."

    Or was it? It was! ...No, it wasn''t. This internal back and forth served only to further instill fear and doubt into his mind, constantly wearing out his mental fortitude over time. Before long, he started to get quite tired himself, but he knew better than to let his guard down with a potential rotted in the room.

    "Vastoria, I''m sorry..." He clasped his hands together, choosing to hope for a miracle after exhausting every other alternative, "I''m sorry for what I did to you, but please¡ªWake up. I know it makes no sense, that wound should have killed you. But for some reason the fork refused to pierce your heart. Please, please... Get up and prove me wrong. Get up, look up at this idiot cowering instead of sucking it up like a man and coming down to help you... And sternly reprimand him for his childish worries."

    He closed his Eyes to pray, even though he knew better than to leave her out of his sight. The rotted were a particularly sluggish bunch, given their bodies were decomposing by the minute. In essence, the people that turned didn''t have much of their lives left to live¡ªThe lifespan of a rotted would equate to how long their bodies could keep themselves alive. The more they ate, the longer lived they were. In other words, a rotted does work off of instinct alone, but what makes their painful existence sad is that they simply have no other choice. To live is to cannibalize, and any living being has to eat to survive. Theirs is just a notoriously picky diet. Realistically, she could never climb up to him if she had indeed turned while he wasn''t looking, which might be why he opted to so earnestly pray in the first place.

    "Humankind wasn''t always plagued with the Black Iro''s Curse." He continued, "Besides, this is Heaven¡ªA place free of such curses. Please, Vastoria. Prove to me not only that I have nothing to fear with you turning on me... But also nothing to regret for attempting to kill you. Please, please... I want you back... Gah!"

    Opening his Eyes, he was petrified to find the lone pool of blood from her chest wound drying up on the spot where she was supposed to be. There was no trail, nor were there any traces of her in the room. It was as if she completely disappeared into thin air, which got him thinking. Possibly, she died and returned to the end of the previous floor? Or maybe even the floor before that? As he was thinking up whether or not to go back and check, a cold hand poked his back, making him jump and slip off the concrete highground where his bed was.

    "AAAAAHHH!" He immediately backed himself into the opposite corner, frequently checking over his shoulder to see if she got any blood on it, "C-Contamination, I gotta make sure...! D-Do I have anything on me?!"

    In his panic, he had glossed over the stupidity of asking that question in the current context completely. First of all, if she was truly a rotted and had contaminated blood, then she couldn''t even reply to him. The rotted are mere husks of their previous owners'' bodies, they have no cognitive sense nor intelligence. Apart from that, it should also be noted that while he was dragging his ass across the floor, he happened to slide right across the puddle of blood left over from her wound.

    "...You''re good." She gave him an uncomfortable scowl, "What the hell is wrong with you? I go to sleep for a minute and I wake up with a chest cavity? Did you do this?!"

    "Y-You!" He bit his tongue, "Vastoria, you''re... not one of them! You''re alive!"

    "Barely! Seriously, what happened while I was asleep?" She asked, sitting on the edge of his bed as she loomed over him.

    "Get up!" He shouted, "It''s a trap! Those beds make you go into a super deep sleep, I thought I lost you!"

    "Sigh, I didn''t ask that..." She hopped down, giving him a mean glare as she bent over him arms akimbo, "I asked you¡ªWhat. Is. This?"

    With the bloodied and exposed golden heart now quite literally in his face, he finally understood why it was that she didn''t die, despite the fact angels and seraphim obviously could inside the Shrine. Her golden heart protected her from croaking, a miracle by all accounts. Given she didn''t possess a golden brain like he did, Energy even understood how close he got to actually killing her. It was down to a fifty-fifty, and if he had stabbed the brain¡ªShe''d be kaput.

    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

    "I... I''m sorry." He begged her for forgiveness, "I might have tried to stab you through the heart with a fork because I was worried you were gonna eat my brains."

    "...You what?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Now, once everything had finally calmed down and they had completely cleared up the misunderstanding, they actually found it quite humorous, all things considered. Whilst it was true that she almost died, and he was almost the one to kill her, she was more or less fine after the fact, so no harm no foul. Still, she didn''t exactly want to believe him on the whole "not sleeping on the beds" rule.

    "My fatigue and wounds all disappeared the moment I closed my Eyes." She explained, "And since I did wake up eventually, I don''t see why we shouldn''t use them. We might face even tougher challenges in the floors to come, so I say we use any rest spot we can."

    "Except there are no more rooms." He refuted, "This is it. The end."

    "What? Oh come on, you seriously don''t expect a place like this to have a hidden passage or something like that?" She reasoned, "In fact, I think that''s the point of this room in general¡ªIt''s goal might be to convince you to stay with the healing beds and safe atmosphere, but in order to progress, you need to be willing to give that up. The Gods would probably pull a stunt like that for a place like this."

    "Well, we''re welcome to try." He shrugged.

    Thus, a lengthy room check ensued with the two of them leading the investigation. Each floor tile, corner, nook and cranny were turned upside down¡ªboth literally and figuratively¡ªyet nothing came out of it. The entire time, the room was chipping away at their focus, and after enough time they were practically rubbing walls absentmindedly with their Eyes half closed. After each setback, they would yearningly turn around to look at their respective comfy beds. In fact, given he was still limping around with one leg and one Eye, Energy was the one more interested in Vastoria''s promise that sleeping on them grants you a full heal. He would like at her open wound and wince, but she looked just fine despite the fact she had a hole in her chest. She seemed fine, and the bed was tempting. So very tempting...

    "Oi." She caught him climbing his tall concrete block to reach the bed, "What happened to not trusting it?"

    "Mnn..." He mumbled something unintelligible, "Whocares...? Lemmesleep~..."

    And soon, the tables had turned completely. Now Vastoria was the only one still awake, however this led to her search becoming even more difficult. By this point they had practically inspected the entire room three times if not more and still haven''t come up with anything that even remotely resembled a path forward. Maybe, she figured, this room really was the end of the Shrine? Could this truly be what the Gods were hiding at the very bottom? A personalized bed that healed you up to full? But what good would it do you if Heavenly Beings can''t even suffer wounds on the surface? Maybe the journey was the true reward.

    "But if that''s the case, I totally feel grifted..." She pouted, opting to retreat to her bed again as well, "Then we''ll leave and go tell Throne what we found after we had our well-deserved shut-Eye. This time I have no one to wake me up with a damned fork too, so might as well enjoy it."

    Closing her Eyes with a content smile on her face never felt better. Though their mission couldn''t exactly be called successful, since the entire point of the Shrine visit was to find a way to resurrect and all, she still felt they had accomplished a lot. Firstly, she found a new friend who knew of Throne as well. She saved him, and in turn he helped her go this far. An accomplishment she could not have achieved on her own. Besides that, they did learn quite a lot from the first four floors of the Shrine, meaning if they ever did try to go back to find out if there were more floors below this one, they could do so with far more ease. Throne would be proud of these results, surely.

    "Hmm..." She craned her Eyelids open, rubbing them as she got out of her bed, "Eh? Energy...?"

    This was the same room she went to sleep in. Or rather, the same corner. There was one key difference, and that was that the corner that resembled Energy''s was now replaced with the remainder of her room. Even the door that led to the rest of her house was there.

    "The hallway..." She warily walked out of the room, tiptoeing over to the living room with great confusion, "Tea and biscuits..."

    This was, by all accounts, her house. Everything was the same, and even rays of sunlight could be seen from the windows. Exiting the house proved her suspicions right¡ªShe was on her floating island... She was back home.

    "But then where is Energy?" She looked around before piecing it together, "Ah, right. If I got sent back to my own home, then surely he got sent back to his."

    This was both good and bad for different reasons. On one hand, they were both safely outside of the Shrine safe and sound. On the other hand, however, they never did tell each other where they lived, and now they might not be able to find each other for a good long while. As she nervously paced around her yard in the sky, she glanced over at her house''s window''s reflection. Two things stuck out immediately.

    "Right, I still don''t have my wings anymore." She sighed, puffing out her chest to examine it, "...And the wound he gave me with the fork is now permanent."

    Where there was blood in the Shrine, there is now gold. What went missing in the Shrine was substituted, and what was lost before that remained unreturned. The mystery of the Shrine was answered, but it also gave way to a thousand other questions in its place.

    "...I gotta find Throne." She resolutely nodded, "He''ll know what to do."

 Vol.2 Ch.48 - Now Wake Up

    Just as she was about to leap from the edge of her floating island like she did a hundred times before, a thought occurred to her¡ªShe no longer had the luxury of flight. If she was to jump off now, she would have to merely fall straight down to the street below, and if she ever wanted to go back up, she would have to seek the help of a seraphim. Figuring this to be the case, she instead sat down on the edge to plan things out first and foremost.

    "I know where Migu''s house is." She reasoned, "It''s close, so even without flying I should be able to find my way there. Throne said to just take the path from her house to mine but invert it if I ever want to go to his place, but that''s also easier said than done..."

    Somehow, she had went from falling asleep in the deepest layer of the Shrine to waking up in her own abode. This was puzzling enough as is, but then there''s also the new golden wound on her chest. The gash from when Energy tried stabbing through her heart and failed. Inspecting her body further for any other new gilded parts, she found nothing else. It was just this, but that means she can at least survive the fall so long as she doesn''t hit her chest on anything on the way down.

    "I miss them already..." She alluded to her wings, flexing her back muscles gently as if she still had them, "Well, no use mulling over them anymore! It''s scarier without them, but it''s not like I never lived without wings before."

    As if dipping her toes in a pool, she slowly lifted her behind off the edge of the floating island with her arms before quickly bringing herself back. She was frightened, the fall was too great to willingly dive into. Before she was in the Shrine, she never felt pain as a Heavenly Being, but now things were different. She got mauled, scratched and eaten, her bones were broken countless times. She knew what it meant to feel pain again, so the reckless acts she used to do without even thinking before, she now had to think twice about.

    "F-First... Mn!" She punched the stone floor next to her, "R-Right, as to be expected."

    No pain, no blood. This was no longer the Shrine, so the rules of it don''t come into effect anymore. She could jump safely, she would be fine. Not just fine, mind you, she would even come out of it unscathed. The more time she wasted anxiously second guessing herself, she told herself repeatedly, the higher the chances were of Throne leaving his house and thus not being there when she needed him most. Resolutely, she pushed herself off without even giving the brain time to process her decision. It was not the time for thoughts, but for action.

    "Baaahh~!!!" She immediately regretted that decision in the very next moment, however, "I take it back, lemme think it over for a few more minutes~! Ahhhh~!"

    And splat, she hit the cloudy ground after a mighty 2 minutes and 34 seconds of freefall. To both her surprise and astonishment, she got up without so much as a single broken bone. She knew this would happen, then again, but it was still an odd feeling to get used to¡ªNot feeling pain, that is. Immediately reorienting herself with the direction of her house up above, she set off towards Migu''s place. This was the plan, however the scornful gazes of the people around her disallowed her from continuing on immediately.

    "She just fell from that island up there, right?" One person asked.

    "Yeah, I remember that island from yesterday!" Another whispered back.

    "Her clothes... Why is she naked?" A lady muttered.

    "Let''s ask." A guy from the crowd finally raised his voice, "Hey lady! The clothes store is right over there, go cover yourself up, for Auros'' sake!"

    "E-Eh?" She did a double take once she saw everyone around her, "Clothes? Store? Huh?"

    Before the Gods were convinced to set up clothes shops in Heaven 2.0, she was already busying herself with entering the Shrine with Throne. It was only now when she first saw even a single angel with clothes on, much less everyone else. Quickly, she was shamed into getting something to wear.

    "Heya, what''ll you be having?" The female shopkeeper joked.

    "I-"

    "Just kidding, you don''t get to pick!" She immediately rummaged through a bunch of random, tacky clothes before showing off a beautiful pink dress, "Ah, this looks just perfect for you!"

    "Sorry, you got anything easier to move around in?" Vastoria inquired, "This seems like it''d slow me down considerably, plus I''d hate to stain it."

    To stain it, that was her reason not to go for it. In the surface of Heaven 2.0, you could not stain your clothes as there was nothing to stain it with. Her mind was still stuck in the Shrine, expecting a beastly encounter behind every corner. This was also when she recalled that her shield and fork were no longer with her. They must''ve remained in the Shrine room.

    "What you get is what you get, come back next cycle if you wanna try again." The shopkeeper crossed her arms, "Sorry, those are the rules."

    "Well do you perhaps have a fork, or even a shield for that matter?" Vastoria asked with complete sincerity.

    "Fork-? Are you making fun of me?!" The shopkeeper lashed out at her, "Take this dress and leave! It''s already annoying that you get to take it, so go on before I change my mind!"

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    "...No!" Vastoria threw it back at her, "I don''t need it! If you want it so bad, keep it for yourself!"

    The people around her were only distracting her from the main goal. She understood this now, after witnessing just how poorly she was treated. They know nothing of the Shrine, and yet she still asks them questions only a person who saw its inner machinations could answer. No more detours, she nodded, she needed to make a beeline for Migu''s house, then for Throne''s!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Eh?" I looked around to spot a familiarly nostalgic Yellow room, "This is... my room?"

    My head hurts really bad, didn''t we get caught by the Gods? If what Sheep and Throne said was true, then shouldn''t I have forgotten all about that? Why do I still have my memories...?

    "Mnn, still have this on my back..." I looked at my golden spine through the mirror, "I... I should go meet up with Gale and Sheep. One of them might know what''s going on."

    Exiting the house, I saw Gale running up to me the very moment I opened the door. He was just as confused as I was, but his elation proved he saw this situation as positive rather than negative. As I suspected, he remembered who I was from yesterday the moment he saw me.

    "Maggie!" He shook me up, "What happened?! Shouldn''t we have forgotten about yestercycle!?"

    "Waaah~! Stop shaking meeee..." I begged before replying, "Phew, I don''t know either. That''s what Sheep and Throne told us, yet here we are. You think maybe they were misinformed or something?"

    This was when a clumsy yet strong gust of wind from above knocked both of us on our butts. The golden trail of the unidentified flying object demystified its existence. That right there was a seraphim flying.

    "Should we follow it-!?" Gale panickedly suggested.

    "Wait! Let''s not get distracted." I calmed him down, "Finding Sheep should be our top priority. He''s more used to waking up with his memories than we are, after all."

    With a solemn nod, he agreed and we began walking to his shop. It wasn''t a long journey by any means, but once we made it there, what we saw kind of made us want to go back. A crazy naked lady was shouting at poor ol'' Sheep, yelling something about not wanting any clothes.

    "Stop giving me frilly dressed, goddammit! I want some proper pants!" She yelled so the whole street could hear.

    "M-Miss, please lower your voice..." Sheep was on the brink of tears, "I-If you want something else, please come back next cycle, and we''ll..."

    "Just give me that one!" She had enough and hopped the counter to snatch away a pair of pants, "Gah! Let go!"

    "No, you let go!" Sheep protected his wares like they were his children, "Back off, woman!"

    "Hey, enough!" Gale stepped in after seeing this, grabbing the crazy lady by her hair and yanking her back, "You don''t get to be picky, woman! Geez..."

    "You alright, Sheep?" I asked him.

    "Y-You!?" He panicked, "How come you two still remember who I am?"

    "Wait, remember?" Vastoria craned her head up to look at the two people, recognizing me immediately, "M-Migu!"

    Ah, there''s that name again. I believe Throne called me by that name as well. I guess this lady and I met before, but then how come she remembers me when she isn''t a seraphim? Let''s see... No wings, but she can still keep her memories...

    "Are you a shopkeeper as well, miss?" I asked her.

    "What? N-No, I''m..." She looked shocked that I didn''t remember her, "Sigh, I''m Vastoria. A seraphim."

    "Yeah right, seraphim have wings." Gale crossed his arms smugly, "Stop lying and tell us who you really are, come on!"

    "Actually, she''s telling the truth." Sheep corrected us, "Seraphim can lose their wings, but they''re still seraphim. She''s kind of like me now, only that she doesn''t have a shop to take care of."

    "S-Sorry for the outburst, I just really got sick of people staring at me." Vastoria meekly apologized to him.

    "Why not just put on anything then?" Gale tilted his head.

    "I would, but right now I''m in a bit of a hurry." She explained, "I could run way faster in a pair of pants or even shorts than I would in a dress."

    This girl, she''s actually pretty down to earth. They say first impressions are everything, but she quickly erased my earlier assumption of her being a crazy, stuck up woman. Now all I see is a troubled soul in desperate need of help. When she said she was in a hurry... I kind of saw a bit of myself in her.

    "H-Hey, what are you doing!?" Vastoria covered her Eyes once she saw me taking my pants off in public, "T-That''s...!"

    "Not like they got anything to see, come on." I handed her my comfortable outfit with a smile, "These are way easier to run in. I''ll take your dress, so it''s a fair trade."

    "Migu..." Her Eyes glimmered with joy as she accepted my gift, "Thank you. I''m glad you''re just as kind as when we last talked."

    Kind... That word again, she''s now the second person to describe me as such. I wouldn''t call myself kind, in all honesty. I just do what I think is right, but that doesn''t always mean I do the right thing. I left Sheep for dead that time... I''m not kind at all, I''m a selfish prick.

    "Then, we''ll be leaving now." Gale turned to Sheep, "You coming with us? You''re kind of an accomplice now, y''know?"

    "I am? Pheh, I guess that''s true." He chuckled back, "That makes Sab and Throne accomplices too."

    "You know Sab and Throne!?" Vastoria shouted in surprise, "I-I''m coming with you! I got so many questions to ask, especially about...!"

    "Oi, oi, calm down." Gale had her calm down, "Do you even know where they live?"

    "Yes!"

    ...Guess that means she''s part of the investigation as well. We''re lucky to have met her when we did, because we sure as hell have no idea where either one of those two''s houses are. She''s gonna be a great asset to the team.

    "Welcome aboard." Gale shook her hand with a smile, "Sheep, Maggie, and I''m Gale. Pleased to meet you."

    "Vastoria." She giggled awkwardly, "Ah, I might call you by your old name by accident though, is that alright Migu?"

    "Call me whatever you''d like." I nodded, "If possible, I would really like for you to tell me more about how I was when we met before."

    It was an innocent enough question, but it made her beet Red in the face for some reason. Playing with the hem of her shirt awkwardly, she looked away as if too embarrassed to even say a word about it.

    "Y-You were... gentle." She muttered.

    The hell''s up with that? Gentle, in what sense? Ugh, whatever¡ªIf she doesn''t wanna fess up, then I won''t force her. Besides, she seems like the type to fold under pressure, so I''m sure with Gale''s incessant interrogations she''ll spill the beans eventually. For now though, we ought to find Throne and Sab.

    "Then, without further delay...!" Gale pointed to where Vastoria was headed, "Let''s go!"

 Vol.2 Afterword

    Another Volume done. Thank you everyone for supporting Heaven''s Calling for 2 whole months, it''s been quite fun uncovering the mysteries of Heaven 2.0 bit by bit with you all. This time, we''ve seen more of the individual characters'' stories, which really helped formulate the overarching plot in my opinion. I hope there aren''t many Haunt fans so far, because he kind of got overshadowed in favor of the rest of the cast. He''ll get his screentime soon, I suppose.

    I wanted Vastoria to be trapped inside the Shrine for the entirety of the Volume as a sort of subplot, but I figured just having an innocent soul like her explore the dangerous depths would be too boring of a task to take on alone, so I gave her Energy. This one legged, one Eyed, golden brained beast of a man hailed from an era in the Living World that was plagued with what appeared to be a zombie apocalypse. Certainly, his is a story just waiting to be told as a standalone series. Look forward to that, I''m very excited about the ideas I have in store for him!

    We learned a lot more about the shopkeeper system, as well as the perks that come along with it. Sheep wasn''t originally meant to be that important of a character, but he quickly grew on me, so I kept him around, which is good too, because I needed someone to help relay the exposition to our amnesic protagonist Maggie. We also got to see an angel become a seraphim directly through Sab, further expanding on both his and Throne''s character. He''s still a bit new to it all, but with Throne''s expert guidance, I''m sure he''ll be fine.

    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    The Shrine''s perils were interesting to write. I always did like dungeon crawlers, but it gets difficult to come up with challenges that don''t grow stale. Guess I''m not cut out for Dungeons and Dragons... Well, my poor writing aside, I still had a blast detailing all the gruesome gore Vastoria and Energy had to endure to get through it all. With a story like Heaven''s Calling, it''s obvious to anyone that gore is something that just won''t happen unless I go about it like this. This is also why fight scenes kind of make no sense on the surface, as neither side can feel no pain and take no damage. There aren''t any stakes, hence there''s no thrill in writing it.

    The same definitely can''t be said for the mystery aspect, however! In just one Volume, we''ve learned so much about Heaven, seraphim, the Gods, the Shrine, as well as the characters who didn''t get their time in the spotlight before. Hopefully after the latest development, Haunt will be upgraded from a mere brute with PTSD to something more.

    As for why everyone can remember the previous day just fine despite not being seraphim nor shopkeepers, that will all be explained in due time. There are still plenty of mysteries to solve in Heaven 2.0, so I do hope you continue to support me as you have until now.

    This is your friendly neighborhood Mikan Akai, signing out!

 Vol.3 Ch.49 - Hot Topics

    "It should be just up ahead!" Vastoria looked back at us, "Come on, you can do it!"

    "Where was this woman when we were up against the Gods?" Gale chuckled, "I feel like I could run a marathon in seconds with her encouragement."

    "She does seem to be in high spirits, but that could also be from her reuniting with Magnes." Sheep explained.

    "Not everything''s about me, y''know?" I glared back.

    "Oh yeah? Is that so, Miss First Person." Gale joked, "Tell that to the readers."

    Readers? Ugh, I''m ignoring this idiot before his brain damage rubs off on me too much. Vastoria, a seraphim who''s lost her wings. It''s a damn tragedy, and yet she still keeps her head high as she faces the world ahead of her. Nonetheless, she even makes sure to slow down if she ever catches herself putting too big of a distance between us, and frequently does these cheerleader-esque shouts to motivate us to keep following her. Not like we wouldn''t be doing that anyways, but it''s nice to have a cute girl in your life that incessantly shouts "Go! Go!".

    "...Go!" Vastoria looked a bit nervous as she continued cheering on us, "Go... Go?"

    "Vastoria?" We looked at her with tilted heads.

    "N-No, I just took a wrong turn is all!" She nervously explained, "But rest assured, I know exactly where my friend''s house is! I guarantee you we''ll be there in no time!"

    Obviously, we weren''t in any position to judge her for the occassional flub or two. Given that none of us know where Throne lives, it wasn''t like we had a better idea in regards to finding it. She''s an extremely important piece of this puzzle, so now it was out turn to cheer her up.

    "You can do it!" I ran up beside her, "Come on, let me help you! What does the house look like?"

    "Eh? There''s no need, Migu-"

    "What''s. The house. Look like." I glared at her with the might of a thousand roaring lions.

    "Mmm... A-A shed." She bent under the pressure way too quickly, "Or maybe more like a shack? It''s very worn out."

    A worn out shed for a house? That''s where such a strong and capable man lives? I''m finding it pretty hard to believe, but I guess anything is possible in Heaven 2.0. Vastoria knows the guy better than any of us do, so I''ll take her word for it. Ah, but looking around in the hopes of finding something as worn as that in a world of new and flashy houses isn''t proving itself very fruitful.

    "Vastoria." Sheep called out to her.

    "Ha-ha, just a bit of patience please!" She chuckled back nervously.

    "You have no idea where you''re going, do you?" Gale was the one to call her out on what we were all thinking.

    Immediately, she tripped and rolled a couple of meters before coming to a stop. Geez, even when she eats mad cloud, she still looks cute. Apart from my ponytail, I wouldn''t say we look too different, so what makes her so sweet in comparison? Is it really all in the personality? It can''t be the golden parts, because the only one she has is that chest wound that looks sort of like a heart. Eh, maybe it is that¡ªSomething like subliminal messaging, who knows.

    "Wahh..." She looked disappointed in herself more so than anything, "Sorry, I could get there without a hitch if I still had my wings, but I guess the streets are just way more confusing to traverse..."

    "Your wings, that''s right." Sheep asked, "How did you lose them?"

    "I was attacked by a horde of White Monsters." She explained, "They ripped them clean off, but I managed to escape thanks to Throne''s help."

    White Monsters, that sounds kind of familiar... Oh right, that brute with the two gold arms was shouting something about them while he was causing havoc on the streets. Yeesh, just when I stopped feeling as guilty for trying to leave Sheep to fend for himself against the guy...

    "It''s possible to survive a White Monster encounter?" Sheep raised an Eyebrow.

    "If a seraphim keeps their Eyes closed, they could fly up and away to safety. Without wings, you''ll never be able to evade them." She explained, "That''s why I have Throne and his wings to thank for swooping in to my rescue."

    "Incredible." Sheep gawked, "Wings truly are the best thing in this world..."

    "Ahem." Gale suddenly raised his arm to ask a question, "Yes, uhm... What the hell is a White Monster?"

    That''s what I wanna know too. It''s scary enough to make that golden armed lunatic go mad with fear, and from what we''ve heard from Vastoria and Sheep, they''re pretty difficult to escape from, but we''ve never actually had them properly described to us. A White Monster... Aren''t we all White in this place? Maybe what makes it a monster is its shape, then.

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    "We''re all White Monsters." Vastoria explained in brief, "Or at least, once we get put to sleep by a White Monster."

    "Eh?" I cocked my head back, "What does that mean?"

    "A cycle has 36 hours¡ª12 for free time, and 24 for bedtime." Sheep continued from there, "After the first 12 hours, a being known as the White Monster is freed, and anyone who lays their Eyes upon its face becomes a White Monster themself."

    "And what happens to the people that get put to sleep?" Gale inquired.

    "They roam around until the reset, hunting anyone and everyone that may still be awake somewhere." Vastoria elaborated, "It''s like a highly viral plague. To my knowledge, no angel''s ever managed to survive all 24 hours of bedtime to make it to the next cycle without sleeping."

    Right, I could see how that would prove difficult. Ah, but she specified angels, so seraphim can? Oh right, I forgot they can fly. So that''s the case¡ªYou get put to sleep and by the time you wake up, your memory''s gone. I think I get what she''s saying now: It''s never been proven, but it''s everyone''s assumption that if an angel were to stay awake the entire 36 hours, they would theoretically transport their memories to the next cycle.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    After realizing that Vastoria is only human, ironically enough, we stopped rushing to the objective in favor of taking a more careful approach. Throne''s house should be sticking out like a sore thumb, so it wouldn''t do us any good to just run past it. We can take our time and scope out the scene properly, and all the while partake in some lovely banter between friends.

    "Eh?! There''s a Shrine far out away from the residential area!?" Gale couldn''t believe what he had heard from Vastoria just now, "And you''ve explored it!?"

    "Haha, it''s not that big of a deal, really." She chuckled, "Heck, even I''m not sure how I came back out of it. That''s what I wanna ask Throne."

    "Has he been there before?" I asked.

    "The outside, yes. But for whatever reason, the barrier around its entrance only allowed me to enter, and it didn''t make it easy, I''ll tell you that." She sighed, "Man, it would''ve been a breeze to reach the end with him around..."

    "So there''s even a magical barrier. That really does sound like something out of a fantasy novel." Gale noted, "Then, if it''s a Shrine dungeon, then there had to have been some amazing loot down there, right?"

    "Loot..." She thought about it for a bit before returning an empty stare, "A fork and a shield."

    "E-Eh?" We were taken aback, "So little..."

    "Ah, but I did find a friend down there. His name is Energy!" She put on a wide grin that quickly turned sour, "I gouged his Eye out with the fork on accident..."

    How do you do that to someone by complete accident?

    "Ah, but he got even with me by giving me this golden scar on my chest." She finally explained the story behind it, "I don''t exactly get the details of why he did it, but I can understand that he was dealing with some heavy trauma, so I forgave him immediately. Haha, funnily enough, he used the fork to do so as well!"

    "..."

    "...G-Guys?"

    What the hell kind of experience did they have in that Shrine?! Gouging Eyes out, stabbing ribcages open... I''ve heard of bad chemistry, but isn''t this taking it a bit too far!? And she seems so nonchalant about it, too. Makes me wonder how that guy would describe it... Wait, speaking of, where exactly is he? Gasp, it couldn''t be! Did she...?

    "Be straight with me¡ªDid you kill him?" Gale asked without reservation.

    "What?" She stood there in shock.

    "No, Heavenly Beings can''t die." Sheep defended her with well-defined facts, "But then again, they can''t feel pain or get hurt either, so I don''t know what she''s talking about."

    "...The Shrine''s power." She explained, albeit sheepishly, "Entering inside it inverts your golden and White parts. That''s actually how I survived getting stabbed in the chest. My golden heart protected me from dying."

    Hold on, that''s way too much to throw at us all of a sudden. So inside the Shrine, I could feel like a... a human again? I''ve had my suspicions for a while now, but this just sealed the deal¡ªThat Shrine holds the key to revival! Vastoria and that other guy didn''t find it, but if I tried my luck with it, then surely...!

    "Hold on, you have a golden heart?!" Gale asked the more important question.

    "Yes, and now thanks to Energy, I also have a golden chest wound." She looked at it, "It appears whatever damage one sustains in the Shrine gets healed up as golden parts once you leave. If my theory is correct, Energy should have a golden Eye and a golden foot to go along with his brain now."

    "...Eh? Foot? Brain?" I noticed, "What the hell did you do to those?"

    "Wha-!? How rude!" She pouted, "I had nothing to do with those! He got his foot caught in a trap before we met, and his brain..."

    "How''d he lose that and still survive?" Sheep asked.

    "...He got that one as a human." She switched to a more serious tone, "What I''m about to say may sound stupid, but please believe me."

    "What''s the matter?" We all tuned in.

    "Energy... Hails from an era of a Black Iro Curse." She revealed, "According to him, he spent his entire life surviving in a disease-infested world. The disease causes people to feel an unquenchable craving for other humans'' flesh."

    "That does sound hard to believe..." Gale tried to picture it in his head.

    "Yeah, honestly I''m at a loss for words." Sheep shrugged, "Like, I wanna believe you, but that just seems so farfetched..."

    "...Oh, so like a zombie apocalypse?" I realized.

    "Zombie...?" She tilted her head, "Apocalypse?"

    "Yeah, I''ve seen it in movies and TV shows all the time. Though I obviously can''t remember anything specifically." I explained.

    It was only through their utterly puzzled and confused stares did I finally realize all three of them came from an era before me. Heaven contains everyone that has ever lived, lives and will ever live, so it''s obvious that this would be the case, but it still feels a bit lonely to be the only one that gets these modern day references. Seriously, how can you not know what zombies are?

    "...Sorry, I''m more so confused over those other phrases you used." Gale stopped to ask, "Movies? TV shows?"

    "Yeah, and to make matters worse, you just brushed off the word "apocalypse" as if it were nothing." Sheep reminded me, "Do you not realize the gravity of such a disaster? Apocalypse literally means a worldwide threat! If you know what it means, then surely you should be afraid of such a thing happening, not smiling like you recalled a nostalgic event!"

    "Geez, you guys are ancient..." I slumped forward, "And just because I know what a tornado is doesn''t mean I should start spinning in the opposite direction, I mean come on!"

 Vol.3 Ch.50 - Scaredy Shelf

    "Oh, this is it!" Vastoria cut the chit chat short once she caught a glimpse of it in the distance, "We found Throne''s house!"

    "Ehhh?" Gale looked skeptical to say the least, "But you said his house was a shed?"

    "Well, I might have been a bit harsh when I said that..." She quieted down timidly.

    "No, he didn''t mean it like that." Sheep shook his head, "Well, it''s more like you weren''t being harsh enough."

    "Yeah, sheds can at least hold a few tools in them." I added, "This feels like it needs a few more meters of galvanized square steel before it can even fit a single person inside."

    "Oh come on, it''s not that bad." Vastoria sort of glared at us as she knocked on the front door, only for it to tumble forward the very next moment, "O-Oh. Good thing these get fixed every cycle, ha-ha..."

    "Having to rely on the laws of the world to constantly fix your broken down house is somehow more sad than just having it stay that way." I sighed, the other two agreeing wholeheartedly with me.

    Despite the rather loud entrance we made, no one came to check on who the guests were. Given how long it took us to find the damned place, it isn''t at all a surprise that he already left. Right, he was with Sab last time we saw him, so they''re probably flying around looking for each other. It''s a pity, but there''s nothing we can do anymore, safe from waiting for them to come back here before the end of the cycle.

    "Shhh!" Sheep noticed some rustling behind a dusty bookshelf, "No one move a muscle..."

    "...."

    "......"

    Ah, there it was again! Creepy! I definitely saw the cabinet shaking for a moment! Hold on, no need to get flustered, Maggie. It''s probably just a rat or something... Yeah right, do animals even exist in Heaven 2.0?! Wait, that''s actually a pretty good question¡ªWhy haven''t I seen any by now? Is Heaven seriously only reserved for humans? Do animals get their own paradise? If not, that''s kind of cruel on the Gods'' parts... N-Never mind that! The shelf is still moving, and it looks like it''s gonna tumble over any second now!

    "Stop!" Gale ordered.

    "Mph!" The shelf immediately stopped shaking, "...Who goes there?"

    "Shouldn''t we be the ones asking you that?" Sheep tilted his head, "Hiding behind a shelf, freaking us out like that..."

    "Yeah, that was messed up!" Vastoria pouted.

    "...Do you know whose house is this?" The shelf asked.

    "We do." I remained alert just in case.

    "Did he send you here?" The shelf still seemed hesitant to reveal itself, "If not, then I''ll kindly ask you to get lost."

    Oddly enough, I do recognize that voice. I might just be mistaken, but I''m pretty sure I''ve talked to this person before. Maybe it''s just a stray memory from a previous cycle or something to that degree. Nonetheless, he seems more scared of Throne than anything if we were to go off of his tone alone. He''s pretty on-edge, so I think being truthful would be the best way to gain his trust and calm him down.

    "We did come to meet up with him, but he didn''t send us here." I explained, "We wanna talk about something that happened in the previous cycle."

    "Previous cycle... Hold on, could it be something to do with the Gods'' Abode?" He asked somewhat desperately.

    "So my hunch was right." Gale smirked, "You''re Sab, aren''t you?"

    At the very next moment, the shelf fell forwards until it smashed onto the ground in a similar fashion to the front door. Seriously, is everything in here broken? As the dust settled, we saw the winged seraphim greet us with a grin wider than his wingspan. He looked terrified and anxious, but thankful that we weren''t an enemy. Hold on, did I miss a page? Aren''t Sab and Throne good friends? Err, disciple and master? Whatever the case is, I just can''t find a single reason as to why he would be hiding from him, and in his own home much less.

    "Oh thank goodness!" He gave us all a hug each, granted he respected mine and Vastoria''s personal space by giving an awkward high five instead, "Okay, but seriously¡ªI need your guys'' help!"

    "We could''ve guessed as much." I smirked.

    "Throne''s gone totally crazy." He explained, "After the reset, I flew over to here as soon as I woke up. That bastard, instead of giving me praise for a job well done, he slammed the door open and tried to lunge at me!"

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    "Talk about strict teaching..." Gale joked, "But there has to have been a reason for why he did it. He doesn''t strike me as the type of guy to just get mad for no reason."

    "You''re saying it''s my fault?!" He got offended, "For your information, I literally did everything exactly as he told me to! No, it''s something else, and I think it has something to do with the Shrine..."

    "The Shrine!" Vastoria gasped.

    "Ah, you''ve heard about it already." He nodded, "Good, it saves me the need to explain everything."

    "That''s true, but we''re still kind of lost as to what you meant exactly." Sheep shrugged, "What in the world would he gain from attacking you if his goal was the Shrine?"

    Sab was a tad apprehensive about admitting it vocally, but he eventually caved. Lightly, carefully moving his wings back and forth so as not to further damage the house''s interior, his body language gave away his next words all too early. Immediately, Vastoria''s story of when she got surrounded by a horde of White Monsters came to my mind, but it still chilled me to my very core to hear the words come out of Sab''s mouth.

    "He went for my wings." Sab sighed, "I think... I think his goal is to pry them off me."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Yeesh, that does sound serious..." Gale stiffened up, "Hey hold on, but didn''t he help you get them in the first place?"

    "He did, but... Sigh, it''s a long story." He slumped forward.

    "We''ve got time." Sheep crossed his arms and leaned up against the supporting beam.

    "...Originally, the plan was that I would become a seraphim and get my wings, and then we''d visit the Shrine together." He hesitantly answered, "That was how it was supposed to go, but then he suddenly pulled this stunt. I somehow managed to fend him off, though I think he went easy on me, and then he just left."

    "Eh? He left?" Vastoria raised an Eyebrow, "Just like that?"

    "Yeah, though as you can imagine, I didn''t feel like following him to find out where he went." Sab scratched his cheek, "I used the situation to find a hiding spot, some place he''d never find me, and just stayed there until things blew over."

    "And that ultimate hiding spot was in his house." I lightly mocked him.

    "Don''t laugh, it''s actually super smart!" He angrily defended his choice, "They say you never spot the thing hiding right from under your nose, no?!"

    "Yeah, it is a good hiding spot." Gale clowned on him too, "That''s why we found out you were there immediately upon entry."

    All jokes aside, this does seem like a pretty bad turn of events. Throne, around whom our entire plan revolved around, now turned out to be a guy that turns on his teammate at the drop of a hat. He''s cunning and careful, so I doubt he did it just for fun, but that honestly makes his supposedly sudden attack all the more scary. What could his motives be? How does this align with the Shrine?

    "Say, how do you guys know him?" Sab asked us about Throne, "I only met him like two or three cycles ago, when he helped me become a seraphim. But when he went after you guys back when the Gods ordered him to, what did he tell you?"

    "...He knew Maggie from before, though she didn''t know him." Gale answered after a brief yet uncomfortable pause, "Me and Sheep are first time acquaintances with him, however."

    "And I knew him for a bit less than Migu." Vastoria looked at me, "The location of his house is mirrored to my own from hers, so she got us mixed up on a map and he had to fly her over to me."

    "So our meeting was a complete coincidence?" I asked, "Wait, if I was following some map to get to you, that means we''ve known each other longer than I did Throne."

    "That''s exactly right, it''s because of you that I met him." She explained the full context of the relation chart, "After that, he and I were supposed to go ahead without you to find a way to send you back to the Living World, since that''s what you said you wanted."

    Oh wow, is that the case? I eventually wanted to revive even back then? I guess it makes sense, since I kinda came to that conclusion even when it was just three of us talking to that Divine Voice. Still, did they seriously not let me go with them because I wasn''t a seraphim? That kind of peeves me...

    "I thought we were going to the Gods'' Abode to ask them for pointers, but instead Throne took me to the Shrine." She continued, "That''s when I lost my wings, and later entered the Shrine without him."

    "Eh? You... entered the Shrine?" Sab raised his Eyebrows in astonishment, "Hold on, you''re a seraphim?!"

    "I''ve gotten used to that reaction by now..." She giggled.

    "My wings, I''m not sure what he wants to use them for..." Sab looked at all of us with a tinge of severity in his glare, "But I''m definitely not gonna hand them over to him. Can I trust you guys to help me out when the time comes to face him?"

    Whoa, I don''t do well with straying off the path to my main goal. I just wanna reach that Shrine, and then hopefully find a way to revive inside it. Ah, but then again, those two don''t have to be mutually exclusive. Maybe we could find a way to make everyone''s wishes come true!

    "Sounds to me like we both have something the other needs." I extended my hand to him confidently, "As long as everyone''s in agreement, we''ll happily help you with Throne."

    "Hell yeah! Thank yo-!"

    "But only under one condition." I backed my hand out for a moment, "You''re gonna be our wings from now on."

    "E-Eh?" He looked like he just got his soul crushed.

    "I think that''s more than fair." Gale commented, "Wings get people around way farther and faster than running, and since our goal is the Shrine at the very end of the human race, it''s obvious that we''re gonna need winged seraphim''s help for that."

    "Was that a dig at me?" Vastoria sighed.

    "It''s a dig at Throne." Sheep groaned, "If that guy didn''t mess everything up, I feel like we would''ve had a way easier time with everything in regards to the plan."

    "I''ll drink to that... You got yourselves a deal." Sab ultimately chose to seal the deal and shake my hand, "I got my endgoal in the form of these wings, so I think it''s only fair that I put them to good use."

    Great! We got a new member added to the team! Sab, he''s gonna be our mode of transport from now on. Ehh, that sounds kind of wrong though. Like I''m calling him a horse or something. Alright, since he''s flying, let''s just say he''s our... airbike! Right, he''s our flying motorbike, ''cause that makes more sense.

 Vol.3 Ch.51 - Rescheduled

    Having recruited our newest member Sab into the team, we walked out of the cramped shed Throne apparently called home to begin discussing our next course of action. With him, we were now given the ability of fast travel by way of winged flight, but even then we had to figure out how we would go about it.

    "How strong would you reckon those wings are?" Gale asked.

    "Definitely not strong enough to carry all of you in one go." He shook his head, "Even disregarding the sheer strength of the wings themselves, I don''t have enough hands to carry you all."

    "Eh? Your strength doesn''t dictate how much you can carry?" Sheep tilted his head.

    "Ah, as odd as it may sound, he''s telling the truth." Vastoria chimed in with her own personal experiences, "A seraphim''s wings are galvanically connected to their owner''s body, so load weight isn''t an issue for us."

    These wings keep getting more and more overpowered by the second. Ultra fast, durable, detachable, and now you''re telling me they can just carry as much as you want them to? Wait, but then the solution is pretty simple, isn''t it?

    "If we find some kind of container that can fit all of us, then couldn''t we just tie it to Sab and fly together that way?" I suggested.

    "That could work... Right?" Gale turned to Sab.

    "Don''t ask me, she''s the expert." Sab pointed to Vastoria.

    Eagerly, we all turned our heads in unison to wait for her answer. She looked at all of us with her signature aloof stare before promptly giving a thumbs up. Success! That''s a gold star for me, right there!

    "Great, we''ve got the basic mode of transport down." Sheep''s content smile dragged on as he spoke, "Now all we need to do is find the materials to make it happen."

    "Ah." The rest of us realized.

    Heaven isn''t exactly a place ripe for salvaging materials, when you really stop to look at it. Sure you''ve got the houses that contain their owner''s biggest wishes in life, but even if we were to somehow luck out in finding the exact materials we needed to make the container, we''d have to go through a super lengthy and annoying process of getting the owners to willingly hand them over to us. Then again, there''s always the option of burglary or even full on stealing it right from their hands, but that might be a troublesome endeavor in and of itself. We ARE in Heaven, after all, so even though there''s no Hell to get sent to as punishment for bad behavior, it does feel wrong to do so.

    "I feel like we''re just straying further from the main goal..." Sheep offhandedly mentioned.

    "Come again?" Gale glanced back at him.

    "The original goal was to find Throne and have him explain how everyone remembers yestercycle, but then we found Sab instead." He elaborated, "Then we switched to attempting to travel to the Shrine, but to get to there we have to go out on a scavenger hunt for a container and some rope to tie it around Sab. It''s just becoming more and more convoluted is what I mean."

    Well we''d all much rather fancy the answer to be a piece of cake to find out, but sadly¡ªThe bigger the goal, the more steps it takes to achieve it. Going off course and following side tangents is part of the package, ironically enough. It''ll all eventually circle back to the first goal, which is for us to figure out why our memories remained, thus how to reproduce them, thus giving me enough time to figure out how to go back to the World of the Living.

    "Wait..." Sab stopped dead in his tracks, "What do you mean, everyone remembers? It wasn''t just you guys?"

    "Ah, you misunderstoo-" I chuckled.

    "Nope, everyone remembers." Gale spoke over me, "Not just us, the entirety of Heaven 2.0. You didn''t realize?"

    Surprised by this revelation myself even, I followed Sab''s example as I finally tuned into the conversations of the passers-by around us. Common words included "before going to sleep", "yesterday" and of course "previous cycle". I didn''t notice it before, but it seems this anomaly has also been extended to everyone else, and not just exclusive to Gale and I. But unlike me, Gale did recognize this. Surprisingly enough, it looks like Vastoria was also ignorant of this just like me and Sab.

    "That''s... I didn''t notice that." Vastoria looked puzzled as well, "Everyone recalls yestercycle... So can we take that to mean that the loop has been broken?"

    "I hope so, it gets annoying to constantly explain stuff to people you know." Sheep chuckled, "I''m surprised you didn''t notice this sooner though."

    "How could I? I was way too focused on the... Shrine." Vastoria realized, "Gasp, could that be it!?"

    Confused, we stared back at her blankly. She explored the Shrine with some guy named Energy, but we don''t exactly know how it went down there too much. Did she find something important inside after all?

    "Could what be it?" Gale raised an Eyebrow.

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    "The Shrine, I think I know its purpose!" She smiled, "I think it advances time!"

    "How?" Sab furrowed his brows.

    "Three perilous floors." She explained, "Energy and I made it past them safely enough to reach the final layer¡ªA room that appears to mimic the explorers'' very own bedrooms. By then, Energy and I were dead tired, so we went to sleep on our respective beds, and when I woke up... I was back in my room up here! It all makes sense now, sleeping on a bed in that room is how time gets advanced to the next day!"

    "A new day... In other words, we aren''t talking about cycles." Gale nodded with a wry smirk, "I guess we have you and Energy to thank, if that''s the case! It''s entirely possible that you''ve permanently shifted the "reset checkpoint" forward by one day."

    "You may get it, but the rest of us don''t." I sighed.

    "Essentially, if my theory is correct..." Gale grinned, "Our memories of yesterday are set in stone, even after the reset. This cycle is now the one that repeats over and over, but the previous one has passed."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Our memories of yesterday, o-of the Gods'' Abode... and of the Book. They''re all permanent now? We''ll forever keep them with us? Wait, my brain isn''t comprehending this fully, so can we retain our memories now or not?

    "Ah, I get it." Sab immediately got the gist, "When Vastoria slept in that bed at the bottom of the Shrine, it''s like she saved in a game. Now no matter how many resets occur, they''ll always start from that point onwards."

    "...Game?" We didn''t exactly understand him.

    "You guys don''t get it?" He pouted, "I''d say I found a rather easy analogy, though..."

    "Probably for someone from your time, but we don''t exactly hail from the same era, I presume." Sheep noted.

    "Ehh?! So you''re ancient like Throne?!" He looked at us in disbelief, "Alright, you know what a GameStation is, right?"

    "A what now?" We shook our heads.

    "A Ybox 720?"

    "Nope."

    "An MES?!" He kept going.

    "Never heard of it."

    "Oh geez, you guys don''t even hail from the technological era, then!" He groaned.

    "That''s not true, I know technology!" Gale proudly replied, "Transport wagons and Firestarter Pistols, that''s the cutting edge, you know?"

    "...Oooooh my Godsssss~" Sab couldn''t even bring himself to laugh at that, "Dude, I only faintly know of Firestarters because they''re historical relics! Isn''t that like the first ever version of the modern day gun or something!?"

    "It is indeed." Sheep chimed in, "Though it was shoddy and unreliable, so better versions were quickly made after just a couple years."

    "I didn''t know that..." Gale looked kind of sad about that fact.

    "And what''s with the transport wagons? Aren''t those basically horseless horse carriages?" I even joined in on the diss session.

    "Yes, and they don''t go any faster than their horse counterparts." Vastoria giggled, "Gale, you may not be ancient, but you''re definitely the oldest among us."

    "Nah, I can''t accept this." Sab shook his head, spreading his wings to go high up into the sky and find something from above, "Okay, follow me you guys!"

    "Eh? Where to?" I shouted back from down below.

    "My house, where else!" He grinned excitedly, "I refuse to work with anyone that hasn''t ever played a game console before! Prepare yourselves, ''cause you''re about to witness the peak of human technology!"

    And just like that, he stalled his wings before dropping back down to the ground. Picking himself back up as he still kept that grin on, he began walking in the right direction as he led us like a herd sheep. I''ll admit, it''s hard to pass up the generous offer of seeing "the peak of human technology" or whatever, but don''t we have more important business to take care of first?

    "Sab. Sab!" Sheep hollered at him, "We don''t have much time left before the reset. Let''s not waste any more time than we already have."

    "Oh come on, like we made any significant progress not worth losing." Sab retorted, "Now that we memory retainers know what our plan is, we can just pick these two up and give them the rundown on the way to the Shrine!"

    "Sab, just because I said what I said about time advancing doesn''t mean that it''s 100% true." Vastoria even disliked the idea as well, "We might be wrong on this, in which case..."

    "To hell with this!" Gale and I threw our hands in the air with large frowns and furrowed Eyebrows.

    "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy!" I argued.

    "Absolutely, Maggie!" Gale added onto this, "And even if we do forget everything, we have you guys to count on to re-explain it to us, don''t we!?"

    "We''d rather not have to..." Sheep weakly replied.

    "And besides!" Gale and I glanced at each other, tossing a mutual nod of agreement as we shouted in unison, "We really wanna see what a game console is!"

    Staring blankly at our childish whims, Vastoria and Sheep were left speechless as Sab could barely stifle his laughter. In the end, a majority vote led to us opting to put the mission on hold in favor of sitting back for a moment of rest to have some fun. The walk over to Sab''s house was neither long nor short, but rather just enough for him to explain to us the gist of them. Once we made it inside, we were greeted with a large two story house that was filled to the brim with pillows. Upstairs, however, we were greeted with a TV... and a magical rectangular plastic box with a sleek design. The insignia on it showed two letters and a number. This was the fabled GS5...

    "Graahhh!" Gale was practically screaming as I incessantly headshotted him in the game, "How the hell is that even possible!? You were nowhere to be found on my screen, dammit!"

    "That''s the point of holding a good angle." I replied smugly.

    "Cut the crap! You''ve been stealing glances at my screen this entire time, haven''t you!?" He turned to complain to Sab, "Dude, don''t you have like another one of these screens for us to use!? I don''t wanna have to share a split screen with a cheater like her!"

    "Even if I did, you''d need a second GS5 and a network connection for that to work." He sighed, "Ah, she picked up the sniper. Dude, you''re cooked."

    "You don''t think I knew that already!?" He raged, "Gah!"

    "Psst, Sheep!" Vastoria could be heard whispering behind us, "Should we stop them before he breaks anything?"

    "...Nah, let him steam." Sheep inspected the livid Gale before replying with an impish grin, "I kinda wanna see him dropkick the screen."

    It appears Sheep was right on the money, because right after I sniped him from across the map one last time the second he left spawn, Gale proceeded to throw the controller at the wall before standing up and delivering a mighty and glorious dropkick to the TV. Now, the roles were reversed¡ªVastoria and Sheep were curbing their laughter, and poor Sab learned never to let Gale play this game again.

 Vol.3 Ch.52 - Co-op Rope Cope

    We found out two things today¡ªI''m incredibly good at this game, and Gale is a sore loser. Well, after his little outburst just now, we didn''t really have another choice but to stop playing. As Sab was tearfully picking up all the tiny fragments of the controller, the rest of us were dismissed from the room to give him time to grieve.

    "He... does realize it''ll just get put back after the reset, right?" Gale contemplated walking back in to remind him.

    "No no, you''ve done enough." Sheep dissuaded him, however, "Come here. While we wait for him, we should discuss what our next move is properly¡ªAs a team."

    "That much is obvious." Vastoria immediately replied, "We''re going to the Shrine."

    "Hold on, now." Gale shook his head, "We should try our luck with the Gods again. Whatever''s in that Book has to be the key to everything."

    "How come you''re so sure?" Sheep raised an Eyebrow.

    "Because the Gods weren''t defending the Shrine." I explained, "Gale probably means to say that the effects of the Shrine are meant to be found out, whereas the Book isn''t."

    It isn''t that illogical to think this way. The Gods obviously don''t want us reading whatever''s in that Book, but barring Throne''s case, Vastoria entered the Shrine without any repercussions. Not only that, but she did clear it and leave safely, despite the fact it permanently changed Heaven 2.0. If we keep limiting our playing field on the palms of the Gods'' hands, then I''m afraid we''ll never get to the real meat of the matter¡ªResurrection. I wanna leave this place, find out who I was before I died, and go back to being that person down in the Living World. As curious as I am about the Shrine, Gale is totally right for this.

    "In that case, we won''t even make it to the front entrance without Throne." Vastoria argued, "Mad or not, he''s the most capable seraphim out of us all. We need him if we want to stand a tiny chance against the likes of Prylos and Selzion."

    "That''s..." Gale looked astonished.

    "She''s got us there." I struck a thinker''s pose as well.

    We can''t go directly to the end, that''ll only lead to us being underprepared. We got off with only a slap to the wrist this time, but I don''t at all doubt the Gods can quite literally send our souls into an endless torturous fate with the snap of a finger. If we wanna do this right, we''re gonna need a pretty solid plan.

    "Then, the Shrine it is?" Sheep tilted his head, "But what then? Are we just gonna keep perpetually moving the days over and over for the rest of time? What''ll that achieve?"

    "No, we''re not going for that reason." Vastoria shook her head, "Energy, I need to find him."

    "Energy?" Gale furrowed his brows, "The guy you explored the Shrine with previously? Is he still there?"

    "Right, obviously he''d wanna go back there as soon as possible to investigate just like you." I turned to Vastoria, "He must''ve flown there the moment he woke up."

    Suddenly, her face soured up. Vastoria had apparently failed to notify us of a certain fact about Energy that sort of makes us question her plan''s success.

    "Actually, he doesn''t have his wings with him either." She shrunk back in her chair.

    "Eh? Then he''s definitely not there!" Gale frowned, "You said it yourself, right? Given the location of it, there''s no way anyone but a seraphim with wings could ever reach the Shrine."

    "No, I think he''s there." She kept looking down, "I know him."

    She knows him. Great, then everything''s settled... Not! Come on, what''s with that blind faith? Obviously, I don''t mind a little bit of optimism sprinkled into a plan every now and then, but this is too much! What if we wasted our time going all the way there just to not find him? She''s gonna be adamant either about us sitting around outside to wait for him or she''s gonna tell us to go inside and start looking for him, both of which just won''t amount to anything¡ªBecause he''s not there! She needs to face it, her plan doesn''t at all sound good.

    "Absolutely not." Gale disagreed completely, "That''s a shallow plan with stupidly low chances of success."

    "We''ll find him!" She fussed, "Trust me! I know what I''m saying sounds rough, but I genuinely believe...!"

    "Believe!? So you admit that what you want us to do is take a leap of faith?" Gale shot back.

    "That''s not what I said!"

    The two were in an uninterruptible squabble, throwing arguments at each other that soon stopped making any logical sense altogether. At some point, one person threw an offhanded insult at the other, and thus the arguments were quickly substituted with good old fashioned swear words. It took until Sab rushed down the stairs for them to stop and take a breather, giving Sheep the opportunity to end the debate for good.

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    "Alright, let''s review our options, then." Sheep clapped his hands together to get everyone''s attention, "We can 1) Try and look for Energy which is highly improbable, 2) Try and look for Throne, which is risky and possibly even dangerous, 3) Try and steal the Book away from the Gods again, which will definitely result in failure, and 4) We can go to the Shrine."

    "As someone who only just now entered the room and knows only what Sheep just said, I definitely believe option 4 to be the best." Sab joined in on the conversation, "It''s the only one that doesn''t involve us possibly coming up empty handed."

    "That''s completely wrong!" Gale shouted.

    "Oh, so Gale dislikes that option?" Sab gave him a smug grin as petty revenge for breaking his TV and controller, "Even better."

    "You...!" Gale fumed.

    Thus, the meeting was adjourned with a successful resolution. Not everyone was happy with it, but the rest of us knew more or less that if we wanted to move forward toward the end goal at all, we were gonna have to go and visit the Shrine.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hey, so, could you just give us a brief rundown of what all you saw inside the Shrine?" Sab asked.

    "Honestly, you wouldn''t like it." Vastoria plainly replied as we walked out of the house, carrying hundreds of pillowcases with us, "Just entering for the first time and experiencing your body go from numb to fully sensitive is super disorienting."

    "Oh right, our White and gold parts get inverted." Gale recalled, "So essentially, we''ll feel just like we did when we were alive in there for the most part, right?"

    "That''s the gist." I began tying the ends of the pillowcases together.

    "I still think we should have just gone out and found some rope for this..." Sheep sighed.

    "We don''t have time, it''ll be bedtime by the time we get ahold of it." Vastoria shushed him, helping me tie the ends up as she sat down beside me.

    Onlookers were staring at us in confusion, but as expected, none dared to ask what we were doing. As we discussed before, the only way for all of us to travel through the air as a group would be if we had some sort of tethering attachment to Sab. He doesn''t have the grip strength to hold all of us, so we need something to tie around his torso instead. Thankfully, my quick thinking saved us in our time of need, and I thought to use the thousands of pillows Sab just had lying around in his home. By doing this, we essentially get a makeshift rope. It''s not as durable as regular rope, but it more than gets the job done, I''d say!

    "...No, that knot won''t work." Sheep begrudgingly explained, "It''ll undo itself while we''re flying. Give it here."

    "I know what I''m doing." I tugged it back slightly, only giving in after seeing his tired expression.

    "Thank you. Look, it''s the same as how Vastoria is doing it." He began to teach me, "Make a loop with the two ends, like this and..."

    "That looks flimsy as hell." Sab smirked, "Give it here... Hnnghhh!!"

    Flimsy, my foot. Sheep''s right though, I''m not that good at tying knots. Guess I never learned that skill in the Living World. Gale and Vastoria seem to be handling the task just fine, I see. In fact, Gale''s pace is scarily fast. He must''ve been a master craftsman... or a sailor, given the era he''s from. I''m pretty sure ships existed back then, right?

    "Slow down there, captain." I joked a bit, "I think the rope''s more than long enough."

    "For one length." He muttered.

    "Come again?"

    "It''s long enough to go from us to Sab once, but that won''t nearly be enough to carry our weight." He further went on to explain, "It''ll snap in an instant like this, which is why we need to go for multiple lengths."

    "H-Hey, you wanna tie multiple ropes together into one giant rope?!" Sab jolted, "You can''t be serious!"

    "I thought that''s how we were gonna do it from the start, no?" Vastoria looked at Gale, "It''s pretty obvious that one layer would snap under the tension. Twisting them together into a braided rope, on the other hand..."

    "You get it!" Gale gave her a proud high five.

    They sure seem to be getting along... No, what am I thinking? Eyes on the prize, Maggie! This isn''t a teenage romance drama. I-In any case, I should get back to the knots...

    After we spent a good half an hour purely on tying knots until we were sick of them, we eventually had enough rope to braid them together into one. Unanimously and unsurprisingly, this task was delegated to our two master craftsmen. Vastoria stood on one end, holding three loose ends together as Gale braided them from the other side. Soon enough, we had a pretty large pillowcase rope to work with.

    "Okay, now can we go?" Sab asked, "Oh come on!"

    "What are you doing now?" Even Sheep was confused.

    "Tying two more medium knots." They glanced back with aloof stares.

    "M-Medium knots? You call this medium?" I kicked the one they just finished combining, "In other words... You''re gonna be making a large?"

    "Any less and it''d snap." Vastoria explained.

    "There''s no way this thing is gonna snap!" Sab furiously stomped on the ground, "You guys won''t even be able to tie all of us together if you make the diameter of the rope too fat!"

    "Don''t you worry about a thing, we know what we''re doing." Gale brushed him off, "Hey, hold here..."

    After that, it didn''t take them too long before they had a fully braided "large rope", made of three combined medium sized ones. Note that the medium sized ones are already derived from a fair length of one layer ropes. It''s overkill no matter how you slice it, medium would have been fine.

    "Sab, it''s time." Gale walked up to him before tying the rope over his arms.

    "What are you doing?" Sab glared.

    "Your arm movement isn''t that restricted this way." Gale shot back, "And in case you haven''t noticed, smart guy, you have two very sensitive golden hoops around your abdomen that would most definitely chafe if I tied the rope around your waist."

    "...Let''s just go already." Sab groaned, giving up on arguing with them anymore.

    "Thanks for this, Sab." Vastoria gave him a warm smile accompanied with the words of gratitude, "It goes without saying how impossible this whole thing would''ve been without you."

    "...No big deal." He looked away, his ears bright Red from the honest praise.

    Aww, look at him~! He''s all shy now! Ehe, I''d tease him right now, and I''m sure the others feel the same way going off of their stifled snickers, but we all know better than to do that now. Let''s not forget he can untie us at any moment if we misbehave... Or can he? Ah, was that the reason why Vastoria and Gale insisted on overbraiding the rope? To make it impossible for Sab to cut us loose? Man, they really are smart...

 Vol.3 Ch.53 - Plans Foiled

    "Everyone ready?" Sab looked over his shoulder, "Make sure you tied yourselves up tight. I''ll have to warn you that I''m not the best aviator just yet."

    "Yeah well, you''re the best we got." Gale twisted the knot, tightly securing all of us in place, "Alright, ready when you are."

    And with a deep breath, Sab flexed his back muscles before flying off into the air. The lengthy coil of rope in front of us served as the perfect countdown timer until we would follow suit in leaving the ground. One second passed, two seconds passed...

    "Woop!" I squeaked the moment I felt the powerful tug raise us into the sky.

    "Epic!" Sheep smiled.

    "Haha, yep!" Gale nodded, inspecting the makeshift rope once more, "It''ll hold up just fine, I''d say! What do you think, Vastoria?"

    "Uuuugh~" She covered her mouth, nauseously gagging with each meter of height surpassed, "This feels way worse than using your own wings... Hmph!?"

    "O-Oi, if you''re gonna throw up, turn away from us!" I inched away as much as I could, though with the rope clumping us all together it didn''t really mean much, "Vastoria, you''ve motion sickness?"

    "Can Heavenly Beings even get sick?" Sheep pondered, "We don''t need to eat, so there shouldn''t be anything to hurl out."

    "P-Please stop mentioning vomit... Blegh." She shivered, "Eugh, to think all that tea and biscuits could catch up to me one day..."

    ...Eh? Come again, tea and biscuits? When''d she get ahold of such luxuries? Actually, I don''t even remember finding a single piece of food ever since I got sent to Heaven 2.0! And judging from the other two''s glaring, it seems they also share the sentiment.

    "Where''d you get tea and biscuits from?" Sheep asked with a suspicious Eyebrow raise.

    "And why didn''t you bring any for the rest of us!" Gale reprimanded her.

    "Please stop talking, you''re making my sickness worse..." She uttered, her face looking a little Green even, "Once we finish this up, we can..."

    "Holy crap-!" Sab''s shriek could be heard from above, quickly followed by a loud crash.

    "Gah!" We got swung back after him.

    Something collided with Sab in the air! How is that possible?! Another seraphim, maybe? No, but they both had the entire sky to work with, so this can hardly be called a coincidental accident... Crap, once he got pushed back by whatever had struck him, we got strung along thanks to the rope too. Inspecting the damages, we noticed that the sheer tension the collision caused had caused a dozen smaller tears to form in the braiding. Scarily, had we only gone for the medium ropes, we would''ve been toast...

    "Sheep, status report!" Gale shouted, "I can''t see jack from my angle! What hit Sab!?"

    "I-I can''t see that well either! They''re too far up!" He squinted, "Definitely another seraphim though¡ªThose wings are unmistakable!"

    "I can hear the ropes starting to snap one by one!" I yelled.

    "We need to help him!" Vastoria squeezed herself free of the rope, "Without Sab''s wings, we''ll never make it to the Shrine! Hup!"

    "W-Wait, what are you doing!?" I grabbed her wrist, but she was all too quick to shake me off, "Vastoria!"

    "Don''t worry, I can handle it!" She smiled back confidently before climbing up the shaky rope, "Oough, I might still throw up, though..."

    She''s crazy! A plan like this is usually Gale''s field of expertise, not hers! Climbing up the rope gradually until she reaches Sab and the assailant, what can she even hope to accomplish after that? She doesn''t have wings, and if she falls, she''s as good as gone!

    "I''m going with her-!" Gale tried squirming out as well, but Sheep pulled him back.

    "Hold it, if you move now, the lasso keeping us all secure will become too loose." He explained, "If any one of us leaves, the other two will fall without question."

    "Well we can''t just let her go alone!" Gale shot back.

    "Gale!" I yelled, "...I trust her to do this."

    His surprised expression struck me to my very core. Hastily, it morphed into a disappointed scowl before I knew it. Gale wasn''t at all happy about just sitting back and hoping for the best, and in truth¡ªneither am I¡ªbut we don''t have another option. It''s either we put our faith in Vastoria to fix this by herself or we all fall flat on the ground like pancakes. Besides, she isn''t doing this alone.

    "She has Sab." Sheep reassured him, "Even if she did fall during the scuffle, so long as he''s nearby, he''ll be able to pick her back up."

    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    "I..." Gale suddenly used Sheep as a platform to push himself up the rope faster, "Sorry, I can''t just stand back and do nothing while my teammates are fighting for their lives!"

    "Ack, hey! Gale!" I struggled to hold onto the rope after almost slipping cleanly off it, "Get back here, Gale!"

    "Sorry! Hold on tight!" He looked back as he made short work of the rope climb.

    "Tch! S-Sheep!" I felt my grip start to loosen, and just when my hand let go of the rope...!

    "Gotcha!" He was there to grab it before I fell, "That damned moron really likes doing the opposite of what you tell him."

    "Phew... Thanks." I repositioned myself close to him so we could both hold onto the rope together, "What now?"

    "What? Don''t tell me you wanna join them up there as well?" He chuckled, "By all means, be my guest if you think you can handle it¡ªBut I''m not gonna follow you."

    "Nah, I never said that." I shook my head, "I''ll wait here with you. It''s the smarter thing to do, after all."

    At that, he could only crack a smile. Sab''s under attack from a mysterious opponent, and Gale and Vastoria are hiking up the rope to play the hero. I have no doubt about Gale, but Vastoria looked queasy just from being tied up, so I can only imagine how she feels now that she''s in the middle of the action. Why would they put themselves at risk? A-Ah, the rope''s still barely holding on...!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Vastoria, keep moving!" Gale had already caught up to her, "Come on, I can''t get up there until you do!"

    "I...! I-I can''t!" She shook her head, panicking with both Eyes firmly shut, "Sorry, I wanted to help, but...!"

    "You made the conscious decision, so follow through with it!" He went off on her, "If you don''t muster up the courage now, then your only purpose was to make the situation worse!"

    "I-I know!"

    "No, you don''t know!" He paused before delivering a humbling question, "Vastoria, are you gonna be a hindrance, or are you gonna climb?"

    His arguments were sound and just, his agility and strength, as well as his eagerness to act in times of crisis made Gale the ideal leader. Nay, he''s just a capable person in general. Even without the rest of these guys, he would probably find a way to accomplish all their tasks and then some all by himself. Vastoria was a kind and gentle girl, she was just mistaken into thinking the Shrine''s trials had changed her. This is why Gale''s question resonated with her so much¡ªShe didn''t want to be a hindrance to the team.

    "I''ll climb!" She yelled, opening her Eyes before steadfastly shimmying up the rope.

    "Attagirl! Can you see who''s fighting Sab?!" Gale shouted with a newly returned vigor.

    "Still can''t make him out!" She tried not to look down too much, "Bwah!?"

    A sudden nosedive from the winged fighters above sent everyone into a nervous panic. Because of the sheer speed of the descent, the rope¡ªas well as everyone on it¡ªwas now the one above Sab and the enemy. Just like that, ascent had turned into descent, and gravity was making their grip on the rope ever more difficult to hold onto. Nonetheless, Vastoria knew what had to be done.

    "Ngh, this better work...!" She stiffened up before ultimately letting go of the rope, "Uwahhhh~! Saaaab, don''t let me fall!!!"

    "Vastoria!" Gale didn''t expect her rash actions, hence he couldn''t catch her in time, "Crap...!"

    Her blood-curdling scream as she made her way down the rope at mach speeds could be heard from miles away. She was so loud, in fact, that even the attacker had to turn around and see what was happening, allowing Sab just enough time to free himself of the guy.

    "Oh no!" Sab tried desperately to move into position and catch her, only to hit the ground before that could happen.

    They were too late. The nosedive was too strong, and it led to Sab crashing out before he could catch her. She would soon follow, of course, and since the others are tethered to Sab, they would be next in line. They would survive, mind you, as they could not feel pain nor die in Heaven 2.0¡ªbarring their golden parts, of course. However, a saving grace came by before this could happen. Before Sheep, Gale and even Vastoria for that matter could hit the ground, a pair of wings swooped in to safely bring them down to where Sab was. It was the same seraphim who was the cause of all this in the first place.

    "...Throne, what are you doing?" Vastoria disappointedly inquired.

    "Vastoria, is that really you?" He looked her up and down in disbelief, "Y-Your chest..."

    "I got it while I was in the Shrine." She uninterestedly replied.

    "Grrr, you bitch!" He instantly lunged at her, but was quickly stopped by a punch from Gale.

    "None of that, moron!" Gale stood in between them, "Calm down and explain everything from the top. You were on our side just a minute ago, so what''s with the switch-up!?"

    Behind Throne laid Sab, firmly planted into the cloud floor, with Sheep inspecting his wounds. Thankfully, it was with a sigh of relief that he interjected to inform us that he''s fine, and is only dazed. Though we were glad to hear it, the situation was still far from settled. Tensions were high, and as Gale and Throne stared each other down for an unbearably long time, Vastoria was the one to finally break the ice.

    "This has to be some sort of mistake, a stupid misunderstanding!" She shook her head, "Throne, please, I know you''re a good person, so tell us why you''re doing this!"

    "...You betray me, explore the Shrine I guided you to on your own, make me have to go down a highly convoluted back up with this winged idiot...!" Throne pointed at Sab with an unbridled rage, "And you have the audacity to call my anger misguided?"

    Betrayal, what is he on about? Vastoria entered the Shrine because that''s all she could do. She passed through the barrier, whereas he could not, so obviously she was gonna go on without him. Does he seriously think she did that just to selfishly take all the Shrine''s rewards for herself? Vastoria isn''t the type of person to do that! To say that his anger is misguided is such an understatement that it''s not even funny!

    "You asshole..." Sab painfully got up to address him, "Stop playing the fool, we all know you''re too smart to rage over a stupid thing like that!"

    "Sab?" Sheep raised an Eyebrow at him.

    "What are you on about?" Throne began to slowly approach him threateningly.

    "Despite what you may believe, I''m not as dumb as you think I am." Sab flapped his wings to leave, "Attack a guy twice and he gets the gist of what your aim is. Just know that I''m not gonna let you accomplish that."

    "Sab-!" I shouted, but he had already flown off.

    "Have fun finding another pair of replacement parts, jackass!" Sab turned around just long enough to flip Throne off one last time, "See ya'' never!"

    What the hell is going on... Sab left? Is he coming back? And what does he mean by all this? Throne has a lot of explaining to do...

 Vol.3 Ch.54 - Disbanded

    Sab had run away, leaving us alone with the friend turned backstabber, Throne. The ones that were across from him remained firmly where they were, and we who were still face to face with him quickly joined them. This was a silent standoff, no one said a word¡ªand frankly, what was there to even say? We needed more information if we wanted to make this work.

    "...."

    "......"

    "...You know..." I raised my voice, "I don''t consider you an enemy."

    "And why''s that?" Gale got angry with my ice-breaker, "You''ve seen what he did to Sab! We''re left stranded here because of the bastard!"

    "He has wings too." I pointed at them with my chin.

    Suddenly, the group twitched in unison. For me to even suggest something as stupid as subbing Sab out for him was undeniably disgusting. Even checking for his reaction only proved he wasn''t willing to join our side.

    "Magnes, stop with the nonsense!" Sheep frowned.

    "Hmph." Throne sat down on the floor unamused, "And what good would helping you do me?"

    "See? The dude''s not good for us." Gale shook his head, "I say we either leave or die trying. He''ll obviously accept nothing less."

    They were extremely wary of him, very much so. I can understand that what he did could be classified as a dick move, but I can''t just accept that the guy who helped us get so far when pitted against the Gods themselves to be a bad person. He has his own goals, but that doesn''t mean we can''t help each other in attaining them together. We just need him to explain what those goals are, and then we can strike a deal easily.

    "...Throne, I apologize if I caused you trouble." Vastoria was the first to apologize despite everything, "I think I understand. You think I betrayed you when I entered the Shrine alone."

    "That''s-!" He tried to interject, but the rest of us shut him up.

    "...Ahem." She continued, "From the moment I passed through the barrier, my goal was to explore as much as I could and relay my findings to you after the fact."

    "You... What?"

    "We were gifted something incredible back then, Throne¡ªA chance." She smiled warmly, "I didn''t want to throw it away. What if there was a time limit for how long I could be in there? Or what if I got tossed out while I waited for you? Can you truthfully tell me you wouldn''t consider that a waste of a chance?"

    After giving her the chance to explain herself in full, he simply had no arguments to toss at her. Suddenly, his rage became confusion, and over time he blinked from a puzzled to an embarrassed expression constantly. The more she spoke, the angrier he got¡ªbut not at her¡ªrather, it was directed at himself and his own failure to discern her true intentions. He doubted Vastoria, and allowed himself to feel like he had been betrayed.

    "I..." He stopped himself from even saying another word back, "Kgh..."

    "Like I said, you''re not our enemy." I smugly crossed my arms, "I know that much."

    "Wait, how do you people even still recognize me?" His Eyes shrunk back in fear, "D-Don''t tell me! Sab...!?"

    "He didn''t tell us how to become seraphim, nor are we ones for that matter." Sheep explained, "I''m a shopkeeper, and you already know Vastoria''s case more than anyone. These two on the other hand, they''re anomalies, alright."

    "Anomalies...?" He looked at us all bewildered.

    "...Ask her." Gale clicked his tongue, still hellbent on not trusting the guy, "It''s because of her "betrayal" that we can even still remember your ugly mug from yesterday."

    "Yesterday... Vastoria, what is he talking about?" He turned to her next.

    "Pff, that''s what I''ve been trying to get at this entire time." She giggled.

    From the top, she told her anecdotes of the Shrine''s interior. Going yet again into needless levels of detail, she told him of the many challenges the floors she had to endure, as well as the reward at the bottom¡ªThe possible ability to advance time for the entirety of Heaven 2.0.

    "Is that why everyone was acting different this morning...?" Throne looked down in a puzzled manner.

    "I''m still not 100% certain that what we did caused the time advancement, nor if the checkpoint for resets has been permanently moved just yet." She finished it off with a confident half-affirmation, "But I guess that''s what we wanna find out."

    "I see..." He realized, "Wait, you said ''we''?"

    "So you noticed." She giggled, pointed at the gilded wound on her chest, "Throne, perchance¡ªHave you ever met with one seraphim Energy before?"

    The name of her Shrine explorer friend. Apparently he had been acquainted with Throne even before she was, which could be confirmed through Throne''s reaction to the name. He was familiar with the man, yes, though we couldn''t quite figure out if he was happy to know him or not from his expression. It was a mix of sour joy and exhilarating hatred. In other words, even the grimace he put on made no sense. Again, we were standing on edge to find out how he would react to this, and thankfully¡ªHe didn''t disappoint.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

    "Energy, so he was still there...!" He sounded almost relieved upon hearing this.

    "Vastoria wasn''t the first person you trapped in there, then." Gale immediately hopped on the opportunity to accuse him, "If you have any shame, you''ll find Sab and apologize before bringing him back here. After that, I want you to leave us alone and never bother us again."

    "Gale!" I shouted.

    "I don''t care what you guys have to say, but I''m keeping you away from the danger!" He shot back, "He acts on impulse and doesn''t feel the slightest bit of remorse for his actions until their severity is painfully explained to him! That alone is reason enough not to keep him on standby!"

    "...I will lend you my honest help." Throne approached us slowly, without any ill intent, "But for that to be the case, I will need your trust."

    Geez, and just when I thought things had cleared up finally. Now everything''s complicated again, and I don''t know whose side to choose!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Oh hell no." Gale turned around.

    "Gale." Sheep grabbed his shoulder.

    "No."

    "Gale!" He yelled this time, "Don''t do this."

    "Do what? You''re taking this idiot''s side after he attacked you?" Gale retorted, "Cause if that''s the case, then you should probably check if you got a concussion after all!"

    "My head is in the right place, and my reasoning is sound. We need Throne no matter how you slice it." Sheep reasoned, "He''s recognized his actions were wrong, and he''s willing to make it up to us. More than willing, even."

    "I agree, moreover..." Vastoria added, "It''s partially my fault for not making my intentions clear when entering the Shrine. Had I somehow signed or mouthed that I''m not abandoning him out there, then none of this would''ve happened in the first place."

    "Don''t pin the blame on yourself when you did nothing wrong." Gale reassured her that her actions were fine, "You were right to hurry and find out as much as you could. Besides, if not for what you did, Sab wouldn''t be a seraphim."

    "He wo-" Throne bit his tongue, "Regardless, I can agree with what he says. You should not blame yourself for my own misunderstanding, Vastoria."

    What did he try to say just now? Would Sab have still become a seraphim? How, though? Perhaps he knew him from a previous cycle and was willing to rank him up regardless? No, right now we should focus on getting Gale on board with this new plan. I know I said he''s capable, but he doesn''t wanna accept something as simple as a change of plans. When you plan something out, it rarely ends up how it did on paper. It''s dynamic, it changes with each new development, and he needs to adapt if he wants to make it work. Throne is our latest development, and I think he''s just what we need right now to make all our worries disappear.

    "Throne, we were headed for the Shrine." Vastoria explained, "I believed-Nay, I knew we would find you there if we went. But besides that, I wanted to check the place out once more."

    "In that case, we can..." Throne then got interrupted again.

    "The original goal was to attack the Gods again after we met up with Throne." Gale glared back at us, "Well, since you''re so adamant about him joining the team... What gives?"

    "Gale, stop being petty." Sheep groaned.

    "Am I being petty?" He raised his tone angrily, "Cause right now all I''m seeing is you guys straying from the original goal! And besides, are you saying it''s alright to just leave Sab while we go off to explore that damned Shrine without him?!"

    "No one said we were gonna abandon him." I replied.

    "Stop lying!" He lashed out, "You''re just trying to appease this asshole! He failed to enter the Shrine not once, but two times! Hell only knows if there was more before Vastoria and Energy!"

    "Gale!"

    "No, let him get it off his chest." Throne stopped me.

    "He''s making me out to be the bad guy here, don''t you get it!?" Gale was genuinely shouting at us like a madman at this point, "Vastoria, you''re smart, so you have to get what I''m saying!"

    "Hey!" Sheep and I took offense to that.

    "Sab''s reaction just now, and even before when we found him cowering behind the shelf." Gale grabbed her hands desperately, "You can''t tell me he was like that for no reason! I''m not telling you to distrust Throne, but please¡ªat the very least¡ªlet''s go find Sab first!"

    "Gale..." She stared at him uncomfortably for a bit before freeing her hand from his grasp.

    "No...!" He fell to his knees.

    "Got everything out of your system?" Throne approached him, lifting him back up on his feet with ease thanks to his wings, "GaLi, I''m not gonna disagree with you. You''re more than right to be saying these things about me."

    "Shut up!"

    "Even now, I can only praise you for being wary around a scumbag like me." He continued to talk calmly nonetheless, "I hurt you, I hurt our friends."

    "My friends!" Gale corrected him, "A monster like you can only see us as pawns for your own sick goals!"

    "Gale, shut the fuck up!" I shouted to get him to keep quiet while Throne was talking.

    "Thank you, but that was unnecessary." Throne barely curbed his chuckle to remain serious as he explained everything to him, "Gale, I agree with you."

    "...What?" Gale didn''t buy it, instead angrily furrowing his brows at the remorseful seraphim.

    "You still don''t get it?" He actually laughed, "I never said I wouldn''t just leave Sab! Not after all that I did to him."

    "You''re going after him?" Gale tilted his head, frown still there.

    "Yes, so can we please agree to bury this hatchet?" He extended his hand for Gale to shake.

    An incredibly well executed apology, paired splendidly with a follow-up explanation. Gale would really have to be a stuck-up jackass to not accept it. Yet, he found a way, nonetheless. Staring blankly at the hand he was offered, Gale only looked back up at him with a smug grin. It was as if the handshake was never offered in the first place.

    "You''re not going after him." He turned towards where Sab flew off to, "You guys go to the Shrine. I''ll be the one to look for Sab. When I do, I''ll clear up the misunderstanding."

    "Gale, get back here!" We called out to him.

    "It''ll be faster if I went with my wings." Throne calmly hollered across to him.

    "I''m offering my help here." The bastard didn''t even take one look back at us, only raising his hand as if to bid us farewell, "You guys should use those wings to get to the Shrine faster instead. Don''t worry, I''ll find him¡ªYou just have to trust me."

    What the hell, must he always be this contrarian? Gale, first it was following Vastoria up the rope which almost ended up making me and Sheep fall off the rope, and now this? Tch, well I for one think we ought to let him! If he wants to leave, then so be it! Less trouble for us, given how much of a pain he would be the entire time Throne was accompanying us. Ah, Throne doesn''t look that pleased by this, though. I wonder, did he want to go and apologize to Sab himself, after all?

 Vol.3 Ch.55 - Higher Efficiency

    Gods, now Gale left too! Then again, we did get Throne in return, so maybe this way was for the best... I feel bad for those two leaving, but we can''t afford to let personal feelings get in the way of our goals. There''s also that¡ªThe possibility that Gale really is headed back to find Sab and bring him over to us. He sounded extremely sarcastic, so the chances of that happening are low, but on the other hand it''s Gale we''re talking about. He''s a team player, a go-getter leader who only wishes his friends the best. If we interpret his speech like that, then there''s a very real chance he''s doing this for our good.

    "Migu." Vastoria snapped me out of my trance, "Migu? What''s got you so holed up in your thoughts?"

    "Wah, sorry!" I shook myself off, "I was just thinking about something useless. Don''t worry."

    "...I''m sure it''ll work out on their end." Sheep reassured me, "Gale and Sab are both capable in their own rights, and given we haven''t traveled that far from our starting point¡ªI''m sure they''ll find each other."

    "Yeah, but finding Sab in the endless sea of angels and seraphim would be like picking out a needle from a haystack." Vastoria figured.

    "You''re forgetting who Gale''s trying to track down." Sheep chuckled, "Knowing Sab, he''s probably¡ªno, definitely¡ªbehind the same shelf we found him last time."

    The humorous reasoning gave way to all of us bursting into laughter. Everyone except for Throne, that is, which is probably because he didn''t understand quite what we were talking about. He wasn''t there to witness the scaredy cat Sab shivering his timbers behind the shelf in his little shack house, so to him we were probably just uttering some nonsense. Nonetheless, he decided it was time to get moving.

    "The time we have is limited." He took the rope from the ground and tied it around his own waist, "I believe you used this to fly under one pair of wings. Crafty."

    "Thank you!" Vastoria enjoyed the praise before her bubbly smile soon turned sad, "A-Ah, it was..."

    "What?" He tilted his head in response to this, "What''s wrong?"

    "It was hers and Gale''s idea." Sheep informed him.

    "Is that so... Remarkable, you two are just incredible." He didn''t hesitate to compliment the guy who opposed him even one bit, despite our expectations, "...What now?"

    "You...?" I cocked my head back, "You really don''t have to prove yourself anymore."

    "I don''t get it." He shrugged.

    "What she''s basically saying is that Gale''s no longer here, so there''s no need to sing his praises anymore." Sheep added, "Besides, he was being an ass to you, so having you incessantly saying all these nice things about him is weirding us out."

    "And we mean that with no offense, of course." Vastoria chimed in too.

    Despite what we had told him, Throne just wasn''t going to budge on this. Crossing his arms with an almost childish pout, he firmly stood his ground as he stated that smart people deserve their flowers. I can understand that, of course, but when the smart person in question was cussing you out just a moment ago, I kind of feel like you really ought to lose all respect for him in that scenario. Regardless, it was almost as if he had gotten offended at our reasoning this time.

    "Honestly, what''s wrong with you guys?" He asked with furrowed brows, "GaLi volunteered to go find Sab and explain everything to him without us so that we could freely go on and explore the Shrine. It''s a smart move, and he did this with our best interests in mind."

    "R-!" I bit my tongue, "Regardless, he could''ve phrased it better! If that''s really all he wanted to accomplish, then he shouldn''t have made himself sound like such a douche!"

    "Not everyone''s good with words." He warmly smiled, "People like him are hot-headed, but that doesn''t mean they''re hot-tempered as well. He acts rashly and doesn''t think about his words all too much. But actions speak louder than words, and his actions were clearly made for our sakes from the start."

    ...Wow. Throne really is incredible. Calling him a saint would be too much, a person with his level of patience and tranquility can only be called a God. Of course, we all knew even before that Gale wasn''t exactly all too good with words, but that shouldn''t excuse him from just blabbering on without caring a single bit about potentially hurting the people around him. Honestly, if it was anyone else in Throne''s place instead of him, I''m sure Gale wouldn''t be pardoned for his flashy exit. Maybe... Maybe Throne''s the better leader after all?

    "Then, now that everything''s cleared up..." Throne tugged the rope a bit to give us the signal, "Can we get going now?"

    "Aye aye!" The three of us shouted in unison.

    The ropes were tightened on both ends, he kindly gave us a countdown, and... liftoff. We were in the sky within the blink of an Eye. Not only that, but we were at the same altitude as with Sab, except it took him minutes to reach this high, and his flight was way more shaky. Just goes to show you how much more experienced Throne is with his wings. The difference is just unrecognizable!

    "At this rate, we''ll reach the Shrine within minutes!" Sheep excitedly grinned.

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    "Wait, that''s bad!" I recalled, "Vastoria, how are you holding up!?"

    "A-Ah." Tears began to gently glide down her cheeks as she viewed the comforting sky visage in front of her, "It''s been... so long... since I saw the sky like this."

    "Vastoria?" We turned to her.

    "I wish I could do more for you." Throne''s voice echoed from up front, "Your wings, I did try and search for them, but they were gone without even a trace to their name. For now, this is the best I can do."

    "Throne." She nodded knowingly, "Thank you, this is wonderful."

    He''s patient, understanding, kind and above all¡ªHe exhibits incredible levels of humanity. Unlike Gale, who had to rely on Sab to fly, Throne can do all that and with the added luxury of comfort. No more getting motion sick, no more shaky, insecure flight. Of course, I feel guilty in saying this¡ªBut I am glad that Throne''s back on the team. Now, if only Sab and Gale could understand that...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    At the speed we were being tugged along at, we couldn''t exactly see the scenery all too clearly. Unlike with Sab, everything around us had dissolved into only but a blur. Vastoria explained with great glee how this is exactly what seraphim see when they soar through the air at their regular, breakneck speeds. No wonder she got motion sick while Sab was flying¡ªFor her, this must''ve felt like going from watching a 60fps animation to a 5fps one just like that. It''d be jarring for anyone, really.

    "Alright, we''ll be landing shortly." Throne circled around to pick us all up in his embrace before slowly descending down into a graceful landing, "Here we are."

    Here we are, he says, but I couldn''t quite see anything just yet. My Eyes were still in blur mode from the inertia, so it took a while for them to readjust and finally see clearly once again. Quite literally, the structure had appeared out of thin air in front of my very Eyes.

    "Woahhh..." Sheep couldn''t believe it, "This place is huge."

    "Yeah, but is it just me, or did I expect it to look a little bit different." I added, "Y''know, something that more so resembled an actual Shrine?"

    In front of us was nothing more than a light Blue-ish, semi-transparent ice wall. It was cold just to stand close to it, which is odd because our White bodies don''t exactly allow for us to feel temperature. I can understand why Vastoria and Throne were so fascinated with it, at least. This certainly is unusual.

    "The Shrine is within the wall." Vastoria giggled, "What you see in front of you is the barrier that blocked Throne''s access the previous time we were here."

    "Eh? But it doesn''t look like it has a top side..." I glanced up, "Why didn''t you just fly over it?"

    "It''s best I demonstrate why." Throne swooped in with his wings again to pick Sheep and me up and fly us a couple hundred meters up. Looking below, we were surprised to only see a lone Vastoria standing in the empty field with a Shrine-like stone structure where the wall was. Did we fly to a different location by accident? No, but that girl is definitely Vastoria... What the hell is this?

    "It''s a mind trick of sorts. An optical illusion." Throne explained, "So long as you''re touching the ground, the barrier is visible and physical. You can touch it, it''s solid."

    "So then, why isn''t it the same now that we''re in the air?" Sheep inquired.

    "That''s where the optical illusion comes in." He answered, "If no parts of your body are touching the ground, the solid barrier becomes almost like a magnetic force field of sorts. It''s no longer there physically, but the moment you try and fly or otherwise drop in, it stops you in mid air before launching you back to the residential area."

    "That far back?!" I yelped, "How is that even possible?"

    "It''s possible." He sighed before revealing, "...It pushes you away by the golden parts of your body. So far, my theory goes that the only ones who can ever gain access to it are those without any external gilded parts."

    External, he made sure to emphasize that part specifically. In other words, this was because Vastoria could still enter despite having an internally golden part¡ªHer heart. For now, his theory holds up fairly well, as even Energy was said to have entered with only a golden brain. Key word, "was"...

    "You''re afraid that Vastoria lost access to it now that she has that wound on her chest." Sheep looked down.

    "It''s not guaranteed to be the case." Throne tried to remain positive, "Nothing is certain just yet..."

    "...But?" I followed his train of thought.

    "But... It''s all but proven." He let out a long, disappointed sigh, "Let''s go back down to where she is. And please, not a word to her."

    Suddenly, he hit us with something unexpected. An oath to secrecy. Then again, we were more surprised to find out that Vastoria didn''t know this. In hindsight, it''s the only logical conclusion that made sense as to why she could enter and he could not, but at the same time, neither Sheep nor I knew before he explicitly told us.

    "Why not?" Sheep tilted his head, "Shouldn''t she know?"

    "What good would it do for her to find out?" He asked a rather realistic question, "If she''s ignorant to the supposed impossibility of the task, then she might have a better chance at accidentally reproducing it after all."

    "Right. But if we told her she won''t make it no matter how hard she tries, she''ll only get discouraged." I nodded in agreement, "Throne''s right, we should first ask her what her thoughts are on passing through the barrier. Once all our methods are exhausted, then we should tell her what we think."

    "Gale didn''t tell White lies..." Sheep made a difficult face.

    "Gale isn''t the leader anymore." I retorted, "At least not for now. Please, Sheep, we need her to try with motivation, not indifference."

    Gale''s departure is still plaguing everyone. Damn, it''s not like he died, what the hell... A White lie here and there isn''t a bad thing, and at the end of the day it''s just as Throne said¡ªWhat good would telling the truth all the time do for us if the truth is bitter? At that point, you might as well just actively start critiquing the plan until we all opt to give up.

    "Oh, you''re back." Vastoria greeted us at the ground, "You took your time."

    "Just enjoying the view." Throne smiled back at her before gently putting Sheep and I down, "Now, shall we get cracking?"

    "Aye aye! I''ll do my best to remember how I did it last time!" Vastoria saluted proudly before running up to the barrier.

    "..." Sheep only stared blankly at the girl''s useless attempts.

    "This is for the best." I uttered quietly so she wouldn''t hear.

    "This..." He shook his head, still opting to let us do it our way however, "This is cruel."

    And so, with another companion''s relationship somewhat being put on the fence, we watched on from the background as Vastoria tried all sorts of moves and methods to phase through the wall as she supposedly did last time. Cruel, he said¡ªIt''d be cruel if we shattered her hopes and dreams at the start without even letting her attempt this once. That''s cruel.

 Vol.3 Ch.56 - Better Than Words

    "She..." We looked on in disbelief through the ice wall, "She actually did it."

    Hold on, what? After we told her to try and repeat the method she did last time, she earnestly nodded, sat herself up against the cold icy barrier, closed her Eyes, and... Phased through just like that. Not to sound skeptical or anything, but I really wasn''t expecting that to work on the first try... or any other try for that matter. That wall, they hyped it up to be impregnable from every angle and everything, but she just made it look like child''s play.

    "What''re you waving at us so adorably from over there?" I jokingly scolded her, "Stop it, you''re supposed to be acting smug, not cute!"

    "She can''t hear you from there, nor can we her for that matter." Throne sighed.

    "Huh?" I tilted my head at him, "I wouldn''t be saying it if she could."

    Happy as a lamb, Vastoria patiently waited for us to cross over by following the same steps she took to pass through the Shrine''s barrier. After a while, she got tired of waving and opted to sit down on the stone steps leading up to the Shrine''s entrance. Teetering side to side as she rhythmically clapped her hands together, I swear I could almost hear the little tune she sang to pass the time. This girl, does being the most precious thing in Heaven 2.0 just come naturally to her or something?

    "Then, let''s not keep her waiting." Throne was the first to try, hitting the cold wall with his back instead of phasing through like she did, "Oof!"

    "Eh? It didn''t work." I furrowed my Eyebrows.

    "Did you open your Eyes by accident?" Sheep immediately began to troubleshoot the cause of the failure.

    "Of course not!" Throne fussed, "Tch, the same happened last time. She passed easily, but it was impossible for me."

    "Well, you''re both seraphim, so there shouldn''t be any reason why she could pass and you couldn''t..." I thought about it, "Maybe it only accepts girls?"

    "No, ''cause that guy was in there with her." Sheep recalled Vastoria''s testimony, "Energy or whatever his name was."

    "...Sheep, you''re next." Throne snapped his fingers, "Come on, quickly now."

    "What the...? Why me?" Sheep protested as he got pushed to the wall, "O-Okay, okay! Stop rushing me!"

    With a deep breath, Sheep closed his Eyes with his back facing the ice barrier. As he crossed his hands over his chest, he reclined before similarly hitting the wall with all his might. Shame too, he really made it look good. I was totally expecting him to phase through, but instead all he got was the wind knocked out of him.

    "Ghack! Guuuhhh....!" He rolled around on the ground for a bit, "Scary! I shouldn''t have held my breath, that was totally the wrong call!"

    "Hm? Wait, now that I think about it..." I muttered, "Did Vastoria actually hold her breath?"

    The two men could only turn to me with bewildered stares as they tried so desperately to recollect her steps. Vastoria sat down with her back facing the wall, closed her Eyes and reclined¡ªBut nowhere in there did she stop midway to take a deep breath before taking the plunge. Could that be it? The secret behind passing through the Shrine''s barrier?

    "Let''s see..." It was my turn next, "Sit down, close your Eyes, and... Oof!"

    Nope, guess it didn''t work after all. I hit my head pretty hard too, I should have probably nestled it forward to avoid the impact... Wait, no, that makes no sense? How do I feel pain in my head when I don''t have a golden part there? Opening my Eyes as I got up, a warm celebratory hug came my way without reserve.

    "Hooray!" Vastoria praised me, "You did it!"

    "E-Eh? Vastoria?" I looked at her with puzzled Eyes, "But how...?"

    Ah, I see now. Turning around to where the two boys were, I could now understand what had happened. They were on the other side of the wall, or rather you could more accurately say that I was on the other side. What I hit my head on wasn''t the ice wall, but the stone pathway instead. And the reason why I felt pain wasn''t because I had gold on the back of my head, but rather because I didn''t. It seems the rule of the Shrine¡ªthe one that switches your golden and White parts¡ªtakes effect the moment you pass through the barrier.

    "Then, it really was the case..." I looked down.

    "I knew you could do it! W-Wah, sorry!" Vastoria realized how long she had been clinging to me and quickly backed away.

    "No no, you can keep going." I reassured her, "You know, in my era, it''s rude to stop at just hugging."

    "E-Eh!? Migu, you made that up just now!" She blushed.

    "That doesn''t matter right now." I put my hands out, raring for another round of huggies, "Come on, don''t be shy."

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    Successfully, I made her overly conscious of me. She was bright Red in the face, twiddling her fingers bashfully as I physically saw her weighing it over in her head. That side of her is irresistible to my Eyes, I just know I made the right choice in teasing her. Ah, but the negative of that is that she now doesn''t wanna get too close to me after this. Curse my devilish teasing!

    "N-Now all we have to do is wait for them to come over as well!" She turned away, too embarrassed to face me head on, "I''m gonna sit down over there."

    "Hm? Oh sure, go ahead." I glanced over at her with a wry smirk, "...Hey, just out of curiosity, are you gonna hug them like you did me when they eventually cross over?"

    "Stop teasing me!" She whined, "I''m sorry for getting too excited, okay!?"

    "Like I said, I don''t mind." I smugly turned back to look at these two idiots banging the back of their heads against the wall, "You''re cutest when you''re excited."

    "Fueh!?" She jolted.

    I know I said I''d stop, but I couldn''t help it. I had to know... if she only reacted like this with me.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Clink!" The wall said.

    "Dink!" It repeated.

    "Clonk." Then it whispered.

    No matter how many unique onomatopeias I practically invented for them, the men just could not get this one simple task right. Granted, they were doing everything right, but for whatever reason they just couldn''t pass through no matter how hard they tried. Vastoria and I quickly got bored of idly sitting around and waiting for them, so I asked a question I deemed pretty reasonable for the current situation.

    "Hey, why don''t we head inside-?"

    "No." She cut me off, "We''ll wait patiently for them until we can all go together. Throne got mad at me last time I did that."

    "Last time he got mad because he was being stupid and misinterpreted it as you betraying him." I argued, "Now that they both know we''re on the same side, then..."

    "I promised him I''d wait." She firmly stood her ground.

    Dammit, she''s hellbent on waiting for him. The day has been long enough already, so I''m sure we''re closing in on bedtime soon enough. According to Vastoria, there weren''t any White Monsters around inside the Shrine, but that doesn''t necessarily mean they won''t be out here as well. For safety reasons, I think it''s for the best that we tread on. The boys can just catch up to us when they eventually figure this out.

    "...Poke." I touched her cheek suddenly.

    "E-Eh?" She turned to me with a puzzled look on her face, "What are you doing?"

    "Passing the time." I poked her cheek once more, "You know, I got so used to my body being completely numb, I totally forgot how nice it feels to, well, feel."

    "That''s true." She giggled at my rather innocent remark, "But why my cheek of all things?"

    "It''s soft, it''s warm, and it''s puffy and cute." I kept poking, "The alternative is your tummy, but I assumed you wouldn''t like that."

    "A-Ah, thank you for being considerate..." She looked down, her ears bright Red.

    Well, this is certainly a fun way to kill time. Her reactions are always a treat to witness, and I wouldn''t be lying if I said I did want to touch her... Wait, that came out wrong. In any case, she''s not telling me to stop, so who am I to cut the fun out?

    "Really, head pats now?" She chuckled.

    "Everyone loves head pats, but I feel like we stop getting them as much as we grow older." I replied, gently stroking her long, silky hair, "I''ll stop if I''m being annoying."

    "Mn, no." She closed her Eyes, suddenly lying down on my lap, "It feels nice."

    "S-!"

    Scooore!!! I did it, she actually lied down on my lap! We might be skipping a few steps in between, but that was definitely on my to-do list with her! I didn''t expect her to reciprocate, I was genuinely under the impression that she was just letting me be creepy out of consideration! A-Ah, can''t stop petting her now, otherwise she might get up! Come on, don''t get flustered now, Maggie! Quickly, keep the flow of the conversation, think of something ASAP!

    "...This feels nice." I ultimately opted to share my honest feelings.

    "It does." She turned her head to look at my face directly, "Ehe, sorry."

    "Is there something funny about my face?" I worried.

    "No, not you." She giggled, "I wanted to say something kind of rude, but I stopped myself before I did. That''s why I laughed just now."

    "You don''t have to hide it." I kept petting her gently, "I won''t get mad."

    "...No." She thought about it, "I couldn''t. Those two would seriously get mad if I did."

    "It''s not like they can hear you." I muttered.

    Opening her Eyes wide in astonishment, her cheeks once again lit up as she blessed me with a warm, gentle smile. It was unlike any other smile I''ve seen in my life, to the point where I could only classify it as something foreign to me. A smile of acceptance. Briefly glancing over at Throne and Sheep to make sure they wouldn''t phase through anytime soon, she tilted her head back over to me before saying what was on her mind.

    "I wish..." She looked into my Eyes with that same giggly tone, "I wish they took their time, so that we could stay like this as long as possible."

    "A-Ah?" I felt my heart skip a beat for the first time in Heaven 2.0, "Vastoria, I..."

    No, words just weren''t adequate enough to express how I felt in that moment. I was over the moon, no wait, even more ecstatic than that. What do I even say to such words? Is this what they call the perfect mood? I feel like I shouldn''t waste the moment and definitely say something, I WANT to say something! But... I feel like whatever I said right now just wouldn''t accurately convey just how happy I am to hear those words from her. So...

    "M-Mn!" She jolted the moment I put my lips against hers, "Migu..."

    "Sorry if I misunderstood." I replied, probably just as, if not Redder in the face than she was, "Right now, I felt so happy, but... If you disliked it, then I''m real sorry. Please pretend like it never happened."

    For a while after that, we simply remained like that in silence. I stared at her, expecting an answer, and she stared back, thinking of one. I messed up¡ªI abused the moment to overstep my boundaries. I don''t know what came over me, I acted on complete impulse. As I panicked internally, wondering whether or not she and I could ever go back to how things were before this, a gentle and warm hand poked my cheek.

    "V-Vastoria...?" I choked up.

    She didn''t explicitly give me an answer. Instead, she just kept looking into my Eyes with that wholesome smile on her face as her finger kept pressing on my cheek.

    "You''re right." She finally said something, "Poking your cheek does feel nice."

 Vol.3 Ch.57 - Dungeon Crawl

    "..."

    "...Uhm!" She tried to say something to break the awkward tension.

    "Y-Yes?" I immediately replied.

    "No, I just..." She sat up from my lap, "We should... go inside, after all... I think."

    "Eh? And what ever happened to waiting for them?" I imitated her prim and pure personality, "Y''know, the whole "I made a promise to Throne!" thing from earlier."

    "I know what I said." She pouted, "But after giving it some more thought, I think you were right after all. They''ll join us when they figure it out."

    Pfft, yeah right. You just don''t want them to see you acting all weird around me. Well, I can at least side with that, ''cause I''m feeling pretty excited myself. Vastoria and I, what happened just now was definitely not my imagination. Before I knew it, I acted on impulse and jumped the gun a bit, but I think she liked it. On the other hand, my heart''s killing me because she still hasn''t given me an explicit, verbal answer. A poke to the cheek is a sweet way to put it, but I''d much rather hear her say it clearly.

    "Lemme guess, you wanna go somewhere they won''t see us?" I grinned.

    "Yes-No! No, nothing weird like that!" She bit her tongue, "J-Just... I''m worried one of them might''ve seen us."

    "Ah, you think?" I glanced back at them, "You shouldn''t worry about that, the wall is pretty thick and moggy, plus they were facing away from us."

    "There''s always a small chance they saw." She fretted.

    After a brief pause, I finally figured out why exactly she was worried. Yep, it''s definitely Sheep. He always struck me as the type to see what others could not, so he might''ve actually somehow seen us. Throne''s kind of dense, or at the very least extremely uninterested in other peoples'' affairs, so I have no qualms about him. Oh Gods, I feel like a criminal, when all I did was kiss a cute girl!

    "Nah, even if they found out somehow, it''s not like they would care all too much." I shrugged it off.

    "Yeah, but... How can you be sure?" She sheepishly asked, "What if they''re, y''know... from an era against it?"

    ...Oh boy, that''d sure be a doozy. Right, I did say I felt like a criminal, but if that were truly the case, then I might as well be. I''m not completely sure on Throne''s case, but Sheep does hail from the pre-TV era. Now I know that doesn''t quite narrow it down by much, so in truth his opinion on two girls kissing can range from extremely hot to extremely blasphemous... Yeah, let''s not sit around and find out.

    "Lead the way." I turned to the Shrine''s entrance.

    "Got it." She nodded.

    The path began out quite normal. A short staircase led us down to a cobblestone pathway which twisted and turned in all sorts of discomforting directions. More often than not, one of us would get disoriented and bump into one another before hastily apologizing. Now I''m all for any extra skinship I can get with my new girlfriend, but I also really want my ability to walk straight back. It feels like I''m drunk off my ass in here...

    "Ah, there it is." Vastoria picked something up from the ground, "A fork in the road."

    "Heh, nice one." I giggled at the punny reaction before she handed it to mr, "Wait, is this the same fork you found last time?"

    The same fork... she gouged that other guy''s Eye out with? The same fork he in turn tore her ribcage open with? I''m asking this because¡ªif that''s well and truly the case¡ªthen that fork gets a whole other air to it. She noticed my careful attitude when handling it in my hands and was quick to correct me.

    "O-Oh no, don''t worry!" She took it from my hands to hastily explain, "See the ridges? The other one had lines on it, whereas this one has flowers instead."

    "Ah, I see!" I chuckled, if not purely to help clear the awkward tension, "Wait, but if they''re not the same..."

    "Then we really did advance time." She clenched it tightly, "The Shrine changed, albeit barely enough for it to be noticeable. I wonder if the shield is further down where we found it as well."

    Despite what she said, it appears she still knew her way around navigating through the Shrine just fine. Granted, there were no other paths to take but the one leading down, so it''s less like she knew her way through a labyrinth and more like she knew there was nothing to be wary of. Yeah, she just sped right through until we found a spiral staircase.

    "This is the end of floor 1." She put her hand out to stop me, "From here on out, be on the look out for booby traps. Floor two was littered with them last time I was here..."

    "Hehe."

    "What?" She then rolled her Eyes, "Oh come on!"

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    "I didn''t say anything... yet!"

    "So you''re planning on saying it!" She covered her chest up despite the fact she had my shirt on, "Please, this is serious! We could die, y''know?!"

    "I know, I know..." I shrugged, letting her take the lead on this.

    On the surface, she seemed meek and insecure, but when we went down the Shrine''s entrance, it was as if a switch was flipped inside her very being. She''s still the same Vastoria I know and love, but something about her demeanor has changed. I can''t explain it, but I definitely feel safer behind her back. That being said, another great part of practically breathing down her neck is that I can do this.

    "Boobies~" I whispered gently.

    "I told you not to say it, dammit!" She fussed, flipping around to scold me, "You-!"

    Just then, a dart whizzed past her hair and hit the wall on the other side. We both stared at it in shock and disbelief. Had I not whispered that just now... Had she not stopped to turn around and scold me...

    "Boobies save lives..." I gawked at hers as my reward.

    "Stop that!" She craned my head back up to meet her gaze, "My Eyes are up here... And they''re very thankful."

    With a quick peck to the lips, she smugly turned back around and continued onwards, making doubly sure each and every step she took was a safe one. Geez, she''s so cool...!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Watch out for that tripwire." She stepped over it, "Duck under this one. There''s another dart trap on the wall over there."

    "Don''t worry, I''m just following what you''re doing." I explained, "Save your breath and focus on remaining alert."

    "That''s smart on your end, but I still feel a need to explain everything." She kept walking, "Pressure plate down there."

    "Pressure plate?" I furrowed my brows.

    "Hey!" She lifted my leg up the moment I stepped on it.

    The pressure plate fell through the moment I made contact with it, quickly closing itself off at around what would be ankle height. Had it not been for her quick reflexes, I would''ve just lost my foot right then and there. Right, in here we can feel everything, so I bet she just saved me from a world of hurt...

    "I-I''d rather you announce them, after all..." I shrunk back in embarrassment.

    "I''m glad to hear it." She finally put my leg down, "Just remember¡ªReaction time is key. When I tell you to move, you move."

    "Got it." I nodded, "But damn, now I see why you wanted more comfortable clothes to move in. This dress really wasn''t made for dungeon crawling."

    "Last time I didn''t have any clothes on, so I didn''t have to worry about them getting caught anywhere." She offhandedly suggested, "If it gets too difficult to traverse in that dress, feel free to take it off."

    "Whoa, hey?" I did a double take, "Aren''t we skipping a bit too many steps here, dear?"

    "You can joke all you want, but I''m being serious here." She stopped to once again look at me, "If you were to get caught in a trap because of the dress I made you wear... I don''t know how I would live with that."

    Her face was serious. She was worried about my safety, and she had every right to be. This dress, I told her to swap our clothes because she said it was difficult to walk around in it. Now I know what she meant, but I still don''t regret doing what I did.

    "...I''m not gonna undress just yet." I reassured her, "There''s no need for that. But, if the time does come, then I''ll think back on your advice."

    "Suit yourself." She joked, "No pun intended."

    "Heh, I will." I giggled, the giggle turning into a chuckle, and then a laugh, "Haha, I will! I will suit myself!"

    For whatever reason, the two of us laughed like she just said the funniest thing in the universe. It was just an accidental pun she made at the end of the day, but for some reason we couldn''t stop cackling and guffawing. Frankly, it got annoying pretty quickly, yet I couldn''t stop myself. Somehow, I felt it would be rude to be the first to stop laughing. I don''t know why I thought that, but I did, and it led to us continuously laughing until we were short of breath. Eyes watery, throats dry and minds devoid of reason¡ªThat''s what we had been reduced to.

    "Bahaha! Baha... Ha-ha..." I looked around at the dark and dreary stoney interior.

    "Hahaha! Haha!" She, however, kept laughing at full force, though she too found something was amiss.

    "Oh." I saw it, finally, "Phahaha! Look, it''s because of that!"

    "Huh? Oh, pssh! Would you look at that!" She burst out into a fit of laughter, "Laughing gas, is that what that is!?"

    A Green gas had been sprayed out from a crevice in the brickwork. For how long exactly, I can''t tell, but due to its silent dispersal, it''s very possible this has been wafting through the hallway for a while now. As for why it made us laugh like crazy, we didn''t know that either. Most probably, the laughter is just a debilitating side-effect. If I had to assume, breathing it in for an extended period of time would probably prove dangerous, so we best hurry along.

    "Hey, dooface!" She giggled as she grabbed my wrist, "You trying to get yourself killed!? Take a chill pill, silly! Booby traps, remember?"

    "Pfft! You said booby!" I couldn''t take her seriously, "Alright, genius! Take us to safety since you''re so smart and all!"

    "Will do!" She cheekily stuck her tongue out with a rowdy thumbs up, "No promises, though!"

    "D''oh, just who did I entrust my life to...?" I asked myself this stupid rhetorical question for reasons unknown.

    With a speedier pace than before, we hurried through the rest of the layer, making sure to avoid any and all traps that were in our way. Obviously, due to our impaired senses and hastier rush, we ran into a few close calls before we made it to the next staircase. In our panic, we tumbled down the stairs until we hit the mossy floor at the very bottom. The giggly effect on my psyche had mostly dissipated by now, but before I could even get a word in, Vastoria put her hand over my mouth and hid us up against the wall.

    "Mph!" I struggled a bit before I heard a loud fluttering sound just on the other side of the doorway.

    "...Phew." She breathed a sigh of relief the moment the flutter left the vicinity, "Sorry, are you okay?"

    "Yeah, a bit scratched up, but mostly fine." I checked my wounds, picking away the pebbles that got stuck onto my skin, "What was that sound just now?"

    "Mn, how do I go about explaining it..." She nervously beat around the bush, "How are you with bats?"

    "Don''t like ''em." I replied immediately.

    "And cockroaches?"

    "Ew, even worse!" I shivered.

    "I see." She tried phrasing it nicely, but ultimately gave up, "Yeah, you''re not gonna like what I''m about to tell you."

 Vol.3 Ch.58 - Ready Player 3

    "Yeah, you''re not gonna like what I''m about to tell you, then." She sighed.

    E-Eh? What''s that supposed to mean? The traps were already scary enough to deal with, and the laughing gas¡ªironically enough¡ªwas no laughing matter. So, now what is it? She''s keeping me in suspense, unsure of whether to tell me what that fluttering sound was or not. After mulling it over for a bit, she eventually decided to be transparent with me.

    "What you just heard was a monster within the third layer of the Shrine." She nervously explained, "It has the body of a bat, but the head of a cockroach."

    "...E-Eh?" I whimpered.

    "Ah, it also feasts on the golden parts of a seraphim." She nonchalantly tacked on, "So you''re actually kind of lucky, because you won''t have to bear witness as it tears you apart."

    "Tears... apart?" I backed away.

    "Ah, no need to worry!" She smiled, "The Shrine actually revives you back at the end of the previous floor once you die in the current one! Heck, I''ve gotten my heart ripped out and eaten in front of my very Eyes by them countless times before!"

    Nonononono-! What the hell is she saying with such a straight and unfazed face, goddammit!? Cockroach bats?! A-And she just said she fell victim to them at least a few times now? Uhh, hello? You''re telling me you died in Heaven and got brought back!? How did you forget to mention that''s a thing until now!? And geez, don''t just brush such a thing off!

    "Sorry, if I told you guys before, there was a high likelihood you wouldn''t wanna come with." She twiddled her thumbs.

    "That''s absolutely right!" I shot back, "No, this is just too much! For Allucius'' sake, we only have a fork to deal with them!"

    "...Oh." She looked at her empty hands, "I-I must''ve dropped the fork upstairs in the chaos, ehe... Silly me."

    Silly... her? Silly her. Vastoria, goddammit...! Ugh, no, calm down Maggie. She was under the influence of the laughing gas, so you can''t fault her for losing it in the midst of running through those traps. Actually, it''s a miracle we even made it this far without a single injury, so when I look at it like that, she did exceedingly well to guide us to here.

    "...Are you mad?" She asked anxiously.

    "Sigh, no." I calmed down, "Actually, you said the Shrine only had 3 floors before we made it to that bedroom that takes us back to the surface, right? If that''s the case, then we could probably just run through and..."

    "Ah." She cut me off.

    "Oh, what now!?"

    "N-No, you''re probably right." She tried to hide it, "Please continue."

    "Well I can''t continue now that I know you''re keeping something from me." I crossed my arms, "Come on, out with it."

    "Uhm... It''s just..." She worriedly explained, "The laughing gas upstairs... wasn''t there last time."

    "Oh, okay?" I tilted my head, "Is that it?"

    Is she saying she''s worried about Sheep and Throne? I''m sure they''ll be fine, they have Throne''s wings after all. Besides that, we didn''t know anything about the laughing gas too, and we managed just fine. In fact, if we''re lucky enough, they might find the fork Vastoria so carelessly dropped and bring it back to us. It''s not much, but if it can gouge out Eyes and ribcages, then it can fend off cockroach bats.

    "What I''m trying to say is that the Shrine changed pretty significantly from the one Energy and I know of." She finally stopped beating around the bush, "So, maybe what we heard just now wasn''t a cockroach bat... but something else."

    "Something else? Ah, in other words¡ªSomething worse." I exhaled disappointedly, "...No, wait. Why should we think about it so pessimistically?"

    "Come again?" She cocked her head back.

    "Yeah! I mean, who knows what we might encounter once we pass through the door!" I smiled, "It could be those cockroach bats or something even worse, but it could also be something as tiny as a rabbit snake. Or a turtle lizard, or...!"

    As I excitedly named off as many mythical sounding animal hybrids as I could think of, each example getting a giggle out of her, she eventually thought to join in on the fun and give a few examples of her own. What started as us using the most dangerous beasts ended with us just thinking up cute hybrids of tiny critters. It was a welcome change of pace, especially since we really needed to calm ourselves down somehow.

    "Naaww, a cat pup would just be the most adorable thing!" She jumped for joy just imagining it, "With it''s little tail wagging as it brings you leaves it found on its "hunt"... Ohh, now I want one for myself!"

    "That''d be awesome." I sat down beside her, "Oh, here''s another one-!"

    "Baaahhhhh!!!" A shrill shriek echoed from upstairs.

    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    Immediately, the two of us stopped talking, glancing up at the source of the sound as we waited to see what was happening. Soon, another scream followed, only this time it was closer.

    "W-What do we do?" I looked at her.

    "No, we mustn''t go out just yet." She looked at the jungle layer, "Whatever that scream was just now, it can''t be any more dangerous than whatever''s waiting for us out there..."

    I gulped, and with a solemn nod I trusted her judgment on the matter. Once again, the shriek came and went. Drawing nearer as the sounds got louder, we eventually realized that the source of the screams was just up the stairs. In fact, it was headed down where we were. We didn''t have anywhere to hide. Our only shot was to face whomever was arriving head on and hope they weren''t a threat. The footsteps grew louder, and finally...!

    "Baaaahhh!!" Sheep jumped out from behind the corner with no arm from the wrist down, "Aaaaaghhh!!"

    "Ahhhh!!!" We screamed back.

    "A-Ah!?" He looked surprised once he saw us, and as the adrenaline left him, he eventually fell unconscious in front of us.

    "...Guess Throne still couldn''t figure out how to get in." Vastoria just kinda shrugged.

    What the hell kind of a comment is that? There''s a handless dude lying on the floor in front of you, and you''re not even gonna address that fact? Poor Sheep...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "What do we do? He''s bleeding out!" I worriedly rushed to check up on him.

    "Oh, he''ll run out of blood eventually." She brushed it off, "He''ll be fine."

    "Huh? No, he won''t??" I looked back at her in disbelief, "If he runs out of blood, that means he''ll die, y''know!?"

    "No, the same thing happened to Energy when he lost his foot and Eye." She explained, "We bleed in here, but that blood isn''t required for us to live. In other words, it''s purely for show."

    "B-But he fell unconscious...!" I pointed at him lying face flat against the ground, "That''s definitely because of the amount of blood he lost!"

    "I think he might just be a hypochondriac." She shrugged.

    "Hypochondria is when you panic over a measly scratch." I groaned, "Does this look like a measly scratch to you?!"

    "Okay, okay..." She looked me dead in the Eyes and said, "Hemophobia then."

    "Hemo-!? Ugh, you''re useless!" I shook my head before ripping the end of my dress and tying it tightly above the wound to stop the bleeding, "This isn''t much, but it''s better than just not caring at all."

    "Hey now, I care!" She pouted, "Of course I care, Sheep''s a friend!"

    "So why are you being so nonchalant right now!?"

    "Because panicking won''t get us anywhere." She calmly replied, "Plus, he''s fine, see?"

    "Hm?" I turned around only to get jumpscared by an awoken and drowsy Sheep, "Gah!"

    "Mnnn... What''s goin'' on...?" He looked around, trying to lift himself up with his hands, but failing to do so because of his missing left one, "Oof!"

    "Hey, careful!" I helped him sit up for now, "You okay? What happened up there?"

    "My hand itches..." He confusedly looked at it, only to faint again.

    "Eh? Sheep? Sheep!" I slapped him about a bit.

    Quickly, I checked his breath, his pulse, and his heartbeat. Everything was in order, despite the blood loss. Weirdly enough, if we ignore the missing hand, the rest of his body is just peachy.

    "See? Like I said, he''s okay." Vastoria put her hand on my shoulder to reassure me, "Honestly, do you think I could''ve survived getting my chest ripped apart with a fork without the Shrine''s effects? I''m telling you, he''ll live."

    Once again, we waited in that position for him to wake up a second time, only making sure to keep his missing hand away from his line of sight. It didn''t take too long for him to open his Eyes, and since this time he was in a way more comfortable position, he seemed to react a lot more positively to the situation.

    "Oh, Magnes, Vastoria." He smiled somewhat weakly, "Boy, am I glad to see you."

    "What happened up there?" I asked him.

    "...Ugh, my hand itches..." He went to inspect, but Vastoria quickly yanked it behind him, "Yeowch!"

    "Answer the question first, please." She somewhat sternly asked him, "What happened?"

    "...I phased through the barrier." He finally began retelling his story, "Throne, I wouldn''t be surprised if he''s still banging his head on that damned wall."

    "We figured as much." I chuckled, "And? Then what?"

    "I signed to ask him if he wanted me to wait for him, but he instead just shooed me away." He explained, "Tch, the guy probably wanted me to come find you as soon as possible, so I ran in."

    "How''d the first layer go?" Vastoria asked.

    "It was a bit topsy-turvy, but otherwise okay." He laughed.

    "And then?" I added.

    "Then... Ack, I lost my hand to a wall trap!" He panicked, trying desperately to free himself from our clutches and inspect the wound for himself, "No, let me see it! I wanna see how bad the injury is!"

    "Ugh, if we show you, you''re just gonna fall unconscious again!" Vastoria ripped the bottom of her shirt as well to use as a cover for the stump, "Ngh, almost... There! Now you can look, geez..."

    "Ngah!" He fended us off and immediately went to inspect it, only to stare blankly at the stump where his hand used to be, "...Oh. Oh wow..."

    "Sorry about your hand." I carefully approached him, but he backed away.

    "I-It''s fine. Not your fault I was careless." He refused to look away from it, "Oh Gods, this never would''ve happened if I just stayed back at the shop..."

    "...Quit whining." Vastoria furrowed her brows, "It''ll grow back."

    "E-Eh?" We looked at her.

    "Any and all injuries that occur in the Shrine grow back as golden parts." She crossed her arms, "Just look at what happened to my chest. Seriously, it''s not the end of the world!"

    "That might be, but..." He looked down at his stump, "Even if it''s back, it''ll be golden."

    "So? You''ll be able to feel what you touch with it, isn''t that a blessing?" She pouted, "Honestly, I''m envious of you!"

    "Envious..." He then smirked, "Yeah, I bet you would."

    "What''s that supposed to mean?" I followed his example.

    Without even saying a word, he cooly used his remaining hand to poke my cheek, signifying he saw what happened between Vastoria and me back at the surface. After that, he kept walking through the doorway to enter the jungle layer as he called for us to follow along, only for him to get eaten alive by a cockroach bat. The bat was done with him in less than a second, and it only took me a singular blink to find myself upstairs with the two of them looking just as confused as I was.

    "Oh good." Vastoria clapped her hands happily, "We get brought back once we die, and the cockroach bats are unchanged as well. Looks like we can do this after all."

    "I think I''m gonna be sick..." Sheep curled up on the floor to cry.

 Vol.3 Ch.59 - Back Assward

    "What... just happened?" I blinked once, "Vastoria, what happened?"

    "Can''t you tell?" She turned around, "We died, got eaten by the monster."

    "T-Then..." Sheep still cowered in fear on the ground, "How are we...?"

    "Still alive?" She smirked, "That''s the beauty of this Shrine, you see!"

    "The beauty of the Shrine?" I tilted my head.

    "Well, it may not be the Shrine, per se." She continued, "It may very well be that the Gods just made sure no one can die in Heaven 2.0, but for whatever reason, it seems we have this safety net of "being brought back to a checkpoint" every time we die. Like a mini version of the resets that happen on the surface."

    "So, down there, our bodies are...?" Sheep assumed with sunken Eyes.

    "Hm? Oh, nonono!" She chuckled, "Nothing like that, our bodies are right here talking to each other. It''s like we get brought back in time, so you''re not gonna run into your mangled body downstairs."

    So that''s the case. Due to the laws of Heaven 2.0, primarily the one that forbids death, we essentially have no other option but to clear this floor and continue downwards. Our success is assured, however it won''t be easy. Those beasts, Vastoria did describe them as terrifying, but what I saw was just so much more than that. It was fast, faster than even light itself it appears. A real ghast, a supernatural monster whose sole purpose is to gnaw on our golden appendages. Honestly, is being able to recall such a traumatic event a blessing or a curse?

    "How many of them are there?" I sat down to think up a plan, using the pebbles as their stand-ins.

    "Mn, let''s see..." She sat down across from me, "Going off of what Energy and I encountered last time, there was one at the entrance, a pair over here, a whole bunch of them after this one weird looking tree..."

    "That''s a whole lotta pebbles..." Sheep gulped at the sheer number of them, "So, how''d you deal with them?"

    "I''m not done yet." She stood up to find a large rock that was at least triple the size of the other pebbles, "Hup! There, at the very end is one last beefy guy."

    "Just when I thought things couldn''t get any more difficult..." I let out a tired smirk, "So, in regards to Sheep''s question?"

    "Ah, about that..." She looked behind us, "We kinda made heavy use of the fork as our weapon of choice... Though, that fork was only good so long as it was in Energy''s capable monster slaying hands. He made it look easy, in all honesty."

    "Is that so." Sheep gave up, lying down on his back ready for the stoney ground to swallow him whole, "Let alone requiring some fork we don''t currently possess, you''re saying we can''t do anything without some guy who''s good with table etiquette?"

    "We could always wait for him or Throne to show up eventually." She shrugged.

    "There''s no guarantee that''ll ever happen." I shook my head, "For one thing, we don''t even know if that guy is ever gonna return to the Shrine after what you guys went through."

    "Yeah, and as for Throne..." Sheep glanced up, "He didn''t exactly look like he was gonna phase through anytime soon."

    As much as I would like for a miracle to occur in having one of them magically swoop in to save the day, I''m afraid we''ll never amount to anything if we resort to sitting around and waiting for that scenario. In a way, you could call this a trial to test who''s worthy of reaching the end, so it also wouldn''t be fair to cheat. We''ve got as many chances as we want, so we should at the very least figure something out on our own.

    "...Wait here." I stood up.

    "Migu!" Vastoria was about to follow me, but I sat her back down.

    "I said¡ªWait here." I sternly ordered before running back to the trap infested second floor.

    It''s the best shot we have, right? If I die, then I''ll return unscathed, and if I lose a body part, then so be it! But I''ll be damned if I have to face those icky bat roaches without a weapon! Actually, running up the Shrine was significantly easier than down it, because most of the traps are for people wanting to get to the next floor, and not the other way around. Thus, it didn''t take me long before I found the fork¡ªSitting pretty and surrounded by ten tonnes of laughing gas and spike traps as far as the Eye could see.

    "Pfft! N-No, calm down, idiot!" I couldn''t help but mock myself for being so unserious at a time like this, "Pull yourself together, your pookie needs you!"

    I was already spouting nonsense under the influence of the laughing gas, but thinking about Vastoria did somehow help me keep my head in the game. I didn''t need to hurry due to this, so I could take my time in hopping over the tripwires and making sure to avoid stepping on any dangerous pressure plates. Having picked up the fork, a nostalgic movie scene of a cave explorer setting off a boulder trap came to mind, which inevitably made me crack up.

    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

    "Haha! Imagine that!" I slapped my knee, "Wait, do I have anything to substitute it with? Nahhh~! ...Eh?"

    Turning around to face the mysterious rumbling in the darkness, I was greeted by the greatest, most ironic boulder I ever bore witness to. It was large and in charge, and by in charge I of course mean it was charging headfirst at me. My smile quickly turned upside down, and I found myself running back to the gang so as to not get smushed.

    "Wahhh!!!" I cried out in fear, "This isn''t funny~! Even when I''m drugged out the wazoo, I still can''t find myself a reason to laugh!"

    Though I made sure to avoid the traps as I ran from the boulder, it didn''t much care itself, so eventually I stopped caring too. I set off tripwires, barely avoided getting my feet chopped off by the sinking pressure plates, and eventually I managed to catch a glimpse of Vastoria and Sheep in the distance.

    "W-What the hell!?" They jolted once they saw the situation I was in.

    "Run down the stairs, quickly!" I ordered, "Come on, move it, move it!"

    Though they had time to run down the stairs in an orderly fashion, I unfortunately didn''t have the time nor luxury, so I had to dive down the stairs as if they were the deepest of pools. It was painful, tumbling down them a second time now, but it beat out the alternative of getting crushed by that damned boulder. Phew, mission accomplished?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "I got the fork!" I held out my empty hand into the air before panicking, "Gah! W-Where did it go!?"

    "Uhm, I know where..." Vastoria pointed with Reddish cheeks.

    Following the direction of where her finger was bashfully pointed at, I actually winced with all my might once I saw a bent over Sheep with the fork deeply wedged up his... A-Ahem, let''s just say it''s somewhere where the Sun don''t shine. Eugh, it even went in with the pronged end somehow, I just know that''s gotta hurt... I wonder why he''s not screaming right now. Oh, he must be unconscious from the pain, and honestly¡ªI wouldn''t blame him.

    "Sorry Sheep, I think it''d be better to get this over with while you''re not awake..." I gulped, tightly gripping the end of the fork before yanking it like the mighty sword Excalibur.

    "Y-!" He immediately stood upright with Eyes wide open, "YEEEEEEEEOOOOOOOWWWWWCHHHH!!!"

    Oh wow, almost every letter got repeated there, so you just know that had to have been a pain in the... A-A pain in the... No, making jokes about this is too low, even for me. I''m sure he''d get butthurt over them. That being said, what wasn''t funny was the bloody trail practically flowing like a waterfall down his legs. Truthfully, I think he''s the very first person in Heaven 2.0 to get an anus. Somehow, I don''t envy that achievement.

    "Thank goodness for the clothes shops, am I right?" Vastoria giggled, "I can only imagine what they''d call you from now on if pants weren''t a thing in Heaven."

    "W-What is this...?" He inspected the blood with his fingers, "Did I just change genders?"

    "I doubt it''s that easy." I shrugged, "It''s also coming out of the wrong hole, though I imagine you wouldn''t know the difference."

    "That''s enough joking around." Vastoria cut the chit chat short, "Thanks to Migu, we now have a weapon to use against the bat roaches."

    "Ugh, yippee..." Sheep groaned, rubbing his sore ass with a peeved Eye roll, "Geez, did you see how fast that thing lunged at us? Do you seriously think a fork that''s only good for stabbing butts is gonna make a difference?"

    "It might." I reasoned, "Vastoria, you said those things went for our golden parts first, right?"

    "Not only that, but they only go for them." She corrected me, "Once they eat the golden parts of a person, they''ll leave the rest of the body and continue on to the next person. It''s why they''re so difficult to deal with."

    "Okay, but do they have a weak spot themselves?" I asked.

    She tilted her head at that one. It wasn''t that she didn''t have an answer to that question, rather she found it kind of odd in general. She explained that it was like any other living being¡ªThe brain and heart is an instant kill, but slicing anything would significantly weaken it. In other words, slicing its legs or wings or even stabbing one of its Eyes would get it off our backs and give us a chance to finish the job.

    "Instead of rushing them, why don''t we do the opposite?" I suggested, "Their main strategy is to bum rush you without a thought behind those actions."

    "What are you saying?" Sheep didn''t quite get it yet.

    "I''m saying¡ªIf I point the fork in front of me like this..." I showed off my stance.

    "Ahh! I get it!" It clicked for Vastoria though, "The fork isn''t all that pointy and effective by itself, but if we use their ungodly speed against them, then we can even stand still with something that just barely resembles a spike, and theoretically... They''ll impale themselves without us having to do any of the heavy lifting! Genius!"

    Hehe, praise me more! That''s right, I got the idea from Sheep, actually. As I tumbled down the stairs, I only had to hold onto the fork for it to lodge itself... Let''s not say where. In other words, using physics to our advantage could prove to be a mega-fruitful endeavor.

    "Yeah, that''s all well and good..." Sheep crossed his arms, his pants still soiled with blood, "But what''ll you do about the giant monster carcass after it dies on top of you? Dead or not, what difference does it make if it takes you with it?"

    "Always a downer..." I pouted at him.

    "No, he''s right about this." Vastoria took his side, "If we wanna make this plan work every time, then we''ll need something to block the oncoming attack."

    "...The shield!" I recalled from her previous tales, "You said you happened upon a shield somewhere in the Shrine, right!?"

    "So you remembered that." She awkwardly smile, "Yes, in truth there was a shield, however..."

    "There''s always a catch with these things..." Sheep grinned.

    "Do you remember that one weird looking tree I told you about?" She stated, "The shield is... hung up on it."

    Weird looking tree? Oh yeah, she did say something like that while she was explaining the layout of the jungle layer. Let''s see, if I remember correctly... Before we can reach that tree¡ªand subsequently the shield¡ªwe''ll have to deal with one roach bat at the entrance, and two after that. Three roach bats, one fork... Geez, couldn''t we have at least been given a proper weapon?

 Vol.3 Ch.60 - Roach Bat Hunting

    "Guess there''s really nothing else to it but to do it." I sighed, holding up the fork as I prepared to set foot into the dangers of the third layer.

    "You sure you''ll be fine?" Vastoria seemed unsure.

    "It''s gonna be alright." I reassured her, "Even if it does get me, I''ll just return back here to try again. Besides, it killed me pretty quickly last time, so it''s not even really that painful."

    Having said that, I won''t be doing this without my fair share of worries. I''m not volunteering to be the one to do this because I''m brave or anything. No, I''m doing it because I have no other choice. We can''t hope for help to arrive, and the only way we''ll ever leave this Shrine is if we make it to the bedroom layer. If we want to achieve that, I''m gonna have to be proactive...

    "...Wait!" Sheep took the fork from me, "I''ll do it."

    "E-Eh?" I jolted, "No, Sheep, it''s fine."

    "You only have one hand, so holding the fork steadily in front of you is gonna be way harder." Vastoria too reasoned.

    "But if Magnes goes instead of me, they won''t be as likely to fly straight into the skewer." He shook his head.

    "Sheep?" I tilted my head as he put the fork away by threading it through his missing hand''s bandages, "What do you mean by...?"

    Just then, everything was made clear to us. The reason behind his sudden urge to be the one to go through with this suicidal plan. Having now freed up his remaining hand, he undid the glove he used to hide away his initials with his teeth. I now finally understood why he kept his hands covered up all this time, why he was so secretive about them.

    "Magnes, your golden part is your spine, so if you went up against them, they might not go for the fork directly." He said, showing off his five golden fingers, "Me, on the other hand, I''m the perfect fit."

    "That initial...!" Vastoria was quick to inquire about it, "An S? No, but it has something else on it...?"

    "? (pronounced Sh), that''s apparently my first name''s initial." He explained, "It''s not a letter in our alphabet, so I hid it away, assuming it was going to be shunned by the other residents."

    Eh? That''s the reason why he didn''t want to show it to us? But doesn''t that just mean he''s foreign? Then again, everyone we''ve met so far only spoke this one unified language, and I never heard of anyone with foreign letters as their initials before. Maybe it really is outlawed in Heaven or something?

    "Ah, I get it." Vastoria nodded along, "The Gods made sure we all spoke a single language in Heaven 2.0 so that we wouldn''t naturally separate into factions."

    "Is that true?" I furrowed my brows.

    "They told me that once." She explained, "People who spoke another language are made to speak this one, but that doesn''t mean their history has been changed. Their human life still hails from that foreign community, hence their initials cannot be translated as well."

    "So it really is a big deal..." I looked at Sheep once more, "Sorry for being pushy about it before. Had I known..."

    "No, you couldn''t have known, so I''m not offended." He smiled, "Regardless, I think this situation is serious enough to warrant me showing you this little secret of mine. If we wanna make it out of here, I shouldn''t be selfish. I want to give us the best chances of success."

    Wow, he''s really stepping up, isn''t he? I''m proud of him, but it''s also not quite right to get the wounded guy to do all the heavy lifting. I feel wrong not doing anything. Hmm, but maybe I don''t have to sit around doing nothing...!

    "Sheep, we got your back." I nodded at him with a confident smile, "Once it lunges at you, hold the fork out in front of you and don''t move an inch until it skewers itself."

    "Yeah?" He seemed confused, "Wasn''t that the plan all along?"

    "Just one more thing." I explained, "The moment its head makes contact with the fork, push it down to the ground with all your might."

    At this point, both he and Vastoria were quite puzzled by my sudden addendum to the plan. He was a bit skeptical, given my lack of explanation, but trust was an important part of this plan working out. With a solemn nod, he agreed and¡ªwithout further delay¡ªset out to hopefully defeat the first of many bat roaches.

    "Mn..." He looked around anxiously, "I don''t see it anywhere."

    "Just keep holding the fork out in front of you no matter what." Vastoria hollered.

    "And fix your stance." I added, "If you don''t, it''ll send you backwards and the plan won''t work!"

    Doing as he was instructed, he kept darting his gaze around until his head got dizzy, constantly checking his stance and making sure his fork was pointed where his Eyes were looking at. The air was quiet, we were certain nothing was there.

    "...Above you!" I saw it for a split second, "Jump back!"

    Just in the nick of time, the large beast hit the ground at shocking speeds, but thanks to my warning and his quick reflexes, he managed to dodge the initial attack. Without even giving him a second of reprieve, the bat roach lunged directly for his fingers. The fork, however, stood in between the two. Just as planned!

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    "Bzzzzt!" The roach bat''s mangled face tried to free itself from the fork''s prongs, it''s Eyes popping out of each socket as it wiggled around in front of him.

    "Eugh, sick!" Sheep gagged before mustering up all his strength to send it down to the ground, "Magnes, now!"

    "On it!" I shouted, running up from behind him with a somewhat large piece of the wall that fell off when the boulder from upstairs struck it, "Die, you nasty motherfucker!!!"

    And just like that, its already half-dead and disgusting head was squashed under the weight of the rock. The sound it made had elements of both a popping balloon and a strong crunch, which made everyone sick to their stomachs. We were too scared to lift the rock up¡ªand thankfully we didn''t have to¡ªbecause Sheep yanked the fork free the moment I hit the creature with the rock. That''s one done, of Gods know how many more...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "A..." Sheep fistpumped with all his might, "Alright! Eat that, sucker!"

    "Yuck, its body is still twitching..." Vastoria refused to get near it.

    "Let''s get a move on." I looked around, "You never know when the next one will show its ugly mug."

    Thankfully, everything about this encounter worked out perfectly in our favor, but that''s probably not gonna be the case for every battle. Besides that, each time we win, I''ll have to run back to our starting room and grab another large rock from the boulder''s carnage. If we are to believe Vastoria, there are two more roach bats we''ll need to fight before we find ourselves the shield. Once that''s done, we should be a lot safer.

    "S-! Stop..." Vastoria quietly instructed us to hide as we turned the corner, "There, on that wall, two of them."

    "Just like you said." I recalled her room plan with the pebbles, "We could deal with them in a one-on-one confrontation, but two at the same time is a different story..."

    "Well, we''re safe here so long as they don''t see us." Sheep shrugged, "We have time to think up a plan."

    A plan, eh? That''s all well and good, but I''m pretty sure we''ve exhausted all of our ideas back at the starting room. Now that we''ve come this far, it''s kind of just a question of whether or not we''re skilled enough to pull it off. If there was a safer strategy, however, I''m all ears.

    "...What if we set a trap for them?" Vastoria recalled, "Even just using one of the traps from the previous floor as a basis would be more than lethal enough, wouldn''t it?"

    "No, that wouldn''t work." I explained, "Those traps require a level of craftiness we simply don''t have. And even if we did know how they worked, we don''t have the tools to make them. I doubt such intricately hidden traps can be made with rocks and a fork."

    "...But what if it could?" Sheep got an idea, "Back when the first one attacked me, I noticed a funny little pattern about the way it hunted."

    "Is there anything funny about those... things?" I struggled to even use the two words in a sentence together.

    "Once you hear what I mean, I think you''ll call it funny as well." He smiled, "Back then, once it fell from above me and I dodged, it remained in place for a split second."

    "Isn''t that just its weight making it harder for it to change directions, though?" Vastoria asked.

    "No, it was pretty light when I skewered it." He explained, "Meaning it can only be one other thing¡ªThey''re too dumb to understand object permanence."

    Object permanence, the ability to understand that once something is out of sight, it doesn''t necessarily mean it''s not physically existent anymore. Most animals and small children think this way, and get scared when their caretakers close the door on them, assuming they''ve been abandoned. I guess you could call that aspect cute, but only for those cases. I definitely wouldn''t use the same adjective for those roach headed bat monsters...

    "So what are you saying, we could use that moment to trap them?" I inquired.

    "If we take our time to set up the trap and bait properly, we could take them out without even having to dirty our clothes." He grinned.

    He seemed more than confident in his plan, so we let him take the lead on this one. After enough theorycrafting, he came up with the idea of using the nearby vines as a rope that''d carry the large rock meant for smashing them. Two of us would hide behind a bush holding the other end of the rope as the third person would serve as the bait, luring them to the position just under the rock. The bait would dodge, the monsters would flock to the correct position, the other two would drop the rock, and hopefully if all goes well...

    "...We''ll be done!" He tossed the vine up, lifting the rock into position, "Alright, who''s gonna be the bait?"

    "...Eh?" Vastoria and I paused, "Y-You mean one of us...?"

    "Yeah, I was on the frontline last time." He shrugged, "This time I''ll hold the vine, and one of you is gonna-"

    "Absolutely not!" We shouted, almost waking the monsters just on the other side.

    "...Ah, I got a way to settle this." He smiled, "Two beasts require two baits, no?"

    "Wait, no-"

    Yep, he made us both be the bait. As we stood underneath the large rock, our hearts began to sink. Somehow, I feel like he''s getting back at us for making he do this last time. I can already see him snickering behind those bushes, the jackass... Regardless, it was now or never. We just needed to make ourselves look like the tastiest pieces of gold they''ve ever seen in their lives!

    "Hey, uggos!" I shouted at them, "C''mere and eat us, bastards!"

    "Y-Yeah, what she said!" Vastoria nervously raised her voice as well, "Come here and-!"

    Ah, they''re already flying full speed at us.

    "Jump back!" Sheep shouted, preemptively letting go of the vine.

    The moment we jumped back, the rock hit them both, thus trapping them on the floor. Quickly, Sheep ran to us with the fork, stabbing the roaches'' brains out with it. It made for an even more disgusting spectacle than before, but at least we knew for certain that they were dead. This time, they weren''t even twitching.

    "...Let''s go." He refused to even talk about it with how sick he felt.

    "I felt my heart jump out of my chest for a moment..." Vastoria tightly clenched it.

    "Lemme see." I put my ear up to it, much to her embarrassment, "Mn, you''ll be fine."

    "M-Migu!" She jolted.

    Her reactions comforted Sheep and I in our time of need, allowing for us to continue the journey with a more relaxed mind. We still couldn''t get the images of the mangled beasts'' corpses out of our heads, but it''s still better than having us be the mangled ones. After a few more minutes of walking, we finally made it to the first proper upgrade since the fork.

    "...That''s one weird looking tree." I thought aloud.

    "Yep, and embedded within its roots is...! Eh?" Sheep saw the tiny shield we had set as our goal, "Vastoria, what is this?"

    "Ehe~" She twiddled her thumbs anxiously, and with a slight chuckle she admitted, "It''s... better than nothing?"

    Better than nothing, she said. Goddamn... This shield is just barely enough to cover your goddamned hand, for Prylos'' sake!

 Vol.3 Ch.61 - Solilotude

    Meanwhile, up on Gale''s side...

    "Stupid morons!" He cussed his former party mates out as he angrily trudged back towards the residential area, "Bunch of naive, idiotic pricks! How can they even begin to trust that Throne?!"

    Nothing about the current situation made sense for Gale. He was suddenly dethroned from his position as leader, tossed away by the ones he considered most dear to him. Sab was attacked, and yet not a single person chose to go look for him or even side with him for that matter. This made Gale''s stomach churn with lividity, not unlike how it does when he recalls Throne''s tired yet smug, conniving mug.

    "Okay, that''s enough re-exposition for now." He put a stop to his self-pitying woes, "Change your outlook, Gale. Instead of looking at how unfair the past was, try and think of a way to turn the situation around in the near future. That''s the way."

    Somehow, his nigh insatiable anger had been quelled just like that as his storming through the streets became a calm and collected strut. To begin with, he had to first understand what Throne is plotting with all this. After that, he would have a way clearer picture of what to do next to stop it from coming to fruition.

    "Let''s say he wasn''t lying about genuinely being mistaken in regards to Vastoria''s "abandonment"..." He muttered to himself, "That would mean that after he lost Vastoria''s wings, and assumed she left him for her own singular gain, he tutored her substitute in the form of Sab... But why Sab?"

    "Sab didn''t know him for long, and yet I highly doubt Throne just picked him up from the street at random..."

    Sadly for our dear protagonist, however, that is precisely what happened. Throne didn''t give himself the chance to meet many people in Heaven 2.0, thus when he recounted everyone he even just barely talked to, Sab was the most probable one to bear fruit. Back when he was searching for Vastoria''s replacement, it was between GaLi and Magnes, who both wanted to rip Throne''s wings off of him by force, or the laid back and indifferent Sab who could be easily manipulated. The choice was simple when put like that, though Gale obviously doesn''t know this.

    "He gave Sab the wings that helped us get to the Shrine, but he also attacked Sab and wanted to tear off his wings, hmm..." Gale kept pacing through the crowd until it suddenly hit him, "Sab''s... wings... No way, he wouldn''t be that crazy!"

    The puzzle pieces began to click. One by one, he had pieced together what his motives were. He never did misunderstand Vastoria''s intentions, he knew from the start what she was thinking when she entered without him. Of course, it was now so very simple for him to process, it was genuinely baffling how he hadn''t figured the mystery out sooner.

    "Vastoria lost her wings, and Throne wanted an extra pair of wings from Sab." Gale stopped walking, "He was cultivating her replacement wings! Instead of using him as her replacement, he just chose to win Vastoria back over by gifting her the wings he would take from Sab!"

    The mere idea was harrowing. He was a pragmatic, sick bastard, Throne was. Nonetheless, Gale still couldn''t bring himself to believe his own crackpot theory about the seraphim that was Throne. Of course, everyone in their group already knew full-well how useful Vastoria was even without her wings, so one could easily amplify these feelings for Throne, the one who knew her at her full power. He wanted that power for himself, a pawn to use to make many a matter trivial. But somehow or another, she had lost them, and that completely derailed his plans. In a desperate attempt to fix everything, he found Sab, won him over with the promise of such a powerful tool as the wings, only to then try and rip them off and take them to Vastoria.

    "But he couldn''t do it because we interrupted him." Gale realized, "With Vastoria on our side, and Sab already having fended himself off the first time and knowing more or less Throne''s true colors, he knew he had to go about things more carefully."

    And careful Throne was, for with his genius ploy, he somehow managed to separate Sab and Gale from the rest of the group. Not only that, but they were also alienated from their allies, to the point of being shunned. He managed to get rid of the suspicious ones¡ªhis obstacles¡ªwhilst also firmly establishing himself as the trustworthy good guy. Gale had now realized the depths of his enemy''s genius¡ªHe had been dancing in the palm of Throne''s hand the entire time.

    "I gotta run back and warn them!" He almost turned back, but understood it was far too late for that now, "N-No, I lost all credibility after our squabble earlier. They won''t believe a word I say, at least until I find Sab and bring him with me. Tch, I messed up...!"

    He messed up, but thinking about the past won''t do him any good. He had to find Sab and convince him to return him to the rest of the party, and fast. Otherwise, who knows what Throne would make them do... Or do to them, for that matter.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "What even is his end goal?" He pondered as he sped up his pace significantly, "What does he need a winged Vastoria for? Is it because she can enter the Shrine?"

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    But it doesn''t matter who would enter the Shrine, he thought. As Vastoria explained it to them before, so long as someone goes to sleep down at the very bottom, time in Heaven would advance globally. He could have just as easily used Sab for that too, so why exactly is he not doing that? Why is he taking the more destructive path to achieve the exact same goal?

    "...Maybe it''s impossible for Sab." He reasoned in his mind, "Could it be gender? No, Energy entered as well... Hey, wait¡ªEnergy was a seraphim too, I believe!"

    According to Vastoria''s retelling of her time in the Shrine, Energy was the seraphim she met whilst down in the second floor. Apparently, he was also someone who got dragged into entering the Shrine by Throne, so they shared that connection at least. But maybe that''s not where their similarities end, Gale thought.

    "Energy also lost his wings!" It clicked for him, "Yeah, that has to be it! The reason why Throne can''t enter the Shrine, but they can! Only those without wings can enter!"

    It was a sizeable breakthrough, but it was nothing more than a hunch. Even he knew that he made quite the vast amount of jumps in logic to get to this conclusion¡ªMainly the one about it pertaining to angels who''ve never had wings to begin with as well. As it stood, he could only guess if this was the case or not, as he couldn''t be there to test it out with say, Maggie.

    "Dammit, Sab. Did you have to fly so far away?" He begrudgingly cursed him in a polite enough whisper, "Where even am I?"

    He was walking for Gods know how long, but it was a pretty aimless stroll all things considered. He did start the search going in roughly the same direction as where Sab went, but obviously it would be like a turtle catching up to a hare, given Gale didn''t have wings and Sab did. Sab could have turned in any direction, and it would have meant game over for Gale. Just then, a gate appeared in the distance, with guards disallowing any and all migrations.

    "Halt, you there!" One guard firmly held his spear as he forbade Gale from passing through, "No angel is allowed to pass between Districts."

    "Districts?" Gale tilted his head.

    "You are in district Z, beyond this gate is district Y." The guard kindly explained, "However, we were instructed to not let any flightless residents of Heaven 2.0 pass between them."

    "What? Why is Heaven even divided into regions?" Gale couldn''t make sense of the logic.

    "Districts!" The guard hastily corrected him, "And to answer your question, it was the Gods'' orders! If you have a complaint, go file it with them!"

    "Eh? But aren''t they in my district and not this one?" Is what he wanted to say, but stopped himself before even uttering a single sound of the sentence.

    Curiously, he was forbidden from going back to his home. It was soon to be bedtime already, meaning he would most probably be left stranded and devoured by the White Monsters if he didn''t get back home. Even still, he didn''t want to say too much and get himself in trouble, so he played dumb for a bit to extract some more info on the matter.

    "Where are the Gods exactly?" Gale asked a disambiguous question.

    "The Gods'' Abode is 8 blocks that way, and 1 block to the left." The guard slammed his spear''s butt on the cloudy ground.

    "And you said no one can pass between districts?"

    "Precisely."

    "So, how can people from district Y talk to the Gods, then?"

    By phrasing the question differently, he could get the answers he needed without outing himself as someone who''s already crossed the border illegally, so to speak. The guard fell for it, too, as he answered without even skipping a beat.

    "The Gods are almighty." He explained with a half-serious shrug, "They surely exist beyond space, as we all do beyond time in Heaven 2.0."

    "In other words, you don''t know the answer either." Gale lightly teased him.

    "Hey man, I just work here." The guard gave up the facade, "Go there if you want, or don''t, I don''t care. You''re just not allowed to leave your district."

    "Gotcha. Then, I''ll take it up with your managers." Gale joked, waving the guard off as he began walking in the direction of the Gods'' supposed second Abode.

    Following the directions he was given, it took him not too long to find the exact same large yard with the proportionately sized mansion resting atop it. The damages they caused to the roof were still noticeable even from afar, meaning what Gale saw was indeed the same house they almost got away with burgling. A reasonable person would understand this to be a stupid idea and would have booked it in the opposite direction, but Gale was desperate. He had no other choice if he wanted his friends to survive Throne''s mysterious and highly-dangerous plans.

    "Knock knock!" Gale loudly announced himself to the Gods at the titanic double doors.

    "You... got some nerves, coming back here." Selzion immediately greeted him at said front door, "Well, either nerve or an extreme lack of shame."

    "You said you Gods are Omniscient." Gale recalled the rough words he heard from them back then, "You know all and see all, right? In that case, you know exactly why I came to ask for your help."

    "Selz, don''t open the door by yourself!" An unkempt Prylos ran up to the door behind his roommate, "We''re a team, man! We both greet the subjects at the same time, remember?!"

    "Oh, zip it." Selzion rolled his Eyes, "We got a problem on our hands, check it."

    Finally taking the opportunity to ogle the tiny "subject" standing before him, Prylos was both surprised and appalled by who he witnessed. Gale, the very same intruder who just recently almost figured out the secret behind the Book they keep in their house and use to write in. That same Gale is now asking for their help like he was no less innocent than the next guy.

    "Explain to me how we saw you both here and in our district." Gale asked frankly, "After that, please help take me to Sab."

    "Hey, y''know..." Prylos slowly pinched the bridge between his Eyes as he addressed Selzion, "I never did apologize to you for being the reason Hell shut down."

    "We ought to take a page from this one''s book and not think about past mistakes too much." Selzion sighed with a mischievous new plan brewing in his head, "Instead, why not try to use it to evade future ones?"

 Vol.3 Ch.62 - Haggling for a Discount

    "You want something from us, and luckily for you we have the power to make it happen." Selzion smiled intently at the comparatively tiny Gale, "But first, we will need your help as well."

    "What are you planning?" Prylos sighed at him with a smirk.

    "Even your roommate is suspicious of you." Gale joked, "What makes you think I''d go through with it after that?"

    "You''re in district Z right now." Selzion explained, barely curbing his excitement to get the point across, "Your winged friend''s house, and by extension he himself is in district G. I''m sure you know the alphabet well enough to estimate the distance."

    "So the districts follow an alphabetical order, huh?" Gale thought to himself.

    He had assumed it to be the case given he was in Z headed for Y, but also had trouble understanding how that would work in a three dimensional space. A list of letters would be a linear line, so how do the districts of Heaven 2.0 work exactly? Regardless, if what the Knowledge God said was true, then he was practically on the other side of Heaven when it came to Sab''s proximity. It was at this moment that Gale truly understood the difference having wings can make.

    "Well, I have his location, but I doubt you''ll let me go there on my own." Gale continued, "If you''re going so far as to ask something of me, then you''re definitely gonna sweeten the deal more."

    "Is that how you see it? You dare haggle with a God?" Selzion threatened.

    "Ah, was I mistaken?" Gale shrugged, "In that case, I guess I''ll just be thankful for the tip you gave me on his location and be on my way."

    "Huh?" Prylos looked on, baffled, at the little angel that just turned around and went to leave.

    "Oof, but I just realized." Gale turned back with an extremely smug aura to him, "That means I won''t be doing anything for you guys. Truly, what a shame that is..."

    Was Gale doing this to get his way with the Gods, or to just piss them off for no reason at all? For this question only he knew the answer. Or maybe he didn''t, maybe he was just doing whatever came to mind. In any case, whatever it was that he was trying to achieve, he had succeeded. Selzion was fuming, having realized that his threats mean nothing to Gale. With a grudgeful side Eye, he allowed Gale extra care.

    "You will be teleported to Sab''s location once I snap my fingers." The Knowledge God groaned, "On top of that, I believe you asked how it was that our Abode exists in multiple districts seemingly at the same time, so that will be explained by my colleague as well."

    "Wow, aren''t you a kind boss!" Gale teased before turning to face Prylos, "Then, colleague? What''s the deal?"

    "You truly are a Wildcard, eh...?" Prylos praised(?) Gale''s boldness, "But really, it''s nothing special. Each nine hundred and ninety ninth of a second, the Gods'' Abode is sent to the next district. Thus, though we are not technically in multiple places at the same time, regular people cannot explicitly tell the difference."

    The explanation was quick and easy to understand. In essence, every 25 999ths of a second (corresponding to the other 25 letters of the alphabet), the Gods, as well as the Abode, are not physically in front of Gale. Instead, he sees and hears their afterimages, but because their flickering between districts is so unnoticeable, it effectively achieves the illusion that they''re in all the districts at the same time.

    "Doesn''t that make you extremely sick?" Gale raised his Eyebrow.

    "Does sitting in a horse carriage make you tired?" Prylos gave a rather good analogy.

    "Hm. Eh, but what if multiple people are talking to you at the same time in different districts?" He continued with a puzzled look, "Doesn''t that get confusing?"

    "For a feeble human mind, holding multiple conversations seems impossible." Selzion chimed in, "But we regularly talk to hundreds of millions of believers through their prayers for every waking moment of their existence. In comparison, up to 26 conversations is nothing."

    "Right, I can see that being the case..." Gale nodded, "So that''s everything I wanted from you, which means it''s my turn to sell my soul to the devil in return."

    "Now we''re being compared to devils? How hurtful..." Prylos looked sad to hear such an insult.

    "Sorry, I was more so talking about your roommate." Gale felt bad immediately, "N-Never mind. Come on, what do you want from me?"

    "He says some incredible things, and then brushes them off like they''re nothing..." Selzion seemed pissed, but calmed down enough to tell him his demands, "Gale, was your current name, no? You are to find your friend Sab and have him take you to the Shrine."

    "Eh? I wanted to do that anyways, though?" He tilted his head in confusion.

    "Enter the Shrine with Throne, reach the bottom where your friends are, and bring them back to the surface." He continued, "Awake."

    The plan Selzion wanted him to go through with was surprisingly lackluster. In any case, this was what Gale was planning to do from the start, so it didn''t actually mean anything to him. The only thing that sort of made no sense was that he was to enter it with Throne and not anyone else, not to mention that part about bringing his friends back.

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    "Are the rest of them already inside the Shrine?" Gale asked.

    "They are, and if you do not hurry, they will reach the bottom." Selzion warned, "The Shrine was a scrapped dungeon event we had planned from before we released Heaven 2.0 to the public. It is dangerous, buggy, and full of death traps."

    "What does that mean for them?" Gale asked.

    "It means..." Prylos added a grim reminder, "Your friends CAN die inside, and their souls will forever be destroyed."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "That''s... that thing, right?" Gale looked somewhat puzzled, "The thing Vastoria told us about before¡ªShe and that Energy guy she was with could get wounded inside."

    "Yes, though this was not an intentional effect of the Shrine." Selzion explained carefully, "It is a leftover mistake from a time when Heavenly Beings could still take damage and subsequently die from their injuries. We quickly understood that leaving that feature of humanity in would lead to mass wars in Heaven 2.0, so we made you invincible. However, we forgot to make it so for that Shrine as well."

    "Eh? So it was just because you were too lazy to check your work before release?" Gale sighed annoyedly, "Way to go, geniuses..."

    "Tch... You''re not wrong, and this is our mistake." Prylos continued, "So to remedy that, we barricaded the entrance with a barrier."

    "And look how well that worked." Gale crossed his arms, "Didn''t you say my friends are all inside the Shrine?"

    "That is due to the Great Filter." Selzion tacked on yet another foreign phrase to the already difficult to process conversation, "We made it so only seraphim who have forfeited their wings could enter the Shrine. This is because we needed a special group of capable people that could help clean up any messes from the inside if something were to go awry with it."

    "Yeah, we just never expected that anyone could manage to stumble upon the exact circumstances by accident." Prylos chuckled, "You would need wings to get there in the first place, but you would need to give them up if you wanted to enter. We figured no one would do that unless we explicitly asked them to, but we failed to account for human errors, such as losing them and then after still somehow finding friends with wings willing to take you there."

    When put like that, Gale could only agree with their sentiment. In truth, you should always add a backdoor for every system in case you''d need to open it up for repairs. This "filter" of sorts was that backdoor, and with how many conditions it required for one to enter it, it really was unfortunate how their group somehow ended up inside. Now things were making a lot more sense, but there was still one thing Gale couldn''t understand.

    "But wait, couldn''t they just make it to the bottom and sleep in those beds again to get sent to their homes?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "Do you think they got sent back because of the beds?" Selzion cocked his head back, "Those beds are nothing more than traps themselves. So long as you''re asleep on one, you will never awaken. The only reason they got sent back was because of us."

    "Because of you?" He asked.

    "Indeed, we tapped into the Book''s powers to-Unf!" Prylos began explaining, but a strong elbow to his side from Selzion stopped him abruptly.

    "We just teleported them back to their respawn locations." Selzion coughed suspiciously.

    Immediately, all sense of Gale''s trust in them got thrown out the window because of this one slip of the tongue. Had Prylos not mentioned the Book, or heck, even if Selzion allowed him to simply gloss over it, Gale probably wouldn''t have thought anything of it. Now, however, he was back to keeping his guard up around them, which made their next demand turn into a desperate plea.

    "Please save them and relay to them the information we told you." Prylos fixed himself up.

    "Hmm... Hey, why don''t you just teleport them out yourselves, though?" Gale asked a reasonable question, "You said you did that last time, so what''s the deal?"

    "That was... a one time occurrence. We cannot do it another time." Selzion covered his tracks.

    "I''m not buying it." Gale was about ready to call off the deal entirely.

    "W-We''ll resurrect you back into your life if you just help us with this one thing!" Prylos blurted out, much to Selzion''s chagrin and Gale''s interest.

    "Oh?" Gale was now all ears, "Go on?"

    "Pry, you...!" Selzion was livid, but Prylos kept going.

    "We know everything about your human life." He explained, "You died young, but we can give you another shot if you help us with this."

    "I died young, did I?" Gale listened in.

    "Pry, stop this!"

    "He''s gonna die later of old age anyways, right!?" Prylos shut his colleague up, "Which means he''ll be back here regardless! He gets what he wants, and we get what we want¡ªWe can''t afford to lose this deal, Selz!"

    Right, even if they did go through with their promise and brought him back, Gale would still later die of either old age or another early death. Death is inevitable for every human, and since a soul loses all of its personal memories of their time in the Living World, it would essentially mean nothing to Gale.

    "It would mean nothing to Gale... but not to the person I was before." Gale reasoned before looking the Gods square in the Eyes, "Okay, if that''s what you''ll give me, then I''ll do it."

    "Listen, Gale! Your soul won''t actually leave Heaven 2.0 at all, since it exists beyond time!" Selzion tried to warn him of this anyways, "It wouldn''t do you any good to accept this reward, so how about instead we-!"

    "I''ll only do it if you revive me after the fact." Gale refused to look away, "Thanks for looking out for me, but I know what I''m asking for. And no, I won''t take any other reward."

    "Sigh, dammit Pry..." Selzion whispered to him, "How do you even plan on making good on that promise?"

    "U-Uhm, you... can do it, right?" Gale asked just in case.

    "Heh, don''t worry, sure we can." Prylos glanced over at Selzion before revealing, "You''ll be the only exception to the rule that forbids resurrection, surely you''ll have earned it after this. Just come visit our Abode after you succeeded and I''ll make sure you''re back from the dead."

    And with a content clap of his hands, Prylos sent Gale to a somewhat familiar location. Pillows everywhere around him, a shattered screen in front of his Eyes trying its hardest to show the game that was being played on it, and a regretful Sab hoping he can fix it with a couple of smacks to the top and sides.

    "Dammit, work you piece of...! Eh, you!" Sab immediately jumped on top of Gale, fists ablaze, "This is all your fault, moron! Fix my damned TV or pay with your blood!"

    "Ah, I just realized...!" Gale offhandedly commented on the cushion that saved his head from hitting the ground, "These pillows really are soft."

 Vol.3 Ch.63 - Duly Noted

    "Y-You...!" Sab went in for the punch after enough provocation.

    "Yeah, no." Gale just as easily grabbed the slow and frankly weak attempt, quickly tossing himself over until he was the one on top, "Ack, dammit."

    "What?" Sab was still trying to fend his opponent off, "You gonna fight me or not?!"

    "See, I''m inclined to..." Gale refused to go in on him, "But given we''re surrounded by pillows, this is just gonna end up looking really suggestive, I think."

    "...Fair point." Sab agreed, quickly rolling out to stand back up, "Regardless, I''m still mad about you breaking my stuff. And how the hell did you even get here so fast?"

    By now, they were less than an hour away from bedtime. Gale didn''t have time to spare, especially if he wanted to achieve that sweet, sweet revival the Gods promised him. Sab needed a lot of convincing if he was to help him get to Throne and the others, so Gale had to multitask a little. Walking up to inspect the technology of the TV, he began trying to remove the backplate whilst simultaneously giving him the rundown.

    "I left the group after they all sided with that bastard Throne." He said.

    "They what...?" Sab looked sullen, "Tch, are they blind? What do you mean, they sided with him?"

    "If I knew where they were coming from, I wouldn''t have left to go find you." Gale looked up and above the TV, "By the way, got a screwdriver or something?"

    "No, why would anyone want that in their Heaven home?" Sab asked a few reasonable questions, "And what the hell are you doing, anyway? Do you even know how to fix a TV?"

    "That''s the best part about fixing things¡ªYou can''t screw it up any more than it''s already screwed up!" Gale smirked, "Ahh, but that''s kind of annoying, though. Alright, we''re gonna have to do it like this..."

    "Huh? W-Wait!"

    Prying his nails into the edges of the TV''s backplate, Gale promptly used his strength to tear into the hidden components without the need for any hand tools. Sab was appalled, but after quickly running around the back himself, he noticed just how meticulously his tinkerer friend had ripped it off. Ignoring the screw holes, everything else was in perfect condition.

    "Ooh, what are all these used for?" Gale got excited upon seeing the exposed wiring, "Future tech sounds like it''s gonna be a blast!"

    "Yep, it''s a real charmer." Sab slumped forward, "So, since you have no idea what you''re looking at, is it safe to assume you can''t fix it?"

    "Mnn... Hold on, just the screen is the issue, right?" Gale ran to the front to check on it, "The right side works just fine."

    "Yeah, it''s the side you didn''t dropkick." Sab hissed back.

    "Well, I don''t have a cure, but I can give you a remedy." Gale explained, booting up the game and entering splitscreen multiplayer, "There, just play on the side that works."

    "E-Eh? No, that''s not..." Sab took the controller to move around a bit, "This isn''t the campaign, though..."

    "Okay, I fixed your issue, now are you willing to hear me out?" Gale talked over him.

    It was at this moment that Sab understood what kind of person Gale was. Simple, overpowering and determined. The issue wasn''t at all rectified as he said it was, but Sab could hear just from his tone that Gale had something he needed done quickly. Placing the controller on the ground, as if to give up on attempting any restorations for the time being, he asked what was up.

    "I visited the Gods again, and they said some pretty crazy stuff about the Shrine." Gale spoke seriously for a change, "Throne''s gonna get everyone in that party killed, not knowingly, but it will happen."

    "Oh, is that all?" Sab almost immediately tuned it out, "Serves them right for siding with him. Why should I care if they all die, they brought it upon themselves after all."

    "They''re our friends. They just happened to have made a lapse of judgment and assumed he''s a greater friend to them than we are." Gale didn''t want to give up so easily, "Look, I''m gonna need to ask you for a favor. Please, you don''t have to follow me inside the Shrine. Hell, fly back the moment you drop me off there, just..."

    "No." Sab sat down decidedly, "I knew it, you''re after my wings, just like he was. Is that all you people see me as? A pair of wings? Fast travel? Well, I''m sick of being used and abused!"

    "Sab, please!" Gale reached for him, only to get his hand smacked away.

    "Leave." Sab sternly ordered, "I''m the one with the wings, not you."

    This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    Just then, something in Gale snapped when he heard that. He was this close to achieving something incredible, another shot at life. He tried his best from the start, and it netted him a special one time pardon from the Gods of this world themselves. Everything was going pretty well, all things considered, but for what? Is it seriously gonna end here, because of Sab''s disapproval? At that moment, he couldn''t see what he was doing. His numb hands disallowed him from feeling the sheer overpowering force he had used against Sab, his Eyes could only see Sab''s golden hoops which he had squeezed vigorously with all his might to discombobulate him, and in the end, his mind could not see anything wrong in tearing his friend''s wings off of his back and taking them for himself.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "...Hoho." Throne saw in the distance a golden glimmer as he kept failing to pass through the barrier, "And to think he was spouting so much self-righteous bullshit just an hour ago."

    A lone aviator, an angel turned seraphim through unsavory means. Gale, now having forcibly stolen Sab''s wings for himself, all under the pretense of it being for the sake of his revival, didn''t even take 10 minutes to reach the Shrine. Unlike most other seraphim, he was a quick learner.

    "Look what the cat dragged in." Throne mocked him, obviously alluding to the wings spread shamelessly behind Gale, "Did you earn those wings yourself by completing the trial? Oh, but if that''s the case, I have to ask where Sab is..."

    "...I did what I had to do." Gale heartlessly replied, "He was reluctant, and I didn''t wanna wait for bedtime to come around until he was convinced."

    "He could have flown you over the White Monsters though." Throne kept his composed, smug smile as he figuratively twisted the blade deeper into Gale''s heart, "Truth is, you were just too horrible to hear his side of the story out. A steamroller wading over everything and everyone that comes in your path, endlessly trucking along to your own selfish end goal. That''s what you are."

    "...I''m told the Shrine is a dangerous place."

    "Are you talking about the wound on Vastoria''s chest?" Throne tilted his head, "That''s exactly why I didn''t want her to go in alone back then, and yet they still somehow choose to repeat their mistakes. Heck, even Sheep ran headfirst into the Shrine the moment he phased through. It was starting to get quite lonely all by myself out here, so I''m glad someone at least showed up."

    Throne''s words had the tone of an aloof, naive and self-pitying character that was happy to see Gale, when in reality that couldn''t be further from the truth. His tone was kind, but his words were carefully handpicked to deliver the most damage towards Gale. He wanted to rile him up, get him to attack or even just get him to start acting without thinking like it usually is the case for him. To Throne, this was nothing more than a distraction from the boredom of banging his head on the barrier. A short reprieve from reality.

    "Ah, sorry, did you come here to warn them?" The corners of Throne''s lips drooped down to an annoyingly low level, "Warn them of the big bad me? Yeah, you''re too late for that¡ªAt this point, they might already be at the bottom!"

    "I''m here to guide you inside." Gale sighed, begrudgingly stifling his anger as he took his wings off and walked up to the barrier.

    "W-What...?" Throne felt a bead of sweat roll down his brow.

    Just like that, Gale put his hand up to the barrier. The cold was surreal, and despite the usual numbness of his fingertips from having this body, he could feel the chill extend down his spine far too quickly. It was a shocking experience, a wake up call. Like a splash of water to the face, he was suddenly reminded of the atrocious act he had committed against Sab, the one whom he was supposed to bring with him in accordance with the Gods. Alas, it was no longer the time to regret his actions. Now, all he could do was press forward until he made it to the other side of the barrier.

    "T-That worked...!?" Throne was left in shock, "Was that the secret all along?"

    "Hey." Gale walked back out just as easily, extending a hand for his enemy turned temporary friend, "Take those wings off and follow me. We''re gonna make sure those guys make it out safely, and we''re gonna do it together."

    "...Tch, my poor head." Throne clicked his tongue with a wry smirk, removing the wings with ease before taking Gale''s hand, "I wonder if I''ll start to feel the countless concussions now."

    "Let''s hope not, you''ll only slow me down if you start whining." Gale pressed on, eager to warn his friends of the dangers that lurked below, "Remember, from here on out, even we can die."

    "Duly noted..." Throne kept that unnerving smile on his face.

    This hateful duo, born out of spite for one another, yet forced to work together to achieve their own individual, respective goals. Gale was going to return to the World of the Living after this, and though he wouldn''t go so far as to say he couldn''t care less about helping save the group down below, he would also be lying if he didn''t admit he had ulterior motives. What was his life like before? Will he keep his memories of Heaven thus far? Where will he be resurrected at, and if he was given a proper burial, will he be able to escape to the surface? These questions festered endlessly in his mind, making him almost sick and woozy. Though, this could also be in large part due to the disorientating first floor.

    "This is quite fascinating." Throne glanced around, "Walls become floors, ceilings become walls... It''d make someone less experienced dizzy without fail."

    "Hm..."

    "Huh? Oh wait, that someone is you?!" He picked up on Gale''s state and pounced on the chance to make fun of him for it, "Really now! And I thought you were capable after learning how to fly so fast! This much is enough to make you puke?"

    "Ungh... I won''t puke." Gale clenched his stomach tightly, "Just shut up for a second, man. Let me... Hrph!?"

    Despite everything leading up to this moment, however, Gale had nothing to throw up. It was merely a stronger gag reflex, however Throne was still the one that lost in the end. The smirk on Gale showed this reaction was enough to bring him back to full strength.

    "What''s the matter? You flinched." Gale teased him.

    "I wouldn''t have flinched if you hadn''t aimed it directly at me." Throne rolled his Eyes before walking in front, "You ass, don''t you dare do that again."

    "What, don''t tell me you''re disappointed I didn''t actually have anything in the chamber?" Gale kept pestering him, "Oh okay, fine. Next time I''ll make sure to actually hurl at you."

    "Remember that you can die in here, Gale." Throne turned to point a finger at his face threateningly, "From here on out, these little jokes are to be taken as you playing with your life."

    "...Duly noted." Gale only stared back, "Now get fucking moving."

 Vol.3 Ch.64 - Without Sin

    After stumbling through the first floor, the duo finally made it to the staircase that led them down to the next layer down. The walk leading up to this wasn''t very talkative, and was mostly riddled with feeble attempts from Throne to engage in smalltalk, only for Gale to silently turn him away. As they made their way down the stairs, Gale was getting quite sick of Throne incessantly breathing down his neck with all these annoying questions.

    "So, your name used to be GaLi, right?" Throne asked with the same smile as ever, "But everyone started calling you Gale after a while, why is that?"

    "Hrm."

    "To be fair, it''s a stupid name anyways, so it''s good you changed it."

    "...Throne isn''t any better." He groaned.

    "It''s shortened and dumbed down for convenience, courtesy of Vastoria." Throne recalled painfully, "My full name is The Dethroned."

    "Wow, that''s somehow a thousand times worse." Gale tried his hardest not to laugh, but a chuckle still cracked through, "Pfft! The Dethroned!? You gotta be kidding me!"

    "You laugh at such an impeccable name, but it''s the meaning that counts!" Throne got flustered, "I gave myself that name to instill a sense of lost pride! Those who heard the name immediately associate it with a king who''s been thrown off the pedestal, a man that''s started from zero. In the Living World, I was surely someone great, yet when I arrived in Heaven I had to work my way up!"

    "You seem pretty full of yourself, but the truth is¡ªNo one knows who they were before they got sent here." Gale mocked him, "What makes you so certain you weren''t just a delusional bum on the side of the road, who could only ever dream of grandeur when he himself only begged for enough coins to grab himself some bread for the day?"

    "That is absolutely not my life! I... I can feel it in my bones!" Throne got offended all of a sudden, "My skills, my determination, my motivation! Hell, can you not tell from my personality that I was surely destined for greatness from the very start?!"

    "...Sheesh." Gale backed off, unnerved, "I can definitely tell one thing¡ªYou didn''t have many friends, if any at all."

    By now, they had reached the start of the second floor. It was described to them prior to this by Vastoria as a trap-riddled death zone, however once they made it down there, it was completely different. Everything was destroyed, as if something huge passed clean through. Any traps that did exist were already activated and thus no longer required them to be wary of. It was a relief, but not by much. They were both careful enough not to completely let their guard down by such an occurrence. Nay, both knew what had transpired here.

    "Guess they all made it safely through." Throne smiled.

    "We can''t know that for sure until we see them. Let''s keep our Eyes peeled." Gale replied, "Look out for any more traps that might go off."

    "Oh, I will." Throne nodded as he stood suspiciously behind Gale''s pace.

    "...That includes not pushing me into one as well." He turned around angrily.

    "The audacity! I''m just standing behind to make sure nothing comes up from behind us!" Throne was appalled to be labeled a murderer, "It''s like you said, we''re in this together!"

    "Hmm..."

    With each step Gale took, Throne was right behind him. Again, from the very beginning, he was always right on his back. No matter what, Gale could only feel like he was about to get stabbed in the back, hit on the head with a rock and now¡ªHe might even get pushed into a booby trap. To remedy this, he preemptively tensed up his back to make sure he could spring back in time before he got pushed in the case such a thing happened. In constantly keeping his guard up around Throne, however, Gale failed to keep himself focused on the traps.

    "Ah!" Throne pulled him back just in time as a giant saw blade flung itself towards their faces.

    "...The hell was that?" Gale looked back at him, still as suspicious as ever.

    "What do you mean?" Throne sighed, "I said I''d watch your back, didn''t I?"

    "You saved my life." Gale added, "To hell with pushing me into it, you could''ve just let me get sliced in half and there''d be no blood on your hands, so why?"

    "Oh my God, is this what it''s all about?" Throne shook his head in disappointment, "Gale, why do you wanna reach the bottom of the Shrine?"

    At first, he wanted to blurt out something akin to "Isn''t that obvious? To help save my friends!", however this didn''t happen for whatever reason. He paused to think about his answer, he hesitated, and though he did indeed want to land on that reply after all, he felt it was already too late to answer after such an awkwardly long pause. Throne, however, thought nothing of this. He merely understood Gale''s worries as an equal and explained his own reasons for doing what he''s doing.

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    "You and I are alike, you just don''t like looking at the mirror." Throne explained sensibly, "I''m doing this to help keep my friends safe. I''m sure they''re doing just fine without me, but somehow I just can''t accept not being there for them."

    "I...! I get that!" Gale agreed, "I want to trust them, and I don''t even think I''d make that much of a difference, but I don''t wanna just sit around doing my own thing while they''re potentially fighting for their lives."

    "So you do get it, after all?" Throne chuckled, "Which is why I can tell you this with confidence."

    "Throne?" Gale raised an Eyebrow.

    "Gale, I''m doing this purely for my own benefits." Throne revealed, "I consider them my friends, but I also only consider friends to be people you can make use of. You should understand what I mean by this, right? I need them alive if I wanna achieve my goal, so that''s why I''m doing what I''m doing."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Eh? Sorry, you completely lost me." Gale turned back around to press onward, "I''m not at all like that."

    "Looks like you''re still a bit too early to see it, but there will come a time." Throne confidently kept walking behind him, "Hey, can I ask you something if you promise to answer truthfully?"

    "No promises."

    "What''s your ulterior motive?" Throne asked, dropping the fake smile in favor of sincerity.

    "My... what? I don''t have one, unlike you." Gale rolled his Eyes.

    "Lying is useless. After going to such lengths as to rip off poor Sab''s wings just to get here even a cinch faster, then I know you''re not doing this out of the goodness of your heart. You''ve got things you wish to achieve, dreams you wish to make a reality. I just wanna know what that is, exactly."

    "And like I said, I don''t have anything like that. I''m here to save my friends, and to do that, I had to make use of Sab somehow." Gale shot back, "Besides, didn''t you want to rip off Sab''s wings first?"

    "Where''d you hear that from?" Throne tilted his head innocently.

    "Logical deduction. You wanted to give them to Vastoria." Gale crossed his arms, "It''s the only reasonable assumption to make, after all."

    "...Heh, not bad! I''ll give you 9 points for that one!" Throne clapped for him, "Out of a total 27, that is. You''re a third of the way there, but there''s something missing."

    "What kind of a scale is that?" Gale sighed, "Then, can you tell me what the other two thirds are?"

    "What would be the point, then? Come on, not like we have anything better to do while we''re trudging along through these blasted ruins." Throne winked.

    He was being annoying, basically. Making Gale use his brain whilst it''s already strained enough from the stressful situation they were in was bad enough, but he had to even be an ass about it on top of that. Throne wasn''t actively nor blatantly trying to killing him, but he certainly wasn''t helping Gale pass the second floor any faster. Somehow, Gale got the impression that the only way to get this guy to shut up was to guess all three answers correctly.

    "You wanted her to continue the investigation of the Shrine."

    "Wrong, no points for that one." Throne stuck his tongue out as he made a loud buzzer noise.

    "...You didn''t want Sab to pose a threat in the future." He assumed.

    "Ooh, nice! That''s another 4.5 points!" Throne smiled.

    "Eh?! Only half of that answer was correct? Come on!" Gale rolled his Eyes, "...You also didn''t want to work with an annoying guy like him..."

    "Bingo." Throne smiled wryly, "So close, so close! Come on, Galey, just one more!"

    "Don''t call me that." Gale furrowed his brows, "The third one... Well, then it''s gotta be..."

    "I wanna revive." Throne said the answer for him, "Hm? Why are you so surprised by this? It''s the only logical conclusion to make, after all."

    Though Gale was indeed shocked to hear this, it wasn''t because he didn''t expect that answer, but because he didn''t expect Throne to say it for him. If Gale had guessed it himself, he would have been the one in charge of the conversation from then on. He would be the one holding the word, and thus he could estimate what Throne thought of such a goal. What he knew of that possibility, if he knew the Gods have contracted Gale with a promise to fulfill that very goal, among other things. But that didn''t happen, it couldn''t have, because Throne was the one who cut in at the very last moment.

    "I wanna find a way to revive, and I think this Shrine is the key to that." Throne explained, "There, now you know my ulterior motive. I do want to make sure they''re safe, but if we ever run into a way to resurrect, don''t expect me to wait around for someone else to seize it."

    "...You won''t find anything like that here." Gale looked down, "This whole place, everything inside it... It''s a mistake left over from the Gods."

    "Eh?" Throne couldn''t believe it, "Ha-ha, what are you...?"

    "I visited their Abode, they said so themselves."

    "And you''re just gonna trust them!?" Throne was angered by this complacent attitude of his.

    He rushed to grab Gale''s shoulder from behind and whip him around. What kind of a face was Gale making at him, he wondered. Was he saying this to rile him up, to plant seeds of doubt in his mind? He didn''t seem like the pessimistic type in Throne''s mind, which is exactly why he was so stunned to see the angel before him look so sullen and guilty.

    "What else can I do but take their word?" Gale looked him in the Eyes, "It''s my only chance to revive myself."

    "R-Revive? Oi, wait...!" Throne saw him run into the dark hallway.

    "It''s as you said." Gale''s voice echoed out, "You and I are much alike... I just don''t wanna accept that ugly mug staring back at me in the mirror."

    In his rush, Throne had failed to see a dart trap still somehow active in the walls. The moment he hit the tripwire, the dart zoomed to him, hitting him straight through the shoulder. It was laced with a deadly acid, one that quickly spread down his entire arm until it became completely black. His screams echoed into the darkness, cursing Gale for this... However, no one answered his cries for help.

    Gale was now the cause of two of his friends'' peril, but he pressed on regardless. It pained him, but he knew that turning around now would only erase all his progress thus far. He had to shoulder that guilt by himself in order to live as a human, for no human is without sin.

 Vol.3 Ch.65 - External Conflict

    The lone angel ran as fast as he could through the dark hallway. At first he ran to avoid getting questioned by Throne, but upon hearing his lone cries for help, the reason became more out of shame than anything else. Gale had potentially just killed another friend, albeit indirectly. Regardless, he could only move forward¡ªand to keep his mind away from the horrifying screeches from behind¡ªhe chose to daydream about his past life.

    "Did I have a wife? Friends?" He thought to himself, "Heh, yeah right. Prylos told me I died young, if I recall. Well, a wife is probably out of the question, but friends are a possibility. I just hope the friends down there are better than the ones up here..."

    Hastily, as if afraid that someone might have heard him, he retracted that statement. Talking about Sab, Throne and the others like that is not only plain rude, but also painfully untrue. He''s not blind and self-centered enough to be ignorant of the fact he himself caused all these problems thus far. From the very start, it was he and he alone who made everyone''s investigation a living nightmare.

    "Was I a kinder person in the Living World, I wonder." He looked sullen, "Probably not. Knowing the current me, I probably just pushed everyone I loved away the same way I''m doing now, and for what? What could I have wanted in exchange for my friendships? Money, fame, power? For what it''s worth, I vow to focus solely on my loved ones once I return from the grave."

    He was ashamed of himself, and rightfully so. Gale stole Sab''s wings, used them to fly himself to the Shrine, only to leave Throne for dead in its depths. His pace slowed down as his conscience got the better of him¡ªGale wanted to turn around and save him after all. But in a cruel twist of fate¡ªas if the devil himself appeared before him to tempt Gale¡ªfrom the shadows at that very moment emerged the doorway to the next floor down. It was sealed by a large boulder, presumably the same one that destroyed the hallway before it. Suddenly, the choice was made a thousand times more difficult.

    "Tch, what now?" He questioned, turning his head back and forth between Throne''s direction and the doorway''s, "Throne might not even be alive. If I risk getting myself killed here¡ªscrew not reviving¡ªI won''t even be alive in Heaven anymore! It''s the humane thing to do, but I''ll be wasting the perfect shot like this...!"

    After craning his head back and forth until his neck got sore, he finally made up his mind. He convinced himself that reviving wouldn''t taste as good if it meant losing his humanity. After all, it was he who scolded Maggie when she left Sheep for dead back against the rampaging angel. He decided this, he made the executive decision...

    "So why...?" He started tearing up as his body moved towards the boulder, "Why am I abandoning him? Throne... He did nothing wrong, dammit! If anyone deserves to get revived, it''s him! Not me, that''s for sure! Why, dammit!? Why is he the one that''s gonna get his soul destroyed for good, and I''m still here, pushing on this damned boulder!?"

    The raw emotions, as well as the adrenaline that came with them, were the deciding factor that ended up helping him prevail against the large rock. He didn''t move it by much¡ªin fact he hadn''t moved it a millimeter¡ªbut his strength managed to cause a crack down the middle of it, eventually making it split in two. He was too caught up in his own emotions to even acknowledge this mighty feat, so he squeezed through the tiny gap he had made and made his way down his third spiral staircase. This was the third floor now, meaning there''s a very high chance he''d find the group in there. Without any more issues to slow him down, he practically sprinted through the vast jungle layer without so much as even checking for danger. This carefree approach was extremely short lived, however.

    "Mngh!" He hid immediately behind a rock once he saw something large, black and gorey, "T-This is...?"

    The body of a bat, but the head resembled a cockroach more than anything. Then again, it could just look like that because its head is crushed into a billion bloody bits, but that fact doesn''t make it any less gross. Vastoria mentioned something about beasts down in the final layers of the Shrine, but to think this was what she and that Energy were dealing with...

    "Guess they dealt with this one, but that doesn''t mean I won''t encounter one myself." He glanced around before grabbing hold of the mandible, "I''m gonna need a weapon, regardless of its strength."

    Something the group before him wouldn''t even think to consider was to loot the corpses of the bat roaches and use the materials to their advantage. Yanking the bloody mandible from the squished head made a mushy, disgusting sound, but the result that came out of this gruesome endeavor was a pretty lightweight, yet extremely sharp sword to swing. Granted, the curved shape made for a rather lopsided and unnatural blade...

    "But, if I dual wielded both mandibles, the counter force could help balance that out..." Gale thought, slowly grabbing the other mandible still on the thing''s head, when all of a sudden...!

    "Gagagagagagaga-" The bat roach, still somehow alive, started quickly oscillating its mandible to chew Gale''s hand off.

    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

    "S-Shit!" Gale rushed to take a step back, swinging his new blade with the force of a thousand winds to slice the entire head in two lengthwise, "...F-Fine, just one sword it is. Sheesh, I don''t feel all that comfortable dual-wielding anyways!"

    One beast, one sword, and an afterlifelong fear of bugs later, Gale had pressed on to the rest of the jungle layer, this time making sure to watch out for each and every corner.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Man, how the hell did those guys even deal with that one?" Gale asked himself, "They crushed the head with a rock, and probably couldn''t handle double checking if it was still alive. Tch, idiots, if I hadn''t killed it just now, it might''ve come to attack them from behind!"

    Despite this, however, he still had to wonder what tactic they used to overpower it. Just from the mandible''s movements, Gale could ascertain that this beast was a speedy one. Bats tend to zoom towards you if they feel threatened, but cockroaches don''t usually have wings. They also only eat bugs smaller than them, but that checks out, given its size. In comparison, a Heavenly Being is like a house centipede¡ªThe perfectly sized snack.

    "I don''t even wanna think about the possibility of it having eaten one of them..." Gale shivered, "One thing''s for certain, though, they were smart enough to stick together... Unlike me."

    He did find it odd how he hadn''t met up with any of them yet, but it was very possible that they were still just up ahead. Maybe, as Throne said, they were already at the bedroom layer, in which case Gale had to hurry. The Gods specifically ordered him to bring them back up to the surface awake, meaning if he''s too late and they''re already asleep, this entire plan would crumble.

    "...Gah, what am I gonna do when we reach Throne''s area?!" He suddenly realized something obvious, "If they see him lying there dead, or even worse, mortally wounded... They''ll definitely consider me an enemy!"

    Right, to bring them back to the surface, he''ll have to take them through the second layer as well. In his mind, he was practically wishing that Throne has long since died up there, no matter how horrible that may sound. This was because, if he did die, then Gale can just lie and say Throne came after him and died by himself. However, if he''s alive, he''ll immediately tattle on Gale, meaning there''s no saving him.

    "I-I could walk ahead of them, maybe?" He panickedly weighed his options, "Ohhh, but that''ll be suspicious...! Maybe, no... Tch, dammit! Why didn''t I turn back!? Stupid, stupid Gale!"

    "...Huh...?" A female voice echoed in the distance, "Gale?"

    "Eh? Where?" Another female voice could be heard replying.

    "I think I just heard his name get called out."

    "Mn, you''re hearing things." A male voice denied the possibility, "Gale left to go find Sab. Even if he ran with all his might there, it would take him hours before he got to him."

    "Hmm, fair point..." The original female voice agreed.

    "W-Wait..." Gale felt his legs give in to relief as he practically stumbled towards the voices'' source, "I-I''m here! It''s me, Gale...!"

    Turning the corner desperately, the smile on his face was brimming with happiness unmatched. Quite literally a grin from ear to ear as he fell to his knees, using his mandible sword as a cane to lift himself up. One corner, two corners, three! Just how many corners did this tree have? And why is there even such a weirdly shaped tree in a jungle themed layer? These questions were irrelevant to Gale in the moment, as he only focused on the voices of his dear friends again. He risked a lot, sacrificed a lot, but all of that was leading up to this very moment. He turned one more corner, saw three beings staring back at him, and the smile on his face drooped to the floor.

    "Oh, you gotta be kidding m-!" He cussed the three bat roaches as they unanimously lunged at him at lightning speeds, "Gah! Hooh! Crap, did they not kill these three?! What the hell!"

    Dodging the nasty beasts as best as he could, Gale''s agility really did shine the most during this fierce battle. Waiting patiently for the right moment to strike back, he eventually found it in the slowest of the three roach bats. Mind you, it was still exceedingly fast, but it was comparatively the slowest. This made it the perfect first blood. Instead of dodging the attack, he extended his mandible sword towards its head, skewering it just like Sheep did with the fork before. The mandible was lodged so deeply into the head that Gale could no longer retrieve it, so he had to yank the two ones that belonged to the ugly bug and use those instead.

    "Hup!" He jumped over the next one, slicing the head off on the way down during his flip, "W-Whoa!?"

    As fast as his reflexes were, there were in fact three opponents he had to deal with. It was a simple numbers game, and 3 was obviously bigger than 1. The final roach bat lunged directly at him, trapping him under itself as the mandibles clackered together at his face menacingly. His arms were trapped to his sides, and he could do nothing to evade getting his face munched clean off, but that''s when it stopped.

    "Huh?" He watched it try to readjust itself before moving down to his forearms, "Heheh! No way, you trying to go for the gold!?"

    This one single piece of info was all he needed to best the final beast. The tiny movements it made to try and go for his hands were just enough to free his arm from under it. Reaching for the mandible blade to his side, he stabbed the roaches underbelly, moving up until all its intestines fell out. The warmth covered Gale''s body completely, and as the disgusting monster panicked above him, he used the moment to lift the bat roach aside on its back. Quickly, mercilessly, he stabbed its head with the mandible... then again... then once more...

    "Woah, phew!" He shook off all the bloody guts on him, "The crap I gotta go through. Literally! Ha-ha... Eh?"

    From the roach bat''s stomach, however, emerged a living, breathing body. It was that of Maggie, thankfully in one piece and without any injuries. Somehow, it appears the beast had eaten her while Gale was running towards them.

    "...Eh, Gale?" She weakly looked up at him, "We got attacked. Sheep... didn''t make it..."

    "What...?!" His heart sank once he heard the news, "Oh no..."

 Vol.3 Ch.66 - Wavering Belief

    "Sheep... died?" Gale fell to his knees.

    "Y-Yeah?" Maggie raised an Eyebrow, "Come on, let''s go."

    "Wait, but did you see his body!?" He held onto her desperately, "Maybe he''s not really-"

    "He died. Those things took him out in a flash, I saw it." She groaned, "Now come on."

    "A-Ah, hey!" He couldn''t understand her tone, "That''s not...? You''re going back to the start, y''know?! And where the hell is Vastoria!?"

    "Hmm, she ran away to hide behind a bush, I think." She figured, "She lost her shield in the battle, so she was kinda useless without it. We can go find her later, don''t worry."

    Was this heartless heathen standing before Gale really Maggie? Of course, she was never really the sweet type, as she would often speak in this casual, tomboyish tone. Regardless, there are limits to the bit, Gale thought. She saw Sheep die before her very Eyes, and she just shrugged it off like it was nothing. Vastoria too, she doesn''t even wanna go look for her. It was at that moment when Gale considered the three of them to have somehow gotten into an argument that might have strained their opinions on one another''s safety.

    "I... I failed." Gale sighed, looking distantly at a random point in space as he sat down on the grass floor, "Sheep''s... d-dead. I can''t, the Gods'' promise..."

    "The Gods? Look, I don''t know what you''re on about, but you gotta pull yourself together." She hoisted him up, "I''m grateful that you saved us, so pick yourself up before another one of these things shows their ugly mugs."

    Staring up at her in disbelief, he eventually gathered enough strength to do as he was told. Holding his trusty new blade at his side as he followed her back the way he came from, she couldn''t help but disgustedly comment about it.

    "You''re seriously gonna keep that mandible on you? Gross..." She scowled.

    "...S-Sheep, could I have saved him?" Gale ignored her, however.

    "Gale, just shut up about that and answer the question!" She got fussy, "What the hell made you think to even touch those nasty bugs, much less rip their pincers off!"

    "...It saved you, didn''t it?" He weakly replied, "Not Sheep, though..."

    "Oh my God, what is he¡ªYour boyfriend?" She rolled her Eyes, "Hey, which way to the staircase again?"

    "Huh? Why are you... N-Never mind, that way." He pointed.

    A few more minutes of traversing the jungle layer later and the duo found themselves standing in front of the stone doorway. With her hand confidently placed on her hip, Maggie hollered for someone to come out.

    "Yo, you there?!" She said, barely keeping a straight face.

    "...W-What!?" Gale stood baffled at the sight of the person that peeked out from the corner, "S-Sheep! But wait, Maggie said...!"

    "Hm?" He blankly stared at Gale, "Magnes, you didn''t tell him?"

    "Pfft, he was so worried, how could I have?!" She burst out laughing.

    "Tell me... what?" Gale darted his gaze between them.

    "Sigh, it''s the third layer''s blessing." Sheep explained the reason behind his miraculous survival, "If you die in the jungle, you get brought back here. In return, however, some of those things you killed get brought back."

    "Sort of like a mini version of the daily reset we have up at the surface." Maggie consoled Gale, "Sorry for not telling you, I figured showing you would be more convincing than just explaining it."

    "Thank Prylos..." Gale sighed in relief before gasping, "S-Sheep! Your hand!"

    "Oh, took you long enough to notice." He chuckled at his bloody stump, "Yeah, got it ripped off during the second layer''s run through. I really didn''t expect a wall pressure plate, ehe."

    "You don''t seem too worried, though..." Gale then chuckled, "Oh wait, is this the same thing that happened to Vastoria?"

    "Bingo, well, we think that''s the case at least." Maggie added, "If all goes well, he should be getting a golden hand after going to sleep at the fourth layer."

    The bedroom layer. Presently, this group believes that sleeping on the beds there causes time to advance to the next day globally, permanently moving the checkpoint of the reset for everyone and letting them remember the previous day. Gale was told this was not the case, and that the Gods were the only reason Vastoria even managed to escape the Shrine in the first place. Quickly, he had told them of this revelation before they made another mistake.

    "So the bed''s just another trap?" Maggie crossed her arms, "We were totally off the mark, then."

    "Hey, hold on." Sheep fretted, "Vastoria ran away after her shield broke, right?"

    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "Ah, that''s what Maggie told me as well." Gale nodded.

    "Crap, we ought to hurry then!" He ran ahead, "She already knows the path to the fourth layer. If she reaches it before we warn her...!"

    "...Fudge!" Gale noticed it too, "Come on, then! Before that happens!"

    Gale was thankfully given another chance with the third layer''s blessing. All of his friends were alive (barring Throne, possibly). Was it a miracle, or did the Gods manifest it? He didn''t know, but right now he was under a strict time limit. If after all this, he lost at the very end... No, he didn''t even want to think about it! Finally, they found the staircase leading down to the fourth and final floor...

    "Right, we''re gonna find her awake down there..." Gale muttered quietly enough so the others couldn''t hear him, "She''s gonna be fine, everyone''s gonna be fine, we''re gonna leave the Shrine, and then I''m gonna... Right, that''s what''s gonna happen-"

    Alas, before them stood a tragically peaceful sight. Vastoria¡ªcalm as can be¡ªlaid on one of the four personalized corners of the room, comfortably resting on her silky soft bed. Approaching her slowly, as if unsure of what to do, Maggie shakily poked her cheek, desperate for a reaction. But said reaction never came...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hyah!" She then smacked her flat across the face.

    "Woah woah, holy hell!" Gale stood in between them, "The hell are you doing!?"

    "I figure we''ve got nothing to lose, now move it." Maggie turned her on her stomach, "This is a prime chance to smack her other pair of cheeks~"

    "Nope." Sheep didn''t let her sexually harass Vastoria, however, "She''s unconscious."

    "Yeah, but her and I are...!"

    "She''s unconscious." He firmly stood his ground until she gave up, "Do that stuff when she''s awake and can consent to it."

    "Guys, this is serious!" Gale barked at the both of them for making light of the situation, "She might never wake up now, we gotta do something!"

    "...Hey, something''s been bothering me about that thing the Gods told you for a while now." Maggie got suspicious, "They said whoever fell asleep on these beds never wakes up, and though we can''t know for sure about Energy''s case, she definitely said she slept on it before waking up in her home."

    "That''s... the Gods said they could only afford to do it once." Gale replied with the exact words they told him.

    "They also told you that we can die inside of the Shrine, yet we''ve revived countless times before." Sheep added, "Look Gale, we''re not saying we don''t trust you, but you gotta understand that it maybe isn''t the smartest idea to trust the Gods."

    "Eh? How can you even say that?" He took offense to this, for some convoluted reason, "They probably have their reasons as to why they can''t save us more than once! And besides, didn''t you say that the "no dying" rule only applies to the third floor?"

    "We only know for sure that it works like that on the third floor." Maggie crossed her arms, "We''re just not stupid enough to try dying anywhere else."

    "Yeah!" Sheep thought about her comment just now, "Wait, was that a dig at me for losing my hand?"

    "Maybe." She smirked.

    "Look, what I''m saying is¡ªWe''ve got no other choice but to trust them on their word." Gale glanced down at Vastoria.

    "And that''ll give you what?" Maggie groaned, "Let''s say we do trust them¡ªbelieve the part where they said she''ll never ever wake up¡ªwhat then? You saying we should leave her here to rot for all of eternity?"

    "No, that''s not-"

    "Gale, I''m not abandoning her." She glared at him fiercely, "You can''t have it both ways. Either you believe everything they say or nothing. And if you truly wish to find a way to wake her up, then I''m sorry to say, but your faith is kind of thin."

    Her points weren''t all that good, in all honesty. To dumb something like your own trust in the Gods of this world to only think in absolutes is everything but reasonable. As with anything really, dealing in absolutes makes you a stuck up moron. Regardless, her tone was more than enough to convince him. The way she spoke of Vastoria, the way she looked at her... It was obvious even to Gale that she was the one most distraught by this situation. Yet, she didn''t allow it to get the better of her. Maggie is doing everything in her power to save Vastoria, and Gale figured it was time he got serious as well.

    "...Smack it." Gale nodded seriously at her.

    "Eh? Wait, what?" Sheep did a double take.

    "We have to try everything, and well, Maggie already volunteered." Gale shrugged, "I''m telling her to go through with it."

    "Ohoho! Alright!" She got extremely hyped.

    "No!" Sheep called them out, "No one''s gonna smack her, anywhere! Look, let''s first try and shake her awake or something."

    "Aww, what?" Maggie quickly deflated, "Come on, you''re no fun, Sheep!"

    "If only she could hear the crazy coming out of your mouth right now..." Sheep rolled his Eyes before beginning to nudge her, "Hey! Vastoria, wake up! Vastoria!"

    "Why are you whispering?" Gale whispered to mimic him.

    "It''s what you do when you nudge someone awake!" Sheep couldn''t stop whispering, "What, do you seriously wanna shout-?"

    "VASTORIAAA!" Maggie screeched like a banshee, practically giving both men tinnitus with her lovely vocals, "VASTORIA, WAKE UP! EVERYONE''S DYING, AGGHHHH!!!!"

    "God, what the hell!?" Gale covered her mouth, "Warn us before you do that, geez!"

    "Ehe, so long as it works~!" She stuck her tongue out after he let go, "Look, her expression changed."

    "Yeah, into a worried frown!" Sheep pointed out, "You probably just gave her nightmares after all that talk of us dying or something."

    "Oh..." She slumped forward, "I just assumed she''d wake up if I raised the stakes."

    "Of what, exactly?" Gale''s heart sank once they heard footsteps coming down the staircase behind them, "Crap, now look what you''ve done!"

    "Eh? Me!?" She hid under Vastoria''s covers.

    "Who else!" Sheep scolded her, "So help me, if your shouting alerted those damned bat roaches down here...!"

    "Everybody, stay behind me!" Gale readied his mandible sword at the shadow that was about to turn the corner, "...Oh fudge."

    A slow, unnerving and disrupting clapping sound emerged from the shadows of the spiral staircase. With the same cursed smile he gave to Gale just an hour before this, it was none other than Throne who came to greet them. The arm that got struck by the dart trap was completely black, causing even the other two to hesitate on running up to greet him.

    "T-Throne, you made it!" Maggie let out a nervous chuckle, "W-What happened to your arm?"

    "Throne..." Gale glared at him, still holding the sword pointed directly at the man.

    "I think I get it now." Throne kept smiling at him, "You and I are nothing alike, after all. Pardon my earlier mistake."

    "Tch, doesn''t take a genius to figure that one out." Gale clicked his tongue.

    "Maybe not a genius, sure..." Throne''s smile turned crooked, his dark hand emanating a faint putrid scent, "But you gotta go to Hell and back if you wanna truly get what I mean."

 Vol.3 Ch.67 - Theres Trust in Distrust

    "..."

    "....."

    "...Well!" Throne jarringly interrupted the tense air around everyone with a loud shout, "Glad to see everyone''s made it this far. I believe we can get going now."

    "H-Huh?" I cocked my head back.

    "The hell are you on about?" Gale too seemed taken aback, "Didn''t you just...?"

    "Gale, do you really wanna talk about this?" Throne smirked at him, insinuating something unbeknownst to me and Sheep.

    "Mn..." Gale shut his mouth for a bit, but eventually answered back, "No, actually I do. You were just spouting all that crap about dragging me to Hell and back, then you turn on your own word and try to pretend nothing ever happened?"

    "We''ve had our... differences, you and I..." Throne tried buddying up to him, but Gale kept holding the sword firmly pointed at him, "But, I believe our main priority is more important than setting the record straight. Arguing about all that had transpired in the first two floors would be detrimental towards our goal of keeping everyone safe."

    Wait, did these two seriously get into a fight before Gale met up with us? Geez, there''s something known as time and place, you guys... Regardless, that black arm on Throne, and Gale''s aversion to this topic... It could very well be that he''s the reason for Throne''s current position in the first place. No, jumping to conclusions won''t get me anywhere. I need to feel out the situation more before settling on a final verdict.

    "You''re saying it''s water under the bridge?" Gale returned an impish grin, "Pssh! Like hell that''s actually the case! I''d rather you just stuck with the "ominous enemy returning from the dead for cheap shock factor" role."

    "Alas, I''m not akin to one of your novel characters. The dimensions of my being are a lot less flat." He guffawed, "I am quite disappointed in your actions, Gale, but we need to get out of here first. Where is Vas-?"

    Peeking over Gale''s shoulder while he was talking, he stopped mid sentence to witness in abject horror the fate of our sweet pea. Vastoria, in her ignorance, was still sleeping on the bed Gale told us she can never awaken from. As one would expect, Throne''s reaction was that of disbelief first and foremost, followed by a strong sense of panic and dread, but then something surprising came about. He calmed his nerves, slowly approached her despite Gale trying to impede him, and lifted her off the bed.

    "O-Oi, let go of her!" Gale tried stepping in, but Sheep and I stopped him, "You guys, he''s gonna harm her!"

    "Let him try, at least." I looked him in the Eyes, "She''s as much of a friend to him as she is to us."

    "...Tch, I''ll block the doorway just in case he tries something." Gale backed off with a rather disgruntled tone.

    What''s with him? I get that he doesn''t trust Throne all that much, especially after what happened back in the sky with Sab, but that was all just a big misunderstanding on Throne''s end. Holding a grudge for that long frankly makes Gale kind of look bad. Somehow, I''m thankful the rest of us weren''t there to witness those two''s descent down the Shrine...

    "Gale told me..." Throne carefully put Vastoria down on the uncomfortable oak wood flooring, "That the person who sleeps on the bed shall never wake up so long as they''re on it."

    "Oh come on, that''s your big solution?" Gale huffed and puffed, "Besides, I did say that, but that doesn''t mean she''ll wake up now that she''s not physically on the bed!"

    "At least he''s trying something." Sheep frowned at him.

    "You gotta be kidding me..." Said Gale.

    Throne''s logic made sense, in a way, but so too did Gale''s skepticism. Regardless of both of these claims, it was still our best and only shot at getting her to wake up. If push comes to shove, I don''t mind volunteering to be the one to carry her out into the surface myself. Either way, she is NOT staying down here, no way no how.

    "Vastoria." Throne called out to her, "Vastoria, we need you to wake up."

    His pleas were met with unforgiving silence, however, so he had to try again.

    "Vastoria." He continued, "We still have unfinished business, are you gonna leave that all behind?"

    "...."

    "Vastoria." He kept staring at her, "Gale brought you a nice new pair of wings to use."

    "What?!" I jolted.

    "Gale!?" Sheep was just as surprised.

    "Vastoria." Throne kept going, however, "We''re so close to a breakthrough, I can feel it! We... We need you to wake up."

    He really does care about her. These strong emotions, strong as they were, still somehow failed to pierce her gilded heart... Wait, that may be it! Her heart, it''s closed itself off to the point where it''s already hard enough to reach as it is, and the wound on her chest is only making it harder! It''s a stretch, but maybe if we tried to reach it through a less obstructed route...!

    "Throne, sit her up for me, please!" I ordered, "I''ve an idea!"

    "Maggie?" He shook off the emotions, "S-Sure, if you think it''ll work..."

    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    After Throne did as I told him, I took over in holding her up. Carefully, I inspected her slim back and pressed my left ear against it. The boys were confused, sure, but right now that didn''t bother me one bit. Honestly, even I think I''m going crazy for actually thinking up this idea, but the truth is we''ve got nothing else to try, barring opening her chest up again with the mandible. Okay Maggie, with a soft whisper, now is the time to let your emotions run free.

    "...Vastoria." I closed my Eyes, "I think of you as an earnest, heartfelt girl. A naive sweetie that''s surprisingly dependable when the time calls for it."

    "..."

    "Hey, won''t you tell me..." I felt her heart beat pressed up against my head, "Won''t you tell me the dream you''re having right now?"

    "..."

    "........"

    ".................."

    A minute passed in complete silence as everyone held their breaths. It felt real, we all unanimously believed this would work. Eventually, however, even I had to face reality. My ear was pressed up against her back so hard, it honestly felt difficult to pull off. I didn''t want this to be her end, to be our end... But it seems this was useless after all. With tears rolling down my face, I laid her back down on the ground. She looked so calm, it... Oi, why does she have that annoyingly smug smile on her face!?

    "Ehe!" She burst out giggling on the ground like an idiot, kicking her feet about, "Did I get you all?"

    "Put her back on the bed." Throne ordered with a serious face.

    "I''ll put her to sleep with the pillow." Gale volunteered.

    "Yikes! Sorry, I apologize!" She whimpered, "M-Migu, you understand, right?!"

    "S..." I spewed tears out of my Eyes like a waterfall, "Send me with her..."

    "No!" She yelped.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Guys, look¡ªI''m sorry, okay?" Vastoria begged for our forgiveness, "I was awake for a while, but you guys were giving me too much attention and I found it difficult to find the right moment to do the big reveal! Ohh, then you started saying all those embarrassing things, and I..."

    "My ass, you were laughing at us like it was all just one big joke!" Sheep pointed to me cradling myself on the ground, "Look, you traumatized the poor girl!"

    "I-I''m not... I''m just happy she''s okay..." I said, fending off tears as much as I could, "Vastoria... Thank the Gods..."

    "No, I wasn''t laughing at you guys!" She explained, "It''s just that Migu was tickling me with that ear pressed on my back! Really, I tried being polite and to keep a serious face, but I just couldn''t help it anymore!"

    "...Sigh, well, that''s one issue resolved, but it does raise an even more serious concern." Sheep glanced over at the uncertain Gale, "It seems the Gods lied to you after all, for she woke up just fine."

    "Mayhaps you should rethink your allegiance to them." Throne added.

    "Allegiance?" The rest of us noticed an interesting word.

    "It''s not allegiance, quit making me look bad." Gale didn''t appreciate the choice of words as he elaborated on it, "They just told me to get you guys out of the Shrine ASAP. They said it''s not safe, and I chose to believe their word for it. Saying allegiance makes it sound like I''m following orders."

    "Are you not?" Throne raised an Eyebrow, "Look, we''re down at the bottom¡ªCompletely whole, not to mention safe and sound, and we just learned even the beds'' curse is reversible."

    "What are you implying?" Gale glared.

    "You may think you''re just trying to keep us away from danger, but what if the Gods just don''t want us snooping about here and made up an excuse to keep us away?" He asked, "As far as anyone''s concerned, that''s just you enacting their wishes against us if that''s the case."

    "...Are you saying you wish to actually go to sleep on these beds?" Gale got serious.

    "Guys, calm down." Sheep tried to interject.

    "I am calm, but if any of you¡ªeven for a second¡ªthink that what I''m doing is unjust, then so help me...!" Gale raised his tone.

    "Quiet!" Vastoria scolded him, "Gale, I''ve done this before, this will advance tim-!"

    "It will not!" He screamed at her, "You morons, I''ve been tasked with protecting you, getting you out of here safe! The Gods gave me this task because they said this place was dangerous! You could get your soul permanently destroyed in here, so they told me to come get you back home safe!"

    "...We never asked you to." I furrowed my brows, "If anyone wants to go with you, then no one''s stopping them, but the rest of us are gonna keep exploring until we find something regarding resurrection."

    Just then, as if hearing a trigger word, Gale popped a vein as he began foaming from the mouth. He was beyond livid, the only color he Could see now was Red. When he pointed a finger at us, I genuinely thought he was gonna start spewing fire out of it. Really, what''s he thinking of trying to accomplish with this outburst? Even if there was someone willing to go with him before, all that flew straight out the window once they saw this side of him, surely. Looking around, everyone seemed to have taken a step back in fear.

    "Tch...!" Gale hid his face behind his hands, frustrated to the point of tears, "I need you to trust me! And I know I''m not at all convincing, but I need you to believe in me just this once, dammit!"

    "You should calm down first before that." I suggested.

    "He''s too far gone, Magnes." Throne put his hand on my shoulder, "The Gods'' influence over him is too strong."

    Dammit, you bonehead! You''re the last voice of reason he wants to hear! Read the room and back off for once instead of always trying to have the final word! Geez, Gale really didn''t like that. He looks like he''s about to explode...

    "Ga-!" My voice cracked.

    "I''m with Gale." Vastoria firmly took a step forward, "With our lineup, reaching this floor at a later moment in time will always be easy to do. But if what the Gods said is true, then we shouldn''t take Gale''s worries for granted."

    "But how can you be sure it''s true?" Sheep worriedly asked.

    "We''ll ask them." She turned back to him with a confident smile, "They know and see everything, right? Besides, it''s unfair to gang up on Gale like this."

    "Vastoria..." He deflated with a sigh of relief, falling to his knees crying for her, "Thank you...! Thank you for this!"

    "You guys coming?" Vastoria turned to face us as she comforted the unstable Gale, "If we''re fast enough, I''ll treat you all to some tea and biscuits at my sky island after this."

    Throne''s logic was sound, Gale''s skepticism was sounder... But Vastoria''s reasoning was the soundest of them all. I still would rather not go with Gale after what he''s shown us, but I also can''t leave Vastoria alone with him either. Sheep is probably thinking the same thing, hence why he crossed over to Gale''s side too. Now Throne was the only one left standing across from us.

    "Throne..." Gale extended his hand, still kneeling on the ground in a pathetic state, "You know why I''m doing this, so please..."

    "Tch, why should I?" He brushed him off, "It only benefits you, after all."

    "I don''t want it." Gale blurted out, "After what I did to your hand, I don''t want to accept the Gods'' offer anymore! Just... Please follow me to safety. We can restart from there."

    The Gods'' offer?

    "...I''ve got my Eyes on you." Throne glared, begrudgingly helping him back up on his feet, "Then, shall we hurry along? The tea will get cold otherwise."

    "Aye aye!" Our shout roared throughout the Shrine.

 Vol.3 Ch.68 - Quiet in the Shrine

    Moving up the stairs back out into the jungle layer, the two leaders were extremely quick to start bickering. Despite their earlier mood, Gale and Throne just could not see Eye to Eye no matter what. This time, it was regarding the level of awareness we should be carrying out as we walked back through the third floor.

    "Hey, stop walking so fast!" Gale told him off, "There might be more of those things lurking around every corner."

    "You dealt with all of them." Throne explained like he was talking to a child, "I would know, ''cause I pranced on through after you guys and I saw only their mutilated carcasses."

    "They can revive, as can we." Sheep chimed in.

    "Hm?"

    "We call it the Third Floor''s Blessing, no one can die in the jungle layer." Vastoria added, "I think we should still exercise some level of awareness just in case. You never know with these things."

    "Vastoria, I must ask..." Throne turned to her, "You''ve been acting very contrarian as of late. Are you perhaps still angry over what I did to Sab?"

    "Eh? No, where''d that come from?" She furrowed her brows.

    "Not everything revolves around you, Throne..." I smirked.

    "You may not realize it, but I can tell there was a change in her attitude towards me." Throne said something that sounded full of himself, "I was willing to let slide her siding with Gale about us leaving the Shrine, but even over minute things like being wary? In any case, if there really were more of those things out there, wouldn''t it be safer to leave as fast as possible?"

    Hmm, he''s not wrong there... But on the other hand, the rest of us have all experienced firsthand what happens when you rush through this Shrine. Though we are climbing back up instead of going down the intended route, it still doesn''t mean we can afford to be careless. Though I think he''s wrong on many accounts, I do have to agree with Gale on this one wholeheartedly.

    "Hm... Okay, then." Throne began walking at a faster pace ahead of us, "You slowpokes go at that snail''s pace! I''ll scout the area ahead, and if I deem it to be safe, I''ll come back and...!"

    "Throne." Gale ordered him, "Get back here. No one''s going off on their own. That''s how you get yourself killed."

    "Ehh~? But didn''t you say we can''t die in this floor?" Throne mocked him, "Honestly, I feel like you''ve been feeding me nothing but lies ever since we met. First you said we can die in the Shrine, then you tell me we can''t actually die in floor 3. You said the bed was a deathtrap, but Vastoria woke up within minutes!"

    "Throne, get back here!" Gale got annoyed by his behavior, "Didn''t you say you''ll leave the bickering until after we leave the Shrine?!"

    "That doesn''t mean I''ll be your obedient little servant!" Throne shot back, "Hmph, first it was Sab, and now you''re going after me next! Oh, the horrors..."

    ...Hm? Sab? When''d they meet up with Sab? I-I mean, Gale did say he was gonna go get Sab and everything, but I thought he changed his mind and went back to the Shrine after getting advice from the Gods. Gale quieted down anxiously as well, why in the world isn''t he denying it, or at the very least explaining himself? Throne got us all curious now.

    "Gale?" Sheep tilted his head.

    "Gale, what does he mean by that?" Vastoria too asked, "If you met up with Sab, why isn''t he here with us?"

    "Guys, guys, would you give the poor guy a break?" I stood between them, "Sab''s probably up there, either keeping watch or unable to phase through the barrier. Isn''t that right, Gale?"

    For the love of Prylos and all that is holy, please let this be the case... Gale''s been acting weird for a damn long while now, but he was never violent. This especially goes for his friends, though I imagine Throne''s a different case. Gale''s silence is only incriminating him more and more with each second, so by the Gods, say something!

    "..."

    ".....Hmph." Throne let out a confident chuckle.

    In the end, Gale couldn''t bring himself to even utter a single word. What could he have done to Sab for Throne to accuse him like this? He looks like he regrets doing it, but that doesn''t really make me any less worried. Gasp, could it be...?! Did Sab... die during their descent down the Shrine? No, all signs point to it... Tch, from the looks of it, Throne''s not gonna let us make any more theories, as he intends to spill the beans completely.

    "...Honestly, you''re way too honest with yourself." Throne patted him on the back annoyedly, "Come on, at the very least clear the air, otherwise the others will think you actually did something to him!"

    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    "E-Eh?" We paused.

    "I was just trying to knock you down a peg or two, but you took it to heart, Galey!" Throne rolled his Eyes, "You see, everyone¡ªOnce those two flew over to the barrier, Gale told Sab he wasn''t fit to come with us, and after a heated argument, he left to go back to his home."

    I-Is that it? Geez, then why the hell does Gale have this look of death on his face? Scared the crap outta me, man... D''oh, I thought he freaking got Sab killed or something, but now you''re telling me they just got into a bit of a disagreement that led to Sab quitting?! No duh, Sab''s incapable! If Gale''s mission is to keep everyone safe, then he obviously would want Sab to stay away!

    "Sheesh, Gale." Sheep consoled him as we kept moving forward, "You owe that guy a big apology, y''know?"

    "..."

    "It''s not that big of a deal if that''s all that happened." Vastoria too, gave her two cents.

    "......"

    "Yes, yes, such a kind and compassionate soul. Getting heartbroken over such... trivialities." Throne poorly tried mimicking their consolation, "But lucky for you, friend, I''m a lot more patient than that boy Sab. Unlike him, you can''t get rid of me easily... at all."

    "...ry." Gale finally muttered something under his breath.

    "Come again?" Throne put his ear closer to his face.

    "...I''m sorry." He gulped, "Let''s pick up the pace."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    That was strange. Did Gale just accept Throne''s suggestion to go faster to try and keep the peace? No, in this situation, he had every right to get angry, I think. Like, I mean that¡ªThrone took it way too far with the guilt tripping. Gale obviously feels bad about what he did to Sab, and yet you still choose to make him feel worse? That''s a new low, at this point I''m just being forced to pick between the lesser evil, and these two keep constantly revealing the other to be the bigger one. It''s getting annoying, so I think we''re in desperate need of a remedy.

    "Hey guys, let''s play a game." I suggested with a wholesome smile on my face, "Who utters a word, steps on a turd!"

    "....?" They all looked at me with puzzled gazes.

    Ahaha! Gold star, Maggie! And with that, the game was afoot! I''ve come to realize something¡ªThe more they talk, the more they bicker, so to fix this I had them shut the hell up! Really, my genius knows no bounds. Granted, it''s a children''s game mostly made up by their tired parents who wanted a moment of tranquility in their lives, but I think that checks out for our situation. Honestly, just looking around to scope out everyone''s expressions was hilarious¡ªThey all thought it was dumb, but no one wanted to be the first to speak up about it! In the end, stepping on a turd is no laughing matter, though that part''s obviously just figurative. Ahh, finally, we can continue the trek up the Shrine in peace!"

    "...?" Vastoria glanced around.

    "..." Sheep didn''t mind keeping his mouth shut at all, since he''s used to it from his job.

    ".....!" Gale looked like he had something he desperately needed to say, but didn''t want this to be how he revealed it.

    "...:D" And Throne just grinned back at me.

    We kept speeding through the jungle layer at an incredible pace, and now that we didn''t have to stop to resolve any sudden conflicts, it only made our time better. Really, I''m the one most surprised that this worked as well as it did. And no one''s even questioning my decision, they just all shut up and refused to talk back. Guess they all must''ve just wanted to achieve this outcome, but they couldn''t find a way to do it until I suggested it. Hold on, am I actually... a genius?

    "...-" Gale tried calling time out with his hands.

    Hey, no signing! That''s considered talking for deaf people as well, so that''s definitely a Yellow card! One more strike and you''re out, buddy! Ohh, but I''m signing this to him right now, so I guess we both get a Yellow card. Dammit Gale, you almost made me lose the game!

    "...?" Throne noticed something off in the distance as we turned the corner.

    "!!!!" Gale pulled us all back behind the corner as a stray bat roach lunged at us.

    "A-!" I was about to call the game off, but he stopped me.

    "..." Gale looked at me with Eyes that screamed "Don''t."

    Is this dude serious?! The game''s effective at keeping us from tearing each others'' throats out, but this is an emergency! Does he seriously want us to take that thing down without even uttering a single word?! Gale...!

    The battle commenced, though our team was in complete disarray. We mostly relied on Gale''s sword and agility, and though we did have Sheep and his fork, that was only to be a last resort. The bat roach, however, was aggressive as hell, constantly going at us until we were all pretty well spaced out. This one, it''s different than the others we''ve faced before...! This one actually has some strategy to it!

    No matter how fast it flew at him, the bat roach would always somehow stop just before hitting Gale''s mandible sword and back away. It kept doing this, constantly feinting him, only to finally charge towards him full-throttle. It flew so fast I couldn''t even keep track of it, but once Gale was confident it was going to attack for real this time... It dodged him, and instead went for the lone Throne who was separated from us during its initial onslaught.

    "!!!" Throne panicked, reflexively putting his black hand out in fear at the beast, only to crane open his Eyes with a confident smirk.

    The bat roach, surprisingly, had stopped the attack just before hitting him. It stood in front of his arm obediently, like a moth enamored by a lamp. My first instinct was to assume that that black arm had tamed it, but alas, that was just my wishful thinking. This was indeed some sort of breakthrough, however, as instead of attacking Throne, it had actively ran away from his arm. Just then, I understood why this was the case¡ªThe poison! It was the poison in his arm from the dart hitting it, these things can sense it and are actively deterred by it!

    In a surprising turn of events, we had accidentally stumbled upon our single most luckiest break yet. With his smugness now on full blast after outing himself as the king of roach bats, he declared his victory proudly.

    "See that? I told you I''m-!"

    "Ah, you spoke." Vastoria pointed, "You lost the game."

    "Wuh-" He paused, flabbergasted, before screeching with all his might, "...Ngahhhh!!!"

 Vol.3 Ch.69 - Leaders Appointment

    "No! That didn''t count, or more like...!" Throne fumbled over his words, "Who cares about the game in this situation!? Are you not seeing this?!"

    "Yeah, sounds like something a loser would say." I mocked him, though we still stood a way''s away from him and the bat roach, "Isn''t that right, Gale?"

    Surprisingly, Gale was just as silent as before. He hadn''t uttered a single word ever since I had everyone start the game. He does realize the game ends when someone says something, right? You can talk now, dummy! Actually, his sullen silence was quite noticeable, no matter how paradoxical that might sound. It was as if he was lost in thought, his body moving on instinct as it cleanly pierced the bat roach''s head with the mandible sword.

    "Whoa, whoa!?" Throne shoved him, "I had it under control, you didn''t have to get Gray matter on me!"

    "..."

    "Just because it didn''t wanna attack you doesn''t mean it wasn''t gonna attack us soon after." Vastoria pouted, "Throne, quit acting childish."

    "What she said. Now''s not the time." Sheep summed it up perfectly, "We got lucky this time, so let''s not waste our chance and leave before any more of them show up."

    With a begrudging click of his tongue, Throne had to let slide Gale''s kill just now. Really, thinking of taming one of these things is just asking to get killed. I expected such a stupid idea from someone like Gale, or heck, even me, but Throne? This Shrine really does change people from their very core, it seems. Regardless, given this round of "Who utters" is over, I figured it would be for the best to start a new one.

    "Who utters a word, steps..."

    "Shut up with that stupid game, it almost got us killed!" Throne chewed me out, "Tch, all because of Gale wanting to make me lose. His damned competitive nature would''ve been my end had my arm not saved me..."

    "The game...? N-No, that wasn''t-" Gale finally spoke up properly, "I didn''t want that beast to attack you guys, so I had you keep quiet as much as possible. Needless shouting would have attracted it to you, and I was the only one with a proper weapon."

    "Eh? And here I thought you were just trying to win." Sheep grinned.

    "Thank you for that, Gale." Vastoria smiled warmly at him, "I''ll admit I misinterpreted the order as well, but it was your call that ended up saving us. Thanks a bunch!"

    "Same here." I smiled.

    "Hm?" Throne glanced between Gale and Vastoria, "Am I sensing something between you two? No wonder Vastoria''s been sucking up to you so much, Galey! A real charmer knows how to get them under his spell!"

    Come again, dumbass? You want a free nose job courtesy of my fist in your face? I can''t exactly blame you for being ignorant, since we never announced it to the team, but Vastoria is MY girl! ...Oh, but it still really ticks me off, given the way he said it! So what, just ''cause Vastoria has been consistently choosing Gale''s good ideas instead of your bad ones means they must be romantically inclined? By that logic, I''d be such an easy woman to the point where it wouldn''t even be funny! Tch, if he wanted to get under Gale''s skin with this stupid comment, then I''m afraid he struck the wrong target!

    "Fueh?! N-No, Gale and I aren''t...!" Vastoria got flustered, "To begin with, M-Migu... uhm..."

    "Are you freaking deranged?" Gale said with a calm, yet stern response, "It''s one thing to call me out constantly, but don''t you dare get the others involved, jackass."

    "Don''t worry, I didn''t actually mean it." Throne teased, "You''d never pull a girl as good as her!"

    "...What?" Gale facepalmed after an uncomfortably long pause, "The hell do you think this is, a love drama novel? We''re escaping a goddamned dungeon filled with death traps and giant man-eating bat bugs, where the hell did love talk come in to play? Seriously, you goddamned troglodyte, I''m genuinely asking you if you hit your head on the way here, ''cause there''s no other plausible reason for you to be this freaking dumb!"

    "...."

    "Pfft." Vastoria and I stiffled our laughter.

    "...Tcheh!" Sheep was the first to crack fully, "Bahahahaha! Troglodyte, he said! Heh, you tell him, Gale!"

    "Shut your mouth, you!" Throne pointed a finger at Sheep.

    "Nah, I think you ought to do that." He shot back instantly, "Don''t make fun of Vastoria next time, unless you want Gale to tear you a new one."

    "Gale is a dear friend, so hearing you say that really hurt me." Vastoria added, only to realize what she said could''ve been taken as an insult to Gale, "A-Ah, no offense."

    "Of course, after all..." Gale glanced at me before winking, "I don''t go after taken ladies."

    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "Whuh-"

    H-How did he know!? Gale, he''s a perceptive one, sure, but this is borderline omniscient levels of knowledge! Wait, was it back while I was trying to wake her up? No, that can''t be the case, unless...? No, he couldn''t have gotten that impression from our conversations, so then what exactly gave it away?

    "Taken? There are no relationships in Heaven 2.0, fool." Throne confidently crossed his arms as the rest of us ignored him, walking right past him to the stairs leading to the second floor, "Huh? W-Why is everyone snickering to themselves!? Objectively speaking, there is no way to remember a loved one from your past lives!"

    "Objectively, you''re an idiot." I laughed, "Your theory falls through once you realize people can find love after death."

    "L-Love..." Vastoria got all Red in the face once she heard such an explicit word.

    "Well, isn''t that a fun way to end such a NICE chapter?" Gale stubbed his foot from constantly looking back at us as he joked, "Roasting Throne, validating a relationship, and then a wonderful reaction from Vastoria! An all-rounder, truly the best of its kind! Thanks all for reading!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "...Huh?" Gale looked around after waving at a random direction, "Oh right, we''re only at halftime. My bad, guys."

    "What are you on about now?" Throne was pretty sick of hearing his voice by this point, "And you people still choose to listen to a crazy lunatic like him?"

    "Beats following you into more danger." Sheep sighed.

    Stumbling up the stairs as we awkwardly traversed through the darkness, I couldn''t stop wondering what it was that gave Vastoria and me away. We weren''t exactly the most showy type of people, and despite me fully expecting someone like Sheep to get it immediately, I didn''t expect someone like Gale to even accept it, much less notice and protect it. He''s surprisingly sharp and progressive, in that sense. Did he have someone rooting for the other team in his past life?

    "Hey, psst." I ran up ahead of the others so that I could catch up to him at the front, "Are you gay?"

    "Urk!" He missed a stair the moment I asked, stumbling and falling flat on his face, "Ngh, that came outta nowhere..."

    "You alright?" The others got scared.

    "Yeah, just slipped is all." Gale reassured them before going back to whispering to me, "Nah, why ask?"

    "Well, usually in a group like ours, people don''t assume the two girls are the ones that get paired up." I tried talking quietly to not spoil the surprise for Throne, "I wanna know how you figured us out so quickly."

    "It''s really not as big as you''re making it out to be." He pointed to somewhere, "I just heard it from the author."

    "Who?"

    "Nothing. If you don''t get that much, then you''re not ready to break the Fourth Wall yet." He shook his head half-disappointedly, "Heh, just kidding. I really don''t know how I figured it out, it just kinda looked like that was the case."

    "In what sense...?" I sighed with a wry smirk.

    This guy''s a bit too free spirited. To just go with his gut on something as intricate as human relationships, not to mention get it right on top of that... It''s just too crazy to be true. Regardless, I do trust him as the leader a lot more than Throne after this. Not just ''cause he saved our butts on multiple occasions, but also because he cares about us as individuals. Throne''s a capable leader, but Gale''s just a good guy. And I think I prefer the one that sees me as an equal a lot more than the stuck up guy with a superiority complex. Just my opinion, though. Right, since I got this chance to talk 1on1 with the guy, I should ask Gale that thing that''s been bugging me for a while now.

    "Hey, what was that about the Gods'' offer you were talking about earlier?"

    Immediately, his smile disappeared from his face. It definitely killed the cheery atmosphere we had going on around us, but I needed answers. Since I consider him my leader, he should have no qualms about being transparent about this much at least. If anything, just the fact that Throne knows something I don''t already pisses me off enough to warrant me asking this question.

    "...I don''t-"

    "Answer the question, please." I kept pressing him to give a reply, "If you could tell Throne, you can tell me too."

    "...It''s a... no, I wouldn''t call it a mistake, per se." He thought about how to phrase it, "Before I went back to the Shrine, I met up with the Gods. They told me some stuff, and offered a reward if I did something in a specific way. The reward was tempting, but seeing what I was doing to you guys just to get it opened my Eyes and made me realize it really wasn''t worth it."

    "So you''re still not gonna actually tell me what that reward is." I chuckled.

    "I told Throne, and look what it did to him." He glanced back with his Eyes.

    "..."

    "...I don''t want you guys to hate me, especially not after I decided not to follow through with the offer." He sighed.

    I can appreciate him giving me even this much, but I can''t shake the feeling that this tiny tidbit of information he''s keeping from us is super important. He makes it sound like it''s no big deal¡ªlike it''s all in the past now¡ªbut the past can come back to haunt you regardless. This needs to be addressed properly.

    "I''d hate you more if you didn''t tell me and I found out for myself." I smirked.

    "You wouldn''t. Trust me, it''s that bad." He exhaled, "Besides, how can you be so certain you''ll figure it out "all on your own", huh?"

    "Mnn, I dunno..." I teased, "Maybe I''ll ask the author."

    "You... Heh, not bad." He dropped the heavy attitude in favor of a more lighthearted one, "But I doubt he''d answer you. He only likes me."

    "What is he, a God?"

    "How should I know." He shrugged.

    "So, you''re not gonna tell us, then?" I asked once more.

    "No, sorry."

    "It''s okay." I said with a bit of a louder tone, "I''ll just ask Sab, then!"

    "H-Huh?"

    "Oh~?" Throne immediately perked up once he overheard us, "Ask Sab? Whatever are you two talking about?"

    "Sab, he isn''t..." Gale started panicking.

    "Hehe, thought I forgot about him, did ya''?" I returned a smug smile, "But if you went to the Gods before the Shrine, then Sab had to have been with you there. I''m just gonna ask him!"

    "Oh right, I totally forgot all about that guy!" Throne spoke with his golden snake tongue slithering out, "What about you, Galey? Do you think that guy''s still waiting for us up at the entrance?"

    "Hrmm..."

    "Or do you think he''s... No longer there?" Throne approached him with sharp glares, "Do you feel that? Your past is coming back to bite you, and I''m afraid it''s about the right time to crack open that nasty can of worms."

 Vol.3 Ch.70 - Wild Goose Chase

    Oh no, he''s trying to ruin everything again...

    "Attention, everyone!" Throne waved upon rushing to the front, "May I have your attention? Yes, I have a rather shocking announcement to make!"

    "Just shut up, please?" Sheep sighed, "We don''t wanna hear it, man."

    "What Sheep said." Vastoria agreed, "You''re just gonna try sullying Gale''s image again..."

    "Audible gasp!" He actually said it instead of just doing it, "Do you truly think so lowly of me? Ah, but I can understand your worries. Truly, I can. But I''m afraid I must disappoint you all, for I do not in fact plan on telling lies just to ruin your preconceived notions of our dear friend Galey here."

    Yeah, I''m still not really that hooked on listening to a guy that outright says "Audible gasp". I''m glad the other two aren''t giving him the light of day either, ''cause it seems Throne''s one and only goal ever since he reunited with us was to make Gale''s life a living hell... Wait, is that what he meant back then? "Gale would have to go to Hell and back", I think he said. No, what am I even thinking? Throne''s just a moron.

    "Don''t get too fussed about this." I reassured Gale with a gentle pat on the back, "We''re on your side no matter what."

    "Even if I revealed Gale''s horrible secret?" Throne raised a smug Eyebrow, "A secret that turns your dear trustworthy leader into a selfish, one-minded mistake? Would you still follow such a pathetic man''s back, I wonder?"

    "Oh, is that what this is about?" Sheep donned a smug grin himself, "Well then, if you''re planning on telling us Gale''s secret for him, then count me out."

    Immediately after, he cupped his ears and hummed a mocking tune at Throne. So this is his way of standing up for Gale? It''s pretty genius, actually! If Throne''s masterplan to get us to stop following Gale is to tell us his deepest secrets, then we can easily counter it by just not hearing them. Of course I wanna know what he''s talking about, but I only wanna hear it from the man himself. Everyone has a skeleton in their closet or two, but it''s not anyone''s duty or right to out someone else''s skeleton. For now, I''ll just follow Sheep''s lead and do the same for my ears. From here on, I can''t hear a thing.

    "...Hmph, Vasto-?" Throne turned to her already humming a tune herself, "Tch...! Heh, looks like they really don''t trust me anymore, eh?"

    "You did that to yourself, Throne." Gale just shook his head, "Hey, you said your end goal was the revive, right?"

    "Aye, and since you''re throwing that incredible offer away, I fully intend to take your place!" Throne folded his arms, "Honestly, what an idiot."

    "Excuse me?!" Gale raised his voice, "I''m the idiot, am I? Dude, the only reason I gave up on it was so that you could trust me! Besides, weren''t you about to chastise me for hurting everyone just to get said offer?! Why are you suddenly switching up your stance on this?"

    "I see, so you don''t get it, after all." Throne merely shook his head, "If it was me, I would have already gotten everyone out of the Shrine safely and returned to report back my success to the Gods."

    "...What?"

    "I''m saying, I''m a lot better than you in many ways." Throne kept piling it on, "And not just in leadership, but in conviction. You see, had our places been swapped, I wouldn''t have even hesitated to leave you behind to explore the Shrine further. Less baggage that way."

    "Baggage? You''re calling yourself baggage?" Gale furrowed his brows, "I couldn''t leave you there, moron! You''d die by yourself!"

    "Exactly, but I was willing to risk that just to find a proper way to resurrect." Throne explained, "Yet you took that away from me. You had us all go to the very bottom, just to turn back at the final step and go home empty handed. Why? In not letting me go further, you chose your own goal over mine, and then I hear you say to my face how you''re gonna throw that away as well?"

    "A-Ah, that''s..." Gale backed off, struggling to find a proper counter argument.

    "I''m willing to throw all of you aside to get my way." Throne made it clear, "And so are you. But unlike you, I actually plan to make good use of your sacrifices. They wouldn''t be in vain. However, you''re the type of leader who would send his soldiers into the battlefield only to still pop the White flag despite the casualties! You''re a coward, Gale! And cowards should at least be forward about their cowardice..."

    "...I see." Gale looked down, "You''re absolutely right. Pfft, ha-ha..."

    "Hm? Laughing deliriously all of a sudden, are we?" Throne raised an Eyebrow.

    "Nah, I''m just thinking." Gale smiled as he mimed for the rest of us to remove our hands from our ears, "This is the first proper good point you''ve made ever since we''ve met."

    Ah, finally, they''re done talking. I can finally stop singing that random song over and over, my voice was getting tired. Unlike Vastoria''s song¡ªwhich I could somewhat make out even with my ears cupped¡ªmy vocals weren''t nearly as siren-like. And unlike Sheep''s deep notes, I couldn''t even reach what would be considered a regular range. Guess I''m just bad at it. Not that it matters, since we can now finally move on with this darned trek in peace. Gale''s secret is safely kept to himself!

    The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    "Hey guys, I beat Sab up and took his wings to fly over here myself." Gale suddenly explained with his usual nonchalant chuckle, "It''s the truth, and I don''t intend on hiding it anymore."

    "U-Uhh..." We all jolted in unison, turning our heads to stare at him like dumbfounded sheep, "Huh?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Finally, some accountability!" Throne threw his hands up in the air, "It only took me wringing it out of you for the past couple of hours."

    "You shut up!" I yelled at Throne first and foremost before turning to Gale, "What... What are you saying?"

    "Yeah, didn''t you guys say Sab was waiting for us back at the entrance of the Shrine?" Vastoria inquired.

    "Throne said that to cover for me." Gale clicked his tongue at him, "I guess he did that to try and maintain the peace."

    "No, I did that to keep you on a tight leash." Throne proudly corrected him, "To let you know that unless you tell them, I can always reveal how you brutally ripped away Sab''s seraphimhood away from him myself."

    "Well, there you have it." Gale shrugged, "Now that you know, I assume you''re all probably pretty furious with me."

    "...Honestly, I''d do the same." I chuckled.

    "Come again?" Throne cocked his head back.

    "Yeah, Sab''s pretty annoying to deal with." Sheep chimed in, "I can already hear him turning himself into the victim, shooing Gale away and not offering to help him."

    "You were strapped for time, so you had to do what you had to do." Vastoria nodded at him.

    It''s obvious that Gale, and especially Throne, didn''t expect this kind of positive reaction from us. They probably thought we''d exile Gale completely from the team, but I stand by what I said earlier¡ªThere''s nothing he could say to make us hate him. Gale has proved not with his words, but with his actions that he''s more than just a kind soul. He was under the impression that Throne was dangerous for us to be around, not to mention he was told by the Gods themselves that the Shrine wasn''t safe, so he obviously was under a lot of pressure to reach us as fast as possible. That quick thinking and ability to make the hard choices ended up saving us, too, so I''d have to really be stupid to hate on him for that.

    "You guys..." Gale quickly wiped the warm smile off his face in favor of a guilty frown, "No, I did it for myself, even saving you... It was all my selfish dream."

    "Do you find it hard to believe?" Throne pranced around him, "Your great, selfless leader has nothing but ulterior motives for saving all of you! In truth, he was promised a second chance at life after he brought all of us back from the Shrine!"

    "...Is that actually what they said?" Sheep turned to Gale, "Cause if it is, then I''m sure you''re the one that most deserves it!"

    "Heck yeah, Gale solved the mystery!" I rejoiced, "Congrats, man! A-Ah, probably shouldn''t be counting our chickens before they hatch, but still!"

    "G-Guys..." Gale whimpered.

    "Are you all out of your minds!?" Throne raged, "He was merely using you for his own benefit! Only he would get resurrected, no one else! Don''t you find that deplorable?"

    "We don''t." Vastoria sternly told him off, "Because Gale is our friend. And when your friend succeeds, then it ought to feel like you''ve succeeded yourself."

    "Everyone...!" Gale began to tear up like a huge baby.

    Heh, just look at him¡ªAll proud of his buddies for believing in him and stuff! Yeah, obviously we wouldn''t turn on the guy that''s literally been supporting us throughout this entire journey. And the fact that he was the one to reveal this supposed dark secret himself only makes our point stronger. Gale deserves that second chance, at the very least a lot more than we do. At any rate, I''m just glad we found out there actually exists a way to revive in the first place. I feel like we''ve finally made the first real step to solving this whole divine mystery since arriving at Heaven 2.0.

    "I''m sure Sab will forgive you eventually if we explain everything to him." Vastoria reassured Gale.

    "Yeah, and besides¡ªAfter you give him back his wings, it''ll be no harm no foul." Sheep chuckled.

    "That''s-" Gale was about to reply, but Throne cut him off one more damned time.

    "Ahem." He cleared his throat audibly, "Isn''t there a tiiiiny little detail you forgot to mention, Galey? Perhaps in regards to the offer''s availability?"

    "A-Ah, the offer... In the end, I won''t take it." Gale solemnly lowered his head in shame, "Despite everything, I did Sab in my attempts to get it, so although I don''t think there''s ever really going to be a proper way to atone for my actions, I believe it won''t ever be fair unless I do this."

    "...Hah?" I glared at him, "You''re not gonna take the offer?"

    "But it''s your, nay, OUR only chance to learn what it''s like to revive!" Sheep explained my disgust with words, "Gale, you can''t be serious."

    "You two, it''s his decision." Vastoria sided with him, "So long as we''re together, we can find another way."

    "Face it, there is no other way." Throne crossed his arms, "Gale told me before. He said the Gods would only allow him this one exception. He IS that exception, and there will be no others."

    "Then he has to take it!" I voiced my opinion, "Gale, disregard Sab. We''ll convince him that you had to revive, and I''m sure once we explain everything fully, he''ll...!"

    "I''m not gonna take the offer no matter what." Gale stood his ground, "I... I think the Gods lied about being able to revive me."

    What''s this all of a sudden? He''s gotten serious again, which means what he''s about to tell us is something he can only dish out with a heavy heart. The Gods would lie about such a thing? There''s no way, they''d have to be lesser than a flea to such a horrible prank...

    "What are you on about now?" Throne rolled his Eyes.

    "I''d die anyways, regardless." Gale explained, "For me, it''d be an entire lifetime back in the World of the Living, but for Gale, it''d be less than an instant. For all I know, the Gods could just snap their fingers and tell me something like "There, you lived a proper life and are back here" and I would have no way of knowing if they''re telling the truth or not."

    "That''s... N-No, they might let you keep some memories as proof!" I refuted.

    "Memories they could probably just make up to keep me happy?" He sighed, "Realistically, it''s not even worth it to try asking them to give me the offer. Realistically... this entire chase for the secret behind resurrection is probably not worth it."

    His spirit is broken. We all wanna desperately prove him wrong, but the sad truth is¡ªNo one has anything to refute him with. Gale has shown us his bare emotions and laid them out for us fully, but we as his useless teammates can only sit there and poke them with a stick. No matter how I try and cut in, there''s just no counter argument to make here. After you die, there is absolutely no coming back.

 Vol.3 Ch.71 - Just Like That

    "...Oh." Gale saw a faint crystalline light shine through from behind the corner, "We made it¡ªFloor 1."

    "All those bugs and traps are behind us, finally." Vastoria breathed a sigh of relief, "The first floor is just a straight shot to the outside."

    They were acting as if nothing had even happened. Gale gave up on his prospects of resurrecting, even now when he''s the only one who has a chance of making it happen. It''s utterly stupid, I can''t condone it no matter how adamant he is about quitting. If he would just agree to try it, then...!

    "Stop looking at me like that." He caught me staring daggers at him, "I''ve stated my case. Reviving won''t mean anything in the grand scheme of things."

    "So you''re saying that to have died is to have never lived?" Throne clicked his tongue at him, "Galey, I don''t think you understand. I''m not gonna let you have a choice."

    "And what''s that supposed to mean?"

    "It means, if you don''t take Sab''s wings to the Gods'' Abode and have them revive you, me and everyone else is going to go back into this Shrine until we find a way ourselves."

    Hey now, no need to go all out with the ultimatums all of a sudden. There are better ways of convincing him. Right, Gale needs to accept the offer, but we also know that it won''t effectively change anything for OUR situation. We still need to figure out what the reason was for him and me keeping our memories from yesterday. Well, it seems no matter how you slice it, we''ll have to go ask the Gods about it.

    "I''m taking the wings back to him, not making any detours." Gale crossed his arms defiantly.

    "Well, we''ll be going to the Abode anyways, so it would be nice if you didn''t make Throne have to do multiple trips." I chimed in, "The wings aren''t going anywhere, and without them Sab won''t be capable of straying too far from his house."

    "Maggie... Tch, fine." Gale annoyedly obliged, "Hm? Hey, what time is it...?"

    We all knew the reason behind such a worried tone, for the moment we walked out of the Shrine we saw not the White sky, but a pale and foggy Gray. Of course, we''ve spent a considerable amount of time inside the Shrine, so it would make sense that we''ve already encroached upon the forbidden bedtime. According to what the others told us, this is around the time goat skulled beings known as White Monster Apostles begin to show up, preying on the Heavenly Beings yet to have called it a day.

    "Watch out, they can teleport in front of you at any moment!" Sheep covered mine and Gale''s Eyes, "One good look at their faces makes you fall asleep and temporarily become one of them within an instant. It''s over once that happens."

    "It seems we''re safe so long as we stay inside the barrier..." Vastoria glanced around until she found them, "Ah, I can see a faint golden glow behind the walls there! Could those be the wings?"

    "Hmph. Well, if you''ll excuse me..." Throne turned back to re-enter the Shrine.

    "O-Oi, get back here!" Gale stopped him, "What are you doing now? Have you gone mad?!"

    "What? We''re safer in here than out there." He shrugged, "We can go when morn arrives, but I am not about to risk getting put to sleep and have my wings left out here while I get sent back to my home."

    For a contrarian, he really is good. I don''t believe even a single one of his ideas has aligned with our own. It makes sense, what he''s saying, but we don''t know what''ll happen to Gale and me once the reset occurs. They''re all seraphim or shopkeepers, so they''ll keep their memories for sure, but what about us? We can''t afford to wait."

    "M-Migu!" Vastoria yelped once I ran headfirst into the barrier, phasing through it as if it was a liquid, "No!"

    "She''s trying to bring the wings to us." Gale shook his head before running out as well, "But that won''t work, the barrier repels them!"

    With the two of us out here alone in the dead of night, a somewhat eerie feeling began to encompass us. I tried picking up the pure gold wings, but both proved themselves to be way too heavy to carry. This was about when Gale lunged at me, lying on top of me and pressing his chest on my face.

    "Mph! Can''t breathe!" I protested, only to look up and see the edge of a goat skull on him, "Shit...!"

    So that''s why he looked so anxious... I see, the White Monster is already here, and he took Gale. No, it must have been aiming for me, but Gale covered my Eyes with his body, sacrificing himself just to keep me safe. His body is heavy, almost like a lifeless corpse... I can''t keep staying under him.

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    "Hrngh...!" I finally rolled him aside, my Eyes firmly shut as I used the voices of my teammates to orientate myself.

    "Over here!" Vastoria poked her head out through the barrier to call for me, "Run to my voice!"

    "I can''t leave Gale out here!" I shouted.

    "Just do it!" Throne''s voice sprung me into action.

    Leaving Gale was a necessity. I had no other choice, lest I became the same gruesome corpse as him. Upon hitting the wall once more, I cleanly phased right through it, as expected. The surprise came from a strong right hook to the cheek that sent me tumbling to the ground.

    "Throne!" Vastoria and Sheep berated him, but he ignored them as he picked me up for another hit.

    "You rash bitch of a woman! Look what you did now!" He hit me again.

    "Ubu-! S-Sobbwy...!" I cried out in tears as blood spewed from my nose, "Ngah!"

    "Throne, you''re gonna kill her!" Sheep grabbed him by the shoulder, only to get the wind kicked out of him with a knee to the stomach, "Unf!"

    "Gale...! Sowwy...! Gah!" I cried out remorsefully, reflecting on my actions as I got sent flying to the edge of the barrier''s interior, "Shtahp, pleash...!"

    "Because of you, we can''t have Gale revive anymore!" Throne kept punching me over and over until my consciousness began to fade, "Because of you, we lost our chance! Because of you...!"

    A strong thunk hit one last time, signalling the end of this one sided and utterly pointless brawl. My Eyes were so swollen I couldn''t even see in front of me, but a gentle voice kept me from falling asleep. It was over. Regrettably... it was over.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    With a gentle peck to my forehead, Vastoria nurtured me back to a stable state. I still couldn''t quite open my Eyes fully, but the adrenaline from everything at least numbed the pain a little. Just barely, I could see through squinted Eyes her and Sheep looking at me with Eyes of guilt and sorrow. Throne, where is...?

    "Ah." I saw a man with his head cut off out of the corner of my Eyes.

    "He thought he could get away with trying to kill you. Well, not on my watch." Sheep confessed, "After he knocked me away, I ran outside the wall to grab Gale''s mandible sword. Not even gonna lie, it felt so damn satisfying to use against that prick..."

    "Sheep... You killed Throne." I said in between ragged, forced breaths, "We''re inside the Shrine''s barrier... His soul is destroyed..."

    "If he hadn''t done what he did, then you would be the one without a soul." Vastoria smiled gently, "I''m glad Sheep did it."

    Slowly, her smile began to grow heavy, until her entire face drooped down into a mournful sulk. Tears enveloped her Eyes, dripping down her face as her brave facade crumpled away. Vastoria was the one most scared of us all, because she had almost lost me, and actually did lose Gale and Throne. Granted, Gale will probably wake up in the next cycle, but how much will he remember? No, I''m too tired to think about that right now. For now, all we could do was wait for morning to arrive in this Shrine''s suffocating safety.

    "...Hey, look." Sheep noticed the blurry figures of the White Monster Apostles pick up Gale''s body and float away with it, "So this must be how we always wake up in our beds, huh."

    "At least we know he''s okay." Vastoria composed herself, "What now? Should we... go check on him once the morning comes?"

    "I think we should... still go to the Gods'' Abode." I said with a strained tone, "We can''t let... their sacrifices be in... vain."

    "Cool it with the yapping." Sheep advised.

    "No, it''s good that she''s talking." Vastoria countered, "We can''t have her falling asleep now. We need to think of ways to stay awake until we meet up with the Gods."

    "Heh, I got a game we could play..." I chuckled.

    "We''re not playing Who Utters." Both of them replied in a deadpanned unison.

    The air was sweet and calming, as if there wasn''t a dead body mere meters away from us. Throne, that man had it coming for a long time now. I just... I guess I just expected Gale to be the one to do the deed. And look at us now, all because of my stupidity, we''re left without either person to call a leader. Like sheep without a shepherd dog, where do we wander now? Looking at each others'' butts for guidance won''t give us much to work with, so unless someone steps up, we''re never gonna recover from this.

    "...Listen." I slightly startled them as I spoke with a bit louder of a voice than usual, "Vastoria will take one pair of wings and carry us to the Gods. We''ll ask them everything we wanna know."

    "Eh? We''re gonna leave the other wings just sitting there?" Vastoria tilted her head.

    "I saw how heavy they were." I shook my head, "Neither Sheep nor I have ever flown with them before, and we know they can carry a lot more than just 2 people. It''s regrettable, but Sab will have to wait a bit before he gets his wings back."

    They were apprehensive about just up and leaving the wings behind, but we had to prioritize the Gods first. If we asked them to tell us more about the offer, more about revival, then Throne''s death and Gale''s sacrifice wouldn''t have been for nothing. The wings are quite literally past the edge of this afterworld, idly leaning on the cold barrier of the Shrine most considered to be mythical. Besides, something tells me we won''t be taking too much time anyways...

    Once morning arrived, we peeked out of the wall, looking down so as to not meet any stray White Monster gazes. Successfully, we had survived the night without going to sleep. But we didn''t have time to celebrate, for we had to quickly equip Vastoria with the late Throne''s wings and depart for the Gods'' Abode. From above, it was easy to spot the larger than average golf course sized yard in the distance, so after not even 10 minutes of travel time, we had arrived to knock on the doors to the mansion.

    "This is... a surprising turn of events." Selzion cackled, seeing the three of us in such a sorry state, "Pry, get out here! Come check this out!"

    "Hm? Oh, well that''s quite a shame." Prylos simply shrugged, "So he couldn''t hold up his end of the deal, after all. That Gale..."

    "Resurrect us in his stead!" I demanded, propped up from both sides by Vastoria and Sheep, "Unless of course, you''re chicken!"

 Vol.3 Ch.72 - Cleaned Slate

    "...Chicken?" The Gods furrowed their brows as they looked to the other two for answers.

    "Ah, she lost a lot of blood, don''t mind her." Vastoria explained, "Not everything she says is gonna make sense."

    "But the first part is true." Sheep kept staring at them seriously, "We demand to get revived, since Gale''s spot is vacant."

    "Nope, if that''ll be all then-"

    "That will not be all, dammit!" I shouted again, "Ngah... My head..."

    "You''ve endured the entire night without a wink of sleep." Prylos immediately noticed, "Though commendable, we must ask you to go to rest soon. It is not safe for your body."

    Heh, yeah right! I know more than anyone that my body is being forced to go through an uncomfortable experience like this, but if I let my guard down, I''ll surely lose all my memories. At the very least, I need to help Vastoria and Sheep extract as much info from the Gods as possible.

    "Why did you promise Gale such an offer?" I asked, slightly calmer than before, "For the Gods to give an angel the possibility of revival, you surely must have had an important reason."

    "Hrm... We can talk more about this inside." Prylos motioned for us to follow him.

    "Hey, Pry!" Selzion got pissed, "Will you stop letting your guard around them?! Don''t make me remind you what happened last time they were here."

    "Are you afraid of the three ants and what they can do?" Prylos smirked, "Oh my Me, don''t you know it''s rude to turn down weary guests?"

    "Hmph!" Selzion stared at us as he moved aside as well, "I got my Eyes on you."

    "How swell..." We chuckled uninterestedly.

    Walking into the large church-like interior for the second time in waking memory, I couldn''t help but notice the jolting sound of the Gods snapping their fingers in unison. Within the blink of an Eye, a comfy looking sofa appeared before us as they nodded for us to take a seat.

    "We won''t be staying long, thank you." Vastoria shook her head.

    With a listless sigh, the two Gods glanced at each other before snapping their fingers again. The sofa was gone, and in its place stood three White plastic chairs that looked significantly less comfy. Damn, now I kinda regret not taking the sofa. They could''ve at least given us some mats as well...

    "Throne, where is he?" Prylos suddenly asked.

    "A-Ah!" I jumped in my seat, "That''s, uhm..."

    "He''s dead." Sheep confessed without remorse, "I killed him."

    "Did you do it inside the Shrine?" Selzion raised an Eyebrow.

    "Just outside of the entrance, but that still fell within the barrier''s effects. He''s not waking up from that."

    How could he face two Gods, stating such a sin so bravely without a hint of fear?! Sheep, I gave you less credit than you deserve, but I don''t think now is the right time to play the hero! What if they punish you for it!

    "H-He did it in self-defense!" Vastoria piped up, "And Migu too, had he not killed Throne, then Throne would''ve...!"

    "Okay, that''s good." Prylos nodded, "No need to explain yourselves, let''s just say mission accomplished and move on."

    "Mission..." I cocked my head back, "Accomplished...?"

    "You''re talking to the First and Third smartest Gods of this world, do you really think we didn''t expect Throne and Gale to not be at each others'' throats the entire time?" Prylos chuckled.

    "Third place is kind of pushing it." Selzion figured, "You and Allucius are pretty similar, but she''s far more mature."

    "The exact details don''t matter!" Prylos bashfully shot back, "Point is, we sent Gale in there with him knowing full well how this was gonna turn out. The main goal was always to get rid of him."

    The main goal of the mission... was to get rid of Throne? No, but wasn''t it to save us? Why didn''t they just tell that to Gale from the start? A-Ah, I guess it''s because he probably wouldn''t have gone through with it. Even at the very end, Gale kept trying to get everyone to safety, yelling for Throne not to re-enter the Shrine. So then, had I not rushed out and gotten him eaten by the White Monster, he wouldn''t have satisfied the Gods anyways?

    "I''m not vindicating you for wanting to kill that prick Throne, but I gotta ask why you couldn''t just kill him yourself?" Sheep rocked back in his chair with crossed legs.

    "The Shrine is the only place left that we can use for the assassination to work." Selzion explained, "And Throne is as smart as he gets, barring his ego. He wouldn''t have died in there by himself. We needed a proxy to do it, among other things."

    "What are those other things?" I asked without skipping a beat.

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    "...Of course, I totally forgot, but..." Selzion looked around, "Where is the other one? Sab, was it?"

    "Answer the ques-"

    "I am answering the question!" He cut me off angrily, "But I need to know first¡ªWhere. Is. He?"

    Putting his hand on Selzion''s chest to stop him from freaking out too much, it appears Prylos already surmised roughly what had occurred from context clues. With Eyes shrunk back in horror, the Meditation God gulped as he repeated the events back to everyone.

    "H-He didn''t..." He stuttered, "Once we snapped Gale to Sab''s house, the only way he could''ve gotten there was with a pair of wings..."

    "...That stupid, insolent moron!" Selzion realized it too, "Dammit, we shouldn''t have entrusted such an intricate plan to a buffoon like him! Sab was supposed to come to the Shrine with you all!"

    "And why is that?" Vastoria instructed all of us to get up, worrying we might be facing the brunt of these two''s rage.

    "Throne and Sab are the catalysts to a very terrible disaster that might happen in the future." Prylos held out his fingers as he was about to snap us back home, "We need both of them gone so that Heaven 2.0 can continue operations without issues. Now that you know all this, we trust you will help us get the rest of the job finished."

    "W-Wait!" I shouted as I heard an ear-piercing snap, "What''s in it for us-!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Back in Sab''s house, the seraphim effectively turned angel was seething in his room. After the reset, his house was brought back to its original state before Gale destroyed it completely. Everything, even the pillow cases they used as a makeshift rope to transport them to the Shrine, they were all brought back. Everything was still there... except for his wings.

    "He''s dead. Oh, he''s so dead once I get my hands on him!" Sab kicked a pillow into the wall in frustration, "The bastard, he''s gonna regret messing with me! Ugh, it''s about time the reset happened."

    Without his wings, he really couldn''t have done much to find his newest arch-enemy. His best bet was to wait until the next cycle began so that he could jump him at his own house. Theoretically, everyone gets teleported back to their bed once the reset happens, so all he could do was exercise patience until it was the right time to strike.

    "And that time is now!" He shouted, slamming his front door open before rushing out into the yard, only stopping once he realized, "Ah, I don''t actually know where he lives."

    He first met Gale as GaLi while him and Maggie (then Magnes) bumped into him on the side of the road. They never showed each other their addresses, and the chances of finding Gale randomly out and about on the street a second time were less than favorable. Thinking back, he recalled how he had met Gale back in Throne''s house, which is exactly where he had set off to go.

    "Excuse me, coming through!" He pushed aside the crowd of people walking aimlessly through the streets, "Move out the way, dammit! Unf!"

    As it always seems to be the case in Heaven 2.0, being a rude idiot that constantly pushes random people on the street aside, you''re bound to stumble across someone who refuses to budge. In Sab''s case, though his anger was more so directed at getting to Gale as soon as possible, he instead ran into a golden armed fellow with a livid expression that made his own anger look like a child''s tantrum. This angel, with the familiar initials H.T, was about to show Sab the true meaning of pain.

    "...Careful, sir." He was instead surprisingly chill, "M-My arms... They''re kinda strong, so I hope you didn''t hurt yourself on them."

    "E-Eh? No, not at all." Sab cocked his head back in utter confusion, "S-Sorry for bumping into you. Cool arms, by the way! What''s your name?"

    "Name..." The burly man looked at the initials on the back of his hands before bashfully muttering, "Hatwell."

    "Pfft-!"

    "Oi, don''t make fun of it!" Hatwell raised his fist threateningly, prompting Sab to shut up.

    "Nice to meet you, Hatwell!" Sab stiffened up, extending his hand out for a handshake.

    As the two were about to exchange a pleasant handshake, a sudden intrusion spelled the end for their carefree moment. Climbing atop Hatwell''s wide back, a man with intense agility and strength straddled his neck and began to choke him.

    "Y-You!" The man addressed Sab, "Run away! This guy caused a rampage yestercycle and almost killed my friends!"

    "W-What are you...!? Khk!" Hatwell cried out in pain, "Argh, lemme go!"

    The two men initiated a full-on brawl in the middle of the street, with Hatwell just trying to survive with his head on his shoulders, and the other guy constantly yelling for others in the vicinity to run away. Everyone obliged, of course, except for the gobsmacked Sab who kept standing there, glaring at the man attacking his new friend like an idiot.

    "...Gale?" He muttered under his breath, "Tch, let go of him, he''s not harming anyone!"

    "H-Huh?" Gale took a better look at the man standing before him, "Are you... Sab? Throne''s apprentice? I thought you had wings-"

    Alas, this moment of hesitation cost Gale plenty as Hatwell flung him into the ground until it made a dent. Thankfully for him, the ground was made of clouds. Not so thankfully for him, Hatwell''s body was not.

    "Ngah!" Gale whimpered as the large man sat on him to disable him, "H-Hoo..."

    "Your name." Sab squatted down to meet his Eye level.

    "Heh, at least tell your buddy here to get off me..."

    "Your name." Sab asked again with the same serious tone.

    "...Gale."

    "Derived from?"

    "Uhh, my initials?" Gale barely freed his hands to show him, "L.G"

    "L.G, huh?" Sab donned a mischievous smile on his face as he gave him a new identity, "Isn''t Elegy better?"

    "Dude, I don''t care what name you give me, just get this fatass off me!" Elegy begged.

    With a continued silence, Sab walked around to signal for Hatwell to let him go. Begrudgingly, and with a lot of protest, he eventually did as he was told. Sab was now in a prime position to get his revenge, and not just on Gale, mind you, but on everyone who had ever seen him as nothing more than just a pair of wings. It was time for the Catalyst of Heaven''s Fall to make his debut.

    "What I''m about to tell you is called gaslighting in my time." Sab hoisted Elegy back up on his feet before extending a handshake, "Hi, my name is Sorbet. Nice to meet you, Elegy."

    "That''s not my... Well, whatever. Sorry about this, I thought you were someone I knew." Elegy returned the handshake before turning to the other one, "And you?"

    "...Hatwell." He bashfully muttered.

    "Oh, cool name!" Elegy smiled brightly, "Sounds like a detective!"

    "Y-You think so?" Hatwell smiled right back.

    "Hey now, I can''t help but fall back on that thing you just said." Sorbet feigned a worried expression, "You... remember your past?"

    "Oh no, just yestercycle." Elegy explained, "Actually, I was just about to go find my friends and ask them why..."

    "I haven''t met anyone that remembers anything about their past." Sorbet did his best to curb his devious smirk, "Are you sure you weren''t just... dreaming?"

 Vol.3 Afterword

    Goosebumps! So many revelations, so many plot twists, and now, so many changes! I''m really glad with how the Volume turned out this time. Unlike the first two Volumes that sort of felt like they were still trying to get their footing, Volume 3 was really in that sweet spot where the scenario and context was already laid out, so we could get to the story immediately!

    I decided to separate the Volume into 4 quarters each containing 6 chapters to hopefully make the pacing a little easier to digest. I usually do this with more expansive/confusing plots that involve a ton of moving pieces. Let me know how i handled it, I''m always willing to improve.

    A large part of the Volume was spent inside the Shrine, to the point where I almost forgot this was all taking place in Heaven! When they exited the Shrine and encountered the White Monster, I''ll be honest, I was quite relieved. Nostalgic even! Can''t say the same for Gale and Throne, however.

    Yes, Throne is our first confirmed kill of the series. Let''s hope there aren''t any (or at least many) more. Initially, the premise of not being able to die in Heaven 2.0 was a double edged sword, because I wanted to explore scenarios where you couldn''t kill your enemies no matter what. Throne, however, was already getting to be quite problematic both for me and the Gods, what with his incessant contrarian attitude and an endless thirst for reaching the end of the dungeon. Besides, after hyping up the only place in Heaven where people could die, it would be a huge letdown if they got out scot-free.

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    Many changes occurred in our cast as well. Sheep never got his hand healed back, so he still only has one. Vastoria and Migu tied the knot and are now involved romantically, though they don''t exactly have a lot of free time to spend it on dates and such. Gale, Haunt and Sab have now formed a dastardly new trio, with new identities to match! Say hello to Elegy (again), Hatwell and Sorbet! ...I-I know, the names aren''t that good, just-

    Point is, the constantly changing names have become a staple of this series, and I wanted to incorporate that factor into the story by showing that even the characters can get fooled by nothing more than a mere name change. Perhaps the Gods should''ve given their subjects more to work with than just two letters. Perhaps... this will cost them.

    Okay, okay! Enough talking about the future, ''cause we''re in the present! And present tense Mikan wants to once again thank you for all the support you''ve shown me thus far. As some may know, this is my second webnovel series I''m writing, with the completed Transcontinental being the other one. The plot, cast, locations and ideas are a lot more ambitious, but you can clearly see my humble beginnings as an amateur way back when. If you wanna show your support, do give that story a read as well to pass the time while you wait for new chapters of Heaven''s Calling.

    That''s about all I have to say. Tomorrow you can expect the beginning of the next arc with Volume 4, as well as a new Cover featuring everyone''s favorite Vastoria! This is your friendly neighborhood Mikan Akai, signing out!

 Vol.4 Ch.73 - Ragtag

    "Nah, it happened." Elegy shook his head, "By the way, what was that "gaslighting" thing you mentioned?"

    "I never said anything about gaslighting." Sorbet replied.

    "Oh, my bad, must''ve misheard." He chuckled, "But seriously, you have the same golden part pattern and initials as my friend Sab. You sure you''re not..."

    "We''re not friends..." Sorbet mumbled.

    "What was that?"

    "I-I said I''m not your friend Sab." He quickly corrected himself, "Look, I''ve met dozens of people since waking up and no one knew anything before they woke up. What makes you so different?"

    "I-I... I don''t know." Elegy looked down, frustrated that he couldn''t prove his memory retention to Sorbet, "But I know what I saw!"

    "Uhm." Hatwell suddenly raised his hand, "I remember stuff from before waking up."

    "...Come again?" The both of them looked baffled.

    Hatwell, previously known as Haunt, or more accurately the rampaging madman wreaking havoc in the streets of Heaven 2.0. A couple cycles back, Elegy deduced he must have died before properly growing up, hence why he was so naive of the world''s offerings. Of course, since this was a while ago, the current iteration of Elegy has since forgotten this. Sorbet was even worse, for he hadn''t even met that Haunt. They both knew it was possible to retain one''s memories under certain scenarios, but as far as they knew, Hatwell didn''t fall into either one. He neither looked the part of a seraphim nor a shopkeeper, so this was quite the shock.

    "W-What kind of memories?" Sorbet asked.

    "Scary stuff, I don''t like talking about them." Hatwell looked down, "But, if you wanna know..."

    "We wanna know!" Elegy jumped on the chance to learn more about memory retention, "If you don''t mind, it would mean the world to me... to us, if you told us your experiences."

    Glancing at them with a face of uncertainty and anxiety, Hatwell was backed into a figurative corner known as peer pressure. His inexperience in dealing with the social phenomenon caused him to fold under said pressure all too quickly and tell them, no matter how scary it was to recall. With a deep sigh, coupled with a shaky, quivering voice, he meekly elaborated.

    "Skull heads." He muttered.

    "The White Monsters...!" Sorbet muttered before realizing he interrupted him, "A-Ah, sorry. Please continue."

    "...I remember waking up two days ago." Hatwell continued, "Back then, I didn''t know where I was. I didn''t know anyone, and I was scared of everyone''s White bodies. They didn''t look human."

    "Makes sense, we''re no longer humans." Elegy nodded, "But Heavenly Beings¡ªAngels and seraphim."

    "Yeah, but I didn''t know that back then, so I ran." He continued, "I ran and ran, as fast and as far as I could. I eventually reached some sort of gate with a knight that didn''t let me pass."

    "Knight?" Elegy tilted his head.

    "That''s probably the guard." Sorbet looked at him, "Heaven''s divided into tons of districts, with guards protecting each one from people hopping over between them."

    "Hm..."

    "O-Or so I''ve heard."

    Despite his incessant denial of being Sab, Elegy still didn''t fully trust his words. Regardless, he couldn''t think of any reason for why Sab would be lying to him, so he decided to let it be for now. Also, he secretly really liked the new name he was given.

    "Can I continue talking now?" Hatwell got a bit fussy over constantly getting interrupted.

    "The stage is all yours." They promptly shut up.

    "Ugh, stupids..." Hatwell let slip a slightly immature comment before continuing his story, "So, where was I? Oh right, the guard was super mean to me, then he slammed his spear on the ground-"

    "Polearm." Sorbet couldn''t help but correct him, only to get smacked on the back of the head by Elegy, "Ack!"

    "...He slammed his polearm on the ground." Hatwell sighed, "Then that scary thing showed up, and I fell asleep right away."

    "Mn, that makes sense..." Sorbet thought in his head, "But he should''ve forgotten everything from that day the moment he dropped to the ground. I know I shouldn''t be saying anything, ''cause a similar thing happened when I got devoured by the White Monster horde. But it''s different for me, since I turned into a seraphim right before that. Gasp, he couldn''t be...!"

    "Hm, what he said lines up with what we know..." Elegy made a mental deduction of his own in his head, "Just like me, he remembers the previous day. But our situations were different. He was eaten by that White Monster thing, while Maggie and the rest of us were tussling with the Gods. At first I assumed the Gods let us keep our memories of that encounter so that we "wouldn''t think to do it again", but I guess that theory kind of falls through now. Wait, could it be...!"

    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

    "Ah, but then I woke up back in the same home I woke up in the day before." Hatwell interrupted both of their trains of thought, "I was so scared, I ran out and started beating everyone whose body was White."

    "Isn''t that everyone?" Elegy chuckled.

    "Yeah, I think that was what you saw, and that''s why you thought I was gonna hurt Sorbet." He nodded, "Sorry, but after seeing such a scary nightmare, I kinda didn''t wanna look at anyone that even sort of resembled that thing..."

    "So you''re not a seraphim?" Sorbet popped the question at an awkward time.

    "Sera...phim?" Hatwell could only blankly stare back at him.

    "You sure know a lot about Heaven, despite claiming you only know stuff from today." Elegy glared suspiciously at him.

    "I-I like to ask around, okay?!" Sorbet defended himself desperately, "I think I was a detective in my past life, because finding all of this info out came naturally to me, y''know?"

    "...Maybe so." Elegy nodded, albeit still not moving his Eyes off of him, "Honestly, we could do with a guy like you, in that case."

    "We?" Sorbet inquired.

    "My friends." He smiled, "You may not believe me, but I do remember stuff from yesterday. I met a friend named Maggie, a guy named Sheep, and two seraphim named Throne and Sab. We tried infiltrating the Gods'' Abode, but they caught us."

    "...And what happened then?" Sorbet asked, feigning ignorance.

    "I woke up and found you two."

    "Yeah, you just made all that up." Sorbet felt there was a need to retcon some info from that story, "To begin with, no one''s ever met the Gods personally, much less been to their Abode or whatever."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    At this point, Elegy was beyond confused. If this person was Sab, he would immediately know not to trust his words, but since Sab and Throne worked closely with their party before, he had no reason to doubt him. This only left the more unfavorable possibility, that being that this indeed was a completely different person who just shared similar gilded parts and initials with Sab. But if that was the case, then that would mean that Elegy would have to start doubting his own memories and mind. Regardless of which one he wanted to choose, both seemed quite terrible in their own way.

    "I talked to the Gods personally. I was inside their house, for Prylos'' sake!" He argued.

    "Yeah, yeah, save the fairy tales for a more gullible audience." Sorbet kept teasing him.

    "I believe you, Elegy." Hatwell chimed in.

    "Grrr, alright then! What does this supposed Abode look like?!" Sorbet quickly stopped them from growing too attached to one another.

    Even for Sorbet, this was still far from a calm situation. He was effectively walking on a tightrope with each sentence uttered, for if he accidentally pretended to doubt Elegy too much, the Hatwell and Elegy would just leave Sorbet and continue with their investigation themselves. Likewise, if he accepted that what Elegy said about his past was true, then his hidden identity as Sab would be found out all too soon. If he wanted to exact his perfect revenge, he had to be a lot more careful than he was up to this point.

    "It''s a huge yard, like 9 times the size of everyone else''s." Elegy explained, "And the house on top of it is more like a mansion on the outside, but on the inside it''s like a church!"

    "A mansion that''s a church on the inside?" Even Hatwell began to doubt such a farfetched description.

    "See that? Even your dearest follower doesn''t believe you." Sorbet noted, "Look, I get it. You had a whacky dream that you thought was real, and now you''re struggling to admit it wasn''t. Happens to the best of us, but you gotta move on."

    "Yet you believe Hatwell!?" Elegy lashed out suddenly.

    He was quite literally on the brink of leaving Sorbet for good. The guy was as skeptical as they get, and though Elegy did admit he would be a great asset to the team, he didn''t want to have to deal with someone constantly nagging him and telling him he''s crazy until they met back up with Maggie and Sheep. Sorbet had to dial it back ASAP, otherwise this entire plan would fall through.

    "...Hatwell told us about the district borders and their guardsmen, not to mention White Monsters." Sorbet looked at him with a genuinely worried expression, "You only talked about stuff I''ve never even heard about. Not only that, but no one I''ve asked had heard about it either apparently. No offense, but would you listen to something as bizarre as that if it came from my mouth?"

    "...Tch, I know what I saw." Elegy clicked his tongue, "All I need to do is find my group and they''ll tell you."

    "And where is that group now?" Sorbet felt a chance begin to show itself.

    "I-I don''t know."

    "I wanna believe you, Elegy." Sorbet said with the corners of his lips twitching, "So may I make a suggestion?"

    "Hm?" Elegy furrowed his brows.

    "There is a place, far far away from where Heavenly Beings reside." Sorbet explained, now fully showing a nasty, wolfish grin, "It is a place known as the Shrine. From my investigations, I''ve concluded almost everyone knows about it, so I''ll bet your friends are gunning for it too. That is, IF they exist, of course."

    "Shrine?" Elegy looked confused, "What''s so special about it?"

    "I''ve only heard rumors, but legend has it that people who go there will learn the secret to revival."

    It appears the information Throne had given him all that time ago hadn''t gone to waste after all. Despite the fact that both Gale and Throne betrayed him for their own gain, he still couldn''t help but acknowledge them as being helpful in this current situation. Gale left for the Shrine with Sorbet''s wings, and he came back without them. This can only mean one thing¡ªThose wings are still there, waiting for their rightful owner to come back.

    "I was planning on going there anyways, and it seems you two are eager to learn more about this place anyways." Sorbet extended a polite hand once more, "So, what say you? Shall the three of us form a team and do our best to reach that place? At our finish line, all of our answers will be revealed. Doesn''t that sound romantic?"

    "...You''re a damn good investigator, Sorbet." Elegy returned the handshake enthusiastically.

    "Eugh, romantic?" Hatwell hesitantly followed suit, "I don''t care about love though, especially not with other guys!"

    "Romantic doesn''t always mean love." Elegy explained, "In general, it can also mean something that''s incredible and adventurous. Like in stories where the protagonist is described as a hopeless romantic, but in actuality that just means he longs for a hero''s journey."

    "Protagonist...?" Hatwell didn''t understand any of those complicated sounding words, "Hopeless romantic? Hero''s journey?"

    "Dude, have you ever read a book before?"

    "Nope, never." Hatwell shrugged.

    And so, the three began their journey across Heaven 2.0 by foot. It would be an extremely grueling journey, one that would most definitely take countless days, if not weeks until they made it. Each night, they would have to survive the onslaught of White Monsters, and every day they would have to deal with hopping the inter-district borders. But Sorbet wasn''t dissuaded, for once he got his wings back... All Hell would break loose.

 Vol.4 Ch.74 - Preparations

    "Then, let''s get moving." Sorbet pointed over yonder.

    "Hey, hold on." Elegy stopped him as soon as that happened, "As with any great journey, shouldn''t the heroes first grab some proper gear?"

    "Gear? Like what? There''s nothing to die from, we''re already dead."

    "Can we get snacks first?" Hatwell raised a meek suggestion.

    "Why would you want snacks if we can''t even get hungry...!?" Sorbet shot back, "And to begin with, where would we even get snacks?"

    "The same place we''d get the rest of our gear!" Elegy picked out a random house that looked vacant, "From the people!"

    A fool proof plan, if he did say so himself. Then again, it''s not up to him to decide, because for everyone else that plan was just as abhorrent as it sounded. To begin with, Sorbet was the first to speak out against such an out of touch idea as burglary. Despite the fact that he was the one reminding them they''d have to resort to any means necessary to get to the Shrine, he didn''t exactly want them to stoop so low that fast.

    "You wanna steal from other people''s houses?" Sorbet made sure he heard that part right.

    "But stealing is bad!" Hatwell reminded him too.

    "Who cares? We''re in Heaven anyways, so it''s not like we''ll face any repercussions." Elegy shrugged with a smug grin.

    "You could get kicked out, for one." Hatwell sighed.

    "Actually, a little birdie told me something you guys are gonna find very interesting...!" Elegy smirked, "When I first came here¡ªbefore everyone else did as a matter of fact¡ªA Divine Voice told me something."

    "Divine Voice...?!" Sorbet jolted.

    Suddenly he was brought to the moment where it all began. Standing on air, thousands of meters above the ground of Heaven 2.0 with two other naked individuals, a man and a woman. Despite the fact they still lacked gilded parts and kept their private parts, their skin was the same snow White as everyone else''s is now. As the three tried to make sense of what was going on, the Divine Voice of Prylos himself descended upon them to explain a few things. Namely, that they were the first three people in Heaven 2.0. That, as well as one other thing...

    "The Divine Voice told me something about Heaven and Hell as we know it." Elegy proudly exclaimed, "The old Heaven, Heaven 1.0 if you will, got shut down because it got overcrowded. And Hell..."

    "Doesn''t exist!" Sorbet finished the thought for him.

    "...H-Hold on, how do you know that?" Elegy paused, petrified.

    "No way, you''re really...!"

    "What the hell are the chances!"

    For the first time in a while, the two men figured out they were fellow "first guests" of Heaven 2.0. The last time this happened was similarly due to extreme chance, though their current iterations don''t remember that far back at all. Now that Sorbet knew how deep rooted his relationship with Gale really is, he couldn''t help but let out a hardy chuckle.

    "This has to be fate." He shook his head, "That, or the Gods are playing some nasty trick on us."

    "You guys..." Hatwell interrupted their warm rendezvous moment, "Mind filling me in? Have you met before?"

    Still standing in the exact same spot as when they first met, not having moved even an inch from the starting line, they kept talking about all sorts of things, be it explaining to Hatwell their situation, or just reminiscing about the things they could reminisce about.

    "Man, that girl had some fine boobs..." Sorbet nodded to himself.

    "B-Boobs!?" Hatwell got embarrassed, "What the hell are you saying all of a sudden!? And what girl?"

    "What''s got you so Red in the face? This is basic level guy talk." Elegy looked at him oddly, "But I have to admit, it''s an odd thing to remember. Wasn''t she covering herself the entire time?"

    "Yeah, but that''s exactly what made the sight more alluring!" Sorbet talked like a creep, "The no-no spots were covered by her hands, but the rest was in plain view! It left so little to the imagination, I honestly found it hard not to keep my cool."

    "I still don''t get it. There was a time where all the girls weren''t wearing any clothes, so what''s the difference?" Elegy asked.

    "If you hadn''t realized yet, genius, all guys look the same, and all girls look the same respectively." He groaned, "But back then, we still kept our human sides'' physiques, so to speak. Meaning, she must''ve been one baaaad catch back!"

    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Finally getting the opportunity to talk with someone as freely and openly as this almost made Sab totally forget about his revenge plan altogether. For a moment, he even considered just leaving Gale alone after they got back his wings. After all, whatever it was that made Gale beat him up and take his wings obviously hadn''t happened yet for Elegy, so it might be alright to let bygones be bygones. Of course, whenever he would think like this, however, all the pain and betrayal he felt that day came rushing back down all at once. To forgive is to forget, and Sab was not going to let Elegy forget his wrongdoings...

    "Dude, you''re crazy." Elegy sighed, "That girl was probably scared out of her mind, and all you could think about was her body?"

    "Bad man..." Hatwell hissed.

    "Come on, what else was there to think about?" Sorbet defended his rousing emotions, "It''s not like I knew the girl before hand. What you see is what you get, and I got that that lady had some fine honkers. Not too big, not too small, just the perfect size!"

    "...I wonder where she''s at now." Elegy looked down, "Do you think we ever met her before, but never bothered to ask?"

    "The chances of the two of us meeting is already low enough as it is." He replied, "Besides, even if one of us did talk to her in the past, we never actually found it out, so it doesn''t matter."

    "Oh..."

    "Right now, what matters most is that we get to that Shrine!" He finally steered the conversation into a more productive route, "Come on, time''s a ticking!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "So, lemme ask just one last time." Elegy clapped his hands, "Are we stealing from people''s houses or not?"

    "What are you, president of the thieves guild?" Sorbet scowled, "Where did this sudden obsession with stealing come from?"

    "The term you''re looking for is high thief, not president, but okay." He made sure to correct him before continuing, "And in any case, we gotta have something to defend ourselves against the White Monsters with."

    "Can we even defend ourselves against them?" Hatwell fretted, "All it takes is one glance and you''re fast asleep. No sword or knife''s gonna make a difference in that case."

    "Hrm... N-Nevertheless, we still need something to help us hop the borders, right?" Elegy was incessant on this, "Like Sorbet, you said the borders were kept safe with guards. They have polearms, right? So if not weapons of our own, we at least should find ourselves some rope to climb over the fence."

    In truth, they would''ve already reached the first border had they just started walking at the end of the previous chapter. Sorbet didn''t know how much longer they had until bedtime, so he was under quite a bit of pressure to rush to a safe spot as fast as possible. Unlike when he could just fly up to safety with his wings, this time he would have to genuinely deal with the White Monsters throughout the entire journey. If he even once got devoured, he''d get sent all the way back here. His memories would be fine, since he''s still a seraphim mind you, but what good would that do if he''d get all his progress set back to zero? At this point, he just wanted to start the journey, regardless of how many detours he''d have to take in the meantime.

    "I somehow get the feeling that you just wanna steal stuff for the thrill..." He sighed, begrudgingly obliging nonetheless, "But fine, have it your way."

    "Woohoo!" Elegy raised his fists triumphantly, "Then, let''s snoop around the area for a house that doesn''t have anyone inside!"

    Walking around the area, it seems they were fresh out of luck. Most everyone was either unwinding back in the comfort of their new forever homes, or they had guests over to share the fun with. Regardless, the group ultimately decided to just go in the direction of the Shrine (which Sorbet tactically decided to hide how he knew it) and look for a suitable target on their way. Said target turned out to be a familiar Yellow house. It was homely and nostalgic, and more importantly¡ªNo one was occupying it at the current moment.

    "Great! Guess we found ourselves our very first heist hit!" Elegy put his hands on his hips proudly as Sorbet just waltzed right in through the front door, "O-Oi, be more careful! People are around!"

    "The more "careful" you act, the more suspicious passers-by will get." He replied with a dead inside tone, "Just shut your mouth and get in. And for the love of God, get whatever you need so we can get out of here."

    Surprisingly, they had found the owner of this house to be quite untidy. That, or their Heaven home was just unequivocally cluttered. Toys, board games, books, even a TV made its way somewhere in there, along with dozens of other random junk and gadgets. Truly, the house of a hoarder.

    "Eugh... Oh, heyo~!" Elegy ran to pick up a sword put up on a wall-rack display, "Whoa, this looks way too cool to be a real thing! The back is serrated, and do I see holes for your fingers on the blade?! This is some seriously good craftsmanship!"

    "Rule number one of fantasy sword ideas¡ªIf it looks cool, it''s impractical as hell in real life." Sorbet rolled his Eyes, "Put it back, the only one getting hurt with that thing is the wielder."

    Ignoring his advice, Elegy masterfully flourished the dangerous looking blade as if it was a cheerleader''s baton. Throwing it behind his back, slamming it into the ground, proceeding to backflip off of its handle, and then yanking it back out with a satisfied smile. It appears Elegy''s swordsmanship was in fact up to the task.

    "...Ehhh." The smile on his face turned into a frown, "Too heavy for my liking. You were right, it''s pretty unwieldy."

    "W-Wait! What the hell was that!?" Sorbet stopped him from placing it back on the rack, "Sorry, I was wrong! If you can do flips and shit off of it, then by all means use it!"

    "That was epic!" Hatwell was entranced as well, "Can you teach me to do that too?"

    "Heh, nah, this was nothing." Elegy shook his head, "I just kinda did what made sense, but like I said, the sword isn''t made for my style."

    "Style?" The two novices could only tilt their heads in confusion.

    "You know how some swordsmen prefer to rush in, while others, like me, try and get the opponent to do the attacking so we can parry it?" Elegy gladly explained, "This sword, it''s made with the primary function of "defense" in mind. Whoever made this, or had it commissioned at least, must''ve wanted the user to never get hurt."

    "You got all that from such a serrated design?" Sorbet cocked his head back.

    "The side facing the wielder is serrated to make it easier for him to catch the oncoming blade attacking him." He elaborated, "But if he doesn''t have time to turn the blade around, he can put his fingers through these finger holes where the serrations pause and get a better grip for a full block. As I said, the craftsmanship is really well thought out..."

    "...Riiight~" Sorbet nodded, not understanding a single thing about what was just explained to him, "Let''s go find you a scabbard for that thing."

    "Tsk. Fine..." Elegy sighed, realizing he was gonna have to use it after all.

 Vol.4 Ch.75 - Almost

    Despite the fact they looked all over for it, the trio¡ªin the end¡ªcouldn''t find the unique sword''s scabbard. This put quite a damp towel over their moods, because it effectively meant Elegy had to hold the heavy thing in his hands the entire time. Muscle training isn''t a thing in Heaven 2.0, in the sense that your body''s strength and stamina are both permanently static. This means that he couldn''t even look forward to it getting easier over time.

    "Can I put my faith in you guys taking turns lugging it around with me?" Elegy chuckled nervously.

    "Sigh, sure." Sorbet fell straight down¡ªas if weighed down by an anchor¡ªthe moment Elegy tossed him the sword, "Unf-! Ack, help! M-My hands...!"

    "Wow, that looked painful..." Hatwell noted as he hoisted the sword up, "It made a dent in the flooring. Should we leave a note apologizing to the owner for when they come back?"

    "Like we have a piece of paper to write on, not to mention a quill." Elegy sighed.

    "I found a piece of paper under some garbage downstairs, though." Hatwell remarked, "It was already scribbled on, but we could probably erase it."

    "Geez, or instead we could actually start the damned trek to the Shrine!?" Sorbet reminded them, "My God, you guys are so...!"

    "Wait, we only got a sword so far." Elegy stopped him from leaving.

    "Mnghhh!!!"

    Sorbet had only one emotion left in his system¡ª A N G E R Y. It''s already been half a day according to his assumption, and yet they still have barely made any actual progress, if at all. It''s a constant struggle with these two, and the only thing making him seethe more was the fact he KNEW this entire journey would''ve been hundreds of times easier had he just gone by himself. But that would defeat the entire purpose of bringing Gale along, renaming him Elegy, and gaslighting him about not being his buddy bud bud Sab. For a moment, a scary thought crossed his mind...

    "He''s fucking with me." Sorbet muttered to himself while in the other room, "He''s gotta know I''m Sab, there''s no way he''s actually that dumb. No, he probably knows what I''m trying to do and is just going with it to make fun of me. He wasn''t nearly as useless back at the Gods'' Abode! Dammit...!"

    "Sorbet!" A voice called out to him from behind, startling the soul out of him.

    "Eep! O-Oh, it''s just you..." He breathed a sigh of relief after recognizing the voice as Hatwell''s, completely acting like no one heard him shriek like a little girl, "What''s up?"

    "I found some rope." Hatwell stared at him with furrowed brows before shaking the feeling off, "Anyways, we can go tell Elegy and leave now. Sorry for making you wait so long."

    "Ah, finally!"

    But wait, he stopped himself from celebrating too fast, what about what he said earlier? If Gale is just leading him on by pretending not to know he''s being tricked, then surely it wouldn''t do them good to have him accompany them. Hatwell is a neutral factor, meaning he''s definitely going so long as he''s willing. In the end, Sorbet understood that such a great undertaking as reaching the Shrine by foot could not be done without asking some questions first and foremost.

    "Alright, emergency meeting!" Sorbet clapped his hands decisively, rounding the both of them up, "Headcount! One, two, and me three! That''s everyone!"

    "Emergency meeting... in the living room?" Elegy found it odd, "What''s this about? Weren''t you the one that said we should leave before the house''s owner arrived?"

    "You gonna take everything I say at face value? Things change, dude." Sorbet glared at him, "Listen, I believe it''s imperative that we find out a bit more about what we all know before moving out. We''re gonna be teammates for a good long while, so arguments are gonna have to be avoided at all costs."

    The two boys didn''t quite understand where this sudden worry came from, but they did agree with the sentiment. It was precisely because they didn''t know enough about each other that Elegy and Hatwell started fighting the moment they locked Eyes with one another for the first time. They were on friendly terms in the current moment, sure, but what about the next cycle? Or the cycle after that? How much longer before one of them misunderstands something about the other and they tear apart. Given their journey isn''t something that can really be stopped midway, they''d need a good deal of teamwork and understanding if they wanted to get to the Shrine.

    Sitting down on the sofa across from Sorbet''s armchair, the two listened intently to what he had to say. Before anything, he figured they needed to know something about him before they would ever be comfortable enough to share what they know. But what? If he revealed anything about himself, then his identity as Sab would immediately be found out. Thus, he had to work under that restriction¡ªFeigning talking about himself, but only revealing objective stuff that don''t tie back to him.

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    "Unlike you two (supposedly), I only remember stuff from this morning onwards, so please do help me if I make any mistakes." He said in voice that just yearned for sympathy, "Really, I have no clue what kind of person I was before any of this, but right now I know who I am. Right now, I just can''t bring myself to sit still in a world unfamiliar to me."

    "Same here." The two nodded back.

    "I wanna find out everything, not just the Shrine." Sorbet continued, "And though I''m not sure I''ll be able to pull it off, I pray that with you guys by my side, we could at least get further than I otherwise would alone."

    Both Hatwell and Elegy were very respectful and friendly towards his confession. From an outsider''s perspective, this moment signifies the blossoming of a wonderful new friendship, though it is only between the readers and Sab himself to know the vile truth of the matter. This was all just a plot to vie at sympathy points from his two dear pawns. After "opening his heart to them", the natural next thing to do would be for them to follow suit. This way, he could snoop out Elegy''s truest thoughts, or at the very least take the first step in doing so. All Elegy needed to do now is admit it...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "I... I think we should stop by the Gods Abode on our way to the Shrine." Elegy instead replied.

    "This again..." Sorbet tried to shut him off immediately, for this was the least safe suggestion to take in.

    "Look, I know you don''t believe me, but...!" Elegy struggled to get his argument out in time, "I remember the path to there vividly! I know it down to the number of each of the turns needed from here! It''s nearby our regular path anyways, so if we just take a slight little detour-!"

    "Detour? In case you haven''t already realized it, we''re under a strict timer here." Sorbet made up an excuse, "If the White Monsters come for us, we''ll be sitting ducks out there. Before that happens, we''ll need to find a safe place to hole up in during bedtime."

    It was an excuse, but not one that was too far detached from the truth. Obviously, they wouldn''t make it to the Shrine in just a couple of hours no matter how fast they ran. Simply put, they needed wings to hope for anything more than a dent in the entire voyage. Until then, however, Sorbet figured it would be more viable to travel during the day when it''s safe, and make frequent "pit stops" in places where White Monsters couldn''t reach them no matter what overnight.

    "There''s no such thing as a safe place, Sorbet." Hatwell refuted, "Those things can teleport. They just show up behind every corner, in front of you, and even in far off places your Eyes just happened to be looking at. It''s impossible."

    "Which is why I came up with a counter strat for that, but I''m gonna need your full trust for when the time comes." He explained, "They can teleport in front of you, behind corners of walls and worse, but if the space between you and something else is thinner than them, then you''re safe, right?"

    "Oh, I get it! You want us to quite literally "hole up", right?" Elegy smiled smugly, "Like, find a tight hole and hide like squirrels."

    "Hell no, we don''t know whether any of us are claustrophobic." Sorbet shot his theory down, "Instead, I was thinking something a lot more involved with teamwork. You''ve heard of team huddles, right?"

    "Yep." Elegy nodded as if it was common knowledge.

    "Nah. Never heard of it." Hatwell, however, was quite lost on the meaning, "What is it?"

    "Dude... Sigh, it''s this." Sorbet showed it off by huddling close to the two, "See? Like this, we can talk without other people hearing us or even seeing what''s between us."

    "We effectively make a private room where we''re the walls." Elegy put it another way, "Of course, there''re limits to this privacy. Whispering like this is best."

    "Ohhh~" Hatwell nodded, "I still don''t see how this is gonna help us deal with the White Monsters."

    "You don''t? Well then, if I scoot in closer, and have all of us duck... Ta-dah!" Sorbet smirked.

    "Ta-dah, my butt." Hatwell got a bit fussy from not understanding the point of this, "I can''t see a thing!"

    "Which is exactly what we want as our defense when fighting against beasts you''re not allowed to look at!" Elegy chuckled, "It''s a bit tight, but that only makes us safer. I imagine any room would keep us safe like this, so long as we keep our Eyes closed and our faces in each others'' bodies."

    "Putting it like that makes me kind of not wanna do it..." Hatwell seemed timid about so much physical contact, "Wait, how long would we have to stay like that, then?"

    "Twelve-"

    "24 hours." Sorbet interrupted Elegy''s thought, "What?"

    "Dude, we only need to stay like this during bedtime." Elegy stared at him with a raised Eyebrow, "Only 12 hours."

    "...No, a day in Heaven 2.0 is 12 hours." Sorbet let slip a detail that only made Elegy suspicious of him, "Bedtime takes 24 hours."

    "Eh? And how could you possibly know that?" Even Hatwell had trouble putting two and two together, "If you only remember stuff from this morning onwards, then how...?"

    "...G-Gosh, how many times am I gonna have to repeat this for you guys before you finally get it?!" Sorbet quickly recovered, "I like to ask questions! Alright, now it''s Hatwell''s turn to talk about what he knows, come on, come on!"

    Suspicious as he was, Hatwell still did as he was told and said what all he failed to tell them before this. The info really isn''t anything special, as expected of someone of his mental age. Rather, both he and Elegy could only recall one sentence Sorbet told them a while ago that all but completely rendered this recovery a total sham. Namely, back when they first met, Sorbet specifically told Elegy that NO ONE REMEMBERS PREVIOUS CYCLES.

    "So, are we gonna go now?" Elegy raised his hand, "We don''t have to stop by the Gods, I can always do that later by myself anyways."

    "Heh, so you''re already thinking of abandoning us?" Sorbet chuckled.

    "Only after we find the Shrine." He shot back immediately, "But that''s still a way''s away, isn''t it."

    "...Aye. It sure is." He glared back, "Alright then, no more stalling! Without further ado, let us depart!"

 Vol.4 Ch.76 - Finally

    It was an hour after they set off on their journey when the first signs of bedtime began to show their fangs. Verily, it appears it was already high time to test out their strategy against the White Monsters. Alas, due to them being so short on time, they couldn''t find an adequate "hidey-hole" to fully create a blockade against the Beast of Slumber.

    "I still think we have more time to move..." Elegy complained as they ran into a somewhat tight alleyway.

    "Shh!" Sorbet warned, "Didn''t you see all those people lying on the ground out in the street? Need I say anything more in regards to that? Now come on, get in your positions."

    Huddling up close to one another, the trio successfully pulled off the tight squeeze maneuver so as to block each others'' vision. This tactic was in fact multi-useful, for it allowed for relatively easy movement whilst also keeping them protected from all sides. Even if the White Monster physically tried to pry them off of one another, their tight grip on one another would simply cause it to fail. Regardless, a long and dubious night awaited them...

    "Holy hell!" Hatwell''s voice cried out, "Look at that!"

    "D-Don''t look, dammit!" The other two annoyedly scolded him.

    "I never said anything!" Hatwell warned them, "It was them! The White Monsters imitated my voice to get you to look up!"

    "The heck? So you''re saying we can''t even talk to each other this entire night?" Elegy groaned.

    "Not necessarily, we can talk to keep each other awake¡ªin fact we should prioritize that, since falling asleep defeats the entire purpose of this." Sorbet explained, "We just can''t allow ourselves to listen to any advice, suggestions or warnings no matter what."

    "So it''s like a messed up game of Simon Says, where Simon never peeps a word." Elegy chuckled, "Fine then, what now?"

    "I-I felt something tugging at me!" Hatwell panicked, kicking the air behind him.

    "Calm down, we''re safe so long as we keep formation!" Sorbet shot back, "We need to get our minds off of these things. Time moves slower when you count the seconds."

    It was obvious that the White Monster was preying on them quite aggressively. Though at first they hoped it could only try and trick them from afar with voice mimicry and the likes, from this latest development they understood that physical touch was permitted as well. If they let their grip slip for even a second, it could prove fatal.

    "Let''s play Who Utters!" Elegy suggested.

    "That''s the number one way to fall asleep¡ªby not talking!" Sorbet scolded him, "Sigh, instead we should play Quickster."

    "Quickster?" Hatwell raised an Eyebrow.

    "We pick a random letter." He continued, "Then, we go round and round, with everyone having to pick a unique word that starts with that letter. If you fail to think of a word in time, or repeat a word, then you lose."

    "And what''s the time limit?" Elegy inquired.

    "It''s rhythmical." He smiled, "We start off somewhat fast, but pick up the pace as time moves on. You have to match the pace of the previous person or raise the tempo by saying the word faster."

    "Tch, will you stop trying to grab my foot, dammit?!" Hatwell got annoyed at the mysterious being constantly tripping him up, "Hyah! There, a kick to the skull ought to do you good!"

    "Stop shaking the huddle, moron!" Sorbet fussed, "You''ll knock us down with you if you keep doing that!"

    "It was deserved, the thing was attacking him after all." Elegy defended him, "Now come on, let''s play!"

    The game was afoot. Of course, the letter they would pick would logically have to be something common and easy to think words out of. Fittingly, almost by sheer coincidence, the first letter of they had picked was also the first letter of the alphabet.

    "Apple!" Elegy went first.

    "...Answer!" Sorbet went after him.

    "...Actual!" And Hatwell was last before the cycle repeated.

    "..Aardvark!"

    "..A-Apocalypse!"

    "..Ark!"

    ".Anything!"

    ".Arrest!"

    "A-A... Ass!" Hatwell blurted out.

    "Hmph!?" The two couldn''t contain their laughter, "Pfft! Bahahahaha!"

    "S-Sorry, I couldn''t think of anything else in the heat of the moment..." Hatwell bashfully admitted.

    "Don''t worry, guy." Sorbet flashed him a grin, "I''m an ass guy myself!"

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    "Boobs for me." Elegy added in.

    "I didn''t ask!" Hatwell blushed, "Come on, stop making fun of me! Ugh, let''s just continue and act like I never said anything..."

    Despite what he originally thought, the two weren''t in fact making fun of Hatwell, as they were just genuinely talking about their preferences. It was a random comment that most wouldn''t think twice about, however for Hatwell it was a hurdle just a few years too high for him. Perhaps, if he was just a bit more experienced... Nonetheless, they continued the game after yet another round of laughs. This time with the letter¡ªD.

    "Alright! Can I start us off?" Hatwell seemed stoked.

    "The stage is yours." They nodded.

    "Ahem... Door!"

    "Doorknob!"

    "Dock!"

    "D-Day!"

    "Dill!"

    "Drill!"

    "...Dick!" Hatwell yet again messed it up, prompting the other two to start tearing up from how much they were laughing, "Grrr, it''s not funny! There''re only so many words that start with D!"

    "Well there''s definitely more than 7!" Elegy said between guffaws, "Oh, there''s another one¡ªDefinite!"

    "Man, you''ve one dirty mind, Hats." Sorbet joked, "Oh, you could''ve said dirty too! Now there''s a word!"

    "Mn...! Screw this game, let''s do something else!" He got angry.

    With only two short rounds to their name, the trio had managed to fend off the White Monster for a total of... 9 minutes. They had another 23 hours and 51 minutes before they could open their Eyes again and continue the journey. At this rate, they would definitely run out of games to keep them occupied before even the 12 hour mark... Eh, make that 6.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Then, let''s-Ack!" Sorbet got tugged a little harder than usual, "Whoa, that one actually could''ve gotten me..."

    "You think we should duck to make it harder for them to topple us over?" Elegy reasoned, "It could help improve stability, ''cause as it is currently¡ªAll it takes is a single bad shove and our whole defense comes crashing down."

    "It could work, but that would mean we''d have to squat for an entire 24 hour period." Sorbet shook his head, "Not something we could feasibly accomplish."

    "I wish we found a place to stay at." Hatwell sighed, "We''re not on the main streets, but we''re still outside."

    "Let''s go find us a place to stay at, then!" Elegy suggested enthusiastically.

    "Absolutely not, that''s too risk-Hey, was that really you that said that?" Sorbet caught on to the White Monsters tricks.

    "Nope, it was another mimic." The real Elegy(?) stated, "Gods, those things really know how to mess with you. I almost started believing that that was my voice as well."

    "Please at least learn to tell that apart..." The two looked at him with great disappointment.

    It was impossible to discern a real voice from the White Monster''s mimicry. The only way to accurately guess if it''s the real voice is not by listening to how it sounds, but what it says. In other words, only by knowing the other person well enough could you stand a tiny chance at not getting duped. Of course, this means our trio is destined to a doomed fate at this rate.

    "How much longer do we have to wait it out?" Elegy groaned.

    "It hasn''t even been an hour, dude. Just chill, how hard can it be?" Sorbet shot back, "Actually, it''s pretty hard. But standing in place has got to be the easiest thing we could be doing for an entire 24 hour period, seriously. If it was running, or even fighting them, then we''d be doomed for sure. Even with that sword of yours."

    "...Oh yeah! The sword!" Elegy remembered he had lodged the sword behind him, "I can make life so much easier if I just do this!"

    "Huh? Hey, what did you do just now?" Hatwell was scared of the turbulent movement Elegy was causing to the huddle, "I feel lopsided."

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Elegy smirked, "I used the crossguard as a seat!"

    "How does that help us at all, you dimwit!?" Sorbet shouted.

    "Well maybe not you, but it definitely makes it easier for my legs to bear the wait." He shrugged, "By the way, since I lodged the sword deep into the ground, there''s no way I''ll get pushed off or have the sword get yanked from under me. You could make the argument that this added stability helps the overall team performance as a whole."

    "Using fancy words won''t get you out of this!" Hatwell demanded, "Scoot over! The crossguard''s got two sides to it, doesn''t it?"

    "O-Oi, stop that! You''re gonna push me off completely!" Elegy tried shoving back.

    "You idiots! I can''t keep holding both of you at the same time if you move like th-!"

    -that, he was about to say before the rocking sword dislodged itself from the back and forth movement, sending everyone tumbling to the ground. With the chain link completely destroyed, Elegy and Hatwell were now splayed side by side on their backs, with Sorbet being the only one facing the cloudy ground below in between them. Without wasting a second, the White Monster forcefully opened both of the angels'' Eyes and sent them to the land of slumber. The mission was a failure.

    "L-Let..." Sorbet refused to budge as the White Monster tried taking the two away back to their homes, "Let them be, you vile thing!"

    " "

    "Back off! They''re my prey, not yours!" He kept lying there until he recalled the sword still lying under him, "Dammit, I told you... to leave!"

    Still keeping his Eyes firmly shut, his body constantly facing the ground, and his face pressed in between the two angels'' arms as a shield, he blindly hoisted the serrated weapon over his head, sweeping at the Monster''s ankles. To his surprise, he didn''t feel any form of resistance or impact, but the Beast did seem to leave him be after that. Of course he knew, there was still a lot of time before he could be safe again, so this was probably just a tactical retreat from the White Monster. It WILL be back soon, and he had to get these two to safety until then.

    "Guess they''re out for now, but I can still salvage this!" He repositioned them under him after hiding everyone behind a corner, "Losing their memories changes nothing for me. I can always just get them caught up with the situation again next cycle. But I need them with me in order to do that. I can''t let them get taken away, otherwise I''ll have to go back to the start as well to look for them!"

    This was indeed the name of the game. Though Sorbet was the only one that survived the attack, this didn''t mean they would need to get brought back to the beginning. So long as even one of them remained awake to keep them all from getting sent back, they could effectively keep their progress between cycles. It was a rather unorthodox method, and even still should be counted as more of a safety net than a way of doing things, but it was good to know nonetheless.

    " "

    "...."

    " "

    "...Phew." He finally let go of his breath once the White Monster left the vicinity again, "This is gonna be so much more difficult alone. Or is it? Looking on the bright side, at least I don''t have to constantly listen to these two dumbasses anymore."

    He was a rather optimistic fellow, at least now that his number one enemy got humbled by a gold-armed bum and a sandman-like eldritch horror. There are always two sides to a coin, you know.

 Vol.4 Ch.77 - Playing Games

    "Tch, it''s back..." He prepared himself to fend off another attack from the White Monster, "...Phew, it didn''t try anything this tim-Gah!"

    Just as he was about to say that, a hand grabbed his shoulder and refused to let go. But the White Monster already left the vicinity, the air around him no longer felt silent. He knew he was safe, so who or what was so tightly holding onto him? Of course, the answer revealed itself quite quickly once he used basic logic. Elegy, and right after him came Hatwell. They were both asleep, turned into the very thing that put them in such a state. Regardless, Sab knew full well from his previous encounter that the White Monster has the ability to "infect" other Heavenly Beings as string them up against the survivors like a pack of angry puppets. Essentially, he was tightly pressed up against two White Monsters, and they weren''t about to let the opportunity slip by.

    "Get your grimy hands out my face!" He shouted, smacking away the Apostle trying to pry his Eyes open, "Dammit, let go! I''m on your side, you morons, so if you''re not gonna help then at least don''t be a nuisance!"

    " " Elegy muttered.

    " " Hatwell agreed.

    "What the hell... Tch, guess you''re really gonna make me work for my revenge, eh?" Sab smirked, accepting the newfound challenge, "Right, ''cause it was obviously too easy to just keep you two from getting nabbed, now I also have to worry about not getting infected from your sorry asses as well. Just great!"

    Finally freeing himself of their claws, he blindly felt around for anything he could use as an Eye shield. Eventually he stumbled onto something that had the texture of nylon, but the shape of a cloth. Perfect for his uses, he was quick to tie it over both of their heads. Usually, this would kill a person without fault due to air asphyxiation, but given they''re unkillable beings, he was certain they would be fine. After that, he squinted his Eyes open while he was given the chance to in order to look for something to bind their hands with. Luckily, it appears he was near a trash container that had some spare zipties strapped to the handles. With a little bit of fiddling, he finally had them packaged just like he wanted them to be. He ultimately mustered up the courage to gaze up at their heads, and...!

    "Phew, thank God those were trash bags..." He wiped the sweat from his brow once he saw the black bags over their goat skull heads, "Somehow, this makes you mucks look even scarier. And that''s saying something, ''cause I remember vividly how your true faces look like... Eh, more like the face of that damned thing."

    He still wasn''t in the clear however, for he merely lucked out in finding the means to disable them from becoming a threat to him. Nonetheless, the real White Monster, as well as countless other Apostles were still out and about, wandering the streets. He couldn''t afford to keep his Eyes open fully, so he carefully kept his head low and his Eyes squinted just in case the thing tried to teleport in for an unexpected sneak attack. Like this, he rummaged through the rest of the garbage container in the hopes of finding some rope to more easily lead Elegy and Hatwell.

    "Geez, even with the extended day, how the hell is there so much stuff in here...?" He complained as he dug through the trash like a raccoon, "Hm? Dah, just some cables. Well, it could work as a makeshift rope, I guess."

    Grabbing onto the bit sticking out, he tugged as hard as he could, but it was firmly lodged in there. Stuck on something, it didn''t budge no matter how hard he tried to pull it out. He finally accepted that he would have to dig out the rest of it manually, so he got to work. The moment he moved a somewhat heavy bag from on top of it, however...

    "...Sht!" He ducked the moment he saw a tinge of bone underneath, "Heh, you bastard! Did you think you could pull such a fast one on me? The ol'' carrot and stick maneuver, eh? Well too bad, I snuffed ya'' out in time before you could get me!"

    The "heavy object" keeping the cable stuck inside the garbage was in actuality a White Monster. Was it the real White Monster, or just a random Apostle chilling in the bin? He didn''t know, nor did he care to find out. He needed that cable though, so there was no backing out of this no matter how scary it would get.

    "...Alright, so that''s how we''re gonna do it." He walked back to pick up the heavy serrated sword before swinging at the 2 front-most corners of the container, "Tch, gah! Crack, dammit! Break!"

    The poor container stood no chance. By all accounts, it was a massacre. Sab eventually managed to cut the entire front wall of the container, so after a bit of pulling back, he managed to open the container from the side. This naturally allowed the garbage inside to spill out, theoretically shifting the Beast inside enough for him to grab at least one end of the cable. Though his Eyes were still squinted, he did see the White Monster''s full body splayed on the ground. In its hand was one end of the cable, and following the line, he found the other end.

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    "Heh, bad luck pal!" He lunged to grab it before the Beast could fully steal it, "From here on out, we''re playing tug of war¡ªAnd I''m pretty darn confident in my grip strength!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    " " Elegy whispered through the trash bag mockingly.

    "N-No, that''s not why my grip strength is-! Gah, shut up!" Sorbet moved his focus away for a second before getting yanked forward by the White Monster, "Whoa!? Unfair, I didn''t know we started yet! Hngh...!"

    For someone defending his team and what little progress they''ve made, Sorbet sure wasn''t taking things seriously. Facing off against a legendary Monster of Heaven''s mythology in a tug of war of all things, he seemed rather confident in his chances. The Beast was valiant, but ultimately, it was his strength that seemed to have the constant upper hand. At this rate, the cable was his.

    " "

    "..Ah!?" He screamed the moment he felt two fingers touch his Eyelid, "You motherfu...! Grr, no wonder it was getting easier to pull, you were inching your way up the cable to get to me!"

    It was foolish of him to assume a Beast would play by the rules of a children''s game. This almost cost him his lucidity. Regretfully, he had to let go of the cable before it could pry his Eye open and make him look at it, meaning the cable was the White Monster''s for the taking. Of course, this would be worrisome if it cared for the cable, but it almost immediately threw it away after repossessing it, instead favoring a full-on frontal attack at Sorbet.

    "Grrrah!" Sorbet wailed in pain as the thing pinned him down to the ground, kneeling on top of his golden hoops, "That hurts, asshole! Couldn''t have gone a little higher or lower!? Ugh, of course not... Then prepare to take back what you dish out!"

    Back when he last squinted his Eyes, he saw a glimpse of some gild glimmering through on the Beast''s body. This was proof that his current attacker was just another Apostle. The gold was on his left cheek, just under his Eye in the shape of a tear, peculiarly enough. Pressing his fingers on it in a last ditch effort, Sorbet found the pressure to be quite an effective way of dealing with it. Again, he just barely managed to escape it for now, but it will soon attack again. He needed to run, but he also needed a way to create enough distance between them to do so.

    "Goddammit, look what you''re gonna make me do!" He cursed the thing as he ran to pick up the cable, jumping at the White Monster and blindly wrangling it with it, "You deserved that, ya'' bastard! Tch, well I dealt with you, but now what do I do about these two?"

    Finally being allowed to squint once more without having to worry about any immediate threat, he could properly see his two bound and bagged friends aimlessly standing around, as if awaiting orders. He no longer had any ropes to use, but in the end he figured just wrapping his arms around theirs would be enough for now. It looked odd, as if they were a group of folk step dancers, but it worked for the time being. As is, they wouldn''t be going anywhere, which means Sorbet could finally find them all a proper spot to stow away at until morning came.

    Walking back out into the street was out of the question, because the streets were still filled with goat skulls. It was then when he realized why the White Monster was still going after them despite Elegy and Hatwell being asleep. He saw out of the corner of his Eye an unconscious body being whisked away by the Beast. This must be how they get brought back home, he thought. In other words, if he just entered a house with the slumbering owner already inside, then he would theoretically throw the White Monsters off his scent.

    "After all, why would they go to an already completed house delivery?" He smugly chuckled to himself, "Nyahaha, truly a genius play from the one and only Sab! Muahaha, aha, guhaha, and all the rest! Nyoho!"

    Still holding the other two in that ridiculous arm lock, Sorbet had carefully inspected the alleyway they were inside. Before, it was just a dead and they thought would work as a three sided room without a roof, but now he saw it as two to three houses where the owner was possibly asleep at. Safe havens, in other words. If he could find shelter inside for them, then he''d be set until the morning. Peeking inside through the windows, he found nothing but empty rooms and beds in each one. That is, except one.

    "...Eep!" He yelped, once again ducking the moment he saw a goat skull tucked in the bed inside, "Wait, what am I worried about? That right there''s safety!"

    Quickly, he ran to the bound enemy Beast he previously tied up with the cable. Disabling its deadly gaze with another opaque bag, he took the cables from it before shoving it aside and hopping into the house through the window with the other two. Whilst inside, he hastily made his way through the dark room before the slumbering White Monster Apostle could wake up and notice him. Refusing to look at him, he quickly tied its arms and legs with the cable, and at the same time using the excess rope to tie Elegy and Sorbet to the bed as well. It was just enough length to manage such an efficient feat, but now at least he could wait out the night without the fear of being attacked. He locked the doors and windows, he kept his Eyes shut and sat on the cold wooden floor so as to not get too comfortable and accidentally drift off into sleep. Before that, however, he carefully took Elegy''s bag and placed it over his head instead, making sure to tie it around his neck extremely tightly. As expected, it didn''t feel uncomfortable at all, and even helped him feel safer because he had an extra layer of defense against the Slumbering Gaze. The night was still far too young, but like this, he had pulled out all the stops in order to keep everyone close by and more importantly, safe. Now, he said to himself as he leaned back on the wall, it''s a waiting game.

 Vol.4 Ch.78 - Continuity

    The rest of the night was as uneventful as it could get. He peacefully waited the entire 23-ish hours left of the bedtime before he finally started hearing people waking up again. The first to speak up was the only unmasked one in the room, Elegy. His panicky screeches woke Hatwell up immediately after, who didn''t at all appreciate the human alarm clock.

    "AAHHH!" Elegy screamed with all his might, "W-Where am I!? Why is everyone''s head covered with a bag!?"

    "WAHHH! A-Ah, I can''t see!" Hatwell cried out as well, "It''s dark! I''m scared! Why can''t I see anything!?"

    "Stop shouting, both of you!" Sorbet finally peeked out from under his protective bag to explain everything, "You''re safe, it''s alright, so let me-"

    "Back the hell off!" Elegy kicked him in the abdomen the moment Sorbet tried to get close, "Just ''cause we can''t die doesn''t mean I won''t hurt you!"

    "Hnghh... Tch, bastard!" Sorbet scratched his golden scarred forearms in retaliation before undoing his ziptie, "I''m your friend, idiot! Let me explain everything first before you go kicking my rings!"

    "Ack! H-Huh, Sab...?" Elegy looked confused.

    "Wrong, sigh... You really did forget everything." He sighed, "Hold on, let me untie Hats first before I go ahead and give you the rundown."

    "Hats?" Hatwell returned him a puzzled stare once Sorbet took the bag off.

    "That''s you. You told me your name was Hats." Sorbet used the abbreviated name, because it was easier to say, "And this guy called himself Elegy."

    "E-Eh? No, my name is Ga-"

    "By the way, I''m Sorbet. You mistook me for Sab yestercycle as well." He talked right over them, "A lot of things happened, and we ended up teaming up to reach a sacred place at Heaven''s Edge called the Shrine."

    "Shrine?" Hats still couldn''t quite follow him on this, "Hold on, do you remember yesterday!?"

    To this question, Elegy also had an interested look on his face. Both knew that it was possible to retain their memories from yestercycle, as they both experienced it from their point of view. Regardless, the question that remained was how it had occurred, because the last thing Elegy remembered was fighting against the Gods with Maggie and the others in their Abode.

    "Sorry, but I need to go find my group-" Elegy was about to skedaddle, "Oi. Move out of the way, man."

    "Your group... You said a girl named... Or rather, with the initials M.G was in it?" He carefully picked his next words.

    "Maggie...!" Elegy''s Eyes shrunk back in fear, "What do you know about her?"

    "She, as well as the rest of your group, are all in the Shrine." Sorbet lied, "It''s the main reason you''re helping the two of us go there in the first place. We all have... someone waiting for us there."

    This was a half-truth, in a way¡ªthough it sounded believable enough to feel like a full one. Indeed, their goal was to reach the Shrine, and indeed, Sorbet had someone waiting for him there (namely, his wings). As for the reason behind Elegy having to go there, the details were less important. Hats'' even more so. Details are barely noticeable, hence why they''re not main points to bring up in any conversation. This is the mindset Sorbet had as he ruthlessly lied to both of them about following his lead.

    "And Hats too, he was a huge help against the White Monster we faced last night." Sorbet explained, leaving aside the fact that he meant Hats'' pecs were a good vision shield.

    "Hold on." Hats shivered, "W-We encountered the White Monster last night?"

    "Duh, why else do you think you two don''t remember anything from that time?" Sorbet groaned, "Look, you don''t have to believe me, but at least know that it''s completely thanks to you guys that I survived to tell you all this."

    "Eh? You stayed awake the entire time under that bag?" Elegy tilted his head, "So that means we can retain our memories if we don''t sleep!"

    As the conversation steadily moved along, it seemed more and more feasible that Sorbet was telling them the truth and nothing else. Though Elegy was still a bit skeptical over the name change, Sorbet was quick to explain that it''s probably just been a lot of cycles between his last waking memory and now. Again, the logic checked out, so despite his confusion about suddenly being put into such a foreign situation, Elegy was quick to accept the situation as it was and move on, lest he wastes more of their daylight being skeptical.

    "Okay, then if that''s the case, let''s continue heading for that Shrine!" He nodded resolutely.

    "Alright!" Sorbet dapped him up.

    "Hey, I''m glad you guys got everything sorted out..." The owner of the house suddenly woke up from his bed, still tied up with his head covered, "Now could you please get out of my house?"

    "Oh damn, I totally forgot about you." Sorbet glanced at him with a shrug, "Sorry, I hope you can understand that you''re tied up for my safety."

    "It''s okay, just untie me and I''ll call it water under the bridge." He chuckled, "...G-Guys?"

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Alas, the poor bloke was left alone in his room, tied to his bed and forbidden from even seeing the trio leave the house. After all, they were in such a hurry that they didn''t even wait to hear him out after Sorbet apologized.

    "Shouldn''t you have untied him?" Hats asked, "It feels wrong to just leave him there."

    "Some people would pay good money to get put in that situation." Sorbet reasoned.

    "Depends on who''s the one tying them up." Elegy corrected him with a disappointed sigh, "Also, even the kinkiest of people would want a way to free themselves as a failsafe."

    "See, I can immediately tell you''re not into bondage just from that sentence." Sorbet mocked him with such a smug grin, "You poor, naive soul. Failsafes defeat the entire purpose!"

    "I never said I was into that stuff, you perv..."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Their speedy jog out of their latest shelter was quickly substituted for a light speedwalk, which eventually devolved into a leisurely stroll. They were running a marathon, after all, not a sprint. The distance was so vast that it wouldn''t do them any good to tire themselves out running when they would have to stop by another house anyways when bedtime came. Right, they''re headed for the literal Edge of Heaven, a place outside of the night infinite residential area, so it was obvious that they would at least have to go through this same spiel a couple of times, if not more. Sorbet was quite tired, however. He hadn''t slept a wink for over 30 hours now, and despite the fact that he was a seraphim who COULD nap whenever he wanted and still keep his memories, the other two didn''t know that.

    "Yaaawn~" He couldn''t hold it in any longer.

    "I wonder, would falling asleep during the day reset your memories?" Elegy pondered.

    "...Probably not." Sorbet got an idea, "So then, if you guys don''t mind me getting some well-deserved shut-Eye for a bit, let''s...!"

    "Absolutely not." Hats grabbed his arm and kept them both in motion, "You''re not falling asleep after setting us off on this journey with you. What if you forget your memories?"

    "I won''t."

    "We don''t know that." Hats continued, "I can understand you''re tired, but you need to hold out as our leader."

    "Is he our leader?" Elegy cocked his head back.

    "Right now, he''s the only one out of us who knows where the Shrine is." Hats replied, "Besides that, he probably also knows a ton of stuff he''s yet to reveal to us that we might never get to know if he forgets."

    It was a very real worry to have, however it was factually untrue due to Sorbet''s seraphimhood. He couldn''t tell them that he''s a seraphim, however, because it would most definitely out him as Sab to Elegy. No, right now he needed to play along in order for them to gain his trust again. It was tough to accept, but he wasn''t going to be allowed any sleep for the time being. Whether or not they''d become more lenient later was quite the uncertain question, but for now he had no other option but to stay awake.

    "Mngh..." Sorbet felt his Eyelids get heavier and heavier, "Uuuugh..."

    "Let''s pick up the pace to get you warmed up." Elegy suggested, "Come on, hop to it! Follow my pace and jog along! There''s no way you''re gonna be sleepy after that!"

    "Here, give me that sword you''re holding." Hats put his hand out, "It''s probably tiring you out more, having to carry such a heavy thing."

    Immediately, Sorbet twitched, yanking Elegy''s serrated sword back in fear. The sword was the one thing that gave him enough time to get everyone inside the house, so obviously he wasn''t going to let go of it so easily. In truth, it would most definitely be better suited in Elegy''s hands than his, but Sorbet didn''t want to give it away. As far as he was concerned, the sword was his. After all, despite how flashy Elegy was with it, he didn''t actually swing it once against the White Monster.

    "T-The sword is... mine." Sorbet nervously looked at both of them.

    "Oh, you got it from your home?" Hats still kept his hand out, "Don''t worry, I''ll just hold onto it while you and Elegy do your warm up."

    "I''m wide awake." Sorbet fussed, "So there''s no need for you to hold the sword. Look, Eyes wide open."

    "Hmm..."

    Hats was quite suspicious, and Elegy was left hanging as he jogged in front of them. This gave Hats enough time alone with Sorbet to ask him all he wanted to know.

    "Is the sword really yours?" He asked, "It doesn''t seem like something you''d want as a human."

    "Looks can be deceiving." Sorbet lied.

    "Maybe. Then, could you tell me why I decided to help you two on your journey?" He asked the second question.

    "Come again?"

    "Well, you have someone you''re looking for, and Elegy has a group to find, but what about me?" Hats reiterated, "What''s my purpose for finding the Shrine?"

    "You... I don''t know." Sorbet looked away.

    "So you admit that much."

    "No, you don''t get it¡ªyou literally never told me." He continued, "Even back then, we just said we''d go, and you said you''d help us. I didn''t wanna pry when it meant an additional team member, but I did find it puzzling as well."

    "So, what you''re saying is, since the current me doesn''t have a reason to go..." Hats raised an Eyebrow, "Then I don''t have to go."

    "Maybe it''s just ''cause you''re a good person." Sorbet quickly engaged in damage-control, "Maybe... You saw the two of us and the mammoth task ahead of us, and wanted to help us reach the goal post. I''ll mention that it WAS your help then landed us that shelter home."

    "Was it, now?"

    "As I said, you were of great help." Sorbet nodded, "But of course, there''s also the possibility of you having a secret goal yourself. Just ''cause you never said anything doesn''t mean you don''t have your own ulterior motives for reaching the Shrine."

    "Ulterior motives?" He frowned at that phrase.

    "Sorry, didn''t mean to make it sound so sinister." Sorbet rephrased it, "Reasons, your own reasons for going there."

    "No, I didn''t-"

    "So then, what are you gonna do?" Sorbet stopped walking to ask, "Are you gonna leave, after all?"

    "..."

    "I''m not forcing you, just in case that wasn''t clear." Sorbet added at the end, "You can choose to follow or abandon us, it''s your freedom."

    "Yo, slowpokes!" Elegy didn''t quite appreciate them being so far behind him, "The street''s crowded, so if you don''t seriously start picking up the pace, I''ll lose you!"

    "Then stop jogging, you nincompoop!" Sorbet shot back with a laugh, "Sorry, I''d give you more time to think it over, but I guess my partner''s in a rush."

    "...Heh." Hats chuckled, "I ain''t leaving you two alone."

    "You sure?" Sorbet curbed his wry smirk.

    "Of course, you need someone to keep you safe." He clanked his golden arms together energetically, "And if I was of help to you guys before, then I''ll surely do the same again!"

    Success, Sorbet was now once again back on track to reach the Shrine with the same group he had before. They were quite easy to manipulate, he thought, perhaps this revenge wasn''t such a pipe dream after all...

 Vol.4 Ch.79 - Strip Mine

    "Well, we''re finally here." Sorbet looked over yonder.

    "This place...!" Hats gasped, "I remember it!"

    "You do? What is it?" Elegy inquired.

    Before them, a cold and heartless border proudly stood erected from the ground. Unforgiving metal bars, polearm wielding guards, everything was precisely and carefully set up for the express purpose of keeping any and all seraphim and angels alike within their own district. This was by and large their first monumental hurdle to pass, and if they couldn''t find a way to cross the border, then their journey will have to end here.

    "What''s the plan?" Elegy asked.

    "We should first try and talk to them." Sorbet replied, "Asking never hurt anybody."

    "They won''t let you." Hats immediately shot the idea down, "I tried before, they just summoned the White Monster on me and that was the end of that."

    They still kept their distance from the area, figuring it to be best if they didn''t engage without some sort of plan.

    "In that case, hopping the fence seems like the only real option." Elegy figured.

    "No, I''ll talk to him." Sorbet was adamant, "The hell can one guy do? Plus it''s the day, so there''s no way he''ll summon in a White Monster while people are around."

    "Hmm..." Hats exhaled through his nose, "You''d be surprised."

    Rather than talking to the guard about crossing peacefully, Sorbet was a lot more interested in asking someone "within the ranks" about his wings. In fact, this was his chance to do so without the other two getting word of it.

    "Fine, if you two are so scared, I''ll go alone."

    "No way, you''ll get us put to sleep!" They protested, "We''ll come with-!"

    "No, stay back." He returned a threatening glare, "You''ve made your points, now stick with ''em."

    And with that, Sorbet left his team briefly for a quick chat with the guard. Immediately upon spotting the fallen seraphim approaching him so gleefully and innocently, the guard raised his weapon and warned him of the consequences of such thoughtless actions.

    "Step back, civilian." The guard stated, "No one is permitted to go any further than this."

    "Hey, lower than tone, I gotta ask you something." Sorbet moved the spear tip aside with his finger as he whispered back, "What about seraphim?"

    "Eh?"

    "Y''know, winged dudes¡ªSeraphim. I''m one, but I lost my wings, so since I could pass over the border before, can you let me through now?"

    Of course, he had no proof of being a seraphim to show to the guard at all, but this worked in his favor. In fact, the only feasible "proof" would be his memory retention, and if that''s enough for the guard, then the other two should be granted passage as well, even if they were never seraphim to begin with. Then again, this would only work if Sorbet was allowed through first.

    "...No, I cannot." The guard hit his polearm on the ground once, "Now, if that is all, please leave."

    "That''s not all. I need to know one other thing." Sorbet inquired, "What are all the ways I can get my wings back?"

    "You''re still going with that cheap story?" The guard laughed.

    "Just tell me, I don''t care if you believe me or not."

    "...Heh, that much is simple." The guard stomped on the ground once more, "If you''re really telling the truth, then there''re only two ways to get a pair of wings again¡ªFind your lost ones, or take someone else''s."

    "Is there truly no "recall" function on those damned things? The hell kinda design is that?"

    "This is Heaven, bud. Not some sort of game with Keep Inventory on." The guard shrugged after the third stomp, "You lost ''em, so you better face the facts."

    "Tch, whatever..." Sorbet backed off just moments before the fourth and final stomp that would''ve called forth the White Monster, "See you around, then."

    "Let''s hope not." The guard smugly waved him off.

    Backing off for now, Sorbet had figured out but one useful tidbit of information¡ªThe guard''s a huge prick. Nothing he said wasn''t already known, and even the things Sorbet was unsure of weren''t exactly good news.

    "Either find your own, or take someone else''s..." He muttered angrily, "Like hell I''ll do the same thing that bastard did to me! I just hope no one else finds mine before I do."

    "Find what?" Elegy snapped his fingers in front of him, "You doing alright? You''ve been muttering something to yourself for a while now."

    "...N-No, it''s nothing." He stuttered, not realizing he was already so close to where these two were.

    "So then, no dice?" Hats asked.

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "Nada. But hey, at least he didn''t sic a White Monster on me."

    "There''s always a bright side to the situation." Elegy smiled, "But damn, guess we''ll have to find a way to sneak past after all."

    To sneak past, in other words¡ªJust busting through wasn''t gonna be enough. The majority of their group knows full well just how impossible it is to escape a White Monster, even if the guards couldn''t keep up. They had to find a way past everyone without being spotted. This was where the true difficulty came in.

    "Hmm... Passing over the gate is impossible, and now we know passing through is the same." Sorbet stuck the serrated sword in the ground, "Then, why not just dig under?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "D-Dig under...?" Elegy chuckled nervously, "With that thing?"

    "I get we''re standing on clouds, but is it really less difficult to dig than dirt?" Hats was skeptical as well.

    "It''s fluffy on the surface and hard underneath, but with a sharp enough blade we can cut through it."

    At that, Elegy could only sigh.

    "That doesn''t answer the question..."

    "What don''t you understand? I did say we''d dig under, but in actuality, it''s more like a slicing motion."

    Glancing at each other for a moment, Elegy and Hats eventually just let Sorbet have the victory. He seemed sure of this plan working, and there really was no other option left for them but to try and see for certain.

    "Go ahead."

    "Alright, watch this...!"

    They sat back, watching as he barely hoisted the mighty sword high above his head, only to fall on his back due to the weight of it. Sorbet was anything but a swordsman, his true strength laid in playing video games, though even then he wasn''t anything special. Embarrassed as all hell, he hastily sprung back up to warn the other two not to laugh.

    "Look, that was-!"

    "Phahahahaha!" Hats burst out laughing, "Him trying to play it off made it a hundred times funnier!"

    "That was hilarious, Sorbet!" Elegy was in tears, clapping at the performance, "Man, you really showed us!"

    "You''re dead men!" He huffed.

    "Yeah right, give it here..." Elegy got up to grab the blade in his hands, "Ehh, it''ll work."

    Sorbet was livid. Not only did Elegy take his blade back, but he also did so with such ease and grace. Despite claiming it didn''t fit his sword style or whatever, he still looked like a professional whilst gripping it. Truly, a swordsman knows best.

    "Whuh-Hey! I never gave you permission to take it!" Sorbet raged.

    "Just shut up and let him do his thing." Hats pulled him back.

    "...Huup~! Oh dang."

    To everyone''s surprise, but Elegy''s most of all¡ªThe ground gave in just as Sorbet had predicted. Sliced through like a sponge, the newly exposed hard bits became just as soft as the exterior above. With this, he had unraveled the first layer of Heaven. If he just kept going like this, then they would make it to the other side of the border just like that.

    "H-Heh!" Sorbet folded his arms smugly, "Told ya'' it''d work, but you wouldn''t listen!"

    "Hwoh!" Elegy kept swinging, ignoring his words, "Hyah! Hup!"

    "Man, he''s really going to town." Even the nasty Sorbet couldn''t help but gawk at his strength.

    "He''s good with the blade." Hats noted, "It''s good that he''s on our side, eh?"

    "...Like I care." Sorbet smirked with an impish shrug, "At the end of the day, the work is done and I don''t even have to lift a finger."

    This entire conversation was well within Elegy''s earshot, but he paid no mind to it at all. After getting one more good look at the distance between them and the other side of the barrier, he sunk his head below ground level and kept digging down until he hit something.

    "Stone? No, just feels like it." He furrowed his brows at it, "Well, whatever. This is low enough to not get spotted anyways."

    "What''s up? You stopped." Sorbet jumped down the hole as well.

    "You can take over if you think you can go faster." Hats rolled his Eyes as he jumped after him.

    "Elegy''s got it, ain''t that right Elegy?"

    "Hyah!"

    "Heheh, see?"

    "Hrm..."

    From here on, he no longer dug down, but towards the border. Even just one glance was enough to roughly estimate the distance he needed to dig, so every couple of minutes, he would walk back to the start of the tunnel, counting the steps and using them as measures of distance.

    "Hmm, another 40 steps or so." Elegy muttered as he picked the sword back up.

    "Mn, and if you''re off?" Sorbet said, sat on his ass doing nothing.

    "Let''s hope he''s not." Hats glared back at him, "Though I trust in Elegy''s judgment."

    "Is that so? I don''t think it''s good to put too much trust in me though." Elegy chuckled back, "In truth, we''re probably near the barrier even now, but I wanna make sure we''re on the other side for sure, so I''m going the extra distance just in case. After all, what good will crossing the border do us if we dig out right next to the guards."

    "So then what''s even the point of measuring!?" Sorbet hissed.

    Despite his angry comments, Sorbet was secretly quite excited about this working. It''s kind of annoying to have to do, but it at least gives them a way across the border. Not only that, but the next time they find themselves nearing bedtime without any form of shelter, they now have the option to just dig themselves a hidey-hole of their own and cover themselves up with something opaque. A makeshift shelter that doesn''t rely on other residents of Heaven.

    *Clank!*

    "What was that!?" The two jumped up in surprise.

    "Hm, guess the border extends down even past the stone layer..." Elegy made a difficult face after realizing he hit the metal bars finally, "Squeezing through isn''t an option, since the male body archetype is made to be wide."

    They were at a dead end again, and just when they thought they were finally in the clear. The bars were hard and tough, there was no way a Heavenly Being could bend them enough to widen the gap.

    "So, what now?" Sorbet asked.

    "Move..." Hats stepped up, annoyed that they completely forgot he had his uses, "Hnghh...!!! Gah, there!"

    "Whoa! Did you just bend them with your bare hands!?" They were taken aback.

    "Yeah, hurt a crap ton, though." He inspected his rusty looking palms, "Golden arms, remember? You guys would do well to remember I''m just as, if not more useful than you."

    They didn''t dare give a reply to that one, Sorbet just meekly sat back down as Elegy bashfully continued to hack away at the cloud tunnel. With this, they knew for certain that they were past the border, so realistically it was up to them to decide when to start digging up. Just in case, Elegy kept going for the same length as before they hit the bars.

    "Hah, huff...!" He was quite winded by now, "That''s enough, right?"

    "It was enough 20 steps ago, but whatever you say." Sorbet rolled his Eyes.

    "It''s enough, Elegy. Thank you." Hats praised him, "Hey, you''ve done enough. Want me to take over?"

    "N-Nah, I got it." He tiredly kept slicing, only this time at a slight angle upwards, "I started this, and I wanna finish it!"

    "Oh, attaboy!" Sorbet clapped, happily sitting back down once he realized there was still no need for him to do a thing, "Man, I''m such a genius for coming up with this idea. Where''s my praise?"

    "Hrm..."

 Vol.4 Ch.80 - Trifecta

    As the trio dug their way to the surface on the other side of the border, they had officially made it to the next district over.

    "Remember, if someone asks¡ªWe''re from here." Elegy reminded them.

    "Obviously, we know that much." Sorbet crossed his arms.

    That being said, they were met with their first obstacle the moment they hopped out of the tunnel. Namely, a female angel saw them exit the hole, saw the outstandingly dangerous looking blade, and came up to them to ask some rather reasonable questions.

    "What the hell are you doing?" Was her first query.

    "Just... diggin'' a hole." The boys replied, darting their Eyes around suspiciously.

    "Did you dig your way under the border?"

    Immediately, Hats shot her theory down, stumbling over his words just to get the point across.

    "N-Nuh uh, ''cause the bars would get in the way-!"

    "This idiot!" Sorbet shut him up, "Ha-ha, stop making us sound guilty, dummy! Look missy, we were just digging a hole for the fun of it, now please move aside so we can continue."

    "So if I were to go through that tunnel, I wouldn''t end up over there?" She pointed to the other side of the fence.

    "Gods forbid a group of boys have some fun here." Elegy threw his arms in the air, "Look, if you wanna know, we were trying to dig straight down."

    Suddenly, everyone''s ears grew to hear his story out. Sorbet and Hats knew that he was lying, obviously, but what exactly was he trying to cook up to keep her from finding out?

    "Dig down? And why in the world would you wanna do that?" She cocked her head back.

    "To get to the bottom of things." He grinned.

    "Oh my God..." Sorbet facepalmed.

    Despite this, Elegy continued the explanation with the cheery mood he had created.

    "Nah, but seriously." He smiled, "We wanted to see what would happen, but as it turned out, we hit a hard rock surface pretty quickly, so we got back out. That''s all, really."

    "I find that hard to believe." She still seemed skeptical, even peering over the edge of the hole, "Wow, you actually weren''t lying! There''s some sort of rock layer down ther-"

    "Whoopsie!" Elegy shoved her down the hole, "My bad! I totally slipped!"

    "You damned...! Get me out of here this instant!" She screeched from the bottom of the hole.

    "Oh, bummer! Would you look at the time?" Sorbet nudged the other two, "Sorry, we''re late for a very important date! Ain''t that right, you two?"

    "Mhm, mhm!" Hats and Elegy nodded in unison, "Sorry, but we''ll be off now. Toodles!"

    "Morons!" She hissed as a group of passers-by curiously approached her new dwelling.

    Success, at least somewhat. Their hopes of coming out on the other side without any commotion were utterly crushed, as now they were locally known as the dimwits that pushed a girl down what was effectively a well of sorts. Regardless, no one was pursuing them, because their main goal was to get her out first and foremost.

    "Phew, at least the guards didn''t seem to care." Sorbet heaved a sigh of relief, "Though that''s kind of scary in its own right."

    "For future reference, we really should make sure to emerge in a secluded area, like an alleyway or something." Elegy replied.

    As the two admired their hard work and successful crime, the third member still had quite the sour aftertaste left in his mouth.

    "I feel bad, maybe we could''ve explained our situation better..."

    "Oh, we definitely could''ve." Sorbet replied.

    "Eh?"

    "Yeah, but it''d take way longer and it''d be a much bigger pain in the ass." Elegy added.

    "Think of it this way¡ªIf we took our time to explain everything to her, whose to say she still wouldn''t report us to the border patrol?" Sorbet explained, "And even if she didn''t, it might have taken us hours before she finally let us go. By then, bedtime would''ve come and we would be left out in the streets again."

    "But now she''s definitely gonna report us." Hats reasoned.

    It was this thought that naturally guided Elegy''s gaze to the nearby clothes shop. Immediately, he saw the perfect way out.

    "Well now, how is she gonna be able to describe us even?" He pointed out, "Apart from Hats'' golden arms, she could see neither mine nor Sorbet''s gilded parts."

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    "So what are you saying?" Sorbet tilted his head.

    "I''m saying, we ought to get ourselves a new fit!"

    The establishment was somewhat secluded, there wasn''t much of a line, and given how Hats was still completely naked, he would be given a full outfit instead of the "One article of clothing per cycle" rule the other two had to follow. Stepping up to the counter after a few measly minutes of waiting, they greeted the female shopkeeper in a friendly manner.

    "Heya, we''re here for some clothes." Elegy smiled, "Especially for our friend here. It''s his first time..."

    "Eugh, where the hell do you get off making my place sound like a whore house?" She clicked her tongue with a scowl, "Fine, whatever, here."

    Rude, but nonetheless she was dutifully doing her job. After putting on his first ever proper outfit¡ªa black tank top and White trousers that made him look like a bodybuilder, Hats was pretty content. However...

    "You got something to cover his golden parts up with?" Sorbet asked.

    "What you get is what you get." She glared at him, "I thought you already knew that..."

    "Hmm. Well whatever, got anything for us?" Elegy shrugged, "Don''t we get one article as well?"

    "Oh right. Here." She halfheartedly tossed them a pair of leather gloves and knee-high socks.

    An odd choice in regards to the latter, especially since everyone there was male, but it was more than enough. Thanking the girl before turning the corner, Elegy and Sorbet immediately got to work.

    "O-Oi, what are you doing!?" Hats whimpered as they cut the ends of the socks with the serrated blade, "That''s...!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    In short, the two cut through the legwear until both socks were now more akin to cylindrical tubes. Putting them on Hats'' arms to cover the gilded parts, and then gifting him the gloves, they had essentially managed to properly cover him up, only leaving a bit of the shoulders peeking out.

    "Oh right. Give me the tank top." Elegy took his shirt off, "We''ll swap."

    "Eh!?" Hats looked down at his cool tank top before backing away, "...Mph!"

    Sorbet was quick to get the jump on him and yank it off from behind him.

    "NOOOO...!"

    "Dude, this is for the sake of us not getting found out." He returned a one bombastic side-Eye, "Looking cool won''t do you much of anything if you''re asleep."

    "Sorry, but that''s the case." Elegy comforted him, "But come on? What''s wrong with my shirt? It''s plenty cool in its own right, no?"

    Inspecting the threads with tears in his Eyes, Hats could only reply with sobs.

    "Yeah nah, I think that type of clothing was only cool in your time." Sorbet agreed, "That stuff won''t fly anytime else."

    "Just shut up and hand me the tank top."

    And so, with a heavy heart, the trio was now halfway done with their encryption. Just one more step was required before they could fully pull off the shuffle of appearances and become truly untraceable.

    "Sorbet, pants." Elegy pointed at them, "Rip ''em."

    "E-Eh? Hey now..." Sorbet backed away slowly, only to get held in place by a vengeful Hats, "O-Oi, you asshole! Let me go, this isn''t funny!"

    "Elegy, get the sword." Hats heartlessly ignored him.

    "Yahh!!"

    Three slices were all it took. Elegy didn''t even need to depant him first, for he was that skilled with the blade. One slice to cut the right leg of the pants off, the other for the left, and the third...

    "...Eh? M-My pocket!" Sorbet cried out after witnessing the damages, "You cut off my right pocket, asshole! What the hell, now I look all raggedy!"

    "It''s for aesthetic purposes, the asymmetry is what makes it look good." Elegy smirked smugly, "Thank me later."

    A steady punch was thrown his way, sending him tumbling on his butt. Sorbet was furious, and he wasn''t gonna let such a travesty slide.

    "You bastard...!" He tried to go in for seconds, but Elegy expected the attack this time and swiftly dodged, "Gah! Oof!"

    "Don''t look at a present''s teeth, didn''t anyone ever tell you that?"

    "Presents don''t have teeth, moron!"

    "It''s an expression!" Elegy shot back, "It means you ought to suck up those emotions and say thank you regardless of what you think of it!"

    Growling at each other like a pair of rabid dogs about to fight, they were forcibly separated by the mentally youngest of them all, Hats. With his mighty strength, picking them up by the hair was but a simple task.

    "Aren''t you forgetting about something?" He asked expectantly.

    "...Hm?" They stared blankly at him.

    "The mission?"

    "Ahhhh~"

    The time for infighting over petty disputes was over. They''re supposed to be a team, but for the longest time the only things on their mind were how to mess with each other and trip them up at every moment, and Hats noticed this.

    "I''m sick and tired of always arguing! The hell are we, divorced parents?!" He gave both of them an earful, "From here on out, I''m drawing the line! No more bickering! One for all and all for one!"

    "Sorry..." Elegy meekly fixed his attitude, "Oh, I like that. One for all and all for one, did you make that up just now?"

    "How the hell should I know?"

    "...Screw this, we''re wasting daylight." Sorbet freed himself from Hats'' clutches before walking off, "Come on, this way."

    "Hey, get back here!" Hats hollered, "We''re not done yet...!"

    "Nah, we''re done." Elegy consoled him, "You did good, thanks for getting us back on track."

    "He''s still mad, though."

    "Maybe, but when has he not been a grumpy prick?"

    "Ehe, true."

    Despite everything, Sorbet was still moving forwards. He might not like that he has to hold back on everything he wants to say to these two, so he remedies this by not looking at their faces. At the very least, Elegy appraised, he''s smart enough to do that much.

    "How much longer do you reckon we''ll be on the road until we reach the next district?" Elegy asked casually.

    "Dumbass, we only just made it to this one." Sorbet shot back.

    "It''ll be a while, that''s for sure." Hats kept the peace by giving Elegy his answer, "But we''ll make it. Even if it takes us hundreds or even thousands of days¡ª we have the formula down, so it''s only a matter of time."

    "Hmm... And luck." Sorbet said pitifully, "You never know what''s waiting for us after each step."

    "Yep, but that''s what makes it so thrilling!" Elegy grinned, "It could be a boring walk to the very end, we could run into a monster, or heck, we might even find something that''ll shorten our remaining distance significantly."

    Finally, talking like a true civilized adventuring group, the boys spoke their mind without reserve. Some were pessimistic, while others¡ªfor example¡ªcouldn''t withhold their excitement at the thought of such adventurous uncertainty. And none of this would even be possible without their mediator, who was just as eager to give his two cents on the matter.

    "I think it''ll be worth it." Hats said warmly.

    "...Hm?"

    "Whether we make it or not, it''ll be worth it." He elaborated, "Before this, I was so afraid of everything, but now that I''m with you guys, everything feels so breathtaking!"

    "Cheh..." Elegy smiled back, "Right?"

 Vol.4 Ch.81 - Filler Up

    On the other side...

    "Wait!" I shouted moments before we got snapped to someplace else, "What''s in it for... us."

    Gah, those damned Gods! At the very least, they could''ve given us a reason to help them get Sab! Ugh, where the hell even are we?

    "Vastoria, where are you going?" I asked after spotting her walking to the other room.

    "We should unwind for now." She glanced back, "I''ll go get us some tea and biscuits. Until then, you guys sit down in the living room."

    "Eh? This is your place?" Sheep glanced around, "Spacious..."

    Spacious is underselling it, and by like, a huge amount. Just this living room looks more like a main foyer of a mansion than anything else, with only the small table and comfy leather sofas defining it as such. Obviously, I expect nothing less than a mansion for my princess Vastoria, but I still have to wonder how it all fit in the borders of her yard... F-Fueh...!?

    "S-Sheep, check this out!" I pointed at the clouds just outside the window, "T-The sky! We''re super high up!"

    "Migu, we''re in Heaven, remember? Everything is cloudy."

    "Grr...! Just look!"

    Leading him out the front porch, I was left speechless a second time once I realized she DOES have a yard, but it''s way more vast than the regular confides of a Heavenly plot of land. How? How is hers so much bigger than everyone else''s? And where is everyone else''s, might I add? It''s like the yard abruptly ends at the edges.

    "Oh, there you are." She got the jump on us with her tray of cookies and tea, "Come on, they get cold quickly."

    "Cute... N-No, wait!" I shook off my honest feelings, "Why is this place so big, Vastoria?!"

    "Hm? Oh, you''re talking about the island." She said with an aloof tone, "Right, I guess since my house is skybound, it doesn''t have to follow the confides of the standard yard size."

    "Skybound?!"

    Immediately, Sheep and I booked it to the edge and looked down. Below was Heaven 2.0, the countless houses of all shapes and sizes, yet still cleanly fitting inside their respective yards'' borders. Not to mention the countless tiny angels walking around aimlessly like ants. This reminds me of the very beginning. I was with those other two guys, when the Divine Voice explained everything about Heaven 2.0 to us. We were standing high up in the sky back then as well, and it looked pretty similar to this. Vastoria, she''s just full of surprises...

    "Wah~! So high up!" I gasped.

    "Ugh, if someone fell from this high up, it''d definitely take minutes before they hit the ground..." Sheep gagged.

    "Nah, definitely an hour, if not more!"

    I gently nudged him a centimeter towards the ledge¡ªy''know, as a joke¡ªbut he must''ve taken it seriously, prompting his legs to give out as he hit the floor like a wet noodle. Thankfully, we were a safe distance away from the ledge of the sky island, so it''s not like he''d actually fall off unless I really shoved him with all my might. Geez, what a crybaby.

    "Demon!" He began to call me names, "Heathen! What the hell was that, eh!? You trying to get me killed!?"

    "Oh for crying out... We can''t die out here, moron!" I hissed back.

    "It''d still hurt if I hit the ground down there with my golden parts!" He raised his remaining hand, "Under this glove is a hand of pure gold, y''know? Sensitive gold! If I even accidentally slammed it on the way down..."

    "Then just keep your hand up! The rest of your body is literally invincible! ...And how long are you planning to lay there like a scaredy cat!?"

    "I can''t move my legs, jackass! You scared the function out of them!"

    How great, am I seriously gonna have to carry this guy all the way to the living room? Honestly, I do feel a bit bad about it, but I genuinely didn''t know he was so deathly afraid of heights! Can you blame me? Geez, now even Vastoria is looking at me with a disappointed sigh.

    "Migu, that was kinda cruel, what you just did."

    "It was just a joke."

    "Maybe to you, but just one good look at his state should tell you all you need to know." She turned her back on me, "Until you apologize and bring him back to the couch¡ªno treats for you!"

    Gah, don''t do that! I won''t be able to live without Vastoria''s sweets! Life without them is agony! Like a drug I haven''t even gotten addicted to yet. Nay, scratch that, I don''t even need to get addicted to know I need it in my system now. As in N O W.

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    "Mn." I glanced back at the wobbly shopkeeper lying on the ground in a fetal position.

    "Right, so if you could just help me back up on my fee-WHOA!?"

    Honestly, it was quicker to just scare him into propping himself up by acting like I was gonna completely push him off the island. Right, it was just an act, I wasn''t actually gonna do it. I''d stop after he got scared enough to stop this sham of his legs not working... Probably.

    "Are you crazy!? You were actually gonna push me off just now!"

    "I didn''t have to, because you got up all by yourself. Good job!"

    "Y-You...! You''re a horrible person, Migu!"

    "Oh come on. It worked, didn''t it?"

    Despite my plan working flawlessly, he still kept acting like a fussy child. Guess he didn''t wanna admit my methods were effective, despite their harsh undertones. After this, he stormed back into the house by himself, and worst of all¡ªhe tattled on me to Vastoria, so now I don''t get any cookies at all! Stupid Sheep!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "So, to begin our latest team meeting..." Vastoria cleared her throat before pausing, "Migu, are you gonna continue to act like this for the entire meeting?"

    "Hmph!" I sat there, arms crossed on the sofa as I gave Sheep death glares for being a tattle-tale, "I don''t know what you mean!"

    "Ignore her." Sheep nonchalantly chimed in, stuffing his face with the cookies just to spite me, "By the way, these are really good."

    "Thank you, I found them lying around in the cupboard."

    "Mnf-!?"

    Choking on the bit of cookies after hearing where they came from, Sheep needed to drink some tea to properly wash it down before he caused a mess. That was when he realized the tea probably hailed from the same place, so he hesitantly sipped that until he stopped violently coughing. What a reaction.

    "W-What the hell, do they have an expiry date?" He asked with a great deal of worry.

    "They reset with each cycle, so they''re fresh." She shook her head, "No expiry date, but I guess I should''ve specified that beforehand."

    Oh? He seems skeptical. This might be my chance!

    "If he doesn''t want them, I''ll...!"

    "No." They shot me down in unison.

    "You''re not allowed to eat or drink any because of what you did to Sheep." Vastoria pouted.

    "Oh come on! Please?" I begged, "This is the first time I saw something I can taste! I''ll take any other punishment, I''ll apologize a thousand times in a row if need be, but don''t you think denying me this is too cruel?"

    At this, the two could only look at me with wide open, flabbergasted Eyes. After an awkward exchange of glances between each other, Sheep was the first to break the news to me.

    "M-Migu, there''s nothing to taste."

    "Huh?"

    "Gosh, how do we put this...?" Vastoria had trouble explaining it too, "Uhm, our tongues aren''t golden, so we can''t really... taste anything."

    ...What? No, but their faces looked so happy while munching on them! And the tea as well, Sheep was practically slurping it down despite the steam coming out of it! No one does that to tasteless drinks! No, but it''d make sense that we can''t "feel" the taste with our White tongues... Hold on, so only Throne could actually taste stuff!? Dammit, that guy''s dead though! What the hell do you mean a jackass like him is the only one of us privileged enough to taste some damned tea and biscuits!?

    "B-But..."

    "Sorry, what we said isn''t quite true." Vastoria gave me a glimmer of hope, only to utterly crush it in the very next moment, "Well, we can "feel" the liquids and solids enter our bodies, but in a sort of static way, like if you ate something under anaesthetics."

    "Heh, in truth, I did compliment the taste and all, but..." Sheep bashfully admitted, "That''s just me roleplaying and all. It helps make it feel more real."

    What...? There''s really no taste in Heaven? Nothing? A-Ah, why do I suddenly have this overwhelming feeling of loss? Tears?

    "Mnf!" I felt something chocolatey get shoved in my mouth suddenly.

    "Heh, gotcha!" Vastoria giggled devilishly, keeping her soft, supple finger on my lips, "But to think you would actually cry over this. I guess that makes Sheep and you even, then."

    "I-I didn''t cry after her stupid prank!" Sheep blushed.

    "So you think we overdid it, then? Want her to do another prank to truly make it even?"

    "I''ll pass!"

    She fed me a cookie. After spouting all that crap, it turns out they were just lying to get a reaction out of me. The cookie, as I expected, was beyond delicious. Actually, I started crying all over again, but this time for a different reason. The very first time in waking memory that I tasted something, and it was this delicious. Not only that, but it was directly fed to me by the cutest of all, Vastoria. I truly am blessed, but I''m still kinda pissed she tricked me like this.

    "I... I knew you were lying." I muttered.

    Quickly, while her guard was down, I swooped in for a quick peck on her sweet lips. The kiss was done directly in front of Sheep, just to further make the situation even more embarrassing. She didn''t know how to react, her Eyes were wide open for the entire time she was left speechless.

    "W-Wha...?" She finally uttered something.

    "I knew you were lying, because when we first kissed¡ªIt tasted unforgettably sweet!" I proudly announced, a tad Red in the face myself.

    "Geez, do that when you''re alone!" Sheep groaned, "Just ''cause I know about you two dating doesn''t mean I gotta see all that!"

    "W-Wait! Sheep, no, that wasn''t...!" Vastoria tripped all over her words, "Migu, that was totally uncalled for! How could you-!?"

    "How could I... what? Not use my tongue?" I teased her some more, figuring I''d strike the iron while it was still hot, "Sorry, if you want, we can redo it."

    "Shut up, what the hell are you talking about even!?" She jumped from her seat, eating all the remaining cookies and chugging the entire kettle of tea in one fell swoop, "There, because you did that, no more cookies for anyone!"

    "Oh, that''s a shame."

    "H-Huh? You''re not as sad as you were before." She stuttered.

    "Well yeah, my girlfriend has an endless daily supply after all." I shrugged, spouting as many embarrassing buzzer words to her as I could cram in, "Then, since you stocked up on sweety goodness, how about we actually start talking about our next course of action?"

    Sheep was cackling, reclined and rolling around on the couch as she reached her tipping point. I well and truly believe that teasing Vastoria is a bottomless well of joy and dopamine. There has to be a rule of Heaven that making her blush will never get old.

    "Grrr...!" She exploded with anger, finally, "That''s what I wanted us to do from the start!"

    "Ahahahaha!" Sheep kicked his feet up sporadically in between wheezes, "This is so much better than retail!"

 Vol.4 Ch.82 - Trial & Error

    "So, to finally talk about the elephant in the room." I stared both of them down seriously, "We''re not gonna help the Gods get Sab at all, right?"

    "That much is already a given." Sheep agreed.

    "Obviously." Vastoria nodded.

    Good, so we''re on the same page. That makes this discussion pretty much done and dusted already. Okay, bring out the cookies and tea! ...Ah, right, she ate them all.

    "Vastoria has her wings, so we can go back to the Shrine immediately if we want to." I continued.

    "To get the other pair of wings?" Vastoria tilted her head.

    "More like to explore further down."

    As I said this, the two stared back with bewildered, wide open Eyes. They were completely confused on my thought process, especially since we''ve already reached the fourth floor and found nothing.

    "There isn''t anything down there, though?" Vastoria recalled, "The Gods said..."

    "The Gods also told us to betray Sab. I don''t think we should really be so trusting of them."

    "That''s... H-Hold on, but what about Gale?"

    "What about him?" I returned her question innocently, "The White Monster brought him back home, so he''s safe."

    Sheep was quick to reprimand me on this, however.

    "And his memories are wiped. We still don''t know if his reset makes him remember that day we went to the Gods'' Abode."

    "Guys, he showed us Throne''s true Colors, he''s done enough!" I lashed out, "The guy''s been working overtime for cycles on end, and it amounted to him getting put to sleep regardless!"

    "..."

    "Look, what I''m saying is¡ªHe''ll find a way back to us if he wants to." I sighed, "He''s the most capable out of all of us, so I have no doubts about that."

    Vastoria made a difficult expression. She was torn between trusting my judgment, as what I said wasn''t inherently wrong, but she also felt it wrong to just abandon him after all we''ve been through together.

    "Then, let''s make a vote." She decided, "All in favor of going back to find Gale, raise their hand!"

    Immediately, I was outnumbered by the two of them raising their hands against me.

    "Tch!"

    "All in favor of visiting the Shrine again?" Vastoria put her hand down, with Sheep following suit as mine shot up aggressively.

    "Then, it''s decided."

    "Wait!" I recalled a hidden third option, "A-All in favor of just storming the Gods'' Abode and trying to see what''s inside the Book again?"

    Again, I was only being met with empty stares this entire time. They were constantly left without words at my wild ideas, but surprisingly, this time they weren''t inherently opposed to it.

    "Wait, you''re not gonna shoot it down immediately?" Even I was shocked that their hands were half-mast.

    "It certainly beats going back to that horrid Shrine again." Sheep considered the possibility.

    "And we were so close last time, so now that we know what our goal is..." Vastoria thought about it, "Besides, we have my wings now too."

    "T-Then!" I smiled expectantly.

    With solemn nods and friendly smiles, they got up from their seated positions and dusted themselves off, ready to face the challenge head on.

    "You''ve got some sound logic there, partner." Vastoria''s Eyes gleamed excitedly.

    "You reckon that Book is actually just a diary dictating all of the Gods'' most embarrassing secrets?" Sheep joked, "Heh, given how overprotective of it they were, it wouldn''t surprise me one bit!"

    With the cheery mood well-established, we promptly made our way out onto the yard. Sheep''s traumas began to act up slightly as he recalled me trying to kick him off the ledge earlier, but everything was fine after Vastoria lifted us with her wings.

    "How are you not afraid of dangling like a keychain while flying, but you''re afraid of ledges?" I asked, semi-annoyedly.

    "When Vastoria is the pilot, I know I''m in safe hands." He glared back at me, "When you¡¯re trying to kick me off, I have no wings to safely let me meet the ground down below."

    Again, Vastoria sort of gave me a disappointed look herself, to which I just stuck my tongue out back at her. Seriously, it was just a slight joke, and it''s not like he''d even die, even if I HAD decided to push him off... N-Not like I would, though!

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    "Then, we''re going straight to the Gods'' Abode?" Vastoria glanced down at the two of us hanging from her waist.

    "Yep!"

    "Are we gonna crash straight through the roof like last time, or are we going to sneak in?" She asked.

    "Isn''t that obvious? The Gods spotted us immediately when we tried to sneak past them." I replied, "I''ll take destroying their house some more any day of the week!"

    Thus, with a confident nod, she zipped us to the Gods in less than a second. It always baffles me just how fast these wings are, and the speed is only amplified with the wearer being confident in their skills as an aviator. In that regard, Vastoria was much faster and comfier to ride with than Sab, but neither can hold a candle to what little we saw of Throne''s flight. He was just on a whole ''nother level.

    "Approaching the Abode!" Vastoria warned, "Brace for impact...!"

    "That''s quite enough." A stern, tired voice echoed inside everyone''s ears, "I believe we already told you what your orders were, so what are you doing back here?"

    "Selzion!" I shouted.

    "Ah, could it be that thing you asked us as we snapped you back to Vastoria''s home?" He pondered, "You asked what was "in it" for you, so allow me to answer that question. Ahem, kill Sab for us, that is your one and only order. Fail to hunt that bounty... and we will place a bounty on you next."

    Just like that, a loud snap of the fingers practically burst our eardrums. I reflexively closed my Eyes, and when I opened them back up, we were once again in Vastoria''s palace.

    "So that''s how it''s gonna be..." I bit my nails in frustration, "Dammit, threatening us like that is so unfair!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The Gods see and hear everything, that''s what they said. In truth, I didn''t wanna believe that, but after what just happened, it can''t be anything but the truth. So long as they''re at home, we can''t ever go back inside there.

    "Tch, looking back, our previous attempt had Throne, Sab and Gale with us." Sheep reclined back on his spot on the sofa, "I just assumed Vastoria would be enough to fill in for them, but yeah, that was a lost cause from the start."

    "I''m sorry." She replied weakly.

    "No, don''t be. He didn''t mean to offend you, Vastoria!"

    "But now we need to kill Sab, otherwise the Gods will send other Heavenly Beings to kill us!" She frowned, "It''s messed up!"

    Well, no one''s arguing back with that. But what else can we do? If we ignore the Gods and they end up finding someone who successfully kills us, then they''ll surely employ that guy to kill Sab immediately after. It''s a lose-lose situation where either he dies... or everyone does.

    "I don''t care." I shook my head anyways, "Sab did nothing to us to deserve death! Besides, if he''s a so-called "Catalyst of Heaven''s Fall", then doesn''t that make him our ally?"

    "Is our goal to destroy Heaven?" Sheep cocked his head back.

    "Our goal is to discover as much about this world as those skeevy Gods don''t want us to know." I reiterated, "And if that means knocking Heaven down to its knees, then so be it!"

    The heartfelt speech was more than heard by them, and once again we were motivated to face anything that came our way. Given that a frontal attack on the Gods'' Abode was now out of the question, and killing Sab was always off the table to begin with, we were pretty much back to square one all over again.

    "Then, what to do?" I chuckled, "Do we go find Gale, or do we go to the Shrine again?"

    "Let''s go find Gale, THEN explore the Shrine with him." Sab raised a fair point.

    "Oh, why didn''t we think of that sooner?" Vastoria giggled, "Right, let''s do that!"

    "Sigh, you guys..." I chuckled, shaking my head, "Well, you indulged me last time, so it''s only fair I listen to your suggestion this time."

    "Hooray!" They raised their arms triumphantly in the air.

    They seem happy. Well, guess it''s time to go back home again. I haven''t been there in a while, probably since I first woke up if my memory isn''t deceiving me. Honestly, I don''t even remember exploring it much, but I saw a ton of interesting doohickeys as I was rushing out last time. After we find Gale, it wouldn''t be a bad idea to look through the house for some useful stuff.

    "Then, ready for take-off?" Vastoria asked just to make sure as we tightly hugged her waist out in the yard.

    "Aye!" We nodded.

    With a zip, zoom and dash, we were already at our destination. I really tried my best to focus on where we were going, but it was just too fast so the motion blur got in the way. I wonder how she can see where she''s going? Maybe it''s that, where you''re a lot more alert if you''re the driver than when you''re the passenger. I should ask her later.

    "This is the place." I stood in front of Gale''s residence, "Hey, wait a second. How do you know that?"

    "You mentioned before that you two are neighbors." She shrugged, "And I know where you live from a previous cycle."

    "My stalker girlfriend can''t be this cute!" I hugged her, though she ignored it as she walked inside.

    To everyone''s surprise, Gale''s house was empty. As in, completely vacant. Barring the walls, ceiling, floor and occasional window, he didn''t have a single other thing inside. Could it have been taken? Stolen by others? Or...

    "Heh, lucky man." Vastoria giggled, "He must have lived such a full life that his Heaven home has nothing he wanted when he died."

    "Pretty sure he just got burgled." I chuckled.

    "Then, where is he?" Sheep looked around, occasionally calling for him, "Gale! Oi, Gale...!"

    No reply, huh? Well, it HAS been a while since morning arrived, so he''s definitely already left to go find us. Thing is, we don''t know where he went. Without wings, it''s probably not too far, but still.

    "...Hey." I looked across the road to my home, "My house... My doors are wide open."

    "Ah, I guess burglary isn''t as rare in a Heaven without locks." Sheep shrugged, "What, did you have things in there you cared about?"

    "Silly, it''s her Heaven home! Obviously she did!" Vastoria shut him up, "Migu, go check inside if everything''s still in place."

    "...N-No, I don''t know what all was in there to begin with, so there''s no way for me to know if anything got stolen." I sighed, "All I can hope for is that the person that took it put it to good use."

    It''s a shame, but that''s how it is. There was nothing to do about it, especially since we''re looking for someONE, not someTHING. The other two were quite surprised by my nonchalant reaction, however.

    "Migu, did I perhaps go too fast?" Vastoria worried.

    "Huh, why?" I furrowed my brows.

    "She''s asking about you suddenly turning all mature all of a sudden." Sheep smirked, "She''s worried your brain might have gotten left behind on the island."

    "You idiots better take that back!" I hissed back, "I''m mature when I want to be, goddammit! I just prefer saying funny and cute things more!"

    "She actually called herself funny and cute." Sheep muttered, "Yeah, that''s the kind of idiocy we expect of our Migu."

    Y''know, just for that, I''m gonna push you off the ledge next time we''re on the sky island. I mean it, I''m not joking here. Count your days, even if they''re infinite, ''cause you''re so going splat the moment that ledge meets your gaze. Vastoria might not talk to me for a good while after that, but I don''t care. I''ll seriously do it.

 Vol.4 Ch.83 - Breakthrough

    "Well, while we''re here, we might as well check for useful items in my house." I glanced at the invitingly wide open door.

    "Sure, not like we got anything better to do." Sheep agreed.

    Crossing the street, we found the house in the exact same state I left it in, that being a total mess. Of course, some things were probably moved around, but with the sheer amount of junk lying around, there was no way I would know what was out of place.

    "You sure were needy in your past life..." Vastoria smirked.

    "Says the princess with a mansion on a floating island." I shot back.

    "Ladies, please." Sheep calmed the tension, "The faster we find what we need, the sooner we can go look for Gale."

    Right, but what do we need? We entered to look for "something useful", but that doesn''t really narrow our search down at all. Should we make a list? I feel like we''re bound to get let down if we give ourselves any expectations though. Ugh, this is gonna be tougher than I thought.

    "Then, I''ll take the living room." Vastoria divided the work pretty evenly, "You two decide amongst yourselves how you''ll divide the second floor."

    "Alright, I''ll look through my room and the bathroom." I turned to Sheep, "You take the closet and guest bedroom."

    "Sounds like a plan." He nodded, "Vastoria, if you find anything, be sure to holler."

    "Of course."

    Walking up the stairs, the two of us immediately realized something was amiss. Namely, the hallway was so crowded that we couldn''t even access the rooms without hopping over them like barrels in a construction zone. Some of the rooms were even barricaded up with piles upon piles of gadgets and clothes, but thankfully the rooms we were looking for weren''t.

    "Be careful, call if you need help with anything." Sheep warned me just in case, "And of course, if you find something interesting."

    "Yeah yeah, just get moving." I hurried him inside the closet before trudging over to my room, "Phew, okay!"

    The nostalgic looking bedroom wasn''t all that spacious, in all honesty. Of course, it would be if it was kept tidy. I have to wonder, I woke up with it looking like this, so did someone misplace everything beforehand, or am I just a messy person in general?

    "Just look at all this." I picked stuff up at random, "A knight''s helmet, a bunch of rose paraphernalia, newspaper cut outs... a Blue cloak? Just what kind of a life have I led down there?!"

    Kicking away a random gadget that most resembled a small metal ball, I was surprised to see it shoot out a piece of rope. It shot towards the wall at mach speeds, clinging to it by extending sharp metal spikes from its surface. The sound startled both me and Sheep in the other room.

    "Everything okay!?" He worried hollered.

    "Y-Yeah, I just ran into some Instarope by accident!" I reassured him, "All good!"

    "Instarope? The heck is that stuff doing in your room?" He sounded puzzled, "Don''t tell me you were an adventurer in your past life."

    Geez, I have no clue. Instarope is a gadget used to grapple to hard to reach surfaces, or in a worst case scenario, a last line of defense. Adventurers love using those things whenever they get the chance, because it''s cheap and provides great value to any expedition. Not to mention, it''s effectively a rope you shoot out at high velocities, so who wouldn''t want one in their arsenal at all times?

    "As for what correlation it has with the rest of this stuff, however..." Glanced around until a gleam caught my Eye, "Gasp, no way!"

    A family photo! Finally, I get to see humans for the first time in forever! Whoa, look at everyone, they seem so happy! I wonder, which one am I? Oh, I can''t keep this to myself.

    "Guys, come quick!" I shouted.

    "Found something!?" Vastoria was already at the door, short on breath and heavily winded, "I came as fast as I could."

    "How? You were downstairs, and I was...?" Sheep recalled she had wings, "Oh, that''s how. Anyways, what''d you find, Migu?"

    Showing them the large family photo that had over a dozen people on it, they both agreed it looked a lot more like a class photo than a family one, had it not been for the older people at the top. From the looks of it, they were arranged in a way where the youngest were nearest to the camera, and the oldest the furthest back.

    "It''s really well done!" Sheep gawked.

    "...Come again?"

    "Yeah, props to the artist, it looks so real." He smiled.

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    Oh right, he''s ancient. I guess cameras weren''t a thing back in his time.

    "A-Anyways, do you think this is your family, Migu?" Vastoria continued the actual topic, "It''s quite large."

    "I''m both happy and sad that that''s the case." I chuckled, exhaling from my nose, "On one hand, I''m glad to see I had so many people around me, but on the other hand, that makes it harder to pinpoint which one I am."

    "The lady in the center, maybe?" Vastoria pointed, "She looks about the same age as us."

    "No, you gotta realize that our Heavenly bodies don''t match our human bodies." Sheep shook his head before pointing at the scruffy, Brownish haired guy holding her close, "Plus, she has a husband."

    "He could be a brother." I reasoned.

    "With how close he''s holding her, I sure hope not." He shivered in response to that.

    As we continued to merely look at each and every person in the photo, a sense of melancholy washed over me like never before. These people, are they truly my family? If so, which one of them is me? Am I even in the photo? Not to mention... All of them are here, in Heaven 2.0 just as well. Sigh, not like it matters, since they wouldn''t even recognize me anyways.

    "Oh, this guy''s got Rainbow Eyes." Vastoria noticed.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Cool." I shrugged.

    "What? That''s gotta be a mistake on the artist''s part." Sheep cocked his head back.

    "Nah, it''s real." I shook my head, "He was just flexing for the camera, I think. People can do that if they Focus enough."

    "What the hell kind of world are you from where people can just make their Eyes go all Rainbow like that!?"

    I''ll let his ignorance slide, since he''s from the past. Honestly though, my brain just automatically registers this fact as the status quo, so it''s kind of baffling in its own right how people didn''t know this before. Eye Color was always a prominent part of every person''s lifespan, but I guess this wasn''t always the case.

    "I think I''m gonna put this in my pocket for safe keeping." I said, delicately folding it for easier transport, "It''s a pretty big clue."

    "Right, then let''s continue with this pace and keep looking for even more breakthroughs." Vastoria smiled at me before walking out of the room.

    "Geez, I''m still finding it hard to believe, that thing you said about the Rainbow Eyes." Sheep muttered as he turned to leave the room as well.

    Just then, Vastoria''s screech sent us into a frenzy. Rushing out of my bedroom, we saw her pinned to the wall by an unknown assailant in the hallway. Judging by the toppled junk next to the previously blocked door behind them, it''s safe to assume was in there the entire time, waiting for his chance to strike.

    "Let her go!" I shouted.

    "Back, back I say!" Sheep instead chose violence over words, grabbing a nearby baseball bat and threatening to use it if the assailant didn''t obey us, "Move away from her slowly, and don''t you DARE make any sudden movements!"

    "...Huh?" Vastoria squinted open her Eyes, allowing her to get a better look at the man that was in front of her, "E-Energy...?"

    Oh no, they know each other! Hey, hold on, isn''t that good though? That name... Energy was the guy that helped her reach the end of the Shrine before she went with us. He''s missing a foot, and he''s got one ugly looking scar where he got his Eye ripped out. Apart from that, nothing too out of the ordinary.

    "...Oh, it''s just you." He looked her up and down before recognizing the chest wound he gave her, "Thank goodness you stopped me. I hid inside this room the moment I heard footsteps downstairs."

    "You''re quite alert." I praised him, albeit with a nasty glare.

    "You have to be when you''re in the apocalypse." He said nonchalantly.

    Apocalypse? Now I''m really confused.

    "Never mind him, he''s been through quite a lot in his life." Vastoria defended the guy''s odd words, "But how are you doing? Is it difficult to walk with just one foot?"

    "Yes it is, thank you for asking." He furrowed his brows, "And the lack of depth of field is also quite difficult to adjust to. I have you to thank for that one."

    "S-Sorry..."

    They''re chatting like old friends. Well, I guess they are old friends, but it''s still rude to keep Sheep and me out of the loop. I ran in between them with a pouty frown, fully intent on feeling him out to make sure he''s not a threat.

    "Oh?" He glanced down at me due to his taller height, "And you are?"

    "Nice to meetcha'', Migu''s the name!" I proudly put my hand out, "Thank you for taking care of our Vastoria!"

    "Migu?" She looked embarrassed.

    "It was the optimal play." He put his hand in his pocket as he suspiciously returned the handshake, "We living gotta stick together. A human spared might save your skin later, but a dead man sure won''t."

    That''s certainly... one way to look at it. Regardless, had it not been for him, Vastoria might still be stuck in the Shrine, and what''s worse, we would have never met! I have to say, though he looks rough around the edges, I''m quite thankful for his contributions!

    "I''m Sheep." He put out his remaining hand, "Heh, feels nice to meet a fellow amputee, am I right?"

    "At least you can run." The guy belittled Sheep''s injury, "Not to mention see where you''re running."

    "Oh come on, you''re not fully blind." Vastoria crossed her arms angrily, "Besides, didn''t you notice? With your cool looking face scars, no one even noticed your threads!"

    "Threads?" I finally saw golden stitches going down the back of his head, "Oh, would you look at that? What''s that-"

    ...for, I wanted to ask, but he was already undoing the stitches carefully to show us. Like a cartoon, even down to ignoring his skull, we could get a clear shot at the purely golden brain that dwelled inside. Stretching his vertical slit wide open to a gruesome extent so that we could see every inch of it, I couldn''t help but feel the need to let out a shriek.

    "Yahh! What is that!?"

    "Migu, where are your manners!" Vastoria got mad at me for some reason, "This is his gilded part we''re talking about! Proof of his scars from his time as a human, so show some respect!"

    "Well, if we''re talking about respect..." I pointed to the ground next to me, "Then why aren''t you scolding Sheep for falling unconscious from the shock?"

    She was so absorbed in defending Energy that she totally didn''t notice him. In a way, you could say I took the news better, but it''s also not a contest. As for the guy that caused all this...

    "Yeah, none of you folks would''ve survived a day in the Living World." He smirked, smugly redoing his stitches like a champ.

    Honestly, is Heaven just filled with weirdos, or are we just exceptionally unlucky? A-Ah, Vastoria, stop kicking Sheep. He''s not gonna wake up from that.

 Vol.4 Ch.84 - Found Family

    "H-Huh?" Sheep blinked a couple of times after finally waking up, "What happened?"

    "We are not your enemies. You are safe." Energy began explaining the entire situation from the start, "To begin with, your name is..."

    "Hold on, he''s not an angel, so he still has his memories." Vastoria stopped him.

    "...Come again?"

    With a tired sigh, Sheep finally sat himself up, rubbing his groggy head all the while.

    "Ugh, yep. I''m what you would call a shopkeeper."

    "Ah, I see. I was unfamiliar with that bit of info." He replied, "Then, can you please tell me what it is you were doing in this house?"

    Eh? He''s asking like he owns the place, the hell? For your information, pal¡ªyou may have come here before us, but this is MY house! And I don''t care what kind of apocalypse era you hail from, stealing from other people''s residences is not okay!

    "This house belongs to Migu." Vastoria reached into my pocket to show him the photo, "We found this and wanted to figure out who these people were to her."

    "Her house...?" Energy looked up at me confusedly, "I see. That complicates some things."

    Leaving that last part as nothing more than an ambiguous mutter he refused to elaborate on, he kept staring at everyone in the photo.

    "Yeah, so you can just return all the stuff you might have taken from me." I put my hand out.

    "Huh? I didn''t come here to take any of this junk." He furrowed his brows, "Hmm, so these people are..."

    Wait, he recognizes them?

    "I see, it''s good that you found this." He handed it back to me, "Keep it safe until we figure out which one of them is us."

    "Huh? Why would you be in the picture?" Sheep cocked his head back.

    "Because¡ªit''s a family picture." He praised the details, "And a rather well-made one."

    Ah, guess he''s also from the "pre-camera" era...

    "Hold on, this is MY family." I reiterated.

    "I suppose you wouldn''t know, so please follow me to my home." He sighed.

    What the hell is he doing all of a sudden? Leading us away from here, spouting random nonsense like him being one of the people here... What makes him think he''s my family? Ah, but his house is super close to mine. Just a few houses away, actually. What the hell, it''s seated on a giant block of concrete.

    "See here, the proximity between our abodes is measly." He knocked on the heavily fortified home''s cubic concrete base, "House location is based on familial relations."

    "...Whuh?" Vastoria''s mouth stood agape, "How is that even possible? Who told you that?"

    "The Gods." He revealed, "If you go around a dozen blocks that way, you''ll see..."

    "We know where the Gods live!" I fussed, "H-Hold on, so are you saying the house next to me is my human parent''s house?!"

    "That is what they told me." He nodded.

    "So then, that makes you Migu''s ancestor." Sheep realized, "But wait, you''re still relatively far from her home."

    "So?"

    "So, you''re ancient compared to her!" He explained, "Let''s say a generation is around 25-30ish years. That''d mean you''re at least 300 years older than her."

    Oh yeah, the math adds up. But I still don''t understand what he''s getting at.

    "You still don''t get it?" He then turned to me, "The picture, he can''t be in it, because he would''ve been dead five times over by the time it was illustrated!"

    "Ah." Vastoria paused before correcting him, "...Shot."

    "Hm?"

    "Photos are shot, not illustrated."

    "Future tech, you wouldn''t get it." I chimed in with a smirk.

    As the poor primitive Sheep tried his best and failed to comprehend our mind blowing news about the state of modern image capturing technology, Energy was quick to steer the conversation back on track.

    "Well, regardless, what he said is probably true."

    "Hey, don''t be sad." I comforted him, "At the very least, I''m glad I have a family member to talk to in here. Even if you are my great-great-great-great-great-great..."

    "I''m not that old!"

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    Heh, gramps is frowning. But to think our house location is based on our family ties. I guess it makes sense, when you think about it. If everyone who has ever and will ever live their lives down there is up here now, then it''d make sense for them to be arranged appropriately. This way, you''re essentially traveling through time as you make your way forwards or backwards. Well, humans had to have started off from one guy and one girl, so in a way, we ARE all related to some extent...

    "H-Hold on!" I noticed, turning my head back to where we came from, "If house proximity dictates family ties...!"

    "Huh? Oh goodness!" Vastoria understood from my gaze, "You and Gale are practically neighbors!"

    Gale''s house is in the same direction as Energy''s, just way closer to mine. Does that make him my ancestor too? If that''s the case, he could very well be my father or grandfather. Given we''re all arranged in a uniform grid pattern, this hypothesis has a slight margin of error. Geez, just who the hell is Energy? He waltzes in unannounced, gives us a boatload of shocking news, then refuses to elaborate!

    "Heh, looks like our dear friend Gale is a rather close relative." Sheep chuckled, though his smirk quickly dropped down once he recalled something, "Crap! Quick, gimme the picture!"

    "Photo." Vastoria corrected him, but he hastily took it from her anyways, "H-Hey!"

    "Heh." His smirk returned, now with a slight sigh of relief as he showed everyone the man with the Rainbow Eyes again, "I knew I recognized those scars on his forearms!"

    We all huddled around him to see, and... Wow, the scratches really are there! Not only that, but he''s showing off his hand that''s missing a pinkie. Just like Gale''s golden one! So this man, he really is...

    "Incredible... So this is what he looked like as a human..." Vastoria''s heartbeat grew loud in excitement.

    "B-But wait, everyone else is dressed so warmly, yet he''s the only one pulling his sleeves up." I noted, "Not only that, but the pose with him showing off his missing finger..."

    There''s just no way that''s the case, but... Could he have somehow known?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "This is all just getting to be too much." Vastoria was about to lean on the concrete block.

    "Wait!" Energy pulled her back up.

    As soon as her back briefly made contact with the surface of the concrete, a large anvil dropped from above, hitting the exact spot where she would''ve been. Staring in abject horror and silence at the man whom the house belonged to, we couldn''t help but yell his ear off.

    "What the hell was that!?" I went first.

    "You freaking booby trapped your house!?" Sheep went second.

    "Thank you so much for pulling me back~!!" Vastoria vigorously shook his hand in tears.

    "Huh, you''re not mad at this prick?" Sheep and I turned to stare at her.

    "I''m just glad to be alive!" She said in between hyperventilated sobs.

    Well, that''s a glass-half-full way of looking at it if ever I''ve seen one. Certainly, he did go out of his way to pull her out to safety, so he does deserve some praise.

    "Something you should know, but this is my human counterpart''s dream house." He explained, "A fully fortified, trapped to the teeth home where no one but me can safely traverse it. Inside are supplies, weapons and plant seeds that''ll easily grow to last you a lifetime."

    "Is there even a need for any of those in a place like Heaven?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "Sadly, the things I had most wished for in life are no longer appropriate..." He chuckled melancholically, "The irony is loud, isn''t it?"

    For once, he was making sense. I''ll admit I see gramps in a whole new light now, but even then I can''t exactly understand just what kind of horror movie era he lived in to wish for this.

    "You hails from a Black Iro era." Vastoria explained, sending shivers down both Sheep''s and my spine.

    "A cursed era!?" He jolted.

    "I thought those were just a myth!" I was taken aback, "So people with Black Irises really do exist..."

    Once a baby is born with Black Colored Eyes, the entire world is cursed until that person is killed or dies. Most often, their parents are forced to kill them so as to not send the world into an era of darkness, but in the case of such a person being allowed to live, unspeakable horrors are said to enshroud the world... Or at least that''s how the legend goes, but that''s obviously just an old superstition, right?

    "Regardless of what kind of horrors came by during your lifespan, it can''t be that bad that you''d wanna live in this unapproachable death trap." Sheep glanced up.

    "And if I told you a viral plague that makes the dead rise and yearn for live flesh was the norm, would you still disagree?" Energy refuted.

    Yikes, that does sound unspeakably horror-ey. Like, horror squared. Now his house being on a giant cube of concrete is starting to make sense, but how does he even get in there?

    "Vastoria, I see you got your wings back." He Eyed them enviously, "Good for you..."

    Oh, so these two idiots are the same, after all. Both have homes that heavily rely on them flying up to reach them. Seriously, what kind of morons would ask for a house too good for them? And this is coming from a hoarder such as myself!

    "Then, if I flew you up there, would you let us take some stuff with us in exchange?" Vastoria raised a deal, "We''ll need all the help we can get if we wanna reach the bottom of the Shrine again."

    "The Shrine?" His Eyes opened wide in response, "Vastoria, that place is dangerous! I lost my foot and Eye in there!"

    "We have reason to believe that sleeping in those beds on the fourth floor advances the time in Heaven 2.0 permanently." Sheep explained, "Trust me, we wouldn''t wanna go there either if we didn''t have that to prove."

    "Ah, the time advancement." He mulled it over in his head for a moment, "Yes, now that I think about it, the angels here have progressed right after Vastoria and I went to sleep in the Shrine''s depths."

    "So?"

    "It''s perfect, everything lines up!" He couldn''t keep his grin from showing anymore.

    "Lines up?" I cocked my head back.

    "Yes, for you see...!" He was now grinning from ear to ear, "I was planning on going there myself too!"

    "Oh, then it''s perfect!" Vastoria returned a smile herself, "We can go together!"

    "If you''re half as capable as Gale, then we can even skip looking for him." Sheep smirked, "Gods only know where he wandered off to by now. Looking for him is a lost cause."

    What the...? What''s with you two? And gramps, wasn''t he just warning us not to go back to the Shrine? Everyone''s suddenly going back on their words, is there really no way for us to go back for Gale first?

    "...Migu, don''t look at us like that." Sheep noticed my sullen mood, "Looking for Gale now would be like finding a needle in a haystack."

    "Yeah, and the needle and the haystack is constantly shifting, like it has worms in it or something." Vastoria was quick to gag at her own analogy, "Eugh, scratch that. Very poor example!"

    "Why?" Energy turned to her, "I never understood people who are afraid of worms and other critters. When you''re strapped for rations, they''re nature''s protein."

    I... I''m not even gonna say anything to that. Yeah, the other two definitely agree with my sentiment, as they''re just staring at Energy in horror right next to me. The silent surprise and subdued disgust was loud. Gramps, I understand you lived in a difficult time, but I''d rather get my flesh eaten than resort to putting a bug in my mouth. Mgh, gonna throw up...!

 Vol.4 Ch.85 - Weaponry

    "Then, Vastoria will fly us all up to my home." Energy reiterated for good measure, "Do NOT stray away from me. Only I know what is safe to touch inside."

    "Meh, not like we can die." I shrugged, "What''s there to be oh so worried about?"

    With a deep sigh, he gently placed his hand on a seemingly random, grittier part of the wall. A trap activated that sent a log swinging full speed towards me, punting me three streets back. Though it hit my front and not my spine, I still felt a ton of discomfort as I rolled on the ground for the last third of the strike. Walking back with a lousy limp only made the embarrassment worse.

    "You still believe there''s no reason to avoid setting the traps off?" He asked smugly.

    "Could''ve proven it on yourself, jackass."

    "You wouldn''t learn from that." He smirked, "Besides, I wouldn''t wanna go through what you just did."

    Gramps is being quite harsh with his discipline. Guess that''s just how they taught their lessons back in the day. That being said, I''m more the type that learns better with praise, not punishment. I''ll bet you everything he''s never even heard of such coddly behavior.

    "Vastoria, you''re not gonna say something?" I complained.

    "Say what?"

    "Ah-? Your friend here just thundercunted your girlfriend three streets away!" I repeated the scenario angrily to her, "And you''re not even the slightest bit pissed?"

    "Well, I don''t mean to get in between family affairs..." She twiddled her thumbs innocently.

    Just great, she witnesses domestic violence and sides with the abuser because he''s her in-law. In any other scenario, this would make her the least likeable person in the world, but since it''s Vastoria I''ll give her a pass. Besides, I can''t argue with the facts¡ªI sure as hell don''t wanna touch any more traps after this.

    "Vastoria, bring us up." Sheep nodded.

    "On it." She replied, swooping us all in her embrace as she flew us to the house''s entrance.

    Again, even where she would land had to be dictated to her by the house''s owner. To think that he would even memorize which floor tiles were booby trapped and which were safe... He''s one sick, paranoid man. Eh, but that schizo is also my family member, so who am I to judge. After she let us down gracefully, we followed in a line the exact steps Energy took to reach the doorway.

    "I will knock in a specific rhythm. If you don''t do the same, barrels of dynamite will drop down from that window up there." He pointed.

    "There''s absolutely no way to avoid the blast hitting our golden parts..." Sheep shivered.

    "Then let''s do our best to not set it off." I rested my hands on my hips.

    Carefully, Energy knocked on the door to the house twice, then three times, then four, and then a fake-out.

    "Eh? Did I not hear your last knock there?" I asked behind him.

    "No, that was deliberate." He explained, "Pretend like you''ll knock on that last one, but pull back at the last second."

    The doors briefly opened for him for just a second, which was enough to let him pass before the doors shut for the rest of us. How secure, I''m almost impressed. That is, I would be, if it wasn''t damned annoying. In any case, I was up next.

    "Two, three, four, hup!" I faked the last knock, prompting the door to open just for a moment, "Phew! That almost squished me!"

    "Good job, but watch your step as you make way for those two." He pointed to my feet, "Follow the marked tiles. They are safe."

    "And what happens if I step on the non-marked ones?" I asked with a jokey smile on my face.

    "You fall to the basement below, that crushes you from all sides." He stated in a matter of fact tone, "Regardless of where your gilded parts are, you''ll surely feel the pain."

    "I swear, you''re a sadist." A worriedly hopped away from the entrance, following the marked path, "Or wait, you live here, so more like a masochist."

    "So long as I''m the one alive, I''ll take any name you call me."

    Admirable, but incredibly tedious all the same. After me came Sheep, with Vastoria jumping the gun and squeezing right after him without doing the puzzle herself.

    "What are you doing!?" Energy hissed.

    "I have my wings, so I can make it in time before the doors close." She proudly answered back.

    "No, not that." He pointed down to where she landed, "Due to your haste, you didn''t step on any one of the marked tiles."

    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "...The what now?"

    The ground shook, opening a hole for her to fall in right where she stood. It closed right after, the walls audibly squishing together underneath us. Vastoria... had wings though, so she didn''t fall down there. Extremely lucky as well, since I don''t think any one of us could survive such a horrible fate had it been us who activated the trap door.

    "..."

    "...Yeah." She glanced back at us dumbfounded after a short pause, "I think I''ll stick to flying for the remainder of our stay here."

    "I should''ve just done this by myself..." Energy facepalmed, the echoing sound activating an arrow trap he easily avoided with a nonchalant ducking motion.

    He... He just did that. And without even batting an Eyelid. Scratch that, I don''t even think he realized what it is he did. There''s like a very real chance he ducked purely out of habit, or like instinct or something. It looked awesome, or at least it would have if the arrow didn''t hit Sheep right in the chest after it missed him.

    "S-Sheep!" Vastoria and I panicked.

    "Hm." He daintily pulled the arrow out without any bloodshed, "Lucky my chest isn''t golden, am I right?"

    I swear to the Gods, this group is too lucky for our own good...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Okay, I''m being serious here." Energy lectured us, "Do as I say, do as I do. In and out, we get what we came here for, and get out!"

    "Wait, what DID we come here for?" I realized.

    "Migu, gosh darn it..." Vastoria put her hand over her Eyes, "Weapons! We need weapons to make our Shrine exploration easier."

    "Can''t we just use Gale''s mandible blade?" I pointed to Sheep, who still held onto it, "It served us well enough, plus with a guy like Energy, I''m sure it''ll be in good hands."

    Energy and Gale are on pretty similar skill levels when it comes to overall competency, so I assume that translates well into swordsmanship as well. Hell, even Sheep was the one that killed Throne with the thing, so it''s not like it takes a genius to at least know how to use it.

    "Oh, I don''t know how to use swords." Energy shook his head as he plainly stated, "I''m much more into mallets."

    "Just say something normal for once, please!" I begged, "What the hell do you mean mallets?!"

    "As in... hammers?" Vastoria was worried by this news as well.

    "Bigger hammers, the ones used for hitting larger parts in place." Sheep corrected us, "Though even I''m puzzled on why one would ever think to use them as weapons."

    As we all turned with questioning gazes at the lone Energy over this query, he returned an annoyed groan, followed promptly by a curt explanation.

    "Must I explain everything to you?" He rolled his Eyes, "Mallets have a wide area of attack, can smash most any Rotted without any resistance, and can push the stronger ones away to buy you time to run. It''s also the easiest one to wash off and maintain, as unlike blades, it doesn''t require resharpening."

    "Pheh, so you''re saying you just use it to run away from the monsters?" I snickered.

    "Wash off? In an apocalypse, does it matter how clean your weapons are?" Vastoria stifled her laughter as well.

    "I''d still pick like a machete or whatever over a damned hammer any day of the week." Sheep brandished the mandible sword proudly.

    "...Migu, you would die from getting overwhelmed." Energy snapped, "Vastoria, you would turn from getting infected by the bacteria imbued in your own weapon."

    "Huh?" We stopped laughing as we listened to his morbid predictions.

    "And Sheep..." He stared him down the hardest, "Anyone can swing your own blade against you, but mallets are surprisingly heavy to pick up as a first-timer."

    The last sentence sent shivers down our spine. Of course, he lived in a cursed era. As people born and raised in a world protected by society, we completely forgot that there exist eras in which the very same has fallen. With no society to protect people from betraying and murdering one another, it''s very obvious to us now that Energy has probably killed a fair amount of people in self-defense, just as he has these "Rotted". And for him to give this example to Sheep... means he''s probably seen a fair amount of people get their blades turned on them and die because of it.

    "Then, the weapons shed is this way." He silently led us up the stairs.

    "R-Roger." We nodded.

    Opening the shed for us, we were greeted by a glorious sight. Swords, maces, nailed bats, bows, crossbows, even some weapons I''ve personally never even seen. And of course, the mallets were there too, positioned in a nice row. But one thing stuck out to us immediately.

    "Hold the phone." Vastoria cocked her head back as well, "Where are the guns?"

    "Guns...?" Energy tilted his head.

    "You had to have had guns back then, come on!" I chimed in, "Even a standard grade AFP would do, or an AK, or something!"

    "You two..." Sheep, the one that came long after Energy''s era, asked naively, "What''s a gun?"

    Oh, oh Gods, no. These guys lived in the pre-gun eras!? I knew they were ancient, but what the hell! Such primitive technology, and they dealt with flesh-eating undead?! Talk about playing on hardmode! Holy hell, now I see what Energy meant when he put priority on keeping his weapons clean! Melee was the only option available back then! Ah, I''m ignoring bows and crossbows because, seriously, if the monsters don''t kill you, the wind up and reload times certainly will.

    "Well, this was a massive waste of time." Vastoria gave up, "I thought we were going to get guns, we could blast the bat roaches from a distance with ease that way."

    "Yeah, I agree¡ªScrew this." I threw my hands up in resignation, "Gimme a mallet and let''s just leave."

    "It''s too heavy for you." He shook his head, "This is way better suited for your strength."

    "You calling me weak?!" I took the... whatever the hell made-up weapon he gave me was and pocketed it immediately, "Shut up and gimme a mallet, come on!"

    "Sigh..." He tossed me his own, the sheer weight of it sending me straight to the ground.

    "Oof... N-Never mind, you can keep it..."

    It appears he really doesn''t like to hyperbolize his words. Those things are HEAVY. And he lugs it around like a claymore, too! Actually, I think it''s the constant pivoting and working with the momentum of the swing that makes it look so easy for him. True technique, that is. As for me, I abashedly accepted the weird looking weapon he gave me, and Vastoria just grabbed a bow. Guess she really doesn''t wanna get in close against those things.

    "Sheep, you''re not gonna grab anything?" I asked.

    "Where would I put it?" He answered with a question of his own, "I already have the mandible blade."

    "How selfish, to not carry as many weapons as possible." Energy growled, arming himself to the teeth, "If you die, the person looting your body will get nothing out of it but a lousy pincer!"

    "...Who hurt you to think like this?"

 Vol.4 Ch.86 - Turn Your Back

    Careful, careful...!

    "Hup!" I hopped out of the front door after knocking in the specific rhythm again, "Phew, gold star!"

    "That''s everyone." Vastoria smiled, picking us up in her embrace, "Then, does anyone have anywhere they''d like to stop by before we go to the Shrine?"

    "Nope, no need to waste any more time." Sheep shook his head.

    "Let''s go!"

    With the party having gotten some proper equipment, not to mention manpower with the addition of gramps, we now have everything we need to take on the Shrine. It''s gonna be quite different without Throne and Gale by our side, but we should be more than capable of reaching the fourth floor by ourselves.

    "Poor Vastoria, having to carry all that weight..." I glared at Energy''s heavy arsenal, "You sure you really needed all those extra weapons, gramps?"

    "I already told you, they''re more than necessary." He shot back, "And don''t call me gramps!"

    "Honestly though, did you take each of every weapon with you?" Sheep inquired, "Geez man, you''re not gonna be able to use all of them, y''know?"

    "I only grabbed the ones I feel comfortable using."

    "So everything."

    "Not the blades."

    This guy! At this point he just has something against blades. Ah, but he did make sure to grab some stakes he made by sharpening down metal. I guess stabbing is different from slicing, after all. In any case, he''s weighing us down quite a bit. Does he seriously not care about Vastoria at all?

    "Migu, stop giving Energy the stink Eye." Vastoria giggled, "I''m doing just fine, since the wings can carry most any weight."

    "Of course, I wouldn''t pack extras if I didn''t know that." Energy chimed in.

    I keep forgetting he was a seraphim too once. At the very least, we''re not gonna have to worry about passing through the barrier this time, since Vastoria is the only one that''ll need to leave her wings behind. That being said, it was exactly thanks to these wings that we have already made it to the Shrine.

    "Sab''s wings are still here." I looked at the pair of wings leaned on the ice barrier.

    "Is this Sab inside the Shrine right now?" Energy gave a puzzled look.

    "N-No, he''s..." Vastoria danced around the answer, "He got separated from his wings, let''s put it that way."

    "Oh. So, can I have them?"

    "No!"

    Gramps, stealing is wrong! Man, and he said that without any hesitation too. His generation is seriously messed up...

    "Oh come on, if he''s not in the vicinity, then it''s better for me to have them than for someone else." Energy elaborated, "We know I won''t use it for malicious purposes, but if someone else finds them first... Who knows what they''ll do!"

    "The wings belong to Sab." Vastoria sternly explained, "He''ll come looking for them, and when he does, he ought to have them back."

    At this, Energy just couldn''t help but throw a hissy fit. He really wanted those wings.

    "I don''t understand, is he an ally?"

    "He is."

    "So why didn''t you fly him here yourself?"

    "Because, we don''t know where he is." Vastoria helped me get it through his thick skull, "Come on, we didn''t come here for the wings. We came here to reach the bottom of the Shrine."

    "Yeah, yaaawn~" I stretched, "I haven''t slept for almost 2 cycles now. That bed down on the fourth floor is calling my name."

    Having heard this, he gave me a suspicious gaze. I guess even he found it hard to believe, but it''s the truth. If I fell asleep now before reaching the bed, it could mean I''ll lose my memories of the past two cycles. On the other hand, they''ve been so eventful and traumatizing that I genuinely don''t think I could fall asleep from the adrenaline.

    "Ah, speaking of sleep..." Sheep glanced up, "It''s almost bedtime."

    "Then we made it just in time." Vastoria cheered, taking off her wings neatly next to Sab''s, "And not even a minute to spare!"

    "Let''s go, everyone." I walked through the barrier with ease, "The White Monsters could show up any minute, and I don''t wanna be out there when they do."

    Behind me came Vastoria, then Sheep, with Energy at coming dead last. It was then when he noticed something peculiar behind us, so he turned to stare at the other side of the barrier.

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "Hm? Did you spot something, gramps?" I walked up to him with a question, "I don''t see-?"

    I couldn''t even finish the sentence, before he swiftly turned around, pinching a specific nerve that immobilized my movements and made me flop to the floor. I was fully conscious, and the pinch hurt like hell, but I was more confused and scared than anything.

    "Migu!?" Vastoria turned around once she saw me hit the floor, "Energy, what-!?"

    "Hyup!" He silently swung the mallet directly into her torso, sending her flying until she hit the Shrine entrance, "Sorry, no hard feelings, gang."

    "You...!?" Sheep was quick to hold out his mandible sword, but with one hand to his name, his stance had an impossible to miss opening, "Moron, what are you doing!? We''re not invincible in here!"

    The man known as Energy put the mallet back on his hip, signifying he no longer wanted to use it. Instead, he grabbed his bow and arrow, aimed it at Sheep... and fired.

    "Shi-!" He ducked, evading the deadly shot, "Are you even listening! Hey! I ain''t gonna play along unless you give me a reason for why you''re doing this!"

    "...A reason?" He lined up the next bow shot, "Then, if I don''t give you one, you''re saying you won''t fight back?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Energy turned on us. My own flesh and blood, well, if that wasn''t a lie that is. What the hell is he doing? The moment we entered the barrier and got our gilded and White parts swapped, he attacked with killing intent. The only mercy he''s showing us is going for swift kills. Not good, Vastoria is in critical position from the mallet swing and slamming into the Shrine wall...!

    "S-Sh...!" I tried calling out to him, but my body refused to listen to me, "S-She.. ehp!"

    "Save your strength and get up quick!" He ordered, "I''m gonna need your help, you hear!?"

    "She won''t get up for the next couple of minutes at least." Energy gave a terrifying fact, "Nerves are powerful like that. A well-positioned pinch can completely put the opponent to sleep, or in this case, paralyze them so you can kill without any resistance."

    "Isn''t she your family, dude!?"

    "I did say that would complicate things, yes." Energy glanced back at me, though his perfectly aimed bow shot still fired off at Sheep, "However, I can''t afford to let this chance pass by."

    What is he talking about? After helping us this much, after we helped him get his weapons and took him to the Shrine, he suddenly turned on us all of a sudden? What possible reason could he have to... Gasp!

    "S-She...ehp!" I panickedly shouted in despair, "Gohds! Ghods!"

    "...You son of a bitch!" Sheep figured it out from my clue, grinning at the traitorous asshole standing before him with now a third weapon at the ready, "So that''s what''s happening, eh?"

    "Was I a good actor?" Energy cracked a whip from his arsenal.

    "You''re the hitman the Gods told us they''d send in." Sheep shook his head, "If we didn''t kill Sab for them, they''d send you to kill us."

    "And that Sab immediately after." He continued after him, "It really is quite the shame. I wanted to wait until you reunited with him so I could deal with everyone in one fell swoop, but this chance was too good to pass up. Besides, now that I know that Sab will come here to retrieve his wings, it''s only a matter of waiting for him to arrive."

    Bastard...! He''d turn on his own family and friends, and for what!? The Gods promised Gale revival, us our safety, but what could he possibly want? His world is FUBAR, I doubt he''d have any trouble fending off against any hitmen the Gods might sic on him, so why then!?

    "I wish to dispel the curse, just so you know." He revealed to us, "If I kill you all now, the Gods will kill the Black Eye and rid the world of the Rotted."

    "Huh?" Sheep''s Eyes shrunk back, "Wait, so you''re not even doing this to revive?"

    "They only allow for one wish." He explained, "Reviving will only prolong my nightmares, and the nightmares of this Vast World. Just imagine, your deaths will pave the way for the entire human race''s continued survival! You all come after me anyways, so in dying in Heaven, you are essentially saving your human lives!"

    "...You''re a sick, twisted, deranged man." Sheep propped himself up with the blade, fully intent on using it to cut Energy down, "And I won''t stand by and watch as you sacrifice my friends for your damned motives."

    "Sigh, I knew I shouldn''t have told you the reason." Energy cracked the whip, its deadly force enough to snap Sheep''s body clean in half if the hit lands, "Now you wanna fight back."

    My body still can''t move, goddammit...! Vastoria, she''s still unconscious on the ground over there, but I can''t see whether she''s alive or not. There''s gotta be something I can do, but... Ngah, I hate this! Sheep!

    "Gyaaaahhhhh!!!!" Sheep screeched with all his might as the whip grazed his calf, "Dammit, you outrange me! No fair!"

    "Call me whatever names you want." Energy''s Eyes gloomed, "I won''t care, so long as I''m the one alive."

    The whipping continued as Sheep couldn''t even get close to him. Attempting to get in close to deal actual damage would result in Sheep getting gashed, but due to him rocking the short ranged mandible sword, he couldn''t just stay in place or run away, because then Energy would just switch targeting to me. For now, all he could do was try and block as many attacks as he could.

    "Gah!!!" He cried out, "Ouw! Yah! Tch!"

    "Not as good at dodging, are you Sheep?" Energy sighed out of boredom, "Hey, can I kill you now? It feels wrong making you suffer like this, so if you would let me, I could quickly stake your brain to..."

    "Stick it up your nose, jackass!" Sheep finally managed to catch the whip with the mandible sword, spinning it around like a fork would spaghetti, "I don''t know what kind of a hero to the world you think you are, but I couldn''t care less. Right now, you''re the villain for hurting me and my friends."

    "I might very well be the reason you all lived your lives without fearing the everyday!" Energy screamed, "You can''t win this, just give up and accept that your sacrifice will bring safety to the world''s extended future!"

    "I lived in a peaceful world because that virus or whatever got cured." Sheep made sure to let him know, "This isn''t some time paradox bullshit where my afterdeath means my live birth, so I think I''ll skip cutting my time here in Heaven short for now!"

    "Then, I cannot guarantee a painless death." Energy lunged at him, a fourth weapon now in hand.

    My fingers were slowly regaining their movement, and though the rest of my body was dancing on pins and needless, I was close to being allowed full movement again. Such a scary tactic, I''m surprised it worked on Heavenly Bodies as well. Sheep, he''s left all alone to fend off against this monster, and I can''t even get up to help him! This sucks...!

    "Bwah!" She tackled Energy to the ground with all her might.

    "Vastoria!" Sheep cried out.

    "That was quite unnecessary. You just did that to die before them." Energy raised his stake at her, intending on impaling a large hole through her brain, "Well, I will commend the effort. Better luck next life... Goodbye."

 Vol.4 Ch.87 - Distant

    "Vastoria!"

    "Crap, no!"

    She lunged at Energy despite being wounded herself. With the state she was in, none of us were even expecting her to get up at all, much less join the fight. But goddammit, now she''s the one being targeted! Come on, body, move...!

    "Goodbye." Energy raised his mighty hammer above his head, swinging it down on her with a great deadly force, "...Huh?"

    Despite hitting her square in the face, the mallet merely bounced right off without her even so much as sustaining a scratch. Truth is, Vastoria played her part perfectly. Her throwing herself at Energy was done in a specific direction and angle, in a way where he would end up on top, and she...

    "She made her head just barely phase through the barrier!" Sheep realized it too, "Now''s our chance!"

    He ran to try and steal a weapon or two from him, but Sheep just couldn''t reach for it no matter what. Energy was raised in an environment that probably valued social distancing, so he''s definitely keeping his personal bubble wide against him.

    "Jackass, was everything you told us a lie!?" Sheep wrestled him with all his might and anger.

    "A lie... Sheep, I didn''t lie to any of you. Not once." Energy calmly replied, "But you have to understand why I''m doing what I''m doing."

    "I understand you, so it''s about damned time you understand me!" He managed to land a hit somewhere in there, "Energy, we don''t have to do this!"

    As the two battled on, allowing Vastoria to safely roll backwards and out of the barrier completely, she could breathe a sigh of relief for only a moment before feeling a familiarly horrifying chill run down her spine. Closing her Eyes and ducking to try and protect her face as much as possible, she realized she was now trapped with a White Monster preying on her.

    "V-Vasto... ria!" I still could just barely prop myself up, my body still tingling all over, "Ghk! You two, call a truce!"

    Regardless, my pleas fell on deaf ears.

    "Truce, with this guy!?" Sheep spat at the idea, "I''d rather d-Ough!"

    "Great, that''s just what I wanted to hear." Energy grinned as he unleashed a flurry of punches, "Time to end this."

    Taking out his trusty mallet, he swung it centrifugally in front of the now dazed Sheep. Once, twice, three times... He kept incrementally increasing its speed until it was akin to a fan blade. Bringing such force to Energy''s body would definitely prove fatal. Dammit, don''t make me do this...!

    "G-Gramps, don''t make me choose between my friends!" I begged, cried even, "Vastoria is outside with a White Monster attacking her, we need to get her inside!"

    "Migu... I thought I told you not to call me that." He craned his head eerily towards me, all the while inching the spinning mallet towards the helpless Sheep, "Besides, why should I care? Half the work is done for me then."

    He''s not listening...! Dammit, what do I do? Sheep, he needs to move, but after getting his teeth bashed in by this ass of a fallen angel, I don''t think he''ll last for much longer! I... I-I''m sure he''d understand if I went to go help Vastoria. Right, it was Gale who helped me last time, so even though it''s gonna suck, I can just get sent back in her stead... Wait, that''s it!

    "Go for Vastoria!" I advised, no, demanded from him.

    His arm slowly came to a halt as he at least heard me out.

    "I thought for sure you would choose to let him go first." Energy was impressed, "It seems you may yet have a chance in my era."

    "I don''t want your rotten era!" I shot back, "Listen, if the White Monster eats Vastoria, she''ll be dragged back to her home!"

    "...Away from me." It finally dawned on him, "Good job, my descendant! You''ve successfully stalled this ordeal for a moment longer! Don''t worry, though, ''cause that''s all you''ll get."

    Asshole... Gah, Sheep! He''s lying on the ground half-unconscious, but he''s alive. Unlike outside the Shrine''s barrier, he can bleed like any regular human now. And boy is he bleeding!

    "D-Did... Did we win?" Sheep twitched his bloodshot Eyes open.

    "...I''m gonna drag you out of the barrier now." I lifted his torso by the arms, "Thank you, Sheep. For everything."

    "Oi, don''t say that like they''re your last words to me..." He contently closed his Eyes.

    "Then don''t say that while raising a death flag."

    "Death flag... Cheh, who are you, Gale?"

    The melancholy chatter we made in this brief moment of the calm before the storm almost made me forget that out here, Energy was fending off White Monsters from reaching Vastoria. Somehow, I succeeded in getting him to agree to help us, if only for this brief period.

    "Sheep, don''t open your Eyes no matter what." I warned, "Hyup! There, I stuck the mandible blade next to your hand. Hold onto it with all your might so that the Apostles don''t drag you away while we''re dealing with Energy."

    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

    "Migu..." He did as he was told, "I feel better now that my body''s numb again, thanks. Though, I might not be able to hold out if a White Monster does attack..."

    "That''s good, too. You''ll be sent far away... from him." I glared back, though still keeping my Eyes squinted for safety, "For now, rest up. We''ll need your help inside the Shrine."

    "Cough, cough!" He choked on some blood as he turned to the side, "Heh, wanna know the funniest thing?"

    "Huh?"

    "This..." He said in between coughs, "Is still way better than retail."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Returning inside the Shrine''s safe zone, I opened my Eyes to see a bruised Vastoria being held up by the ruthless hitman himself. He gave me a cold gaze, knowing I did all I could and still failed.

    "Well, one should always expect to have to work for their game." He figured.

    "Hunting analogies? Is that all we are you?" I scowled, "Just animals waiting to be hunted down?"

    "Migu..."

    "You asshole, to think I''d meet such a psychopath in Heaven of all places!"

    "Migu."

    "Stop, you''re embarrassing yourself!" I hissed, "What are you doing, trying to gain sympathy now that you''re about to kill us!?"

    "Migu!"

    Tired of my tirade, he pointed his stake to Vastoria''s neck, shutting me up almost immediately. With a peeved look on his face, he began his damned monologue.

    "You''re my family." He said plainly before sticking the knife inside Vastoria''s neck anyways.

    "NO!"

    "Khack!" She splurted blood out, drowning in it, "Gahck! Khack!"

    "Let her go, let her go!" I pushed him aside, holding her head steady, "Vastoria...!"

    "...Gha-"

    She looked at me with those Eyes once more before succumbing to her wounds. Her heart was silent, not even a single beat. No, it could just be that her heart stops beating once she enters the Shrine...! Vastoria, you still gotta live, come on!

    "Then, ready to join her?" Energy put the bloody stake to my nape as I grieved for her, preparing to slam it clean through me as well with the swing of the mallet, "I... I''m sorry."

    "Sniffle... Huh?" I shakily craned my head back to see such regretful tears streaming down his cheeks, "You... You''re serious?"

    "I don''t know whether or not I knew my family down there." He said in between sobs, "But I knew I was definitely alone up here. You, Migu... I never wanted to do this to my family!"

    He''s actually sobbing. Tch, wimp! Don''t try and justify all this shit you pulled on us by feeling bad about it! Those tears though, I don''t doubt they''re real...

    "Hngh!" I mustered up all my strength to push off him and rush Vastoria''s body to the outside, "Ngah!"

    "Hey, she''s dead! Stop that!"

    "I''m not...!" I shouted through tears, "I''m not letting you mutilate her body any more!"

    By now, the blood bubbling out of her throat had completely stopped, meaning she definitely stopped breathing. But if I could just get her outside, it could at least freeze her body''s state in numbness. She... I at least want her to go without feeling any pain.

    "Migu!" Energy threw the stake directly at me.

    "Crap, not gonna make it!" I realized.

    I made ample distance between us with this headstart, but his throw would definitely hit me. It was that perfect, I don''t even think I''ll feel the moment of impact. No, I need to try! Vastoria... She needs to make it out of here...!

    "...Hm?" I heard screaming coming from above.

    "FUUUUUUUUGHHHHH!!!" Sheep yelled, diving at near light speeds with Vastoria''s wings he borrowed.

    "No way, but if he does that...!" Energy realized something.

    Much like slamming your fist into jello, Sheep contorted the barrier''s anti-flying forcefield to the point where he almost touched the ground on the other side. That being said, it was enough to make it right between me and the stake, and since it hit him "outside the barrier", it merely dinked off of him. Immediately after, however, the force field elastically returned to its original shape as it sent Sheep flying in the direction we came from.

    "He got away...! And with the wings too!" Energy fussed as I safely succeeded in dragging Vastoria in, opening her Eyelids and letting the White Monsters take her back home, "What are you doing now!? She''s dead!"

    "Maybe." I walked back into the barrier decidedly, "But even if there''s the tiniest chance she''s alive, this way she can stay safe in her home."

    "Migu..." He actually applauded my handiwork, "Not giving up, I see. Good on you, but what now?"

    "Now?"

    "Your friends are gone, you and I are alone." He explained, "You''re out of weapons, and I''ve plenty more to spare. I won''t be crying over that stake, don''t worry."

    "...You still don''t get it, do you?" I said with a solemn stare, "I didn''t re-enter the ring to fight, I came here to talk."

    "What''s there to talk about? Your best bet was to open your Eyes against the White Monster and run back home yourself, but you instead had Vastoria take it." He groaned, "Face it, you''re out of options! And maybe your actions did save them, but what good will it do if you''re dead?"

    "Ah, so you are a hypocrite." I smirked, "I swear, it''s like an unwritten rule for senior citizens to only judge others without looking at themselves."

    "I told you, I''m not ol-!"

    "Gramps, when the Gods told us to kill Sab, we refused."

    "W-What?"

    "We refused, so they sent you to kill us. But even you should know how it''s much more troublesome to kill all of us than one of us."

    "Obviously. Get to the point!"

    "The point is... Help me reach the bottom floor." I extended my hand, "Sleeping on that bed will advance time. It might not mean much, but surely that change will help someone. Besides... Vastoria and Sheep are in dire need of some treatment."

    "...And if the Gods sic someone else on me?" He chuckled.

    "We''ll have your back." I nodded, "A human spared might save your skin later, but a dead man sure won''t... Right?"

    Staring blankly at me after I used his own words against him, he paused for an uncomfortably long amount of time before bursting into laughter. Slapping his knee, he couldn''t help but feel an overbearing sense of pride well up within him.

    "You really are something, you know that!?" He wheezed and wheezed, "The dead don''t help, is that right? And yet here I was about to add three to that group."

    "You''re smart enough to know the Gods won''t follow through with your wish." I shook my head, "And even if they did, how would you know?"

    "Right, I''d be up here anyway." He sighed, "Fine, four was getting to be crowded anyways."

    "You''re actually gonna say that after personally culling half of our team?"

    "Others can save your skin if you use them as a distraction while you run away." He stated.

    "Huh!? You mean that''s what that saying was referencing!?"

 Vol.4 Ch.88 - Relative

    "Sorry again for all those things I did." He made sure to apologize as we entered the Shrine.

    "Sor-!? Ugh, just shut the hell up. I''m trying not to think about it..."

    He beat up Sheep to an inch of his life, and even killed Vastoria. Honestly, I just wanna curl up into a ball and die right now, but if I did that then their sacrifices would''ve been in vain. For now, even though it really hurts me to have to do this, I have no other option but to team up with him. Even after all that he''s done...

    "Look, I can see why you''d be mad." He kept being annoying, "But suck it up."

    "Excuse me?"

    "It''s the emotional people that are prone to dying first." He explained, "You did good in taking Vastoria away, and Sheep is at the very least alive for certain. If you fuss over them too much, you''ll never make it to the end of the Shrine."

    "And whose fault is that?"

    "Blaming others is a sign of insecurity and immaturity." He kept preaching, "In fact, I would argue you have no one else to blame but yourself, Migu, for it was you guys failing to kill Sab that got me involved."

    Well, he''s definitely not beating the hypocritical senior citizen allegations. This guy''s insufferable to the core. Almost as much as Throne, and that guy got closer to killing us than this moron! Geez, I''m really disliking the Gods'' decision to shut Hell down...

    "Tch, what are we even doing anymore..." I sighed, ready to give up, "What good would reaching the bottom of the Shrine even do us? Those beds advancing time won''t do anything to help Vastoria and Sheep, if they''re even alive anymore even..."

    "The beds heal your wounds." He explained.

    "Hm?"

    "Vastoria''s chest wound got healed, right?" He explained, "Surely that can''t be a coincidence."

    Oh yeah, she did mention that... But wait, how come his wounds didn''t heal then?

    "Quit looking at me like that." He noticed me staring at his missing foot and Eye, "My hypothesis still checks out, y''know?"

    "How though?"

    "You''re operating under the assumption that I fell asleep." He revealed.

    ...Huh? Wait, no way! Vastoria definitely said they both fell asleep on their beds! Could he have just been pretending? But what good would that do them?

    "I always sleep with one Eye open, or in other words, I''m never fully unconscious when I sleep." He explained, "I got to see what would happen to someone that slept on the beds."

    "What happened?" I worriedly inquired, "Energy, what the hell happened to Vastoria while she was asleep?"

    "...Something beyond my technological knowledge, I presume." He said with an uncertain expression, "Claws, metal ones. They moved on their own, operating on her like a doctor would."

    Metal claws...? Why does that sound familiar...

    "Did some of the claws perhaps have... saws on them?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "Huh?!" He stood surprised, "How did you know?"

    I see, now things are starting to line up! Right, that makes sense, the claws that substitute your wounded parts with golden ones! Of course, it''s so clear to me now, I''m surprised I never thought of it sooner!

    "Right, the houses were all Gray when we first arrived...!" I muttered, "And the room where I first got my golden spine was Gray too! So this is where angels get their gilded parts!"

    "Hm? Sorry, you''re gonna need to repeat all that out loud for me." He didn''t quite follow.

    "Back when I first entered Heaven 2.0, I didn''t yet have my body turned modified with gold." I recalled that nostalgic time, "I was with two others, and we were the first guests of Heaven 2.0."

    "How come you''re the first? Logically speaking, shouldn''t it be the first humans to have ever lived?"

    "That''s what I wanna know too. It''s still a mystery." I pondered, "But, after Prylos explained to us the basic rules of Heaven, we were sent off to get our bodies "rid of impurities" as he called it."

    "So that''s what the gold meant..."

    Yeah, now it''s coming back to me. I briefly woke up in a dark, Gray room, and got my spine ripped out by metal claws and saws. It was traumatic, and I''m still surprised I lived through that, but even back then I found out that that was the exact moment I got my gilded parts. So now I know that that place was actually here, on the fourth floor of the Shrine...

    "So the Gods lied after all." I nodded solemnly, "This place isn''t some kind of scrapped area from before they made us invincible. The thing that makes our bodies prone to feeling and wounds again is a deliberate choice!"

    "Are you sure that''s the case? Those hands are truly safe?" He fretted.

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    "They may look scary, but at the end of the day, their job is to repair you." I nodded, "When we reach the beds, I urge you to fall asleep and let them fix your wounds."

    "So then... I''ll really get my foot and Eye back?"

    Yes and no, dude. Yeah, you''ll probably get them replaced with golden ones, but keep in mind that those ones are hypersensitive outside of the Shrine''s domain. What this means is you''ll feel every other step, and Gods only know what you''ll see with that golden Eye, if anything.

    "...I hope so." I merely kept walking, "Ah, already made it to the second floor."

    "That''s the trap area, right? Let me take the lead."

    "Energy." I called out to him.

    "What?"

    "...Don''t get too emotional." I smirked, "I heard the ones that get too excited are the first to die."

    "Heh, good call." He continued slowly down the staircase, "Who knows, that advice might have just saved my life."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    As we turned each corner of the second floor very carefully, we made our way down the hallways that progressively became more glowy with crystal light. It was magnificent to look at, however the faint reflections made the rooms look like a kaleidoscope, making it even more difficult to look for traps in the area. It was also quite difficult to traverse in my dress.

    "Man, now I remember." He smiled, "This is the exact spot where Vastoria and I first met."

    "Getting nostalgic all of a sudden?" I rolled my Eyes, "Just so you know, she''s my girlfriend. Well, was..."

    "Kheh!" He stifled his chuckle.

    "...What?"

    "Nothing, it''s just the way you said girl friend made it sound like girlfriend."

    "I did say girlfriend, though."

    "...You ARE a girl, right?" He paused with severity in his tone.

    "Of course I am, jackass."

    "Wow..." He could hardly believe it, "Wait, so you and Vastoria are romantically inclined?"

    "We were." I corrected him with a glare, "Until you killed her."

    Taken aback by my words, he couldn''t bring himself to continue moving along the trap infested hallway. He was too preoccupied with this, so he couldn''t afford to be distracted.

    "W-Wait, you''re really confusing me here." He chuckled nervously, "So Vastoria''s a he?"

    "What? I get you''ve only got the one Eye, but you''re not that blind." I glared at him, "We''re both women."

    "So you''re... the hell!?" He actually took a step away from me in disgust, "The hell are you doing in Heaven then!?"

    Ah, have I finally reached the intolerant era of history? Both Sheep and Gale couldn''t care less about the fact I kiss girls, so would it be wrong for me to say this reaction is actually a refreshing change of pace?

    "What''s wrong?"

    "It''s suboptimal!" He shot back immediately.

    "E-Eh? Sub...?"

    "Suboptimal! How the hell do you expect to have children when you''ve got nothing to stick it into!" He got angrier and angrier the more he talked.

    "Stick it in-!? Hold on, that''s not the only part of a relationship, is it!?" I bit my tongue.

    "Then what IS the point!? Two women can''t repopulate the world, can they!?"

    ...Ohhhh. Right, he''s from an era where humanity is sparse. Of course¡ªto him, reproduction is probably like, a huge deal or something. Yeah, in a cursed era such as his, the general populace probably had bigger worries than thinking about which gender they liked more. I imagine survival and continuing to give birth to future humans was way more pressing.

    "When I''m from, we can afford two less mothers in the world." I chuckled, reassuring him that it''s not that bad.

    "Every human counts." He crossed his arm, firm on his stance, "Sorry, you''re my family, so if you don''t have children, then it''s like my effort was wasted."

    "Can angels even reproduce in Heaven?" I cocked my head back, "Honestly, I really feel like your worries are misplaced here."

    "I don''t mind you being with whoever you want, Migu, but you two need to find yourselves a man to wed!" He said something super weird, "Rear a child each, then when you''ve checked off your biological goal, have as much fun as you want."

    "That''s... Sigh, regardless of how crazy that sounds, does it even matter?" I slumped forward, "Vastoria''s dead."

    "Ah." He remembered, "Sorry again."

    "You really think a simple apology will do the trick?"

    "What else can I offer you?" He leaned on the wall, triggering a dart trap, "Duck!"

    "Whoa-!?" I evaded it just barely, my glares pointed at him growing exponentially, "Sigh, start with not killing me too, you idiot."

    After this accidental flub, he remained deathly quiet for the rest of the floor. This small scare was enough to get him focused back on the real matter at hand, and thanks to his dangersense, we didn''t hit even a single other trap after that. Luckily, because the Shrine resets every cycle it seems, we didn''t have that blasted boulder blocking the stairway down to the jungle layer.

    "Hm?" I heard faint digging sounds just on the other side of the wall, "You hear that?"

    "Migu, focus on the task at hand."

    "Says the guy that was worried about my preferences." I shot back, "Damned hypocrite grandpa."

    "Stop calling me that!"

    No, I don''t think I will. It''s funny seeing him rage when I do. Ah, but I can''t judge him too hard. He''s just a product of his time, I think. The way he reacted to me and Vastoria all but gave it away. He''s not opposed to us being together, but to us not having children. In his world, the main priority was to have children and provide them with a better life than yours. Of course, operating under the assumption that the Gods wouldn''t deceive him and actually did remove the curse from his era, then he would essentially be doing just that by killing a measly 4 angels who were already dead to begin with.

    "Energy..." I stopped walking down the stairs.

    "What is it now?" He looked back, "Whoa-!?"

    Kicking him down the stairs felt soooo satisfying! Hehe, serves you right, gramps! Vastoria''s probably laughing from the grave right now! Ah, but she died in Heaven, so she doesn''t even have a soul anymore... Sniffle, dammit!

    "Augh, ptu!" He spat at the bottom of the stairs, "The hell was that for!?"

    "S-Shut up!" I said, tears streaming down my cheeks, "As compensation for killing her and hurting Sheep, you''re gonna let me push you down every staircase we come across until we leave the Shrine!"

    "Ah..." He ashamedly got back up, "O-Okay, I understand."

    "Even on the way up." I appended.

    "Eh!? But then I''d have to climb up just to get pushed down!"

    "If we didn''t do it like that, you''d only have one more staircase to worry about." I shrugged, "Hardly a punishment like that."

    "Tch... Fine." He obliged nonetheless, "But you gotta stop calling me gramps!"

    "Sure thing, old man!"

    "Can''t call me that either!"

    "Bag of bones!"

    "Nope!"

    "Cursed ancestor of mine!"

    "Okay, fine! Just call me gramps, geez!"

    Well, since Vastoria''s gone for good, I might as well hang it over his head for as long as I can, right?

 Vol.4 Ch.89 - Woozy

    Meanwhile, as these two traversed down the Shrine at breakneck speeds, our other party was equally good at breaking their necks digging under the ground.

    "Tch, damned district borders..." Sorbet complained, "Why don''t either of you have wings? Things would be so much easier that way!"

    "Why are you the one complaining while Elegy''s the one doing all the digging?" Hats glanced back at him.

    The two stared each other down for a while, but it should be noted that neither one picked up the serrated sword to dig in Elegy''s place even once. Hats wasn''t being rude by complaining, but he failed to realize that he is just as useless as Sorbet. That being said, Elegy couldn''t care less.

    "I just gotta ask, first¡ªhow is Migu faring?" He glanced over at you.

    "Who?" The other two tilted their heads, confused about this sudden name drop, "Are you talking about the girl we pushed down that hole back when we just entered the district?"

    "No, different girl." He shook his head, "I''m talking about my teammate. She''s a girl from the group I told you guys about."

    Sorbet quickly deduced that this girl was Maggie, as he knew her, but was left puzzled as to why Gale decided to change the way he addressed her. Regardless, he didn''t pay that detail too much mind, as this innocent question was wasting valuable digging time.

    "You''ll find out when we get there, now come on! The tunnel ain''t gonna dig itself!"

    "Elegy, for the love of the Gods, please make him dig the rest of the tunnel!" Hats begged.

    "Nah, he can''t hold it properly." Elegy, however, refused, "We won''t ever reach the other side of the border, much less the Shrine if I do that."

    They were making reasonably good time, all things considered. During their stay in this district, they figured out they were in H district, meaning the one they were tunneling to was I district. They had a long way to go, but they somehow managed to already make it to the next border before even a single bedtime hit them. In other words, if they played their cards right, they could be seeing the Shrine in less than 3 weeks of traveling.

    "Oh? We hit the border." Elegy turned to announce, "Hats."

    "On it." He nodded, bending the bars with ease, "Huh?"

    "What now? Just move aside and let Elegy continue digging!" Sorbet hissed.

    Despite his haste, Sorbet could only be seen lying against the wall listlessly. At the same time, Hats worriedly darted his gaze between his shaky hands and the metal bars he bent.

    "N-No, I felt vibrations in the bars..." Hats gulped, "We might have been found out."

    "Shit. You damned moron!" Sorbet immediately began name calling, "How is it that easy for you to mess everything up for us?"

    "Sorbet, get off your ass and help us dig." Elegy wasted no time in hurrying up, "If what Hats said is true, then we''ve only got a few more minutes before the guards find our hole and attack us."

    Sorbet, however, couldn''t care less.

    "Why should I help? You guys messed up with being too lou-"

    Despite this, it seems the other two were now demanding, not asking. They were in a race against the clock, and if they didn''t emerge in an inconspicuous spot soon, there''s a high chance they''ll get a White Monster sicced on them.

    "Hmph." Hats grabbed him with ease, slamming Sorbet''s body up against the wall, "Dig."

    "Mnf! N-Not... gonna... hap-"

    "I''ll give you the sword back." Elegy offered.

    "Deal!"

    With a newly returned vigor and a spring in his step, Sorbet took the serrated blade only to barely even be able to lift it up, much less slice the cloudy wall before him. That being said, the other two now had to rely on just clawing their way through, but it worked out somehow.

    "Don''t stop for even a second!" Elegy shouted at Hats, "You''re tired, I know you are, and so am I! But we need to get out no matter what!"

    "Yeah, do your best!" Sorbet motivated them from behind, not even lifting a finger as he spun the sword below his chin idly.

    Eventually, despite the tense atmosphere, they managed to safely exit out into a secluded, safe alleyway, successfully having made it to their next area¡ªDistrict I. Given that these districts are always random and don''t have any distinct differences between them, the trio could only assume they were named arbitrarily after the alphabet. If anything, it gave them a rough estimate of how much longer they had until they reached the Shrine.

    "Only in our third district..." Elegy slumped forward tiredly, "I''m pooped, though. Isn''t there someplace to rest?"

    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

    "If you fall asleep you lose your memories, so no." Sorbet denied the idea, "Sorry, but we should try and hold out for as long as we can until that happens."

    "Eh? Oh come on, you can just explain to me the entire situation again if that happens. Like you did this morning!"

    "That was different, you two were already memory-wiped by then!"

    Elegy pleaded and pleaded, but alas, Sorbet wasn''t having it. He was traveling for a long time, dug not one, but both of the tunnels so far, and yet he''s not being allowed even a moment''s reprieve. If this was the Living World, our poor Elegy would be working in a black company.

    "Narrator, do a cutaway gag." Elegy, in his despair, directly addressed me, "Just something that''ll allow me to pause for a sec!"

    "Dude, Sorbet, he''s gone crazy. You made him crazy." Hats sighed.

    "Not my fault!"

    Well, dear Elegy, cutaway gags aren''t a thing in this novel series... or probably any novel series for that matter, but I will bless you with those three little magical asterisks that signify the halfway point of every chapter. Please rest up for the latter half.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Wah, I feel so much better already! Thanks!"

    "Oh come on, Hats!" Sorbet kept whining, "Even you gotta agree he''s gone cuckoo!"

    Yeah, the pleasure''s all mine, Elegy. I''m sleepy too, but who cares about me right now. Ahem, the three were now officially stepping through new land. Given they knew no one from here and had no reason to stop by anywhere, all they could really do right now was in fact continue moving at their accelerated pace.

    "Hey, hurry it up, we ought to find a place to hunker down before nightfall." Sorbet urged.

    "What ever happened to the ''digging a hole'' strategy we discussed?" Hats tilted his head.

    "Idiot, you can''t just dig a hole in the middle of the street! We need to go somewhere we WON''T immediately get surrounded by Apostles."

    It wouldn''t be long before bedtime came, meaning they no longer had the luxury of picking and choosing their place of shelter. What they had currently was more or less what they would have to work with for the entire next 24 hour period. Needless to say, Sorbet wasn''t about to get set back hours of progress just because of a single flub.

    "We ought to look for a house again." Elegy took the lead in deciding, "Someplace inside, where they won''t be bothering us."

    "Nice try, but we can''t dig a safety hole inside." Sorbet shot down the idea, though his words were duly ignored, "E-Eh? You can''t be serious!"

    "If we were to find a house with only wooden plank flooring, we could dig ourselves a hole yet."

    It would be rude for the house''s owner, yes, but they already decided they would stop at nothing to safely reach their destination. Caring about others would have to come secondary, lest their hospitality and kindness lost them all the time they had left. Quickly, Elegy chose a random house that looked like it was vacant.

    "...There, that one story house there!" He singled one out.

    "Guys, bedtime is coming any minute!" Hats worried.

    Figuring they were fresh out of time, Elegy spared no time in bodying the front door and punching the wooden flooring. He was a man of his words, as not once did he ask for Sorbet to hand him the sword. That being the case, Sorbet wasn''t particularly willing to help him out either...

    "Alright, hop in!" Elegy wobbled into the hole he made first.

    "You''re tired as hell, man! You''ve been pushing yourself to the limit." Hats worried, "Sorbet, we need to... Hey!"

    "Will you stop shouting?" Sorbet ignored him as he jumped straight into the shallow hole.

    "Elegy''s gonna fall asleep at this rate, we can''t just ignore him like this!"

    "Well, if you don''t stop complaining and enter the hole already, then all his effort would''ve gone to waste!"

    Hats despised that this logic of Sorbet''s made sense, and since it had already gotten eerily quiet, he had no other choice but to hop into the hole they made inside that house. The cubby hole was quite small and cramped, as Elegy didn''t have either the tools or time to make it big enough for all three of them.

    "Oi, scoot over!"

    "Wait, move your leg!"

    "This is impossible...!"

    They were all three men trying to fit into a single hole that would only ever realistically fit one person tops. Regardless, they had no other choice but to make it work. The moment they found a position that seemed to sit right with everyone was the moment they could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

    "Guys... I think... I''m gonna..." Elegy blinked a few times intermittently, "Zzzz..."

    "Crap! O-Oi, wake up, dammit! Why''d we put him on top of the dogpile!?" Hats panicked, "Elegy, wake up! If you fall asleep, you''ll-!"

    -lose all your memories, leave me alone, let Sorbet win. All of these were things he wanted to say, but it was too late. Elegy was tired from getting overworked for some time now, and it took a heavy toll on him until he could no longer handle it. To make matters worse, because he was the one on top of the dogpile, neither of the two could even do something to wake him up.

    "Hey, what''s got you so worried? Just go to sleep." Sorbet groaned, "Hey, it''s okay. So long as I remain awake, we can continue the journey."

    "..."

    "Oh for the love of-! Rest up, man! We''ve got a lot of traveling to do tomorrow, and you''re useless to me when you''re like this prick!"

    "You''re the prick for making him like that in the first place!" Hats lashed out.

    "What did you say?"

    "You heard me! The poor guy has been doing your dirty work for the entire day now, and yet you didn''t step in once to try and stop him!"

    In Sorbet''s mind, the only thoughts occupying it were to dial this conversation down before it got too derailed. Making Gale do all the dirty work was his way of getting revenge on him, but it kind of defeated the purpose when he just sucked it up and kept going. In truth, Sorbet expected Elegy to crack the moment he sniffed out even the tiniest amount of injustice, but that moment never came.

    "S-Sorry..." He admitted to his guilt, "You''re right, I was being horrible. Next time, I''ll be sure to treat you well."

    "..."

    "Please go to sleep. Rest up, you''ve earned it." He smiled, "I''ll stay awake to keep our memories going. Don''t worry, they''re safe with me."

    "..."

    "......"

    "...Okay."

    Before long, Sorbet was once again the only one left awake in the party, but he didn''t mind. In fact, this was the desired outcome, as because of his fallen seraphim status, he could just conk out immediately now without worries and wake up with his memories intact anyways. The other two would be none the wiser, and he could immediately bring them back up to speed without even a hint of remorse. This is where the true terror of his revenge lied¡ªIt was repeatable, and the victim wouldn''t even have a single way of knowing he was being used and abused every single cycle. With a content, deviously impish grin, Sorbet closed his Eyes under the dogpile in the hole Elegy had poured his blood, sweat and tears into making, and promptly fell asleep.

 Vol.4 Ch.90 - Unbagged Cat

    The first to greet the new cycle''s dawn was none other than Hats himself. Because Sorbet was the one who was awake the longest, and Elegy was the one who exerted the most stamina, it only made sense that the guy who required the least amount of sleep would be the first to awaken. Looking around to scope the scene, he heard Sorbet''s loud snoring and let out an annoyed sigh. As he got up, he accidentally threw the slumbering Elegy on the hardwood floor.

    "Gack! What the hell!?"

    "Oh, sorry about that, I-"

    "Yikes! Y-You''re that crazy guy we saw earlier!" Elegy immediately pointed a finger at him, "The hell''s the matter with you!? Why are you following me?"

    "...Sigh, let this guy explain." Hats rolled his Eyes.

    Lifting Sorbet back into the conscious realm by the scruff of his collar, Hats let the man himself take the lead on explaining everything. Woozy as he was, however, Sorbet wasn''t quite caught up to speed with everything.

    "Whuh...? Gah, in a minute~" He wanted to go back to his snug hole.

    "First explain why we''re in this unfamiliar house together, dumbass." Hats groaned.

    "Hm, mn... O-Oh, right! I gotta explain, yeah!" Sorbet shook the drowsiness off quickly so that they wouldn''t leave, "Right, the three of us formed a party to get to the Shrine!"

    This very brief explanation simply wasn''t at all enough for Elegy.

    "Shrine? Look dude, I was just fighting against the Gods with my own party."

    "That happened cycles ago!" Sorbet corrected him, "You go by Elegy now, and you said your goal was to find them, who are waiting for you at the Shrine. Hats here is in the same boat."

    "Hats..." Elegy glanced at the golden armed fellow, "H-Hold on, my name isn''t-!"

    "Elegy, listen to the guy." Hats calmed him down, "Ahem, I get we lost our memories from falling asleep, but how can you keep yours?"

    The question was directly aimed at Sorbet''s blunder. It was a mistake to not wake up before the other two, because as far as they know, he''s just another angel like them.

    "Oi, that''s right. Your initials, your memory retention..." Elegy immediately recognized these aspects, "Could you perhaps be...?"

    "No, you ask this every time. I''m not Sab or whatever his name is." Sorbet vehemently denied the allegation.

    "Oh..."

    Feigning offense at the posed question is always a surefire way to get the attention moved away from you. Unless the person is actively trying to get a confession out of you, most would stop so as to retain a neutral-to-positive opinion for themselves. This tactic saved him before, but as they say, don''t fix what isn''t broken.

    "Yeah, so..." Sorbet was about to leave the house, but got stopped again by Hats.

    "You didn''t answer my question. How come you remember all this?"

    "Hats..." Sorbet cursed him under his breath, "That''s...! Look, that''s what I wanna know too, okay!?"

    "And you''re sure you''re not a seraphim?"

    "What? No, can''t you see the lack of wings, idiot?" Sab crossed his arms.

    "A shopkeeper?" Elegy raised an Eyebrow.

    "Just look at what we''re wearing. Do you honestly believe I''d give even my worse enemy such horrible attire?"

    Well, he did in fact do just that, but that doesn''t mean Sorbet is a shopkeeper. Regardless, he did feel a tinge of pride well up within him as he silently mocked Elegy''s fit with his gaze.

    "...Tch, let''s just continue." Hats grunted, begrudgingly leaving the house through the front door.

    "Oi. Hold the fuck up." Sorbet realized a dire detail, "You... How do you know which direction we''re headed if you don''t have your memories?"

    It was at that very moment that Sorbet realized who he was dealing with. The naive giant he thought Hats was turned out to be the biggest threat to his plans of revenge.

    "..."

    "Hey, answer me." Sorbet pointed the serrated blade at his back, "Even a scrawny kid can kill with a sword, much less me."

    "The sword you''re too afraid to give to Elegy?" Hats smirked back before swinging around to smack it away.

    "Whoa, whoa! Guys, keep the peace!" Elegy stood in between them, but the damage was done.

    The jig was up for both parties. Sorbet felt a livid rage unlike any other, he was made a fool of for not one but two entire cycles. Before him stood a man who could somehow retain his memories just like him, and yet he hid that fact away to snuff out Sorbet''s true, unsavory motives.

    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "Put that frown away, you''re no better than I am." Hats ordered.

    "Asshole! You were pretending to not remember this entire time!" Sorbet hissed, "What''s your deal!?"

    "To out you for the monster you are." He then glanced over at Elegy, "And to protect someone who doesn''t deserve your bullshit."

    Though he appreciated the gesture, Elegy was still left pretty much completely in the dark without any of the previous few chapters'' context. For him, he just woke up in an unfamiliar room with two unfamiliar folks who are shouting at each other for an unknown reason. All he knew was what was told to him, and that was that he needed to reach this mysterious Shrine if he wanted to see Migu and the others again.

    "Both of you, truce." Elegy picked up the sword with ease, putting it in between them to set some distance, "Settle your qualms on the road."

    "The road? Ele-! No, Gale, this guy''s a total liar. Your friends aren''t at the Shrine!" Hats tried to warn him.

    "They are, there''s no way they''re anywhere else!" Sorbet shot back.

    "But how do you know that?" Elegy tilted his head.

    "Tch, b-because...!"

    Silence, a knock on the door. It was odd and unexpected, as they had already left the house and previously saw no one inside with them. Much weirder than that, why would anyone knock from the inside. It could only be that...

    "A White Monster." Sorbet gulped.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Behind the door, inside the house they were just in was a White Monster. It was an odd assumption to make at first glance, but after he gave his reasoning, Sorbet''s theory proved much more believable.

    "Or it''s just, y''know, the house owner?" Hats rolled his Eyes.

    "Don''t be ridiculous, why would any sane person knock on the door from the inside?" Sorbet pushed their heads down to look at the ground, "Close your Eyes, hold my hands and run."

    Confusion, refusal and rebellion were the first reactions of the two. Hats refused to trust Sorbet, and Elegy could only see him as crazy after all he''s been told. That being said, Sorbet''s hunch was right, because in the next moment, the doors slammed open, sending the three booking it in the opposite direction.

    "T-The hell was that sound!?" Elegy yelped.

    "Don''t let go of my hand, and whatever you do¡ªDON''T open your Eyes!" Sorbet instructed, "Locking Eyes with one of those goat skulls means an instant game over, so for now, run as fast as you can!"

    The two had their Eyes tightly shut so as to avoid getting put to sleep by the Monster, whilst Sorbet took on the riskiest position by leading them in the right direction. To do this, he had to just barely creak his Eyes open every so often just to get a sense of direction. They ran like this until they could hear sounds again, indicating the beast wasn''t near them anymore.

    "What was that?" Elegy asked, slowing down a bit.

    "Keep moving." Sorbet sighed, "Gods, I guess this is our last warning..."

    "Sorbet, explain what''s going on." Hats frowned, "Why was that... thing in there?"

    It was confusing the other two, but for Sorbet it only made sense. It all started yestercycle, when they got caught bending the bars as they were leaving the previous district.

    "Remember those vibrations you experienced whilst bending the bars? What am I saying, of course you do." Sorbet explained, "That was our sign that we''re being targeted."

    "But I was expecting guards, not the damned Slumber Monster itself!"

    Hats was quite shaken, and for good reason. If they were just being chased last night it''d be one thing, but now they know there''s no escape. The White Monster is constantly chasing them, and it won''t stop until it catches them.

    "So that''s the situation, huh? I think I get the basic gist."

    "Elegy?" The other two turned to him.

    "So what you''re saying is¡ªWe just gotta keep moving until we reach the Shrine." He smiled, "Doesn''t really change much, does it?"

    Alas, this refreshingly optimistic view on the situation wasn''t enough to deter Sorbet''s nasty thoughts from leaking out. For all intents and purposes, they were dead men walking, only being allowed to slightly extend their lifetime by trying to run for as long as possible. It was a marathon where stopping meant sleeping, and sleeping meant being sent back to the beginning.

    "To think we were this close to saying goodbye to this journey altogether..." Hats gulped, "Had the Monster shown up just a few minutes earlier, we wouldn''t be able to escape."

    "Grrr...! Who gives a damn!" Sorbet cussed, "Why am I even running anymore!? Once a White Monster starts going after you, there''s nothing you can do to stop it! Screw this, I might as well quit!"

    "Quit? But we gotta reach the Shrine, that''s what you said!" Elegy strongly dissuaded him.

    "Heh, you moron, me quitting is good for you." Sorbet shamelessly admitted.

    "I don''t care."

    "Huh?"

    These strong words left a lasting impact on Hats and Sorbet alike. Elegy was smart enough to already assume he was being tricked. Just from this brief conversation they were holding, he learned from Hats that Sorbet was quite the nasty individual. His goals were beyond his understanding, but he knew they weren''t aimed to help him one bit. Regardless, no one likes a quitter, especially not Elegy.

    "Come again?" Sorbet gulped.

    "I don''t know how sinister your goals are." Elegy said with a serious tone, "I don''t know what you want, who you''re up against, or even if I should trust you at all. But at the end of the day, you want to reach the Shrine, right?"

    "Y-Yeah, if you put it like that."

    "Then it''s settled." Elegy nodded, "You don''t have to explain yourself, I''ll help you reach the Shrine if that''s what you want."

    "No, Elegy! You don''t understand, he''s planning to harm you once we get there!" Hats pleaded, "Run away now, while you have this knowledge!"

    "And what then?" Elegy figured, "He''ll just trick me into following him to the Shrine again in a future cycle. It''s better to satisfy his needs now and be done with it so I can continue to search for my friends."

    "Idiot, and what if what Hats said was true?" Sorbet cackled.

    "What about it? I''ve seen how you hold a blade." Elegy smirked, brandishing the sword even with just one hand, "Go toe-to-toe with me, let''s see who comes out on top."

    Sorbet could only hold back his anger as Hats loudly laughed at the comeback. Of course, in a fair fight, there was absolutely no way that Elegy would ever lose against Sorbet. Regardless of this, Sorbet isn''t exactly known for his fairness and just nature. This is pure skill versus cheating, and if it did come down to it, Elegy had only stated that he will face the fight head on and accept the outcome regardless of how it ends. Some would call it noble, others brave, but if you asked him, Elegy would call it...

    "I just wanna move things along, honestly." He sighed, "The pacing for this mini-arc is just horrendous from the get-go."

    "...Ah, I get it." Sorbet realized finally, "It''s not that we drove you to insanity yestercycle, you were just always crazy by default."

    "I gotta admit, the things you say that I don''t understand far outweigh the ones I do." Hats agreed with Sorbet for once.

    They couldn''t understand his fourth wall breaking jab at the author''s poor writing skills, but that works out for me because I get to save face. Seriously, does he know I can erase him from the story at any moment? The nerve...

 Vol.4 Ch.91 - Back Again

    Having finally ran a fair distance away from the White Monster, they were faced with a new opportunity. Before them stood a clothes shop that was offering its wares to them. As the rules go, they are all permitted another article of clothing as it was the new cycle.

    "Do we go for it?" Elegy asked, "I''d like to ask for a proper belt to hold this scabbard."

    "We don''t have time." Hats shook his head, "If we take too long, the Monster will catch up to us."

    "...So what? It won''t take even 5 minutes, there''s like 2 people in line." Sorbet smirked.

    It was 2-1 in favor of standing in line, and so the majority vote prevailed. Hats was quite averse to the idea of dawdling as they were, but when it came down to it, this really was just picking up your daily free loot along the way. They can always discard the items they don''t like, but they Materialize items they chose to skip out on.

    "Don''t worry, the lady working the till looks stylish." Sorbet reassured them, "She definitely knows what she''s doing."

    This... wasn''t a lie, actually. He was right on the money, she knew how to match the style of each customer perfectly. The only issue? She would spend way too much time picking the perfect article out. In fact, it was more like a tailor''s appointment than a simple apparel drop off point. Despite there only being two people in line ahead of them, it took the first guy 10 minutes to leave.

    "Ugh, we''re behind schedule!" Hats panicked.

    "Yeah, screw this. Let''s just leave." Sorbet nodded.

    Elegy, however, didn''t find the idea appealing.

    "...Just a bit more, we already spent too much time waiting to just give up."

    "Majority vote prevails, you know the rules sucker!" Sorbet put his foot out of the line.

    "Hey, stop." Hats pulled him back.

    "Ugh, what now?"

    "Well, let''s just wait a minute or so more." Hats shrugged, "He''s right, the Beast should be pretty far away still, and lugging the sword around in his hands could be detrimental to us if Elegy gets tired before a big fight."

    Hats trusted Elegy, but Elegy was pretty obviously in the wrong here. In truth, he just learned from Elegy what FOMO means, and really disliked the idea of leaving a free item giveaway without getting anything. Sorbet couldn''t even argue, because as it stood, he was now the one in the minority.

    "Gah, that lady''s taking forever!" Sorbet fussed, "Come on, we don''t got all day!"

    "Shut up, I came here to get the perfect hat!" The customer in front pouted, "It needs to match my overall outfit!"

    Almost all the extra time they had made with their previous marathon sprint was used up because of this mistake. The White Monster could arrive any minute and they''d be sitting ducks, so it makes sense why Sorbet lost his cool a bit.

    "I ought to stick a match under your outfit...!"

    "Hey, calm down." Elegy chuckled, "Take your time, lady. Please, excuse him."

    "Tch, that''s exactly what I intend to do!" The posh customer rolled her Eyes.

    "What are you doing!?" Sorbet cried out.

    "Waiting in line, same as you." Elegy smiled.

    At this point, Sorbet could only laugh deliriously at the absurd reply.

    "Oh, haha, I get it!" He cackled, "This is your way of getting back at me, eh!? You said you were gonna help us reach the Shrine, but you''re just stalling until the White Monster shows up to send us all back to the start!"

    "I have no clue what you''re talking about." Elegy shook his head, "I''m just waiting to get myself a proper belt, that''s really it."

    At this point, the stylish shopkeeper called for Elegy after the posh lady found herself a good hat.

    "Next!" She would shout.

    "Seriously, everything is your fault!" Sorbet couldn''t take it anymore.

    "Hello? Next!?"

    "From the very start, you''ve been screwing me over time and time again...!" Sorbet cussed him out publicly.

    "Sir, next!"

    "And even now, what the hell are you standing there for like an idiot!?" Sorbet finished it off with a tearful query, "Go, dammit! You''re next in line, so quit stalling!"

    "I was..." Elegy awkwardly inhaled, "I was waiting for you to finish speaking. It''d be rude if I just ignored your feelings."

    "Ah."

    Sorbet questioned his every move leading up to this moment. Never before was he so regretful of choosing the path of revenge than now. In truth, he understood that this thorny path was one built by him and only him. Had he chosen to let Elegy''s actions go unpunished, he could''ve still been in his perfect home, chilling under and over thousands of pillows, cranking 90s on his GS5. By now, he figured, the reset had fixed both his TV and controller.

    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "You..." Sorbet uttered.

    But he couldn''t let go of that anger. The pain, the betrayal he felt that day, when Gale tore off his hard-earned wings just to come back tomorrow having lost them. There was no forgiveness for such a transgression, and he knew from the start that this plan was never going to be easy. Of course, he showed his cards to Elegy, so it''s obvious that he would try to counter them as best he could.

    "Okay, sorry. I''ll go get the belt now-" Elegy turned around.

    "Here." Hats tossed a brand new, sturdy leather belt to him the moment he did.

    "E-Eh?"

    "Hats?" Even Sorbet was left speechless.

    It appears while the two were bickering and being overall useless, Hats took the initiative to cut in front of Elegy and order the belt himself.

    "Sigh, you''re both acting way too carefree for someone getting chased by the White Monster."

    "Chased by the White Monster!?" The shopkeeper panicked after she heard that, "Shoo! Get the hell away from here, then! Don''t bring it to me, you idiots!"

    "Right, sor-"

    Silence. It''s here.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    " "

    "!?..."

    " " The White Monster spoke, " "

    As soon as they felt its presence, the three boys shut their Eyes tight and grabbed each other''s hands. That being said, they were highly disoriented, and given how the Monster was practically in front of them, this time Sorbet couldn''t even peek out to find out where they should go.

    "Shopkeeper, can we jump inside!?" Elegy pleaded.

    " "

    "Crap, it got her!" Sorbet fussed, opting to choose a random direction and just straight booking it, "Let''s go, come on!"

    "H-Hey, wait! We don''t know if that''s the right way!" Hats argued.

    "Right now, getting everyone to safety should be the number one priority! We can always realign ourselves once we can open our Eyes again!"

    Despite their quick thinking, the ambient silence never stopped. They ran and ran, far longer than it should have usually taken them to evade it, but this time it just wouldn''t leave them be.

    "Urk! It''s not letting go!" Elegy began to worry, "What do we do?"

    "...Open your Eyes!" Hats ordered suddenly.

    "Huh?! Are you crazy?" The other two turned to him, Eyes still firmly shut, "That''s suicide!"

    "Just trust me!"

    As his voice echoed throughout the silence of their surroundings, the two tensed up before opting to listen. They at first squinted their Eyelids open, spotting his familiar golden arms. After that, just as they began to open their Eyes wide...

    "Tcha!" A powerful being slammed Hats deep into the ground, "You guys alright!?"

    "Hats!" Sorbet shouted.

    "You asshole, why did you...!" Elegy pulled his sword out, only to pause the moment he recognized the being, "Eh? S-Sheep...?"

    As it so happened, this was around the time Sheep got flung back to his shop. He still had the wings on him, so he opted to power through his injuries and immediately head back for the Shrine. It didn''t take him long before he spotted a terrible sight from up in the sky¡ªHis two friends, Sab and Gale, holding hands with a White Monster Apostle.

    "The shopkeeper!" Sorbet recognized him as well, "H-Hold on! For now, we gotta make sure Hats is okay-!"

    "Stop!" Sheep swooped them up, taking them high into the sky where no White Monster could reach them, "If you''re talking about the guy with the golden arms, he turned into a goat skull."

    "What? You''re kidding...!" Sorbet gasped.

    "...T-Then, you need to take us back down!" Elegy tried wriggling free.

    If the White Monster already put Hats to sleep, then it''s only a matter of time before it comes to pick him up so it can take him back to his home. Leaving him all alone down there would most certainly amount to that.

    "Hey, stop that! I''m trying to keep you two safe!" Sheep kept them within his embrace.

    "...Y-Your hand!" Elegy noticed it was missing.

    "I''ll explain everything, but let''s first get you to safety." He explained.

    "No! We can''t leave Hats behind!" Elegy remained firm in his stance, "We don''t know where the guy lives, so we can''t let them take his body away!"

    "He''s already asleep, fool! His memory''s wiped!"

    "No, it isn''t!" Sorbet shouted back as well, "He can retain his memories too!"

    In a surprising twist of fate, even he couldn''t sit there in silence while Hats was potentially getting taken away by the White Monster. Though this wasn''t a change of heart or Sorbet leaving behind his revenge plan, as he was just way too curious about the story behind Hats'' memory retention.

    "What the hell...?" Sheep could hardly believe it, "No, but if that''s the case, then that''s all the more reason to let him go!"

    "Please, Sheep! We need him with us!" Elegy begged.

    "You''re wasting precious time, idiot!" Sorbet as well, "Here, we can use my clothes as a blindfold! Until he turns back to normal, we''ll just keep him like that, so come on!"

    "Dumbasses. We have our own issues to worry about!" Sheep shot back, "Vastoria is on the brink of death, and Migu''s fighting a psychopath."

    "What?!"

    The news was hard to hear, and even harder to dish out. Both of them were shaken up by this sudden report, but that wasn''t all the bad news they had to hear.

    "Wait, what about Throne?" Sorbet gulped.

    "Throne? Hey, how do you know...?" Elegy questioned "Sorbet''s" knowledge.

    "...He''s dead." Sheep looked away, "I killed him."

    "You...!" Sorbet held his rage in for the time being, "Tch, serves him right."

    "Sheep..." Elegy, however, was quite disappointed.

    "Don''t look at me like that, Gale. It was either that or he killed Migu. In fact, it''s thanks to you that we managed to extend our investigation this far."

    In shielding her from the White Monster, Gale managed to uncover Throne''s true motives and simultaneously put a stop to them. The remaining members of that party learned that Sab was the next in line to face soul destruction, and in them refusing to pull the trigger, they became accomplices as well.

    "Investigation?" Elegy tilted his head.

    "You lost your memories of that cycle, so I don''t doubt you have your questions, but now''s not the time." Sheep shook his head, "For now, I need your help to save Migu."

    "...Your injuries." Sorbet sighed, "It''s a miracle you''re still breathing with them.

    "I''ll probably die the moment I enter the Shrine''s domain." He revealed, "But I don''t mind doing that if it means protecting Migu."

    At this, Sorbet could only mockingly laugh at him.

    "Heh! If that''s the case, moron, then you''re gonna need proper manpower to fight for you."

    "Huh? That''s what I said!"

    "Yeah, so in that case..." Elegy smirked, following Sorbet''s lead as he pointed down to where Hats was, "We got this one guy who can bend the border bars with ease lying just down in that hole over there."

    "You two..."

    Begrudgingly, he had to accept defeat this time and go on a little detour before helping Migu. It was risky to go toe-to-toe with a White Monster, especially just to rescue an Apostle of all things, but in his heart he knew just how riskier it would be to go to Energy unprepared. In truth, of their group they only had Elegy to match his strength, but if they had someone capable of even bending the unbendable border bars, then...

    "That psychopath won''t stand a chance!" Sheep smirked confidently, swooping down to reach the ground as soon as possible.

 Vol.4 Ch.92 - Call it Greed

    The plan was overall pretty simple. The trio would swoop in, grab the Apostle Hats and put clothes over his head as a precautionary cover, then leave and hope he recovers soon.

    "Explain that stuff first, moron!" Elegy whined helplessly.

    "Oof!" Sorbet bounced off the ground, "Wahh~, duh... Gah, c-close your Eyes!"

    The White Monster was steadily making its way to them with every second elapsed, however it was still out of view. On the other hand, Apostle Hats wasted no time in getting up to attack them and make them join his side.

    "                !"

    "Back!" Elegy swung at him with the serrated blade, only knocking him away thanks to the angel''s invincible skin, "Remember boys, no mercy! He won''t feel a thing!"

    "Tch, easy for you to say! You just gotta swing a weapon around!" Sorbet clicked his tongue, "Meanwhile I gotta get in close to blindfold him!"

    It was true that Sorbet got the shorter end of the stick, as everyone had to keep their Eyes firmly shut for the duration of this entire bout. Opening them for even a split second will put them to sleep, rendering them out of the battle for good. This was by all accounts an uphill battle.

    "Where is he...!?" Sorbet felt an impending punch mere inches from his face.

    "Hyah! Don''t worry about getting smacked!" Elegy reassured him, "So long as I''m near, he won''t lay a finger on you!"

    No one doubted Elegy in terms of his swordsmanship skills, but this was by all accounts too much to just sum up as talent. For someone, anyone to exist that has the ability to fight without his Eyes... It''s absurd to even imagine.

    "The hell does that mean?" Sorbet curved his brows, "How are you blocking the hits!?"

    "Audio cues! You''ll get the hang of it too, just listen!"

    In all fighting sports and disciplines, the term "telegraph" is commonly used to describe this sensation. Certain "tells" in your opponent''s behavior give away their intentions, allowing you to confidently predict their next move and likewise counter it. Most commonly however, these telegraphs are reserved for visual tells, but there are rare instances where the alternative holds true.

    "Focus on his location! Look for where the silence is coming from!" Elegy said in between dodges.

    "Silence?"

    Of course, the White Monster and its Apostles had a certain "silent air" to them. That being said, the silence emanated from them, meaning that if given enough focus, one could just barely use that to their advantage. If you hear smidges of sound in 270 degrees around you, and an increasingly deafening silence in the remaining 90, then you could technically triangulate the Beast''s position. That is, if you were skilled enough.

    "Come on, Sorbet!" Elegy was getting sick of having to stall for him this long, "Attack him already!"

    "I don''t know where he, frick, is!"

    Sorbet could only duck when he felt the air around him move rapidly, indicating a swing was near his face. Apart from that, he was pretty useless. Due to Hats'' constitution, Elegy couldn''t do all this alone, nor could he leave the job to Sorbet for that matter. One good slam to the ground would be all it would take for the Apostle to force his opponent''s Eyes open, so they had to work in tandem to take him down. Elegy would distract and cover for Sorbet, and Sorbet would hopefully blindfold Hats.

    "That''s the plan, so...!" Elegy lured Hats nearer to Sorbet, "Just rush forward! I''ll put him in the right position for you, so all you gotta focus on is putting the shirt over him!"

    "O-Oi, hold on a second!" Sorbet was petrified, but flinched the moment he felt something approach him, "Crap, you''re so dead for making me do this, Elegy...!"

    He still couldn''t accurately read his opponent''s movements, but Elegy made sure to block each and every hit anyways. By all means, he was carrying someone like Sorbet like no one ever did before, but this did allow Sorbet to climb atop the burly Apostle''s back.

    "              !?"

    "Haha! Left ya'' speechless, did I?" Sorbet laughed at his own joke, "...Whatever, just take this, jackass!"

    Tying the shirt tightly over the goat skull''s contour, Sorbet successfully managed to incapacitate the Apostle''s most devious weapon. His first instinct was to rub it in his opponent''s face by getting a good look at all his hard work''s payoff, but the victory dance was cut short by Sheep swooping in and carrying the three of them away.

    "Whoa-!?" Sorbet almost fell, but Elegy grabbed him in the nick of time, "The hell''s your problem, man!?"

    "Be honest, you wanted to open your Eyes down there." Sheep sighed, "Dude, did you seriously not stop to think that that entire street was full of goat skulls?"

    Only at that moment did it click for Sorbet just how dangerous his action almost was. Whilst true that he wouldn''t go to sleep if he looked at Hats, they were still fighting for a fair amount of time in a densely populated part of Heaven. For sure, Hats wasn''t the only Apostle there.

    Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    "I saw it all from the sky." Sheep groaned, "Gale was singlehandedly fending off an entire horde of those things while you were busy doing nothing but trying to get yourself killed."

    "E-Eh? So Elegy was actually fighting a ton of those things...?" Sorbet could hardly believe it, glancing at the man fidgeting around with his belt as he sheathed the serrated sword.

    "...Hm?" Elegy glanced back confused, "Oh, I thought I was fighting just Hats as well. But does it matter though? They were all bad guys, so I just swung indiscriminately."

    The entire time, Elegy''s words about how he''s "not used to using this type of sword" echoed in Sorbet''s mind. If this was how Elegy used a sword he was bad with, Sorbet shuddered to imagine the beast he was with a sword made to his liking.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Now that they had everyone in check, the group of four flew through the sky in peace, for the most part. In truth, Sheep''s flying could still use a bit of work, and his wounds weren''t at all helping him with that, but they made due nonetheless. Sorbet and Elegy rode on his back, with the crazy Hats Apostle dangling below, being held by both hands by Sheep.

    "              ."

    "No can do, bucko. Not until you turn back to normal again." Elegy replied before asking the other two a relevant question, "By the way, when will that happen?"

    "When will Hats become normal again?" Sheep raised an Eyebrow, "Well, I suppose when he wakes up."

    "So he''s currently sleep walking?" Sorbet returned a follow up query at that answer.

    As it stood, even though they got Hats back, he was still useless against Energy. Well, maybe not useless, but more like a mad dog. He would attack anyone he saw indiscriminately, meaning both him and them all at the same time. Rather than a trump card, he was more like a joker. Neither side''s friend nor foe, just a being of pure unadulterated chaos to spice up the battlefield.

    "Can''t we shake him awake or something?" Elegy wondered.

    "It''s not so simple." Sheep shook his head, "Besides, after all those whacks you gave him, he should''ve been long awake by now."

    "Then is our only option to just wait for the next reset?" Sorbet fretted.

    "We don''t have the time to wait for that, Vastoria and Migu need our help now!" Elegy replied.

    Right, they were on a tight schedule. Due to his White skin, physical trauma would never shake the sleeping Apostle awake, and due to the silence he emanated, shouting or tossing loud noises his way wouldn''t work either. It was as if Hats was in his own cocoon of slumber, and there was no waking him no matter what they would try. In the end, waiting seemed like the only option...

    "Sheep!" Elegy got an idea, "Where is Vastoria now?"

    "Huh? Her home, I guess?" Sheep raised a curious Eyebrow at that question, "Why ask?"

    "Take us there."

    "Eh?! No, man, we don''t have time!"

    "I''m trying to do what''s in everyone''s best interest, so take us there!" Elegy demanded.

    An idea brewing in Elegy''s head could only lead to more complications, and these two were smart enough to know that, so they wouldn''t budge unless some details were given away first.

    "G-Gale, there''s something you need to know." Sheep admitted, "Vastoria''s house is located on a remote floating island."

    "For real!? That makes things way easier, then!" He smiled back.

    "...Why do you wanna go there, Elegy?" Sorbet was now even more suspicious.

    "              ?"

    This suggestion came so far out of left field that even the Hats Apostle was confused. Just as the other two were worried for their safety, so too was the Apostle for its own. In truth, nothing quite came to mind whenever any of them tried to think up what Elegy was brewing.

    "Could it be...!" Sheep gasped, "Do you somehow plan on healing Vastoria!?"

    "Let''s put it that way, sure!" Elegy flashed him a thumbs up.

    "Ain''t she near death, though?" Sorbet recalled Sheep''s report, "What could this golden-armed chump possibly do to make her feel better?"

    "              !"

    "Oh, I''ll call you a chump whenever I want, chump!"

    The fallen seraphim and the Apostle bickered all the way up until Sheep suddenly stopped to turn them around and change destinations. It was once again a conscious decision to leave Migu to fend for herself against Energy, but given that Vastoria''s condition was way more uncertain, he trusted that Migu would be able to hold out for just a little longer.

    "Whoa~, crap!" Sorbet cussed after almost getting flung in the opposite direction due to the inertia.

    "And that, kids, is why you always wear a seatbelt!" Elegy stuck his tongue out.

    "              ?"

    "Of course I know what a seatbelt is, I''m not that old!" He lashed out at the Apostle.

    Before long, the unfortunate squadron managed to successfully make it to the floating island. As soon as they landed, Hats immediately tried to attack them. This move, however, was swiftly dealt with thanks to a little known tactic known as:

    "Tie his arms and legs up." Sheep handed Elegy some sturdy vines growing in Vastoria''s garden.

    "On it."

    "              -!?"

    Now that he could rely on his Eyes again, Elegy was practically ready to dance with the blinded opponent before deftly taking him down and incapacitating him fully. Hats'' arms proved too strong for the rope, though, so he was quick to break through them.

    "              ...!"

    "Oh, I see." Sheep nodded, flying over to grab a large boulder from the very same garden before dropping it over him.

    "              ...."

    "..."

    "              ......."

    "Oh good, he won''t be moving from there anymore." Sorbet grinned, "Now come on, let''s go see how Vastoria''s doing."

    "Man, Vastoria''s place is awesome..." Elegy admired it, "Down in the Living World, this would''ve been considered a World Wonder for sure."

    "Not the time, Gale." Sheep brushed past him, "Come on, her bedroom should be upstairs. Once you examine her condition, do the thing you wanted to do."

    The sights were magnificent, truly, but the situation was equally as dire. They could always chat about her Heaven home at a later moment, but now the only thing on Sheep''s mind was finding a way to save Vastoria and Migu. He''s already wasted enough time thanks to Elegy''s whims, so he doesn''t plan to let him dawdle any more.

    "Oh, crap..." Elegy bit his tongue the moment he saw the large gash going through the lying Vastoria''s throat.

    "Talk about brutal..." Sorbet gagged, "O-Oh, my God!"

    "Gale, just tell me what you want me to do." Sheep placed all his trust in his friend, "What can we do to save her life?"

 Vol.4 Ch.93 - Bicker Than You

    "Gale, how do you plan to fix her?"

    "Thanks for repeating the last thing you said from the previous chapter." Elegy smiled back, "Also, yeah I have no clue."

    "I knew it!" Sorbet stomped on the ground furiously.

    Despite putting on airs about how he had the perfect plan to bring Vastoria back to full health somehow with the help of the Hats Apostle, Elegy was suddenly backing out. This would not do well for his image.

    "Alright, get the hell out. Let''s go." Sheep motioned for them to follow him outside, "Come on, this was already a massive waste of time, so let''s just go to the Shrine."

    "Wait, you can''t just leave the Hats Apostle alone with her like this!" Sorbet reminded him, "Sure, he can''t move ''cause we tossed the rock over him, but we''d be losing a fighter if we didn''t bring him along!"

    Upon hearing this, Sheep blew a fuse.

    "Grr...! Stop postponing the goddamn rescue mission, you troglodytes!"

    "Hey, I take offense to that!" Elegy frowned.

    "Good job, now are you gonna use that offense on something productive for once and save Migu with me or what!?"

    Sorbet could have intervened, but he found them bickering amongst themselves funny, so he opted to just sit down next to Vastoria and laugh from a distance.

    "Haha, you tell him!"

    "Don''t think you''re in the clear either, jackass." Sheep roped him into the argument as well, "How''d you let this moron take your wings in the first place?"

    "Eh? M-Moi!?" Elegy pointed at himself in shock, "When did that happen!? To begin with, I never even met Sorbet before I got snapped away by the Gods!"

    "...Sigh." Sheep disappointedly stared at the fallen seraphim, "Sorbet?"

    "I-I just thought a... n-name change was in order, ha-ha..."

    "What the hell do you think a name is supposed to be, genius?"

    "A haircut?"

    "It''s way more than a haircut, you goddamned mistake!" Sheep shouted his ear off, "It''s not something you change on a whim! That''s your identity there, man!"

    Before Sheep stood two idiots. One was experienced in the field, so the way he carried himself was with high confidence and poise. The other was still a bit wet around the ears, but he reckoned he could get the hang of it pretty soon with a bit more practice and time. Regardless, Sheep needed someone with functioning brain cells, and these two were way off the mark.

    "Wait, so then who''s Sorbet actually?" Elegy scratched his head.

    "Who-!? Sab, it''s Sab!"

    "What? No, he specifically told me that he''s not Sab, though."

    "Because you tore his wings off and stole them for yourself!"

    Sheep was out of breath from all the shouting, and he felt no matter how far his screeches reached, they still weren''t enough to go through such a thick skull as Elegy''s.

    "Woah, I did? Dang, sorry." Elegy turned to Sab.

    "What the hell? Apology denied, I''ve been planning to kill you for a while now over it."

    "You were?" Elegy cocked his head back, "So why haven''t you?"

    "Because, I can only do it in the Shrine."

    "Ahh, I see..." Elegy flashed him a thumbs up, "Good job, I hope it works out for you!"

    "Ehe, than-No wait! Don''t wish me luck in that, moron!"

    Sheep could only blink at the sight of these two as they seemingly chatted in leisure about Elegy''s downfall.

    "Oh great, now you wanna kill us too?" He shouted at the top of his lungs.

    "Sheep?" Sab tilted his head.

    "Dumbass, this entire mess is happening because of you!"

    "Me!?"

    "The Gods told us to kill you originally, but we refused because you''re our friend!" Sheep fussed, "And now we''re all getting hunted down by some other dangerous bloke because of it!"

    "W..." Sab was left speechless, "Wow..."

    "Yeah, that''s tough..." Elegy slowly shook his head, "Just for the record, I wouldn''t ever think to kill you either."

    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    "I know that!" Sab hissed back, "But regardless, you beat me up, took my wings, not to mention you broke my gaming setup!"

    "A-Are..." Sheep looked puzzled, "Are you still angry about that?"

    At this point, they had completely forgotten all about Vastoria, Hats and Migu altogether. Energy wasn''t even a concept in their minds at this point. But something happened that jogged their memories in regards to the current situation...

    "Hph!" They all three shut themselves up in unison.

    " "

    "Crap..." Sheep gulped, thinking on his feet and slamming the door to their room shut.

    "You guys, that silence..." Sab gulped, "Hats escaped."

    Suddenly, a lone chuckle filled the room briefly.

    "Heh."

    "Elegy, this isn''t funny."

    "It isn''t, it''s exciting." Elegy couldn''t stop himself from grinning, "See, that''s not Hats."

    All of a sudden, what they thought was their biggest fear turned out to be nothing compared to what Elegy just uttered. The silence was irrefutable, but if it wasn''t Hats, then that could only spell danger for them.

    "You guys still don''t get it?" Elegy turned back at them with a smile, "I did want to check on Vastoria, but I can''t do anything to fix her current state. The other thing I wanted was a proper arena unreachable by the masses!"

    "Just tell us who the hell is on the other side of that door!" The other two panicked.

    "You two better prepare for the craziest battle of your afterlife." He squeezed tightly on the door knob, "Cause our opponent for today is the big bad White Monster himself!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The sound of the doorknob turning, the creaks of the door opening, and all followed shortly by a deafening silence. Before them stood a figure with a goat''s skull and a pure black robe. The color was so dark in fact, that it didn''t reflect any light at all. It felt surreal to even look into it, but that was the extent of how far up their Eyes could wander.

    "Crap...! Elegy!" Sab shut his Eyes just in time, "What the hell is this!?"

    "What do you mean, the White Monster!?" Sheep followed his example.

    The beast only stood in place at the door frame without moving a single muscle. Unlike the other two, who ran to the opposite corner of the room hoping to evade its next attack, however, Elegy merely stared back at it. Well, what he could safely stare at without getting put to sleep, that is.

    "What''s up, neighbor?" He lightly mocked the eldritch horror, "Need some sugar? Sorry, but we''re all out."

    "GALE!"

    The other two wouldn''t dare attempt what he was doing. They were far too afraid, and honestly, they didn''t even have a proper reason to try it. What he was doing could only be chalked up to willingly giving himself up, but Elegy of course had other plans.

    "Hats is still stuck down there, isn''t he?" Elegy took a step forward, but the beast still didn''t budge, "Yeah, you definitely should''ve freed him first before you came here. We would really be in trouble if you did."

    "Elegy, close the damned door!" Sorbet was at the brink of tears by now, "There''s a window in this room, if we just jump off...!"

    "Shhh. I''m talking here." Elegy briefly turned around to quiet him down, "Now then, oop-"

    The beast was no longer at the doorframe. It was now right in front of Elegy, to the point where all he could see was the darkness of his robe. Nonetheless, so long as Elegy didn''t look up at the skull, he was safe.

    "Phew! Heh, that made me jump!" He took a step back, "But now I think I get what your deal is. I played this game before."

    The Beast would only move if no Eyes were looking at it. It would merely stalk its prey from a distance, hoping they would be the ones to do all the heavy lifting and look at its grotesque, hollow Eyes themselves. If it wanted to attack them directly, the White Monster would employ the help of any and all Apostles it could get its hands on.

    "Well, we got one question solved." Elegy scratched his cheek awkwardly, "But the main one remains¡ªHow do we kill you?"

    So far, every Heavenly Being he''s encountered shared the same traits¡ªWhite body parts mean they''re impervious to damage and pain. In other words, since this thing doesn''t have any gilded parts Elegy could see, there was a high probability he wouldn''t be able to do anything to it right now.

    "You two, what the hell''s got you pissing your pants like it''s some sort of sleep paralysis demon?" Elegy groaned, this time learning from his mistake and not turning around when calling out to them, "Hehe, oh, I get it. This is one of those shock twists where I don''t turn around for a while, only to realize you turned into Apostles while I wasn''t looking. Yeah, I can see it already. You''re gonna grab my shoulders in three, two, one...!"

    "Huh? No, we''re not gonna open our Eyes so long as that thing''s in the room with us." Sab clicked his tongue.

    "Yeah, you''re the only idiot here that would be dumb enough to try that." Sheep agreed, "Oh, but please don''t do that."

    "Haha, I won''t..." Elegy let out a nervous chuckle, trying to hide the fact his Eyes have been open this entire time, "In any case, follow my voice and..."

    "Dude, what are you doing? Let''s leave, come on!" Sab urged him, "What''s even the plan here?"

    Despite his best hopes of them understanding his plan flawlessly, or even to a point¡ªthe two still remained puzzled. Elegy''s true motives were left unsolved by them, which only further infuriated him.

    "What''s the plan? We kill it here, what else!" He shot back, "I knew the Monster was hot on our tail, so I had us lure it up here where no other Apostles could intervene! Had Sheep not trapped him in place with the boulder, I was even considering kicking Hats off the ledge."

    "What...?" Sheep furrowed his brows, "For what reason would you do all that?"

    "Tch, I get it." Sab smirked, "If we somehow kill the legendary White Monster, a lot of paths will suddenly open up to us. From then on, we won''t have to worry about traveling during bedtime, and it''ll immediately free Hats from skull-face syndrome without us having to wait for him to wake up."

    "As such, we could make it to the Shrine and save Migu without ever needing Sheep to sacrifice himself for her sake." Elegy finished his thought, "Of course, that''s IF we manage to kill it first."

    With a slow yet determined waddle, the first one approached Elegy.

    "Haha, I knew you guys would get it."

    "Elegy..." They raised an Eyebrow each at that statement, "Get... what?"

    All sorts of alarms went off in Elegy''s head as the person behind him grabbed his head and twisted it up. Now facing the White Monster''s hollow Eyes directly, Elegy was quickly put to sleep. Behind him was neither Sab nor Sheep. No, in that room was yet another person they forgot to account for.

    " "

    "T-That''s...!" Sab screamed, "That''s Vastoria''s voice!"

    "Gale!" Sheep called out to the empty abyss, "Elegy, you there!? Shit...!"

    What separated the two opposing factions was but a single bedroom''s length. From this distance, even disregarding Vastoria (and soon Elegy too), they would immediately see the White Monster''s face if they opened their Eyes. Alas, they simply could not disregard the aforementioned Apostles, for it was they who were steadily approaching them with each passing second.

    " "

    "Shut your trap! You got us into this mess, and now you''re joining their side as well!?" Sab shouted his heart out, "The least you could''ve done was toss us your stupid sword, dammit...!!!"

 Vol.4 Ch.94 - Sweet Victory

    "Oh shoot...!" Sheep turned towards the window.

    "Listen, we''re gonna need the sword before we can... Oi!" Sab heard him open the window, "The hell are you doing!?"

    "Tactical retreat!"

    "How is that tactical?! You''re only putting yourself in a worse position if you do that!"

    "Fine, impractical retreat it is!"

    "Not the point!"

    Their panic was more obvious than ever as the severity of the situation set in. Elegy was put to sleep, the White Monster as well as Vastoria are about to attack them any second, and they''re effectively blind so long as they''re inside the room with them.

    "Sab, grab my hand. I still have my wings, so we can-"

    "What? Escape and leave them here?" Sab clicked his tongue.

    His sudden shift in opinion was met with absolute confusion, however. Sab, someone who loudly proclaimed just a few minutes ago how he most wanted Elegy to die, was now advocating for him to be saved. Sheep struggled to understand why this phenomenon was happening.

    "...Come on, it''s not what you think." Sab frowned, "Ignoring Vastoria, that bastard and Hats are our only chance of survival. If we don''t kill the guy hunting us down, we lose. We don''t have a weapon, I have no fighting experience, and you''ll die the moment you set foot inside the Shrine''s barrier."

    Everything he said was the truth. By all accounts, if they don''t find a way to somehow kill the White Monster here and now, they will without a doubt lose against Energy. Regardless, Sheep found no logic in just making a mad dash at the White Monster without any sort of plan.

    "Hmph." He grabbed Sab''s arm and flew out the window.

    "H-Hey! Put me back!" Sab kicked and thrashed, "Sheep, you bastard!"

    Having flown a fair way up now, outside of the scope of the White Monster''s deathly stare, they could finally open their Eyes without worry. Carefully craning them open regardless, they could talk about their next course of action with a lot more peace of mind.

    "They''re not dead, Sab." Sheep ultimately sighed, "If anything, trying to kill a legendary beast tailor made to be the bane of us Heavenly Beings is the dumbest choice we could make here. If we fall asleep as well, Migu will definitely die."

    "...So you''re saying we should just leave them here?" Sab asked rhetorically, "Fly directly to the Shrine?" He added, "And for what? So you could die the moment your body loses invincibility?"

    "...If-"

    "If need be, huh?!" He raised his tone before calming down, "Sheep."

    "..."

    "Shut. The fuck. Up."

    Sheep was covered in bruises and wounds, and it''s by no means an understatement that Migu dragged him away from death in the last possible second of his soul''s existence. Sab is essentially alluding to the fact that he''ll be left alone against Energy the moment Sheep enters the arena with him, as the wounds will eat him up the second he phases through the barrier even once more.

    "Sab..."

    "You don''t get to lecture me." Sab shot back, "...At least I value my life."

    "Are you... saying I''m disrespecting Migu''s actions?" His blood pressure rose, "I ought to let you fall down, jackass...!"

    "Do it." Sab shrugged, "See how far that gets you."

    A few more seconds of awkward and tense silence between them only stood to prove Sab was in the right here. No matter how much Sheep wanted to give to save Migu, even going so far as to offer his own afterlife, the fact of the matter is¡ªThat just simply isn''t enough. As it stands, they currently have someone with wings who can fly them anywhere they want to go, but if Sheep chooses to give himself up like this, then Sab won''t even have that. Saving Migu will be an impossible feat, and given that Elegy, Hats and Vastoria would be stuck on the floating island, Sab won''t even be able to team up with them anymore either.

    "If you''re brave enough to kill yourself, then at least make it worthwhile." Sab frowned, "Bring us down to the island."

    "I can''t."

    "Afraid of going night-night?"

    "It''s not that... We''ll lose no matter what."

    "This implies there''s a chance we win against that guy as just us." Sab tried to recall, "What was his name again?"

    "...Energy."

    Sheep was terrified. So much so that he couldn''t even think straight.

    "Then, riddle me this." Sab put it another way, "Which one''s easier to beat? Two dumbass slowpokes who only know how to grapple and an immovable rock... Or an armed bounty hunter out to get us?"

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "...Tch." Sheep finally caved, "Fine, I get it already! I''ll help you with the White Monster!"

    "Booyah!"

    "But first, we need a plan." Sheep nodded, "At the very least, tell me what to do."

    "Hmm..." Sab thought about it for a bit, "Your task will be... To retrieve the serrated sword."

    "Huh!? You''re making me face off against Elegy!?"

    "What''s the problem? He''s just an Apostle now, so he doesn''t have Elegy''s fighting skills or speed."

    "B-But still!"

    Sheep had the wings, but neither the strength nor courage to complete the look of a bona fide seraphim. Makes sense when you recall he''s just a regular old defective shopkeeper.

    "Okay, fine." Sab reassured him, "I''ll lure the other two away outside myself! Seriously, if you can''t even take care of one measly Apostle after all that, there really is no hope for you."

    "Quit making fun of me!" Sheep steeled his resolve before swooping back down towards the island, "Ugh, okay. But you better not turn on me!"

    "Nooo promises." Sab sang a tune.

    "Promise me, dammit!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Remember, toss me off in front of the front entrance." Sab reminded him one last time before they parted ways, "I''ll head inside first, you wait for me to lure them outside before swooping into the room where I''ll hopefully lock Elegy in."

    "R-Right, then it''ll be a one-on-one between me and him... Ugh." Sheep felt uneasy.

    Even after steeling his resolve, Sheep was still quite scared. It was up to Sab to lend him a bit of his strength.

    "...Hey man, you don''t have to do this if you don''t want to."

    "Really!?" Sheep gasped eagerly.

    "You moron, hell yeah you''re gonna do it!" Sab tactically let go once they were near enough to the ground.

    "Gah, you lying...!" Sheep didn''t have time to say anything before retreating to the safety of the skies once more, "Do your best!"

    As Sab waved his cowardly friendly off, the deafening silence of the three White Monsters fast approached him. Sensing him the moment he made contact with the ground, it was Elegy and Vastoria who slammed the front door open.

    "Alright, just like how Elegy taught me...!" He prepared himself before running right in between them, "Haha! This way, morons!"

    "Slow as they were, it was a fact that they were navigating the mansion''s layout way better than Sab was. After all, he could only afford to occasionally peek open his Eyelids before closing them shut for the next couple of seconds.

    "Do-wah!" He slipped whilst running up the stairs, "Tch, I can recover from this..."

    At the same time, he wasn''t allowed to look behind himself to ascertain the distance between them. His goal was to return to Vastoria''s room so that he could lock Gale inside. Sheep would thus enter the room through the window and try his best to retrieve the serrated blade from Elegy, whilst Sab would do his best to not fall asleep fighting Vastoria outside in the yard.

    "Okay, the room should be... Ah, here it is! Hrk!" He panicked the moment he opened the doors, realizing the White Monster was waiting for him to return without moving from its spot, "Dammit, you were supposed to be behind me... Ngah!"

    The very next moment, the Vastoria Apostle and the Elegy Apostle grabbed him from behind. One craned Sab''s head up in a similar fashion to what happened to Elegy, and the other reached for his Eyelids.

    "Ngh... N-No, stop it...!" Sab cried out, "STOOOOOP!"

    His voice frail and scared, was overshadowed by a large explosion. No, rather than an explosion, it was the sound of a large wrecking ball slamming into the wall where the window was, sending rubble hurdling at the White Monsters.

    "...Hgah! Not getting me today!" Sab used the situation to free himself, pulling the sword out of Elegy''s scabbard and running out of the room, "Nice going, Sheep!"

    "Shut up and go outside!" Sheep''s voice could be heard hollering from outside.

    Whilst maybe not a wrecking ball, it was in fact just as effective. Thankfully, Sheep''s proactive choice to grab the large, heavy boulder from the yard outside and toss it at the house was a rousing success. However...

    "Doof!" Sab hit something unexpected whilst he was running down the stairs with his Eyes closed, "Huh? What is...?"

    "Oh, by the way!" Sheep shouted retroactively from outside, "The rock I lifted was the one keeping Hats pinned to the ground, so do watch out for him!"

    "You could''ve told me that sooner!"

    As quick as he was, Sab could not dodge the golden arms from grabbing him and holding him still. Behind him approached the three White Monsters, and one was in front. As it stood, Sheep couldn''t save him a second time due to the distance between them. It was all but game over.

    "Ngh... Shit, sorry about this!" Sab apologized, putting the serrated blade up to the arm that was holding him down.

    It was a dire situation, and this action¡ªno matter how deplorable it may seem¡ªwould save all of them. A Heavenly Being is composed of two parts¡ªThe White parts, and the golden parts. In the Shrine¡ªwhere these two are inverted¡ªyou can lose your White parts. But likewise, outside of the Shrine...

    " !!!!"

    "I know, I know! It hurts, but bear with it!" Sab said through tears, "Hats, I''m sorry! But you would never let me go otherwise!"

    Cutting back and forth like one would with a saw, he eventually lopped off the strong, pure golden arm. Sab fell to the ground right after the arm did, and with his newly returned freedom of movement, he turned around to swing the sword blindly at the opponents behind him. Whom he would hit would determine if this was the heroes'' victory... or the White Monster''s.

    " "

    "..." He held his breath.

    " " Elegy said, "My God..."

    Sab knew better than to open his eyes at this moment. After all, the White Monster has the ability to imitate others'' voices. But it was Sheep''s gentle touch that assured him it was alright. Opening his Eyes properly for the first time since the battle had started felt like rebirth. The first sight to grace him was a brutal one¡ªElegy stood there, torn between feeling proud or mortified. A large golden arm lay limp in front of his feet, with Vastoria''s nigh lifeless body just beside it. Her neck was just barely connected to her body at this point, quite literally hanging by a thread. But somehow, so long as she wasn''t inside the Shrine''s barrier, she remained alive.

    "This is..." Sab gulped, finally looking up at the White Monster''s skull crushed to thousands of bone fragments, "The sword... landed...?"

    "Nice job." Sheep was the first to praise him, "Just for today, you were the star of the show."

    The White Monster was no more, and all of its Apostles were set free Heaven wide. The seemingly intransient rules of Heaven 2.0 were now changed thanks to Sab. A new frontier, one that allowed for two things¡ªFreedom of movement during bedtime, and freedom of movement between districts. And all this without sustaining any casualties. This was their perfect victory, and everything had gone to plan.

    "Sab actually saved us...?" Hats steadily grew a smirk on his face, one which naturally evolved into an excited grin, "Haha! High fi-!"

    "Ah."

    "Oh." He finally noticed, "AAAAAAHHH! MY ARM!"

    Well, almost everything.

 Vol.4 Ch.95 - Next Step

    "Hrm..." Selzion grunted angrily.

    "What''s up?" Prylos asked, only to sense the same thing his colleague did, "E-Eh?! No way!"

    "I should have expected this..."

    Word spread fast of the White Monster Apostles suddenly waking up fine. Before long, everyone in Heaven 2.0 was celebrating this unheard of phenomenon, meaning the news very quickly reached the Gods as well.

    "You sensed it too, Pry. The disturbance." Selzion sighed, "Why must this specific group of people cause us so much trouble in particular?"

    "I know, right?" Prylos sulked, "On top of a second life that never ends, we gave them everything they wanted in it! Sigh, and I used to think Ouroboras was joking when he said us Gods can''t ever understand human emotions..."

    The surprise mention of their old friend and fellow God set off a wave of nostalgia within their minds. A question arose to brighten the mood.

    "Hey, how much longer until the next Meet?" Selzion asked, "As annoying as the other two are, I really do miss talking to those idiots."

    "Yeah, I can at least admit Heaven 2.0 is kind of boring." Prylos chuckled before beginning his calculations, "Let''s see... The Meet happens every 10 years, and it''s only been 2 years since we ascended up here to govern Heaven 2.0."

    "That''s... a long time before we can meet up again." Selzion groaned, "I wonder how they''re doing right now. Auros is definitely up to his weird shenanigans." He shivered, "The bastard never changes..."

    "Yep, that''s the Golden God for you, haha! Oh, but Allucius isn''t any better. I seriously don''t understand how she can just live among the humans so indiscreetly. People will notice her unaging body, you know?"

    "She better not find out you said that about her, otherwise you''re in for a world of hurt." Selzion chuckled.

    The two Gods spoke of their colleagues in peace, with nostalgic yet bittersweet smiles on their faces. Given that only these two were in Heaven 2.0, it would take a while before they could descend for a quick check up with the other three back in the Living World.

    "But neither of them can compare to Ouroboras..." The tired Knowledge God exhaled, "It''s one thing to no longer govern Hell because it got shut down, but this latest plan of his is utterly sick in the head."

    "...Granted, we were the ones who shut down Hell." Prylos bashfully added, "Yeah, I can see why he went off the deep end after that..."

    At this, Selzion couldn''t believe what he was hearing.

    "Are you... saying WE''RE the reason he turned himself into a human?"

    "Look, no one can know why exactly he gave up his godhood for sure. I''m just speculating here." Prylos backed away before chuckling, "Heh, maybe it''s not just the humans we don''t understand..."

    Sat there in silence, the two oblivious Gods tried desperately to think up why everything had gone the way it did. The Meditation God tried to see things from the others'' perspectives, and the heartless Knowledge God only saw themselves as right. In the end, both came up with no explanation.

    "Pry, it''s a fact that you fell into Hell that one time, and I got you out." Selzion piped up suddenly, embarrassing his friend by making him remember the traumatic experience.

    "E-Eh? Why are you bringing that up, geez...!"

    "It''s also a fact that I saved you, and with the two of us deeming it too cruel for anyone, Gods and humans alike, to go through it¡ªWe had it shut down."

    "That''s... Yeah? What are you getting at, exactly?"

    "Just going through things chronologically." He replied, "This meant we forced Ouroboras to no longer govern Hell, and instead to take care of any race of humans he chose."

    "That''s how it happened, yes."

    "And after a couple of centuries of doing exactly that..." Selzion leaned back in thought, "We suddenly find out he''s "gone on vacation from godhood". Sigh, what in the world does that even mean?"

    "Allucius said he''ll only remain a human until his human life expires naturally." Prylos shrugged, "That''s like, what? 50 years?"

    "I think humans live a tad longer than that. Try 70."

    "Right, but a person would want their vacation to last as long as possible, no?" Prylos figured, "You think he''d go for the big 100?"

    "Nah, he knows that''s too much."

    This topic continued on for a while after that. Talking about their fellow Gods gave them a sense of ease that quelled the worry of our group of heroes permanently killing the White Monster. As the two Gods who governed over Heaven 2.0, they had to remain in their Abode no matter what. The only way to put a stop to our group''s plans was to "hire" assassins to get the job done in their stead.

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    "Energy..." Selzion suddenly frowned.

    "We should have done more research on him." Prylos shook his head, "To think he''s related to those two as well. I swear, that family will stop at nothing to cause us problems."

    "Wildcards, the lot of them." Selzion closed his Eyes, "Well, I suppose nothing is impossible. Though it is quite improbable that there''d be so many free spirits in a singular family."

    "Maybe the next Universe Cycle won''t have them in it."

    "Prylos, you and I both know that''s wishful thinking." Selzion inhaled disappointedly, "My us, when will this suffering end?"

    "That''s not a fun thing for the God of Knowledge to say, you know."

    "At the very least, permit me my freedom to mope."

    Glancing at each other for a brief moment, the two couldn''t hold it in anymore as they chuckled together in the spacious Abode. Certainly, being a God is far from an easy job, but it''s their duty nonetheless.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "WAHHHH!!!" Hats screamed aloud, "MY ARM, IT''S GONE!"

    "Err, to be specific, I chopped it off." Sab raised a point before getting strangled by Hats'' leftover arm.

    "Why would you do that!?"

    "Hats, Hats!" Sheep and Elegy stopped him, "Calm down, we''re alive thanks to him! He had no other choice!"

    "Huh...?" Hats let go before seeing Vastoria lying motionless on the ground.

    Quickly and strategically, the three men stood in front of her to shield him from the gruesome, gorey sight. If he was this shaken just from seeing his arm going missing, then seeing Vastoria practically missing her head would definitely send him over the edge.

    "Ha-ha, she''s okay! Just... tired, that''s all!" Elegy loudly made up an excuse.

    "Yeah, you two go get some fresh air while Sab and I bring her back to bed!" Sheep nudged his subordinate, "Isn''t that right, Sab?"

    "Eh? Why me?" He replied seconds before getting a smack to the face, "Ow, I get it, fine! R-Right, she''s so tired she doesn''t even know where her head is."

    "Sab!"

    "It''s an expression! I didn''t mean that literally!" Sab shot back before pouting, "Though I wasn''t wrong by much..."

    Before things got too heated, the group temporarily split up so as to not scare Hats any more than he already was. Leading the poor big guy into the yard outside, Elegy began giving him a brief rundown of all the events that had led up to this moment.

    "We got caught by the White Monster, but that guy with the wings saved us." He said, "His name''s Sheep."

    "Pfft! Seriously?" Hats could barely hold back his snickers, "But wait, so then where are we now?"

    "Vastoria''s home." Elegy smiled, "Ah, guess you''ve never met her before. She''s part of my group, and so are Sab and Sheep."

    Suddenly, an unfamiliar name was heard.

    "Sab?"

    "Sorbet''s real name. He said I harmed him in the past, so he wanted to get revenge." Elegy elaborated, "We''re good now, though."

    "Oh. So then... All''s well that ends well?"

    "How can you even say that with an arm missing?"

    All jokes aside, however, they were still very far from reaching their desired end. Most if not all of them were in some way or another injured, and Migu still needed saving from Energy as far as they knew. Despite how much he wanted to allow Hats to go leave them, Elegy knew they couldn''t afford it.

    "Yo." The other two finally made it out of the house as well, "We finally put her in a comfortable position on the bed."

    "I''m never gonna forgive you for making me carry the head..." Sab glared heavily at Sheep, "Sigh, then, shall we get going to the Shrine?"

    "Of course, but first¡ªI think we should all be on the same page before we continue." Elegy paused, "We''re all under the Gods'' radar, correct?"

    "Huh?" Hats worriedly looked his way.

    "Yep, and the Gods hired the guy named Energy as our bounty hunter, who is currently in the Shrine chasing Migu." Sab added.

    "What?"

    "Ugh, the guy''s a real pain in the ass too." Sheep complained, "He''s like Elegy when it comes to weapons, except he knows how to use everything BUT the sword. We''re gonna have a tough time taking him out."

    "Muu...!"

    In essence, the more these three revealed, the worse Hats felt about joining them in this endeavor. However, he still couldn''t just quit this group, especially after hearing they were all being targeted by the Gods.

    "B-But if that''s the case, then would this Migu girl even survive for this long?" Hats wondered.

    The three stood there with bewildered expressions. Certainly, if he could win solo against their entire group that time, then Migu probably didn''t last that much longer than they did, is what they all thought. However, Sheep knew of a detail that the others didn''t.

    "Migu and that guy... are related." He sighed, "He''s a distant, distant ancestor of hers. Probably the family''s founder, even."

    "What? Family...?!" Elegy held his breath.

    "That''s not all we found out that cycle, though..." Sheep turned to face him directly, "Elegy, you''re related to her as well."

    A shocking truth, one that led the boys to question Sheep''s words from start to finish. It took a lot of backtracking and convincing before they could finally swallow the pill in regards to these two''s relationship.

    "I actually have family up here...?" Elegy thought to himself.

    "Hm... Well then!" Sab clapped his hands to get their attention, "Since they''re related, Energy might actually be having trouble killing her off for good, but that doesn''t mean Migu''s safe with him!"

    "Right, and now that we''ve finally gotten everything off our chests, it''s time to go to the Shrine!" Sheep raised his fist as well.

    "Hold on, before anything..." Hats stopped them one last time, "Sorbet... Sab."

    "Hmm..." Sab glanced at Elegy for a bit before relaxing his shoulders, "Sigh, I won''t try anything anymore. At this point, I''m happy so long as I get my wings back by the end of this."

    "Good, I''ll trust you." He smiled back.

    "Geez, quit it with the sappy atmosphere!" Sab rolled his Eyes, "Sheep, send us away already, will ya''?!"

    "Heh, alright, alright..." Sheep chuckled, swooping them all up on his back in a flash, "That bastard assassin won''t know what''s coming! He''ll rue the day he messed with this quartet!"

    Reaching top speeds in an instant, not minding for a single thing in the sky, they hastily made their way to the distant Shrine off in the horizon. Past all the buildings, far beyond any borders, that''s where their destination awaited their return. Tensions rise on both sides as the Gods make their next plan, but who will be the one to come out on top?

    "Find out next time on Heaven''s Calling¡ªVolume 5!" Elegy announced.

    "..."

    ".....What''s he talking about?" Hats whispered.

    "Ignore him, he just does that sometimes and none of us know why." Sab replied, seemingly just as worried, but pretending not to look.

    Worst part about all this? He didn''t even get the chapter count right, since there''s still one more chapter left before the end of the Volume. Dammit Elegy, you ruined the moment.

 Vol.4 Ch.96 - Scratched Itch

    At the same time, right at the entrance of the third floor of the Shrine...

    "Hm?" I noticed something.

    "Oh." Energy did as well, "Did you feel that just now?"

    "Yeah, like an annoying itch someone placed on me." I scratched everywhere, but couldn''t get the irritation to stop.

    "Like someone messed up the timing." He added, "But for what?"

    Yeah, that''s it! Like when someone tries to call an event before it occurs, but they end up just looking stupid because they failed the prediction! It''s that, isn''t it? Second hand embarrassment. I guess it must have something to do with the Shrine if we can both feel it...

    "Well, it hardly matters right now." He shook it off, "Alright, you stay here, where it''s safe."

    "I CAN fight, you know?" I crossed my arms with a pout, "I''m not unarmed."

    "Mn, I guess that''s true." He glanced at the unfamiliar weapon he gave me earlier, "In that case, just stick close to me."

    Huh? That worked? Hold on, I still don''t even know what this thing is, nor how it''s used. I wanted you to tell me, but I guess if I asked now he wouldn''t let me tag along. Hrm, how do I go about this...?

    "A-Ahem! Actually, I haven''t used these... things, in a while!" I cleared my throat, "They''re... that, right? I think the ones we have from modern times look different, so the design is a bit different."

    "Ah, given the distance between our eras, it''s possible that Flashers have changed a bit over the ages." He noted.

    So they''re called Flashers, huh... I have no idea what that is. No, nevermind the fact that we don''t have those in my time, but what the hell kind of a criminal name is that? Should I be worried? Like, is it gonna take my clothes off? Worse yet, is it like an X-Ray machine? I really wouldn''t wanna see gramps'' naked body, even if there''s nothing to see under that armor.

    "Ha-ha, I gotta admit, these are like... ancient." I found it hard to keep the farce up, "These ones look like regular old hand grenades, so I imagine if I pull the pin...?"

    "Huh!? Migu, no-!"

    That was when I learned why they''re called Flashers. Thankfully they didn''t disintegrate our clothes, but it did blind us with a White flash. Not only that, but the piercing sound it made completely deafened me. I thought I was dead for a moment, but him grabbing it out of my hands brought me back to my senses.

    "Ugh, dammit! Don''t keep the pin out for that long, idiot!" He chewed me out.

    "What???"

    "I said, don''t keep the pin out, moron!" He kept lecturing, "I knew it! I didn''t wanna believe it, but this idiot descendant of mine has never even heard of, much less used a Flasher before!"

    "..."

    "......"

    "What???"

    I feel bad for him wasting his breath like this, but I genuinely still can''t hear anything he''s saying. God, my ears are still zinging. What is this sensation? It''s annoying! Huh, what''s he motioning for me to do? Cup my ears?

    "Ahhh~!" I smiled, "That feels better~! Oh, the buzzing stopped."

    "Honestly, you should''ve told me you don''t know what a Flasher is." He groaned, "Though I guess I should''ve checked with you first. I just assumed since everyone had a Flasher or two on them, it was a timeless weapon, but I guess not."

    "No, leaving that aside, why the hell would that be useful for anyone?" I furrowed my brows.

    "It''s meant to be used for when you''re cornered." He explained, "You pull the pin for a split second while your Eyes are closed, it blinds the enemy and deafens both of you."

    "And?"

    "And then..." He motioned for me to close my Eyes and cup my ears again as he pulled the pin, "See here?"

    Squinting my Eyes open showed me what I didn''t see before. The grenade-like weapon had grown a knife-like prong on its side, which was previously held in place by the pin. I see, so while you''re both deaf, and the enemy is blind, you would use this to stab or slice them to bits before distancing yourself appropriately. It''s pretty ingenious, but there''s one thing that''s bugging me.

    "Does..." I inquired, "Does it work on the Rotted?"

    "..."

    He kept quiet for as long as he could, but as if worried that holding any info back could prove fatal for me one day, he eventually caved.

    "...No, this only works on humans."

    "Oh, I see."

    The air around us grew awkward once again. At this point, I should just expect this is how every single one of our conversations is gonna end. Argh, I wish the next staircase would come soon so I could at least push him down!

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    "...Sigh, well then, here you go." He handed it back to me.

    "Eh? You trust me with it?" I tilted my head.

    "Now that you know how it works, it should do you well." He explained, "Besides, we''re up against bat roaches that are probably not used to any sort of light. I wouldn''t be surprised if they just died from the shock of the flash, actually."

    "Haha, wouldn''t that be the day." I giggled.

    Gods, what am I doing? Joking about and laughing with the stupid guy that killed Vastoria? At this rate, am I actually gonna end up forgiving him one day? Hell no, I miss Vastoria with every fiber of my being, s-so... Hmph, regretful or not, he''s not gonna ever redeem himself in my Eyes!

    "Hey, slow down a bit." He warned.

    "Shut up!" I hissed back, "I''ll do what I wan-!"

    "Migu!"

    Before I could even turn around, the large cockroach-headed bat already jumped me from a blindspot I apparently didn''t pay enough attention to glance at. As hard as I screamed, it wasn''t enough to deter it. My body froze up as it tore my spine off, rendering me paralyzed to use the Flasher in my hand. The last thing I saw was Energy slay the beast, before inspecting my wound and promptly smashing his head in with his own hammer.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Wahp-!?"

    "Shhh! It''s okay, we''re fine now." His hand immediately shut me up.

    What? Where are we? Huh, the doorway right before the third floor...?

    "I''m gonna remove my hand now, so promise you''ll keep quiet." He slowly explained, "We can''t make too much noise, or we''ll alert them, got it?"

    I slowly nodded in response, after which he made good on his promise.

    "Puah! Was... Was what I just saw a dream?" I asked, "No, rather a nightmare."

    "It''s the Curse of the Third Floor. I remember it vividly..." He clicked his tongue, "So long as we''re in it, we absolutely can''t die. We''ll just get brought back to here."

    Oh right, Vastoria told us something like that last time. But didn''t she call it a Blessing? I guess it depends on how you look at it. But wait, our wounds are healed too, and we even get to keep our memories. Yeah, no doubt about it, this is just another case of Energy being a prune.

    "This is definitely a Blessing." I exhaled, "But wait, doesn''t that mean we''ll see our dead bodies once we reach that part of the jungle again?!"

    "No, you only have this one body." He poked my forehead, for which he promptly got his hand smacked away, "Hm. Just some light teasing, no need to be so protective."

    "Don''t think I''ve forgiven you for the harm you''ve done." I glared, "You may be my relative, but that doesn''t make us buddies."

    For some reason, his aloof, dumbfounded stare made my blood boil. There''s no way that he actually sees nothing wrong with his actions? Or is he just the self-centered type who thinks he can get away with anything?

    "...Is this because of Vastoria?" He asked annoyingly.

    "Yes! It''s because you killed her!"

    "Wait, you''re still hung up on that?" He cocked his head back in genuine confusion, "She''s dead, end of story. You need to move on, the world doesn''t have time for your grief."

    "Doesn''t have ti-!?" I was appalled, "Okay then, by all means, go ahead! I''ll stay back here grieving while you clear the path ahead by yourself!"

    He didn''t seem too sad about my suggestion. Of course, it''s not like he lost much with me staying back, in fact I think it made his job easier since he doesn''t have to look out for me as well, but I still find it annoying how he just doesn''t care to argue back one bit.

    "Really? Sure, thanks a lot." He smiled.

    "No, you''re supposed to be furious with me!" I stomped on the ground, "Are you even human!? How detached from the world are you to have such heartless replies!?"

    "...Migu." He noticed my discontent before replying, "I''m sorry for not meeting your expectations, but my goal in life has always been, and will always be to survive."

    Tch... I know that. In your damned world, emotions get you killed. You said it before, how the only way to live is to close yourself off. Pragmatic means efficient, and efficient means you won''t die. I know it all, but...

    "But still...!" I sniffled, "If you''re like that, then what makes you any different from those Rotted you''re so scared of?"

    "There''s a clear difference. You''d know if you were there." He immediately replied, "The Rotted feast on flesh, I do not. The Rotted fall only when their heads or hearts get destroyed, I fall to more. I have fine motor skills and speedier movements, the Rotted-!"

    "Does it matter!?" I lashed out, "It''s exactly that attitude that makes me question your humanity at all! You''re no different than a wild beast in the forest, hopelessly scrounging up food that fell from the tree whilst desperately avoiding predators! Tell me, is that what a human is!?"

    "...Is it...?" He paused before asking, "Is it not?"

    Frankly, I couldn''t even respond to that. I just defeatedly sat back down in the corner, shooing him away with my hand gestures periodically. Despite that, he just wouldn''t budge.

    "What''s wrong? Didn''t you say that wasting time is suboptimal?" I mocked.

    "Migu, I think we need to talk about this more..." He sheepishly stood in place.

    "I think YOU need to clear the jungle out! In fact, since you pride yourself on being such a wild animal, it should be a piece of cake for you!"

    "Cake..." He looked down, "I''m sorry."

    As if finally getting the hint, he promptly turned around before walking out of the safety of the doorway. I was left alone in the dark stoney corridor, watching him slowly walk away into the distance before he finally turned the corner and escaped my sight. Was that... a hint of sadness I saw in his Eyes?

    "Guess I really hurt his feelings..." I thought to myself before shaking it off, "Gah! That bastard has no feelings, the hell am I saying! He''s a heartless sociopath who killed Vastoria, so serves him right!"

    Despite him putting on airs so confidently, however, it didn''t take long before he returned to the room I was in. It happened while I was blinking, with the entire process being so seamless I genuinely didn''t notice at first.

    "..." He bashfully glared back at me, embarrassed.

    "...Heh."

    The corners of my lips couldn''t help but mock him as they slowly raised into a grin. The man who claimed he survived the most cursed era of human history stood before me, teleported back after dying to a few measly bat roaches. His discontent was only amplified once he caught me making fun of him.

    "I-I was careless." He tried to save face by acting all cool.

    "Riiight~" I nodded before hurrying him along, "Well, thankfully you''re a heartless piece of crap subhuman bastard, so this one flub won''t get to you."

    "Migu...!"

    "The hell are you doing still standing there?" I shooed him off once more, "Go on, you''re a lone wolf, ain''t ya''? Prove to me that huge arsenal of weapons isn''t just for the next person to loot!"

    "Hrm..."

    Mumbling and grumbling away as he left me alone a second time, I could hardly wait for him to turn the corner before loudly laughing my ass off. He was acting all heartless and vile just a moment ago, but now he''s all shy and embarrassed! Hahaha, I hope he fails again just so I can keep making fun of him! This is way better than just pushing him down a flight of stairs! Ah, but I''m still definitely gonna keep doing that. He''s not leaving this place without a broken ego, or at least a broken bone!

 Vol.4 Afterword

    "That''s all, folks! See you in Volume 5!"

    Hey, the hell are you doing here, Elegy! This is the Afterword, you bonehead!

    "Well I messed up the last chapter, so I''m making it up with this!" He smiled back.

    But now you''re late! The chapter''s already over!

    "Not my fault you decided to focus on those two instead of me!"

    Whatever, just leave! Ugh, what a character, am I right? Ah, can I finally begin the regularly scheduled heart to heart between me and the readers now? Okay, hello again, everyone! Right, as you''ve heard, this is the last chapter of Volume 4. I hope it was a good one.

    The projected length of this book series is 9 Volumes, so we''re in fact not even halfway done. I''ll admit it''s somewhat disheartening, but on the other hand I''m super excited for all that I have left to tell about this story. I feel like so much has happened already, but also that nothing has happened in comparison with what''s left. Is that bad? Perhaps I''m just reading too much into it.

    Unlike the last Volume, which I''ve divided into 4 equal parts, this one is divided into 3. This wasn''t planned, but given the parties have somewhat converged a bit again, the next Volume will only have 2 twelve chapter parts. Following this logic, Volume 6 should only focus on Migu''s POV for the entire 24 chapters, but at this point that''s still too far away for me to think about.

    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    A lot of changes, a lot of twists, a lot of progress. We''ve learned a lot since we first got a glimpse of this otherworldly Heaven, but the biggest twist has to be the destruction of the legendary goat skull. A large obstacle has been removed from the pool of enemies, but that doesn''t yet mean Heaven 2.0 is safe to explore, does it? I suppose there''s still some more beasts to tame, in that regard...

    I''ve really grown fond of Elegy this Volume. Despite him constantly breaking the immersion with him calling out to me and seemingly knowing things before he should at that point in the story, I find his little antics quite endearing. Not to mention, he is now officially the first person in Heaven 2.0 whom we know the human appearance of. Well, we don''t, but the characters do (since they saw the picture), but one day you''ll be able to see the man in his fully-Colored glory, I''m sure.

    Energy being a part of their family was also quite the twist. My only hope is that it didn''t look too forced or sudden, as it was indeed planned for a while now.

    Sab having Hats¡ªand now Sheep too¡ªas his foils was quite funny to write. The so-called Catalyst of Heaven''s Fall doesn''t quite live up to his title, so unless he seriously pulls himself together, I just can''t see that goober ever posing a threat to an entire dimension. Meh, weirder things have happened.

    "Oi, you done yet?!" Elegy knocked on the door before kicking it open.

    Ah, are we already out of time? Apologies, everyone, but it appears I must part ways for now.

    "See you all tomorrow!"

    Actually, we''ll be continuing Migu''s and Energy''s story immediately.

    "The hell, the readers won''t be able to handle two whole weeks without me!" He pleaded, "Please reconsider!"

    Zip it! Now get back in the damned story!

 Vol.5 Ch.97 - Petty

    A short summary: Elegy, Sab and Sheep successfully managed to save Hats after defeating the White Monster permanently. Vastoria still hangs on to life by a thread, so they made the unanimous decision to let her rest in the solitude and safety of her floating island. Meanwhile, Migu and Energy are having quite the troublesome time in the Shrine''s jungle layer...

    "Wowie." I smirked at him, "That''s the third time you''ve died since we got here, gramps. What''s wrong? You said you could do this alone easily."

    Energy didn''t at all enjoy my jeers, which is in fact exactly how I want it to be. A guy who doesn''t know how to hold himself accountable for his actions should learn it the hard way, at least that''s how I see it. Vastoria... isn''t gonna get forgotten so easily.

    "Hm." He held his hand out, looking annoyed.

    "What?" I still sat leaning up against my wall, "Need something?"

    "The Flasher." He moved his fingers, fully expecting me to hand it over, "I need something to distract them with."

    "Ehhh~? No way~" I sang, "This is my only form of self-defense, you know? Besides, you were the one who gave it to me in the first place!"

    "I''m just borrowing it-"

    "Nope! You can''t just take back a gift!" I stuck my tongue out, "Figure it out yourself, since you claim to be able to do this all by yourself."

    He had donned a very gloomy glare by this point. I know for a fact that he detested both me for being this uncooperative and himself for making me like this. Like I care, though. He killed Vastoria, there''s no excusing him.

    "Migu..." He grumbled.

    "Come on, didn''t you already beat this lousy floor once already? Even we managed it before we met you, so what''s the problem?"

    "You had Ga-" He bit his tongue.

    Oh? Do I sense some envy in that sentence? Am I getting this right? Ehe, so he does know the importance of working with a team. Suddenly, gramps has grown meek, how cute.

    "Hm? What was that~?" I kept teasing him, "I didn''t quite catch that!"

    "Grr... A-Ahem, back then I had Vastoria to use as bait." He tried to regain his composure, "While the bat roaches went for her, I''d swoop in and kill them."

    That''s what I was waiting to hear!

    "Ah." I acted naive.

    "What''s wrong?"

    "Nothing, I just realized you can''t do that now." I rubbed salt into the wound that he so vehemently claimed he didn''t feel, "Y''know, since you brutally killed Vastoria in front of my Eyes and all."

    A stern smack to the face finally made me realize I went too far. Peeking over at his Eyes, he had the same terrifying expression as when he took our group out at the entrance.

    "Will you shut up about that girl already!?" He screamed.

    "...E-Eh?"

    "She''s dead, idiot! Killed or not, it doesn''t matter if you can''t talk to them or use them for anything anymore!" He kept going off on me, "Besides, she took my Eye, and do you think I cared one bit!? No, I forgave her because I know holding a grudge isn''t optimal for survival!"

    "You... slapped me..."

    My Red cheek called for my hand''s comforting touch. It almost sizzled with how hot it had gotten, and I couldn''t bring myself to let go. I was afraid he''d hit me again if I did. I went too far, he''s gonna kill me.

    "I forgave her, and that turned out to have been the reason for why we made it to the bottom of the Shrine!" He just wouldn''t stop, "So tell me, future descendant of mine, what exactly is the logic behind your grudge!? What do you gain from it?"

    "I-I..."

    "A sense of pride? Revenge!?" Energy raised his tone, "Think, Migu, think! Will pride save you against a horde of rotted? Can revenge stop a bat roach from gnawing on your spine!?"

    Before long, he dragged me out into the grassy area by the hair. Loud as he was, we were surely attracting a few dozen of those things, at least.

    "L-Lemme go..." I begged, "Energy, let me goh!"

    "Shut up and prove to me!" He raised me so high I couldn''t even touch the ground anymore, "Prove to me how your pride and your petty revenge will save you from them!"

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    "I-It won''t! I''m sorry!"

    "How convenient..." He whispered, "Down there, disciplining brats had a hard limit. Usually, beating them within an inch of their life was as far as you could go, since any less would lower the population. But here... Here those limits are nothing but a distant memory."

    C-Crap...! I can hear flapping in the distance. It''s getting closer! He won''t seriously feed me to those things, right? Energy, you bastard, I thought you said we were family! I get I was being annoying, but it was your choice to kill Vastoria! You made that choice, so the least I could do was make you realize what you did and repent!

    "Energy..." I finally saw the large dark beast making a beeline for us in the distance.

    "You die here." He said, "I will too. I''ll follow you into our next attempts, where I''ll keep feeding you 9 more times. That should be enough to get you to take this seriously..."

    "Energy..." I glanced back just in time before the beast tore me open, "You''re a product of your time, you damned geezer!"

    The very next moment, I opened my Eyes to a very disgruntled Energy. He yet again grabbed me by the hair and took me outside, shouting for the bat roaches to attack us. No matter what, though, I didn''t falter. No, Vastoria wouldn''t want that. I just kept tossing out snide remarks with this annoyingly shit-eating grin on my face. He stopped the punishment after 8 deaths, claiming that he felt bad for me, but I know the truth. That man couldn''t take the fact I was holding out so well.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Had enough, brat?" He asked, "Gonna help me clear the floor now, finally?"

    I didn''t even have to waste my breath to reply. Just sitting back down in my regular corner was all it took for him to blow another fuse.

    "Migu-! Ugh... Gimme the Flasher." He yet again tried this approach, "I''m sorry for trying to rely on you, and I''m sorry for killing Vastoria. You don''t have to do anything, just give me the Flasher and I''ll do everything myself."

    "I don''t accept that apology." I shook my head, "Seriously, you could''ve at least sounded a little sincere."

    "Migu, we''re running short on time here!" He began to panic, "If what you told me before is true, the Gods will surely send in another hitman against us, and I''d like to at least heal up at the bed before that happens. Think about it, I''ll be able to protect you better if I''m at full strength!"

    Right, I did mention that. I kinda don''t care though, since Vastoria is dead. Back then, I thought for sure Energy was normal, so I at least hoped we could somehow mend everyone''s wounds down here and continue the investigation without her, but now I see that''s a lost cause. No, more like it''s a waste of time. He won''t ever be able to make up for what he did to her¡ªwhat he did to me¡ªso yeah, I don''t care if someone tracks us down here and kills us. At the very least, I won''t have to feel sad without her by my side.

    "...Hey." He squatted to meet my Eye level, "You know what this is?"

    "Hm? I''m not dumb." I shot back annoyedly, "That''s your mallet."

    "I want you to have it."

    Before even waiting for my reply, he tossed it on my lap which hurt like hell. Dammit, jackass, do you know how heavy that thing is!?

    "Ow! I-I don''t want it!" I shoved it off, but he pressed it up against my face, "H-Hey!"

    "This side of the mallet broke 13 bones in Sheep''s body." He explained, "By the way, the other only got 5. Do you know why I''m telling you this?"

    "What the fu-!? Get it away from me, then!" I shoved him, but he didn''t budge, "Mn...!"

    "Hey, Migu." He got real close to whisper, "Did you know...?"

    "Ener-" I suddenly felt a sharp pang in my thigh, "AAAAHHH!"

    Without even seeing him do it, that bastard stuck a stake in my leg. But I know what he''s going for, there''s a deeper meaning to this already bloodied stake in particular...

    "Did you know that''s the same stake I used to impale Vastoria''s throat?" He asked innocently, "I know it''s dangerous to keep the weapons bloody, but I made a special exception for you."

    "T-The... hell... are you talking about...?!" I hissed back in between dogged breaths.

    "Sharing blood, sharing bodies, isn''t that poetic in a way?" He asked, "I thought long and hard about you two, and it made me realize just how tough you actually had it. You were lovers, but there was no way for you to bless that love with children. I know it''s not much, but I hope this gift can bring you peace of mind¡ªIt is a fact that you now carry a bit of Vastoria in you for the rest of your afterlife."

    This bastard...! Has he gone insane?! I get it, he wants to scare me into doing as he says, but won''t this just make it harder for me to trudge through the Shrine''s layers? Ugh, it hurts...!

    "Hm? What are those?" He wiped the tears streaming down my face, even going so far as to lick it from his finger, "Salty... Seawater? How are you doing that?"

    "You''re old enough to know what crying is, idiot gramps!"

    "Oh? Is that what that is?" He smirked contently, "Well, stop that. I imagine it''s gonna blur your vision if you leave that seawater in your Eyes like that."

    "Huh...?" I finally realized the main caveat of his latest punishment, "W-Wait, aren''t you gonna kill me again?"

    Pausing to stare at me like I just said something so outlandishly weird, he eventually sighed before painfully yanking the stake out of my leg, causing me immense pain.

    "AAAGH! Dammit, you-!"

    "Tsk, tsk." He shook his head, "My dear descendant, it pains me to hear you wish for such a horrible thing."

    "Just shut the fuck up and gouge my throat out like you did to her!" I demanded, "You''re not seriously gonna leave me wounded like this, are you!?"

    "Don''t worry." He dangled the Flasher he pickpocketed from me while I was down, "Now that I have this, we should be able to clear the floor easily. Ah, but I guess that means you''ll have to bear with the pain for a bit longer. Do your best, brat~!"

    You damned...! Ghack, crap, my wound is spewing blood like crazy...! Dammit, to think he was this mad. I wanted to wait for him to leave with the stake so that I could use the Flasher''s blade, but he even took that from me. It seems he doesn''t plan on letting me heal until we reach the beds on the fourth floor. I have two options¡ªI can either look for a way to kill myself before he reaches the fourth floor, or I help him make it there in one piece.

    "Heh, I think it''s obvious what I''m going for...!" I smirked, slowly but surely limping far behind him through the jungle layer, "Just you wait, gramps! As soon as the opportunity arises, I''ll give those bat roaches a five star meal! Let''s see you keep me safe from that!"

 Vol.5 Ch.98 - Bratty

    Though Migu''s Eyes could only see the character presented to her, Energy was a reserved individual with many of his truest thoughts kept to himself. From his point of view, things looked quite a fair bit different...

    "Migu, you..." I turned around briefly, "You''re quite slow."

    "Shut your trap, jackass!" She hissed back, tightly clutching her thigh, "And whose fault is that!?"

    She''s mad. It makes sense, I''d be mad too if someone did that to me. But I had no other choice, she would never help me traverse the jungle if I didn''t offend her. My descendant is a real pain in the ass, though I guess I''m not too much different.

    "Are you still angry?" I sighed.

    "Just you wait! As soon as we find ONE of those bugs, I''ll let myself die and revive without this damned wound you gave me!"

    I... can''t let that happen, for multiple reasons. Of course, reviving here means she''ll be back to her previous state, but the only reason she''s tagging along this time is to make that happen. If she revives back at full health, she''ll just sit back down and try to make me do everything alone. Not to mention, I really don''t wanna die anymore. I know I was the one who said we''d go for 10 deaths, but frankly speaking, I couldn''t stomach any more than 8. Death is a horrifying experience no matter how swiftly your life gets taken. Just what the hell is she made out of...

    "...What?" She glared, "Quit staring."

    "I just have to ask, descendant." I cleared my throat, "How in the world is a weakling like you so unfazed by death''s clasp?"

    "Huh?" She tilted her head, "Are you taking the piss out of me?"

    "Merely curious."

    Answer the damned question! I''m genuinely puzzled over the fact anyone, let alone a person from a peaceful era, can just face death and shrug it off! Death is inevitable, undefeatable, so how are you not as sick as I am when just recalling the experience!?

    "Meh, it''s not like I really died." She figured.

    "S-Still..."

    "What can I say? Death is only scary to us because we don''t know what''ll happen after we kick the bucket." She then further elaborated, "But I know what happens when I die here. I get sent back, and without any of the injuries sustained past the jungle''s entrance. Sure it''s scary while I''m dying, but that only lasts a second or two at best."

    "..."

    This girl is a psychopath. I know it sounds weird, but I''m genuinely scared of her. Is... Is her era really safer than mine? To just casually shrug off literal death like that undoubtedly takes a whole other level of thinking, because even the strongest warriors of my time would cower and beg for their lives once the reaper approached with his scythe. In comparison, she strikes me as someone who probably arm wrestled death when the time came and actually won.

    "Is revival commonplace in your time, somehow?" I felt a need to ask.

    "Of course not, idiot." She then donned a wry smirk, "Oh, wait! Don''t tell me you actually dislike dying?"

    That smirk, wipe it off your face this instant. Ugh, when she starts teasing like this I just wanna smack her silly! A brat is a brat no matter the injuries sustained, it seems... But what do I say now? If I tell her the truth, I''m afraid that damned grin of hers will become permanently etched onto her face whenever I''m in view. I need to fix this posthaste.

    "Tsk, what kind of a question is that?" I rolled my Eyes, "Who in their right mind likes death? Don''t ask stupid questions."

    "Oh, I guess that''s true." She quieted down, "Yeah, you''re from a cursed era, so I''m sure you saw plenty of death in your life."

    "Yes, yes, so-"

    "But then, why did you kill Vastoria?" She asked.

    Stop asking me that! It was either I kill you guys or I die, end of story! If I had known you were in the same boat as me, I would have reconsidered, but there''s no way I could''ve known! Seriously, I''m the bounty hunter, you''re the bounty¡ªWhy in the world would I just ask you "Hey, is there a possibility that you guys were bounty hunters like me?" No! Why would such a question even cross my mind, especially since you never mentioned you were originally sent to kill Sab!

    "..."

    "What''s the matter?" She only grew more distraught from my silence, "Finally realized just how fucked up what you did is?"

    "...I did what I did." I finally gave up on trying to explain myself to her, "Past tense means there''s nothing you can do about it now. No one can. I know it sounds heartless to say, but from one survivor to the next, please focus on the current goal. It was your idea in the first place for us to take on the Shrine as a team."

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    Somehow, I succeeded in turning the situation around, for she fell silent as soon as I said that. She looked troubled for a while after that as we silently kept walking together. It was only now that I had realized my natural walking pace had slowed down so as to not leave her behind. Right, we''re both hopping on one leg now, but I guess she''s still not used to it.

    "Piss off." She flinched the moment she saw me move closer to her, "Look, I did say we''ll team up to reach the fourth floor, but I''m only using you to heal up."

    Ah, so she''s no longer suicidal. It appears I swayed her heart on the matter, which is good. A person... should fear death. It helps you appreciate life that much more in comparison.

    "Be that as it may." I sighed defeatedly, "Your leg is wounded, so you''re limping must make you feel uneasy."

    "Yeah, and-!"

    "And so, if you''re gonna use me, then do so." I tapped my shoulder.

    With an uncertain and befuddled look on her face, she nervously reached her arm over my neck as she leaned in for support. She despised this, I could tell, but her expression was no longer as pained every time she made a step.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Close your Eyes!" I raised the Flasher, "Now!"

    "H-Huh!?" She panickedly did as I told her, "Okay!"

    We were moments away from getting mauled yet again. I guess we reached that part of the floor, after all. Since we were supporting each other, I didn''t have time to cup my ears, but this was good too. If my theory is correct, this should prove effective against the winged chimeras.

    "Byahhh!" The roach screamed, falling back for a moment.

    "Migu!" I felt her slip away.

    "Don''t mind me!" She wobbled behind a nearby bush, "Flash it again, I''ll throw rocks at it or something as well!"

    Way to contribute, dammit. Just make sure you don''t overdo it, you might sprain your shoulder! Ugh, kids these days... W-Wait, that just made me sound like an old man! Ugh, whatever. For now, I need to focus on killing this thing.

    "Flasher incoming!" I announced, cupping my ears and closing my Eyes as I held it out at the beast, "Going in!"

    Whipping out my trusty mallet, I launched myself as high as I could with my single leg before slamming hard on the beast''s thick skin. Unsurprisingly, this wasn''t enough to completely squish it, which led to it flying away.

    "Tch, bastard... O-Ow, Migu, what are you...!?"

    "Get away from him!" She shouted, tossing stones at me with her Eyes closed, "Now, gramps, smash its head in while it''s distracted!"

    This girl...! Ow, ow! Just how many rocks did you find back there, the hell!? Holy hell, girl, I got a sensitive brain resting in here, you know!? I barely managed to hop over to her before smacking the pile of rocks out of her arms.

    "Gah!" She opened her Eyes, terrified of who just did that, "Wuh...? E-Energy?! But how, weren''t you...? No wait, where''s the bat roach!?"

    "So you seriously didn''t notice..." I chuckled, instinctively patting her head, "Rascal, I thought you were just using that as an excuse to throw rocks at me."

    "Rascal? Now I know you''re ancient, gramps." She moved her head away, "But that doesn''t answer my question."

    "Don''t worry, that thing went away after I significantly wounded it." I explained, "Although, I expect us to see him again soon."

    Although I said that, the beast really was on another level. Before, I could hold out the fork and use their own speed against them, but that won''t work this time. Back then, all they did was lung straight at you, but now they have brains, so to speak. They sporadically change directions, slow down and speed up to make it more difficult to predict where they''ll be, and even when blind and deaf they know to thrash around, making it more difficult to strike their heads. The bastards, how did they get so much better in such a short time...

    "Does it hurt?" She suddenly said.

    "Hm?"

    "Your head." She pointed out on her own scalp, "It''s bleeding like crazy."

    "Fueh!?"

    Quickly checking for myself with my hand, I felt no wetness of any sort, and even pulling my hand back showed no Red liquid. I only then realized I was the victim of a childish prank once I saw that damn annoying smirk on her face again.

    "Y-You...!" I pointed a stern finger at her, "So you WERE throwing rocks at me knowingly!"

    "Whatever do you mean, dear ancestor of mine?" She whistled innocently, "Besides, you''re a warrior. You survived horrors beyond my comprehension, so why are you so scared of a couple of rocks?"

    "Grrr...!!"

    C-Calm down, Energy! She''s just an idiot girl, she doesn''t know any better. Yeah, this is just her little way to feel better about losing her, ugh, girlfriend. And besides, she''s right! I survived so much, yet I''m about to prove to her that all it''ll take for me to get mad are a few measly rocks? Deep breaths, man!

    "Hm?" She noticed my calm expression and got fussy, "You''re no fun."

    "How about you save that vengeful attitude for after we get to the fourth floor?" I suggested, my smile curving in on itself, "Hmm~?"

    "Eugh, scary." She scowled, "Fine, but if I see you mess up another kill, I won''t hesitate to throw a boulder next."

    "You can''t lift something that heavy."

    "Are you doubting me because you know you can''t kill another one of those things?" She raised an Eyebrow, "So humans are just fine, but anything else is off the table? I gotta ask myself if you weren''t just a troubled maniac who imagined the entire black Iro curse."

    "You calling me mentally ill?"

    "What do I know?" She shrugged, trudging ahead of me, "I''m just some crazed gramps'' descendant, after all."

    I can''t believe I''m about to say this, but I miss Vastoria. She was so much more cooperative and quiet than this brat! Migu is cheeky, smug and annoying! In comparison, the useless klutzy girl that gouged my Eye out is the perfect companion! Though, I guess even Migu wouldn''t have turned out like this if Vastoria was alive... No, the past is the past, and I can''t change it. What the hell is wrong with me? Has this damp dungeon of a Shrine actually made me lose my marbles? I survived to think like this because I focused on the present, and that''s how I intend to do this as well. Dammit, where''d she run off to now?

    "AAAHHH!" Her scream came from around the corner.

    "Tch, there''s no way she came from my bloodline..."

 Vol.5 Ch.99 - Jungle Fever

    "Elegy!" I screamed out, "Ahhh!"

    Dammit, just when I thought things were starting to get better for us¡ªanother one of these bat roach bastards showed up! To make matters worse, it''s looking straight at me, ready to lunge at any moment...!

    "Migu, get back!" He ran in front, only to lower his guard after inspecting the enemy thoroughly, "...Sigh, you made me rush for no reason."

    "W-What do you mean? It''s gonna attack us!" I pointed at its hollow bug Eyes.

    Shockingly, he still refused to raise his guard, instead slowly shaking his head as he hopped over to the unmoving beast. Flipping his mallet, he poked the thing between the Eyes, only for the hammer''s stump to poke right through the bug''s head.

    "Ew!" I fell back on my butt.

    "As you can see, this one''s already dead." He groaned, "Look at its body¡ªthis is the one I already fought. Seems it tried to escape, but didn''t get too far."

    "You didn''t have to poke its brain to prove that, though..."

    I was already far too scared to stay near that thing, but it seems he was in quite the inquisitive state. Hopping slowly around its body, he started slamming the hammer against every part of its body. The torso, the wings, the tail, even going so far as to flip it on its back just to try and go for the stomach.

    "What the hell are you doing?" I gagged.

    "What better way to analyze the enemy than an autopsy?" He smiled before popping its bug head in one mallet swing.

    "Oh!" I had to look away as the blood exploded everywhere.

    "Yep, now we know for sure." He hoisted the bloody hammer over his shoulder, "If you''re gonna fight, then not only is the head your best shot..."

    "It''s also your only chance at killing it." I scowled, "I still think you could''ve figured that out without popping its head like a zit. Urgh..."

    He saw me having trouble keeping myself from hurling, so he tossed me something while I wasn''t paying attention.

    "Catch!" He announced.

    "Huh?!" I glanced down at my palm, "What did you thro-?"

    A Flasher, and he purposefully removed the pin ahead of time. The last thing I saw before getting deafened and blinded by the White ray was him smugly cupping his ears and closing his Eyes. Quickly holding it closed with my hand, I eventually got my vision back just enough.

    "You bastard!" I hissed, "What was that for!?"

    "Haha, sorry, sorry." He approached me, putting the pin back in, priming it for the next use, "Keep that with you. In the case one of those things attacks you, I''m gonna need you to save yourself."

    "...What??"

    I couldn''t hear a word he just said. Shame too, he looked like he was saying something really important. Is he giving me the Flasher? Well, regardless of if he is or isn''t, it''s in my hands now! Yanking it towards me with a defensive stance, I glared back at him until my ears finally decided to resume working.

    "That wasn''t funny." I pouted.

    "You''re not feeling sick anymore, though." He grinned, "The feeling of getting flashed is unpleasant, sure, but in comparison every other ailment feels like nothing. A perfect home remedy to queasiness."

    "That''s...!"

    Tsk, I hate to admit it, but he''s right! It''s like the flash fully wiped my memory of the bug roach''s body. Well, I can probably still get myself sick if I look at it again or try to reconstruct the memory in my head, but what good would that do me. Yeah, let''s just be thankful I don''t have that image in my head anymore.

    "Hey Energy."

    "Yeah?"

    "For the love of Prylos, please don''t call it "getting flashed". Makes it sound super dirty." I smirked.

    "...My point still stands." He stood firm.

    After a brief moment of Eye contact, we burst out laughing like idiots. The moment was short lived however, since we were in a hurry no matter how you sliced it. So long as we were inside the Shrine, our wounds were steadily impacting us. Before long, one of us might even bleed out, if that''s even possible.

    "Let''s get a move on." He hopped in front of me, going against the large boulder hill we were at, "Remember, the moment you see one, use your Flasher without reserve. Ah, but warn me before-"

    "Flash!" I shouted, removing the pin and striking a similar defensive pose to the one he had when flashing the bat roach before.

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    "Crap!" He swung the mallet blindly as he turned around, thankfully hitting the bat roach''s head directly, "Phew... Ack, more incoming!"

    "Rapid fire flashes!" I announced.

    This... sounds wrong. Rapid fire flashes, what am I¡ªa slut? Jokes aside, since I had to constantly put the pin in and out, I had to sacrifice my hearing so as to keep a straight stance. Though I couldn''t hear, I still closed my Eyes at the appropriate times so as to not get blinded. I could see Energy fighting the whole horde of them off perfectly, timing his blinks to perfectly fit with my rhythm.

    "Gah!" I got tackled by one of them from behind.

    "Migu!?" He turned around, getting smacked in the process as well, "Crap!"

    I dropped the Flasher after I got tackled, and the same happened with Energy''s mallet. He had his other weapons, but reaching them was a different story. Both of us were pinned to the ground, and there were more of these bastards incoming at a rapid pace. Before long, we were completely swarmed.

    "Migu!" He shouted, staking the one on him in the head, "Migu, you alive!?"

    "I-I...!" I tried reaching for the Flasher to no avail, "I sure as hell will be!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The situation was already a lost cause. There''s absolutely no way he could fend all of these things off by himself, no matter how many weapons he had on him. Meanwhile, the Flasher was just too far away for me to reach out to with my hand. The roach bat''s mandibles were reaching slowly to bite my head off, most probably because it deemed killing me off immediately to be an easier way to get to my spine. I knew it, they''re definitely smarter than they were before...!

    "Migu! Fuck the Flasher!" His voice shouted out desperately, "The mallet! Go for the mallet!"

    "The hell!? I can''t swing that thing!" I shook my head, still just barely holding the roach back from cutting my head off, "Hngh! Fine, but don''t expect much from my performance!"

    Choosing to ignore the Flasher in favor of the much closer mallet, what happened was all but expected. Given my position and strength, I couldn''t even lift the damned thing, much less swing it. All I could do was bring it closer to me, but that wasn''t going to do much. Unless...!

    "Hmnghh...!" I pulled with all my might, eventually putting it on my chest, "Hooh! Now¡ªlift Migu, lift!"

    As it stood, the bat roach would chop my head off if I kicked it away with my legs. I needed to pivot with my arms, but I didn''t exactly have a good handle nor leverage by myself. That''s where the mallet came in. The large, heavy hammerhead served as a perfect wedge between us, and the handle was, well, a handle. It took every fiber in my being to push it to my side, but I still wasn''t in the clear.

    "Byahhh!" The next one attacked me immediately after.

    "Back..." I used the extra space to swing the mallet with all my might, "...the FUCK off!"

    The hammer was heavy, but by working with a little bit of momentum, I could easily dish out a strong attack even while laying on my back. I hit the damned thing directly over its head, so as expected, it fell easily. Now, gotta get to the Flasher...!

    "Stop!" Energy strongly warned me, "Don''t show your spine! They''ll chomp it off the moment you do! Ngh...!"

    "Okay, how the hell am I gonna move then!?" I asked, but he was too busy fighting them off to give me an answer, "Tch, damn it all!"

    "Here!" He slid a rapier he carried with him across to me, "Let''s swap!"

    "I thought you said you weren''t good with swords!?"

    "I''m not, but I carry them for these exact situations!" He smiled the moment he got ahold of his favorite mallet, "Haha, that''s the stuff!"

    Smashing them away without so much as breaking a sweat, he quickly made his way to me. Lifting me back on my feet, he pressed his back against mine and told me to get ready.

    "For what?" I asked.

    "How good are you at dancing?" He asked.

    "Eh!? P-Pretty good?"

    Actually, that was a lie. I''m actually really good at dancing, but what does this have anything to do with that?

    "Good enough!" He nodded, slowly pivoting us around with his hips, "I''m gonna use the mallet''s weight to spin around, hopefully hitting as many of them as possible. You''re gonna need to keep your back as firmly pressed on my own as you can, otherwise I can''t guarantee your safety."

    "That''s insane!"

    Regardless of my opinion, though, he had already swung with all his might. Dammit, he asked me if I know anything about dancing, but he''s the idiot keeping his center of mass out, slowing us down! If he wants to keep us in balance, I''m gonna need to cover for him with the rapier!

    "I-It''s working!" He smiled, "Thank goodness!"

    "Wait, you weren''t sure it would!?" I jolted.

    "Why would I ever try this strategy out with anyone before? I imagine it only looks half as stupid as it feels."

    "Yeah, well, the only reason it is working is because I''m balancing us out properly!" I noted, "Your footwork is abhorrent!"

    "Sorry, I only got the one foot, after all!" He joked, "But you''re right, this wouldn''t work if it wasn''t for you! Nice work, descendant!"

    Hrm... I don''t need your praise, old man...

    "Just keep swinging, dammit!" I then slipped on something, "Bah!"

    Welp, it was a good run. We were pretty close to surviving the encounter too, but I guess it wasn''t meant to be. So, what did we learn from this? I guess not to be too loud, to aim for the head... Gahh, nothing else comes to mind! Even now, the only reason we failed was because I slipped on... Huh!?

    "T-The Flasher!" I picked it up hastily, pulling out the pin just before the roaches could get to me, "Close your Eyes!"

    "Do it!" He kept swinging blindly.

    A single flash was all it took. To be honest, I yet again forgot to cover my ears, but it didn''t matter. Deaf as I was, I could still hear the bells of victory drawing near. The loud sound and blinding White light scared the crap out of these things¡ªa third were killed from the shock, the other third were stunned, and the final third ran away. This order was based on proximity.

    "Now, while they''re stunned!" I picked the rapier back up before springing to my feet, "Kill as many as you can!"

    "What??" He shouted confusedly, but already knew to do that.

    After everything we just went through, we must''ve had at least a hundred dead bug roaches around us. I couldn''t even see the green moss floor from their bodies and guts, how horrifying. In the end, two thirds were somehow wiped out, and more importantly¡ªwe survived.

    "Haa... Haahh..."

    "Hoo... Hmph..."

    With heavy and dogged breaths, we couldn''t even celebrate our victory properly. Instead, the only strength we had left in us was to lift a single fist at each other until they met at the center. Immediately after, we both fell in between the sea of dead roaches, unable to move a single sore muscle. The adrenaline wore off, and the pain of it all is finally kicking in...

 Vol.5 Ch.100 - Brainless

    I don''t know how long I was asleep, but I felt a fair bit more refreshed once I woke up. The first sound I noticed was that of crunching, which was odd, since there wasn''t any food in the vicinity. Did Energy wake up before me and scrounge something up for us to eat? If so, he should''ve woken me up too. Ever since we entered the Shrine, my hunger function began working as it does for humans. I should get up.

    "Hm? Energy?" I looked to where he fell, but no one was there, "Energy, you there?"

    "Bzzzz..."

    That sound... That''s a roach bat! Crap, I thought we killed all of them! Guess one of the ones that got scared away went back to get us. That''s bad, I need to hide!

    "Energy...! Energy!" I called out to him in a panicked whisper, "Dammit, gramps! You didn''t actually leave me here to die, did you!?"

    ...No, think about this rationally, Migu. He said he only ever sleeps with one Eye open, the paranoid idiot. Surely he must''ve sensed it was drawing near and hid for a better position. Ugh, I really hate crawling in between these dead carcasses, but I can''t keep staying here. The bat roach, where is it...?

    "The sound of munching is getting louder. Is it cannibalizing?" I dreaded the very thought, "Disgusting. Come on, Energy, swoop in and kill it already!"

    It was already getting difficult to breathe with the stench wafting through the area. I guess these things are half bugs, so killing one surely releases some nasty fumes. Now multiply it by all the ones we killed, and well, you get this unsettling smell. I still have my rapier and Flasher with me, so even if it does somehow spot me, I can pretty safely defend myself. Ugh, though it''s difficult to move with my wounds...

    "Energy... Maybe he''s not actually here?" I worriedly reasoned, "He might''ve gotten chased away by another one of these freaks, in which case we got separated. Does that mean I''ll have to kill this one by myself?"

    Hoo, steal your resolve, Migu! It''s just one roach bat, after all, how hard can it be? Just think, you''ve killed a dozen just a while ago. Right, just like how Energy taught you¡ªjump out, stun it with the Flasher, and aim the rapier straight between its nasty bug Eyes! Three, two, one... Go!

    "A-Ah." I stopped the moment I jumped out from my cover, "A-AH!? AHHHH!"

    Before my Eyes laid Energy, his scalp completely torn off as the roach desperately tried to reach for his golden brain. To say the sight was depressing was an understatement, but I still had time to fix this situation. Flashing it in the face before skewering its head, it thrashed around a bit before succumbing to its death. Horrifying. But more importantly, Energy!

    "Energy, wake up!" I gently shook him up, unsure if it''s safe to be any rougher, "Energy, Energy!"

    He''s... He''s dead...!

    "..."

    "......"

    "AAAAAAHHHHHH!" He suddenly began to scream.

    "Ahhhhh!"

    "BAHHHHHH!" He blinked at me uncontrollably, "Why does my brain feel cold!? Migu, why!?"

    "E-Eh!? Calm down, they''ll hear us!" I shushed him, "What the hell, you''re alive!?"

    "Hoo, hoo... Okay, I''m calm." He slowed his breathing before replying, "I''m... Yeah, why wouldn''t I be?"

    Okay, I know I was the one who told him to calm down, but for a guy hanging with an exposed brain, I''d this level of tranquility is scarier than the bugs we''re facing.

    "A-Are you in pain?" I asked, "Nonono! Don''t get up!"

    "Huh? Why not?" He furrowed his brows.

    "I-It''ll spill..." I muttered, "No, what I meant is¡ªit''s best for you to rest a bit more. Listen to me, you got attacked by one of those bugs in your sleep."

    "Hah! Are you kidding me? I told you already, but I sleep with one Eye open, descendant!" He proudly guffawed.

    Evidently not... So wait, if he''s not aware of the entire upper half of his head being torn open, then I guess it doesn''t matter? There shouldn''t be any mirrors in the Shrine, and even if there were, he wouldn''t be able to find the angle necessary to see the injury no matter how hard he tried. It''s gonna be tough, but if he holds out for just a little while longer, we can make it to the beds and he''ll be just fine.

    "Alright, so uhh..." I rummaged through his armor.

    "O-Oi! What are you doing!?" He jolted, "We''re related!"

    "Piss off! Oh, there it is!" I finally found something that''d work, "I''ll bandage your head up, since it got a bit... I''ll bandage your head up now."

    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    If I tell him about his injury, he''ll definitely want us to die and restart, but then we''d have to fight off all these guys. I''d rather die than go through all that again. Wait, no, that''s not-... Whatever, you get the point! I need to cover the brain with bandages so he doesn''t notice until we reach the fourth floor!

    "Alright, all done!" I gently helped him get up, "Easy does it!"

    "What the hell did those things do to me?" He felt his bandaged head out, "I got this incredible headache right now..."

    "Yeah, and I got a thigh ache because of a certain someone staking me." I retorted, "We''re both pretty banged up, but we shouldn''t be too far from the stairs."

    I started limping forwards, but he was quick to hop in front and stop me.

    "Hey, hold it."

    "What''s up?"

    "The hell do you mean What''s up?" He cocked his head back, "Don''t you remember? Some of them escaped when you spammed the Flasher, so we ought to be wary from here on."

    Tell that to yourself, halfwit.

    "Then, what do you suppose we do?" I sighed.

    "I''ll lead the way." He hopped in front, "And remember, if I get even a SINGLE serious wound, please don''t hesitate to kill us and reset."

    "...Yeah, got it." I nodded solemnly, "You uhh... have my word on that."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    So as things stood, I think it was the right choice not to tell him. He seems happy in his blissful ignorance, and besides, if he''s gonna heal up by the end of this whole ordeal, and he''s still capable, then what''s the difference? I''ll just let him be, and maybe treat him a bit kinder just in case.

    "Whoa." I got stopped by his arm right before a tight corner, "What''s-?"

    "Sst!" He shushed me, "Two more, just over there. Can you see them?"

    Looking over his shoulder, I did in fact notice the two chimeric beings that almost looked like they were conversing amongst themselves. Weird, I didn''t know they could communicate. Maybe that''s just their way of tricking us, making us think they''re smarter than they are. Y''know, the whole "appear bigger when a bear attacks you" life hack.

    "Oh yeah, we better sneak around them." I noted.

    "I''m going in-"

    "Whoa whoa whoa!"

    I can''t let him fight like this! His brain''s literally gonna pop right off if he starts swinging that damned mallet of his! He needs to be a good little grandpa and chill out for a bit.

    "Migu, let me go." He tried to break free, but I didn''t let him.

    "I-I''ll go, ha-ha..." I chuckled nervously, "You still need to rest. Besides, I got this really fun idea about killing them, and I want you to see my skills!"

    "Migu, now''s not the time. Look, we''ll do it together-"

    "Bah!" I saw the bandages starting to get undone, "No, wait a second! Lemme just...!"

    "What are you-Hrk!"

    His Eyes shot straight up, his mouth foaming like crazy, and his body went limp as it dropped to the ground. Dang, did I just kill him by accident? Well, I did tighten the bandages pretty hard around his brain... Hm? Oh good, he''s still breathing. I guess I just found out how to put him to sleep whenever I want to.

    "Sorry about this, but I need you to lay low for a while." I apologized before turning the corner, "I''ll be right back. Right after I deal with these guys."

    Turning the corner, I was once again faced with these fearsome foes. They didn''t seem to notice me just yet, so I used the situation to sneak into a better position. There was a bush right next to them, so if I could just get there...

    "Bzzz!" One suddenly got aggravated.

    "Oh no...!"

    "Bzz..." It then calmed down.

    "Phew! It just got pissed at the other one..." I let our a sigh of relief.

    I kept moving between the bushes and shrubbery as I steadily moved in closer to them. My rapier was still in my main hand, and the Flasher in my offhand. They''re both staring intently at each other with their faces right in front of where the bush is. Once I get there, I''ll quickly use the Flasher before delivering a swift skewer to both of their faces. Ah, but I shouldn''t count my chickens before they hatch, since there''s still a way to go before I reach them.

    "Mn!" I panicked as the sound of a stick cracking beneath my foot echoed throughout the area, "Uuu..."

    My heart was practically jumping out of my chest with each thump, and I knew that the only reason I wasn''t spotted yet was merely because of my luck. I won''t be getting this chance again, so I need to focus up. Energy''s waiting for me!

    "Bzz. Bzz bzz." The bat roach buzzed sentimentally.

    "Bzz." The other bat roach agreed, "Bzz bzz bzz bzz."

    "Bzz!?"

    "B-Bzz..."

    The hell am I looking at? Why does the air around them look so pink and bubbly all of a sudden? No, don''t get distracted, Migu. The bush is right in front of you, so all you have left to do is sneak in.

    "Bzz... Bzz bzz!" The first one confessed.

    "Bzz bzz bzz! Bzz bzz!"

    The scene could almost be called joyful. Gods only know what the hell that conversation entailed, but I certainly don''t care. Right now, their ugly mugs were right in front of me, just outside the bush. It''s showtime.

    "Bzz..." The bat roach moved in closer.

    "Bzz." The other one seemed to follow suit.

    "...Now!" I pulled the pin, putting my offhand in between them, "Say your prayers, you disgusting beasts!"

    Startled as they were, they couldn''t dodge the Flash in time, and with it hitting them point blank, I''m sure they must have already croaked just from the shock. I wanted to make absolutely sure, however. Last time we didn''t double check, Energy almost got his mind munched clean off. Not letting that happen to me, not a chance. After all, I like my ponytail!

    "Die, suckers!"

    I slammed the Flasher''s tiny blade right into the left one''s brain, simultaneously stabbing the other one with the rapier in my main hand. A clean, stealthy double kill from the bushes¡ªjust like the assassins would''ve done it!

    "Eugh, I think I finally get why Energy put so much emphasis on cleaning his weapons." I tried wiping some of the blood off of the grass below, but it didn''t work, "Well, whatever. Let''s go check up on him."

    Now that there weren''t any threats to hide away from, I could leisurely walk back to his rock hideout in peace. Now that I don''t have to go from bush to bush, the actual distance between us wasn''t that far at all. Thankfully, once I turned the corner, there weren''t anymore unpleasant surprises.

    "Energy. Hey, Energy!" I gently shook him awake, "Wake up-... Ah."

    His brain just fell out. That''s... That''s bad, isn''t it?

    "...."

    "......."

    "..."

    Oh yeah, that''s bad.

 Vol.5 Ch.101 - Racist Radar

    "I can just... scoop the brain back in, can''t I?" I reasoned, "Ugh, no way am I touching another person''s brains with my bare hands, though."

    Do I use the rapier? I might harm it if I do. No, but his brain is made of gold, so shouldn''t it be fine? Just what the hell kind of situation have I gotten myself into...?

    "I''m just gonna use his mallet to gently scoop it inside his noggin." I reached for it.

    "Stop!!" He shouted all of a sudden.

    "Wah! O-Oh geez, you scared me..." I breathed a sigh of relief, only to notice he still hasn''t woken up, "Wait, did I imagine that...?"

    "Imagine what, bozo." His voice echoed throughout the jungle hallway, but his lips remained unmoving, "What the hell did you do to me?"

    Whoa, this is... weird. Is his brain telepathically communicating with me? It sounds crazy, but yeah, that''s definitely Energy''s voice. Then again, the brain is the main part of a person, so maybe it''s because his is made of gold?

    "Migu, answer me." He groaned, "I can''t move my body ever since you did that weird thing that put me to sleep."

    "Ah, I might''ve struck a nerve. Literally speaking." I realized.

    "Wait, so you just permanently paralyzed me!?" He started freaking out, "What the hell, then kill me this instant so that we can restart!"

    I knew he was gonna say that as soon as he found out. Actually, before this I had the intention of keeping his injury a secret until we went to bed, but I don''t think this is salvageable anymore. Maybe offing ourselves is the right move, after all...

    "O-Oi, what are you doing?" He saw me pick his brain up, "Wait, is that my body lying on the ground down there!? Migu, how are you doing this?! Migu!?"

    "Hey, thinking about it rationally¡ªisn''t it kind of lucky that you''ll get to have a completely golden body once we heal up on the fourth floor?" I reasoned, "Outside of the Shrine you''ll feel like a human, but inside you''ll be impervious to any and all damage."

    "Migu!!"

    I could tell from the nervous signals he was desperately sending out in my embrace that he was trying to break free, but as a lone brain without any muscles to do that with, he didn''t really manage all too much. Honestly, if we ignore the fact he''s an ugly, wrinkly brain, he''s way cuter in this little form. Though, a jar to put him in for safe keeping and easier handling would certainly be nice.

    "Migu, get back there and put me in my body this instant!" He shouted as I began walking away, "Hey, at least take my weapons!"

    "You kidding? I can''t use half of those things." I scoffed, "A mallet, a bow, a whip... If it was a gun, it would''ve been a different story, but I just don''t see myself using anything other than my rapier and Flasher."

    "They''re MINE, not yours!" He corrected, "And regardless, are you seriously gonna leave my body back there to rot forever!?"

    "Like I said, once we arrive on the fourth floor, we''ll be able to regenerate a new body for you once you go to sleep." I reassured him.

    Eh? Can brains even go to sleep? Well, logically speaking, they shouldn''t even be able to live outside of the body at all, so who knows? I guess I''ll have to take responsibility and wait to see if he really can fall asleep and regenerate or not. If he doesn''t, I guess I''ll just have to go through this whole third layer again.

    "Wait, what am I right now?" He asked.

    "A brain." Something in my body urged me to pinch it, but I refrained, "A-Ahem, a small little dumbo brain."

    "You''re kidding me..." He chuckled self-depracatingly, "A-Alright, I get it¡ªyou don''t wanna erase our progress, right?"

    "I''m not gonna kill us, Energy..."

    "Just... Fucking listen, okay!?" He sounded like he was about to cry, "Kill me, I''ll go through the entire third layer by myself, and we''ll meet up at the fourth floor, got it!?"

    "I can''t know for sure if killing you won''t immediately kill me as well somehow." I shook my head, "Since we usually die roughly at the same time anyways when we do, there''s no way to know that."

    "Please! I don''t wanna be a stupid brain forever!"

    Heh, did he just call himself stupid? N-No, now''s not the time, Migu.

    "Look, even if I did kill you, who''s to say you''ll even manage on your own?" I asked, "Not to mention, if I kill you as a brain, will you revive with all of your weapons still on you? Will my rapier and Flasher get stolen? You understand the risks at play here, don''t you?"

    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    "T-That''s...!" He stuttered, "I-I do, but...!"

    "Then you''d do well to shut up and stop complaining." I decidedly kept walking through the third layer.

    At the end of the day, he''s the one at my mercy now, not the other way around. Mind you, we''re talking about the guy that brutally killed Vastoria in front of my very Eyes, not to mention beat me and Sheep up within an inch of our lives. If I''m being brutally honest, I wouldn''t mind it if he remained a harmless brain for the rest of his afterlife either! It''d be one less teammate against the Gods'' bounty hunters, sure, but it''d also give me some solace and fulfilment.

    "Knock knock." I guess he thought to lighten the mood with a joke.

    "Who''s there?" I genuinely looked down at him in confusion.

    "Bat roach!" He shouted.

    "Bat roach... Who?"

    "No, you idiot! A bat roach is approaching!" He warned, "Put your rapier out!"

    Oh, haha, I thought that was part of the joke. No, but seriously, I neither see nor hear any bat roaches in the vicinity, so I don''t know what he''s talking about. He said to extend my rapier out in front of me, but it''s kind of tough to finagle between it, the Flasher and his brain.

    "Do it now!" He was incessant.

    "Ugh, fine!" I rolled my Eyes, just barely reaching out to the blade on my hilt and putting it in front of me.

    Splat, a terrifying amount of blood suddenly splashed all over me, starting from the rapier''s pointed tip. Was... Was that seriously a bat roach just now? Eugh, yuck! I got some in my mouth!

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Ptu! Eugh, tu!" I spat as much blood splatter out as I could, "What the hell was that!?"

    "I told you, I sensed something approaching at high speeds..." He replied nervously, "Was I late?"

    Late? Damned idiot, it''s the opposite! He was so early, I didn''t even see or hear it at all. But now that I take a look at its carcass lying on the ground a few meters back, it was undeniably a bat roach that lunged at me at such an ungodly speed. But how could he have sensed it without Eyes or ears...?

    "Elegy, do you see things differently now?" I inquired.

    "Hm? Oh yeah, now that you mention it..." He noticed, "I don''t quite see you, but I do feel you."

    "Phrasing..."

    "Hearing is much the same, in that I feel the soundwaves emanating in my proximity." He explained, "I heard the loud buzzing fast approach, but I''m genuinely surprised that you didn''t hear it as well."

    Yeah, that''s because you obviously "feel" sound better than you or anyone else hears it. I guess this is also something only Energy can do because of his golden brain, on top of the whole telepathy thing. Damn, I''m almost jealous. Keyword is "almost", because I''d never switch places with his sorry ass.

    "Well then, looks to me like this is a blessing in disguise!" I smiled, lifting the brain in front of me to admire it in all its glory, "With your radar warning me up to a dozen seconds ahead of time, we''ll be invincible!"

    "...Kill me."

    "Later." I smiled deviously, "Once you''re fully golden and we leave the Shrine."

    I say that, but I''m still not that confident in my ability to take him down, despite the blatant advantages.

    "You really think that''ll satisfy your sense of revenge?" He got all sentimental, "Migu, you need to let Vastoria go. She will continue to live on through you, and I made sure of th-AHH!"

    "Don''t push your luck." I tossed him up and down like a parent would their baby, "You do know I can just decide not to put you on the bed once we make it there, right? You''ll just be stuck in this place forever, rotting without rusting as these bugs attempt and fail numerous times to chomp off a bit of you."

    "Eep! Okay, I''ll be a good boy!" He begged, "Just spare me, okay! I just want my body, any body! Please don''t leave me!"

    Ehe, that''s more like it! This Energy is a lot more pleasant to be around, especially when he does the job I gave him of being what is essentially a human radar. Thanks to him, I could accurately expect a bat roach attack from miles away, and all it would take for me to end the battle quickly was to extend my rapier when he told me to. The bat roaches did all the heavy lifting, ''cause they''d just blindly lunge at me in a straight line.

    "Tch, why are they like this with you, but not with me?" He grumbled.

    "Maybe because we killed all but a few of them." I shrugged, "With less of them around, they get desperate to kill us and end up moving predictably."

    "Huh?" He sounded surprised.

    "What?"

    "Nothing, just... What you said actually made sense." He realized.

    Hey!

    "Yeah, back when Vastoria and I were heading to the bottom of the Shrine the first time, there were only a handful of them." He continued, "This time, though, there had to have been a thousand of them. I wonder if they have a colony nearby."

    "...Why should I care?" I sighed, "Frankly, all I care about is reaching the fourth floor, healing, then getting the hell out of here."

    "I think we should find their base and hunt them down to extinction." He suddenly suggested something wild, "They obviously breed at an alarming rate, so much so that the Shrine might not be enough to house all of them..."

    "You''re saying they might take over the other floors as well?"

    "Worse." He fretted, "They might even escape the Shrine."

    Some bone-chilling words were coming out of this brain. It''s certainly a possibility once you factor in their multiplication, but how would I even go about doing that?

    "...Ahem." He feigned a cough, "Of course as you know, I don''t intend on making you go through such a hassling ordeal by yourself, milady. All I''d need is a regenerated body, and we''d be wreaking genocide like no one before us!"

    "O-Oh, right! You''re saying we do that AFTER we fall asleep on our beds, that makes sense." I chuckled, "Yeah, maybe we should do that, then. Besides, we''re waiting on Sheep anyways, so might as well keep Heaven 2.0 clean of those things'' ugly mugs."

    If someone overheard us talking about this and didn''t know we specifically meant the bat roaches, they''d call us insane racists that should be put to jail for war crimes.

    "Ah, Migu." He sensed something coming again.

    "Got it." I understood the signal to put my rapier out, only this time remembering to close my mouth and Eyes, "Eugh, it still got in my nose, dammit!"

    "I don''t envy having orifices as much anymore." His golden brain shimmered smugly.

    "Oh yeah? Then I might as well keep you like this permanently."

    "P-Please don''t..."

 Vol.5 Ch.102 - Hopeless/ful

    Once we had everything planned out, it was only a matter of getting to the beds so that we could heal up. After that''s done, if our calculations are correct, Energy''s brain will have grown a fully golden body. Essentially, he''ll be an invincible war machine so long as he''s inside the Shrine''s confines, and although I dislike giving my malefactor such a strong power up, it should be noted that he''ll become the most disadvantaged person in Heaven 2.0 the moment he exits the Shrine''s barrier.

    "I can''t wait for my new body." He sounded eager, "I don''t know if you''ve noticed, but your hands are extremely sweaty."

    "You sure you''re not just slimy?" I bashfully checked my palm.

    "I''m a brain made of pure gold, and I can sense stuff from a mile away." He retorted, "So of course I can tell the difference."

    ...In other news, he can either choose to remain inside the Shrine indefinitely to maintain his invincibility or step out and risk getting killed. I was about to feel bad for the bastard, but thankfully he made not doing so a bit easier with that comment just now. I couldn''t care less whichever one he chose, ''cause I''m sure he''ll be suffering either way.

    "Coast is clear. Nothing''s there for the rest of the hallway." He scanned, "Correct me if I''m wrong, but aren''t we close to the staircase leading down to the fourth floor?"

    "Yeah, it''s right there. I can see it from here, even." I smiled, a mischievous idea brewing in my head, "Say, gramps, you remember the deal we made, don''t you?"

    "Hm?"

    "Don''t play dumb, we both know what that staircase has in store for you."

    The grin on my face was so wide, the corners of my lips almost touched my ears. I stopped at the top of the stairs, waiting for him to react.

    "Migu..." He let out a nervous chuckle, "Let''s talk about this."

    "Nope! Rules are rules, get down there!" I chucked the damned brain right down the spiral staircase, "Bon voyage~!"

    "Wahhhh!!!"

    We did agree that I''d be pushing him down every flight of stairs we saw, whether we''re going up or down. Alas, the White parts of his body are all gone, so he won''t be feeling any pain from this, but I''m sure just getting him dizzy will suffice. Argh, but if his body does indeed grow back fully golden, then he won''t feel anything at all, and it won''t be fun! Vastoria, sorry, but I kinda suck at avenging you.

    "Hm." I took an awkward breath, "You didn''t roll as far as I had hoped. Only a few steps."

    "No shit! A brain isn''t circular in any way, so why would I!?" He shot back before groaning angrily, "Okay, now that you got that out of your system, let''s not waste any more time. Come on, pick me up and carry me to the bottom already."

    "..."

    "...Migu."

    "Yeah, but what if I just..." I gently put the tip of my boot in front of him.

    "Migu, don''t you dare."

    Hup! Gooooooaaaal~! Haha, kicking this bastard''s brain in is definitely hitting the spot! It still doesn''t hurt him physically, but it gives me some solace at least. Besides, at the end of the day, it''s fun as hell to kick him with all my might down the stairs. Thankfully, due to the staircase''s spiral design, I can even get a dozen or so kicks in before we reach the bottom.

    "Uwahh..." He cried out, "Are we there yet...?"

    "Huh? Aww..." I slumped forward once I saw the warm light from the room in front of us, "Yeah, lucky you."

    "I''m gonna tear you limb from limb once I get my body back." He threatened.

    "Nope, can''t do that. You promised I could get away with this because you''re making up for killing Vastoria." I reminded him, "By the way, we''re gonna be doing this again on the way up, so prepare yourself."

    "Tch, it''s not even my fault. How could I have known?"

    "Maybe so, but I don''t care." I kicked him into the room one last time, "Alright, should I try and kick you into your bed? H-Huh...?!"

    The room, Yellow and nostalgic on one corner and bleak and unapproachable on the other, lacked the beds associated with it. Darting my gaze around in the hopes of them just being misplaced for some reason proved to be a fruitless endeavor as well. Something''s off...

    "What''s wrong? Migu, I can''t see, so tell me." Energy''s brain reacted to my shock, "Toss me on the bed, we can''t regenerate if we don''t fall asleep on them."

    Stolen novel; please report.

    "Energy..." I gulped, hastily picking him up, "The beds are gone."

    "The beds... What?" His voice cracked slightly, "Migu, now''s not the time for jokes! Come on, plop me down already and-!"

    "I don''t have anywhere to plop you down, dammit! Are you even listening to me!?" I lashed out, "The beds are gone! Not here at all! We can''t...!"

    We can''t regenerate. Ignoring my own body, which has some notable bruises but is still somewhat capable of limping about, Energy will remain a brain unless we find a way to get the beds back. As for Sheep, he''s even worse off than me, essentially having become an invalid with wings. After what Energy did to him on the surface, I wouldn''t be surprised if his legs don''t work at all. Wait, no... This isn''t how this was supposed to go, dammit! We were supposed to be in Heaven! A land where all our wildest dreams were fulfilled, so why did it turn out like this!?

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Migu, what do we do?" He asked me.

    "How the hell should I know?" I sat there against the wall, hugging my knees, "This was our only chance. The moment we go back upstairs, we''ll get swarmed by those damned bat roaches."

    "We might yet be able to evade them before they repopulate." He reasoned before shutting that very same idea down himself, "But we can''t. The issue needs to be resolved, and there''s no one else who can do it but us."

    Is that really the case though? Who cares if we don''t eradicate the bat roaches? Sure they''ll eventually flood the third floor, but then they''ll move on to the fourth and second. Then it''ll take a bit more time to flood the first, and finally the Shrine will become to cramped for them. Come to think of it, there''s no way they won''t eventually suffocate amongst the crowd. Honestly speaking, as far as bugs go, the lack of food would make them cannibalize anyways.

    "Our priority should be to leave the Shrine for now." I steeled my resolve.

    "No, we can''t let these things out onto the surface!" He strongly protested.

    "Energy, we don''t have the luxury to choose!"

    "But we do!" He went off, "Don''t you get it, we killed off all but a few of them! If we just jump back in and finish the job, we''ll have saved the entirety of Heaven 2.0 from...!"

    "From what!?"

    "...From the same fate my era was plunged into." He quietly replied.

    Oh my Gods, what are we gonna do...!? I can''t take on an entire colony of those things all by myself! Even Energy''s entire usefulness as a brain radar that would detect any incoming attacks in the distance will have lost its purpose completely because we''ll already be surrounded by them! If only there was some way to kill them remotely...

    "I got it!" Energy''s voice got energetic all of a sudden, "Let''s kill ourselves!"

    "We''re not gonna do that, dammit!"

    "But it might return me to my body! And your thigh too, you won''t have to limp anymore!"

    "I was pretty banged up after your surprise betrayal on the surface, so I''d still be a limping mess anyways." I revealed, "On the other hand, we cleared the third floor, and we don''t know what that means for us if we die here and now."

    "Why would it be any different?"

    "Because..." I recalled, "Throne and Vastoria died on the surface layer."

    "..."

    If we were to die because of the Shrine, then that would be a different story, but I just can''t see myself willfully giving up my life under the guise of it being merely an attempt. There are too many unknown variables at play here, and even the beds'' disappearance is making me second guess everything from here on out. We need a plan, and one we can both agree on.

    "Let''s first list off all of our ideas." I suggested, "We''ll work out the answer easier if we have everything out in front of us."

    "Then, it''d be best to recount the situation first." He added, "Our issues are thus¡ªI am just a brain, and you have very little battle experience."

    "I have only a Flasher and a rapier to my name." I sighed.

    "Going back to loot my body could help resolve that a bit." He noted, "But that all depends on your skill with the weapons I had on me."

    "I''m even worse with those weird ass items. Sigh, what else? Oh, the beds are gone for some inexplicable reason and so we can''t repair our bodies."

    "The bat roaches will attack us the moment we go back up to the third floor, so we should maybe find a different way up." He then asked, "The beds wouldn''t just disappear by themselves. Someone must''ve stolen them."

    Heh, stolen two entire beds? In such a deep down place as this? There''s no way such a heist would ever even be feasible, much less possible. I guess since the number of beds reflect how many people are in the room at the same time, you could argue the bandit only stole his own one bed, but that''s still pretty impossible to carry out on your own.

    "How would they even do that?" I rolled my Eyes.

    "Check for a tunnel in the room somewhere." He sounded confident.

    A tunnel... Wait, is he saying there really is a secret entrance to this room?! We theorized about its existence before, but now that I take a look at the situation, it seems like the only plausible explanation for the beds disappearing!

    "Right, instead of having to go through the entire Shrine, and then drag the bed back up..." I felt a smile make its way over to my face, "They could just have a separate, straight and safe shot to the fourth floor immediately! It''d be genius!"

    "But, is that the case?" He asked.

    I paused, realizing we might just be completely wrong about our theory. Running about the room, touching quite literally every surface I could reach, I eventually came up with nothing. No secret door, no lever to reveal a passageway, no hollow walls to break through. It was all just so sturdy and perfect.

    "So?" The brain inquired after I sat down beside him.

    "Zilch." I went back to sulking, "Guess we were wrong."

    "Then at least we know we''re not dealing with more adversaries." He tried to cheer me up, "Migu, let''s not let these setbacks overpower us. We''re better than this."

    "Gramps, you''re really weird when you''re positive." I gently rubbed the wrinkly surface of the frontal lobe, "I don''t dislike it."

    "I''ll take that as a compliment and move on." He chuckled, "Then, we really have no other choice but to prioritize making it out of the third floor and into the second."

    The second floor. In other words, the trap infested crystal caverns... Wait, traps?

    "That''s it!" I sprung to my feet, kicking him up into my embrace.

    "Wah, w-what are you doing!?" He fussed in my arms.

    "The second floor, of course!" I smiled, "We can eradicate all of them without even entering the base they''re coming out of. And all it''s gonna take are some explosive traps!"

 Vol.5 Ch.103 - On Second Thought

    "Where are you taking me? Migu, answer me this instant!" The little brain fussed in my arms.

    "Be quiet! If even one of those bat roaches locks onto us, we''re toast!" I replied.

    "Toast? I don''t know what that is, but it sounds bad!"

    Hm, so he''s from a pre-toast era. Wait, did such an era ever even exist? No, ''cause like, everyone knows about bread, right? It''s like the number one thing to make regardless of where or when you come from. It''s just an extra step in the toaster. Ah, but maybe they didn''t have toasters. Yeah, that could be the case.

    "Never mind toast for now. I''m taking us to the second floor for some firepower." I explained, sticking close to rock formations, walls and bushes as I ran through the third floor, "Your job is to tell me if we''re under attack."

    "O-Okay? Well, we''re not, so just keep moving."

    We can''t leave the Shrine without making sure those bat roaches won''t pose an issue later, so we''re gonna need to commit a mild amount of tomfoolery in the form of a mass extinction event. At first I thought all hope was lost because the beds were gone, but I just so happened to remember that the second floor is littered with traps galore!

    "Hey, not that way!" Energy suddenly stopped me, "A bunch of them are crowded in that direction."

    "Good to know." I nodded, taking the long way around, "You think that''s where their hive is?"

    "Possibly, I feel like there''s at least a hundred of them just in there." He suddenly jolted, "Gah!"

    "What''s wrong?!"

    "S-Something huge..." He grunted, "There''s a bat roach bigger than any of the other ones in there. Might be their queen, I''m not sure."

    A queen. So, does their hive function like a bee nest? If that''s the case, that''d explain why they reproduce so fast. Dammit, why are the ickiest creatures in the world the most plentiful? I hate insects of all kinds, chimeric in nature or otherwise! I should note this path down in my head. When it''s time to attack, I should at least remember where to go.

    "Back when I was here with Vastoria..." He recollected, "We fought something of a similar size. It was a large bat roach, stronger and tougher than the rest at least a dozen times over."

    "And you''re saying this is the same case?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "Worse, much much worse." He sounded worried, "If this is the queen, then what we fought earlier was the king."

    I don''t understand. Shouldn''t it be the other way around? Ah, he must be talking about chess terms, I guess. Nah, actually scratch that. I refuse to believe he knows what chess is but has never heard of toasted bread. That still blows my mind, how could you not know what toast it!? It''s my favorite thing in the world!

    "Wait, but then if our theory is correct, doesn''t that mean we only have to kill the queen bat roach to ensure they stop reproducing?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "Insects elect a new queen when the old one dies." He explained, "Some species can even forcefully change their gender to fit their new matriarchal role."

    "I''m not even gonna ask how you know that..."

    "Isn''t this common knowledge?"

    I absolutely cannot fathom how this man thinks gender bending insects are considered common knowledge. I know I''m being annoying here with the toast talk, but are you seriously expecting me to believe he knows such irrelevant trivia and has never once tried to cook a slice of bread twice in a row?

    "Wait, something''s wrong. I sense a sudden blockade in front of us." He warned.

    "No, it''s alright. That''s just the stairs leading to the second floor." I reassured him, "You can''t exactly see that without Eyes, though."

    Surprisingly, it seems his senses work as a sort of myopia now that he''s just a brain. He can "feel" and easily discern the sensations of me touching him, as well as the stuff near him, but the further out the thing he''s focusing on is, the less precision he has over correctly guessing what it is. Then again, we''re lucky that the only threats looming in this floor are the bat roaches, so the moment he feels something fast moving in the distance, he knows what it is without hesitation.

    "Made it safely to the staircase!" I announced, gently patting the top of his brain, "Good work out there."

    "I get you think that feels nice for me or whatever, but I''m only getting messages sent to me through the nerves that detail what you''re doing." He sighed, "In other words, you might as well just say "Pat Pat" instead of actually doing it."

    "So you''re the type who likes to get verbally pampered as well as physically?" I joked, "There there, good little fossil."

    "You damned brat, that''s not what I meant!" He fussed in my embrace, "And stop calling me old!"

    Ah, so he knows that a fossil is something old but doesn''t know what toas-Nah, I''ll stop. I already see there''s no hope for him, so I guess I''ll just have to cut my losses for now.

    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    "One day, if we get the chance to..." I said as I limped slowly but surely up the stairs, "I''d like to eat some toast with you."

    "Eh? Where did that come from?" He sounded confused.

    "Just saying, I think you''d really enjoy it." I smiled.

    I could tell from his silence that he really wasn''t in the mood for wholesome breadtalk, but something about the air around him did seem to relax just a tiny bit. I guess at the end of the day, these moments of reprieve really are everything a person could ask for.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Migu, I''ll remind you again just for safety." He warned, "For the duration of our stay on this floor, I''m useless. My senses can''t detect traps."

    "I wouldn''t exactly go so far as to call you useless. After all, I would''ve been knee-deep in the bat roach hive had you not warned me to turn around when you did."

    "Regardless, you will have to watch out for traps on your own." He added, "Watch your step, don''t touch the walls or ceiling, and evade any tripwires you might come across."

    Well, the warning is certainly appreciated, since you can never be too careful. This time, however, my goal wasn''t to just evade the traps, but to grab them for ourselves. If I want my plan to work, I''m gonna need to find an explosive trap, or at least a wide range one. Essentially, I''ll place a bunch of them inside the nest and remotely set off the traps from a safe distance, hopefully killing all those bat roach bastards without even having to look at their ugly mugs once. In theory, the plan should be flawless, but it''s the practice part that always makes things difficult.

    "Hey, do you even know if it''s possible to take them and use them somewhere else?" Energy asked.

    "..."

    "Wait, you weren''t sure!?" He jolted.

    "I''m like 80% sure." I reasoned, "Okay, 75% sure. Look, if it turns out we''re unable to take them for ourselves, I''ll just take us outside and we''ll wait for Sheep to arrive."

    "And if the bat roaches overflow the Shrine while we''re waiting for him?" He asked, "What makes you so sure he''ll return for us at all? And even if he does, how long will it take him? He has his wings, sure, but the rest of his body is completely broken."

    And whose fault is that, dumbass? Sigh, but I guess you''re not wrong. If we''re gonna leave the Shrine, it has to be after we''ve successfully taken out all those bug heads. This is gonna be more annoying than I thought. Let''s just hope these traps come-

    "...off." I held the dart trap in my palm after simply pulling it out of the brickwork, "There''s no way that worked!"

    "Eh? It worked!?" He sounded elated, "Quick, show me, show me!"

    Putting the dart trap close to his golden surface, he admired it with great glee. That''s when I noticed a button on the top, so almost instinctively, I pressed it. This launched the poison dart loaded inside the tiny cube trap point blank at Energy''s brain. Thankfully, it just dinked off of the gilded surface.

    "..."

    "....."

    "...Awesome!" My face lit up, "So they CAN be activated manually! Hooray, no wiring required!"

    "I see, so the darts are fed through the back when placed inside the wall..." Energy inspected the mechanism closely, "Well, we''re not gonna be using the dart traps here anyways, so we don''t need to worry about that."

    That''s right, we''re looking for something with a bit more oomph to it. Something like a mine or dynamite would be the most convenient, but given how neither of us ever saw those two on this floor, chances are we''ll have to settle for something lesser.

    "Let''s think about this..." I pondered, "So far, we''ve seen dart traps, guillotine traps, swinging axes, as well as some variations of spike traps. Could any of those theoretically be used to wipe out a large hive of those things?"

    "Probably not." He figured, "But we need to find something to use. Maybe the guillotine is our best bet? After all, they''re the only trap that doesn''t require tripwires or pressure plates to automatically get triggered when something is under it. We could place it right in front of their hive and coax them out."

    "That could work, but only if I could somehow transport it there." I shook my head, "The guillotine is embedded into the walls, and we''d need to somehow break it free before fitting the large thing through the tight spiral staircase. Not to mention cross practically half of the third floor just so we could bring it to the hive''s entrance."

    If he wasn''t a brain, Energy could probably help me find a way to accomplish that even. Once again, we''re stuck at an impasse, and it seems like we have nowhere to go. Forfeiting the Shrine over to the bat roaches will lead to them slowly flooding the surface, but it seems no matter what attempt we make to nip them in the bud, it always ends up falling through. This is going nowhere...

    "Energy, let''s leave the Shrine." I suggested.

    "Giving up so soon?" He made the sound of his tongue clicking despite not having one.

    "It''s called a tactical retreat. Besides, now that we know the beds aren''t here anymore, we really have no reason to even want to come back here."

    "Are you even listening to what I''ve been telling you this entire time? This isn''t about the beds, it''s about the bat roaches overpopulating!"

    We were at each other''s throats for a while, both constantly trying to prove that they were in the right. I can understand his worries, but it''s just impossible to expect us to do anything without even a plan of attack. Right now, we need Sheep''s wings. If we can have him fly us around Heaven 2.0, we should be able to investigate the matter with the missing beds. At best, we''ll all be repaired, and at worst the bat roaches won''t be our problem for at least a while.

    "Our primary goal is to get the gang back together." I sternly explained, "We need Sheep, Sab and Gale to come back. With a full party, we''ll more than double our chances of success."

    "...Do whatever you want." He resigned himself to his fate, "Not like I have the ability to stop you."

    "Energy, don''t be like that."

    "Why not? It''s the truth." He sighed, "I''m just a useless brain you can choose to throw away whenever you want. You got your revenge over what I did to Vastoria, and now my Heavenly Body is no more. Honestly, even death sounds like a better deal than this sorry state."

    "I don''t wanna hear it!" I shouted, "Quit being depressed! It''s those very emotions of wanting to give up that manifest your downfall!"

    "What do you care?"

    "I do care! Vastoria''s killer or not, you and I are family." I scowled, "And though I really despise that fact, I understand you didn''t really wanna do what you did. Truth is, you got tricked by the Gods into killing her, so I don''t consider you any different than the rest of our group."

    "Migu..."

    "So, quit whining!" I took him up the stairs leading up to the first floor, "If Vastoria was alive, she would say the same thing¡ªthe Gods killed her, not you. Now let''s go get some fresh air."

    Again, my words were met with nothing but demotivating silence, but this time the air around him felt heavy. He was sulking, trying to process what I had just told him, and understanding that he was forgiven.

    "I don''t remember if I had a family down there or not..." He inhaled deeply, "But I''m glad you''re here now."

    "Don''t mention it, gramps."

 Vol.5 Ch.104 - Questions Without Answers

    We left the Shrine not too long after that. Figures, since the first floor is just a nothing burger in general. Honestly, I was craving the fresh air outside¡ªthe Shrine''s depths are just way too anxiety inducing for my tastes. The first thing we saw as soon as we exited the structure was the all too familiar ice wall standing proudly before us. But another thing stuck out to us upon further inspection.

    "Oh right, there were originally two pairs of wings." I looked at where they were previously, "That''s odd, now there''s none."

    "Huh? Wait, but that''s impossible." He replied, "Sheep was the only one that had taken them, and even then it was only a single pair. Are you telling me someone else was here while we were exploring the Shrine and took them for themselves?"

    Well, that''s frightening¡ªbut also to be expected. After all, they weren''t exactly hidden from plain sight, so realistically anyone could have just come by and taken them. Heaven 2.0 is a large place, housing many people all across humanity''s history, so it''d honestly come as a shocker if it was someone we knew.

    "Perhaps Sab returned to retrieve his wings?" Energy theorized otherwise, "Or that Gale guy you mentioned before."

    "It could just be a lucky explorer who stumbled across them. If that''s the case, those wings are as good as gone."

    "Hrm..." He seemed to remember something annoying, "I''d rather it be someone associated with us. In fact, I got my wings stolen from me by a couple of hooligan angels once. Those wings will never be mine again, I presume."

    "Poor gramps. There there..." I petted him gently.

    "Stop that! I told you, it has no effect on me!"

    "Mwah."

    "Hrm..." He hesitated for a second, "If pats don''t work, why would a kiss be any different? Besides, did you not claim to be committed to Vastoria?"

    Geez, don''t make it weird, gramps. I kissed the top of your brain, so to me that was like a forehead kiss. Eugh, looking back I wanted to just tease him with it, but now it kind of hit me that kissing an exposed brain is really icky. That being said, I can only do this because he has no body. It''s like kissing a small animal, y''know?

    "You''re walking a tight rope by confusing familial love with romantic love." I glared, "I wouldn''t dream of being involved romantically with a person such as yourself."

    "You flatter me." He smugly replied, "Well then, the wings are gone, so we can''t even go look for the others ourselves. I really didn''t want it to have to come to this, but we have no other choice but to wait for that Sheep to arrive."

    "Well now, we''re not out of things to do just yet." I explained, "We might as well stretch our legs a bit with a walk."

    "Is that supposed to be your attempt at dark humor?" He groaned, "Sure, let me just grow some first."

    Literal as ever, always the buzzkill. Energy doesn''t sound like he''s in a good mood, despite the fact we''re safe and comfortable. Does he just hate standing around doing nothing? I guess those restless types exist as well, though I for one don''t really agree with their stance at all. I''d take a lawnchair over a pickaxe any day of the week, if you catch my drift.

    "Quit whining, come on." I said, carrying him in my embrace as I began tracing the ice wall.

    "Coming, coming. Hey, slow down." He sarcastically replied.

    "If you don''t stop that soon, I''ll resort to kicking you along like the ungrateful rock you are."

    "Noted, I''ll henceforth hold back with the snide remarks."

    Hold back, not stop. Never change, gramps... Well, as it turns out, my suggestion to take a walk around the perimeter of the barrier turned out to be quite beneficial. For the first half of the circular area, we didn''t see anything out of the ordinary, but the moment we reached the exact backside of the entrance...

    "A hole." I was taken aback.

    "Where?"

    "In the wall." I pointed, "Oh right, you can''t see. It looks like someone dug straight through the ice barrier somehow."

    "Eh, that''s possible?"

    "Seems so." I pondered, "What should we do? Do I try to pass through it?"

    "Your choice, I can''t accurately see the situation, so I''m afraid you''ll have to choose whether it''s safe to do so or not."

    Gah, I knew he''d say that. Though it doesn''t seem like there''s anything dangerous or suspicious about it¡ªjust a regular tunnel more than wide enough for someone to comfortably pass through. It''s not even a tight squeeze, even with me walking straight ahead.

    "I''m doing it." I said, "Want me to take you along? Y''know, since there''s still a non-zero chance that this will kill me somehow."

    Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    "What good would it do me to remain a brain hidden away behind the secluded remote Shrine anyways?" He reasoned, "Just take me with you. If we die, we die. I won''t have to suffer a possible eternity of loneliness and immobility."

    That''s fair. In that case, nothing to it but to do it! Here I... go?

    "What? What happened?" He asked worriedly, "Why did you suddenly stop? Migu, did we pass? Are you there!?"

    "I-I''m there." I glanced at the sight on the other side of the wall after passing through safely, my mouth agape, "You''re not gonna believe this when I tell you."

    "Geez, don''t scare me like that!" He breathed a sigh of relief, "So, out with it¡ªwhat did you see? Gasp, did you find the wings!?"

    "Even weirder." I gulped, "A hole in the ground."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "What? Elaborate." He sounded confused.

    "I told you, it''s a hole in the ground." I replied, "Well, a hole in the clouds, but it looks like someone dug it out. I don''t know how to explain it exactly."

    The hole is right next to the doorway, so it''s safe to assume the culprit is the same for both. If that''s the case, then how did they do it? Neither of the two seemed to have been blown up. No, both tunnels are way too neat for that to be the case, so we can safely cross out explosives. Shame too, we could''ve used some to eradicate the bat roaches.

    "Can you approach the hole?" Energy asked, "If so, check how deep it is."

    "The hole is..." I glanced down over the edge into the dark abyss, "Pretty damn deep."

    "Could you jump down it?"

    "Jump-!? Do I look suicidal to you?"

    "I''ll take that as a no." He noted, "Wait, do you hear that!?"

    "Hear... what?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "Shh, quiet! Hold me over the hole." He instructed.

    "Are you crazy!?"

    "Please, Migu!" He begged, "I trust you won''t drop me."

    That''s a hell of a lotta trust you''re putting in me, you know? But if that''s what he wants, then who am I to deny him this thrill. By the way, the responsibility of him accidentally slipping into the pit lies entirely on him. I ain''t jumping after him if that happens, nuh-uh!

    "...Someone''s down there." He said, "Deep, deep down, and they''re digging."

    "Is that your brain feeling them?" I asked.

    "Possibly, or your hearing just sucks." He answered.

    "Oi."

    "Mn, I can''t recognize the voices, but the sound of a pickaxe hitting a hard surface is undeniable." He explained, "Definitely, it seems whoever it is decided to take matters into their own hands when it comes to reaching the bottom."

    Did he just say voices? In other words, there are multiple people in the hole together. Wait, wouldn''t that get cramped? Also, just how stable is it to dig a hole straight down? Well, I guess they''re outside the Shrine, so it''s not like anything can hurt them.

    "Wait, but if someone''s down there, then they must be the ones that took the wings." I realized.

    "We can''t be too sure, but yeah." He agreed, "That''s most probably the case."

    "...H-Huh?" My Eyes shrunk back in fear as I stared at the hole.

    "What now? I can''t take any more of your shocked sounds!" He fussed.

    "T-The hole is repairing itself!" I shouted, "It''s closing up, what do we do!?"

    "Oh my Gods, what the hell!" He got angry, "What else can we do? Jump inside, dammit!"

    "Y-You sure!?" I worried.

    "Just do it! Before it closes up for good!" He yelled, "We''ll be safe, we''re outside the Shrine!"

    "But what about those guys down there?"

    "Think about it, they have nowhere to escape to once the hole closes." He exhaled through his nose, "Friends or foes, it doesn''t matter. What matters is that you get in before we lose this opportunity forever!"

    Easy for you to say, you damned invincible brain! Gasp, wait¡ªyou''re outside the Shrine, so you''re no longer even invincible! Dammit, I''ll have to hold him tight while I cushion the blow... Aaagh, so scary! I can''t do it! No way, no how!

    "Migu, I''m the only one in danger here." He reassured me, "You will feel nothing, your spine is your only weakpoint. Listen to me well¡ªonce you reach the bottom, quickly put your back up against one of the walls and take out your Flasher. Use that time to pin them to the ground and then begin asking questions."

    "A-And if they end up wanting to kill me anyways!?"

    "The Flasher has no cooldown." He explained, "You will have more than enough time to strike their golden parts with the rapier."

    "But what if they don''t have golden parts? What if they''re completely White!?"

    "Just shut up with the excuses! Have you honestly ever seen a single pure White Heavenly Being since you got here!? The chances of having all of them like that are next to zero!"

    "Emphasis on Next to!"

    Gahh, what am I even doing? I''m just stalling until the hole closes up completely so I don''t have to make the call. I know that I need to jump down, but it''s so scary! We don''t know for sure who or what is down there. Even if everything went to plan and I ended up subduing all of them without us getting hurt, there''s a chance they won''t have wings with them. Even if they did, I wouldn''t be able to fly out since the hole is closed. I''d get crushed to death unless I dug faster than the hole was being repaired. And then there''s a chance these guys didn''t actually use a tool but something specific to one of their party members. I know, it would make no sense, but is it really worth it to just jump to my death with Energy just because the chances of failure are "somewhat improbable"?

    "No way, we''d be throwing out so much work if we did this." I turned around.

    "Migu, jump the fuck in!" He ordered.

    "I''m not doing it. Look, they''re probably gonna end up tunneling to the Shrine anyways, so I''ll just wait for them there and...!"

    "They might dig past that!" He shot back.

    "Past the Shrine?" I realized, "You don''t mean...!?"

    Right, there''s an old saying¡ªif you keep digging down, the Gods will punish you by opening the Gates of Hell to swallow you whole. Obviously, dig too deep and you''ll die from the fumes and heat anyways, but in a metaphysical sense, you could say that''s the same as being put through Hell. But by that same logic, if we''re in Heaven and we dug down far enough...!

    "Okay, I''m jumping in!" I flipped around, throwing myself inside the hole just seconds before it closed up for good.

    The last glimmers of the surface light died out soon after, leaving Energy and me to impatiently wait for the ground to hit us at the bottom. Would I stick the landing safely? Will the people down there be friendly? Will we have enough time to reach some sort of safe spot before the ground engulfs us, or perhaps... will we find a way to reach the Vast World down below?

 Vol.5 Ch.105 - Change of Scenery

    "Boom! Cliffhanger!" Elegy shouted all of a sudden.

    "Gah, stop doing that!" Sab smacked him.

    "I swear, you guys are the worst passengers known to man..." Sheep tiredly flew through the sky, carrying the two on his back and holding Hats up with his hands.

    "Are we there yet?" Hats whined.

    A real squad of warriors, they were. By this point, Migu and Energy were still carefully making their way through the first floor of the Shrine, their bodies still mostly intact. Because of their last interaction, Sheep had a very negative opinion on Energy, wanted nothing more than to defeat him and save Migu from his clutches.

    "We''re here, don''t worry." Sheep nodded.

    "Wings sure do make any journey trivial, eh?" Elegy almost sulked.

    "I for one don''t mind one bit." Sab chuckled, "After seeing what he did to Vastoria, the bastard ought to get the same treatment as soon as possible."

    At his surprising thirst for revenge, the other three could only look at him in bafflement.

    "Just a few hours ago you could barely even remember her name." Sheep tilted his head, "What made you change tunes so quickly?"

    "You kidding? You of all people should know why." Sab shivered, "Carrying her mutilated, mangled body like that back to her head... I-I mean, bed! Ugh, mortifying. That bastard''s gonna pay for traumatizing me!"

    A wave of relief washed over Sheep and Elegy, for they knew things would get very awkward if something like Sab catching feelings for Migu''s girlfriend were to occur. Especially after knowing that they''re dealing with the guy apparently destined to cause the downfall of Heaven 2.0, they know all too well how important it is to keep him appeased. Hats, on the other hand, was worried about something else."

    "W-Wait, didn''t you guys say she was just sleeping...!?"

    "Hph-!" They all jolted, "Y-Yeah, that''s right! She is, ignore Sab!"

    "Yeah, I''m just hyperbolizing, man!" Sab tacked on, "Chill!"

    "High... perbo...?"

    "Gah, why don''t you know any sophisticated words!?"

    As the men panickedly descended in front of the Shrine''s force field barrier, it gradually began to show its true, ice wall appearance. They couldn''t care less, though, since their primary focus now was to calm Hats down.

    "Look, once we take down Energy, we can traverse the Shrine with Migu until we reach floor 4!" Elegy talked a mile a minute, "We can recover Vastoria''s health down there with the beds!"

    "No, you idiot!" Sab scolded him, "If she or even Sheep step inside the Shrine''s barrier, they''re as good as dead!"

    Quietly, Sheep thought it best to take a step or two away from the ice wall.

    "T-That''s a fair point from Sab." He nodded, "In that case, you all will have to deal with Energy and the Shrine''s perils without me. Don''t worry, I won''t go anywhere in the meantime."

    "My ass, you have your... Gasp, my wings!" Sab recalled, only now spotting them idly leaning on the barrier, "Oh, how I''ve missed you sooooo much~! My precious, my beloved! Squeeee~!"

    To him, this level of appreciation and endearment for the seraphim wings was completely natural. Of course, it is a high only someone who had the ability to fly and lost it could truly understand, leaving the other three unable to relate.

    "Creepy..." Hats scowled.

    "I''d almost call that level of perverted love for an object interesting." Sheep couldn''t look away for whatever reason.

    "That boy ain''t right." Elegy added.

    Ignoring their hurtful comments, Sab instead took to equipping his long lost wings before enjoying a short little fly-by of the Shrine''s perimeter. Obviously, given they were at the very edge of Heaven 2.0, he really didn''t have much to see, but he enjoyed the feeling of the wind hitting his face nonetheless. To Heavenly Beings, this could be most similarly attributed to the feeling of joyriding a motorcycle.

    "Sure looks fun." Elegy looked on from below, "Hm? O-Oi, he''s escaping!"

    "No way, that bastard can''t be this shameless!" Sheep reacted quickly enough, "Get back, you idiot! We need you here!"

    And so, the seraphim and the angels were separated just like that. In a way, this didn''t change all that much. Given that Hats and Elegy were their only capable fighters anyways, they reasoned it would be alright to just leave them alone while they went to go look for Migu. Alas, phasing through the ice barrier showed no signs of either of their targets.

    "Crap, he must''ve chased her inside." Elegy clicked his tongue, "Proceed with caution."

    "Mn." Hats nodded, teetering behind him.

    "You can be a bit less cautious."

    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

    The light jab made Hats'' face go bright Red. Despite wanting to so desperately prove himself to the big kids, so to speak, all he ended up doing was showing Elegy his weaker side. Of course, Elegy could only find that interesting.

    "You''re just walking in without hesitation." Hats muttered, "Aren''t you scared?"

    "Hm? Of what?"

    "Y-Y''know... That something might jump out?"

    "...Eh?" He turned around, "Hats, are you afraid of the dark?"

    A surprising revelation befell him suddenly. The burly man with large, golden arms standing before him, was in fact afraid of something most kids would learn to get over the fear of. To say that he was surprised by this would be a huge understatement, but Elegy also knew that there were all sorts of people in the world.

    "H-Huh!? No, of course not!" Hats vehemently denied the accusation, "I''m not s-scared!"

    "..."

    "...Huh?" He quickly found himself alone in the dark passageway of the first floor, "E-Elegy? Are you there...?"

    "......."

    "...M-Migu?" He whimpered.

    "Boo!"

    As one could assume, Elegy jumped out from behind him, causing an incredibly discordant screech to begin permeating throughout the Shrine. He soon apologized for the prank, but it was too late¡ªthe scaredy giant was by this point already on the floor, unconscious and foaming at the mouth with his Eyes rolled back into his head.

    "Yikes." Elegy felt bad, "Maybe I did go too far."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Ughhh..." He finally awoke, "Bwah! Monster!"

    "Nope, just me." Elegy chuckled, "Sorry for scaring you."

    "Geez, that was mean!"

    Elegy could hardly believe the adorable pouty expression coming from this hunk of a man. And what exactly was with that mean comment? No matter how he sliced it, there was just no way that Elegy could believe Hats was an adult.

    "Hey, pop quiz." Elegy decided to make sure.

    "Eh? O-Okay..."

    "Question 1! Can you read and write?"

    "No."

    This question, alas, could only prove effective for Elegy''s time period. He deduced Hats was so far no less than 16 mentally, for reading and writing were both only taught at school after that age. Of course, for Hats'' era, things could be completely different, which means he really didn''t narrow it down at all. Besides that, people can be born poor or even homeless, so they might never become literate despite their age being well past that. This leads them to the next question.

    "Question 2! How many continents are there in the world?"

    "Uhh... Five? No, wait!" He thought about it a bit more before locking in his answer, "Four!"

    Again, due to the fact Elegy didn''t know what era Hats was from, there was a possibility that the Living World looked different back then, so there was no way to know if ''his'' answer was correct or not. If you go back far enough in history, it would also be correct to say one continent, after all. In the end, only one question truly seemed like a universal one for all eras in history. Something so human that it bordered on timeless.

    "Question 3." Elegy asked with a serious expression, "What other uses does your dick have apart from peeing?"

    "Is there more than one?"

    "This man''s a child!" Elegy shouted triumphantly.

    Immediately, Elegy sifted through his past encounters with Hats. One by one, they had all begun to make sense when viewed under this new light. Easily frightened, naive and aloof, doesn''t know many sophisticated words, if any... Yes indeed, Hats was merely a child in a man''s body.

    "Oh wait, that''s actually horrible." Elegy understood the meaning behind such a fate, "Oh Gods, but then...?"

    "What''s wrong?" Hats worried, "Did I fail the pop quiz?"

    The boy had died young, and due to the fact Heaven 2.0 only has one body type, he was forced into a body he had yet to grow into. His arms were golden, signifying he had been brutally mutilated and killed even if he was a child. Irked by this horrifying news, Elegy''s disgust at the world below was abated only by the naivety of this young boy. He had gone through so much, and even now in Heaven, he selflessly offered his team a helping hand.

    "You passed with flying colors." Elegy ruffled his hair, despite them being the same height, "Now come on, let''s go save Migu."

    "U-Uhh..."

    "Hmph. Give ''er ''ere!"

    Seeing the frightful boy still somewhat hesitant to move his petrified legs, Elegy exhaled through his nose, extending a hand for him to hold on to while they descend further through the darkness of the Shrine. Though he was unaware of this fact, this was in fact the second time Elegy came to this realization regarding Hats. And of course, both times he made the same exact vow.

    "I promise I''ll keep you safe." He said a warm, friendly smile, "Now, shall we?"

    "...Yeah!" The young giant returned the smile in full.

    A wholesome and charming resolution came about as they walked down the latter half of the corridors of the first floor. At the same time, however, the winged seraphim playing tag in the skies up above the surface were in quite the contrasting state.

    "You... Sab, stop right there!" Sheep sped up, gradually catching up to him more and more, "You can''t get away from me, bastard!"

    "...Now!" Sab nosedived, throwing off his pursuer as he hit the clouds below.

    "What...!?"

    This was nothing if not a self-sabotage. A feeble attempt to try and juke Sheep out after realizing he wasn''t going to be able to run forever. But when Sheep followed him down to the ground, he had finally found what it is that made Sab suddenly decide to leave as abruptly as he did.

    "Is that... a seraphim?" Sheep was taken aback.

    "Phew, thought you could get away, eh buster?" Sab rubbed the victory in the female seraphim''s face, "Well, too bad! If you''re gonna spy on us, given our current situation, I can only assume you were doing it because you''re an enemy!"

    "An enemy!?" Sheep jolted.

    The lady resembled Migu. Well, and Vastoria as well. In truth, there really was no difference in neither her face nor body from the rest of the women of Heaven 2.0. Her hair was tied into a lovely pair of twintails. This much is nothing out of the ordinary, but the thing that caught their Eye was her gilded part. Namely, down the middle of her entire body, she was half and half¡ªher left side was White, and her right was golden.

    "Mngh...! The hell are you blithering on about, you twit!?" She tried breaking free of Sab''s hold, "I dunno what you''re talking about!"

    "Ain''t that cute?" Sab turned to Sheep jokingly, "She thinks she can just walk away after I saw what was in her hands."

    "Her hands?" Sheep instructed, "Wait, turned her around!"

    "Ugh, unhand me!" She squirmed about, unable to stop the men from forcibly laying her over on her back.

    A pickaxe. One that was made of pure gold, molded into the correct shape. The tip was sharp enough to pierce most anything, and the material was durable enough to maintain its durability even whilst breaking through even the toughest of surfaces. She was certainly a fascinating one indeed.

    "What were you attempting to accomplish with this tool?" Sheep asked her.

    "Isn''t that obvious?" She looked away, "I want to dig out of Heaven."

    After having turned her around, they finally noticed another hidden detail about her appearance that proved quite unique¡ªshe only had a left wing.

 Vol.5 Ch.106 - Poirrate!

    "What''s your name." Sab demanded an answer out of her.

    "Not tellin'' ye'' squat!" She turned her head away.

    "I see." He got up close to her golden side''s ear, whispering gently, "Tell me~, what is your name~?"

    "Gah! Stop that!" She flinched, "Me ears is sensitive, ye'' know that!?"

    Despite this, the mysterious and suspicious seraphim refused to return an answer.

    "Don''t you worry your dear little head~" Sab kept going, gently caressing her golden hand as Sheep guiltily kept her from running, "We have plenty of questions to ask you~"

    "Dude, even I don''t consent to this..." Sheep grimaced.

    "I-I... still won''t bow tah ye''...!" She shivered with each uttered word, "Oi''ve nothin'' ta'' hide!"

    "Then~" Sab got punched away by Sheep, "Ack!"

    "Sorry for that. I''ll take it from here." Sheep continued, "Then, could you at least tell us what you were doing at the Shrine? Were you actually spying on us?"

    The incredibly uncomfortable scene had to be cut short for everyone''s sanity but Sab''s, and the lady very much appreciated that at least one of her captors had some common sense.

    "O'' course not, a''yuu mental?" She retorted, "I came ta'' gemme sum'' booty!"

    "Oh great Heavens!" Sab covered his ass, "Not my booty!"

    "Ignore him." Sheep rolled his Eyes, "Look, so long as you''re not here to attack us, we don''t mind letting you go."

    "Har har! Noice jib, mate!" She cackled wildly, "But Oi kno'' a backstab in tha'' makin'' when Oi see wun!"

    Her accent was abhorrent and barely understandable, leading the two men to assume she came from a vastly different era than them. That, or her worldly profession wasn''t all that legal...

    "Perchance, were you a pirate in your past life?" Sheep suggested the idea.

    "Oi ain'' no stinkin'' poirritt!" She hissed, "Even without me memries, Oi know tharr was nevar a mooment in me seafarin'' loife where Ah''d consider moiself wun!"

    In other words, she was a sea voyager¡ªmaybe even a captain¡ªbut she vehemently denied being a pirate. For these two, the difference was negligible, but for her it was night and day. Two sides of the same coin, however it was blasphemous for her to consider these sides one and the same.

    "S''can ye'' lemme go, now?"

    "O-Oh, sure..." Sheep obliged, "Then, we''ll be leaving now."

    "Yeah, see ya''!" Sab waved.

    Alas, she grabbed both of them before they could fly away in time, prompting them to stay grounded for just a little while longer.

    "An'' jus'' where''dya'' think yuu''re goin''?" She smirked, "Ye'' scarred me knickers wet with that chase, ye'' did! Oi musta'' ran halfway ta'' me hoome jus'' now, so y''owe me a ride back!"

    "That''s... not how it works." Sab declined almost immediately, leaving the two in the dust.

    "..."

    "...So?" She stared at the remaining seraphim, "This wing ain''t worth scrap fer'' flyin''. Y''ain''t gon'' leeve a lady ta'' walk tha resta'' the way, arr'' ya''? C''mon, Oi''m loight ''sa fetha!"

    "...Sigh, get on."

    At first he didn''t want to. In fact even now he''s hesitant, but the hole she had made in the barrier was too incredible of a discovery to pass up. She most definitely used that golden pickaxe to tunnel through it, but many questions remained¡ªwhere''d she get it from? Who exactly was she, and was she sent by the Gods or not? What even is her name? He had to be extra careful, so he decided to carry her from above, like he did Hats.

    "Aghh, Oi'' dispoise heights!" She dangled her legs as they took off together, "Tha'' seas'' mighty foiner fer'' me!"

    "Then you should''ve just walked." Sheep groaned, "By the way, now that we''re on friendlier terms, you could at least provide a name."

    "Yuu first, matey!"

    "Oh yeah, maybe we should''ve done that earlier..." He felt stupid, "I''m Sheep. Weird name I know, but-"

    "Mutton!" She yelled, rocking the seraphim after her reaction, "The man''s name be Mutton! Bahahaha!"

    Her laughs were haughty and annoying, though Sheep was a patient and tolerant man. In the end, she was somehow the one left offended after her attempt at riling him up failed miserably.

    "Yer'' noo fun." She pouted.

    "I''ll take that as a compliment." He chuckled, "Now, I''ve given you my name, so it''s time you give me yours."

    "Hmph..." She proudly exclaimed, "Nerys Edris be tha'' naem! Oi'' gave it to meself afta'' cus'' me las'' name got poofed!"

    Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

    For a while now, he had wondered if she would follow the naming trend of using one''s past life''s initials, and it appeared to be the case. From N to Nerys, and E to Edris, he was most impressed by the unique sound it gave off when pronounced.

    "A surprisingly cute name!" His Eyebrows raised in astonishment.

    "Woddya'' meen kyuute?!" She scowled, "Tha'' naem aloon'' wuud stroik feer n'' malice in tha'' heart''sa seilers n'' poirates aloik!"

    "Maybe for your period, but all I can imagine when I hear a name like that is a mermaid princess." He shrugged, "Though that doesn''t mean I consider its owner the same..."

    "Gasp! Euuuwe scurvy-deservin'' twit!" She uttered, "Oi''ll shav'' this ''ere pick op yer'' ass f''that!"

    "So you wanna be called cute after all?"

    "No!"

    It was at this very moment where Sheep truly regretted bringing her along. Women were so very tiring for him, and despite being in Heaven, so far he''s only had to deal with the annoying ones. Vastoria could possibly be considered an exception, but even her naivety and airheadedness would sometimes lead him into all sorts of trouble. Thus, he decided to stop replying to this girl''s words as she thrashed around below him, demanding attention with each shout and cuss.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Sheep." Sab had a dark smile on his face.

    "Yes, Sab?"

    "What''s she doing here?"

    "Oi''m ''ere ta'' steel ye'' booty!" She triumphantly puffed her chest out.

    "...She''s here to steal our booty." Sheep merely repeated her words in a deadpanned tone.

    "I thought we agreed she wasn''t gonna get her way, Sheep." He had to take a long exhale to process this.

    "That pickaxe of hers is powerful." Sheep explained, "She could be just what we need to reach the bed without me even entering the Shrine."

    Suddenly, both Sab and Nerys were all ears.

    "Bed? Wot bed?" She inquired.

    "Reach the bottom...?" Sab wondered, "What are you insinuating, Sheep?"

    "I''m saying if she could break through the ice barrier, then possibly, she could even break the Shrine bricks." He replied, "If this is indeed the case, we could try and dig through from the outside and directly into the final floor."

    "Is that where me booty is!?" Nerys excitedly jumped in place.

    "Shut up!" Sab yelled, "Sheep, this is insane. Need I remind you what happened the last time you brought in a stranger to the party? Hell, you were there and I wasn''t!"

    Sab was cautious, whereas Sheep chose to trust Nerys. This trust wasn''t exactly unfounded, however. Unlike the terrifying powerhouse that is Energy, Nerys only had her pickaxe with her, not to mention no matter where she was¡ªinside or outside the barrier¡ªshe always had an equal area of vulnerability. She couldn''t fly, and the men were at an advantage due to her female Heavenly physique being generally weaker than their own.

    "In that case, we can just steal the pick away from her." Sheep shrugged, "But I believe we can keep her around until she decides to cause too much trouble."

    "Euuwe dolts arrn''t capable a'' takin'' Nerys Edris daun, Oi tell ye''!"

    "Huh, surprisingly cute name." Sab offhandedly commented.

    "S''not kyuute, dammit!"

    "Nerys, if you promise not to double cross us and help us dig down to the bottom of the Shrine, we''ll let you walk free with anything you want."

    "Barring the bed or beds we find there!" Sab made sure to point out, "Those are ours."

    "Wot is it with thoos beds, even?" She found calling dibs on such an item odd, "They got sumthin'' special about them or wot?"

    "Nnnnope." Sheep lied, "They''re just regular beds."

    "Arr'' they comfy?"

    "As comfy as any other bed out there."

    "Can Oi'' at leest jomp onnit wonce?"

    Again, the word "cute" popped into both men''s heads, but they quickly dismissed it when remembering exactly who they were talking about. Though Nerys was mostly a rough seafarer of a woman, it appears even she had some semblance of female charm to her. Regardless, neither wanted to even associate with her too much, let alone get swooned by her. In the end, Nerys was allowed to jump on the beds once they reached the fourth floor, but only for 5 minutes.

    "Then, wot''re we waitin'' fer''!?" She excitedly grabbed both of their wrists, yanking them towards the barrier.

    "H-Hey, hold on a second, Nerys!" Sheep panicked, "Let me go this instant!"

    "Shit...!" Sab realized the issue with this arrangement, so he immediately took them both to the skies, "Phew. Close one."

    "Wot now!?" She fussed, dangling between the two.

    Sheep was still very much operating on the brink of death. Had she taken him inside the Shrine through the little tunnel she carved out, he would''ve dropped dead from the suspended injuries immediately. Luckily, Sab was there to force her to stop before anything bad could happen.

    "From here on out, you listen when we tell you to." Sab chewed her out, "You and I will enter the barrier without him, and you''ll test the pickaxe out to see if it works on Shrine bricks."

    "And why shud Oi'' listen ta'' that?"

    "Because we''ll be digging from outside the barrier." Sheep added, "No other option will work."

    Their refusal to answer her question made her slightly peeved, but she knew better than to anger the people leading her to treasure. Her pout quickly morphed into a sweet smile as they made their way back down to the ground.

    "Oight! Will do, chaps!"

    "What the hell is that?" Sab stared horrified at her sudden emotional change, "Scary..."

    "Iss'' me charmin'' feis!" She frowned as the two walked to the Shrine''s entrance, "Ta'' getcha'' ta'' truss me moor!"

    "Are you really supposed to admit to doing that?"

    "Gah! Oi fibbed!"

    Bashfully, she covered her mouth before it could let slip any more of her inner thoughts. Once more, the gap between her outer and inner personalities was notably poignant, but Sab decided not to comment on it for now in favor of letting her do her job.

    "Then, go on." He cleared his throat, "Try and swing the pick with all your might, and if the dungeon brick breaks, we know this plan will work."

    "Y''dun'' hafta'' boss me around, man!" She strongly nudged him, "Haha! Wotch this, matey! Oi''ve dun'' me fair sharr a'' treasure digs, so this should be easier than crackin'' a cracker!"

    Despite getting everybody''s hopes up after such a prideful boast, the lass ended up not only failing to break the brick, but also hit her face with the blunt side of the pick. Thankfully, it hit the golden half of her face, mitigating the damage yet causing a painfully ear piercing scratching sound to come off it.

    "...T-T''is be unbreakable." She announced, hiding away a pair of blushing cheeks.

    "My ass!" He snatched the pick away from her, "Give it here. Hup!"

    One swing, two swings, three swings and it was done. The brick was quite sturdy despite seemingly being made of stone, but he did eventually manage to break it.

    "Woooow!" She praised him, "Uu''re incredible, lad! A reel strongman!"

    "Huh? Ehe, I know, I know." He admittedly got a bit excited after such earnest praise from a girl.

    "Fer'' a guy loik yew, diggin'' down the entoir'' wey''s gon'' be a cinch!"

    "Yeah, it will!" He was all smiles as they made their way back to Sheep, "It will be a cinch!"

    He hadn''t realized it yet, but it seems he was just tricked by Nerys'' sweet reactions and cunning charm into doing all of her mining work for her. Sheep didn''t want to say anything, because, well, he didn''t wanna do it either.

 Vol.5 Ch.107 - Trap Nation

    "...Hats?"

    "W-Wah!" He yelped, "Uhh, yeah?"

    The young angel was still tightly holding onto the hand of support Elegy was lending him, but they would soon reach the end of the first floor''s deep darkness. Elegy knew this, which prompted him to mention it, at the very least as a heads-up.

    "You''ll be happy to know the next area is well-lit." He smiled, "We''ll be able to see a lot more ahead of us, isn''t that nice?"

    "O-Oh..." Hats didn''t seem too pleased to hear that, "But we''re underground?"

    "Come again?"

    "We''re underground, so how is the area ahead well-lit?"

    Certainly a fair question to ask for his age. He knew that the surface was lit up due to the unobstructed sky above, but below the Shrine''s brickwork lay no such luxuries. Of course, under normal circumstances, he would even be correct to assume this would be impossible, but the rules of light emission appear to work differently as they do in the Vast World below.

    "The second floor of the Shrine is littered with magical crystals, you see." Elegy was happy to explain, "Well, I don''t exactly know if they''re magical or not, but they do emit light despite seemingly not having any sunlight to take in beforehand. Hmm, actually¡ªI wonder how the surface even has light if there''s no sun in the sky?"

    "Don''t ask me." Hats shrugged, "O-Oh, Elegy..."

    Stopping dead in his tracks as he pointed before him with his chin, Hats alluded to the dreary staircase leading into darkness. This was his first time exploring the Shrine, so he really didn''t know what could be looming in the shadows, if anything.

    "Oh, guess we reached the end of floor one." Elegy took a step forward, only to get stopped by the bulky scaredy-cat holding him back, "Hm? What''s up, bud?"

    "I-Is that really the only way down?" Hats shivered in place.

    Elegy would have easily shrugged the boy''s worries off with a light-hearted tease had he not found out Hats'' rough mental age. Now things were different, he had reckoned, for he knew how to go about treating him and encouraging him to go on.

    "Listen well, Hats. It''s okay to be scared." Elegy reached to ruffle his hair, "That being said, I''m gonna teach you how to fight back against those fears."

    "I don''t wanna go..." He whimpered.

    "Don''t you worry! Uncle Elegy''s gonna teach you all the tricks in life!" He smiled proudly, "Listen well, do you know what arrogance means?"

    "Uhh, I''ve heard of it." He scratched his head, "But no, not really."

    "Arrogance means knowing that you''re the best." Elegy grinned resolutely, "And the best don''t have to fear any monster or opponent that may come their way, ''cause they know they can dispose of them easily!"

    It was a simple parenting trick¡ªteach the child to believe in their strengths and give them a healthy sense of self-confidence. Of course, this has a somewhat high chance of making them ''too'' arrogant in the sense that they''ll over-inflate their egos, but at times even that can prove beneficial. Elegy was essentially attempting to get Hats to think the Shrine wasn''t all that difficult, which did end up working¡ªfor better or worse.

    "I don''t get it." Hats tilted his head.

    "I''m saying the Shrine is nothing to worry about!" Elegy patted him on the shoulder, "You''re a beast of a specimen, I tell ya''! You''ll do great in there, I just know it!"

    Hearing these words of encouragement and positive reinforcement certainly did make Hats feel a lot better about himself.

    "Ehe, is that so?" A smug grin grew on his face, "Yeah, I got my epic arms to smash away any enemies that might jump at us!"

    "Attaboy! Ah, but you should probably be a bit more careful for the next area..."

    "Rraaaaahhhh!!"

    "Hats, no!"

    Letting go of his guardian''s hand in favor of rushing headfirst down the staircase leading to the second floor, Hats had proved himself to be superior to any and all foes that may try to oppose him. That being said, the second floor was known for another form of danger. One that didn''t care about something as trivial as how bold you were.

    "Eep!" Hats got pulled back right as the first swinging axe trap brushed past his face.

    "Phew..." Elegy breathed a sigh of relief, "Yeah, that''s what I''ve been trying to tell you. Arrogance is good for getting that initial rush of motivation, but motivation isn''t the only deciding factor."

    "W-W-W-What was that!?" He shivered all over, pointing with his finger at the swinging axe as it gradually re-armed itself for another swing.

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    "That''s the second floor''s schtick." Elegy chuckled, "Traps ahoy. If you wanna make it to the third floor in one piece, you''re gonna need to closely follow my lead. Stick close and try not to touch anything, that''s the name of the game."

    Mentions of traps immediately set off some alarms in the young angel, but it was now already far too late to back down. In fact, seeing as the second floor was lit up from the crystals and the staircase behind them was completely dark, it could be stated that Hats would even willfully deal with the deadly trap rather than go back now. That is the mind of a child, after all. So naively frightened, yet so brave all the same.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Watch closely." Elegy tactically set off the tripwire in front of them before pulling back as the darts fired, "See? Nothing to be afraid of. That is, if you know how to take your time."

    "I-I see."

    That being said, Elegy knew there would come a time when Hats would have to traverse the floor without any help, so he opted to go about teaching him in a different manner. Namely, in the blink of an Eye, Elegy had perfectly run through the corridor, avoiding setting off even a single trap.

    "Whuh-!?" Hats jolted, "How did you...!?"

    "What''s that? You weren''t looking~?" Elegy smugly retorted, "Aww, too bad~! Guess that means you''re just gonna have to figure it out yourself. Well, good luck, I''ll be waiting for you right here!"

    "Gah, come back and help me!" He cried out.

    Despite his incessant pleas, Hats'' demands fell on deaf ears. For a while, the two kept bickering over whether or not Elegy was really going to make the boy go through this alone.

    "No means no, Hats."

    "Come on, I''m gonna die without you!"

    "I can''t just go back now." Elegy shook his head, "Too late for that, you''re gonna need to make it over by yourself."

    This was, for all intents and purposes, a total lie on Elegy''s part. In fact, it was previously mentioned how the design of the Shrine is one-directional and linear, meaning that avoiding the traps whilst walking up the Shrine was way easier than making your way down. Hats didn''t know this, however, so to his mind there really was no other way than to do his best and hope he doesn''t get killed.

    "Ahem!" Elegy loudly cleared his throat right before Hats took his first step.

    "...Huh?" Hats slowly inched his foot to the left.

    "Hm." Elegy slightly nodded.

    Well, it appears even Elegy isn''t that heartless to completely leave a naive child to fend for himself. Slight hints being dropped here and there surely wouldn''t be considered too much interfering.

    Hats took a few more steps forward, only to just barely teeter his shin in front of a tripwire. At this point, stepping back would still trigger it no matter what. Immediately¡ªlike any child would¡ªhis head craned to his guardian for guidance.

    "Yaaawn~"

    Elegy stretched a bit, making sure to touch his toes to really target those hamstrings. Translation¡ªduck down as you let go of the tripwire.

    "Yah!" Hats yelped as the dart flew over his head, "...Phew."

    The next trap he had to look out for were the swinging axes. Aligned in a row one after the other, their only goal was to cut a clean chunk of him off without even a hint of struggle. This was considered one of the easier ones to dodge, because you can actually plainly see it in action as the axes swing left and right. Elegy couldn''t help but notice how devastating they would be if only they were hidden away.

    "Khm, khm!" Elegy yet again coughed, "Ack, got something stuck in my throat..."

    "Stuck, stuck..." Hats tried deciphering the message, "Oh, I got it!"

    Picking up a few pebbles from the ground, Hats threw some inside the mechanism''s railings to hopefully get the axes stuck on them, thus stopping the axes from swinging altogether. Alas, the message Elegy had left him wasn''t exactly that, as the measly rocks stood no chance against the crushing force of the axes pressing them up against the railings.

    "..." Hats looked over at Elegy, who has long since gone to sleep, "Gah!"

    Going back to the drawing board never felt particularly good, but Hats in general had no other choice. Now that he was halfway done with the current set of traps, even backing out seemed impossible. This was when Elegy''s earlier statement rang out in his mind.

    "Arrogance...!" He realized, rushing headfirst through the rest of the corridor.

    "Huh!?" Elegy saw this and panicked, "Hats, what are you doing!?"

    "If I keep worrying over every step, I''ll never make a single step!" He replied, a confident smile brimming from ear to ear, "Don''t worry, Elegy! I''ll be over there in a jiff!"

    Shoulder tackling the first swinging axe, Hats appeared to have been blessed by a great deal of luck in that moment to perfectly hit its side. This not only had the benefit of him not getting sliced in half, but also destroying the axe and allowing him to use it for himself.

    "No way..." A proud smile grew on Elegy''s face.

    "Huohh!" Hats screamed, taking down the rest of the axes with this one, "Ack, off, dah!"

    By this point, he had long since abandoned the notion of "slow and steady", instead mostly focusing on ducking and weaving through as many traps as possible. Nearly a dozen times he could have died, either from getting his feet or hands lobbed off, getting sliced and diced, getting poisoned from the darts, as well as many more various dangers to look out for. Somehow, by the end, he had succeeded in making it to Elegy''s side all by himself, and all this without sustaining even but a single scratch!

    "Nice job, bud!" Elegy high fived him, "You get a gold star for that."

    "That means I passed, right?"

    "With flying Colors." Elegy smiled, "Okay, that''s the first corridor down. Just 24 more to go."

    "E-Eh?" Hats'' heart sank the moment he heard the number.

    "Hm? What, you didn''t seriously think this was all the second floor had to offer? Especially after how long that first floor was."

    "I can''t do it!" Hats finally threw in the towel, "I wanna rest! I don''t wanna do this~! Scary!"

    Alas, a child can only take so much before cracking. Adults are good at being arrogant. They know how to trick themselves into believing they are right, not to mention capable, but kids are brutally honest even to themselves. Even this little display was all Hats could afford to muster, but the rest fell on Elegy to deal with.

    "Heh, at the very least I can rest easy in knowing you''ll be alright without me." Elegy praised him.

    "I won''t leave you!" Hats admitted, "I won''t leave you, so you can''t leave me either!"

    "Okay, alright. Sorry for the scare."

    "It''s good. So long as you understand." Hats smiled before opening his Eyes, "Eh? Elegy...?"

    "...Boo!"

    Once more, the frightful angel had been toyed with by his senior. A small scare was all it took for Hats to fall to the ground a second time, this time only foaming at the mouth however. In a way, that''s quite the impressive accomplishment.

 Vol.5 Ch.108 - Hole Lotta Trouble

    "Hngh! Gyah! Damn!" Sab shouted with each swing at the cloudy ground below, "This is... Hoo boy!"

    "Woooow~!" Nerys praised him with a cheery smile, "Ye'' arms be poppin'' veins, matey! Rarr'' are thee men that be carryin'' gons like thoose!"

    "Eheheh, y-yeah..." Sab quickly resumed in spite of his fatigue, "It''s a real workout, but nothing to a guy like me!"

    The hole he had spent so long digging was barely even up to their waists. He originally wanted to make it a spiral staircase, thus allowing them to bring the bed back up the way they came, but due to the extra work required for that to happen, he had to stick to the basics. Regardless, so long as he had this pirate girl perched on his shoulder and singing his praises, he was more than willing to keep going.

    "He sure is weak to girls..." Sheep pointed out.

    "Ay, euwe''d be surprised by the amounta'' men willin'' ta'' risk tharr'' loives justa'' get a praise outta me." Nerys chuckled, "So wot''s yuure deal, lad? Not into women?"

    "Not into you." Sheep scoffed.

    "Pish! Loik there''s any lass better!"

    Well, Sheep could think of a few girls better than her, especially when it came to personality. Nonetheless, this womanly charm of hers was sadly working way too slow for them to even make a dent in their vertical journey. Sab was a gamer, not a miner, so it was obvious that they''d have to switch things up if they wanted to progress.

    "Sigh, gimme that." Sheep yanked the pick from him.

    "Oi, I need that to dig!"

    "I''d die of old age by the time you hit the fourth floor!"

    "We''re immortal, jackass! We can''t die of old age!"

    As the two men fought over who got to dig the hole, Nerys quickly grew sick of their squabble and intervened.

    "Oi, laddy. Give Mutton ''ere tha'' pick." She said, "Rest up, no need ta'' cause a stir."

    "Grr... Hrmph, alright." Sab crossed his arms, begrudgingly passing the pick over to Sheep, "Just FYI, it''s not as easy as it looks."

    "Unlike you, I never underestimate a job." He groaned back, "Now step aside."

    One swing, two swings, three even. In just under ten whole swings that exercised a beautiful full range of motion, Sheep had nearly double the size of the hole it took Sab an entire half hour to dig out. He only had one hand to clutch the pickaxe with, but even that was enough to beat out the bedbug that is Sab. Clouds in general were very fluffy and easy to dig through, to the point where Hats and Elegy earlier managed to even claw their way through them while they dug under the border. Sab was just extremely weak, so to him even that much was asking for a lot.

    "Pssh, I did all the heavy lifting." Sab rolled his Eyes, "You''re just shifting the leftover bits around, that''s all."

    "An'' we be prouda'' ya'' fer'' that, matey!" Nerys hugged him over the shoulder.

    Sab enjoyed the touchy feely nature of a female pirate. In his head, he silently cursed the fact he wasn''t born a few hundred years earlier.

    "Muhehe... A-Ahem." He fixed himself up, "So, you gonna tell us how you lost that wing?"

    "Hngh!" Sheep added mid-swing, "Or how you got ahold of this pickaxe?"

    "Oi vey! Too much thinkin'' is bad fer'' me helf!" She grabbed her head, "Thankfully Oi can answer bofa'' ye'' queschins with bot a single ansah!"

    A rather surprising, that is to say, unsurprising twist. The two cases were interconnected, yet Sheep and Sab already could have guessed as much. Verily, there was barely even a need for her to say it.

    "Oi took off me roight wing n'' chipped it into a pick sheip!" She proudly grinned, "Poked it thru'' a stick and tharr'' ye'' haffit!"

    "So you would even go so far as to give up your flight..." Sab disagreed with it, "Nope, ain''t no way I''d be able to do that."

    "Oi dun'' loike floyin'' anyways, so t''is oll klir!"

    Sheep was for a moment reminded of her crying and screaming as she tightly held onto his hand.

    "Well, that much I can verify." He sighed.

    "Mph-!" She blushed, "N-Nay! T''was jus'' me jestin'' witcha'', Mutton! A-Actually, it be me newest shanty Oi''ve inventid!"

    "Huh? Pirates actually sing sea shanties?" Sab cocked his head back, "I thought that was a myth."

    "Oi''m not a poirrate!" She fussed.

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    "Alright then, sing the song again." Sheep turned back with a very smug grin, "Your voice was really something, y''know?"

    Before she realized it, she had cornered herself with her own web of lies. Sheep was rarely one to tease, but she in particular made his sadistic side brim with pride.

    "A-Ah, no, that be..." She bit her tongue.

    "I wanna hear a real sea shanty!" Sab encouraged her, "Ohhh, this is gonna be so awesome! You can''t get more authentic than this! Nerys, you got this!"

    Whilst Sheep was obviously just teasing her a bit, Sab was fully convinced she was actually a star singer of the fleet. Her demeanor was rough, yet when backed into a corner, she would turn surprisingly docile. Merely by extending this logic, Sab had somehow come to the conclusion that hers was the voice of a mermaid adrift in the sea.

    "D-Don''t laff, Oi''ven''t the toim tah practis..." She twiddled her fingertips abashedly, "A-Ahem!"

    Nails on a chalkboard, the forbidden lovechild between a fork and a plate. Neither of the sounds produced from these could even begin to describe the bone-shivering, ear-piercing screeches she wailed as she let her voice roam free throughout the hole. It got so bad Sheep actually had to toss the pickaxe away just to plug up his ears, but even that wasn''t enough to abate the damaging effects. The song lasted an entire minute before even her own throat gave up on her, leading her to finish the performance with a nasty cough.

    "S-So..." She whispered, her vocal chords barely functional by now, "That good inoff fo'' ya''?"

    "What is this feeling...?" Sab demanded an answer, "My ears... They''re not golden, so they should be numb to any and all pain...!"

    "So why...!?" Sheep desperately asked as well, "Why do my ears hurt regardless!?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The awkward silence between this uneasy alliance lasted all the way until Sheep finally reached the end of the cloud layer. Indeed, below the clouds, one could recall there was a layer of smooth stone which even Hats'' fists or Elegy''s serrated sword couldn''t break. Whether or not this entire plan of theirs would even work would rest on whether or not they could even cause a dent in it.

    "Then, with all my might." Sheep took a deep breath, "Hya! ...Eh?"

    "Go easy on tha'' poor stoon, laddie." Nerys fake sobbed, "It moight look sturrdy, bot''s nu excuuse ta'' decimaetit."

    "N-No way..." Sab blinked once, "But that rock... Even Elegy couldn''t...!"

    "Hm? You''ve thought of digging down once before?" Sheep immediately caught on.

    "To sneak past the border control." He nodded, "Though we could ever only go deep enough until we hit this rock layer. We had to stop and go horizontally after that. Elegy used his serrated blade to dig."

    A new enigma, with clues to go along with it. The stone layer is present all across Heaven 2.0, just underneath the initial surface cloud layer. It was flat and smooth, as if someone had poured malter evenly to bury something underneath.

    "So the pickaxe can dig through it with ease, but anything else won''t work?" Sheep pondered, "Granted, swords aren''t exactly meant to be used for such purposes, even with his blade''s specific bulky build."

    "T''is me wing''s gold, Oi tell ya''!" Nerys jumped in with her own theory on the matter, "Tha'' material be the key!"

    It was a reasonable assumption, and so far the only one that made sense. Obviously, the pickaxe would be better at mining than a bulky serrated sword, but if it was really just that, then even the blade should have been able to at least chip the surface a bit. That didn''t happen, however, as Sab clearly recalled the blade merely bouncing off.

    "The blade didn''t even graze it even with Elegy''s impossibly deadly swing." He shook his head, "So there''s no reason why Sab''s dainty arm could decimate it so badly in comparison."

    "Maybe the stone layer there was harder somehow?" Sheep figured, "I mean, if Heaven 2.0 is so Vast, then there are bound to be spots the Gods had to spread thin, right?"

    "Blasphemy begone!" Nerys got offended, "Tha'' Gods a'' this ''ere land and the previous arr'' spotless and perrfect! Somethin'' loike a laya'' o'' stoon ein''t gon'' end up nuthin'' bot equal!"

    "Eh? Where did this come from?" Sab raised his guard, "Suddenly defending the Gods so much, why are you...?"

    "Huh?" She tilted her head, "Tha'' Gods be arr'' creators! All of ye'' an'' me, an'' that be no lye! So dun'' be doubtin'' them fer'' even a second, y''hear!?"

    Once again, a gap between her demeanor, personality, and now her belief as well. When you think of the word pirate, or in Nerys'' case, a seafarer, you would rarely think to combine it with the word believer. Given the nature of her daily dealings, it was quite odd to imagine her in a habit.

    "To think you of all people were religious, Nerys." Sheep chuckled.

    "An'' that be fonny whoi, exacly?" She put her arms on her hips.

    "Yeah, she''s right man." Sab cracked his knuckles, slowly spreading his wings behind him, "This shit ain''t funny at all..."

    Someone this uncharacteristically close to the Gods should already be setting off some alarms, but given how their group is already in quite serious kahoots with them, any person who so vehemently defended the Gods in their name should be a pretty clear suspect. She never showed any signs of posing a threat to them, not to mention she was even outright helping them disobey the Gods by aiming for the Shrine''s bottom most layer, albeit unknowingly. That being the case, the same could have been said for Energy...

    "Sab-!" Sheep shouted.

    "Oi! Let go a'' me!" Nerys struggled as the wary seraphim grabbed her and flew straight up, "Laddie, this ain''t the toime fer'' a quick shag!"

    "Quit with the jokes." Sab wasn''t having it, "Y''know, there''s a chance you''re not even sent by the Gods to kill us, and if that''s the case I''m truly sorry."

    "Sab!" Sheep lagged behind them.

    "Laddie, wot''re euwe...!"

    "I''m sorry, but I''m afraid we can''t take risks anymore." Sab closed his Eyes, taking a deep breath before rolling back into a suplex dive, "Goodbye."

    He had no weapons to dispose of her, but the force of such an impact would surely cause fatal damage if it struck a golden part. The genius behind this play was hidden in the fact that Sab only had two golden rings going around his waist, whereas Nerys'' entire left half of her body was pure gold. Merely tilting slightly midair would make her entire left side squish flat, and all Sab had to focus on was sucking in his stomach.

    "Sab!?" Sheep saw them falling back down for just a second, "Crap, no!"

    "Lemme go, lemme go!" Nerys begged, "Tch! Oi feckin'' heit hoights so baad~...!"

    At this point, there was absolutely no saving her. Sheep was too slow to react to Sab''s sudden turnaround, so he couldn''t ever even hope to reach them before they hit the ground. As for Nerys, even if she could theoretically break free of Sab''s clutches, she still wouldn''t be able to land safely without any serious injuries. At best, only her golden leg would get broken off, and she disliked those odds heavily.

    "Laddie..." She smirked, "Did ye'' mum nevah teach ya'' ta'' not provook a woman...!!?"

 Vol.5 Ch.109 - Warming Up

    After an arduous trek down the second floor, the senior/junior duo made their way down the stairs to the jungle layer. By this point, Migu and Energy were just about to finish fighting against that humongous horde of bat roaches.

    "Ohh, light!" Hats excitedly rushed down the stairs.

    "Hey, hold it." Elegy grabbed his shoulder, "Remember, Migu and Energy could be right around the corner. We should be wary if he decides to ambush us."

    "O-Oh right! Saving Migu, I remember now!"

    "E-Eh? So you totally forgot the entire point behind this trip...?"

    "I didn''t, I just told you I remember!"

    Hats was a strong fighter, and his body had the ability to even bend border bars, yet due to his mental age, he was quite prone to getting frightened. If this were to occur in the middle of a heated battle, Elegy was afraid of what would become of them. He had his blade with him, but even then there was a chance it wouldn''t be enough. For this rescue mission to work, he wagered, he''d need Hats'' support.

    "Hats, did we ever tell you anything about the third floor?"

    "No, I don''t think so?"

    "In that case, it might be best to give you a few pointers." He reasoned, "We might run into a... beast, let''s just say."

    The Shrine''s layout was pretty much completely linear from start to finish. In other words, if they hadn''t run into Migu nor Energy yet, that means they''re either still in front of them, or the two had never even entered the Shrine in the first place. Elegy didn''t really want to think about the latter option at all, meaning Energy had already probably killed most of the bat roaches on the third floor by now.

    "What kind of beasts?" Hats tilted his head.

    "Uhhh... Bat roaches?" Elegy tried to explain the gruesome appearance without scaring him too much, "Like, body of a bat, head of a roach."

    "What!? That''s so yucky!"

    Not off to a good start.

    "No no, I assure you it''s nothing bad!" Elegy chuckled, "In fact, their bug heads are easy to squish, so they''re not scary at all!"

    "I never said that was scary, I said it was yucky!" Hats retorted, "I don''t wanna have to get near such a thing, much less s-squish its head!"

    "Ah, then I guess I should mention they''re constantly hungry for your golden parts."

    "M-My arm!?" He worried, "But I already lost one!"

    "Yep, and if you don''t wanna have to squish their heads like water balloons, then you''re gonna have to say goodbye to the other as well."

    "Ohhh...!"

    It was a tough pill to swallow for him. Most kids would be deathly terrified of any creepy crawly with more than 6 legs on it, so having one that could both fly, had an invincible body and the head of the most disgusting bug of all was very much horrifying to hear for poor Hats. That being the case, he really had no other alternatives.

    "Sigh, I wouldn''t worry your head too much, though." Elegy reassured him, "That guy Energy probably dealt with most of them by now. Look, if we do happen to encounter one, you just run away and I''ll handle it!"

    "Will you manage?"

    "Ah, the naive brutality of a child''s honest fears..." Elegy slumped forward, "I will, okay!? I''ve got this epic sword, and I''m the best goddamn swordsman we have!"

    "Aren''t you the only swordsman as well?"

    "That too!" Elegy grinned, "Besides, I already have prior experience with this Shrine, so we''ll be fine!"

    The thing is, though¡ªElegy was indeed in the Shrine once before, but back then there weren''t nearly as many bat roaches as there was this time. It was a simple mistake which even Energy and Migu made on their end as well. The bad part about this dangerous assumption is that Elegy doesn''t even predict them to run into one bat roach, much less a few hundred.

    "At best, we''ll run into one or two." He estimated, "Maaaybe three if we''re unlucky."

    Having explained the plan to Hats, he led him out of the safety of the staircase''s doorway. The two walked barely even a few meters before a large, blinding flash briefly stole away their vision.

    "Gah! The hell is that!?" Hats was panicking.

    "Run back!" Elegy took out his sword, "I got a bad feeling about this...!"

    That flash was precisely one of the many Flashes Migu set off after she and Energy got cornered by the horde of bat roaches. Neither Hats nor Elegy hailed from an era where Flashers were a thing however, so they had expected it to be the work of another powerful beast.

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    "Hats, I got my sight back!" Elegy commented, "It seems like whatever that Flash was probably works on proximity, hence why I got it back so fast!"

    "Y-Yeah! My vision''s coming back slowly as well." He blinked a few times at Elegy''s direction, "Watch out!"

    Flashers cause immediate death to bat roaches when they''re activated point blank, but they scare off the ones further away. This is the exact thing that happened with Migu, which led to a stray bat roach zooming all the way over to Hats and Elegy. Had it not been for Hats'' warning just now, Elegy¡ªwho had his back turned to the beast¡ªwould have most definitely died right where he stood.

    "Tchah!" He instead parried the lunge, "Thanks for that, kid! Boy, this one''s a lot feistier than its predecessors!"

    "What''s a predecessor?!" Hats yelped.

    "I''ll tell ya'' later." Elegy returned a confident smirk to the foe before him, "For now, I gotta deal with bug-Eyes over here!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    As stated before, bat roaches have a tendency to evolve with each consecutive iteration. Generations upon generations of fighting cause their offspring to develop pre-programmed understandings of their parents'' opponents'' fighting style. Seeing as this was far from the first time the Shrine had encountered a challenger, bat roaches have by this point achieved a very high difficulty rating when it comes to killing them. Elegy, however, was up to the task.

    "Bzzt!"

    "Hyop! Calm down there, sucker! You''ll get dizzy from all that movement!" He jeered.

    Ducking, dodging, weaving and turning, Elegy was seemingly taking as much time to annoy the beast before even thinking of counterattacking. He was forcing out large movements and huge leaps out of it just by barely moving aside from its narrow area of attack, the perfect way to wear it out without doing much yourself. Alas, this bat roach didn''t seem to let up no matter how long he kept at it, eventually leading to even him getting winded.

    "Hah, what do you think, kid?" He called out to Hats, "Do I finish it off now, or should I keep going?"

    "You still haven''t killed it!?" Hats whined, hidden behind the doorway with his Eyes covered, "What the hell are you doing!"

    "Kids these days, so impatient..." Elegy shook his head, finally raising his sword against the bat roach, "Sigh, I suppose we don''t have all day. Migu might be in deep trouble, after all. Then, foul beast, have at thee!"

    "BzZZZZzt!"

    Grabbing hold of the safe slit of the blade on the serrated backside of it, Elegy used this unusual grip that was unique only to this sword to fully block the oncoming attack. Despite this, however, he still slid back a meter or two, his boots digging into the jungle grass below him. The force at which this ungodly amalgamation was striking with was nothing to scoff at¡ªand yet¡ªhe couldn''t get enough of it. It wasn''t at all tired from Elegy''s earlier shenanigans, but it ''was'' frustrated. This was exactly what he was waiting for, because it made the bat roach''s movements all the more predictable.

    "Snap, crackle...!" Elegy twisted the blade counter-clockwise, "Pop!"

    Breaking off both of its mandibles at the same time, the beast recoiled in pain, only to get clocked in the face a second after. Internally, Elegy prayed this much wouldn''t kill it already. He was raring for a show.

    "Come on, big guy!" He danced around it, "Don''t run away now! When a man starts a fight, he better be ready to finish it¡ªregardless of the outcome."

    "Byahhhh!"

    Understanding from his body language that Elegy wasn''t going to let him escape, the bat roach used its wings to fly to the ceiling where he couldn''t reach it. Sticking to its new safe spot, it had almost mocked the feeble wingless angel standing just below it. This was where Hats came into play.

    "Kid, gimme a boost!" Elegy smirked.

    "Fueh!? But what if it flies over to me!" He worried.

    "I''ll squash it before that happens, don''t you worry!"

    A few seconds of indecisiveness later and Hats was sprinting full speed towards his senior. Interlocking his fingers, he waited for Elegy to take the step up before getting launched straight up.

    "Byahh!?"

    "Night night, don''t let the bed-Elegies bite!"

    Just then, the beast surprised everyone by letting go of the ceiling just before getting impaled by the sword. The switch up was incredibly precise, and though Elegy managed to slice off its wing, he had now gotten his sword stuck on the ceiling above, with him dangling by the handle as well. As for the frightful boy standing down below...

    "I trusted youuu...!" He cried out, desperately running away from the giant insect/animal hybrid.

    "Hm, that''s bad, right?" Elegy looked down on the two of them playing together, "Well, not like it''ll ever catch up to him. Without wings to fly with, it''s barely slower than a regular angel''s running speed."

    In the end, he leveraged himself upside down, planting his feet firmly on the ceiling with both hands on the handle. With all his might, he pulled out the legendary sword from the stone before pivoting right back into a freefall state. The timing was a bit off, however, since by this point the beast was already way too far to cushion the impact of the landing. He had to improvise.

    "To think this little piggy would eventually save my life." He smiled at his golden pinky finger, "Do or die, sink or swim¡ªthat''s the way of the...! Wait, how''d the saying go again?"

    Just as the White parts of an angel''s biology are fundamentally numb to any pain or damage on the surface, the interior of the Shrine has this curious effect to swap the effects with one''s golden parts. For some, like Nerys, this is barely noticeable, but for a man like Elegy who only has a few scrapes and a pinkie, the Shrine is a very risky place to be in. Though, risky to him doesn''t suggest a low survival rate, but rather the fact that the chances of living are non-zero.

    "Oop!" He let out a yelp as the golden digit bent in an odd way, "Yikes, had that happened to any other finger, I''d probably be screaming louder than Hats."

    "Save mee~!" Hats begged behind him, "Elegy, pleaseeee~!"

    "Alright, alright! Hup!"

    He turned around, picking up his blade before chucking it like a javelin at the bat roach. His aim was without flaw, and he had even accurately calculated the speed the beast was chasing Hats at so as to hit the moving target whilst simultaneously avoiding injuring his own teammate. The bat roach''s head popped just like a balloon, spewing bloody gore all over the area. Thankfully, Hats wasn''t near when this happened, as he continued running for a while after that.

    "...Golly." Hats finally stood next to his guardian.

    "Holy heck does that date you." Elegy snickered, "Damn, now I''m super curious what kind of era you come from where THAT''S your reaction to seeing a bug head get blown off!"

    One beast down, and it only took a few near death experiences. Of course, this was all just Elegy having a bit of fun and not taking the fight seriously, but even that was only the case because he believed this would be all the fighting he''d have to do until they''re done with the jungle layer. A mistake that will surely cost him in the not so distant future...

 Vol.5 Ch.110 - No More Infighting

    "Nerys, give it a rest already." Sab consoled her, "You''re gonna hit the ground and die, just accept it."

    "Accept wot!?" She squirmed in his embrace, "Euwe wan'' me ta'' doye jus'' loik that, eh!? Well, fack off!"

    Her proclamations of fighting back were strong, but unfounded. No matter what she tried to do, Nerys couldn''t escape his grasp. They were plummeting to the ground at an alarming speed, and soon enough Nerys will be getting her soul shattered by him.

    "Mutton!" She shouted for the seraphim desperately chasing after them from above, "Throw me yer'' wing!"

    "Huh!?" Sheep gasped, "But then I''ll be the one to fall!"

    "Yer'' fallin'' ollready!"

    Her logic checked out, so Sheep had to do something he never before thought possible. Reaching for his right wing, he yanked it off and threw it with all his might. The heavy object had a bigger terminal velocity, so it quickly caught up to Sab and Nerys just in time. She couldn''t break free just yet, but with the wing hitting him right before latching onto her like a magnet, Sab was successfully stopped. Not only that, but now that they both had fully functioning wings, they could no longer fall and hit the ground.

    "Ugh, stop flapping those wings!" Sab ordered.

    "Nah, Oi'' needa'' catch Mutton, y''see?" She kicked herself off of Sab right before swooping in to save her savior, "See? Easy peasy, innit?"

    It was a close encounter with death in Heaven 2.0, but now they were facing a different issue. Sab was still eager to kill Nerys as soon as possible, and she had to not only deal with him, but also keep Sheep safe as well.

    "Let''s talk, Sab." Sheep broke the tension.

    "Let''s not."

    Their one shot at getting Sab to calm down before he did anything too rash had gone by. He refused to see Eye to Eye, or even to accept the very high possibility of Nerys'' faith having nothing to do with the actual Gods they were beefing with. As far as Sab was concerned, Sheep being on her side only made him an accomplice.

    "Whoa! Switch time!" Nerys announced as she dodged Sab''s lunges.

    "Huh!?" Sheep felt his wing transfer from her to him mid-flight, "W-We can do that?!"

    "Course we can! Woddya'' think?"

    "I think you need to warn me ahead of time before doing that!" He said, now picking her up instead of the other way around.

    "You two are dodging the inevitable." Sab remained calm, "Sheep, you''re smarter than this. What will the others say when they hear about her allegiance?"

    "Allegiance and faith aren''t the same thing, dude!"

    Despite the wild shouting as they flew through the air, dodging and attacking endlessly, Sab still refused to even hear a single word from either of them. To him, Nerys was an enemy, or at least a threat, and that was enough for him to be unable to continue working with her.

    "What would Vastoria think?" Sab asked all of a sudden.

    "...What?"

    "Go on, be honest." Sab finally stopped briefly to let himself speak, "Last time you let someone far less suspicious into the group, you got your ass kicked and Vastoria''s body got mangled."

    "Yeesh, socks ta'' be ''er..." Nerys winced.

    "Are you implying she''ll do the same?" Sheep glared over at him.

    "I''m not implying anything, I''m asking you a hypothetical." Sab replied, "If Vastoria were to find out we let this girl into our group, what do you reckon she would say?"

    Sheep, in all honesty, wanted to laugh at this man''s face. He would laugh so loudly it would piss off even a saint, but he held back. He knew what kind of person Vastoria was, and if anything, she would probably be the one standing by Nerys'' side the most here. She''s neither grudgeful nor spiteful, so what Sab was insinuating made absolutely no sense. But this was Sheep''s chance¡ªthe one time he was calm enough to let up in his attacks and properly listen to him.

    "Yeah, let''s assume Vastoria would be on your side." Sheep sighed.

    "Oi! Ye'' turnin'' on me!?"

    "Shut it, wench!" Sab yelled at her, "Sheep, continue."

    "...Even if Vastoria would agree with you on killing Nerys, what would that do for us?"

    "Elaborate."

    "The pickaxe this entire operation is reliant on is made of her right wing." Sheep shook his head, "What if we kill her and the pickaxe disappears?"

    This was, by all accounts, a bluff. While in truth they didn''t know how exactly the pickaxe worked fully, Sheep knew for a fact that killing the seraphim wouldn''t do anything to the wings. He killed Throne back then personally, and the wings remained free for them to inherit. This was a matter of Sab trusting his friend, more than anything...

    "And if it doesn''t disappear?" Sab inquired.

    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    "Then you''ll be getting booted out of the team without dilemma." Sheep declared, "This I can assure you. And we all know what will happen once the team stops caring about whether or not you''re alive..."

    Suddenly, it clicked in Sab''s head that he wasn''t amongst friends at all. Everyone in the team was his ally, his protector, but if Sab decided to not respect their words, then they wouldn''t hesitate to give him up to the Gods as well just so they can continue to live their afterlives without having to dodge hitmen anymore.

    "From the very start, you guys never had any skin in the game...!" Sab accused.

    "Of course we did, and we still do." Sheep smirked, "You see, the moment we took you into our care, we''ve been getting attacked left and right. We''ve been doing nothing but bust our asses so you could continue to exist with us, because we deemed it unfair for you to be the only one dead."

    "Sheep..."

    "But things change, especially people''s opinions on you." Sheep shook his head, "So if you want us to keep feeding skin into this "game", then you ought to keep your rating above favorable."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The fight ended without anyone getting hurt, thankfully enough. The trio descended back down to the bottom of the hole they dug, with Sheep gently letting Nerys down after he touched the ground himself.

    "So oll''s well that ends well?" Nerys patted the two men strongly on the back.

    "Ugh, you''re on thin ice." Sab grunted, "Just try and do anything to us and I''m gonna make you wish you had died back there."

    "Euwe wish, laddie!" She then tossed him the pick, "Now gow on! Get ta'' moinin''!"

    "I''m not your slave!" He shot back.

    "Sab..." Sheep warned.

    "...Tch, stupid pirate..."

    Hoisting the pickaxe high above his head, he broke the stone one layer at a time. Oddly enough, even though he had plenty of trouble breaking through the cloud layer which was supposed to be softer, he was practically blitzing through the stone layer at a rate most similar to Sheep''s earlier pace.

    "This pick really is crazy, though." Sab inspected it, "I wonder what a golden weapon would do..."

    "Eep! Dun'' lookit'' me loike that, ye'' bastard!" Nerys hid away behind Sheep, "Mutton! Laddie ''ere be tryin'' ta'' taek me otha'' wing!"

    "So? What do you want me to do about it?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "Well protecc'' me, dammit!"

    "Oh come on, you''re not even using that other wing." Sab rolled his Eyes, "I say it''s just a waste of space without the other one. Geez, what a waste to even go through that trial."

    "Mn?" She tilted her head innocently.

    "What?" Sab paused, "You... You know? The trial to get those wings in the first place?"

    "The one where you had to do a hundred good deeds, right?" Sheep turned to him.

    "Wot''re ye'' tolkin'' about?" She asked, "Oi'' nevah did no troyal."

    Once more, she was back inside the Red. If she had wings but never did the trial, then once again Sab''s suspicions of her working with the Gods skyrocketed. He didn''t want to say anything however, because he figured he''d wait to see what Sheep thought of this first.

    "W-Wait, Nerys..." Sheep looked at her worriedly, "How exactly DID you get your wings?"

    "Oi'' stole ''em." She flat out admitted.

    "Come again?"

    "Ye'' ''eard me!" She flaunted it, "Oi'' met a bugger out in tha'' street n'' took ''is wings! Ehe, wot can Oi'' say? Once Oi'' sees me a bitta'' gold, ye'' can bet ye'' keister Oi''m takin'' it fer'' meself!"

    "...Pirate."

    "Am not!"

    Though the men kept calling her that to her face, they were internally breathing infinite sighs of relief over this revelation. They felt bad about the poor guy or girl that got their wings stolen, but at the very least this was the first proper thing she''s said to them that fit with her personality. Instantly, she brought herself back into the Green.

    "Sheep, once we reach the beds, what then?" Sab offhandedly asked.

    "We sleep on them." Sheep cocked his head back, "What else?"

    "Ye'' needa'' rest ollready!?" Nerys cackled endlessly, "Wee little men! Scrawny, the lotta'' euwes''! Wot evah happun'' to tha'' reeel bad men?!"

    "Yeah, I''m weak as hell." Sab smirked, handing Nerys the pick, "Really, I''m nothing compared to a pirate!"

    "Oi''m not a poirrate, dammit!" She hissed and growled, "Mutton! Tell ''im off!"

    "..."

    "M-Mutton...?"

    This time she no longer had the support of the guy she thought would always be on her side. After calling him weak and scrawny, he really couldn''t handle that bratty behavior anymore, so Sheep ended up backing off, showing his stance in this argument without reserve.

    "M-Mutton, yer'' gunna'' soide widd'' this monsta''...?" She sniffled, "B-But Oi''m..."

    "Go on, you said the only reason you crafted this pickaxe in the first place was because you wanted to dig down to the Living World." Sheep said with scary Eyes, "Show us the strength needed for that."

    "Gulp, nuuu..."

    Making a girl do the grueling task would usually be seen as frowned upon at best, and a crime at worst, but given the woman in question neither of the two valences applied. The men merely sat back and let poor Nerys cry them a river while she swung with her dainty arms. Of course, due to the pick''s resonance with the stone, strength was no longer a factor, but she still felt humiliated over having to put in some actual work for once.

    "Come on, speed it up!" Sab shouted, "We don''t have all day!"

    "Oi! Quiddit!"

    "He''s right. Pick up the pace, Nerys." Sheep shamed her, "Are you saying you''re weaker than us dainty men?"

    "Not yew too!" She fussed.

    "Are we perhaps being too harsh on her?" Sheep turned to Sab, "Maybe I should..."

    "Nah, let her be." Sab stopped him from taking over, "Trust me, there''s nothing better than seeing a bratty snot-nosed girl break in front of you."

    "How the hell did you get into Heaven with that knowledge?" Sab shivered.

    "Just goes to show you how messed up these Gods are."

    Overhearing their conversation, Nerys wanted to shout their ears off for cussing out the Gods. Her uncharacteristic love and devotion to the Gods was met with harsh backlash the last time she showed it off, however, so she had to begrudgingly keep it to herself. The entire time, the men sat back and enjoyed the show.

    "Lord help me, I think I get what you mean." Sheep chuckled.

    "You ain''t seen nothing yet." Sab replied, "Let her dig for another hour or so, that''s when the cinema starts."

    "Cinema?"

    The foreign word left a deep impression on Sheep, for he knew not what it entailed. Sab''s refusal to explain the proper definition of it also didn''t help much in this case. Nerys ended up digging down for the next hour and a half before she finally threw the pick on the ground, lying down in a fetal position with tears rolling down her Eyes.

    "Oi'' quit!" She would cry out, "Euwe''r roight, Oi''m sorrey! Oi won'' evah disrespecc'' ya'', so please let me res''!"

    "Huh, what do you mean?" Sab curbed his smile, revealing to her the true twist of this arrangement, "You could''ve told us to switch with you whenever you wanted, so why did you only say that now?"

    "Euwe-!? Bot Oi''...!!" She burst into a teary mess, "Bwaaahhh~! Meanie! The lotta'' yew~! Waaahhh~!"

    Admittedly, finally putting her into place felt like attaining Heaven all over again to Sab, but he didn''t want anyone to know, so he merely consoled her in silence as Sab took over.

 Vol.5 Ch.111 - Answers To The Questions

    "Holy..." Elegy gasped as he saw the field of dead bat roaches.

    "Yuck..." Hats shivered, "T-They''re 100% dead, right?"

    Before them stood the giant valley which served as the battlefield for Migu and Energy versus the bat roach horde. Mere seconds after they fell unconscious from fatigue, these two entered the area to witness the horror.

    "I only heard rumors of Energy''s strength, but to think he''s capable of all this..." Elegy felt his heartbeat increase, "We need to hurry, on the off chance that Migu is still alive, then she won''t stay that way for long."

    "Then let''s go!" Hats pointed, "Ugh, but can we at least try to go around the dead bodies?"

    This innocent sounding plea was ultimately what led the two of them to not run into the unconscious Migu and Energy and instead overtaking them. Be it fortune or misfortune, the senior/junior duo made it to the fourth floor without any trouble.

    "This room is...?" Hats gawked at the splendor of its mystical design.

    An empty half, barring a bed, and a food filled half to compliment Elegy''s and Hats'' Heavenly homes respectively. This is what the two saw once they descended down the final spiral staircase of the Shrine, but alas there was neither Energy nor Migu inside to greet them.

    "Remain alert, check every nook and cranny." Elegy warned.

    "Gulp, mhm..." Hats nodded back.

    Despite this, there weren''t many nooks and crannies to check in the first place due to the room''s simple layout. If anything, just the fact that there were only two beds inside meant they were the only ones present on the floor. Deeming it safe, the duo were met with a dilemma.

    "What do we do about the beds?" Hats asked.

    "What do you mean by that, exactly?" Elegy raised an Eyebrow.

    "The beds repair us, right?"

    "Yeah?"

    "But Vastoria and Sheep can''t reach this area without dying before that." He explained, "We should bring it outside so they can freely use it."

    The idea had shocked Elegy beyond words. On one hand, it''s true that that was one of their objectives, but on the other hand Energy still hasn''t been dealt with, and Migu is yet to be found. The question now was, who would they prioritize?

    "If we take the beds now, we could bring them outside, and Sheep and Vastoria would be healed." Elegy reasoned, "But that could lead to Migu not getting the help she needs, which might get her killed."

    "Your call. I trust you, Elegy."

    They needed to find Migu as soon as possible, but they already searched the entire Shrine to their knowledge. Perhaps they missed them? Maybe the two were hiding from Hats and Elegy? What if they were already killed and eaten by the bat roaches? Or maybe they already ran outside of the Shrine? The more he agonized over the many possibilities, the more Elegy became unsure of his choice. In the end, he reasoned that doing something was better than doing nothing.

    "I''m gonna go upstairs." Elegy announced, "Once the room removes my bed because I''m no longer there, you pick up your own bed and carry it up the stairs. Call me if you need any help."

    "No problem. One arm is all I need!" Hats flashed him a confident thumbs up.

    At this point, Migu''s survival rate was practically close to zero, Elegy reckoned. Any further active attempts at searching for her would only be a waste of time, and though he felt bad, he knew that they needed to at the very least save Vastoria and Sheep first. Her safety was sadly out of their control, but theirs wasn''t.

    "Phew, just climbing up a single one of these stairs is tiring!" Elegy wiped the sweat off his brow, "Can''t imagine how difficult it''ll be for Hats. Heh, poor kid..."

    Given that he had nothing better to do, he decided to look around the area close to the staircase, just in case he found some kind of clue. It was nothing more than killing time for Elegy, but what he ended up finding was something way worse.

    "Bzzt!" A random roach bat appeared from inside the bushes.

    "Whoa! The heck are you doing here, big guy?" Elegy unsheathed his serrated sword, "Got lost? All your friends went over there."

    Just then, a stroke of genius hit him. He began to threaten the bat roach by swinging the sword repeatedly at him, causing minute bruises and scrapes to the body, but nothing too lethal.

    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    "Byahhh!" The beast cried out, flying away quickly.

    "That''s it! Lead me to where they went!" He chased close behind it.

    From what he saw of his previous fight with the bat roaches, they have a certain appetite for golden parts in a Heavenly Being. In fact, the moment they deem one person too difficult of a target to kill, they immediately switch to the other nearest target in line. He saw this firsthand after the previous bat roach they fought went for Hats after juking him into the ceiling. Now, Hats wasn''t here yet, so he had to assume it''s going for the only other two logical assumptions.

    "Migu, hold on just a little longer!" Elegy grinned, "I reckon I''ll save you and bring you back before Hats even climbs up those accursed stairs!"

    In the end, he reached the valley of the dead, rotting bat roaches. The one live one he used as a radar ended up hiding among all the dead bodies, so Elegy sadly lost track of him.

    "Ugh, I knew I should''ve cut off its wings..." He frowned, ''''Obviously it''d outrun me with them. Stupid, Elegy! ...Huh?"

    This being the case, the search was still not completely cold. Turning to the right, he happened to spot another path leading to a previously unexplored area of the jungle layer, covered in vines and moss. This had to be where they went, surely. Elegy unsheathed his sword and quickly sliced open the covered path before moving forward.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The area Elegy was currently exploring was, coincidentally enough, the very bat roach nest Migu and Energy would end up agonizing over how to destroy in the near future. What they didn''t know back then, however, was that he was already dealing with them before they had even found out about it.

    "Byahhh!" The entire nest lit up with loud screeches and buzzes, "Bzzzt, byahh! Bzz!"

    "Oh, seems I was mistaken." Elegy glanced up, still maintaining his composure, "Those two can''t be here, surely. This place stinks too much for anyone to want to willingly stay here for more than a minute!"

    His sword was already primed and raring to go, but curiously, the beasts refused to attack him as he had hoped. No, they merely remained couped up in their individual hives. Some were empty, however, which revealed the underlying larvae hiding inside. There was no doubt about it, if he didn''t singlehandedly destroy the entire nest right now, Hats would never be able to escape the Shrine with the bed.

    "Killing kids, author? What has this story resorted to..." He teased me, "Well, I suppose that could fit my character, but just know that I''m not the type to do so willingly!"

    Yeah yeah, whatever you say. A-Ahem, Elegy brandished his blade before running straight into the hive in front of him. Prioritizing the empty ones with nothing but the larvae inside, he effectively stopped the process of reproduction and left only the bat roaches that were already there. Even climbing up the walls posed no issue for him, for he masterfully used the blade to dig into them and spring himself up.

    "That''s the final one, I think!" He chuckled, only to get attacked by three angry mother bat roaches immediately after, "Gah! Ladies, one at a time!"

    "Byahhh!"

    Two of the beasts pulled him by the hands, and the third grabbed his legs. Pulling away from all sides was a painful experience, and it didn''t help that in the scuffle he lost his sword. Alas, it fell down all the way to the bottom, leaving him with no other options.

    "This is gonna be disgusting..." He closed his Eyes before shoving his left arm all the way down the roach''s throat, "Mngh...! Bah!"

    Now that he had a proper grip on it from the inside, he popped the vile beast''s head open just like that by pulling his fist upwards. Now with one arm free, the rest would easily follow suit.

    "Bonk!" He smashed the other''s head in, "Whoa~!"

    Given that the only one left was pulling him down by the legs, it would make sense that they both fell directly down to the ground. But that was alright, for that''s exactly where he wanted to be.

    "See, this is where the fun begins!" He smiled, pivoting himself on the ground as he just barely reached for the sword, "Say, wanna die quickly like your friends, or keep dragging this out? And yes, before you ask, these are the only two options available."

    "Bzzt!"

    "I see, such a shame..." He shook his head.

    The rabid beast chose the latter of the two, meaning Elegy was getting dragged all around the nest as the other bat roaches stared on from their hidey holes. He let them stare, believing this to be his way of showing some sort of mercy for brutally killing their offspring. Eventually however, he got bored and thought to put a stop to it.

    "Had your fun?" He smiled at the best dragging it around.

    "Bzzt?"

    He could have sliced its head open at any moment, killing it instantly, but he decided it would be more chivalrous to respect its choice of dragging its death out. So, instead of that, he slouched forward, bashing its brains in with the pommel of his sword with each sit up. The struggling bat roach refused to let go until its mouth was physically incapable of keeping itself shut. In the end, it died a very disgusting and inhumane death, even for human standards.

    "Yuck, got my boots dirty..." He scowled as he stood up, "So? What''ll it be, fellas? You gonna do the whole schtick of all the goons attacking the hero one by one or are you gonna be smart about this and attack me all at once?"

    Hearing his provocations, the single largest bat roach among them descended from his hole to the center stage.

    "Tch, just when I thought you were gonna break tradition..." Elegy rolled his Eyes, "Author, I know you love me and all, but you really shouldn''t make things too easy for me! I could have handled all of them just fine, you know!?"

    Huh? Why am I the bad guy now? You should be happy I made things just a tad bit easier for you. Not to mention, you''re gonna need to fight all of them eventually anyways, so it''s practically the same thing. Also, I never said I loved you."

    "Oof, harsh!" He cried out, "Dear reader, boycott the author right now! He''s abusing his characters by not abusing them enough!"

    Ahem, immediately after the larger bat roach descended, all of the others followed suit.

    "...T-Thanks." He gulped, "Dang, me and my big mouth, am I right lads? Ha-ha..."

    "Bzzt! Byahhh! Bzzut!"

    "Well, I guess I''ve got no other choice." He shrugged, bracing himself for the most fun fight he''s had yet, "If only novels had music, ''cause the tunes right now would be absolutely killer!"

    Hit it!

 Vol.5 Ch.112 - Digging a Hole

    "Oh?" Sab noticed something, "Guys, check this out!"

    "No way, already?" Sheep could hardly believe his Eyes.

    "Oi! Ain''t that onna'' dem bricks we smashed up tharr?" Nerys pointed to the surface.

    Somehow, they had already reached the Shrine''s bricks, meaning they were but a few small layers of brick away from digging their way inside. Granted, they were digging for quite a while, but there was no way they already made it to the fourth floor.

    "Sheep, how do you feel?" Sab turned to him.

    "Still fine, I guess the golden/White part inversion only happens inside the Shrine''s interior." He shrugged back, "I do feel a tad cold though."

    "Just to be safe, please go back up to the surface."

    "On it."

    Right now, any single pickaxe swing could be the one to send them dropping down directly into the Shrine. If Sheep were to fall down as well, he''ll most certainly die within a second. Having him remain at the surface also had the benefit of him keeping guard just in case Migu or someone else left the Shrine from the top.

    "Jus'' euwe n'' me nau, laddie!" Nerys patted his shoulder.

    "...Depending on what floor we end up digging into, this could range from pretty safe to extremely dangerous." Sab remained alert, "How are you at fighting?"

    "Oi''ve ''ad me farr'' sharr'' a'' scuffles, Oi did!"

    "And what''s your opinion on bugs?"

    "Bogs?"

    "No, bugs." He repeated, "Insects."

    "S''wot Oi sed." She shrugged, "Bot ''ave no ferr! Oi loike bogs!"

    Surprisingly enough, her answer was the opposite of what Sab generally expected a girl to say. Then again, given it''s Nerys, maybe the answer is completely expected? In any case, this was good news to hear. If they do happen to run into a bat roach, at the very least he can rest assured she''ll remain calm and won''t panic.

    "We might run into a beast of sorts down there." Sab continued digging, "Or well, more like a few beasts."

    "Wot koinda'' beastie?"

    "Honestly, even I''ve never seen it before." He shook his head, "But Sheep told me that inside the Shrine''s third layer exist a bunch of giant bats with cockroach heads."

    "Oh..." She raised an Eyebrow, "Thassit?"

    "What do you mean That''s it?" He turned to her in confusion, "Doesn''t that scare you?"

    "I be afraida'' nuthin'' bot illness!" She revealed, "When''re out on n'' expedition, ye'' dun'' got much medicine. Them''s the days prayin'' ta'' God is yer'' only option."

    Of course, she was a seafarer in her past life, so it would make sense that she was hardened to all sorts of atrocities. But Sab had plenty of difficulty trying to understand just what she meant exactly.

    "You mean like scurvy?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "Only an idjit would make tharr'' crew live thru'' that." She shook her head, "Get ye'' sum'' fruit onboard and ye'' be fine."

    "Then what? Tuberculosis?"

    "Possibly, bot'' Oi'' mean tha'' toipa'' illness that be present all throughout the ages." She explained, "A terrifoin'' sickness that steal ye'' strength n'' hotness from ye'', leavin'' ye'' nuthin'' bot a carcass aloive."

    Her description was gruesome and tense, and her voice shivered even as she faintly recalled the affliction. An illness all throughout the ages, with symptoms like that¡ªwhat exactly could she be referring to?

    "No way you''re talking about the common cold." Sab slumped forward.

    "Aye!"

    Tossing the pickaxe aside, Sab grabbed his face with both hands before pulling down. His groans were loud and sounded genuinely annoyed to hear her biggest fear is something so easily treatable.

    "Just drink some tea and sleep it off!" He shouted at her.

    "Ah, bot'' Oi can''t sleep with tha'' shivarrs''..." She whined, "S''too cold, laddie."

    "Then cover yourself up in blankets, I dunno!"

    "No no, blankets raise ye'' temperature!" She wagged her finger at him, "Thass'' tha'' dilemma, y''see? Ye'' be cold, but ye'' also be burnin'' up! One a'' loife''s greatest mysteries..."

    "Except it''s really not." Sab shook his head, "Just take some antibiotics and you''ll be fine in a day."

    Just then, she stopped to look at him. Tilting her head lightly, her puzzled expression overwhelmed Sab with a feeling of guilt. Of course, if she''s from the past, then maybe something as trivial as a cold could be seen as a proper bother. Seafarer or not, back then they probably didn''t have any antibiotics, so all they really could do is resort to home remedies and pray it gets better.

    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    "In my era, that''s one of the easiest illnesses to cure." Sab spoke quietly.

    "S''at so? Locky euwe!" She smirked.

    "Yeah, you don''t have to worry though." He picked up the pickaxe again, "In Heaven, our bodies can''t get sick."

    "Yeh, that be the case." She nodded, "So, ye'' gon'' dig us down now?"

    "On it..." He grumbled.

    Despite this, it didn''t even take him ten swings before the floor below them gave way. They fell down inside the Shrine''s hallways, but upon closer inspection, they appeared to be in the corridors of the first floor.

    "Sigh, guess we ought to keep digging through." Sab raised his pick again, "Sheep said that the first floor is made up of stone bricks."

    "Mutton did?" She raised an Eyebrow, "And the otharrs''?"

    "Floor 2 is a trap infested crystal cave, floor 3 is the jungle layer with those bugs..." Sab recounted, "And the final floor is unique, he says."

    "Unique?"

    "I dunno, when I asked him he just brushed it off." Sab began to dig through the first floor''s brickwork, "But we''re looking for the beds inside the fourth floor. Hey, you continue digging down further and I''ll go tell Sheep of our findings."

    "D''ohh, euwe jus'' dun'' wanna dig no moor!" She pouted.

    "Cut me some slack, I''ve been digging for a while now." He chuckled, "Then, I''ll be back soon."

    "Yeh, yeh. See ya''!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Yoyoyo!"

    "Bah!"

    Sab flew straight out of the hole, overshooting the surface by a couple hundred meters at least. By the time he slowly glided down to Sheep, he had already forgotten what he had wanted to say.

    "..."

    "....O-Oh right." He shook the confusion off, "Sheep, we figured out what''s under the bricks."

    "Yeah? Do tell."

    "We got both lucky and unlucky in a way." He explained, "On one hand, we hit the very first floor, on the other hand..."

    "It''s only the very first floor." Sheep then sighed, "So wait, where''s Nerys? You didn''t leave her alone, did you?"

    "She''s still digging a hole straight down."

    This odd idea was met with heavy critique. Sheep could only wonder why they didn''t just continue down the Shrine the intended route.

    "That would defeat the purpose, genius." Sab rolled his Eyes, "We need a straight shot to the fourth floor''s beds so I can carry them out without issues. The less turns we have to make on our way back, the better."

    "But there''s no way we hit the nail on the head when it comes to hitting such a tiny room directly, right?"

    "When''d you get so stupid?" Sab suddenly asked.

    "What!?"

    "Dude, we''ll dig down until we reach the third floor!" Sab explained, "Then I''ll use my wings to speed through the rest of it and make it to the fourth floor. Easy peasy!"

    Once again, Sheep was stupified by Sab''s logic. By all means, he was right on every account, so Sheep really didn''t have any comebacks at the ready. Listlessly standing around near the hole for a while, Sab felt it necessary to ask how it went on Sheep''s end.

    "And what about you? No one came through the Shrine''s doors?"

    "Nope, I''ve been floating ever so slightly above the ground to make sure the ice-wall doesn''t trigger." Sheep shook his head, "That way I can see the invisible forcefield instead and, in other words, get a clear view of who''s inside the barrier."

    "Finally, the smart Sheep I know is back!" Sab joked, "In that case, I think it''s about time I go back down and help Nerys. She''s probably already crying herself a river over having to dig."

    "Pheh! You made her dig again?!" Sheep burst out laughing, "I wish I could see that, if only once more."

    "I''d rather she pull her weight properly instead of whining all the damned time..."

    "Now now, I''d help you if I could, but..." Sheep jokingly showed off all of the bruises he had sustained from the fight with Energy.

    Unlike Sheep, Sab has still yet to meet the incredible figter that is Energy. With each person describing him, his fear for Energy just kept growing over time, and now it''s starting to reach unbelievable levels.

    "Ugh, I so don''t wanna have to deal with that guy..." Sab peeked down the hole.

    "There''s a chance Elegy and Hats already met up with him and beat him." Sheep figured, "You never know."

    "Blind optimism won''t get me anywhere."

    "Then wallow in your pessimism, I dunno." Sheep daintily shoved him as a joke, "Go on now, it''s up to you."

    "R-Right." Sab then gulped before hopping inside, "Nerys, I''m gonna piggyback off of your pious prayers, so let''s hope we don''t run into that bastard...!"

    Laughing at the wimpish pleas of his friend, Sheep once more found himself waiting outside alone. This little friendly chat with Sab really killed some time for him, so he was quite sad to realize it was already over. For a people-pleaser like Sheep, being told you have nothing to do but essentially wait is more than humiliating. As for Sab...

    "Euwe''re back, laddie!" Nerys immediately shoved the pickaxe onto him, "Look, look! See wot'' Oi did!?"

    "You..." Sab felt a vein pop, "You didn''t even dig out of the first floor, you moron!!"

    Taken aback by his sudden and loud screeches, she paused with a cute frown before breaking out into tears.

    "Wahhh~! Euwe dun'' gotta'' shout~!!"

    "And how else are you gonna learn to do your task properly!?" He shot back, flicking her on the forehead just to add more damage to his lecture, "We''re in a race against time, you old-timey scallywag!"

    "GASP!" She stood petrified at his words, "Euwe. Did. NOT!"

    "Oh I did!" Sab flaunted the use of such a word, "And I''ll do it aga-OOF!"

    One steady punch to the face shut Sab up real quick. After that followed a second punch to the gut, then the ribs, then a kick to the groin. Some of these bounced off of his golden rings, but most were just as painful as they had sounded. And of course, gentlemanly as he was, Sab refused to hit a girl back, deeming the fight totally unfair.

    "What''s ''rong, dolt!?" She hissed, "Call a leidy that godfer''saken warr''d n'' ye'' wun'' even foight back!?"

    "Gah, Nerys, stop that!"

    "Thassa'' word beyond all offense, laddie!" She kept hitting him repeatedly, "Ye'' better learn not ta'' use it lightly, err'' Oi'' moight not hold back next toime!"

    "Wait, this isn''t you at your full-strength!?" Sab yelped, "Ow!"

    Truth be told, Sab felt he would lose even if he had the privilege of fighting back. Nerys'' fighting style was tight and without many extra moves. Her punches were fast, strong and precise, and due to the speed at which she pulled back after said punches, one could even go so far as to say her defense had no openings.

    "Nerys! Okay, stop, if you keep hitting me, I won''t have the strength to keep digging!"

    "Hngh... Had... enaff'' yet?"

    "I did, I won''t ever call you that word, never ever!" He groveled at her boots, "So please, save your strength!"

    Save her strength, Sab smirked just thinking about it, for Energy! A stroke of genius, all he has to do is sic Nerys on the bastard and he can just watch from a distance if there ever comes a time they have to duke it out. This plan, of course, was not yet shared with the female fighter to be, however, because if he did reveal it to her, Sab wouldn''t even live long enough to reach Energy at all.

 Vol.5 Ch.113 - Bedtime

    "Oof! Hoof...!" Hats barely inched the heavy bed up the stairs, "Hnghhh...! Gah! Elegy~!"

    Alas, calling out his friend''s name proved fruitless, for Elegy was currently in a heated battle inside the bat roach hive. The only thing that made carrying a whole bed by himself more difficult is the fact that it was a spiral staircase. Each twist and turn meant Hats had to meticulously and methodically go about lifting the bed''s legs one step at a time until he would eventually reach the third floor. This was, as one would expect, everything but easy.

    "Darn it, didn''t you say you would be there for me if I needed help?" He clicked his tongue, "Hmph, screw this! I''m not bringing this entire thing up by myself!"

    And so, just like that, Hats opted to leave the bed halfway lodged inside the staircase as he ran up the stairs without it. His plan was to find the slacker Elegy and have him help with the lifting, but even when he climbed to the top, he couldn''t find a soul. The lush Greenery of the jungle layer proved as empty as it was vast.

    "Elegy~!" He shouted, "Elegy! Where''d he go?"

    Suddenly, a grim idea popped into his head.

    "Gasp, there''s no way! Those b-bugs ate him...?!" He gulped, "Uuu, I-I better go check!"

    Rushing forward through the third floor, he ran until he reached the same area Energy and Migu were still resting in¡ªthe dead bat roach valley.

    "Eugh, I know they''re dead, but I still can''t get used to seeing them..." He shivered, "Hm? That voice...!? Elegy!"

    "Hats!" Elegy shouted from inside the hive, "Is that you, Hats!?"

    "It''s me! I''m here!"

    "Wait!" Elegy stopped him from rushing in, "Did you bring the bed with you!?"

    Silence, and an awkward one at that. In times like these, Hats would really come to understand the importance of listening to your elders. He didn''t want to disappoint Elegy, but on the other hand, he also didn''t bring the bed with him. Yep, it was still stuck inside the staircase, so even if he rushed back to get it, it would take a considerable amount of time.

    "Are you okay in there?" Hats thought to ask first.

    "Who, me? I''m peachy!" Elegy laughed, "But I''m gonna need that bed, y''hear? I''ll hold off the bat roaches while you go back to fetch it, but without it¡ªthis fight will forever be in a stalemate."

    "Stalemate?"

    "Draw."

    "I don''t have a pencil."

    "Just shut up and bring me the bed!" He yelled.

    Hearing the calm and kind Elegy suddenly raise his voice sternly at him made Hats break off into a sprint. Though Elegy did say he was doing just fine, it was obvious that Hats really didn''t have as much time as he had expected. It didn''t take him too long to reach the staircase leading down to the fourth floor, but once he caught a glimpse of the bed still stuck firmly in between the central pillar and walls, his Eyes narrowed.

    "Gah, damned thing..." He pouted.

    There wasn''t any time to be gentle, so he had to resort to trickier tactics. Namely, turning the bed sideways significantly helped with freeing up space, but it had the downside of him scratching the bedframe with each step climbed. This was of no issue in his mind, however, for Elegy''s safety was at stake here.

    "Hngh... Come on!!" He yelled, "So what if I damage it a bit!? If it''s magical, then it should be fine, right!? It can heal all of us, but not itself? My butt!"

    Cursing it off until he finally reached the very top of the staircase, this time together with the object of interest, Hats flipped it back right side up before hoisting it over his head, keeping it balanced with his one arm. Eventually, this "balanced" state morphed into an over the shoulder carry due to the heavy imbalance on the missing arm''s side, but he didn''t mind. So long as he was moving, that''s all that mattered.

    "Elegy! Eleg-EEP!" He shut himself up, "B-Bug! One''s alive in there...!"

    After having rushed back to the bat roach valley, he happened to hear the sounds of munching, causing him to stop, dead silent. This roach was the one Elegy previously used to find the hive and subsequently the roach that tried to eat Energy''s brain. Though, Hats doesn''t know this of course.

    "Keep quiet, keep... quiet..." Hats inched around the perimeter of the area slowly, "Don''t scrape the walls, don''t trip... Ack!"

    As misfortune would have it, the mossy floor beneath him gave away. He caught himself quickly enough thanks to his alertness, however the sound all that shifting dirt made would have surely alerted the roach. That is, if it wasn''t already preoccupied with another person...

    "Phew, didn''t notice me." He breathed a sigh of relief, "Elegy, you there?"

    "Yo!"

    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    "Quiet!" He cut him off.

    "Oh, sorry." Elegy sheepishly apologized, "Did you bring the bed?"

    "Yup, it''s here." He plopped it down on the floor carefully, "Come here and rest up."

    A few seconds later, the most terrifying, grotesque, eldritch amalgamation of man, but and bat emerged before him. Hats wanted to scream, but because he knew that would surely alert the bat roach behind him, all he could do was stand there petrified. Thankfully, he soon learned this unknown being was merely a bloodied Elegy covered in bat roach guts, pridefully carrying a smile on his face.

    "Hey thanks! I can always count on you, kid!" Elegy picked up one end of the bed, "Grab the other end, we''re bringing it inside."

    "Huh? You wanna sleep there?"

    "Oh no, not for me." He chuckled, "Say, I should ask again if you''re squeamish around bat roaches?"

    "Ugh, incredibly so..."

    "Oh." Elegy stopped, "Then you stay here. It''s best I do the second half of this chapter by myself."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Leaving the poor confused Hats utterly in the dark with his fourth-wall breaking comment, Elegy dragged the bed inside the hive where he previously wreaked havoc. Passing by hundreds of dead bat roaches of varying shapes and sizes, some merely babies and others well into their senior years, he truly chose not to discriminate by eliminating them all equally. Even the larvae were all squished, with the only sole survivor among them being the one giant bat roach that is considered the queen.

    "Darling, I''m back~!" Elegy jeered melodically, "I brought you a present, since you''re so needy!"

    "Bzzt!" The beast scurried around the area violently.

    "Laid a dozen eggs already, have you?" He plopped the bed into the center of the hive, "You slut, how''d you manage that when I killed all your suitors?"

    "Byahhh!"

    Having heard enough of his provocations, she lunged at him with all her might. Some things to keep in mind about this specific beast¡ªshe is unkillable. Not just her body, like with the rest of the bat roaches, but her head as well. Anything Elegy tried simply wouldn''t work at all, so he had to come up with a different approach.

    "That''s it, c''mere!" He dodged at the last second, "Oop! No good, no good! You gotta be faster than that!"

    "Byahh! Bzztaahhh!"

    "Women, am I right?" He turned to face the reader, "You can never understand them. Sigh, no matter how hard you try..."

    The plan here was simple¡ªmake the bat roach lunge at Elegy, Elegy would then dodge, and the roach would slam itself into the bed. From there, plenty of things could happen, but he had hoped for one thing specifically.

    "You eat gold, right?" He asked, "Well, I''m offering you gold. All you can eat, in fact. All you gotta do is provide a bit of it yourself, you see!"

    The bat roach lunged at him, slamming always ever so close to the center of the hive, but never hitting the bed exactly.

    "Tch, almost like she knows to avoid it..." He grunted, "Wait, that''s it!"

    Realizing that there was no other way, he came to a rather difficult decision surprisingly easily. Without even skipping a beat, Elegy brandished his sword, slammed his hand on the ground and began to saw the area around his golden pinkie off. If you were to ask him whether or not this ludicrous idea hurt him in any way, he would answer...

    "Yeeeooooowwch!!! Yes, it hurts!" He revealed, "But now I got some proper irresistible bait for Miss bug-brain over here!"

    One might be hard pressed to understand the reasoning behind his self-sacrificial action, but the explanation is quite simple. Verily, the only two gilded parts Elegy had on him were the tiny scars on his forearms, and his left pinkie. Seeing as he really didn''t feel like he was using it much anyways, he didn''t at all mind lopping it off to use in this situation. As for the queen, this was the only way he could ever think to lure it onto the bed.

    "If this doesn''t work, I might have to make use of Hats'' other arm..." He grimly noted, "Haha! Just kidding, kidding! It was a joke... Yah!"

    "Bzzz..." The queen bat roach stared him down.

    "Listen little lady, you''re getting on my nerves." Elegy waved the severed golden finger around to make sure it had her attention, "First you refuse to die, then you give birth to more of those freaks. I''m under a tight time limit here, you know? If I don''t kill you soon, those larvae are gonna hatch, and that''s no fun at all."

    After a few more tense waves of the golden pinkie finger, he offhandedly tossed it onto the comfy bed. Immediately, the bat roach lunged directly onto it, securing Elegy his one shot at making this plan work.

    "Hah, gotcha now...!"

    As the beast munched on the finger, he kept repeatedly slicing at the body of his opponent. These slices were miniscule and barely did any damage, but they were enough to trigger the bed''s claws and healing procedure. Holding the bat roach still, the machine-like claws tore into these slices and cuts, replacing them deftly with golden substitutes. The sight was gruesome, yet glorious all the same.

    "Byahhh!?"

    "What''s the matter? You like gold, don''t you?" He pointed out the newly golden bits on her body, "Then by all means, bon appetit."

    Slowly, anxiously, the queen craned her head to her gilded parts. You could almost see the torn expression in her beady Eyes. One side of her knew what going through with this action would entail, but the other side was hungry all the same. It cared not that feasting upon oneself would lead to suicide, for all it could see was gold. Slowly, it reached out into itself with its own mandibles, and ate.

    "Tasty, eh?" He patted the bedframe, "Don''t worry, there''s plenty more where that came from!"

    Just like that, the more she bit off, the more the bed regenerated her body. This in turn led to her eating more and more, yet the more she consumed, the more golden she had become. Eventually, her entire lower body was that of pure, solid gold, but there was of course a catch.

    "Are you gonna be able to finish all that?" Elegy smirked, "That''s half your body gone, y''know? Now I''m not exactly an expert in neither insect nor bat biology, but I''m pretty sure that''s gonna kill ya''."

    "B-... Byahhh..." She whimpered before gnawing off her entire lower half, eventually succumbing to her own demise.

    Just like that, the queen was defeated, and the Shrine no longer had any means of reproducing the bat roaches. If some stragglers existed, they would have been dealt with not too far into the future, surely. Of course, this included the larvae Elegy had to snuff out as well.

    "Sorry, kiddos." He impaled them one after another with his sword, "Not my fault you were born monsters."

    After double-checking that every bat roach was properly slain, he met up with Hats to detail his escapade. In spite of Elegy''s proud tone over his accomplishment, Hats really didn''t want to hear such a gruesome tale.

    "Wait, what about the bed?" He suddenly asked.

    "T-The bed?" Elegy recalled, "Oh yeah, when she fell on it, it kinda... broke..."

    Just like that, two more "Staples of Heaven" were destroyed. First it was the White Monster, then the Bat Roaches, and now even the Bed. They will be dearly missed, some... more than others.

 Vol.5 Ch.114 - Divine Intervention

    As Elegy triumphed over the bat roach colony with the aid of his dependable companion Hats, a gallant chill ran through the entire Shrine. Those who were awake shivered to their very core, and those who were not were forced into consciousness because of it.

    "Nerys." Sab stopped swinging for a brief moment, "Back the hell off."

    "Iss cold, matey!" She latched onto him, cheeks flushed and body weak, "I be tellin'' ye'', fevarr''s be lurkin'' around evry cornah!"

    "Is that so?" He smiled back, only to heartlessly shove her away, "Then I don''t wanna catch your cold. Now stay out of my way or you''ll soon be wearing an Eyepatch."

    "S-S-S-Sowry..."

    The bed had been broken, and from it a thousand echoes emerged. These echoes were chillier than the chilliest of breezes, and they flowed through the air like none other. Before long, everyone in Heaven 2.0 felt the disturbance. Including the Gods...

    "Hrm..." Selzion breathed a long inhale before crashing out, "What the hell are they doing!?"

    "Now, now. Deep breaths, count to 10." Prylos snapped his fingers, "Have some tea."

    "I can''t take it, are they... Are they trying to make a fool out of me? Out of the God of Knowledge!?" Selzion raged, "They! Measly ants in comparison to our own plane of existence! I know it''s not their fault, Pry! They''re ignorant fools who know not the intricacies of our giving hands, yet it irks me so to be met with such ingratitude! Am I actually the one in the wrong here? Tell me, is securing all of their souls eternal haven, regardless of the lives they''ve outlived... Is that not kindness?"

    The usually grouchy, low energy ball of depression known as Selzion was now having a panic attack. As the God of Knowledge, he is the only one of the Five who chooses to never relinquish a single tidbit of information he learns, regardless of importance. Thus, his mind is quite prone to these moments, though he usually has Prylos to help calm him down.

    "You''re not wrong, Selz. Me and the other Three would''ve opposed you a long time ago if you were." Prylos patted him on the back, "Hey, come on. Humans have always been dumb, so what''s got you so surprised? Look, we gave them a nigh infinite playground without any consequences, and yet they still chose to venture out and investigate the only area where they can get hurt and even get their souls destroyed. That''s not your fault, right?"

    "They killed the White Monster and the Bat Roaches, both meant to deter anyone from coming near that wretched Shrine..." He uttered back, "No matter how many times they best you, you will never permanently die from them, I''ve made sure of that."

    "And so far it''s worked wonders!" Prylos raised his hands, "No one has gotten their soul destroyed because of them."

    "But now there is no bedtime stopping anyone from venturing out past the residential area." He shook his head, "There are no demonic chimerae springing up at them, scaring them back to whence they came. And now, even if someone did get hurt..."

    "There''s no bed at the bottom to guide them to in order to get them repaired, yeah..."

    Even Prylos didn''t have anything to say to that one. The fact was that their perfect rendition of Heaven was falling apart a second time now. The first Heaven already had many issues to begin with, like people briefly coming back to life after dying just to say a few parting words to their loved ones, or those very same people watching over their loved ones'' final moments from the clouds above. Many such cases caused problems for those among the living, leading to rumors of ghosts and other foolish phenomena spreading. Ultimately, this new Heaven was supposed to solve everything, yet it ended up only doubling the Gods'' worries.

    "Hey, but look on the bright side!" Prylos noted, "Or rather, bright sides! Plural, ''cause there''s more than one!"

    Suddenly, the moping Selzion''s interest was thoroughly piqued, as shown by a curious Eyebrow raise.

    "Go on..."

    "Well, for example, how many others in Heaven 2.0 want out and are causing trouble?" He asked.

    "I... suppose none."

    "Right? So if we somehow manage to deal with this little group of troublemakers, then literally, objectively speaking, everyone will be happy." Prylos smiled, "Doesn''t that sound amazing? We''re so close to that goal of ours¡ªa world in which every single person is undoubtedly joyous and content."

    A sudden memory flashed by Selzion''s endless mind. One of the Five of them 45.351.711.621 Universe Cycles ago talking about their end goals. Ouroboras wished to experience everything¡ªevery emotion, sense, taste, touch, feel, everything. He now wanders the world as a human reborn, aimless and clueless of his divine origin.

    Auros wished to find the most chaotic, negative moment. In the endless string of Universes, each just barely different from the last, he aimed to witness with his own Eyes just what "chaos" was. He now lazes about on his Golden Throne, bored of having to wait for such a specific and far-off moment.

    Allucius, as the most mature one despite not being the eldest, wished only to help the others accomplish their goals. As difficult as they may seem, she was always willing to lend a hand... provided the life of an innocent human wasn''t in the way of the Gods'' plotting.

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    "Sigh, in the end, we really did end up being the only ones who followed through." Selzion slouched, "A world where everyone is happy, hm..."

    "Isn''t that good, though? We can rub it in those idiots'' faces next time we see them!" Prylos joked, "Look, we gave these guys every chance we could. Every warning, threat and deal we could think of to make them just sit tight in their homes and enjoy what Heaven 2.0 has to offer, but they refused. Nothing we can do about that."

    "So what''s the other bit of so-called good news?"

    "Ah, that''s right." Prylos donned a wry smirk, "Now that they don''t have the bed, they''re gonna be desperate for a way to bring back Vastoria..."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    We cut back to a lonely Sheep pacing listlessly around the hole. Every so often he would turn to see if anyone was exiting the Shrine, but the more time passed, the less frequent his glances got.

    "Come on, at least let me do something..." He groaned, "Brr, what a chill... Wait, why did I feel that just now?"

    "So you''ve noticed, Shopkeeper." A familiar Divine Voice approached him.

    "What the-!? Back off, I don''t wanna talk to you!"

    "Covering your ears won''t work, for I dwell inside the mind." The Voice echoed, "Shopkeeper, you know us as enemies, but the truth is we have an urgent matter to discuss."

    "I said I won''t-!"

    "Vastoria will not wake up."

    Needless to say, Sheep''s heart dropped immediately.

    "H-Huh?"

    "That cool breeze just now, it means one, some or all of your teammates down in the Shrine have killed the Queen Bat Roach, though we do not currently possess the knowledge to tell you who did it exactly."

    "Heh, thank goodness...!" A smile twitched on Sheep''s face before he quickly subdued it, "No, wait! I don''t trust a word you say, you hear me!?"

    "And if I told you the bed that was supposed to be used for yours and Vastoria''s repair has been destroyed as well?" The voice echoed, "What will you do then?"

    Sheep''s mind was in disarray. He could not process the shocking information being relayed to him by one of his adversaries. On one hand, it shouldn''t even be considered for a moment to trust the words of these Gods, the Gods that tried to send in people to kill them. Yet, on the other hand, if anyone would know of this info, it''d have to be someone as Omniscient as them. Simply put, Sheep was torn.

    "If that is all, I shall be taking my leave." The Voice trailed off slowly.

    "W-Wait!" Sheep yelled, "What do you mean?! You''re the one who approached me! How should I know if that''s all!?"

    "Hmph." The voice let out a smug chuckle, "You said you wouldn''t listen to us, so I cut the theatrics short. Is this not to your liking?"

    "...You wouldn''t just tell me this for no good reason." Sheep sat down on the edge of the hole, "Is there a way to bring Vastoria back to a stable and healthy state?"

    "Would it make you happy if we told you?"

    "Of course."

    "Would you happily return to live in the residential area without ever causing a fuss again?"

    "...If the method actually works and restores everyone''s bodies to their full health, then yes."

    Sheep considered this deal to be worth investigating. He was careful with his words, making sure he had so far only agreed to hear them out. If the method they would give sounded too far-fetched or sketchy, he would immediately back out.

    "Then, have no fear. It is quite simple, though difficult all the same." The Voice contradicted itself.

    "I''m out."

    "No, hold on, wait-!" Prylos bit his tongue, his mysterious aura seemingly dissipating in a matter of seconds, "Okay, I''ll be straight with you! Sigh, basically¡ªit''s easy for you, but difficult for us."

    "Oh, so that''s what you meant." Sheep smirked, "Then, you gonna be more specific?"

    "I''m getting there, wait a bit!" Prylos shot back, "In essence, you will need to help us craft a new bed. This process cannot be done by Gods, you see, as it requires the unique powers of an archangel."

    "...And that is?"

    "A step above a seraphim."

    Once more, a shocking piece of information came to light all of a sudden.

    "I thought seraphim was the highest rank?" Sheep tilted his head.

    "Was this ever specified?" The God retorted.

    "Mn, fair point. So how do I become an archangel? Do I have to do like, a thousand good deeds or something?"

    "You have to personally help one of the Gods." Prylos barely kept his excitement from showing, "And this isn''t a superficial rule either. We need to be genuinely thankful for your contribution in order for this to work."

    "Oh." He paused, "Whack."

    "Fret not, Shopkeeper, for we have made the necessary arrangements for that as well." Prylos chuckled warmly, "For now, follow this Voice. It shall lead you to our abode, where we shall explain things in more detail."

    "Hold on, I still have to wait for these guys to show up." He glanced down the hole hesitantly, "Migu and Energy might still..."

    "Migu is safe, Energy is all but dead." The Voice sounded honest, "In fact, I do believe his current state is worse than Vastoria''s."

    "Huh? Worse than... Y''know?" Sheep mimed snipping his neck off with scissors.

    "Even worse." Prylos assured him, "Sooner or later they will all reconvene, so why not show that you''ve done something yourself and bring Vastoria with you to the celebration?"

    This tone was suspicious on every account. Sheep wasn''t naive, nor was he dumb, but this was Vastoria''s life at stake here. He had to tread carefully.

    "Why are you suddenly doing this for us?"

    "Believe it or not, we don''t actually prefer to have people dying in Heaven 2.0." Prylos revealed with a deadpanned and monotone voice, "If anything, we''d much rather avoid that. From what we''ve gathered, all you folks want is to revive."

    "...To an extent."

    "Well, we can''t do that." Prylos explained, "But we can give you everything you want in the residential area. A bigger house? A bigger yard? Whatever items you want shipped to your abode, you''ll get them, just say the word! Honestly, if it''ll keep you from causing trouble for us Gods, we don''t mind giving your group special treatment at all. Consider this our defeat."

    The Gods admit defeat. Now there''s something you don''t see every day... or any day for that matter. Sheep was convinced though, or at the very least he wanted to be. Deep down, this stopped being about revival a long time ago. Sheep just wanted to be with his friends, alive and well. Surely, with this opportunity the Gods were giving him, they would agree as well, especially Migu. Without the bed, she has no way of being with Vastoria ever again, and that hurt him more than anything.

    "Please..." He flapped his wings to follow the voice slowly, "Please don''t let this be a trick..."

 Vol.5 Ch.115 - Getting Cramped

    As for the Shrine''s interior during this bout of words, whilst Migu and Energy had only barely just woken up and began moving through the third floor for the first time, Elegy and Hats were already making their way back up the stairs to the second floor.

    "In the end, we couldn''t find Migu at all..." Hats slumped forward.

    "Yeah, it sucks, but what can you do." Elegy in turn only shrugged, "We''ve got Sab and Sheep scanning the area up at the surface, so let''s hope they caught sight of them at least."

    Though they had just accomplished something incredible, what with the literal extinction of the bat roaches and all, they didn''t feel all too thrilled. In fact, now that they couldn''t even bring Vastoria back due to their destruction of the bed, this entire mission felt somewhat wasted in general.

    "Sab..." Hats frowned once he remembered, "The last time we saw him, he tried to run away."

    "I''m sure Sheep knocked some sense into him." Elegy reassured him, "Such a serious guy wouldn''t let a cheap escape attempt like that slide."

    "You really think so?"

    "Sigh, I hope so..."

    Again, that word was the only lifeline to their sanity. No matter what corner they turned, "hope" was all they could do. They have to hope Migu is alive, to hope Sab didn''t abandon them, to hope Sheep brought him back safe... When they look at their entire journey like that, it really did feel like they haven''t actually accomplished anything at all.

    "What do we do if Migu...?" Hats mustered up the courage to ask.

    "What? You think we''re not gonna find her?"

    "I''m sure we will... eventually." He twiddled his thumbs, "But in what state? What if Energy already, y''know...?"

    "If that''s the case, then we''ll take care of her like we did with Vastoria." Elegy glared back strongly, "Her mansion has ample space to keep the injured and wounded out of harm''s way."

    This answer wasn''t exactly what Hats had wanted to hear out of him, so he kept the questions going.

    "But we don''t have a means to treat them."

    "Not right now." Elegy corrected him, "But Heaven is Vast. Vaster than the Vast World below. We''ll definitely find an alternative."

    "But how can you be sure? We''ve already reached the end of Heaven''s residential area."

    "Once again, you''re seeing things from an A-B perspective." Elegy shook his head, "We explored the areas around our homes, then skipped to the edge of Heaven. Heck, you and I both traveled by foot and saw just how much we''ve been missing out on, haha!"

    The hardy laugh was contagious, bringing a similar smile to Hats'' face as well. Indeed, they weren''t yet out of options. Much of this world was yet to be explored, and just because they haven''t been everywhere doesn''t mean they''ve only been to the places that matter. Surely, given enough time and perseverance, they would find something or somebody that would aid them in healing Vastoria.

    "Oh, watch your step." Elegy suddenly stopped Hats with his hand, "Second floor, remember? Traps are everywhere."

    "Ugh, how could I forget?" Hats groaned, "You made me go through the entire floor alone, section by section."

    "So now you''re more prepared." Elegy smirked back at him as he walked in front, "Isn''t that good?"

    Though Hats may have gotten more alert from his earlier experiences, Elegy had in that moment failed to notice the pressure plate he had stepped on. He screamed like a little girl, yelping and jumping back into Hats'' huge arm, only to sigh in relief once he realized it wasn''t the foot-snapping kind.

    "Ha-ha... Sorry about that."

    "Please be more careful." Hats dropped his head down before pausing, "Wait, do you hear that?"

    "Sounds like mining."

    "No, not that!" Hats turned around to spot a giant boulder slowly picking up speed behind them, "Dammit, since when was there a boulder here!?"

    Picking Elegy up under his arm, Hats then proceeded to haul ass through the trap-infested dungeon. As they were moving up the Shrine and not the other way around, he didn''t have to be nearly as careful about the traps, as they were all one-sidedly installed. Regardless, in spite of his speed, the boulder was still closing the distance between them hastily.

    "We''ll never make it to the staircase at this rate!" Hats fretted.

    "Huh? That hole wasn''t there before..." Elegy noticed it from a distance, "Hop inside!"

    "Eh?! But what if there are spikes inside!?"

    "If you don''t wanna risk it, at least toss me inside while you jump over."

    Fearing having to go on alone more than the possibility of this hole being dangerous, Hats steeled his resolve and dove inside the hole with Elegy still under his arm. A mere second later, the boulder passed right over them.

    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    "Phew, that was close..." Hats breathed a sigh of relief, "Thankfully it wasn''t too deep."

    "Yeah, and the landing was soft too." Elegy got up, "Thanks for breaking the fall."

    "Huh?" Hats cocked his head back, "I didn''t-?"

    "Get the hell off us!" Sab shrieked from beneath them, prompting the two to finally notice them.

    "Whoa, you didn''t leave after all!" Elegy helped Sab up before giving him a brotherly hug, "You guys dug this hole or something? How did Sheep enter the barrier safel-?"

    Only then did Elegy finally stop to glance at the person he thought was Sheep. Hats awkwardly and bashfully helped her get up, only to quickly hide away behind his two already familiar friends.

    "Wot?" Nerys hissed at them, "Not gunna'' apologize fer'' landin'' on me, arr'' ye''? Pathetic men oll ''raund!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You two, this is Nerys Edris." Sab finally introduced her, "As for why I left all of a sudden like that, it was because I saw her spying on us."

    "So you didn''t actually leave us?" Hats smiled.

    "Hold on, so you went to catch her, I get that." Elegy interrupted, "So why is she here with you now?"

    "Coz'' Ah''ve got this ''ere thingamajig!" She pulled the pickaxe out of the ground, "We yuus''dit ta'' skip this donjin'' jus'' loike dat!"

    "I see." Elegy nodded, "So where''s your parrot?"

    "Oi''m not a bloody poirrate!"

    Jokes aside, this was incredible news for Hats and Elegy. In fact, you could very accurately say that Sab going after her back then just saved these two''s lives, so they were nothing but thankful. Apart from that, it also meant they had gotten a new team member, and one who had quite the fascinating tool they could make use of.

    "Nerys, welcome aboard!" Elegy was all smiles as he put his hand out, "No pun intended."

    "Oi''m a seafarra'', dammit..." She begrudgingly returned the handshake, "N'' euwe? Wot''s got ye'' knickers toight?"

    Hats was still shy around new people, especially ones with such an overpowering personality as Nerys''. In the end, he couldn''t even utter a name, so Elegy had to fill her in.

    "This kid here''s called Hats." He made him put his hand out, "Don''t be too harsh on him. He may look like this, but mentally he''s no less than a tyke."

    "...Yer'' yong?" Nerys raised her Eyebrow at him, stealing the occasional glance at his golden and missing appendages, "Euwe muss'' loike ta'' tussle."

    "U-Uhm, no, this is just..." Hats tried to think of an answer, his extended hand still shaking, waiting for her to reciprocate and move on.

    "Nerys, let him-" Sab went to stop her, but she suddenly lunged at the boy.

    "Euuuuuuwe poo'' widdle boy!"

    "H-Huh!?"

    She hugged him with all the strength she had in her. Squeezing tighter and tighter as she refused to let go, she kept showering him with praise and consolation.

    "Woddey'' maed ya'' do, laddie!? C''mon, tell ye'' big sis n'' Oi''ll taek caer avit!"

    "N-Nerys?" Sab looked on, mouth agape.

    "Is she like this with everyone?" Elegy turned to him, equally as perplexed.

    "No, she''s usually a whiny brat once you crack down that tough shell of hers..."

    "Ah, so a tsundere character."

    "Exactly like a tsundere."

    As the two bonded over a strangely familiar word to them both, they couldn''t help but chuckle at the boy who was getting his soul coddled out of him. This girl Nerys, despite having such a difficult personality, is apparently really good with kids.

    "It hurrts me so ta'' see a yong sool loike euwe go thru'' so much!" She teetered from side to side, still tightly grappling onto Hats, "Dun'' worry, whenevah ye'' need comfert, jus'' ask for ye'' big sis Nerys'' magical hugs!"

    "W-Wahhh~, t-thank you...?" Hats looked confused, but the grin going from ear to ear gave away his true thoughts all too well.

    "Ahem." Elegy finally put a stop to all these charades to get down to business, "I imagine Sheep is waiting up there, then?"

    "Yeah, he couldn''t come with." Sab nodded back.

    "We went to the bottom floor and couldn''t find Migu nor Energy." Hats added, "Did you guys spot anyone?"

    They weren''t expecting much with this question, but it was still quite a gut-punch to see both Nerys and Sab looking down dejectedly.

    "But hey, if you guys were on the fourth floor, why didn''t you get the bed?" Sab realized, "The entire reason we''re digging this hole is to reach it, after all."

    "The bed''s gone." Elegy admitted, "It got destroyed while we were fighting the Queen of the bat roaches."

    "What?"

    "They won''t be multiplying anymore, so we don''t have to worry about the third floor anymore." Hats looked at them, "Maybe there''s still a chance there''s another bed on the fourth floor?"

    "You guys... let the bed get destroyed?" Sab grit his teeth, "What''ll we do about Vastoria and Sheep now!?"

    Sensing he was about to blow a fuse, Nerys tried to calm him down.

    "Oi, ''oldit."

    "Don''t gimme that!" Sab ignored her, "What the hell are we even doing here anymore, then!? Digging this damned hole... For what!? Vastoria''s dead now, Hats is missing an arm, Sheep is all kinds of fucked up...!"

    "Mind ye'' tong!"

    "Mind your fucking business!" He shot back, "Elegy, we''re facing an uphill battle, so how the hell could you let yourself mess this up!?"

    "...I-"

    "Migu''s probably dead as well." Sab sighed.

    "We don''t know that."

    "Oh, and who does?!" He retorted, "Huh!? Energy?! ''Cause the way I see it, we''re fresh out of ideas now that you did this!"

    A stern smack to the face finally shut him up.

    "Zip it!" Nerys demanded, "Ye'' be whoinin'', but wot''s that gon'' do fer'' ya'', ey!?"

    "..."

    "The man''s sed da'' floor below''s saef." She added, "We keep diggin''. We''ll go ta'' the damned fort floor n'' check fer'' moor beds. If we dun'' foindem, we keep diggin''."

    "Huh? What''s that gonna accomplish?" Hats tilted his head.

    "Who knows?" Elegy smiled, recognizing Nerys'' sense of adventure, "But since these two have already started the hole, it''s only natural we follow it through until the end, right?"

    "Aye, ye'' gets it!" Nerys dapped him up, "Seafarin'', groundfarin'', saem thing once ye'' taek out tha'' nitty-gritty!"

    "We might not find anything." Sab crossed his arms.

    "Or, we might find a hidden fifth floor." Elegy refuted, "We might even find an alternative way to heal Vastoria and the others, or maybe something even better."

    Despite this speech, Sab still wasn''t all that convinced yet.

    "Pssh, what''s better than that?" He asked smugly.

    Briefly glancing at Nerys before nodding in unison, she and Elegy already knew what the other was gonna say in response to that. The answer was obvious to those who took the time to think about it.

    "What else?" They both replied, "The Vast World!"

 Vol.5 Ch.116 - Mission: Archangel

    Sheep followed the Voice to the Gods'' Abode. This being the place he was being led to didn''t surprise much at all, but he was quite puzzled by the welcome he was being given.

    "You made it safely, I see." Selzion acknowledged him with a proud smirk.

    "Obviously, with my masterful guidance!" Prylos crossed his arms.

    "You two...? Actually, forget it. I''m not even gonna ask." Sheep shook his head, "How do I become an archangel?"

    "Is there a need for such a rush?" Selzion replied back with a question of his own, "Surely, your allies face no immediate peril nor danger, and Vastoria''s state can neither improve nor diminish by itself."

    Despite this rather unexpected greeting he received from the two oddball Gods, Sheep did understand that what Selzion just said did come from a place of genuine care. After all, if Energy is no longer a problem, then he should indeed be able to take it easy.

    "Come on, have a seat!" Prylos snapped his fingers, summoning forth a comfy sofa behind him, "No good discussions were done standing up."

    "Good point." Selzion tacked on, "Besides, if you are the only one standing, that makes us lousy hosts. For now, we should consider you our equal."

    They were bending over backwards just to accommodate him, and though most anyone would be enthralled to hear the Gods consider him their equal, Sheep could only feel off put. Prylos sounded like he might''ve actually meant it, but Selzion had already long since established himself as someone prideful and egotistic. Even the mere thought of being not unlike a human was vexing to him, and Sheep knew that.

    "I suppose I''ll take you up on that offer, then." Sheep faked a smile as he sat down, "Then, archangel business!"

    "It''s no use, our guest here is far too jumpy." Selzion remarked.

    "I guess there''s no more stalling it out..." Prylos slumped forward, "To tell you the truth, Shopkeeper, this is gonna be highly dangerous."

    Finally, the Gods were honest with him for a change.

    "I''m sure you''ll be fine." Sheep replied.

    "Not dangerous for us, dangerous for you." He explained, "Becoming an archangel requires you to do something that is of genuine help to us. In this case, we have an idea that would surely do the trick, but well..."

    "It''s got something to do with that Book, doesn''t it?" Sheep suddenly asked flat-out.

    "Huh?" They both blinked, "How did you know?"

    "You''ve both been sneaking glances at that lectern for a while now. I knew that giant Book had something more to it than just the key to revival, and you''re saying we''re gonna need to use it to turn me into an archangel. It''s the only logical explanation."

    The two Gods were astonished beyond words at his sleuth skills. Sheep was no amateur in the art of using his brain, which came with both good and bad news respectfully. On one hand, this made explaining the plan a lot easier, as he would surely understand the intricacies at play here, but on the other hand...

    "Ahem, that certainly caught me off guard." Selzion cleared his throat.

    "You might have yourself an apprentice on your hands, Selz!" Prylos nudged him, "What do you say? Wanna give it a shot?"

    "Ugh, I''d rather find a way to kill myself than that." Both Sheep and Selzion said in unison, and with the same annoyed tone to boot.

    "It''s true, we''ll need the Book''s help for this." Prylos hopped off his large seat to make his way to the altar, "What we will teach you by doing this is something that you must never tell anyone. Doing so will lead to many problems for everyone involved, you and your friends included. Do you understand?"

    Picking up the Book from the lectern, he walked back over to the other two, only to slowly place it closed on the ground. The hard covers were far too heavy for Sheep to attempt to lift open, and the pages were almost as thick as his finger. In short, Prylos was safe to do this much, because there was no way Sheep could ever peer inside the gigantic Book.

    "I get it. My main goal is to avoid just that, so it works out for everyone." Sheep nodded, "What else?"

    "We''re afraid to tell you more." Selzion revealed, "This could very well blow up in everyone''s faces. If not done correctly, you could end up getting your soul completely destroyed."

    "I''m..." Sheep resolutely agreed, "I''m willing to accept those terms."

    "In that case, here is the plan." Prylos opened the Book.

    Though Prylos opened it, Sheep still hadn''t quite reached the "Book" part of it. That''s because he only had the cover''s inside shown to him, as any more was deemed too dangerous for now.

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    "Your task is to bring all of your friends here." He continued, "This includes Sab."

    "Sab..." Sheep worried, "And just to be clear, the bounty on his head is gone, right?"

    "We... will look into making that the case." Selzion had to suffer an awkward pause mid-sentence there, "Though we cannot promise you anything, Shopkeeper. If we see that he''s starting to cause trouble for us once more, then we might still have to destroy him."

    "That sounds fair." Sheep looked down at the heavy Book beneath his feet, "Now, if that''s all, couldn''t you have told me that back at the Shrine?"

    "Ah, but that''s not all." Prylos explained, "Because you won''t be able to look for them physically. They are irretrievable, hence you will need to use this..."

    Sheep was finding great difficulty in trying to understand what their plot was with this, yet the further he went along, the more it seemed like they genuinely just wanted to bring the others away from danger. Whether or not to believe them, Sheep knew not anymore.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You will need to bring them back here, all of them, to this very room." Selzion explained, "We shall permit you to use the Book, albeit only the cover page."

    "Why am I not allowed to see the rest?" Sheep wondered.

    "That is not something you need to know."

    They were being secretive about certain topics, which Sheep greatly suspected. Then again, if all it takes for him to become stronger than a seraphim¡ªnot to mention recreate the bed to heal everyone¡ªis for him to round his allies up, then Sheep had no qualms about it.

    "Right." Sheep intently stared at the Book for a good few moments before looking back up, "...What do I do, exactly?"

    "The Book has two main functions, of which you will be utilizing only the second." Prylos elaborated, "You will be given a pen to write with. Inscribe inside it your wish to see all of them in this room."

    "So it''s a wish-granting Book?" Sheep raised an Eyebrow, "Can''t I just wish to become an archangel then? Or better yet, just wish for a new bed."

    "It is not so simple."

    Though, it sounded pretty simple to Sheep. Regardless, the Gods then went on to explain to him the real power behind the Book.

    "If you may recall, it was with this very Book that we have returned Vastoria and Energy from the fourth floor." Prylos reminded him, "In essence, consider it like a... teleportation Book of sorts."

    "Oh yeah! Speaking of that incident, it wasn''t true at all!" Sheep called him out, "You two previously warned us that falling asleep on that bed will make you sleep for eternity, but now you''re fully admitting the fact it can heal Vastoria and me! What''s the deal?"

    The Gods, panicking, had to think up something on the spot. Sheep wasn''t willing to let them go without giving them a hard time first.

    "Does the journey matter in the face of results?" Selzion retorted, "We gave you that shallow lie to deter you from getting hurt in that Shrine again. You disobeyed, and look what happened."

    "Yeah, if you had just listened to us from the start, we wouldn''t even have to be doing all this to fix you guys." Prylos pouted, "We''re doing everything in our power to make everyone happy, and you''re just causing more work and worry¡ªfor you and for us!"

    "..."

    They got him there.

    "You guys gotta understand, I wanna trust you¡ªI really do¡ªbut how can I know for sure that I can?" Sheep asked.

    "Just think about it for a moment and the answer will come to you." Prylos suggested, all smiles, "Or Meditate, if you will."

    Finding his on-brand advice enticing, Sheep briefly sat there thinking about it. Choosing not to trust them will mean he''ll have to go back to find his friends without their help, and the Gods will also reinstate the headhunt. On the other hand, if he chose to trust them, then they''d definitely help him get his friends, and the headhunt will at the very least be paused until a repeat offence. By that point, even if something bad did happen, he really couldn''t see the issue in putting a little bit of faith into the Gods.

    "So, did you come up with an answer?" Prylos saw Sheep open his Eyes once more.

    "Tell me what I need to do." He nodded.

    The plan was simple. Sheep would be given a pen to write with, and he would write down exactly what the Gods told him to write on the Book''s cover page. After that, if nothing goes wrong, everyone in the party should be brought to the Abode, thus turning Sheep into an archangel.

    "Are you ready, Shopkeeper?" Selzion asked him once more, "I feel the need to ask just once more if you are skillful with the pen."

    "If you''re asking if I know how to write, the answer is a resounding yes." Sheep groaned.

    "Messing up even a single letter, nay¡ªeven a single word¡ªcould spell disaster for everyone." Prylos explained.

    "If you''re so uncertain, then why don''t you two write it down?"

    "A person can only use the Book once for someone else." Selzion shook his head, "We used it to bring Vastoria and Energy back."

    "Oh."

    "If that''s all, then please listen." Prylos began to dictate, "In their most inopportune of times, the heroes of this tale beeth summoned by the protagonist to an Abode of the Gods'' belonging."

    "...of the Gods''... how do you spell belongings again?" Sheep glanced up.

    "Gyah!"

    "Heh, just kidding! Got you good, didn''t I?"

    "You...! Did that Elegy''s stupid demeanor¡ªus forbid¡ªrub off on you!?" Selzion stormed.

    "Shopkeeper, you must understand that this is a very serious ritual. If you were unsure, you should have warned us..." Prylos breathed a sigh of relief.

    "Never mind that." Sheep glanced around, "Why aren''t they here yet?"

    Fretting for a second or two that he actually did mess up his spelling somewhere, or perhaps his handwriting had gotten the better of him here or there, he double and even triple checked for errors, only to find none. This in fact only fueled his worries more once he realized nothing was happening even if he got everything right.

    "Give it a few minutes." Selzion smirked, "I''m sure they will be arriving soon enough."

    "And what will we do if they don''t?" Sheep inquired.

    "There is no need for such a fuss." Prylos chuckled, "They will arrive without question. It might be in a few minutes, or a few seconds, or even... Right now!"

    Snapping his fingers as he struck a dramatic and cool pose, Prylos embarrassed himself in front of the other two for not calling the timing correctly. In fact, he only made himself look worse by remaining in that same pose indefinitely.

    "You gonna sit back down?" Selzion facepalmed.

    "They will arrive soon, and when they do, this will count." Prylos blushed.

    "How the hell does that work!?" Sheep shot back, "You can''t just keep posing for hours and say you got it right, dammit!"

 Vol.5 Ch.117 - Sierra

    "You''re saying you destroyed an entire nest of those things!?" Sab shrieked at the smug Elegy.

    "And he did it all without even breaking a sweat!" Hats hyped him up even more.

    "Ehh, a few sweats were broken." Elegy flexed his muscles, "But mostly the bugs were the ones getting broken, haha!"

    "Greht job, mate." Nerys slowly clapped for him, "Nau get ta'' pickin''!"

    "Oi! Th''onleh thin'' Oi''m pickin''s mah eer!" Elegy retorted, "Let Sab dewit since''s already willin''!"

    The surprise of Elegy knowing a dialect somewhat near Nerys'' own came as quite the shock. Couple this with his incredible swordsmanship, and you really do have a man of many talents on your hands.

    "Whoa, that sounded pretty good just now." Sab figured.

    "You think?" Elegy chuckled.

    "Yeah, I hardly got a single word out of it, so it must be Nerys'' accent." He tacked on.

    "Euwe twits dun''no nuthin'' about me accent!" She hissed back, "We sound nuthin'' aloike! In fac'', Oi'' know me''s a Hianic dialec'' when Oi'' hears wun''!"

    "Hianic?" Hats tilted his head.

    "A country from the old world." Elegy explained, "And yeah, that''s the correct dialect, though I doubt it''s my native one if I don''t speak it subconsciously."

    Depending on where in the world you were born, you might speak in a different way or even a different language altogether. This rule rings true in most worlds that could exist, fictive or realistic in nature.

    "So what''s Nerys''?" Sab asked.

    "Heck if I know." Elegy shrugged, "Probably just a random seafarer accent she picked up from fellow crewmate she sailed with."

    "Fer'' tha'' las'' taem! Oi''m not a...!" Nerys stopped, "Eh? Y-Ye'' got it roight, mate!"

    "Why wouldn''t I? You already said you''re not a pirate. Calling you that even after you told me you''re not it would be extremely rude."

    "...Ye'' kud pick ap a few thin''s from ''im, laddie." She turned to Sab with a smug grin, "Matey ''ere''s got it locked n'' loaded."

    This entire time they were talking, not a single swing of the pick was taken. At first this little chatting session was meant to be a necessary break so that everyone could get acquainted and caught up on the situation, but it quickly grew into a huge procrastination session where everyone knew someone had to start swinging, but no one wanted to be the one to speak up and risk getting the work tossed on them.

    "Ignore his empty words of flattery." Sab rolled his Eyes, "The type of person that Elegy is basically always wins you over at the start, then bares his true fangs once he''s already got you in his claws."

    "Darn, I sound scarier than the beasts we''ve faced so far." Elegy remarked.

    "Guys, isn''t it about time we resume digging?" Hats sheepishly raised the question.

    "Not yet." Everyone shot back in unison.

    They really¡ªREALLY¡ªdidn''t want to do this whole digging thing.

    "Sigh, then I''ll do it." Hats begrudgingly picked it up himself.

    "Sitcher'' arse daun, lil'' boye!" Nerys pulled him back, "Wid'' dat wun'' arm a'' yus'', yain''t diggin'' squat."

    "I don''t need your coddling!" Hats tried to pry himself free, but her soft body and strong pull all but disabled him, "Wahh~"

    "Quit molesting the damned kid, Nerys." Sab glared.

    "Oi''m givin'' ''im tha'' lav'' n'' affekshin'' ye'' didn''t!"

    "Kids need all that in spades, yes, but it''s important for them to learn the value of hard labor." Elegy educated them, "Without this core factor, he''ll only grow up to be a slob."

    "Aren''t I already grown up?" Hats raised an Eyebrow.

    "In body, but not in spirit. You gotta grow into that huge body of yours, kid." Elegy explained, "You''re right to want to be the bigger man here and take the pick for yourself. I''m proud of you, kid! You''re gonna be just like me before you know it!"

    Throwing out ideas left and right of Hats becoming a master adventurer and swordsman like Elegy was indeed a successful way to motivate him into digging, but Nerys still disliked this scammy use of Hats'' naivety.

    "He''s troyin'' ta'' trick ya'' inta'' doin'' oll tha'' werk."

    "I don''t mind, what he said was true." Hats smiled.

    "If it''s so true, then why didn''t Elegy offer to dig first?" Sab chimed in.

    "Because unlike you two, I actually want to teach the kid some proper lessons about life." Elegy snapped back, "I''ll be darned if he doesn''t learn to live completely fine on his own in this place. See how important being the capable one in the group is?"

    "Oh, so this was all just an elaborate way to get us to praise you for swinging that stick around, huh!?" Sab pointed at the serrated sword, "Just ''cause you can lug that huge chunk of iron around with ease doesn''t mean you''re hot shit!"

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "Language."

    "Who cares!?" Sab yelled, throwing his arms up, "I''m in Heaven, who''s gonna judge me if I swear all I want now that I''ve already crossed the Pearly Gates!?"

    The three could only return him a deadpanned stare as they pointed straight up.

    "...A-Apart from those Two."

    "Why do you even care so much?" Hats raised a point, "I''m offering to do the work none of you are willing to put up with, so isn''t that good for you?"

    "S''not gud." Nerys shook her head, "Ye'' be a kid, boye''. Ye'' wanna kno'' hwat kids werkin'' adult jobs arr'' called?"

    ".........?"

    "They be slaevs!" She startled him a bit, "Choild slaevs which git toss''d off tha'' plank once they git old nuff ta'' retaliate!"

    "Hold on, now." Elegy chuckled, "I think what we''re doing is a little bit different, ha-ha..."

    "Hau so, matey?" She turned to him, "Coz'' th''way Oi'' see it, yer'' way a'' tutorin''s gun'' get ya'' boye kill''d wun dae..."

    The wound cut deep, Nerys wasn''t pulling any punches there. Both were correct in their own ways, and depending on the eras they hail from, there is definitely a right answer to be found among them, but this only made the hurtful phrase sting more. Elegy waited an unbearably long time in silence before suddenly springing to his feet.

    "...Fine, give me the pick."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Seemingly offended beyond reason, Elegy then went on to dig for the next hour without taking a break or even slowing down at all. The others at first felt bad for making him do it, then they saw the results, but after about 45 minutes they all collectively decided enough was enough.

    "Oi, giver ''ere." Nerys put her hand out, "Ye'' did enuff'', thank euwe."

    "..."

    "Yo, Elegy, broski. Hand me the pick, you''re probably tired as hell." Sab nudged him, "We all know you''re trying to act tough to get back at us, so you don''t need to-"

    "Back. Off." Elegy glared back, "I might accidentally hit you on the swing back."

    "Elegy, I''m sorry. This is all because of me." Hats thought to apologize.

    "...I did this to myself." Elegy quietly uttered.

    It seemed no matter what they tried to do, he wouldn''t let up. Elegy was determined to dig his way to the very bottom, wherever this bottom may be. Eventually, Sab realized he wasn''t interested in taking a break anytime soon.

    "Then, I''m gonna go get some fresh air." He glanced up, "Sheep is probably worried about us, and I haven''t checked in with him in a while."

    "Okay, have fun." Elegy kept swinging.

    "Dah-! Ugh, whatever."

    Extending his wings fully in this cramped hole they had dug out, with but a single mighty flap, he was already gone. Beneath him, all of the rubble they had dug out previously was raised, dirtying everyone in the process.

    "Dammim''..." Nerys cursed under her breath.

    "......."

    Elegy just kept silently digging. Either he was in the zone or he just didn''t have anything to talk about, but after seeing how much all of them worried about him, his anger did fade slightly. Soon, he hit another brick layer.

    "This must be the third floor, then." He smiled.

    "The third floor again?" Hats whined, "But we were just there~"

    "Nerys wasn''t." Elegy glanced at her, "Besides, we didn''t have a pick before. We might yet find something that''ll lead us closer to healing Vastoria."

    "Matey, ye'' be sertin'' tharr'' be no bogs around no more?"

    "Mn, maybe I missed a few stragglers." Elegy figured, "But they don''t have a way to reproduce, I killed their Queen after all."

    "I thought you said you weren''t scared of bat roaches?" Hats raised an Eyebrow.

    "Oi''m not." She looked away, "Jus''... They be annoyin'' if they get big, ye'' kno''?"

    "Well, these ones are bigger than Hats and me combined." Elegy chuckled.

    "No wae!"

    Filling her head with as much truthful trivia about the bat roaches as he could, he made sure to accentuate every possible detail he could think of until the image in her head made her shiver. Elegy enjoyed teasing more than anything, and Nerys was the perfect new target.

    "Oh, whoops." Elegy broke through, "Watch your step, we can see the jungle grass down below."

    "Nooooo~! Dun'' wanna!" She latched onto Hats for safety, "Boye''! Tell ''im ta'' go firs'' n'' check if it''s oll roight ta'' fall!"

    "Elegy..." Hats sighed.

    To put it bluntly, she went from reassuring Hats he''ll be alright in her care to becoming someone in need of even Hats'' care.

    "You better hold on tight, in that case~" Elegy swung once.

    "Noooo!"

    "Cause at this rate...!" He swung a second time.

    "Please, don''t dew this!"

    "Woohoo~!" Elegy smiled as they quickly hit the ground soon after with a thunk, "Ow."

    Looking around and, as expected, not a single bat roach was around anymore. Even shouting at the top of his lungs to provoke them did nothing but instill more fear and anxiety into Nerys. The power of spreading rumors is immaculate.

    "Then, what now?" Hats asked him, "Are we gonna explore a bit or keep digging?"

    "What do you wanna do?" Elegy tossed the question back at him.

    "Nah! Nuh uh! Absolutely not!" Nerys interrupted them, "We be diggin'' outta ''ere!"

    Snatching the pick out of his hands finally, she seemingly went into overdrive with it as she dug directly out of the third floor. It didn''t even take her ten minutes with her speed, surprising both Hats and Elegy at the same time.

    "You could dig that fast this entire time?" Elegy questioned her.

    "Oi'' dun'' loike bogs!" She let out a pathetic whimper before resuming her full-mast excavating.

    "Is that so." Hats cleared his throat, "You better hurry it up then, Miss Nerys. I saw something huge and dark in the distance."

    "Gyahhh!"

    Finally, some of Elegy''s personality was starting to rub off on the kid, though many would question if the things he picked up werew the right things. Doesn''t matter though, since it brought them closer to the goal in less time, plus Elegy was proud at least.

    "Wait, what''s that buzzing?" Elegy glanced out of the hole.

    "Zip it, matey!"

    "It''s getting louder..." Hats whispered into her ear.

    "Y-You too, lil'' boye!" She pointed the pick at him, "Ye''ll be gettin'' a spankin'' if you keep at it!"

    "Seriously, that severe?" Elegy jeered, "Hoo boy, we might have to stop then."

    "Wait, really?" Hats looked sad.

    "Yeah, it''s actually quite bad to be jinxing bad luck like we''re doing right now." Elegy explained, "They say no matter how improbable or impossible, if you do make fun of them, it''ll only hurt more when a real bat roach shows up~"

    With milliseconds to spare on the dodge, Elegy''s quick reaction time saved him from getting a pick to the face. He ducked just in time, but hit his head after, as it got stuck on the wall behind him. Craning their heads to a livid Nerys, they finally understood just how far they took it.

    "Got anythin'' ta'' say?" Her Eyes saw Red as she asked.

    "Yeah." Elegy pointed out, "Imagine if a bat roach showed up right as you threw this. You''re left weaponless, why would you do that?"

    "Grrrrahhh...!!!"

    Soon enough, Energy learned the same thing Sab did¡ªthat being to NEVER get on Nerys'' bad side.

 Vol.5 Ch.118 - The End

    The group had made it past even the fourth floor by now. Sadly, they never got to dig through it due to how the Shrine was set up, but they also didn''t have anything to do in there either now that the beds were gone.

    "Well, we''re officially no longer in the Shrine''s barrier." Elegy said, "I can feel the White parts of my body getting numb again."

    "Gah!"

    "Nerys! What''s wrong?!"

    "Disorientatin''..." She shivered, "Roights n'' lef''s jus'' switch''d."

    Given she was half and half, this reaction was to be expected, though none of the others thought about it before. The scare, they felt however, was more than unnecessary.

    "So how long do we have left until we can stop digging?" Hats asked.

    "Until we reach the Living World." Sab replied.

    "In otha'' wurds, notta'' clue."

    "Easy for you to say when I''m the one actually digging." Elegy glared back.

    After scaring her enough, Elegy had to endure a hellish revenge from Nerys'' slaps and fists. Back then, he managed to block the initial few hits with ease, but given the tight space they were in, as well as the fact he refused to hit back, and eventually even the legendary swordsman fell against the female seafarer. As the loser, he was forced to keep digging until the bitter end.

    "Much to my dismay..." Elegy muttered under his breath.

    "Wot wuz'' dat?"

    "B-Be that as it may!" He jolted, "What will we even do if we reach the World below?"

    "Oh right, I wonder if we''ll remain in these bodies or not..." Sab glanced at his own.

    "What will we do if the people don''t accept us?" Hats worried.

    "Oi! Wot''s tha'' worryin'' about?" Nerys hugged him over the shoulder, "We''ll jus'' be sailin'' tha'' seas, in that caes, har har!"

    Of course, it wouldn''t at all be that simple. As romantic as that idea sounds, it just wouldn''t be viable for anyone but Nerys herself. Few people are good with sailing in general, so expecting a bunch of inexperienced men to suddenly pick up its intricacies in a flash is nothing if not wishful thinking.

    "Ignoring the fact these guys don''t know anything about seafaring..." Elegy pointed at Hats and Sab, "Who even knows what era we''ll end up in."

    "Ah, that''s right." Sab agreed, "The best we could hope for is if we end up in my modern era, but there''s a very real chance we end up in one of yours."

    "Er'' werse¡ªan era nunnav'' as hail frum." Nerys pointed out.

    This was, by all accounts, treading into the unknown. Beneath them, neither safety nor danger were guaranteed. Hell, they might even end up digging for infinity, searching for an end that may never arrive. Then again, the deeper they got, the more their resolution grew. They didn''t wanna back out, not after how far they''ve come. Regardless, this didn''t mean they had other qualms.

    "What will we do about Vastoria?" Sab asked.

    "Huh?"

    "Are we abandoning her?" He reiterated, "And Sheep too, not to mention Migu. Aren''t they our friends?"

    "W-We..." Hats bit his tongue as he nervously looked over at Elegy.

    "...Hey now." Elegy chuckled, "Who said we were gonna leave them? Obviously we''ll go back to get them!"

    "But Vastoria needs to get healed first!"

    "...We''ll figure it out."

    He was running out of things to say. In truth, Elegy had accidentally forgotten all about the allies that brought them this far. It wasn''t intentional, and this was only the case because of his thirst for adventure. He felt bad, but chances were he''d have to hold off on actually digging to the bottom until they were all rounded up.

    "You can''t figure it out." Sab crossed his arms, "Even if we did heal her, we''d still need to dig a separate hole for Sheep since he can''t pass through the Shrine''s barrier."

    "Dude, if we heal one, we heal the other!" Elegy''s anger rose.

    "Then what about Migu, huh!?" He shouted, "You think she''s just gonna fall from the air, huh?!"

    The other two wanted to step in, but the air between Elegy and Sab was far too bitter. The tension was at an all-time high, and it was anyone''s guess as to who was gonna swing first and when, including the two men. Elegy couldn''t take it anymore, however...

    "Then what the hell do you want from me!?"

    "I want you to think about your teammates, dammit!" Sab shot back, "Leaving them behind... Even I wouldn''t do that to you, and you caused me the most trouble of all!"

    Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    "...Then you do it." Elegy spat at him before continuing to dig, "You think you''re so good, round ''em up yourself."

    "Matey!"

    "Elegy!"

    "Hrm..." Sab extended his wings, "I guess I will."

    "Laddie, nau holup'' jus'' a sec!"

    "You too, Elegy, you two need to make up!" Hats stepped in as well.

    Just then, everyone went dead silent. They heard something from above, fast approaching. A terrifying, blood-curdling scream that would make anyone tremble. Elegy didn''t dare swing even once more, and Sab refused to fly up in fear of having to face off against whatever the source of this screaming was.

    "C-Come on, dig!" Sab ordered Elegy.

    "Excuse me!?"

    "I don''t know what that shrieking is, but in case you haven''t noticed¡ªit''ll be here any minute!" Sab took the pick from him and started digging himself, "We could reach the other side any second now, so we better dig until the very last moment!"

    As if motivated like never before, Sab dug with an incredible vigor to him. After a few more speedy and strong swings, he eventually did it. With this, they had reached a thin layer of metal. Tapping on it suggested the other side was at the very least hollow, meaning they are most likely at the border between worlds.

    "Find a way to dig through it!" Everyone scrambled for an answer.

    "Come on...! Break, damn you!" Sab swung at the metal sheet to no avail.

    "Crap, the shrieking is here...!" They glanced up, "No-!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    I jumped down the hole. I did it, and I didn''t look back. Well, not like I could anyways. Gravity just wouldn''t allow me any takebacks, I''m afraid. How cruel.

    "Migu, calm down!" The brain in my hands shouted.

    "Ahhhhh~!"

    Though it may seem on the outside that I am very scared¡ªinternally, I''m terrified. Yeah, these screams show only but a fraction of my true power... The power to shriek like a scared idiot.

    "Seriously, quit it! We don''t know who''s down there!" Energy shushed me, "We need to make a good first impression."

    "Yeah!? Well, going splat isn''t exactly the best first impression to give somebody either!"

    Geez, just how deep is this hole!? We''ve been falling for so long, my throat actually got tired. Not like that''s gonna stop me from shouting though, that''s here to stay.

    "I-I know!" I tried reaching for the walls, "If I try to just grab on to the side..."

    "Don''t!" He stopped me, "At best, you''ll rip your fingers off, at worst¡ªyour entire arm." Energy explained, "Either way, it won''t stop your fall."

    "Then what do I do?!"

    "Pray that whoever''s at the bottom will break your fall."

    We expected the hole to end somewhere inside the Shrine, meaning I could just land on my feet without any issues, but my body''s already starting to numb up again. This is an issue, my echoes are already starting to grow weaker, meaning we''re closing in on the bottom. I''ll need to somehow land on my spine...

    "...Tch, sorry, but bear with it!" I clicked my tongue, holding his brain out in front of me, "My shoulder isn''t gonna like this, but it''s better than dying!"

    "Oi, you''re gonna use me to break your fall!?" He yelped.

    "You can''t feel any pain anyways, so who cares!?" I braced for impact, "Ngahhhh~...!"

    I had my Eyes closed, but my shoulder definitely informed me when we hit the ground. Surprisingly, we broke clean through in spite of this. Just when I had hoped to stand on both feet again, I found myself in a freefall state once more. Peeking my Eyes open, I was astonished by the view splayed out before me.

    "W-Whoa..." I gawked at the expanse in front of me, "Is this... the Living World?"

    "M-" Gale''s voice made my head turn, "Migu! It''s you, isn''t it!?"

    "Matey, ye'' kno'' this lass!?" A girl with twintails and a funny accent asked.

    "You guys, more importantly..." Sab yelled, "We''re still falling!"

    Oh, right. I was just way too baffled by this lineup that it totally slipped my mind. The atmosphere around us was still dark, signifying we were in space. Regardless, something was indeed pulling us to the ground. From this high up, it''s only possible to make out the basic geography of the planet. I couldn''t quite make out any giveaways about what era we were in, but this was definitely the world I used to live in.

    "Beautiful, isn''t it?" I smiled.

    "Uwooh~" Twintails inquired, "Holup, whoi''s it curv''d?"

    "Whoa, you''re right!" A golden one armed hunk added, "Is this another illusion from Heaven?"

    "You idiots, the world is a sphere." Sab rolled his Eyes, "Common knowledge."

    "No wae!"

    Guess those two are quite old themselves. To not know the world isn''t flat, they must be more ancient than Throne...

    "Sab, can you still use your wings?" Gale asked.

    Just as he asked this, Sab''s golden wings melted behind him.

    "I... can''t." He glanced back, "Huh, not just the wings...!"

    The same happened to all of us as well, or rather, our gilded parts. Gale''s scars, Sab''s hoops, the guy''s arm, the girl''s... entire half. We were back to completely White beings, albeit some of us still missing some parts.

    "What''s happening!?" I yelled.

    "Guess we''re left with no other way to find out!" Gale was oddly enough grinning, "Whoa, the sky is slowly turning from black to Blue!"

    "We''re entering the atmosphere!" Sab explained, "This means air is finally around us!"

    Oh, so we didn''t need air before. That''s good to know. So if we survive this, will I be able to breathe underwater? I kinda don''t wanna find out, though. Just bring me to land and I''ll be happy. But to think that we did it. This isn''t an illusion, it''s really here, after all this time...

    "You guys still numb?" Gale asked.

    "Yep!"

    "Yeah."

    "Aye!"

    "Looks like we''ll be landing somewhere in the desert of Abyssus Solis." He could hardly keep his excitement in check, "It''s gonna be a trek and a half until we find any form of civilization, but so long as we stick together, it should be fine!"

    "Almost there!" Sab''s voice cracked, "Nerys, let go of my hand, dammit!"

    "Oi''m scarred!" She pouted, "At leas'' gimme sum'' courage, laddie!"

    Soon, the one armed guy also latched onto her. Following suit, Gale grabbed Sab''s other hand before extending his right to me. I guess we''re doing this. I''d form a circle with the one armed guy, but for obvious reasons that''s not quite possible. The ground was fast approaching, and Sab lost his wings. All we could do was wait and hope for the best now.

    "Shall we do a countdown?" Elegy asked warmly.

    "Ten." I started us off, "Nine, eight..."

    "Seven." They all started chanting after me, "Six, five."

    Five more seconds. It hardly feels real, but in five more seconds we''ll have escaped Heaven 2.0. This isn''t the end, though. We still need to find a way to bring Vastoria and the others over as well.

    "Four!" We continued, "Now, everybody! Three, two, one...!"

    Admittedly, I closed my Eyes at the last moment. Can you really blame me? I was about to faceplant on the hot, hard sand after falling from space, and yet I couldn''t even use my hands to shield my face. Though, when I opened my Eyes again, what I saw left me speechless.

 Vol.5 Ch.119 - Be Not Afraid, My Ass

    "Huh?" I opened my Eyes.

    "Did we make it?" The others followed suit before donning an equally mortified expression, "Oh no..."

    This is... the Gods'' Abode. What are we doing here? We were-... We were supposed to be back in the World of the Living.

    "The End, my foot!" Gale yelled at a random wall, "Nice going, author! Really jinxed us there!"

    Most of the people in the room didn''t pay him any mind, but I definitely do sympathize with that anger he''s letting out. The Gods somehow stopped us from escaping at the very last moment. Somehow... They got one over on us again.

    "Ooh! So close!" The God of Meditation mocked us, "Luckily, you have us to thank for saving you."

    "Phah! Who said we needed saving!?" Sab crossed his arms.

    "We did." The Knowledge God''s voice thundered throughout the room, "For you obviously know not of what you had just attempted."

    Pretty sure we just tried to dig down from Heaven to the Vast World. Not much to get wrong.

    "When will you understand?" Prylos pinched the bridge on his nose, "You are dead. Ergo, you are only souls. You can''t be in the Living World without a body."

    "We could try-!" Gale refuted.

    "You would merely fall through." Selzion shook his head, "You would phase through the ground until the world''s gravitational pull took you to the very center of the planet."

    "Explaen ina'' languidge we can oll undastand." Twintails groaned.

    "A fate equivalent to that of Hell." Prylos said in layman''s terms.

    "N''oh, wudn'' wont that."

    "Yeah, you wouldn''t." Prylos crossed his arms like a tired babysitter, "So don''t try it again."

    Not like we can, since the pickaxe melted. Oh wait, so did all of our golden parts, too! I was too preoccupied with these guys that I totally forgot to check!

    "Yes, your gilded parts..." Selzion noticed me inspecting my body.

    "Will they return?" Gale asked.

    "No, you''ve permanently messed that up." Prylos sighed.

    Messed up? Isn''t this good, though? The only place where not having gilded parts on you would be bad is the Shrine, and we''ve cleared it already. Right, they just don''t wanna admit it, but this is a noticeable upgrade from before¡ªfrom hereon, we''re all invincible in Heaven 2.0!

    "You do realize you''re just fanning the flames here, don''t you?" Sab smirked at the Gods.

    "In fact, we are practically bending over backwards to accomplish the exact opposite." Selzion explained, "We called you here not just to save you from yourselves, but to also call upon a truce."

    "Truce?" Hats tilted his head.

    "It means when two opposing parties..." Gale began explaining.

    "I know what it means!" Hats fussed, "I''m asking what they mean to do with it."

    "Hm." Prylos cleared his throat, "We have tried lying to you, threatening you, among other horrible things. In hindsight, we should have expected these ideas to not work."

    Shocker, I know.

    "So, we now wish to try a different approach." He continued, "Return to your district¡ªall of you¡ªand never attempt to leave again. You have everything you can ever need inside, there is no reason to explore further out."

    "We don''t got wings..." Sab muttered angrily.

    "Consider this a fresh start, then." Selzion reasoned, "No seraphimhood, no wings, no threats. You may enjoy your endless afterlife in bliss and fulfilment. Even luckier, you have each other for company."

    "Eh? Nerys is in G district too?" Gale turned to Twintails.

    "Aye." She nodded briefly enough.

    A fresh start with everyone, huh? One without any great powers or great responsibility. Just a simple restart, then. Heh, to think it actually sounds enticing if you ignore the most obvious part...!

    "Then, what about Vastoria?" I piped up.

    The Gods went silent. They refused to give an immediate answer, unlike how they''ve been doing thus far. As expected, they claim they can give us everything, but then this is suddenly a problem?

    "Yes, this issue has been brought to our attention before." Selzion finally spoke up.

    "It has?" Hats asked, "By who?"

    They glanced at each other, nodded once, then stepped aside to reveal something. A corpse, or rather, just its skin. The horrifying sight made my stomach churn, but it was only when I recognized the golden scars on it that I finally let out a scream.

    The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    "S-Sheep!" I ran to the body, "Oh Gods, what have you done!?"

    "Oh, crap...!" Gale pulled out his sword.

    "Dun'' look, boye''." Nerys blocked Hats'' Eyes, "This soight ain'' pretty..."

    Lifting up the lifeless flab of skin with my hands, I could only clench it in my frustration before glaring heavily at the Ones responsible. I reached for my Flasher before being reminded of a grim detail.

    "Energy!" I jolted, "He''s...!"

    "Still here." He replied from inside my clothes, "Albeit noticeably less shinier."

    Phew, I forgot I put him there during the freefall. I was sure he had dissipated with the rest of our gilded parts, but I guess all that happened was that his brain got turned pure White. I gotta wonder how he''s still talking through brainwaves or whatever.

    "Everyone, step back!" Gale ordered, "These bastards killed Sheep. I don''t know about you, but I''d rather die fighting than stand kneeling!"

    "Hmph, of course YOU''D say that." Prylos snickered, "But we do have some good news, in that regard."

    Just then, we heard his voice speak to us. It was close, yet distant. An unfamiliar feeling different even from Energy''s case. Sheep was here, his presence could be felt, but also not. The Gods could hardly contain their laughter as they pointed behind us.

    "Hey, you guys seriously don''t recognize me?" He asked with a carefree chuckle, "Look, I''m a-"

    "M-Monster!" Hats screeched, hiding his huge body behind the comparatively tiny Nerys.

    "What are my Eyes looking at!" Sab covered them.

    "I feel like I''m going insane just looking at it!" Gale had to drop his blade.

    Hundreds¡ªnay, thousands of wings stuck to one another in a most grotesque way. Eyes peering into my very soul from all angles, I could hardly count half of them before my mind started getting fuzzy. This being is supposed to be the friendly, lovable Sheep? This is nothing but a beast...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Though his latest change in appearance may seem... unsettling, at first¡ªwe assure you that your friend is the same Shopkeeper as ever." Selzion explained.

    "Huh? Migu, that thing behind you...?" The bundle of Eyes and wings slowly approached, "Whoa, is that my old body? Freaky..."

    "What the hell happened to you, man?" Sab dared to ask.

    "I''m doing my part." It somehow smiled, "This is all to save Vastoria. The Gods said I''m stronger than a seraphim now."

    "And you trusted them, just like that?" Gale shot back, "Dude, have you seen yourself in the mirror?"

    "Eh? What''s wrong with...?" He turned to a glossier part of the marble floor to inspect himself before freezing up, "O-Oh."

    "Mutton shore didn'' look like the wooly fellas ye'' see on tha'' fields before, bot nau ''e definitely dosn''." Nerys joked.

    "In any case, you have him to thank for bringing you back from your perilous descent." Prylos added, "At least someone in your little ragtag group is responsible and sensible."

    "Eh?" We turned to Sheep, "You were the reason we got teleported here...?"

    An overwhelming rage befell us all. We wanted to beat him to a pulp, we wanted to chew him out for hours on end. Damn him, you''re saying we would have actually made it to the Living World if it wasn''t for Sheep making a damned deal with these lousy Gods!?

    "Wipe that proud smirk off your face, you idiot!" Gale yelled.

    "You fucked everything up, man!" Sab added, "Should''ve just done what we told you instead of trying to go above and beyond like you did!"

    "Aye, Mutton! Oi''d be long sailin'' tha'' seas had it not bin f''yer antics!"

    "H-Huh? Guys, what are you talking about?" He backed away slowly and anxiously, "Didn''t you get brought here to safety at your most inopportune moment?"

    "Inopp-!?" I gasped.

    I gasped, but then I felt a different feeling. I was beyond livid by this point, but something inside me told me not to go through with these emotions. Yeah, now that I think about it, ever since we got to Heaven, we''ve been doing nothing but bickering and getting angry at one another over dumb misunderstandings. Of course, Sheep was just trying his best to make us all happy. Besides, he did more for Vastoria''s sake than any of these bozos shunning him. He even went so far as to ruin his body to bring her back...

    "Sheep, thank you." I exhaled.

    "Huh!?" Sab raised an Eyebrow, "Migu, are you crazy? We''re still stuck in Heaven because of this moron!"

    "You heard the Gods, we''d be stuck in the center of the world had it not been for him." I explained, "We need to remain calm and think about what to do next."

    "Indeed, you are finally learning." Prylos praised me, "But you have already been given a task to fulfill."

    "What do you mean?" Gale inquired.

    "Live your afterlives in peace within the borders of district G." Selzion reminded us, "That is all you can do, and all you should do. As an archangel, the Shopkeeper is the only one who can actually heal Vastoria now."

    "But what will happen to him?" Hats asked, "He''s not gonna be able to continue to live normally looking like that."

    Of course, in solving one issue you''ve only succeeded in substituting it with another. The Gods are only causing more trouble for us after all.

    "It''s okay, guys." Sheep assured us, "I''ll manage just fine. In fact, being able to fly and see in all 360 degrees at the same time is actually pretty convenient!"

    "You sure you''re alright with this?" Gale asked just in case.

    "So long as you''re all alive and happy, I''m happy too." He smiled, "Heh, besides¡ªnot like I can take it back now anyways."

    His voice feigned indifference, but he wasn''t fooling anybody. This body, even he was grossed out by it, but he''s holding out for our sakes. Is he planning to shoulder all the burden on himself? There''s no way I''ll stand for that.

    "Sheep." I decidedly raised my hand, "Take me with you."

    "Huh!?" The gang gasped in unison.

    "You will provide nothing of value in his endeavors." Selzion warned.

    "He''s saving a friend, I''m saving a lover." I explained, "Deadweight or not, I''m not gonna let him take all the credit for this."

    The room was speechless. It was only after a few moments of awkward silence that Sheep finally broke out with a roaring laughter. The ground quaked beneath us, and horns could be heard in the background harmonizing with the hardy laugh. He really did get more powerful...

    "I don''t mind." He accepted.

    "Shopkeeper, you mustn''t bring her along." Prylos warned, "It will be dangerous for her! She will die without fail!"

    "If I do, so be it." I grinned back at them smugly, "The others can take it from there."

    "Huh? We''re not coming along too?" Sab asked.

    He wanted to protest, but stopped once he noticed me winking back at them. Of course, did you think I was just doing this to be annoying? To begin with, I''m accompanying Sheep to make sure the Gods don''t try to silently dispose of him or whatever. I know they won''t save Vastoria, they''ll just send him on a wild goose chase before telling everyone they didn''t make it. Thankfully, I''ve already learned enough about how Heaven 2.0 functions to know there indeed is a way.

    "It''ll be tough, but I''m sure we can do it." I smirked at the Gods, knowing full-well they can''t stop me, "So long as we stick together, right~?"

 Vol.5 Ch.120 - Foes Two Friends

    "I feel obligated to ask, but are you sure you''re gonna be okay?" Sheep asked.

    "Just take a look at my body. No gold in sight." I reassured him with a smile, "Besides, I got two Gods and an archangel with me."

    "This does not excuse any poor performance on your part." Selzion groaned, "You will have to endure a rigorous journey meant only for archangels, so expect hardships aplenty."

    Yeah right, your threats mean nothing to me¡ªI''m invincible! As for the journey itself, who knows where they''ll be taking us, but I''ll have to sit tight and follow behind quietly until I get my chance. To think I''d get the chance to directly travel with the Gods... I can''t mess this up.

    "You lot." Prylos snapped his fingers, Materializing a portal before Gale and the others, "Step inside and you will be brought back to G district. We trust you will remain there indefinitely."

    "And what happens if we don''t?" Sab inquired.

    "Sab, listen to them. You were allowed to continue living so long as you guys stayed there." I replied, "Don''t worry, we''ll find a way to save Vastoria and then we''ll all be together again."

    They understood the significance of the pardon they were given by the Gods, but they still refused to stay still. Of course, I know it''s not that simple to just tell them to waste away while Sheep and I do all the heavy lifting, so that''s why I''m gonna give them something to do in the meantime.

    "Hey, while we''re away, why don''t you chart out the district''s layout?" I restlessly tapped my foot on the ground, "Looking back, we still don''t really know what''s where. Go visit each others'' houses, have a little shopping spree for clothes, y''know."

    "Eezee f''you ta'' sae, lass." Nerys shook her head, "But Oi'' be rarin'' fer'' an advencha''!"

    "Too bad, ''cause all you get is the space within the district." I shrugged.

    "But we''re gonna die of boredom inside!" Hats fussed as well.

    "Rummage through my house for some games, I don''t know!" I rolled my Eyes, "Energy''s house too."

    "Huh!?" The brain in my clothes'' folds piped up, "I never allowed that!"

    "Great, so our first task is to find a way to reach Energy''s house." Gale smirked.

    "Gah!"

    All jokes aside, there''s not much I can do for them apart from giving them access to my house. Who knows, they might just find something interesting. As for me, it seems I''m gonna be the only one in our group to actually resemble a human. There''s no way I''ll stand for that.

    "Hey, you guys don''t mind being called by your names, right?" I turned to the two Gods towering behind me, "Knowledge God and Meditation God are both way too much of a mouthful to say constantly."

    "You may call us however you''d like." Selzion nodded.

    "Cool, then you''re PeePee, and he''s PooPoo."

    "You may no longer call us however you''d like."

    "Hey, can Selz and I switch?" Prylos at least heard the suggestion out, "Not that I vibe more with PeePee or anything, but he looks way more like a PooPoo than I do."

    Everyone silently agreed, in spite of Selzion''s fury. Honestly, what''s the matter with him? He said so himself that I can call them whatever I want, so what''s wrong with this? Sigh, I guess I''ll just keep it simple.

    "Then, Pee and Poo." I settled.

    "No, you were supposed to say Selzion and Prylos." Selzion groaned.

    "But that''s too boring~!" I whined.

    "Just call them Selz and Pry, like they do each other." Elegy suggested.

    "Absolutely not! Only fellow Gods get to call us that!" Selzion refuted.

    "Hey now, you did say they get to call us whatever they want." Pry turned on him.

    "You shut it!"

    And so, Pry and Selz were born. Well, their names at least. Really, these goofy nicknames serve their purpose of demistifying them in spades. It''s actually pretty refreshing, though I''ve learned something interesting with this little experiment¡ªPry is really amicable and easy to talk to. I guess that''s to be expected of the God of Meditation, but this is perfect. He is Selz'' equal, so even though he might disagree, so long as we get his colleague on our side, we''re golden. Err, wait, being golden is bad, so uhh... W-Whatever.

    "Then, it''s about time we go our separate ways." Elegy cleared his throat, "Let''s each do our best on our respective sides."

    "You mean...?" I opened my Eyes wide expectantly.

    The reaction was met only with a sly wink. He got the message, it seems. That''s good.

    "Be careful out there." Hats put his hand out awkwardly, "Sheep is super strong now, but you''re not."

    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

    "Thanks for the heads-up..." I slouched.

    "Oi'' didn'' kno'' ya'' fer'' long." Nerys was up next, "Bot'' ya'' gotta keep ya'' hed on ya'' sholders, in both senses ov tha'' meanin''! Har har!"

    "I will." I chuckled as well, "Sab?"

    "...Hmph." He silently stood before me, suddenly closing in for a hug.

    "Whoa now." Gale glared heavily at him.

    What is this? A sudden love confession? Sorry guy, but at least take me out for a cup of coffee first... is what I would say, if I wasn''t already taken. Well, he''s holding me tight, almost to the point where he''ll squish Energy between us, but I guess I''ll let him get it out of his system first.

    "Sab, you...?" I awkwardly patted him on the back.

    "You''re planning something with this." He whispered in my ear.

    "Huh?"

    "I don''t know what it is, but we''ll-"

    "That''s alright." I smiled warmly, "Just sit back and relax. I''m only tagging along to make sure Sheep stays safe, that''s really it. Don''t waste this opportunity I''ve given you."

    "...I see." He backed away, "Sorry for the hug."

    "By all means." I put my hand on my hip, "Anytime you need one, I''ll be there."

    "Boohoo, an'' when ''e has me roight ''ere too!" Nerys fake-sobbed behind him, "Wot an ungrateful laddie!"

    "Why''d I ever wanna hug a pirate like you?" He tossed back, "Your hugs probably smell like fish."

    "The ohdacity!"

    And with that, they waved us off before stepping into the portal. It was now just me, a brain, two giants and an Eyewing monster. What a lineup...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You three must be tired from your most recent adventure." Pry chuckled, "Rest up, we''ll depart once your fatigue wears off."

    Huh? That''s a surprise, I thought they would be in a rush to leave after everything that happened. Then again, they probably couldn''t care less about treating Vastoria.

    "That assumption is incorrect, Migu." Selz replied, "Our goal is to create a world wherein everyone is happy."

    "Hm? Did you say something?" Sheep turned to me.

    "She didn''t." Energy muffled from underneath my clothes, "The Gods see and know all, remember?"

    "Your brilliant friend speaks the truth." Selz continued, "You would do well to not badmouth us internally, expecting us to not know of it."

    "So you heard what Sab whispered to me earlier?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "That much is a given."

    ...

    "Well, you said to rest, but it''s not like we have anywhere to do that." I looked around the place, "Hey, set us up on that lectern there, and..."

    "No." Selz snapped his fingers, "You will sleep on these beds. They are made of the finest material, you will always find yourselves in a comfortable position on them."

    "Though, that''s just how every bed in Heaven 2.0 is." Pry added with a smirk.

    A-A bed! I haven''t slept in so long, I was beginning to think sleep was a myth altogether! What with the White Monster''s reign and the rush to explore the Shrine, I couldn''t really set aside some time for my Eyeballs, so to speak. Without even a hint of hesitation I leapt on my bed, slightly squishing Energy in the process.

    "Gyahhhh! Descendant, it''s dark in here! Lemme our!" He cried out.

    "Stuck between a woman''s chest and the world''s comfiest bed, and yet he still finds a way to complain..." I roll my Eyes, opting to turn over on my back to let him breathe a bit, "Men, am I right?"

    "He doesn''t speak for us." Sheep announced, attempting to lay down on his own bed before realising his floating monstrosity of a body really isn''t made for it, "Naw..."

    "Do not fret, Shopkeeper." Pry explained, "Archangels feel no fatigue nor mental ailments."

    "Hm, you''re right." He finally noticed, "I do feel healthier than before!"

    "You didn''t realize until now?" Selz tilted his head.

    "Working retail for countless cycles has made me always put my own mental wellbeing last."

    This depressing comment with a hint of harsh truth sprinkled on top of it left a lasting impression on us all. Despite this, we three were quite comfortable on our beds, but we couldn''t help but notice a discrepancy in this arrangement nonetheless.

    "You guys gonna keep standing there or are you gonna fix yourself up some beds as well?" I asked.

    "We have no need for rest, as we are Gods." Pry assured us.

    "They''re really comfy though~" Sheep rolled around in his bed, "And that''s coming from an archangel that supposedly shouldn''t care less about rest either."

    Curious as they were, they ultimately found no real reason to go through with creating their own beds.

    "We stand to gain nothing from such human frivolities." Selz explained, "Besides, a bed made for our size wouldn''t fit in this room, much less two beds."

    That''s true, these guys are both above 10 meters in height, so I doubt even a king sized bed would do them much. Wow, they can do practically anything as Gods, but they can''t even find a way to lay down and rest?

    "Grr...!!" Selz fumed.

    "What''s wrong, chief?" Sheep asked.

    "Count to ten, remember?" Pry tried soothing him to no avail, "She didn''t mean anything bad by it."

    "Huh? What''s going on?" I worriedly sat up from my bed.

    "You must have thought something in your mind to provoke him." Energy exhaled, "You better apologize quickly, or we''re all goners."

    Oh crap! I forgot they can read minds! Selz is Red with anger, he looks like he''s about to blow up the entire Abode!

    "...!!"

    "......." I gulped, "U-Uhm."

    "...We can!" He finally snapped back.

    Admittedly, I yelped a little. Well, more like whimpered. Can you blame me, though? I thought he was gonna snap me out of existence for a moment, but we''re still not out of the bushes. He''s livid.

    "Selz, I told you to calm down." Pry frowned, "Don''t do anything you''ll regret later."

    "She''s making a fool out of us Gods!" He prepared to snap his fingers, "Blasphemy! She claims we Gods cannot find a way to fit inside beds, well it''s time I show her that we can!"

    "H-Huh?" Pry realized, albeit far too late by now, "Wait, stop-!"

    A strong snap of his fingers echoed throughout the room, causing a storm of mist to fill the spacious room. Inhaling it caused heavy coughing, making me worry this might have been their attempt at killing us. Of course, nothing scary like that happened. No, instead when the mist cleared I spotted two new beds equal in size to our own that weren''t there before.

    "Selz, Pry!" I called out to them, realizing the towering figures in front of us weren''t there anymore, "What did you do!?"

    "I could ask him the same thing..." Pry appeared from the mist, at the very least 7 times smaller than he was before, "All this to prove a stupid point, and to make matters worse he had to rope me into it as well..."

    "Shut up and go to bed!" Selz roared from one of the two new beds, just as small, "Rejoice! For they will stand no chance against us Gods, in rest nor in fatigue! Pry, we must show them that we are better!"

    This... is certainly an interesting development.

 Vol.5 Afterword

    Over halfway there! What a journey it''s been so far, I do hope you feel the same way.

    Chaining last Volume''s success, the group this time tackled the troublesome Shrine, and even managed to subdue it fully. Without threats nor a reward to look forward to, it really has lost all of its purpose. The Gods are steadily losing ground to our heroes, but is this really the best course of action?

    Alas, Vastoria remains in her comatose state. Still on a tightrope inches away from death, she waits for Migu and the others to rescue her from her perilous predicament. Thanks to a certain swordsman, however, the medium by which they would have accomplished that had been broken. What a bummer.

    I have some big plans I sincerely hope will work out as well as they are working out in my head for the next couple of Volumes. Namely, from the latest twist, we encounter a strange scenario where the big bad and scary Gods show hints of underlying humanity within them, not to mention how they are now part of the team responsible for bringing Vastoria back.

    I would like to explore their characters a bit more. Being tired Gods all the time can''t be all that they''re good at, so I''d like to showcase their side of the story a bit more. After all, despite how sinister their goals may sound like from afar, they in fact do sincerely just want everyone that has ever, is and will ever exist to be happy. Depending on how the story progresses, we could either see Migu start to understand them on a more fundamental level, or she could still remain averse to them and their plotting nature. Anyone''s guess, really.

    The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

    As for the Volume''s layout, you may have noticed the first third being completely about Migu and Energy, before going back to explain what the others were doing in the meantime. We learn that one group really couldn''t have done it without any of the others, which was really tough to write out properly. The amount of planning and backtracking I had to do just to make sure everything aligned warrants some level of praise, you know?

    We also got to meet a new character for the first time in a while¡ªNerys Edris! I wanted to originally save her for a bit later, but I realized I was already past halfway done with the entire thing, so I figured holding out any longer would detriment her character growth. She''s a pir-err, seafarer from an unknown era. Then again, as an ever-seabound individual, it really doesn''t make too much of a difference at all when she''s from.

    And all this led to our heroes getting the closest they''ve ever been to escaping Heaven 2.0 yet. Mere centimeters away from touching down on the World of the Living, they were regrettably transported back to the top¡ª"at their most inopportune moment."

    Migu seems undeterred, however. Vastoria''s safety guides her to her latest quest, this time with a pair of very scary allies. Let''s wish her the best of luck in her future endeavours¡ªthey seem to be quite the handful...

 Vol.6 Ch.121 - Counting Sheep

    "Hold on!" I yelled, "Are we just gonna gloss over the fact you guys are... us sized!?"

    "We appreciate your delicate word choice in not outright calling us tiny." Pry chuckled.

    "I have already made my point clear." Selz replied with a pouty tone, "Your endless mockery of us Gods must cease at once. And what better way to do that than to make ourselves assume your own body sizes?"

    I still fail to see the exact logic on that one, but I suppose if it''ll make him happy, then I don''t mind. With just a snap of a finger, he managed to shrink both himself and Pry to the size of a regular human being. I''m still gonna make fun of him for being a lousy God, though.

    "I am NOT lousy!" Selz roared, "And from now on, we are not Gods, either!"

    "Eh? Hold on, so you''re saying...?" Sheep gasped.

    "Sigh, that''s right..." Pry finished the thought, "On top of getting shrunk, Selz also made it so we both lost our Godhood. As such, we are no stronger than a regular human in Heaven 2.0."

    "Wow, so you''re not lousy..." I turned to Selz with a meaningful stare.

    "Took you long enough to realize something so simple."

    "You are a horrible friend, however." I furrowed my brows, "As if wanting to prove me wrong wasn''t petty enough, you actually had to get poor Pry in on your shenanigans as well!"

    "H-Hm?" His voice cracked.

    "What the hell is wrong with you!?" I kept going off on him, "You''ve just jeopardized our entire operation, and why? Because you got your ego poked by a little girl you could literally squash like a bug!? Shame on you! For shame, Selzion!"

    I can''t believe the world I live in, where the God of Knowledge is this much of an idiot! And I know he can read my mind, so I''ll think it again¡ªhe''s an idiot!

    "Migu, that''s quite enough." Pry stopped me from angering his colleague any more, "Though, I do agree that he''s an idiot."

    "Hey!" Selz yelled.

    "Enough of you, go to sleep. It''s the main reason you got us in this mess in the first place..." Pry glared back at him, "As for the journey, you shouldn''t worry too much about it."

    "Huh? But we''re now two Gods short." Sheep tilted his head, "No pun intended."

    "Hey, good one." Pry chuckled, "Actually, the reason I say we''ll be okay is because of you."

    "Me?" He cocked his head back.

    "Remember, the only imperative on this journey is that we have an archangel in our party." Selz said, lounging comfortably on his bed, "Everything else is mostly optional."

    It''s that "mostly" that worries me, though. Well, if they say it''s okay, then who am I to judge? In any case, it''s not like they''re actually planning on helping us save Vastoria.

    "Hrm..." Selz groaned, turning his back on us.

    "What''s the matter with him?" I asked.

    "He''s offended, and frankly Migu¡ªso am I." Pry crossed his arms, "I have to ask what it''ll take for you to believe us."

    "Maybe don''t try and get us killed all the time." Energy coughed.

    "Oh come on, that was a one-" Pry bit his tongue a little bit, "T-Two time thing, okay? It won''t happen again, there''s no reason for it to happen again!"

    "Yeah, ''cause we''ve already proven it won''t work." I shot back, "Honestly, why would you assume I''d trust you at all? The only reason I''m traveling with you guys in the first place is because I''m worried about Sheep''s safety."

    "...don''t know anything..." Selz grumbled quietly.

    "What was that?"

    "You don''t know anything, do you?" He rolled back to face us, "You don''t know our goals, our convictions, our motivation, nothing! And yet you shun us for trying to give you undeserving trash a second chance!"

    "Whoa, that''s a bit harsh, isn''t it?" Sheep wondered.

    "We have allowed everyone''s souls an equal chance to live out proper lives in Heaven 2.0, and then do it all over, again and again!" Selz shouted over him, "In this environment, you can be anything you have ever dreamed to be, so why is it that you do not accept our gift to you!?"

    "T-That''s... I didn''t-" I stuttered.

    "Why, humanity!? Why have you failed your creators!?" He pleaded to hear the answer, "Must I shout for everyone to hear, but for no one to understand!? Is the gift of life so meaningless to you that you don''t even want an extension to it!?"

    "Pry."

    "Answer me, humanit-!"

    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    A snap of the fingers from Pry later, and... nothing happened. Selz kept shouting like a maniac while the rest of us anxiously tried distancing ourselves from him. It seems Pry wanted to shut him up by Materializing something, but forgot he no longer had his Godly powers. It actually took him a few more snaps before he realized it and took matters into his own hands.

    "O-Oh, right." He lightly blushed.

    "Humanity~!" Selz kept shouting as his colleague calmly approached him.

    "Selz, buddy."

    "Not now, I''m pondering the ungratefulness of humanity and their feeble existence." He briefly paused to address him, "Ahem, why humanity~!?"

    "Hrm..." Pry readied his fist, "Hey, Selz?"

    "I said...-!"

    Blammo, a strong uppercut to the chin sent the God of Knowledge straight to bed. After he got knocked out, Pry even had the decency to respectfully tuck him in as well. I guess there you have it¡ªif you''ve ever wondered how a fight between two Gods would look like, you just got your answer.

    "A lot more anticlimactic than I thought it''d be." Sheep figured.

    "Did you have to go that hard on him?" Energy asked Pry, "That could''ve easily killed him, you know?"

    "Eh? Nahh~!" Pry reassured us, "We may be humans now, but a human wouldn''t die from a punch to the chin."

    "...."

    "......Selz?" Pry tried nudging him awake, only to get no response, "W-Wakey wakey...?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    A few worthless nudges later and even the Meditative Prylos began to panic. What with them being Gods and all, I assume they don''t quite know the limits of their human bodies yet. It''s quite funny to witness, but I imagine it''s gonna get quite tiring having to constantly explain basic stuff to them soon.

    "What are you two doing?" He saw Sheep and me lying back down.

    "More importantly, you should get some rest too." I added, "You''re human, aren''t you? Fatigue is way more prominent in your body than in mine."

    He sniffled once more, obviously distraught about his friend''s safety. Sigh, he''s seriously not gonna let us sleep until he sees Selz is fine, isn''t he?"

    "Alright, stand back." I begrudgingly got up and walked to Selz''s bedside.

    "W-What are you going to do?" Pry whimpered.

    "The only thing you can do in these scenarios." I returned a confident smirk as I pinched Selz'' nose.

    "...Mph-!?"

    Just like that, Selz became livelier than ever as he struggled to break free of my trap. Obviously, he wouldn''t die from a punch to the chin. If he did, boxing would have been called a deathmatch instead. The way I found out he was alive was by noticing multiple smaller details about his state. First off, his hands were curled up into fists, indicating his fine motor skills were okay. Secondly, when Selz fell back into his bed, he was conscious enough to put himself into a comfier position. Usually people would spasm more, but he just fell unconscious. Oh, and the third part is the most important one of all.

    "You could literally see his chest going up and down, so he''s still breathing." I finally let go of his nose, "So that''s why this tactic worked so well."

    "T-The..." Selz uttered something after catching his breath.

    "What''s that?"

    "The... audacity!" He lunged at me from his bed suddenly, "A mere angel wishes to slay a God! And after all that we''ve done for you!"

    Gah, this bastard''s actually choking me out! My neck isn''t golden though, so it''s not like he''ll succeed or anything, but it''s still scary to think I''m gonna be out journeying with this lunatic.

    "Yo, stop that!" Sheep broke up the fight, "She didn''t try to kill you, Migu actually saved your life!"

    "...Hmph." He let go with a pout and a pair of crossed arms, "Saved me, how could an angel-"

    "She did, dude." Pry frowned, "We''re humans now, remember? I''m sure you do, since you''re the reason we''re mortal to begin with."

    "Oh."

    So it finally clicked in that tiny little head of his why relinquishing one''s Godhood is an extremely dumb idea? For the God of Knowledge, he really is stuck up. Even now, he only turned to me with a bewildered stare without even saying a word of gratitude.

    "Migu..." He had trouble letting go of the words in his mouth.

    "Yeah?"

    "I..." He ultimately bailed, hopping back in his bed, "I still cannot comprehend why you would willingly want to return to being a human."

    "Oh, you stupid...!"

    "Let it go, Migu." Pry stopped my mighty hand from striking him in his bed, "He''s finding himself, we must be supportive of his endeavors."

    Now this guy''s spouting crazy nonsense too! He''s not a monk living alone on a remote mountaintop to be finding himself. In fact, I find it infuriating how you would even classify "finding the strength to admit a girl saved you and thanking her" as something he needs to figure out. It''s really not that difficult, asshat!

    "That is not what I meant." Pry chuckled, lying down in his own bed as well, "I suppose you''ll understand more clearly what I''m saying after our journey. For now, it is as you said¡ªrest before departure is crucial."

    "A surprisingly mature answer." Energy babbled from within my pockets, "At the very least we have one decent person on the team."

    "Yeah, me." I proudly replied.

    "If we were to create a list and check it twice, you''d still be at the bottom."

    "Energy, need I remind you that your brain is literally small enough to fit in the palm of my hand?"

    "All brains are like that!" He fussed, "What, do you seriously think a brain is something bigger than a palmful?"

    That''s... How should I know that!? I''m neither a brain surgeon nor a neuroscientist, so obviously I''m not too knowledgeable on the average brain size. Still, I''m positice Energy''s is smaller than average!

    "Phrasing." Both Selz and Pry said in unison as they laid on their beds.

    Hrm... I totally forgot, but I''m the only girl in this group now. I hardly even met Nerys for longer than a few minutes, but I still miss her more than ever. Ugh, if Vastoria was here, we could have fun talking about all sorts of cute and silly stuff on our own, but now I have to endure nothing but rouchy dick jokes and stuck up bickering.

    "If Vastoria was here, then we wouldn''t need to be doing this in the first place." Pry suddenly spoke up.

    "Will you shut up and go to sleep already!?" I yelled, "And quit reading my mind all the time! In case you haven''t realized it yet, humans can''t do that!"

    "...Uhm." They gave each other a glance, "W-Well, technically..."

    "Everyone." Sheep rose from his bed in all his winged glory, "I just found out my wings can become razor sharp."

    "Ah, yes." Pry began to explain it in detail, "This is only scratching the surface of your new powers. Your wings can actually detach and become-"

    "I don''t think you quite understand." He primed them for fire, "Razor sharp can cut through human skin."

    "..."

    "......"

    "Goodnight, everyone." Pry nodded.

    "Yes, quite." Selz followed suit.

    Is it finally over? Can we finally go to bed now? I feel like we''ve been up all night just talking. Hell, if it wasn''t for the nights in Heaven being 24 hours long, we might''ve actually greeted dawn at this rate. I can''t believe I''m saying this, but the Gods actually cooked on that one.

 Vol.6 Ch.122 - Twin Personalities

    Morning came, and I''ve never felt more refreshed. The light rays shone down on our faces through the tall windows above, indicating it was time to head out. I sat up from my bed, rubbing my Eyes before poking the brain lying next to me.

    "Morning, did you sleep well?" I asked.

    "Surprisingly enough, I have never dreamt better." Energy replied, "It appears the lack of a skull obfuscating my brain''s breathing allowed it to fully focus on my lucidity. I could even control the dream I was having, isn''t that incredible?"

    So this was his first time experiencing a lucid dream, huh? It''s kind of sweet, gramps learned something new by himself, but I better not break his heart by telling him it''s already a known phenomenon. Rare, but known nonetheless.

    "How interesting!" I clapped my hands, "So, what did you end up dreaming about?"

    "...Happy things." He muttered bashfully.

    Soon as he said that, Prylos jumped from his own bed, looking to be quite frazzled. He glanced around the room, his Eyes darting all over before they ended up on Selzion''s face, where he finally calmed down.

    "Phew, it was fake..." He turned to me, "You''re saying you humans actually enjoy these nightly visions?"

    "When they''re dreams and not nightmares, sure." I chuckled, "What in the world happened to make you that terrified?"

    "...Bad things." He turned away bashfully.

    Are men this difficult to talk to when it comes to explaining dreams? Geez, I''m curious to know!

    "Hrm..." He heard my thoughts before sighing, "Fine, but it really wasn''t anything you should be worried about."

    "Oh goodie!" I jumped for joy, "Tell us, tell us!"

    "A-Ah?" He was slightly taken aback, "I dreamt of... Ouroboras."

    The Sun God?

    "Who?" Energy was left clueless.

    "An old friend. Your era knew not of him." Pry explained to him with a nostalgic smile, "He is currently somewhere down in the World of the Living, though we can''t even go and look for him due to our obligations being found up here in Heaven 2.0."

    They can''t find him? The Gods of this world, really? How does that even work?

    "He is a God, Migu." Pry glanced at me, "Gods cannot spectate other Gods, and he made full use of that to escape."

    "Escape, from what?" Energy inquired.

    "From his responsibilities." His Eyes grew dark, "The Sun God suddenly went ahead and reincarnated himself as a human, who now wanders the land without any knowledge of his true identity."

    Whoa, that''s actually kind of incredible. A God walking among men, eh? That''s hard to believe, but if it came straight from Pry''s mouth, then it has to be true.

    "But why would a God turn himself into a human?" Energy sounded livid, "He could create anything, see whatever sights he wanted to see, and he could be anywhere he wanted to! In contrast to that, being a human has no merit!"

    "I wouldn''t be so harsh..." I bit my tongue.

    Of course, I wouldn''t¡ªbut Energy hails from a cursed era. Obviously he would wish to be more powerful, more secure, so as to live a carefree life. As a God, he could surely turn the tides against that plague that overtook his world. He could probably save his loved ones and friends from meeting all sorts of terrible fates, and yet the Sun God purposefully made himself weaker.

    "Actually, I have to agree with Energy." I shook my head, "I just don''t understand why he would do that to himself."

    "That is what we Gods wish to know as well." Prylos chuckled, turning to the snoring Selzion resting on his bed, "This one, for example, was so eager to find out the reason behind such a drastic action, that he even thought to put us through the same trial."

    Neither Energy nor I could even think of what to say to that. Now it was starting to add up, why Selzion was so emotional last night, why he held so much contempt for humanity. He wasn''t just a grouchy God, he was someone who had lost a friend, and to the very humanity that he and Prylos were taking care of in the afterlife.

    "And this God, you do not detest him for his actions?" Energy blurted out.

    "Detest? If you were ever blessed to have met him in your lifetime, you would know that such an idea is unfathomable." Pry chuckled, "Ouroboras was truly as bright as the Sun he signified. Tell me, could you ever bring yourself to hate the Sun?"

    This retort was delivered calmly and charismatically. Pry''s only goal with it was to enlighten us, and we could tell from his tone.

    "Well, once you figure out why anyone would want to become a human, will you return to being Gods?" I inquired.

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    "Ah, that''s the thing." Pry slouched, "He put a fixed timer on this arrangement, meaning regardless of whether or not we figure out the answer, we''ll only turn back into Gods once 252 hours have elapsed."

    That''s a big number...

    "Yaaawn~! Ugh, what a dream." Sheep woke up shortly after, "I dreamt that I was munching on a field of grass, then some guy ran up to me and punched me."

    "Weird. What happened then?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "I gave him two pieces of wool."

    Just what the heck was he dreaming about? Of course the one guy actually willing to tell me the contents of his dream ends up telling me something completely nonsensical...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Now that I think about it, we kind of got off-topic." I turned to Pry once more, "You never did tell us what exactly happened in your nightmare to make you jump like that."

    "Oh what?" Sheep laughed, "The Meditation God himself had a nightmare? There are whole LAYERS of irony to that statement!"

    "...Ahem." Pry cleared his throat, "As I said, I dreamt of the Sun God Ouroboras." He continued, "We met at the top of Mount Ivrys. A regular occurrence for us Gods, but I found it unusual how none of the other Gods were there as well."

    The tallest mountain in the Living World, Mount Ivrys. Said to be the meeting place of the Gods. To think the legends were true...

    "He informed me of a rather dark piece of info." Prylos shivered just from recalling it, "He told me the others had died."

    "The other Gods did?" Energy gasped.

    "Can Gods even die?" I asked.

    "There is... a way." He stopped himself from elaborating further, "But for that to happen, many improbabilities would have to align first. Effectively, we are indeed immortal."

    "But it''s not impossible." Sheep nodded along, "Which made you panic in that moment."

    "Yes, the mere thought shook me awake." He admitted, albeit a tad abashedly, "I immediately ran to check on Selz, but thankfully he was doing that "breathing" thing with his chest which you''ve informed me of previously, so I knew everything was alright."

    "Hmm, I dunno." Energy figured, "He looks pretty dead to me. Snoring is a clear sign, you know?"

    "Gah!" The poor God panicked, pushing his friend off the comfy bed.

    Selzion crashed loudly on the ground, finally waking up dead last. Rubbing his sore head from the thunk, he angrily got up to ask why Prylos would do that.

    "Nincompoop! Must I deal with your idiocy first thing in the morning!?" He shouted.

    Dang Energy, that was horrible. Funny, but horrible. Prylos even seems to be the kinder one of the two, so I don''t see why you would choose to bully him like that. Ohh, now he''s gonna get it...

    "Have you gone ma-!?"

    "You''re okay!" Pry rushed to hug him, interrupting this bout of rage with pure care, "I had a vision! No,  nightmare as it were! Ouroboras was there, he said... He said...!"

    "Hm?" Selz was stunned by this reaction, briefly glancing at us with an annoyed glare before comforting his old pal, "Of course you would forget something as commonplace as dreams and nightmares... These visions are merely a part of being human."

    Eh? So he knows what they are, even though Prylos doesn''t? How does that work...?

    "Well, I suppose we are all wide awake now." Selz pried himself off the Meditation God before announcing, "I believe it is time for us to finally leave."

    "Okay..." Pry sniffled.

    The air was a tad awkward after that, but we persevered for Vastoria''s sake. The Gods took us outside of the Abode and explained the plan in detail as we stood out in the vast yard.

    "To begin with, our primary task is to retrieve Vastoria''s body from her floating island." Selz explained, "This much shouldn''t prove to be too difficult, as we have an archangel with us."

    "That''s me!" Sheep did a little dance.

    "Indeed. Your task is a most vital one, so make sure to stick close."

    So we need to actually go out and take Vastoria with us this time, huh? It makes sense, but wouldn''t keeping her safe on the hard-to-reach floating island and bringing the method of healing to her make even more sense? Well, it didn''t exactly work out the last time we did that, so I suppose it''s worth giving this idea a shot as well.

    "What will happen after that?" Energy inquired.

    "Let us first focus on the matter at hand." Selz refused to answer that one, "It can get confusing having to explain everything from start to finish. It is a rather arduous and tedious method, but it''s the best one we''ve got."

    Whoa, hear that? It sounds like my trust in the Gods plummeting again. Geez, is it that difficult to give us the full plan from the start? Or at least a rough roadmap, come on! We gotta know what we''re getting ourselves into, otherwise we won''t be willing to go through with it!

    "...We cannot tell you more." Pry slouched, still depressed over his earlier fright, "You wouldn''t want to do it if we told you."

    "Huh!? Well now we definitely won''t do it!" Sheep yelled.

    "Hold on." Energy interrupted him, "You Two are rather difficult to talk to. I''m certain you don''t mean anything bad by that."

    "How could you tell?" Selzion smirked.

    "Call it blind faith." Energy tossed back, "Well, to elaborate, you''re not actually sending us on a wild goose chase, are you?"

    "No, we have promised your group Vastoria, and we fully intend to make good on that." Pry replied, "We can only hope that you will return this gesture of goodwill in kind by not leaving your district after this."

    "And will we have to sacrifice any of us to bring Vastoria back?" I asked as well, "Why else wouldn''t we want to do this, otherwise?"

    "No, there will be no drawbacks, sacrifices or the sort." Selzion shook his head, "But explaining everything will only needlessly confuse you. Please, allow us to take this one step at a time. We are doing this for your sake."

    So Vastoria will definitely be back, and we definitely won''t be sacrificed. In that case, I guess they really are just going about this in such a way so as to not confuse us.

    "Then, can we finally depart now?" Selz groaned, "Shopkeeper, with your new body, you should be able to carry all of us with ease."

    "I can''t wait!" Pry jumped for joy, "Selz, we haven''t gotten a chance to explore this place ever since we opened Heaven 2.0 to the public!"

    "Yes, yes..." Selz rolled his Eyes, "I''ve seen it all before, though. For Heaven 2.0''s sake, Pry, we made the damned place."

    It''s like looking at an inverse mirror. One side was optimistic, kind and open-minded, whilst the other was constantly annoyed and tired. Certainly, I never expected to witness a day where I could actually discern the Gods'' individual personalities, but it seems we have their newfound humanity to thank for that.

    "Everyone strapped in?" Sheep asked, carrying us within his winged embrace, "Don''t fall through the cracks."

    "We won''t!" Pry smiled.

    "Just go." Selz ordered.

    It''s like a golden retriever and a husky. They couldn''t be more different.

 Vol.6 Ch.123 - Party Bonding

    We stood in front of the door to Vastoria''s mansion, and...

    "Hey, hold on a second!" I jolted, "Weren''t we just about to set off from the Gods'' Abode!?"

    "Migu, that was 10 minutes ago." Sheep looked at me concernedly.

    There''s no way I skipped through 10 entire minutes of travel time. Seriously, I was hyper focused on the moment, standing inside Sheep''s sphere of wings, and then I blinked and I was here! I don''t even remember him dropping us off.

    "Of course, this much should be expected." Selz explained, "A seraphim can fly at the speed of light, so naturally a rank one step above him should travel even faster than that."

    "Beyond light speed travel?" Energy reacted.

    "For those of you who have not experienced it firsthand, it may sound a bit confusing." Prylos elaborated further on this, "But even though latching onto a flying seraphim as an angel feels like you''re traveling from one place to the next in the blink of an Eye, the seraphim actually sees everything in a slowed down fashion so as to allow better handling."

    In other words, Sheep being in super speed made it look like we were super slow for him in comparison. So that''s why none of the people with wings ever complained about flying at such high speeds.

    "So if that''s how it is for seraphim, then archangels must be even faster." I figured.

    "I was wondering why you all got quiet." Sheep laughed, "Even while I was setting you down, you refused to budge. I was actually getting worried the speed might have knocked you out."

    "Hey, that''s right..." I turned to the Gods, "Regular humans shouldn''t be able to take such high speeds. We as Heavenly Beings don''t feel anything ''cause of our bodies, but how come you guys don''t either?"

    "Yes, you are correct to assume as such." Selz dutifully announced, "I believe the answer to that is that we were simply going too fast for our bodies to register the inertia. Once the G forces catch up to us, we shall promptly fall unconscious in the near future."

    "That''s our Knowledge God! You really know everything, huh?" Pry patted him on the back before freezing up, "W-Wait, we''re gonna what now?"

    "Fall unconscious."

    "Way ahead of you."

    And with that perfectly timed remark, Pry daintily fell to the ground, twitching and spasming with his Eyes rolled back and foam coming out of the mouth. We were terrified, or at least we would be if Selzion reacted the same way.

    "Alright, someone help me put him inside the Shopkeeper." He hoisted him up, "With your archangelic body, he should be lighter than a feather."

    "O-Oh, right..." Sheep awkwardly obliged, "Will you be joining him?"

    "Please do the same to me once I have fallen unconscious as well." He grunted, "Until then, you need someone to guide you."

    We felt a bit bad for him in that moment, but he assured us that he''ll be fine. Despite everything though, we were now under a bit of a time limit. He refused to give out the next part of the plan until we marked off this one, and if we didn''t manage to do that before he fell unconscious, we''d have to waste a bunch of time waiting for them to get up.

    "Everyone, follow me up the stairs." He walked in front.

    "Hey now, careful!" I ran up beside him, "If you fall unconscious here, you won''t have anyone to catch you!"

    "...Stand at least two steps below me, mortal." He glared, "You are not my equal, and certainly not above me."

    "Right now, you''re the only mortal here." Sheep shot back, "So pipe down and take our advice. You''re supposed to be wise, aren''t you?"

    "Nah, he''s not the God of Wisdom, he''s the God of Knowledge." Energy tacked on, "Book smarts mean nothing when you lack common sense and decency."

    "The insolence!" Selz thundered before wobbling in place, "Ghk! My head..."

    "Yeah, maybe don''t get too riled up when you know you''re gonna drop to the floor any second." I smirked, propping him up by the shoulders, "Here, a shoulder would do you good."

    "I don''t need your pity!"

    "But you need me to walk." I sternly retorted, "Better get that ego in check, pal, ''cause right now we need your help to bring Vastoria back to life."

    He highly disliked my choice of words, but nevertheless he knew I was right. Maybe as a God, he could get away with doing everything on his own, but like this he needs to understand that relying on others is crucial. Teamwork makes the dream work, but with the way he''s acting¡ªthis is shaping up to be the nightmare of all nightmares.

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "Sheep, open the door." I ordered.

    "Got it!" He flew past us in a flash, the doors magically opening before us, "Woo, this superspeed sure is fun!"

    "I am glad you are enjoying it." The Knowledge God grew paler, "That is the Gods'' gift to you, and for the next step, you must be sure to practice using your new powers well."

    "The next step? What is...?"

    "Vastoria!" I interrupted.

    She was still lying in bed, her head barely attached to the rest of her body. Regardless, she was supposedly alive, albeit on the very brink of death. I wanted to run to her side, but I was helping Selzion stand up. It irked me to put her beneath him, but right now he was the most crucial part to the plan that would hopefully one day save her. I needed to be patient.

    "Carry her, urp! ...within your wings." Selzion was gagging heavily by now.

    "G-Got it!" Sheep followed his order, "Oh geez, you don''t look so good..."

    "Screw that!" Energy piped up, "God, tell us what to do next! Quickly, before you...!"

    "Ah." I exhaled, "He''s out."

    "D-!" Energy fumed from inside my clothes, "Dammit! Wake the hell up, you stupid God of supposed Knowledge! Hey, you hear me!? Selzion...!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    In the end, we failed. Well, it''s not too big of an issue, since they''ll wake up soon enough, I''m sure. At least we can use this time to rest up a bit more.

    "Hey, since we''re stuck here until they wake up, why not set Vastoria back down on her bed." I suggested Sheep, "I wanna see her face again."

    "Uhhh, you sure?" He remained hesitant, "It''s not a pretty sight. Her entire head is-"

    "I know. Doesn''t stop me from wanting to see her."

    A tad uncertainly, he belched her out from his body made up entirely of wings and Eyes. You would expect this to be a rather clumsy job, but he was actually quite dextrous in making sure she was laid out flat on the bed safely. Carefully, anxiously, I approached her, this time not having to worry about taking my time or helping prop up a stupid God.

    "Vastoria..." I felt tears well up within me as I gently poked her cheek.

    "Oi." Energy called out, "I wanna see her as well."

    "Right, I''ve been meaning to ask this, but..." Sheep glared, "Why are you even here with us? You do know you''re the entire reason she''s like this."

    "Sheep." I turned to him, "It was... a misunderstanding on his part. No one''s at fault."

    "Except he obviously is." Sheep refused to accept that, "Migu, he stabbed her through the throat with a stake. Alive or not, you can''t just forgive him for doing that to her!"

    I never said I was gonna forgive him, at least not entirely. That being said, he was tricked by the Gods to do so, as he thought he had no other option.

    "Hey..." I realized, "Come to think of it, it''s the Gods fault she''s like this!"

    "Huh?" Sheep tilted his wings.

    "I suppose you could look at it like that, yes." Energy replied, looking down from my hands at the comatose Vastoria, "It doesn''t matter now, though. Nothing to be done about... Ah."

    It seems he came to the same conclusion as I did. The Gods are human now, meaning they''re prone to death, just like any other human. Along with this, they are right here in this very room with us, lying unconscious and defenseless. It would make finding a way to save Vastoria a bit more uncertain, but apart from that, it wouldn''t detriment us too much.

    "Sheep, barf out those two morons as well." I commanded.

    "Why? They haven''t woken up yet."

    "That''s the point, now do it."

    "Descendant, you''re letting emotions blind you again."

    "Shut it, gramps!" I hissed back, "They had this coming for a long time!"

    Sheep refused to budge, so I had no other choice but to lunge at him. I tried prying the wings open, but he was faster than me by a long shot. I couldn''t even catch him once, nor could I even see where he was for that matter. Of course, once he enters flight mode, I''m stiller than water to him.

    "Migu!" Energy shouted.

    "Hrm..."

    "Migu!"

    "You must be mad at them too, aren''t you!?" I flipped around, "They made you almost kill Vastoria! Hell, you almost wiped all of us out because of their lies!"

    "Migu, think about it." He sat there on the bed, next to the sleeping Vastoria, "As someone who comes from a world without Gods, trust me when I say you do not want this."

    His words shook me to my very core, but more importantly than that was the sudden twitch of Vastoria''s finger. I immediately stopped attacking Sheep to run to her side, holding her hand gently as I called her name.

    "Vastoria!?" I shouted, "Vastoria!"

    "Huh? What happened?" Energy sat confused.

    "I saw it as well." Sheep floated slowly behind me, comforting me despite my earlier outburst, "She''s clinging onto life even now. Doing her best to not let go."

    "Vastoria..." I sniffled.

    "Migu, I''m sure you''re well aware of this by now, but you need to work with the Gods." He continued, "If you could forgive Energy, then you can forgive them too. At least until she''s awake."

    But... the only reason I forgave Energy was because I turned that hatred towards the Gods. If I can''t be mad at the Gods either, then... who?

    "Oh, speak of the devil." Sheep chuckled.

    "Insolence! He dares call us Gods devils!" That familiar annoying voice echoed from inside him, "Let me out this instant, archangel! I am fine now, so I do not wish to be inside your disgusting skin any longer!"

    Barfing them out with ease, Sheep stepped back to give the Two some space. Prylos was rubbing his head, followed closely by a few close gags as well. Sheep recalled Vastoria had cookies and tea in her pantry and took him downstairs to recover. The Knowledge God declined the offer, however. He had something he wanted to know first.

    "You didn''t kill us?" He turned to me directly.

    "..."

    "......"

    "...Sigh." I picked Energy back up and put him in my clothes, "Why would we?"

    It seems even someone as stuck up as him wasn''t ignorant to his own mortality. Makes sense, he''s supposed to be smart. That being the case, I guess you could say he trusted us to not off him while he was down. If he can do that... then we can trust him with this mission too.

    "You''re not gonna say goodbye to Vastoria?" Energy asked me as we left her room.

    "I don''t plan on it." I replied, "I''d much prefer welcoming her back."

    The Knowledge God was walking in front of me, so I couldn''t quite make out his face. However, I did catch a small glimpse of a smirk growing on it. Maybe, just maybe, he might have a shred of common decency in him yet.

 Vol.6 Ch.124 - New Plan

    "Have you calmed down yet?" Selz groaned at the nauseous Meditation God.

    "Two, three, five, seven, eleven..." Pry counted up, "Y-Yeah, it''s mostly subsided by now. To think Ouroboras feels this on the regular..."

    "Humans don''t normally experience faster than lightspeed travel." I chuckled, "But on a smaller scale, we can get nauseous."

    So the Gods really are this ignorant to how it''s like being a human. Like watching a baby giraffe learning how to prop itself up on its unusually long legs. It''s refreshing¡ªbut as Gods, shouldn''t they already know everything?

    "It''s useless trying to explain anything to him in regards to humanity." Selz sighed, "He''ll forget it soon enough anyways."

    "Does he have issues with his memory?" Sheep tilted his wings.

    "Ooh, I got this!" Pry was eager to explain, "Basically, since we Gods have an infinite memory capacity, all of that eventually gets cluttered in our noggins."

    I don''t get it. If you''ve got an infinite capacity, then how could it ever get cluttered?

    "How come?" Energy didn''t quite understand.

    "If I asked you to name off every fact you knew, for example." Selz gave an analogy.

    "Oh..."

    "Right? Now imagine if he asked you what Color the sky is." Pry continued, "You''d know immediately that the answer is Blue."

    Ah, I think I get it now. They "know" everything, but actually carrying all that knowledge weighs them down.

    "That assumption you''ve all made in your heads is incorrect." Selz rolled his Eyes.

    "Mental jinx!" Sheep yelled, slamming his wing into me, "Because we thought the same thing."

    "How old are you?" Energy scowled, despite not having a face to do that with.

    "Ahem, it is not that the knowledge weighs us down, so much that it confuses us." Selz explained.

    "Our brains get forced to work overtime, having to constantly sift through each individual bit of information until..." Pry elaborated.

    "Until?"

    "Poof." He mimed, "The Gods go insane."

    Oof, wouldn''t want that ruling over your world. Nuh uh, definitely not.

    "Poof, indeed." Selz continued, "Thus we have found a way to forever keep our sanities intact without sacrificing knowledge."

    "Well, WE have." Pry snickered at him.

    "What does that mean?" I asked.

    "Pry, for the last time, Knowledge is my entire thing..." Selz grunted, "Sigh, basically¡ªthe Gods all purge their minds of useless information every so often. Intentionally separating the synapses in our brains to unlearn them. The human equivalent to this is referred to as "forgetting", which you may be a bit more familiar with."

    "Forgetting, huh?" Pry smiled, "I forgot the word already."

    "Eh? B-But...?" I shook it off, "Whatever. So you have to constantly forget stuff in order to not go crazy?"

    "Yep, we only keep the most necessary information for any given situation, and that changes all the time." Pry nodded, "For example, I don''t know a single thing about humans right now. That''s why I''m so confused about things that are obvious for you all the time."

    Purposeful, concentrated amnesia... That sounds convenient, but also kinda scary. Like, what if you accidentally messed up and forgot how to breathe? Or worse, forgot about your loved ones! Well, I guess that explains how the White Monster''s Curse functioned...

    "But wait, you mentioned earlier how you can''t do that?" Sheep turned to Selz.

    "For your information, I am perfectly capable of doing so." Selz snarled, "But I am the God of Knowledge, so it is my duty to never forget a single piece of information. Ask me anything, and I will know the answer."

    "Okay, how do we revive?"

    "I know." He nodded.

    "Ack-! Then are you gonna tell us!?"

    "I said I knew everything, not that I was willing to share everything with you."

    What an ass. So does that make him crazy, then? I sure hope he goes crazy. Wouldn''t feel bad at all.

    "That is very rude to say, Migu." He lectured, "Praying for someone''s downfall is one thing, but you''re talking about the God who created you and everyone you love."

    "Eh? YOU made humanity?" Energy chuckled, "I find that hard to believe."

    "Yeah, ''cause he didn''t." Pry exhaled, "Only for his own continent."

    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    "Hooray!" We sang in unison, "Wait, which one of us is from there?"

    "Just Energy isn''t."

    "Tsk..."

    Sheep and I were crushed to find out who our creator was. They say never meet your maker, or was it idol? Either way, I won''t accept Selz as either. The guy''s too bitter and smug. Just look, even now he''s grinning at both of us with this annoying glint in his Eyes. Though, Energy seems just as smug and happy.

    "Woohoo! I wasn''t created by a snarky idiot!" Energy yelled.

    Hearing this, the two Gods sort of held back some rowdy chuckles. They didn''t want to break his heart, but it seems there was no other choice. They were too transparent.

    "W-What?" Energy fretted.

    "It''s just, how do we put this lightly..." Pry bit his lip.

    "Let''s just the God that created you isn''t a "snarky" idiot..." Selz finished his thought.

    Ah, he''s talking about the Fighting God, Auros. Out of the Five, he''s the only one the legends specifically described as a moronic brute. Ironically enough, despite the fact the continent he was governing over was supposed to be in an endless cycle of war, the faint memories I have of my life only speak of peace down there. He couldn''t even get that right, huh.

    "Migu." Energy glanced up at me, "Why is everyone laughing?"

    "It''s better if you don''t know..." I gently petted him.

    Yep, if he doesn''t know that he was created by the dumb God of the bunch, then that''s all the better. Ignorance is bliss, which is¡ªironically enough¡ªprobably the Fighting God''s favorite saying.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Then, have you gotten to learn a bit more about the responsibilities of being a God?" Pry asked us like we were school kids.

    "I learned just how powerful you truly are." Energy blandly replied.

    "I learned that I have to rely solely on Selzion if I wanna have any chance at bringing Vastoria back." I sighed.

    "And I learned that we should really get going." Sheep floated up from his seat, "I love chowing down on some tea and biscuits, despite the fact this body has no mouth to consume them with, but we''ve been dawdling about too much. Pry, you feeling up for it?"

    "Eugh, I''ll try my best..." He begrudgingly staggered up as well.

    "Then, Shopkeeper." Selz gave the order, "Please pick Vastoria up once more. Make haste, we will wait for you outside."

    "Got it!"

    That being said, we blinked and Sheep was already calling for us to get out of the mansion. It seems his ungodly speed is still leagues ahead of our own. At this point, I finally get what the Gods meant when they said just Sheep would be enough. Really, Energy and I are here to do nothing but keep them company. I did say deadweight or not, but I kinda wish I wasn''t being a burden to everyone like I am now. I gotta wonder-

    "Migu, don''t think like that." Pry comforted me, "I know it may seem like it, but we wouldn''t already have gotten this over with without you two. Sheep is speedy, and we''re knowledgeable, but he still needs to stop to ask us for directions constantly."

    "...I told you not to read my mind without my permission." I pouted.

    "Who in their right minds would ever permit such a thing?" Selz rolled his Eyes as he walked right past us and through the front door, "Now get a move on. Our next stop will be most pleasing for your ears to hear."

    We could only roughly presume what he meant by this, at least until we entered the vessel that was Sheep. Once we did that, he really didn''t have any other excuse to keep us in the dark any longer, so he finally came out with the next step of their grand plan.

    "We need to get Elegy." Prylos revealed.

    "Oh." We paused, "Wait, what?"

    That''s it? That''s the secret they wanted to keep from us for so long? We gotta backtrack!?

    "Well, why didn''t you say that from the beginning?" Sheep asked, "He could''ve gone with us."

    "No, he couldn''t have, which leads us to our next point." Selzion made clear, "Under no circumstances, EVER, should Elegy learn of what we had just told you."

    "Which part?" Energy asked.

    "Every part. Down to the last sentence." Prylos reiterated, "As far as you''re concerned, we zipped to Vastoria''s floating island, picked her up, and went back. Not a word was uttered here."

    That sounds... somehow even sketchier than the previous stuff they said. Keeping secrets from us is one thing, but making us keep secrets from our team? I think that''s a step too far, besides...

    "Let''s go, then." I nodded.

    "Hm?" The Gods looked at me funny, "Did you say something?"

    "I said let''s go, come on." I signaled for Sheep to floor it.

    "No, there was something els-"

    Zoom, the Sheep-mobile flew past the speed of sound... well, at least a thousandfold. I couldn''t even blink once before we had already arrived back at district G. Home sweet home, as they say. That being the case, the Gods once again felt their human bodies struggle to keep up.

    "Sheep, dude...!" Pry was about to fall unconscious, "You didn''t have to rush so much...!"

    "...No!" Selz realized, albeit all too late, "They did this on purpose! They''re planning... to...!"

    "Whoa." Sheep felt his internals rocking up and down, "What just happened?"

    "They both fell unconscious." Energy reported.

    "Oh dang, I heard Migu''s call and got a bit jumpy. Sorry, we''re gonna have to wait for them to wake up."

    "No, you did good." I smiled at him, "Sheep, set us down. I got something to tell you two."

    Confusedly, they heard me out as we exited Sheep''s winged embrace, leaving only the two unconscious Gods inside. Now, they were curious.

    "Migu, what''s this about?" Energy asked.

    "Sheep, Energy and I will go find the others. I got something I need to tell them, but I can''t have the Gods find out." I winked, "Think you can keep them unconscious with a few hours of joyriding?"

    "Hours?! Do you know how much time that equates to for me?" He fussed.

    "I''m sorry, but we need this." I begged him, "Sheep, please!"

    "...Sigh, I guess I have no choice." He obliged, "Want me to drop you off near them while I''m at it?"

    "No, we''ll be fine going on foot." I patted Energy, "I got somewhere I need to stop by first."

    "Sheep, take me with you." Energy pleaded, "She''s scaring me more than the Gods are."

    "No can do, gramps!" I brushed him off, "I''m gonna need you for a very special thing!"

    Man, it feels good to finally have my own head to myself for once! Knowing that the Gods were listening at every waking moment, I really couldn''t rest too easy, but now that they''re gonna be out for at least a few hours, I can finally return to how I once was¡ªa wild, unadulterated, no-filter femme fatale!

    "Ugh..." Selz''s voice could be heard waking up from inside Sheep, "Nothing about you... is even femme..."

    "Ack! Sheep, get a move on already!" I slapped him on the wing, "Be sure to speed up even more at times to really make them sick!"

    "Got it, but if they throw up inside, you''re gonna have to clean it up!" He yelled, suddenly disappearing from our sight.

    "Wow, it really is instantaneous." Energy remarked, "So, you gonna tell me YOUR grand plan now? Or are you gonna be taking a page from those Two''s Book?"

    "There''s nothing for me to hide. My plan isn''t nearly as complicated as theirs is." I chuckled, "All we gotta do is find them and warn them. We''re not gonna let them take Elegy with us. I have a gut feeling that''s not gonna end well for him if we do."

 Vol.6 Ch.125 - Fashion Statement

    "O-Oi! Do you even know where you''re going?"

    "Home!" I shed a tear, "I''m going home."

    "And do you know where that is?"

    "Don''t ruin the moment."

    Running at top speed through the busy streets once more sure felt nostalgic, but it didn''t last long, as I had to constantly fix my clothes up so as to not drop Energy by accident. I''d carry him in my hands, but it''d attract way too much attention from passers-by, and I''d rather not get stopped for interrogation midway through the mission.

    "Okay, this obviously isn''t working." I stopped, "I''m still wearing Vastoria''s dress ever since that day we swapped clothes."

    "I was wondering why you had her clothes on you." He acknowledged.

    "Oh right, you were with her when she wore this." I inspected my clothes, "And you didn''t bother to ask about it?"

    "Clothes aren''t permanent. You should change them as often as possible to avoid the spread of bacteria."

    "Hrm..."

    "What?" He snickered, "Did you think I was gonna say something cheesy like "your girlfriend wearing your clothes is completely normal"?"

    There it is! Ehe, hearing an old-fashioned fart like him say something so cute and wholesome just makes me all giddy inside. Then again, he''s gotten a lot more mellow as of recently. I guess Vastoria is his friend after all, so it''d make sense. Then there''s the fact he and I are related, and he really ends up having no other choice but to be accepting. Jokes aside, he is a lot more approachable now.

    "Hey gramps, where do your era''s clothes look like?" I inquired out of curiosity.

    "Nothing like the one''s they sell-well, give out here." He chuckled, "Leather has grown out of fashion, it seems."

    "So you''re into that, huh..."

    "I don''t know what you''re alluding to, but I get the feeling you''ve gotten something majorly wrong." He buzzed back, "Leather is quite warm, durable, and most importantly easy to wash off."

    "You and your hygiene..." I rolled my Eyes, "Anything else?"

    "Chainmail."

    "Come again?"

    "Hard metal chainmail. Preferably one made of a non-rustable material." He elaborated, "Plop on some metal plating over that and you''ve got yourself a fine defense against the Rotted''s bites."

    Knight armor against zombies? That''s a novel take on the genre. I suppose it''s fitting if he''s from a distant past, especially if it''s a pre-guns era, but to think that''s all that they wore back then. Desperate times indeed.

    "Well, we''re gonna be stopping by for a little makeover, you okay with that?" I smiled.

    "You wanna stop for clothes?" He exhaled.

    "I know, I know, you''re gonna miss being nestled neatly in my chest, but I can''t run without having a proper place to carry you around."

    "On second thought, maybe a tote bag would do us good."

    That''s the answer I was looking for! Now gramps is thinking with his brain! Ah, well, it''s the only thing he can think with nowadays, but I digress. Really, Heaven 2.0 has no shortage of clothes shops. The Gods must really love their fashion, huh... That''s lucky for us, though, since we found one not too far from where we were. The lady working there didn''t quite look too good, however.

    "Hello." I politely greeted her.

    "Ah!" She jolted.

    "Bwah!?"

    "Oh, sorry, dear customer!" Her Eye twitched, "I was sleeping, hope you don''t mind. Yaaaawn, what can I get for you?"

    What a jumpy reaction just now. Tired and overworked must be her two most favorite adjectives, I''d wager. Then again, with the amount of people she has to serve on a daily basis, I could see how this would start to affect the clerks here negatively.

    "Sleeping? With your Eyes open?" Energy poked out of my dress.

    "Wahh~" She smiled tiredly, instinctively reaching out to pet him before slapping her outstretched hand with the other one, "A-Ahem, cute doggy!"

    "Thanks." I smirked.

    "What breed is he?"

    "Brainiac."

    "Oho~? Brainiac, is he~?" She nodded along drowsily, "And his name?"

    "You''re never gonna believe it." I curbed my smile, "Brian."

    "Stop messing with the poor girl already!" Energy cut the fun short, "And my name isn''t Brian!"

    It seems the girl was so tired from overwork that she hadn''t even fully processed a single part of this encounter. I''m sure she''d brush off whatever I told her with that cute drowsy smile on her face. Actually, that gives me an idea...

    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    "Hey, how many outfits can I get a day?" I asked.

    "One article of clothing per day..." She snored, "Per person..."

    "Okay, so one outfit per day per person."

    "Yeshhh~" Her Eyelids drooped.

    "Then, I''ll just help myself to whatever." I hopped the counter.

    "Mn? Heyy~, you can''t do..." She weakly tried to stop me before giving up, "Eh, whateverrr..."

    I''m in. Ohh, how cozy. This place is a lot more spacious than I initially thought. It''s got an entire basement filled with rows upon rows of clothes. How fun, I get to pick and choose only the best of the best!

    "Finally." I placed Sheep aside as I took my clothes off, "I get to wear proper clothes."

    "Hey, get this one." He pointed... actually, he had nothing to point with, so I didn''t quite get it.

    "Which one?"

    "The one to your left."

    "Huh!?" I blushed, "O-Oh, I get it. You wanna make me feel embarrassed, is that right?"

    "It''s leather, I''m being serious."

    "It''s a gimp suit." I tossed it away, never to be seen again, "Don''t even joke about that stuff."

    He was left confused in spite of my explanation. I guess he really didn''t know what it was, but surely just seeing it should have been enough to give off some signals. Wait, could it be that gramps is actually pretty naive and innocent when it comes to that stuff?

    "Gramps, quickly now. What''s your favorite position?"

    "Sitting down." He replied calmly, "I dislike standing around, but lying on my side is also pretty underrated."

    Yep, that settles it. Gramps is purer than a nun, somehow.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "This, then this..." I picked out a bunch of random items, "Ooh! And this''ll pair nicely with the sunglasses!"

    "And you need those glasses why exactly?" He scoffed at my fashion sense, "Your Eyes should work well enough to not need prescription."

    "They''re for blocking the Sun from getting in your Eyes, not to make you see better." I corrected him, "They also look pretty fly!"

    "I don''t understand. The Sun isn''t deadly?"

    "Stare at it next time you see it and you''ll see what I mean."

    "See that''s what I don''t get about these younger generations!" We went on a weird tirade all of a sudden, "Do you all seriously lack the common sense to NOT stare at the Sun all the time? It''s not even in your face most of the time, you really have to go out of your way to look up at it."

    He can''t be serious. Where exactly did he live in the world for the Sun''s rays to not pose at least a mild amount of annoyance to him. Besides, dusk exists, and that really does get in your face sometimes. I would have imagined a germaphobe like him to be more keen on taking care of his body, but I guess not.

    "Here, you try them." I burst out laughing the moment my Eyes gazed upon a brain with sunglasses on, "Phahaha! They fit you surprisingly well!"

    "...Take them off." He pouted, "Now."

    "Not a chance. In fact, let me see if there''s something to keep them from falling off in here."

    Alas, I didn''t find a single thing that would allow for that, so the sunglasses had to temporarily return to my head again. I say temporarily, because there is no way in Hell that I will allow Energy to continue living without these snazzy sunglasses. Surely I''ll find some glue somewhere...

    "Well?" I twirled around, "How do I look?"

    "Sweatpants, severely undersized shirt, severely undersized jacket, and a cap with these "sunglasses" resting on the brim." He sighed, "Just awful. The only thing I agree with is the footwear."

    "No no no! You got it all wrong! The Colors are important!" I refuted him, "White sneakers, beige sweatpants, a navy Blue CROP TOP, a black jacket, and a black cap with navy Blue highlights to finish it off! Though I do agree the sneakers are really comfy."

    "I suppose I''m just behind the times." He chuckled.

    "Hey, you sounded just like a real grandpa just then!" I pointed out.

    "I''m not old!" He fussed, "And I''m way older than your grandpa! I literally started our lineage, for your information!"

    Those two really don''t coincide with one another, but I''ll let it slide so he doesn''t stay angry. But dang, these clothes would''ve made anyone turn to gawk at me, I''m surprised gramps isn''t the same. Senior citizens, am I right?

    "Ah, one final touch." I looked around in the back before rushing over to him, "A tote for the old man!"

    "I''m not old!"

    "Yeah, yeah..." I stuffed him into the bag, "Let''s get a move on now, Sheep''s probably dying inside with each passing second."

    "Didjya'' get everything you need~?" The poor girl working the till teetered from left to right.

    "Yep, you''ve got a really fine selection." I hopped over the counter, "You''re a really good clerk. I''ll be sure to put in a good word with your bosses."

    "Ehehe~" She giggled, "Thank you... Zzz..."

    Naww, just look at that sleeping face. Now I see why there wasn''t any traffic around, who''d wanna wake her up from such a nice looking nap? By the way, I didn''t just say that to lie to her. I''ll genuinely praise her to Selz and Pry. I''ve got the chance to, after all, and she let us take more than we deserve. Actually, on second thought, that might get her punished if they find out, so maybe I shouldn''t...

    "Ahh, running feels so much better now!" I smiled from ear to ear, "And we''re a lot faster thanks to this as well!"

    "I have to admit, it was a good call." He agreed, "You''ve made me proud as a descendant yet again, Migu."

    "That''s great news! And you wanna know how you would make me proud as an ancestor?" I threw on a wry smirk.

    "I will not wear the sunglasses."

    "You don''t get a choice."

    "Wha-!? Migu!"

    Laughing maniacally as I ran through the crowd and occasionally talking to my tote really made me look like a madwoman, which attracted a few unwarranted gazes, but I just attributed it to my sick new style. Hehe, what''s the matter, plebeians? Never seen such pristine clothing in your lives before? This much is nothing special, don''t worry! Ah, maybe in a few dozen centuries, you all will attain this level of fashion that I have long since mastered.

    "Wait, isn''t that my house in the distance?" Energy peeked out of the bag.

    "Bwahhhh!" A group of people fell off the giant cube as a large explosion blew the house on top sky high, "Oof! Dammit!"

    "Elegy, let''s just quit already!" Sab complained, "Nerys thinks it''s time to let go as well."

    "Oi''m notta'' quittah!" She disagreed with him immediately, "Laddie ''ere be feedin'' ye'' lies!"

    "Shut up, no one asked you!" Sab shot back a nasty glare.

    "My head..." Hats whimpered.

    "Guys, no use stopping now when we''re so close." Elegy turned to finally notice the two of us, "Migu! You''re back!"

    "Hm?" The others turned as well.

    "Missy..." Nerys pointed, "Wot''s dat outfit s''pos t''be?"

    "Huh?" I yelped.

    "It''s weird." Hats made a difficult expression.

    "Now now, everyone." Elegy didn''t wanna sound harsh, "It''s probably normal to show so much skin for her era!"

    At least he gets it. And Sab?

    "Hm..." He looked me up and down until I started blushing, "Last century called, they want their clothes back."

    Seriously!? You''re from the future, idiot! You actually have the audacity to call ME outdated!?

 Vol.6 Ch.126 - Tote Totem

    "Everyone, shut up for a second!" I yelled out, "We came here to tell you something important."

    "Where''s Sheep?" Elegy inquired.

    "And... those Two." Sab squinted.

    "That''s exactly what we wanted to explain." Energy added, "He''s buying us time with Them, and we''ve come to use that time wisely by warning you."

    Really, we got lucky in finding them so quickly. The district is a lot larger than this, I assure you, we just lucked out immensely. Then again, with a huge explosion like that coming from Energy''s imposing abode, it really wouldn''t have taken anything else but to just follow the crowd.

    "Okay, but first help us with this." Hats pointed up at the base.

    "Guys, this is more important-"

    "Regardless a'' wot ye'' got ta'' sae, werr'' gunna need tha'' equipment inside that therr'' ''ouse." Nerys reasoned.

    That''s... not wrong. I planned to just tell them to try and hide away from the Gods so they can''t recruit Elegy, but it wouldn''t hurt to get them some tools to make that easier. It should be a piece of cake with the house''s owner on our side.

    "They''re right, Migu." Sab chimed in, "You can tell us while we''re making our way inside."

    "Okay, but let''s make it quick." I glanced back, "Poor Sheep can''t take much more flying in circles."

    Turning to the imposing cube atop which sat Energy''s home, we steeled ourselves for what was to come before I took the brain out of my tote bag. Energy was a bit pouty, but overall still cooperative.

    "I never gave you permission to steal all my stuff..." He grunted.

    "Not like you can even use them anymore, anyways." I rolled my Eyes, "Come on, guide us inside safely. I don''t wanna get my brand new clothes blown apart like these guys."

    "Even our torn-to-shreds threads look better than whatever the Hell you''ve got on." Sab smirked.

    "Hey now." Elegy interrupted, "Bullying girls isn''t nice."

    "I come from an era of true gender equality!" He shot back, "Where men and women duke it out with all they''ve got if there''s a disagreement!"

    "Oho?" I cracked my fingers menacingly at him, "Good to hear! That means I don''t have to stop even if you cry and beg me for mercy."

    "...Ahem, that being said, I''m an old-fashioned gentleman." Sab chickened out, "I wouldn''t hit a lady, so I mostly stick to verbal abuse."

    That line only succeeded in making him look worse... Sigh, are people from the future really this insufferable? If that''s the case, I''m kind of glad I died before they all became, well... like him.

    "Laddie!" Nerys smacked his back suddenly, making him yelp like a girl, "Oll ye'' had ta'' sae wos that yer'' rarin'' fer a tomble! C''mon, Oi''ll be ya'' partna''!"

    "A-Ack! Damned seadog!" He shot back angrily, "Ask me after we get some proper weapons, then it''s on sight!"

    "I don''t think you understand what ''on sight'' means..." Elegy chuckled.

    After enough messing around on the street, we walked up to the giant cube together, discussing how to even reach the first step. The obstacle before us was a six sided wall made completely of smooth concrete. A cube, as it were. Barely any traction, and an absolutely hellish height to scale. Climbing this was necessary, however, because at the top of it was Energy''s home, and subsequently, the weapon locker where we''ll be getting our weapons and armor.

    "Energy, your time to shine." I nudged his bag.

    "Hm? There''s no easy shortcut to scaling it." He revealed, "Try to keep your hands as dry as possible and hope your fingers have good grip."

    "Eh?" The others'' hearts dropped.

    "Oh right, you said before how you needed wings to get up there." I recalled, "Well then, how''d you guys do it?"

    "With dry hands and grippy fingers..." They exhaled.

    Ah, so elbow grease really was the only way to go about it. I''m surprised, especially since it seemed like they were already up there before we arrived. Now their previous anger feels a lot more justified, as each failed attempt meant they had to re-climb it all over again.

    "Of course, there is another option." Energy thought about it.

    "What is it!?" Elegy asked.

    "This cube is 10 meters tall and 10 meters wide." He explained, "The men here are 2 meters tall, and the women 1.5 meters. It''ll take a bit of luck, but if you were to form a stack..."

    "A stack." Nerys had a dark smile over her face, "S''that it? Ye'' want thees scallywags ta'' crush me undah they'' weight, aye?"

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    "Obviously you''d be on top of us!" Hats calmed her down, "Ah, but maybe Migu should be the top-most one of the stack, since she has Energy with her."

    "I dunno..." I stammered, "I''m not good with wobbly surfaces, especially not when I got nothing to hold onto."

    A conundrum. It''s regrettable, but I think there''s no other choice if we wanna pass through to the weapons locker inside without setting off any traps. We need Energy to show me the way like he did last time, otherwise it''s a lost ''cause.

    "Then what do we do?" Elegy worried, "We can''t have the men be above the girls on the stack, because you won''t be able to hold our weight."

    "Hmph." Nerys let out a smug chuckle, "Simple ''nuff solution, innit? Lass, euwe gimme the sack!"

    "Nerys?" We all turned to look at her, when suddenly...

    "Migu, hand me over to her." Even Energy agreed with this, "The two of us will enter the house alone and get you the weapons."

    "But-!"

    "In the meantime, you get them caught up with the situation." He sternly interrupted, "Warn Elegy of what the Gods plan to do."

    "Me?" Elegy pointed at himself.

    Hand him over to her... Yeah, with this arrangement it could definitely work¡ªbut is it really okay to have him leave my side? I suppose Nerys doesn''t know about how he tried to kill everyone, so it''s not like she''d try to exact revenge on him or anything, but I still feel uncomfortable having him leave my side...

    "...Okay." I nodded, "Be safe."

    "Euwe kno'' we will." Nerys answered for him.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "W-Woah..." I wobbled atop the huge tower we created, leaning up against the wall as our only form of stability, "Nerys, you doing alright up there?"

    "Nevah'' betta''!" She grinned, the tote bag hung over her shoulder as she reached for the cube''s edge, "Eep!"

    We went about creating the tower in a rather backward manner. Namely, Nerys was the first to climb atop my shoulders, carrying Energy in the bag. Then Sab lifted us up from underneath, then Elegy did the same to him, and finally¡ªHats at the bottom. After everyone was seated atop one another''s shoulders, we took turns standing up, wobbling with each consecutive centimeter of height gained.

    "Keep her steady!" Sab yelled from under me.

    "G-Guys, hurry it up already..." Hats begged from the bottom.

    "Ugh, screw this." Elegy announced, throwing Sab up with a springy maneuver, "My arms are getting tired, so let''s end this already!"

    S-Seriously!? He lifted all four of us just like that! Elegy, he''s... He''s not human! W-Well, he''s actually an angel, but this strength is way too crazy even for our standards! A-Ah, there''s no way we''ll stick a landing like this, everyone''s gonna fall...!

    "Bah!" Sab hit the ground first, "Y-You...!"

    "Ack, dammit Elegy!" I rushed to yell at him as well, "Nerys was this close to reaching the ledge, why did you-!?"

    "Ahem." He smirked, pointing straight up, "I gave her the necessary boost, didn''t I?"

    Warily, we looked up to see Nerys... barely hanging onto the ledge of the cube. Before, we were a few meters short of her reaching the necessary height, but with Elegy''s stunt just now, it gave her enough of a jump to cling onto it. After a hasty salute to Elegy, she lifted herself and Energy up in a jiff.

    "Many thanks, matey!" She guffawed from atop the structure, "Oight, time fer'' us ta'' make arr'' leaves!"

    "S-She actually made it..." I gulped in disbelief.

    "Lucky she did, too." Sab still glared back at Elegy, "I would have killed you if she didn''t."

    "Like you''d kill Migu in that duel you were boasting about?" He cracked his knuckles just like I did, "I''d like to see you try."

    "Now..." I looked up at the two as they left our sights, "It''s up to them."

    Nerys and Energy made their way to knock on the front door. Energy informed her ahead of time of the specific rhythm required to not set off any traps, to which she confusedly agreed to follow.

    "Howzat werk?" She tilted her head as the doors barely craned open.

    "Even I don''t know the answer to that." He replied, "But it was always my dream to live in a home with  such a defense, regardless of the nitty-gritty behind the scenes. Heaven 2.0 allowed just that."

    "Ehhh~?" She stepped inside, "Shoulda'' wish''d fer'' a propah ship. S''wot Oi'' did."

    "Did you now." He humored her, "By the way, from here on, only step on the marked tiles. The rest are instakills."

    "Ack." She barely stopped herself from stepping on one, "Tell meh dat soonah. Anycase, me ''ouse''s a ship motif. She''s a beute, Oi'' tells ya''."

    "A lady like yourself is just chock full of surprises." Energy continued to speak in a casual tone, "The life of a pirate is thrilling indeed."

    A touchy subject. She really didn''t enjoy being called that again.

    "Oi, jus'' s''euwe kno'', Oi'' dun'' prefer dat term..." She glared at him sitting inside the tote, "Oi''m a seafarer, nu''n mo."

    "Mn, I think ''pirate'' suits you way more." He reasoned.

    "Ye'' tryna'' taek tha'' piss outta me, man?"

    This was when the air around them had grown dark. Nerys sensed something was amiss, but nothing exact came to mind. Once more, she took a look inside the bag to find the brain resting calmly within. A brain shouldn''t be capable of showing external emotions, yet somehow an immense sense of guilt and dread reached her the moment she gazed at him.

    "Nerys Edris, you really think I''d forget a name like that?" He asked plainly, "Not to mention a girl with such a horribly unintelligible accent?"

    "E-Ey nau..." She let out a nervous chuckle, "Shoulda'' told me we met befoh, man."

    "Sorry, I must have forgotten." He explained, "It happened a relatively long time ago, so I don''t expect you to remember. We met in an alley, back when I was still an angel¡ªnay, a seraphim."

    Her heart was racing, and her mind in shambles. Desperately, she tried to recall the last time she had met a person sharing his personality or name, yet nothing came to mind. His tone indicated hostility and malice, and she was now well within his trap. The only thing keeping her from dying in this house is his advice, in other words¡ªone purposeful miscommunication and she''s a goner.

    "Nerys, you were the girl who took my wings all those cycles ago." He revealed, "In that alleyway, before I could even meet that blasted Throne who made me lose my foot."

    "H-Huh, Throne?"

    "The man who stuffed me in that accursed Shrine, the reason I met Vastoria and got entagled in this whole story to begin with. It all dates back to you, Nerys."

    "Aye, Oi'' dunno anythin'' ''bout that, man..." She sweated profusely, "B-Bot Oi''m sorry, we can talk dis out, y''kno''...?"

    "I know." He snickered, "By the way, you should duck right about now."

    Her heart sank. Does she trust him or not? There didn''t seem to be any sort of trap activating, but that''s the point of keeping them hidden in the first place. In the end, she opted to trust his words, ducking in place before barely squinting her Eyes open.

    "N-Nothin'' ''appen''d...?" She looked around.

    "My bad, I must have misremembered." His snickers only grew louder with each word uttered, "Accidents happen, hope you don''t mind."

 Vol.6 Ch.127 - Even

    "Aye, Oi''n rememba'' muggin'' no wun''!" Nerys sweated profusely, "Ye'' got me mixed ap'' with somwun else, man!"

    "Oh I''m quite sure." He chuckled innocently, "That being said, this happened a long time ago. Back then, the White Monster was still alive and kicking, making everyone''s memories reset."

    Nerys was by all accounts left utterly clueless, much to her dismay. Energy refused to explain anything to her, and merely sat there in her palms, calmly yet sharply accusing her of wronging him for something she had no recollection of doing. To make matters worse, she was now in a position where he could essentially kill her at any moment. All it took was one wrong callout and that''d be it, so she couldn''t even advance without first clearing up any bad blood between them.

    "Wot...?" She furrowed her brows, "Hwoit monsta''? Did euwe ''it yer'' ead'' er'' sumthin'', man?"

    "Oh right, of course you wouldn''t even remember it." He reasoned, "You must have just one day woken up with my wings already attached to you, not a single care in the world about how you got them, right?"

    "Y-Yeah, bot Oi'' didn'' kno''..."

    "And to make matters worse, you just up and turned one of those precious wings that never even belonged to you into a damned pickaxe of all things." He kept going, "Sigh, if only we had touched the Living World back then, maybe I would have even considered calling it worth it. But no, in the end it was all just... such a waste."

    He wasn''t going to let her go without a fight. A fight, or at the very least a struggle. Nerys was to think very carefully about each word she uttered and action she committed from hereon out. A single mistake would be the death of her outright. Just then, a clicking sound emerged from below them.

    "Oh right, if you stand in place too long, the tile beneath you falls." He let her know at the last second.

    "Gah!" She jumped to the next marked tile just as the previous one dropped, revealing a crushing spiral turbine below, "O-Oh dear Lordes above..."

    "Kinda nauseating to look at, eh?" He remarked passively, "Just imagine getting your body stuck in there. The turbines don''t stop for nothing, they''d crush your body in half regardless of what it was made of."

    "Tch, wot''s it too ya'', anyways!?" She lashed out finally, "Feck ya'' need wings fer'' wid no body, aye!? Ye'' gon'' be a floyin'' brehn, ey?"

    "I don''t think you understand, Nerys." He explained, "I may have lost my Heavenly body, and I may not be able to fight you as a mere brain¡ªbut so long as I''m within this building, it''s essentially even better than having a body to work with."

    "Ye'' wankah...!"

    "Tsk tsk, I''d watch your language if I were you." He clicked his tongue, "Remember, right now the only chance you have of surviving this requires you to take good care of me. By the way, I suggest you duck."

    This trick again... Nerys was smarter than before, however. He already said it before, making her panic and duck down for no apparent reason, putting her in a less favorable position. But she had learned from her mistakes, and this time refused to listen.

    "Oi'' ain''t that domb, ma-!"

    Blam! A brick fell from the high ceiling, hitting her straight over the head. Given her non-gilded body''s invincibility, she obviously wasn''t harmed in any way from this, but the scare coupled with the sheer force of the impact made her fall over and onto an unmarked tile. To make matters worse, she had also dropped Energy a few meters away across the room.

    "Get out of there!" Energy screeched.

    "Gyeh!" She rolled away, a controlled explosion instantiating within the borders of the unmarked tile, "Ack!"

    "Keep moving, don''t stop until you reach a safe tile!" He kept urging her.

    Inside Nerys'' head, all she could think of was to question his sanity. One moment, Energy was untrustworthy and dangerous to listen to, and the next he was hellbent on keeping her safe. Then again, she reasoned, this could all only serve to make his future warnings more believable. Even now, every piece of advice he had been dishing out could have been false, and she would have died just like that.

    "Ye'' sed you''s was gon'' kill me, man." She heaved ragged exhales after finally reaching a marked tile, "Go on then, wot''s got ye'' tangl''d op?!"

    "...What''s the point of getting my revenge if it doesn''t even last more than a minute." He said after a brief pause, "Besides, I still need those weapons delivered to those guys down there. I made that promise to Migu."

    "Ah?" Her Eyes widened in disbelief, "Buehehe, bahaha, phahahahahaha! Still tryna'' keep ye'' promise, aye!? Yous'' plannin'' ta'' off me bot ye'' cannae'' bring ye''self ta'' disappoint ''em!?"

    "Is there a problem with that?" He asked, "Don''t worry, once you''ve served your purpose, I''ll be sure to dispose of you just when you think it''s all over. That''s my plan."

    "Oye, issit?" She jeered, Eyeing him down across the room, "Then y''wonna kno'' my plan? Oi''ll git thoos weapons, and Oi''ll be takin'' ye'' outsoid wimme!"

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    The way she was to go about this was also quite clever. Her method was one that required a great deal of agility, precision, reaction time, and above all else¡ªbravery.

    "From ''ereon!" She announced, "Anythin'' ye'' say fer'' me ta'' do, Oi''ll jus'' do thee opposite!"

    "How stupid, you''ll only kill yourself faster that way." He scowled.

    "Is that an ordah?" She smirked, "Guess Oi'' oughta'' not die, den! Git ready, man¡ªit''s toime ta'' show ye'' wot a reel seafarer''s movement resembles!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Nau den, shall we get goin'' ollready?" She asked, "Say tha'' warrd, n'' Oi''ll come ronnin''!"

    That having been said, she didn''t even wait for him to say anything. Instead, she immediately bolted to grab him and quickly make her way up to the second floor. This task was a daunting one, but nothing she couldn''t handle with even a teensy bit of luck on her side.

    "Dodge left!"

    "Roight, gottit!" She nodded, dodging the oncoming wrecking ball that landed to her left.

    "Jump over that tile!"

    "Stand directly on it!" She followed the opposite of his words, all of the surrounding tiles dissipating around her, "Phew, this is workin'' out too good!"

    Her plan was rock solid. She was approaching him too fast for Energy''s brain to catch up and say the correct phrase. In other words, so long as she didn''t let up with this pace, she''d reach him soon enough.

    "U-Urk, get down!" He yelled.

    "Jomp ova-!" She got impaled by a spear.

    A spear had somehow launched itself clean through her abdoment, though no blood poured out of the wound. Of course, she felt no pain from this, but she was in shock nonetheless. He had lied and actually told her the correct comm to trick her into disobeying it. She didn''t want to admit it, but he got one over on her.

    "E-Eh?" She whimpered

    "What? You''re that surprised?" He got offended, "If you wanted to be tricky about it, then you shouldn''t have told me what your plan was. See how I tricked you by keeping my mouth shut? Now you lost, all because you couldn''t keep it to yourself."

    "Ngah!" She yanked the spear out of her, the wound closing up in seconds.

    "Whoa, wait..." Energy was pissed, "That''s not fair!"

    "Gah!" She ran with the spear pointed in front of her, "Say wot'' ye'' will, Oi''m gettin'' os outta v''ere!"

    "Hmph, you can try." He smugly replied, "But I''d suggest you jump first.

    His words of advice fell on deaf ears, however, so he had to try again.

    "Not gonna get fooled twice, I see?" He chuckled, a tad nervous, "I can admire that, but you really should listen well."

    "Shuttit."

    "N-Nerys...!?" He began to worry, "Stay back, hey! Are you even listening!? You''ll get yourself killed!"

    Despite his frightful tone, she didn''t at all let up in her rush. No longer did she care for a single word that came out of him, all she could focus on was bum-rushing him whilst maintaining a steady pace. She masterfully avoided each unmarked tile, she refused to take even one step more than what was necessary whilst crossing from one marked tile to the next, and she relied solely on her vision and quick reaction time to dodge any stray traps that may have gotten activated.

    "Nerys...!"

    "Energy...!"

    She was relentless. Explosions, darts, arrows, wrecking balls, pits, spikes and spears. None could reach her, nor could they even faze her for that matter. Energy saw for the first time what Nerys had excelled at was her agility, and this one little surprise ended up being the deciding factor of this battle. The result?

    "My win." She held the brain up proudly, like one would a trophy.

    "Hmm..." He groaned, "I suggest you lower that hand, the game''s not over yet."

    "Eep!" She freaked out, ducking super low to avoid... nothing, "Tch, ye'' basterd!"

    "Heh, you let your guard down." He remarked, "But let this lesson be the reward for your victory just now. You may have found your way to me again, but that doesn''t mean you''re out of the forest just yet."

    "Ye'' sersly still gon'' keep loyin'' ta'' me aftah oll dat troble?" She sighed tiredly.

    "Until you leave this house." He grinned, "Of course, it''s entirely up to you whether or not you choose to trust me. But remember, it''s your fault if you end up dying."

    With that, she quickly leapt from the marked tile she was on to the staircase. The creaky sound of the wooden, rotted planks made her instinctively grapple onto the handrails, which fell off the moment she applied the tiniest bit of pressure on them. Soon, she realized the next obstacle in their way.

    "The stairs have a time limit on them, by the way." Energy revealed, "Like climbing up a sandcastle, it''s quite the fickle structure."

    "Ah, ''course it is." She grunted, "Den, Oi bettah maek a break fer'' it-!"

    "Stop!" He shouted before lowering his voice again, "The name of the game is slow and steady. Feel out each step before you take it, measure thrice cut once. Don''t take too much time, but rushing will certainly lead to failure."

    Of course, this could all just be another elaborate lie meant to get her to fail, but she found good logic in his words regardless, so she thought trusting him on this one couldn''t hurt. Slowly, she stepped on the next creaky plank, and it...

    "Gah!"

    Fell.

    "Hrm." She frowned, a new determined glint in her Eye, "Next step, then!"

    It fell as well.

    "Urk, the third...?" She gulped.

    Yep, it fell through as well. In the end, the next five steps she had tried all turned out to be duds, leaving her stranded on the first step still. She could no longer reach the next viable step without doing a leap of faith, though the sharp spikes underneath didn''t really prove to be a good incentive to do that. Seeing this, Energy just had to toss over a rude comment.

    "Wings sure would have been convenient here, don''t you think?"

    "Oi."

    "Just saying, last time we had Vastoria fly us straight to the weapons." He recalled, "Oh, you have wings, don''t you? Ahhh, my bad~! I forgot they disintegrated!"

    "If ye'' dun'' shut ye'' trap roight this instant Oi''m tossin'' ya straight out tha'' windoe, ye'' hear me!?"

    Livid, past her breaking point even. Nerys was done taking Energy''s relentless crap, and he could tell. In truth, he hadn''t actually planned to kill her, just scare her a bit to fulfill his vengeance quota. But now, he saw what he had done, and it made him feel like a very bad person.

    "...I''m sorry." He admitted solemnly.

    "Apology... accept''d." She sighed, a small smirk cracking on her lips, "Oi''m still gon'' toss ya'' out tha'' windoe once this is ovah, doe."

    "Why does everyone want to physically abuse me!?" He cried out.

    "Yer'' a fun ponchin'' bag." She giggled, "N'' yer'' kindov'' an arse."

 Vol.6 Ch.128 - Two Stacks of Weaponry

    Having exhausted all other options, Nerys prepared herself for a rather over-athletic feat. Bracing herself, she leaned up against the side rails of the staircase and rode up them with as much speed as she could muster.

    "You''re gonna fall, you know." Energy sighed dejectedly.

    "Shaddup, Oi''munna need ya'' help ''ere!" She shouted, jumping off the rail once she felt it was about to break.

    Perfectly timed, she leapt off at the exact moment the rails gave in and fell down into the pit of death below. From this distance, even despite her efforts, she wouldn''t have reached the second floor.

    "What do you mean help?!" He screamed, "I don''t have a body, genius!"

    "An'' ye'' dun'' need wun!"

    Tossing the tote over herself, it allowed her just enough of an extension to her distance to cling onto the handrail above. The tote bag was now upside down, so Energy quickly fell out. Thankfully, Nerys was there to catch him.

    "Oop! Gotcha, man. Dun'' piss ye'' britches."

    "Phew..." He breathed a sigh of relief, "To think that ugly bag would actually come in handy."

    "Oi'' kno'', roight?" She giggled, lifting them up and onto the second story, "Lassie really outdid ''erself, as ogly as ''er cloths be."

    Having temporarily changed their target of dissing to Migu, the bad blood between them only dissipated more as they made their way down the hallway. They were finally out of the main foyer, but the traps were not over yet. They still had to actually make it to the weapons shed and take the stuff out. Something Vastoria and the others easily accomplished prior to this thanks to her wings.

    "We should have just taken Sheep with us..." Energy grunted, "What was my descendant thinking, sending him away?"

    "She wos'' probly worri''d ''bout the Gods n'' allat." Nerys reasoned, "Ye'' said before that Elegy shudn'' meet wid ''em?"

    "Oh right, I never got to tell you what all happened on our side." He recalled, "A lot of revelations about the Gods, but for now they''ve temporarily been turned into regular humans. Physically, they are even more powerless and dainty than we are."

    "Seems loike ye'' shud''ve told us dat soonah..." She said, Eyes wide open.

    "Yeah well, you all insisted on us getting the weapons first, so." He shot back, "Sheep''s carrying Vastoria''s body, as well as the two of them inside his winged embrace. Since they''re humans, they fell unconscious from the high speeds of his flight, and we''re using that time to warn you guys."

    "Warn us... Ye'' said dat before." She inquired, "Bout wot?"

    "The Gods don''t wanna tell us the plan to save Vastoria." He explained, "They''re drip feeding at best, and we have issues with that way of doing things."

    Of course, not every partnership is expected to be transparent, but neither is it expected to work fully opaque either. All the Gods had to do was explain the method from start to finish and ask if these three wished to go through with such a plan, but instead they directly admitted that doing so would "ensure they won''t do it".

    "It''s trickery at best and surefire death at worst." He scowled just thinking about it, "Their next step is to get in contact with Elegy. We don''t know what he''s required for, but we don''t want to find out. Once we''ve warned everyone to hide away as best as they can, we''ll return to the Gods and try to lure them astray until we think of something to do."

    "Then just ''ave us leave tha'' districc." She suggested.

    "No, we need to respect that rule." He declined.

    "Whoi shud'' we?"

    "Because they''ll kill us if we don''t."

    No matter how unfair it seems, they are bound by the verbal agreement they made with the Gods to not leave the district anymore. Of course, trusting your enemies isn''t encouraged, but a contract is a contract regardless of whom it''s made with. It''ll make things more difficult, but so long as they uphold their end of the deal, everyone will remain safe from the Gods'' schemes. At the very least, it''s a chip less the Gods would be able to use against them at a later time...

    "Hmm..." He got lost in his thoughts for a moment.

    "Wot''s tha'' mattah, man?"

    "There''s something else I''m forgetting, but I can''t quite put my finger on it." He muttered, "If I recall correctly, it''s pretty important."

    "Well den'' try ''n remembah." She helped him out, "We last tolk''d ''bout tha'' Gods, they be humans nau, ye'' warned me ''bout Elegy..."

    "No no, retracing our steps won''t work... Actually!" He recalled, "That''s it, now I remember!"

    Bonk. A nailed bat swung down from the ceiling on a rope, hitting Nerys square in the face. Thankfully, her body was now all White, so she didn''t sustain any injuries. She wasn''t too thrilled about that, however.

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    "I wanted to tell you to duck soon..." He winced.

    "Thank ye'' fer'' tha'' warnin'', man..." She checked for blood out of habit, "Phew, we got locky, so''s''not that bad, bot ye'' need ta'' be more focus''d."

    "Right, sorry." He agreed, muttering softly, "Duck again, by the way. That isn''t the only one."

    "Yoikes!"

    In the nick of time, or perhaps a tad late, but she managed to dodge the second swing of the nailed bat. After that came an entire onslaught of deadly traps, each worse than the last. Of course, they would have been long dead if they had any gold on them, but it seems falling through Heaven 2.0 had its perks after all. Before long, they had reached the fabled weapons locker.

    "Dun'' tell me tha'' doorr''s boobi''d?" She turned to smirk at him, "Oi''m serious, dun'' tell me that."

    "It''s not-" He said as she swung the door open, a large crossbow bolt hitting her straight in the chest and sending her flying back into the wall behind them, "...but the actual room is another thing."

    "Thassit." She settled, "Ye'' goin'' out da'' windoe fer'' shore nau."

    "That''s fair."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Now that they were inside the locker room, half of their mission was complete. All they had to do was take as many items as they could and leave the house to reconvene with the others. Easier said than done though, because the amount they could carry was very miniscule in comparison with what was presented before them.

    "Booty!" Nerys'' Eyes glimmered with stars in them, "Treasure! Werth its weit'' in gold!"

    "And yet you still vehemently deny being a pirate..." He sighed.

    "Sea. Ferrah."

    "Whatever the case may be, I don''t think we''ll be able to carry as much as we had expected." Energy continued, "Even if we use the tote effectively, all of these weapons are just way too large for you alone to carry."

    "Hau moch we need?" She counted with her fingers, "Laddie, lassie, matey, boye... Thass foive."

    "You''re that bad at math?"

    "Huh?" She scowled at him, "Oi'' be tha'' fifth, moron."

    "Oh, right." He felt embarrassed over the blunder, "But we should still grab two weapons for everyone."

    "Two be a crowd, man."

    "It''s always easier to switch to your secondary." He remarked.

    "Whoi''d ye'' need a secondary if tha'' primary''s got infinite use?"

    "I... don''t know."

    He was completely making a fool of himself in front of her. Despite all these weapons being part of his arsenal, he was left at a loss as to what to do. That''s of course when the idea struck him.

    "Hey, let''s just go to the bedroom real quick and snag a bedsheet." He explained, "Use it to tie everything up and it''ll be easier to transport."

    "Izzit fahr?"

    "Just two rooms down the hall." He reasoned, "B-But there''s really not that many traps, I promise-"

    "Nah, Oi'' gotta betta'' oidea." She shook her head, haphazardly grabbing as many blades as she could carry, "Man, ye'' rememba'' Oi'' told ya'' ye''ll be floyin'' out da'' windoe soon?"

    "Where''s this going...?" He gulped as she booked it out of the weapons locker.

    Instead of going down the dangerous hallway any further, she instead used Energy''s squishy yet indestructible brain to break away the glass of the window across the door. Peering over and below, she saw the huge drop they''d have to endure, and Energy was not having it.

    "Nuh uh! Are you crazy!?" He yelled at her, "You''re not gonna free up much space by tossing me out!"

    "Immuna'' dewit."

    "Do it later?!" He yelped as she chucked him full force, "Baaaaahhh~!"

    She wasn''t done with her plan, however. The next step was to empty out the contents of the tote out of the window as well. A bunch of swords, throwing knives, machetes, nailed bats, batons and the like all fell the entire 10+ meters until they landed on the cloudy surface below, right on top of Energy mind you.

    "Nau!" She dusted her hands off before returning to the weapons locker, "Next batch!"

    And so, she kept going back and forth, stocking up on as many items as she could carry before hoisting them out of the window for the others to pick up. It took her 7 round trips, but she eventually emptied out the entire locker room, leaving not even an arrow feather behind. Once that was done, she prepared herself before making a swan dive right out of the window as well.

    "Aye! This be a doive''!" She yelled, her grin going from ear to ear, "Woo-!"

    A perfect landing, with no splashback whatsoever. Truly a work of art, or at least it would be if it was on water. Alas, metallic sharp objects don''t equate to such a liquid, so she ended up busting her body up badly as she hit the pile of weapons she extracted.

    "Thankferly Oi''m not golden..." She said in a daze, "Hrmph! Ye'' in der'', man?"

    "Mph...!" Energy shouted desperately from beneath the pile, "...e out!"

    "Oi'' gotcha, Oi'' gotcha..." She put her hand inside, wiggling it about for a bit before yanking him out, "Er'' ya'' go, bee''nt Oi'' a smartie?"

    "You be a wild idiot, that''s what you be!" He clapped back lividly, "I swear, that was enough to make me start beef with you all over again, you crazed seafarer!"

    "Fer'' da'' last toime, it''s poirrate!" She bit her tongue, "Oh wait, Oi'' gottem mix''d op..."

    Their incessant shouting attracted the others to come to them, their pleasant smiles showing on their faces as they saw the fruits of these two''s labor.

    "Nerys, Energy!" Migu ran up to them, "You got this much stuff all by yourselves!?"

    "Ehe~, jus'' a bitta'' loight werk." Nerys blushed smugly.

    "Incredible..." Hats stood there, mouth agape as he curiously picked up a mace.

    "I call dibs on the crossbow!" Sab immediately shouted.

    "You even know how to use that thing?" Elegy rolled his Eyes, only taking a whetstone to sharpen his serrated blade, "It''s nothing like a gun, you know."

    "Same diff." He pouted.

    "Maybe, up until you actually have to reload for another shot..." Elegy sighed before turning to these two, "Energy, Nerys, you guys did an incredible job. I see I was worried for nothing about you two taking so long in there."

    "I told you they were kissing." Sab tacked on.

    "Ew, how does kissing a brain even work...?" Hats grimaced.

    As they picked out their weapons and equipment with great joy, Energy and Nerys could only look on in disbelief and bewilderment. Just what kind of nonsense did they think these two were getting up to? If only they knew just what was keeping them from getting this over with sooner...

    "Ignore them." Migu approached the stunned duo, with Nerys handing over the tote with Energy inside back, "Oh, thanks. But really, this is too much stuff even for all of us to carry. You two make way too good of a team!"

    "Ah." They both uttered.

    If only she knew...

 Vol.6 Ch.129 - Deceit

    "Everyone, be sure to suit up." I informed them, "You never know when that piece of armor could save your life."

    "Huh?" They all turned to look at me weirdly.

    What? Why do they have that look on their faces? Look, I get it''s kind of an obvious thing to point out, but I noticed none of them were going for the armor pieces, so I just had to notify them.

    "Um, Migu..." Hats timidly approached me, "We don''t need armor."

    "Our bodies are impervious to damage, genius." Energy scoffed, "Armor''s only gonna weigh you down."

    "...Oh." I blushed.

    "Apart from that, you and Energy will need to go back to Sheep and the Gods." Elegy tacked on, "It''d be way too suspicious if you came back with a full set of armor."

    Eh~? In that case, wouldn''t my new clothes give me away either way? No, but from what it sounded like, Selz already knows we left to go warn these guys about the situation, so there''s no reason for me to discard them. Yeah, definitely¡ªthe clothes stay on no matter what!

    "T-Then I guess you do have a point about the armor being useless..." I scratched my cheek bashfully, "In any case, if you guys are gonna be hiding within the district, then why would you even need any weapons?"

    They once more collectively tilted their heads in unison at me. I''m really not liking this feeling of being silently mocked for my ignorance...

    "You never know what  might show up in the future." Sab stated.

    "Did ye'' reely think we''d be usin'' these agains'' tha'' Gods?" Nerys flailed her harpoon gun about, "Pish, euwemans ''r not, we cannae killem."

    "That''s... true as well." I nodded, "Geez, I get it! I''m stupid, and you guys are right, so let''s just go already!"

    "Oh, about that." Energy interrupted me, "You and I won''t be joining them from here on."

    ...I''m gonna lose it.

    "And why not!?" I hissed back, glaring harshly down the tote bag.

    "They should find a place to hide away at without us knowing." He reasoned, "The Gods could find a way to extract their location from us."

    "Urk, okay..." I slumped forward.

    "Besides, we have nothing else to help them with. We did our part." He chuckled, "Sheep must be getting bored of flying around and keeping them from waking up as well, so we should return to him as soon as possible."

    Oh right. Would it be wrong of me to say that I completely forgot about Sheep for a moment there? Right, not having a face to attribute to the person really does make him harder to remember. It feels bad of me to think like this, especially since he''s busting his ass trying to buy us time and all, but that''s just what happens when your body is just made up entirely of wings and Eyes.

    "Then, it''s already time for us to go?" I looked at everyone with a saddened expression, "What am I saying? You guys better find a good hiding spot."

    "T''was tha'' plan, lassie." Nerys winked.

    "Consider it a game of hide and seek." Sab smirked as well, "The Gods will try to look for us, and in the meantime your job is to get them to spill the beans on why exactly they need this bozo with them."

    "Hey, who are you calling a bozo?" Elegy smacked him, "Good luck out there, I know they can be a pain to deal with, but try and get them to understand that we''re willing to be reasonable so long as they do the same."

    "Yeah." I nodded solemnly, "And hopefully, by the time we do find you guys, the Gods will have been convinced."

    "There''s no hope in that equation." Energy remarked, "It all boils down to how hard we work for it."

    Gramps is spitting facts again. Usually I''d discourage his little lectures, but this time it actually kinda sounded cool, so I''ll let it slide. We bid farewell to everyone for now before going in the opposite direction of them. They could hide away wherever they wanted, so long as it was within the boundaries of district G. A single district might just be bigger than a continent in terms of size, and even though they probably won''t be able to travel to the other side of it by the time we reach the Gods and Sheep, I''m sure they''ll have gotten a pretty sizable headstart. From then on, it''s up to us to get the Gods to spill the beans on their so-called master plan to fix Vastoria.

    "Hey, now that that''s settled..." Energy realized, "How exactly do you expect us to find the flying blur that is Sheep?"

    "What do you mean? That''s the easiest part." I looked up, giving him a signal by reaching for the sky.

    In the very next moment, loud horns could be heard as our archangel friend seemingly just appeared before us. His wings looked crooked and fatigued, and his ragged breaths showed that he really didn''t enjoy having to fly God knows how many laps around the district.

    Stolen story; please report.

    "Y..." Sheep could barely even speak by now, "You done?"

    "Huh!?" Energy yelped, "B-But how did you...?"

    "Hmph! Guess it''s finally time for me to be the bearer of obvious explanations!" I smugly puffed my chest out, "Sheep was flying at incredible speeds, but for him it was all happening in real time. He also wasn''t straying away from this district, so regardless of where he went to, he would eventually circle back to see me giving out the signal to stop. Piece of cake!"

    "Sheep, thank you for doing this." Energy ignored me.

    "No problem..." He opened up his winged embrace, a whole bunch of vomit from the Gods spilling out as he did, "Alright, get in."

    "...How about no?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    It took a while, but I eventually got rid of all that upchuck once we decided to sit down and take a break. It seems the Gods really disliked getting their bodies thrown about everywhere while he flew, so they involuntarily had to gunk up his feathers. After I took out these Two and Vastoria, cleaning Sheep up was pretty easy.

    "Ahhh~" He smiled, "You have no idea how much better that feels! Imagine flying in slow motion and witnessing your passengers begin to throw up without even having any way to make them stop. Eugh, I tell you, it made ''me'' gag...."

    "Sorry again for making you go through this." I apologized.

    "It''s alright, so long as you get everything done on your part." He then took a closer look at me, "Wait, there''s no way you made me keep them at bay just to get new clothes, right?"

    "Of course not!" I shot back, "W-Well, that too, but there was another reason!"

    "And you''re not gonna tell me?" He raised an expectant Eyebrow.

    "I can''t." I shook my head, approaching the two Gods lying on the cloudy ground in front of me, "They can hear us."

    Their bodies twitched a bit once I said this. After a few more seconds of thinking I didn''t notice, they eventually came clean and got up with a grouchy attitude.

    "How''d you know we were awake?" Pry asked.

    "Cleaning Sheep up took long enough for even a coma patient to wake up." I explained, "If you still weren''t on your feet by now, I''d proclaim you deceased."

    Well, that''s only partially true. I didn''t actually mean what I said literally, I just meant they could read our thoughts at any moment and figure out what it is we''ve done while they were out cold.

    "A-ha, so that''s the case!" Selz laughed maniacally.

    "Well, since everyone barring Vastoria is awake now, I might as well explain myself." I cleared my throat, "...But first, what do you think of my new clothes?"

    "Oh my days..." Energy gave up.

    "Uhh, they''re fine?" Sheep confusedly replied.

    "Amazing!" Selz loudly clapped for me, "That fabric is simply divine!"

    "Hard agree! And the colors really match your vibes!" Pry followed suit.

    "Ehe~, you really think so?" I admittedly got a bit embarrassed over the praise, "No wait, I don''t need your flattery!"

    "But you asked us for our opinions..." Pry looked sad.

    Yeah, maybe if it wasn''t so obviously fake! These Gods have no shame, are they really trying to butter me up just to get me to slip up on some info regarding our outing!? And to think I almost fell for it... I-It can''t be helped, okay!? None of the opinions I got on it were good, so I kinda got a little excited for a second there! Sniffle, I-I''m not crying, you''re crying!

    "Can you all stop holding conversations I can''t follow along to?" Energy looked annoyed.

    "Ditto." Sheep agreed.

    "Migu, just tell us what exactly happened while mister archangel here was taking us for an unprompted joyride." Pry asked nicely enough.

    "I can''t trust you enough to do that." I shook my head.

    Selz really disliked my thick headedness on this matter, so he had to raise his tone.

    "Have we not already long since established that trusting us is of the utmost importance to making this plan work in the first place?!"

    "Sigh, you guys still don''t get it?" Sheep exhaled, "All we wanna know is what your plan is."

    "That''s right, we''re tired of playing back and forth games." I added, "So I come to you now with a deal."

    "This should be fun..." Pry folded his arms, "Then, we''re all ears."

    "We''ll tell you outright what Energy and I did while we were away." I explained, "We''ll even stop complaining and fully embrace helping you with that plan of yours."

    "Good, that sounds like what we would want out of any kind of deal being made..." Selz stared me down, "So what''s in it for you?"

    "All we''re asking for is brutal, unfiltered transparency." Energy chimed in, "Whether or not we will back out of it should be a choice made by us, not you. It''s unfair of you to expect us to simply comply without any information about what exactly we''ll be doing."

    They sat there for a moment, discussing amongst themselves what exactly to do. Pry kept repeating that they absolutely shouldn''t reveal anything, but Selz in fact sighed, explaining that we will undoubtedly try to find another way to save Vastoria if they keep quiet, which anyone could understand would probably just serve to cause even more trouble. In the end, they both nodded at each other in agreement, briefly glancing over at Vastoria''s unconscious body before turning to us.

    "We plan to create a carbon copy of Vastoria." They said in unison.

    "I''m out." I immediately replied.

    "Whoa-Hey, hey!" Sheep stopped me, "We got them to speak to us finally, so let''s at least hear them out fully!"

    "Hrm..."

    After that, the Gods explained in detail what it is that they needed Elegy for. We had originally assumed it was a sacrificial offering of sorts, but it seems to be something way more intricate. The Gods would merely use Elegy''s fighting prowess to win against another beast.

    "Without the bed, Vastoria has no hope of ever recovering." Selz said some harsh words, "But we can create a new Vastoria. One that looks, sounds, thinks and even remembers everything the same as this one before you. An exact copy is no different than the original, don''t you agree?"

    "...But it''s not ''her'', is it?" I pouted.

    "It is. Effectively speaking, at least." Pry continued, "We knew you would have this reaction, but it really isn''t as bad as you might be led to believe."

    "I see." Energy understood their point of view somehow, "But that still doesn''t explain Elegy''s role in all of this?"

    "In order for this to work, we needed two things." Selz put two fingers up, "Vastoria''s original body to be used as "raw materials" for the new one, and a cherubim''s head to serve as the power source for the ritual."

    Cherubim...? What the hell, not another beast that needs slaying!

 Vol.6 Ch.130 - Absolutely Abysmal Pacing

    "A cherubim." Sheep repeated, "And that''s what, exactly?"

    "Sounds like a rare ore, honestly." Energy figured.

    "I was leaning more towards a scary monster." I shrugged.

    "Don''t worry, it''s nothing to be wary of." Pry chuckled, "A cherubim is merely another Being of Heaven, just like you and we."

    "Its closest relative is actually Sheep''s archetype, the archangels." Selz added.

    Ah, so I was right on the money, then. Sigh, I swear Heaven sounds more dangerous than the Living World at this point. Like sure, down there we had some messed up animals and stuff, but that''s only if you looked hard enough for them. Kinda like... what we''re doing right now.

    "Wait a second, is it our fault for always provoking the Staples of Heaven?" I realized.

    "Took you long enough." Selz groaned, "Had you just remained in this district without causing trouble, there''d be no "monsters" for you to face in the first place."

    "Too late to be thinking about that now." Energy comforted me, "Now that we''re this deep, there''s no use in regretting your choices. You Two, tell us more about the cherubim."

    The Gods'' body language didn''t really make us think we were dealing with a deadly threat in any way. Just from how nonchalant they were when speaking about it, we figured there might even be a chance we deal with it quickly.

    "It''s a bunch of wings spliced together." Pry briefly described, "Only difference it has from the Shopkeeper''s body is that it''s got a head in the middle."

    "Oh wow, that somehow sounds scarier than an archangel." I retorted.

    "Eh? You think I''m scary?" Sheep slumped forward.

    "So long as we have Elegy with us, there is no reason to fear it." Selz continued, "Well, there is no reason to fear it regardless, for it is a pacifist."

    "It doesn''t attack?" Energy was left baffled, "Then why would you ever need Elegy''s help in the first place?"

    They needed Elegy because he''s undoubtedly the strongest of us when it comes to combat, or at least that''s what we assumed. So then how come they need him for a beast that doesn''t fight? Of course, Elegy''s got more than just combat prowess going for him, but what makes him different than any of us if that''s the case?

    "Put simply, he''s a Wildcard unbound by fate." Pry explained, "A man born to change the world''s preset path. You could even call people like him our natural enemies."

    "Wildcard?"

    "More importantly, what''s that got to do with the cherubim?" Energy interrupted.

    "Sigh, cherubim are protectors." Selz tiredly lectured us on the topic, "Guardians, if you will. Their goal is to protect you from yourselves."

    "Protect us from ourselves? You guys are making less and less sense..." Sheep couldn''t understand it.

    "That''s why we insisted on drip-feeding you this info throughout the course of the mission..." Pry stared at him intensely, "But what my colleague here meant to say was that they make sure you don''t act up past a certain point. One good look at them and they''ll remind you of your fate."

    "Ah, I get it." I nodded, "And our fate is of course to stay in our yards and not cause trouble, right?"

    "At least someone is paying attention."

    Getting praised by the lecturers... This is university all over again. But I now understand what they mean when they say there''s nothing for us to fear. Unlike the White Monster or even the bat roaches, this cherubim fella doesn''t really do much but tell you to turn around and head back. No scary face, no falling unconscious, just a warning and off you go.

    "Of course, one cannot defy the hands of fate, hence why we need a person immune to this ironclad rule." Selz elaborated, "Elegy is one such example. Even during his human life, he..."

    "Ahem." Pry nudged him.

    "...Any other questions before we can finally get going?" Selz glanced over at us.

    No no, you were definitely gonna say something interesting there about Elegy. But wow, to think that guy''s actually so incredible even with all his other talents. Hey, hold on a second, if he''s my ancestor, then doesn''t that mean I should be able to twist fate a bit as well? If not, that''s kind of unfair...

    "Yeah, I got one." Sheep worried, "You said one good look at the cherubim and we turn around, but is the cherubim as scary as the White Monster?"

    "Oh, that." Pry was surprised by the innocent query, "Quite the opposite, actually. Its head takes on the shape of what you find most beautiful in a person. Male or female, or even an androgynous mix if you''re so inclined, its powers are to captivate you in such a way that you simply cannot ignore its heartfelt advice."

    This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    "Sounds pleasant." I remarked, "But how come you, as Gods, aren''t immune to it?"

    "Simple¡ªwe''re no longer Gods." Selz dropped his head down, "I''m really starting to regret doing that to us now..."

    "I thought you were smarter than this, dude..." Pry tacked on, "This is the kind of plan I''d expect of Auros, but not the God of Knowledge. Sigh, and you even got me roped into it."

    "Don''t equate me to that bird-brained, mayonnaise-covered lummox!"

    Eh~? So even the Gods have some drama between them? This sounds interesting, I''d actually pay to watch a full show based on it. To think the God of Knowledge is even capable of thinking this way about his coworker... Hold on, what''s this about mayonnaise?

    "Well, at the very least now that you know the entire plan, we don''t have to worry about walking on eggshells around you anymore." Pry turned to us with a sunny smile, "And with the Shopkeeper''s speed, it shouldn''t take long before we find Elegy and recruit him to our cause!"

    "...Rii~ight." We gulped.

    We messed up big-time, didn''t we? Oh God, we totally did...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "How strange, reading your minds shows no sign of where Elegy went..." Selz pried.

    "Ha-ha..."

    "You... purposefully left their group without hearing or seeing where they went to throw us off." Pry''s Eyes went cold, "How very... careful of you."

    Okay, we get it, I messed up! Geez, am I ever gonna make the right call? Is there just some higher force at play here making always pick the worst possible decisions or something? No, but that would be these Two, so they''re to blame!

    "Hey now, this is entirely on you Two." Sheep raised his voice.

    "Yeah!" I shook my fist at them.

    "If you were more transparent with us from the very beginning, she wouldn''t even have a reason to go behind your backs and warn the gang in the first place!"

    "Ye-" I paused, "Yeah, that''s what I was gonna say too."

    "Hrm... Be that as it may, we have no way of convincing the cherubim to help us without him." Selz sighed.

    "Eh? Convince?" I cocked my head back, "As in, not kill?"

    "Why would we ever kill a cherubim?" Pry mirrored my reaction, "They''re friendly, and are fully capable of communicating."

    "But you said earlier that we needed a cherubim''s head to revive Vastoria." Even Energy recalled their words.

    "Yes, we need its head. But we don''t have to kill them for it." They rolled their Eyes snidely, as if we asked such a stupid question, "A cherubim has the ability to regenerate, you know? Hell, it''ll just shed its own head and hand it over to you if you convince it to."

    Eh? It''s that much of a pushover!? How sad, are you saying we have to bully the poor guy?! Make everyone in Heaven happy, my foot...

    "As a sidenote, we did mention that they are most closely related to archangels, but this is only in regards to their outward appearance." Pry heard my mind''s thoughts and decided to address the concern, "They have no souls, just like the bat roaches and White Monster you''ve encountered before."

    "They have no soul, but are fully capable of reasonable communication." Energy saw the hypocrisy in that logic, "Then how are they in any way different to what you want to do to Vastoria?"

    Hey, that''s a good point! The Gods also couldn''t quite refute him instantly, having chosen to stand there in a guilty silence instead. If they want to make an exact copy of Vastoria, claiming it''s fundamentally the same as healing her, then how come she''s a person but cherubim aren''t?

    "The Vastoria you know has a soul that lived in her era''s Vast World." Selzion said with that signature gloomy glare of his, "A cherubim was created originally in Heaven 2.0. None of them ever had any souls to begin with."

    "And will Vastoria''s copy have a soul, too?" I asked.

    "..."

    His silence... says it all. These guys aren''t here to make us happy. They''re here just to fulfill a quota! A self-fulfilling sick experiment of theirs to find out if it''s possible to make everyone be happy! And yeah, maybe they can make us be happy, but we''ll never ''feel'' happy! Vastoria... It''s too soon to make any promises, but I''ll definitely try my best to find another way to get you back¡ªthe real you! Not some cheap imitation!

    "An exact copy means an exact copy." Pry sighed, breaking the loud silence with his own calm and collected tone, "Soul and all. Don''t worry, we wouldn''t trick you."

    "...Migu." Sheep put his wing on my shoulder.

    "Huh? Don''t tell me you''re actually siding with them!" I smacked it off, "Sheep, you know just as much as I do how much Migu means to me-!"

    "And she means just as much to me." He revealed.

    ...Huh?

    "Ah. P-Platonically, I mean." He hastily corrected himself.

    "Phew..."

    "Listen, we''re not getting anywhere bickering like this." He reasoned, "Migu, I know it may sound harsh, but Vastoria is lying mangled inside my body." He added, "Each passing second I yearn more and more for the moment she gets better. The moment she wakes up, is able to walk on her own two feet and talk to us just as sweetly as she did before. But right now all I have with me is a corpse."

    "She''s still alive, though!"

    "She might as well be dead." He took a deep breath, "So the best we can do for her is to make her might as well be alive."

    "Whoa..." Energy was left speechless.

    "Spoken like a truly sound individual. I knew making you a shopkeeper and later an archangel was the correct move." Selz nodded proudly.

    "Everything you''ve mentioned, Shopkeeper, you will be able to do once we get the cherubim''s head." Pry too smiled proudly, "But before that, we''re gonna need to find Elegy."

    Everyone''s so determined... But I''m sorry, I just can''t accept it. Outright replacing Vastoria, even if all of her atoms were exactly the same down to the last one... I don''t find it a humane way of going about it. She might not even know she''s not the original, but we will, and I find that horrible. I don''t wanna live in a world of trickery and lies, and I''ll walk down as many thorny bushes just to pave a way to honesty.

    "I''ll help you guys find Elegy." I calmed down a bit, "But I still think this is wrong."

    "That''s enough for us." Selzion smirked, "So long as the end result remains unaltered, your emotions mean nothing for us."

    "A-Ah!" Pry was quick to word it better, "Ignore that last part, I''m pretty sure even you guys have been around him enough to know he always tacks on annoying insults at the end of every sentence."

    "And what does that mean, you blithering bimbo?"

    "See? My point exactly!" Pry crossed his arms, "That''s why you''re single, dude. No girl would date a guy like you!"

    "Nonsense, the Five Gods are the only constant throughout time. Everything else expires!" Selz refuted him, "The only female of us currently is Allucius, and as far as I know she''s already made a lover of that whimmy idiot Ouroboras."

    No wonder you lot are so miserable...

    "Psst, did I just hear that right?" Energy and Sheep whispered at me, "Allucius is female?"

 Vol.6 Ch.131 - Plain Sight

    With nothing more to add anymore, we hopped inside Sheep''s winged embrace and zipped to a secondary location. Given the speed we were going at and the distance traveled, we really couldn''t even tell where it is he dropped us off until he let us out.

    "Did you find Elegy?" I asked, hopping out.

    "Nope, I flew three laps around the entire district and couldn''t spot a whiff of him." Sheep breathed heavily, "It''s like he sunk into the ground."

    "Three laps... Yeah, that checks out..." Pry barely held himself together.

    "Hey, you haven''t fallen unconscious." Energy pointed out.

    "I suppose this is what humans would call building up one''s tolerance." Selz gagged, "Eugh, after what the Shopkeeper put us through earlier, this is nothing."

    "Sorry about that..." Sheep apologized dejectedly.

    Well, we can''t do anything about the cherubim until we find Elegy, so quitting really isn''t any option. If only the Gods were honest from the beginning, finding them would be a breeze... Guess we''ll need to continue on foot. Huh, right now we''re stopped in front of Elegy''s house. It''s the most obvious place to start looking, but it''s also the area with the least amount of hiding spots. Elegy''s house is completely empty, if I recall.

    "What are the odds they went outside the district?" Pry worried.

    "Zero, we warned them not to." Energy replied, "And unlike you, they''ll trust us enough to not break that rule."

    "Hrm..."

    "Hey now, no bickering." I peered into the tote bag, "Energy, is there any way for you to ''feel'' them out with your brainwaves?"

    "That ability, it''s gotten a lot more numb ever since I lost my gold." He explained, "But I could give it a shot."

    "Feel?" Sheep tilted his wings, "Brainwaves? Did I miss a page?"

    "It''s best if we just show you." I nodded, taking Energy out of the bag and holding him high up like an antenna, "Do your thing!"

    Despite the flashiness of our tandem maneuver, Energy''s effort still couldn''t really be seen by anyone. After all, he''s merely using his sixth sense to scan the area around him, so it''s not like we''ll physically see him move or anything. After a few seconds of scoping, he sighed disappointedly before giving the results.

    "Good news and bad news." He said, "Which do you wanna hear first?"

    "Good." Pry and I immediately replied.

    "Bad." Sheep and Selz said at the same time.

    Huh? Why would you wanna hear the bad news first? You''ll be too bummed to even fully take in the good news!

    "Why would you wanna hear the good news first?" Sheep scoffed at us, "You''ll just get your feelings crushed by the bad news after the fact!"

    "I concur, we must first address the issues before we can focus on blind optimism." Selz added.

    "Yeah right, you and your realist approach!" Pry frowned at him, "Always gotta be a downer!"

    "Alright, the order doesn''t matter!" Energy shouted, "You''ll hear both anyways, so who cares!?"

    "O-Oh, right..."

    But then why ask us in the first place? I know it''s a figure of speech, but still. Huh, I guess he didn''t expect us to be so butthurt about it.

    "Sigh, the good news is¡ªI found Sab."

    "Whoa!" Sheep gasped, "Wait, really!? You can just do that with your brain!? That''s incredible!"

    "Hm, yes." Selz and Pry nodded, "Certainly, every body part of a Heavenly Being is perfect, and that does include the brain. A perfect brain does indeed have the ability to tap into its sixth sense without the skull obstructing it."

    So that''s how it works. About what I expected, honestly. Energy seems chipper about it, though.

    "So the bad news is, you haven''t found Elegy." I noticed.

    "No, the bad news is¡ªI haven''t found anyone but Sab." He sighed, "They must have split up to throw us off."

    "Smart, it''s way harder to find one person at a time than an entire group." Sheep smiled.

    "Smart for them, inconvenient for us." Pry reminded him, "Our goal is to find them, remember?"

    "Well, we have no other choice but to go for Sab and ask him where Elegy is." I slouched, "He should be more than willing to cooperate after we explain everything to him."

    "Right, just tell me where exactly he''s hidden, Energy." Sheep glanced around.

    "Uhhh. That way." Energy tried to point.

    "Which way?"

    "...That way." He repeated.

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    "This isn''t gonna work if you have nothing to point with..." I dropped my head down dejectedly.

    "Just slowly turn around and he''ll tell us which way he went like that!" Selz ordered.

    "Oh right, or we could do that." I offhandedly pouted at him, "There was no need to shout at the top of your lungs to tell me that, though."

    I lifted Energy''s brain in front of me, holding it out in a given direction before I started to slowly crane my body clockwise. It was actually kinda fun trying to get the right direction with him.

    "Colder, colder..." He repeated, "Oh, now you''re warmer!"

    "Which is it? I didn''t change directions!"

    "Just keep going that way, warmer!" He shouted, "You''re getting hot, it''s a fever! You''re on fire! Lava!"

    "How much hotter can it get!?"

    "Oh, you missed it. Cold as ice." He stopped the enthusiastic callouts abruptly.

    The difference between ice and lava is way too tiny! Ugh, apparently lava is as hot as it gets. I pulled back a bit and he said that was where Sab was. Sheep asked if he should fly us there, but Energy insisted for the Gods'' sake that we''re within walking distance.

    "Keep in mind, I can loosely sense that he''s there, but he''s obviously gonna be moving around." Energy reminded us, "Besides, it''s his job to hide away from us, so don''t expect this to be easy."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Wuh-" I stopped in front of him, "Sab?"

    Not gonna be easy, my foot! He''s just strolling around randomly in the street! Did he not listen to me at all when I told him to hide!? What is this guy doing?!

    "Gah! How''d you guys find me so fast!?" He took a step back.

    "Eh?" Even Selz was at a loss for words, "Wait, you were seriously hiding like this?"

    "At this point, I''m ashamed of myself for not seeing you earlier..." Sheep looked embarrassed.

    "How rude! It''s called hiding in plain sight!" Sab refuted, "See, you guys expected me to be hiding in a nook somewhere, so no crazy person would think to comb through the busy streets!"

    I... I''d say that''s beyond stupid, but since it worked on Sheep, I really have nothing to toss at him. Really, if we didn''t have Energy''s radar ability, I think he''d actually be the last person we found. It''s just a pity he''s not Elegy.

    "Where are the others?" I cocked my head back.

    "Hmph! Not telling you!" He stuck his tongue out.

    "Sab, it''s okay, the Gods are on our side. It was a misunderstanding." Energy pleaded with him, "We need to know where Elegy is."

    "Huh? Really?" He remained skeptical, "Ooooh, I get it! Yeah, yeah, "we can trust the Gods"¡ªnice acting!"

    God, this isn''t an act, we really did mess up! Well, more like I messed up, but that''s beside the point. I get the feeling that convincing him to spill the others'' locations isn''t gonna be as easy as we think it''ll be. Then again, now that we''ve found him, it''s only a matter of... Oi, get back here!

    "Where''d he go!?" I panicked.

    "Urk, he disappeared into the crowd in the blink of an Eye..." Sheep darted his Eyes everywhere, "Is his plan actually smarter than we thought?"

    "Nonsense!" Selz ordered, "Archangel, peruse the skies!"

    Yeah, we got a being that flies faster than light on our side. Cornering him should be easy, but...

    "Sheep won''t be able to see him from that high up because of the crowd!" Pry reminded everyone, "We gotta push through ourselves!"

    "Sab!" Energy yelled.

    "Sab, get back here!" Sheep as well.

    "Sab, where are you!?" I shouted.

    Running through the thick crowd of people never felt so deterring. Somehow, the longer we searched for him, the more it felt like we never even saw him in the first place. Everyone looks the same as him, with the only way to recognize him being the lack of gilded parts and his clothes. He''s actually pretty good at hide and seek.

    "...There!" I pointed over yonder, "Way out in front of us, he''s mocking us!"

    "Blehhh~" He jumped above the others just to stick his tongue out, "Try and catch me, fools! That''s right, you can''t!"

    "Enough of this." Selz popped a vein, "Sheep, take me up."

    "Huh!? But you can''t fly without-!"

    "Bring me above him." Selz insisted, "Quickly, before we lose track of him again!"

    With an uncertain gulp, he obliged and flew at his hyperspeed. Immediately, the two were high above Sab''s location, with Selz dropping down the moment he blipped there.

    "Blehh~!" Sab kept looking at us, "Huh? Weren''t there five of y-?"

    "Divine elbow!" Selz yelled, slamming him into the ground from the skies above, "Oh, it appears I broke my arm pulling such a stunt off."

    "You got him!" We caught up as well, "Oh, that looks painful..."

    "No worries, it''ll heal back soon enough." Pry smiled naively, "...Right?"

    Sheep and I just looked on, nervously shaking our heads back and forth. While his arm isn''t broken, it''s definitely sprained at the very least. He''s only human after all, so of course it''ll heal back up eventually, just not as soon as he''d hope. Moving around without a cast is also going to be difficult. I just hope his pain tolerance isn''t...

    "Gah!" I jolted once I saw Selz bend the joint back into place, "What are you doing!?"

    "Hm? Fixing it, what does it look like?" He rolled his Eyes as if I asked something stupid, "Gods can''t be killed, but we do feel physical pain, you know?"

    "In other words, you''ve grown accustomed to such injuries, is that it?" Energy smirked.

    "Y-You gonna..." Sab begged from under him, "Get off me... now?"

    "Not until you tell us where Elegy is."

    "Ugh, I don''t... know!" Sab struggled to get the words out from the knee in his back, "We all agreed...! To go our separate ways!"

    We knew that much. So wait, you never actually discussed where you''ll be hiding? Again, smart on your part, but how come you guys are only this efficient when it hinders us? Earlier you could barely form a tower together. Hold on, is the problem in me?

    "Selz, get off him." Pry motioned, "I checked his mind, he''s telling the truth."

    "Hrm... Moron." Selz spat at him before getting up.

    "Ghaaa!" Sab sprung back up to his feet, "Geez, then¡ªam I free to go, officers?"

    "Huh? Where''re you going?" Sheep asked.

    "Aren''t you gonna come with us?" I tilted my head.

    "Who said the hiders become the seekers once they get caught?" He turned around to leave, "I''m gonna go enjoy the rest of my stroll in peace now, since you''re in the market for Elegy anyways."

    "Just don''t leave the district!" Selz made sure to remind him.

    As he disappeared cooly into the crowd, a lone arm was raised to wave us off. In a way, he''s doing what we told him, since we did say they should spend their time in the district leisurely. No need to get involved when trouble isn''t the one calling you.

    "Why''d you let him go? He could''ve helped us!" Energy frowned.

    "If we need him, we''ll go look for him." Pry reassured him, "Don''t worry, we''re already crowded as it is. Keeping our numbers low will ensure we move easier through this crowd."

    "Oof!" A random dude bumped shoulders with Selz, "Watch it, dude!"

    Oh, now you messed up, guy! Selz''s face looks livid! What''s he gonna do now? Destroy the street? Blow up your house...!?

    "I certainly will." Selz apologized calmly.

    "Huh?" We stared at him blankly as he waited for the guy to leave.

    "I regret destroying Hell so usdamned much..."

    Yep, there''s that familiar frown of his! He even replaced "goddamned" with "usdamned", what a Selz thing to do!

 Vol.6 Ch.132 - Hotline Brrring!

    "Well, that''s one person down." I recounted, "Not that it means anything in particular, since he didn''t tell us anything about where the others are hiding."

    "They can''t have gone too far on foot." Pry reasoned, "Let''s try and search the area around us. Perhaps Elegy may be in one of the many buildings scattered throughout the streets?"

    "Mn, he wouldn''t be that obvious..." Sheep mulled it over for a bit, "Yeah, knowing Elegy, he''s already halfway across the entire district by now. We''d have better luck trying to get the others to out him."

    The others... Barring Sab, that leaves Hats and Nerys. Personally, I know next to nothing about both of them, but it''s true that they might have a better idea as to where Elegy went exactly.

    "They don''t know where he went either." Selz shook his head.

    "They''ve known him longer than we have." Sheep remarked, "It''s a way better chance than just randomly searching every house in the district, especially since he''ll know to avoid us the entire time."

    Gahh, so annoying! I wish I could just call him and tell him to get his butt over here! Heaven''s 2.0''s technology is next to nonexistent....

    "Why aren''t phones a thing here...?" I asked the Gods, "It shouldn''t be this difficult to get into contact with someone in a place as huge as this."

    "What''re those?" Energy''s voice sounded puzzled.

    "Sigh, ignore my random bumblings." I went to quietly sob, longing for the most convenient device in human history since the invention of the wheel, "Those aren''t a thing here."

    "Migu, you have phones, though." Pry furrowed his brows.

    "What was that?" My head perked up eagerly, "I do?"

    "Honestly, a better question to ask is what you do NOT have in that house of yours..." Selz snickered, "Indeed, among the many gadgets you longed for in your human life is a phone. Plenty of them, too."

    Oh right, my house is the spitting image of what a needy, materialistic person would most want in the world. So wait, if phones are a thing here, then how would they work? I obviously need a number, then there''s the question of how I would get connected to the other line... Ugh, no use thinking about it.

    "I''d like to ask as well what these "phones" are." Sheep chimed in.

    "How about I show you?" A wry grin grew on my face, "Take us to my house, Sheep!"

    "Migu, we don''t have the time for that." Selz sternly replied.

    "With Sheep''s speed, we''ll be in and out in a jiff." I assured him, "Besides, my place is a treasure trove of items! Who knows, you might even find something you''ll like."

    "Ooh, we get to keep it?" Pry sounded interested.

    The Gods kept bickering amongst themselves until they reached a begrudging agreement.

    "Don''t let her words get to you, Pry."

    "What''s the hurry, Selz? Not like Elegy can leave the district anyways."

    "You never know with that man. Besides, the cherubim awaits."

    "It''s waited this long, it can wait a little more. Besides, not like we announced ourselves to it ahead of time or anything."

    Feeling that arguing like an old married couple would by this point waste more time than just actually going on this little side tangent, Selz ultimately allowed us to hop inside Sheep and make our way to the house. Thank you, God of Meditation!

    "Ahh, home sweet home!" I sniffed the nostalgic air as soon as I walked in, "Blegh! What the Hell is that smell!?"

    "What did you expect a cesspool of dust to smell like?" Selz picked up an old gas mask from the floor, dusted it off and put it on his face, "I will be borrowing this."

    "Any more of those for me?" Pry pleaded.

    "No, just the one."

    "Oh..."

    Poor guy, and after all he''s done for us. Eh, he''ll live. The only real issue would be if he was allergic... Hold on, could Gods have allergies!? N-No, no way that''d happen. It''d be funny, sure, but Selz also would never purposefully make their dispositions anything less than the apex of health, surely.

    "Selz, about what crossed her mind just now..." Pry gulped anxiously.

    "No need to worry." Selz exhaled, "I only made you allergic to cats."

    "Why!?"

    "Does it matter? There aren''t any cats in Heaven 2.0 anyways."

    "But what if we run into one!? Selz, you''re saying I actually won''t be allowed to pet it?!"

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    It seems Selz was enjoying teasing his friend here. Still, it''s a bit of a low blow to make a happy guy like Prylos unable to touch cats.

    "No one''s stopping you from petting one if, somehow, we ran into a cat in Heaven 2.0." Selz said through the mask, "You''re just gonna get a nasty rash all over your body and die from being set on fire."

    "Pretty sure that''s not how allergies work-" Energy whispered.

    "Shh!" Sheep and I shut him up, "Don''t make this harder than it needs to be."

    Upon finding out that he was in fact allergic, albeit not to anything that could be found within this place, Pry melancholically dragged his feet around the living room as he looked for the phones. I wonder, would Meditating help with that? Nah, you can''t fix the broken heart of a man who''s just learned he''s allergic to cats.

    "We''ll check the first floor." Selz turned to us, "You three go upstairs. And please, do try and hurry things along, would you?"

    "Geez, we get it." I rolled my Eyes, "Same to you, apologize to Pry and cheer him up as best you can by the time we find the phones. I''ll extend our stay unless you two have made up."

    "Negative. We will leave once we find those blasted devices." He glared, "End of debate."

    "Just be a good friend for once?" Sheep and Energy sided with me.

    "Grrr... Whatever." He glanced back at the mopey Meditation God, "Just get going already."

    ***

    While those Two were working things out between them below deck, we decided it would be best if Energy, Sheep and I searched the upper level of the house. Despite how much I hope for it, this floor always greets me just as messy as the one below it. This is gonna be so tiresome...

    "Then-"

    "I call dibs on the left side!" Sheep bolted in front of me.

    "Gah, I was about to say that!" I yelled.

    "Does it even matter?" Energy groaned disinterestedly.

    "It very much does!" Sheep and I shouted in unison.

    Thing is, the right side of the hallway has the bedroom, guest room and study, whereas the left side has the closet and bathroom. See the difference? That''s right, the left side has one entire room less to go through! It makes absolutely no sense to give all that extra work to me when Sheep is the speedster here!

    "You snooze, you lose~" Sheep jeered as he entered the closet, "Don''t worry, I''ll help out a bit once I''m done checking this place out. Gods know I''ll be done before you."

    "Bastard...!" I grinded my teeth at him.

    "Migu, we''ve got rooms to search." Energy cleared his throat.

    "Urk, alright..."

    First up was the bedroom. Yep, this is where it all started, so to speak. It''s always a familiar, warm and comfy sight. The Yellow walls certainly help with that.

    "So many clothes..." Energy scowled, "By the way, you don''t have to take me out of the bag. I can see just fine from inside it."

    "You deserve some time outside. Consider it a treat for being well-behaved." I joked, "On a more serious note, we''ve got some stuff to discuss."

    Immediately, he realized what was up. Not gonna say anything too revealing, ''cause the Gods are probably listening in on this conversation, but it''s got something to do with him locating Sab.

    "Sit still if yes, hop around if no." I told him.

    "Sigh, Migu..."

    "Oh right, you can''t actually move at all." I giggled, "I totally forgot."

    Well, this isn''t gonna work. I wanted to try encoding our convo, but without a way to communicate without words, it''s just a dead end. Never mind, let''s just continue to look for that damned phone.

    "You never did explain what that thing we''re looking for is." He noted, "What does it do? Or at least describe what it looks like."

    "It does all sorts of things, honestly." I shrugged, "You can talk to someone from any distance in the world, and sending messages is instantaneous."

    "Get outta here, there''s no such thing!" He sounded intrigued.

    "I''m being serious! It exists in my era, and most everyone has it!"

    "...So you''re actually telling the truth?" He was stunned, "Wow, just imagine how much easier life would be in the Infested World with those around..."

    "I think phones require some sort of maintenance for the antenna towers, so they wouldn''t do much even if they existed." I broke the news to him, "And they need regular charging, so again, no-go."

    "Oh..." He sulked.

    "Don''t worry, we should be able to use them here, if we''re to believe the Gods." I comforted him, "They newest models look really cool, and the ones I always wanted had all sorts of useful features, like a clock, a calendar, and even an alarm clock!"

    "Ehh~? At that point, what can''t it do?" He inquired.

    "Exactly! See gramps, you get it!" I patted him a bit as a reward, "Look for a round-edged rectangular plastic device about... this small."

    "That''s tiny! It could easily fit in one''s pocket!" He gasped, "You suck at measuring."

    "No I don''t, it''s actually that small." I smirked proudly, "As a matter of fact, it has the ability... to flip over and double its size! That''s right, the latest model with the most versatility and style¡ªthe flip phone!"

    Yes, prehistoric ancestor! Mire at the beauty you''re picturing in your head, for this is the peak of modern technological advancement! The flagship of the era, the defining invention¡ªflip phones will one day rule the world! ...Well, once I find one to show off to him, of course.

    "It brings a tear to my Eye..." He sniffled, despite neither having an Eye nor a nose.

    "And why''s that? Finally realized us youngins ain''t so bad after all?"

    "No, nothing like that." He explained, "In the Infested World, few were the moments where people would truly believe their will to live on meant anything."

    "Oh..."

    "I don''t remember them by name, but it seems to have happened often enough for me to consider it a part of life." He choked up, "The deaths of comrades, suicides aplenty. Folks just couldn''t handle the stress of such a cruel environment, especially the ones who knew what it was like before the Rotted took over."

    "...But I''m here." I smiled, "And I''m from a future where no one even remembers what the Hell a Rotted even is."

    "That''s why I''m so happy." He said, "My efforts to survive, to last just that one day longer. People like me who gave it their all to hopefully build a better future for our offspring, we probably never got to see such a world clean of Rotted in our lives. I do have to admit, I''m thankful to the Gods for creating this opportunity in Heaven."

    "Energy..." I felt a tear drop down my cheek as well, "Wow. And to think, our generation only knows about zombies and the like from cheap horror movies. In comparison, you went through the real deal."

    "Zombies? Is that what you call them?" He chuckled, "The Rotted sound way cooler."

    "I-I know that..." I blushed.

    Out of the corner of my Eye, I spotted a glimmer just as I said that. Immediately, I sprinted to it as if the item would disappear had I not hurried. I picked the device up, its reflection glinting in my Eyes. A round-edged rectangular device that flipped open to reveal its true potential.

    "You found one." Energy was left baffled.

    "Yeah, that''s one." I smirked, "But a phone is useless when it''s all alone."

 Vol.6 Ch.133 - A Mere Coincidence

    A few minutes earlier, downstairs...

    "What are we even doing, Selz?" Pry kicked over a random piece of junk.

    "Getting demotivated all of a sudden?" Selz snorted, "Who''s the one moping about now?"

    "Not funny, man. I wanna help make everyone happy, but if we kept our godhood we would''ve been done ages ago." Pry groaned, "Face it, you''re doing this for yourself."

    A sudden argument burst forth between the Two. They have already spent an entire day as humans, realizing the flaws of the very beings they have created. Going from nigh infinite possibilities and powers to only a fraction of what they once were truly did hit them hard, and it seems to have made Prylos second-guess this entire operation.

    "I never said I was doing it for you." Selz rolled his Eyes, picking up a four-winged owl pin, "I merely wanted to try and study what was so good about being Gods."

    "You''re still hung up on finding Ouroboras? He''s down there, we''re up here. Leave that task to Allucius, man!"

    Allucius, the Goddess of Water, vowed to search for and find Ouroboras'' human reincarnation. The God of Sun chose to throw away his godhood in search of something they could not even comprehend, and that made her furious most of all. Ouroboras was more than a mere fellow God to her¡ªhe was a lover. And for that reason she promised to spend countless days and nights until she could locate him and kill him, thus forcefully returning him to Godhood. Yet Selzion wished to accomplish this same result in a different way...

    "If we became humans ourselves for a time, I assume we will come to understand why it was that he did it first." Selz explained, "If we know the reason, we will know where to find him. Of course, finding a valid reason to knowingly set aside your perfection still eludes me, but I will not waver."

    "You''re dodging the question." Pry glared, "Why did you have to drag me into your stupid experiment as well, then?"

    "Doubling the samples doubles the chances of success, no?" Selz looked around calmly, "He would have done the same if he was in my shoes."

    Ouroboras was an unforgiving God, but he was wise to reason. He was ruthless to sinners, but showed remarkable kindness and mercy to those who deserved it. Whereas the other Four Gods saw humans as their subjects, he saw them as equals. Among all of the Gods of this world, Ouroboras was the only one to actively seek advice from his followers when he required it. Actively setting aside his pride to resolve the issue was a trait only he possessed.

    "No he wouldn''t!" Pry shot back, "He''d make sure to torture you as a human before killing you just so you wouldn''t get such a stupid idea again! Need I remind you that he governed Hell before we decommissioned it?"

    "As if more ludicrous ideas never crossed him before..." Selz scoffed, "Why, he would destroy everything and start over just to retrieve one of us if he... hm?"

    Left on a disambiguous table beneath countless layers of clothes and other useless junk was a single framed photo. With a vertical, robust frame, one could easily assume it meant a lot to Migu''s soul. Picking it up, Selz clutched the frame until the glass cracked.

    "What is this..." He muttered through gritted teeth.

    "What did you find?" Pry peeked over his shoulder, "Oh, what in the...?"

    Yet another family portrait, albeit on a smaller scale to the one Migu and the others found before. Unlike that one, this picture only contained 5 individuals. Two middle-aged men, both with long rugged beards, with the one on the left sporting a stylish Eyepatch and hair a dirty orange, whilst his friend''s was that of a pure White tint. A young couple and what appeared to be their child sat below them posing on the central chair. The mother''s short ginger hair exuded grace, very much unlike the scruffy-looking father. Most particular about this image was the daughter sat on the chair, for her hair flowed a light lavender Purple.

    "What are they doing here?" Selz asked, his veins popping and his teeth all but cracking from the pressure, "Ouroboras, Allucius... What are you doing in this picture together?"

    As to be expected, the two most unusual looking people were the ones these Gods singled out. The White haired man and the Purple haired child both bore extreme similarities to the Sun God and Water Goddess respectively, which only made this picture more dubious.

    "But Allucius said she''d kill him the moment she figured out who he was." Prylos furrowed his brows, "So why are they just posing happily for this picture? When was it taken?"

    Quickly, Selzion broke open the frame the rest of the way, hastily turning the photo over to check if a date was printed on the back. Alas, only a single message was inscribed in ink.

    "To dad, thank you for giving me this life to live. I spend every day, hoping you see us¡ªsee our happy ending."

    "...Tch." Selz ripped the photo before tossing it away, "Scaring us for no reason like that..."

    "Whoa, why''d you do that!?" Pry reflexively snapped his fingers to try and put it back together, though this power was since long lost, "What''s the meaning of this!? That message, it''s...!"

    "It''s not Allucius." Selz explained with a long sigh, "The child pictured within the photo is Migu. They merely share physical similarities."

    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    "Oh..." Pry looked down after handing the torn photo to him, "B-But then what about Ouroboras?"

    "Don''t you get it?" Selz took a lighter from nearby and put the photo over the open flame, "A God like Ouroboras wouldn''t reincarnate with the same physical appearance as his Godly counterpart. This man isn''t him either. It''s all just a coincidence."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Migu, Migu, come quick!" Sheep called out to us from the closet, "Hurry!"

    "Sheep!" I ran out waving my brand new flip phone around, "Look what I... found?"

    "Good news!" He turned around, all smiles as he showed me it, "I was rummaging through the closet when I happened upon a random box! I went to open it just out of curiosity, and I found a bunch of these cool devices in it!"

    "No offense, but those look like explosives." Energy said warily.

    "No, no, ''cause look!" Sheep tossed me one.

    Energy screamed with all his might when he did this. He was genuinely convinced these things were explosives, but in reality it''s something much worse...

    "Gyahh! We''re all gonna die!" Energy cried out.

    "Woot, woot! Can you hear me?" Sheep talked into his device, yet his voice was forwarded through the one in my hands, "This is what we''re looking for, right? A device for communicating with everyone, a phone!"

    This isn''t a phone. In fact, it might even be better than a phone, because verbal communication is much easier to establish and doesn''t require even a bar of signal to work. That''s right, what Sheep just found was in fact a whole box of walkie-talkies.

    "This is a phone..." I weakly brandished my flip phone.

    "Whoaaa~! That looks so cool!" He smiled before realizing, "Ah, but now that we have these, there really isn''t a reason for you to have that, right?"

    Uuu~, and just when I thought I could finally carry a snazzy flip phone to complete my outfit~! Darn you, Sheep, you''ll rue the day you messed up my day... which is today! You''ll rue today, you hear me?!

    "Put the box inside with Vastoria." I whimpered, "Come on, let''s just go look for Elegy already..."

    "Migu, you look sad." Energy considerately thought to ask.

    "I''m just bummed I did all that searching for nothing."

    "Mn."

    Ah-!? What the Hell does "Mn" mean!? Bastard, you were supposed to comfort me, or say something along the lines of "You can still carry the flip phone on you for style points"! Why even ask if all you''re gonna reply with is the bare minimum required to pass as subtle acknowledgment of my problem!?

    "Y''know, you-" Sheep stated.

    "You''re so right!" I hugged him, "I CAN keep the phone, after all!"

    "What? That''s not what I-?" He felt me squeezing him harder, "U-Urk... Happy to help!"

    As we walked down the stairs, we happened to come across the two Gods taking a leisurely break on my living room couch. They didn''t speak, they didn''t blink. It was only when we approached them up close did we realize why this was.

    "Ah." Sheep said, "They''re asleep."

    "Wake up, they''re eating your brains!" Energy shouted at the top of his lun-... at the top of his brain?

    "Bwaarghhhh!" Pry shot up from his seat, clutching his stomach, "Don''t eat my brains! I only have three of them!"

    "Would you stop panicking?" Selz squinted his Eyes open, not at all fazed by the scare attempt, "Your brain is in your head, not your stomach, you reprobate."

    "Ehh? My bad..." Pry quickly moved his hands to his scalp instead, "I must''ve gotten those confused with something else. Refresh my memory real quick, what do humans only have three of?"

    "Nothing, they''re humans."

    They seem to be having a fun time, it seems. I guess I can''t blame them too much for slacking though, since being a human naturally means they''re weak to staying up for too long.

    "Sniff, sniff..." Energy felt something waft through the air.

    "Wasn''t me." Pry immediately raised his hand.

    "No, not that. Is something burning?" He asked.

    "Oh yeah, I smell it too." I noticed, "Did you guys leave the stove on or something!?"

    "Relax, it is nothing to be worried about." Selz assured us, "Rather, shouldn''t we be leaving?"

    "How''d you know we found the devices?" Sheep tilted his wings.

    "Why else would you all be circled around us." He retorted, "What did you find?"

    "A bunch of walkie-talkies, all in working order and set up to be on the same frequency." I explained.

    "That''s a relief. Everyone grab one for yourselves." Selz immediately commanded, "Migu and Energy, you two can share since you''re always together."

    "That''s fair." We nodded.

    "Sheep, go look for Sab and give him one as well." Selz continued, "Meet back up with us once you''re done."

    "On it!" He blipped for a split second before returning in a somewhat nervous state.

    "What happened? Did you find him?" I asked.

    "I-I did."

    "And did you hand him the walkie-talkie?" Pry inquired.

    "So what''s got you so pale?" Energy yelled.

    He wanted to explain it, but he didn''t know where to start. It took him a moment to catch his breath, but when he finally calmed down enough, he opted to pull out his walkie-talkie and press the button with one of his many wings, signalling for Sab to come through.

    "Yo, this thing on? Over." Sab''s distorted voice echoed from the device.

    "Sab!" I talked to him through my own device, "Thank goodness we can talk to you whenever now!"

    "You''re supposed to say over every time you''re finished speaking." He corrected my radio-communicative manners, "Over."

    "Is that so? Over." Sheep chimed in, "I didn''t know. Over. Hey, could you tell everyone what you told me just now? Over."

    "You don''t have to say over every time you finish a sentence. Over." He elaborated, "And yeah, I can. You guys are gonna be pretty hyped to hear this, but I think I find Nerys'' hiding spot. Over."

    "Wait, really!?" Energy jolted, "How can you be sure? Over."

    "It''s just a few blocks down in the direction I went after you last saw me." He explained, "Trust me, you can''t miss it."

    That''s incredible. So much for not wanting to help, this guy already gave us our next lead! Getting Nerys on board will be a huge help, and with these walkie-talkies now, we''ll be able to report back the moment something pops up. But more importantly.

    "Sab, you forgot to say over at the end there." I snickered.

    "Gah! It''s too cumbersome to keep repeating over and over again!" He yelped before monotonously saying after the fact, "Over."

    "Let''s just agree to all talk normally when using these." Selz sighed.

    "Agreed." We nodded, "Over."

 Vol.6 Ch.134 - Seafarer Ship

    We flew on over to the location as per Sab''s instructions. We found it puzzling how finding a single person in a nigh endless crowd could ever be described as hard to miss, but everything was clear once we turned the corner.

    "Oh." I cocked my head back.

    "I''d bet my mother''s soul on that being Nerys''s Heavenly Abode." Sheep smirked.

    "In that case, I raise." Energy snorted.

    A huge pirate ship in the middle of the land. Nay, more like a shipwreck if I''m being honest. Hell, even the ship''s sails are the same Color as her clothes¡ªGreen and Red accents all over.

    "Sheep, how in the world did you miss this huge Eyesore while flying about?" I turned to him.

    "I was looking for people, not ships." He explained, "Not to mention, unusual houses aren''t exactly that rare up in Heaven once you actually get a bird''s Eye view."

    "Indeed, you humans seem to have particularly strange tastes in choosing your housing spaces." Selz groaned.

    "You''re one to talk." Pry muttered.

    ...What was that?

    "Sorry, ignore what I just said." He tried to backpaddle.

    "Nope, say what you wanted to say." We urged him, eager for some more drama between the two.

    "What''s wrong with our Abode, Pry?" Selz asked, somewhat threateningly.

    "I-It''s just, y''know?" Pry chuckled nervously before explaining, "A huge mansion for giants in the middle of Heaven 2.0, with absolutely no proper gates to keep outsiders from barging in all the time."

    "Hrm..."

    "Kinda counterintuitive if you''re just gonna keep complaining about all the visitors we get all the time, that''s all I''m gonna say."

    "What good is a perfect world if we cannot Behold it personally?" Selz refuted.

    "Behold it pers-!? Oh, come on!" Pry yelled, "We can''t even leave the damned place except for very rare and very dire situations! At that point, we might as well have just made our house up in the sky like Vastoria did!"

    "Oh, and look where that got her...!"

    "Ahem." I abruptly interjected, "How about we stop it here, while no one''s gotten mad yet?"

    Offending each other is fun, but don''t bring her into this. She can''t even defend herself with the state she''s in, not to mention Vastoria isn''t even at fault for your poor decision-making! You Two have officially crossed the line.

    "Nonsense! I''m quite mad already-!" Selz announced.

    "Sheep, if they so much as utter another word about this topic..." I said with a dark smile on my face, "Scoop them up and make sure they experience the fastest speed there is."

    "I think they got the message." Sheep pointed at the two''s knees shivering.

    Wow, they really are traumatized. So Gods can get like this as well. Then again, I''m sure Pry will just choose to forget it and be done with it. Selz, on the other hand, well... He''ll just have to learn to deal with it. Not like I care, I just wanna help Vastoria.

    "Nerys~!" I hollered from in front of the giant ship, "Oi~, Nerys! You there!?"

    "She''s hiding from us, why would she answer?" Energy remarked.

    "Oh, right." I bashfully quieted down.

    "You don''t have to hide anymore!" Sheep yelled after me, "This isn''t a trick or a scam, you can come out! Nothing''s gonna happen!"

    "...Ye'' shore?" Her voice replied in a quiver-like volume.

    Oh good, we got the right address. I was getting worried we''d actually have to bust in and make sure it''s hers for real. Then there''s the nightmare scenario where it''s actually not hers at all and we just burgled into a random dude''s fancy ship house.

    "Yes, we-" Selz tried to speak before she shot back.

    "Oi''m not ''ere!" She interrupted him, "Git lost, almoighty Gods!"

    "So does she respect us or not?" Pry turned to inquire.

    "Does it matter?" I gave a brief reply before turning to her again, "We know you''re in there, no use hiding once we''ve heard your voice!"

    "...N-Nuh uh."

    Well, glad to know this won''t be as difficult as Sab''s case was. Nerys isn''t exactly the smartest fish in the sea, after all. Then again, this could all be an elaborate trick to lure us in...

    "Nerys." I hollered once more.

    "Yeh?"

    You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    "Could you let us in?"

    "Nah."

    "We need to find Elegy quickly!" Selz got frustrated.

    "Sst!" I shushed him, "Nerys, we have something for you. I think you''ll really like it."

    "Wot issit?"

    "Come on down and I''ll show you."

    Yeah, entering inside is definitely a trap, so instead we should lure her out to minimize the risk. Besides, she''s only got the one place to exit from, unless she plans to jump down from the deck. Even if she did, I invited her to come to us so I can give her a gift. There''s no way a treasure-hungry lass like her would turn away the opportunity.

    "How''d Oi'' kno'' Oi'' can trost ya''?" She asked sheepishly.

    "Aren''t pirates supposed to be brave?" Energy groaned.

    Immediately, she was enraged by his underhanded comment. Livid, she ran up to the railing above us to wave her fist about, Red in the face.

    "Oi''m a seafarah!"

    "Now, Sheep!" I ordered.

    A zip and a zoop later and she was already captured by the archangel. Now this may sound a bit cruel on our part, but we really don''t have the time nor the patience to constantly convince these guys that it''s safe to trust the Gods for now. At the end of the day, I never lied about giving her a gift, so it all evens out I''d say.

    "Lemme go!" She tried breaking free of us surrounding her.

    "Here." I tossed her my walkie-talkie before taking an extra one from Sheep''s inventory, "Press that button there, and you''ll get to talk to us and Sab whenever you want."

    "Same goes for us, obviously." Energy smirked, "Marvelous, isn''t it? Modern technology is the best treasure one could receive as a gift."

    She pressed the button, heard the radio static, then quickly got scared and smashed it on the ground.

    "...I''d ''ave preferr''d ye'' jus'' gaev me sum'' gold."

    "W-We''ll keep that in mind..." I weakly replied.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hello, Big Bird, do you read me?" Sab called me fat through the radio, "This is Top Dog, over."

    "Who''re you calling Big!?" I yelled before explaining to Nerys, "Sigh, as you can see, so long as I hold this button, my voice comes through everyone''s devices."

    "I thought we agreed to stop with the "over" talk." Sheep recalled.

    "Of course, if any one of us presses the button..." Selz talked through his own walkie-talkie, "Migu can hear it through her own device."

    "Oi'' gettit nau!" Nerys seemed thrilled.

    "You sure?" I warily handed her a brand new one, "Don''t break this one, please? We don''t have many left."

    "Bot ye'' got a whole box in dere''."

    "We won''t if you keep breaking them." Energy retorted, "Take care of it or you won''t be getting another one."

    Harsh, but true. If we wanna stay in touch with everyone and have easy access to multiple people''s witness accounts, we''ll need all talkies in working order. Nerys isn''t a child to be destroying them willy-nilly like that, she should have learned to treasure her stuff more by now.

    "Foine..." She pouted, stuffing it haphazardly inside her back pocket, "Den, izzat oll?"

    "No, not in the slightest." Selz glared.

    "We actually came here to ask you if you know where Elegy is." I explained, "We really need his help for Vastoria''s sake."

    "Nah, he went loike tha'' wind, he did. Couldn''t foind  a trace a'' him."

    Again, I don''t know if I should even be disappointed anymore. They already told us they went their separate ways, but it still hurts to know we sort of did this for nothing. Well, not completely for nothing.

    "In any case, can we trust you to report to us over the device in case you do run into him?" Sheep asked nicely.

    "Yep, sailer''s werd!" She puffed out her chest, "Ah, bot'' Oi'' did catch a glimpse a'' wherr'' the lil'' boye'' went."

    "Hats!" We all shouted in unison, "Where is he!?"

    "Wid'' tha'' matey." She said as a matter of fact.

    That doesn''t help us at all! Hold on, she calls Elegy matey, right? In that case, it''s like she said she doesn''t know where he is either! Then again, I suppose it is more convenient to find the both of them at the same time than to have to go around the district looking for Hats after the fact.

    "Well, there''s two of them, so it should be easier to look for them at least." Sheep reasoned.

    "Yeah, plus a guy missing an entire arm should be pretty obvious." Energy figured.

    "I didn''t even think of that." I nodded, "Energy, could you use your radar again to try and look for one of them?"

    "No, I''d have told you if I sensed them already." He replied dejectedly, "Sorry for not being more helpful."

    "Hmph, preposterous." Selz said with his arms crossed, "You''ve done plenty enough already. If anyone is being useless here, it''s Migu."

    "Hey! That was uncalled for!" I hissed back.

    "Selz." Pry sternly looked at him until he apologized, "Drop it. Just a coincidence, remember?"

    "...I will not concede this matter." He paused for a while before turning his back to us, "She has objectively done the least. In fact, it was her joining us that led to this whole extra debacle. I assure you all that we''d have already been done had she just went with Elegy and the others from the start."

    He''s...! No, is that right? That can''t be... No, but, I helped out a bunch, didn''t I? I helped these guys get their weapons! ...Which they didn''t need to use even once yet. I-I warned them to... stay away from us, and now we''re paying the price heavily. I-I...

    "I''m sorry, I really did make a mess out of everything." I admitted.

    "Migu, ignore him." Energy rushed to comfort me.

    "Energy''s right, nothing good will come of regretting your actions." Sheep added, glaring at Selz heavily with his hundreds of Eyes, "We''re not out of options yet, far from it. Once this is all over, Vastoria will be happy to hear you offered to help personally."

    "Vastoria..." I uttered.

    At the end of the day, does it really even matter? The Vastoria we''ll get won''t be the one resting inside Sheep. All this effort, and she might not even be the same person. It''s scary, it''s unnerving. The uncertainty of the unknown makes my bones ache. Really, looking back I was the reason why any of this had happened in the first place. Had I just stayed still in my Heaven Home, everything would be okay.

    "...Ahem." Pry couldn''t stay silent anymore, "Migu, had you stayed passive all that time ago, I am afraid you would have never met any of these people. This includes Vastoria."

    "Huh?"

    "The question then becomes¡ªwould you rather have never met your friends, or would you rather have met them? Now, I''m not too well-versed in human emotions nor logic, but I assume you would pick the latter option, no?"

    "Tch, what makes you say that?" Selz groaned.

    "It seems relations, whether they be familial or friendly, mean a great deal to humans." Pry patted him in the back, "And I would have never learned this had Migu not gotten you angry enough to turn us into humans."

    I see, in his own awkward way, he''s trying to comfort me. But he''s right, though¡ªthey all are¡ªthere''s no use in regretting my actions. They may not have been the best decisions to make, and there were probably a ton of better ones to make, but in choosing them, I opened up this path for myself and everyone around me. This path, which would otherwise have been completely closed off otherwise.

    "Thanks, Prylos." I smiled warmly at him.

    "No problem." He responded in kind, "After all, it doesn''t take more than a minute of Meditation to undo an hour of bad vibes, and that''s a fact."

 Vol.6 Ch.135 - Pickaxe Axe

    Nerys said she won''t be joining us in looking for Elegy and Hats. Now that she had a way to communicate with everyone, she said she was gonna go meet up with Sab so they can go look for them together.

    "So we all agree they''re just gonna spend their time goofing off, right?" Sheep asked.

    "Definitely." I chuckled.

    "Which isn''t in any way bad, mind you." Pry chimed in, "In fact, they say you only ever find the thing you''re looking for when you''re not actively searching for it."

    I think that kind of rule only applies to stuff like keys and spare change, not two full grown angels. In any case, they seem to be hitting it off well, so who are we to intervene? Having more Eyes on the lookout is always welcome. As for our group, we''ve got our work cut out for us.

    "How do we even start searching for them if we don''t have a single lead to work off of?" Energy sighed.

    "Maybe I could fly you around while you scan for them?" Sheep replied, "It''s not the most optimized route, but we should eventually find them that way."

    "Hrm..." The Gods looked somewhat worried, "That won''t work."

    "How can you be sure?" I tilted my head.

    "Elegy... He learns from others most." Pry explained, "Copying the skills of others and mastering it for yourself is the cornerstone of being a Wildcard, and he''s one of the best in that regard."

    "Indeed, and regrettably, the last thing he learned was that it is possible to dig through Heaven 2.0''s stone layer."

    Oh no, they''re not insinuating that Hats and Elegy made another pickaxe and dug through the ground again? If that''s the case, we can kiss any chances of finding them goodbye, especially since we learned the ground regenerates itself after a while.

    "Then we should hurry!" Sheep panicked, "If they dig through into the Living World again, we won''t be able to save them a second time!"

    "Elegy wouldn''t risk the fate the Gods warned him about, he won''t dig through the bottom." Energy calmed him down, "But now there''s no doubt. If there''s any place he could hide from the Gods and an entire archangel without ever being caught, it''s beneath us."

    Well, that sucks. It''d be difficult for them to attain a spare wing from someone to craft into a pick like Nerys did, but I have no doubt in Elegy''s abilities. On the other hand, where could we find a spare wing to...

    "Hm?" Sheep simply smiled back at me, "Is there something on my face?"

    "Yes, feathers." Energy donned a similarly serious tone to my own.

    "Golden feathers, to be exact." I added, "Just the kind we need."

    I felt bad, but it''s not like he''d ever notice the difference anyways. Sheep has at least a million wings circling around his core, so taking one out wouldn''t mean much in the grand scheme of things. He whined, cried, begged for us not to go through with it, but after he saw even the Gods were siding with us, he had no choice but to comply.

    "Ow." He pouted after I yanked the heavy wing out.

    "Shut up, archangels don''t feel pain." Selz glared at him.

    "It''s emotional pain!" He shot back.

    "You can''t feel that either!" Pry shut him up, "You''re doing us a huge favor with this, so have some pride!"

    Hearing genuine praise, albeit in this roundabout way, really did lighten his mood. I''ve noticed this before, but Sheep''s really easy to flatter. If he isn''t careful, he might run into the wrong company. The kind that would use him as nothing but a tool and nothing else. Thankfully, he has us.

    "Nerys, come in. Can you hear me?" I talked into the walkie-talkie.

    Nothing but static.

    "Nerys, remember to press the button if you want us to hear you." Energy added.

    "...eah, sowry." She finally replied, "Wotcha'' need?"

    "How''d you turn your wing into a pick?"

    "Hau?" She sounded confused, "Loike a parrot, jus'' pluck tha'' feathels."

    "What then?" I cocked my head back.

    "Steck it onna'' steck."

    Oh, I see. Pluck tha'' feathels, then steck it onna'' steck. Sounds simple enough... Not! To begin with, how are you gonna pluck gold out of gold!? And the stick, it''s surprisingly pretty difficult to find a sturdy piece lying around in Heaven that fits the correct shape. Ugh, but this is just me speaking. For people like Elegy and Nerys, this must have been a piece of cake.

    "Eh?" I jolted as I saw the two Gods plucking the damned thing like a turkey, "How are you doing that!?"

    "Much like the wings themselves, the feathers aren''t actually physically connected to the ''bone''." Selz explained, "They merely float picometers above it, like magnets. As Nerys explained, plucking the feathers out is extremely easy and requires next to no effort."

    Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    "Oh..." I looked down, "Then, the stick...?"

    "We''ll use the wing''s sharpness to our advantage and carve a stick out from a larger plank." Pry added, "We can just use one from Nerys'' shipwreck."

    Huh? Will that really be okay? It''s her house, after all... But then again, if it were up to me, I''d just grab a random floorboard from someone''s house anyways, so they''re not wrong either. Eh, could it be? Is crafting a pickaxe capable of mining through the very foundation of Heaven actually super simple? You''d think it''d take more effort, given the power it holds, but I guess I was overestimating the process.

    "Huh..." I touched the pointy tip of the wing-turned-pick, "Ow!"

    "You pricked yourself?" Pry asked, "Be careful, it''s a tool capable of ripping through Heavenly stone, so angelic skin is nothing to it."

    "I''m actually bleeding outside of the Shrine..." I inspected the wound as it closed back up in seconds, "Guess I''m not as invincible as I thought."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Oye, laddie!" Nerys addressed Sab through the line, "Where ye'' at?"

    "Exactly where I told you, I''m in front of the big Red house." He groaned back, "Where are you?"

    "Oi''m derr'' ''swell!" She pouted, "Nex'' ta'' the Green ''aus, roight?"

    "Gree-? Wait, there''s no Green house anywhere near here!" He paused, "Nerys, are you Colorblind?"

    "...Am Oi''?"

    Though the conversation was somewhat a solo talk between her and Sab, this last question seemed to be more aimed at everyone currently with a talkie on them. I shrugged when Sheep turned to me, leaving the Gods to answer it in our stead.

    "Sigh, your Eyes are flawless, as is the rest of your body." Selz replied sluggishly, "There is no visual impairment to be had."

    "So hau...?"

    "You just suck at navigating." Pry explained.

    "Euwe lil''-!" Her heart sank suddenly, "O-Oi, wot''s ye'' doin'', fellas...?"

    Crap, she heard us breaking off a plank of wood from her ship. We shouldn''t have kept the line open.

    "What was that? We''re walking through a crowd now, so the signal might be a bit... (make some noise!)" I switched between talking to her and the gang, "Sorry, Nerys, what''s the issue?"

    "Ye'' be takin'' moi ''aus planks, ey!?" She sussed it out anyways.

    How!? How''d she figure it out so soon!? We even told them we''d be leaving for Elegy soon as well, so how''d she figure out it was her house specifically!?

    "Mates, ye'' cannae fool a fool." She said with a smug tone, "Wen Oi'' maed me oun pick, Oi'' took me own planks aswell. Oi'' mem''ris''d tha'' sound, s''Oi''d kno''."

    "Congratulations, Ace Detective." Sab saved our butts with the surprise assist, "Now get your ass over here, I''m standing around in front of someone''s house like an idiot waiting for you!"

    "Gah! Sowry!" She quickly hung up.

    "...Phew." Sheep breathed a sigh of relief, "That was scary."

    "Was it?" Energy didn''t seem too bothered by it, "Even if she did get angry at us, it''s not like she was anywhere near here anyway."

    "Indeed, she could do nothing about it." Selz nodded, shaping the thick plank into a more handle-like stick shape, "Migu, don''t just stand there."

    Eh? What do you want me to do? I''m no woodcarver!

    "Hold the damned plank." He rolled his Eyes, "I''ll try and slice it in half."

    "Hold up, you''re gonna swing at me!?" I stepped back, "Nuh uh, no way! Pry, you do it!"

    "I would, but I''ve come to learn that humans regenerate far slower than angels." He grinned proudly, "You can do it, I believe in you!"

    "W-Wait, but isn''t Selz''s hand busted up from that elbow slam he did on Sab earlier?" I raised a panicky point, "S-So, why don''t we switch? I''ll swing, and you hold it!"

    "You''re forgetting that I am a human too now..." Selz explained.

    Huh, I totally forgot. For Pry it''s a lot more noticeable because he''s more friendly and approachable, but Selz really leans heavily on the whole "God you don''t wanna mess with" you''d hear all about in the legends. I suppose there''s no other way around it. It''s gonna be difficult, but I''ll have to just suck it up and do it.

    "Sheep." I handed him the plank, "You do it."

    "What!? No wa-!"

    "Hyah!" Selz swung at him full force with his Eyes shut firmly.

    Thank goodness I handed the plank of wood to Sheep, otherwise it''d be my brain that just got impaled, and not his wings. Man, did Selz even try to aim beforehand? And why shut your Eyes? He really isn''t cut out to become a lumberjack...

    "Your comments are unnecessary!" He shouted at me, "Oi, Shopkeeper! Hand me back the pickaxe!"

    "I would, but you sort of lodged it into me." He replied with a calm yet eerie tone, "Rather, how about someone else does the slicing? AND the holding?"

    "I volunteer to slice!" Pry eagerly raised his hand.

    "What? No, I''m slicing!" I contested him.

    I think it was already made clear that I won''t be holding the plank steady, so how come he gets a pass!? Nuh uh, absolutely not!

    "He called first dibs, Migu." Sheep figured, "And someone has to hold it."

    "Well I won''t!"

    "Neither will I!"

    "Hmph, me neither."

    "Ugh, you goddamned crybabies!" Energy suddenly piped up, "Fine, I''ll hold it!"

    "...Hm? You?" I looked into the bag, "But you''re just a brain."

    "Just place me on the ground before it." He instructed.

    Figuring he had some kind of idea in mind, we positioned everything just as he had told us to. First it was him, then the plank a meter in front of him, then Prylos stood in front of the plank with his pickaxe edge. It was only then when we all collectively facepalmed at the realization that someone holding the plank up really wasn''t even necessary, as we could just cut it from the ground like this.

    "You lot wouldn''t survive a day out in the wilderness, regardless of the Rotted roaming around." He mocked us, "So now that you''ve figured it out finally¡ªyou can put me back in the bag again, Migu."

    "...I could." An impish grin grew on my face as the idea crossed my mind, "But you did say you wanted to be there to hold the plank steady."

    "H-Huh? No, Migu, I don''t physically have the body to-"

    "No need to worry." Sheep chuckled deviously as well, "I''m sure Pry''s aim is way better than Selz''s. Ain''t that right, Pry?"

    "Totally!" Pry replied with a hearty nod, his Eyes already firmly shut before he even lifted the damned thing.

    Needless to say, Energy got to taste the pointed tip of the golden pickaxe head point blank. The poor guy even bled like crazy, but thankfully due to his Heavenly Body''s healing factor, he was quickly back to normal.

    "Whuh...?" Energy seemed disoriented after the hit, "Wherr am I? Tia...?"

    "Is he gonna be okay?" I turned to ask the Gods worriedly.

    "Oh yeah, he''ll be back to his usual self soon, just give him a minute." Pry reassured us.

    "Get in the wagonnn~" Energy kept muttering more nonsense.

    "We''re slowly getting better at swinging." Selz reasoned, "Few more of those and we might just hit the plank next time. Me next."

    It took them 26 swings until they eventually struck the plank. I had to yank it away from them before they hurt anybody else after that, and then I swung once and cut it clean in half. I''m not sure if this has happened before, but I think I might have just become the first person to earnestly get admired by the Gods because of this. By the way, Energy quickly recovered as well, so no harm done.

 Vol.6 Ch.136 - Wrung Out Towel

    We finally (somehow) managed to craft ourselves a replacement golden pickaxe! With the wing of an archangel and the clumsily cut wooden plank of Nerys, we had secured the one tool that will allow us to find Elegy!

    "Now, onwards and downwards!" I shouted.

    "Ah." Energy noted, "You guys wouldn''t happen to know the rough area of G district, would you?"

    "Why, we know its exact area!" Selz scoffed, "23,472,007 kilometers squared!"

    "Yeah, that''s a lot of holes to try..." I deflated.

    Right, we may have the tools necessary to reach him, but we still don''t exactly know ''where'' to dig. Last time it was pretty easy to find them, because their group stuck out like sore thumbs, not to mention they weren''t even trying to hide from anyone. This time, however...

    "Ow." Sheep winced.

    "What was that?" Energy inquired.

    "It''s the needle in the haystack I found sooner than we''ll find Elegy." He groaned, "You guys have to come up with something better than just digging around and praying it works out!"

    "Sigh, maybe if we were still Gods, we could." Pry slouched, "But as humans, we really can''t do much of anything."

    "Well, think of something!" I frowned as well, "Otherwise that cheru-something-or-other will die of old age before we find Elegy!"

    I know I''m repeating myself a ton here, but we can''t wake Vastoria up without the cherubim''s powers, and we can''t tap into those without Elegy''s help. I don''t know the details, but that''s the gist of it. All because he''s what the Gods call a "Wildcard"...

    "Hey, how rare are Wildcards, anyways?" I asked.

    "How rare?" Pry tilted his head.

    "If you''re asking whether or not it''s possible to find a different Wildcard other than Elegy, then I am afraid you''re fresh out of luck." He shook his head, "He is the only one in district G."

    "And you know this how?"

    "We checked while we still had our Godhood." He replied, "And before you ask¡ªyes, that means we can''t go outside of the district to look for others, because in truth we don''t know who the Wildcards over there are."

    "Rats, I was gonna ask that..." Sheep looked sad.

    "So in the end, we really do have nothing but guesses to work with." Energy clicked his tongue, "Best get to digging then."

    The boys figured we best get to it since we have nothing better to do, but I wasn''t gonna stand for that. Pry and Selz swung with their usual awkward motions, but given that Energy and Sheep didn''t really have fingers to grip the pickaxe with, they were exempt from the toil.

    "Migu, you''re next after Selz." Pry turned to me.

    "Actually, I got a better idea." I shook my head, "How about doing anything but that."

    "Whining already?" Selz said as liters of sweat poured down his brow.

    "Look, I''m not telling you guys to stop. In fact, by all means, continue." I explained, "You got your walkie-talkies, so just tell us if you find anything. In the meantime, Sheep, Energy and I''ll try a different approach."

    "Eh?" The two boys turned to me, "We never agreed to that."

    "Oh come on." I threw on my best puppy-dog Eyes, "I need Sheep''s speed, not to mention Energy''s sensing ability."

    "In other words, you''ve just found the perfect excuse to get out of having to work." Pry and Selz said with a deadpanned expression.

    Well can you blame me? I''m not about to go digging random holes in the ground until Elegy and Hats just magically manifest below us. Scratch years, it could take entire millennia before we got done checking every square inch of the district! Nuh uh, we''re gonna go check the surface again. Gods know we didn''t check all of it beforehand anyways.

    "Well, holler if you need us, and we''ll come flying back." I said, hopping inside Sheep''s wings, "Ack, Vastoria... Scoot over, girl."

    "Suit yourselves." Selz handed the pick over to his colleague, "But once we find them, WE will be the ones calling YOU."

    "...That''s what she said." Energy said after a pause.

    "Yeah, but!" Pry chimed in, "The reason behind calling you will be different!"

    "Just don''t hurt yourselves." I rolled my Eyes, "See you later."

    "Bye-bye!"

    "Why so chipper? You''re up next." Selz turned to him confusedly.

    "Urk, I didn''t think you''d get tired so soon..."

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    "The human body is quite prone to fatigue, it seems."

    "Your Divine body wouldn''t fare much better and you know it!"

    They really are like an old married couple turned young. Well, more like roommates that really can''t stand each other. Either one works, pick your headcanon. That being said, we really should get going and let them work things out on their own. In the meantime, we''ll go ask around the area a bit more just in case someone happened to spot them. Frankly, even that sounds more fun than just randomly choosing a spot to dig in the ground.

    "Where to, Migu?" Sheep stopped midway through his flight to ask.

    "I was thinking we start off with the Shrine." I figured.

    "Hmm, okay~" He nodded eagerly before all his Eyes shrunk, "Wait, but that''s outside the district."

    "She''s saying Elegy might have disobeyed the contract with the Gods so that we wouldn''t find him." Energy elaborated.

    "Eh? How can you be sure?"

    It''s just a hunch, and not a very plausible one at that. The chances of finding him outside are just the same as finding him inside, but that could work in our favor. Given that I instructed him to not get caught no matter what, there might be a chance that he purposefully left the confines of the district. After all, if I told him he was gonna get punished when he got found, then why not utilize everything you can to not let that happen?

    "I''m just using logic here." I shrugged, "Besides, so long as Vastoria''s asleep, we can freely move about anywhere in Heaven."

    "Are you sure we won''t get into trouble?" Sheep still seemed hesitant.

    "Meh, even if we did, the Gods can''t do squat against us so long as they''re human." I reasoned, "Now, my dear wing-Eyed friend! Spread your wings and fly!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Like a bolt of lighting, we struck the Shrine in a flash. The familiar sight was more welcome than you could ever imagine. To us, this place almost felt like a second home with how much time we''ve spent exploring it.

    "Hm?" I looked down my bag, "Energy? What''s got you grunting like a constipated child?"

    "I''m looking for any bat roaches..." He said in between huffs and puffs.

    "Well, don''t strain yourself." Sheep chuckled, "We need you to look for Elegy as well while you''re at it."

    "In a moment." He obliged.

    A few seconds later, and he gave us back the results of his search. Alas, he didn''t run into any traces of Hats nor Elegy inside the Shrine, but at least he didn''t find any bat roaches either. Elegy really did clear the place out, huh.

    "Alright, let''s go to the next place." I sighed, "There''s nothing here."

    "We''re really going from omega to alpha, huh?" Sheep inquired, "You''re making me fly the extra mile."

    "It''s a bit more systematic than just going by proximity." I groaned, "Besides, I wanna be as far from those Two as I possibly can."

    The next location we blitzed to was district Z, in other words, the closest one to the Shrine. They go from A to Z, and then there''s the Shrine, but according to Sheep, no matter what direction he flew in, he''d always reach the Shrine.

    "Seems like Heaven 2.0 is shaped like a bunch of rings, then." Energy figured.

    "No, it''s definitely got a shape. There''s no hole down the middle." Sheep shook his wings, "The best way to explain it is by imagining a towel lying flat on a table."

    "Hm? A towel?" I cocked my head back.

    "Just follow me here." He continued, "Pinch the center of the towel and twist. Once you''re done, you lose the center, but the outer ring becomes the new center. You get what I mean?"

    Hrm... Sort of. It''s actually a really intuitive analogy to imagine in my head, but wouldn''t that mean we''re always in the center? Wait, if that''s the case, then the twisted spiral... So that''s why digging to the bottom of Heaven took these guys so long! Gah, that''s so well optimized, but... Damn is it annoying!

    "Energy?" I sighed before patting him, "Got any readings?"

    "Nope." He jolted, "Wait! ...No, nothing."

    "That didn''t sound like nothing, though."

    "I thought I sensed them, but it must have been a false alarm." He apologized, "Sorry for getting your hopes up."

    "No, you''re doing more than enough in assisting us in finding them." I shook my head, "Thanks for all your hard work, gramps."

    "Tch, I''m still young mentally, you know?" He shot back with a smug tone, "Especially now, ''cause mental is all I have left."

    "About that, maybe we could ask the cherubim to give you your body back as well?" Sheep merely suggested.

    "It wouldn''t hurt to try, but Elegy should prioritize getting Vastoria to wake up first." He said.

    Priority... Why should priority even exist in this situation? You both need medical attention, it''s just that she isn''t conscious to agree with me. Surely, Vastoria would say the same thing about you if she was awake, I just know it! Ah, but then we''d just be in an endless loop... Ugh, that''s exactly why the only priority we should focus on is making the both of you feel better!

    "Let''s go to the next district." I heaved a long, tired exhale.

    District Y was exactly the same as the one that came before it. So was X, and W, then V, U and T. In fact, its quite frightening how none of them deviated from one another for even a moment. Each time we''d enter a new district, Energy would mention how he caught a brief whiff of them before the feeling went cold. Elegy, what does this mean...?

    "Just where in the world could he be?" I wracked my brain trying to think of the answer.

    "Before we realized it, we''ve already reached district G again." Sheep flapped his wings tiredly, "What now? Do we report to the Gods or do we continue until we reach alpha?"

    "We''ve never actually gone back, did we?" I thought about it, "Unless I''m misremembering it, we really only ever booked it to the Shrine whenever we left the district."

    "That''s because there''s nothing of worth there." Energy explained, "Well, nothing we know of, for that matter."

    "You think the Gods are hiding something bigger from us?" I tilted my head.

    "Well, it ''is'' the very center of Heaven 2.0." He figured, "You can''t have something as grand as the center of the world and not put anything important in there."

    He makes a fair point, not to mention we still haven''t gotten to the bottom of why exactly he constantly catches very brief glimpses of those two before immediately losing them again. With that being the case...

    "Ugh, this won''t roll off the tongue nearly as well, but..." I grinned, "Off to district F we go!"

    "Just a few more to go!" Sheep nodded excitedly, "Though, I still think something like district A is a bit too much to expect, even if it''s Elegy."

    "Never underestimate the capable." Energy said something that sounded profound all of a sudden, "And always overestimate the incapable. Follow these two rules, and you''ll survive every encounter."

    "Ehhh? You ruined it with that second part." I teased, "Now you just made it sound like paranoia."

    "Para-who-ha?" He winced, "Sounds scary..."

    "Exactly my point."

    It came a bit too suddenly for my tastes, but it looks like we''re gunning for the center of Heaven next. Well, if what Sheep said was true, that is. Wrung out towels, huh? How does he come up with that? Did becoming an archangel make him smarter too?

 Vol.6 Ch.137 - Gotcha Now

    District F was a short-lived visit. Much like the dozens of ones that came before it, Energy sensed Hats and Elegy for but a split second before it disappeared. It was almost as if they were following us, but they couldn''t be that fast to keep up with an archangel''s speed, right?

    "It''s actually getting scary now." I clenched Energy''s tote bag tightly, "How are they doing this?"

    "Now you''re afraid of the guy?" Energy groaned, "Look, it''s entirely possible that my senses are a tad off and that this is all some kind of mistake."

    "That''s actually scarier to think about..." Sheep tiredly smirked.

    We flew around the entire district in what felt like less than a few seconds at best. Sheep has really gotten the hang of flying at top speed now, which means that even zipping through each and every street didn''t take away from our time. We were making good pace, but the results sadly weren''t reflecting that.

    "Is the feeling at least getting stronger the closer we get to district A?" I sighed.

    "Not really, it''s all the same." Energy replied, "At best, the duration varies a bit between districts, but the difference is in milliseconds at most. I doubt proximity has anything to do with it."

    "Off to district E we go..." Sheep sobbed.

    Again, the further out we went, the more we felt like we were wasting our time. It was obvious to anyone that they weren''t at the center of Heaven, and we started feeling bad about leaving Pry and Selz alone by this point. That''s when the familiar radio buzzing woke us up from the anxious trance.

    "Yo? Come on, anyone there?" Sab''s voice reached out to us.

    "H-Hello!?" I pressed the button to reply, "What''s wrong?"

    "Which''s betta''?" Nerys replied for him, "A man soized chiken, err'' a chiken soized man?"

    "You idiots! We thought you found something!" I hissed back.

    "Your fault for getting your own hopes up." Sab pouted.

    "I think a man sized chicken is terrifying..." Sheep answered.

    "The question was which is better, so I assume we''re fighting it." Energy also gave a surprisingly serious answer, "In that case, punting a chicken sized man would be way easier."

    "Grrr...! Don''t use the walkie-talkies for stupid hypotheticals!" I interrupted angrily.

    They seemed bummed that I ruined their fun, but I really wasn''t in the mood right now. With each passing second, we were getting closer to possibly finding Elegy, and the last thing we''d want is for their nonsense to make him slip away. There''ll be time for fun, but that time isn''t right now.

    "Hmph, buzzkill." Sab frowned, "Anyways, me and Nerys are out buying clothes. How are you guys faring on your end?"

    "Eres'' a significant lacka'' blabberin'' from thoos Two." Nerys picked up on it.

    "We''re flying around with Sheep to try and find Elegy a bit easier." I expained.

    "What? Gave up on the digging idea already?" Sab jokingly guilt-tripped us, "And after Nerys explained everything to you so nicely, too..."

    "Oi''m ah''polled!" Nerys cried out as well.

    "No, those Two are still digging." Energy raised his tone, "Actualy¡ªOi, you Two! You''re on this line as well, pick up your talkies!"

    Hearing us hollering for them, the Gods finally picked up. Albeit with a reluctant tone, Selz grunted the moment he pressed the button.

    "Ugh, we''re here. What is it?"

    "Rude." Sab noted, "How''s it going?"

    "Terribly!" Pry cried out from the background, "Migu, Sheep, Energy! Come back quickly, he''s making me do all the work!"

    "You shut your mouth!" Selz shouted back.

    A stern smacking sound could be heard a few seconds later, followed by a painful yelp from the Meditation God. Just what the Hell are those Two getting themselves into? That sounded like a slap, but it could also very well have been a whip crack with the way it echoed through the walkie-talkie. With friends like Selz, who needs enemies? Talk about harsh...

    "As you can imagine, we are still hard at work trying to fix this issue." Selz calmly responded.

    "Unlike you three!" Pry yelled at us next, "What are you taking so long for? He''s not on the surface, we''re telling you!"

    "Don''t worry about it." Sheep reassured them, "You guys just keep digging, we think we''re close to a breakthrough."

    "Breakthrough?" Selz''s voice sounded dire, "Wait, what do you mean by tha-!?"

    "Boop." I released my thumb from the button, ending our communication, "They don''t gotta know everything."

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    "Safe bet, we''ll tell them everything once we find Elegy." Energy nodded.

    Even after I turned off the microphone on our end, the walkie-talkie was still eagerly buzzing with static noises and the panicked, distorted voices of the two Gods. In the background, Sab and Nerys kept asking stupid hypothetical questions that I can imagine only served to infuriate them more. Yeah, I stepped away at the perfect time. Pressing the button again now would be nothing if not suicide.

    "Then, next stop¡ªD district?" Sheep made sure it was alright to go.

    "Godspeed." I nodded, "Energy, try and focus on the direction of where that feeling comes from next time, okay?"

    "How fast do you think I am?" He retorted, "You want me to track a feeling that blips in less than a few milliseconds?"

    Right, his reaction time just doesn''t allow it. If he was just a bit faster... or, maybe time could just be a bit slower! That''s it!

    "Energy, focus up right as Sheep goes all hyperspeed!" I smiled, "Let''s try doing it this way!"

    "Hm?" The archangel and brain both looked confused, but shrugged it off, "Worth a shot, at least."

    Thus, he counted down before focusing all of his energy on tracking Hats and Elegy''s location down. The moment he reached zero on the countdown signalled for Sheep to begin zooming to district D. Theoretically, since hyperspeed slows down time for Sheep because he''s focusing on his flying, I believe Energy too could piggyback off that to "slow down" the time around them. This would turn that milliseconds long feeling into possibly a long enough one to get their location. Now, we wait for the results...

    "Gah!" Energy snapped out of it the moment we reached the next district over, "Migu, you''re a genius!"

    "It worked!?" Even I was surprised to hear the good news.

    "Yes!" His tone gradually got softer, "And no."

    "Huh?" Sheep paused, "What''s that mean?"

    "Do you want the good news or the bad news first?" He asked.

    Oh God, not this again...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Good news!" I strongly voted.

    "Bad news!" Sheep contested it.

    "Alright, I''ll give you both, so don''t argue." Energy quickly ended the debate.

    Aww, I kinda wanted to butt heads with Sheep a bit. Don''t get me wrong, he''s a chill guy, but that''s exactly why we never get into anything too heated. Well, at least Energy''s good at damage control. Now we can get to the point quickly.

    "Good news..."

    "You started with good news first last time." Sheep cleared his throat.

    "So what?" I rolled my Eyes, "Does it matter.

    "I''m just saying, he''s showing clear favoritism and bias here."

    "Alright, okay, fine!" Energy huffed angrily, "Bad news is¡ªthey disappeared."

    "Eh?" We blinked in confusion, "That doesn''t make any sense."

    "Yeah, because the bad news was supposed to play off of the good news."

    "So in reality, good news first is the only right answer..." Sheep solemnly exhaled, "The illusion of choice truly is poignant in this one."

    I''m beginning to think Energy might just be socially awkward. Despite being smarter than most, and quite capable despite being so ancient, not to mention also just a brain, he seems really bad at holding the flow of any conversation he''s in. Gramps, go back to bed, you''re not hip with the cool kids anymore...

    "Migu, wipe that pitying look off your face." Energy groaned, "Okay, now for the good news."

    "Be sure to add the bad news after the fact, don''t be shy." Sheep smirked.

    "Stop being so demanding!" He shot back, "Ugh, anyways¡ªThe good news is, I saw clearly where Elegy and Hats were. The bad news is, they disappeared."

    "Oh, the extra context makes it make a lot more sense." I figured, "So, mystery solved?"

    "Not exactly..." He worried, "And it has everything to do with that "disappeared" part. You see, they were in the Gods'' Abode."

    "Eh?" Sheep and I gasped.

    Wait, the Gods'' Abode...?! But why would...? Ah, I guess we never searched that place, probably because that was where we started from. So they were right under our noses the entire time! Damn, Elegy''s way too smart for us, we should''ve checked that area first!

    "But you said they disappeared?" Sheep inquired.

    "Not just them, but my entire vision of that area as well." He explained, "One moment, I sensed them doing something inside the mansion, and the next moment¡ªpoof¡ªonly clouds remained."

    "So the entire place disappeared?" I furrowed my brows, "Doesn''t that just mean your senses are off? Maybe the fact that it''s the Gods'' Abode is interfering with your senses?"

    "No, I''m positive my senses work just fine, otherwise I wouldn''t be able to see inside there at all." He replied, "We need to go ask the Gods about it. This is a huge find."

    "Oi, are you crazy?" Sheep stopped him, "Those Two are gonna flip when they find out Elegy took Hats inside their house. They''ll be lucky if they even survive the encounter after such a bold move."

    "Wait, but isn''t the Gods'' Abode in district G?" I tilted my head, "If that''s the case, then how did you sense them from all the way out here?"

    The question stumped both of them. Somehow, Energy sensed Hats and Elegy inside the Gods'' Abode from two districts away. His senses are sharp, but not that far-reaching. There had to have been a better explanation for it...

    "Sheep, head in that direction." Energy said.

    "Which one?"

    "Migu, time for hot and cold again." He said with 100% seriousness.

    I wanted to laugh and tease him for it, but I knew the situation called for such emotions. With a silent nod, I took him out of the bag and twirled around my axis until he gave us the right direction.

    "Lava." He gave the signal, "Where Migu is pointing is exactly where I felt their presence."

    "Alright, let''s go there and see for ourselves, then." Sheep understood.

    "But that direction... Aren''t we going towards district C, then?" I asked.

    "No, not that far out. They were still in district D." Energy replied.

    Just what in the world is going on anymore...? I''m so lost, how is any of this even remotely possible? Elegy, Hats, they were in all of the districts so far? But how did they move so fast between them, and how are they already gone? Nothing makes sense anymore.

    "Sheep, will you do the honors?" I braced myself.

    "Got it."

    In a flash, we had reached our destination. Sheep was silent, almost mortified. He spread his winged embrace so that we could step outside, and the view before us shook us to our very core.

    "This is...!?" I couldn''t believe my Eyes.

    "The Gods''...!? B-But, how?!" Energy was shocked as well, "How is the Gods'' Abode in this district too!?"

    There''s something the Gods never told us. Just how much more will we have to learn on our own... In any case, the sounds of clatter coming from inside the mansion made it quite obvious that there were people inside causing a ruckus. I didn''t even need Energy to confirm it.

    "That''s them, alright." I pushed on the large double doors that towered 15 meters over us, "Except this time, there''s nowhere to run."

 Vol.6 Ch.138 - The Center of Heaven

    I swung open the heavy doors of the Abode, their inertia carrying them after they''ve built up enough speed. As usual, the sight that greeted us was that of a church-like interior, fitted with rows upon rows of benches all aligned to face the altar at the center. Atop the altar sat a lectern, though it was so high up that we couldn''t see whether or not that large Book the Gods tried to hide away from us was on it or not.

    "Elegy!" I hollered, "Hats, get your butts over here!"

    The shout was met with silence, though that wouldn''t fool us, "Elegy, it''s okay!" Sheep elaborated, "The Gods aren''t with us right now!"

    "We know you''re in here, we heard you thrashing about just a moment ago from outside!" Energy groaned loudly, "No use hiding now."

    Honestly, with how deathly silent it got all of a sudden, I was almost about to just give up and assume they somehow left, but the loud thud of something toppling over cleared our suspicions.

    "Gah! S-Sorry...!" Hats'' youthful voice apologized profusely.

    "Sst!" Elegy shushed him.

    Dude, we know you''re there...

    "Sigh... Are we seriously doing this?" Sheep cracked his wings, "One day I''d like to have someone go with the easy way. Way less of a hassle than the hard way."

    I blinked, and before me Sheep already rounded up both of them. As they thrashed around inside his winged embrace, confused and angry over getting caught so easily yet still trying not to step on Vastoria in the meantime, Sheep barfed them out onto the hard marble flooring.

    With a strong grunt, Elegy looked up at us, "Hm? Oh, you were actually telling the truth."

    "I told you the Gods weren''t with them!" Hats protested, "But you wouldn''t listen-"

    "Don''t say that, kid." Elegy shut him up with but a finger, "Our mission was to hide away from the Gods, and Migu even told us to avoid the rest of their group as well. It was only natural to assume that she was "playing a trick on us" by luring us into a false sense of security. It would have been the perfect double-cross against the Gods."

    "Too many crosses for my brain to comprehend..." Hats'' Eyes swirled, "But wait, where even are the Gods?"

    "Digging a hole." I smirked, showing off the walkie-talkie with their voice shouting profanities from the other side.

    "Gah! I''m sick and tired of doing all the work, man!" Pry finally snapped at his colleague.

    "H-Hey, have you gone mad!?" Selz couldn''t believe it, "Did you just try to swing that pickaxe at me!? I''ll have you know I''m no rock!"

    "But you''re somehow as dense as one!" Pry kept going off on him, "Moron, what part of "spreading the work evenly" didn''t you understand!? I''m busting my back over here trying to find the Wildcard and you''ve barely even swung the pickaxe once!"

    "I''m saving my strength!"

    "For what!? You gonna tackle him to the ground? You!?"

    Yeah, they''re having a blast over there. But more important was these two''s reactions to the device in my hands. Hats and Elegy were on high alert the moment they heard the Gods'' voices, but Energy was quick to clear up any possible misunderstandings.

    "This device allows us to talk to them, Sab and Nerys no matter where they are." He elaborated, "It is technology from Migu''s era. Pretty nifty, isn''t it?"

    "Well, even for my era, it''s a bit outdated..." I corrected him, "See, most people now use phones, which-"

    "Incredible!" Elegy snatched the talkie rudely from my hand, "So we can hear them through this speaker, right!? Oh wow, and this button, it''s to open up the microphone, no!?"

    "Eh? How come you know so much already?" Sheep cocked his wings.

    "Hm?" He shrugged, "It''s just common sense, I think. What else would the button be used for?"

    Elegy''s way too multi-talented... Is this the power of a Wildcard? Is he just an all-trick pony? A gifted individual who just knows every skill that there is? Somehow, that really pisses me off. Like, seriously, leave some trades for the rest of us, jack!

    "Hey, you mind if I take  this apart?" Elegy said as the battery case popped out, "Oof. My bad."

    "Don''t worry, I have my own." I took it out of Sheep''s storage.

    "Oh cool!" A large grin formed on his head as he immediately continued tinkering with it, "Then I can figure out just how it works without fear of ruining it!"

    "Ahem." Hats interrupted him, "So if the Gods aren''t here, where exactly are they?"

    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

    "Don''t worry, they''re not anywhere near this place." Sheep reassured them, "They''re all the way in district G, after all."

    Hearing this, the two fellas couldn''t help but petrify in shock at these words. Judging by those reactions, it seems something doesn''t quite sit right with them either.

    "How is that not super close?" Elegy''s Eyes shrunk back in fear.

    "Eh? You kidding?" Energy chuckled, "That''s a whole 3 districts away, fool." He continued, "You guys are in D."

    "Fueh!?" Hats panicked, "What do you mean? We never crossed any borders, so how come we''re in district D!" He then whispered at Elegy while counting with his fingers, "That''s this many districts away, right?"

    "No, you got four fingers extended." Elegy calmly knocked one finger down, "You''re getting better at counting though, good job."

    Good job, my ass! What the Hell do they mean they never crossed the border¡ªthey can''t say that and expect us to believe them after we found them all the way out here, dammit! Ah, not to undermine Hats'' achievement, I''m glad Elegy''s teaching him some basic stuff like counting and vocabulary.

    "Urk, good job, Hats..." I swallowed my anger to keep his spirits up.

    "Nice going, man!" Sheep praised him as well.

    "You are doing well, keep it up." Energy nodded too.

    The situation was lowkey in a pretty messed up state, but at least the kid was happy. Somehow, in that moment, we all silently and unanimously agreed that his smile made it all worth it.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "First of all, I think we should sort a few things out before we get too far ahead of ourselves." Elegy began the discussion.

    I replied, "Agreed."

    "To begin with, maybe we should start from you guys first." Sheep suggested, "Just why in the world would you choose the Gods'' Abode as your hiding spot?"

    "Ah, about that..." Elegy scratched his cheek with a nervous chuckle, "I think I should still keep that card hidden for now. You never know when the Gods might be listening in."

    Oh right, I forgot that they can still read minds. But if they''re humans, then doesn''t that mean they have to physically be looking at us in order for that to happen? Meh, they seem to know more about it than I do, so maybe they found a way to bypass that.

    "Okay...?" Energy sort of understood the reasoning behind that, "In that case, can you at least tell us if you went anywhere else before settling on here?"

    "Nope, we went straight here." Hats shook his head, "Elegy immediately broke off from the rest of the group the moment you and Migu left to go back to your side. It was so scary, I didn''t know who to go with...!"

    "Hehe, sorry for scaring you, kid!" Elegy reached up to pat his head, "But I''m glad you came along for the ride! It would''ve been a chore and a half without you by my side."

    So that''s the case, he ran here from the very start. But still, this doesn''t explain how he ended up all the way in district D. We need to dig deeper.

    "And you''re positive you never crossed a border?" I inquired.

    "Nope."

    "Not even once?"

    "Nuh uh. All within the confines of district G." Elegy shook his head, "Actually, are ''you'' sure you''re outside of district G? Maybe you imagined it."

    "We didn''t." Sheep answered, "Actually, we checked every district from Z to here."

    "Wow, you were thorough..." He chuckled before a moment of realization struck him, "Everyone, leave the Abode, now!"

    "Eh?" We jolted, "What''s with you all of a sudden!?"

    "Leave, come on, get out get out get out...!" He ushered us through the front doors.

    With the speed and force he was pushing us out of the house, you''d expect the doors to burst open, but that didn''t happen. They were large, fifteen meter tall doors made of a hard material, so obviously they were too heavy for basically a bunch of ants to swing open. Regardless, he did slowly but surely pry them open, sending us out into the yard, but this time something felt off.

    "We... weren''t here before." I looked around in confusion.

    "Where are all the houses surrounding us...?" Energy as well glanced around.

    That''s when Sheep flew up to get a better view, "The answer''s obvious." He descended down to us, "We''re no longer in district D."

    So that''s the case, after all. Teleportation of some kind, the kind that activated the moment we entered the Abode. Then, was this a trap of some kind? No, it doesn''t seem to have some kind of danger to it. After all, this is nothing but fast travel.

    "Re-enter the Abode." Elegy informed us.

    "Eh? No way, we-!"

    "Just get in!"

    He pushed us inside for approximately a second before shoving us back out. As if magic, we found ourselves surrounded by crowded streets and Heavenly Houses of all shapes and sizes neatly conforming to their yards'' boundaries.

    "What the...?"

    "Alright, let''s go back to that empty place now." Elegy shoved us back in a second time.

    "W-Wait...?!"

    Again, we were surrounded by citylife after we stepped out of the Abode, but this time the houses were different. A third time and the people wore different clothes, and the attempt after that finally brought us back to the empty place we first came across.

    "So it''s true." Elegy nodded, proudly explaining to us this phenomenon, "We''re constantly being sent from one district to the next in cycles. This must be the Gods'' answer to blessing every district with a Gods'' Abode of their own."

    "You got all that from that?" Sheep asked.

    "It''s just common sense." He grinned, "Why else would the place be teleporting?"

    Okay, better check off "detective" as well off his bingo card as well then, geez! Elegy... honestly, is there even a point to him having us tag along at this point? Why doesn''t he just solve everything and fix Vastoria up all by himself? He seems more than capable.

    "Migu, are you mad for some reason?" He egged me on, be it purposefully or not, "Why the long face?"

    "She finally realized she isn''t necessary for this whole mission to work." Energy jeered.

    "I''ll throw this bag with you in it down a ditch and bury it." I threatened.

    "You''re getting buried with me in that case."

    Our bickering and death threats aside, the other three seemed very interested in the empty location we were currently in. Let''s say that there are as many districts as there are letters in the alphabet. If that''s the case, and we visited everything from Z to D, then that only leaves us with three other options where we could be. If we look at it like that, and then couple it with Sheep''s previous explanation about how Heaven 2.0 is laid out, then there''s gotta be really only one right answer.

    "This has to be it. There''s no other possibility." Sheep could hardly contain his excitement.

    "Has to be what?" Hats tilted his head, "What is this place?"

    "District A." My Eyes glinted at the visage splayed out in front of me, "The Center of Heaven."

 Vol.6 Ch.139 - TVSM

    "How can you be sure it''s the center?" Elegy''s head tilted curiously.

    "Ah, it''s just a theory." Sheep awkwardly chuckled, "It''s probably not the case..."

    "It IS the center!" I pouted at his lack of self-confidence, "Sheep''s explanation made way too much sense for it to not be the case! Without a doubt in my mind, district A is the Center of Heaven! Hmph!"

    Sheep was by this point jolting and flapping his wings abashedly all over the place, trying to get me to pipe down. Energy was looking around us to try and find some sort of building or person in the vicinity, and Elegy was still left without a proper explanation.

    "So if this is the center..." Elegy earnestly rubbed his chin, "Then Heaven 2.0 must be divided up into rings, right?"

    "...Gah, stop guessing everything correctly!" I stomped my foot on the ground, "You''re making us look bad!"

    "But that can''t be the case, though?" He continued his train of thought anyway, "Because then the districts would enlarge as we got closer to the Shrine, but they were all the same. No, but you guys are on the right track. Hmm... Maybe, and I know this is gonna sound farfetched, but maybe the plane of existence "twists and contorts" at the center so as to maintain the illusion of every district being the same size."

    "..."

    "What?"

    "Actually, that''s what I suggested." Sheep bashfully raised his wing.

    "Oh wow, you got that before me?" Elegy praised him, "You guys are super smart!"

    Speak for yourself, dumbass! Excuse you, but who is "we"?! I can understand Sheep being smart, ''cause that''s the kind of vibe I got from him in the first place. Yeah, he''s supposed to be the smart and responsible one, so how come you''re overstepping his lane as well!? Dammit, you can''t just do what everything''s good at with ease, you know!?

    "Ah, but it''s still odd how this place is so darned empty." Elegy glanced around a bit again, "You''d expect to find something grand and important here, but nah. Just clouds as far as the Eye can see. Almost like the path between Z district and the Shrine, even."

    "The sky is pink." Energy corrected him, "It''s not like that anywhere else."

    "Come again?" We all looked down at him.

    The sky is... pink? No, it''s so obviously not. It''s as Blue as it is anywhere else in Heaven, so what''s he on about? Maybe Energy is the Colorblind one, and not Nerys... Though she''s not Colorblind either.

    "The sky doesn''t look any different to me." Sheep also found differences with the regular sky.

    "Are your Eyes okay?" Energy replied, "It''s the same Color as Vastoria''s dress."

    "Wow, that strong of a pink?" I furrowed my brows, "But still, it doesn''t matter if you''re the only one that can see it that way."

    "No, I believe him." Elegy piped up.

    Oh great! This guy again! What next, is he also gonna steal away Energy''s unique "pink sky" vision as well? We just can''t catch a break!

    "Hey, don''t look at me like that, Migu." He chuckled before elaborating, "I see the sky as Blue too, but Energy''s earlier comment got me thinking."

    "The one where I asked if your Eyes worked?" Energy also looked lost.

    "It''s an otherwise redundant question because the Gods told us that every part of our bodies is flawless." Elegy explained, "But maybe their version of "flawless" includes not allowing us to see the truth."

    Deep, but we don''t need a poet right now. Thankfully, he''s not THAT multi-talented. Honestly, where is he even going with this?

    "Have you ever wondered if the world you saw was actually how it was?" Elegy asked.

    "Oh, I have!" Sheep flapped his wings jovially, "It''s like that, right? We''ve all been taught that grass is Green, but what I see and interpret as Green might not be what everyone else does, like for people with Colorblindness."

    "It''s a simple analogy, but yeah¡ªthat''s a good way to put it." Elegy continued, "There is no way to know what the "true world" around us looks like, as we all have our own Eyes to guide us through it. Well, everyone but Energy."

    Oh. Oooh! I think I''m starting to get it! Since Energy doesn''t use his Eyes to see, but rather his brain radar, it means he sees the world "as it is"! In other words, there really is something hidden from us in this place, and thanks to him, we now know this for a fact!

    "Nice job, Energy!" I patted the bag I was carrying him in, "It''s thanks to you that we''ve solved yet another piece of the puzzle."

    Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

    "Eh? I really did nothing." He sounded confused, "Really, in comparison to Elegy''s detective skills, I..."

    "Shut. Mouth." I peered into his bag with a very dark smile, "He couldn''t have deduced squat had it not been for you pointing it out in the first place."

    "That''s right, anyone could''ve figured this out." Elegy remained humble, "I just so happened to be the first to speak up, that''s it."

    Gah! Stop being nice, it''s making me sound bad just for wanting to praise Energy! Bastard, I didn''t hate you before, but now you''re really getting on my nerves! No one man can be this useful of an asset! Ah, but looking back, he really was like this from the very start...

    "Alright then, genius, what exactly does that mean for us?" I jeered.

    "Migu, seriously...?" Energy seemed baffled by my attitude.

    "I still don''t know what the sky being pink means for us, but we''ll need Energy''s help again to figure it out." Elegy flashed us a confident thumbs up, "Isn''t this exciting? We''re messing with the Gods again without them breathing down our necks!"

    I think I now see why the Gods hate him so much. He really wastes no time in getting on their nerves. Hell, if I was one of the Five Gods, I''d hate him too.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Thus, we began trudging through the empty, vast expanse laid out before us. The only sense of orientation we had to work with was the mansion behind us, whose size thankfully made it difficult to lose. To decide the direction we were headed to, we used the front doors as a benchmark. That was our "north", and everything else was based off of that.

    "Hold that internal exposition." Elegy suddenly yelled, "We never decided that this was north."

    "Hm?" The other two raised a figurative Eyebrow in unison, "Who are you talking to?"

    "Did you just read my mind!?" I yelped.

    "Chill, it''s nothing like that." He brushed me off, "I''m just reading the parts of the chapter without the quotation marks."

    Are we even talking about the same thing here? What chapter, what quotation marks? Elegy, you''re scaring me, dude...

    "In any case, don''t worry about it." He saw us staring worriedly at him so he changed the subject, "Rather, I think the direction we''re headed to is east."

    "Huh? Why does it matter? I mean, we already have the house to go off of." Energy asked.

    "The house isn''t always gonna be like that." He refuted, "We might have to go out pretty far before Energy notices another discrepancy, so we should try to avoid losing our way. Setting common directions is a good way to do that."

    That we can agree on. After all, it''s the entire reason I arbitrarily chose the front of the house to be north. But what''s wrong with that?

    "In that case, east? Really?" Even Sheep was skeptical.

    "Take a look at our shadows." Elegy pointed with his finger, a smug smirk forming on his face, "If we can see, there is light. If there is light, there are shadows. And if there are shadows, they will always point in the opposite direction of the light source."

    Oh, now that he mentioned it, I never really took a good look at where our shadows were. After all, what would I gain from doing that? Hmm, let''s see... If I''m facing the direction we''ve been walking this whole time, the shadow is... right below me. Ah, no it''s just barely behind me?

    "Gah, it''s tough to make out with how faint the shadow is!" I tried stomping at it in frustration.

    "So there is a light source...!" Sheep was astonished, "It''s extremely high up, but it does exist. And from the looks of it, it''s right above us."

    "Possibly noon, though time has no meaning in Heaven 2.0, so its position might not even matter." Elegy nodded.

    "Again, what does it even matter if there is no "visible" Sun in the sky?" I frowned.

    "The sky that we evidently can''t see properly?" Elegy turned to the bag carrying Elegy, "Yeah, I think it''s time to refer to the expert here."

    Energy was astounded to hear all this info hitting him all of a sudden, but he wasn''t one to waste time on the uptake. Immediately, he got to work, asking me to lift him above my head as far as I could to hopefully get him a clearer picture. My arm got tired after an entire minute of holding him, but it was worth it.

    "This is an incredible find." Energy confirmed, "Yes, there does seem to exist a "Sun" of sorts in Heaven. Though, it''s so far out that even I can barely make out its silhouette."

    "We knew that much already." I gave an annoyed sneer, "Which way is it moving?"

    "It''s not." He answered, "The light source in the sky is not moving. Even from this distance, I can feel it."

    "So we can assume that the entirety of Heaven is revolving around this light." Elegy muttered, "Usually, directions are defined with magnetic poles, but since we don''t have that luxury currently, we''ll have to "invent" the directions of Heaven. Absolute directions that don''t have any connection to our currently facing direction."

    "Alright, you''ve painted your points vividly." I rolled my Eyes, "But you still haven''t exactly gotten to the part where you explain why you think we''re moving east."

    "...It just feels right to call the center of the map "eastward", I dunno." He simply shrugged.

    "Use your brain, dammit!" I shouted his ears off, "Look at the house behind us from a top down view! The front entrance is northward!"

    "But that also depends on if you''re entering or exiting." Sheep chimed in.

    "You shut your damn-!!!"

    "Guys, guys!" Energy stopped things before they got too heated, "If we can''t pinpoint the exact direction we''re facing, then why not just name them ourselves?"

    "Ah." We blinked, "Good point..."

    We were so caught up in which idea was right that we never stopped to realize the obvious¡ªthis entire topic is stupid and divisive as is and it can just be solved by not giving anyone what they want. Just a hard reset where we can start from the ground up to make something together, instead of picking sides.

    "Then, I dub the direction behind us...!" Elegy pointed at the mansion, "Marinara!"

    "Ooh, like the sauce!" I excitedly added onto that, "Then, the direction we''re headed to should be Vasta, named after the cutest girl of all time!"

    "Naming the direction after your lover? How childish." Energy mentally rolled his Eyes, "The direction to our left is Tin."

    "And you''re naming yours after a can..." Sheep gave him a deadpanned smirk, "In that case, I guess I should choose the final one, huh? Oh God, now I''m kinda feeling the pressure to think of something..."

    "It''s not that hard." I figured.

    "Maybe for you guys!" He fussed, "Sigh, I think I''ll skip this one, after all..."

    Hm? Actually, that sounded kind of right just now. I know it was unintentional on his part, but it might actually be the best name out of all of these.

    "Skip it is!" Elegy, Sheep and I smiled in unison, "And with that, we''ve got our cardinal directions! Marinara, Vasta, Tin and Skip!"

 Vol.6 Ch.140 - Out of Nowhere

    "Then, we''re currently headed vasta, right?" I asked to make sure, "And the house is located marinara of here."

    "That still sounds so weird..." Sheep wasn''t sold on the idea just yet.

    "It''s better than bickering over the directions that already exist." Energy reasoned, "And it makes it easier for us to stand on common ground."

    It might very well have been a useless detour to take, an endeavor that''s just an extra hassle, but I''m sure if the moment comes where we need to quickly alert each other of an oncoming threat, we''ll be thankful we had this conversation.

    "Not like it''ll matter outside of the district, though." Elegy chuckled, "Since this entire system is based on the orientation of the Gods'' Abode."

    "In other words, the moment it''s out of view, the directions lose all meaning, don''t they?"

    "Technically, we could just arbitrarily "choose" the directions every time we need to." Energy shrugged.

    "Eh? But then what''s even the point of having them in the first place!" I grimaced, "At that point, just use left, right, in front and behind!"

    Though, I completely get it. Cardinal directions are something of an unshakable rule of the world, and since we don''t know this rule, it''s not that easy to learn it. Until we find a compass, we''ll just have to do it in this half-assed way. Hours pass as we traverse the empty expanse, or at least that''s how it felt like. Our feet got tired miles ago, but we couldn''t let up.

    "I forgot, which way''s the house again?" I asked tiredly.

    "Marinara of here." Elegy said in between ragged breaths.

    "I know that, moron! I''m asking where that is!"

    He blinked at me, "Behind us... I think?"

    "Oh God, don''t tell me we''ve been running in circles?" Sheep fretted.

    "We''ve been walking a straight line this entire time, trust me." Energy assured us, "I would have sensed a deviation in your stride with my mind''s Eye, so don''t worry."

    That really isn''t making me feel any better, you know? That just means there''s literally nothing here, dammit. Sheep also can''t carry this many of us inside him anymore, so even having him fly us to the end is also out of the question. Gah, I blame Elegy!

    "Pfft." Energy suddenly broke out into a hardy cackle, "Hahaha!"

    "What''s so funny?" I glanced down his bag, "Oh, lmao!"

    "Lmao?" Elegy couldn''t keep the corners of his lips from lifting either, "Phahahaha!"

    "You guys, I hate being left out of a joke." Sheep worried he might have been the butt of it before bursting out laughing as well, "Bahahahaha! Oh wow! Hahaha!"

    We laughed, cackled, chuckled, giggled and guffawed all in that order, only to repeat it in a different order after that. It''s actually so funny, but I just can''t quite put my finger on what made us lose our cool so suddenly. This being the case, I did take notice of the fact that even I started seeing the sky as pink now.

    "M?" Vastoria''s voice called out from behind me, "What are you even doing here?"

    I giggled in response, "Saving you, silly."

    "I can see that..." Her face seemed disapproving, "Wandering around in the middle of nowhere. Side-questing, if you will."

    "Nuh-uh!" I shook my head, "We''ll find... something important here, I''m sure of it!"

    "How much longer until you do?" She posed a fair question, "Sigh, just go get the Gods already. They have the answer to waking me up and fixing me, not whatever the heck you''re waiting to show up."

    Hm? But the Gods might get angry if we tell them where we found Elegy... Meh, then again, they don''t need to know that. Eh? Hold on a second, why did we ever even assume that we''d have to tell them in the first place? Besides, the Gods said their goal is for everyone to be happy, so they wouldn''t punish us in any way, I think. Wait, why are we even here, then?

    "Guys, let''s go back to the Abode." I turned around, noticing they were stood petrified, looking at Vastoria''s visage in the distance, "Guys?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You... do I know you?" Energy asked the floating head enshrouded in wings in the distance.

    "You did, but right now my memory eludes you." She replied.

    "Somehow, when I look at your face, I am overwhelmed with feelings of joy... but also fear. Why is that?"

    She then replied, "Because I remind you of the good and the bad."

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    "Yeah, but not the ugly." He joked, "Your face is so round and alluring, and your Eyes the epitome of security."

    The lady giggled at his flattery, seemingly charmed by the brain''s witty remarks and cheap pick-up lines.

    "Humu, you''re just feeling a little nostalgic, that''s all." She shook her head, "Hey, N. You gonna quit with this charade and just go back to enjoying this paradise the Gods gifted you?"

    "Hm?" He was immediately taken out of the immersive experience, "Enjoy this paradise? Me and what body?"

    "Who cares that you don''t have a body, though?" She argued, "Not like you need it now that the Rotted aren''t a thing. You finally succeeded in your lifelong goals, remember?"

    He then tilted his head, "I had other goals apart from surviving?"

    "Of course, blockhead!" She laughed at him, an act that made his brainwaves go off the charts, "You wanted kids, remember? To start a family and have them survive and reproduce as well. The best way to fight back against a curse is with blessings, and you wanted to bless the world in exchange for the curse dealt upon it. That girl and that man, they are both clear signs that you survived, had offspring, and they lived to keep your family name alive."

    "Migu and Elegy?" He turned to them briefly, though he couldn''t fully take his gaze off of her.

    "Yeah, so now that you know all this..." She repeated the offer to him once more, "Why not just kick back and enjoy the reward you''ve been given for all of your hard work during your life down in the Living World? Convince the girl to drop you off in your house with the archangel''s aid and have some fun alone for a change."

    "No conflicts, no danger..." He thought about it, "Isn''t that extremely boring, though?"

    "You prayed day and night for this." She reasoned, "So what''s the hold up?"

    With arguments like those, he really had no reason not to take her advice. Just as a soul has only one life to live, so too does it have only one afterlife. Though this afterlife is rather long in comparison to a human lifespan, it doesn''t mean he should be in any rush to cause trouble.

    "Alright, thanks for the advice!" Energy turned to alert the others, "Hey, everyone. Would it be alright if I went home? This is leading us to a dead end, you can see it from a mile away... Guys?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "?, you gonna head back now?" The floating head asked Sheep.

    "Hm? Wait, you''re...!?" He was taken aback.

    "Don''t ignore me. You''ve been on vacation from your job for a while now, haven''t you?" He barked, "Way longer than anyone should ever be allowed to. Do you know just how many people had to cover for you?"

    The head was neither that of a woman nor a man, but shockingly¡ªa dog. A floating dog head enshrouded in wings even more glorious than his own, yelling at him to get back to his station.

    "J-Job? You mean, at the clothes store?" Sheep gulped.

    "No, I mean the chew toy store." The dog rolled his Eyes, "Of course I mean the clothes store, where else do you work!?"

    Sheep felt guilty from the bottom of his heart, "Ack, sorry! I''m kinda caught up in something right now! I''ll go back as soon as I-!"

    "Excuses, excuses! All you ever do is make excuses!" The dog frowned, "You have so many responsibilities, yet you still think you get to pick and choose them as you please!"

    "Well I can''t be everywhere at the same time, can I!?" Sheep blurted out.

    "And you don''t have to!" The dog fussed, "All you have to do is help me! Help me help you get back on the right track! You''re a shopkeeper, not a moron!"

    The dog''s words were as spiteful as his fur was soft. It kept barking and vying for Sheep to return to his station and focus on the responsibilities given to him by the Gods, yet the tone it used to get him to listen almost made it impossible to try and bark back.

    "But I can''t return to my job anymore! My body is no longer fit for it!"

    "Oh shut up!" The dog growled, "The body of an archangel is an upgrade of your previous body. If anything, it''s even more of a reason to return to your job! Now, get to it!"

    "Urk..." He understood finally, dragging his head to apologize to the others, "Sorry everyone, I really have been on vacation for way too long... I think I''m gonna head back... Guys?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Elegy stood before the winged head in front of him, her allure having a noticeable impact on his judgment. He said neither a word nor made a sound, yet his mouth was agape nonetheless. Carefully, anxiously, as if afraid he''d startle her, he muttered the first sentence.

    "I remember you." His heart raced, "Why?"

    "..."

    "Your hair was pink... or was it Red?" He couldn''t recall exactly, "It was short... or was it long? If my mind is telling me it remembers you, then why is my image of you so cloudy?"

    "A fair question to ask, L." She nodded, "Though, you never did quite know the answer to these queries. I was never your prime objective anyways."

    Her tone suggested jealousy¡ªa hint of grievance mixed with envy. She was a head embraced by her surrounding wings, yet even that head wasn''t as clearcut as it was for the others. She was an enigma, something he simply could not understand.

    "You''re the cherubim." He announced, "The others told me about you."

    "So they have." She briefly glanced at them before returning her watchful Eyes to him, "Well, now that you know, surely there is no possibility of you listening to me. L, you have bested me."

    Elegy paused, thinking about his next words very carefully, "Well now, we''re in no rush."

    "Eh?"

    The cherubim was thrown for a loop. Those who wanted to best it were required to have extremely strong, unwavering wills. Enough to quite literally change their fates. Out of everyone here, only Elegy succeeded in seeing through her trick. Despite this, he refused to let the opportunity go to waste. Before he could continue their mission, he just had to figure something out.

    "Why do I claim that I know you, but I don''t even know who you are?" He asked.

    "Oh." Her Eyebrows shot up, surprise showing most on her face before she burst out laughing, "So that''s what''s on your mind?"

    "Can you give me this answer?"

    "I can certainly guide you towards it." She replied, "But as with all things in life, the truth you are seeking is an annoyingly convoluted one. Most choose to turn away from this truth, for they cannot bear to face it."

    "I get the feeling I''m no different."

    "You are, and you are not." She giggled, "I will give you everything you need to work the mystery out yourself, but even then, there is no guarantee you will fully grasp it."

    "How so?"

    "A personal question requires personal rationale." She explained with a warm, kind smile, "In other words, only you yourself can give yourself that answer."

    "In that case..." Elegy smirked, turning to the rest of his entranced teammates, "You guys won''t mind if me and my new friend have ourselves a little chat, won''t you... Guys?"

 Vol.6 Ch.141 - Theres Your Answer

    He looked around to notice all of his friends were gone. As if turned into thin air, they had left him and the cherubim alone for a long time now. He was in the company of himself, the cherubim, and the vast White expanse around them. More than enough space for him to get his so sought after answer.

    "Did you send them back home?" He turned back to face the cherubim.

    "I''m protecting them from themselves, that''s all." She replied, "Currently, their fates are destined to end abruptly in a few measly days time. When compared to the nigh infinite lifespan of Heaven 2.0, one could argue that it is quite soon."

    "Yeesh, scarily so, even." He agreed, "So how long have you prolonged their afterlives by pulling this stunt?"

    "Infinitely." She winked, "So long as you do not interfere anymore."

    It was then when he noticed the bundle of clouds next to him dissipate, revealing the unconscious Vastoria lying there. It seems Sheep had taken these two back to district G and left Vastoria to him.

    "Wow, he even left a walkie-talkie for me to contact the others..." Elegy snorted, "How thoughtful."

    "I told him to do that." The cherubim shook her head, her mysterious hair swaying in the wind, "You can save Vastoria alone, and make everyone happy. And if you do as I say, then that will include S and N as well."

    "Sab, Nerys..." He looked down, "In other words, you want me to bring them here so you can iron out their fates as well."

    "Quick on the uptake." She giggled, "The previous Wildcard was sent to Hell because of such a display of capability."

    He tilted his head at that, "I was told Hell no longer existed, though?"

    "There is much you do not understand yet, though I have no doubt that you will come to realize it all someday." Her Eyes seemed distant, "L, do tell me, are you enjoying your time in Heaven 2.0?"

    A sudden change in topics. So sudden, in fact, that even she felt it to have been too forced. Only a fool would answer this phony question without addressing the previous statements beforehand, and yet...

    "It''s fun." He replied meaningfully, "A novel experience."

    She leaned in, "Oh?"

    "But... that''s about it." He shrugged, "I''ve met some good friends up here, and teaching Hats about life has been an honor. Still, I''d wish to go back one day."

    "To district G?"

    "To my human life."

    She strived to make him forget about the previous problematic conversation with this new one, but in doing so she unwittingly only gave him the opportunity to strike up an even worse topic. Reincarnation, the one wish a Heavenly Being cannot get granted to them. Elegy''s life was cut short, and thus his afterlife was riddled with regrets deeply embedded within his identity. For the cherubim, this was the one topic she wanted to steer clear from the most...

    "No one can revive." She immediately shot the idea down, "Perhaps now that you have gotten a bit closer to the Gods, you could ask them to let you spectate your era a bit, but otherwise there are certain rules you absolutely mustn''t break."

    "Rules?" He raised his Eyebrow.

    "You cannot find out your human identity." She listed them off, "You cannot bring back those whose souls have been destroyed, and finally¡ªyou cannot revive. There, sounds simple enough, right?"

    Immediately, the thought of the now soul-destroyed Throne crossed Elegy''s mind. He was stricken with grief, though coupled with a sense of pride. "Good riddance!", he would shout in his mind as he blew away the mental image. Her patronizing tone also didn''t really help convince him much.

    "Heh, simple." He stretched, "Yaaawn! Though, I am thankful for your words. You really did open my Eyes."

    "Humu, I''m happy to hear it." She giggled pleasingly.

    "Yep, I was kinda lost until now, but you''ve given me a new goal to look out for." His grin grew as he turned to face her once more, "The first rule that came to mind is the most dire of all, isn''t it?"

    Her Eyes shrunk back in fear, "H-Huh...?"

    "Don''t ever find out who you were before you died, huh? Sounds serious..." He teased her a bit, "I wonder why that is? Surely, something interesting will happen if I do."

    "Hey! I just told you that it''s forbidden!" She hissed, unsure of how this will unfold, "If you really wanna find out what happens if you try it, then I''ll tell you¡ªthe Gods will be furious with you! So much so that they will immediately snap away your soul into oblivion. So tell me, L¡ªis that interesting to you!?"

    He blinked at her with his Eyes wide open. The tension between them all but gone, replaced by an awkward wave of silence. Eventually, he snapped out of it to deliver a sheepish reply.

    "G-Geez, I was just kidding." He scratched his cheek, "Heh, didn''t think I''d rile you up so much."

    This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    "...A-Ahem." She blushed, embarrassed to show him this side of herself, "It is not allowed, you know? I am the cherubim, this world''s protector of souls and Heaven itself. It is my duty, after all."

    "Yeah, I get it. You''re just doing your job." He nodded, "In that case, shall we switch to a more pleasant topic?"

    "Please." She begged, "Ah, but what exactly constitutes as pleasant to you?"

    He had the poor cherubim traumatized after his cheeky jokes. At this point, she was already quivering in fear, dreading his next topic. She picked off Elegy, but he ended up being more than she could chew.

    "So you''ve already forgotten my original question?" He chuckled, "How come I get the feeling that I know you, even though I don''t remember you one bit?"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The query that started it all. An otherwise innocent question that was merely posed to quell his curiosity. She bore a striking resemblance, and yet he could not for the afterlife of him figure out to whom. Her hair was pink, or was it Red? Long, or was it short? He stared directly at her, and yet the truth remained blurry.

    "To put it simply, I am a loved one." She explained, "Or at the very least, I aim to imitate her likeness."

    "A loved one... From my past life?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "Indeed."

    He found the idea preposterous, "And why in the world would you do that?"

    "Is the answer not obvious enough already?" She chuckled, "Human minds are incapable of witnessing a cherubim''s full glory. Rid of imperfections or not, you will go insane if you take a gander at the truth."

    "In other words, you don''t want me to be afraid of you, so to sweeten the deal, you figured it''d be better if you resembled someone I used to know." Energy groaned.

    In other words, all of this was nothing more than a ruse. An attempted trick to get him to lower his guard, which evidently succeeded for the others in his now disbanded party. He never knew the woman standing before him.

    "Then again, I never could exactly nail down who your love was." She noted.

    This came as a shock to him, "Huh? How come?"

    "The others always had a number one, so to speak." The cherubim continued, "Someone who meant more to them than anyone else in the world. You, on the other hand, had two. A perfect 50/50 split of love, with absolutely neither side managing to tip the scales in their favor completely. What a truly dubious man you are, L."

    "Is that why your face is so blurry to me?" He thought to switch between using one Eye and then the other, as if that would work, "Mn, nope. You''re blurry through and through."

    "Would you like to see just one of the people you so verily adore?" She offered, "Surely it would help you get closer to your answer?"

    "Keep it ambiguous. Once I revive, I''ll take a look at them myself." He smugly replied.

    This resolution was not the answer she had hoped for, however. The cherubim''s goal was to have him choose one or the other, to satiate his curiosity and allow him to understand that only one is his true lover. Alas, he refused. On top of that, not only did he refuse, but he also essentially spat in her face by gloating about how he will still try to revive himself from the dead.

    "Before me stands a lost lamb." She shook her head pityingly at him.

    "And before me stands a mirror." He returned the favor in kind.

    "Eh?"

    "You''re supposed to calm me down, yet you know nothing about me. You expect this sham to work?" He grimaced, "One or both of these girls could have been my lovers, my family, my friends, or whatever our relationship was, yet you puppet their likeness to talk to me like I''m some sort of stranger. You''re right, I am dubious, but you''re the spitting image of me, cherubim."

    Her heart began beating rapidly, her excitement growing as he gave his speech. This was it, he was getting closer to the answer. Angry as he was with the cherubim, this was exactly what she was aiming for in riling him up so much, for he understood it best when facing such an authority.

    "Indeed, we are the same." She nodded with a proud smile on her face, "Selfish, greedy, both butting heads just to try and have our way in the end. I''m curious, L, what do they call an argument between an unstoppable force and an impenetrable wall?"

    "I take it you''re the wall, then?" He chuckled, "I''m sorry, but I don''t do too well with riddles."

    "This is merely trivia." She giggled, "But it serves its purpose to show you that continuing like this will never lead to a resolution. The smarter goat pulls back."

    Vastoria was still lying unconscious next to him, whilst all Elegy was doing was wasting time. Had he just accepted the cherubim''s advice and gone back for Sab and Nerys, then the Gods, she would have already been well on her way to a fully recovery. Alas, he wasn''t going to let this chance slip by.

    "Cherubim, I get the feeling we won''t be seeing each other anymore." He turned around, hoisting the comatose girl over his shoulders, "So for some parting words, I find it''s only acceptable for me to present to you my answer."

    "We shall see each other again, no?" She tilted her head, "No matter, I am glad you have come up with an answer that satisfied you. Please, I would be honored to hear it."

    "The log''s about to fall down the waterfall, cherubim, and I have no intention of letting you get away." He looked back, a daunting smirk on his face, "I''ll string you along this sinking ship with me, because I am an unstoppable force."

    Her swaying hair stood on end, her Eyes shrunken back in fear. This was not at all what she was expecting to hear from him, especially not after he supposedly resigned from their argument.

    "Y-You... What does this mean!?" She panicked, "L, answer me! What does this nonsense amount to?!"

    "I''ll find Nerys and Sab, and I''ll have them be the ones to take your head." He replied before leaving, "Vastoria will walk on her own two feet again. Migu, Sheep and Energy will live full afterlives. And I..."

    "Lu-!"

    "I will resurrect."

    After enough hours of walking marinaraward, he felt the startling vibrations of the walkie-talkie in his pocket. Awkwardly, he squirmed about, trying to avoid dropping Vastoria as he answered the call.

    "Yo, guys!" Sab laughed without a care in the world on the other end of the line, "We got another hypothetical for you."

    "Is that so?" Elegy chuckled, "Well then, go on."

    "If ye'' had ta'' pick, which''d ye'' ratha''?" Nerys yelled to be heard from Sab''s talkie, "Be tha'' hiero, arr'' be tha'' king?"

    "Mn, the hero or the king, eh?" Elegy thought about it, "Neither."

    "Neither?" The two were shocked.

    "I''m not cut out to be a hero nor a king. Too many responsibilities, I say." He explained, "I''d like a more humble role, if possible. I''d be the one helping the king and hero do their jobs well from the sidelines. Is there a term for that?"

    The line was silent for a while before the static buzzing abruptly cut to them laughing their asses off.

    "A term fer'' dat!?" Nerys cackled on and on.

    "Elegy, if there was ever a driving force strong enough to help both kings and heroes alike..." Sab said in between wheezes, "He''d have to be more than a God!"

 Vol.6 Ch.142 - Showtime

    "Elegy, come in." Prylos'' voice called him out from the walkie-talkie in his pocket, "Elegy!"

    "Answer us this instant, this is important!" Selzion too.

    "That''s not gonna work, you two." Elegy chuckled to himself, refusing to press the button and reply to them, "These talkies sure are noisy, though. Isn''t there a way to lower the volume?"

    Just then, Sab hopped on the line, "Whoa, what''s the problem, you Two?"

    "Yeh. Ye'' be inna panic n'' wotnot''s makin'' os ankshis." Nerys added.

    "Ah right, that''s right, I can''t lower the volume." Elegy realized, "Because I still need a way to talk to those guys."

    The easiest solution would have been to just outright destroy his device, but that would disable communications with the rest of the active team. Hats, Migu, Energy and Sheep still weren''t picking up when he tried to call them, so he assumed that''s what the cherubim told them to do.

    "Darned wench, she made things ten times more difficult!" He cussed her out angrily under his breath, "Ah, should I be calling her that? I mean, given her appearance and all... Meh, a wench is a wench. Doesn''t matter what kind of face she''s making."

    "Elegy, pick up the line or else...!" Selz threatened.

    "Seriously, what the Hell did he do?" Sab asked outright.

    "An'' wotcha'' gun'' doo iffie dozint ansarr?" Nerys wondered as well.

    "These guys really are a blessing, aren''t they?" Elegy turned in a random direction that happened to be the angle we''re looking from, "See that, folks? That''s called working smart, not hard! I''ll just chillax while Sab and Nerys extract all the necessary information for me!"

    Indeed, it''s quite convenient to have friends, Elegy. Ah, but do try to refrain from actively breaking the fourth wall from now on...

    "Shut up!" Selzion''s voice piped up suddenly, "You don''t need to poke your nose into our affairs! Our dealings are with Elegy and Elegy alone!"

    "Yeah!" Pry, too, was furious, "And Elegy, if you''re hearing this, you really ought to answer soon! Otherwise, we''ll come to you! ...Just as soon as we get out of this hole."

    "Ack!" Selz noticed.

    "Oho~?" The edges of Elegy''s lips raised, "So they''ve dug themselves into a literal hole? Ain''t that thematic? But at least now I know that..."

    "You imbecile!" Selz yelling at Pry could be heard loudly from the microphone, "Now he knows we''re still stuck in the hole! Eugh, whose idea even was it to dig this deep!?"

    Sab jockeyed on the chance to laugh at their idiocy, "Bahahahaha! You''re actually stuck down there!?"

    "Ye'' dug a hole without en'' egsit?!" Nerys mocked as well, "Wotwer ye'' thinkin'', yew dolts!?"

    Of course as humans, they lacked the foresight to predict that Elegy would go against their ways like he did, so they had fully expected that their group would never run into the cherubim without them. In other words, they had dug as deep as they could without a care in the world with the express belief that Sheep would come back eventually to bring them out. This miscalculation has put them in a very bad spot.

    "So they can''t get out of the hole anytime soon..." Elegy calculated, "In that case, they''re as good as dead already without me even having to do a thing. The holes dug on Heaven 2.0''s surface regenerate, so they''ll suffocate regardless. Ah, well, that would be the case if they wouldn''t dig a separate tunnel back up faster than they dug this one."

    In other words, it was a race against the clock for them, and Elegy figured they definitely didn''t stand a chance against it. Still, his goal wasn''t to kill the Gods, merely to fool around with them for a bit.

    "I ought to go check up on ''em, hm?" He glanced at Vastoria''s sleeping face, "What do you say?"

    Despite how often he addressed her, she nonetheless remained motionless and comatose.

    "Hmm, no response still... No matter, you''ll be awake after I''m done on my end!" He shrugged it off, "Though, I can''t exactly run to the Gods with you weighing me down..."

    Before anything, he needed to recruit Hats, Sheep, Energy and Migu back into their party again. After the cherubim destroyed their wills to continue fighting for the cause, he fretted they might never see Eye to Eye again, but that''s all the more reason why Elegy should do his best to win them back.

    He calmly pulled out his walkie-talkie, finally pressing the button to activate the microphone, "Sab, Nerys, come in. Where are you?"

    "Eleg-!" The Gods yelled.

    "You Two stay in the hole." He interrupted them, "Don''t worry, I''ll come to you."

    "Matey, dafuq''s goin'' on?" Nerys worriedly asked, "Tha'' otha'' three ain'' answerin'' eitharr, so''s we be werri''d."

    "What''s going on, dude?" Sab asked as well.

    "Answer the question, where are you?"

    Before anything, he had to drop Vastoria off with them. Regardless of what would happen between Elegy and the Gods, he wanted to make sure that the story could at least continue with Sab and Nerys.

    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    "...Okay, listen well." Sab understood from his dire tone.

    The pieces were set, and the game was afoot. The Gods would wait impatiently for Elegy to reach them for a chat, but before that, he had to stop by Nerys and Sab to relinquish care of Vastoria. By now, he had reached the Gods'' Abode of district A and entered it. Counting a couple of seconds before he left at the perfect moment, he exited at exactly district G. Right where Nerys and Sab were.

    "You guys are fast." Elegy smirked.

    "We weren''t that far from where you were." Sab shook his head, "But never mind that, why are you here in the first place?"

    "An'' wot''s goin'' on wid'' er''wun?" Nerys added.

    "Long story." Elegy winked, "Thankfully the readers don''t have to read through the hefty explanation!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "O-Oh..." Sab looked shocked beyond belief after Elegy finished his explanation of the past events.

    "That be..." Nerys gulped, "Unsavry."

    "Well, that explains why the Gods were so pissed off at you, at least." Sab continued, "But wow, you guys actually jumped the gun and found the cherubim without their help."

    "For better or for worse." Elegy nodded, "Those four were charmed and swayed by the cherubim, who made them quit this entire cause altogether."

    "So what now? It''s just down to us to save Vastoria?" Sab worried.

    Their group was miniscule, but not hopeless. Elegy still wagered there was a way to bring everything back to normal.

    "I''ll go talk to those Two." He cracked his knuckles, "Besides saving them from getting crushed by the very hole they dug out, I need to destroy their walkie talkies so that we can use our own without them hearing our conversations."

    "Ack, ye'' roight." Nerys realized, "We cannae tolk ovah tha'' tolkie widdout dem hearin'' git."

    "For the time being, please refrain from using them." Elegy warned.

    "But what about Vastoria?" Sab glanced at her.

    With an impish grin, Elegy shoved her over to them, "Until I''m done on my end, you take care of her!"

    The two were reasonably outraged.

    "Eh!?" Nerys jolted, "We ain''t ye'' nannies, ya'' nonce!"

    "Yeah, whatever the Hell that means... nonce!" Sab fussed right next to her, "What do you expect us to do with an unconscious girl''s body!? She''s heavy!"

    "Tsk tsk, don''t you know it''s rude to say that about a girl?" Elegy wagged his finger at him.

    He shot back immediately, "So what!? I call Nerys heavy all the time, and she doesn''t mind!"

    This backhanded compliment was met with a stern slap from the woman he apparently so often shamelessly shames. Turns out Nerys only tolerated his harsh comments, believing them to be a joke. To think he was serious all this time...

    "In any case, please take care of her." Elegy sighed, "If I don''t make it back, I want you to find the others yourselves and save Vastoria."

    "Huh?" They immediately got serious, "You mean there''s a chance you... won''t?"

    "Oh, absolutely..." Elegy looked down, "Not! Haha, the only way I could die from those Two idiots would be if I took them down with me, and if that happened, you''d have way bigger issues than my death to worry about!"

    "We''d rather not have that happen..." Sab winced.

    "Then do as I told you and wish me luck." Elegy finished it off, "The Gods are a nuisance, but killing them while they''re human is out of the question. Who knows what that might cause."

    "Ye'', bot destroyin'' they thingamajigs will giv'' as'' a steppop from ''em!" Nerys added.

    "In five hours time." Elegy put his hand out, "If I don''t come back in five hours, continue on without me."

    "You sure you won''t need more time?" Sab asked.

    "Positive. Heck, I''m giving myself some leeway here to account for the travel time to the hole." Elegy guffawed, "In reality, three will be more than enough."

    "In that case, we''ll leave after three hours."

    "N-No wait, please don''t..."

    After waving both of them off, the trio diverged once more, with Elegy splitting off to go find the Gods. Selzion and Prylos eagerly sat inside the hole they had dug out, with only a few minor worries to their name.

    "Gah, we''re gonna have to die, aren''t we?" Pry groaned, "Is that right? I''m pretty sure humans can''t survive when immersed in a solid."

    "You''re correct. They have no air to breathe, and the pressure crushes their bodies, so they die." Selz explained calmly.

    "Yeah, knew it had something to do with air..." He nodded, "So, how long until we revive after that?"

    "Come again?"

    "Revive, y''know? You die and your consciousness returns to the nearest safe spot alive and well."

    "No, I know what revival means, fool." Selz shook his head, "I''m trying to understand why you think we''ll revive after death."

    "Uhh, because we do that?"

    "Not when we''re humans we don''t."

    The topic was as heavy as their tone was light. They seemed rather nonchalant about their possible untimely demise in spite of the stakes at play. As it stood, they were too tired and out of breath to dig out of the hole before it closed up, meaning there was no way out. To conserve their strength for the eventual conflict with Elegy, they figured taking a breather would be the most optimal play to make.

    "Remind me again, when was the last time one of the Five died for real?" Pry asked.

    "Believe it or not, this is actually the first Universe Cycle in which it occurred." Selz frowned, "We''re usually smarter than this."

    "You." Pry gave him a deadpanned stare, "You''re usually smarter than this. Don''t forget, you''re the one who turned us into humans yourself..."

    "I profusely apologize for that..."

    Just then, the slightest ray of Sunlight had died out.

    "It seems the hole has started regenerating." Selz closed his Eyes, "Elegy was late..."

    "Selz?" Pry nudged him, "You got it all wrong, look!"

    From the skies, the object that shaded them was not the ground closing up, but the very angel they were waiting to come for them. Falling the entire way down until he slammed into the ground before them, Elegy stood back up without a single injury.

    "Oof, you Two sure these Heavenly Bodies are indestructible? I still feel the ringing in my knees..." Elegy shivered as he dusted himself off.

    "Let''s hope you''ve enough strength to dig us out of here." Selz smirked, happy to find out his life will continue.

    "Urk, not even gonna give me a moment of reprieve..." Elegy grinned, Eyeing the Two down as he put his hand out expectantly, "Fine, so be it. Then, before anything, hand over your walkie-talkies."

    Silence. Confusion. Bafflement. All of these emotions strewn together around the Gods as they questioned what exactly he was plotting.

    "You... You couldn''t have..." Pry was heartbroken, "There''s no way you came all the way here just to break our way of communicating with you."

    "Regardless, now that he''s down here, he''ll ''have'' to dig us out with him if he wants to survive." Selz grunted, "Even he isn''t that dumb to perform a suicide mission..."

    "Don''t you worry about a thing. I plan on making sure we all live through this encounter." Elegy bared his teeth, "So just hand over the talkies. I''m not asking."

 Vol.6 Ch.143 - Right of Way

    The air between them grew tense as the Gods faced off against a determined Elegy. His hand outstretched, beckoning for them to hand over the walkie-talkies.

    "You would go so far as to threaten your Gods, boy?" Selz smirked cautiously.

    "The things I have to resort to just for some privacy..." Elegy retorted.

    "Never mind the talkies, we''ve got a bigger issue to address!" Pry worried, "You two, the hole up above us has almost closed up. We need to get out of here."

    Though he did succeed in entering the hole before it had fully closed up, that doesn''t mean that Elegy has much time left before they get swallowed by it. As it stands, he still needs to dig himself and them a separate tunnel that will lead them up to the surface before the hole''s regeneration catches up to them.

    "Hey, hey, didn''t you hear me? I don''t plan on having any of us die here." Elegy chuckled, "But I do get what you''re saying, so how about a trade instead? You hand me the pickaxe, and Selz will hand over the walkie talkies."

    "That''s no trade." Selz refuted, "That''s a robbery!"

    "Ah, you got me~!" Elegy sang a tune, "But seriously, you guys need to learn to lighten up."

    Pry cocked his head back, "Lighten up? Have you gone mad?"

    "Be a bit more optimistic, will ya''?" He continued in spite of their confusion, "Sure, this right here is a robbery, but if you don''t hand both of them over while things are still peaceful, I''m afraid I''m gonna have to take the pick from your hands myself."

    "So the robbery will become an armed robbery instead..." Selz grinded his teeth in frustration.

    "Hehe, they don''t call you the Knowledge God for nothing! Gold star for you!"

    Elegy had now laid out his terms for Them, however They still refused to move from Their spot. Inside this rather cramped hole, distanced just barely a meter apart from each other, They stood in silence, gripping the talkies and the golden pickaxe firmly.

    "I see you''re choosing the hard way." Elegy nodded.

    The very next moment, Selz warned his teammate, "Now!"

    The fight had begun. Elegy had already lunged at Pry to try and steal away the pickaxe from him, but it was thanks to Selz''s quick thinking that Pry knew to dodge. Rebounding just in time to catch a flying fist headed his way, Elegy parried the attack and sent it back to Selz, knocking him into the opposing wall.

    "Hrmph!" Pry swung the sharp-pointed pick, "Ngh!"

    "Wobbly, slow." Elegy dodged it with ease, "You''re letting the weapon swing you instead of the other way around. What are you, a baseball player?"

    "This pick can even rip an angel''s skin, you know!?" He swung a bit faster this time, nicking his shoulder, "There!"

    "Hm." Elegy stared at the wound as it regenerated within seconds, "Should''ve followed up with a second attack if you wanted it to count."

    Pry clutched the pickaxe''s handle tightly, bracing himself for a counter from Elegy, "No...!"

    Elegy clenched his fist for a mighty gut punch, the hit... not connecting! Just before it could, Selzion arrived to smack him away. Having created some distance between them once more, Selz called for a truce.

    "We don''t have time for this quarrel right now." He stated, "Elegy, have it your way."

    "Eh!? W-Wait a second, we''re giving him the talkies!?" Pry jolted.

    "Just the pickaxe." Selz glared at the angel standing before them, "The walkie-talkies are negotiable."

    Elegy made sure his words weren''t empty, and that he would make good on his promise. Gauging their reactions for a while, he ultimately let out a sigh, "Good enough for me. Then, if you''ll be so kind."

    "Pry, give him the pick."

    "About that, it''s kinda stuck to the wall..." Pry whimpered.

    Prylos'' previous wild swings were alas a tad too violent, leading to him sticking the sharp object into the stone wall once he partially scraped Elegy''s shoulder. It was a minor, almost comedic inconvenience that Elegy could easily rectify, so they didn''t make too big of a deal out of this. Elegy grabbed hold of the pickaxe, yanking it free after a few strong tugs.

    "Bah!" He fell on his back, "Oof, got it."

    "Nicely done." Selz congratulated him, "Then, when can we expect..."

    Elegy suddenly put his hand out, "Hold it, there''s still something I''m gonna need done before I can dig us out."

    "Oh no, what is it...?" Pry yelped.

    "The talkies, you don''t need to hand them over to me." He replied.

    A sudden pardon from Elegy. What could this possibly mean...?

    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "Huh?" Even Selz was left puzzled, "We don''t?"

    "I see now that I was being a bit too hasty with my demands. Yeah, you don''t need to hand them over." He continued solemnly, "Instead, just snap them over your knee yourselves. That''ll be enough."

    "It''s essentially the same thing!" They hissed.

    "Nuh uh, this way I''ll have to do one step less!" Elegy winked, "Ha-ha, but seriously¡ªI''m not swinging this pick until those talkies are smashed into tiny bits and pieces."

    As he said this, the gradually disappearing faint beam of light illuminating their surroundings had completely dissipated. The hole above them had closed up fully, meaning they were officially less than an hour away from getting swallowed by the ground around them.

    "Clock''s ticking, you Two." Elegy jeered, "I wonder what''s gonna happen to the rest of Heaven 2.0 when its rulers die in a ditch."

    "You...!" Selz grit his teeth, "Fine, have it your way."

    Snatching Pry''s walkie-talkie from him before tossing both of theirs onto the ground, Selz stomped the devices until there was nothing but stray bits of plastic left. They were officially off the grid, so to speak.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Sab, Nerys, don''t reply to this message." Elegy said on his own walkie-talkie, "I''m almost done here, I''ll come back to you soon."

    The otherwise silent device briefly began to spew out static before cutting back out, which was Sab''s way of communicating to him that the message was received. Now that this was over with, Elegy felt himself lucky to be in such a dark area. This way, the Gods could neither see his heart beating rapidly nor his brows sweating.

    "Heh, truth is, we''re not nearly done just yet." He laughed to ease the tension within him.

    "It''s a long way''s up." Pry noted.

    "Sure is, but I''ll make it in time, so don''t worry." He nodded, lifting the pick over his shoulder before turning around, "Then, please step back. As humans, your skin can''t regenerate wounds, so I really don''t wanna accidentally poke you."

    "Of course. Elegy, you have our gratitude after all." Selz humbly thanked him.

    The previous air around them that only propagated further hate and animosity between them had all but disappeared. Now that the matter of the walkie-talkies was settled, they really had no reason to not work together to leave this hole safely. This was Elegy''s victory.

    "Hyup!" Elegy grunted with each heavy swing, "Hngh, gyah!"

    "Such speed..." Pry complimented him, "I''m impressed! So angels can achieve this level of strength without the aid of Godly powers!"

    "Even humans can do this much, if not way more." Elegy glanced back, "You guys are just super out of shape."

    "Save the disses for later." Selz groaned, "Mayhaps after we return to the surface?"

    "Fine, fine, I got it..." Elegy continued digging, "So, what''s the plan after this?"

    "The answer will come in due ti..." Selz paused, "Ahem, the plan is to have you defeat the cherubim."

    "Cherubim?" Elegy stopped mining.

    The Gods still didn''t know that he had already met the cherubim prior to this. In fact, as far as they were concerned, the others that were looking for him had for some reason gone radio silent. During that period, they had somehow located Elegy, handed him his walkie-talkie, and for some reason refused to return to the hole with him. Elegy used this chance to play dumb.

    "That being...?" He turned around innocently.

    "Have the others not told you?" Pry returned the question back to him, "Come to think of it, where are they?"

    "On the surface." Elegy replied immediately, "Just ''cause I''m risking my life to save you doesn''t mean they have to as well."

    "But with the Shopkeeper, surely...?" Selz paused, "You''re plotting something."

    The Knowledge God saw through his lies all too quickly. The charade didn''t last long, though Elegy was unperturbed nonetheless. So long as he kept the act up and found a reasonable excuse, he could continue this farce for just long enough to get out scot-free.

    "I was hiding in my home." Elegy revealed a lie.

    "Eh? But we checked that place already!" Pry protested.

    "Sigh, no." Selz shook his head, "We never actually did enter the place, just stood in front of it."

    "I heard you guys in front of the door, so I was pretty certain I would get found out, but turns out Energy bailed me out."

    Throwing the brain under the bus was Elegy''s way of removing suspicion from himself. The goal now was to make the Gods believe the other group was planning something instead of him, and so far this plan was working flawlessly.

    "What purpose would he have to do that...?" Selz began to breathe more raggedly.

    "He wanted to lead us away from you, but why?" Pry too was left confused.

    "Beats me. I sure was thankful though, since it allowed me to stay hidden until Sab and Nerys eventually found me." Elegy explained, "They gave me a quick summary, but apparently it was a bit too quick."

    The perfect cover up story. With this, the Gods no longer had any reason to suspect him. The fake story also gains more credibility when taking into account Sab and Nerys'' overly friendly greeting once Elegy picked up the walkie-talkie instead of the others in their group.

    "In that case, we should elaborate a bit more on the plan thus far." Selz sighed, "We need your help to take the head of a cherubim."

    "This being has a very compelling aura around it that can easily sway the hearts of even the most determined angels." Pry added, "But you, Elegy, have an unwavering heart. This trait is rare and special, and is our only way of bringing Vastoria back."

    "This head can heal her?" Elegy tilted his head.

    "It will replace her previous one." Selz explained, "The cherubim can perfectly copy the likeness of a person, as well as their personality and memories. By taking its head and placing it on top of her body, we will effectively succeed in bringing "a Vastoria" back."

    This information... was new, even to Elegy. It made him sick, so much so that he didn''t hesitate to try and puke right then and there. The visceral reaction was disliked by the Gods, whom wished for him to at least understand.

    "Migu had a much too similar reaction when she found out." Pry rolled his Eyes, "Humans can be so picky sometimes..."

    "Picky?" Elegy kept swinging his pickaxe, refusing to look at them after this, "Is that how you see it?"

    "You have only yourself to blame for destroying the Shrine bed." Selz scoffed, "Elegy, Vastoria cannot awaken anymore after the injury she had sustained. The next best thing is to replace her with a perfect copy, and we have deemed that to be the cherubim."

    "That stupid wench is gonna replace Vastoria!?" Elegy''s rage made him blurt this out.

    There was no excuse for this slip of the tongue. He had given himself away to the Gods, whose Eyes were so wide open they were practically bulging out of the darkness, staring him down. Of course, he didn''t mind. Elegy had grown to hate the cherubim from the bottom of his heart, for her methods of trickery were more despicable than any beast or human he''s faced before.

    "Elegy, you..." Selz realized slowly over time, "You already met the cherubim. Which means... the others are...!?"

    "It''s a bit dark in here, so I hope you can see the face I''m making." Elegy''s brows were pointed sharply down as he announced, "This is the face of a man who will stop at nothing to retrieve his friends from your rat bastard clutches."

 Vol.6 Ch.144 - 54 Feet Under

    "Elegy!" Selz cackled, "You thought you could pull a fast one on us, huh!? Believed yourself to be capable enough to outsmart the God of Knowledge!?"

    "You tried to trick us..." Pry felt hurt, "Even after we respected your wishes."

    "Sorry, but this isn''t gonna be the last time I trick you." Elegy truthfully apologized, "You guys, I know you mean well, but this isn''t how I want things to go down."

    He lightly bowed to show his sincerity before turning around to keep digging the tunnel leading to the surface. Selz was infuriated by this nonchalant attitude, but was even more shocked to finally notice just how steep the tunnel had gotten. By this point, Elegy was almost digging directly up, the rubble causing the already difficult to traverse terrain to send the two Gods sliding down to the base.

    "Hmph." Selz looked down, "So this is how you wish to play. You''re planning to leave us down here while you alone escape."

    Pry gasped at this, "Huh!? No way...!"

    "...Sigh, that''s not true." Elegy denied it solemnly, "I already told you that I don''t intend on leaving you to die. We''re all getting out of this hole safely, and that''s a promise."

    "But not at the same time." Selz added.

    "Hm..."

    Elegy put his back up against the narrow tunnel before lifting his legs up to support his weight on the adjacent wall. He no longer had any contact with the ground.

    "H-Hey, how''d you do that?" Pry yelped.

    "To continue digging straight up for an extended period whilst at the same time holding yourself up like this requires an insane amount of core and arm strength." Selz explained begrudgingly, "He knew our human bodies weren''t nearly as trained as his angelic body, so he used it against us to create this gap."

    "You won''t get crushed by the ground anymore." Elegy glanced down, still keeping up the pace of ascending up the tunnel he was digging, "I made sure to dig up gradually and slowly enough for you to be able to "climb" up the regenerating tunnel. Just stay there for a while and wait for the tunnel to bring you up slowly while I get things done on my end."

    "What are you planning to do!?" Selz yelled.

    "Something... interesting." He half-joked, "Get excited, I don''t think you''ll be expecting such a twist."

    "Elegy, there''s gotta be another way of doing things!" Prylos pleaded, "We can work together! We''re on the same side, we''ll help you get Vastoria and everyone else back to normal!"

    Selzion looked on as the angel above them dug into the darkness above. It would still take him about an hour to dig himself straight up to the surface, meaning it would take the Gods at least an entire Heaven''s day. By the time they even leave the hole, much less find Elegy, he''ll have already finished doing everything on his checklist. They were successfully duped.

    "Enough, Pry." Selz grabbed his shoulder, "He''s been fed enough lies, there''s no reaching him anymore."

    "But I''m not lying!" Pry cried out, "We can do it, we can!"

    "But not the way he would like it."

    By this point, they couldn''t even see Elegy anymore. He was already that far up from them. Never mind climbing after him, the Two were too exhausted to even stand up after such a tiring day of mining and fighting. This humiliation broiled quietly within them, the feeling of helplessness they''ve never yet had the chance to experience as Gods was burning itself in them as humans.

    "I''m gonna puke..." Pry sat down on the ground.

    Selz surprisingly agreed, "I was... outsmarted. By A MERE HUMAN!"

    "I can still hear you." Elegy''s voice said from above, "I''ll give you a chance, you know. Just tell me, right here and now, how to save Vastoria without involving that stupid cherubim and I''ll come down."

    "Eleg-!"

    "You dare pity us, mortal!?" Selz went mad with anger, "Your filth was granted mercy by US, not the other way around!"

    "Selz, now''s not the time!" Pry begged him to shut up, "This is our chance! We can turn over a new leaf, he can...!"

    Selz spat back, "I will never kneel to that imbecile, nor any man whose mortal soul walked the corporeal plane! He will, he will...! Ah."

    "Calmed down, finally?" Elegy jeered from the shadows above, "Or did you finally short circuit?"

    "Of course, the solution is to wait!" Selz immediately calmed down, "Yes, yes, when out of options, one must bide their time. This is the solution, the correct way."

    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    "You''re supposed to seize the day, not wait for it." Elegy advised.

    "We wait... until we become Gods again." He added.

    "Eh?"

    "Yes, our time is soon to come. The countdown until we return to being Gods, rid of this accursed humanity." Selz announced, "Just a few short, measly days and everything will be set straight... All. with the snap. of a finger."

    With such a bold declaration accompanied by the aforementioned action, even Elegy felt his hairs stand on end. The snap reverberated throughout until it reached his sensitive ears, the ringing it caused sending shivers down his spine. For a split second, Elegy felt his grip on the walls between which he was sandwiched begin to slip, but he was alert enough to not fall from it. The Gods had just announced a war. A microcosmic war wherein only three individuals duked it out, amounting to two sides¡ªThemselves... and him.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Ngh, urk!" Elegy gasped for breath with each swing of the pickaxe growing weaker, "Hngh...! Agh, finally!"

    After an entire hour of mining through nothing but solid rock, he finally poked through the cloud layer, signifying he was just a few meters away from the surface. Immediately, he changed directions to the side so he could dig out a rest spot. Previously, he couldn''t waste the energy required for this maneuver, but now he was certain that he could afford it. The first breath he took after completing this mammoth task was taken with his full lung capacity.

    "Ahhhh!" He breathed out loudly, "I did it! Ah, should I shout down so those Two know as well? It''s only polite."

    He peeked down the dreary abyss of the drop he had dug out, waiting quietly for himself to make a decision. Even after an entire minute of giving it some serious thought, Elegy concluded he should just get going.

    "But politeness might make me lose here." He stepped back, "I feel bad for those Two, but they ''are'' my enemies. Actually, keeping them out of the loop is actually tactically more advantageous for me. Eugh, still feels cheap though..."

    In the end, he concluded the best idea would be to dig out a larger chunk of the surrounding clouds and toss it down the pit. Cloud in Heaven 2.0 dissipated by themselves like snow after you dug them out, so this was his way of leaving the decision up to fate. If the cloud reached them, it would give them a clear sign that he has reached the surface, and if it didn''t, they''d be none the wiser.

    "Not like it matters, though." Elegy shrugged, setting his sights straight up to continue digging, "The second those horrid sounds of the pickaxe hitting the rocks stops echoing for them, they''ll reach the same conclusion."

    He swung a few more times before it happened. The beautiful Sunrays blessed him from the tiniest of crevices embedded between the clouds. In fact, given how much time he''s spent in the dark, this sight had actually caused sore Eyes instead of treating them.

    Elegy squinted, "Gah! Woo, that''s tough!" He then reached his hand out, "Hngh!"

    Punching through the ground, he had garnered the attention of many passers-by. Certainly, a random man poking through the ground with a golden pickaxe wasn''t something you''d expect to see on your regular walks, but the scene nonetheless had occurred. Some backed away, others curiously approached him, but the general consensus was that he was quite the anomaly.

    "Need help there, bud?" One angel put his hand out.

    "Hey, thanks." Elegy accepted it gracefully, "Careful, don''t fall. It''s super deep."

    The nonchalant comment only attracted more suspicious gazes, but it was no longer his concern.

    "It''s not every day we see a dude come out of a hole in the ground." Another onlooker joked.

    "Huh? But what about...?" Elegy glanced back at where the previous hole he originally fell down was, "Ah, patched up already..."

    "What''s that?"

    "Nothing, be careful around this area." Elegy warned, dusting himself off before leaving the premises, "If you do fall, though, be sure to tell the Two idiots down below that they got nothing on Elegy."

    "Eh-!? Ele...?" The poor guy was left confused.

    Tired, but motivated, Elegy ran in a random direction until his legs could run no longer. In truth, they were so tired that he had fallen to his knees the moment he lost the passers-by behind him. Only then did he calm down to remember his own plan.

    "Oh right, I gotta tell the others!" He chuckled to himself as he pulled out the walkie-talkie, "Sab, Nerys, come in."

    Static.

    "Sab? You there?" He shook the talkie for some reason, "You can talk like usual now, I destroyed their devices."

    Radio silence. No, something was miss...

    "Urk..." Elegy desperately started naming names, "Migu? Sheep, Energy, anyone?"

    "...Kzzt!" The walkie-talkie startled him.

    "O-Oi! Come in, anyone!" Elegy panickedly yelled out, "Even if it''s somehow you Two, don''t scare me like that!"

    "Did you forget about me already?" Hats laughed from the other side.

    "W-Wuh...? Hats, you''re okay!" Elegy felt tears of joy well up from within him, "I thought you and the others were demotivated by the cherubim!"

    "Demotivated?"

    "Ugh, it means the opposite of motivated¡ªbut never you mind that!" He shook his head, "Hats, tell me where you are right now."

    "Try and guess." He giggled.

    "Heh, that''s funny, kid. But now''s not the time." Elegy chuckled back anxiously, "If you don''t know, that''s fine too. I''ll come find you no matter what, so at least try and describe the area a bit."

    "Describe it..." Hats'' young voice cut out a bit, indicating he was looking around as he spoke, "There''s nothing around me. As usual, the clouds are White and the sky is Pink."

    "Nothing around y-" Elegy bit his tongue, "Hey, what was that last part just now?"

    The sky was Pink. Not Blue, but Pink. Elegy knew there was only one place with such a description, and it reeked of a certain blurry and wing-encumbered head.

    "Alright, I get it now." Elegy nodded, "Stay where you are, kid¡ªI know where to find you."

    "Really? Gee, that''d be great." He smiled back, "You''re really cool... L."

    "..."

    His heart sank once he heard that nickname be used for him by the kid he wanted to protect so badly. A cherubim''s power is to change the fate of any soul it encounters. Another way to put it is that it has the ability to change the trajectory of another person''s life or afterlife. Sort of like injecting custom commands for a program to run by itself before it eventually continues on without them. In other words, the angel talking to Elegy over the walkie-talkie wasn''t Hats...

    "Cherubim!" Elegy shouted out, his face Red and his veins popping, "You just made the biggest mistake of your lousy afterlife, you goddamned soulless wench...!!!"

 Vol.6 Afterword

    "Alright, and then Elegy''s gonna...  Hm? Eh!? We''re already on the last chapter of the Volume!?" was my honest reaction just last night lol. So much happened these past few days in my own life, that I had trouble keeping up with these guys'' afterlives. That being said, the current plotline allowed for a good stopping point to end the Volume, so I have no issues with this arrangement.

    This Volume is what I like to call the penultimate setup for the finale. Volume 24 of my previous work is very much along the same vein, in that they both are exclusively there to cash out on all the lore I had been building up since their stories'' respective starts. Three Volumes left, and they''re all gonna be focusing on the conflict that''s about to go down. I hope you''re as excited as I am, because Heaven''s Calling has really been going strong for a long time. Which leads me to my next topic...

    I''m off to college! That''s right, tonight is actually my last night in my hometown, and I''ll be off to college-ville with my buddies early tomorrow morning. It''s a bit daunting, but I''m overall excited for what''s to come. Don''t worry though, this changes nothing for you guys¡ªI''m still gonna be writing and uploading my stories daily.

    But enough of the future, how about we discuss some of the things that happened in the current Volume? First of all, I apologize for the rocky pacing at times. Even I felt the quality of those chapters drop significantly, mostly due to my lack of motivation that springs up occasionally. That being said, the law of Cyclicism suggests that all low points are followed closely by equally as tall high points. In other words, I try my best to not let these episodes last and pivot the story and its quality in a better direction. In my opinion, I did pretty well for the last couple of chapters, but in the end¡ªyou guys will be the judges of that.

    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    I placed a large focus on Elegy due to his Wildcard status mentioned previously. The Gods really do hate him to the core, huh? I really hope they patch things up between them one day...

    We''ve been introduced to a rather fearsome Staple of Heaven in this Volume as well¡ªthe cherubim. It''s a sleazy one, capable of mimicking the appearance of your most loved one to try and get you to do as it says. In a way, it''s more dangerous for these guys than even the Gods themselves. Ah, but notice how it adopted Vastoria''s likeness for Migu, how sweet!

    Ehe, jokes aside, the last part of the Volume had thrown quite a wrench in Elegy''s plan. I do hope you''ll stick around to see how he''ll end up resolving it. As he stated, he doesn''t mind going down with the ship if it means allowing his friends to live freely and happily... Though, let''s all hope it doesn''t have to come to that.

    That''s about all I have to say for now. I''m off to bed early because I''ve got an early morning of traveling to look forward to, so that''s it from me for now. See you all tomorrow with Volume 7, which will come bundled with a BRAND NEW Cover art! Yippie!

 Vol.7 Ch.145 - Conviction

    "Be sure to come quickly." The cherubim teased him over the walkie-talkie through Hats'' voice, "I''ll be waiting."

    "You wretched... Ugh!" Elegy swung his arm, just barely holding it together to not smash the device off the ground, "Damn, this wasn''t supposed to happen...!"

    The plan had changed significantly. Of course, Elegy had done his party an incredible favor in dealing with the Gods for the time being, but the cherubim threw a nasty wrench he just couldn''t ignore. It sent Energy, Migu and Sheep away, demotivating them from continuing to fight on, but without him ever realizing it, the cherubim had also prepared a countermeasure for him nonetheless. Hats, the innocent boy hidden inside the body of an adult, had been told to give Elegy a scare, to warn him of what the cherubim was about to do... And Elegy was furious.

    "Taking Hats hostage, huh?" He stormed back towards Sab and Nerys, "You''re so dead!"

    But then, he had a thought. His feet stopped stomping, and he turned around in a completely different direction.

    "No, I don''t need those two right now." He realized, "Calm down, calm down... Phew, I need to rethink some things, but the plan stays the same for the most part."

    Saving Hats could be done without Elegy even having to lift a finger here. He''s only got around 35 hours left until the Gods escape the hole and catch up to them, so he''s not necessarily big on time. This is why friends are important.

    "If I find those three and re-recruit them..." He settled, "Alright, I got it! First off, I''m gonna need to find Migu and Energy. They''ll go off to look for Sheep and try and convince him, meanwhile Sab and Nerys can deal with the cherubim and potentially return Hats to us."

    By dividing the work evenly among his teammates, he''ll be able to continue executing the plan on his end without too much of a time loss. At the same time, it has a bit of a risk, in that there are many potentially run-ending variables at play, but as stated before¡ªthe cherubim made things so bad that there''s no other way.

    "I''ve got a rough idea of where Migu might be. Of course, it goes without saying that Energy is with her." He reasoned, "But there might be a chance I don''t find them there after all. Then there''s the chance I don''t manage to motivate them to join me again..."

    The streets cheered and booed around him anonymously. He pushed through the random angels to make it to his first point of interest. If he got this right, then Migu and Energy are sure to be where he''s headed. Then again, even if they''re not there, he had already prepared himself to go to the next spot that came to mind. Elegy was not going to let this plan fail because of the cherubim.

    "Even if I convince Migu and Energy, they''ll still need to successfully convince Sheep to rejoin us as well for the plan to work." He turned to look at us, "You get it, right? If even one cog doesn''t turn the right way, we''re totally screwed. If that happens, there''s nothing else to do and we''ll have lost. But hey, being hopeful is way more interesting than being realistic, am I right?"

    After pushing through the harsh rush of Heaven''s modular and nigh endless avenues, he eventually made it to a familiar sight¡ªhis Heavenly Abode. But the empty house was not where his interests lay, for he turned his head around to take a gander at the content duo playing together out in the yard neighboring his own.

    "Descendant, remove the sunglasses." A brain on the cloudy ground ordered.

    "Ehe, no way! I just got them to stay on by themselves!" The girl taking care of him giggled to herself, "You look way cooler now!"

    "Got them to stay on, she says! You just put some regular adhesive on them and called it a day!" He growled, "Damned brat, remove them this instant!"

    "I said I''m not gonna~" She sang a tune just before she spotted Elegy staring at them dumbfoundedly, "Oh, you''re back."

    Elegy felt a strong urge to cry right then and there. He wanted to so badly hug them, apologize for forsaking them, and then beg them on his hands and knees to come back to him, but he maintained his cool for the sake of the plan. Carefully, he approached the situation with great timidity.

    "I-I''m." He nodded.

    To which she tacked on, "Is Vastoria better?"

    The question threw him for a loop, all of his previous unstable emotions falling flat. For starters, Elegy had fully expected them to not even remember who he was or to be hypnotised or something to that degree, but apart from the obvious, they seemed untouched.

    "Vas-? No, the Hell?" He recoiled in confusion.

    "Then what''s the hold-up?" Energy gruntled at him, "You promised you''d get on that, didn''t you?"

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    "So did you!" Elegy wanted to shout, but he bit his tongue before he could commit to it. Now he realizes what it means for the cherubim to demotivate someone.

    "If only it was something simple like hypnotism or memory manipulation..." Elegy mumbled under his breath.

    "Hey, hey! Take a look at gramps'' new style!" Migu shoved her ancestor''s brain in Elegy''s face, "You agree that he looks way cooler with the sunglasses on, don''t you?"

    "Remove me from his face, woman!" Energy fussed as Elegy tried his best to back away.

    "Urk, this is definitely gonna count towards the time loss you mentioned earlier, boss..." Elegy glanced in my direction, "Seriously, next time write a story without any unnecessary drama! Anyone can tell you''re just padding for time!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Moments later, a stray tomato hit his face from the sky. Where''d it come from? And who threw it?

    "Gah, I get it! I won''t badmouth you anymore!" He learnt his lesson after that, "Ugh, got my clothes dirty over a stupid gag..."

    "You done talking to yourself now?" Migu stared at him uninterestedly, "By the way, if you still haven''t saved Vastoria¡ªthen what''s the holdup?"

    "Wow, rude. I''ll have you know I''m doing my best out there." Elegy retorted, "And I came here because I need your help."

    "Ah, sorry, but we quit." She plainly stated.

    "Sorry to say, but even regular jobs require a 2 week notice before you get to say that." He shook his head, "I really, genuinely need your help. Vastoria is still asleep, and if everything goes well, we''ll be able to-"

    "Elegy, stop." Energy interrupted him, "Don''t drag her into this."

    The incessant refusal made Elegy''s blood pressure rise to a substantial degree. He was under a time limit, and he so badly wanted to force them back into the game, but he knew that sort of action would only give them more reason to not join him again. So long as they spoke diplomatically, there was always a chance to fix things.

    "I know it''s selfish, Elegy, but we just don''t feel like we''ll be of any help at all." Migu sheepishly apologized, "You''re more than capable of doing everything yourself, but even if you''re not..."

    "Even if I''m not, it doesn''t matter?!" Elegy shouted expectantly.

    "Hrm..." She frowned, "Even if you''re not, there''s little we can make up for it."

    Finally, the truth clicked in his mind after she said this. Elegy saw from his perspective two highly capable and valuable teammates, but that''s not the same visage they themselves saw in the mirror. It was so obvious for him to see a master survivalist and crafty strategist with an incredibly useful radar ability in Energy, and a fearless, highly motivated instigator who would stop at nothing to get her lover back in Migu, so Elegy just couldn''t understand the underlying insecurity lying dormant within them.

    "The cherubim tricked you, that''s all." Elegy tried to elaborate, "You don''t actually mean that."

    "She... It just showed me what I always knew deep inside." Migu shook her head, "Besides, even if we do succeed, what''s the point? The Gods themselves said that the only way to bring Vastoria back is to just replace her with a copy."

    Elegy loudly interrupted, "Which will not happen."

    "..."

    He was tired of hearing excuses, yet the one thing that irked him more was the topics involving the cherubim. In his Eyes, it was a monster worse than any other, whose sole purpose is to live among humans as a phony. The Gods intend to use its head-morphing ability to replace the bad one on Vastoria''s shoulders. Effectively, this would allow everyone to view her as the true Vastoria, but it would nonetheless be nothing more than a life of delusion. Elegy aimed to not let this be the case.

    "You''re grasping at straws, Elegy." The brain wearing sunglasses told him, "Of course we''d all like the real Vastoria to be brought back, but a perfect copy is the next best thing. You can''t just make up a new method."

    "I will." He assured him, "What ever happened to me being a Wildcard, huh? If you wanna listen to those two idiot Gods so badly, then weren''t they the ones who said themselves that I can change fate as much as I want?"

    "That doesn''t mean you''re omnipotent." Migu shot back, "You can change fate within reason, that''s what they meant!"

    "How can you be so sure!?"

    "Because Vastoria would already be standing here safe and sound if you were!" She blurted out, panic beginning to set in as her face went Red.

    Migu shivered as she waited to hear his response. Energy tried his best to calm her down, as well as get in between her and Elegy, but without a body to protect her, all he could really do was try and maintain the peace. Of course, it''s not like Elegy had jumped to attack her or anything. Instead, his vision only went blurry as the tinnitus kicked in. Truly, Elegy was so shocked he dissociated completely.

    "I''m sorry!" She tried to take it back.

    "Is... Is that how you see it?" Elegy barely mustered up the strength to say the words, "If I was capable, I''d have done it all already?"

    "Elegy, she said something stupid, but you need to remain calm-!" Energy advised.

    "No, I''m calm. Just..." He trotted away awkwardly, too unsure to even finish his sentence, "I''m just... just..."

    Of course, her reasoning was extremely shallow and selfish, but Elegy couldn''t help but agree with her nonetheless. He waltzed up to their peace, he intruded just to boast about how he can do anything, yet Elegy has nothing to show for it. To make matters worse, he has the gall to say something like "I just need your help, and then!", despite not even knowing fully how he plans to reach this alternative remedy for Vastoria''s coma.

    "Elegy...!" Migu wanted to follow after him.

    "No, this is for the best." Energy stopped her, "You''ve said enough."

    "But-!"

    "He''s strong, and capable. Way stronger and more capable than we are." He continued, "He''ll recover from this, and then he''ll return to saving Vastoria like he originally set out to do. Just give him some time."

    Migu could hardly stomach the thought of leaving Elegy to suffer alone after hurting him like this. In her mind, she felt she could only do wrong and mess things up further, so her best solution was to just not participate at all¡ªbut then this happened anyways. Migu sighed before turning around and walking shamefully to her house.

    "I''m sorry."

 Vol.7 Ch.146 - Diminishing Returns

    "Migu?" Energy looked up at me after I plopped the brain down on the porch''s chair.

    "I''m sorry." I turned around, "But I should at least talk to him first. He came all this way after all, it''d be rude to send him away without an explanation."

    "You... Heh." He accepted this rather easily, "You surprise me at the worst of times, you know that?"

    I chuckled back, "I get the feeling I just can''t do anything right."

    With this solemn yet promising nod, I ran to catch up to my depressed friend. Elegy was sulking, and though he wasn''t planning to throw in the towel just yet, surely, he definitely felt the need to recuperate by himself for a while. This blow he was dealt was hard to recover from.

    "Elegy!" I yelled out to him.

    "...You''re back." He turned around carefully.

    To which I sighed, "I came to apologize again."

    "Is... that so?" He took a deep breath, "You''ve got nothing to apologize for."

    "But I still want to." I shook my head, "I came to tell you clearly why it is we can''t join you again."

    He felt this was unnecessary. Rude, even. It was one thing to shoo him away after he ran up to us, begging for our help, but I should have at least let him think up another plan in peace. This proper apology of mine was selfishly wasting precious time for him, but he still let me speak¡ªI think he figured it''d get me off his back quicker, so that''s why.

    "I miss Vastoria." I calmly restarted the conversation from zero.

    "Then why not come and help?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    "Because I''m worthless. No, worthless can''t even begin to describe it. Most of the time, I was the one causing us all the extra trouble. In the end, it''s just like Selzion said..."

    The self-pity was so disgusting it made him want to puke. Elegy always believed that everyone was capable of doing incredible things, so long as they were willing to make the necessary change themselves. I know that, but this is nothing more than making blatant excuses just to willingly wallow in my self pity. In the end, I''m just the worst...

    "...Hm." He wanted to say something, but kept it to himself, however, opting to nod along instead, "Well, you did cause us some trouble back in the day."

    "You were supposed to deny it." I frowned.

    "I''m not gonna sugarcoat it." He groaned, "But well, you also did a lot of good for us as well."

    "There it is!"

    "Heh, you know this trope too well." He joked, "You did a lot of good for us, Migu. I''ll be honest, most of the time I''d fall back on your words to keep trying to find a way to save Vastoria."

    "That''s so... Eh?" I paused, "That''s it?"

    "What else were you expecting?"

    "I dunno, I thought you would name off some of the things I did to try and remind me of how good I am." I shrugged, "You''re saying my existence is the only good thing I had going for me?"

    "Don''t blame me for that." He stared back in a deadpanned manner.

    "Urk..."

    Truth was, I really didn''t do much of my own accord. You could argue there were some smaller things that snowballed into this large and complex situation we were in now, but when it came time to actually name each one off, Elegy ended up coming up short. But fittingly enough, my words ended up giving him an idea.

    "But, why do you make it sound so bad?" He asked me, "You said your mere existence is important enough to us, didn''t you? That should be all the convincing you need, shouldn''t it?"

    "Ah." I realized, "No, but... Apart from that..."

    "Apart from existing? Look, most people exist their whole lives without bringing anything to the table." He chuckled, "In comparison, don''t you think you''ve got an incredible headstart on them? If just existing gave us so much, then just imagine what choosing to actively help us again will accomplish on top of that."

    What''s he doing? At this rate, my peaceful life with Energy will be... gone. This heavy feeling in my chest, it''s... anger? Frustration? No, it''s something worse. I''ve felt this before, I know it¡ªthis is guilt. It''s like my body is actively lashing out against my self-pity and negligence towards the team, so it''s sending signals directly to this numb heart of mine.

    "Elegy, no..." I looked away, "You''re not supposed to be convincing me, you know?"

    "Sorry, but you did that yourself." He shook his head, "Migu, no matter what anyone says, you''re my strength."

    "Your..." I looked him in the Eyes, "I am?"

    "Yeah, and I''m sure the others feel the same way as well." He nodded, "You''re our beacon of light, at least for now. As far as I''m concerned, you can go back to Energy''s side."

    "Huh? What''s this about?" I cocked my head back, "You''re giving up on me?"

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    "I see you still don''t get it." He shook his head, "You''re gonna be our strength regardless of whether or not you''re joining us for the ride. Nothing will change if you don''t go with us."

    Heh, not sounding very convincing anymore, dude. Actually, it kinda sounds like he''s actively trying to get me to not join him. Yeah, nothing will change if I don''t help, huh? That''s basically confirming that I was useless this whole time...

    "Elegy." I put my hand out, "Good luck."

    He looked a bit puzzled by my gesture. Awkwardly, he put his hand out to take what I was giving him, but he only found out what it was after I handed it to him. A singular pair of sunglasses.

    "Pheh, you think these are gonna make a difference?" He snorted.

    "Small changes make a big difference." I smiled back.

    "Oh? Okay then." He nodded as well before turning around, "Good luck to you as well."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    And with that, we had parted ways, but not in the way you might think. Elegy did go off to do his own thing, but I did make a promise of my own to him. I''ll help from the sidelines, I''ll be their strength!

    "Gramps!" I ran to spook him, "Let''s go."

    "So he did it, huh?" Energy tiredly replied, "You''re really doing this?"

    "Hm? What of it?" I questioned his words, "You''re coming with, right?"

    He sat there, unperturbed, "I... have no choice, do I?"

    "Don''t say that, of course you do!" I jolted, "I''m not gonna force you or anything."

    Why does he sound so sad?

    "Of course you''re not, you''re a good girl." He smirked, "But you need me, don''t you? That''s just how it is."

    "Energy...?"

    "Migu, I''ve lived through a cursed time, and I''ve learned one singular lesson from the experience that followed me even to the afterlife." He sighed, "A person is measured by how useful he or she is."

    "That... can''t be true." I grimaced, "At least not anymore."

    "You think it''s not one of those rules that just exist throughout time?" He queried, "Like 2 plus 2 being 4, it''s just the unwavering truth."

    No, but that''s such a dehumanizing way of looking at it! If a person is only worth as much as they''re useful, then that''s the same as saying you can''t love someone without them having some form of benefit for you! It''s an ugly way of thinking, that''s all!

    "You seem perplexed." He noticed, "Then let me enlighten you. Tell me, who do you want us to look for?"

    "Sheep, of course." I shrugged, answering the obvious, "We need his wings."

    "If he didn''t have wings, he''d just be an extra person on the team." Energy continued, "Not bad, but certainly not as useful. You''d do better looking for Hats."

    "Hats? Why him?"

    "His strength." Energy then stopped himself, "Oh right, he no longer has his golden arm. But did you notice? You were left completely baffled about me telling you to pick him over Sheep because you already ''knew'' he had outlived his worth."

    What''s he saying? He''s spinning the story to make me sound heartless.

    "Oi... I''ll look for him too, you know?" I frowned, "It''d just be more efficient to go for Sheep first."

    "Efficiency, is it? You''re just constantly confirming my ideology, and yet you''re asking for more proof." He clicked his tongue disappointedly, "Migu, I am a brain that requires your body to move around and make the best use of my own powers."

    "Yeah, exactly!" I interjected, "So-!"

    "Don''t you get what''s going on? We''re pawns." He elaborated, "Pieces of a puzzle we can''t even begin to solve in our heads. We can''t grasp the full picture that we ourselves are a part of, because Elegy and the Gods are the ones moving us into place."

    "So your tactic is to rebel?"

    "I have no tactic¡ªI can''t move, therefore I have no say in the matter." He took a deep breath resignedly, "You''re my body. My arms, my legs. You call the shots¡ªif you want us to run back in, then I can''t do anything to fight back against that."

    I''m your body. Your arms and your legs. In other words, I''m Energy''s strength. Geez, geezers are so difficult to talk to! At the end of the day, we''re both batting for the same team, but we''re batting against each other either way! I get what he''s saying now.

    "Hey gramps." I picked him up from his chair.

    "Careful now." He looked up at me, "What is it?"

    "I gave away those sunglasses you hate so much."

    "Eh!?" He jolted, "When''d you...!? To whom!?"

    "I gave them to Elegy, since he seemed to appreciate them more than you did."

    "Wha...!? But I...! Urk, t-that''s fair..." He sulked.

    "You''re not mad?"

    "No, why would I be?" He heaved a deep sigh, "I should have... treasured them more when I had the time."

    "Yeah, but they''re gone now." I smirked, "And no matter how hard you try and spend just a bit more time with them, they''ll never come back to you before."

    Dang, I didn''t think he was actually so attached to them. I could''ve sworn he would be happy to see them gone... But this might actually be even better.

    "Indeed. They''re gone." He agreed halfheartedly.

    "Hey gramps." I smirked, "I''m off to go help Elegy."

    "Oh yeah?" He seemed to get what I was aiming at.

    I asked the question again, "Yep, you''re not mad?"

    "No, why would I be?" He chuckled, "I''m coming with. No descendants of mine will go untreasured."

    "But you said I don''t have any worth?" I raised a curious Eyebrow.

    "Hey now, watch your tongue." He grunted, "Don''t go making me out to be the bad guy, I said no such thing."

    "Then how come you said you''ll treasure Elegy and me?"

    "I''m taking the average of both of you." He snickered, "The average of infinity and one is infinity, so the math checks out."

    "So my worth is one..." I sobbed quietly.

    Despite this burn, however, he insisted it was an okay rating overall.

    "Look at it this way." He smiled, "I rate my mother 1 point for giving birth to me."

    "That''s stingy." I stuck my tongue out.

    "I''d rate anyone who died of old age in my era a hundred points." He continued.

    "That''s really nothing compared to Elegy, though."

    "I don''t count Elegy." He elaborated calmly, "Hey, did you know? Infinity isn''t a number in math. There''s nothing "objective" about it. It exists beyond that."

    So Elegy''s rating being infinite isn''t a good thing? Man, old people rambling makes no sense...

    "Let me dumb it down for you a bit more." He chuckled, "There''re millions of people alive in the Living World, and they all meant zilch to me. Most, I''ve never even met."

    "Wow, so even some of the people you''ve met counted as zeroes?" I furrowed my brows.

    "You get it now?" He finished up his presentation, "I''d need to owe someone my life to get them up to a 1. Past that, we run into diminishing returns."

    So that''s the conclusion he came to. Heh, I think I can get behind it. Really, as long as it gets him to rejoin the team, I wouldn''t mind whatever he said.

    "So basically, I''m more efficient than Elegy?" I smiled smugly.

    "Don''t go spouting nonsense now. He''ll always be better than you at anything you try to do."

    Geez, shouldn''t have even asked...

 Vol.7 Ch.147 - Life in a Cradle

    I''ve decided to help Elegy, and to do that, I''ve been tasked with converting all of our friends to our side once more. Though, even I''m not all that motivated to directly go up against the Gods... B-But nonetheless, I can do plenty for him from the sidelines, like making Energy join me!

    "Then, we''re looking for Hats first and foremost, eh?" I walked through the busy streets, this time openly carrying Energy in my arms.

    "What? No, why would we?" He recoiled in confusion.

    "Wait, pause." I stopped moving.

    He looked up at me curiously, "Hm? What''s wrong?"

    "Wha-!? The Hell do you mean we shouldn''t go for Hats first?" I yelled, "It was your idea in the first place!"

    "No? I never said that."

    I scowled, "Then what did you say?"

    "That you only see our friends as tools based on how useful they are." He reasoned, "That being said, it''s objectively the correct option to go for Sheep first, since he has his archangel wings."

    So what was all that stuff about life not always having the need to be efficient and to treasure your friends or whatever...? Old people, stop being hypocrites, please! Really, sometimes I feel he just wants to pretend he''s superior and wise, but he''s just an old fool.

    "Ack, hey!?" He protested.

    "What? I''m just giving your brain a nice massage." I dug my knuckle into him, "What''s so wrong about that?"

    "That''s a nuggie! Nuggie!" He begged, "Please stop, it feels super weird and it''s messing with my senses!"

    "Don''t tell me it''s turning you on?"

    "Not that kind of weird feeling!" He squirmed in my hands uncomfortably, "I''m hypersensitive, remember? Well, not my brain, but the senses around it."

    I groaned, "That makes no sense."

    "Doesn''t matter. You do that again and I''ll..."

    He paused for an uncomfortably long time after he tried to threaten me. I stood in place, patiently waiting for him to finish his sentence, but the words just wouldn''t come out. To make matters even funnier, whenever I tried to interject, he would immediately shush me, insisting that the idea would come to him soon enough.

    "What''s wrong? Can''t think of anything?" I teased.

    "I''ll think of something to make you regret it!" He fussed, "Now move it along! We ought to find Sheep pretty quickly."

    "Eh? What makes you say that?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "Migu, he has a job." He looked up at me disappointedly.

    "..."

    And...?

    "...Eh? You''re that naive?" He was surprised, "Migu, let me restate this¡ªSheep is a slave to his work."

    "No, I heard you loud and clear." I shrugged.

    He stuttered, stammered, mumbled then shot back, "Wh-? Y-!??! He''s gonna be in his shop, you big dumb idiot!"

    Oh. R-Right, in hindsight, that makes a lot of sense. And here I was prepared to stroll around the district endlessly until I saw a glint flying about in the sky. But no matter how much of a workaholic he is, I highly doubt Sheep''s actually gonna return to working a dead-end job without any pay just for the fun of it.

    "Ah, come on!" I shouted the moment I saw the plethora-winged bastard folding clothes neatly in his little shop, "Prove me right once in a while, would ya''!?"

    "Oh, Migu." He jolted after my sudden shout, but continued to fold them clothes anyways, "Did you come here for some new clothes? I just got a fresh batch ready."

    He seems at peace. This must be extremely therapeutic for him, in spite of his body not being exactly the best fit for his job. Now look, I know there was a semi-high chance that we''d find him working here just like Energy predicted, but to think I''d get to see such pleased Eyes on him... He looks way happier than when he was getting dragged around by us.

    "Sheep..." I gave him a pitiful look.

    "You poor fool..." Energy disliked the sight just as much, "What are you even doing here?"

    "Hm? My... job?" He laughed it off, "What does it look like?"

    "It looks wrong." I shook my head.

    "Hrm..." His Eyes lost their glint, "Migu, come here for a sec."

    Oh, I''m gonna get smacked, aren''t I? Well, it''s to be expected, since I did offend him pretty badly. Really, I didn''t mean for it to sound so bad, but it just kinda came out like that. I''m not gonna take it back, though. An archangel fumbling around in a clothes shop with a bunch of shirts and dresses definitely doesn''t look right. Ugh, here it comes...

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    "Hm?" I craned open one Eye to see him measuring a most wonderful White dress on my torso, "What''re you...?"

    "I''ve been thinking about how to make it up to you for just up and leaving the group like I did." His Eyes inspected the length accordingly, "And then the idea struck me¡ªwhy not a wedding?"

    "Come again?" Energy returned a befuddled stare.

    "Heaven''s a scary place. Not much good news going around." He placed the beautiful dress on the counter between us, "But I recalled you and Vastoria. Surely being the first couple to tie the knot in Heaven would be an incredible achievement, don''t you think?"

    "Oh." My face progressively grew bright Red, "Fueh!? You want me to marry Vastoria!?"

    "Well not now, obviously." He chuckled, "Just be happy with her, that''s all I can ask for. Ah, but when you''re ready, of course, you''ll have yourselves two dresses at the ready from your old pal Sheep." Sheep paused for an answer, "So, what do you say?"

    Wow... This is, or rather, I don''t know... Sheep, he really wants to gift me such a beautiful dress? Is this his way of saying he knows Elegy will succeed and bring the real Vastoria back? Oh gosh, now I''m all flustered. Gramps, help me out here!

    "Hm? Don''t look at me, I don''t understand the point of love." Energy grumped back, "In my time, people only married ''cause they felt most reproductively compatible with a specific partner. Otherwise you''d mix and match."

    "O-Oh." I yelped.

    "Way to ruin the mood..." Sheep groaned.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "So, you up for taking it?" He tried to course correct after Energy''s horrible comment.

    "O-Of course." I cleared my throat, "Thank you so much, but..."

    "I see." He nodded knowingly, "It''s okay, if you don''t like the Colors, we''ve got this in Red, Blue..."

    "That wasn''t what I was gonna say." I sighed, "Sheep, we need your help."

    "Oh, so it was that after all..." He went in the back to grab something, "I kind of guessed the moment I saw you two approach the shop, but I didn''t wanna believe it."

    "Why not?" Energy inquired, "You know damn well that Vastoria stands no chance of getting properly brought back without your hyperspeed."

    "Which is exactly why I can''t help you." He shook his wings, "You were there as well, so I''m sure you saw it. The cherubim."

    Huh? So he knows he''s been affected by the cherubim as well? He''s smarter than I gave him credit for, I kind of feel bad for doubting him now.

    "It twisted our fates so that we physically feel repulsed by the idea to rejoin the fight." I explained, "It''s not our fault we''re doubtful right now, but Elegy managed to convince me to rethink it!"

    "You don''t sound too confident about that, though." Energy said with a deadpanned gaze.

    "Urk, at least I''m trying my best..." I gulped.

    "I''m sorry, but I just can''t help you." Sheep was adamant, "Everyone has a job to do in this world. For Elegy, it''s saving Vastoria directly, for me it''s this."

    "But he won''t be able to do his job if you don''t abandon yours!" I shot back.

    His Eyes contained the very epitome of guilt within them, but he nonetheless refused to budge on this. He returned to the counter with a second dress, this time made of a material that resembled pure gold. It was, without a doubt, made for Vastoria.

    "I don''t remember what my life was like back while I was alive." He recalled thoughtfully, "But I remember vividly the strong and heavy emotions I felt on my first ever day of working."

    "Where is this going?" Energy complained about him wasting our time needlessly.

    "I remember wanting to quit." He said flat out, "And not just my job, but everything else as well. I don''t remember what that job was, nor what I was doing to mess it up so badly, but I just recall telling myself over and over how much of a screw-up I am."

    Ah, he''s... kind of like me.

    "That feeling when you look at yourself in the mirror, and the sad, pathetic excuse of a kid stares back... Looking back, that poor kid''s Eyes were terrified." He chuckled, "He was scared of the future, afraid that he''d never do things right and fail. The thing about failure is that it''s very easy to chain another failure after that, then another, and then another... Before long, you get the feeling there''s no more fixing things. Your life is over."

    "Hrm..." Energy kept the harsh comments to himself for now.

    "Still, I have no recollection of ever experiencing that moment I had so dearly hoped for." Sheep revealed, "The moment where everything just clicked. Or the moment someone perfectly swooped in to teach me. I just... kept grinding through the days, until I had no more strength to grind with."

    "And then?" I gulped.

    "And then... Who knows?" His Eyes stared emptily into the distance, "Maybe I died of old age, maybe I croaked of overwork. Or maybe we just get too caught up in our daily routines to ever notice a change takes place right from under our noses."

    Energy got it wrong. This guy isn''t a workaholic... He''s traumatized. Sheep, just what in the world happened throughout your life to make you feel trapped by your workplace this much?

    "You''re nothing more... than a whiny, useless waste of space!" Energy suddenly shouted out.

    "Huh?"

    "You never figured it out, huh? Never met anyone who had it figured out, is that it!?" He continued, "Well guess what, moron! We were all in this world for the first time in our lives!"

    "Energy, calm down, he''s just venting..." I tried to quiet him down.

    "The fuck is that!?" He lividly lashed out, "Venting!? You vent a fireplace, not a human! This idiot is just complaining about his so-called tough life, but he doesn''t realize how good he''s had it!"

    "Oh yeah?!" Sheep got offended back, "And what makes you say tha-!"

    "I''ve eaten human meat to survive!" Energy screeched, "I''ve had to run and hide from countless hordes of cannibalistic humans turned monsters my entire godless, damned life! Every single night, I''d have to climb a tree and cover myself up in a blanket to not get sniffed out by the Rotted! I''d have to rummage through dead men''s pockets for anything to get me through the next day! All this without anyone telling me how it''s done!"

    "..."

    "You lived in a peaceful era, where you could work for another person without them pulling out a shiv and stabbing you in the back right before your payday!" He kept going off on him, "When life gives you lemons, you make it work!"

    "E-Energy..." I uttered, "You took it too far. Your situation is different to Sheep''s."

    "No, Migu. We are the exact same." Elegy replied, "This rat bastard doesn''t understand that not everyone can get cradled by the world. You wanna complain about how your job traumatized you through to the afterlife? How ''bout you suck it up like the rest of us and do what you want for a change."

    Sheep was speechless. No, rather, he looked like he had nothing to say. His Eyes were closed, not allowing us to get a peek in at his true feelings. I would assume he was angry, but he didn''t even give us the satisfaction of finding out. He had now fully closed himself off to us.

 Vol.7 Ch.148 - Shepherd

    "Migu, take those two dresses. They''re my gift to you and Vastoria." He said after a long enough pause.

    "Sheep!" I tried to protest, but in the blink of an Eye...

    "Hm?" Energy glanced around, "Where are we?"

    "Not far from the shop, but away." Sheep sighed, "I took you two back to Migu''s house. Consider this my answer to your proposal."

    "But we...! We need you!" I started to tear up, "Not just to save Vastoria, but as a friend! The group will never be whole without you with us, Sheep!"

    He chuckled at my troubled display, hiding away the sorrow with a fake smile.

    "...Heh. I never said we can''t be friends after this, did I? Just... gimme some time alone."

    "And once we do, you''ll come back to us?" Energy raised the question.

    Immediately though, Sheep glared down at him before replying, "No. My life isn''t supposed to be filled with peril and danger. As far as I''m concerned, stop by to hang whenever you want, but you should know that it was you who dragged me out of my comfort zone, not that I willingly ever joined in the first place."

    He doesn''t mean that. There''s just no way he does! Pft, never willingly joined, yeah right! I''ve known Sheep for a very long time and he never... uhm, well, now that I think about it, he did complain a lot. He also used to constantly beg us to let him go back to the shop, if I recall correctly. Oh geez, I guess we did kind of force this role onto him.

    "Sorry." I lowered my head down in shame, "Because of us, your body is now like this..."

    "Hm? Oh no, I didn''t mean you messed up my life or anything, come on now." He quickly corrected me, "On the contrary, being an archangel is very nifty, actually. Work has never been easier with this hyperspeed, haha!"

    "Sheep, we''ll be looking for Hats next." Energy explained, "If you''re not coming with, the least you could do is take me with you for a quick flyby around the district. With your powers, it shouldn''t take even a few seconds."

    "I said I''m not joining you." He groaned.

    "Fine, you don''t have to join, jackass! Just help us find Hats and as far as I''m concerned, fuck off back to your cave of clothes!"

    Sheep shot back, "What''d you say, you damned slimy bastard!?"

    I''ll just let those two argue in the back while I think of what to do next. Sheep isn''t the spiteful type, so I''m sure he''ll cave to Energy''s pressure eventually and make a quick flyover to check for Hats. That being said, the moment he finds him and takes us there, he''s definitely going back to his shop. It pains me to say it, but I don''t think he''ll be joining us on any more adventures, sadly. He''s made up his mind.

    "So you want me to what, help you out one last time and then I''m under no obligation to help out any further!?" Sheep made sure the deal was clear.

    To which Energy shot back, "Are you dumb!? You''re our friend, dumbass! You were never under any obligation to do what you didn''t wanna do to make us happy!"

    "Oh is that right?!"

    "You bet your cluster of wings its right."

    "Then y''know what? I''m gonna help you!" Sheep made a big deal out of it.

    "What? You just said you didn''t wanna!"

    "Well I changed my mind!" He crossed his wings defiantly, "But only until I drop you off near Hats! After that, I''m gone."

    "Well then, good riddance!" Energy yelled, "And thanks for all your help so far!"

    "Don''t mention it!"

    "Hmph!"

    "Hmph!"

    They... somehow came to an agreement? I get the feeling Sheep''s just messing with us and isn''t actually planning to quit. Seriously, just look at how much fun they''re having, and I''m no different. Talking like this with everyone from the group was what made exploring the mysteries of Heaven 2.0 worth it, in my opinion. It would''ve been so much more boring without them around.

    "Ahem." I cleared my throat, "If you''re done, why don''t we contact Elegy to report to him?"

    "Hm?" They both turned to me, "Oh, is he okay?"

    "I don''t see why he wouldn''t be." I shrugged, pulling the walkie talkie out of my pocket, "It was his idea to get everyone back together, so I imagine he''ll know what to do next."

    Clicking the walkie talkie''s side button, I was greeted with a loud static buzzing noise. With this, the microphone inside was activated successfully, and my message was being broadcast to anyone with a functioning talkie. I put the device close to my mouth, opened it to begin talking, and then...!

    "I''m still not done, leave me alone." Elegy groaned into the mic the moment he heard my call.

    "Oh, is that... so?" I stuttered, "Well hey, we just need a minute of your time to ask where-"

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "Busy right now, can''t talk." He just barely squeezed in a reply.

    The Hell is he doing? It sounds kind of like he''s... moaning? No, what am I saying? Uhh, grunting? Heavy breathing? Panting?

    "You guys tell me what you think he''s doing." I gave up, "My mind''s too dirty to get it right."

    "Well, let''s see." Sheep thought about it, "He''s out of breath, a bit frustrated, and he REALLY doesn''t want us interrupting him. That can really only mean one thing."

    "Oho, I know what that means." Energy chuckled to himself, "He just got back up into a corner and just got done climbing up to the safety of a high point, and now he''s contemplating how to get out of the bad situation."

    ...Y''know what? Sure, let''s go with that. No way that''s the case, but it''s more probable than whatever my mind came up with.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Let''s just ask him already." I clicked the button again, "Yo Elegy, need help?"

    "Gah, I told you to stop bugging me!" He shot back through the talkie.

    "What are you even doing?" Sheep inquired.

    "Hm? Sheep, is that you?" His friend''s voice seemed to have calmed him down a bit, "Gah, don''t worry about me. Just... please stop buzzing so much, I really need to focus."

    Hm, I take it he has a reason for not telling us explicitly what exactly he''s doing. Elegy''s smart like that, so he wouldn''t withhold information for no reason. As for his current condition, I''ll just have to assume he''s trying to climb up someplace. Either that, or he''s in a rush to get somewhere.

    "We managed to convince Sheep to help us for the time being, so we just wanted to tell you we''ll be going for Hats next." I added.

    Immediately, a loud crash could be heard on the other side, followed shortly by his panicked shouts.

    "Don''t!" He yelled, "Hats is, or rather, Sab and Nerys are on it!"

    "Oh yeah, they weren''t with us when we encountered the cherubim." Energy recalled, "Hey, are they on the line with us right now?"

    Elegy''s voice sounded worried, "They''re... I don''t know. I met up with them earlier to give them the order to go find Hats for me, but I haven''t heard from them since."

    "Eh? Even with the walkie talkies?" I tilted my head.

    "Probably broken or lost." Sheep figured.

    Elegy finished it off with a quiet, anxious mutter, "Let''s hope so... Oof, okay. One more time."

    Some ruffling and grunting could be heard from his side before a couple of cloth plaps, then his mic cut off. Presumably, he got up off the ground, did a mental reset, then dusted himself off and tried... whatever it was that he was attempting once more. Of course, I''m not gonna pass up the opportunity to mess with him.

    "Still not gonna tell us what you''re doing?" I clicked the button a few times.

    "Gah!" A scream, followed by a loud, painful sounding thud could be heard, "What did I just tell you about not messing up my rhythm!?"

    "Seriously, the hell is he doing?" Sheep sighed.

    "Look, we did everything you told us, but you don''t seriously expect us to just sit back and relax after this." I told him flat out, "We need orders. What should we do next?"

    "...Sigh, fine." He sounded peeved, "You can... Actually, no, that''d ruin everything. Maybe if you went to where I''m at... Nah, but that''d be far too risky. Hmm..."

    "If you''re done, I''m gonna head back." Sheep added.

    "No!" Everyone unanimously yelled, Elegy included.

    "Okay, okay, I got it! Something you can do that''s definitely gonna prove useful for the mission." Elegy thought of something, "Where are you right now?"

    "My house." I replied.

    "Oh, that far? Then again, you got Sheep now." He reasoned, "Okay, let''s see, that''s... vasta of your house''s front."

    Whoa, our made-up directions are making a comeback? I thought that was a one time gag, honestly.

    "Oh, so forward." I nodded.

    "No, that''s skip. Vasta is to your house''s left if it''s easier for you to look at it that way." He adjusted for my sake.

    "It''s easier for anyone but you..." Energy groaned tiredly, "And come on, you just made all that up. There''s no way you know exactly which way her house is facing."

    "Hm? Why wouldn''t I?" He asked with genuine sincerity, "Just pay attention to vasta at all times and you got yourself a compass."

    This guy''s too good at navigating! Elegy, your extreme competence levels are showing again... and I don''t like it! Seriously, he''s really trying his dang best to get it to stick. Just say left and right like a normal person, no need to be pretentious!

    "In any case, go there and you''ll find a hole with screams of the damned echoing out of it." Elegy explained.

    I was terrified, "Why is that there?"

    "More importantly, what possible business could we have with the damned?" Energy winced as well.

    "The voices will try to escape into the surface level. If they do, we''re toast."

    So that''s the situation. I don''t remember ever encountering or even hearing about this horrible hole before. How did Elegy even stumble across it?

    "I take it this has something to do with those Two?" Sheep assumed.

    "Two?" I turned my head to him.

    "They shouldn''t be making an appearance anytime soon." Elegy figured, "But you never know what they''re capable of. That''s where you guys come in, I need you to stall for time IF AND ONLY IF they somehow make it out of the hole."

    "Wait, I''m still lost." I shrugged, "Who are we up against exactly?"

    The boys didn''t seem to want to spoil the surprise for me, or at least that''s what I think their reaction suggested. Way more probably, they just didn''t want to waste more time explaining when we can just go there and see for ourselves. Elegy especially, I can tell from the hasty replies that he just really wants to hang up and go back to doing whatever he''s been doing for the past while.

    "Alright, go now." Elegy cut the convo short.

    "So left of the house and then straight ahead?" Sheep made sure for good measure.

    "Yep, can''t miss it. Bye-bye, now."

    "Elegy." I squeezed in a final reply.

    "Gods, what is it!?" He snapped.

    Sulking, I whimpered out a response, "I just wanted to say good luck..."

    "...Yeah, you too." He said after an awkward pause, "Now come on. Let''s all do our best so that we can enjoy Heaven together with Vastoria again."

    Sheep scooped Energy and me into his embrace before tattling on me.

    "Yep, then these two can finally tie the knot as well!" He teased.

    "I-I never said...! I-!" I panicked.

    "Oh, you''re getting married?" Elegy sounded pretty calm despite that, "Congrats. Every good story needs a satisfying happy romantic end to it in my opinion."

    We stared blankly at the walkie talkie.

    "Eh...?"

    "One day we''ll get him to crack..." Energy sighed.

    Sheep chuckled.

    "But not today, it seems. For now, we got some souls of the damned we need to hold back!"

    Wow, when you put it like that, doesn''t it kind of sound like we''re headed for the gateway to Hell? Suddenly Elegy''s original suggestion to just chill and do nothing sounds a lot more tantalizing...

 Vol.7 Ch.149 - Baited

    After Elegy cut off communications completely, we had set off to go find this accursed hole. By the way he described it, I was genuinely dreading each second it took for us to reach it. Thankfully, it took less than a second with the help of Sheep''s hyperspeed fast travel, but my point still stands.

    "Oh God, it really is here..." I gulped upon witnessing the crowd of people circling dangerously close around it.

    "I half expected it to be somewhat secluded, but this is just ridiculous." Energy grunted, "It''s in the middle of town!"

    "It''s dangerous is what it is." Sheep flapped his wings before clearing the entire area, "Phew! That ought to do it. The last thing we want is for someone to accidentally fall in."

    That''s Sheep for you, he got that done in a flash. Literally, he blipped and the entire crowd around the hole was gone. Then again, it seems their confusion over this sudden spatial translation had only fueled their morbid curiosity regarding the hole, so they quickly ran back to inspect it even more carefully.

    "Another miracle!" One yelled loudly.

    "First wisdom, and then miracles!" A second agreed, "How incredible!"

    "We gotta go down there!"

    "Anyone got a rope we could use!?"

    "Quickly, go get some!"

    "Ack, hey! Stop pushing, I almost just fell straight in!"

    "Well, be more careful!"

    The loud and annoying arguing was so loud that I couldn''t even hear Sheep or Energy speaking to me over it. Seems simply giving them a sing to leave won''t be working anytime soon.

    "Hmph, then so be it..." I nodded decidedly, "Didn''t think I''d have to resort to this thing again..."

    "What did you say?!" Sheep shouted.

    Energy, on the other hand, saw the device in my hands and quickly caught on, "Gah! Migu, that''s-!"

    "Say cheese!"

    A White flash enveloped the entire street we were crowded in, blinding anyone who happened to have their Eyes open in that moment. Obviously, this meant everyone but Energy and me, who knew what the Flasher was capable of. Alas, I couldn''t cover my ears properly due to not having enough hands free, but at this point I''ve gotten almost used to it. Urk, but it doesn''t mean I don''t hate this ringing in my ears...

    "Gyahhhh!" Everyone fell to the ground in pain, "Bahh! My Eyes~!"

    "M-Migu, what did you-!? What''s going on-!?" Sheep panicked as well, "My Eyes, I can''t see! I''m blind!"

    "Calm down, calm down!" I grabbed his wings and pulled him close so he could hear me better, "You''ll be fine, just wait for it to pass."

    His numerous Eyes blinked once or twice, all at different times to maximize the creepiness of the action, but eventually he managed to get his Eyesight back. Surprisingly, even though he got hit point blank, he''s managed to recover incredibly quickly. Before any of the others, for that matter.

    "That was reckless, Migu." Energy frowned, "What if someone near the hole got startled and fell in?"

    "Ah." I jerked in realization, "Let''s hope that didn''t happen."

    "That was you?" Sheep''s Eyes looked horrified, "Geez, give a warning next time, would ya''?"

    Meh, even if I did, there''s no chance you''d hear it through the commotion. Speaking of, the crowd has gotten a lot more quiet since I Flashed everyone. I wonder, what are the odds some of them actually fainted? It''s entirely possible, but it only makes me question Sheep''s tolerance more. Archangelhood is not to be messed with...

    "Alright, now we can actually see what this hole is all about." I approached it semi-carefully, "Hello~? Anybody down there?"

    "Don''t lean to close to it!" Energy bickered.

    "I won''t fall, dang it!"

    That being the case, these clouds are a bit too soft for my liking. It''s like standing on pudding, and without calling myself fat or anything, I can definitely feel the ground start to give way slowly but surely.

    "Hellooo~!?" I kept shouting down the abyss.

    "Why would you even think anyone''s gonna answer?" Sheep sighed.

    "I heard these people mention something about the hole giving them some words of wisdom." I replied, "And Elegy did say we gotta make sure whatever''s down there doesn''t get out anytime soon."

    "Out of this?" Energy scowled, "Not gonna happen, can''t you see how deep this thing goes?"

    I shook my head, "I can''t."

    "Exactly."

    Hm, a fair point. But there''s always a chance it''s another form of a winged amalgamation like the bat roaches or even a being like the cherubim and Sheep. Climbing out by itself is definitely not gonna happen, but if it has wings, then that''s a completely different story.

    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    "I''m with Energy on this one." Sheep chimed in, "Whatever the heck these randos were saying about the hole definitely shouldn''t be taken at face value. After all, they attributed me moving them around as a miracle by the hole or whatever."

    "No, but the wisdom part came before we even arrived." I refuted, "Surely, there''s gotta be more to it."

    "Then let''s just fly down and make sure for ourselves." Energy groaned loudly with impatience.

    "We were told to make sure nothing fell in or got out." I sat down a step away from the hole, "Let''s not cause Elegy any more problems to worry about. His plate''s full enough as it is already."

    Sheep agreed, though Energy was pretty pissed about my executive decision. Y''know, for a guy who claims to be overly cautious and doesn''t pull any stops when it comes to survival, Energy sure does like suggesting the most dangerous ideas. Maybe it''s because he''s an invincible brain with nothing to lose now? Who knows.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "The situation doesn''t differ at all from the bat roaches." Energy protested, "Leaving it alone until it grows out of control is more dangerous than nipping it in the bud now."

    "Okay, wise guy, and how exactly do you intend to accomplish that without a body?" I frowned, "Sigh, none of us are in any condition to "defeat" whatever is inside this hole. Elegy was also rather vague with his description, so we don''t even have enough information to make a proper guess."

    Sheep nodded, "I agree with Migu, we should only focus on doing what he told us to do. Follow the recipe and you can''t mess up."

    It was two against one, and even Energy couldn''t refute the fact he himself lacked any attack power. I was never a fighter to begin with, with stealth attacks being the only feasible way I could actually take a monster like a bat roach down. Then again, most of the heavy-lifting came from Energy''s lent rapier, but that thing''s gone too. The Flasher is really all I have on me right now, so at best I could distract this thing.

    "If worse comes to worst, we''re fleeing." Sheep reminded everyone.

    Energy was furious, "Oh come on!"

    "What?"

    "Now you''re just doing this to piss me off!" He said,  "Running away, you serious? Our job was to take care of whatever the hell is lurking down at the bottom of that hole."

    "Either you misheard or misremembered." I replied, "Because Elegy told us specifically to "try and stall it". Ergo, if we deem it to be too tough for us, we should prioritize our own health."

    Yeah, Elegy''s no loon. He knows that whatever is down there is something we probably won''t be able to beat, so he made sure to give us this out. Besides, what good would recruiting us back into the party do if we just end up dying right after? At the very least, we should make sure to keep whatever''s inside this hole at bay for as long as possible.

    "Grr...! You people are making a huge mistake!" Energy fussed, "If you''re not confident that we''ll be able to kill it once it reaches equal ground, then stomp it down while it''s a few floors below!"

    "That wasn''t the plan." I replied, a tad annoyed.

    "Don''t tell me it''s some sort of warrior''s code, descendant!" Energy scowled with all his might, "Chivalry died out with the last of society, you know?! The fair died first when everything went to shit, leaving behind only the ones who fought dirty!"

    "It''s neither chivalry nor a warrior''s code thing, we just have no reason to take unnecessary steps that might end up backfiring on us." Sheep groaned, "Like what if we do drop down and the hole ends up being a tighter fit than we expected? I won''t be able to fly us back up."

    "Or worse, whatever''s inside it mauls us to death before we can escape." I added.

    "You''re faster than time itself, man!" Energy glared heavily at the defiant archangel, "How can you not be sure we''ll escape? Of course we will!"

    He''s being obtuse, at this point I''m pretty sure he''s just arguing for argument''s sake. His words hold no power, and Energy''s just raising his tone with each reply to try and justify his lack of logic. Thing is, his plan might work, but ours definitely will. It''s an unnecessary risk, and that''s all there is to it.

    "And what if it hitches a ride with us while we''re flying out?" I suggested, "It escaped the hole, and we''ve somehow managed to speed that process up instead of slowing it down. Elegy''s plan might not work if that happens."

    "It might not work anyways!" He shot back.

    "Actually, that''s not the case at all." Sheep dismissed him, "Let''s think back to how he told us to do this whole thing."

    "Oh yeah, I was thinking about that too." I nodded, "He had some other ideas lined up for us, but ultimately opted for this one."

    "Hm? What does that mean?" Energy looked confused.

    "He also seemed to sort of hand it to us as an afterthought. I wouldn''t be surprised if nothing came about this hole in the first place." Sheep explained, "Basically, if it was really something that serious, he would have already called us first. But that didn''t happen."

    Right, first we had to call him through the walkie-talkie, then we had to incessantly pester him to give us the next order. He was already preoccupied with his own affairs, as can be heard from his rugged breaths and annoyed voice. At the end of the day, he was just trying to get us off his back so he could go back to doing his thing in peace.

    "In other words, you get it, right?" I giggled, "Things would remain the same no matter what we do here, hop down or not. Heck, if he knows about this hole, then I have no doubt he''s the one who trapped the thing down there in the first place."

    "Everything''s... already done..." Energy remained lost for a long moment, "Ugh, that makes me mad for some reason."

    "Can''t exactly agree with the sentiment, since it means less work for us..." Sheep chuckled, "But I can see where you''re coming from. Feels like we got tossed to the wayside just so the real star can steal the show."

    "Oi, Elegy''s doing a lot to save Vastoria." I pouted, "Don''t go badmouthing him just ''cause we''re not as resourceful."

    "Ah, should I gift you a groom''s outfit next?" Sheep teased, "I suppose, depending on the era, that women could have multiple partners."

    "Hey, watch your tongue." I stared into his soul with my Eyes, "You''re talking about my family member, y''hear?"

    "Ack, my bad, I forgot." He backed off, but only for a short while, "Ah, but I guess technically, depending on the era..."

    A stern smack to his outer wings was issued. Though he didn''t feel it physically, the disgust in my Eyes was enough to deal emotional damage of a way higher grade in comparison. Don''t go shipping real people, dipass, especially not blood relatives.

    "Whoa-!" I felt the ground beneath me crumble.

    Sheep shouted, "Migu!"

    He saved me just before I fell, but the shock made my flasher fall down to the bottom. It''s a shame, but at least this way we could gauge the distance from the bottom by waiting for the thud.

    "..."

    "......"

    ".........."

    Hm? Is it that deep?

    "Ack! What the-!?" A familiar Voice echoed back up to us.

    "O-Oi, that''s a-!" Another equally familiar Voice panicked moments before a White Flash emerged from the darkness of the abyss.

    The Two screamed like maniacs at the bottom of the hole, their confusion and pain mixed into one as they scrambled to remove the effects of the Flasher from their Eyes and ears. Goddammit, Elegy, you should''ve told us it was just them.

 Vol.7 Ch.150 - Optimistic Nihilism

    "Is that you Two, Pry and Selz!?" I screamed down the hole.

    "You morons! Just what do you think you''re doing hitting us with that usdamned-!"

    "Yep, that''s Selzion''s voice alright." Energy smirked, "So it wasn''t any kind of monster after all."

    "Yeah, but if it''s just them, then why would Elegy even... ah." Sheep figured it out, "They must not be too fond of him looking for alternatives."

    No wonder I didn''t see the Gods with him all this time. Looking back, this is the same place we left them to dig by themselves while they were looking for Elegy, isn''t it? But there''s no way they dug this far down, is there?

    "Are you guys okay down there?" I hollered.

    "We''re fine, just kind of stuck is all." Pry explained.

    Sheep added, "Need any he-mph!?"

    Idiot, what''s the one rule we were told to follow!? If Elegy told us to keep them in that hole for as long as possible, then wouldn''t helping them have the inverse effect!? I swear, he''s too kind for his own good sometimes...

    "Well, now that you are here, I must ask if you have found Elegy or not." Selzion inquired.

    "We... Yeah, we did." I looked down.

    "Oi." Energy glared at me.

    "What do you want me to do? I can''t just lie to them, they''ll know for sure!" I whispered back.

    Besides, if Elegy knows they''re trapped here, that obviously means he''s seen them inside with his very own Eyes. Selzion just asked me to see if I was willing to lie to their faces or not, but I saw through his trick in time, thankfully.

    "Then, is it fair to assume that Elegy has instructed you to come by here and keep us at bay for as long as possible?" Selz asked another question.

    "He did." Sheep nodded.

    "But you guys aren''t gonna do that, are you?" Pry pleaded endearingly, "We''re friends, right?"

    "Friends or not, we have to follow orders." I declined, "Sorry, but you''re gonna have to just bear with it until he says it''s okay to let you out."

    They were disappointed by my words, but hardly surprised. Both of them knew we wouldn''t budge that easily, however they still had their ways of making our heads turn.

    "We were told you encountered the cherubim." Selz''s tone shifted to a much more cunning one.

    "We did..." My Eyes squinted, "What of it?"

    Interrupting him was the offputtingly chipper and excited voice of Pry.

    "So you did!" He smiled, "Wow, and you managed to handle the pressure alright? It didn''t tell you anything too scary, did it?"

    "Huh?" We tilted our heads.

    They think we never left? No, but they themselves said there''s no way the cherubim would fail to sway us. To think even they would get put in a situation where they''d second-guess themselves like this...

    "No, you got it all wrong. We did get demotivated. In fact, we still have no clue where Hats is." Sheep replied, "But Elegy managed to find Migu and Energy, who in turn brought me back, so it''s alright."

    "Should we be telling them this?" Energy worried.

    "Do not fret, we knew already." Selz replied from the bottom of the abyss, "So, you''ve outgrown needlessly lying to us for no reason at all, it seems."

    "We''ve just known you for long enough to understand you already read our minds before we even found this place." I groaned.

    Yeah, I get what''s going on. This is already a "game" they''re playing with us, but we''re gonna have to figure out what that game is. They''re Gods, they can read minds and know stuff otherwise impossible for any other person to know. Actually, this could work...

    "Hey, since you claim to know everything, what''s Elegy planning to do?" I tossed them an offhanded question.

    "Sigh, pick and plant, I''m afraid." Pry heaved a tired, pitiful sigh, "In other words, he''s wasting his time, for there is no way to bring "the real" Vastoria back to a conscious state."

    He put quotation marks around the "real" part, indicating he doesn''t even wanna humor the idea of their plan creating a "fake" Vastoria. That part kind of pisses me off, but I''ll hold off on correcting him in exchange for listening to any more intel we could pick up.

    "Regardless, he refused to tell us what he was doing, so at least for our sake, tell us." Sheep added.

    "He did, didn''t he?" Selz chuckled, "Smart of him. Well, not smart enough, but I can clearly see the logic in his decision. He must believe that we can only read the minds of those near us, and that in not telling you, we will be unable to track him from here."

    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

    "Is that not the case?" I furrowed my brow.

    "We are Gods." He chuckled, "We know all, we see all."

    Yeah, except right now, you''re powerless humans who probably can''t even see anything in that dark hole you''re trapped in. Still, I can''t help but get my intrigue piqued just by his sheer tone. He definitely does know where Elegy is and what his goal is, but I don''t think he used mind reading to extract that info.

    "And are you gonna tell us?" Energy sounded done with their suspense-building.

    "Why? So you can leave us stuck down here while you go and help him?" Pry pouted, "If that''s the case, we''d rather you stay here waiting like we are!"

    "So you''re waiting on purpose, is that it?" I smirked.

    "You have no idea." Selz''s toothy grin shone through the darkness, the faintest glimmer sending chills down my spine, "Trust me when I say¡ªthis could all be over with the snap of a finger."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    And so, that''s the situation. We''re seated around this giant gaping hole in the ground somewhere in the middle of the street, people are crowded around us, some having woken up after the initial Flash, whilst others were still knocked out. The Gods are still safely stuck down at the bottom of the hole, and whilst we can just barely make out their silhouettes through the darkness, it''s way more accurate to say they''re far from visible.

    "Then do it." I called his bluff.

    "Come again?"

    "Let''s see it." I crossed my arms confidently, "You say you can end this all with the snap of a finger, so I wanna see you do it."

    "W-Wait, no..." His voice lost its strength.

    "What?! You were huffing and puffing so seriously just a second ago, and now you''re telling me you can''t actually do it?" I started bullying him, "Tch, got my hopes up for nothing..."

    As to be expected, a brief pause happened where neither side exchanged any words at all. They wanted to so badly move on from the hole they dug themselves in (no pun intended), but so long as I expectantly kept silent, they felt there was a need to prove themselves.

    "Uuuu..." They whimpered.

    "Go on."

    ...S-Snap.

    "Whoa." Sheep''s Eyes bulged out of their sockets.

    "This is painful." Even Energy couldn''t look anymore.

    "Bahahahahahaha! That was it!?" I mocked the sorry excuse of a bluff, "The damned snap was so weak that even the narration stuttered!"

    Whoa, kinda sounded like Elegy there. That was weird...

    "We had to do something to break the awkward silence!" Pry whimpered, "I-I just figured...!"

    "Ahem. Enough of that." Selz stopped him from ruining his image any further.

    Ah, so it was Pry after all. A shame, I was really hopeful that it''d be the stiff Knowledge God himself, but apparently the God of Meditation doesn''t do so well with peer-pressure. Somehow, that makes it even worse.

    "As you could probably tell from my colleague''s... demonstration," Selz continued, "We currently do not possess the promised powers."

    "So why put on hot air, then?" Sheep asked.

    "Oh? Do you not recall what we have told you just a few measly days ago, when we first got reduced to this pitiful mortal form?" He replied with a query himself.

    "Nuh uh." Pry immediately corrected him, a light shove echoing through the darkness, "I got reduced, you were the one doing the reducing. Don''t go making yourself out to be the victim, I''m sick of it."

    "They understand my intentions with the wording-"

    "No! You''re gonna learn to accept your mistakes and you''re gonna like it!" Another shove echoed from the bottom of the hole, "Every time I do something bad, you always say "Pry did it", and yet you''re somehow different!?"

    "This is no time for..."

    "Zip it!"

    Some would call this typical roommate behavior.

    "Okay, since ''I'' reduced us to this pitiful mortal state." Selz caved after a bit more back and forth, "Now, can I continue?"

    "Thank you."

    "Oh my Me... Okay, where was I?" Selz''s head looked to us for help.

    "Uhh... Something-something recall what you told us a few days ago." Energy replied.

    "Oh yeah, we''re gonna turn back into Gods soon." Selz said nonchalantly.

    "Hm." I nodded, "W-Wait, huh!?"

    "Oh please, you knew this much already." Pry rolled his Eyes, "Obviously we''re gonna need to return to our positions soon, otherwise Hell would break loose, both literally and figuratively."

    "But that means...!" Sheep started panicking.

    They''re gonna get their powers back soon, and then that pitiful snap will have the power to destroy us behind it! Next time they snap their fingers, it won''t be Selz and Pry, but the God of Knowledge and Meditation respectively!

    "So that explains Elegy''s rush." Energy smirked, "That being said, doesn''t that mean nothing we do will mean anything in the end? After all, even if he does somehow succeed in bringing Vastoria back, you''ll just snap us away for causing so much trouble anyways."

    "That is partially correct." Selz replied, "Though due to our personal goals, we stand to gain nothing from destroying your souls, we can and will snap the situation back to how it was originally supposed to play out."

    "To put it simply, we''ll just replace the "real" Vastoria with the intended "fake" one." Pry tacked on, "Then again, that won''t change a thing for you guys, so it effectively doesn''t matter."

    It doesn''t... matter? Wait, what the Hell are you saying? Of course it does! How many times do I have to tell you Two morons, no matter how identical the fake Vastoria ends up being, I won''t love her the same! I won''t treat her the same, I won''t see her the same... Urgh, she''s not the same!

    "B-But then..." I gulped, "All of our efforts..."

    "Will have been for naught. Yes, you finally get it." Selz snidely remarked, "Of course, you "can" do it this way, it''ll hardly change anything in Heaven 2.0. But we will set everything into place, whether you like it or not."

    Amidst the silence, it was Energy''s voice that suddenly spoke up, "But wasn''t it you guys who said your goal was to create a world where everyone is happy!?"

    "H-Huh...?" I turned to him.

    "Migu, don''t they just get on your damned nerves!? How are you even capable of standing there instead of jumping down and beating their asses!" He glanced up at me, "Disrespecting us and our hard work is one thing, but disrespecting Vastoria is a step too far!"

    "I''m on his side." Sheep agreed, standing next to me, "If nothing we do matters, then why not blow off some steam by showing this two ''humans'' what their own creations can do to them?"

    "I see...!" I nodded at the both of them, "An angel, an archangel, and a flawless brain against a few measly humans. They might become Gods soon, but if they''re gonna make us miserable once that happens, then why not beat them up while we still can!"

    "So that''s the conclusion you came to..." Selz resignedly sighed.

    "W-We didn''t mess up, did we?" Pry had second thoughts, however.

    "Just let them have this." Selz replied, "Call it..."

    I then smirked, finishing the sentence with him, "An advance payment in whoopass!"

 Vol.7 Ch.151 - Flashbang

    The three of us wasted no time in jumping down the hole. We were on a tight schedule, after all. Maybe even a countdown if we''re unlucky. No matter the case, the only Color we saw was a frenzied Red, barely even capable of waiting for the Two Gods to enter our field of view from the dark abyss below.

    "Sheep, don''t let me go splat!" I instructed him.

    "Aye!" He yelled back, catching me halfway down the descent to allow us a more graceful landing.

    Of course, we were all Heavenly Beings who completely lacked any gilded parts, so it''s not like we''d get hurt if he didn''t catch us. Still, it looked cooler this way, so I think it was pretty necessary.

    "Hmph, good to see you again in the flesh." Selz chuckled.

    "You''re really gonna beat us up for something we haven''t even done yet...?" Pry sulked next to him.

    "Those whimpering Eyes mean nothing to us, so you can just cut the crap right off the bat." I shot back, "You know, just promise you won''t go through with your plan once we achieve our happy ending, and we won''t even lay a finger on you."

    "Nah, speak for yourself." Energy interjected, "In my opinion, threatening is half the job. Plus I really wanna punch these guys in the face."

    "You''re the one guy here who physically can''t do that, though..." Sheep sighed.

    Meh, I''m actually on Energy''s side here. These Two have been the ones behind all of our troubles for the longest time now. They deserve at least a flick on their foreheads for it, I''d wager. Yeah, ever since I got into Heaven 2.0, I''ve been blaming myself for all the issues we''ve been facing, when in reality it was their plotting from the sidelines. They''re so dead...!

    "I feel rage welling up within you all." Pry still tried to call it off, "Look, maybe Selz is used to dealing with physical pain, but I''m a full-on pacifist! If you hit me, it''ll be like kicking a toddler."

    Energy replied, "I kick toddlers for breakfast!"

    "That''s... You''re still the least plausible person to be saying that stuff." Sheep added, "No legs, remember?"

    "So? The same could be said for you!" Energy fussed, "Buncha'' Eyes and wings looking ass..."

    Hey now, no use getting into a fight between each other when the real opponents are right across from us. Just release those frustrations on them instead. Speaking of, I can understand Pry not doing anything, but why is Selz also stationary?

    "Hm? Go on, get it over with." Selz noticed me staring curiously, "I won''t fight back either."

    "What?" Sheep was taken aback, "Not even gonna try and dodge?"

    "Why should I? A human can''t even fully comprehend staring directly at an archangel without their mind going numb, much less keep up with one in a fight." He explained, "Apart from that, it''s a 3-on-2 battle, and my teammate already forfeited before the match even started. What good could I possibly accomplish?"

    "That''s...? Wait, he''s not wrong." I turned to the other two, "So what now? We beat them to death?"

    "Ah, we can''t actually do that." Energy recalled, albeit a tad too late, "Who knows what''s gonna happen to this place if its creators and administrators just up and die. We can''t risk it."

    Wait up a sec, did we just make a mistake? I mean, it''s not substantial or anything, but we did kind of end up looking dumb with this. Are our two only options really to beat up two helpless morons who don''t wanna fight back or let them be? That''s kind of anticlimactic.

    "I mean, I still wanna hit ''em." Energy figured, "We could beat them to an inch of their lives."

    "But that''s wrong, though." Sheep reasoned.

    Energy grunted, "And? Abusing their Godly powers is also wrong."

    "We have no morals, you see." Selz explained, "Those are made for humans to make them feel better about themselves when they follow their own self-imposed rulesets."

    "Again, that''s kinda whack, but we''ll get back to that." I huddled up close to Sheep and Energy for an emergency meeting, "We''re going back up, aren''t we?"

    "Oh come on. At least chuck me at one of them." Energy protested.

    "And what if they capture you after that?" I frowned, "We won''t be able to get you back if that happens."

    "Actually, I could." Sheep politely raised a wing.

    "..."

    "....."

    We turned back around to see the Gods patiently wait for us.

    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    "You came to a conclusion?" Pry asked.

    "U-Uh, yeah." I nodded, "We''re gonna go back up now."

    "Though I already know the answer, I believe it''s fair of me to ask if we could accompany you." The deadpanned Selz asked.

    "..."

    "Well?"

    "Brain attack!"

    I tossed Energy straight into the Knowledge God''s face, hitting him right between the Eyes. Man, I''m a really good pitcher! Immediately afterwards, Sheep rebounded the brain before grabbing me as well and taking us back up, all within the span of milliseconds. Back up at the surface, my Eyes were still having trouble adjusting to the Sun''s rays. Only after a few seconds could I finally see around me.

    "Everyone okay?" Sheep asked to make sure.

    Energy replied all cheery, "Woo! Thank you both, that felt great!"

    "Heh, it was kinda funny." I chuckled as well, "But it was pretty risky. I''m still kind of in disbelief that they didn''t actually somehow predict this."

    We exited Sheep''s winged embrace, touching down safely on the cloudy ground below. I went to turn around and inspect the hole one more time, as if to just make sure we truly made it without any problems. What greeted me, however, was a familiar White Flash of light, accompanied by an ear piercing high pitched sound that immediately made my consciousness slip away.

    "Hm, an interesting gadget indeed." Selz inspected the Flasher I had previously dropped down the hole earlier, "Still don''t like it. Maybe because of having it done to me before, but I''m very averse to the barbaric notion of temporarily blinding and deafening your opponent so easily."

    "You can say that again." Pry nodded behind him, cupping his ears with a pained expression.

    "So you agree?"

    "No, literally, I meant say it again." He then promptly shoved a finger in his ear, "I didn''t hear anything you said after the Flash."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    I can''t see a thing. I can''t hear it either. Matter of fact, what even is the thing I''m looking for? Urgh, my head is screaming right now... What the Hell just happened? I''m so confused.

    "...igu! Migu!" Energy snapped me out of it, "Wake up, they got Sheep!"

    "Whuh?" I blinked once or twice, "What do you mean...? Who did?"

    "The Gods, dammit! They took him away, I sensed everything in realtime!" He yelled back in a panic, "Dammit, they must have somehow hitched a ride while he was taking us back up the hole!"

    I knew it, they were bluffing the entire time. "Just humans"... Tch, my ass they are. So when they said they were no match for Sheep''s hyperspeed, Selz was just saying that to trick us into a false sense of security. Him failing to dodge me chucking Energy at him also served its purpose of doing just that. We''ve been duped.

    "So they kept my Flasher hidden on them the entire time?" I rubbed my sore head, dusting myself off a bit before picking Energy up, "That felt horrible, how are you holding up?"

    "I''m fine, my mind doesn''t have Eyes nor ears to feel its effects." He replied, "But Sheep is different. I saw it all, they''re constantly Flashing him point blank to keep him from waking up."

    Oh geez, that''s horrible. Any normal person would go blind and deaf from that a long time ago. Hell, a normal person would have died before that could even happen. Just one Flash was enough to knock me unconscious, so I can only imagine what Sheep''s going through.

    "Then we gotta save him." I nodded decidedly, "Where''d they go?"

    "Right where you''re looking at, that street with the dome-shaped house." He exasperatedly explained, "I don''t know what they''re planning to do with him, but it''s a fact that we let them out of the hole prematurely. Elegy''s plan might be in danger."

    "I get it, you don''t have to rub it in..." I looked down, "Darn it, we messed up again...!"

    I''m seething to my very core right now. I broke off into a mad dash down the street, but I''m not sure how far until we catch up to them. On one hand, they''re carrying someone as heavy as an archangel, but on the other hand, who knows how much of a headstart they had gotten.

    "Hey, how long was I asleep?" I glanced down with my Eyes.

    "A few minutes." He replied, "Not long, but enough for them to turn as many corners as they want to shake us off."

    "Don''t jinx it."

    Using Energy''s sensing ability to locate Sheep''s location, I was very worried to find out that we were headed straight towards the Gods'' Abode in G District. If that''s the case, then that can only mean one thing¡ªthey want to meet up with the cherubim. Who knows what that''ll entail...

    "Just up ahead, you got it." Energy navigated me through it.

    "Tch, as I thought..." I grinded my teeth at the grand sight, "The gates to the Abode''s yard."

    Just as cold, metallic and spiky as I remember them. Despite not being that tall, at least in comparison to the rest of the plot''s size, it still carries this air of unwelcoming to it. That being said, there was one key difference to it that wasn''t there before.

    "They shut the gates and locked us out!" I yelled, my Eyes lividly staring down the giant mansion in the distance, "Let me in! You hear me!? Let me innnn~!"

    "Climbing over it is gonna be too difficult for you to accomplish because of the pointed tips." Energy worried, "Maybe leave me here? The lessened burden will allow you to-"

    "No, are you crazy?" I frowned at him next, "We''re doing this together, I need your help to find them."

    "Hrm... In that case, you''re gonna have to find a way to get past this gate."

    Despite me calling them metallic bars, it''s not like I can squeeze in between them or anything. The bars go both vertically and horizontally, creating a sort of square design which makes even fitting a fist through the holes pretty tough. Still, the metal is so thick and tough, it''s impossible to bend.

    "What now?" I looked at him for help.

    "What else?" He replied halfheartedly, "Look around the perimeter. Find a weak spot we can abuse to get over or under it. Apart from that... Pray we find one, I guess."

    In the distance, constant bright Flashes could be seen emerging from the windows. A clear sign that they were in there, torturing Sheep so that he couldn''t wake up and fight back. Urgh, how cowardly! And after we offered them a peaceful alternative...! Those bastards deserve no mercy for what they''re doing to Sheep!

    "Ouch!" I stepped on something sharp, "The Hell...?"

    "You alright? Careful, the bars are sharp on the bottom as well." Energy comforted me.

    "It''s not that..." I looked down at the blood Red color spewing out onto the otherwise White clouds I stood on, "I-I''m bleeding..."

    "It''ll heal quickly." He hurried me to get a move on, "Come on, we don''t have time to worry about that. Our bodies can handle a prick or two just fine."

    "No, you don''t understand." I carefully put him down on the ground.

    "Migu...!"

    "Don''t worry, I think I know what to do." I smiled back at him confidently, "I need to dig!"

 Vol.7 Ch.152 - Parkour

    Just as I was about to run around the entire perimeter of the Gods'' Abode just to find an entrance to squeeze myself through, I had tripped on a mysterious object poking out of the ground right in front of the main gates. Blood spewed out of my wound, though it quickly healed itself back to a healthy status. That being the case, I just couldn''t ignore this sudden development.

    Energy fretted, "Migu, now isn''t the time. Sheep''s in danger!"

    But I knew what I was doing, "Don''t worry, I know what I''m doing! If I''m correct, then the moment I dig this thing out, we''ll be right where we need to be!"

    He was hesitant, but knew better than to try and persuade me any further. Though it does hurt me to leave Sheep hanging, there''s also the fact that he might have to endure this pain even longer if I choose to gamble on a miracle, like just finding a random hole in the fence. Instead, I choose to believe in my gut feeling, to believe in Elegy.

    "There!" I saw a golden shimmer emerge from the ground, "I knew it, Elegy must have predicted this!"

    "That''s crazy. But not even the Gods saw it..." Energy gulped.

    The golden pickaxe we reforged. It was just sitting there, covered up by a thin layer of cloud. So that must have been what he was doing back when we called him! He must have dug this out so we can have something to use when the time was right!

    "The Gods must not have spotted it because they were in a rush to get Sheep inside before we caught up to them." I smirked, "Besides, no one would even think to stand in this spot and get pricked by it unless they were denied access and wanted to look for another way in."

    "So even something as simple as the location was so well thought out..."

    Yep, and it''s exactly because he thought so far ahead that we now have our ticket through the gates. Made mostly of metallic bars going sideways and vertically, even I know better than to try my luck in breaking through them, no matter how strong this pickaxe is. No, I''m gonna need to try another tactic.

    "Digging under, then?" Energy suggested.

    "Think back to the borders between districts." I shook my head, "Chances are we''ll just run into more bars down there as well."

    "But the pickaxe can dig through the stone layer too." He figured.

    "Too risky. By the time we''ve reached that deep, the Gods will have already finished whatever they intend to do with Sheep."

    "Then what?"

    There it is, the oh so famous line. Yep, can''t go through, under nor around the mountain, so what''s left? In a way, the answer is so obvious it''s painful. That''s right, no other way to go about it¡ªwe''ll climb over!

    "Migu!?" Energy jolted as I stuck the pick between the bars, "That''s not gonna...!"

    "Sst! I''m focusing." I shot back, picking him back up before stepping up on the pickaxe''s handle, "Nerys'' house, don''t fail me now..."

    A few test presses to make sure it was okay to apply my full weight to it later, and I was completely on it. The pickaxe was now serving as a sort of step stool, something I can use to get just a bit more extra height. That being said, I had only reached a quarter of the way there.

    "Not enough." Energy clicked his tongue.

    "I''m not done." I replied, "Watch this."

    Squeezing the pick from both sides with my heels as I held onto the bars with my hands, I had lifted the pick up and retrieved it like that. Letting go of the bars with my one hand to pick it up, I was now in a position to rinse and repeat.

    "Genius! Bravo, my descendant!"

    "Didn''t I tell you to zip it? This isn''t, urk... easy, you know?" I struggled, just barely lodging it into the bars above me.

    Ah, maybe this one''s too high up? I didn''t really think about it, but for the first repetition, I had the ground to jump off of, so I could reach pretty high. But now, things are different. I don''t have anything to "bounce" off of, and my arms are starting to hurt from holding on for too long. To make matters worse, I can''t retrieve the pick, since it''s too high for me to reach. If I fall, it''s stuck there for good...

    "Hmph!" I steeled my resolve, mustering all the strength I have to reach the pickaxe''s handle, "Gah! Phew..."

    "That was risky." Energy lectured me, "Next time, try and go for smaller distances."

    "You..." I felt a vein pop for a second there, "You think I don''t know that!?"

    "Just saying. I wanted to warn you, but you told me to shut up and let you focus."

    "That''s...!" I pouted, "Sigh, y-you can speak when it''s good advice..."

    "Ehe~" He gave a smug reply, "Sure, gotcha."

    This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

    "You''re being annoying." I raised my tone slightly, "Quit playing the wise grandpa and help me get across the rest of the way."

    "For the last time, I''m not old!" He shouted.

    "Hey, so how were the dinosaurs like?"

    "I don''t even know what those are!" He fussed, "Cause I''m not old!"

    "Ehh? So your generation''s so old that they don''t even know what dinosaurs are? Gee, I underestimated you."

    "Migu!"

    "Yes, grandpa?"

    "Grrr...! Gah!" He let out a thunderous roar before reverting back to a pouty expression, "Fine, I don''t even care anymore. Let''s just focus on saving Sheep."

    "Hm, smart!" I smiled, "The wiser goat backs down,  as they say. You really are wise, Energy!"

    "Heh, with age comes wisdom, you know?" He resigned, chuckling with me this time around with self burns aplenty.

    Man, it''s not nearly as fun when he isn''t screeching like a worn tire. Guess I broke him. Oh well, they say you shouldn''t poke fun at the elderly too much anyways, so this must be my sign to stop... Not like I''m gonna, though.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hup! Ngh..." I reached the top, "Phew! Finally!"

    "Hold up a second." He revealed, "You''re only halfway there."

    "What did we say about speaking out of line?"

    "Wait, so now I''m an obedient soldier?" He asked, "No, seriously, you shouldn''t be counting chickens before they hatch."

    What''s he on about now? Gods forbid a girl celebrate her small victories that pile onto a greater one. I climbed the top, now all I gotta do is jump over to the other side. Easy peasy.

    "We need to discuss what we''re gonna do when we reach the front doors." He sounded serious.

    Though I had already jumped down with pickaxe in hand, I did fail to land properly because of his sudden words. It didn''t hurt due to my body''s composition, of course, but the shock made me a bit weak for a while after that.

    "What''s this all of a sudden?" I hid anger behind an arrogant chuckle, "Getting cold feet?"

    "No, but we need to think about this carefully." He explained, "Migu, I''m sure you''re well aware, but the time for making rookie mistakes and flubs is over."

    "...I knew that." I glanced down.

    "Sheep''s been captured by the Gods, Elegy''s off doing Gods know what, Sab and Nerys can''t seem to find Hats and aren''t returning our calls." He listed everything off, "And to top it all off, Vastoria waking up again is becoming harder and harder to imagine by the minute."

    ...Yeah, yeah, I get it. The situation''s screwed, basically. Still, what do you want me to do about it? I''m doing my best, aren''t I? Always have been. In fact, you telling me this isn''t helping calm my nerves and anxiety even a little bit. On the contrary, you''re just making things worse.

    "We''ve gone through worse things before just fine." I quietly muttered.

    "This and that are two separate things."

    "But we''ve managed to get through those just fine!"

    "Statistically speaking, our chances of miraculously making it out alright are dwindling."

    "Quit being so negative!" I blurted out.

    "And you should stop being so unserious." He shot back calmly, "Migu, I know things are hard right now. You''re just trying to lighten the mood because you work best without any pressure."

    "Ugh, if you get it, then..."

    "I''m not finished." He interrupted me, "Sigh, we need a plan. Gung-ho no longer works. I know we can''t predict everything, but we can plant seeds for the future."

    "What are you even spouting?" I rolled my Eyes.

    "I got this thought when I first saw you dig out Elegy''s pickaxe." He continued, "It made me think¡ªwe really have been going into every situation without any form of preparation thus far."

    "We couldn''t have known that the things that happened would happen." I refuted.

    "But we could have been more careful." He replied, "We could have held more group meetings, tactically used the tools we had at our disposal to better optimise our routes."

    When did the old man get dementia, huh? Seriously, it''s like he wasn''t even there with us to the Shrine once. We ''did'' use everything at our disposal! In fact, we couldn''t have even made it out without using our tools and brains, with a hefty bit of prep work on top of it for good measure!

    "Okay, wise guy!" I began walking through the vast yard splayed before us, "Gimme one good example of-!"

    "My body." He immediately answered, "If we had stopped to take even just a second to make sure all of the bat roaches were dead, or even just moved aside after we dealt with all of them. I wouldn''t have gotten myself caught with my pants down like that."

    "Oh..."

    "But even before that, I couldn''t help but notice that the White Monster was killed only thanks to the selfish act of Sab cutting Hats'' entire arm off to free himself." He continued, "There might not have been alternatives in that moment, but the entire situation could have been avoided if we just communicated to everyone to say, look down the entire time..."

    I genuinely frowned, "Your hindsight is 20/20, I get it. But there''s no way we could have known all of that at the time."

    "Migu, there were plenty of moments where we ''had'' the time to make preparations." He spelled it out for me, "This is one such moment. Please, for the love of the Gods, let''s try and piece together a plan for when we reach the mansion."

    That''s... no, there''s just no way to know what could happen! Hell, we''re dealing with omnipotent Gods who are not only in their own domain, but also in their own home! For context, they might have the bodies of humans, but we have the souls! Our entire lives, we''ve lived as humans, and now we''re quite literally three layers deep in unfamiliar territory. By all means, wasting time trying to "predict" what could happen would only serve to confuse us. His hindsight is making him blind to the truth¡ªfact is, we might not have gone about this the best way possible, but we never once stopped aiming for the best outcome we could muster.

    "You do that." I sighed, "I''ll focus on running. Dish out ideas and information, and we''ll see what I can make use of."

    "That''s good enough for now." He replied, a smidge of relief showing on the wrinkles of his brain, "Migu, I''m gonna say this just once more, but the time for jokes is over."

    "I''m out entirely if we ban jokes." I grinned, "But I will be taking this fight seriously from now on. Vastoria might get the wrong idea if she sees me laughing about while I''m heroically saving her."

    "By far, that''s the worst joke yet." He cringed.

    "Hm? What was?" I glanced down, "I haven''t said a joke yet."

    "The fact you actually think you''ll be the one saving her and not Elegy." He winced mentally, "No offense, descendant, but there''s no competition between you two."

    "Eh!? I''m gonna get Vastoria stolen away from me?!" I cried out.

    "I told you to stop with the jokes." His brows furrowed, "You''re offending both him and Vastoria with your nonsense."

    Yeah, might''ve gone too far on that one. Sorry guys, didn''t mean to... But don''t go getting any weird ideas either!

 Vol.7 Ch.153 - Execution

    "Then, what have you got in mind?" I said, running like the wind.

    "First of all, we need to take inventory."

    Aww, what? What inventory is there to take, dude? We''ve got like three things on us in total, and that''s counting you, might I add!

    "Don''t look at me like that." He frowned, "Fact is, we''ve got plenty of items we can make use of, but naming them off properly might allow us to get a better grasp of the possible synergies between them."

    "Synergies, huh..." I humoured in, "In that case, excluding you of course, we have¡ªthe pickaxe, a walkie talkie, my clothes, and that''s it."

    He was very much disappointed by the results, "Eh, so little?"

    "What did you expect? Contrary to popular belief, women don''t have extra compartments embedded within their bodies."

    "I never thought... Ugh, it''s just I forgot the Gods took your Flasher." He sighed, "I didn''t mean anything bad by what I said."

    "Now who''s out here throwing around jokes. Didn''t you say they were banned?" I squinted, "The Gods are using the Flasher to keep Sheep from waking up, that''s what you-"

    ...said. That''s it! Eureka, I found the solution! That''s right, those Two are spamming the Flasher right in Sheep''s face to keep him from potentially breaking free! But given that they''re already under a ton of stress to just carry such a heavy body of purely golden wings and Eyes around, then they must have their hands full with the Flasher as well! In other words, if we could just smack the Flasher away for a bit, then Sheep will have woken up!

    "Energy!" I energetically explained, "Our target''s the Flasher!"

    "Mnn, so that''s how you wanna go about it..." He chuckled, "Certainly, removing it from their arsenal would put a stop to their plans."

    "Right?!"

    Actually, now that I got the idea, everything really does seem to be falling into place perfectly! They''re humans, so their ears and Eyes are human too. If they''re consistently Flashing Sheep while they''re carrying him, then they''re inadvertedly Flashing themselves as well. Mind you, they probably thought about that accordingly and are utilizing the shrugging strategy Energy taught me to minimize the effects, but with so many frequent uses, some are bound to fail. Hell, even if they don''t, it still means their Eyes are constantly closed and ears constantly covered. Effectively, we''ve got a huge advantage over them!

    "Wow, before I was kind of nervous about the whole ordeal, but now things look so easy in comparison..." I smiled warmly, "We can do this, I know that now for sure!"

    Still, with Energy being Energy and all, obviously he had some smug things to say when it came to being right.

    "Ahem, I do believe you owe preparation an apology." He smugly insinuated, "Without it, you would have never come to this conclusion. A fly without its head."

    "Somehow, I feel like that analogy only works in your mother tongue..." I scowled.

    Though, I have to admit that he''s not wrong. Really, organising my thoughts so neatly like this makes finding opportunities way easier. Looking back, my original plan was probably to just bust in cops and robbers style and dropkick the first God I saw, but chances are that wouldn''t exactly pan out as I''d hope for it to. Ah, speaking of, we''ve reached the Abode already.

    "What are you doing?" Energy asked, "Why''d you stop in front of the doors?"

    "Gimme... a break!" I huffed and puffed, "Lemme catch my breath, this damned yard is bigger than a golf course!"

    Just then, a loud, high-pitched screeching sound could be heard just from the other side of the large doors. Not good, another factor we didn''t account for¡ªthe Gods'' Abode is large and highly acoustic, so each and every Flash will be as if it''s right in your ear, regardless of where in the room you are. What now...?

    "Hrmm..." Energy mulled it over for a bit, "I''m not affected by it."

    I replied, "Yeah, too bad you don''t have a body, though."

    "But you do."

    "Huh?"

    What''s he thinking of doing now?

    "Put me up to your ear. Cover the other one with your remaining hand." He instructed, "Use my brain as a sound muffler and close your Eyes. I''ll guide you on what to do ne-"

    "Eugh, God, no!" I gagged, "You crazy!? I''m not putting your slimy, wrinkly surface anywhere near my head, much less practically inside it! Think of a better solution!"

    "Well maybe if we had thought about this sooner, we would already HAVE a better solution!"

    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

    "Don''t go blaming it on me again!"

    Bickering like rabid dogs, we ended up having to do it his way. Begrudgingly, I put Energy on my shoulder and pressed my ear to him, like one would a telephone. At the same time, I used my newly freed up offhand to cover my other ear before closing my Eyes. Like this, I was nothing more than a pickaxe-swinging arm and a pair of legs. Sort of a morbid fusion, but hey, desperate times.

    "Okay." I said once more for good measure, "Once I open the door, I''m putting all of my faith into you."

    "That''s what I wanna hear." He whispered gently into my ear.

    "Gah! Speak normally!"

    He sounded confused, "Eh? But won''t it be too loud for you?"

    "You''re worried about the wrong things, dammit. Now shut up and guide me to Sheep!"

    A loud affirmation struck me directly from one side.

    "Aye aye!" He yelled out.

    O-Ow, that''s actually pretty loud... Well, it''s better than hearing this old bag of bones'' ASMR session...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    I slammed open the doors, "This is the police! We have you surrounded!"

    "Huh??" Pry turned around.

    "I said, we have you-!"

    "Ehh???" He repeated, "Speak up, we can''t hear you!"

    "Then stop spamming that damned Flasher!" Energy yelled, further damaging my right ear.

    Alas, Selz kept incessantly releasing the Flasher''s mechanism, his Eyes closed and shoulders shrugged to minimize the damage. Sheep was there as well, dragged on the ground like a dead animal between the two Gods. Thanks to our earlier planning we did, I knew exactly what had to be done. I dashed to Selz first and foremost, surprising them with the rather unorthodox choice.

    "Hah!" I whacked the Flasher right out of his hand, its metallic body coasting down the marble floor.

    "That''s a shame." He merely shrugged, dropping Sheep as soon as he was freed from the duty, "Pry, step aside."

    "What??" He kept shouting.

    Sounds to me like Pry''s been out of the game a long time ago. Hm, but now that I think about it, didn''t this go a bit ''too'' much according to plan? Let''s see, I knocked away the Flasher from Selz, so Sheep should be waking up soon. Well, now that Selz can''t blind or deafen us anymore, I might as well stop pressing Energy up into my ear like this...

    "O-Oi, stop that!" Energy protested.

    "It''s hard to move like this." I scoffed back, "Plus there''s no reason to hold this stupid position anymore."

    "Just trust me, whatever you do¡ªdon''t uncup your ears." He warned, "And close those Eyes, descendant. Remember, I''ll be guiding your every move from now on. Don''t go stepping out of line."

    Ugh, but me stepping out of line gave us a huge advantage! Why make things harder on ourselves when there''s no need? Look, the second Sheep wakes up, we''ve won. It''s really that simple, the Gods can''t do anything anymore.

    "Fine." I did as I was told, "Now what?"

    "Pry is ten meters to your left, not a threat." He explained.

    "I saw him standing there a second ago, moron."

    "Then, Selz is running towards you at full speed with the intent to knock you down."

    "Eh!? You should''ve said that firs-!"

    Immediately, whiplash struck me as I tumbled back to the marble floor, my neck hurting from having to squeeze Energy between my shoulder and cheek. Thankfully I did, too, ''cause I don''t think I would have been ready for what was coming even if I had my Eyes open.

    "Roll left!" Sheep shouted.

    Like clockwork, due to the minute distance between his orders and my mind, there was absolutely no delay in my execution. Such reaction time would be impossible to achieve even among the most trained athletes, yet I somehow accomplished it in that moment.

    "Hmph. So that''s your strategy?" Selz chuckled, "By joining forces, you aim to achieve the same level of physicality as your friend Elegy."

    Due to my ears being cupped from both sides, I didn''t actually hear that in his voice, though. This was all being sensed by Energy, who in turn would relay the information back to me. Quite literally, I was now functioning with two brains effectively within one body.

    "We''re really the same as Elegy like this!?" I got all giddy hearing that.

    "I''d say we''re even better." Energy smirked.

    "Pish, not at all. That one man has something both of you lack..." Selz''s words echoed.

    Energy warned me ahead of time, "He''s getting ready for another attack, prepare yourself."

    Left, right, up, down, all around... The attacks came in quick succession from one another, and the commands were even quicker. Thankfully, this strategy worked like a charm, as not one hit actually connected. Selz''s human body was starting to reach its limit after so much strain had been put on it for so long, which came in clutch for me, because I was reaching my own limit too. Focusing not only on the attacks which were just barely grazing me, but also listening in on Energy''s orders became very tiring very quickly. Eventually, the orders came to a halt, indicating Selz was talking to us.

    "This body..." Energy relayed to me his words, "It''s well past its use... Oh, how I loathe this humanity so..."

    "Why hate your own creation? Is this your attempt at getting pity out of us?" I shook my fist at him, my Eyes firmly shut.

    "Don''t you worry, for humanity loves me." He snickered back, "Without me, you would have never had the Knowledge to plan ahead."

    ...What''s he on about?

    "The Knowledge to kick away the Flasher." He kept going, "The Knowledge to remain connected and blind as you were, to forfeit your own Eyes and ears for your own sake... and mine."

    "Energy, what''s he doing now?" I felt my voice quiver, expecting the worst.

    "...Oh no!" Energy realized, albeit far too late, "Migu, dive forward right now!"

    "H-Huh!?" I hesitated for a split second.

    "Now, do it now!"

    I failed. Though I did eventually jump forward and knock Selz down to the floor, he had already accomplished what he had set out to do. Truth was, there was absolutely no way for me to keep Energy perched between my head and shoulder after the dive, so I had to actually rely on my own Eyes and ears from now on. This is also the reason I hesitated back there. Alas, the moment I opened my Eyes, I was met with a gruesome, bone-chilling, horrifying smile from the Knowledge God.

    "What did I tell you?" He dangled the Flasher mere centimeters in front of my face, "Hugging me so tightly after I said I hate you? Humans really do love me..."

    "Crap-!"

    I tried to break free, but there was no way out. Because we were on the ground, I could neither spring back to my feet nor push him away. A blinding White Flash knocked me out immediately, the loud buzzing from the device impairing my hearing to a blurry, muffled mess. The last thing I saw was Selz''s cheeky grin as he ripped the golden pickaxe away from my arms. After that, I blacked out.

 Vol.7 Ch.154 - End of the Line

    "Selzion. Selzion!" Energy shouted, "Release her this instant!"

    "Pheh." Selz replied, tossing Migu to the wayside, "Do you honestly believe I intend to hold her hostage? A mere pitiful angel without even her consciousness to her name?"

    Energy laid on the floor, his brain turned sideways after it had fallen from Migu''s shoulder. She had been knocked out from a point blank Flashbang, and Selz now had no one to stop him. Though they started off great, Migu and Energy soon found their positions to be... unsavoury, at best.

    "I must applaud you for trying your best, however. Had it been any other God, there was a high chance you could have succeeded even." Selz continued, "Isn''t that right, God of Meditation?"

    Across from them stood a lone God, his hair Green and complexion pale, in spite of his human nature. Prylos had nothing to say in his shame, for it was his inability to act in the face of adversity that caused his ally to potentially lose his life in front of him. He gulped, not knowing what would become of him.

    "S-Sorry about that, Selz..." He bit his tongue, "I was praying for you to win, you know?"

    "Ah, sending thoughts and prayers my way, is that right?" Selz chuckled, "I commend you for the assist, or well, the goodwill at least. But you should know that¡ªas a human¡ªyour meditative prayers don''t hold much weight anymore."

    "A-Ah, I didn''t know, ha-ha..." Pry couldn''t even bear to look him in the Eyes, "But hey, it worked out anyway, right?"

    Immediately, Selzion picked the poor Meditation God up by the collar. Lifting him up along with his robes, they finally matched Eye levels so that Selzion''s next words could for sure be heard loud and clear.

    "Next time you stand there like a buffoon, I''m sending you back to Hell." His grip tightened, "Got that?"

    "H-Hey! No need for the threats, man!" Pry kicked his feet about, hoping somehow to reach the far down below marble flooring, "Look, Migu''s knocked out, Energy''s useless, and Elegy isn''t around either!"

    "Are you suggesting we count our chickens before they hatch?" Selz raised a livid Eyebrow.

    "I''m no farmer, so don''t ask me!" Pry begged, "So could you just gently put me down so I can... Bwah!"

    Tossed aside just like the others, Pry hit the ground with a few extra rotations to add to the pain. Selzion had successfully circumvented the attack just now, but the war was far from over. The fact that someone as weak as Migu managed to actually pose a threat to him was in his Eyes nothing but shameful. Though she was formidable by anyone''s standards this time around, he still could not fathom the idea of any one being that once bore a mortal soul to be capable of defeating him.

    "Here, don''t lose it." Selz tossed him the Flasher, "Keep using it on the archangel. The last thing we need is an extra headache to hinder us right now."

    He then moved to lift Energy''s brain, hoisting him with his worn hands.

    "Urk! What are you...!?" Energy grunted.

    "Patience. We aim for the same goal, yet for some reason you detest ours." Selz replied calmly, moving aside to pick up the golden pickaxe as well, "A query, one of great significance for you."

    "Whatever it is, I''m not interested." Energy shot back.

    "Hrmm..." Selz shrugged, asking anyway, "Energy, where exactly do you believe the soul is stored in a human?"

    "Huh?"

    The question was sudden, unexpected, and not to mention quite deep. It''s thought-provoking nature lent itself well to confusing the enemy, in this case the brain he had gently plopped down on the marble floor before him.

    "The brain." Energy gave a shot in the dark.

    "Wrong!" Selzion struck the ground mere inches behind him, "Guess again."

    What was the Knowledge God doing with this? A sudden attack! ...Or was it a threat? A way to extort information from him? But no, the question being asked right now has no correlation nor use to the current situation. This was some form of twisted pop quiz, with Energy as the sole contestant. The prize? His continued existence.

    "The body!" Energy yelled, seeing the pickaxe this time hit a few inches in front of him, "Crap!"

    "Ah, ignore him." Pry chuckled at the display before him, reassuring Energy that everything is under control, "He''s a real theater nut. Selz just gets giddy when things start to go his way."

    "Guess again, brain!" Selz laughed maniacally, lifting the pickaxe over his head expectantly, "Or your downfall will come sooner than you think!"

    "Whoa whoa, wait! You''re actually gonna kill me here!?" Energy cried out in confusion.

    "Answer the damned question!"

    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

    This was when Energy realized the exact position he was in. With none of his friends around to help him, and no body to fight back with or dodge the oncoming lethal strikes, he truly was at the mercy of these two merciless Gods standing before him and laughing.

    But there was a way to win. A way to somehow succeed in making it out alive, though it was highly improbable at best. The name of the game was stalling, as even though Sheep was now back to getting regularly Flashbanged and probably wouldn''t wake up to rescue him, Migu was far enough away from Prylos to maybe possibly regain consciousness in time before the pickaxe finally struck him.

    "You''re doing this to spite me..." Energy snickered back at his enemy.

    "Did you know? The first ever kill in this Universe happened due to a sick, morbid sense of curiosity." Selz could barely hold back his chuckles, "One guy said to the other¡ªif we''re different from the animals we hunt, then surely stabbing you through the chest with my spear won''t amount to anything!"

    "And what did the other guy say to that?" Energy braced himself.

    "The other guy ripped him limb from limb, until only the head remained."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Clock''s ticking, Energy." Selz continued to trail the pick''s tip around him, "Speak. Up."

    "Ngh... Gimme a minute." He replied.

    Tensions were sky high as the two faced each other, waiting for even the faintest snap to advance their battle to the next step. Though, with how one-sided this is, it could hardly even be called a battle...

    Energy had figured his best choice to be to stall for as long as possible. Hopefully by that time, Migu will have woken up to save him, though the chances were slim of that occurring. Prylos was keeping Sheep under a tight slumber, and Selz eagerly awaited for the next wrong answer.

    As for the question itself, Energy already assumed he wouldn''t ever find the answer the Gods were looking for. To answer the question "Where is the soul inside the human body?", you would first have to know what a soul is. Energy, as a mere human born and raised in an era where such existentialism was trivial and unimportant in comparison to say, fighting, hunting, gathering and applying medicine¡ªhe just couldn''t ever bother to imagine an answer past the two he gave already. Chances were, the Knowledge God knew this.

    "..." He remained quiet, hoping they''d buy into his trickery, but alas...

    "Bap!" Selz slammed the pickaxe to Energy''s right side, "Time''s up! That''s one more "life" down the drain, you know? Soon enough, you''ll be out~! Bahahahahaha!"

    "Urk... And how many more lives do I got?" Energy inquired.

    "Judging by the shape, you got two more chances left." Pry chimed in, "Make ''em count, I really wouldn''t want another death to occur in Heaven 2.0."

    Of course¡ªthere was one other who had died in this plane of existence. Throne was his name, or rather, The Dethroned, to be precise. His exploits, cunning as they were, showed great promise and eventually¡ªresults. Though unfavored by the group led by Migu and the others, he did in fact show great care for the future of his comrades, as well as Heaven as a whole. Such a man met his untimely demise by the hands of Sheep, who was now reduced to no less than an unconscious blob of gilded wings and horrifying arrays of Eyes.

    Energy didn''t know much about Throne, if anything for that matter, but he knew that there existed those whose souls were destroyed permanently¡ªand he knew what that meant for him...

    "So, you gonna stand there in silence and patiently await your demise, or are you gonna try your luck in saving yourself for a change?" Selz hoisted the pick over his shoulder.

    "Hey now, at least be honest yourself, Selz!" Pry hollered, "If he ''does'' get the question right, are you actually gonna let him go scot-free?"

    "Ah, so that''s the issue? I hadn''t realized it." Selz lightly gasped, his further intentions unknown, "So, is that it, Energy? You were scared to answer because you believed there was actually ''no right answer, hmm?"

    Energy remained silent.

    "..."

    "You are permitted freedom of speech, you know?"

    "...R-Right." He finally cracked under the pressure, "Yes, I was... scared. ''Cause knowing you, chances are you''d change what the "correct" answer is the moment I got it right."

    "Oh, Heavens, no! There can only be one "right" answer, you know? Truth and tautology allows us to look at it from an objective point of view." Selz reassured him, "So now, once more without further stalling¡ªcould you tell us your answer?"

    "..."

    Migu wasn''t waking up. Minutes had passed since she had initially been Flashbanged, yet it seems her body''s recovery rate is much slower than that of Sheep''s. Alas, he''s done all he could, yet even now all he could muster was a measly 4 minutes and 11 seconds. He had no answer to give.

    "So that''s the case..." Selz swung the pick, hitting Energy''s left side now, "Hup! Gahhhh, that one felt scary, didn''t it?"

    "I''ve memories of worse things happening." Energy let out a pained chuckle, his brain bulging from the supressed fear within him, "Alright, so you''ve made a nifty cross around me. Looks cool, but I take it the next swing will be the last?"

    "It really is a shame, you gave up after the second time." Selz let go of a sarcastic tear, "You could have at least tried to give an answer, you know?"

    "I speak when I have something smart to say." He replied stoically, "Otherwise, I will wallow in my own ignorance silently."

    "How... commendable. But well, I suppose it''s about time we wrap this up." Selz lifted the pick high above his head one last time, "So, are you curious to hear the true correct answer to the question?"

    "You''ll let me hear it before I die?" Energy laughed at him, "How merciful you are, God of Knowledge. I could have used a man like you during my travels in the Rotted World."

    "You surely could have." Selz acknowledged him, "The question was¡ªwhere is the soul stored in the human. Your first answer was the brain, and the second the body."

    "Both incorrect." Prylos solemnly nodded along.

    "And what''s correct?" Energy asked, if not purely out of curiosity by this point.

    "Oh, I must apologize, Energy, but it was a trick question." Selz frowned sympathetically, "The soul is its own construct."

    Energy felt truly defeated. Outwitted, outnumbered, and now even outpowered. Simply speaking, Migu had failed to wake up in time to change his fate, and they had officially run out of time.

    "Oh. In other words..." Energy chuckled, Eyeing down the man who was seconds away from splitting his hemispheres into two clean partitions.

    "In other words, your brain has no soul." Selz announced, "So destroying you now won''t hinder our plans to create a world where everyone is happy. Not. In. The. Slightest."

    "Smart as ever, Selz." Pry gave the thumbs up.

    His thumb synchronized with the pickaxe, and with the wrist moving it down, so too did the pick follow suit. A splatter of bloody gore stained the otherwise pure marble flooring, with barely any recognizable trace of Energy remaining. The deed was done¡ªone party member down, just a few more to go.

 Vol.7 Ch.155 - Good Mourning

    I suddenly jolted awake, "Crap!" I cried out.

    In no small part due to my incompetence and inability to take action at a most crucial time, I was Flashbanged by Selzion and forced to take a long nap. Once I arose, I found the room in total disarray, completely unlike how it was before I went under. No one else was in the room with me, making me wonder what exactly had transpired after I got knocked out.

    "Energy!" I called out to him, "Huh?"

    I offhandedly wiped away some sort of liquid off of my face, originally mistaking it for sweat or possibly even tears. Alas, I was horrified to see the scarlet Colors of blood on the tips of my fingers. Worry began to set in as I felt up the rest of my face for any wounds.

    "No, this isn''t my blood..." I realized, "Did I somehow chip Selzion? I don''t remember that happening, but then again, maybe I nicked him during our tumble."

    The room was a mess from start to finish. Never mind all the broken chairs and benches, the rubble and erosion was massively noticeable. I don''t think even a tornado passing through this place would be an accurate enough description of it. It''s just that bad... But it only got worse after I saw more blood.

    "What the...?" I winced, turning the corner to see the large area where this supposed blood splatter originated from, "What could have caused this... Gasp, the pickaxe!"

    I looked around everywhere, but the golden pickaxe was nowhere to be found. Drats, those Two must''ve taken it for themselves after I got knocked out. Energy was left all alone, he must''ve been furious...

    "...Eh?" I saw the tiniest piece of Gray matter swimming in the large pool of blood, "That''s... a joke, right?"

    Energy... They couldn''t have...! Energy is-! Energy is-!?

    I screamed, with all the emotions that welled-up within me, "AAAAAHHHHH!"

    I fell to the ground, scooping up the blood as if that''d do anything, "Energy! Energy...!"

    My hands, as well as everything below the knees was drenched in velvet gore. I was shaking, about ready to puke at any moment, though I knew I didn''t have the strength to even do that much. Pupils shrunken, body weak, consciousness damn-near fading at this point... I was in hysterics.

    "Energy''s not really... dead, right?" I comforted myself, "R-Right! The Gods said they plan to make everyone happy, so they aren''t allowed to kill anyone! Ha-ha, he can''t be... dead."

    Just then, my already weak and shaken knees gave in, leading to me faceplanting into the puddle of blood and brain spatter. The metallic, iron scent of blood filled my nostrils, its putrid stench nauseating. I knew the truth, no matter how much I didn''t want it to be the case. The Gods have already proven how easily expendable we are to them. One or a few kills won''t mean anything. Besides, they''ve by now probably already justified this one in their own sick and twisted way...

    "Energy..." I cried, refusing to remove my face from the puddle, "Energy...!!!"

    I laid there quietly for a while. How long exactly, even I don''t know, but a while nonetheless. I probably should have gotten up immediately to try and save Sheep at least, in fact that would have definitely been the smarter play here, but I couldn''t help it. For better or for worse, Energy was my family. In this world of strangers and friends, he alone was always there for me, though I can admit that part probably wasn''t of his own volition...

    "You''ve taken care of me, taught me a lot about the things I didn''t know... And look what I gave back in return." I slowly picked myself up, "Your one and only goal was to see me and Vastoria happy together, and to be a part of that happy life as well. Energy, I... I can''t grant you both, but I''ll do my best to at least not disappoint you completely. Thank you for everything."

    I stammered back up to my feet, almost falling face first immediately in the very next moment, but I managed to hold my ground for now. The loss of Energy was a heavy blow, but as things stand, I might yet have another funeral to hold pretty soon if I don''t catch up to the Gods. With the blood still trailing behind my footsteps, I walked through the Abode''s long aisle to reach the lectern. Its large stature looking directly at the outside from the front doors made it a prime spot for me to regain my strength and potentially find a good counterplan to their own plots.

    "Something really serious must have happened here for it to turn out like this." I figured, "The interior wasn''t even close to looking this beat up when I had fallen unconscious, so what could have happened? Energy... no, he couldn''t have possibly been the cause of this¡ªhe has no body. Maybe infighting among the Gods? They do seem prone to bickering, I believe.

    "Or it could be one of the others." I nodded, "Elegy, Sab, Nerys, or even Hats for that matter."

    Any one of these could possibly be the culprits. They all know Energy, as well as the situation between us and the Gods. Just seeing him in this state would have driven anyone who knew this mad. Right now, this is shaping up to be the most probable answer.

    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    "But it really doesn''t matter now, does it..." I looked at the puddle, this time from a distance, "Better to prevent than to look for a cure, eh Energy? God, I should have listened to your advice more..."

    Energy is gone, but I remain. And for now¡ªso do the others. I can''t erase this mistake, but I can make sure it doesn''t at least repeat itself again. I''ll keep everyone safe, I''ll find a way to do it. I can... I can change the future.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Currently, I remain alone in the disheveled room where all this had taken place. Energy is dead, but the Gods are gone and have taken Sheep with them. For what purpose, no one knows...

    "Huh?" I heard rubble rolling around near me, "Is anyone there!?"

    "Unf..." A tired voice groaned through the pain.

    I ran around the lectern''s perimeter to find this person, but even after two entire laps, I could find nothing else but rubble. Just then, another groan forced my head to flick behind me.

    "There!" I saw a lone arm sticking out from beneath the pile, "Stay calm, I''ll get you out of there!"

    At first I reasoned lifting the heavy rocks up would be the best way to go about it, but I soon realized just how impossible that task is. These weren''t just rocks, rather huge chunks of the surrounding walls, ceiling and floor. Heavy marble slabs and plates twice the size of me were crushing this person with all their might, and I could barely even nudge the heavy stones, much less move them aside.

    "I-I''m gonna need your help, so get ready!" I yelled, grabbing the one arm and pulling.

    Immediately, pained grunts screamed out of the rubble. It must be terrifying for them, this sense of helplessness and fear, but at the very least I know they don''t feel physical pain. After all, the color of the arm is White.

    "Keep going! You can...!" I pulled, "Gah!"

    I slipped, or did the arm pop off? Either way, I fell back on my butt, the hand still holding my own for support. I opened my Eyes to see what was the case, only to see a blessing before my Eyes. Not only does this person still have his arm, but it''s also the only arm he has.

    "Hats!" I smiled, hugging him strongly, "It''s you!"

    "Heh, it''s me." He chuckled, awkwardly returning the hug, "Nice to see you too."

    "What happened!? How did you-?!"

    "Migu." He gave me a serious look, one of regret and anguish, "Energy is dead."

    "Oh, I-I..." I nodded, my heart broken over hearing it confirmed for real, "I know. I saw the blood."

    "I arrived just as Selzion smashed the pickaxe into him." He grit his teeth.

    Selz-!? ...So it was him, after all... Well, I expected nothing less, in fact Prylos didn''t seem interested in fighting us to begin with, so I''d be more surprised if it wasn''t Selzion. But none of that matters now¡ªHats needs comfort.

    "I beat the snot out of him!" He raised his fist high before slowly lowering it back down, "But it didn''t matter. Energy was already gone, I didn''t save him..."

    "Hey, it''s not your fault." I smiled, "I''m glad you got revenge for what they did to Energy. That''s more than enough for me."

    "But it won''t bring him back...!" Hats started tearing up, but quickly composed himself, "Ungh... I-I pinned Selzion to the ground and whaled on him until he dropped his pickaxe."

    "Eh? He dropped it?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    Wait, but doesn''t that mean it''s not with them anymore?

    "Yeah, he dropped it over... Ah." He pointed to a pile of rubble, "It''s... Probably under there."

    "That''s... incredible!" I praised him, "You did amazing, Hats! Now they don''t have the pickaxe with them, all thanks to you! Gold star!"

    "Ehe~" He seemed to have cheered up a bit, "S-Still, the other Guy intervened, and we fought for a while after that."

    The other Guy, he must be talking about Pry. But I''m surprised he even had the courage to face off against Hats after being scared stiff against us. Maybe that was also just a ploy from Them to get us to lower our guard. Damn...

    "What happened then?" I asked, "How did the place get to be like this?"

    "Oh." He bashfully admitted, "I might have gotten a bit rough after that."

    He says it so cutely, too. Kids these days are scary...

    "B-But they made me do it!" He fussed, "The second I beat one Guy, the other shows up to save Him! It got so annoying, smashing them into the walls and pillars, hitting them with the benches and such! They just never quit, and it made me super mad!"

    "Yeah, I-I''ll bet..." I chuckled nervously.

    Well, that explains how the Gods Abode got thrashed while I was asleep. Now that I got a better look at the place, it''s got a lot of support beams and pillars holding the ceiling up. The structure is practically solely dependent on them holding the weight of the structure, so it must have started falling apart after Hats slammed those Two against the pillars.

    "And what happened to them?" I realized, "Rather, why''d I find you buried under the rubble if you were dominating them the entire time?"

    "...Something happened. A bright Flash of light." He looked down annoyedly.

    "The Flasher!" I recalled.

    "After that, I ran around blindly until I hit a wall." He explained, "Immediately after that, I got hit over the head by the falling rubble."

    So that''s the entire story. Honestly, I don''t know whether to be glad or sad over this. The Gods must have run away with Sheep after trapping Hats, but I''m still happy to have found him. Now we know where everyone is, at least according to Elegy.

    "Hm?" I saw a small rock land right between us, "Oh no..."

    "The ceiling''s gonna fall again!" Hats yelled, "We gotta get out of here!"

    And not just the ceiling, it seems¡ªthe entire Abode looked like it was gonna collapse right on us. We ran across the destroyed hall of the Abode, vaulting over flipped benches and ducking under the rubble just to make it to the front doors. Just then, I had slipped over Energy''s blood, tumbling to the ground not too long after.

    "Dammit, if you''re not gonna help me from beyond the grave...!" I cursed at him, "Then at least don''t be a hindrance!"

    "Here!" Hats put his hand out, "Gimme your han-!"

    The Gods'' Abode crumbled around us, trapping us before we could get out. As soon as I took his hand, Hats wrapped me close in his embrace, shielding my body from the rubble that had hit us from above. After that, we were engulfed in darkness.

 Vol.7 Ch.156 - Just Up Ahead

    Can''t see a thing in here... The ceiling collapsed on us, but Hats hugged me in the last second. I''m fine, but what about him?

    "It''s... warm." He uttered.

    "You can feel the temperature?" I raised an Eyebrow.

    "No, I don''t have any gold on me, but..." He smiled, "This feels snug."

    I can''t argue with that. I guess if you think about it, cramped is just another word for snug. Regardless, we don''t have time to be messing around like this, there''s gotta be a way to break free from the rubble.

    "Think you can free up some space for us?" I asked, "We''ll try picking through the rubble until we find some light."

    "Ungh, that''s gonna be a bit more difficult." He admitted, "The entire building collapsed on us, the weight is humongous."

    "Then regain your strength for now, I''ll try and think of something."

    Thanks to Energy''s brain juices making me slip and fall, we didn''t manage to leave the Abode before it came crashing down on us. As we speak, the Gods are rushing somewhere, carrying Sheep on their backs. Nerys and Sab are also MiA, with Elegy apparently doing his own thing. We''re incredibly scattered, but that doesn''t matter. Right now, the Gods and Sheep take top priority.

    "Gah!" I freed my hands up, if just barely.

    He yelped, "Ow."

    "Did I scratch you? Sorry."

    "I don''t feel pain, I just said it out of habit." He tried shrugging, but his shoulders got stuck.

    Sigh, this kid... Well, my hands are free now, so I can start digging up. Umm, actually, where exactly is "up?"

    "Ew, did you just spit!?" Hats scowled, "Gross!"

    "Relax, I heard you''re supposed to do this if you ever get stuck underground." I replied, "The way the spit drops is where ground is, so if you wanna go up, dig opposite of that."

    I didn''t actually spit on him, but it landed on his chest anyways. I feel bad, but now we at least know our directions. Had I just dug where I thought was up, I would have actually been digging sideways. Now I know where to go for sure.

    "The pick sure would have been useful right now..." I groaned, clawing my way through the tough rocks and marble with my nails.

    "Would you even be able to swing it with this amount of space?"

    "Good point."

    I usually go for shortcuts of any kind just to speed up the process, but now when I most need one, there''s no faster way to reach the Gods. The scratching and screeching sounds my nails make as they graze the marble hurts my ears, and the horrible friction it creates makes my hair stand on end. Regardless, it took about 10 minutes to free up enough space for me to stand comfortably.

    "Great job." Hats said from below, "Now could you stop stepping on me?"

    "Oh right! I forgot you were below me!" I quickly repositioned myself, "Alright, can you get up?"

    "Ngh...! I-I think so?" He sat upright, but we didn''t have enough space for him to stand as well, "Just keep going. Once you''re free, I''ll follow after."

    "Got it. Don''t worry, we''ll get out of this!"

    "I know, then we''ll beat the crap out of those Gods for what they did to Sheep and Energy!"

    The kid seems enthusiastic, at least. I kept digging slowly but surely, emphasis on the slowly¡ªthese rocks are just impossible to break through. If push comes to shove, this might take an entire day.

    "Ack!"

    "What''s wrong!?"

    "Don''t worry, just some rubble..." I shook my head, "Ow! It wasn''t funny the second time either, universe!"

    Despite this, the rubble kept falling down repeatedly. I was actually starting to get worried that my digging was actually gonna bury us alive even more, but thankfully that wasn''t the case. A few more pebbles hitting me in the face later, and I had seen a glint of what appeared to be some light.

    "Guess it''s not the universe that''s moving the rocks." Hats grinned, "Someone''s digging us out!"

    The light reflected off my Eyes, its piercing Colors making me squint my Eyes reflexively. I gazed up at the face of our rescuer, and she gazed right back with a smile.

    "Nerys?"

    "Euuuuuwe betcha!" She snapped her fingers.

    Hats was ecstatic.

    "Nerys!" He shouted, "What are you doing here!?"

    "Rescuin'' yuz, wot else?" She snickered, "Mans tol'' me yuu''d nid sum aide."

    "Elegy did?" I lowered my brows, "How did he know?"

    "Mans craezeh loik dat." She shrugged, "He been knowin'' yus n'' da brain''d need help, bot Oi'' didn'' expecc boye ta'' be witcha'' swell."

    Stolen story; please report.

    I couldn''t quite look her in the Eyes after she mentioned Energy. She lifted me out of the rubble and jumped down to try to fit him out after without so much as even mentioning Energy''s name anymore. Guess she must have figured it out from our silence...

    "Oye." She could finally rest after her job was done, "Tharr ye'' go. Bofa'' yus dun'' been frid."

    "Thanks for that, Nerys." I still couldn''t quite act normal, "You saved us a bunch of time."

    "...Men die a lot, dontcha'' think?" She rested her chin on the rubble.

    We both turned to her confused.

    "Huh?"

    "O''well nau, sum'' deserv'' eet." She explained, "Sum'' die loik dawgs, othas'' die ''eroically. Bot'' dey boff git remembah''d."

    "What are you talking about?" I cocked my head back.

    "S''weird..." She jumped out of the hole we dug, "Hup! That brehn wuz moighty fun ta'' talk to, n'' he gottim'' self a gud noggin fer'' survoival. Wish Oi''d nevarr met ''im, he set a gud standard."

    A good... standard? A good standard. For what? Men? Angels? Brains? Is that all she has to say about Energy''s death?

    "Tch..." I looked down, my Eyes growing teary, "Dammit, those words shouldn''t be this emotional..."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    After I had composed myself again, we left the Gods'' Abode safely and without any further injuries. Of course, an angel''s skin is mostly impenetrable, not to mention it heals quickly, so it''s not like this wouldn''t have been the outcome anyways. Nerys immediately started walking in a direction we weren''t familiar with, which confused Hats and me heavily.

    "Wait, did we teleport to another district again?" I walked up next to her.

    "Dis'' be tha'' rong wun." She shook her head, "Shoulda'' been Ae, bot hoo knoes which wun we wentto."

    "So the Gods are there?" Energy raised the question.

    "Thems?" She turned her head, dumbfounded.

    Apparently she didn''t know we were on the hunt for the Gods in the first place. Even though she found us buried in their Abode... just how couldn''t she have known that? As it turns out, she really did just follow Elegy''s orders and come here without any prior knowledge on the situation. I guess I can''t bash her too hard, since she ''was'' the one that saved us.

    "Sos thass tha'' caes." She nodded, "They dun'' took Mutton n'' killed Brainy. Hard fer'' me ta'' defend ''em afta'' dis, ''onestly."

    "They''ve either gone crazy or were crazy from the start." I furrowed my brows, "We don''t know where they went to or what they''re planning to do with Sheep, but we can''t let it happen."

    "Gottit." She then pulled out a walkie-talkie, "Oi, mateys! Boye n'' lass''r sekyur''d!"

    Wait, she had a talkie on her? When''d she get that? Well, ignoring that question¡ªfrom the other line answered Elegy and Sab. My assumption was correct, these three met up in person, then.

    "Nice going, Nerys!" Elegy praised her, "We''re almost at the Abode too, so come by as soon as possible."

    "Oh look, the sky''s slowly turning Blue again..." Sab added offhandedly.

    Nerys bashfully scratched her cheek.

    "Ah. ''Bout dat..." She chuckled, "We be stuck ''ere. Abode''s destroy''d."

    Elegy''s voice slightly cracked.

    "You said what?"

    "Wait, where are you guys right now?" Sab butted in.

    I replied, "We could ask you the same thing."

    So Elegy gladly explained his master plan. After he had left me alone with Energy back at my home, he had gone directly to district A to fight the cherubim head on. While he did, he met up with Nerys and Sab, to which he advised Nerys to fall back and help us while Sab came along with him against the cherubim.

    "Still, that doesn''t really explain why Hats is with you guys." He finished it off with a question of his own, "How come he arrived before Nerys?"

    "Huh? Why wouldn''t he be?" I tilted my head.

    "Hats, you doing alright?" He asked back.

    "My mind''s kind of fuzzy, but otherwise I''m fine."

    Seems that was a good enough answer for him.

    "In that case, all is well." He nodded.

    "So wot nau?" Nerys asked.

    "Well, we''re done on our part." Sab shrugged, "What about you?"

    "Ugh, we still need to find Sheep." I groaned.

    Just then, I got hit with a guilty query by Elegy, "By the way, where''s Energy?"

    "Ulp! Y-You''re breaking up! Connection... fuzzy!"

    I wrestled the talkie out of Nerys'' hands, hanging up on then before I had to explain what had happened. Energy''s death is gonna come as a huge shock to them, and I''d rather they don''t have that distraction looming over their heads right now. It''ll have to wait, but for now we''ve got bigger fish to fry.

    "Come... find Gods...!" I still kept up the farce of the talkie''s signal breaking up, "Save... Sheep!"

    "Uhh... Okay?" The boys on the other end of the line awkwardly replied, "Well, call back later when your talkie starts working again."

    "Phew... Ow!" I shouted in pain as soon as the communication ended, "Nerys, what was that for!?"

    "Dun'' chu'' evah steel me stuff agehn, lassie!"

    "I didn''t steal anything, dammit!" I rubbed the back of my palm after she snatched the talkie back from me, "Anyway, we finally got some good news for once, so we should go find Sheep and the Gods as soon as possible."

    Though we can''t really move between districts quickly at all anymore, Sab and Elegy can. Thankfully, they said they''re finished with whatever it was they were doing, and now that we''ve relayed to them their next order of business, we at least know Sheep''s life isn''t completely over.

    "Huh?" Hats squinted, staring off into the distance, "Wait, that''s...?"

    "Oye, waittamin...!?" Nerys jolted, "Bot wot''re dey doin'' ere?"

    "The Gods, and... Sheep!" I yelled.

    What district are we even in right now? No, that doesn''t matter, more importantly¡ªhow come the Gods are here too!? Didn''t Nerys say they were supposed to be in A district? My hands are shaking like crazy.

    "Gulp..."

    From the distance the two Gods that were lugging a large archangel with them stopped to stare back at us. As if to taunt the fact that they can see us just as we them, their body language showed they not only felt no need to rush away from us, but also that they were actively inviting us to try and catch them. Meanwhile, Sheep''s still knocked out from the perpetual Flashbangs...

    "Come on!" I shouted.

    "A-Ah, lassie wait-!"

    A thud knocked me back. As if I had hit a wall, but there was nothing there. No, it wasn''t that I hit something, but rather that my body listened to Nerys before it did to me. Truth is, I''m terrified to face off against them. What they did to Sheep, Hats and me... what they did to Energy¡ªI don''t want to repeat it. Even without their Godhood, they''re still incredibly strong opponents.

    "Lass." Nerys helped me up, "Yer'' emoshins fer tha'' fellow man be admirable, bot ye'' need ta'' understan'' chance."

    "Chance?" Hats raised an Eyebrow.

    "Rushin'' in won''t do squat." She explained, "Fer'' evry battle, tharr''s a certen momint wen victory be assured¡ªyer chance. Loikewise, ignorin'' it''ll lead to an early defeat."

    "B-But... But they''re right there!" I pointed to them, my voice quivering.

    "They be slow regardless, n'' we can always catch up ta'' dem." She reiterated, "We''ll tail ''em until we git hour chance."

    Well certainly they''ll have great difficulty in trying to shake us off, but it feels wrong just letting them Flashbang Sheep while we look on from a safe distance. Chance, huh? It better come soon, ''cause I''m not sure I''ll be able to wait!

 Vol.7 Ch.157 - Rewind

    A few days earlier...

    "Elegy." She put her hand out, "Good luck."

    He was a bit confused by her gesture. Awkwardly, he put his hand out to take what she was giving him, but he only found out what it was after she haa handed it to him. A singular pair of sunglasses.

    "Pheh, you think these are gonna make a difference?" He snorted.

    "Small changes make a big difference." She smiled right back.

    "Oh? Okay then." He nodded as well before turning around, "Good luck to you as well."

    On that day, two fates diverged, each expecting many great results from one another. On the one hand, Elegy wished for Migu and Energy to succeed in their endeavors and find as many of their friends as possible. On the other hand, Migu could only give him this much.

    "Shades, huh?" Elegy inspected the sunglasses with a proud smile before putting them on, "I like ''em. Snazzy!"

    "But now isn''t the time to play dress up." He continued, "Shall we look at the list and see what all I have left to do? Then, to begin with¡ªI gotta find Sab and Nerys, then I gotta beat the crap out of the cherubim, and hopefully that''ll free Hats from its clutches. After that... Meh, I''ll figure out the rest later."

    The plan was as simple as it was complex. In many ways, this seemingly straightforward plan of action had to be carried out with great thought and precision put into it. Rushing in headfirst was a brave feat, but not that smart. In other words, even just finding those two would be extremely difficult and require some amount of luck. Neither of the two picked up his radio call prior to this, and time was running out for Hats.

    "Sab, Nerys, can you hear me?" He tried again to no avail, "Tch, what the Hell are you doing...?"

    "Kzzt!" The radio buzzed, a sickeningly smug voice replying to his outcries, "Not giving up, are you?"

    "...Cherubim."

    The Staple of Heaven mocked him endlessly from the radio comms. As if teasing him, hoping to get under his skin so that he would take the bait. The cherubim knew just how strong of a chokehold it had on Elegy, and it made sure that this was apparent to him as well.

    "So, you got Hats under your spell, huh?" He asked, "Even now, you''re talking through his vessel."

    "May very well be the case." The cherubim¡ªin Hats'' very own voice¡ªreplied, "And we both await your arrival with great glee! Our conversation from earlier hasn''t yet been properly adjourned."

    Elegy despised hearing this beast speak to him so friendlily, and in his own ally''s voice no less. He grit his teeth and played it cool.

    "Is there even a point to holding conversations with those that don''t even listen to you?" Elegy sighed, "I believe I told you, but I won''t be the one meeting you next time."

    "So that''s the case, you heard from the Gods about S.B..." It immediately understood, "I don''t think you quite yet understand to what capacity his catalysm can accompli-"

    Elegy hung up.

    "Kzzt! Finger slipped. Oh well, I''m sure it didn''t have anything smart to say anyways."

    Placing the walkie talkie snugly into his back pocket again, he continued to walk towards the Gods'' Abode in hopes of figuring out the locations of the rest of his scattered allies. Obviously, the cherubim had demotivated everyone and sent them back home, but that doesn''t mean much when you take into account that Elegy doesn''t know where anyone lives.

    "The search is narrowed down to district G for sure." He figured, "But even then, a district is no small field to cross, especially with the crowdedness of it. If only they answered their walkie talkies..."

    As if looking for a needle in a sea of hay, Elegy was tasked with a simply unsurmountable task to handle. But, he figured, whining wouldn''t solve a thing. And so, thusly he had sped up his pace before arriving at the fated building wherein the Gods primarily resided.

    "The yard is always so annoying to cross just to get to the door..." He complained, "Knock knock! Just kidding, I''m coming in."

    The joke was met with a loud silence, but not because no one found it humorous. Rather, there was no one to even judge it in the first place, as the entire Abode was empty at the time. The Gods were still stuck in the hole by this point, and Migu and the others were behind Elegy. He was, for all intents and purposes, all alone in the building.

    "OOOOOI~!" Elegy let out a loud roar, "If anyone''s in here, come on out!"

    Nothing. The prolonged silence made him put his sanity into question, but he ignored the weary emotions in favor of another loud holler.

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    "Nerys! Sab!?"

    Alas, no one answered the call. He lowered his tone, coughing a bit from the strenuous use of his vocal cords, before ultimately strolling down the aisle.

    "This place just isn''t as fun without those Two morons causing us trouble." He reckoned, "Hey, I could use this situation to check out the Book we were vying for earlier."

    "Or not." He slouched, "Without ladders or wings, I can''t climb that high alone. Maybe if I used something sharp to ascend...?"

    He looked around the area, finding nothing of use initially. It was only after he removed his snazzy sunglasses did he realize the answer was staring right at him¡ªwell, the back of his head that is.

    "Oh right, the golden pickaxe!"

    And so, alone inside the one place he was forbidden to be in, Elegy began to ascend up the monolithic lectern atop which all the answers to this Heavenly mystery lied. The pick easily dug into the wood, allowing him a new place to jam his fingers into as a sort of checkpoint. It was quite literally carving out his own path for him.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Hngh...!" He grunted, "Nghhhh~"

    "Bzzt!"

    "Gyah-!?"

    A scrunching noise startled Elegy, causing him to slip and fall all the way to the bottom. It was the talkie in his back pocket, thankfully it didn''t break on impact.

    "Dammit, who is it!?" He shouted.

    Three voices, those of Migu, Energy and Sheep replied back with somewhat sheepish news. Migu wanted to report her success in motivating the other two to rejoin the cause, but a few problems persisted yet.

    "Dammit, she already did it?" He said, mic closed, "That should''ve taken her way longer! Hold on, I just got here, what do I say now?!"

    He tried ghosting the line, pocketing the talkie once more before starting his climb over from the beginning. As expected, Migu''s buzzes didn''t allow for this.

    "Stop buzzing me! You''ll throw off my rhythm!" He shouted at her.

    "We need orders." She immediately replied, "We were thinking of going to look for Hats next."

    Hats, the one currently under the spell of the cherubim. Currently, no one but Elegy knew of this being the case, and it was his intention to keep it that way until the matter was resolved. Though, he still needed to prepare something to say to them, but what would sound the most believable?

    "D-Don''t! Hats is-err, well..." Elegy interrupted her, "Sab and Nerys are on it, so don''t worry!"

    The last time she saw Elegy, Migu was fully convinced that Elegy had some sort of masterplan that involved those two. It was this exact fact that he leveraged in order to sell them this cheap lie. Of course the omniscient reader knows that Sab and Nerys were not in fact found by Elegy, at least not yet, but the ones on the other end of the line didn''t need to know that. He put the walkie talkie back in his pocket before slowly climbing up the side of the lectern.

    "Bzzt! So then-?"

    "I told you to stop calling me already!" Elegy fumed, "I need full concentration, this isn''t easy!"

    "Eh? S-Sorry..." She sulked, "Hey, what are you even doing right now?"

    At this time, the two Gods Prylos and Selzion were trapped down at the bottom of the hole Elegy had trapped them inside. They were far away from the group physically, but they could still possibly read their minds and find out Elegy''s ploy if he shared it with anyone. No, not yet he resolved. He won''t be revealing anything to anyone until the matter was already done and dusted.

    "I can''t tell you that." Elegy waited this time before climbing the wall again, "I knew it." He muttered, pressing the button on the side of the talkie.

    "Elegy, enough of this." Energy sounded annoyed, "Just tell us what to do next."

    "Oof, that''s, err..." He thought about it, "You could... No, that''s no good. Well maybe-! Nah, that''d ruin a bunch of things, actually."

    He had caught himself in his own web of lies. Sending them out to look for Sab and Nerys would be a job that would end in a flash thanks to Sheep''s archangel wings. A lot of confusion and doubt would arise if the two groups had somehow converged, so he had to think of an alternative. In the end, only one idea prevailed as the safest, though it would be a very steep price to pay.

    "Go vasta." He said with a guilty expression, "There you''ll find a hole with possibly some scary sounding voice yelling below."

    "Eh!? That sounds scary!" Migu winced, "What are we supposed to do there!?"

    "...Make sure nothing comes out."

    With this, their fate was sealed. Elegy knew his friends all too well¡ªtelling them to not let something happen is directly translated for them into do just that. He knew the group would end up messing up and unleashing the Gods way sooner than he had planned, but there was simply no other way to keep his plan going.

    "No matter, that just means I gotta pick up the pace before they inevitably get here!" He smirked, placing the walkie talkie in his pocket before striking the lectern''s wood with the pickaxe, "Just a quick glance at the Book and I''m off!"

    Climbing the lectern, opening the Book, reading all that was embedded within its pages, possibly even deciphering it... All this had to be done before the Gods had rushed the Abode and caught him. The words of the cherubim still rang out loudly in his head¡ªfinding out his identity was his primary goal.

    "Hup! Once I''m... done!" He slowly but surely made his way up, "I''ll, hup! Leave the yuh! Abode, and... Grm! Then I''ll go look for Sab and Nerys. It won''t be a lie if I find them eventually, so long as Migu and the others don''t find them first."

    A confusing plotline which even he himself cursed. The structure was too puzzling, the boomerang storytelling a terrible narrative choice. Regardless, it was this very chaotic world he afterlived in, and there was no other way around it but to accept it. Sab, as the Catalyst for Heaven''s Fall, simply had to be there for their fight against the cherubim. If that meant having to take the harder route, then Elegy was more than willing to do so. All this effort, all these risks and huge gambles... All just for the sake of Vastoria''s and their eternal happiness.

    "Just a bit more...!" He announced, climbing over the ledge, "Nggggah! Phew!"

    As expected, the closed Book that was larger than twice his size showed itself to him, but bore no information outright. Its Colors perplexing, its length dazzling. Just what kind of secrets would he find within its pages?

    "Find out next time, on Heaven''s Calling!" Elegy turned to the camera, "...''cause Gods know it''ll take me a while to even figure out how to open such a heavy thing."

    The fourth wall was in shambles, and so was he.

 Vol.7 Ch.158 - Autobalance

    "Oh, you''re still here?" He glanced behind himself, "I uhh, I thought you''d, y''know, go outside. Take a break, get yourself a cuppa'' joe."

    Clock''s ticking, and Elegy was making damn well sure each second was properly wasted. Talking to the audience instead of focusing on the issue as usual...

    "Alright, alright! I get it, you all wanna find out what happens next!" He interrupted himself, "Well, lucky for you¡ªso do I. First though, I really gotta figure out how to open this Book in the first place."

    Large as it was, more than twice his size even, the hard covers made it nigh impossible to even flip open a single page, much less all of them. Still, he reasoned, if the Gods didn''t want him opening it, then it has to contain something incredible.

    "Alright, let''s use some physics." He nodded, barely lifting up the very end of the Book''s cover and sliding the pickaxe inside, "Heh, how you like them apples! Way better leverage, tonnes easier to open!"

    Now he had the Book just barely opened, and even a few blotches of ink could be seen already. This was it, now all he had to do was move the pickaxe''s handle closer and closer to the spine, increasing the cover''s angle slowly but surely.

    "Okay, that''s step one. I''m sure you''re screaming praises at me from wherever you''re reading this." He winked, "But now, we still have some work to do. Namely, I gotta apply some good ol'' fashioned elbow grease as well to get the rest of the job done."

    Propping himself inside the Book''s cover, he put his back up against it and increasingly pried it open even more¡ªthis time with his body. It was difficult, his body felt like it was burning hot like lava, but he felt the strain was well worth it the moment the large cover flipped past 90 degrees. After that, gravity took over and the cover had been successfully flipped open. He could now finally read the words inscribed within this mysterious and powerful Book.

    "...Huh." He nodded, "I can''t read this."

    An ancient script? A foreign language? Bad handwriting? All of the above? Maybe it''s the last one, but in reality the answer was a lot more complex. Letters moved around the page, switched positions with other letters, appeared and disappeared, and constantly made it impossible to actually decipher it. Elegy was dealing with this chaos all at once.

    "My head''s starting to hurt the more I focus on the letters..." He rubbed his forehead, "Huh? Wait a second, did I just...!?"

    "T-The words!" He pointed at the top of the page, "If I Focus, I can actually make them stay in their correct positions! But how...?"

    No, now wasn''t the time to investigate how or why this was the case. In his heart, he knew there had to be an answer, a way to decrypt the dubious Book, but to think it''d outright reveal its secrets to him just like that. He felt extraordinarily lucky, and it was this euphoric feeling he had carried with him for the rest of the time he was reading.

    "The Book contains a collective summary of all that has been and all that will be in the Universe''s Cycle." He read aloud, "All characters are fictitious in nature and mustn''t be taken into consideration as anything but characters. This world holds no kings, peasants, dictators nor common men. There is no poor, no rich, no gifted, no talented. There exists merely a protagonist and the world around him."

    For what it''s worth, the Book was at the very least being transparent with him, at least at a glance. Elegy was given the truth behind this world on a silver platter¡ªa truth most would have difficulties understanding or accepting. And his reaction?

    "Pft, that''s kind of disappointing." He sighed, "And here I thought the Book would give me more info on who I am, but if there''s no such thing as anything but a hero and a setting, then it doesn''t even matter that much."

    Though, he reasoned, his Eyes just couldn''t stop inspecting the text that was progressively revealing itself to him. Like a curtain slowly being pulled aside, each word¡ªnay, each letter¡ªhaving been shown off masterfully. It teased him with the truth, knowing his thirst would guide him to greed for more.

    "But if there''s a protagonist, then who is it?" He wondered.

    He''d like to imagine it was him, or at the very least someone from their party, but it could also make sense for it to be one of the Gods. Or maybe he had it all wrong, and the main character was someone completely unrelated to their saga in general. In the end, the only way to figure this out would be to read on further.

    "A protagonist is identical to this world. Ever changing, forever adapting to the Eyes of its Beholder."

    "In other words, I''m my own protagonist." He rolled his Eyes, "If the Gods made this world, then they really did make it clich¨¦ to a fault. What is this, a fairy tale? I don''t want life lessons, darn it, I want to know what I shouldn''t be allowed to learn!"

    And so, as if hearing his honest demands, the Book responded in kind by heeding his instructions. The next page slowly flipped with him still standing on the current one. It covered him up and made him have to roll out to the side, but he eventually climbed back on properly. This time, the Book''s enchanted lexicons had already deciphered themselves to him. The answer was clear as day.

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    "The protagonist''s name was-"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Elegy!" A voice from the walkie talkie rang out, startling him.

    "Gyah! I said not to...!" Elegy paused, understanding the dire tone of the voice, "Wait, who is this?"

    "Never mind that! Run away, right this instant!" The voice instructed.

    Though its hasty tone was convincing his body to move impulsively, Elegy''s mind was sharp enough to deduce the situation from the vocals alone. Male voice, albeit a tad on the weaker side. It had to be someone with a walkie talkie, so the Gods were out of the question. Migu too, as her voice was far too feminine to match the description. This left a smaller group of people to pick and choose from, though he already knew it wasn''t Sab nor Nerys. Sab''s voice was sharp and strong, and Nerys'' accent would''ve given her away. Sheep and Energy too, since they were with Migu there was no way it was either one of them. This left only one possible suspect.

    "Hats, or rather¡ªcherubim." Elegy smirked, "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

    "Not the time, leave this instant!" Its panicked, quivering voice persisted from the speaker.

    "Sure, right before the big reveal." He cackled, "Ahem, the protagonist''s name...!"

    "You''ll revive!" The cherubim revealed.

    Silence. An unexpected revelation that was all too sudden for him to process. Revive, is this not what Elegy''s goal was from the start? And if figuring out his name and past identity would truly revive him, then why in the world should he not do so?

    "The protag-"

    "If you revive, you''ll be leaving the others to fend for themselves up here!" The cherubim further elaborated.

    "Oh. Should''ve said so from the start." Elegy finally peeled his Eyes off the Book he stood on, "Right, and this all is bad for my health... why?"

    "Elegy..." It took a moment to realize this fully, "I am not long for this world, it seems."

    "And now you''re wallowing in self-pity? To think the guardian of Heaven is such a wuss..."

    "Your prediction, nay, your prophecy... It may yet bear more fruit than I had originally assumed." It continued, "Your ally is on his way, Sab was it? He shall best me in the not so distant future. I... I pray for your aid."

    From taking control of Hats and coaxing him into meeting back up a second time, to now begging Elegy to save him. The cherubim''s goals were as puzzling as its own appearance was. And this news of Sab, it was foreign to Elegy just a moment ago. Another trap? Or perhaps misguided information? The cherubim spoke truthfully, its tone coarse and terrified.

    "So if I read my name out loud now and find out my identity, I''ll revive and finish what I set out to do here." Elegy reviewed, "But that''d mean leaving my friends to fight against the Gods without me."

    "Are you not hearing me!? Sab will-!"

    "Where is he right now?" Elegy interjected.

    "...D-District X, he''s trying to find his way over to you, but is having difficulties traversing the Gods'' Abode teleportation system." It explained, "The moment he stumbles upon District A, wherein I am located... it will spell my doom, for he is the one Catalyst of mine destruction."

    Finally, it clicked inside Elegy''s head just what the meaning of these words meant. A prophesized ending, one that is unavoidable so long as the conditions are met. These conditions most probably are that Sab and the cherubim meet. Of course, the cherubim dying is one of their goals, as its head is required for Vastoria to be cloned, or so the Gods suggest. But Elegy an alternative idea in mind...

    "Alright, I''m coming over." Elegy dangled his legs off the side of the lectern, "But I''ve got some demands as well."

    "Anything, just name it!"

    "Firstly, free Hats." He stated, "Give him his motivation back too, he''s on our side now."

    The cherubim bit its tongue, "Done! A-As soon as this conversation is over, he will be free to do as he pleases!"

    "Good, next up¡ªI might need your help against Sab." He continued, "If I''m gonna be helping you, don''t expect to be made into the pretty princess that does jack squat while her White knight swoops in to save her."

    "I had no such intentions anyways!"

    "In that case, final demand..." Elegy could barely hold back a wry smirk, "I''m planning on dissolving the pickaxe and using that gold to create a proper neck for Vastoria."

    "T-that''s-!?" It raised its voice, "No, it''s impossible... Only the Gray room''s machinery could operate on Heavenly Beings, a spoof amateur operation as the one you suggest would most certainly not work!"

    "Is that a fact or an assumption?"

    "As..." The cherubim finally paused, taking a while before laughing from the other end of the line, "You are a once in a millennium child, fool."

    "I''ll take that as a compliment. Now, wait for me."

    Ending transmission, Elegy plopped the walkie talkie back in his back pocket before slowly turning around to climb down the same lectern face he carved a path up from. With the sharp end of the pickaxe, the climb down was a cinch. Though it''s a shame he had to purposefully hold off on his main goal, one that was even within arm''s reach in this case, he still didn''t mind it.

    "This is for everyone else''s sake too." He muttered to himself, "Can''t be selfish, L."

    As he ran out of the mansion and into the spacious yard, he recalled to go back in and visit district G briefly.

    "I can''t run that fast with this thing on me, plus I might accidentally hurt Sab with it." He said, digging a small hole in the clouds before placing the pick inside, "Migu and the others will take way better care of it anyways."

    And with that, he ran back inside the mansion, causing it to shift his location. Stepping out at the exact 26th of a second, he had found himself once again at the cherubim''s district¡ªthis supposed Center of Heaven.

    "Looks like Sab still hasn''t made it yet, I''m on good pace." He nodded, that confident smile of his disappearing in a second, exchanged to that of slight worry and disgruntlement, "Or maybe he''s already there..."

    A leisurely stroll turned into a walk. The walk turned into a gait. The gait, a jog¡ªand then he ran. As fast as he could, until it was a sprint. The cherubim''s life, as well as all of their happiness, was in grave danger.

 Vol.7 Ch.159 - Pink Skies

    Elegy ran until the sky had turned pink. Around him even the clouds disappeared as his mind adjusted to the cherubim''s domain. A small part of him worried this was nothing more than a trap to lead him astray, but he knew there was no risk in meeting up with the cherubim. After all, his Wildcard status would protect him from demotivation.

    "Halt, ye who enter." A soothing female voice beckoned him, "Just kidding, welcome back."

    "Tch, should you be making light of the situation you''re in?" Elegy groaned, "Cracking jokes while your life''s in jeopardy..."

    "There is no risk now, for you are here to protect me." It revealed itself, its uncanny appearance a mix of Red and pink, "We meet again."

    "Don''t get it twisted, my plan remains the same either way." He crossed his arms with a pout, "I''m just making sure everyone survives until the end."

    The cherubim blinked seductively, "Even me?"

    "See, now you''re getting it twisted."

    For the amount of panic in the cherubim''s voice earlier, it really does seem to have calmed down significantly now that Elegy is around. Sab is supposedly going to be making his appearance soon as well, and when that happens, it''s Elegy''s job to keep him from killing the cherubim.

    "Phew, if I had known I''d still have ample time after the fact, I wouldn''t have rushed down here as fast..." He laid down on the soft ground beneath him, "Let''s kill some time while we wait for him."

    "Ah, do you suppose a game would be satisfactory-?"

    "Cherubim, I need you to tell me how to save Vastoria." He stared directly at it, "My way."

    It gulped. The very protector of Heaven 2.0, guardian of the Heavenly Beings itself, was too terrified to even let out a soft whimper. Despite its title, it saw its own fate get cut short by Sab of all people, and now even has to bow its head down to its former adversary, Elegy. For a being that consistently preaches how fates are inescapable and unchangeable, it sure did find itself in an unexpected twist.

    Telling him now would only serve to motivate him to cause more trouble, but the cherubim''s figurative hands were tied. No matter how it sliced it, there was no other way to appease him and get him to stay here and protect it. With a long, drawn out sigh, the cherubim revealed the real truth behind his plan.

    "To be completely honest, your plan is far too childish and naive to work."

    "Eh?" Elegy paused, "W-Wait, childish?"

    "Dissolve the metal in the pickaxe and mold it into a golden neck for Vastoria." The cherubim recalled, "To begin with, this material is night impossible to break, and the heat required to melt something like it would have to rival that of a Divine Sun."

    "Divine Sun?"

    "A Sun personally created by the Sun God, Ouroboras." It elaborated, "Mind you, even if you did somehow accomplish this, you''d need to mold it. Something like a neck isn''t as simple as making a cylinder out of gold. You''d need to chart out airways, pipes, vocal cords and even parts of the tongue. It''s simply too complex a job, hence why even the Gods automated it with a machine."

    "And that machine was the bed inside the Shrine..." Elegy sulked.

    Nothing like the guilt of knowing you yourself are the cause behind all of your problems. During the fight against the Queen Bat Roach, Elegy had to call in some help from Hats and sacrifice the bed so they could defeat it. It worked, but in doing so the bed got completely destroyed, never to be seen whole again.

    "Sorry about that." He felt nothing else could be said.

    The cherubim giggled, "You should be apologizing to yourself more so than me, in that case."

    "But is there really no easier way, then?"

    The cherubim paused to think for a moment.

    "You''re not exactly on the wrong track, per se." It admitted.

    He blinked, "I''m not?"

    "Well, as outlandish as the idea sounds, it''s probably your best shot at fixing Vastoria''s state without going about it as how the Gods intend it."

    Although highly improbable to pull off, the cherubim still commended Elegy greatly for thinking of such a well-thought out plan. This also served as a great segue into the cherubim''s next topic.

    "Though, I highly doubt the Gods would be willing to listen to you." It smirked, "Me, on the other hand? I harbor no villainy toward any of you. I am nothing if not a neutral advocate of peace and protection to all."

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    "I see, in other words, you''re willing to help us do it." Elegy nodded.

    "But remember, this won''t work if Sab ends up killing me." It explained, "And though the Gods are correct in their assumption that I won''t die from a simple beheading, I fear that what that man has in store for me is far more lethal."

    Such scary words are being used to describe that Sab of all people. For the record, Elegy had never once considered him a threat¡ªneither to his own team nor their adversaries. There was that one moment where Sab personally killed the White Monster, but even then it ended up losing Hats his arm.

    "E-Eep!" The cherubim whimpered, hiding its face behind its wings.

    "Huh? What''s wrong?" Elegy furrowed his brows.

    "B-Behind you!" It yelped, "He''s here..."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Lo and behold, the second Elegy had turned around, he saw a figure walking towards them in the distance. A lone man, one without any golden parts to speak of. As expected, Nerys didn''t seem to be with him this time. An odd sight, for certain.

    "Don''t worry, I''ll handle it." Elegy solemnly nodded.

    From afar, Sab caught a glimpse of Elegy before waving over to him with a harmless smile. This only served to confuse him more, yet the cherubim''s pure feelings of terror quelled Elegy''s doubts.

    "Yoohoo! Elegy!"

    Elegy hollered back, "Oiiii!"

    The more Sab approached them, the more Elegy''s heart began to race. Does Sab not yet see the cherubim? Shouldn''t he be angry at it if it''s his fate to kill it? If so, then why is he only reacting to Elegy?

    Suddenly, a grim idea appeared in Elegy''s mind¡ªpossibly, this was all a trap. The last time they saw each other, Elegy understood that Sab and the others were taken control of briefly by the cherubim to be told to stop their delusions. Chances were this Sab was still hypnotized, so to speak, hence the lack of a reaction to the cherubim. Now it all made sense, Elegy had to act fast before something really bad happened.

    "S-Stop!" He put his hands out.

    "Huh?" Sab did as he was told, "Elegy, what''s up? Boy, I''m so happy to see you again, after we split up-"

    "Don''t come any closer, stand over there!" Elegy demanded.

    Sab was dangerous, yes, but not to the cherubim. In this moment, Elegy had found himself trapped between two enemies on both sides, and though he wanted to move aside, he knew better than to make any rash moves. Anxiously, he felt the sweat off his brow fall as he began this life or death conversation.

    "Sab, did you come here from the Gods'' Abode?"

    A simple question, but one that could easily prove all of his doubts if answered properly. If the cherubim kept him near the area to be used as a pawn, then the answer should be "No". Of course, saying yes could only either indicate lying or remove a bit of suspicion from Sab, both possibilities having already been accounted for.

    "Man, I don''t even know." Sab brushed him off casually.

    "Huh?" Elegy paused, "Eh? How do you not know which way you came from?"

    "Dude, all I remember is being told to stop my nonsense and leaving you guys alone. Then I wandered around for a while before realizing it was kind of a dick move to just up and abandon you, so I came back. By the way, where are the others?"

    So he never left. Odd, given the cherubim stated he was teleporting around using the Abode''s powers. Or possibly this was all a fabricated lie as well. Because he gave an unexpected answer, Elegy has to think up new routes the conversation can follow on the fly. A bad situation to be put in, but he has no choice.

    "They''re all doing their part." Elegy brushed off his query, "Anyway, Sab, if you wanna help, then go in this direction and you''ll eventually spot the Gods'' Abode."

    "Ehh? Come with!" He invited him.

    "I got something I gotta do over here." Elegy glanced back at the cherubim, "So you just go back to district G and uhh... Oh yeah, we''re still looking for Nerys, so you can just help us find her!"

    "Eh? But she''s standing right behind you?"

    Another unexpected answer. So Sab began to see the cherubim''s head as Nerys. This must be why he doesn''t seem too scared to be around them. No, right now Elegy can''t be trusting a single word that''s coming out of this guy''s mouth. The fact that he''s trying to lead Elegy away from the cherubim is also not helping his case.

    "Sab, go back to the Abode and enter and exit until you step out into district G." Elegy glared at him from their distance.

    "Hey, don''t get snappy with me."

    "Sab-!"

    Suddenly, a strong force pushed Elegy''s back, shoving him towards Sab. The cherubim, perhaps? Either way, it didn''t amount to much¡ªthankfully Elegy had prepared for this double crossing and properly distanced himself from Sab.

    "Eh? But if that''s the case, why is his face right in front of mine?" Elegy muttered to himself.

    "G-Guhhh..."

    "Sab? You alright, buddy?"

    "Guhhhack!" He choked on some blood.

    "Sab! Oh my Gods!"

    Elegy was scared and confused. Why were they within inches of each other, why was Sab''s expression so grim, why wasn''t he saying something, and now¡ªwhy is there blood coming out of his mouth? Finally, Elegy had steeled his resolve to look down and find all his answers bundled into one.

    "Ah, this wasn''t a trap for me." He uttered, pulling out a bloody fist from Sab''s abdomen, "I''m the one being controlled by the cherubim."

    "Ghuuuhhhh...!" Sab struggled to breathe as he fell to the floor, a hole punched clean through his stomach.

    "That push earlier, it wasn''t from the cherubim physically shoving me..." Elegy craned his head back to see the empty expanse glare back at him, "It told me to kill him. It ordered me and then left when it saw its chance."

    Sab was still bleeding out profusely on the ground before him. Without any form of healthcare or first aid, those wounds would undoubtedly lead to death. Yet, they were surrounded by nothing but pink skies and clear White clouds. All alone for miles on end, with only the two of them to rely upon, Elegy could only stare blankly at his dying friend, constantly muttering the brilliance of their enemy''s cunning.

    "The cherubim protects those who want to be protected..." He muttered to himself, "And to those who wish to die, it says onto them¡ªdie, for I shall help you achieve said goal as well."

    Another blink and the mind control was cut off. Elegy was now made fully aware of his actions towards Sab, and left with nothing but the aftermath of the situation he had no say nor intention of doing, he silently stared down in internalized agony. The Staples of Heaven won once more.

 Vol.7 Ch.160 - Ultimatum

    Around the unfortunate duo skies of pink returned to azure hue. Kneeling on the ground in front of Sab''s jittering body, Elegy examined the wound.

    "It''s... healing." He noticed.

    But of course, though the gaping hole through Sab''s stomach would have instantly killed any human down in the Living World, they are angels now. Tendon by tendon, organ by organ, the hole had repaired itself until Sab could properly breathe again. Soon enough, he could properly speak too.

    "Gu-huuuuhh..." He barely breathed in again, "That was... unpleasant..."

    "Sorry, did it hurt?" Elegy replied with a curious question.

    Sab answerer, "It felt like getting the wind knocked out of me, multiplied by getting my spine realigned."

    A painful description, but overall the best outcome that could have occurred given the situation. At the very least, it''s better than dying.

    "Right, so, are you gonna explain to me why you just did that?" Sab casually spoke to him.

    "I was tricked by the cherubim." Elegy shook his head, "I let my guard down thinking I was safe from its control."

    Not only did the cherubim manage to keep Elegy away from finding out what was written in the Book, but it also successfully avoided its own fate by pitting the two against each other. A cunning beast, one that knows trickery like the back of its figurative hand.

    "Okay, I trust you." Sab nodded, accepting the info surprisingly quickly, "There was nothing you could have done, and hey¡ªI''m still alive and well."

    "What now?"

    "Well, not much has changed, has it? The cherubim has always been, and continues to be, our enemy." Sab shrugged, "You reckon we have time to catch up to it?"

    "With those wings it has, I doubt we''d be able to outpace it..." Elegy sulked.

    The harsh reality was that the sky had already turned Blue around them, indicating the cherubim''s signature pink sky domain was distant. Given they had barely any navigation to work off of in district A, and now coupled with the fact that their target was moving aimlessly through the expanse¡ªfinding the cherubim a second time would be like finding a needle in a wheat silo.

    "When I find that thing...!" Sab smirked proudly, "You best believe I''ll be beating it to death a thousand fold!"

    "..."

    "What? Don''t tell me you''re thinking of sparing it?"

    Elegy replied, "I don''t know. We might need its help to bring Vastoria back."

    "Is that the issue? ''Cause if it is, we can do it without the cherubim."

    Elegy was thrown for a loop. Granted, he had the basic idea of how he was gonna go about it, but even the cherubim outright stated the method would be a rather difficult one. Nay, damn near impossible. To mold the pickaxe''s gold into such a precise shape as a human neck, it''s unheard of.

    "And what makes you so sure we don''t need its help?" Elegy asked.

    "Pft, you kidding? It''ll be easier to work without that backstabbing trickster than to work with it." He smirked, "Now come on, let''s go find it and end its suffering."

    "Wait a second, why would it be suffering?"

    "When''d you get so dense, Elegy?" Sab smiled wryly, "We''ll be the ones causing it all the suffering, and personally cut it short! Bahaha!"

    It appears this most recent traumatic experience had left a hard to remove stain on Sab''s heart. He was a changed man, one that wasn''t just going to let some beast of Heaven almost kill him and get away with it. This holds especially true when you take into account all the smug aura it exuded for the entire duration of its conversations with them.

    "The sky''s turning pink again." Elegy noted, "Urk, no. I''m starting to see things."

    "...Or maybe you''re not." Sab turned around, "Yeah, it''s headed this way. We''ll use the sky as a proximity detector!"

    Running around in what felt like circles for what felt like an everlasting eternity, the two boys had found themselves still stuck in nowhere-land. Despite their best efforts, it seems rushing towards the cherubim only served to tire them out and nothing else. Even the cherubim, a being with wings tons faster than their legs, had been supposedly mocking them with this charade. Constantly slowing down to give them the faintest of hope only to quickly turn the sky Blue right from over them. The boys were getting impatient.

    "Alright, I give up." Said Sab suddenly.

    "Eh?" Elegy jolted, "Wait, what? But weren''t you just now on about...?"

    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

    "Sst, you didn''t let me finish." Sab laid down on the ground, "I give up on running around chasing after the thing, it''s too tiring and it''s obvious it''ll never let us reach it."

    "So, you got a better idea?"

    Though he was the one to ask, Elegy already had a rough guess as to where this conversation was going. For the past while, he had been keeping track of their direction so as to not get lost. At the very least, he had come to the realization that the cherubim was going around in circles. Hence, some assumptions can be made in accordance to this.

    "The cherubim could''ve booked it to the Abode and left to go to another district, but it''s still here, just out of reach." Sab explained, "Don''t you find that odd?"

    Elegy responded, "Hmm, I see what you mean."

    "This is just a theory, but I think it doesn''t have the ability to leave the district in general." Sab elaborated, "Either that, or it''d be put in a huge disadvantage. But no matter how you slice it, that''s not something it wants to have happen."

    Lying down on the floor, Sab had decided it was time for some camouflage. Using the surrounding clouds to bury himself in the shroud of pure White, his skin melded perfectly with the Colors. After him, Elegy followed suit.

    "If you can''t chase the prey, wait for it to come for you!"

    Now came the waiting game.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The cherubim flew for a while more, though not sensing a change in its hunters'' positions.

    "Have they given up?" It asked itself, "Have they been stopped by a third party?"

    "No, far more likelier than that... They have switched up their strategy." It grunted.

    The cherubim has the ability of convincing and controlling a set amount of people, or a single Wildcard, but never both at the same time. It already threw itself in front of harm''s way to avoid having Elegy read the Book inside the Gods'' Abode, but now it has to hold out until help from the Gods arrives. This situation was seemingly becoming less and less hopeful.

    "Hmph, so they believe me to be so simple." It laughed at them smugly, "Hiding among the dirty clouds of which your body''s Colors draw inspiration from. How incredibly moronic of you, I expected more!"

    For a second, it considered taking a rest as well. Of course flying is tough, so why not? After all, no one was chasing after it...

    "No, I mustn''t get complacent." It quickly began moving again, "One small victory means nothing against them. I am dealing with a Wildcard of all people, so the last thing I should be doing is underestimating their danger levels..."

    The flying had become a gentle floating with max speeds barely even reaching a running gait. Despite putting on all those airs, the cherubim was taking it easy. It considered that wasting energy on useless running would exhaust it before anything could even happen, so the decision wasn''t at all a hard one to make. After a while, it saw in the distance a mansion.

    "The Gods'' Abode." It admired it briefly, "I must say, a splendid idea from the Gods. Incredible, simply amazing."

    To think, Elegy was inside that very building not too long ago. He had somehow managed to enter inside without the Gods being around to teleport him back, he had somehow climbed up the lectern, he had somehow opened the Book...

    "Wait, isn''t this a bit too much, even for a Wildcard?" The cherubim paused, "No wait, how come one person had made it this far. There''s gotta be some sort of mistake!"

    If Elegy really was seconds away from reading the Book, then maybe he already did read it. It knew that the moment he had read his name, he would have been revived, but since Heaven 2.0 is beyond time, then his soul would have just continued to exist here in no time at all. Maybe... Maybe Elegy did reincarnate, and the reason they''ve stopped tailing it was because he was explaining all this to Sab. Letting one person reincarnate would lead the cherubim to a heavy punishment from the Gods, but letting two go? That''s far too much.

    "I-I need to find them...!" It quickly scanned the area, "U-Uhhh, that way!"

    Flapping its wings wildly, the cherubim desperately began to search for the duo. Somehow, the tables had been turned, and it soon began cussing out Sab for his ingenious plan.

    "For you to force me to actively look for you instead of the other way around...!" It muttered, "I need to find them, I need to make sure they''re not exchanging important information...!"

    It flies past a tiny mound in the otherwise flat cloudy terrain. The mound shakes and tumbles, revealing two angels hidden inside it.

    "Bah! Why didn''t you let me attack it!?" Elegy grinded his teeth, "It didn''t notice us!"

    "That''s exactly why." Sab shot back, "It''d just run away again if we exposed ourselves. Instead, why don''t we let it stress itself into a corner some more before we make our move?"

    Sab was eager to play the long game. The theory checks out¡ªif the cherubim really wanted to, it could have left the district at any time, but it still decided to stay here. Possibly, there was something stopping it. Some kind of rule or barrier...

    "By the way, what did it mean by exchanging important information?" Sab turned to him.

    "Beats me. Although..." Elegy thought about it in a bit more detail, "Before I met up with the cherubim, I was on top of the lectern in the Gods Abode."

    "Eh!? Say that sooner then!" Sab raised his voice, "The Hell were you doing there...?"

    "Take a wild guess."

    Once more, Sab had lost himself in thought before snapping out of it excitedly. He stood up, dusting off all the clouds from his body, much to Elegy''s confusion.

    "Hey, what happened to playing the long game?" Elegy inquired.

    "We''re still doing that, just a bit differently!" Sab nodded decidedly, "Let''s go take a look at that Book again!"

    The cherubim was terrified of a few things¡ªletting the two exchange information, and letting the two progress on their investigation. Both possibilities made its breath grow ragged and its wings flap wilder, so it was safe to assume that it would immediately pick up their scent inside the Gods'' Abode and start panicking.

    "Even back while I was inside, the cherubim had to talk to me through Hats'' microphone." Elegy recalled, "Yeah, it''s possible the cherubim can''t enter the Abode!"

    "In that case, we''ll be giving it a nasty ultimatum indeed!" Sab gave him a high five, "Let''s see what it''ll choose¡ªto let us progress, or to break an ironclad rule it has!"

    The two had made it in front of the gates. They entered the yard, walked down the long pathways, strolled past the fountain, and stood in front of the titanic double doors. Elegy felt it necessary to announce a few things ahead of time.

    "I dug out a climbing route on the lectern with the golden pick, but who knows if it''s still there."

    "Even if it''s not, just the mere fact that we''re cutting off its one and only exit is enough." Sab shook his head, "The cherubim is looking to find us, but it also supposedly can''t enter the Abode. We got this in the ba-"

    The cherubim cleared its throat behind them, "Ahem."

 Vol.7 Ch.161 - Turn-based

    "I don''t believe my countless Eyes." The cherubim giggled, "Instead of chasing after me and wasting even more of your precious time, you opted to go straight back to investigating the matter on the Book."

    "Sorry, but we can''t play for long." Elegy smirked back, "We''re on a tight schedule, you know. The Gods could have climbed out of the hole I dug them in right as we speak."

    "Eh? Hole?" Sab turned to him briefly.

    A standoff, or rather a death sentence. The only query left now is whether the sentence is addressed to the cherubim or these two. The duo was standing right in front of the Abode''s entrance, they were this close to entering it... But the cherubim had already caught on to their plans.

    "You understand there''s nothing to be done now, don''t you?" The cherubim tilted its female head cutely, "As for the Gods, they''re already inside, duking it out with Hats and the others."

    Sab''s Eyes shrunk back, "In that case, we have to-!"

    "Don''t open the door!" Elegy stopped him.

    Tensions were high, so rash decisions were bound to occur eventually. Sab hadn''t yet realized that entering the Abode in his haste would only doom their entire party altogether.

    "What''s wrong with you? We need to help save them!" He protested.

    "Your friend Elegy is actually thinking with his brains, Sab." The cherubim backed away slightly, giving them some breathing room, "If the Gods are inside the Abode, what makes you think you''ll have any power inside there?"

    "Powers? We have no powers even out here!" Sab yelled out.

    Immediately, the sentence he uttered in his fit of rage enlightened him to the truth of the matter. They have no power, no strength, no weapons. All they have is a walkie talkie to their name, and some clothes to boot. On the other hand, the cherubim is strong enough to take control of everyone safe from Elegy, so if they three had invited themselves into the already uphill battle, they''d certainly be done for.

    "That was close..." Sab gulped.

    "So, you''re gonna let us fight you 2-on-1 out here in district A, huh?" Elegy put his palm on the doors, "Odd how you''d actively prop us up on an even playing field when victory is your end goal."

    "My end goal is to protect everyone." The beast prepared itself for a lunge, "Though seemingly paradoxical in your ex-mortal Eyes, to a cherubim like me, it makes perfect sense to even harm someone in order to accomplish that."

    "Pheh, some joke you are." He let go, understanding the cherubim wasn''t bluffing, "In that case¡ªSab."

    "Hm?"

    "There''s a strong chance the cherubim takes control of one of us midway through battle, but we have a card up our sleeve." Elegy explained, "The cherubim can only control a single Wildcard or a larger group of Heavenly Beings."

    "Wait, so that means...!"

    "You got it, since we''re the only two here, and I''m a Wildcard...!" Elegy turned back to face the cherubim head on, "It can''t control both of us to call off the battle like it did the previous times!"

    A battle that simply can''t be postponed anymore. The cherubim tried and failed to get them off its back, but they persevered until the perfect setup was achieved. If it kept running away like a coward, the boys would just enter the Abode to help Migu and the others. On the other hand, fighting them is going to prove difficult, what with Elegy''s physical prowess and Sab''s murderous intent.

    "Don''t get too cocky now." The cherubim reminded them, "I can still control one of you."

    "And we''ll be ready when you do." Elegy fistbumped his pal, only to run to the opposite side and have them surround it on all fronts.

    "Kheh." The beast let out a weak chuckle, "This sucks."

    Immediately, a flash of light blinded the boys; its piercing glow burning its way into their retinas. Soon after, they were both flung into the sky, unable to even dodge without knowing what had hit them. The cherubim made its first move.

    "Sa-URK!"

    "El-GHA!"

    One gut punch for Elegy, then another for Sab. Rinse, repeat until they were both out of breath, all the while they were being suspended helplessly in the air. The cherubim had the speed to keep them separated from one another and still switch between both of them, and it used that speed effectively. As it stood, this battle was already over as soon as it began.

    "Sa-" Elegy yelled, "I''m call-" He struggled, "Backup!"

    "Oh no you don''t!" The cherubim smacked the walkie talkie out of his hands, "Not like anyone would be able to do a thing about it anyways, haha!"

    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

    "Crap...!"

    Despite their best efforts, even the one item they had at their disposal was thrown away just like that. The cherubim kept piling on hit after hit, constantly keep them in the same elevation. It wasn''t even game over, rather the game hadn''t ever even started to begin with. Regardless of strength or intellect, the power gap between an angel and a cherubim is simply too large...

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Elegy-!"

    "I''m here-!"

    "They comin-!?"

    "How many times do I have to tell you!" The cherubim got annoyed slightly, "No one''s coming! Besides, even if someone did hear you distress signal and walked out just as the Abode moved them to district A, we''re so high up they couldn''t possibly reach you!"

    The cherubim wasn''t even getting winded from this incessant back and forth. Zipping from one to another was a simple feat for the beast, and yet it found great joy and purpose in doing so. In purposefully wasting their energy and time with this maneuver, the cherubim allowed the Gods to properly finish their own side of the battle without interruptions. As for these two, all they could do was hopelessly take the hits.

    "You''re, so, goddamned, dead-!"

    "Elegy! Calm, down-!" Sab realized, "Hm?"

    As if noticing something after a while of this combo lock, Sab had enough time to register the true meaning behind Elegy''s distress signal. Rather than alerting the others of their predicament, Elegy had merely used the fact that he could as an excuse to throw off the cherubim''s timing.

    An elevation imbalance. Due to Elegy getting the walkie talkie forcefully smacked out of him before he could say anything, he actually had to take three hits for that one cycle. In other words, Sab was being kept afloat a tad lower than his ally. This was the key, the secret Elegy was waiting for Sab to understand.

    "10..." Sab began a count.

    "Huh?" The cherubim furrowed its brows once it noticed him try to stall by dodging the blow, "What are you on about?"

    "11!" Elegy shouted behind it, finally alerting it to focus on him too, "Gah!"

    "You''re counting up?" It inquired, "To what? Why start from te-"

    "9...!" Sab hid his smirk.

    "Now a nine...? You morons think you can confuse me with this!?"

    No, this wasn''t some odd count; it was a countdown, and they were both keeping track of their own ones. The name of the game was stalling out each one of its attacks to lose a smidge of airtime at a time, and given their limited space for freely talking, something as simple as an array of numbers would more than suffice.

    In truth, any numbers would do, but giving the cherubim a sense of urgency as well as the slightest hint of confusion was more than enough to make its initial hits miss on occasion. And when the count got low...

    "3... 2... 1...!" Elegy glanced down at Sab, "Zero, now!"

    The cherubim flipped its head back over at Sab, "Wha-!?"

    But nothing had happened. Another strike to the gut and everyone was still within its control. Or at least, that''s what it seemed like to the worn cherubim, but they were actually whole tens of meters below their original starting point. This was it, an offset reverse ladder climb.

    "Heh, still haven''t figured it out yet?" Sab smirked, now even having the time to form a short sentence before getting interrupted.

    "Quit pretending, you did nothing!"

    "Oh, I wouldn''t say that." Elegy continued where they had left off, "Just look up high." He pointed.

    The cherubim, now mentally exhausted from maintaining the long combo, didn''t think twice about doing just that, not realizing it was letting Elegy fall an entire 50 centimeters before it continued the chain. Now he and Sab were equally as high.

    "Now look down." Sab pointed.

    "Not gonna happen!" The cherubim retorted smugly.

    "But your ears are pointed down."

    "Wh-! Ear-? Did you get brain damage!?" It yelled out its confusion.

    These Red herrings, coupled with the random meaningless comments and instructions sprinkled in, all served their purpose to further throw off the cherubim and lower them down more and more. By this point, the roof of the Abode was already in sight, yet the cherubim couldn''t notice this at all.

    "Not even gonna look at me anymore?" Elegy smugly noted, "Your Eyes are afraid."

    The cherubim smacked him around an extra few times, "What did you do? Hey, tell me! What happened!?"

    It was beginning to even doubt itself. Surely its ears weren''t pointed down. Ears can''t typically do that on their own, or can they? And how come its Eyes aren''t looking at Elegy if it sees him clearly? Confusion amassed in its head until it could no longer discern right from left, up from down. And when all was said and done...

    "Sab!" Elegy yelled.

    "On it!"

    Accepting the gut punch with grace, Sab clung on to the wing that struck him until it carried him over to Elegy. Locking arms, the two were now successfully reunited, but that wasn''t all.

    "Bastards...!" The cherubim grunted, hitting them repeatedly with a barrage of attacks.

    Cuts, slices, punches and slashes all made their way to the duo, but unlike before, the cherubim had completely lost its rhythm. Since their angelic bodies nullified all physical damage, this was mostly just a matter of the cherubim desperately holding onto the chain, but it was all for naught. Tired and mentally drained, it eventually slipped one too many times, and didn''t have the strength to recover, thus allowing the two to fall all the way down to the front of the Abode at mach speed.

    The cloudy dust dispersed around them as the two quickly stood up, still linking forearms to avoid getting sent back into the same attack once more. They had successfully gotten out of this skillful display from the cherubim, but when it came to actually figuring out a way to deal damage or even take it down, they were still fresh out of luck.

    "...Quick, dig!" Elegy ducked down in a hurry.

    Sab had to take a moment to process this, "A-Again?"

    "It can''t fling us into the air if we''re underground!" He explained, "If we fight underground, it won''t be able to fly as freely as well! We might be able to trap it!"

    "Ohhh, good idea!"

    Thus, the two used up all of the time they had until the cherubim descended back down to dig themselves a small tunnel. The tunnel was covered up with clouds to allow them as much time as possible to make the necessary preparations, and even then it was a tight fit for just the two of them¡ªlet alone the cherubim as well.

    "Shh, it''s coming down now." Elegy hushed Sab.

    "..."

    The air was thick and coarse to breathe in. Panic and anxiety were at an all-time high as they both anticipated the direction of the cherubim''s next attack. Briefly, Sab unlinked from Elegy''s forearm.

    "Hey, we still need to-"

    Crack, Elegy''s neck was snapped just like that. The cherubim had taken control of Sab while their guard was down. Another loss on their side...

 Vol.7 Ch.162 - No Need For Protection

    Elegy was brutally killed by a mind-controlled Sab inside the underground tunnel of clouds and stone. The cherubim descended gracefully to the surface above them, smacking its lips deliciously at the deliverance of its enemies'' defeat.

    "Come forth, Sab." Its voice mimicked that of Nerys, "Bring him to me before his neck heals."

    "Yeah, okay." He replied, slowly poking his hand out of the cloudy ground.

    Barely even lifting himself up, much less the dead body he was carrying, Sab had found himself annoying the cherubim pretty dangerously. Though unintentional on his part, it still caused the beast to angrily grab his arm by force and lift him up that way. The result, a disgraceful welcome.

    "Ugh, can''t even lift up a body right!" It hissed at him, "Damn, did you drop him!?"

    "Sorry, you surprised me and-"

    The cherubim roared, "I don''t care for excuses!"

    Though Elegy''s neck was snapped cleanly just a few moments ago, that didn''t mean he was out for good. No, angels and other Heavenly Beings can''t die unless they''re mortally wounded in their gilded parts. That, or they get wounded inside the barrier of the Shrine, though that opportunity has long passed for this duo. Nay, Elegy would heal back up to full soon enough, and the cherubim needs to make sure he doesn''t do that anywhere nearby.

    "Geez, you just had to dig a tight hole... Ugh!" The cherubim gave up, "Sab, get in there and find him!"

    "On it!" He gave a hearty salute.

    Immediately bolting it into the tunnel, Sab disappeared into the endless Whiteness without a trace. The cherubim, now being left alone, had grown anxious of the possibilities.

    "He should be waking up soon..." It worried, "What if that Elegy surprises me while I''m waiting for them to come out of this hole. What if...!"

    Possibly, they''re inside digging out another hole to exit from. The cherubim was already more than convinced of their true battle intellect, so it wouldn''t be below them to try such a conniving tactic. It flew up, both for its safety and for a better view of the surroundings.

    "You can''t hide from me!" It muttered, it''s hundreds of Eyes scanning every possible point they could emerge from, "The second you surface, it''ll be like a hawk taking its prey!"

    It was at this moment that the cherubim recalled the previous times they had done something like this. It groaned at the amount of times they annoyed the cherubim by stalling needlessly for time. But, it reasoned, it always seemed to work out for them. Thus, the cherubim felt stupid.

    "What am I doing? Afraid of a few lowly angels..." It sighed, descending back down to the ground, when suddenly!

    "We''re back!" Sab poked his head out.

    "Gyahhh!"

    A girlish shriek, the only thing making things weirder was that Sab heard it with Nerys'' vocal cords. It was embarrassed by its own shameful display, but found it thankful that Sab was under its control, and Elegy still dead.

    "O-Oh, so you are." The cherubim giggled nervously, "Thank you, Sab. Please drop him on the ground in front of me."

    "Gotcha." He nodded, plopping his friend haphazardly on the floor, "Like this?"

    "Exactly, that''s all for now."

    Elegy''s neck was twisted in a weird angle, and his body remained limp and motionless on the clouds below. A gruesome sight, but to the cherubim it was a feast for the Eyes. The Wildcard was dealt with, and now that he could no longer fight back, the cherubim was free to break, contort and trap him in any position it so desired. All this to ensure he would never wake up to hunt it down again. After that, Sab would soon follow.

    "Stay here, I''ll be back after I''m done with him." The cherubim announced.

    Sab smirked back, "You got it!"

    And like that, the beast whisked Elegy away in its winged embrace. Taking him high into the sky, the dizzying heights and speeds would make anyone vomit, but it was better than that. It cared not for Elegy''s comfort, his little twitches, the contortions of his body...

    "Wait, no-!"

    "Boo!"

    Elegy had seemingly arisen just like that, though that obviously wasn''t the case. His neck was broken, such a critical wound should have taken a lot longer to heal, yet here he is good as new. No, the trick here came from when the cherubim left them below ground.

    "Y-You woke up down there!" The cherubim said, struggling to steer itself midflight.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    "Played opossum, as they say!" He quipped, "Even fooled the almighty Sab. Hey, not half bad if I do say so myself!"

    "Grr...! No, you gain nothing from this!" The cherubim lashed out, "Taking me down... taking us down! We''re both immortal, there''s nothing to do!"

    "Hmph. Wanna bet on it?" He raised an Eyebrow, "How about this? I steer us to slam into the ground at full speed."

    "The hell''s that gonna accomplish?"

    "Well, think of it like this." He replied, "Either we both get freed from this cursed world or you get another chance at being the immortal badass that doesn''t fear death."

    "What are you even saying!?"

    "Shut up, I''m borrowing a quote from a book!"

    Though Elegy said this, it was far from his intent to go straight down. Given his position, it was entirely up to Elegy to decide where they would land. The cherubim had no control over him, but instead it was the other way around.

    "H-Hey, let''s talk about this...!" The cherubim broke out into a nervous sweat.

    "What''s the matter? We''re just taking a scenic route here."

    They weren''t headed straight down to where Sab is, and they had long since passed by the Gods'' Abode. It had taken him a while to crack the code, but Elegy had figured it out¡ªthe cherubim''s fatal weakness.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "You know, this feels much like riding a paraglider." Elegy noted.

    "W-What!?"

    "Yeah, I faintly remember riding one during my lifetime." Elegy remarked, "Don''t know how far it went, though. Oh, speaking of, what''s your prediction?"

    "P-Prediction!?"

    The cherubim was fumbling over its words. Stuttering and stammering as it failed to answer his incessant, seemingly innocent queries, it had found itself in an impasse.

    "Yeah, like." Elegy looked it dead in the Eyes, "Which district do you think we''ll land on?"

    Looking back, it was all too obvious. The cherubim could only ever be found inside district A. Likewise, it actively strayed the duo from entering the Gods'' Abode, though it didn''t at all seem scared to enter it itself. Elegy grilled himself for not noticing it sooner.

    "You probably know this, but entering the Abode actually zips you around all of Heaven 2.0''s districts one by one indefinitely." He nodded along, "26 letters, 26 districts, in 1/26th of a second. Or was it a millisecond? I honestly can''t remember, I just time it based on instinct and feel."

    "I know that much, buffoon!" It yelled, "What are you insinuating!?"

    "Just saying, it''s pretty difficult to guess where you''ll end up if you get forcefully kicked outside." He continued, "In a hectic situation like a battle with the Gods in it, surely even a cherubim might get knocked around."

    They were fast approaching the edge of the district. Elegy had completely forgotten about the whole descending part of the wager, and was more horizontal than anything. The cherubim was too scared to notice, though it''s not like it mattered.

    "Elegy, I-I''ll help you fix Vastoria!" It begged for mercy, "This time for real! I swear on my afterlife!"

    "Afterlife, you say..." He smirked, a pair of devilish Eyes staring it down, "You have no soul, cherubim, you''re just a cheap mimic! What makes you think you have an afterlife to swear on, anyways!?"

    As district B entered into view, the cherubim screamed with all its might, its skin peeling off and Eyes experiencing a wild case of haemolacria. Still, its wings were being steered by Elegy even if it was in this state of perpetual agony.

    "So I was right." Elegy breathed a sigh of relief, "You can enter the Abode, you can freely traverse district A... Yet you can''t leave and go visit the other ones."

    "Ugyahhhhh!"

    "Such a shame, truly a shame." He pitied it, "A bird trapped in a cage can''t even spread its wings properly once in its lifetime. You''re no eagle, lady, you''re a damned dove."

    The genius play was rewarded with a choir of agony sung by the beast itself as they crossed the border over to district C. Then, moments later, they were in district D.

    "Seems we''re picking up some gnarly speed." Elegy noticed, "Oh, but if I reeled you in, it might cause us to fall. Sorry, you''re gonna have to bear with it a bit more, but I trust you''re strong enough. Remember, just gotta ride the wave."

    Soon after district D came E, then F, then G. They were crossing incredible distances in a flash, yet Elegy never felt better. It was an incredible moment of synchronisation¡ªtruly, the worse the cherubim felt, the better it was for Elegy. This was what would be known as the end of the Guardian of Heaven.

    "Eh~? Don''t tell me you got used to the pain." Elegy smacked its head around a bit, noticing the Eyes had long since closed around him, "You stopped screaming. What¡ªdead already?"

    Riding a corpse felt sort of wrong, but Elegy knew there was no other option at this point. Just cruising along, riding the wave until they had hit the ground. Where they''d land or how gracefully they''d make it was still up in the air (for lack of a better term); in other words, all he could do now was wait.

    "Phew, that was such a pain!" Elegy rubbed his sore neck, cracking it a few times even, "Cherubim, protector of all... what a joke! Ugh, when I land this thing, flying back is gonna be a slog... Or is it?"

    But of course, he was currently surrounded by powerful wings ready for the picking. Granted, these wings didn''t belong to an archangel nor seraphim, but rather a cherubim. Still, if he could find a way to attach them to himself, then not only could he easily and quickly fly back to Sab''s location...!

    "But he could also mold these other wings into as perfect of a neck replacement as he wanted!" Elegy yelled, "Oh, oops. Sorry, I got a little too excited and accidentally spoke in third person. Didn''t mean to steal your job, narrator!"

    It''s alright, just don''t let it happen again... E-Err, ahem! Eventually, a few more minutes later, he landed in front of the Shrine, of all places. The very edge of Heaven 2.0, and one of the first mysteries of this strange and bizarre world. Finally making contact with the ground wasn''t as smooth as he had expected either, for he tumbled on another good 50 meters before the clouds killed his momentum.

    "Like I said, such a pain..." He groaned, getting up to dust himself off before walking over to the dead carcass, "Look at you, can''t even recognize the face anymore... Or the head, for that matter."

    As if scorned by the Sun, the cherubim''s head was completely charred black. There was no sense of identification as there was before, and even after Elegy had kicked it a few times to make sure it wouldn''t revive, it stayed motionless.

    "Yuck, got some charred cherubim on my boot." He rubbed it on the cloud below, "Welp folks, we''re still far from over. See you next chapter, after I''m done breaking off this thing''s wings and hopefully using them for my own benefits... How in the world did this feature get approved by the Gods again?"

 Vol.7 Ch.163 - Murders Accomplice

    Moments later, a sonic boom.

    "Woah woah whoa!" Sab raised his guard.

    Before him floated a beast, constantly kicking about the clouds around it with each flap of its nigh infinite wings. Its Eyes stared deep into his soul, as if they could peer into his very soul, his very nature. Sab was immediately reminded of the cherubim, and yet its face was kind. No, not its¡ªhis.

    "Elegy...?" Sab gulped.

    "Yo!" He waved, "Check it, I beat the cherubim and took its wings! Pretty cool, right?"

    "Yeah, I guess?" Sab furrowed his brows, "But like... Aren''t you afraid?"

    "Afraid of what?"

    "Surely you''ve heard of the trope." He went on to explain, "The good guy takes the villainous monster''s strength for himself and in turn gets turned evil by the sheer strength of the power."

    An angel taking and using a cherubim''s wings, the mere notion was unheard of! So to expect nothing unpredictable to come out of Elegy''s stunt would be pure naivety incarnate. Sab''s worry was completely valid.

    "What? So the twist was that the villainous monster was never evil to begin with, but rather the actual power was the one making it so?" Elegy raised a counter-question.

    "No, that wasn''t the point I was trying to-"

    "Because you''re right!" He shrieked, tightly grabbing his head and twitching uncontrollably, "I-I don''t think I can control it! Sab, while I still can, you have to run away! Save... yourself...!"

    Despite the initial jolt, Elegy''s little act didn''t convince Sab at all. Instead, after a few more seconds of him trying to double down, Elegy finally stopped, sulking after he realized how dumb he looked.

    Sab sighed, "Elegy."

    "...Too soon?"

    Finally, Elegy dropped all the other wings surrounding him, leaving only a pair to use for himself. Two wings were necessary for flight, only these ones had Eyes aplenty blinking on them, their gazes wandering everywhere around him. The rest of the wings would be used to carve out a new neck for Vastoria to use, but how they would go about accomplishing that is a whole different issue.

    "You''ve really outdone yourself." Sab''s jaw dropped, "Hey, can I take a pair for myself?"

    "If you want, but just know we might end up burning through a lot of attempts." Elegy shrugged, "If the situation calls for it, we''ll definitely have to relinquish them. Remember who we''re doing all this for."

    Sab was reminded of the kindhearted girl whom all these events revolved around. The one that currently rests comatose, her neck barely even attached to her head. Though her soul remains intact due to her angelic body, it doesn''t change the fact that she''s only a hair''s breadth away from soul destruction.

    "Vastoria, I know." Sab looked away helplessly, "But our current objective is to go help Migu and the others."

    "...Hm." Elegy''s smiled turned upside down, "Oh crap!"

    "Don''t tell me you-!?"

    "Yeah, I forgot; now quit yapping and let''s get going!" Elegy hastily rushed to the Abode, his new wings carrying him beyond the speed of light.

    The duo were seasoned pilots, or well¡ªat least they''ve had experience in being airborne. A few larger leaps to start them off before they could freely and easily glide their way through the skies. What would originally take a good hour of running was now reduced to a mere fraction of a second. However, what they saw wasn''t the familiar Abode they were expecting. No, something much more sinister was afoot.

    Sab gasped, "Oh God..."

    "The Hell happened here?" Elegy scanned the surroundings, "This place is ruined."

    What remained of the Gods'' Abode was a mere field of ruin. A sea of bricks, marble and roof tiles as far as the Eye could see, and to make matters worse¡ªneither friends nor foes could be seen nearby.

    "Migu!! Dammit, Energy!?" Sab yelled out to no avail.

    "Hats! Hey, kid, you there!?" Elegy shouted as well.

    They rummaged through the heavy rubble, finding nothing worthy of note. The shouts became quieter with each echoed cry, yet no answer came up despite their best efforts. Eventually, Elegy had to face the facts.

    "Sab, they probably escaped while the place was falling apart." He turned around, "I don''t think... Urk!"

    "Yo, what''s the matter? I didn''t hear that last par-" Sab walked over to him, realizing why such a grave face was being made, "Tch, there''s no way...!"

    Greymatter, just barely protruding from beneath the layers of rubble and marble. Bloody gore beneath it, the kind that wasn''t possible to create without the aid of a golden edge.

    "Sab..." Elegy kept his Eyes locked on the terrifying sight, "They got Energy."This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    "No..."

    "They used the pickaxe to kill him, there''s no other way to deal damage to a Heavenly Being." His voice grew livid, "Sab, they freaking won. The Gods, I mean."

    "Energy can''t be dead, man!" Sab shook him up, "That ain''t him! We can''t know for sure if it is!"

    "You really think it''s one of the Gods under there?" Elegy turned to him tiredly, "If it was, this entire world would be destroyed. A world without one of the Five Gods might as well have never existed, that''s the vibe I got from them."

    "T-Then it''s someone else!" Sab refuted.

    "Who, exactly? Migu? Hats?" He groaned, "At this point, it''d be better if it was Energy than one of them."

    "Bastard...!" Sab''s Eyes saw Red, "How could you even say that!? He''s your family, jackass!"

    "...Sigh." Elegy gave up, "Let''s go, c''mon."

    "Oi, we''re not done here!"

    Elegy finally snapped, "Exactly, we''re not done. So that''s why we need to go and look for the others and see if anyone''s still around."

    "..."

    "Now come on." Elegy started turning over heavy rocks, "The sooner we confirm if everyone''s dead or alive, the sooner we get to go after the survivors."

    The mood was completely ruined, an unpredictable event had washed away all their hopes just like that. How fickle, the afterlife of a soul is.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Elegy paced around the perimeter, kicking over as many rocks as he could. Employing the nifty strength of his new wings to overturn the ones that were too large to normally flip, he had found no signs of Migu and the others.

    "Come on, you gotta be in here, this ain''t nothing for you, dammit!"

    Sab intruded on his anxiety.

    "Elegy! Found something!"

    He sprang to action, "Who is it!? Are they alive!?"

    It was obvious by his reaction just how scared he was. After seeing what had seemingly become of Energy, he could no longer stave away his worries with the simple belief that his allies are all indestructible Heavenly Beings. Knowing the Gods don''t mind killing them, and knowing that they have the means to do so is already enough to prove all but him and Sab are long gone. But well, hope finds a way into one''s heart whether they like it or not.

    Elegy clicked his tongue, staring down at the golden pickaxe peeking out of the rubble below Sab, "Quit playing around. We''re looking for people, Sab, PEOPLE."

    "The Hell are you on about? This is huge news!" He smiled back, "The pickaxe somehow made its way here, isn''t that incredible?"

    "Oh..."

    "It''s a huge clue towards finding the others, not to mention..." He tried and failed to pull the tool out of the rocky ruins, "Urgh... It''s gonna be way easier to dig them out if we do find them."

    Elegy was about to puke. Scratch that, he was already holding back gags. The sheer weight of his actions made his innards all too queasy. Right, Elegy was the one who strategically placed the pickaxe near the Abode. He was the one to entrust it to Migu and Energy, the reason why Energy was now split into thousands of pieces, never to be brought back again...

    "Urk!" He couldn''t hide it on his face anymore.

    Sab was confused at first, "Dude, you good?"

    "Hrm..." Elegy thought about what to say.

    Notably, he thought to steer clear of the topic.

    "I''ll help lift the rock." He ordered, "You pull it out as soon as I do."

    "Huh? But Elegy, that gagging you did just now...?"

    Before he could even properly get an answer, Elegy had grabbed tightly onto the rock before applying all of that weight to his wings. Thanks to their strength, the rocks were dealt with quite easily. Of course, he hid this fact from Sab to cover his own tracks.

    "Hnghh!!" Elegy groaned, "Q-Quickly! I can''t hold it for long!"

    Sab, not wanting to forsake his ally, sprung to action accordingly.

    "Ack, gotcha!"

    Tugging it out with little to no effort, Sab had successfully repossessed the golden pickaxe. Falling back on his butt, he stood up with the pick proudly resting on his shoulder. Elegy could barely even look at the sight without breaking down.

    "Heh, piece of cake!" Sab announced.

    "Sab, that pick..." Elegy gulped, "Golden edges and points are the only things that can deal damage to Heavenly Beings. Chances are¡ªthat thing was used to kill Energy."

    Sab''s Eyes shrunk back in fear and disbelief. He quickly stopped playing around with it, treating it with the respect this powerful tool deserved. Now holding it with both hands and in front of him this time, he inspected the golden edge until a certain Color stuck out.

    "R-Red...!" He started hyperventilating, "Blood! Holy crap..."

    Elegy took this moment to snatch the pick from his friend. Using the guise of it being for Sab''s own good, Elegy went out of his sight, digging in a different location in the hopes of finding his other friends.

    "Come on, you gotta be down here somewhere...!"

    Elegy stopped.

    "Even if it''s just your bodies, I''d like to see them for myself..."

    By this point, he was crestfallen. Defeated, ruined, destroyed internally... He was just done. This entire party, wiped out in a flash while these two were just being toyed around by a bunch of stupid Eyes and wings. No, even before that, it was the fault of the Gods for not properly giving them what they had wanted. Of course, these were all the excuses Elegy had thought of and more.

    "Truth is, I''m the one at fault."

    Acknowledgment of one''s own sins. One''s own mistakes. In truth, it was Elegy''s idea to hand the pickaxe over to Migu, naively believing she would keep it away from the Gods. No, again he was shifting the blame onto someone else. Migu just did what she was told to do, with the tools she was given. Elegy was the one who gave her the orders, and the one who gave her the tools...

    "I''m so stupid!"

    He tossed the pick away in a fit of rage.

    "A goddamned moron!" He continued, "Damn the Gods! Damn this pick... And damn me for burying it for them to find!"

    Behind him, a voice weakly quivered.

    "E-Eh?"

    It was Sab. Of course it was Sab, who else would it be? Elegy was being overly loud with his freakout, and they weren''t exactly on the other side of Heaven 2.0 to not hear each other. Maybe this was what Elegy wanted. Possibly, even though his outer emotions showed pure fear in his Eyes... Maybe he just wanted to come clean to someone and get the retribution he deserved.

    "Sab!"

    "You... What?" Sab took a step towards him.

    At the very next moment, a marvelous dropkick to the face, so strong it sent Elegy flying into the hard marble rubble behind him.

    "Ghack!" Elegy cried out in pain.

    "You did all this...?" Sab cracked his fingers as he closed the distance, "You destroyed the Abode, you ruined our teleportation system, you let the Gods get away... You got Energy killed. All of this was... you?"

    "...Yes."

    There was no more lying. After all, what could you even say in this situation to get out of it scot-free? Elegy didn''t at all dislike that sucker kick, in fact he actively welcomed it. A murder''s accomplice deserves at least that much, after all.

 Vol.7 Ch.164 - No More Sugar

    "Elegy..." Sab''s voice rose in anger, "Elegy, I''ve been quiet about your damned ideas this long because they seemed to be working out pretty well for us..."

    "And they have been."

    "Until you got Energy killed because of one."

    Elegy had no rebuke. Oftentimes the hardest argument to win against is the truth itself.

    "Why don''t we save this for after we find the others?" Elegy tried to de-escalate, "Once we have their reports, we''ll know for sure. Maybe the brain we saw doesn''t even belong to Energy in the first place."

    "That''s a weak sauce retort, you know? I thought you would at least try to sound convincing." Sab sighed back, "We both know the chances of that being the case are less than miniscule. How about instead we face the facts and you face this ass-kicking instead?"

    Both sides had a newfound power with them¡ªnamely, the wings of the cherubim. Though they were both pretty inexperienced in their uses, it at least upped the dimensions of the brawl that was to take place here. But Elegy knew better than to let this happen.

    "It was a mistake on my part, but not one of ill intent." He explained.

    "Does it even matter what the intent was anymore?" Sab furrowed his brows, "Results matter, Elegy, not the road you took to get to them. Fact is, your little whoopsie got our teammate''s soul permanently destroyed. Just how many more of those cases will we have to endure before it becomes worth it?"

    Harsh words arose from the unstable Sab. After getting his intestines smashed through by a mind-controlled Elegy, he really didn''t want to have to do any more dangerous stunts. His teammate standing before him, however, seemed to be just the perfect magnet for those, so a change in management simply had to be made.

    "You''re not gonna let this go, are you?" Elegy got serious.

    "Never planned to, at least."

    Wings spread on both sides, ready to pounce at any moment.

    "Y''know, I think I get why the Gods dubbed you the Catalyst for Heaven''s Fall." Elegy smirked, "Sometimes people like you come along who just can''t listen to reason unless some sense is knocked into them."

    Sab was left flabbergasted by this comment.

    "Reason?" He repeated, "So you''re saying I''m the unreasonable one here?"

    "Look at yourself, speaking in paradoxes." Elegy retorted, "Only the results matter, huh? If that''s the case, then we should be proud to give away our lives to achieve it."

    When it came to pure logic, Elegy had Sab beat. It was this common sense that showed the exact difference in their experience. As battle hardened as he was, Elegy knew to keep a calm head at all times. The primary goal of a fighter is to avoid conflict, after all¡ªor at least the unnecessary ones. Sab, however, was still a bit wet around the ears in that regard. All he knew was what he was given, yet his anger denied him to find out the rest of the context.

    "Hey, back off." Elegy ordered.

    "Or what?" Sab walked towards him, his wings still spread menacingly.

    "You''ll get yourself hurt, don''t do this."

    "What?" Sab shoved his former friend to the ground, "I''m just blowing off some steam like you said."

    The first to get angry is often the loser in any battle, but the only exception is if the one who''s angry manages to anger his opponent. If that happens, it''s anyone''s guess as to who would come out on top. Elegy, however, remained firm in his belief as he stood up to dust himself off.

    "Up for round two already?" Sab shoved him to the ground a second time.

    "...You''re wasting our time." He got up again.

    And then a third time, Elegy got pushed to the ground. As it stood, this would have gone on for a while had Elegy remained calm as he was. But right now he had a timer to beat, and for that to happen he''d need to let go of his zen state. On the next push, Elegy caught the hands as if they were moving in slow motion.

    "Here comes-!" Sab''s heart stopped, "Guh!?"

    "Like I said, there exist people who just can''t listen to reason until you beat them to a pulp." Elegy spread his wings as wide as they could go, "These types of people can scorch the world with their ambition, you know?"

    "T-The Hell are you...!?"

    "Ah, but they can sometimes be really annoying." Elegy thought about it, "Like when they purposefully waste precious time with their rage boners."Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    By this point, the wings were primed and ready. All Elegy had to do was twitch his shoulders and Sab would be squished flat between them. Alas, the time for dodging and evading was over. This was gonna sting, and Elegy had long stopped caring for mercy.

    "Have you ever considered that, while you were busy accusing me of your nonsense, the others might have needed us to be there for them?" Elegy finished it off with a rather crude idea, "Sab, you know, if by the time I''m done beating the crap out of you and we come to find out this scuffle ended up costing Migu and the others their lives..."

    "S-Shit...!"

    "Yeah, you''re right to swear at this moment." Elegy nodded, "If that happens, I''m gonna do all the things I''m gonna do to you now, but ten times worse."

    Immediately after, Elegy clamped the wings down on his opponent from both sides. Such strong force broke the sound barrier like it was as thin as a bubble, the strength of the blast carved a long and wide rift in the clouds they stood on. As for the person unlucky enough to find himself in the blast''s epicenter...

    "Just remember, Elegy." He smirked, spreading his own wings right back at him, "Everything you can do, I can do too."

    Likewise, he had smashed his friend with his own cherubim wings. Like a slap battle for the ages, this duel commenced with a rather loud array of attacks.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Still holding onto each other, their clothes and hair blown back in a disheveled disarray, the two stared each other down without hesitance. As the the more experienced brawler, Elegy knew to make the next move before his opponent could get a second smack in.

    "Ngh!"

    A headbutt to the nose sent Sab struggling to regain his footing. With his legs getting crossed in an unnatural position, he fell flat on his back only to get picked back up by the collar.

    "There are two ways to deal with a battle hungry bastard like you." Elegy explained, "Option number one, I let you whale on me until you''ve had your fill."

    Sab returned a snarky reply, "Ngh... Sounds like a plan."

    "If you think that sounds appealing, wait ''til you hear the latter." Elegy smiled, "Option two, I beat that thickheaded ego out of you until you''re too demotivated to even lay a finger on me."

    This time lowering his wings for an uppercut, Elegy braced them both for an aerial assault for the ages. Sab was not as amused.

    "Yeah, I think I''ll stick to option one." He groaned, "Ghk!"

    Elegy''s wings kicked them both up high, quickly slamming back down to murk Sab while he was in the air. As Elegy was still holding tightly onto his collar, this in turn didn''t actually slam his opponent back into the ground. Rather, all it did was spin them around into a 360. The flip served to disorient the one taking the hits, while allowing the attacker full control of his next moves.

    Sab desperately blocked with his own wings, "Freakin'' stop!"

    "Whoa, didn''t expect you to catch that." Elegy praised him, only to wind up a blazing fist immediately after, "Too bad I got hands, though."

    Smashing his face in with a knuckle sandwich, Elegy was constantly making sure to aim for the nose each time. Unlike when fighting mortal humans, he knew that he could go all out with a guy like Sab. In fact, he was grateful to have such a hotheaded friend willing to let himself get thrashed like this so easily.

    Left wing, right wing. Left fist, right fist. A stern knee to the abdomen. Left, right, down, up, left, left, up, right, left into right... The attacks didn''t let up for even a second. Elegy was making sure this angel would be sore even with this indestructible body of his. Sab just couldn''t compete.

    "A bit of that! And a bit... this! Haha!" Elegy mocked him, "So, did I finally break your spirit?"

    Sab barely moved his lips to mutter something. His sullen Eyes and defeated demeanor showed no signs of resistance anymore.

    "...tard."

    "Hm? You said something just now?"

    "Yeah, I did." Sab grabbed his opponent''s wrists, "You ought to handicap yourself, bastard, ''cause this shit ain''t fair!"

    Finally managing to keep the hands still, Sab sliced down with his wings, removing both of Elegy''s arms from the elbows down. Going for brutality over mercy, he showed just how much he wanted to beat Elegy at his own game. But this counterattack meant so much more than what he had originally assumed.

    "M-Moron...!" Elegy quivered, staring him down with Eyes wide open, "Wounds dealt with the golden wings don''t heal..."

    Immediately, a sense of dread, uncertainty and regret began to set in for the immature Sab. Now unlike before, he understood that his actions actively and purposefully jeopardized their revolt against the Gods. As the only real fighter in their gang, Elegy was supposed to be the vanguard leading them to safety by protecting them from the Gods forces. Just like with Hats though, now his dexterity and strength has been rendered nearly null.

    "I concede." Elegy took a long, deep breath.

    "H-Hey, wait...!" Sab followed him down to the ground slowly, "I didn''t mean...!"

    "You won, I lost. That''s all there is to it." Elegy shrugged, "I gotta say, that was a smart move on your end. Gahh, I should''ve been paying more attention!"

    Despite everything, though, he showed discipline and patience above all else. Elegy wasn''t mad that he got his arms lopped off, yet he was instead praising Sab for his bravery.

    "Elegy, please listen."

    "I think I get why you''re the Catalyst and not me." Elegy continued, his smile mimicking that of a proud father, "This marks the third arm you''ve chopped off already. It''s permanent too, yet you showed no signs of hesitation."

    "I know, and I''m sor-!"

    "Don''t be." He added, "If you''re gonna bring about the Fall of Heaven, then it''s better if you only stop to think about the consequences after the fact."

    A very optimistic point of view from the experienced Elegy. Though he was now highly impaired without any hands, it''s a fact that he still has the shoulder-elbow parts intact. The cuts were clean too, so there was hardly any bleeding before they became stubs.

    "Good news is, my wings are just as versatile as my hands were, if not more." He chuckled, "You better show that same resolve when facing off against the Gods, or you''re getting another smack from these bad boys!"

    "Y-Yeah..." Sab looked down before jolting, "Wait, what do you mean when I face off against them!?"

    "Well, you don''t seriously expect me to be the one to do it now, do you?" Elegy''s laugh echoed far out around them, "Now come on, I can only carry a few of these extra wings with these stubs. Let''s go find Migu and the others."

    "Urk..."

    Rather than feeling bad about intentionally injuring his friend during a fit of rage, Sab was now feeling more regretful because of the extra work he put on himself. To make matters worse, he ended up losing the arms during their flight to district G.

 Vol.7 Ch.165 - Were Not Like That!

    "Hey, how''re..." Sab gulped, "How''re you holding up?"

    "Who, me?" Elegy pointed to himself with just his elbow, "Just fine, why?"

    "No reason..."

    It was only in district C that Sab truly felt the weight of his actions sink in completely. He had just cut off both of Elegy''s arms, and to make matters worse¡ªthey won''t be regenerating anymore. Elegy stopped flying forward, with Sab taking a break with him soon after.

    "Rather than worrying about me, I think we should talk about something more interesting." Elegy turned to smirk at him devilishly, "I seem to recall a certain moment in time when you were speaking to the cherubim directly."

    "Hm?"

    "Don''t play dumb, you said loud and clear that the voice you heard belonged to Nerys." He chuckled.

    As Elegy understood it, the cherubim mimicked the voices of its victim''s most beloved in order to help lower their guard. For Elegy, it was a blurry mix of two women, indicating the two primary loves of his life down in the Living World. For Migu, it was Vastoria. And yet, here Sab was hearing Nerys.

    "What? You think it''s like that?" Sab raised an Eyebrow in surprise, "You got a lot of things messed up there, man. I mean, it''s true that I heard her voice come out of the cherubim''s mouth, but to me she''s way more like an annoying twin sister."

    Elegy could only stare back with a blank smile.

    "...Eugh."

    "What the-! What''s yucky about that!?" Sab groaned, "Fine, then let''s say she''s just a good friend!"

    "By the way, I heard the cherubim''s voice as my two past lovers''." Elegy felt it important to mention.

    "Good for you!"

    Bright Red as a tomato, Sab was seething in his own conflict and inner turmoil. On the one hand, he despised getting teased by the dude that was just beating the crap out of him moments ago, but on the other hand, he felt way too horrible about permanently removing his arms and felt a need to let Elegy get his revenge, if even in this lowbrow sort of way.

    "You know, I''m not poking fun at you or anything." Elegy noticed, "I think it''s nice that you see her in a positive light. Honestly, for the longest time now I was worried about you two bickering all the time."

    "Is that so?" Sab''s facial expression relaxed slightly.

    "I mean, obviously. Whether it''s romantic or platonic, I''m just glad my friends are getting along so well that they can consider one another their most trusted."

    Sab paused, too stunned to think up a proper reply. The tone shifted way too quickly from mocking to serious, so much so that he had trouble keeping up. Awkwardly, he looked down and to the side as he gave his best to properly speak about it.

    "Thanks for telling me." He answered truthfully, "She''s really annoying, and her accent is just an earsore, but I do think she''s the most fun I''ve had talking to a person ever since I got here."

    Elegy grinned right back, "Heh, should I take that as a diss at the rest of us?"

    "Nah, it''s a close race overall."

    With them having finally relaxed the tension between them a bit, both parties felt more eager to speak up about their true thoughts on all sorts of matters. As if intoxicated, both angels happily shared story after story without hesitation. The words simply flowed one after another until they formed a sentence; and when they did, the sentences flowed just as easily too.

    "Hats, that guy scares me in all honesty." Sab shivered.

    "Nah, he''s a good kid." Elegy shook his head, "Migu, on the other hand¡ªthat girl ain''t right..."

    "You''re just saying that because of Vastoria."

    "What? No, why would you think that?"

    "Eh? I mean, you''re from the past and all..."

    "Dude, my era''s not that old."

    Naming off their friends seemed to quell their worries about the current situation, if even just a little bit at a time. Given what sort of hellscape they''re going to, it''s nice to enter it with a clear mind like this.

    "You used to Sheep''s archangel appearance yet?" Elegy asked.

    "I still get queasy whenever I look at him directly!" Sab shot back, "Especially now, his body just resembles the cherubim way too much..."

    "Yeah, I get that. Actually, even despite how much stronger and more useful he is with that new body, I still think he shouldn''t have ever let go of his angel side. I can''t quite explain it, but... we all just seem a lot more human that way."

    As former humans themselves, not to mention the shared goal of reviving so they could go back to their old lives again, it all but made sense that this was the string that pulled at their hearts. Somehow, both of them just agreed that the Gods had doomed their archangel friend into an afterlife without hands or legs forever. Silently, they pitied him together.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    "So, we gonna continue looking for them or what?" Sab finally asked getting ready to speed off onward.

    "Actually, I didn''t stop just to chat." Elegy pointed down, "I spotted your crush talking to another guy and thought I should tell you."

    "Eh, Nerys is!?" Sab''s head spun down, "And she''s not my crush!"

    All jokes aside, he had finally seen what Elegy had spotted a while ago now. Nerys was indeed chatting it up with some random angel foreign to them, but upon closer inspection, he seemed to just be a random passer-by asking for directions. The look of relief on Sab''s face was hard not to laugh at, but Elegy persisted somehow.

    "Nerys!" They descended down to her.

    "Hm?" She glanced up behind her, "Oye~! Tuk yus longinaff! C''mover''ere!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Matey." She immediately pointed to Elegy, "Ye'' seem... disarrm''d."

    "That''s such a lame pun!" Sab yelled.

    "No no, she''s got a point." Elegy noted, "Yeah, some things happened and I kind of lost my arms, but we do have these wings now, so all''s well that ends well."

    Quite the brief review of the events that had transpired with the cherubim. In but a few measly clauses he managed to convey the message to her strikingly well, though it''s anyone''s guess as to how she managed to figure it out herself from so little.

    "In dat cass, ye'' got off pretteh well, euwe did!" She gave them both a pat on the shoulder, "Cannae help bot reeloize ye'' got wun fer'' meh too, dontcha''?"

    Elegy glanced down at the wings they were carrying before shooting down her hopes of flying about at the speed of light.

    "Ah, sorry, we need these other wings to hopefully mold a replacement neck for Vastoria." He shook his head.

    "Wait, aren''t you afraid of heights?" Sab raised an Eyebrow.

    "Ah, dat be poppycock, lad..." She bashfully poked her fingers together, "Bot Oi'' gettit, the lassie be tha'' first in loin."

    At the very least, she was quick to understand their intent with stopping by. Though she sadly wasn''t able to snag a pair of wings for herself, she did explain what she was doing all the way out here.

    "Hm? Oi''v bin lookin'' fer yous'', mateys!" Her Eyebrows shot up in surprise, "Nunna'' the otharrs be aroun'', so Oi''v jus'' bin wanderin'' about aimlessly."

    "Is that really the reason?" Sab remained skeptical.

    "Aye."

    "Nerys..."

    "W-What...?"

    He read her like a book. There was no lie capable of evading his watchful Eye, at least when it came to Nerys. Though she had fully convinced Elegy, thankfully Sab knew her little tricks well enough to discern the truth from the lies.

    "I-If ye'' be thinkin'' Oi''m only lookin'' fer booty, then ye'' be a fat liarr!" She blushed angrily.

    "Ah, so that''s why." Sab smirked, "Once a pirate, always a pirate I guess."

    "Oi''m not a bloody poirrate!"

    Elegy could only look on in bafflement at the friendly banter between the two of them, a smug grin slowly creeping its way on his face. It was Nerys'' shivering timbers that had first caught notice of it.

    "Oi, wot''re euwe lookin'' aet!?"

    "You guys really aren''t beating any allegations, you know." He chuckled, "Honestly, Vastoria and Migu better hurry it up, otherwise the first marriage of Heaven 2.0 is gonna get snatched away from right under their noses."

    Sab heavily disliked the implications his armless friend was insinuating, however Nerys was left completely clueless without the full context.

    She looked to Sab for guidance, "Matey, ye'' be spoutin'' mad nonsense as av'' recent, y''know dat?"

    "Bah! Would you shut up about that already!?" Sab jolted, "Seriously, you''re gonna make things weird for no reason!"

    "I have no idea what you mean by that." Elegy shrugged, his impish grin still showing proudly on his face, "In any case, it''s you who recognized the cherubim that way, not me."

    "Grr... Is this your way of getting payback for losing the arms?" Sab''s Eyebrow twitched in frustration.

    "Again, I have no idea what you mean."

    Teasing a fella'' about a girl he''s close with was one of Elegy''s favorite forms of vengeance, at least when it came to the non-lethal ones. But it wasn''t all for the sake of getting back at Sab for the damages he''s done. Given the state of the entire party, morale was their main driving force. Even if it meant he had to be a bit annoying, Elegy wagered this much was necessary to ensure everyone is still on the right track.

    "Nerys, you still on board to help us bring back Vastoria?" Elegy suddenly asked.

    "Eh, Oi''m kinda in tha'' middle ova'' treasurr'' hunt." She shrugged ambivalently.

    "Ugh, can you be any more of a klepto?" Sab rolled his Eyes, handing her one of the many wings they were carrying, "There''s your treasure, now quit being a brat and help your friends!"

    Elegy grinned behind him, "Right, friends."

    "Will you shut up!?"

    As a treasure hungry seafarer, she really didn''t need all too much convincing to return to the cause, especially now that the cherubim is dead. Equipping the single wing on her left side just like the one she had before, it didn''t quite allow her to fly, but it did make it easier to carry around at least. She was now ready for her next order.

    "Jus'' say da word, mateys!"

    "Glad to have you back." Elegy smiled, "You know where the Gods'' Abode is in this district, right?"

    Sab''s heart skipped a beat for a moment upon hearing this.

    "Aye, Oi'' jus'' passed eet a bit ago." She nodded.

    "I want you to go there and look for the others." He continued, "Migu, Hats, Energy, and whoever else may be inside."

    "Why can''t yew dewit?" She pouted.

    "Geez, do you have to know everything?" Sab dodged having to answer that, "In any case, it''ll be clear once you reach it. Hopefully there shouldn''t be any issues, but if there are, just be prepared to dig a bit."

    "Eh? Dig?"

    Now she was starting to get worried. Back when she passed by this district''s Abode, it was completely normal; nothing was out of the ordinary. Of course, the guys knew that it was most probably in ruins just like the one in district A, so they felt a heads up was necessary.

    "And where''ll euwe be?" She sighed.

    "Flying around all the districts as fast as we can." Elegy explained, "Just in case they''re not inside the Abode, we ought to know their location and make sure we don''t miss them no matter what."

    Apart from that, it would also serve as a way to check if any of the Abodes survived the destruction. Though, according to the Gods'' explanation of how they worked, it shouldn''t be the case. Either way, Elegy had a feeling that the Abode has long since fallen out of relevancy for the two Gods. Without his hands, he absolutely needed to keep Sab with him at all times.

    "Well, if that be all..." Nerys waved them off, "Guess Oi''ll get ta'' werk."

    "Hey." Elegy nudged Sab as he was returning her farewell in kind, "Shouldn''t you be going in for a goodbye kiss?"

    Sab hissed, "I told you to stop joking about that!"

    "Oops, I might''ve gone too far..." He looked down, "So a hug, then?"

    Poor Elegy got smacked in the face without even having the ability to block it with his hands.

 Vol.7 Ch.166 - Stop! Trumpet Time

    After so many hectic twists and turns, the boys had finally been given their well-deserved break. Though the Gods are still largely on the loose, the story has indeed winded down for the most part. Killing the cherubim and acquiring some proper materials to help Vastoria helped largely with that.

    "Need help carrying all that?" Elegy flew next to Sab.

    "You and what hands?" Sab retorted.

    "You know I''d help you carry those wings if I could." Elegy shrugged, "You''ve got no one to blame but yourself."

    "Oh..."

    After seeing off Nerys, they set off to scan the rest of the districts. Nothing too detailed, they figured¡ªjust a flyby to see if they could spot anyone of interest. On the other hand, there was some planning to be made ahead of time.

    "We need to think about what our next plan of action is." Sab uttered.

    "No need to overthink it." Elegy disagreed, "We don''t know whether we''ll run into the Gods, Migu''s team or anyone else for that matter, so why even bother with thinking ahead?"

    Sab was fully expecting to get some praise out of his friend, but was utterly baffled when Elegy simply brushed him off without a second thought. Such a lack of hesitation felt like he didn''t take Sab''s words seriously at all, hurting him greatly in the process.

    "Because it''ll raise our chances of success, maybe?"

    "How so? Sab, we only know what we know." Elegy explained it to him in detail, "If we meet the Gods first, we''ll try and convince them to rejoin our side and help us turn these cherubim wings into a neck replacement for Vastoria. If we meet up with Migu and the others, then we''ll discuss our next plan together with them after exchanging information. As is, we know far too little to be thinking up strategies."

    Turns out, Elegy''s broad strokes approach ended up benefiting them in the end, ''cause they would have surely gotten their own expectations trumped by reality. Thinking ahead is a wise move on many occasions, but if you''re lacking in information about the situation, then you should expect to get a bunch of things wrong.

    "I hate to bring this up, but there''s a large chance that the splattered brain we saw in the Abode''s ruins is in fact Energy." He continued.

    Sab gulped at that.

    "Why bring this up now?"

    "Because it goes to show that expecting the best case scenario is naive of us." Elegy shot back, "To begin with, we don''t even know if Migu and the others are even alive yet."

    "I''m sure they made it out."

    These lax words that came from Sab furiously angered Elegy. Deep inside, he felt a strange sensation of lividity that appeared to stem from the very soul. There''s a certain level of optimism that one shouldn''t ever cross, and that level is based on time. Expecting the best in a hopeless situation is romantic and all, but even Elegy only does that for short-term spurs. Expecting something as vague and long-term as "the rest of their mission" to go exactly as planned without any hiccups along the way is nothing if not completely stupid.

    "Nothing is certain." Elegy glared at him, "One day you could be taking care of your pregnant newlywed wife, the next day she could die in your very arms."

    "Where''s this coming from?"

    "You''re missing the point. Everything can change in an instant, and that instant¡ªat least for us¡ªis gonna be when we hear back from the others." He continued, "Right now, our goal is to scan the area to try and find either an intact Gods'' Abode, the Gods, or anyone from our party. Once we find one of those, we''ll work from there."

    Sab was still skeptical that these words were coming out of THE Elegy''s mouth. A man as free-spirited and blindly optimistic as him was suddenly preaching the very opposite of his ideals. Maybe the loss of his arms really did affect him?

    "...So, what district are we in now?" Sab concededly sighed.

    "Hm?" Elegy turned to him blankly, "I thought you were keeping count."

    Already, they went back to bickering.

    "You moron!" Sab shouted, "Geez, and here I thought with less stuff to carry, you''d have more time to focus on paying attention!"

    "Well excuse me, the Gods didn''t exactly install roadsigns in the middle of the sky for us to take notice of!" Elegy shot back.

    "Bastard, just how many districts have we passed without even keeping track of!?"

    "Look, don''t worry about it. We''ll just descend and go ask someone on the surface." Elegy groaned, "Check it, there''s a district border up ahead. If anyone knows the answer, it''s gotta be those guys."

    Sab had no retort anymore. Elegy was going back on his words constantly, to the point where even his most ironclad traits were turning out to be shaky at best. At this point, he reasoned the best course of action would be to just let him take the lead until something inevitably goes wrong.Stolen novel; please report.

    "Urk, you''re way too laid back..." He groaned.

    "Dude, in and out." Elegy replied, "We''re just gonna go ask what district we''re in, how bad could it be? Five minute ordeal, come on."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Yahoo!"

    "..."

    Despite Elegy''s loud entrance into the scene, the border guard didn''t even so much as flinch at the angels'' sudden descent. Once more, he tried to get his attention.

    "Oii~!" Elegy waved his stub over the guard''s face, "He''s not moving."

    "You scared him straight." Sab smirked.

    "Hey now, he wasn''t moving even before I arrived!"

    The bickering continued on even into the second half of the chapter, it seems. Despite this, however, Elegy quickly took notice of the guard''s other colleague, who was just as still.

    "Are these guys even alive?" He muttered.

    "Ugh, not another ordeal again...!" Sab rolled his Eyes, "We just got done with the cherubim issue!"

    Just then, a thought occurred in Elegy''s mind.

    "...The cherubim, that''s it!" He yelled out, "Sab, an archangel''s wings can make one move in hyperspeed."

    "Ye-"

    "And that in turn makes the wearer perceive time in hyper slow motion, no?"

    "Well yes, but-"

    "You get what I''m trying to say, right!?"

    "Stop freaking interrupting me, dammit!" Sab crashed out, "Ugh, I get what you mean, but we''re wearing cherubim wings, NOT archangel!"

    "Well maybe it''s a case of the same diffs!" Elegy retorted, "In fact, if an archangel''s time is slowed, then it would only be natural that a cherubim''s is stopped completely."

    The logic worked out just fine in Elegy''s head, given he considered the cherubim to be a rank above an archangel, but Sab was more than skeptical. To begin with, the entire theory falls to the wayside once you recall their past encounter.

    "Alright then, genius, riddle me this." Sab crossed his arms, "How in the world did Nerys move and talk normally when we saw her last?"

    Elegy paused to think of the answer before blurting out, "...We gave her a wing!"

    "And how do you suppose we communicated before we gave her the wing?"

    "I don''t see you coming up with anything better!"

    No, rather than a simple time stop ability, the duo was facing something much more worrying. As mentioned, not only did the border guards not move an inch from where they stood, but so too did the other passers-by around them. The situation was too crazy to even think about.

    "So is the entire Heaven 2.0 stuck like this?" Sab worried, "Is Nerys okay?"

    "Heh."

    "Dude, I''m being serious here! She could be in danger!"

    Elegy replied, "From who? Nothing''s moving."

    Sab had enough and was getting ready to fly back and check on her, but he was quickly stopped by a loud trumpet in the distance. The two hid behind the still border guard, waiting for the horrifying sound to end. Eventually, they felt it was safe to uncover themselves.

    "What was that...!?" Sab jittered.

    Elegy replied with a shrug, "Dunno, but I get the feeling that that sound was the reason behind this mass petrification."

    They could both talk, and their bodies listened to their every command without fault. They weren''t petrified like the others, or at least not yet, but something in their hearts knew for a fact that the sound that had just erupted from afar caused all of this. Their greatest fears were proven correct once they tried to walk towards it.

    "Urk!" Sab fell to the ground, knocking down Elegy with him, "S-Sorry."

    "...Eh?" Elegy looked down in fear, "My legs...?"

    "Huh?" Sab felt it too, "No, not the entire legs. My knees and hips are still fine, but..."

    "My ankles are petrified."

    A loud trumpet horn was their newest worry, and it seemed to be that they were on a timer to defuse it. Had it not been for their cherubim wings, this would be game over already. Their feet felt heavier than cinder blocks, and soon enough, so too would the rest of their bodies.

    Elegy led his friend through the sky, "Move it, move it!"

    "Gah, I''m trying!" Sab lagged a bit behind him, "Urk, it was hard enough to steer these things without the extra weight making it harder!"

    Just then, the trumpet horned again.

    "Brace yourself...!"

    "Waghhh!!!"

    Like a metric tonne was thrown on top of them, they both sank to the cloudy ground below in an instant. This time, the petrification spread all the way to the knees.

    "Pheh, this is just like a game of hangman!" Elegy joked, "How many more tries do you reckon we got?"

    "Don''t you usually start with the head in hangman?"

    "Would you prefer that over this?"

    "Hell no."

    Barely lifting themselves up this time, they felt their time with the wings grew ever more limited by the second. With each new horn of the trumpet, they were getting more and more petrified. A few more of those and they''d be just like the others around them.

    "Hey, remember when you were a kid playing hangman, and to make the game give you as many lives as possible, you''d give yourself a stiffy as well?"

    "Elegy, the Hell are you on about?"

    "Y''know, like, you normally got 6 tries, right?" Elegy elaborated, "But if you add the D and then all 20 of your fingers and toes, that''d practically make you immortal."

    "There''s only 26 letters of the alphabet." Sab grunted, "You''re guaranteed to win with 27 tries."

    An odd segue from Elegy, but not one without a purpose, sadly.

    "See, now you''re getting it!" Elegy winked, "What do you say we try it?"

    "Hey now...?!"

    "You know what I mean, darn it!" He fumbled over his words, "There may be a chance to buy us some time by attempting to focus the petrification on individual body parts."

    As he was saying that, another horn rang out. This time, the two stood up to face it proudly. With all their might, they focused on but a single finger. The result?

    "I can''t feel anything from my hips down." Sab looked below him.

    "Darn, I really thought I was onto something there, too."

    "You goddamn idiot!" Sab screeched, "Quit wasting precious time, this is a life or death situation!"

    "But we''re already dead?"

    "I-I meant afterlife or soul destruc... Why the Hell am I correcting you on this, even!?"

    Just as calm as Elegy was, so too was Sab losing it in equal amounts. The situation was scary, sure, but Elegy felt panicking would do much for them anyways, so he refrained. Their next few attempts had to contain a winner in them, otherwise the boys would be turned to statues before they even left the district.

    Sab hyperventilated, "Oh Gods, it''s almost time for the next one...!"

    "...I got it!"

    Just then, the trumpets roared.

 Vol.7 Ch.167 - Chase

    "Keep following them, they got Sheep!"

    "Y''think we dun'' haff Eyes ''r somethin''!?" Nerys shot back.

    "They turned another corner!" Hats yelled.

    The Gods were leading us towards them knowingly, indicating they wanted us to catch up. Still, they''ve gotten faster as time went on, and by now it''s gotten pretty difficult just to not lose track of them. Just where the Hell are Elegy and Sab...!

    "Eh?!" I jolted, "They''re not here!"

    "Up above!" Hats pointed, "They''re climbing up that building!"

    Selzion, who was still busy with keeping Sheep unconscious, stopped once he reached the top of the building. Hanging off the ledge, he stared down at us with a disinterested expression. Looking down on us, he muttered something too quiet to hear, then got dragged away by Prylos.

    "Wot'' ye'' sae ta'' meh, bassta''d!?"

    "Nerys, quit yelling and climb the damned building already!" I ordered, "Hats!"

    "Got it! One boost coming right up!" He nodded, reading himself up against the wall without missing a beat, "Hup!"

    Without fault, I grabbed hold of a hanging ladder bolted to the side of the building. I have no clue how those Two managed to reach such a high up ladder themselves, but at least I could follow them up here too. After me was Nerys, who apart from some light fumbles pretty much made it up safely as well.

    "Gimme your hand!" I reached out to lift Hats as well.

    "Ye'' crazeh?" Nerys stopped me, "T''ain'' nevah gon'' werk. He be too fatty, ye''d jus'' be tossin'' yerself off the ledge, lass."

    "Hrm..."

    Y''know Nerys, you''re not really being of much help here. Hats is pretty large when compared to us, but it might even be possible if you stopped making up excuses and helped me lift him up.

    "She''s right." Hats surprisingly agreed, "You two follow after them across the rooftops, I''ll be following from the ground in case they think of jumping!"

    "But-! ...Tch!" I turned around, "Come on then, they''re just up ahead."

    "Aye aye, lassie!"

    Just Nerys and me left. Gonna be honest, I was hoping for Hats'' help more than hers, but beggars can''t be choosers, I guess. The Gods were already hopping from one rooftop to the next, and since we took the time to discuss strategy with Hats, we were kind of far behind.

    "Don''t let them out of your sight!" I yelled, "Oop-!"

    "Gotcha''!" She pulled me up by the wrist, "Y''knoe lassie, lookin'' at where ya'' goin'' is also important."

    "N-Noted..."

    Turns out, just staring directly at your targets instead of your footing in such a dangerous place as a rooftop most usually means you''ll end up slipping. Gods, had it not been for Nerys just now, I would''ve fell all the way to the ground level. I know I said I''d rather be with Hats, but not if it means I''d be down there.

    "Just what the Hell are they doing?" I grunted, "How is this in any way going to help bring Vastoria back, dammit!"

    "Ye'' still on about dat?" Nerys raised an Eyebrow, "Lass, they be worryin'' about evrythin'' bot the girl."

    "Yeah, I can tell that much..." I glared at them in the distance, "But why are they hurting Sheep, then?"

    "We''ll hafta'' catchem'' n'' foind out." She nodded before speeding up, "Nau c''mon! Dun'' miss dis next jomp!"

    With such a long run-up, she practically cleared the gap two times over. That''s a pirate for you, I''ll bet she learned that from years of jumping from one ship to the other. As for me, I''m not too confident I could beat her, but I should be able to reach the other side just fine.

    "Long run-up, amass speed, and...!" I buckled my knees, "Ack!"

    The jump was too late, so I ended up slipping off the ledge of the roof. I had the proper speed, but without any upwards momentum to let me clear the gap, even Nerys couldn''t reach me from where she was. This time there were no more do-overs, I fell straight down to the bottom.

    "...Gotcha!" A boyish voice announced.

    "What the-!? Hats!" I gasped in surprise once he caught me with the one arm.

    "Why do you look surprised?" He asked, "I said I was gonna be below you, didn''t I?"

    I mean, yeah, but if I''m being completely honest I thought that meant you were hauling ass to cut Them off. I mean, it was nice of you to catch me from my fall, but it''s not like I''d get hurt either way.

    "Migu, you okay?" He got self-conscious, "You''ve kind of been staring at me for a long time now."Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    "You''re surprisingly reliable, kid."

    He stared blankly at me before muttering meekly, "Okay, I''m gonna put you down now..."

    Welp, guess I got my wish eventually. I do feel bad about leaving Nerys on her own though, but that''s just how it is. As for the bright side, at least now I can properly stop the Gods with Hats, if we play our cards right. After all, running on the ground layer is much easier and faster than parkouring from rooftop to rooftop.

    "Hey, slow down!" Hats requested.

    "Tell that to them, not me!" I glanced back with a smile, "Now come on, it''s only a matter of time before they gang up on Nerys now that she''s alone! We gotta stop that from happening!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "Th'' lass fell." Nerys muttered to herself as she bolted from one rooftop to the next, "Shaem."

    In such a high octane situation, Nerys reasoned it''s only natural to mess up once or twice. When nerves get to weak people, they tend to crack under the pressure.

    "Bot'' Cap''n Nerys ain''t wunna dem!" She yelled, "Oii! Euwes Twos can expecc an'' ahh whoopin'' tha'' secun'' Oi''ve reach''d yus!"

    The Gods, upon hearing this, did in fact turn around to humor her. Their legs kept the distance between them equal and unchanging, however.

    "Nerys Edris..." Selz glared heavily at her, "Yes, the seafarer."

    "She''s not gonna catch up to us before we...?" Pry fretted.

    "Hush, Pry. That information is unnecessary to share." Selz turned to look at the reader, "Their lips are loose, so they may yet warn the Wildcard..."

    "Wot'' yus tolkin'' about!?" Nerys hollered, "Oi! Quit yer'' ronnin'' n'' tell meh!"

    "She''s persistent." Pry chuckled, "Almost makes you wanna root for her."

    "I would rather we root for our own victory." Selz shrugged, "Though, such would be redundant. After all, ours is assured."

    No matter how fast she ran, she could not close the distance between them. If she sped up, they sped up, and if she slowed down, they remained sped up still. Despite lugging around a huge unconscious archangel, they were running without a single bead of sweat dropping. Though, Nerys caught notice of something important.

    "Aye, ye'' cannae go too fass when jompin''!" She smirked, "At''s me chance!"

    Indeed, the distance between the rooftops was large, but the actual roofs weren''t all too big. In other words, if the Gods jumped with the speed they had accumulated, they''d end up overshooting and missing the next roof, thus dropping down to where Hats and Migu were. On the other hand, Nerys had absolutely no drawbacks to overshooting, ''cause that would mean lunging full speed at the Two and thus catching them.

    "Wait, wasn''t she supposed to be the dumb one?!" Pry panicked, "How come she figured out the complex math and physics all in her head!?"

    "Pry, another lesson in human psychology." Selz explained, "Humans don''t actually have to calculate such intricacies when it comes to praxis. Instead, their subconscious does the math for them, allowing them to reach the same proper conclusion through sheer logic alone."

    "What? That''s cheating!"

    She was making quick work of closing the gap between them, and with this latest trick up her sleeve she managed to find herself within just a few short hops of catching up to them. Coupled with the fact they were carrying a heavy Sheep between them, the Gods had figured running wouldn''t be enough to shake her off their tails.

    "Pry!"

    "On it!"

    With but a single call-out and a nod, the Two achieved mutual understanding just like that. Immediately, they both let go of Sheep as they split apart, dazing Nerys in a shroud of confusion. No matter how quick her reactions were, she simply could not prepare for the possibility of her objectives splitting into three before her very Eyes.

    "Ngh! Not gunna werk!" She shook it off, lunging at Sheep without any form of hesitation, "Gottem!"

    "Now!" Pry screamed.

    From both sides, Nerys was attacked by the Gods of Meditation and Knowledge. Once more, her choices were forcibly limited either to defending herself or keeping her hold on Sheep steady. Unsurprisingly, she chose the more reckless approach.

    "Open ahp, ye'' damn piece a'' Mutton!"

    Prying open his wings, Nerys found herself within the protection of his embrace. Inside she found the unconscious Vastoria, as well as a few of their walkie-talkies.

    "Inaff ta'' werk widd." She figured, rushing to activate all the walkie talkies at once.

    The closed off space within Sheep''s winged embrace caused the sound of all the devices'' static into an endless feedback loop. The irritant screeching of the devices kept accumulating until it had amassed a nigh deafening volume. The Gods outside, however, could not hear this happening at all.

    "She got inside, what do we do now!?" Pry frowned.

    "Tch, what else?" Selz begrudgingly sat down, "We can''t do "the plan" with her inside, so until she willingly leaves, all we can do is wait."

    Meanwhile, inside Sheep, Nerys was barely holding out. The horrible sound of the static endlessly amplifying made her head feel like it was being torn apart, but she had to endure it until the time was right. After a while, she felt like the frequencies that were being reached were almost too high to even hear anymore, however this was merely her brain playing tricks on her.

    She squealed in pain, "Gahhh, can''t... tekkit... any... more!"

    "Just... a bit..." She held out, "...More!

    In the very next moment, an eruption occurred. The two unassuming Gods staking out in front of the ball of wings were blasted with the loudest sound they had ever heard. The sound was so loud, in fact, that it somehow managed to give all the Heavenly Beings nearby a sense of pain in their ears despite their invincibility.

    In other words, the sound of the feedback loop was so loud that even angels could feel pained from it, so the Gods that were currently nothing more than mortal humans had it a thousand times rougher. They dropped to the ground immediately, with Nerys peeking out only when the feedback had settled down.

    "...Gotchus." She grinned smugly, "Har har! This foin land''ll remembah th'' naem a'' the fair cap''n who bestid tha'' Two Gods! Across th'' endless see a'' clouds, Nerys Edris shall rein supreem!"

    Alas, her victory was ruined by the blokes downstairs.

    "Nerys! What''s going on up there!?" Migu yelled.

    "Is it safe to come up!?" Hats added.

    "Gah. Ruinin'' me victry..." She pouted, "Aye! C''mon ahp!"

    With the threat of the Gods now temporarily dealt with, the trio was safe to converge where Nerys was waiting for them. After this, she figured, it would be best to try and tie the Gods up and then wait for Sheep to naturally wake up. Or at least, this was her assumption.

    "Huh? What happened to them?" Migu raised an Eyebrow at the sight of the two Gods lying motionlessly on the rooftop.

    "Th'' sound a'' th'' devoice." Nerys explained proudly, "Made ''em drop loik flois, eet did."

    Migu approached the two bodies, feeling a sense of anxiety well up within her with each passing step. Carefully, she ducked to inspect their conditions, only to be met with the scariest sight of her afterlife.

    "N-Nerys...!" Her heart sank, "They''re not breathing!

 Vol.7 Ch.168 - The Stuff of Nightmares

    Somehow, someway, the Gods of Knowledge and Meditation died. No, it makes perfect sense how this is the case; most angels that had to endure those deafening decibels felt like they were going to pass out. In other words, the sound was so loud that absolutely no human could ever survive it.

    "Dey be ded?" Nerys poked Selz'' cheek.

    I ran in circles, "Oh my Gods, oh crap...! We just killed the Gods!"

    "Oi." Nerys pouted, "Maek no mistaek¡ªOi'' kill''d ''em."

    Seriously? It doesn''t matter who did it, dammit! And besides, weren'' you supposed to be a devout follower? What kind of a religious person kills their own Gods!?

    "What frickin'' ever!" I shouted, "O-Oh right, in moments like these you perform CPR, right!?"

    "What''s that?" Hats tilted his head.

    Geez, even I don''t know for sure. Uhm, chest compressions, filling their lungs with air, the likes. No wait, isn''t this just for drowning victims? Tch, dammit Migu, no time to think about the details¡ªthese Two absolutely mustn''t die!

    "O-Oye!" Nerys twitched, "Ye'' inta'' dead men, lass!?"

    "Quit with the jokes, if these guys die who knows what''s gonna happen to everyone in Heaven!" I shouted, kneeling next to Pry to give him mouth-to-mouth, "Breathe, dammit!"

    Once that didn''t work, I began chest compressions. I heard somewhere that it''s okay to apply enough force to even break a few ribs. Still, either I''m extremely weak or their human bodies were made sturdier than I''d expected. Point is, I heard no cracks, breaks or fractures, nor did he begin to breathe again.

    "..."

    "The Hell are you two standing around there for like idiots!?" I pointed, "Come on, get Selz!"

    Hats and Nerys quickly snapped out of it, rushing to follow my instructions and do the same to Selz that I was doing to Pry. Hopefully even one of them wakes up, since I imagine they''d have the ability to revive the other in some way. They''re Gods, after all, they have to have it!

    "Migu..." Hats said with ragged breaths.

    "Keep going, we can''t give up!" I gave Selz a few slaps on the face.

    "Lass." Nerys put her hand gently on my shoulder, "They be long gone."

    It was only after she said this that it finally clicked in my head. I stood up, looking at the two cold corpses lying motionlessly in front of us. The Gods were dead, and we killed them.

    "H-Huh!?" I shoved her away, rushing to Selz'' side, "He''s...!"

    Putting my ear up to his mouth, I could feel the lightest bit of airflow coming out. In other words, he was breathing again. Phew! I was about to cry, dammit...

    "Eeeeeeeeegh..." He let out an audible exhale.

    "Think that''s jus'' his soul leavin'' him." Nerys crossed her arms.

    "He stopped breathing again." Hats sighed.

    "..."

    "......"

    Suddenly, a loud trumpet sound erupted from his throat.

    I fell back in surprise, "Gahhh!"

    "Cut eet off!" Nerys cupped her ears.

    "Please stop!" Hats begged him.

    For whatever reason, Selz''s body started to let out this horribly loud sound. Almost like he had heard him, Pry began to do the same soon after. Now they were both creating this trumpet-like sound from their bodies, and we were directly in the line of fire.

    I covered their mouths, "Shut up already!"

    "Mph-!"

    Eh? That worked?

    "Tch, wot nau?" Nerys sat down on the rooftop we were on.

    "We need to find Elegy." Hats suggested, "He''ll know what to do."

    "Not a chance he''s anywhere near us." I looked down, "Last we heard he seemed pretty busy with his own things. Even if he''s finished up with it, it''s gonna take a long while before he comes over."

    I noticed something funny about my palms by this point. Obviously, covering their lips was always meant to be a temporary solution, but it was something else. They felt heavy.

    "I-I can''t move my palms!" I worried, "Guys, help me out here!"

    "Migu!" They sprung to action.

    As if stuck to Their faces, my hands just wouldn''t budge free. It took all three of us pulling me away to finally free my hands, but it meant the trumpet sounds began again.

    "Dammit, wake up already!" I cussed my hands out, "It''s like they''re encased in concrete; they''re too heavy to move around in!"This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    "Bah!" Nerys slipped.

    "What''s wrong!?" Hats turned to her.

    "B-Boye..." She gulped, "Oi'' cannae moov me legs."

    In short, utter pandemonium. We quickly figured out that the sound the dead Gods were creating and our partial paralysis was interconnected. Hats was the only one who still had full control of his body, so I had to make a difficult decision.

    "Migu?" He looked at me raising my leg.

    With stern kick, I sent him flying off the top of the roof. His scream almost made me tear up, but there was no other way. I don''t like harming my friends, but given the situation there was just no saving us. I''m sure, if I told him to save himself and go find Elegy, he would undoubtedly try to bring us with him... But it''s already too late for Nerys and me.

    "Miguuuu~!!"

    "Tch, th'' boye'' didn'' deserv dat." Nerys groaned.

    "He''s the only chance we have left." I chuckled, "I don''t know what''s gonna happen to us, but if he finds Elegy, I''m sure they''ll figure out a way to fix all this."

    "Lotta faith ye'' got in arr'' mateys." Nerys smirked, "Ah, can''t moov beloo me neck."

    "Faith, huh? Nah, but do we have any other options?" I joked, "Oh, me neither. Guess that''s it for us."

    Hats, Elegy... Sab. Please save everyone.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    "I got it!" Elegy shouted.

    And just then, another set of trumpets roared. With each consecutive horn, Heaven 2.0 became more and more petrified. As if weighed down by pure concrete, the men couldn''t even fly with the powerful cherubim wings anymore.

    "Sab! Toss me the wings!" He yelled.

    "Huh!? How many?"

    "All of them!" Elegy shouted, "Quickly!"

    Figuring they didn''t have time to waste, Sab followed the orders he was given and attached as many wings as Elegy could fit on his back. Wings are really powerful attachments in Heaven 2.0 that allow an angel to soar the skies, but one really doesn''t need more than a single pair before it gets reduntant. If a single pair can carry a multitude of angels, then why would anyone ever be so wasteful as to equip more?

    "Gahh!" They shouted in pain.

    "W-What did you lose?" Elegy asked worriedly.

    "Can''t feel a thing below my torso!"

    He could still wave his arms around, so it hadn''t gotten to his shoulders, but Sab knew he was probably done for after this. Whatever Elegy had planned in his head, he had to hurry it up with the execution.

    "Alright, your wings too!" Elegy put his stubs out.

    "B-Bastard! What do you even need them for!?"

    "Oh shut up, not like you can make use of yours anymore anyways."

    Sab understood he was being left behind. His Eyes sunk back in fear.

    "Y-You''re leaving me here...?" He gulped, "For dead?"

    "Sab, give me the wings!"

    In the distance, another wave of trumpets set off.

    "Sab, we don''t have much time!" He kept insisting, "I''m not leaving you, I need your wings!"

    Sab blinked, his voice quivering from the uncertainty, "Y-You''re not gonna leave me behind...?"

    Just then Elegy lunged at him, stealing away the wings from his friend. No, he didn''t lunge, he couldn''t. His legs didn''t work anymore, there was no way for him to generate the power necessary for such a move.

    Just then, it struck him¡ªElegy was using his plentiful wings to move. Wings weren''t alive, nor were they connected to the rest of his body. They were galvanically connected, in other words¡ªhe pushed himself off the ground with them serving as extra limbs.

    "Sorry about this." Elegy muttered, lifting him up with the wings with ease, "You''re gonna get petrified, there''s no stopping that. Hell, even I''m not so sure if I''ll be fully conscious from this point on... But I''m not gonna leave you behind."

    "You won''t be conscious?" Sab worried.

    "Once my head gets petrified, the wings will fully take control of my body." Elegy explained, "There''s not a scarier fate I can think of in this moment, but we have no choice. Wings function based on commands you give them¡ªmove like this, move like that, flap, strike, rotate."

    Sab dutifully listened to the explanation. Still, he couldn''t for the life of him understand where Elegy was coming from.

    "Dude, what does this have to do with you stopping those damned trumpets?"

    "You still don''t get it?" Elegy looked toward the source of the sound, "I simply gave each wing a command¡ªOne will always hold onto you, these two down here will function as replacement legs that will take us to the source... And the rest will be tasked with fixing the situation."

    "That''s...!" Sab groaned, "An extremely vague request."

    "Heh, so you realized it as well?" Elegy chuckled, "Yeah, chances are this little living suit of armor isn''t gonna work out as I''d hope for it to, but by giving it a long-term task, I can at least rest easy in knowing everything will turn out okay."

    The Gods were dead, their bodies producing the trumpet sounds that were petrifying Heaven 2.0. Until they reach the Gods and get them to stop, Sab and Elegy, as well as the rest of Heaven 2.0, will all remain living statues.

    "Then, shall we get going?" Elegy began to walk peacefully toward the sound.

    "You''re not gonna hurry to get there?" Sab inquired.

    "Will it make a difference?" He replied, "The second another horn goes off, we''re both getting put to sleep. Whether I rush or not won''t matter."

    Sab looked down before recalling a painful possibility.

    "...Wait, how sure are you that the wings won''t just stop moving the second you get your head petrified?"

    "If that happens, hmm..." Elegy thought about it briefly, "Well, guess that means we reached the bad ending. Heaven 2.0 will have, for some reason unknown to us, been frozen over for all eternity."

    "And that doesn''t scare you?"

    "Mn." He shrugged, "Not like I''ll be conscious to mourn it."

    Such a lax resolve. Either Elegy succeeds or Heaven 2.0 is doomed. It was as if he couldn''t care less for the world in general, but Sab knew better than to believe him to be so shallow.

    "Your Eyes are darting around all over the place." Sab smirked, finding a bit of relief in this fact.

    "Huh? No, that''s..."

    "You ''are'' scared." He let out a chuckle, "Eyes are a human''s most important body part; they''re windows peering into one''s soul... and right now, they''re the only body part you can move normally."

    "Nuh uh, I can move my ears too." Elegy shared a fun little party trick.

    Sab kept looking at him.

    "Does that confident, carefree mask ever crack?" He wondered to himself.

    The silence that ensued cut deep for both of them. Just then, Elegy''s voice echoed around the two men.

    "Of course it does." He looked back, "When my family''s safety is on the line, that mask shatters into a thousand tiny pieces."

    "Elegy..."

    "But know this, Sab." He pressed on fearlessly, "This mask is here not to keep a smile on my face, but on the ones'' around me. I''ll stop smiling the second I''m the only one left."

    "Is that so?" Sab''s Eyebrows shot up in surprise, "So you''re saying you know Migu and Energy are alive?"

    "I''m saying I''ll make it so." He smirked, the resolve in his Eyes burning as bright as brimstone, "You''re right, Eyes are the most important part of a human¡ªwithout them you can neither dream nor witness your dreams become reality."

    "How profound." Sab nodded as the last wave of trumpets approached, "But you know, Eyes can show us some pretty nasty nightmares too."

    "That''s a choice, dreams and nightmares... And you already know which one I''m picking!"

 Vol.7 Afterword

    One burnout, a 3 week break, a slow recovery, and a ton of procrastinating later, and we''ve finally finished up Volume 7. Honestly, I don''t think even the Ancient Egyptians felt like this while they were placing the last block of the final pyramid. I''m just so relieved to have finally finished SOMETHING, you know?

    As for the actual Volume itself, I wouldn''t consider it my proudest work, but that''s why I write webnovels first and foremost. Mostly, I just throw as many things at random and see what sticks, so when I eventually revisit the story while turning it into a lightnovel, I have the hindsight necessary to pick what stays and what changes.

    Given the turbulent time in my life, what with heading off to college at the start of October, separating from my friends and family for the first time... ever, really; not to mention all the extra responsibilities I had to get used to doing pretty much daily¡ªyeah, it''s really no surprise that I found myself too tired to write after a while.

    We''re closing in on 3 years since I started writing stories. Depending on how you look at it, I either have nothing to show for it, or a heck of a lot. Perhaps taking the time to properly turn some of the Volumes of my previous story into a published book would be the smart play after I''m done with Heaven''s Calling. On the other hand, I dislike the idea of not writing the next story immediately after.  I''m greedy, and I feel like at least some of you can relate to what I''m saying. I''d most prefer it if I could do it all at once, but as weak as it may sound¡ªI have my limits.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    I''ll of course finish Heaven''s Calling the way the story was intended. I''ll try my best to finish all 9 of the projected Volumes in time for New Years, and after that... Who knows? You might not hear from me for a while, at least not until Transcontinental has some published Volumes under its belt. When that happens, maybe give the lightnovel a try if you do happen to miss me. Sigh, after that... I''ll probably work on the next series.

    I''ll look into checking off some of the shorter stories I have planned so far. Maybe that''ll be easier to manage? What am I saying, of course it will! I''ve also learned my lesson when it comes to planning a story ahead thoroughly from start to finish. I can only hope that the next work will blow all of my previous works out of the water.

    Oh dang, I''ve been yapping on and on about the future so much, I completely forgot to talk about the Volume. Well, I have something to admit¡ªthat was sort of on purpose. Truth be told, I spent so much time writing Volume 7 that I completely forgot what all happens in it. A blunder on my part, but I hope you can forgive me this time. Well, that''s all I have to share for now. Everyone, please take care of your health, and I''ll see you at the end of Volume 8.

    This is your friendly neighborhood Mikan Akai, signing out! Cheers~

 Vol.8 Ch.169 - Stone World

    "Miguuu~!"

    Shoved heartlessly aside by whom he considered to be his friend, Hats cried out her name as the trumpets roared. Confused and scared, he tumbled down the side of the tall building until he collided with the floor straight on, a small crater forming in the ground around him.

    "T-Trumpets mean bad business!" He recalled, instinctively looking towards the door of the building he just fell from, "Gotta hide!"

    Though at first the door didn''t budge, a stern shoulder tackle proved it was no match for Hats'' strength. Quickly, before he could feel the effects of the petrification, he slammed the door shut behind him, even going the extra mile by pushing a nearby drawer behind it.

    Looking around the dim room, it appeared to resemble a living room of sorts. The trumpets kept getting louder, though, so he couldn''t quite admire the vacant spot for too long. Hastily, he retreated beneath the coffee table, hiding behind the tablecloth covering it.

    Silence. He waited and waited, whether it be for the deafening sound to stop, for someone to lift the tablecloth from him, or even just for someone to knock on the door of the building... but none of this happened. He sat there, his heart racing until he could wait no more. Inside this cramped hiding spot, petrified or not, he couldn''t move an inch.

    "Stop it already!" He jumped up, tossing the table across the room in a fit of rage, "...I-I didn''t get heavy."

    A revelation inadvertently caused by momentary lividity. Despite hearing the trumpets emanating from the Divine corpses above him, he didn''t get petrified like Migu and Nerys did. The anomaly allowed him to conclude one thing for certain¡ªthe petrification doesn''t pass through walls.

    "Ha-" He snorted, "Haha! I figured it out! I did it! It won''t hurt me if I hide behind a wall!"

    The boy jumped up and down in excitement.

    "You hear that, Migu!?" He yelled out, "Nerys too, you guys¡ªI figured it out!"

    Despite his joy, he still understood that this information would only remain useless unless he used it for himself. Thankfully, by the time he steeled his resolve, the trumpets had finally seized for a minute or so. Just enough time for him to make his grand escape.

    Carefully moving aside the drawer keeping him and the outside world separated, Hats rushed out of the door to run as far away as possible. Alas, the trumpets roared once more, not minding at all for the fact that he hadn''t yet reached a safe spot.

    "Gah!" Hats jolted, fearing the worst, "G-Gotta hide...! There!"

    Though he was well-mannered enough to hope for a peaceful entry every time, Hats simply didn''t have enough of it to justify not breaking through the door this time. For the entire duration of the trumpet horns, he hid inside the rooms of another vacant house. The very second it stopped, he was out of there just as quickly as he had entered.

    "I get it now." He nodded, "I gotta stay close to the houses! That way the horns won''t catch me off guard!"

    This was the first time Hats was left to fend for himself for real. With no allies to fall back on nor adults whose advice he would heed, he had to rely on himself and his own experiences to get out of this predicament. Evolving slowly but surely, this child''s brain developed intense and rapid growth. The horns roared again.

    "Hehe! Not this time!" He smirked, rounding the corner to smash through the doors, "Hyah!"

    Inside, however, an unexpected turn of events led to a mishap of sorts. Another group had already claimed this building as their own, hoping that the measly chair they had put up against the door would keep them safe from the disaster happening outside. What they didn''t factor in, though, was for someone like Hats to break a hole through the door clean through.

    "A-Ahhhh!" A lady screeched in horror.

    "Get out!" A man shooed Hats out, "Out, now! Go on, or I''ll make you!"

    Hats was frightened and confused. The adults were yelling at him, telling him to leave; but leaving would turn him into a living statue. By this point, he had reasonably assumed that Migu pushed him off back then so as to save him, so he knew better than to betray her feelings by failing the mission this early on as well. His mind was already made up, he was here to stay.

    "We need to block the door." Hats sternly replied.

    "Hello!? You deaf, jackass?" The man walked up to him seeking a confrontation, "I told you to get the hell outta my house!"

    "Just let him stay, geez!" The lady in the back was shouting too, "Do you see what''s going on out there? The guy was probably just looking for shelter!"Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators!

    "After he broke my door?!"

    "Screw your door, man!" She continued to berate him, "We''ll just ask the Gods for another one!"

    "The Gods haven''t been answering anyone''s wishes for a while now!" The man shot back, "Gah, just find someplace else to stay, man!"

    While the pair were bickering, Hats felt a tingling sensation creep up on his back. The trumpets were being particularly loud by this point, and he knew his time was limited. Hats ran past the man and into the closet, shutting the doors firmly and not letting anyone open them.

    "Hey, crazy whacko dude! Get outta my stuff!" The man yelled, "What the-!?"

    The lady shouted after him, "Ahhh! My arms are-!"

    Silence. Well, if you ignore the trumpets that persisted for another 3 minutes. Hats slowly creaked open the doors of the closet to find the two petrified mid-panic, their Eyes wide open in terror.

    "...Hmph!" He ran off, determined to make things right no matter what.

    Right now, Hats needed to think about himself. If he doesn''t find a way out of this area, then Migu would be let down. Hats'' friends need him alive, and he can''t do that unless he''s fully focused on saving his own skin first and foremost. A quiet prayer was muttered from the young lad, directed solely however to the two whom he had just doomed.

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    This time from the top. Hats moved deftly from building to building, making sure to always keep an Eye out for any doors that may be nearby. A point was made to prioritize open doors or windows, as that indicates vacancy. The last thing he''d want is to have more people in his conscience.

    "I don''t think they''re dead..." Hats muttered to himself, "No, if they''re dead, then so are Migu and Nerys, so they can''t be dead!"

    This hopeful train of thought kept his motivation at an all-time high, just enough for him to make it through the next three trumpet waves without a single hiccup. On the flipside, due to him getting further away over time, a new issue presented itself.

    "It could just be that my ears are hurting from listening to the same noise over and over again, but it''s getting harder to hear it now." He glanced down, "No, Elegy told me to never let my guard down! Just a bit more, Hats. Just hold out!"

    Eventually it came to the point where he started once again seeing non-petrified angels roaming around him. Their confused expressions upon seeing him so winded made him worriedly warn anyone that had business in the direction behind to strongly reconsider.

    Alas, many angels were unnerved by his one-armed stature, and seeing as he was so tired that he could barely even form cohesive sentences, most chose to ignore his warnings. Hats watched them walk into the petrification zone  and couldn''t do a thing about it. With so many people around, he couldn''t ever hope to stop them all without getting caught in the disaster himself.

    "Oh Gods..." He whimpered as the trumpets'' faint roars echoed behind him, "It''s not just around where Migu and Nerys are. It''s spreading...!"

    Another bone-chilling piece of information made his heart sink. The petrification induced by the sound of the Divine corpses'' trumpets wasn''t a stationary disaster. Rather, its radius kept slowly spreading as the sound began to raise in volume. Seeing the people around him start to panic with some even getting their extremities petrified, he figured another round of hiding would be necessary yet.

    "Tch, crap...!" He darted his gaze around, "I can''t search for doors in this crowd!"

    Running through a stationary, half-empty street was a lot simpler than running through a chaotic, eternally moving one, after all. Even if he had tried to enter a building, though, it wouldn''t work one bit. The angels would have stopped him, accusing him of being a burglar. Despite everything, the sound of the trumpets got to Hats.

    Feeling helpless, he knocked over a living statue, causing a domino effect to spiral out of control in such a crowded area. Once he did that, he hid beneath the dogpile, squeezing himself just barely in there before he got nicked. A close shave, but a successful one nonetheless. However horrible it may seem to an outsider''s perspective, Hats justified this selfish act of his rather logically.

    "T-They would have turned anyways, they were in the middle of the street!" He yelped, squeezing out of the dogpile of living statues, "I''m sorry, and thank you for your sacrifice."

    Once more, he ran as fast as he could until he had outpaced the petrification zone. No longer wasting time on warning other angels, he had finally found a moment of reprieve. By this point, he had been working with the petrification for so long that he could even predict when the next trumpet horn would come without the need of his ears. He reckoned off the top of his head that he had at least three more trumpets before the petrification zone would catch up to him, so he had time to rest and celebrate this tiny victory.

    "M-My legs..." He fell to his knees, "They didn''t get...? No, this isn''t from the sound, they''re just tired."

    A quick and tired chuckle proved just how hard he worked to achieve this result. Hats succeeded in running away from the zone for now, but he still didn''t know how to fully put a stop to it. Just then, an unexpected sight caught his Eye.

    "What''s that...?" He looked on at the bundle of wings, "Sheep? No, he''s up on the rooftop."

    A large humanoid-shaped shrub of wings marched on slowly towards him. Hats moved aside, but quickly understood that he was not its main point of interest. Nay, the thing was traveling single mindedly toward the Gods.

    "Wait, you''re holding someone..." He squinted, "S-Sab!?"

    An unconscious yet oddly stiff Sab dangled in the loose grasp of one of that thing''s wings. As careful as it was to not harm him during transport, Hats simply couldn''t leave his ally to get dragged into the danger zone. The others before were different, they were nobodies who didn''t know the context of his troubles, but Sab was a part of the team in Hats'' Eyes. There was no way he was going to let this one slide.

    "Hey." Hats blocked the way, "Leave my frie-! Oi, you think you''re funny by walking right past...? Gah, stop ignoring me!"

    The childish tantrum fell on deaf ears, for the thing had no intention of even humoring Hats with a simple pause in its gait. As if under orders, it kept marching on toward the source of the petrification, leading Sab into the gaping mouth of the problem. Without any other choice, Hats reasoned it was okay to apply a bit more force this time.

    With a proper run-up, he delivered a mean tackle aimed directly at the wing holding onto Sab. Successfully, he knocked him free of this thing''s claws, but alas Sab was still unconscious.

    "Though I don''t think that''s the main problem right now." Hats craned his head back to face the full anger of the beast, "Seriously, why out of all the people here, you chose to take my friend?"

 Vol.8 Ch.170 - Give Up

    The thing stopped marching, instead it craned its body over to face Sab, now splayed out on the ground like a weeping angel. Hats caught wind of this and acted accordingly before his progress was erased.

    "Oh no you don''t!" He let out a shrill battlecry, "Sab''s mine!"

    That being said, Sab was a whole house, or at least as heavy as one. Lifting him up and carrying him away proved to be way more difficult than Hats had originally assumed, so before he could do anything, the thing was already standing before him.

    "Tch, no way...!" Hats gasped, "Sab, you''re already a statue!?"

    Now things were starting to unravel slowly for the poor boy. His friend hadn''t been kidnapped by this mysterious winged thing, rather he was already petrified to begin with. Too heavy to lift, Hats understood that simply transporting him away from the scene would be far too impossible.

    The thing loomed over the boy and his friend, its grotesque appearance seemingly peering into his soul.

    "..."

    "Y-You...!" Hats'' voice cracked.

    A symbol of death, towering over the already pretty sizeable Hats¡ªits body made of wings with Eyes riddled all over them, the foreign thing couldn''t even be described properly. It bore plenty of similarities to both the archangel Sheep and the cherubim, however its most notable differences were the tiny hints of an inner body peeking through.

    Feeling cornered, Hats began to grill it for answers.

    "What do you want with my friend!?" His voice came out weak.

    "..."

    "Grr... I''m not giving him away!" He once again raised his tone, "If you wanna take him somewhere, then take him away from that area!"

    Figuring appealing to the thing would give him the highest chance of success, Hats began to beg. A middle ground of sorts, if you will. So long as Sab wasn''t being taken toward the petrification zone, Hats would even consider letting him get taken away.

    "Over there is dangerous, you know!?" He continued, "The same thing that happened to Sab will happen to you as well if you go there! Listen, if you come with me, then maybe we can find a way to save Sab together!"

    Extending his hand to the winged monster, Hats presented a rather unexpected truce. The thing kept standing there, as if petrified already; in fact Hats had even assumed as much, but its body disproved the theory by moving soon after. The thing ducked down, carefully picking Sab up with the same wing it had previously delegated to carrying him before he was dropped. Then, it turned back around to face the zone.

    "Are you stupid!?" Hats once again tried to tackle it, however this time he didn''t even manage to stagger the thing, "Tch, I''m not letting him go with you!"

    A fight ensued. Hats'' attacks were furious and wild as he leaned his entire body into his one arm. The thing, not intending to be a pushover, reciprocated these strikes with powerful swings of its own. The difference between them, however, would quickly be made apparent as the thing raised its wings threateningly.

    "Y-!"

    Before he could even say anything, Hats was slammed from both sides by the Eyeful wings. A single slap from even one wing would send anyone flying for at least a 100 kilometers, so experiencing two equilateral forces from opposite sides surely dealt incredible damage. Once scraped off of the wings'' surface, he fell to the ground, a large majority of his body missing chunks of it.

    But Hats was an angel, one without any gold on him. These missing chunks regenerated within seconds, allowing him to catch the thing off guard as he ran in for a dropkick. Striking dead on, it was as if all the force he had endured from the attack he took on was flowing through the length of his body. Hats'' kick actually toppled the winged giant, with it even dropping Sab a second time.

    Before, Hats was willing to negotiate an answer that would make both parties happy, but not this time. Now, all bets were off the table.

    "It''s... It''s not fair!" Hats, surprisingly, latched onto the thing instead of running to get Sab, "How come you can carry him like he''s a twig, but when I do it, it''s like lifting up the entire world on my back!"

    The silence of the thing only infuriated him more. Just like last time, the thing remained motionless after getting knocked down, probably surprised by the drastic turn of events. Hats capitalized on this weakness by attempting to rip off the wings clean off of it.

    "I remember now, the others had wings of their own too!" His breath grew rigid, "It''s because of them, isn''t it? The reason why you can carry him without breaking a sweat!"The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    "..."

    "Heh, well, no need to answer anyway." Hats grinned, finally ripping the wing clean off, "I''ll figure it out sooner or later by myself!"

    Just then, the thing woke up to knock him away, but Hats didn''t at all mind. Even if he couldn''t fly, just having the means to lift Sab off the ground would have been incredible progress. That being the case, he reached around to equip the wing on his right side.

    "Hm?" Hats furrowed his Eyebrows, "No! No way, how!?"

    The wing just wouldn''t attach. Despite his best efforts, Hats was betrayed by his own seemingly flawless plan. Like water and oil, or two magnets facing the same direction, his body simply rejected the wing. He could have sworn that this was the exact same method the others used to attach their stolen wings, but for some reason Hats'' case was different. Just then, the wing zipped back to reattach to the thing.

    "This can''t be real..." Hats muttered, raising his voice to deliver a declaration filled with anger, "You cheat! I''ll find a way to take Sab away even without those stupid wings of yours!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Whittling its health away wing by wing had turned out to be a fruitless endeavor, merely wasted effort and stamina. Hats was out of breath, definitely in no state to take on such an invincible opponent, but he was determined to save Sab despite this fact.

    "You''re really bad at listening, huh?" He groaned at the thing, "So long as I''m standing on my two legs, you can''t touch Sab!"

    The reason he was saying this was because the thing obviously had no interest in Hats himself. Instead, it was once again trudging slowly toward its main objective¡ªthe living statue of Sab. Its gait wasn''t particularly fast nor determined, in fact this ambivalent attitude only made Hats question its mission even more. If Sab was so important to it, then why not put in more effort to hold onto him?

    "I can''t keep knocking you down over and over again..." Hats admitted, "I still need to save my strength to run away after this."

    Only now did he remember that he was also on a rather strict timer. The zone was expanding, petrifying everyone in its wake. Before, he calculated that he had roughly three trumpet cycles'' worth of time, but echoes of the terrifying sound were already closing in on them. If he didn''t figure out a solution soon, Hats would find himself soon to be entrapped just like the others around him.

    "Wait..." He jolted, his gaze darting from side to side, "Everyone''s already turned into statues!"

    In other words, the zone had already reached the street where Hats and the thing were fighting. So then how did only the two of them survive the petrification this time if they were outside?

    "Ah." Hats stood there baffled, "You can''t turn."

    Chaining revelations one after another as if they were puzzle pieces, Hats progressively got to understand more of the full picture. For one reason or another, this thing sensed that Sab was important, so its goal is to move in close to the Gods and put a stop to them. This was the conclusion Hats came up with, but even then he wasn''t so sure.

    "Is that right? You can''t become like the rest of them?" He tilted his head, standing by as the thing carefully picked Sab back up off the ground, "Sab... He''s already a statue, so it''s not like he''s gonna get more harmed than he already is. I think... I think it''s okay for me to hand him over to you."

    "..."

    The thing didn''t even acknowledge Hats'' words. Rather, it simply turned its back to him and walked away, steadfastly dragging itself along the ground toward where Migu and Nerys were with the Gods. Hats wasn''t quite certain this was the best play to make, but one action it did during their fight was enough to make him trust it, at least.

    "Right, that must also be why I didn''t get turned into a statue while the others did." Hats smiled warmly, "It was back when you hit me with the wings. Because you covered me up with them completely and refused to let go, the trumpets had passed by already by the time I freed myself. What I heard back then wasn''t the trumpets incoming, but rather them leaving!"

    Whether the thing did this for Hats on purpose or not remained uncertain, as once more¡ªit never once uttered a single word. Still, Hats understood the concept of actions being louder than words, and right now this thing''s actions were crystal clear. A sense of relief overwhelmed him in knowing that he wasn''t the only one tasked with setting everything straight.

    "Oop, gotta hide again." He looked away, "The trumpets are starting again."

    He didn''t quite get to say goodbye nor wish the thing good luck, but Hats carried in his heart a strong sense of respect and gratitude nonetheless. Despite everything, he still had to find a way to make sure everyone could be properly de-petrified, even if the trumpets got stopped by the thing without his help.

    "Ack-!?" He fell to the ground suddenly, "Oh no... No no no!"

    After everything was said and done, Hats assumed the rest of his mission would continue smoothly from now on, but this was far from the case. He looked down in horror to feel a severe lack of movement from his ankles down. Indeed, whilst the majority of his body was being protected by the thing''s wings, only his feet remained exposed. Hats was now part statue as well.

    "I-I need to make it to a building!" He crawled on the ground, refusing to give up just yet, "Migu believes in me! I can''t betray her trust!"

    Slower than a snail''s pace, but still exuding an immeasurable sense of self-preservation, Hats continued to slowly creep his way off of the main street. The trumpets began to roar louder, yet he was only a few steps away from where he fell.

    "Ngggggahhhhhhhh!!!"

    A lone cry in the sea of statues, Hats kept pushing despite the ear-piercing trumpets making his mind foggy. His feet began to sink deeper and deeper into the cloudy terrain, only making his battle with gravity tougher. Nonetheless, he kept pushing through until he had reached the nearest door.

    Too weak to even stand up, he just headbutted a hole to squeeze through. Tired and scratched up all over, he used his petrified boots to block the hole in the door, just barely managing to keep the rest of his body from turning.

    "...Dammit..." He felt his consciousness start to slip from the heavy strain of this event, "Just five minutes, then I''ll continue..."

    His head lowered without his permission. Or rather, his body allowed it to before the brain could say no. Hats was lying flat on the ground near the doorway, using his boots both as a doorstopper and a way to block the petrification from leaking through the hole he had created. He was safe; isolated and alone, but safe nonetheless. His feet were practically immovable after this, but at least the rest of him was fine. A long and difficult journey awaited him.

 Vol.8 Ch.171 - H-E-L-L-O

    "Uuuughh..." He moaned, "My body hurts all over."

    The difficult battle he had just experienced made him weary. Hats was still well within the zone of petrification, and the longer he dawdled, the further out he''d have to travel in order to escape it. Even now, the only thought occupying his mind was that he shouldn''t disappoint Migu.

    "I gotta keep moving." He resolved, "Urk. But my legs are too heavy..."

    By this point, each step would feel like walking in hardened cement. In that sense, he couldn''t really lift his legs at all, much less move around deftly with them being so disabled. The next best step was to find a way around it. Another mode of transport.

    "If only I had wings..." He muttered to himself, "Maybe if I slide around?"

    Possibly, he reasoned, if he never had to lift his feet off the ground in the first place, he could move whilst preserving most of his energy. Despite his initial tester along the wooden plank floor of the house he was in proving successful, he quickly had to rethink his plan once he moved outside.

    "Gah!" The friction of the clouds put him to an immediate halt, "Not gonna work, huh... The clouds are too grippy, the boots just fall through."

    Soon enough, another set of trumpets would go off, and if Hats didn''t have a plan by then, he feared he wouldn''t ever be able to leave the area. Just then, an idea blinked in his mind.

    "Wheels turn!" He churned back into the house to find something suitable to use, "Plates? Coffee table top? Ugh, none of this will work the way I want it to!"

    That being the case, his luck had turned around when out of the corner of his Eye he spotted it¡ªa duffel bag. As foreign and odd of a container he had found it, Hats wasn''t one to ignore an opportunity. Checking inside, he found a few oddities. Goofy looking shoes, some container that had a weird grease in it, fingerless gloves, a napkin and..."

    "Whoa!" He could barely lift it in his hands, "A heavy ball!"

    Unbeknownst to him, he had stumbled into the home of a bowling hobbyist. The ball with three holes on it was to be used to knock down pins originally, but in Hats'' hands, it held a more profound meaning.

    "I can stand on it and it''ll roll me to my destination!" He proudly dropped it on the ground with a loud thunk.

    Alas, Hats wasn''t a circus clown, so his balance wasn''t at all up to par. As quickly as he had climbed atop it, so too did he immediately slip and fall on his back. For a moment he contemplated crying, but recalled the trust placed on him to save everyone.

    "Heroes don''t cry!" He wiped the tears away, "I gotta try another way."

    Indeed, giving up wasn''t an option. Not after he got this far. After finding one bowling ball, finding a few more wasn''t that difficult. Having found the four necessary balls, he looked around for an adequate "body".

    "The coffee table from before could work..." He thought, "No, I need something I can easily attach the balls to."

    The coffee table was scrapped a second time. If it had emotions, it would surely cry; but Hats didn''t pay that too much mind. Instead, he looked for an alternative. One which had proper weight distribution and symmetry to avoid having him fall off a second time. The ride was to be smooth, which led to him finding the answer in... a door, of all things.

    "Hyup!" He ripped the door off of its hinges, "This''ll work!"

    "Now, how do I attach the balls...?" He stole a glance at the coffee table a third time, "Ah!"

    Ripping the poor table''s legs off one by one, he had made good use of them by shoving each end into the bowling balls'' hole. Thus, he placed the door on top of the mechanism, creating a sort of land raft. Painstakingly moving to the outside, he had given it a push, and...

    "Success!" He heard the trumpets shriek in the distance, "Oh, gotta hide. But after this, I can finally leave!"

    It took less than three minutes before the trumpets had stopped once more. Immediately, Hats left his hiding spot inside the house and trudged to his newly created vehicle. Though not really efficient in pushing him along the ground, it did serve its purpose of moving him along slowly but surely. With this, he can zoom on out of the petrification zone in no time.

    "Time to hide again." He took a detour to another empty house, "The trumpets are gonna sound again."

    By this point, he had long since figured out the rhythm of the trumpets going off. He knew when to move and when to stop. Hats had effectively learned all the ins and outs of this Red light Green light game with the divine corpses. And after many painstaking minutes of rolling, stopping, hiding and wading through the thick clouds... He had done it.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    "Okay." He stared back at the direction he just came from, "The next trumpet sounds should be coming in three, two, one...!"

    Nothing. No sound could be heard anymore coming from that side of Heaven 2.0. Not only that, but even Hats didn''t feel any sort of petrification creeping up on him. He had succeeded in outpacing the petrification zone, and now it was time to move on to the next step of his plan.

    "This place is...?" He turned to his left, spotting a large open yard with the remains of what appeared to be a mansion in its center, "The Gods'' Abode!?"

    Recalling its significance from the other party members, he quickly turned the DIY vehicle to enter through the yard''s metal gates. Pushing them aside, he wheeled himself over to the marble remains. If there was any place in the world he could go to in order to find a way to fix all of this, then it had to be here.

    "I''m sure, this is it." He stood up, if just barely, "There''s gotta be something worth using in this place!"

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    Slower than a sloth, limper than a corpse, he dragged himself over to the ruins of the Gods'' Abode if just barely. He didn''t have much time to search the area, yet he felt that only made what little he had that much more important.

    Walking through the rough terrain meant he had to briefly say goodbye to his little contraption, despite only just creating it. A bitter end to what was supposed to be a long lasting relationship, but life goes on.

    "I remember this place from back when Migu was there." He recalled bitterly, "Those Two beat me up really bad back then too..."

    The defeat he had to endure against the Gods was a bitter pill to take. Hats'' temper was still out of whack due to this, but the idea that they''re now no longer among the living did give him a small snicker. Then he remembered that Their deaths caused the petrification of his friends, which once more made him sad. Truly, life is an anthology of ups and downs.

    "This is where we got buried, and Nerys had to save us." He commented, "Right, which means just next to it should be..."

    Energy''s remains. The splattered Graymatter contrasted deeply with the pure White marble tiles. It was a disgusting display of power from the Gods, despite their mortal, powerless states. To gang up on a brain with no way to fight back, their despicability knew no bounds. Hats could only stand there in silence.

    "I should''ve been faster."

    Once all was said and done, the only emotions that remain are those of regret... and blame; and with no one around for the young Hats to blame, the blame could only fall on him. Bitter feelings emerged of wishing he came by earlier, of him not being so weak as to lose to the two scrawny Gods; the urge to scream at his own hopelessness was at an all time high. But he stowed these feelings away for the time being.

    "I''m gonna properly make up for it later." He gently bowed to the brain bits, "Sorry Energy, but right now Migu and the others need me to get my act together. You''d understand."

    Just then, a golden glimmer caught his Eye. It was a familiar glint, one he immediately recognized and ran toward, despite nearly falling from the heavy weights covering his ankles. With all the strength he had in his one arm, he pulled the tool out of the rubble. With one end pointed and the other blunt, the golden pickaxe''s curve shone just as brightly as when it was last buried.

    "This''ll work!" He shouted in joy, "Haha! I did it! I found something I can actually use! I can use it, I can!" He then stopped, "Wait, can I?"

    Hats did indeed find the golden pickaxe prodding out of the rubble, and he did manage to successfully pull it out, but what exactly could he use it on? There was no reason to dig down, there was no one to use it on as a weapon, and to his knowledge, there was no other special use for it.

    "I mean, I guess it''ll make walking around easier." He then demonstrated by using it as a walking stick, "And it''ll make digging through the rubble way easier, too..."

    With an annoyed pout, he kept prodding around for any stray treasures and tools he might be able to use in order to save everyone. But with such a tall task placed on him, and with so little to work with, it became more and more impossible to imagine a scenario where all this worked out perfectly. But maybe things didn''t have to go perfectly. No, maybe they just had to be enough.

    "This is...?" He noticed a large sheet of paper on the ground, "A blanket! Oh, on second thought, the texture''s different."

    He looked around the area a bit more, but came up empty handed. This piece of paper, which was as large as he was, simply existed in front of him without seemingly any rhyme or reason. Just then, a thought occurred to him.

    "Wasn''t there a Book around this size somewhere nearby?" He recalled, "Yeah, it was on the ground while I was fighting the Gods."

    The fabled Book Elegy had almost read, the one that was said to be the key to reviving. And Hats had in front of him a single ripped out page of it. As he kept inspecting it, trying to piece together what he could use it for, the page began to speak to him.

    "Ah!" He gasped, "...I can''t read."

    Well, it tried to, at least. Without a mouth to talk to literally, it did attempt to establish communication by way of writing. The letters appeared one by one until a message was shown.

    "Sorry, Elegy said I''m illit-" He had some difficulty pronouncing the word, "Illiterr-... Illitraight. N-No, illiterate! That''s it, I''m that!"

    With how proudly he proclaimed the statement, an outsider might be led to believe he likes being called that, but the Book could only begrudgingly erase its complex message in favor of a drawing.

    "Eh? That''s... me?" He looked the one armed figure, "And the word next to it... That must be how you spell my name. H-A-T-S..."

    Without any other way to get the young angel to understand it, the Book had to start from the essentials. This was the best it could do for now¡ªdrawing a person Hats was personally acquainted with, and then writing their name next to the caricature. It was slow, inefficient, and highly limited with the letters he could learn. But still, it was enough.

    "Hats, Migu, Elegy." He properly answered the little quiz it gave him, "That one''s Energy, and Prylos and Selzion. Eh? That''s not a name? Let''s see... H-E-L-L-O."

 Vol.8 Ch.172 - Alive Again

    "Hello¡ªthat isn''t anyone''s name." Hats muttered to himself, "Paper, are you talking to me?"

    The singular sheet of paper erased its previous message before inscribing within itself an affirmative three letter word. Hats once more took his time in trying to grasp its meaning and pronunciation before nodding happily.

    "Y-E-S, so... Yes!" He clapped his hands, "This is incredible! I''m talking to a piece of paper! Geez, if I knew all books were like this, I would have learned how to read a long time ago!"

    Alas, not all books had such a power. In fact, no other books did, so this one was just highly special. That being the case, it didn''t feel the need to break his heart with this info, so it decided to withhold that info for the time being. He''ll learn eventually, but right now Hats has slightly more pressing matters.

    "Hey, my name''s Hats!" He pointed to himself, "Err, though you already knew that... But what''s your name?"

    An odd question, sure, but it wasn''t an odd one for the young and naive Hats to ask specifically. Elegy had taught him to always greet himself properly when meeting new people, so Hats was putting this advice to the test. The ripped out page thought about what type of answer it would reply with, but in the end it decided to stick to the facts.

    "No name." Hats read aloud, "Naww, we''ll then, I''m gonna give you one!"

    The page hastily backspaced before rewriting a new message on itself.

    "Please no?" Hats tilted his head at that one, "O-Okay?"

    It seems the piece of paper highly disliked the change of topics Hats was trying to pull off. Though not on purpose, his efforts did hinder the page''s plans. After yet again erasing the last reply, it wrote out a more elaborate message this time.

    "You must save your allies." It implored.

    "O-Oh right, I kinda forgot." He scratched his head bashfully, "In that case, I gotta go, Mister Paper. The entire reason I came here was to look for something to help me do that."

    Bested by a child''s stupidity. The page was midway through writing for him to stop and not go, but by then it had already lost him. Figuring the scribbling sounds of its own inscription could draw his attention back, it riddled its own surface with scars of pure jet black ink. Thankfully, this was enough to bring him back over.

    "You wanted something?" He raised an Eyebrow.

    Figuring he might just actually leave for real if the page doesn''t hurry it up with writing what it wanted, it hastily scribbled the next sentence for him to read, not minding for its own usual neat cursive handwriting.

    "Oh, this is way easier to read." Hats giggled before reading it, "Oh, you''re really writing there..."

    No matter how long he waited for it to finish, the page simply didn''t stop. It would write a sentence nearly until the full stop, but then suddenly change its mind and cross the entire thought out. Seeing as it was fighting for Hats'' interest, it didn''t even bother with erasing the sentence¡ªit merely wrote beneath it a new one. Then, it would do the same for that sentence, and then the one after that. By this point, it was running out of space, but thankfully it had done it.

    "Some of the crossed out sentences have letters you didn''t teach me." Hats pouted before realizing, "Oh, is that why they''re crossed out? You wanna write a sentence that I can read?"

    "YES!" The page jumpscared him with the reply mere seconds after it finished writing the perfect sentence.

    Impatiently, anxiously, the page waited for the young angel to read through the sentence it had prepared for him. After many unsuccessful drafts and attempts to use only the letters found in the names of Hats and his acquaintances, it had finally achieved a structure suitable for the lad''s knowledge. It took him a minute, but Hats finally deciphered the message.

    "In short, I grant the protagonist anything he hopes to see." Hats nodded, "Okay."

    "..."

    "....."

    "So then?" The page drew a face with an expectantly raised Eyebrow.

    "So what?" He shrugged, "Maybe it''s ''cause I don''t really know what a protagonist is, but I don''t get what this has to do with me."

    Once more, the page was duped by his ignorance. Of course, using such a complex word to what is essentially a child in mind was a blunder on the page''s part. As it agonized a bit more over how to rephrase the sentence properly, Hats seemed to have figured it out himself.

    "Oh, like a hero?"

    The page stopped, simply inscribing across itself "!!!"

    "So you help the hero, huh?" Hats asked, "That''s your job?"

    "Yes, you may use me to save your allies." It explained, "I not have letters to esplain, so you must learn hau yourselph."

    By this point, it was close enough to getting Hats to figure out its powers, so it didn''t feel the need to methodically write with the intent of being grammatically correct. So long as he could read it, he could understand it; and if Hats can understand it, then it can use it.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

    Hats looked around for a nearby writing utensil before gently placing his finger on the page. Slowly, as his hand traced a line on it, a smile grew on his face.

    "Haha, I''m writing too!" He smiled, "Whoa, I can write just with my fingers! Wait, can I do this with all books!?"

    After messing around with the touch sensitive piece of paper for a while, he finally understood that the situation required at least a bit of seriousness. The random squigglies he did gradually morphed into shapes that seemed to resemble the way the page itself wrote the letters to him. Finally, he came up with an answer to this riddle.

    He wrote on the sheet of paper in bold, messy and insecure handwriting, "Revive Energy."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    A flash of light emerges from behind Hats and the page. Something was about to happen, and Hats was scared to figure out what. Quickly he ran from the scene as a child would once it created a mess. Even with his heavy ankles, he managed to stumble away behind a larger pile of rubble. There, he would occasionally steal glances at the direction from which the strange light originated.

    "Gah, I forgot to take the page with me!" He finally realized, "Huh?"

    Upon taking a glance down to the ground, he had found the page dissipating. As if finally having fulfilled its purpose, the page disappeared into a fine mist. Hats saw this and quietly sobbed¡ªthis was a friend he could confide in, after all.

    "N-No!" He sniffled, "I need to focus on the light, the light!"

    Something could jump out of the glowing pile of rubble across from him at any moment, and if that were to happen then he had to he ready for it. Of course, it was his wish to have Energy revived, but what exactly would this wish entail? Of course, this is if he had even correctly assumed the page possessed such an ability.

    To begin with, the phrasing alone was too vague to make sense. "Revive" might suggest bringing him back as a fully restored angel, or it could mean to have him return as a human. For a brief period, he was a seraphim too, so will he have his wings? If he''s alive, then is he conscious? What if this version of Energy attacks Hats on sight? Nothing was certain, and the uncertainty was slowly killing Hats.

    Silently, he waited for any form of audiovisual queue to give him an answer.

    "...Uuuughhhh..." A loud groan sounded out from the source of the light.

    Hats screamed, "Wahhhhh!"

    "Eh? Kid, that you?" The familiar voice echoed out, "Oi, where are you? I can''t see, I-I can''t...!"

    "Energy! A-Are you really back!?" Hats admittedly jumped out the second he heard the voice, but was quick to cautiously take a step back, "Show yourself first!"

    "Kid, I can''t move." He replied.

    "Why not?"

    "Why n-? Oh, you''re messing with me." Energy exhaled tiredly, "Take a wild guess, moron."

    After this light diss, Hats breathed a loud sigh of relief. The angel known as Energy was surely back, and his witty remarks proved he was exactly the same as before when it came to his mental conscious. Hats wanted to run around the corner to hug him as fast as possible, but even with all that excitement, he could only awkwardly slide over due to his petrified feet.

    "Kid, what in the world are you doing?" Energy chuckled upon seeing his goofy slide.

    "Shut up, I''m moving as fast as I can!" Hats was in tears, "You''re back!"

    "Was I ever gone?" He chuckled.

    "Yeah!" Hats finally dived to him, giving the brain a strong bear hug, "You were dead! The Gods killed you! You went splat, and, and-!"

    "Whoa, easy there, easy!" Energy consoled him, "Ugh, well that explains the headache. Yeah, it''s all coming back to me now."

    Alas, only Energy''s brain was returned to its fully restored state. Still, he was now successfully brought back to life at least, so it''s not at all a bad outcome. Given the groggy state he was found in, Energy had quite the amount of empty patches in his memory, but it seems even that was slowly but surely getting filled back in.

    "Yeah yeah, the bastard Selzion slammed me over the brain with the pick." He growled, "The happened to them, anyway? If we''re still in the Abode, then I take it they managed to get away?"

    "Ah." Hats poked his fingers, "Sorry, I came by late. And when I tried to beat them up for what they did to you, I got knocked out instead like a wimp..."

    "Eh? You went toe to toe with them?" Energy was pleasantly surprised, "Good job, kiddo! Nothing to be ashamed about, I''m sure you did your best."

    "Yeah, but they got away and took Sheep..." Hats muttered, "Ah, but then I saved Migu, and we got saved by Nerys."

    "Nerys?" Energy inquired, "She was here too?"

    "Yeah, and together we went after the Gods." Hats admittedly cracked up once he got to this part, "Then, hehe, Nerys killed the Gods with the walkie talkies."

    "Hold it."

    Energy simply couldn''t gloss over that part, for even he was freaked out by the sentence.

    "She did what now?"

    "Yeah, she killed them with the power of sounds or something." Hats shrugged, "Oh, but now their dead bodies are turning everyone in Heaven into statues."

    "Kid, my brain''s still fuzzy from being dead a couple minutes ago, so I can''t tell if you''re making stuff up or not."

    "I''m being serious!" Hats fussed, "Anyways, Migu pushed me off a rooftop, I fought a super armored Elegy, I made a cool cart thingy, my ankles are heavy, and after all that, I learned how to write but only enough to revive you."

    Energy stared back blankly. All he could do was utter a resignating phrase.

    "Oh my Gods..."

    "I''ll say!" Hats nodded, "Oh, but the paper died."

    "When the hell did a paper get mentioned in that story!?"

    "Did I forget to say that?" Hats tilted his head, "Yeah, I found a piece of paper that talked to me and showed me how to revive you, but when I did as I was told, it disappeared into dust."

    "I..." Energy slumped forward in the angel''s palm, "I see."

    There was nothing he could say to this. Absolutely nothing to add onto it. What would even be an appropriate reaction to this sudden and nonsensical story, even? The more he tried to make sense of it, the less it made sense. In the end, Energy decided he was just lucky enough to be revived, and he didn''t really care all that much about the hows and whys.

    "So what happened to Migu and the others?" He asked.

    "Oh, they''re all statues, like I said." Hats explained, "I actually came here to find a way to save everyone."

    "Can you take me to where they are?"

    "Yeah!" Hats smiled, "Man, I was so scared of being all alone, but now with you here, I have nothing to fear!"

    "I don''t really know what I can provide that''ll make that much of a difference." Energy chuckled, "But meh, I guess if giving you some peace of mind is enough, then I''m happy to be of help."

    As the two began to slowly roll back to ground zero on Hats'' door/bowling ball vehicle, a feeling of hope echoed throughout the petrified emptiness of Heaven 2.0. There was absolutely no need to give up just yet.

 Vol.8 Ch.173 - Return

    The lonely sound of wheels turning echoed throughout the petrified Heavenly realm. A vivid scent of citrus emerged as the distant trumpets could be heard roaring just up ahead.

    "This is... just awful." Energy inspected their surroundings, "This all happened while I was gone?"

    "Mn~, you say that." Hats shrugged listlessly, "But it really only got bad a few hours ago. Y''know, when the Gods died."

    Energy grumbled at the young angel''s indifference.

    "I certainly DON''T know, that''s why I''m asking." He replied, "And would you stop pretending that that little briefing of yours back in the Abode was in any way helpful?"

    "Well, it''s been a while since we last talked." Hats chuckled, "Feels like... 2 months?"

    Energy''s brain wrinkles shivered at the time estimate.

    "That''s a lot."

    "I''m probably wrong. I just said it feels like it''s been 2 months."

    Just then, the young angel began to slowly shift the direction of the cart.

    Energy noticed this, "You''re veering off the path, kid."

    "I know." Hats nodded, "It''s just, the trumpets are coming."

    He was well aware of the trumpets'' timing, as well as how to avoid getting hit by the petrification. Hiding behind walls facing the opposite way of the trumpets'' noise almost completely negated its effects. As the noise echoed past them, dissipating into the distance, he began to push them back onto the main road.

    "What was that?" Energy inquired.

    Hats sighed, "The reason we have to move around in this slow cart thingy. If that sound hits you dead on, you turn into a statue, like the others."

    A petrifying sound that periodically passes by the entire area surrounding the Gods. It didn''t take Energy long to figure out why Hats had alluded to their cart. Most definitely, after having his legs partially hit by the noise, he had to think up an alternative way to move. Though he wanted to praise the young boy''s unwillingness to give up, Energy knew not to give the kid too big of a head.

    "But we still heard the sound, didn''t we?" Energy thought about it, "Sound travels through air, that''s why you can''t scream underwater, so..."

    "Wait, why do you know such a terrifying fact?" Hats grimaced.

    The brain refused to elaborate, instead choosing to continue its original train of thought.

    "So it works like that, then..." He mumbled, "If we assume the strength of each direction''s noise to be equal, then the area is equivalent to a circle, with the source of it being the center."

    "...Huh?"

    Despite the boy not following at all¡ªEnergy''s geometry class checked out, at the very least in his mind. Despite his current state being no better than a fish out of water, it''s still important to remember that Energy was a top tier survivalist who''s faced horrors way worse than this in his previous life. The calculation isn''t to be taken lightly.

    "Right, placing a building inside the circle''s area¡ªno, a four sided wall¡ªwe get ourselves a blind spot to take refuge in." Energy continued, "But if we move the wall closer..."

    "Ohhh, I think I get it!" Hats interrupted him, "If we move the wall closer, the blind spot gets smaller!"

    Energy smirked, ready to correct the boy''s misconception.

    "Nah, the opposite occurs."

    "What?"

    "Think about it like this." He explained, "Put your palm out in front of your face."

    A sudden experiment.

    "Okay, now what?" Hats did as he was told.

    "Blow into it." Energy emphasized, "As hard as you can."

    The boy huffed and puffed, and once he was all out of air in his lungs, he stopped to take a literal breather.

    "Gu-wahhh! Urk, that was rough..."

    "Did the air reach the back of your palm?" Energy asked.

    "Eh? No, it didn''t."

    "In that case, try again." The brain lectured, "But this time, put your hand a bit farther out."

    Doing as he was told, the boy quickly came to the intended realization.

    "I-I can feel it!" He blinked in surprise, "It''s slight, and only on the edges, but it''s there!"

    By explaining it in a more intuitive way, Energy helped Hats figure out the secret behind the Gods'' trumpets all on his own. Now, they were one step closer to neutralising the threat plaguing Heaven 2.0.This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    "Like I said, sound travels through air." Energy added, "And so, they move in much the same way as well. Heaven''s physics might not work the same as they do down below, but us surviving that latest encounter proved airflow is at least a thing."

    Next to the boy''s head was a brain rivaled by none other, at least in his Eyes. Having him back on the team was a miracle that had only now begun to kick in fully.

    "You''re a genius, Energy!"

    "Gah, kid, you''ve only got the one arm!" Energy squirmed beneath his hand, "Stop petting me and keep pushing us forward!"

    "But Migu said you liked getting petted?"

    "That''s absolutely not the case!" The brain yelled out, "Come on, keep us moving!"

    Despite not wanting them to waste much time faffing about, Energy did find happiness in this brief yet reassuring moment. The childhood whimsy of a boy learning a new factoid in life is something he seldom saw in his past life, to the point where it was nigh unfamiliar to him. Before Hats, no one but Migu fit the description, though even she felt like she was moving on.

    "Is it weird for me to say this?" Energy admitted, "I''m kind of digging the peace and quiet this situation brought on."

    "Is it really quiet with all the horns blaring in the distance?" Hats raised an Eyebrow.

    "It''s... nostalgic."

    <hr>

    ***

    <hr>

    The two advanced further into the petrification zone. Hats'' timing allowed for him to optimally move aside to hide behind one of the many buildings at just the right moment, all before continuing the slow journey once the sound went past them.

    As for Energy, his theory ended up being correct.

    "Try and stick your hand out just a bit closer to the edge." He yelled through the trumpets.

    "This far...? Ngh, nope." Hats retracted his hand quickly, "It''s more than before, but I can feel the petrification begin to show up on my fingertips if I do it."

    Certainly, putting oneself in danger to prove a point is tantamount to reckless endangerment, but it was a necessary evil. Assuming they were to push on until they reached ground zero¡ªthe Gods'' Corpses¡ªit would stand to reason that they needed as much information on what they were facing up against as possible. In his heart, Hats still recalled the golden suit of armor he had encountered previously.

    "Elegy is..." He gulped.

    "I know." Energy comforted him, "If you''re the one that found me, then that means he''s been petrified too, right? Don''t worry though, we''ll get him back."

    Jumping to valid yet technically incorrect conclusions, the brain left the poor boy a stuttering mess.

    "Ahm, n-no, that''s..."

    "Am I wrong?"

    "Well, yes? But actually no." Hats shook his head dismissively, "He''s petrified, but he can move."

    The impenetrable winged suit of armor Elegy was encased in made him almost robotic. Had he not saved Hats from getting fully petrified back during their battle, the boy would have been certain that was in fact the case for sure. Still, to explain this to someone like Energy would be highly difficult.

    "You lost me, kid."

    "Okay, so like... Imagine a suit of armor." Hats stopped pushing the cart to focus on explaining, "But biiig~"

    "...Uh huh?"

    "And, and... The biiig~ armor has wings!"

    "Yep?"

    "And it can''t speak and is really strong!"

    "I would assume so."

    "Yeah! And, inside is, uh... Elegy." Hats smiled, "Ah, but I think he''s like, sleeping, or something. Got all that?"

    "Not at all." Energy sighed, "Suppose I''ll just have to wait to see the guy for myself."

    He hesitated on asking why Elegy wasn''t with him even now. If such a strong force of nature was on their team, then surely they could use his wings to make light work of traversing Heaven 2.0. Alas, Energy''s realist worldview gave him all the answers he needed¡ªmost probably, Elegy wasn''t on their team anymore.

    Thus, they kept moving onwards. The closer they got to their destination, the faster they''d have to react to each consecutive trumpet horn. Still, so long as Hats followed the proper timing, they could masterfully hide without even getting hit once. Soon, they figured, this idle chase would come to an end.

    "We haven''t exactly discussed what we''ll do once we find them." Energy noted, "The Gods, I mean."

    "Well, shut them up, I guess." Hats reasoned.

    "And when it comes to making everyone move again?"

    "We''ll figure it out as we go."

    This relaxed way of thinking gave Energy an uneasy feeling. Alarms went off in his head as screeches and screams filled his thoughts. These weren''t memories, they were traumas. Things he''s experienced so much throughout his lifetime that his subconscious merely accepted that that was how the world was at the time. A terrible sense of foreboding enveloped him, to the point where he had to speak up.

    "Let''s... figure it out now." Energy cleared his imaginary throat, "Okay?"

    Hearing the reliable brain''s suggestion, Hats'' Pupils dilated as he eagerly awaited his ideas.

    "Do you have something in mind?" He asked.

    "Ulp-" His figurative stomach dropped, "I don''t have enough info to work off of. To begin with, I can''t even fully comprehend the Gods of this world being dead."

    The glimmer in Hats'' Eyes faded as he heard the bitter news.

    He sighed, "Well, at least let''s focus on getting our friends back. That way, they might have some idea of how to get everything back to normal."

    That was it. Truly, that''s all the thinking Hats invested into this cataclysmic event. Gather the friends, figure out the rest. Energy could tell from a mile away that this boy was not the same boy he was before his death. Hats had on his face a level of maturity and collectiveness that was rarely seen even in most adults. They say necessity brings out the best in people, and it seems the young yet dutiful angel is no exception.

    "You''ve grown, kid." Energy chuckled, "Earlier, it felt like we had to constantly keep an Eye on you¡ªall of us. But now, you''re facing the end of the world with an unfazed optimism. That''s incredible."

    "Ehe, praise me more, would ya''?" Hats giggled.

    "Nah, you''ve had enough."

    Prioritizing each other''s banter over the stakes at hand, they quipped all throughout the rest of their little journey. One street at a time, they began to finally see in the distance the building atop which were the Gods and their friends.

    "Is that the one?" Energy asked.

    "Yep, you could tell?" Hats squinted.

    "The vibrations make the air shift around the top of the building awkwardly. It''s impossible to mistake."

    Before long, they had reached the base of the building they had set their sights on. Without wings or legs to work with, they quickly came to the conclusion that they were still far from their destination.

    "Ack." Hats twitched as he took one good look at the endless flight of stairs in front of them, "I wish stairs could move on their own..."

    "Or better yet, a box you could hop in and magically get sent up a few floors..." Energy flopped over as well.

    The two shared a sigh, before complaining in unison:

    "Oh, but that''s never gonna be a thing!"