《Stella's Feathers》


 Prologue (edit 99% nothings ever perfect)

    My name is Stella Grace. My parents gave me this name because they thought I would be the light of there lives. They could not have been more wrong.


    My parent''s names were Crystel and Jack Grace. They didn''t have much but they were happy. Every day they had fun working together, eating together, being together, and they became even happier when they finally had a child in their lives.


    After I was born my parents lost everything. The first 3 years weren''t so bad, they owned and ran a small florist shop at the edge of town. It was a 2 story house/store with the first floor being the shop and we lived on the second floor.


    At first business just went down, they simply thought they were in a slump or that another shop opened near by and that things would go back to normal soon.


    On my 4th birthday, however, came the first lawsuit. I don''t remember much from back then but I do remember it was a false claim, and it almost crushed my parents business.


    Customers stopped coming, unless they didn''t know anything about us, and the ones who filed that claim kept coming back to harass my parents. To this day I do not know why they did such a thing or even what the claim was, but it nearly destroyed my parents.


    They soon filled for bankruptcy.


    I was 5 when my parents were preparing to shut down the store, and everything changed on my 6th birthday.


    As my parents were preparing my 6th birthday party at home, my neighbor was asked to bring me home from pre-school. She was a kind old lady in her 60s who gave me some of her oranges that grew on her tree.


    Thinking back, it would have been better if she didn''t.


    When I opened the door expecting my parents to be holding a big cake and lots of presents, what I found was blood.


    A LOT of blood.


    My parents were covered in blood that just kept flowing. My mom was right in front of me, she was sitting by the door with her eyes open and a few holes in her chest that just kept bleeding. My dad was face down in front of the stairs with a pool of blood under him.


    Theneighbor lady screamed behind me. I didn''t understand what was going on but I knew blood was bad, it meant my parents were hurt. Before I could even ask them if they were ok I heard something by the stairs.


    I looked up to see a man in black. He had a gun in one hand and a sack in the other. Our eyes met, I will never forget those strange yellow eyes. It was yellow where it was supposed to be white, and the iris was dark blue. I was told later that the condition was from some genetic disease but I didn''t care about that, back then I just wanted to understand why my parents were gone.


    While I thought about his eyes, why his face was covered, was he the one that hurt my parents, and why he has a sack and a gun, he shot at us. One bullet grazed by my head and over the fallen neighbor lady behind me. The other went through my arm and into the neighbor lady''s knee. When he realized he didn''t have any more bullets, he ran through the back door and left.


    I ran crying to my parents asking if they were ok, but they didn''t respond. I thought they might be sleeping so I started asking them to wake up, but they didn''t move. I started shaking my mom, crying and screaming, begging them to wake up.


    I heard someone crying and talking behind me but I didn''t care about that, I just wanted my parents to wake up.


    They didn''t.


    3 years later I was living in an orphanage. I was alone for the most part, I didn''t want anything to do with the others and they wanted nothing to do with me.


    Everone noticed that being around me was "scary." At first, they wanted to play with me but they would trip and get small cuts or scrapes, if they talked to me for more than an hour they would fall sick for a day, if they ate next to me they would cough and choke, so they started to just stay away.


    They called me cursed and I didn''t disagree. It may have been just kids being mean but I was much more aware of my surroundings now. When I thought back, my parents and friends were the same.I was the same.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Even if I did nothing and just stayed in bed something would come flying at me or fall on me for no reason at all.


    The orphanage manager was kind though, she came to see me whenever she had time. She gave me extra to eat at lunch, she patched me up whenever I got hurt, she hugged me whenever I cried. She was so nice I couldn''t help but get close to her.


    That was a mistake.


    She started getting sick or hurt often enough to notice. She didn''t want us in the orphanage to worry so we didn''t know much of what was going on but we knew it was something. There were fewer snacks and miss manager was getting skinnier. Even though she was in her 40s she started having grey hair.


    When I was 10 she just disappeared. No one knew what happened to her for 5 years when she was found to have been tortured and killed along with 6 other women in a serial murder case. She was said to have been the first and was used to test which method was most effective for the most pain.


    After that, the new manager was abusive and money-grubbing, he was only arrested after I left the orphanage.


    We never got new cloths, we were told to beg in the streets until we had 100$ a day or we would sleep outside. It didn''t matter the method, if you got 100$ you could sleep inside today, if you got 200$ you could sleep inside for 2 days.


    It also didn''t matter the time of year, so long as we didn''t die, no one cared.


    We only got 2 meals a day, breakfast and dinner. If we went to school we get lunch, and it tasted better and was more filling than at the orphanage.


    If we did something he didn''t like we would get the stick. If we made to much noise we would get the stick. If he was drunk we would get the stick. If he didn''t like your face he would get the stick.


    I never got enough money, or it would be stolen by the others. I never got food at school because they were always sold out. At least I wasn''t bullied, everyone stayed away because of the rumors of me being cursed.


    I got good enough grades that the teachers didn''t bother me, but not good enough for them to care.


    4 years passed.


    When I was 14 I was confessed to. I told him he would die to my curse like everyone else if he did and he said he didn''t care.


    He was Cain Hopper. He followed me everywhere trying to talk to me while I tried to ignore him. I wanted to open up but I tried to keep him away.


    I started to like him, he became covered in scrapes andbruises but he kept coming back. He said it didn''t hurt but I knew it did, I had them too after all.


    For a month he was fine so we started to become friends, I was starting to think I wasn''t cursed, that maybe my luck was starting to turn around. So we started to talk more often, he even gave me half his food at lunch.


    We talked for hours about what job makes the most, which game was the most fun to play, who between us has better grades. It was nothing special but to me, it was enough.


    We started hanging out more often, he found me a job so I could sleep inside at night.


    "A girl shouldn''t be outside at night that''s dangerous!!! I should go tell that manager what happens to bad guys like him."


    He tried to rush off when I told him about the manager''s abuse but I hurridly stopped him.


    "You going will only make things worse, if he finds out I told you..."


    "Fine, but at least let me tell the police."


    "NO! If he gets questioned by anyone he takes out the stick and... I won''t put the others through that!"


    "But..."


    "..."


    When we were eating lunch together at school a few days later he suddenly just collapsed. I screamed for someone,anyone, to call an ambulance.


    Once again I was met with despair.


    A month later and he still wasn''t in class so I went to visit him. I found out he was in a coma and unlikely to wake up ever again. He suddenly had a brain hemorrhage.


    When I finally saw him I realized my sight was blurry. I was crying again. I started apologizing, again and again, once more begging him to wake up.


    Before I noticed his heart had stopped beating and doctors and nurses had rushed into the room. A nurse was pushing me out while Cains mom was screaming about this being my fault, about how she should have never let me in here.


    She was right. I shouldn''t have gotten close, it was all my fault, I am a curse.


    He died.


    I ran from everything, the orphanage, school, anyone who once new me, EVERYTHING.


    I couldn''t take it anymore. Everyone I care about gets hurt and dies. Everyone who cares about me ends up the same.


    For 2 years I lived on the streets, I lived on handouts and slept in parks. So long as I was moving, even if some got hurt from helping me it wasn''t much more than a small burn or scratch.


    I was 16, I think. I wasn''t sure anymore because I only paid attention to what year it was. When you live on the streets the only things that matter for time was when to go to the soup kitchen.


    That was when it happened.


    It was cold and I hadn''t eaten for days. Some gang members found me and wanted me to "work" for them. I refused so they followed me everywhere trying to get me alone. If I hadn''t already lived out here for 2 years they might have succeded.


    They waited at each of the places people on the street get handouts for food in this area orpaid people who lived on the street to tell them if they see me.


    So I stayed in places where people pass by frequently. I wandered near a market on the edge of town and soon realized I was across the street from my old home. The people who now owned the flower shop were a happy couple with a young daughter.


    I looked back on my life, recalling everyone I''ve met, everyone I loved, everyone I hurt...


    Before I knew it I was crying. I remembered those days like they were yesterday, even those happy days from before I was 6.


    I looked to the sky, and asked anyone who was listening, "Why. What did they do wrong..."


    The young girl came over from across the street,


    "Mama said you might be hungry. She said to give you this."


    She holds out some bread. With tears in my eyes, I reply,


    "Thank you, be careful crossing the road, ok?"


    "Ok!" and she runs back to her mom as fast as she can... without checking for cars.


    "STUPID GIRL!!!"


    A sports car is rushing towards that STUPID girl who STUPIDLY ignored my warning.


    I chased after her and barely managed to push her away before the car arrived.


    The only thought I had was, "At least no one else will die because of me."


    Then everything went black.

 Chapter 1 (edit 99%)

    Where am I?


    I got hit by a car after pushing that... girl...


    What happend after that?


    Didn''t I die?


    I woke up in strange place. I mean, waking up in a grass field surounded by trees is strange right?


    Oh, there are small white flowers too, they''re kina cute.


    I don''t see any clouds... wait, is that Laputa(castle in the sky)...


    W-well, I got hit by a car and ended up in a flowery field, a castle in the sky doesn''t seem that strange right?


    Maybe I''m dreaming?


    (???)"Oh, your here."


    Who?


    In front of me are suddenly 2 strange boys with wings, one of them has black hair and wings while the other has white hair and wings...Wait WINGS!!!


    Yep, definitely dreaming.


    (???)"Well, I''m sure you''re confused but I was told to explain to you whats going o-"


    (Stella)"S-s-stay away from me, you might get hurt."Wait, if this is a dream maybe he''ll be fine.


    (???)"What? Oh, don''t worry about that, we delt with it already."


    What is he talking about?


    (Stella)"E-even if you don''t understand, just stay at least 3 meters away from me."Better safe than sorry.


    (???)"I just sai-"


    (Stella)"Just do it."


    He backed up a bit


    (???)"Ok... if I can speak now-"


    (Stella)"Wait, hold on a second, I thought I died? Is this a dream? How am I alive? How am I here? and who or what are you?????"


    Should I mention the wings?


    (???)"Well if SOMEONE would let me speak I could tell you these things but nooo, you just-" (???)"BROTHER"


    The black haired strange boy intrupted, was the explaining one about to complain about my confusion? Wouldn''t anyone be at least A BIT curious about waking up in a strange place and seeing 2 strange peopleWITH WINGSin front of them?


    I''m going to keep thinking about the wings, aren''t I? Should I ask anyway?


    Am I realy dreaming? It doesn''t feel like it but...The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    I hope they don''t come closer, I don''t want anyone else to get hurt...


    (???)"AHEM, as I was saying, welcome to heaven, or at least that''s what you would call this place. To answer three of your questions, no, you are not dreaming, but yes, you died, so no, you are not alive, you are a disembodied soul. Happy?"


    He looksannoyed...


    Ok, did not see that coming. So not dreaming, I''ll believe it because I didn''t wake up after asking. Just try asking yourself out loud in a dream if you are in a dream and you will wake up, at least that''s the case for me. But what''s this about a disembodied soul?


    (self-proclamed god of life)"I am the god of life, my brother here is the god of death. I might tell you our names later if you don''t-" (proclamed god of death)"BROTHER!"


    Wait, aren''t wings for angels? At least that explains why they are color coated. What, I''m not shocked at the gods part, look I was living on the streets not in a cave, even homeless people get access to the library, besides, I''m confused enough already, I need to calm down.


    I should ignore the rudeness because I kept intrupting him earlier but...


    (self-proclamed god of life)"To put it as simply as possible, our mother is the goddess of fourtune, before you were born our mother cast on you a blessing because she thought your soul was beautiful, but our sister, the goddess of beauty, got jealous and reversed your and turned the blessing into a curse."


    Before I could calm down, he dropped this bombshell on me.


    (Stella)"What, there''s no way that I was actualy curs-"


    (self-proclamed god of life)"Yes, you were, being intrupted isn''t so nice-""BROTHER" "FINE, and I''m here to apologise on my mother and sisters behalf and get your soul stablized before sending you to your new life, so you will stay here for a time and relax as much as posible so you don''t dissolve into particles and disappear."


    I didn''t hear that last part, I was buisy being pissed at his completely insincere apology and realizing that he was actualy serious. That this situation is serious.


    Does that guy realize what this means? Does he understand what he just told me.


    I don''t even know how I feel right now, shock? guilt? They are definitely there, but..


    What, I realy was cursed, they realy died because of me, they realy suffered so much because of me, and for suchA STUPID REASON!!!


    I went from confused to annoyed, to trying to calm own, to pissed, to shocked, to guilty, toangry.


    Right now I just feel extremely angry.


    (self-proclamed god of life)"So now you-" (Stella)"YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!! YOU ARE TELLING ME MY WHOLE LIFE WAS LIKE A JOKE TO YOU PEOPLE!!! YOU ARE TELLING ME THAT ALL THOSE KIND PEOPLE GETTING HURT, ALL THE PEOPLE WHO CARED ABOUT ME WHO DIED, ALL OF IT WAS BECOUSE YOUR SISTER GOT JEALOUS!!!!!"


    JUST beause of some stupid jealousy, JUSTbecause of some stupid family problem, my family died, everyone I got close to died, just because of something so, so, SO CHILDISH!!!


    (self-proclamed god of life)"Well yes-"


    (Stella)"AND EVEN AFTER SO MANY KIND PEOPLE HAVE GOTTEN HURT OR DIED YOU DIDN''T JUST GET RID OF THE CURSE!!! DID YOU DO ANYTHING?!!!"


    (self-proclamed god of life)"We couldn''t, we-"


    (Stella)"YOU ARE TELLING ME MY PARENTS, MISS MANAGEAR, CAIN, ALL died, diedbecauseof this..."


    My sight got blurry, I reached up to my face and my hand felt wet. I was crying. I hadn''t cried in years but why am I crying so much lately...


    I know screaming at these... gods, won''t change anything, but, shouldn''t they have done something. And this guy isn''t even actualy apologising, he is telling me it''s not his problem and is telling it,me, to go away.


    Did they have to suffer for me.


    Did they realy suffer forthis.


    Why. Why! Why!! Why!!! WHY!!!


    I can''t understand, what did they do wrong.


    I don''t want talk, to do anything, anymore. I''m done. I''ve had enough, I just want to disappear.


    I suddenly felt dizzy, I couldn''t stand strait, and finaly collapsed.


    (proclamedgod of death)"BROTHER GIVE ME YOUR FEATHER!"


    (self-proclamed god of life)"I don''t want want t-" (proclamedgod of death)"NOW!!!"


    (self-proclamed god of life)"Fine..."


    I blacked out.

 Chapter 2 (edit 99%)

    A ceiling I don''t recognize...


    I always wanted to know what it was like to say that but... it''s anticlimactic.


    I woke up in a normal? house.


    If I had to describe it, small?


    It''s 2 stories that I know of but, no real rooms that I can see on this floor. Starting from where I am, there are stairs straight in front of me and there''s a door to the right of them. I say this place is small because next to me on the right is a table and 4 chairs and on the other side of the table looks like a small kitchen. Yes, I woke up next to the kitchen. On my left and behind me are walls but, there is also an arc that looks like it leads into another room behind me on the right that I can''t see from here. I also can''t see the top of the stairs so I have no clue what''s up there.


    How did I get here... I remember... those self-proclaimed gods...


    I may have overreacted... Were they telling the truth? It''s hard to believe but you can''t sleep in a dream so at least this isn''t a dream... still it''s hard to believe.


    This is getting me nowhere...


    I tried to get up but I felt strangely dizzy. Even sitting up is a challenge.


    Ok, now what?


    I lay back down trying to figure out what''s going on and what I want to do but I got nothing.


    Just then, I heard the door open.


    (proclaimed god of death) "Ohh, you are finally awake"


    It''s the black haired one.


    Remembering what happened, I want to get angry but I think I''m just too tired to. Haven''t they done enough damage?


    (proclaimed god of death) "Well, you can ignore me if you want, I''ll just talk to myself then."


    He grinned at me.


    Is he trying to be funny, he is making it harder for me to be mad. Maybe this one''s nice?


    (proclaimed god of death) "Then, to explain to the air, my name is Nox, this is my home, that is my spare bed, the room behind you is the game room, upstairs is off limits until you can walk properly, and feel free to ask any questions whenever you want."


    How am I supposed to respond to that? Isn''t that completely different from earlier?


    While I''m stunned at the difference in treatment he continues.


    (Nox) "If you won''t ask anything then I''ll start with an apology, I''m sorry for how my brother acted when we first met, most of my siblings think of outsiders, aka humans, as toys or ants. That, unfortunately, has led most of my siblings to act like small children when "their toys" won''t act the way they want. It''s not a good apology but I am, admittedly, not familiar with this sort of thing."


    That''s... disturbing... toys? But this was better than the last "apology"I got.


    (Nox) "My sister, the ex-goddess of beauty, is a prime example of this. However, I think she forgot the rules mother and father placed when they created us. We are created and get placed based on our interests and personality, but if we break the rules we will be placed in a more... suitable domain. She, as the goddess of beauty, cursed something beautiful, as well as cursing someone innocent by reversing a blessing, which is against the rules. If you want to know more, you only need to ask."


    Now he has an annoying smile like he''s expecting me to ask, but I won''t. As much as I want to know what happened to this ex-goddess, I feel like I''ll lose if I ask anything. Not sure what I have to lose at this point though.


    (Nox) *Sigh* "Alright, I get that this situation must be difficult for you to accept but I''m not here to make things worse. I get that first impressions are important and that we completely mucked that up. Look, the last important thing I want to say for now is that all the people that were kind to you, now that there is no curse, were given a little extra luck as compensation for the trouble we caused. Not enough to win the lottery or jump out a plane and live but enough to live a long happy life."


    I was getting angry again. AFTER the curse is gone, they could only fix this mess AFTER I died!!!The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    (Stella) (WHAT ABOUT THOSE WHO DIED?! MY PARENTS WHO DIED?!!!)


    I shouted in angerly my mind but he responded...


    (Nox) "They were each given a wish we could give for their next life, your parents wished to be together again after asking for your happiness. We couldn''t give you happiness due to the curse so they made the second wish after we promised to take good care of you and were reborn as neighbors. They are 10 years old now and have a puppy love for each other while living normal, happy lives. For anyone else, you will only need to ask and I will tell you."


    Even after they died they still worried about me, even wishing for my happiness...


    I''m glad my parents are happy, but did he just read my thoughts???


    (Stella) (YOU CAN READ MY MIND?!)


    I thought, more out of surprise than anger this time but his next words did not lessen my surprise.


    (Nox) "What, no, you said that out loud."


    (Stella) (I didn''t say anything though...)


    (Nox) "no no, see you are talking out loud... Wait your lips weren''t moving... Telepathy?"


    He murmured that last word but I still caught it. But telepathy? How could I do that?


    (Stella) (What are you talking about...)


    (Nox) "It''s not too strange, you don''t have a body so you wouldn''t talk using vocal chords anyway. Besides the domains in this place are stronger than on earth so anything you would classify as magic should be possible."


    (Stella) (Then how was I yelling at you and that self-proclaimed god of life earlier?)


    (Nox) "Well, let''s skip the small details for now."


    HEY


    (Nox) "Anyway, are you hungry? That stupid brother who you met yesterday should be here soon..."


    Yesterday? The more he explains to me the more I don''t understand. What''s a domain? Why is it weaker on Earth? Why is it stronger here? Why can I do telepathy? How is that even possible? Why haven''t I asked about the wings? Wait, where are the wings I saw before?


    While I was getting lost in my thoughts,he appeared.


    *Knock knock*


    (Nox) "Oh, that should be him. JUST COME IN IT''S UNLOCKED."


    The door opens and that self-proclaimed god of life came in.


    (self-proclaimed god of life) "Oh, you''re awake... about yesterday... sorry."


    (Nox) "..."


    (Stella) (... I interrupted you often and may have overreacted so I''ll apologize for that and forgive you for being mad at me, but as I don''t understand much of what''s going on I can''t completely forgive you. After all, I don''t even know what I need to understand to completely forgive you yet.)


    I was taught to be reasonable, even to those who are not. I was also taught that I don''t need to forgive everything, as some things are unforgivable. Still, for now, I''ll just follow my instincts, I don''t like this white "god."


    (self-proclaimed god of life) "My name is Alacritas. I bought some soup, it''s good for souls."


    He says as he hands me the bowl, inside is some kind of steaming clear soup... do I have to eat this...


    I look at Nox. I don''t know why but I will trust him, well it''s not like I can do anything else in this situation.


    (Nox) "He made this as an apology for how he acted earlier, it should be ok to eat, I doubt he is dumb enough to poison you at the very least. He should have made something to help stabilize your soul as an apology for the stress he caused you."


    (Stella) (Stabilize?)


    (Nox) "You didn''t notice? Look at your hands."


    As he said I looked at my hands, they are transparent...wait, what?!


    I looked up to Nox, probably with a shocked face.


    (Nox) "When you got overly emotional before your soul began to disperse, I managed to stop it but... to put it simply, the stress your emotions put on your core was killing you. As long as you stay emotionally calm or positive you will recover over time, soul food will also help. But if you get stressed, like earlier, your core will start to dissipate and you will disappear."


    I don''t really get it but basically I almost died... wait I already died... died for good? I still don''t get it but it''s something bad, isn''t it?


    (Nox) "So eat and feel better faster. Then we can go out and have fun, ok?"


    I still don''t get it but, I''ll trust Nox... for now, he seems like he''s not lying at least.


    So I nodded at him and took the soup. It still looks hot so I blew on it before bringing it to my mouth and drank some of it... it''s actually not that bad- PAIN


    (Nox) "What''s wrong Stella! BROTHER?!"


    Nox turned to glare atAlacritas.


    (Alacritas) "I really didn''t do anything! I really don''t know what''s going on!"


    (Stella) (It hurts...)


    Pain. All I feel is pain. Like my skin is being shredded and my blood feels like freezing lava in my veins.


    (Nox) "What''s wrong Stella. What do I-"


    Nox suddenly took the soup and drank some.


    (Nox) "!!!, Brother you made it too strong for her! Stella hold still, I''ll help you absorb it but this will hurt for a bit."


    I didn''t know what was going on, I only felt pain. I suddenly felt something warm on my back. The pain got worse, I started screaming out but the pain slowly turned to a comfortable warmth like my back. After what I think was an hour, all the pain was gone but the warmth stayed, and I felt tired... really tired.


    (Nox) "Stella, are you ok now?"


    He asked with... concern? in his voice. It''s been a while since someone talked to me like that...


    (Nox) "Stella?"


    I nodded slightly, too tired to do anything else.


    (Nox) "Thank goodness."


    He smiled at me, then looked to Alacritas.


    (Nox) "Brother."


    He wasn''t smiling anymore and he sounded... scary.


    (Alacritas) "It wasn''t on purpose, I swear!"


    Alacritas was definitely scared, I''m glad I''m not on the receiving end. Nox is scary.


    (Nox) "It may not have been but that is not what you should say, right now you need to say something else."


    (Alacritas) "I''M SORRY!!! Don''t be mad, I didn''t-"


    (Nox) "Don''t apologize to me."


    Nox motionstowards me.


    (Alacritas) "Then what do you want me to-"


    (Nox) *Sigh* "I guess I was expecting too much of you. Stella, you get some rest, I''ll bring this idiot to get some punishment."


    (Alacritas) "NO, you are mad, what did I do. No, stop, no, NO!"


    (Nox) "I''ll be back soon."


    Nox hooked his arm aroundAlacritas neck and dragged him out the door they came from...


    It''s suddenly quiet.


    I''ve had enough. I''m tired, I''m just going to go back to sleep.


    Good night.

 Chapter 3 (edit 99%)

    What I woke up to this time was-


    (Nox) "Oh, good morning. How are you feeling?"


    The nice scary guy from yesterday...


    This is weird. Not bad, I think, but weird. It''s been a while since someone said ''good morning'' to me.


    Still, is this the same guy from yesterday? The one who mentioned punishment while dragging his screaming brother out by the neck?


    (Nox) "The effects of yesterday''s soup should still be affecting you, so you shouldn''t need to eat for a few days."


    Won''t not eating for a few days kill me? Wait, I''m already dead... then how did I eat that soup?


    *Sigh*, thinking about these thingswill getmenowhere.


    From then on, I decided to try and change my way of thinking.


    Well, it won''t be easy to forget somethingingrainedover my whole life.It''dbe like switching from a wuxia novel to aJRPG. Youwouldn''thave a clue whatyou''redoing until you talk to every importantcharacter. Eventhen,killing things for levels while thinking about how thewuxiacharacters just had to sit down for awhileis...


    (Nox) "Stella?"


    I got a bit derailed. How do I do telepathy again? How did I use it in the first place?


    *Sigh*This might be a problem.


    (Nox) "Is something wrong? Is there still pain?"


    Hecameovertoput a hand on my headbutI pusheditaway. Then I looked him in the eyes and shook my head.


    (Nox) "Then why aren''t you talking?"


    I just glare at him.


    Aren''t you the one who said that I don''t have vocal chords?


    (Nox) "Perhaps, you can''t use telepathy anymore? That can''t be right, you used it just fine yesterday..."


    I''m not even sure how I used telepathy in the first place. How should I know why I can''t use it now?


    Not sure what else to do, I just continue glaring at him.


    What, I should just talk? Don''t wanna. It might be childish, but I don''t want to talk to these people. Even if I haven''t reacted well to what''s goingon,they haven''t been very understanding either. How would I describe what I''ve been throughsinceI camehere?Wherever''here''is... Still, seems like my luck hasn''t changed much. *Sigh*.


    (Nox) "If you can''t talk, maybe I should find some paper or..."


    He went through the arc to the other room to find something.


    Does he reallythink that I''mmute without telepathy? Whatever, I don''t want totalk,so that works too.


    Selfish? These peopleclaimedto beresponsiblefor destroying my family and harming everyone who cared aboutme,for noreal reason at that. Why should I be nice?


    He soonreturned with a small whiteboard, an eraser, and a black marker.


    (Nox) "Here, this should be easier than paper to carry around, just use this until you can use telepathy again."


    He really forgot I could talk.


    (Nox) "Now that that''s settled, what do you want to do?"


    (Stella) (?) It''stoomuch of a pain to write a wholesentenceon awhiteboard.


    (Nox) "What does that say?"


    Well, that''ssurprising. He can''t readEnglish? Isn''t he a god?


    (Stella) (English?)


    (Nox) "Ohhhh, I think I get It. We can understand each other because you are "listening" through your soul, not your ears... this could be a problem."


    I don''t get it.


    Maybe he noticed myconfusion seeing ashe started explaining... again.


    I also hate not knowing everything.


    (Nox) "Basically, we both speakdifferentlanguages. Because you don''t have abody,what you are hearing is like you are reading my spirit waves. What youhearare mythoughtsof what I''m saying and not my actual words... the reasonthat''sa problem isthatas soon as you have abody,you won''t be able to dothat - notifyou can''t use telepathy proficiently."


    So we won''t even be able to talk after I get a body,? Great. But I don''t get the rest of that, I''m not hearing words? I''m reading his thoughts? What are spirit waves?If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    *Sigh*, more things I don''t know.


    (Nox) "On the bright side, if you can learn to control telepathy well enough beforegettingyourbody, then you couldeasily train your body to use itnaturally.Thatmeans you will never haveanother problem with thelanguage barrier."


    The silver lining in thismess, I suppose, is thatI never have to talk again... if I can figure out how to doit. It''s telepathy, not high schoolmath. Ifeveryone could useit,we wouldn''t be in this strange mess. Is ittoolate to say I can talk? Why can''t this god do it instead? Maybe it''s because I''m not talking out loud?


    (Nox) "I''ll look into why you could use telepathy in the first place, after that we can practice until you can do it as easily as breathing."


    I''m dead, do I breathe? Seems I still need to work on killing my logic. Still, might as well be mute... at least I won''t have to talk to people. Atleast,not directly.


    (Nox) "For now, let''s go on a walk. Staying inside all day isn''t good for anyone. Come on, we won''t go too far."


    Nox grabs my hand to help me up then drags me out the door. When did I say I wanted to go for a walk? Is this a downside of being mute?


    We really didn''t go that far. His homeisat the edge of a small town. Not on the floating castle, but maybe near the clearing I was at before? Not a place I expected a god to live in,especially not thegod of death.


    (Nox) "You may havealready noticed,but not many of my siblings live down here.Most of them thinkthat a higher rank means a biggerhouse,but I think that a big house with no one in it is pointless. Besides, this is one of the few places witha fantastic viewaround almost every corner. Take the place we found youinforexample; It''ssurrounded by trees and small flowers grow everywhere, makes it a good place for a picnic."


    Well, that is certainly is a place I can see people going to for a picnic. Wait, did he just say he has a high rank? I guess gods have a ranking system of some kind.


    Remember, no more Earth logic.


    (Nox) "I''m taking you to one of the places I like to go during the summer. It''s a bit closer than most of the scenic spots I know. It also looks better in summer but you are still too weak to walk much farther."


    How can somewhere look better in the summer? In spring and fall flowers and different colored fruits make things look pretty and more colorful, not to mention the leaves themselves in the fall, but summer''s all about the most vibrant green for plants so it can''t be that.


    By the way, it''s early spring. As for what month it is... are they even the same in... where ever I am? Earth doesn''t have a castle in the sky after all.


    (Nox) "We''re here."


    I look up from thinking and finally understood why this place was better in the summer.


    In front of me was a 10-meter tall waterfall with a large pond beneath it. Jumping off the waterfall in the summer would definitely be fun.


    (Nox) "In the summer there is a rainbow across the waterfall, that''s what makes this place even more beautiful."


    Was I the only one who thought jumping in from the top would be fun?


    (Nox) "Sometimes some of my siblings come here to play in the water while having lunch, it''s fun but sometimes they go a bit overboard and make some waves. Sometimes even the food gets ruined and I have to clean up the mess."


    Great, I can be compared to childish gods... also, can he read my mind? I feel like he''s saying this on purpose.


    Well, this place is still beautiful. I mean, what kind of waterfall isn''t? I wouldn''t mind coming out here again.


    (Nox) "Let''s rest for a while before heading back. You can explore if you want, just don''t go too far. There shouldn''t be anyone else around here but if you do see someone just come back to me. You can''t talk to them after all. I''m going to relax under that tree for a bit."


    He said as he pointed to a random tree at the edge of the tree line.


    I nodded and walked closer to the water. When I got close I noticed how clear it was... shame, fish can''t live in clear water, they won''t have any food.


    I walked along the shore for a bit before deciding to take off my shoes and soak my feet in the water.


    How does a disembodied soul wear clothes? No, need to kill Earth logic...


    As I was thinking of questions I''ll likely never get answers for, I heard a voice behind me.


    (???) "So this is the human. Hey, human what''s your name?"


    I look behind me to see a boy roughly Nox''s age with green hair waving his hand towards me.


    How do I answer that I won''t talk?


    While I wasn''t sure what to do... I created a misunderstanding.


    (???) "Why won''t you answer me? Are you ignoring me?!"


    W-what do I do now???


    I started panicking... Nox said a majority of his siblings are unreasonable. What will I do if this one is like them?


    I got out of the water and started walking towards where Nox said he''d be.


    (???) "You are ignoring me human! I only asked for your name! You cursed kid! You child of misfortune! STOP IGNORING ME!!!"


    I froze. I haven''t been called that in years... I know it was my fault but...


    (???) "I finally got your attention. Well, of course I would. That''s the nickname someone called you whenever something bad happened. Well, you did try to get close to people when you had a curse after all."


    Hearing him made me remember some things I''d rather forget. By the time he finished that sentence I was shaking.


    Please don''t say more.


    (???) "Well, even if some things weren''t your fault most of them were. Like a certain girl who fell down some stairs."


    Stop!


    (???) "Or that nice old man down the street."


    STOP!


    I covered my ears only to realize that it was pointless, I could still hear him.


    (???) "Or how about that kid who was just unfortunate to be standing next to you when-"


    (Nox) "SILVA!!!"


    When did he show up? This might be the first time I''m glad to see this god of death.


    (Nox) "Silva, what are you doing to Stella?!"


    (Silva) "What do you mean ''what am I doing to her''? She ignored me so I-"


    (Nox) "Then why is she crying?!"


    ?... since when was I...


    Only now did I notice that I really was crying.


    (Silva) "I didn''t... I just wanted..."


    (Nox) "Stella lets go back for today. You are still a bit see-through so we shouldn''t stay out for too long. Ok?"


    While making a strange excuse, he took my hand again and started walking in the direction we came from.


    (Silva) "Nox, I..."


    Nox didn''t look back. We kept walking in silence until we got back to Nox''s house.


    Once we got inside he dragged me to the bed I was using and sat me down before getting one of the chairs and sitting down in front of me.


    (Nox) "Are you ok?"


    How do I even respond... would you be ok if your old scars suddenly got scratched open by someone you never met?


    (Nox) "Stella?"


    I just sat there, looking down. I don''t know what to do... it was all my fault they got hurt after all...


    While I was busy blaming myself... he suddenly hugged me.


    ??? What is he-


    (Nox) "It''s ok. It wasn''t your fault."


    He spoke to me in a soft voice.


    I-


    (Nox) "It was never you who hurt them. It was my sister''s curse. You even tried to protect them."


    I started crying again but this time my tears wouldn''t stop.


    (Nox) "None of it was your fault."


    I cried and cried... even if some people told me that before, they still avoided me like the plague. It was just a formality, they still thought I was the cause, so did I. No one meant it.


    Nox meant it...


    He said it wasn''t because of me...


    I cried for such a long time...


    At some point, I fell asleep.

 Chapter 4 (edit 99%)

    (Nox) ¡°Good morning, will you let go of me now?¡±


    ?!?!?!


    I woke up lying next to Nox, Why?!


    Last night! What happened last night?!


    I cried then¡­ nothing? AH, I fell asleep! Hugging Nox¡­


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, if you don¡¯t want me to leave the bed- Wha?! Ouch.¡±


    I immediately panicked and pushed him as hard as I could. He fell off the bed and landed on his back. Seeing that, I started to feel bad.


    (Stella) (Did that hurt?)


    (Nox) ¡°Hey, you finally spoke! Maybe I should tease you more often.¡±


    But I didn¡¯t speak¡­ telepathy? I finally used it! Wait, he¡¯s going to do what?!


    I glared at him and tried to ¡®speak¡¯ again.


    You just think it''s fun to make fun of me!


    And I failed miserably.


    (Nox) ¡°So, I should? Well, if you insist. It sounds like a lot of fun, at least for me, anyway.¡±


    He said with that annoying grin on his face.


    So it is for fun!


    I just continue to glare at him while yelling at him in my mind.


    (Nox) ¡°Well, enough of that for now. I will go out for a bit, so you, stay here and rest. I¡¯ll be right back with something I need you to see.¡±


    Then he got up and left without even waiting for my reply.


    I wonder what he¡¯ll bring back?


    I lay back down on the bed for a few minutes before...


    I¡¯m bored. He told me to rest, but after that wake-up, I am wide awake.


    So, I got up to explore this ¡®gods¡¯ house.


    I just realized that I''ve never looked around this place before. I wonder what a god has lying around his house?


    First, I looked through the kitchen. It¡¯s just a normal modern kitchen¡­ though I can¡¯t open the fridge for some reason. I can''t see any lock on it, so maybe it''s magic?


    Next, I looked through that ark by the side of the room that''s been bugging me. I can see a gigantic flat screen TV in front of me as soon as I walk into the room. Who knew gods watch TV? The couch facing the TV looks sooo comfortable. The left wall is practically a bookshelf that is so filled I can''t find any gaps. The right side has 2 smaller bookshelves on either side of a window, both of them are just as full.


    I went over to the window and looked outside.


    So pretty...


    Outside the window is a small flower garden. All of the flowers are either white or black, but they go well together. Seeing it from here makes me think those flowers may have a pattern. If only I could see them from above.


    The sound of the door being closed woke me up from my daze, Nox had come back.


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯m back! Stella, come here for a bit.¡±


    I walked out of the TV room and over to the door where Nox was standing.


    (Nox) ¡°Outside there is someone who wants to meet you. Don¡¯t worry, I will be right behind you the whole time.¡±


    What do I need to be worried about?


    I got my answer as soon as I opened the door.


    And I froze.


    ...Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    (Silva) ¡°I am so sorry for yesterday.¡±


    What is he doing here?! No, wait, he said sorry?


    (Silva) ¡°Nox came over to explain the situation to me¡­ I never even considered that you couldn¡¯t talk¡­ I got overly excited when I met my first human and wanted to talk to you, so when I thought you ignored me I got mad and took it out on you¡­ Sorry.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Now, why don¡¯t you come in and talk? We can''t stand here all day.¡±


    I didn¡¯t know what to do, so I just followed Nox as he walked inside and sat down at the table.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, can you let go of my shirt now?¡±


    When did I?!


    I let go quickly and looked down, embarrassed, and probably with a red face¡­


    I hope he won''t tease me about this¡­ why did I grab his shirt? Was I that scared?


    (Nox) ¡°Silva, you too, sit.¡±


    (Silva) ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    Now that we are all sitting at the table¡­


    *Silence*


    (Nox) ¡°*Sigh*, Silva, even if Stella can¡¯t talk, you can.¡±


    (Silva) ¡°Yes¡­¡±


    *Silence*


    (Nox) ¡°Ok, this is getting nowhere... Silva, why don''t you come back tomorrow after you''ve calmed down and thought about what you want to talk about?¡±


    (Silva) ¡°Ok¡­¡±


    He then quickly gets up and walks out the door.


    What was that?


    Nothing else happened for the next week. I didn''t want to go on walks, so I stayed inside while Nox tried to teach me telepathy with a bit of success. It''s nothing major, but I can now answer with a few words like a 2-year-old¡­ At least it''s an improvement.


    Silva also kept showing up, but we just stayed silent for about a half an hour before he left. No improvement there.


    I also started eating food again. I can only eat soup now, but Nox said I can soon eat solids. He also said I will be getting a new body after my soul is stable, and that I will go to a fantasy-like world. I¡¯m not getting reborn, just sent there.


    Luckily, I will be able to talk to any god I want once I¡¯m there. Even if I die, I will just be sent back here¡­ but most ways of dying are painful, so let''s hope that I can die of old age.


    It''s not like I didn''t ask why I couldn¡¯t reincarnate like my parents, but Nox wouldn¡¯t tell me. He would try and change the subject whenever I brought something like that up.


    Nox said his mom will explain more when I get my body. I¡¯m not sure I want to meet her though, she is part of the reason that I¡­ anyway, that is for the future.


    Today something different happened.


    *Knock, knock*


    (Nox) ¡°Silva, come in.¡±


    (Silva) ¡°...¡±


    (Nox) ¡°*Sigh* Today, I¡¯m leaving you two alone, so at least try and talk to her Silva. Bye.¡±


    (Silva) ¡°Wait!¡±


    But he was already gone¡­


    What just happened? Did I get abandoned?!


    (Silva) ¡°...¡±


    ¡­


    (Silva) ¡°...¡±


    ¡­


    (Silva) ¡°...¡±


    ¡­


    (Silva) ¡°Want to play a game?¡±


    I slowly nodded¡­ this is awkward.


    We walked to the room with the giant flatscreen TV.


    (Silva) ¡°Do you like video games?¡±


    I nodded and he went towards the left bookshelf.


    So that¡¯s what that was, Nox doesn¡¯t come in here often so I thought he didn¡¯t like TV but if that shelf is full of games then¡­ I wonder why we didn¡¯t play any?


    (Silva) ¡°Then... how about this one? Our mother made it a long time ago in case we wanted to manage the believers under our domains. She wanted us to know how much work it takes. That makes a great game if we can turn it off whenever we want, but reality is much more difficult. Still, this game is one of the best mother has ever made.¡±


    He must really like games, that¡¯s the most I¡¯ve ever heard him talk... eternal deities playing video games¡­


    (Silva) ¡°What do you say? Do you want to play?¡±


    I nodded and he touched the game to the flatscreen. The game got absorbed and the TV turned on¡­


    Then he handed me a PS4 controller¡­ not what I was expecting.


    (Silva) ¡°Here¡¯s your controller. I¡¯ll help you with the voice commands.¡±


    WHAT?! What kind of game is this?!


    And so, we started the game.


    [1 hour later.]


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯m home!¡±


    (Silva) ¡°We¡¯re in the game room!¡±


    So it was a game room¡­


    (Stella) (Nox¡­ Why¡­)


    That was the best I could do, but Nox can understand me for the most part because all we did in the last week was talk. Who knew there was a better alternative like gaming? Yes, I¡¯m mad at Nox for not telling me.


    (Silva) ¡°You spoke?! I thought you couldn''t speak?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°She can¡¯t, I¡¯ll explain to you later. Stella, I didn¡¯t let you play because I wanted you to talk more and go outside.¡±


    I would play games all day if given a choice so I have no way to argue. I still want to play though...


    (Silva) ¡°Is that what she asked you? All I heard her ask was ¡®Why?¡¯.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Yeah, that is why I want her to talk more. If she talks more she can get used to it faster.¡±


    (Silva) ¡°I see. Then why don¡¯t we all play and ¡®talk¡¯ about how to deal with that corrupt pope.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°I¡­ Ok, you win. We can play games while discussing strategies, but Stella, you need to go on a walk at least once a day. We can see nearby scenic spots or just explore nearby, but you need some fresh air. Got it?¡±


    (Stella) (Ok.) yay, video games!

 Chapter 5 (edit 99%)

    A week of fun, playing games, and looking at scenic spots, has passed.


    Thinking back, the scenic spots got more and more strange. The first three days, we walked around to different nature mysteries that were just beautiful. Places like the blue flower field that looked like a lake until you got close, or the world tree¡­ Yes, the real one. Apparently every world has one, even Earth.


    The last few days, we flew around icecream volcanos and candy wonderlands¡­ I just had to ask if they exist¡­ it really was just a joke¡­ why did they take me seriously?


    Also, we flew around. At first, Nox and Silva took turns carrying me but I couldn¡¯t take that anymore, too embarrassing, so I asked if there was any other way. Apparently, I have the feathers of the gods of life and death. Feathers for gods are like wuxia cultivation, not easy to get but each one is precious.


    Now, I know what you are thinking, ¡®can''t you be all-powerful with those feathers?¡¯ The answer is no. One reason is that they are not my power, so I can''t control them, not that I can¡¯t learn how to over a few years. The other reason is that it takes thousands of feathers to just fly, normally.


    However, right now I don''t have a body, so I have no weight to hold me down.


    I obviously asked how I was still affected by gravity without any weight, but all I got was ¡®it¡¯s magic.¡¯


    Anyway, I can use the feathers to grow tiny black and white wings that can, kind of, get me off the ground. Combine that with some of Silva¡¯s magic and I was flying like any other soul with 2 strange looking feathers on my back.


    Best day ever.


    They told me more about feathers after that. Not all gods need feathers. The god of creation and goddess of fortune, aka their parents, don''t have wings, they don''t need them. They created this system for their kids as a type of reward system. Do something godly, get a feather.


    Doing nothing is also godly, so most of them get a free feather a year for that¡­


    Back to the present. Today, we are going into town.


    (Nox) ¡°Look, you need to get used to being around other people. How are you going to live if you don''t learn to at least ignore people staring at how different you look. Remember, you will be going to a world different to your old one.¡±


    (Stella) (Don''t want too.)


    Look at my amazing progress! 3 words without problems!


    Seems like only I was satisfied with my progress¡­


    (Silva) ¡°Stella, you haven''t gone past 3 words for 4 days. Nox is just worried you won''t be able to talk at all in your new body. I agree that you need to go to town. If you talk to a lot of people, maybe you will be able to get to the next step, even if that step is small.¡±


    I know that they¡¯re worried about me, but I can probably easily ¡®speak¡¯ more than 3 words, it¡¯s just that I don''t want too. I do want to see if I can choose who listens when I¡¯m in a crowd though¡­


    (Nox) ¡°So, let¡¯s go.¡±


    (Stella) (Hold on!)


    (Nox) ¡°What?¡±


    (Stella) (Why no Silva?)


    That¡®s right, Silva doesn''t plan on going. He won''t tell me why he isn¡¯t going either.


    (Silva) ¡°I told you I can¡¯t. I need to go¡­ do stuff. I¡¯ll be here when you get back though, so don''t worry.¡±


    When he says that, I can''t help but be worried¡­ Who won¡¯t be worried when someone says, ¡®don¡¯t worry.¡¯


    (Nox) ¡°Then, let¡¯s go. Silva, see you later.¡±


    (Stella) (Wait, don''t want-)


    (Silva) ¡°Bye, see you soon.¡±


    (Stella) (Traitor!)


    And so, I get dragged out the door.


    [10 minutes of useless struggling later]


    (Nox) ¡°We¡¯re here.¡±


    (Stella) (Go back, please!)


    I look at him and plead. Nothing good ever happens in town, at least, not for me.


    (Nox) ¡°It''s just town. How can anything go wrong?¡±


    He just had to say it¡­


    So we went through town¡­ slowly. We window shopped strange stores like, ¡®the Godly Alchemist¡¯ and ¡®Familiar Pets¡¯ for about 3 hours. Except for being stared at by everyone we came across, it was fun. I even learned to control who hears my telepathy, so stop looking at me like that¡­ I¡¯m not a zoo animal¡­


    Before we headed back, Nox decided to eat at a restaurant.


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯ll have¡­ crispy dragon strips and a side of clover fries. Stella, what about you?¡±


    (Stella) (Can''t read menu.) See, the waiter didn¡¯t notice.


    Not that I even understood what you just ordered. Dragon strips? Clover fries?


    (Nox) ¡°Right, sorry about that. Then, 4 seasons soup and a magic grilled cheese. Grilled cheese is your favorite, right?¡±


    When he first asked what kind of food I wanted when I was first allowed to eat solids, I asked for grilled cheese. Who wouldn''t want to eat their favorite right after being restricted on food? I guess Nox thought the same way.


    So, I nodded my head, and the waiter walked away.


    I wonder what¡¯s so magic about the grilled cheese? And ¡®4 seasons soup¡¯? I can''t even tell what kind of soup it is, I¡¯m kinda looking forward to this ¡®god food.¡¯


    This stores slogan is, ¡®god food is good food.¡¯ it''s too cheesy to me but I¡¯m looking forward to it.


    (Nox) ¡°See? It wasn''t that bad. You even had a little fun.¡±


    (Stella) (Not over yet.)


    I smiled to taunt him.


    (Nox) ¡°Fine, but you need to admit you had fun so far. I saw how you were looking at those puppies, no way you didn''t enjoy that.¡±


    I blushed and looked down. Touche.


    So embarrassing¡­ they were cute though. The mini fenrier was adorable, and the baby orthos were so cute with one head sleeping while the other was begging for food.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    That is not something I ever thought I would say. But who knew I liked dogs so much. I never got close to pets because¡­ *Sigh* Nevermind.


    (Nox) ¡°Sorry I can''t get you anything, but you will be leaving soon. Hopefully by the week after next week. You¡¯ll need time to adjust to suddenly having a body after all.¡±


    I¡¯m trying to not remember that. I am having lots of fun here, but I know I can''t stay forever. I¡¯m only here because of the damage caused by the curse to my soul and my unstable emotions. No point in sending me somewhere else if I just suicide and return, not that I would. I might have accidentally starved while avoiding people if I was just sent somewhere after all.


    (Waiter) ¡°Here are your orders. Enjoy.¡±


    She said and walked away. She looked at Nox with a pink face and completely disregarded me. Strange? Does she have a thing for Nox?


    (Nox) ¡°Ok, let''s eat.¡±


    Nox paid no attention to the poor waiter and just dug right in.


    By the way, she only brought out Nox¡¯s food and not mine¡­ I don''t think Nox noticed that though.


    (Stella) (Is it good?)


    (Nox) ¡°Mum nom?¡± (Want some?)


    Is this a form of telepathy? Ah, I understand them despite the language difference, is this an example of understanding spirit waves?


    I nodded my head, curious about what dragon tastes like.


    As I was about to take one of the dragon strips, the waiter suddenly appeared and spilled a bowl of hot soup onto my arm.


    I panicked and tried to move but wasn¡¯t fast enough.


    Nox pushed the bowl away in a hurry and got splashed by the soup.


    (Stella) (Nox!)


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯m ok Stella, just a small burn. You!¡±


    He turned to the waiter.


    (Nox) ¡°What is the meaning of this?!¡±


    (Waiter) ¡°I-I d-didn''t mean! It was an accident!¡±


    (Nox) ¡°You thought I wouldn''t notice?! Do you think I am stupid?! Why do you want to harm the soul under my protection?!¡±


    (???) ¡°So what if she does?¡±


    Some strange guy with blue hair comes out from the kitchen. Now that I think about it, this waiter also has blue hair, it¡¯s just not as dark.


    (Nox) ¡°Lacus, Aqua, are you going against mothers will?!¡±


    Suddenly everyone in the room froze. So that''s their names, Aqua¡­ water gods?


    (Lacus) ¡°Don''t even think of accusing us of something like that!¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Then why did Aqua intentionally try to harm this soul? We both know it''s impossible for her to drop food on a customer, especially if that food could hurt someone. She cares too much about this business to make a mistake like that.¡±


    Everyone started staring at Aqua. Under the pressure, she finally spoke.


    (Aqua) ¡°Ok! It was intentional, but I-¡±


    (Nox) ¡°What ¡®but¡¯?! Stella never provoked you, never threatened you. How could she have possibly made you want to hurt her?! She never even spoke to you or got a chance to eat your food, so she can''t have said something like ¡®your cooking tastes bad.¡¯ What could she have possibly done to you for you to try and scald her with soup?!?!?!¡±


    Aqua stayed silent.


    With no response from her, Nox turned to Lacus.


    (Nox) ¡°Can you give me an explanation?¡±


    (Lacus) ¡°Do I need too? That''s only a human soul, even if my sister wanted to boil it, I would be fine with it.¡±


    Harsh¡­ I don''t want to be boiled, that sounds painful. Did I do something wrong?


    I looked towards Nox¡­ He looks scary¡­ like when he took Al¡­ whatever his name was.


    (Nox) ¡°I see. In that case, Stella, I¡¯ll take you home. Lacus, I will report this incident to mother. I wonder how she will react when she finds out you and Aqua tried to harm the soul she owes because of Forma.¡±


    I nodded¡­ Nox is scary. I don''t know what he¡¯s planning but I do know these 2 will suffer. Is Forma that ex-goddess?


    Not only these 2 in front of me, but everyone in the rooms faces turn pale and they look like the world is ending after hearing what Nox said. I can''t tell if they are more afraid of their mother or that smile that Nox has¡­


    After dragging me out of the restaurant, he held onto my arm tightly, spread his black wings, and flew us home. At least it wasn¡¯t a princess carry this time...


    Inside the house.


    (Nox) ¡°Sorry about earlier¡­¡±


    (Stella) (Told you so.)


    (Nox) *Sigh* ¡°Yes, you did. I will immediately go and tell mother what happened. Just wait for the good news.¡±


    (Stella) (Wait!)


    So, he left¡­ I wanted to rub it in a bit more or at least complain about how my arm hurts. Still, it was a fun trip, for the most part. I won''t make it too hard on him. Actually, I¡¯m more worried about that burn on his arm. He didn''t seem to react to it much but burns are always painful, I hope he¡¯s ok.


    I waited for a while and someone came through the door, but it wasn''t Nox.


    (Silva) ¡°I¡¯m back! Hey Stella, where¡¯s Nox?¡±


    (Stella) (Nox. Mother. Punishment.)


    (Silva) ¡°Whoa, what? Punishment? What happened?¡±


    (Stella) (Bad water gods¡­ hurt Nox¡­ hope he¡¯s ok¡­)


    (Silva) ¡°What?! Why would they... Aqua likes Nox. Everyone knows that.¡±


    (Stella) (Aqua said¡­ Intention to burn¡­ me.)


    (Silva) ¡°WHAT?! Why those little¡­ don''t worry Stella, I¡¯m going to-¡±


    Halfway through his angered rant, the door opened and Nox came in.


    (Nox) ¡°You''re going to what?¡±


    (Silva) ¡°Nox! Stella said you got hurt protecting her. What happened?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯ll tell you the details later. First, Stella, take these.¡±


    (Stella) (Was I bad?)


    (Nox) ¡°What? No. You did nothing wrong. Now, take these, it''s from those 2.¡±


    He handed me feathers, LOTS of different colored feathers¡­ aren''t feathers like a power source for gods? Why did he give me these?


    He noticed my confusion and started to explain.


    (Nox) ¡°These things will help you learn magic a bit easier in your new world. It''s not much but it should offset your 16 years and make it easier for you to adapt. It''s just a little apology gift from Lacus and Aqua.¡±


    He showed that scary smile again¡­ I got shivers from looking at it¡­ scary¡­


    I looked at Silva to see him shivering too. I didn''t even want to know what Nox did to make those 2 ¡®apologize¡¯ like this.


    (Nox) ¡°So, Silva, what was so important for you to run off by yourself today.¡±


    He just casually changed the subject. I¡¯m glad but also scared that even he was avoiding telling us what happened.


    (Silva) ¡°What? Oh right! Stella, I went out to get you this!¡±


    He said excitedly and shows me a white teardrop shaped pendant. It''s pretty but¡­ why is he so excited to show it to me?


    (Stella) (Why so excited?)


    (Nox) ¡°This is¡­ how did you?¡±


    Nox looked surprised, is this something impressive?


    (Silva) ¡°I traded some rare plants to Iter.¡±


    By the way, Silva is the god of nature. If he says that a plant is rare, it is. However, he can mutate a plant however he wants so recreating a rare plant using a common one isn''t that hard for him, but it still takes a bit of effort.


    (Nox) ¡°I had heard he was making a new garden¡­ but even for him, that thing isn''t cheap. It costs at least a few feathers.¡±


    Says the person who just gave me a lot of feathers.


    (Silva) ¡°No worries, he wanted those plants from me for a while so it was easy to convince him. Stella, this pendant it an unlimited storage device. It''s like a games inventory only more convenient. As long as you own the item, you can put anything in and take anything out whenever you want. You can even store people or pets but anything with intelligence must be willing. Inside, time won''t flow so you won''t need to worry about them starving. If you learn magic in the future, you can use other affinities to store fireballs or something for emergencies. It also can''t get stolen, if someone tries, it will teleport back to you after about 5 meters or so.¡±


    Wow, the ultimate storage device. This will be much more useful than feathers to the me that knows nothing about magic.


    (Silva) ¡°There are more functions, but nothing you can''t figure out on your own later.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Enough of that, hurry and absorb the feathers. I¡¯ll go make us dinner since ours was interrupted earlier.¡±


    So, he went into the kitchen¡­ how do I use these things again? Absorb? How do I do that? I also want to know more about this inventory¡­ feathers first I guess.


    (Stella) (Silva, how to absorb?)


    (Silva) ¡°You don''t- Ohhh right, I forgot you¡¯re¡­ anyway, all you need to do is press them one by one against your heart. Make sure you wait for the one you are absorbing to finish before moving on to the next one. If you don''t, you may not get all the energy. Do the same to the pendant to bind it to your soul, that way, even if you die it will stay with you.¡±


    As Silva said, I pressed the feathers to my heart, not that I think souls have one, and they got absorbed into my¡­ soul. It felt weird honestly. Like I suddenly got more blood in my nonexistent veins. After binding the pendant I was finally done.


    (Nox) ¡°Dinners ready. Eat up, then we¡¯ll play for a bit before going to bed.¡±


    (Stella) (Ok.) I¡¯m gonna stop that holy war this time.


    (Silva) ¡°Alright, but seriously, why is every pope that gets into power so corrupt?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°I think mother designed the game so that power corrupts 99% of people. Hurry and eat so we can play.¡±


    And we completely forget what happened at the restaurant earlier and moved on.

 chapter 6 (edit 90%)

    Where am I? Why do I look like I¡¯m 6 years old again? This place is dark, like an eternal black fog. Suddenly, I heard a familiar voice.


    (Mom) ¡°Stella, how could you do this to us?¡±


    (Stella) ¡°Mom?¡±


    (Dad) ¡°Stella, how could you let this happen?!¡±


    (Stella) ¡°Dad?¡± *Sniffle*


    (manager lady) ¡°It¡¯s all your fault I got killed. It¡¯s all your fault we died!¡±


    (Stella) ¡°But I didn¡¯t-¡±


    (Cain) ¡°My mom is suffering because of you, and all you did was run away.¡±


    They suddenly appeared and surrounded me.


    (Mom, Dad, Manager, Cain) ¡°It¡¯s all your fault. It''s all your fault.¡±


    (Stella) ¡°I-I didn¡¯t mean-¡± I crouched down and cried out, and they circled around me.


    (Mom, Dad, Manager, Cain) ¡°It¡¯s all your fault. It''s all your fault.¡±


    I wanted to cry out when a light cleared the fog and I heard another familiar voice.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, wake up. It¡¯s not real, it''s just a nightmare, wake up.¡±


    I shot up, shivering and gasping for breath, a cold sweat on my back.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, wake up. Today¡¯s the day.¡±


    I woke up to Nox... in my bed¡­ again¡­


    (Stella) (WHY?!)


    And I shoved him as hard as I could.


    (Nox) ¡°OUCH! Why do you do that every time?!¡±


    He says that but am I supposed to just say ¡®good morning¡¯ when I wake up with some guy in my bed¡­ of course I would freak, I¡¯m still a girl.


    And, yes, EVERY TIME. For the past week, he has been sneaking into my bed without waking me up, somehow. Before that, he only did that every few days¡­ Why???


    I asked once, and he said I grabbed his hand and wouldn¡¯t let go¡­ I do not believe him but it scared me to think of what other excuses he might come up with¡­ so I gave up on that, but he just won''t stop.


    I glare at him as if I could pour all my grievances into my gaze.


    (Nox) ¡°Well, let¡¯s go.¡±


    (Stella) (DON''T JUST BRUSH THIS OFF!!!)


    While I was still fuming, I chase after him and we set off towards that big castle in the sky.


    (???) ¡°She¡¯s here!!!¡± *BANG*


    The first thing that got my attention as we entered this huge castle¡­ were the giant boobs that were suffocating me¡­


    (Stella) (Can¡¯t¡­ breath¡­)


    (Nox) ¡°MOTHER!¡±


    (???) ¡°Oops, sorry dear.¡±


    Nox spoke up and I could suddenly breathe again.


    Wait¡­ ¡®MOTHER¡¯???


    The woman in front of me was the most gorgeous beauty I¡¯ve ever seen. Her eyes kept changing color, from green to purple to yellow to blue, and other colors of all kinds, but none of them looked bad on her. She has crimson red hair tied into a high ponytail and a matching beautiful low-cut red dress¡­ and it highlighted her extra large chest¡­ that nearly killed me a second ago¡­


    (???) ¡°It¡¯s so nice to finally meet you, dear. My name is Fortuna, goddess of fate and fortune. I¡¯m so sorry about how my daughter acted, it''s all my fault.¡±


    She told me with tears in her eyes¡­ I am totally speechless here¡­ this is not how I expected my meeting with this goddess was going to go¡­


    (Nox) ¡°Where¡¯s father?¡±


    (Fortuna) ¡°He¡¯s waiting inside for us. Dear, let¡¯s go, I want to introduce you to my husband.¡±


    Then, she takes my hand and pulls me into the castle without waiting for my reply¡­ so, it runs in the family¡­


    As we walk through the corridors to a central room, Fortuna starts to explain the details of why she blessed me and why Forma cursed me.


    (Fortuna) ¡°So, you know that my daughter cursed you, but I didn¡¯t let Nox explain why I blessed you, at least not properly. You see, dear, your soul is special. Most souls are created by my husband''s or Al¡¯s domain over the soul. Your soul was created naturally, like mine and my husbands. We call it a complete soul. One is created every few hundred millennia or so. Basically, you will live as long as your soul doesn¡¯t dissipate, and reincarnate with all your memories whether we interfere or not.¡±


    So¡­ I¡¯m doomed to live forever? Great, what a girl always wanted, eternal youth with a side of insanity...


    (Fortuna) ¡°I created my children so I could spend eternity with a large eternal family. It was better than going insane and destroying everything or dissipating my own soul. You can make that choice one day as well, however, please keep in mind that you can make this choice in a few billion years after you¡¯ve had a chance to try out eternity. It''s not for everyone after all.¡±


    That¡¯s not making me feel any better about all this.


    (Fortuna) ¡°I wanted to bless you so that you could live a first life full of beautiful memories¡­ I¡¯m sorry I couldn¡¯t stop my daughter¡­ if I¡¯d been able to react faster, perhaps you would have lived the full life I had hoped for.¡±


    How do I even react to that¡­ Do I say thank you for trying? Do I get mad for the ridiculousness of the situation? I don¡¯t even know what to¡­ *Sigh* What now?This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    (Stella) (What now?)


    (Fortuna) ¡°Well, first, we get you that new body. After that, it''s up to you to decide. Oh, we¡¯re here. If you need to know anything about your new body, just ask my husband, he made it after all.¡±


    At the end of that long corridor was a 10-meter tall door. As we neared, they started opening¡­ on their own¡­


    When I finally saw the inside of the room, I was stunned. In the center of the room is a glowing light with the shadow of a person inside.


    As I was looking around the room, a person with¡­ interesting hair, like Fortuna''s eyes... appeared beside us.


    (???) ¡°You must be Stella. It''s nice to finally see a new soul around these parts. My name is Genesis, I am called the god of creation.¡±


    The man in front of me looks no older than 25. Unlike his strange hair, his eyes are the same as Nox¡¯s, pitch black.


    (Stella) (What¡¯s that?)


    I pointed to the glow in front of us.


    (Genesis) ¡°That, child, is you.¡±


    It feels strange to be called a child by someone who only looks 10 years older than you, but he should be at least as old as the Earth¡­ I think?


    (Stella) (Me???)


    (Genesis) ¡°Well, it will be. Just think of it as a suit of armor for your soul if you are uncomfortable with the concept of a new body.¡±


    Now, I¡¯m even more confused.


    (Stella) (Armor?)


    (Genesis) ¡°Yes, there are actually quite a lot of soul-eating beasts in existence. This is simply armor to protect you from those things. Well, that, and to add a bit of color to you.¡±


    He has a point¡­ my current skin, eyes, clothes, and hair are pure white. I think I was told it had something to do with how young and magicless I was¡­ am.


    (Stella) (How add color?) I mean, doesn¡¯t it already have color?


    (Genesis) ¡°This body is a mold. As long as you can gain more control over your soul, like using telepathy, you can learn to control this body''s shape. For example, reshaping your ears to be like a beastman''s.¡±


    Stella the bunny girl¡­ I kinda want to try it, but I also kinda want to forget that thought¡­


    (Genesis) ¡°It will also be easy for you to gather mana, considering that mana is what this body is made of. Mana can be a substitute for stamina because of that, but you will need to use mana to heal even the smallest scratches. Well, it will be like second nature at some point.¡±


    Is that convenient or inconvenient¡­ seriously, I¡¯ve never used magic before. How am I even supposed to find mana?!


    (Genesis) ¡°If you get mortally wounded, there¡¯s an auto-heal function that will use any stored mana you have to save your life¡­ anything else¡­ Right, this body won''t age so try not to stay in a human town for more than a few years. Not all humans discriminate but some may take you to be immortal¡­ and try to eat you to gain that immortality.¡±


    Gross¡­ but I can think of worse things on Earth that people have done to gain immortality¡­ like those creeps that use newborns as sacrifices¡­ this is making me more depressed¡­ no, think positive, chances of dying is low and I can trick some people into helping me for being young even 100 years from now¡­ is this really a good thing?


    (Genesis) ¡°Well, if you''re done thinking, all you need to do is touch it and your soul will be sucked into this new body. It may feel weird at first, but you will take a week to learn and get used to moving. Nox will teach you how to use your mana as well.¡±


    So I walk over to the light¡­ are you sure I¡¯m not passing on? I stood in front and hesitated. I mean, if I do this, I¡¯ll leave soon. I like it here. I can play every day with my only worries being how to avoid the people that don¡¯t like me.


    Maybe I will be forced to leave either way but¡­ so, I turned back and look at Nox.


    (Nox) ¡°What¡¯s wrong Stella?¡±


    He looked back at me with a confused look.


    (Stella) (Scared.)


    (Nox) ¡°Of what?¡±


    (Stella) (Being alone.)


    Call me a scaredy cat if you want, but I was alone for years. Now, I have 2 people who are willing to talk to me¡­ 2 people who get mad for me¡­ 2 people who laugh with me¡­


    I don¡¯t want to lose them.


    Tears start to escape from my eyes as I ask,


    (Stella) (Can I not leave?)


    (Nox) ¡°Stella¡­¡±


    (Genesis) ¡°I already set up a system so you can talk to anyone of my children you want for an hour each day. All you need is to call out their name in your mind.¡±


    ¡­ I already knew that, but it¡¯s not the same.


    (Fortuna) ¡°Now, now. Stella, you are going on a journey. We want you to make friends, say goodbyes, meet again, and some people will leave forever. Sweety, eternity is full of meetings and partings.¡±


    That is not making me feel better


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, we have all week to say goodbye. I know you can''t bear to leave me-¡±


    I immediately step into the light.


    What is he smiling about?! Why is he breaking this serious moment with another stupid joke?! To think I was sad over leaving that guy!!! I can¡¯t wait to go back and complain to Silva! So stop laughing at my serious emotions!!!


    I seriously hear laughter behind me¡­ jerk¡­


    I took a deep breath and touched¡­ my body¡­ that sounds strange¡­


    Like Genesis said, I got sucked in. I slowly started to feel my skin. I didn¡¯t notice before that I couldn''t feel it but now it¡¯s too obvious to not notice.


    This is probably why I need time to get used to it¡­


    I feel even the smallest breeze on my skin, hear the smallest sounds, smell every scent. My head started hurting badly so I didn¡¯t even try to open my eyes. I think this is called ¡®sensory overload.¡¯


    Nox said I wasn¡¯t really hearing him before but¡­ this proves it.


    I kneel on the floor and cover my ears, trying to get something in control.


    After a while, my skin feels normal again, then my nose. Before uncovering my ears I try to use telepathy.


    (Stella) (Please, don''t speak.)


    I don''t know if it worked but when I uncovered my ears I didn¡¯t hear voices. I slowly got used to each of the sounds in the room. Some wind here, clothes moving over there.


    After getting used to that I slowly opened my eyes. Af first, it was too bright to see, then it got better. As my eyes adjusted, I started looking around the room. My head hurt worse when I first opened my eyes, but now the pain was starting to go away.


    After a while, I heard a voice.


    (Genesis) ¡°*$^%@%^&%$#¡± (Feel better now?)


    All I heard was gibberish but I could somehow understand him.


    (Stella) (No, but I will be.)


    (Nox) ¡°*#&^^@*#^$&%^¡± (You can still use telepathy!)


    I had to cover my ears again.


    (Stella) (Don''t shout!)


    (Nox) ¡°*#%^...¡± (Sorry...)


    (Genesis) ¡°*%^$&&*%&##^&*$&$%&*#&@@%&^%#@^¡± (Why don''t you go back now and rest. Start practicing control tomorrow.


    (Stella) (Ok)


    So I get up to leave.


    (???) ¡°*$^&&%$#%*&$@#$¡± (How about a twist.)


    Suddenly, a white light that flashed around me.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella!¡±


    (Fortuna) ¡°Iter!!!¡±


    2 people called out at the same time and I felt someone hug me tightly.


    Then, it was like the air started to break around me, I kept hearing noises like glass shattering. Soon, it felt like I was being stretched and pulled in all different directions. After a bit, I couldn''t tell up from down and got sick and dizzy. Then, I started feeling like I was getting cuts all over my body. It was like this torture would never stop.


    At some point, I couldn''t take it anymore and fainted.

 Chapter 7 (edit 99%)

    (Nox) ¡°Ow, ow, ow, it hurts.¡±


    That is how I woke up this time¡­ I feel bad for Nox but¡­ PUSH


    (Nox) ¡°OW!!!¡±


    Maybe that was a bit too harsh¡­ at least he¡¯s not hugging me anymore, right?


    (Stella) (You OK?)


    (Nox) ¡°Of course not!!! I just forced myself into a space tunnel only meant for one person!!!¡±


    OK¡­ I have no idea what he¡¯s talking about.


    (Stella) (What happened? Where are we?)


    I look up and see trees, lots of trees.


    (Nox) ¡°Iter happened. God of space that likes playing pranks. He sent us through a space tunnel to... wherever this is.¡±


    (Stella) (Bad thing?) At least I¡¯m not alone. I will never admit this out loud.


    (Nox) ¡°Yes and no. Normally you would just be sent here early, I doubt he would send you to some random dimension, but I tried to drag you out and got pulled in¡­ The whole tunnel got messed up because of that.¡±


    (Stella) (Lots of pain?)


    (Nox) ¡°It must have hurt, right. I tried to take all the force but you probably still got hit by some of the force¡­ sorry.¡±


    I just realized this now but¡­ how can I understand what he¡¯s saying?


    (Stella) (Nox, are you speaking English?)


    (Nox) ¡°What? Oh, no, I¡¯m using magic to have people hear what I¡¯m saying in whatever language they understand the most. Think of it as reverse telepathy. Don¡¯t worry about talking to people, we will be able to understand the language after a while. Your telepathy will auto translate here like it did back home.¡±


    (Stella) (Your home.)


    (Nox) ¡°You might as well think of it as your home too. Mom seems to want to keep you as a new daughter.¡±


    That¡¯s not even close to a good joke¡­ Wait, he¡¯s not smiling¡­ is he serious?


    (Nox) ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get up and find a town. Unless you want to stay here until a monster finds us?¡±


    (Stella) (Monster?)


    (Nox) ¡°Yes, monster. Anywhere domains are strong enough, ambient mana either creates or mutates creatures and things into monsters. So, let¡¯s get going before we get ambushed or something.¡±


    I thought monsters were jokes to add funny names to food in the god world¡­ then again, there was an orthos at the pet shop¡­ that was real? Will we be ok?


    (Stella) (Nox, are you strong?)


    (Nox) ¡°Why are you asking this now? Worried? My physique is like a normal humans but I can use magic and fight with a weapon well enough.¡±


    I wonder what weapon he uses? I don¡¯t see one on him¡­ as for magic¡­ do I want to see a death god use magic?


    Will we be ok? Important things need to be said 3 times¡­ will we be ok?


    (Nox) ¡°Let¡¯s get up already. I doubt Iter would put us in the middle of nowhere, so there has to be a town, or at least a village, nearby.¡±


    (Stella) (Still hurt?)


    (Nox) ¡°No, just a bit sore. I¡¯ll be fine in a few hours.¡±


    He says as he gets up before taking my hand and helping me to my feet.


    (Nox) ¡°Besides, we need to get you some clothes.¡±


    WHAT!?!?!?!?!?!?


    I look down to see a white dress¡­ S-safe¡­


    Then I punched him as hard as I could.


    (Nox) ¡°HAHAHAHAHA!!!¡±


    (Stella) (Stop laughing you jerk!!!)


    He starts running away¡­ If I don¡¯t chase him I¡¯ll be alone in a forest that has monsters in it¡­


    I am sooo going to hit him again when I catch up!


    And we ran. Well, he ran, I chased¡­ until we found a road and saw people. I¡¯ve never seen a horse before, let alone a horse carriage. This group has 6 carriages and, I think, 20 horses.


    (Guard like guy) ¡°Halt! State your business!¡±


    I hide behind Nox, who I finally caught up too, and punch him in the back in a way the guard guy can¡¯t see. The skills you pick up over a short lifetime. *Sigh*


    (Nox) ¡°We came from a small village and got lost in these woods. Is there a town nearby?¡±


    (Guard like guy) *Damn peasants* ¡°Just follow the road for 2 hours in the direction we¡¯re going towards. You¡¯ll get to 32nd town if you go straight or 18nth town after a week if you take the branching path.¡±


    So, telepathy has it''s downsides, I can hear even whispers of insults¡­ is peasant an insult? Still, this guy is probably an actual knight or something to say peasants like that.


    (Pretty female voice) ¡°Rodric, why don¡¯t you invite them for a ride. I would love some company for the rest of the trip.¡±


    And somehow we got invited for a ride. I look towards Nox because I have no idea what to do. On Earth, I would refuse immediately if I was offered a ride but¡­ this isn¡¯t Earth.


    (Nox) ¡°We would appreciate the help.¡±


    (Rodric) ¡°Lady Ele-¡±


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Rodric.¡±


    (Rodric) ¡°Understood. You, get on with the miss, and you get on one of the other carts.¡±


    He pointed at me first then at Nox. I look at Nox again, I am kinda mute after all¡­ it may be intentional but I don¡¯t want to talk to people like them at all. Using telepathy will defeat the purpose of that¡­ If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    (Nox) ¡°My friend here is mute. Is it possible for us to stay together?¡±


    He says towards the ladies carriage. The knight guard guy looks at us like we were some devil''s advocate or something. Wait, I am with the god of death¡­ does that count?


    As I was thinking weird stuff, they started talking.


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°I don¡¯t mind. Please come aboard. I would love to hear the story about how you ended up lost in these woods.¡±


    Good thing I don¡¯t need to talk. I can make up a lie or 2 but¡­ how am I supposed to coordinate a lie with someone else?


    So we both get on the ladies carriage under the scary glare of the mean guard. As the carriages start moving, Nox makes up a believable story.


    (Nox) ¡°So, it goes like this; while on a small road on the way to town, a monster appeared suddenly and our group got split up in the chaos. I grabbed my friend''s hand and we ran in a random direction until we couldn¡¯t move anymore. After we rested up a bit, we walked to find a road and ran into you.¡±


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Great story... now tell me the truth.¡±


    Poker face... poker face...


    (Nox) ¡°That is the truth, believe it or not.¡±


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Your clothes are too clean, not to mention that the material is not something a peasant can afford. You don¡¯t smell of sweat, let alone blood. And you are too calm for someone who claims to have nearly lost their life.¡±


    She''s got you there Nox. But those loopholes are easy to fix¡­ but fixing them may give away the lie. Why is lying so complicated?


    (Nox) ¡°Your basis is on us being peasants.¡±


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Are you saying you are not?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯m saying that you are jumping to conclusions without understanding the whole situation. Well, I¡¯m also saying that, even though you were kind to us, I don¡¯t need to justify myself to you.¡±


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Alright, you win. However, I still wish for you to help me relieve my boredom¡­ I know, let¡¯s play a game. Mute girl, you can play this one too.¡±


    ¡­ Mute girl¡­ even if we haven¡¯t told you our names, can¡¯t you think of something less insulting to the actually disabled.


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°This game is simple, we each take 3 cards from this deck. Here take it.¡±


    She shoves some cards into my hand¡­ wait, aren¡¯t these tarot cards. Fortune, Magician, Star¡­ is this practically my life lately¡­ I wonder if Nox got the death card.


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Then, we each pick one of the others cards. I¡¯ll take one of mute girls.¡±


    Ah- she took my magician¡­ Nox took one of her cards and I took one of Nox¡¯s. The world card¡­ I don¡¯t know much about tarot but I don¡¯t think this is how you play.


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Next, we make a story about the cards. Mute girl, try your best to tell the story, it should be possible for you.¡±


    She¡¯s making fun of me right?


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°You can¡¯t speak to tell the story in this game so I thought this would work best.¡±


    She is definitely making fun of me.


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°All you need to do is guess the cards based on the story. Then I¡¯ll go first to demonstrate.¡±


    Half an hour later, I was free from the torment of entertaining a noble¡­ for some reason, I get the feeling that she didn¡¯t like me.


    (Lady Ele-) ¡°Then, kind sir, I hope we meet again.¡±


    She definitely doesn¡¯t like me, to the point of no longer acknowledging my existence. After she dropped us off at the gate of the town, she left. I wonder why she didn¡¯t bring us through the gate? Are we that suspicious?


    (Guard) ¡°Please show your ID or guild card.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We were told by our village headman to come to town to get our guild card.¡±


    (Guard) ¡°Orphans?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Yes sir.¡±


    (Guard) ¡°Fine. All non-residents without ID must wear this bracelet. If you do not obtain an ID or exit town within 3 days you will be heavily fined and barred from entering town.¡±


    Harsh¡­


    (Guard) ¡°If you cannot pay the fine, you will be sold into slavery as a debt slave.¡±


    Now I don¡¯t even want to stay here¡­ and this guy is saying that like it¡¯s something normal.


    (Nox) ¡°W-well be careful¡­¡±


    So we put on the bracelets and went into town. Well, the harsh policy is definitely working. There are no homeless or ragged children on the streets, at least not on the main street or in the nearby alleyways.


    So this is another worlds town¡­ I explored the town in Nox¡¯s home but that was much more modern, like an urban district. This place, on the other hand, looks like a typical medieval fantasy town. Stone roads and wood houses. Looks like the houses farther up the road are made of brick though.


    (Nox) ¡°What should we do first¡­ probably get an ID, I don¡¯t want to forget about it while looking at the different shops.¡±


    (Stella) (Let¡¯s go to the guild tomorrow. I want to explore this worlds town today.)


    (Nox) ¡°...¡±


    (Stella) (What?)


    (Nox) ¡°I think that¡¯s the most you¡¯ve said since the day we met.¡±


    (Stella) (Should I talk less?)


    (Nox) ¡°No, no, please talk more.¡±


    (???) ¡°Hey, you 2 look new in town.¡±


    In the middle of our conversation, a strange guy with bright red hair suddenly shows up behind us.


    (Nox) ¡°Yeah, just got here. We came to get our guild cards.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°I see¡­ then I suggest getting them as soon as possible. I don¡¯t know how much money you have but you can save some of it by sleeping in the guild. Ah, this is limited to those who registered within the month. Think of it as the guilds way of helping new kids. Well, if you have money then it¡¯s better to use an inn.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°No, thank you very much. I completely forgot about our money issue.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°No worries, I was the same when I got to town. Come on, I¡¯ll lead you to the guild.¡±


    (Stella) (How did he know we were new?)


    (Nox) ¡°How did you guess we were new in town?¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°Those bracelets are something everyone knows about, and it¡¯s my job to find and lead newcomers like you to the guild. Now, let''s go.¡±


    15 minutes later, and we are in front of a huge building.


    (Redhead) ¡°This is the adventurer''s guild. Remember to tell the receptionist your circumstances when you register.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Thank you again for the help.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°No worries, I actually do get paid to do this. HEY LAYLA!!!.¡±


    Up ahead at the desk, a woman with light blue hair who¡¯s in her mid 20¡¯s looks over to us.


    (Layla) ¡°Zack, you''re back early today.¡±


    Is it my imagination, or do people just not introduce themselves in this world? Why am I only hearing his name now?


    (Zack) ¡°Of course I¡¯m back, can¡¯t you see this fine fresh meat behind me?¡±


    (Layla) *Sigh* ¡°That old joke again¡­ don¡¯t worry about what he just said, Zack is just trying to trick you like he was when he first joined.¡±


    (Zack) ¡°No fair! You didn¡¯t help me back then, why are you helping them now?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Because that¡¯s a girl your trying to scare away. Let¡¯s start over¡­ Hi, my name is Layla. What can I do for you today?¡±


    Well, I am mute so why are you asking me? I look over to Nox.


    (Nox) ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Nox and this is Stella. We¡¯re here to register and get these bracelets off.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°In that case, have you ever taken a guild test?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°No.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Then you will need to take the basic test and fill out these forms.¡±


    She handed us 2 papers to fill out. They didn¡¯t have anything special on them. They had things like name, age, race, current profession. There¡¯s no birthplace¡­ I guess adventurers don''t stick around long enough for something like that to matter.


    (Layla) ¡°You don¡¯t need to fill in everything, actually just your names are enough. This information will be added to your guild card so many women don''t even write their ages. This information can also be updated at any guild so no need to worry about your profession.¡±


    Nox and I just fill out our names and hand back the forms. What else could we do¡­ say Nox is a super old god¡­ and I don¡¯t even know if I¡¯m still human¡­


    (Layla) ¡°All done? You can start your tests tomorrow, as the testing rooms are being used for some rank up exam today. If you don''t have a place to stay, feel free to use the resting rooms to the left. Also, we will remove your bracelets after you get your card.¡±


    After she said that she gave Zack a harsh glare.


    (Zack) ¡°Y-you said you were tight on money, right? I¡¯ll treat you today, just pay me back when you can.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We appreciate the help. Do you mind showing us around town before we get something to eat?¡±


    Layla is still glaring at him¡­ is she that scary?


    (Zack) ¡°I don''t mind at all! Work is over for me today. See you later Layla.¡±


    I think he just got forced into this¡­ how many times has this happened for him to start shaking at a glare?


    And so we left the guild.


    After wandering the town for a while, we stopped at a vendor stall and ate¡­ BBQ duel horned bull? Apparently, this is a common monster in a nearby plain. Something even an E-Rank adventurer can take down¡­ We¡¯ll get the rank explanation tomorrow when we get the guild card it seems.


    After that, we walked back to the guild, said our goodbyes, and went to sleep in the guilds restrooms¡­ not toilets, do not get them confused, like a certain someone¡­ Layla told me some stories when we got back.


    Nox also insisted to sleep next to me for my protection¡­ I get that this room is open to anyone but¡­ Wait, he didn''t give me a choice¡­ Whatever, I¡¯m going to bed.


    Good night.

 Chapter 8 edit (99%)

    I woke up the next day, alone¡­


    Then what was the point of that fuss he made about sleeping next to me? How am I supposed to push him off the bed for revenge if he isn¡¯t here? He may be some ridiculously old god, but I¡¯m just a normal teenage girl who will panic when a boy sneaks into my bed!


    As I think of the devil, I mean death god, the door opens.


    (Nox) ¡°I got some breakfast for us. It''s nothing special, just oatmeal, but it''s better than nothing¡­ and it''s free since we don''t have any money. Why are you looking at me like that?¡±


    I¡¯ll just ignore that last part.


    Right, almost forgot about money¡­ I don''t even know what kind of currency they use here¡­


    (Stella) (Thanks, let¡¯s eat. Then, find quest.)


    (Nox) ¡°You know that you need to learn to talk normally at some point, right?¡±


    (Stella) (Says, the guy, responding, to a mute¡­ )


    I wonder how other people will react to this conversation. Will they think of him as insane for having a one-sided conversation, or will they notice that I¡¯m actually responding?


    (Nox) ¡°Come on, let¡¯s eat then go take those tests. If we don''t start early, who knows what kinds of quests will be left for us.¡±


    So we finish eating quickly before leaving the rest room and going to the receptionist to find Layla.


    (Layla) ¡°Morning guys, all set?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We¡¯re ready for the test.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Don''t look so tense, it''s just a standard test, not the end of the world.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Ahahahaha¡­¡±


    He said as he scratched his head¡­ I just realized this but Nox seems like a protagonist from a light novel¡­ does this mean we have to go through the cliche where some crude adventurer challenges him for looking young?


    (Layla) ¡°Then, please come this way.¡±


    Layla led us up a staircase, down a hall, and to the left, until we finally stopped in front of a strange row of doors¡­ all right next to each other¡­ so close that their frames are connected together¡­


    Ok, it''s not the strangest thing I¡¯ve seen in the last couple of weeks¡­


    (Layla) ¡°Here we are. Don''t be fooled by its appearance, the guild leader asked a friend of his who is a space mage to build this for us. Normally a guild has one large room dedicated to testing, but this guild mimics the guilds in countries capitals, or other prosperous cities, and uses space magic so that many can get their testing done at once. The reason they were all full yesterday is that a C-rank league was here to update all its members after a long quest.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°League?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Yes, when parties reach more than 10 members they need to register as a league. This is so we can keep track of everyone. Parties need to register as well, however, it''s not nearly as troublesome. This is because some quests require more people than a party has and it''s easier to work with those you¡¯re already familiar with.¡±


    (Stella) (Seems, more like, a mercenary.)


    (Nox) ¡°Isn¡¯t that kind of work more like what a mercenary would do?¡±


    Yay, I don''t have to learn sign language with this guy around!


    (Layla) ¡°Mercenaries usually fight against humans. If an outbreak of forest wolves raids a town, you would call adventurers. Generally, mercenaries work for nobles as protectors or warmongers. Although a mercenary may be an adventurer, an adventurer would never be a mercenary.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Thank you for the explanation.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°No problem. Besides, I would need to explain mercenaries to you at some point. They love to cause trouble for newbies, so you need to watch your backs. They are easy to spot as they tend to have buff bodies riddled with scars, but stay alert as not all of them do and even those that are obviously troublemakers may try to force you somewhere with fewer people.¡±


    (Stella) (Are scars strange amongst adventurers?)


    (Nox) ¡°Is getting scars strange?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Worried about your girlfriend? Well don''t, as long as you take your jobs seriously, it''s rare for someone to get hurt. That said, some people do overestimate themselves and get killed when they are new. Those that are cautious tend to come back without a scratch.¡±


    That¡¯s a bit exaggerated¡­ but she has a point. Anyone new may know they can''t kill a dragon, but how many think they can kill a goblin without ever seeing one?


    (Layla) ¡°If there¡¯s nothing else, just pick a door and go inside. When you¡¯re done, come see me to get your guild card and have that bracelet removed. After that, I¡¯ll explain some guild things and you can take your first quest or go back and sleep.¡±


    After saying all that she just turned around and left.


    Nox and I look at each other for a moment.


    (Nox) ¡°Ladies first.¡±


    (Stella) (Does it matter?)


    So, I open a door and walk right in.


    Unlike my last experience with space magic, I didn''t feel anything happen. I just stepped through a door.


    That was anticlimactic¡­ I was still expecting something.


    Inside is a spacious room with a crystal ball on a pedestal in the center¡­ there is literally nothing else here. It just looks like a grey room made of concrete or something. How is there light in here? The room¡¯s bright but I don''t see any lamp or even a candle, no windows either.


    Oh, there''s a door on the other side of the pedestal¡­


    I walk up to the crystal ball¡­ Do I just touch it? Ok?


    I touch it and it shines white for a bit. When it stops shining I remove my hand¡­ That¡¯s it?


    I walk through to the next door. Same room, but no pedestal¡­ then I feel a weight pulling me down. It slowly becomes stronger and stronger until I can¡¯t stand anymore. When my knees touch the ground it suddenly stopped.


    I rest for a bit before going through the next door. This test stuff is harder than I thought.


    This room is much longer and has an hourglass in the center¡­ Speedrun, I guess.


    The sand started falling as I began running¡­ I wonder how that works?


    At the end I just enter the new room¡­ this room has strange slits in the walls and a small circle in the center. I hope this isn''t about defense but knowing my luck it probably is¡­


    When I step into the center of the room, a frisbee-like thing came out of the wall in front. I hit it when it gets close¡­ It''s a habit to hit things that come flying at me¡­ The barrage continues for a while and when I get hit a few times it just stops. That¡¯s it? This part of the test seems done, so I go through the next door.


    After a few more doors I finally came out. FREEDOM!!!


    I¡¯m tired, no wonder she said we might want to go back to sleep after this¡­ too bad we need money...


    Nox came out of the door next to mine after a few minutes, while I was resting.


    (Nox) ¡°That was¡­ worse than I expected. This really is only about the bodies condition, must have been hard to come up with a way to quantify things like speed and reaction times. Weapon skills must be tested somewhere else, or you maybe you need to ask for those tests. This is a good place to train though.¡±


    Not the thought I had¡­ maybe I¡¯m not cut out for adventuring? Or is it just exercise that I want to avoid?


    (Stella) (Now what?)


    (Nox) ¡°I guess we should go to the reception counter.¡±


    Down the hall again, turn here, and down the stairs. Oh, looks like Layla¡¯s waiting for us.


    (Layla) ¡°All done? Well, I guess that''s a given. Here are your guild cards, would you like the explanation now?¡±


    She says as she hands us 2 blank cards¡­ This is the guild card?


    (Nox) ¡°Then, please give us an explanation.¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    (Layla) ¡°No need to be polite, this is a part of my job.¡±


    So she says, but she is smiling at Nox like he made a joke¡­ well, a god is acting polite, but she doesn''t know that. Is this an inside joke? It can''t be that, so why is she smiling?


    (Layla) ¡°Then, let¡¯s relocate to somewhere more comfortable¡­ Unless you like standing in people''s way at the bottom of the stairs?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We have no complaints about going somewhere to rest.¡±


    I guess he is tired too.


    Layla leads us back to the rest room where we sit on the beds and begin ¡®the talk¡¯.


    (Layla) ¡°Then, I¡¯ll start with the ranking system. Unlike the skill system, the ranking system uses letters to classify the body''s basic physical and magical capabilities. We use letters since there is no sure way to quantify things like strength and accuracy, as many things can affect them, such as rest - or a lack of it.


    The letters range from G to A for most adventurers, and S through Ex for people we can''t classify at this branch. However, there is a huge difference between each level so it''s usually easy to tell them apart when they fight. There is even a special testing facility for them in each nation''s capital.


    Each guild card is private to the person it''s created for, you don''t need to show anything to anyone if you don''t want to. That said, you will need to prove your abilities to be able to accept certain quests and showing your guild card is the fastest and most reliable way to both the guild and the quest giver. Your rank is normally shown as the average of your tested abilities but may be shown as lower, but only a few people do this. It is however, recommended to do this if you have one ability raising your rank average as your rank may no longer be accurate.


    The card itself can be retracted into your body, just wrap your mana around it and draw it in, so you don''t need to worry about carrying it everywhere.¡±


    I immediately try it and it works! This looks cool, it even has a shimmering special effect. I¡¯m made of mana so if I couldn''t do this much I¡¯d be in trouble.


    Then I look at Nox and see he is unfazed¡­ Right, I''m the only one here from a world without magic.


    (Layla) ¡°You likely haven''t joined a skill guild yet, I suggest doing so as soon as possible. They can help you learn new skills or record the ones you already have on your guild card. As for taking quests, the bulletin board has plenty to choose from. However, please take ones matching your rank. Depending on how you feel about your abilities, you can take a quest one rank above or below you. This is not a rule, but a courtesy; we don''t want an A rank taking C rank quests as there might not be enough for the C rankers while A ranked quests may never be done. Now, any questions?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°What''s this about skill guilds?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Most guilds are affiliated with the Adventurers Guild as there are many things this guild does for them. In return, the skill guilds guide and records the skills affiliated with them. For example, the Warriors¡¯ Guild who teach close combat, or the Mages¡¯ Guild who teach magic.¡±


    I don''t think that¡¯s what he was asking¡­ is it because it''s common knowledge? He was asking about what a skill guild is, but I guess that explanation works too.


    (Nox) ¡°I meant that I¡¯ve never been to a skill guild. Can you tell me where they are and what to do when I get there?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°That depends on which guild you want to go to. If it''s the Warriors Guild then it''s right next door. They teach and test close combat skills and weapon skills. Some skills, regardless of guild, require your guild status to be at a certain level. For example, without the requisite strength, it''s pointless to try to learn heavy weapon skills like hammers or greatswords.


    It''s also pointless to go to the mage guild, which is directly across the street, to learn large spells, like blizzard, if you don''t have the mana or the ability to control it. Even a simple frostbolt requires a certain amount of control over ice.


    On this street, other than those 2, we have the beast tamers guild next door to the left, the alchemist and craftsmen guild''s are to the right of the mage guild, and to the left is the bards guild¡­ on the other side of the warriors guild is the largest pub and inn in town. Because most guilds became sub-guilds of the main guilds you can find anything you need at these guilds. The only exception is the psychic guild, they are only located in each countries capitals due to the rarity of psychics users.¡±


    (Stella) (Bard¡¯s Guild?)


    (Nox) ¡°I can understand why you mentioned the alchemy and craftsman guilds, but why is a bard''s guild in this area?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°You¡¯ve never seen a bard fight? They mix magic into their music to heal their allies, among other things. You can think of them as extremely useful support. The main reason they are on this street is that most bards like to travel everywhere they can so they need to learn to protect themselves. Most learn magic at the mage guild but some go to the warrior or tamer guilds as well.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, what do you want to be?¡±


    ¡­ You expect me to answer? Still, being a mage sounds fun, so does being a beast tamer. I always wanted a pet, well ever since I saw the cute pets in the god world. I never learned any instruments but that sounds like fun too. As for the warriors guild¡­ No way, can''t do it. I can''t hurt a fly without feeling bad about it, how can I cut or stab something?


    (Layla) ¡°W-well, you don''t need to decide now. Everything costs money after all, we need funds to operate. Both learning new skills and the affiliated practice rooms cost quite a bit.¡±


    See, even she thinks it''s strange that you asked.


    (Nox) ¡°Lessons I can understand, but practice rooms?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°If you go to a special practice room, then yes. I suggest that, if you have the money, you use the practice rooms. You can ask each guild what''s so special about them when you have money. Make sure you bring at least 10 silver coins with you as the cheapest rooms are about 1 silver per hour.¡±


    Oh, currency! I didn''t think that it would be in dollars, but coins? I wonder what they look like... Wait, that¡¯s not the point! When we got food from Zack yesterday, he used coins? All I saw was a card¡­ AH the guild card!


    (Stella) (Nox, ask if, store money, in guild card.)


    (Nox) ¡°Do we store money in the guild card?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Did Zack not show you?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°No, but I didn''t see him use any coins.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Yes, you can think of the guild card as a money pouch, however each rank lets you hold a different amount. G rank can hold 10 coins while F rank can hold 100, and so on. The coin itself doesn''t matter, so you could have 1 gold or 1 copper and still only take up one slot. Coins can be exchanged anywhere and the guild can hold anything you can''t carry.


    (Nox) ¡°Why, isn''t it more convenient to be able hold more money?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°We did this because of some children who got robbed from for having gathered a small sum of copper coins, among other similar events. Like this, it''s unlikely for new members to be robbed as they either have almost no money or they are rich, and with bodyguards, to start with.¡±


    Well, we still don''t know the currency system, but they probably don''t use 10s to move up. If they did, the kids would have silver not copper and the limitation would be useless.


    (Stella) (Any more questions?)


    (Nox) ¡°I think that''s everything I want to know for now. Thank you for your help.¡±


    Ah, she smiled.


    (Layla) ¡°As I said, this is part of my job, so no need for thanks. What do you plan to do now? Will you take a quest or¡­¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We need money, so we will have to take a quest.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Alright, please follow me.¡±


    We follow her out the room, into the lobby, and to a gigantic builbord.


    (Layla) ¡°Did I explain enough on quests? Anyway, choose a quest according to your rank then go to the counter to register it. You may take as many quests as you want, but all quests must be finished by their deadline or you will be fined and the quest considered a failure. I recommend this one for your first quest as what you get is entirely dependent on how much you find and there¡¯s no time limit.¡±


    She picked a paper from the board. It said,


    Medical Herbs Wanted: More Means Better


    Rank: - (F)


    Location: Glow Forest


    Type: Collection


    Amount: Only more not less


    Pay: 10 copper per bundle of 50


    Time Limit: None


    I can''t read it¡­ Is this the language in this world? Maybe Nox knows¡­ or not, otherwise why couldn''t he read english?


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, what do you think?¡±


    What? Oh, you''re asking me about the quest. Wait, how am I supposed to answer, we don''t know anything about it and you want me to decide?


    I nod. You take care of it, I¡¯m just a mute who can''t ask questions¡­ Should I find out if this world has something like sign language after all?


    (Nox) ¡°We¡¯ll take it. Do you have a map of the area? Also, some information about the dangers around here?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°I almost forgot that you''re new here. Follow me to my desk and I will get what you need.¡±


    Back to following¡­ at least it didn''t take long to get across the room. After she got to her desk she got out a book, a map, and a small stack of papers.


    (Layla) ¡°Hand me your guild card and I will add the information. This book has pictures and descriptions of all the medical plants in the area, chapter 5 is about Glow forest. Use it to bring back a little extra and you can sell it to the guild. It won''t be as much as a quest but it''s something. This is the map you wanted, nomaly this costs money but if you don''t take it with you there won''t be a problem. Lastly, this is a copy of the monthly report of Glow Forest.¡±


    How thorough. I take the report and¡­ I can''t read this, but luckily Nox is some almighty god¡­ nevermind, he can''t even read english. When will I learn that most gods are useless?


    I tugged on Layla¡¯s sleeve then pointed to the paper when she looked at me.


    (Layla) ¡°You can''t read?¡±


    I shook my head¡­ This is humiliating. I can read, I¡¯m just from another world. It''s impressive enough that I can understand you¡­ Well, it still sounds like english to me.


    (Nox) ¡°No one was willing to teach her.¡±


    Did he just throw me under a bus! You can''t read ether you know! Ah, he looked away with a guilty face. Layla didn''t notice though¡­


    (Layla) ¡°I-I¡¯ll teach you when you get back, for now¡­ this quest is about getting medical herbs, you need this one but can also find this and this, just dig them out from the roots. Then, also be careful of goblins and run if you see an ork. Also, a large pack of wolves was seen recently in the area. Also, also...¡±


    She explained it to me in a way I could understand¡­ at least I know what quest we¡¯re doing and she even pointed out the herb in the book and what to look out for in the forest, and how to read a map¡­ and to ask for directions if I get lost¡­¡­.. I¡¯ve had enough! I¡¯m not some pitiful kid who needs to be taken care of!!! And NOX! Stop looking at me like you¡¯re enjoying this!


    (Stella) (STOP LAUGHING!!!)


    (Nox) ¡°Pfft¡­¡± (I-I can''t, BAHAHA, she''s totally treating you like a lost kid, HAHAHA- OUCH!)


    Revenge feels sweet.


    (Layla) ¡°Is something wrong?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°N-no, i-it''s just that we need to do the quest or we won''t have money for dinner, or even an inn.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Sorry, for taking up so much time, but do you have any weapons or armor? Even if Glow Forest it only an F-rank forest, it still has goblins and wolves, and sometimes a wild orc wanders in. You will also need a bag to carry everything.¡±


    Even though you just explained it to me¡­ is Nox considered an adult taking care of a child here?


    (Nox) ¡°We don¡¯t have any money. We can still run if we see a goblin or something so you don''t need to worry so much, as for the bag¡­ we still have no money.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°You can borrow from the guild if you need a bag, as for weapons, go to the warriors guild and they will let you borrow something. Let''s see, here it is. This bag has 1 cubic meter of space, it should be plenty for herb gathering or bringing back anything unexpected.¡±


    She took out a small brown pouch¡­ space magic. I have my necklace but¡­ let¡¯s assume god made items are rare and tell no one. And ¡®meter¡¯? Is it the auto translate?


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, lets go. If we can find a lot, we can eat something delicious when we get back.¡±


    I am waiting for you by the door. Let¡¯s go, I can''t wait for my first real foo- I mean adventure.


    I can''t wait.

 Chapter 9 (edit 99%)

    (???) ¡°Hey, guys! Wait up!¡±


    We heard a shout behind us but I want to keep walking, so I do.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella.¡±


    He said in a strict voice as he grabbed my shoulder and held me in place¡­ what did I do? Why aren''t we going to get foo- herbs?


    I stare at Nox confused but he isn''t telling me. Then a boy with red hair shows up.


    (Redhead) ¡°I¡¯m glad I found you. Are you going on a quest now? I can help if it''s inside the city.¡±


    Who is this? He was calling out for us but the only people we know¡­ AH, the redhead from yesterday¡­ what was his name?


    (Nox) ¡°We¡¯re going herb hunting in glow forest.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°Oh, I still have to guide newcomers to the guild so I can''t go out of the city. Oh, well. Hey, you need some kind of weapon or you¡¯ll be in trouble. Weak monsters are still monsters.¡±


    Why can''t I remember this guys name? Wait, are they talking about our quest?


    (Nox) ¡°Layla said to go to the warriors guild to borrow one but¡­¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°It may break on you but it''s better than nothing.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°You seem to know a bit about this.¡±


    Is he surprised? But redhead is an adventurer too, not to mention almost as broke as we are. If he wasn''t, why would he be doing quests in town?


    (Redhead) ¡°I used one when I first got here. Actually, the weapons you can borrow are all failures or come from apprentice blacksmiths with almost no experience. It''s possible to find something good but not likely. That''s why you can borrow it for free and no one cares if they break. The warriors in the guild use them for practice so the good blades don''t get damaged. But only those who recently joined the guilds can use them.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Why?¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°If you could use something for free, even if it''s bad, wouldn''t you? Well, there are people who look down on those types. There are 3 types of people in the warriors guild and 2 are easy to find. The first is someone with no skill who doesn''t care about their weapon, the second is someone with skill who treat their weapon as a part of them, the third kind are the skillful people who can''t find a suitable weapon so they use whatever they can.¡±


    What happened to the information on glow forest?


    (Nox) ¡°We¡¯re going now, otherwise I think Stella will burn a hole in me with her stare.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°Alright, just remember to get a weapon before leaving town.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Got it. See you later.¡±


    And we walk away, straight to the city gate. I wonder if that means Nox is confident.


    At the gate we see the same guard from yesterday¡­ was that guy serious about the slavery thing?


    (Gard) ¡°It''s you two. Remember to show your passes when you enter town next time.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We will.¡±


    (Gard) ¡°Ok, be careful out there.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°See you later.¡±


    And we walk out¡­ that''s it? Even if we ignore the slavery issue from last time, isn''t going out of town too easy?


    *trip*


    (Nox) ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    At least he caught me¡­ though being grabbed by my arm like that hurt a bit¡­


    (Nox) ¡°Be more careful.¡±


    I nod¡­ that was embarrassing, I should pay more attention to where I¡¯m walking.


    A few minutes of silence later.


    (Nox) ¡°Now that we¡¯re out of town, let''s look at our guild cards.¡±


    (Stella) (How?)


    (Nox) ¡°What do you mean how? Just take them out and add mana to it.¡±


    (Stella) (How?)


    (Nox) ¡°Like this.¡±


    He made his guild card appear and then words and letters started showing up¡­ not that we can read them¡­


    (Stella) (Can''t.)


    (Nox) ¡°Why can''t you? How could you put it away if you can''t take it out?¡±


    (Stella) (Like this.)


    I held his guild card between my hands¡­ well it worked with my card. I ¡°covered¡± my guild card with my mana, or hands, and it worked¡­ Nox is staring at me like I¡¯m some kind of idiot¡­ but it worked¡­


    You''re the one who said I¡¯m made of mana¡­


    (Nox) ¡°How are you able to use telepathy without being able to even move your mana? Wait, I guess it''s possible since telepathy uses soul power but the source of mana is the soul so this doesn''t make any sense¡­¡±


    Nox, I can''t understand what you¡¯re mumbling about.


    Then he looked at me, then in the direction of town, then at me again¡­ just say something already!


    (Nox) ¡°Do you want Layla to teach you, or go to the mage guild? You might get laughed at if we go ask a mage but it would be better to ask a professional.¡±


    (Stella) (You can''t?)


    (Nox) ¡°The god of deaths mana being used to help you sense your own. Do you want to die?¡±


    ¡­ He has a point, or he could be lying to escape from work. I''m not sure which.


    (Nox) ¡°We still need to see your guild card so¡­ this might hurt.¡±


    What is he talking aboUCH!!!


    I glare at him and back away.


    (Nox) ¡°This is why it''s a bad idea for me to help. Death mana hurts. The only reason you''re not dead is because I gave you my feather. Anyway, here¡¯s your guild card. I deactivated the privacy so you could see it.¡±


    I thought this thing could only be used by the person it''s made for?This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    (Nox) ¡°I am still a god you know. Something like this is like hacking on Earth, do you think a god wouldn''t know how to hack mana?¡±


    Sounds weird when you put it that way¡­ Did this guy read my mind?


    (Nox) ¡°I didn''t read your mind, it''s written all over your face, so stop backing away and glaring at me like I''m some suspicious person!¡±


    Let¡¯s see what my guild card says, because of the explanation from Layla I know that an ¡°F¡± looks like but I still don''t know about the others¡­ well, let''s take a look first.


    #*^%*@


    @%^ : F %^# : F &%# : @


    *^# : $ $^@ : # $&^ : %%


    #%* : & %$@ : $ *&^ : &


    ¡­ As expected, I can''t read this. Looking at Nox, he¡¯s not doing any better. All I can see on mine is that I have 2 somethings that are F-rank.


    (Stella) (Nox...)


    (Nox) ¡°W-well, let¡¯s get our quest started.¡±


    I want to laugh at him but I will probably be laughed at for the same reason. He can''t read it so he¡¯s panicking on what other people will see if they get ahold of his guild card. Still, I''m surprised I only have 2 Fs here. One of them must be for strength but I don''t even know what other criteria are here. If magic is on here I''m kinda worried over what it might say though. I also hope mana control isn''t here because I don''t know how it could be listed as nonexistent.


    After about 30 minutes of walking, we reach the edge of a forest that''s much closer than I thought it would be.


    So I start looking for the herb. Nope, nope, nope, nop- wait that one''s poisonous¡­


    I look around the edge of the forest while Nox keeps a lookout for monsters¡­ and I can''t find a thing at the edge even after an hour.


    I look towards Nox and shake my head.


    (Nox) ¡°Nothing here either¡­ it¡¯s probably been picked dry around the edges then. I guess we need to go in further... Don''t make that face, I¡¯ll protect you.¡±


    What kind of face am I making? I am a little scared but I can''t die so that''s not it¡­ I just don''t like fighting I guess. I''ve had enough of something like that.


    Still, I reluctantly follow Nox into the forest while keeping my eyes on the ground to search for herbs.


    Nothing, nothing, nothing¡­ Half an hour of nothing¡­ Ok, I¡¯m tired. I break a stick to get Nox¡¯s attention then just sit down.


    (Nox) ¡°What''s wrong Stella?¡±


    (Stella) (No food, tired. Rest?)


    (Nox) ¡°We don''t even know what''s poisonous out here so we¡¯d need to hunt if you want food. Get some rest, we¡¯ll start again in half an hour.¡±


    Nevermind half an hour, I didn''t even get 5 minutes before,


    AWOOOOO!!!


    *CRASH* *BAM* *BAMMM*


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, get behind a tree and hide!¡±


    W-what''s going on?!


    RAAAWL


    OUUUUUUUUUUUUU


    *BAM* *CRACK* *CRASH*


    (Nox) ¡°NOW!!!¡±


    Before I get a chance to move, a wolf jumps out of the bushes.


    B-blood, it''s fur is covered in blood to the point I can''t tell if that its blood or-


    *BAM* *CRASH*


    The tree behind it fell but it managed to dodge. The wolf started to run but an o-ork came out from behind the fallen tree and tried to smash it with the club in its hand.


    W-what is this?!


    (Nox) ¡°STELLA!!!¡±


    I snap back to my senses and run behind the tree. Feeling it''s not safe enough, I climb the tree quickly and hide myself among the leaves before I begin to watch.


    I didn''t see much of the wolf, just its tail retreating into some bushes away from us. The ork was about to chase but it saw Nox¡­ Where did Nox get that huge scythe? It even has a strange black cloud wrapping around it.


    *CLANK* *SWOOSH*


    OOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWW


    While I was thinking, they started to clash. The ork rushed at Nox while Nox knocked the club away with the end of the scythe then slashed down. B-blood splashed everywhere.


    Both sides stopped fighting for a second so I got a good look at the ork. It''s about a meter taller than Nox so 2.7ish meters tall with pink skin? It''s hard to tell because it looks like that wolf got a few good hits in, even a claw that slashed through one of the orks eyes. Most of the ork is a bloody mess but its injuries don''t seem to be affecting it much, except the one Nox gave it.


    That wound is-OOOOOOOOOOOQWAKKKKKKKKKK


    *BAM*


    Oh no! My tree!


    That stupid thing charged at Nox but Nox dodged and the ork slammed into the tree I¡¯m on! I might not fall but the tree-*CRACK* Not good!


    As the tree was falling I saw another one so I took the chance to jump.  I scramble onto it before hiding again and look back at what''s happening.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella, you ok?¡±


    How do you want me to answer?! I can''t even be on the sidelines without getting involved and you want me to tell that thing where I¡¯m hiding?!


    *SLASH*


    While I¡¯m ranting at Nox¡¯s carelessness he had already run up to the ork and slashed its arm off¡­ Ah, it got mad and swings its club at him! Why didn''t he slash the arm holding the club?


    Nox lured it back to where they were fighting but now Nox is on the other side of the ork and I can''t see him.


    OOIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINK


    *SWISH* *SLICE*


    Well, I feel completely useless. Though I reaffirmed that I¡¯d do nothing good in close quarters combat. Even after all this time I¡¯m still afraid of blood.


    *rustle rustle*


    What''s that? I look towards the sound on the ground to see a shadow moving towards the battle. Is that the wolf from earlier?


    OOW


    *CRASH*


    The wolf creeps forward as it tries to stay behind the ork. Is it aiming for the ork? Or does it not want Nox to see it?


    RAWWWWOOOOO


    *CRACK* *BAM*


    As the fight goes on the wolf sneaks forward. At that angle it can''t attack Nox, so I¡¯ll just watch for now and warn him if it changes target later- Oh, it stopped.


    OUUUUUU


    *BAM* *FWOOSH*


    The fight goes on but the wolf doesn''t move. Is it waiting for a chance to strike? That''s not the hunting tactic of a wolf, but then again this one doesn''t seem to have a pack. Maybe it adapted to being a loner to survive.


    Suddenly, I see the ork stumble backwards. The wolf rushed towards it and grabbed its leg. The next thing I saw was the ork¡¯s head flying¡­ Gross.


    I decided to stay in the tree¡­ and it looks like that was a good choice because Nox and the wolf are staring at each other in a tense situation.


    I don''t know what to do. All it would take to change the situation is some noise but they might start to fight.


    Then Nox unexpectedly moves. What are you doing? See, the wolf is scary looking now¡­


    Nox slashes down his scythe and cuts off the orks leg before throwing it to the wolf¡­ the wolf grabs the leg and quickly drags it away¡­ what just happened?


    I look around for a bit before not seeing anything nearby. The fight must have attracted something so we should leave as soon as possible.


    I look back at Nox and¡­ He''s dismantling the ork and letting blood¡­ Why would a god know how to do that?


    I quickly climbed down the tree and ran over to him.


    (Stella) (Nox, ok?)


    (Nox) ¡°I¡¯m fine, just a little tired. More importantly, look, I did a good job right.¡±


    (Stella) (How, dismantling? God?)


    (Nox) ¡°I first heard about it from some hunters who died while hunting, then I asked my sister and she taught me all kinds of things about hunting.¡±


    (Stella) (Sister?)


    (Nox) ¡°Goddess of the hunt.¡±


    So you won''t tell me her name? Well, I¡¯d probably forget it soon anyway.


    After he ¡®cleaned¡¯ the monster¡­ I don''t think it will fit in that bag¡­


    (Stella) (Nox...)


    (Nox) ¡°I know¡­¡±


    So it''s no good after all. We don''t even know what we have to bring back to get money from it. If people eat it we need the ribs, if people use the bones we need bones. This won''t work, even if we shove the thing in it probably won''t fit.


    (Nox) ¡°Stella¡­¡±


    (Stella) (No!)


    Yes, we have one other storage, but I¡¯m not putting that thing in there. First, I don''t know how. Second, I wouldn''t be able to take it out anyways there''s no point. And most importantly, third, I don''t want that thing to be anywhere near me. Even if it''s in some other dimension, that dimension is too close to me and that thing is gross beyond compare.


    (Nox) *Sigh* ¡°I¡¯ll do something about it, I guess.¡±


    *Squelch*


    I decided to not look on at this god¡¯s ways and search for our quest target¡­ nothing in this area either. Is there some kind of special environment I¡¯m missing here? Too bad I don''t have that book¡­ not that I¡¯d be able to read it¡­


    That''s it, I¡¯m going to hide behind this tree while I wait for Nox to finish¡­ with what he''s doing.


    When he¡¯s done, we can continue on and finally finish this quest, but first I need to calm down.


    That was blood¡­ and I couldn''t do anything to help¡­ again. No, don''t think like that, first breath in and out, hee and hoo. I didn''t even notice how fast my heart was beating¡­


    I don''t want to keep being useless, when I get back to town I¡¯ll learn how to fight. I may not be able to help directly but if I learn magic¡­ I want to be some kind of support mage, maybe learn to heal or buff and debuff.


    I just¡­ don''t want to lose another friend.

 Chapter 10 (edit 90%)

    (Nox) ¡°Stella, I¡¯m done!¡±


    I snap out of my daze and walk back to Nox.


    (Nox) ¡°Hm! W-what''s wrong?! Are you hurt? Why are you crying? Should I rush to town and get a doctor? No, wait, I can''t leave you here alone. What do I do?!¡±


    Pfft- what is he talking about? I shake my head to tell him that I¡¯m fine before wiping away the tears I didn''t know I had.


    (Nox) ¡°What does shaking your head mean? Are you telling me even a doctor can''t help?! No! We can''t give up if there is even the slightest chance of survi- OUCH!!! What was that for!¡±


    You¡¯re usually better at guessing what I¡¯m saying¡­ *Sigh* I pat his head in an attempt to calm him down before slowly turning in a circle to show that I¡¯m fine.


    (Nox) ¡°You¡¯re not hurt? Then, what''s wrong?¡±


    I shrug and shake my head. I feel frustrated, not sad, so I have no clue why I would start to cry. But your silly panic just now cleared most of my bad feelings away, not that I¡¯ll tell you about it.


    I gesture for us to go look for our quest, then I start walking.


    (Nox) ¡°H-Hey¡­¡±


    Let¡¯s just ignore him, I want to finish this quest as soon as possible.


    After another half hour of nothing¡­ we find an entire clearing filled with medical plants¡­ I need to ask Layla about this when we get back.


    As we walk back to town¡­ the only thing noteworthy is that Nox kept pestering me over whether I was ok. I ignored him.


    As soon as we walk through the gate we see a familiar hair color.


    (Redhead) ¡°Hey, you¡¯re back! What took you so long?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We ran into a seriously injured orc on the way there and had to fight.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°S-seriously?! That''s an orc, not a goblin! How did you survive?!¡±


    (Nox) ¡°By killing it.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°...¡±


    Seeing this conversation lead nowhere, I pull on Nox¡¯s sleeve and point towards the direction of the guild.


    (Nox) ¡°We still have to turn our quest in, so see you later.¡±


    (Redhead) ¡°Y-yeah¡­¡±


    We walk away¡­ Why does he look so depressed? I stare at Nox to try to get the answer out of him.


    (Nox) ¡°... What?¡±


    *stare*


    (Nox) ¡°You can speak you know.¡±


    *stare*


    (Nox) *Sigh* ¡°I don''t know why he looked so down, happy?¡±


    I nod.


    (Nox) ¡°It''s fine if you don''t speak but why aren''t you even using telepathy?¡±


    I just don''t feel like it¡­ but I¡¯m not sure how to ¡®say¡¯ that so I shrug and keep walking.


    Soon, we are at the guild and looking for Layla. She found us first and lead us to a counter.


    (Layla) ¡°So, how was your first quest? Did anything unexpected happen?¡±


    She sounds like she expected something to happen¡­ Well, she¡¯s right though¡­


    (Nox) ¡°How¡¯d you know?


    (Layla) ¡°Easy, if something didn''t happen it wouldn''t be a quest.¡±


    ¡­ I¡¯m speechless.


    (Nox) ¡°Well, we did run into a badly hurt orc.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°See, this is why you need to be prepared, if you don¡¯t¡­ ORC!?!?!?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Yep.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°...¡±


    Oh, looks like it''s her turn to be speechless. Are orcs strong? Does that mean Nox is strong¡­ I want to say ¡®he¡¯s a god so it''s not strange¡¯ but¡­ I¡¯m starting to feel like gods are a bit pitiful, if they do something amazing it''s as expected but if they fail at something they get blamed¡­ ok, I decided to act like Nox is a protagonist in a light novel instead of a god from now on. As well as reflect on my past judgments, not even gods are perfect.


    (Nox) ¡°Layla? Hey, wake up. Not you too Stella.¡±


    I stuck my tongue out at him. :p


    (Layla) ¡°W-what did you say?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Badly hurt orc.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Hurt by what?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°A wolf.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°...¡±


    Yup, she''s speechless again.


    (Layla) ¡°An orc is a D-rank monster, are you sure you are new at this? And a wolf? Wolves can become D-rank in a large pack but by itself, it would only be E-rank at best. Did it mutate?¡±


    Mutate? They have something like that here? Does that mean I can catch em all and evolve them to be number 1 of the poke- no, stop this train of thought, it won''t happen.Stolen story; please report.


    (Nox) ¡°So¡­¡±


    (Layla) ¡°R-right, do you have its corpse?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°The bag you gave us wouldn''t fit everything but I got most of it.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°T-then please follow me to have it inspected.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We can''t do that here?¡±


    (Layla) ¡°It''s too big...¡±


    After saying that she got up and lead us to a back room. Let¡¯s just say that this room is big enough to hold a dragon¡­ unless I''m underestimating dragons. But you could put 2 or 3 airplanes in here with room to spare.


    (Nox) ¡°I think this room is too big.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°This is the dismantling room. It''s made so that a few groups can have their monsters dismantled at the same time. Although unlikely, we are also equipped with the tools to handle a great wyvern as well.¡±


    ¡­ So this room is for wyverns¡­ I wonder if a dragon and a great wyvern are the same size? Actually, I haven''t heard anything about dragons, I wonder if they stay away from cities or if they have some kind of treaty with this worlds kingdoms. ¡®You don''t hunt us, we don''t hunt you¡¯ or something.


    (Layla) ¡°Please take out the orc so we can inspect it.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Ok, here you go.¡±


    I closed my eyes as fast as I could¡­ I¡¯m afraid my imagination is less scary than what that ork looks like now.


    (Layla) ¡°AH-¡±


    I don''t know how she stopped herself, but I¡¯m impressed that she could.


    (Layla) ¡°YOU- At least warn me!¡±


    (???) ¡°Desk lass, what are ya screechin'' about.¡±


    So some people do talk like that¡­ Is it a dwarf or am I playing with stereotypes? I refuse to open my eyes to check.


    (Layla) ¡°Ol Vin, help me look at¡­ this.¡±


    (Ol Vin) ¡°What do ya have here lass. Hmmm, nice work, hardly any damage around the cuts¡­ HMM! This is a mutated orc, and what''s left of it¡­ 20 silvers, and that''s roundin¡¯ up.


    (Layla) ¡°M-mutated but they went to Glow Forest, an F-rank forest! Mutated orcs are almost C-rank! I need to report this to the guild master.¡±


    (Ol Vin) ¡°Hold on there lass, give these kids their pay first.¡±


    (Layla) ¡°Right, here¡¯s 20 silver and 5 large copper, you can go shopping or something and we¡¯ll meet up later. Bye.¡±


    Aaaaaand she''s gone. The extra coppers are¡­ for the initial quest? I don''t remember turning these in but¡­ I guess I¡¯ll leave them here then.


    (Nox) ¡°Ol Vin, you need an assistant?¡±


    (Ol Vin) ¡°Only if you''re the one who made this piece of work.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Great, I¡¯ll come by whenever I¡¯m free.¡±


    (Ol Vin) ¡°Truly an adventurer, sigh. Alright, I¡¯ll pay you for the amount you carve but you need to work from the bottom like everyone else.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°That''s fine. Stella, why are your eyes closed?¡±


    Because you took out that bloody thing that can even make guild personal scream in fear! I decide to keep my eyes closed for the time being.


    (Ol Vin) ¡°I¡¯ll take this mess away so you take that one.¡±


    After I hear him drag something big away, I sigh in relief that I didn''t open my eyes till now. Wait, I think that guy called me a mess¡­ is it bad to not want to look at a mutilated body?


    (Nox) ¡°Was it that scary?¡±


    I nod my head as exaggeratedly as I could.


    (Nox) ¡°Well, you might see something like that often, can you get used to it?¡±


    I shake my head just as intensely as my previous nod. Even if I see it daily, I won''t get used to it... It''s a mutilated corpse, not a hairy butterfly.


    (Nox) ¡°Alright, let''s go find an inn and get lunch then.¡±


    We leave the guild to start looking for our new temporary home.


    The first place we go,


    (Innkeeper) ¡°Sorry, we¡¯re booked.¡±


    The second place,


    (Innkeeper) ¡°We have one room but there''s only one small bed.¡±


    Third place¡­


    4th place¡­


    ¡­ Let''s go find redhead and find out what''s going on. I get Noxs attention before motioning to something red then at my head.


    (Nox) ¡°Do you want that apple- Ouch! Ok let''s go find Zack, he might still be around the gate.¡±


    So Zack was his name¡­ Zack, Zack, Zack¡­ Let¡¯s hope I remember it this time.


    We look around the gate, there he is. He might be the only one in town with bright red hair¡­ then again Layla has light blue hair and I¡¯ve seen a few people with light green hair¡­ I wonder if it''s like the gods where hair color=magic color? Nox has black hair and my hair is blon- why is my hair white?


    (Nox) ¡°Zack, we need some help.¡±


    (Redhead/Zack) ¡°What do you need?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°We went to a few inns but they¡¯re booked, why?¡±


    (Zack) ¡°Two reasons, first is that this town is a good resting point for merchants the other is that a legion is passing through right now.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°So the main reason is that legion?¡±


    (Zack) ¡°Pretty much, there''s not a lot of brothels in this town so they all ¡®sleep¡¯ at the inn¡±


    ¡­ I''m not deaf, and I''m not dense or ignorant enough to not know what you''re talking about so stop looking at me like I''m a poor child who doesn''t understand.


    I stare at Nox.


    (Nox) ¡°No, you can''t hit him. Zack, she''s mute, not deaf, blind, or ignorant enough to not understand your words.¡±


    (Zack) ¡°Wait, she''s mad about me trying to explain without her understanding and not that I was talking about ¡®that¡¯?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°She''s mad about being looked at like she''s a small child who knows nothing.¡±


    (Zack) ¡°Why would she hit me?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Because she can''t say that she is mad so she can only show it.¡±


    (Zack) ¡°How can you know all that with just a stare?¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Because she is intentionally making all her emotions easy for me to read.¡±


    (Zack) ¡°How does that work?¡±


    I stomp on both their feet and smile at them, can we get back to finding an inn?


    (Nox) ¡°Like this. So the inn?¡±


    (Zack) ¡°R-right, I¡¯ll bring you to the inn I''m staying at, it''s cheap and the foods good but it looks like it''s falling apart on the outside so almost no one goes there.¡±


    Works for me. I try to rush them as much as I can. It''s an inn, my first home in another world! I''ve never been to an inn before¡­ even if I say I¡¯ve been to a motel¡­ let¡¯s not think about it. I doubt I¡¯ll have to run for my safety this time.


    As we arrive, my first thought is that redhead made a very accurate description¡­ it looks like it''s falling apart.


    (???) ¡°Zack, welcome back. Oh, you brought friends, are you eating or staying.¡±


    Inside is a middle age, kind-looking, slightly overweight, aunty like, innkeeper with brown hair and an apron.


    (Nox) ¡°We¡¯d like a room with 2 beds and lunch for 3.¡±


    (???) ¡°One night is 10 copper, and a meal is 3. If you want warm water to wash, that''s 2 copper.¡±


    (Nox) ¡°Here¡¯s a silver, this is for 9 nights and 3 meals for lunch.¡±


    (???) ¡°Alright, here''s a key for room 203, and 1 copper, lunch will be served in the hall shortly. By the way, my name is Barbra, and my husband in the kitchen is called Tim¡±


    When we sit Zack starts asking about the orc while Nox answers. Only after the food arrives does he obtain freedom.


    The food is delicious. I can''t be entirely sure but in earth terms, we each got a bowl of chicken noodle soup, a plate of beef and vegetable stir-fry, and a small loaf of bread. All of it tastes delicious.


    (Zack) ¡°Barbra, tell your husband his cooking got better again! The Taurus stir-fry especially!¡±


    ¡­ Is the auto-translator telling me they aren''t cows? Should I be worried? Who cares, it tastes good, so it must be fine.


    After eating Zack says he has to work and leaves, meanwhile Nox and I go to room 203 to see what it looks like.


    2 beds, a window with curtains, 2 treasure chests, and 2 dressers¡­ looks like the toilet is somewhere else¡­ I just realized that I haven''t gone to the bathroom since I died.


    (Nox) ¡°Lets rest til'' dinner then eat before finding Layla and learning how to read.¡±


    I nod my head and lay down on the bed. I think this is the fastest time I¡¯ve ever taken to fall asleep.


    Even if it''s only a nap, goodnight.