Aurora ended the illusion of her conversation with Fortuna just after it showed her seeing her body for the first time. While the illusion was not completely accurate since her memory could not recall everything perfectly, it was more than enough to show everyone her experience as well as the existence of magic, one reality breaking aspect that will make her story more believable.
As the mists of the illusion faded, the reactions of everyone involved were varied. Hilda and Regina had looks of both relief and utter disbelief, while Ingrid sat with a dumbfounded expression, looking around the room while trying to comprehend the revelations she had just seen.
Lucy was like David, sat with a look of horror, but noticeably less extreme as she seemed to be processing the implications of Aurora’s existence. The chauffeur, Baker, sat there with a blank look, eventually just giving a nod and waiting for her next words while Harold who had already seen magic for the first time had a glint of wonder in his eyes as he discreetly looked around at the dissipating mist.
The first to break the silence was David who slammed his palms on the table as he looked at Astaria.
“What the hell was that!”
Aurora let out a slight sigh as she began to explain.
“That was my meeting in Caelus Online with the Roman Goddess of luck, Fortuna, who was the one to explain this current situation. I used magic, that was apparently given alongside my new body, to display through an illusion the conversation I had.”
Seeing David about to speak up again, Aurora cut him off as she continued.
“If you need further confirmation, speak to any of the group who were here 5 days ago as they also had encounters with Fortuna. And that brings me onto the second major reveal, the Game Caelus Online is actually another world that we can access, and in three months our real life bodies will be changed into our in game characters.”
This revelation caused Hilda and Regina to gasp, starting to understand the reason behind some of Aurora’s actions in the last two weeks. David, still looking angry spoke out again, his tone less hostile but still confrontational.
“So, you are saying that this Fortuna is a Pagan god? What about the One True God?”
Astaria placed her thumb and index finger on her chin as she hummed in thought, contemplating David’s question.
“To be completely honest, I am not sure. From my experience, and as you saw in the illusion, I did experience a time regression so have 3 years of future knowledge, the ‘gods’ had very few direct interactions with the world. They interact with us through the system, and as far as I am aware, nobody has ever met one in person. As for if the ‘One True God exists either as an existence on the same level of the apparent Roman Gods, is an existence above them, or exists at all, I cannot say. What I do know is that the Roman Gods have the ability to manipulate reality, and are responsible for my current situation, and for future events.”
David’s expression seemed to calm down slightly as he silently thought over Aurora's words while Ingrid spoke next, her face pale as she voiced her concerns.
“So, if you truly are Chester, does that mean that someone actually manipulated the last seven years of my memories?”
Aurora’s expression became sombre with a hit of anger showing after she realised the implications.
“Yes, it does. I can’t believe I was the reason other's memories were manipulated. It’s disgusting. From what I know, this has not happened before, but that’s under the assumption my memories were never changed. I can at least say the gods never had a presence before, so it is unlikely to happen again. I will ask Fortuna when I next get the chance since she seems to have some form of limited contact with me.”
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Aurora's answer gave a slight relief to Ingrid, however, those who had not thought of this began to realise the implications.
“Anyway, for now, let me explain my experiences of the future so you have some idea of what to expect. So, for me, it was about 3 years ago…”
****
Aurora spent the next half an hour giving the staff a brief understanding of what Caelus Online was, explaining some of the future events that it was safe to tell them, and how she came to experience it.
Like with Harold, they had been hesitant to believe what she was saying, but thanks to her earlier display of magic, additional small illusions to show what she was talking about, and a selection of elemental magic, they had been more open to her words.
By the end of her explanation, everyone in the room had lost the looks of sadness which had been replaced with expressions of slight worry for the future and a hint of determination. Even David, the most sceptical of them appeared to lose most of his hostility in place of deep contemplation.
Moving on to conclude the next steps for them given the change in the current situation, Aurora broke everyone out of their contemplation as she started to speak.
“Now, moving on, we will need to act like I actually died, which I guess is true in the sense to the world I have become a different person. I decided to tell you all of this since it will make dealing with my current situation both easier for you and myself, especially for the maids. That said, there are a number of things I need your help with immediately. If I had the freedom, I would have given you guys some time off to think about what I have said, but as you know, with me having ‘died’ there is a lot I need help with, especially in the ‘becoming a woman’ department.”
Seeing smiles from Hilda and Lucy, and a nod in understanding from Baker and David who could sympathise with her plight, Aurora felt reassured that she could continue to count on the members of her household.
It was then that Harold stepped forward to start issuing instructions.
“The first item on his gra… her grace's schedule is a private appointment with a personal shopper at Selfridges, followed by an evening meeting with Executive Manager Brewer at six thirty. First, Head maid Hilda, could you take Aurora to get her measurements? Once that is completed, and Ben, Roxanne and Marie arrive, I would like you and one other to accompany Aurora and her friends to her appointment and assist them where necessary.”
Hilda stood up and gave a slight courtesy as Harold continued issuing his instructions.
“Baker, be ready in a car with a suitable number of seats to leave at any time. David, make sure to organise a discrete security detail while Aurora is in public, given her appearance she will attract a lot of attention.”
With a brief nod from Baker and David, everyone stood up as Aurora spoke to Harold, Also rising from her seat.
“Harold, Since I have not eaten yet and I am starting to feel a little hungry, would you be able to bring me a slice of cake? Surprise me with the flavour.”
Harold gave a quick response and moved off into the hallway first, soon followed by Hilda who was waiting for Aurora.
They swiftly made their way upstairs back to her room where Hilda asked her to remove her clothes.
For Aurora, this was quite an awkward experience since she was not yet used to her current body. She had made some progress in the bath where she had to wash herself, but being naked in front of someone else was still a step ahead from where she was mentally. Sure, she was far from embarrassed about her current looks, and even as a guy she was not embarrassed being seen in only her underwear, but there was the conscious reminder that the body was different. She found herself mentally worried about accidentally exposing too much, especially since she was wearing panties instead of boxers, an underwear item that had less than a quarter of the skin coverage.
Thankfully Hilda was both experienced and professional about taking her measurements, swiftly measuring all parts of her body without any fuss, seemingly quite understanding of Aurora's unfamiliarity with her new body.
After a short 10 minutes, Aurora was fully clothed again as Hilda left the room, quickly replaced by Harold who had brought her a slice of cake. After sitting down at the small table in her room, Astaria checked out the dessert she had been served.
She had thoroughly enjoyed her first taste of cake as a woman in game and was now quite excited to taste cake produced through modern means by a top-class chef. As a man, Aurora had never completely enjoyed sweets and cakes, however, that had clearly changed and she was excited to earnestly continue her exploration of various foods with her new sense of taste.