By the time Reginn woke up, the battle of the souls was already over. It seemed that as a singular soul against multiple, Alevensteinn held nowhere enough authority to overrule the prisoner’s verdict.
Even if Kyriekaos had used the last of her talent, it would’ve been for naught.
The world was now a total light blue replacing the void. The prisoner had gained complete control over the domain. All was good, except the horrendous thing at the center of it all.
Kyriekaos’s beautiful form, a reflection of the perfect human, was shed, and only a horrifically senile man, his loose skin hanging from all nooks and crevices was left behind. Alevensteinn’s new form had thin arms and legs. He had a fat, drooping stomach but still looked extremely malnourished, especially his face. The mouth — if you could even call it that — was dropping to near detachment, and he was no longer able to open or close his eyes, imprisoned forever in the darkness under his eyelids. This was the true reflection of Alevensteinn’s true soul, without any manipulation.
Reginn now understood why he was so obsessed with the perfect soul. This must’ve been what he saw every time he looked at a mirror — a personal hell. This must’ve been why he was so adamant in sacrificing himself for the project. He was no martyr, but a selfish man unable to accept reality.
“...I suppose this is mercy.” said the prisoner.
Without a word, Alevensteinn’s soul was dispersed into feint blue particles, disappearing amid the blue sky.
“...Are you sure that’s enough?” asked Reginn.
“...Yeah, that’s good,” said the prisoner, “there’s no use in torturing him or killing him in any gruesome way. I used to feel that way for a bit… but I finally understood when I saw his form. I don’t forgive him still, but I don’t need to stoop to his level either.”
Reginn turned to his side, then faced the bright blue sky. It was finally over, project Kyriekaos.
“So what now?” asked the prisoner.
“...”
The hero pondered for a few moments and reflected upon his experiences. Then he finally came up with another solution. But first, he would need a breath of fresh air.
“...Could you bring me outside?”
----------------------------------------
It was already midnight under the starry space, illuminated by the greeting moon. Reginn could feel his body rejoicing as he gained enough mana to cast spells again. Of course, with his anti-mana body, it’d be impossible to heal himself, but he was already going to call Elem here anyway.
Kyriekaos — or the prisoner, he supposed — no longer had a form, and remained a cross casket. However, this would be solved soon.
“Well, I’m glad you finally called me, brother!”
“Elem… Thanks for arriving on such short notice, but what do you know about making puppets?”
“Making puppets?”
The solution Reginn came up with was to create a puppet body for the prisoner to reside in. The only other option was to either sacrifice a demon or a human — which was obviously inapplicable… except maybe a demon… It’d also be impossible to create life, which Reginn believed only the Goddess could do. Elem himself confirmed that he could create simpler creatures and plants, but not entire humans.
“...I’ve got it, so just a new body right?”
“If possible, something humanoid would be good.”
“...Heh, you’ve changed a lot since I last saw you,” said Elem, “You’ve gotten softer… I-in a better way, of course.”
“...Shut up.”
The two began their work on the puppet that night, and each word the two deities spoke shaped the creation. Elem shared his newfound love for humans, but also the sorrows. How he could never truly walk at the same pace as humans, but it was fine to simply be next to them. Reginn shared his birth experience in the accursed arena, battling other newly created World Beasts for dominance — which he had never shared before. The two had two thousand year’s worth of topics, and Reginn was truly impressed by how much his little brother had grown. He had not only become a man, but a wise elder. It was strange to think, but Reginn felt the small part of his heart — the pride that felt jealousy and inferiority — melt away at the sight of his brother’s smile when talking about humanity. If he was happy, Reginn was happy too.
In the end, the puppet was finally finished — fully clothed too. It was almost indistinguishable from a human aside from the innards, but the two seemed to have unconsciously reflected the people of their life onto its appearance. Its red hair was reminiscent of Reginn and the pride he felt as a child of the Goddess, and its brown eyes were similar to Caretaker. To Elem, it reminded him of someone he used to know.
“...Did you know that I used to be married?”
“Married? You?”
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“Yes, yes, very surprising,” said Elem, “She was a beautiful girl. Kind, mature, understanding. Best of all, she understood people -- the system. She taught me more than I taught her! Her name was Emile Liense, though that name is lost to time now… I don’t regret it one bit though.”
“...That’s just how it is, isn’t it? It’s who we are.”
“I know it better than anyone, but I suppose I just can’t help falling in love. It hurts just as much.”
“...Well, at the end of time, you’ll still have me, and our brothers and our sisters — the Goddess too,” said Reginn, “Just know that you’ll always have a family.”
“...Yes.”
Now there was just one last thing to do — to transfer the soul from the casket to the puppet. This was different from the casket merely posessing the body, and after this process, the casket would be permanently disposed of for safety concerns.
The two brothers carried their masterpiece and walked it into the void of the casket, and soon enough, the prisoner walked out, finally in control of her own body after years in the dark.
“W-wow…”
“So how is it?”
“It’s incredible…”
Inexplicably, the prisoner’s vision began to blur and tears began to fall to the grass.
“H-huh? What is this?”
While Reginn was confused, Elem knew more about humans than anyone after spending millennia with them, from young and old, good and evil, powerful and frail.
“...Miss, since I’m here, I’d like to give you a choice that may help you in this new life.” said Elem, “Effectively, you have been reborn in this foreign world, and I can sense your turbulent past which may hinder you in the future. However, this is a choice only you can make — I can erase all your memories and be reborn as someone new, or you can stay who you are.”
The prisoner began pondering the question and organized her thoughts. Her memories had already been erased once, and after Alevensteinn’s destruction, even those stored by Kyriekaos were erased. Now all that was left was the memories of the years in the dark, of pain and suffering and ultimate triumph. In the end, she just wanted to live a normal life, as a normal human.
“...I’d like to forget… everything, but before that, I have a few requests.”
“Go on.”
“Could I choose my own name? And what will my new identity be?”
“Of course, who do you want to be?”
“...Of the little memories I can recall, they’re mostly of the soul of a young girl. Remnants of Alevensteinn’s daughter… I still do not know how much of I am her, but I’d like to go to school and live a normal life as a girl.”
“Hm… Then we will have to arrange something…”
“...Hmph, is that all?” asked Reginn, “If you have no other choice, I suppose I could help you.”
The two turned to face the hero. Elem was surprised by Reginn’s suggestion — it was as if he was reborn in these last few days.
“You’re telling me… You’re willing to adopt her?”
“...The kingdom needs a new god, for the Goddess is gone. It seems that you and the others have no interest in doing so, meaning that I will have to step up as the eldest brother,” said Reginn, “Besides, this is a good way to learn more about the human world, and this will be my way to slowly amending my past sins.”
“...Are you alright with this, Miss?”
“...Sir Reginn saved my life and helped me realize my own power. If I can be of help to him, I’ll gladly oblige.”
“Hey! It’s not like I’m going to work you like a slave, alright? You’ll be living a cozy life, you know? I know what human luxury is now!”
“...Heheh, it seems that a girl has finally domesticated you brother,”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
Then came the topic of choosing a name, but it seemed that the prisoner already had an idea.
“...Marily. I remember the daughter’s name was Mary, but I’m not her — at least not fully. I’d like to keep my legacy somewhat, but also face the bright future.”
“Marily… It’s a cute name,” said Elem.
“From what I’ve gathered, most humans have last names, yes?”
“...I’d like for it to be as far away from Moscovonitch as possible. That is the name of a monster.”
“Hm… If I am to integrate into human society, I should get a last name too, should I not?” asked Reginn.
“Well, if you want, we could share my last name since we’re siblings. My alias isn’t much, and I changed it after a few years, but I’ve always kept the last name of ‘Magina’”
“Hm? Why is that?”
“‘Magina’ was the first hero’s last name which he gave himself. I felt that it was fitting since the first hero is who inspired the Goddess to create the children to overlook humanity.”
“Huh… I never knew that.”
“Magina… Marily Magina… I think it’s fine, a normal name.”
“Then so be it,” said Reginn, “Let’s begin your new life!”