He looked around to notice all of his friends were gone. As if turned into thin air, they had left him and the cherubim alone for a long time now. He was in the company of himself, the cherubim, and the vast White expanse around them. More than enough space for him to get his so sought after answer.

"Did you send them back home?" He turned back to face the cherubim.

"I'm protecting them from themselves, that's all." She replied, "Currently, their fates are destined to end abruptly in a few measly days time. When compared to the nigh infinite lifespan of Heaven 2.0, one could argue that it is quite soon."

"Yeesh, scarily so, even." He agreed, "So how long have you prolonged their afterlives by pulling this stunt?"

"Infinitely." She winked, "So long as you do not interfere anymore."

It was then when he noticed the bundle of clouds next to him dissipate, revealing the unconscious Vastoria lying there. It seems Sheep had taken these two back to district G and left Vastoria to him.

"Wow, he even left a walkie-talkie for me to contact the others..." Elegy snorted, "How thoughtful."

"I told him to do that." The cherubim shook her head, her mysterious hair swaying in the wind, "You can save Vastoria alone, and make everyone happy. And if you do as I say, then that will include S and N as well."

"Sab, Nerys..." He looked down, "In other words, you want me to bring them here so you can iron out their fates as well."

"Quick on the uptake." She giggled, "The previous Wildcard was sent to Hell because of such a display of capability."

He tilted his head at that, "I was told Hell no longer existed, though?"

"There is much you do not understand yet, though I have no doubt that you will come to realize it all someday." Her Eyes seemed distant, "L, do tell me, are you enjoying your time in Heaven 2.0?"

A sudden change in topics. So sudden, in fact, that even she felt it to have been too forced. Only a fool would answer this phony question without addressing the previous statements beforehand, and yet...

"It's fun." He replied meaningfully, "A novel experience."

She leaned in, "Oh?"

"But... that's about it." He shrugged, "I've met some good friends up here, and teaching Hats about life has been an honor. Still, I'd wish to go back one day."

"To district G?"

"To my human life."

She strived to make him forget about the previous problematic conversation with this new one, but in doing so she unwittingly only gave him the opportunity to strike up an even worse topic. Reincarnation, the one wish a Heavenly Being cannot get granted to them. Elegy's life was cut short, and thus his afterlife was riddled with regrets deeply embedded within his identity. For the cherubim, this was the one topic she wanted to steer clear from the most...

"No one can revive." She immediately shot the idea down, "Perhaps now that you have gotten a bit closer to the Gods, you could ask them to let you spectate your era a bit, but otherwise there are certain rules you absolutely mustn't break."

"Rules?" He raised his Eyebrow.

"You cannot find out your human identity." She listed them off, "You cannot bring back those whose souls have been destroyed, and finally—you cannot revive. There, sounds simple enough, right?"

Immediately, the thought of the now soul-destroyed Throne crossed Elegy's mind. He was stricken with grief, though coupled with a sense of pride. "Good riddance!", he would shout in his mind as he blew away the mental image. Her patronizing tone also didn't really help convince him much.

"Heh, simple." He stretched, "Yaaawn! Though, I am thankful for your words. You really did open my Eyes."

"Humu, I'm happy to hear it." She giggled pleasingly.

"Yep, I was kinda lost until now, but you've given me a new goal to look out for." His grin grew as he turned to face her once more, "The first rule that came to mind is the most dire of all, isn't it?"

Her Eyes shrunk back in fear, "H-Huh...?"

"Don't ever find out who you were before you died, huh? Sounds serious..." He teased her a bit, "I wonder why that is? Surely, something interesting will happen if I do."

"Hey! I just told you that it's forbidden!" She hissed, unsure of how this will unfold, "If you really wanna find out what happens if you try it, then I'll tell you—the Gods will be furious with you! So much so that they will immediately snap away your soul into oblivion. So tell me, L—is that interesting to you!?"

He blinked at her with his Eyes wide open. The tension between them all but gone, replaced by an awkward wave of silence. Eventually, he snapped out of it to deliver a sheepish reply.

"G-Geez, I was just kidding." He scratched his cheek, "Heh, didn't think I'd rile you up so much."

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

"...A-Ahem." She blushed, embarrassed to show him this side of herself, "It is not allowed, you know? I am the cherubim, this world's protector of souls and Heaven itself. It is my duty, after all."

"Yeah, I get it. You're just doing your job." He nodded, "In that case, shall we switch to a more pleasant topic?"

"Please." She begged, "Ah, but what exactly constitutes as pleasant to you?"

He had the poor cherubim traumatized after his cheeky jokes. At this point, she was already quivering in fear, dreading his next topic. She picked off Elegy, but he ended up being more than she could chew.

"So you've already forgotten my original question?" He chuckled, "How come I get the feeling that I know you, even though I don't remember you one bit?"

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The query that started it all. An otherwise innocent question that was merely posed to quell his curiosity. She bore a striking resemblance, and yet he could not for the afterlife of him figure out to whom. Her hair was pink, or was it Red? Long, or was it short? He stared directly at her, and yet the truth remained blurry.

"To put it simply, I am a loved one." She explained, "Or at the very least, I aim to imitate her likeness."

"A loved one... From my past life?" He raised an Eyebrow.

"Indeed."

He found the idea preposterous, "And why in the world would you do that?"

"Is the answer not obvious enough already?" She chuckled, "Human minds are incapable of witnessing a cherubim's full glory. Rid of imperfections or not, you will go insane if you take a gander at the truth."

"In other words, you don't want me to be afraid of you, so to sweeten the deal, you figured it'd be better if you resembled someone I used to know." Energy groaned.

In other words, all of this was nothing more than a ruse. An attempted trick to get him to lower his guard, which evidently succeeded for the others in his now disbanded party. He never knew the woman standing before him.

"Then again, I never could exactly nail down who your love was." She noted.

This came as a shock to him, "Huh? How come?"

"The others always had a number one, so to speak." The cherubim continued, "Someone who meant more to them than anyone else in the world. You, on the other hand, had two. A perfect 50/50 split of love, with absolutely neither side managing to tip the scales in their favor completely. What a truly dubious man you are, L."

"Is that why your face is so blurry to me?" He thought to switch between using one Eye and then the other, as if that would work, "Mn, nope. You're blurry through and through."

"Would you like to see just one of the people you so verily adore?" She offered, "Surely it would help you get closer to your answer?"

"Keep it ambiguous. Once I revive, I'll take a look at them myself." He smugly replied.

This resolution was not the answer she had hoped for, however. The cherubim's goal was to have him choose one or the other, to satiate his curiosity and allow him to understand that only one is his true lover. Alas, he refused. On top of that, not only did he refuse, but he also essentially spat in her face by gloating about how he will still try to revive himself from the dead.

"Before me stands a lost lamb." She shook her head pityingly at him.

"And before me stands a mirror." He returned the favor in kind.

"Eh?"

"You're supposed to calm me down, yet you know nothing about me. You expect this sham to work?" He grimaced, "One or both of these girls could have been my lovers, my family, my friends, or whatever our relationship was, yet you puppet their likeness to talk to me like I'm some sort of stranger. You're right, I am dubious, but you're the spitting image of me, cherubim."

Her heart began beating rapidly, her excitement growing as he gave his speech. This was it, he was getting closer to the answer. Angry as he was with the cherubim, this was exactly what she was aiming for in riling him up so much, for he understood it best when facing such an authority.

"Indeed, we are the same." She nodded with a proud smile on her face, "Selfish, greedy, both butting heads just to try and have our way in the end. I'm curious, L, what do they call an argument between an unstoppable force and an impenetrable wall?"

"I take it you're the wall, then?" He chuckled, "I'm sorry, but I don't do too well with riddles."

"This is merely trivia." She giggled, "But it serves its purpose to show you that continuing like this will never lead to a resolution. The smarter goat pulls back."

Vastoria was still lying unconscious next to him, whilst all Elegy was doing was wasting time. Had he just accepted the cherubim's advice and gone back for Sab and Nerys, then the Gods, she would have already been well on her way to a fully recovery. Alas, he wasn't going to let this chance slip by.

"Cherubim, I get the feeling we won't be seeing each other anymore." He turned around, hoisting the comatose girl over his shoulders, "So for some parting words, I find it's only acceptable for me to present to you my answer."

"We shall see each other again, no?" She tilted her head, "No matter, I am glad you have come up with an answer that satisfied you. Please, I would be honored to hear it."

"The log's about to fall down the waterfall, cherubim, and I have no intention of letting you get away." He looked back, a daunting smirk on his face, "I'll string you along this sinking ship with me, because I am an unstoppable force."

Her swaying hair stood on end, her Eyes shrunken back in fear. This was not at all what she was expecting to hear from him, especially not after he supposedly resigned from their argument.

"Y-You... What does this mean!?" She panicked, "L, answer me! What does this nonsense amount to?!"

"I'll find Nerys and Sab, and I'll have them be the ones to take your head." He replied before leaving, "Vastoria will walk on her own two feet again. Migu, Sheep and Energy will live full afterlives. And I..."

"Lu-!"

"I will resurrect."

After enough hours of walking marinaraward, he felt the startling vibrations of the walkie-talkie in his pocket. Awkwardly, he squirmed about, trying to avoid dropping Vastoria as he answered the call.

"Yo, guys!" Sab laughed without a care in the world on the other end of the line, "We got another hypothetical for you."

"Is that so?" Elegy chuckled, "Well then, go on."

"If ye' had ta' pick, which'd ye' ratha'?" Nerys yelled to be heard from Sab's talkie, "Be tha' hiero, arr' be tha' king?"

"Mn, the hero or the king, eh?" Elegy thought about it, "Neither."

"Neither?" The two were shocked.

"I'm not cut out to be a hero nor a king. Too many responsibilities, I say." He explained, "I'd like a more humble role, if possible. I'd be the one helping the king and hero do their jobs well from the sidelines. Is there a term for that?"

The line was silent for a while before the static buzzing abruptly cut to them laughing their asses off.

"A term fer' dat!?" Nerys cackled on and on.

"Elegy, if there was ever a driving force strong enough to help both kings and heroes alike..." Sab said in between wheezes, "He'd have to be more than a God!"