What does it mean to truly live?

That was a question almost anyone would be familiar with. A question that everyone eventually asked at least once in their lives. A question that some of the greatest had tackled ever since the first humans gained sapience. Every culture and every religion, both dead and alive, had claimed to give an answer to this question.

Truly, it was that important—to the point that one could be defined by how they viewed such a subject.

People who were entirely materialistic would have said that living depended entirely on one's wealth and achievements. They viewed success, physical comfort, and attaining social status as paramount. They said that we would become dust and molecules upon death, so in life we had to make use of it as much as possible, either for ourselves or for the next generation.

People who were religious would have said to live was to serve the higher power in the heavens above, to be morally good, so that in death, we would go to our creator's side in Heaven, or to any other afterlife one's beliefs might have dictated. It would have depended on one's faith and what they had accomplished in life to attain such reward, or punishment.

Others would have said that in life, one must detach themselves from the worldly. One must have detached themselves from suffering. They must have understood that nothing was permanent. They must have understood that living a compassionate and mindful life was key to reaching a spirit free from the eternal cycle of karma.

There were many thoughts and feelings that one would have whenever this one specific question was asked. But, truly, it was something that was almost impossible to know the real answer to.

If so…how would Marilyn Althorn view this question specifically?

It was a complex topic for sure. And she wasn't exactly a philosopher either, so she didn't have the qualifications to delve into it. But, then again, no one truly did.

What she did have, however, was experience.

To her, living involved varying reasons—that would be the answer. Each person had their own unique perspective and to-do list in life, and they were always malleable and prone to change.

Free will, the very idea of it, was a priority to her. She wouldn't have wanted anyone to be prevented from living their life as long as they didn't force others to live their way. She wouldn't have wanted her wish and dream to be encroached upon either.

For her personally, to live was to be able to realize one's own potential. To be happy was also a goal that everyone would want, and attaining simply that was enough for her. And for her, to be happy was to be capable and relied upon by other people willingly.

Whatever might have lain ahead, those people who lived their lives like this were the ones who had truly lived in her eyes. They were the ones who found meaning in life. Reasons to continue.

The most arrogant and full of themselves would have been jealous of them, or simply scoffed at them, spouting insults and dictating how they were supposed to live their lives. The most empathetic would have been happy for them, cheering for them and their achievements. The most indifferent, simply a passing praise.

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Marilyn Althorn, despite now only having been 17 years old, and had only begun her life in earnest after her meeting with the Sage, had thought that she could finally make her realised philosophy a reality.

She was once someone called Kei Etsuko, a 19 year old high school student who experienced a gloomy life. She had persevered for so long. And despite her determination, in the end she had lost. Her will had broken.

But her current life's past compensated for such a depressing background. She grew up in a happy and loving family, experienced what by far any child would want out of a childhood and came to realise how much she had missed as a child in her previous life in terms of, well, being a child.

A loving father and a caring mother that stayed consistently as such even until now and again. A stern but motherly maid that she viewed as an older sister, and her actual older sister who she never once had as a Japanese girl in her previous life.

She awakened her potential to be a great mage, and a love for magic. Training herself in the art was and still is her favourite hobby. Strategising how to use it effectively even with weaker spells had also become a favoured routine of hers on the daily.

An interest in wanting to become a pathfinder. Still a hatred for broccoli. And despite not having actual visible talent in sword fighting, a curiosity in wanting to know its intricacies and how Helena could become so skilled in it.

She considered her past self a pity, but also something to be reflected upon dearly. She felt somewhat glad that it ended that way. There were no more options for her to live.

However, she regretted one thing: She never got to say goodbye to her one and only friend.

Violet Hawthorne was the brightest light in her life. She was an exchange student from Britain, perfect in almost every way in her eyes. She was the reason she could smile genuinely, the reason why she could realise her dreams and wishes, the reason why she could stand now in her current life.

But still, that regret had itched at the back of her head ever since she had been reborn.

She wondered…what her friend would think of her now.

"You were always the one to bring me up whenever I'm down. And whenever I'm hesitant, you never were. Whenever I faltered, you were always there to help me in any capacity you have."

Those were the words that were said by her, as the girl gazed upon the scenery before her from above, using her flight magic during night time. The skyline of the capital of Albion, the city of Leandon, stood before her. A mix of 19th century style architecture and advanced magical futurism.

The sounds of bustling activity was present even from this high up. The sprawl of the city could also be seen stretching across her field of vision for dozens of miles. She felt at peace here, in her own element.

In three days, the entrance exam for the Royal Academy of Albion would begin. And aside from Helena, who's already a student in the academy, she was practically alone. But even so, as long as she held strong…as long as her will did not falter.

She would keep persevering.

She would keep moving forward.

It's a world where one's heroic reveries are the key to fight against the darkness, whatever form it may be.

A world where technology and the fantastical are all in one, built upon from a millennia of progress.

A world where one's wish could come true if they possess the strong will to push onwards, to reach for that one possibility.

With her wish and dream wanting to be realised, she would thank her current family for bringing her life into this world. She would thank whatever force that brought her here and offered her a second chance.

She would...no...she will become strong for them. For their sake, not her own.

To whatever friends or enemies she would encounter along the way, she declared so. For the sake of her family and the world at large, those were her words.

Afterall, with the concept of death not applying to her, she had no reason to not try and take even the most dangerous of risks.

And with a confident and cheerful smile, Marilyn would say these words.

"Violet…if you're listening to me, even if it's only in spirit…cheer for me, will you?"