Jack was speechless. How could Ellis think so little of humans? Wait... no. He was taking this too seriously, there was no way she was even real, he had clearly eaten something expired, then fell asleep in his car, this was all a dream. Jack pinched himself as hard as he could on his forearm, and winced at the pain. Well, he wasn’t dreaming. Maybe he’s just crazy? He was nineteen, this could be schizophrenia brought on by stress from school, but he was a pretty laid-back person, so that was unlikely.

“Ellis.”

(Yes?)

The source of his self-doubt replied.

“You underestimate humans.”

(I never underestimate! I am a goddess.)

“Oh, really...”

(Yup!)

Jack sighed.

“How did you contact this ‘archangel’?”

There was still stuff that he didn’t understand, like how a dead person trapped in his head could communicate with anyone outside of him, goddess or not.

(Foolish human. My power isn’t gone, just like me it’s just residing inside you. All I did was manipulate it a little so I could send a message.)

Jack propped himself up on his elbows, then pushed himself into an upright position before responding.

“You can do that?”

(Of course! I may not be able to do much, but I can manipulate it enough to send a simple hate message!)

“You get angry too easy.”

Jack stood up and dusted himself off. If this is real, he should do something about it, and if it’s not, then he should go to the hospital.

“Can you tell her to stop?”

(Yeah, I already tried, but she won’t listen anymore.)

“Can you get one of your god-friends to stop her?”

There was a short pause before she replied.

(Gods don’t do favors.)

Ellis’s voice got darker as she revisited unwanted memories, and Jack could sense her regret in this bitter truth.

“What do I do?”

He asked her seriously.

(Get stronger, obviously! Angels are relatively weak compared to most beings, so she is currently about the same caliber as a dragon.)

“You know a human can’t kill a dragon, right? It’s not like I have a tank either.”

(But your not a human! That’s just what your physical body is!)

Jack began to walk towards the gate, he figured he should get ready for Jenny’s arrival.

“Oh? How can my physical body be human, but I’m not human? What the hell am I?”

(Rrgh)

Ellis let out a frustrated grunt and let out an angry response.

(I already told you! Your the god of love!)

Jack stopped walking.

“Wait. I’m just a human, wouldn’t the power of a god kill me?”

(I’m bored of this conversation! Your physical body doesn’t matter! You have my power inside of you! JUST DON’T DIE!)

Jack grabbed his head as the words blared in his mind, causing a slight headache. He took a second to recover before removing his hands, and straightening himself.

(Just close your eyes.)

A command came from the slightly irritated personality in his head.

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“Why?”

(Because I said so!)

Jack quickly obeyed.

(Okay, now try to feel it.)

“What does it feel like?”

Jack tried to sense the hidden power of a god inside of him, and felt a little stupid. He hadn’t done this since the sixth grade when he had a dream where he was the god of fire.

(Hell if I know, gods are pretty much made up of this stuff, it’s like asking us to feel our arm or leg.)

“Wait.”

He can feel it. It was like he could sense his blood flowing through every part of his body. It felt surprisingly normal, as if it had been there the whole time.

(Wow. That was really fast. It takes most gods years to be able to sense that much.)

“W-what do I do now?”

Jack asked while trying to remain focused on the energy.

(Try moving it, duh.)

“Right.”

Jack felt it’s movement, then focused on making it flow in the opposite direction, figuring that was the most effective way to get a response. He collapsed. Pain flooded his mind, screaming in his brain as every muscle, nerve, bone, and organ rip apart. and regenerate over and over again, causing him to writhe and roll around in pain. It started in his bones and worked its way out, crushing and crunching his bones before replacing them with new ones, each and every cell and nerve exploded, then reassembled, followed by his skin which felt like it it had caught on fire. This all ended within 30 seconds.

After it was over, Jack didn’t move for several seconds, just panting and sweating while he tried to slow his heartbeat.

(Nicely done. I thought you were going to die for a second there, but you pulled through. I’m actually proud of you.)

“*pant* *pant* I don’t want to *gasp* do that again.”

Jack slowly pulled himself to his feet, carefully making sure not to strain himself. He found that he felt really good, despite just going through a traumatic ordeal.

(Then you won’t get any stronger. Pain is necessary to grow.)

“Grow?”

Jack was on his feet now, rubbing his slightly sore muscles, which he noticed were significantly harder than usual, like he was flexing.

(Yes, because of that little stunt you pulled, you should be able to beat your world’s greatest warrior unarmed despite your lack of skill, and your intelligence should also be above average.)

Jack took a deep breath and looked around. It wasn’t as dark as it used to be, and he could hear things moving around him, scampering and chirping, though it wasn’t overwhelming. It was more informative than anything, as if letting him know of everything that’s happening around him.

(Your life is also extended, you will also have another week added to your inconsequentially short life. Keep this up, and you may even live a year.)

“Humans have been known to live over a hundred years, average life span is about seventy. We’re not flies.”

(Oh, in that case, you will likely live to one-hundred and seventy if you are healthy.)

Jack was no longer listening, he felt like he could take on the world, hopping up and down on his toes, and feeling as light as a feather.

(Ignoring me won’t end well for you.)

“Can I do that again?”

Ellis paused to consider his question.

(No, I wouldn’t recommend that. You need to recover and adjust to your new abilities or else you may have a heart attack, or a serious injury. Don’t forget how you almost died just now.)

Jack stopped hopping when he heard a car approach. It was still decently far off, but he was certain it was there.

“That must be Jenny.)

Jack pulled his phone out and checked the time.

“She’s fifteen minutes later than she said... well, at least she didn’t just leave me here.”

Jack placed his phone back into his pocket and resumed his walk towards the gate with a newfound energy. His stride was long and confident, and he walked with his head held high, inhaling a deep breath of fresh air.

(Who’s Jenny? Your girlfriend?)

Ellis asked in a teasing tone, but Jack just laughed and shook his head.

“No, she’s my closest friend, I’ve known her for years. She would probably break my neck if she heard me say I was her boyfriend.”

(Ah, I see. A childhood friend and a tsundrere huh? Don’t worry, you got the goddess of love on your side, I’ll make her fall for you!)

A cute reply came from the goddess, and Jack couldn’t hold back his smile.

“How do you know about that, but not anything else about humans?”

(I’ve been exploring your brain.)

Jack choked on nothing, and tripped over himself, almost face-planting but recovered quickly, avoiding an unpleasant experience.

“S-stay out of there! I didn’t give you permission to be in there!”

(MWAHAHA! I now know all of your dirty secrets! Although I don’t know why there is so much about the human reproductive cycle in here... Jack, are you a pervert?)

“No! I am a healthy, straight young man! Now get out of my brain!”

Jack was feeling unprecedented amounts of embarrassment at this new psychological torture. A car’s headlights turned towards Jack, catching his attention.

(Hu hu hu. Incognito mode activated, communicate through thoughts now to keep from alerting the target.)

“So I’ve been talking to myself like an insane person for nothing?”

Jack approached the car. As he came close to the hood, a loud honk caused him to nearly jump out of his skin, and he stepped backwards in alarm. He heard a faint giggling from inside the car, and realized Jenny was just teasing him. He quickly regained his composure and walked up to the car door, which was opened for him at just the right moment to hit his groin. Enhanced or no, it still hurts like hell when your crotch gets smacked by a car door, and he leaned forward while gripping the top of the opened door with one hand, and holding his knee with the other to keep himself upright.

He looked up to meet a pair of beautiful, blue eyes that were deeply amused at his suffering while still holding a small trace of affection. Jenny’s short brown hair came down to her slender shoulders, and a deceptively delicate-looking body which Jack knew could pack quite a punch.

“Thanks.”

“Masochist.”

Jack chuckled at her response.

“I meant for the ride.”

She released a radiant smile that could melt the coldest of hearts.

“Sure you did. The ride’s no problem, but the rest is gonna cost you.”

“Cost me what?”

Jack entered the car and sat next to her, closing the door behind him.

“A burrito and a soda.”

She replied to his question with a very basic request, however her motives were not as pure as Jack had thought. While he was nodding in response to her request a thought ran through her mind.

‘Hehehe. You may not know it yet, but your already mine.’