I awoke to a world of white.

Letting out a small groan, I raised my hand to cover my eyes, momentarily blinded by the brightness that filled my vision all of a sudden. Why was it so bright anyway? The last thing I could remember before I passed out was seeing a tiny, slightly transparent blue box.

Oh. There was also that person. Loki, if I remember correctly.

Recalling the times I've met him made everything seem increasingly ridiculous. And I bet, with my luck, everything was just going to get worse from here.

Wordlessly, I lifted my arms a little to take a look at them. I didn't have a chance to do so before due to my sudden losses of consciousness, but now that I had... I was really thin. Too thin, almost like I'd been starved for days. It was bad enough to describe myself as scrawny. I never had to refer to myself as such in my previous life. Despite being slim, I was still healthy, and I ate the same amount as every other person did. I never had to go on a diet, though, since I never ate too much in the first place. Currently, however, it seemed like I was just as unhealthy as I looked. I could feel my ribs sticking out of my skin, and some belly fat. I supposed I was a milder version of a malnourished kid. It hadn't helped that I felt just as hungry as I looked.

Ah, now that I think about it... I haven't even eaten anything yet. My saliva felt sticky in my mouth. I frowned. I didn't even want to remotely try to smell my breath.

Putting a hand on my stomach, I raised my head and looked around me, and was surprised a little.

I hadn't been aware of my surroundings until now because I'd been too busy thinking about my present situation, but it seemed that I was taken somewhere. Now, usually I would've been alarmed and would've tried to find a way out at once, every other thing thrown aside. But I didn't think I had to.

The room I was in was not very big. It was probably as small as my former bathroom, but it did the job, and felt very... comfortable. Every piece of furniture, and even the room itself was made of wood. It didn't look like it had been assembled by someone particularly skilled, but it was pretty impressive nonetheless. Pretty fancy for a cabin in the middle of the woods if you ask me.

That made me pause for a bit.

Was I even still in the woods?

At this point, if I had not seen the food prepared on the table, I'd have bolted.

But since I saw the bowl filled with porridge and egg, as well as the sandwich on the side, I supposed I'd have to throw that thought away.

I stared at the food, all too aware of the hunger in my system. Every cell in my body wanted to just grab and eat everything all at once, but I refrained from doing so. Despite the apparent warm treatment directed at me, I still wanted to determine the other person's intentions first. After all, I was just a girl in the woods. Stick thin, filthy and barely alive. What use would I have to anyone?

I couldn't help but feel doubtful.

So I waited.

But it seemed that someone couldn't.

A suspiciously familiar blue box materialized a few inches away from my face, displaying the text:

[ Hello, my young champion! ]

And accordingly, a certain God's voice entered my ears.

I blinked, and stayed silent.

Loki didn't.

[ So, what have you eaten for dinner? Want to get something with me? ]

My eyebrow twitched at his overly casual words. He made it sound like everything was perfectly normal. Even his manner of speech made it seem like we'd known each other for years. It threw me off guard a little.

I mean, he reincarnated me. Into another world. In a used body. Well, it's the body of a girl that didn't seem to be any older than six, but I wasn't sure. I hadn't seen myself yet anyway. Just my arms and legs.

I mean, he was the one behind my reincarnation. It had been uncalled for and, frankly, unneeded. I could've just been reborn normally like everyone else, but he simply had to interfere with the process, and for his own amusement, no less. He didn't seem very responsible to me, and gave off an air of a powerful but naive person of higher society. It was inevitable that I'd resent him a bit.

[Ahem. Dinner?]

Dinner, he said.

I turned to the window. It was open, and despite the filmy curtains obscuring my sight slightly, I could make out the stars littering the vast, navy blue skies and a strangely purplish... moon. Nighttime?

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Suddenly, my stomach growled, and very loudly, too.

I waited for the feeling. For the blood to rush to my head, and for the thoughts about the ground swallowing me or something. For the tiniest sliver of shame.

But I didn't feel anything out of the ordinary.

I licked my chapped lips. Uncertainty about my own-- though yet unfamiliar--body coursed through me.

I heard a gasp. [ What? You haven't eaten yet. ]

I shook my head, then realized that he might not be seeing me at the moment. I spoke, albeit very slowly, "Ha...ven't..."

Strangely, the language I used hadn't been the same one I used in my past life. It sounded a little like French, but a bit different. A little rougher. And I had never learned French in my life, yet it felt completely natural. My throat was dry, though, so it hurt a little.

[ Eh, you know how to speak Erylian? ]

Loki's voice contained a hint of surprise.

I almost nodded again. "It seems... so...?"

I thought I heard him mumble "truly spectacular" but that's probably just me.

[ All right. So, do you want me to--oh... ]

I was half-expecting him to jokingly offer me something knowing that I'd feel conflicted just for the sake of it, so when he suddenly went quiet, I couldn't help but raise my eyebrows. And, as if he could read my mind, Loki cleared his throat and explained, his words still displayed on the blue box. It was like someone was typing it as he talked. Considering the sheer absurdity of my current situation, I wouldn't be surprised if someone actually was.

[ Um, don't be so weirded out--]

I snorted.

[--but I can see you from here. ]

...Oh.

Well, that changes things.

Maybe it could have been something that I considered creepy. However, my usual thoughts weren't present. If anything, I felt more relaxed knowing that he could see me. I didn't know if it was because of the security that the attention of a God brought with it, or if I was just too trusting. At the same time, I couldn't sit still. My body alternated between having my fingers rub the blanket and shifting at the slightest sound that entered my ears.

It wasn't long before Loki caught onto my unease.

[ Is something wrong? ]

His tone seemed more curious than concerned. It made me feel a little like a test subject under the hands of a scientist. Whether he was mad or not was still up for debate, however.

As if on cue, I suddenly flicked my wrist and winced when it emitted a cracking sound.

"Just... a little jumpy," I murmured, knowing full well that he could still hear me, and examined my forearms.

[ Oh, well that--]

This time, my shoulder popped, and pain flooded my senses completely. I let out a small whimper before I caught myself.

[--doesn't look like just a little. ]

I bit my lip at his remark, my free hand flying to my left shoulder and gripping it tightly as the pain traveled my veins slowly. Harsh, shallow breaths left my lips as I opened them ever so slighly, resisting the urge to scream.

Then the pain was completely gone.

Like it had never been there at all.

I didn't have a chance to relax, though, because the next thing that popped was my neck.

And for the second time since I woke up in this world that I didn't even know the name of yet, I fainted.

Somehow, I had a feeling that my track record was just going to improve over time.

Come to think of it, I still hadn't had a bite of anything.

_

Loki stared at the portal with wide eyes.

"Well, that was... " A smirk gradually graced the God's features. "Quite interesting."

He didn't have to turn in the knight's direction to know that he'd been scribbling something. Loki hummed a tune happily, twirling his body before crashing onto a bed that had materialized out of nowhere. He stared at the skies that stretched for miles, suddenly deep in thought.

"Hey, Thor," he suddenly called out.

Th man in black armor stilled for a second. Then he turned to Loki and let out a breath. He seemed frustrated, but with the helmet, no one other than Loki could really tell. "I would prefer it if you refrained from calling me that but what is it, Master?"

Loki turned over so he was laying on his stomach. He set his chin on his hand and stared at the black knight. "Does vessel adjustment happen right after souls reincarnate?"

Thor stayed silent for some time. He also stopped writing. He simply stayed in the same hunched position, his head turned in his master's direction.

Somehow, Loki felt like Thor was insulting him quietly.

"What the he--" Thor cleared his throat before the word fully slipped out of his mouth. "Excuse my mistake. I meant, master, vessel adjustment only happens when souls ascend to godhood."

"What, so it doesn't happen when someone gets reborn?"

Thor resisted the urge to hit the god with the clipboard in his hands. "Of course, it doesn't. How would their spirit manage to adjust physical objects anyway anyway? Besides, bodies only go under vessel adjustment when their current state is unable to handle the influx of stellar energy."

Loki furrowed his eyebrows. "What stellar energy?"

The black knight gaped at Loki under his helm. "Master, stellar energy is what all Gods as well as humans absorb in order to attain an immortal body." It's the thing that keeps your dumb ass alive, he wanted to add, but he opted to bite his tongue.

"Oh! You mean cultivation?"

"...Yes, master."

Loki suddenly took on a weird expression. It looked somewhat like a cross between questioning and excited. Thor only thought that it was creepy.

"Then why did she have to go through it at this time?"

All of a sudden, silence reigned between the two people. The black knight was shocked stiff, while a grin was slowly forming in Loki's face.

"She? Did you mean that soul that you found in Hades' plane?" Thor asked slowly, and each word that rolled off his tongue made him feel as if he was saying something utterly ridiculous.

"Yes... Yes!" Loki's face was split by a wide grin. Thor felt his excitement all the way from the door which was about 3 meters away from him, and he couldn't exactly blame him.

This wasn't normal.

Vessel adjustment was a process that a body is required to go through once the storage of stellar energy inside it reaches a particular bottleneck. To be precise, it happens because mortal bodies were fragile and would be unable to bear the violent nature of divine stellar energy, which the Gods absorbed and lived off of. It wasn't something that happened to a child, and one that had yet to start cultivating, no less.

Souls never transmigrated to a body of a dead person in the first place.

None of this was normal.

And Loki loved it.

A sigh escaped Thor's mouth. "I swear to God, you have the weirdest methods of having fun."

Loki faced him. Then, he grinned. "Which God?"

"...You're hopeless, master."