The inner-world calmed, and the glow of the source fruit dimmed, leaving a cool reflection on the water's pristine surface.
Regularly rhythmic ripples, like small waves, emanated outward from the base of the crystal, slowly but surely carrying me to the edge and giving me a chance to relax.
I lay in relief at being able to think coherently again while I waited, enveloped by the weightless caress of the water.
_Hmm, I'm not really sure how to feel about how used to pain I'm getting; I guess it's fine, but losing that... the umph of it somehow makes me feel like I'm losing something more meaningful._
_It's like I've barely had any time to settle in at all._
I sighed and let the thought drift away from me; there was nothing I could do about it now.
Thinking back, I instinctively raised my hand to my upper chest.
_Nothing seems off... and I feel more or less the same despite that soul splitting or whatever, and the system did say it partially emulsified, which I guess is just a round about way of saying she awkwardly stitched it back together._
_I was a bit rudely impatient then, but I'm seriously glad to have her, or it, or whatever... I'm only going off that occasional voice._
[Exp Store: 0]
_As expected._
_I was kinda hoping it would be a shop and I could just buy everything I could ever need, but I s'pose it's certainly 'store' as in 'storage', of course..._
_What I didn't expect was the crystal being used like that... and to such great effect too._
Glancing over at it, small imperfections I couldn't see before now scarred its surface, but it hardly looked brittle at all.
_I'm not sure if they were always there and it's now more dim or... maybe I've wasted a lot of it._
_I'm certain it has more grey spots—a bit like the varying shades of a moon, resembling oceans from afar, yet ironically a mark of impurity._
_Maybe there's a way of revitalising it? It had to have been made somewhere; considering it's a fruit, or was originally a fruit, then Botany might be the answer._
_Well, I'll store that thought away for now. I can always ask Karin or Johan since they seemed to have the most to do with the evolution ceremony, and the energy is definitely the same in retrospect._
I paused and looked to the sky—at the many wondering miniature stars spread beyond the scope of my vision.
Recommendation. RE come mend ation.
I looked at the screen still floating to my side—the same screen I'd conveniently ignored.
_The system is so strange, and it also didn't shut down this time. Actually, perhaps that's what the exp was for, and I was simply keeping it afloat with my leftovers._
_At the same time, I'm pretty sure it can always help with things inside its 'prerogative', which appears to be 'only I can control it." If anything external tries to influence it, it'll fight back..._
_Besides that, it also helped after making a mistake, so that must be another part of this mysterious 'prerogative'. Maybe checking those 'properties' out will enlighten me, but I don't want to analyse any kind of complex explanation the system will give right this second._
Closing my eyes for a moment, I massaged some of the water into my face, content with my flawless reasoning.
_Hmm... just like my flawless skin and flawless fac..._
_Oww._
I winced at the stab of pain, and my face ached slightly.
Frowning, I carefully touched around the horn protruding from the side of my head.
_I guess that's karma, huh._
_Wait, has it grown?_
_Ooh, how exciting! It's a shame I have absolutely no idea what it's for—besides looking more... fierce and cool._
A smile naturally began to grow on my face.
_Hahhh, I feel great right now, like a weight's been lifted from my shoulders._
I continued to stare at the iridescent orbs, which now appeared to be the main illuminating factor in my entire small world here.
_Evolve the inner-world huh... Everything needs to settle down before I can even think about doing that; once it's blown over, I might stay in the forest and try some things out and maybe gather some information from whatever towns are nearby._
_Preferably, I'll expand this place and make a miniature recreation of sorts... Since I know the forest outside is stable and quite diverse at the same time, that, and I love its colour—mostly that, actually._
My arm suddenly brushed the outskirts of the pond, halting my thoughts.
Pushing myself up against the edge, I shook the water out of my hair calmly, giving it a light squeeze; however, my attention was soon enraptured by what I saw.
_Oh, wow!_
My eyes sparkled as I peered over the sheer cliff face sharply passing by the edge of the pond.
Both sides of the ravine were jagged and rough, and if I looked closely, I could see thick, plant-like roots connecting the two halves of the world together far below.
_What's strange is how abyssal it looks, like the darkness is actively devouring the light pouring in from above._
Strangely, this didn't put me off, despite the deathly visage.
_In fact, I feel quite drawn to it, comforted by it even, but that isn't really unique; it's true of everything in this tiny realm of mine._
Tilting my head to the side, I continued to squeeze the water out of my hair and watched it vanish into the depths below.
I smiled lightly and pushed myself all the way up, directly meeting the gazes of some silent Angels who'd been oh so patiently waiting for me.
Fortunately, my clothes manifested themselves here, and the water ran off the dress as if it had never been submerged to begin with; this didn't seem to apply to the skirt, however—the evolution dress must be a special material.
_Well, it's not really a big deal; I'm just happy not to be naked or something—I'd probably have killed them in shock. I probably should have thought about it before, back when I was alone here, to be honest._
It was my turn to be patient now, continuously flicking my sight from one face to the other.
I could see it in their eyes—they were all lost and vehemently bewildered... and this place clearly and completely superseded their imaginations. It tickled my pride a little, and I couldn't help but embody a smug attitude with my posture, despite my size.
Seeing this, the three of them looked at each other and got to their feet, now standing as tall as they could muster on the other side of the great ravine between.
Surprisingly, it was Kharn who opened his mouth first.
"Demon, what is this place?"
Despite his phrasing, there was an unexpected politeness to his tone.
_They've obviously decided that gathering info is more important for survival, especially since I seem so familiar and attuned with this place._
Excitement rose in my chest.
_I'll play a little role._
My face darkened, and his face stiffened slightly in response.
"Oh... Demon is it? So that girl's eyes make her a Demon, but mine don't make me an Angel? Is that how it works? Or do you just pick and choose as it suits you?"
I crossed my arms and watched each of their expressions change.
_Kharn appears to be the most contemplative; Laurie doesn't seem to be phased at all—I can't see through what she's thinking... On the other hand, Kesef tightened his fists and took a step forward, his brows furrowed into an almost jagged point._
_Somehow, their reactions were mostly what I expected._
"Don't play games with us, kid, or..."
"Or what?"
Suddenly, a vast popping sound cut through the air and smacked into their ears like the warning echoes of a landslide.
A black mist quickly arose from the abyssal fracture, dissolving the blades of grass daring to reach across the edge.
Seeing this, Kesef's anger vanished, and he hesitantly stepped back, an ounce of fear colouring his expression.
_I doubt the anger was real anyway; he seemed more to be testing the waters... He'll risk his life for such a small gain hmm._
Kharn looked more resolute, and there seemed to be a newfound maturity in his eyes, like nothing he saw could ever break him.
"She's just playing word games like they all do, Kesef. The dark magic makes it obvious, yet she'll still try and toy with your thoughts."
He spoke quietly, as I couldn't hear, paying no mind to the darkness as if it weren't even there... Perhaps he felt it was an illusion, or maybe he simply realised that if I wanted them dead, they would already be.
I'd managed to hide it, but I'm actually a bit stupefied myself.
_I attempted to call upon my dark magic and force him to back away; after all, they shouldn't be near their full strength; yet it was the world that changed and apparently heeded my call..._
The light of realisation dawned on me, and an undecipherable smile grew on my face.
Without warning, a nebulous aurora flooded the sky and surrounded the orbs of light. Sporadically, the emerald vapour began to ignite around the orbs, sending out wave after wave of dissipative holy energy and leaving tiny granular particles that shone with a profoundly vibrant lustre.
They were like the ignition of life, a spark caught in an instance of frozen time, only to be affected by gravity, allowing them to drift to the ground and meld with the earth.
"What?!"
"How on..?!"
Kharn's stoic mask fell away, and he looked like a boy lost in a field of grass too tall for him to peer through.
Belief in the illusion dissipated in all of their eyes as the particles fell upon their skin and melded with their bodies, revitalising their energy.
Even the withering grass returned to life as the darkness receded.
_Now that I can control this place so completely, I don't have to worry..._
Kharn turned to stare at me with a strange face, but I didn't meet his eye, instead pretending to make nothing of it.
_Hehe, I can even use this here without backlash, and it's enormous too... But this isn't my real body, so I don't feel it affecting me; what a shame!_
_Wait a minute, I'm basically..._
"You..."
Kesef spoke.
"Who are you?"
_Hehe._
_Basically..._
"I'm the Goddess of this domain."