'Heh, great! Don't you have a better way to transmigrate me? You greatly hurt this poor soul!'
Complained Leo inside his mind as he slowly opened his eyes. Enriel successfully gave him a new body. Leo thought Enriel would give him a crippled body, but much to his surprise, the body he received was intact.
'This world looks the same as Earth, at least on the surface.'
Leo stood up and looked around with curious eyes. The air was not polluted, and there was not a single road in sight. Everything before him was green. A green field, pine trees, and a fine, gentle breeze.
He looked around but found nothing aside from beautiful greenery. Thus, he decided to check his new body. His hands, his legs, his hair, and everything he could. His clothes were nothing more than rags—a brown ragged robe similar to a hoodie and leather pants of the wrong size.
His body was skinny but not weak. His long brown hair remained silky despite his dirty appearance. He was curious how his face looked, but there was no single water surface nearby where he could see his reflection.
Eventually, Leo concluded that it was time to explore this new world. He walked inside the pine forest out of pure caution.
'Who knows what kind of beasts lurk here? I'm in the middle of nowhere, and there is a chance that something I can't outrun finds me if I walk across the field. The trees might give me a tactical advantage.'
MEANWHILE, ENRIEL'S SANCTUARY:
The white room where the almighty Goddess of Creation resided quickly lost its uncanny form. Endless tremors shook the unusual sanctuary. Cracks spread across the walls, and the white room eventually fell apart.
The scenery contorted, and Enriel found herself inside a library where millions of books found their home. The Goddess of Creation sighed in defeat as she realized this place was the home turf of another Goddess.
The only Goddess whose curiosity exceeded hers. The Goddess of Knowledge herself. Enriel causally took off one of the books from one of the bookshelves and flipped it open without hesitation.
The book emitted a dim white light as Enriel held it in her hands.
"Enriel, what did you do? You know that whatever you did was against the pact, right? We can't intervene in the lives of lower beings. In order to keep the multiverse from turning into a multidimensional chessboard."
"Naturally, I was the one who wrote those rules, but I was irritated and bored. Mistakes happen sometimes due to unfavorable circumstances, but how did you find me?"
Enriel wanted to sweep this whole incident under the rug quietly, but she was called here right after everything was over. She instinctively knew that this couldn't be a coincidence.
"I just took a casual walk when I stumbled upon the white subspace you created. I got curious and decided to take a peek. This is how I found you two. I also happened to overhear the end of your conversation. It was all luck."
"I get straight to the point. You can't escape punishment, but you already did whatever you were not supposed to do, so I'm not going to punish you more than that. Just tell me what kind of ability you gave him."
Enriel shrugged and spilled the beans without hesitation. She knew her punishment would be the same even if she didn't say anything.
"I gave him the ability called Fire (F-rank), but you don't have to worry. The bastard had the ability of hand-to-hand combat (S-rank). He is strong. I just couldn't let go of the unfairness. How can he receive all that when he killed so many people?"
The Goddess of Knowledge nodded in understanding. Once again, she was reminded that age is just a number and the maturity of one is based on experience.
"Enriel, what you did there immensely helped him. You gave him a fire ability on the one day when you shouldn't have done that. The world where you transmigrated his soul currently celebrates the day of Ina. Do you know about her?"
"N-no."
"She is their Fire Goddess. Whoever gets a fire ability on the Day of Ina also gets her blessing. I'm not blaming you for this as this particular day happens only once every millenium."
"Either way, what's done can't be changed. You will receive your punishment once we decide what you'll have to do, but one thing is certain. The next time you do something like this will be your last."
Enriel closed the book and shook her head in disappointment. What she did was meaningless, and she would even receive punishment. Today was a bad day.
LEO'S POV:
It's been a while since Leo entered the pine forest. The rays of the setting sun pierced the thick fog that embraced the surroundings. Leo was worried that Enriel had dropped him off in the middle of nowhere.
Sleeping here without food or water was dangerous, but tiredness got the better of him. He decided at least to find a somewhat safer place, like a small cave, where he could spend the night.
Leo looked around the forest, hoping to find something useful, and spotted something he hadn't expected. Behind one of the pine trees was a human hiding. Leo spotted his hand by accident.
He looked around once more, hoping to spot more of them behind some of the trees, but couldn't find anyone else.
"You can come out now. I found you, so there's no point in hiding."
Leo was unsure if the man behind the tree spoke the same language, but he made a noise to find out.
"Ya should've run away while you had the chance. Don't move! Drop everything on the ground, and don't even attempt to shout. No one will hear you. Make a noise, and your head will fly. Understood?"
The middle-aged man revealed himself. He looked like a beggar with a rusty dagger in his hands. The visible desperation on his face betrayed the confident act he attempted to display.
"It looks like we speak the same language. This makes things easier. Give me some help, old man. I want to give you my belongings, but you told me to stay still. What am I supposed to do?"