They continued to have fun until the sky darkened, then afterwards decided to return to the villa they had rented for their vacation. Even though they had been playing all day, none of them were tired, so they agreed to play once more—with fireworks.
And with Rei's ability to create small objects, they didn't have to worry about running out of fireworks.
"Fufufu, this is the first time I've seen an Astral using their abilities to make fireworks." Rosetta chuckled softly, watching Rei, who was busy grilling barbecue.
"Yeah, Rei really is a unique existence," Sandalphon smiled warmly, her gaze fixed on Rei as well.
"My~ even as a girl, Rei still manages to capture someone's heart." Rosetta laughed again, remembering how an alternate timeline Lyria had shared stories about how Rei constantly charmed many women.
"Yeah, you wouldn't believe how many times Rei manage to win over girls' hearts every time we visit a new island." Lyria added with a playful smile.
Not only were Sandalphon and Rosetta there, but all the other women in the group were also helping Rei with the cooking, except for Katalina, who was forbidden from entering the kitchen.
Meanwhile, the men had gathered elsewhere, talking among themselves about other topic.
"What do you think the girls are talking about?" Rackam whispered to the others.
"I don't know, and I don't *want* to know. It'll just cause chaos if we try to eavesdrop." Gran replied while setting the table for everyone.
"Hahaha! Nice, Gran! You already know how to handle women!" Eugen laughed, impressed with Gran's response.
Meanwhile, Rei was happily humming to herself while tending to the barbecue. "Hum~ hum~ hum~ It's been a while since I've made barbecue. Last time was probably during New Year's with my family." she smiled, watching the meat grill to perfection.
"Do we need more vegetables, Rei?" Malluel asked.
"How much do we have?"
"Probably enough. I'm sure people will prefer the meat over the vegetables." Halluel chimed in.
"Hmm... Yeah, you're probably right. And this is a vacation, so it's fine to let them eat as much meat as they want until they're satisfied."
A little while later, the cooking was finished, and everyone gathered around the large dining table that was big enough to accommodate the group.
"Here's the last one." Rei said, placing down a plate piled high with meat.
"Woah, everything looks so delicious!" Lyria² exclaimed, her eyes wide with amazement at the feast.
"Yeah, it's been a while since we've had a spread like this." Vyrn added, his eyes sparkling as he wiped away the drool that had started to drip from his mouth.
"Alright, everyone, enjoy your meal!" Rei said happily to everyone after placing down the last dish.
"Yeahhh!" they all cheered with joy and started eating happily.
"This is really delicious!" Lyria² said as she bit into her meat.
"Yeah, yeah, this is really good!" Some of the others started praising the food while enjoying it.
"I'm glad everyone likes it." Rei smiled and began to walk away, intending to go somewhere else.
But just as she was about to leave, Gran stopped her by asking, "Where are you going, Rei? Aren't you going to eat?"
"No, I'm fine. I'm just going to take a rest on the deckchair behind the villa." she said, heading out without waiting for Gran's response.
Rei walked out, leaving the lively atmosphere behind as she headed toward the deckchairs behind the villa. The sound of laughter and chatter from the group faded as she stepped into the calm night, the cool breeze from the ocean gently brushing against her skin.
She finally found a spot, sat down, and let out a small sigh. The night sky above her was clear, stars twinkling brightly. For a moment, she just closed her eyes, taking in the serenity.
"*I still need to find a way to fix my body... But I'm just gonna do that after I'm done with this vacation.*" she thought, feeling her body relax after a long day of playing and cooking.
Seeing Rei leave like that made Lyria and the others worry that something might be wrong, but since both Lyria and Orchid couldn't sense anything unusual, they figured Rei was just tired and needed to rest, especially after not having slept since she turned into a girl.
So, they decided to continue eating, chatting about random things until they were finished.
"Ahhh, I'm so full…" Io said, patting her now full stomach.
"I hope I don't get fat after eating that much meat." Katalina said.
"I'll help clean up the table and bring us something to drink. Does anyone want to request a specific drink?" Rosetta asked them.
Everyone then made their drink requests to Rosetta, and a few of them decided to help her clean up the table as well.
Now, they were all sitting together, sipping their drinks and chatting about various topics. Then, out of the blue, Katalina decided to ask something.
"You mentioned that Rei keeps charming a lot of girls, right? Do you know what kind of girls have already fallen head over heels for her?"
Hearing that, everyone immediately turned to Lyria, curiosity gleaming in their eyes, waiting for her answer.
"Eh? Hmm…" Lyria was a bit startled by Katalina's question but soon began recalling who had fallen for Rei.
"There's me, Djeeta... probably Narmaya, based on how she acts, also Vira..." Lyria counted on her fingers, but when she mentioned Narmaya and Vira, everyone was shocked.
Especially Katalina when she heard Vira's name. "What—!? Vira!?"
"Vira!? The same Vira? The crazy chick that's obsessed with Katalina!?" Vyrn was visibly taken aback.
"Huh?" Lyria looked confused by their reactions. "Why is everyone so surprised?"
"Umm, Lyria... you know Vira, right? The Lord of Albion Citadel Vira? The... how do I put this... *unique* Vira?" Gran clarified, unsure how to phrase it delicately.
"Yeah, I know she's the Lord of Albion Citadel when we met her before." Lyria nodded, still looking a bit puzzled.
"And you're telling me that the Vira you know is in love with Rei? The *male* Rei we met before?" Gran asked again for clarity.
"Yeah, she was always clinging to Rei when we stayed at Albion for a week. Even when we were leaving her island, she seemed really sad and... kissed Rei for a really long time."
"...Alright, can you tell us about your journey? Like, the whole story until you arrived here?" Rackam asked, now intrigued by the unexpected twists.
"Sure!" Lyria cheerfully agreed, ready to tell them everything.
~~~~~~
After that, Lyria began telling them everything that had happened since her journey started—from her meeting with Rei, Djeeta, and Vyrn on Zinkenstill Island, all the way to Rei summoning Akasha.
"There were times when Rei would suddenly disappear, and I don't know what he was doing during those moments. Maybe he was making another girl fall for him again." Lyria said with a playful tone.
Everyone sat in silence, processing the story Lyria had just shared.
It sounded like their own experiences, but in Lyria's world, everything had been resolved much faster. Even before Akasha was summoned, they had already dealt with the issues involving the Erste Empire.
"Just one person made such a huge difference." Katalina mumbled to herself, amazed by how things had changed.
"I mean, he's not exactly a *normal* person, considering he's an Astral." Rosetta added thoughtfully.
"So, Rei currently has someone inside her body right now?" Io asked Lyria, curious about the situation.
"Yeah, Ferry is inside his body so her body adjust to Celeste's power, since she's now has Celeste's power within her."
"That's really interesting. It makes you wonder why Rei suddenly got transported to the Sky Realm in the first place." Sandalphon remarked, breaking her usual silence.
"Usually, when someone accidentally ends up in the Sky Realm, they get sent back to their own world not long after." she continued.
"Yeah, it's probably the Omnipotent's will, or something." Halluel suggested with a shrug.
"Well, I don't think too much about it. After all, that's how I got to meet Rei!" Lyria smiled gently, clearly happy about the unexpected turn of events.
"By the way, where is Rei?" Orchid suddenly asked, looking around.
"Huh?" Everyone paused, realizing Rei had been gone for a while.
Not long after, they suddenly heard someone approaching. "Hey everyone, I'm already done preparing the fireworks," Rei said to them.
"What? You prepared it by yourself!? You know you can ask us for help, right!?" Katalina stood up from her chair and walked over to Rei.
"It's fine, I didn't have anything else to do, so I just made the fireworks."
"Well, since they're already prepared, let's go use them!" Malluel said excitedly, eager to see the fireworks.
After that, they all started walking to the back of the villa, where Rei, still in her female body, had set up the fireworks.
They could see many fireworks lined up neatly in front of them, and they began lighting them one by one with joy.
Meanwhile, Rei returned to her deck chair to sit and watch everyone.
As she observed them, her thoughts wandered back to figuring out how to properly use her Astral powers.
"Looks like I don't have another choice except to just ask him..." Rei murmured reluctantly, not thrilled about the idea of asking for his help, but she wanted some clue on how to properly use her powers.
So, she decided to close her eyes and lean back on the deck chair, focusing on what she intended to do.
Slowly, the sound of fireworks and the joyful voices of the others faded away, becoming silent until they vanished completely.
Rei could feel herself being transported somewhere else. She opened her eyes and saw a small building, just large enough for one room.
Around her was nothing but darkness, except for the building in front of her.
"Hahhh... Here we go again," Rei sighed, then began walking toward the building.
Inside the small, dimly lit room, the atmosphere felt both familiar and unsettling. The scent of the coffee lingered in the air, warm and inviting, yet the silence around her was suffocating.
The air felt heavier with each step she took, Rei stared at the coffee cup, staring into its dark surface then, from the shadowy corner of the room, a faint but familiar voice broke the silence.
"It's rare for you to come here by yourself." she heard Lucillus's voice from there.
She immediately turned around, facing him while being really cautious. "Why are you surprised? Don't you always force me to come here and listen to your monologue?"
Hearing her response made Lucillus smile. He walked over to the chair beside his coffee and sat down.
"Looks like you're still stuck in that body. Still don't understand how to use our power properly?"
"That's the reason I'm here. How do I fix this?"
Lucillus smiled mockingly at her before picking up his coffee and taking a sip.
Rei remained silent, waiting for his answer, her eyes fixed on him.
"Let me put it this way." he suddenly said after finishing his coffee.
"You want to use our power, but you keep rejecting your own nature as an Astral."
"You mean I need to accept my power? And risk losing control?"
"It's not losing control. That's your true nature. Your life as a human for almost 20 years has been holding you back. You're the only Astral who has ever existed that rejects their own nature."
Rei suddenly remembered the vision she once had, where Lyria, Djeeta, and the others died at her hands, causing her to reply firmly.
"No, I will never do that. Even if I have to stay stuck in this body, I don't care."
Lucillus let out a small laugh, his eyes gleaming with amusement as he set down the empty cup. "That's exactly what I mean. You're so adamant about clinging to your humanity that you refuse to accept what you truly are."
Rei's fists clenched, her gaze unwavering. "I'm not like you or the others. I won't become indifferent arrogant about anything just because I'm an Astral."
Lucillus leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms as if he found her defiance amusing. "You misunderstand. Rejecting your power doesn't make you human. It just makes you weak."
Rei felt a surge of frustration but kept her composure. "Maybe being weak is better than losing control. I've seen what happens when Astrals stop caring about anything but experiment and satisfying their curiosity. I won't let that happen to me."
Lucillus leaned forward, his expression growing serious. "You're afraid of what you saw. That vision, those memories—they're not inevitable. But if you keep fighting against your true self, you'll never understand your potential, and that fear will consume you."
Rei shook her head, refusing to accept his words.
Lucillus sighed, standing up from his seat. He began to walk around the room, his voice echoing as he walking. "The longer you resist, the harder it will be to control. You'll see that soon enough."
Rei keep watching him, her heart heavy with the weight of his words. She knew he wasn't entirely wrong, but she couldn't shake the fear of what she might become if she fully embraced her Astral nature.
Sitting down on the empty chair Lucillus had vacated, Rei let out a deep breath. "*Is there really no other way?*" she wondered to herself.
"You already met with Belial, right? If you're still curious, go meet him. He can definitely answer all the questions you have," Lucillus suddenly said.
"Belial? Like hell I want to meet that weird guy."
"I agree he's weird, but he has his uses and is a pretty good companion to have because of how loyal he is."
"But for now..." Lucillus raised his hand toward Rei, and from his palm emerged purple lightning with a hint of silver.
"What are you doing?" Rei asked, preparing to dodge whatever Lucillus was planning.
"It's kind of disturbing seeing our body like that, so..." The lightning in his hand shot toward Rei, striking her body with incredible speed.
Rei couldn't avoid the strike because of how fast it was, and all she could do was brace herself for the pain she thought would follow.
But nothing happened... She didn't feel any pain, just the electricity surrounding her body before it seeped inside.
Soon, her body began to glow and started changing. She grew taller, her chest flattened, and her hair became shorter.
As the glow faded, Rei realized his body had returned to normal. "Wha—!?"
"I'm back! Finally, my body is back!" Rei exclaimed joyfully, relieved to see his body had returned to normal.
"Now get out of here," Lucillus said, promptly throwing Rei out of the space and making him disappear.
Once Rei was gone, Lucillus found himself alone in the dim room, accompanied only by his empty coffee cup and the surrounding plants.
"Really regretting using the Phoenix method to get out of that place right now... I should have just listened to Belial and waited." Lucillus muttered, shaking his head.
He glanced at the empty coffee cup, then began to leave to brew another cup with his powers.