Tokita sat on the bed, trying to organize his thoughts.
— Anyway... do any of you at least remember who I am?
They tilted their heads, confused. They replied in unison:
— Of course we remember, you are Sun!
— Looks like I'll have to say it all again... Can we meet at the dining hall? I want to talk to dad and mom as well.
Nocus said:
— Say it all again...? Dad and mom are sleeping right now, so...
— Then we can do that tomorrow morning.
Burier sounded concerned:
— But, young master, my skin is sensitive to sunlight... Your will is still my duty, so I'll comply nonetheless.
— Ah, I forgot about that... I can talk to you two now, then I'll meet my parents tomorrow.
Nocus began to worry:
— Big bro, are you alright? You look conflicted...
— Yeah, I'm okay. I still can't believe I died in the real world, so this is pretty shocking to me.
— You died in the real world...? What does that mean?
— I'm not sure if I really died, but this isn't my original reality. This world, everything in it, is a creation of mine.
They tried to understand his words. Burier answered after a few seconds:
— So you are an impostor?
— Wait, do you believe in me? Don't you think I'm joking?
— No, I believe in everything my master says. I take it as a fact if he trusts me his word. But it's a paradox, don't you think? If you are an impostor, I shouldn't believe in you.
— Yes, I am an impostor... Sun is the main character of a fictional world I created. Nothing here... is real.
Nocus was clearly offended by that sentence.
— Nothing here is real...? Do you have any idea of what you're saying?
— Yes, because it's true. I'm probably dreaming or delirious as the life I always wanted flashes before my eyes.
She slapped him on the face violently.
— Do you really think this is not real?! So my entire life was a lie? My brother never really existed? Everything happened for no reason at all, but to satisfy your broken ego?!
He stared at her in disbelief. He glanced at Burier, who couldn't look at him in the eye. Nocus recomposed herself.
— I'm not saying this is all your fault in a negative way... I just can't believe you thought of us as mere toys. This world may not be real to you, but it is to us. You can't just say that...
She broke into tears.
— W-Wait, I'm sorry, Nocus... I didn't think you would react this way...
— React this way? You didn't predict this event, huh? Does that mean that not even my creator understands me?
— N-No, please! If this makes you feel better, I tried to kill myself, but it didn't work. I'm still trapped inside your brother's body, so I can take his place! His personality is based on mine, so we're basically the same!
She stopped crying and looked into his eyes. Pure hatred and disgust were all he could see in her eyes.
— Basically the same...? Do you think my brother was disposable? That you can take his place just because you have his body? That being similar is the same as being the person?
Huh? I thought she would want me to pretend I'm her brother...
She stood up slowly and walked towards the door. She stopped beside Burier, who was leaning against the wall next to the door. Without turning around, she said in a voice of someone who lost all her interest in a subject:
— I really thought my brother had come back from the dead to fix his stupid mistake. I don't care anymore. You can die again. No one will miss you.
She left. Burier was watching everything in silence. She could not interrupt her masters' discussion, but she also didn't have a reason to.
— Burier, I'm sorry...
— Of what? You're still my master.
— R-Really? So you still trust me?
— As an obligation, yes. But servants can hate their masters as much as they want.
— I see...
— No, you don't. Please stop pretending to know people, master.
She walked away, waving as she turned.
Tokita was now aimless. He had no goal, as always, but this time was different. There were so many amazing things to try, but he didn't know what he wanted anymore.
What if they're right? I never thought of them as human beings, to begin with... What if God sees me as a toy to pass their time?
Tokita looked in the large mirror that was in Nocus' room. He finally got to see his face. He had orange short hair and blue eyes. Tears rolled down his face subconsciously. He had just been rejected by his own family, after all. Even worse, his own children told him to die.
I want to, but I think something or someone stopped the spell from working... I'll talk to Albert and Nefina tomorrow... I just need some rest...
He fell asleep. He forgot that Sun and Nocus sleeped in separate rooms, for privacy reasons. He was in Nocus's room, but he didn't really care. He was too tired to care about useless things. Except himself, of course.
Sun, wake up. It's noon.
— Sun? Are you still tired? You should be radiant right now, just like the sun.
— Uhh...?
He opened his eyes after what seemed like seconds. He was still tired. The woman waking him up looked very young. She had short, messy pink hair.
— Nefina...?
— Why yes, I'm your mother. Do you want to skip lunch?
— No, wait... I wanted to talk to you two anyway.
They arrived at the dining room. It was so absurdly large and tall that less than 10% of the area was actually useful. The rest was decorations and more decorations.
— Oh, my Sun! You look like a beggar...
The man who recognized him was old. He had grey hair and beard, blue eyes and was a very distinguished gentleman.
— Albert, this is no time for jokes...
— Hoho, you got it? But tell me, my son, why the long face?
They sat on nearby chairs. The massive table was empty, because it had already been used. The staff and guests were in other rooms or had left.
— Don't you have anything to say to me? Like, don't you realize anything different with me?
The mother replied:
— Nocus said you were our creator, not Sun. But we didn't understand it very well...
— This makes things easier for me. What she said is true, I am not your son. I did not come back from the dead. I think.
— Uh? What do you mean?
— I mean that I don't know what happened to my real world self. I just went to sleep and woke up here.
— Real world...? I think I understand now why Nocus was so upset...
— Sorry, I'm not used to this world yet. But I know it is real. Nocus opened my eyes to that question.
— Why don't you apologize to her later?
— I will, but first I need your help.
They paid more attention to what he was about to ask them.
— I woke up inside a coffin buried deep in our graveyard. Did Burier or anyone else cast a spell on that coffin? Because my soul was probably dragged into Sun's dead body.
They both thought for some seconds. Albert replied:
— Burier never lets anyone near the dead without our permission. She also checks corpses, coffins and the graveyard frequently.
— That's why she was sniffing my dead body in the morgue... Wait, who made that coffin?
— We made you a coffin beforehand, but we never used it.
— Wait, what?
The mother answered:
— We left it to catch dust because we never wanted to use it. We had it just in case.
— So it never left the warehouse?
— No, it's still there...
They went to the warehouse. They guided him to his future coffin and removed the large cloth that covered it.
It has my name... The texture of the wood feels the same...
— It may have been cloned, but I think it's the coffin I was trapped in.
They were shocked. Nefina asked:
— But how? You never left the morgue after you died. Besides, the coffin has never been used...
— And before I died? Have I ever been buried alive?
— No... We would never let that happen. Burier only buries people who are certainly dead.
— I was at our graveyard, so I guess she buried me after some time at the morgue...
Albert confirmed it:
— That's right. Burier always waits at least two weeks to confirm that the person is dead and will not come back to life.
Wait, that's it!
— If my information doesn't match yours, it must mean I'm in an alternate reality!
— What?!
Both of them were even more surprised.
— I mean, it's not impossible, right? I've traveled between worlds once.
A voice came from the entrance of the warehouse.
— Were the two worlds different?
— Huh? Nocus?
She was leaning against the massive doorframe.
— No, I think... they were very similar, except that I woke up at different times.
— So you're the divergence point? That's probably time travel, not dimensional travel.
— Time travel...?
He looked at his hands, amazed by his newfound power.
Did I really travel back in time? I did not give Sun that power... what if it's entirely mine? But it happened automatically, so there's a condition... wait, a condition!
— Nocus, I said Burier killed me yesterday. Is her spell flawless?
— Yes, why?
— I think someone stopped me from dying by making me travel back in time.
Everyone was stunned by the revelation.
When I woke up, I heard a woman mentioning the number 7... It was not Burier's voice. Maybe she's the one playing with me.
Tokita looked at his parents.
— Do you know anyone who can do that?
Albert, worried, replied:
— I don't know anyone who can do that, directly. I've heard rumors about the strongest wizards and heroes being almost omnipotent. If they're targeting you, it's not for a good reason...
— She must be the one who dragged me into Sun's body too.
— "She"?
Shit, I've said too much!
— I think she's a woman, just a hypothesis. It was revealed to me in a dream.
They were suspicious at first, but then they trusted his word.
— Sun, I know someone who can exchange powerful information.
— The Trader? Nah, I think he would charge you everything you have.
— How did you know I was talking about him?
— I created him, remember? He's an important character in my story.
— What about the supporting characters?
— I don't know, maybe they were filled with randomness.
Shit, I said too much again!
He nervously turned around to see Nocus. She frowned, but she wasn't as angry as before.
— I'm not saying they are not important. I just think the gaps were filled, that's all.
Albert proposed:
— Well, why don't you find that out yourself? The Guild Association is surely full of randomness. They probably have that kind of information, it's just really hard to get.
Nefina smiled and added:
— Nocus can go with you.
They both looked at each other, surprised by the sudden suggestion. Nocus sighed, kind of disappointed.
— Let's go, big bro.