After saying those words, Anophynos and I started talking about the new world I would be reborn in, Daraksis. It was a lush world filled with a multitude of cultures and races. The continent we would be looking at was Tylga, the largest continent on Daraksis. The goddess explained a few of the lands and races while we discussed where i would end up.
In the north is the land of Arcane. It houses the Elves, who view magic as their lifeblood. They reject most other races, however they do view druids and magicians more favorably than anyone else. They're ruled by a matriarch voted in by their council of elders, who rules for 100 years.
To the east is the land of Dhaar. It's ruled by the Beastmen, a conglomeration of numerous humanoid races that share features with demonic beasts. They are the most accepting of any race, due to the prejudice commonly held against them. They are ruled by a council of 13 elders, all of whom are elected by the general populace for life.
West is the land of Cavar. Ruled by the Dwarves, It is a kingdom of steel and metalsmithing. At the top of it all stands the Dwarven King, who is the best blacksmith in the entirety of Daraksis. When a Dwarf does not hold this title, it goes to whoever does, no matter the race.
South of the continent stands Adrami, the land of Humans. With a multitude of kingdoms, its the most split of all the nations. The only thing keeping it together are the heroes that have come from there.
Finally, in the middle of the entire continent is the land of the demonic beasts. Each of the continents holds a sealing pillar to seal off this continent, whose name has long been forgotten in history books. Every thousand years, a new hero emerges from each nation to renew the seal, and keep the demonic beasts at bay.
"With all that information," Anophynos says, "Do you have any more questions, or is there a place you've decided you want to go?"
Thinking it over, I realized I do have a few questions I would need the answers to before i could truly decide.
"I do actually have a few. First, is this world dangerous? Second, will I be one of the heroes that you mentioned? Third, why are there so many different races and nations? Fourth..."
"Wait!" The goddess cried out. "At least give me some time to answer. In response to your first question, yes. the world will be slightly dangerous. But after we find which nation you'll go to, I'll find a safe place with strong parents so you won't be in too much danger. Second, you won't be one of the heroes. those are decided by someone else, I just handle you because of our bet. As for your third question, It's how most worlds are. Yours was just a bit of an anomaly. Any others?"
With those questions answered, I had a lot of the worries that were plaguing me reduced. I didn't want anything like what happened before to happen again.
"I don't think I have any other questions in that regard, Goddess." I stated. "However, I'm still not sure which race would suit me best."
Anophynos opened her mouth to speak, before stopping and going into thought.
"I can understand why you feel that way. In that case, I'll put it in simple terms. When you are sent to Daraksis, you'll be sent into the body of a newborn child and your soul will combine with that body, so you will learn how to operate the body the same way a normal child would, so you don't have to worry about Beastmen or Dwarves in that sense. Elves and Humans are very similar to what you're used to already, however Elves do have another sense in regards to their connection with nature. However you want to choose, all paths will lead you down a path that will give you a new life, with choosing Humans giving you a life closest to what you had before."
Hearing what Anophynos said, I realized that Human was the worst choice out of the four. It would remind me the most of what had happened, and what haunted me. Next off the list was Dwarves. Out of all the races, one all about blacksmithing wouldn't suit me. All that was left was Elves and Beastmen.
"Goddess," I started to ask. "which would you recommend more, the Elves or the Beastmen?"
"In regards to which is better for you, or which is the better race?" the Goddess responded quickly to her own question. "Out of all of them, the Beastmen will be best for you, because of the stark differences between your Human self and the Beastmen. In regards to the latter question, there isn't a true answer. Each race has their own upsides, so none is truly a better race than the rest."
"Then I'll follow you're recommendation, Goddess." I quickly thanked her for what she had done for me.
She accepted my thanks, and continued. "Since you have chosen, our time together has come to it's end. Soon, you'll be sent down to inhabit the body of a stillborn Beastman, where you will become the child of 2 powerful adventurers, and begin our bet. If you ever need advice, remember that you can create a shrine to me and I'll answer, or visit one of my temples. When we meet again, you'll finally have a name you can call yourself, rather than just dead."
"Thank you again, Goddess," I said. "I'll make sure to tell you my name when we meet again."
As soon as I said that, I felt myself being pulled away. I looked towards Anophynos, as she smiled and waved. I was going to Daraksis to live a new life given to me by the Goddess of Hope.