Chapter 216: Chapter 216 - Marriage of Body and Soul
A warm, dark, never-ending field...
The ground is soft, like... is this grass? Though there’s no grass with this specific texture.
It’s all dark on dark, so I can’t tell anything apart visually. I mean, there is one thing I can tell apart.
The ground, and whatever’s on it, is slightly darker than the ’sky’ or whatever passes as a sky in this realm.
Oh, so this is no grass, because plants need sunlight. So this would be some sort of dark elemental, grass-like... thing?
Its texture is smooth and gentle to the touch. Which is quite surprising for a dark realm. Anyway, why am I here to begin with? I was with Yaci a few... oh.
I remember now. We were ambushed.
Am I dead? Is this death? Like proper death, the reincarnationless type?
My two arms are properly attached to my body, though. And there’s no injury in my chest. Also, no pain. Or clothing, for that matter.
But my body is definitely corporeal. It has reality... or has it?
I feel no pain, no matter how many times I pinch myself.
I try to activate my dark vision skill, but nothing happens. I try to open the System’s UI, and also nothing happens. It’s like it never existed.
Which means I’m not in that world, after all. So I might be already dead, after all.
The dark element is the concept of ’ending’ in itself. Which means it is also death. But...
"Aurea? Aurea!"
This voice...
"Lovelace! I am here! Can you hear me?"
Yet no answer comes... Am I in some sort of bubble universe or something?
"Aurea... Finally, I found you."
The voice comes from behind me. It’s most definitely Lovelace’s voice, but when I turn to look at her...
A scorpion. Several times bigger than the one she was when I fought her.
"It’s okay. I’m here. Everything will be fine."
"Lovelace... is that you?"
I’m somehow able to see the form of the scorpion very distinctly, even though it’s just another shade of pure darkness. I wonder how that works... as I’m not able to tell the ’grass’ from anything else.
"Yes... this is my true form. Quite the weirdo you chose to date, ain’t it?"
"Your... true form."
Her semblance in this dark realm doesn’t frighten me nor bring any bad feelings at all. On the contrary, it’s almost... soothing? Warm? I don’t know how to explain it.
"I like it. It’s not like I never knew you were a scorpion to begin with. But... am I dead? What is this place?"
"Right. It’s just like you to ask that... But please, let’s talk about that later. For now, I need you to come back. There are people waiting for you."
"Come back? How?"
"I’m not sure... I just know that it is possible. So, please... you have to try. I can’t bring you myself."
"Maybe if I try to follow you? You know how to go yourself, right?"
"I... yes, that might work."
Her form starts to fade out, like a video transition in which the previous frame is ’sucked’ into a point on the screen.
But thanks to that, I can see that point now. It has light pouring, though very faint.
I lock my eyes onto that light. I don’t think that physically walking to it would work, so it’s more of a ’focusing all my will and consciousness into that single point’ kind of thing.
Now all those stories about people being brought back from the realm of the dead failing because they looked back make sense. It isn’t punishment. It’s because the path itself only exists while you see it.
Thinking that I might really be dead makes that light dim and blink, so I put that idea aside and renew my concentration.
Inhale.
There’s no me. There’s no world. Only the point exists.
Exhale.
Empty the mind of any distractions. Silence the internal dialogue.
Inhale.
There is no emptiness, for existence is fulfillment. Fill the mind with the point.
Exhale.
Bring the point closer. Increase it. Open it.
Inhale.
Feel it. Feel the light coming from it. Attune to that light.
Exhale.
[click]
"Gasp!"
"Aurea!"
"Aurea, you’re back!"
"Aureaaaaaa!!!"
Huh?
What’s this...? Ugh, it hurts. There’s... oh, I have my eyes closed.
"Yaci..."
The first thing I see when I open my eyes is her tearful face. By the looks of it, she has been crying for some time now.
"I’m so happy you’re back..."
And the other voices...
"Ingela, Lovelace... Mom? Oh... Yaci, it’s hurting a little bit..."
She has probably thrown herself over me as soon as I gasped. I appreciate the feeling, but it’s a bit uncomfortable.
"Oh, I’m sorry. I’m just so glad."
She sits back up. I try to do the same, but my body barely moves.
"Don’t try to move yet, my love. None of us know how resurrection works, as nobody has ever pulled it off before. But I knew that if anyone would be able to pull it off, it would have been you."
That is Lovelace’s voice. All I can do is move my head a bit to see her better. At least I can speak.
"Was I actually... dead?"
"Yes. Your mother here helped me reach the netherworld and find your soul there. But you were the one who resurrected yourself."
"I’m so proud of you, my dear... and so happy to see you alive."
"Mom..."
There’s something in my hand... something warm. Wha... oh. It’s a hand.
"Yes, I am holding your hand now, my lovely daughter. Now you need to rest. Take your time to recover control over your body. Don’t push yourself, please."
"I agree, Aurea. Don’t push it. You need to recover your energy. Full
re-coupling of your soul and your body might take some time."
Re-coupling of body and soul... those words really drive home the notion that I was actually dead.
"How long was I...?"
"Just an hour or so. Don’t worry, as I’ve stopped decomposition altogether. So just do as Lovelace said and recover your energy. We’ll talk after that."
"You all heard the Saint. Let’s head out and let her rest."
Rest...
It’s nice to be alive. And it’s even better to have such lovable people around me.
:::
The whole ’re-coupling,’ as Lovelace put it, took a bit longer than I imagined. No matter what techniques I tried with meditation, controlled breathing, and all the etcetera, nothing seemed to speed it up.
I was out of commission for a whole day before I managed for the first time to sit and eat solid food. But, after that point, full recovery was quite quick.
That’s why I’m already in the dining hall of my manor, eating with everyone.
"So, how did you appear there, Lovelace?"
"Well, your mother contacted Head Priestess Ledda Swanhildi, who hurried to the army’s headquarters and got a portal to this place. She then told me that you were in danger, and I created a portal directly to you."
"Luckily I was in the manor at that moment, taking breakfast before going to the office. So I jumped in along with the two of them."
"Yeah, Ingela used her magic to block the angels while I retrieved you and Yaci. Ledda used on-the-spot healing, but you were already dead at that point. She was able to stabilize Yaci while I was hauling the two of you back to the portal, though."
"And the angels?"
"They didn’t try to follow through. When they saw that we would be able to escape, they simply gave up and disappeared."
Lovelace’s words are a relief for me. I’m glad that nobody else had to fight them. And that they didn’t try to invade us here.
"Good. That’s good."
"Aurea."
"Huh?"
I’ve seen Yaci angry before, but I don’t remember ever seeing her voice so grave and domineering.
"I don’t want to feel like that ever again. So please, don’t go dying on me again."
Her words have the gravity of a ’that’s an order’ phrase.
"Uhh... I’ll do my best. I can’t guarantee that, because I’m a mortal, after all."
"I won’t accept excuses. Just. Don’t. Die."
Eeeeeeeeh???
How was that my fault?
"There, there, Yaci. I really don’t think that she did that on purpose."
"I know... I was just so worried... When I saw the sword in your chest... I just... It was too unbearable... I..."
She doesn’t finish the phrase, as the tears are again trailing down her face and her voice fails. So, instead, she just jumps on me.
Huh???
Surprise hug attack? Nevermind. This is just how I like her, with all her impulsivity. And I love those hugs out of the blue, so I’m not complaining either.
"I’m okay, Yaci... I’m okay... And also. I think that I know the path back if this ever happens again."
She releases the hug a little bit so she can look me in the face.
"Don’t you ever dare. I just said I dont want to-"
Sometimes we have to silence someone using our own lips.