Life After You

I follow Aziel to his room. The setup of his room is a familiar sight—all Messengers’ rooms are regular-looking dorm rooms, as per Zeph’s instructions. The rationale is that they should not become attached to their afterlife to the point of being unwilling to spend their wisdom points.

So that they will not do what he has done.

Aziel is a pragmatic person. As soon as I close the door behind me, he opens his hand, a magnifying glass appearing in it.

Delilah: “You’re not going to throw a dart at me afterward as some form of reflex, right?”

Aziel: “Only if you act stupid.”

In the game, Aziel is a strong support unit—not a healer; Mykel is the healer. Aziel’s magnifying glass finds truth whenever and wherever he seeks, easily locating the enemies’ strengths and weaknesses. His skills enhance allies’ power while diminishing the enemies’. He throws his darts at his targets when he has to do more than stand at the back and expose his enemies.

I fold my hands together in front of myself. Standing in front of such a powerful weapon is a little nerve-racking.

Aziel: “Relax, envoy. I’m not about to make the biggest mistake of my afterlife by killing our manager’s beloved.”

I chuckle bitterly, and shrug.

Aziel lifts his magnifying glass and waves it over me from a distance. His brows furrow as he studies me, and I only stand there, not knowing what he is seeing.

A minute later, Aziel looks up from his magnifying glass, crossing his arms again. As he does, the magnifying glass vanishes into thin air.

He sighs.

Aziel: “It is you, but it isn’t you.”

Delilah: “What does that even mean?”

He sits on his bed, then nods at a chair nearby. I take a seat.

Aziel: “It was your brother who allegedly cracked into this world, yeah?”

I nod.

Aziel: “I found traces of that on you, but your connection was only a catalyst, not the main cause. Hm...picture the barrier as plastic wrap. Your connection to your brother is like a poke with a toothpick, but the plastic wrap was already worn and cracked by the time that poke happened.”

I nod along, narrowing my eyes at the complication of it all. If what Aziel says is accurate, that means that my coming here is not the only factor affecting everything that has been different from what I knew the game to be.

Delilah: “Does that mean everything else rests with Rehan’s forgotten memories?”

I mumble, looking down at my hands.

Aziel: “I don’t think so.”

At this comment, I perk back up again, curious.

Aziel: “Zeph knew about Rehan’s barrier, didn’t he?”

Delilah: “...”

Delilah: “...!”

Aziel grins when he sees my reaction.

Delilah: “Does that mean we can find out about it without awakening Rehan’s memories?”

Aziel stands up, walking to the door. I follow him.

Aziel: “Smarter than I thought, envoy.”

[Points system has been annulled.]

[Error: points system has been annulled.]

My eyes widen in horror. As they do, my gaze is still on Aziel. I don’t expect him to react, since system messages are only seen by—

Aziel: “What was that?”

Delilah: “You...you see it?”

The condescending smile fades from his face. Aziel opens the door and heads outside.

Aziel: “I hope that’s just because I know about this world being a game now, because if an ‘error’ message means the world is breaking down...”

Delilah: “...”

Aziel: “That’s the most convenient way to kill all of us. And I don’t think it makes a difference which world you’re from then.”

Aziel and I bolt out of his room and run for the railing. Without saying it out loud, our consensus is to check to see if Zeph and Rehan are still in the garden. Before I reach the railing, Aziel holds out an arm to stop me from going any further. From where I stand, I barely see a serious Zeph and terrified Rehan in the garden.

Without saying anything at all or even giving me a warning, Aziel spins around and takes me into his arms. Just as he lifts me off the ground, the building begins to shake.

I hold on to him, useless at that moment. Having felt it, he glances at me briefly, his golden eyes glinting with approval.

Then, he jumps.

I can’t even scream. I simply tense up in his arms, my mind blank. Mid-air, Aziel lets go, tossing me away. Before I can comprehend the situation, I land in someone else’s arms—Zeph’s arms, I recognize by the touch.

Even though I’m the only one who feels it to be familiar.

We land on the grass. I look up to see the concern in Zeph’s eyes, and I almost mistake him for the Zeph that knew me.

Zeph: “You good?”

I nod.

Immediately, he glances to his left—in Rehan’s direction. I follow his gaze to find that Rehan is focused on holding the building together with his threads, at least until everyone inside has fled.

Then, I shift my gaze to the spot where Aziel had been before he tossed me away. He has just landed—perfectly, on his feet, with his hands on his sides supporting his weight. Our eyes meet for a split second before he turns back to the building. He takes a few steps back, his magnifying glass materializing in his hand. Aziel waves it over the building, then points to its left.

In response, Rehan’s threads spread to the left of the building, holding together a crack that I cannot see.

From within the building, golden beams of light shoot out, shaped like a slide. The remainder of the people inside slide to the outside on those beams. It looks like the beams are not actually touching the building—Rehan can repair the building without being influenced by the additional weight. The light only disappears when everyone is out, and its caster, Kendric, slides down standing up as if he is on a skateboard.

A soothing tune echoes in the atmosphere, traveling through the anxious murmurs and panicked sobs. I look to see Mykel, playing his flute at the back.

Finally, I turn back to Zeph.

Expectedly, he has a dark expression on his face.

At that moment, I forget that he doesn’t know me.

I wrap my arms around him from behind, the same way I did that time in Pistevo’s world when I found him staring blankly into the ceiling. Back then, he’d gone to prepare our takeout pizza and froze—perhaps deliberately—at the mention of what he had just done. It was his way of communicating to me that he needed me, right then.

Delilah: But we’re not...

As I begin to realize this, my arms loosen around him. Before I can pull away, though, he takes my hands in his.

I look up.

Zeph: “You’re not going to say anything?”

He asks quietly.

Delilah: Does he know what I was thinking when I did that?

Delilah: “Your power isn’t a curse.”

Zeph: “...”

Everyone else is using their powers to help with the situation, but Zeph’s powers—the fumes of vengeance—are best for damage...of all kinds. It does not help, it does not mend, it does not heal.

Zeph: “Did the me who you loved believe those words?”

Delilah: “No.”

He releases me, then turns around to look at me.

Delilah: “I think he came to terms with it.”

He smiles, a bit bitterly.

Zeph: “Pft...well, that’s even better, isn’t it?”