Navia momentarily flinched.
'Now that I think about it, I haven't even greeted her.'
"……Hello?"
It was a bit late, but she bowed to the stuffed rabbit anyway.
Then Nyx looked at Navia up and down, walking around her. Tilting her head in curiosity, she said:
- Hmm. You're quite small.
It didn't seem like an appropriate comment for a toy half her size, but
Navia just stood there quietly.
- This baby is my avatar. My first avatar, to be exact.
Twinkle, twinkle.
His eyes, made of blue topaz, sparkled brightly.
- To think this baby could make a contract with the great me...
Nyx crossed his short arms with difficulty and puffed out his belly.
- I like her a lot.
Lark's eyebrows twitched at this.
"Don't give my baby any crap."
Like a kangaroo tucking her joey into her pocket, Lark embraced Navia in her coat, hiding everything but her face.
Navia, although this wasn't the most important matter, couldn't help but protest.
"I'm not a baby."
Of course, the two paid her no attention.
- She's my avatar, so she's my baby. Didn't you know I made her live in this world?
"I gave birth to her."
- Camilla gave birth to her, not you!
Is this really the level of conversation between a god and her avatar?
Navia briefly looked out the window, waiting for their meaningless argument to end.
- Anyway.
Nyx suddenly became serious.
- The gods of this world are uncomfortable with your existence. Even without revealing your divinity, just by being, you're disrupting the order.
Lark looked as if to say, 'So what?'
He wasn't suddenly made an avatar; he was born as an avatar body.
So, he had never lived as a human.
From the start, he was a 'god'.
Therefore, he understood why other gods found him uncomfortable, but it wasn't his concern.
The gods of this world couldn't do anything about Lark either, except watch.
Then, something unexpected happened.
- We agreed to a deal with a woman.
Camilla carried his child, and Navia was saved by seeking out Nyx.
- We don't know about the world you endlessly regressed and disappeared from. But we watched all eight lives you lived, my baby, or rather, our baby.
Navia's eyes widened in shock.
'You watched my regression?'
Nyx looked at Navia intently.
The gods were able to observe all eight of Navia's regressions as it was within their realm.
At first, it was out of curiosity.
An avatar child of an external god, Lark. What kind of being would that child be?
They witnessed the terrible days she lived through to fulfill her price.
Not all gods of this world were friendly towards humans.
Especially ancient gods like Chaos, the primordial disorder, and his daughter, Nyx, were entities that didn't care about the human world. They should've been indifferent, but...
Navia received their support because she had never taken her own life despite everything.
This child is not special just because she's the daughter of an avatar or Nyx's avatar. She's, truly, a beautiful child.
Thus, a meeting of the gods took place.
Navia was given a gift.
- Well done, child.
Nyx looked at Navia proudly.
She was very proud and fond of the child who had endured the same life so firmly without falling apart.
Navia felt a lump in her throat upon hearing she was 'well done' despite her stained past regressions.
- That's why I've come to grant your wish.
Navia's wish.
It was the fulfillment of Lark's wish.
'I hope my father's regression ends.'
So that we can live our last life together and find ordinary rest at the end.
- We have decided to break your incarnation contract. Of course, if that's what you want.
Lark unknowingly tightened his embrace around Navia.
The thought of no longer being a slave to his great god seemed unreal.
That I could die forever.
My only wish.
The prospect of fulfilling my long-desired death left me choked up.
In truth, he had been researching a way to sleep forever these days. To remain in an eternal slumber without ending his regressions.
So that he could protect the time of others.
Navia tightly grasped his hand.
Blood returned to his hands, which had grown cold before, calming her heart.
Lark asked Nyx in a slightly hoarse voice.
"…But that can't just happen, can it?"
- It'll take some time to completely sever the divine contract. Meanwhile, you will be asleep.
"How long will it take?"
- At least 10 years.
"Ten years..."
Navia clenched her fist so tightly that her bones turned white.
"And at most?"
- That, I cannot say.
Does that mean, he may never wake up?
'It means I might be separated from Dad forever.'
Navia's complexion turned deathly pale.
How could she face the possibility of parting with the happiness and family she had achieved?
Her breath tightened. It was supposed to be a happy occasion, but her heart couldn't fully embrace it, leaving her feeling unsettled.
"When should I go to sleep?"
- When you're ready.
That was the best kindness Nyx could offer.
Lark deliberately tousled Navia's hair.
"I can't play with you for ten years, but after that, let's play a lot. I'll play house with you."
"…I won't be old enough to play house then."
Of course, she wasn't even now.
Navia forced a smile, shaking off the heaviness in her heart.
It's a happy occasion. It's a chance to save her father from infinite recursion, so she should smile.
"Let's create a lot of memories."
Memories that will help her endure, to keep living.
Lark whispered softly, kissing the top of Navia's head.
"Yes. Let's make many."
He calculated the time to restore Creed's condition to normal and the completion of the current research in magic.
"Two years from now would be good."
Then Navia would wake up just as she becomes an adult.
Lark thought of waking up exactly after 10 years, as if it were a given.
'Well, I am exceptional.'
Lark arrogantly finished his thoughts and looked at Nyx.
Nyx nodded his head.
- Then call me when you're ready. I'll appear before you again.
The glittering topaz turned to a normal color. Nyx had left.
Navia stepped out of Lark's arms and embraced Cesare.
'Kind gods, thank you for this opportunity.'
She hoped to remember to convey this gratitude next time.
* * *
Soon, the carriage arrived at the duke's residence and stopped.
Lark alighted from the carriage and murmured as he stared somewhere.
"Ah, finally here."
"What's here?"
When Navia asked, tilting her head, a gentle whirlwind suddenly swept around the carriage.
This wasn't an ordinary wind. It was magic spreading like the wind.
Then, a young voice was heard.
"My lord."
Navia's gaze followed the voice.
Behind the carriage was a barren garden.
But suddenly, dozens of knights appeared there.
Navia's eyes widened.
'Ah, could they be the Titans…!’
'Eseled's elite.
A magical knight order of the empire, known as the 'Titans,' reputed for their might equal to an entire legion.
Navia saw a man at the forefront of the Titan knights.
His short, sunlit blond hair and vibrant green eyes were striking.
But, unlike his fresh appearance, his expression was empty, devoid of emotion.
A boyish man, not fully matured to be among such powerful knights.
It made sense.
If Navia's guess was right, this man was barely eighteen years old.
Lark spoke.
"Nero Sylas."
The bastard of the Sylas family.
A prodigious magician who became the leader of the Titan knights at seventeen.
And the man who played a decisive role in making Eseled known as a 'junkyard.'
'The bastard is too talented compared to the legitimate children, but has a fatal flaw.'
Navia had heard society's whispers about him.
Perhaps antisocial personality disorder, a rather chilling rumor.
Nero knelt on one knee, showing a knight's respect.
Click!
The other knights behind him took the same position simultaneously.
Navia felt overwhelmed by their precise and coordinated actions.
"All Titan knights report the completion of their mission and return."
"Well done."
There were no other formal pleasantries.
But for a moment, a flicker of life passed over Nero's otherwise empty gaze.
Navia didn't miss it.
'That person, he respects my father.'
And very much so.
Perhaps because he liked Lark, Navia quickly felt a kinship with Nero.
"This is my daughter, Navia."
Upon Lark's announcement, the Titan knights slightly stirred.
They had already heard about the Eseled ducal family's story upon entering the capital.
The older knights knew Camilla. But Nero, who had come here eight years ago, had only heard of Camilla and never seen her.
"Please take care of me."
As Navia greeted them, the knights quietly shut their mouths.
To those accustomed to the stark Eseled, Navia's presence was… quite sensational.
Some were already lost in thought.
Nero alone remained composed. He showed respect to Navia.
"Nero Sylas greets the lady."
"Nice to meet you."
And their eyes met.
Nero looked at Navia with a calm expression, unlike when he looked at Lark.
Knowing the rumors about him, Navia tried to pass it off nonchalantly when, for a brief moment, Nero's gaze towards her changed. It was so faint that anyone else might have missed it.
It was undoubtedly hostility.
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