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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“…”
“…”
A long silence.
Just as the Goddess of Time seemed to have given up on me, she returned, watching me silently.
With an expression similar to mine as I looked at Eris.
She opened and closed her mouth several times, then vanished as I regained awareness.
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“Could you answer just one question?”
“…”
“Please.”
This time, she returned sooner than expected. And for the first time, she bowed her head and asked politely. I turned to face her.
“What is it?”
I’d expected my voice to be raspy, like a withered tree. Or perhaps I wouldn’t be able to speak at all.
But my vocal cords, frozen in time, were fine. As if I’d just been talking.
“Do you really think something will change?”
“…”
“Do you really believe that elf can do something? Or have you already given up and are just doing this out of spite?”
“…”
“What are you expecting from her that you’re staying here like this?”
I didn’t know how much time had passed, but it had been long enough for me to contemplate everything.
“To say goodbye.”
“Excuse me?”
The goddess’s face contorted in confusion.
“I want to apologize and say goodbye to her, for burdening her so.”
“Impossible.”
“…”
“You’re expecting too much from that elf and her staff. Do you want to know how much time has passed while you’ve been like this? You’d be shocked!”
“…”
“Just give up and become a demigod! These people wouldn’t want you to wither away like this!”
She gestured towards my frozen companions. I looked at her, then back at Eris.
“Be quiet and leave.”
The Goddess of Time bit her lip, clenched her fists, and vanished.
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“…”
I realized I’d lost consciousness again, seeing the Goddess of Time crouched before me, staring.
“You’ve been losing consciousness more frequently lately, you know?”
“…”
“You were out for almost a week, in real-time.”
That long?
I wasn’t surprised. I was beyond surprise.
“Your body won’t decay, but your mind will. You’ve already endured more time than a human can handle. If this continues, your sense of self will disappear.”
“…”
“It’s not death, but… a similar end awaits you. Let’s stop this. If you don’t want to be a demigod, then come to the Divine Realm as a human.”
“…”
“At least walk around like you used to. Visit your companions.”
“…”
“Won’t you say something?”
She pleaded, but I closed my eyes. Her voice was exhausting.
She sighed heavily and left.
I opened my eyes, looking at Eris. Thoughts swirled in my mind.
“I’ve had too much time to think about saying goodbye.”
Even speaking felt awkward.
I hadn’t told the goddess, but I could barely move my fingers.
She’d said my body was frozen in time, but it was my mind that was failing.
“I’ve thought so much that I don’t even know what to say anymore.”
I wished my words, too, could be frozen in time.
“And then it occurred to me… I might not be there for you, at the end of your journey.”
My consciousness faded.
My eyes closed, and I drifted into unconsciousness, my last sentence unfinished.
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The continent was frozen, still, and silent. A magnificent, yet lifeless, sculpture created by a god.
Then, the fingers of the elf holding the staff twitched.
“You’ve been watching him for a while now.”
“…”
The Goddess of Time, startled by the God of Life’s voice, rested her chin on her hand and replied indifferently,
“He’s beautiful.”
“Indeed, the continent you created is truly beautiful. The sight of them frozen in joy and happiness never gets old.”
The God of Life meant it sincerely. He was relieved that Death’s darkness and his flames hadn’t consumed the continent.
This was the most beautiful sight he had ever witnessed.
It brought a smile to his lonely existence.
But he wasn’t referring to the continent.
“But you’re not looking at the continent, are you?”
“…”
Daniel McLean sat motionless, gazing at the elf.
The Goddess of Time had pretended otherwise, but she’d been watching him from the Divine Realm.
Her visits had become more frequent, and now she simply watched him.
“Time, we are the wielders of power, not the wielded. Do not be swayed.”
“I know.”
He’d expected her to make excuses, but she simply replied, her gaze fixed on Daniel,
“But he’s so beautiful.”
“…”
“He’s endured eons, more time than a human mind can handle, yet he remains steadfast. Waiting, hoping for something unattainable.”
She looked ready to rush to his side.
“He’s noble. Perhaps even more so than I.”
“Nonsense.”
“…”
“We are the creators, and they are the created. Don’t get any strange ideas.”
“You’re right.”
The Goddess of Time nodded, and the God of Life continued,
“They are powerless. They call our simplest gestures miracles. They are ephemeral, fragile, insignificant. Do not compare yourself to them.”
“You’re right. But…”
She lowered her hand and looked at him, her eyes filled with a newfound emotion.
“That’s what makes his struggle so beautiful.”
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“Time!”
The God of Life, following her to the continent, called out urgently. He was surprised she’d left the Divine Realm without a word, but he’d found her easily.
She was, as always, watching Daniel McLean.
He was now barely conscious, fading in and out of awareness…
“…”
…His eyes were closed, his body turning grey.
“Surprising, isn’t it?”
She murmured.
“I thought he’d used up all his power stopping the continent, but he had one last trick up his sleeve.”
“He…”
“Yes, he stopped his own time. He must have realized he couldn’t endure any longer.”
Not a mental death, but a conscious decision to freeze himself along with the continent. He had remained true to himself until the very end.
“…Beautiful.”
The God of Life murmured involuntarily. He finally understood why she’d been watching him for so long.
“He chose to uphold his convictions, resisting temptation for eons, despite the easier path of becoming a demigod.”
The Goddess of Time wanted to say something, but she remained silent. He couldn’t hear her.
Crack.
Both gods’ eyes widened.
They turned.
Brilliant golden hair regained its color. Lifeless blue eyes sparkled like gems.
Crack!
“Haaa…”
Eris Anen Serier, frozen for so long, awoke from the apocalypse of time.
“This is…”
The God of Life looked at the Goddess of Time, who was glaring at the elf.
“W-what? Why is everyone…?”
Eris looked around in confusion, seeing her companions frozen, their cheers of victory silenced.
“Astonishing. I thought miracles were our domain.”
The Goddess of Time approached Eris, her voice filled with disgust.
“But it’s too late.”
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