Chapter 40 - Girlfriend??!!
Astraia sat within her celestial observatory, the vast expanse of the multiverse stretching before her in shimmering holographic displays. The lesser gods had already begun their desperate struggle for survival, each departing in different directions, their divine auras flickering across the decayed world like embers against the abyss.
She watched, her emerald eyes sharp and analytical—until something shifted.
A presence.
No—something more than that.
Her senses, which encompassed the entirety of this multiverse, recoiled. It was subtle, nearly imperceptible, but she felt it. Something—someone—was within the game. And they did not belong to this verse.
Astraia's gaze snapped toward the holographic projection. There, amid the forsaken ruins, a being stood on the edge of existence itself—indistinct, yet undeniably present. Its form flickered, warping like a mirage against the crumbling landscape.
Her fingers clenched.
"What... is that?" she muttered under her breath.
She could feel it.
An anomaly.
An entity not born from this multiverse.
And yet, it was here. Watching.
Astraia exhaled, her mind racing. She knew only one person could have a hand in this.
"Zar."
Her voice didn't travel through air. It didn't need to. Across realms, across time and space, her words reached out in search of him.
But something was off.
The connection was faint—fainter than it should have been. She had locked onto his presence, had nearly pinpointed his location...
Then, suddenly—
Gone.
Like a wisp of smoke in the wind, his presence vanished.
Astraia stiffened. Her fingers curled into a fist as unease settled in her chest.
Had he— had he blocked her?
A bitter thought crept into her mind.
Did he not want to meet me?
She quickly shook her head, dispelling the idea. It was ridiculous. Zar wasn't the type to avoid confrontation. If anything, he enjoyed it.
But still...
Why did it feel like he was deliberately avoiding her?
---
Elsewhere...
Zar exhaled sharply, running a hand down his face as he felt Astraia trying to reach him.
Then, with a flick of his will—
He blocked her.
Just like that, the link severed.
For a moment, silence hung in the air.
Then Zar groaned. "System, now what?"
[Now what?] The System's voice practically dripped with amusement. [I should be the one asking you that, dumbass. You're the one avoiding your girlfriend like a guilty husband caught in the wrong bed.]
Zar's eye twitched. "Shut up."
[Oh? So you do have something to hide?]
"How the hell am I supposed to explain this?!" Zar snapped, motioning vaguely to the unseen beings Astraia had sensed. "If it was something else, I could bullshit my way through it, but them? How the fuck am I supposed to explain them?"
[Oh, I don't know... maybe by not being a coward?]
Zar clenched his fists, inhaled through his nose, then exhaled. Slowly.
[Relax,] the System continued, clearly enjoying his suffering. [I've already handled it.]
Zar frowned. "Handled it?"
[Yep. You don't have to explain anything. Just act all mysterious and shit, and everything will sort itself out. Easy, right?]
Zar narrowed his eyes. "You're telling me Astraia will just accept that?"
[Of course not, you idiot. She's not stupid. She'll be suspicious as hell.]
"Then how is this handling anything?!"
[Because all you need to do is act like you don't know anything, and she won't think you're hiding shit. Instead, she'll think you're just being your enigmatic self.]
Zar stared.
The System's tone turned smug.
[Let's be real. You always pull this cryptic nonsense, so it won't even seem out of character. Just throw in a vague one-liner, look at the sky dramatically, and boom—problem solved.]
Zar pinched the bridge of his nose. "I hate you."
[No, you don't.]
"I really do."
[Yeah, yeah, whatever. Now hurry up before Astraia overthinks things and convinces herself you're cheating on her with cosmic horrors.]
Zar opened his mouth.
Paused.
Then scowled and ignore him.
"...Fine."
And with that, he vanished.
---
When Zar appeared before Astraia, she didn't acknowledge him right away.
Her emerald eyes glinted, but she didn't speak, choosing instead to ignore his presence entirely.
Zar stood there for a moment, stunned.
He crossed his arms. "Oh, so now you're acting like a child?"
Then, it clicked. He remembered. She wasn't the type to express her feelings openly, especially in this situation. She was an introvert, after all—someone who'd spent most of her existence within the boundaries of Elythros, only recently taking on a physical form. It made perfect sense.
Before he could open his mouth to speak, the System's voice rang in his mind, almost smug.
[Oh, what's this? You're playing the mind reader now?]
Zar blinked. "Did you just read my mind?"
There was a pause before the System replied flatly.
[Man, just tell me. If you know someone well enough, can't you tell what they're thinking just by looking at their face?]
Zar frowned. "So, you read my mind then?"
[Yeah, of course I did. And what's it to you?]
Zar stared, processing that.
"Really?" he muttered. "You've been reading my mind this whole time?"
The System sighed in a mocking tone. [Well, yeah. It's not like you've been subtle, idiot.]
Zar threw his hands up in exasperation in realisation. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry for doubting you, alright?"
[Good.]
Zar took another deep breath. "As for why I think she's an introvert, it's obvious. She lived her whole existence in Elythros before becoming physical—of course she's introverted. It's logical."
[Fair enough.] The System's tone softened just a bit. [Alright, now go and talk to her. You've got a girlfriend to convince, after all.]
Zar frowned and muttered, "I'm not calling her my girlfriend, okay?"
[Yeah, yeah, whatever. Just go deal with it.]
Zar rolled his eyes. "Just give me a damn gift from that shop function."
[Oh, right. Sure thing, Romeo.] The System's voice was dripping with sarcasm.
Zar gritted his teeth. "Shut up and give me a gift, now."
There was a brief silence before the System handed him a small box, elegantly designed, but unassuming.
Zar held it, curious, but something about it felt... suspicious.
The box was sealed tight, and Zar couldn't resist his urge to peek inside. It looked like a ring box.
[Relax,] the System said, sensing his unease. [It's not an engagement ring, man. Chill.]
"I just want to know what's inside," Zar muttered, "because it's too suspicious."
[You know it's improper to open someone else's gift, right?] The System sounded like it was thoroughly enjoying Zar's discomfort.
Zar narrowed his eyes. "You don't understand. This looks like a damn ring box. I need to know."
The System huffed. [Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just go before she gets even more pissed off.]
Zar, finally annoyed enough, nodded in agreement. He glanced at Astraia, who still wasn't looking his way, and muttered under his breath.
"Fine. I'll go deal with this."
He approached her slowly, knowing that if he didn't move fast, she would likely shut down even further.
But the System's voice followed him as he walked.
[Hurry up, or she's going to be even angrier, and you'll have to buy her flowers or something.]
Zar groaned. "Shut. Up."
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AUTH here,
"Judge not my Chapters by their scattered threads, for only when the tapestry is complete, shall you behold its true splendor, and in its intricate beauty, my greatness shall be revealed."