"She was murdered."
The words lingered in the air almost as if to provoke her. The owner of the body she inhabited, the same body she planned to leave at a moment's notice, was dead and long gone.
"Who murdered her?" Adria said, her mouth finding it difficult to utter the words.
"…I'm not sure."
"Any idea who might've done it?"
"Most likely an avatar… or a god."
Adria's brows furrowed. "What would a god have against her?"
"…Katherine was meant to be the avatar of the god of wisdom," the goddess said. "There are many who don't want to see him regain influence."
Adria looked down at the void, tracing small circles with her index finger. Some pieces of the puzzle had finally clicked, but she still wondered if she should trust this being. She appeared to be truthful so far, yes. And she did look weak. But what if it was all a way to get Adria's guard down?
"So what happened after she died?" Adria asked. "I don't believe he was happy that you stole his vessel."
"I made a deal with the god of wisdom," the goddess said. "Since his vessel no longer had a soul, I placed one of my own inside of it."
The goddess paused. "In exchange, I offered him something he severely lacks."
"And what would that be?"
"…Essence. I offered him a large portion of mine."
Adria exhaled slowly. Innocent people had died in this world, and even more were going to get caught in the crossfire of this divine war.
A part of her cared about those people. A major part of her didn't. This wasn't her world, after all. But she couldn't go home for now, and, on her mind, she had two options: wait idly until the goddess maybe regains her strength and maybe she could send her home; or make the best out of this situation and at least do something here while waiting.
'What would Katherine do?', she thought before quickly stopping herself. In this space, in front of this being, she was not Katherine. She was herself. She was Adria—a name that now almost sounded foreign to her ears.
"…Do you have any more questions?" the goddess said.
Adria inhaled a large gust of air, ran both hands through her thick violet hair, and exhaled. She didn't want to trust the goddess.
'But what if people die because I didn't bother helping?'
'This isn't your world, Adria. Nobody's asking you to care.'
She dropped her hands down to eye level and stared at them. They looked as soft as early winter snow, and Adria was certain that if she picked up a sword with such delicate palms, they'd melt instantly.
'But it's Katherine's world. She'd probably not stand by and watch her people get slaughtered.'
'Katherine is dead. You'll never know what she would've truly done. What you're doing is akin to desecrating a grave.'
'And what if she's alive?'
'And what if she's not?'
Adria closed her eyes and took a breath before opening them once more and looking upwards.
"How much does helping you benefit me?" she asked.
"A god with an avatar can interact with the world more freely and gain influence faster," the goddess said. "And that could help me get more essence."
'Don't trust her, Adria. You can find a way out of this by yourself. You've always found your way out of problems.'
"…Fine, goddess," Adria said. Her fists clenched. "I'll help you."
The goddess raised her brows, the look of surprise on her face being clear as day. She joined her palms in front of her face, opened her eyes, and said, "You may call me Edia."
***
The bathroom was as dark and quiet as the night sky. There was only one sound that could be heard from it, and that was Blanche's breathing.
She stood still, staring at her own reflection in the mirror. The dark eye bags carved on her face had deepened further from recent exhaustion. She ran a finger across a crack on the mirror. Golden particles seeped from her fingertip and into the mirror. The crack vanished, and just as Blanche breathed out, the mirror broke into pieces.
[You placed too much essence. Do it slower than that.] the disembodied voice said.
Blanche shut her eyes tight and let the memory of the purple-haired girl simmer in her mind. She had poisoned the girl. She had watched her take her last breath. But the girl was there at the festival. She was alive and worse than that, she was… walking.
[What's wrong, Blanche?]
She inhaled lightly, trying to think of how to word her sentence.
"...I think I failed the mission," she said.
[How so?]
"That girl you sent me to kill came back to life."
[Who? The baron's daughter?]
"Yes."
[Did she now? But that's fine, you accomplished what you were supposed to.]
"I did?" Blanche raised her head.
[She was meant to be a vessel for the god of wisdom. I don't detect his energy, so that must mean his power isn't assimilating onto her anymore.]
Blanche bit her lip. There was more she wanted to say, but a part of her wondered if it would be worth mentioning. The god of harmony had secrets, too.
[Did she recognise you?]
"No, my Lord. I don't think she did."
[No harm, no foul, then.]
"…Right."
Blanche could feel his cold, piercing gaze on her. He still had more questions, but patience had always been his strongest virtue.
[…You've always been a good kid, Blanche. Don't let that turn into a weakness.]
[Put your finger back on the mirror.]
Her finger moved up and stood on the mirror's surface before she could think.
[Breathe. Slowly. Imagine that your essence is like glue for the mirror's cracks.]
A golden light shone on the end of her finger. The essence she generated now felt… different. She opened her eyes. The golden particles transformed into a thin, golden liquid, which then fused and became part of the mirror's reflective surface.
[Ok. Now slow down the essence output and pull your finger out slowly.]
She felt the air flowing into her lungs and into her bloodstream. Her essence output slowed down.
[Perfect. Now remove your finger.]
Her tired eyes narrowed onto her pale index finger; some of the glass shards began sticking to it.
[Slower, Blanche. Slower.]
The mirror burst into a dance of tiny shards the size of snowflakes. She pulled her head to avoid the damage, but it was too late; her left cheek and arm were grazed by the glass. Blood dripped onto the tiles.