The city had changed since the last time Min passed through it. There was a steady stream of people approaching the gates, and yet, almost everyone was let in.

  Min walked the road at a leisurely pace, feet silent against the stone. Though they couldn’t see her, humans stepped out of her way. Here and there, she had to avoid a cart-pulling golem, annoying as that was.

  She stopped in front of the gates, analyzing the road ahead. She immediately noticed multiple layered wards, specifically tuned against illusion.

  Min scoffed. Even when not using her true body, being discovered was not an option. Not before the war was well underway.

  Perhaps I could take the slight risk.

  She focused, tracing the origins of the wards, and started to slowly disassemble them.

  Her manipulations would inevitably be found and the wards reinforced, but by that time, she should be long gone along with her experiment.

  She went through the tunnel, past the interior gates and down the main roads, until she reached a tavern, first of many.

  Behind the doors, noise blurred into a single, aimless hum. All she knew was a name and two professions, but that has never stopped her before.

  Marco's breaths came shallow as he devoured his bowl of stew. The explosion of meaty flavours was so enticing, that it felt as if it grabbed him by his throat and didn’t let go until he finished the whole thing.

  He wasn’t the only one. Sophie and Bert were almost inhaling the meal, too.

  “You outdid yourself, mom.” Marco said, patting himself on the stomach. “I’ve never eaten something this good.”

  “It’s the least I can do to celebrate your big day,” The smile on her face grew larger. “I’m so proud of you.”

  “Yeah, you showed them what you’re made of, son.” Bert grumbled. “Wish you let us know that you were attempting it, though.”

  “Please,” Sophie shot him a look, and kicked him under the table. “Let’s just appreciate the occasion.”

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Suddenly, the front door rattled open with a gust of wind.

  "Aura, did you forget to lock up again?" Bert grumbled.

  Marco frowned. He distinctly remembered Aura closing and locking the door. Just to be sure, he focused his mana sight, spotting a thin, almost invisible veneer of mana near the door. Almost immediately, it disappeared, as if he hallucinated it.

  "Marco, is everything alright?" Aura asked.

  He nodded, forcing a smile. "Yes, I just got surprised mid-bite."

  Once they finished eating, Marco squeezed through his bedroom door, opening it only enough to slip inside before closing it behind him.

  He pulled a crate of alchemical ingredients from under his bed, grabbing a fistful of fine earth dust, and then climbed into bed.

  He lay there for a long time, listening intently for any sound in the house. Just as sleep almost claimed him, his doors slowly opened.

  Marco shot up, infusing the dust with mana and throwing it toward the doorway, creating a brief, glittering stabilization field. A silhouette flickered violently in the moonlight, then instantly vanished.

  "Who are you?" Marco coiled up, ready to pour every ounce of mana into his claws and fight for his life. "Reveal yourself."

  "Hello, child."

  A tall woman with a veil on her face appeared silently in the room as the dust settled. "Don't you remember me?"

  Marco paused. Of course he recognized her. How could he not?

  The golden woman. The one who had resurrected him. The dead goddess.

  "No," he said.

  "You lie to me," she smiled, "When I come to free you from your suffering."

  "Why now?" he countered, trying to fish for information. "Why all this secrecy?"

  "There are grand plans in motion," she replied, extending her hand toward him. "But now I have the appropriate time to care for you."

  "You left me in a foreign world, stuck in a child's body and fighting to survive," Marco flinched away. "You're two years too late."

  "You misunderstand." Her tone grew colder. "The only choice you have is whether to go willingly."

  He suddenly felt his body tighten, restrained by an invisible force. He tried to scream, but only a muffled sound escaped. Panic flooded his senses.

  "Don't struggle," she walked up and gently brushed his hair. "Don't bring yourself more pain."

  His consciousness grew hazy as fear mixed with resignation: she was unfathomably stronger.

  But he'd rather die, than let her take him. Not now, when he finally found his place in the world.

  He poured a torrent of mana into his claws. As they burst out, the sharp pain shocked him back to alertness.

  The spell that kept him in place burst like a bubble, and he swung for Min’s neck, screaming.

  His claws crashed against an invisible barrier with a dull thud, just before they reached her.

  Footsteps started across the house.

  “Curious, but…” Min waved her hand, turning invisible again, "...fate cannot be outrun."

  Marco focused all his willpower to withdraw the mana from the claws before his family reached the door, and fell to his knees, panting.

  A disembodied voice reached him. “We’ll meet again.”

  Aura was in the room seconds later, worried and asking questions, but Marco was too rattled to speak. In her warm embrace his panic waned, leaving behind just a single question.

  *Why?*