Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 137017 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 685(@200wpm)___ 548(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137017 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 685(@200wpm)___ 548(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
“Quite possible. Then it just so happened that it lined up with what really occurred in real life, leading Lillia’s soul to believe she was living in a book.”
“And those real lives would always end in my death, and because my death was a trigger for the regressions, and it just kept happening over and over again.”
“Yes. Which is, perhaps, why the version you read had a happily ever after for Lillia and Torin. If the author was a soul originally of Sada, then they likely wouldn’t have seen the true ending play out and created their own.” God smiled sadly. “Now, Lillia remembers a number of these cycles, and I fear you’re in more danger than ever before. Especially if she hasn’t realised what triggers the regressions.”
I met his eyes. “It’s all right. I have the truth now, don’t I? This is the best chance I’ve had to survive so far.”
“Yes. I suppose you’re right.”
“Is that really why Kalon is different? Because it’s my original soul that’s back?” I tilted my head to the side. “Are we, like, soulmates?”
“As close as a pair can get to such a thing,” he confirmed. “He may not remember your lives together, but on some level, his soul recognises yours. But that’s all I can tell you now. Your powers have almost entirely recovered thanks to your time here. It’s getting close for you to return.”
“Oh, but I still have questions!” I gripped the edge of the lounger. “Alicia died when she fell down the stairs in this life, didn’t she? That’s how I was able to return to ‘my’ body.”
“Yes, she did. Because I had your soul in my possession at that point, I was able to limit the regression of the world to mere minutes before Alicia died, meaning I could swap your souls before your body died again. This is your fifth life in this world.”
“Will Lillia know that a regression happened?”
“No. It was but a blip in the passage of time.”
“So, it’s kind of like when you walk into a room only to forget what you went in there for?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, but yes, I suppose so. Now, if we’re done here—”
“Wait! Can I tell Kalon about all this? Will I remember more of my original lives? Will he remember anything? Can you and I hang out again if I have more questions?”
He rubbed his temples, looking utterly exhausted with it all. “Yes, you may tell Kalon. Yes, you’ll remember more over time now that you know, but I can’t say the same for him. If you really need me, you can go to the temple and request access to the inner prayer room. Your divine power will grant you it once you’ve learnt to use it.”
“Learn how to use this fancy power first. Got it.”
“Is that all?”
“No. One more thing.”
“Allie—”
“That soul that lived all those lives for me,” I said, making him pause. “You said you’d let her eternally rest. Is that the case for her? Is she at peace now?”
A slow smile stretched across his face. “Yes, she is.”
“Okay, good.” I laid back on the lounger and closed my eyes. “You can send me back now. If you ever see that soul again, please tell her that I’m sorry and I love her.”
“I will. I promise.” He laid his hand over my eyes. “Return now, my dear. And be happy.”
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Back to You
I opened my eyes to darkness. It took a moment for my eyesight to adjust, and when it did, I recognised the canopy above me as belonging to the one on my bed in the Imperial Villa.
Hallelujah. The beach was gone.
And God hadn’t lied to me. My memory of our time together was complete, as was the one of our first meeting before I’d woken up in this world.
My world.
It was always my world. Not the world of a fantasy novel, but the place I was destined to be. This was my world, my home, the place my soul was born.
This body was mine, too.
All the things I thought belonged to someone else, didn’t.
I couldn’t shake the guilt over the soul that’d lived my life over and over again, though. How many times had she lived as me? How many times had she died for her to have given up?
The few memories I possessed of my very first life here with Kalon were painful enough, and they were mostly happy ones. Yet this soul who’d walked in my shoes had fallen for him each and every time, only to be rejected and ultimately watch the person she loved fall to ruin.
What if, in this life, I’d been destined to follow that same fate? Could I have coped with seeing him fall for another woman?
Would I have been able to follow through with my original plan of letting him go?