"So thou knowest who I am," Aerialia asked, narrowing her eyes at the bowing woman before her.
"Yes," the Princess of the Garden replied.
"Since thou already knowest who I am, introduce thyself... who art thou?"
The Princess of the Garden took a deep gulp.
She responded, "I am the Princess of the Garden, born from your blood, essence, and soul. Aerialia, goddess of the hunting moon..." The Princess of the Garden paused as though trying to rearrange her thoughts before continuing, "…I am you."
At that moment, an unnatural silence enveloped their surroundings.
Upon listening to the Princess of the Garden's words, Orion immediately stood rooted on his spot; his eyes fixated on the Princess of the Garden's stiff figure.
Meanwhile, Aerialia's expression instantly became cold as she stared at the Princess of the Garden. Her words were as icy as her expression as she parted her lips and spoke, "Tell me, who is responsible for this?"
"Naka."
"Naka?"
"Yes, Naka. He was trying to recreate the goddess of the hunting moon from the crimson sword she had left behind. Still, unfortunately, he failed after I was made—a failed recreation of a goddess," The Princess of the Garden responded with quivering lips as she nodded.
She looked at the goddess before her, whose expression seemed to have morphed into an indescribable anger.
Aerialia clenched her fists tightly as she shivered in anger, "Naka! How dare thee? How dare thee attempt to recreate this goddess?" Aerialia said, her cold, piercing eyes filled with hate shooting towards the Princess of the Garden.
Although she had several other things that she wanted to say at this moment, she understood that she had to save them all until she met that god, Naka. Whether he is alive or not, she will make him pay for making such an abomination of her.
No, the woman before her was even worse than an abomination. A failed recreation of herself… what manner of audacity to try to recreate her?
With eyes burning with anger and hate, Aerialia could only think of one thing that could rid her of the extreme emotions currently raging within her.
So, she opened her mouth and said, "Kill yourself."
The Princess of the Garden's expression fell.
"There can only be one goddess in this life or the next. An abomination like thee has no place in this world, but because thou art me, I am willing to give thee a chance, Princess of the Garden... Kill yourself," Aerialia added.
"Enough!" Orion said. At that moment, he appeared before her, standing between her and the Princess of the Garden.
"Let us talk about this matter calmly," Orion said, with various emotions coursing through his heart. If he had known that things would become like this, he would have gone straight to the Prismerian kingdom before searching for the Princess of the Garden. But still, he knew that he couldn't blame himself for not knowing after all...
Who could have guessed that the real reason the Princess of the Garden had been hiding her true identity from him was not because she couldn't reveal it to him, but because she didn't possess an identity?
She was a living, breathing replica of Aerialia, without a name of her own. So, when she had introduced herself to him as the Princess of the Garden—
That was her one and only identity.
Orion clenched his teeth in anger.
Naka! Why does it have to be him?
At this point, Orion couldn't help but wonder why Naka seemed entangled in every crucial detail he had encountered. From the god his village served to the Prismerion race inside the mountain waiting for the day of their salvation, to White Flame's words about his betrayer, and now to Aegis of the Arctic Deity's explanations about the past—everything always involved...
Naka!
"Mortal, this is none of your concern. Move out of the way and let me purge that abomination from the surface of this world," Aerialia said, gritting those words through clenched teeth as she glared furiously at Orion, who was blocking her way.
Orion stared at Aerialia's hateful gaze, about to respond, when he felt a tight grip around his left leg. Turning his head backwards, he saw the Princess of the Garden gripping his ankle tightly, her blend of golden and green hair almost covering her pitiful expression.
She uttered, "It's okay, I can handle this myself," then shifted her gaze towards Aerialia, "Goddess of the hunting moon, please, I don't want to die… yet."
"Hey, no one is dying here," Orion said, his voice sounding out as he looked at the Princess of the Garden. He then shifted his attention towards Aerialia, unflinchingly staring at her raging gaze.
Aerialia, however, could only stare at Orion for a moment before she shifted her attention toward the kneeling Princess of the Garden.
"Tell me why I should spare your life, even if just for a moment, and permit such an abomination to continue living?" Aerialia demanded.
"You are going to spare her life because she is my partner," Orion declared, gritting his anger as he stared at Aerialia.
He had maintained a clear mind throughout the whole conversation, so he knew what Aerialia was currently feeling, and he understood that anyone else would find it distasteful and bitter to discover that someone had made an exact clone of them after their supposed death, especially for a goddess.
However, even though he might have understood her feelings, that didn't mean he would remain quiet and watch such a scene unfold.
"Even if she is a failed replica, there can only be one of us, one Aerialia. So, mortal, since thou dost not wish to step out of the way, as this matter doth not concern thee in any way, I will also give thee a choice," Aerialia said, shifting her attention back to Orion.
"What are they?" Orion responded with a deep frown, already disliking what Aerialia was about to say.
....
A/N- Aerialia's way of speaking was intentional for future purposes. She will start speaking properly in a few chapters.
