LILIVIENNE

  In front of me was a sea of flowers. Pink, white and blue. Lily-Roses. They remind me of Lily of the Valleys from my old world. Though, they’re larger in size and more fragrant. It may be poisonous yet they were believed to drive away evil spirits from someone’s garden. I looked at the skies covered with a never-ending sunset and it was just as colourful as this flower field. Where am I?

  “It’s pretty isn’t it?” Sitting beside me on the wooden bench was a young woman in a blue dress. Her hair was cherry blossom pink and her was skin white as snow.

  “Lilivienne…” I spoke.

  Here she was. The original Lilivienne. The owner of the body I possessed. She was smiling at me so gently like she had been expecting me to come for a long time.

  “Welcome to the Spirit Garden. I heard you were looking for me?”

  In the reflection of her beautiful green eyes, I saw my old self from my former world. It turned out I was back to my original body. Tears instantly pooled in my eyes. Lilivienne clasped my hands out of panic.

  “Oh, no! Did I make you cry?”

  “No, you didn’t! I’m just g-getting emotional. I’ve been wanting to meet you since coming to this world!” She pulled me into a hug—much to my surprise—and it only worsened my sobs. “I’m sorry, for taking over your body!”

  “What’s there to be sorry for?” She looked at me warmly. “It gladdens me to finally meet you and be able to talk to you. Have you been well-adjusted into this life?” I nodded hesitantly, wiping my face like a child. “Is Father and Big Brother giving you a hard time?” I shook my head. “Have you… already fallen in love with someone?” I looked down at our hands, which earned her a hearty chuckle. “You haven’t found the ‘one’ yet?”

  They were right. Lilivienne Van Der Horst was a soft-spoken woman. She was elegant, gentle and full of smiles. She should be living her life in her own body, not get it taken away by someone like me.

  “It just feels wrong for you to ask me that when I’m a stranger, whose soul has stolen your body.” She twirled a few strands of my hair.

  “Hey, you’re not a stranger and you didn’t steal anything from me. You’re a part of me, like how I’m a part of you.”

  “But you don’t have to say that to make me feel better, you know? We’re totally different from one another. Speaking to you right now makes it more obvious that the one inside your body is a fake. One day, everyone will learn the truth and I don’t know how I’m supposed to handle that.”

  Lilivienne grabbed me by the shoulders to make me look her in the eye.

  “Is it really that important? Why don’t you just be yourself? Our history shapes who we are as a person. If someone comes to you and asks why you changed, tell them about your experiences, your discoveries, the things you learned and realized, since the day you entered my body. Tell them how life can be so unpredictable and how those things made who you are now.” The Cataclysm suddenly flashed in my mind. I thought everything went according to plan until the attack. “Conforming to change is inevitable if one decides to keep on moving forward. If you tell them those words, no one will suspect you anymore, yeah?”

  I looked at the flower field to avoid her gaze. “But then, no matter how many excuses I make to hide this secret—our secret—it’s not going to be the same as when it was you inside this body, the original owner. Because I am not you.“

  Lilivienne also looked at the flowers. “See those flowers? They’re pretty, aren’t they?” I nodded, confused at the sudden change of topic. “They’re called the Lily-Roses. They grow everywhere in Evermore, mostly in forest glades. Mother named me after them.” She continued. “I was continually sick after her death, but one day, as I was looking at this vast field of Lily-Roses, I met a strange man. He said there’s a similar flower species from where he came from. Then he asked me, how would I feel if I ever met a piece of me from another world. That time, I never knew the answer, because I couldn’t imagine what it was going to look like. But then….” She turned to me. “… you came, and it made me feel whole for the first time. Because that other part of me is here now...” She pointed to my heart. “That’s you.”

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  The loud ringing of church bells echoed the whole surroundings. “What’s that?” I asked.

  Lilivienne looked at me with a hint of sadness. She pulled me up from the bench. “It’s time for you to go back.”

  “B-But…” I still had so many questions. What was the reason I entered her body? Who was the man she was talking about? What did she mean I was a part of her?

  “I know you have a lot of questions right now and I wouldn’t blame you if you’re angry, but I’m truly happy I finally got to meet you.” Cracking sounds interrupted our farewell. We looked up at the skies. It was shattering like glass.

  “W-What’s going on?”

  Lilivienne smiled. “This realm is about to end now that I accomplished my mission with you. Don’t grieve me, but you won’t need me anymore. You’ll understand once you find the truth.”

  The reality completely shattered. I tried to cling to her once more, but Lilivienne only pushed me out to the abyss. “Lilivienne!!!” I called desperately.

  Her image was cracking into smaller pieces before my eyes yet she managed to smile at me for the last time. “—Is your name. Now go!”

  ????? ☆ ?? ???

  I woke up to the same cleric who was looking after Lilivienne when I entered her body. I touched my face, down to the hair flowing in my shoulders.

  I was still her.

  “My lady!” Elise immediately attended to me. Behind her were Father and Alasdair.

  “Lili, you’re awake.” Alasdair stood at the foot of my bed while Father watched by the door. It was the same as the day when I woke up to this world. But this time, it felt like there was something—someone missing, and I couldn’t find myself to pretend that I was not expecting that person to be here the moment I opened my eyes.

  But why would he be here, anyway? Just who do I think I am?

  “How long have I been asleep?”

  It was the cleric who spoke. “It’s been three days, my lady. Your body was depleted of so much mana that it took that long for you to recover.”

  Three days?!

  Father faked a cough and walked closer to the bed. “Once you return to your feet, we’re going to talk about this magic thing, Lilivienne.”

  I didn’t even have enough energy to instigate an argument. “Yes, Father.”

  A knock on the door interrupted us from the outside. Another maid opened it.

  My heart thumped in anticipation. Could it be—

  “Your meeting with the lords will begin soon, Your Grace.” It was Father’s assistant.

  “If you’ll excuse me.” He looked back at me before he left. “Take your time to rest. The starting date of the Railway Project has been delayed until the capital is rebuilt, so you don’t have to worry about it for now. I’ll see the both of you in the morning.”

  “Yes, Father,” me and Alasdair replied in unison.

  When he left, I asked him. “What happened while I was asleep?”

  Alasdair looked out the windows. “The ruined areas around the capital went into renovation immediately, funded by the government. Only a few casualties and injured are currently receiving treatment, like you. If not for your friend defeating Astaroth, there would’ve been more deaths.”

  “Any news about him?” He was surely rewarded by the king just like in the game so he must be getting headlines.

  “I heard he got promoted as the Crown Prince’s knight. So I might see him often at the palace.” I was right.

  “So, uhm… What about Prince Zathrian? He helped us back at the Goulcrest Village too…”

  Since he wasn’t involved with Astaroth in this life, a war triggered by his actions will not happen. Although other reasons may spark it in the future, Evermore has always been prepared for war—except for the Cataclysm.

  Alasdair avoided my gaze. “About that…” Elise looked at me with pity in her eyes, raising my concern.

  “Is there something wrong?”

  “Here, this just came out this morning.” Alasdair handed me an Evermore Times Newspaper. There was an article about Zathrian.

  “No, this isn’t true…!” I threw up on the side of the bed. Elise didn’t know what to do.

  After what I went through, after facing my fears and risking my life countless times to change his fate, after all the things I did… they were all for nothing?

  On the night of the Cataclysm, the temple accused Zathrian as the culprit behind Astaroth when he returned to the capital with the paladins. He was currently being locked up in the palace dungeons. He’ll get the death penalty if proven guilty—which could lead to a war between Evermore and Valencourt the same as the original story—the day that I’ve been most dreading to happen.

  Alasdair massaged his temples. “Me and your friend will serve as his witnesses—“

  “I’ll join you,” I announced, firmly. “I’m serving as the third witness.”

  Why can’t the narrative let him go? Meeting the real Lilivienne raised a lot of questions within me. Is this world real? Is Erith a real planet? Who's controlling our fates? Do the humans in Erith don’t have free will, therefore making this world, a fake one?

  Come to think of it, how did I get here?

  Who put me here?

  “His lawyer is coming in the next two days. By then, you should focus on regaining your strength.”

  At first, I only wanted to save my life to avoid dying but I found myself saving Zathrian in the process. He deserves to live a long life just as I am. I want to see it happen even if I had to steal the pen of whoever controlling our destiny to make it possible. We shall be free to write our own paths and die on our own terms, unbound to some strings of fate.

  “We’re going to save him no matter what.” I looked Alasdair in the eyes with full determination. “Whatever they’re doing to Zathrian has got to stop. I will not let them keep on painting him as the monster they want him to be.”