A Villainess Should Be Strong

Estelle shut her eyes as she recounted the last memory she had. She was supposed to be with Heine, then she abruptly fainted without any provocation. She didn't believe that Heine was the perpetrator because of his reaction to her fall, but who could it be?

Astarte kept observing his elder sister, frowning when Estelle didn't answer his calls.

"Rae? Rae!" He kept calling again and again until Estelle finally snapped out of her trance.

[I should play along for now.] She decided. It would be weird if she didn't react at all, it would be out of place.

"Astarte.. What was I doing?" Estelle's voice was shaky as she addressed the younger male.

"Hm? What's wrong with you, older sister? Why do you seem so down? Are you tired? You don't usually call me Astarte either.." Astarte tugged on her loose robes, his face showing concern. "Rae, I think you really should go back to the Absolute,"

"No... I just think.. I forgot something?" Estelle diffused the matter, but her ears perked up at the mention of the Absolute.

She had encountered the being before, when she was trapped in a dilemma. The being helped her and even revealed important memories. She wanted to try and seek the being out. Although she still wasn't sure what kind of state she was put in right now, she believed that if anything, that impregnable being would have an answer to her doubts.

He was, after all, the one and only Absolute.

"If you forgot about it wouldn't it be unimportant?" Astarte was confused. It wasn't like his older sister to act this way, down and zoning out without a purpose. Normally, he would come across a woman who got excited at the mention of basically just anything. From the simplest things to marvelous sights.. or things that incited a spark of interest within her.

Recently, her fixation was on the mortal world, which had brought changes to the Goddess.

"Unimportant.. huh," Estelle laughed , wondering if anything she had to brood over for this long could be unimportant. She felt like something was missing from her current state.

She felt very comfortable as Estraea, but things were off.

[Could it be, the missing part of my divinity that they spoke about? But if this is a replay of the past, then it shouldn't affect me this way. It should just be a replay and not a mirror of my current self, right?] Estelle frowned as she thought.

"Sister? You're zoning out again! Ao, if you keep acting like this, then I'm going to get very worried," Astarte pouted, waving his hand in front of Estelle's face.

"Astarte.. No, Arte, could you take me to the Absolute? I think I really need to stay with him for now," Estelle asked.

"Alright, I'll bring you to him. Watch out, sister," Astarte gently took her hand and gripped it with his own, pulling her towards a specific direction.

On their way there, Estelle constantly tried to manipulate her powers. She was always curious to what extent the original Goddess' prowess would be. She felt very liberated in this body, much more than her previous vessel.

It only took them some simple steps to pass through a barrier that separated the higher realms with the Absolute's personal space.

Astarte stopped, letting go of Estelle's hands. "Sister, you know that the Absolute only permits you to get in there, so I will have to part with you right now. Go in and have him check up on you to tell if anything serious is happening,"

Divine beings did not get sick unless severe damage implicated them, but even so, it wouldn't be the same as the ailments mortals faced. It would just be exhaustion or mental damage, but never a sickness.

If a high Goddess like Estraea wasn't feeling well, there was a very high chance that it could be something much more serious.

Astarte worried for his elder sister as he waved the Goddess goodbye, stepping out of the barrier and leaving her alone.

Estelle pursed her lips after the younger left and faced the gate she was supposed to enter through. Slowly, she walked towards it and entered the other realm.

There, she saw a figure whose beauty couldn't be described with mere words. Estelle immediately knew that this was the Absolute, the one she sought for. He had an androgynous look, and with every small movement he made, his features would sparkle as if there was a constant background effect laced over him.

This was the first time Estelle was actually stunned by someone's beauty to the point where she forgot to take a breath. Before, in her previous life, she used to make fun of these overreactions made up in stories, but now that she was actually facing that sort of situation, she felt taken aback.

The figure slowly turned towards her as he noticed the intrusion. "Rae? What brings you here... Well, I suppose I shouldn't bother with those words," His voice rang clear and concise, bringing a wash of familiar feeling to Estelle once more.

"..By that, you mean?" Estelle halted her steps.

"Rae.. or should I say, Estelle Clareste? Come here and sit down with me, let us have a little chat," The Absolute beckoned for her to come near him, his eyes twinkling with great interest. He had a gentle smile plastered on his face, but it made Estelle be weirded out. His face lacked colorful emotions, as if it was stiff all over. His actions were turned to look insincere. Even though he had a smile, he still looked cold and unapproachable.

From the memories she saw that day, the Goddess Estraea and this being were closely acquainted and acted chummy, but it felt different to directly be in Estraea's perspective.

Although Estelle was still stuck in her trance, she obediently followed the man's words and came to sit down beside him.

"So.. Since you are here, then you must've learned a lot of things..." The Absolute stretched his hand to smooth out Estelle's hair, making her shirk away from his touch.

The Absolute stopped his hand, hovering over the woman's head for a couple seconds before retracting it. He knew that the Goddess' sentiments would be all wiped out, but to experience her rejecting even the smallest bits of his touch like this felt quite striking to him.

"..How can I be here in this state? Is this a replay or my past, or an illusion?" Estelle asked.

"I suppose you could say that it's an illusion created by your fragmented memories. I can only enter your consciousness, I can't do anything much now that.. I'm bound to the choices I made, the risks I took. I linked myself with you ahead of time to prepare for this kind of situation.. I guess I really miss you," The Absolute frankly stated.

"Did Heine have any hand on this?"

"No. I just wanted to take you here, to let you experience what you used to go through. You saw Astarte on your way here, didn't you? Since the one who told you those new information was probably Heine.. I thought that you should see that kid too. Although.. the main purpose really was just to bring you here, to meet me in person," The Absolute said.

Estelle felt awkward being so close to the man. She knew that in the past, this being was the one who created her, the one who built her up. She didn't know how to react because she felt so out of touch.

"What do you think about Heine? Are you still mad at him?" The Absolute asked.

"I just have some unresolved sentiments for him," Estelle sighed. "Come to think of it, the last time I spoke with you.. It was because of Heine's actions, right? I know that I have to cooperate with him in the end, so I resolved to try and rebuild our relationship... But I don't think I can bring myself to trust him anymore unless my memories get wiped out or something,"

"That kid will feel so hurt seeing you act indifferent to him.. If not for the fact that you only look extremely similar to Estraea, and not exact.. and that Astarte's consciousness hasn't gained full control over Heine yet, that kid would probably cry,"

"Heine.. I heard that he felt pained after Astarte mixed in with him. How harsh was it? I don't know how much you could tell me, but I don't think Heine told me everything.. did he?" Estelle was curious about this matter too.

She didn't know the full extent of what Heine faced. Even if she did know, it still didn't justify his actions. Perhaps, she would feel a bit sorry, but that was it.

"Slowly, slowly. This time, we can hang out for a bit longer since your soul has stabilized quite a lot," The Absolute calmed her down.

Estelle pursed her lips, waiting for the answer.