20 Not Alone

Eventually, I opened my eyes. I looked around and knew instantly that this was not the room we rented at the inn.

This place was made of pure darkness with nothing in sight.

Then, I raised my hands. They didn't look like Ember or Sylphy.

They were light blue and had no weight.

'What?!' (Usagi)

This surprised me too much and I looked at the rest of my physique.

Light blue arms and legs, devoid of any clothing, but ... I could notice something. It had an eerily similar shape to my previous body.

The biggest difference was that I was no longer overweight.

All the limbs and trunk of my body were thin as if I had been going to the gym for quite some time.

The second different thing was that ... the member that made me a man is nowhere in sight.

Sigh. ' ... Is this what it feels like to be genderless? ... It's terrible.' (Usagi)

I've gotten used to being a girl due to my recent possession experiences, but seeing that my male body is lacking in something it shouldn't is still depressing.

That's when it came to mind. This must be a representation of my soul.

Also, I remembered that the last message I saw said something about an "Inner World" ...

From what I know, it is a space that resides in the psyche of a person, but it seems to be something different in my case.

'If this is my inner world, I should be able to find Ember here ... ' (Usagi)

That is what I wanted to think. I must be here for a reason.

So, I began to walk with my weightless body.

Time passed slowly ... a minute ... ten minutes ... an hour ... I wasn't counting, but I still felt like I had been doing the same thing for a long period.

Even after all this, I couldn't find Ember ...

That's when I thought. If walking is useless I'll try a different method.

"Ember! Where are you?!" (Usagi)

Where are you?!

Are you?!

You?!

My words continuously reverberated clearly as if bouncing off the "walls" of this place.

Then finally, I was able to hear something in this desolate world.

"Sob ... sob ... " (Crying Girl)

Someone was crying ...

I followed the sounds she made and saw the silhouette of a curled up girl after a few moments.

" ... Ember?" (Usagi)

"Sob ... Master? ... " (Ember)

Similar to mine, Ember's body here was made of some kind of energy. Probably ... a representation of her soul.

While my color was light blue, hers was light red.

I wanted to know more about this world and our current conditions, but I didn't have much time, so I got straight to the point.

"You have to go back, Ember ... Sylphy and I are waiting for you ... " (Usagi)

Also, if she wanted to be possessed for that long, I'd have to devour her one day to keep my sanity ...

After all, even now I can see small particles of red light that her soul slowly releases and melts into the darkness of my inner world.

Those things are permeating my being and they were the ones that made me uncomfortable before.

They are responsible for forcing me to take in even more of Ember ...

That's what I could feel.

"Sob ... I don't want to go back, but it's okay ... I know Master wants a body of his own ... You can take mine ... I don't think I need it anymore." (Ember)

I indeed want a body, but I'm not crazy enough to take hers. If I ever get one from someone, that person should not be related to me.

Because if they were ...

The pain I would feel for their deaths would be greater than the joy of achieving my goals ...

After saying those words, Ember was losing even more particles and I felt even weaker.

I could feel my being gradually overlapping with hers.

' ... I don't have much time ... I can't let this continue!' (Usagi)

I clenched my fist and looked at her. She covered her face with her hands as she cried in a weak voice.

I knew she was sad and confused, so I tried to ask as gently as possible.

" ... Ember, don't you want to find your parents?" (Usagi)

"Sob ... Alpha said they might already be dead ... " (Ember)

That's true. There's no guarantee they're still alive somewhere, but I didn't want him to give up so easily.

If Ember lives on, chances are sure to appear for her to be happier!

I know it was useless to be nice, so I raised my tone, and this time I was a little more forceful.

"Will you abandon Sylphy, your Big Sister? ... She will cry if you do ... " (Usagi)

"Sob ... Master can soothe her sadness ... I know Master likes her ... and she likes Master too ... " (Ember)

Sylphy is my friend, after all. Also, I am grateful for all the things she has done for us.

But I somehow knew that Ember wasn't referring to that. The memories that I had received from her became more vivid in this place.

So, I closed my eyes and thought about the meaning of her words ...

"Images" began to appear in my mind.

They were all from Ember's point of view, but Ember wasn't herself in any of them.

It was me controlling her body in each one of them. The other thing they had in common was ... Sylphy would always smile at me with all kinds of emotions. Over and over again.

'I see ... so she thinks I have "romantic" feelings for Sylphy ... ' (Usagi)

I don't know when she learned about love, but she may not be wrong.

Sylphy is a pixie and I was previously a human, but I still like her. She is cute, smart, and a bit mischievous at times.

Also, since I'm usually in Ember's body and not hers, the times I've seen Ember's smile are fewer than the times I've seen hers.

But, even then ... we only met two days ago. The feelings I have for her are not at the level of being "love".

Ember is still young, so she may not know the difference between liking a friend and loving someone ...

Since that's the case, I have to tell her the truth.

"I like Ember too! I don't want you to disappear!" (Usagi)

"Sob ... I'll be fine living inside Master ... I sob ... That's why Master ... Please take my existence!" (Ember)

She looked at me with pleading eyes and her figure was starting to blur as if she was going to disappear at any moment ...

Like a leaf that can be blown away by the wind.

This was taking a dangerous turn and I felt like the time I had left was extremely short ...

My next words are crucial. If I fail, the 'System' will probably consume Ember's soul to keep me alive ...

I knew this was not the time to be silent and keep thinking but to let my emotions out and hit her with them.

Not literally, of course ...

"So ... will Ember abandon me? Just like your parents did to you ... I want Ember to be by my side!" (Usagi)

"Sob ... Is that's right? ... Will you always stay with me, Master? ... " (Ember)

"Yeah, that's right. I will never leave you! ... I may not be 'inside you' at all times, but I will make a vow! I will not die suddenly or disappear! This way ... I'll never really be apart from you." (Usagi)

I don't know if my words reached her or not. However, I still approached her slowly, knelt, and hugged her small, trembling body.

I won't back down, I won't let her disappear ...

She was silent for a while but her trembling decreased moderately.

"You're not alone anymore, Ember ... I'll always be here for you." (Usagi)

I whispered softly into one of her ears, hugged her a little tighter, and started stroking her long hair.

Finally, she opened her mouth, but the words she said were very different from what I expected.

"Sob ... Master ... I know that I might look small and young in Master's eyes, but ... I don't want to be just your companion ... I want to be your lover, Master!" (Ember)

Eh? Love?

I was very surprised for a moment and couldn't react to his sudden movements.

My vision was blocked by her face. Also ... I could feel something very soft touching my lips.

When I regained my composure. All I saw was Ember's naked body and her blushed face.

I was too concerned for her well-being that I even forgot that we were both naked ...

Although, her revealing parts were covered with light in a certain way as if to censor her figure ...

She no longer looks blurry, which made me very happy. As if she had calmed her emotions and reaffirmed her existence.

" ... " (Usagi)

Before I could continue thinking, Ember opened her mouth to speak.

" ... Master gave me strength, courage, and even ... a place by your side ... I feel very grateful, but I know ... this is not just gratitude ... my feelings for Master will never stop growing. That's why ... I want to be your lover!" (Ember)

I hastily processed everything she just told me. So, after thinking about it, not with reason but with my heart, I asked.

" ... Are you sure? ... I'm just a soul ... I may never have a body that you can hug or even do other things lovers do ... " (Usagi)

She smiled. It was not the cute smile of a girl, but the mature smile of a young woman.

"Master, I know you can get a body whenever you want. After all, I have seen and experienced your powers for a while. But ... I know it too. Master, you are too soft and gentle, so you will never steal someone else's life, no matter the circumstances." (Ember)

Was Ember that talkative? I remembered that she was the quietest girl I have ever met ...

She even understands me too well ...

"Hehehe, I was just shy, Master ... I feel too happy when you are by my side, so the words I wanted to say would not come out. Well, I was just a lone wolf before, so I wasn't that used to talking either." (Ember)

Cough! Is my face that easy to read?

Besides, I think she probably learned to talk so much from all of our conversations with Sylphy and maybe even from the time her parents were with her ... although I don't hate it.

If she can tell me what she wants and doesn't just stay silent, suppressing her emotions, then that's all I could ask for.

"Master, you think too much! Don't be silent! ... You still haven't responded to my confession!" (Ember)

She pouted and I couldn't contain my smile, so I closed my eyes and relaxed for a few seconds.

I don't think Ember realizes what it means to be lovers and if this were my previous life, I wouldn't even consider dating such a young girl.

But ... I have reincarnated and the things that I have lived in this short period have changed my values.

If she wishes to be my lover, I have no reason to reject her.

I will gradually teach her everything she doesn't understand so that we can genuinely deepen our relationship.

When I came to understand my own will, I stood up, opened my eyes again, and stared deeply into Ember's with a serious expression.

" ... I love you too, Ember ... Are you willing to be my lover?" (Usagi)

Her expression became extremely bright and her smile resplendent.

Then, she too stood up and ran into my arms.

"Yes! I want to be your lover, Master!" (Ember)

We hugged for a while and shared our feelings without saying a word.

In this dark world, we were each other's light ...

. . .

I was still inside my inner world next to Ember. There are things that I felt we should talk about.

We were no longer standing but sitting next to each other as we held hands.

"You know, Ember. You don't have to force yourself to call me 'Master'. We're lovers now, so I don't want you to hold back everything you want to say. Also, your parents were the ones who told you to call me that, right? If you don't like it, you can stop." (Usagi)

If she feels uncomfortable or hates calling me by that "name", I would understand.

"No ... I could have considered your opinion and called you by your name when we first met, but ... now I feel that you are truly my Master and that I am ... both your wolf and your lover, Master!" (Ember)

She said it with such certainty that I was touched.

Also, I didn't hate that she called me "Master", after all, we've already experienced a lot together and there wasn't even a time when she used my name.

So I couldn't hide my smile and I also blushed. Afterward, I held her hand tighter before telling her.

"You are truly cute, Ember. Not just in appearance, but the things you say make you look prettier in my eyes." (Usagi)

"Humph. If Master really thinks I'm cute, then you should show me with actions and not just words!" (Ember)

Chuckle! 'Even her pouty face looks cute.' (Usagi)

But she is right. She took the initiative before, so now it's my turn ...

"Come closer, Ember." (Usagi)

Once she did, I hugged her waist with one of my arms and brought my lips to hers.

We gently kiss each other over and over again.

We were both new to this, so I realized that we were pretty clumsy.

However, the feelings we felt for each other were clearly conveyed.

"I love you, Ember." (Usagi)

"I love you too, Master. Hehe~" (Ember)

I felt the need to say those words from time to time as I continued to flirt with her.

That's because ... this is the only place where I could hold her in my arms right now.

. . .

Many messages appeared in front of my eyes.

I read them all carefully, although not because I was too interested.

The reason behind my actions is that I am deeply indebted to the "System".

If what I saw was not wrong, there was a time when it answered my pleas and helped me save Ember.

'Thank you, System. I couldn't have done it without you.' (Usagi)

< ... >

That was the only message that appeared. I tried to make it "talk" a few more times, but my efforts were in vain.

Since that was the case, I got up and decided to tell Sylphy the good news. Unexpectedly, the sunlight was still streaming through the window.

I spent quite a few hours in my inner world, but it was as if time in that place elapsed at a different speed than outside ...

Also, I'm still controlling Ember's body, but assimilation was already disabled and I didn't consider activating it again for a while unless it was necessary.

As for Ember, she is currently asleep. The damage to her soul was not a joke, so she may not wake up for a few days like when I was killed as a goblin.

But I was not afraid that she would not return, after all, our bond was now truly unbreakable.

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