Chapter 996: Pursuing Him
"I feel like I’ve been holding out on you for far too long... Rael, would it be okay if I act like my true self around you?" she asked.
Rael paused for a moment, taking in her words. There was a deep layer of maturity behind them, and he knew for a fact she wasn’t talking about her playful side, but rather her deep and emotional side where she was stoic, and rather boring.
But that side of her, Rael didn’t mind seeing. In fact, this was what he had been waiting for for a very, very long time. However, he also felt like she might not show herself to her truest extent, as in the end, she was nothing but a construct of some being’s whims.
He understood that much after becoming such a powerful being. She was... burdened. That Yggdrasil was like a soul tie to her, and while it did give her power, the fact that if anyone had a matchstick powerful enough to burn that damn thing down, she’d be dead.
More importantly, since her soul was essentially tied down to Yggdrasil, if it burned down, she would disappear permanently. Maybe because of that, she was less human than others. Or maybe it was because she was several eons old.
Whatever the case may be, Rael stared at her for a few seconds longer, then nodded.
"Alright. You know, you don’t really need to ask for things like this before doing them. You can just do them, and I’ll respect you and whatever you say. On that note, what is it you’ve been wanting to say with your true personality?"
A faint smile appeared on Gaia’s face. Then her expression turned cold, her previous warmth vanishing completely as the purely logical Gaia took root.
"I’d like it if you allowed me to chase you."
Rael tilted his head. "That’s it? If you want to chase me, then chase me."
"I mean pursue you. That’s what I want, and that’s what every version of myself wants as well. I’m not sure what it is, or where this insecurity stemmed from, but alas... it exists, so I must get rid of it," she replied in the same monotone voice as before.
Honestly, he didn’t quite understand her logic here. She was planning to get rid of her insecurity by pursuing him. Wouldn’t that add more anxiousness and worry? Well, she was definitely a bit different from the other girls, so the odds of her actually having planned all of this out were great.
However, Rael couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy. How exactly did she intend to pursue him? It wasn’t like she really liked him to begin with. For a brief moment, Rael’s thoughts wandered, and without meaning to, they entered her mind.
Before he knew it, he had scanned the last couple hours of her memories and saw that she was a little bit interested whenever he acted cold to her. That was... a strange thing to be turned on by, but beggars can’t be choosers.
Soon enough, Rael left her mind, and when he did, he found that she had realized what he had done — except she wasn’t really mad. More so, she was just conflicted.
"Hmm... I will pursue your interests, for starters. What are you most interested in?" Gaia asked.
Rael shrugged. "Probably my wives. Would you turn lesbian for me?"
That was an obvious joke of course, but seeing her nod, Rael felt a little helpless.
"I was just kidding... Don’t do that. I’m not into it. On that note, you can read my mind, so what’s with the guessing game? If you want to know something, look and find out."
Hearing that, she was once again at a loss. She had only thought as far as her confession just now. Seeing that nothing was working out, she once again returned to her previous personality. Twirling on her heels, she walked past him and out of the forest, not even paying attention to the shrine that he had come to see in the first place.
Finding her actions odd, Rael let her walk away, as in the meantime, he looked around the shrine, realizing that it was some kind of inheritance tomb. If not, it was a very fancy grave for someone. Glancing inside the grave, Rael found several dozen pieces of treasure, and even a bloodline.
Since it was just a Tier 4 bloodline, Rael didn’t even humor it. Frankly, since he had access to every single bloodline, the sheer thought of him even wanting another one was a bit odd. Also, since he now had a form that made him the most powerful being in reality, it kind of defeated the point — since what was the point of normal combat when he could just disappear, destroy reality, and reappear.
Heh.
Still, Rael found the swords were pretty nice, and since they had some wear to them, he could put them in his room and call them antiques. Smiling in satisfaction, Rael pocketed all the treasure aside from the bloodline, and then went ahead and caught up to Gaia.
From the looks of things, she was already at the entrance of the forest, looking at a city in the far-off distance with a slight bit of longing. Perhaps she was reminded of her life, the life she had told him about.
But odds were, she was lying about that life too... Just how many lives did she have? Rael couldn’t help but wonder that every time he saw her smiling.
Still, he gave her the benefit of the doubt as he placed a single hand on her shoulder and then teleported her over to Celestara, reappearing right in front of their mansion.
He cracked his neck, feeling a little sleepy. As for Gaia, she just stared at him from the side before saying something outlandish once again.
"Rael, would you mind if we took a bath together?"
"A bath...?" Rael’s brain short-circuited.
Was she already making a move on him?
