Chapter 323: Gaining A God-Daughter
Luca didn’t know what to say. His mind was spinning with conflicting emotions.
Finally, he managed to find his voice.
"How?" He asked, looking at her with confusion. "How was she even able to do such a thing?"
He looked down at his hand.
"Isn’t she supposed to be crazy right now? How could she give such a thoughtful gift?"
The Goddess of Space rolled her eyes good-naturedly.
"Like I said before, she may have her mind scattered, but she’s still the same Goddess I look upto on the inside."
She paused, her expression softening.
"She gave you such a gift because somewhere, deep down, she wants to help you. Even if she doesn’t express it in the most conventional ways."
Luca looked completely taken aback. He stared at his arm for a long moment, watching the tattoos move and dance across his skin.
Then, slowly, he began to chuckle to himself.
"I thought for sure that she would be my biggest enemy in this lifetime." He admitted, shaking his head. "I was even thinking of having a fight with her in a boxing ring when I met her."
"A boxing ring?" The Goddess of Space looked baffled at the image.
But Luca just shook his head, a fond look appearing in his eyes.
"But after this...how could I possibly stay mad? Even if she messed up my plans, she still helped me more than I ever expected."
He looked up at the Goddess of Space with deep gratitude.
"I should thank her too, when the time comes."
The Goddess of Space smiled, satisfied. "She’ll be very happy to hear that you liked her gift so much."
And Luca absolutely did like his gift!
He was so overcome with joy that he stepped away from the beautiful deity and began pacing around like an excited kid on Christmas morning.
"I want to go back!" He declared, his voice bubbling with energy. "I want to go home already! I want to show everyone the blessing I got!"
He radiated excitement from every pore.
"I’m sure everyone would lose their mind once they saw this! And I’d become the best husband ever!"
He looked at the Goddess in anticipation, practically bouncing on his heels.
"Can you open a portal already? Please? I need to get back!"
The Goddess just chuckled at his adorable response like a little kid who wanted to play with his new toys.
She waved her hand, and a portal quickly emerged, its surface shimmering with inviting light.
Luca practically sprinted toward it, eager to show everyone in the village what he had received.
But just as he was about to run through, he suddenly thought of something and slowly turned around.
His expression shifted from excitement to something more thoughtful, a fond gaze in his eyes that was full of nostalgia and deep emotion.
"Thank you." He said softly, his voice barely above a whisper. "For showing me Azalea and the others."
The Goddess blinked, momentarily confused.
Luca continued, his voice filled with deep love and sadness.
"It’s honestly been so long that I almost forgot all of their voices. But now, not only do I have the satisfaction of meeting them after so many years, but I even have a goal to strive toward and a chance of meet them again"
"I have to thank you for that."
He smiled warmly at her, expecting her to preen and accept his gratitude with divine haughtiness.
But to his shock, the Goddess of Space instead just looked at him with a surprised expression, like she had no clue about what he was saying.
Finally, she spoke, "Regarding that." She said slowly. "I had no participation in it at all."
Luca stared at her, his smile fading.
"What do you mean?" He asked, stepping forward in confusion.
"Didn’t you create that entire situation just so that you could drive my ambition towards reaching the end?"
"To push me along so that nothing was holding me back anymore from doing what I had to do?"
But she just shook her head, an innocent look on her face.
"I really have no idea regarding that at all." She admitted awkwardly. "Honestly, even I was surprised when I saw that vision come to be. It came out of nowhere. I had absolutely no control over it."
"And there didn’t seem to be any influence from other Goddesses as well. So really..."
She spread her hands helplessly.
"...I have no clue regarding that at all. I don’t even know who those girls were that appeared in the mortal realm."
She looked genuinely perplexed. "It’s a phenomenon even for me."
Luca searched her face, looking for any sign that she was lying just to keep up some modesty.
But she just looked genuinely, authentically confused. There was even a hint of curiosity in her expression, as if she was wondering how exactly that all had occurred.
And then, Luca thought of the previous conversation they had just had.
A tall figure appeared in his mind. A being of unimaginable power.
He couldn’t help but mutter under his breath.
"Could it be?..Is she the one?"
The Goddess noticed his reaction immediately, her divine senses picking up on his shift in demeanor.
She leaned in, her eyes narrowing with suspicion and curiosity.
"What?" She pressed. "Do you have any idea of what exactly happened? Can you tell me about it!?"
But Luca just shook his head, forcing a casual smile onto his face.
"It’s nothing." He said lightly. "Just an afterthought. Don’t worry about it."
The Goddess’s suspicion only grew. She couldn’t help but lean in even closer, narrowing her eyes as she studied him.
"You seem to know a lot more than you’re letting on." She observed. "You have a whole bundle of secrets wrapped around you, don’t you?"
Luca just gave her a mysterious look.
"Who knows?" He said, his voice dropping into a cool, enigmatic tone. "Maybe I do. Maybe I don’t."
And with that, he turned back toward the portal, his expression unreadable.
The Goddess of Space pouted in an adorable manner, looking like a child who had been denied a treat.
She felt so aggrieved that the mortal before her seemed to be playing games with her, dangling secrets in front of her face without actually sharing any of them.
But just as Luca was about to disappear completely through the shimmering portal—
—the Goddess of Space’s eyes suddenly shimmered with realization.
A pivotal matter, something she had completely forgotten in all the chaos of their conversation came rushing back to her.
"Luca! Wait! Hold on!" She called out urgently, her voice cutting through the ambient hum of the portal’s energy.
Luca immediately turned around, a look of exaggerated surrender on his face.
"No matter how much you ask me, I’m not going to tell you anything." He said firmly. "My mouth is sealed. You could offer me the secrets of the universe and I still wouldn’t budge."
The Goddess of Space let out an exasperated huff, her cheeks puffing slightly with annoyance.
"I’m not going to ask about your secrets or anything." She said, her voice tinged with irritation. "I have something else I want to tell you."
Luca’s expression shifted to one of confusion. He tilted his head, waiting.
And in response, the Goddess of Space suddenly looked uncharacteristically shy.
She started fidgeting with her hands, twisting her fingers together in a nervous gesture that seemed completely at odds with her divine status.
Finally, she looked straight into his eyes, her gaze vulnerable and sincere she said,
"...Lumiel."
Luca tilted his head, completely baffled.
"Lumiel? What’s that? Am I supposed to figure out something with that word?"
He asked, his brow furrowing with confusion.
"Is that a riddle? A code? Some sort of celestial password I need to—"
"That’s my name, you dummy."
He went quiet for a moment as the realization landed.
"The last time we met." She continued, her voice carrying a trace of stiffness that didn’t quite conceal the shyness underneath. "I told you that once you’d completed your mission in the elf village, I would tell you my name."
She met his eyes, and for just a moment the Goddess who ruled over the infinite expanse of space looked almost small.
"So...my name is Lumiel. Y-You can call me Lumi, if you prefer. That’s what my sister calls me."
Luca was quiet for a beat.
Then a slow smile spread across his face, warm and genuine.
"Lumi...." He repeated. "That’s a rather cute name for a Goddess."
"Don’t laugh at it!" She snapped, the heat in her cheeks intensifying. "It was bestowed upon me by the cosmic weave itself! I’m just stuck with it for eternity!"
"I’m not laughing." He said, though the corners of his eyes still crinkled. "I mean it. It’s adorable. Fits you, somehow."
The compliment, delivered so casually, struck her with unexpected force. She regretted telling him instantly—this was too personal, too vulnerable.
Mortals weren’t supposed to know the names of deities. Names held power. Connections.
"It’s so adorable, actually..."
He continued thoughtfully, as if working through a decision in real time.
"...that I want to give it to one of my children someday."
Lumiel went completely still.
She looked at him with an expression caught between disbelief and something that fluttered dangerously close to joy.
"...Really?"
Her voice came out much smaller than she intended before she jumped up in excitement.
"You’d actually do that!? Name a child after me?!"
"Of course." Luca said, nodding casually. A knowing glint entered his eyes. "After all, I have so many children right now—dozens and dozens of them."
"It won’t be a big deal to give one of them that name."
Lumiel blinked, processing his words. Then realization dawned.
He had so many children that naming one of them after her was practically nothing to him. It was almost an afterthought, a casual gesture.
And yet...
She found herself happy anyway.
This was because even though she was a Goddess ruling over so many different worlds, she couldn’t properly interact with the mortal realm.
After all, the Heavenly Realm and the Mortal Realm were completely separated, and interference from Goddesses was deeply prohibited for their own personal agendas.
Due to this restriction, she had never truly made her mark or any difference in the mortal world beyond her divine duties.
But now, her name was actually going to be among someone in the mortal world!
A child would carry her name, would grow up with it, would live their entire life associated with her!
The thought filled her with a weird sense of fondness and warmth.
Just then, Luca waved his hand as he turned back toward the portal.
"I hope you can be a good godmother to the child in the future."
He called over his shoulder, a playful smile on his face.
"Take care of little Lumi from up high in the Heavens, will you?"
And with that, he slipped through the portal, disappearing from sight.
Luca had of course said it as a joke, a casual offhand remark meant to lighten the mood.
But little did he know that Lumiel had actually taken it seriously to heart.
Her eyes sparkled with determination as she was already thinking about how she would help out the child named Lumiel in the future.
How she would watch over them, protect them, guide them.
Even if she had to break a few rules here and there.
She was even more excited about the birth of this child than Luca himself in that moment. Her divine heart swelled with anticipation.
But then, pushing aside those warm feelings, her thoughts turned back to the main issue at hand.
The identity of Luca himself.
