Chapter 75: A Clumsy Debut on a New Stage

My grand arrival into the world of Caelum concluded with a mouthful of dirt and a profound sense of humiliation. I had tripped over a root and landed face-first in the grass.

“This is going to be harder than I thought,” I mumbled, spitting out a piece of clover.

I pushed myself up, brushing dirt from the front of my ridiculously frilly dress. First order of business: assess my new, nerfed abilities. I held out my hand, palm forward, in a pose I’d seen in countless anime. “Let’s start simple. [Sparkle Shot]!”

Poof.

A small cloud of iridescent glitter erupted from my hand, shimmered prettily, and then gently drifted down to coat my dress in a fine layer of sparkle. I stared at my hand. Then I stared at the glitter.

“Okay,” I sighed. “So my primary offensive spell is essentially a party favor. This is fine.” Next, I needed a companion. “[Summon Fluffy Companion]!”

A small, amethyst-colored circle of light appeared on the ground, and with another soft poof, a creature materialized. It was… a bunny. A tiny, ridiculously fluffy, palm-sized bunny with long, floppy ears and a twitching pink nose. This was Mochi. A squeaky voice echoed directly in my mind.

“Got any snacks?”

My fluffy companion was not a noble beast. He was a freeloader. “I am your summoner, Aki!” I said, trying to sound commanding. “We are on a quest for truth and justice!”

“Seriously, though,” Mochi’s voice squeaked back. “This whole ‘heroic quest’ thing looks like a lot of cardio. I’m not really a cardio guy. Unless we’re cardio-ing our way to a carrot patch.”

“We are not,” I grumbled, scooping him up and placing him on my shoulder. I scanned the horizon and saw it: another, much larger floating island with the faint shapes of buildings. A town. Aeria. I knew it was the right place. I could feel it. “There,” I said, pointing a determined, glitter-covered finger. “That’s where we’re going, Mochi.”

“Does ‘there’ have a five-star hay buffet?”

“Just get ready for a walk.”

The journey was an odyssey of minor mortal suffering. My boots gave me blisters, my muscles ached, and I discovered the unpleasant sensation of hunger. Finally, dusty and thoroughly disillusioned with the mortal experience, I reached a sky-port at the edge of the island. I managed to trade my divine locket to a skeptical captain for passage on the “AERIA EXPRESS.”

When we docked at Aeria, I was a bundle of nerves. The town was beautiful, with buildings of pearlescent white stone and the scent of baking bread in the air. I walked through the main gate, my heart pounding, my eyes scanning every face in the crowd.

“So, about those snacks…” Mochi began, but I shushed him.

And then I saw him.

He was standing in the middle of the town square, next to a fountain. He was talking to a little girl who had dropped her apple, using his spirit blade to slice it into perfect, star-shaped pieces for her before handing it back. He was laughing, and the sound, clear and real, hit me with the force of a physical blow.

All the frustration, fear, and pain of my clumsy mortal journey melted away. It was worth it. Every blister, every glitter-sneeze, every sassy comment from my freeloader bunny. It was all worth it, just for this. Just to be in the same world as him again.

I hid behind a market stall, my breath caught in my throat. I couldn’t just run up to him. He didn’t know me. I was Aki Amakawa now. A stranger.

My eyes fell on a large building at the edge of the square, a sign with a crossed sword and axe hanging above its sturdy oak doors. The Adventurer’s Guild. A place where a wandering, amnesiac magical girl might go to find her footing. A place where a kind, goofy hero might look for his next quest.

It was the perfect place to start. With a deep, steadying breath, I squared my shoulders and started walking towards the Guild. My ridiculously, universe-breaking plan was about to enter its second, even more complicated stage.