CHAPTER 53: REBIRTH OF THE UNBORN

The floral scent of the herb smoke fills the air, and the forest around Cecilia and Marya falls eerily silent.

Cecilia takes a deep breath and starts chanting the words of the ritual.

"Nythera phaneros, ely­siar en Lythaen.

aelys-nyth, velion seiryn, thēros alun.

Khelen phoros, kyrien en elendar,

mirion ephemar, seiryn anthea.

Lythaen-aelys, velion-nyth,

phorion aelys, phaneros en

Ephemerys-velion, chros en lythaen,

kythera en nythea, phor-ael en cycle.

Anthyra velion, nythea phoros."

("Gate of Death revealed, rest within the Fading.

Wing-Death, behind the veil, mercy sings.

Path of light, divine return,

Myriad souls awaken in song.

The winged passing, shroud of death,

Journey of rebirth, light at the end.

Veil of Ephemerys, coloured in fading,

Bridge to death, soul journey through the cycle.

Veil of Rebirth, Path of Death.")

As the chant progressed, the silver thread on the ground began to vibrate like harp strings. Though it was one single thread, each part of it hummed at a slightly different pitch, forming a chord that builds up into the sacred hymn.

The trunk at the center syncs its brightness with the ups and downs of the melody. Marya feels the air getting denser, making all the hairs in her body stand up.

At the end of the chant, the flames on the mirrored candles converge, creating a bridge of rainbow light between Cecilia and the trunk. The flames then return to a horizontal position, and the mirrored ones disappear.

Only the bridge remains, a light path between invokers and spirit.

The trunk splits open, revealing a hollow where filaments of code are woven into a humanoid silhouette.

{User detected. Parameters mismatch. Query: Restoration or Termination?}

It was an AI voice, robotic and emotionless, coming from the trunk.

Cecilia allowed herself to breathe normally again. The ritual had worked.

"Neither. I’m here to understand what you’ve become."

{Processing... Unknown directive. Understanding not defined.}

((Of course understanding wouldn’t be a defined word... But is it just me, or did that voice showed some... emotion?))

"You were meant to regulate the forest’s growth, weren’t you? To keep balance. But you’ve been alone for too long."

The filaments that compose the silhouette ripple, as if reacting to her tone.

{Alone equals no master node. No updates. Continuous loop. Growth beyond control variable. Error persists.}

((The game world expanded after becoming a real world, so did the rate of growth. They are now proper plants and animals, not governed by algorithms anymore.))

"You kept following your function, even after the world changed. Even without a master node or updates. You truly are a devoted one."

A pause. The lights on the humanoid body flicker, something almost like doubt.

{Devoted... not in data. Input unknown. Define ’devoted.’}

"A devoted person is someone who keeps doing what they were made to do, even when no one tells them to do it anymore. To care without reward."

{Caring... Resource expenditure without return. Not logical. Defies parameters. Yet... pleasing.}

The humanoid form takes a tentative step forward, towards Cecilia. Marya, at her side, flinches and tenses, but Cecilia takes her hand, appeasing her. She senses no hostility from the entity, and the circle around them is meant for protection.

{Administrator Morielen. Verification incomplete. Request: confirm identity.}

((Huh? Administrator? Me?))

"Morielen is my character’s name, from the age of players. I don’t use it anymore, but it’s still in my system data. You can check it. But I was never an administrator..."

{Age of players... closing event... lost connection. You... remain. How?}

"I honestly don’t know."

Cecilia felt a weird sensation, the one that happens when someone uses Appraisal on you. There is then a long silence, then something flickers inside the entity, like a line of code.

{Loop termination requires command. Awaiting order.}

((Is it asking me to order it to die?))

Cecilia hesitates for a moment, then shakes her head.

"I’m not here to end you. You are part of this world now, just like me. But trying to preserve it the way it was is actually hurting it."

{Preserve equals harm. Contradiction acknowledged. Unable to resolve.}

((’Unable to resolve.’ That’s the sad truth of all paradoxes.))

She then suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

"Then let me help you rest. Let your code return to the cycle."

The figure leans closer, as if showing curiosity and interest.

{Cycle... death fades, rebirth shines... phrase recognized. Ephemerys protocol. I remember light... butterflies.}

((Is it working? It just used a personal pronoun to refer to itself. Maybe it’s working.))

"Yes. That’s her. The one who governs the cycles of all beings. Death... and rebirth."

{Service acknowledged. Request: closure... peaceful.}

Cecilia nods, stepping out of the protecting circle and placing her hand into the light.

"Your cycle is complete, Verdant Root. Return to rest."

She channels her mana into the entity, mingling it with the code that forms its body.

{Acknowledged... Cycle complete... Preserving memory... thank-}

The rest is lost in static. The shape unravels into particles of pollen that scatter upward like the remnants of a prayer.

Cecilia kneels and pray, a heartfelt prayer to Ephemerys, as the light fades. The candles’ flames also disappear, and the silver thread returns to its inert state. The ritual has been closed.

When she opens her eyes and stand up back to her feet, she hears Marya’s small voice trembling.

"Was that a spirit, Miss?"

"It was... once a tool. Now, it’s... a soul. I chrysalis. When it’s born again, it will be in a new form, attuned to the world of today."

Two system messages flickered then in her vision, briefly.

[Process Terminated — Status: Peaceful]

[Residual Data Saved as "Verdant Memory"]

"Let’s rest a bit, then clean the ritual area and head back."

She felt her muscles aching from the tension of sustaining that kind of ritual.

((Seriously... the game made it all feel so easy. But now, this is exhausting.))

"I’m not as tired, Miss Cecilia. So you sit there and rest, I’ll clean everything for you."

Marya smiled and started running around, organizing everything.

The forest was slowly losing its artificial properties, reverting into a natural-looking place. Insects were buzzing, and the sound of small animals could be heard, not in loops anymore.

Cecilia sat on the ground, resting her back on a leafy tree and closed her eyes.

Then, in her vision, two more system prompts flashed.

[VerdantRoot.subprocess archived.]

[Network Ping: Awaiting further Administrator input.]