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...I really need to stop trying fate on this bitch.

Letting out a monumental sigh, I sit on the edge of a nearby sofa, staring at my bishop as I ask, "It was something to do with my soul, wasn't it?"

She nods in a slightly unsure movement.

"Y-yes… it looked like, how am I supposed to put it… unnatural? As if it wasn't something that would normally exist."

...Crap and then additional crap.

Slumping onto the bench like a sack of rocks, Valerie slowly joins me, tucking her legs under her, and I have the head to order her to wear something less provocative.

God only knows I need every kind of concentration and intelligence I can muster right now.

Carefully formulating my next question, I ask, "And what is it in my soul that didn't feel natural?"

The Dhampir changes uncomfortably before answering quickly: "I ... I can hear voices at some point to use my Sacred Gear ... and some of them are too far away, as if they spoke through many universes and unimaginable depths of space. His soul sounded and sounded a lot like theirs... and yet it was also so close. I... I don't know how to describe it anymore."

My preoccupation with the current situation is abruptly dismissed, while his confession opens up a new branch of 'oh shit'.

"Can you hear voices!? They're not forcing you to do anything, are they? To make decisions or choices you wouldn't normally make?"

She blinks once in obvious surprise before frantically waving her hands back and forth.

"Oh, none of that! I mean, sure, some of the voices can be a bit rude or insistent... but it's a simple matter of tuning in or ignoring them."

Her face turns a light shade of red, fingers shyly poking together.

"And, well... the emotions and feelings I get from all of you through help a lot, acting like... like a beacon, almost when the voices get insistent or cacophonous."

I let out a shuddering sigh of relief, worried that using the [ Sephiroth Graal] has already become too much for the Dhampir.

Okay, I'll take your word for it... but remember that previous users of [ Sephiroth Graal] have occasionally gone mad due to other souls and lives you can communicate with, don't be afraid to tell us if things get a little overwhelming, ok?"

A pure, uncomplicated smile crosses her doll face as she leans forward and places a quick kiss on my cheek, all glee as she replies, "I'll do it, you're so sweet to worry about me~!"

Easy, Gilgamesh... we're still in the middle of a conversation here.

Some of Valerie's glee evaporates when she gets back to the main topic, also pissing off my mood.

"So… are you from this world?"

Screw this.

And I suck at telling big lies. Little things? I am your man. I could convince the teacher that my friend's dog that didn't exist actually ate his homework, explain why I was late for class, think of an excuse for not going out last night and getting a good grade on the exam. . a test I didn't do that well.

But so do I have to lie about a relative's health, or explain why someone is breaking up with someone else?

Forget it, I have all the deceptive talents of a little kid with his hand in the cookie jar.

There's no way I can get a quick one now that I've been exposed...

...

There's still an ice ball forming in the mouth of my gut that I have no control over.

"If... if this is such a sensitive subject, Gilgamesh, you need not tell me..."

Valerie's hesitant question seals the deal for me.

"No, you deserve to know…ok, since you've clearly read all sorts of manga and other crap like that…are you familiar with the whole, transported to another world?"

"Oh, you mean 'Isekai'?"

"Umm…sure? Well, to make a long story short…I'm practically from another world, as you guessed it."

Valerie is quiet long enough to make me worry.

- and then a cry of joy almost deafens me at the time.

"Oh my god so are you an alien?!"

"Wait, what the fuck is this? How did you interpret this as me being a-"

"So how much of this prophecy was really true?"

She flashes me a smile, causing me to shiver.

"…everything about saving the world is true…but the rest was a total lie. I was just worried that you thought I was absolutely nuts for suddenly opening up with 'hey, I'm a guy from the other world, come help me save this one'."

The Dhampir wisely nods before giving me a curious look.

"Who were you in your previous world, Gilgamesh?"

That particular question makes me snort.

"Someone who was just as bland – but no less unique – than anyone else. I had my own ups and downs, my own trials and tribulations…but at the end of the day, I was like any other human. one day I died and some goddesses of fate said they wanted me to make some changes to the way things were going to happen in this world. The rest is history. They gave me my powers and sent me to this world."

Valerie seems transfixed by my tale... until she abruptly looks uncomfortable, asking hesitantly, "So... so where do we fit in? Will you leave us and go back to your own world once your task is complete?"

"What? Hell no! For starters, I'm enjoying having a real purpose here, having a task that will really mean something. And more than that, I don't want to leave you. Any of you."

It puts her at ease, leaning her head on my shoulder - flooding my nostrils with the scent of freshly washed hair and skin - as she responds with relief.

"Why do you look so… okay with what I did?

"...I would bring an artificial and genuine happiness to a natural and aimless existence any day. Because that's what I had before you and Enkidu rescued me. A loveless family who saw me as resources to be used ​​when convenient... or unworthy slaves who are not so good at expressing an opinion... "

Acting more on instinct than conscious thought at this point, I pull the young woman into an emotional embrace, stroking her hair as I let out a long, strained breath I'd been unconsciously holding.

"I think I might be the luckiest man in the world, having someone as understanding as you as one of my partners."

She snuggles into my embrace, now looking much happier as she laughs lightly.

"Oh my God, what a flattery~..."

"No flattery involved, just truth."

She lightly licks my neck, her pointed canines brushing my skin, and just like that, I'm suddenly reminded that there's an incredibly attractive woman dressed in an incredibly provocative outfit practically straddling my lap, nibbling on my jugular.