Brand New Life Online: Rise Of The Goddess Of Harvest

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Elena didn’t really want to reveal that she had a Spiritual Heart or anything similar. The concept didn’t seem to exist here in Japan and explaining it would only spark more complicated questions. For now, she preferred to keep her mother’s existence a secret.

Elayne had vanished after all, choosing to conceal herself. Heroic Spirits—and most Spirits in general—possessed the ability to dissolve into pure spiritual energy and disappear. She had done so without hesitation, opting to hide from others for the time being. Being discovered as a Heroic Spirit would only invite suspicion, or worse, expose her true identity and draw enemies straight to her.

“Hey, she doesn’t know. We can figure it out later. Does it really matter?” Anna asked, crossing her arms and tapping them impatiently. She didn’t want to be rude—he was genuinely kind—but she needed him to drop the curiosity.

“I guess it doesn’t. Sorry for prying too much,” Matsuo nodded. “Anyway, I see you’re all awake. The Clan Master sent me to show you around. There will be some introductory classes for beginners and new students. They’re not mandatory, but I’d recommend attending. You could learn a lot about various things.”

“Huh, I guess we should,” Anna agreed.

“Yeah,” Elena said. “Thank you, Matsuo. Where’s Master Olivia?”

“Ah, I saw her wandering around this morning. I don’t know what she was doing, but she looked… I don’t know, tired? Stressed, maybe,” Matsuo replied. “She might be having trouble adapting or something. I’m not sure. It seemed like she was searching for something—she completely ignored me when I greeted her.”

Elena and her friends exchanged puzzled glances but shrugged it off. They weren’t children anymore; they could manage just fine in this place.

“Have you had breakfast yet? A maidservant arrived recently and is preparing something for you,” Matsuo said. “It should be ready by now. Why not sit down and eat before the day starts?”

“Oh, yeah, we’re starving,” Anna nodded. “Right, girls?”

“Yes, I’m quite hungry myself!” Elisa agreed. “However, Elena, you just woke up. Go take a bath and change clothes first.”

“We’ll be waiting for you in the dining room,” Monica added.

“Alright, thanks,” Elena said. She watched Matsuo and her friends leave, then headed to her bathroom for a warm bath.

“Haaa… Mom? Are you there?”

FLASH!

Golden and green spiritual energies suddenly manifested. Her mother appeared in the large bathtub right beside her.

“Yes, I’ve always been here,” Elayne said gently.

“Ribbit…”

But she hadn’t come alone. It seemed to be a new facet of her powers—her abilities no longer limited to vegetation. Animal life now emerged whenever she materialized.

Out of nowhere, the hot water became covered in huge lily pads, blooming lotus flowers, twisting vines, leaping frogs, and swimming fish.

“Uwaaah?! M-Mom, there are too many animals!” Elena scrambled out of the tub before a frog could jump on her. “Take them out!”

“Eeeh? But why? Aren’t they cute?” Elayne chuckled, cradling a tiny frog in her palm and kissing it. “They’re so precious and adorable, my beloved children. Why are you afraid of them? Don’t be mean… they’re just babies.”

“W-What?” Elena raised an eyebrow in disbelief, her eye twitching.

She remembered her mother’s deep love for animals and nature—her garden, her pets—but this felt different. It bordered on obsession. Even after Elena insisted repeatedly, Elayne could barely be reasoned with.

“Fine… fine…” Elayne sighed at last, making the creatures vanish.

“Where do they even come from?” Elena asked as the water returned to normal, as though nothing had ever been summoned. “Were they illusions?”

“They’re manifestations of my new powers…” Elayne said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “Hmmm, they’re living beings, yes. But at the same time, extensions of my own authority over life.”

“I see…” Elena nodded, though she didn’t truly understand much of what her mother meant. “Um, so what do we do now?”

Elayne swam closer and began gently washing her daughter’s hair, helping Elena relax.

“Hmm, maybe we could start the day like usual? I want to see the world around you, dear—what you’ve built,” Elayne said. “And I will protect you.”

“Mom…” Elena sighed softly. “I wonder if Mark is okay? And Rita? Or Lily… And Jenny. They all disappeared.”

“Hm…” Elayne’s eyes filled with sorrow as she exhaled. “I guess I was so focused on you and what’s around us that I didn’t think about them… I hope they’re safe. I can’t do much right now…”

“I know… I’m not asking you to do anything, Mom,” Elena murmured. “Well… can that wish really do anything?”

“I think so,” Elayne replied. “Why?”

“I was wondering—all these wars, all these people wishing for whatever they wanted… how come the world hasn’t ended yet?” Elena asked. “Like, wasn’t there a single Magus who wished for the world to end or something?”

“Hm, wishes that go against the world itself cannot be granted. Wishing for the world to end won’t happen because the Holy Grail draws power from the world,” Elayne explained. “And most winning Magi are self-centered, aren’t they? They always wished to become the greatest, the strongest family of magicians. Over the years, that same wish was made countless times, forging new families again and again. One family in particular, however… wished for something different, I think.”

“What was it?” Elena asked, curiosity piqued.

“Ah, no, nothing,” Elayne said quickly. “I don’t really know much, unfortunately. Sorry about that.”

“Eh, well, it’s fine,” Elena shrugged. “If this is true, then… is it possible to wish for those who died to return?”

“I think so,” Elayne nodded. “It might be our only hope.”

“Then let’s make sure to do that,” Elena said, a confident smile spreading across her face.

Though she had once felt so crushed she wanted to die, this new spark of hope now filled her heart. Determination and resolve surged through her—she would fight in this war and do whatever it took to save those who had been lost.

“I was wondering about everybody else—the fairies and the other people from Avalon…” Elayne said quietly. “What happened after… we lost?”

“Hm,” Elena thought for a moment. “Your Domain became their refuge. The Canadian Government, along with SWORD, decided to keep their existence secret and offered protection to all the spirits who settled there—as long as they helped fight the Hollows and Undead now invading through Gates even more aggressively than before.”

“I see…” Elayne nodded slowly. “Well, that’s a relief! I’m so happy they found shelter in my Domain. But wasn’t it too small?”

“It was, but they expanded it dramatically,” Elena explained. “I mean, it was already a large forest, but it grew enormous as they poured their power into it. Some of Oberon’s children brought their own Domains and fused them in. Practically speaking, some people speculate it might eventually evolve into a new Realm. Amazing, right?”

“Yes, that makes me so curious. I wish I could go see them,” Elayne sighed wistfully. “But it might be better if we stay here for now… well, I guess I could do something.”

“Huh?” Elena tilted her head. “I have a rune that lets me teleport there through a gate, but I don’t know—bringing you so far might disconnect you from the Ley Lines here, right?”

“Yeah, it might be dangerous. I wouldn’t be able to sustain myself,” Elayne sighed. “I’m tied to the Ley Lines beneath Tokyo. I can’t just switch to others freely. There are strict rules. All of this exists to prevent Heroic Spirits from being turned into weapons of mass destruction by their Masters.”

“It makes sense,” Elena nodded. “Kaguya became the new Domain Master, and she even revealed herself to be some kind of Kami from here—wait, now that we’re in Japan, I wonder if we could contact her True Body?”

“Eh? K-Kaguya?!” Elayne’s eyes widened in shock. “You’re saying she was a Goddess?! Eh?!” For a moment, she reverted to her old clumsy self, completely stunned, making her daughter chuckle.

“Y-Yeah, haha,” Elena laughed. “I missed your reactions, Mom… Um, so anyway… yeah, she was. When you… disappeared, she was granted full control of your Domain because it lost its connection to you. It became hers. She’s still loyal to you and is just managing things there. At the same time, she revealed she was a Kami from Japan. She answered your summon out of curiosity—about you and the powers you brought into the world when you awakened, among other things.”

“Hmm, now this explains her connection to Abe-no-Seimei even more,” Elayne murmured thoughtfully. “Ame-no-Seimei-sama… and also Amaterasu-sama… I owe them both. They helped me forge a Soul Trait back then.”

“Eh, do you feel like repaying the favor or something, Mom? Does it really matter? It’s not like you have that power anymore, right? You were completely reborn as a Heroic Spirit…” Elena said.

“That’s true, but I do want to meet them again. Perhaps we could forge some kind of beneficial alliance,” Elayne replied. “Elena, you always have to think a few steps ahead—think about building alliances and gathering strong allies. Walking the path alone isn’t good… even when I’m here to protect you.”

“I guess so…” Elena said quietly. “But how are we even meeting Ame?”

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