Lulu sat cross-legged on the mossy floor of the training grove, the ancient spellbook opened before her. The final page she had mastered last chapter still shimmered faintly with emerald light, as if congratulating her. Now came the next challenge—Avatar Shaping, a spell so advanced that even the old annotations warned beginners not to attempt it alone.
But for Lulu, curiosity beat caution every time.
She closed her eyes, pressed her palms together, and whispered the incantation. The air around her rippled, the clover leaves shivered, and then—
A small figure materialized before her.
The avatar had luminous green eyes, delicate glowing wings, purple-tinted hair, and a dress woven from living clovers. It looked like a tiny nature spirit—fragile and adorable, yet overflowing with magical potential.
"Wow…" Lulu breathed. "I actually did it."
She stepped forward and infused a bit more mana into the avatar. The construct blinked, then fluttered its wings. Then—with a burst of speed—it lifted off the ground.
Lulu gasped.
"It works! I can see through its eyes! I can feel the wind!"
She sent the avatar flying through the trees, laughing as she adjusted its height and angle. The sensation of controlling a second body was strange but exciting—like she was dreaming while awake.
The avatar soared higher, darting through branches and drifting over clover patches like it belonged there.
And then she spotted someone.
A man was sitting on a fallen tree trunk, looking up at the glowing canopy. He wore casual clothing—jeans, a light jacket, and a backpack—nothing like a hero's armor. His hair was tied back in a small ponytail, and he looked slightly older than when she last saw him.
Lulu felt her magic jolt.
"Rafael…?"
She carefully lowered her avatar toward him.
The man looked up, startled, and stepped back.
"Huh? A fairy…?" he muttered in Portuguese before switching to English. "Wait, what is—who are you?"
Lulu's avatar hovered close.
"Rafael, it's me. Lulu."
Rafael froze.
"…Lulu? No way. That's impossible."
"It really is me," Lulu insisted through her avatar. "I'm using a spell. The old spellbook taught me how to make this avatar body."
Rafael leaned closer, squinting.
"You look… very different."
"Well, yes," Lulu said shyly. "Avatar Shaping lets me appear however I want. I picked something cute and leafy."
Rafael blinked slowly.
"…Okay, yeah. That checks out. That sounds like something you'd do."
Lulu giggled.
Rafael sat back down, processing.
"So you used the ancient book? You actually made it work?"
"Yes! The witch who created these spells was amazing. She defeated monsters from many realms—super powerful ones!"
Rafael nodded slowly.
"That witch… what was she like?"
Lulu answered without hesitation.
"Powerful. Brilliant. Lazy."
Rafael choked.
"Lazy?!"
"Super lazy," Lulu said proudly. "She even wrote notes about napping between battles."
Inside his mind, Rafael felt the sharp sting of recognition.
( Rafael thinking )
Goddess Faenira once told me about someone… a mysterious woman who saved her and defeated all nine God of Chaos alone. I thought it was The Priestess, because she is important in this world… but… lazy? The Priestess doesn't seem lazy.
…Right?
Maybe I misunderstood? But Lulu sounds so confident…
Still… it has to be The Priestess. Who else could it be?
Rafael rubbed his forehead, troubled.
Goddess Faenira's words kept echoing in his head, but he clung to his original assumption. It had to be The Priestess, even if some pieces didn't line up.
Lulu's avatar landed gently on a tree root.
"So… how have you been, Rafael? I didn't expect to see you here."
Rafael gave a faint smile.
"I'm okay. After the summoning ended… I returned to my world. Brazil."
Lulu's avatar tilted its head.
"And you turned back into a normal person?"
"Yeah," he chuckled. "No more hero powers. No more divine duties. Just a guy living in São Paulo again."
"Do you miss the magic?"
Rafael hesitated.
"…Sometimes."
Then he smiled softly. "But it's peaceful. And I'm grateful for that."
Lulu nodded through her avatar.
"That sounds nice."
A warm silence settled between them—one glowing fairy avatar and one retired hero from Brazil sharing a quiet moment in a magical forest.
Eventually, Rafael stood.
"I should go. I have work soon. But it was really good seeing you again, Lulu—even if you look like a leaf fairy."
Lulu puffed her tiny avatar cheeks.
"I'm a very cute leaf fairy!"
Rafael laughed.
"That you are. Take care, Lulu."
He walked away, fading into the shimmering grove's light.
Lulu hovered in the air with her avatar, watching him disappear.
A gentle, proud whisper left her lips:
"One day… I'll master every spell in that book. Even the ones she left unfinished."
The avatar dissolved into sparkles, returning to Lulu's real body.