[100 faith points consumed. Dialing Goddess Helia!]

The system message was clear, and I looked at it, waiting for my call to connect to the Goddess. But she was being a bitch and not picking up.

The phone had been ringing for about two minutes now, and the situation looked more and more hopeless.

Finally, just when I thought I should give up, someone did pick up the phone. And the female sounded far too sleepy for my liking.

"Hello! Who is calling? Can you come back later? I am too tired to speak to you."

The female told me as she almost cut off the call. But just before she could do that, I spoke up.

"Goddess Helia! Wait a second. I need to talk to you. It's important."

I stressed the "important" part, and she finally relented and recognized me.

"You are… that shopkeeper? What are you calling for? Can you do that later? I need to catch up on my sleep."

The female told me as she tried to head back to sleep. But I was relentless and refused to cut the call. That finally told the female that I was serious, and she sighed before I heard the sound of a splash.

The next time Goddess Helia spoke, she sounded much fresher.

"So, what is it that you want from me? Hurry up and name it so that I can go back to sleep."

The Goddess asked, making no mention of what she had promised me. I could not tell whether she had forgotten all about it or simply was not interested in speaking about it.

Whatever the reason was, I needed answers from her, and I was going to get them one way or another.

"Excuse me, but didn't you promise to answer my questions in return for my help? I am here to get my end of the deal."

I told the Goddess, and she suddenly sounded agitated.

"Oh, that! Is that really something you want to talk to me about? Won't it be better for you to… I don't know? Wait before I gather enough strength back?"

The female asked me, sounding tired.

Now she was beginning to annoy me a lot. If she was going to make a deal, then she needed to keep her end of it at least.

"No, I won't be heading back right now. I am going to stay here until you tell me how I can go back to my world."

I told her, and the Goddess finally relented.

"Fine! I will look into your future for you. But you better not be disappointed with your results."

She told me as she went quiet. She chanted softly, and I waited for her to speak… and waited.

But five minutes passed, and she still did not speak.

Finally, when she did, she sounded shocked.

"You! How can someone like you exist? You have no past or future. All you have is a blank state. I cannot even sense your presence. If I did not know you were talking to me and actually had a form, I would have taken you for a ghost."

The female told me, and I felt my head throb.

"So, what does that mean exactly?"

I asked, and the female bit her lip before she answered.

"That means that you… are someone neither I… nor anyone else can interfere with. I am sorry, but I cannot help you out."

The female told me, and I felt my patience snap.

"What do you mean you cannot help me out? Am I some kind of joke to you? I helped you out, and we even have a contract—"

"I know. And that's what's frustrating for me as well. I am bound to you because of this contract, so don't think it's as one-sided as you are making it out to be."

The female told me, and I felt hopeless as well. What was I supposed to do about this now?

"Don't worry. I will look more into it and find a way to help you out. You just need to believe in me."

The female told me, but I did not feel reassured by her words. How could I feel reassured when she had failed to keep her word in the first place?

But what else could I even do? Even if I wanted to shake her and demand compensation, I wouldn't be able to reach her. She was in another realm where I could not go.

"Fine. I will back down… for now. But you better keep your end of the deal. You are lucky I am such a tolerant person."

I told the female, and she sighed in relief. It seemed that our deal was weighing on her mind as well.

"You are right. I do need to be careful from here on… no, wait! I do see a vision… you are about to meet your destiny soon. You better be prepared for that."

The female's voice told me before she cut off the phone.

"Wait a minute! What do you mean by that? What destiny! Hey, come back here—!"

I shouted, but she had already cut the call before I could ask anything more. Now I was left with more questions than answers.

"What a headache. I have learned my lesson. Do not accept help from unidentified sources since they can spell trouble for you."

I reminded myself as I went back to the forest and to the kids I had left behind.

This outing had been nothing more than a failure. And I even lost 100 faith points for it with nothing to show as a result.

"What an annoyance. Ugh, I cannot wait to head home and relax with a book in my hand. Just the thought of it is making me miss my home even more."

I felt longing for my home — the cozy bookstore where I could do what I wanted and lack for nothing.

Weirdly enough, I did not recall my previous home much. The bookstore had become home for me, and it happened too fast.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.