I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 287: A Voice Ignored

Liam is staring at his reflection in the mirror.

He has just finished brushing his teeth, about to head to bed. He sees a tired young man with dark circles under his eyes. Someone who hasn’t had a proper night’s sleep.

His mind starts to wander back to what happened in the gym a few hours ago.

He sighs.

"You’re blaming yourself for not being able to fight Arthur head-on, aren’t you?" a voice suddenly speaks from behind him.

"Jesus!" Liam turns around and sees Matthew standing behind him.

"Don’t scare me like that!" Liam says, holding his chest. He feels like his heart just dropped to the floor.

"I thought you knew. I’m sorry!" Matthew says.

"How can I know?! You don’t exist!" Liam snaps, his voice low.

He turns back, shuts the water, dries his face with a towel, and walks out of the bathroom.

When he reaches the bedroom, he whips around to face Matthew again.

"And no, I’m not blaming myself for not being able to defeat Arthur. I know he’s stronger than me. So stop psychoanalyzing me!"

Liam whips around again and snatches his sleeping T-shirt from his wardrobe.

He turns back to Matthew, who is still following him.

"Besides, what are you doing here?! I thought you said you wouldn’t come back until I’m ready to talk to you," Liam rants.

Matthew opens his mouth, about to answer, when Liam suddenly points a finger at him.

"You better not psychoanalyze me!" His eyes blaze with warning.

Matthew is stunned, but only for a second.

The next moment, he says, "I never said I’d come back when you’re ready. I said I’ll keep coming back until you’re ready. That’s not psychoanalyzing. That’s a reminder."

Liam presses his lips together. "This is how I know you’re not the real ghost of Matthew. You’re just my imagination. Matthew didn’t know what ’psychoanalyze’ means. He didn’t even know that word existed. He was twelve, for crying out loud!"

"So you—" he points at him, "—are not Matthew."

"So tell me straight." Liam crosses his arms. "Who are you?"

Silence.

Matthew looks at Liam, amusement in his eyes.

"What? You’re not going to say anything?" Liam challenges.

"Oh, now I can say something?" Matthew replies. His demeanor shifts, from a twelve-year-old boy to someone much older.

Liam gets goosebumps.

He is looking at Matthew, his late friend who died at twelve, but with the presence of an older man.

It’s unsettling.

Matthew smiles.

"You’re right, Liam. I am not the real Matthew. He died ten years ago. We both know that. So no, I am not Matthew."

"I am what you would call your inner conscience. I take the form of Matthew not because I want to, but because Matthew is your greatest guilt." He stares straight at Liam without blinking, making him even more uneasy.

Liam clenches his jaw.

"I don’t know what you’re talking about," Liam says through his teeth.

Matthew nods. "Okay, now you’re going back into your shell again, just like a turtle."

He sighs. "It’s okay, Liam. You don’t have to entertain me. I’m here because I have something to say to you."

"You ready to hear it?" Matthew asks.

Liam blinks.

He’s thinking, hard.

"Go on," Liam says, very quietly, barely audible.

"What?" Matthew leans in, one ear closer to Liam.

"I said, go on. Say what you want to say. Then leave. Or disappear. Whatever," Liam snaps.

Matthew sighs again.

"Okay," he says calmly.

"You don’t need to blame yourself for what happened in the gym. Arthur is stronger than you," he begins.

"But that is now, Liam. Only now. I’m going to say it again, now. Right now, Arthur is stronger than you, yes. But it doesn’t mean that will always be the case."

"Liam," his voice grows firmer,

"You are not weak. You are strong. Very strong. Extremely strong. If you don’t believe me, go and ask Thea to ask Theo. Your magic potential is not less than Arthur’s."

Matthew pauses, letting his words sink in.

Liam blinks several times, then scoffs.

"Huh. I can’t believe I’m getting a pep talk from someone who doesn’t exist."

He sighs, defeated.

He plops down onto his bed.

"Do you not remember what Teacher Theo said? That you might also be an Ascendant? You remember that?" Matthew continues. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"And that time when you somehow blocked Arthur’s Fire with your Water, when he was in a berserk state and you were completely normal?"

"Liam, you are not weak," Matthew says again.

Liam looks at him, his expression filled with mixed emotions.

He doesn’t know what to think.

He covers his face with his palms.

Silence falls.

One minute.

Two minutes.

Three minutes.

Still silence.

Liam lowers his hands and realizes Matthew is no longer there.

Liam is slightly stunned. He scans his bedroom.

Then he laughs, a quiet, defeated sound.

"Son of a bitch." He whispers.

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"You guys are going together?" Maeve asks from the kitchen, watching Arthur and the others, including Alicia, at the door, putting on their shoes.

Arthur nods.

"Yes," Liam answers. "So that once the paperwork is done, we can immediately go clear the dungeon. No need to waste time."

He’s very excited. He hasn’t been able to sleep for a few nights, and Matthew’s appearance last night didn’t help.

He is jittery, eager to do something.

Julian is not as excited as Liam.

Last night, after dinner, he went back to his lab and checked his computer. His alarm had been beeping for a long time, and he hadn’t realized it.

He was very irritated that he hadn’t noticed the alarm earlier.

It was tied to a program he had been working on, based on the discussion between him and Arthur.

He hasn’t told Arthur about his findings yet. Partly because he was a little upset with Arthur, since it was him who delayed Julian from going back and checking the alarm sooner.

He glares at Arthur for a few seconds while putting on his coat, still feeling the sting.

Arthur waits, holding the door open. Ever since his Fire awakened, he doesn’t need to wear many layers in cold weather.

Today is a cold day. It’s still considered autumn, yet the temperature outside has dropped to five degrees.

Theo is ready.

This is his first winter. Caelthorn didn’t have winter, only hot and dry weather, very unpleasant.

He looks very beautiful, wearing a light pink turtleneck sweater with a light blue long coat over it. He also wears a light blue beanie, which contrasts nicely with his long white hair and misty grey eyes.

He’s wearing white winter leggings and light blue boots.

He really looks like a princess.

Maeve looks at him with pride, because it was her who dressed Theo this morning, making sure he stays warm, since Theo told her this is his first winter.

In his coat pockets, Maeve has placed white winter gloves, and she keeps reminding Theo to stay warm, until Theo finally reminds her that he’s an Archmage and not afraid of the cold.

Only then does Maeve back off.

Alicia finishes and straightens up. When she sees Theo, she sighs.

"What is it?" Julian asks, as he also straightens up and notices Alicia sighing.

"I feel like my effort is wasted. I was trying to dress very nicely, since today is my first time going to the DEU again in a while, so I paid special attention, but then..." She gestures toward Theo.

"I mean... what’s the point of dressing up if I’m up against something like this?"

Julian laughs, followed by Liam.

"What?" Theo looks confused. He looks at himself up and down. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Arthur steps closer to Theo from behind and pats his back. "Nothing, Little Sis. They’re just admiring your beauty."

Theo blushes.

It’s awkward for him to hear someone call him beautiful. He knows they are complimenting Thea, not him. But he is the one hearing it.

"Everyone ready?" Arthur says. He’s a little impatient. He wants to get going quickly. Even though he doesn’t enjoy working as the interim chief, it’s still his responsibility. He doesn’t like being late to his own job.

"Yeah, we are," Julian says.

"Then let’s go, guys. I don’t want to be late," Arthur says.

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Hawk pants heavily as he walks around. He’s been doing a weight training session in the gym for the last thirty minutes.

His muscles are screaming now.

"Holy God... How long has it been since I did this? Why am I panting this hard? Doesn’t clearing dungeons count as a workout?" he mutters, as he paces around.

"Yeah, Hawk. What’s going on? You’re one of the fittest among us," Carter says. He’s walking on the treadmill nearby.

Hawk looks at him.

"I don’t know, Carter. I think I didn’t sleep well last night," Hawk finally admits.

"Why?" Carter asks.

Hawk doesn’t say anything. He just stares at him.

Slowly, he grins.

Carter stops walking and just lets himself slide off the treadmill.

His face deadpan.

"Please don’t tell me you were thinking about that white-haired princess until you couldn’t fall asleep?"