Isadora, using all her speed, reached the foot of the mountain in just a few minutes. Once there, she walked around for a while, but could not find any cave.
So she called Noah again to receive instructions on where to find him.
After Noah gave a few more details, Isadora managed to find the cave where he was.
It was a cave that was in a stone wall.
The entrance wasn't very big and it was also all pretty uniform, it even looked like someone had dug that cave.
"So, is everything ready?" As soon as Isadora reached the entrance, Noah came out and found her.
He looked at her for a while analyzing her appearance.
"You look different."
"Why are you worrying about this? Just bring your parents and Lari here."
"Okay. They're awake now, I'll call them."
Noah entered the cave and then spoke to everyone.
"The Goddess is out there, she's going to take us away." When Noah said those words, his father and mother stood up quickly looking nervous.
"Wait, the goddess? The goddess?!" Emma approached Noah and held his shoulders. She was trembling.
"Yes, the goddess who takes care of our world."
"You hadn't said she was the one who would come for us! What am I going to tell her? She is the goddess, you know."
"I don't know what to do either... She is the goddess..." Lucio was walking in circles to calm himself down.
Lari was the only person who didn't seem nervous. She was looking excited to meet the goddess.
"Stop it, let's go soon. We can't stay here too long. You don't have to worry about the goddess, just act normal."
"Okay, I'll try... But when we get out of here I'm going to try to talk to her about something."
"You're thinking the same thing I am, aren't you?" Lucio said to Emma.
They both nodded their heads at the same time.
Noah had already realized their goal, so he smiled bitterly.
'That won't work...' He thought.
After that, Noah put out the fire and led his parents and Lari out of the cave.
As soon as the three of them left, they held their breaths and looked at the goddess who was being illuminated by the moon. Even though it wasn't her real appearance, she was a beautiful woman who exuded purity.
Emma was speechless, Lucio was in awe, and Lari was the only one brave enough to approach.
"It's a pleasure to meet you... Isadora?"
"It's a pleasure to meet you." Isadora smiled innocently and soon after asked everyone to come closer.
Emma and Lucio were very nervous, so they had to be pulled along by Noah.
"Don't worry, it will be quick." Isadora gave one last warning before using her magic to make everyone fly.
Feeling their bodies become light, Emma and Lucio began to shout.
Noah looked at the two and laughed.
"Calm down, you won't fall. You too, Lari, you don't have to hug me like that."
With Noah and his family's interaction, Isadora gave a satisfied smile before increasing her flight speed.
####
Everyone saw the world pass by their eyes quickly, and by the time they realized they were in a completely dark space.
Emma, Lucio, and Lari were confused and also scared by the sudden change of environment, because of this Noah calmed them down and told them to wait a little longer.
They calmed down and waited for Isadora to lead them through the dark space.
After a few seconds, the environment changed again, now revealing a large blank space.
As soon as they got there and everyone was put on the floor their legs gave way. Noah was the only one still standing.
"Oh my god, what was that? I feel like I'm going to throw up." Emma put her hand in front of her mouth to hold back the vomit. Lucio also seemed to be feeling bad, but he preferred to support Emma.
Lari was dizzy, so she lay down on the floor.
"They're not used to that."
"I get it. And you shouldn't be used to it either, or have you ever flown at 300km per hour?"
"I have plenty of endurance."
"I see. But now take care of your parents and Lari, I need to bring my subordinate back."
"Your subordinate?"
"Yes, I used him to distract Dionysius and bring you guys back."
"I see... But I remember you saying you had no subordinate."
"Did I say that? I don't think so."
"All right."
Noah turned away from Isadora and then walked over to Emma. She was feeling a little better, so she managed to get up. The only one who remained lying down was Lari.
"So, where are we? In paradise or something?" Emma started walking through the blank space.
Lucio started to step on the ground to see if it was safe to walk. Since it was all white, there didn't seem to be a floor, wall, or ceiling. It was all very strange for someone who had never visited that place before.
"Yes, this is the place where the Goddess lives and observes everything in our world. I have visited here before."
"Yes. When I was lost in the forest the Goddess called me here to talk to me and then sent me back to the forest."
"Doesn't that mean you died?"
"I don't know..."
"... You died... Oh my god, I feel like I'm going to throw up again." Discovering something new, Emma felt her blood pressure drop, causing her to pass out.
Lucio held her in his arms.
"I think she's overreacting."
"Well, she's pretty shaken up by what happened, she just went on a crazy trip and found out her son died."
"It makes sense that she passed out. Take care of her and Lari, I'll go over there."
"Right. And thank the goddess for me, I don't want to talk to her and end up saying something unnecessary."
"You guys are weird. She already knows everything you do in our world, it won't make any difference that you pretend to be 'saints' now."
"Urgh..."
"Ahahaha."
Noah laughed and then walked over to where Isadora was standing. She had gone a little farther away and seemed to be worried about something. She was biting her nails and tapping her foot on the floor.
"So, did something happen?"
"Yes, my subordinate died."
"Eeeh?" Surprised, Noah widened his eyes.
"Wait for a second, he just died? That's it?"
"It's okay. I had created a fake body for her, I already transferred her mind to her original body."
"I see, good."
"Yes... Well, now let's get back to what matters. I'm going to send all of you to my world again, all right?" Isadora clapped her hands a few times to get everyone's attention and said that out loud.
But when she turned around, she found Emma passed out on Lucio's lap.
"What happened?"
"She just found out that I died a while ago. That affected her quite a bit."
"It probably was because her mind was already tired."
"Yes."
"Imagine if she knew you had died about three times already."
"Shut up."
"Noah, is that true?" Lucio looked a little irritated and also sad.
"Well, yes... But no matter how many times I die, this woman here can bring me back. Right, Auntie?"
"Stupid."
"Ouch."
Noah received a slap from Isadora plus his body began to glow.
"I will send you guys directly to the capital side. I'll do that for obvious reasons."
"Thank you very much." Lucio bowed his head in thanks.
But then he interrupted the teleportation to ask one last question.
"Is there any chance that the people who lived in the village will come back to life? I know it's a selfish request, but... They didn't deserve all that."
With his father's question, the feeling of guilt finally hit Noah.
Immediately a sad and pained expression came over his face, catching Isadora's attention.
"Unfortunately that is not possible. They were all good people, I will take very good care of each one's soul."
"Got it..."
A few last tears flow Lucio's face before he disappeared.
And before Noah disappeared, Isadora came closer and said something in his ear.
"Don't feel guilty."
####
After a few seconds, Lucio, Emma, Lari, and Noah found themselves next to the capital wall.
Emma was still passed out, so Lucio held her in his lap so that her clothes wouldn't get dirty. And Lari, as soon as she arrived, stood up quickly.
"Looks like we're here. Isn't it fun to use teleportation magic?" Noah joked a little at the situation, but his father did not laugh.
Only Lari gave a small smile so as not to make the mood even more awkward.
"Now is not the time for that, let's go inside and find an inn. We are all dirty and tired, we need to rest to think about what to do tomorrow."
Lucio said in a serious tone.
Because of this, Noah stopped "joking" and nodded.
Walking to the capital gate, they knocked a few times and one of the guards opened it.
"What are you doing out there at this hour?"
"We were on a trip, our carriage was attacked two kilometers from here, the bandits took everything. My mother is injured, can we come in?"
After the guard heard Noah's little lie, he talked to some other guards and cleared the entrance.