Prologue: Guardian Angel

Strea sighed as she rubbed her forehead. The corpse stared back at her, its face frozen in an agonised scream. Evidently the gaping hole in its chest was the cause of its demise and the source of the pool of blood in which the dead body lay.

The grotesque sight did not faze her; she saw far worse on a daily basis. Angels like Strea had been tasked with cleaning up the messes of messed-up people since the dawn of time. The issue was that the dead human male happened to be her ward. Of course he would get himself killed on the very day she was assigned as his guardian angel. Yui was sure to give her an earful for failing her custodian duties; just thinking about it made Strea's wings itch. Perhaps it was time for a career change? Chucking lightning bolts at sinners in the name of divine retribution was starting to look like an attractive alternative to playing nanny. At least there was more leeway for botched jobs in that department: missed shot could easily be explained away as 'divine warnings'.

The soul of the dead young man appeared to be inspecting its former body. It was hard to say for sure considering the soul's lack of facial features. Strea smoothed out her purple gown and tucked a loose strand of lavender hair behind her ear before weakening the Higher Invisibility spell cast on herself so that the departed soul could perceive her existence.

"Hello. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said with a gentle voice. Strea smiled pleasantly while repeating the phrase 'customer service' in her head.

"Oh. Hey. So … I'm dead, aren't I?"

"I'm afraid so. Your circumstances were very unfortunate."

"Yeah, tell me about it. Where did that thing come from – what even was that thing? I come to these caves all the time and I've never seen anything nearly as terrifying."

"Ah, that was a demon. It killed its summoner and now roams the lands wreaking havoc. You were simply in the wrong place, at the wrong time."

"A demon! Of all the – well, that's life I guess."

"If it's any consolation, there was another person nearby who heard you scream. Thanks to that, they were on guard against the demon's ambush. They're still fighting it as we speak."

"Huh." The departed soul stroked its chin with translucent fingers. "That actually makes me feel better about all this. Thank you."

"My pleasure! I'm sure you have many questions so feel free to indulge your curiosity," Strea offered, her arm extended towards the departed soul invitingly. The ex-human's ability to take everything in stride pleased her to no end.

"First of all, do you have a name miss angel?"

"Please call me Strea. As your guardian angel I am responsible for guiding you to the afterlife."

"How exciting. I've always wanted to be escorted by a professional. By the way, my name's Loul – you probably knew that already but it feels impolite to not introduce myself."

Strea's overworked colleagues at the Heavenly Information Bureau had compiled a profile on the human male. The pitifully short document stated that the deceased was an apprentice mage and the only son of a middle class family. He was also deathly afraid of spiders, had a propensity for impulsiveness and destined to never reach his ideal height of 6 feet.

"I thought angels have halos," Loul remarked.

"They're kind of an outdated fashion choice these days. I like my halo enough but it works better as a light source for my home."

"I'm learning so much. You mentioned bringing me to the afterlife, right? What exactly does that entail?"

"I'm glad you asked!" Strea's smile widened as she clapped her hands together. "It is my utmost pleasure to inform you that you are eligible to enter the Kingdom of Heaven!" With a snap of her fingers, the sounds of thunderous applause resounded through the vicinity. Loul was amused by the idea that passing on involved so much fanfare. Then again, funerals were a thing.

"Yay. Not that I'm complaining but how did I get a spot in heaven? I don't remember doing anything to earn it. My life was pretty uneventful. And short."

"We used to throw – I mean, place unproven people like you in limbo. Recently, management decided to shut limbo down to cut costs so we had to lower the standards for getting into heaven to compensate."

"I'm sorry, did you say that heaven's cutting costs? Should I be concerned about this?" The soul would have raised an eyebrow if it could.

"Things are actually pretty good these days. We haven't had any security issues ever since we hired that massive spider to be our gatekeeper."

"YouknowwhatsuddenlyIdon'tthinkIwanttogotoheavenanymore – "

"Relax! I'm joking," Strea said with a melodic laugh. "Well, there is a spider that's in charge of the Dream-Weavers' Cottage but she's very nice. She also isn't in heaven most of the time."

"Aren't angels supposed to respect the dead? You literally just lied to me."

"Like I said, it was a joke. You must be so much fun at parties."

Loul was no stranger to verbal sparring. Being sassed by a guardian angel was a wholly novel experience. "I wouldn't know. I couldn't live long enough to attend Sachi's party next week." The departed soul glanced back at its corpse. The screaming face was far less dignified than it would have liked. "What a shame. I was quite fond of that body you know. I suppose the hole in the chest does ruin the whole look."

"Sadly death is mostly non-negotiable."

"Wait. Mostly?"

Strea's smile turned into a frown. "Let me make this clear: I'm only saying what I'm about to say because it's part of my job. Feel free to ignore me while I spew some bullshit for a bit."

"Are angels allowed to curse?"

"Why not? It doesn't hurt anybody. Anyways, despite my very obvious reluctance I am duty-bound to offer you a second option: immortality." Strea snapped her fingers again; this time loud booing filled the area. "Instead of passing on to the afterlife you may choose to continue living as an immortal human. Forever."

"That 'forever' was a bit redundant. Why is immortality even an option? It feels very … left field."

Strea cleared her throat. "Once, an ancient entity crafted a cursed manuscript. This nameless artefact can grant a single creature eternal life along with the power to revive at the start of each new day. The saints back then, believing the book to be too dangerous, tried their best to eradicate it yet failed to so much as scratch the cover. In response they held a divine ritual at the expense of their lives to send the artefact to heaven where it would be safe."

"Sounds like a pretty extreme solution. Though I do admire their resolve."

"The problem is, the book's curse allows it to drain holy energy from heaven so it's been a thorn in our side for the longest time. We could destroy it but the stupid curse makes that enterprise much, much, much, much, much more trouble than it's worth. Fortunately, that ugly tome seems to be single-use so after much deliberation – most of which was actually procrastination – management decided that we might as well let someone who died an untimely death use it." Strea sipped on a mug of warm milk which materialised in her hand. Angelic duties involved a lot of talking so the ability to produce refreshments anytime and anywhere drastically improved her work life.

"Isn't is kind of unethical to give some random person a cursed object?" Loul pointed out.

"Not necessarily. The curse only protects the book, it won't harm anyone who reads it," Strea clarified. "We double-checked the artefact's magical properties before triple-checking them, then we triple-checked the triple-checking and double-checked the triple-triple-check. All we offer is the unreasonably heavy mantle of immortality, no strings attached."

"I see. Most of all I'm surprised that the book hasn't been used already. I would assume that many people died with strong regrets."

"Well, the higher-ups only just decided to get rid of it for good. I'm also the one angel who's responsible for offering immortality. So far I've spoken to six people and they all chose heaven so I really hope you won't be the one to break my streak."

"Why are you so vehemently opposed to eternal life anyway? Surely it can't be all that bad?" Loul asked.

"The few immortals I know live tragic existences." The angel's voice carried a hint of melancholy. "Let me help you put it all into perspective:

After experiencing the same things over and over and over again you start to get tired of them, right? Life's basically the same. With time your enthusiasm for living gives way to apathy. Eventually you'll realise that you're just going through the motions like a thoughtless automaton, then you'll start slowing down until you stop completely and succumb to ennui. Lots of people die before things get that bad but those who live forever have no escape. I've seen immortals spend an eternity wasting away, lethargic and uncaring as they wait for the world to end.

Maybe you're the type to derive joy from being with people you love. Can you bear to watch them die one by one until you're left all alone? Can you stomach the thought of watching their descendants get into accidents or grow up to become disgraceful disappointments? Of course, normal people aren't exempt from those experiences but eternal life guarantees that you'll be around when lineages end and legacies die."

The departed soul tilted its head. It appeared to be considering Strea's words with care. Time for one final push, the angel thought to herself.

"Eternal life isn't only about an empty future; immortals slowly lose their past as well. When you've lived for centuries your memories begin to blur into one another. Before you realise it, you'll find yourself reduced to a confused mess of incoherent details. Sure, record-keeping might help alleviate the memory loss but the feelings attached to those precious moments are destined to rot away over the years. I can tell you first-hand that it's a very depressing experience. As a heavenly representative, it is my duty to offer you immortality on behalf of my superiors. However, as you guardian angel, it is my prerogative to advise you against it. So please reject my offer and carry on, because life goes on happily in heaven."

The departed soul remained silent. It scratched the back of its pellucid neck. "This really is a heavy topic," Loul said. "Umm, thanks for your insight. I definitely didn't realise the downsides of eternal life until you brought them up. Still don't fully understand them, to be honest, but all of it sounds pretty disturbing. With that said, I'm still going to choose immortality. Sorry."

"Why? Why would you knowingly subject yourself to such an unpleasant destiny?" Strea asked sadly.

"Deep down I know that your advice is sound. I'm sure heaven's the 'right choice'. But I think about the people that I'm leaving behind and I just can't bring myself to walk away from them. You see,

I want to watch Lisbeth become a famous blacksmith. She has the drive to be successful; I've seen her work harder than anyone I've met. One day she'll open up her own store and the line of customers will extend all the way past the city gates.

I want to witness Kirito's rise to knighthood. He's a skilled fighter who cares about others, and I know he'll go on to do great things once he graduates from the Academy in two years' time.

I want to find that whiskered girl and thank her for saving my life. She probably doesn't remember me but I think about her all the time. She's the one who inspired me to be a better person.

I haven't done enough to thank my parents for giving me a happy life. I want to repay them by becoming a man they can be proud of. So yeah, I love these people and I want to grow old with them. No way am I giving up a second chance at that."

Strea took a deep breath. "The people who you love will not want you to suffer an undying life for them."

"Ultimately I'm doing this for myself. This won't be my first instance of self-centredness and I highly doubt it'll be my last."

"Let's not be hasty. Be patient and wait for them in heaven. The lives of mortals go by very quickly, you'll reunite with the people you care about in due time."

"Very tempting. However, what I really want is to be by their sides as they live out their stories. My wish is to be with them, for them, in joy and in misery, in pain and in peace." The departed soul gestured towards its former body. "Remember, Strea: I used to be human. It's in my nature to be selfish and myopic."

The angel sighed. "Once more shall I ask: are you determined to continue living as an immortal human?"

"Yes, I am."

"Very well then. Wait here while I return to heaven and fetch the manuscript." With a beat of her wings the angel vanished. Loul wondered if Strea's lack of surprise during their prior exchange meant that she knew more than she let on. It did not take her long to return with the ancient tome in hand. Something about the book repulsed Loul on an instinctual level; the departed soul took the artefact from Strea nonetheless.

"I'm sorry for being the cause of your future suffering," the angel said solemnly.

"Don't say that. I'm the one who made the decision. If anything, I owe you an apology for making you help me with something you dislike."

Holy magic allowed Loul to understand the long-lost language which the tome was written in. Surprisingly, it contained the sad tale of an arcane researcher whose work failed to bear fruit before his life ran out.

"These days I often think of the time wasted during my youth. If I were a dwarf or an elf, I would surely have all the time I need to complete my research. Alas, I am but a humble halfling. It appears this is where my unsuccessful journey ends: my body shall soon lay in the earth as my life's work remains in my study unfin"

When he finished reading the book it slammed shut on its own. Loul dropped it in surprise; a black flame enveloped the artefact mid-fall, reducing it to ashes before it hit the ground.

With a wistful smile Strea extended a hand to Loul. "Welcome to your new life, my dear immortal. May fortune smile upon you."