"You have my sihanks," Finn replied, bowing his head slightly.

  His thoughts ed. The only thing I’ve dohat might have offehem… Could they really be reag like this because I transferred all my points to the Fire element?

  He took a deep breath. First, he had to apologize.

  "Most revered Water God, Maris," Finn began, his voice steady despite the tension. "First, I would like to ask for your fiveness for what I have done."

  "You should know, mortal, that apologies will not save your life," Maris replied coldly.

  I thought as much, Finn grimaced internally.

  "Even so," he tinued, "I must apologize for my as. After the generosity you have showo think I would dare do something so disrespectful…"

  Maris said nothing, her silence heavy with judgment.

  "But most revered Water God," Finn pressed on, "I was desperate—desperate and afraid. Just as you said, I am only a mortal, fragile and fleeting. I would probably perish the moment I stepped into the tower. I have none of the strength you possess, none of the power of the elements. In my fear, I made a rash decision."

  He hesitated, searg for the right words.

  "When I tried to use the other elements, they resisted me. It felt as if they deemed me unworthy, as though I didn’t deserve to wield them. That only deepened my fear."

  Finn nearly gagged on the lie. The idea of beling himself unworthy felt like a betrayal to the Fire element, the only one he had mao wield. But he had no choice. Every word he spoke was calcuted, a gamble for his life.

  "Please uand," Finn pleaded. "Humans often act irrationally when desperation grips them. I did what I thought would give me the best ce to survive. I strengthehe element that resonated most with me, thinking it would help me endure."

  He paused, his heart pounding as he awaited Maris’s response.

  "Hmmm," her voice rumbled like the deep sea. "Is that all you have to say?"

  Finn swallowed hard. He wasn’t do.

  "Most revered Water God," he said, his voice softening, "when I saw your image earlier, I was captivated—especially by your eyes. They are as deep and mysterious as the o itself. And within that depth, I glimpsed your kindness."

  He pressed his forehead to the ground, f his words out. "If you find it within you to show me mercy, I would be eternally grateful."

  The words tasted like ash. His own voice gave him goosebumps. Finhey wereirely true. Sure, Maris was captivating, but it was the Fire God, Isha, whose image had lingered in his mind. He g to that thought to sell the lie, hoping it would make his words sound genuine.

  Silence huweehid suffog. Then, a voice broke it—this time, not Maris'.

  "Water God, Maris, am I permitted to speak as well?" Yukha's voice came from behind Finn.

  "Speak," Maris allowed.

  "I also apologize," Yukha said. "I failed to teach him properly. If you find favor in me, one of your humble subjects, I ask you tive my friend as well."

  "Yukha…" Finn whispered, his voice barely audible.

  "He is from Earth, you see," Yukha tinued. "This is his first enter with you, most respected Gods. I promise to teach him the proper respect so that he will never repeat this mistake. I beg you to show him mercy."

  The space grew quiet as Maris’s voice, deep and resonant, cut through once more.

  "From Earth, you say?"

  Her words echoed ominously, reverberating like ripples on a vast, still o. She paused, as if weighing something. The tension in the air grew unbearable.

  "Alright, mortal. I am willing to let you live, but only because I pity you," Maris said, her voice cold and resolute. "I do not see you surviving for long anyway. You will die, whether I intervene or not."

  Finn swallowed hard, but before he could respond, Maris tinued.

  "Be thankful that one of my subjects has pleaded for you, ahankful to the ods who vinced me to spare your life. But do not fet this day. No—I will make sure you remember it."

  Before Finn could exhale in relief, a sudden searing pain shot through his palm. He gasped, clutg it instinctively. Looking down, he saw a glowing blue gash etched into his skin, like a tattoo of a single, jagged dash.

  "I will take my leave now. You should feel hohat I even graced you with my voice," Maris decred.

  "I am most honored, Water God," Finn replied, bowing his head despite the pain. "I will be forever grateful to you and will never fet what you have done for me this day."

  "Yukha," Maris said, turnitention to him, "make sure to teach him well so that this does not happen again."

  Yukha bowed deeply. "Yes, O Great One."

  As Maris's presence faded, the stormy skies cleared. The dark clouds dissolved, repced by the warm light of day. It was as if the frontation had never occurred.

  But Finn knew better. His krembled, his stomach ed, and his palm throbbed with pain. He colpsed onto his back, staring bnkly at the sky above.

  I really almost died. Again.

  He exhaled shakily. That’s three times now. I wonder how many more close calls I handle before I actually die for real.

  "Finn," a voice broke his daze.

  Turning his head, Finn saw Yukha standing nearby. He expected anger in Yukha’s eyes, but instead, there was only relief.

  "You should be thankful that you were spared," Yukha said softly.

  "I am," Finn replied, sitting up with some effort. "Thanks for stig up for me, Yukha."

  "You're wele. But tell me—what in the world did you do to make her that angry?"

  Finn sighed, rubbing his neck. He expined everything. How he had transferred all his points from the other elements into Fire, thinking it was the smartest move. He admitted he didn’t expect the Gods to take offense, assuming he could distribute points however he pleased, like in a game.

  Yukha’s eyes widened as the story unfolded. "Goodness! When you asked to borrow that many Valor Points, I thought you po bance your affinities, especially in the elements you were weak in—not pletely empty them into Fire!"

  "I thought it was the best option," Finn said defensively. "Strengthening the element I had the most affinity for seemed logical."

  "You might have a point," Yukha admitted, "but pletely abandoning the others? That’s reckless!"

  "I'm handicapped, Yukha. I don't have the time tthen every element or learn to trol them all. I rength now—immediately. Or I won’t even survive a single day on that damower!"

  Yukha sighed deeply, ping the bridge of his nose. "Alright, fine. But promise me this: before you do anything else as reckless, you’ll sult me first."

  "Fine. I promise," Finn muttered.

  "Good. Now, give me a moment tanize myself. That ordeal was… exhausting."

  "Fair enough. I think I need a break, too," Finn said.

  Yukha sat down, summoning a fsk and drinking deeply. He offered some to Finn, but he refused, worried about upsetting his still-ing stomach. Instead, he opened his status menu, letting his gaze fall on the gring evidence of his as.

  Elemental Affinities:

  Stone - 0

  Water - X

  Fire - 146

  Wind - 0

  The "X" o Water stood out like a scar.

  Does this mean I o longer add to my Water affinity? Will I be uo trol water or unlock water-reted skills now?

  It wasn’t an immediate disadvantage, but what about ter? The thought was like a sp to the face. Still, Finn reminded himself, it was better than being smote by an angry God.

  Is this her way of punishing me?

  A pang of guilt stabbed at his chest, but he shook it off. The Gods had made their decision, and there was no way to ge the past. He would accept the sequences and move forward.

  Even after all that, Finn realized, he didn’t regret his choice. There was still a sense of pride in what he’d done.

  And now, he thought, a flicker of excitement cutting through his exhaustion, I ’t wait to try out my new firepower.

  But something else caught his eye: the small envelope i at the tht er of his s. Above it was a small red badge dispying a two-digit number—unread messages.

  He hadn’t noticed the i before Halgon's message. Was it always that small, or did it only appear when he had a message? Either way, curiosity got the better of him, and he mentally clicked on it.

  An inbox panel popped up, revealing a flood of messages. Most of them were from Halgon, flipping out and demanding to know what he’d done. Finn didn’t even want to open them.

  However, as he scrolled further down, three messages stood out. Uhe transparent backgrounds of Halgon’s frantic texts, these had distinct colors: brown, green, ahey exuded a sense of importance, like system annous in a game.

  With a deep breath and fingers crossed, Finn opehe first ohe brown one.

  From Terron:

  I admire your loyalty.

  Attats: [Earth God's Blessing #425] (Category: Blessings)

  A blessing? They send those through messages? And what’s with his rea? He’s not offended like the Water God? Was Terron the one who vinced her to spare me?

  Finn was baffled but moved on to the message, the green one.

  From Lirael:

  >:(

  Attats: [Wind God's Curse #2] (Category: Blessings)

  Is that… an angry emoji?

  It made sense fod who looked like a child to act like one, but still, an emoji? Did she get offeoo? But she also sent me a blessing—or is it really a curse?

  Still fused, Finn clicked the final message, the red one.

  From Isha:

  Finn's heart skipped a beat just seeing her name. Nervously, he g the message itself, as if it were a text message from a admired one. He was sure he was even blushing.

  ...

  Attats: [Fire God's Blessing #1] (Category: Blessings)

  But the message itself? Just three dots.

  Dot dot dot? What does that mean? Is she happy? Angry? A she still gave me a blessing?

  Finn couldn’t tell, but the fact that Isha had aowledged him at all—and directly, no less—filled him with a strange giddiness. He almost fot he’d nearly died a few minutes ago.

  Eagerly, he opehe Blessings se to check his new acquisitions.

  Blessings:

  [Universal Language]

  [Stone God's Blessing #425]

  [Wind God's Curse #2]

  [Fire God's Blessing #1]

  amon23