Only God

Across the boundless Sea of Souls,

everything was calm, as if, regardless of the changes happening in the outside world, the fairies here would continually lead abundant and carefree lives.

After all, they fed on human kindness and possessed neither illness nor the concept of lifespan; they had virtually unlimited time unless they chose death themselves.

Yet, the Queen ruling this realm, Fairy Sophia, recorded in thousands of legends, was clouded with worry amidst this realm full of kindness.

Unlike regular fairies, the Queen was often anxious, it was said her worry surpassed that of a hundred fairies combined.

Although rumors could not determine the truth, at this moment, Fairy Sophia indeed wore a troubled expression.

Since the last conversation about the Devil, Sophia had not seen Schiller for some time.

Considering carefully, it seemed almost ten years.

Although for fairies and Great Angels, ten years was but a tiny fraction, barely the time taken to read a book or complete a sleep, it was the first time the Great Angel had left for ten years.

Because of this, Sophia was almost perpetually worried.

Panic spread at the bottom of her heart like a spark falling on a windy prairie on an autumn night, swiftly drawing a long line of fire under the night sky before engulfing the whole prairie in a sea of flames.

Despite her unease, Sophia could do nothing; she could not depart the Sea of Souls to trace Schiller's path, not only because her clan was here but also because Schiller had not disclosed his whereabouts.

Under these circumstances, Sophia could only incessantly pray and patiently wait.

Though the whole Fairy realm believed in the Lord above, Sophia did not habitually pray to God.

The mortals on the earth always had various rituals, like morning and evening prayers, reverence, among others; contrastingly, the nearly deathless Fairy realm was not that complicated because fairies prayed as they wished, and whether one form of prayer was more effective than another or both equally effective, no one truly knew.

Yet even among fairies, Sophia's prayers were extremely casual.

The Queen did not pray daily; at most, she occasionally murmured a few words or sang a few praises spontaneously when moved, which could hardly be deemed devout by any True Believer.

Why was this so?

Indeed, even Sophia herself could not understand.

Possibly, deep down, she did not have much faith in God, or perhaps, Schiller seemed more like a god to her than the distant Lord.

And now, her "god" had left her for ten years.

During these years, Sophia often read the "Twin Kings Book" and "Second Prophet Book" of the Logos, cherishing some snippets she favored.

"To an extent, I experienced a similar plight to those Logos people."

Atop the highest point of the Sea of Souls, moved, Sophia continued to gaze into the expansive starry expanse.

A tiny white dot, like a fine grain of sand, appeared at the horizon unknowingly.

Initially, Sophia did not notice the dot, but as it grew larger, turning into a light sphere, it became impossible to ignore. She fixed her gaze upon it, discovering it was getting bigger and approaching the Sea of Souls at high speed.

"Schiller."

Sophia exclaimed excitedly,

As she said, a Great Angel slowly descended to the highest point of the Sea of Souls, reentering Sophia's view.

"Sophia."

Schiller uttered slowly.

Hearing this, the Fairy Queen was momentarily dazed.

It might just be her illusion, but Schiller's voice sounded much more indifferent than before.

It was as if the Great Angel before her no longer played an eminent role in the material world; half of his soul had already transcended the present, transforming into some more metaphysical concept.

Sophia slowly recovered her senses and hesitantly asked,

"What's wrong?"

Schiller responded,

"Nothing."

Saying so, the Great Angel bent down, gently lifted Sophia, and placed her on his shoulder.

This affectionate gesture made Sophia shiver instead.

In the past, Schiller would never have done this; Sophia would have flown onto his shoulder herself.

As Sophia was left puzzled, the Great Angel turned around and pointed to a particular corner of the land below.

There, amidst ice and snow, stood a towering, abrupt giant tree.

"This is…?"

Sophia confusingly asked.

"Sophia, I have a revelation for you."

Said Schiller slowly,

"Once, there was a righteous man who endured tribulations but suffered punishment..."

In an incredibly ethereal voice, the Great Angel then recounted the ordeal of Jon.

"So… you turned him into a tree?"

Sophia asked, astonished,

"Why… you…"

Schiller seemed to anticipate her response,

"You mean to say, I shouldn't have done this?"

Sophia nodded with some difficulty, then quietly added,

"This isn't… something a Great Angel should do, nor is it the sort of miracle a Prophet should manifest. This seems more like…utter malice.

He begged you to release him... yet you turned him into a tree."

Schiller replied,

"What he begged for was, to release him from his torment."

Sophia could not help but speak in a rushed tone: