"Good morning, Aunt Chan!" I threw myself to Aunt Chan and she caught me right away.
"I'm glad to see you cheerful, my dear niece. Are you excited for our class?" I certainly am! Asher only told me about the Zariah Empire, but there are other histories besides that, so seeing Aunt Chan is always worth it!
"Of course, Aunt Chan! I'm always excited to see you," I replied, giggling. And because of that, Aunt Chan hugged me tightly while giving me kisses all over my face.
"Is the Astra not with you today?" Aunt Chan asked. I shook my head.
Asher needs to help Sir Abel in locating the Essence Tree. Now that we have two ways to obtain holy crystals, it looks like they're going to be much busier than before.
"But, how about your overflowing mana?" Aunt Chan asked, pulling away from me.
"Oh, he said he cast a spell to contain my mana. However, it will only last for a day…" Asher left earlier after casting that spell to me. I asked if he can just make it last for a lifetime, but he said it was risky.
"The Astra really is cautious and careful when it comes to Ali," really? Well—of course, he will. It's probably their task to guard this world and prevent any possible destruction. And this curse within me is probably one of the things they should look after.
"Anyway, we shall begin. We have already tackled the history of our own family. Do you have any idea about our next topic?" Err…
"Is it about the previous affairs of our empire…?" I asked. After all, even in my previous world, we had to study everything that happened in history. We had to tackle world wars as well, and many more.
"That's right! Ali's really amazing!" Ahaha… well, Auntie—you're talking to an actual adult here, that's why.
"Ehehe… thank you so much, Aunt Chan…" I respond while scratching the back of my head.
"Okay, let's begin!"
***
"Asher," I called, and suddenly he appeared in front of me.
"What? Need the book?" The book materialized in his hand and threw it to me. I caught it right away and smiled at him. I have a business class after Aunt Chan's history class, but that's still four hours away from now, so I have more time to read this book.
"Thanks! Oh, were you helping Sir Abel with the holy crystal search?" I asked.
"Yeah, we also began a research about the crystal left by Aisha," crystal left by Aisha? Uhm… why do I keep learning something new every time we meet?
"What crystal?" I tilted my head and creased my forehead. Aisha actually left something behind?
"Hmm, you might've forgotten about it since it's been two years since your first visit to the Magic Tower. But, there was a huge crystal in the middle of the tower. You can see it right away when you enter the tower," Oh, wait… that huge glowing crystal? It was left behind by Aisha?! An actual God?!
"You're researching it just now?"
"Yes. We couldn't even touch it before. But Abel witnessed it glinting once, and when he tried to touch it, it was finally tangible," So, he's saying it was intangible before?
"That crystal was the one that contained my body as well when I was in another world," Huh…
Hmm, this is starting to get confusing. If it was intangible how is it able to contain his body?
"How did it do that?"
"Aisha's the God of Life. We have yet to figure out information about that crystal, but it's been in Aisha's tower ever since we gained consciousness. I heard from Creo that we were born from that crystal, but that's all we know," Wow… even Asher and the other Astras are unaware of the real purpose of that crystal? Looks like only Aisha knew about it.
"Aisha's incarnation probably knew about it, but…" he said, staring at me.
"But?" I asked, tilting my head to the side while raising an eyebrow.
"But she's not here," Aisha's incarnation, huh? The Astra that I have no information about.
"So, any progress with your research and the holy crystal search?" I opened the book in my hand, and the first thing that caught my attention…
Wow, this is written in ancient language…
I haven't learned that yet!
"We just started the research on the crystal. Still no leads to Azrael's empire, and we're trying to create a portal that will automatically connect to the Essence Tree," Wow…
"You're really busy… and this is written in ancient language, Your Divine Highness," I said, pointing at the book.
"Somehow, it's a bit relieving that you can't read ancient language," the heck does that mean?
He snapped his fingers, and all of a sudden…
"Woah… did you just translate the whole book into our local language?" What the heck, this jerk is really amazing!
"Of course. There's nothing I can't do," but still arrogant.
"Alright, Your Divine Highness. You may go back to your work now," I mentally rolled my eyes and lay on my bed. Now that it is translated, I can start reading it!
"Don't cause trouble," when did I ever cause trouble?!
I sighed when he disappeared again. That jerk always makes it like I am troublesome.
Anyways, I should start reading this…
[ Several centuries ago.
In the endless void of the cosmos, there drifted a world untouched by time—a sphere of dust, with only silence and darkness. Within are mountains that lay crumbled and unstirred oceans. Burned by stars around it, indifferent. In this drifted world, nothing lived and nothing moved.
Until HE descended.
The entity who called himself 'Raini', a name with no meaning, just presence—vast, ancient, and unknowable. He descended not from the sky, but from beyond the void of the cosmos, a ripple in reality itself. He was light and shadow, both burning and soothing. A shining golden hair, eyelashes with the same hue, and golden eyes that shine as it shows the mark of a sun.
When His incarnation touched the ground, the world breathed.
A single pulse spread from the area where his light brushes—warmth flowed into the cold rock, and where His footstep fell, the soil darkened and softened. Grasses whispered into existence. Flowers blinked open like a newborn's eyes. Water wept from dry stone, pooling into rivers and oceans that glittered with stardust.
Mountains rose not in violence, but in reverence. Forests grew from dust, tall and watchful, bending slightly as if in prayer. The winds that were once still for eons, began to dance and wander—curious and free.
But He knew that creation without guardians was a flame without kindling. Life would falter. So from His own divine core, He pulled five radiant shards—each one is a soul forged with purpose, power, and will.
He created them not as tools, but as Gods. Those who will guard the lives that He created.
They descended as stars across the sky, taking form as they struck the waking world. He called them The Primal Luminars—the first gods, sovereigns of balance and order, each born to preserve what He had given.
Creo, the God of Creation, born of Flame—bringer of form and spark, whose fires molded the bones of the world and breathed invention into mortals' hands. The first God He made, giving him the power of his. Allowing him to create what is necessary for the life of the awoken world.
Moira, the Goddess of Fate, shaped of Stone—unmoving, eternal, inscribing the threads of destiny into the bedrock of existence. She, who guards the red thread and blesses those who are underneath.
Deo, the God of Prophecy, borne on Wind—his voice scattered across time, whispering visions to seers and guiding those chosen by the stars. He, who sees everything, relays his visions to his people, avoiding a worse future.
Aisha, the Goddess of Life, flowing with the Tides—her waters stirred the still hearts of all living things, her breath gave rhythm to the world. She, who guards the lives of the living beings, uses her power to save.
Azrael, the God of Death, veiled in Light—neither cruel nor kind, but a keeper of ends, who carries and comforts souls in silence toward what lies beyond. He, who watches the dead as they enter the other realm, wishing them a better and great life. Giving them his blessings with all his heart.
All Luminars had one truth etched in their essence, whispered by He, the Creator:
"Save what I have given. Give each other the lives each of you deserves. Do not be greedy. Do not sin. Do not lose trust. Do no harm."
And so it was, from the first breath of a powerful God, a world has awoken. And from that breath, five divine lights rose—guardians not of just life, but of its meaning.
Creation. Fate. Prophecy. Life. Death.
They are the pillars upon which the world would rise—or fall. ]
Huh? What the heck is this…? Ahh, right. Asher did mention that this is equivalent to a bible in my world. Do people actually know about this book? The Bible is a scripture—a book of revelation, something that most people in my previous world own. But, in this world, this is the very first time that I've been exposed to this kind of knowledge. I just know that Asher and Sir Abel are both incarnations of the Gods, and that there are five Gods in this world. But I didn't come across a book that tells about their origin… until Asher gave me this.
How come it never crosses my mind?
And the title of this book…
The Hidden Era of Year 1-1000
Hidden Era…?
I've never heard of it before, even from Asher. He never mentioned anything about something like this.
Just—what happened between those years? Is it simply because of the Zariah Empire?
Now, this has piqued my interest.
I want to know everything written in this book.
"Asher…"
"What?" Oh, he appeared again. With his left hand on his hip and his head tilted right. He looks so done with me.
"Sorry for disturbing you. Is it really alright for me to read this? This book looks confidential… I mean, the title says 'Hidden Era'," I said. He stared at me for a couple of times and finally replied.
"Yes. Ley and Abel also allowed me to give you that book. Honestly, you're the first human to read it. The Era of Luminal Genesis was supposed to be forgotten. The Gods did everything to remove all the proof and evidence that the Year 1 to 1,000 ever existed. After all… that was the worst era for Lumia," worst era for Lumia?
"I am not going to tell you everything about it. You have the book, so read it at your own risk,"
"Hmm…"
"Do you still have questions?" Right…
"None at the moment," I replied.
"Then, I'll be going back to the tower now. If you still have questions, just call me," aaand he vanished again.
He's surprisingly docile today.
Okay, let's continue reading this book.
***