LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 23 - Drizzle
[Welcome to the Verdant Veil 7th District Genetic Archive Service.]
“Hello, I’d like to request the genetic profiles of my biological parents and my older sister.”
In a quiet, meticulously clean hall, Hestia stood before an AI service terminal, holding an umbrella dripping with rainwater.
[Each profile query costs 100 Federal Credits. Please present identification and consent to testing. The process will be fully recorded.]
Beep Beep—
[Identity verified. Retrieving records…]
[According to the archives, the probability of you being the biological child of your parents is 99.99%.]
Hearing this, Hestia let out a sigh of relief and continued listening.
[Your genetic profile matches that of your late sister. While there is no explicit record in the archives, it can be inferred that you are identical twins or possibly a clone.]
So, that’s how it is. Hestia had her answer.
“Please check if my mother had any records of freezing embryos or fertilized eggs.”
[This information is considered private. However, under Article 258, Clause 5 of the Federal Privacy Act, relatives of deceased residents may access privacy-related data relevant to themselves…]
[Your mother, Gu Yongtian, had one record of embryo freezing, which was stored for six years before being retrieved.]
So that’s what happened. Hestia stared at the rows of data on the screen. After a long pause, she concluded her interaction with the AI terminal.
Stepping out of the nearly empty, quiet hall, she opened her black umbrella and reentered the rain-soaked world outside.
The sound of rain was endless. Droplets fell from the gray, overcast sky, striking the umbrella and bouncing off as tiny splashes before sliding down its smooth surface.
Her mother had indeed conceived twins, but for various reasons, one was frozen instead of being born at the same time. That frozen embryo was her.
Hestia twirled her umbrella, scattering water droplets as she walked. She wondered what life would have been like if she and her sister had grown up together.
Perhaps the hardships that followed could have been avoided. Her character, her progress in transcendent sequences—everything might have been smoother.
But life doesn’t deal in “what ifs.” The two sisters had lived vastly different lives, with entirely different experiences. Keeping pace with legendary twins of the past was no longer possible.
Hestia couldn’t fully accept her sister because doing so would mean the obliteration of her own identity. She would need to grow much more—mentally, experientially, and in strength—to ensure she wasn’t overshadowed by her sister.
She raised her head slightly, letting the rain sprinkle onto her forehead and cheeks. The droplets slid down slowly.
Though the sky remained a dull gray, beams of light began to pierce through the clouds.
Raindrops gathered on her face and wrists, turning into small, crystal-clear beads before falling.
Crystal of Convergence (Mythical): The ability to gather, freeze, purify, and heal—restoring chaos-torn wounds to their original state. (Enhances capabilities in related domains to their highest potential.)
Voice of the Temporal Strings (Mythical): A resonance with the rhythm of existence, allowing one to pluck the strings of time. (Currently, it permits the reconstruction of past scenes from fragments and even limited, brief time reversals.)
The first gift, Crystal of Convergence, seemed to be her innate origin talent, complementary to her sister’s. If she was the Crystal of Convergence, her sister, Themisia, was the Sands of Oblivion. The second gift related to her role as a Songstress, though much about it remained unknown. She had only accidentally activated a portion of it that day.
These descriptions came from her research into federal talent classification standards and literature, combined with a self-inquiry ritual she performed.
The Aijeka Sea, in some ways, functioned like an imperfect wishing machine. It responded to the desires of sentient lifeforms but with limits and flaws.
When another universe overlapped with the current one, special particles seeped into this world from the other dimension. These particles acted as a medium, allowing sentient minds to influence material reality, leading to the emergence of magic and transcendent powers. This phenomenon was both the cause of humanity’s meteoric rise and its near destruction.
Human civilization had already undergone three cataclysmic collapses and extinctions. The first occurred in the ancient 21st century, the second during the Twilight Era, and the third in the Fifth Epoch.
The matter seemed settled. After that day, Hestia had to take a three-day leave to recover and heal. She used the time to sift through past records.
Now that it was all resolved, it was time to return.
She found a public starnet terminal and summoned a hovercar.
Minutes later, a sleek black hovercar emerged from the rain.
Once inside, Hestia leaned back into the seat and quickly fell asleep. She had been unusually fatigued in recent days, no amount of sleep seemed to alleviate her exhaustion—likely a side effect of using her gifted powers.
…
Two hours later, Hestia arrived at her home to find two individuals waiting at her door.
She shook the rain from her umbrella, holding it firmly in hand as she approached them.
“And you are?”
She wasn’t as easily frightened as she used to be.
“Miss Hestia! We—we’re Brother Qiao Long’s subordinates.”
The rotund man introduced himself, visibly nervous.
“Hmm?”
Hestia tilted her head. She knew who Qiao Long was—the man who had ambushed her that day.
“What does Qiao Long want? I said back then that our grievances were settled. Is he dissatisfied?”
“This…” The man hesitated, flustered, until his companion stepped in to explain.
“It’s like this—Big Brother wants to apologize and make amends, but he’s still in the hospital recovering, so he sent us instead.”
Seeing Hestia remain unmoved, the man hastily continued.
“Big Brother said he accidentally broke something of yours, so he asked us to deliver this.” He then gave the stout man a nudge.
“Yes, yes! I’ll show you.”
The rotund man opened a silver briefcase, revealing three transparent boxes, each containing a top-of-the-line personal terminal.
“The latest ‘Ink Art · Ge Wu 2707’ from Ink Charm Workshop is an upgrade of the flagship 2700, featuring phoenix bird patterns and the ‘Condensed Ink’ frame system. This system can generate a transparent barrier of up to 20 square meters, effective against sound, rain, attacks, and disturbances.”
“The ‘Huacai · Roleila H4-Blue’ from Shelia Group is a customized version of the latest ‘Huacai · Roleila H4,’ with a flowing sand-blue coating. It provides interference isolation and ensures stable, efficient operation, making it an excellent assistant for various tasks.”
“The ‘Sacred Song · Opera F-192’ from Seven Spiral Melody includes a seven-layer Calming Altar Engraving System. This allows you to set up a calming altar anywhere, aiding in transcendent sequence training and meditation.”
They really put some thought into this selection, Hestia thought as she glanced at the items.
The first option from Ink Charm Workshop emphasized elegance and versatility for everyday life. Shelia Group’s product was renowned for its precision and support in professional analysis tasks. Lastly, the Seven Spiral Melody’s offering was an imported product from a distant country, well-regarded for aiding in transcendent practices. Hestia had only heard of it but never seen it before.
“Am I supposed to choose one?”
“No, no, all of them are gifts for you as compensation,” the two replied quickly.
“This is quite excessive,” Hestia remarked, shaking her head. The cheapest one was likely worth 30,000–40,000 federal credits, while the last one might exceed 100,000.
“Please accept them; otherwise, we wouldn’t know what else to do.”
“Are you trying to coerce me?” Hestia’s umbrella twirled slightly, scattering water droplets.
“No, no, not at all! It’s just… we’re not good at explaining. If you don’t accept them, we’ll feel terrible. Brother Long didn’t want to upset you, he just wanted to show his sincerity. A light compensation would be an insult in our eyes.”
In their world, compensation wasn’t just about reimbursing damages—it was a gesture of goodwill. Anything less than three times the value would be considered disrespectful and insincere.
“Is that so…” Hestia considered for a moment.
She preferred not to have further dealings with someone like Qiao Long. While she wasn’t afraid for herself, the family she was staying with might face ongoing trouble in the area. Avoiding an irreconcilable conflict seemed prudent.
“Fine, I’ll accept, but only on the condition that you never bother me or those around me again. Understood?”
“Understood!” the two answered immediately, visibly relieved.
“Good. Leave the case here and go.”
“Yes!”
They quickly left, even taking a detour to avoid passing too close to Hestia.
Watching their retreating figures, Hestia wondered how Qiao Long had described her to his subordinates. By all appearances, she looked like an ordinary 16-year-old student—hardly intimidating. The two men, clearly hardened by street life, seemed inexplicably wary of her.
Hestia didn’t realize that Qiao Long had said very little. His severe injuries—a chest and arm torn open—had been enough to alarm his underlings. They had never seen him in such a state, and the fact that a teenage girl was responsible only deepened their unease. Qiao Long’s repeated warnings to tread carefully around her had further convinced them she was either a hidden powerhouse or someone with unimaginable backing.
Hestia brought the silver case inside, placed her umbrella to dry, and returned to her room. After a brief rest, she opened the case in the living room.
She did need a personal terminal, as her previous one had been destroyed during Qiao Long’s attack.
Are he and his mentor particularly adept at breaking personal terminals?
Choosing the model from Ink Charm Workshop, Hestia powered it on, charged it, and entered her information to bind it to herself.
Minutes later, she dialed a familiar number.
“Grandma? I’ll be staying at my own place tonight to sort out some things. I’ll come over tomorrow.”
…
“Alright, I’ll be careful. You take care too… Bye.”
With that settled, Hestia placed the new terminal aside and reclined on her bed. Staring at the familiar ceiling, she felt another wave of exhaustion.
I’ll nap for a bit.
The black-haired girl curled up on the edge of her bed, her arm resting on the corner of the blanket like a pillow. Soon, her breathing slowed as sleep overtook her.
Her delicate features, framed by soft black hair, took on a peaceful yet faintly melancholic expression. Her dark brows furrowed occasionally in her dreams, only to smooth out again after a while.
At 11 p.m., Hestia woke from her deep sleep. Sitting groggily on her bed, she stared blankly ahead before mustering the energy to get up and wash her face.
In the mirror, her dark eyes shimmered faintly with blue, then transitioned to a hazy violet before fading back to their usual hue. She blinked, ensuring everything was normal.
Heading to the kitchen, she activated the automatic cooking machine. While waiting, she retrieved an old journal and began to write at the dining table.
April 28, Rain
“Got into a fight with my sister the other day. It hurt.
But I won. I’m happy.”
Pausing to think, she listened to the soft sounds of steaming from the kitchen before continuing.
“I want to learn how to cook, just like Mom.”
Closing the journal, Hestia walked to the kitchen.
Today is the first step.