The rain god's servants raise their brows, surprised by their master's words. What is going inside their master's head? Is he going to take care of this mortal woman? Sosuri wrinkles his brows. Their master is interested in the mortal woman for sure. But what kind of interest is it? Gratitude or something else? It can't be something as simple as gratitude.
Cina gives a dirty look to the rain god. "I don't want you to pay her by returning my memories. This house is important to her. You should give it back to her while we are being nice to her."
The Renasir stares at the rain god, studying him with a quiet gaze. Is it as simple as paying rent?
Ryou smiles at her, unperturbed. "You don't believe me, Takayama Ari."
"I have dealt with the gods a few times." She speaks slowly, "As much as I know, gods don't do things in a straightforward manner."
"Maybe you are talking about the demons or spirits." Ryou taps his finger on the floor. Ame Onna peers at his fingers with a complicated look in her eyes. The dwarf folds his fingers and bows his head slightly, hiding his face from the guests. Ryou adds with a mild tone, "What do you need for the rent?"
"I don't want my house to turn into a shrine." Ari frowns at him. "I want normal tenants."
"Takayama Ari, you say that you have dealt with gods frequently." Ryou narrows his eyes and chuckles. "Still, you want to risk angering me. Is it because they are with you?"
It's true that they can't risk angering a god of this world. They are not powerful enough to protect Renasir Ari. Rilyah takes a breath. "Why do you even want this place? It's odd that a god would want human's dwelling."
"It's not odd in this world." The rain god tells her solemnly, "In the old days, gods and humans used to live together. Then, humans started to forget the ways of the old. The new gods are also born with the need of time. Where do you think they live?"
The ticking sound of the clock is getting louder. Ari clutches her belly. It feels like she hasn't eaten for three days. She inhales sharply. There must be something wrong with her.
"Prepare a meal for my landlord." Ryou commands his servant, "I promised her that she would never go hungry as long as I am here."
Ari bites her inner cheek. This god knows what's wrong with her. She watches the servants leave. It's been three weeks since she woke up here. With each passing day, her hunger is growing strong. Why are her daughters starving?
"In the past, I had seen some gods who laid down with mortals." Ryou glances at the untouched tea and snacks lying in front of Ari. "The stronger the god is, the more difficult it is for the mortal to carry the seeds of the god. Sometimes, the human body can't provide enough nourishment that the child needs."
Rilyah widens her eyes when she hears that. She looks at the Renasir. "Renasir, how long has it been since you came to this world?"
"Three weeks, I think?" Ari replies. "I don't know why I woke up in this body. But I was pregnant when I woke up." And the twins are growing faster than a human foetus. She has no idea what would happen.
"The dark god is not with you." Rilyah grabs Ari's hand and utters quickly, "You aren't on Iravan either. This world's magic isn't enough to nourish the twins."
"That…" Ari blinks her eyes. She completely forgot about that. The twins are halflings. Even if they are getting nutrients from human meals, they need magic too. There's no ehr in this world.
"We need to go to Iravan now." Rilyah looks at Cina. "How long will you take to recover? Are ten years not enough?"
"You just said it yourself." Cina wrinkles his brows. "This god doesn't have enough magic. It will take some time before I can build a gate again."
"And there were creatures who would love to eat the mother and the child of the god for power," Ryou reveals to them nonchalantly. "I am not one of them."
But the gods of Iravan aren't listening to him. Rilyah grabs Cina and shakes him. "What should we do? If anything happens to her or the twins, we are going to end up in Qeshaya. I am sure that we would never be let out of that place."
Ari creases her forehead. She hasn't expected it to become like this. The children should be born whether she lives or not. Why is her body not capable of providing enough nourishment to her daughters?
"If you let me stay here, I will ward off the evil energy from this place." Ryou stands up and walks toward her. Stopping in front of her, he places his hand on her head. "As long as I am here, no one will be able to harm you and your people. I don't have the magic of that world, but I can send heavenly energy to your body until they are born safely."
The strong burning hunger in her belly seems to be diminishing. She releases her breath. Heavenly energy? She has no idea what that is. Ari removes his hand from her head and looks up at him. "Why are you being kind to me?"
"Isn't this how a god should be?" He bends down his knees and places his finger on her chin. "How could I watch my landlord suffer?"
Is it this simple? Ari bites her lower lip. Does he only want a place to stay?
Ai grasps the rain god's wrist and pulls it away from her. He scowls at him. "Rain god, keep a distance from her. She's the bride of the dark god. Any inappropriate interest can become a reason for your death."
The rain god sighs. "What must I do to make you believe that my intentions are honourable?"
But his actions aren't. Ai releases the god's wrist. His mother is too naive. "She needs strong magic. I am not sure if heavenly energy can help her."
"You are right." Ryou gives her a side-long glance at Ari. "But she's human. I can reduce a bit of her suffering and I can find something that might send dark elements to her body. It's not enough, but it will help her children."
The rain god is going so far for her. Ari recalls everything that had happened. She was planning to come to this world anyway. Something did go wrong when she was shaping the true name. Even in this body, she has access to the source of universal magic. Can't she give that magic to her daughters? Universal magic is the rawest form of magic. Surely, it can help her daughters' growth.
"I don't need your help." Ari doesn't want to get involved with a shady god. She's thankful to this rain god though. If he hadn't pointed out why she was so hungry, she might have realized it too late. "I don't need your help. I am strong enough to ward off any evil energy that tries to harm me and my people. Tell me why you are interested in this place and me."
"Renasir, you can?" Rilyah asks her. "How?"
"If I can shape a true name in a strange world, can't I siphon the universal magic again?" Ari cocks her head slightly. "I can provide for my daughters. I don't need the Dark God or the magic of Iravan."
"You can draw out universal energy?" Ryou looks at her with interest. "A mortal being able to do that… the supreme one is full of surprises. But you are wrong about one thing. Just because you can use the universal energy, it doesn't mean that your child can absorb the same energy. How are you going to transform universal energy into the magic of that world? Both grass and meat have energy; however, a lion can't survive on grass."
Ari clenches her teeth. The information in that book was incomplete. On top of it, she didn't have the book when she woke up in her body. The memories of the time when she was shaping Ai's true name are also vague. She's forgetting something important.
"So, you can protect yourself and your people." Ryou seems amused for some reasons only known to him. "You still need an artefact that can provide the dark element to your children."