“Do you believe in second chances?” Woohyun asked. The words sounded familiar as they escaped his lips involuntarily. Like deja vu, Woohyun felt as though he had asked this question many times before.

Frowning, Sunggyu replied in a cold voice, “Are you referring to yourself and Jieun?”

Woohyun spaced out at Sunggyu’s words. What was he referring to? Was he implying that even though Sunggyu the God of Night and Jieun the God of the Death – the most well-known and admired couple – were engaged, this almighty Woohyun, the God of Light, could break them up and steal Jieun away? The question that he had asked out of blue, without thinking beforehand, had left him pondering in confusion. What exactly did he mean? No… what exactly did he want?

“A-ah…yes, Jieun and I,” Woohyun stuttered in perplexity. “Who else would I be referring to?” His tone quickly became arrogant, like that of his personality.

Receiving his response, Sunggyu’s expression did not waver, nor did Jieun’s. Instead, they both stared at him like he was the most idiotic person they had ever seen in hundreds of years.

“In that case, how about you try to find out for yourself?” Sunggyu then held up his hand that was intertwined with Jieun’s tightly. The latter smiled gently as she tenderly looked at him with loving eyes. The Goddess of Death never smiled. The only exception was when she is with the God of Darkness, the one and only.

Woohyun felt his heart throbbed like a someone had stung it with a thin needle. The pain was unnoticeable at first, but it slowly grew more painful with each passing second. Ignoring the strange sensation he was feeling, Woohyun flashed his opponent a triumphant grin. “I will. Brace yourself. You’re about to fall, Sunggyu,” he declared, giving the man a thumb down provocatively.

Sunggyu raised an eyebrow at Woohyun’s provocation. He was about to respond when a deep voice boomed throughout the Holy Palace.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please gather in the main hall immediately.”

“Oppa. It’s time to go,” Jieun whispered. Sunggyu nodded and glanced at Woohyun one last time before leaving the balcony.

“H-Hey! Wait for me!” Woohyun chased after them. “How cruel of you to have left me out there,” he whined.

The couple ignored him and quickly disappeared into the dark hall. Woohyun tried to look for them fruitlessly. He sighed and resigned to fate when he knew there was no way he could ever find them in this massive crowd. A sudden white light shone from above in the centre of the Holy Palace and a hologram of The Great appeared.

“Thank you for your presence here for the Inheritance party tonight. I am glad to see you all well and healthy.” With his face hidden deep inside the usual black hood, The Great began his speech with words of gratefulness and caring.

“As you all probably know already, the Inheritance Party is when I will introduce to you your successors that are currently living or will soon live on Earth within the next 100 year period. Your job is to watch over your successor and to try to guide them in life. Keep a close watch because how they live on Earth will affect the way they will act here in Paradise. Thus, if possible, I would like for them to act decently during their stay here.” The Great emphasized the word ‘decently’.

“Your Guidance Fairy will now show you who your successor is.” As soon as The Great had finished, the guidance fairies emerged from the light, spreading out to all the directions as they found their way to their gods.

The fairies were small, but not Tinkerbelle size or the size of the typical fairies in the humans’ typical fairy tales. Instead, they were in the size of a child of 5 to 6 years old. However, do not judge them by their appearances, for they were the epitome of immortality. They would never die, and nothing could kill them. Additionally, they existed in another world created just for them called Mirasolum. A fairy could only stay out of Mirasolum for two months at most unless they received a special order from The Great.

Another beautiful thing about the guidance fairies was that each of them was divinely unique. Their appearances strongly reflected their elements. For example, the Guidance Fairy of Fire had a pair of butterfly wings made out of fire. As she flew, fire ashes shot out from her majestic wings. Her dress was tight-layered with a mix of bright red, orange and yellow, highlighting her tanned skin. Her crimson hair was tied up in a ponytail and blue fire was burning at the end of her hair and on her shoes. On the other hand, the Guidance Fairy of Water simply wore long pants made out of seaweed-like material. His short light blue hair mixed in well with his pale skin. The long fringe sadly covered up half of his crystal clear eyes. He moved around, not with wings, but with a surfboard made out of water that left no traces behind.

“Long time no see, Nyx.”

“Hi, Sunggyu. Indeed, it has been a long time.”

Nyx, the Guidance Fairy of Darkness, greeted Sunggyu with a gentle smile as she landed swiftly on the ground beside him. Nyx’s hair was very long, reaching halfway down her thighs; the lower half was wavy, while the upper half straight. The upper half of her hair was brought to the back loosely, causing the middle strands of hair to fall, hence forming half-oval shapes on either side. The ends of these strands of hair were held together by a semi-circular ring of black roses with silver leaves. While her hair was interwoven with roses in the back, a series of black pearls encircled a symbol of a crescent moon and a star in its centre to complete the ring on Nyx's forehead. Her jet-black hair sparkled with white glitters making it seem like a clear night sky full of stars. Her wings were made of six gossamer pear-shaped segments, two pointing upwards and one pointing downwards on each side. Her dress was a grey and black dip-dyed dress with the front reaching right above her knees, while the back was long enough to trail on the floor. Her well dressed (or overly dressed) appearance was the complete opposite of Sunggyu’s, whose attire was simply a full-length black cape with silver ornaments on either side of his shoulder, classic yet powerful.

“How have you been?” Nyx asked with a smile. Unlike her element, Nyx was a very nice and warm-hearted fairy.

“Good.” Sunggyu nodded. “You?”

“You know, 300 years passed by very fast for us. It has been a peaceful period. Thank you.” Nyx chuckled. And it was true; she really meant it when she said time had passed by really fast for her, because the Guidance Fairies lived in a far different world. In their worth, Mirasolum, time passed by much faster than it did on Earth and Paradise.

“Glad to hear that.”

And thus, their conversation ended just like that. Nyx glanced at Sunggyu from below and giggled to herself, thinking that he hadn't changed at all since the last time she had seen him.
 

[Holy Garden, 6th Coronation Ceremony]

“Are you excited for the Coronation Ceremony, Sunggyu?” Nyx asked enthusiastically.

“Not really,” Sunggyu replied with a bored expression.

The Coronation Ceremony was one of the three most important events in Paradise held in the Holy Palace. It was when the previous gods are to hand over their power to their successors before moving onto their next life. The successors officially became gods only after they had received this power. 

Nyx simply smiled, though one could easily see that much of the excitement had died down. “I’m sure you are.”

The small Sunggyu shrugged and looked at Jongwan, the God of Darkness. “Are you scared of dying?” he asked.

The older chuckled at the sudden question. “You’re an excellent student who rarely ever asks me any questions; yet when you do, it’s always something that is hard to answer!” He ruffled the younger’s hair, messing it up completely.

“Oh my, Jongwan! Please refrain from doing that today. The ceremony is about to begin.” Nyx reminded him as she proceeded to fix Sunggyu’s hair.

Jongwan chuckled again and looked at the curious Sunggyu waiting for his answer. The man crouched down to put himself on the same level as the small child.

He smiled warmly. “Sunggyu-ah, I’ve lived 600 years already. Why would I want to live any longer?”

“So you’re not afraid of death?”

“Remember this clearly, Sunggyu. Death is not the end. Just like how the day will come after the night; everything will repeat all over again. After death, there is life. You will have another chance in your next life. A second chance.” Jongwan said with caring tone, “I’m not afraid of dying. I’m quite excited actually, to be human again. I’ve always wondered what it is like to live like there is no tomorrow.” He then flashed his brightest smile yet.

“It is time. Please get into your position.” A voice could be heard giving instructions from above.

“Jongwan, please step to this side,” Nyx said, and pointed to the spot opposite to Sunggyu. Shortly afterward, two lines were neatly formed: one of the gods and one of the successors.

“You have five minutes left. Say your last words to each other.” Nyx gave them a final notice.

“Stay healthy okay? You’re finally growing up, Sunggyu-ah.”

To explain Jongwan’s words, the successors remained as 10 to 11 years old kids until they received the power from the gods. Once the power had been transferred over, their bodies immediately transformed to that of a young adult, varying from 20 to 25 years of age.

Sunggyu nodded. “You take care too, Jongwan hyung.”

“Hyung. I wonder if one day I will have to call you that.” Jongwan chuckled.

In Paradise, there was no order of elderly or youth; hence, the terms oppa, hyung, noona, etc. were of no use. However, some gods liked to adopt the popular cultural practice into their everyday lives — perhaps to add spice to the boring way of life in Paradise.

“Perhaps, if you ever become my successor,” Sunggyu said nonchalantly, though he secretly wished that day would never come.

“Sunggyu-ah.” Jongwan reached out his hand for a handshake and Sunggyu complied, “It’s been a pleasure teaching you,” the elder said proudly, “you were a great successor. In fact, you’re one of the best in Paradise.”

“One minute left,” the fairy kindly announced.

Jongwan nodded and turned back to Sunggyu. With a smile, he said, “Take care. Make sure to become the strongest god in Paradise, alright?”

Sunggyu nodded. “I will.”

They released each other's hands and stood up straight in their positions.

“Let the Coronation Ceremony begin.”

The Great’s voice boomed throughout the Holy Palace, and the Guardian Fairies began to chant their spell in unison. Soon, the gods’ body began to perish, releasing silver particles in the process. Once the gods were nowhere to be seen, those particles slowly found their way to the designated successors on the opposite side of the room. The children's body began to levitate in mid-air and absorbed the particles. A bright light shone throughout the room, and once faded, the group of successors was now a group of young adults, full-fledged gods and goddesses.

“Congratulations on becoming a God, Sunggyu,” Nyx said as he landed back on the ground in his new form, a handsome young man in a plain black shirt and long black pants.

Sunggyu nodded at her. “Thank you.”
 

“This lad hasn’t changed at all. Still the same cold, quiet Sunggyu,” Nyx muttered quietly.

“Pardon?” Sunggyu turned to Nyx, thinking she was talking to him.

“Nothing!” Nyx grinned, looking at him with her innocent eyes.

Sunggyu simply stared in confusion for a second before turning away with disinterest.

↭↭↭↭↭↭↭↭

“Aye Woohyun! My man, what’s good?”

“What’s with the way of talking?” Woohyun raised an eyebrow at the Guidance Fairy of Light, Aether. “And what’s with that getup? Did you get wasted at a party or something?”

Aether was wearing an oversized white short sleeve T-shirt, completely ed – thus revealing his oh-so-wonderful one pack abs – together with a pair of classic black trousers that didn’t seem to fit his small body. In the middle of his right bicep, there was a ring of tattoos in some sort of ancient language. This was a huge difference from his usual getup, which was a simple brown leather skort with a thick strand of golden leaves hanging diagonally across his torso. His usually clean, short hair was now rather long and messy, poking all over the place and making him look somewhat more badass than the norm. A big crown of light with a sun symbol in the centre stood out on his blonde hair, which was streaked with brown lowlights. His skin was rather pale, and the same symbol that was on his crown was tattooed in the middle of his chest, though in a bigger size. And above all, his most valuable asset, his charming eyes that were as blue as the clear sky and so enchanting that they could make one feel helpless when looking at them. His wings were also made out of light and were not as big as Nyx’s, but more elaborate. The light outlined the shape of his wings, which were similar to those of an eagle’s when gliding, golden sparkles coming off them every time they fluttered. 

“Oh…this? Let me tell you ‘bout it. This is the newly trending fashion in the mainstream culture. It usually appears in the magazines. What is the word again…? Ah! They called it ‘y’. You should check it out.” Aether smirked as he did a y pose.

Woohyun rolled his eyes at the remark. “y my . What’s there to see with that child-like body of yours?” he scoffed.

“You don’t understand.” The fairy shook his head, grinning with a sense of superiority. “You see… My perception of fashion is off the charts. You, little child, should just remain dull as always. Fits y’all pretty well.” Aether tilted his face backward proudly, feeling smug about his newly gained knowledge.

“Pfft, please!” Woohyun flicked the arrogant guy’s forehead.

“Ouch! Ya! How dare you lay your filthy finger on my precious body?” Aether held onto his stinging forehead while yelling and pointing his fingers at Woohyun. His childish persona instantly returned.
 

[Holy Garden, 6th Coronation Ceremony]

“YA! WOOHYUN! AETHER!” Kibum, the God of Light yelled. “GET BACK HERE YOU TROUBLEMAKERS!”

“Ahahaha. This is so fun, Aether!” The young Woohyun laughed as they ran away from Kibum, trying to ditch the training session.

“That Kibum guy has always been too uptight. Tch, tch. He needs to relax and enjoy life a little more.” Aether mocked as he flew beside Woohyun.

“I know right? Kibum hyung is always—ouch!” Woohyun fell backward after bumping into something hard. He slowly looked up, only to see Kibum with his arms crossed in the middle of his chest, fuming. Woohyun could do nothing, but grinned in hopes that his cute smile would melt the other’s wrath.

“WOOHYUN! You are so dead!” The elder said as he dragged the mischievous boy back by his ear.

“Ow ow owwww! Aether, help me!” Woohyun cried out loud in pain.

“Aiyayaya Kibum~! Let the poor boy go, okay? I’ll make sure to take him back to train with you this time,” Aether said with a convincing tone.

Kibum looked back to see Woohyun’s pained face and then Aether’s pleading eyes. He sighed and let go of Woohyun’s ear. “Fine, but you’re going to—”

“FLY, AETHER!” Woohyun shouted as soon as he was released from Kibum's deadly fingers.  Holding onto Aether’s hands, the boy escaped by a hair’s breadth as the two flew away into the sky at a speed of light.

“……WOOOOOOHYUNNNNNNN!!!”
 

Aether stared at the current Woohyun, who was busy looking around in the crowd, and sighed. 

“Tch. He was cuter back then.” The fairy clicked his tongue in annoyance.

“I can hear you!”

“You lia—”

“Let us began the introduction. Look after your successor well!” The Great announced, interrupting Aether’s sentence, and soon disappeared.

“Urgh...” Aether whined in anger. As he began to chant a spell in the language of the fairies, a tiny sphere appeared, hovering above his hand.

“What?! Don’t tell me I’m supposed to see the child through that tiny glass thing.” Woohyun frowned as he brought his face closer to the object.

“Of course not, you dumb .” Aether knocked Woohyun in the head hard, causing the latter to groan in agony. “Be patient, fool. Look!”

As soon as he finished his sentence, the sphere shot out a hologram image in mid-air like a projector. Through the hologram, the gods could see their successor through various ages, from infant to adult age.

“This child is called Howon. He seems quite masculine, doesn't he?” Aether commented.

“Indeed. His look isn’t too bad, though it’s nowhere near my level. Good. He passes as my successor!” Woohyun gave the hologram a thumbs-up. 

“Were you planning to kill him if he was ugly or something?” Aether questioned sarcastically.

“Well, who knows… I was hoping for a cute girl, but if it's a guy then I expect him to be half as handsome as me,” Woohyun answered honestly. 

“Jeez… what else was I expecting…?” Aether sighed in hopelessness.

Woohyun's smile immediately tensed when he suddenly recalled the bet. Pointing at Hoya in the hologram, he asked nervously, “Hey, do you know what kind of a person that kid is?” 

“How would I know?” Aether then glanced into the sphere, his eyes shone brightly for a moment. “Apparently, he is a son of a super rich family with problematic personality.” 

“YES!” Woohyun pumped his fist in the air knowing that he had won the bet. 

“I said, problematic personality.”

“Every young master has a troublesome youth! I'm not surprised.” 

“Even though he is a murderer?” 

“W-What…?” 

“...” 

“...” 

“...I'm joking.” 

“AETHERRRRRRRRR!” 

↭↭↭↭↭↭↭↭

“This is your successor. His name is Dongwoo.”  

“…He looks funny.” Sunggyu raised an eyebrow.

“Oppa! How can you say that to him?” Jieun said with a laugh.

“Well, because I think he looks funny. What does yours look like?”

“Oh, mine? Here.” Jieun took a step back, allowing Sunggyu to see her successor.

“She looks kinda cute,” Sunggyu commented with a straight face. 

Jieun smiled in agreement, her successor was indeed very cute in her eyes. “I'm glad someone thinks the same. Even her name, Soojin, is cute!” 

As Jieun went off about her excitement to have Soojin as her successor, Sunggyu simply gazed at her in silence. With a careful look, one would be able to see the warmth in his usually cold eyes. 

“Are you done with this, Sunggyu? Can I put it away?” Nyx stepped in.

“Oh yes, of course, you may,” Sunggyu answered.

“Well, my job here is done. I hope to see you at the Birth Ceremony next time.” Nyx gave Sunggyu a tight hug, her worried face hidden in his broad chest. 

The Rebirth Ceremony was the last of the three most important events in Paradise, also held in the Holy Palace. This was when the successors were to arrive at Paradise and begin their training to be the next generation of gods. 

“Erhm… Okay.” Sunggyu responded, slightly puzzled at the sudden hug as he gave Nyx a few awkward pats on the back.

The Fairy of Darkness then pulled back and held onto his hands. She mumbled something under her breath that sounded like a prayer then turned to look at Sunggyu. “Please take care of yourself, Sunggyu.”

Sunggyu nodded. “You too.”

Nyx stared at his face a little while before smiling and letting go of his hands. Waving at him one last time, she flew back into the light in the upper centre of the Holy Palace.

“Please be safe…” Nyx muttered as she glanced at Sunggyu, who was leaving the Holy Palace with Jieun. The worried expression never left her face as she left.

↭↭↭↭↭↭↭↭

“Alright. Now go away. Go back to your Neverland. Shoo shoo.” Woohyun dismissed Aether.

“It’s called Mirasolum, you fool!” Aether corrected him.

“Yeah, yeah, go. Go! I’m a busy man,” Woohyun said as he continuously looked around the main hall.

“Ya! How dare you?!” Aether’s yelling was completely ignored. He was about to take off, but a sudden jolt of memory stopped him on his track. Aether turned around and patted Woohyun on the shoulder.

“Good luck and take care of yourself, okay?” he said with a concerned tone, “Don’t die.” 

Woohyun stared at the fairy in confusion. He then reached out to the fairy’s head. “That’s weird… I thought all holy beings are immune from sickness… Are you alright, Aether? Got a… what was it… ah! Fever?”

“Aish… rude bastard!” Aether said as he pushed Woohyun’s hand away and flew off into the light.

“What the… and I was actually concerned about him for a second there… Whatever.” Woohyun then walked off and resumed his search for the couple. 

⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰⊱⊰

I'm finally back! Sorry for the super late update guys. My life got hectic and I also lost my motivation and ideas to write. I didn't want to give you all a ty chapter so I delayed it until I managed to write a decent one. Hope you're happy with this one :D Do comment guys~ It is really motivating for me to see your opinions :P 

SUPPORT ME BY SUBSCRIBING AND UPVOTING :)

LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS OR ASK ME ANYTHING IN THE COMMENTS BELOW.