Creis fell into deep thought.
“Yeah, my daughter.”
The word “daughter” was one she had never really wanted to use.
After all, no matter how you looked at it, it was just a term of address.
She had always referred to Gabriella simply as “Gabriella.”
The reason Creis was pondering this now was because Olivia had once called Gabriella “daughter,” and Gabriella had clearly enjoyed the title.
She needed to try getting closer to Gabriella’s heart so that Gabriella could understand.
Understanding meant cooperation, and cooperation would allow her to achieve her goals.
Creis knew she had to grasp this meaning.
Right now Gabriella had simply forgotten for the time being, but sooner or later she would realize that her mothers were Olivia and Creis.
“Olivia, how did you tell her?”
“Tell her what?”
“That you’re her mom.”
Creis tilted her head again.
She hadn’t recovered her memories—how could she acknowledge that you are her mom?
“We look so much alike that we recognized each other right away, and she only has me, and…”
Neither she nor Elsa were truly reincarnated… they had been resurrected.
Creis nodded. She had heard the name Elsa, but it seemed the Evil God had turned her into a demon.
But she did not care about that.
She only cared about Gabriella—the one existence that could change the world, or even the entire firmament, in the future.
“Gabriella and I have very similar personalities. Our eyes are alike, and our facial structure, body shape, and measurements are exactly the same.”
“Speaking of which, you still haven’t revealed yourself to her?”
Olivia was completely at a loss for words. She felt she needed to change the subject.
Creis shook her head.
She did not dare say it, afraid it would make Gabriella even more distant from her.
Besides, maintaining their current guard-and-maid relationship might not be so bad.
If Gabriella remembered… those memories of slaughter, then Gabriella might keep her at arm’s length or even start fighting her again.
“When I learned that Gabriella had died, I kept reflecting on it.”
Creis stared into Olivia’s eyes.
There was no special meaning behind it; she simply wanted the other woman to listen to everything she had to say.
“She died?”
“Yes. So I want to make a change. If things continue like this, Gabriella will repeat the same mistakes.”
“Haven’t you considered that the one making everything repeat is you yourself, Creis? You’re different from the rest of us.” Olivia sighed.
Creis lowered her head, then nodded again.
“I have considered it, but the possibility is very small. I wasn’t wrong, and neither were the Heavenly Oracle Envoys. Gabriella, she—”
The moment Gabriella’s name came up, Creis fell silent, unsure how to respond.
Because Gabriella’s loss of control seemed to represent her own failure.
Olivia sighed and picked up a piece of cheese in her hand. “Let’s cook first. Twenty minutes have already passed.”
“Yes.”
Olivia began handling the kitchen tools, skillfully slicing onions into strips and carrots.
A basket of diced green vegetables that had not been used up earlier that day sat nearby.
The beef bones had already been roasted to a fragrant crispness.
She pulled out the baking tray, and the aroma filled the entire kitchen.
Olivia used magic with one hand to control the fire, carefully turning the ingredients.
When the mushy onions released their caramelized scent, the rich brown color carried a sweet aroma that rushed straight to the nose, as if gently teasing the taste buds.
Even for Olivia, the entire process took a full hour.
Water soaked into every corner of the softened carbs.
Two slices of bread, fried at the same time, were placed on top of the onion soup.
When the finished stock was ready, Creis understood—this was what she needed to learn.
Gabriella, whose body was weak, would probably love this hot, thick, savory soup.
Creis took it all in, carefully observing every step.
As soon as it was done, she walked over to the kitchen tools and replicated the steps almost flawlessly based on Olivia’s actions.
She suddenly remembered that during the days they lived together in the Upper Domain, Olivia had made similar delicacies.
Recalling those memories made Creis even more proficient with the food.
She finished a bowl of onion soup in just twenty minutes, though it looked a bit too thick.
It was not burnt, but it still seemed a little off somehow.
Had the time been too short?
Olivia looked at the onion soup on the plate and did not know what sound to make for a moment.
The plating, the shape of the bread, and the position of the parsley garnish were all nearly identical.
Creis really was terrifying.
Olivia saw Creis simply reach out her hand, and the food in the pot began to rotate on its own.
It was as if she could wield an invisible force—something closer to the origin than common magic or dark magic, more like shadow power.
Creis nodded. “Yes.”
“But the steps were correct. I calculated them.”
Olivia took a sip of the bread and soup, savoring the layers of flavor carefully.
Although she had already known the answer.
Creis had been staring at her eyes the entire time.
However, it took Olivia a full thirty seconds before she gave her verdict:
“It’s not bad for a beginner, but it’s still not enough to satisfy Gabriella.”
Creis lowered her head, thinking about the mistakes that had appeared in those twenty minutes.
But no matter how she thought about it, she had only caused a twenty-percent error.
In every other aspect she had even done her best.
And this answer left Creis dissatisfied.
She was not a Heavenly Oracle Envoy. She was the Celestial God.
In this world, for the vast majority of things—swordsmanship, academics, anything—she only needed to glance at them a few times to learn, and she could even surpass the masters in those fields.
Olivia was also a highly gifted Heavenly Oracle Envoy, yet the Celestial God did not think what she had done was particularly poor, let alone to the point where Gabriella could not be satisfied.
It was absolutely not at an unsatisfiable level.
Creis received the answer, turned, and left without taking the onion soup with her.
She felt Olivia was being a little arrogant.
Olivia did not continue scolding her. She simply waited quietly and ate the onion soup Creis had made, bit by bit.
On the way back, Creis’s eyes stayed fixed on the floor. Her gaze did not shift for a long time.
Her little leather shoes made no sound on the ground.
She was like a ghost walking beneath the moonlight.
The thoughts flowing through her mind felt as if they had been blocked by a massive stone. It felt very unpleasant.
Creis silently repeated the words Gabriella had once said.
She did not know what kind of “magic” the meaningless phrase “with heart” would attach to food.
At 11:55 PM, she returned to the bedroom.
The moment she pushed open the door, she saw the girl named Isa lying on her side on the bed, gently stroking the head of the girl who had buried herself in the blankets.
Isa’s pupils shone like moonlight.