Heaven Breaker: SSS Rank Tiger Evolution-Chapter 59: Coffee and Books

The wind roared through the desert, carrying the sand with it.

"Hot..." I said amid the sandstorm before taking a step forward.

Step after step, I wandered through the desert.

Until suddenly, the sky brightened and the storm dissipated.

"Where am I now?" I wondered, looking around.

The desert’s golden sand stretched everywhere—but this was no longer a desert.

Small and large shops surrounded me in a familiar urban environment.

"This isn’t funny."

Meanwhile—

Directly in front of me stood a chic café, with a glass display window framed in gold.

Inside the café, shadows moved back and forth.

"This really isn’t funny."

I clenched my teeth and took a deep breath before walking to the door and touching the handle.

Click

I turned the handle and stepped into the air-conditioned space, putting an end to the oppressive heat.

I looked around, scanning the environment.

There was someone sitting at one of the tables, drinking coffee and eating a natural sandwich—whole-grain bread with salad. In their hand was a book they were reading.

"There you are." Once again, I recognized something in that familiar scene.

However, this was from a different moment in time.

The goddess who represented the system was sitting in that chair—the same goddess who had helped me accommodate Sun Eater’s fang.

One step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

I pulled out the chair and sat down, then adjusted it closer to the table.

"So we can finally meet properly," she said in a noble, elegant manner. "I’m sure you have many questions, but first allow me to introduce myself."

Cough, cough.

"My name is Mai, the great goddess who blesses soldiers so that they always return from battle and are never afflicted by illness. I am also the one who stands with the doctors who accompany soldiers—their hands are my hands."

"A Right goddess, I presume," I said dryly.

"Precisely," she continued. "In life, I was a saint who followed soldiers into battle in the name of my god. Despite that, I am a devotee of the principles of nonviolence and against any kind of animal mistreatment, being completely vegan and—"

Bang

"Ouch!" she cried out in pain in response to my flick. "Why did you do that?!" she said, tears welling in her eyes.

I just chuckled softly.

"That time, Euphy’s entity said similar nonsense and I couldn’t say much. But now, just by looking..."

She puffed out her cheeks while rubbing the spot where I’d flicked her.

Once again, I looked her up and down.

Mai was a young adult with silky black hair and skin that leaned toward lighter tones, though not quite pale.

She also had two large eyes with golden pupils, carrying the lively sparkle unique to the young.

Her clothes consisted of a military uniform with a hat, gloves, and a skirt, with various honors and decorations pinned to her chest.

Yet the more one looked at her face, her mannerisms, and especially her radiant gaze...

The harder it was to believe that Mai went to war.

However...

"You wear my honors and decorations and have a female version of my original appearance. You drink coffee at the café I used to visit and order the same thing I did, all while reading a book I once read."

"Wow, you figured out the secret..." She pouted, averting her gaze, resting her elbow on the table and her hand against her face.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dad."

I felt a sharp stab deep in my chest.

"What are you, exactly?"

"I-i d-don’t know. I’m still trying to figure that out," she sighed before straightening her posture. "But I was born from you, and I am a part of you. That is a fact."

"And your life story? Your past experiences—what are they?"

"Apparently, a lie." Mai lowered her gaze. "I’m sure I remember a life—living it, and then dying before appearing here—"

"However," I said.

"However... the more I reflect on it, the more I realize I never existed, and all my memories are false... I’m not a goddess..."

I lowered my gaze, slightly disappointed.

Sigh.

"You’re supposed to think you’re something like a higher self or a goddess, but in truth you’re a lower self. A creation of my mind that relies on my memories to exist."

"Exactly..." she finished the sentence.

"I’m sorry if i i I m-made you t-think I was useful," she said, tears streaming down her face. "T-that I-i could h-h-help you or teach you something new. The truth is that I’m a lie and—"

Suddenly, I leaned across the table and pulled her hat down over her eyes, blinding her.

"Hey! Stop that! Right now!" She struggled with me for a few moments, trying to regain control.

I laughed before returning to my seat once more. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"You’re talking nonsense, so just shut up," I said with a smile. "Let’s start from the beginning. What did you do when you were born? Where did the system come from?"

Gulp.

She swallowed hard.

"The system... I read about it at the library entrance when I woke up."

"What library?" I frowned.

"The library is called the Akashic Records," she said, pointing. "Beyond this café, past the desert, there are countless worlds and countless entities wandering through the unfounded."

She focused on me once more.

"Each of those entities never truly lived or died. They are all abstract ideas inhabiting someone’s mind—mere imaginary concepts clothed in symbolism that developed consciousness."

"And why is that important?" I asked, noticing the change in her tone.

"Because some places—especially the Akashic Records—are inaccessible to beings like you, who are bound by time or space."

"This place exists beyond time and space?" I frowned deeply.

"Almost all of these places exist beyond time and space. Nothing there makes sense—it’s complete chaos."

She lifted her cup, took a sip of coffee, and continued.

"But I’m also chaos," she said with a hint of pride. "I’m not bound by time or space, nor limited by any law of man or nature. I’m just an idea laden with symbols, after all."

My eyes widened.

"Once again, it’s a pleasure. My name is Mai," she said with a smile. "And I am merely an idea beyond space-time."