Phantom Pain
Alexandra couldn't pay attention to the class.
Apart from the freak accident and the trip back and forth to her old world, now a strong headache tortured her too.
"Not the way I imagined my first day in school." At least the pulsing pain didn't last long. Was it the strain of the long-term teleportation?
She used to jump around in her world once she rediscovered the ancient method without an issue. Using it between dimensions was another story though.
"What the hell was wrong with that girl?" She pondered, almost falling asleep midway through the first class. "No, come on, focus, I came back so I wouldn't miss a thing."
Thinking if she would be all right didn't give her rest.
"I mean, I gave her the System. It turned out pretty good, so she should be fine." She mumbled, proud of her creation, albeit she never tested it.
"Well, it has everything I know about the world. It should keep her safe." Let's ignore, that this info dates back to a decade earlier. Time dilation still felt weird, even if she was aware of it.
Catching the glance of a classmate, she stopped herself for a moment.
Yeah, humans like to stare a lot. It's nothing new. She got used to it in the past year in this world. But talking to herself didn't help.
Her stomach grumbled. A reminder that she ended up skipping the cafeteria to save that girl's life. Next recess, she should take a plate and eat something.
What was her name again? Everything happened so fast, she remembered asking, but did she even respond?
And what was her deal in the first place? She had seen reckless people before. Hell, she even collected many of them under her Banner. But this girl would rush headfirst into anything.
Was it five times? Only after she took notice of her. What grabbed her attention was a mystery, she looked mundane. She couldn't even tell if it was a boy or a girl at first glance.
But there was something about her aura. Things, that most people in this dimension don't even know about. Her destiny was way beyond the mundane Earth-y things.
"Achoo!"
What the hell? Now this. It's almost as if someone were talking about her.
She can't get a cold, it's impossible with this homunculus body, and here it is again another stimulus.
"Achoo, achoo."
"Bless you." A boy offers her tissue paper with a shiteater grin. He's so obvious. He'd have to start a hundred years early to get a chance with her.
She's the Thirteenth Bride after all; the Goddess of Luck. Even the Demon Lord couldn't conquer her heart. And he had immense power.
Both magical and physical, humans of this world couldn't even comprehend.
"Thanks." She took it anyway, not like she needs to blow her nose, but as long as she's here, it's better not to stand out too much.
Ugh, let's hope that girl does the same. The bell finally rang, but right as she was about to stand up, she felt full to the brim. What on earth is happening?
"Don't tell me the bodies have a connection." This didn't happen before, but she sealed her real self off in a pocket dimension, outside of time and space.
Now that Leona was in her original shell, whatever she did with it could affect her soul too.
Right, Leona, that was her name. It's not even a bad one. It sounds heroic. Together with her strange aura, she might have a bright future ahead.
Okay. Assuming their bodies somehow connected, this fullness must mean she found food.
A lot of them. So she shouldn't worry about her. It's too bad she never finished the tutorial, leaving it with a placeholder.
When she made the System to practice, she didn't think about someone using it for real.
She got addicted to roleplaying games in this world, her favorite Hoards & Monsters. It had a well-defined system that she could emulate with code.
Slap on a Large Language Model with a magic twist, and the game was ready.
All she had to do was limit her immense strength and let the System unlock her true abilities over time. This way she could pretend to level up.
She even set the difficulty to easiest for the girl. It granted higher starting stats than normal so nothing could stand against her.
With, or without the tutorial. Only the Inquisition or the other Brides could match her strength. And of course the Demon Lord.
She felt bad for him, even if she didn't love him. So many people misunderstood his genius. They were thirsty for his power, wanting a slice of the Unified Continent.
The mighty Cranta Empire he created.
Did it collapse because of her? If she didn't try to expand the Gate in the Capital, the First Bride couldn't seal him for sure. She led her by the nose, a lesson learned the hard way.
Never trust humans, ever again.
Looking around the lecture hall, standing, but no longer hungry, she felt embarrassed.
"Something's happening over there. It would be smart to return ahead of time." Her long legs took her to the next class as she pondered.
"No, I promised her to recreate her original body, and I have no idea how I would do that."
She didn't take a good look at her, despite the attraction. She tried to resist it, but couldn't, intervening every time she got into trouble. How pathetic can you be?
The Thirteenth Brite. Someone, who became a literal deity.
"What is her deal?" She kept repeating the question as her heart rate picked up the pace. The headache returned, sharper this time, but was gone before she could raise her hand.
"Did she... It has to be homesickness. Or anger? Achoo." There's no doubt about it, she's cursing in the other world. Hang in there, it will only feel a week before we meet again.
Even less for her. It's both a curse and a blessing. She didn't want to wait long but didn't want to return empty-handed either.
"She said she had a sister." She remembered. A sibling should know a lot about her, and have pictures or something. She could use that to study up on her body and recreate it.