Chapter Eleven:Great. I Died Again!

There was something deeply humiliating about recognizing the texture of the void. It was soft, cold, and smelled faintly of lavender and disappointment.

Shizuku floated in it again—weightless, motionless, and extremely annoyed.

For the second time in what was turning out to be the worst year of her unlife, she was dead. Again. She could almost hear a sarcastic narrator somewhere in the cosmos going, "Oops! All Stabbings!"

She groaned into the darkness. "Seriously? This again?"

It wasn't like she'd even had time to emotionally process the first death. One moment she'd been turning a robber into a fleeing smear of regret at a convenience store, the next she was setting goblins on fire in the wilderness of a monster-infested medieval world.

She had accepted that. Mostly. Sort of.

But this? Getting stabbed by a prince she'd literally saved?

Oh, the betrayal. The melodrama. The sheer cliché of it all.

"Next time I save a life, I'm checking for backstabbing tendencies first," she muttered bitterly.

Then, as if summoned by cosmic sarcasm, she felt gravity return and reality snap back into focus—complete with sparkles, harp music, and a distinct scent of cotton candy and ozone.

Shizuku dropped like a sack of laundry onto something soft and bouncy. Not a cloud. No, this was marshmallow grass again.

Great. The sparkle realm. Celestial limbo. Goddess HQ. Hell's candy-coated foyer.

She groaned as her face bounced slightly against the pillowy surface. A familiar pastel sky stretched overhead, swirling in nauseating shades of bubblegum pink, electric violet, and highlighter blue. Floating islands drifted lazily above like sky-whales. Giant jellyfish bobbed through the air with an elegance that made her vaguely uncomfortable. The waterfalls still flowed the wrong way. And everything smelled way too sugary for a place that claimed to be divine.

Shizuku sat up slowly, brushing her long silver-blonde hair out of her face. She checked her chest out of habit—no blood, no hole, no sword sticking out. Bonus. She was back in her hoodie again, looking suspiciously clean despite her recent sword-through-the-back experience.

"Well, this is familiar," she muttered. "Back again. Didn't even get a loyalty card last time."

A sudden explosion of harp chords made her wince. The sky above her split with shimmering white light as a staircase made of literal stardust unfurled with a dramatic, sweeping curve. Sparkles rained from the heavens. Ethereal choirs sang in soft oohs and ahhs.

And from the top of the stairs came—

"Wait for it…"

The goddess tripped.

Miriel, divine sovereign of light, rebirth, and mild spatial miscalculations, made a sound not unlike a startled duck as she stumbled down the glowing stairs. Her wings flailed. A stack of scrolls burst into the air like startled pigeons. She landed face-first in the marshmallow grass with a muffled yelp.

Shizuku stared, deadpan. "Graceful as ever."

Miriel popped up like a cartoon character, brushing marshmallow fluff from her robe and trying very hard to pretend nothing had happened. Her long blue hair shimmered with divine luster, though a strand now drooped awkwardly over one golden eye.

"Welcome back, Shizuku!" she said with forced cheer. "What a… surprise! I wasn't expecting you again so soon!"

"Really?" Shizuku arched a brow. "Because dying horribly in a world where magic doesn't exist kind of felt like a scheduling error."

Miriel winced. Her wings drooped. "Yes. About that…"

Shizuku stood up and crossed her arms. "Let me guess. That realm I got dumped into? Not on the 'Recommended for Rebirth' list, huh?"

"It was on the 'Absolutely Do Not Send Anyone Here' list," Miriel admitted, voice shrinking. "I—I got distracted. The portals were glitching. I was juggling soul logistics, the celestial paperwork system crashed again—"

"You sent me to a medieval magic-hating murder world and I got executed for being a 'demon,'" Shizuku snapped. "And not even a cool demon. Just a confused girl who could toss a fireball and save a life."

Miriel's halo flickered. "I didn't mean for that to happen! I thought I'd fixed the coordinates—Realm 837B wasn't even supposed to be active anymore! I was horrified when I saw the placement report!"

"Too late for horror when I've already been stabbed, sparkles."

The goddess looked like she might cry. "I—I came as soon as I could! I didn't think you'd die again!"

"I mean, statistically? The moment I saw the prince's hair glittering in the sun, I should've run."

"I'm so sorry, Shizuku," Miriel said, voice trembling. "It was my failure. Truly. And I want to make it right."

Shizuku stared at her, arms still crossed. "Go on."

Miriel brightened. She reached into the air and pulled out a scroll that shimmered with divine symbols and let off a slight buzzing noise.

"As an official celestial apology, and to compensate for your repeated untimely deaths, I'm authorized to grant you an extraordinary gift."

Shizuku narrowed her eyes. "Define 'extraordinary.'"

Miriel beamed. "Full, unrestricted mastery over all five elemental magics: fire, water, earth, wind, and lightning."

The silence was profound.

Then Shizuku blinked. "...Seriously?"

"Yes! Full command. No cooldowns, no divine fees, no sparkle-based side effects!"

"So I'm basically a walking natural disaster now."

"...A benevolent one, ideally."

Shizuku smirked. "I accept. But only because this means I can finally roast things without anyone calling me a demon."

Miriel clapped her hands, and a soft pulse of magic radiated through the air. Shizuku felt a warm surge move through her core, like fire and thunder and ocean waves all blending into a heartbeat.

Then came the glitter.

"Oh come on," Shizuku groaned, brushing flecks of gold from her hoodie sleeves. "You said no sparkle side effects."

"Ambient shimmer. It'll fade!"

With the apology gift granted, Miriel's tone sobered again.

"Now then… let's talk about where you'll be going next. This time, I've triple-checked the coordinates. This is a stable realm. Approved. Balanced. With a strong narrative framework."

Shizuku narrowed her eyes. "Why does this sound like you're about to ruin my life again?"

"You'll be reincarnated in the kingdom of Velletia. A land of magic, noble houses, magical academies, dragons, destinies…"

Shizuku's eyes widened. "No."

Miriel paused. "What?"

"Velletia? Magical nobles? Romantic destinies?" Shizuku's voice rose. "That's the setting of Romance Royale: Love's Divine Academy!"

Miriel winced. "Technically, yes…"

"You're sending me into a dating sim. A sparkle-infested, piano-soundtrack, rose-petal nightmare dating sim."

"It's a very popular world!"

"I hate it."

"You'll be fine! You're not the heroine or the villainess this time!"

Shizuku stared. "Then what am I? The tea-fetching maid? Background character number three?"

"Ahem." Miriel flipped a glowing page. "You'll be inhabiting the body of Arila Vellion. A young noble girl from a minor house. Not a key plot character. Very quiet, not involved in any of the love routes. She recently had… an unfortunate run-in with a bee swarm and a marble statue."

Shizuku blinked. "A bee swarm?"

"She tripped. Hit her head. Currently unconscious. It's a very seamless moment for reincarnation. No one will notice."

"So I'm going from 'demon execution' to 'bee-related head trauma.' Lovely."

"She's got great potential!" Miriel insisted. "Quiet life. Magic lineage. And now you'll have all five elements under your control!"

Shizuku rolled her eyes but sighed. "Fine. But I swear, if one sparkly noble so much as offers me a rose, I'm incinerating it."

Miriel gave a nervous laugh and swirled her wand. A golden portal opened before them, humming with divine energy. This one, at least, didn't look like it was about to explode.

Miriel looked regretful. "I truly hope this time is different. You deserve peace. Or at least... less stabbing."

Shizuku gave her a dry look. "I'll settle for not dying in the first week."

And with that, the portal pulled her in, light swallowing her whole.

Somewhere far below, in the lush green estate of House Vellion, servants bustled nervously around a large canopy bed. A girl lay unconscious, bandaged carefully, her dark hair fanned over silk pillows. She had tripped in the garden two days ago, head meeting marble with dramatic consequences. Her name was Arila Vellion—distant cousin of a minor duke, generally polite, vaguely forgettable.

Until now.

Shizuku's eyes fluttered open.

She groaned. The ceiling above her was ornate, covered in painted cherubs. Her head ached. Her limbs felt wrong. Her clothes weren't hers.

"Ugh. Did I just reincarnate into an antique doll?"

A soft breeze blew in through the lace curtains. Somewhere, a bird chirped.

Shizuku glared at the ceiling. "If I hear a piano, I'm burning this place down."

To be continued...