The sound of gentle splashing, of coins tossed into the water, filled the realm invisible to human eyes. Just as it had through all the years in which Sota slept. This time, however, he opened his eyes and blinked drowsily. At once, countless sea creatures swirled around him.
"He's awake! – He's awake!!" they cried to one another in excitement. Sota furrowed his brows, trying to gather his thoughts and arrange them in a way that made sense. Yet nothing did. Talking fish? And what was he lying on? Some kind of cloud?
"Am… I dead?" he asked uncertainly, looking around. It was obvious! He must be dead. But was this the underworld? Or heaven? Where was Ebisu? Did he even exist? Suddenly, fragmented memories of the encounter with the beautiful dragon returned to him.
"Dead?" one of the fish repeated, shaking its head quickly. "How could you think such a thing? You cannot die, honored Ebisu."
Sota turned, just to make sure Ebisu wasn't standing behind him, but clearly, they meant him.
"I am… Ebisu..?" Sota whispered the question. As the fish exchanged questioning glances, he realized he could no longer remember his own name.
But what did it mean to be a god? Sota looked around, then lifted his gaze upward. "Can I go up there?" One of the fish, a blue one with colorful stripes, swam closer and circled his head quickly.
"Your Holiness, I think you are not yet fully awake! So confused as you are!"
The omega regarded the fish in puzzlement for a moment, then a suspicion arose in him. It seemed these creatures could not distinguish between the old Ebisu and the new one. Did that apply to all beings? Well, how many had ever even been able to see a god?
Eventually, Sota pushed the fish aside and stood up. His gaze was fixed upward again. He wanted to rise. He wanted to leave this place.
But how was he supposed to get out? Several times, he jumped upward with effort, but without success. The fish only stared at him in confusion. Still, Sota would not give up. His eyes landed on the coral reef. Rolling up the long sleeves of his kimono, he tried—awkwardly—to climb the reef.
Again, a fish swam toward him, wearing as worried an expression as only a fish could. "Your Holiness. Why not simply go up?"
The question made Sota pause in confusion. "Simply go?"
The fish nodded. Jumping hadn't worked, after all. "You must still be very tired! Just imagine yourself walking through the water!"
Sota looked around and swallowed nervously. Surely this was only a dream? He must still be lying on his straw mat, waiting for his parents to wake him and call him out to work on the farm. But if this was a dream, then surely he could walk through water—just as he was speaking to fish.
Closing his eyes, he took a great step away from the rock he had climbed. When he opened them, he realized he had not fallen. He was standing in midair—or rather, in the water.
Suddenly, his true goal became clear: the surface. Forgotten, yet now urgent. He began running and leaping around as though discovering joy for the very first time. He felt free, strong enough to rip trees from the earth! Unaware of just how strong he truly was.
After what felt like an eternity, when he had exhausted himself, he stopped, breathless, and looked upward once more. Another coin caught his attention. A fish snatched it up and swam toward Sota with it in its mouth. Tilting his head, Sota accepted the coin.
The moment he touched it, he felt it. The wish bound to this piece of metal. "Someone wants luck for their children's grades? What grades?" he asked in confusion, drifting closer to the surface.
"Your Holiness, are you sure? You haven't been above for so long—" The fish was shoved aside by the others, silenced, and Sota gave it no more thought.
Nothing could have stopped him now. He was mere centimeters from the surface when he hesitated. How would his parents react if they saw him? Would they recognize him? Would they understand that he had not become Ebisu's bride but Ebisu himself?
All at once, his body trembled, his stomach knotting as the memory of his sacrifice struck him. They hated him. He had been a useless omega no one wanted. Sota stretched out his hands, studying them as if searching for a flaw, a treacherous detail that would reveal the merciless truth: that he was meaningless. But there was nothing.
Swallowing hard, he lifted his head above the water, then stepped out, as though invisible stairs lay beneath his feet, a path he could tread as lightly as a feather.
The omega had expected many things—but not the sight that met his eyes. The pier was gone. And not just that—the entire village had been swallowed by the earth. Only a few stone walls remained to mark the countless farmers' and fishermen's homes where life had once thrived. Only the shrine still stood, though it too was worn and weathered.
The realization that everything he had ever known was gone struck him without mercy, pounding into his head until he clutched it and staggered toward the shore. "What happened here…" he whispered, dazed, leaning against one of the crumbling walls.
As he struggled to order the storm of thoughts in his mind, a voice called out. "Hi!" Sota flinched and turned, startled, toward its owner. A young alpha, strangely dressed! He smiled warmly at him, though he seemed just as surprised to find Sota there.
"I've never seen anyone here before. Are you here to make a wish, too?" he asked cheerfully, eyeing him without hesitation. "You're really pretty, but isn't it a bit impractical, dressed like that, climbing around in mountains and hills?"
Sota flushed crimson with shame. Not only had his clothing been criticized—this stranger had given him a compliment! Just like that! "I… I..!"
The stranger tilted his head, still smiling. "Yes? Oh… how rude of me..!" He held out his hand. "My name is Haruki."
But Sota didn't react. He only stared awkwardly at the hand, as though unsure what he was meant to do. Haruki looked at his own hand, then slowly withdrew it. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be pushy. I'm just glad to finally meet someone here. They say this place is special, and I love mystical things, so what could be better than meeting someone who feels the same?"
Nervously pressing his lips together, Sota longed to ask Haruki what had happened here. Yet his thoughts circled back to one fact: someone had not only greeted him kindly, but even offered him a compliment.
"My name is…" It simply would not come to him. "Ebisu…" That was the only name he could remember when he thought of himself.
"Woah, like the god? That's so cool!" Haruki was clearly delighted, his excitement spilling over and lifting Sota's heart as well. "I guess so… thank you…" he murmured softly, slowly daring to inspect this unfamiliar alpha more closely.
Haruki's hair was black, but his eyes—blue. Blue, like Sota's own. He had always considered them a flaw, never a gift. And now, to see someone else with those same blue eyes—it felt beautiful.
"What happened here..?" Sota asked carefully as he drew nearer.
"How do you mean?" Haruki looked around, not understanding. "Everything is the same as always."
Sota shook his head. "No, I mean… the village. There used to be a fishing village here, right?"
Haruki blinked in surprise, then slapped his fist into his open palm as though struck by inspiration. "Aaah, I get it now. But how do you know it was a fishing village?" He chuckled and shook his head. "Okay, it's by the sea—dumb question from me. Anyway, I don't know exactly what happened. From what I've found, the village, like many others, was very religious, and at some point it was destroyed by a storm."
He shrugged, dismissing the information as though it were unimportant. "That must've been like 200 years ago or something! It's a miracle the shrine is still standing."
Sota lowered his gaze, struggling to grasp the weight of Haruki's words. But he could not decide what was worse: the thought that he had caused the storm, or the fact that two centuries had passed, and whether or not the storm had happened no longer mattered. Everyone he had known was long dead.
"I see… so that's how it is…" he said quietly, masking his emotions. Haruki, however, seemed unbothered, simply overjoyed to have company.
"Here!" The young alpha held out a coin to him. "If you're here, you should make a wish too!"
Sota accepted the coin, staring at it in bewilderment. "You're giving this to me? Just like that?"
Haruki raised a brow, utterly confused. "Uh, yeah? I mean, it's not much, but better than nothing. I'm sure your namesake, Ebisu, would appreciate it."
Sota's cheeks flushed red, and he lowered his gaze shyly. "Yes… I'm sure he would be happy." How dearly he wished he could keep the coin. Instead, he pressed it to his chest, then threw it into the water with a faint smile.
Haruki clapped with excitement, then stretched. "So, what did you wish for? I wished not to be alone anymore. Might sound boring, but…" He broke off, waving the thought away. "Sorry, you probably don't want to hear that."
Sota looked at him in surprise. The flood of impressions was overwhelming, but Haruki's manner was so utterly different from the alphas he had known before. "Nothing. I wished for nothing. Except… well… I know what it feels like to be alone. And you're really kind…"
Sota dropped his gaze in embarrassment, missing the way Haruki's face flushed red in turn.
"Wooow… I don't even know what to say! That's more compliments than I usually get! But hey, if you keep being this cute, it's going to ruin my super-cool alpha image!"
Haruki pointed toward the shrine, nodding in that direction. "Come on. We can sit over there. And, well… I just happened to pack too many sandwiches, so we can share!"
Sota nodded and followed him. When they sat down, however, he eyed Haruki curiously. "Haruki, forgive me if I ask, but… what are these sandwiches?"
At that, Haruki nearly dropped one of the very sandwiches in question. "Uh…" He faltered, then simply handed Sota one filled with tuna and mayonnaise. "My world-famous tuna sandwich! Even gods can't resist it!"
Grinning smugly, he bit into another and watched Sota hopefully.
At first, Sota didn't know what to make of the food, but he gave himself a push and bit into it. Immediately, his eyes lit up. "Woah, I've never eaten anything so delicious before!"
Full of delight, he ate the sandwich, chatting with Haruki all the while.