Day 1 (?)…
"Huff… huff…" Kai kept doing push-ups nonstop. Even though he had no idea how much time had passed, he still didn't stop.
"Aren't you hungry?" Pandora asked, her tentacles lightly touching Kai's cheek.
"Not hungry enough yet. Let me train in peace."
"Ugh… I thought having you here would change something. Turns out it's still boring as hell."
"You talk too much," Kai panted, sweat pouring down his face.
Day 2 (?)…
"Huff… huff…" Kai was running on the treadmill Pandora had created, set to quite a high speed.
"You've been training since earlier without sleeping or eating at all? Steel willpower much?" She sounded a bit surprised to see a human this stubborn.
Even though he was merely the vessel of a god, which might (or might not) make him stronger than normal people, he still trained diligently.
"I was about to stop… but then I thought nah, I'll keep going."
"Not replenishing nutrients or sleeping is bad, you know. It might even make these training sessions useless."
"Go back to sleep."
"Hmph… too lazy to care about you."
A few hours later…
"Ugh… ha… ha… I… I overdid it…"
Kai tried to stand up, but his legs were jelly, his body had clearly exceeded its safe limit.
Still, he forced himself upright through sheer iron will and eventually managed to stand.
He slowly dragged himself to the bed and noticed a small table nearby with a piece of sponge cake and a glass of milk.
"…This is barely enough nutrition?"
He glanced at Pandora sleeping soundly, sighed, and ate it anyway.
Day 3 (?)…
"Haa… Hm?"
Pandora sat up and saw Kai doing pull-ups, but he stopped when he noticed her.
"Ah, can you create a kitchen for me?"
"For what?"
"What do you mean for what? So I can cook for myself, obviously."
"Oh, sure, whatever."
The moment cooking utensils and a gas stove appeared, he happily inspected everything and then asked her to create ingredients too.
"You think I'm your personal wish-granting machine or something?"
"Aren't you?"
"Hmph… You'd better respect me! I am the calamity of—"
"Yeah yeah, calamity of mankind. Can you make some eggs?"
After creating them, she stormed off to sleep again, leaving Kai cheerfully cooking to replenish his nutrients.
Day 4 (?)…
"Hey."
"…Mmm."
"Get up."
"Five more minutes…"
"Wanna bet I'll shit on the bed?"
"What the?!"
She jolted upright and saw Kai setting the table, placing food down, then looking at her.
"Eat?"
"…You're not training?"
"Just finished weightlifting. Eating alone is boring."
"Oh…"
Pandora and Kai sat at the table. She sniffed the aroma and looked at each dish.
"It's been forever since I last ate. Being here, it's not like I can get hungry anyway."
"I didn't ask."
"Then don't ask!"
Pandora stabbed the egg with her fork and shoved it in her mouth.
It was… pretty good. It reminded her of the early days when she was a new bride.
"How is it?"
"Delicious."
"Of course. A kid like you would think anything tastes good."
"What did you just say?!"
Kai laughed for a moment then ate quietly. After finishing, he stood up and went back to the weights.
There was still a lot of food left…
"Why'd you leave so much? There's plenty left," Pandora raised an eyebrow at Kai.
Kai glanced at her, then continued lifting.
"The meal has no taste. That's all."
No taste? Why no taste?
…Oh. I get it.
"Because your little brother died?"
Kai, mid-rep, froze and glared at her.
"Don't look at me like that. It's a shame for you, sure, but humans die eventually anyway."
"Then when your ex-husband died, were you sad?"
"Of course? Back then I was still pretty naive—"
"Then shut up. If you understand how devastating it is to lose someone important, don't act all high and mighty lecturing me about obvious shit."
"…Are you mad?"
"…Ugh, sorry. Just ignore me."
Pandora stared at Kai for a while, then looked at the table and put more food in her mouth.
…Now the food tasted bland to her too.
Day 5 (?)…
Kai opened his eyes. The muscles in his body were slowly getting used to the training intensity.
His muscles were starting to show, even just a little. It proved that what he was doing wasn't pointless.
But it still wasn't enough.
"…Hm? What's that smell?"
Kai looked toward the kitchen and saw Pandora fumbling around.
"This… ugh… salt or sugar? Damn it, it's been so long since I cooked I can't tell anymore!"
BOOM!
Black smoke rose. Her face was covered in soot. She carried a plate of her "creation" to show Kai.
"Ehehe… You don't have to eat it. I'll cook again later."
Kai looked down. Whatever this black thing was, it was probably eggs—and definitely tasted awful.
Yet Kai still put it in his mouth, face expressionless.
"…You really don't have to eat it, you know?"
"I know. And it's horribly bitter."
Then Kai smiled.
"But at least it has taste. Probably contains your feelings."
"…Really?" Pandora scratched her cheek, a bit embarrassed.
"Alright, I'm going back to training. Make me a punching bag too."
"Okay."
Day 6 (?)…
She realized she wasn't sleeping as much as usual anymore.
Because now she had a new goal:
Relearning the cooking skills she had long forgotten.
She had no idea why she was so determined—like back in the days when she was a new wife.
Maybe because of Kai?
Heh, what do you mean "maybe"? A thousand years alone and now someone finally shows up—of course it's certain.
She quietly glanced at Kai, who was awake again doing high-intensity training.
He's really determined to become strong enough, huh?
Why doesn't he just ask me? I could lend him power if he asked.
Or is he too stubborn to ask?
"Whatever. He'll probably come begging once he realizes pure physical training is useless. For now—cooking time."
She went into the kitchen and started.
It was still bad, but better—she turned off the gas earlier this time.
"Kai!"
"Hm? Ah, wait a sec?"
He put down the jump rope and walked to the table.
Both of them sat down. He ate her food without complaining.
"How is it?"
"Bad as usual."
"I'm hurt."
"If you're hurt then aren't you basically admitting you're a child?"
"Hey!!"
Only six days had passed. She originally thought she'd get bored watching him train nonstop without any entertainment.
But she was wrong. Actually… it was still fun.
Especially watching him eat. His expressions weren't as rich as her ex-husband's when she first cooked for him, but he patiently finished everything even while complaining.
How to describe it… he resembled her ex-husband's older brother more—calm, patient… but then suddenly hot-tempered and impatient? What a contradictory person.
Weird. This guy somehow combines traits from both brothers yet is distinct enough that she no longer sees them in him.
"From now on I'll cook for you every day, okay?"
"No thanks."
"So rude! Why not?"
"You only cooked one egg. How is that enough nutrition?"
"Hmph, fine. Then I'll make a full meal."
Kai looked at her and smiled.
"I look forward to it."
Day 7 (?)…
So… one week, I guess?
Honestly, this is the first time since Kai arrived that time felt like it was passing slower than usual.
"Girl, do you even know how to cook??"
"Why did your personality flip so fast??"
Yeah—Kai decided to take a rest day and just watch her cook. Now he was acting exactly like Gordon Ramsay.
"That's sugar."
"Ah right, forgot."
"That's MSG."
"Ah crap… uhh."
"Pandora, how the hell did you ever become someone's wife? Your ex-husband must've had a stomach of steel."
"Uwaaa!!!"
He definitely wasn't anything like her ex-husband—and he was proving it very well.
She felt stupid for ever thinking they were similar. Ugh…
"Still… it's gotten better. Your skill is improving."
"Really?"
"Have I ever lied to you?"
"You lied to your little brother."
"Do you know what privacy is?"
Kai was noticeably more energetic these days. Maybe because he wasn't hyper-focused on one thing, his true personality was showing more.
Heh, and she once called him gentle or something.
But thanks to him, she was starting to remember the joy she had long lost.
Cooking is actually really fun…
Week 2 (?)…
"So? Good?"
"Your skill really jumped. Tastes great."
"Hehe, I practiced harder than you just to make this meat juicy and delicious!"
"…" Kai chewed for a moment, then sensed something wrong.
This sweetness… it seems to come from… fruit?
"Pandora… did you put orange in the meat?"
One sentence. Both froze.
"Eto… teehee?"
"Make it again later, missy. I'm not accepting demonic cooking."
"But it's good though, right?"
"Good but you're insulting chefs! What's next?! Pepsi and shrimp?!"
They argued for a bit, then both burst out laughing.
Pandora sat on the bed and waved Kai over.
"What's up, granny?"
"Granny your head! Come tie my hair!"
"…Not sleeping yet?"
"Later."
"You're joking, right? Sleep while getting your hair tied? First time I've heard of that."
"Shut up! What I do is my business! A believer like you should just obey!"
"I don't remember being your believer."
So Kai sat beside her, took her hair, and gently brushed it smooth.
Very gentle, as if he had experience.
"You've tied someone's hair before?"
"Didn't you see it in my memories?"
"I did, but I like asking more."
"What, jealous?"
"Kinda…"
"Why the hell would you be jealous? I'm definitely not your husband."
"You're getting ruder every day! Careful or my tentacles will crush your balls!"
"Hmph, I dare—yes ma'am, sorry ma'am, please forgive me."
Pandora laughed happily, amused by Kai's reaction.
Only two weeks together and it's already this fun. Weird.
"Done."
"Hmm, nice! I approve!"
"How are you gonna sleep now?"
"Why do you care?"
"I'm just asking. Problem?"
"Hmph, you really have zero delicacy. No wonder you're still a virgin."
"What does being a virgin have to do with anything???"
She checked herself in the mirror, smiled mischievously, and Kai could only sigh.
Girls are sometimes so hard to understand. Never say things straight, always making guys guess.
Week 3 (?)…
Her fingers kept poking his arm.
"What? Can't you see I'm training?" Kai turned, drenched in sweat, looking at her.
"Every 7 days you chose to rest and hang out with me. Why are you training today?"
"…"
Kai turned away and didn't answer.
'Hmm… so he's already hit his limit, huh?'
In the end, Kai's potential was extremely low. No matter how much he trained or how persistent, his stats only increased by tiny amounts.
Sometimes the world is unfair. Geniuses barely need to train; the weak can train ten times harder and still lose.
"You know… being strong doesn't always mean physical strength. You can train other things besides your body."
"I don't really need that."
"Relying on Gear instead?"
"…"
"Hmmm… how about this!"
She stood up and rummaged in her sleeve.
"That's…?"
"Cursed equipment. If you wear it, you'll definitely suffer!"
"Does it increase strength?"
"No! But you'll get used to curses—and you'll definitely need it later!"
"…"
Five minutes later…
"UOHHHHHHH!!!"
"Keep going! Keep going!"
Kai was struggling through push-ups while blood poured from his nose. Pandora sat on his back.
1 month (?)…
"Hey."
"What?"
Kai was resting. Pandora lay beside him. Both stared at the stars.
"Actually… that thing about me being the first woman of humanity? I lied."
"I know."
"Whatever, I'm continuing. My true nature is calamity and misfortune for mankind. In other words, I was the first disaster of humanity—the ancestor of earthquakes, tsunamis, storms, blah blah blah."
"My ex-husband Epimetheus was a lovesick idiot. So was I. Except for his brother Prometheus, nobody was wary of me."
"And then I personally destroyed both humanity and my own family. That's when I realized I was just a puppet in the gods' hands, with one sole purpose: to punish mankind."
"Prometheus's brother was eternally punished for giving fire to humans. And my husband… ugh, our daughter ended up marrying Prometheus's son."
"Wow. Real mythology. Incest galore," Kai said tiredly.
"Back then I thought it was normal. Looking back now… yeah, hard to defend. But divine blood probably prevented inbreeding defects."
She sighed and sank back into memories.
"What about you? After you opened that box with your name?"
"…I thought about killing myself."
She turned to look at Kai.
"Everything happened because of me. My husband might not have blamed me, but I hated myself more than ever."
"But suicide wouldn't fix anything. My soul and the calamities are fused together—I can't separate them. Even if I reincarnate, I'd still bring disaster."
She closed her eyes.
"So I sealed my soul inside this domain I created. My body decayed."
"…Meaning if you leave here, your soul returns to the reincarnation cycle?"
"Yeah."
Kai and Pandora fell silent. Nothing more was said.
Things just continued like that…
1 year (?)…
She leaned against Kai's shoulder.
"What?"
"Nothing."
Then she hugged him.
"Hey, I'm not interested in romance, you know."
"I know."
"Then stop hugging and sniffing me. I stink of sweat."
"Mhm."
"…"
Kai sighed and patted her head.
"You don't love your ex-husband anymore?"
"…"
"Ugh…"
She looked at Kai.
"You're going to leave someday, aren't you?"
"Yeah."
"You have to leave this place?"
"Yup."
"…Then let me hug you a bit longer. I don't want to regret not spending enough time."
…
"Hey, you lied when you said you liked my cooking, didn't you?"
"No way."
"Liar. You said you never lie—such a slippery guy."
"…"
"Silence means yes. Fine, I'll keep practicing until even you admit it tastes good!"
…
Time unknown…
"So you're still leaving?" She watched Kai put his Gear back on.
"Yeah. This is enough. I've reached my physical limit anyway. Thanks for everything."
"…"
She grabbed his finger, face full of sadness.
Kai scratched his head, looked at her for a moment, then walked over and hugged her.
"…"
Her arms wrapped around his shoulders; her tentacles tightly embraced him.
"You can see through the box, right?"
"Yeah…"
"Then I'll take it with me. So you can watch me."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
They looked at each other and smiled. Pandora created a white gate for Kai to leave.
"Bye. Maybe we'll meet again someday."
"Yeah… bye."
Kai waved and walked toward the gate.
His figure grew smaller… smaller… and smaller still.
She stood there, alone, watching.
…
…
…
Rapid footsteps echoed.
"?"
Kai turned around—Pandora came running and hugged him.
Both fell into pure white nothingness.
"W-What?! Idiot! If you leave here you'll go back into reincarnation!!"
"I know."
"Then why—"
"But I don't want to… I don't want to be alone anymore. I've had enough…"
She lifted her face, tears and snot everywhere.
"You have to take responsibility!"
"Responsibility for what?! I didn't even sleep with you!!"
"You made this place no longer enough for me. You made me feel love after so long—and then you dare leave me alone without taking me?! Heartless jerk!!"
"Damn it! Are you a child?!"
They kept falling, falling forever.
"When I reincarnate after entering the cycle, I'll lose all my memories. But my personality and appearance will stay the same. I'll be a completely new human—just weaker."
"So…"
"To make sure I don't lose you, I'll choose you as my symbiotic host. Even if I don't remember anything, I'll still instinctively know you're the one I belong to."
"That sounds kinda romantic??"
She smiled and hugged him even tighter.
"Meaning you and me—no more loneliness… I'm so tired…"
Kai looked at her, then hugged her back.
"Yeah. I'll definitely raise you well—like a little sister."
"Not wife?"
"Keep dreaming."
Both laughed loudly… and disappeared into the white void…