Hearing the Water God speak of a hundred years of youth, Isolde couldn't help but feel intrigued. She had never heard of such a thing before—this must have been a recent discovery of his.
"The method you mentioned… does it have something to do with this tear?" she asked.
The Water God didn't hide the truth. He nodded without hesitation and explained:
"I never imagined the first tear of a deity would hold such immense power. With it, I've found a way for us to be together for another hundred years."
Such a phenomenon hadn't occurred in billions of years. Gods had shed tears before, of course—but theirs were often born of jest or fleeting sorrow, never from the deep pain the Water God now carried.
This tear was strange—unique. A fragment of his divine essence was sealed within it. More than that, he could use it to construct a space where consciousness could temporarily reside.
Isolde looked toward the shimmering droplet and asked softly:
"So… what do I need to do?"
The Water God smiled at her and replied:
"Just live your life well. Wait for me—one or two years at most. Even for a god, this won't be easy."
Rather than rejoicing, her expression turned to worry.
"Will this hurt you? If it causes you harm, I want you to stop—promise me."
His gaze softened. He reached out to gently stroke her hair and said:
"Don't worry. It's difficult, yes—but not dangerous. Wait for me. I'll show you something truly wondrous."
"Alright."
And so, the two of them continued their quiet life on the deserted island for another year.
Of course, Isolde couldn't manage everything on her own, so the Water God left behind a water clone to help her. Meanwhile, his true form focused entirely on transforming the tear into the miracle he envisioned.
...
One year later, fortune favored them—the work was finished even sooner than expected. The Water God gazed upon the object in his hands and smiled with satisfaction.
"From now on, you shall be known as Tear of the Water God. You will become one of the holy waters of this world."
As soon as he finished speaking, he flew swiftly toward Isolde, his heart brimming with anticipation. He could barely contain his excitement—he couldn't wait to present her with this long-awaited surprise.
At that moment, Isolde was lying on a bed inside the wooden cabin, while the Water God's clone was busily tidying up the place.
Suddenly, the clone vanished, replaced by a breathtakingly handsome young man—none other than the Water God himself.
Hearing the sudden movement, Isolde turned her head and caught sight of him. It had been so long since she'd last seen him that her face immediately lit up with joy.
"You've finally come back? How could you bear to leave me alone for an entire year?" she said, half-complaining.
The Water God recognized the teasing in her tone and smiled warmly.
"I didn't leave you alone. I left a water clone to keep you company and help out, didn't I?"
"Hmph. Don't joke with me. That clone couldn't even speak! If you don't offer proper compensation, I'm not going to forgive you so easily."
At that moment, she looked just like a sulking young girl demanding a gift. But rather than being annoyed, the Water God found her utterly endearing.
In a flash, he was seated beside her. He kissed her gently on the forehead and asked:
"Still mad?"
Though her cheeks flushed slightly, she stubbornly replied:
"Hmph, don't think a kiss will be enough."
The Water God chuckled and narrowed his eyes playfully. Then he opened his palm, revealing a single crystal-clear tear, gleaming with the colors of a rainbow.
"This… is your gift. Do you think it's enough now?"
Isolde reached out, leaning against him as she struggled to sit up. She gazed at the tear in front of her. To her eyes, it looked no different than it had a year ago.
Her vision had grown weaker, but not so much that she couldn't clearly see what was right before her. So, puzzled, she asked:
"What exactly did you do to it? It looks the same as before…"
The Water God's face was calm, but his eyes sparkled with satisfaction as he began to explain:
"Over the past year, I've transformed the inside of this tear. It's now a vessel for a world—one made for souls. I modeled it after the world we live in, creating a parallel version inside the Tear of the Water God. Inside this world, your soul can remain for at least a hundred years. And since a soul doesn't age the way the body does… we'll be able to explore it together, forever young."
As he spoke, he gently brought the Tear of the Water God to rest in the center of her palm.
Gazing at the shimmering droplet, Isolde whispered:
"Tear of the Water God, huh? So that's what you named it. It's… it's truly a wonderful gift. Thank you, truly."
Her smile lit up her face, radiant and heartfelt. To the Water God, that smile was more beautiful than any flower—like sunlight melting the cold solitude of his heart.
He stood there, completely entranced, gazing at her with such intensity it was as if the world itself had faded away.
Eventually, he asked softly:
"As long as you're happy... So, when shall we depart?"
Without a hint of hesitation, she replied:
"Right now! I've long grown tired of this fragile old body. I want to laugh, run, and explore with you—just like before."
The Water God nodded with a smile.
"Very well. Everything shall be as you wish. Let us go."
With a wave of his hand, her soul was gently drawn from her body and drawn into the Tear of the Water God. A moment later, he too separated his own consciousness from his divine vessel and followed her inside.
At that same moment, Isolde's physical body dissolved into a cascade of sparkling motes of light and vanished into the air.
This, too, was the Water God's doing. Unlike the bodies of gods, human flesh was fleeting. Once the soul departed, the body would eventually decay—but in this case, it dissolved in an instant. Such a phenomenon could only occur through the intervention of a god, or if a soul was strong enough to sever itself entirely by sheer force of will.
Isolde slowly opened her eyes.
The scene before her was both familiar and strange. She was back in the same wooden cabin—but now, everything appeared sharp and vivid, as if veils had been lifted from her senses.
"My eyes… have they truly healed?" she murmured in awe.
Almost instinctively, she looked down at her hands—no longer wrinkled and fragile, but youthful, smooth, and full of life.
She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
Rising to her feet, she felt strength surging through her limbs—power she hadn't felt in decades. It was undeniable now:
She was young again. Her health had been fully restored.