God Simulator: The Goddesses In The Simulation Are All Real

Linsley sighed inwardly, already anticipating the misunderstanding that was about to unfold.

The air around him shimmered as multiple figures materialized. The reinforcements were a mix of high-ranking military personnel and Overlords of varying levels.

At the forefront stood Fleet General Wyrn, a towering man whose aura radiated dominance, indicating his Level 9.7 Overlord status. Behind him were two Major Generals, both at Level 9.5, and several Brigadier Generals at Level 9.1 to 9.3.

Their presence exuded authority and tension. Each was armed and prepared, their expressions grim as they scanned the area.

Aurielle stood off to the side, her playful demeanor unshaken.

She gave the arriving forces a cheerful wave, her golden-blonde hair catching the sunlight as she smiled brightly. "Oh, more guests! This is turning out to be quite the party."

Fleet General Wyrn\'s sharp gaze locked onto Linsley as he barked, his voice commanding and authoritative, "Lieutenant General Sinclair, report! Who is this woman, and why were your soldiers recalled without notice?"

Linsley turned to face the reinforcements, his expression neutral but his mind already calculating. He raised a hand, a silent gesture to halt any immediate action. "Stand down, Fleet General. She\'s not a direct enemy—yet."

"Yet?" Wyrn\'s gaze flickered between Linsley and Aurielle, his skepticism clear. "You\'re telling me this... girl isn\'t involved in the outbreak?"

Aurielle giggled, taking a few casual steps forward. "Girl? How charming. But I assure you, I\'m much more than I appear." Her violet eyes sparkled with amusement, though her tone carried an undertone of warning.

The tension among the reinforcements was palpable. Weapons shifted subtly into readiness, flux signatures flaring around them in anticipation. To them, Aurielle\'s presence was far too coincidental to ignore.

"She was present during the outbreak," Linsley explained, his voice steady, "but she\'s not directly responsible for it. And she\'s not someone any of you should provoke carelessly."

Wyrn\'s scowl deepened. "So you trust her, then? Enough to dismiss your own forces?"

Linsley\'s jaw tightened slightly. He knew this situation was a powder keg. "Trust is irrelevant. What matters is that she\'s not an immediate threat, and this is a situation best handled without unnecessary conflict."

Major General Dyris, a hawk-eyed woman at Level 9.5, stepped forward. Her voice was cold, her suspicion evident. "Lieutenant General, her aura is clearly suppressed. She\'s hiding her true power. That alone is cause for alarm."

Aurielle sighed theatrically, twirling a strand of her hair. "Oh, please, Linsley. You\'re making me sound so boring. I\'d hate to disappoint our new friends."

Her playful tone didn\'t match the sharpness in her eyes as she glanced at the reinforcements. "You\'re all so tense. What\'s the harm in a little trust?"

Before Linsley could respond, Fleet General Wyrn stepped closer, his presence overwhelming. "Lieutenant General, you\'re out of line. I\'m the ranking officer here, and if this woman poses even a fraction of the threat you imply, we cannot afford to let her walk away."

Aurielle raised her hands in mock surrender, her expression teasing. "Oh, relax. If I wanted to destroy your precious Dominion, don\'t you think I\'d have done it already?"

Wyrn\'s expression darkened further, and the Overlords behind him tensed. Linsley knew this was spiraling quickly, and Wyrn\'s higher authority complicated the situation. But before anyone could act, Linsley spoke with finality.

"Enough!" His voice cut through the tension like a blade. "This is my operation, and she\'s my responsibility. You\'re all dismissed."

Wyrn\'s eyes narrowed, his voice laced with warning. "Lieutenant General, you\'re playing a dangerous game. If you\'re wrong about her—"

"I\'m not," Linsley interrupted firmly, his gaze steady. "And I\'m ordering you all to retreat. Your presence here is unnecessary and potentially catastrophic."

For a moment, the air was heavy with unspoken challenges, but Linsley\'s unwavering stare silenced further argument.

Wyrn motioned for the reinforcements to withdraw, though his expression made it clear this wasn\'t over.

Once the reinforcements were finally out of sight, the tension in the air eased, but Linsley\'s irritation did not.

He dropped his Lieutenant General facade, his expression shifting from cold authority to thinly veiled annoyance. He turned toward Aurielle, arms crossed, his voice laced with frustration.

"Do you have to make everything harder than it needs to be?" he asked, glaring at her. "If you weren\'t trying so hard to antagonize them, we could have avoided that entire mess."

Aurielle, unbothered as always, tilted her head and smirked. "Oh, come on, Linsley. They\'re military dogs—they were already tense. I just added a bit of spice to the mix."

She stretched her arms overhead, her grin playful as if she hadn\'t just caused chaos. "Besides, what\'s the point of life if you can\'t enjoy the little moments? They\'ll get over it."

Linsley pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a slow breath to temper his frustration. "You call nearly starting a full-scale battle with multiple Overlords \'a little moment\'? You\'re unbelievable."

Aurielle twirled a strand of her golden-blonde hair, her violet eyes sparkling with mischief. "Unbelievable, yes. But also correct. You\'re overthinking it. Those uptight generals wouldn\'t have attacked me, not with you standing in the way. You handled it, so what\'s the problem?"

"The problem," Linsley growled, his voice dropping, "is that you don\'t seem to care about the consequences of your actions. Do you have any idea how much worse this could have gotten?"

She raised an eyebrow, her grin softening into a more casual smile. "Worse? Linsley, let\'s be honest. None of this matters in the long run. The universe is on borrowed time. The Outer Gods are going to devour it eventually. So why should I waste what little freedom I have worrying about things I can\'t control?"

Linsley\'s eyes narrowed, his voice steely. "That\'s the difference between us. I\'m not ready to give up on this universe, no matter how bleak it looks. Maybe you\'ve resigned yourself to watching everything burn, but I haven\'t."

Aurielle sighed, her playful demeanor fading slightly. "You misunderstand me. I\'m not giving up—I\'m just... prioritizing. If I spent all my time brooding over the inevitable, I\'d lose what little joy there is left to find. So yes, I\'ll joke, tease, and play around. Call it selfish, but I\'m not going to let despair ruin whatever time we have left."

"Selfish doesn\'t even begin to cover it," Linsley muttered, shaking his head. "If you spent half the energy you use annoying me actually helping—"

"Helping?" Aurielle interrupted, her tone sharp for the first time. "You think I haven\'t tried? Do you have any idea what it\'s like to carry the weight of an entire universe, only to realize that no matter what you do, the scales are hopelessly tipped against you?"

Her sudden shift in tone caught Linsley off guard, and for a moment, silence stretched between them.

Then, just as quickly as her intensity had risen, Aurielle\'s playful smirk returned, though it didn\'t quite reach her eyes.

"But hey," she said, her voice light again, "if it bothers you that much, you can always just stop hanging around me."

Linsley scoffed. "As if I\'d let you out of my sight. You\'re the Diviner World\'s last line of defense, whether you like it or not. I can\'t afford to let you wander off unsupervised."

Aurielle\'s grin widened. "Aw, you do care."

"Don\'t flatter yourself," he shot back, turning away. "Just try not to make any more trouble. We\'ve got enough problems as it is."

Aurielle chuckled softly, watching him with a mix of amusement and curiosity. "You\'re an interesting one, Linsley Sinclair. Maybe this universe isn\'t completely hopeless after all."

He ignored her, resuming his work on the battlefield. But her words lingered in his mind, even as he tried to dismiss them.

…

Linsley worked methodically, repairing the last remnants of the destroyed buildings and infrastructure. His restoration guns hummed softly as flux energy surged through them, weaving broken pieces of the site back into a cohesive whole.

He focused on eradicating every lingering trace of the virus, ensuring the area was entirely sanitized.

Aurielle observed him with mild curiosity, occasionally wandering off to inspect the restored surroundings. She twirled a strand of her golden-blonde hair idly, her lively expression betraying no sense of urgency.

When Linsley finally completed his task, the outbreak site was pristine, a far cry from the chaos it had been.

He wiped the sweat from his brow, giving the area one final sweep. "That\'s done," he muttered, glancing over at Aurielle. "Let\'s head back to headquarters."

Aurielle yawned dramatically. "Headquarters? That sounds so dull. I think I\'ll pass."

She turned on her heel, taking a step away. "I\'ve had my fun here, so I\'ll just—"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Before she could finish, Linsley reached out and grabbed her by the hair, pulling her back with just enough force to halt her retreat.

Aurielle froze mid-step, her violet eyes wide with disbelief.

"Seriously?!" she exclaimed, spinning around to glare at him, her hands reaching to free her golden locks from his grasp. "Of all the ways to stop someone, you grab my hair? Are you trying to rip my scalp off?"