Chapter 96
Jinseong quietly looked at Marten.
Marten had a much younger appearance than the Marten in his memory, but wore a similar smile.
Marten smiled brightly without any shyness under Jinseong's gaze and said:
"Now that I've said everything the grandpa told me to say, I'll say what I want to say~ Jinseong Park, thank you for saving me and giving me a new body~~!"
"You're thanking me?"
"Yes. I'm really grateful~ Specifically, to the extent that if you make a wish, I’ll probably grant it?"
"A wish, huh."
Jinseong quietly looked at Marten thanking him, and as if he had made up his mind, he removed his hand from her head.
"You were born long ago, but you weren't born in the true sense."
Jinseong smiled gently at Marten.
"Birth is a truly strange thing. We can't simply say someone is born into the world just because they come out of the womb or hatch from an egg. One must firmly establish their existence to be truly born. And since ancient times, it was a name that established a person's existence, and only after receiving a name and being able to set out on a journey by oneself did one become an adult. Being an adult is a word that proves one can exist alone, and at the same time, it's the minimum condition to be able to influence the world."
He took out a folded paper from his bosom and burned it.
"In that sense, you are a very strange being. You clearly exist as a separate individual, but at the same time, you couldn't come out of the body, so you're a being that's both born and not born. But it's not that you don't exist because you clearly do exist. That's the kind of being you were."
Jinseong looked at Marten with his eyes but grasped the air and brought paper and pen from somewhere.
"That's why you couldn't do anything before. You received a fetal name, but it became meaningless and couldn't become your name, and you had to exist without being recognized by anyone despite existing. But now you've gained a body and started on a journey to influence the world. And now I want to give you a gift. I may not be able to be your godfather, but I can be a namer."
Marten blinked her eyes and looked at Jinseong.
"First, I'll give you a name. A name is something that defines a person and represents the person themselves. It's a boundary that distinguishes individuals and symbolizes your identity. In that sense, nothing suits you better than this name."
"A name?"
"Don't you like it?"
"No, I do~ If my benefactor is giving it, it's good! But please make it pretty~~"
Jinseong brought his hand to the paper and extracted ink.
The ink was extracted in the form of a thin thread and floated in the air, then wriggled like a snake, swam through the air, flew to Marten, and entered her body.
"Your name is Anastasiya (Анастасия). It contains the meaning of resurrection."
One who gained a body and was resurrected.
One born from the flames of consciousness.
One who, like a phoenix, gained their body from flames and revealed themselves to the world.
This name, containing the meaning of resurrection, would be the name that best represents her.
"Anastasiya..."
Marten seemed to like the name that came out of Jinseong's mouth and muttered it several times with a blank expression.
"Next is the surname. But your choice is important for this."
Jinseong smiled gently and asked Marten.
"Do you prefer Russian style or German style?"
Like in a famous SF movie where red and blue pills were offered and one was urged to choose, Jinseong held out his empty hands to her and asked.
Would she choose Russia or Germany?
But unlike the movie, he only said this much and didn't mention the results of the choice. Although the occasional flashes in Jinseong's arched eyes suggested that this was truly a once-in-a-lifetime choice that would have a huge impact on life, Jinseong only told her to choose.
Marten tilted her head at Jinseong's question and then looked at his right hand.
"I prefer German style~ It feels like I'm really sisters with my little sister~"
The choice was made.
"Alright. I understand."
"What kind of name will it be~ Will I have the same surname as my little sister?"
"No."
He smiled.
"You were born in the song of spring. So the name 'Winter' doesn't suit you."
Once again, ink was extracted from the paper and flew towards Anastasiya's chest. And when all the ink had seeped in, the presence that Anastasiya was emitting seemed to become clearer, and her aura became even stronger.
"Blue Zoisite Lentz. Abbreviated, it would be B Lentz. Your name, your full name from now on is Anastasiya B Lentz."
Winter.
Lentz, meaning warm spring.
Although not the same surname, as the seasons continue, this too could be said to be a surname proving their sisterly relationship.
"Anastasiya B Lentz..."
Marten stroked her chest.
So that the ink that had entered there could seep in better, so that her name could dig deep into her body and become a trace that would never be erased. She rubbed her solar plexus again and again until her skin, cold enough to be pale, turned red from friction, and then she raised her head and said to Jinseong with a bright smile.
"Thank you! It's such a pretty name!"
"It's nothing. It was just your choice."
"But you know, what name were you going to give if I had chosen Russian?"
Jinseong stared at her as if asking if she really wanted to know. But when she didn't avert her eyes, he smiled slightly and opened his mouth.
"It's a name that you, as you are now, don't need to know."
If she had chosen Russian style, the meaning of the name and surname would have been similar to now.
He would have given her the name Anastasiya (Анастасия), which also meant resurrection, and Vesna (весна), which meant spring.
But the middle name would have been significantly different.
Unlike European middle names which were quite freely given, in Russia, they used a patronymic as a middle name. And due to the characteristic of Russian culture that emphasized patronymics, that binding was quite strong, so if he had given her a patronymic derived from himself, she would have been bound to and influenced by Jinseong.
"But since you seem unable to contain your curiosity, I'll tell you. The meaning given wouldn't have been much different from now. Only the sound would have been different, with Vesna instead of Lentz."
"That's pretty too~"
"But isn't Lentz prettier?"
"Yes, I think I like Lentz a bit more~ Maybe because it's the same language as my little sister?"
Anastasiya chose.
Whether that was right or not was unknown.
Freedom and safety.
Being able to live freely but dangerously.
Being safe but with a leash.
It was unknown which would be better for her.
However, she gained a clever move through fate, gained choices through that clever move, and obtained a different fate from those choices. This was a fate different from before the regression when she lived with the name Anastasiya Alexandrovna Vesna (АнастасияАлександровна весна), and also different from the fate Jinseong was going to present.
The fate to move forward with the name Anastasiya B Lentz was no different from an unexplored path.
Jinseong recalled a certain poem as he watched Anastasiya chattering and boasting to Ella as if pleased with her name.
A poem written by Robert Frost called 'The Road Not Taken'.
『 Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. 』
Jinseong looked at his old colleague who would live a different fate.
"Congratulations on being revived, being born, and gaining a name."
"Heh, I'm even more grateful! You saved Ella, saved me, and gave me a name! I don’t even think repaying you for the rest of my life will be enough!"
"That much isn't necessary. Just."
Jinseong paused in his speech and recalled Marten's old appearance.
The memory from before the regression when she brought information, saying she had accidentally discovered sorcery.
No matter how much fate has changed, the curious Anastasiya would surely wander around the world. And in that process, she would discover numerous ruins and sorcery, just like before the regression.
"Don't forget that you said if I make a wish, you'd probably grant it."
"Yes~~! I understand! Anytime!"
Jinseong seemed satisfied with her shouting that she would gladly grant wishes, nodded his head, then turned his body and disappeared. He vanished as if evaporating into thin air. Marten blinked her eyes curiously at this ghost-like appearance.
"Little sister, little sister. Did you just see that? Huh?"
She spoke to Ella like a child who had seen something interesting and came running to urge. Not stopping at just speaking, she also pressed down the head she was resting, and rolled her head back and forth, stimulating Ella's entire leg as if rolling a foam roller.
Annoyed by this, Ella used all her strength to move both arms and firmly grabbed Anastasiya's head, then said through gritted teeth:
"Stay still, you fraudster! And explain properly, systematically, in chronological order! Well organized! So that me and the Lee sisters can understand!"
At Ella's words, the two spectators who had been watching the ritual performed by Jinseong like sacks of barley slowly approached Ella and Anastasiya. Anastasiya carefully smiled brightly as if pleased with the body heat of the three people she felt around her and said:
"Alright~ This big sister will now give you an awesome explanation!"