Chapter 20: Past Sealed in Ice and Snow
The moment the door was pushed open, Lonis was stunned.
Not only was the entire street covered in ice and snow—but it was also because she finally remembered where she had seen this world before.
In her dreams, when she became a hero!
When she submitted her quest at the guild, when she was admired by the citizens, when she stayed at the inn, she was living in such a place.
Although the layout of the streets was not entirely the same, the appearance of each building was exactly the same as in her memory.
It was just that now everything was covered by ice and snow, which was why Lonis didn’t recall it immediately.
And…
Even the hall where she received her award still existed.
It stood majestically at the very top of the entire city. Lonis remembered that at that time, traffic was bustling. Not only the common people and young ladies of the aristocracy, but even the Archbishop and the King had come.
Everyone was congratulating her name in unison, and white lilies carpeted the area from the city gate to the palace, extending for hundreds of meters, it was so magnificent.
But now… what was going on?
What was all of this…
Lonis was stunned, and black smoke once again rose from Elus’s feet.
When the silver-haired girl regained her senses, the elven form of Elus had her arms crossed, as if smiling at Lonis:
“Hmph, finally noticed? You guy, you don’t seem that stupid…”
“Elus?”
“Let’s go, don’t you want to confirm it?”
“I…”
If you want to stand here and turn into an ice sculpture, I’m leaving.
“W-wait a moment!”
The unfamiliar environment, which felt so familiar, sparked an instinctive fear in Lonis’s heart. She didn’t dare to stay alone in such an empty place, so she quickly followed.
…
Elus’s target was clear: the hall located at the high position.
The grand entrance was over ten meters high. As she approached, she had to look up to see its lush eaves.
But perhaps it had been abandoned for too long?
The huge doors were frozen shut by ice, making them impossible to open. Even Elus could only sigh deeply, a flicker of helplessness flashing in her eyes:
“Brave Miss, although I really want to take you on a tour of your old stomping grounds and help you complete your unfinished investiture ceremony, unfortunately, it seems impossible?”
“Wuwu…”
“What a shame, it would definitely be more effective to torment you in a place like this… to fall into decadence as a girl amidst the glory of your homeland, you should enjoy that feeling of shame, shouldn’t you?”
“Who would enjoy that, you… sadist!”
Lonis wanted to say something more insulting, but Elus’s oppressive aura was too overwhelming… Lonis, wearing a cute little skirt, could only tremble slightly and pretend to be angry, turning her head away.
“Oh… you don’t like it?”
“W-what…”
“Imagine, if the royalty and nobles of that time saw you now. What would they think? Would they continue to worship you, admire you? Revere you as an invincible hero?”
“Eh?”
“No, they would only think about how to push you down, how to use up your last bit of value… The former hero has actually turned into such a cute and naive girl, who knows how many people would want to lock you up in a dark room and imprison you?”
“No, it’s not like that. I’ve done many things, so…”
“So some people will be even more jealous? Like those nobles who originally wanted to marry the princess, or those gloomy middle-aged men. They will torment you without mercy, making you completely debased into a public plaything.”
“!!!”
Lonis’s back turned cold as Elus spoke.
Speaking of which, the reason she was respected by people was also because she possessed unrivaled strength.
But once that power disappeared?
Like now, turning into a powerless girl, perhaps many people would want to do excessive things to her?
“Wuwu…”
Thinking of this, Lonis’s mood suddenly became a little dejected, and tears seemed to well up in her eyes.
And Elus?
Seeing that she had tormented Lonis enough, she changed her approach:
“Alright, you guy aren’t completely useless. At least, if your power hadn’t disappeared, you would still be a qualified hero.”
“Isn’t this all just a virtual world thing?”
“So, there’s no need to worry about virtual matters. Now, you just need to obediently be my slave maid.”
As she spoke, Elus tugged at the collar around Lonis’s neck.
“Wuwu…”
“I’ve said all I need to say. Now follow me, and don’t ask any more questions.”
Following Elus’s footsteps, Lonis’s previously melancholic mood was somewhat eased.
At least…
She was still alive, wasn’t she?
Although it was embarrassing to have become a girl, and she had no dignity being treated as a slave,
Compared to those who had died in coffins, compared to those corpses buried underground, she was much luckier, wasn’t she?
Lonis was not a sad person to begin with. After a moment of self-encouragement with the ‘mental victory method,’ she regained her composure and noticed a problem that she hadn’t paid attention to before:
Since she had visited this city when she was a hero,
It meant that the world in the virtual world was closely related to the current snow-covered royal capital.
Perhaps,
Those nobles, commoners, and kings she had seen before were all living people!
And Elus, who understood both this city and her past experiences, might also have an intricate connection to these two places.
In addition to that…
…
While Lonis was thinking, a voice came from ahead:
“Lonis, if you’re going to walk that slowly with both legs, you can crawl.”
“Eh?!”
“Or are you deliberately walking so slowly because you want me to punish you?”
Lonis suddenly realized that because of her distraction, she had fallen some distance behind Elus.
She quickly ran to catch up, apologizing, “Ahhh, sorry!”
“If saying sorry was useful, why would we need prisons?”
“Eh?”
“Hmph, I’ll consider your behavior as momentarily distracted by revisiting the past. Later, I might have to deal with some annoying little troubles. Don’t try to play any tricks while I’m busy.”
“Oh… oh?”
“From now on, you’ll lead the collar yourself. Hmph, I can walk faster even with a dog than with you.”
Elus waved her hand, tossing the other end of the collar’s chain into Lonis’s hand.
She herself took out that lacquered black longsword from her waist, then took out a belt and tied her long hair into a ponytail behind her.
It had to be said that Elus, with her maidenly appearance, was already extremely handsome, giving off a decisive, boyish aura.
And now, with her ponytail tied up, Elus had an even more heroic and valiant demeanor, as if even facing an army of thousands would not startle her in the slightest.
(So cool!)
(No, I’m a hero. I like gentle girls. Loli Elus is somewhat acceptable (her chest is too small, though). But like this, she’s not my type at all?)
Lonis shook her head and quickly suppressed the urge to kneel.
Elus, with a solemn expression, walked towards a lacquered black stone house and frowned:
“It’s still here. That guy, he still dares to come back?”
“Dares to come back…”
“Stay behind me, maintaining a distance of 5 meters.”
Elus pushed open the stone house door,
And what greeted them was a flight of downward steps.
…
…
