episode_0093

Amelia peacefully asleep.

I feel like she might wake up if I kiss her right now. But I know that’s just wishful thinking.

I gently kissed the sleeping Amelia and got up.

I wanted to stay by Amelia’s side, but I knew that the longer I stayed, the worse it would be for her, so I just took a quick look at her face and slipped out of the room.

Helena also quickly greeted Amelia and left the room.

As we left Amelia’s room, Eia had prepared tea for us.

“Ah…”

The tea, made from the leaves of the World Tree, was smooth and delicious from the aroma to the aftertaste.

We talked about the current situation while drinking tea.

First.

“Well, thanks to Charlotte and Marie, there are no problems with sourcing materials. I’ve been studying hard based on the book left by the World Tree.”

“It seems so. But how can a human have such a high affinity for natural mana, not being an elf?”

“I’m not sure either…”

Eia lives inside the World Tree, taking care of Amelia. From cooking to cleaning, and taking care of Amelia.

Charlotte and Marie are working hard in our place, as we can only come once a month.

“What about the Saintess and the Holy Knight?”

“There’s been no contact so far. If I can’t even reach them, they might be trapped in a mana-blocking barrier.”

Helena tapped the table with her finger.

A year has passed since the sudden declaration of war by the Levank Empire. The alliance with the Hira Kingdom was shocking to me as well.

No matter how much the Saintess is called a lesbian, she would never declare war first.

Some may call her naive, but the Saintess truly had the heart of a Saintess.

And Amelia’s sister, Emily, was the same. Annoyingly following me around, but her heart was that of a true Holy Knight.

In other words, if the Saintess and Emily were there, this war would never have happened.

So, it’s safe to say that the Pope was behind this. I don’t know what means he used, but it’s certain that he imprisoned the Saintess and Emily.

“But why is Emily being held captive?”

The most curious thing is why Emily has been imprisoned for a year.

Emily sacrificed all her connections to Amelia and returned to the past.

She may not be able to beat me, but she is considered the strongest among others.

But to be held captive for a year with her childhood friend, the Saintess? It doesn’t make sense.

She must have escaped. But because of that, Levank Empire’s security would be strict.

Using mana prophecy would trigger mana detection, so she wouldn’t be able to use it. That means she’s hiding within the Levank Empire.

“Should we go to the Levank Empire?”

“No. We don’t have time, and if they find out you’re there, it’ll cause chaos.”

“Ugh… frustrating. I just want to know everything… sigh…”

A year since the war started, many things have changed. I don’t know what they did, but it turned into a world war. Countries no longer trust each other and only think of stabbing each other in the back.

Our Vitium Kingdom, not allied with any country, barely maintained its front line.

Even with overwhelming power and intelligence, Helena and I can’t help in all the battles happening in large countries.

Now, in the battlefields where Helena and I are, we are using a strategy of stalling time.

Literally, a sacrificial lamb, a time-stalling meat shield.

“Lily.”

“I know. We have to be careful.”

Helena held my hand and called my name firmly.

Helena does this because I almost had a serious accident.

Amelia had trouble controlling her emotions after she fell asleep and only met once a month, which was unfamiliar to her.

There was a time when I almost went berserk and ended up killing all my allies. If Helena hadn’t come to stop me, it would have been a disaster.

Even though it’s been a long time since I’ve been here with Amelia, my broken mind slowly resurfaces.

My shattered sanity.

I thought it had disappeared while living happily with Amelia for a long time. But no.

As Amelia falls and we meet once a month, my hidden sanity has resurfaced.

Each time, I hold on with various items of Amelia’s, but now it’s impossible to gain anything from Amelia.

Amelia is asleep, but frozen. Literally, she stopped all activities thinking that her body needs to preserve vitality by forcibly holding onto vitality.

Like time has stopped.

“When will you wake up, Amelia.”

Helena opened her mouth in a sullen state.

Helena is also struggling a lot.

She’s in charge of the entire southern region of the Viteum country, which has been at war for a year, although her condition is better than before meeting Amelia.

There was hardly any respite in the endless war. If there were difficult times, I used to go to Amelia, receive a pat on the head, and relieve stress by fooling around, but now it’s impossible.

Helena, who used to predict all enemy movements perfectly, started making mistakes little by little, and her mind deteriorated.

She’s barely holding on because she can meet Amelia once a month.

==

No, I definitely just slept and woke up. I thought I just woke up from a refreshing sleep.

What? It’s been 8 years? That’s ridiculous. I just closed my eyes and stretched out when I woke up because I was really sleepy, but 8 years have passed.

I can’t believe it, but the brooch, scent, and voice of Ea that I feel in front of me keep saying it’s real.

The small 9-year-old Ea has now turned 17. A huge Ea that can be felt even with just her hands.

“Ea… Did I really sleep for 8 years…?”

“Sob… Sob… Yes… Huhuhu!”

Ea, who can’t stop crying. I pulled her into my arms.

“Oh, Lady Amelia?”

Wow… Ea has really grown a lot.

The Ea who always fit completely in my arms is gone, and she’s bigger than me, isn’t she?

Ea’s body feels bigger than Lili and Helena by my senses.

-Pat, pat.

“It’s okay. It’s okay.”

As I comforted Ea, who had grown unexpectedly, she buried her face in my chest and burst into tears.

As I stroked her back, I felt the bra strap. Our Ea now wears a bra.

It’s definitely felt because she’s tightly holding onto me. Ea’s chest.

If we were the same height, it seems like our chests would be too big for a hug.

-Growl.

“Eek…!?”

Suddenly, a huge sense of emptiness in my stomach came. The sound of rumbling in my stomach continued, and eventually.

“Burp…! I’ll make breakfast quickly.”

Ea found laughter again at the sound of my stomach and left my arms.

Ea has matured… She always stayed in my arms until I told her to stop. Now she’s going out on her own.

8 years… 8 years…

What about Lili and Helena?

Both Lili and Helena are too good for me. They love me more than I gave them affection and love.

But if someone who loved me so much was in a coma for 8 years…? I would have been heartbroken and devastated…

Wait a minute.

I remembered what would happen if I disappeared.

Lili’s rage and Helena’s rage.

What happens if the two of them rage together…? Is this world still intact?

Outside the magic tree, everything has been destroyed… Nah, that can’t be.

Phew… I need to meet Lily and Helena as soon as possible.

*Swoosh.*

“Hmm?”

“Amelia!!!”

A familiar voice. But it’s not Lily and Helena. That much is certain. No matter how much time has passed and voices have changed, the voice I hear now is unmistakably Lily and Helena’s.

Then who is it?

“It’s me. Charlotte!”

Ah, I remember now. Charlotte, the high elf who is Lily’s friend. Did Mari come along too?

“Mari came with me too!”

They came together?

Come to think of it, I am currently inside Su-unni’s body. And Su-unni is in the elven country.

So they must have received the news before anyone else.

“Welcome, Charlotte. Mari.”

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes. I’m feeling quite energetic.”

I raised one arm to indicate my well-being. Should I say I’m feeling well instead? As long as the meaning gets across.

“But how did you get here? I remember Charlotte and Mari couldn’t enter this place.”

“Oh…”

“Well…”

“Hmm?”

The atmosphere suddenly turns tense. Even though I can’t see, I can tell from Charlotte and Mari’s tone that I said something unpleasant.

And when they explain the reason, I am once again hit with a huge shock.

“The elven country has been destroyed.”

“… What? Th-then, what about Su-unni?”

“Su-unni? Oh, you mean the World Tree. It’s still sealed.”

“What were you doing until your country was destroyed…!”

“It couldn’t be helped.”

“No, was this really an unavoidable issue…?”

I just can’t wrap my head around it. What on earth happened in the past 8 years…?