Ch.89Return to the Beginning (14)

“Huh? Adventure? Sure. Go ahead. There are potions and other things that might help you.”

“Thank you!”

Alreina adjusted her bag and hurried through the village alleys.

Soon, a two-story potion shop appeared ahead.

Flower pots were arranged on the windowsill, and in front of the wide-open door stood a sign listing prices for potions and other miscellaneous items.

Alreina passed by adventurers who were leaving after shopping and entered the store.

“Welcome. This is Jack’s Potion Shop in Starting Village.”

A man who had been organizing shelves greeted Alreina with a friendly smile.

“Oh, hello…!”

Alreina hesitantly spoke as she approached the counter.

“Um… I’d like to buy some potions…!”

Though she managed to speak up, the man just stared at her without saying anything.

“I, uh… want to buy… potions….”

As the man continued staring, Alreina completely lost her confidence and mumbled in a tiny voice.

“Alright. Wait a moment.”

The man took out a couple of Healing Potions from the shelf, then shook his head.

He then brought out a sack from the back and swept all the Healing Potions into it.

Seeing this, Alreina was shocked.

“What?! I, I don’t need that many!”

“You will. For an adventurer, the more Healing Potions, the better.”

“But I only have this much money….”

Alreina showed the few silver and copper coins in her hand.

A Healing Potion cost two silver coins.

But what Alreina held was barely enough to buy two potions.

“I’ll give them to you for free.”

“Whaaaat?!”

“And take these too. They’ll be helpful.”

The man stuffed herbs, flint, whetstones for weapon repair, and fishing rods from the shelves and display cases into her bag.

Alreina staggered slightly under the weight of the heavy bag.

“You don’t need to give me all this….”

“You do need it. The outside world is much more dangerous than you think. These will all save your life in extreme situations.”

“Oh, I see…. Thank you….”

As Alreina hesitantly put on her bag, the man asked her:

“Where are you planning to go?”

“For now… I was thinking of heading north.”

“Hmm, I see. Then let’s do this. Come with me.”

“What…?!”

Alreina shouted at the shocking suggestion.

“You, sir?! Why?!”

“I’m doing what I can from my position. And.”

The man continued with a smile.

“Because it’s too difficult and lonely a path for you alone. I’ll go with you.”

“B-but you… need to look after your shop….”

But the man was already packing his bag and putting on thick travel boots.

“We’re going together, right?”

Alreina couldn’t understand why the man suddenly wanted to join her adventure.

But she was too happy to think deeply about it.

“Okay! Let’s go together!”

And so Alreina left Starting Village with the man to begin her adventure.

This time, the man didn’t write her a strategy guide.

But she didn’t need one. The man himself was the strategy guide.

Starting from Mestopin’s Junkyard, the man guided Alreina step by step.

“Now, Alreina. Change your equipment here. Put away the sword and take out the mace. That creature is weak against blunt weapons.”

“Got it.”

“After the third wave ends, we jump in together. That’s the only time we can enter the underwater palace.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Let’s buy winter clothing in this city. Our next destination is extremely cold and remote. This is the last place with a shop.”

“I’ll do that.”

“Never believe what that king says. Insist on the third clause of the contract. It’s a poison clause meant to trap you.”

“You’re right.”

“It’ll be painful, but once this mission is over, behead that companion. They’re planning to stab you in the back at the most critical moment.”

“I have no choice….”

“What will you do about your future husband who keeps following you?”

“I’ll teach him a lesson so he never follows me again.”

Alreina and the man traveled across the continent together.

It was a short time, just under a year.

But for Alreina, it was the happiest moment she would never forget.

And at the end of their adventure, after everything was finished, the man proposed to Alreina.

“Alreina. Would you like to return to Starting Village?”

“To Starting Village?”

“Yes. Let’s go back. We’ll live there together.”

“Live together…?”

“Starting Village is a good place. Though it’s underdeveloped now, it has endless potential. With you, I can make it happen.”

“Can I really do that?!”

Overjoyed, Alreina reached for the man’s hand but suddenly stepped back.

“No. I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because this… isn’t the real world….”

During her adventure with the man, Alreina remembered.

Who the old witch was that had dropped her into this strange space.

And who the young female magician was that appeared after 7,000 years of wandering and guided her to Starting Village.

They were the Witch of Sighs and her daughter. And this place was the Subspace of Sighs.

Everything was fake. Starting Village, the adventure, and the man were all fake.

Because the man was already dead.

“That’s not true, Alreina.”

A woman’s voice came from behind her.

The daughter of the Witch of Sighs smiled and said:

“The man isn’t dead.”

“I don’t understand. Everything is so confusing.”

“That’s because you were corrupted. The black flames of corruption have messed up your reason, just like the complex castle you created.”

“I see….”

“You know this is the Subspace of Sighs, right?”

“Yes….”

“Then you understand that what’s beyond here is reality?”

“Yes.”

“So if the man exists in that reality, then he isn’t dead, right?”

“Yes….”

“Good. It was worth guiding you for 7,000 years. Seeing you think logically, it seems those black flames have completely died down.”

The witch’s daughter smiled.

“Everything here is an illusion. But at the same time, it’s also truth. The strategy guide you carried is the man himself. You’ve essentially been adventuring with him all this time. You just couldn’t see the end of the adventure and return to Starting Village.”

“That’s right….”

“But that’s not an impossible dream, Alreina. The end here is a continuation of reality. Just as your training in the subspace has strengthened your real self.”

“A continuation of reality?”

“Yes. That means living with the man in Starting Village is entirely possible in reality too. The only difference is that here, you finish your adventure with the man and return to Starting Village, while in reality, you finish your adventure with the strategy guide and return to Starting City.”

Understanding the meaning, Alreina’s expression brightened.

Noticing that Alreina had understood, the witch’s daughter raised her hand.

“Let’s go, Alreina. And go to Starting Village with the man.”

“Oh, wait a moment! I have one question.”

“What is it?”

“Then the man who adventured with me here… was he fake too?”

“No, he’s real. He was trapped here with you.”

“Ah….”

“The man’s feelings for you are genuine. So you don’t need to worry.”

“I understand, ah! And one more thing!”

“What?”

“Why… did you help me? And how did you come to me?”

The witch’s daughter laughed at that question.

“I followed my mother when she suddenly disappeared. Then I assessed the situation. My mother is a very, very, very old magician who sees the world in ways we can’t understand. And as for why I’m helping you.”

The witch’s daughter smiled with her eyes.

“Do you think I want to see the world end too?”

“Oh, I see….”

“Let’s go back.”

The witch’s daughter snapped her fingers.

“To where the person you love most is.”

* * * * *

Alreina slowly opened her eyes to a warm sensation.

The first things she saw were the Milky Way and stars shimmering as if about to pour down, and a very thin, transparent golden wall.

“You’re awake.”

When she turned her head, she saw the Holy Knight sitting on the ground, poking at a campfire.

She had definitely been in a tower, but now they were in a dry wasteland with no castle in sight.

“What happened…?”

“You were trapped in the Subspace of Sighs for about two hours. Both you and Jack.”

“The man… where is he?!”

The Holy Knight pointed to the side with a branch.

She could see the man sleeping under a sleeping bag.

“Don’t wake him. He was extremely exhausted and fell asleep as soon as he returned to reality.”

“Oh, okay…”

Alreina trailed off as she looked down at her body.

The black flames were gone, and her body was back to normal.

“You must have many questions, but first, this.”

The Holy Knight handed Alreina a stack of papers.

Even at a glance, there were dozens of envelopes.

“What are these…?”

“Letters from the man that never reached you.”

Letters from the man?

“Jack brought these recently returned letters when we came here. Read them.”

Alreina hastily tore open an envelope.

‘To Alreina, whom I miss.’

As soon as she read the first line, Alreina burst into tears.

The man…. I missed you too….

‘I don’t know if this will reach you this time either.’

‘I’m always worried about you.’

I worried about you too…. Whether you were always healthy…. Whether thieves broke into your shop….

‘You can do it, Alreina. You can do it.’

‘When everything is over, please come back here. I want to hear about your adventures.’

Okay, I will. I’ll tell you everything, even if it takes days and nights….

‘The north is cold, so be careful not to catch a cold and eat well.’

‘It’s almost over. Don’t give up until the end.’

‘I’ll be waiting for your return.’

Now that I’m back… so…

Alreina sobbed and shed tears as she read the man’s replies that she had never known about.