Erica, skipping joyfully, hummed a tune as she walked hand-in-hand with Leya along the forest’s dirt path.
“Ah, Sister Leya, you…”
Suddenly, a golden radiance erupted from Leya beside her. Erica’s small mouth gaped open, her eyes wide with astonishment at the sight.
‘Had the transformation finally arrived?’
Indeed, as the light receded, the valiant female knight’s form had vanished as if carried away by the wind.
Standing before Erica now was a being with long, silvery-white hair, pure as freshly fallen snow, and profound, sea-blue eyes as deep as the ocean itself. To Erica, this entire presence was almost dreamlike.
“Erm, it’s quite complicated to explain. If we have time later, I’ll tell you.”
Taken aback, Erica was momentarily at a loss for words. She stammered, “Alright, alright… I understand.”
Leya’s expression visibly relaxed at Erica’s words. After all, if Erica had truly pressed for an explanation, Leya wouldn’t have known what to say.
Moreover, their encounter had been purely by chance; Leya had never intended to keep Erica by her side indefinitely.
After a series of intricate logical considerations, Leya finally softened her somewhat cold demeanor towards Erica.
She explained, “I am her, and she is me. Only the appearance has changed. This form you see now is my true self; the previous one was merely a transformation for combat. Do you understand?”
Of course, whether they were truly one and the same was a secret known only to the heavens, the earth, and Leya herself. Sometimes, being too explicit could lead to unnecessary trouble.
Still, such an explanation felt somewhat forced.
Erica, for instance, found it hard to believe that the gentle, kind, and considerate Leya she had just known could suddenly undergo such a drastic change. Her tone now was like that of a completely different person.
‘Hmmmm.’
Yet, considering the outcome, Erica found some solace in the fact that Leya had still voluntarily revealed this secret to her.
This made Erica wonder if perhaps…
‘Perhaps only Leya’s appearance had truly changed!’
Setting aside these thoughts, what surprised Erica most was that she couldn’t discern any scent from Leya’s current form.
No, a scent *was* present, but it felt…
‘So distant from her, so perilously dangerous…’
“Yes, I understand, Sister Leya… I believe you’re definitely a good person, right?”
“…………”
‘It was truly unimaginable that she, whose ultimate goal since birth had been the destruction of the world, could be considered a good person!’
Leya was momentarily at a loss for words.
However…
“At the very least, I won’t actively do anything evil. Don’t worry, little Erica~ I’m still the same me as before, and you can confirm that from my scent, can’t you?”
Considering it merely a way to placate a child, Leya didn’t dwell on it. After all, she was no longer the Knight King whose word was law and irreversible.
Moreover, Leya herself was unsure what kind of “scent” Erica perceived her to have. As the saying goes, what’s meant to be will be; Leya had no desire to change anything because of it.
“Yes, I believe you, Sister Leya!”
‘Such remarkably cheap trust,’ Leya thought, a faint smile gracing her lips before she promptly dismissed the thought.
“…Um, Erica, if I recall correctly, aren’t you an elf? How did you end up here, on the outskirts of the forest?”
Since they were idle anyway, Leya decided to try and glean more knowledge from Erica.
“Oh… well, you see…”
With nothing to hide, Erica immediately spoke without hesitation, beginning to explain her origins and current predicament to Leya.
Erica originally lived in a place not too far from here, known as the Elven Forest. Her father was a renowned scholar among the elves, while her mother was a mage of considerable magical prowess.
Not long ago, the Elven Forest suffered an invasion from the Undead. Their forces were overwhelming, a black, oppressive tide of undead stretching as far as the eye could see.
According to the Elves’ reconnaissance, the enemy numbered at least three hundred thousand.
The Elves, on the other hand, had very strict requirements for their natural environment, leading to a predominantly tribal social structure. This resulted in sparse populations within individual Elven settlements.
Erica’s own tribe, numbering around sixty thousand, was a significant force and the largest Elven power in the region.
However, facing an inexhaustible horde of Undead, overwhelming like a surging tide, even if the entire Elven race took up arms, old and young alike, resistance proved incredibly difficult.
After losing a third of their territory and over ten thousand kin, their strength was severely diminished.
Ultimately, the United Elven Council decisively ordered them to abandon their current homeland. The entire race was to relocate to a safer, more beautiful place to begin life anew.
Erica, however, during the migration, had gotten separated from the main group due to a moment of childish playfulness.
Unluckily, she then got lost in the vast forest and was captured by a human merchant caravan that happened to be ambushing travelers there.
It was hardly surprising that Erica, who only knew a few rudimentary spells, was no match for those mercenaries.
Leya already knew what happened next. Yet, upon hearing the tale, she still asked with a touch of curiosity, “Undead? What exactly are they? A type of monster?”
“Monsters? How could that be? Sister Leya, I’m actually quite startled that you’d ask such a question!” Erica exclaimed, her voice filled with disbelief.
‘Could Sister Leya truly have been in seclusion for so long, completely out of touch with the world? To not even know about the Undead…’
“Are they called Undead because they can’t die? Wouldn’t that make them far too powerful?” Leya frowned.
“Of course not!” Erica replied, somewhat vexed, unsure how to explain such a concept to Leya.
“I’ve only heard my father speak of it,” Erica began. “Most Undead are created from the spirits of the deceased who harbored intense hatred in life. They can also be forcibly summoned by powerful necromancers through binding contracts.
However, the latter method always comes with significant limitations, making it impossible to control large numbers of undead.”
She paused, as if remembering something, then added:
“The ones who attacked our Elven tribe, for instance, fall into the first category. They emerged from the depths of this forest, from a place called the Nether Wastes.
However, I truly don’t know what or where the Nether Wastes are.”
“Is that so…”
Leya’s deep blue eyes swirled, her thoughts unreadable.
“Sister Leya, even though I think you’re really amazing, please don’t try to provoke those creatures! They are truly terrifying! Far more cruel than even monsters!”
Noticing the unusual glint in Leya’s eyes, Erica spoke with considerable worry.
Evidently, Leya hadn’t truly heard her. As they walked, she muttered to herself phrases like “Interesting, omoshiroi”—words that were meaningless to Erica, yet somehow sounded incredibly profound.