NOVPUBMurmurs started spreading through the group.
"No way."
"Is this a dream?"
"This is impossible!"
While the dwarfsntinued to murmur in disbelief, the captain finally spoke.
"Go report to His Majesty that the dungeon has been cleared,"
While the dwarfs were panicking, seeing the dungeon crumbling down before their very eyes, Renan and Elaris were already at ampletely different location, far away from the chaos and destruction that was rapidly unfolding behind them.
Renan, who had just appeared in some unfamiliar forest, blinked in surprise, his mind momentarily thrown intonfusion. He had expected a more turbulent teleportation process, yet this transition had been seamless, smooth, and without a single hint of resistance. As he tried to process everything that had just happened, heuldn't help but think to himself, 'She didn't use the teleportation door, but instead, she simply teleported us instantly. The entire process was incredibly fluid, without even the slightest bit of resistance or interference. Is it because the place she is teleporting to is actually her own body?' Renan wondered, still absentmindedly holding onto Elaris's hand.
Elaris, who had been patiently waiting for Renan to release her hand, was leftnfused when he didn't let go but insteadntinued to hold onto it, his grip unwavering.
'Huh? Why is he not letting go of my hand? Don't tell me… he fell in love with me after just holding my hand for a few moments?' she thought to herself. The thought alone made her feel somewhat flustered, and for a brief moment, the mature andmposed act she had been maintaining slightly slipped. After all, despite being tens of thousands of years old, Elaris was stillnsidered young in terms of a will's existence. Her will had only started forming a few thousand years ago, and her world—though it had existed for hundreds of thousands of years—was still classified as a 'teen' world whenmpared to other ancient realms. Given this perspective, Elaris, who had only started to form a will a few thousand years ago, was still relatively young.
'Also… he is not my child, so I suppose I wouldn't mind if he tried tonfess his feelings to me,' she mused internally.
Yes, Elaris had never had any sort of relationship before. Every living being on this planet was, in a sense, her child. And what kind of parent would even think of their child as a potential partner? Definitely not Elaris. However, Renan was a different case. He had once been somewhat of her child, but after his rebirth, thatnnection had severedmpletely. Now, he was no longer her child but rather amplete stranger in terms of existence. Because of this, the idea of him bming her partner didn't seem all that far-fetched to her. After all, even she felt lonely sometimes, and having ampanion might not be such a bad idea.
'But isn't he too easy?' she thought to herself, feeling strangelynflicted about the entire situation. 'How can someone fall in love with another person after just holding their hand once?' She felt a mix of emotionsnfusion, amusement, and something else she wasn't entirely sure how to define.
Renan, who wasmpletely lost in his own thoughts about something entirely different,uldn't even begin to imagine the strange ideas swirling in Elaris's mind at that very moment.
Elaris, who had finally decided that enough was enough and that Renan needed to let go of her hand already, let out a small but deliberateugh.
*COUGH*
Renan, who had been deeply engrossed in his thoughts, was abruptly pulled back into reality. His eyes snapped up to Elaris's face, only to find her wearing an awkward expression. However, her gaze wasn't directed at him but at something else. Curious, Renan followed her line of sight and soon realized what she was looking at—their interlocked hands, still holding onto each other. 𝘯𝑜𝑣𝑝𝑢𝘣.𝑐𝑜𝑚
'Ohh, right. I forgot to let go of her hand,' Renan thought to himself, feeling slightly embarrassed about the situation.
But instead of simply releasing it and apologizing, he looked up at her with feignednfusion and asked, "Huh? Are we stopping here?" He deliberately acted clueless, trying to maintain hismposure and avoid any potential awkwardness.
"Yes," Elaris answered, her tone neutral but firm.
"Ohh, I see," Renan responded, pretending as if he had been under the impression that they were still heading somewhere else. "I thought we were still going to some kind of building or another location, not stopping here in this forest," he added, lying through his teeth as he finally let go of her hand.
'Saved,' Renan thought, mentally patting himself on the back for successfully dodging a potentially embarrassing situation.
"No problem," Elaris replied nonchalantly, though internally, she was thinking, 'Ugh, has loneliness really caught up to me after all those years? And after finally finding someone who is not my child, my first thought was to make him my partner?'
Despite her internal musings, she maintained her usual demeanor on the outside, her lips curling into a small smirk.
"Anyway, so where are we?" Renan asked, shifting thenversation as he glanced around the surrounding forest.
Just as he was surveying the area, something in the distance caught his attention. A particular tree stood out among the others, and while it might have seemed ordinary to anyone else, to Renan, it was something entirely different.
"An illusion?" Renan questioned aloud.
Elaris, who was standing beside him, simply nodded in acknowledgment before speaking. "As expected. All three of your bloodlines, after the fusion, have been strengthened tremendously—to the point that you can now see through an illusion like this without requiring any additional effort or strength. You are a newborn, arding to me, as you have only just been reborn. And yet, your strength is already equal to that of a fourth-stage warrior and magembined. What a terrifying yet fascinating thing," Elaris observed, her voice carrying both intrigue and admiration.
Renan nodded his head in understanding. "So anyway, what exactly is that?" he asked, his gaze fixed on the peculiar tree.
To the outside world, it appeared to be ampletely ordinary and stable tree, standing tall and unmoving. But to Renan's enhanced perception, it was different—it rippled like water, shifting and waving like a curtain caught in a gentle breeze.
"Well, youuld say it's a gate to my home," Elaris answered simply.
"Your home?" Renan repeated, slightly puzzled.
Before heuld inquire further, Elaris spoke again. "Anyway, follow me. I'll show you around," she said before walking ahead.
Renan, after hearing her words, followed closely behind. Soon, they reached the mysterious tree, and without saying anything more, Elaris simply walked through it, as if it were nothing but air.
Renan, slightly surprised by this, hesitated only briefly before stepping forward and following her. As he passed through the tree, he felt a slight resistance, but it lasted only for a fleeting moment before itmpletely vanished.
The moment he emerged on the other side, he was met with a breathtaking sight.
It was beautiful.
"Beautiful," Renan murmured, his eyes scanning the landscape in awe.
All around him were vibrant flowers, theirlors blending in a mesmerizing display. Among them were multiple creatures, mostly small, adorable animals that seemedmpletely harmless. The air itself carried a refreshing and pure quality. And in the center of it all stood Elaris, looking just as breathtaking as the scenery—perhaps even more so.
Elaris, noticing his reaction, simply smiled and spoke,
"Weme to myre, Renan."
