Chapter 31: Awakening

In the pitch-black space, there was a heart-pounding silence.
My vision seemed to have been taken away, and there was nothing but emptiness before my eyes.

Where am I?

I tried to move my body but found that my sense of touch didn’t exist, as if my body didn’t exist either…
Am I some kind of conscious entity right now?

Whoosh, whoosh—

A few clusters of eerie green flames ignited, floating in the air like ghosts.
They swirled and gradually converged, finally becoming an eyeball—”The Ancient Gaze.”

I learned this name from that scumbag.
It sounds very impressive, and he even called this eyeball a divine artifact… a divine artifact that fears death.

It was still staring straight at me, but compared to before, the coldness in its gaze had lessened quite a bit.
At least, I didn’t feel cold all over just by looking at it.
Instead, it was a bit like… it was trying to be cute??

Sparkling… I don’t know why I used this word…
The large, sparkling eyes blinked and blinked, then closed.
The eerie green flames spread out, forming a huge scroll painting.

That was… a forest, a ridiculously lush forest.
Giant trees, green and tall, were dotted with a few bright red fruits.
Other races moved through the forest.
Looking closely, the trees had doors and windows; each one was a treehouse!

Other races, a forest… a scene I had never seen before.

Could this be… the City of the Sea of Trees?

Why is it showing me this??

Before I could figure it out, the scroll painting in front of me gradually turned white.
The light grew stronger and stronger until it finally became a dazzling bright white.
It felt like I had just eaten a full-flash grenade…

The world was spinning.
I didn’t know what was happening to me.
I only heard someone calling out something in this pure white world.

“…na… Velo… Verona, wake up… wake up…”

“Can you hear me? Verona…”

“Ugh… ugh…”

I struggled to open my eyes.
The sunlight pierced through the green leaves, stinging my optic nerves.
My head was buzzing.
My vision and hearing were both blurry.
There was only a pitch-black thing swaying back and forth in front of my face.

‘What a big, black bug… I’ll swat it!’

My arm felt as heavy as a thousand pounds, and it was very difficult to move it.
The action of raising my arm was like operating with a huge network delay.
But in the end, I managed to swat the black bug as I wished… as expected of me.

I swat!

Smack—

“The first thing you do when you wake up is to slap me? Stop fooling around. How’s your body?”

The big black bug spoke?
The voice is so familiar!

I rubbed my tired eyes with my other hand.
My pupils gradually focused, and I finally saw the true face of the thing in front of me.

“El… vira?”

The black bug just now was none other than Elvira.
She was frowning and looking at me, her eyes full of worry.
It would have been even better if my hand wasn’t imprinted on her face.

“You’re finally awake. Are you uncomfortable anywhere?”

“Uncomfortable?” my voice was as weak as a thread, as soft and powerless as a whisper.
“I’m uncomfortable everywhere…”

Hearing this, Elvira’s expression grew more anxious.
She pursed her lips, her golden pupils trembling as she looked me up and down, racking her brain for a solution to the current situation.

But she didn’t know medicine.
After bustling about for a long time, it was all in vain.
She could only worry.

“Don’t worry, Elvira. My situation isn’t that bad.
It’s just excessive blood loss, weak breathing, dizziness and nausea, and weak limbs.
It just looks scary.
Actually, there’s nothing wrong with my body at all.”

“…You’d better not talk,” Elvira let out a long sigh and continued,
“Do you know how long you’ve been unconscious? A full three days…
During this time, your breathing even stopped several times.
Do you know how worried I was?”

“Three days, huh… It’s fine, it’s fine. I’m still alive, aren’t I?”

I moved my head.
The sensation from the back of my head was even more comfortable than a top-tier latex pillow.
And there was an elegant fragrance lingering at the tip of my nose.
Curious, I turned my head slightly, and fair white skin came into view.

This ultimate enjoyment was Elvira’s thigh.

A lap pillow?!

Without thinking, I subconsciously wanted to get up.
But my useless body couldn’t muster any strength.
I was like a live fish on a cutting board, only able to flop around twice and do nothing else.

I had no choice but to ask Elvira for help.

“Help me… up.”

“Alright, don’t be anxious. Take it slow.”

Elvira supported my back and helped me sit up.
Only then did my senses slowly begin to function.
The rustling of the leaves in the wind, the smell of the forest soil in the air, and that ray of warm sunlight.

We were surrounded by a lush bush.
Not far away was a clear lake, with sparkling ripples on its surface.
And we were leaning against a cave.

Why is it a cave again?

After sitting up completely, I gently removed Elvira’s hand, wanting to stand up on my own.
But in just a moment, my body went limp and collapsed…

“Be careful.”

Elvira was quick-eyed and quick-handed, and she caught me in her arms.
In her enchanting embrace, I managed to steady myself.

“Sorry, my situation seems to be worse than I thought…”

Suddenly, the strength in Elvira’s arms increased slightly, as if she wanted to knead me into her body.
She rested her face on my shoulder and whispered in my ear.

“Don’t do this again in the future, okay?”

“What?” I was a bit confused.

“Don’t, ever again, exchange your life for power or anything else.
Please, trust me a little more… okay?”

“It was an emergency… that little blonde brat was about to cut off your wings.
Could I let her?”

Hearing the slightly serious tone in Elvira’s voice, I tried to respond in a half-joking way.
When it comes to matters of life, Elvira’s concern is almost on par with her concern about the curse.

“Life is precious. I don’t care about others, but you, and you alone, I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Her two arms supported my shoulders, and Elvira looked at me.
Her golden dragon pupils were scorching, her gaze very serious.
The forest, the lake, and the sunlight all lost their color in the face of this serious and perfect face.

“Promise me, okay?”

“This, this kind of thing won’t happen often. There’s no need…
By the way, what’s our situation now?”

She didn’t speak for a long time, just kept staring at me, as if still fixated on the previous question.
I was stared at until I felt a bit awkward, so I turned my head to the side, not daring to meet Elvira’s gaze.

We remained in a standoff like this, and time passed minute by minute.
After a long while, Elvira took a deep breath and helped me sit back up.
She was the first to speak:
“I followed your instructions and flew along the coast.
It wasn’t until yesterday that I found this place to rest.
I didn’t see any pursuers.”

Does that mean we’re relatively safe for now?

No… I can’t think like that.
It was because I let my guard down before that we were ambushed by the church.
Nadiesse’s fleet probably suffered heavy casualties…
I hope everything is okay on her side.

And here, we’re back to the original problem—how to escape the Holy Nation?

Elvira seems to be fine.
Flying across the ocean shouldn’t be a problem.
The problem is me…

In my current condition, I can’t withstand a long flight.

I’ve become a burden again…

What should I do now?

Ugh… my head is so itchy.
It feels like I’m about to grow a brain.
To face such a difficult problem right after waking up from a coma is too much to ask…

Just as I was worrying, an indescribable scent entered my nostrils.

Sniff, sniff—

What is that?
It doesn’t smell very pleasant.

Wait a minute… three days, and I was fighting before that.
Could this smell be… me?

I looked at my body.
The magnificent black dress was already in tatters.
Mud, dirt, dust, and other messy things were on it.
The tips of my snow-white hair had also turned gray from the dirt.

I haven’t taken a bath in a long time…

“Are you concerned about the smell on you?” Elvira suddenly asked.
I was so startled I jumped.

“How did you kn— no!”

I glared back, but in my heart, I knew it was not good, because the wicked dragon beside me had that half-smile on her face again.

Every time she’s like this, it’s never a good sign.

“There’s water over there. I’ve already scouted the area, and it’s deserted.
You can wash your body with peace of mind.
But… in your current condition, Verona, you probably can’t wash by yourself, right?
How about…”

“No! Don’t even think about it!”