Chapter 183: Absurd Letters

“Lady Perletti, this is a letter from the Leader.”

“Ino’s letter?”

Perletti accepted the envelope, her fingers casually brushing over the wax seal without much emotion.

After that negotiation, Ino had stubbornly assigned her the position of Elder.

Perletti originally wanted to refuse.

But Ino brought up the reputation witches held within human society, leaving her no choice but to reluctantly accept.

Between the two of them, calling them friends would be inaccurate.

They were more like collaborators tied to the same rope.

Even after spending years together day and night, the distance Ino maintained toward her had never truly disappeared.

The Ino before her was ultimately not the same person from her memories—

Not the one who would smile and reach out a hand toward her.

After spending a year here, Perletti had mostly grown accustomed to life as an Elder.

It was much easier than she had imagined.

Most of her duties involved clearing out remaining beastfolk resistance, managing subordinates, and overseeing urban reconstruction.

None of it was especially difficult.

“Mint Kitty is dead? Is this some kind of joke?!”

The moment Perletti read the very first line, the letter slipped from her hand and slammed onto the table.

Her heart felt as though an invisible hand had seized it, squeezing so painfully she could barely breathe.

How was that possible?

Just yesterday, she had still been exchanging letters with Nasisa.

The letters had been filled with trivial details about rebuilding beastfolk territory.

So how could she suddenly—

“Lady…?”

Seeing Perletti’s pale face, the subordinate beside her quickly explained in a low voice,

“The message came directly from the Leader herself. It… should not be false.”

Perletti took a deep breath and forcibly calmed herself down before picking up the letter again and reading every word carefully.

“‘Sudden illness caused her death’?”

She let out a cold laugh, finding the explanation utterly absurd.

Sudden illness?

Who were they trying to fool?

Through Nasisa’s letters, Perletti had gradually learned the true internal situation of the beastfolk.

The real power within the beastfolk had never belonged to Nasisa.

Nor had it belonged to her deceased father.

Ever since all her direct relatives died during her childhood, true authority within the beastfolk had fallen into the hands of her uncle.

Nasisa, to put it bluntly, was merely a puppet.

On the surface, she was the Princess.

In reality, all power was controlled by her uncle.

And now—

Just as Nasisa had finally stabilized the beastfolk situation and successfully brought her people back to their homeland—

She died.

Anyone with eyes could tell that her uncle was behind this.

That was also the implication hidden within Ino’s letter.

But after mentioning it, the letter immediately shifted topics and stated that Nasisa’s death would not affect the alliance between the two races.

She hoped cooperation would continue as usual.

Although Perletti and Nasisa had only communicated through letters and lacked the deep emotional bond the “original” Perletti once had with her, a full year of correspondence had still created some degree of attachment.

And this matter only strengthened Perletti’s certainty of one thing—

This place was absolutely not the real past.

In Qingcheng’s memories, Mint Kitty had been personally killed by Qingcheng herself.

Not murdered by her uncle’s schemes.

It was only a minor discrepancy.

But it was enough to overturn everything.

“Alright. I understand.”

Perletti waved her hand.

Her voice revealed no emotion whatsoever.

“You may go.”

“Yes.”

The subordinate bowed and withdrew.

After watching the person leave, all the strength in Perletti’s body seemed to drain away.

She collapsed into the chair, staring blankly out the window.

An entire year had already passed.

Yet she still had not found any method of leaving this place.

She did not even understand why she had been thrown into this miniature world in the first place.

Could it be…

That someone deliberately threw her here just to watch her struggle?

Throughout the entire year, she remained within human territory and never once stepped foot near the Tower or the Elven Forest.

It wasn’t that she had never considered visiting.

But Scarlet Night’s simple sentence—

“Big sister, the people there all hate you.”

—completely extinguished the idea.

It seemed the “original” Perletti’s reputation within the Tower had truly been terrible to the core.

“Big sister! I’m back!”

A cheerful voice rang out together with the sound of the door opening.

Scarlet Night skipped into the room like a happy little bird, holding a piece of malt candy in her hand.

“Scarlet Night? Where did you get that candy?”

Supporting herself against the desk, Perletti slowly sat up.

The gloom in her eyes lightened slightly, and an almost imperceptible gentleness entered her voice.

“I bought it from a street vendor!”

Scarlet Night waved the candy excitedly before grabbing Perletti’s hand and tugging her toward the door.

“Big sister, stop staying cooped up inside all the time. Come out and walk around with me!”

“Alright.”

Perletti nodded in agreement, deliberately saying nothing about Nasisa’s death.

She did not want Scarlet Night to worry.

Nor did she want such heavy news to ruin the girl’s happiness.

Besides—

She truly did need some fresh air.

Ever since arriving in this world, she had been like a clock wound too tightly, endlessly searching for a way out.

And yet in the end—

She had accomplished absolutely nothing.

“Big sister, big sister, look at that building! It’s so tall!”

Scarlet Night tugged Perletti’s hand while bouncing happily ahead of her, laughter like silver bells scattering through the streets.

Watching her lively appearance, Perletti became slightly absentminded.

This version of Scarlet Night was wonderful.

The Scarlet Night in her memories had always been quiet and withdrawn, like a frightened rabbit hiding behind her back.

But the girl before her now—

Smiling brightly and acting freely without restraint—

Was someone she had never seen before.

In truth, the surrounding buildings were not especially tall.

They did not even reach a tenth of the Tower’s height.

But perhaps because Scarlet Night had personally watched these houses being rebuilt brick by brick—

She felt especially proud of them.

“Slow down a little. Don’t bump into anyone.”

Perletti smiled as she warned her.

The corners of her lips unconsciously lifted upward.

It was good that Scarlet Night could be this happy.

Good that she no longer spent every day gloomy and depressed.

As for Josuna and Elberna—

There had been no news of them these past few years.

And honestly…

That was probably for the best.

They had likely listened to her advice, hidden their identities, and quietly lived ordinary lives within this newly established nation.

As long as they were alive—

That was enough.

As for where they currently were, or whether they were truly safe…

Forget it.

Being able to live peacefully at all was already a blessing.

She dared not ask for anything more.

“Come on, big sister!”

Seeing Perletti falling behind again, Scarlet Night ran back and grabbed her arm.

“If we’re out having fun, stop thinking about annoying things already! You’re ruining the mood!”

“If we’re out having fun, stop thinking about annoying things already! You’re ruining the mood!”

“Alright, alright, my mistake.”

Perletti laughed helplessly.

“At least walk properly. What if other people see you acting like this?”

“So what if they see?”

Scarlet Night puffed out her chest proudly.

Watching this scene, Perletti could not help finding it slightly amusing.

In her memories, it had always been Olivia constantly asserting her claim over Scarlet Night.

Yet here—

The one declaring ownership had become Scarlet Night instead.

What was this supposed to be?

Karma coming full circle?

As they passed a small roadside stall, Scarlet Night suddenly stopped.

Squatting down, she picked up a tiny pellet drum and shook it lightly.

Dong dong.

The crisp sound echoed beside her ears.

“Mister, what’s this little drum called?”

She looked up curiously at the elderly stall owner.

Perletti also walked over, though her attention fell upon the old man himself.

“Grandpa, why are you already out setting up a stall at a time like this?”

She was responsible for this district.

Urban reconstruction, civilian affairs—everything here fell under her supervision.

Most residents in the area recognized her.

The war had only recently ended.

The aftereffects still lingered, and everyone was busy responding to the nation’s reconstruction efforts.

On the entire street, there was only this single little stall.

“This old body of mine doesn’t have the strength young people do anymore.”

The old man sighed, wrinkled hands gently rubbing the little handcrafted items on display.

“I can’t do heavy labor anymore. All I’ve got left are these handicraft skills. If I don’t come out and sell things, what else can I do?”

“Handicrafts are good too.”

Perletti crouched down slightly and spoke softly.

“You could open classes and take in apprentices.”

“That way, you wouldn’t need to stay outside suffering under the wind and sun all day.”

“And you could also help young people who don’t have any survival skills.”

“Wouldn’t that benefit everyone?”

Hearing her words, the old man’s eyes brightened slightly as he thoughtfully nodded.

During wartime, everyone had been too busy surviving to think about learning craftsmanship.

Many teenagers possessed no practical skills at all.

At his age, he likely did not have many years left to live.

If he could still do something meaningful before passing away…

That would not be so bad either.