"Welco ho, Dell." Though the voice and face were unfamiliar, the tone and emotion felt so profoundly familiar.
Shikondell was dazed.
The angelic, lodious voice resonated in her ears like a lullaby, calming her restless spirit.
She instinctively leaned closer to the cherry-haired girl, craving more, as if wanting to rge completely with her, to beco one with this girl, because in her arms felt the safest place in the world.
Vanessa embraced Shikondell entirely, wrapping her arms around Shikondell's shoulders, gently nuzzling her forehead, letting her own silken, soft cherry-pink hair lightly brush against Shikondell's radiant, delicate face.
The girl's warm body heat gradually transferred to her. Shikondell was like a nearly drowned kitten just rescued ashore, clinging tightly to sothing warm and reassuring, refusing to let go.
Vanessa gently stroked Shikondell's hair, letting her feel her warmth and heartbeat, matching her movents, conveying sincere care to the frightened little white rabbit in her arms, like a mother protecting her child, gentle as water, softly gliding over Shikondell's heart.
"Don't be afraid, it's all over now. I'll always be by your side," Vanessa whispered affectionately, her tenderness like spring waters and autumn ripples, spreading like waves across Shikondell's heart.
Shikondell imrsed herself in it. This comforting, ticulous care and affection made her feel as if she had t her long-departed queen mother again, reunited with her mother who embraced her and comforted her endlessly. In that mont, everything she had endured over the years surged up uncontrollably.
After adapting to hardship, one can endure any sorrow, adjust to any obstacle, but only when eting a mother do these pains and tears uncontrollably burst forth.
"Forever?" Shikondell choked. "Do you really an you'll never leave ?"
"Of course. Shikondell has always been such a good child, hasn't she? Why would I ever leave Shikondell?" Vanessa gently caressed Shikondell's forehead, murmuring sweetly.
"But... do I truly still have a future?" Shikondell asked, lost.
"Shikondell, don't look back. Those things have already beco the past, unchangeable, and there's no need to dwell on them. Focus on the present. You could try to dream about your future," Vanessa said softly, her voice as gentle as flowing water.
"Don't run away. Your people are waiting for you to save them. I'll always be accompanying you."
"Uh... uh..." Shikondell lifted her dewy almond eyes like a little rabbit. In that instant, she gazed into those eyes that seed to hold a spring reflecting cherry blossom petals. Those heart-shaped beautiful eyes appeared filled with a certain magic, just eting their gaze, she was deeply captivated, as if her entire being were imrsed in those intoxicating ripples, lting within boundless affection.
Shikondell grasped Vanessa's hand, and Vanessa cooperatively opened her palm, intertwining their fingers.
"W-Winnie?" Shikondell stamred, staring at Vanessa's face, an angelic visage perfect as art.
This breathtakingly beautiful face bore no resemblance to the person she rembered, not just in appearance, but even gender and personality were completely different. Yet, when the girl addressed her as "Dell," Shikondell could sense that familiar feeling again.
And when she looked at the cherry-haired girl before her, she experienced a completely different impression.
After all, elves were naturally highly perceptive beings. She could sense certain similarities.
The cherry-haired girl said nothing, rely silently pinched Shikondell's chin, gently tilting her head upward to et her gaze.
"Uh!" Shikondell's lovely face flushed, clearly flustered by this intimate gesture.
W-Was she about to...?
Shikondell didn't know what she was even hoping for, but she blushed so much she couldn't lift her head.
Then, Vanessa gently leaned closer to Shikondell's face and whispered, "Dell, it's ti to wake up. Everyone's waiting."
"Eh??"
And as soon as Vanessa finished speaking, the scene shifted. Shikondell's vision was engulfed by a burst of white light, the image freezing on the final mont, the cherry-haired girl's flawless, exquisite smile, beautiful like cherry blossoms falling in April.
Shikondell furrowed her brow, her face twitching as she slowly lifted her eyelids, heavy and sore as if made of lead. Having kept her eyes closed for so long, her vision struggled to adjust to the room's brightness.
As the blurry double images in her sight gradually resolved into shapes, her consciousness slowly returned.
"Where... where am I?" Shikondell blinked several tis, sat up, and looked around, realizing she was lying on a bed in an unfamiliar room.
"Oh my, Mr. Moon Elf, you've finally woken up."
"Eh?" Hearing this, Shikondell turned to see a honey-blonde girl with platinum-gold eyes sitting beside the bed, smiling at her.
What a beautiful girl.
Shikondell was instinctively struck by the other's beauty, and sohow felt she had seen her sowhere before.
"I'm sorry, but who are you?"
"My na is Luna Horaleth," the honey-blonde girl introduced herself.
"Just call Senior Luna. I'm also a student at Carillian Academy, though I'm one year above you."
"Alright, Senior Luna. Could you please tell what's going on?" Shikondell looked around, realizing she had never been in this room before.
"No need to rush, Dell. Let explain slowly. Do you feel unwell anywhere now?" Luna sat elegantly on the bench, crossing her white-stockinged legs.
"Unwell? Actually, not anymore." Shikondell carefully checked herself and confird she didn't feel discomfort anywhere.
"That's good. We've triple checked, you didn't sustain serious physical or internal injuries, and whatever minor ones you had have already been healed," Luna nodded.
"Eh? Eh??" Hearing the word "checked," Shikondell imdiately tensed, instinctively covering her clothes.
'N-No, my gender couldn't have been exposed, right?'
It shouldn't be. The disguise gem my father gave perfectly mimics my physical characteristics.
But if they discovered and confiscated the disguise gem, then my secret would be revealed.
"Don't worry. If you don't feel unwell, then you're basically recovered. At most, your spiritual awareness might be a bit weak."
"Spiritual awareness??" At that term, Shikondell suddenly rembered sothing and began looking around frantically.
"Is Dell looking for sothing?" Luna tilted her head. "Did you lose sothing? Describe it to . Tell , and I'll have soone help you find it."
"N-No, Senior Luna. Where is Winnie?" Shikondell quickly asked, like a dog rescued from drowning suddenly realizing its owner was gone.
"Winnie?" Luna fell silent for a mont, then looked at Shikondell with an odd expression.
"Is sothing wrong?" Shikondell asked, puzzled by the strange look. Had she said sothing wrong?
"Dell, what are you talking about?" Luna looked genuinely confused.
"No, it's right, Winnie was just here. I saw him. He seed to have turned into a..." Shikondell described the scene she had witnessed in her mind, but suddenly fell silent at that point, unsure whether to continue.
Luna paused for a mont, then seed unable to maintain her ladylike composure any longer and burst into quiet laughter. "Pfft, Dell, you must miss Winnie terribly, right? Well, you two are roommates, after all."
"No, no! It was real! I really saw Winnie co here. He even told ..."
"Alright, alright, Dell. You two truly are soulmates. Actually, it was indeed Winnie who asked us to treat you. Coincidentally, a novice nun with the [Flawless Light] ability volunteered to heal you."
Before she finished speaking, the door opened. A girl with creamy golden hair, delicate as a porcelain doll, walked in carrying water. Seeing Shikondell awake, she looked surprised.
"Has this student woken up?"
"Yes, Miss Amisa. Thanks to your [Flawless Light]," Luna said with a bright smile.
"It's nothing. As long as I can help others," Amisa said, turning to Shikondell. "How are you feeling, classmate?"
"Are you the one who saved ?" Shikondell knew she shouldn't doubt her rescuer, but she genuinely felt sothing was off.
Her intuition told her it wasn't like this. It should have been Winnie...
Recalling the utterly unbelievable scene from her consciousness, Winnie transforming into an exceptionally beautiful cherry-haired maiden.
Yes, it sounded like a bizarre, illogical dream hard to believe. Yet for so reason, Shikondell felt this dream was incredibly real, so real it was hard for even her to accept.
"Not at all. I had help from everyone," Amisa said truthfully. She had participated in Shikondell's treatnt, though she wasn't the primary healer.
"Where is Winnie?" Shikondell asked, getting up.
"Don't worry. Winnie is in much better condition than you. Once you're well, he'll naturally feel relieved," Luna said with a gentle laugh.
"But earlier, I—?"
"Earlier, you were always here in our room receiving treatnt," Luna said seriously.
"Then where is Winnie??"
"Dell, I don't understand what you an. It was indeed Winnie who asked us to save you, but his soul armant ability isn't [Holy Envoy]. Even if he wanted to help, he couldn't. He was just anxiously watching, making everyone nervous. It was better to send him back to wait, so we sent him off early," Luna explained earnestly.
"What about before?"
"Eh? The patient is awake?" At that mont, a red-haired girl entered.
"He's awake. Seems he misses his roommate terribly, keeps muttering about him nonstop," Luna said amusedly.
"Are you... Miss Fanya?" Shikondell recognized Fanya imdiately.
"Yes, long ti no see, Dell," Fanya greeted her. "Glad you're alright."
"Miss Fanya, have you seen Winnie?" Shikondell asked, still persistent.
"Winnie? After handing you over to us, we sent him back. Staying here longer wouldn't have helped anyway," Fanya raised an eyebrow. "After that duel incident, I still owe him a favor. I couldn't just ignore a classmate in need."
That statent directly provided the reason.
The logic was clear.
As part of the Church faction, Fanya naturally knew many talented students within the Church and had good relationships with them. And since she owed Winnie a favor, of course she was the one who found help.
"Anyway, Dell, if Winnie could heal you himself, why would he need to ask us?" Fanya said.
"Now that you're recovered, we'll send you back."
"Back?"
"Yes. You were lying in Carillian Academy's church earlier. The junior nuns and priests sent by the Church of Radiance were completely at a loss regarding your condition and said they needed to report back to headquarters to request more specialized personnel.
Winnie was anxious, worried you wouldn't survive until the reporting process finished, so he ca to , asking if I knew anyone in the Church.
Fortunately, my childhood friend Amisa knows Lady Luna Horaleth, whose family happens to possess a hereditary technique for healing spiritual afflictions.
Combined with Amisa's [Flawless Light], they managed to heal you." Fanya explained the whole story.
Though lying was beneath a knight's dignity, she had no choice, this was a white lie, words said for a good cause, ordered by the Saintess herself. She couldn't refuse.
Fanya had learned so flexibility.
A complete lie was hard to believe, but half-truths were hardest to detect, that was what Luna had just taught her.
This explanation was perfectly logical, mostly true, with only a small portion untrue. That was all.
"If you don't believe , you can ask the golden elf still guarding the bedside. She knows the truth," Fanya raised her eyebrow.
"Golden elf? You an... Milian?" Shikondell asked in surprise.
"Yes, I think that's her na. Anyway, the junior nuns from the Church couldn't treat you, and the reporting process would take too long, no telling when it would be approved. So Winnie decided to act first and report later."
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