I will not die a Villainess's death

Once the undead had been immobilized, only then did Elysia brave to have a close look at what they were. They looked vaguely human but no human would have been able to move a whole being that dry.

Magic or no magic, their bones would have given in way before that. So it could only be a curse that was keeping them going.

"Did you find anything by observing these dead bodies? Anything we can use?"

"No. I cannot tell what these things are but they don't have any body organ inside them. They are like a husk that looks like a human, walks like a human but is not human."

The arm in Elysia's grip broke into the sand as soon as she applied even a little bit of pressure. It now made sense how or why this thing had been able to move.

"But how is that even possible? There is a lack of magic in this world. How can the curse even sustain itself for this long? Even the trees have withered away."

"I don't know. And at this point, I'm too afraid to ask. I have a feeling that no one was supposed to be in this abandoned world. Then why did we end up here?"

This world was beyond saving and was collapsing even now. Why would someone want to send them here when there was no purpose in it?

"Let's head deeper into the mansion. This is our only clue about this place."

When this word had collapsed, it had taken everything but the Dirac mansion with it. This was the only place that had been protected by the last of this world's magic.

There should be a crystal inside that held huge amounts of magic in it. If Elysia was able to stimulate it, then she could transport everyone else home.

'Wait! Why do I know all this? Agh, my head hurts.'

There was a small throbbing headache behind Elysia's closed eyes. Thoughts and memories flowed in her mind that was not her own.

But she felt like she was supposed to know all this anyway.

"Inside? But my instincts are telling me that we should head south from here. I can sense an unusual energy source there. It's calling out to me and it's really difficult to resist its call."

Asam sounded like he was torn between following Elysia or following his instincts. If the energy source was really as grand as he was making it out to be then there could only be one thing he was feeling.

And that is their end goal.

"Adam, lead us to that source right now. It is our ticket home."

"Well, I could but I won't do it for free. Won't you agree to give me something in return?"

"What do you mean by 'for free?' Don't you want to go back home as well?"

Adam stared at Elysia with a straight but dumbfold face. Elysia could not figure out why he was looking at her like this.

Did he not realize what kind of situation they were in right now?

"Elysia, I was trying to…. never mind, you have always been thick-headed when it came to my actions. I cannot believe how right Eve was when she said I need to speak up if I want you to understand."

Even Adam's voice sounded like he was trying his best to suppress his irritation. Why did he never say things clearly and out loud? Did Elysia have to guess every time about what he wanted?

"Elysia, I was asking for a kiss in exchange for helping you out. Are you even conscious of the fact that I said I was in love with you? Or are you just ignoring my feelings? I have never been treated like this before."

'O-Oh, yeah….so that did happen.'

Elysia came to a stop as soon as she heard Adam complain to her. To be honest, he had never spoken like this to her after that first time which had ended up in a disaster.

Adam had been all but a gentleman toward her but had maintained his true self in front of Eve. Elysia had taken it as a sign of indifference back then.

'But what if he just didn't want me to hate him and that was why he changed? Or well, pretended to change. I don't know how to feel about it.'

"I-You tell me that you like me Adam but I don't know anything about you or Eve. I thought I knew you both but the more I uncover, the more I realize that you both never showed yourself fully to me."

"You ask me to consider your feelings but have you ever considered mine? How can I even know if I like the 'real' you or not if you don't show it to me?"

The more Elysia said the more she had a feeling that she should keep her mouth shut. She was digging up her own grave right here.

But words were coming out of her mouth all on her own.

"You are saying that? YOU? After all, you hide from me and Eve, you don't have a right to say it. Did you think I would never notice who it was that was paving the way for the next saintess? But I kept quiet because I didn't want to overwhelm you like that. But now I see that I was a little too lenient on you."

Elysia felt her heart sink as soon as she heard all that.

How long had Adam known and not said a thing? Then did that mean that all of Elysia's effort was in vain all these years?

Who else knew? And how much danger were they all in-

"Calm down. I am not telling this to you to threaten you. I love you, Elysia, and I want no secrets between us anymore. We can postpone this conversation for now but I assure you that I won't hold back once we reach back home."

"I will stop holding my desire and my true self back because you asked me to. And I am sure that Eve will come to a similar conclusion once she knows what happened here."

For a second Elysia was stunned that Adam say that he would tell Eve. But the more Elysia thought about it, the more it made sense to her.

Adam and Eve could deny their relationship all they wanted but there was no hiding the thin line of fate that was binding them together.

Even if they both said that they loved someone else, they were still being tugged together.

"H-Hey-"

Elysia called back to Adam but he had started walking again. He looked dejected by Elysia's words and actions and it made Elysia's chest feel heavy.

She did not want Adam to be angry at her or to look away from her. She was ashamed to admit that she liked Adam in 'that' as well but she also held love for Eve.

Eve just did not want to overstep her boundaries here but the more she was trying not to, the more she ended up hurting the people around her.

'I hope he forgets all about this conversation and his promise by the time we get back home. That is all I can ask for at this point.'

______________________________

It was an awkward silence when Elysia followed after Adam. Adam was not behaving as if anything had changed but Elysia found it even harder to look at him.

Every time Adam's familiar attitude put Elysia at rest, his words came crawling back into her mind and she jumped up and away from him.

It had landed Elysia in trouble once or twice due to her inattentiveness in this matter. Did things have to come to this?

"We are here. Whatever I am sensing is located deep in this cave but I don't think I can make it down there due to my bulk. You are slimmer and smaller than me so you might be able to slip right past the hole and check inside."

Adam eyes Elysia up and down, his eyes almost holding a hungry stare before they went back to his usual gaze.

"I s-see. I guess it is up to me to go down there and bring that source out. You just wait here for me to come back. Also, keep an eye out for my brother and Eve's group. I am sure they will find us soon."

Even though Elysia could not feel her familiarity in this world. Somehow, the bond that was even supposed to trample the test of times and death was effortless to block off.

And every time that happened, Elysia felt more and more tired of the lies she had been fed since childhood.

"Hurry up and go in. We cannot be sure how long we have before a disaster strikes. The land is too deprived of magic and would start to consume itself soon."

There was an unknown pain in Elysia's heart at hearing those words but she could not do anything about it.

This world was fated to die and there was nothing Elysia could do about it but to let it happen. The timeframe to save this world had passed a long time ago.

'I hope this doesn't happen to our world as well. I must be careful in how I approach the future.'

Elysia walked through the hallway before she reached the final chamber. There was no more corridor in front of Elysia but just a door for her to pass through.

She knocked at the door to be let in and the door opened without any effort.

Inside was a carefully stored box that emitted strong magic from inside and a diary of sorts that had a lock placed on it.

Elysia picked them both up before she felt the cave start rumbling and the sky ceiling came crashing down.

"Look out."

Adams's familiar voice spoke in Elysia's ears before she felt the world go dark around her.

The ceiling had collapsed right on top of her and there was a heavy weight on her chest that knocked the air out of her.

And all around her was darkness which was pressing against Elysia's chest.

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