Chapter Earth After Four Days
On their way to the Elven Continent, Elysia remembered something and asked the Sea G.o.d to stop.
"It"s been four days. Please give me a little time to confirm things on the other side first." Elysia told everyone while looking at the clock cube worriedly. Time had pa.s.sed, and she was worried about trouble on Earth.
Because of that, she immediately closed her eyes and put her finger on her forehead to feel Erina"s marker on Earth with high concentration.
"Err, what does Ely mean by the other side? Another world? Do you know anything?" Yuuki whispered with some curiosity.
"Perhaps, what Ely meant is Earth. She is still worried about the trouble on Earth." Sylvia spoke in a whisper-like voice while covering her mouth with her hand.
"Oh~ I see..." Yuuki dropped her fist onto her palm.
Elena gave a signal to everyone to stay quiet without making any noise for a while. After that, she put her hand on Elysia"s back and connected her sight to Elysia"s vision to find out more.
"Uh, this is more difficult than I thought. Is my marker unable to achieve the result I expected? But, Rhea said that this kind of marker technique is quite effective if I put in someone"s spirit..." Elysia muttered in her mind with her own anxiety.
"Master Elysia, you need to imagine Erina"s figure and presence more for this technique to work. It"s like what you did with little Nell, but it"s a bit more difficult because it"s only a temporary spirit marker connection, not a permanent bond." Rhea gently reminded her master about the core condition behind her marker technique.
"Uhm, but this is a fragile thread of connection, right? I need to concentrate more, then?" Elysia looked at Rhea and blinked her eyes in confusion.
"Mm, you need to concentrate more, Master Elysia. Please feel Erina more to connect the connection of the marker you put in her spirit." Rhea gently smiled in reply.
For some reason, Elysia felt Rhea"s answer sounded rather inappropriate, but she kept trying again with great concentration. She tried to imagine Erina"s presence and existence in her mind.
She tried to materialize a communication bridge with the other party regardless of their distance.
In a luxurious theater building in the middle of a metropolitan city, a beautiful girl with long brown wavy hair down to her hips. She was staring at the sunset with a subtle smile on her face.
She then placed her hand on her upper chest and looked at her dainty hand in the black-gold glove.
For some unknown reason, she felt a little uneasy. However, she decided to hum sweetly while remembering what would happen in the near future. "Hmm-mm~ Am I nervous? It doesn"t seem like it."
"What is Elysia-san probably doing right now, hmm? I was wondering. Did she find what she was looking for in the underworld realm? I hope she contacts me soon. That way, we can have a nice time together again. May good things always be with her." Erina stroked the aurora bracelet on her wrist with a worried look.
"Hm, I think it"s connected successfully." Elysia"s pleasant voice sounded so close to Erina"s ears. Erina immediately looked left and right for Elysia"s presence. Yet, she couldn"t find anyone but herself and her bodyguards.
"E-Elysia-san!? Is this really you, or am I just imagining things?" Erina muttered as if she was trying to communicate using her inner voice.
"Ah, it"s actually connected too! Nice to hear your voice again, Erina-san! I"m glad you"re proficient at using my marker to communicate with me when it just connects. I wish you good health and good luck. What about the current situation and conditions on your side?" Elysia responded in a pleasantly surprised tone.
"Hehe, I don"t know. I"m just talking in my mind, and who would have thought this becomes telepathy to you, Elysia-san. I"m fine here. How about you? Is your business in the underworld finished? When do you want to return to Earth? I miss you." Erina heaved a sigh of relief and went to sit on the nearby sofa.
"Our plan to return is four weeks away. Uh, wait. Erina-san, can I tell how much time has pa.s.sed since we last met? I"m afraid the time here is different than on Earth." Elysia felt a little nervous to ask one of the most crucial questions.
"It"s only been four days since we last met, Elysia-san." Erina looked at the date on her smartphone just to be sure.
"Hmm? Same time difference? This is a bit strange... So, maybe I was previously stuck in the void for two years?" Elysia spoke in a whisper-like, almost inaudible voice.
She recalled what happened to her when she arrived on Earth some time ago. Two years have pa.s.sed since Ali"s death, and it was probably a time gap before she was thrown into Vrelenia for some unknown reason.
"My apologies, I failed to hear your voice, Elysia-san." Erina put two fingers on her forehead as if she was concentrating more. She didn"t want their current communication to be cut off just because of her mistake.
"I just mumbled nonsense. Anyway, may I know what is happening on Earth right now? A war or battle between powerhouses or ability users is taking place? Err... A commotion and chaos?" Elysia went straight to the main topic.
"Hmm-mm, I don"t know why you would expect such a thing, Elysia-san. However, nothing like that happened. Ah, some chaos due to natural disasters and strife between nations is indeed happening on Earth." Erina tapped her smartphone"s screen to check the latest information.
"War between nations!? Colonization and ma.s.sacre? I thought they were only doing military protection to their country"s borders. Are the ability users also involved? What about the Esper a.s.sociation?" Elysia gasped in surprise. She had not expected the situation to take a sharp turn in just four days.
"Fufu, you"re exaggerating what happened, Elysia-san. It was strife, not war. This is a common thing that happens in various border areas of the country. As far as I know, no ability users are involved." Erina checked into her intel network, and there were no reports of ability users causing major trouble.
"I see... Then, everything"s still fine there, huh. They haven"t made a move yet, and that event will open at the end of April. Erina-san, I suggest you be more careful about anything too good to be true because it usually has ulterior motives. Especially since that event will involve thousands of ability users..." Elysia breathed a sigh of relief, but her voice still sounded so concerned and worried.
"Hm, may I know what kind of event we"re talking about here, Elysia-san? You sound so worried about that?" Erina was curious, but she pursed her lips because she was aware of Elysia"s statement"s weight.
"I"ll be honest with you, but can you keep this information from outsiders?" Elysia thought for a moment and made a decision for Erina"s good.
"Sure, leave it to me. I"m good at keeping secrets~" Erina put her hands together with a happy smile.
"So, it happened like this--" Elysia explained a little about a deathmatch event called the G.o.d Game. An event involving hundreds of "beyond" mortal powerhouses and thousands of ability users.
A few moments later, Erina took a deep breath and leaned back against the sofa while looking up at the night sky. The sun had already set, and Elysia had just finished explaining next month"s b.l.o.o.d.y event.
She reconsidered everything Elysia had just told her. The G.o.d Game in question sounded absurd for some reason, but she trusted Elysia without the slightest hesitation.
"I will warn my close ones not to get involved with foreign and mysterious parties. As for my personal safety, you don"t need to worry, Elysia-san. I still have your aurora bracelet, and I have two additional powerful bodyguards now." Erina glanced at a raven perched on an ornate tree in the corner of the room.
"Two powerful bodyguards? I am relieved that your grandfather sent two trustworthy experts from his aides to ensure your safety, Erina-san." Elysia breathed a sigh of relief.
"Hehe, my grandfather only sent one of his top experts. The other one is a powerful raven, Elysia-san. She is Victoria! She decided to follow me everywhere because she believed you would come to me. It seems Victoria is eager to meet you." Erina sipped her tea and acted natural. She was talking to someone in her mind, and she didn"t want anyone to suspect anything from her.
"Victoria? Is it the same raven as Victorious from Great Britain? Victor? How about Mio?" It took Elysia a few seconds to realize the raven in question.
"En, I called her Victoria, and she didn"t mind after giving her a spirit stone bag. She is now my bodyguard besides my grandfather"s top expert. For Mio... She left. I mean, she went to join in intense training to hone her overall skills. You know Elysia-san, I"m already halfway to ascending to Rank 5!" Erina proudly announced her achievement.
"Congratulations! I"m happy to hear it." Elysia then had a bit of small talk with Erina for a few minutes about trivial matters, but it couldn"t be ignored.
After that, she ended their conversation because she had got all the information and confirmation to treat her worries.
"Who exactly are you, Elysia-san? If those people knew about our closeness, will you protect me?" Erina stroked her aurora bracelet with a tender gaze while looking up at the distant sky.