Chapter 3

After a while, she managed to find a spot. She sat down on the floor, sighing. “Sorry, can't talk with monsters around.”

“Are you alright now?”

“Should be fine.”

She looked around. I couldn't see what she was seeing, so unfortunately, I didn't know where she was.

“Anyway, about my world…”

She began explaining the world she lived in.

•••

The continent I live in is called Toredetera. Every race had their own country, and we lived in peace with each other. The elven kingdom spanned from the center of the continent all the way to the south. We have the human nation on the west, a felink nation to the east, and a fishna kingdom to the south. North of us was a large desert, a complete contrast to our forestry nation.

It was said that this large desert used to be a powerful nation, but something caused its fall, and no trace of it was ever recovered. It had been millennias since then. No clear record survived, and what remained were rumors. I think the humans have some knowledge about them. If we can find one, then they might be able to tell us more about this fallen nation.

People don't often traverse this area. The magic in that area was uncontrolled and wild, and whatever valuables left behind were destroyed by the magic powers anyway.

So no one bothered with that area, not even outlaws and criminals. It’s said that going there meant death, since no one had ever returned from that area. There were some people that claimed they did it, of course, but they brought no proof. Anyway, since no one went there, no one checked what was happening up there.

And something did happen. Someone, something, I don't know. That thing had caused a stir in the northern regions. All of a sudden, the monsters attacked us. They were supposed to be regular monsters, but they're much stronger. They were fused with some kind of dangerous magic, making them an incredibly tough foe.

It wasn't something logic could explain.

So we did our best. We tried fighting them off, but we failed. We, the elven nation, lost a significant portion of our territory, including the capital, in the first few days. The other countries didn't have as large northern borders as us, and the monster incursion into their regions were significantly smaller, but that didn’t mean they didn’t suffer from it.

And now, here we are. Fighting a losing war.

As to how we met… I think it's my fault. After the war, in an attempt to push the demons back, us adventurers would go into the monster-filled territories to hunt. We'll attack and kill as many monsters as we can. That's why you kept seeing me running around all over the place. Currently, I'm behind enemy lines.

Yesterday was no different. I took a quest to hunt down some monsters. That was when I stumbled upon this ancient magic shrine. Magic shrines are shrines scattered all throughout Toredetera. They exist in our oldest records, filled with magic. Most people can detect the flow of magic within it, but they can't tell what its function is.

That said, its shape is pretty obvious. It's like a white cylinder with a sharp top point, countless drawings, writings, letters? I'm not sure what they are, but all these things are scattered on the cylinder. There are some pyarmid like shapes around them. Back before the war, we treated them as ancient monuments. We clean them, take care of them, that kind of stuff, even if we didn't know what they're for.

But, some do say that they can grant wishes. I… I doubt that they're really that powerful. I mean, countless others had wished for the war to end, but we're still fighting. If anything, we kept losing ground. Entire regions had to be evacuated because of the damned monsters. Urgh, I wish they would just die already.

But, when I stumbled on this old shrine, I thought to myself, what if those rumors had even the slightest bit of truth in them. I didn't believe them, just to be clear. It's a massive what if. Since I didn't lose anything, I decided to try. I stood below the shrine, touched its surface, and made a wish. A very egotistical one.

I wish to be free. To be free from this world, from all the fighting. To be free to live my life just like how I wanted to be.

Nothing happened. I wasn't surprised, honestly. Expected it, even. I shrugged and moved on.

Then, that night, I dreamed. I dreamed of a large town, with countless tall buildings. The night lights were blinding, nothing like the silence of elven villages during the night. The carriages came in many different shapes, the many people walking around despite the dark skies. It was so bright, so dazzling.

I wanted to be there. I wished to be there. Away from this hellish place.

And then I woke up, rather, I was woken up by you.

•••

I heard her story carefully. She had a pained expression as she told it, occasionally stopping to take a breather.

“I'm sorry…”

“No, it's alright. It's not like you can expect a girl to suddenly appear in your room.”

“No, I don't mean that…”

“Oh…”

“So… you want my help to win the war?”

“Not exactly… I… what I actually want… I want to leave.”

Her words caught me off guard. I expected her to want to find a way to rescue her homeland, not abandon it.

“Pathetic, isn't it?” She smiled wryly. “I don't care about what happened to my nation. I just want to get out.”

She hung her head, letting out dry laughs. I patted her head.

“No, I don't think so.”

“You… you don't?”

For a moment, she looked at my hand with fear, but soon relaxed. I gently played with her hair, bringing her face closer.

“I don't know how I can help, but I'll try. I'll do my best.”

She nodded and kissed me on the cheeks. “I trust you.”

We only just met, so this trust felt a bit unnatural, but I wasn't about to ask that. Instead, I would try my best to be someone worth trusting. As her husband, I'll fulfill her wish and bring her here.