"There's nothing we could do about that. I get it now. It connects. Nothing is out of place anymore. I just need to find the key by myself.. One that isn't Daphne, of course." Elgin sighed.
He felt even more pity for the little faerie that was trapped there and had to undergo her cruel fate again and again. She wouldn't know that there were multiple rounds of the same world's repeated sequence, but it was true that she was subjected to an unfair death every time.
It was probably because she shared a similar fate with him that he felt even worse.
[Yeah, I think that's the right choice. It's not like you didn't get the blessing at all, it's just impossible to activate for the current you. For now.. I think we have to look for some other way.] Cecily said.
All in all, their trip turned out to not be so profitable, but that didn't really matter. Elgin looked at the positive side, the fact that he was able to meet Daphne and learn that there could be some sort of connection.
Daphne clearly knew that there was something unnatural. She knew that the one who caused her adversities was not something that came out of the world's natural law and order.
She had the initiative to try and seek the truth.
This was a major clue in his eyes. If Daphne could spread her wings and try to look for her own answer, what if he tried to solve mysteries like the one in Yale and possibly trigger similar scenarios in the future?
Daphne was a middle-class spirit, but what if his future target could be a high-class spirit? What differences could occur?
Perhaps they could be his true comrades in seeking the truth.
[I know what you're suspecting. It's probably too far of an idea, though.] Cecily jumped in with her thoughts. [You might think that the solution is that easy, but.. Hm. The chances are close to zero.]
"I don't know. If I hadn't triggered the lake in such a way that no one has ever done in the past.. Daphne wouldn't have shown up. If- there were actually clues about the reset sealed behind places like this, ones that the Players couldn't activate the right way??"
[..I don't dare to deny it fully. After all, our powers over this place is restrained to just observing. I could feel that Daphne was there because she is in essence from the same birth place as me. There are many things that were lost from the original world, Elgin.]
The last sentence seemed to contain a much more complex meaning behind it judging from the faerie's tone. Cecily sounded quite pained, which led Elgin to speculate the faerie's origins once more.
Shrugging the matter off, Elgin decided to make his time here worthwhile. He went here to train his magic, but the asset he desired disappeared.
He entered the grinding mindset once again, scouring the forest to find preys for him to hunt and be turned into delicious experience points.
By the time he was done with grinding, he only gained three levels. Meanwhile, the time he spent exceeded four hours. He found the experience to be close with a game, so he didn't mind, but still winced at the results.
The rates were cruel. He needed a change of environment soon. Getting out of Ulya was key.
Instead of spending his night in the wilderness, Elgin decided to try and stay inside a proper inn for once. Even though he was still focused towards getting stronger, he didn't want to burn out early from not treating himself properly.
He entered the most renowned inn in Ulya.
"I would like to book a room for.. two nights." Elgin said towards the receptionist and handed the correct amount of money.
"Gladly," The innkeeper turned around, grabbed a small magical shard and handed it to Elgin.
The shard was used as a key for the customer's room and personal storage. The system was pretty common in this world, although a lot of establishments still preferred the traditional methods.
"Would you like to have dinner while you're at it? There should still be food left in the kitchen. It's not totally fresh anymore, but I guarantee it won't be that shabby. Our cook is very good at his job!" The innkeeper cheered with a smile.
"..Sure." Elgin decided. A hot, full meal was something he skipped a lot these days due to his grinding. One would be nice.
"Alrighty, just come into the pantry and wait! It's right down the hallway, to the left. Have a seat, I'll have our cook prepare your delicious meal!"
Elgin nodded, and headed towards the pantry as she said.
Before he could peek his head inside the room, he was met with a familiar figure.
"Ah.. Hi there.." With a rather awkward tone, the man Elgin bumped into greeted him.
It was Adel.
Elgin had some pretty nasty recollections about his meetings with the man, so he wasn't enthralled.
'Of course they would be staying here. Where else? Their ego is somehow high as hell for newcomers.'
"I still have some things to do in this city. I'll just tell you ahead of time. I came here because this is easily the best inn in town, not because I want to mingle with you guys. My point from the previous time still stands."
For precaution's sake, he had to clear that off first. Without sparing the other any glances, Elgin slid inside the pantry to claim his seat.
"Actually..!" Adel raised his voice. "Actually, I didn't mean to ask you about that! I have a separate thing to ask about. It.. concerns me." Adel interjected the other.
In turn, Elgin stopped in his tracks.
For a split second, his curious side perked up. It told him that he should pay a listen to find out if there was anything worthwhile. He had to look for comrades in the future, too.
This guy, Adel, was one of the candidates that he found to be pretty decent from the start.
Just what could be on his mind?