A Homeland That Can Never Be Returned To

As the rain began to fall, it seemed as if someone wanted to cleanse the city of its filth. But if there was too much filth, what could a continuous drizzle really wash away?

The girl leaned against the cold wall. She had been searching for days, handing out countless flyers, but there was still no news.

She knew that her younger sister was probably dead, but she didn't know how she was going to get through the rest of her life.

The girl got up and, like a walking corpse, staggered alone through the rain-soaked city, her hair and clothes soaked.

But she was oblivious; she walked aimlessly, not knowing where she was going.

"It's been a few days, and you look practically dead." A familiar voice rang out, and the girl's eyes lit up. It was Feng. He had exchanged contact information with Elysia, so...

She looked in the direction the sound came from. Feng was holding an umbrella, with Elysia standing beside him. Elysia was looking at her with concern, while Feng... still had no expression.

She tried to find her sister among the two people, but people were coming and going all around, and only the two of them stopped there.

"Excuse me..." the girl began in a hoarse voice, preparing to say what she had said countless times over the past few days. But Feng didn't have the patience to wait for her to finish. He cut to the chase and said, "Your sister, that little girl named Sophia, has been confirmed dead."

The girl's pupils contracted; she instinctively rejected the answer, "Impossible, she must..."

"If that's what you think, then so be it. I'm not in the mood to comfort you..." Feng said, Elysia next to him couldn't help but pinch his waist.

"Why... why did this happen..." the girl whispered. "We... we just wanted to live a good life, was that... wrong?"

"There's nothing wrong with that. Everyone has the right to live. It's just that fate is unpredictable. There will always be people who get off or change trains on this one-way train of life." Feng's tone softened a bit from cold. "No matter what, life has to go on. It's actually easier to die than to live."

"It's not that simple..." The girl looked at Feng, then at Elysia, and said with a self-deprecating tone, "At least you... have family. When you get home, you can still see your loved ones. But me..."

Feng's expression turned somewhat strange. He looked at her and then said, "You think I can't understand? On the contrary, I can understand. If you still want to live, and want to live on for your sister's sake, then your life has only just begun. Try to adapt; this is the first step."

As he spoke, he looked at Elysia: "Elysia, she was the first person I met when I took a completely new step in this world, she was my first friend. What you are about to experience, I have also experienced."

After a moment of silence, he added, "Of course, I might be luckier than you, because I met Elysia."

Elysia's eyes flickered; she seemed to want to say something, but ultimately remained silent.

"That's all I have to say," Feng said, and then fell silent.

Elysia sighed softly and said to the girl, "I think if your sister had a spirit in heaven, she would also want you to live well."

As she spoke, she took a pink umbrella out of her bag and handed it to the girl. "When you get home, take a good rest. Consider this umbrella a loan to you. You can keep it for now. We'll be staying here for a few more days, so you can return it to me then. If you keep getting wet, you'll really catch a cold."

The girl paused for a moment, then reached out to take Elysia's umbrella, but suddenly withdrew her hand halfway. She looked at Elysia and said softly, "No need, people like us are actually quite healthy..."

"Take this. You probably haven't rested much these past few days. Even the best body will break down, and it's even worse to get sick when you're living alone." Elysia stubbornly placed the umbrella in her hand and gave her a note as well. "This is the hotel we're staying at. You can return it here later. Please take good care of yourself!"

The girl looked at Elysia, then at Feng, and said, "You're very lucky, Feng. Well... I'll borrow this umbrella for now, and I'll return it tomorrow."

"The day after tomorrow is fine too, no need to rush," Feng finally spoke up again. "Take good care of your own health first."

The two men watched as the girl bowed to them and disappeared into the rain.

After a long pause, Elysia finally spoke, "Maple, I also want to say that I am very lucky to have met you... really."

Zhu Yufeng smiled and said, "Then I am truly honored that you feel it is a lucky thing to know me."

"Don't always say things like that. I'm just an ordinary girl!" Elysia said, looking at Zhu Yufeng. "Or do you still think of me as a Herrscher?"

"I didn't," Zhu Yufeng firmly denied. "You are undoubtedly human, just a super beautiful girl who is a bit special."

"Then you're not allowed to say things like 'It's an honor to know me' anymore. If you have to say something, say... um..."

Before Elysia could think further, Zhu Yufeng spoke first, "Then let's put it another way. I'm very happy to receive such a compliment from you. Thank you, Elysia."

"Um... you're welcome..." Elysia's cheeks flushed slightly as she looked in the direction the girl had left. "Speaking of which, Maple, wasn't your preferential treatment a bit too obvious?"

When talking to her, or to Kevin and the others, Zhu Yufeng never spoke so directly and poignantly.

She hadn't pinched Zhu Yufeng; she suspected that Zhu Yufeng could have driven that girl to despair.

Lilith was right; Feng would be gentle for her sake. The moment Feng's tone suddenly changed, she was actually a little... happy.

"I just think she should get through this on her own, instead of always bothering others like this." Zhu Yufeng shrugged.

He suddenly noticed that Elysia's gaze towards him had begun to become strange. She looked at Zhu Yufeng, reached out and held his head still, making him look at her.

"So, how did you get through the last time, before the Fourth Herrscher incident? And how did you get through the time between the Sixth Herrscher incident and meeting Lilith, Maple?" Elysia asked seriously.

"It's all in the past, there's nothing to mention..." Zhu Yufeng said helplessly. Ever since meeting Lilith, Elysia has become much more proactive than before. What exactly did Lilith say to Elysia?!

"This isn't something that can be forgotten just because it's over," Elysia said, squinting at Zhu Yufeng. "What, can't I know?"

"It's not that I can't know..." Zhu Yufeng said, "I just feel there's nothing to say. What she the Present through now, I've been through too, it's that simple."

"Have you ever thought about suicide?" Elysia asked.

"I have thought about it." Zhu Yufeng thought about the situation at the time. "In the period after you left the headquarters, I would always think of my family and my friends when I went to sleep at night. Whenever I wanted to give up, I would think of you. At that time, saving you from the future that required you to sacrifice yourself was my only obsession."

"But why..."

"Because you deserve it." Zhu Yufeng smiled and said, "You love this world so much, and you bloom with your own colors without reservation. That alone is enough. That alone was enough to make me yearn for it back then."

He still remembers feeling a vague sense of regret every time he entered the game and saw Elysia and heard her voice.

When the chapter on the Elysian Realm began, he already knew that the story of the Thirteen Heroes of Fire Moth was destined to be a tragedy. When the story of the Elysian Realm came to an end, the regret in his heart reached its peak.

And then... just like that, I was transported to another world.

Is there any more outrageous way to time travel than this? You wake up to find yourself trapped under rubble!

"Maple... your answer is really unfair..." Elysia said softly.

"Didn't you want me to say it?" Zhu Yufeng tilted her head and said, "I just wanted to tell you what I was thinking at the time."

Elysia looked at Zhu Yufeng and felt as if her heart had been stabbed again. Yes, he had cared so much about her before, and he still cared about her now. Yes...

Their feelings for each other have long since changed.

"When can I visit your hometown sometime?" Elysia said, as if she had just remembered something. "I think you went there once when you were on a mission, right? And you went with Lilith."

She doesn't remember everything. In her previous life, she knew about this because she had been paying close attention to Zhu Yufeng at that time. Now, thanks to Lilith, she recalled everything she remembered Zhu Yufeng and Lilith had done.

Then she realized she was jealous.

Zhu Yufeng's eye twitched. How did you remember such a thing? Besides, that wasn't even his hometown. He didn't even know the way... Back then, Lilith looked at him strangely and said, "Isn't this his hometown? How could he not know the way?"

He could only explain that he had been away from home for a long time and things had changed too much...

"What are you going there for?" Zhu Yufeng asked.

"What? Lilith can go with you, but I can't?" Elysia said, crossing her arms.

Zhu Yufeng paused for a moment, then said, "That's not my hometown. I've never gone back to my hometown."

Elysia paused, then said, "When you and Lilith went back, it was after the Eighth Herrscher Incident, so there must have been changes..."

"No, I mean, even now, I can't go." Zhu Yufeng said, looking at Elysia. "If I go, then maybe..."

"Possible?"

"We may never see each other again." Zhu Yufeng shifted his gaze to the dark sky in the distance. "Between my hometown and you, I can only choose one."

Elysia was confused and could only look at Zhu Yufeng with a puzzled expression.

"I remember, Elysia, you were found in the forest by the people of a small town, right?" Zhu Yufeng suddenly said something cryptic. "That was the earliest trace you left in this world."

"Yes, but why did you suddenly bring this up?" Elysia asked. She didn't need to think about how Zhu Yufeng knew about this, since he already knew about the next era's story. Wasn't it normal for him to know some things from before?

"The earliest trace I left in this world was the moment you rescued me from the ruins," Zhu Yufeng said.

"Huh?!"

"Didn't Su use the Thousand Worlds to observe other worlds? I fell here from another world," Zhu Yufeng said. "And then I decided not to go anymore."

Elysia looked at Zhu Yufeng in surprise. She remembered that when they were at the amusement park, Eden had also asked him who he was, but he had chosen to remain silent at the time.

This is really... big news.

"My world is very similar to this world, so when Lilith and I went to that place, geographically speaking, it is indeed my hometown. However, that's about it." Zhu Yufeng said, "This should be my biggest secret. I shouldn't have told you, but... I feel like it's okay to tell you now."

"So, for you, that place is a hometown you can only see but never go back to, right?" Elysia asked.

Zhu Yufeng shrugged. "You could say that."

"So, do you miss home?"

"... Elysia, you're asking me that question. Of course I want home! I still have my parents, and my true childhood sweetheart..."

"So, if you could choose between me, between us and your hometown, you would actually choose our family, wouldn't you?" Elysia said softly.

"It's obvious I'm not going," Zhu Yufeng said. "And even if I could go, I'd definitely make sure you see me before I go..."

"If I can't see it with you, then it's meaningless." Elysia said, looking into Zhu Yufeng's eyes. She finally understood why Zhu Yufeng treated her so obviously differently. He was not a person of this world, so naturally he wouldn't care about other people who were not in the stories he saw.

Zhu Yufeng remained silent.

"I've finally managed to stand here with you again, but you say you might leave one day. Have you ever thought about... what I think?" Elysia reached out and hugged Zhu Yufeng. "Isn't there someone in this world you love? Even if there isn't... at least there are people who love you. I am, Lilith is, even..."

"Elysia ..."

"..."

Are you scared?

"... Of course I'm scared. I'm scared that one day you'll leave without saying goodbye. Knowing your personality, you definitely will, right?"

"..."

"Okay, you're not leaving?"

"Elysia, you know, all of this is based on the premise that I can go, I..." Zhu Yufeng didn't know how to say it. If he could go, of course he wanted to go see his parents. However... he realized that he seemed to have become too deeply involved with this world without realizing it, and he couldn't just give it up cleanly.

After a moment of silence, he reached out and hugged Elysia, saying, "If that day ever comes, I can't guarantee what choices I'll make, but at least for now, no matter what happens, I'll be by your side, Elysia."