The pain was gone. Elise opened her eyes when a maid entered her room with a tray in her hands. The young woman tried to be silent, but Elise could sense her presence, making the effort futile. Were her senses more sensitive now? It had to be connected to yesterday's events.
The maid placed the tray on the closest counter and rushed outside when she realized Elise's eyes were open.
"She is awake!" she yelled in the hallway.
Elise heard a ruckus outside but ignored it and tried to sit up. Unlike the last time, she succeeded without feeling any pain. She checked her body to assess her current condition.
Despite the lack of pain, her body felt quite... rusty. It was as if her muscles had not worked for ages and had only just remembered how. Her bones creaked and clicked with every move.
But she was fine. There seemed to be no serious injuries or anything that would hinder her movements. The Energy the Traveler had planted had surely done its job.
Elise had tried to 'track it down,' as the Traveler had instructed, to follow its movements, but it was too complicated to fully understand in one go. She only grasped its main purpose: to rebuild the damaged parts of her body. It flowed with her natural Energy flow, but unlike the time she sped up her healing in the previous Realm, it was doing far more than she could comprehend, such as creating new tissues. While she was trying to understand what it was doing, she had fallen asleep before she could look deeper into it.
She was attempting to sit at the edge of her bed when three people, along with the maid who had just left, rushed into the room. Elise smiled when she saw her father among them. He must have stayed close to see her if needed.
The other two were women she didn't recognize, but they seemed to come from the Church of the Six. They must have been healers of the Goddess of Life.
"What are you doing, child?!" The older healer rushed forward to hold her down. "Your body is broken. You have countless internal injuries. If you move, you could hurt yourself even more." She spoke while frantically checking Elise's body, stopping only after making sure none of the bandages had opened.
"You need to lie down and rest, child. Your body needs to recover with the special ointments we applied."
"Please calm down. I am fine." Elise tried to pull away from the worried nun, looking to her father for help. But he looked even more distressed.
"Elise, my daughter! Are you really alright? They said there was a possibility you could never move again. They couldn't even tell when you would wake up."
Was her condition truly that bad? She tried to look as healthy as possible before answering. "I am really fine. The Traveler, my Master, visited last night. He healed me. I don't feel any pain anymore." She looked them both in the eyes and repeated, "I am fine."
"Someone healed you?" The old nun was clearly not convinced. "Even we, the Daughters of Life, couldn't use the Goddess's healing on you. Your body rejected all our methods. Now, please lie down, child. I need to perform another check-up."
Elise did not resist, deciding this was the fastest way to convince them. She lay down and let the nun do her job. The old priestess closed her eyes, moving her hands over Elise's body with a silent chant on her lips. After a moment, Elise felt a foreign Energy flowing inside her, moving through her now-familiar channels. The priestess's expression kept shifting due to the sheer confusion she was experiencing.
"How could this be possible?" She stopped, her eyes wide open. "Your body was broken; there is no way it could all heal in one night. I have never seen something like this in my entire life."
An awkward silence fell in the room, and Elise decided to break it. "Now that it's all settled, can I talk to my father?" That brought the nun to her senses.
"Oh, of course." She stood up and instructed the other nun to leave with a quick hand gesture. "If anything comes up, please don't hesitate to call us." She was still not quite herself when the other nun opened the door, revealing someone unexpected waiting outside.
Lord Avir Fortis stood next to the door. Elise noticed her father tense up upon seeing him. Lord Fortis leaned through the doorway and asked, "May I come in, my Lady, my Lord?"
Her father answered before she could. "Can you please give us a moment, Lord Fortis?" There was a slight coldness in his voice. Lord Fortis nodded and carefully closed the door. Had something happened between them?
"Are you alright, Father? You seem bothered."
He tried to look like nothing had happened, but he was never good at hiding such things. "Don't bother yourself with me. You... Are you really fine?"
"Father, I am perfectly alright." She slowly stood up to show him there was nothing to be concerned about. Her legs shook a little at first, but she quickly recovered. "Did something happen after the duel with Lord Fortis?"
Her father didn't seem to want to talk about it, but he could never resist his daughter's insistent stare. "He was supposed to handle that duel with the utmost care. I–" Realizing he had raised his voice, he lowered it before continuing, "I trusted him. But look what he did to you. The healers said there was a possibility you might never wake up, or even die. I was so worried!"
Elise could see how worried he was without him saying another word. He took constant deep breaths. He had dark circles under his eyes, meaning he hadn't slept well, if at all. His eyes darted wildly, preventing him from focusing on anything while talking, showing exactly how panicked he had been.
She hugged her father to calm him down. He hugged her back after a brief pause, as warm as always. Elise knew that even though he blamed Lord Avir Fortis, he blamed himself even more.
"All that happened was the result of my own decisions, Father. If there is anyone to blame, it is me. I pushed myself harder than I could handle. I am the cause of your worries. Lord Fortis only did what he had to. And you, of course, merely supported my decisions. I couldn't ask for more from you. So please, don't be too hard on yourself."
They stood there for a while, hugging each other until her father broke the silence. "Before I forget, you and your Master are no longer under arrest. The King himself declared your innocence, and although the Crown Prince didn't like it, there is nothing he can do about it."
Finally, this meaningless situation had come to an end. "I only came back here to bid you a proper farewell before I go. I didn't expect to cause this much trouble. I am happy to see it come to an end."
His face suddenly fell. "Do you really have to go?"
Elise didn't know he was still bothered by it. This whole situation and the duel were meant only for her to leave peacefully. Her father had supported her through it all, so she thought he had already accepted her leaving, but apparently, he had not.
"Father, I–" She wanted to explain herself, but her sentence was cut short by a knock on the door. The maid from earlier slowly stepped into the room.
"You have another visitor, my Lady, my Lord. Head Magician Gustave Vorony requests to see you."
Head Magician? Why would he be here? He was a weird one, as far as Elise could see. Whenever he was around, he cast curious looks at her. Since she had never felt any harmful intent from his gaze, she had let him be.
She looked at her father; perhaps he knew something, but he was equally surprised by the unexpected visitor.
"Let both of them in."
The maid went back out, and Lord Fortis and Head Magician Vorony stepped in. Lord Fortis was visibly uncomfortable. He tried not to make eye contact with her father, wearing a remorseful expression. But other than that, his strong and ever-vigilant posture remained.
Gustave Vorony, on the other hand, wore a cheerful expression on his wrinkly face. This made Elise even more curious about his intentions. Why would he even be here? Standing a couple of steps behind Lord Fortis, he was likely letting him speak first since the Lord had arrived before him.
"I am glad to see you on your feet again, young Lady Vandenberg." Lord Fortis offered a respectful bow. "I was worried you would not recover after hearing the healer's examination. You keep surprising everyone around you."
Elise returned his bow with her own. "I appreciate your compliments, Lord Fortis."
"I am not saying it just for the sake of it. Our duel... I have never experienced something like that. You are an exceptional warrior, my Lady, and I believe with proper guidance, you could achieve much more."
He glanced at her father before continuing. "This is the other reason I am here. I would like to take you under my guidance and train you to be a great commander of this Kingdom. If you want to, of course."
Well, she was not expecting that. She didn't know how to respond or even think about it. While she tried to grasp the situation, Gustave Vorony stepped in.
"It is nice to see I am not the only one." He moved next to Lord Fortis. "That is also why I came here as soon as I heard you were awake. You are exceptional, just as Avir said. You possess a really high potential for magic. The amount of mana you have is almost comparable to a high magician's. With proper teaching, you could be the greatest magician this world has ever seen. So, I propose the same: become my student, and I will make sure the entire world knows your name. What do you say?"
What was going on?! She could only stand there, staring at the two of them with her mouth open. After a brief moment, she remembered to breathe and looked to her father for support. But he was no different. He clearly was not expecting this either, yet Elise saw something more in his eyes.
Hope. He hoped she would accept their offers. That way, his beloved daughter could stay where he could still reach her.
She could say yes. She could stay and spar with one of the best warriors on the continent. She could learn the depths of this Realm's magic. She could become a great commander or a great scholar. She could work for her Kingdom's well-being and achieve great things under King Arteon himself and his successors. She could marry a noble, have kids, and die peacefully fulfilled.
If the old Elise had been in her place, she would have said yes without thinking. But now... there was no way she could stay after learning there were infinite Realms, infinite places she could travel, and infinite things to learn and experience. It was an obvious choice.
"I am truly flattered by your offers. But..." She glanced at her father. He already understood what her answer would be. "I couldn't have achieved any of the things you praise me for without my Master. I thank you for your offers, but I already have someone to follow."
Both looked slightly disappointed, but they didn't give the reaction Elise expected. She realized they hadn't expected her to accept in the first place.
"I respect your decision, young Lady Vandenberg. Just know you can always come back. The offer stands. I will leave you alone to rest." Lord Fortis headed to the door. "My Lady, my Lord." He nodded goodbye and left.
"I actually had a little hope," said Head Magician Vorony. "I don't know who that man is, but he was extraordinary as far as I could see. I hope you achieve your life's goal. I am curious to see what kind of person you turn out to be." He followed Lord Fortis. "My offer also stands."
Once again, she was alone with her father. Their previous moment was gone, and his sadness was visible on his face. This was the hardest part, the whole reason Elise had come back: to bid a proper farewell to her father.
"I should also leave; you need to rest after all." He moved halfheartedly toward the door.
"Father." He stopped and turned back. "I am sorry to disappoint you, but I really want to do this. I have seen things I cannot ignore for the rest of my life. I need to go. This is my calling; I can feel it."
He took a deep breath, shaking off his gloomy expression. "I know, my daughter. I don't want to make this hard for either of us. Whatever you choose to do, know that I will support you until the end. But please understand, it is not easy for me. I cannot simply stop worrying about you."
Elise stepped forward and hugged him. "I know. But don't worry. You saw what my Master is capable of. I will be fine, I assure you."
After he left, she began getting ready to leave. She only needed a couple of notebooks and her sword. The Traveler had visited her earlier and mentioned she wouldn't need her armor anymore, so she didn't bother wearing it. It needed repairs anyway.
The castle maids prepared her sturdy travel clothes per her request. One insisted she needed bigger luggage and more clothes—mostly dresses—to be ready for any situation. After a brief argument, the maid finally relented.
She also wanted to bid her mother farewell, but Kalena refused to see her. Elise had expected as much; she hadn't even visited when Elise woke up. Elise insisted on seeing her little brother, however. When her mother refused that as well, her father interfered and brought him to her.
When she was finally ready to leave, the Traveler appeared out of nowhere, as if he had been watching her all along.
"You ready?" he asked.
One last time, Elise looked out the window. She could see the buzzing streets of the Capital behind the castle walls. Beyond that lay the sharp mountain range that hid the territory of the Vandenberg family. Her home. She was about to leave everything behind and live her life as she had always wished. She took a deep breath and nodded. The journey of her life was about to begin.
"Good. Let's not waste any more time than we need to." He grabbed her shoulder, and before Elise could realize what had happened, their surroundings changed in the blink of an eye. They were standing in front of the Gate inside the Malargo Forest once again.
"This is the closest one; the other is on another continent. Give me some time to search for him." He put his hand on the smooth stone and closed his eyes. Not long after, he reached for her with his other hand without opening his eyes, smiling with satisfaction.
"Found him."
This time, she did not hesitate. Her first time traveling through the Gate was still fresh in her mind. How much time had passed since then? A year? Everything had happened so fast that she had lost track of time. Who knew when she would come back to this place?
"Come on, it is not easy to keep tracking him."
It was too late to think about such things. She had already decided. One had to leave their past behind to move forward. She held his hand. This time, without any regrets.