"This house is so beautiful, Eriri. Do you think I could come and stay here for a few days every now and then?"
After touring the villa, the High Elf Archer—who had fallen in love with everything about it—looked at Eriri with hopeful eyes, eagerly asking for permission to stay.
After all, this place wasn't far from the Forest Princess' capital. If anything happened there, she could easily rush back to help. More importantly, she wanted to live closer to the World Gate so she could travel to other worlds whenever she pleased.
"Don't say 'borrow.' This place was built for group members like you. Even if you decide to move in permanently, that's perfectly fine," Eriri said, gently ruffling the High Elf Archer's hair with a soft smile.
Though the elf was more than a hundred times older than Eriri, in Eriri's eyes she seemed no different from an innocent girl in her early teens.
Hearing that, the High Elf Archer immediately raised her right hand excitedly. "Yay! Then I'm moving in for good!"
She quickly turned to her sister. "Sister, come live here with me too!"
"No problem." Frelia nodded without hesitation, readily agreeing to her younger sister's request.
"Alright then, since we've finished touring the villa, it's time to let you experience the World Gate firsthand."
Eriri withdrew her hand from the High Elf Archer's head and smiled at both sisters.
"Mm-hmm! I've been waiting for this!" The High Elf Archer nodded eagerly, grabbing both Eriri and Frelia by the hands before dragging them enthusiastically toward the door.
Soon, the three of them stood once more before the grand entrance.
"So, I just need to open it, right?" The High Elf Archer asked, her face full of anticipation as she looked at the door.
"That's right," Eriri said with a nod. "But remember—before you open it, you have to think about going to another world."
She didn't rush to activate it herself, giving the opportunity to the High Elf Archer to satisfy her curiosity.
"Got it!" the elf replied, wasting no time as she reached out and pushed the door open.
In an instant, a mysterious and ethereal passageway shimmered into existence before her eyes.
"So this is the passage that connects to the Saekano world?! It looks so magical…"
The High Elf Archer's voice was full of wonder as she gazed at the swirling dimensional path. Unable to resist, she extended her right hand toward it. When her forearm disappeared smoothly into the portal, her expression turned even more fascinated.
Beside her, Frelia also watched with great curiosity—it was her first time seeing a World Gate in person as well. Saying she wasn't intrigued would have been a lie.
Meanwhile, Eriri stood nearby with a serene smile, calmly observing their reactions. She had already expected this kind of excitement.
"Frelia, Arelis," she said softly, stepping closer behind them and placing both hands gently on their shoulders, "you two go on ahead first. Yue-chan will take good care of you. I still have some matters to attend to in this world."
"Eh? You have something to do? Then how about we come along and help you?" The High Elf Archer immediately pulled her half-immersed arm back from the portal, turning to look at Eriri.
Frelia also didn't move toward the Saekano world. Instead, she turned around and took hold of Eriri's left hand, gripping it tightly.
"Arelis is right. Let us go with you. We'll help you with whatever it is—and then we can all go together afterward."
Eriri didn't answer right away. Her eyes lingered on the two sisters for several seconds before she finally nodded with a faint smile.
"Alright. If you insist, you can come with me."
"Hehe, that's more like it~" the High Elf Archer giggled happily, immediately closing the door and sealing the World Gate.
Although she was dying to explore another world, the chance to accompany Eriri took absolute priority.
At that moment, Frelia—still holding Eriri's left hand—suddenly spoke again.
"Eriri, what exactly do you need to take care of?" Frelia asked curiously.
"It's nothing major," Eriri replied casually, her lips curving into an amused smile. "I just need to meet the Sword Maiden—and then prepare an interesting little game centered around her."
...
Far away from the Forest Princess' capital, in a bustling human city, a young, newly registered adventurer stepped into the Adventurers' Guild for the first time.
She looked about fifteen years old—still a little immature. Her golden hair was tied neatly into a ponytail, and her fair, rosy face was flawless. The moment she entered the guild hall, her presence immediately drew the attention of many adventurers.
Her clear, sky-blue eyes shone with excitement and hope for the adventures ahead. In her hand, she held a finely crafted staff about one and a half meters long—clearly marking her as a cleric.
Just as she was wondering which party she should try to join, a voice suddenly called out from behind her.
"Hey there! Excuse me, are you already part of an adventuring party?"
The young cleric turned around. Behind her stood a boy in light armor, holding a long spear. Beside him were two other adventurers—a girl in a black mage's robe and hood, and another girl in light armor with a sword strapped across her back.
All three looked to be around the same age as the cleric—fresh-faced, full of youthful energy. It was obvious they were all rookies, probably only a few days ahead of her in their adventuring careers.
Facing the smiling spear-wielder, the young cleric grew slightly nervous. She bowed politely and replied, "Hello. I just registered as an adventurer not long ago, so I haven't joined any party yet."
The young spearman's face immediately brightened. "That's perfect! You're a priest, right? Our party just happens to be missing a healer. How about you join us on an adventure?"
"Yeah!" the girl swordsman chimed in enthusiastically. "We're pretty strong, you know. With your support, our team's strength will definitely rise to a whole new level!"
The young mage didn't speak, quietly standing by and observing the exchange with a calm expression.
"This…" The cleric hesitated. But after a moment's thought, she decided there was no harm in accepting. They didn't seem like bad people—and she had been planning to find a party anyway.
After a brief pause, she nodded with a smile. "Alright. If you don't mind having me, I'd be happy to join your party."
"Great!" the spearman grinned. "We just accepted an urgent quest. It's something we could easily handle even on our own, but with you here, it'll be a total breeze!"
"An urgent quest?" the cleric asked curiously.
"Yeah—it's a Goblin Subjugation mission," he explained.
"Goblin?" she echoed softly.
"That's right. Those creatures attacked a village, stole food and livestock, and even kidnapped some girls. We've gotta hurry and rescue them!"
The moment she heard that last part, the cleric's expression turned serious. "In that case, we can't waste time! We need to go right away!"
"Exactly! It's just a bunch of goblins. With the four of us, it'll be an easy victory," the spearman said confidently, brimming with youthful pride.
The swordsman girl and the mage both nodded in agreement, none of them showing the slightest concern. To them, goblins were low-tier monsters—not worth fearing.
"Let's hurry and get this mission over with," the mage added nonchalantly.
And so, the four rookie adventurers set out together toward the goblins' nest—a journey that would soon change their lives forever.
...
Half an hour later, on a quiet street not far from the Adventurers' Guild, three radiant figures suddenly appeared out of thin air.
The three figures who appeared were none other than Eriri, Frelia, and the High Elf Archer, who had come all the way from the Forest Princess' capital.
However, by this point, several hundred years had already passed since Eriri first arrived in this world.
After explaining her plan to Frelia and the High Elf Archer, Eriri had simply shifted the timeline forward—jumping several centuries ahead to the present moment.
Neither Frelia nor the High Elf Archer objected to this. As long-lived elves, a few hundred years meant little to them; their absence over such a span wouldn't cause any disruption to their people.
After crossing through time, Eriri used teleportation to bring the two of them directly into the human city.
Her goal for arriving in this particular timeline was simple—to rescue the Sword Maiden, who was about to face the horrors of goblins.
The young cleric who had just joined an adventuring party and set out for the goblins' lair was, in truth, the Sword Maiden herself—newly departed from her temple to begin her first adventure.
For the sake of preparing her new "game," Eriri hadn't warned the Sword Maiden or given her overwhelming power to easily crush the goblins.
Instead, she wanted the girl to witness firsthand the cruelty and filth of those creatures.
Of course, since the Sword Maiden was Eriri's chosen protagonist, she would never allow her to be defiled by goblins. When the crucial moment came, Eriri would intervene and save her.
As for the three rookie adventurers accompanying her—Eriri had no particular concern for their fates. Whether they survived or not would depend entirely on their luck. If they were to die before Eriri appeared, it would simply mean their fortune had run out.
...
"Eriri, are we going to meet the Sword Maiden right away?" the High Elf Archer asked while clinging to Eriri's arm, her eyes full of curiosity as she looked around the unfamiliar city.
Having lived in the Forest Princess' capital for over two thousand years, this was her first time visiting a human city, and everything fascinated her.
She had always dreamed of becoming an adventurer and exploring this world—but after learning about the existence of other worlds, her ambitions grew far greater. Still, she hadn't given up on adventuring here either.
"There's no rush," Eriri said lightly. "Let's walk around the city for a bit first."
It had only been half an hour since the Sword Maiden left the Adventurers' Guild, and according to Eriri's perception, she would need quite some time to reach the goblin nest.
Everything the Sword Maiden did was under Eriri's watch. The moment she encountered danger, Eriri would instantly appear before her.
The High Elf Archer naturally had no objection to this plan—if anything, she was delighted. She loved exploring, and the idea of wandering through a new city excited her immensely.
Frelia, on the other hand, simply followed along quietly. She wasn't here to meet the Sword Maiden—her only reason for coming was to accompany Eriri.
Whatever Eriri decided to do, Frelia would never question it.
And so, with the two elf sisters affectionately accompanying her on either side, Eriri began her leisurely stroll through the bustling human city.
...
Nearly two hours later, the Sword Maiden and her newly joined adventuring party finally reached their destination.
"So this is the goblins' den, huh? We finally made it," the young spearman said, his voice showing a hint of fatigue as he looked toward the cave entrance several meters ahead.
Even so, his excitement over his first real mission hadn't diminished in the slightest.
Two hours of walking had tired him out, but only slightly—he was, after all, in good shape. The young swordswoman beside him was also fine; though her stamina wasn't quite as good as his, a two-hour trek was still well within her limits.
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