That voice, inexplicably sounding within her heart, left Columbina trembling with fear. Her figure flashed, and she teleported back to the underground Court of the Silver Moon.
As soon as her feet touched the ground, she immediately looked around, her gaze sweeping over every shadow and every fold in the rock walls, confirming that no strange entity had followed her. When her line of sight fell upon the entrance to the vertical shaft, her heart skipped a beat.
The passage leading to the surface was still open.
She immediately turned around and found a massive natural grey rock, about five meters square, at the edge of the cavern hall. With a thought, the rock vanished, instantly reappearing at the top of the shaft to seal the entrance airtight.
Having done this, she stood in the center of the sea of flowers, the pale purple halo gently wrapping around her. Her tense shoulders slowly relaxed.
But as her gaze grazed the sea of flowers and saw only a sparse few Moon Spirits wandering about, her heart rose again.
The Moon Spirits were still outside. Would that unknown existence hurt them? She had already lost one; she couldn't afford to lose any more. She immediately sank her consciousness into the Ley Lines, searching along the faint connections.
Most of the Moon Spirits were on the shoals surrounding Ilha Hiisi. Some were using their light orbs to tease sand crabs, some were rummaging for stones and shells of various colors, and others hung at the edge of the verdant forest, quietly observing the pacing of those giant blue deer.
A few had flown together to the north of the island, stopping at the peak of that highest sharp mountain. The Lunar Force there was exceptionally dense, and the Moon Spirits seemed to enjoy it greatly.
There were even a few bolder ones that had unexpectedly flown far away to another island east of Ilha Hiisi. Columbina spent some effort before finally catching their faint traces at the edge of the Ley Line information.
After confirming the locations of all Moon Spirits, she recalled them one by one. As each one returned, she would hold it in her hands, turning it over to check and confirming that the round light orb was undamaged and undimmed. Only after checking them all did she feel a sliver of relief.
She instructed them not to run around again, then turned and floated toward the wooden bed.
What did that voice say? "Children of the Frost Moon"... Coppelia should know who they are. And that voice that sounded directly in her heart—she had to ask about that too...
She floated to the bedside and extended her finger, wanting to touch Coppelia's cheek.
Her fingertip stopped an inch from the skin.
She needs rest now. Will I disturb her? But she has been lying there for a long time...
Columbina thought for a moment and made a decision: just one touch. If she didn't wake up, it meant she was sleeping soundly, and she wouldn't disturb her further.
Her index finger landed gently on Coppelia's cheek and pressed once.
Coppelia's eyes opened immediately. Her gaze swept over Columbina's face, and without waiting for the other to speak, she said, "You're hungry, right? I'll go get you something to eat."
After saying this, she propped herself up on the bed with her elbows, trying to sit up.
Columbina pressed one hand on her shoulder, pushing her gently back to her original position. "I've eaten. I'm not hungry now."
"Eaten?" A look of confusion appeared in Coppelia's eyes. "What did you eat?"
Columbina pointed to one side of the cave: "Roasted fish. I roasted it myself."
Coppelia turned onto her side and looked in that direction—there lay an extinguished fire pile, with some scattered ash and fish bones nearby. She turned back, looking at Columbina: "It's good that you're full." She paused, then asked, "Did you run into any other problems?"
Columbina asked first, "Do you feel better now? If you're uncomfortable, just keep resting."
Coppelia's lips curved into an arc. "Don't worry. The Abyss inside me isn't making too much of a fuss right now; chatting with you for a while is definitely fine." Her smile was no longer forced, and her enunciation was clear.
Seeing that Coppelia's condition wasn't bad, Columbina organized her thoughts. "I met a group of people on the island..."
She recounted her experience just now—following the Moon Spirit, discovering the buildings, hiding and observing, speaking to the deer, the sudden voice in her heart, and her panicked escape—exactly as it happened.
Coppelia listened quietly to the end, then nodded to indicate she understood.
"That group of people are the descendants of Hyperborea," she said slowly. "After their nation fell, the survivors migrated here. They believe in the Frost Moon, call themselves the Children of the Frost Moon, and have been waiting for the Moon God's response."
Believing in the Frost Moon, waiting for a response... Columbina asked, "Does that count as... waiting for me?"
"Yes." Coppelia looked at her. "However, it's better if you don't make contact with them for now."
"Are they very dangerous?"
"I wouldn't say dangerous." Coppelia weighed her words. "But... they have lost the moon for too long. If you suddenly appeared before them..." She paused, then summarized, "In short, avoid contact if you can. If you do run into them, absolutely do not display your power in front of them."
Columbina nodded. "I understand. I won't contact them."
Coppelia continued, "As for the voice in your heart... that should be what that deer said to you."
A talking deer? An existence like Cloud Retainer? Columbina froze for a moment and asked, "Is that deer... an Adeptus?"
How did we get to Adepti? Coppelia was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but let a light chuckle escape her throat.
"What's wrong?" Columbina was puzzled. "If that deer isn't an Adeptus, how can it speak human language?"
Coppelia explained patiently, "The animals of Nod-Krai have been soaked in Lunar Force for a long time. And you can precisely perceive the subtle fluctuations of Lunar Force within them, thereby understanding their intent. In a sense, all animals here can be counted as your kin." She looked at Columbina. "You understood that deer's thought at the time, and then spoke it within your own heart."
Columbina thought for a few seconds and said, "I understand."
Coppelia's palm rubbed gently against the bedding beneath her; the fabric was soft and thick. "Where did you get this bed?"
"Gunnhildr gave it to me."
Ran that far... No, for her, teleportation is just an instant. Coppelia asked, "How are things over in Mondstadt?"
Columbina recalled for a moment. "There is no more snow there."
Snow... Come to think of it, back when we were in the snow, I never took her to play in it, never even built a snowman. It was an oversight back then; I must make up for it later. A life without building a snowman is incomplete. Coppelia quietly noted this thought in her heart.
Columbina couldn't think of new questions for the moment. Coppelia also fell into her own thoughts. Silence descended between the two.
Columbina wanted to say something more. Once Coppelia fell asleep, who knew when she would wake next? She had to chat a bit longer while the other still had spirit.
Her perception wandered through the cavern hall, seeing the pale purple sea of flowers and the hanging vines, and found a topic.
"While you were resting," she spoke up, "I decorated this place a bit."
Coppelia withdrew from her thoughts and looked at her, then her gaze slowly swept across the entire Court of the Silver Moon.
The sea of flowers... the hanging vines... the scattered crescent-shaped white stones... the wandering Moon Spirits... and the "moon" emitting a soft light in the deepest part. Her line of sight swept past, comparing the scene before her eyes with the appearance in her memories.
Seeing her watching intently, Columbina asked, "Does it look good?"
Coppelia moved her gaze back to her face. "It's very pretty. It's already very similar to the Court of the Silver Moon I've seen." She paused, then added, "Truly amazing."
Columbina felt a burst of jubilation. She asked again, "Do you like it?"
"Of course I like it!"
This affirmation made Columbina even more delighted. Her toes tapped the ground gently, and her body floated forward, hopping as if in a low-gravity environment, landing almost soundlessly. In this ethereal manner, she advanced hop by hop for a dozen steps, landing in the center of the sea of flowers about ten meters from the bed. She turned around, hands behind her back, facing Coppelia.
Next, she began to mobilize the Lunar Force around her body. The power was precisely constrained to an extremely small range around her, with not a single thread of excess fluctuation escaping the sea of flowers. Thus, Coppelia felt no discomfort from the rise in Lunar Force concentration.
Following her control, the pale purple sea of flowers began to ripple with color changes, centered on where she stood. The purple faded, and a clear, azure blue infiltrated outward ring by ring, like ink drops falling into water.
In just a few breaths, the entire sea of flowers seemed to transform into a tranquil lake, and Columbina, standing in the center, was like a white dove perched in the heart of the azure lake.
Coppelia leaned against the pillow, watching unblinkingly. Her lips parted slightly, somewhat entranced by the sight.
Seeing the other so focused, Columbina wanted to show even more.
She looked at this azure blue she had lit up herself and had an idea. She beckoned to the nearby Moon Spirits. Several Moon Spirits gathered around and began to circle her slowly.
Subsequently, Columbina's feet left the ground. She did not fly, but rather "swam" through the air like a fish.
Her body traced a soothing and graceful arc; her pure white dress rippled out like unfurling fin-gauze, and her black waist-length hair drifted gently in the invisible "current."
The Moon Spirits floated up with her, mimicking her trajectory, swimming together.
At this moment, the Court of the Silver Moon seemed to have sunk to the bottom of deep waters. The azure flower-light was the rippling shimmer of water, the hanging vines were swaying waterweeds. Columbina led that string of glowing Moon Spirits, like a lively silver fish in the deep sea leading a school of fish following her, drawing silent and fluid patterns in the quiet "water."
Coppelia watched this scene, unexpectedly forgetting the churning and dull pain in her abdomen entirely. She propped herself up on the bed board with her elbows and sat straight up, her gaze tightly pursuing that silent "underwater performance." A long-lost sense of surprise, similar to when she first saw the colorful schools of fish upon entering the waters of Fontaine, surged into her heart.
Columbina cruised a few more circles above the sea of flowers, finally "swimming" lightly toward the depths of the cavern hall. She landed atop that ten-meter-high "moon," sat down steadily, and beckoned to Coppelia.
The Moon Spirits also drifted toward that sphere of light, clustering above, below, and around it, packing it full like a swarm of moths attached to a light source.
Coppelia watched the whole process. Sitting relaxed on the bed now, she smiled and waved at Columbina.
But the waving motion only lasted a few times. The Abyss power within her body began to grow restless again. The dizziness and needle-like pain became clear and intense once more.
Her hand dropped, and her body slowly leaned back, lying down on the bed again. She deliberately made her movements appear smooth and natural, not wanting the figure in the distance to spot any clues.
Columbina, sitting on the "moon," saw the action of her lying down and understood her meaning. With a thought, she reined in the dissipating Lunar Force.
Below, the color of that lake-like azure sea of flowers began to fade silently. The blue lightened, blending into purple, and finally returned to a pale purple shrouded in a dreamlike halo.
The churning of the Abyss power within Coppelia followed no pattern, and her waking times became unpredictable.
In order to look after her at any time, Columbina's range of activity for the following days was limited to a few small islands on the west side of Ilha Hiisi. She caught fish along the coast and observed the nearby terrain.
As expected, Coppelia now needed to eat. Columbina had considered roast fish, but cooked food could not be stored for long.
Thus, she would go to the dwellings of the Children of the Frost Moon, quietly teleporting away some dried meat strips or nuts, and compensating them with fresh fish.
The Children of the Frost Moon did not notice anything amiss. There were many active animals around the island; they simply assumed it was an exchange brought by some intelligent wild beast.
During the times she waited for Coppelia to wake, Columbina mostly sat atop that ten-meter-high "moon" in a daze, or looked down at the Moon Spirits wandering in the sea of flowers.
Sometimes, she would think of that future Coppelia had mentioned—that a person would come to the Court of the Silver Moon and take her home.
What kind of person would that be? She imagined. They should be very powerful, and willing to help others.
But compared to the other party's identity, she cared more about another question.
When Coppelia woke up once again, Columbina floated to the bedside and asked, "You said that a person who can take me home will come here. When will that person come?"
Coppelia, lying on the bed, thought for a while. "A long, long time from now."
"How long?" Columbina pressed.
She changed to a more specific way of asking: "How many years later?"
Coppelia pondered carefully for a moment, a smile appearing on her face. "Better not tell you for now."
"Is it very long?"
Coppelia did not answer.
"A few years?" Columbina looked at her.
The other remained silent.
"Decades?" Columbina's voice lowered a bit. "Centuries?"
When she said "centuries," her voice was so weak it was almost inaudible.
Seeing her so persistent, Coppelia finally answered, "Two thousand five hundred years."
Columbina was stunned. She looked at Coppelia, seeming not to have heard clearly, and asked again, her voice very light, "How... how much?"
"Two thousand five hundred years."
A year has more than three hundred and sixty days and nights. Two thousand five hundred years meant more than nine hundred thousand days and nights.
Columbina's shoulders slumped. She spoke no more, simply hanging her head as she walked to the bedside and slowly sat down by Coppelia's hand.
____
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