“Ren! You meanie.” Alice stormed at Ren and jabbed a finger at him. “Why didn’t you help me? I could have died!”
By this time, Alice’s head was already attached to her neck. She was pouting and glaring, but she couldn’t look any deader with the lack of color on her face.
“Who is she?” Isolde questioned.
Hearing that, Alice stared at Isolde and curtsied. This time, she made sure to keep her head in its rightful place. “My name’s Alice. Nice to meet you . . . ?”
“Isolde.”
“Isolde. A pleasure. I’m Ren’s new maid. And I’ll be helping him around in exchange for freeing me.”
Isolde stared at Ren with questioning eyes.
“I saved her in one of the rooms here,” Ren began and just as well ended. “She’s a ghost maid, and she can keep our HQ nice and tidy.”
“Oh? That’s good news. I’m sure Hubert will be happy.”
“What do you mean, ghost?” Alice butt in. “I’m perfectly alive.” As she said so, her hand fell off when she dramatically waved them.
“Agh! Not again!” Alice scrambled to pick up her arm and attached it to her shoulder. “I can’t wait to get out of here, so I can find a healer that can cure me of this curse.”
Isolde stared Ren in the eyes.
“Don’t ask,” sighed Ren.
Their talk came to a halt when everything suddenly turned into a blur and then into pixels, while the players and NPCs alike dissolved into particles.
“Egh? Did we die?” Isolde asked.
“No, we’re probably teleporting into the surface since Jibblinplip is gone.”
“Ren,” Sebastian called. “Tell Evie that I’ll be waiting for her in Lone Valley. Meriyaah’s second item needs a new master.”
“Will do.”
The centaur’s stony face turned tender as he smiled. “It’s been a pleasure working with you,” he said before bursting into particles.
“Likewise.”
Particles boomed everywhere, clouding the vanishing room with translucent white lights. While everyone was teleported on the surface, Sebastian went on his way to Lone Valley, not staying another second in the presence of mortals.
The Princess and the armies didn’t have any rest either because there was another World Boss that needed their attention.
“The Empire’s battalion had already arrived,” reported a scout. “But they are currently engaged with the Kraken.”
“Gather every last one of your soldiers, and go to the nearest Port Town to set sail toward the Kraken at once. Use the Empire’s insignia if you have to, so the sailors would agree to take you to the monster.”
“Yes!”
“What about you?” a general asked the Princess.
“I can fly, so you don’t need to concern yourself with me. You go first. I have something to do here,” as she said so, her eyes were to Ren.
Ren and Isolde were the only players left after Jibblinplip was banished back to its plane. Because they were active throughout the battle, she would give them a reward, and now was the time to receive them.
At the side, Alice praised the heavens, feeling thankful to the point of kissing the earth. She was finally free from her imprisonment inside Jibblinplip’s accurse belly!
“Agh! Praise the God, Vanadel! I’m finally out of that accursed place!” Alice then twirled, taking in the surroundings in one fell swoop. “Ah! The fresh breeze. The sunshine. The animals! I miss all of it!”
“You mean the dust and smoke from the battle,” Ren muttered.
“Though, how many days have I been trapped inside that thing? I can’t seem to recognize where this is,” Alice told Ren. “It’s as if everything has changed. There used to be a lot of forests and lakes and mountains. What happened when I was away?”
“They obviously got destroyed to make way for towns,” answered Ren before thoroughly ignoring her and searching for Evie amidst the crowds that were dispersing. A voice suddenly sounded from behind, stealing his attention.
“Ren, right?”
Ren didn’t expect that the Princess would come at him after they defeated Jibblinplip. Could it be some quest?
“Yes. Is there something you need?”
The Princess smiled behind her mask. “I want you to have this.”
[ACQUIRED! The Renais Empire’s Insignia!]
Ren was surprised to receive the Empire’s emblem. This was a special token that couldn’t be bought nor acquired just because one wanted it. This was an item that only the Empire Royal Family could give away.
The Empire’s Emblem would allow him to get 10% off in every store in the Human Continent. With this, he could even enter the castle and request an audience from the Princess or the Emperor himself. Although low, it was better than zero percent.
“Thank you,” Ren said.
The Princess nodded in approval of Ren’s attitude.
[Your Relationship Level with ???? increase!]
“We need more warriors like you,” she told him. “One that is brave and lucky enough to survive a World Boss. You have done a great job in defending our continent, Sprite. And for that, you have our gratitude.”
After the Princess said that, she took her leave and approached Isolde, who was making her way toward Ren in high spirits. However, Isolde’s plan to approach Ren was thwarted when the Princess blocked her way and started speaking to her.
Ren searched for Evie again when someone nudged at his robe. He ignored it, thinking it was just Alice being annoying again. But when he looked, he found the dead girl on the side, busy reattaching her hand back to its rightful place.
Looking down, Ren’s heart skipped a beat when he finally found her.
“Evie. Where have you been? What happened to you? Why didn’t you reply to my messages?” Ren fired questions without pause.
He then noticed something off about her, and his eyes immediately zoomed in on the ooze on her shoulder. It was small, white in color, with big sparkly eyes, and it was hopping on her shoulder. As it did, it produced a bobbing sound like that of bubbles.
“What’s that?”
