"Say 3, 2, 1, 1, 2, 3 with me — I will always love Elysia!" In the darkness, Shun vaguely heard someone speaking.
"I will always love E… Eh, that's not right!" Shun jolted awake as if electrocuted, his body reflexively sitting up. However, in that instant, he suddenly felt his forehead slam into something extremely hard. The impact made his vision go black, his head buzzing, nearly causing him to faint again.
"Oh dear, it's not good for boys to be too impatient!" Elysia touched her slightly reddened forehead and said with a somewhat aggrieved expression.
"So… I'm back?" Shun stood up again and looked at the European classical-style courtyard filled with elegance. If he remembered correctly, this was the "Elysian Realm," a "Elysian Realm" that did not exist in reality.
"That's right. It was all thanks to Elysia's efforts! How about that? Pretty amazing, right?" Shun looked at Elysia, who looked exactly the same as when he had left. Her pink-blue eyes were full of anticipation.
She really wants to be praised, huh…
"As expected of Elysia, you can actually do something this miraculous. If it weren't for you, I might have died for good in the Moskva River…"
"Ehehe, you can praise me even more~" Hearing Shun's praise, Elysia narrowed her eyes happily.
"Yes, yes, yes. Elysia is the best. Truly worthy of being the Flawless One, the Ego Herrscher of the Thirteen Flame-Chasers, the second seat of Fire Moth — Elysia."
In truth, Shun didn't really know how to praise people, but he knew that Elysia would be genuinely happy when praised like this, and that was enough.
Shun slightly raised his head, his gaze slowly turning toward Elysia standing not far away. A trace of doubt and hesitation appeared in his eyes, as if he wasn't entirely sure about what he was going to say next. Finally, after a brief silence, Shun parted his lips and asked Elysia in a slightly hesitant tone.
"By the way, Elysia, do you think I succeeded?"
Elysia was stunned for a moment, seemingly puzzled why Shun would say such a thing. However, she didn't know what Shun had experienced during the consciousness projection, so she could only look into his eyes and say gently, "Well, what do you think? Did you change anything? Don't ask me — it's up to you to feel it yourself."
"I probably changed something… but I seem to have been too restrained. Because the future me had already decided the past, whenever I did anything, I kept thinking about what the future me would do… But is that really right?"
Elysia listened to Shun's outpouring and smiled gently. "Then have you ever thought that the future you might also feel lost, just like the current you, coming to Elysia with a face that looks like you're about to cry to pour your heart out?"
"We're talking about serious matters, stop joking…" Several black lines appeared on Shun's forehead, somewhat speechless at Elysia's playful nature.
"Of course it's serious! Shun, don't separate the future you from the current you. Although the time periods are different, you are both Shun. The thoughts in your heart won't change. So no matter when, you must always believe in your own heart. Believe in your heart, and don't worry about other factors. Being your true, original self is the best!"
Shun gave a bitter smile. "But what if the original me isn't that great? He might be weak, cowardly, incompetent, fickle, lacking courage, small, and stupid…" Elysia's outstretched hand firmly covered his mouth.
"Alright, alright. Even if it's Shun saying this about Elysia's good friend, I will still get angry! Boys should be more confident! You are already very good. No — in Elysia's eyes, you are the best, without exception!" Elysia said seriously. Her sincere tone showed not a trace of falsehood.
Elysia was always like this… But considering her setting of never lying, such praise made Shun feel much more at ease. Taking the opportunity, he half-jokingly said, "Then, am I more beautiful than Kevin in the north of the city?"
"You are extremely beautiful, Kevin cannot compare to you!" Elysia quickly responded, catching Shun somewhat off guard.
Leaving aside whether Elysia was illiterate or not, this was clearly classical Chinese that only appeared in the Current Era. How would Elysia know it? Shun felt that his sudden whim might have uncovered some incredible secret.
"What's wrong?" Elysia waved her hand in front of Shun's eyes and blinked her large pink-blue eyes.
"Nothing. Let's get back to the main topic. In the future, will I see you every time I perform a consciousness projection?" This was another question Shun needed to clarify. If he could receive Elysia's help every time, he would be able to do a lot.
"No~ If in the timeline you project into, Elysia is not in the Elysian Realm, then I'm afraid even I won't be able to respond to your expectations." Elysia shook her head, shattering Shun's fantasy.
"I see. That makes sense." Shun hadn't really expected to receive such help every time anyway. Elysia's Authority was equivalent exchange. Helping him like this probably wasn't easy for her either.
"By the way, can I take this thing back with me?" Shun took out the pink rose that sealed Cecilia's consciousness and looked at Elysia with hopeful eyes.
He had already sealed Sirin's consciousness using the Core of the Herrscher of the Void. It would later be placed on Kiana by Otto. However, he didn't know what to do with the pink crystal flower containing Cecilia.
Come to think of it, if Sirin was the Herrscher consciousness on Kiana, then during the Third Honkai Impact in Nagazora City, when he used Taixu Sword God on Sirin, she hadn't resisted at all, which made sense now… Wait, why did he feel like he had gone in such a big circle? If he had directly used the Sword God on Mei back then, there wouldn't have been so much trouble afterward?
"No~ Unlike you, although this crystal flower is my creation, it is something that truly only exists in this spacetime. It is different from you, who does not belong to this world.
"So, even if I preserve Cecilia's soul, I still can't revive her?" This made it sound like all his efforts had been in vain. Although he had saved Sirin, Cecilia…
"Idiot! I only said you can't take it to the future. I never said everything you did was wasted. Since you can't take it away, just change it to a carrier that can guarantee it goes to the future! Have you forgotten where we are?"
"The Elysian Realm?"
"Wrong. It's Imaginary Space~" Elysia corrected him.
"Imaginary Space? But if I leave it in Imaginary Space…" Shun still remembered how Teacher Himeko, who had fallen into Imaginary Space, had been found by a thousand people.
"Sigh, then let Teacher Elysia help enlighten that not-so-bright little brain of yours… The answer is right here."
Elysia suddenly stepped forward and hugged Shun, her arms wrapping around his neck as she pointed at the back of his neck.
Before Shun could react, she tilted her head and smiled. "Now do you understand? Idiot Shun!"