"I used a sleeping powder. I'm surprised it worked to be completely honest." Takeshi rubbed his hands through his hair. "So much for staying under the radar, huh?" he asked. Maru sat up on the bed.
"There was a boy and his two sisters... they were losing their mother! For what??? So the owner could use the boy for a cheap laborer?? He does not deserve..." Maru began, but Takeshi cut her off.
"Maru! Do you hear yourself? It's a damn ga..." Takeshi said but then stopped looking at Haru. "Can you let us speak in private??" he asked. Haru looked to Maru for a response. She just gave him a nod.
"Miss, I don't think it to be wise to.." Haru began but stopped when both Takeshi and Maru glared at him. "If you need anything, I'll be right outside." he said as he bowed and left the room. Takeshi waved his hand around. Maru already knew he was putting up a sound barrier. Then his eyes landed on Maru.
"They're not real people, Maru! It's a damn game! And have you thought of the possibility that you could be seen as a bug or a glitch in the game?? Then there's an update to eliminate you?? We have no leads on where you're at in the real world at all or what is going on. Yet here you are playing heroine! Not to mention, people are sure to find out sooner or later that Lady Kyomi has returned and then what? Do you have a plan for when wars break out over a global server? Thousands that want to help you gain power to make the realms peaceful again, the other thousands that want to kill you to make an example out of you, or the remaining thousands that just want to use you to create utter carnage and chaos just cause?? Do you have a plan?!" Takeshi grilled her. Tears began to swell in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. He had already seen her cry once, not again.
"No. I have no plan. No, I have not forgotten that this world is a game. I just.. I couldn't sit back and watch it. It's all real to me. I'm in here. Not on a console or a computer. I feel the grass, the water, the breeze... touch." she said as she moved her hand on the blanket. "Perhaps I did forget for a moment... but if I'm here... how are you sure that absolutely none of them are???" she asked. This made Takeshi freeze. The thought had never crossed his mind. It would not be unimaginable seeing as Maru was here. On top of that... these npc characters had tons of dialogue available compared to most. A sigh left his lips.
"So annoying." Takeshi whispered. He sat down in the chair. Maru stood up and moved to the other one. "It took forever, but I did finally find some information on Kyomi. Father is the king of woodland elves pure blood. No information could be found about the mother.." he began.
"Her name was Maru. She was mixed blood. A traitor not only to the woodland elves but the dark elves as well. I don't know what treason she committed, but..." said Maru. Takeshi stared at her, processing the information. He started nodding.
"I'll look into the dark elf archives, but I'm guessing it's been stricken from all of them." he said as he stood up.
"Wait! There's also the vision! I completely forgot about it till now..." Maru then explained what had happened at breakfast the other day.
"The gift of foresight is highly rare to the point of nonexistent. There hasn't been a record of a dark elf possessing the gift for at least ten thousand years. However, I will look into that as well. I'll be back in a while." said Takeshi. Then he was gone. The barrier he had put up disappeared with him. Maru moved to the door and opened it. She expected to find Haru standing there, but he was nowhere to be found.
"Haru???" she called out. There was a group of the 'working' ladies that passed by. "Excuse me, ladies??" asked Maru. The women must not have heard her since they did not even acknowledge her. She walked down the stairs and into the garden. There was music playing and chatter between the guests of the inn. Then everything grew quiet. It took a minute for Maru to realize that everyone was looking in her direction. She looked around her, trying to figure out if something was happening around her. There was nothing of significance.
"Maru!" a familiar voice called out. She turned to see Haru walking up to her. He glanced around them. "We should head back to the room." he said as he motioned toward the stairs. Maru turned, and they headed to the room. Haru closed the door behind them. "News about you is being spread throughout Telan."
"They know who I am???" Maru worriedly asked. Haru shook his head.
"No. They're all talking about what you did to the innkeep and the owner of the apothecary. They're also talking about what you did for the four families and for Makoto's mother." answered Haru. She sighed at his answer. As long as her identity was intact, she could care less about the gossip. She moved towards the bed to lay down. "Miss, aren't you worried??"
"No. I already know that they're all scared but impressed. Thankful but suspicious. Let them wrestle it out on their own. I don't need to clear my name. I did what I did. There's no changing that." she said as she layed down of the bed. "I'm exhausted, Haru. I'm going to lay down for a while. You should rest as well. I'm sure Takeshi will be back with an update soon." Haru nodded, then moved to his own bed.
Maru curled up on the bed. She kept running everything in her head. Her body was that of an elf, but to her, she felt no different than being a human. Exhaustion still hit her like it would normally would even though it should not. Maybe she was not this amazing princess like everyone thought. What if the game did see her as a glitch? She just wanted to go home. Why did it have to be her? Her thoughts paused. But why did she care so much to go home? There was nothing and nobody there for her. She remembered being in the valley of Kyomi before being transported in. It was so peaceful. Her thoughts about being in the valley lulled her to sleep finally. There was a warm breeze and the smell of wild flowers in her nose. Was she dreaming of the valley since she fell asleep thinking about it?
Her eyes opened to see a clear blue sky again. Wait, was that a real clear blue sky? The more her eyes focused on it, the more she realized it was a ceiling tile. Maru tried to move but she could not. Was she in the real world??? Quickly, her eyes scanned the room. The breeze was not a breeze at all, but a fan and the smell of flowers were a diffuser! She had to be back in the real world! And from the looks of it, a hospital room! Then she could hear people talking!!! She tried to say hello and tried to move but it was no use! Her vision was blurry, but she could see a man standing towards the top of her head.
"Hurry!! The meds, she's coming out of it!!!" said the man. She tried to speak, but suddenly, she could feel herself slipping out of consciousness! 'No! No! Nooooo!' she thought to herself. Quickly, she sat up and opened her eyes! "The.. the valley of Kyomi?!" yelled Maru. "How??? How did I get here?" she whispered. Her head began to hurt. What was reality, and what was fake??? Was she still sleeping in the game? Or was she awake??? Was the hospital room real or just a dream?? Maru looked all around her. Then she looked down to see what she was wearing. It was still the clothes her and Maru bought. There was a sound she did not recognize, and then Takeshi stood beside her.
"The Valley of Kyomi?? Why did you leave the inn??? Where's your guard??" Takeshi asked. Maru sat speechless, still trying to comprehend what was going on. Takeshi bent down to her level and grabbed her by the arms. "Maru?! Are you ok?? Why are you here???" he asked. She shook her head as a tear rolled down her face. "Maru?! Why won't you say anything??"
"I... I don't know." she answered quietly. Takeshi stared at her, waiting for her to say more, but she just sat there.
"I'll teleport us back to the inn." he said as he began to do the spell. Maru quickly grabbed his arm.
"Wait!" she yelled as he stopped mid spell. "I... I think my body in the real world is in a hospital!"