As Elara was carried by the mysterious white light to an unknown destination, she remained entirely calm and composed.
Elara didn't react at all when her surroundings began to change colors in a mesmerizing manner, as if trying to capture her attention.
The 9-year-old girl's body appeared serene, devoid of any panic in response to the preceding events. It was akin to floating on the surface of a tranquil sea, where calmness prevailed, and neither her surroundings nor herself uttered a sound.
However, her mind was completely absorbed by an issue she couldn't ignore or dismiss.
Moments before the portal was about to close, the transformation of the unfamiliar woman named Rhea into a very familiar figure etched itself vividly into her memory. The mere thought of it caused her head to throb intensely, as if struck by a hammer.
"Is the woman named Rhea really my mother?"
No matter how much evidence she had, for Elara, accepting the reality that her mother and Rhea were the same person remained incredibly difficult.
It was hard to fathom that two individuals with such contrasting personalities, albeit identical in appearance except for the facial scars, were the same.
'Let's set Rhea's identity aside and ponder why she attempted to erase my memories from 4 years ago,' Elara contemplated.
She recalls Rhea pressing her forehead to her 5-year-old self's forehead.
'Is that why I forgot all about this absurd incident 4 years ago, and when I managed to remember it, my head hurt so much as if it was preventing me from remembering? Because of Rhea's previous actions that didn't want me to remember?' Elara tries to piece together the mysterious reason for the strangeness that happened to her.
"But... why?"
Various strange situations that had been occurring throughout the day were increasingly confounding her thought process.
"Hah. From the beginning, why is all of this happening to me?"
Muttering to herself, Elara tilted her head slightly, gazing around at what appeared to be a tunnel with an indifferent expression.
Currently, she was surrounded by a white light enveloping her body, mysteriously flying through this colorful tunnel without a clear explanation.
Nevertheless, she didn't protest. Not only was she tired, but she also felt comfortable with this strange white light that wrapped around her warmly.
'Is it because I was reincarnated with my previous memories intact, deemed a mistake, and whoever made that mistake decided to punish me slowly like this?'
Elara narrowed her eyes as if displeased with her thoughts.
'Who even asked to be reincarnated into another world with intact memories like this?!' she exclaimed in frustration.
From the start, she had hoped to live a peaceful life, enjoying a normal existence without any burdens at all. But somehow, it seemed increasingly difficult to achieve that simple desire, whether in her first life or her second.
Elara felt a strong urge to release the pent-up emotions that had been building inside her due to these mysterious incidents. She needed to vent her frustration before she truly went mad from the stress.
'In this strange world with peculiar powers, I, a reincarnation from the modern world, seek no power. I just want to live peacefully with my mother, leading an ordinary life. Establishing a delightful bakery was my way to secure a comfortable life. Did I unintentionally offend some powerful entity here, disrupting my peaceful existence?' Elara's thoughts wandered uncontrollably, emotions spiraling.
If only she could speak, she'd babble like a broken radio.
Suddenly, the white light surrounding Elara's body began to tremble intensely, as if sensing her anger and frustration. The light seemed to be influenced by her emotions.
"Huh?" Elara was startled when she felt the strange vibration coming from the white light enveloping her. The vibration grew stronger and more intense.
However, her surprise didn't last long. Out of nowhere, droplets of water appeared and headed toward Elara, specifically toward the white light that enveloped her like a transparent shroud.
Reflexively, Elara glanced in the direction of the water droplets and reached out to grab them with her hands. Miraculously, her two palms now held a clear and glistening pool of water.
The water in her hands moved beautifully, leaving Elara in awe. She blinked her eyes to make sure it wasn't an illusion.
But before she could say anything, something that was previously unseen, a miniature whirlwind, which had been carrying her comfortably through the colorful tunnel, suddenly revealed itself and emitted a gentle sound as if greeting Elara. This diverted her attention.
"Woah!" Elara stared down at the mini whirlwind that greeted her, with an expression of wonder.
A moment later, as if not to be outdone by the others, something emerged from the changing tunnel floor. It took on the shape of a human hand that reached almost to Elara's floating feet.
But the pool of water in Elara's hand quickly responded, splashing water in the direction of the ground forming the human hand, and returning it to its original soil form.
"Huh?!" Elara was again taken aback with a high-pitched tone as she watched the mysterious movements of the shapes.
More accurately, it was the shadows on the ground. Those shadows transformed into the forms of several tiny and adorable animals as if demonstrating their abilities to Elara.
As if responding to Elara's surprise, the white light enveloping her like a shroud changed its color to a bright yellow. The light illuminated directly toward the shadows of the cute animals.
When the bright yellow light shone, Elara, who had been focused on the shadows, suddenly looked up at the ceiling of the tunnel. And right above her head, there was a small, warm flickering flame.
"This is crazy, what's happening?" Elara couldn't help but utter an expletive as she saw these unknown creatures suddenly appearing one by one before her.
It seemed there were six unknown creatures around her.
Why did Elara feel like they were not a unified whole?
'Because they have different natures and behaviors...' Elara thought as she observed each of the unknown creatures, all of them cheerful and obedient, following her in a direction she didn't know.
Just as Elara was trying to decide what to do in this increasingly bizarre situation, the mini whirlwind that had been carrying her suddenly stopped. The same happened to the others.
"...?" Elara looked around and realized that this was no longer the tunnel she knew.
Her tongue felt numb. She found it impossible to describe this place in words alone.
"... Where is this?" Finally, the only word that escaped her lips was a simple question.
However, instead of providing an answer, the six unfamiliar creatures responded together.
"Goodbye! We'll be waiting for you to play with us again!"
"Huh?" Elara wasn't sure what language they were speaking, but she felt like she could understand it easily.
"W-Wait!"
As the six unknown beings departed without answering Elara's question, she felt perplexed and surrounded by rainbow leaves that suddenly fell like rain.
"Whoa!" She almost got buried under the pile of leaves, but fortunately, the wind helped carry some of them away, allowing Elara to remain standing.
But the surprises weren't over. Thick fog suddenly engulfed the entire area, and quickly, Elara began to feel drowsy.
Several minutes or maybe more later, Elara woke up in confusion.
She looked around and saw a bright blue sky with the sun shining brightly. Her head rested on comfortable grass.
She examined her entire body. Her brown hair was back to its youthful length, and the clothes she was wearing were the exact ones she had worn at the age of nine.
"This... I'm finally back in my nine-year-old body!" Elara exclaimed with joy. She felt relieved that her body was no longer translucent like a ghost.
After feeling delighted, in a still lying position, she surveyed her surroundings, looking for signs of life other than herself. However, she only found silence and a vast expanse of grass.
Elara's confusion grew as she realized, 'I'm in the meadow? But I was in the forest before I fell?'
Suddenly, Elara remembered the boy she had met earlier. She recalled his cute whining and chuckled softly.
"His name is Kai, right..." Elara murmured.
She smiled and reminisced about their meeting. However, her smile faded when she thought that Kai might choose the Great Protection from the Spirit King and forget their encounter.
"Yeah, maybe he'll forget about me..." Elara muttered with a hint of sadness, enjoying the refreshing breeze on her skin.
As she closed her eyes for a moment, she felt that the adventures in this world were still long and mysterious.
Elara began to contemplate the Great Protection, a very special and rare blessing given by the Spirit King or Queen Titaia. Great Protection could protect, boost, and improve someone's condition according to their needs.
In her thoughts, Elara realized that Kai likely had some health issues that required the help of Great Protection. This explains why Rhea offered Great Protection to Kai.
But Elara also knew that Great Protection was like a 'cheat' in this world, providing a significant advantage to the recipient.
"Well, if I were offered Great Protection, I definitely wouldn't refuse it. Only a fool would turn down such a fantastic advantage! Ah, I envy that boy named Kai for receiving the Great Protection mentioned only in legends!" Elara said in a relaxed tone.
Having successfully evaded the bizarre predicament, Elara's emotions steadied, allowing her to think calmly. In fact, she found herself brimming with high spirits!
With a burning determination, Elara decided that as soon as she returned, she would ask her mother many questions. Especially, she would inquire further about Great Protection and the woman named Rhea. She felt it was the key to understanding many of the mysteries that had unfolded during this eventful day.
Having made that decision, Elara rose from her lying position. She felt grateful that her body had not suffered serious injuries after falling from an unknown depth.
"Phew..." Letting out a sigh, she surveyed the grass around her with gratitude for possibly minimizing the impact of her fall.
However, her gaze turned towards the chasm where she had fallen earlier, and then she checked her surroundings again, realizing that she was not just in the middle of a peaceful expanse of grass.
"...!"
Beyond this peaceful expanse of grass, it looked like a battle had taken place, or perhaps a natural disaster, as the land, rocks, and everything were all in ruins.
"W-What...!"
She could no longer contain herself and screamed hysterically, shaking the Eternal Forest and the entire Galatea territory without the knowledge of many, except those who had a direct or indirect connection to Elara.
"AAAAAAAAAAAA!"