“What’s wrong?”
The girl beside her was woken by the noise, her voice still groggy.
Princess Lia didn’t say a word, only hugged her tightly, her brows furrowed deeply for a long while.
The final scene in the dream left her breathless, as if her heart was being blocked.
“Was it a nightmare?”
“Mm.”
Tina asked tentatively, “Are you just too tired? About healing me—why don’t you take a break from it for a while?”
But Lia remained silent for a moment, then resolutely said, “No.”
If she gave up just because of a strange dream, how could she face Miss Tina’s self-sacrificing efforts?
Besides, at the moment, this was the only path—the library had no other books related to the Curse.
No matter what, she had to try.
Seeing Lia’s determination hadn’t wavered, Tina could only silently comfort her as best as she could:
“Lia, don’t worry. Dreams and reality are opposites; if it was a scary nightmare, then in reality, the outcome must be good.”
Godbeast.
Several more days passed after that conversation.
Lia became even busier.
She was busy preparing for the mountain expedition, making sure all affairs were handled in advance to free up a whole day for the climb, to visit the legendary National Guardian Beast.
The Godbeast recorded in the books was clearly so considerate and gentle—how could it have gone mad like in her dream?
The missing pages must contain some crucial information, which troubled Lia greatly.
In contrast, Tina’s daily routine was the complete opposite.
Besides secretly spying through her puppet, she only wandered around the palace or watered the Hibron Trees in the garden.
“When will I grow up?” the girl asked.
Time seemed short; it was estimated Lia would be ready in two or three days.
By then, they would have to part ways.
So Tina decided to prepare something in advance for Lia.
Whether it was a genuine blessing or just to deepen her regret later, a gentleman judges actions, not thoughts.
Tina felt like she sounded like a ruthless witch who would do anything to prolong her life.
Knowing the ending and still making things worse for others wasn’t very nice—
Not true.
She enjoyed writing the little notes, imagining Lia’s reaction as she wrote.
“All done. Everything’s ready.”
After writing her will, Tina secretly cast a tracking spell on Lia, so she could follow her immediately once she set out.
The remaining time, she would spend more with her.
After all, this was only a Simulator; no matter how much emotion was generated, it wasn’t real.
If she invested too deeply, she’d be the one who got trapped first.
In the following two or three days, Tina was more enthusiastic than ever, clinging to Lia as soon as she returned.
This unusual behavior surprised Lia and stirred a bit of unease.
At the same time, she still tried every means to dissuade Lia, but each attempt was brushed off.
Thus, the last day finally arrived.
Lia got up early, planning to leave the palace when fewer people were around.
She took a sick day as an excuse to rest; most of the urgent documents had been dealt with, and the remaining few were handed over to her assistant.
If nothing went wrong, she would be back by night.
But before stepping out of the hall, she encountered a familiar figure blocking her way.
“Tina? Why are you here?”
“Isn’t that what I should be asking you, Lia? Is there something you’re trying to do without telling me?”
Lia didn’t want to explain. The risk of this trip was high; if she told Tina, she’d definitely follow her.
She didn’t want Tina to face danger too—she alone could bear the consequences.
“I’m just going out for a while. Tina, don’t worry about me. You should go back and rest.”
But Tina lowered her head, a lonely expression appearing.
“You want to go find that so-called cure on your own? Have you ever thought that I don’t actually care whether you cure me? I just want you by my side.
If you don’t come back safely, and leave me here alone as a disabled person, helpless in this world—that would be the most hopeless way to live.”
Lia was speechless, caught off guard by those words.
She had only focused on herself, selfishly trying to fight her inner demons without thinking about what would happen to Tina if she died.
“Even so, are you still going to risk it?” Tina asked with the weight of her soul.
“…I won’t fail.”
“Then all right.”
Tina forced a smile, “I wish you a safe return. I’ll be waiting for you.”
With that, she pushed her wheelchair back into the palace, leaving Lia standing there.
Lia regretted it a little—her words must have hurt Tina’s feelings.
Always wanting to bear everything alone and not sharing the burden with her partner.
That kind of thinking, if put nicely, was care; but if spoken harshly, it was arrogance and distrust, failing to make the other feel equal and respected.
It would create a rift between them.
True love wasn’t a one-sided effort but mutual commitment and support.
But since Tina had already accepted her going out, Lia decided to return with good news and apologize afterward.
With that hope, Lia left quietly.
According to the map in the classic text, the palace wasn’t far from the hill—it was almost connected.
Only—
Despite being so close, no one had ever climbed the hill or found any seal, which puzzled Lia greatly.
After traveling about twenty kilometers by carriage, Lia saw a small village not far ahead.
“This must be the place, but why does it look different from the map?”
The village was built on a plain; there were no hills or even exposed rocks nearby.
Stranger still, the village seemed to be under some kind of force field.
Its inhabitants lived peacefully but never left.
After observing for a long time without result, she told the coachman to wait, and went in alone to investigate.
As soon as she stepped through the village gate, Lia felt dizzy.
When she opened her eyes again, the plain behind her had disappeared, replaced by a snowy mountain path, empty of people.
The coachman had vanished in the blink of an eye.
The village, originally situated in a spring-like plain, was now covered in snow, surrounded by endless peaks.
“What’s going on? Did I… cross over?”
The thought lasted only a second before she dismissed it.
Crossing over would require extremely high temporal and spatial magic, not to mention magic that anyone could use.
After pondering, Lia reached a reasonable conclusion.
Someone had cast an illusion to isolate the hill, while also restricting the people inside from leaving—probably to protect some secret.
If that was true, it meant she had come to the right place.
Lia climbed along the snowy mountain and soon met some villagers.
To her surprise, their clothing seemed stuck a thousand years in the past, made from very simple fabric.
Fortunately, they could still communicate; the most basic phrases were understandable on both sides.
A passing villager seemed to recognize her and asked, “Traveler, are you from outside?”
Lia was puzzled. “What do you mean from outside? Do you know you’re trapped inside a contained space?”
“Yes, just as you said. We have been trapped here for a thousand years, generation after generation, unable to leave.”
The villager’s expression turned regretful.
“We have seen many guests like you, but they all took their own lives after realizing they couldn’t leave.”
“That’s truly tragic. Do you know who did this?” Lia tried to glean some information, suspecting it related to her goal.
“It was a witch. She sealed the Godbeast and the entire hill, blocking it off from the outside world—only allowing entry, no exit.”
“Has she come back since?”
“No. That witch doesn’t care about our lives. But some time ago, a group of people wearing black robes came looking for the Godbeast and the witch.”
Black robes? Could it be the Moonmist Sect? How could they appear here too?
“Where did they go? Could you point me the way?”
The villager pointed to the cliffside mountain path.
“Over there. If you want to catch up with them, you should hurry—they’re probably almost there.”
“Thank you.”
Lia didn’t know the Moonmist Sect’s intentions, but it couldn’t be anything good.
They might even involve the Godbeast, which would ruin her chances of healing Tina.
“I have to catch up with them quickly.”
Unnoticed by Lia, a familiar figure was struggling not far behind, pushing a wheelchair.
“Damn, why is this mountain path so hard to walk on!”