Enya met Eliv’s gaze, but only for a brief second before she pretended to look at something nearby to avoid it. She picked up the bag of fruits and, turned sideways to Eliv, said.
“Long time no see.”
Eliv gave a faint smile, her eyes lifting slightly to look behind Enya. “Yes.”
Vivienne stood outside the shop door, and the two women’s gazes brushed against each other briefly before Eliv withdrew her gaze and placed it back on Enya.
“Let us find a place to sit. I know you may have many questions, and you want to find some answers from me.”
Enya looked at Eliv, silent for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
By this time Vivienne had already walked in, and as she drew closer, the surrounding scenery blurred, that blur twisting and shifting continuously.
From the perspective of the swindler Little Red Riding Hood, she only saw the Saintess and those two mysterious foreign race women disappear under a halo of light. After confirming that Eliv and the others had left, she let out a sigh of relief.
But just as she stood up from the ground, a hek fruit fell and hit her on the head.
“Ah!”
“Saintess, I was wrong, I will go find Meris right away!”
Little Red Riding Hood had originally thought that since the Saintess had left without telling anyone about this, she could pretend nothing had happened and avoid sweeping the streets.
But when that hek fruit hit her on the head, Little Red Riding Hood knew she was still being watched by Eliv.
***
Inside the shop, the elven girl closed her red umbrella with a weepy whimper.
On the other side, as the surrounding scenery gradually stabilized, the blurriness rapidly decreased, and in an instant it transformed from a tiny shop into the courtyard of a house.
Enya immediately recognized where this was — it was exactly the place she had lived before.
“This place…”
Enya sighed inwardly. The passage of time really was like a shuttle, and many things had become matters of years past in the blink of an eye.
This small wooden hut was perched on a crooked tree, the path up being the slanted trunk, covered with a thick layer of dark green moss like a quilt draped over the entire slanted trunk.
Enya leaned on the simple wooden railing, looking at the scenery below the tree.
This place was located on a small island in the center of a lake.
The lake’s surface was wreathed in mist, and all around was a lush dense forest, giving one a sense of natural, primordial beauty at a glance.
Vivienne glanced around, then looked toward Eliv, who had already sat down at the wooden table in the courtyard.
Eliv quietly brewed tea, and returned Vivienne’s gaze.
Vivienne narrowed her eyes and walked over, sitting across from Eliv.
At this moment Enya also turned back to look at them, discovering that both had already taken their seats, so she hurried over and found a stool to sit down.
Aside from the path leading up, this wooden hut was maintained by someone, so despite Enya having left for several years, it had not fallen into ruin and decay, becoming a playground for flowers and grass.
And the only one who could come here was Eliv, the Elven Saintess.
The wooden hut had been built by Enya herself, and after she left, it became a dwelling place for Eliv.
Vivienne said, “Occasionally.”
Enya blinked her eyes and looked toward Eliv, asking.
“You come here often?”
Eliv looked at her calmly, and simultaneously handed the two cups of tea in her hands — first to Enya, then to Vivienne.
Enya accepted the exquisite ceramic teacup, looked at the red tea in her hands, and did not raise it to take a sip, instead looking directly at Eliv.
This elven woman who carried an otherworldly aura throughout her being, the Saintess of the Church of Nature, the highest leader of the entire elven race — her age and status meant she knew countless pieces of information, and seeking answers from her was undoubtedly an excellent choice.
After taking a small sip of tea, Eliv looked at Enya and smiled.
“Is there something you want to tell me?”
Enya remained silent for the moment, and immediately raised her teacup for a small sip.
The tea was very ordinary, but she did not care about that.
She was currently thinking about what to ask Eliv, how to phrase things well, which things she truly wanted to know — that was why she had not picked up on Eliv’s conversational cue.
Enya actually did not care about many things, and toward worldly honors, she could not muster the slightest interest. From a very young age, she had been a person lacking in interests.
Vivienne glanced at the pensive Enya, then turned her gaze to Eliv. As a companion, she spoke up.
“Regarding some things that are about to happen, Saintess, you never listen seriously.”
Eliv said calmly, “Noted. Add to that her nature of disliking trouble… You understand as well.”
Vivienne said, “She has never told Yaya anything either. She has been raising a child all year, without any information at all.”
She did not particularly like listening to people speak in vague, nebulous terms.
Vivienne took a deep breath and said to Enya.
“Enya, do you have any understanding of the various eras of this world?”
“Uh… a little, just a little.”
Enya smiled awkwardly.
Eliv smiled faintly, then continued.
“In existing historical records, our world has three eras. Human history only covers the late Second Era and the Third Era. Even for a long-lived species like elves, history only records the major events of the Second Era.”
“Then the First Era…”
“We call it God’s Era. After the dusk, the Second Era began.”
“Let me tell you about the beginning of the three days and one night great calamity.”
Eliv’s expression gradually grew solemn, and Enya listened earnestly.
This world has two seasons, light and dark, as well as four months: Revival, Fire, Harvest, and Frost. At the end of Harvest in the Dark Season, the sun gradually shrinks, and when the Frost Month formally arrives, the sun becomes ten times smaller than before.
At that time, demons will be born more frequently in the darkness — in the cognition of all intelligent beings, this is a perfectly normal common sense.
But tens of thousands of years ago, this was not the case. The sun’s radiance was constant. Although the four seasons were still distinct, at that time demonic spirit body monsters were not as numerous as in today’s Dark Season.
At that time the world was extremely vast, and no matter how life multiplied, there was still ample soil for survival, which meant the various races rarely fought among themselves. Everything was so beautiful.
But then something happened that changed that cradle-like beautiful world.
Three days and one night dealt an immeasurable impact upon this world.
Eliv paused to take a sip of tea, then continued her account.
Enya thought of what Vivienne had told her before — the unprecedented long night spanning three days and one night descending upon the mortal world.
“What exactly happened back then?”
Enya asked curiously.
Elves are ancient beings. Their recorded history should differ considerably from humanity’s, and would be well worth learning about.