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Elena cannot be persuaded.
That’s all there is to it. Elena cannot be persuaded. She had already decided to take Yuri back with her when she came here, and for Yuri, there wasn’t any reasonable excuse to refuse her.
He couldn’t explain what he had to do or what he wanted to do. He didn’t even have any clear vision for the future. He may not have called the Black Faction his job, but whatever it was, he had lost it. In the process, Yuri almost died too.
Without even needing to bring up a modern perspective, it was obvious that Elena was already living a successful life.
In this world, Seronis, the Tower of Magic stands at the cutting edge of magic. While not every great magician hails from the Tower, all Tower Masters are great magicians. Even in the game, those carrying the title "Tower Master" were notoriously tough named bosses to defeat.
Elena had been recognized for her talents by one such Tower Master.
Moreover, the content of the last letter she received indicated that Dersia’s Tower Master, the Heavenly Thunder Orca Dersia, had arranged a special request to broaden her experience.
From the looks of it, it was certain the Tower Master had a special regard for Elena.
Now, such an incredible person had come all the way here, insisting on taking care of Yuri and urging him to go with her.
No matter how rude Yuri’s natural disposition might be, rejecting Elena in this situation seemed baseless.
“no…”
It wasn’t going to work. Elena was determined to take Yuri with her, even if it meant forcing him.
There was no room to retreat.
"Is this actually a good thing?"
At least life there would be better than here. Living in this rural city of Oldor had come with countless inconveniences.
Of course, there were risks. Even though ten years had passed, he might be able to disguise the changes in his personality, but he’d have to avoid topics like memories from the orphanage. While he retained the memories, he had no emotional connection to them anymore.
He’d also need to hide any traits unique to a "possessor."
Had it not been for the Veil of Deception, Yuri might have either fled the moment he ran into Elena or struck her first. Or come up with some ridiculous excuse.
Just as games and reality are different, the Veil of Deception functioned differently here too. It would have been nice if an instruction manual had come with it, but the Order of Law and Lorellian didn’t care to be that considerate.
It was fine. Thanks to observing it after it entered his system, Yuri had figured out how the Veil applied in reality and how to use it.
He could feel a mental switch, something he could consciously control to adjust the Veil of Deception.
It wasn’t that having the Veil meant he couldn’t use his internal energy or mana at all. It just wasn’t noticeable to others. That was the default, but by focusing on the switch, he could control the output.
He could appear as an ordinary person or as a novice just starting out. That’s where the true value of the Veil of Deception lay.
"Hopefully, I’ll be lucky enough to get some mana cultivation manuals or martial techniques from Elena."
While he had secured internal energy through the ‘Art of Relentless Ten Thousand Miles’, he still needed a plausible excuse for later.
"Alright."
After considering everything, Yuri finally accepted the situation. He would follow Elena and leave this rural Oldor behind. And on the way out, he might as well take advantage of his brilliant childhood friend.
"Are you done yet?"
Elena, who had been standing in the corner with her arms crossed, spoke.
His mind was racing, but his body was still moving. He couldn’t just leave with only himself in tow; he still had to pack.
"Instead of standing there, why don’t you sit down?"
"It’s too dirty for that."
“What’s so dirty?” Yuri frowned and glanced at Elena before finally understanding when he took in her outfit again. The pure white dress she wore stood out in this rural city. Just standing there must have been enough for it to pick up dust.
"...Why are you dressed like that?"
"What?"
"Your clothes. You know what kind of place this city is."
“Even if you stood outside for hours, you wouldn’t see anyone dressed like you in Oldor.” Her outfit made it obvious to anyone that she wasn’t from here.
"...What I wear is my business."
Elena frowned as she answered, her voice tinged with irritation.
"Ah."
Was it some kind of self-assertion, perhaps? Maybe she was showing that even though she came from here, she no longer had any ties to this place. Based on her personality as revealed in her letters, that didn’t seem unlikely.
Back when they were kids at the orphanage, she used to follow him around, constantly calling his name—Yuri, Yuri. Who would’ve thought she’d grow up to be so cold and distant...
"You look pretty."
Yuri turned his head back forward, muttering quietly.
Earlier, he’d acted rudely to push her away, but now that he’d decided to go along with her, it was time to adjust his attitude.
"...What did you say?"
He said it clearly enough for her to hear. If she ignored it, it would hurt him more.
"I said you look pretty."
"...."
"Did I say something strange?"
"No... uh, thanks."
Her previously cold voice softened a little, and Yuri heard a quiet cough from behind him. Ignoring it, he continued packing.
There really wasn’t much to pack anyway. Just some clothes for the journey, the emergency stash of money Yuri had saved, a journal filled with self-loathing, and then...
"That."
Elena, who had been fidgeting nearby, moved closer.
"Are those... my letters?"
The letters piled at the bottom of the drawer. As Yuri carefully placed them into his bag, Elena came closer and looked down at him.
"Yeah."
"You didn’t... throw them away?"
"Why would I throw them away?"
At his response, Elena’s eyes trembled slightly.
she thought he might have thrown them away.
She had felt it from Yuri’s replies. They lacked warmth, and there was a distinct sense that he responded out of mere obligation rather than any desire to "communicate" or "connect."
No matter what Elena wrote in her letters, Yuri’s replies were devoid of personal engagement.
Life at the Tower had gotten busier for her, and at a young age, she hadn’t liked Yuri’s attitude either. So over time, Elena herself stopped putting much effort into the letters.
Their relationship as "childhood friends" was held together only by faint memories from the past.
It wouldn’t have been surprising if their connection had broken, but Elena hadn’t wanted that.
It didn’t feel right to let it.
"You... kept them."
Elena glanced at the remaining letters in the drawer. Most of them were loosely sealed, as if they had been opened and re-read recently. At least, that’s what it seemed like to her.
Had Yuri read them multiple times?
