Chapter 65: I Believe
Peiya briefly explained her doubts to Elise.
Just now, when she tried to imagine herself as the Ice Bear King, she slowly noticed something else.
The investigation team had followed a fixed path and failed to find the Ice Bear King.
So was it possible… that she was also stuck in the same kind of thinking?
In the past, her teammates couldn’t communicate well, so she chose to rely only on her own judgment. But now?
Elise’s strength was already clear for anyone to see. If she still kept Elise aside and only relied on herself, she might still solve the problem.
But then, how would that be any different from before?
It would just be replacing the troublesome Anna with an obedient Elise.
If this team were like a coordinate system, it couldn’t be called a team if it only had an X-axis or a Y-axis.
Peiya didn’t fully understand why such feelings appeared in her heart. Her reason felt like a heavy stone pulling her down into the water.
A loud splash echoed in her ears. She looked at the heavy stone tied to her body. It felt familiar, like a shadow from her past.
Peiya felt as if someone who looked like her fell into the water instead of her. Before sinking, that figure even slapped her once, as if to make her realize that someone was holding her hand. She wasn’t fighting alone.
Maybe… all of this wasn’t just an illusion.
Peiya slowly opened her thin eyelids. When she said those words just now, she had already closed her eyes without realizing it.
Like a whale falling into the deep sea…
That sinking feeling came from there. With her eyes closed, she could barely keep her balance.
Her whole body became tense, and her movements grew slightly unsteady.
Just before she fell, Elise caught her. The two of them formed a delicate balance.
Two completely parallel lines can never meet.
But this time, both of them chose to lean toward each other at the same moment.
Even if it meant becoming a little different from who they were.
It seemed they were both afraid that if they didn’t do this, they would regret it. So they turned around at the same time, only to find that the other person had also turned to look at them.
Their eyes met.
Peiya’s expression became flustered.
It felt like they bumped into each other, but not completely.
Because this time, Peiya was also tightly holding Elise’s hand. One person alone couldn’t firmly hold another.
“I… I…”
Feeling the strength in her hand, Peiya wanted to let go. But once you’ve boarded the ship, how can you jump off?
This was a one-way ticket, there was no turning back.
“The question you asked me just now, were you serious?” Elise asked.
Peiya raised her head.
Her fingers unconsciously twisted the corner of her clothes, and her breathing became short and shallow. She turned her head away first.
“I just suddenly thought… if I keep relying only on myself, then this kind of adventure feels a bit unfair to you.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Huh?”
Peiya looked up, surprised.
Elise watched Peiya’s nervous and uneasy expression. At some point, she had started to care about this small feeling.
How should she describe it?
It was like going out with a close friend, and that friend introduces you to someone new.
You want to say something, but the words keep circling in your mouth. Then, when it’s time to sit freely, you unconsciously sit next to your friend, and only then do you finally let out a deep breath.
Only when Peiya suddenly tightened her grip on Elise’s hand did Elise realize that the “beast” trapped in her heart had already grown so big.
Maybe that was why Peiya had recently said she felt “heavy.”
After all, wasn’t Elise also the one who remembered every little detail of their time together most clearly?
Elise had practiced swordsmanship since she was a child, so she had very precise control over the strength in her hands.
Because of that, she could instantly tell how much force Peiya used each time she held her hand.
Without a doubt, that grip just now was the strongest it had been in all this time.
She could feel that Peiya was truly holding her carefully. The roaring “beast” inside her seemed to calm down because of that.
Looking at Peiya’s slightly nervous face, Elise spoke softly:
“I’m really happy that you’re willing to tell me all this. I know you must have worked hard for a long time before you could say it to me. So how could I refuse you, Miss Peiya? I’ve never not trusted you. Double negatives mean yes, you know. This time, don’t misunderstand. I… really have always trusted you.”
Elise controlled her facial muscles, letting a perfect smile slowly appear on her lips.
Peiya suddenly raised her head. It felt like all the blood rushed back to her heart, and her whole body became soft and weak.
“W-why are you suddenly saying things like that? I just feel like being too self-centered isn’t good. Even if this team is temporary, I should still trust your judgment… Anyway, don’t think too much. That’s it, stop being curious.”
Peiya let go of Elise’s hand, not letting the atmosphere become too intense.
Elise remembered the “Peiya Rules” she had come up with before. After translating Peiya’s words back to their original meaning.
The first sentence was probably sincere. But why did she emphasize that this was a “temporary team”?
If you reverse it, doesn’t it mean she wants to form a team for life?
And the next part was even simpler. Once she said “but,” it meant she couldn’t help but speak the truth.
So that part could also be trusted.
But… a new question came up.
What about the last sentence?
Elise thought for a moment and remembered a term from her textbook, modal particles.
They are often used at the end of a sentence to express tone, or in the middle to show a pause.
If it was Peiya, it was probably used to encourage herself, so it was more like the first type.
Most likely, she was acting a bit spoiled again.
Right in front of Peiya’s surprised eyes, Elise slowly hugged her and whispered into her ear.
“Go on, tell me, how do you want me to help you?”
Peiya, suddenly pulled into a hug, had her prepared words cut off completely.
The warmth from Elise’s body didn’t ask for permission. It passed through their clothes and rushed straight in.
“I…”
Peiya breathed lightly, her eyes shifting around. They were still in the Calamity Forest, and the danger hadn’t passed yet.
She couldn’t hold them back.
So…
“I need you to help me decide whether we should go find the Ice Bear King now. At the moment, we still don’t fully understand the situation around here. Also, the biggest weakness of our team is that we don’t have enough people. Many strategies can’t be used, and if we go in recklessly, we might fall into a trap. At first, I wanted to go in now, because I already prepared several plans to deal with it. But… but…”
Peiya clenched her fist. The process of her reasoning appeared in her mind, she had calculated every possibility.
But something still felt wrong. For some reason, her body was resisting the conclusion her logic had reached.
She had never felt like this before. But today, when she analyzed it again, there was always something in her mind rejecting the answer.
Something unexpected that she couldn’t guarantee would never happen.
Peiya kept shaking her head, as if trying to throw away those complicated calculations. She carefully hugged herself, her breathing becoming light and quick.
But…
“But I… I’m afraid that if I make a careless mistake, you’ll get hurt.”