Chapter 73: The Chosen One vs The Loser
Anna stared blankly at Lisa, who now looked almost ghost-like. Her lips moved slightly as she spoke.
“Lisa, I haven’t given up on you. You can trust me on that. The reason I did all this… is because I didn’t want everyone to fall apart after Peiya left.”
“……”
Lisa sighed. She knew this was probably the most sincere and moving thing Anna could say. So she didn’t argue further and instead asked, “So, you admit that he did well before, right?”
Anna bit her lip. “Why do you care so much about that? No matter how well he did before, he’s not in the team anymore. Why keep bringing him up?”
“What I mean is… when we go back this time, should we try to invite him back? I know you’re not willing to accept it, but if this continues, we might all be finished. Anna, you don’t want Dawn Guild to fall apart like this either, right?”
“Th-this…”
Anna looked at Stella. “Do you also want Peiya to come back?”
“I don’t care.”
Anna: …
As expected, she couldn’t rely on this person.
After clenching her fists and hesitating for a long time, Anna finally sighed.
“Since everyone thinks this way, when we go back, I’ll talk to him properly. But for now, focus on dealing with the lord boss. Even if your current strength is… really bad, I still think we should at least try fighting the Ice Bear King. Let’s treat it as gaining experience.”
“Alright. As long as you’ve thought it through. I’m tired, I’m going to rest first.”
Lisa stood up and casually leaned against a tree to sleep.
When a person is tired enough, they don’t care if the place is comfortable or not.
Stella wrapped her clothes tighter and leaned against the pile of leaves, closing her eyes to rest.
Only Anna was left sitting by the campfire, unable to sleep. Memories of Peiya kept replaying in her mind, making her thoughts more and more chaotic.
It wasn’t like she had never tried to find Peiya before, she just couldn’t find her.
So what she said earlier about going to find Peiya… was actually just a lie to stabilize the team.
Looking at Lisa and the others sleeping soundly, Anna sighed and decided to go for a walk.
…………………
Walking into the Calamity Forest, Anna chose a path she was somewhat familiar with. Holding her dagger, she moved toward her destination.
From afar, she saw a somewhat familiar figure.
Someone holding a map, seemingly searching for something—
Elise!?
“Sis… sister, what are you doing here?”
There was no mistake. Anna could feel a familiar presence from her.
Elise also noticed Anna approaching, her eyes showing a hint of surprise.
“I came to look for something. Sister, why are you here alone so late?”
“I’m not alone, I came with my teammates. But they’re resting now. What about you? Are you alone?”
Anna felt like she asked a pointless question. She knew what Elise was like. Most likely, she came here alone again to challenge a lord.
This child had always been alone. Anna had watched Elise grow up, so she knew this well.
However, Elise shook her head.
“No. I’ve already found a new teammate. Like you, I came here with a team.”
“Wh… what?”
Anna was surprised. Elise having new teammates was something she could hardly imagine. To her, it was more unbelievable than a dead tree blooming.
“Is it really that surprising? Also, sister, there are many monsters ahead. You’d better not go alone.”
Even though Elise didn’t like this sister very much, when it came to important matters, she still cared about the bigger picture.
If something really happened to her sister, their parents would worry. After all, Anna was still their child and also her sister.
As long as Anna didn’t interfere with her normal life, Elise wouldn’t deliberately provoke her.
If she really angered her sister, and it led to harming Miss Peiya indirectly, it wouldn’t be worth it.
Anna raised her head, a bit confused. “I understand… thank you. So, are you happy with your new teammate?”
For once, Anna didn’t get angry. She suddenly became curious about the difference between herself and Elise.
Why was it that Elise always received praise from others, while she kept failing again and again?
For the first time, the two sisters quietly gave way to each other on the same issue.
Elise paused for a moment, and a natural confidence appeared on her face.
During this period, under Peiya’s care, Elise had changed a lot.
Whenever anything related to Peiya was mentioned, she couldn’t help but smile, as if Peiya were a piece of sweet candy. Every “taste” of it felt deeply sweet.
Elise adjusted her emotions and said calmly,
“I’m doing quite well with her. I’m telling you this because no matter what, you are still my sister. Even if we don’t admit it, the same blood flows in our bodies. I’m willing to show you some sincerity, hoping we can have a meaningful conversation. But there’s one thing I need to make clear first, my understanding toward you is only temporary. It doesn’t mean I forgive what you did to me in the past…”
“...It’s just that I already have a new life. I don’t want to stay trapped in the past, so I chose to make peace with myself. I hope you won’t use this as a reason to interfere with my life. I could have lied to get rid of your curiosity. The reason I’m telling you the truth is because I don’t want our relationship to become as bad as before. So please don’t take my kindness as a chance to act selfishly. Mom and Dad mentioned a few days ago that we should find time to visit them.”
Anna bit her lip.
“You don’t need to tell me all that. I’m not a child. I won’t interfere with your matters. But… there’s one thing, can you answer me?”
Elise crossed her arms. “Go ahead. What is it?”
“Since we were young, you’ve always been the one people praise. Compared to you, I’m just background. Why is it that you can so easily take everything that belongs to me?”
Anna stared straight at Elise.
Today, she really wanted to know the answer.
“You’re wrong.” Elise sighed. “It seems you still don’t understand what I meant earlier. Being praised by others is the kind of life you want, but it’s not what I need.”
“That’s impossible! Who would dislike being praised? You’re the rising star of the Anthony family, and I’m just the outdated older sister. Everything that should have been mine was taken by you!”
Anna’s chest rose and fell sharply, like an arrow pulled tight on a bowstring, ready to be released.
Elise rubbed her temples.
“I’ve already explained, I don’t like that kind of life. Believe it or not, that’s how I truly feel. You didn’t come here tonight just to argue with me, right? Instead of talking about this, let’s talk about something else, like the Ice Bear King. You look injured. Does that mean you’re almost done with the dungeon?”
“…No.”
When the Ice Bear King was mentioned, Anna’s face turned slightly red. Not because of Elise, but because she was frustrated with her teammates.
“We haven’t met it yet, but soon. What about you?”
“We haven’t seen it either. Alright, I’ve said what I needed to say. If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back now. It’s dangerous ahead. I just cleared a wave of beasts. They probably haven’t gone far yet. Do you want me to escort you back?”
“No need. I can go back on my own.”
Anna clenched her fists, then turned back to look at Elise. Perhaps Elise’s attitude today had moved her a little.
After a pause, Anna looked up and asked,
“There’s one more thing I want to ask. I have a friend… she… she lost someone important. If it were you, what would you do?”
Anna turned her back, not daring to look into Elise’s eyes.
Even she felt this excuse sounded awkward and a bit ridiculous. But this was the most “proper” way she could ask without losing her noble dignity.
To be honest, Lisa’s questions earlier had really disturbed her.
She seemed to truly not be used to life without Peiya.
“I don’t know, because I’ve never experienced that,” Elise said calmly. “But if it were someone I truly cared about, I wouldn’t lose them in the first place. If you did lose them, it only means that from the beginning, you didn’t really care about them. You only start to regret after they’re gone. You can’t accept that you made such a mistake, so you start pushing the responsibility onto others…”
“...In other words, what you love isn’t really that person, you just don’t want to feel bad yourself. Even if they came back to you, you probably wouldn’t truly be happy. Because the one you’ve always loved is yourself. Your so-called love for them is just something you imagined. You’re trying to convince yourself that you’re not that kind of person, using ‘love’ as an excuse to feel better.”
“No! That’s not true! I’m not like that!”
Anna held her head, her body slowly sinking down.
Elise looked at her with interest, gently holding her chin.
“Sister… wasn’t this about your ‘friend’? Why are you reacting so strongly? Don’t tell me… that ‘friend’ you’re talking about is actually yourself?”