After leaving the cave, Ryn and Elysia rode on Volibear's back for a long time.
During the day, they would lie on the bear's back and sleep. Elysia would wake him up for lunch, and he would casually catch a few small rabbits to roast for their meal.
Then he'd go back to sleep until evening, when Ryn suddenly began to ponder what to eat for dinner and where to stay for the night.
Eat, sleep, sleep, eat. That was him, alright.
Ryn silently gave himself a thumbs-up, then shook Elysia, who was also sleeping beside him, awake.
"Elysia, it's getting dark. Where do you usually sleep at night? In a cave like this morning?"
"Mmm…" Elysia tapped her chin, thought for a moment, then shook her head and said:
"I don't always find a cave. Usually, I just find a big tree and sleep under it."
"Huh? Aren't you afraid of being carried away by some small animal in the forest?"
"Nope, Elysia has a sleeping bag! As long as I cover my head when I sleep, no demons or monsters can hurt me!"
Elysia proudly lifted her head, revealing her tender neck, her face filled with a smug smile for having discovered this mysterious rule of the world.
"..."
Ryn turned his head, closed his eyes, and exhaled.
Little Ely is just like Kiana was as a child, super innocent and romantic…
"Forget it, let's find a town and stay in a hotel. We can have a good meal tonight too! I want to try what kind of delicacies the people of this era can make!"
"Mmm… okay…"
Elysia agreed hesitantly, but she quietly let her hair down a bit to cover her ears and pulled on her hood.
Ryn noticed Elysia's actions and helped her tidy her hair and hood.
"Seeing how you didn't hide them from me at all, I thought ears like yours were a normal phenomenon in this world."
"Because I feel like Brother Ryn is the same as me… I just can't put my finger on how we're the same…"
Elysia looked up at Ryn seriously, her eyes constantly darting to the side of his head, wanting to confirm if, under Ryn's hair, he had the same elf ears as her.
Ryn understood what Elysia was thinking and gently lifted his hair to let her see his ears.
Seeing that they were normal human ears, Elysia felt a little disheartened. Then she explained to Ryn:
"Actually, my ears were the same as everyone else's at first… But on the day I read about the story of the Eternal Elysium in a fairy tale book, I got a little too excited, which caused some bad things to happen…
Then, not long after, a group of strange uncles came to the small town and searched everywhere… I knew they were looking for me, so to avoid harming everyone in the town, I left on my own…
Shortly after that, my body started to change, and my ears became pointed like this…
Then I met Mother Maheśvara. Mother Maheśvara told me this was a normal phenomenon, just rare in human society, and nothing to worry about.
But during my journey, the adults would all look at me with pity, thinking I had some strange disease. And the children would just call me a monster…"
Elysia lowered her head sadly, pulling the strings of her hood. That was why she traveled through forests like this, far from where people lived, to search for the Eternal Elysium.
(In the short animated video of little Ely's wandering in the game, you can clearly hear the change in Elysia's voice before and after her journey. She lost the initial happiness and joy she had even when she was deceived. Later, it was always "Why? It shouldn't be like this..." or "Can I do it too?"—full of disbelief and a little insecurity.
Although these weren't caused by her elf ears, Elysia did indeed suffer a lot of malice… She always kept people's joys and sorrows in her heart.)
Ryn: "Does Elysia think ears like this aren't pretty?"
"No, they're very pretty… It's just that everyone else doesn't seem to think so…"
"As long as Elysia thinks they're pretty, that's enough. Why care about what others think? Your body is your own. No matter what it becomes, it's still you. No matter what others say, only what you yourself think is good or bad is what truly matters.
Let others say what they want. No matter how much they flap their gums, can they change the fact that the Elysia with little elf ears is extremely beautiful and cute?~"
Ryn ruffled Elysia's hair, then took off her hood and tucked her hair back, letting her little ears show.
Elysia's gaze flickered and she looked away. A child's self-esteem and confidence are built on the foundation of those around them and their family. How others act determines a child's personality…
Elysia had a good childhood. Everyone liked her, so she was happy and sunny. But after leaving the small town…
Being called a monster by everyone, along with a series of other bad things, had hurt her a little.
Ryn took out a mirror and placed it in front of himself and Elysia.
In the mirror, a red-haired boy with a sunny smile had his arm around a small, pink-haired child who was hugging her knees, her eyes a little dim.
Both the boy and the girl were very beautiful and good-looking. In fact, if you just looked at their faces, people would at first glance mistake the boy for a beautiful girl.
After seeing his whole body and realizing he was a boy, there would always be a sense of regret that he wasn't a girl…
"Elysia, if we only cared about what others say…
Then your Brother Ryn would have been physically castrated and turned into a pretty little sister long ago. How could I still be the handsome and charming young man I am today~"
"Pfft—hahaha~"
Elysia was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing.
After hearing Ryn's joke-like example, Elysia suddenly didn't feel so bad anymore.
That's right, just because others say she's different from them, a monster… does she have to cut off her own ears?
Why? On what grounds?
This is how Elysia looks, a unique and beautiful girl!
Thinking this, Elysia suddenly became a little smug, placing her little hands on her hips with a proud look.
"Elysia is a beautiful, pretty, pink elf girl!"
"That's right, Elysia is the nth cutest in the world!"
"Huh? Why the nth cutest, not the first cutest?"
"Because in my heart, Kiana is the cutest in the world, Stigmata Kiana is the second cutest, Alaya is the third, Theresa is the fourth, Janna is the fifth…"
"..."
Elysia fell silent, then quietly jotted down the names Ryn had mentioned in her little notebook. So many super cute girls, it would be such a shame not to meet them and get close to them!