“Lucia! Lucia!”
The waves destroyed Lucia’s room, taking her along with it. Nier took in a deep breath and watched the black silhouette that was sinking down. Nier dove down after Lucia, who was unconscious. Lucia was immobilised in extreme cold weather and would even pass out. Lucia couldn’t respond to Nier in her state. Further, she wore thick clothes to stay warm, resulting in her sinking even faster.
The turbulent ocean thrashed Nier around, but she swam down toward Lucia with all her might. She finally managed to grab onto Lucia’s hair. She pulled with all her might, and then desperately swam down further to grab Lucia around her waist. However, Lucia’s weight almost pulled her down further. She drew her dagger and cut Lucia’s clothes and removed them in order to be able to grab Lucia around her waist. With Lucia secured, she struggled to the surface.
“I’m almost out of breath… Why is the surface so far away…?” cursed Nier.
Lucia grew heavier and heavier, while Nier’s nose and mouth almost burst from water accumulation as she took breaths of desperation. She struggled with every ounce of energy she had; she nearly cried out due to the torture. She wasn’t a skilled swimmer. She practiced swimming in calm waters, while the ocean was in a frenzy. Not to mention she was pulling Lucia along. Her arm felt as though it would break.
“Kgh… Ugh…”
A rush of salty water forced its way into Nier’s mouth. She nearly coughed. Her strength gradually leaked from her paddling hands and legs. The surface was so far away. She felt a sharp painful sensation in her lungs as her cells screamed at her to prepare to run for dear life. She wanted to save her husband. Unfortunately, the water had swept him away by the time she entered the water. That was when she saw Lucia sinking. She remembered the last words her husband said to her. He told her to save Lucia at all costs.
Feeling overwhelmed, Nier’s mind began to run wild with thoughts: “My husband will be all right. I will definitely do what my husband asked me to do… However, I genuinely can’t seem to do it. I can swim to the surface if I abandon Lucia, but then I’ll be all alone… Without Lucia and His Majesty, I’ll be alone… I won’t know anybody else… That would be the same as reverting back to my past self… It would be the same as life in the past. Wouldn’t the blissful life I felt be an illusion, then? Wouldn’t that mean I’d lose everything I had…? I don’t want that… No… I don’t want to return… I, absolutely, don’t want to return. No way!! I absolutely don’t want to return to the past!!
Don’t die! Don’t die! Don’t die! Don’t die on me! You may have fought for my man with me; you may like to infuriate me and you may make me a little jealous… But I don’t want you to die. If you die, if you die now, I won’t have any friends! I won’t even have somebody to argue with anymore!”
“Lucia!!”
“What?!” Nier attempted to shout loudly, but suddenly realised that she couldn’t in the water. She vigorously turned her head back. The water around her parted from her as if a wall of air pushed it away. Lucia and Nier were then encapsulated in a water bubble that gradually floated to the surface.
Lucia, green eyes faintly glowing, looked to Nier. She took in a deep breath and said, “Nier, listen to me. Don’t overreact. I’m now using Lucia’s body to communicate with you. I branded her with a spell on her wedding day that would activate when she was on the verge of death, thereby allowing me to use her body to cast magic. However, her mana is poor; it won’t last for long. Listen, Nier, did my son wear his necklace when he fell into the water?”
“Ah… Q(ueen Vyvyan)-”
“Answer me!!” thundered Lucia, or rather, Vyvyan.
Nier lingered for a moment. She thought about it for a short while before replying, “He did not. His Majesty does not wear it when he sleeps. That necklace must have fallen into the water.”
Lucia cussed, “Damn it!”
The bubble encapsulating the two reached the surface. Lucia checked out her body then said, “I’m out of time. The mana will rip Lucia apart if I continue using it. Nier, you and Lucia must find my son and bring him back, understood? According to my senses, he’s still alive. I can’t personally go there, so you two must bring him back! Otherwise, you two can forget about coming back, understood?!”
Lucia shut her eyes. Nier seriously responded, “I will definitely bring him back, Queen Vyvyan!”
Nier didn’t plan to return, before locating her husband even without Vyvyan’s order!
“Troy! Troy! Please…Troy… Please wake up… Troy… Please… Don’t… Don’t make Mommy worry… Please… Wake up… How is Mommy supposed to live on without you…? Please. Please wake up…” prayed Vyvyan.
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I know you want to hear this. I drowned to my death the last time I jumped into the water to save someone drowning, and then randomly arrived here in this world afterwards. This time, I jumped into the water again to save Lucia and Nier. I passed out faster than last time. What you see in movies is all a lie. A huge wave smashed into me. It felt as though I had a huge boulder rammed into my chest, knocking the wind out of me. I felt a sharp pain at my chest. I had no idea if my ribs were broken. I felt I was going to drown again. I really wanted to hear those cries, too.
I might be reincarnated after dying. I’d be reincarnated and wake up in Mommy Vyvyan’s arms. If that happened, I had lots of things to do. I’d wipe out the Earth Dragons as fast as possible, spend more time with Mera and Lucia, save Luna and Freya in humanity’s lands, then return to the elven lands to protect Mera before returning to humanity to have Mommy Elizabeth to throw Alice out, all the while confessing to Nier over and over.
I wanted to fix all of my mistakes. I wanted my Luna and Mera to be alive. I wanted those who died because of me to be by my side. I wanted them to stay by my side even if we couldn’t be together. Oh, right, I would definitely go to the North again. Perhaps I’d get to see Ling Yue proudly ordering people around. When I pass by Tanya’s village, I’d be able to bring the young girl back. Alternatively, I could stay in the elven lands and stay with Lucia forever. If I couldn’t protect everybody, then I shall protect Lucia’s smile alone.
If I could hear those cries again, I’d open my eyes. If I could hear them, I’d definitely open my eyes. And, this time, I’d make sure to be a better son than last time. I’d definitely hold Mommy Vyvyan tightly without any hesitation. But nonetheless, I didn’t hear those cries. All I heard was a soothing gurgling sound, similar to the sound of something being boiled. Next to my ears was a soft breeze. My nose, which was somewhat numb due to the salty sea water, was filled with a faint scent of flowers…
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