CHAPTER 202: SEPHRINA [2]

"Lili!"

The small Sephrina quickly rushed towards the fairy, grabbing her.

But...

Akamir’s eyes were solely on the man who walked out of the room as well.

"...Velyrian?"

Akamir froze in his place as he stared at the elven man.

It was unmistakable. Those sharp, almost regal features, the blonde hair tied neatly behind his head, and the calm, assessing eyes that seemed to see through everything.

Velyrian.

Only... not quite.

This Velyrian looked younger.

No faint lines at the corner of his eyes, no hardened weight in his gaze.

His posture was still proud, but there was a softness in it that Akamir had never seen before.

Even his legs were still intact as he stood in front of him.

"Welcome, guys." Velyrian said with a warm smile, "How was your day?"

"It was great!!" Sephrina replied with a bright smile.

"You see this!" she pointed at her teria. "Akamir made it for me!"

Velyrian smiled as he patted his daughter’s head. "It looks good on you."

Lili squirmed out of Sephrina’s hand as she moved towards Akamir.

"Hey!" she said. "Do you remember me?"

Akamir gave her a weird look. "Lili?"

"Yes, no?" She looked even more confused. "I mean do you know this place?"

"Alright." Velyrian clapped his hands. "Don’t just stand out, let’s go inside."

"Okay!"

Sephrina said, her voice brimming with happiness.

She walked inside along with Velyrian, leaving him alone with Lili.

"Akamir." Lili said, her eyes filled with expectations. "You remember me, right?"

"This isn’t the real world?" Akamir asked her. "Where are we now?"

A wave of relief passed Lili’s face as she nodded in response.

"This isn’t real." she replied. "I have been here for almost three months now."

Akamir remained silent as he stared at the fairy.

"I just came here." he mumbled, unsure of the situation.

"I know." she nodded. "You have been here for a while but you were not yourself."

Akamir nodded, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "What about Sephrina?" he asked. "What happened to her?"

"I don’t know." she replied, shaking her head. "She isn’t being herself right now."

Akamir glanced toward the doorway where Sephrina’s laughter echoed faintly.

She sounded... normal.

Happier for the first time since he saw her.

"How long has she been like this?" he asked quietly.

"Since I first saw her here," Lili replied, her small wings flickering with unease.

"She talks, smiles, plays... but it’s like she’s reading from a script. There’s nothing behind her eyes when she thinks no one’s looking."

Akamir’s jaw tightened. "And Velyrian?"

"That’s not him either," Lili whispered. "At least... not the one you know. It’s like this whole place is... copying memories, making them into people."

Akamir’s gaze flicked toward the hall where the blonde-haired elf had gone.

The younger face. The legs that should’ve been gone.

If this was a copy, it was a good one... way too good.

"How come I am with them?" Akamir asked, looking at her. "I shouldn’t be in any of their memories."

"I don’t know." she replied. "I think the whole world is mainly based around Sephrina."

Akamir nodded guiltily. "I see..."

’I need to find a way to get out of this place.’

Before he could say more, Sephrina’s voice called from inside. "Akamir! Come here!"

Lili grabbed his sleeve. "Be careful. Every time you play along... it gets harder to stop."

He gave her a small nod and stepped inside, his mind already working through possibilities.

The warm glow of the room welcomed him, the smell of fresh bread and stew filling the air.

Velyrian was busy in the kitchen while Sephrina was waiting for him.

When he arrived inside, she quickly grabbed his hand. "Let’s go."

Akamir remained confused as she pulled him towards a different room. "Wait, where are we going?"

"To take a bath." she replied, tilting her head. "We always do before eating, right?"

Akamir opened his mouth to speak but didn’t have any argument.

He quickly tried to free himself. "You can bathe alone." he replied. "I will wait—"

"No!" she whined. "You always bathe with me."

"I can’t, Sephrina—!"

"Why not?" she cut him off. "You looked happy before."

Akamir wanted to slap his own face but he controlled himself.

’The fuck happened before I gained consciousness?’

He drew in a deep breath as he replied. "I can’t, Sephrina."

’...I have no intention to bathe when she looks like a literal child.’

Sephrina remained silent before she mumbled. "Okay, but can you accompany me?"

"Just say yes." Lili advised him. "Otherwise she will just start crying."

Akamir let out a sigh as he nodded in response. "Alright."

Sephrina’s face lit up instantly.

"Yay!" she grabbed his hand again, tugging him down the hall with the unshakable energy of a child who’d just won an argument.

Lili floated behind them, muttering just loud enough for him to hear, "I think she hasn’t gained her consciousness yet."

"I can tell, genius." Akamir grumbled in response.

The bathing room was warm and filled with a faint scent of lavender.

Steam curled lazily from a wooden tub, and neatly folded towels sat on a bench nearby.

Everything felt real.

Sephrina skipped over to the tub, dipping her fingers in and humming.

"It’s perfect," she said brightly. "Just like always."

Akamir stayed near the doorway, arms crossed. "I’ll sit over there."

"Mm-hm." she didn’t protest this time, which was... suspicious.

Instead, she stepped into the water with a small splash, humming a tune he didn’t recognize.

Akamir remained seated on the other side of the bathroom, still lost in his own thoughts.

’Lili is right about her not being herself.’

Behind the movements, her eyes were vacant, like a doll going through motions it had been taught.

Lili hovered near his shoulder, whispering, "Creepy, isn’t it?"

"Understatement," he muttered back.

Akamir looked at Lili once again. "How much area have you covered?"

Lili blinked. "I... I can’t." she replied. "There is a barrier-type thing that forces me to stay here."

Akamir nodded his head in response. "I see..." he mumbled. "So the place is finite."

’Hmm, if it is finite then there should be an end or something like a weak point.’

For what Akamir could think, this place is some sort of trick by the Greater One to trap their minds.

And the more they stay in this place, the faster their minds will melt down.

’This is really a terrifying ability.’

He praised, though he wasn’t really sure if he should.

"By the way." Lili said after some time. "There is also another thing."

Akamir looked at her. "What?"

"The royal family here is different." she replied. "Sephrina isn’t the one or anywhere close to being one."

Akamir blinked in confusion. "Really?"

She nodded. "Yes, and the new family has their guards stationed in this place."

"Do you know who they are?" he asked, hopeful for any information.

"I don’t know." she replied. "They never showed themselves."

Akamir fell in deep thought as he lowered his head.

’This is really troublesome.’

If by any chance there are more people and those are not on his side... things will go nasty.

’I did see Greater One attach itself with a lot of people.’

Akamir rubbed his face as he closed his eyes.

"Huh?"

He let out a startled voice as he felt something.

...It was something that crawled back to his mind.

’Are they memories before I took over the body?’

He thought as he felt different scenarios that never happened appear in his mind.

"Akamir!"

Sephrina suddenly yelled, making him alert.

"Yeah?"

"Are you there?" she asked again. "You are there, right?"

"Yeah, I am." Akamir replied softly. "Don’t worry, I am not going anywhere."

"Um."

Akamir let out a sigh as he rubbed his temples.

With these new memories in his mind, he got some idea as to why she wants someone to accompany her in the bath.

"Sephrina?" he called her.

"Yeah?"

"You told me that when you were taking a bath in the pool late at night... someone was looking at you, right?"

Akamir asked, slowly standing back up on his feet.

"Uh-hm." Sephrina hummed softly. "I don’t... I don’t like remembering about it."

Akamir wanted to ask more but he remained quiet. "I see." he replied. "Sorry for making you remember something unpleasant."

Akamir leaned back against the wall, watching the steam drift up from the bath.

Sephrina didn’t reply as she came out of the bath and wrapped a towel.

When she walked towards Akamir, he made sure not to look at her.

She pushed another towel on his face. "Help me get ready."

Akamir let out a tired sigh.

---

---

When Akamir was done with Sephrina, he took a bath and joined the father and daughter pair for dinner.

They were already eating as they talked among themselves.

"Oh, Akamir." Velyrian said with a smile. "Have some more."

Akamir shook his head. "I am fine."

Velyrian just smiled back as he focused on his daughter.

"By the way." Akamir mumbled, looking at him. "Who is our king?"

Velyrian blinked in confusion. "You don’t know?"

Akamir shook his head.

"Ah, maybe I should tell you about it." he said, looking at the boy. "Our current king is Sir Lewin."

Akamir gave him a blank look. "...What?"