After being reborn, I was turned into a slave girl by a princess.

Unlike outsiders like herself, Elusia grew up in the palace from a young age, living under the watchful eyes of these people.

So seeing everyone dead must have been incredibly emotional for you, right?

……

The silver-haired girl opened her mouth, as if to say something... but Elusia spoke first:

"Lonnies, I know you have questions you want to ask."

"what?"

"However, knowledge is not without cost. If you want to know about the past, you have to pay a price."

"Give me something in return?"

"Yes, this is the principle of 'equivalent exchange,' miracles don't happen for no reason..."

At this point, Elusia raised an eyebrow and a wicked smile appeared on her lips: "And as a slave maid, all you can do is serve me your pleasure. For every question you answer, I will play with you once."

"what?!"

Lornes trembled, her face paling as she clutched her chest: "Playing with... you mean..."

"Of course, it's as a maid, having my body played with, okay? Of course, even if you don't agree, I'll still play with you, but you have to cooperate with this kind of playing."

"Elusia!"

Lornes blushed. What was going on? She had been lost in the sadness of reminiscing about her homeland, unable to forget it for a long time.

But now, things have turned sour because Elusia's words have made her feel so embarrassed... It would be too shameful to willingly cooperate with Elusia and be manipulated by her.

No matter how outrageous the things done to them, they could not resist. Even if they felt extremely ashamed and embarrassed, they could only thank Elusia for her "gift".

but……

Lonnies, however, could not let go of the past, not only because she wanted to know about Elcia, but also because she missed her life as a hero.

Do those people truly live in this world?

Was everything I did to become a hero meaningful and valuable?

What is the underground world all about?

Why did Elusia become his partner?

……

Then Lonnies spoke:

"I understand, so be it... But, Elusia, you can't fool me. You have to tell me the truth."

"Hmph, since when did it become the maid's place to make demands of her master?"

"what?"

"However, since you're such an idiot, I'm not going to lie to you anymore~~ Just ask me whatever you want."

"That……"

The silver-haired girl clenched her fists and took a deep breath: "Those NPCs I encountered in the dream world, were they real humans or virtual characters? What is their relationship with these people lying in these tombstones now?"

……

……

Lonnie asked firmly.

Chapter 31 Farewell to My Homeland

Upon hearing Lonnies' question, Elusia's expression remained completely unchanged; she simply replied calmly:

"You could say it's virtual, or you could say it's real... And don't try to be clever, you're making two separate issues."

"Huh?"

"What lies beneath the tombstones are merely their physical bodies. Their souls, however, were taken back to the Land of the End by me and merged with it."

"W-What do you mean?"

"In other words, those NPCs you see are all living, breathing people. The system erased a part of their memories, allowing them to live in their dream world as they were in life, until their wishes are fulfilled."

"!"

"And their wish is to defeat the demons and restore peace to the world."

At this point, the black-haired girl suddenly stared intently at Lornish, her eyes seeming to hold some emotion brewing within them:

"Therefore, once you have completed your mission of saving the world and defeating the demons, your wish has been fulfilled, and that world will naturally cease to exist."

"So that's how it is? Then, what about those demons I defeated when I became the hero...?"

"Of course not. In fact, many of the fallen demons who once invaded the Snow Kingdom are still alive and well, such as that cunning Demon Lord..."

When the name of the Demon Lord of Tricks was mentioned, Elusia's tone turned several degrees colder: "However, the Dream World was originally a training space created to train humans, so the knowledge you have gained will come in handy someday."

"I understand!"

Lonnie gasped and said, "So, the Dream World is just a rehearsal, and our real mission is to save the world and defeat the Trickster Lord and other dark beings?"

"wrong."

"what?"

"My mission is to save the world, and your mission is to assist me in saving the world, warm my bed, and act cute."

"How...how could this happen..."

Lonnie's cheeks turned bright red at the mention of acting cute and warming the bed.

"Furthermore, I would like to remind you that it is best not to attempt to defy this. This is a matter written into the contract, and it will last until death."

"What does '契' or '契约' mean?"

"You can think of it as a magical contract, which will result in terrible punishment if violated. The essence of the contract lies in the principle of equivalent exchange that I just mentioned."

"Could you... explain equivalent exchange to me?"

When she was a hero, Lonnie felt she was quite intelligent. But now, she felt like she had become a clumsy, adorable girl, completely at Elcia's mercy.

"In other words, in order to bring peace to the souls of the Snow Kingdom (and to seek revenge), I must take on the responsibility of saving the world. And you, as the price of my rebirth, must become my partner."

"!"

"But originally, you were supposed to be a brave and invincible hero, joining me to wipe out the enemy. But I never expected you to be such a masochistic maid, wearing a flowing white dress and long stockings. So, I can only be your master and keep bullying you~"

"N-no, it's not that I like you. I've already said it was a misunderstanding, I originally..."

"So that's what you wanted me to become? Hmph~~"

Lonnies wanted to argue, but when she heard Elusia's cold snort, she instinctively shrank back and dared not say that she wanted to "be the master" anymore.

"So, if we're talking about saving the world, what exactly do we need to do?"

"There's a lot to do, but for now, collecting all seven weapons is the most important thing."

"Seven weapons...?"

"Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, and violet—there are seven Rainbow Temples in this world, and the Flame Abyss we just visited is one of them. Each of these seven temples possesses different powers; some are still being worshipped, while others, like the Flame Abyss, have been sealed away."

"Oh, so that means there are seven weapons like the Crimson Lotus Hammer! The Yellow Lotus Hammer and the Green Lotus Hammer?"

"How foolish! You have knives, swords, spears, and bows! Have you ever seen anyone go to war with seven hammers?"

"Ah, no wonder, hehe..."

Lornes chuckled foolishly; by now, the questions that had been nagging at her had been largely answered.

Only one thing remains, something about myself.

However, seeing Lonnies's curious expression, Elusia smiled and said, "Masochistic maid, are you so eager to be bullied by me?"

"what……?"

"You already asked me that."

Nine questions, so you'll have to willingly let your master tease and bully you nine times.

"Wait a minute! Do the ones after that count too?"

Lonnie was stunned. She had been so engrossed in asking questions that she had completely forgotten the consequences of being teased.

"Of course it counts. So, let's start our first one here?"

"Now?!"

"Hmph, I've been wanting to see this for a long time."

The black-haired girl walked towards Lonnie with a strange smile.

then……

"O people of the past, please...please rest in peace. The heroes of the past, I have...have returned safely as Lonnie."

Standing at the highest point of the cemetery, Lonnies was holding a page of paper and reading it aloud.

Judging by this behavior alone, Lonnies seems like a devout priest comforting the dead, but considering her attire, that's not the case.

Her legs were tightly bound together with rope, and a collar was around her neck. Her light white dress fluttered, and her chest trembled with each breath, making it seem as if she was engaged in some strange and shameful play.

The same was true for the subsequent speeches:

"Please, please don't worry. Her Highness is perfectly healthy... and I, I've become her personal... maid, serving her forever. Wearing... wearing a little dress, for her..."

These words, one by one, pierced Lonnie's heart like nails driven into it.

It's so shameful. If there really are souls in the tombstones, what would they look like seeing themselves in this shameful state?

(Look! The former hero is now willing to be a slave maid!)

(And she's wearing such a shameful little skirt, with white stockings and thigh-high socks, how embarrassing!)

(Is this guy trying to act like a girl and deliberately want to be bullied by the princess?)