...
...
...
A few seconds later, she returned back to reality.
Mei: "Ugh, ughhh..."
She looks up at the entrance to the Elysian Realm.
Her eyes blurred from the brightness.
Her body felt a bit wobbly due to setbacks of coming back.
Suddenly, a monotone clear familiar voice was heard in front of her, taking her slowly out of trance.
???: "Blood pressure, body pressure, heart rate..."
???: "All vital signs are stable."
???: "Vitals check complete."
As this point of time, her consciousness had started to clear up.
She first looks straight but the person she was looking for wasn't there.
Then...
She looked down.
Mei: "Hmm?"
Mei thought she was hallucinating.
She blinks and looks at the person again.
Standing in front of her was a very small mysterious figure at the size of Mei's knees.
She had green short flowing hair, her eyes were green on the top, pink on the bottom.
She had an eyepatch on her right eye, as well as holding some type of black book in her arms, holding the back with her two small hands.
There, that monotone familiar voice Mei heard in the realm was now in front of her.
???: "Hello, test subject."
???: "Welcome back to reality."
She says in a clear natural monotone.
Mei: "This voice..."
Mei: "You were the..."
Mei: "Sorry, you look... special."
Mei: "I didn't notice at first."
???: "..."
???: "You did what I told you."
???: "Why?"
Mei: "My instincts pointed me that way."
???: "...Groundless instincts."
???: "But luckily, you chose the route with the highest simulates survival rate..."
???: "34.7%."
The small figure states in a monotone.
Mei: "34.7% sounds pretty good to me."
Mei: "What about the other two paths?"
???: "30% at most."
Mei: "..."
???: "I know..."
???: "You don't probably see it as a big difference."
???: "But you can't deny that it's indeed a safer route."
Mei: "I agree, but I think most people would choose to trust their intuitions over a stranger's instructions."
???: "That's why humans are always doing things they regret."
???: "Certain reactions taking place in the Ferguson Area of the brain do bring such emotion-driven but stupid..."
???: "...Never mind, you wouldn't understand anyways."
Mei: "So..."
Mei: "Can you introduce yourself now, stranger?"
???: "..."
???: "I'm Klein, Dr. Mobius's assistant."
Klein: "I handle the regular maintenance of the Elysian Realm."
Mei: "The maintainer of the Elysian Realm..."
Mei: "Are you a Flame-Chaser too?"
Klein: "..."
Klein: "Record: Anomalies in the realm may have caused irreversible damage to the test subjects visual and cognitive functions."
Mei: "...I guess that's a no."
Mei: "Then why are you here?"
Klein: "...It's my job."
Klein: "I'm an ELF designed and made by Dr. Mobius."
Klein: "I'm just as real as you."
Klein: "But you don't have to address me like your senior."
Klein: "You can simply call me Klein."
Mei: "...Hi, Klein."
Mei: "I'm Raiden Mei."
Klein: "There's no need to introduce yourself."
Klein: "I was alerted the moment you entered the realm."
Mei: "..."
Klein: "No one foresaw the coming of a Herrscher as a successor."
Klein: "I had to run emergency maintenance on the realm, otherwise..."
Klein: "You might have experienced its various defense mechanisms by now."
Mei: "...Sounds like I should thank you."
Klein: "You're welcome."
Mei: "..."
Klein: "Unless you have more questions, test subject, let's talk about your next job."
Mei: "My next job?"
Mei questions in a suspicious manner.
Klein: "My best guess is that the anomalies you just experienced were part of the realm's rejection against Herrschers."
Klein: "It's more of a biological term, but I think it applies to your situation."
Klein: "To fix these anomalies, I hope you can gather more observation data in the realm for me."
Mei: "...And why should I help you?"
Mei questions sternly.
Klein: "Because you're now the only successor in the realm."
Mei: "Still, my answer is no."
Mei: "I didn't sign up for this."
Klein: "..."
Klein: "...Huh?"
Klein: "...You refused?"
Klein: "Why?"
Klein: "How can you turn down a request?"
Mei: "Hm?"
Mei raises an eyebrow in question.
Klein: "Shouldn't you... accept the request and finish it on time?"
Klein: "Even if the requestor changes their mind and asks you to start all over again..."
Klein: "You're still supposed to say yes, aren't you?"
Mei: "Do you live in hell?"
Klein: "..."
Mei: Anyway, these anomalies didn't disturb me, and I have no reason to help you."
Klein: "If your exploration is limited to the current area, I guess you're right."
Klein: "Alright it's fine."
Klein: "I'll try to think of a way to gather data myself."
Klein was about to leave.
When suddenly, the herrscher's voice stopped her in her tracks.
Mei: "Wait, Klein."
Klein: "?"
Mei: "You just mentioned the 'current area'..."
Mei: "Which means there are other areas in the realm that I haven't been to?"
Klein: "Yes, but the realm is becoming more and more unstable."
Klein: "Maintaining the stability of the current area is difficult enough, not to mention fixing all the anomalies throughout the realm."
Mei: "..."
Mei: "If that's the case.."
Mei: "I can help, Klein."
Klein: "Huh?"
Mei: "Getting to the deeper reaches of the realm is one of the reasons why I came here."
Mei: "But if I find out resolving these anomalies doesn't help me in any way, I can help no further."
Klein: "Alright, that's good enough for me."
Klein: "Thanks."
Mei: "So, how do I help?"
Klein: "Ah, about that..."
Klein reached out her hand to Mei, trying to attach something to Mei's belt.
But due to their huge height difference, Klein attached it to Mei's leg instead.
A blue stream of data flashed for a brief moment at the location of contact and then dispersed.
Mei: "What's this?"
Klein: "Uh..."
Klein: "It's alright."
Klein: "Where you wear it doesn't matter."
Klein: "It's functioning properly."
Klein says, as if she didn't listen to Mei's question when putting her attention on this certain device, now attached to Mei's leg.
Mei: "..."
Klein: "It's hard to explain..."
Klein: "Just know that it's accessory used exclusively in the realm."
Klein: "During an anomaly, you can use it to communicate with the outside world."
Klein: "I'll answer your call as soon as possible."