"Lena..."
Elashia gently grasped Ileina's right hand.
"Shia?"
Ileina's right hand, which had been suspended in midair due to hesitation, was unexpectedly grasped by Elashia's small hand.
Elashia's sudden action left Ileina stunned in place.
Elashia... had grasped her hand?
Ileina bit her lip and mustered the courage to look up at Elashia's small face.
On the pink-haired girl's small face, blurred by tears... she still wore her characteristic gentle smile.
Soon, Ileina understood why Elashia had grasped her right hand.
"Lena... you know..."
The pink-haired girl, with tears in her eyes but still smiling gently, softly placed Ileina's small hand on her delicate face.
"Shia?"
Ileina was stunned.
Elashia... had placed her hand at the corner of her eyes?
"You are both worthy."
Elashia smiled as she looked at Alexandra's projected figure and gently used Ileina's somewhat tense hand to wipe away the tears from her small face.
"Shia..."
The scene before her left Ileina almost entranced.
The pink-haired girl before her, so lovely she could purify the hearts of even the most evil beings in the world, was smiling gently at her...
With her slender, pale small hand, she had placed her own hand at the corner of her eyes that still held tears, slowly using her hand to wipe away the tears...
Those emerald eyes full of vitality and spirit looked at her gently, as if telling her something...
So beautiful... truly so beautiful...
Had Elashia, now grown into a young woman, become so utterly captivating...
My goodness...
"Mother is the same..."
"Past events... did indeed have a great impact on me."
"But... for me, this isn't important."
"What's important is..."
Elashia looked gently at Ileina and Alexandra:
"I like you..."
"I really like you..."
"From countless years ago, I've been looking forward to facing together those enemies that require our combined efforts to defeat..."
As she spoke, Elashia's eyes were filled with sincerity so intense it could almost become tangible.
Her words contained not a shred of falsehood—they were all what she truly wanted to say from her heart.
Although transmigrating to this world full of danger, where one wrong choice could mean death, a world destined for destruction, did indeed make Elashia feel fear and pain.
But could Elashia say that coming to this world hadn't made her feel even a bit of anticipation and hope?
Impossible!
After all, what normal person could refuse such a classic story of forming deep bonds with these extraordinarily courageous Human Heroes who possessed humanity's most noble qualities, and together confronting those enemies of humanity who, though powerful in the game, were ugly and merciless?
In any case, Elashia couldn't refuse it!
And among the Ten Human Heroes in the game, Elashia's favorites were Ileina and Alexandra!
So she would never let the mistakes they had made against "Elashia" in the past hinder her bonds with them!
Although doing this was indeed unfair to "Elashia," what did that have to do with her, Elashia?
She didn't care about the past—she only cared about the present!
She wanted to be affectionate with Alexandra and Ileina!
She wanted to join hands with them to fight against the enemies humanity was about to face!
She wanted all the Human Heroes she liked to survive with smiles!
So... although she was sorry to "Elashia," she would never let those past events affect her present self!
"Lena... Mother..."
"I know... even if I say I don't care about those things, you won't believe me."
"But... what I want to say is—compared to those past events, I care more about you and me in the present."
A flash of clarity appeared in Elashia's beautiful eyes as she asked Alexandra and Ileina:
"Mother, Lena, do you like me?"
She naturally knew how Alexandra and Ileina would answer her.
Hearing Elashia's question, Alexandra smiled slightly:
"Dear daughter... does this question even need Mama to answer?"
After Alexandra finished speaking, Ileina also said urgently:
"Shia! I swear! You're the person I like most!"
"Like the birds in the sky, no matter how far, I..."
Just as Ileina, lacking in literary refinement, was urgently trying to express her feelings for Elashia, Elashia smiled and gently blocked her small mouth with her finger.
"Then isn't that fine..."
A gentle smile appeared on Elashia's small face.
"You like me, and I like you too."
"That's what's important, isn't it?"
"I want to get close to you, to understand you..."
Elashia looked sincerely at Alexandra and Ileina before her.
"I think... you also know that I long for our relationship to become closer."
"Not only because humanity needs to unite in the face of unprecedented crisis, and as Elasia's Empress I need to unite the Holy Kingdom and Iron Empire."
"And not only because of the trust and attachment carved into my bones as your close friend and daughter..."
Speaking to this point, Elashia, having completely expressed the thoughts in her heart, declared loudly:
"The reason I long to get close to you... is because I like you!"
...
After Elashia finished her last sentence, the air fell into silence.
"Like... is it..."
Ileina murmured.
She knew this simple phrase was Elashia's sincere expression.
Although it was just a plain, unremarkable "like" without any embellishment, behind this simple word was Elashia's genuine and passionate emotion...
Savoring Elashia's words in her heart, a blush appeared on Ileina's small face.
Actually... she had indeed made a serious mistake before.
Didn't she know that Elashia really liked her?
Didn't she know that seeing her suffer made Elashia even more pained than herself?
Compared to Elashia's sincerity, she seemed laughable instead.
If she felt guilty toward Elashia, she should let her live happily by her side, not make her suffer to the point of tears like just now.
Her debt to Elashia should be repaid with actions, not words and expressions!
That would only make Elashia suffer more!
"Shia... I understand..."
Ileina, now completely clear in her heart, stepped forward and gently embraced Elashia.
Determination flickered in her eyes.
From now on, she would never let her beloved girl shed a single tear because of her!
"Very good..."
Seeing the determination in the blonde girl's eyes and her daughter's gentle expression, Alexandra smiled with satisfaction...