Volume 7, Chapter 11 – Incomplete Identification

“Mana… mana surge?”

Just as Fia had imagined, the moment checking the mana surge was mentioned, Anastasia immediately backed away.

Fia wasn’t surprised. In Anastasia’s eyes, there was a clear distinction between the current her and the Eldest Princess in her memories. Just as Fia felt that the current Anastasia wasn’t the one she knew, the elf felt that Fia wasn’t the real Dofilia. It was only natural to hesitate.

Likely, only the Fia who had first arrived on the World Tree Continent—knowing nothing at all—would have foolishly allowed Anastasia to check her mana surge. That said, the current Fia didn’t feel much about it; there was nothing to be ashamed of regarding a mere gemstone.

As for how to distinguish Anastasia’s mana surge: whether it was accidentally seeing her doing something unspeakable at night in Aurora City, or while bathing in the bathhouse of the Dusk Palace(when Liti had suddenly flipped Anastasia’s towel away), Fia had caught glimpses of it.

It must be emphasized that Fia didn’t try to remember it on purpose. Her ability to never forget was simply too strong, and her excellent dynamic vision made a few short seconds feel extremely long. Thus, it was difficult for her not to remember. Being too powerful was truly a burden.

Now, their positions were essentially reversed.

Fia spoke as seriously as possible.

“The mana surge best reflects an elf’s soul. If you want to know if the current Anastasia is the one I know, confirming the mana surge is the simplest way.”

Fia stood up and walked toward the window, where the faint light of dawn was filtering in. It was six in the morning. The servants in Baron Yuraidon’s estate were already awake. Fia could faintly hear the sound of servants chopping wood outside and birds chirping in the distance. The peaceful air bore not the slightest resemblance to the disaster Anastasia had described.

“To help you understand the current situation, I must explain beforehand. You’ve likely noticed that my personality is very different from the Dofilia you know. The specifics can be explained later, but to put it simply: Anastasia, you have come to another world. The people here are the same as in your world, but developments have been entirely different. I did indeed go to the Milcandis Holy Kingdom with you and was ambushed, but I did not die under the attack of the Unsinkable Moon; I survived.”

“No, to put it even more simply: your soul has swapped with the Anastasia who was supposed to be by my side. This is not your world. Because I didn’t die, Father didn’t launch a massive invasion of the Holy Kingdom, and the Barony of Yarua wasn’t bathed in blood by the undead of the Netherworld because the southern defensive troops were moved. Furthermore, I don’t know if I accidentally destroyed The Sovereign’s plans or if the Chaos itself wasn’t that strong, but it is now the summer of the second year, and as far as I know, there is no trace of Chaos in this region.”

“Now, I must confirm where the Anastasia who should be by my side has gone. The only possible way left is to check the mana surge. If you cannot believe me, I will allow you to confirm mine as a condition for your trust. You should have seen the Eldest Princess’s mana surge before.”

“Urgh…”

Even though Fia’s back was turned to her, Anastasia could still feel the charisma radiating from her. It was exactly like the Dofilia in her memories, her words filled with a charm that made one want to believe.

Anastasia’s right hand instinctively moved to her left shoulder. After a moment of hesitation, she had already confirmed the mana surge on Fia’s arm—it was indeed Dofilia. She didn’t fully understand the concept of her soul coming to another world, but that didn’t stop her from believing Fia’s words. This was her master.

“As you wish…”

She stood up and slowly pulled down the strap on her left shoulder. With a look of shame, she lowered her head.

Fia turned around.

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Even though she had checked every part of Anastasia’s body last night—both those meant to be seen and those not—this current, bashful look of being half-dressed still made Fia’s pupils dilate slightly. She reminded herself that now was not the time to admire Anastasia. She shifted her gaze to the diamond-shaped gem on Anastasia’s left shoulder. Then, her dilated pupils suddenly constricted. She hurried forward, using [Illumination] to fill the room with more light, even using [See Through] to ensure she wasn’t mistaken. Only after confirming there was no error did Fia look hesitantly at Anastasia’s profile.

Anastasia’s mana surge was different from when Fia had first arrived on the World Tree Continent; her mana surge had changed.

Anastasia had half-royal blood, and her mana surge was supposed to be a ruby-red color similar to Fia’s. However, at this moment, her mana surge was a dull, lifeless gray. This meant that Anastasia’s soul had indeed changed.

“Anastasia, the color of your mana surge has changed.”

“What?”

Shock appeared in her azure eyes. Anastasia immediately turned her head to look at her left shoulder. Then, as if struck by a [Mind Shock], a flash of trance appeared in her eyes. Her body swayed uncontrollably, and she nearly collapsed to the floor.

“Hey! What’s wrong?”

“A bit dizzy…”

Anastasia clutched her forehead, her brow furrowed in a display of pain. However, as if realizing something, the way she looked at Fia gradually changed. In that instant, she had felt another faint, ethereal consciousness within the mana surge.

Because Fia could use magic without chanting, she rarely used her mana surge and couldn’t feel the subtle differences within it. But Anastasia was different. For her to use magic, she had to go through the mana surge, which she could control as easily as her own limbs. Now, with an extra thing in the mana surge that didn’t belong to her, the intense discomfort was as obvious as a limb becoming sluggish. Coupled with the fact that her current body was younger than the one she was familiar with, she gradually understood Fia’s words—her soul was in a body that didn’t belong to her, and this body was her younger self from fourteen years ago.

It was absurd.

Even more absurd was that such a thing was happening to her.

Anastasia swallowed with difficulty.

“Your Highness, I can feel something else in the mana surge.”

“Something else? What is it?”

I’ve never seen such a hopeful expression before…

Looking at Fia’s expectant, magnificent red eyes, Anastasia lowered her gaze. She knew it wasn’t something that belonged to her.

“It’s another consciousness. I think it might be the ‘original me’ you spoke of. It’s just that the connection is very weak. The original me should be somewhere very far away.”

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“Far? How far? Can you feel the general direction? We’ll go right now—no, I’ll tell Claire and Liti first, then pack up and leave immediately!”

Fia hurried toward the door, only stopping when she noticed Anastasia was heavy-hearted and looked conflicted. She realized then that things might not be so simple.

“What is it?”

“I… your subordinate cannot sense the direction of the aura.”

“You can’t sense it? How can that be?”

For a split second, Fia instinctively thought the current Anastasia was lying. Although Anastasia had only revealed a tip of the iceberg of her life in the original world, Fia could still infer that life over there was not good. Compared to her current life, they were two different worlds. On such a basis, it was only logical that Anastasia would be unwilling to return to her original world.

However, that was only an instinctive thought. In less than a second, Fia dismissed the rude speculation. Regardless of which world’s Anastasia it was, her feelings toward Fia were sincere and pure. Anastasia might lie to others, but she would never lie to her. Even if she was the Eldest Princess of another world, Anastasia’s very existence meant devotion.

“Your subordinate swears by the meaning of Anastasia’s existence—I am definitely not deceiving you…”

Gritting her teeth and biting her lip, Anastasia’s lovely face was filled with shame and disgrace. She clutched her shoulder with one hand and bowed her head deeply.

Likely, the suspicion that had flickered for an instant was too obvious, and Anastasia had seen it.

Tch.

I’m a total jerk.

Fia clicked her tongue internally. Suppressing her urge to leave, she spoke.

“The fact that you can feel the consciousness in the mana surge means the original Anastasia is still alive. As long as she’s alive, there’s a way. I’ll ask just in case: before coming into this body, did you encounter any danger? Or did you experience a trigger that might have caused a soul swap?”

“No. Your subordinate was always in the rear, far from the battlefield, hiding in a village where no one knew me. I should have been sleeping when it happened…”

“That’s good, then.”

Fia’s tense heart finally relaxed. Even if her Anastasia had gone to the current Anastasia’s world, she wouldn’t be in a dangerous situation on a battlefield. Of course, it was also possible that her Anastasia was simply sleeping within the mana surge and hadn’t gone to the other world at all.

That said, she still had to quickly find a way to restore Anastasia to normal. The current her wasn’t skilled in academic matters. Returning to Blossom to seek help from those specialized in the soul was the fastest and most effective means. Whether it was the magic chanters of the Elf Tower or Laplace—or even if she had to learn it from scratch herself—it would be faster than just worrying.

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She would pack up and leave.

Standing at the door, Fia looked at Anastasia again. Then, she froze slightly. Anastasia was still holding her shoulder, her face turned away, standing there alone. She radiated an aura of melancholy and loneliness, like a puppy that no one wanted, huddled under the eaves.

The earlier suspicion had hurt her.

Fia felt a wave of shame.

Even if this was “another” Anastasia, Fia didn’t want to see her sad. If the Eldest Princess of the other world hadn’t died, the Anastasia before her would be identical to her own. Aside from their different experiences, they were exactly the same.

I wasn’t calm enough.

Regret and guilt surfaced in her chest. Fia stepped forward, her voice much softer.

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t being rational just now. For now, we’ll return to Blossom first. I want to figure out exactly what happened.”

“You… you’re apologizing to me?”

Anastasia’s face was full of disbelief.

“What else could it be but an apology? If you do something wrong, you must seek forgiveness. That is the way of the world.”

“But how could your subordinate ever blame you?”

Though she said that, the loneliness in Anastasia’s expression vanished without a trace, and a hint of joy and surprise appeared in her eyes.

So easy to please…

“You’d best start viewing me as an Eldest Princess with a completely different personality, or you’ll be finding yourself shocked like this quite often. Alright, put your clothes on. I’m going out to explain your changes to the others. Stay here and calm down for a bit once you’ve changed. Someone will bring you breakfast.”

“I—No, can your subordinate come with you?” To Fia’s surprise, Anastasia hurriedly tried to stop her from leaving. “Though I am a soul from another world, I… since I am occupying ‘my’ body, I should shoulder the responsibilities that originally belonged to ‘me’.”

Anastasia spoke haltingly. As someone who had gone through a similar experience, Fia could guess what she was thinking. She was worried that her phrasing would cause Fia to feel repulsed; someone wearing the skin of Anastasia and doing the same things as her—any normal person would feel disgusted by such an act of usurpation. Not to mention, the purpose of Anastasia’s words was actually self-satisfaction; her Dofilia was dead, and seeing Fia now, she viewed her as a replacement.

If one didn’t know Anastasia well, they would naturally feel nauseated. But Fia knew her too well and could understand her thoughts. The existence known as Dofilia was so important in Anastasia’s heart that even the weight of a casual order could exceed her own life. The drive behind her words was stronger than her instinct for survival.

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The soul swap wasn’t Anastasia’s intention. After learning that this Anastasia had lived as a fugitive just to carry out the Eldest Princess’s orders, it was even harder to refuse her.

However, if she were to show charity and sympathy to this Anastasia and allow her to do the same things as the original… what would happen to the gap in her heart when she returned to her own world?

Fia hesitated. She looked at Anastasia’s face; the other’s hand was held out in mid-air, still waiting hopefully for her response.

Even if it’s just a moment of warmth, I’ll fulfill this Anastasia’s wish. I’ll treat it as a dream.

Fia convinced herself and took a deep breath.

“Very well. But I will explain to Liti and the others that you are no longer the same Anastasia. And you have much to learn. First of all: rather than a guard, I consider you more of a Sister. You must get used to your identity, even if you aren’t the real Anastasia; you are essentially the same person.”

Despite getting an affirmative answer, Anastasia gaped exaggeratedly, even taking a small step back.

“Si—Sister?! Do you not know about the situation between my father and His Majesty? If His Majesty knew you considered me a Sister, he would certainly kill me!”

“The era has changed. You’ll understand everything once you meet my father. Also, write down all the major events that happened after my death. I need to know exactly what will happen in the future.”

Although the butterfly effect meant that a single small change could make the future develop entirely differently, being able to understand the attitudes of various parties under crisis was still a gain. At least for now, if she hadn’t been in Cold Night, the Chaos might have already swallowed most of its territory.

“Your subordinate thinks you should consider this further…”

Is the fear Yelido left in you really that great?

Actually, she could tell exactly what the usual Anastasia was thinking through this version’s reactions.

Fia feigned coldness.

“There’s nothing to consider. Get dressed and follow me out. Even if the sky falls, you won’t be the one supporting it. The priority is figuring out what happened. Other than that, you just need to do your duty.”

“Yes…”

Unable to agree but complying, Anastasia nodded awkwardly. Her stepping foot hung in the air, as if its landing would decide something. However, that hesitation was quickly shattered under fourteen years of longing and regret. She no longer hesitated and took a step forward.