The Paranoid Elf Queen Turned Me Into Her Sister

Volume 3, Chapter 23 ~ Teresa, I Won’t Let You Die!

So, was the former Teresa truly the same as those oppressors?

I stood dazed in the ruins, the flickering firelight stretching my shadow long.

If that was the case, I could not understand the point of recovering the memories of an oppressor. To recover the memories of an exploiter—was that not aiding and abetting evil?

Was I to let myself clearly see how the original Teresa had oppressed the lower-class elves? Was that necessary?

Before I could think further, the distant rumbling and shaking snapped me out of my thoughts, the violent, shocking sounds urging me forward, wordlessly telling me that there was not much time left.

If I did not stop it now, something even more severe would happen.

The decaying Empire and its bloated, paralyzed, and hopelessly rigid administrative system could not be relied upon. I could only rely on myself.

Could I really do it?

A person who did not even know who she was, who had not even figured out her place in this world—could she really do it?

Honestly, I am very confused now. I did not know why I was following the guidance of the Golden Chalice Butterfly, seeking the memories of the original Teresa. It held no meaning for me personally; I had no motivation to do so.

Yet I still willingly accepted the guidance, as if instinct was driving me to do it.

Clearly, this world and Teresa had nothing to do with me, so why did I care so much?

The more the confusion and doubt tangled in my heart, the more irritable I became. Not knowing what I should do, I moved my feet in high-frequency steps on the ground, sprinting toward the source of the noise.

No matter how many questions filled my heart, I could only temporarily ignore them, focusing all my attention on dealing with that monster born of resentment.

‘Using one’s own flesh and blood to fight against the resentment of millions—how arrogant.’

This mocking voice echoed inexplicably in my mind, but I remained silent.

The source of the loud noise was a village already reduced to fiery ruins.

After only half a day, the monster that fed on resentment had become even stronger and larger than when I first saw it.

My instincts had been right: if this monster was not eliminated quickly, it would eventually cause a catastrophe.

In just half a day, it had absorbed so much resentment and despair, its balloon-like growth speed was astonishing.

Having absorbed more negative emotions, the monster’s evolution had advanced further. The long spear in its hand had merged with its arm, and the warhorse it bore was entirely purple-black, its four hooves burning with ghostly flames, each step leaving a sea of fire in its wake.

That Imperial officer had been turned into a monster alive, his self-awareness erased. Now, it was controlled by the resentments seeking a vessel.

I raised my longbow in confusion, my gaze no longer as sharp and keen as before.

Light arrows condensed, the arrows shot out, like a toothpick hitting the horse’s hind leg, unable even to break the skin.

Though it caused no substantial damage, it still drew the centaur monster’s attention.

The ground beneath its hooves became a sea of fire, all life extinguished, and with nothing left to destroy, its hollow, infected eyes turned to the golden-haired girl behind it.

Several harsh, grating sounds rang out, and the purple-black warhorse spewed out black poisonous flames.

Seeing my opponent attack, my gaze grew slightly firmer, and I quickly retreated, dodging the flames.

The poisonous flames, with intense corrosive properties, burned as they twisted and chased after me relentlessly.

I flipped several times but could not shake off the encroaching purple flames. A small sprout appeared in my hand, which I threw onto the ground beside me.

A wall of thorn-covered plants rose up, meeting the corrosive flames, but lasted less than three seconds before being melted away.

What should I do, should I use that?

In this tight spot, I thought it over. To defeat this monster, I would have to use [Sacred Oblivion].

This monster was impervious to blades and spears; only Sacred Oblivion’s absolute strike could kill it.

But while its body could be killed, what would happen to the resentment released afterward?

Resentment accumulated over centuries could not simply be dealt with so easily. Mishandling it could even lead to backlash.

Moreover, in the depths of my mind, a sense told me that relying too much on and using Sacred Oblivion was unwise.

My attention was not fully on the battle, I was chased all over by the monster, unable to counterattack.

Still lost in questioning my purpose as an outsider in this world, losing focus on the battlefield was taboo, and in that moment, I lost the composure and calm I once had.

This dangerous state came at a price.

After several missed attacks, the resentment monster had learned my dodging patterns. Raising its spear, it struck while I was leaping through the air, the flaming spear thrusting toward me.

My pupils contracted. Unable to dodge in the air, I could only raise my longbow in front of me to block.

“Boom, boom, boom!!” The ghostly burning spear struck me squarely, sending me crashing away, smashing through a half-broken fence and rolling into a cloud of dust.

“Teresa!” Yimi, arriving late, saw this scene and rushed over.

“Cough, cough...” I climbed up a bit awkwardly, my dazed eyes opening. I was not seriously injured, but not far away lay my wooden bow, broken in two.

Looking at my mud-covered palms, I suddenly recalled the memories I had retrieved earlier.

Just like this, I had stood in a burning village, my hands covered in blood.

Those people had died because of me.

Yimi had been right; I truly was the culprit responsible for the fall of the Land of the Elves.

But...

This was Teresa’s memory, not mine, so why...?

Why, upon knowing the truth, did it still hurt so much?

It was as if I truly was Teresa, as if I had really betrayed my own kind with my own hands, regretting it endlessly, unable to even summon the will to resist now.

Burying my head in the dirt, I could get up, but I did not want to anymore.

Closing my eyes, I could see those emerald eyes filled with hatred staring at me, watching me, their hatred undisguised.

No, no...

I squatted on the ground, hugging my head, ignoring the approaching hoofbeats, trembling all over in fear and cowardice.

“What are you doing? Get up already!” Yimi, panting, sprinted to me, trying to pull me up.

I remained silent, my lips trembling, and when she forced me to raise my head, the dazed look in my eyes stung Yimi’s heart.

She could hardly believe her eyes; she had never seen me this cowardly before.

“What are you doing? Too scared to even stand? You, the Elf War Goddess, are too pathetic!”

“Get up, can’t you see that centaur monster is about to charge over? If you want to die, don’t drag me with you!”

“It’s... no longer necessary.” After a long time, I shook my head, not daring to lift my gaze.

“What do you mean, no longer necessary?? Weren’t you trying to recover your memories?”

“Don’t think you can just die here. I’m still waiting to see your speechless expression once you remember everything!” Saying this, Yimi forcefully pulled my hand, trying to drag me away, but I did not budge, unmoving no matter how hard she tried.

“I’ve already remembered.” I lowered my head. “Don’t waste your strength.”

“What? You’ve remembered? Then you...?” For a moment, Yimi understood, and her pulling weakened.

“You’ve remembered what happened back then?” Yimi asked coldly after a moment of silence.

“Something like that. Although, it’s not very clear... but it should be correct.”

“So, you’re not leaving?”

“...”

I did not speak, merely lowering my head further, my mud-stained golden hair growing dull.

“Sorry, I misunderstood you before, Yimi.”

“You should go now, or it’ll be too late.” “You’ve always wanted me dead, haven’t you? That day has come.” I glanced at Yimi apologetically, then fell silent again.

“...Look at me.” Yimi suddenly said.

“?” Hearing this, I looked up in confusion, and the moment I did, Yimi raised her small hand and slapped me hard across the face.

“Pa!” A crisp sound exploded in my ear, leaving me stunned, unable even to feel the pain, a faint red mark appearing on my pale cheek.

“I don’t have a mirror now, but I really want you to see how pathetic you look right now!” Yimi said in disgust.

“I was even starting to doubt my memories, but you’re just going to deny everything with a single sentence?”

“Stop pitying yourself here. Do you think dying would make things right? That’s just your wishful, self-indulgent sentimentality!”

“Teresa, listen up. I won’t let you die.” Yimi held my cheeks, her clear, beautiful eyes staring into mine.

“You must live, live forever!”

“Only if you live can you suffer, so live on in pain for me!”

“Pull yourself together. Don’t forget, you are the Elf War Goddess, the strongest of the Elf Tribe!”

“Before anything is decided, you’re going to condemn yourself? And you call yourself the Elf War Goddess?? If this is all you have, you might as well marry some farmer and live as a village girl!”

“You... you need to go!” Seeing the centaur monster closing in behind Yimi, my pupils contracted.

“Go? Go where?” Yimi remained unmoved. “The Elf War Goddess is standing right here, and if you can’t even deal with this plague, it’s only a matter of time before I’m killed too, so why run? I’m not leaving. We’re staying right here.”

“This isn’t a joke.”

“Do I look like I’m joking?” Yimi stared at me blankly. “You may like to tease others and joke around, but I never joke.”

“You...” While we argued, the centaur monster, lacking any sense of honor, did not wait for us to finish. It had already charged up behind Yimi, raising its spear to strike down the small body shielding me.

“Teresa, I believe in you.” Yimi stared into my eyes, unmoving, as if she felt nothing of the giant flaming spear about to fall on her.

If struck, Yimi, without a domain, would surely be torn apart instantly...

It would not be the first time I had seen a comrade die, but this time was different.

This time, it was right before my eyes...

My eyes widened with light, and I did not know where the strength came from, but I stood up.

Was it over?

Yimi closed her eyes for a moment, but the pain did not come. When she opened them again, she saw the immobile, giant monster.

The golden-haired girl held her in one arm, a stone blade in the other, blocking the unstoppable corrosive spear. With that seemingly ordinary stone blade, she held back the centaur monster, several times her height, preventing its spear from descending no matter how hard it pressed.

“Truly reckless.”

“Hmph.” Hearing the woman’s now-calm voice, Yimi let out a rare soft laugh.

“If I weren’t reckless, you’d already be dead.”

“This discussion can wait.” I glanced at the restrained, immobile resentment monster.

Just now, it felt as if I had triggered some muscle memory, allowing me to get up and protect Yimi.

Yimi was right. That pathetic state of mine was not like me at all.

It seemed I had recovered some of my combat instincts.

“Very well, time for you to leave the stage.” I lifted the stone blade, and the giant resentment monster staggered and fell.

“Stay back.” Placing Yimi down, another stone blade appeared in my hand as I walked toward the smoking, battered centaur.

“Sorry, ugly monster. I didn’t want to fight before, I gave you a chance, but you didn’t take it.”

“Now, please leave the stage.” I crossed the twin blades in my hands, a slight confident curve on my lips.

At that moment, the Golden Chalice Butterfly burst forth with brilliant light, and I paused, then quickly opened it.

Sensing something, I opened the Gacha page and was surprised to find that my quest commission had been completed.

I had now met the conditions to receive my quest reward, with fifty chips instantly credited.

In that case...

I wanted to recover more memories, so my gaze burned as I looked toward the weapon in the wishing pool that I had never seen before, yet seemed so familiar.

At first, I had not felt much, but now, having regained many memories, I felt that this bow was very important to me, extremely important.

Perhaps, as long as I obtained it, many of my doubts would be resolved.

Although the time and place were not ideal, it was time to start the draw.

The resentment monster struggled back to its feet, attempting to attack me again, but I struck it down with a single slash.

“Sorry, ugly monster, I’ve got urgent matters to handle here, so please stay down now, okay~?”