"You really pulled one over on me."
Faced with Elysia's triumphant declaration, Fallen Elysia instantly understood why, sighing with a mix of helplessness and annoyance.
—She'd been tricked.
Undoubtedly so.
Because when Elysia proposed this 'catfight' theme, she had already laid a trap.
If it were just a matter of superiority between 'Elysias,' then unquestionably, both she and her foolish original self held equal standing in Qiao's heart, with no inherent winner.
But, if they were competing on the 'purity' of Elysia...
Although Fallen Elysia was confident—even though her current self was tainted, transformed into something the original Elysia could never become—she still believed she could win this 'Elysia competition.'
After all, regardless of anything else, she was a 50,000+ year veteran Elysia, absolutely incomparable to the novice original from 50,000 years ago.
But...
Perhaps because of the corruption, even though Fallen Elysia still considered herself 'Elysia,' in essence, compared to the original, factory-sealed Elysia, she was inherently at a disadvantage.
To some extent, she had actually already lost the moment she agreed to this theme.
Elysia had chosen a competition she was guaranteed to win.
Facing Fallen Elysia's displeasure, Elysia hummed smugly:
"Hmph hmph, when it comes to dealing with myself, I do have some tricks up my sleeve."
"Even if we're both Elysia, the one who's a step ahead is definitely me!"
"That's hardly something to brag about, is it?"
Faced with Fallen Elysia's retort, the latter exclaimed, half-embarrassed, half-annoyed:
"Cut the crap! According to our agreement, you lost!"
"Is that what you think? I don't quite see it that way."
"...Are you planning to go back on your word?!" Elysia grew wary.
Fallen Elysia giggled charmingly.
"Actually, it's not entirely out of the question. After all... I'm a naughty little fairy, you know? And if the target is my original self, breaking my word doesn't really matter, does it?"
"Ultimately, the one with the absolute advantage right now is still me."
"You... Naughty Jiang Qiao...!" Elysia fumed, then looked somewhat aggrievedly at the certain Mr. Jiang beside her.
However, before he could say anything, Fallen Elysia spoke first.
"Alright, alright, just kidding~"
"Since Qiao witnessed everything, a bet's a bet~ I don't want Qiao to think of me as a bad woman who breaks her promises."
So if naughty Jiang Qiao wasn't here, you really were planning to renege!
Elysia's eyes widened, having caught the implication.
"But, it doesn't really matter."
"After all..."
"Speaking of which, this 'competition'... I truly lost from the very beginning, didn't I~"
Fallen Elysia smiled, her gaze sweeping over Jiang Qiao and Elysia, her words carrying a profound undertone.
Hearing this, Elysia felt strange. At the same time, looking at the interested expression on her other self's face... Come to think of it, she'd been bothered by it before. For some reason, this bad version of herself always had flushed cheeks, as if she had a fever...
"What do you mean, 'lost from the beginning'?"
Facing Miss Pink Elf's utter confusion, Fallen Elysia beamed, her words filled with delight and a hint of trembling:
"Hmm~ Exactly what it sounds like."
"Of course, I doubt you'd understand just by me saying it."
"So..."
"It's better if you experience it yourself."
As her words fell, a crisp snap of fingers echoed in the air.
Just as Elysia, bewildered, was about to scold this bad version of herself for being deliberately mysterious and demand she admit defeat...
The next moment—
"Pssh—"
Completely unaware, Elysia only heard a close, urgent sound of rushing water—it sounded like it was right next to her... No, it was right next to her!
She instinctively looked down in the direction of the sound, her face turning beet red.
Undoubtedly—she had just witnessed a blooming crystal flower turn into... a sprinkler?!
...Can't stop, can't stop at all! At this moment, Elysia felt like a broken faucet.
"You... What did you do?!" Elysia knelt on the grass in a W-sit, looking at the smiling Fallen Elysia with utter shame, fury, and shock.
"Hmm~ I just did what I was supposed to do."
Fallen Elysia twirled a strand of silky hair around her finger, speaking nonchalantly and cheerfully.
"After all, this is a 'competition'~"
"Isn't this what Elysia is supposed to do?"
Just as Elysia could easily win this 'catfight' between Elysias by simply doing nothing and carrying on as usual—because for Elysia, she didn't need to intentionally do anything. Elysia is Elysia.
Therefore, as long as what she was doing aligned with her current feelings, the correctness of this Elysia was undeniable.
Hence, for Elysia, simply being happy with naughty Jiang Qiao, waking up happy, going to sleep happy every day... this was Elysia's life, Elysia's everything—and also what Jiang Qiao hoped to see.
So, doing nothing, going with the flow, living according to her feelings, never hiding her true heart—that is Elysia.
Deliberately putting on airs, worrying about things, would actually be a flaw.
However—
Since that is 'Elysia.'
Then Fallen Elysia, who also belongs to Elysia, would naturally submit the same answer—the only difference being, she was ultimately no longer the Elysia of the past, but the corrupted Fallen Elysia.
Even understanding this, she chose not to purge the 'poison' that caused her fall. In fact, after discovering the true nature of this 'script,' she chose to calmly accept it all, transforming into her current, entirely new self.
But even with many changes, Fallen Elysia, as Elysia, always held onto certain things.
Undoubtedly—that was the true self belonging to 'Elysia.'
Even having fallen, she hadn't abandoned it.
After all, if she abandoned even this 'origin' of Elysia, she probably couldn't call herself Elysia anymore.
However, even if this 'true self' remained constant, it would naturally yield different results when applied to Elysia at different stages.
Just like her younger self, holding this true self, sought the paradise described in fairy tales.
And after her travels, discovering that no such paradise existed in the world, Elysia, still holding that true self, changed direction, wanting to personally create the flawless paradise that only existed in stories.
Now, for Fallen Elysia, who had already walked the path of corruption—this 'true self' would naturally undergo a transformation as well.
It was the emotion previously suppressed deep within her heart, the product of being twisted and diseased by the 'poison.' According to most people's thinking, this was probably indeed wrong.
But, if something is wrong, must it be corrected?
Perhaps the past Elysia would have done so, but... having been corrupted, having fallen, having tasted the details of this gradually twisting emotion, even though she wasn't without choices, Fallen Elysia unhesitatingly chose—to make the best of a bad situation, to double down on the error.
Even if it's wrong, it doesn't matter!
As long as she sees it through to the end, then undoubtedly.
This is Fallen Elysia's 'true self.'
"You...."
Looking at Fallen Elysia licking her lips, her eyes sultry, shamelessly displaying her high-class aura, Elysia, knowing her own business, couldn't possibly mistake what kind of 'Elysia' the other was. Ultimately—that was an 'emotion' she also possessed.
It was just that, due to a maiden's shyness, Miss Pink Elf, even if she wanted to do bad things, didn't dare to be too outrageous.
But...
Fallen Elysia was different.
Suppress emotions?
Why do such a thing?
Do what you want to do, take what you want to get—as long as it doesn't betray your own heart, there's absolutely nothing to hesitate about, right?
Just like now, this feeling born from her own unwillingness, her bitter emotions, from the jealousy and craving generated by the Herrscher of Corruption 'scavenging scraps'... When these became Elysia's current feelings, then, wasn't it obvious what she had to do?
"Because I am Elysia, I will do this."
"Because I am Elysia, I must do this." Fallen Elysia smiled, her tone holding an undeniable certainty.
Even though—at this very moment, she was in the same 'embarrassing' situation as Elysia.
Or rather, the latter's current awkward predicament was actually caused by Fallen Elysia.
"You... Have you no shame at all?!" Elysia, feeling weak, her legs numb and trembling, could only miserably try to cover the mess on the ground, biting back silver teeth as she loudly reprimanded the other.
"None whatsoever."
Fallen Elysia wore a calm smile, completely unfazed by her current state resembling a broken sprinkler. She even stood straight, hands on her slender hips, creating a stark contrast with Elysia, who could only sit miserably in a W-sit.
"I only feel happy."
Utterly unconcerned, she could even nonchalantly turn the valve up higher.
"Setting aside the fact that there's no one here but Qiao and us—shame? I was always a Herrscher, wasn't I? Why should I care about that?"
The so-called sense of shame was merely a 'moral guideline' formed by human social relations—in ancient times, when humans were still primitive, would anyone care about being naked?
Although times have changed, ultimately, 'Elysia' was originally a Herrscher, not human.
Since that's the case, why should she, as a Herrscher, be bound by human moral guidelines?
"Besides, I'm Fallen Elysia, remember?"
She smiled, making no attempt to hide it—in fact, she wouldn't mind having a competition of who could 'go further.' Shameless Fallen Elysia proudly flaunted the fact that she had 'fallen.'
If I hadn't fallen, fine. But I, Elysia, have already become a bad girl, so why still be so uptight?
Of course, I'll do whatever feels good, whatever makes me happy!
"Although it's frustrating, I have to admit, you won from the very beginning." Fallen Elysia's smile held a hint of helplessness and regret, but seeing her state, Miss Elysia, the victor, couldn't feel happy at all.
—After all, the outcome of this competition was decided from the start.
Elysia secured victory from the beginning through her higher purity compared to Fallen Elysia—because of this, she was naturally confident, completely assured.
After confirming her guaranteed win, Miss Elysia was already contemplating how to deal with this trouble-making bad Elysia afterwards.
But...
She stared daggers at Fallen Elysia, gritting her teeth.
Turns out, this girl never intended to win from the start!
No...
It wasn't that she never intended to win, but rather, after choosing the 'Elysia' competition, Fallen Elysia was bound to lose.
Because—
As long as she wanted to act as 'Elysia' and follow the original intention of her 'true self,' she would inevitably break the rules by making a move on the judge, a certain Mr. Jiang.
If she didn't make a move, she definitely couldn't win.
But... breaking the rules meant automatic disqualification—from this perspective, whether from Elysia's angle or Fallen Elysia's, she was destined to lose this proposition!
As if sensing Miss Elysia's fury, Fallen Elysia clapped slowly, humming through her nose, congratulating the former:
"Hmm~ Can't be helped. This time, you won."
...This time, you won.
....You... won.
—You won! (Confirmed)