That's right—the choice Enrico made was correct, and the house he chose was neither the future nor the past. It was the present, which made his exit easy, since the only thing he needed to do was refuse to change anything that had happened that day. Easy. It was very easy. It would only have been difficult if he had suffered some trauma that day.
"In a way, this house is supposed to be about the present, which doesn't make much sense to me, because if it makes me relive the day, then it's still the past."
[You're right about that… what a useless and misleading little house.]
"Well, it wasn't created by someone who truly understood the concept of time or had that kind of power. It was created by someone who didn't fully grasp those matters."
That person had been one of the first elves ever born. He hadn't made something like this intentionally, because for him the most important houses were those of the past and the future. Skadi had simply used what he created to test two people, not all four.
[So your plan worked, and now all that's left is to leave.]
"I'll know if my plan worked one hundred percent after I leave."
[What do you mean?]
Enrico was drinking tea inside the house. If you didn't leave immediately, you could enjoy a moment inside. There was coffee, tea, and some different foods that he planned to reproduce later after liking them.
'I wanted Elaris to see the past with her own eyes, so I used my knowledge of where each house was.'
He had gone straight to the present house—the same one Elaris had entered in the original story. Since he chose quickly, he was sure Kai and Valença would want to stay close to his house, and because they were faster, they would leave the last house for Elaris.
[…I see. So you used them.]
'The way you say that makes it sound like I'm using them as tools.'
[From my perspective, yes—they're being used by a cruel monster.]
Shaking his head, he finished his tea and stood up to wash everything he had used. In his thoughts, perhaps Skadi had lied about the houses being random—both in the original story and here. Without a doubt, she had done it just to amuse herself watching them grow tense over which one to choose.
[…Now that I think about it, what if your plan had failed? What would you have done?]
"I would have told her myself."
He would have revealed what happened in the story to her, but he believed the best way for her not to doubt it was to see everything with her own eyes. Even if it was cruel, it was the best choice for his plan to eliminate a danger like Elithia.
"Time to leave."
Opening the door, Skadi—who was undoubtedly watching the invasion of the base—looked slightly surprised. She waved her hand and closed her eyes again. From her curiosity, it was very possible she was watching a circle eight or higher battle of mages she had not seen in this dimension.
'Possibly someone from the cult against Virelle, since Skadi only gets curious about new people.'
He waited until he saw the door of Elaris's house open. She looked like a walking corpse without life. It seemed she had seen exactly what Enrico wanted her to see, and now doubts were flooding her mind. It was undeniable that her thoughts were in chaos, so he needed to speak to her.
"Help with my decision? Do you happen to know what I witnessed?"
"If I say yes, would my leader believe me?"
Elaris stared into his eyes without moving her head for five full seconds. Enrico didn't seem to be lying—but if that was true, why hadn't he told her before? Why had he remained silent all this time? Was he hiding even more?
"The reason I didn't tell you is because let me ask—would you have believed me if I told you that the sister you love so much was a traitor?"
"…Maybe."
"I'm sorry, Princess, but a maybe isn't certainty. You had to see it with your own eyes."
That also meant he had known about the houses even before everything happened. This boy was impressive and undoubtedly kept much more inside his head… and she wanted to know. At the very least, he could reveal something so their relationship would not stagnate—
"You want to know about the future, don't you? Come, I'll tell you everything."
He patted the stone beside him. Seeing that, she moved to sit next to him and decided to listen. She wanted to know more about him—how he knew everything, and what he expected from her in the future. She listened until the part where she was betrayed by her sister a second time. Covering her face, tears began to fall again. It was irritating how many times she had cried that day—and in front of a subordinate.
"Now that you've heard everything, tell me what you want to do."
"…I… I want to… take revenge."
She didn't remove her hands from her face. There was doubt in her voice, which made sense considering she had come here believing her sister had been forced, believing she was the one who had always protected her—the one she loved as a child, even more than her parents.
"Revenge can be done in many ways, but what I want to know is how you want to do it."
She didn't know how to answer. Everything had just been revealed to her in a single day. But she was certain of one thing rising in her heart—a new feeling toward the sister who had betrayed her and would betray her again.
"I… want to kill her."
"Then I'll leave it in your hands, because that will be your battle."
She lowered her hands slightly to look at him. Enrico seemed, in a way, determined to act if she chose another path. Elaris was certain that if she did not end her sister's life, he would.
"And if I don't want to do it with my own hands? What if I'm a coward who can't?"
"Then I'll do it for you."
Lifting her head, she continued crying—but not only from sadness. It was because of the person beside her, who was undoubtedly a good companion. Someone who would dirty his hands for her without hesitation. His eyes, as he looked at her, did not lie. Elaris was certain of that.
"Leave it to me, Enrico… as you said, this fight is mine, and I won't hesitate."
"If you say it with such conviction, then all I can do is trust you."
Wiping her tears with her hand, she smiled at him. Thankfully, only the two of them were sitting on that stone. Being beside him brought calm to her heart. Feeling his finger tap her shoulder, Elaris saw him patting his thigh. At first she hesitated, but a second later she laid her head on his lap.
'So confident.'
He stroked her hair. It reminded her so much of her father and mother. And in all the years since that event, this was the best moment of sleep and rest she had experienced—without worrying about anything at all.