Linea hummed a tune as she worked diligently. Of course, as a shrine maiden directly protecting the World Tree, she didn’t have to deal with trivial tasks, but she found satisfaction in keeping the area around the World Tree clean, so she did it freely without anyone telling her to.
“Hmm…”
As evening approached, the streets became even more vibrant. Lights brightened up as the sun set, and the atmosphere remained almost as lively as daytime. This sacred place allowed entry 24/7 unless there was a special event, so shops operated accordingly. Some stores even ran in three shifts, staying open all day.
After finishing her tasks for the day, Linea headed to where Hana was. Of course, she didn’t forget to check in whenever she had time along the way. After all, she had brought the World Tree from another dimension for her own amusement, so she had to ensure it didn’t feel uncomfortable. Why the World Tree went to other dimensions for fun, Linea couldn’t understand, but all the shrine maidens had accepted it as an unspoken rule.
If it weren’t for Linea’s selfishness, she would have sent the World Tree back to its original home immediately. But Linea was different from the other shrine maidens. The moment she saw the World Tree, she couldn’t help but be captivated. Anyone who saw the adorable and lovable World Tree would surely feel the same as Linea.
So, Linea chose to live together with the World Tree for just a month. Originally, she wanted to keep it longer, but doing so would have seriously affected the original dimension where the World Tree resided. Linea sensed that, given the high concentration of the World Tree’s essence in that dimension, most people there probably couldn’t survive without it.
Though she wanted to monopolize the World Tree, the conflicting thoughts of not being able to do so left her with a sense of regret. She even considered abandoning everything and hiding away with the World Tree. Of course, if other elves knew her thoughts, they’d be horrified.
“Lady Hana…?”
Linea slowly opened the door and entered the house. A barrier surrounded the house, preventing ordinary people from entering. Located on a high hill, the view from the window showed people enjoying the sacred grounds below. Perhaps because of this, Hana was gazing out the window at the scenery outside, her eyes seemingly longing to go out and play.
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*Creak—*
The sound of the door opening made me turn around. Linea had come in. I glanced at her briefly before focusing back on the scenery outside. There was something surreal about it, and I couldn’t help but stare in awe.
The giant tree always looked fascinating, even from a distance. The large buildings seemed massive, but compared to the tree, they felt small. The tree was towering and majestic.
Talking with Linea, I realized she seemed like a girl around my age. She looked like a middle schooler, somewhat mature but not quite ready to be called a high schooler. Compared to me, a third-grade elementary student, she seemed more grown-up.
Of course, I didn’t ask Linea her age, so I didn’t know she was over 100 years old. If I had known, I might have bowed my head and called her “Grandma.” No, at 100, she’d be more like a great-grandma. The age gap was staggering. Even though I was a child with the soul of the World Tree, I wasn’t too concerned about such things. In my past life, I was in my 20s, so I had treated Linea like a kid, but knowing her real age would’ve made me the kid instead.
“Hmm…”
As I was watching the festival-like scene outside, Linea seemed to pick up on my emotions and smiled brightly.
“Lady Hana, do you want to go out and take a look around?”
Even though the sun had set, the outside was brightly lit like a night market, and I found myself wanting to go out too. Thankfully, Linea didn’t seem like she was going to lock me up and keep me all to herself. The atmosphere had been leaning that way, so it was a relief.
“Yeah, let’s go out and play.”
My heart was pounding. Who knew the thought of returning to my original home could feel so comforting?
In most novels about dimensional travel, the characters usually can’t return to their hometown, right?
Novels where they do return are rare. But I was different. Listening to Linea’s story, she said sending one person back to their original world was entirely possible. With a hefty dose of mana and some serious overconfidence in her magic, of course.
Normally, dimensional travel requires precise coordinates. So, if you jot down random coordinates, ending up in the middle of space wouldn’t be surprising. But Linea already knew the coordinates of where I came from, so she could create a dimensional gate that could shuttle between here and my original world.
Of course, I had no clue about how to make it or how it worked. The good thing was, she looked at me with friendly eyes. I wasn’t treated like a lab rat locked up in a research institute like before.
“Then let me explain this place to you…!”
I was dragged outside by Linea, my hand in hers. I had been wearing clothes suited to this place for a while. My original clothes were carefully stored away for when I returned. Of course, since this place was also civilized, there wasn’t much difference. Listening to Linea, it seemed to be around the modern era? But with magic as a variable, there were definitely some differences.
The fact that there was a Bluetooth shower here shocked me. No hose was connected, but when I turned on the switch, water gushed out. If I had filmed this and posted it online, ten out of ten people would have said it was fake. A Bluetooth shower? It felt like some kind of magical prank.
It felt like I was on a trip. Linea seemed strong, and above all, this place had a fantasy-like atmosphere that didn’t exist on Earth. Even now, just looking at these impossibly large trees made me think that.
If I was only going to stay for a month, enjoying myself seemed like a good idea. Of course, from my perspective, it didn’t seem like it would end in just a month. Looking at Linea’s condition, she would probably find another way no matter what.
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I left the cozy house. I was nestled in Linea’s arms. Even if I said I wanted to walk on my own, Linea would shake her head and try to carry me. Of course, I didn’t mind being carried, so I didn’t say much. I could have refused, but being carried was comfortable, wasn’t it?
After walking for a while, I arrived at a holy site that resembled a night market. Despite the late hour, many elves were passing by. Maybe because it was night or the lighting was dim, it didn’t look as glamorous as I thought. But it was still enjoyable to walk around.
“Shall we go to the most important place, God?”
“Important place?”
“Yes! A place where only authorized personnel can enter!”
That piqued my interest. I felt like I was at a tourist spot abroad. Luckily, we could communicate, but most of the surroundings were new and exotic. I nodded at Linea’s words. If someone in charge at a famous tourist spot said something like that, it was only natural to follow.
“Okay!”
With that, Linea grabbed my hand and we walked. From our previous conversations, it seemed like Linea was starting to treat me like a child. Of course, I was an adult, so maybe it was just my imagination.
Just because I looked young didn’t mean I was mentally immature! It didn’t matter what others thought. I was confident! Although I didn’t know what Linea thought of me, she always spoke with respect. At our first meeting, her voice was trembling so much.
