"Let's talk about a lot of things, Elaine."
Broken said, rembering the advice Lily had given him many tis. She had always told him that getting to know soone was key to building a strong bond. This was new for Broken- he had never really tried to make friends or connect deeply with others. But this ti, he decided to give it a try with Elaine.
"A lot of things? What would you like to know about, Mr. Broken? About this land? Or perhaps more about Faeries?"
"Actually... I'm curious about you," Broken replied. "What's your ability? How strong are you in battle?"
Elaine blinked, a little surprised. But she nodded and responded, "My strength lies in magic, particularly in elental manipulation and spirit connection. However, due to the curse, my power is often unstable. In combat, I can defend myself, but... the more the curse manifests, the more dangerous I beco not just to enemies, but to those around ."
Intrigued, Broken decided to inspect her stats.
[Na: Elaine]
[Level: 239]
[Strength: 390 | Agility: 423 | Intelligence: 1450 | Constitution: 298 | Stamina: 867]
"Damn!" Broken muttered under his breath. He was genuinely surprised by Elaine's stats. Her level might only be 239, but her stats were far beyond what he had expected.
It made sense-she had lived for centuries and was the protector of her tribe. But the thought of having to defeat her in her Eternal Fla form... How am I supposed to do that?
"You're probably the strongest in this tribe, right?"
"Uhm..." Elaine hesitated. "I'm not sure how strong I am... But, yes, I guess you could say I'm the strongest Faery here."
Broken nodded. "I believe it. Based on your level and stats, you're definitely the strongest here."
Elaine's eyes widened in surprise. "You can see soone's level and stats?"
Broken chuckled, "Yeah, I can inspect people and get an idea of their abilities."
She smiled, nodding thoughtfully. "Well, I suppose now you understand why the curse makes things so dangerous... My strength can be a curse in itself."
[Elaine felt a deeper connection with you after your in-depth conversation, where you both got to know each other better. Your affinity with her has grown to 71%.]
Elaine giggled softly. "Are you still sure about fighting in my Eternal Fla form, Mr. Broken?"
Broken took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "Well, do you have any advice? Like, can you tell your weaknesses or how to defeat you easily?"
Elaine shook her head. "I never rember anything when I'm in that state. I'm locked away... I simply endure until I revert back to my normal form."
"How long do you stay in that form?"
"At first, it could last a whole day," she explained. "But recently, only for a few minutes before it fades."
"So, I'll need to defeat you within that short window. Otherwise, I'll have to wait until next month—or maybe I'll never get another chance. But no worries, I can respawn, and I'll just keep trying to beat you until I succeed." His tone was flat, almost casual.
Elaine chuckled at his words. "You're saying you want to kill right to my face, and yet it makes happy to hear that. How ironic, isn't it?"
[Your affinity with Elaine has grown to 72%.]
Broken smiled faintly. "I guess we have a strange dynamic, don't we?"
He went on. "I simply can't comprehend what it's like to live for centuries. It's so far removed from our human experience. What do you even do with all those hundreds of years?"
Elaine paused for a mont before responding, "May I ask how old you are, Mr. Broken?" "In my real world, I'm twenty-one years old," he answered with a slight chuckle. "Twenty-one years old?! You're like a baby to ..." Elaine giggled.
"Don't laugh," he replied with a smile. "I know, it must seem strange to you. But we humans -both in this world and my own-rarely live past 70 or 80 years. So yeah, compared to you, I guess I am like an infant."
Elaine smiled again, "So, does that make like an ancient ancestor in your eyes?"
"Well," Broken chuckled, "I'm sure there are plenty of humans who would love to live as long as you do and still look as young as you."
Elaine giggled softly, but her tone turned more somber. "But, Mr. Broken, do you realize how ironic your question is? I've lived all these years carrying a curse. If I had the choice, I would rather die than endure this burden any longer."
Broken nodded slowly, feeling the weight of her words. "I'll never fully understand what you've been through, Elaine. But I admire the strength it must have taken to carry on. It couldn't have been easy."
He thought about it—living hundreds of years, only to watch a mber of her tribe turn into a wild beast every month. It wasn't just immortality; it was a life of endless suffering. Living with that kind of burden.
Elaine continued, "Age is relative to each race, as every race lives their life differently. For those who live longer, life moves at a slower pace. They take their ti to make decisions, to act, and to experience things. That's how they spend the centuries they're given."
She paused, her gaze softening. "Humans, however... Humans are the toughest race in Yunatea. In such a short span of life, they achieve remarkable things. The history they've built, the wisdom they've gained-all in just a few decades. It's extraordinary. Humans create and grow rapidly, while many of us, like the faeries, still feel like children even after living for centuries."
"That's an interesting perspective," he said, nodding. "I guess we're in a hurry because we, humans, don't have as much ti?"
Elaine smiled. "Exactly. Humans live with a sense of urgency, and maybe that's what makes your race so remarkable. You evolve quickly, while so of us are still figuring things out, even after centuries."
Broken couldn't help but smile. "I've never thought about it like that. I suppose we all have our strengths, then."
[Your affinity with Elaine has grown to 73%.]
"So... you've been in Moonlight Land for hundreds of years, right? Have you ever encountered anyone else, aside from your own tribe?"
"We can't leave this forest. We're confined here," she replied. "As for your second question, I've never personally interacted with anyone outside the tribe. But so of the faeries have communicated with adventurers hunting in the forest from ti to ti."
"Did your Knight Commander also try to slay those adventurers like he did with ?"
Elaine giggled at the thought. "No, I don't think so," she said playfully. "He doesn't usually act so... direct. I'm certain this is the first ti he's done that. You must be quite remarkable in
his eyes."
"Thanks for the sarcastic complint, Elaine," Broken quipped.
Broken noticed that his affinity with Elaine had reached an impressive 73%, but it seed to stall there. Even so, achieving such a high level in such a short amount of ti was nothing
short of remarkable.
He just needed another 7% to complete the quest, but the uncertainty of how to reach it lingered in his mind. He was confident but knew it wouldn't be easy.
"Elaine, did you know that our affinity has to reach at least 80% for us to form a bond?"
Elaine looked slightly puzzled. "Uhm... I didn't know that exactly. But I can assure you, Mr. Broken, that I'm doing my best to trust you completely and sincerely. And I've enjoyed spending ti with you... You're warm and kind."
Broken smiled. "Thank you. Maybe we can continue getting to know each other better on a different note-how about you accompany on a monster hunt and show more of this
place?"
Elaine's eyes brightened, and she nodded confidently. "I'd be glad to."
After Broken and Elaine returned to her room, he carefully pushed the door open and stepped
outside.
The Knights standing nearby shot him disapproving looks, though he wasn't quite sure what he'd done to warrant their judgnt.
As he moved further away, his eyes fell on Ivana, who was laughing and chatting with a group of faeries. She seed to be in her elent, enjoying their company, and the faeries appeared just as fond of her. Broken couldn't help but think how effortlessly Ivana connected with
others.
Ivana must have noticed his return because she quickly said her goodbyes to the faeries and hurried over to him, her face lighting up with a cheerful smile.
Ivana stopped in front of Broken, tilting her head playfully. "Do you have an interesting story
for ?"
Broken smiled. "Yes, Ivana, I do. Let's go sowhere we can talk. I want to discuss a lot of
things with you."
"Let's go," Ivana replied, gently taking his left arm and linking it with hers as they walked
away from the village together.
***
(Author's Note:)
Oh, it seems I've been writing quite a bit of conversation between Broken and Elaine, haven't
I? I hope you're still enjoying it.
The story is a blend of slice of life, friendship, romance, and action, so you can expect
monts like these where we slow down and explore relationships.
What do you think? Do you prefer full-on battles, or are these warm, bonding monts okay
too? Let know your thoughts!
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