"Who are you?!" Feidric demanded, his face tense with suspicion as he confronted the suddenly appearing white-haired girl. Aside from the fact that the surroundings had just been pitch black, it was utterly baffling where she had been hiding and how she had evaded the monster attacks. Her emergence at such a perfectly timed moment only deepened his suspicion.
Feidric's first thought was: Could she be a monster in disguise? Is she about to claim she's also from Okhema to gain our trust?
After all, with so many people in Okhema, it wouldn't be entirely unreasonable for a white-haired girl Feidric didn't recognize to have been brought to this strange place as well. However, if she did make such a claim, it would only amplify his skepticism.
Sometimes, when things seem too reasonable, they become suspicious.
Hearing Feidric's question, the white-haired girl showed no hesitation. She replied candidly, "Me? I'm Olivia, from the Grand Duchy of Augustus. So, where exactly is this place? Do you know the way to the Grand Duchy of Augustus?"
"Ha?!" The moment Feidric heard her name, he was completely stunned. In disbelief, he asked again, "What did you say your name was?"
"Olivia," she replied, tilting her head slightly. "Is there a problem?"
No, no, no! This is a massive problem! When Feidric first arrived in Okhema, the first thing he did was immerse himself in the Library, thoroughly researching the region's history.
Naturally, he knew that Okhema had once been the Grand Duchy of Augustus, and he also knew the truth behind the Demon Lord War. He knew the Demon Lord's true name was Olivia!
How could someone who should have died centuries ago suddenly reappear before him?
Necromancy? No, impossible. Feidric stared at the girl before him. Even necromancy couldn't achieve such a perfect resurrection.
Noticing his intense gaze, Olivia scratched her cheek with her index finger. "Um... is there something on my face?"
Aria and Douglas chimed in, "So who exactly is she?"
Feidric replied gravely, "It's complicated. I can't explain it properly right now. All you need to know is that Olivia is roughly Okhema's former City Lord, a figure from five hundred years ago."
"Huh?" Aria gasped, her entire body stiffening in shock. Douglas wore a bewildered expression as well. "A figure from five hundred years ago?"
Various possibilities flashed through Feidric's mind as he turned to Olivia. "When the darkness surged around us just now, where were you?"
Olivia looked genuinely confused. "What darkness?"
Feidric pressed, "Then how did you get here?"
Olivia hesitated. "Uh... I don't know? I probably just got lost. Ending up in strange places is kind of normal for me."
Feidric asked, "Where is the Grand Duchy of Augustus?"
Olivia retorted, "I already said I'm lost! Didn't I just ask you the same question? If I knew, would I be asking you?"
Feidric fell silent, at a loss for words.
To say the least, Feidric was rendered speechless by her complete ignorance. Olivia genuinely knew nothing; after all, Evernight had only just brought her here.
Olivia adopted a thoughtful expression, then suddenly pointed to the left. "This way! I feel the Grand Duchy of Augustus should be in this direction. We can't go wrong this way!"
Feidric silently cast Divination Magic again. This time, instead of searching for Okhema's location, he sought the Grand Duchy of Augustus. The magic swiftly revealed the answer: the right.
"You're wrong," Feidric said with a sigh. "The Grand Duchy of Augustus is to the right."
This made Feidric begin to wonder: had they really traveled back to the past?
The failure of his first Divination Magic, the success of the second, and the appearance of Olivia—a woman from five centuries ago—all seemed to confirm this.
But how could it be? One moment everything was fine, and the next they were suddenly five hundred years in the past? Was such a thing even possible?
And what about that Child of Flesh from earlier? Could it really be that the Children of Flesh had already invaded the Material Plane five hundred years ago?
Regardless of the truth, visiting the so-called Grand Duchy of Augustus now seemed like the best course of action.
Feidric turned to Olivia and asked, "Your Highness, would you mind if we accompanied you to the Grand Duchy of Augustus?"
Olivia immediately replied, "Of course not! Meeting by chance is destiny! I've had so many similar encounters before!"
After all, Half, Jay, Tide, and even Tribios had all been "picked up" by Olivia—making her the Legendary Person-Picker, without a doubt.
Olivia continued, "Besides, you don't look like bad people at all, especially that little girl with the golden hair. You're so adorable~!"
Aria blinked, pointing at herself. "Huh? Who? Me?"
Olivia didn't respond, simply nodding with a warm smile. "Mhm~"
"Oh, come on!" Aria protested. "You're the one who's gorgeous, Your Highness! You have such a beautiful figure and you're so pretty~!"
As they spoke, the group of four followed the guidance of Feidric's Divination Magic, turning right as directed.
Evernight and Cipher, who had witnessed the entire scene, showed no surprise. The unfolding events perfectly matched Evernight's predictions. Although she couldn't control 'Memory Olivia,' her deep understanding of Olivia made it easy to anticipate how things would play out after their reunion.
It's worth noting that this memory space, this 'prank,' wasn't simply a recreation of five hundred years ago. Instead, it was a 'hybrid memory.' Here, the Grand Duchy of Augustus stood alone, without any surrounding nations. This meant the so-called Demon Lord War would never occur.
However, Evernight had grafted fragments of the Ding Lang World's memories onto the Grand Duchy of Augustus's surroundings. This meant the four adventurers would soon encounter the Mother of Flesh series of monsters.
Though she called it a prank, it was entirely a win-win situation. Not only would Aria and her companions gain valuable combat experience by facing these monsters ahead of time, but Aria, that little dummy, would also finally learn about Okhema's past and the truth behind the Demon Lord War.
Evernight and Cipher fell into step, silently trailing behind the quartet. After some time, Aria and her group left the dilapidated streets and ascended a hillside. As they crested the ridge, the silhouette of a city emerged before them.