Confess Everything to Elysia!

"Oh my, let me see, who do we have here~"

People's joys and sorrows aren't always shared.

Unlike Miss Qingque next door, immersed in the toil of paperwork, the moment Jiang Qiao left the Salt Lake Base and entered the Elysian Realm, his ears were greeted by a sweet girlish voice, and before his eyes appeared the familiar, fairy-like face of the pink-haired girl.

Usually, Elysia only pops out eagerly when a beautiful girl arrives. But with Jiang Qiao, who had such a close relationship with her, it was clearly different.

"Long time no see~ Did you miss me~"

"You're not allowed to say no, or I might get a little pouty." The girl beamed, greeting him while simultaneously, before Jiang Qiao could even speak, resorting to extremely cheeky tactics.

"Well~ I guess I missed you then~" Jiang Qiao conceded reluctantly.

"What do you mean 'guess'... Being so perfunctory with a girl like me is quite mean, you know~ But, I forgive you~" The Elysian Realm's Elysia pouted, a little dissatisfied, but quickly broke into a smile again and leaned in close.

Like a curious cat, she approached Jiang Qiao, rising slightly on her tiptoes to study him. Her examination was so meticulous it seemed not even the finest hair escaped her notice, Jiang Qiao's face reflected in her mirror-like azure eyes.

However, even though the Elysia in the Elysian Realm was a seasoned veteran, doing this still brought a flush of red to her cheeks.

Their eyes met—but in this 'staring contest,' ER Elysia clearly couldn't hold out and was the first to break away.

"Although you don't have the cute beauty you had when using my form, this appearance really suits you better, you know."

"Perhaps," Jiang Qiao replied. "It's just an outer shell."

ER Elysia didn't comment on his statement, instead asking, "So, why did you come here this time?"

"Don't tell me you just came to see me because you missed me?"

"In that case, going directly to find Elysia seems like it would achieve the same thing," Jiang Qiao countered.

"Hmph! Saying things like that, even if the target is my past self, will still make me angry, you know!" ER Elysia puffed her cheeks, glaring at him, but then sighed. "But... she needs you more than I do."

Jiang Qiao didn't deny it. He remembered something and asked, "How is Mei doing in the Elysian Realm?"

"Chatting with a cute girl like me, yet thinking about another girl~ That's naughty~"

"Of course, Mei is indeed very cute~ It's not strange that you can't forget her~"

"Er..." Jiang Qiao showed a slightly peculiar expression.

If he hadn't made this trip to the Elysian Realm, he probably would have completely forgotten about the existence of Miss Housewife, who had received virtually zero screen time recently. But obviously, he couldn't say that out loud.

"I feel like you're thinking something quite rude... Never mind." Elysia sensed it but let it go.

"Right now, Mei should be with Sakura."

"Let me take you to see Mei." With that, ER Elysia led the way.

A short while later, in Sakura's domain, Jiang Qiao saw Raiden Mei.

She seemed to be training, dressed in light clothing, holding the blade at her waist, eyes closed in concentration.

Then... with a single strike, she severed a falling leaf.

"See? Hasn't Mei improved a lot?" Elysia asked proudly.

"Sakura really likes her, almost treating Mei like her direct disciple, even teaching her secret techniques."

A cool voice sounded from nearby. Sakura, wearing her Goushinnso Memento outfit, had appeared at some point. She commented casually, "Isn't this the very purpose of the Elysian Realm?"

For 'phantoms' of the past like them, there was nothing they couldn't teach. The Elysian Realm existed precisely to pass on the will and knowledge of predecessors like them to successors.

"However, in all this long time, she's the first visitor who resonates with me as well as Mei does," Sakura remarked, a hint of satisfaction in her感慨 (sigh/emotion).

Previous visitors, though some were exceptionally talented, generally didn't align well with her style. Passing on Signets was one thing, but none had been able to inherit the essence of her Setsuna techniques.

"By the way, Mr. Jiang Qiao, what brings you to the Elysian Realm this time? Is it just to check on Mei's progress?" Her gaze fell on Jiang Qiao beside Elysia, both scrutinizing and curious.

The Flame-Chasers' Signets held little meaning for him now—after all, he had already obtained [Elysia], the true essence of the Elysian Realm, the very thing the Flame-Chasers guarded. Logically, there was no reason for him to return.

"Sort of," Jiang Qiao replied. "And also to report back, I guess."

"Report back...? Never mind, I won't pry... Um... well..." Sakura looked puzzled but shook her head, letting it go before adopting a hesitant expression.

"You want to ask about Rin, right?" Jiang Qiao easily read her thoughts, finding it slightly amusing.

Sakura looked a bit embarrassed. "Yes... How has my little sister been lately?"

"That question really stumps me. After all, I've been away from the Previous Era for many days now and haven't paid much attention to that..."

"Eh..."

Hearing this, Sakura's fox ears visibly drooped, her face filled with disappointment.

"But no need to be sad," Jiang Qiao added quickly. "She's already back where the other Elysia is. I can just ask."

"I'm deeply grateful!" Sakura didn't understand the specifics but was clearly moved.

Jiang Qiao then popped up in the chat group he hadn't used in ages.

Well, not exactly offline. He was mostly just lurking in the group.

Hu Tao and the others were quite active. The 99+ unread message count spoke volumes about the group members' passion for chatting. Most of it consisted of Furina sharing life updates, Hu Tao discussing business strategies, and Yunyun's adventure diaries.

Of course, Qingque was the most active—after all, for Prisoner Que, trapped at work, this chat was her only precious escape.

Jiang Qiao: @Elysia, How's Rin doing recently? Poke.jpg

Jiang Qiao glanced at the chat interface, noticing it had really kept up with the times. It used to have just a few basic functions, but now boasted photos, videos, stickers, voice calls, and video calls—small but perfectly formed.

On the other end, the 'proper' 55kg Miss Elysia was initially pleased to see a message from Jiang Qiao, but then she read it...

He wasn't asking how Elysia was, but how Rin was...

Instantly, Elysia's mood soured. She really wanted to reply "Hmph!" or something similar. However, knowing Jiang Qiao's usual ways, Elysia highly doubted he was asking about Rin out of any romantic interest. He must need something.

The pink-haired miss pouted. Only contacting Elysia when you need something! Bad Jiang Qiao! I'm not your messenger pigeon!

Though annoyed, she still replied curtly.

Elysia: She's fine, okay!

"She said 'very well'," Jiang Qiao relayed honestly.

Sakura's expression turned subtle. She wanted details about her beloved sister! This felt far too perfunctory! But she quickly sighed. As long as Rin was doing well, that was enough. Though she sometimes felt like a lonely empty-nester, having Raiden Mei around now made her days more interesting.

Seeing Mei's impressive progress, Jiang Qiao nodded with satisfaction.

And then... he decided to continue leaving Miss Housewife fostered here.

Keep up the good work! Mei, you've improved the most among the main trio! Strive for more, until you emerge... you'll emerge eventually, right? Probably...

After leaving Sakura's place, ER Elysia impatiently pulled Jiang Qiao to her own domain.

"You said earlier~ you finished your business, right?" she asked, staring at him, her expression incredibly excited.

ER Elysia, who had previously used certain 'forceful' means to find out what Jiang Qiao intended to do, had been eagerly anticipating Kevin's reaction ever since.

"Yeah."

"Kevin's reaction was quite interesting. At the time..." Jiang Qiao began to recount enthusiastically, but ER Elysia was clearly not satisfied—she wanted more than just a vivid description.

It was fine before; communication with visitors was limited, and learning things usually meant relying on words.

But... Jiang Qiao was different. Compared to previous visitors, he was more 'convenient' to use, and... more 'comprehensive'!

Therefore...

No need for you to go through the trouble of explaining! Elysia will just help herself!

Fully embodying the principle of "do it yourself and you'll have plenty," ER Elysia pounced. Although 'biting' into the [Jiang Qiao] persona seemed to cause a bit more hesitation than when he wore the [Elysia] persona, following the logic of "awkward the first time, familiar the second"... she bit down anyway! Besides, the main body liked it too!

However, it wasn't quite the same as with [Elysia].

Previously, because he was [Elysia], ER Elysia, closely connected to her original self, could easily pry what she wanted from Jiang-Elysia. But with [Jiang Qiao], although she had absorbed a little 'Jiang Qiao' essence last time, bluffing her way through now wasn't so easy.

But...

Daijoubu! No problem!

After all, before Elysia, this normally impregnable defense was basically paper-thin!

ER Elysia quite naturally pried open his defenses and got what she wanted.

"Pfft... This is the first time I've ever seen Kevin make that face!"

Sitting atop Jiang Qiao, the 55kg Miss Elysia was too lazy to move. Having cracked the 'safe,' she immediately began 'consuming the contents,' enjoying the memories she'd 'stolen' from him, muffling her laughter behind her hand.

Unlike the data Aponia guarded, the ER Elysia here was still not fully complete. Or rather, a complete Elysia couldn't exist in the Elysian Realm, as her memories only extended up to the time before the final banquet. The rest was recorded by the other Flame-Chasers.

Although Jiang Qiao had received the unedited full record, this ER Elysia was still largely unaware—and she knew it, having consciously avoided touching that part of 'herself'.

But here, in Jiang Qiao's memories, ER Elysia got to witness the famous scene of a certain someone shedding tears. The amusement she derived from it surpassed even the fun she'd had teasing Kevin over the past 50,000 years—after all, that unfrank, tsundere-like boy could be quite 'troublesome'.

Of course, joy was mixed with sorrow.

Although seeing Kevin's 'distress' certainly amused ER Elysia, witnessing the heavy burdens he carried and the complexities of his relationship with Dr. MEI also filled her with sadness and regret. That lingering regret from 50,000 years ago mirrored the state of the Flame-Chasers themselves now.

However...

That fruitless tragedy finally had a relatively better outcome.

"You did a good job with Kevin's situation."

"...It would be even better if you could say that after getting off me..." Jiang Qiao replied with resignation.

Being crushed like Mt. Tai wasn't the issue—the 55kg weight wasn't that hard for him to handle, especially within the Elysian Realm. But being looked down upon, used as a cushion, was an angle he still found rather awkward.

"Oh, alright..." ER Elysia snapped back to reality. Though slightly annoyed by his desire to push her away, she nodded, preparing to free him. She had already pried out what she wanted. As for more... 'flowery' things, while the veteran ER Elysia was relatively open-minded, she wasn't that bold. A little secret taste was about the limit. Actually 'stealing a bite' would be too unfair to her original self...

"Hm?"

Just as ER Elysia was about to get off, she suddenly noticed something, and her brow furrowed.

She had initially focused on the memories concerning Kevin, but out of curiosity, she had casually browsed further...

Instantly, she discovered a fragmented memory that felt... not quite right.

The girl stared intently at the person beneath her—

Looks like I didn't pry everything clean... Confess everything to Elysia!

Confess truthfully...

Blushing slightly, ER Elysia got up satisfied, licking her lips. Then she looked at the now completed memory...

Instantly, she began to rapidly heat up.

...Heating up in all senses of the word!