She had gone on a journey, made trustworthy friends, but couldn’t invite them to return home with her and introduce them to her people. This was indeed a pity.
But Melika also understood that Vivian and Lumia couldn’t leave now.
“Fortunately, Mr. Shien will be going back with me…”
For some reason, Melika’s mood improved.
Being able to invite Shien to her homeland was undoubtedly a happy thing for Melika.
Even though Shien was already engaged, and to that perfect and beautiful princess whom she couldn’t help but admire, Melika still couldn’t help but feel happy.
This faint feeling might never be known to anyone.
But Melika was willing to savor it, to taste all its sweetness and bitterness.
The reason was simple: this was her first love.
Elven love was very pure.
Because elves were born from nature, not through reproduction, and because of their nature, their love lacked the element of lust and was very pure.
For elves, falling in love with someone was very difficult.
Their fellow elves were all women.
The gods they worshipped were also all goddesses.
And their emphasis on purity made them instinctively resistant to men from other races.
Under such circumstances, ninety-nine percent of elven girls remained single until the end of their lives.
Only a very small portion of elves would be attracted to men of noble character from other races.
But elves were a long-lived race. For them, a hundred years was just a blink of an eye, but a hundred years was often the entire lifespan of a human male.
Under such circumstances, of the very few elves who fell for men from other races, more than ninety-nine percent would choose to silently watch over their beloved for their entire lives, not choosing to be with them, let alone form a union.
Because of this, for elves, love was both pure and sacred. All elves respected and yearned for love, and in the end, they would often choose to dedicate and sacrifice themselves for this love.
Such elves, either wouldn’t fall in love for thousands of years, or if they did, would only love one person for their entire lives. After witnessing their beloved’s happiness or death, they would return to the Elven Homeland, never to leave again, spending their long lives in peace, tranquility, and subtle bitterness, until they faded away.
In the eyes of others, this might be a pitiful thing.
But for elves, this was normal.
Such a relationship, mostly destined to have no outcome, would become something they would constantly recall, cherish, and savor throughout their long lives.
Therefore, whether it was sweet, sour, bitter, or spicy, for them, it was worth savoring.
Melika was the same. Sometimes she felt jealous, sometimes envious, sometimes melancholic, but she would never regret it.
Like before, when Shien became Lucy’s fiancé, she was troubled by this relationship. Now, with things settled, while silently blessing and envying them, she also sincerely felt happy and blessed to be able to return home with Shien.
Yes, Melika had come to terms with it.
Since Shien was already engaged to Lucy, and she wasn’t the one who could be by his side, then, like her ancestors, she would silently guard him for his entire life.
After seeing him start a family, have children, and live a happy life, she would quietly leave, return to her people, and live out the rest of her life. That would be enough.
As for now…
“As long as I can be with him, be able to see him, I’m content…”
Melika murmured.
Even though it was a bit painful and sad, it couldn’t be helped. This was the fate of an elf who fell in love with someone from another race.
“Oh, right, don’t forget to bring this.”
Melika seemed to suddenly remember something and took something out from under her pillow.
It was a flower crown.
A crudely made flower crown, as if it was casually woven.
However, this flower crown had been carefully preserved, its colors still vibrant, without a single blemish, as if it was freshly made.
This was only natural.
Melika had put in a lot of effort to maintain its original state, not only channeling magic power into it every day, using the elven trait to maintain its vitality, but also sprinkling it with expensive preservation magic potion.
It was obvious how much Melika treasured this flower crown.
Wherever Melika went, she would carry this flower crown with her, even holding it while sleeping to feel at ease.
“Hee hee.”
Looking at the flower crown, Melika seemed to recall the scene of its creator giving it to her, her face slightly flushed, a happy smile on her face.
When Melika came back to her senses, she realized that it was already bright outside.
“Roar—!”
Outside, a dragon’s roar echoed clearly, as if signaling something, calling for people to gather.
“Oh no!”
Melika quickly put away the flower crown, placing it inside her robe, close to her heart, then grabbed her staff and luggage, hurriedly rushing towards the garden.