A few minutes earlier, at the wooden cabin…
A black-haired elf with her hair in a long braid, dressed like a maid, stood behind the counter, serving a knight standing before her.
“Don’t lie to us, miss! Tell us where your mistress is, now!” demanded a knight with an irritated expression.
“I’ve already told you, gentlemen, Lady Rimaria is currently away, and I don’t know when she’ll return. If she comes back, I will make sure to pass on your message. So, please leave a note.”
“This is a royal decree—it’s urgent! Are you daring to defy the kingdom?”
“Hey, hey, enough already, let it go.”
“Bret! Stop that! You’re being rude to Miss Lusserina. Miss, please forgive his behavior; he didn’t mean to offend you.”
“Tch.”
“In that case, we’ll take our leave. Apologies for disturbing you.”
With that, the knights left the wooden cabin. Lusserina sighed in relief once they were gone.
(If not for Lady Rima’s kindness, I wouldn’t bother dealing with them.)
Still a little irritated, Lusserina returned to the back room. But just as she was walking through the corridor, she caught a glimpse of a figure outside the window. She turned and looked—and indeed, there was some commotion near the lake.
(Lady Rima’s back?!)
Excited, Lusserina approached the figure by the lakeside. From afar, she saw a woman speaking to the knights, but judging from her expression, there seemed to be some tension.
“Excuse me, what’s going on here?”
“We were trying to deliver a message to Lady Rimaria, but she claims we’ve got the wrong person.”
“Gentlemen, please give Lady Rimaria some space. She just returned from overseas—she likely needs rest. Please come again tomorrow.”
“The royal family wishes to meet with her immediately, but she said her name isn’t Rimaria—it’s Luna. She must be joking, right?”
Hearing that, Lusserina’s body instantly froze. Her heart pounded furiously. She slowly turned to face Luna. For a moment, she simply stared before regaining her senses.
“(Luna?!) Lady Lunaria?!”
When the black-haired elf turned to face her, Luna felt a strange sense of familiarity. And when the memory returned…
“Lusserina?!”
Lusserina’s body stiffened. Her eyes widened, and her lips quivered slightly. Slowly, she stepped forward, afraid this might be an illusion.
“Lady… Luna?” Her voice trembled.
Without waiting for an answer, she leapt forward and embraced Luna tightly. Her body trembled, and the tears she had held back all this time finally burst free. Sobs shook her frame, as if two centuries of waiting and longing erupted all at once. The knights looked on in confusion at the emotional scene.
After composing herself, Lusserina released the embrace and straightened her posture like a proper maid.
“Welcome home, Lady Luna.”
“I’m home, Lusserina.”
All the knights remained puzzled—except one of them.
(Lunaria? Where have I heard that name before…?)
“…!”
(OH!! Lunaria Oberyth! The commander once said that Lady Rimaria had a twin sister named Lunaria Oberyth, the original owner of the Moonshine Shop?!)
Realizing this, the knight immediately bowed deeply.
“Lady Lunaria, please forgive my subordinate’s rudeness earlier.”
He also ordered his men to bow in apology. Though still confused, they obeyed their commander without question.
“I hope Lady Lunaria can find mercy in her heart. Now, if you’ll excuse us.”
With that, the knights took their leave.
“Ugh… those knights are so annoying! They come here almost every day looking for Lady Rima. Even when I say I’ll pass on the message, they won’t listen. So frustrating! If not for Lady Rima, I would've chopped them up ages ago.”
(Goodness! This is what she’s like when alive? Back in the game, she always stood straight and graceful like a proper maid. I never expected her personality to be like this.)
“Ahem! My apologies. Please, come in—I’ll make you something to drink, my Lady.”
(‘My Lady’?)
Lusserina returned inside, and I followed her. We entered through the back door, the one facing the lake—not the front entrance where the knights had left.
As I stepped inside, I was greeted by a cozy, European-style kitchen. The cabinets were made from Stokra wood, the strongest tree in the game. They were all painted in bright blue.
She guided me to sit at the dining table. Soon after, she brought me a cup of warm tea and sat beside me.
“I know you must have many questions. I’ll tell you everything.”
She began asking where I had been. I explained, using the story from this world’s version of events.
“…"
“I thought you were gone forever, but Lady Rima, along with the young master and mistress, always believed you would return—and they were right. I’m so happy!” Lusserina was moved, her eyes brimming with tears.
(Young master? Young mistress? Is she talking about…)
“I’m sorry for making you all worry.”
“It’s okay. What matters most is that you’re back. Lady Rima, the young master, and the young mistress will be so happy when they find out.”
“Oh, right, where is Rima anyway?”
“Lady Rima is an S-ranked adventurer. Besides dealing with dangerous monsters, she often meets important figures from various countries to discuss critical matters. Many even tried to win her over by proposing marriage, but she refused them all.”
“Oh? Sounds like she’s become a celebrity. How long has she been gone?”
“Four months, my Lady. She usually returns every six months.”
“I see. And how are the children?”
“They come here only during the annual celebration since they now have homes and lives of their own.”
“That means you’ve been here all alone?”
“Yes, my Lady.”
“…”
“Thank you for always taking care of this place by yourself.”
“No need to thank me, my Lady. It is my duty as a servant of this family.”
Oh, right. Lusserina is an NPC character that belonged to a friend of mine. He entrusted her to me, saying I’d need someone to help take care of my children.
“What happened after I left?”
Hearing that question, Lusserina fell silent and stared into the cup in her hands.
“…”
Just as Lusserina was about to tell the story, a memory suddenly resurfaced in my mind—like an old recording playing back.
I saw myself standing beside a male elf. In front of us, three children around five years old looked up with hopeful eyes. Behind them, Lusserina and a gentle-faced elf woman stood, watching with care.
“We’re leaving now, okay? You all behave and listen to Lusserina and Auntie Rima, alright?”
“Mm! Okay!”
I smiled and turned to Rima. “Rima, we’re off. Sorry to trouble you with the kids.”
“It’s fine—they’re like my own. Take care, and come back soon!”
“Will do!”
“Lusserina, please help Rima look after the children, okay?”
“Don’t worry, my Lady. I will take care of them.”
“…”
“Alright, we’re off now!”
The two of us then flew off toward the western sky.
(Hah… hah… was that… my memory?)
“My Lady, is everything alright?”
“Ah, I’m fine. I just remembered something. Where were we?”
Lusserina continued her story. She said that after we left, things were normal. Lusserina cooked and did housework as usual. Lady Rima sat on the balcony reading while watching the children play in the yard.
Then one day, the children stopped playing and stared westward.
“What’s that in the sky?”
“A red ball?”
“Auntie, look! A red ball in the sky!”
Rima, curious, came over to see. When she saw the direction they were pointing, she got a bad feeling—but wasn’t sure yet.
(A red ball?) From where they stood, the ball looked small. She quickly realized that meant it was very far away—if it were close, it would be huge. It couldn’t possibly be a ball.
They kept watching until the red object disappeared behind the mountains. Once it was gone, the kids went back to playing. But just as Rima turned to go inside, she saw flocks of birds flying away from the west.
(This is a bad sign!)
Moments later, a violent earthquake struck. The ground… the trees… the lake… even the mountains shook with a loud rumble. Rima instinctively rushed to the children, who hugged her in fear. Eventually, the quake subsided.
“Children, get inside the house, quickly!”
Lusserina, alarmed, came outside and helped bring the children in. Suddenly, from the west, a massive cloud of smoke rose into the sky, shaped like a giant mushroom. Rima felt an immediate sense of danger.
“Get inside!”
Once the children were safe, Rima flew into the sky to see what was happening. She was stunned to see a high-pressure wind wave approaching. Quickly, she cast protective magic around the house.
Just seconds later, a powerful shockwave struck. Some nearby trees were uprooted and hurled meters away.
(This… it came from the west. Isn’t that where Luna went?!)
Just as she was about to descend, a second shockwave arrived—this one carried intense heat. After it passed, Rima stayed floating in the sky, watching the west carefully. When no more tremors followed, she returned inside. The children clung to Lusserina in fear.
“Auntie, I’m scared.”
“Me too…”
“It’s okay, Auntie and Lusserina are here to protect you.”
As night fell, Rima and Lusserina fed the children and lulled them to sleep on the living room sofa so they could watch over them. Meanwhile, Rima kept vigil from the balcony.
The two stayed awake all night, fearing more disasters. Nothing happened—except that they saw many monsters running around the area, not attacking, but fleeing something. Rima also spotted red glows in the distance—burning trees, and not just in one spot, but many. It was too much to handle, so she summoned rain magic to extinguish them.
The next morning, Rima left Lusserina in charge of the children and flew west to investigate. Along the way, she saw uprooted and charred trees and many dead monsters. After crossing mountains and valleys, she reached the central plains.
She was shocked. What was once green land was now a barren wasteland. Scorch marks, cracked earth, and the stench of burning still linger. She saw a massive crater—four times larger than a football stadium. Her face paled as she imagined what must’ve happened the night before. She called out Luna’s name repeatedly, but there was no answer. She searched every corner of the central plains, but had no luck.
Time passed—days became weeks, weeks became months, months became years. No matter how far Rima searched, she found no trace of Luna. She even traveled to nearby villages and cities, but to no avail.
The children, worried, eventually begged her to stop—fearing they’d lose her too. Rima tearfully embraced them, promising to become their foster mother and fulfill her vow to Luna.
The children were devastated by the news. At first, they were depressed, lost their appetite, and struggled. It was a dark time. But slowly, they began to move forward. Rima, initially desperate, began helping others as she searched. Over time, her efforts earned her fame across the continent. She joined the adventurers’ guild, hoping her connections might one day lead her to Luna.
Because of her strength and service, many nations tried to recruit her—offering titles, positions as prime minister, even royal marriages—but she refused them all. She wanted Luna to be able to return to the same home, unchanged. Even the royal family of this kingdom was rejected when they offered her a noble’s life.
Thirty years after the incident, the Nuzantra Kingdom moved its capital here—wanting to be close to one of the continent’s strongest.
“Since then, I’ve helped Lady Rima raise the children until they became strong and independent. After the capital moved, they found work there.”
Hearing all this, I felt a tightness in my chest, like something squeezing my heart. I never imagined what they had gone through. It must’ve been so hard—especially for the children, losing their parents at such a young age.
And Lusserina… she waited for me all this time. She never gave up. I… am so incredibly lucky to have her.
“I see… I’m sorry for making you all worry and wait… for two hundred years.”
Hearing that, Lusserina walked over and hugged me tightly.
“What matters most is that you’re back, my Lady.”