Trash Prince and Ice Queen 10th Re - Life-Chapter 86: Mist of Illusion

The following afternoon, the carriage turned onto a narrow trail that could have taken them straight to the Kingdom of Rellios. Midway through, however, they stopped to head toward the elven village on foot, taking a path that cut deeper into the dense woods. Ard instructed the driver to take the carriage back to the capital of Fredonia, leaving them there. Once everyone had climbed down, Patricia—who had shifted back into her form as Pyria—stood at the head of the trail and turned to face the group.

"Alright, this is the entrance to the elven village. Somewhere along the way, a mist will roll in. If you suddenly see something you desire inside that fog, do not go toward it. You’ll get lost in the forest and find yourself spit back out on the other side or right back here on this path. Understood?" Pyria asked.

"Understood," Alicia, Milia, Beatrice, Rosalind, Mirea, Claudia, Adeline, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin replied in unison.

"Stay focused on the path and keep your head clear. Let’s move," Ard commanded.

"Hold hands, everyone. It’s safer that way," Eva added.

"Let’s go, everyone," Pyria said.

Without delay, they ventured into the woods. The group linked hands, acting as an anchor for one another’s consciousness. After walking for about ten minutes, a thick mist began to swallow the forest, and the path ahead vanished into white. Pyria, Ard, and Eva stayed in the lead, while those behind them huddled closer together.

"Uuh... we’ve entered the illusory forest, haven’t we?" Alicia whispered, glancing around nervously.

"Shh... don’t talk," Claudia hissed back.

"This is fun! It’s so thrilling—I’ve never felt anything like this before," Adeline chirped.

"Wait... Hailey? What are you doing here?"

Ainsley suddenly stopped and turned toward the trees. Everyone else followed his gaze, but there was nothing there. Ainsley let go of Geoffrey and Milia’s hands and started walking toward the brush on the right. Geoffrey lunged forward and grabbed his arm with a firm grip.

"Hey, let go! My fiancée is right there!" Ainsley shouted.

"There’s nothing there, man! Snap out of it!" Geoffrey yelled.

"Don’t forget, this is the forest of illusions! Your fiancée isn’t there!" Milia screamed.

"Re... really? But she’s still there... look, she’s calling me! I miss her so much, it’s been forever since we last met!" Ainsley shouted, struggling to break free.

"Ugh... sorry, bro."

Finally, Geoffrey struck Ainsley hard on the back of the neck, knocking him out. He hoisted the body over his shoulder while Milia picked up Ainsley’s glasses from the dirt. Shaken, the group continued their walk.

"Hey... Pyria, is it much further?" Milia called out.

"It is. We need to take it slow," Pyria shouted from the front.

"This is bad... we barely started and one of us is already down," Mirea muttered.

"We have to be more alert, right, Princess?" Rosalind added.

But Beatrice didn’t answer. Rosalind felt the hand she was holding go limp. Beatrice’s face was turned toward the deep woods on the left, her eyes vacant even as her feet kept moving forward.

"Princess Beatrice?" Rosalind asked.

They stopped again, and now every eye was on Beatrice. She stared into the dense trees with a hollow gaze. Suddenly, "slap," Rosalind struck Beatrice across the face. Beatrice jolted awake, saw Rosalind, and immediately burst into tears.

"Forgive me, Princess," Rosalind said.

"Waaaa... Mama... Mama... I miss Mama!" Beatrice wailed, throwing her arms around Rosalind.

Ard, Eva, and Pyria hurried over. Pyria pressed her forehead against Beatrice’s, then turned to the others.

"She was caught in an illusion. She saw her mother calling out to her. Did you know about this, Rosalind?" Pyria asked.

"Yes. The Queen of Rellios died of a severe illness when the Princess and I were only six years old. So... her greatest wish... is to see her mother again," Rosalind answered, gently stroking Beatrice’s hair.

"Hmm... that makes sense. A buried desire she might have forgotten... so the illusions here aren’t just material things, but memories too. This is getting a bit annoying," Ard remarked.

"Everyone, please be careful... just look straight ahead," Eva urged.

"Got it," Alicia, Milia, Mirea, Claudia, Geoffrey, and Irwin replied.

"Come on, we have to keep moving. Staying still is even more dangerous," Pyria said.

"I’ll carry the Princess. Come on, Your Highness, let’s keep going," Rosalind said, helping Beatrice along.

They pushed forward, with Ard and Eva sandwiching Adeline between them. Behind them, the rest of the group walked hand-in-hand following Pyria. The mist grew so thick that they could no longer see one another. Suddenly, Alicia and Claudia panicked in the middle of the fog.

"Wait... where’s Milia? Why am I holding Claudia’s hand?" Alicia asked, looking around in a sudden panic.

"Oh my god... she let go of us. Milia! Where are you?" Claudia screamed.

"Irwin is gone too! Hey... stop!" Geoffrey shouted.

"Augh... this is a disaster," Mirea groaned.

"Everyone stay calm. Don’t panic in the middle of a fog this thick," Ard commanded.

"This is... getting terrifying. Hang in there, Princess," Rosalind said.

"I’m sorry... I saw Mama... I’m sorry," Beatrice replied, still only half-conscious.

"I’ll go find them. You all wait here," Pyria said.

"Should I come with you?" Eva asked.

"No, you and Ard need to stay here and protect the others. This forest is my playground, I’ll be fine," Pyria answered.

"Alright. Hurry back," Ard said.

"I will," Pyria replied.

Pyria vanished instantly into the mist. The rest of the group huddled together in a single spot, staying as close as possible so they wouldn’t lose sight of each other. A few moments later, footsteps crunched through the dry leaves and the air suddenly turned freezing cold. They immediately drew their swords, ready for anything. Geoffrey handed Ainsley over to Claudia and unsheathed his greatsword, since the footsteps were approaching from his side. Suddenly, Irwin emerged from the fog looking slightly battered, along with Pyria, who was helping a frozen, unconscious Milia back to the center of the group.

"Hey... what happened?" Alicia asked.

"Talk to us, Irwin," Mirea added.

Irwin quickly told them that he had seen Milia leave the group. He followed her using his Evil Eye, which allowed him to see through the mist and remain immune to the illusions. He saw Milia suddenly draw her sword, summon her familiar, and begin attacking the trees with magic. Irwin tried to stop her, but she turned on him. He could see that her eyes were hollow and her face was expressionless, but she kept bombarding him with spells and her familiar.

After a struggle, Irwin finally managed to knock her out, causing her familiar to vanish. However, the area around them had been encased in ice by her magic. While Irwin was struggling to carry her back, lost in the fog, Pyria found them and led them back to the group. After they laid Milia on the ground, Pyria spoke.

"In her mind... she was seeing a nobleman who planned to destroy her father’s territory and frame him. That man was working with Julius. She... has a powerful desire for revenge," Pyria said, stroking Milia’s head.

Everyone went silent. They understood that revenge counts as a desire, especially when it is strong and buried deep inside. Alicia knelt beside Milia, stroking the head of her unconscious friend, while Eva began healing the wounded Irwin.

"Thank you, Irwin. You saved her," Eva said.

"Don’t mention it, Princess. Friends are supposed to help each other," Irwin replied, wincing as Eva used her healing magic on his arm.

"Alright, let’s get moving again. I’ll carry Milia," Ard said.

He crouched down, and with Alicia and Pyria’s help, he hoisted Milia onto his back. Once Ard stood up and saw that Eva was finished with Irwin, the group began walking slowly through the thickening mist once more. About an hour later, the fog began to thin out. Ainsley had regained consciousness and was walking on his own, apologizing to everyone for causing trouble. Beatrice had also recovered and was no longer crying. Only Milia remained unconscious on Ard’s back.

"We’re almost out of the mist. The path to the village isn’t much further, so hang in there," Pyria called out from the front.

"Phew... we finally made it. That was actually kind of fun," Adeline said.

"Yeah, it was," Ard replied with a smile.

"Well... fun for us, maybe. But look at them," Eva added with a chuckle, pointing over her shoulder with her thumb.

Adeline looked back. Mirea and Claudia looked relaxed, but Alicia, Rosalind, Beatrice, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin looked completely exhausted. They looked like they were on the verge of collapsing, their faces set in grim expressions with furrowed brows.

"Big brother, what actually happened to them?" Adeline asked.

"They had to face their own desires. Just let them be," Ard answered.

"Exactly. Don’t worry about it," Eva added.

"Oh, okay," Adeline replied. She didn’t seem to understand what had really been happening around her; in her innocence, the whole thing just felt like a fun walk through the mists.

Finally, the mist began to vanish entirely. A wave of relief washed over the group, and almost everyone let out a long sigh as they realized they were finally free.