Yuna-san and I head off from the inn to Lucia-san’s place to deliver the hemp grass we harvested.

When we arrived at the store, Lucia-san comes over to welcome us and takes the designated items we brought in exchange for hemp thread and knitting tools.

She eyes us with a puzzled look, seemingly baffled by the small amount of hemp grass we obtain even after taking almost a whole day before visiting her again, to which we respond by telling her the whole story of what happened today.

Of course, we omit the part when we get together.

Her face turns into a frown as she looks at us with concerned eyes. In the end, she offers us words of comfort and condolences and sincerely tells us to be more vigilant in the future.

The overflowing gentleness that radiates from her makes Lucia-san look like a saint in my eyes. What a kind woman she is.

After exchanging small talk for a while, we depart from Lucia-san’s store back to Celia’s place.

The sun has set, dying the darkened sky a purplish crimson hue.

The breeze brings the chill, brushing my skin lightly as I stride at a hurried pace, Yuna-san on my side.

I really miss the warmth of home.

Along the way, I sidetrack a little bit as I spot some familiar ingredients in the nearby stall. Yuna-san does the haggling while chatting merrily with the shopkeeper auntie, and I pay the money after the deal’s concluded.

In the end, we buy enough ingredients for two days' food.

Not long after, we finally arrived at Celia-san’s front door.

As I’m about to open the door, my hand wavers. A pang of guilt surges within my heart as I recall the deed we did this afternoon.

Although Celia and I are not officially in a relationship, I can’t help but feel I’m betraying her somewhat, despite having confidence that Celia won’t be too bothered by the fact that I did it not only with her but also with other women, considering how open-minded she is regarding physical relationships.

To be honest, after growing aware of how overwhelming my libido can be, I’m not confident that I can be satiated with just one partner in the future.

Nevertheless, I can’t act too suspiciously here lest Celia and the rest of the party might catch on to the affair between me and Yuna-san, especially the innocent Iris-san and Irika. I really don’t want to scare them off or risk them being disappointed in me. After all, despite being together only for a short time, I really enjoy their company in this game.

I know that I’m just delaying the inevitable, but I still need a bit more time to prepare my heart. Hopefully, they can understand and accept my true nature after getting to know each other better. That’s what I think.

I send a single glance at Yuna-san from the corner of my eyes, only to find that she’s totally unfazed and humming pleasantly without a single worry in the world. Sensing my gaze, she tilts her head toward me and winks while a cheeky grin emerges from her dainty lips. This woman is really a carefree person.

I can’t help but let out an exasperated sigh. Maybe I’m the only one who is overthinking it.

Straightening my back and holding my expression tight, I twist the doorknob and push the door open.

"I’m ba-"

"Eve! Yuna-san! Are you okay?!"

As soon as we enter the house, Celia rushes and dives into me, pulling me into her tight embrace.

I can’t help but startle when I see her distressed look. This is my first time watching her composed bearing break. Well, except for when we’re in bed, of course. I shake the unbecoming thoughts out of my head and quickly comfort her.

"Ce-celia, what’s wrong? please calm down."

"You guys were killed by the thieves’ guild, weren't you?!"

The news sure travels fast.

Eh… wait a moment.

Why did it sound like she’s more agitated knowing that we were killed by the thieves’ guild rather than the fact that we’ve died? Is resurrection common in this world? Do the NPCs also respawn after they die, just like us players?

Also, where did Celia get the news of us being attacked? The only people who knew about the accident were Lucia-san, Yuna-san, and me. So how did she know?

Questions flood my mind.

Exchanging glances with Yuna-san, it seems that she also has similar thoughts as mine.

"No, I'm glad you're safe. Come on inside and have some rest."

Before I can ask her, she drags me by my hand inside the house while Yuna-san follows us quietly from behind. Getting there, Iris-san and Irika have been waiting for us in the living room, sitting around the table and chatting.

Among the three, Celia is the only one who gets impatient, while the remaining two didn’t seem in the know of what happened to us. They also look as surprised as us when they see us coming in, and a worried look dawns on their faces as the two watches how flustered Celia is.

Celia forces us to take a seat and stares at us gravely as she sits down.

"Tell me what happened."

I give Yuna-san a glance once again and she nods.

I begin to reiterate my experience while Yuna-san occasionally chimes in, adding in her own experience.

Iris-san clenches her fist tight, seemingly restraining herself from smashing the table, a hint of fury flashes in her eyes, while Irika’s face turns pale after listening to our story.

Celia slumps in her chair, heaving a heavy sigh before turning her attention back to us.

"I see… So, are you guys going to take revenge on the Thieves’ Guild? Please tell me."

I can hear a hint of worry and guilt in Celia’s tone. While it’s true that I want to get my revenge on the men who killed me, but…

"Eve-chan, a moment please…"

Yuna-san suddenly pulls me out of my seat and brings me away from the table just the two of us. After we gain a bit of distance from the rest of the group, Yuna-san speaks to me in a hushed voice.

"I’m not sure, but I think this is a key quest flag."

"Key quest...is it?"

I know what quest means, but I don’t know the difference between "Key Quest" and "Ordinary Quest". It seems like a big deal because Yuna-san suddenly becomes serious. That aside, there’s something that I’m dying to know right now.

"Before that Yuna-san… Celia didn’t seem surprised when she said that we were killed. Is it common sense that you get revived after you die in this game? I mean not just us players but also the NPCs."

Yuna-san nods and proceeds with her explanation.

"I don’t know about dying from old age or sickness, but in this game, if one dies, whether it’s a player, NPCs, or monsters, from battle, they’ll also respawn in the nearest city or their home base. So, it’s not surprising that Celia-san is nonchalant about it."

I see. So that’s the case.

Doesn’t it mean [Eternal Phantasia Online] is a relatively peaceful game? A utopian world? There’s no dying for hunger or getting massacred in a horrid war among the sovereignties?

No, no. I’m too naïve if I think I think that way.

After all, there’s always something more terrible than death, such as how those bastards PKers tortured me.

Another example: for someone, especially women, who suffer the fate of being forced, abused, and tortured, both physically and mentally, death is actually a form of release, a salvation. However, they don’t have such privileges in this world.

Immortality has its own set of problems, it seems.

Anyway, let’s return to the earlier topic.

"I understand. Speaking of which, what is a "Key Quest" Yuna-san?"