Chapter 186: The 1,000-Year Nap

“Shiro, I still have to thank you for saving me.”

“Alright, alright, how many times have you said thanks already? My ears are starting to grow calluses ...... ”

Along the way, Vicki acted like an obedient good girl, repeatedly expressing her gratitude to Shirotsuki Rei.

However, Shirotsuki Rei only waved her hand with a lack of interest, her gaze constantly searching for a way to help herself leave the River Styx and return to the future a thousand years later.

According to the Styx Butterfly, the World of Fate has a unique repair mechanism that will try every possible way to send people like them, whose space-time status is chaotic, back to the correct space-time.

But Shirotsuki Rei still hadn't quite figured out what that meant; what exactly did this repair mechanism entail?

Could it be that as they walked, a giant wormhole would suddenly pop up in front of them, and they would return to a thousand years later just by stepping through it?

Or perhaps a mysterious teleportation array would suddenly appear by the river, and once they stepped on it, they would be transported back?

Or maybe this world is actually the work of some hack author who suddenly got too lazy to deal with the readers and decided to let the protagonist master the power of space-time travel without any explanation?

No matter which one it was, it all sounded too ridiculous.

***

Although the scenery of the River Styx was beautiful, it was very monotonous, consisting of nothing but faint blue river water from beginning to end.

Even though Shirotsuki Rei and Vicki had clearly been walking for a long time, it felt as though they were just running in place.

Right at that moment, Shirotsuki Rei’s elegant brows twitched as she spotted a different splash of color in the distance — fiery red, as if something was burning.

They hurried over and, as expected, saw an incredible, gargantuan object.

Dozens of tree roots as thick as mountain ranges wound across the River Styx, with blazing fires dancing upon them.

Accompanied by a crackling sound, they emitted an aura of destruction and chaos.

The scorching firelight formed a sharp contrast with the faint blue river water, as if two completely different worlds were intersecting here.

“This is the legendary World Tree.” Vicki revealed a look of surprise: “I had long heard that the roots of the World Tree spread everywhere across the world, but I didn't expect them to reach even the River Styx.”

Shirotsuki Rei asked: “Then what’s the deal with these flames?”

Vicki explained: “Judging from the aura they emit, they should originate from the ‘Goddess of Destruction’ and the ‘Goddess of Chaos’ who fell during the Divine War. The aftershocks of their battle affected the World Tree, which is why these terrifying flames were ignited. However, the World Tree is simply too massive; it won't be completely incinerated by just this amount of fire.”

Shirotsuki Rei looked toward the river's surface.

The firelight that blotted out the sky was reflected on the water of the River Styx, staining the originally tranquil river with a somewhat hideous shade of red.

A low-hanging root had plunged into the River Styx, and countless souls were huddled together in terror, their path blocked by the burning root.

“Someone please save us ...... ”

“Quickly move this root away ... ”

“This is much hotter than the Dark Elves I killed on the battlefield …… ”

Many souls were blocked here, unable to continue downstream to enter the cycle of reincarnation.

“I’ll help you out, everyone move aside a bit!”

Shirotsuki Rei pulled out her divine staff, and a series of Holy Light Orbs rushed toward the root like meteors.

Accompanied by a deafening explosion, the giant root that was obstructing the River Styx collapsed instantly, stirring up a terrifying spray in the river.

The water gurgled and the ripples shimmered as the River Styx revealed its true face once more.

The souls continued downstream atop the white flowers, expressing their gratitude to Shirotsuki Rei by the riverside.

“No need for thanks, no need for thanks! If you beautiful and sexy big sisters still remember me a thousand years from now, you can come to the capital of the Rose Kingdom to repay me! My name is the ‘Priest Hero’!”

Shirotsuki Rei stood by the river and waved goodbye to the souls, the light of her divine staff gradually dissipating.

Vicki stood beside her, silently observing this scene, thinking that although Shiro looked a bit like a mesugaki on the outside, her heart was unexpectedly very kind.

Only such a kind person would ignore her past mistakes and resurrect her like a closest friend.

Just then, the soul of a young girl wrapped in ice crystals bowed her head to the two of them from the River Styx in gratitude: “Thank you, Miss Priest Hero. If I still have my memories, I will definitely come looking for you.”

“Okay~” Shirotsuki Rei nodded: “No need to keep your head down. When saying thank you, you should look the other person in the eye.”

“Is ... is that so?”

Hearing this, the Ice Crystal Girl lifted her head.

Under the illumination of the faint blue water, a puff of crystalline white mist escaped her mouth.

“But Mother taught me that I shouldn't look up when talking to people, because doing so will turn them into ice blocks …… ”

As soon as she finished speaking, the river continued to push the white flower under her bottom forward.

The Ice Crystal Girl waved goodbye to the two of them: “Goodbye!”

However, Shirotsuki Rei and Vicki were slow to respond to her.

The moment the Ice Crystal Girl exhaled that white mist, a thick layer of ice surfaced on both of them, freezing them in place.

Whether it was their physical bodies or their souls, they could no longer move an inch.

On the banks of this faint blue River Styx, the temperature-less souls continued to flow downstream, bringing a continuous stream of icy breath that prevented the ice on the two from melting.

And so, Shirotsuki Rei and Vicki were frozen within the scroll of time — for a thousand years.

During these long thousand years, they quietly watched over the flowing River Styx like statues, their graceful bodies faintly visible within the profound ice, becoming a unique scenery along the banks of the River Styx.

Countless souls passed by them; some hurried along, while others stopped to watch.

They also became the final scene these souls witnessed before their memories were forgotten.

A thousand years passed like a single day, as if they were meant to keep watch like this forever, until the very end of the world.

***

But even the River Styx was not immutable.

The dozens of tree roots that had once taken root in the River Styx were eventually burned to nothing by the fierce fire.

The holes they left behind as they broke through the rock, however, slowly turned into an ordinary river channel as the world outside changed over time.

The cool river water that flowed out eventually merged into the River Styx.

And on a certain day a thousand years later, accompanied by a giant splash, a huge ball made of skeletons was washed down by the river, its entire body plunging into the waters of the River Styx.

The giant ball immediately began to tremble violently, and scorching flames suddenly burst from its body, with heatwaves spreading out like ripples.

And the ice that had frozen the two for a thousand years melted away under this sudden heatwave.

“Waaah!”

“Ugh!”

Shirotsuki Rei and Vicki broke out of the ice, panting as they sprawled on the riverbank, their tender faces still carrying a few drops of melted ice water.

They sat there, staring blankly at each other.

Although a thousand years had passed, they had not aged, nor had their souls suffered from being unable to move, because they were hardly aware that they had been frozen.

Their only sensation was that they had watched a video fast-forwarded countless times in an instant, and the only content of the video was the unchanging scenery of the River Styx over a thousand years.

“It feels ...... like I’ve experienced a wondrous journey.“ Vicki couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

“Yeah, but we should have already returned to a thousand years later by now.” Shirotsuki Rei sighed: “To think it was through the form of being frozen? This repair mechanism of the World of Fate is a bit too crude, isn't it?”

Just as she finished speaking, a giant ball slowly floated out from the River Styx, its entire body wrapped in a mass of giant, faint blue flames.

【Name: Skeleton Rolling Ball】

【Race: Undead】

【Level: 40】

【Description: A Skeleton Rolling Ball that fell into the River Styx and became possessed by countless resentful souls. Its power of death has received an unprecedented boost.】

【Note: Now they're even more crowded than the Imperial Capital's Line 6 during the 8 AM rush.】