The heat from the sphere suddenly transferred into Long's hand, bringing a strange warmth that contrasted completely with the coldness of the metal block just moments ago.
"Huh?!"
Long's eyes widened in surprise. Glowing cracks began to spread across the surface of the sphere, then it abruptly shattered into a hundred pieces. The fragments of gold metal didn't fall but hovered in mid-air, surrounding a violet light source that was constantly swirling.
The light shrank, condensing and transforming into the shape of a tiny girl, as exquisite as a porcelain doll. She had delicate wings like silk, fluttering gently, emitting sparkling dust of light.
The scene was so beautiful that Long felt no wariness at all. And his own intuition told him it was safe.
"Bloodline confirmed. Proceeding with master identification."
The voice rang out, sweet and smooth like honey poured into the listener's ear.
The violet film of light covering the tiny body gradually dissipated, revealing fair, rosy skin and a face so beautiful that Long believed any movie star would be jealous.
Was Long shocked? Yes. But after nearly dying because of a goblin, a fairy floating in front of him didn't seem too unbelievable.
"Oh~ who is this kid?" The little girl narrowed her eyes at him, then asked: "Hey kid, what is your relationship with Alex?"
Long was stunned, his face full of question marks: "Huh? Who is Alex, miss? I don't know him!"
The little fairy immediately frowned, her expression becoming annoyed: "Hey kid, don't try to trick me. Only his bloodline can awaken me."
"I really don't know, I don't know any foreigners... except for an old friend," Long honestly explained.
As soon as he finished speaking, the tiny figure shot forward, her tiny hands pinching Long's cheek hard.
"Ouch!" Long groaned in pain.
"Don't make me angry, confess quickly..." She shouted, but then hesitated as if remembering something. She stared deep into Long's eyes, muttering: "He has another name that isn't very common... Do you know Nguyen Phuong Nam?"
Long froze. That name was like an electric current running through his mind.
"That is... my grandfather's name."
The little girl's face suddenly brightened like a child given candy. She rushed to stroke Long's cheek, her eyes sparkling, looking at him unblinkingly as if examining a treasure.
"Oh oh, so you're his grandson? No wonder you look somewhat similar..."
However, the short-lived joy was quickly cut off. That beautiful face suddenly darkened, a gloomy atmosphere descending.
"Hahaha... he even has a grandson already? Hahaha!"
Long shuddered, his spine turning cold. He thought to himself: Her laugh doesn't sound okay at all.
"Damn that cheating bastard! Alex, you are truly a scumbag, a cheater, an ungrateful jerk!"
And then, to Long's astonishment, the little fairy suddenly burst into tears like a child whose toy had been stolen.
"Waaaaaaaa! Sob... I hate you... you were always surrounded by girls... I... I absolutely hate you... Sob... but I also love you!"
Long stood frozen before the scene in front of him. This scene was even more shocking to him than the first encounter with the goblin. In his head, he silently screamed:
Grandpa, what kind of terrible thing did you do?!
Although his heart was full of questions and he knew this girl held all the information about his grandfather, Long's nature didn't allow him to ignore someone sobbing in front of him.
He fumbled in his pocket, pulling out a strawberry candy. Since the spirit was only slightly larger than an adult's hand, Long carefully crushed the candy inside the wrapper, then opened it, picking up a small fragment to offer her.
"Do you want some candy, miss? Sweets help improve the mood."
She stared blankly as she took the piece of candy. Long looked at her with sincere and gentle eyes, smiling a kind smile.
"I don't know what happened between you and my grandpa, but if he made you sad, please let me apologize on his behalf. Is there anything I can do to cheer you up?"
Long's warm tone made the little fairy pause for a beat. An emotion kindled, creeping into her heart which was full of resentment. She suddenly chuckled, biting into the sweet strawberry candy, then smiled radiantly, poking her tiny finger into Long's cheek.
"Oh my, wanting to take responsibility for me? Whose child is this cute? Did Alex teach you how to pick up girls?"
Long scratched his head, answering honestly: "No, seeing you happy makes me feel relieved. By the way, can I know your name?"
The little spirit puffed out her full chest proudly, her face suddenly becoming unusually solemn. She floated in mid-air as if standing on a grand podium, raising her voice to declare:
"Listen carefully, kid. I am the Twelfth Spirit Princess of the noble royal lineage de Valerius. My full name is Liana Vesperia Solari Evangeline de Valerius!"
Long froze, his mind suddenly blank as a sheet of white paper. The incredibly long name with its cluster of foreign syllables caused his already tired brain to completely "crash." He blinked at her, his mouth slightly open but unable to utter a word.
Seeing Long's "dumbfounded" reaction, Liana Vesperia Solari Evangeline de Valerius let out a long sigh, her pride from moments ago deflating somewhat.
"Hmph, truly a kid. If you can't remember, just call me Lia. And you, what's your name?"
Long scratched his head and smiled awkwardly, his voice still carrying a trace of respect:
"Yes, Miss Lia, my name is Truong Long. Oh, by the way, do you know anything about my grandp-"
Swish!
He quickly turned his eyes toward the source of the sound, looking around but seeing nothing.
"Wait... nothing there? Where is the goblin's corpse?"
Suddenly, pressure in the air slammed straight toward him.
"Long! Move!"
A force field from Lia's tiny hands shoved Long hard, sending him flying away. She screamed, her voice cracking:
"RUN! RUN!!"
A long black shadow, massive as a car, shot forward with terrifying velocity, swallowing Lia who was floating in mid-air. Long tremblingly shone his flashlight. A giant python of irrational size was glaring its glowing yellow eyes at him.
Without hesitation, Long ran for his life. The snake slithered, tearing through the wind as it chased after him. Long's calf muscles were tight, burning as if dipped in boiling oil, his lungs hot as if about to catch fire.
"Damn it, it's right on my ass."
"Shit, at this rate I'm dead. I have to live to save Miss Lia. What now... ah right, it's in this dark environment, it definitely isn't used to light, just like the goblin earlier was immobilized by the flashlight."
Thinking is doing. Long ran while pointing the light behind him. The light shining directly into its eyes hurt the monster. It was distracted and gradually slowed down.
"Nice!"
But the flashlight began to flicker, the light weakening as if the battery was running out.
"Motherf*..."
"It's too close, aaaaa— huh?"
The distance narrowed, the snake was right at his heels. But right in front, the violet light of the gate appeared. Long threw the flashlight straight into the monster's eyes as a diversion, then hurled himself into the veil of light.
Then Long shot into the light source.
The snake also frantically lunged after him. However, what welcomed it in the other world was not a delicious meal, but a terrifying itch and extreme nausea.
While its head was convulsing from dizziness, in front of it was the prey from earlier, now standing firmly with a hoe in his hand.
"Hello. I just threw up too!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Long swung the hoe continuously onto the top of its head, focusing all his terrifying strength into a single point. The snake screamed miserably, but it couldn't advance nor retreat, because inside its stomach, Lia had activated a force field to hold it tight.
"Damn you, just die already!"
The final strike pierced the skull, finishing off the monster's brain. The massive corpse collapsed. Lia crawled out from the python's mouth, messy and disheveled, rushing to hug Long tight.