The Righteous Player(s)

energy in moderation.

“But the vast majority of elves are reluctant to give up on the convenient and magical energy because its side effects can be said to be negligible compared to its convenience.
Having an entire civilization using the curse energy together will further share its burdens and side effects rather than having one person bearing it alone.
As for the possibility of the world becoming riddled with holes for hundreds of years later, that’s a future that has nothing to do with us.”

“Can the curse energy be so addictive?” Citalopram asked subconsciously.

She vaguely saw the shadows of the Sunwell Plateau [1] and Quel’ Thalas [2].

“Not really.
The curse energy itself is not addictive, but the convenience itself is a terrible dependence for us.
The convenience of the curse energy is enough to make people forget the pain of death.
Therefore, the elves born after the third era do not see death as a terrifying thing.

“For them, the curse energy is not for survival, but enjoyment.” Boffis’ answer was even direr.

“Given the increasing rarity and the magical property of this power, the people of Yaselan are eyeing this power.
There are traces of curse energy in some of the legends and stories sung by the bards.

“In your legends, curse energy is granted many aliases like ‘the Water of Immortality’, ‘the ‘Fountain of Youth’, the ‘Holy Grail’, the ‘Water of the Underworld’, and so on.

“In the end, under the persuasion of many prophets, the emperor took control of the situation.
In the case of the elders’ house opposing it, a compromise was reached.
The elves would not completely stop the use of curse energy but centralized the population in the capital and ran curse energy there.
In the end, they prohibited the use of spell energy among the Centaurs and Yaselians (People of Yaselan).

“…But then, we launched a rebellion.

“Not an uprising, but a rebellion bringing us to self-destruction.
For example, the city I live in is a curse-worshiping city at the extreme level.
Before the curse shaft was finally demolished as planned, people destroyed their own houses and destroyed the traces of life.
Using the curse shaft’s last power, they weaved an eternal public nightmare and stopped the time there.

“—It was an endless month, an incomparably beautiful ‘nightmare’.
But, it wasn’t to record important knowledge and inheritance, but to escape into it and enjoy life no different from before.”

Miss Boffis turned emotional, but soon the surge of emotions subsided.

She was silent for a long time before she lowered her head and said in a low voice, “Sorry, I lied before.”

“This is not your fault.” Citalopram gently and softly comforted.

Boffis took a deep breath and calmed down.

Then she continued, “Mom wanted to take me to the capital.
But I ran away halfway because I didn’t want to use the curse energy anymore, which was obviously wrong.
Mom taught me so since I was a child.

“But she herself wants to move to the capital to live…” When she said this, she choked with emotion.

Citalopram advised again, “It’s not your fault.”

“I just want to live a normal life.
But no one supports me.
The best I can do is go back to my hometown and die with everyone, putting this meaningless ‘knowledge’ as specimen.

“But, I couldn’t do anything.
When I came back, I was late and didn’t get to participate in the ritual.
When I wanted to leave, I couldn’t run.”

Boffis smiled wryly, “I’m here alone with no great mission or great things to achieve.
So I just lingered in the same place, not knowing where I should go, and I didn’t get anything done in the end.

“I lied, Citalopram.
I’m not good at all.
I don’t have any buddies, and I don’t have any special abilities.
So I can’t do anything well.”

She murmured, “I’m just an indecisive dabbler.”

Boffis looked at Citalopram pleadingly, and her voice was soft and ghostly.
“Will you come back for me?”