Fairy tale: Little Red Riding Hood's wolf mentor

Looking around, whether wooden or stone buildings, all stood intact on the ground. Although there were still no stars in the sky, the flickering lights inside many buildings illuminated the city.

“Are we in... Shadi’s royal capital? An intact Shadi royal capital? Could it really be as that old man said… ghosts?”

Polo warily looked around. There were also some figures on the city streets.

They were wearing Shadi clothing.

“You must have come from outside?”

At this moment, the Shadi man they had first met next to Lake and Polo spoke again, his gaze passing over Lake and Polo, focusing on what was behind them, a thoughtful expression on his face.

“Outside? Sir, where is this place? What do you mean by outside?”

Lake thought for a moment and decided to directly ask the Shadi man in front of her.

For some reason, although Lake felt a slight sense of disharmony and strangeness from him,

when investigating his strength, this person didn't seem to have any powerful abilities. Neither his strength nor his speed was any different from ordinary people.

“Since you were able to get here, you should be able to guess some of it.”

The man smiled. “This is the Shadi Kingdom, or rather, the Shadi royal capital in the shadows. As for the outside, it refers to the real world you were just in.”

Hearing the man's explanation, Lake was stunned for a moment. Then, she suddenly realized—under the faint light, the man had no shadow under his feet!

“The royal capital... in the shadows?”

Lake and Polo exchanged glances, their eyes filled with disbelief. They walked back the way they came, while scanning their surroundings.

On both sides, there were many Shadi people, and they also had no shadows under their feet.

Then… how do they get out?

Polo's mind raced, but he couldn't figure out how he had gotten here.

If this is the Shadi royal capital, then would walking out of the city gate lead them out?

After all, the old Shadi man who had dissuaded them had said that the haunted place was only the “ruins” of the Shadi royal capital.

However, when Lake and Polo stood at the intact but open city gate, they suddenly stopped.

“What is outside? Is this… another dimension?”

Beyond the open city gate was a fog, a dim, gray fog swirling around, obscuring any trace of what lay beyond. The colors of the fog were changing strangely.

It was like countless afterimages mixed together.

The stone bricks of the city's ground extended outward and began to shatter, turning into equally dark and formless fragments. The entire city seemed to be floating above a void world.

“Uh, this isn't the reality you thought it was, so you can't leave through the gate.”

The Shadi man behind them said. He didn't seem surprised, as if he had already anticipated Lake and Polo's reaction.

“So, how did this world form? And where should we go to get out?”

Lake and Polo took a deep breath and asked the Shadi man behind them.

“Honestly, there are very few people in the shadow royal capital who can think as clearly as you do. Are you two special?”

The Shadi man thought for a moment and replied, “As for how this world formed, I'm not really sure—but without a doubt, this world hidden in the shadows has protected many Shadi people like me.”

“Protect?”

“During the Weisser Kingdom's massacre of the city, about ten thousand people from the entire royal capital came here, escaping the slaughter.

As for leaving… it's still a bit early until dawn, so you don't need to rush to leave. When the time comes, I can naturally send you back.”

The Shadi man said, squinting his eyes and carefully examining Lake. “We aren't ghosts, just some Shadi people who were lucky enough to survive.

Of course, the reason I can tell you this is because your voice doesn't sound like a Weisser person, and you're also a harmless little girl.”

Lake realized that the Shadi man in front of her had developed some misunderstandings about her.

But this misunderstanding didn't have any negative impact, so Lake didn't refute it.

“You can send me back in the morning?”

Lake thought for a moment. “Like a dream?”

“Shadows and dreams always have an inextricable relationship.”

The Shadi man said, waving to the two of them, signaling them to follow. Then, he walked towards the city. “Many people have strayed into this place over the years, and many of them are travelers like you—if you're not Weisser people, we're happy to send you back.”

The Shadi man said with a smile, waving to other people passing by on the streets in the city.

Lake and Polo saw that although the sky looked like midnight, those people were not sleeping. Many of them were leaning back on lounge chairs on the streets, playing Shadi-style card games.

“Can you tell me what the outside world is like now? About… the Shadi cities, of course, other countries too. By the way, little girl, where are you from?”

Lake thought for a moment and said to the Shadi man:

“I'm from the Goethe Kingdom.”

“Goethe, huh…”

The Shadi man thought for a while before retrieving the name from the depths of his memory. Then, he became a little silent. “Is the Weisser Kingdom at war with your country? We lost. Are you about to…”

“Uh, actually, the Weisser Kingdom has already lost. Their king just died in the recent war against our Goethe Kingdom.”

“Wait—what did you say?!”

The Shadi man's eyes widened instantly when he heard this. “The Weisser Kingdom is destroyed? You won against those flying ships in the sky?!”

“Yes.”

“Then can you tell me… uh, well, little girl, you might not know, but what is said about how that war was won?”

The Shadi man even forgot to take a step, leaning over and staring at Lake in disbelief.

“Of course. Simply put, the King of Goethe led a relatively small number of soldiers into the Weisser army, which was ten times their size, used special powers to quickly break into the flagship, and then directly killed the Weisser King?”

Lake thought for a moment and quickly summarized the war process based on what she remembered.

“Is that so…”

The Shadi man listened, repeating what Lake had said. His voice trembled slightly. Lake noticed a crystal tear falling from the Shadi man's eyes.

He wiped his eyes, his words carrying a hint of undisguised excitement.

“That, sorry, I'm too excited. I mean… do you mind if I share this good news with others?”

The Shadi man said, pointing to a black tower behind the palace in the center of the city, not far away.

Following his finger, Lake and Polo noticed that among the Shadi royal capital in reality and here, only that tower was the only thing that hadn't changed much.

“That is…”

“The one who saved us from the disaster of the city's massacre, the king of the shadow Shadi royal capital, and also… the only surviving member of our Shadi royal family, the Shadow Princess.”

The Shadi man said, “Our princess, although her personality is a bit… introverted, she will definitely be very happy if she hears this good news!”

Saying that, the Shadi man continued to persuade them as if he was afraid that Lake and Polo would refuse:

“Don't be afraid, Her Highness the Shadow Princess is very benevolent and won't blame you.

Moreover, the night is still long, and you don't need to rush to leave now, right?”

Hearing these words, Lake and Polo exchanged glances.

The only surviving member of the Shadi royal family?

Shadow… Princess?

Although their purpose in coming to the Shadi Kingdom this time was indeed as envoys of the Goethe Kingdom, they were meeting the last princess of the Shadi Kingdom here?

“Okay, then please lead the way, sir.”

Lake nodded and followed the Shadi man towards the center of the city.

Passing through the city, they arrived at the Shadi Kingdom's palace. The Shadi palace, which had not yet collapsed, did indeed appear tall and luxurious. Beside the palace, Lake and Polo also saw many soldiers wearing armor, sitting around resting.

Many of the soldiers' armors had traces of ancient swords, and their bodies also had many scars that were difficult to heal.

The Shadi man who led the way walked towards the soldiers stationed in front of the palace.

He pointed to Lake and Polo and introduced them to the soldiers. The soldiers also showed surprised expressions, and several soldiers ran towards the depths of the palace first.

The remaining people led Lake and Polo into the palace.

After almost crossing an entire empty palace, Lake and Polo arrived at the bottom of that tower.

The black tower had a slender cylindrical shape, with no doors or windows, extending upwards into the clouds high in the sky.

“Is the princess in this tower?”

Lake and Polo were a little confused. “How should we get in?”

As they were thinking this in their hearts, before they could ask, the square bricks on the outer wall of the tower suddenly began to blur—no, not just this tower, but all the surrounding scenery began to blur like rippling waves!

A soldier's voice came from their ears:

“Ladies, the princess invites you—”

This time, Polo, who was concentrating, sensed the change in the world.

The next moment, when Polo opened his eyes again, the surrounding scenery had turned into a room that looked like a royal palace bedroom, or rather, more like a princess's boudoir.

The flames in the carved hanging lamps flickered, illuminating a girl sitting on the bed.

“Hello, ladies.”

The girl on the bed was wearing a crown on her head. She had a sweet face and her skin had a sickly pallor. She looked at Lake and smiled, her expression showing a hint of apology.

Although her words were brief, all the meaning could be clearly expressed,

“I am the princess of the shadow Shadi Kingdom. You can call me by my name, Marlene.”

“It's an honor to meet you, Miss Marlene.”

Lake bowed and performed a standard court etiquette. “Is there anything I can do to help you?”

“Um, could you please tell me more… about the Weisser Kingdom?”

Princess Marlene gestured for Lake to sit in another seat in the room, and then asked curiously.

…

After listening to Lake's account, Princess Marlene was still immersed in thought, and a reserved smile appeared on her lips:

“Thank you, you killed the Weisser King. I guarantee that every Shadi person in this city, um—including every Shadi person outside, will sincerely thank you!”

Lake's eyes lit up after hearing this:

“Then the matter of our Goethe Kingdom forming an alliance with the Shadi Kingdom…”

“Although I haven't been in contact with Shadi people outside for a long time, I believe that those Shadi people who are still alive will be your best partners!”

Princess Marlene said with a smile, “There will definitely be no problems.”

“Thank you, then you…”

Lake said here, suddenly paused, “The Weisser Kingdom is destroyed, will you go out? You, and the people in this city?”

Hearing Lake's question, Princess Marlene fell silent, and then she slowly shook her head:

“Sorry, although I really want to, but… in order to survive the massacre disaster at the time, we hid here.

This is the side of reality, the gap in the world, a shadow world that was created.

When you came, you already saw my people. They don't sleep at night. They are not ghosts. They are still alive, but… in the form of shadows.

We don't need to eat, drink, or sleep, and we can live here forever.

But there is a price to pay for this.”

Lake and Polo both understood the meaning in Princess Marlene's words. Indeed, all the benefits would naturally have their price, but Lake couldn't help but ask:

“You are all still alive, but is there really no way to get out?”

“It's not that there isn't, but…”

Princess Marlene said here, paused for a moment, as if she remembered something, shook her head and changed her words, “Yes, there is really no way.

We are escaping in the shadows.

War and death should have nothing to do with us.

We Shadi people always yearn for peace. There is nothing good outside. It is better to… stay here forever.”

Saying this, Princess Marlene smiled apologetically at Lake:

“Thank you for bringing me this good news. The city may celebrate for a long time because of this. As for your mission to the new Shadi Kingdom—

no matter who rules there now, as long as it is a Shadi person, he will definitely help you!”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

A hint of relief appeared in Lake and Polo's eyes. It seemed that this mission would probably not have any problems.

“Um… it's almost dawn.”

Saying this, Princess Marlene suddenly seemed to sense something. She looked up at the empty ceiling, then stood up and made a gesture of seeing them off with court etiquette:

“You don't belong here. Now, I should send you away.”

Saying that, Princess Marlene raised her hand and pointed, and Lake and Polo instantly saw that the shadows under them spread upwards like a tide in an instant, and passed over their heads in the blink of an eye—

Shadows devoured sound and light, and all five senses were lost.

This is…

When Polo's thoughts reconnected, he opened his eyes and the darkness receded like the tide.

He climbed up from the ground and exchanged a glance with Lake, who had also just woken up beside him—

On the ground, the remains of last night's fire were scattered.

Above, a ray of dawn light shone in through a corner of the collapsed roof.

“Huff…”

Polo breathed a sigh of relief.

He was back.

Back in the real-world ruins of Shadi.