Chapter Two: The Girl Who Could Not Become an Explorer

The senior’s appearance had changed so drastically from what Melina once remembered that it was almost as if the quiet, black-haired girl wearing black-rimmed glasses had transformed into a fiery, blonde, passionate woman.

After so many years, Melina’s remarkable memory still held onto the image of that afternoon at the Faculty of Law, where the senior stood on the steps, turning back—a literary girl who never sought attention but whose black hair had stirred a faint ripple in Melina’s heart. Little did she imagine back then that this person, like herself, was a traveler across worlds, and over the years, she had revealed traits never seen before.

“Senior,” Melina said, her gaze lingering on the other’s attire, “have you become an explorer now?”

The senior’s smile faded, and she lifted her head slightly. “After all, I am a banshee. And a banshee must become an explorer.”

The statement caused Melina’s expression to harden.

Banshees, born with powerful magical factors, possessed an unrivaled advantage in wielding weapons, surpassing even vampires and elves on this front. The literary senior’s swift transformation into an explorer was due to the innate superiority of her magical factors.

Magical factors were substances permeating every corner of this world, as ubiquitous as the air itself. They came in refined and unrefined forms, controllable and uncontrollable.

Unrefined magical factors mingled in the atmosphere, and the human body naturally secreted a unique dopamine compound to absorb them. These were harmless and brought mental pleasure, then refined by a special organ within humans.

Refined magical factors were injected into blood vessels, strengthening tendons, ligaments, and bones, transforming a person into a superhuman.

Uncontrollable magical factors existed within the earth; plants evolved and overgrew abnormally through the high nutrition of these factors, developing near-magical properties. These effects could become controllable; minerals also contained stable structures of controllable magical factors.

With magical factors, humans could perform feats beyond normal capability—telekinesis, leaping ten meters in a single bound, even barehandedly resisting weaker dragon breaths.

Humans became explorers precisely because the quantity of refined magical factors in their bodies balanced the weapons refined through magical factor infusion.

“If weapons are the organs of an explorer, then magical factors are their heart.”

Melina could not become an explorer for only one reason:

No weapon could suit her heart.

She longed to run freely through the ninety-nine percent unknown expanse of the world like others.

She yearned for a brilliant, passionate life, not a dull existence confined to towns, picking up bits of wisdom from wilds hidden with countless secrets, only to boast like finding pebbles on a beach.

She also longed to become the pride of a place, like the countless famed banshee explorers.

You must not utter cruel words to someone chasing their dreams.

Nor could you say, “A banshee must become an explorer,” to a banshee who cannot.

The magical factors on Melina’s body began to activate; her silvery-white hair took on a fiery, molten-metal shimmer.

“Senior, what do you mean by ‘A banshee must become an explorer’?”

A dangerous smile appeared on Melina’s face.

The senior’s words were as provoking as telling a wheelchair-bound person, “People like us are destined to be long-distance runners.”

“Senior Sonia, if you want to anger me, you’ve already succeeded.”

Such overwhelmingly powerful magical factors were both a curse and, in another sense, a blessing.

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Melina needed no weapons to rival small black or yellow dragons. Against explorers, even those seasoned enough to have slain small red dragons were nothing but paper dolls and toys before her.

While she wouldn’t kill, giving a good thrashing to this senior who had tricked her into this remote region and then spoke mockingly was surely forgivable.

A strange red light flickered in Melina’s golden eyes.

“Stop, stop! Nice to meet you, hold on a second, don’t rush,” Senior Sonia said, raising her hand in a calming gesture. “Do you think I don’t know your problem?”

“…Yes,” Melina remained silent. The senior claimed to be a reincarnator.

“Come to my place first,” Sonia suddenly said with a mischievous grin, “My house is quite big…”

“…” Melina held back a retort.

She closed her eyes briefly.

“Plus, I can serve you black tea.”

“…” Melina snorted.

Sonia laughed heartily. “Hey, you really do look beautiful when you smile.”

The senior’s boisterous charm disarmed Melina’s defenses unconsciously.

By the time she realized this charm, Melina was already standing side by side with her in front of a two-story villa perched on a cliff halfway up the mountain. The estate was spacious, with several rustic stone pillars forming the façade, abundant greenery, and a flowing water feature completing the exterior. Behind the walls lay a sizable lawn with a few small greenhouse-like huts. Directly facing them was the villa, exuding a slight countryside vibe with a tall chimney reminiscent of Japanese fantasy illustrations.

Sonia stepped into this picture-perfect scene and turned to greet warmly: “What are you standing there for? Come inside.”

Melina approached, her luggage floating behind her.

“I know your problem,” Sonia said as she opened the door. “Your overwhelmingly strong magical factors have become a curse that shackles you. No matter what weapon you wield, it breaks within seconds. You’re like a supercharged power source; anything connected to you overloads and explodes. Believe me, my reincarnation is meaningful, Melina.”

She paused, smiled, and pushed open the door.

“Welcome to my dream home.”

Inside, the place resembled a fully equipped explorer’s camp, with facilities for alchemy, weapon forging, armor crafting, equipment maintenance, and more. In the center of a cleared room was a small lounge sectioned off by soundproof curtains at each corner.

“This is a communal area,” Sonia explained. “The bathroom is in the basement; sleeping quarters are upstairs. Any questions?”

Too many questions.

Melina tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Yes.”

“Please, go ahead,” Sonia said, crossing her arms, turning, and seating herself steadily on the lounge sofa, her long legs crossed.

“…I guess I didn’t quite say I have nowhere to live.”

“The dogs in Hamlet Town don’t even bark; the inns in Innsmouth are terrible. What’s worse is…” Sonia lowered her voice like telling a horror story, “After you use the toilet, there’s only a brush. The front half is a public restroom; the back half is a bathhouse. But here…”

Her face radiated the pride of a traveler across worlds.

“…there’s a flushing toilet, warm water washing, a private shower room, an open-air bath in the courtyard, and alchemical insect repellents.”

Melina closed her eyes.

“You think this is enough to bribe me?” she wanted to say.

But no matter how she thought about it, it was.

Without a word, Melina silently agreed to stay, waving all her luggage aside.

Sonia smiled at this. “Good. Now, let’s talk business.”

“So soon?”

“As soon as that.”

Sonia pointed to herself. “I was born to save the world.”

Her words brimmed with absolute confidence—or rather, an unshakable conviction that even awed Melina with its force.

“Sister, have you ever felt this way…” Sonia said, “We were born here for a reason, supported by some chaotic logic. Look, not only am I a traveler, I’m a reincarnator. In that first loop, I saw so much, felt so much—there must be a reason I’m here in this second loop, to fix and save everything.”

Sonia declared, “That’s my motivation. I’ll help you overcome your inability to become an explorer. You help me once, how about it?”

“Once?” Melina was sensitive to quantifiers.

“There will be many crises. You’ve played MMOs, right? Our world is much like a game—major events mean world-ending, mid-tier events mean nation-ending, minor events mean city-ending. But I can’t just hold a grudge and ask you to clean up every mess. Just once. One time. I need time to grow. If I survive the first time, I have a good chance of achieving a happy ending.” Sonia giggled.

Melina nodded.

What troubled her most was her inability to become an explorer. If what Sonia said was true, then becoming an explorer was the key to controlling her own fate.

“Great, sister, you really are gentle!” Sonia clapped happily.

The senior knew her well.

Melina felt conflicted about this sudden “acquaintance.” On one hand, the senior was almost a perfect prophet; on the other, Melina felt transparent to her, while the senior remained nearly invisible to Melina.

“You…” Melina couldn’t help but ask seriously, “Who exactly are you to me?”

Sonia paused, then smiled: “It’s more accurate to say, who you are to me.”

She hesitated. “Melina, you will be the one to kill me. You will become a banshee who falls into darkness. You will be one of the world’s top five explorers.”