Morning sunlight streamed through the ornate glass window of the Loki Familia’s headquarters, casting warm patches of amber and gold across the floor of Riveria’s room.
Riveria Ljos Alf slowly opened her eyes.
A lingering haze clouded her emerald gaze, and for several moments, she could not quite separate dream from reality.
Her cheeks were burning.
Her heart beat much faster than usual, her chest rising and falling with each slightly unsteady breath.
She touched her face and found it almost painfully warm.
“I really…
had a dream like that…”
Riveria murmured the words under her breath, a faint tremor slipping into her voice without her noticing.
The dream had been far too vivid.
Every sensation remained so clear that she could barely convince herself it had not truly happened.
She remembered standing in a beautiful, otherworldly space surrounded by drifting starlight and luminous ribbons of color.
A shadowy figure had been waiting before her.
She had never been able to make out his face, yet his presence had filled her with a strange sense of closeness and ease.
And then…
Merely recalling what followed sent another wave of heat through her body.
Inside the dream, Riveria had cast aside the composure and dignity she had maintained for more than a century.
It had been as though she had become a completely different woman—bold, passionate, and utterly uninhibited.
She remembered her own laughter.
She remembered how freely she had acted and the unfamiliar intensity of the emotions surging through her.
‘Gods…’
Riveria abruptly covered her face with both hands and buried herself in the pillow, letting out a muffled groan.
She was a High Elven princess, the vice captain of the Loki Familia, the strongest mage in Orario, and the adventurer feared and respected throughout the city as Nine Hell.
How could she possibly have dreamed of behaving that way?
It was mortifying.
It was absolutely humiliating!
If Loki ever learned how shamelessly she had acted in that dream, the troublesome goddess would tease her about it for the next hundred years.
No, knowing Loki, she might continue for a thousand.
Riveria shook her head vigorously, as though she could physically fling the embarrassing images from her mind.
Her long emerald hair spread across the pillow, gleaming softly like silk in the morning light.
“Calm yourself, Riveria.
It was only a dream.”
She raised her head and spoke quietly to her reflection in the mirror, trying to smother her embarrassment beneath cold reason.
“Dreams are not real.
They have no meaning.
They are merely fragments of memories combined without order.
There is nothing to dwell on.
Forget it.”
She repeated those words in her mind again and again, almost as though she were trying to hypnotize herself.
Gradually, the heat in her cheeks began to fade, and her heartbeat returned to its usual steady rhythm.
That’s right.
It had only been a dream.
No one else knew about it, and it could have no effect on her real life.
She only needed to dismiss it as a ridiculous accident and continue with her day.
Riveria drew a deep breath, rose from bed, and opened the window.
A cool morning breeze drifted inside, carrying the fresh scent of dew, grass, and trees, clearing away the room’s lingering warmth.
The Loki Familia’s courtyard was already busy.
Several young adventurers were practicing swordsmanship, their wooden blades meeting in a steady rhythm of sharp cracks.
Farther away came the clatter of pots and pans from the kitchen, accompanied by the faint aroma of breakfast.
Everything was peaceful and familiar.
Riveria watched the ordinary scene for a moment, and the final traces of unease and embarrassment slowly settled.
She changed into her usual mage’s robes, simple yet elegant, then carefully combed her green hair and tied it behind her head with a silver ribbon.
By the time she finished, the woman reflected in the mirror had returned to her usual calm, dignified, and authoritative self.
There was no sign that she had awakened moments earlier with flushed cheeks and a racing heart.
“The expedition departs soon.
I cannot allow an insignificant dream to distract me from my responsibilities.”
Riveria gave herself a firm nod, picked up several documents and maps from the desk, and left the room.
A few Familia members cleaning the corridor bowed respectfully when they saw her.
Riveria acknowledged them with a slight nod and continued toward Loki’s room with her usual measured stride.
The expedition team was scheduled to depart that afternoon for another journey into the Dungeon’s deep floors.
As vice captain and the Familia’s strongest mage, Riveria needed to confirm the condition of every member and ensure that their supplies were properly prepared.
She also intended to have Loki update her status before departure so she would have an accurate understanding of her condition throughout the expedition.
Upon reaching Loki’s room, Riveria raised a hand and knocked.
“Come on in~!”
Loki’s familiar lazy, cheerful voice drifted through the door.
Riveria stepped inside and found the goddess lounging across a wide sofa with one leg raised, a bottle of alcohol in her hand and her posture as undignified as ever.
“Oh, Riveria!
You’re here early.” Loki grinned mischievously, her narrow eyes sweeping over the elf as though searching for something amusing.
“It’s rare for you to come asking for a status update on your own.
Are you getting excited about the expedition?”
Riveria’s face remained perfectly expressionless.
“It is merely a routine update.
With the expedition approaching, confirming any changes to my status is a necessary precaution.”
“Right, right.
Just a routine update.”
Loki shrugged, climbed off the sofa, and walked over.
She bit the tip of one finger, drawing a bead of crimson divine blood.
“Come on, then.
Same as always—lie down.”
Riveria removed the upper portion of her robes, revealing her smooth, pale back, and lay facedown on the bed Loki kept specifically for status updates.
Loki pressed her bloodied finger against Riveria’s back, allowing her divine power to sink into the Falna and read the information engraved there.
At first, Loki appeared completely unconcerned.
She even hummed quietly to herself as she worked.
Five or six seconds later, the humming stopped.
Loki froze.
“Hm?”
A puzzled sound escaped her as her brows drew together.
She pressed her finger more firmly against Riveria’s back, as though convinced she must have misread something.
“What is it?”
Sensing the sudden change in Loki’s demeanor, Riveria turned her head slightly.
Loki did not answer immediately.
She examined the Falna once.
Then again.
Her narrow eyes abruptly opened wide, filled with disbelief.
“Riveria…”
Loki’s voice had lost its usual playfulness, becoming unusually grave.
“Are you absolutely certain you haven’t entered the Dungeon recently?
You haven’t undergone any unusual training either?”
“I am certain,” Riveria replied.
“I have spent the past several days handling the Familia’s paperwork and preparing for the expedition.
I have not even visited the training grounds.”
“That makes no sense…” Loki muttered under her breath.
She quickly retrieved a sheet of parchment and copied Riveria’s newly updated status onto it.
Now curious herself, Riveria sat up and accepted the parchment Loki handed her.
The moment she saw the numbers written there, she fell silent in utter shock.