Girl in the Box: Please tell me why I was reincarnated as a mimic monster!

"What's wrong with you?" Li asked, somewhat puzzled.

"N-nothing!" Ning's tone rose slightly, sounding anything but nonchalant. "You said you were going to see your parents, right?"

“Yes,” Li nodded, “You know… I died of AIDS at the age of seventeen. The situation might have been even worse. If it weren’t for my parents’ constant support, I might have died much earlier. The years of treatment also cost my family a lot of money… so I’m quite worried about how they are doing over there. I was thinking that if I have the chance, I should go and see them.”

“…I see.” Ning nodded. “Then I’ll go with you. Anyway, you probably haven’t thought about how to get close to those two, and you’re planning to just watch them from a distance, right?”

"Hehe, I don't need to worry with you here."

Before they knew it, the dumpling feast had reached its final stage. Everyone was full, even Salid couldn't eat any more, and the others had long since taken their seats to rest. Having overheard the conversation between the two, they joined in.

"Oh? So you're planning to meet your biological parents?" Celia exclaimed. "How filial... I guess I should start thinking about that too. What about you, Ister?"

"Huh?" Faced with the sudden topic, Ister stammered, "Um... well... my parents are gone, and that armor was actually my father's keepsake..."

"Pfft cough cough cough!?" Negi, who was drinking water, suddenly spat it out.

Negi had no idea that the jet-black armor Esther wore when she was still shrouded in mystery as the Black Knight was actually her father's heirloom. She had so carelessly altered his father's belongings that day; it was incredibly disrespectful. Riri was another person who reacted similarly, because Riri and Negi had planned that whole thing together.

“Ester… um… I…”

Even the most unrestrained and carefree Negi realized the seriousness of the situation at this point, and she was embarrassed and didn't know how to start the conversation. Negi also didn't know what to say.

“Miss Neki, Miss Li, you two don’t need to make that face.” Ister smiled faintly. “My father’s armor was actually almost worn out from continuous use. I had thought about replacing it. But thanks to Miss Neki’s modifications, the armor can continue to be used. I am very grateful to you two, so please don’t blame yourselves.”

“I’m sorry…” Negi said apologetically, “I didn’t realize it was something so important.”

"Me too..." Li said apologetically, "It was my oversight."

"There's really no need for this..."

Their earnestness made East feel somewhat awkward. Sensing the change in atmosphere, the considerate Finoer changed the subject.

“Eh…” Fino sighed, “You were a human in your past life, right? Unlike us Dragon Kings, you had parents, didn’t you? It’s said that a person will have some characteristics of their parents. I’m a little curious…”

"That's genetics, right?" Kuroba interjected. "Offspring inherit some traits from their parents, but that doesn't apply to the logic, because the logic of this world wasn't born through human reproduction; its origin is a mimicry monster."

“Genetics…” Olitto stroked his unkempt stubble. “I heard that you learned a lot about Earth here, Professor Kuroba. Is genetics one of those things?”

Kuroba nodded and said, "The civilization of that world called Earth is probably much more advanced than ours. I haven't been able to fully understand the knowledge recorded in the books of their world yet. It's too profound. That's roughly the feeling I get from the perspective of the civilization level of that world."

"Wow..." Olitto's eyes lit up like gold coins. "Wouldn't that be a great profit?"

"Tch..." The battalion commander rolled his eyes at him. "Is money all you think about?"

“Hey, you can’t say that, Captain,” Olitto complained. “You have no idea how much money it cost to plan this harvest festival. If it wasn’t profitable, I would have run away long ago. You have to understand, this isn’t like the time when the commodity economy wasn’t so developed. You can’t do anything without money. Besides, the guys at the workshop need money to develop new magical items, you know what I mean?”

"I don't understand." The captain casually took a sip of sake.

These two are, in a sense, natural enemies. The troupe leader is a man who leads the troupe to perform without seeking profit, while Olitó is a businessman who is not driven by profit. The two have fundamentally different styles, and it is truly amazing that they have never had any conflict.

“Ha…” Negi sighed, “I was saying… you were planning to take two people with you to that world, right?”

"Hmm...yes," Li asked, "Is there a problem?"

“Yes, of course,” Negi said. “Why don’t you take me with you?”

"Negi!" Fino called out to Negi reproachfully.

"Oh, I know," Negi said. "You and Ning are going on your honeymoon, right? I definitely won't bother you. You just need to leave me alone. I'll come looking for you when we get back."

"Eh……"

Honestly, Negi bringing this up at this time is very troubling for Li.

Because, among the people here, Negi is definitely not the only one interested in the civilization of another world. Kuroba is one of them, but she is able to control her desires well. As for Olitano, he will definitely do it as long as he can make money. From the beginning, Li had thought that Negi, Kuroba, and Olitano would be the three most likely people to bring up this idea to her, and now it seems that her prediction was correct.

Once one person brings it up, others will surely share the same thought. It's the same feeling Li had when she was curious about other worlds on Earth; they also wanted to see another world completely different from this one. However, Li wasn't helpless, because she had already prepared her explanation.

“Uh… I’m sorry,” Li said helplessly, “I’m not entirely sure about time travel right now, so I don’t want to bring so many people with me on my first time. Everyone is important to this world, and I don’t want anyone to be unable to return from that world because of me. So, besides Ning, the Demon King, and Xia Que, I can only bring one more person at most, and I already know who that person is…”

Li's gaze moved to a certain spot in the crowd, and everyone's eyes followed her gaze to the same place. Then, they all nodded in unison and smiled.

"Huh...?" Xiao was stunned for a moment. "Me?"

“Let’s go together, Xiao.” Li reached out his hand to Xiao.

When Li mentioned that she and Ning were going on a long trip, she had already noticed Xiao's change. From that moment on, Xiao had a hesitant expression, but ultimately didn't say anything. Everyone could see the bond between the three sisters, and Li didn't intend to use Xiao as a shield, because the three of them had been family since the very beginning of the labyrinth, and...

"Come on," Ning said, extending her hand with a warm smile. "Nobody said a honeymoon is only for the couple. Besides, we're all going; we can't leave you home alone, can we?"

Xiao hesitated for a moment. Li and Ning were waiting for her reply, worried that she might start arguing with them again.

"Um..." Xiao asked, "Can we bring Shuangyue along?"

"..."

The two looked at each other and couldn't help but laugh.

Chapter 6 Time Travel Isn't That Simple

After the dumpling feast, everyone except the Dragon Kings went home. This was the first time in a long time that so many members of the Li family had returned. The members were basically the same, except that Xia Ling, who was no longer living with Li and the others, was replaced by Chu Chu.

Xiao and Finoer slept in the same room, Nieqi and Chuchu slept in Ning's old room, Salid slept in Xia Ling's old room, and Li and Ning naturally slept together. However, after changing into their pajamas and getting into bed, the two of them didn't go to sleep immediately, nor did they do anything like that. Instead, they lowered their voices and talked quietly.

“Hey,” Li asked, “if we leave this world and arrive on Earth, will we still be able to use magic, this special power?”

“…Sometimes you can be really perceptive.” Ning’s tone changed. “Or rather, what game’s worldview are you connecting this to?”

"Hey...we're talking about serious matters." Li grunted twice in dissatisfaction.

“Okay, okay,” Ning changed her attitude, “I have the same thoughts as you now.”

Both of them were thinking about the same issue, which is also a common point of contention in many isekai (another world) stories: the continuation of power. Many protagonists in isekai novels gain immense power in another world, and after completing the arduous task of saving it, they often end up in one of two fates: either remaining in that other world or returning to their original world.

The latter is currently facing the same situation as Li and Ning, because the protagonists who return to their original world also have two different endings: one is to lose their power and return to an ordinary life, and the other is to retain their original power and return to their original world to punish evil and uphold justice.

Although both scenarios seem idealistic and unrealistic, they represent the common ending of most stories of this kind, varying in form but all being largely the same. This is the core issue that concerns the two of them now: whether the five of them can use magic to protect themselves after returning to Earth.

Because he had lived in this world for more than two years, he had developed some habits unique to this world. Simply put, he had been spoiled by his powers and magic. Compared with modern technology on Earth, although there were some inconveniences, magic also had its own advantages, such as instant teleportation.

Especially the Mystic Eyes. The Mystic Eyes are incredibly convenient. If I were to use them after returning to Earth, it would cause some trouble. To date, Rie has lost count of how many conveniences the Mystic Eyes have brought her, but she was able to return to the present safely thanks to the Mystic Eyes. In short, it's a very important thing.

They possess these ridiculously powerful special abilities in this world, allowing them to do whatever they want (not really) and avoid unfair situations as much as possible. But if they return to Earth, these abilities will be useless, and these protections will be gone. Keep in mind, of the five people on this trip, four are girls, and as for the boys… Xuanze's frail appearance probably won't be of much help.

So once they got there, the two of them had to consider these things, and Riya also planned to avoid as much trouble as possible while they were there.

"First, let's organize the problems we need to face."

Ning stretched out her hand from the nest, counting each finger clearly with Li.

"First, we need to confirm whether we can use magic normally after we arrive in that world; second, can we use our advantages here to solve some unnecessary troubles; third, what should we do with the things we bring back if we can't use magic normally? These are the three issues we need to focus on right now. If there are any more issues in between, we'll discuss them later."

"Hmm... I can't think of any other problems besides these." Li nodded. "So these are the only problems, right? For now."

“Oh, right.” Ning nodded. “So, I’d like to ask Miss Li what your plans are for your honeymoon? As for me, I’d like to do something like a round-the-world trip.”

"Eh... a round-the-world trip..."

Li was slightly disappointed by Ning's idea. Well, it was just disappointment with the suggestion itself, not with Ning. Due to changes in her circumstances, she had long lost interest in traveling the world. If she were still on Earth, she might have been interested in the suggestion, but now, she had no interest at all.

Li had already had her fill of this wider and more interesting world, and she didn't think Earth could still hold her interest. Besides, she couldn't recall really finding anything particularly interesting there anymore. Hearing Ning express such thoughts, Li was more surprised than anything else; she hadn't realized Ning could have such ordinary ideas.

"What? You're not happy about it?" Ning grabbed her face and turned her around. "I used to always take you around, so this time it's your turn to take Xiao and me to see the sights, right? Besides, that's where your family home is, isn't it?"

"Ah, I see," Li recalled Ning's unusual behavior today. "Did you think this was like meeting your future in-laws?"

"Ahem..." Ning coughed twice. "You could say that... By the way, don't change the subject."

"My parents aren't some monster, why are you acting like you're facing some formidable enemy..."

"Haa... If you don't understand, then forget it..."

This wasn't a big problem for Ryoma, but it was extremely important to Ning. This meeting meant that she was finally going to take their precious daughter away from them. Even if Ryoma were to be reborn as a mimic and no longer have any blood relation to them, Ning still considered it a very important matter.

Therefore, Ning didn't want any perfunctory responses; she was determined to have a direct confrontation with those two. If she left this matter to Li, given her personality, she would likely just watch her parents from afar, making sure they were safe and sound. So, Ning decided to intervene, while Li, on the other hand, found the matter quite ordinary and didn't feel anything special.

Well, we can't blame her. Her thought process is just different from that of ordinary people anyway.

Ning sighed on the bed, then pushed Li back, saying, "Alright, it's late, time to sleep. We'll have plenty of time to discuss it tomorrow; you have all my time tomorrow."

"Ah..." Li couldn't help but yawn. "So sleepy... I'll go to sleep then... Goodnight..."

"Good night……"

Goodnight my foot...

Logically, Li should have been fast asleep by now, but her mind was unusually clear. When she opened her eyes, she realized she was no longer in her home in the maze. Well, as she felt her consciousness was perfectly clear, she had already foreseen what was to come.

She still remembered this pure white world, and she had been here twice, no, three times. The first time she came, it was in a rather chaotic state; the second time, she could clearly feel the purity of this space; the third time, it had become a world of mixed black and white fragments; and this time…

The white fragments have come together, and now only some scattered black fragments are wandering around.

Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Fortunately, all the efforts I've made over this period of time haven't been in vain, and the world has basically returned to its original state, which is very gratifying.

"haven't seen you for a long time."

A pure white goddess appeared out of nowhere beside Li, but this did not frighten her. On the contrary, she wanted to beat up these guys who always liked to make a fuss, but this was someone else's territory, and she might be the one who got beaten up, so she held back.

"So," Li asked listlessly, "what's going on this time? I've stabilized this world for you, right? There shouldn't be any major problems now, right?"

"Well, there's nothing to worry about in that regard." The goddess smiled. "You've really brought me a lot of surprises. It feels like the world is developing in the direction you hoped for, and I feel like I'm no longer a goddess."

"..."

Who do you think you are, goddess or something?!

I didn't voice my complaint.

"Are you feeling better?" Li glanced at the goddess.

The goddess, who was originally covered in blood-stained bandages, now had noticeably fewer bandages, and at least she didn't look as miserable as before. Li didn't want to see that the world change again because the goddess hadn't taken good care of herself, and of course, he was also worried about her.

"Much better." The goddess easily raised one hand. "Look, the wounds have basically healed."

"Oh, I see." Li replied perfunctorily.

"How indifferent," the goddess frowned, but didn't show any displeasure. "Thanks to you, this world is now moving towards a new era. Also, I know some things. You're planning to use the permissions and powers I gave you to go directly back to Earth, right?"

"...Yes, that's how it is." Rin didn't intend to hide anything. "Is that not allowed?"

“It’s not that it’s impossible,” the goddess turned and walked away, then continued, “but I can say that it will absolutely not succeed.”

"……Why?"

Li thought that since he had the goddess's authority, plus his own spacetime powers, he would be able to travel through time and space. He had also told everyone about this. If the goddess were to interrupt him now and say that she couldn't do it, Li couldn't accept it.

"Don't rush," the goddess explained. "Let me give you an example. You now understand my relationship with this world, right?"

"Your relationship with this world?" After thinking for a moment, "Does it refer to the mutual influence between you and this world?"

“That’s right,” the goddess nodded. “Now that you know that, let me give you another possibility: there is more than one god.”

"There is more than one God...?"

The reasoning was based on the possibility proposed by the goddess.

Is there more than one God?

The goddess probably means that there are other gods besides her, and based on the special rule that gods and their own worlds influence each other, the only conclusion that can be drawn is...

“You mean…” Li offered his speculation, “There are other gods besides you, right? Each of you gods governs your own world, including the gods of Earth. Your authority cannot interfere with those other worlds, right?”

“Yes, that’s roughly the idea,” the goddess nodded. “But it’s not entirely accurate. If I can make contact with the gods of other worlds, I can still interfere with them to some extent. In fact, the reason I was able to bring you to this world is because I’m friends with the gods on Earth.”

"They're even friends..." Li was a little dumbfounded.

After the goddess spoke like that, Rin became curious. So Earth also had gods? Since gods and their worlds influenced each other, Rin was very curious about what kind of gods Earth had. Also, she seemed to understand why so-called otherworldly realms always welcomed Earthlings as heroes to save the world, and Rin began to doubt the authenticity of these otherworldly stories.

I'm afraid they're all really going...

"In short," the goddess concluded, "it's impossible for you to bypass the Earth God and go directly to the Earth world."

"Hmm..." Li nodded. "Since you've called me here and brought me to meet, you can't just be telling me that this is hopeless, can you?"

"I feel like you've suddenly become smarter..." The goddess looked surprised.

"Believe it or not, I'll slap you."

Li's patience was almost at its limit. This goddess suddenly contacted him again, disturbing his peaceful sleep and preventing him from getting any rest.

"Well... that's about it anyway." The goddess shrugged. "Since you've done so much for me, I feel it's not quite right to just give you the title of goddess's agent, so I'll grant you some additional privileges. After that, I'll also help you contact the goddess on Earth and arrange for her to meet with you. The rest is up to you to handle."

"Hey? Wait a minute..."

"Okay, then this conversation ends here. I won't bother you any longer. I'll contact you again when necessary."

"Hello!?"