Niu squinted, blinded by the light. She shielded her face using a hand. It had been only a couple of days since she’d last seen the sun, so why did it feel so intimidating and foreign all of a sudden?

It was the following day after being told about the oncoming expedition to Kalden. They hadn’t yet set out, but were preparing for the trip. One such preparation was acclimating themselves to sunlight again after staying underground for a while. Although Seele had said that on the way to the capital they’d move mostly by night, Kalden itself would be another story. They shouldn’t get too used to the darkness.

Seele had taken them to what they called a “sun room”. Despite being partly covered by a few towering trees and other plants on the outside, it was something like a large, deep hole that connected to the surface, so sunlight poured right in.

“We come here every day,” Seele had explained. “Now you need too.”

Niu half-closed her eyes and took another step into the large circle of light. It was still too blinding, but she did feel the heat somewhat invigorating her.

“When are we expected to head out?” Roah asked. His exposed eye perhaps more sensitive than the others’, he was still mostly in the shadow of the room, squinting.

“Oh, it shouldn’t be too long,” Seele replied. “But there’s a lot to prepare… well, this is probably the most important mission we ever do.”

“Umm… we haven’t really talked about it before, but you’re part of the army, right?” asked Gen.

“Yes. We’re a support part… we mostly handle storing things and watching out around.” Seele’s words were a bit awkward but the meaning was clear—they were no fighters.

“Then how’d you manage against…?” asked Gen. It wasn’t a topic they’d breached much since it brought uncertainties and some dark thoughts, which was probably why he bit his words short. Seele answered anyway.

“Not many came here,” they replied, “it seems that most attacked Kalden.” Seele smiled as always.

“H-Hayden is surely fine as well, right…?” asked Shaya weakly.

Niu lowered her glance. The four of them had only just barely defeated one monster and while they were no warriors, they at least had the ability to channel. Most townsfolk weren’t like that. There were the town’s guards, to be sure, and even Molton had apparently been there and fought, but Niu still couldn’t help but worry, and she was sure that the others felt the same.

“I hope,” mumbled Gen, clenching his fist. “Gods, please let everyone be safe…”

“…What do you mean by that?” For some reason Seele erased their smile.

Gen was confused. “Huh? What do I mean by what?”

Niu had a hunch she knew what was wrong, and it seemed that Roah was sharp enough to voice it as well. “It’s only a figure of speech, but he was basically praying to the Gods… you know the word?”

“Yes… but we have other names for them,” Seele continued. They wore a somewhat strained smile. “You shouldn’t mention them in front of others, next time.”

“Huh? Why not?” Gen still couldn’t understand.

“I think that the legends say that the Gods banished fairies to this world… right?” Shaya glanced at Niu, seeking confirmation. She nodded.

There were many versions to how this all went, but most stories simply agreed that the fairies had done something to anger the Gods. Consequently, the Gods had decided to separate fairies from humans, thus leading to the present state of their worlds. Since there were actually fairies here in Fairland, it was perhaps true to an extent.

“Oh,” Gen rounded his mouth. “I’m, err, sorry.”

Seele shook their head. “It’s fine. Most of us don’t really think about it anymore, but we don’t like hearing about that. The real problem is that now they started attacking us for some reason.”

Everyone stared at Seele.

“Hmm?” they asked when faced with their expression.

“…We simply hadn’t really thought about that option,” Roah explained to the confused Seele.

It was understandable. Rather than ponder the origin of the horrible monster they’d desperately fought against, they were currently more focused on acclimating to their situation in a foreign world. Recalling the alien threat only brought back the pain and uncertainly about what happened back home, so instead they focused on the marvels of the new world they’d found themselves in.

Niu actually had considered this. Could there be another explanation? It was said that not all Gods were benevolent, but would they really send entire armies of these beasts to attack them all of sudden? And it apparently happened on both worlds at about the same time. Why would this happen?

“Yeah, that makes sense,” admitted Gen, furrowing his brows.

“It does, but there’s another option—what if these came from the underside of the world?” Roah suddenly suggested.

“What are you talking about?” asked Gen, raising an eyebrow. “That’s the sort of nonsense parents use to shut up their kids at night with.”

In a complete reversal of their usual dynamic, it was Roah’s turn to receive a blow. He seemed so stung from Gen’s comment that he couldn’t even retort, instead mumbling something under his breath and directing an angry gaze at the other boy.

Well, it didn’t make sense anyway, seeing how the monsters dropped from the sky—but then again, if they were carried there by the tentacles, perhaps that didn’t matter.

“So, never mind that for now,” said Seele, probably trying to steer the topic to a more positive direction, “you’ve been staying in the dark for too long! Go ahead!”

Now that Niu thought about it, the sun wasn’t as blinding as it felt a few minutes before. She was getting used to it again. She took another step forward, gazing upwards. The thick foliage visible from the top swayed in the gentle wind, causing both light and shadow to dance over her body.

She spread her arms and smiled. Even if only for a brief moment, standing under the warm sunlight made her feel calm and content.

While they went to the sun room from time to time, most of their time was still spent in the darkness. Roah once theorized that they were keeping them secluded on purpose, even if possibly for their own good, but the other side (mostly Seele and TriX, the only ones that could communicate with them) seemed nice and welcoming enough.

Not wishing to speak too much about the current situation, Niu and the others instead decided to inquire a bit about this new world and their near future.

“Say, how’s Kalden anyway?” asked Gen. “Like, what kind of a city is it?”

“Oh, Kalden is great!” said Seele happily as if waiting for that very question all along. “Kalden is actually a big tree but around it there are many other trees, and together we call them our capital.”

“A city of trees?” asked Gen with a raised brow. “Well, I mean, is that like one house per a tree, or…?”

Seele chuckled. “Sorry,” they hurriedly apologized, “I just forgot you didn’t see our Trees. They’re really big! Some even bigger than this base!” They raised their arms to the air.

Even larger than the base? Although Niu had only seen little of it and thus couldn’t truly gauge its size, it sounded astounding still. There were a few old trees near Hayden and Niu heard that there were massive trees in Sacrona, but surely none of them would be that big.

“That sounds incredible,” Gen concluded. The girls nodded.

“Huh. I’m not sure if it makes more or less sense than building a city on a mountain,” mused Roah, obviously referring to Rumdon’s capital of Copius.

“Wait, thinking about it, do you also have a king or a queen?” asked Shaya next.

Seele looked a bit confused. Luckily, there was also someone else there to help. “They probably mean Ruler,” TriX suggested.

Seeing that TriX was not even human or fairy, perhaps its lack of gender was even more prominent than that of Seele. However, the four of them still had a hard time not to think of Seele as female and of TriX as male. It was something completely foreign to them.

“Ruler… yeah, we have one. Acrus Kalden, that’s his name.” It was very subtle, but Seele’s voice seemed to lower for an instant as they mentioned that name. Niu wasn’t quite sure what this meant.

“Kalden…” echoed Roah, “are they called after the capital or is it the other way around?”

“What you said first,” Seele said. “We normally call ourselves after the origin, but the Ruler takes the name of the capital.”

“The… origin?” asked Gen with a raised brow.

“Oh, ah,” Seele scrambled for words, thinking hard. “How faeries call it, I wonder… TriX?”

TriX replied after a short delay. “I am unsure. The meaning is, someone who created you.”

“You mean like… parents, maybe?” Gen suggested. “The ones that gave birth to you?”

“Ah, yes!”

“Origin,” mumbled Roah. “Is it called like that because of how you reproduce?” That of course raised all sorts of questions, including ones that they were too shy to ask about before.

Seele nodded. “Anyway—my origin was named Sowng. So my name is Seele Sowng.”

“Hmm… so if you had a child, will they have Seele as their last name?” asked Roah.

Niu thought she noticed some subtle change in Seele’s expression, but perhaps she just imagined it for their answer was calm. No, maybe even unnaturally calm. “Yes. How are you named, then?”

“Err, we have this thing called a family name,” explained Gen. “You see, we tend to have many children, so we assign a collective name for all of them.”

“Not all of us, though,” said Roah, eyeing him.

“Right. A family name is usually only used for big families that made a name for themselves—whether it’s through their rank or their profession. So common people don’t tend to have a family name.”

“Really… that was very interesting to learn!” Seele sounded excited. “What are your full names, then?”

“Gen Hydeen.”

“Shaya Wolster,” mumbled Shaya.

“I don’t have one; I’m just Roah,” Roah said when Seele’s asking gaze turned to him. Niu shook her head as well.

“Hydeen, Wolster… and these are not the names of your orig—I mean, parents, right? Well, I guess they are, but you know what I mean… Yes, I think I understand. Interesting, no?” Seele turned to TriX.

“We laborers lack these, so-called family names too,” it said instead of directly replying. “Our names are actually, not really names. TriX for example, is a code. It means three X’s—one of our letters."

So they’re cataloguing them, thought Niu.

“In the end, we’re different but also similar. It is really interesting, learning about fairies, right?” Gen finally said, smiling at Niu. Was he looking at her because she found so many things about her childhood obsession? Well, that was true. She dreamt of meeting them ever since she was a little girl, but never thought it’d actually happen.

“How far is Kalden, anyway?” Roah suddenly breached a completely new topic, sending a side glance at Gen. Had he annoyed him somehow?

“Normally a day or two,” Seele replied, “but for us it will take more. Maybe three or so.”

“Why so much?” asked Shaya.

Seele smiled somewhat bitterly. “We will need to move slow and silent. We don’t want to get attacked.”

Niu’s heart skipped a beat. For a moment the image of some ferocious wolves living in the forest rose to her mind, but she recalled there were no such things here. Were they referring to the unknown monsters dropping from the sky, then?

But then it hit her. Of course… right now they were inside an actual military base. The conclusion was so simple she felt stupid for not even considering it so far.

“By Kalden’s enemies?” asked Gen, similarly shocked.

“Yes. Oh, but don’t worry!” Seele hurriedly said. “This area isn’t really dangerous. But they do attack sometimes. We just need to be careful.”

“So you’re always fighting, then?” Gen asked. “I always thought fairies were nice creatures that lived in harmony with one another… even back in Plainland we don’t fight much.”

Roah raised a brow. “Are you pretending or really that stupid?” he took a harsh jab at him, perhaps as a revenge for before. “I skipped most of the lessons and even I know our history better. Sacrona mean anything to you?”

“B-but we haven’t had any wars in a long while!” Gen retorted, his face reddening a bit. “Sure, it’s not exactly peace, but still.”

Roah sighed. “It’s just a matter of time until they cross the sea again,” he said.

“Sea?” asked Seele, seemingly interested.

“Don’t tell me you don’t have that?” asked Gen, perhaps happy to use this chance to escape another argument with Roah.

“It’s a large place of water, right? We have it, but it’s really far from Kalden. Do you live near sea?”

“No, it’s far for us too,” answered Roah.

“Our family went to a nearby fishing town once, but that was the only time I’d seen it,” added Gen thoughtfully.

The sea, huh? Niu too would have liked to visit it someday. Thought now it seemed like even more of a faint dream than before.

“Ah, and what about—”

But Seele’s next question was cut short by a voice coming from nearby; apparently one of the fairies was calling out to them. After a short exchange Seele smiled bashfully and stood up.

“Sorry, I think I wasted too much time here… see you later.” Seele and TriX both left in a hurry. The quartet saw them off while sinking into another silence.

Things were about to change. Soon, they would head into the outside world. From an unknown but relatively peaceful place, they would head out to an unknown danger. Toward Kalden, the next phase of their uncertain future.

Seele could see that the faeries were anxious, and they also felt this way to an extent—but they were also very excited. The days passed surprisingly quickly, and for the first time in a while they finally stepped outside the cavern system along with the faeries. The cool nighttime wind washed over their bodies.

Of course, they were not alone. Leaving aside their permanent partner, TriX, here were about half a dozen other fairies as well as another robot. A small party, all things considered, but this was a small base; they needed to leave most of the personnel behind.

“Soon,” Seele spoke the faeries in their native tongue, “we will set out for Kalden. You just need to follow us and be quiet. Questions?”

The four faeries were clad with new clothes made of greenish material—partly to serve as camouflage—and each carried a small bag. These all contained various food items, mostly dry foods that were meant to last for most of the journey. Seele hoped that these would be enough. They also saw Niu packing her slate, but had the feeling she wouldn’t be able to use it much.

“I have one,” Roah volunteered. “Are we all going together?”

“Yes,” Seele replied, a bit confused by the question.

“Shouldn’t we split up?” he kept asking, his face a grim mask. “Wouldn’t it be safer that way?”

“Split up…” Seele pondered aloud. If they weren’t mistaken, the word meant something like breaking into multiple parts. “You mean go in different groups? Why?”

“If we’re attacked then it’s over for all of us. But splitting up gives us better odds. Just in case, so some of us can get to our destination safely.”

“You can go alone if that’s what you want to,” Gen interjected angrily. Roah only shot him an exasperated glance with his eye. The two of them seemed to constantly bicker like this, so Seele wondered what happened between them to make it this way, but felt it would be rude to ask. “I’m not leaving the girls alone. …No offense, Seele.”

“Ah…” Seele mumbled in response, unsure how to reply. “Well, I don’t know about that idea… this is our plan for now.” These were the orders from above. They could try to talk with the officer in charge of the expedition, but since everything was already on the move it would probably be futile.

“I was just trying to be logical about it,” said Roah as if to justify himself.

“Sure,” Seele said. “Well, we should probably start going now.” They smiled and turned toward the other fairies—but then froze in place, their eyes widening. “Kalden, I almost forget…”

“Huh? Forgot something about Kalden?”

“Ah, no, it was just a phrase,” Seele giggled. They didn’t know how to translate “a figure of speech”, but that was probably good enough. They then turned to TriX, their smile gone. “Code 010. You must make sure the faeries reach Kalden and protect them from harm at all costs. Maximum priority.”

The aforementioned four only looked at them in confusion; they could obviously not understand anything about Seele’s order just now, especially since they used their native language for it. And, well, it was better that way.

Seele turned back to them with a smile. “Okay, we’re all set! Wait here while I go check—”

“…What did you just do?” Roah interjected.

“Hmm? Oh, I just told TriX to protect you... Don’t worry about it.” There wasn’t any specific need to hide it from them, but no real need to explain it either.

Roah still looked suspicious but said nothing, so Seele stepped away to consult with their superiors. They were told that it was time to go. Seele was cautious but excited. It was time to head back to the homeland of Kalden, filled with both sweet and bitter memories.

When they’d first arrived in Fairland it was noon, and now it was the middle of the night. Niu found that it was less dark than expected. There was obviously the sun that was now channeling over Plainland—bringing her a pang of pain and worry she hurriedly cast aside—but it was mostly hidden by the many treetops around, only allowing its feeble and distant rays intermittently.

Other than that, all of the fairies, laborers and even the four humans all wore a very small light in the form of a glowing mushroom. According to what Seele had told them, each mushroom would not hold for long, but they preserved a few of them to be handed out when necessary. It apparently somehow converted humidity to light and so would die out in the fresh air before long.

Even that wasn’t the only source of light around. Here and there twinkling flowers were peeking from between the blades of grass. At times Niu could even see some sort of light flakes twirling in the winds; was this some sort of pollen or spore, perhaps? But as they kept walking silently, Niu had to keep these thoughts to herself.

Their pace was obviously slow, not to mention that the fairies were purposely leading them around and inside massive bushes or patches of grass, probably to obfuscate their potential enemies. Now Niu understood why the trip would take that long.

At first, being finally outside felt fresh, but the more time passed, it became simply tiring and dull. Niu herself could walk long distances just fine—even if this was way over her usual daily walk—but she could see Shaya and Roah in particular were struggling despite not voicing any complaints.

The wind too felt cool and refreshing at first but was now just cold as the night deepened. The clothes they’d been given were relatively warm, but the wind still bit the exposed parts like her face. She wished she could frolic under the warm sun just as she did before this whole mess started.

It was a long, tiring and boring night.

When daytime came and the sun rose, the group finally took a break. The fairies led them into a small pit in the ground that was unrecognizable at first due to the cover of many bushes around it. Niu wondered whether this hiding spot had been prepared in advance but was too tired to ponder or ask about it. For now, she simply sat down with the others on the hard ground at the bottom of the pit. Not very comfortable, but the days spent in the underground base prepared her for it.

Seele quietly told them to take their first meal since heading out, so they did. It consisted of some hard nuts and a couple of dry fruits; not the relative luxury they had been given recently, but enough to satiate their hunger and allow them to recover their strength after the strenuous march. Shaya in particular seemed to be suffering: she massaged her legs and groaned from time to time.

“Are you fine?” whispered Gen in worry, Niu also watching her.

“I’m just not used to this,” she mumbled softly in response. “I just need to rest. I’ll probably be fine.” So they left her at it. Now that they finished eating, they needed to go to sleep anyway.

Just like Seele had told them, the plan was to move mostly during nighttime. However, they didn’t have their soft and pleasant grassy beds (Niu had learned to quite enjoy them by now) anymore and they had to lie down on the cold ground. Obviously not all of them would be sleeping, but at the very least none of the quartet had been asked to stand guard, and they were thankful for that.

Sleeping out in nature was much quieter than Niu had expected due to the lack of anything buzzing or prowling around, so the only issue was letting her fatigue overcome her anxiety so she could fall asleep. Coupled with the fact they were sleeping in daylight, albeit in deep shadow, it made for very shallow sleep. She felt as if her consciousness flickered on and off, strange thoughts and half-dreams mixing in her head.

Niu wondered why they were in Fairland anyway. Why couldn’t they have gone to Blissland instead? No, that was silly. Humans like them, and especially someone like Shaya, couldn’t walk amongst the Gods. Not to mention that they had sent the monsters to devour them. The monsters that crawled all over her body at that instant and bit into her—

Niu woke with a small start, blinking. These thoughts still bothered her, but they soon withered away like any dream, especially since they were replaced by a slight headache and dullness from the lack of proper sleep. She sighed softly. Looking around her, she could see forms moving in the darkness. One of those leaned near her.

“Good morning,” said Shaya in a hushed voice. “Well… it’s not morning, but you know what I mean.”

Niu rubbed her eyes, rousing her body and smiling at her friend. At times half-sleeping really was worse than not sleeping at all. She hoped that the cool wind getting through the cover would serve to fully wake up her. She could see that the sun was still channeling but the light reaching them was dim even regardless of their cover, so it was definitely evening now. Despite barely sleeping, these 10 odd hours really did pass quickly.

“Hey Niu, how are you doing?” Seele asked her next. Unsure how to reply, she simply shrugged with a smile and a small huff. Whether or not Seele understood this as could be better, they simply smiled back at her and nodded. “Eat, we’ll be going out soon.”

This meal was no different than the previous one. After finishing eating and taking care of other business they once again set on foot. Another tiring march started.

Soon the never-ending trek almost became instinctive. Since a large stretch of every night was spent simply walking carefully and stealthily among the greenery, Niu just dragged her feet ahead and looked around.

Despite the tedium there was also something refreshing about the situation; it was Niu’s first time to have everyone around her be so quiet for hours and hours. Just like she lived her entire life.

On the other hand, it also felt lonely. Whether it was Shaya talking about her worries, or even Gen and Roah’s usual silly bickering, it was odd to be without all that. Not to mention things like Saburn’s lessons or even her mother’s curt comments, as unsubstantial as they were.

So naturally, never mind dull or tiring, this whole experience ended up quite unpleasant.

Even the novelty of the magnificent forest around them was wearing off quickly. While the various kinds of trees, flowers, bushes, bushes and whatnot seemed much more varied and exotic than those back in Plainland, after a while everything started blending together. Or at least so it felt to Niu when she couldn’t take the time to examine each and every one of them. She felt the itch to once again sketch some flowers like she used to.

At least she did learn some valuable information about the local flora, like the time Shaya had reached out to a shockingly beautiful pink and delicate flower only to have been deterred by TriX in the last moment, explaining that it was actually poisonous to the touch.

Another thing Niu learned was that the day cycle really was the same as on their world. They’d already been told so by Seele, but now she fully ascertained it after getting out of the underground base.

This fact also made her wonder about something: according to legends and some accounts of old history, the sun was actually being channeled by one of the Gods, so what did the fairies think about that? Unfortunately, this was apparently a touchy subject so perhaps it’d be difficult to ask. At least such thoughts served to pass her time, even if only for a little while.

The monotonous cycle was slightly broken by an unexpected occurrence one night; the line suddenly stopped and a new fairy appeared from within the darkness.

At first Niu was scared: were they discovered by the enemy? But she soon realized it was a needless worry. For one, the other fairies didn’t seem tense or hostile, only surprised. Also, she soon saw that the fairy was dressed much like they all were. Were they some scout, then? After spending these last few days with a limited number of fairies she more or less could recognize them by sight and the newcomer wasn’t anyone she knew.

It all became apparent when Seele came to speak with them in a hushed voice.

“…Apparently there are some Stroba near,” they said, clear but subdued anxiousness in their voice. “We need to change our path.”

In a sense Niu’s worries were true after all. As Seele had explained to them sometime during the preparations to set out, the Stroba were a clan that stood in opposition to Kalden and were their longtime enemies.

According to Seele, they were a ruthless bunch and tried taking control of Kalden many times. They were also adept in the usage of plants and various concoctions to poison and to befuddle the senses and it was rumored that they conducted horrible experiments on both enemies and allies.

Niu realized that all these stories might have been exaggerated, but she still didn’t want to meet up with the Stroba if she could help it. She grew tense; the quiet and empty dark forest around them now seemed much more menacing than dreary.

“Where did they come from?” asked Roah.

“There are other groups,” mumbled Seele hurriedly in response, looking behind. “We need to go, no speaking.”

Ah, so they weren’t actually trekking in the forest alone? Perhaps there were other groups scouting ahead for them just for cases like these, or else they came from other places—possibly there were other bases or settlements in the area. If that was the case Niu felt a bit better.

But now she had to focus on walking again since the group seemed to pass through the rows of trees and shrubbery more aggressively than before, probably due to having to suddenly change their route. She was anxious and jumpy; one time Gen stepped on a twig or something of the sort and it caused her heart to race and everyone stopped for a moment, but as the hours kept passing with no evidence of any attack, they all gradually calmed down.

On the sunset of the third day since setting out, when they once again hid inside a well-placed pit to rest, eat and sleep, Seele spoke to the quartet happily.

“We’re really close,” they announced, excitement dripping from their voice. “We’ll get there tomorrow… ah, I mean this night… you understand.”

“Will we be able to see those giant trees you told us about?” asked Gen, sounding somewhat excited as well. “We should see them from afar, no?”

“Well,” said Seele, “the area right around Kalden is really dense, so it might be hard… we’re also arriving at night. Though there are many lights. We’ll see."

“…What’s going to happen to us once we reach Kalden?” Roah suddenly asked, sending a piercing gaze at the fairy. Whether due to that gaze or that question, Seele fell silent.

“I don’t know,” they finally answered. “We were only told to bring you there.” Seele hung their head but then immediately raised it. “But I… I won’t let them do anything bad to you.” For a moment there was something fierce in their gaze, but soon Seele’s expression eased into a smile like usual.

Niu had similar worries. The fact that Seele answered like this brought a faint smile to her lips. Even if she knew that Seele probably had only a very limited effect on what their superiors would do.

“Thanks,” said Gen, while Roah made no further response. “I don’t know what we would have done without you all this time... Oh, and TriX as well,” he gestured toward the tall figure. In contrast to Seele, TriX was practically glued to the four of them during this entire excursion.

“Of course,” the laborer replied curtly.

Seele nodded. “We should go to sleep. Just a bit more,” they said and left them at their corner.

“I wonder if this is smart,” mumbled Roah softly once Seele was far enough.

“Smart? What are you talking about?” asked Gen.

“Us just… going along with them.”

“What else could we do?” now asked Shaya.

Gen sighed and scratched his head. “You’re never satisfied with anything, are you?”

“It's not that,” the other boy hissed, “I just wonder if we’re really—” but he froze mid-sentence, casting a sidelong glance at TriX. It somewhat looked menacing in the darkness, but said nothing, like most of the time. In fact, Niu completely forgot about its presence. Roah shook his head. “Never mind.”

“I don’t know what you’re thinking about,” said Gen, “but we definitely wouldn’t have survived here without their help. Don’t try any funny business, alright?”

“I said never mind.”

“Fine!”

And they turned their backs to each other, each determined to go to sleep. Niu sighed but then smiled; at least it didn’t escalate any further. They were quite childish at times. Shaya also seemed tired from their usual exchange, but she said nothing.

Finally, Niu also lay down on the ground and tried succumbing to the clutches of her fatigue again.

The next sunset started as any other during this trip. Niu was finally getting used to sleep during the day on the cold ground, so it somewhat felt like a pity it was going to end soon—no, not really. She could hardly wait for them to finally reach Kalden, even if to just sleep comfortably and eat more. Sure, she was still anxious just like Roah about their future here, but surely it couldn’t be that bad.

“You look excited,” Shaya pointed out to Seele. Sure enough, in contrast with the tense situation, they seemed to be quite energetic. Possibly more than usual.

“Oh?” said Seele, perhaps surprised at that indication. “Ah, maybe. I haven’t been in Kalden for a long, long time.”

So that was why. From the way Seele had described to them the towering trees and the magnificent view of the capital it was obvious that they really loved Kalden. Perhaps Seele was homesick, but did this they mean they had been situated in the base for a long time?

Niu didn’t have the impression there was an actual ongoing war or anything of the sort, though bases surely had to be maintained at all times. However, all of her thoughts were cut short by the next exchange.

“How much time was it?” Seele wondered aloud, turning to look at their partner.

“Almost 30 years,” TriX replied.

Gen perfectly encapsulated Niu’s thoughts with his next confused line. “No, what?”

Seele seemed to find it odd everyone was staring at them so incredulously. “Is there something strange about this?” they asked innocently.

Gen hesitated. “Well, err,” he said, “you just don’t… look that old, I guess.”

Niu nodded. Even taking into account fairies looking different than humans, and even if it was obvious Seele was older than them, they couldn’t have been that much older, right?

Seele giggled. “You flatter me. But I’m honestly quite old. I’m already 407, way past my prime.”

Niu felt numb after being surprised like that for what seemed like the hundredth time in a row. Of course there were still many things to find out about the world of the fairies and their many secrets.

“No way,” breathed Gen.

“H-how…” mumbled Shaya.

“Hmm,” Seele mumbled uncomfortably, “so that is a lot more than you thought?” Their shocked silence affirmed it. “I thought faeries lived for really long.”

Not that long! But once again, there were precedents in legends—fairies really were supposed to be extremely long-lived, or rather didn’t have the concept of aging in the first place. Perhaps the residents of Fairland had the same sorts of legends about Plainland, or else just assumed they were the same in this respect.

“Not even close,” said Roah, shaking his head. “We’d be lucky to live even to a hundred years.”

“Really?” asked Seele in surprise. “Then how old are you?”

“We’re all fourteen, give or take.”

“Fourteen!” Seele gaped at them. “Do faeries really grow up that fast? Amazing!”

Niu sighed but smiled. Yes, they definitely had their understanding of each other completely reversed. It was very surprising. Both the fact that Seele was that old and that they looked like that despite being so old. What was the average lifespan of fairies? She hoped someone would ask for her, but unfortunately the entire conversation had to end anyway. One of the other fairies came to briefly speak with Seele.

“Ah… get ready, we’ll be going now,” Seele explained, smiling.

Perhaps still somewhat numb from the incredible revelation just moments before, Niu even barely noticed how her feet hurt when she resumed walking. Or was she already growing used to it? There were also the anticipation and worry of finally approaching their destination.

Niu found herself being filled with more and more curiosity about the new world around her. She was actually in the world of fairies and they were so different from humans. It was still a frightening situation, but the sense of living inside a fairy tale also excited her. She spent her time walking while fantasizing and theorizing about this and that in her mind.

That was why, for about a few moments, even the sudden shouts from around seemed inconsequential. Only for a short while, though. Soon fear took hold of Niu’s heart as there was a flurry of movement in the darkness.

“Run!” It was probably Seele who shouted this. “TriX! DuA!”

Just a short while before finally reaching their goal, they were being attacked.

Between tall trees and fields of green

Behold, now comes our splendid queen