章 21: Fay, the Wind Fairy
After spending all his time walking and searching for a water source, Kenneth was lucky enough to find a small stream that he could use to refill his nearly empty water bottle. The area around the stream also seemed safe, so Kenneth decided to spend the night there. The prince happily took out the provisions that Amy had brought him. After running and walking all day, being able to eat and drink in peace was indeed the best.
While eating his food, Kenneth began to think again about how Audoran Forest was not the same as what he had thought it would be. Kenneth had been prepared to encounter many dangers or even risk his life when he entered the Audoran Forest. However, Kenneth had not encountered any dangerous creatures at all. This situation seemed so strange, especially considering that the Audoran Forest was notorious for its extremely high level of danger.
As Kenneth thought about the strangeness, the prince couldn't help but glance at the little fairy, who had not regained consciousness even though Kenneth had brought her to various places. Kenneth thought it was all because he had brought the fairy with him. But when the fairy had not yet regained consciousness and proven his theory, Kenneth did not want to believe too much in his assumptions.
It was getting dark, and Kenneth knew he needed enough rest to recharge his energy. The man tried to close his eyes, although he could not fall asleep completely.
Kenneth, who closed his eyes, did not realize that the fairy, who had previously been unconscious, slowly began to open her eyes again. At first, the fairy did not show any reaction because she still processing what happened to her. However, as soon as the fairy saw that she was sleeping near a human, the fairy immediately screamed and forced Kenneth to open his eyes again.
"Don't come near me, Human!"
BOOM!
Kenneth had just opened his eyes when he faced a dangerous windfall aimed at him. If Kenneth had been a little late to avoid it, he was sure that his body would have been seriously injured by the attack.
"Wait a minute! I have no ill intention towards you!"
Kenneth heard that the language used by the fairy was the same as his, so Kenneth felt that he might be able to communicate with the fairy. Kenneth used his magic shield to block the attack from the fairy. The prince felt like he wanted to mock himself. Every time he intended to help someone, the outcome was never good for him.
"Ugh!"
Fortunately, the attack stopped when the fairy felt a sharp pain in her wings. Fairies had strong sensitivity in their wings. The burns on her wings became unbearable just because the fairy tried to move them recklessly.
When the fairy stopped attacking, Kenneth wanted to use the opportunity to escape. Even if he previously believed that magical creatures at least had a sense of gratitude, after Kenneth was continuously attacked by the strong wind attacks, the prince felt that running away was his best option.
However, Kenneth found that his body refused to move when he heard the little fairy groan in pain. After moving her body excessively when she had just woken up, the pain that came back from her wounds made the little fairy cry out in sorrow again. The sight of the cute fairy crying so pitifully made Kenneth helpless again. Although Kenneth didn't want to die when he had just entered the Audoran Forest, the prince felt that he shouldn't have run away again.
"You shouldn't move around so much with those wounds. I won't hurt you, so you can rest assured."
Although Kenneth was not sure that the fairy would listen to him, the prince still spoke to inform the little fairy. Miraculously, the fairy's ears moved as if she were responding to Kenneth's words. The fairy stared at Kenneth suspiciously. But, in the next moment, her gaze shifted to look at the several wounds Kenneth had previously managed to treat.
Perhaps because Amy's medicine was indeed high-class, the wounds on the fairy's body were no longer bleeding. The fairy might still be feeling the pain. But at least her life was no longer in danger.
"You, human, just treated me?"
The fairy was confused. Although the figure in front of her was the same type as the person who attacked her, Kenneth did not hurt her and was even willing to treat her with strong medicine.
The fairy's defenses began to drop when she saw that Kenneth did not look like he was going to attack her. The fairy was already very happy that she had survived the dangerous attack. She sat on the ground quietly, then repeated her question to Kenneth in a friendlier tone.
"Human, why did you save me?"
Kenneth stared at the fairy and then decided that the fairy seemed to no longer have any hostility towards him. Kenneth secretly breathed a sigh of relief. In a place where he couldn't navigate where he was or where he should go, being able to communicate with the creatures living in Audoran Forest must be extraordinary.
"I can't possibly abandon someone in need," Kenneth finally answered. At first, Kenneth thought that his excuse might not be believed by the fairy. But to his surprise, the fairy stared at him with wide, cute eyes the next moment.
"Are... are you part of the group that came to destroy this forest?"
The group the fairy was referring to must be part of the other prince's group, so Kenneth shook his head confidently. The fairy lowered her guard even more because of Kenneth's answer. Despite her initial impression of being suspicious, the fairy was very naive and easily believed what others said.
"I came through the path in Celeste Village. Um... do you know about that path?"
Kenneth was just trying his luck by distracting the fairy from her original goal. But he didn't think he was really lucky to have asked the fairy about it.
"Eh? That means you came with Neil's permission?"
After hearing about Celeste Village, the little fairy started to get excited as she talked to Kenneth. The prince nodded to answer the fairy's question. Logically, he did get Neil's permission to do what he had to do.
"Ah... you should have said from the start that you were from Celeste Village! Alright. Now, what's your name, Human?"
"Kenneth. You can call me Kenneth."
The fairy nodded, then pointed at herself with a big smile.
"My name is Fay, and I'm a wind fairy! As you can see, my power is to control the wind and use it to do whatever I want."
Kenneth didn't know if all magical creatures were naive or what, but Fay had just stated her identity easily in front of Kenneth. The aura of hostility and suspicion had disappeared after the two of them got acquainted. Fay started to show her cheerful nature in front of Kenneth and talked about many things with the prince.
"Is Neil okay? The last time he came here, I could see that he had some white hair."
"Ah… his hair has completely turned white now. But other than that, the Chief is fine."
Fay's gaze immediately softened after she heard Kenneth's answer. "Humans age fast, huh…" she whispered unconsciously. For some reason, Kenneth felt that Fay was lonely when the fairy told him that. But in the next moment, that sad expression immediately changed back into a cheerful one.
"Then, what is your purpose in coming here, Kenneth? You even came here alone."
It seemed that the people of Celeste Village never came alone whenever they had business in the Audoran Forest. Kenneth remembered that well and then began to tell his lie.
"Actually… I've been constantly targeted in the human world, and coming here is the only way to save my life. If… If possible… I want to stay in the Audoran Forest for a while."
Kenneth couldn't possibly say that he came to kill the monster of Audoran Forest, so he could only reveal half of the problem. The problem of him being targeted and Audoran Forest being his only way to survive was the truth. Without killing the monster of Audoran Forest, in the future, Kenneth, his mother, and Uri would probably be killed by the people in the palace.
Kenneth felt bad for having to lie to a fairy as good as Fay. But in this case, he had no choice but to lie.
The next moment, the prince's shocked when he saw that Fay had gotten up from her sitting position to approach Kenneth. The fairy's small hand was placed on Kenneth's leg as the fairy spoke somberly.
"Life must have been hard for you all this time. Don't worry, Kenneth. From now on, I will make sure you live comfortably in Audoran Forest! I hope that's enough to compensate you for saving me."
Kenneth could only feel warm because of Fay's earnest words. The prince smiled sincerely, then nodded in response to the fairy's words.
"Thank you, Fay. Then, from now on, I will be under your protection."
"Of course! You can leave it to me, Kenneth! Although I am injured and cannot do much now, when I recover, you will know that I am one of the strongest beings in the Audoran Forest!"
When Kenneth saw Fay's smile, the man once again felt bad for having to lie to Fay, who was so kind to him. But at that moment, Kenneth felt that he could no longer back down. The man could only continue to pretend and use Fay to search for the whereabouts of the monster of the Audoran Forest.
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