“The Fairy Queen must still be trapped in her dream. She will probably try to invite you in as usual.”
“If she greets you like they do in high society, lifting her skirt slightly, then speak my name. Things will go smoothly. But if she greets you like any other person, don’t mention my name. Her dream likely hasn’t involved me yet.”
Recalling Erginus’s advice before coming here, Joy saw the Fairy Queen’s hand faintly holding her skirt through the darkness. With this, she mentioned Erginus’s name.
It’s difficult since I can’t see her expression. If the darkness within the Fairy Queen was even slightly lighter, I would have been able to use the skills I learned in high society to survive this.
The Fairy Queen’s hand, which had released the skirt, moved toward her chest. Though her full form was obscured, I could see her arms and her moving feet.
Such movements are common in high society. Shy girls always end up transforming like that.
“Fairy Queen?”
“Ah. Ah, I’m sorry. Erginus... Erginus had taught me about this spell!”
The darkness interrupted the Fairy Queen’s voice midway. Her excitement was disrupting her dream.
There’s no time to waste. I must act before she wakes up. She’s probably asking me about the spell I was taught, wondering why I wouldn’t let her in.
“Erginus also thought so, so he taught me this magic.”
As Joy’s hand spread out, a magical circle appeared, and a fairy began to dance, made of magical energy.
“It’s a spell that he said no one else knew.”
Once Joy confirmed that the magic had fully formed, she raised her head again and saw the grotesquely distorted face of the Fairy Queen.
Are there two eyes? Three? Why is her nose near her ears? Where did her lips go?
No... Are they in the same place?
Are they?
No, wait...
“Hmph!”
“Joy.”
Feeling Faebie’s warm hand on her shoulder, Joy steadied herself as she saw Faebie’s smiling face and determined eyes.
“Reinforce your mental barrier. As soon as you started speaking, the energy grew denser.”
“Thanks.”
“Actually, I should be thanking you. Your burden is the heaviest.”
With a reassuring smile, Faebie stepped back, and Joy turned her attention back to the Fairy Queen.
“This is a somewhat serious matter, Your Majesty. May I come in and speak with you?”
“Oh? What is it about?”
“It’s a story that will make the girls’ eyes sparkle.”
The Fairy Queen’s face contorted again, but Joy remained unshaken. It’s a bit dizzying, but I can hold on.
The divine energy Faebie imbued in me is still with me, and the mental barrier I reinforced can handle this much energy.
“Ahem. If it’s just you, I’d be happy to invite you in.”
“Would it be possible to bring my friends with me?”
“...If you’re Erginus’s disciple, you must understand what it means to enter the heart of the forest. It’s not something that can be easily permitted.”
“Yes. I understand.”
Because Erginus had told her, Joy knew well what it meant to head toward the center of the forest.
That place could only be entered by those granted permission.
It was not a place for strangers to step into carelessly.
“But I believe my friends are worthy of being invited by the fairies.”
The Fairy Queen’s distorted face turned away from Joy and faced the other direction. Though her expression was unreadable, I could tell she was either nodding, hesitating, or slightly tilting her head.
Is she contemplating?
The nodding slowly becomes less frequent, and the hesitation lasts longer.
She’s probably going to reject us.
It seems that being Erginus’s disciple alone isn’t enough. How can I persuade her?
In the worst case, should I go alone?
Into that place, full of darkness that easily seeps into the human mind, a place full of grotesque energy.
Into a place where I might die any second.
Into the unknown that might swallow me whole.
Alone.
...
Has Lucy always faced such terror so calmly?
...
“Me!”
“Hey, chicken coop.”
The voice Joy made after making her decision was easily drowned out by Lucy’s youthful voice, which she had kept hidden until now.
“D-Did you just say chicken coop?”
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“Why is your judgment so slow when your brain probably has more wrinkles than your face? Did you transplant brain wrinkles into your face?”
Every time Lucy spoke, the surrounding darkness deepened.
The scene was similar to before, yet different.
It was anger.
This time, the Fairy Queen, who had been swayed by affection in front of Joy, was awakening from her dream filled with the anger consuming her heart.
The disturbance is greater than before.
If this continues, she’ll wake up before the plan even begins!
Lucy! You promised to stay quiet! Why did you suddenly pop up!
The others, too!
You should’ve stopped her!
If you thought she was about to jump out, you should have stopped her!
What now?
“Watch closely.”
Tap.
Lucy’s light steps hit the ground and then lifted.
Unlike before, her steps weren’t filled with divinity, but that didn’t matter.
Even without divinity, Lucy shone with the light of being Lucy.
Tap.
Lucy dances.
Tap.
A fairy dances.
Tap.
Playfully.
Tap.
Gracefully.
Tap.
Beautifully.
Tap.
Like the fairies from the distant past.
Was it because of their beauty? Once fairy-like beings, one by one, flew in and surrounded Lucy.
The distortion from the ones who had long been tainted by darkness seemed to desecrate Lucy’s dance, but at some point, Lucy’s dance and the fairies’ dances began to blend.
Tap.
A fairy dances.
Tap.
A fairy dances with a human.
Tap.
A fairy dances with another fairy.
Tap.
They laugh, each claiming they are the best.
Stumbling, they catch and let go of each other.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Suddenly, Joy wondered if she was seeing an illusion from the past. The dream of a time when the fairies were still pure and untouched by darkness.
So that’s why Lucy showed us her dance.
Now I understand.
If I hadn’t seen Lucy dance back then, I might have been entranced by the scene and reached out.
“...You.”
When Joy lifted her head at the voice from the side, she froze, seeing the Fairy Queen’s face.
It wasn’t because it had twisted more grotesquely than before, but because her eyes—blue eyes, trembling with purity and emotion—were so incredibly beautiful that Joy stopped.
This.
This is.
The true Queen of the fairies.
“Chicken coop. Can you answer now?”
As Lucy continued to dance, pushing away the fairies who clung to her, the Fairy Queen nodded.
“There’s no need to stop you from entering the center of the Fairy Forest.”
Leaving the words “Follow me” behind, the Fairy Queen stepped forward, and with a sharp, narrowed gaze, Lucy followed her.
The rest of the group, realizing the situation late, followed behind Lucy, taking in the emotions of the scene they had just witnessed.
Phew. I’m glad it worked out.
When the Fairy Queen’s face turned into something like Cthulhu, I was really scared!
I was already thinking of escape routes through the forest!
I’m relieved that after watching the fairy dance, my energy stabilized. If I had made a mistake, I would’ve risked my life.
<If I left her alone, your friend would’ve gone in by herself. I had no choice.>
‘...I never said that.’
<Oh? Then you must be feeling guilty and making excuses.>
I raised my head, suspecting whether she had read my thoughts, and saw the Fairy Queen’s face.
Her eyes, like an emerald sea so clear you could see all the way to the bottom.
Skin as white as marble, yet full of life.
A body brimming with vitality, unlike me who feels poverty.
I’ve met many beautiful people, but seeing the Fairy Queen felt different.
What should I say? It’s like I understand the feelings of a lovesick fool, just a little.
When I faced the Fairy Queen in the trials of Ganshu, I didn’t feel this kind of awe.
I guess Ganshu, that bookish old man, couldn’t quite reproduce the feeling.
If that perverted crow had known, he would have had a fit, calling it an insult to the Fairy Queen.
No, could he even do that? That crow has plenty of weaknesses in front of Ganshu.
“Fairy Queen.”
Hearing the pure voice calling me, I turned my head and saw the Fairy Queen smiling softly.
“‘Chicken coop’—what does that mean?”
...Is that it!?
Of course! That’s probably what’s been bothering her the most!
I’d be asking that too, considering I called her that out of nowhere!
But how should I respond!?
How do I explain that I called her a chicken coop because she smelled like one?
I can’t do that! If I did, the Fairy Queen would turn into Cthulhu again!
I don’t want to live in a cosmic horror world, I want to live in a medieval fantasy!
Friends! Help! HEEEELP!
Someone say something that sounds plausible for me!
The moment I speak, disaster will unfold!
“If it’s hard to answer, you don’t have to.”
Really!? Thank you! Thank you so much! Thank you for saving me!
“It seems there’s a more important matter to discuss.”
Is it about Erginus!?
I thought it was just unrequited love, but maybe it’s mutual affection!
Heh, okay! I’ll step aside right away!
It’s better to raise my favorability for the future.
“I just remembered.”
Huh? What memory? The cute and clumsy image of that virgin loser?
“The little child who felt fear in front of the evil god’s overwhelming darkness but still raised a shield to protect me.”
...Huh?
“Yes. That child called me the ‘chicken coop queen.’ At that time, I was so embarrassed, I had no time to think.”
Wait, what!?
“That back was so small, yet strangely trustworthy.”
Are you saying... you remember me from that time!?
“Compared to back then, you’ve grown more beautiful, and a little taller, but I haven’t forgotten that back. I couldn’t forget it.”
The Fairy Queen.
“It’s nice to see you again, little hero. I am the queen of the fairies. Please call me freely.”
You remember the trials of Ganshu!?
“Heh, this is truly a wonderful dream.”