Fairy water permeated the ground where the trees had taken root.

Fresh leaves sprouted on the dry branches where moonlight seeped in.

Green light surged in the places touched by the light.

A fragrant scent wafted through the brushing wind.

Absorbing the starlight and moonlight, the trees awakened.

The faintly spreading light and wind unfolded beautifully in the dawn square.

Unbeknownst to anyone, a secret miracle had occurred.

In an instant, vivid vitality filled the trees, and the beautiful fairy tree, that she had seen the other day reappeared there again.

Kalia’s eyes sparkled with delight as she witnessed the entire process.

“Kyaaong!”

Drea, clinging to Kalia’s shoulder, let out a small roar in response to the emerging green spectacle.

The baby’s clear, big eyes sparkled brightly.

Sasha and Simon, too, silently and attentively watched the tree come to life.

In that moment, a warm breeze swept in along with a refreshing scent.

In the tickling sensation, as they blinked for a moment…

-Ugh, ugh, ugh! I had a good sleep!-

-Umm, do we have to get up? Ughhh…-

-I feel all tingly. Ughhh, ugh! What happened?-

Three mischievous children appeared on top of the tree.

With sleep still lingering on their faces, they looked around curiously with their innocent eyes.

Soon, as they stretched and got up, the children noticed Kalia and Simon beneath the tree, looking up at them.

-Huh? Huhuhuh?-

-Hey, guys, someone seems to have come here! Look!-

-Wow!-

Their deep green eyes twinkled and collectively gazed at Kalia and Simon’s group.

The children, who had descended to the closest branch to the group, looked down at the two adults and two babies in awe.

-You two have met?-

-Look over there. There are babies too! Oh, and that white-haired one… is it a dragon?-

-Oh, really? How did you end up with a hatchling too?-

-Hmm… But that baby has such a warm and fascinating soul color! And something seems different about this side too.-

-That’s true. Something feels strange… Why do I feel such a familiar sensation with both the baby and this human?-

Watching the chattering fairy children as soon as they woke up, Kalia smiled and reached out with a prepared gift.

“Hello, kids. Did you sleep well and wake up? Here, this is a gift. Do you know that you’ve been asleep for over a year?”

The children quickly reacted to the cookies Kalia offered.

The children who were on the branches jumped down and took the cookies from Kalia’s hand.

-Wow, cookies!-

-Cookies! Coookiesss! Sniff sniff, they smell sweet!-

-But did we sleep for over a year?-

The first child, who seemed more alert after being captivated by the cookies, asked Kalia.

Kalia gently stroked the child’s messy brown hair as she approached.

“To be precise, it’s been a little over a year. Some slept for a long time, and others for a short time. And during that time… something unfortunate happened to this village.”

As Kalia spoke, the children all looked at her.

“Someone is spreading demonic energy in this country. They are trying to turn people into demons and capturing fairies and monsters to make chimeras.”

Their three pairs of round eyes widened in astonishment.

The tree above their heads also shook as if sympathizing, rustling softly.

-What?!--Could it be the ones who attacked us?-

-That’s right! It must be them! Oh, come to think of it, when we were attacked, wasn’t that man the wizard who helped us?-

-That’s right. It was him!-

-You, the human wizard! No, the wizard with elven blood! What happened? Explain it to us too! What happened to the bad guy who attacked us?-

The children, hanging onto Kalia’s hips, rushed towards Simon.

Simon looked at Kalia with a puzzled expression, then kneeled down, meeting the gaze of the children, as if telling him to go ahead.

Despite the rough language, his actions and the way he spoke at their eye level showed his kindness.

“That bad guy seems to be in the palace now. And he made a pact with a dark wizard and demons to destroy this country. So… Kalia and I are going to confront that bad guy. We’re trying to save this country with the help of our friends.”

-Make sure to teach that bad guy a lesson! You can do it. I believe in you!-

-That’s right! You two are incredibly strong, and even the dragon and that baby!-

-But you know… Earlier, you mentioned that demonic energy has spread in this village too, right? But I don’t feel it so strongly…?-

This time, Kalia answered the child’s question.

“I purified the magic in this village. I’m not sure if it worked well, but judging by what you’re saying, it seems like I did a good job.”

-You purified the demonic energy?-

The three fairies looked at each other in surprise.

Only high-ranking fairies had the ability to purify demonic energy, even among fairies.

Even the fairies of the fairy tree had acquired that power only recently.

It had been only about 30 years, right?

But how does that fairy have such power?

-Hey, are you a fairy by any chance?-

-A little. And what I did wasn’t solely my own doing… Anyway, what I want to say is to you, kids.-

Kalia also kneeled down next to Simon and met the gaze of the children.

“I hope you can protect this village from now on. There might be… a big fight coming soon. That’s why we need a lot of allies. Can you become our allies?”

The children’s eyes sparkled at Kalia’s words.

The excited children looked at each other.

-Us?-

-Can we… do it?-

-We can! We can do it, guys!-

The biggest child roared and climbed up the tree.

The other siblings followed him up the tree.

-Look! We can do it too!-

The oldest child was the first to release his power from the tree.

A warm and refreshing energy slowly spread around.

Afterward, the other children quickly joined hands with their siblings and empowered each other.

The rustling leaves helped the children’s power to spread.

The faint power amplified threefold as the three children held hands, spreading widely around the village.

It was a clean and clear energy that made them feel good.

Along with the scent of the trees, the spreading power enveloped the village and extended into the surrounding forest.

The sound of children’s laughter could be heard.

Beside Kalia, who was looking at that scene with a sense of pride, Simon stood with a face that seemed to have realized something.

* * *

The separate residence Louismond gave to Buford was the second palace not far from the main palace, towards the west.

The place with the rather romantic name of Moonlight Castle was slightly separate from the eastern annex where other royal families who arrived earlier stayed.

It was secluded yet not far from the main palace, and as beautiful as its name suggested, shimmering in the moonlight.

Suddenly, Buford looked down from the castle Louismond had given him and twisted his lips, smiling.

“That prince, he seems to know something.”“What do you mean, Buford?”

“It’s close to the main palace, yet isolated from other foreign delegations… What do you think it would mean to give you a castle that shines brightly at night?”

“Well, maybe it signifies that they’re being watched or something like that?”

Buford nodded with a sense of affirmation.

Then, he rolled the wine glass he was holding, savoring its aroma, and swiftly downed it in one gulp.

“Well, I guess so. If they can’t sense a hint despite pushing so hard, they must be fools.”

The spreading demonic energy here and the chimeras that made the imperial citizens tremble with unease, and even the changing geopolitical situation of the continent…

‘They call themselves the strongest Empire… It’s so trivial for them to fall after just ten years.’

The alcohol filled him with a fragrant sensation and soothed his restless black magic.

After traveling for just over a month, his auditory and visual hallucinations were about to start again.

Fortunately, he had brought an ample supply of Lirik’s medicine, but since he couldn’t administer more than a certain amount, he relied on this wine to calm his mind.

-My dear prince…-

Ignoring the fading hallucinations in his ears, Buford poured wine into his glass again.

Knock, knock.

Just as he was spending a calm morning like that, the door suddenly burst open with an urgent knocking sound.

Six or so noble members of the Rojas family rushed into the reception room.

Their faces were filled with excitement.

“Oh, Your Highness!”

Among them, the most ecstatic-looking person was Marquis Aonti.

He still had a gaunt and dry appearance, but he ran towards Buford with a much livelier appearance than before.

“You’ve finally arrived! We’ve been waiting impatiently! Please sweep away this rotten country and the arrogant nobles of the Prince’s faction and take the Emperor’s throne!”

“Marquis, your words are a bit excessive… What if someone overhears?”

“It doesn’t matter. The owner is about to change, so who cares!”

Since morning, he came running like a loyal and adorable dog.

Buford looked at Marquis Aonti, who kissed his feet, and the five men lying prostrate at his feet.

Marquises, counts, barons — regardless of their titles, they had all been revived thanks to the favor of ‘Lirik’.

They were traitors who swore loyalty to Akan without knowing that their fading lives were temporarily revived.

They were also contributors who played a significant role in swallowing up Rojas.

Buford poured wine for them as if showing kindness.

Receiving it with grateful faces and drinking, they seemed to gain strength and enjoyed themselves among each other.

“Now, this country belongs to Your Highness. We will certainly make it so.”

It felt like watching a long and boring show.

Buford, seemingly bored, watched them praising him, Lirik, and Damon without any enthusiasm, and suddenly blurted out.

“…It’s not mine, it belongs to Lirik, I suppose.”

The one who desired this country the most was Lirik, not him.

Damon gently stroked Buford’s bright red hair, murmuring as if finding it adorable.

Buford poured another glass of wine and drank it.

Upon arriving here, he had expected something interesting to happen immediately, but it turned out to be more tedious than he thought.

With that thought in mind, as he turned his gaze out the window, someone hurriedly added another remark.

“Um, there’s a bigger issue! General Kalia and the Duke of Magic have arrived in the capital! It is said that the attendant, who was spying on the Mage Tower, saw the prince running to the Mage Tower!”

In that instant, Buford swiftly turned his head and stood up from his seat.

And in one step, he grabbed the nobleman who had just delivered the news by the collar and demanded.

“Who has come?”

“G-General Kalia and the Duke of Magic…”

With that one word, Buford’s face brightened more than ever before.

Elation shone in his dilated pupils.

He licked his lips and smiled like he was having fun.

Ah… finally, she has arrived.