T/N: Huge shout out and thank you for Marman for giving me your support, I really appreciate it, thank you
When did that smile disappear from Edward’s face?
Deep in her memory, an image she would never forget remained crystal clear.
Even in the slightly hazy moment of their first meeting, the boy had stepped forward like a prince, leading her out of the forest and into the human world.
A sweet, melodious smile had graced his lips, as though he had discovered the greatest treasure.
That vivid scene had stayed with her forever.
It proved that Edward was never someone who disliked smiles, beauty, or gentle warmth.
It seemed… the change had begun the year he turned nine.
“Aren’t you going to celebrate with me?”
“We’ve been traveling together for many years.”
Edward placed a hand over his chest and looked at the girl he had once held most dear.
A gentle, happy smile curved his lips as he asked for her blessing.
Only then did the veil of complacency finally lift from Elysia’s eyes.
Her pink-blue pupils no longer reflected empty happiness.
Instead, they saw only the boy she had ignored so many times.
He stood right in front of her, filling her entire vision.
At some point he had grown tall, already half a head taller than her.
The clearest image of Edward in her mind had always been the small boy by the pond.
She had somehow believed he would stay young forever.
How could she have overlooked something so obvious?
When had she stopped noticing how much he had grown?
What have I done…?
“Happy…”
“Happy birthday…”
Her body moved on instinct, her soft lips parting slightly, just as she had done countless times for others.
She wanted to offer him the same sincere congratulations she had given so freely before.
She only needed to speak the words.
But she could not.
No matter how hard she tried, the words refused to come.
Her soul had sunk into a battlefield of neglected emotions, and the walls she had built around herself finally met the love she had kept buried for so long.
The feelings surged forward, unstoppable.
What she had imagined as a calm river turned out to be a vast, raging ocean.
Her will and reason were like a tiny boat caught in a storm, moments away from being shattered by waves hundreds of meters high.
Why does it hurt so much… why?
She could not understand it.
She had always been able to explain the origins of other people’s emotions with ease when giving advice.
Yet when it came to her own heart, she was completely lost.
Perhaps… it was because the very first living being she saw when she opened her eyes in this world was Edward.
A distant dawn.
A lush forest.
Flowers carried on the wind.
Even now, when she recalled that moment, the only words that came to mind were from the book he had given her: Elysian Realm.
An eternal paradise.
A flawless sanctuary.
There may have been danger that day, but the moment any threat appeared, the first person in the entire world to truly care for her had already arrived.
That memory had never faded, no matter how much time passed or how many complicated people she met afterward.
Even later, for reasons she could not fully explain, she had chosen to spend more time with the townspeople.
She had gradually left behind the boy she had never been apart from, the one she had always played and laughed with.
Even during their travels, she had focused her attention elsewhere, devoting nearly all her time to others.
She had always treasured that first connection deep in her heart.
He was her first.
The first to see her.
The first to hold her.
The first to give her a gift.
The first to care for her.
The first to bring her into the beautiful human world.
But now…
But now!
“Elysia?”
“Are you alright?”
“If something feels wrong, we can see a doctor first.
The birthday wishes can wait.”
Edward’s face had changed over the years, growing more mature, yet the gentle smile at the corner of his lips remained exactly as it had been on the day they met.
It was as if the past and present had merged, breaking through the barriers of time.
In her memory, he had stepped through the shadowy thicket like a hero, like a prince.
He had pushed aside thorns and weeds, faced the light, the leaves, the flowers, and the birds, and reached out to her from the depths of the dense forest, shielding her from the darkness.
He had brought the innocent girl out of the deep woods and into the human world, acting as her heroic savior and giving her the first taste of true beauty.
Yet now he stood there, asking why she seemed lost and even hoping for her blessing.
His blessing… together with Vill-V.
“Ah…”
“I…”
“I have something…”
Her voice trembled.
Her magnificent pink-blue eyes, usually so bright and star-like, shook as well.
The rosy color drained from her lips in an instant.
She no longer had the strength to do anything.
She might even lose the ability to think clearly.
Across from her, Vill-V, who was usually the timid and avoidant one, now seemed steady by comparison.
The surging emotions had broken the dam in her heart completely.
When something cannot be resisted or broken through, the only response is to run in circles.
Elysia had never been so hesitant before.
The flawless fairy had always faced everything with courage.
In a situation like this, the best and only choice should have been to explain everything clearly.
Yet she trembled, her legs weak.
===
“Sorry…”
“I have to go.”
Without thinking whether the excuse even made sense, Elysia turned and fled as if escaping for her life.
Everything felt chaotic.
Her thoughts had never been so tangled, like a ball of yarn shredded by a playful cat.
There was no way to tell where anything began or ended.
Everything contradicted itself.
The girl who could once say, “Wherever I go, that is my destination,” seemed to have vanished completely.
Run… just run.
At this moment, escape was her only option.
She could only hide like a turtle pulling its head into its shell or an ostrich burying its head in the sand, avoiding everything in the most ridiculous, thoughtless way possible.
A familiar, clear voice called out from behind her.
Edward had clearly noticed that something was wrong, that her behavior was completely unlike her.
But Elysia kept running.
She deserved this.
She had brought it upon herself.
Why did it turn out this way?
Why had her childhood sweetheart become like this?
Elysia clutched the ribbon tightly in her hand.
The faint sweetness of cream still lingered on her lips.
The cake she had chosen for Edward had somehow become nothing more than an ordinary one, only slightly more decorative on the outside.
It was simple.
There was nothing difficult about it.
She had known the answer for a long time.
She had simply refused to face it.
Ah… so that was how it was.
So that was how it was… so that was how it was!
Her foolish attempt to bury her head in the sand had been completely exposed.
Once her eyes were truly open, no veil could block her vision any longer.
Everything from the past appeared before her with perfect clarity, without any concealment or distortion.
Crystal clear.