A sudden gale burst out from the center of the lake and tore across the clearing in every direction.
At the same time, the entire lake flared with blinding light, and within that radiance, an impossibly intricate magic circle spread across the water.
"Huh? Huh?! What is that? What’s going on?!"
The wind whipped Shulim’s hair and clothes wildly around her, and the glare was so bright she could barely keep her eyes open.
Splash.
"World below, I’m back!"
A figure wrapped in light burst out of the lake and appeared above the water, saying something that made absolutely no sense to Shulim.
A moment later, the magic circle disappeared, and the light faded away.
Standing before Shulim was a woman with skin as smooth as white porcelain and clear emerald eyes. Beneath a cascade of shining golden hair were a pair of long, delicate pointed ears. She was breathtakingly beautiful, almost like an angel from a dream, assuming you ignored the three pairs of translucent wings behind her, all six of them glowing faintly.
"O fortunate chosen one, was it you who called for me?"
The golden-haired woman hovered above the lake without even moving her wings, wearing an expression so holy and serene it almost didn’t look real.
Then she looked at the girl in front of her.
And froze.
The little girl staring back at her did not look awed or reverent the way Semirys had expected.
She looked absolutely terrified.
"A m-monster! A monster showed up!"
"Huh?"
The golden-haired woman blinked, completely thrown off.
Shulim’s face had gone white. Panic filled her small eyes as she scrambled backward on hands and feet.
Only when she reached the edge of the rock and had nowhere left to go did she raise her wooden stick with trembling hands and point it at the woman floating above the lake.
"D-d-don’t come any closer!"
Her voice was already on the verge of tears.
"Wait a second, who are you calling a monster?!"
The golden-haired woman clenched her fists in outrage.
Then she planted one hand on her hip, pointed straight at Shulim with the other, and huffed, "Listen up, you ignorant little thing, I am one of the oldest beings in this world, a servant of the great Earth Mother, Teraia, one of the first fairies, and the Fairy King, Semirys Pan Genis. Open your eyes, take a good look at me, and show some respect."
"Huh? The Fairy King...?"
A trace of confusion flickered through Shulim’s teary eyes.
Semirys nodded vigorously. "That’s right. The great Fairy King people talk about, that’s me."
"So... what kind of monster is that?"
"Obviously, it’s... not a monster at all!"
Semirys shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Eek! Don’t eat me! Magic bolt, magic bolt, magic bolt..."
Shulim’s face went pale as she grabbed pebbles off the ground and hurled them at Semirys as fast as she could.
Thunk.
Semirys’s head jerked back slightly, and a bright red mark instantly appeared on her forehead.
A vein twitched at her temple.
"I said, who are you calling a monster?! And stop throwing things at me!"
Her roar sent birds exploding out of the trees all across the forest.
It also finally made Shulim stop.
A little while later, Shulim studied Semirys’s face more carefully. Her features were no different from a human’s. If anything, she looked angelic, and definitely nothing like the monsters described in storybooks.
"Wait... you’re not a monster?"
There was still some uncertainty in Shulim’s little eyes.
Seeing that the girl had finally calmed down, Semirys let out an annoyed breath.
"Of course I’m not. Mistaking someone as noble and magnificent as me for one of those filthy monsters, honestly, out of every chosen one in history, you might be the rudest one yet."
"But, but..."
Shulim did not really understand most of what Semirys was saying.
"But humans don’t have wings, right? And they can’t float in the air either."
Semirys went completely still. Then the vein at her temple jumped again, and she grabbed her head with both hands.
"What is wrong with you? I already told you I’m a fairy. A fairy. A fairy. Don’t tell me you don’t even know what a fairy is."
"I don’t."
Shulim shook her head without the slightest hesitation.
"Ugh..."
Semirys froze in midair, all the complaints she wanted to spit out getting jammed in her throat.
She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.
"All right, then. A fairy is..."
It took Semirys a full half hour to explain the history of fairies, what they were, and how they lived.
Fairies were magical life-forms created by the Earth Mother, Teraia, born from the springs of natural mana. They were different from humans, beastfolk, and the other familiar intelligent races. They were born able to use magic, possessed endless lifespans, and were most easily recognized by the translucent wings on their backs.
As followers of Teraia, fairies mostly lived in Tiramshuin, the heavenly realm, which was why they were rarely seen in the mortal world.
And Semirys was the very first fairy in the world, the king of all fairykind, the Fairy King with three pairs of wings.
Aside from lounging around in heaven as ruler of the fairies, she also worked as one of the Earth Mother’s envoys, taking care of all sorts of matters between heaven and the world below. Churches throughout the mortal world kept clear records of her status as a divine messenger, and she was widely revered for it.
"Well? Now do you understand how impressive I am? You’re totally allowed to worship me, you know."
Semirys lifted her chin proudly and looked down at Shulim.
Unfortunately, she had greatly overestimated the brainpower and worldview of a seven-year-old.
Shulim now understood who Semirys was, at least in theory, but none of Semirys’s pride or grandeur had actually landed.
At the end of the day, things like divine messenger and king meant absolutely nothing to her.
"Huh? I still don’t get it."
At seven years old, Shulim had not yet learned the art of polite pretense, so she simply said exactly what she was thinking.
That made it hit even harder.
As a fairy, Semirys was born with the ability to see through lies.
"..."
Semirys crouched over the lake and started drawing little circles with her finger, looking like she was one step away from falling into a full-blown depression.
"?"
Shulim tilted her head, having no idea what had suddenly happened.
"Ugh, forget the fairy stuff for now."
Semirys suddenly snapped out of it, sprang back up, and clutched her head with both hands as she groaned.
Shulim jumped at the sudden movement, but now that she knew Semirys was not some man-eating monster, she was no longer afraid.
"Fine. I’m wrapping up this job, and then I’m finally going to go enjoy myself for once."
Semirys slapped her cheeks lightly and forced herself back into high spirits.
Then she looked at Shulim.
"Hey, you..."
Her voice stopped short.
Those emerald eyes carefully examined Shulim from head to toe.
Her short hair shimmered like silver starlight, and a single little cowlick curled upward like a crescent moon. Her bright silver eyes were clear as crystal, reflecting the light, though there was still a trace of timidity in them.
A flash of light flared from Semirys’s wings, and in the next instant she was suddenly right in front of Shulim.
"Eek!"
Startled by the face suddenly right up against hers, Shulim nearly fell backward.
"Hm. Something really is a little odd."
Semirys, apparently having no idea how invasive this looked, muttered to herself, "You distracted me earlier, so I didn’t notice, but now that I’m looking properly, you’re really tiny. Are you a dwarf? No, not quite. You look more human than that. Maybe mixed blood? No, that doesn’t seem right either. Is this some new intelligent race? I haven’t heard anything about that..."
Listening to Semirys ramble on and on about her, Shulim puffed out her cheeks in annoyance and lifted her head.
"I’m human. A human. I’m not some new race."
"No way. Humans aren’t that small."
Semirys looked utterly unconvinced.
"They are when they’re kids."
"Oh. Right. A kid."
Semirys suddenly looked enlightened, and then her eyes lit up.
"This is my first time seeing a human child chosen by the ritual. You’re so tiny. That’s adorable."
She started circling around Shulim, looking her over from every angle, and before long she was poking and prodding her all over.
"Wow, has the world below really advanced this much? Even human children are going after legendary power now."
"Mmph... let go."
Shulim finally smacked away the hand pinching her cheek and protested, "I’m not tiny. I’m only seven, so of course I’m this tall. In a few years I’ll be taller."
"Wha..."
Semirys went rigid, like she had just heard something impossible.
"S-seven?"
"That makes you basically a baby!"