We live at the foot of Dragon Peak.
Dragon King’s Forest
We can never let our guard down. A moment’s lapse can be fatal.
Indeed, this world is an eternal battlefield.
“Elnea, wake up.”
“Yes!”
I was shaken awake by Priscilla-chan’s mother and quickly came to.
Whew, that was a close call. If I had overslept, I would have been lectured by Priscilla-chan’s mother right from the start of the day! I can’t be as childish as Mistral and say, “I’m still sleepy.” When I’m woken up, I get up immediately. I quickly fix myself up and get to work with all my might from the morning. Truly, it’s a battlefield!
“Battle! Battle!”
“Indeed!”
I released Ares-chan, whom I had been holding like a hot water bottle. Ares-chan trotted energetically towards the sleepy Priscilla-chan.
“Priscilla, wake up now.”
“Mmm, I’m still sleepy?”
Priscilla-chan herself was just being woken up by her mother.
“Priscilla, that’s enough.”
“Um… I want to sleep a little longer?”
“Don’t be selfish!”
“Owww.”
Priscilla-chan was forcibly woken up as her blanket was roughly pulled off. Even so, if she continued to whine sleepily, her mother’s scolding would rain down on her from the morning.
“This isn’t your home. If you keep being pampered, you’ll get into dangerous situations!”
Priscilla-chan, made to sit on a mat, had her face wiped by her mother with a damp cloth. Then, her bedhead was fixed, and she was chased out of her sleeping place.
“Battle! Battle!”
Ares-chan gently petted the still sleepy Priscilla-chan’s head. The baby spirit of the Spirit Tree seemed to have already left its bed before we woke up, and was being entertained by Yunyun and Rinrin elsewhere.
“Mornings are so sleepy. When that happens, a warm, sweet drink is just the thing.”
Grandma Yuuri, who was watching the mother-daughter exchange with a loving smile, handed Priscilla-chan and me warm drinks.
“Is this goat’s milk?”
It was slightly sweetened, and a gentle, thick liquid spread in my mouth. As I gulped it down, I felt warmth spreading from my stomach.
“But where did the goat’s milk come from?”
The Forbidden Territory is on the frontier, you know. Even if you pop out for a quick morning shopping trip, there are no open-air stalls anywhere. Therefore, perishables like milk are impossible to obtain in this land. Jab was smiling at my question.
“That’s deer milk. I saw a deer family just ahead, so I got a little.”
“Wow, that’s amazing!”
Truly, they are beastfolk. To secure the blessings of nature so easily. Thanks to Jab, we were able to have a cozy, warm start to our morning.
“Hmm, considering the future, maybe I should raise goats at the mansion?”
“You have to take care of them every day, you know? Elnea, can you really do that properly?”
“Ugh…”
Priscilla-chan’s mother pointed out something quite astute, much like Mistral. Or perhaps Mistral’s behavior is more motherly? Mistral is the most reliable person in our household. Ruiseine is also reliable, but she’s slightly outdone by Mistral due to the age difference.
“Since you Elnea-kun and the others are often out, it would be difficult to take care of them.”
“I don’t feel like it’s a bother, but that’s the problem, isn’t it?”
Raising a living creature is truly difficult. The benefits are great, but they also restrict your freedom to that extent. We, who are always flying around, cannot responsibly raise them.
“Fufufu, once the relocation of the Mimicho Race settles down, I’ll take care of the breeding. A few heads should be no problem, right?”
“Speaking of which, you used to take care of sheep when you were younger, didn’t you?”
“Oh, I still look after a little lamb. She’s a diligent little thing whose future I look forward to.”
“Um, Mei?”
“Fufufu, yes. Will you play with her again?”
“Yes!”
Priscilla-chan, knowing that it’s safest and most secure by the side of the kind grandmothers, fled from her mother’s scolding to Grandma Yuuri’s lap. Ares-chan also cheekily perched on Jab’s lap, munching on a sweet potato.
“Hey, that’s unfair to just eat alone!”
“Sweet potato, sweet potato.”
“Priscilla wants some too?”
“Here you go.”
“Um, thank you.”
“Ares-chan, I want some too?”
“Hey now, Elnea, Priscilla! It’s breakfast now, so behave yourselves and wait!”
“Yes!” “Yes!”
Scolding from Priscilla-chan’s mother rained down mercilessly. Priscilla-chan and I obediently waited for breakfast preparations to be completed. For the record, Ares-chan, the baby spirit of the Spirit Tree, was not scolded. Even that mother couldn’t scold a Spirit Tree Spirit, it seemed.
After finishing breakfast and cleaning up, we finally entered the forest. Today, the Light Spirit is our guide again.
“The air is so pure.”
“The resident spirits seem peaceful too.”
As soon as we entered the forest, Carly and Kate commented. Everyone else was also walking as if sensing the forest’s presence. They checked the health of old trees and observed the flowers and grasses growing vigorously under the sunlight. They were seriously assessing whether this forest would be a good place to live. I quietly followed them, not wanting to get in the way of the Mimicho people. And, just in case, I kept watch of our surroundings.
Then, I immediately felt a subtle change. Listening closely, the chirping of several types of birds echoed through the forest. I could hear the sounds of animals walking through the undergrowth and their calls.
“There are creatures living in the forest!”
Carly looked at me, puzzled, as if asking what obvious thing I was stating.
“When the Light Spirit was protecting it, there weren’t even any animals in the Bewildering Forest. So I was surprised.”
Not much time has passed since then, and yet the forest is already teeming with life. I wonder what the Light Spirit thinks of this change? I suddenly wondered and looked at the Light Spirit. The Light Spirit was smiling and cradling Priscilla-chan while humming a tune.
“You know. She’s happy that everyone likes the forest she cherished and protected.”
I see. While the Light Spirit had cast the Bewildering Technique on the forest, it didn’t accept any intruders. But after all, it’s a being of nature. From its current position, freed from the old curse, it seems to be accepting the natural order of things honestly.
“It’s not as grand as the Dragon Forest, but it’s a pretty good forest.”
Carly already seemed to be starting to like this forest.
“It’s a forest with a lot of character. Although we’ve only looked around briefly, it has great depth.”
“The nature and animals are all energetic. The number of animals still seems a bit small, though.”
Yunyun and Rinrin, the sages, also highly praised the forest. However, to make important decisions that will affect us for tens or hundreds of years to come, we must investigate more carefully. The Light Spirit guided us deeper into the forest.
I wonder where in the forest we are walking. We haven’t gotten lost, but I have no idea where we are anymore. The forest is deep and vast. There are thickets that are difficult to step into, and then there are clearings bathed in dazzling sunlight. The forest encompasses various environments such as ponds, streams, swamps, and rocky areas, and we were moving back and forth through them. As we looked around various places, my sense of direction was completely lost. I realized how important positional information is, something that isn’t felt much when looking down from above on Nimia.
However, the Mimicho people living in the forest don’t seem to have the same problem.
“It’s not far from that place.”
“If we don’t go around, it’s right nearby.”
They were talking normally. Even though the scenery looked the same to me, Carly and the others could clearly distinguish the differences and were not losing their sense of direction or position. Furthermore, the Mimicho people were investigating not only the nature but also the ecosystem of animals in various locations.
“That area seems to be inhabited by a herd of deer.”
“It seems wild boars appear around that swamp.”
“There are new bird nests. Perhaps there are plenty of nuts and insects there.”
Although the number of individuals seems small, I could feel the presence of animals wherever we walked in the forest. I enjoyed the lively atmosphere of the forest together with the Light Spirit.
Actually, I followed the Mimicho people, but am I not useful at all? No, it’s fine. I’m responsible for their bodyguard duty. The fact that my bodyguard duty is leisurely means it’s peaceful, right? Unlike me, who was leisurely enjoying a stroll in the forest, the Mimicho people carefully investigated the distribution of spirits, the flow of wind, the richness of the land, and more. Priscilla-chan was also diligently doing her job. I had assumed they would decide on a settlement based on the forest’s atmosphere and the Mimicho’s intuition, but seeing everyone so seriously investigating various things made me realize again how difficult relocation is.
And, before sunset, the Light Spirit guided us to a certain place.
“This is…”
A slightly open space. Looking up, we could see the beautiful sunset. Carly, who had thoroughly investigated even here, noticed something and called us over. We stared intently at “something buried in the soil” that Jab had brushed away. Then, we confirmed the undulations extending from it!
“Is this the foundation of a building?”
Although it had decayed or been buried by soil over time, the undulations indicated a shape surrounding all four sides.
“Look. Isn’t this a piece of pottery?”
The small fragment that Kate picked up was indeed a piece of pottery.
“How many years ago was this? But this is conclusive proof that humans once lived in this forest.”
Further investigation revealed other undulations that appeared to be building foundations.
“The Light Spirit guarded the treasure jewel and cast the Bewildering Technique on the forest. This must be ruins left by the Mimicho.”
Not only Carly, but everyone reached the same conclusion. And, as if to confirm it, the Light Spirit nodded.
“They have left. However, I hope a new tribe of Mimicho will take root in this forest.”
I see. Although the old curse was lifted by Priscilla-chan, the Light Spirit still cherishes and loves this forest. And, as a spirit, it wishes for the return of the Mimicho who lived together with the forest and spirits. Receiving the Light Spirit’s feelings, Grandma Yuuri smiled gently.
“Well, there’s a place I’d like you to guide me to.”
“Yes, we will guide you from now on.”
No one said where. Although it was evening, we left the ruins, guided by the Light Spirit. And the place we were led to was a place I knew. A clearing with soft grass growing luxuriantly. The surrounding trees extended their branches and leaves, forming a ceiling over the clearing. However, even though it was just before the sun set, dazzling sunlight poured through the leafy canopy.
“I know this now. This is the Spirit Village, isn’t it?”
Although its appearance and atmosphere are different from the Spirit Village in the Dragon Forest, the presence is very similar. Able to sense the spirits’ presence faintly, I could read the presence of many spirits gathered around. And I could sense without doubt that all the spirits cherished this place.
“We need to find offerings for communicating with the spirits. I wonder what would be good in this forest. Also, we need to make a new treasure jewel to protect the forest.”
In the Dragon Forest, a tower made of stacked flat stones was used as an offering for communicating with spirits. And making a treasure jewel with the same purpose?
“Grandma, that means…!”
“It’s a wonderful forest. The spirits who moved from the Dragon Forest seem to like it too. It’s perfect.”
Grandma Yuuri, who smiled with a “fufufu,” was embraced by the Light Spirit, overcome with joy. It was an unusual expression of emotion for the Light Spirit, who had a modest personality. The surrounding spirits also danced happily.
“Well then, starting tomorrow, we’ll all work hard in earnest.”
On this day, the new living place for the Mimicho and spirits who moved from the Dragon Forest was officially decided. I’m sure the real hardship lies ahead, but we all shared the joy of the present moment rather than worrying about future struggles.
