Chapter 89
April 13th, 761 (Tuesday)
Aiorin had a hard time moving around due to Valterre’s scouts.
Moreover, since their encounter two days ago, the number and alertness of the scouts had only increased.
But then again, who was she? Near the Elven Forest, there was no one who could dare to stop her.
Though it delayed her by a day, she finally reached her destination by Tuesday morning.
“Sis, is this the Fey Forest?”
“Yes. Just wait a bit, and I’ll prove to you that I’m not your sister, but your grandmother.”
“No way, that makes no sense.”
Aiorin genuinely wanted to be called ‘grandmother.’ Most women would want the opposite.
Well, what meaning does “you look young” even have for her? She was technically still a minor by elven standards.
Besides, in elven society, being told you look young wasn’t exactly a compliment. Just meaningless words.
“Still, there are some huge trees here, and it’s pretty cool. Way bigger than any forest I’ve seen before. It can’t even compare to the palace.”
As Katrina said, it was a forest on an entirely different scale than the artificially constructed gardens of the Royal Palace.
And since many spirits lived there, the plants’ growth was anything but ordinary.
It was a spectacular sight with thick, tall trees beyond the norm of a typical forest.
“Wow, this is just like the place from Grandpa’s storybooks.”
Meanwhile, Brandon showed quite the sharp eye. He found a spot that was illustrated in the fairy tale books.
“Huh? Where?”
“Look, Sis. Check this out—the way the trees stand at the forest entrance looks exactly like the picture!”
“Whoa, it really does. You’re amazing.”
Perhaps because the book was based on Solinor’s memories, the historical accuracy was surprisingly high.
The scene depicting the entrance of the Fey Forest that he remembered had been incredibly vivid.
Seeing her grandchildren chatting away so warmly, Aiorin couldn’t help but smile.
“Sis, why are you walking so slowly?”
“It’s nothing. Let’s go.”
But Aiorin’s steps into the Fey Forest were heavy.
Even Katrina could sense it with ease.
Well, for Aiorin, honestly, going home was a little—or rather, very—scary.
Why be scared of your own home? Well, because she had run away. Naturally, she feared her mother’s punishment.
‘Come to think of it, how did I run away again?’
It had only been a month ago, yet it felt strangely distant.
Somehow, while her dad sent the spirits elsewhere, she slipped away.
She didn’t miss her one chance and made a clean escape. What would Mom think now?
Just thinking about her mom waiting with a dwarven frying pan gave her the chills.
‘But still… they didn’t even send any spirits after me this time.’
During her first runaway, her parents had sent spirits after her quite frequently.
Even Wendy, whom she used to travel with, once came running after hearing her mom’s summons.
Those spirits had been ordered to find out her location. Thankfully, they weren’t that bright.
They just came up to her and asked, so she simply gave them fake locations.
‘Some even tried identifying me from afar and tracking the terrain.’
But even that wasn’t much of a problem.
The spirits didn’t know human place names.
At most, their answers were like, “a place with trees” or “a place with a river.”
How could anyone know where that was supposed to be from that?
The only truly threatening method would’ve been sending a spirit first and then having her parents follow behind.
But considering Elven culture, that was an almost impossible scenario.
The main reason was that Aiorin’s Spirit Mage skills, even as a “child,” guaranteed a certain level of safety.
The second reason was that her parents—and Elves in general—hated going outside the Elven Village.
She couldn’t understand how they endured the suffocating monotony of the village.
But that’s just the Elven way.
They could live in the same place for hundreds of years without a problem.
And yet, they hadn’t even sent a spirit this time. What on earth was going on?
Not knowing that her father had deliberately let her go, Aiorin could only feel fear.
What kind of fate awaited her upon returning? A frying pan? Solitary confinement?
But she had one ultimate weapon: her grandchildren—who were, to her parents, great-grandchildren.
Once they saw these adorable kids, everything would work out. That much was certain.
In Elven society, where children were rare and precious, each one was treated like treasure.
Surely Katrina and Brandon would be showered with terrifying amounts of love.
Ah, but maybe they wouldn’t get too chubby with an Elven diet?
…If she could manage to tell them they were great-grandchildren before being knocked out by a frying pan, that is.
“Phewwwww…”
“Sis, what’s wrong? You seem kind of stiff.”
“Sis, are you sick?”
“No, I’m really okay.”
Apparently she had tensed up so much that even Katrina noticed.
Hearing her grandchildren’s warm voices of concern made Aiorin feel soft inside.
But that wasn’t enough to make the fear completely disappear.
‘Why is nothing happening?!’
Now that she had stepped into the Fey Forest, her parents—no, the entire village—surely knew.
She could already see the numerous forest spirits surrounding their group.
Some of them had probably flown to the Elven Village the moment they saw her.
She’d fully expected her mother to come greet her—frying pan in hand, of course.
She had even braced her body in preparation for the first blow, but it was all for nothing.
“Okay, don’t let go of my hand. From here on, it’s easy to get lost.”
“Ah, okay.”
Of course, with spirits all around the forest, even if the kids did get lost, it wouldn’t be hard to find them.
Still, when it came to kids, caution wasn’t a choice—it was a must. Just in case.
Another reason was that the path to the Elven Village was unusually complex.
The Elves had used their inherent massive spirit power to twist the forest’s structure entirely.
So even if someone happened to wander deep into the forest, they’d never find the village.
Follow the path long enough, and you’d end up back where you started—that was the mystery of the Fey Forest.
But to Aiorin’s Elven eyes, it was just a straight, wide-open road. And what’s more, it was welcoming her.
‘This makes it worse. Why are they welcoming me?!’
The road to the village, and the spirits, were all welcoming her return.
This had to be a message from her parents. There was no turning back now.
Just what kind of horrible fate was waiting for her that they were acting this way?
Aiorin was on the verge of tears.
‘Wait—what if I send Wendy ahead to tell them I brought great-grandchildren? Maybe then I won’t get hit?’
Suddenly, a brilliant idea popped into her head.
This might let her escape her doomed fate.
Why hadn’t she thought of this simple and obvious trick before? She finally felt relieved.
While walking slowly, Aiorin sent Wendy ahead. Soon after, a reply came.
“She said, ‘Of course I already know that. Now hurry up. What kind of snail pace are you walking at for a visit home?’”
Apparently, even for the extremely patient Elves, her speed was hard to endure.
Katrina and Brandon had been too busy admiring the scenery to complain, though.
‘Huh? They already knew? How?’
‘How would I know? Anyway, they said to hurry.’
‘Ah… okay.’
Hearing Wendy’s response, Aiorin instantly regained her confidence.
Now there was nothing to fear.
“Kids, you’ve seen enough, right? We’re going straight to the Elven Village now. Hold on tight, I’m gonna speed up.”
“Okay!”
“Got it!”
She had the spirits lift the children slightly off the ground and started running—
—as if she were using a teleportation technique, the scenery flashed by.
In an instant, they flew through the forest path, and Aiorin reached the village entrance.
She glanced around.
The village looked just the same as always. A few villagers were sunbathing.
And in front of their house, her parents stood with bright smiles—safety incarnate.
With the children in tow, Aiorin practically flew toward them.
“Mom! Dad! I’m home! Kids, these are your great-grandma and great-grandpa. Say hello!”
“Hello! Wait, are you really grandma and grandpa? You look so young, just like sister here.”
“Hello! Brandon, you could ask that later. Mind your manners.”
Brandon, now back to his cheerful self, asked with excitement, and Katrina scolded him.
She whispered it quietly, but no way Elves wouldn’t hear it.
Aiorin’s mother gently patted the children’s heads with an unusually warm smile.
“Of course, of course. I’m your great-grandmother. And this silly girl here is your grandmother.”
No sooner were those words spoken—
—a Dwarven frying pan came flying from somewhere—
CLANG, followed by a loud scream echoing through the village.
“Aaagh! Mom! Please!!”
—
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