Chapter 40: The Fairy Forest
.......
Explosions everywhere due to impact of spells as we ran for dear life...
"I just want to talk!" I yelled with futstration.
"There you are!" A voice yelled as a tick Mark appeared on my head, the randos had found us...
"Look! I don't care who the f*ck you are but If you don't start running we'll all die by fairy hands!" I glared
As if they got the message, their faces paled as the started running ahead
"I'll eat them all...." Kuro said with dazed yet crazed expression
"Shiori-sama, what are your orders?!" Yuishiro asked
"I'm not sure, we need to make sure those people that were following us are safe but we need to calm this fairies too and kuro has lost it..." I whined
Master, why are you carrying kuro like a child?
It was Ryu Chatting through telepathy
"I need some help here!" I whined
How mean considering you went to take others along now only to ask for my help...
He said sarcastically....
"What if I let you watch more sword play and invest in making sake!" I wagered.
Yes please!
To handle the adventurers, I'll open up a mist gate.
"You want to lead them to the kingdom?" I asked
Yes, for your attackers yuishiro should be more than enough and as for kuro, just feed him his favorite food and he'll return to his senses...
"Thanks for the advice!"
Hold up what even is kuro's favorite food 😑
"Master, what's going on?" Yuishiro asked as the adventurers were engulfed in a mist portal
As I was about to explain, I accidentally cut my tongue to a sharp branch...
Ow!😰
Luckily it was was only a scratch but it did draw a little blood. The scent caught kuro's attention as I cupped his cheeks before smashing my lips against his.
His eyes return back to there usually color as he deepens the kiss, twisting his tongue with mine for dominance, savouring the taste of my blood and saliva.
My mind went blank for some moments
"Wh-what are they doing?!" The fairy girl asked as she blushes madly, trying to cover her eyes with her hands
"I don't think it's mating season yet, Demi human are so strange" the fairy boy stated dully
Our lips pulled away, kuro licking his lips to savor the taste.
"Thankyou for the meal, shiori-sama..." He smiled like some lovesick puppy...
"Um sure..." I said, cheeks still red
"Our patients has ran thin, begone..." The girl said but Before they could cast another spell, yuishiro snatched their wands before breaking them in half like twigs.
"Kuro tie them up just to be safe" he nodded before proceeding to do as told
A few minutes later
"So let me get this straight, you just want to talk with us about the flowers?" The girl asked
"Yes, you see I have some back at home and would love to get some tips on how to grow them plus believe it or not but I'm a merchant so I value information more than anything else..." I explained
"Very well, we'll run by it to the queen but first untie us" the boy said
"Very well " I nodded as yuishiro and kuro untie them
"My name is lance" the boy said boredly
"And I'm Emma" the girl said
"A pleasure, I'm shiori koromi and these as my followers kuroha and yuishiro.."
"We'll take you to our village now..." Emma said leading the way
"Thankyou..."
.........
We arrived at a beautiful flowery part of the forest. The center was a large willow tree that represented the tree of life as Flower life buildings surrounded the tree.
"Welcome to Emilia the sacred fairy river kingdom hidden within the forest " lance explained boredly
"I see, it's beautiful " I smiled
"We only allow suspicious people in here, congratulations, please applauses..." He added with a bored look
Why does that sound like an insult😒
Once in the palace, the inside the floors were tiled, the walls painted sky blue and sitting on a throne was a beautiful blonde fairy woman and Beside her throne was a grey haired boy sitted on a smaller throne
"Greetings travelers, I am queen Anna what brings you here?" The woman asked
"We're here to talk..." I said
"Oh? aren't you the one that took over the human kingdom Melvialine?" She asked
Oh crap
"We come in peace! I just came to ask about raising flowers, that's all!" I said awkwardly
"I see, if that's the case I have no objections..." The queen nodded
Just then the grey hair boy stood up...
"I am mark, the prince of Emilia. Shiori komori was it? I find it hard to believe that a mere fox girl could defeat lance and Emma so easily..." He narrowed his eyes at me
"And your 'followers' seem to have an impressive amount of mana while I can barely sense any from you. Care to explain why is that? Or do you possess something that blocks mana detection..." He added
Oh crap his suspicious of me!!!😨
"Hm, sorry about that but I didn't mean to harm anyone, it was all in self defense. As for my mana, yes I do possess a tool but all of good intentions.." I chuckled awkwardly
"I'll choose to believe you for but beware for I'm not convinced." He glared before sitting back down
Close shave😓
........
We were then taken to one of the guest houses to rest.
"Well be holding a feast as an apology for the misunderstanding.." Emma said
"Ok". I nodded
"But First you'll have to meet our master..." Lance added
Master?! Of these two, hell no!
"Don't worry it only hurts a little at first" lance reassuranced
It hurt?! Hell naw?!😰
Just then the door swung open with a bang
What now?!😫
A man with bright blonde hair and green eyes appeared into vision. His worrior gear making him seem even more intimidating.
"Hello I'm Marcus! Lance and Emma's master!" He grinned proudly
"It's a pleasure to meet you but first..." He offered his hand to which I cautiously took.
His eyes widened as his lips twisted into a mischievous grin...
"I've never felt anything so good before..." He said
I cringed😵💫
"Master?!" Emma was awed
"Could it be?" Lance asked curiously
"Someone please explain what's going on?" Yuishiro asked confused
"So soft and delicate yet so much energy..." Marcus said entranced as he caress my hand
I froze in panic not knowing what to do
"UNHAND HER YOU PERV!" Kuro kicked him out the window as Marcus spun away like a boomerang...
I blinked, well that was a forced exit....
I turned to kuro who was pouting
"I only got to hold you had for 30 seconds, and yet his got to hold your hand for a whole minute, so unfair, so unfair, his actions must be paid with blood if not death!" Kuro said with a dark aura surroundings him..
"Terrifying! Wait you were counting?!"
"Someone please explain what's going on" yuishiro deadpanned
no one's pov
The fairy prince was in his room, staring anxiously at the window, just then The door opened
"Your highness..." Marcus greeted as he bowed on one knee...
"Are the guests comfortable?" The prince asked
"Yes my prince..."
"Very well, we shall sacrifice them by the end of the party..." The prince said plainly
"What?! But my prince..." Marcus was bewildered and fully against the idea.
"The barrier is far to weak now, in order to restore it, we must offer the great serpent a sacrifice, else it'll wreak havoc and consume us all....!" The prince yelled
"Does the queen know?"
"No she doesn't, and I plan to keep it that way, my mother has enough to deal with as it is, I can't cause her anymore problems..."
"Understood " and with that he left..
Shiori's pov
"Huh? Investigate" kuro asked
"Yes, I have a bad feeling about this kingdom, you and yuishiro can go look around and report anything seeming suspicious..." I said with a serious expression
"Like a spy?!" Kuro said excitedly
"Sure why not..." I shrugged
"Understood master!" The two vanished as I sat there with my thoughts
Yuishiro watched from the roofs while kuro watched from the trees..
"Nothing grants me greater joy than being of use to master... she has enough problems as it is but the thought of her sending us to investigate this place just because she's too exhausted makes me kind of sad...."kuro mumbled away his thoughts
"Ever since that night I met her, I've had a lot more to think about, new emotions, desires of my own, why is life as a mortal so complicated.." he sighed.
A few hours later they returned with some new interesting information...
"Sacrifice?..." I queried. They nodded
"Using a technique Ryu had recently shown me, I read some the guards memories and found out that there a barrier that hides this kingdom from the outside world, even phantoms can't track this place..." Yuishiro said
"The faires are a mystical type species yet they have a very critical weakness..." Kuro said
"I'm listening..." I sat down on the bed, getting comfy
"Long ago fairies lived working mainly as messengers for higher mystical type species such as elves, fulgels and even forest orges. But soon as human nations expanded, adventurers soon found them more resourceful due to their knowledge and mana capacity. As expected, the fairies refuse to be acquired for parties, and In a fit of cruelty, a human ripped off a fairy's wing causing it incredible pain and fatigue, they soon discovered that a fairy's weakness was it's wings as that's where there mana are stored, practically their life source...
this discovery resulted to abducting fairies and selling them for slavery on the black market, placing them under mana blocking collars and forcing them into submission for the twisted minded, nobles bought fairies as pets...
in a fist of desperation, the king of fairies made a deal with a legendary rank monster, the moon serpent . that in exchange for placing a sacred barrier over there fairy kingdom, the kingdom would sacrifice three souls to the serpent every year, and so that went on for decades..." he explained.
"I had easedropped on an interesting conversation happening between prince mark and some of the guards who are planning on drugging our drinks..." Kuro added
"It's no wonder lance and Emma didn't hesitate to try and kill us..." I sighed
"What should we do shiori-sama? Leave? Attack?" Yuishiro asked
"No, we sit and enjoy the party..." I said.
The two stared at me like I was crazy as a mischievous smirks crept on my face
......
The party commenced at nightfall. Ladies dancing, delicious food served, children running happily....
I sat on a fancy chair with the queen and prince, not paying any attention to the entertainment in front of me...
"A drink my lady?" A fairy servant asked offering a tray of fruit juice. my blue eye glowed faintly
The glass is laced with grounded sleeping pills.
I shook my head at the fairy who nodded before leaving my sight
"Why not drink something, or is our hospitality not suitable to your liking?" The prince ask with a suspicious gaze.
"I'm not thirsty..." I said with a straight face.
"This is a party granted in your honor, don't you think it's a little rude to not eat nor drink anything?" He said with a raised eye brow
"I do not care about your opinion of me, your people are the ones who attacked us and Why so eager for me to drink something?" I shot back, he sat in his sit silently muttering...
"Excuse me, I need to use the bathroom..." I said as I got up.
"Huh, why? It's not like your stomach has anything to dispose of" the prince muttered under his breath. I rolled my eyes and left the party.
Once far enough I snapped my fingers as I summoned someone. A man with mouse ears and tail, seeming in his late teen, wearing a ninja outfit appeared before me.
This is Alex, the same guy is recused from the soel village. He majorly serves as a spy for me.
"Axel, monitor prince mark and while you're at it, knock out anyone seeming suspicious..." I ordered
"Yes shiori-sama" he nodded before disappearing like a ninja...
I stepped outside, opening a mist portal before reappearing in a very high tree.
"Leaving so soon? Shiori-sama?" I turned to see yuishiro not so far from me.
Before I could speak, the smell of smoke filled my senses...
"Do you smell that?" I asked
"It smells like a fire.." he replied
I look down to see the entire place gradually lighting up in flames.
"Shiori-sama, did you do this?!" Yuishiro asked with a frown
I shook my head is disapproval As the sounds of screams echoed in the area, children being taking away by familiar looking humans, the males and female (guards) fought back only to be killed one by one.
My eyes widened with disgust as I held stoic expression, It was horrible to watch.
"You know I was really pissed at the fact that they were planning on killing us and all but watching the way humans are treating them is sickening..." I frowned
"We should leave quickly there no better opportunity then right now..." Kuro said reappearing
"I'm sure that serpent They worship has it under control, plus interfering selflessly with this realms affairs we'll only delight the goddess that had wronged you, won't it?..." Yuishiro added
"...." I didn't respond as I kept staring at the event unfold, eyes staring intensely as I clenched my fist tighter till my knuckles turned white
"Take a look as the emblem on the leaders shoulder.." I spoke, my voice void of emotion.
They looker closer and gasped as the symbol was none order than that of crimson cross
"They'll owe me for this..." I said stoic
"What?" Yuishiro asked as kuro grinned excitedly
"If I save Them they'll owe me big time!" I smirked as I took out my mask , used mana as a shield so as to change into my Ultamia outfit, before I bought out my scythe
"Let's go kick some ass!" I grinned