Perched on the trunk of a towering tree, a small red bird with bright red eyeballs stared ahead into the darkness, its tiny beak emitting a displeased sound, clearly annoyed.
"Didn't I tell you to stop bothering Her Majesty? She hasn't been informed yet and might be frightened by your behavior," the bird scolded, her voice barely audible with frustration.
The recipient of the scolding, a magnificent white horse with a slender body and beautiful wings, displayed clear displeasure at the bird's words. Standing at 55 inches tall, the horse was almost half the size of its impressive wingspan.
Raising her head slightly, the winged horse addressed the red bird with a hint of disdain. "Are you underestimating 'her'? How could such a great figure be afraid of a mere gust of wind?" she snorted.
The red bird remained silent, her beak tightly clenched in shock at the horse's retort.
However, a golden-furred cat, lounging on a large boulder amidst a diverse group of creatures, interjected casually, "But it's true that your wind almost blew away Her Majesty's delicate frame."
As the cat groomed his paw, the scene exuded an air of incongruity, with creatures of different species and habitats gathered in the same place.
"..."
No one dared to dispute the words of the golden-furred cat, who appeared the weakest and smallest among the six creatures gathered in the dark meadow, illuminated only by faint fireflies.
"That's right," chimed in another voice, the gentle sound emanated from the water, addressing the beautiful winged horse, accompanied by small foam appearing on the surface of the vast lake, the atmosphere grew more charged with tension.
The golden-furred cat nodded his tiny head, all the while continuing to lick his paw. "From now on, you must show kindness to the wind spirits who saved Her Majesty's body when it nearly flew away due to your inadvertence. Moreover, you inadvertently disrupted the winds meant to guide Her Majesty home."
"If 'she' discovers that you nearly caused trouble for Her Majesty, you'll undoubtedly find yourself dangling from above, your wings bound tight," cautioned the gentle voice from the water, its small giggles sounding like a mix of mockery and horror.
The words of the gentle voice from the water lingered in the air, casting an even deeper shadow over the dark meadow.
The six creatures gathered in the dark meadow possessed a distinct presence and aura, causing each of them to immediately tense up upon hearing that sentence.
Even the owner of the voice from within the lake, whose foam disappeared as if holding its breath in fear after uttering those words, and the golden-furred cat, who had momentarily ceased licking his paw, had his golden pupils shining brightly.
The white-winged horse swallowed hard, her majestic aura momentarily dimming as she seemed to envision herself being hanged. Hastily, she shook her head, dispelling the disturbing thought.
Unable to refute the accusations, the winged horse replied weakly, devoid of anger, "I wasn't careless; I was simply overwhelmed with excitement at the opportunity to see and assist her up close for the first time."
The small red bird interjected once more, her tone now tinged with satisfaction, "That's both careless and foolish of you. How could someone like you..."
"Enough," snapped the beautiful winged horse, her annoyance palpable. "I won't heed advice from someone as reckless as you, who once nearly set the forest ablaze in a foolish bet with Eggy. You have no idea how terrified the trees become; some even wither from anxiety."
"Ssss... Stop it."
The hissing sound of the snake cut through the tension, causing the gathered creatures to tremble slightly.
"Haha. You two are making quite the racket," chuckled a gentle voice from the lake. Its laughter had a calming effect, gradually easing the tension that had permeated the dim, dark meadow, dissipating the lingering hissing sound of the black snake.
"But let's not provoke Noir any further." The sound of splashing water resonated from the large lake beside the meadow, accompanied by rapidly moving ripples as if a giant fish were swimming within its depths. The sheer depth of the water seemed immeasurable.
"I'm not angry. You'll only irk Haben," hissed the small but lengthy black snake softly, before slithering behind the shadow of the giant turtle standing nearby.
"No." The giant turtle, whose shell resembled a mountain in motion, spoke in a slow, calm voice, causing the ground to reverberate with each word. "I am sleepy."
The five creatures could only stare in silence at the giant turtle as if they were powerless to hold back its desire to sleep.
"Don't sleep just yet, Haben. Her Majesty is sleeping in your shell right now," interjected the golden-furred cat, finally ceasing his grooming to leap onto the turtle's shell effortlessly.
"... Because Her Majesty is sleeping in my shell, I wish to sleep too," murmured Haben in his tranquil voice.
"Ah, it seems Her Majesty will awaken soon," remarked Haben in his composed tone, his small head compared to his massive shell appearing slightly turned as if to check on the state of his shell, which was currently serving as the resting place for a majestic and noble figure.
Upon hearing Haben's words, the five creatures reacted simultaneously, turning their attention towards Haben's colossal shell, resembling a mountain peak in the dim light.
The black snake, with scales gleaming like jewels, emerged from Haben's shadow and slithered up his shell.
The small red bird also took flight, heading towards the apex of Haben's shell, followed by the winged horse.
Meanwhile, the previously calm lake began to stir, sending ripples across its surface. Emerging from its depths was a creature resembling a large, majestic serpent, its beautiful dark blue hue towering into the sky. With its head lowered it gazed upon Haben's giant tortoise shell.
"No matter how many times I see Her Majesty, her cuteness always increases," muttered the serpent in her soft voice as she gazed upon Haben's turtle shell.
They beheld a young girl sleeping soundly, as if on a soft bed, though she lay upon the uneven surface of the giant turtle shell, akin to a mountain peak, with the cold air surrounding her due to the altitude.
"Should we take Her Majesty home or let her sleep in the Sanctuary?" inquired Noir, the black snake, his long tongue protruding as he hissed at the golden-furred cat.
"Her Majesty must go home, as she cannot remain in the forest for long with her unstable strength," responded the golden-furred cat, casting a glance around at the other five creatures, each expressing admiration and respect while gazing at the sleeping little girl.
"But I'm the one bound to accompany her home, per our bet from last month," added the cat, causing the expressions of the other creatures to shift from admiration to annoyance and envy.
"Eggy, you cheated," they chorused in unison, though none dared to argue, fully aware of the golden-furred cat's intimidating nature.
Eggy, the golden-furred cat, completely disregarded the plea of the other creatures, instead sporting a wide grin with sharp fangs protruding from his mouth, as if delighted by something.
"Haben, don't move, I'll make Her Majesty descend from your shell first," Eggy said, swinging his paw towards the little girl still sound asleep.
From the tip of Eggy's claws emerged beautiful strands of golden thread, slowly weaving together to form a delicate swing perfectly suited for the little girl's body, carefully lifting her into the air.
The little girl's body twitched slightly, and she hugged her tiny arms around herself as if feeling cold due to the chilly night temperature in the forest.
"I, I also want to help warm Her Majesty!" The small red bird flapped her wings, instantly warming the surroundings, although her enthusiasm inadvertently caused the fire to grow hotter.
The winged horse, oblivious but unwilling to be outdone by the red bird, decided to amplify the heat further with her gentle breeze, causing the fire to spread and the temperature to rise even more.
"You two..." The dark blue serpent emitted a displeased sound as the temperature around her rose suddenly due to the winged duo's actions. She let out a soft snort, and her snout moved slightly, conjuring a cluster of water bubbles floating in the air. The bubbles extinguished several scattered fires around their gathering, causing splashes of water to scatter in all directions.
Meanwhile, the black snake named Noir had long vanished into the shadows cast by the soundly sleeping girl, without anyone noticing his disappearance.
Unaware of each other's actions, the trio continued their efforts, resulting in chaos and disorder in the grassy field.
Eggy, focused on carefully flying the small girl without waking her, glared angrily at the others for making the ground muddy.
"...!!"
The three of them abruptly stopped, as if terrified to the core, under the intimidating gaze of the cat, despite its smaller size compared to them.
Haben suddenly yawned, but the gust of wind it produced affected various things, including Eggy's careful control, causing the girl to fall onto the dirty ground.
Fortunately, the girl remained deeply asleep, thanks to the small spirits gathered around her, oblivious to her fall.
Eggy glared at the four of them, growling in frustration and swatting them away effortlessly.
"Please be quiet," Eggy hissed firmly, his eyes ablaze with irritation.
"Yes...."