"Ah, but, for the time being, I might have to trouble you to carry me. As you can see, my wings are still unusable. If you hadn't helped me at that time, I might not have survived."
After Fay brought that up, Kenneth finally recalled Fay's initial condition. "Fay, in the first place, how did you get injured like this?" Kenneth asked in confusion. Judging from the power Fay had displayed earlier, Kenneth was certain that Fay was a fairly strong wind fairy. Moreover, Fay also seemed to be a long-time resident of Audoran Forest. Other than the person he was thinking of, Kenneth didn't believe that someone could hurt her.
"Ah... that... A group of humans entered this area and caused quite a commotion. I came in place of Lelitia to chase them away. However, it seems... I'm not strong enough."
Kenneth immediately fell into a daze when he heard Fay's explanation. With the current state of Audoran Forest, it was certain that the other princes would have no problem continuing to enter Audoran Forest and find the monster. The prince subconsciously frowned. Kenneth didn't understand. For him, Audoran Forest should not have been easily invaded by others.
"Kenneth? Are you okay?"
As if remembering something, Kenneth suddenly raised his face again. The prince looked at Fay's face, then repeated what he had previously heard from the fairy.
"Fay, who is Lelitia?"
"Of course, she is the protector who guards Audoran Forest. Kenneth, did Neil never introduce Lelitia to you?" Fay asked in confusion. Kenneth answered the question by shaking his head slowly. Lelitia. Kenneth did not think that someone who was considered a monster by humans all this time would have such a beautiful name.
"Lelitia is my best friend, as well as someone who is responsible for protecting all creatures living in Audoran Forest. She is a very strong elf, so chasing away anyone who disturbs the safety of Audoran Forest is not a big deal for her."
Fay looked very proud as she introduced her best friend to Kenneth. Throughout Fay's story, Kenneth can no longer maintain his calm expression in front of Fay. An elf. Kenneth never thought that the person he had to kill was a magical race that had been declared extinct by the people of the Avalanche Continent.
The elves were recorded as the most powerful magic users and could live for hundreds of years. They were known to have beautiful faces, regardless of their gender. Humans had always considered the elves a magical race loved by the Creator. They never lacked anything and never started disputes like what humans did.
In ancient times, some elves lived side by side with humans. They helped humans and taught them various things until humans built a prosperous life. But at one time, the elves suddenly disappeared from the Avalanche Continent. No one knew why the magical race suddenly disappeared from such a large continent. But over time, the existence of the elves was finally considered only a legend that was slowly forgotten by humans.
Kenneth never thought that such a race would still live. But hearing the news also made Kenneth doubt the success of his mission. The elves were known as the strongest race loved by mana. If such a race were the ones guarding the Audoran Forest, Kenneth wasn't sure he could wipe them all out with his strength.
After all, wiping out a race was not something he wanted to do. Kenneth did not want to become a villain who wiped out the race that had taught them to be strong. Kenneth's expression turned ugly. It was only his first day in the Audoran Forest. But hearing the truth that humans had never heard before was enough to shake Kenneth's resolve.
"Kenneth, really. What happened to you?"
Even though Fay was a naive fairy, she was more sensitive to the changes in Kenneth's expression. Fay's expression immediately changed to worried when she saw Kenneth pondering for a long time.
"I'm... fine. You can go back to rest, Fay. You fought well today."
Fay's bright smile returned when Kenneth praised her in a gentle voice. As a fairy, Fay could read someone's aura as easily as turning over her hand. One of the reasons why Fay easily got along with Kenneth was because she could feel the same aura as Lelitia from Kenneth. Fay had always liked Lelitia, who had saved her life. So automatically, she also liked Kenneth, who had done the same thing to her life.
"Kenneth, can we go to the innermost area now? You know... I'm afraid those humans will find us if we stay here. I also have to report this incident to Lelitia as soon as possible. Without Lelitia, I'm not sure Audoran Forest can be safe from their invasion."
"You... will take me to meet her?"
Fay nodded confidently after that. "Of course! Anyone who comes to Audoran Forest must get her approval to stay," the fairy answered smoothly. Kenneth unconsciously swallowed his saliva with difficulty after that. The longer he talked with Fay, the more Kenneth's desire to kill the Monster of Audoran Forest disappeared.
"Then... should we go now?"
"Of course! Take me, Kenneth! I'll show you the way!"
Although Kenneth's heart was filled with doubt, the prince still took Fay to sit on his shoulder. The little fairy took a comfortable position from her new seat. Kenneth packed all his things quickly, then started walking in the direction Fay pointed out.
But in the middle of the road, the prince suddenly stopped in his tracks. Kenneth seemed to remember something, then looked at Fay, who was once again confused by his actions.
"Fay, the deepest part of the Audoran Forest... Aren't we already there?" Kenneth asked in confusion. Earlier, Kenneth had been so focused on the fact that he had to finish off the elves that he didn't notice the fact that Fay said that they had to go to the deepest part of the Audoran Forest. A place filled with trees, until the sky was no longer visible, was characteristic of the deepest part of the Audoran Forest that humans had known so far. Apart from the place he was currently standing on, it was certain that humans didn't know that there were still other areas that they had not known about so far.
"Gosh, Kenneth. You don't know anything, huh? How could this gloomy and lonely place be the deepest part of the Audoran Forest? This place is just a wall that prevents intruders from entering further into the deepest part of the forest. In fact, without the inhabitants of the Audoran Forest to guide you, you might never find the true location of the deepest part of the Audoran Forest."
Hearing Fay's explanation made Kenneth confused as to why the Audoran Forest Guardian would allow a fairy-like Fay to roam around like this. With Fay being too trusting of others, Kenneth was confused about how the Audoran Forest still survived until now.
Such thoughts automatically made Kenneth feel a little suspicious. Although Kenneth could feel that Fay had good intentions when she was with him, Kenneth was not sure that everything would remain peaceful once he entered the place that Fay had mentioned earlier.
Kenneth knew that he was not special. Moreover, if someone were to find out his true purpose, Kenneth not sure that he could live peacefully as Fay had promised him.
"Kenneth, we will soon enter the barrier created by Lelitia. Please follow my directions carefully from now on."
Although Kenneth could not tell where they were going in a place without anything to guide them, he could feel that he was getting closer to an area with a denser concentration of mana than before. Kenneth tried to stay calm as he remembered the instructions that Fay had given him seriously. The prince took each step carefully. If he made a single wrong move in this place, his body could be destroyed by the invisible magic circle surrounding it.
"Kenneth, hold onto the tree on your right while channeling your mana into it."
Kenneth did as Fay told him, and the tree Kenneth was holding slowly emitted a greenish light that looked so beautiful. Kenneth almost panicked as his body slowly turned transparent. But when he saw Fay smiling as she looked at him, Kenneth's panic began to subside.
Kenneth felt like he had only blinked. But the next moment, he had moved to a place that took all of his awe. Kenneth could no longer hide his expression of awe as he looked at the beautiful scenery in front of him. Fay laughed again as she saw the strange expression on Kenneth's face. Fay lightly touched Kenneth's cheek before she spoke in her cheerful tone.
"Welcome to Audoran Forest, Kenneth!"