Kenneth's journey to Audoran Forest was a journey that drained all his energy. As he and Fay were waiting for Lelitia to arrive on the ground floor, drowsiness began to take over his consciousness. Fay also seemed to need a lot of rest because of the wounds she had suffered. A moment after Fay leaned on his body and fell asleep, Kenneth also slowly closed his eyes until he was completely asleep.
Once Kenneth had fallen asleep, the prince was no longer aware, even when someone entered the same room as him. Lelitia had just returned when she realized that Fay, who had disappeared since morning, had finally returned. However, with her return, Fay had also brought a strange human with her.
As soon as she entered her house, Lelitia's gaze was immediately drawn to one direction. On one of the wooden chairs in that place, Kenneth sat with his eyes closed while Fay was asleep on one of his thighs. Lelitia's gaze momentarily became sad when she saw Fay's injured body. Without needing the fairy to tell her, Lelitia already knew that the wounds were obtained because of the actions of the humans she had seen earlier.
Lelitia looked at Fay, who was sleeping comfortably near Kenneth, then turned to look at Kenneth, who was sleeping so soundly. Although Fay was a little naive and easy to get along with anyone, that was the first time Lelitia had seen the elf willing to sleep comfortably next to someone other than herself.
For a moment, Lelitia's gaze, which was usually filled with indifference, showed a complicated look as her beautiful eyes focused on Kenneth. The elf stepped forward to approach Kenneth, who was sleeping in an uncomfortable position. The elf's hand almost reached out when she was close enough to Kenneth. But in the end, Lelitia pulled her hand back and turned to look at Fay, who was sleeping comfortably.
"Fay, wake up."
Lelitia's voice sounded so sweet like honey when she spoke. Although her voice sounded too soft to wake someone, Fay was able to wake up after hearing Lelitia's voice.
Lelitia signaled for Fay to be quiet once the elf fully opened her eyes. The elf cast magic so that she could heal Fay. After Fay was okay, Lelitia signaled for Fay to follow her to leave that place.
"Thank you for healing me, Lelitia."
Lelitia nodded slightly but said nothing. Fay had known for a long time that Lelitia was not someone who liked to talk. The two of them left the room in silence and then stopped walking when Lelitia stopped walking.
The two of them sat on one of the roots of the giant tree that was Lelitia's home. As soon as Lelitia sat there quietly, Fay, who had regained her ability to fly, immediately flew to stand on Lelitia's nail.
"Lelitia, where have you been? Kenneth and I have been waiting for you since earlier."
"I know."
Lelitia answered Fay's words briefly but gently. Although her face remained as cold as before, her calm eyes showed that her personality had softened a lot when she was with Fay.
"Then, do you know that there is a large group of humans attacking the outer borders of the Audoran Forest?" Fay asked again. Lelitia nodded again to answer Fay's question. With her power, she could find out anyone who dared to enter the Audoran Forest.
"I'm sorry I couldn't come sooner, Fay."
Lelitia was in the middle of hibernating when she suddenly felt the mana instability in the outermost region of the Audoran Forest. At that time, Lelitia had tried to arrive at the scene as quickly as possible to save Fay. However, before she could do so, Fay had already met with Kenneth and received treatment from the prince of the human kingdom.
Just like when Lelitia left after observing the people who invaded the Audoran Forest, the elf felt that this was not the time for her to meet with Kenneth. Lelitia felt that there were still many things she needed to pay attention to and consider before she made a decision that would affect everyone's fate.
"It's okay, Lelitia. Thanks to that incident, I was able to meet with Kenneth."
Fay could tell that Lelitia was thinking about something serious when the elf unconsciously frowned while contemplating. The elf didn't want Lelitia to feel guilty because of what had happened to her. So, while touching Lelitia's hand, Fay also showed a big smile to her best friend.
"Besides, you've healed me now. Lelitia, you've done what you could to protect all of us."
Lelitia's hand gently stroked Fay's head after she heard the elf's words. Lelitia could see that Fay unconsciously closed her eyes while smiling after that. From her gesture alone, Lelitia could tell that Fay liked her stroking.
"About that human, you can let him stay here, Fay. It's just... can you keep my existence a secret from him? If possible, I want to secretly observe him for a while."
"Do you suspect him of being a bad person, Lelitia?" Fay asked. The elf knew that since Lelitia was used to fighting humans who tried to disturb the peace of the Audoran Forest, the elf tended to be more wary of humans than others.
Even so, Lelitia shook her head slowly. "I know he's a good person. It's just that... I think I need more time before I'm ready to meet him."
"Of course, you can still say that I've allowed him to stay in the Audoran Forest. You can also say that I have other business to attend to if he asks about my whereabouts."
"Did you know him before? You speak as if you've known him for a long time, Lelitia."
Lelitia smiled wryly, then chose not to answer Fay's question. She might have known Kenneth since he was born. But that wasn't enough for Lelitia to make decisions that affected the lives of many.