Chapter 7
After a brief stare off between the wisp and the women, the small spirit slowly drifted closer.
It hovered around them in a lazy circle, tilting its head as if examining them from every angle. Its faint blue glow illuminated their faces one by one, curiosity unmistakable in its movements.
Then, without warning, it stopped.
Turned.
And floated in the opposite direction.
“…Chief,” Yara said quietly, her voice barely breaking the silence. “Is that what I think it is?”
Aiza’s ears twitched. Her gaze sharpened.
“Indeed,” she replied. “A blue wisp.”
A murmur rippled through the group.
“We follow it,” Aiza continued without hesitation. “They are rare, especially these days. Alert the others. Stay close.”
“Understood!”
The formation shifted smoothly as the wolf beastkin moved, feet barely disturbing the forest floor.
Anticipation welled within Aiza’s chest as she followed the faint glow deeper into the forest.
Blue wisps were not just rare, they were revered.
Wisps, after all, came in many forms.
Yellow wisps were harbingers of luck and wealth.
Pink wisps guided souls toward lost loved ones, rekindling bonds torn apart by time and distance.
Green wisps and on rare occasions blue led the lost, guiding those without direction toward purpose, destiny… or awakening.
Red wisps brought trials. Hardships. Challenges with uncertain rewards.
And black wisps,
Those were omens. Calamity incarnate. Creatures best avoided at all costs, often found haunting ruins and forgotten battlefields.
A blue wisp.
If the legends were true, then whatever lay at the end of its trail.
Aiza slowed.
Then stopped.
Her raised fist halted the entire group instantly.
“Chief?” someone whispered behind her.
Yara noticed at once and relayed the signal, her expression tightening.
All eyes turned forward.
There it was.
The famed blue wisp, said to appear only once in a lifetime, hovered silently ahead of them.
The forest grew unnaturally quiet.
No insects. No wind.
Everyone held their breath.
Then, the wisp chirped.
Joyfully.
It spread its tiny arms wide, bobbing in the air as if trying to convey something. Excitement, perhaps. Or welcome.
A faint glow emanated from its body.
Soft at first.
Then brighter.
And brighter.
Eyes widened.
Instinctively, hands rose to shield faces as the glow intensified, flooding the forest with radiant blue-white light.
It was as though dawn itself had descended upon them.
The darkness was erased. Trees, roots, and earth were bathed in brilliance.
Awe seized them.
Fear followed close behind.
Then,
A voice echoed from within the light.
Gentle.
Warm.
Carrying a hint of amusement.
“You’re lost, little ones?”
The glow slowly faded.
Enough for shapes to form.
Enough to see.
Descending before them was a man, bathed in spectral blue light, his presence calm and overwhelming all at once. His features were delicate, almost ethereal, yet his expression carried the gentleness of a patient guardian.
He landed softly before Aiza.
“You must be their leader,” he said, smiling faintly.
He extended his hand, a simple gesture of goodwill.
What he received instead was,
THUMP
“…Eh?”
The sound echoed louder than expected.
Before him, every single wolf beastkin had dropped to one knee.
Heads bowed.
Silence.
Soobin froze.
His hand remained awkwardly outstretched as realization struck a beat too late.
“…This again,” he muttered under his breath.
—
Everyone knelt before the legendary being.
Something spoken of only in myths,
A supreme entity said to govern spiritual beings.
A Fairy King.
“It is an honor to meet you, Your Majesty,” Aiza said, lowering her head. “I am Aiza, and these are my kinsmen. I deeply apologize for trespassing upon your domain.”
“Trespassing…?” I echoed, blinking. “No, I believe you’ve mistaken me for someone else.”
“No,” she said firmly. “You are unmistakably the Fairy King.”
…Huh?
First a forest spirit.
Now a Fairy King?
Wasn’t it usually a Fairy Queen?
Wait.
Don’t tell me,
Am I in a gender-reversed world?
I slowly scanned the group.
Most of them were women, broad-shouldered, tall, radiating the kind of rugged presence I was all too familiar with.
Muscles attractively proportioned without being excessive. The type that would laugh loudly, swing axes, and clap you on the back hard enough to bruise.
Then my eyes landed on the only two men among them.
One had his hands clasped together near his chest, eyes sparkling like he was staring at a shooting star mid-wish.
The other clung tightly to his partner’s arm, half-hidden behind her, tail swishing nervously.
Both were short.
Both delicate.
…Yep. That confirms it.
I resisted the urge to sigh.
So if I ever make male friends here, I guess they’ll be the gentle, shy type.
Or rather… in this world’s standards, feminine?
I was so lost in my thoughts that I nearly missed it.
Aiza.
She was fidgeting.
Shifting her weight from foot to foot, ears twitching, hands curling slightly. Like someone desperately trying not to look like they needed to excuse themselves.
I smiled wryly.
My feet touched the ground as I let my form settle, the spectral glow dimming to something more… manageable.
“My apologies,” I said lightly. “I was lost in thought for a moment.”
“N-no! It’s quite alright!” Aiza replied quickly, flustered. “Truly!”
I nodded, deciding not to press the issue.
Even if I wasn’t particularly superstitious, I couldn’t really blame them. If someone with a delicate face, glowing faintly in the middle of the forest, suddenly descended from the sky and spoke to me.
Yeah. I’d probably assume something divine too.
Karma, I suppose.
For getting a little too mischievous earlier.
“Well then,” I said, clasping my hands behind my back. “May I ask what brings you brave souls here?”
If I couldn’t escape this misunderstanding, I might as well lean into it.
“Yes,” Aiza replied, regaining her composure. “We were tracking a bicorn that attacked our village. Its trail led us all the way here.”
“Oh,” I said slowly. “You mean…”
“Yes?” Her eyes sharpened. “Did Your Majesty perhaps deal with that insolent beast?”
“Well…” I scratched my cheek. “You could say that I did.”
A murmur rippled through the group.
“As expected of the Fairy King!”
“To think he would personally intervene!”
“Our village is saved!”
I raised a hand.
“But,” I added casually, “would you still seek revenge if you knew…”
Aiza tilted her head. “Knew what?”
“If that same creature,” I continued, glancing behind them, “is standing right behind you?”
Silence.
Every single one of them turned.
Behind the group stood a unicorn. Pristine white, horn gleaming faintly under the moonlight, posture calm and utterly unbothered.
The bicorn they had been hunting.
Its ears flicked once.
And then,
It gave a very polite snort.
