Inside a quiet room furnished with understated elegance, a noble and beautiful figure sat beside a table, carefully trimming the flower stems in a vase.
Judging by her appearance and her human-like stature, she could be identified as a fairy of the Wind Clan.
From a distance, her long hair seemed woven from gold, cascading over slender shoulders beneath a laurel wreath. Colorful wings fluttered gently in rhythm with her breathing. Her pale, lustrous arms, smooth as polished jade, held a delicate pair of scissors poised around the flower stems. Completely absorbed in the art before her, every movement was poised and graceful, as though a goddess had descended into the mortal world.
Bang!
Just as the blonde Wind Fairy was wholly immersed in her work, the door was abruptly thrown open and an ordinary-looking attendant rushed inside.
"Chieftain! Chieftain!"
Snip...
The sudden interruption made the blonde Wind Fairy's hand jerk. The gold-trimmed gardening shears came down and completely severed one of the protruding stems.
"What is it? Why are you shouting? I seem to recall teaching all of you what composure and etiquette mean..."
With her back still facing the doorway, the blonde Wind Fairy went rigid. Her chest rose and fell as she took several deep breaths before finally calming herself enough to turn around.
Her tone remained mild, but veins seemed to be standing out along the arm gripping the gardening shears.
The attendant looked at the Chieftain's radiant smile and immediately felt a chill run through them. They hurriedly stammered out the report.
"Th-there are... three humans that some fairies brought here..."
"New ones?"
"Yes! They're very beautiful and look extremely noble. Their clothes are elaborate too!"
At the attendant's confident report, the blonde Wind Fairy's amber eyes lit up, excitement and anticipation appearing on her face.
Nobles!
They must be human nobles!
Those tasteless idiots only ever brought shallow commoners here. What did they know about beauty? About fashion and art?
Honestly, they were doing nothing but wasting my precious time!
At last, I'll get to see what upper-class life is really like. And I'll be able to add so many new things to my collection.
"What are you standing around for? Hurry!"
With that thought, the blonde Wind Fairy immediately tossed aside the gardening shears and rose from her chair. Still maintaining a measure of restraint, she frowned and gave a soft, impatient snort.
The attendant snapped back to attention, nodded hurriedly, and led the way.
Once the blonde Wind Fairy had left, the empty room revealed itself in full.
The flowers in the vase still spread out in a colorful, disorderly arrangement. Beside the exquisite gardening shears on the table lay only two or three scattered scraps of clipped stems.
That was the result of four or five hours spent sitting there, utterly devoted to art.
There was also a large full-length mirror hanging in a brightly lit spot. Whether by coincidence or design, it happened to face the table, chair, and vase directly...
At that moment, the elegant blonde Wind Fairy walked slowly along a winding, picturesque corridor until she reached the door of a quiet chamber in the rear courtyard of the Great Cathedral.
The place was not only secluded and peaceful, but Magecraft arrays had also been arranged all around it.
Naturally, besides providing visitors with a pleasant setting for conversation, they also prevented valuable merchandise from escaping.
Just before stepping inside to receive the distinguished human guests, the blonde Wind Fairy put on an elegant, gentle smile, warm enough to make anyone instantly feel at ease around her.
Then she entered.
As light and shadow shifted around her, she swept her gaze across the room, ready to inspect the visitors.
The instant her eyes landed on a certain person, they froze.
Horror flooded her face.
The next second, the Wind Fairy stiffly turned around and bolted without the slightest hesitation.
But before she could get away, a pale, slender hand settled gently on her shoulder.
A mild whisper sounded beside her ear.
To Aurora, it might as well have been the murmur of a demon.
"Why are you running?"
"S-sorry, I... I took the wrong way..."
"That doesn't seem right. You should be Aurora, the owner of the Great Cathedral and Chieftain of the Wind Fairies. We've been waiting quite a while. I've heard that you're remarkably approachable. I never expected you to make a joke like this."
Samael spoke with a pleasant smile.
At the same time, the resonance of Divine Words woven subtly into his voice reached this old acquaintance with perfect clarity.
The dignified Wind Clan Chieftain instantly went pale, her legs nearly giving way beneath her.
Weren't the gods supposed to have fallen asleep?
Why is this demon still walking around on the surface?
And how did he find me here?!
Could it be that they found out I secretly slacked off during the War of the Covenant and refused to enter Paradise afterward?
Aurora's thoughts spiraled wildly.
The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became.
Looking up at the smiling face of that ancient deity, she trembled like a quail trapped beneath the talons of a great eagle.
"We heard that you're the fairy in the Nameless Forest who shows the greatest goodwill toward humans. You're also known for your noble character and for never refusing someone in need. So there's something we'd like your help with. If you don't mind, why don't we go inside and talk?"
After an unseen exchange that no one else noticed, Samael's smile became even brighter.
He offered Aurora another round of pointed praise while casually guiding her back into the room.
Faced with this particular "request," the famously helpful "paragon of virtue" among fairies wore an enthusiastic and elegant smile as she sat down beside Samael, trembling all the while.
"I... I love helping humans more than anything! Whatever you need, just ask. I'll definitely take care of it!"
After saying that, Aurora carefully glanced toward the demon beside her.
Morgan relaxed considerably after receiving such an enthusiastic promise.
However, she also noticed that the Wind Clan Chieftain's smile seemed unusually stiff.
And perhaps it was only her imagination, but that enthusiasm was beginning to border on outright fawning.
"You two... know each other?"
The Witch frowned slightly and nudged Samael with her elbow, asking in surprise.
"I'm just a swordsman pursuing my training. I met Aurora while traveling through Britannia some time ago, so you could say we know each other fairly well."
The Ancient Serpent answered casually, though the corner of his eye remained fixed on the Wind Clan Chieftain.
"That's right! Samael helped me quite a lot in the past. Since you've come all the way to the Great Cathedral, whatever you need me to do, just say the word."
Aurora jolted like a wound-up doll.
She immediately forced her approachable smile back into place and nodded repeatedly.
Her eagerness to help was so intense that it practically poured from her eyes, carrying something dangerously close to pleading.
Terrifying!
Absolutely terrifying!
Just remembering what this demon had done to her in the past made Aurora tremble all over.
And now she even had a guilty conscience hanging over her head.
If Samael were not supporting her, she doubted she could even walk properly.
Whatever you want, please just say it already.
Let me finish this quickly and send this walking disaster away!
Fortunately, the oppressive atmosphere did not last much longer.
Morgan, who was leading the discussion, soon explained why they had come.
"You want to hold an auction at the Great Cathedral and use it to lure out Foul, the Earth Clan Chief?"
Once Aurora understood their request, she visibly relaxed.
Thank goodness.
This had nothing to do with her.
"I can guarantee that news of the auction will reach every corner of the Nameless Forest. No matter where Foul is hiding, he'll hear about it. But there aren't many things in this world that can tempt him. Those little dwar... Ahem, those Earth Fairies... don't understand art at all! All they ever do is shut themselves inside their workshops and fiddle with boring creations. They drag down the aesthetic standards of all fairies!"
As her tightly wound nerves finally relaxed, Aurora gradually shed her usual gentle, elegant facade and began complaining about her fellow fairies with open disdain.
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