I vacantly stared at the unfamiliar ceiling.
Although I couldn’t understand much of my surroundings, it was all gradually coming back to me.
Speaking of which, I came back to the fort, didn’t I?
Whilst thinking I couldn’t possibly sleep, my memory faded out the moment I climbed onto the bed. Could be because I had completely worn out my body. Thanks to a good night’s sleep, my head was now crystal clear.
As I got off the bed, the cold air lingering on the floor clung to my feet. I dressed myself in a shawl and approached the window. The sky seen through the little gap between the curtains was slightly brighter towards the east.
Looks like a fine day today.
After breathing on my freezing fingertips, I quickly got changed.
I opened the curtains and sat on the sofa with a shawl and a rug.
As I warmed myself up in a ball, I pulled out the materials I’d borrowed from Vice-Commander Walter. I wanted to find a clue no matter how small it may be.
I pulled out a bunch of old stories about the evil fairies from the pile and meticulously scanned over another piece of paper in my hand containing the title, name, and date and time the information was collected.
The story began once upon a time in a beautiful, faraway land with a boy shepherd as the main character.
The boy, whose wish to nap surpassed eating his three meals, took a day off from helping his parents today as well. The neighbour’s fields, a big tree branch behind the house, the sheep shed attic; the boy, wandering around trying to find the most comfortable spot, jumped into a mountain of straws. A small, dimly lit ball of light emerged from the pile.
He thought it was some dust at first, but that light continued fluttering around him.
The light oozed a pleasing brightness and warmth. The boy thought, If I have this light with me, I’ll be sure to sleep well!, and decided to chase after it.
The ball of light distanced itself away from the boy. It was a distance that one wouldn’t lose sight of, but also never reach.
After a chasing frenzy, before he knew it, the boy stood at the entrance of the forest.
The boy came to his senses and started to turn back.
It was already dark and so far away from his home. His parents taught him countless times to never enter the forest.
When the boy turned away, the light that had always remained out of reach approached the boy.
The boy hesitated in front of that inviting light.
Just a little bit more. A little bit more and I’ll be able to reach it.
With that light, I’m sure I will be able to sleep well today.
The boy told himself so and took his first steps into the forest laid under the night sky.
He chased after the light that he could barely reach with his fingertips. As the chase went on, he found himself looking at an old temple.
After reading to this point, I leaned myself forward.
“A temple! There’s finally a temple!”
I hurriedly turned the page over with excitement.
Following that light, the boy entered the temple.
The boy was frightened of the old statues that appeared in the darkness, but even so, he pressed on. The light then melted into a silhouette of a person.
A beautiful girl, with fiery-red hair and eyes, smiled at the boy.
The boy, captivated by her beauty, accepted her invitation and approached. As if she was sucking him in, the girl extended her hands.
A flame sat ablaze on her left hand. Her right hand was otherwise empty.
‘If you swallow the light in my left hand, you will have a peaceful sleep.’
Thus spoke the girl.
‘And what about your other hand? I can’t see anything, but what is it?’
The boy asked.
‘There is nothing. But if you wish to take it, you will be taken back to the entrance of the forest.’
The girl answered.
The boy was at a loss. Completely at a loss on what to do. If I go home now, my parents will definitely be angry. I won’t be able to take naps anymore for not helping them with work today.
I don’t like being punished, but I hate not being able to take naps even more.
After some hesitation, the boy ultimately chose the flame.
The boy intended to apologise to his parents properly after a good night’s sleep.
But the boy who swallowed the flame never woke up again.
The next day, the boy’s appearance returned to the parents.
It was the shape of the boy who always worked hard and never took a nap. He also worked himself to the bone throughout the night. When the boy’s parents, justifiably very worried, told the boy to go to sleep, the boy’s figure only laughed.
‘I’ve already slept enough for a lifetime,’ said the boy.
“…As I thought, isn’t the ending similar?”
I closed the documents in front of me and let out a dejected sigh.
If this was a game, I could only think of a wrong choice that they might’ve made in the past that leads to their Bad End. Unfortunately, this wasn’t anything like that.
I stayed in my room even after breakfast.
Today, in place of Sir Leonhard who was out doing some research, Commander Lieber was the one to escort me instead. Following the setting of babysitting me as a daughter of some wealthy family, he said he would be waiting outside of the room.
I kept reading the materials for the next few hours.
When I took a break, I gazed out the window. The sun is quite high. I guess it’s about noon?
I had a slight headache, probably from chasing small letters for too long. I massaged my temples before raising both hands up high and gave them a stretch.
I haven’t been able to put my thoughts together since a while ago.
There was something amiss, and it definitely wasn’t the dull pain pulsating inside my head.
“…I wonder what it is?”
I couldn’t get rid of the discomfort I had when I was about to realise something but couldn’t get it out.
I was sure I overlooked something, but I didn’t know what it was.
I leaned against the backrest and closed my eyes.
I envisioned the story from just now like a video playing in my head. The introduction and all that probably wasn’t all that important, so let’s skip right to the forest bit.
A little boy walked through the forest at night, chasing after a small ball of light.
Nearly stumbling on the tree roots and was close to be taken by the mud, the boy tread on dangerously.
The building soon appeared through the dense trees. It was an old temple, half-green with moss and ivy, and was sucking in all light.
The darkness visible through the cracks in the pillars was eerie, but still, the boy tread on.
He was afraid to turn back at this point and went inside.
The inside was pitch-black, and made the stone statues illuminated by the faint light creepier. The long shadows that they cast reminded him of monsters and scared the boy even more.
“The ones I’ve come across so far were all pitch-dark as well, and a little scary… It’s natural for children to be scared.”
Of course it’d be scary to see human-shaped things in the dark. Like Japanese dolls or mannequins and the like.
The stone statues in these temples will probably look different in proper lighting.
“Hm…?”
I realised something.
Let’s draw the blueprints of the temples in my head again, and look at the three places one by one. They were in various conditions; one was newly rebuilt, the other half-destroyed, but ultimately the inside didn’t differ much.
No, only one place was different.
The temple that was being renovated. There were no statues there. I thought there was nothing off since it was under construction inside, but that’s not all.
The uncle said it himself, didn’t he? They were surprised to find absolutely nothing inside.
No… Maybe it’s not the statues they were talking about.
Did he mean that there were no valuable documents, pictures, or anything of the sort?
“But… If that’s the case, the statues should have been moved somewhere else, right?”
If there were any statues in the building, surely they wouldn’t wreck the building along with it. On the contrary, if the statues were ruined from the start, replacements should’ve been made. No, well, since the building was still underway, would the statues be made later?
I thought and let out a groan.
Maybe… I’m thinking too much into it.
But I couldn’t shake the possibility once it came up in my head.
What if the temple being built is a fake?
What if its purpose is to thwart the eyes of others from the real temple that housed the sealed Demon Lord?
“What if the real one is inside the forest?”
A village came to mind as I muttered to myself. Certainly, there was a forest next to it. There might be a temple there.
It was only a feeling. Pure feeling without any basis or evidence to back it up.
But if given the choice of whether to keep worrying about it, or look it up, it was a lot quicker to do the latter.
“…Alright!”
I placed the materials down on the desk and stood up.
First, let’s ask for an escort. I head straight to Commander Lieber’s office.
I vacantly stared at the unfamiliar ceiling.
Although I couldn’t understand much of my surroundings, it was all gradually coming back to me.
Speaking of which, I came back to the fort, didn’t I?
Whilst thinking I couldn’t possibly sleep, my memory faded out the moment I climbed onto the bed. Could be because I had completely worn out my body. Thanks to a good night’s sleep, my head was now crystal clear.
As I got off the bed, the cold air lingering on the floor clung to my feet. I dressed myself in a shawl and approached the window. The sky seen through the little gap between the curtains was slightly brighter towards the east.
Looks like a fine day today.
After breathing on my freezing fingertips, I quickly got changed.
I opened the curtains and sat on the sofa with a shawl and a rug.
As I warmed myself up in a ball, I pulled out the materials I’d borrowed from Vice-Commander Walter. I wanted to find a clue no matter how small it may be.
I pulled out a bunch of old stories about the evil fairies from the pile and meticulously scanned over another piece of paper in my hand containing the title, name, and date and time the information was collected.
The story began once upon a time in a beautiful, faraway land with a boy shepherd as the main character.
The boy, whose wish to nap surpassed eating his three meals, took a day off from helping his parents today as well. The neighbour’s fields, a big tree branch behind the house, the sheep shed attic; the boy, wandering around trying to find the most comfortable spot, jumped into a mountain of straws. A small, dimly lit ball of light emerged from the pile.
He thought it was some dust at first, but that light continued fluttering around him.
The light oozed a pleasing brightness and warmth. The boy thought, If I have this light with me, I’ll be sure to sleep well!, and decided to chase after it.
The ball of light distanced itself away from the boy. It was a distance that one wouldn’t lose sight of, but also never reach.
After a chasing frenzy, before he knew it, the boy stood at the entrance of the forest.
The boy came to his senses and started to turn back.
It was already dark and so far away from his home. His parents taught him countless times to never enter the forest.
When the boy turned away, the light that had always remained out of reach approached the boy.
The boy hesitated in front of that inviting light.
Just a little bit more. A little bit more and I’ll be able to reach it.
With that light, I’m sure I will be able to sleep well today.
The boy told himself so and took his first steps into the forest laid under the night sky.
He chased after the light that he could barely reach with his fingertips. As the chase went on, he found himself looking at an old temple.
After reading to this point, I leaned myself forward.
“A temple! There’s finally a temple!”
I hurriedly turned the page over with excitement.
Following that light, the boy entered the temple.
The boy was frightened of the old statues that appeared in the darkness, but even so, he pressed on. The light then melted into a silhouette of a person.
A beautiful girl, with fiery-red hair and eyes, smiled at the boy.
The boy, captivated by her beauty, accepted her invitation and approached. As if she was sucking him in, the girl extended her hands.
A flame sat ablaze on her left hand. Her right hand was otherwise empty.
‘If you swallow the light in my left hand, you will have a peaceful sleep.’
Thus spoke the girl.
‘And what about your other hand? I can’t see anything, but what is it?’
The boy asked.
‘There is nothing. But if you wish to take it, you will be taken back to the entrance of the forest.’
The girl answered.
The boy was at a loss. Completely at a loss on what to do. If I go home now, my parents will definitely be angry. I won’t be able to take naps anymore for not helping them with work today.
I don’t like being punished, but I hate not being able to take naps even more.
After some hesitation, the boy ultimately chose the flame.
The boy intended to apologise to his parents properly after a good night’s sleep.
But the boy who swallowed the flame never woke up again.
The next day, the boy’s appearance returned to the parents.
It was the shape of the boy who always worked hard and never took a nap. He also worked himself to the bone throughout the night. When the boy’s parents, justifiably very worried, told the boy to go to sleep, the boy’s figure only laughed.
‘I’ve already slept enough for a lifetime,’ said the boy.
“…As I thought, isn’t the ending similar?”
I closed the documents in front of me and let out a dejected sigh.
If this was a game, I could only think of a wrong choice that they might’ve made in the past that leads to their Bad End. Unfortunately, this wasn’t anything like that.
I stayed in my room even after breakfast.
Today, in place of Sir Leonhard who was out doing some research, Commander Lieber was the one to escort me instead. Following the setting of babysitting me as a daughter of some wealthy family, he said he would be waiting outside of the room.
I kept reading the materials for the next few hours.
When I took a break, I gazed out the window. The sun is quite high. I guess it’s about noon?
I had a slight headache, probably from chasing small letters for too long. I massaged my temples before raising both hands up high and gave them a stretch.
I haven’t been able to put my thoughts together since a while ago.
There was something amiss, and it definitely wasn’t the dull pain pulsating inside my head.
“…I wonder what it is?”
I couldn’t get rid of the discomfort I had when I was about to realise something but couldn’t get it out.
I was sure I overlooked something, but I didn’t know what it was.
I leaned against the backrest and closed my eyes.
I envisioned the story from just now like a video playing in my head. The introduction and all that probably wasn’t all that important, so let’s skip right to the forest bit.
A little boy walked through the forest at night, chasing after a small ball of light.
Nearly stumbling on the tree roots and was close to be taken by the mud, the boy tread on dangerously.
The building soon appeared through the dense trees. It was an old temple, half-green with moss and ivy, and was sucking in all light.
The darkness visible through the cracks in the pillars was eerie, but still, the boy tread on.
He was afraid to turn back at this point and went inside.
The inside was pitch-black, and made the stone statues illuminated by the faint light creepier. The long shadows that they cast reminded him of monsters and scared the boy even more.
“The ones I’ve come across so far were all pitch-dark as well, and a little scary… It’s natural for children to be scared.”
Of course it’d be scary to see human-shaped things in the dark. Like Japanese dolls or mannequins and the like.
The stone statues in these temples will probably look different in proper lighting.
“Hm…?”
I realised something.
Let’s draw the blueprints of the temples in my head again, and look at the three places one by one. They were in various conditions; one was newly rebuilt, the other half-destroyed, but ultimately the inside didn’t differ much.
No, only one place was different.
The temple that was being renovated. There were no statues there. I thought there was nothing off since it was under construction inside, but that’s not all.
The uncle said it himself, didn’t he? They were surprised to find absolutely nothing inside.
No… Maybe it’s not the statues they were talking about.
Did he mean that there were no valuable documents, pictures, or anything of the sort?
“But… If that’s the case, the statues should have been moved somewhere else, right?”
If there were any statues in the building, surely they wouldn’t wreck the building along with it. On the contrary, if the statues were ruined from the start, replacements should’ve been made. No, well, since the building was still underway, would the statues be made later?
I thought and let out a groan.
Maybe… I’m thinking too much into it.
But I couldn’t shake the possibility once it came up in my head.
What if the temple being built is a fake?
What if its purpose is to thwart the eyes of others from the real temple that housed the sealed Demon Lord?
“What if the real one is inside the forest?”
A village came to mind as I muttered to myself. Certainly, there was a forest next to it. There might be a temple there.
It was only a feeling. Pure feeling without any basis or evidence to back it up.
But if given the choice of whether to keep worrying about it, or look it up, it was a lot quicker to do the latter.
“…Alright!”
I placed the materials down on the desk and stood up.
First, let’s ask for an escort. I head straight to Commander Lieber’s office.
