“Whew… That was a close one… I would have been dead if Carol caught me.”

  If someone were to ask me what’s the best way to escape someone, I’d probably tell them to find a way to disappear from the face of the Earth. I followed my own advice and ran to Ebrilyon. This would have worked on any normal person, but Carol is one of the few people that can follow me here if she wants. She can probably easily deduce where I am too… Gotta watch my back…

  I caught my breath in front of the fast-travel station. The streets on this side are always more bustling than on Three Records.

  She wasn’t exactly that angry, was she? Would she actually follow me here just because of a little hug with Narumi? No way to know for sure. I came here without thinking, but… What now? I should be able to blend in if I can just find something to do… What are Ririna and Sarasa up to? Maybe I should reach out to one of them…

  “Ah! Iroha, there you are! I’ve been looking for you!”

  The metallic clicking and clanking of a chest plate approached as a familiar face with wine-colored hair ran towards me. She had a soothing aura and waved with a smile on her face.

  “Hey, Flanne. What are you up to? Out on patrol?” I waved in return, but as soon as she got close enough, she grasped my wrist with both hands.

  Catch~! “Patrolling? Yeah, something like that.”

  Woah… I came here to escape someone, so why do I feel like I’ve just been caught? By a girl who’s technically a soldier, no less…

  “Ahahahaha… Okay, I see… So, uhmm… Were you looking for me?”

  She’s not letting go. Her eyes were closed, and her smile only got wider. Why does she look so happy? So pleased? “Mhmm mhmm! That’s right! I need you to come with me to the castle. I need you to tell the princess how hard I worked so I can get some days off.”

  “Why am I supposed to help you negotiate with your boss? Sounds like a pain!”

  “Don’t be silly. That’s exactly why I need you to come with me. Also, it’s another opportunity to meet with the princess! Aren’t you excited?”

  “The same princess who dragged me into her problems a few times now? Who would want to meet her again?” Without her smiling face even flinching, she pulled me toward the castle. *Sigh…* It’s unfair to say she drags me into her problems… She’s helped me out a ton too, hasn’t she? “Okay, fine. You can stop pulling me now. I owe you one, anyway.”

  Flanne opened her eyes, now with a normal, happy expression. “Very cooperative of you. Thank you.” She let go of my wrist, and we now walked side-by-side, with her just normally holding my hand. “Still can’t let you go, though. Can’t risk you running off on me.”

  “Wha-!?” We’re just holding hands then! No jokes, no gimmicks? Doesn’t she have any shame?

  She instead just giggled. “Let’s go.”

  We walked to the castle, looking like lovers and making me feel very conflicted on the way there. I can hug Narumi as a friend, but this might actually be cheating… What’s Flanne thinking?

  The main hall of the castle was as tall and impressive as always, but it wasn’t our stop. Bea, for being a princess, isn’t as flashy as one would expect. Her office was pretty inconspicuous, and we had to walk through a lot of basic and twisting stone hallways to get to her.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  “Listen… Thank you, Iroha…” Flanne said while guiding me through the maze.

  “Huh? For what?”

  “For dragging me back to the Forest of Illusion.” She calmly continued. “You see, when I renounced the title of Queen of Illusions, I was ready to give up on everything. I gave up on my home, and I gave up on Hilde. If it wasn’t for you, I might have spent decades, maybe even centuries, in human territory without ever realizing that I still had a home I could return to. So thank you.”

  There was something very tender in her voice. Made me blush… “I- It was nothing, okay? In fact, I should be the one thanking you. You went there all the way with us even though you were scared of finding how they felt about you… That’s very impressive…”

  We could have thanked each other back-and-forth for hours, but it wouldn’t have made our lives any more meaningful. So Flanne just smiled.

  This feels too real.

  “So… If you can actually live for centuries, does that mean you’re not human? I guess since you were born in the Forest of Illusion, that makes you a fairy instead, huh?”

  “Well… It’s complicated… Personally, I’d say I’m both a Fairy and a human. Each Pillar of the world is sovereign over a specific element, and every living being has a specific combination of those elements. I may not have become a human like humans become humans, but the combination of those elements in me is as close to a human as possible. It just happened that I was given life like a Fairy. What do you think? Which one am I?” She curiously turned her head to the side.

  “Mhmm…” Complicated question… Very complicated indeed. “Well, it doesn’t matter. Human or Fairy, you’re still Flanne to me.”

  She didn’t seem unhappy with my answer. That’s good.

  “More importantly, now that you know you can go back to the Forest of Illusion, are you going to go back home?”

  “Huh?! No way!” What kind of question was that? Flanne waved her hand in front of her in denial. “Didn’t you see how boring it was next to the Pillar? Nothing happens there, you know! I may visit Hilde sometimes now, but no way I’m staying.”

  “You hate it that much, huh…? At least you can see each other again. Good for you.”

  …

  Bea’s office was bright with a big window behind her desk and the sun shining outside.

  She sat there while I borrowed the couch for guests, and a madwoman raved in front of her, singing her own praises.

  “To sum it up, I was solely responsible for guiding our large party through the confusing depths of the Forest of Illusion. I played a vital role in maintaining cohesion, mentally and physically, and I successfully delivered us to the Pillar of Void, helping our group be some of the first humans to see the Pillar of Void. In light of my achievements, I believe the number of days off I receive should be increased as soon as possible!”

  Flanne’s performance was almost theatrical, and Bea watched with an amused smile. Can anybody take this seriously?

  “As a witness to my achievements, Iroha will attest to everything I’ve just said. Right?”

  “Uh? Yeah… Flanne was a great help, and I’m very thankful for her.”

  “Thank you, Iroha. There you have it, princess. May I hear your response now?”

  Bea nodded without responding, then her eyes shifted towards me. “Is she coercing you?”

  “No…?”

  “Are you sure?” Flanne, what have you done that she doubts you this much? “*Sigh…* Fine. If you want time off, I’ll give you your time off. Since everything is ready for the tournament, you can take the next three days. And you can clock out now too.”

  “*Gasp!* Really?” Flanne was the happiest I’d ever seen her. “Princess… Thank you so much! I’ll take you up on your offer then.”

  She skipped toward the exit, twirling before she left. “I’m going to start off with some soothing tea… And then… I still have to figure it out.” She then opened the door. “Take care of yourself while I’m away, princess. Ah, and you too, Iroha. Thanks and see you later!” She was already off in dreamland.

  Her strange exit was supposed to leave a certain silence in the room. The kind that would leave us thinking, ‘what was that about?’, but instead…

  “Heh… What an idiot.” Bea snickered.

  “Bea? What was that? I don’t like the sound of that.”

  “Don’t be scared, Iroha. I got her out of the room so the two of us could speak without any interruptions.” It was all part of a plan? I think I should be scared then. “‘Don’t say this, don’t do that’… It’s always like that with her. Without Flanne to nag me, we don’t have anything to worry about.”

  “I’d say you’re a reason to worry, but whatever. What do you wanna talk about? Did you really need Flanne out of the way?”

  “It’s something that can stay between the two of us for now, yes.” Bea got up from the desk and walked around the couch, sitting across from me. “You know how we have a tournament starting in the next few days? Are you interested?”

  Tournaments are fun to watch. I don’t know any of the fighters, but I’d probably have a good time. “Sure… As much as anyone else, I think. It’s hard to get super excited when I don’t know what to expect.”

  Bea pouted a little. “You’re as blunt with me as always. If a princess asks you about an event she’s organizing, you’re supposed to be excited even if you have to fake it, you know? Then again, that’s what’s good about you.”

  Bea shrugged her shoulders, then leaned forward.

  “Either way, I wasn’t talking about just watching. Are you interested in participating? Have you thought about it?”

  “N- no… Not really… I only learned about this before leaving for the Forest of Illusion. I don’t know much about it. There was a prize, wasn’t there? Then Flanne said I wasn’t eligible or something, so I forgot about it.”

  Bea nodded calmly. “See? This is why I needed her out of the room. She was assuming you wouldn’t be interested in the prize, but there’s nothing in the rules that says you can’t join.”

  “Oh… That changes things… What’s the prize then? Is it good?”

  Bea sat up straight with a smile, then poked her own cheek without saying a word. Is she thinking about how to explain it? “Huh?” She tapped her cheek a few more times. “What? Are you going to tell me or not?” D- did I just piss her off? Her smile faltered, and she poked her face frantically now. “Wait… No way…”

  “*Sigh…* You finally got it… That’s right! I’m the prize! The winner gets to marry me!”