Chapter 50

"Don't, disturb us, eating."

"You, this, mongrel."

"We, are starting."

"Starting? This is the first time I've heard you say that. What are you going to eat? Is it interesting? Let me see."

Although the person, whose voice sounded young, seemed to be slightly disliked by the Fae, they continued to ask as if they didn't care at all.

"None, of your, business."

"Human, same as half of you, human."

"Eat, eat."

"Delicious taste, good smell, tasty flavor."

"First time, seeing, and brought in."

From the sound alone, Avia could already imagine the scene where the Fae would tear apart his clothes, scrape his flesh, and eat him like this.

He was probably the only human who had been taken away and eaten by Fae.

However, one second, two seconds, it had already been three seconds, and Avia still didn't feel any biting on his body.

Instead, after three seconds of silence, the silver-haired youth heard something fall to the ground, and—

Then, a voice that sounded extremely heart-wrenching rang out:

"Ah! Fin, finally came over here... You are... my.. is... This is my father!"

097: A Request from a Half-Nightmare

"Human, your father."

"Is, it true?"

"You weren't abandoned? That's great."

"But, I really want to eat."

"I'm not messing around, and besides, this is what the Great Mother told me," the owner of the voice continued. "You should understand by now, right?"

Regarding Fae, their origins are numerous. Some are fallen deities, residual hatred from humans or animals, lingering thoughts with nowhere to go, or beings born from human inheritance. Ordinary Fae rely on human intellect as sustenance to maintain their existence.

As for pure Fae, they are beings generated solely by the Inner Sea of Stars, meaning they are the gods among Fae, referred to as the Great Mother or Great Father, and are existences that are divine spirits of the planet.

Therefore, upon hearing that it was the Great Mother who spoke, these Fae promptly handed Avia over. After all, in their eyes, no one would say such things carelessly.

However, Avia wasn't particularly surprised about suddenly having a child out of nowhere.

Because although the Fae's tone sounded heart-wrenching, it was mostly an act. This statement was merely to deceive these Fae. As for the so-called words of the Great Mother, they were probably just to pull a fast one.

"Then I'll be taking him."

This Fae did not take the Avia handed over by the other Fae. Instead, they first picked up the staff they had dropped earlier while feigning panic. Then, using an unknown magic, they kept it floating in the air. After that, they walked through the world with extremely high magic concentration, humming a song and waving the staff.

Just as all the Fae thought they were about to enter through that door, this Fae immediately tapped the ground with the head of their staff.

Tap. The ground made a soft sound.

Instantly, vibrant colors like waves swept over Avia and this Fae.

When the waves dispersed, both of them had vanished.

When Avia came to his senses, he found himself back on Avalon Island in the real world, and he could move his body again.

"Even though the magic concentration inside was so high, a human should have their body rupture from the inside with just a single breath."

Saying this, she, who was sitting on a pile of rocks, turned towards the silver-haired youth who was slowly getting up.

"However, if you pass through that door, your body will also dissolve, leaving only your spirit. I saved you."

Avia was also quietly gazing at the other person. Because they looked familiar, resembling a smaller version of that Half-Nightmare.

"Oh my, how is it? Happy to see your daughter?"

Her lips exuded an air of interest. Although her attire was simple, it was a long robe woven from the highest quality fibers.

Sunlight poured through the sparse canopy of the trees onto her white hair and her crimson eyes, which were almost like flames.

"I am immensely grateful for your help. May I ask your name?"

"How boring. I thought you might come up with some interesting idea."

She suddenly showed a disappointed expression, but immediately, a smile appeared on her lips.

"If you want to know my name, I am a hybrid of human and nightmare, named Meli."

As expected, it was the Half-Nightmare that Avia had guessed.

It was just that her current height was only about 140 centimeters. Both her limbs and face still looked immature, which was why Avia hadn't recognized her immediately.

The legend of King Arthur takes place approximately between 500 and 550 AD. Meeting the not-yet-grown Magus of Flowers a century ago seemed plausible.

However, Avia knew the personality of this female Half-Nightmare very well. Although she appeared very amiable on the surface, in reality, she never worried about others, nor did she grieve. She was a being devoid of emotional fluctuations; in simple terms, she possessed a sense of alienation as a species, unable to coexist with the intelligent beings of this planet.

Therefore, since she saved him, she probably wanted him to help her with something.

Avia now understood that the reason he couldn't move when the Fae took him was simply because the concentration of magic there was too high, and his body needed to adapt. Now that he was back, he needed to adapt to this place as well...

"My name is Avia, and I am a Hun."

"Why are you telling me you're a Hun?" The young Meli narrowed her crimson eyes, tilting her head to gaze at the silver-haired youth. She waved her staff, "That doesn't matter. As long as you're still human, that's all that matters."

"Meli, you told me your name and origin, so I should reply in kind. I cannot hide anything."

Avia offered a gentle smile, similar to Meli's, as he looked at her with his azure eyes.

"I am immensely grateful for your help, Meli. I will surely spread word of your deeds throughout the land. If you have nothing else, please permit me to take my leave."

"Oh, wait, wait! I saved you, you know. Can't you say a few more words? Don't be in such a hurry."

Meli called out to Avia, who had turned to leave.

"I have no way to repay your life-saving grace. I will forever sing of the great deeds of the beautiful Nightmare maiden, ensuring your legend lasts for eternity and becomes a celebrated tale."

Avia truly did not want any connection with this underdeveloped Nightmare. Not only did he already bear the curse of the Rhine Gold, but dealing with such a carefree person was also very troublesome. Who knew when he might get screwed over.

"Wait—"

In truth, the moment Meli saw this human display a smile so similar to her own, she knew this wasn't someone she could fool with a few words. He was probably a troublesome fellow, but it didn't matter. She needed him to do her a favor and go to Wales in her place.

The reason Meli herself couldn't go wasn't fear or anything of the sort. Such emotions simply didn't exist for her.

It was solely because, when she had just been born, her parents, who brought her here, had entrusted her with a plea:

Meli, no matter what, you must not leave this place. When they return, the family can be reunited.

It was for this simple reason that she had never entered anyone else's dream.

Meli was half-human, half-dream demon, a being situated in such a hybrid state.

If one were born a child of a dream demon, their true nature would only yearn to frolic in the world of the mind. However, simultaneously, through the individuality gained from being human, she considered herself fortunate to be able to act using her own dreams as sustenance, without relying on the dreams of others.

She generally liked humans, yet she also clearly believed, "Humans are humans, and I am me."

However, compared to her mature self, the young Meli of today had one piece of information she absolutely needed to know—

"I want you to go to Wales and search for news of my parents. In return, I can help you with one thing."

098: Suddenly, Briskly—

Within her exceptionally rare crimson crystal pupils, the blue sky was reflected, along with the vibrant spring earth and a silver-haired human.

"Your parents?"

"That's right. After they brought me here shortly after my birth, they went to Wales. They haven't returned since, so I want to know their whereabouts."

The Half-Nightmare gazed at Avia, her small form exuding a serious demeanor.

As a wanderer of paradise, an immature form of the Court Mage and mentor from the legends of King Arthur, her mother was a maiden from Wales, and her father was a supernatural being, a Nightmare, born between the moon and the earth.

Generally, love between ordinary people and non-human or, so to speak, humanoid beings, often ended in tragic circumstances.

Take, for example, witches, who are essentially Fae-like beings. There was a witch from the Clock Tower's botany department who, after falling in love and giving birth, aged rapidly in body and appearance. Ultimately, she was abandoned. Her child, whom she bore and educated, did not kill her when she wished to die, but merely blinded her. Her child's name was Beryl.

However, there were also a few happy endings. For instance, Aoko Aozaki's mother was also a witch, but her father always cared for his beloved.

It was highly probable that this Half-Nightmare's parents, by sending her here for protection, had experienced a love similar to the latter case.

But honestly, Avia had not expected that this emotionless Half-Nightmare's request would be to find news of her parents. He had thought he would be toyed with for amusement.

But then he reconsidered; this was quite normal. After all, they were parents. Perhaps her emotional anchor was only towards her parents, and after their passing, she would become emotionless towards everything. But it would happen soon. Children born from such love would inherit either the responsibility or the abilities of their parents, and then one side would immediately perish.

As Avia remained silent, Meli continued:

"Because my parents told me not to leave this place, I can only ask someone to search for them. But over the years, you are the only human who has come here. I can only ask you."

The Half-Nightmare looked up at Avia's blue pupils from between her white hair. He lowered his head as well, meeting her gaze.

After listening quietly for a while, Avia finally spoke:

"You don't want to leave, could it be because you're afraid your parents won't be able to find you when they arrive? Are you worried?"

Upon hearing this, Meli neither laughed nor got angry. She simply smiled faintly and replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"That's right. I'm waiting for them here."

This situation now aligned with Avia's initial perception of Meli, but the Meli who had earnestly asked him to search for her parents just now was not fake either.

Just as day and night each held their own significance, although their expressions differed, neither was a counterfeit. After all, the emotions hidden deep within the heart, even if not overtly displayed, undeniably existed.

As for the Wales region Meli mentioned, Avia had heard about it on his way here. It seemed to be the main stronghold of the Holy Church in Britain, responsible for the faith and the management of mysterious creatures across the entire island. However, even with these words, rumors suggested it was actually a period of intense exploitation, as the Church did not recognize non-human entities. It was considered fortunate that they weren't directly slaughtered like Dead Apostles.

Therefore, these fantasy creatures unable to venture inland lived lives of constant apprehension, fearing the day they would be killed by humans.

As for why Meli's parents went to Wales and had not returned for so long, Avia surmised that they had likely been imprisoned by the Church.

"So, what do you say? If you help me find my parents, I'll help you with one thing..."

Meli thought she had presented her offer well, but the silver-haired human before her did not respond immediately. Instead, with a smile that was both familiar and subtly different, he looked past her.

Was this a rejection...? It couldn't be helped, it was unavoidable. She'd find someone else... but she wondered how long that would take...

She knew that most humans nowadays followed the faith of the Church, so it was only natural for them to refuse actions that could potentially anger the Church.

Although Meli's mood didn't change much, she subconsciously sighed. She was about to return to pacify the Fae she had deceived. If they truly complained to the Great Mother, she would be in trouble too—

"A child was looking for their parents, and I helped with that."

At that moment, a human voice came from behind, and the young Nightmare quickly turned to look.

Beyond the shimmering light reflecting off the lake's surface, leaving the gently swaying plants behind.

That person was briskly, cheerfully, closing their eyes and answering thus.

And on the small, quiet island, perhaps because of his voice, birdsong and the sound of wind rustling through grass and flowers suddenly erupted.

Half a month later, in Britain, in the Wales region, sharp bird cries could be heard intermittently.

Although this was a branch area of the Holy Church on the island of Britain, the closer they got, the more numerous the rugged paths became, along with repeated unevenness and slopes that seemed designed to efficiently destroy human feet.

Avia couldn't help but feel puzzled. After all, the Roman Empire had always placed great importance on roads. Even before its division, the Roman Empire wouldn't have just ignored them. And why would the Church choose such an area...

Moreover, the scent of mud, blood, excrement, and rotten fruit was mixed together, as if it had merged into the very land of Wales.

Faced with a landscape that never changed no matter how much time passed, ordinary people's emotions should have collapsed already. Rather than being an area, it felt more like a labyrinth, or a disoriented sensation of approaching death with every step, or being gradually swallowed into a monster's stomach. Some kind of grand magic must have been deployed...

Thinking to that point—

Avia suddenly took a deep breath.

Because just then, a sound had occurred. The flapping of wings echoed with a pasha pasha sound as nearly ten crows simultaneously took flight, soaring towards the not-too-distant summit.

He naturally followed the direction of the crows' flight.