The Frozen Fairy Village

Sherlock stopped and rubbed his temples, feeling a headache coming on.

Iver was walking ahead of him, immediately sensed everything. He stopped and turned around. "Is everything alright, Sherlock?"

"I'm fine."

Sherlock's voice was indifferent. "I think it's because this body is too short... For the same distance, you can walk briskly while I have to jog to keep up. It's a bit tiring... I can feel the veins in my forehead throbbing."

Iver smiled upon hearing this.

But instead of saying something like "Then I'll walk slower," he casually remarked, "They're probably thirsty. After all, we haven't had much water all afternoon."

Having said that, he took a water jug from his pocket and tossed it to Sherlock.

Sherlock, dressed as a newsboy, took the water jug and poured it into his mouth without any hesitation.

Then he just sprayed it out.

"Are you crazy?!"

Amidst Iver's triumphant laughter at the success of his prank, Sherlock angrily tightened the lid of the "kettle": "I'm only thirteen or fourteen years old, and you're giving me alcohol?"

And it was strong liquor.

Sherlock could tell from just one sip that it was Theocracy Whiskey of over 40%.

The amber-colored liquor has a unique and rich roasted aroma, like roasted wheat. It also has a subtle, burnt fruity sweetness, leaving a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth after each sip.

However, Sherlock has a low tolerance for alcohol and usually needs to dilute it with water to drink it—or he can dilute it with lemon juice and honey water.

Iver simply took the bottle away slowly and handed Sherlock another almost identical water jug. "I didn't tell you there was water in this."

"That's because I trust you!"

"Don't give me that. You're just letting your guard down because you're with someone you know."

Iver said bluntly, "If someone impersonated me and fed you poison, wouldn't you drink it without hesitation? Perhaps if you had paused for a second or two, you would have sensed something was wrong. But you were too quick and drank it all—do you think I would be happy about your death? 'Oh, my friend Sherlock died because of his trust in me, I'm so happy'... Do you like that kind of tone?"

"... Tsk."

Sherlock clicked his tongue, unsure what to say for a moment.

Although I was very annoyed, rationally speaking, I felt that what Iver said did make sense. Because I couldn't refute it, I was even more annoyed.

He could only obediently drink the water and accept Iver's lesson.

"But it really is peculiar."

Seeing Sherlock's displeased expression, Iver, who had already mastered the Sherlock instruction manual, spoke up directly, "We rode the griffin around twice, but we still can't see Eagle Cape Village."

They had followed Hai Na's instructions and headed south from Bagpipe Town... but even after flying all the way to Alder Town, they still couldn't find Eagle Cape Village.

Undeterred, Iver sent the two griffin aunties back close to the ground—but they still couldn't find them.

They eventually reached Bagpipe Town, and after asking around, they learned that Eagle Cape Village was indeed nearby. With the enthusiastic guidance of a local resident, they finally found the forest path.

"Two possibilities. Either it's some kind of large barrier concealing its existence... or it's the Fairy Forest."

Sherlock was indeed distracted by Iver's words.

He looked at the path through the Dense Forest and said seriously, "Do you know the Fairy Forest?"

Iver nodded. Lily and the griffin Liz looked over curiously.

Sherlock ignored Iver and instead looked at the two ladies, explaining earnestly, "Whether it's Avalon, Star Antimony, or Iris, in those Dense Forest countryside places, there's a common legend: children easily disappear in the forest. That legend refers to the ' Fairy Forest.'"

"If a seemingly harmonious path suddenly appears in a dense jungle where you can't see the bottom or climb up to get a good view, but you didn't see anything before... then this place is most likely the Fairy Forest. Some fairies live here."

"Only those invited by fairies can enter the Fairy Forest —usually innocent, lively, and healthy children, or simple and enthusiastic young people. One of the necessary conditions is to be good-looking, and another is to have talents such as singing or dancing."

"After these people enter the Fairy Forest, they will play with the fairies. During this time, they often forget about time and remain youthful... Whenever they want to leave, the fairies will teach them something and keep them there for a while. When they finally leave, they will find that a lot of time has passed outside."

"... Isn't that great?"

Lily asked, somewhat puzzled, "Isn't this a way of extending lifespan?"

Sherlock said seriously, "These are some good-natured fairies. There is another kind of bad fairy who will forcibly leave Children here and turn them into new fairies; in order to 'increase their friends,' they will even take the initiative to abduct or steal children."

"Children who are stolen like this, even if they are rescued before they become fairies, often cannot speak human language. Therefore, the Fairy Forest is very dangerous—regardless of whether the fairies living there are good or bad fairies."

"The simplest way to identify the Fairy Forest is by the light source. If the sun is bright, but there is no light in the depths of the forest and no animals come out, then the path may lead to the Fairy Forest."

Sherlock said, pointing ahead, "For example, here—look."

The straight path disappeared into the distance.

The surrounding trees seemed to have made way for them, leaving a clean dirt road.

"It's already mid-December. The ground should be covered with fallen leaves and withered branches, but the dirt road is spotless. The fallen leaves are neatly arranged on both sides of the road, as if someone had swept them clean."

Sherlock narrowed his eyes and calmly analyzed, "Just one look and you know something's definitely wrong here, right?"

Lily lowered her head in shame.

Despite being an extraordinary being Path of Adaptation, her spiritual intuition should be dominated by a strong sense of danger. Yet, standing here, she only vaguely sensed a slight unease, without the slightest hint of crisis.

But she found it a little hard to understand.

Miss Hai Na, do you... live in the Fairy Village? But fairies are beings who Path of Beauty.

If this place truly is the Fairy Village, how could Hai Na, who hails from here, be so unsuitable for the Path of Beauty? "In any case, we must first prepare ourselves to encounter fairies."

Iver squinted, gazing into the dark, unknown space deep within the forest path, and shared some rather obscure and rare knowledge with the two. "Actually, 'fairy' is a rather unfriendly term for fairies; it's a derogatory term. Just like calling the ' Child of the Moon ' Si Cui Ge, directly calling a fairy 'fairy' will provoke their hostility."

"Compared to the Child of the Moon, fairies have a simpler way of thinking. This means they say what they think and do what they say. Even the slightest dissatisfaction will not be suppressed in their hearts, but will be expressed directly."

"The correct way to address them is 'our kind neighbors' or 'joyful creatures'... Remember that."

"But," Lily was still a little confused, "Eagle Cape Village isn't necessarily the Fairy Village, is it..."

Little Sherlock sighed.

"Still don't you understand, Miss Lily?"

He spoke in a serious, childish voice. "What Iver means is... he'd rather have fairies living in here."

As they spoke, they stepped completely into the darkness and crossed the mountain.

After a brief silence, a ray of light pierced the darkness. A lively clamor drifted through the shadows.

The brilliant golden sunset hung in the sky, illuminating the entire village and casting long shadows. People came and went, laughing and chatting happily.

—At dusk, Eagle Cape Village resembles a frozen painting.

It feels as if this place has been this beautiful for a long time, and as if this moment can last for a very, very long time to come.