Under the dazzlingly blue sky, lies a white gazebo. Little fairies toss stardust from their dainty wings.
In this enchanted scene, a tiny child sits on Eros’s lap, sucking on her finger.
“Rosedale, look at this.”
Eros stroked Rosedale’s cotton-candy like pink hair.
“This sparkling golden arrow invokes love in people. And this one is made of…”
“Lead!”
Rosedale exclaimed before Eros could finish his sentence. Her ruby red eyes sparkled like jewels, expressing her desire to be praised.
Eros chuckled at Rosedale’s enthusiasm and affectionately tousled the child’s head.
“Yes, a lead arrow. Those struck by it feel emotions of hatred and an excessive longing for things they cannot possess.”
“Scawy!” (Scary!)
Rosedale shivered, hugging her small body with both hands. Eros smiled benevolently at her, even though she hadn’t quite learnt to speak yet.
He put the arrow away and cradled Rosedale in his arms.
“One day, when you are old enough, you will shoot these arrows at humans as my messenger.”
“Hmm?”
Clueless Rosedale tilted her head and played with Eros’s short hair.
Even with the appearance of a five-year-old, it was easy to tell that she was actually a newborn fairy.
Eros smiled at Rosedale’s playfulness and spoke in a soft voice.
“My child, you will be the emissary of I, Eros, the God of Love. With my blessing, may you grow to become a source of love for humans.”
A small glow bloomed on Rosedale’s forehead as Eros kissed her.
A child born to become the messenger of the God. Rosedale, blessed by Eros, was destined to grow into a fairy more lovable than anyone else.
Rosedale smiled back and yawned through her tiny mouth.
And just like that, she was fast asleep in Eros’s embrace.
***
Many years passed.
On a sunny day, under the clear sky, the fairy realm was filled with the pleasant sound of chirps and serene trickles. The day was peaceful as usual. And in the midst of it all,
“Ah, boring..”
Rosedale was slumped at her desk, using a book thick enough to be a weapon as a pillow.
Her wavy, baby-pink hair swayed lazily on top of the book.
Above her, tiny fairies fluttered their wings, buzzing around like restless butterflies.
“No, no! You’ll get in trouble with the King if you try to fool him!”
“Miss Rosedale! Please get up before the King gets here!”
Due to the small fairies’ constant chattering, Rosedale covered her ears.
What’s the point of being locked in an alcove like this, studying and training all day and never getting recognised?
“Pathetic. If you can’t even do this much, how can you be the successor to the Fairy realm?”
Rosedale shuddered at the memory of Elpis’s chilling gaze.
The sovereign of mother nature and protector of the world tree, Elpis was the King of all fairies and elves.
Rosedale the daughter born with Elpis’s mana was meant to succeed his throne. Perhaps that’s why the stern and strict King, was especially hard on Rosedale.
Rosedale’s exceptional skills couldn’t satisfy him. Even after finishing a whole book in a day or mastering magical skills that could surpass all fairies except Elpis, he never once praised her.
“As a child born of my mana, is this really all you can do?”
“Your power is barely enough to protect yourself. Do you want to kill other fairies as well?”
“Do not shame me any further, Rosedale.”
“…….”
The thought of Elpis made her heart suffocate.
Rosedale turned her head to look out the window, feeling tears welling up in her eyes. The fluffy clouds drifted by, oblivious to her inner turmoil.
“Miss Rosedale, you can’t sleep! Please wake up! You’ll get in trouble!”
The fairies’ nagging continued, but Rosedale familiarly shrugged it off.
There’s nowhere else to go in the fairy realm. All you can see is sky, water and plants. To her it was plain and mundane.
“Ahh, I’m so bored. I’m bored to death.”
“Wake up, wake up!”
Now the fairies tugged as hard as they could at the hem of Rosedale’s dress with their tiny hands. But despite their efforts, Rosedale, who was the size of a full-grown human woman, didn’t budge an inch. If anything, she only curled up further, burying her face in her fluffy pink hair and trying to hide.
“Can you all go away? I’d like to be alone.”
“No! The King will be angry! You have to study!”
“Get up!”
“You have to study for your coming-of-age ceremony tomorrow, Miss Rosedale, get up!”
“Ah!”
Rosedale’s eyes flashed open, and she jumped to her feet. The gust of wind created by her sent the little fairies scurrying away.
Rosedale’s ruby-red eyes sparkled among the swarming fairies.
“I’ll be a grown-up tomorrow, won’t I?”
“Yes. Miss Rosedale.”
“The King said he’s going to gather all the fairies tomorrow for Miss Rosedale’s coming-of-age ceremony, and we’re going to celebrate!”
The small fairies, forgetting their complaints, happily sprinkled flower pollen around.
Even the previously annoyed Rosedale couldn’t help but smile.
‘After the adult ceremony tomorrow, I can finally leave this fairy realm.’
Within a week of her birth, Rosedale became a messenger of Eros, the God of love.
How Elpis, who usually despised races other than fairies, made an exception for her becoming a God’s messenger is unknown.
She was too young to remember, and Elpis kept it a secret.
But I do remember that no matter how much I cried, I wasn’t allowed to meet Eros from that very day. While Rosedale may not have been trained as a messenger, she was promised one thing.
When she came of age, Rosedale was granted time to go to the human world and fulfill her duties as the messengers of Eros.
‘Tomorrow, I will finally be able to go to the human world and live freely, away from this stuffy fairy realm and my father.’
As the parting came to mind, all the grass and trees and even the nagging fairies in this fairy world suddenly seemed cute. This little room, the countless stacks of books, and the traces of mana training- It’s all adorable.
“I’m going to study, so everyone leave.”
Rosedale stood up stiffly and grabbed her pen.
“No! Miss Rosedale, we can’t leave you like that!”
“If the King comes, we’ll have to stop him! He will be angry if he sees you playing, Miss Rosedale!”
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to play games anymore.”
Rosedale smiled, her face as innocent as ever. Her cherry lips stood out against her snow-white skin.
‘Because I won’t be here after tomorrow.’
On the outside, the smiling Rosedale resembled a little pink bunny.
Harmless and adorable.
***
But the next day, Rosedale wasn’t at the expected ceremony but in front of a swamp in the Forbidden Forest.
“I really didn’t want to do this…”
The murky swamp was seething, emitting all sorts of disgusting odours.
The filthy swamp, which threatened to swallow her like a liquid monster, was actually a gateway to the human world.
It was said that long ago, humans who tried to cross the swamp were killed and turned into fertiliser by the elves. This was the forest acting as a barrier to the world tree.
Why would Rosedale sneak in and stand in such a place?
“It’s all because of him.”
Rosedale’s large eyes glistened with tears.
A few hours ago-
“Your Majesty, no, Father, you can’t do this!”
Rosedale, hurried after Elpis.
“What are you trying to say?”
Elpis continued to walk, not once glancing at his daughter, who struggled to catch up with him.
“I’m Eros’s messenger. I’m supposed to go to the human world as a God’s messenger when I come of age. Why aren’t you letting me go?”
“Impossible.”
Elpis stopped in his tracks, casting a cold gaze down at Rosedale.
Rosedale’s shoulders stiffened as a sense of dread seemed to crush her entire body. But even in that state, she did not avert her gaze and looked straight at Elpis.
His voice was cold.
“You want to instil that kind of emotion in a human.”
Elpis turned to face Rosedale, and a thud shook the ground.
“You’re the fairy King’s only daughter.”
At his cold words, the plants around dropped to the ground in a prostrate motion.
“Are you going to abandon the fairies you’re supposed to protect for humans?”
“Father…”
“Isn’t that what you meant, Rosedale?”
Rosedale’s lips trembled.
Elpis looked at her coldly, his expression remained unchanged.
Elpis had always despised those Gods. He didn’t like them from the beginning. They meddled between worlds, ignoring the fairies.
‘And of all of them, Eros.’
Elpis’s eyes narrowed fiercely.
‘The most insignificant of the Gods. A rude, arrogant b*stard who dared to appoint the daughter of the fairy King his subject.’
“You are a fairy, Rosedale. Daughter of Elpis, the Father of Nature, and my heir to rule the fairies in the future.”
Elpis took a half-step closer to Rosedale and spoke warningly.
“You will not go to the human world. When the time is right, I will remove the label of a messenger.”
“Father!”
“Rosedale, I won’t say it twice.”
Elpis’s height and body remained the same, but somehow he seemed towering. His overbearing aura silenced Rosedale’s words.
Elpis looked at the pale, frightened Rosedale, then turned away with his cloak flapping.
“Go back to your room. This is the time to build up your strength.”
“…….”
Rosedale shuddered helplessly as she watched Elpis’s figure recede into the distance.
I waited so long for this day!
I wanted to learn new things, to prove myself as a messenger of the Gods, to….
If I stayed in the fairy realm, I would be stuck in the stifling position of being the heir, enduring Elpis’s pressurizing gaze.
‘…No. I can’t live like this.’
Suddenly, Rosedale’s eyes flashed with determination.
“Let’s run away.”
The grass, barely waist-deep, shuddered again at her ominous laugh.
Rosedale remembered the swamp and snuck into the forbidden forest.
“Ugh…”
Each inhale brought in hot air mixed with an unpleasant smell.
I didn’t even want to breathe the air. It felt horrible to have to throw myself into such a place. But anything would be less terrible than this fairy realm, where Elpis meddled in every aspect of life.
“All right, let’s go.”
Rosedale sucked in a breath, pinched the bridge of her nose and squeezed her eyes shut, and with a poof, her form disappeared into the swamp.
The swamp, having swallowed the fairy, gurgled.
The Fairy Forest fell into silence once more.
From somewhere, one could hear the mischievous laughter of a God.
Hello everyone! I picked up a new novel. I actually wanted to release chapter during the holidays, but it was delayed. But better late than never. Hope you enjoy reading this story !
