Ch.108Fairy Kingdom (2)

Lilly’s charge had knocked me down, but fortunately, I was able to regain consciousness quickly.

Of course, despite regaining my senses, my stomach where I had collided with the rapidly accelerating Lilly still throbbed with pain.

[Um, didn’t you defend yourself with mana at the last moment?]

‘I tried to… Lilly’s charge was just stronger than my protective aura.’

Even though its power had been weakened by converting the mana’s properties to natural energy, my protective aura was still a form of reinforcement.

The fact that I was in this state despite using my protective aura was a clear indication of just how strong Lilly was at full power.

“I’m lucky I reacted quickly, otherwise my ribs might have been broken. Please be more careful next time.”

“Ehehe… Sorry, I thought I was hugging you like usual. Guess I was a bit too strong.”

“Well, this is the immaterial realm, so moving like you normally do creates a big difference…”

The rules of each world weren’t simply about weakening one’s body or limiting fighting time.

It was more like reducing the influence that beings from one world could exert in another.

This was why beings from other worlds typically sought contractors to operate effectively.

In Lilly’s case, however, I couldn’t form a contract with her due to her unique nature and my inability to handle the mana consumption.

‘It’s also why Luna can’t become my contractor either.’

Even though I was in the position of raising her, I doubted that taking Luna’s mana would extend my time by even five minutes.

While I was lost in these thoughts, Lilly, who had perched on my shoulder, gave me a look suggesting she had something to say.

“Ahem, hmm-hmm.”

“Hmm? Lilly, do you have something to tell me?”

“Well~ I was just thinking you must have had a really hard time after being separated from us.”

“The rules were definitely more inconvenient than I expected. It made me appreciate how amazing Lilly is, moving around without proper mana supply.”

I had a feeling about what Lilly wanted to talk about, but I deliberately misunderstood and complimented her instead.

Lilly was pleased for a moment, but quickly regained her focus and stated her original purpose.

“Hehe~ I did work hard… but that’s not it. I know a way to ease those rules a bit. Want to hear about it?”

“Ah, that’s okay. I’ll be traveling with Lilly again anyway, so I just need to cheer you on, right?”

“B-but you never know…! We might get separated again like this time. So why not just listen a bit?”

Despite Lilly’s pleading, I continued to wave off her suggestion.

Of course, after my continued resistance to her persuasion, Lilly’s patience seemed to run out.

“I believe Lilly will take good care of things. Besides, something like that probably sounds expensive and valuable.”

“Waaah…! It’s not expensive or anything!! Just listen to me! You’re doing this on purpose! I can see your mouth twitching as you try not to laugh…!”

“Pfft, I’ll stop teasing now.”

Seeing Lilly’s reaction—she looked like she might actually cry—I had no choice but to end my joke.

Of course, stopping the teasing didn’t mean I would go along with what she was saying.

“But I’m not doing this without reason. The ability I have isn’t very efficient.”

[True, True Words are pretty much rock-bottom in terms of efficiency.]

True Words were somewhat ambiguous as a finishing move, but they were a kind of trump card ability.

It was a versatile ability that could be used in various situations, and its power was strong enough to make the impossible possible.

However, True Words had one serious drawback that couldn’t be ignored.

While using ordinary True Words might be manageable, situations requiring maximum output demanded too much consumption.

“After all, it’s an ability that can affect the world itself. I can’t even imagine how much the rules would demand in return.”

“Hmph, worrying for nothing. You think I can’t handle that much? I’m the strongest in the Fairy Kingdom except for the Queen! No, I’m stronger if you exclude her blessing!”

Lilly released her mana as if to say there was nothing to worry about, and immediately a tremendous gust of wind blew.

It was strong enough to blow away not only the earth warriors listening nearby but even Luna, who had grown quite large in size.

Thankfully, other fairies who had anticipated Lilly causing trouble had prepared in advance, so there were no casualties.

However, it seemed someone’s stress levels had definitely increased.

“Princess. Didn’t the Queen ask you not to cause any trouble? Moreover, since we’re near demon territory, please refrain from excessive mana discharge.”

“Isn’t it about time you stopped nagging? I know how to control myself!”

“Princess, did you not see how your friend’s companions almost got blown away by the wind just now?”

“Ugh…! That was to show my power… anyway, I had my own deep reasons!”

“Is that what you call an excuse? I’ve served you for many long years, but somehow it seems I haven’t seen you mature even once in hundreds of years.”

The fairy, who seemed quite exhausted, skillfully cornered Lilly and continued her lecture as if she had done this many times before.

It made sense, as she must have been Lilly’s maid for nearly hundreds of years.

‘I see, Faur is Lilly’s maid in this world too.’

[Oh, you seem to know her well.]

‘Well, she was Lilly’s personal maid in most timelines. I saw her often when playing the game.’

In truth, I wondered who else could possibly be Lilly’s personal maid if not her.

Even if someone else somehow took Faur’s place, it would be difficult to keep Lilly in check and reduce the rate of incidents as well as she did.

“If this causes diplomatic problems, you won’t be the one taking responsibility. It will be the Queen who suffers again.”

“Ugh… that’s true, but if such a situation arises, I would also make an effort to—”

“Or perhaps the Princess would like to ascend to the throne herself and resolve the matter? If you’re willing to take the throne, the Queen would welcome it.”

Look how the lecture that started as a scolding had now connected to the matter of succession that Lilly had been avoiding, putting pressure on her.

If I left them like this, Lilly might actually end up ascending to the throne, so I intervened at an appropriate moment.

“Lilly will reflect on her actions, so please stop scolding her now. What she did wasn’t right, but no major problems occurred, right?”

“Frey! You came to save me…!”

“Hmm, greetings, the Princess’s friend. Now that I think about it, I had something to say to you as well. While I appreciate you being a friend to the socially limited Princess, please refrain from actions such as impersonating Apos Hunt and unauthorized use of gates. And also…”

“Uh… looks like I’ve been caught too…?”

* * *

“Ahem, I seem to have gone on for too long. I apologize for keeping you when you must be busy.”

“No… it’s all my own doing, really…”

“Well then, I entrust our troublesome Princess to your care in the future as well.”

In conclusion, I was fortunately able to escape from the swamp of Faur’s lecture before my ears started bleeding.

She had originally come to discuss this matter with the Queen, and thanks to her having a good impression of me, I was spared.

“Honestly, I thought I might receive hostile glares, but I’m relieved.”

“The Princess’s friend has already proven her innocence through actions.”

Faur added that while other fairies might remain cautious, everything would be resolved once my conversation with the Queen went well.

“Phew, I hope the conversation goes smoothly. It seems like there are various problems arising right now.”

“Unlike the Princess who doesn’t use her head, the Queen is wise. There will surely be a good discussion.”

“Hey! Faur!! Do you have to say it like that?!”

“However, unlike the Princess who is full of energy in everything she does, the Queen is quite cold, so please don’t be too surprised by your first impression.”

“Yes, certainly. If I were to imagine her based on Lilly, she might seem scary.”

When comparing Lilly and the Queen, how many people could actually believe they were family?

Not only in terms of appearance but also personality, the differences were so great that most people would likely never imagine it.

“Well… considering her somewhat hot-tempered aspects, I guess they’re not completely without similarities…”

While the Queen was certainly cold, calm, and rational, she wasn’t always like that in every situation.

‘Considering how ice pillars came flying when someone provoked her… wow, I need to be careful…’

Although such incidents were extremely rare, I made a mental note to be cautious just in case.