Speak with Your Body
Body language is one of the few ways to communicate in places where words and writing fail.
Of course, it wasn't foolproof. The Greeks used nodding to mean no, for instance. In Brazil, touching your index finger to your thumb to make a circle was an insult. In Mongolia, pointing at someone with your index finger meant "I'll kill you."
Body language was often misinterpreted, far from its original intent.
And this place wasn't just a different culture—it was a whole different world. Even the most basic gestures could be taken entirely wrong.
"Uh, no way... Do you mean I should plant this there…?"
"Yes."
Fortunately, pointing with your finger seemed to mean the same thing here.
.
Veronica reached the stream, still cradling the seed in her palm.
"H-Here, is this good?"
"Yes!"
I nodded emphatically at her hesitant question. She immediately squatted down and started digging into the dirt with her bare hands.
While Veronica busily planted the seed, I flew past her toward the bamboo grove.
A bamboo stalk bent into an arch, unable to support its own weight, lay tilted sideways. I perched in the center of its bulging stalk and carefully reviewed my status window.
Fairy lv.10 (MAX)
Traits
[Mysticism], [Pathfinder(+)]
Skills
[Dimension Corridor lv.1 (new!)], [Instinct lv.1 (new!)]
[Flight lv.5], [Evasion lv.10★], [Air Current Ride lv.4], [Ambush lv.2], [Pierce lv.10★], [Natural Affinity lv.2(+)], [Dark Adaptation lv.1], [Analysis lv.3], [Dive Bomb lv.5★], [Mana Detection lv.1], [Mana Sensitivity lv.2]
'Not bad—I've leveled up quite a bit.'
Apparently, killing those wolves right before entering the Fairy Realm had paid off. My race level, which had been 3 before meeting Veronica, had jumped a whopping 7 levels.
But...
'...No evolution?'
The status clearly said my race level was at max, but there was no notification about reaching evolution requirements.
I stared suspiciously at the "MAX" label.
• Evolution requirements not met.
Hint: Listen more closely to the voice of nature!
'...Nature?'
What the hell kind of hint was that? Nature, nature...
'Natural Affinity…?'
Among my skills, that was the only one related to nature. Looking closer:
[Wind Affinity] and [Earth Affinity] had reached lv.2, [Space Affinity] was newly at lv.1, and some locked affinity sat at lv.0.
It wasn't hard to guess the missing one.
'W-water, fire, wood, metal, earth? No—water, fire, wind, earth, space.'
The five elements of the universe. The last one was probably fire-related.
'So, to evolve, I need to level up these affinities first…'
I pondered ways to raise them. Water Affinity grew from soaking in cold stream water to wash off blood. Wind probably from flying hard against the breeze. Earth... maybe from rolling around the sunflower field. So then—
'Don't tell me I have to jump into fire…?'
An uneasy feeling crept in, but maybe just flying near flames would do.
'...Yeah, as long as it doesn't throw up some weird evolution options again.'
I tabled fire worries and turned to the skills.
This time, I'd gained two new ones.
Dimension Corridor lv.1
• Opens a corridor to the Fairy Realm from respawn point once per day.
• Saved respawn zones: 1/1
[Dimension Corridor] let me create rifts.
But according to the description, it was limited to once a day, from designated respawn points.
Hmm.
'Okay, analysis complete.'
To open rifts, I needed the [Dimension Corridor] skill. But the penalty was offset by:
Homing Instinct: Open [Dimension Corridor] to Fairy Realm anytime, anywhere.
The sub-effect of trait [Pathfinder] canceled the limit. So I could use it freely.
Skills were active; traits were passive with higher priority. Something like that.
Instinct lv.1
• Occasionally grants inspiration.
[Instinct]'s origin was unclear, but probably from the wolf fight.
'No idea on this one.'
Just that vague line. No change when I tried using it intentionally, so probably passive.
'Still, handy to have.'
Glancing lower, overall skill levels had risen. But most striking were:
'...Stars?'
The star marks next to some skills.
'What do they mean?'
Intrigued by the new feature, I examined them closely. Then [Evasion], one with a star, began glowing.
Skill [Evasion] has reached max level!
Skill [Evasion lv.10] evolves, incorporating [Ambush] and trait [Mysticism]!
Skill [Evasion lv.10] → [Invisibility lv.1]!
"...Huh?"
I gaped at the new messages.
Skill [Pierce] has reached max level!
Skill [Pierce lv.10] → [Spear Arts lv.1]!
Skill [Dive Bomb lv.5] merges into [Flight lv.5]!
Skill [Flight lv.5] → [Combat Flight lv.1(+)]!
The other two lit up too, but...
'Invisibility?'
That word dominated my vision.
Invisibility lv.1 (Mana cost: 10/s)
• Makes your body invisible.
"I-Is this for real…?"
The Invisibility I knew? The one that hides you from sight? Could I really have this skill?
"...It actually happened. The 'super strong invisible fairy' is real."
"Um, Fairy-sama…?"
As I murmured in quiet awe at finally getting a proper skill, Veronica—who'd been planting sunflower seeds—approached with a worried look.
....
Watching her, a fun idea struck me.
Bzzz.
I flew right in front of her.
"Watch me disappear."
'Invisibility.'
"Ta-da."
I showed off the shiny new skill.
"Wha—...F-Fairy-sama?"
Veronica whipped her head around in clear panic. Yep, jackpot—this skill was legit.
Invisibility. I could see her, but she couldn't see me.
With this alone, I'd have an absolute edge in hunting and survival.
'My era has finally arrived…'
Great. Time to head back to the sunflower field and wipe out those damn wolves—
Insufficient mana.
"Gah!" "Ah!"
Whiiiir—thud. "A-Are you okay?!"
For wiping them out, this skill's limit was a measly 3 seconds.
Veronica caught my plummeting body in both hands, staring down with concern.
"Hah... haa..."
It felt like I'd sprinted 100 meters flat-out. Exhausted, unable to even twitch, I leaned against her finger, catching my ragged breath.
...Good thing I tested it first. In real combat, I'd be fairy paste by now.
....
....
....
"Hoo..."
About five minutes of rest, and I stabilized.
'Seal it for combat until I get used to it.'
It'd dropped from cheat-tier to useful, but vanishing from sight for 3 seconds was still valuable.
As I brainstormed uses for Invisibility,
"Um... Fairy-sama?" "Yeah? Oh, yeah. I'll move."
Veronica spoke cautiously. I nodded and started lifting off her palm.
Squish. "Eek?!" "C-Could it be...! D-Do you have... a name?!"
Suddenly, she clenched her hand, trapping me tight, and shoved her face close, eyes sparkling.
"I-If you don't have one—I-I mean, may I ask permission to suggest names for you…?"
"No, let go first—!"
I thrashed to escape her grip, but
"Tiny, Hachu, Sugar. Wh-Which do you like? Or Chira, Sunny, Star…"
My only communication tool, the fork, was lost delivering wolf death earlier. And I couldn't overpower her physically.
Rub rub. "W-Wait! Let go—!" Pet pet. "Yaaah!"
Even glaring and snapping didn't help. She ignored it all, rubbing my head and cheeks with her thumb.
* * *
Veronica smiled faintly at the fairy wriggling in her hand.
'As expected, this must be that fairy from the legends.'
Fairy Queen Titania. The special being who adventured with the founder of Tark Kingdom—a mere rural youth back then—and helped establish the kingdom.
After founding it, she married the founder and lived happily until his death, then returned to nature with his soul.
This fairy probably wasn't Titania herself. No records of later queens existed. But the moment she entered this unique pocket dimension—accessible only to fairies and their chosen—Veronica knew.
'A new queen.'
Or the seed of one.
Royal library lore said fairy queens reborn as candidates in the human world upon death. Veronica loved that tale.
'Legends say the founder named her Titania himself, starting their bond.'
Naming a fairy forged a deep tie. Of course, as two females, no marriage, but
'...With Fairy-sama's help, I won't let their deaths be in vain.'
Fairies held great status in the kingdom.
If the kingdom learned of her, just having a fairy companion could secure Veronica's claim to the throne.
A strong bond might let her avenge her mother and brother, punish her tormentors.
'You can do it, Veronica. ...No, you must.'
Recalling faces lost one by one, grief and hatred filled her. As her eyes clouded,
Snap. "Ow!"
A sharp pain from her thumb. Startled, her grip loosened.
Bzzz!
The fairy seized the chance and escaped.
"Ptoo…!"
She spat blood from Veronica's finger, glaring fiercely.
"I told you no!" "Uh... uh..."
Veronica couldn't understand the fairy's tongue, but
"Why won't you listen..., fairy words?!"
Her gestures and expression made clear hostility obvious.
'Wh-Why…?'
She'd petted sincerely, as texts said all fairies loved. Perplexed by the clear antagonism,
"Diana!" "...?"
The fairy shouted sharply. Veronica first thought it fairy threats, but
"Fairy! Name! Diana!" "...A name?"
Diana. The fairy's name.
'She... already has one…?'
Realizing this, life faded from Veronica's eyes.