Chapter 376: Descendant of the Fairies
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 376: Descendant of the Fairies
“The space is about to collapse,” Jin said, feeling the subspace vibrate.
“Indeed. It’s a good thing we didn't destroy it, just as you said.” Valeria stood, lightly dusting off her robe. “That was a rather intriguing conversation, Jin Runcandel.”
In the three hours they had spent inside the subspace, the two had shared a great deal of information. It was mostly Jin speaking and Valeria listening.
He told her everything about his life—from his time as her disciple in a past life to their reunion as comrades in this one. Of course, this wasn't just a pointless life story; it was a necessary exchange of information between allies. He spoke of becoming a Contractor of Shadows at a young age (though in truth, it had been since his rebirth), the various secrets of the world he’d learned as a cadet, the assets he’d gained as a reserve flagbearer, the trials he’d faced since becoming a flagbearer, and his plans for the future… all the way to the events that led him to her.
Valeria wasn't just being polite; she was genuinely, deeply interested in his story. She felt the sheer weight of experience the man named Jin Runcandel carried was incredibly heavy.
He's only nineteen, yet he's experienced so much.
Of course, Jin also knew what kind of life Valeria had led, even at only seventeen. He knew better than anyone that her brief childhood happiness had ended abruptly, forcing her to endure a solitary, ascetic existence ever since.
That was why the words Valeria spoke just before the subspace completely collapsed felt so poignant.
“You knew what I was commemorating earlier, didn't you?”
“I did.”
“It was for the Grey Owl Mercenaries—my dead family. After they were slaughtered by the Zipple, I resolved never to let anyone else by my side again.”
Valeria met Jin’s eyes. She looked as if she were about to say something more, but then she sealed her lips.
“Why?”
“It’s nothing. Anyway, after hearing your story, I think our work together has become a bit clearer.”
Jin was inwardly surprised that she had been the first to mention the Grey Owl Mercenaries. He also felt like he knew exactly what words she had just swallowed.
Fsssss…
The collapse of the subspace accelerated. Particles of spirit energy, fluttering like black pollen, scattered in all directions and vanished.
Though they had spent only about three hours inside, it was nearing noon in the outside world.
[They’re here!]
[The kids are back, Lady Shilla!]
The catfolk, Lulu and Miru, were the first to welcome them. They were huddled together under the spirit energy armor cloak Jin had given them, looking like a giant ball of fur.
The torrential downpour had stopped. The clouds had cleared, and a brilliant sun shone down.
[You have returned.]
Shilla flew toward the two, her voice weary. Even with the ethereal light unique to fairies flowing from her body, she looked haggard. It was only natural, considering she had been betrayed by her own kin and had killed her only brother with her own hands, all in a single day.
“I didn't realize so much time had passed. Did any more pursuers come while we were away?”
[No. I heard someone is blocking those attempting to approach the forest.]
“Who…?”
[That person called herself Green Rose.]
[Yeah, Green Rose. She said you’d know who she was if we told you that.]
[I’ve never seen a human find us so easily.]
[We didn't even realize Green Rose was standing right next to us!]
Lulu and Miru had spent the night hiding and watching the forest entrances, worried about pursuers. At one point, they had turned their heads only to find a smiling Yona standing right there. They had been terrified and tried to flee, but Yona had simply found them adorable and introduced herself with her new alias.
Sister Yona helped me.
While he felt grateful, a chill ran down his spine.
Just how long has she been following me…?
He hadn't had an inkling. That meant Yona could have killed him at any moment if she’d had the mind to. Of course, he knew she would never do such a thing.
[What’s your relationship with Green Rose? She’s an ally, right? Not an enemy pretending to be an ally?]
“We’re very close, fortunately. She’s an ally.”
Lulu and Miru let out sighs of relief. They had judged that if Yona were an enemy, even Jin would have been no match for her.
I don’t know exactly when she started trailing me, but at least the fact that I came to the Wantaramo Forest with a Record Mage won't reach the Zipple.
There was no need to leave the forest in a hurry, either. While in the subspace, he had worried that the situation outside might be so dire that he wouldn't get a chance to speak with Shilla.
Jin met Shilla’s eyes.
“It seems 'Descendants of the Fairies' was just a name people gave you, Lady Shilla. You aren't descendants, but…”
[Nothing more than fairies who lost their honor and were cursed by a witch,] Shilla answered, her tone self-deprecating. [We are hideous beings. We killed powerless humans who happened upon us, traded King’s Liquor with those in power, and rotted away, stagnant in our own little world.]
At that moment, Jin recalled the final detail he had seen in the records of the King’s Liquor.
By then, the fairies had forgotten most of their memories from when they were true fairies. They had only returned to existence by borrowing Heluram’s power; they hadn’t truly reclaimed their ‘selves.’
It wasn't just their memories of being true fairies that they had forgotten. Most of the fairies, excluding Shilla, were even forgetting what Heluram had done and said to them.
It was because they were bored.
A life without purpose, meaning, or hope was nothing but an endless succession of boredom. And so, they found amusement in killing the humans who stumbled into their forest. For them, that was enough.
Only Shilla, as their queen, had agonized over their future.
“…Even so, you kept Solderet’s message.”
[It was not I who kept it; it was kept because you came for it. You are the promised Contractor, the one awaited for a thousand years. Therefore, I did nothing to uphold my promise to Solderet.]
“There’s a saying among humans: the best way to displace guilt is to hate oneself. But you aren't human, Lady Shilla.”
Jin paused for a moment.
“So, look at it clearly. You made a mistake long ago, paid a harsh price, and were cursed on top of that. Yet, while the other fairies were completely losing themselves, you did not forget Solderet’s message. That is enough.”
As Jin finished speaking, Shilla’s wings trembled slightly.
[…Thank you.]
“I might have overstepped. Thank you for taking it well.”
Shilla’s gaze turned to Valeria.
[Come closer.]
Valeria stepped before Shilla. Her expression suggested she had already sensed something.
[What did you feel within the records you saw through the King’s Liquor?]
Valeria slowly closed and opened her eyes.
“Upon entering the Primeval Forest, I felt a strange, almost painfully nostalgic emotion.”
[That is because your soul originated from that place.]
“My family has existed since the 1400s. It is now 1799. There is a vast difference in time compared to the records contained in the King’s Liquor.”
[Yes, the records I left are from a thousand years ago. Nevertheless, your soul is rooted in the Primeval Forest.]
“On what grounds are you so certain?”
[A human using the surname Hister visited me once before.]
Valeria’s eyes widened.
[That human’s name was Minka Hister. Like the kin I betrayed, and like you, she had that same unique, unforgettable red hair.]
Minka Hister.
Valeria knew that name. She was the progenitor of the Hister family and the first person to leave behind a ‘Heritage Site.’
She was also the first human to use record magic. All the record magic unique to the Hister family began with Minka.
“…Why did the progenitor visit you, Lady Shilla?”
[To let it be known.]
“What?”
[That the fairies who fought against the Zipple until the very, very end… were all forgotten. And that before they were completely forgotten, before they eternally vanished as existences, they left behind a single spark…]
Shilla’s body turned a shade of red. Remorse, sadness, resentment—a violently surging vortex of emotions was tearing at her chest.
[And that she herself was the one who finally germinated from that unextinguished spark.]
A thousand years ago, the fairies were completely forgotten by the world due to the Zipple’s manipulation of history.
However, they had left behind one final record.
A record in the form of a ‘soul.’
The fairies who lived in the Primeval Forest understood the laws of nature more deeply than any other beings. One such law they understood was circulation.
Humans, beasts, vegetation, and even steel that seemed as if it would never change—eventually, everything is decomposed by time and absorbed into the world, spreading into the earth, the flowing rivers, and the wind. Those things become nutrients, mix with seeds, and become life once more.
The fairies gathered all their souls and let them flow into nature, desperately praying that one day, those souls would bloom again somewhere…
Six hundred years passed.
Finally, after circulating for six hundred years, the souls of the fairies forged a name.
The name Hister.
As Shilla explained this truth, tears flowed incessantly down Valeria’s cheeks. She was breathing heavily, not even realizing she was crying.
Shilla could not bring herself to comfort Valeria. She looked at her as if she were a beloved niece, yet also as if she had committed an unpardonable sin against that same niece.
“What kind of person… was the progenitor?” Valeria finally asked, her question filled with a thousand others.
[She was beautiful and dignified, to a degree that makes me ashamed to even judge her. She was very strong, yet she looked lonely. Looking at you, I am reminded of her. I can see clearly… what kind of person she was.]
Minka Hister was the human who vanished when the Zipple erased the Histers from history. Because of that, Shilla’s memory of her visit four hundred years ago had grown faint. She had only recalled a vague image, but from the moment Valeria arrived at the forest, she had felt a strong sense of déjà vu.
And now, seeing Minka’s image in Valeria, the memory of her face came rushing back, clear as day. Along with Minka, the face of Ruet Damiro Yul, her elder sister, also appeared.
The souls of the ancient fairies within Valeria were rekindling the fire of Shilla's faded memories.
[Could you tell me your name?]
“Valeria. Valeria Hister.”
[You are the descendant of the fairies. Not these ghosts of the Wantaramo Forest… you alone are the one who has truly inherited the existence of the fairies.]
It was the moment one of Valeria’s heavy, long-standing burdens finally came to an end.