The day after Rei told his companions he would be taking the A-Rank promotion exam, he found himself back in the Treant Forest as usual.
But he hadn't come today to haul felled timber like he normally did. He was heading toward the fairy settlement.
Since he was going to the fairy settlement, Nielson was naturally at his side alongside Set.
As for why Rei was headed there in the first place…
"A Magic Item made by fairies, huh. I'm looking forward to seeing what kind I get."
In good spirits, Rei murmured as he gazed out at the trees of the Treant Forest.
That was because Nielson had received word from the Chief that very morning.
The Chief intended to present Rei with a Magic Item as thanks for resolving the recent incident and had told Nielson to bring him to the settlement in the Treant Forest today.
"True. I'm curious what kind of Magic Item the Chief picked out. I did at least let them know what types Rei prefers, so I doubt they'd hand over something completely useless."
"I'd be glad if that's the case. Getting a Magic Item that's only good for decoration would be pointless."
"Then what about weapons?"
"Weapons too…"
Rei's expression turned slightly troubled at Nielson's suggestion.
The weapons he currently used were Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear. Both were long weapons—normally, a person could only wield one at a time. But thanks to the body the Zephyle faction had created for him and his own combat instincts, Rei had established a fighting style that used both simultaneously: the Twin Spear Style.
Making that possible was largely due to Death Scythe's ability to render itself weightless to both Rei and Set.
In any case, with only two arms, Rei had no need for additional weapons in serious combat.
He also carried the Eye of Nebula on his belt as a quick-draw weapon—a Magic Item that generated arrowheads which vanished after use—but he had no complaints about that either.
For the record, his Misty Ring also contained numerous spears, but those were essentially disposable throwing weapons.
"Right. I've got more than enough weapons. What I want is a Magic Item I can use on regular requests."
"Such as?"
"A Magic Tent, a Dagger of Flowing Water, an Oven—Magic Items that come in really handy when I'm out on a job."
The Magic Tent and Dagger of Flowing Water aside, the Oven was something he used constantly, even for everyday meals.
Nielson seemed to grasp what Rei was getting at.
"In that case… hmm, I wonder. We do have a few things like that, but they're all items we need for our own daily lives."
It went without saying that fairies needed Magic Items for their own livelihood.
Which meant that even if they had something Rei wanted, there was a strong possibility it was something the fairies couldn't part with.
"It'd be nice if there was a Magic Item that just made food appear automatically."
"No such thing exists, and even if it did, I wouldn't hand it over."
Nielson replied instantly—without a flicker of hesitation.
Rei had expected as much. If such a Magic Item existed, Nielson never would have been so fixated on food back in Gilm.
"Figured. So what about a Magic Item that produces metal?"
Rei didn't particularly need metal himself, but if he could produce it freely, there would be no shortage of ways to put it to use. He could even use it to strengthen his companions' Magic Items.
"Nothing like that either. For starters, we can supply our own metal for whatever we need."
"…That's impressive in its own right."
In Rei's mind, when it came to those skilled in working metal, Dwarves were the first to come to mind. He simply couldn't picture fairies being adept at metalwork.
How do they get their metal? Mining it from ore? …No way—that really doesn't suit them.
Rei conjured an image that was the exact opposite of what fairies evoked. But since fairies couldn't possibly be working mines, that assumption wasn't far off the mark—at least if mining was the only alternative.
"Then I guess I'll have to wait until I actually meet the Chief to find out what kind of Magic Item it is. By the way, what sort of personality does the Fairy Chief have? Is there any chance I'd offend them if I don't approach with proper etiquette?"
If this were a noble, he wouldn't need to worry nearly as much. But the one he was meeting was the Fairy Chief.
…At the very least, the saving grace was that the Chief wasn't the leader of the entire fairy race—just the head of the fairies living in this particular Treant Forest.
The Chief Rei had met before was the same: not the leader of all fairies, but simply the head of the settlement the fairies on the Seremuse Plain had belonged to.
If that held true here as well, there was no need to overthink the etiquette.
Still, between the promotion exam and this, I've suddenly got a lot of etiquette-related matters piling up. …Though I suppose it's better to deal with it all at once than to have it dragged out over time.
That said, the etiquette required for the promotion exam and for meeting the Fairy Chief were entirely different things.
The promotion exam called for human etiquette—primarily when dealing with nobles. But with the Fairy Chief, Rei was the one being thanked, given that he had saved the fairies from Antelme.
…Of course, if he considered that Antelme had come to the Treant Forest as a result of his conflict with Rei, then in a sense, the fairies had simply been caught in the crossfire.
If that's the case, is it really right for me to accept a Magic Item from the Fairy Chief…?
The thought crossed his mind—whether he should refuse the reward entirely.
Naturally, even if he kept quiet and accepted it, no one would blame him for it. But whether he could convince himself was another matter, and he knew he wouldn't be able to accept it with a clear conscience.
"We're here."
Lost in thought, Rei snapped back to reality at Nielson's words.
Before he knew it, they had arrived at the fairy settlement.
Which also meant this was the place where the wolves Rei had grown close to had died.
That's right.
Looking at the spot where the wolves were buried, Rei resolved to tell the Chief what had happened. That, in a sense, the fairies had suffered collateral damage from his own affairs.
Of course, even if he told them that and the Chief still insisted on giving him a Magic Item, he had no intention of refusing.
"Rei? What's wrong?"
"Just thinking about what to say when I meet the Chief."
"What to say…? Well, whatever. Let's keep moving. From here on, you could get lost without me, so stay close. Set, don't wander off either."
"Grrrl."
Set purred in acknowledgment.
Rei suspected that a High-Rank Monster like Set could probably ignore even the Chief's ability and reach the settlement on its own. But there was no point saying so aloud and confusing the fairies, so he kept that thought to himself.
"Fog's rolling in. I've heard fog isn't uncommon in the Treant Forest, but I've never heard of it getting this thick this fast. Is this the fairies' doing too?"
Glancing at the mist drifting around them, Rei asked Nielson, who was perched on his shoulder.
The Treant Forest was part of nature, so fog was bound to occur. With a lake right next to the forest, conditions were even more prone to producing it.
Even so, Rei had never heard of fog this dense, nor had he ever experienced it himself despite spending considerable time in the Treant Forest.
Nielson nodded as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"That's right. Inside this fog, you can't move properly unless you're with a fairy or you have the Chief's blessing."
"The Chief's blessing, huh. Is that how the wolves came and went freely? Or did they have a fairy with them, like I have you right now?"
"The blessing. If you have one of us or the blessing, the fog isn't much of a concern. From my eyes, it's barely there at all."
"Really? From where I'm standing, it's so thick I can barely see a few feet ahead."
That was no exaggeration—it was plain fact. In his current situation, anything more than a few meters out was completely invisible to Rei through the fog.
It hadn't been so bad when the fog first appeared, but as they pushed deeper, it had grown steadily thicker.
The thickening fog is probably a sign we're getting closer to the settlement. Though if that's the case, you could navigate by fog density alone… No, normally just trying to push through this fog would be impossible. And the Chief has probably accounted for that.
For instance, the Chief could be intentionally creating variations in the fog's density. Someone trying to follow the thicker patches as a guide could easily end up lost somewhere entirely different.
Plus, Rei was passing through without issue only because he had Nielson with him and an invitation from the Chief. If someone tried to approach the settlement uninvited, they would clearly be hit with one fairy prank after another in this fog.
"Rei, don't wander off."
"I know. As long as I stick close to you, I won't get lost, right? Then there's nothing to worry about."
Hearing Rei's reply, Nielson briefly considered what would happen if she simply walked away from him—but she had no real intention of doing any such thing. There was no telling what kind of punishment the Chief would dish out if she did.
"Still, this fog is remarkably handy. With this, wouldn't Antelme have been powerless even if he'd tried to burn everything?"
"Impossible. He threatened to burn the entire Treant Forest. If he'd actually done it, the fog wouldn't have helped at all—he'd be outside the fog."
Put that way, Rei had no choice but to concede. If Antelme had actually resorted to burning the forest, the fog likely couldn't have stopped it.
Fog is moisture, so it's definitely harder to ignite—that much is certain. But… it's Antelme we're talking about.
Antelme's combat style relied heavily on Magic Items. He operated solo without forming a party, so he had to rely on Magic Items to cover everything he couldn't manage alone. Considering Antelme's personality, Rei could understand why he worked alone.
In any case, if Magic Items were used to generate fire, there was no guarantee the fog could counter it. There was a chance—a very slight chance—that the fog could hold its own against fire. That was because Rei had been told that fairy-made Magic Items were more powerful than their human-made counterparts.
But conversely, it wouldn't be unthinkable for Magic Items to interfere with each other, creating the normally impossible scenario of fog itself burning.
"Anyway, I'm glad we managed to take Antelme down. …Come to think of it, after the audience with the Chief, should I leave some food at the wolves' graves? I left the burial entirely to the fairies, after all."
The wolves had lived alongside the fairies. When the fairies asked to handle the graves themselves, Rei had had no choice but to let them. At the time, there was also the pressing need to deliver the limbless Antelme to Daskar as quickly as possible.
"True. I think they'd appreciate that. The little ones especially."
There had been several pups in the wolf pack. Naturally, they had stayed behind at the settlement during the fight against Antelme. For those pups, having someone visit their parents' graves would surely mean a great deal.
As they continued walking and talking, the fog eventually lifted—and they arrived at the fairy settlement.