Suta POV

He opened one of his eyes to see the fruits of his slightly devious act.

Firstly, he was surprised it had worked as well as he had hoped. All three of them were now carrying beet-red cheeks of embarrassment. The fairy with the red braid even looked as though he was fighting back every fiber against his face trying to form a smile.

'Excellent!' Suta mused inwardly, watching as the trio formed a small huddle with their backs turned towards him.

Yet again, they attempted but failed to mask their whispers.

"Wh-what should we do now?"

"I... I'm not sure... he's quite flattering, isn't he?"

"I-I think so, I think he could be our friend?"

"Quiet, the both of you! He might hear us." Snapped the one with the red braid

The three turned their heads around to face Suta in unison before turning back again.

"You see... he seems nice."

"Pfft, it-it-it's all a ploy! I know his kind..."

"You do? W-w-well, what is he then?"

"I... er... I don... Listen-forget about that! This is what we do. We treat him like our slave, and that way, he can help us."

"I-I dunno... what if we get into more trouble?"

"H-he has a point, Jett. The chief might scold us if we-"

"Don't be such scaredy-cats!

Trust me, I'm an expert on this!

Ahem!

We make him listen to us, and then he-he can help us with dealing with those pesky fruit bats who stole all our delicious peaches... hold on..."

He turned around again towards Suta, who could only stare absentmindedly at the little guy who was obviously struggling to work out the sort of face to show him.

'Well, well, well... what do we have here? A little fairy trying to play the big boss?' Suta thought to himself, suppressing a chuckle.

He decided to play along with Jett's little scheme, curious to see where it would lead. Plus, he figured that cooperating with these fairies might be his best chance at getting some much-needed help for his injury.

"So, what is it that you require of me, oh mighty ones?" Suta asked, putting on his best subservient tone. Jett puffed out his chest, trying to appear more imposing than his tiny stature allowed.

"Y-you! You will help us deal with those pesky fruit bats! They've been stealing our precious peaches, and we need someone of your... size to teach them a lesson!" The other two fairies exchanged uncertain glances, clearly not entirely on board with Jett's plan.

"Are you sure about this, Jett? I mean, he's injured, and we don't even know if he's capable of—"

"Silence!" Jett interrupted, shooting a glare at his companion. "I know what I'm doing! Now, you!" He pointed at Suta. "Do you agree to help us in exchange for our assistance with your injury?"

Suta nodded solemnly, doing his best to keep a straight face.

The trio all nodded in unison before turning around to face him again.

He quickly noticed that two of the fairies beheld him with much kinder eyes, leaving the haughty-looking one with the braid who still tried to maintain that air of seriousness.

'It's hard to be scared of such adorable tiny things, mind you...' He chuckled to himself, mistakenly a little too hard thus igniting that shooting pain down his side once again.

"Argh! D-damn it!" He growled, feeling the pain only worsen and very nearly stealing his consciousness away.

"O-oh-no, he's hurt!" one of the fairies exclaimed.

"Quick, Jett, do something!" the other urged.

"Wh-wh-what am I supposed to do? We-we can't cure such curses... although... there is someone b-but..." Jett stammered, his face growing pale.

"What is it? Is it the chief?" the green-haired fairy asked, with concern etched on his face.

"N-no, not the chief... I... We shouldn't, but... I think he's the only one," Jett replied, his voice trembling.

"Who-who is it?" the chubby fairy inquired, adjusting his bamboo frames nervously.

"Wh-who-who else b-but... the-the c-c-c-cursed one!" Jett finally blurted out, causing the other two fairies to gasp in shock.

Suta, despite his pain, couldn't help but be intrigued by this new development. ' The cursed one? Now, that sounds interesting...' he thought to himself, trying to focus on something other than the searing pain in his side. The fairies huddled together once more, their whispers even more frantic than before.

"The cursed one? Are you insane, Jett? We can't go to him!" the green-haired fairy hissed.

"B-but he's the only one who might know how to cure this kind of curse! We can't just let him die!" Jett argued, gesturing towards Suta.

"I don't know... what if the cursed one doesn't want to help? What if he curses us too?" the chubby fairy whimpered, his eyes noticeably shaking with fear.

Jett took a deep breath, seemingly trying to muster up his courage.

"We have to try. It's our only option. Besides, if we help this giant, he'll be indebted to us. Think of what we could accomplish with him on our side!"

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The other two fairies shared uncertain looks with one another, weighing the risks and benefits of Jett's proposal. Meanwhile, Suta watched the exchange with growing curiosity and a hint of apprehension.

'The cursed one, huh? Sounds like someone I should probably avoid, but then again, if he can help relieve me of this pain...'

As the pain continued to throb against his side, Suta realized that he might not have much of a choice in the matter. If this cursed individual was his only hope for survival, he would have to take the risk.

'Well, I suppose I've faced worse than a cursed fairy... I hope,' he mused silently, bracing himself for whatever lay ahead.

The fairies finally broke their huddle, turning to face Suta with a mixture of determination and trepidation in their eyes.

"Alright, giant," Jett declared, his voice still shaking slightly, "we've decided to take you to the cursed one. But you have to promise to help us with the fruit bats once you're healed, got it? Oh and if you get too close we'll run away and leave you to die"

Suta took a quick glance at the trio, and creased a charming smile.

"Deal"

***

The crunchy ground crackled beneath his soles as Suta followed the fairies along the narrow, slightly eerie path. The swash of deep blue mixed with the tones of the twilight sky created an ethereal ambiance, so beautiful that one might find themselves lost in the simple splendors of this majestic blue forest. As jungles go, Suta had this one down as the most strikingly beautiful thus far in his life. He knew it wasn't much of a list considering he could count on a few fingers the numbers of jungles he had seen.

A unique air of wanderlust settled around him, a true mythical space filled with both the wonderful and the intriguingly weird. Glowing flowers bloomed against the pockets of dense foliage, and colorful flying bugs changing colors based on their mood. One of his favorites, though, had to be the old oaks with horrid faces. Most of them were frozen masks against the firm barks, but he did pass by a few that surprisingly mumbled something as he passed, a familiar verse he had remembered another host of ugly-faced flowers singing to him before.

'Abbra? Abbra? All Hail Abbra they sang

And Suta caressed a single response to it...Who the hell is this Abbra?

'Auhh, why do I feel so good?'

Right now, Suta was feeling incredibly good! And no, his poisonous, festered wound hadn't improved a single bit; in fact, he was almost certain it was getting worse with every passing second. But thanks to the little fairies, who had somehow sprinkled this incredibly potent golden dust over his wound, he felt ten times better, so much so that he could easily walk, skip, and hop as though nothing was wrong with him in the first place.

Although the chubbier fairy had warned him about the drawbacks of this method of quelling his pain for now, Suta felt like he was on cloud nine. He did suspect he might've been given some sort of hallucinogenic substance. But for now, it achieved what it said on the tin: his pain had completely been taken away.

'Is this what they call fairy magic? Fufufu, how convenient. I wonder if I can coerce one of them into following me around from now on. They might probably refuse, but perhaps I just need to be a little persuasive? Ah! I could bring one back for Demoria! Hehe, she would be so surprised when she met one,' Even his ideas had taken a turn for the worst since they sprinkled the strange dust over his wound.

He couldn't get over this intense feeling of euphoria.

The air was heavenly, enriched with a unique splendor that felt life-giving. The dance of the majestic stars above only fueled the ethereal ambiance. By the time they crossed halfway along the thinly crunchy path sleeked through the forest, most of the atmosphere had gone through a series of changes before his glittering eyes.

The oak trees with howling faces were soon left behind, and the landscape changed into flatter and clearer earth, where an array of colorful feathered animals appeared in the fold.

Suta marveled at the wondrous sights around him, his mind drifting between the present and thoughts of his distant companion, Demoria. He couldn't wait to share these incredible experiences with her, hoping that she, too, would be as enchanted by this magical world as he was.

Suta walked passed a class of beautifully arrayed flamingos dressed in violet with lush blue feathers and mango-colored beaks. He also caught the brief sight of exotic-looking white-furred tigers with enchanting azure irises, cautiously observing him through the thin shrubbery.

Thankfully, these creatures weren't hostile. With the little fairies leading the way, Suta trailed behind them, rather enjoying the scenery and the euphoric feeling spiriting his every step. Now and again, he noticed the little fairies ahead stealing subtle glances at him. He found the childish-looking one with green hair was the most likely to befriend him. On more than one occasion, Suta caught the little fairy waving to him before being swiftly scolded by the one with the red braid.

But the little fairy didn't let up and would occasionally crease a smile.

Time passed on, and Suta found himself standing on a sloping mountainside snaked around an incredibly giant tree with long, twisting branches reaching towards the stars. As they ascended along the stony path, Suta could see the almost endless outlay of this enchanting blue jungle layered before him. The carpet of deep blue seemed to flow like waves of an endless sea. Mesmerized by its captivating surrealism, he found his feet planted against the stones, unable to peel his gaze away for a single moment.

A single word appeared through Suta's shaking smile.

"B-beautiful..." He meant that in the truest sense of the word. The soft, moving winds gently brushed past his body. The feeling of peace doused upon him, and he softly closed his eyelids, allowing himself to drink in the richness of the soothing air. However, his serene calm was momentarily disturbed by the slight, high-pitched voices from those fairies ahead. Suta lazily opened a single eye.

"J-jett, are we sure about this?" one of the fairies asked.

"No, b-but what choice do we have? I-I don't think there's anything the tribes can do for him," Jett replied.

"It's true. Lion's rot poison is far beyond even our capabilities. I even fear once the effects wear off, h-he m-m-might-" the chubby fairy stammered, scared to complete the sentence.

"Let's not dwell on the bad things. We're almost there... H-hopefully, he's in a good mood today," Jett said, trying to sound reassuring.

Hearing the remnants of their conversation, curiosity bloomed a host of questions out into the open. "So then, tell me about this 'accursed person' we're visiting. You said he can cure me, yes?" Suta asked, his spirited voice causing the trio to shiver a little. The green-haired fairy turned rose pink again whilst creasing a childish smile and a faint head nod. The chubbier fairy was still slightly scared, while the other haughty one remained indifferently cautious.

"Y-yes. He arrived here some time ago. The chief ordered him to stay on the outskirts of our village, just in case... he was dangerous," the little fellow's brow narrowed out of fear.

"And is he... dangerous?" Suta asked as he subtly hastened his footsteps to catch up with the trio.

The green-haired fairy hovered around his face, sniffing and gently touching his bright pink locks. After poking his ears a little, seemingly trying to measure something. The little sprite gently propped its bottom against his shoulder. Suta didn't mind it; he was still trying to work out if he was being led towards another disaster or not.

"Y... yes, very dangerous. Ahem- but he's not so bad. He's helped the tribes with fortifications and taught us a little bit about his world. Oh-and he allows us to pet his fluffy companion. He ju-just... looks dangerous... he's not so... b-bad," the red-braided fairy explained, its pointed ears twitching a little, the tips turning red.

'Is it getting embarrassed?' Suta noticed its reserved mannerisms

A twinkle beside his left ear sounded, followed by a childish voice.

"Hey mister, you're not dangerous, are you?" the green haired fairy asked him. Suta twisted ever so slightly, gazing into the large wide eyes of the tiny thing. A warm smirk creased against his face in response.

"Absolutely not! I'm the most friendly giant you'll ever meet."

The green-haired fairy chuckled childishly, having found itself perched atop Suta's shoulder comfortably now, using one of the many braided locks cascading down his helm as support.

"Good-good then"

As they continued their journey towards the accursed one's dwelling, Suta couldn't help but wonder what kind of being this mysterious individual might be. Dangerous and yet helpful? A fluffy companion? It all sounded quite intriguing, and despite the potential risks, Suta found himself eagerly anticipating their encounter a little more than he should do.

'Well, I suppose I'll find out soon enough,' he mused silently to himself.