It was late when we returned to the village. The others had finished their hunt as well. Judging by Shani’s grin she had found something with blood. I offered the massive snake to the village, which Delwyn accepted. I placed it outside the circle of trees.

Some of the villagers started harvesting parts of the snake. What I had not expected were the roots emerging from the ground and piercing the dead body.

A dryad walked up to us. “We thank you for this generous meal.” She bowed.

“Uh, sure.” I replied.

“Dryads have good taste.” Lucy commented.

Since the monster was so big, only small parts were harvested for cooking. The majority was devoured by the dryads and their trees. We dined on some expertly cooked snake this evening.

The next day it was finally time to meet the lady of the forest. Delwyn escorted us to the massive tree in the centre of the village. The trunk opened as we approached and a shimmering blue portal appeared. I could see magic running towards it through a vast root network. It seemed like the dryads powered this portal.

“I shall remain here but you are expected on the other side.” Delwyn said.

I nodded, still focused on the magic. A theory formed in my head.

“There is a natural connection to the fairy realm here. But it is not stable. So you grew a tree, a dryad grove, to turn it into a true portal. The dryads are not just here for protection, they are vital for it to work.” I mused.

Delwyn looked at me, then he gave me a small nod. “Very perceptive, my lady.”

It was some interesting information and might help if I wanted my own portal in the future. Also, something else occurred to me. Were dryads fey? Or were they creatures of the mortal realm? Or maybe a bit of both?

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While I contemplated things I stepped through the shimmering portal. In an instant the world changed.

I arrived at a large plaza. There was no tree here, instead it was a massive stone arch, covered in vines. The plaza itself featured perfectly cut stone tiles. They looked like green marble. Looking around I spotted several buildings. The architecture reminded me of Japan, especially the roofs.

“Huh. I expected more of a forest.” Lucy said, as she appeared next to me.

Indeed the area was rather civilised. I could see plenty of vegetation, like trees, but they were deliberately planted. Even the vines on the arch seemed to grow in an aesthetically pleasing pattern.

Of course, we were not alone. A welcoming committee was here. There were about 50 soldiers with shining mithril breastplates. They were fey with various shades of green skin and pointy ears, which emerged from their helmets. They stood in formation wielding naginatas.

In front of the soldiers was a woman. Her robe was black with green accents. She looked at us with emerald eyes. She had long blond hair and the familiar light green skin.

“I am Ivy, knight of Lady Izanami. I greet you in her name.” She said.

I wondered if she was an elemental knight, and why she did not wear armour. Then again, she might have one ready inside a magical storage.

“Greetings, I am looking forward to meeting Lady Izanami.” I responded.

“Hi. Pretty nice place you have here.” Lucy commented.

“Eh, they have a lazy elemental sleeping below us. I hope you are charging it rent!” Shani said.

“I greet you, Ivy, knight of the forest.” Lilith said.

Ivy was studying our group. “Please follow me, I shall escort you to Lady Izanami. She has prepared some refreshments.”

In my old world, there were stories warning you about food or drink from the fey. But I could not remember that being a thing in the game. Also, it might just be about the potency of magical food. I had eaten a lot of things in this world that would have killed my old body.

“Nice, food!” Lucy’s tails wagged excitedly.

“And you always say I am the glutton.” I teased.

“You still are. I simply became one too, because of your bad influence.” She responded.

“Maybe it’s a good influence.” I countered.

“Enjoying food and drink is nothing to be ashamed of.” Ivy responded.

“Indeed. I am training myself as a chef to better serve my ladies.” Lily said.

“Oh?” Ivy looked at the succubus. “You are…” Then her eyes widened. “You are not a maid, you are a knight!“

“I am a maid knight.” Lily confirmed.

“She is the maid knight!” Adhira said. “She is the knight of the storm!”

Ivy looked at Lily again, then at Adhira. “I see. I welcome you, fellow knights.”

Lily smiled but Adhira was almost bursting from pride. She puffed out her chest and stood, or rather hovered in the air, straighter.