A long time ago, humans all lived together. Alas, due to an inevitable war, many were separated. Some were forced to live in other places, far from the Grenyth Empire where humans occupied.

One such place was the Wastelands, a place in constant peril.

The small community managed to sustain themselves, and survive in the harsh Wastelands. Sadly, one day, that entire community was annihilated.

There were only two survivors in that community, who had gone out hunting for food that day.

The two survivors were utterly devastated over the deaths of their loved ones. Thus, they decided to seek vengeance.

One of the survivors was Auriana Lionheart, a fallen noble, and the other was her good friend, Nikulas.

The two of them set off on an epic journey to find the perpetrator, finding comrades along the way to aid them in their journey.

That was the story of 《 The Rise of Lionheart 》, a lengthy and engaging fantasy novel with three volumes.

Unfortunately, for Ida, she only read the first volume. Despite that, the knowledge she gained from reading the first volume was enough to inform her about the world of Vriafenia.

In addition to that, it seemed that Ida came to a time where the timeline of the novel had just begun.

It was an opportune time.

There was only one reason she didn't recognise Ida Wolfe, since no such name was mentioned in the novel. Nevertheless, now she knew Ida Wolfe's role in the book.

She was the first obstacle to Auriana Lionheart.

Ida Wolfe kept her promise to not let Auriana pass the barrier, and the novel simply mentioned her as "the twenty-year old daughter of a fallen noble" without any notable appearance.

This setback delayed Auriana and Nikulas, as they tried to find another way out of the Wastelands. Regrettably, there was no such option and the only way out was through this particular breach in the stone wall.

Hence, they returned to plead once more, and to their horror, the village soon met the same fate as their loved ones. The magical barrier was completely broken.

Ida moved away from the window ledge, heading to the drawer as she pulled it open. There was a hidden compartment and she lifted the lever, revealing a small area that stored a vial of blood.

She knew the origin of the blood.

It was the blood of a beastman.

"That disturbing hooded man," Ida muttered out, taking the vial. "I can't believe he made Ida Wolfe drink something like this."

She did not have a single clue about their identity, even with her previous memory.

Ida walked out of her house, staring at the vial of blood before she smashed it onto the ground. The glass vial shattered into pieces and blood poured out, staining the dirt. For a good measure, Ida stomped her shoe on the glass pieces.

It crumbled under the weight of her foot.

It wasn't the blood of the beastman she was disgusted with, but the man that procured this, using uncivil methods no doubt.

Satisfied, she spun around and walked back into her house. Her thoughts began to drift off.

My parents will not come back in time.

The village will be destroyed.

It should be around this time…

Ida swung open the door to her house, glancing up at the sky.

"The Emperor passed away, and the mourning will soon begin," she mused to herself softly. "During that time, mother and father...they will not be able to leave the Imperial City."

She closed the door behind her.

This time, Ida knew what to do to save the village.

▪︎ ▪︎ ▪︎

"Lady Wolfe, there is something...strange."

Ida spun around, raising an eyebrow. "Strange?"

Is Auriana finally here with her good friend?

Ida thought hopefully.

Two days have passed, and Ida spent the past two days writing down the content she remembered from the novel. She wrote it in a language only she understood, and kept the notebook in the hidden compartment.

"Yes, well..." the guard scratched his head, sounding bewildered. "It is better if you see it for yourself."

"Where?"

"The binoculars at the top of the guard tower, I'll bring it down--"

"No need, bring me up there with your spirit falcon. To the roof. Tell it to pass me the binoculars too."

The guard blinked rapidly, hesitating. "Lady Wolfe, it isn't safe and it can be intimidating--"

"Quickly."

The guard could not refute her words.

He summoned his falcon, and the falcon gripped her collar firmly, lifting her up into the air. Fortunately, Ida was wearing a shirt and pants, and her shirt rode up slightly and exposed the creamy skin of her slim belly.

The guard that summoned his falcon spirit was impressed by the composed Ida.

She did not scream nor showed any signs of panic, despite being so high up in the air. The falcon released her, and she landed smoothly on the roof of the tower, flipping her hair aside. Just like she commanded, the falcon passed her the binoculars before returning to its owner.

"Which direction is it?" she hollered to the guard, sitting cross-legged on the roof.

"Northwest!"

She used the binoculars, looking in that specific direction.

Indeed, it was a strange sight.

The mutated wolves were yapping and running around in circles. They seemed to be chasing after something, and they couldn't catch it, but Ida couldn’t spot what it was. Her eyes lingered on the wolves, until she finally saw an aqua-coloured orb zipping past one of the wolves.

It seemed to have slowed down its speed, allowing her to catch a glimpse of it. Ida noticed the wolves could now grasp at their prey, albeit barely.

The aqua-coloured orb then paused, before spinning around in circles. The wolves snapped at the aqua-coloured orb with their sharp fangs, and the sight made Ida frown.

Whatever it was, it was attracting more wolves nearer to the village.

Ida didn't want the wolves ramming themselves into the barrier again. After all, she knew that this village was fated to be annihilated.

There were a thousand ways a village like this could be wiped from existence, in this world.

She definitely did not want that to happen.

"Scare those wolves away," Ida ordered, raising her voice as she looked down. "Whatever is causing those wolves to act like that, it's attracting more of them."

"I'll do that immediately!"

Ida recognised this guard, he had a spiritual contract with a bat. She knew what he was planning to do, covering one side of her ears.

Soon enough, the deed was done and she watched through the binoculars as the wolves scampered off.

She lowered the binoculars, regaining her senses. This body was really physically weak, since the guards weren't affected by the spirit bat, except for her.

"Bring me down--"

"Stop stop!"

There was a distant soft cry.

It originated from the direction where the wolves were previously playing around.

Ida paused, hastily looking through the binoculars again. At that moment, the same aqua-coloured orb that she saw earlier, sped towards her.

Startled, Ida almost dropped the pair of binoculars as she lowered it quickly.

Just as she did so, the aqua-coloured orb revealed itself in front of her.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

It wasn't an orb.

It was a winged, humanoid creature that was jovering in the air as its wings fluttered rapidly.

The creature was tiny enough to catch with her hands. Its blue wings were bright and vibrant with cursive patterns that seemed to glow ethereally.

Its appearance was gorgeous, with round bubbly eyes and pink, firm lips along with a button nose. The fair-skinned creature wore clothing made out of vines and blue flower petals. From its appearance, Ida could tell its gender was a female. Her straight, aqua-coloured hair, that shared the same colour as her eyes, reached down her neck.

Ida inhaled sharply, recognition flitting past her amber eyes. In the novel, the descriptions of such a creature flashed through her mind.

A creature that she didn’t like one bit.

"Why did you scare the furry ones away?!" Her delicate voice exclaimed and she sounded aggrieved. "I was having fun with the furry ones! You tall ones are always so mean, taking away the fun!"

Ida was nervous.

"You are...a pixie?"

The "pixie" stomped her feet in the air, huffing in frustration.

"I'm not a pixie! I'm a fae, a fae!"

In the land of Vriafenia, pixies and faes lived together, and it was hard to differentiate them. Although, whether it was a pixie or a fae, both were equally bad to Ida.

One was mischievous and playful, the other was serene yet evil. However, along the way, the characteristics of both pixies and faes have started to combine.

Ida did not want to mix with either kind.

Alas, right now, in front of her, there was an actual fae venting her frustrations on Ida.

She did not understand why a fae would appear at the border between the Grenyth Empire where humans resided. In the novel, it was stated that the faes lived in an area far past the Wastelands.

"I apologise, Miss...Fae, it’s hard for me to differentiate between the two," Ida spoke respectfully, relaxing her expression. "And I didn't mean to scare away the furry ones, but more were gathering around you, and that would be bad for us tall ones."

"Don't call me Miss Fae! You tall ones can call me June Honeymint! Or Honey! Or Honeymint! Or June!"

"I'll call you June."

June did a happy twirl, before she stiffened and her smile dropped.

"Hmph! You are distracting me! Just now, I wanted more furry ones to gather to play! Why would that be bad for you tall ones?!" June hissed in anger. "I ought to turn you tall ones into stone ones for taking away my fun!"

Ida's face twitched.

Since it was coming from a fae, June really meant those words.

June would turn all of them into stone.

"It would be bad because the furry ones would attack us."

"So what if it attacks you tall ones!"

"We tall ones will die."

“Hmm?” June tilted her head with an innocent look. "So what?"

Her wings fluttered as she maintained her expression, not a single ounce of guilt or remorse in them.

"You tall ones took away my fun," June added, nonchalant. "It's only fair."

Her innocent expression and nonchalant words sent a chill down Ida’s spine.

This was why Ida disliked pixies or faes.

"Lady Wolfe, the wolves have run away! Is everything alright up there?"

For a moment, Ida forgot that she was still on top of the guard tower.

"...I'm fine."

"Do you want to come down?"

Ida looked back at June, still hovering in front of her. June was distracted once again as she gazed at Ida.

"Just a moment longer."

The guards wouldn't be able to spot the tiny June that was being covered by Ida.

"Tall one! Tall one! What's your name?" June questioned excitedly, as if she discovered something interesting about Ida.

"Ida Wolfe."

"Ida! Ida!" June called, smiling brightly. "Your soul is so interesting! It's burning so bright unlike other tall ones! This shows you have lived longer than your age! Tall ones cannot live long, but you are special!"

Ida became still.

Faes were really magical creatures. They could tell about her unique existence from a glance.

"You want to go down this tall tower? I can bring you down!"

"No need." Ida rejected promptly.

At her negative response, June's expression twisted in an ugly way.

"No?! I am kind enough to help Ida, but you don’t want to accept my help! Fine! If you don't want to go down, I'll make you stuck up here forever!"

Ida felt her head throbbing. One more wrong word, and she'll really be stuck up here with no one to help her.

"No, June, I don't mean it that way," Ida soothed. "I simply do not want to trouble you."

June reverted back to her cheery self. She did another happy twirl.

"It's no trouble! If you feel bad, then play with me!" June giggled. "Since you tall ones took away my fun, play with me all the way!"

The colour drained from Ida's face.

Play with me.

Those were the most dreadful words to come from a pixie or fae.

"June, I don't think I..."

June became irked. "You can't play with me either?! I'm angry now! And I'm bored, bored, bored, bored! Because you tall ones ruined my fun! If you don't say yes, I will bring the furry ones back!"

"...of course, I'll play with you," Ida said reluctantly. "How about you bring me down and play with me?"

"Yes, yes! When I bring you down, count how many furry ones you see on the left! What do tall ones call them? Wolves!" June nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes! And My fae dust will make you float down!"

Ida knew the powers of the fae dust and pixie dust.

After all, it was the same dust that was currently empowering and supporting the magical barrier.

This was the one thing that bugged Ida incessantly.

How did the imperial family manage to procure such rare dust? Faes and pixies are fickle-minded, they would never lend a helping hand to humans, unless there was something fun for them to do.

"Hehe, are you ready? Are you ready? Remember to count the wolves! If you get it wrong, I'll turn one of your tall friends into stone ones! If you get it right, I'll give you some of my fae dust!"

"..."

Both options were equally terrible to Ida.

June danced around Ida, her wings quivering as it glowed brighter. Colorful and vibrant particles scattered all over Ida's body and she found herself floating in the air.

Ida gasped.

Whereas, the guards who witnessed this from below, collapsed onto the ground in shock. The more knowledgeable guards started to mutter along the lines of "the work of the faes and pixies" in a terrified manner.

"It's fun, right? Fun floating in the air!" June continued to babble. "Look at your tall friends who are tiny ones now! Hehehe!"

Ida focused her eyes towards her left. The Wastelands truly reflected its name, since it was an enormous forest filled with dead trees, or trees that have mutated beyond comprehension. These same trees covered the entire forest.

The monsters in there were mutated animals, that were the remnants left from the war that took place centuries ago. It wasn't only their bodies that mutated, but their lifespan extended as well.

Fortunately, due to the dead trees and her floating down slowly, Ida could catch sight of the wolves around the area on the left. She counted them quickly in her mind, paying no heed to June babbling.

"Ida! Ida! Are you paying attention to me talking?!" June grumbled, her wings flapping rapidly to show her annoyance. "Don't count the furry ones so seriously! Talk to me, talk to me! I'm bored! Bored!"

Ida felt a drop of sweat roll down her face.

If I do not count the wolves right, you are going to turn one of my people into stone.

If I do not pay any attention to you, you'll get angry and turn me into stone.

She placed her hand on her head, sighing.

This is a conundrum.

Nonetheless, Ida still had to cater to this capricious fae.

"I heard you say this is fun."

"You heard! You heard!" June chirped. "I'll let you down now!"

Ida did not say anything.

The guards could only watch on speechlessly as the young lady was lowered down to the ground. Their eyes then strayed to the aqua-haired fae skipping around Ida.

"Now, now tell me!" she said, her voice jubilant and playful. "How many furry ones are there? How many did you see, hmm? Hmm?"

"Eight of them."

“Hehe, are you sure? Are you sure?”

“I am.”

“You are wrong!” June announced with a twirl. “It’s actually nine furry ones!”

Ida's heart skipped a beat.

"But I'm nice, I will give you a chance!" June added on. "No stone ones this time!"

The guards began to approach Ida cautiously, keeping their eyes on the aqua-haired fae. June, on the other hand, disregarded their existence. She only seemed to be concerned with Ida at this moment.

“Lady Wolfe, wh-what is--” one of the guards stuttered out, staring at June with a pale face. “Isn’t that a...a…pixie?!”

June twitched in anger and she rushed towards the guard with an unhappy expression.

“I’m a fae! Fae! Why can’t you tall ones see it!”

The guard let out a frightened yelp, collapsing to the ground.

“Hmph, you are not the one I want to play with!” June pouted, flying back to Ida’s side, hovering all over her. “Ida! Ida! Play with me again!”

Before Ida could say anything, there was a commotion among the guards. Ida turned to look, freezing in shock when she noticed a sudden fog enveloping the entire village.

She turned back to June.

“Play hide and seek with me!” June demanded smilingly.

The fog spread rapidly, covering everywhere possible now.

Ida's visibility was robbed in an instant, only able to see June in front of her.

The presence of her people, the villagers and the guards, had completely ceased to exist.

Ida was horrified, her amber eyes holding a faint trace of fear.

“Count to a hundred, and then come find me!” June added, just as her tiny figure disappeared into the fog.

“Wait, June! What have you done to my people?” Ida questioned, glancing around in a panic.

All she could see was the same white fog. She couldn't hear or sense anything else.

“Hehe! Just like you, they are lost in my fog!” June giggled cheekily in the fog, her delicate voice surrounding Ida. “If you find me, you can have them back!”

Ida was still searching around, wearing a troubled frown.

“But if you can't find me, I won't give the tall ones back to you!”

June giggled once again.

It was a giggle that one would find saccharine.

However, to Ida, it sounded disconcerting.

There was an impending doom headed for this village.

Nonetheless, the impending doom was now the least of Ida's concern.

The arrival of the main protagonist of this world was also the least of her concerns.

Right now, the lives of her people were in the hands of this mischievous and capricious fae.

“If you can't find me, you'll also have to play hide and seek with me forever and ever!”

Ida suddenly recalled the lines of the novel, describing a fae and a pixie.

《 An adorable creature with a pure heart. Pure to the point where morality meant nothing to them.

Appearances that were meant to deceive.

Those were the faes and the pixies.

If one encountered any of these pure-hearted creatures, it would be best to turn and run the other way.

It would be best to pray that the creature would never set its sights on you.

If they did, no matter who it was, they would be helpless before these adorable yet deceiving creatures. Yes, even the skies would pity that hapless soul. 》

Ida closed her eyes, covering them with her hand.

I should have just left the wolves alone. Even if they did attack, it would be easier to handle them compared to this...fae.

Ida halted at those dreadful thoughts.

No, the wolves would be equally bad. Since she was attracting too many of them.

Ida sighed.

Just then, she heard the same saccharine giggle that perturbed her once again.

“Ready, Ida? Now, count to a hundred and let's play!”