“Shall I? Feri, I’m heading out.”
Sylvia knew that he still had more to say to Benjamin, so she walked away with Louis.
“I’ll come over once the conversation is finished.”
“Got it!”
The fairies fluttering beside them naturally followed Sylvia. Felix briefly glanced at the fairies.
In the past, the fairies liked Sylvia, but they never left his side.
Since he knew that he was the source of those fairies, he didn’t miss them, but he couldn’t help but feel a slight sense of longing.
Sylvia, who came close to the lake with Louis, checked the still-functioning black dragon’s gem.
“It’s definitely on a different level from other essences.”
Since low-grade essences were often single-use, Sylvia measured the gem’s condition and let out an exclamation of admiration.
“Recently, I made a stew with white conch. I added plenty of tomatoes and other vegetables, and it turned out really delicious.”
“Wow, that sounds great!”
Since it was a tomato stew with seafood, it couldn’t possibly taste bad. But adding chicken would deepen the flavor!
“Next time, try making it with broth made from chicken bones. The flavor will be much richer.”
“…Yes, I’ll definitely try that!”
Louis nodded seriously with a determined expression. Finding him adorable, Sylvia grew strawberries just like when she first met Louis.
“Want some?”
“Heh, yes!”
Although he’d grown taller, he hadn’t changed much from the beginning. While munching on strawberries with Louis, Sylvia looked around.
The red flowers spewing out tendrils were still abundant.
“Hmm, it would be nice to take some white conch with us.”
She had doubts whether the lake, now devoid of monsters and the black dragon, would produce white conch as readily as it did in the past.
At that moment, Sylvia noticed the fairies flying around her.
“Back then, those kids used to watch over the place.”
Filled with nostalgia as she looked at the fairies, Sylvia decided to check out the lake.
Just like before, she covered herself with a barrier of wind, but this time, she enveloped her entire body to avoid getting wet.
Louis watched in awe as Sylvia slowly entered the water.
Sylvia quickly descended to the bottom. After confirming that there were still plenty of white conchs, she moved using the wind as if swimming.
She discovered a cave that seemed to have once been an inlet for water and lightly extended her hand to check if the water was flowing.
Then, she immediately ascended to the surface.
With a swish, as Sylvia appeared after cutting through the water, Louis, who had been waiting, and his parents, who had arrived unnoticed, clapped in unison to greet her.
“Wow!”
As the veil of wind was lifted, and Sylvia disappeared, the fairies, who had been startled and flying about, suddenly flocked to her.
“Sis, you’re amazing! I want to be a wizard too!”
“You’re really incredible.”
“It’s an astonishing magic.”
At their exclamations of admiration, Sylvia smiled sheepishly and asked Louis.
“Can I have some conch shells?”
“Of course! You can take as much as you want, Sis! I don’t think anyone in the village would oppose you taking them!”
As Louis answered, his parents also nodded in agreement. After she and her mercenary group had come, people had found hope to live.
For those who had been living a life of daily struggle without food, waking up to food, crops to tend, and houses to care for had brought vitality to their lives.
Only then did the villagers recall the past and began to diligently take care of the village.
Instead of mindlessly consuming vegetables, they transplanted them to increase the number of plants, repaired and expanded their homes.
As they put effort into these tasks every day, they had no time for idle thoughts, and the miserable days of migration no longer came to mind.
Although they missed those who had left, hope guided them forward.
They believed that one day they would return to their homeland, or perhaps, they would make this place their new home. With such determination, the villagers gradually emerged from the shadows.
Even more so, without the presence of the wicked lord, they were happy to reap what they had sown.
All of this was thanks to Sylvia and Felix.
“Darling.”
At that moment, Felix, having finished talking with Benjamin, approached. Louis’s parents bowed deeply in greeting.
As if he could no longer bear even a moment apart, Felix quickly wrapped his arm around her waist.
Sylvia, naturally, placed her hand on his arm.
“Then, we’ll be leaving now.”
To Felix’s words, Benjamin responded.
“But not all the villagers have returned yet…”
His voice was full of regret, to which Felix replied with a smiling face.
“I think we could come back once a year.”
At those words, which were almost like a promise to return, Benjamin’s expression brightened.
Though they were not people to be easily met, they had become a guiding star, and he longed to follow.
With a light gesture, Sylvia placed the conch shells into her subspace bag. She then gave a wide grin.
“When I crave conch shells again, I’ll stop by.”
“Of course. Everything here isn’t ours, it’s yours and Felix’s.”
“Oh, and take this.”
Sylvia handed over a pre-prepared subspace bag. It was filled with various types of meat and side dishes she had made.
“Oh, you shouldn’t have…”
“If you receive, you must give as well. Stay healthy and take care.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Felix took to the sky with wind magic.
The two stopped by a nearby pink lake to gather leaves that tasted like soy sauce and mustard, then moved on to the next lakeside village.
“It’s Sylvia!”
By this time, the children who had grown up quickly recognized Sylvia and ran toward her.
“Sis! Give me strawberries!”
“Sis, I missed you!”
“Kyaa! There’s a butterfly!”
Sylvia found the children’s excitement adorable and winked as she grew strawberries and grapes for them.
The fairies, avoiding the children’s hands, landed on Sylvia’s head and shoulders. Their expressions, as if they were annoyed, were amusing.
After lightly washing the fruits with water, she personally handed them out to the children. Hearing the news, Bern and Liu came running.
“Miss Magician!”
Sylvia greeted Bern and Liu, who both looked healthier than before. Felix retrieved the Black Dragon’s gem that he had planted there.
“Are you catching coconut crabs well?”
“Oh yes, absolutely. Now, I can clean them with my eyes closed.”
As she spoke, Sylvia headed toward the place. After confirming that the magic stone was still working well, she gently patted Noel’s head, who had been following her.
Thinking of Noel, the children, and Louis, Sylvia suddenly became curious.
What would a child who resembled Felix and herself look like?
The thought alone made her blush with embarrassment. Although no one could read her thoughts, she cleared her throat unnecessarily and looked around.
“The crops are growing well. The demonic beasts haven’t appeared, so we expanded the field to the adjacent clearing. When we crushed the coconut crab shells and spread them, they worked perfectly as fertilizer.”
“Oh, that’s a good idea!”
“Yes, and…”
Bern, who found Liu’s eagerness to chat surprising, smiled while listening.
“But how did you know the demonic beasts had disappeared, Miss Magician? If it weren’t for the letter you sent, we would still believe they were around and wouldn’t have dared to go outside.”
“It seems Sir Ethan visited you regularly.”
In the past, Sylvia had once asked Ethan to send a letter on her behalf. Although the demonic beasts had disappeared, this was before Felix ascended to the throne as emperor.
Worried about the villagers, she had hired the Nakri Mercenary Corps to deliver a letter to the lakeside village.
Ethan had readily agreed to her request. Though she had tried to pay him, he refused.
Aside from the village chief, no one knew that the two of them were the emperor and empress.
Thanks to the strict secrecy, Liu and Bern still considered Sylvia and Felix as their benefactors, nothing more.
“Can I take some coconut crabs?”
“Why even ask?”
Sylvia watched Liu, who spoke so warmly, with a renewed sense of gratitude. She felt relieved.
He no longer had to suffer.
Of course, the past wouldn’t be completely forgotten, but the living must go on.
Sylvia, more than anyone else, was a person who lived by this principle, and seeing Liu’s positive transformation made her genuinely happy.
After gathering coconut crabs, mussels, and even oysters, Sylvia was approached by Felix.
Just as before, Sylvia handed Liu the subspace bag she had prepared.
“Take this.”
“What is it, Miss Magician?”
“It’s a gift from me.”
“Huh?”
“Liu, please share it with the villagers.”
“…Yes, I will. Are you leaving already?”
“We have no choice; time is short.”
“At least stay for a meal…”
Liu spoke with a face full of regret. Felix added softly.
“We feel the same way, but we can’t delay any longer.”
After speaking with the village chief, retrieving the Black Dragon’s gem, and surveying the area, Felix had received another message from the Duke.
Though they had only intended to make a brief visit, a month had already passed, and Felix understood the Duke’s concerns.
After bidding farewell to the villagers, the two took to the skies. As they hurriedly made their way back, Sylvia spoke to Felix.
“Isn’t there a teleportation circle in the Dragon Grimoire?”
Although it was faster than speaking, moving the body directly took up a lot of time.
She grumbled seriously.
“I’m definitely going to inscribe a teleportation circle.”
Felix knew well that when his wife spoke like this, she was determined to make it happen.
He thought it might not be a bad idea to inscribe it together so that they could quickly travel to the same place whenever they wished.
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