The Book Of Flowers

Formerly in the Elf Forest (2)

-- Year 115, Miralius --

It's been a year since the ceremony of my appointment as an Oberon

But, what's new to me is a bigger residence, and more work

My father and a senior named Cyrus often helped me take care of those jobs. More precisely I made them do those jobs

I used to sneak away and play alone without their knowledge. When I get caught, they'll sigh tiredly and take me back. However, in the end, the work I do can be counted by the fingers compared to them because I always pass it to both while at work

"You have no problem letting Oberon not work?" Cyrus asked my father

"He's a kid too. I'm sure he'd rather play at his age"

"But, if he's not used to it, he'll never want to do this responsibility, will he?"

...

I don't want to be an Oberon if I don't have to

'If they can do my duty as an Oberon, what is the necessity of my appointment?'

I always thought so

Feeling irritated and forced, I not infrequently grumbled when I heard such talk

They didn't mean to be evil or insult me, but like I said, I was offended that I didn't want to be Oberon in the first place

...

I once again ran away from my job. And when I realized, I was near the Great Tree. And not long after, Alf's voice welcomed my newly arrived self

"Ah, Vainzel" Call him

I approached and sat down at one of its large roots—picked a pouting face that was barely visible under the hooded cloak I was wearing to hide myself from the sight of others

"Still running away from your duties, hm?" His little laugh was heard after that

She insinuates. I'm ashamed he knew that, too

"I don't blame you, my son. You are still a little girl"

"... Then, why did Father choose me?"

I raised my head and stared at the trunk of the Great Tree directly

"As I said before, there's a bond between me and your soul"

That doesn't answer my question at all

He always gave me that answer every time I asked. It was as if he wanted to avoid that question...

*sruk!*

I'm appalled. There was a voice of movement I did not recognize heard around here. And that voice sounded close

"Who is that?"

Realizing the sound was something moving within the bush, I was startled and on standby for a moment

"Just calm my son. He's not dangerous"

Along with Alf's words, a little Elf girl came out from the bushes and turned slowly towards me

He lowered his eyes from my face. Her little face was flushed with shame

His white-green clothes with a bell flower-shaped hat on his head made a harmonious impression between his clothes and face

"... M-sorry..." Said slowly

He then ran off somewhere, disappearing from my sight

...

"Who?" Much

Alf suddenly laughed and astonished me. "If you're so curious, come back here again" he said later

I just kept quiet not responding. But anyway, I was curious...

--- The next day ---

"Yahujana? I've ti-"

My words broke when I saw the girl who was near the Great Tree— was shocked to see my presence

His face turned red again, just like yesterday. While I was just confused to see his behavior that I considered unclear

"A-a-I'm going first...!"

He was about to leave once more, but the Great Tree blocked him before he could make a step

"Ha-Great Tree?"

He was shocked and panicked when confronted directly by Alf. I also realized that Alf wanted me to talk to the girl, for some reason, as seen from the movement of the tree roots trying to signal

I also tried to start a conversation, inevitably

"Hello..." My broom

He still lowered his gaze when he faced me. The shy girl even started pulling down her bell flower hat, until her face was covered

"Your name?" I asked again

"..."

I don't know if this girl is shy or doesn't want to talk to me. Maybe both

"... Or-Ordera..."

...

I jerked. Her slow and gentle tone stunned me for a moment. All of a sudden he introduced his name, and I wasn't ready to respond to that

I started again trying to continue the conversation

"You're the son of the flower Elf clan?"

He nodded slowly responding to the question. The atmosphere is awkward...

"Why come here?"

"..."

He didn't answer. Even if I force her, she will definitely not answer. I also feel tired of continuing this conversation

"You guys are so awkward..." Alf suddenly followed the conversation

"Iamazand..."

"... You're the new O-Oberon, aren't you...?

I turned to her because I mentioned that specifically. And I nodded first

"Yes. My name is Vainzel" I'm responding

"... What a good name..." Mumbled

...

I need a hand. I don't know at all how to interact with new people, especially when the situation is awkward

"But, a-I have to go. Nice to meet you"

He immediately gave a farewell and left as quickly as possible from before me. Again

...

I heaved a sigh of relief, and also a sigh of sighing all at once

"You already know his name now" Alf began to make a sound again

"But what's the point of that for me?" I asked him, confused

"Tomorrow, come again"

"Tomorrow again!?"

I don't understand at all the purpose of telling me to come. But at least, I had reason to avoid this blessing work, so I didn't protest too much

................

a week later ---

It's been a week. The girl was always near the Great Tree whenever I came

We talk to each other every day. And the further ahead, our conversation grew longer and longer

That day he was there again. He seemed to be sitting and waiting for me. His eyes shifted to and fro like he was looking for someone

"Morning" Sapaku

"Oh, Vainzel. Morning"

But, even though I was approaching and sitting nearby, he still looked around

"You looking for something?"

He nodded

"I was playing hide and seek with my friends. But, I do remember that you might be waiting"

He's focused on playing hide-and-seek while talking to me here?

But, guys...

Guys guys...

Means more than one...

...

I immediately panicked when I realized that his friends were probably around this place. Explains why his eyes have been going all the way here since I saw him

"Your friends are near here?"

He nodded, according to what I feared

I was afraid that if I misbehaved in front of his friends, trying to prepare myself in advance for various possibilities

"Ah, meet!" Suddenly he called out

Just as Ordelia said so, A male Elf of our age appeared bound to a tree tendril while thrashing in the air. I was shocked and amazed at once, seeing the unexpected catch Ordelia had obtained

"Let go! Ordelia! You cheated!"

Ordelia placed the child slowly in front of the two of us, showing a triumphant face as the child groaned in annoyance

Instantly, the boy turned his gaze towards me who was sitting beside Ordelia. But, I covered my head with the hat Ordelia used to wear. I was the one who was being shy at that moment

"Ah, the boy..."

He got up and cleaned his clothes that were covered with dust. When I looked at him carefully, the child's eyebrows always shrunk with a face that had the impression of looking upset. All of his clothes were all red, following the color of his hair and eyes

"Eh? But, she-"

"Alright, come!"

He grabbed Ordelia's hand and dragged her away from beside me

...

I wonder why.

...

'Hmph... Now it's quiet...'

I didn't expect I'd say that. But, I got confused as to what to do after Ordelia left to take the boy

........................

Ordelia had never come back since that day. Whether he was emphatically reprimanded or indeed he who was unwilling to come, I had no idea at all

Because of that, I often sit still and talk to Alf every once in a while while. But out of boredom, I descended from the root of the Great Tree and walked around it

My head poked out looking back and forth from behind the roots of the Great Tree, observing every inch of it closely

Right, left, up, down, front and back. I checked everything to find Ordelia's whereabouts, even though I knew she wasn't there

"The boy never came here again" Alf said

I stopped looking here and there and immediately pouted. Alf just ruined my busy life that I did to distract myself

"Then do you know where he is?" I asked too

"They're near the end of the forest right now. Right on the border"

The frontier? The dark forest border? That's not the place of Dark Elves?

The dark forest was where the Dark Elves or some other kind of 'problematic' elves lived. And since it was dark, several moon fairies lived there

Dark Elves themselves live there because they always need Mana constantly because of their curses

And the great thing is, even though Mana is poisonous, they can still contain it like nothing happened

The people in that place are not dangerous to them, but the place is the problem

That place has a dangerous mana flow in its area. This was caused by the carcass of a cursed dragon that died in the area polluting the ground and the air

When the dragon came to attack Miralius, Alf killed him. The dragon fell into the area of the Dark Forest and died until it became a carcass there

And as his carcass began to contaminate the Miralius area, Alf made the place overgrown with many very large and dense trees to reduce the effects of the poison that spread

This resulted in almost no sunlight entering the place, shrouded in a closed area

If any living thing had no resistance to poison, it would see illusions and lose its breath slowly to death. In addition, most of the shape of the area where it was was gulfs and poisonous ponds. No need to explain again what dangers can be caused by these two things

What was worse than that place was that Alf could not use the Great Tree to inspect it. If they go in there and disappear, no one can know what happened to them

"Isn't the place dangerous?"

"You could say so. It's just, if they're strong enough, they can go"

"But-"

"Yes. They are still my children. None of them should die horribly"

His words made me steadfast to check on their circumstances

"You must be careful, my son. Please watch them"

With his consent, I ran towards the border to catch up with them. I also happen to be curious to see the Dark Forest directly

................

"Where is luna...?"

"I don't know. He may have forgotten"

"Luna is evil if so... He has promised"

"..."

I peeked out from behind a bush and saw that there were 4 elven children from different clans gathered near the border between the Dark Forest and the ordinary forest

One of them was Ordelia and the red-skinned child

The Border and the Dark Forest...

The ground in this place looks like a difference. The side belonging to the Dark Forest area had a blackish land compared to the usual area of Miralius

I even started thinking about not setting foot on the ground in the slightest when I saw him now. There was no sign of life like a little green plant there, and I was uncomfortable entering such an area

Putting that aside, my focus returned to the 4 children who were still in my control

"What are they doing...?" I murmured softly

"Ah, that's it!" One of them exclaimed

I was shocked to hear the call, thinking I had been found out. But instead of pointing at me, they pointed at a figure

The figure came from the side of the Dark Forest at the border. And, as she approached, she saw the figure as a female Elf child

Her skin was purplish with white hair and a striking jewel purple eyeball. He stood very rigidly like a soldier, facing his friends who began to gather and approach

And considering that they were waiting for a child named Luna earlier, then I could find out firsthand the name of the Elf boy

"You're late!" The red-skinned boy cried

"That's because the training has already begun, Ivor" The boy, Luna, responds

"Whatever. Give me that Mana stone now"

Luna gave a necklace with bluish stones as her jewel. Each of his friends received the necklace and immediately wore it.— can not wait for something to look forward to

Except...

"Why, Ordelia?" Ask Luna

Ordelia seemed hesitant to enter the Dark Forest. Reactions are quite understandable

"... I don't want to go. I'm scared"

"Huh? Then why are you following us?" The yellow-haired child among them began to speak up. "We told you not to, didn't we?" Further

"... I want to play with you guys..."

"But Ordelia, we want to play in the Dark Forest" the blue-haired girl interjected between them

They all stood there and waited for Ordelia to decide. It was as if they were squeezing and pressuring Ordelia to stick with what they wanted to do

Hesitating, Ordelia finally put the necklace around her neck. They were all spontaneously happy—smiles implied on the face, and immediately stepped inside the Dark Forest area with Luna holding Ordelia's hand so that she would not be frightened

...

I don't know if I should follow them. I never went in there myself. Only my father told me all about the area on a visit to replace me in a meeting

If I go in there, I might die slowly... But...

"Hey, Vainzel!"

That voice surprised me. Not to mention, the voice came from beside me

Alf's voice came from a tree root. He was holding a small glowing blue ball and was right beside me. A blue ball that was exactly like the gemstone that was on the children's necklace

"Take this my son" He said

The ball he put on the ground. I slowly grabbed what I was given and took it, which turned out to be no bigger than a pebble. It might be smaller than the necklace gem, but this alone was enough to help me survive in the Dark Forest environment

"Always put it in your pocket and don't lose it" Alf warned

The roots went back to the ground after he finished speaking, leaving me alone to think of how to get in and out

Following Alf's words, I pocketed the small ball and immediately rushed into the Dark Forest area, following the five Elf children

...

I followed them from a distance. With the light from their necklaces, I could tell their position within the darkness of this area

They kept talking about various things while on the way. One of the things I heard was that they were talking about exercises in this area

A drill? So, there are Elves training in a place like this?

Their voices continue to be heard from my current position. Meanwhile, I was busy avoiding the poisonous ponds, the giant trees that filled this place like pillars, and the holes in the ground, while continuing to follow the five of them silently

This place is in keeping with what my father told me... That's creepy...

"Huhah!? Have to cross one by one!?"

The loud cries spontaneously startled me and immediately looked for a place to hide. But apparently, it was just the voice of one of those kids

She exclaimed loudly, but it somehow shocked me

I tried to get closer to them and hid behind a large rock to eavesdrop further

"Why should that be!?" The boy named Ivor said

I wonder why they wonder. But the answer was immediately apparent as I looked further ahead, an area right before the five of them

When I looked carefully, there was a bridge there—a place they had to cross. The bridge in front of them looks old and can break easily. And looking at the shape of the steep cliff near me, I could tell that the bridge was over a cliff that might be very deep or have something deadly at its base

The area itself gives me goosebumps. How could one not be afraid to look at that place and think about continuing?

Worse, the fog covered the view on the bridge and made me unable to see how far the side across the bridge was. I was a little boy, of course, afraid and intended to go home, but could not because I still had to keep an eye on the five children

"If you want, let's just take a detour, how?" Luna asked the boy named Ivor

"... Hmh!"

Ivor has given me the answer. He refused to take the spinning path that took too long. He immediately retreated and fell into submission with Luna's words

"alright. Luxor, you go first" Ivor then pointed

But no one refused. The yellow-haired boy gulped knowing no one was arguing, and began to advance slowly to cross the bridge

I panicked, thinking that he could fall at any moment. The fragile bridge looks like it won't be able to hold anything above it

I'm panicking. And remembering that I had to follow them would make me panic even more. Maybe when it was my turn to cross, the bridge was sure to break until I fell to the bottom of the ravine

But the boy named Luxor continued to advance slowly on the bridge that had to be passed, while holding the rope carefully

"Remember! Don't use your magic!" Luna warned

"P- Understand! Don't disturb my concentration just yet!" He replied, sounding like he was scared

Luxor continued to walk slowly over the bridge. And after a while, his figure was engulfed in a fog that covered the entire area and disappeared from our sight

I was nervous to see that. Her friends look nervous like me. But, the bridge is still swaying slowly, indicating that Luxor is still up there

Till...

A loud sound as if a broken wood could be heard, making the lives of everyone who heard it float out for a moment

"AH!!! LUNA!!!" The panicked scream followed after