Chapter 549

Chapter 556: Left Alone~ (Please Subscribe!)

The fourth warehouse of the Orlando Guild… also known as the Fairy Warehouse, is a military territory on Floating Island No. 68.

Currently, in this massive structure nestled deep within the forest, about thirty young girls reside, all of them female.

Their ages vary but are roughly between seven and fifteen years old.

As for their race… they’re all Gold Fairies!

The Fairy Warehouse was specifically built by the Winged Guard to train these fairies.

Each Gold Fairy undergoes combat training from childhood, destined to fight beasts for the sake of the floating continents.

But… that was the old name and mission of this place.

Nowadays, it’s said that the Grand Sage, the highest advisor of the Winged Guard, personally renamed it.

It’s now called the Fairy Home. The military designation has been removed, and no further sortie missions have been assigned.

It’s almost as if it’s been left entirely alone.

However, thanks to this, the place has experienced a brief period of peace and tranquility.

At least for now.

Kotory is currently the oldest among the Gold Fairies.

She’s nearly sixteen years old.

As the eldest sister, her arrivals and departures always attract attention from the little ones.

There’s only one path connecting the Fairy Home to the forest, and Kotory herself makes no effort to conceal her presence.

By the time she approaches the mansion, news of her bringing someone home is already spreading.

“Is it Kotory-nee-sama returning?”

“Wow! There’s an unfamiliar adult! Run!”

“There’s a man! We’ll be eaten!”

Surprisingly, the children here seem quite unaccustomed to outsiders, especially men?

They were initially happy upon seeing Kotory return.

But upon spotting Izay, they scattered like startled birds.

“Sorry, the kids here are just a bit shy. They simply don’t know how to interact with strangers; it’s not that they’re deliberately avoiding you.”

Seeing this, Kotory managed a somewhat forced smile, intending to explain on behalf of the little fairies.

But then…

“Nigelan! Kotory brought a man home!!”

??!!

Kotory’s smile faltered.

Who’s spreading rumors about her?

Her sharp gaze scanned the area, but she came up empty.

Too many children had rushed over upon hearing the news and quickly dispersed, making it impossible to identify who started it.

“Having energetic kids isn’t such a bad thing.” Artemis smiled gracefully.

Perhaps out of foresight, she’s developed a liking for children lately.

Look at the goddess, with Cat, Xiao You, and even Laentoluca by her side.

She treats these three as her daughters.

Incidentally, Black Candle Lord is no longer around.

Due to some of his past actions, this Earth God felt that meeting the Gold Fairies might cause them discomfort when the truth comes out later.

Thus, to avoid hindering Izay and Artemis’ persuasion plan, after spending some time with Laentoluca, he left contentedly.

On the other hand, Red Lake Lord, as an outsider, didn’t participate in the conversation and went early to sleep in Laentoluca’s spiritual world, commonly known as Spring Nap.

Perhaps because the news spread rapidly among the little ones.

By the time Izay and the others approached the mansion, a woman was already waiting there.

Additionally, there were children hiding in various corners, peeking at the commotion.

Judging by appearance, the woman looked about twenty years old, tall, with a well-proportioned figure.

Her pale red hair cascaded down to her shoulders like a waterfall, her yellow-green eyes clear and bright. A grass-green shirt and white apron tightly wrapped around her body, barely revealing any skin.

With her hands folded in front of her, she exuded an aura of good upbringing.

“Welcome back, Kotory. Are these friends you’ve made during your diplomatic travels? It’s rare to see you bring friends home like this.”

Her tone carried a hint of joy.

Clearly, she was delighted that Kotory had brought friends home.

As the former manager of the Fairy Warehouse, Nigelan had taken care of Kotory and the others for several years.

She’s maternal by nature, being considerate towards the Gold Fairies living here. She’s one of the few people in the floating continents who didn’t view the Gold Fairies as mere weapons.

In the past, Kotory and the others had their lives restricted by the Winged Guard. Not only was it hard to make friends, but they rarely had time to rest, as the vast floating continents relied solely on a few adult fairies for protection.

Now, suddenly left alone, they’ve gained the opportunity to socialize with others. In Nigelan’s view, this could be a good thing.

“Friends… maybe…”

Faced with Nigelan’s sincere congratulatory remarks, Kotory averted her gaze guiltily. Anyone could tell she wasn’t being truthful.

“Ara? If these aren’t your friends, may I ask why you’ve come here?”

Noticing Kotory’s abnormality, Nigelan maintained her composed and reserved smile, turning to inquire about Izay and the others’ purpose.

“We’ve come to play with Laentoluca and Nafude! And we want all of you to join Artemis-nee-sama’s Familial Group!”

“Uh… As Laentoluca said, that’s right.”

Laentoluca took the initiative to answer, leaving Izay to echo her response.

According to Black Candle Lord, without sortie missions, all the Gold Fairies have remained on Island No. 68.

Izay wasn’t worried about not seeing Laentoluca and Nafude.

Even if they stepped out, they’d return soon enough.

“Laentoluca means Laentoluca? You know her and Nafude?”

“What is this ‘Familial Group’?”

Upon hearing Laentoluca’s response, Kotory and Nigelan reacted differently.

While Kotory was more concerned about her companions, Nigelan focused on understanding what this ‘Familial Group’ meant.

Some kind of organization?

Are they here to recruit them?

Recalling the other day when a Winged Guard officer mentioned that some big shot had traded with the Grand Sage for the ownership of the former Fairy Warehouse and changed its name, Nigelan realized that the current Fairy Home is actually the “private institution” of that big shot.

Since that person hadn’t shown up or sent any messages these past few days, Nigelan assumed they had been left alone.

(Are these people related to that big shot? But why do they know Laentoluca and Nafude?)

Nigelan couldn’t figure it out.

After all, Laentoluca’s response was too “direct.”

Though it did clarify their intent, it revealed nothing else, leaving her clueless.

Nevertheless, out of basic courtesy, she invited Izay and the others into the mansion to continue the conversation inside.