Last night, Aria made a decision. She would go to that forest. To where the glowing petals led. If Elma was hiding something, the answer had to be there. So now, Aria lay in her futon with her eyes open, quietly counting Elma's breaths. Whoosh, whoosh. Steady breathing. Even after five minutes, it didn't change. Aria slowly raised her upper body. She moved carefully so the wooden floor wouldn't creak. One foot, then the other. (I can do this.) She cupped the petal from her pillow in her palm. Two herb breads wrapped in cloth, stuffed into her pocket. She almost grabbed the herb encyclopedia too—then stopped. Too heavy. She held her breath and slid open the front door. A faint sound escaped, and Aria froze. Elma's breathing continued. Outside, the pre-dawn air was thin and cold, brushing against Aria's cheeks like a sting. The eastern sky was still dark, but beginning to turn indigo. She ran. To the edge of the village, trying to keep her footsteps quiet. Then, in front of the familiar sign, she stopped. *"No Entry—Grove Prohibition Order / Violators subject to labor sentence up to three years"* Three years. Three years... three years. Three years! Aria read the sign three times, and each time she felt her face go pale. Three years of labor meant hauling stones, clearing fields. Elma would be furious. Village Chief Thomas would be furious. She might not even be allowed to take the Tilsia Herbalism Academy certification exam with a criminal record. Her future would be, quite literally, over. (But...) The petal glowed softly. In her palm, pulsing like a heartbeat. As if saying "come on, hurry." A sensation seeped into the back of her left hand. Since picking up the petal, the feeling had become clearer, stronger than before. "Alright." She took a step forward. She pretended not to see the sign. ――― The mist boundary came suddenly. The moment she stepped through, her vision changed. She was in a forest, but the light filtering through wasn't ordinary dappled sunlight. The air itself was a different color. A bluish, gentle light crawled across the ground. And the plants— "...wait a second." Aria stopped. White flowers bloomed at the base of the trees. But their petals glowed at the edges. Faintly, pale blue, flickering like breathing. The moss covering the ground lit up in the shape of her footprints with each step, then faded. In the distance, a bell chimed. Ching. Without any wind. (This... is this Lumina Orchid? Does Lumina Orchid actually exist?) Aria almost reached for her herb encyclopedia before remembering she hadn't brought it. Instead, she flipped through the pages in her mind. Luminescent plants, luminescent plants... The Tilsia Herbalism Academy textbook said Lumina Orchid was "a relic of the Spirit Age, believed to be extinct." It was right here. Aria stared at her feet and muttered. "It exists... Lumina Orchid actually exists..." As she leaned closer to the plants, muttering to herself, something soft brushed against her shoe. Looking down, three moss-ball-like creatures were sniffing around her feet. About twenty centimeters long. Round bodies covered in moss, with tiny eyes and limbs. Moving with a soft patter, one of them poked at Aria's shoe. (What... is this... so cute...) When Aria knelt down to crouch, all three retreated at once. One of them made a sound in a halting voice. "[serious]Run away." Aria went rigid. "Wait, it talked." "Run away. Humans bad." "It's talking! The moss ball is talking!!" The three Mokori startled at her excited voice and scurried away. But they didn't go far—from behind a tree, they watched her intently with their small eyes. (Descendants of spirit familiars... from legend... they were real...) Aria remained on her knees, staring at the Mokori for a while. When she tried to lean closer, the glowing moss beneath her feet vanished, replaced by stone tiles. Before she knew it, she'd entered a wide space. An ancient spring—that's what came to Aria's mind. The water surface glowed despite the darkness. Flowers blooming around it reflected in the spring, making it shimmer faintly. There was no sound of water. But the water was definitely there, the air was cool, and somehow time felt different. Aria approached the spring's edge. Her face reflected in the water. Black short bob, brown eyes. Then another shadow appeared in the reflection. "...A human." A low voice. Aria spun around. A young man stood there. Silver hair fell to his shoulders in disarray. He was a full head taller than Aria. But his body's outline was somehow vague. Not quite transparent—but as if he slightly refracted the forest's light around him. His eyes were jade green, quiet, cold. A small bird feather earring in his left ear. He was smiling. Just at the corners of his mouth, barely. But his eyes weren't smiling. "[cold]I told you not to come here." "Nobody told me that." "The forest is telling you. The prohibition order. The mist boundary." His voice had a weight to it. Low and quiet, carrying the heaviness of something ancient that had always been there. Aria unconsciously stepped back. But her feet didn't stop. (Jade green eyes... such a beautiful color...) The thought lasted only an instant before Aria snapped back to reality. This wasn't the time for that. "Who are you?" "[cold]A spirit guardian. The protector of this forest. My name is Kael." A spirit guardian. Aria found herself repeating the words in her mind. A being who contracts with spirits and protects sacred grounds—a title that was supposed to have ceased existing after the spirits vanished in the Silence Mist four hundred years ago. She'd read it mentioned in just one line in one of Elma's old books. "[surprised]Spirit guardians actually exist?" "I'm standing right in front of you, so yes." "Right... yeah, that makes sense..." Aria felt her cheeks warm at the foolishness of her own question. But something else was bothering her more. She pulled the glowing petal from her pocket. "This is what led me here. Do you know anything about this petal?" The moment she held it out, Kael's expression changed. His smile vanished. His eyes fixed on the petal. His body's outline seemed to waver slightly. A single footstep forward. He stared at the petal— "...You were guided by this petal?" A murmur. Whether he was speaking to Aria or to himself, she couldn't tell. "The Spirit King's proof..." "The Spirit King's... proof?" Aria reacted sharply. She took a step forward. "[serious]Does that have something to do with my origins? I don't know anything about my parents. Where I was born, who gave birth to me. So—" "[cold]It's better not to know." He shut it down completely. "Go back." "I won't." An immediate answer. Kael looked slightly taken aback. "[cold]This place isn't somewhere humans should come. The Mokori warned you." "They did, but 'Run away' was way too cute to be scary." "..." "I want to know. Where I came from. I know Elma is hiding something. And why this petal only reacts to me..." Her voice trembled slightly. When emotion crept in, she couldn't help it. She continued anyway. "You don't have to answer. Just... don't tell me to leave." Kael watched her for a while. His eyes weren't calculating something—they looked like someone hearing a human voice for the first time in ages. A mixture of bewilderment and something he didn't want noticed. "[cold]I'm a spirit guardian. I can't leave this forest. There's no reason for me to talk to a human." "But you're talking to me right now." "..." "Hey." Aria hesitated, then reached into her pocket. "Are you maybe hungry? I brought herb bread." Silence. Kael's eyes narrowed. "[cold]Spirits don't need food." "Oh, right. Sorry." Aria put the bread back in her pocket. Kael turned his gaze to the spring. Silence continued for a while in front of the soundless spring. Then Kael's nose twitched slightly. "..." "What's wrong?" "Nothing." More silence. Kael's gaze drifted casually toward Aria's pocket. Then back to the spring. Then toward her pocket again. "[cold]...That bread." "Yeah?" "Does it have... Lunagrass in it?" Aria's face lit up immediately. "[excited]It does! How did you know?! Lunagrass and chamomile in equal parts, with a little honey mixed in, then baked—" Kael's face showed obvious regret. He'd let something slip. His gaze fixed on the spring, and he coughed once. "...Spirits don't eat. However, they can... sense scents. That's all. Nothing more." "So you like the smell?" "It's not about liking. It's just how a spirit's senses work. I'm not eating it. Absolutely not." "But you do like the smell." "..." Kael didn't answer. Aria pulled out the bread again and unfolded the cloth. The sweet scent of Lunagrass—a plant that favored moonlight, also used as a catalyst in grass-flower magic—spread softly through the cool air. Kael's expression softened, just slightly. It was obvious he was pretending not to notice. Seeing that, something warm bloomed in Aria's chest. Warm, or—what was this feeling? She'd thought he was scary, but his face changed at the smell of bread. (I can't just leave someone like this alone.) It was an occupational hazard of being an herbalist, Aria decided. It had to be. "[gentle]...Just a little." "Huh?" "[cold]I'm saying I'll tell you a little about this forest. Nothing more. Not about your origins, not about the Spirit King's proof—not now." Aria's heart began to race. (The tension broke, I guess. Yeah, that's it, that must be it.) "Thank you!" She held out the bread with the cloth toward Kael. He'd said he didn't eat, but she offered it anyway. Kael didn't take it. But he turned slightly toward the scent. ――― For about an hour after that, Aria listened to Kael talk. The interior of Grouve operated under different spatial laws than normal. Walking around, you could find yourself back where you started without realizing it. Most of the glowing plants weren't useful as grass-flower magic catalysts—they had their own power from the Spirit Age. There were three Mokori, they had no names, and when Kael tried to name them, they refused, and eventually he stopped bothering. Kael let things slip while talking. "The Mokori were timid at first. It took forty years before they came close." "Forty years?!" "Spirits experience time differently than humans." "I see... so what does four hundred years feel like?" Kael was quiet for a moment. "...Long." That was all he said. He wouldn't say more. Aria couldn't take that word lightly. Four hundred years. Since the Silence Mist happened, he'd been here. Alone, with the Mokori, with the glowing plants. (It is long. Yeah, that's long.) Aria tried to think of something to say, then stopped. Nothing clever came to mind. Instead, she unfolded the bread again and ate some herself. The taste of Lunagrass spread across her tongue. Kael wasn't looking. He was facing the spring. But his nose twitched again. ――― Before leaving through the mist boundary, Aria turned back. "Can I come again tomorrow?" Kael raised an eyebrow slightly. "[cold]My permission doesn't matter. This place is—" He stopped mid-sentence. A brief silence. "...I'm not telling you not to come." That was all he said before turning away. Aria looked back one more time. Kael stared at the spring's surface, completely still. In the forest's light, his profile looked terribly lonely. No smile, no irony—just a face that existed. (I can't leave someone with that expression. It's definitely an occupational hazard of being an herbalist. There's no other reason.) Aria settled that in her mind and passed through the mist boundary. Walking back toward the village, she had a strange feeling she was taking the long way. Wait, she thought, looking around—unfamiliar undergrowth stretched ahead. (Huh? Wasn't it this way?) When she tried to turn bac