Volume 1, Chapter 10 – The Moon Fairy

In the end, Fia did not go out.

It wasn’t that Anastasia forbade her from leaving—rather, Fia didn’t want anyone following her. According to Anastasia, the outside world was extremely dangerous right now, and if Fia wanted to go out, she had to be accompanied by guards. However, the reason Fia wanted to leave was simply to be alone, to quietly think about her next steps. Since having people around would only disturb her, there was no longer any point in going out.

Anastasia’s concerns about danger weren’t unfounded, but the current Anastasia knew nothing about Fia. If she knew that Fia’s flame magic was powerful enough to blow the entire city sky-high, she definitely wouldn’t be worried about her safety.

Of course, it wasn’t as if Fia had no reason to go out at all. In the desert cabin, she had obtained three items: a map, The Secret History of Witches, and a silver dagger inlaid with gemstones. The Secret History of Witches mentioned right at the beginning that the silver dagger should be returned to its original owner. Fia had always respected the wishes of the deceased, so finding an opportunity to return it would fulfill a promise.

After that, she still needed to visit the pawnshop and the Adventurers’ Guild to gather information—the Adventurers’ Guild was an organization mentioned in The Secret History of Witches.

“Things are getting more and more complicated.”

Walking down the corridor, Fia clicked her tongue. She had changed into a black evening dress, and to avoid drawing attention, her black hair had been dyed white with special magical dye, and her hairstyle had shifted from loose twin tails to a side ponytail. If the previous Fia had been a pitiful, cold-faced girl, the current one was the type who radiated approachability, making people instinctively want to get close to her.

According to Anastasia, after the Elf Princess was defeated, the elite troops under her command had also collapsed. The elves had either lost contact or been captured by the Milcandis Holy Kingdom. Anastasia now had only a dozen or so people left under her command, all of whom were living within the slave traders’ association. Under various fabricated titles, they carried out covert activities in the city of Aurora.

As for why the slave traders were willing to help Anastasia—it was because the Elf Princess had once saved the life of one of them.

The sky gradually darkened, and from the third-floor corridor where Fia stood, she could already see the lights of nearby houses flickering on one after another. Setting aside the magic array covering the sky, the city’s appearance resembled that of a medieval European street, yet it wasn’t entirely the same. Stone-built houses stretched layer upon layer into the distance, the streets crisscrossed in all directions, and the city was unusually clean.

The clothing of the pedestrians on the streets was simple—only short hemp shirts and pants, often patched up. Some people simply tied two pieces of cloth together with rope and draped them over their shoulders as makeshift vests.

“Before dawn, during the shift change of the city guards, slip out quietly through the underground passage.”

Repeating Anastasia’s words under her breath, Fia withdrew her gaze from the distance and resumed walking down the empty corridor.

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“She didn’t even ask for my agreement,” Fia couldn’t help but sigh softly. “Honestly, this whole ‘amnesia’ explanation is problematic to begin with.”

If she didn’t have memories from the Human Alliance, she might have believed Anastasia’s claim—that she was simply suffering from amnesia after a severe injury and was still the Elf Princess at her core. But if she were truly the Elf Princess, she wouldn’t possess knowledge from the Human Alliance. Moreover, the memories the Elf Princess had left her had already made it clear—the Elf Princess was truly dead.

If she were to explain this to Anastasia—

Fia’s mind conjured up the image of Anastasia’s hopeful expression when she thought the Elf Princess had merely lost her memory.

No…

Perhaps she shouldn’t reveal the truth.

As long as she didn’t, she could enjoy the affection, friendship, trust, and even loyalty meant for the Elf Princess. Amnesia was an incredibly convenient excuse. With it, she could start over in this world, and those around her would treat her with extra leniency. No one would question why she didn’t even know her parents’ names—because everything could be blamed on memory loss.

As for the claim that “the Elf Princess has been possessed,” Anastasia had already dismissed it using something called a “Mana Surge” crystal. Admittedly, Fia didn’t understand the properties of Mana Surge, but the raw emotion in Anastasia’s words couldn’t be faked—she was telling the truth.

If she just played dumb here, everything that belonged to the Elf Princess would become hers. The emotions and bonds she had never experienced, the things she lacked and yearned for—all of it would flock to her based on her next response. Not just parents, but friends, subordinates, even lovers or admirers—a future full of promise awaited her. These were things the lonely Fia had never known and might never have again.

For a moment, Fia couldn’t help but feel as if the flickering candlelight lining the corridor was cheering her on. She could almost see those shining possibilities beckoning to her.

She stopped in her tracks.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment. The night was eerily silent.

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“No.” Her teeth lightly bit her red lips, as if bidding farewell to something. Fia took a deep breath. “That’s wrong.”

A bitter taste lingered in her mouth, but Fia felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She suddenly felt much lighter.

This was wrong. Fia understood that deeply.

Could she really just accept everything that belonged to the Elf Princess so easily?

She did wish for—even craved—the care of friends and family, but only if those things truly belonged to her. She couldn’t brazenly take what rightfully belonged to the Elf Princess.

In other words, even if she hid the truth about being from another world and agreed to Anastasia’s claims, she might feel happy in the moment when Anastasia and the Elf Princess’s loved ones cared for her. But once night fell and she was alone, she would inevitably be consumed by emptiness and guilt. Because deep down, she would always know—they were caring for the Elf Princess, not her, the impostor. Living under someone else’s name would only hurt her in the end.

Fia was too clever to deceive herself.

She had her principles.

Deception was something she could never accept. Moreover, bonds should be built on sincerity and openness. Gaining affection under a false identity wasn’t the kind of connection she sought.

Rather than living in constant fear, it was better to come clean as soon as possible.

That was what Fia truly wanted to say.

Before she knew it, Fia had reached the first-floor hall of the mansion. The slave traders’ association was quite large, with a massive enclosed courtyard in front of the entrance. Surrounding it were covered “display platforms”—and the items on display needed no explanation.

They were slaves, locked in iron cages, waiting to be sold.

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This was a world where slavery still existed. Those who broke the law could be demoted to slaves, who were treated as less than human—often worse than livestock. The slaves in the courtyard now could only curl up in cramped iron cages, waiting for buyers to arrive.

It was not a pleasant sight.

Just when she was feeling down, she had to witness such a heartbreaking scene.

Perhaps tonight would be a good time to talk things over with Anastasia.

Just as Fia was about to turn back, a glimmer of silver light suddenly caught her eye. Almost instinctively, she stopped and looked toward the courtyard.

Standing there was a girl.

She seemed to be concerned about the slaves in the cages, her face full of worry. The way she crouched down only deepened that impression. Just this one scene was enough to tell anyone that this was an extraordinarily kind girl.

Though Fia could only see her profile, it did nothing to diminish the girl’s radiant beauty.

Skin as pale as the moon, eyes pure and untainted, and a waterfall of silver hair cascading naturally down her back. Her indigo dress was covered by a snow-white shawl, and her calves were outlined enticingly by white stockings.

Bathed in moonlight, the girl seemed to glow with a transparent, holy radiance, like a goddess descended to the mortal world. Even the bleak, desolate courtyard seemed softer and brighter around her, as if she had become the focal point of the night. Upon closer inspection, one could even see countless tiny specks of light floating around her—even the elements seemed to dance in her presence.

The princess of the moon, standing in the courtyard.

If the black-haired Elf Princess was a fairy of the night, then this silver-haired girl was the moon’s spirit, the night’s companion.

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The dreamlike scene made Fia momentarily forget what she had been doing. There was an indescribable feeling, as if something intangible yet powerful tied her to this girl. So much so that she didn’t even realize she had been staring for far too long.

“Hm?”

As if disturbed by something, the silver motes of light around the girl quickly vanished. The girl herself seemed to sense something and turned around in confusion.

Their eyes met.

Emerald-green, deep and pure like the starry sky.

What a beautiful girl.

—Wait, now wasn’t the time to stare.

Even though they were over ten meters apart, Fia still felt embarrassed about her blatant staring. She quickly averted her gaze from the moon princess and instinctively tried to leave this awkward situation behind.

But the girl called out to her.

“Wait.”

At this point, Fia couldn’t just pretend she was passing by. Moreover, being stopped by the girl gave her a strange feeling. This was the first time someone had actively called out to her—not because she was the Elf Princess, but simply for being herself.

Fia turned back. By now, the girl had already approached her.

“You—don’t find me frightening? Like I’m some kind of curse or something.”