Pastel clasped her hands together, closed her eyes tightly, and quietly made a wish.
“Please don’t let Elsia’s heart get too hurt.”
It’s unrealistic to wish for her to not be hurt at all.
Her attitude was reverent, unlike the slightly blinded desire that had led her to wish for immortality before.
—Dear Fairy, please don’t let the heart of the friend this girl spoke of get too hurt.
The Lord Fairy also performed the ritual of granting wishes with a pious demeanor.
It was a stark contrast to the casual attitude from before.
This was the debt of the tenant.
Uh-huh.
Pastel finished her wish and opened her eyes.
She saw the Lord Fairy, slumped against the carriage cushion.
—Huh.
“Oh? Are you unwell, Lord Fairy?”
—No. This wish was within my capability, but it consumed my energy, so I’m tired. I’ll be fine after a rest.
Oh, so it wasn’t infinite power after all.
The Lord Fairy weakly waved her arms. She looked so weak that even the dark energy that usually swirled around her was slightly diminished.
—Still, it seems like something is excessively draining my strength.
“What?!”
That can’t be!
Is there already a health issue with the Lord Fairy, who has yet to grant the world’s greatest wealth and power, let alone immortality?!
“Lord Fairy! Please don’t die!”
Pastel became teary-eyed at the prospect of something happening to the Lord Fairy.
Ahhh!
—I’m not going to die. It feels like someone has stuck a needle next to me and is sucking the energy from my soul.
“Really? Isn’t that a serious issue?!”
Pastel was shocked to see that the Lord Fairy, with her radiant and lively complexion, was in a state that slightly fulfilled her soul, which had felt empty after consuming meat pudding in the grand mansion and magic stones on the Sky Island.
The Lord Fairy looked at Pastel and seemed to realize something, her eyes widening.
—Could this be the cause?
The Lord Fairy muttered.
—Could it be the Cult?
“It’s the Cult!”
Bad Cult!
Pastel punched the air.
Yap! Yap!
“Bad Cult! Bad Cult!”
—While I don’t know what organization it is, if your guess is right, then it must be called the Cult.
The Lord Fairy flopped down on the cushion.
—It seems like they’ve been using tricks. They managed to imprison me, so they likely had some safety mechanism set up for when I attempted to escape. If I break free from the Cult’s control, my energy will continue to be drained, just like it is now.
Ahhh.
What kind of wicked device has been set up against the kind Lord Fairy?
The Lord Fairy glanced around as if she was being careful.
—You see, our artificial spirits, no, fairies, are actually beings created by extracting the essence of the powerful fairy.
Huh?
—I didn’t know where the essence, or rather the great fairy, was, but logically, they must be trapped by the Cult. So, they might be encouraging the great fairy to recover power. That’s why I feel like I have a needle stuck in me. Right, this seems to make sense.
The Lord Fairy looked convinced by her own astute reasoning.
Pastel was in awe.
Although the Lord Fairy had made a few slip-ups while explaining, it was understandable given the hiccups in translating the fairy world’s language into human language.
With this level of detail, it meant that the Fairy World truly exists!
Wow! What a great discovery!
“So, to save the Fairy World, we need to rescue the great fairy trapped by the Cult, right?”
The Lord Fairy seemed to ponder for a moment as if calculating and then readily agreed.
—That’s right! It seems that the chosen one, you, has to rescue the great fairy who is likely imprisoned!
Oh, that was it!
Pastel realized her sense of mission.
The reason I was born pink and cute was to experience the grand narrative of rescuing the great fairy to save the Fairy World!
No wonder! No wonder!
If only my appearance weren’t so pink, I probably would have fallen into corruption by now and lived lavishly, but how strange it was that I’m so pink!
When will I fall into corruption and indulge in darkness? The Devil seems to lack any thoughts, huh? I have been slowly having such thoughts lately, but it was wrong!
Her pink eyes sparkled.
“What kind of great fairy are we going to rescue?”
—Huh? Um….
The Lord Fairy appeared uncertain.
—I haven’t met the great fairy myself. I’ve heard that she is a being sent by the ancient god, not the god that is spoken of in the temples. How should I put it? An ancient god? The fairy god? Yes. I know she was sent to this world.
Oh?
I’m not a being of this world either!
Is there such a common ground?
I truly seem to have been born for the Fairy World!
Pastel was overflowing with a sense of purpose!
“I’ll do my absolute best! For the beautiful Fairy World!”
Aja Aja!
#
Pastel arrived in front of the palace of the Demon Realm United Kingdom.
Unlike the city filled with skyscrapers, the expansive plains, the white palace, and the surrounding lush vegetation were quite attractive.
“There used to be a few skyscrapers around here, but the development of firearms became quite threatening, so they were all removed as a precaution against snipers.”
Eli casually explained.
“Wow.”
As she turned her head, she saw the royal procession that had come to welcome her. The king at the forefront smiled and welcomed her.
“Governor Kraft, you have come a long way.”
Hehe.
It’s not me who is entering the palace to greet; it’s the other party who has come out to welcome me.
What should I say?
It’s an event that reflects the hierarchical relationship between the Empire and the United Kingdom, and while I feel a bit guilty, I also feel good as the party involved.
However, since the other party is Eli’s father, if I were to act this way towards a friend’s father, it would feel quite different, as if I were being treasonous.
After completing the formalities, Pastel walked alongside the king.
“I’ve invested in railway construction for the development of the Demon Realm, but there are many demon clans that dislike it, which is unfortunate.”
Pastel abruptly began to press for accountability.
After all, a friend’s father is still a friend’s father, but work is work.
“Haha.”
The king chuckled heartily. His dark eyes, like Eli’s, leisurely surveyed the palace garden.
“That’s the matter; I believe it is the prime minister’s job to handle that. I am merely a trifler living in the palace, so I am not well-informed.”
Oh?
Is it a lack of authority instead of an evasion of responsibility?
Pastel became perplexed. She subtly looked back at Eli, who was following behind her.
Eli looked embarrassed but somewhat hesitant, and then explained with her royal princess status.
“It’s true, even if the governor doubts it. My father has not been involved in the affairs of the state for a long time, so you should discuss that matter with the prime minister.”
“Eh? Really?”
The parliament wasn’t just a show? It wasn’t operated through secret meetings or the king manipulating matters from behind the scenes?
“Yes, truly. That’s why I called you and other important figures for a meeting. At that time, everyone agreed, so there was no need to persuade the prime minister. He was also present at the meeting. While we made a mistake in not preventing the radical group’s terrorism, that was unavoidable.”
Eh?
Eli’s father has been idle all this time.
“If you really want to discuss matters with the royal family, you can talk to me. There is a prophecy that many believe the royal family should take responsibility and step forward, which is why I’m working in their place.”
Eli shot a sharp glare at her father.
“Haha. Our family is lucky to sit in the vacant seat, but if we act arbitrarily like that, that’s something else.”
Eli’s father chuckled heartily.
The royal family of the United Kingdom does not come from the lineage of the previous Demon King.
When the last Demon King was killed by Kraft’s evil plot and chaos and power struggles broke out in the Demon Realm, the ancestors of the royal family maintained the situation as a second-in-command and took on the role of the Demon King on a temporary basis, which has continued since.
It makes sense, but they seem to lack ambition.
“So, I guess you won’t know much about the information on the Cult residing in the Demon Realm?”
“Talk to the prime minister about that, haha.”
“Ehh.”
Pastel completed her audience with the king.
After that, she came across the same prime minister she had seen at the secret meeting on the Sky Island, discussing how the radicals were doing and that the principles dictate that there shouldn’t be any railway terrorism, and so forth.
“Principles dictate?”
“Ahem.”
The prime minister cleared his throat.
“Since the faction of hawkish members acted behind the scenes, if we turn a blind eye, it’s unavoidable.”
Puu?
What does that mean?
Is the faction that is openly a sponsor of terrorism sitting in the parliament, and the monarch, or rather, the prime minister, can do nothing?
Pastel was astonished by the absurdly complex political system of the United Kingdom.
Is this the parliamentary cabinet system based on constitutional monarchy?
No matter how novel this political system is, it shouldn’t be experiencing such setbacks.
Ehh.
Is Duchess Nastasha, who dreams of overthrowing the Empire, envisioning something like this?
Governor Pastel, a verified loyal subject of His Majesty the Emperor, cannot comprehend this.
“Well, putting that aside, I sent an urgent letter saying I was ambushed by what seems to be a suspicious organization resembling the Cult. How has that been resolved? Have you finished investigating what kind of organization it is?”
“Ahem.”
The prime minister coughed again.
Puu?
“The hawkish members manage the information network, so please understand, Governor.”
Puu?
Puuu?
What kind of nonsense is this?
Pastel’s expression grew increasingly sorrowful. She quietly glanced towards Eli.
“Princess.”
Eli flinched.
“Why is the administration of this country like this?”
If this were the student council, everyone would be fired.
Eli swallowed hard.
She glanced fiercely between the prime minister and Pastel, seeming to struggle with her stance before finally speaking.
“I know that the governor cannot understand. However, we are doing our best—”
“Yes, understood.”
Pastel stood up from her seat.
“I’ve enjoyed the tea. I have matters to attend to, so I’ll be leaving now.”
Turning her body, she exited the prime minister’s office.
As she left the prime minister’s residence, Eli ran after her in a hurry.
“Pastel! Just a moment! Listen to my explanation!”
When her arm was caught, Pastel narrowed her brows slightly.
She turned to look at the princess.
“Princess, what kind of commotion is this? Please observe etiquette between us.”
Eli froze.
Pastel released the hand gripping her. Rubbing the back of her neck, she turned away.
It seems that this country has a lot of bad demon clans that follow wicked Demon Kings.
Shivers.
Since the foresighted His Majesty the Emperor commanded a search for the Demon King, I must do my best as a loyal subject.
For now…
Should I meet Leonard, the commissioner who should have arrived earlier?
Oh, right.
Pastel paused her steps. She turned back to find Eli staring blankly at her.
“Eli, there’s no need for you to come to work for a while.”
Eli turned pale.
Pastel turned her body away.
It seems like I’ll be busy for a while.
Her pink hair swayed softly.
