Chapter 16
“Did I… maybe act too familiar? If it made you uncomfortable, please feel free to tell me anytime.”
“No, not at all. I actually like it.”
Honestly, I felt quite comfortable around Kateri too.
At my response, she smiled brightly again.
“Hehe, somehow I feel like we could become really good friends.”
I returned her smile.
I wasn’t quite as energetic as she was, but I also felt like we could build a good relationship.
As we smiled at each other, Kateri suddenly clapped her hands again.
“Oh! I’ve shown you most of the Magic Tower already, but if you have time, would you like to visit my personal laboratory?”
“Is that okay?”
“Of course! I’m inviting you, after all. Then we should get off here!”
Kateri stopped the descending elevator.
As soon as the doors opened, she led me outside.
Beyond the elevator was a corridor lined with doors, much like a hotel hallway.
As we walked, she continued explaining.
“This floor is entirely made up of personal labs assigned to Magic Tower mages.”
“I see… though the doors seem packed pretty tightly. Isn’t it a bit cramped?”
At my question, Kateri smiled and grabbed a doorknob.
“Ta-da! There’s spatial expansion magic applied, so it’s not cramped at all!”
Unfortunately, I couldn’t immediately see her lab.
A massive notification window suddenly popped up in front of me, blocking my view.
The second main quest gifted by the Divine Messenger has arrived!
Main Quest!
→ Leave the capital and head to the Silver Moon Nymph Village!
This quest has no time limit.
There is one sub-quest to assist smooth progression.
Sub-Quest 1
→ Help the Silver Moon Nymph!
Below the window floated a familiar profile.
Looking at it, I slowly spoke.
“…Um, Kateri?”
“Yes, Aigle!”
“…Are you… a nymph?”
Her eyes widened dramatically.
“H-how did you—”
She abruptly shook her head and cut herself off.
“No! I’m not a nymph!”
At that, I glanced at the floating profile in front of me.
Name: Kateri
Race: Silver Moon Nymph
Age: 34
Not a nymph…? It literally says ‘nymph’ right here though?
And there was even a large picture of her face next to it.
I narrowed my eyes at her.
“Kateri… you’re not very good at lying, are you?”
“Well…!”
She avoided my gaze, her eyes darting elsewhere.
Watching her, I thought quietly,
So Kateri really is a nymph?
I knew there were different types of nymphs.
But the only one I knew was the Evening Glow nymph—my mother.
“Silver Moon” was something I had never heard before.
Is her hair silver because she’s a Silver Moon nymph?
Mine was orange because I was an Evening Glow nymph.
In any case, there was no way the quest system would lie to me.
So Kateri must definitely be a nymph…
Then… this sense of familiarity I feel toward her…
Was it because she was a nymph too?
I blinked at her.
When I continued staring silently, she seemed to grow tense and finally asked,
“But… why are you suddenly asking that?”
She had regained her composure, but now her gaze was cautious.
“Aigle… is there a reason you brought up nymphs?”
That look was clearly suspicious—completely different from before.
I met her gaze briefly, then made a quick decision.
If Kateri is a nymph like me… maybe I can reveal my identity?
I had accidentally brought up the topic due to the sudden quest.
Because of that, she had withdrawn her earlier friendliness.
Revealing my identity now would probably be the best way to lower her guard.
Besides, I had to help her anyway to complete the quest.
So without hesitation, I spoke.
“Kateri… actually, I’m a nymph too.”
Her brows furrowed.
“…What?”
“I’m a nymph too! Ah—this room is soundproof, right?”
“It is, because of magic experiments, but… what?”
I answered her clearly once more.
“I’m a nymph too! I’m an Evening Glow nymph!”
As I said that, I released the magic I had been maintaining.
I felt the mana drain from my hair and eyes.
Ah… it’s been a while since I felt this.
Ever since I was left in my uncle’s care, I had rarely ever undone this magic.
Even when sleeping or bathing, I always kept my brown hair and blue eyes.
In fact, I hadn’t undone it even once in the past few years.
Fortunately, there was a large mirror in Kateri’s lab.
Looking into it, I saw a girl with orange hair and orange eyes.
That was me.
…As expected, warm colors suit me better.
Orange looked much better than brown.
Just as I was thinking that, I heard a gasp beside me.
“Oh my goodness!”
Kateri stared at me with wide eyes.
Her gaze darted between my hair and eyes before she shouted,
“Aigle!”
She rushed over and cupped my face in both hands.
Her fingers gently traced around my eyes as she examined me.
“Oh my—oh my!”
After checking even my hair, she looked at me in disbelief.
“Aigle! You really are a nymph! And an Evening Glow nymph at that! Were your hair and eyes changed by magic this whole time?”
“Ah… yes.”
“My goodness! I had no idea at all! Your magic is incredible!”
Haha… that’s because it’s the only magic my mother trained me harshly in.
Kateri, unaware of my awkward smile, kept touching my cheeks before her expression slowly changed.
It was complicated—
Part surprise, part pity… part sympathy.
“…Kateri?”
At my call, she finally spoke.
“So that’s why… you felt strangely familiar.”
“I felt the same. Honestly, this is my first time meeting another nymph besides my mother. Do nymphs feel this kind of connection even if they’re from different tribes?”
I smiled at her.
She nodded.
“Yes. The closer the lineage, the stronger the sense of familiarity.”
After saying that, she hesitated before asking carefully,
“Aigle… may I ask you something?”
“Of course!”
“…What happened to your parents?”
“My parents? They both passed away.”
It wasn’t a secret, nor something that still hurt.
So I answered casually.
But Kateri’s expression turned visibly sorrowful.
“…I see… as I thought…”
Is she pitying me?
Whenever people heard I lost both parents young and lived with my uncle, they always pitied me.
But I never really cared about either my parents’ deaths or others’ sympathy.
So I simply said calmly,
“I’m fine.”
“Aigle… you said this is your first time meeting another nymph, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then… do you know anything about Evening Glow nymphs?”
“…Hmm.”
What did I know?
I knew our village was destroyed by Radon—that much I confirmed through my mother’s belongings.
And besides that…
Come to think of it… I don’t know much at all.
Even the Secret Arts of the Evening Glow Nymph was something I only learned through a quest reward.
As a child, I lived in the forest with my mother.
Later, I entered noble society.
So I didn’t really know much about nymphs.
“Well… I’ve heard people don’t view them very favorably because of Radon.”
At that, Kateri let out a deep sigh.
“I see. Then let me tell you what I know.”
She guided me further into her lab.
The space was large, like a studio apartment, divided between a living area and a research area filled with bookshelves.
She seated me on a sofa in the living space.
“Where should I begin…”
After a moment of hesitation, she spoke.
“I’ll start by properly introducing myself. As you guessed, I am a nymph. I belong to the Silver Moon Nymph village in the far north of the Empire. We serve the Guardian of the Moon, Lady Echidna.”
My eyes widened.
Guardian of the Moon!
That strangely familiar title!
Suddenly, a memory flashed through my mind—
“A toy created for amusement by the Guardian of the Moon.”
Right! The Divine Messenger who created ‘reasonable fabrication’!
So it connects like this…!
…Well, the world is surprisingly small.
I set that thought aside since Kateri continued speaking.
“Our village is quite closed off, but we still knew about the Evening Glow nymphs. In fact, there’s no nymph who doesn’t know about the tragedy that happened there.”
I nodded.
Of course. How could anyone not know about a village destroyed by a monstrous dragon?
“The dragon we served suffered greatly… and met such a tragic end…”
“…Excuse me?”
I blinked.
“As nymphs, there’s hardly a tragedy more heartbreaking than that.”
…Wait, what?
You can see it that way?
I mean… that dragon destroyed an entire village—and you feel sorry for it?
Come to think of it… my mother also pitied Radon.
…Are all nymphs like this?
