Raising up his hand, he blocked the bright sunlight. Underneath the shade of his hand, he smiled. It’d been a long time since he felt the warmth of the sun.

Didn’t know I’d miss this.

Trapped underneath the ground definitely showed some other perspective to the mind of Kevin. He who once hated the sun was now loving the warm embrace of its sunlight. 

As his skin absorbed those sought over vitamin D, the gaze of an alva Queen rested upon him.

“Is this necessary? From what you told, your adventure with the second elder’s disciple only brought you close to the Mana Node within the underground tunnels,” said Queen Qirien.

“It is,” said Kevin. He glanced at the Queen as he stared. He swore he could hear the thumping of his heartbeat.

Beautiful…

As the sunlight fell upon the figure of Qirien, her ethereal beauty dazzled Kevin’s eyes, like a diamond sparkled underneath the shower of lights.

“Ehem, like I was saying. My bonded Fae told me that different Mana Node has a different concentration of the known elements, and these elements influenced what type of Fae that can be call out,” said Kevin.

“So you are doing this for my sake? Or is it because you missed the fresh air of the forest?” she said.

“Both,” he replied as he had no reason in keeping these minor things from the Queen.

The end of Qirien’s lips curved upwards by a bit, amused by the frankness of this man. Even so, she appreciated the gesture from Kevin. She knew better that if it involved the elements, then the one above the surface suited her better.

“Sorry, my Queen, but can you show me the way?” he asked with a finger scratching the side of his temple.

The absurdity of this situation baffled Qirien. For a Queen to be the guide was the most ridiculous thing, she wondered whether Kevin knew about his rudeness. If it were the other royalties, she was sure that his head would be rolling by now. He was quite lucky in a way.

A silent snicker escaped from the Queen unknown to the oblivious Kevin, yet she still led the way. These two walked through the forest floor as they headed deeper into the thick forest.

Huge trees stood up tall and proud, with some bearing similarities to oaks, corks, and redwood. Kevin was not an avid camper. He was the type to stay indoor, preferring the comfort of easiness of modernity to the rustic nature of outdoor camping. Even so, he still felt the forest was familiar to the one back at home.

Now that I think about it, this forest doesn’t seem that different from that lame-ass school trip when I went during middle school.

The ambiance and feel were no different as he looked around in blandness.

“Do you cherish the forest?” she asked.

“I…” he stopped himself before saying he hated it. He knew about the elves, a species that cherished and loved their forest and trees. An environmentalist, you might say, and alvas was just another word for it.

I better mind my words, these kind of things are rather sensitive.

“I once had a school trip before, we went camping in a forest like this. It was… pleasant if I must comment on it,” said Kevin with a bit of feigned laughter in the end.

He was a terrible liar, and he was definitely opened for others to see. The Queen knew right away, but she kept her lips sealed as she narrated about the beauty of the woods and its importance.

Kevin listened to his best to the gentle voice of the Queen. It was like a lecture from a boring professor back in college, and her soothing voice didn’t even help much as even while walking his eyelids grew heavy.

Get it together you dimwit!

He shook his head as he regained his clarity. Trying not to let his face planted on the ground, he posed a question that had been bothering him for quite a while.

“Is going out in the open like this safe?”

“You worried?” she asked back.

“Well, there is that case where a bunch of people trying to kill me,” said Kevin.

“Said the one who proposed to the idea of going out,” she threw back at him.

But Kevin wasn’t the one to fall back.

“I did it for you, my Queen,” he said with a slight gesture of respect that he picked up after seeing the elders greeting the Queen.

“Is that mockery Kevin Wang?” the brazen act of Kevin was a bit of a surprise, it soured her a bit, but she was more to amused.

Kevin noticed the grin on Qirien. He thought she was playing along with his antics, he might as well continue.

“To a beautiful Queen that I’ve ever seen in my life, I dare not,” his tone changed like the one he saw in those medieval theme films. He was truly pushing his boundaries.

“Oh, so they are Queens in your world?” she wasn’t offended but grew interested over what lied in the other world.

“There is,” said Kevin as only a single queen surfaced in his mind. A queen that outlasted the reigns of many presidents of his country.

“But you’re a million times more beautiful,” said Kevin as he smiled.

“Flattery will not get you far Kevin,” said Queen Qirien. “Many men uttered those words, and yet most of them were humans, you seem similar but different in a way.”

“Well, I guess I’m a bit special,” said Kevin with his hands behind his head. He grew rather laid back while conversing with the queen, which only piqued the interest of the queen.

“Care to tell this queen the reason?”

“Hmm, how do I say this,” he stared at the foliage above him as he thought about it. “It’s like I know giving a compliment isn’t enough so I’m well prepared for rejection. In a way, I guess my heart takes rejections quite well.”

“Rejection? Meaning?” a bit of frown on the Queen’s face.

“You know like you want to ask someone out, and you get rejected because of your pickup line lacking the oomph that it's needed,” said Kevin.

“I see,” Queen Qirien had her confusion. But her, being an intellectual of her kind, she knew what Kevin meant after a few seconds of careful thought. 

She herself knew about her beauty that was known to the world of man and others alike. Some who had pride and the balls to courted her ended up well with a bruised pride and ego, with some ended up in a perilous state. 

Yet this man was different, he spoke as if he had the means to court her successfully, but at the same time, he doesn’t. He did tell her that if he had the umph in his words, then he would be successful and it made her rather looking forward to it.

“You-” but before she could ask, the man in question cut her off as he was too oblivious.

“Let’s get back to the main thing here, is it safe with just us two? Shouldn’t you be like having personal guards or something?” Kevin asked as he was quite worried about getting ambush. Being impaled by spears and whatnot was definitely not in his plan.

The gentle smile on the Queen disappeared as she turned lofty like those similar to Lautiria, a deadpan expression. 

“I have no men to spare, and for your reassurance, I am enough,” the tone shifted to a colder one. She didn’t like being cut off and more so when she felt something in the crevice of her heart. Yet it disappeared like a small flickering light of a candle being blown away. 

Kevin definitely didn’t know what he had done, and it only fueled a bit of the Queen’s annoyance. Kevin, on the other hand, thought something else in mind.

The Queen must be at some ridiculously high level for her to be this confident. From back in the game, the level cap is at 275. So she must be around the high mark since she’s a queen, 245 to 255 perhaps?

The two kept their thoughts to one another until they finally reached the edge of a known Mana Node.

“We are here,” said Queen Qirien.

“Woah,” to Kevin’s surprise, there were no more tall trees as his sight witnessed upon a vast sea of flowers in a myriad of colors.

“Should we reach the center?” asked Queen Qirien.

“No, I think this is good enough,” said Kevin. “So should we begin?”

His words prompted a gaze from the Queen. There was silence between them as the Queen had something in mind.

“You do know you have committed a grave offense in making Yaereene sang outside the alva events?” she asked.

Kevin stared back at those golden eyes as he knew it wasn’t the time to cower.

“There is no other way,” he said, despite being there was, but he had no time for tedious procedures, “and she did gain something, a title, an acknowledgment, and a bond with a mystical fae.”

He was telling her that the benefits override the taboo, and in some other way, Kevin was telling her that the Alvas were missing out on their privileges that had been lost over the ages.

“But there is a rule for a reason,” said Queen Qirien. She stared down at Kevin with her cold-eyes. 

Kevin gulped down his saliva as the situation turned frighteningly fast. But the Queen suddenly sighed.

“No matter, as long as it helps the survival of my people, I will ignore the old rule,” said Queen Qirien flashing a gentle smile at Kevin.

He replied with a smile of his own but not out of free-will.

Man, she’s too unpredictable. How the hell did she turn that fast? I guess women in both worlds aren’t that different. 

For now, he dodged a bullet. Yet the future was undetermined. Soon, the Queen sang as her voice filled the flower fields. 

Kevin stared as he was amazed by the resonance and tone of her voice. It was richer compared to Yaereene yet soothing as if it could mesmerize anyone who heard it.

He told her about the prerequisite of needing an alva with a class pertaining to the light-element. She told him it wouldn’t be a problem, and he could see it why she said so.

The moment she sang, the orbs emerged around her dancing and floating along with the melody of her song. The difference between Yaereene and Qirien was apparent enough to tell Kevin that the Queen was strong. He even assumed that the Queen might have a rather unique kind of class relating to the light element.

It didn’t take long for a few faes greeting the Queen. Yet a dissatisfied voice echoed within Kevin’s mind.

Hmph, those pervert really know how to wag their tails.

It was Kassmeaa, as she floated beside Kevin coming out from within his clothes. She was glaring at the glowing orbs around the Queen.

Pervert? Do faes also have perverts?

You have no idea, tch. Kassmeaa’s eyes were full of scorn at those faes who were familiar to her.

Let’s go, I can’t stand looking at them. 

Kassmeaa flew away as Kevin followed.

Wait, I need to teach her how to bond with a fae.

Don’t worry, she can easily bond with any of those faes. Her temperament and her voice are enough to attract any one of us with ease.

Kevin looked back. He saw the smiling face of the Queen as she interacted with the glowing orbs around her. It was a face he had never seen on the Queen since he met her.

Wait, where are you going?

He chased over the flying fae following the trail of glittery dust.

You said you wanted to become stronger right?

Yeah, why?

My fae sense is tingling, there’s a strong mana concentration coming from around here. I think it might be a Mystic Flora.

Kevin stopped on his track as he recognized those two words. Indeed true to what Kassmeaa had just said, the Mystic Flora could help a person become stronger in a straightforward way. Simply eating granted a raise in one of the statuses by random. But Kevin had another idea in mind.

I need to get it! No matter what!

His smile was from one ear to another. He rushed after hearing such good news. Kassmeaa was floating on top of a peculiar looking flower. It was similar to a daffodil, yet at its center was the same as a sunflower disk florets.

Kevin knelt down in front of the precious flower as he stared at its brilliance. The shining gem-like florets were the key difference compared to the other daffodils around it.

It’s a Sol Almas, a flower that earned the love of the sun. You’re pretty lucky to find this flower in the middle of nowhere.

Kevin was rather impressed by the knowledge held by this fae. She wasn’t even a fae related to the wood element, yet she knew her stuff about rare flowers. Even he only knew about Spirit Flora in general and not of their names or their description. 

You’re pretty good with flowers, huh.

Kassmeaa, who had been smiling, stopped as her face twitched. As if a bad memory resurfacing.

Just a passing interest, it’s nothing to be amazed about.

The looked on her face was enough for Kevin to stopped mentioning it. He turned back to the flower as his hands reached out to it with a careful pace.

Kevin! Watch out behind you!

A belated warning, Kevin turned to his back, and a shadow came whipping right at him. 

Shield!

A purple barrier erected at the last second, but it wasn’t enough. The shadow broke through the barrier and struck Kevin by the flank. His feet swept off the ground as his whole body flung in the air. 

“Ugh,” he groaned in mid-air as pain erupted at every inch of his body. He fell on the flower bed as he rolled on the flowers. His eyes trailed to the corner of his side and saw a huge chunk of his HP went down. Then something came from within.

“Bleagh,” he vomited out dark fresh blood as he felt his body grew weak.

Fuck! What was that?!

His eyes were shifting around, looking for the perpetrator as his body ached out of pain. It was even much worse when he was injured by that huge boar.

Kevin.

He looked up and saw Kassmeaa slowly floating until she fell on the flower bed. The glow of her body was diminishing.

What happened to you?

It’s too strong and I’m… too… weak.

Kassmeaa fainted as her whole body turned dull. 

“Wake up Kassmeaa,” he said as his eyes started to shake. 

“It’s not the time to play around, you’ve got to wake up,” his trembling hands reached out to the dull fae.

“Kassmeaa?” he held her in his hands as he stared at the immobile fae before something trickled over his cheeks.

“Kevin!” a gentle voice emerged along with a powerful breeze.

Kevin turned and saw Queen Qirien standing before him. She glowed in a resplendent golden light as she was blocking him from something, and he saw what it was.