Myune disliked the morning the most. If not for her strawberry field, she didn’t want to wake up until the sky became dark. With a wrinkled face and shabby cloth, the girl came out of her bedroom and went to the backyard of the house. She brought a wooden basket filled with bread and a bottle of milk. She also brought the teddy bear in her other hand. She couldn’t be apart from her favorite doll. Even when she slept at the night, she always hugged it tightly. Living alone, only the teddy bear was her closest friend. Usually, the landlord would come back at the end of the month, but it had been three months since Myune last saw his nose.

The humble residence was located behind the green hills at the South of Canne Island. There were only a few houses in this place because the majority of the residents worked as farmers. Each house had a distance of several kilometers because of the corn and wheat fields. Her closest neighbors were a pair of kind, old couples who owned a corn field. Sometimes, they shared their funny past stories with her.

Myune walked along a footpath filled with dry grass. Her strawberry field was only a kilometer away from her house. The corn field she passed seemed crowded in the morning. The farmers were doing their jobs like planting seeds, harvesting the corps, or checking the pest traps. All of them looked happy.

When she arrived at her strawberry field that was only a patch in size, Myune dropped the wooden basket in shock. Her strawberry field was destroyed. The fresh fruits scattered on the ground. She saw footprints everywhere, especially near the wooden fences and polybags. It was clear someone had trespassed her field last night.

Myune felt resigned. She plucked some untouched strawberries and tidied up the fallen polybags. After that, she rolled out a carpet under the purple maple tree near her field and ate her breakfast.

“Today, I could only harvest fifteen fresh strawberries. It seems we can only earn a little today,” Myune said to her doll as she could only talk to it.

Myune looked back at her field after the breakfast. There was a desire to restore her favorite place, but she remembered the landlord’s warning. Frustrated, she stood up and left the place.

The market was her last destination of her routine. Myune sold the harvest from the field to the merchants. She saved the money she had earned to buy a few books from the merchants at the corner. Aside from taking care of her strawberry field, she liked to spend her free time on reading books.

“You finally come!” Harry said with glistening eyes as he saw Myune arriving at his store. “I have several book recommendations for you!”

The pile of books was her most favorite thing. The smell of papers and inks made her addicted. Sinking into stories opened the horizon of other worlds, and it was timeless moment.

While looking for a book, Myune overheard the conversation of the people in the antique store at the side of the book store. Three men were talking about something important with panicked expressions.

“Wars are raging everywhere. Two noble families have betrayed the throne,” said the black-skinned man.

“So the rumor is true. The heir is alive?” asked a brawny man.

“I heard there was a heir who had survived from that incident,” said the man in a brown cloak. His fingers palpated the handle of the sword on his waist.

“That’s impossible! Everyone knows the royal family is gone after that incident.”

“Besides, if a royal family member is alive, there should have been an announcement for coronation party,” said the cloaked man.

“I believe there is a royal family member who is still alive,” said a girl who was suddenly standing beside Myune. All her dress and accessories were pink-colored, making Myune’s eyes hurt. Her pink-colored, dragonfly-like wings flapped even though her feet was touching the ground.

The fairy girl annoyed Myune. Her uninvited presence threatened her peaceful life. She didn’t want the fairy to say anything unnecessary to them.

“Go away, Elaine!” scolded Myune. Having heard enough, she continued to look for a book among the piles.

“Come on! You never play with me anymore,” Elaine cried.

“No. You always caused troubles for me,” Myune refused while hurriedly picking out a book and putting it into the wooden basked. “The last time we played, you recklessly rode on a farmer’s tractor and destroyed a hectare of the village head’s radish field.”

“That wasn’t my fault! The brake was broken, Myune,” Elaine said, defending herself. Myune didn’t respond and walked to the cashier, paying for the book she had chosen. “Myune! You don’t want to see me grow up as a lonely old granny in this place, right?”

Myune unwillingly heard her chatter throughout the day. She finally had had enough. She pulled a book from the pile near her and threw it to her face. “Go read a book, you will find your own world!”

Elaine threw the book to the floor. “I don’t want to grow up like that nerd Harry.”

“Go play with other kids.”

“They already have their play groups.”

“They don’t want to play with you because of your bad behavior,” said Myune sharply.

Before Elaine could intercept her, Myune suddenly jumped and kicked a can, sending it toward a dirty alley.

“Can’t hit the target again, John?” Myune mocked the boy who was standing in front of the dirty alley.

“What are you doing here, outcast?” asked John. Together with his five goons, he approached Myune. His tall posture and his scary-looking face made people think he was and adult thug.

“Not your problem,” Myune replied coldly.

John looked at Elaine and laughed. “Look! An outcast is supposed to hang out with a stupid friend. I reckon this fairy always brings misfortune to you.”

Elaine was offended, and she was about to beat him up, but Myune put a hand over her.

“Go away, John! I don’t want to argue with you anymore,” Myune requested.

“Don’t think you can go away from me after your friend has protected you,” John threatened, pointing his index finger on her temple.

Glaring at her neighbor, Myune remembered what he had done to her. It had been almost four years since she suffered from the traumatic past, especially getting embarrassed and slandered. It was all John’s fault. However, Myune wasn’t a quiet girl, she always stood up for her innocent self. It wasn’t surprising that two of them always argued where ever they went. Myune wanted to leave the house, but she couldn’t. She didn’t have another place to stay. The landlord would scold her if he didn’t see her at home.

“Soon… my uncle will come home. I will convince him to drive you out of my home,” said John.

“Listen to him, you outcast! No one wants you to be here!” supported his friend.

“Go to you habitat in the forest of ghosts!” added another friend of his.

She was angry, but Myune could only stare at them. Usually, she would counter their words rougher, but she knew it would worsen the situation in the market, even though she was holding back all the swearing that she wanted to say.

“Just you wait tonight! I will create a mess in your room!” threatened John.

Annoyed by his threat, Myune pulled his collar and pressed her fingers onto his shoulder blade. John glared at her back.

“Once you takes a step into my room, I won’t forgive you!” she threatened.

John laughed. “Who do you think you are? You are just a freeloader in my home! My mom never saw you in the eyes! No one thinks highly of you!”

Myune released him roughly. She wasted her time by threatening him. John has always been like that. He never respected her.

“You are living in my home because of my uncle’s pity. I will assure to drive you out of my home. No, this village! Remember that!” shouted John. He went to another place with his friends.

As she looked at John who was getting farther, she gripped her hands, holding back her desire to punch something.

“Don’t mind them. They are always like that,” Elaine said as she touched Myune’s shoulders, soothing her.

Myune turned around and picked up her wooden basket at the corner of the street. “I should have buried them.”

“People will call you a criminal,” Elaine replied.

“If only I can become a criminal,” Myune added. She saw the wall clock at the book store and gasped in surprise. “I have to go.” Before Elaine could speak, Myune threw a sharp glance at her, as if saying do not disturb me.

“Alright. But can we play together tomorrow?” Elaine asked.

“No.”

“Why not? I don’t have any friend beside you.”

“Who said I am your friend?” Myune asked back in annoyance.

Many people didn’t want to be friend with Elaine. The fairy always disturbed people’s peaceful lives wherever she went. Myune’s hands were already full with John, so she didn’t want another person to increase her burden.

“Hei, outcast! We got your strawberry plant!” shouted John’s friends from the other alley.

They dragged several strawberry plants across the ground. Myune was familiar with them, especially there were five almost ripe fruits. She had plannet to harvest them in two days. Panicked, she handed her basked over to Elaine, and she chased them.

Their evil laughs reverberated across the alley until the field. John and his friends were happily slamming strawberry plants to the wall, destroying them. Before she could stop them, they had escaped to the field.

Seeing the strawberries across the alley, something flashed in her mind. The fate of her field.

Running back to the field until she arrived at the destination place, her dejection peaked. As expected, her field was destroyed. A message on the fence—written in red paint—seemed lustrous under the sunlight.

As she looked at her dying plants, Myune felt pity toward herself. She felt ashamed because she hadn’t use all her power to teach John and his friends a lesson.

“No! No!” she squealed, pushing back the surging power of magic inside her body.

But if she refused the power, what was her choice? If her field was completely destroyed, she couldn’t possibly wait for new seeds to grow. She needed to earn money to buy books. Most importantly, she needed to save up money, so she could go to the castle and find someone she wanted to meet.

She had no other choice. Myune needed to sell strawberries, and she needed to restore the field first.

She would regret for her upcoming action. Myune closed her eyes and let the mystical energy flow throughout her body. The destroyed field slowly recovered back as before. The dying plants were growing back and producing fresh strawberries.

“You are the member of royal family!” exclaimd someone from across the street.

Myune was shocked, and she turned back. Elaine was standing behind her, and she dropped her wooden basket. The fairy seemed shaken after seeing everything.

“I have the power of the white moon, the power to restore and heal,” Myune denied.

“Ordinary white moon users can’t resurrect dying plants. That’s the power of the chosen one. I am not stupid, Myune,” Elaine said.

“Go away and pretend you never saw everything!”

Elaine grabbed Myune’s shoulders and stared into her grey eyes. “Listen, Myu! You never told anyone about your story. Everyone called you an outcast, but with this—” She looked at the restored field. “Everything can be restored by the power of the white moon’s chosen one. Only the royal family members and the moon knights have this power.”

“I said go away and pretend I never exist. That will save your life!”

“But Myu—” Before she could reach Myune’s hand, a thorny vine appeared from the ground and almost pierced her skin.

Myune panted, realizing her wrongdoing. She then ran away to her residence.