Like coincidences tend to happen, we found ourselves in each other presence on more than one occasion.

We met time and time again like two hands of a clock. Sometimes by fate, others by design.

But this... was by no means a coincidence.

"!"

I held my breath at the sight before my eyes. Unknown emotions I had never experienced before held me bound to thoughts as the world around me faded into oblivion. The only sound I could hear was the beating of my own unsettled heart which was racing in a chaotic phase.

With my state of mind in pandemonium, I need not look to know that the glamor magic was long undone leaving me unmasked to the cold air.

Under the rays of the three moons glistening the night, Angelica slowly rose from the bottom of the lake like a spirit shattering the walls between the realms and descending into the world.

Her platinum mane stuck to her pale skin, as droplets of water slithered down her lips like rare pearls of the ocean. The emerald irises of her eyes curved as a hazy yet seductive smile adorned her lips.

Like a lone hunter entranced by a witch's spell, 'I was enchanted'

My eyes widened as my legs started moving with a mind of their own. Before I knew it, I was shifting through the veins blocking my way toward the lake Angelica was in. Even though her blue locks were as graceful as the morning sky, her true self was unparalleled by any other.

Earlier when Angelica left the camp after an argument with her companions, I followed her in secret while maintaining a safe distance. But this was more than what I bargained for.

Right when I was about to step of out the shadows I heard the sound of voices around us. The childlike clatter of voices was enough to snap me out of the trance.

Within a matter of seconds, winged beings emerged from the sky and encircled Angelica like bees attracted to the scent of flowers. They caught her attention long enough for me to step back in the nick of time, leaving her oblivious to my presence in the shadows.

'That was close...' I took a step back and leaned behind a tree.

In the past, I have heard rumors of a fairy forest hidden inside Eldom. Even though I have traveled through these lands before this is the first time I have seen this path. It must have been concealed with magic since fairies are known for their hatred toward humans.

The fairy forest is like an entirely different world hidden in Eldom. I least expected to cross into their territory when following after Angelica as usual.

When I turned back to look at Angelica, I was greeted by an unexpected visitor.

"Heee?"

A fairy that had strayed away from the rest of its group, flew before my eyes. Much like their voices, the fairies had a similar childlike appearance, and the one in front of me had a confused look on her face.

Although I had never seen a fairy before, I am well educated about its characteristics. Being the purest forms of magical beings, they are attracted to those of the brightest of souls or so the legend goes. While I might be questionable in that aspect, I bore no ill will to their kind. It must be one of the reasons I was able to cross over their barrier with ease.

"Sssh" I beckoned and pointed towards Angelica in the water.

As if it understood the message the fairy trailed back on its way, mimicking my action.

I chose to stay hidden and stand watch as Angelica continued to play with the fairies. There seem to be more fairies around the lake than compared to when we first arrived. And aside from the one that spotted me, it was obvious that the rest of the fairy folk were knowingly avoiding the area I was in. At least they do not intend to expose me.

"Here take this!" Angelica exclaimed, playfully splashing water on the fairies.

"Quiee! Quiee!"

The fairies in turn returned the favor by creating a small wave that momentarily submerged her under the water.

"Here's Angelica!" "Quiee!"

The sound of laughter filled the night sky as Angelica rose back to the surface.

Suddenly I felt a throb in my head. The battle of self-control was far more fierce than any battle I had ever been a part of.

Extreme emotions cannot be tamed. As a noble, one of the first lessons taught was to learn to control one's emotions. Still, it cost all my might to stand rooted to the ground. I could still hear the beating of my restless heart that wanted to step out of the shadows.

Angelica was well within my reach, yet so far away. I feared I might do something I might regret in a moment of haze.

'If another man had followed her into the forest in my place, I would have plucked out the eyes that coveted her and kill...' I stopped knowing where these thoughts were leading me.

They made me want to lock her away so that no one else can ever see her. To take her to a land far away only the two us existed.

"Haa..." I closed my eyes trying to clear out the unpleasant thoughts.

Meanwhile, Angelica was blissfully enjoying her time with the fairies unaware of the torment I was undergoing.

To distract myself, I pulled out my pocket watch. Being in the fairy forest had almost blurred my sense of time. The longer the time we spent in the forest the harder it will be to leave.

Right then as the clock struck twelve, the day changed. It was the night of the full moons.

The sky clear of any clouds or stars had only the three moons at its peak. All at once, the fairies started to fly and circle Angelica slowly paving a way as if directing the moons to her.

"What... what's wro-!"

Angelica who had also noticed the subtle change in the air looked up just as the rays of the moons fell upon her. While she was awestruck at the appearance of the moons, I was engraving her picture in my mind.

It was a moment to be forever cherished, yet can never be discovered.

"Quiee!" "Quiee!"

Moments later, the fairies went back to Angelica in such a way that she might consider the moment to be just an illusion.

Suddenly, a question crossed my mind.

'What would you do if I reveal myself now?'

Would she be surprised? Would she attack me? Would she try to come up with a story to lie her way out of the situation? I may have even believed her, had I not known of her true colors.

"Heh..." I scoffed when I noticed Angelica looking right in my direction.

Now that the glamor magic has regained its stability. I was back to being the Merchant Kalan, Angelica knew of. So even if she finds me, I could feign having lost my way in the forest.

Instead, Angelica walked over to the shore and quickly began to dress herself. It was half past twelve and any longer, people might start noticing our absence.

Once we leave the fairy forest, we will be back in the world where we were pretending to be the people we were not.

'That is a bit depressing...' I felt a bitter taste in my mouth.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed that the little fairy who spotted me earlier had returned. It flapped its wings and sat on my shoulder with grace before looking ahead curiously. In its hand was a large berry the little fairy was munching on.

"You must find this entertaining"

I wiped off the stain on the little fairy's cheek.

"Hee?"

The little fairy cocked her head in question and presented the berry toward me. When I shook my head, she went back to eating and looked ahead at the woman in front.

The rest of the fairies on the other hand were trying to stop Angelica from leaving by holding on to her as much as they could.

"Don't be sad. I will be back when I make a return trip home"

Angelica assured them and reached for her dagger. Almost immediately her eyes widened, looking at her reflection on the water.

"Ah sh... Crap"

It was only then she finally realized that the lake's water had stripped out the artificial color of her mane.

Being a crucial part of her disguise, the blue hair dye had perfectly concealed her appearance among the mercenaries especially since they were similar in colour to that of the twin fox beastmen.

Aside from the Frost Knights mixed in with the Orion merchants none of the others knew of Angelica's identity. But if she returns to the camping site in this state, it could raise suspicions. With the full moons in the sky, her platinum blonde mane would be clearly visible even without a fire to light the camp.

"Quiee!" The little fairy exclaimed and dropped the berry in her hands.

Quickly, I slid into the shadows away from the pathway.

Bidding farewell to the fairies who were reluctant to let her go, Angelica walked past me into the woods with her head covered with a jacket to hide the color of her hair.

"Were you helping me?"

"Hee!"

The little fairy jumped up and hovered before me with a smile on her face. She pointed at the way Angelica disappeared and waved goodbye like we were old friends.









Our return trip to the camp was uneventful.

While I trailed behind Angelica, I realized that the fairy forest was nearer to the camp than I had initially calculated. It must have been another trick by the fairies to confuse the travelers in the forest. We would have not found the fairy forest had they not intended to be found.

'Why?' I decided to put aside that thought for the future.

As we got closer, it was clear that Angelica was heading straight towards the far side of the camp where the Nero mercenaries were stationed.

The Tullus mercenaries and the Orion merchants occupied the majority of the rest area compared to the Nero mercenaries, who were only a six-member crew. They opted to guard the rear end of the camp to break free from the cluster of people.

I entered the camp through the carriages parked together when I heard Ezra calling out to me.

"Your Gra-..." Ezra looked around before correcting himself,

"Sir Kalan!" He looked distraught and worried.

"The Lady has vanished. We tried looking for her discreetly but we couldn't... You were with her?" Ezra relaxed, answering his own question.

He let out a sigh of relief. We were mere days away from Parthellam to lose sight of her.

"My goodness. This is far worse than keeping track of Mikhael" He mumbled under his breath, holding onto his chest.

"Your Grace. Please send me back to the battlefield once we return to the north"

"No need to fret Ezra..." I thought back to Angelica at the lake,

"The night was more rewarding than any battle could yield"

At that moment, I felt a mild tremor as if the ground was shaking. Ripples were visible in the water barrels next to the horses.

*NEIGH* *NEIGH*

"Calm down!" The stableman tried to coax the horses that were trying to break free from his hold.

"Earthquake?" muttered a member of the Tullus mercenaries, as the tremors became apparent.

"No. This is not an earthquake" said Raeden the wolf beastman, voicing out my thoughts.

The wolf beastman was right. It was not an earthquake that caused the ground to shake.

Eldom may have been rumored to have extinct fairies living on its lands. But it was also the primary habitat of another well-known predator.

"Ogres!" Someone yelled as large green monsters burst out of the trees attacking everything in sight.

"ROAR!"

One after the other, ogres entered the camp armed with weapons of their own.

Instinctively, I reached for my sword but stopped midway. I signaled the Knights to stand down to let the mercenaries do the job they were hired for.

Here we were not Knights but merchants on our way to the city to trade goods for profit. It would be strange for merchants known to have agile minds to kill ogres that were overpowering experienced mercenaries.

For now, I instructed the Knights to evacuate the injured while the mercenaries took care of the uninvited guests.

If worse comes to worst, the Frost Knights would take charge to subdue the ogres. It did not matter if the ogres plundered the possessions in the carriages since materialistic possessions held no meaning. The only valuable we needed to protect was Angelica.

I moved toward the rear end of the camp to find Angelica. However, my concerns were unnecessary.

True to her lineage as an Ashford, Angelica was fighting against the Ogres on the front lines assisted by her fellow mercenaries.

"Haha..." I couldn't help but laugh at the spectacle.

With a hood covering her head, Angelica was riding on top of one of the ogres like she was taming a wild horse. The blind ogre thrashed back and forth unable to get her off its back.

"Should we help her?" Ezra asked, unable to determine the nature of the combat he was witnessing.

"No, let her have her fun"

In a matter of minutes, Angelica and the twin fox beastmen skillfully subdued the two ogres by directing them to collide onto each other.

It was a reckless yet clever move, much like Angelica herself.

Around the same time, the other mercenaries brought down the remainder of the ogres.

"Well done" Angelica climbed on top of the ogre and proudly declared when a gust of wind blew knocking out the hood covering her head.

"That... That..." Ezra staggered back as if he had forgotten to breathe.

"No way..."

It was not just him but the entire camp fell silent astounded, as Angelica's platinum blonde hair danced to the rhythm of the wind as if to seal the truth.

"Still have doubts?"

"It's her. It's really her... the Duchess" Ezra acknowledged, a bested smile on his face.

And with that, the last of the doubts that Ezra or the Knights held vanished.

Antarctica Leveret was none other than the Late Duchess Angelica Ashford the world had forgotten.