In the midst of the primeval mountain range stood the towering World Tree, Cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree.

The elves and fairies firmly held onto the title of ‘Cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree’ for that place.

Regarding the Cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree, there was a saying that jokingly circulated among the fanbase of the original romance fantasy novel.

If you plan to do business in the Cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree, exclude construction and real estate. Then you'll definitely succeed.

The reason was quite simple: The Heavenly Spirit Tree itself grew branches and built houses for the spirits that came into its embrace.

In other words, the elves had no worries about housing.

However, it would be a mistake to think that they lived in haphazardly woven branch nests.

"Wow..."

"This is a city truly built by the will of the Heavenly Spirit Tree...?"

After arriving at the capital of the Elven Nation, the Cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree, known as the Skyflower Haven, Stella’s students were given some free time.

This was because they were scheduled to participate in the Heavenly Spirit Tree's Ascension Day.

Of course, that was just an excuse.

To be honest, Edna thought of this schedule as something similar to a university field trip.

They couldn't drink and have fun, but it was a measure taken by the academy to allow the students to freely explore the city with their friends to relieve their stress.

Splaaaash!!

Waterfalls cascaded down from the branches of the Heavenly Spirit Tree hanging at the edge of the sky.

At the intersection where the waterfall split into two streams, a large bridge was laid, and on either side, mansions reminiscent of apartments stood tall.

The original novel described the capital, Skyflower Haven, like this: ‘Hundreds of gigantic tree trunks filled the world. And every tree trunk bore houses like fruits.’

While human cities spread horizontally on flat ground, elven cities expanded vertically as well.

As a result, they had a considerable number of stairs. They were not necessarily for the elves, but they were built in consideration for outsiders.

It was said that those with poor physical stamina found it challenging to even tour the Skyflower Haven.

Sigh!

A window of a cabin located above opened, and a young elf looked down in that direction.

Just as the elven city fascinated Stella’s people, the reverse was also true.

Considering the fact that a magical warrior like Edna received the treatment of a ‘hero’ among civilians and didn’t appear casually, it must be a remarkable sight to see so many students from the world's top magical warrior academy gathered here.

Edna smiled warmly and waved at the children, causing them to shyly hide their faces.

"They're cute. Even elven children are adorable."

"That's right, that's right."

The girls chattered excitedly.

How often would they have the opportunity to visit the Heavenly Spirit Tree in their lifetime?

Even if they were nobles, such opportunities were rare.

"It feels rejuvenating..."

Everywhere was filled with homes, nature, and fortresses.

Truly a fantastic city of elves.

The modern elves pursued an intellectual life, so there was nothing lacking in this place.

Starting with the academy as the centre, the city had various shops such as weapon stores, bars, hair salons, cosmetic shops, nail art studios, handicrafts, and flower gardens.

Recently, even human food trends like barbecue and hot pot had become popular.

The protagonist who played a key role in causing the elves to quickly adopt foreign culture was none other than Eltman Eltwin, the principal of Stella Academy.

His achievements were so great that he could be considered a protagonist in a novel. He traded with dwarves, spreading metal manipulation magic and alchemy & magitech technology to human society.

In exchange for saving the Second World Tree, he initiated the first civilization exchange with the elves and learned divine magic from the angels, laying the foundation for the current "healing magic."

All of these events mostly occurred over a hundred years ago, so it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was truly at his peak during that time.

The reason why he suddenly left his role as a magical warrior and took on the position of principal at Stella Academy to educate future generations was still a question mark.

Regardless, it was concluded that the elves of the current era were quite open-minded.

"Hey, Lady. Shall we go have a cup of plum tea together?" An elf hunting in the streets said.

"Cheap, cheap! A relic ball staff personally grown by an elf, only thirty-nine thousand eight hundred credits! Thirty-nine thousand eight hundred credits!"

Elves set up street stalls to do business.

"Hey, you! I was here first, wasn’t I?"

"This old man is for real!"

Elves were fighting drunk in broad daylight, and many modern elves coexisted in the city. The peculiar dance of commerce and desire made up the cradle of the Heavenly Spirit Tree.

Moreover, a festive atmosphere enveloped the city, prior to the Ascension of the Heavenly Spirit Tree festival, and it was bustling with a significant number of outsiders and different species, including the students of Stella.

"Edna, do you want to try that? They're selling something weird."

"Um... hmm..."

Edna knew what it was.

In the original novel, she was attracted to the fragrant smell and spent a handful of money to purchase it, but it was described as a despairing experience due to the texture which made it feel like one was chewing bark...

"I'm not really interested..."

"Really? Then let's eat it together!"

"Eisel, do you want to try it too?"

"Hmm... I guess so."

Watching her friends flocking to the skewer merchant elf, she briefly contemplated, ‘Should I just tell them?’

But soon, she gave up.

Trying something tasteless would still be an experience.

That way, she would have the qualification to say, ‘I tried it back then, and it wasn't good.’

Lost in thought while looking at the streets of Skyflower Haven, Edna noticed a familiar figure in the distance.

Baek Yu-Seol was squatting at a street stall, looking at the cheap miscellaneous items with a serious expression.

‘Is he alone?’

He was always alone.

She knew the reasons why it had to be that way, but recently, she couldn't help but want to interfere.

So, as she was about to approach and speak to him, someone passed by in front of her.

Whizz!

"... Huh?"

When her vision cleared again, Baek Yu-Seol had already disappeared from sight, as he always did, like a ghost.

And among the crowd, another boy was looking in her direction.

Jeremy Skalben was smiling and radiated a brilliant golden glow.

"Edna, hello."

"..."

In an instant, Edna’s expression began to crumple.

Jeremy leisurely approached Edna and met her gaze.

"What's the matter?"

"You're not showing me that face you had earlier?"

"What face?"

This situation made her very uncomfortable. She wanted to avoid getting involved with Jeremy, but how did it end up like this?

"..."

"..."

Puff! Puff!

Jeremy stayed five paces away from Edna, and smiled gleefully as he just looked at her. It seemed like even just making eye contact brought him joy.

"What's the matter? Hurry up and tell me your business."

"Ah."

Then, as if belatedly realizing something, he paused for a moment. After a moment of ponder, he hastily said, "The weather is nice today, isn't it?"

"No, it's damn gloomy."

The sky was clear without a single cloud.

"How about having a meal together? I know a place with a great view."

"I'm full, so I'll eat alone."

"How about a simple walk?"

"I don't want to."

"There's a pet cafe over there."

"I don't like cute things."

Impenetrable defense.

"Well then..."

Just as Jeremy was about to say more, someone blocked their path.

A sharp-looking boy with jet-black hair, and red amber eyes.

"... Haewonryang?"

"Prince. Leave it at that. Are you aware that your actions are quite rude and overbearing?"

"Haha, what's with the sudden talk? Why don't you just butt out and quietly disappear?"

As Jeremy spoke with a smile, ordinary people would naturally avert their gaze and avoid him.

However, it wouldn’t work on someone who stood at the pinnacle of the magical world as the successor of the Magic Tower.

Crack!

As the two boys locked eyes in a staring contest, Edna could only be caught in the middle.

'Damn, why are these crazy guys like this?'

It felt like a scene straight out of a cheesy romance novel she used to read in elementary school.

Before she could even think it was childish, she was dumbfounded.

'Have I ever had any weird encounters with them? I can't think of any.'

Haewonryang had always just been friends with both boys and girls in a normal way. Jeremy's attempts at conversation were nothing but inviting insults and curses.

‘I don't know.’

Edna was a complete novice when it came to romance in the first place.

‘How am I supposed to handle this? Damn, this is driving me crazy!'

While Edna was tearing her hair out, Jeremy made the first move.