At that moment, I heard the sound of running water. With my fairy instincts, I could tell that there was a large stream nearby with clear water flowing through it.

“I think there is water nearby.”

“Really? I’ve been wanting to wash off all this dog fur smell. Perfect! Lead the way!”

With Stella pushing me forward, I guided her to the stream that flowed nearby.

Through the bushes and between the trees, we came across a clear valley stream running through the dense forest. The sight of it refreshed my head, as if the heat had just lifted a little.

Swish, swish.

While I was taking it all in, Stella had already kicked off her long boots and jumped into the water with her bare feet.

Splash!

“Ah, it’s cold!”

She waded deeper into the water, submerging herself up to her neck. It seemed like the water was deep.

And then it happened.

Whoosh.

I suddenly felt something wrapping around my ankle.

“Huh!”

Without warning, I was pulled in by a strong force and plunged into the stream.

“Gah! Heup—hieek!”

I couldn’t feel the bottom! Was it deeper than I thought?

As I flailed around and swallowed a lot of water, someone grabbed me by the side and lifted me up. Thanks to that, I managed to regain my balance.

“It’s not that deep. You can touch the bottom.”

“…….”

“Theo-kun, it’s just like when you fell into the river last time. Are you scared of water? That’s unusual for a half-fairy. Nymphs usually love water.”

“I’m half-fairy but also half-human. And there are plenty of humans who can’t swim.”

Puuu-.

I spat out the water. Now that I looked around, the water wasn’t as deep as I initially thought.

It only came up to my chest and neck. However, with the smooth stones beneath my feet, one wrong step could easily make me slip and fall in again.

Since I couldn’t swim, I had no choice but to focus all my strength on my legs as I slowly tried to get out of the water.

But then, someone pulled me back from behind.

“Not so fast.”

Of course, it was Stella.

Did she want to play in the water with me?

“You should wash up too, Theo-kun. You smell like a pack of wolves.”

“Um.”

That was true. I reeked of sweat from not having washed for days, along with the smell of wild animals from staying with the wolves.

Even though she hadn’t said anything, Stella must have been enduring the stench all this time.

In the end, I decided to wash myself in the running water. It was more like doing laundry than bathing….

Swoosh, swoosh.

As I was pouring water over myself, Stella splashed some on my face. Splashing water while bathing—was she a child?

“Nymph Hydro Pump!”

Puuuu-.

“Eek! Theo-kun, you dare spit water in my face!?”

After playing in the water for a while—

My body was freezing and trembling. I should get out before I catch a cold.

* * *

“Heh-choo!”

The little half-fairy kept sneezing. His face was flushed red, and his clear blue eyes looked hazy. He caught a cold.

“Heh-choo!”

A cold, of all things.

Stella couldn’t believe that the guy, who hadn’t shown any signs of struggle while fighting numerous monsters, was now shivering from a cold.

The reason was simple.

Stella forced the little half-fairy into the water.

Never in a million years did she expect that a nymph would catch a cold just from being in a stream for a bit. Didn’t they enjoy the water?

“Ugh…”

‘Now I feel bad.’

The more the sneezing and coughing increased, the more Stella Von Bellhawk felt guilty.

She tried feeding the half-fairy some herbs and fruits that were said to be good for colds, but they didn’t seem to have much effect. Healing remedies didn’t work that quickly, anyway.

“Here, it’s a vitality bug. It looks a bit weird, and it’s really spicy, but it’ll give you energy.”

“Ugh.”

When she tried to feed him a bug that was good for his body, he wouldn’t even eat the herbs or fruits anymore.

“……”

The usually chatty half-fairy had gone completely silent. Was he too tired to talk? Walking in silence felt strange.

‘He’s like a completely different person.’

Stella decided it was too much to continue walking like this.

Though it was important to reach the eastern wall and reunite with the others, delaying the journey by another day wouldn’t hurt at this point.

Fortunately, she found a tree hole in a huge ancient tree.

The hole was big enough for several people to fit comfortably in. By laying straw on the ground and covering it with a coat, it became a place to stay for the night.

“Since it’s already getting dark, let’s rest here tonight.”

“…Ugh…”

The half-fairy was barely conscious. His forehead felt like it was on fire. Stella wondered if it might be the nymph flu that had been going around lately.

But it didn’t seem like that.

“Theo-kun, your forehead’s burning up. Lie down for now.”

She helped the half-fairy lie down. He looked pitiful panting—limp as if he hadn’t just been walking.

‘He looks so docile like this.’

Normally, the strange tension and atmosphere surrounding the half-fairy obscured these details. But looking at him in this quiet state, his face was like a finely crafted piece of glass.

Precariously balancing between a young man and a boy, his eyelashes were thin, and his chin and nose were sharp and delicate.

Was he what you call a pretty boy? If he had lived a normal life in an ordinary family, he would have made many girls cry.

Of course, the half-fairy’s fate had been anything but ordinary. The strange, grim scar etched across his right eye was proof of that.

‘I don’t know how he got it, but it’s definitely a blade wound.’

Had his life been in danger at some point?

It was an unsettling scar, as if someone had recklessly marred a well-crafted porcelain.

Stella raised her hand and lightly covered the half-fairy’s right eye. Looking at him without the scar… It reminded her of someone.

‘I feel like I’ve seen this face before.’