The conversation between Naoki and Mab in the bathroom was unknown to any third party besides the two of them.
Even Aesc had no idea what they had discussed, as Naoki had not told her about it.
And in the blink of an eye, the next day had arrived.
At the gates of Edinburgh.
"That's far enough, Mab."
Aesc said to Mab, who had come to see them off.
"Thank you for your hospitality last night."
"Don't act so formal with me. You should know I still have absolutely no good impression of you. The only reason I'm willing to speak like this is because of your status as the Savior." As usual, Mab showed not the slightest friendly expression toward Aesc. "I'm seeing you off now purely out of courtesy."
Aesc smiled. "I know. If nothing goes wrong, the next time I visit here should be when Faerieland is united. I hope you'll keep your promise."
"Of course I will. You don't need to remind me—really. If you want unity now, why did you stop me back then?"
"Because you intended to slaughter all the southern fairies, of course I had to stop you."
(Tch!)
Mab sneered inwardly, then waved her hand in annoyance. "Fine, fine. Hurry up and leave my Edinburgh. Seeing you makes my heart uneasy. The farther, the better."
With that, Mab turned and hurried back into Edinburgh, slamming the gate shut.
Sighing in resignation, Aesc looked at Naoki and Melusine. "Well then, let's head back to Londinium, Naoki, Melusine."
"Flying back? Should I carry you both?"
"No. Let's walk back. I want to clear out some Mors along the way," Aesc said. "This is something I thought about last night. Though Wryneck regularly leads the Fang Clan to exterminate Mors, the range they can cover is limited. This area is quite far from the Fang Clan, so I'm sure there are plenty of Mors."
"If left alone, it might affect the fairies. For safety's sake, it's better we clean them up."
(Mors, huh…)
Naoki nodded slightly. "Alright. So we walk back to Londinium while exterminating Mors? I guess that'll take a few days."
"No problem. We have plenty of time anyway," Aesc smiled. "It's rare for us to be out. It wouldn't be good to return too quickly. Think of it as a little pilgrimage. I'm troubling you both to accompany me."
"No, it's no trouble. Right, Melusine?"
"I don't mind. As long as I'm with Naoki, anywhere is fine."
And so, the plan for the return journey was settled.
Walking from Edinburgh back to Londinium, the straight-line distance was nearly the length of all of Britain. They wouldn't be back in four or five days. And with the Mors extermination added…
(A week at most. That's pretty good.)
If they returned to Londinium, Naoki figured he and Aesc would only see each other during meals. Now they could spend more time together. He was very happy.
"Well then, let's set off."
"Yes."
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Meanwhile.
In a room somewhere in Britain.
"This is it?"
Wryneck, leader of the Fang Clan, entered the room. He saw three familiar figures seated around a table.
He knew these three. Though they rarely met, they were indeed the leaders of the Wind Clan, Wing Clan, and Earth Clan.
Four of the six leaders of Britain's great fairy clans, now gathered here.
Seeing Wryneck arrive, the beautiful girl-like leader of the Wind Clan smiled. "You're very late, Your Excellency Wryneck. You're the last one, you know."
"I was just exterminating Mors outside. I rushed here as soon as I received the invitation," Wryneck said, sitting in the remaining empty chair. "Rather than that, what's this about? Holding a meeting between clan leaders."
{Due to the increasingly severe human resistance incidents lately, we hope to discuss with the Fang Clan leader}—This was the joint invitation Wryneck received from the other three clan leaders after exterminating a small number of Mors two days ago.
If it were an invitation from just one clan leader, Wryneck would have ignored it. He preferred to focus his efforts on dealing with Mors.
Besides, human rebellion was something Aesc paid close attention to. She was even the one secretly encouraging human resistance. Naturally, Wryneck had no desire to get involved.
So, Wryneck had no intention of attending this meeting. But this was a joint invitation from the other three clan leaders. As the Fang Clan leader, he couldn't completely ignore it.
"Leader Wryneck, the purpose of the meeting is clearly stated in the invitation."
The elderly man-like leader of the Earth Clan said, "In recent years, human resistance has grown stronger for some reason. Many fairies have died at human hands, greatly disrupting our previous normal lives."
"Oh, and?" Wryneck responded coldly. "Do you want the Fang Clan to suppress those insolent humans?"
"Of course—"
"Impossible!"
Wryneck rejected it outright and slammed his fist on the table!
"The Fang Clan's enemies are only Mors! Using our claws and fangs against weak humans is a waste! It's an act that stains our dignity!"
"Besides, from what you're saying, it seems you can no longer handle humans with your own strength? How shameful! You still have the nerve to come to me! Are you even worthy of being called fairies!?"
"…"
"…"
"…"
No one responded. Only Wryneck's voice echoed in the meeting room. The leaders of the three great clans—Wind, Wing, and Earth—all fell silent, as if stunned by Wryneck's anger.
But just as Wryneck began to calm down and prepared to leave, ending this boring meeting—
"Don't say that, Leader Wryneck." ×3
The three clan leaders suddenly spoke in unison, saying the exact same words without a second's difference.
"Yes. Of course we knew you wouldn't act. That's natural, since you are a traitor, a traitor siding with the Heaven Fairy."
"Your opinion doesn't matter. The fact that you came here is what matters. We truly thank you for coming."
Like three puppets controlled by the same person, the three clan leaders continued speaking in perfect sync. And as they spoke, stood, and performed various actions, a bad premonition suddenly arose in Wryneck's heart.
"You…"
"Very well. You may retire here, Leader Wryneck."
A voice suddenly came from behind him. Wryneck immediately swung his fist backward. But the punch that should have shattered the entire meeting room produced no movement. Instead, Wryneck felt his fist hit empty space.
No—more precisely, he had punched into Darkness.
Behind him, a human-like figure had appeared at some point, its entire body shrouded in Darkness, with an exaggerated, clown-like smile on its face.
"You—who are you?"
"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is that next, I need your power, Wryneck." The figure let Wryneck's fist pass through its Darkness-filled body. "To destroy this Britain, lend me your power, Wryneck."
"With that, I can completely destroy this world's place of hope—Londinium."