[Realm: Álfheimr]
[Location: Heart Kingdom Outskirts]
The mountain plain stretched out under the washed-out sky. The air was thinner here — not suffocating, but light enough that each breath came with a faint reminder of altitude. The rocky ground was broken and uneven, scattered with stone and stubborn tufts of dead grass clinging to life between the cracks. No mist clung to the horizon; every line of the surrounding peaks stood unblurred.
Mikoto rolled his shoulders in a slow stretch, his expression caught somewhere between disinterest and irritation. A few paces away, Shuten-dōji stood in a relaxed stance, arms folded, that infuriatingly smile tugging at her lips.
Mikoto glanced to the side — and felt his mood sour further.
Not just one smiling fool… four of them. Gretel and the three goblins he'd unfortunately gotten to know: Arabella, Meryl, and Adrian.
