The tiny girl kept staring at Arin as if he were the strangest thing she had ever seen.
Arin stared back.
For several seconds, neither of them spoke.
The girl finally crossed her tiny arms.
"You're really a human."
Her voice sounded both surprised and excited.
Arin blinked slowly.
"And you're really… a fairy."
The girl puffed her cheeks slightly.
"Of course I am! What else would I be?"
She floated closer, circling his head again like a curious bird.
Arin could clearly see her now.
Her wings shimmered like thin glass in moonlight. Soft glowing dust fell from them every time she moved.
Her silver hair reached her waist, and her eyes shined like little stars.
She suddenly stopped right in front of his nose.
"You're huge."
Arin sighed.
"Well, humans are bigger than fairies."
She tilted her head.
"Humans are also supposed to be extinct here."
Arin froze.
"…What?"
The fairy blinked.
"You didn't know?"
Arin slowly stood up.
His legs were shaky, but they worked.
He looked around the glowing forest again.
Tall silver trees stretched endlessly into the distance. Strange flowers glowed faintly along the ground. The air smelled fresh and cool, like rain and magic.
Everything looked too beautiful.
Too unreal.
"This place…" Arin whispered.
"…is not Earth."
The fairy nodded proudly.
"Of course it isn't."
She spread her arms.
"Welcome to Lunareth."
The word felt strange in Arin's ears.
"Lunareth?"
"The Fairy World."
Arin felt his stomach drop.
The crash…
The rain…
The truck…
His mother.
The thought hit him like a wave.
"Mom."
He grabbed his head.
"I need to go back."
The fairy frowned.
"Go back where?"
"Earth!"
Arin's voice rose slightly.
"My mother was in the car. She might be hurt. I need to—"
He stopped suddenly.
Something felt wrong.
The forest had grown quiet.
Too quiet.
The fairy's playful expression slowly disappeared.
She turned her head toward the dark trees behind them.
Her wings stiffened.
"Oh no."
Arin felt it too.
A strange pressure in the air.
Like something watching them.
"What is it?" he asked.
The fairy whispered one word.
"Hide."
Before Arin could react—
A deep growl rolled through the forest.
The ground trembled slightly.
Something huge moved between the trees.
Branches snapped.
Heavy footsteps approached.
Arin's heart started racing.
"W-What is that?"
The fairy grabbed his shirt and pulled hard.
"Move!"
They quickly hid behind a massive tree.
Arin carefully peeked around the trunk.
Then his blood ran cold.
A creature stepped into the moonlight.
It looked like a wolf.
But it was far bigger than any wolf on Earth.
Its body was covered in dark scales instead of fur. Two curved horns grew from its head. Its glowing red eyes scanned the forest slowly.
Each breath from the creature released visible mist into the air.
The fairy whispered nervously.
"That's a Horned Dreadwolf."
Arin swallowed.
"That thing could eat a truck."
The monster sniffed the air.
Then its glowing eyes suddenly snapped toward their tree.
Arin froze.
The fairy's voice trembled.
"…It smelled you."
The Dreadwolf let out a terrifying roar.
Then it charged.
"RUN!" the fairy shouted.
Arin didn't need to be told twice.
He ran.
Branches whipped against his face as he sprinted through the glowing forest. His lungs burned almost instantly.
The Dreadwolf crashed through the trees behind him like a living tank.
Its footsteps shook the ground.
"Why is it chasing me?!" Arin yelled.
"Humans smell different!" the fairy shouted while flying beside him.
"That's not helpful!"
The monster leaped.
Its massive claw slammed into the ground just behind Arin.
The impact knocked him forward.
Arin rolled across the dirt and crashed into a rock.
Pain exploded through his shoulder.
The Dreadwolf slowly approached him.
Its red eyes glowed in the darkness.
The fairy hovered in front of Arin desperately.
"Go away!" she shouted at the monster.
The beast ignored her completely.
Its gaze stayed locked on Arin.
Arin's chest rose and fell quickly.
He couldn't outrun it.
He couldn't fight it.
He was just a normal human.
The Dreadwolf opened its mouth, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth.
Then—
Something strange happened.
Arin suddenly felt something inside his chest.
A strange warmth.
It spread through his body like fire.
His heart started beating faster.
Not from fear.
From something else.
The Dreadwolf stepped closer.
But suddenly—
It stopped.
Its glowing red eyes widened slightly.
The monster tilted its head.
As if confused.
Arin didn't understand why.
But the fairy gasped in shock.
"…What?"
She stared at Arin.
"You're… glowing."
Arin looked down.
Faint silver light was spreading from his chest.
The air around him shimmered softly.
The Dreadwolf slowly backed away.
The monster growled nervously.
For the first time, it looked afraid.
Arin felt the strange warmth pulse again.
A quiet voice seemed to whisper deep inside his mind.
Not words.
Just a feeling.
Connection.
The Dreadwolf stared at him one last time.
Then suddenly turned and ran back into the dark forest.
The ground stopped shaking.
Silence returned.
Arin sat there in shock.
The silver light slowly faded from his body.
The fairy floated closer to him slowly.
Her eyes were wide.
"What… are you?"
Arin shook his head.
"I don't know."
He looked up at the silver sky.
His chest still felt warm.
And deep inside the forest…
Something ancient had also felt that light.
Something powerful had just awakened.
And Lunareth had noticed.