Aline, who had been staring at the man’s face with clear eyes, stretched out her small finger and said:

“You’re the toad mister.”

The man gently folded Aline’s finger and said:

“Pointing is a bad habit. Didn’t your mother or father teach you that?”

“They did teach me.”

“Then why are you doing it?”

“Because I wanted to.”

Her tone was brazen, as if to say what was wrong with doing what she wanted. The man burst out laughing and sent another sharp flash of light across Aline’s eyes.

“It’s dazzling.”

Aline frowned her soft brow and rubbed her eyes.

“What about the toad?”

“Ah, if you mean that fellow, he’s right here.”

As he spoke, the man put his hand into his clean jacket pocket. Aline watched him rummaging through his pocket with an expression that said it was nonsense, but when a real toad came out, her large eyes opened wide.

“Isn’t it stuffy inside the pocket?”

“It’s fine. This pocket is connected to another world. When I put him in here, he goes back to a cozy swamp where he can eat delicious mud soup. If he’s lucky, he might even have a few snails on the side.”

Aline frowned a little as if it were strange and tilted her small head.

“Where is it connected to? And does being connected mean it’s joined? Like mother and the babies in her belly?”

“You’re clever. Yes, it’s connected like that. Roughly similar. Probably a place you’ll never visit.”

Aline, standing on tiptoe on the bookshelf, fidgeted with her hands and said. The short braid by her ear swayed cutely.

“I want to see the festival.”

The man snorted.

“What’s so fun about human festivals?”

“You’ve never been to one, have you?”

“You think I’ve never been to a human festival? What makes you think that?”

Light green eyes, reminiscent of fresh early spring leaves, stared at the man with a meaningful look unbefitting her age.

‘She’s the spitting image of her father’s eyes. Yet the way she gazes is just like her mother. Human offspring are always peculiar.’

The man said:

“Tell me. Why do you think I’ve never been to a human festival?”

“Because you’re not human, are you?”

Suddenly, the wind blew. Not a single strand of the man’s hair moved, but Aline’s fine, delicate hair rustled by her ears and cheeks.

“I am human. Look. My arms and legs, and even my head are attached and not falling off. I have eyes, a nose, a mouth, and ears too.”

“I can smell when someone is lying.”

“Your little nose must be broken.”

“Humans can’t stand next to a third-floor window.”

The man finally glanced down at his feet and said nonchalantly:

“I thought it was the first floor.”

“It’s not.”

“What were your parents thinking, making your room here? What if you fall while looking out the window like this and break your neck?”

At that, Aline gripped the window frame tightly with her small hand and lowered her head slightly. It was a sight that would have made her nanny faint with foam at the mouth if she had seen it.

“Will there come a day when I fall from here?”

The man laughed again.

“No, your parents would come to save you before that. Or that woman in that room. Wouldn’t all the humans wandering around here come to save you?”

“What if there’s no one who can rush to my side?”

It was the same question she had asked Eustar.

Neither Eustar nor Laila knew why Aline considered such extreme situations. She was a very sensitive child, despite never having been left alone or lost. It was different from being timid.

As Aline looked at him with eyes demanding an answer, the man said:

“Then call for me. I’ll come and catch you before your neck snaps.”

“Do I call you toad mister?”

“Just think of me, that’s enough.”

Aline pursed her small lips with an expression that seemed to understand but not quite, then rested her chin on the window frame. Her two small hands, barely human-sized, cupped her chubby cheeks quite neatly.

“I won’t fall. I don’t usually climb up here.”

“Don’t make promises. Human children often do nonsensical things.”

“What does ‘make promises’ mean?”

“It means don’t believe in yourself too firmly.”

It’s difficult, Aline thought. But strangely, she liked this weird mister.

It was unusual for Aline, who didn’t usually take to strangers. Of course, if Laila or Eustar had seen it, they would have found it strange too… if only that man had been an ordinary human.

“Your mother used to do such things often when she was young.”

Aline blinked and turned her head towards the man, still resting her chin on her hands.

“Are you my mother’s elder brother?”

“Elder brother?”

The man suddenly burst into loud laughter. Aline turned her head in surprise, worried that the nanny might come running at the sound, but for some reason, there wasn’t a single sign of movement despite the noise.

The man fixed his gaze on Aline’s face as if examining it thoroughly, then said:

“No, I’m not your mother’s elder brother.”

“Then how do you know what my mother was like when she was young?”

“I was acquainted with your mother’s mother.”

Aline’s brow furrowed again.

“Grandmother?”

“She would be your grandmother.”

“But you’re not grandfather.”

“Didn’t you say earlier? That I’m not human. If I’m not human, changing my appearance is nothing. It’s easier than blinking.”

Aline was silent for a moment as if thinking about his words again, then asked this:

“Where is your home, mister?”

At this unexpected question, the man’s red eyes flickered like flames. The moment Aline saw those eyes, she thought he must be part of her mother’s family.

If not an elder brother… maybe he could be a younger brother. Like the two siblings growing day by day in her mother’s womb right now.

“My home is quite far away.”

“I want to go see it.”

“For what? Don’t you have friends?”

“No, not yet.”

“How is Hyanmorik raising children these days.”

The man clicked his tongue with a disapproving tone and glanced at Aline.

“Your parents will return at sunset, are you saying you’ll stay with me until then? Why?”

“Because it’s interesting that my mother had a time when she was young.”

“I find you more interesting. You’re just an ordinary human, yet why do you act as if you have the soul of a sage?”

Both ‘sage’ and ‘soul’ were unfamiliar words to Aline. However, Aline stretched out one hand towards the window.

Realizing she wanted him to hold it, the man looked at Aline with amused eyes before carefully taking the child’s hand in his large one.

At that moment, Aline felt strange. It felt as if suddenly, a large, shiny… square something had appeared behind her back. When she turned around, of course, there was nothing there, but something had definitely changed.

“What did you do?”

“You can even feel this? This is beyond just good intuition. Your mother’s blood has flowed down more strongly than I thought.”

“Where does mother’s blood flow down to?”

The man didn’t answer that question but took a step in the air. Then Aline’s body in the playroom floated up into the air, and soon, as if an invisible path had formed, her small feet touched down on the sky.

“It’s magic.”

Aline chirped, looking down without fear.

“Yes, it’s magic. Now hold on tight.”

“Aren’t we going to walk?”

“I told you it’s far, didn’t I? Young ones are so leisurely.”

As the man finished speaking, Aline’s body floated up again. It was a light and nimble movement, like a soft, small flower petal being blown by the wind.

By early morning, the flower market was completely crowded, with even the late-setting merchants added to the mix.

Laila and Eustar were sitting across from each other at a makeshift table, drinking plum juice while looking at flowers, plants, and herbs, and watching children buying baskets of flowers.

“Isn’t this fun too?”

Eustar said. Laila looked down at the bland plum juice, then nodded slightly with a smile.

“Yes, it’s fun. But I think it’s fun because Eustar came with me. If I were alone, I would have turned back without even setting foot in because there are too many people.”

“You’ve been getting along well at royal palace balls lately. Do you still dislike places with so many people?”

“It’s not that I dislike it, but when I see something, I start worrying about what I should do.”

Laila’s answer was calm, but Eustar slightly relaxed his eyebrows as if he had made a mistake.

Laila, who had rejected the deal Badin had offered in exchange for sealing the Deceptor, still had her abilities as a medium. However, they were not as powerful as before.

She could still constantly see non-human things, but in the sense that she couldn’t look into the core of souls through ‘overlaying’ and neutralize them, the situation had become even more dangerous.

Worried about this, Eustar had left a few of the magic tools they used in Tentinella for Laila. Though he had never actually seen Laila carrying or using them…

“Do you still see them often these days?”

When Eustar asked, Laila stirred the cup to float the settled skin and pulp fragments and answered:

“Less than before. I’m not sure if my eyes are getting blurry, or if there are fewer souls staying in the royal palace itself.”