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"I don't want to go yet… I want… to stay more with Sylphy…"

On the morning of the next day, Aquarina was crying while she asked her parents to stay here for a bit longer.

"Come on, Aquarina…" Shade said, letting out a sigh.

"Hehe. She seems to have taken a liking on you, Sylphy," Nepheline could not help but tell me.

"Isn't there a way for her to stay here for a few more days?" I asked.

"Sylphy, don't be disrespectful. Aquarina's parents are busy. Unlike us, they have a whole town to protect," my mother told me in response.

"Indeed. It's also because of that that they must return quickly. Not to mention that the trip from there to here takes them around three days," father quickly added.

"Oh…"

Then again, even if Aquarina would be safe with my parents here, it's not like her parents would leave their child in a completely different house, right?

Plus, I'm also sure she would miss them. I don't think she would prioritize staying with me, someone she just met, over staying with her parents.

However, her cute little face and her beautiful sapphire-colored eyes were tearing up so sorrowfully that it broke my heart.

She was being held by Shade as she extended her hand at me.

"Sylphy…!"

"Calm down, Aquarina. We'll meet again soon someday, don't be like this," I told her.

"Sniff… but we're fwends…"

"I know… since we're friends, our bond will still be there even if we're far away from each other, right?"

"Sniff… right…"

"You have to be strong! Whenever we meet again, let's play a lot and enjoy ourselves!" I continued.

"Okay… promise?"

"Of course I do…"

I held her hand tightly as she smiled as her mother gently wiped the tears off her face.

"Honestly, we wish we could stay longer… but our town won't protect itself. My tribe is strong, but what if a thing like that fly appears near it? We'd rather not risk it… the world might be safe from the Demon King, but the remnants and the monsters are still around." Nepheline said.

"Indeed. Thank you for being our daughter's first friend, Sylph. We'll make sure to invite you for her birthday in a few months. And well… we'll try to come here once a month, perhaps," Shade told me after that.

Once a month… only one day every month, huh… well, I hope Aquarina becomes patient.

When we grow up, we'll be able to travel by ourselves and meet more often.

"Well, although our territory is vast, it's not like we have to protect people like you guys. In fact, we could head to your town and visit you guys… we could even stay for a few days once a month. I think that would be better… right, Sylph, Aquarina?" father asked soon after.

As expected, my father is the best!

"Yeah, that sounds nice!" I replied.

"Oh, I suppose it would be a good experience for Sylph to see the outside world… we could head to your town next weekend, how about it?" my mother soon asked.

"Sounds great. We'll be waiting for you guys," Nepheline said, nodding in agreement.

"Indeed. Make sure to prepare well for the travel, though," reminded Shade.

"Yeah, we'll be ready by then." Father nodded.

"See, Aquarina? We can meet in a week from now!" I told her.

Hearing that, Aquarina beamed with great excitement.

"Really? I-I'll be waiting for you at home!" she said.

"Me too! Ah! …Wait!"

I quickly headed upstairs into my room and grabbed a fairytale book before heading downstairs again.

"Here, take this! Hold it until we meet again."

I gave her a small book named "The Goldfish that Became a Dragon". It was a fairytale that taught the value of effort, hard work, and perseverance to young children.

Aquarina liked it a bit, so I gave it to her.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yeah!"

"Thanks…"

"Such a cute little girl! Thank you for being so nice with our girl, it's as if you two are sisters already!" Nepheline could not help but chuckle as she kissed my forehead.

"Take care of her please!"

"Sure thing," said her mother.

"Very well. We must be off, then. It was good to meet you, Sylph," Shade told me as he petted my head.

"Thank you, sir. Have a good trip."

"We will."

After that, the mysterious Shade and Nepheline walked away with Aquarina after they hugged my parents rather tightly. Their bond as friends was clearly strong, forged from many battles.

Suddenly, Shade called upon something.

"Familiar Summoning."

FLASH!

Right outside the house, an enormous raven made of shadows emerged from Shade's shadow, which expanded at an alarming rate.

The enormous creature was over 7 meters tall and had glowing bloodshot eyes. Not to mention a powerful yet eerie presence…

"CRAA!"

It cried loudly as it sat down on the ground. Shade, Nepheline, and Aquarina soon sat down over its vast back before the enormous bird began to flap its gigantic wings, creating a small commotion around the place.

Amazing…

"We'll be waiting for you!" Nepheline said, waving her hand as Aquarina waved her hand at me.

FLAAAASH!

With that, mother opened the barrier, and soon, the raven flew into the skies.

The creature slowly disappeared within the white clouds atop the sky. After a while, they were gone from our line of sight.

Damn… it would be scary to travel in such heights, but Aquarina seemed pretty calm… Maybe she's used to it?

I wish my parents took me to a trip somewhere!

Well, they'll do that the following weekend, so it's just a waiting game at this point.

"And that's that… who wants some grilled boar steaks?" father asked.

"Me!" I replied with great fervor. In fact, I love wild boar meat.

"There's a lot of cake left… we can also eat that for dessert," my mother said, holding me in her arms before carrying me inside the house, with father following after her.

As we entered the house, I could not help but feel a bit said. After all, I wanted to stay more with Aquarina…

But I suppose I should get over it. In over a week, the two of us will meet again.

I have to make sure to prepare…

Come to think of it.

"How will we get to Aquarina's place? And where are we exactly?" I asked, curiosity taking over my mind.

"Oh, you finally wondered where we live." My father laughed.

"We live in a giant floating continent named Cloudia," my mother replied rather casually.

Floating… continent?!

Are we literally high up in the skies?!

No wonder it's a long trip to here if Shade and Nepheline live down there…

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