Chapter 188: Handle Fairies with Care (2)

"What if I refuse? Will you let me go?"

"If you say no, we have to send you back. We don’t want humans wandering into the Misty Forest."

If I chose to leave, they would likely guide me out in the same way I was brought in—drifting in a daze while following the whispers of the fairies. Like the other missing people, it would probably take me a few days to return.

'From what the fairies are saying, it sounds like the Misty Forest’s strange effects are a natural defense mechanism meant to protect the Fairy’s Sword...'

If I accepted their request, I might be able to leave faster.

I decided to accept and extended my hand toward Laz. She tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what I meant, so I held out just my index finger instead.

"What’s this for?"

"It’s a handshake. It means I’m accepting your request."

"How do I do it?"

"Just grab my hand and shake it lightly."

Laz hesitated, then used both hands to grasp my finger and gave it a small shake. Seeing these innocent fairies, so unaware of the world, was oddly endearing... and strangely amusing.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yeah, I’m fine now."

The white-haired fairy had put on the clothes her friends had made for her, and after regaining her composure, she fluttered up to me, her wings buzzing. With a curious expression, she inspected me, then puffed up her cheeks and gave me an angry look.

"Friends don’t eat friends!"

"Ah... I wasn’t actually trying to eat you."

Of course, if we were talking about "eating" in another sense, then yes, I had definitely intended to do so.

"And no scaring us with that mole on your body!"

It’s not a mole—it’s my dick. But considering that fairies seemed to be exclusively female, they probably had no idea what a man’s anatomy looked like.

"You’ll be careful from now on, right?"

"Sure."

"Then it’s fine!"

The fact that they could make such a promise with a man and believe it so easily... They were truly innocent. I wondered what would happen if they ever encountered someone with actual bad intentions.

"This way!"

Having seemingly moved past the trauma of nearly being devoured—or perhaps just being naturally cheerful—the white fairy flitted around me energetically, guiding me forward.

"Are you really okay now?"

"Yeah! Earlier, my stomach felt all tingly and my legs were all twitchy, so I couldn’t move properly, but now I’m fine!"

"Maybe his mouth is poisonous?"

Hearing their conversation, I realized that fairies, like any other females, reacted to stimulation. They just lacked the sexual knowledge to understand that what had happened to her was due to me licking her pussy.

Well, if they didn’t understand what I had done, that was fine. As long as they simply told me not to do it again, there was no problem.

"Where is the Fairy’s Sword?"

"Actually... we don’t know."

'...Are you kidding me?'

"We get lost in the Misty Forest too. We just fly around until we find an exit to guide people out. If we smell fresh water, that usually means we’re near the Fairy’s Sword, so we sometimes go check it out before coming back. That’s all."

So, even fairies didn’t fully understand this forest.

Either that, or they relied too much on Fairy Blink for teleportation, making their sense of direction utterly useless.

"But it’s fine! If you stick with us, you won’t get lost as much."

True enough, the areas around the fairies were less foggy, revealing a faint pathway. But when I looked behind me, the mist was so thick that I couldn’t even tell which way I had come from.

Just to be sure, I infused mana into my eyes to see through the mist, but this fog wasn’t normal...

'Incredible mana...'

The mist itself was pure mana.

In other words, the entire forest was filled with mana so dense that it became visible.

By circulating my mana, I could sense that the fog was actively replenishing the energy I used. No matter how much mana I burned, the surrounding mist kept forcing more into my body, automatically activating my mana circuits.

'At this rate, I could use this to develop my mana circuits even further...'

Imagining myself absorbing the mist’s mana, I activated my lower mana circuits, expanding them. Until now, the pathways in my torso and lower abdomen had been twisted and complex, like a city’s tangled roads. My arms and legs had clearer, more direct circuits, resembling highways. But now, I was paving new paths—turning tiny trails into well-formed roads.

Since walking through the Misty Forest required nothing but mindless movement, and the fairies were constantly calling out to guide me, I let my legs follow them automatically while dedicating my full concentration to refining my mana circuits.

'I can’t stop now.'

Like forcing down food I didn’t want to eat, my mana circuits were repeatedly expanding and forming, filling my entire body from head to fingertips. The pain of burning flesh accompanied the accumulation of mana circuits.

"......Haa..."

Only when my entire body was saturated—when even the tiniest strands of hair held weak mana circuits—was I finally able to stop the expansion. By then, sweat was pouring off me like rain, and the gnawing hunger in my stomach suggested I had unknowingly spent over ten hours absorbing the mist.

Growl...

Physically, I was in peak condition, with my mana circuits fully open and replenishing energy from the mist. But physiological needs couldn’t be ignored.

"Looks like our friend is hungry."

"We should share some food."

Hearing my stomach growl, the fairies scattered in three directions, vanishing from sight. However, unlike before, I could now faintly see traces of their movement.

Pop.

Viola was the first to return, looking as calm as ever. She held three small berries in her tiny hands.

From her perspective, she had gathered as many as she could carry. But to me, they were barely the size of my fingers. How was I supposed to fill my stomach with just these?

Laz and Maggie soon returned with similar offerings—small berries and acorns that were edible but far from satisfying. Their tiny hands simply couldn’t carry enough for me.

'If I don’t wrap this up quickly, I might starve to death.'

Still, eating even a little relieved the worst of my hunger. Thanks to my enhanced mana circuits, I wouldn’t experience physical exhaustion even with minimal nutrition. Rather than relying on fairies to bring me food endlessly, it would be smarter to finish this job quickly and return to the border camp for a proper meal.

"How about this?"

Maggie, in contrast, returned with her hands full of wriggling larvae. I had learned in survival training that they were edible, but the burst of insect guts in my mouth was something I’d only consider if I were truly starving.

"No thanks. This is enough."

"Humans are so high-maintenance. We just need a single berry."

Tired from their efforts, the fairies began settling down. Viola gently perched on my head, while Maggie rested on my shoulder, folding her wings to recover her energy. Only Laz kept her distance, still unwilling to lean against me.

"Should we rest for the night? Flying all day has left me exhausted."

"Yeah... I used Blink way too much today... feels like I burned through years’ worth of it."

Laz, the one who refused to rest on me, looked especially drained. Since I had no choice but to rely on the fairies for navigation, I decided to follow their lead.

After wandering the forest, we found a suitable clearing where they settled beneath large leaves, using them as blankets while lying on sturdy branches. The sight of these tiny beings curling up under leaves was so doll-like that I couldn’t help but chuckle.

"You’re not going to eat us, right?"

"Yeah."

Satisfied with my confirmation, Laz finally lay down. One by one, the fairies drifted off to sleep, while I sat nearby, like a knight standing guard over them, focusing on my mana circuits.

'Is there still room for more absorption?'

I had successfully activated my entire body’s mana circuits.

The next step was to widen the circuits and refine them into a complete network covering my entire body. Doing so would increase my mana capacity, response speed, and overall output. With such high-purity mana saturating the air, I couldn’t afford to neglect my training.

Of course, trying and succeeding were two different things. No matter how much I attempted to force expansion, progress had slowed.

'Perhaps I should condense the newly-formed lower circuits first?'

Forcing them any further could result in an overload, causing a reverse mana backlash. I decided to stop here for now.

Like osmosis, the dense mana of the Misty Forest was naturally seeping into my body, making it impossible to gauge the exact mana concentration in the air.

'Might as well get some sleep.'

The Misty Forest was silent—no insects chirped, no wind rustled the leaves. Without the fairies chattering and flying around, the entire forest was eerily still. For someone like me, who was a light sleeper, it was the perfect place to rest.

Of course, while the lack of sound was beneficial, the constant sensation of mana prickling my skin made actual sleep difficult. But rather than moving around and waking the fairies, it was better to lie down and at least try to rest.

'Laying on damp grass isn’t ideal, though...'

The fairies, resting on tree branches, didn’t have to deal with the ground’s moisture. But since I was too large to sleep on a branch, I had no choice but to endure the mist and dew soaking into me.

Fwoooosh...

Just as I was forcing myself to sleep, I heard the sound of wings flitting through the air.

A faint trickle of fairy dust fell onto my face, followed by the soft patter of tiny feet landing on me.

'Is she just trying to warm herself with my body heat?'

But contrary to my expectations, the fairy that had landed on me was rustling about—removing her leaf-made clothes. Soon, she neatly folded them on my chest before pressing her soft, naked body against my lips.

"Nnh... Uhh..."

A moment later, the scent of sweet flowers filled my senses as the fairy’s delicate folds rubbed against my lips.

Hearing Maggie’s muffled moans, I quickly understood exactly what was happening.

'...Is she using my face to masturbate?’