The restless journey never ends, but the tranquil one always concludes too quickly. When Zilvra and Soka opened their eyes, the small boat had already approached Heather, reaching the palace of Elf City.
"That was such a comfortable sleep!" Little Soka stretched lazily, her beautiful wings spreading out around her. She patted her mouth with her small hands, yawned a few tis, and then widened her eyes to observe the surrounding scenery.
Zilvra rubbed her eyes, quickly flexing her joints to restore their usual agility. She asked Lynch, "How long did I sleep? Why do I feel like it’s been a long ti?"
"Yes, your feeling is not wrong," Lynch replied. "You both have slept for five whole days and nights. And you happened to wake up just as we reached our destination."
Zilvra frowned, looking nervously towards the shores. "Is there so strange magic here? How did I lose my alertness?"
"Don’t worry, it’s not any malicious magic," Lynch explained. "From entering Salantir to reaching the elves’ palace, it takes more than five days. Generally, travelers would sit on the boat watching the scenery on both sides with nothing else to do. This kind of hypnotic magic can eliminate fatigue and avoid the tediousness of the journey." The mage said with a smile, "But I once had a friend who complained about this magic, arguing that it let him miss the beautiful scenery, spending five days sleeping instead of appreciating, which he found quite unprofitable."
"Then you didn’t enjoy sleep like us during this ti?" Zilvra asked. "You were alone on the boat, why didn’t you wake up to keep you company?"
"No, I thought that would be inappropriate," Lynch said. "I assu you haven’t had the luxury of completely tranquil sleep since you were born. Seeing you and Soka rest peacefully, able to forget everything around and enjoy this deep sleep, how could I disturb that? Besides, I’m used to traveling the world alone; such a short ti of solitude doesn’t affect much."
"Perhaps I’m not saying this correctly," Zilvra said to Lynch. "You once told that having left that place, I should change my habits from there to adapt to the current journey. I think you should also abandon that habit of being alone to adjust to the journey of three."
Lynch gazed at Zilvra for a long while before responding, "I think you’re right, I’ll slowly adapt."
"It’s so beautiful here!" Soka exclaid happily, tugging hard at the mage’s robe. "Can I go play for a while?"
"Go ahead, but don’t stray too far from the boat; you must be able to return at any ti. Otherwise, when we land, we’ll eat all the fruits ant for you!" Lynch patted the little angel’s head. "Go and fly!"
Soka spread her white wings, happily skimming over the water, and flew into the azure sky. Here, Erutalon’s river water converged into a large lake, the erald green waters reflecting and embracing the surrounding mountains. Originally, the white clouds in the sky now floated at the feet of the verdant peaks, while the birds flying through the clouds now appeared like fish frolicking in the lake.
Although the sun overhead still emanated its scorching rays, it must restrain its intensity in front of this impeccable scenery. No trace of impatience could taint this masterpiece of nature, and any creature that understands the appreciation of beauty would not want to disturb this atmosphere.
Lynch and Zilvra couldn’t help but stand up, trying to see as far as possible. The lake beca a mirror, perfectly reflecting the surrounding scenery once more. Originally a piece of beautiful scenery now doubled, complenting each other, capturing everyone’s gaze. In that mont, the lake transford into an ocean embracing everything, endowing its inhabitants with boundless openness.
At the center of this beautiful mirror was the elves’ most prideful place—Isley & Heather, their palace, their Holy Forest. It was a white mountain, densely covered with lush trees, endless flowers, and shrubs adorning the gaps between the trees. These towering ancient trees, like the soil here, were white, yet they appeared neither boring nor lonely: the usual green leaves spread across the sky above them, changing to golden in autumn, and although turning white in winter, they wouldn’t wither, regaining their green luster in spring. The tree trunks were entwined with green vines. Yellow small flowers and bright red fruits hid beneath the twisting vines, while butterflies gathering flowers and small birds seeking food cheerfully shuttled through the forest. Here, they never had to worry about food.
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