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I suddenly woke up in the middle of my sleep.

There was no particular reason. I just felt a bit hot and stuffy, which pulled me from my dreams, leaving my mind still half lost in them.

I thought about shifting my body to catch my breath, but for some reason, my body wouldn’t budge. My mind was clearly screaming commands, yet my body refused to follow.

I wondered if I was being pressed down by a weight or something, but seeing that my head could move just fine, I figured it wasn’t that.

Instead, I could only turn my head and look around. That was when I finally understood why I couldn’t move an inch.

Turning my head to the left, I saw Anne and, behind her, Selian, both of whom were resting on my left arm. After turning my head to the right, I noticed Luna and, behind her, Lindy, also resting on my right arm.

Finally, when I subtly lifted my head to look down, I first spotted Frecia curled up like a cat, sleeping on my stomach. It brought back memories of her visiting my room in her cat form during our Academy days.

Further down, I could see Yuli and Lilith sleeping, hugging my legs as if they were pillows.

It seemed that I was the only one in this party with a sleeping problem. Compared to the others, I was definitely in the weaker position when it came to sleeping habits. It was survival of the fittest, I suppose.

As a guy surrounded by beautiful women, I couldn’t exactly say I disliked the situation. But what good did it do? I was already in a woman’s body, and they were all just friends.

I was a bit worried about losing control over my desires and doing something foolish while half-asleep, but it was just a fleeting concern. After all, even if I wanted to act recklessly, my arms and legs were completely immobilized. There was no reason to worry.

So, I simply enjoyed the moment, surrounded by beautiful women, and closed my eyes to fall back asleep.

*

“Welcome. We greeted each other yesterday, but allow me to formally introduce myself once more. I am Lunia, the leader of the elves living in the forest.”

Holding the title of Elder, which would be equivalent to a king among humans, Lunia could easily come off as pompous. Yet, as before, she treated us with a remarkable politeness that was worlds apart from any emperor I knew. Not that I was criticizing any emperors here. Lunia held a humble nobility within her courtesy, while emperors possessed an unyielding strength wrapped in arrogance. Each had their own style, I suppose.

“Elder. The reason for our visit today…”

The other friends were exploring the Elf’s Forest to their liking outside, while only Lindy and I, the Hero, entered the Elder’s house together.

“Shh. I know you’re in a hurry, but let’s take it easy. Rushing can sometimes lead to mistakes.”

Lindy was about to jump straight into the main topic, but Lunia placed her index finger to her lips and soon stood up, offering us a cup each.

“This tea is brewed with dew I collected at dawn. It’s quite effective for calming the mind, but I’m not sure if it matches your tastes.”

Looking inside the cup, there floated a pink flower on the surface—truly just a flower sitting in dew rather than a properly brewed tea.

As I took a cautious sip, a subtle sweetness and floral fragrance swirled around my mouth. It felt far more luxurious than any expensive tea I had ever tasted.

“Hmm, it seems you like it. I’ll make sure to prepare some for you when you leave.”

“Ah, thank you…”

“Now, let’s hear why you’ve come to the Elf’s Forest. I have some expectations.”

“That is…”

As Lunia was about to steer the conversation into serious matters, Lindy slowly began to unravel her tale. She explained how she had decided to go on a journey with me, the Hero, to defeat the Demon King, the powerful demonic races we’d face ahead, and how her current weak state posed a limitation… It seemed like she was trying to gain permission through a long-winded explanation.

Lunia nodded along, encouraging her, listening to Lindy’s account until the very end.

“In short, you want to take the human, Elysia, to the Spirit Realm.”

“Yes…”

After taking a moment to sip her tea, Lunia opened her mouth again.

“Of course, the path to the Spirit Realm isn’t the kind of place just anyone can enter, but it’s not entirely off-limits either. So don’t worry too much. The Spirit King probably won’t mind too much, especially since Elysia is a Hero.”

Fortunately, Lunia granted permission easily, just as Lindy had predicted. The first goal had been achieved.

But we couldn’t stop there; our ultimate goal was to receive forgiveness from the Spirit King to lift Lindy’s restriction.

“However, do keep in mind that beyond this point, I can’t assist much. The Spirit Kings are known for being quite particular; they only listen to my words half the time. Convincing the Spirit King will be entirely up to you two.”

“No, that’s more than enough. Wanting more from here would be akin to stealing.”

I exaggeratedly waved my hands to brush off her concern, and Lunia lightly covered her mouth with her hand, chuckling softly.

“Hehe. I was worried when Lindy ran off from the Elf’s Forest, but seeing her in such good company puts my mind at ease.”

“Oh no, not at all. I’ve been receiving a lot of help from Lindy.”

I denied Lunia’s words with a wave. It wasn’t mere humility; I truly believed it.

If it weren’t for Lindy’s help, I wondered if I could’ve even made it this far. Before I became Third, I wouldn’t have even learned of my true identity, and I had received a lot of assistance in taking on the role of the Hero.

Yet, I wasn’t planning to repay Lindy—meaning there was no proper reward. I was essentially exploiting her feelings toward me. Although I did give some of the Hero’s support funds from the emperor to Lindy, it was more like the emperor was giving it rather than me.

I was genuinely thankful to Lindy for always working hard for me.

“Still, Lindy can often be quite mischievous, can’t she? Elysia must have been quite flustered too. In fact, the reason Lindy fell out of favor with the Spirit King was probably because of her habits…”

“Hahaha! I had no idea Elysia thought so highly of me!”

Just as I was discussing Lindy with Lunia, Lindy barged in, laughing loudly. Yet, I could already grasp how we ended up in such a situation. It was a classic Lindy move, for sure.

*

“Alright. From here, you can walk straight ahead. You might feel a bit bewildered by the sensation, but you’ll adapt quickly.”

We arrived at a lake within the forest, said to lead to the Spirit Realm.

Aside from being so clear it reflected like a mirror, it didn’t seem to differ much from any other lake.

“So… I’m supposed to walk into the water?”

“Yes. You don’t need to worry too much.”

“But the water….”

This was undeniably a rather alarming command.

“If you’re scared, I can hold your hand. I could easily take Elysia’s hand if you wanted.”

“…No, I’ll pass. I’m not a three-year-old child.”

Quickly refusing Lindy, who seemed to treat me like a kid, I strode straight into the center of the lake.

As my ankles got wet, then my waist, it wasn’t long before my head was completely submerged. When I opened my eyes, there was no stinging sensation like I’d expect, and even taking a breath cautiously, not a single drop of water entered my mouth.

As I looked around, I found myself in a place with a mystical landscape, not beneath the lake.

“Okay. You’re all set. From here on, it’s the Spirit Realm.”

There was no feeling of passing through a dimension; we arrived in an instant. I felt disappointed as I had expected something a bit more special.

“Chirp chirp.”

Amidst all this, I suddenly heard a chirping sound right next to me. Turning my head naturally to find the source, I spotted a little bird floating in mid-air.

“Huh? What’s a bird doing here…?”

“Oh! That’s not a real bird; it’s just a low-level wind spirit. It’ll be troublesome if you tease it and make it sulk, so just ignore it.”

However, contrary to Lindy’s warning to ignore it, I couldn’t help but be fascinated by the low-level wind spirit. Since being a Spirit Mage wasn’t common, seeing a spirit up close was a first for me. While Lindy could handle low-level spirits, their lack of power meant they couldn’t take on a physical form in the material world, so I just perceived it as wind blowing.

As I cautiously reached out my finger, the blue spirit-bird circled around me before perching on my finger. A wild animal would’ve bolted at the slightest movement.

Gently lifting my opposite hand, I petted the tiny head of the low-level spirit as it cocked its head, surrendering to my finger. When I scratched its neck, it chirped happily.

Looking up again to survey my surroundings, I saw many more spirits scattered about, not just the one on my finger. A small child was dashing around, chasing an adult woman, a leopard sleeping high up in a tree, and a lizard sticking its tongue out and peeking over a rock… they were all spirits.

True to their fantastical nature, each spirit was cute, cool, and beautiful.

Just a little, I felt greed stirring.