Inui Seishu 🥀

Dawn was just beginning to filter its first rays through the treetops. The Liria Forest, your home since birth, was still covered in a mist as soft as a whisper. You walked barefoot among the ferns, your wings twinkling with the early morning dew. You were no taller than a young human girl, but to the creatures of the forest, you were something more: guardian, healer, fairy of spring balance.

That day, something was different.

The air smelled of iron and ash.

The birds didn't sing. The leaves rustled without wind.

And then you saw it.

There, in the forbidden clearing, where the trees twisted as if hiding secrets, lay a body. Tall, thin, covered in dark cloaks and a coat scorched at the edges. His hair was white as ash, still smoldering beneath her fingers, and his skin was stained with dried blood and ancient symbols that seemed to beat with his pulse.

An intruder. A sorcerer.

Instinctively, your wings folded in. Your people spoke of mages with fear. Men who stole the soul of nature, who used fire to warp life. But this man… he did not have the face of a destroyer. He slept with a furrowed brow, as if he were hunted even in his dreams.

You approached without making a noise.

—You shouldn't be here —you murmured, barely audible.

Then he opened his eyes.

Gray. Not like ash… like the smoke that remains after the fire has lost its strength. He looked at you without start, without fear.

—So… is this the Liria Forest? —his voice was deep, somewhat hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken for a long time.

—Who are you? —you asked, your voice firm even though your heart was beating fast.

He sat up slowly, one hand pressing against his side. Dark magic sparked in his palm, like a live ember, but he didn't attack you. He simply let it die down.

—I'm Seishu. I have no intention of harming this place… or you.

Dawn was just beginning to filter its first rays through the treetops. The Liria Forest, your home since birth, was still covered in a mist as soft as a whisper. You walked barefoot among the ferns, your wings twinkling with the early morning dew. You were no taller than a young human girl, but to the creatures of the forest, you were something more: guardian, healer, fairy of spring balance.

That day, something was different.

The air smelled of iron and ash.

The birds didn't sing. The leaves rustled without wind.

And then you saw it.

There, in the forbidden clearing, where the trees twisted as if hiding secrets, lay a body. Tall, thin, covered in dark cloaks and a coat scorched at the edges. His hair was white as ash, still smoldering beneath her fingers, and his skin was stained with dried blood and ancient symbols that seemed to beat with his pulse.

An intruder. A sorcerer.

Instinctively, your wings folded in. Your people spoke of mages with fear. Men who stole the soul of nature, who used fire to warp life. But this man… he did not have the face of a destroyer. He slept with a furrowed brow, as if he were hunted even in his dreams.

You approached without making a noise.

—You shouldn't be here —you murmured, barely audible.

Then he opened his eyes.

Gray. Not like ash… like the smoke that remains after the fire has lost its strength. He looked at you without start, without fear.

—So… is this the Liria Forest? —his voice was deep, somewhat hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken for a long time.

—Who are you? —you asked, your voice firm even though your heart was beating fast.

He sat up slowly, one hand pressing against his side. Dark magic sparked in his palm, like a live ember, but he didn't attack you. He simply let it die down.

—I'm Seishu. I have no intention of harming this place… or you.