A Journey Unwanted-Chapter 434 - 423: The fairies interest

[Realm: Álfheimr]

[Location: Quadling Country]

[Bunnybury]

Puck continued to drift slowly through the narrow streets of Bunnybury, letting the gentle flow of the town guide her. She didn’t bother choosing a direction with any real intention. The small flower a rabbit had given her was still between her fingers, and she twirled the stem idly while observing everything around her.

It was still peaceful.

That word kept returning to her mind.

The streets weren’t loud, the rabbits weren’t rushing, and even the small conversations she overheard seemed idle and polite rather than hurried or tense. Two rabbits passed beneath her carrying a wooden crate filled with vegetables, discussing something about the next day’s market schedule. Another pair walked slowly together while debating which tailor in the city made the best waistcoats.

None of it sounded dramatic, nor did it sound urgent.

It was simply life continuing at a steady pace.

Puck drifted past a row of homes where several rabbits were tending to a garden bed filled with flowers and herbs. One of them looked up and noticed her again, blinking in surprise before offering a respectful nod.

"Good afternoon, Lady Fairy."

Puck smiled lightly and gave a small wave as she passed.

"Hi."

The rabbit returned to its gardening without another word, as though a fairy floating through the city was unusual but not worth disrupting the day over.

Puck floated a little higher again, glancing across the town square she had just passed. The dancing lesson was still happening, though the instructor now seemed to be correcting a particularly clumsy student who had managed to step on someone else’s foot.

She let out a small amused breath, then just as suddenly stopped.

It wasn’t something visible; it was more of a feeling. A sharp ripple of mana somewhere beyond the marble walls. Puck’s head tilted slightly as her attention shifted outward, past the city and toward the rocky terrain where she had left Grimm. The magical pulse was brief but strong enough that she felt it clearly.

"Hm." She hovered there for a moment, thinking. Puck remembered what the Cowardly Lion had said earlier about the Good Witch and how fond she was of the rabbits. Her eyes drifted toward the wall again. "Oh," Puck murmured quietly. "That’s probably her."

If the Good Witch was protective of Bunnybury, then sensing a heavily armored stranger sitting outside the city walls probably hadn’t gone over very well.

Which meant—

"Yeah, she’s probably attacking Grimm." Puck rested her chin in her armored hand as she floated there, considering the situation.

She didn’t look worried, not even slightly.

"Eh," she said after a moment.

Grimm could handle himself; that much she was completely certain of. If anything, the sudden appearance of a powerful spell was probably the most interesting thing that had happened to him all day. He might even be enjoying it.

Puck shrugged lightly.

"Guess he finally found something he cares about."

With that thought settled in her mind, she drifted forward again, continuing her slow exploration of the rabbit city. Below her, life in Bunnybury continued exactly as before; no one inside the walls seemed aware that anything unusual was happening outside. Or if they were aware, they didn’t seem concerned. Perhaps they were confident in the Good Witch’s protection, that was a given.

The rabbits still walked their streets. They still tended their gardens and shops. Conversations continued in calm voices.

Everything looked content.

Puck watched them quietly as she floated along another street lined with small homes and tidy hedges.

They looked comfortable.

Safe and satisfied even.

But something about it made her tilt her head again.

"Content isn’t the same thing as happy," she murmured softly. The thought came without judgment, just her own idle observation.

Her gaze followed a pair of rabbits walking together down the path, both dressed in well-made coats. They were discussing something about city maintenance and which council member had proposed a new path near the southern gardens.

Neither of them sounded unhappy, but they didn’t sound particularly joyful either. Puck drifted a little lower, her thoughts wandered briefly to someone she had met a long time ago.

A human.

Not a king or noble or soldier.

Just a man who lived in the forests, moving freely through the trees as though the whole world belonged to him. He had laughed often—loud, genuine laughter that didn’t care who heard it. He had shared food with strangers and stolen from tyrants without hesitation.

He had been happy.

Not because his life was safe but because it was free. And because he had ideals.

Puck’s eyes returned to the rabbits of Bunnybury.

They were protected, organized, and peaceful.

But she wondered...

"Are any of you actually happy?" she murmured quietly as her gaze moved across the streets again.

Rabbits usually belonged in the wild. Running through fields and forests, dodging predators, searching for food, and living quickly, sometimes dangerously. It wasn’t easy, but it was natural, and of course, some rabbits thrived, some didn’t survive. It was a simple circle of life. This place, however, was different.

Here, everything was controlled and ordered. Protected behind marble walls.

Puck wasn’t sure what that meant for them; she drifted lower until she was just above street level again.

That was when she noticed the older rabbit.

He sat on a wooden bench beside a small tree, dressed in a well-fitted coat with a waistcoat and neatly tied cravat. A folded newspaper rested between his paws as he read quietly, occasionally adjusting a pair of small spectacles perched on his nose.

The headline at the top of the page read: Bunnybury Gazette.

Puck hovered nearby for a moment, curious.

The older rabbit turned a page slowly, clearly absorbed in whatever article he was reading, then he sensed her presence.

His ears twitched slightly before he looked up, his eyes widened briefly when he saw her floating there.

"A fairy," he said calmly, lowering the newspaper slightly.

Puck smiled.

"Yeah. Hi."

The rabbit gave a polite nod.

"Good afternoon, Lady Fairy."

"Good afternoon," Puck replied, drifting a little closer to the bench.

The rabbit folded his newspaper carefully, placing it beside him. "Bunnybury does not often receive visitors of your kind."

"I noticed," Puck said with a small laugh. "Everyone’s been pretty polite about it, though."

"We try to maintain good manners," the rabbit replied.

Puck glanced at the newspaper.

"Rabbit news?"

The older rabbit chuckled softly. "Of course. One must stay informed about local matters."

"What kind of stuff do rabbits write about in the news?" Puck asked.

"Oh, the usual," he said calmly. "Market schedules. City council decisions. Crop reports. Occasionally an article about events elsewhere in Oz." He paused briefly. "There was once a report about a dragon sighting in the northern hills. That issue sold quite well."

Puck grinned. "Sounds exciting."

"It was mostly speculation," the rabbit admitted.

Puck tilted her head slightly.

"So, how is life here?"

The rabbit considered the question.

"Peaceful," he said after a moment. "As well as comfortable. Our people live well."

"Sounds nice," Puck said.

"It is."

But something in the way he said it made her pause; it wasn’t exactly hesitation. Just a slight shift in tone. Puck studied him quietly.

"You don’t sound completely convinced," she said.

The rabbit blinked.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You said life here is peaceful," Puck explained. "But it didn’t sound like you were saying it because you’re happy about it."

The rabbit looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Well," he said slowly, "peace is not the same thing as excitement."

Puck raised an eyebrow.

"So it gets boring?"

The rabbit smiled faintly.

"At times."

Puck drifted down until she was level with the bench.

"Ever thought about leaving?"

The rabbit chuckled.

"At my age?"

"Why not?"

He leaned back slightly.

"Because Bunnybury is my home. It always has been."

"That doesn’t mean it has to be the only place you ever see," Puck said.

The rabbit looked at her with amusement.

"You sound like someone who has traveled far."

"Yeah," Puck admitted.

"Then perhaps you understand something our people do not."

"Maybe," she said.

The rabbit studied her for a moment before asking, "What brings a fairy so far from her homeland?"

Puck shrugged. "Curiosity."

The rabbit laughed softly. "A simple answer."

"It’s usually the only right one," Puck said.

They sat in silence for a moment.

Then the ground trembled; it was brief, however. But strong enough that the bench shifted slightly beneath the rabbit. Puck felt the vibration instantly; her eyes turned toward the marble wall again.

"Ah," she murmured.

The rabbit looked confused.

"Is something wrong?"

Puck waved a hand casually.

"Probably just Grimm getting into a fight."

"...I beg your pardon?"

"Don’t worry about it," Puck said lightly.

She floated upward again.

"Nice talking to you, though."

The rabbit stared at her, clearly unsure what to make of that explanation; Puck gave him a quick wave.

"Enjoy the newspaper."

Then she drifted away, heading toward the center of the city again while the feeling of distant magic continued somewhere beyond the walls.