Not long after, Dixue and Xiao Bai were hashing out the partnership’s fine print. Tiny stitches and seams, ink-thin margins.

They spoke in Elven, heavy with jargon. Yue Liuyi caught a few leaves blowing past. Once the Yue Fengyi body pillow launched, she’d get a healthy cut.

No more scraping by like a dry well.

She sipped juice from a glass, sunlight trapped in orange. The blue-haired girl felt satisfied: finally earning her keep. No more living off Dixue. It kept faith with her “boy” pride.

But just then—

Outside, the street broke into a tangle of sound, like twigs snapping in wind.

“What are you doing!? This is a body pillow and doll shop!”

“Open up!”

The door shoved inward with a thud. The wind chime shivered, jangling like cold rain.

“Eh? This is—”

“Tisinate’s people already? That was fast.”

“Mm. Looks like it. Shall we greet them?”

“Huh?”

Yue Liuyi set down her juice. Surprise rippled through her chest. Dixue and Xiao Bai weren’t the least bit flustered. They shared a knowing smile, like clouds parting on cue.

…

The shop, lined with pillows and dolls like a quiet garden, was now encircled by armed maidens.

They wore ornate, soft skirt-armor. The hems fluttered like moth wings. Up close, it looked rather cheap.

They were lovely, skin pale as snowfall, hair a wash of silver. Yue Liuyi had never seen so many silver-haired girls gathered. Compared to Dixue, their tresses weren’t pure. Strands of other colors threaded the silver, like veins in ice.

Their leader strode like a high wind, face cold as frost. A silver-white longsword in hand, she drew every gaze like a rising moon.

“Chief Councilor of the Elven Parliament, Qiu Baimo. Captain of the Elven Capital Guard, Qiu Ruyi. You colluded with outsiders. You’re enemies of all elves. I hereby arrest you for treason!”

Her words cracked like ice. Her presence brooked no argument.

“What? Lady Qiu, impossible!”

“Are those Silverwing Elves? First time seeing them…”

“Uh-oh, this is bad!”

Whispers rustled from elven customers still clutching merchandise, trapped mid-errand like birds in a net.

“Treason? Hah? Kashiya, how could I be a traitor?”

Xiao Bai came out with hands on hips. The blonde loli tried to throw thunder. Her tiny frame turned it into a spark.

Time for our Butterfly Snow President to step on stage. She too was silver-haired, yet Dixue’s aura was purer, beauty like a blade drawn.

“Oh? You’re the Silverwing Elves of this planet?”

The moment Dixue entered, the air flipped like a banner in wind. Against her, the Silverwings dimmed, pressed like grass under rain.

“Uh… you’re the leader of the Azure Front? Hmph! Then, Qiu Baimo, your treason is confirmed!”

Kashiya’s brows knit tight. She led the silver-haired squad, captain of the Silverwing Elf Special Task Force.

“I’m fighting for elven welfare! Since when did signing fair, reciprocal trade become treason?”

“Hmph. We have proof. Qiu Ruyi is a deputy head of the Rangers Lodge. The Qiu clan has long sold out elven interests!”

“Eh? You dug that up? But we’ve never betrayed the elves! President Dixue, what do we do? Seems I’m being dragged into your mess!”

She said it with a sunny laugh, no blame, no fear. She played the little girl to Dixue with a wink.

“Then what can I do? If they’ve branded Xiao Bai a sinner, they’ll make up any charge they like.”

“Mm. Got it.”

“What… are you talking about? Surrender now!”

“And if… I say no?”

Xiao Bai tilted her head, lashes fluttering like moth wings.

“You’re resisting the law? Then I’ll… enforce it by force!!”

In the Elven Kingdom, few defied the Silverwings. In some sense, they bore the World Tree’s will. Raise arms, and you were a traitor.

But the blonde loli stood firm. She’d confirmed Ailuna’s identity in her own way, and learned what Tisinate had done. The World Tree Maiden was on their side. So… it was time to move.

“Force it is? If you insist… we’ll do the same!”

Xiao Bai flicked her hand. Outside, Elven Guards surged like a tide. Weapons lifted. They ringed the shop, outnumbering the Silverwings severalfold.

Yue Liuyi spotted familiar faces—those elven girls who’d fought with her at Cascade Gorge.

“You… mean to rebel?”

Even Kashiya’s voice faltered. The scale blindsided her like thunder from a clear sky.

“Elven Queen Tisinate ignored her people’s cries and forced a war. She profaned the World Tree Maiden. I, Qiu Baimo, and my sister Qiu Ruyi, on behalf of the elven masses, formally sanction Tisinate!”

“Traitors!”

Kashiya glared at Qiu Baimo. On the other side, Ruyi emerged. The green-haired girl raised her staff, lips weaving a spell like wind through pines.

“Kin, we answer the World Tree Maiden’s call to censure the queen. Chant with me. Send these lost lambs to sleep.”

Ruyi meant sleep, not a euphemism. In the Elven Kingdom, lethal magic was rare. Even blades were unsharpened, drawing no blood.

Instead, their arms were arcane. A touch sent foes into slumber or stone, like dew freezing overnight. Back then, the Skyship fell the same way—waves of spells, everyone lulled and captured.

“Dammit! Guardians of the World Tree, don’t be swayed by enemy tongues! Subdue them all!”

Kashiya’s shout split the air. The battle began.

The Silverwings charged. They were few, but their rhythm hit like drumbeats. Silver hair streamed like banners. Their mana felt bottomless.

Pale yellow arcs fanned out, crescent waves slicing air. A brush of light, and an Elven Guard folded into sleep.

“No wonder they’re Silverwings.”

Qiu Ruyi raised her side-sword and met Kashiya. She knew the girl wasn’t evil. They’d shared a classroom at Linyun Academy. Different creeds drew steel between them like a river.

Her emerald sword-light moved with grace. Slow, yet undeniable, like calligraphy drawn in one breath. That was Qiu Ruyi’s art—freehand, effortless.

Kashiya’s blade was quicksilver. Her silver sword flickered, dazzling, its path a blur like rain on a lake.

Silver and green wove together, even matched, a tapestry of light.

Elsewhere, the clash swelled. Seeing their kin ringed, dozens of Silverwings on winged steeds swept down like a stormfront. Xiao Bai answered with sheets of arrows, rain pulled from a dark cloud.

The once-peaceful Elven Capital vanished under war’s shadow.

“Relax. Leave this part to us.”

“Mm… we’ll follow the plan.”

Dixue dipped a nod to Xiao Bai, then pulled Yue Liuyi into a firm hug. Beside them, Ailuna and two catfolk girls stared, lost, like kittens in thunder, not understanding a thing.

“Sis Dixue, what’s going on!?”

“I showed Xiao Bai the proof that Ailuna is the World Tree Maiden.”

“Eh? But… because I’m the World Tree Maiden, why is everyone fighting? Ailuna doesn’t like war…”

Ailuna lowered her head. Her eyes caught the clash’s gleam like tears. She hated strife. It seemed woven into the World Tree Maidens. Breeze was the same.

“Don’t worry, Ailuna. No one will die in this battle.”

“But still, that also…”

“Sometimes, a necessary fight is… necessary. If you only give ground, others will only look down on you.”

“Mm…”

Maybe because the target this time wasn’t “bad people,” Ailuna still looked hesitant, a fawn at the river’s edge.

“Little Yue, Ailuna, I don’t want this either… But Tisinate moved first. To stop the war, we must reach the World Tree’s core, and let Ailuna reclaim its authority.”

“Eh? We have to fight our way there?”

“Yes. But before that, we must defeat every Silverwing who stands in our way. And Tisinate.”

Hearing LittleSnow lay out the operation so decisively, Yue Liuyi knew this wasn’t her first storm. For this silver-haired girl, battle might be daily bread.

Back at the Imperial Grand Academy, it was the same. What had LittleSnow lived through?

In that moment, Yue Liuyi felt LittleSnow’s quiet cold. Maybe Maria had been right—Dixue’s old ice wasn’t all a mask. Yet her heart didn’t shrink. It warmed to her more.

Because she was the same.

Without meeting LittleSnow, she’d have died in the wastes, all frost and fury. Because we met, beauty took root. Because we knew each other, the heart found warmth.

If the road ahead is ice and snow, then walk it with the heat of your soul.

So even if it means war with the elves…

“Mm. I know. Since our foes won’t play by the rules, we’ll meet them head-on.”

“Eh? Even you, Liuyi…”

“Heh. Come with us. Ailuna will understand.”

Yue Liuyi reached out to Ailuna, hand steady as a flame.