In the depths of the great forest, in a secluded place untouched by any human foot.
There stretched a vast patch of trees. Their leaves were yellow all year, and their thick branches extended outward until they brushed the ground. There, where the spirits lived in a miniature kingdom.
Inside a very large wooden structure that looked as if it had been carved from the trunk of a massive tree, the elders of the Autumn Spirits gathered around a long table made from tree bark.
Vines wrapped and curled around its sides. And at the head of the table sat the Grand Elder, the Sage of the Spirits. His size was slightly larger than that of an average human. His beard was extremely long and made of orange vines.
On his right sat the Elder of Wind Spirits, who appeared to be a young man in his twenties, though his size was extremely small.
His wings were made of layers of overlapping leaves.
And on the Grand Elder's left sat the Elder of the Autumn Giants. His build was massive, like a wild bear, although he had a human face covered with dense fur.
Close to him sat the leader of the Paper Knights, the group responsible for protecting the land of the Autumn Spirits.
He wore full armor made of leaves, which hid most of his facial features, though some strands of his long hair flowed out from his helmet.
The Grand Elder raised his hand.
"As you know, tomorrow is the final day of the harvest festival held by humans. The great Spirit of Autumn is still exhausted from her battle with that intruder. We must ensure that the harvest rituals proceed as they should, just like every year. This year, among our young spirits, there are some fools who may cause trouble."
As soon as the Elder of the Autumn Giants heard this, he slammed his hand onto the table with force.
"Who dares to corrupt the great harvest festival? What idiot would dare insult the great Spirit of Autumn?"
The Elder of the Small Autumn Spirits responded.
"There are some fools who dislike that we protect humans. They organize small protests, spreading the idea among the young spirits that we should stay away from humans. These bastards do not respect the decree of the great Spirit of Autumn."
The Elder of the Autumn Giants slammed both his palms down with greater force this time, shaking the entire table.
"Tell me their names. I will execute them in front of everyone so they become a lesson to the rest."
The leader of the Paper Knights intervened. He drew the green blade of his sword from its sheath. A sword made of paper, yet extremely sharp.
The moment he drew it, it extended and grew until it matched the size of the Elder of the Autumn Giants.
"You cannot behave like this. They have the right to express their opinion. We are not in one of the humans' oppressive kingdoms."
The Elder of the Autumn Giants grew until he doubled in size, and his claws grew longer.
"Do you dare raise your sword at me?"
The Sage intervened before things escalated further.
"Sit down. We are the leaders of the Autumn Spirit clans. If we fight each other in such a foolish manner, what example do we leave for our young ones? With these petty arguments, we tarnish the image of the great Spirit of Autumn herself."
Although the Elder of the Autumn Giants still wanted to rip the knight commander's face off, he chose to sit down out of respect for the Sage and the great Spirit of Autumn.
Meanwhile, the commander returned his sword to its sheath and sat without objecting to the Sage's words.
The Sage continued.
"Our duty is to protect the human village. That is an order from the great Spirit of Autumn herself, issued hundreds of years ago. Although among the spirits, opinions differ about the humans."
He glanced at the commander, then continued.
"But there is no place for chaos during the festival. We must ensure everything proceeds smoothly. And if there is anyone among us who intends to ruin the festival… then we must remove them, quietly. We cannot afford to lose the trust of the spirits."
...
During the meeting, which lasted hours, the elders of the Autumn clans came to a dirty but expected decision. They agreed to eliminate the spirits who opposed interacting with humans. But quietly, in ways that would not draw attention.
The leader of the Paper Knights remained silent the whole time. He made no comment, did not nod, did not agree or disagree.
When the meeting ended and everyone left the hall, the Elder of the Small Spirits walked alongside the Elder of the Autumn Giants.
The latter walked with his eyes fixed on the back of the knight commander who was walking ahead of them.
The Elder of the Small Spirits spoke in a low voice,
"It seems the commander did not like our decision."
"He is weak. Those dissenters are nothing but traitors. Anyone who dares insult the great Spirit of Autumn deserves death."
"Lately, I've heard rumors that someone of high rank is supporting the dissenters."
Then, after saying that, he quietly walked away.
The Elder of the Giants stopped as he looked toward the knight commander who had already walked far ahead.
His fist clenched so tightly that his own claws dug into his palm, drawing blood.
...
At night, in a distant area deep within the forest, far from the eyes of other spirits, the Elder of the Small Spirits stood before a spirit.
The same spirit who had taken the black bottle from the mysterious man near the village of Muan.
The elder spoke while staring at the bottle,
"Did you bring it?"
The spirit lowered its head, then pulled the bottle from inside a hollow tree trunk.
"Did anyone see you?"
"No. I made sure no one saw me."
"Good. Now just make sure you carry out the plan as we agreed."
The spirit stared at the bottle nervously.
"Is this thing safe? The person who gave me this bottle said I would need to take a risk. If this thing has any side effects, I won't drink it."
The elder smiled widely, a smile so wide it seemed more than confidence… the smile of a devil calling himself a guardian.
"Have I ever deceived you? I was the one who supported you from the beginning until you gained everyone's trust. I was the one who saw the leader in you. Humans… these vile creatures, staying near them is an insult to us, the noble spirits of autumn."
He then placed both hands on the spirit's shoulders.
"You are the one who will restore the glory of the Autumn Spirits. All you have to do is complete the plan. There are many spirits who support you, in the shadows, but they do not dare speak. The elders are deceiving you. The Spirit of Autumn is not sick, she has simply been asleep for years, and they exploit her absence to rule in her name."
"And this bottle? Will it awaken the Spirit of Autumn?"
"Yes. And it will prove to the Autumn clans that you are the true leader. You will be a hero, and you will make our clan proud."
"I will do it."
The elder smiled.
"That is the determination I wanted."
He then spread his wings, made of dozens of green leaves, and rose into the air before disappearing among the forest branches.