It was the year 400 of what would later be known as the Fairy Calendar.
In the southeastern region of Britannia, on the plains crossed by the River Thames, the city of Londinium had already stood for a thousand years.
"That concludes the report, my lady."
A human-looking guard knelt on one knee, delivering his report to the woman seated upon the throne.
"Very well. But as in previous years, the Thames is likely to flood during this season. Issue orders throughout Londinium to reinforce the riverbanks within the city and along the upper reaches outside. Prepare all necessary flood defenses."
Aesc placed the document beside her on the table and gave her orders calmly.
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Next," Aesc said, turning to Baobhan Sith, who stood at her side.
Baobhan Sith raised her hand toward the palace gate, and the next soldier entered.
This time, it was a fairy—green-skinned with sharply pointed ears.
"Report! The scaffolding used for repairing the city defenses was attacked by Black Dogs! Around fifteen humans and fairies working on the fortifications were killed instantly, and over twenty others were injured!"
The Black Dog was a peculiar creature native to Britannia, drawn by the scent of dying life. It belonged to no clan—an Unseelie Court monster, a vicious kind of fairy-eater that appeared anywhere death lingered.
"Black Dogs…" Aesc's brows furrowed for a moment before she swiftly issued her orders. "Immediately call reinforcements from the Construction Bureau to fill in the gaps. Recover the bodies of the dead and send healers from the hospital—those skilled in curative Magecraft—to tend to the wounded workers."
After a brief pause, as if still uneasy, Aesc added, "No fairy is permitted to desecrate human remains. Anyone who disobeys this order will be punished severely."
"Understood!"
The reporting fairy saluted and withdrew. Aesc set the paperwork aside, signaling for Baobhan Sith to organize it later.
"How many reports are left?" Aesc asked.
"This should be the last one. Witch-sama may return to her chambers and rest soon. Leave the remaining clerical work to me," Baobhan Sith replied seriously.
Aesc's expression softened. "Then, as usual… By the way, where is Totorot?"
"She should be at the Textile Management Bureau, overseeing that project," Baobhan Sith said.
"There's no need for her to rush it now… Didn't my husband always say, 'Build high walls, store ample grain, and bide your time before claiming the throne'?"
Aesc paused, thinking for a moment.
"It's been three days since the last report from the front lines. Any new updates?"
"Not yet—"
Before Baobhan Sith could finish, a soldier came running through the palace gates, holding a special token and a sealed letter—proof of his right to move without obstruction.
He stopped before the throne where Aesc still sat, knelt on one knee, and presented the report with both hands.
"The Lord Commander sends a message from the front lines for the Lady of the Castle to review!"
Baobhan Sith descended the three steps leading from the throne, took the report from the messenger, dismissed him to rest, and then brought the document to Aesc.
Aesc opened the battle report, quickly scanning the familiar handwriting before her eyes lit up with joy.
"My husband has once again achieved a decisive victory against the anti-Londinium coalition," she said, handing the report to Baobhan Sith for filing. "He'll be leading the army back to Londinium in triumph within days."
"That's wonderful news," Baobhan Sith replied, sharing Aesc's genuine happiness.
Three months had passed since Shiomi had led Londinium's Round Table Army to campaign against the hostile forces. Aesc had never worried about his defeat; rather, she sometimes found herself wondering why subduing the allied fairy clans—those who had broken away from their own and turned against Londinium—took so long.
Shiomi's answer had been simple yet deliberate. Crushing these rebellious fairies completely would change nothing. The goal was to strike them hard enough to instill fear and pain, yet not destroy them entirely—to make them behave for decades, even centuries. Extermination would only lead to their rebirth elsewhere, as new generations who remembered nothing of their predecessors. The lesson of fear and restraint had to be lived, not erased.
"Witch-sama, shall we begin preparing for the ceremony to welcome Sage-sama's return to Londinium?" Baobhan Sith asked.
Aesc returned from her thoughts. "Yes. I'll leave that to you."
Baobhan Sith bowed, gathered the reports to be archived, and departed the audience chamber to begin preparations.
The spacious hall soon fell silent again, the only movement coming from the guards posted along the walls, who stood wordless and unblinking.
"The Lady of the Castle, huh…"
Aesc stretched lightly. Even though the guards paid her no mind, she still wished to maintain a measure of composure before others.
In the autumn following the end of the "Summer War," Shiomi had eradicated the fairies who attacked the villages. Together with her, and accompanied by Totorot and Baobhan Sith, he entered the surviving settlements. Before long, those villages submitted to his power and accepted his rule.
The once-scattered settlements gradually united. A thousand years ago, they became the foundation of a new city—Londinium—built along both banks of the River Thames.
The city had been constructed not through Magecraft, but through centuries of labor by fairies willing to coexist with humans, alongside the humans who lived there.
Here, humans could live. And fairies who chose to live as equals among them could live too.
That was Londinium's most fundamental rule.
Even such a simple rule was enough to unsettle the other fairy clans.
When Aesc later looked back on that time, she understood that Shiomi had done it deliberately—making his rule grand and visible, driving wedges between the clans. Those who grew restless and struck first were crushed one after another, each defeat sowing fear and order in its wake.
Six hundred years ago, when the Great Calamity once again swept across Britannia, Shiomi suppressed it and reorganized Londinium's forces, naming them the Round Table Army.
Aesc knew that name—one that had existed in the Proper Human History from which he came.
The strongest humans in the army were knighted.
Totorot, for her valor during the Great Calamity, was knighted as a Fairy Knight, along with her fellow warriors, the Black Knight and Wryneck.
Grímr declined the title, saying he had merely lent a hand and had no interest in becoming a knight.
Afterward, Shiomi became the Lord of Londinium, and Aesc became the Lady of the Castle, governing the city by his side.
She had expected Shiomi to proclaim himself king outright, but he never hurried. "If Aesc wishes to become the Fairy Queen sooner," he had said with a faint smile, "I could always claim the throne now."
Instead, he proposed a strategy of "delaying the coronation."
—Though, as he'd admitted, it was merely imitating history.
Standing on the terrace of the royal chambers, Aesc gazed out over Londinium. After a thousand years of growth, the city had finally become the very image of the dream she had once held as a young girl.
"Using Londinium as our foundation, we will build our own eternal, peaceful millennial kingdom here in Britannia."
In the gentle spring breeze, Aesc's heart warmed. She softly whispered the promise she had once made to him.
...
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