In a garden at the back of the palace, filled with tall trees and lush greenery, a green caterpillar named Liy rested comfortably on a large branch. The morning sunlight filtered through the leaves, shining down on his small body. Liy chewed on fresh leaves peacefully. Soft munching sounds echoed through the quiet area. Even though he was just a caterpillar, he was already nearly two years old. In human years, that would make him around thirty-four years old. Yet, until now... he still hadn't transformed into a butterfly.
Other animals often whispered that he was cursed. Some felt sorry for him, while others looked at him strangely. In the beginning, Liy had tried many ways to break the curse. He asked magicians, travelers, and elderly forest creatures, but nobody could give him a real answer. Over time, he grew tired of hoping. Maybe... one day he would change naturally. Or maybe he would never change at all.
"Liy."
A soft voice called his name. Liy stopped chewing and looked down. He saw Silas the white rabbit standing beneath the tree, looking up at him, his ears twitching gently.
"Yes?" answered Liy.
"Can you help me with something?" Silas asked in his usual tone.
"Help with what?"
Silas glanced around before speaking again. "I have something to discuss with you. Come down here."
Liy didn't ask questions. His small body slowly wriggled down the branch. The large branch bent slightly under his weight, even though he wasn't very big. Once he reached the ground, he lifted his head to look at Silas.
"What is it?"
"Can you fetch some white paper from Princess Elowen's office? Just blank paper. Charles needs it."
Liy blinked slowly. "Why didn't he ask me himself? Doesn't he have legs?" he asked honestly.
Silas chuckled softly. "He's a bit busy right now. I'm just passing on the request. I'm busy too. Please leave the paper in the library when you get it."
"Alright."
Liy didn't suspect anything. He was naturally the kind of creature happy to help others. Without hesitation, he began wriggling toward the palace. His green body moved slowly across the clean marble floors. Palace workers passing by just smiled when they saw him; they were used to seeing Liy crawling around everywhere.
Liy started climbing the stairs to the third floor. It was a slow journey because he was only a caterpillar, but he kept wriggling up step by step until he finally reached the door of Princess Elowen's office. Even though Elowen had left the palace, her room was still kept neat and tidy.
Liy pushed the heavy wooden door open slowly. Creak...
The door opened slightly. His eyes looked into the quiet room. Sunlight poured through the large windows near the desk. Tiny dust motes danced in the air. On the table, several sheets of white paper were stacked neatly.
"That must be it," Liy murmured softly.
He wriggled onto the desk and carefully grabbed a few sheets of paper with his mouth. Immediately afterward, he turned around to leave.
However... unbeknownst to him... a dark shadow appeared briefly behind the door. It moved too fast and too silently to be noticed. Something was quickly stuck onto Liy's body. It was a piece of paper bearing the dark red royal seal. Strangely, the paper slowly changed color until it perfectly matched Liy's green skin, making it almost invisible to the naked eye.
The dark shadow vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. As if nothing had happened at all.
Liy didn't notice a thing. He left the office carrying the white paper Silas had asked for. As he wriggled toward the stairs, two knights standing guard saw him coming out of Princess Elowen's office.
"Hm?" One knight looked at him curiously.
"Isn't that one of Princess Celestia's pets?" asked the other knight.
"Probably."
They didn't think much about it. After all, Liy was always wandering around the palace and was considered harmless.
Liy began making his way down from the third floor to the second. His small body moved slowly across the stone steps. Eventually, he reached the library. The library doors stood wide open.
Liy entered and looked around. It was quiet. There was nobody there. Tall bookshelves filled the space. Light from the large windows shone onto the wooden table in the center of the room.
Liy wriggled over and gently placed the white paper on the table.
"Where is Charles?" he whispered, glancing around.
But there was no answer. He waited for a moment. Still nobody came.
"Maybe he stepped out for a bit," he muttered.
Without thinking much about it, Liy turned around and crawled back out of the library.
Meanwhile... the paper marked with the royal seal was still stuck firmly to his body. Hidden perfectly, looking exactly like part of Liy's own green skin.
Inside Princess Elowen's office—now quiet and rarely used—Celestia stood before the large wooden desk, flipping through the stacks of files piled there. Her breathing was unsteady.
"Where is that document?" she muttered softly.
Her hands moved quickly, turning sheet after sheet. The rustle of paper filled the silent room. But the more she searched, the more papers ended up scattered across the floor. Still, she did not stop. She opened the second file, then the third… yet there was no sign of what she sought.
Nearly an hour passed. Documents lay strewn everywhere, covering the floor. Celestia looked exhausted, her hair messy from hours of intense searching. She rushed to the wooden cabinet at the far end, opening every door and checking each shelf carefully. Nothing. She pulled open the desk drawers. Still nothing.
"Where is it?" Her voice grew strained.
This was no ordinary paper. It was one of the most important documents belonging to the royal family of Wonderveil. Celestia was certain her sister hadn't taken it—if Elowen had wanted it, she would have taken every vital document in the office, not left everything else behind. But now, all the other papers remained. Only one was missing.
A pale yellow paper bearing the official royal seal of Wonderveil, containing classified information about the nation and the palace's security routes.
Celestia clenched her fists. She could not afford to lose it.
Eventually, she sat down heavily in the chair, staring at the mess she had made.
Just then—
Creak…
The door opened slowly. Charles stepped inside and was shocked by the state of the room.
"Your Highness… are you alright?" he asked, concerned.
Celestia looked up. "Charles… could you please help me?"
"Help with what?" Charles immediately approached the desk.
"Find a document with the royal seal. It is pale yellow. That is the only paper bearing the seal."
"Of course."
Charles helped without hesitation. He knelt on the floor, picked up the scattered files, and examined every sheet carefully. But after some time, he also found nothing. He sighed and leaned against the wall, having neatly rearranged the documents back into place.
"I am sorry, Princess Celestia. I could not find it either."
"We must keep searching until we find it. It is extremely important."
"Perhaps we should look elsewhere?" Charles suggested calmly.
Celestia nodded slowly.
They searched several other areas in the palace. Celestia even ordered guards to assist in the search. Yet… there was still no result.
While the knights were gathered, two of them exchanged glances as if suddenly remembering something. They approached Celestia, who stood holding her head in frustration.
"Princess Celestia," one began.
"Yes?"
"Your Highness… the other day, I saw Liy coming out of Princess Elowen's office."
Celestia lifted her head sharply. "Is this true?"
"Yes, Your Highness. We both saw it ourselves. We do not know why he entered there."
Celestia fell silent. She turned and walked quickly away from them.
She guessed Liy might be in the flower garden—and she was right.
Among the trees and blossoms, Liy sat on a branch, munching leaves slowly.
"Liy!" Celestia called loudly.
Surprised, Liy immediately wriggled down the tree, moving as fast as his small caterpillar body allowed until he reached the ground.
"Princess Celestia… why do you look so weary?" Liy asked innocently.
"Did you enter my sister's office a few days ago?" Celestia asked without delay.
"Yes. I took some paper and left it in the library. But there was no one there, so I left it on the table."
Celestia turned instantly. "Alright. I shall check the library."
"Princess Celestia, what is wrong?" Liy asked, following her as quickly as he could.
"An important document is missing. It is very critical—I must find it."
Celestia ran toward the library, while Liy tried his best to catch up despite his slow, crawling pace.
Finally, Celestia reached the library. She saw several thick sheets of paper resting on the large central table. She rushed over and flipped through them one by one.
But—nothing.
"Where has it gone?" Her voice rose in frustration.
Liy arrived breathless shortly after.
"Are you certain your sister didn't take it?" he asked quietly.
Celestia shot him a sharp glare. "If she had taken it, she would have taken all the important documents there. Do not accuse my sister like that, Liy!"
Liy lowered his head. "I apologize, Your Highness. I only asked."
"That kind of question?" Celestia snapped, losing patience. "I know my sister can be cold, but she would never steal from me."
Suddenly Celestia fell silent. Her eyes fixed on something behind Liy.
"Liy… what is that on your body?"
Liy twisted around to look at his back. His eyes widened in shock.
Stuck firmly there was the pale yellow paper, clearly marked with the official royal seal of Wonderveil.
Celestia snatched it from him. She stared at it for a few seconds before gripping it tightly.
"Liy… how did this document end up stuck to you?" she asked, her voice quiet but heavy with pressure.
"I—I truly do not know…"
"You just accused my sister, and now you claim you don't know why you have this?" Celestia raised her voice angrily.
Liy froze in terror. He had never seen Celestia this furious before.
"I really don't know, Your Highness…" Liy whispered fearfully.
"My guards saw you entering her office," Celestia continued. "If you had accidentally taken it, you would have given it to me immediately. But you kept it hidden!"
She clutched the document tightly. "I spent nearly two days searching for this!"
"It is true I went inside… but I only took blank paper. I did not take any important documents," Liy insisted desperately.
"I am tired, Liy…" Celestia's tone shifted to deep disappointment. "I am truly exhausted. Why did I ever trust others… and trust the word of an animal, let alone a caterpillar?"
Liy's eyes widened in pain. Those words pierced his heart sharper than any knife. He never imagined Celestia would speak to him like this.
Celestia turned and walked out of the library without looking back.
Liy remained there, bowing his head silently.
Meanwhile… hidden behind a bookshelf in the corner of the library—Fin the squirrel watched everything closely, listening intently to every single word spoken between them.
A few days later, the atmosphere inside Wonderveil Palace grew increasingly tense. Although the loss of the confidential document had been successfully kept secret from the public and the nobility, palace staff gradually learned the truth, bit by bit.
Secrets… are always hard to hide.
It became obvious when security was suddenly tightened, and guards began patrolling key areas day and night. The palace issued a strict warning: Anyone caught spreading rumors about the missing royal document to outsiders would face severe punishment. No one dared defy this order.
Yet… Liy's name became the main topic of whispered conversation everywhere.
It got worse when staff members learned the shocking truth: the document had been found stuck to the body of the very caterpillar who was known to be one of Princess Celestia's closest companions.
In the palace kitchen, maids chopped vegetables while whispering to each other.
"Hey, did you hear? That big caterpillar stole that important document," one maid gossiped.
Her colleague leaned closer. "Yes, I never expected it. And such a critical document too."
"What would he even do with it? He's just an animal, isn't he?" asked another, sounding confused and suspicious.
"Maybe he planned to give it to the nobles… or betray Princess Celestia himself."
They lowered their voices even though nobody else was nearby.
"He's been a caterpillar for such a long time. When is he ever going to turn into a butterfly anyway?"
"Pfft…" the maid let out a sarcastic laugh. "Good thing he's still just a caterpillar. If he ever became a butterfly, he'd probably commit even worse crimes."
They chuckled quietly.
Unbeknownst to them… just outside the kitchen window, Fin stood perched on a branch, listening to every word. The little squirrel's ears twitched slowly, his expression turning serious and grim.
The news spread rapidly throughout the entire palace. Staff began looking at Liy with suspicion. Some were afraid even to say his name aloud, while others actively avoided him, acting as if he truly were a traitor.
Worse of all… Liy had been banished from the palace. He was forbidden from ever entering the royal grounds of Wonderveil again.
Inside the library, Silas, Nyx, Axe, Aver, and Fin gathered together. The air felt heavy and suffocating.
Silas hung his head low, his white rabbit ears drooping sadly.
"I… I truly believe Liy would never do such a thing…" Silas's voice trembled. "He didn't hide that document on purpose."
Fin looked at Silas briefly before lowering his own little head.
"I think so too," Axe said softly. "But then… why was the paper found stuck to his body?"
Nyx, who had been sitting on a low shelf grooming his fur, paused and spoke coldly. "That is exactly what makes it so strange."
Silas clenched his paws tightly.
"Maybe someone deliberately sabotaged him…" His voice became quiet, heavy with guilt. "It was my fault for asking him to fetch paper from the office. If I hadn't asked him to do that… none of this would ever have happened."
"Don't say that," Axe said quickly. "You were busy that day, remember?"
"I know…" Silas lowered his face further. "But I still feel responsible."
Aver sighed deeply. "None of us imagined something like this could ever happen."
Silas slowly raised his head, eyes determined. "We must go see Liy. We need to give him encouragement and support."
"But Princess Celestia strictly forbade us from seeing him, Silas," Aver replied, looking troubled.
"He is our friend," Silas insisted firmly. "We have to stand by him."
Suddenly Nyx jumped down from the shelf, turning to face them with cold, hard eyes.
"Silas… I don't think that is necessary anymore."
Everyone turned to stare at him.
Nyx flicked his tail dismissively. "He committed a serious crime. I don't trust him anymore either."
Silas froze, shocked. Even Axe and Aver fell silent, stunned by Nyx's harsh words.
"Nyx…" Silas whispered, sounding heartbroken and disbelieving.
But Nyx merely turned away. "I refuse to put Princess Celestia's safety at risk just because of some caterpillar."
With that, Nyx walked away and left the library without looking back.
The room became even quieter than before. Silas stared at the floor, unable to speak.
Meanwhile… hidden deep within a dark corner behind the bookshelves… Fin watched everything silently. The little squirrel's eyes slowly narrowed, gleaming thoughtfully as if he were carefully calculating something.