To be honest, a dark thought crossed my mind to just hit them all properly. After all, this is a medieval world, and that kind of thing is normal here. But turning the people of an unknown kingdom against myself right away…
'Stop! Sorcerer!' shouted what was probably their leader when I simply rose into the air on my hoverboard. Of course, they tried to shoot me again with their crossbows, but with my spider-sense, that wasn't a problem. Besides, I climbed high enough that I didn't really worry about them.
'Yeah… the forest is beautiful…' I flew high enough to witness the beauty of this forest beyond the dark and grim wall of roots with thorns.
And it really was some kind of magical forest, because I could see strange creatures I had never seen before… as well as plants that seemed to glow from within.
Climbing even higher, I finally spotted a city with a large castle, which, by my estimate, was about ten kilometers away from the forest. Most likely, those people were from there.
And of course, I couldn't just turn around and fly to some ordinary, unremarkable kingdom, leaving this magical forest behind.
The latter was far more interesting.
So I simply flew over the barrier and entered the forest itself, then began slowly descending to take a closer look. For moments like this, I even pulled out a charged phone from my inventory to use its camera. I had taken this phone from the Kaiju world when I was wandering there.
'Something to remember…' I took a few photos from above, then pulled out a camera with a large lens from The Sims. This one would definitely be better. I'm no photographer, just an amateur, but I can at least take pictures.
'Like another world…' I muttered.
Well... it is...
And right next to me… a tree opened its eyes. That was unexpected, but my instincts didn't signal danger… for now.
'Oh, uh… hello?'
'Hu-man…' the tree rumbled, its leaves rustling.
'Actually, I'm a traveler, and I came from afar,' my hoverboard lifted slightly so I was at eye level with it.
'Ma-gic?' it asked uncertainly.
'Hm, a little,' I nodded. 'It's beautiful here… though at the forest entrance some people attacked me, shouting that I'm a sorcerer…'
'Soldiers… of the King… enemies… of nature… and HER,' the tree rumbled.
'And who is—' I suddenly stopped. A lump of mud hit my pants.
Just ordinary mud, thrown by some smiling creature staring at me with big eyes. It grinned… and then smeared itself with mud.
'Want to play?' I guessed, and the creature immediately nodded. It wasn't afraid of me. If anything, it seemed drawn to me. 'Well…'
I pointed at it and… a stream of water knocked the creature over, sending it into the water. Near where I stood were large stones and a small lake.
The creature surfaced and started jumping happily, only to get another splash of water in its face. I can control this magic attack, so I reduced the force to almost nothing. I wouldn't just casually fire what is essentially a combat spell at a friendly creature… I could've cut it in half otherwise.
Within a couple of minutes, some flowers seemed to bloom, as if recognizing me or simply no longer afraid. And from them flew… fairies? Small blue girls with wings, curiously circling me. Then from the water emerged something like a little mermaid, hovering in the air…
There were several of them, forming a circle around me as I walked and looked around. There were hundreds of different magical creatures here, all watching me with curiosity.
And then I gave in to the mood…
I rose into the air on my hoverboard, and the fairies followed, laughing.
Accelerating, I flew through a waterfall in this part of the forest, then quickly turned and flew straight through the swarm of fairies, who squealed and scattered.
In short, I had fun. And now I know where I can bring Anna and Elsa. I think they'll like it here.
'Caw!'
A black raven suddenly appeared right in front of me. I nearly hit it mid-flight and had to stop abruptly, though it still bumped into my leg and barely managed to cling onto the hoverboard.
'Hey, feathered one, what are you doing breaking flight rules?!' I protested honestly.
'Caw?' it replied questioningly and climbed onto the board, examining it with a surprisingly aware look.
And I… remembered this forest, its inhabitants, the kingdom, and the "witch." Could it be…
'Hey, you don't happen to turn into a human thanks to some incredibly charismatic dark sorceress, do you?' I asked.
'C-caw…' it widened its eyes and froze like a statue.
'So that's how it is… what was her name again? Always dressed in dark clothes, mysterious, holding a grudge against the nearby kingdom… and because of her mood, the whole forest feels darker…' I kept rambling.
'Caw! Caw!' it croaked as if calling me insane, then flew off, circling me before diving downward.
'Yeah, you too…' I muttered.
Maybe my subconscious desire to meet another familiar "character" of this world led me here. Otherwise, I can't explain how I ended up in this exact place out of all possibilities.
'And who are you, insolent one, trespassing in my domain…'
As soon as I landed near the lake, I heard a cold, enchanting woman's voice. She stepped out from behind a tree. My instincts faintly warned me… she was dangerous.
'I didn't see any signs with your name at the forest entrance,' I shrugged, studying her with interest. She looked around thirty, no older. And even that was mostly due to her outfit. Change her appearance a bit, and she'd look younger.
'Impudent and disrespectful of boundaries… just like all humans. Always dreaming of taking the last piece of bread from the poor…' she said with clear disgust.
'I haven't done anything like that. So you're the "witch" those people were shouting about? They thought I was your lackey and immediately decided to put my head on a spike… well, technically on a bolt.'
'People of the kingdom…' her tone alone said everything she thought about them.
'I'm Victor, a traveler.' I stepped off the hoverboard and approached her. She didn't move, but the very atmosphere around her changed… as if the forest itself was ready to protect her.
'Such youthful recklessness and impulsiveness,' she said, looking at me as if I were an insect she could crush at any moment. And that was despite me being taller than her… not counting the horns.
'I'd call it confidence in my abilities. I'm not just some farmer's boy either.'
She flinched slightly at that and stared at me more closely.
'You know me.'
'The raven?' I said, and it immediately appeared behind her, landing on her shoulder. 'So I wasn't wrong… I told you, I'm a traveler. But you're the second person I've met with magical abilities. The first almost froze an entire kingdom because of a nervous breakdown and fear of her own power.'
'Interesting…' she said, almost like a predator, stepping aside and looking at my hoverboard.
'This is a hoverboard. You could call it a magical artifact that allows flight.'
She didn't reply, but I could see something like… longing in her eyes.
'A wonderful place,' I said casually, turning my back to her. 'Magical creatures, giant mushrooms… are those edible?'
'And again, everything comes down to destruction…' I heard her scoff behind me.
'Food is an essential part of life for all living beings. That's not destruction, that's consumption. People sow and harvest, that's normal. All these fantastical creatures probably don't live on thin air either. Neither do you.'
'…there is no fear in you. Only curiosity… and something else. You are not afraid to stand before the Mistress of the Moors, the dark fairy Maleficent.' She struck her staff against the ground, and… the forest fell silent.
All magical creatures hid from their ruler's anger.
'I've got a giant robot in my inventory that can reduce a kingdom to rubble, along with plenty of magical artifacts and firearms… saying that out loud makes me feel like an average American.'
This version of Maleficent was probably from the movie… as far as I remember. Though she looked slightly different… more realistic and intimidating, yet still enchanting.