Chapter 3: Edenmere

Just then, I saw the angels flying ahead of us stop and turn around, as if waiting for us. 

"Sorry..." I started to apologize, thinking they were annoyed that Nicola and I were flying too slowly while messing around.

But Serena shook her head and said, "We're here."

"What? That fast?" I was surprised. It felt like we hadn't flown very far out of the Astralrealm Kingdom yet. How could we be there already?

"Are you sure this is the place?" Nicola and I looked around. Besides us angels there was nothing but open sky. I was expecting Edenmere to be built among the clouds, but that didn't seem to be the case.

"Yes, you'll see it in about 50 more meters," Serena smiled and explained. "Or you can try sensing the aura of light elements ahead."

"Light element aura?" Following her suggestion, I did feel a faint dispersion of light elements leaking randomly out of the void ahead, infusing into the air. 

"Come on, follow us inside!" Serena flew forward and her whole body disappeared after advancing a short distance. The other angels followed suit. 

Nicola and I exchanged glances before reluctantly flying after them.

"So this is Edenmere?" As we flew, the scenery abruptly changed and a vast land appeared spread out before us. 

"What's going on?" Nicola and I looked back and saw a huge golden portal hovering in midair, slowly rotating. It seemed we had just flown out of that.

"It's a concealed teleportation portal that connects the human world to our angel world, allowing only us angels to pass through," Serena explained from up ahead as she led us towards a city nestled in the distant land. "And the exit isn't fixed to the Astralrealm Kingdom, it can change locations freely."

So convenient and customizable? No wonder Edenmere was always described as so mysterious in legends. Now I realized ordinary humans could never find this place. 

"So it's like a completely separate world?" From Serena's words, I gathered this was different than the Darklands, it was its own distinct world.

"Yes. No matter how far you fly, you can't reach the human continent of Eldoria. This world is small, about the size of the Astralrealm Kingdom." 

Serena's voice came from up ahead as she led us towards a city nestled on the distant land below.

"What if the teleportation portal gets damaged?" Nicola suddenly asked. "Wouldn't we all get trapped in here with no way out?"

"Don't worry, contingencies were put in place long ago. If the portal is damaged, the entire Edenmere landmass would reappear in the oceans of the main world. It originally split off from there, they say."

"What? An entire continent was split off?" Hearing this incredible feat from Serena, I was once again awestruck by the might of angels.

As my attention was drawn to the expansive forests blanketing the land below, Nicola suddenly said to me, "Feliciana, don't you think the sunlight here feels strange?"

"Sunlight?" Reminded by her, I realized there was no distinct light source in the sky. The whole firmament seemed to glow, bathing the world in a soft, hazy brightness. 

"Unlike the main world, there is no day-night cycle here so the light element is more abundant and constant," Serena explained, noticing our reaction. "That's why we angels can always stay energized. You don't even need to sleep if you don't want to." 

"Amazing..." No wonder I felt more comfortable the moment we entered this world. I had to admire it - the environment was perfectly suited for angels. 

"We've arrived, that palace below is Lady Elara's..." Serena led us down onto a high terrace overlooking an ornate palace nestled in the city center. 

This city was small, much smaller than Norvale, about the size of a second-tier kingdom city. But the buildings looked exceptionally grand, including many outlying residences. 

"There don't seem to be many people around?" From the terrace I noticed the streets below were mostly empty, giving a hollow feel. Some structures even showed signs of disrepair.

"Many angels perished in the endless wars over the millennia, so the population has dropped drastically..." Serena sadly lowered her head before instructing a six-winged angel beside her, "Casey, please take them below to rest first."

"You're leaving?" I asked in surprise as Serena spread her wings as if to take flight. 

"Lady Elara isn't in the city currently. She should be visiting the light elf settlement on the border forest, so I must invite her to return." Serena and the other angels then took off flying out towards the city outskirts.

"There are light elves here too?" Nicola asked the remaining angel. 

"Yes. A few decades ago, seeing how few of us angels were left, Lady Elara brought some light elves from the outside world to live in Edenmere since they like abundant light and forests. It helped increase the population of this land."

The angel named Casey looked young, giving me the impression she wasn't fully grown yet. 

"So those wingless angels I saw walking the streets could be light elves?" If so, there were far fewer true angels here than I imagined.

"Maybe some...but most city-dwelling light elves still don't number many. They prefer living in the outlying forests," Casey said uncertainly before leading us to a small chamber at the terrace edge. "Please step inside, don't worry..."

"Is this a lift?" I asked dubiously about the box-like little room. 

"Lift? This is an ascender for descending directly into the palace below." 

I supposed it was just called by a different name but functioned the same as a lift, which I knew existed in Norvale's central citadel but never had a chance to ride before.

As we waited to descend, Casey suddenly asked somewhat embarrassedly, "Have your hair colors always been like that? They look so strange..." 

"I guess so...does it look weird?" I glanced at my blue hair and Nicola's white, which did stand out from most angels' uniform gold. 

At first I also felt it odd but had gotten used to it. 

"Usually only humans display such variety. Could it be an effect of the angel descent formation...?" Casey couldn't help sneaking more peeks at our hair while murmuring, "Also, how did you two manage to advance in rank so quickly?"

"Advance in rank?" Nicola and I looked at each other in surprise. Why was she asking about this?

"According to Lady Serena, you newly born angels were only birthed a month ago in the Elara Woodlands. Yet now you already have six wings..."

"Newborn angels?" My mind stirred. I quickly followed up, "What's the connection between the angel descent formation and newborn angels?"

"The angel descent formation is what summons newborn angels!" Casey replied matter-of-factly, no longer bothering to conceal secrets here. 

"All Edenmere's angels know the formation is our primary way to increase population. But we're forbidden to mention it outside Edenmere."

"Huh?" Nicola and I exchanged shocked glances. This was completely different than what we imagined. From the name we assumed it summoned existing angels from Edenmere out to the human world, not that it actually created new angels!

"So you were also summoned by an angel descent formation?" Nicola looked Casey up and down incredulously. 

"Yes, same as you! Just earlier, around 200 years ago." Casey casually divulged her origins.

"You're 200 years old?" I felt a chill down my spine. The girl before me clearly looked underage yet was so ancient? I vaguely recalled being told angels had long lifespans but hadn't grasped the full import of it until now. This felt so bizarre. 

"Around that! I've lost exact count...doesn't matter," she dismissed as if her age was trivial after living so long.

"But you only have six wings..." I still couldn't quite believe it. If she truly was hundreds of years old, why did she have the same number of wings as us? What had she been doing all this time?

"That's why I'm so puzzled you two advanced so fast!" Casey said helplessly, gazing at Nicola and me with near covetous eyes.