Chapter 15
“The Guardians of the Twelve Months”
Haah… Pure Gold and Pure Silver, huh?
Now that she looked closely, their golden and silver hair really did shine differently from the others.
As Ruri was thinking that, the fairies began introducing themselves one by one.
The red-haired girl was January’s guardian — Garnet, named Zakuro.
February’s girl wasn’t Amethyst as Ruri expected from her purple hue, but rather Chrysoberyl Cat’s Eye, named Chrysos.
Now that she looked again, the girl’s eyes gleamed a pale yellow-green — definitely unique.
March wasn’t Aquamarine either, but Iolite — a violet-haired girl named Sumire.
April wasn’t Diamond, but Morganite, a pink-haired boy named Morga.
May was Emerald, a green-haired boy named Eme.
June, a boy with white hair, wasn’t Pearl or Moonstone but Alexandrite — his hair and eyes shimmered, changing color under the light.
His name was Alek.
July wasn’t Ruby but Sphene, a girl with apple-green hair named Phene.
August wasn’t Peridot but Spinel, a boy with pinkish-red hair named Nell.
September’s boy had blue hair like Sapphire but was actually Kunzite, named Lichia.
October was a Fire Opal, an orange-haired boy named Flare.
November was Citrine, a yellow-haired girl named Lemon.
And finally, December’s guardian was Lapis Lazuli, the blue-haired girl named Lapis.
Ruri realized that, after all, the Gem Kingdom’s birthstones weren’t so different from Earth’s.
As she finished hearing their names, a small growl came from the prince’s stomach.
Come to think of it, she was hungry too.
“Hey, what do people in the Gem Kingdom eat?”
“The same as you, right? Meat? Vegetables? Oh — and gemstones?”
“Wait— gemstones… as food?”
Ruri’s expression froze in disbelief, and the fairies tilted their heads at her.
“You don’t eat gemstones here?” asked Lichia, eyes widening.
“Of course not. They’re rocks!”
“You use magic to eat them,” Phene explained patiently.
“For Prince Phos, this will be his first meal here,
so naturally, it should be a gemstone dish.”
“Do you have plates?”
“Uh… probably.”
Ruri gently set the prince down from her lap and went to the kitchen.
She had restocked the place with dishes that suited this little home — all neat and matching.
Her heart squeezed slightly.
Did Grandma… know she was going to die?
She laid out the plates on the small dining table.
“I’ve got the dishes ready,” she called to the fairy group.
“How adorable! Perfect for the prince,” Sumire said with a smile.
“Then, let’s begin,” Flare said, pulling out a magical wand.
Of course, Ruri thought, eyes sparkling. Magic always involves wands — just like in anime!
Childlike excitement welled up in her chest as she watched.
Flare swung his wand — and clang-clang, countless gemstones fell from the air,
raining down onto the plates in dazzling color.
