The 24th day of the heavenly month.
　And the forest city of Yggfresis is no exception.

　In this land governed by Lilliwood, there are many trees of all shapes and sizes, mainly the World Tree, which are beautifully decorated for Christmas.
　The World Tree and Lilywood are objects of faith for the people of Yggfresis, and on this day, too, a large city-wide festival is held in the name of giving thanks to the sacred tree.

　While looking at the lively city streets, while attaching the decoration in my hand to a nearby branch, I hear a calm voice.

''........I'm sorry. Kite, I didn't mean to make you help me...''
No, no, no, it's as cheap as this. But what do you think of decorating a tree, from the point of view of Mr. Lillywood, the spirit of the tree?
The trees don't get decorated in this way, and I think it's a nice touch,
Okay.

　
　Currently I'm getting ready for Christmas tonight and tomorrow. Actually, I had to visit Lilliwood for a few things, but he seemed to be busy with some things, so I called out to him and helped him out, albeit in a small way.

''I'm a little jealous of you. You see, I........can't decorate the world tree, and.......
'Oh, that certainly sounds difficult,'

　The World Tree is too big to be decorated........and there are branches as wide as four lanes of trees.
　Ms. Lillywood's clothes are the same as usual, ethnic costume style....poncho or something like that, but I like this outfit because it's very Lillywood.

''You look more than enough beautiful as it is, Lilliwood-san.
''........please don't say anything too pleasant. You'll be embarrassed...
'Haha, but spending time with Mr. Lillywood like this is fun for me.
''You're a very different person you're a very different person you're going to be in charge today and tomorrow and yet you're going to have Christmas with me. I'd like to spend time with you, etc...

　Lilliwood-san's face moves as her cheeks are slightly tinted, and her hair, which is made up of fresh green leaves...or rather, the leaves themselves folded together, sways in time with her.
　Maybe it's because Liliwood-san is a tree spirit, but I feel somewhat relaxed when I'm with her.
　It's a little different from forest bathing, and I think it's because of Liliwood-san's own gentle nature, but...I feel at home with her.

''It's nice, I like doing it because I like it.
I'm not much of a social butterfly, am I?
'No problem. I'm well aware that Mr. Lillywood is the star of the festival in this city. It's fun enough for me to have Mr. Lillywood come to see me when he sees me like this.
'........you really are......a troublemaker, aren't you?

　Even as she told us these words, Liliwood's voice was very gentle and her jade-colored eyes were very warm as she turned to us.










　We finished helping with the decorations and as the sun set, a bright light shone through the darkness of the night and the party began.
　I was going to be staying at Mr. Liliwood's place today, and I was sipping my tea as I looked out the window at the bright lights of the city.
　I could have joined the festivities, but if I did, I would have caused Lilliwood-san a lot of trouble, so I decided to stay here and wait for him to come back.

　He is the star of the festival, and he is so busy at this time of the year that I remember him saying "I don't think I'll be able to go home today, so please go to bed first.
　　I feel like it's not so bad to relax and wait for someone like this every once in a while, so I take a book out of the Magic Box and start reading it to pass the time.

　After a while, about the time when the date was about to change or not, the festivities seemed to have died down and Mr. Lillywood returned.
　Lilliwood-san sees me sitting on a chair reading a book and lets out a sigh of dismay.

''...........Huh, I was wondering if you might be.......but why are you up? You are.........''
Welcome back, Mr. Lillywood. Good evening.
'Yes, sir. I'm back now. Sorry to keep you waiting.
No, no, I was just waiting to run some errands...
You need...?

　Mr. Liliwood nods his head at my words, and I hand him a corsage that resembles a flower that I took out of the magic box.

'Merry Christmas, Mr. Lillywood,'
"...what?
'I couldn't decide what to use, but I knew that flowers would look good on Lillywood, so I went with this one.
'What?　Oh, um........thank you, thank you.......

　Liliwood-san, who received the Christmas gift corsage, looks at it with a surprised expression as she returns the thanks.

''This, to give you this.......you've been waiting for me?
Yes, sir.
Truly I'm no match for you.

　With a resigned, yet very happy smile, Mr. Lillywood changed from being buried in a tree trunk to his human form and wrapped his hands around my neck and hugged me.
　The very large chest of Mr. Lillywood's chest received my head like a cushion, and I felt soft and happy and smelled the gentle scent of wood.

''........I'm troubled. I didn't expect you to come to see me today........I'm sorry. I haven't prepared anything on my end.''
No, don't worry about it. I just wanted to give it to Mr. Lillywood as a gift...
Yes, but... But, you know..........it's not that I'm a substitute for you, but.......
...What?

　There, I hear him stammer a little, and then he hugs me tighter than before.
　Liliwood-san remains silent as it is, holding me a bit, and then slowly tells me in a shy voice.


Yes?
The present for Kite, Mr. Kite would be me, wouldn't it be better?
What, does that mean...
"...don't make me say more.
''~~!　Yes, sir.

　I'm not so stupid as to not understand the meaning of those words, either.
　The sweet and debauched voice invites me to gently hug Liliwood-san back.

It's just that in the case of this gift......................there's a slight problem.
Is there a problem?
''Yes. This makes me happy so I'm not going to give you much in return.'
''........Huh, no, not really. To me, it's really the most delightful gift I could ever get.

Yes, sir.

　Christmas with a loved one it's really a warm thing... at least tonight, the thought of being with Mr. Lillywood all the time naturally brought a smile to my face and filled my heart with happiness. It's spreading.