Chapter 309: Vacation and Cure

Actually, this task would be better suited for the elf Kalist.

After all, elves are naturally attuned to nature, and many spells were born from this connection.

A method of grafting without disrupting the overall spirituality would surely come easily to her.

But this one is far too exhausted—recently she's had to manage the river defense line, deal with the forest, and prepare for her own ascension ritual.

All three are major rituals, requiring immense time and mental energy to prepare.

To prevent her from suffering another mana depletion, Luo De only obtained the relevant materials and ritual instructions, leaving the rest entirely to Cailina.

Kalist is truly a worrier by nature—this morning she even said she'd come to personally oversee it.

But Luo De talked her out of it.

"As you command, my master."

Cailina took the hand-drawn, handwritten materials without expression and began studying them carefully.

Luo De was bored.

So he chatted idly with the little fairy Tami.

It helped him understand the background and personality of this new forest resident.

Moreover, he wanted to learn about recent changes in the region through her experiences in those forests.

It's a pity.

At the time, Tami, being a Light Spirit, didn't pay attention to such observations—she spoke mostly about which tree had the most spirituality and which natural spirit was the most volatile.

"Luo De!"

The mare-girl Bond responded to the call of the 【Far-Speech Chain】 and sprinted over.

Behind her, the increasingly obese squirrel Cui Qian struggled on all fours.

That doesn't make sense.

She's been running around with Bond every day—how did she get even fatter?

Then he saw the little fairy Tami nervously hiding behind his head.

Little fairies are generally afraid of strangers, due to their low combat power.

"Luo De! What's up? Where are we going?"

The mare-girl looked thrilled.

"You're going to guard Jia Valley Highlands."

When Luo De gave her the 【Far-Speech Chain】 just now, he sent the words "come play."

"Wait a moment."

"I'm coming too!"

The squirrel Cui Qian ran over, panting.

"Fine, all of you can go—but you must stay right beside Bond."

"Of course!"

Bond's long-range shooting means the front line is held by Pan Ni and Wendigo—there's little threat to them.

Cui Qian bounced excitedly.

Then, as if remembering something, she said:

"By the way, Master Luo De, winter's negative energy has risen, weakening the World Tree's vitality, so our workload has decreased significantly. Some companions from the Tree Realm want to visit the physical dimension for a vacation—would it be possible...?"

"Come on by, feel free—there's plenty of space in the forest."

Luo De didn't mind.

Recently, Xiao Ke visited his friend Amy the Guardian, and Pan Ni and Krist have been stationed permanently at Jia Valley Highlands—the forest has grown quiet. More cute squirrels here would be nice.

Luo De didn't venture deep into Ke's Plain today.

After dropping off the two little ones at Jia Valley Highlands, he went to No. 31 South Xinlan Street in the municipal town.

That is, the witch Dimia's residence.

Today was the day he'd arranged with the dog-girl Sharon to cure Dimia's mana outburst.

He entered the familiar standalone villa.

At a glance, he saw all the furniture and carpets had been cleared away; Sharon knelt half-bent in the center, wearing only a white short shorts and tank top.

Her rolled abdomen showed not a trace of fat—lean and smooth.

Her golden-furred tail arched high to avoid touching the ground array.

She glanced at Luo De briefly, expressionless.

But her tail couldn't help swaying left and right.

"Sit for a bit—it'll be ready soon."

"I'll go check on Dimia."

"Do as you like. Knock first. If there's no reply, get out—don't disturb her rest."

"Nah, I won't go. She's always sleeping anyway—better to just look at you for a while."

The witch suffering from mana outburst is extremely sleepy—this time even more so, far worse than before.

No one knows why.

Hearing this,

the dog-girl's tail wagged faster, and a faint smile appeared on her otherwise calm face.

"I'm kidding—I'll go check on her anyway."

The smile froze.

"Get out!"

Luo De laughed and went upstairs to the villa.

He knocked on Dimia's door.

As soon as he reached this spot, he immediately recalled the last time he and Sharon had messed around here.

His heart tingled slightly.

"Come in."

Dimia's voice came from inside.

It was lazy, slightly drowsy—she must have just woken up.

Luo De pushed open the door.

He saw the witch sitting at a small tea table, wearing a pale blue dress with only two thin, ribbon-like shoulder straps.

Compared to her usual attire, this was slightly more conservative.

She had poured a cup of tea and placed it on the other side of the table.

"Feeling better?"

Luo De sat down and drank the jasmine-scented flower tea in one gulp.

At the same time, he noticed the imprint of pillow patterns on Dimia's baby-faced cheeks.

Compared to her current composed and elegant demeanor, it created a striking contrast.

"These past few days, having Sharon with me has helped a lot—I've stayed in good spirits, stopped thinking about work, and stopped thinking about novels."

"What's the problem this time? Still the novel?"

"Mm... yes."

Dimia's face flushed.

She had confidently declared last time that novels would no longer be an issue—yet here it was again, just a few months later.

"Last night, while chatting through the Far-Speech Chain, you explained to me about flower spirit genders... so I revised my setting and turned the hero Ophir into a man. But readers didn't accept it—they wrote letters to the newspaper to curse me."

Since connecting to the 【Far-Speech Chain】, Dimia has grown fond of this way of chatting.

She always loves talking to Luo De at night about racial peculiarities—it's a shared secret, and their bond has grown closer because of it.

"All because of this?"

She nodded reluctantly.

"I—I... read every letter, got furious, and then the next day..."

Luo De couldn't help laughing out loud.

"You..."

The harder he laughed, the more embarrassed Dimia became.

Her witch body's skin is naturally thin—when she blushes, it turns pale pink, her entire face glowing softly, even more delicate.

"Actually, this whole thing is Luo De's fault!"

She pouted playfully.

"My fault, my fault—I'm here to cure you now, aren't I?"

"... heard from Sharon that you found a spirit seed for this."

"Sort of. The key is fear—nothing much."

Sharon had mentioned it before.

She had concealed from Dimia the details of their trip to the Fear Field, claiming instead that she'd found the solution in ancient texts.

"We're friends—no need to mention it. But don't you think Sharon's personality has changed a lot lately?"

No one knew how Sharon had explained it, but Dimia showed no surprise at her best friend's transformation.

"Has she?"

The witch tilted her head.

Isn't there even that?

It's like the difference between a pet dog and a stray, for heaven's sake.

Could Demia be the type who's accidentally a bit dense?

"Mr. Luo De may not know, but since I met Sharon, she's always been this way—indeed, she's changed a great deal since dropping out of Bahadur."

(End of Chapter)