Chapter 16: I Will Definitely Protect You

Compared to the other shops in the town, bustling and extraordinarily lively, that clothing store seemed forgotten in a prosperous corner, appearing exceptionally cold and desolate.

It could be said to be deserted, empty of a single person.

The clamor on both sides of the street formed a stark contrast with it, like a stroke of faint ink in a lively scroll.

However, it was precisely because the contrast was so obvious that Xia Zhi spotted it at a glance; otherwise, trying to directly find a specific fairy on a noisy street as lively as a festival celebration would have been more or less difficult.

Xia Zhi pondered slightly, feeling this should be because the clothing store is very easy to understand — fairies all know what it does, so they have no interest; for familiar things, they naturally lose freshness and the desire to explore.

Fairies are like a group of bratty kids obsessed with playing house; only for things full of mystery, elusive and unfathomable, would they be filled with curiosity and enthusiasm.

After all, it's still that saying: they are just a group of pure bratty kids, but collectively roleplaying a game of "playing house" —

Many behaviors hold no actual meaning, more like an imitation and mockery of the surface of Human Civilization, seeking fun in liveliness and novelty; the more impenetrable something is, the more it stimulates their interest, thereby attracting their pursuit and onlooking.

Although this behavior seems slightly childish, it also reveals a simple, pure, terrifying psychology, allowing one to peek at a trace of Essence.

Xia Zhi and Vivian stopped in front of the clothing store, looking at this storefront so deserted you could swat flies, so empty you could almost hear the sound of time passing.

Behind the counter inside sat a fairy resembling a little girl, who seemingly didn't think customers would come at all, currently lying on the counter fast asleep.

Her nose almost blowing bubbles, this scene was slightly familiar.

Xia Zhi thought and discovered that Index, after completely letting down her guard and losing vigilance during this period, had a sleeping posture that was a bit similar to this fairy; he estimated that was the source of the deja vu.

Vivian, on the other hand, focused entirely on the furnishings and goods inside the shop; her gaze flowed over those clothes of wildly different styles and strange designs, revealing a slightly doubtful emotion, unable to bear lightly raising an eyebrow:

"These clothes look... very strange."

Very obviously, the young lady was euphemistically expressing a certain opinion.

The "chaos" and "hodgepodge" they had sensed everywhere in the city earlier were displayed to the fullest in this clothing store in the form of clothing art, concretized in an extremely Impactful way — a Presence that could not be ignored.

One could simply say every piece of clothing was like a rhapsody composed with colors and lines; the obvious degree and intensity of visual impact were simply staggering, not just ordinarily eye-searing.

Bold use of color.

Avant-garde style.

Novel design.

Of course, this is putting it nicely; just listen...

As for the specific situation, one can only say it's more or less a bit indescribable.

"Guess these are also artworks born from random hodgepodge..." Xia Zhi had already looked past it, laughing slightly mockingly; he fundamentally didn't want to evaluate the fairies' unconventional, extremely bizarre aesthetics.

Anyway, style isn't a problem at all; as long as the Technical Limitation's proficiency reaches a certain height, professionalism is solid, that's the person... cough cough, Fairy talent he needs!

Giving Vivian a look, Xia Zhi then lightly reached out and knocked on the counter.

"Boss."

"..."

"..."

No response.

The fairy resembling a little girl was still fast asleep; if this were an animation, a string of dreamy bubbles should still be emerging from her small nose tip, rising and falling with those even, rhythmic snores.

"No wonder it's so deserted; even if customers come, they can't be caught..."

Xia Zhi complained a sentence, then reached out again, but seemed to suddenly think of something, his movement obviously Pausing for a moment, as if seriously sensing and estimating something, slightly Adjusting the force.

He used a force slightly larger than just now, yet pinched to perfection, and knocked on the counter again.

"Boss! Are you doing business or not!"

"Mmph... wh-what?!"

The snoring disappeared, and the fairy resembling a little girl finally woke up; she Dazedly Raised her Head, looking around, her eyes quickly regaining clarity, Flashing with light both surprised and confused.

Immediately after, she seemed to have reacted; her expression changed very obviously in an instant, turning gloomy at once. Like those people with morning grumpiness, woken up by someone, leading to a bad mood and rising anger.

She widened those Red Light pupils, looking as if she could unleash black magic at any moment.

Next Moment —

"What do you want what do you want! Want to die is it! Don't need you to bother me! Scram scram! Otherwise I'll break your legs!"

The Wing Fairy resembling a little girl shouted loudly; her voice, though childish, was very irritable; she directly slapped the counter before her hard, simultaneously making a baring-teeth, ferocious expression.

It could be seen she was very angry; however, the counter that took that slap was very sturdy, and didn't shatter On the Spot... although one could faintly hear a groan coming from within the wood.

This attitude is a bit too terrible...

No wonder there are no customers...

Vivian's gaze instantly cooled; she currently held a certain general hostility toward Wing Clan fairies, call it first impression bias; in short, it came with a natural cold Alignment reputation —

Even this "coldness" was Wei Bao; if not for needing to control emotions, it would probably directly be a hostile Danger Alignment red enough to Bleed.

Only she hadn't had time to act before feeling her sleeve gently tugged; her gaze shifted slightly, meeting the young man's "let me Handle it" gaze.

"..."

"..."

The young lady said nothing, merely that slightly cold gaze still enveloping that Wing Fairy like a little girl.

"That, Boss, calm down first."

Xia Zhi turned his head back, very naturally revealing a harmless Smile.

Fairies have very long lifespans, but their psychological age is often positively correlated with appearance; that is to say, this little girl, I'm afraid she really is just a little girl, so she should belong to Index's elementary schooler tier.

"We're here to buy clothes, not to find trouble..."

He quickly soothed the Wing Fairy's excited emotions; while speaking, he used sharp eyesight to carefully observe the micro-expressions and eye changes on her face.

The Premise of speaking human words to humans and ghost words to ghosts is —

The Skill Level of Observation must not be low.

Only then can one rapidly determine from changes in the other's facial expression and body language whether one's words are Effective, playing a positive or negative role... thereby quickly deciding one's next Strategy based on the other's Reaction.

But speaking of which —

Why are my opponents always this kind of little girl?

Perceiving that he was always bullying innocent lolis who knew nothing of the world, Xia Zhi couldn't help but feel a slight bit of shame... well, just a tiny bit.

"B-buy clothes?"

The Wing Fairy behind the counter, however, froze slightly, her red eyes widening, unable to disguise the astonishment on her face.

Perhaps the scene before her eyes left her in a trance for a moment; she repeated the words in disbelief: "Buy clothes? You're here to buy clothes?"

How could they be here to buy clothes?

Weren't they here to mock her, to suppress her?

Yes, it must be like this! They're definitely deliberately disguising themselves as customers, but secretly they want to pick a fight and provoke her, thinking of ways to bully her! She never fit in to begin with, they definitely want to drive her out!

Thinking it over, she quickly felt she had found the truth; connecting it with events during this time, she instantly grew angry again, subconsciously tightening her fist.

And right at this moment——

"Right, who made these clothes? We just took one look and immediately took a liking to them; they really have distinctive features..."

Such a sentence spoken at just the right moment, the words filled with admiration for a certain unique craft, surprise and emotion intertwining between the lines, caused the originally furious, about-to-lose-control Wing Fairy's movements to instantly stop.

Xia Zhi deliberately used such a relatively neutral phrasing, convenient for ambiguously changing his story later, shifting his attitude, while also paying attention to observing the expression on the little girl's face across from him, preparing to cater to her preferences and go with the flow.

Sure enough, he discovered the little girl's expression had obviously changed.

She even directly braced both hands and stood up on the counter.

"How is it how is it? What features?" The anxiety and nervousness in the Wing Fairy's tone were extremely obvious, like a little kid full of anticipation waiting for exam results after a test, both yearning for praise yet afraid of a bad outcome.

"..."

"..."

"Of course——it's simply too wonderful!!"

"I've never seen such amazing clothing designs!!"

The youth instantly understood in his heart, very decisively and proficiently switching immediately to praise mode, directly cheering aloud.

With that deep, serious look on his face, pointing at the clothes hanging in the shop, he looked especially sincere, as if every word came from the bottom of his lungs.

"Look! Look! Such bold use of various dazzling colors, unrestrained and flamboyant yet not losing harmony..."

"In style it's even more unique, pioneering without falling into cliché, this different design philosophy and aesthetic pursuit..."

"Novel design elements, from the unique innovation of cutting structure to the exotic fusion of pattern textures, none fail to reveal the designer's ingenious ideas, simply passionate and unrestrained, creativity unlimited, igniting a fire in my heart..."

This string of praises fired off like a machine gun, pouring out, directly leaving the two people on the scene stunned.

Little girl: "..."

Vivian: "..."

How did this person suddenly become like an audience judge in a food anime, becoming so professional, so sincere all at once, commenting on works rigorously yet full of deep feeling, praise language rich and vivid...

Although such praise was like script lines, it somehow had not a trace of affectation, instead brimming with sincerity and genuineness.

Naturally, to achieve this degree, there was undoubtedly extremely strong purposefulness and targeting, like a meticulously arranged magnificent line show, every flattering word falling perfectly on the heart of the one being evaluated.

Although Vivian showed a helpless expression of being unable to bear it, the little-girl-like Wing Fairy especially ate this up.

She first had a completely dazed expression, immediately followed by her eyes slowly widening, as if light was shining from her pupils.

——My clothes have this many merits...

——Listening to him say it, it seems like an especially high-end thing...

——But clearly everyone always denigrates and suppresses my works...

Past memories surged up like a tide——those doubts from all directions, sarcasm, and denigration and suppression, had once made her waver on the meaning and purpose of her own existence.

No! Wrong! It's definitely like this! It's all those fellows who don't know how to appreciate! I indeed hold this kind of design philosophy, this kind of aesthetic pursuit, it's just those fellows——all of them! None of them know how to appreciate!

Only this person before my eyes... is the bosom friend I've finally met!!

In the depths of her heart surged an unprecedented emotion and relief.

"Right right! That's it! That's it!"

In an instant, this Thread Fairy jumped down from the counter in great excitement, rushing frantically around the counter and running out, grabbing the youth's hand in incomparable excitement, her head nodding repeatedly like a chick pecking rice——

"Well said! You said it too well! Finally... finally someone who can understand me, this is truly too great..."

Her emotions running high, like she'd found a long-lost bosom friend, her speech speed increasing: "Right! Right! I'm called Tetelot, a Thread Fairy, what's your name?"

"..."

"..."

"Ah, this... I'm called Li Feiyu."

Xia Zhi blinked, and also immediately gripped the other's pair of small hands in return, shaking them very hard a few times, tone serious and earnest:

"Nice to meet you, Tetelot, so these clothes were made by you? Then you're truly a well-deserved... uh, Visual Color Master!"

"Ah! Really? Really?!" Tetelot's voice chirped with joy, that excitement beyond words, the delight of being affirmed almost jumping out from every movement, infecting the surrounding air.

"Wait! I have more! I have some more works inside... you wait, I'll bring them out!"

She was so happy she spun in circles on the spot, then immediately remembered something, and with a quick trot dashed into the shop.

Vivian beside her pursed her lips, watching this "high mountains and flowing water meeting a bosom friend" scene, for a moment not knowing what to say.

She gently took a breath, just wanting to take this chance to say something to the youth, but suddenly raised an eyebrow.

The girl seemed to have sensed something unusual, subconsciously turning her head to look in a certain direction.

"Careful! Situation!"

Receiving the alert, Xia Zhi's eyes shifted slightly, also collecting his expression, looking along the girl's line of sight.

Can't see anything...

Magic Power Sense didn't detect anything either...

Deeply understanding that he currently counted as at most an Apprentice, he didn't get discouraged because of it, but directly chose to ask the thigh: "What situation? Vivian, can you sense it?"

"Moss——!"

"Moss is here! Moss is here!!"

"So many, so many, run! Run outside!!"

No need for Vivian to answer; that direction seemed to suddenly erupt with massive chaos, fairy screams and roars intertwined, despair and fear woven together, not only answering the question but seemingly portending the arrival of Calamity.

Moss?

That kind of thing is invading this town? At this time?

"We're leaving, retreat immediately, their numbers are too many..." Vivian's expression was also somewhat unsightly; she glanced at his complexion and immediately said in a decisive tone: "Consider it after the live combat exercise!"

"We still aren't sure how you getting injured or dying counts in this state, absolutely cannot take the risk!"

"I know, I know..."

Xia Zhi nodded, and immediately heard hurried footsteps.

"Moss is here? How could it be——"

Tetelot ran out of the shop carrying a huge pile of clothes, seemingly unable to react to what had happened, but very quickly she figured out the situation, hurriedly threw down the things in her hands, and grabbed the youth's arm.

"In the name of the Visual Color Master! I, Tetelot, will definitely protect you!"

The little girl patted her perfectly flat chest forcefully, staring straight at the human opposite with incomparable seriousness, as if making a promise: "Rest assured, Li Feiyu!"

"?"

Isn't this one of the lines a boy most wants to say? Why is it a little girl saying this kind of thing to me?

——Xia Zhi suddenly felt he might really need to reflect.

(Chapter End)