Chapter Sixteen: Entering the Sylphiette Affection Quest Ahead of Time

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The task must be completed within one day after activation… better put it on hold for now, I’ll think it over.

The panel vanished.

Allen watched Rudy lower his head, placing the relic almost touching the tip of his nose, about to cast the spell, and hurriedly interrupted him.

“But when you go out to scout the terrain, you have to take me along.”

Rudy was momentarily stunned, glancing sideways at Allen.

“Teacher, are you also interested in plants?”

Allen pointed to his face with his index finger, speaking deliberately and clearly.

“I just said it’s because I want to become friends with you.”

Then he glanced at Rudy’s bewildered expression and turned to leave the room.

Rudy gazed after Allen’s retreating figure.

Friends, huh…

…Come to think of it, this guy named Allen seems a bit more mature than kids his age; maybe we’d have some common topics… Although he seems like a kid who’s starved for affection… Paul seemed really supportive of him becoming my friend… And this guy’s face, aside from looking a bit fierce, is quite ruggedly handsome. He’ll surely be popular with girls in the future. If I call him brother, the leftovers from his harem might just trickle my way…

Although my looks aren’t top-tier, being with someone handsome like him would look good on me too…

Rudy nodded.

Girls who lack confidence tend to target me. Compared to confident and aggressive girls, I prefer the slightly insecure type… they seem easier to train… no, easier to nurture~

It works—just like beauties keep plain girls around as supporting cast, I’ll do the opposite.

——

Allen returned to his bedroom and collapsed onto the bed, exhaling deeply.

Today’s events were sudden and out of control. As expected, even after reading novels, adding another person into the mix brings unpredictable twists. The plot can’t unfold exactly like in the books.

Fortunately, the overall direction remains normal. About Sylphy… should I intervene early to save Mother Bai? I’d rather not think about it, but if I do… she’s being pelted with mud, insulted, even beaten by peers every day. Just thinking about it makes my stomach ache…

Her childhood experiences led Sylphy to indulge Rudy in every way later on. Even though she was jealous of Rudy’s harem, she still empathized with him and helped maintain harmony in his harem…

It’s all because Rudy became her childhood light… the only friend in the village…

Allen pondered this while focusing on his Dragon Holy Fighting Qi’s embryonic core.

A dull brown groove sat beside the glowing green tree-shaped magic pattern, completely bare.

The detoxification magic groove… no runes etched yet. I remember Senis knows intermediate detox magic and often helps at the village clinic… I should try to get that rune someday…

As for Sylphy… Loki only had contact for one night, and there was a butterfly effect… If Sylphy gets involved early, will it cause problems? Maybe it’d make it harder for Rudy and Sylphy to separate?

I’ll think it over… think it over…

His consciousness blurred as Allen drifted into sleep.

——

The sound of flowing water softly filled Allen’s ears.

Mixed with discordant shouting.

Allen blinked, dazed.

The scorching sun cast its radiance over the patchwork fields, birds sang incessantly, and children’s noisy chatter buzzed nearby.

He turned his head to the side.

Rippling waves shimmered with a firefly-like glow; a small river snaked past his legs.

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‘…Where am I… Why am I standing by the river… so leisurely… Is it the weekend… Is the company work done… Should hurry back to work overtime…’

“Stinky demon kids, get out of the village!”

“Get out of the village!!”

“Take this!”

“Pathetic… you didn’t even hit me! Watch this!”

“Hit!”

Cheers erupted.

Allen, confused, turned toward the voices. In the flooded paddy field by the riverbank, three mud-covered boys faced off against a lone boy crouched by the river’s edge.

Ah, right, I’ve transmigrated, no more work… sweet… Wait… are three people bullying one? No, the three muddy kids look like the bullies; they’re just covered in mud because they were wading in the fields…

The shouting resumed.

“Now let’s see who’s better at headshots!”

“Alright, watch me!”

“Hit!”

“Headshots are boring, face shots!”

“Hey, hit, hit!”

“Tch, these demon kids don’t resist at all… boring!”

“Let’s go, see you tomorrow~”

Perhaps noticing Allen’s tall figure, the kids scattered and ran back into the village.

Allen’s mind was foggy; he didn’t know why he was here but felt a pang of sadness watching the scene.

The bullied boy was short, his body so covered in mud he looked like a little mud doll, sitting dumbly by the river.

Allen cautiously stepped forward.

His hair was long, completely plastered with mud, hiding his expression. Beside him lay an old wicker basket, filled with lumps covered in mud…

Not mud, but bread or some kind of food, all plastered with mud.

The boy stared blankly at the basket, oblivious to the footsteps near him. His hands fumbled in front of his face, but Allen couldn’t see clearly due to his posture.

Instinctively, Allen reached out to help him up, but just as he approached the riverbank and stretched his hand, his peripheral vision caught the river’s surface. His hand froze mid-air.

The water was clear, reflecting a filthy face.

The face’s owner kept pulling clumps of hair tangled in mud from his head, clutching them in his palm. Occasionally, strands slipped through his fingers into the river.

His hands worked repeatedly; the water’s surface soon covered with hair clumps.

The strands drifting on the water gradually revealed a verdant green beneath.

Allen snapped back to clarity.

…Sylphy…

“…Don’t do this… Sylphy…”

Allen trembled as he patted her shoulder. Sylphy turned her head.

Her mud-covered face revealed only a pair of reddish-brown eyes.

Lifeless, numb, hollow.

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Allen’s throat went dry, and he struggled to speak.

“…Stop pulling your hair, it’s all mud… Let me wash it for you…”

Sylphy stared blankly at Allen, not responding, only raising the muddy hair in her hand.

Allen followed her palm.

In Sylphy’s palm, clumps of freshly pulled hair tangled with mud looked like dirty, blackened grass.

She said,

“…Don’t wash it… if it’s covered in mud, it’s no longer green.”

——

“Ah!”

A scream by Allen’s ear jolted him awake. He rolled out of bed in a rush.

The river had vanished, but before him sat a boy.

Allen looked at Rudy, who sat on the floor, astonished, and exhaled in relief.

It was a dream…

“…No, why the hell did you scream so early in the morning?”

Rudy, who had come to wake Allen, wore a sheepish expression, as if unjustly accused. The scream indeed came from him, but the cause was clearly Allen.

He pointed at Allen’s hand.

Allen looked down.

His fist was clenched tightly, with splinters deeply embedded in his palm, wounds so deep they revealed the bone beneath. The corner of the bed frame was crushed, shattered by his uncontrollable fighting qi in the dream.

Allen stared at his injured hand, silent for a moment, then turned to Rudy.

“Can Healing Magic fix a bed frame?”

Rudy looked at his hand, then the bed frame, his expression puzzled.

“Seems like… no…”

Allen lowered his eyelids.

Free Real-Time Quest—Gain Sylphy’s Favor, issued.

[Confirm issue? Reminder: The host has only one day. It’s best to activate the quest after meeting Sylphy Yet. If you don’t find her today…]

Confirm issue.

[Free Real-Time Quest—Gain Sylphy Yet’s Favor, issued.]

[Quest started.]

[Sylphy Yet: Countdown: 23:59:59. Completion unlocks the Barrier Magic Groove.]

Allen lifted his face toward Rudy, holding out his bloodied but still clenched fist.

“Maybe… you can use Healing Magic?”