Chapter 276: Analysis of the Situation.

Shu Li hadn't expected to hear news of the Sword of Itno so soon.

Nasha had previously told them that after the Kingdom of Cecilia invaded Pedam Kingdom, the Sword of Itno had disappeared without a trace. As it turned out, her brother had it all along.

"The two swordsmen accompanying my brother must be Duer and Horei," Nasha said.

Both were Senior Great Swordsmen loyal to the royal family, their strength comparable to Senluo's. The stupid bird hadn't seen any other guards, which meant they had probably... all been killed by the Black Knights.

The light faded from Nasha's violet eyes, and she clenched her fists. She had to become stronger—strong enough to avenge every citizen of Pedam Kingdom who had died in the war.

Seeing that they had no more questions, Deklet timidly addressed the Little Fairy. "Um... can I leave now?"

Shu Li was secretly amused by its cautious manner. He took a Romi fruit from his storage ring and tossed it over.

"Here's a little extra reward."

Deklet caught it in its beak and mumbled its thanks around the fruit.

Delighted with its prize, it spread its wings and fled as fast as it could, terrified that if it lingered, the Little Fairy would make another outrageous demand.

Once the stupid bird was gone, the Light Squad gathered around the campfire to discuss what they had accomplished and the information they had collected that day.

"I can't believe we finished the assignment so easily," Hector said, sounding almost indignant. Everything had gone unbelievably smoothly, without a single setback.

"Not enough of a challenge for you?" Falm hopped in front of him. "Want me to withdraw my intimidation?"

"No, no, no!" Hector waved his hands frantically. It was the middle of the night, and he still wanted a decent night's sleep!

"Tch!" Falm flicked out his forked tongue, then bounded over to Shu Li and poked his leg with the tip of his tail. "I'm hungry."

As if Shu Li couldn't see straight through him. The stupid bird had received three Romi fruits, and now Falm wanted one too.

"Here."

He took a fruit almost as big as Falm himself from his storage ring and stuffed it into his arms.

"Heh, thanks!" Falm wrapped his short, chubby limbs and the wings on his back around the enormous fruit and happily began munching away.

Shu Li brought out a large platter of Kuku fruits as well and set it on a rock beside the fire for everyone to share.

Kuku fruits were small and resembled cherries. Tender, juicy, and sweet without being cloying, they earned nothing but praise from the human members of the squad.

Humans couldn't grow fruit this delicious. No wonder the stupid bird couldn't stop thinking about the fruit cultivated by Fairies.

"Since we've finished our assignment ahead of schedule, should we head straight back tomorrow, or stay in the forest and keep exploring?" Shu Li asked.

For novice adventurers, this expedition had been far too short to be satisfying.

Kumandi suggested, "We could gather some medicinal herbs tomorrow and take them back to make potions."

Angel raised his hand. "I agree."

He had recently been studying human potions and discovered that most of their medicinal herbs came from the Magical Beast Forest. Their ingredients were completely different from those used in Fairy potions, making them well worth researching.

Budno said, "There must be plenty of shed magical beast skins around here. We can collect them and exchange them for gold coins in the city."

Magical beast hides were important materials for making protective equipment. If they happened to find a hide shed by a high-ranking magical beast, they could make a fortune.

"There are valuable magic crystals in the Magical Beast Forest, too. They contain abundant magical power and can help you advance through the magical ranks faster." Ace took a beautiful, pebble-like stone from his storage pouch and showed it to everyone. "This is a second-rank magic crystal. I've absorbed two already, and I can clearly feel that my capacity for magical power has increased. If I can find magic crystals of the fourth rank or higher, becoming a Mage within two years shouldn't be a problem."

"Wow! Really?" Xidi asked excitedly.

So there was a shortcut like that? Why hadn't Ilio told them?

"The higher the quality of a magic crystal, the more expensive it is." Seriu studied the second-rank magic crystal in Ace's hand, then hesitantly asked, "Did you... spend all the money you earned from our last assignment?"

Ever since discovering that Ace was actually the Elven King, Seriu had felt somewhat uncomfortable around him. He couldn't let anything show on his face, however, so he could only struggle to suppress his conflicting emotions.

"Yes." Ace nodded frankly. "Three second-rank magic crystals cost me six hundred gold coins."

Shu Li was stunned.

Among the Light Squad, Hector was a wealthy young master, Xidi and Nasha were princesses, the Little Fairies and young dragon had more gold coins than they could ever spend, and Seriu had accumulated considerable wealth.

Ace was the only one who was genuinely poor.

Bandits had robbed him of all his money. Apart from the high-grade magic robe he was wearing, his only possessions were what he had bought with the payment earned from assignments.

Advancing his magical rank was important, of course, but spending every last coin at once would make it difficult to cover his living expenses!

Catching Shu Li's worried look, Ace smiled. "Improving my magical rank is what matters most. I can always earn more money."

Shu Li sighed. "If you ever run short, just borrow some from me. Don't be embarrassed to ask."

Ace nodded. "All right."

Amanda generously patted his chest. "You can borrow from me too! I've got loads of gold coins."

As the Dragon King's younger brother, he received mountains of gold and silver from his elders every year. He had so much money that he couldn't possibly squander it all in a thousand years.

"Thank you," Ace said gently. "I'll ask for your help if I need it."

Amanda chuckled and scratched the back of his head.

Falm, who knew Ace's true identity, snorted inwardly.

Hmph. Tricking innocent little kids like that.

Seriu had mixed feelings about the whole exchange. He lowered his head and poked at the campfire.

Halis noticed the subtle change in the prince's expression, and a trace of puzzlement appeared in his pale blue eyes.

"Since nobody objects, we'll spend tomorrow exploring the forest," Shu Li announced. "Now, about Chris and Nasha's brother. What does everyone think?"

Kumandi said, "If Chris went to the Snow Mountain Labyrinth alone, he might be in danger. But with another adult Fairy accompanying him, the risk is cut in half. We don't need to worry about his safety anymore."

The other adult Fairy was older and had spent many years gaining experience in the Human World. There was no way he would let Chris do whatever he pleased.

Shu Li nodded in agreement.

Chris loved playing pranks, but as long as someone was there to keep him in line, he wouldn't dare go too far.

He turned to Nasha. "The Sword of Itno must have accepted your brother as its master."

Nasha froze for a moment.

"Only a magic sword that has acknowledged its master can unleash its true power," Seriu explained.

Since awakening as the Sword of Carlos, he had gained a much deeper understanding of magic swords.

Without a recognized master, a magic sword couldn't kill a sixth-rank magical beast. In fact, it couldn't even be drawn from its scabbard.

That was precisely why the Sword of Itno and the Sword of Boshug had been treated as expensive ornaments and sent out of the Kingdom of Snow as part of the princesses' dowries.

Fortunately, Nasha's brother carried the royal bloodline of the Kingdom of Snow. The Sword of Itno had recognized him and accepted him as its master.

As for how he had become the sword's master, the experience certainly couldn't have been pleasant.

He must have faced a life-or-death situation that forced him to awaken his hidden potential, thereby rousing the magic sword's consciousness.

"Now that the magic sword has accepted your brother, and he has two Great Swordsmen escorting him, I'm sure he'll reach the Kingdom of Snow safely," Seriu assured Nasha.

The royal family of the Kingdom of Snow would not only welcome the prince of Pedam Kingdom warmly, but might even regard him as an heir to the throne.

After all, the master of the magic sword was the legitimate heir to the Kingdom of Snow's royal bloodline and possessed the right to become king.

At last, the weight that had been hanging over Nasha's heart lifted.

As long as her brother was safe, she could devote herself entirely to her studies and concentrate on advancing her magical rank without distractions.

Seeing Nasha's spirits restored, Shu Li was genuinely happy for her.

"Well, it's getting late. Everyone, back to your tents and get some sleep!"

"Okay!"

Budno answered more enthusiastically than anyone else. He loved sleeping in and had been drowsy for ages. After a long stretch, he was the first to crawl into a tent.

Traveling away from home meant making do with limited accommodations. They had brought four tents in total, each large enough to sleep three people.

Shu Li, Ace, and Budno shared one tent.

After tidying up, Shu Li lifted the tent flap and discovered that Budno had wrapped his arms around a long body pillow and was occupying half the sleeping space, drooling in his sleep.

That was some seriously impressive sleeping ability.

Shu Li sighed helplessly and pushed Budno to one side, making room for Ace.

Budno mumbled something and rolled over.

Shu Li immediately seized the opportunity to lie down, pressing himself against Budno's back to make absolutely sure he couldn't turn around and steal the sleeping space again.

When Ace entered, he found Shu Li lying close against Budno, his delicate face full of exasperation.

"What's wrong?" he asked softly.

Shu Li pointed at the peacefully sleeping Budno and lowered his voice. "This guy's a terrible sleeper."

Back when Budno had been a little fatty, he would sprawl out all four limbs, taking up more room than an entire bed could provide.

Fortunately, he had slimmed down now and was no longer as round as he had been when he was little.

Ace glanced at the remaining space and smiled. "It's fine. There's enough room for me."

He lowered the tent flap and carefully lay down on Shu Li's right, turning slightly onto his side before pulling up the blanket.

"It's late. Let's sleep."

"Mm."

Shu Li closed his eyes. With his keen sense of smell, he caught the fragrance of blazing flame flowers drifting from Ace.

It smells so good...

Like sunshine.

Before he knew it, Shu Li had fallen into a deep sleep, enveloped in the scent of blazing flame flowers.

Beneath an azure sky, the world brimmed with life. Brilliant crimson blazing flame flowers stretched as far as the eye could see, swaying in the breeze like rolling waves upon a scarlet sea.

Light as a swallow, Shu Li flew back and forth among the flowers.

The petals of the blazing flame flowers were enormous. A single petal could easily support a Little Fairy's weight.

Like a mischievous child, Shu Li used the petals as trampolines, bouncing from one flower to another and having the time of his life.

Just as he was getting thoroughly carried away, a heavenly voice called to him from the distance.

"Sperien..."

Shu Li spread the wings on his back and rose into the air.

Not far away, standing among the flowers, was the blond Elven King.

Shu Li's eyes lit up, and he flew toward him happily.

"Freyus!"

Just as he approached, he suddenly released his innate power, transforming from his tiny form into his full-sized one. He threw himself into the Elven King's arms, wrapped his arms around his neck, and locked his legs around his waist.

The Elven King supported him beneath his hips to keep him from slipping. The intimate gesture came so naturally that it seemed they had done it countless times before.

"What brings you here?" the Elven King asked gently.

"That old man Goleibia, of course! Always making excuses, dragging his feet, and going on and on. I'm sick of him! If he keeps refusing to join the forces of light, he can look forward to becoming a slave to the dark forces!"

Shu Li puffed out his cheeks indignantly.

The Elven King smiled. "So you ran away?"

Shu Li bared his teeth. "Of course! I wasn't about to sit there listening to that old man drone on. I'd rather go somewhere I could have some peace and quiet. Then I found this huge field of blazing flame flowers, so I decided to play here."

As he spoke, he beat the wings on his back and exerted a little force, pushing the Elven King down into the flowers.

Forced to lie back, the Elven King gazed up at the sly smile spreading across the blond Fairy's face, his green eyes full of tenderness.

Shu Li looked down at the handsome man surrounded by blazing flame flowers and slowly lowered his head. His breathing quickened involuntarily.

Just as their lips were about to meet, Shu Li's own consciousness abruptly returned.

His eyes widened in disbelief.

He tried to pull away, but the hand resting against the back of his head gave him no chance to change his mind, pressing him firmly downward.

They... they kissed...

Feeling the softness against his lips, Shu Li screamed inwardly.

Wake up! Hurry up and wake up!

Then he jolted awake.

His eyes flew open, and he discovered to his utter horror that he was nestled in Ace's arms, the two of them wrapped tightly around each other.

Wh... what's going on?

It wasn't bad enough that I had an intimate dream about the Elven King—I'm actually cuddling with a "man" in real life too?!

Thoroughly alarmed, Shu Li swallowed and held his breath. He carefully lifted the arm Ace had draped around his waist and began inching out of his embrace.

But before he could completely free himself, his back bumped into a wall of flesh.

It was Budno.

Shu Li turned his head and nearly spat blood.

You've got to be kidding me!

Budno's sleeping posture was outrageous. Not only had he spread himself out like a pancake, but his body pillow was occupying an entire person's sleeping space too!

No wonder Shu Li and Ace had ended up tangled together.

There simply wasn't any room left!

A vein throbbed on Shu Li's forehead. Between his lack of sleep and that bizarre dream, his temper was reaching its boiling point.

He took several deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.

Forget it. I'm not going to argue with this lazy little pig!

If there isn't enough room, then I'll just... shrink!

Without hesitation, Shu Li withdrew his innate power and transformed into his tiny, palm-sized form.

Flapping his wings, he flew around to the other side of Budno's body pillow, pulled up a corner of the blanket, and draped it over himself.

There. Surely I can get a good night's sleep now, right?

He closed his eyes and forced himself to try to sleep, praying over and over that he wouldn't have another dream.

After a long while, he opened his eyes in despair and stared blankly at the roof of the tent.

He couldn't sleep.

He simply couldn't sleep!

Every time he closed his eyes, the image of himself kissing the Elven King replayed endlessly in his mind.

Why does it seem like every time I sleep beside Ace, I end up having some kind of weird dream?!