Chapter 302: Taking a fragrant bath.

After leaving the Mages’ Guild, the group headed to a nearby restaurant for lunch.

After five or six days of eating nothing but the provisions they'd brought with them, they could finally enjoy a proper meal.

Unfortunately, the Kingdom of Snow was frozen year-round. Food choices were limited, and fresh fruit and vegetables were scarce. The meal proved rather disappointing.

Once they left the restaurant, everyone decided to return to the inn for some rest.

Although Nasha was eager to visit the royal palace, Shu Li eventually persuaded her to wait.

They had spent five or six exhausting days climbing through the snowy mountains. Turning up at the palace with dark circles under her eyes would hardly make a good impression. Wouldn't it be better to get a proper night's sleep, recover her strength, and look her best when she reunited with her brother?

Nasha took out the small mirror she carried with her and examined her reflection. The moment she saw the bloodshot whites of her eyes, she agreed.

After all, what girl didn't want to look beautiful?

She certainly didn't want her brother to see her looking so haggard.

Back in their room at the inn, there was nothing more blissful than taking a hot bath and then curling up in bed for a wonderful sleep.

Shu Li undressed and stepped into the bathroom. Finding the inn's supply of hot water inadequate, he used magic to create his own warm shower.

He knew cleansing magic, of course, but nothing beat the comfort of a hot shower.

Shu Li spent more than half an hour washing himself until he was perfectly clean, his skin soft, smooth, and fair. He dried his body and hair with magic, changed into a loose sleeping robe, and emerged from the bathroom.

The room was heated, so he wasn't cold even with nothing but a robe on.

Fairies disliked anything restrictive and had always preferred loose clothing.

Shu Li's sleeping robe was made from fabric woven by Fairies. Soft and silky, it was exceptionally comfortable.

His freshly washed and dried hair fell around his shoulders in a fluffy cascade, making his flawless skin appear even fairer. His cheeks were rosy from the hot water, and he looked as soft and delicate as a freshly peeled egg.

Having grown accustomed to the extraordinary beauty of Fairies and Elves, Shu Li remained completely oblivious to his own appeal.

His slippered feet padded across the carpet as he approached the bed, promptly pulled back the covers, and slipped underneath.

A twin room really was wonderful. With two separate beds, he didn't have to squeeze into the same one as Ace and endure the awkwardness.

After pulling the blanket into place, he glanced toward the blond man sitting on the sofa by the window, absorbed in a book.

The man was so engrossed in his reading that he never raised his head. Whenever he finished a page, his slender fingers turned it gently before he continued.

Shu Li wanted to tell him he'd finished showering, but he was afraid of interrupting his reading, so he swallowed the words.

After observing Ace over the past several days and discovering more and more “evidence,” Shu Li had gradually come to accept that Ace was the Elven King.

Still, until the truth was openly acknowledged, there was absolutely no way he dared ask him about it directly.

His feelings had undergone a subtle transformation.

At first, there had been disbelief. Then suspicion, followed by utter bewilderment, and finally acceptance.

Now he took every opportunity to quietly uncover more clues about the man, approaching the task with the tireless enthusiasm of a gold prospector.

Sometimes he couldn't help wondering whether the Elven King was even making a serious effort to disguise himself.

Apart from his face and voice, everything else was exactly the same.

Only someone as blind as Shu Li could have spent two years in the man's company, seeing him day and night, and taken this long to discover his secret.

Since Ace caught him every time he tried to steal a glance anyway, Shu Li had decided to abandon subtlety and stare openly.

Sure enough, even the way he sat and held his book was identical!

Perhaps his gaze had grown too intense, because Ace finally lowered his book and looked up.

Meeting Shu Li's unabashed stare, a faint smile spread across his handsome face, his green eyes brimming with warmth.

“Finished your shower?” he asked, his voice slightly deep, with a husky edge that made it unexpectedly alluring.

Shu Li buried the lower half of his face in the blanket and mumbled, “Mm-hmm. Are you going to take one?”

“Yes.”

Ace closed his book, set it casually on the table beside the sofa, and rose to walk toward the bathroom.

Shu Li hesitated before asking, “Would you like me to make you a warm shower with magic?”

Ace stopped in the bathroom doorway and turned to look at him.

“If it's not too much trouble.”

“No trouble at all! None whatsoever.”

Without even getting out of bed, Shu Li retrieved his magic staff from his storage pouch, pointed it toward the bathroom, and recited several spells in succession.

Whoooosh!

The sound of running water filled the bathroom.

“All done,” Shu Li announced, putting away his staff. “I'll dismiss the spell once you've finished.”

“Thank you.”

Ace nodded, stepped into the bathroom, and closed the door.

Shu Li lay flat on his back, staring at the rather plain ceiling. After ten seconds of blank contemplation, he suddenly sat bolt upright.

Oh, for goodness' sake! That was completely unnecessary!

The Elven King was a Seven-Element Mage, just like him. Creating a warm shower would have taken him no time at all. He certainly didn't need Shu Li's help.

Was this what happened when something became a habit?

Because Ace was supposedly a wind mage, Shu Li had automatically assumed he needed help with other kinds of magic, forgetting that the man could use those elements too.

He sighed softly, raked his fingers through his hair, and lay down again.

He really needed to find the right opportunity to confront Ace and expose his identity. Otherwise, the unresolved question would continue hanging over him, neither settled nor forgotten, and the uncertainty was driving him crazy.

But when exactly would the right opportunity come?

The more Shu Li thought about it, the more convinced he became that no time would ever feel right.

He lay with his eyes closed, pondering the problem for a long while.

Eventually, drowsiness crept up on him. Before he knew it, he had fallen into a deep, genuine sleep, so soundly that he didn't even notice Ace emerging from the bathroom.

The blond man, still surrounded by the faint warmth and moisture of his shower, stood beside the bed and smiled helplessly.

The magical shower was still running in the bathroom, while the Little Fairy who had promised to dismiss it was tucked beneath his blanket, sleeping blissfully.

The Elven King murmured a short incantation.

The sound of running water stopped abruptly, and the shower spell vanished.

He extended his slender fingers and gently touched the little flower crown, which had transformed into a hair clip.

Sensing a familiar presence, the little flower crown instantly returned to its original form, its emerald-like leaves glowing with a faint, soft light.

“Sweet dreams,” the Elven King whispered.

He turned, retrieved the book he'd left on the table, and returned to his own bed. Propping himself against the pillows, he resumed reading, without the slightest trace of fatigue on his face.

Outside the window, snowflakes began to drift down, adding another layer of pristine white to the city of ice and snow.

Inside, the room was wonderfully warm—the perfect place for a long, comfortable nap.

Shu Li slept so deeply that his soul seemed to leave his body and drift into a fantastical dream.

He was flying through the Faerie Forest, his translucent wings fluttering behind him.

As he flew, a beautiful patch of flowers caught his attention. Almost without thinking, he landed on one of the blossoms, took out his tools, and began collecting pollen like an industrious little bee.

As a Little Fairy, there was nothing he loved drinking more than nectar.

And where did nectar come from?

Why, from gathering pollen and processing it into delicious nectar, of course!

Fairies had their own special method of producing nectar, so there was no need to compete with bees for food.

Shu Li took out a syringe-like magical tool and diligently extracted pollen from the flowers. He moved from blossom to blossom, working tirelessly, and soon filled ten jars.

Unfortunately, he was so absorbed in his work that he failed to notice the danger approaching.

A towering magical beast was lumbering slowly through the forest. Its legs were thicker than an elephant's, and it trampled the flowers and grasses beneath its feet without a care.

As it passed the flower patch, its enormous feet came down indiscriminately, crushing the blossoms into the mud.

Shu Li was busy extracting pollen from a flower when a vast shadow suddenly fell over his head.

He assumed the sky had clouded over.

Looking up in confusion, he was horrified to discover the enormous foot of a magical beast descending toward him.

Startled, he tried to flee, but his body seemed to have frozen solid. He couldn't move a muscle.

Just as he was about to be flattened beneath the beast's foot, a voice as beautiful as heavenly music suddenly rang out.

The next instant, Shu Li felt himself become weightless. A gentle current of wind wrapped around him and swept him out of danger.

“Bichum, please watch where you step when walking through the Faerie Forest.”

The man's voice sounded close by.

Shu Li instinctively looked around for its owner and soon spotted a blond Elf seated upon a pure-white unicorn.

Ah!

It's the Elven King!

Suspended in midair by the gentle wind, Shu Li blinked his bright, pale-green eyes and gazed at the Elven King with undisguised reverence.

“G-Good... good afternoon, h-honored... Your Majesty...”

His Elven came out in awkward, halting fragments.

How strange!

A gigantic question mark practically appeared above Shu Li's head.

Wasn't he already seventeen or eighteen years old? Why was his Elven still so terrible?

And when had this happened? Why couldn't he remember any of it?

“Good afternoon, Sperien.”

The Elven King extended his hand, and the little current of wind carried Shu Li toward him.

When the wind dispersed, Shu Li landed neatly in the Elven King's palm.

He gave a clumsy little bow.

“Th-thank you, Your Majesty... for... for saving me.”

The Elven King regarded the shy Little Fairy with gentle eyes.

“There are magical beasts throughout the forest. In the future, it would be best to go out with your companions.”

“Y-yes... I... I understand.”

Shu Li nodded obediently.

The Elven King reached out a finger and gently stroked his little head before raising his gaze toward the magical beast, whose enormous foot was still suspended in midair.

Ever since the Elven King's magic had immobilized it, the beast had been trembling with anxiety.

It had nearly stepped on a Little Fairy and killed him!

How terrifying!

Thank goodness the Elven King had stopped it. Otherwise, it could have forgotten about ever living peacefully in the Faerie Forest again. The Fairy Clan would undoubtedly have hunted it down.

Seeing the Elven King turn his attention toward it, the magical beast apologized in a trembling voice.

“Please forgive my carelessness, Your Majesty.”

“You should apologize to Sperien,” the Elven King replied.

The beast immediately turned toward Shu Li.

“I'm terribly sorry, little Sperien. Please accept this gift as an apology.”

It opened its mouth and disgorged a heap of precious crystal ores from its spatial pouch.

“Ah! N-no... you don't have to give me so much...”

Shu Li stared wide-eyed at the little mountain of crystal ores and hurriedly waved his hands.

But the magical beast gave him no opportunity to refuse.

The moment the Elven King released the spell holding it in place, the beast fled as though its life depended on it.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Its massive body shook the ground with every stride, startling the small animals hiding among the grasses.

Shu Li watched the beast disappear into the distance, moving so quickly that it became a blur, and blinked.

What a generous magical beast!

“Your Majesty...”

He turned back toward the Elven King and pointed helplessly at the mountain of crystal ores on the ground.

The Elven King smiled.

“Go ahead and accept them.”

With permission granted, Shu Li flew down from the Elven King's palm and circled the pile of crystals.

After examining them, he selected the largest, purest piece of crystal ore. Wrapping his arms around it with considerable effort, he took off and flew unsteadily back toward the Elven King.

“Your Majesty... this... is for you...”

The crystal was even larger than Shu Li himself.

Struggling beneath its weight, he carried it over and set it on the unicorn's head.

Feeling the unexpected weight on its head, the unicorn voiced its displeasure and swished its flowing tail.

Shu Li hurriedly apologized.

“I'm sorry... Vilaya...”

“Neigh!”

The unicorn swished its tail even more vigorously.

The Elven King chuckled, reached out to take the crystal ore, and gently corrected the Little Fairy.

“It's Velia.”

Shu Li's face turned bright red.

He'd gotten the unicorn's name wrong again!

He'd been in this other world for eighteen years, yet not only was his Elven still dreadful, he couldn't even remember people's names properly!

The Elven King accepted the Little Fairy's gift and asked gently, “It will be dark soon. Would you like me to take you back to the divine tree?”

Shu Li shook his head.

“I... I can go back myself.”

The Elven King was patrolling the forest. Shu Li couldn't possibly trouble him further.

He flew down from the unicorn's head, stored the crystal ores in his storage ring, and bowed to the Elven King once more.

Then he fluttered his wings and set off toward the divine tree.

After flying a short distance, he couldn't resist glancing back.

The Elven King was still there, watching him.

Delighted, Shu Li was just about to break into a huge grin when—

Thump!

He flew straight into a tree trunk.

Ah!

That hurts!

Back at the inn, Shu Li's eyes flew open as he jolted awake.

It took him a while to regain his bearings. Finally, he pushed himself upright and pressed a hand to his forehead, which still seemed to throb faintly.

Had that just been... a dream?

It had felt so real.

Almost as though it had actually happened.

But that was impossible!

There was no way he could have been seventeen or eighteen years old and still unable to speak Elven properly!