Chapter 1038 - 16: Divine Dream: Self-Balancing Illusion

Chapter 1038: Chapter 16: Divine Dream: Self-Balancing Illusion

"Xiao Ai, Xiao Ai... Try this, quick, have a taste."

The silver-haired, silvery-eyed girl spoke in a lively and joyful tone, exuding a vibrant energy. She reached out to pull the daughter sitting next to her, then waved her chopsticks in hand, happily and energetically promoting.

"This is something Mom worked really hard to make... Um, even Lan and Serra can’t find any faults with it this time. It’s definitely, definitely, definitely successful!!"

Speaking with such confidence, she flashed a blend of a coy and smug expression on her face. Shenqi seemed very confident in her creation this time, her eyes were bright, and she was eagerly anticipating her daughter’s approval and feedback.

"...Oh..."

Elongated sound syllable.

Alice seemed to be sleepwalking as she nodded, somewhat blankly, scooped a spoonful of what was claimed to be a masterpiece, and mechanically brought it to her mouth.

Without noticing what it was, whether it was a culinary disaster...

Because she felt entirely numb, her brain had stopped thinking.

She just sat by the dining table like a malfunctioning robot, turning her rusty-like neck with a particularly complex gaze, looking around one by one... Well, she felt slightly comforted that the class enemies weren’t too numerous.

Yes, not too many.

Barely even a handful.

Not as absurd as her immediate imagination suggested, given how startled the girl was—the impact of the mental image was so overwhelming that it was shocking enough to last a whole year—

It was in a grand and opulent hall...

A long banquet table stretched from one side to the other...

Countless women with indistinct faces sat there...

The moment the heavy doors were slowly pushed open, making a sound, the instant she stepped into the hall, everything went silent; the audience turned their eyes to her, staring intently with inexplicable expressions...

—In short, although it was just an imagined scenario, it was indeed suffocating.

Just this subconscious mental image made Alice feel breathless.

Like now, it wasn’t that bad... not that bad... not bad...

Ugh! No, no! This isn’t good at all!!

The girl suddenly realized her thought process had gone astray without noticing, quickly shook her head repeatedly; the shock she received seemed too great for her to process the strange information, resulting in a mind turning sluggish and having such thoughts.

It’s not a matter of good or bad, but a difference between bad and worse.

Yet, she shouldn’t feel it’s less terrible just because the worst-case scenario didn’t appear...

"Eh eh eh, how, how could—?!"

At this moment, a voice that seemed disbelieving and unacceptable stumbled out.

The silver-haired, silvery-eyed girl’s pupils shook like an earthquake; she was deeply struck, looking at Alice with eyes that lost their shine, instantly dimming; in the next second, she let out a whimper like a dying small animal, unwillingly voicing wu wu.

"Isn’t it good? Really isn’t good?"

"Wu wu, it can’t be true, I clearly... I clearly did well this time..."

Shenqi originally planned to showcase her skills, filled with confidence.

Just as she said, her effort this time yielded remarkable success, such that not even the housework-savvy Shikigami Fox and the versatile maid could find any faults with the proud creation. By any standard, even if not reaching sparkling culinary levels, it shouldn’t count as bad.

Yet under such circumstances—

The progress completely veered off the script she imagined.

Not just the expected amazement and admiring expressions—none of the praises and affirmations she anticipated appeared...

Moreover, after Alice took a bite of her proud creation, she first seemed obviously bewildered, then vigorously shook her head as if strongly rejecting something, her expression resolute and resistant.

Thus...

This foolish mom, originally wanting to boast a little, childishly awaiting her daughter’s praise and affirmation, found her expression frozen...

This was the most painful blow, directly causing Shenqi to orz.

"Uh... No, no, I didn’t mean it’s hard to eat..." Only at this point did Alice awaken from her stupor, realizing the direct blow she inadvertently dealt to her mom, she was suddenly at a loss.

What was all this—it’s not because it’s hard to eat at all...

Actually, due to her absent-mindedness, she hadn’t noticed what she ate, so discussing the flavor didn’t make sense.

"Really it isn’t, actually it’s delicious, it truly is delicious..."

But this was no solution, the girl could only attempt to clumsily comfort her foolish mom, stutteringly unable to find the right words.

Of course, Shenqi herself lacked the experience of being comforted; both mother and daughter probably weren’t too familiar with it...

After all, whether you’re a mom or a daughter, it’s the first time for both parties, and there isn’t much experience involved. If there had been a better way to handle emotions and communicate, Alice wouldn’t have left home back then.

——Even if they’ve reconciled recently, it was a recent occurrence.

——So, the comforting effect is evidently minimal.

Shenqi probably has a preconceived disbelief. She lifted her head, despondent yet with a hint of hope:

"Is it really delicious? How exactly is it delicious?"

"Uh, um... this..."

The blond maiden suddenly had a headache. She subconsciously glanced at the table. Perhaps improvising was a good idea?

But just at that moment, a maid with white hair and red eyes, with a face as proper as a doll’s, happened to be nearby, placing down several dishes again. She nodded gently and then turned to enter the kitchen, continuing to busy herself alongside the fluffy nine-tailed Shikigami Fox.

"..."

"..."

Looking at the sumptuous spread on the table, Alice fell silent. Now, which dish was it just now?

At this point, Miss Shenqi, who had a glimmer of hope, completely sank into sadness. She listlessly laid her head on the table, evidently overwhelmed by the real damage of this second blow, her entire being turned grey as if a painter forgot to color her in.

Alice opened her mouth in distress, glancing at the silver-haired, silver-eyed maiden beside her, who was dispirited from the blow, even the tuft of hair on her head drooping lifelessly. She did not know what to say for a while.

"Pfft..."

Someone at the table couldn’t help but laugh.

This made the Puppet Master suddenly think of a certain someone, and she looked over, flustered and annoyed.

"Alright, alright, let me say something fair... It’s still quite good, Shenqi’s skills have improved..." Under her daughter’s embarrassed and annoyed gaze, the young man hurriedly stifled his smile, raised his fist to his mouth, gently coughed, and earnestly began speaking.

He amusedly observed the little drama between the mother and daughter across from him, unable to suppress the smile on his lips. Alice was trying to comfort the dejected Shenqi, and the two looked more like sisters—for the record, Alice instead seemed like the older sister...

In every sense, this was quite criminal...

If this truly were a very normal and standard world, then it might be enough to sentence someone to a lifetime.

"It’s certainly not bad, much better than before..."

On the other side of the table, a Witch in a white and red robe spoke softly, giving a fair evaluation.

"Mm mm..."

The black-haired straight-haired maiden lightly nodded. Though she didn’t say much, she uttered a few syllables seemingly in agreement.

"It’s okay, I suppose..." Only the Fox Elf, beautiful enough to enchant the world, pouted at this, seeming somewhat reluctant and gave an indifferent evaluation. Mainly because she had previously tried to win over Master through cooking and wasn’t happy to see competitors in this field.

Even in this new world, it’s still the same reason.

"Really? Really? You’re not lying, are you?"

Finally receiving reasonable recognition and affirmation, Miss Shenqi somewhat perked up, recovering some strength.

However, Alice felt quite uneasy. Why was it like this? Her mother should have come in, right? Then why was it so natural to accept all this now? Or is it that her current self isn’t actually like her real self, just a "perfect" reflection manifested in this world?

Or perhaps—

They are holding onto their composure, seriously playing their "roles" now?

Numerous thoughts flashed through her mind, Alice strived to maintain her expression unchanged, scrutinizing the three witches across the table... Only three people.

Even Yakumo Zi wasn’t among them.

She wondered if this was considered good news... Just what caused this discrepancy?

Unconsciously glancing at the person beside her, Alice felt slight doubt—was it really influenced by this individual’s understanding and deep-seated subconscious attitude? So it’s only these three in confirmed relations, and other than them, only she and her mom?

Hmm, it seemed quite plausible. After all, this peculiar world’s creation must be influenced by this guy’s understanding.

——Otherwise, it’s not just Yakumo Zi.

——Even the one at the Eternal Pavilion has to be added, and the one at the Sunflower Field might have her ideas, plus other women...

Her heart couldn’t stop surging with irritation. For the first time, Alice realized she was facing a worrisome crisis. Thinking this way, there might be quite a few wanting to be her mom. Within the Fantasy Land, many seemed interested in the Dragon God.

It was said to be like this before.

No way! They absolutely mustn’t be superimposed!

The seven-colored Puppet Master cannot imagine suddenly being inferior to an unexpected generation in the presence of past acquaintances and friends...

...

(PS: Happy Winter Solstice everyone... My throat still hurts... No hope offline, can’t get anything, don’t know when the medicine ordered online will arrive, frustrating...)