Earlier, Shu Li had looked out through the Fairy Nursery’s skylight and learned that many adult Fairies lived in the forest.
What he had not known was how spectacular—and terrifying—the sight of thousands upon thousands of palm-sized Fairies gathered together would be!
Individually, each one was exquisitely beautiful and pleasing to the eye. But when so many appeared at once, their beauty instantly diminished beneath the overwhelming visual impact, and a fear of densely packed objects welled up inside him.
Goose bumps rose all over Shu Li’s body. His wings faltered, and he began flying crookedly.
The Fairy cubs who had left ahead of him were overjoyed. Clearly, none of them shared Shu Li’s sensitivity. Seeing so many adult Fairies waiting to welcome them, they all puffed out their chests and flew onward with tremendous spirit.
Today was the day the Fairy cubs left the Fairy Nursery. Every Fairy in the forest had gathered outside its doors, watching kindly as the adorable cubs flew out one after another.
The little fatty Budno charged out first. Despite drawing the attention of so many adult Fairies, he showed no fear whatsoever and flew forward with his head held high.
Fairies were small and generally slender. Although cubs still carried some baby fat, very few became as round as balls.
The adult Fairies could not help laughing when they saw such a fair, plump cub.
He had to be a greedy little eater.
After Budno, the other cubs obediently remained in line and flew through the doors one by one.
The adult Fairies watched their lively, energetic figures with gentle gazes, their faces filled with affection.
When the final golden-haired cub emerged, the adult Fairies all revealed puzzled expressions.
Hm?
What was going on?
There was a little fellow here who could not even fly steadily!
He stumbled through the air, rising and falling, swerving left and right. His exquisite little face was pale, as though he had seen something terrifying. His eyes kept opening and closing as he tried to avoid looking around.
“That’s Sperien,” an adult Fairy exclaimed softly after noticing the flower crown on the cub’s head.
As the Fairy cub who had received the Elven King’s blessing, Sperien was already famous.
Whenever Aisha and Siet left the Fairy Nursery, they would share amusing stories about the cubs with the other Fairies.
The one they spoke about most was Sperien.
On the very day he was born, the little fellow had already tried communicating with the adult Fairies through gestures. In order to obtain underwear, he had painstakingly gathered cocoons, unwound the silk, and attempted to weave a pair himself. Although he was hardworking and eager to learn and even took notes during lessons, his Elven remained only half-learned.
The other adult Fairies had long been eager to meet such an interesting cub and see whether he was truly as unique as Aisha claimed.
Now that they had finally seen him, however, they were worried about Sperien’s health.
Was he feeling unwell?
Why else would he look so listless and fly so poorly?
Shu Li had no idea that he had become the focus of the adult Fairies’ attention. He was struggling desperately against his fear of densely packed objects while tremblingly following the line ahead.
After an unknown amount of time, they finally moved away from the Fairy Nursery’s doors. The adult Fairies stopped crowding together and gradually dispersed, allowing Shu Li’s discomfort to subside at last.
He had nearly suffocated just now.
Imagine walking out of a door and immediately finding yourself surrounded by “bees” from the ground to the sky. How terrifying would that be?
He felt rather guilty comparing the beautiful Fairies to bees, but when such enormous numbers crowded tightly together, it placed far too much strain on the human visual system.
At that moment, Shu Li deeply envied the other Fairy cubs for their insensitivity.
Perhaps it was because they were genuine cubs who had never seen the world, while he was merely a fake Fairy who had transmigrated with the memories of his former life?
Once his discomfort faded, Shu Li stopped avoiding his surroundings. He boldly opened his eyes, beat his wings, and flew swiftly.
The adult Fairies who had been watching him exchanged looks when they saw the little fellow suddenly return to normal.
What had happened?
He could suddenly fly again?
Had he merely been afraid of strangers?
That did not sound like what Aisha and Siet had told them!
Still, as long as he was not ill, that was good. They could observe him carefully later and make certain that every cub remained healthy.
Shu Li followed the group to the colossal tree.
Back inside the Fairy Nursery, he had seen the enormous tree through the skylight, but from that distance, he had been unable to comprehend its terrifying size. Now that he was viewing it up close, the shock was indescribable. Compared with it, the nearby trees were utterly insignificant.
The colossal tree towered into the clouds like a pagoda, straight, lush, and majestic. Its powerful, well-developed roots occupied an enormous area. No other trees dared grow nearby, and only wildflowers and grasses grew cautiously beneath its shade. Its thick branches spread outward in orderly layers, with all kinds of exquisite little houses arranged neatly upon them, adding countless splashes of color to the tree.
Little Fairies were so tiny that, beside the colossal tree, they were no different from ants.
The Fairy cubs who had only just left the nursery stared at the gigantic tree in speechless amazement.
“So... so amazing!”
“Are we going to live in the big tree from now on?”
“This is wonderful! I like this big, big, big tree!”
“Where are our little houses?”
“I don’t want to live too high up. It’ll be so tiring to fly all the way there!”
“I want to live at the very top! It must be super fun!”
The cubs chattered among themselves and occasionally cried out in wonder.
An adult Fairy passing by overheard them and smiled at the cub who wanted to live at the top.
“Hello, little darling. You won’t be able to live on the highest level.”
“Why not?” the little cub asked indignantly.
The adult Fairy mimed blowing and lowered his voice.
“Gales howl across the highest level. Since you don’t know magic, the moment you went up there, you would freeze into an icicle and then be torn into tiny pieces by the wind.”
“Waaaah! Then I don’t want to go to the highest level!” The little cub was frightened. He hugged himself and shivered, two enormous tears forming at the corners of his eyes as he teetered on the verge of crying.
The adult Fairy blinked in surprise.
Oh dear. It seemed his joke had gone too far. The little cub was about to cry!
“Chris, you’re playing another prank!” Aisha flew over and glared at the adult Fairy with her hands on her hips.
She had noticed that the cubs at the back of the group were flying too slowly and had come to hurry them along. Instead, she happened to catch Chris deliberately making a little cub cry.
Chris had only just turned one hundred and was at the age when his energy was at its peak. He loved playing pranks and often “bullied” Fairies younger than himself. The elders had punished him many times, yet he stubbornly refused to change.
Who would have imagined that today, he would not even spare a three-month-old cub?
Aisha rolled up her sleeves and glared fiercely.
Seeing that the Fairy godmother was about to lose her temper, Chris hurriedly apologized.
“I’m sorry! I’ll never do it again!”
Without waiting for Aisha to respond, he beat his wings and fled as swiftly as lightning.
Aisha watched the distant “speck of light” and ground her teeth.
He was lucky he had escaped quickly!
Shu Li, who had witnessed the entire scene, opened his mouth in amazement. He could already foresee that his future days here would be very eventful.
Not every adult Fairy would carefully cherish and protect the cubs. There were also Fairies like Chr... whoever that was, who took pleasure in teasing them.
Although he bore no ill will, his tricks were still enough to make an innocent little cub cry.
It took Aisha a great deal of effort to soothe the frightened little fellow. Then she took him by the hand and flew toward the lower-middle section of the colossal tree.
A short while later, all twenty-five Fairy cubs stood upon one of its branches and looked around curiously.
The branch was enormously thick, as spacious as a small plaza. The cubs could run and play upon it as much as they pleased without ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) worrying about falling.
Of course, even if they did fall, it would not matter.
They had wings. A fall could not hurt them.
“Do you see the branches beside us?” Aisha pointed. “The houses upon them will be your homes until you reach adulthood. The male cubs will live on the left, and the female cubs will live on the right. Now, everyone go to Siet and draw a house number.”
Redhead raised his hand and asked, “Can we exchange numbers?”
He wanted to live beside Boss.
Whitehead immediately nodded, looking expectantly at Aisha.
Aisha smiled and inclined her head.
“You may, as long as the other person agrees.”
“Yay!” Redhead and Whitehead happily high-fived each other.
Shu Li was pleased as well.
He did not want an annoying fellow as his neighbor. If it were the little fatty Budno, for example, seeing him every time he left home would ruin his mood for the entire day.
Siet took out a wooden box, shook it several times, and placed it on the branch before calling the cubs over to line up and draw lots.
Before long, each cub had obtained a house number from the box.
“I’m number three.”
“I got number twelve.”
Redhead and Whitehead turned simultaneously to look at Shu Li.
Shu Li showed them his number and said helplessly, “I’m... number twenty.”
It seemed they would have to find someone willing to trade.
Redhead and Whitehead immediately took action, searching for the cubs holding numbers nineteen and twenty-one.
Coincidentally, number twenty-one belonged to the little fatty Budno.
“I’m not trading with you!” Budno tightly clutched his number and bared his teeth at Shu Li.
Shu Li puffed out his cheeks.
What had he just said?
Having an annoying neighbor would ruin his mood for the entire day.
By an absurd coincidence, he and Budno had truly drawn neighboring numbers.
Shu Li decisively went to exchange numbers with another cub.
When Budno saw Shu Li abandon his original number without hesitation, he looked deeply frustrated. His eyes widened as if he wanted to say something, but he stopped himself. He squeezed his little fists, awkwardly turned around, and pointed his bottom toward everyone.
Shu Li glanced sideways at him and more or less guessed what the little fatty was thinking.
He was just like an elementary school child from Shu Li’s former world. The more he liked someone, the more he bullied them in order to attract their attention, without realizing how unpleasant and childish his behavior was.
What a complete nutcase.
In the end, Shu Li traded for number eleven. Redhead obtained number ten, while Whitehead kept the number twelve he had drawn.
Redhead and Whitehead would never allow another cub to live beside Boss.
Once they received their house numbers, the cubs found their respective homes.
Shu Li stood outside house number eleven and tried pushing the door, but it would not move. Puzzled, he examined it and discovered a small recess in its surface. He tentatively inserted his house number into it.
A magical array immediately appeared on the door.
With a click, the door opened, and the recess spat the number tablet back out.
“Wow!” Shu Li exclaimed. He took the tablet and pushed open the door.
Redhead and Whitehead followed his example. Two more clicks sounded as they opened their own doors.
The three cubs eagerly entered their homes and looked around in fascination.
Although the houses were small, they had everything one could need.
Each contained a bed, a table, a chair, a cabinet, and even a separate bathroom.
The moment Shu Li saw the spotless toilet, his face lit up with joy.
Wonderful!
He finally would not have to squat in the grass and expose his bottom in embarrassment!
The house was extremely clean, as though someone had specially prepared it. Not a speck of dust could be seen. Soft bedding covered the bed and gave off the fresh fragrance of flowers. A row of decorative wooden carvings sat upon the table, so adorable that one could hardly bear to put them down. The cabinet was spacious and divided into numerous compartments for organizing different types of belongings.
Seeing the cabinet reminded Shu Li that Aisha still had his luggage.
He hurriedly closed the cabinet door and went outside. The moment he stepped through his doorway, he encountered Aisha.
Seeing the anxious expression on the little cub’s face, Aisha smiled and removed his luggage from her belt pouch.
After thanking her, Shu Li dragged the large sack into his house with all his strength.
He had brought so many things from the Fairy Nursery that they nearly filled the entire cabinet.
“Phew—”
Once he had finally finished organizing everything, he sat on the chair to catch his breath. Looking at the little home that now belonged entirely to him, he felt deeply satisfied.
“Jingle, jingle—”
The familiar sound of the bell rang out.
Shu Li’s ears twitched. He knew Aisha was summoning all the Fairy cubs.
He took his little house number and stepped outside. The door automatically closed and locked behind him.
His sense of security instantly soared.
Shu Li was very satisfied.
The things he had collected inside the Fairy Nursery might not be valuable, but he still hated the thought of outsiders entering his home.
He spread his wings and flew elegantly toward the neighboring branch. With a light touch of his toes, he landed gracefully upon the branch where they had gathered earlier.
As their Fairy godmother, Aisha was responsible for teaching the cubs all the basic knowledge they needed for daily life.
Once every cub had arrived, she waved her fairy wand and led them around to familiarize them with the Fairies’ living environment.
This unimaginably enormous tree was an ancient divine tree more than one hundred thousand years old. It had always protected the Little Fairies.
To repay the divine tree, the Fairies had built their homes upon its branches. They supplied it with nutrients, removed pests, trimmed excessively overgrown leaves, and ensured that it remained healthy.
“How do we provide nutrients for the divine tree?” one cub asked curiously.
Aisha smiled.
“The same way you provided nutrients for the flowers and plants inside the Fairy Nursery.”
Shu Li turned her words over in his mind several times.
When he finally understood what she meant, his pupils shook violently.
Huh?
Author’s Note:
Shushu: Building infrastructure in another world? Leave it to me! (Not really.)
P.S. There are toilets! Shushu simply misunderstood, hahaha. Happy Children’s Day! (＾ワ＾)
Red packets will be randomly distributed in this chapter.