The Divine Tree had an enormous, highly developed root system that occupied a vast area and required tremendous amounts of soil and nutrients. Apart from a few shade-loving wildflowers, grasses, and fungi, no other plants dared grow near it.
With no sunlight, nutrients, or resources, competing with the Divine Tree for territory was no different from seeking death. It was better to stay far away, where the sky was high and the land vast, and grow freely while competing with plants on equal footing.
Although the Little Fairies made their homes in the Divine Tree, they still had to gather their daily necessities from the forest, including food, medicinal herbs, and various materials.
The Faerie Forest was a treasure trove rich in resources, filled with rare plants and magical beasts found nowhere else.
To the other races of the continent, the home of the Fairies and Elves was mysterious and beautiful, like a paradise that inspired endless yearning.
Had the Elven King not sealed the forest entrance ten thousand years ago, outsiders would have invaded and occupied it long since.
Fairies were the forest’s favored children, enjoying nature’s bounty every day.
To make gathering safer, the Fairies had used magic to enclose a protected area, preventing large magical beasts and aggressive carnivores from approaching.
Of course, anyone who wanted to gather more valuable treasures had to leave the protected area and venture deep into the forest.
Gathering was an essential skill for every Fairy. After the cubs left the Fairy Nursery, the adult Fairies carefully taught them how to survive in the forest.
Since the cubs had not yet learned combat or magic and possessed no ability to protect themselves, the fruit grove Dorsia was taking them to lay within the safest part of the protected area.
Never mind large animals—even insects were restricted there.
The moment they learned they were going into the forest to play, the cubs became ecstatic. Abandoning their notebooks, they happily followed Dorsia out of the classroom.
Shu Li carried a little basket, wore his bag across his body, and fluttered his beautiful gauze-like wings at the back of the group.
The Divine Tree’s territory was enormous. The cubs flew for a long time without leaving the area covered by its branches and leaves.
"I’m so tired!" Budno panted. He ate a lot and had grown round and chubby. Whenever they flew a long distance, the little wings on his back struggled beneath the burden.
"Keep going, Budno! There are lots of delicious fruits ahead," Shu Li tempted him with food.
Sure enough, the moment Budno heard there would be delicious fruit, his eyes lit up.
"Heave-ho—"
He rallied himself, increased the speed of his wingbeats, and shot forward like a tiny cannonball.
Disio noticed Budno overtaking him and immediately gave chase, refusing to be outdone.
"Charge—!" Angel waved his little fist and shouted with tremendous vigor. Encouraged by him, the other cubs all sped up at once.
Trailing behind them, Shu Li’s mouth twitched.
He had only wanted to encourage the little fatty. How could he have known the cubs were so competitive that they would turn it into a race?
Did they really have to be this intense?
They were only going to pick fruit!
Shu Li sighed at the heavens, not daring to pause for even a moment as he desperately flapped his wings.
He might not be fat, but his flying skills were average. Flying too high or too quickly could trigger his fear of heights.
Just as he was struggling to keep up, the prank-loving Chris appeared out of nowhere at the worst possible moment and added fuel to the fire.
"Well, well, well. Where are all you little cubs flying off to in such a hurry?"
A sweet, rather clueless female cub answered, "We’re going to pick fruit."
Chris clapped his hands. "Picking fruit sounds great! I’m heading to the fruit grove too. Let’s race and see who can fly fastest! The Little Fairies who lose have to hand over their fruit!"
The innocent cubs had never made a bet before. The moment they heard that the losers would have to surrender their fruit, how could any of them dare fall behind?
Budno, who was especially protective of food, unleashed his full potential and swore to come in first.
Shu Li suffered bitterly and glared at Chris with deep resentment.
Apparently deciding Shu Li was not suffering enough, Chris grinned and shouted at him, "Sperien, did you skip lunch? Why are you flying so slowly? Do you need my help?"
Shu Li ground his teeth.
Thanks a lot, pal—
Seeing the little cub’s cheeks puffed out like a frog’s, Chris doubled over laughing. Suddenly, a high-heeled foot came flying at him and struck his cheek with perfect accuracy.
"Aaagh—!"
Chris let out a scream like a pig being slaughtered and spun head over heels through the air like a top.
The cubs stared in shock and unconsciously stopped flying.
Dorsia slowly withdrew her long, elegant leg and gracefully swept back her fiery red hair.
"Did you think I wasn’t here? How dare you encourage innocent little cubs to gamble!"
After finally stabilizing himself, Chris covered his swollen cheek and apologized pitifully.
"I... I’m sorry. Next time, I’ll still—"
"Hm?" Dorsia shot him an icy look.
Chris hurriedly corrected himself, his attitude becoming extraordinarily sincere.
"I won’t dare do it again!"
"Is that so?" Dorsia snorted, clearly unconvinced.
Chris cast a healing spell on himself. After a flash of white light, his cheek, which had swollen like a steamed bun, returned to normal. He bowed politely to Dorsia and said with a solemn expression, "I’m going to repair the magical wall. Farewell."
Afraid that Dorsia might kick his handsome face again, he beat his wings furiously and fled like a whirlwind.
Dorsia watched his retreating figure, the corners of her lips rising.
As the name suggested, the magical wall was a transparent barrier constructed with magic around the outer edge of the gathering area.
High-ranking magical beasts frequently roamed the forest and sometimes damaged the wall by accident, so every half month, the Fairies had to come and repair any breaches.
Chris had only recently reached adulthood. He was energetic and still at an age when he loved to play. Sending him to repair the magical wall was perfect. It would keep him from running around playing pranks.
Dorsia turned to face the cubs and said kindly, "Babies, gambling is very bad behavior. We must never imitate it!"
"All right." The cubs obediently nodded their little heads.
"Chris is a bad Fairy!" grumbled a female cub named Lois, puffing out her cheeks angrily. She had answered Chris’s question so nicely, only for him to encourage them to gamble.
"That’s right! Chris is a huge villain! He wanted to steal our fruit!" Budno clenched his little fists in righteous indignation.
"Last time, he even tricked us into thinking we were going to be late for class!" Angel planted his hands on his hips.
The cubs all began reporting Chris’s "crimes" at once, proving just how badly he normally behaved.
After they had finished, Dorsia said seriously, "Since Chris has provoked such widespread outrage, we should punish him."
At the mention of punishment, the kindhearted cubs hesitated.
"A-Actually, Chris isn’t that bad... The day before yesterday, he gave me a fruit." Budno licked the corner of his mouth. "It was super delicious."
"Yesterday, we bought so many things in the shopping district that we couldn’t carry our bags. Chris helped us."
"He’s really strong! He can carry four huge bags with two hands!"
"When I got lost, Chris brought me home."
"...Now that I think about it, he doesn’t seem that bad."
The cubs became confused.
How could a Fairy be both bad and good?
Shu Li was the only one who understood the truth.
Despite belonging to a long-lived race, the hundred-year-old Chris clearly still had the dramatic tendencies of an adolescent. He liked teasing children, but he did not actually mean any harm.
For example, if they had not flown faster the morning before yesterday, they really would have been late for class.
Yesterday afternoon in the shopping district, every cub had gone on a buying spree. Their shopping bags had become so heavy they could not drag them. Chris had happened to pass by and kindly helped them.
Without Chris, they probably would have missed dinner.
In brief, Chris was simply a loudmouthed Fairy with an overactive teenage hero complex.
He had fully deserved Dorsia’s kick.
Still, Fairies who knew magic really were incredible. A casual healing spell had reduced the swelling immediately.
Shu Li rubbed his hands eagerly, desperate to learn magic.
Unfortunately, he was only a tiny cub who had been born a short time ago. He could not even learn Elven properly, let alone magic.
He had a long road ahead of him!
He had better make the most of his time and study!
Dorsia waited patiently to one side as the cubs debated whether Chris was good or bad. Suddenly, she noticed that one cub had not joined the discussion. Instead, he sat cross-legged atop the cap of a large mushroom, looking down at the notebook in his hands.
It was Sperien.
The little fellow flipped through the notebook while murmuring under his breath, apparently memorizing something.
A flicker of astonishment passed through Dorsia’s eyes.
Wait... were cubs nowadays all this diligent?
He refused to waste even a moment and had already started studying again.
She cleared her throat twice.
She remembered the Elven poem she had heard yesterday afternoon.
According to Lia and Oress, the cub who had stumbled through the song and even mispronounced the true names of the gods was Sperien.
His courage was commendable!
His Elven was also genuinely terrible.
It had been several centuries since she had encountered a cub with such ordinary talent for languages.
Hearing her cough, Shu Li looked up in confusion and met Dorsia’s interested gaze. He froze briefly, then calmly closed his notebook, slipped it into his bag, and picked up the little basket beside him.
"Dorsia, are we still going to pick fruit?"
At this rate, it would be dark before the cubs finished their discussion.
Dorsia smiled faintly, clapped her hands, and called, "Little darlings, we can continue discussing Chris after we return. For now, everyone, let’s keep going to the fruit grove."
"All right~~" the cubs answered in unison and lined up behind her.
Shu Li quietly exhaled, spread his wings, and joined the group.
More than half an hour later, they finally reached their destination.
The brilliant afternoon sunlight shone uninhibitedly over the thriving flowers, grasses, and trees. All kinds of fruit trees were laden with small, crystal-clear fruits, making the cubs drool at the sight.
"Ahhh, I know that one! It’s a Kuku fruit!"
"That’s a Lolo fruit!"
"This whole patch is red plum fruit!"
"This is amazing! I love it here!"
"Let’s start picking! I want to eat lots and lots of fruit!"
Carrying empty baskets, the cubs could barely resist diving headfirst into the grove and feasting.
Budno sucked in his drool with a loud slurp.
Shu Li looked around and discovered that all the fruits were small. They were foods the cubs often ate and were suitable for them to pick.
Ever since transmigrating to this other world, he had eaten nothing but vegetarian food for more than three months, and it was becoming rather monotonous.
He missed the taste of meat so much!
However, Fairies were herbivorous creatures. Their staple foods were nectar and fruit, supplemented by plant roots, wheat flour, and their only nonvegetarian dish—unfertilized eggs from certain birds. Unless Shu Li one day left the Faerie Forest to train in the Human World, he would have no chance to eat meat.
Unfortunately, he could not leave the forest until he reached adulthood at the earliest.
Fairies did not become adults until they were a hundred years old.
Back in the Fairy Nursery, when Aisha had taught the cubs basic knowledge and revealed that Fairies and Elves reached adulthood at one hundred, Shu Li had been stunned speechless.
One hundred years... That was the limit of a human lifespan, yet a Fairy’s life had only just begun at that age.
How could the difference between species be so enormous?
Seeing the cubs staring hungrily, Dorsia took a large wicker basket from her belt pouch. It was big enough to hold four soccer balls.
The cubs cried out in wonder and flew inside, touching everything curiously.
"Dorsia, what is this basket for?" Angel asked from where he stood on its rim.
"For holding fruit." Dorsia pointed at the various fruits around them and smiled warmly. "All you little darlings will be responsible for tonight’s dinner in the school dining hall!"
In other words, the cubs had to place all the fruit they picked into the basket until it was full.
Of course, if they became hungry during the process, they could pick and eat fruit on the spot.
The task was substantial, but every cub was bursting with determination. They rolled up their sleeves and got to work.
Dorsia gave them a lesson on the spot, pointing at the fruit trees one by one and explaining what kind of tree each was, what fruit it produced, how it tasted, and what nutrients it contained.
The cubs listened carefully, and some even took out little notebooks to record what she said.
After introducing all the surrounding fruit trees, Dorsia flew to a branch, sat down, and watched the cubs roam freely while munching on a Kuku fruit.
Shu Li was immensely grateful for the quiet top student’s notes. Every one of these fruit trees had been recorded in the notebook, complete with remarkably lifelike drawings. He had understood Dorsia’s explanation without any difficulty.
"Sperien, come pick fruit!" Budno called enthusiastically.
"Oh—" Shu Li returned to his senses, pulled Redhead and Whitehead along, and flew over.
The four cubs often acted together, and their friendship steadily deepened. Although Disio and Budno still bickered, their exchanges no longer carried the hostility of their first meeting.
Kuku fruits were small enough for a cub to hold in one hand, but they were difficult to pick. The cubs had to wrap both arms around them and tug with all their strength.
"Heave-ho, heave-ho—" Budno’s face turned bright red from the effort. He had barely picked any fruit before his palms began to hurt.
Shu Li took one look and decided this would not work.
Dorsia had brought out such an enormous wicker basket, yet the baskets distributed to the cubs were tiny. How long would they have to pick before completing the task?
Without tools, gathering fruit was a massive undertaking.
After thinking for a moment, Shu Li took a pair of protective gloves from his bag and drew the dagger hanging at his waist.
"Huh?" Angel asked curiously. "Sperien, what are you doing?"
Shu Li flew up to a fruit and raised the dagger to cut its stem.
The dagger was small but extremely sharp. The fruit immediately separated from the branch.
"Ah, it’s falling—!" Disio rushed forward and caught the descending Kuku fruit in his arms.
Budno clapped excitedly. "Sperien, that’s a great idea!"
Darn it!
He had bought a bow, but it was inconvenient to carry, so he could only hang it on the wall at home as a decoration. Had he known, he would have bought a dagger too.
Seeing how useful Shu Li’s dagger was, Angel’s eyes lit up, and he immediately drew his own short sword.
"Ha—yah—take this—!"
Angel struck an impressive pose and swung the sword fiercely. A Kuku fruit fell from the branch.
Budno swiftly caught it and placed it in Angel’s basket.
Angel grinned. "Thanks! Once my basket is full, we’ll start filling yours."
Budno nodded vigorously. "Yay!"
The four little cubs divided into two teams and worked together. Before long, all four small baskets were full, and they happily emptied the fruits into the large wicker basket.
When the other cubs discovered that fruit could be gathered this way, they immediately copied them.
Many of the cubs had bought daggers and short swords at the weapons shop in the shopping district yesterday. They all took them out and paired up with cubs who had no weapons.
The cubs worked busily throughout the grove, while Dorsia sat on a branch and watched with endless amusement.
This was the most unusual group of Little Fairies she had ever taught.
Not only did they study seriously, but they even knew how to use weapons as tools for gathering fruit.
Interesting. Far too interesting!
"Hello, Dorsia. Taking care of the cubs?" An adult female Fairy flew over from the other side of the grove.
Dorsia looked back and recognized the Fairy responsible for tending the orchard.
"Yes. I brought the little darlings here to play today. Have you finished your work?"
The adult Fairy landed on the branch beside her and stretched. "I’m finished. I fertilized and watered every fruit tree. My back is aching from exhaustion."
Dorsia covered her mouth with a smile. "Isn’t all of that done by casting magic?"
The adult Fairy blinked innocently. "Casting magic requires physical strength too!"
Reciting spells was exhausting!
"Is that so?" Dorsia met her gaze. They stared at each other for a long moment before bursting into laughter at the same time.
After they finished laughing, Dorsia asked, "Did you run into Chris?"
The adult Fairy shrugged. "I did. He complained that you kicked him and nearly ruined his face."
Dorsia bared her gleaming white teeth. "He tried to gamble with the cubs. A kick was getting off lightly."
Hearing that, the adult Fairy nodded in agreement. "Good kick!"
The corners of Dorsia’s lips curled upward. "We should assign him to repair the magical wall again next month."
The adult Fairy raised her eyebrows. "Agreed!"
In a fruit grove more than ten meters beyond the central protected area, Chris sneezed.
"Achoo—!"
He rubbed his nose and continued facing off against a gigantic avian magical beast.
"Listen, big fellow. Breaking into the Fairy orchard and stealing fruit without permission is rather rude, don’t you think?"
The gigantic bird ignored him completely. Perched on a branch, it leisurely ate fruit, swallowing one after another with a remarkable appetite.
A vein bulged on Chris’s forehead.
This was a Sekern bird, an herbivorous flying magical beast known as the Gale. Arrogant by nature and confident in its great speed, it frequently slipped through breaches in the magical wall and snuck into the Fairy orchard to steal fruit.
Usually, powerful adult Fairies were responsible for repairing the wall. The moment the Sekern bird sensed danger, it fled with astonishing speed.
Today, however, it had discovered that the Fairy repairing the magical wall was a newly matured youngster. As a seventh-rank Sekern bird, it considered him no threat at all. It had therefore deliberately perched on the branch and brazenly eaten fruit right in front of him.
Being looked down upon by a giant bird made Chris’s fists clench.
"You had better leave immediately—right now—or I’ll stop being polite."
The Sekern bird slowly chewed its fruit and looked disdainfully at the tiny figure.
He was not even as large as one of its claws, yet he wanted to threaten it?
Chris’s mouth twitched. "This is your final warning!"
The Sekern bird responded by opening its beak, biting off an entire cluster of fruit, and swallowing it arrogantly.
"That’s too much! Far too much! I’ve had all I can take!"
Chris roared.
Everyone accused him of loving pranks, but was he anywhere near as obnoxious as this stupid bird?
It dared ignore his warning, damage the Fairy orchard, and steal fruit. Its crimes were unforgivable!
The Sekern bird spread its five-meter-wide wings and openly challenged the Little Fairy.
Come on, then. Let’s see who is stronger!
The two sides glared at each other, tension stretched to the breaking point.
Hidden in a fruit tree five meters away were four tiny cubs.
Sensing the thick killing intent in the air, the cubs were already staring in stunned silence.
It was the first time Shu Li had ever seen a gigantic bird more than two meters tall with a wingspan of five meters. The sight struck him with tremendous force.
"We... need to leave..."
He tugged at his three companions’ clothes and spoke in a whisper.
That enormous bird clearly looked dangerous. Chris was only the size of a palm. Even if he knew magic, he would have difficulty resisting it.
If the four cubs had any sense, they should return immediately and find Dorsia so she could think of a solution.
"B-But we still haven’t picked the big fruit." Budno hugged the pear-shaped fruit in his arms, reluctant to let go.
Such a large fruit smelled wonderfully sweet. It had to be incredibly delicious.
Shu Li broke into a cold sweat. "It’s dangerous here—"
Originally, they had been picking small fruit within the innermost protected area. However, because the cubs were too efficient, they had nearly stripped all the nearby trees and had been forced to spread farther outward.
Sharp-eyed Budno had spotted a fruit larger than himself and excitedly flown over to pick it.
Redhead and Whitehead had refused to fall behind and raced toward the large-fruit tree.
Shu Li had been unable to call them back and had no choice but to follow.
As bad luck would have it, they had stumbled upon the confrontation between Chris and the gigantic bird.
Clearly, they were no longer within the innermost protected area. They had to return immediately.
If the gigantic bird and Chris started fighting, the four defenseless little cubs would unquestionably become collateral damage.
Budno clung to the fruit and refused to release it, his eyes brimming with tears. He looked utterly pitiful.
Disio was not frightened by the enormous bird. On the contrary, he was bursting with excitement.
"Sperien, don’t be afraid. They won’t fight."
Angel nodded innocently. "Siet said the magical beasts and animals in the forest are friends of the Fairies."
How could friends fight one another?
Their innocence defeated Shu Li completely. Even friends could turn against each other!
As though proving his point, Chris and the gigantic bird suddenly moved at the same time.
The huge bird swept its wings forward. A small tornado instantly formed in the air and charged toward Chris with unstoppable force.
Chris sneered and neither dodged nor retreated. He clenched both hands and recited a brief spell. A blinding radiance erupted from his entire body.
Shu Li instinctively raised an arm to shield his eyes.
When the light disappeared, he lowered his hand and anxiously looked ahead.
The palm-sized Chris had vanished.
In his place stood a handsome young man who was six feet tall.