As the setting sun completely sank below the horizon, the night sky silently enveloped the entire Han Hai Cheng like a piece of deep blue velvet.
Streetlights on both sides of the road lit up one after another, their warm yellow halos appearing particularly cozy in the thick darkness.
But for Tunzuo at this moment, the myriad lights of the city were truly a bit too glaring.
“Wuwuwu, it’s over, it’s over, I’m really done for this time.”
Like a wandering ghost, Tunzuo stumbled through the alleys near the Witch Academy, using the shadows for cover, muttering incomprehensible words under her breath.
Tunzuo had been circling this area for three full laps!
The address on that stupid piece of paper An Lin gave was utterly anti-witch! Just a house number?
How was anyone supposed to find it with that?
No obvious landmark hints either.
This kind of navigation guide that would make a guide dog weep had thoroughly disoriented Tunzuo in the maze-like streets of Han Hai Cheng.
Perseverance paid off.
Just as Tunzuo’s patience was about to run out and she was ready to abandon the task and go home to obediently face the music, the sign for the Green Branch Gardening Shop finally appeared in her line of sight.
It was a shop hidden deep in an alley.
The storefront was small and mostly obscured by dense vines, revealing only a weathered wooden signboard.
Through the half-open door, the dim yellow light from inside spilled onto the shop’s front steps, appearing exceptionally serene in the night.
Tunzuo stopped, looking at the gardening shop’s closed door, her heart pounding.
‘I’m so late… could it already be closed?’
Tunzuo hesitated, glancing up at the sky.
The moon was already high in the center of the night sky.
‘Is knocking at this hour too much of a disturbance? But if I don’t bring back the fertilizer, An Lin is definitely going to nag me to death.’
Just thinking about An Lin’s terrifying expression of “deep love, harsh criticism” made Tunzuo shiver involuntarily.
‘Might as well try! Here goes!’
Gritting her teeth, Tunzuo took a deep breath, mustered her courage, walked forward, and gently pushed open the heavy wooden door of the Green Branch Gardening Shop.
Creak—
The old wooden door let out a grating groan, shattering the quiet inside the shop.
“Excuse me, sorry to bother you… is there a witch here?”
Tunzuo poked half her head in, her voice as faint as a mosquito’s hum.
The gardening shop was silent.
The air was filled with a peculiar scent mixing soil, plants, and some unknown floral fragrance.
The shelves were stocked with all sorts of potted plants and gardening tools.
In the corner, some fertilizer bags stained with dirt were piled up.
Just as Tunzuo hesitated whether to call out again, a rustling, scraping sound suddenly came from above her head.
Hearing the noise, Tunzuo instinctively looked up towards the ceiling.
A massive green figure was silently sliding down the vines on the ceiling beams.
It was a snake!
An enormous snake, its entire body emerald green, its scales shimmering with a metallic luster under the light!
The giant snake had a triangular head.
A pair of crimson vertical pupils emitted a faint, eerie glow in the dimness.
On both sides of its neck grew leaf-like vines resembling a standing collar, and the tip of its tail bore three strange leaf-like lobes.
“Yoo—”
The giant snake brought its triangular head close to Tunzuo’s face, its forked tongue flickering rapidly, letting out a strange cry.
“Wha… what a huge snake! Stay back! I’m not afraid of you!”
Tunzuo was badly startled by the sudden appearance of the giant snake.
The whole witch jumped backward like a frightened cat, the shadows at her feet immediately churning and coalescing into shadowy tentacles, adopting a defensive posture.
However, the expected attack from the giant snake didn’t come.
The snake just stared at Tunzuo quietly with its crimson eyes, showing no intention of attacking.
The giant snake tilted its head, seemingly curious about this witch who had suddenly barged into the shop.
Seeing the snake had no intention of attacking, Tunzuo also retracted her shadow tentacles, curiously examining the giant snake before her.
As she observed more closely, Tunzuo suddenly realized… this giant snake looked… somewhat familiar?
The emerald green body, the leaf-like collar around its neck, and the three leaves on its tail… this design, this color scheme… why did it look so much like a certain grass-type starter from a certain generation of a monster-catching and raising game on Blue Star?
“Ser… Serperior?!”
Tunzuo scratched her head uncertainly.
The giant snake seemed to understand Tunzuo’s words.
It let out a proud-sounding “Yoo—”, raising its head high, seemingly pleased that Tunzuo recognized it.
“Xiao Qing, don’t scare the guest.”
At that moment, a clear, cold voice came from deep within the shop.
The voice was like a mountain spring—chilly and pleasant, but devoid of any emotional inflection.
Hearing its master’s voice, the giant snake named Xiao Qing immediately became docile.
It slid down from the ceiling beam, its massive body nimbly weaving through the shelves, crawling towards the source of the voice.
Tunzuo followed the sound, looking towards the back of the gardening shop.
A green-haired witch slowly emerged from the shadows in the depths of the shop.
The green-haired witch had a cool, beautiful face, a pair of elf ears twitching slightly.
She wore an exquisite green Lolita-style dress, the hem embroidered with intricate vine patterns.
On her head was a bonnet with white lace trim, from under which cascaded long hair as dazzling as emeralds.
The white lace-up high heels on her feet and the white silk gloves on her hands all gave this witch an air of classical elegance in her every movement.
But the most astonishing thing was the green-haired witch’s special eyes.
Her left eye had no pupil; instead, a blooming white rose took its place.
Her right eye was a normal emerald green vertical pupil.
The giant snake crawled to the green-haired witch’s side, raised its body, and affectionately nuzzled her cheek with its head.
The green-haired witch reached out and gently patted the giant snake’s head, her movements as tender as if she were stroking a cute kitten.
After calming the giant snake, the green-haired witch turned her gaze to Tunzuo.
Those peculiar eyes watched Tunzuo quietly, devoid of any emotional fluctuation.
“Leiruiya Feng Keman. Rose Elf Witch. Owner of the Green Branch Gardening Shop. What business brings a guest here so late? The shop is preparing to close for the day.”
Leiruiya gave Tunzuo a slight nod, her voice cool.
Faced with Leiruiya’s aloof, keep-your-distance attitude, Tunzuo could only steel herself and step forward.
“Um, I’m here to pick up the fertilizer An Lin ordered.”
Tunzuo lowered her head somewhat awkwardly, not daring to meet Leiruiya’s strange eyes.
“I got delayed a bit on the way due to… some matters. I’m terribly sorry!”
Upon hearing An Lin’s name, a subtle change finally appeared on Leiruiya’s expressionless face. She raised an eyebrow slightly, a flicker of surprise in her eyes.
“Ah, so you’re the little one An Lin mentioned who was coming to pick up the fertilizer. To arrive so late… An Lin has already sent me dozens of messages on the witch-net, asking where you went.”
Leiruiya’s tone remained flat, but her speech suddenly sped up a bit.
“I’m sorry, I got lost…”
Tunzuo was utterly ashamed, hanging her head like a child who had done something wrong, ready to receive a scolding from Leiruiya.
However, Leiruiya did not reprimand Tunzuo.
On the contrary, she took a step forward, her strange eyes fixed intently on Tunzuo, launching into a rapid-fire series of questions.
“What happened? Are you hurt? Is everything alright? Were you caught up in an accident? Or did you encounter a bad witch? You don’t look well. Are you anemic? Do you need me to prepare some blood-tonifying herbs for you?”
Although Leiruiya’s tone remained as flat as if she were reading a textbook, the concern contained within her words was genuine.
Leiruiya’s barrage of questions hit Tunzuo like machine-gun fire, completely overwhelming her.
“Huh? Uh, well…”
Tunzuo was dizzy from the questions, completely unable to respond.
“I… I’m fine! Really! I just… met two friends and talked for a bit too long…”
Tunzuo seized the opportunity to explain quickly, fearing Leiruiya would continue questioning.
Hearing Tunzuo say she was fine, Leiruiya finally stopped her relentless output.
But before Tunzuo could catch her breath, another torrent of words poured from Leiruiya.
“That’s good. An Lin was just frantically messaging me, asking if you had arrived at the shop, why you were so late, if something had happened, if you’d been in an accident, or if you’d been kidnapped by a child-witch trafficker. She was so anxious she almost called the authorities. I had a hard time calming her down…”
Hearing this, Tunzuo covered her face with her hands, letting out a groan of despair.
“It’s over, completely over. I’m definitely going to be nagged to death by An Lin when I get back…”
Tunzuo could already picture An Lin’s heartbroken expression and the subsequent “loving education” lecture she would have to endure for at least three hours.
“Don’t worry. I’ve already sent her a message.”
Leiruiya took out her grimoire inlaid with a green gemstone, her fingers flying across the screen.
“I told her you’re safe and sound, picking up the goods here, and that she shouldn’t panic.”
As the send button in the chat window was pressed, Leiruiya put away her grimoire and turned to walk towards the back of the shop.
“Follow me. The fertilizer is in the backyard.”
Leiruiya’s words made Tunzuo feel as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
She hurriedly followed Leiruiya to get the fertilizer.
Along the way, Tunzuo curiously looked around the shop’s interior.
Although Leiruiya’s gardening shop wasn’t large, it contained a wide variety of plants, from common ornamental flowers to rare alchemical ingredients—truly everything one could need.
As she walked, Leiruiya began a non-stop introduction of the plants in the shop, her tone as flat as ever.
“This is Moonlight Grass. It only blooms during a full moon and can be used to make calming potions.”
“That’s Flame Orchid. It prefers high-temperature environments. When watering, use water above 40 degrees Celsius. Not one degree less.”
“These over here are Baby Carnivorous Plants. They look cute, but be careful with your fingers when feeding them. They can’t tell the difference between a finger and a piece of meat.”
“And that one, Mandrake. Remember to cover your ears when pulling it out. Its cry can shatter glass and even pollute the mind.”
Leiruiya’s tone was monotonous, as if reading from a manual, but the content of her explanations was incredibly detailed.
As Tunzuo listened, she silently complained in her heart.
Now she was sure: Leiruiya was an outwardly cold, inwardly warm, expressionless chatterbox!
Then, Tunzuo remembered the giant snake, Xiao Qing, she had just seen and asked, “Um, Miss Leiruiya, that snake just now…”
“Oh, you mean Xiao Qing.”
Leiruiya stopped and glanced back at the giant snake coiled up asleep on a ceiling beam.
“That’s Xiao Qing. A Serperior. A familiar I summoned from the Spirit World using a summoning spell.”
“It really is a Serperior…”
Hearing the answer from her memory confirmed, Tunzuo couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her mouth.
So the name and appearance were exactly the same as in the game’s setting.
Although curious about the term “familiar,” as it was already late and Tunzuo needed to finish An Lin’s task quickly, she reluctantly suppressed her questions and didn’t pursue the matter further.
Leiruiya led Tunzuo through the shop to the backyard.
But as soon as they entered, Tunzuo was stunned by the sight before her.
The backyard was neatly piled with dozens of large sacks, each printed with the words “Premium Plant Nutrient Soil.”
These sacks were stacked like a mountain, almost filling the entire backyard.
“This… this many?!”
Tunzuo’s eyes widened, staring incredulously at the mountain of sacks before her.
‘Is An Lin planning to reclaim wasteland?! This much fertilizer! Is she going to plant the entire Glowing Crystal Coral Island with red coral fruit trees? How am I supposed to transport all these sacks back? Am I supposed to carry them on my shoulder, bit by bit?’
Just as Tunzuo was worrying over the sack mountain, Leiruiya calmly walked to her side.
She raised her right hand, revealing a silver ring on her finger engraved with green runes.
Leiruiya snapped her fingers lightly.
The runes on the ring instantly lit up.
“Storage.”
With Leiruiya’s soft utterance, a green light shot from the ring, enveloping the pile of fertilizer.
The next moment, something astonishing happened.
The mountain of fertilizer vanished from the spot as if swallowed by a black hole, completely absorbed into that tiny ring.
“Wow! Is that spatial magic?”
Faced with such a miraculous sight, Tunzuo let out an exclamation of awe.
Leiruiya took the ring off her finger and handed it to Tunzuo.
“A storage ring. An alchemical item. Not worth much. Consider it a freebie for An Lin’s bulk order this time.”
Tunzuo took the ring from Leiruiya.
It was light as a feather, completely belying the fact that it contained dozens of sacks of fertilizer.
“Thank you so much, Miss Leiruiya! You’ve been a huge help!”
Tunzuo was immensely grateful to Leiruiya.
If she had to move it herself, she’d probably still be at it tomorrow morning.
“Don’t mention it. It’s just part of the service I should provide.”
Leiruiya waved her hand expressionlessly, telling Tunzuo not to make a fuss.
After settling the payment for the fertilizer, Tunzuo got ready to leave, preparing to return to Glowing Crystal Coral Island.
“Well, I’ll be off then, Miss Leiruiya. Goodbye!”
Tunzuo waved and turned to walk towards the shop entrance.
“Wait a moment.”
Just then, Leiruiya suddenly called out to her.
Tunzuo stopped and turned back, puzzled.
“What is it? Is there something else, Miss Leiruiya?”
Leiruiya walked up to Tunzuo, her strange eyes quietly observing her.
“While running this gardening shop, I also teach at the Witch Academy of the Vast Sea City. Perhaps… we will meet again at the academy very soon.”
Leiruiya’s voice was still cool, but a trace of barely detectable anticipation could be heard within it.
Hearing Leiruiya’s words, Tunzuo was momentarily stunned, but then she broke into a bright smile.
“Really? That’s great! Please take care of me in the future, Teacher Leiruiya!”
“Mm. Be careful on your way back.”
Leiruiya gave a slight nod, the corner of her mouth seeming to curve into an extremely faint smile.
Tunzuo left the gardening shop, transforming into a wisp of black mist that merged with the shadows, speeding off towards Glowing Crystal Coral Island.
Meanwhile, inside the Green Branch Gardening Shop, Leiruiya stood at the doorway, watching Tunzuo depart.
“Xiao Qing.”
Leiruiya called softly.
The Serperior, Xiao Qing, slid down from the ceiling beam and coiled up beside her.
“That little one is quite interesting.”
Leiruiya reached out and gently stroked Xiao Qing’s scales.
“Next time we meet, I must have her try the carnivorous plant cake I make.”
“Yoo—”
Serperior Xiao Qing let out an approving cry, its crimson eyes also sparkling with anticipation.
Random Pokémon reference