Chapter 29: Departure, Hunting the Starflame Falcon

“Mm, hug~”

Lu Keke smiled, revealing her little tiger teeth, and ran forward.

“Oh ho ho~ little cutie~”

Su Yue let out a creepy, lovestruck laugh.

“Big Sister Su Yue, your laugh sounds so weird, hehe (#^.^#).”

Lu Keke leaned in and kissed Su Yue on the cheek again.

“I want one too, I want one too! Keke, you kissed her twice~”

Du Lin protested unhappily and shoved her face forward.

Lucia, who had been watching from the side, seemed thoughtful.

She asked uncertainly, “Keke, the way you speak… you don’t stutter anymore?”

“Huh?”

Lu Keke froze for a moment, then realized it herself. She tried speaking, almost as if asking herself: “I… I don’t stutter anymore?”

The moment the words fell, her eyes lit up, and her little face filled with excitement.

“Mom, I don’t stutter anymore! Keke doesn’t stutter anymore!”

She jumped in front of Lucia, waving happily.

Lucia smiled gently.

“Yes… Keke doesn’t stutter anymore.”

She reached out and rubbed the girl’s messy hair, though a trace of regret flashed in her eyes.

(“Her stuttering was so cute… sigh~”)

Their group stood outside the forest where the hunter who had captured the [Starflame Falcon] chick had mentioned.

Lu Keke originally thought Lucia would first help Du Lin and Su Yue level up a bit before coming here.

But unexpectedly, they came straight here.

Su Yue was still level 13.

Du Lin was still level 16.

Their experience hadn’t increased at all.

Mother and daughter stood side by side, looking at the forest ahead.

1: Rogue Interception System — Suspicious individuals who approach will be struck by lightning that ignores defense. If the wearer consents voluntarily, the effect will not activate.

2: Gain Skill [Flutter] — Summon fairy wings and gain low-altitude flight ability.

3: Full set bonus — Increase base attributes by 20%.

“Do you like it, Keke?” Lucia bent down and stroked her head with a smile.

“Yes! Keke likes it very much!”

Lu Keke broke free from Du Lin’s arms, hugged Lucia’s face, and kissed her.

Lucia smiled and gently turned her around.

“The ones you should thank are your two Chosen sisters~ They specially prepared this for you and had it delivered by [Courier Bird].”

Hearing that, Lu Keke froze and looked at them in surprise.

Both of them were already crouching behind her, looking at her expectantly, their faces showing a bit of pride.

Their own equipment was still tattered…

They must have been unwilling to open their treasure chests.

Yet they were willing to get her a full equipment set?

Lu Keke scratched her head shyly, her cheeks turning red, feeling both embarrassed and touched.

She shuffled over awkwardly.

Under Du Lin’s eager gaze, she leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you, Big Sister Du Lin.”

When she turned her head, Su Yue had already leaned her face forward, grinning foolishly.

Lu Keke kissed her too.

“Thank you too, Big Sister Su Yue.”

“Hehe, can I get a hug?”

Su Yue pushed her luck and opened her arms.

Stare~~

“Mmm~ hehehe~ Keke, let big sister hug you, okay?”

Su Yue begged with hopeful eyes mixed with disappointment.

So the next step should be to hesitate a little, pretend to struggle internally, and then—

“Ha! Got you~ woohoo↗!”

Du Lin suddenly attacked from behind and hugged Lu Keke tightly.

What?

Face rubbing~

(“We’ve only known each other for such a short time, and you’re already touching me so casually! Are we that close?!”)

(“Lucia, you’re really just watching? And you’re smiling.”)

(“Although being hugged by a beautiful girl is indeed enjoyable.”)

But!

(“…Arigato.”)

Thank you, Auntie Du Lin, for your soft embrace.

If possible, be even bolder and kiss my cheek too.

And Auntie Su Yue, I actually want a hug too.

I wouldn’t refuse now.

Stop standing there grinning foolishly~

Putting aside the cuddling for now, let’s check the new equipment’s attributes.

[Flower Fairy Set · Children’s Version
Green C-Rank Set, wearable at level 15, cloth armor.]

On the left stood a knight with clear eyes.

On the right, a curious mage observing her.

In front of her, Lucia squeezed in, holding a magic ice blade with traces of blood still on it.

“You’re awake~ You’re now the cutest girl in the world~”

?

Lu Keke looked confused.

She rubbed her sleepy eyes, stretched, and slowly sat up.

Cute?

Isn’t that obvious?

I’ve always been—

A water mirror suddenly appeared before her.

“Who did this?! Was I turned into a dress-up doll while sleeping?!”

Lu Keke widened her eyes and examined her reflection.

“…Why didn’t they take out such cute clothes earlier?”

She nodded approvingly and gave a thumbs-up to the fairy-like girl in the mirror.

“Cute!”

At times like this, shouldn’t a little girl blush in embarrassment and angrily find the culprit, acting adorably fierce?

No, no.

Admiring yourself and enjoying your beauty freely—that’s the essence of a game.

Besides, with the soul of a mature adult man, feeling shy wasn’t possible.

Not laughing creepily was already her greatest restraint.

“Let’s go~!”

Du Lin shouted excitedly, a cracked staff appearing in her hand.

“Go~!”

Lu Keke raised her hand.

“Amplify!”

Colorful buffs began shining on both of them.

The three ran joyfully into the forest.

Lu Keke’s gaze kept circling between the two.

No wonder Lucia was so confident.

One had a double-SS imprint.

One had an S-rank imprint.

Both were elite tier.

They had been hiding their strength.

If she hadn’t formed a party, Lu Keke wouldn’t even know their imprints, since her appraisal skill couldn’t analyze elite tier players.

But…

Seeing their tattered equipment made her feel conflicted.

Her thoughts drifted toward the reward chests and skill crystals she received earlier.

(The chests contain at least level-20 equipment… I can open them and give them those.)

(If I give them chests… they’ll definitely be happy.)

(The skill crystals would work too…)

Lucia followed slowly in her carriage, sensing them running farther away, smiling softly.

“You’re right. The gold was worth it! Her affection just increased by 10 points!”

Lu Keke slipped out of Lucia’s arms and waved.

“Big Sister Du Lin! Big Sister Su Yue! Let’s go!”

“Coming!”

Su Yue ran over immediately.

Du Lin sighed and followed calmly.

“Coming, Keke.”

Du Lin opened the special party interface that allowed forming teams with NPCs.

A window appeared before Lu Keke:

Accept party invitation from Chosen Du Lin?

Accept.

Display primary imprint?

One may be shown.

Selection: [Saintess]

Party formed successfully:

Member 1: Su Yue — Elite Tier [Holy Knight · SS]

Member 2: Du Lin — Elite Tier [Elemental Mage · S]

Member 3: Lu Keke — [Saintess · SSS]

[Quest “Hunt Starflame Falcon” Activated]

Objective: Kill or capture two Starflame Falcons.

Reward: This is Lu Keke’s trial quest. No additional rewards.

“Yay! Let’s go!”

Su Yue summoned a chipped sword.

Lu Keke relaxed.

Now they could hunt the bird safely.

Lucia wouldn’t casually use teleportation anymore.

Life should be cherished.

She didn’t know that Saintess teleportation consumed less life as the rank increased.

At high levels, short-distance teleportation cost almost nothing.

Later—

Lucia suddenly felt fear for the first time since Lu Keke’s birth.

The Goddess of Light had said even ten Saintesses couldn’t defeat her.

Lu Keke had both Saintess and Hero imprints.

And no one knew what other powers she might possess.

(If this child ever turned evil… Estra would be destroyed.)

Lucia knelt and held her shoulders.

“Keke… why tell me this?”

Lu Keke lowered her head, clutching her necklace.

“I just wanted Mom… to stop using teleportation recklessly.”

Lucia laughed softly and hugged her tightly.

“Silly child…”

“Mom, can the two sisters really handle it?”

Lu Keke asked worriedly.

Lucia smiled.

“With you here, they definitely can. Mom believes in you.”

Lu Keke nodded.

Then she hesitated.

“Actually… I…”

[System Warning…]

“I… the Demon King won’t die. Not even before growing up. Not Hero, not Saintess, can kill it. So… don’t risk your life.”

Lucia froze.

Because according to the rules of Estra:

An infant Demon King can be killed.

A growing Demon King revives within a year.

A mature Demon King revives instantly—even if killed by Hero or Saintess.

But Lu Keke…

Was an exception.