"Isn't that your direct subordinate?"
Black Cat, puzzled, said, "Even if she is a bit rebellious, isn't it a bit too much to just ignore her like this?"
"We are solitary seekers in this world, not toddlers learning to walk under the watchful eyes of our parents."
The girl spoke, "The path of seeking is always fraught with bumps and dangers, as well as trials and tribulations. If one cannot cross, then it is simply fate."
"Is it really okay to say that now?"
Black Cat said, "Cornflower is not such an easy opponent to deal with."
"...It doesn't matter."
The girl slightly cast down her eyes, and a hint of life slowly appeared on her previously wooden face, "If she is strong, then all the better. I look forward to a match with her, strong as she may be. Whether I win or lose, there will be sothing to gain. I don't like battles where I bully the weak."
"You really should change that habit of yours, battle is battle, it's not a stage for you to display any kind of martial spirit. You're too rciful to your opponents."
Black Cat sighed in an almost human-like manner, "Enough with the talk, go to sleep. I'll keep watch in the wee hours."
As it said this, it looked towards the endless wilderness in the distance. Because it slightly turned its body, a pair of sowhat flimsy wings were exposed on its back, revealing its true identity—a fairy.
"Is two hours of sleep okay?"
The girl tilted her head slightly, "You didn't sleep during the day, did you? For a cat, does that qualify as staying up late?"
"I am a fairy, not a real cat."
The Black Cat Fairy swished its tail, "Black Cat is, and so are you. Don't always treat like a pet cat."
"Yet the black cat calls others 'Black Cat'."
A faint smile appeared on the girl's face, "Isn't that sowhat of a cold joke?"
"If you know it's a la joke, don't waste ti on it."
The Black Cat Fairy glanced at her irritably, "Hurry up and sleep. We need to continue on our way to Fangting tomorrow."
"Right, I'm going to sleep."
The girl said no more. She leaned against the bonfire, enveloped her body with her generous robe, and her black eyes looked towards the Black Cat Fairy, "Thank you, Semi."
"Sleep."
The fairy turned its head away, continuing to gaze at the vast wilderness, and slowly muttered the girl's na:
— "Yuan."
...
...
At dawn, Erald Sparrow moved from the bedroom to the kitchen, adjusted her attire, and took down her sleeve protectors from beside the door. She was about to prepare breakfast for the day when she slled the fragrant rice porridge already boiling in the kitchen.
She looked into the kitchen and saw a small pink puppy fairy busy at the stove. The diminutive creature effortlessly wielded cooking utensils much larger than itself, seeming quite adept.
"Nini?"
Erald Sparrow asked curiously, "Why are you still the one preparing breakfast today? Didn't we agree that I would do it?"
"Such trivial chores, it's better not to trouble Lord Cornflower with them."
Nini turned her head from the stove to look at Erald Sparrow, "Also, today might be the last ti I prepare a al for everyone here."
Erald Sparrow's mind, still sowhat groggy from sleep, cleared up quite a bit at these words. She paused briefly but quickly recovered,
"Are you leaving?"
"Yes, the kingdom finally contacted last night, saying they want to return for a period of observation and training, waiting for the next assignnt."
Nini turned down the stove's heat and bowed slightly in mid-air to Erald Sparrow, "I expect to leave today. Thank you all for your tolerance and care all this ti."
"No need to be so polite. In fact, everyone has been under your care."
Erald Sparrow shook her head, "But this ans that after this, Moco will officially be the Seeder of Fangting City, right?
"Yes, that's right."
Nini sat up, "After I leave, the kingdom should send soone with the official appointnt docunts for Moco and the tools a Seeder needs, like the Magic Mirror. It also ans that I, the negligent Seeder, can finally leave this city for good."
"That's actually not your fault."
Erald Sparrow spoke softly, "You're just a victim of the situation, and there's no need to take on so much responsibility."
"But if it hadn't been for Fangting, and if it hadn't been for Lord Cornflower, wouldn't that city have fallen due to my mistakes?"
Nini sighed, "You don't need to comfort like this. We Seeders bear a great responsibility, so actually, having gone through the relevant education, I just... need so ti to think on my own."
"...As you wish."
Erald Sparrow nodded, "Then let's not talk about these matters. Wish you a safe journey."
"Thank you, the journey back shouldn't have the issues I faced on the way here. However, there is one more thing I entrust to you, and that's Moco."
Nini laughed upon hearing this, "I've disciplined it in these past days, taught it many things and rules, but ti has been short, and it will take a little more ti for it to truly master them. I hope everyone can be a bit more tolerant of Moco. Of course, this isn't to say that you should condone its mischievousness, but at least tell it when it does sothing wrong, give it so guidance. After all, it..."
——"After all, it's not actually a Seeder, right?"
Erald Sparrow took up Nini's words, hand on hip, face calm, "It's not just about not being a Seeder, it's about almost not having received any Seeder-related education at all. Fundantally, it's different from you Seeders."
"...Yes, you're right."
Nini's face showed a hint of helplessness: "Because it's actually a fairy from the garden, and according to normal plans, it's supposed to be a 'Gardener,' not a Seeder."
"Is that so."
Erald Sparrow understood, "It seems to know a lot about fairies, but is clueless about most common knowledge of Magical Girls; knows so things about the kingdom, but is totally ignorant about the material world. Other than growing up in the garden, there seems no other possibility."
"Yes."
Nini continued explaining, "Moco, inherently, is not bad. Other than being a bit playful, it's a child who eagerly seeks approval. If it can be recognized by others, it's willing to learn and work hard. So please give it a chance."
"I wouldn't go so far as to be that strict with a fairy, as I've seen plenty of unreliable ones already."
Erald Sparrow crossed her arms, "But what exactly is your relationship with it? Why did it run out of the garden just to co to Fangting City to find you?"
"My relationship with it? If I had to say... although there's no such kinship among fairies, we might be considered sisters?"
Nini mused, "Our sources of Magic Power were both born within the garden, and we acquired sentience through later growth, so we've been close friends since childhood."
"It's just that even among fairies, who tend to mature late, Moco was one of the slower ones. When everyone else could already leave the garden to work independently, Moco was still living carefree in the garden."
"Moreover, although I can't elaborate much, Moco's status in the garden... is sowhat special. It's unique compared to the other fairies, receiving treatnt that's second to none. The Black Cat Fairy was especially indulgent with it and never disciplined it strictly, which is why it has such a... bold character."
"After I grew up, I chose to leave the garden to undertake Seeder training, but Moco and I remained friends, and we often played together."
"Later, I was assigned by the kingdom to be a Seeder in Fangting City. So when I left, I said goodbye to it and told it to co to Fangting City to see if it missed ..."
At this point, Nini's expression beca complex, "I just didn't expect it to be so proactive. Because it couldn't contact for two years, it really ca all the way to Fangting City. It didn't even tell the Black Cat Fairy, almost like it smuggled itself out of the garden to find ."
"...But in a way, it saved you by doing so, didn't it?"
Erald Sparrow's eyes narrowed slightly, "Exactly because it impulsively ca to Fangting City alone, that's why all these subsequent events occurred. It caused troubles but also set everything in motion."
"So, although it made many mistakes, it also unwittingly did so things right. Even if we're just talking about rewarding its good deeds, I won't be overly harsh on it."
"Magical Girls need to grow, fairies need to grow, and Seeders are also mbers of the Magical Girl squad. Helping each other is naturally the right thing to do."
She looked seriously at Nini, "Does what I said count as giving you a proper explanation?"
"Yes."
Nini smiled with a sense of relief and bowed once more to Erald Sparrow, "If you can say that... then I can rest assured."
Reviews
All reviews (0)