The Hat Fell
The Black Lightning Motorcycle was fast. In just a few minutes, Li Yan brought Little Fool to the entrance of Small Town, where several soldiers stood guard, checking the civilians entering town.
When Li Yan arrived on the Black Lightning Motorcycle, the guards saluted him one after another. Ignoring the startled looks from the civilians around him, he drove straight into Small Town.
It was simply because he was the Earl's eldest son, someone the mayor of Small Town needed to curry favor with. The guards already knew some of Li Yan's distinguishing features, and since he occasionally came down alone to shop and restock supplies, the whole guard squad knew very well that the Earl's eldest son lived nearby. Anyone driving a bizarre-looking magic item was bound to be a person of high status.
In this era, anyone who possessed a magic item was no ordinary person. Even if they weren't a noble, they were a capable adventurer or magician.
Riding the Black Lightning Motorcycle, Li Yan had become the most eye-catching person around, like someone arriving at school on a flashy moped with music blasting.
"Young master, so many people are looking at us."
Little Fool held Li Yan around the waist and leaned shyly against his back. The gazes around them were especially fervent, particularly those of the teenage girls, each of whom looked as though she had seen her prince charming.
"It's all right. We're just buying a few things before heading back. There's no need to be nervous."
Li Yan reassured Little Fool and stopped at a fruit stall, where he bought some fresh cherries, strawberries, and grapes. He casually tossed the owner a few silver coins, said, "Keep the change," and took the fruit before riding away on the Black Lightning Motorcycle. The fruit seller blinked and counted the coins, but before he could finish, Li Yan had already disappeared.
"Hey, buddy, the price of cherries and strawberries has gone up! You're more than ten copper coins short!"
The fruit seller shouted angrily in the direction Li Yan had gone, but the noise in the street drowned out his booming voice. He didn't particularly care about the dozen or so copper coins, but the man had actually told him to keep the change. Who was he trying to impress?
Leaving the fruit stall behind, Li Yan rode the Black Lightning Motorcycle to a street where vegetables and meat were sold. Pedestrians came and went along the plain, unadorned street. Some were adventurers who had just accepted commissions, while others were magicians buying vegetables with their staffs in hand.
"Young master, what are we having for dinner today?"
Little Fool asked as she looked at the countless vegetables and cuts of meat around them. Her difficulty choosing had struck again; it really was hard to decide.
"Let's buy some tomatoes, eggplants, beef, and mutton. We can have eggplant casserole, beef with tomatoes, and mutton with tomatoes for dinner."
Li Yan looked around and casually picked a stall selling tomatoes and vegetables. Its owner was an old woman of about sixty, and before her lay fresh tomatoes and all kinds of vegetables, still beaded with water.
"These cucumbers have a nice color. They look very fresh."
Li Yan casually picked out ten tomatoes, then gently picked up a cucumber beside them and examined it. It looked so crisp and juicy that he couldn't resist wanting to take a bite and taste its freshness.
"Don't worry, young man. All my vegetables were just picked."
The old woman spoke with a kindly smile as she put the tomatoes Li Yan had chosen into a bag.
"Then I'll take four."
Li Yan saw that they looked excellent, straight and slender, with a fresh green color. They were so fresh that he felt like buying a few to use in his spare time.
He had also been studying Water Magic lately, because ingredients needed to be frozen and some drinks tasted better chilled. So he had considered making a magic appliance similar to a modern refrigerator.
"Sure thing. I can tell at a glance you're a handsome young man who likes fresh vegetables. Is there a girl you like? I have a granddaughter who should be about your age. You two could get to know each other."
The old vegetable seller spoke enthusiastically as she added the cucumbers Li Yan had chosen to the bag.
"Ahem, thank you for your kindness, but I'm still young."
Li Yan coughed and politely declined. He had only come to buy vegetables, not to meet a prospective match.
Little Fool sat adorably on the back seat of the Black Lightning Motorcycle, watching the pedestrians come and go. She couldn't help feeling fulfilled. The human world really was full of wonders: all it took was something called money to exchange for food.
Quite a few pedestrians stole glances at Little Fool sitting on the Black Lightning Motorcycle, simply because its cool design was so far ahead of its time, thousands of years ahead.
There were especially many adventurers among the pedestrians. They were always immensely curious about cool things they had never seen before.
Faced with the cool Black Lightning Motorcycle they had never seen before, civilians, adventurers, and magicians alike crowded around to look. This world never lacked onlookers eager to watch a spectacle, especially when it involved something new.
Li Yan pushed through the crowd and returned to the Black Lightning Motorcycle. Many adventurers and merchants watched him with envy and curiosity.
"Hey, young man, what kind of magic item is that? I've never seen one before."
"Yeah, exactly. It's pitch-black and it moves, but the main thing is, it looks really cool."
"Is it for sale, young man? I'll give you fifty gold coins."
The crowd clamored, and Li Yan could only shake his head to show he wasn't selling. Many adventurers curiously touched the exterior of the Black Lightning Motorcycle. Like country bumpkins, they were intensely curious about how it moved, and some even guessed there was a magical beast horse inside it.
Li Yan got on the Black Lightning Motorcycle and gave them a small demonstration of its power. Its internal mana engine roared, and the adventurers and merchants watching hurriedly retreated several steps, afraid some unforeseen mishap might suddenly occur.
The corners of Li Yan's mouth rose slightly. Under the lovestruck gazes of the town's girls, he swung himself onto the Black Lightning Motorcycle. As the girls watched with envy and jealousy, Little Fool clung tightly to Li Yan's waist, afraid the motorcycle might suddenly start.
Once the crowd opened a path for them to leave, Li Yan started the Black Lightning Motorcycle and made a dazzling departure under everyone's astonished gazes. There were especially many people out shopping at the market, so Li Yan didn't dare go too fast and could only follow the flow of people slowly.
"Hey, sorry, your hat."
An adventurer held out the hat to Li Yan with an apologetic expression. He had been distracted by the cool Black Lightning Motorcycle just now and accidentally knocked the girl's hat off in the back seat.
The corner of Li Yan's mouth twitched. Just as he was about to put the hat back on Little Fool's head as quickly as possible, the apologetic adventurer looked up to apologize to her.
"Sorry about that, little one."
It was already too late to stop him. Little Fool's two horns were plainly exposed to the crowd. The Black Lightning Motorcycle drew more attention than anything else, and Li Yan and Little Fool, riding it, were the main focus of the crowd.