A Picnic Mishap with Sylphy and Rudy, System Whispers

The Batil Flower was a common cash crop in the Asura Kingdom. It resembled lavender, with pale purple blossoms that could be eaten directly. It required only rough, low-maintenance care to grow and demanded little effort. Thanks to its fragrance, it was generally processed into spices and sent to the royal capital, where workshops turned it into perfumes of various kinds for distribution throughout the country.

Buena Village was a village that primarily made its living from wheat and Batil Flowers.

At the edge of the forest, three figures—one large and two small—moved through dense fields of Batil Flowers.

"How much farther is it, Sylph?"

Sylphy pushed aside the purple flowers beside her and glanced at Rudy.

"The watchtower is quite far from the village. It'll take another hour."

Rudy looked at her in surprise.

"That far? Why does your father make you bring him food? Couldn't he just make something in the morning and take it with him?"

Sylphy answered softly.

"It's a rotation at the watchtower. Since they're short-handed, Father usually stays there for five whole days whenever he goes. There's no way to prepare food for that long."

"Oh, I see. No wonder you brought a whole basket of bread. Is that supposed to be a whole day's worth of food?"

Sylphy nodded.

Behind them, Allen plucked clusters of flower spikes from the swaying purple blossoms at his side, rubbed them apart in his palm, and kept only the seeds. Without looking up, he asked, "But the bread in the basket can't be eaten anymore, right? Is it okay for us to go there empty-handed?"

Rudy froze at that, then turned toward Sylphy with a helpless expression. Sylphy leaned back and tilted her head toward Allen, her eyelashes fluttering in the wind.

"Father can go hunting. This has happened before when the food got dirty and there wasn't time to make more. But if he's unlucky and there aren't any rabbits nearby... he might have to go hungry."

"I see."

Allen rolled the flower seeds between his fingers and looked toward the nearby woods.

"An hour is enough time. By the way, is the watchtower tall? Is it easy to spot?"

Rudy blinked, not knowing why Allen was asking, but he answered honestly anyway.

"I heard Father say it's three meters high. There's a net around it to keep monsters out, so it should stand out."

Allen smiled. He stopped walking and looked at the puzzled little pair before him.

"Then you two go on ahead. There's still time. I'll find us something to eat."

An hour later, at the edge of the forest.

Who's this handsome guy?

Rudy stared wide-eyed at the handsome blond Elf Race man with pointed ears atop the watchtower. After a moment of stunned silence, he followed his prepared excuse and apologized.

"Hello, I came to apologize. We accidentally dirtied your lunch. Please don't blame Sylph."

Sylphy's father, Rolls, looked at Rudy, then at Sylphy, who had lowered her head without speaking. He did not seem to care that Rudy had gotten her name wrong.

"Luffy, were you bullied again today?"

Sylphy's body stiffened, and she murmured, "No, Father. Someone helped me today. It's just that I... I dirtied the lunch again by accident. I'm sorry, Father."

Rolls sighed, a trace of helplessness in his stern expression.

"...Again? You've had it rough, Luffy. Maybe it really would be better to have your mother bring it over from now on?"

"No, I can do it."

"Then if you're bullied again next time, make sure to tell Father, all right? Father will get justice for you. Don't make up lies about dirtying it yourself anymore, okay?"

"Okay."

Watching their interaction, Rudy blinked.

Luffy... I wonder if Sylphy's limbs can stretch freely? Uh... getting off topic. So Luffy is her nickname. It sounds rather affectionate.

Rolls turned to Rudy.

Rudy immediately gave him a proper ninety-degree bow.

"Actually, Luffy didn't dirty the lunch. Allen... I mean, I accidentally dirtied it while helping him. I'm sorry."

Allen still hasn't come back... Damn it, that guy must have anticipated this situation. Saying he was going to find food... What a cunning old fox. Well, since I'm his friend, I'll take responsibility for him! Uh... now that I think about it, this family has gained another child besides Paul.

"You children are all very sensible. You don't need to keep taking the blame on yourselves. I know it was mud thrown by those children in the village. It was already kind of you to help her. The lunch is insignificant. What's your name?"

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ru—"

Just as Rudy was about to introduce himself, Rolls's expression darkened. Then, as though struck by lightning, he straightened his back, drew his bow, and fired an arrow.

The arrow streaked like a meteor, carrying a sharp howl of wind as it shot toward the woods!

But in the next instant, the whistle of the arrow abruptly stopped.

The shadowy forest, like a beast lurking in darkness, silently swallowed the arrow.

Rolls's expression turned ugly, and he spoke rapidly.

"You two, hurry back to the village and notify the knights—"

But halfway through his words, his eyes widened sharply as he stared in astonishment at where the arrow had vanished.

Rudy and Sylphy followed his gaze.

A massive boar-shaped shadow was slowly approaching the watchtower where the three of them stood.

Sylphy instinctively covered her mouth and turned to run back to the village as her father had told her, but Rudy grabbed her. She turned around in panic, only to see an oddly admiring look on Rudy's face as he gestured with his chin for her to look again.

Sylphy blinked and looked toward where the monster had come from.

That was not a monster. No, that was wrong—it was a monster.

But it was not a living monster.

A figure emerged vaguely before the monster, breaking through the gloomy forest. Light and shadow flowed around him through the gaps in the trees.

He dragged the Terminator Boar by one enormous tusk in one hand, while gripping an arrow in the other. Under Sylphy's adorably wide-eyed, hand-covered-mouth gaze, he walked beneath the watchtower.

"Since there's no bread, we'll have pork for lunch."

Allen tossed the Terminator Boar's corpse before the three of them like it was garbage, then casually handed the arrow back to Rolls, who had jumped down from the watchtower with a blank look on his face.

Then he clapped his hands.

"Try my cooking."

After showing off, Allen naturally had to sincerely ask Rudy to use magic to make fire and water.

By the time the aroma of roasted meat drifted through the air, another hour had passed.

Rudy used Water Cannon to wash away every trace of blood from the slaughtered monster, leaving shallow ripples of clear water flowing over the ground.

The four of them gathered around a raised platform made with Earth Magic. On it sat crude tables, chairs, and benches made from Earth Magic as well.

There was also a simple grill.

Though, strictly speaking, it seemed Rudy was the one cooking.

Allen was only responsible for cutting the meat, skewering it, and turning it over.

But Rudy was enjoying himself.

The experience felt rather like a riverside picnic barbecue, reminding him of his previous life. Back then, he had not had any friends to invite out for a picnic and grilled meat, but now he had somehow achieved it in this other world in a slightly strange way.

Though his current friends were only two children, it still felt good.

"I didn't expect Batil Flower seeds to work so well as seasoning. This is delicious~"

Rudy let out a blissful groan, while Rolls beside him showed little interest in the food. He merely kept examining Allen with admiration in his eyes.

"I never expected you to be the swordsmanship teacher Paul mentioned for Rudy. You're so young. It's wonderful that you two can be friends with Luffy. I hope you'll look after her in the future. Also, this child's hair color is merely a slight ancestral throwback. Please don't look at her strangely because of it."

"Don't worry, Uncle. Sylphy is our friend. Of course we'll look after her."

As he spoke, Sylphy's cute pointed ears twitched. She raised her eyes and silently looked at Allen. On the leaf before her lay slices of perfectly roasted meat, piled into a small mountain.

Allen turned to Rudy.

Rudy had stuffed his mouth full of grilled meat and had no time to look after his future first wife.

Allen silently sighed. Amid Sylphy's flustered expression, he added another slice of meat to the top of the mountain on her leaf.

Looking at Rudy, even though Sylphy hasn't cut her hair short at this point, he still doesn't think she's a girl. Otherwise, he wouldn't react like this. Come to think of it, there's no need to deliberately push them together. Let nature take its course. It's fine for childhood sweethearts to take things slowly.

Sylphy's main role in the story... was to introduce a new character—Ariel—and prepare for the later Asura royal succession conflict storyline. Although White Mom was cute and lovable, overall she was just a plot device. Her other purpose also seemed to be only...

Uh, curing Rudy's impotence, then ensuring Rudy had the necessary equipment to build a harem? And quietly maintaining harmony in that harem too?? Her children had nothing to do with saving the world either. Was this a world where childhood sweethearts got utterly crushed?

At that thought, Allen put on a pitying expression and added another piece of grilled meat before the young form of White Mom, who had been utterly defeated.

Sylphy's eyes widened.

"A-Allen, I... I really can't eat anymore."

"You can."

Allen raised his brows at Sylphy. Her entire body trembled as she grabbed the grilled meat and stuffed it into her mouth, filling her little cheeks until they puffed out like a small animal's. She blinked at him.

"I-I ate it."

"Good girl~"

Rolls merely watched the children's reactions quietly, a smile appearing at the corner of his lips.

Though strictly speaking, only one of the four was actually a child.

After the meal, Allen took a piece of hide from the Terminator Boar and gave the rest to Rolls.

The three of them returned to the previous hillside. By now, many children were playing there, but when they spotted Allen from afar, a little boy let out a terrified scream. The crowd immediately scattered.

As though fleeing from a plague god.

Allen slowly walked to the tree and casually carved several words into it with his sword.

Rudy, Sylphy, and Allen's territory.

Requirements for entry:

Bow to Sylphy three times.

Left by Allen.

Suddenly overcome with the urge to play around, Allen nodded in satisfaction. Then he turned to Rudy, only to find that something seemed off about his expression.

Rudy clutched his stomach, his face slightly green.

Allen looked toward Sylphy in surprise. Her forehead was covered in sweat, but when she noticed Allen looking at her, she still raised her head and forced out a smile.

Then she collapsed cleanly to the ground.

"Sylph!"

Rudy reached out to help Sylphy, but as soon as he took a step, his legs went weak and he fell as well.

As he fell, he seemed to realize something. He looked in disbelief at Allen, who hurried over to help Sylphy rather than him, while their conversation from earlier flashed through his mind.

"...Batil Flower seeds are mildly poisonous. They stimulate pain receptors on the tongue, making them the perfect natural spicy seasoning. You're asking about detoxification? Uh, no Detoxification Magic is needed. It's not a big deal. I eat them all the time. The body can metabolize them harmlessly."

Not... a big deal.

Rudy rolled his eyes back and fainted.

The conclusion was that, under Allen's careful feeding, the two had consumed too much Batil Flower seed powder and suffered acute poisoning.

Allen had used his own physical condition as the standard for two five-year-old children. Of course it was a huge problem.

He looked awkwardly at Zenith, who had rushed to the clinic after hearing the news, her expression foul.

I'm sorry, Zenith. I'm sorry, Lokkishi. Please forgive me, the kid really didn't do it on purpose. Wait, Lokkishi knows that consuming too much of this flower seed powder can cause fainting. She won't think I used it for something weird, will she? Hiss... Good thing I won't see her for the next few years.

Zenith, her face flushed red, wore a white clinic uniform top. She glanced irritably at the stiff-faced Allen, but rather than verbally tearing into him as he had imagined, she raised a hand and rapped him on the head with her knuckles.

"Don't eat food whose effects you don't understand. If Batil Flower seeds were really safe to eat, they would have become a common kitchen seasoning long ago. You too—you look mature, but you're still a child at heart. So careless and clumsy."

Who's careless and clumsy? Paul?

The child with a mental age of thirty-four twitched at the corner of his mouth. Looking at Zenith's newly changed skirt and trousers, he noticed even her shoes were no longer the pair of thigh-high boots she had worn that morning, but short boots that were easier to put on and take off. He was utterly speechless.

Zenith reached out and placed her hands on the two children's foreheads.

"May the breath of God be the source of nourishment, granting those suffering from illness the strength to awaken and recover. Detoxification Spell!"

As soon as the words fell, Rudy and Sylphy's complexions improved. Neither of them had especially short eyelashes for children, and they fluttered slightly as they slept peacefully.

Allen looked at their eyelashes and could not help reaching out.

He caught Zenith's hand.

Amid her astonished expression, Allen looked utterly sincere as he said, "Please, whatever you do, don't tell Lord Paul."

Zenith blinked and looked at the tall figure that had suddenly appeared behind Allen.

"But he's right behind you."

Of course I know that. This is so I can copy a magic rune.

Before the thought had even finished, a heavy blow struck the back of his head. Allen's vision went black, and he fell stiffly to the ground. Struggling, he looked toward Paul's retreating figure as he stepped out from behind him.

No, Brother Paul, there's no need to hit this hard when teaching a child a lesson, right?

As if answering his thoughts, Zenith's startled voice rang out at just the right moment.

"Dear! What are you doing?!"

In his increasingly dark vision, Paul's hand reached out and firmly pinched his wife's waist.

"Don't worry. Allen is exceptionally tough. I know how hard to hit. Since he made a mistake, knocking him out is only a small punishment. By the way, dear, just now I still hadn't—"

"You! Don't move around. Mrs. Sorin is still outside. She's on duty at the clinic today, you—"

"I already sent her home."

Paul, you're not human. You're doing clinic uniform play and won't even let your brother watch. Is that right...?

Darkness swallowed the figures of Paul and Zenith entwined together. Allen's head lolled to the side, and he fainted.

Unlike the time he had pretended to faint when he first met Lokkishi in the forest, this time, under Brother Paul's attentive care, he fainted thoroughly.

The Ruyan System panel slowly appeared in the air, then drifted apart.

Detected that the host is making physical contact with Zenith. Searching for Detoxification Magic cast by Zenith within the previous minute.

Search successful. Magic rune inscribed—Intermediate Detoxification Magic.

So far, you've done very well~

Good night, Allen.