Village Sights

"Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock, knock."

"Qian Guang!!!"

"I came to play with you."

Qian Guang had been so excited after obtaining magic for the first time last night that he had stayed up very late. He had only been up for a short while when he heard Roundy calling for him outside in her soft, childish voice.

The old man had left a note saying he had gone to see the carpenter. He had left breakfast behind and gone out early.

Qian Guang went over and opened the door for Roundy.

The moment Roundy saw Qian Guang open the door, her eyes lit up. She transformed into a koala again and clung to his waist.

"Good morning, Qian Guang."

Looking into those bright eyes, Qian Guang felt completely healed.

He had no idea why this little girl was so unafraid of strangers. She had only met him twice, yet she was already so attached to him. Back on Earth, she would have been kidnapped in no time. Could it be that his current appearance came with some child-rearing trait? Was that why kids liked him?

Well, it wasn't impossible.

Qian Guang rubbed the little girl's head. He couldn't exactly keep standing at the doorway.

"Roundy, let's go inside first. Big Brother hasn't had breakfast yet. We can go out and play after I finish eating, okay?"

"Huh? Big Brother is such a sleepyhead. Roundy finished eating ages ago."

"Mom said that children who wake up early are good children. Big Brother, you're not a good child today."

"Haha, then Big Brother will try to be a good child tomorrow."

With that, he led Roundy inside and went to the kitchen to bring out breakfast.

"Roundy, do you want some more?"

Roundy looked toward the kitchen, thought for a moment, and asked, "Did Grandpa Lei En make it?"

"Yes. Want some?"

"Ah, no!"

The moment she heard that Grandpa Lei En had made the food, the faint interest on the little girl's face vanished. She looked as though she had just seen something utterly terrifying.

Old man, it looked like your cooking reputation had spread through the whole village. How did you ever come to think your cooking tasted good?

Looking at the completely green porridge in the pot, Qian Guang briefly considered wasting food. But after thinking it over, he suppressed the thought, resigned himself to his fate, and ladled out a bowl. Then he took out several flatbreads the old man had bought outside and gave them to Roundy.

Holding the flatbread, Roundy sat on the chair and took tiny bites, her little legs swinging in the air. If the gentlemen from his previous life saw this scene, they could only say, "Awei is dead."

"Roundy, how many people are there in the village?"

"Hmm~ Let Roundy count."

"Me, Dad, Mom, Grandpa Lei En, Grandpa Village Chief, Grandpa Carpenter, Grandma Hua..."

Watching Roundy count one by one on her little fingers, Qian Guang felt both amused and helpless.

Sure enough, Roundy gave up before long. With tears shimmering in her eyes, she looked at Qian Guang and said:

"Qian Guang, Roundy can't count them. There are too many. Roundy doesn't have enough fingers."

Qian Guang found it funny. This little girl was far too cute. He had roughly looked around yesterday, and there were dozens of houses. Even if he lent her his fingers, she still wouldn't be able to count them all.

After Qian Guang cleared away the dishes, he noticed that his hair had already grown to his shoulders. He tied it into a small ponytail, then saw the little girl still counting on her fingers. Smiling, he patted her head and said:

"Stop counting. I'll teach you arithmetic in a few days."

As soon as the little girl heard that, she gave up and grabbed Qian Guang's hand, pulling him toward the door.

"Big Brother, I'll take you around to meet everyone. You count them yourself. Roundy can't figure it out."

The old man's house stood on higher ground in the village, with an excellent location. The moment they stepped outside, they could see the entire village.

After looking once more at the peaceful, warm village, Qian Guang looked at the little girl holding his hand and said:

"Let's go."

"Morning, Grandma Hua."

"Good morning, Uncle Riley."

"Flatbread! Come play at the secret base later!"

The little girl, like a tiny elf, darted through the crowd, bringing joy to everyone.

The villagers she greeted all replied with smiles. Grandma Hua even picked a beautiful flower from her beloved garden and placed it in the little girl's hair.

Grandma Hua also beckoned for Qian Guang to come over.

"I heard that old rascal picked up a grandson. You must be the child, right? What a handsome boy."

After Qian Guang came over, Grandma Hua took his hand and kept praising him. At the same time, she told him about some foolish things the old man had done when he first arrived in the village in his younger days.

For example, free-fighting a brown bear and getting beaten black and blue, or stealing honey and getting his face covered in bee stings...

"Grandma, Grandma, you can't steal Big Brother away. I was planning to take Big Brother to my secret base."

Seeing that Grandma Hua showed no signs of stopping, the little girl grew anxious.

"Alright, alright, Grandma won't steal him. Come help Grandma water the flowers next time. I'll bake cookies for you then."

Grandma Hua picked another small red flower from the garden and said, "It suits you very well."

Qian Guang accepted the red flower and thanked her.

"Hurry, hurry, Big Brother! I'll show you my secret base. Let's go!"

The little girl could no longer sit still. She grabbed Qian Guang again, ready to run.

"Goodbye, Grandma!"

The little girl did not forget to say goodbye to Grandma Hua.

"Hehe, that girl..."

"Hurry up, Big Brother!"

Watching the little girl run through the fields ahead of him, Qian Guang helplessly shook his head. He had no idea why she had so much energy. Anyone who didn't know better would think she had Hashirama Cells.

After coming to the world of Fairy Tail, aside from his initial struggle to survive, Qian Guang felt himself becoming increasingly lazy. Without the pressure of life, without having to struggle for food and shelter, he had suddenly chosen to lie flat.

Or perhaps Qian Guang had always been lazy at heart, both in his previous life and this one. If he could lie down, he would never sit up. But he had had no choice in his previous life. There had been too many things he needed to work for, and the pressure of life would have crushed him.

Back then, he had chosen to study traditional Chinese medicine partly because he had been influenced by it since childhood, and partly because life would be especially easy after mastering it. Every day, he could study and treat patients.

But after arriving in Fairy Tail, everything had disappeared. The heavy stone pressing down on Qian Guang seemed to have suddenly vanished. He felt as though he had returned to his true self and become even lazier.

A nine-year-old child living like an old man without a shred of vigor—one look and anyone could tell he had been raised by his grandpa. He had the air of a little old man through and through ㄟ(▔,▔)ㄏ.

In the end, the two arrived at a small courtyard with two remaining walls and some furniture. Well, it was a Syrian-style house.

Qian Guang examined the unusually styled house and found that it was not as dilapidated as he had imagined. Nor was it some dangerous building. On the contrary, every part of it had been reinforced.

It seemed this secret base wasn't much of a secret after all.

Qian Guang looked at the little girl, who was still proudly showing it off to him, and found it rather amusing.

"Look, look! These are the pictures the few of us drew. Everyone is in them."

Qian Guang followed the direction of her finger and saw six children drawn on one wall. As for how they looked... well, all kinds of heights, builds, and shapes were represented.

"This is me, this is Hopper, this is Flatbread from earlier, and this is Sweetie, Brother Sol, and the last one is Mu Nuo."

"It's a shame it's morning. They usually don't come until the afternoon."

The little girl continued sharing stories about her friends and the amusing things that happened between them.

Qian Guang listened quietly, responding to her from time to time.

He learned that Hopper was a little troublemaker who loved causing mischief; Flatbread was the simple-minded chubby boy from earlier; Sweetie was a little girl who liked pretending to be ladylike despite her extremely fiery temper; Brother Sol was a disciplined boy raised by Uncle Daina; and Mu Nuo was the youngest of them all, a three-year-old child who still had a runny nose.

What an adorable group of children, Qian Guang thought silently. Little did he know that, in everyone else's eyes, he was also just a child.

Of course, there were more children in the village than just these few, but these were the closest friends. As the discoverer of the secret base, the little girl naturally chose to share it with those she liked best.

"Hey, hey, Qian Guang, Roundy will add you in." With that, she somehow found some paint and began drawing.

Watching the little girl start with a circle, Qian Guang didn't stop her. He simply watched in silence, praying that it would at least have one or two recognizable features.

Afterward, when he saw the utterly unidentifiable drawing, Qian Guang silently picked up the paint and added a little ponytail to himself. That was right—the ponytail was the true body!

After accompanying Roundy around the secret base, the sun was already hanging high overhead, and cooking smoke began rising throughout the village.

Roundy had played herself tired and started clamoring to go home.

On the way back, Roundy became a little elf again, taking Qian Guang around to meet people. From time to time, she even picked up some snacks.

"Roundy, do you want to come to my house for lunch?"

Seeing Roundy's chubby cheeks stuffed full, Qian Guang asked with a smile.

The moment she heard that question, Roundy stiffened and quickened her pace.

"Qian Guang, I hear Mom calling me. See you this afternoon!"

Watching the little girl's retreating figure turn into a sprint, Qian Guang once again marveled at how terrifying the old man's cooking was.