After the familiar distortion in space, Anise appeared, a hint of confusion on her face.
"Mr. President, how did you know I was here? I hadn't even dispelled my Veiling Spell yet."
"Simple. That familiar feeling I had when you were always beside me suddenly came back, so I knew you were back," Xu Yi replied with a smile.
"A familiar feeling?" Anise looked puzzled. "What kind of feeling?"
"I can't really explain it. Anyway, when you're beside me, even if I can't see you, I always get a strange feeling that tells me someone is nearby," Xu Yi explained.
"Then if another elf used the Veiling Spell beside you, wouldn't you be able to detect them too?" Anise asked.
"I don't think it's quite the same." Xu Yi shook his head. "Maybe it's because you've spent so much time with me. Even when you hide beside me with the Veiling Spell, I can sense that it's you. But if it were another elf, I might not notice. If I had to guess, perhaps your scent gave you away?"
"My scent?" Anise frowned slightly, lowered her head, and sniffed herself. "There's no particular smell."
Xu Yi felt a strong urge to lean closer and sniff her himself, but decided that would be far too forward. He suppressed the impulse, smiled, and changed the subject. "All right, enough chitchat. How did your first business trip on your own go?"
"Oh, I met Chief Slubi, Chief Monto, and the elder, and passed along everything you told me to say. Then they asked me to bring some things back for you."
Anise took the enormous backpack off her back and opened it, revealing a pile of metal lumps in assorted colors.
Xu Yi was startled. "Don't tell me you carried all this on