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He pushed the enthusiastic little creatures aside and casually rubbed the head of the nearest one. "Go back and tell Telingewei I'll be there on time."

Several of the little creatures' eyes lit up. "Chirp!"

The weather wasn't very good on the day of their meeting. It was overcast, but fortunately, the rain had stopped by the time he went out.

Telingewei had invited Xie Juanhan to lunch.

He went into the woods first thing in the morning to gather the mushrooms that had newly grown that day, then headed into town later that morning to make it in time for lunch.

He had been in this world for some time and had bought quite a few local items.

That day, he wore local clothes.

The weather was cold, so local clothes were mostly made of wool, giving them a crisp, structured look.

Xie Juanhan liked close-fitting clothes, so he wore a traditional outfit tailored at the waist, making his waist look especially slim and his legs long.

People watched him all along the way.

Xie Juanhan was largely immune to all kinds of stares.

As he approached the restaurant, he felt one gaze burning particularly hot. He frowned and looked up.

A tall man was sitting behind the restaurant's display window.

Even seated, his long arms and legs gave his figure an especially expansive, upright appearance.

Xie Juanhan met the man's gaze.

The man had striking features, black hair and black eyes, and a rather intimidating face.

He had the sort of face that would make an ordinary person quickly look away.

Xie Juanhan tilted his head and looked at his own reflection in the window.

He was 186 centimeters tall, with nine-head proportions, and his younger male cousin had called his face a rare beauty in their family.

He hadn't lost.

Xie Juanhan looked away with satisfaction, turned to Telingewei, and silently mouthed, "Telingewei?"

Telingewei rose from his seat. "Good day."

His voice clearly couldn't have carried through the window, yet it was as if Xie Juanhan had heard him.

He went around to the restaurant's front entrance and pushed the door open.

The restaurant was dimly lit, and there weren't many diners.

Several candles were lit in a chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

The burning candles gave off a faint fishy smell. Xie Juanhan guessed they might be made from fish oil or the fat of some other marine creature.

He crossed the mostly empty main dining room and walked into a side room.

Telingewei stood to greet him. "It's been raining these past two days. I hope you didn't have any trouble getting here."

"It was fine." Xie Juanhan sat down. "I like rain."

Telingewei rang for the waiter to serve the food and said to Xie Juanhan, "I've wanted to visit you for a long time, but I never found the opportunity. Thank you for looking after my companion beasts. They've been doing much better lately."

Xie Juanhan had paid little attention to the pleasantries, letting them go in one ear and out the other, until he heard the key words. "Wait, companion beasts?"

Telingewei nodded. "That group of little ones. They've been doing very well lately."

Those fluffy little creatures were actually a dragon's companion beasts!

Xie Juanhan said, "They aren't magical beasts or spirits?!"

"Of course not." Telingewei asked, "Don't you divine creatures produce companion beasts when your energy overflows?"

Xie Juanhan said, "Not at all."

"Powerful creatures on our plane often produce companion beasts." After a pause, Telingewei said, "They were a gift my mother left me."

Xie Juanhan looked surprised again.

Telingewei's voice was low. "Before I hatched, my mother had already gone to another plane. She was worried I'd be lonely, so she specifically guided my energy to ensure a group of companion beasts would be born when I hatched."

Xie Juanhan said, "I'm sorry for bringing up such painful memories."

"That was a long time ago." Telingewei's voice was subdued, and he didn't seem to want to talk about it much. "Rifts in space-time occasionally appear. They're very rare. My mother probably left to seize that opportunity."

"I'm sorry," Xie Juanhan said softly.

If he'd known, he wouldn't have repeatedly asked Telingewei about rifts in space-time.

Perhaps the local dragons didn't place as much importance on family ties, which was why his mother had left the dragon egg behind and gone alone.

Growing up in those circumstances, Telingewei must have felt lonely.

Even with his companion beasts.

Telingewei asked, "Are dragons different where you come from?"

"A little." Xie Juanhan's expression warmed as he explained, "Our kind tends to look after one another. The dozen or so dragons born to our clan throughout the long course of history are basically still together now."

After listening, Telingewei said, "That's nice."

"Yes." Xie Juanhan sighed softly. "That's why I've always wanted to go back."

Telingewei fell silent.

Telingewei had ordered in advance.

The waiter soon brought their dishes, filling the table with food.

Although the food had arrived, Telingewei didn't order wine from the restaurant.

He took a bottle of wine from his space to serve Xie Juanhan with the meal.

Xie Juanhan hadn't expected him to have a space too. He gave him an extra glance at the sight of the bottle appearing out of thin air, then looked at the wine on the table.

The wine was held in a crystal-clear bottle and was golden in color. Even in the somewhat dim light, it shimmered with color, beautiful to the point of looking almost sacred.

Xie Juanhan looked at it. "What kind of wine is this?"

"Elven holy wine, brewed from various rare berries in the magical forest," Telingewei said. "It tastes quite good."

Xie Juanhan stared at the bottle. "I've heard of Dwarf holy wine before."

"Dwarf holy wine is extremely strong. Humans love using its name, and almost every tavern has a drink called Dwarf holy wine."

"So that's how it is. I was wondering why even a little tavern would sell wine that sounded so expensive."

As they spoke, Telingewei opened the bottle.

The aroma escaped, and Xie Juanhan froze.

The wine's aroma was incredibly strong.

It was as though a spring were hidden inside the bottle, with the fragrance of wine bubbling out.

In the blink of an eye, the little side room was immersed in an ocean of wine aroma.

So this was what elven wine was like.

Telingewei poured the wine into crystal glasses and gently pushed one toward Xie Juanhan, inviting him to try it.

Xie Juanhan picked up the glass and took a small sip.

The wine touched his tongue and surged into his mouth like a tide.

Its aroma was like foam on the tide, bursting layer after layer on the tip of his tongue.

Unusual floral, berry, and nutty fragrances blossomed, gently enveloping him.

He carefully swallowed the wine.

It was very rich, yet it didn't seem like wine. It was like fruit juice.

Sweet and slightly tart, with a hint of alcoholic bite, like a faint electric current.

After he swallowed, the finish rose in his throat.

The gentle aroma lingered around his nose and mouth.

"This aroma is so unusual." Xie Juanhan's eyes widened slightly. He stared at the glass and couldn't help taking another sip. "It's my first time tasting a wine like this."

"Elven wine is famous for its aroma. They even have a special word for it."

Telingewei uttered a word with an unfamiliar pronunciation.

The word sounded especially elegant in his resonant voice.

Xie Juanhan tilted his head to listen to the term, then asked, "A powerful, rich, complex wine aroma that comes billowing out?"

Telingewei nodded. "That's right."

Xie Juanhan smiled. "Whenever you speak, I can always grasp your full meaning precisely."

Xie Juanhan relied on his spiritual power to communicate with the creatures of this world.

He could fully receive the information Telingewei conveyed because Telingewei's spiritual power was strong enough to transmit it in sufficient detail.

He could understand most of what ordinary humans said, and as for the remaining local terms, he could guess more or less what they meant.

He could understand the general meaning of the companion beasts' cries, though it hardly counted as communication.

Communicating with Telingewei was more comfortable after all.

Telingewei raised the bottle again and poured Xie Juanhan another glass. "In winter, if you put the wine in an ice bucket, it becomes crisper and more refreshing, and the aroma becomes more distinct."

"It needs to be chilled?" Xie Juanhan raised his eyebrows in mild surprise.

As he spoke, he lightly touched the bottle with a fingertip under Telingewei's gaze.

Cold spread instantly, and the wine inside the bottle looked clearer.

Xie Juanhan withdrew his hand. "Didn't the little ones tell you that making ice and snow is what I do best?"

Telingewei said, "I was making a tactful request."

Xie Juanhan smiled, extended a finger, and released a crisp chill into both his and Telingewei's glasses. "Try it again."

Xie Juanhan picked up his glass and raised it toward Telingewei in a toast.

The crystal glasses touched gently with a clink.

They each raised their glass and tasted the wine.

Xie Juanhan had controlled the temperature with extraordinary precision.

The wine in the glasses was icy and refreshing, but not excessively cold.

When a liquid was too cold, it only numbed the senses, making it difficult to taste its aroma.

But that wasn't the case with the wine Xie Juanhan had chilled.

With the wine's temperature lowered, its aroma was fresher and more distinct, and its icy texture was captivating.

Xie Juanhan felt he had taken not just a mouthful of wine, but a mouthful of aroma.

A feeling of ease

, happiness, and bliss welled up from deep within his body, followed by a sense of fullness brought by the energy contained in the wine.

He narrowed his eyes and savored it slowly. When the feeling passed, he raised his glass and tapped it against Telingewei's. "That's truly excellent wine."

Telingewei wore an expression of agreement. "Shall we drink wine made by fairies together next time? That wine is good too."

Xie Juanhan smiled with his glass raised. "Next time, please be sure to let me treat you."

==========Author's note:==========

See you tomorrow~

Thanks to HBbedLE and Junzi Zaiye for the hand grenades; thanks to Qiangwai You Zhi Mutu (*2), Yangmeishu Xia Zhai Pingguo, Nanzhi, Jiuci, Huangchao Zaishi, Mangguo Nuomici, Celistine, Ancient Spirit Jingguai Xiao Yatou, Sun Shifu, Mangguo Dawang, Quantang 0 Zhi Liangcha, Zai Bopian, mgk993, Shui Yin, Mu Su, and Junzi Zaiye for the landmines.