Chapter 33

The little one's eyes went round. "Chirp chirp?!"

The other little ones came over and gathered around Telingewei's feet.

Telingewei said, "Go play with Xie Juanhan."

The little ones said, "Chirp?"

Telingewei said, "Go tomorrow morning, and I'll give you two gold coins."

One little one rose onto its hind legs. "Chirp chirp!"

Telingewei looked down and met its gaze.

Harper insisted on bargaining. "Chirp!"

Telingewei said, "All right, two gold coins each. Go over before the sun rises and come back after the moon rises."

"Chirp chirp?"

"You don't have to do anything." Telingewei fell silent for a moment, then said, "Just keep him company."

The little ones were baffled.

Still, for Xie Juanhan's sake and the gold coins, they happily agreed.

Lately, Xie Juanhan had deliberately kept his distance from Telingewei, avoiding anything that might give the dragon the wrong idea.

He could turn down Telingewei's invitations by saying he was busy, but he couldn't refuse the little ones.

Every morning when he got up, he saw a row of furry little creatures lying outside his door, and when he came home in the evening, they were still lying there in a row.

Even a dragon with a heart of stone would have melted.

Besides, Xie Juanhan wasn't hardhearted.

The little ones came every day, and most of the time he couldn't play with them for long, so he couldn't help feeling a little guilty.

Telingewei wasn't there.

With nothing weighing on his mind, Xie Juanhan made the little ones delicious food every day.

Raw marinated shrimp, seared fish, salt-roasted crab, ice cream made from fruit pulp...

They were all delicious, healthy foods that weren't too high in calories.

The little ones didn't mind how busy Xie Juanhan was. Every day, they came eagerly to keep watch outside his house from morning until evening.

Telingewei was secretly paying each little one the handsome wage of two gold coins a day.

Once Xie Juanhan started making them delicious food, they were even happier.

Even the tips of their fur seemed to be brimming with joy.

Neither Xie Juanhan nor Telingewei was in a particularly good mood. Only the little ones grew rounder and happier by the day.

That day, the little ones finished their daily task of keeping Xie Juanhan company and scampered home in a line under the moonlight.

Telingewei went to the cave entrance to meet them.

The little ones spotted Telingewei's tall figure at once.

Before Telingewei could ask, the little ones who had taken his gold coins loyally reported on the day's events. "Chirp chirp, chirp chirp chirp!"

Telingewei said, "Xie Juanhan's fields keep getting ravaged by Demon Deer, Demon Rabbits, and Demon Birds?"

The little ones said, "Chirp!"

Xie Juanhan had asked his friends among the Weaving Fairies, dwarves, and adventurers to collect many fine seeds from all over.

He had diverted river water, brought in humus-rich soil, and carefully planted the seeds along the riverbank. He also regularly nourished them with Dragon Power.

His crops were growing well, and all sorts of herbivorous and omnivorous demonic beasts and Demon Birds had noticed.

Although those creatures never dared eat his crops while he was in the fields, as soon as he went home, demonic beasts and Demon Birds of all kinds seized the chance to snatch a few bites.

Xie Juanhan was fed up. He had not only built a fence, but also bought rune templates to ward off demonic beasts.

Unfortunately, there were always some stronger creatures that could break through his defenses and eat his crops.

At a loss, Xie Juanhan had even gone to ask Orfrey for advice today.

Orfrey's face was full of sympathy. "When you grow crops, all sorts of demonic beasts will eat them. That's why our whole village farms together, and we arrange for people to patrol at night during the harvest season."

Xie Juanhan asked, "Is patrolling the only way?"

Orfrey thought for a moment. "Patrolling isn't all that useful either, but if you run into demonic beasts eating the crops, you can kill them and sell them to make up for some of the losses."

Xie Juanhan said gloomily, "If I want to hunt, I can just go into the Magic Forest. I don't really want to use the crops I planted as bait."

"Then I don't think there's much you can do." Orfrey scratched his head. "A while ago, our village was harassed by a Chimerao. I heard you were the one who dealt with it in the end."

Xie Juanhan nodded.

Orfrey gave him an optimistic smile as he continued, "That's just how it is, anyway. You're bound to lose some crops when you farm. If you can make up for it by hunting, that's great. If you can't, you'll just have to charge the townspeople a little more for the crops."

Xie Juanhan didn't want to raise his prices. He just wanted to protect his crops so he could eat the delicious food he'd grown himself when harvest season came.

He still had to think of another way to deal with the demonic beasts that got in everywhere.

At the cave entrance.

Hearing the Companion Beasts' account, Telingewei frowned and began thinking of ways to keep the demonic beasts out, too.

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

Hehe, they won't fall in love that quickly, but Telingewei is already trying. I have a fast-paced Western fantasy story on my author page called "Succubus Magician." It's fast in every sense, so readers who like a quick pace can check it out.

Chapter 33: Chapter 33 [VIP]

Early in the morning, Xie Juanhan opened his door and stood outside, stretching.

He had just raised his arms when he saw a silent, tall figure standing beyond the fence.

They hadn't seen each other for many days, and Telingewei's physique seemed even better. His outstretched figure was exceptionally fine.

Especially in summer, when he wore light clothing that showed off his narrow waist and long legs to perfection, he was practically a feast for the eyes.

"Good morning." Telingewei's deep voice rang out.

"Morning," Xie Juanhan replied.

Telingewei fell somewhat silent, as though considering what to say.

The Companion Beasts at his feet were already impatient to greet Xie Juanhan. "Chirp chirp!"

Xie Juanhan bent down to greet them. "Good morning to you too."

The little ones tilted their heads up and looked at Xie Juanhan with their big, round eyes, while glancing toward the kitchen.

Usually, when Xie Juanhan saw the little ones come over, he would make them a portion of breakfast too.

Today, Xie Juanhan only smiled at them, a trace of hidden apology in his smile.

Most of the little ones didn't catch on and continued to look at him expectantly.

Two of the little ones understood and lowered their heads in disappointment.

Telingewei realized what was happening and asked, "You haven't had breakfast yet?"

"I just got up." Xie Juanhan asked, "You came over so early. Is it-"

"Have breakfast first," Telingewei said. "There's no rush."

"I'll just grab some bread." Xie Juanhan smiled. "What is it?"

Telingewei chose his words carefully. "I heard your fields are often damaged by demonic beasts. There's a kind called the Meli Demonic Wolf. They hunt demonic beasts, but they're not interested in plants. If you're willing, you could invite one to live near your fields. It would protect its territory."

Telingewei had thought for a long time before coming up with this idea.

When he was an adventurer, he had traveled elsewhere and heard of similar things.

To keep out small animals, small demonic beasts, or little fairies, some residents would deliberately build empty dwellings and invite certain special little creatures to move in as neighbors.

Xie Juanhan hadn't expected there to be a method like that.

Biological pest control?

Xie Juanhan thought for a moment. "Would this kind of demonic beast hurt people? A lot of farmers nearby go into the forest. It would be bad if anyone got hurt."

Telingewei immediately said, "You can make a contract with a Demon Wolf. I know there are contracts like that. If you need one, I can write to a friend and ask."

Xie Juanhan said, "Let me think about it first..."

Before he had finished speaking, a little one jumped up and pawed at his leg with its pads. "Chirp chirp!"

The other little ones jostled around his legs. "Chirp chirp chirp!"

The little ones were all enthusiastically urging Xie Juanhan to go catch a Demon Wolf.

They crowded around Xie Juanhan, acting cute, and a few even made little whimpering sounds through their noses.

The little ones had long since discovered that Xie Juanhan was especially susceptible to those whimpers.

Telingewei looked down at them.

In the past, whenever the little ones crowded around Xie Juanhan and pushed him aside, he would always give them a death stare.

Today, however, the sight of the little ones acting cute with the hem of Xie Juanhan's clothes in their mouths was especially pleasing to him.

Taking advantage of his ability to speak, Telingewei spoke up amid the little ones' cries:

"Meli Demonic Wolves are a type of giant wolf demonic beast. They live alone and are extremely territorial. They're also somewhat intelligent, so you can communicate with them."

Telingewei's voice drowned out the little ones' cries.

Xie Juanhan listened attentively, stroking the little ones now and then to soothe them.

Ignoring their expressions, Telingewei continued:

"They breed every spring, and this is just the season when the cubs are weaned. Their parents drive them out of the den."

"If this period passes and the cubs have already left the den and settled in territories of their own, there'll be no bringing them here."

"They're extremely loyal to their territories. Even if you take them away, they'll fight to the death to get back."

They sound like loyal puppies.

Ah, no, wolf cubs.

Xie Juanhan was tempted.

Telingewei continued his invitation. "Want to go? We can take a look before deciding."

Xie Juanhan looked up and met his gaze with bright eyes. "Are you free?"

Telingewei had met Xie Juanhan's eyes many times before.

Back then, he hadn't quite understood, and every time their eyes met, he had only felt warmth.

Now, when their eyes met again...

Telingewei immediately felt all the blood in his body rush into his heart, and his fingertips grew a little stiff.

Telingewei kept his expression taut and took a moment to recover before saying, "Very free."