Chapter 280: The Fool
Chapter 280: The Fool
Rod was filled with regret, immense regret.
He shouldn't have called Worm over in the first place, and if he hadn't, Mila wouldn't have insisted on keeping it.
If Worm hadn't stayed, there wouldn't be this soft and fluffy barrier between him and Mila.
Just five minutes ago, they were cuddling and whispering sweet nothings, and now, five minutes later, a pathetic thick wall stood between them.
"Sigh," Rod breathed, blaming Worm for this.
"Huh?" Worm felt its master was talking about it.
Mila's scolding voice rang out, "Go to sleep, we have work tomorrow."
This person, after a day of traveling and a few hours of fighting in the evening, should be resting instead of being so annoying.
"Oh." But he couldn't really blame Worm; they were in someone else's home, after all.
He should have known better and stayed at an inn... but there wasn't one in the village, a miscalculation.
Rod closed his eyes, only to open them again shortly after. He knew he should rest, but... how could anyone fall asleep in this situation?
Lying in the same king-size bed, Rod's restlessness couldn't escape Mila's notice.
She sat up, facing Rod, with her legs bent to the sides and her body leaning forward. "If you can't sleep, I'll help you."
The neckline of her sleepwear was loose, but unfortunately, the dim light didn't allow for a clear view of the beautiful scenery.
"How?" Rod asked. "Do you want to sing a lullaby?"
"Something more convenient," Mila replied. She extended her right hand and gently placed it on Rod's forehead.
Rod sensed the fluctuations of mana, and before him appeared a pile of bubbles emitting a pink glow.
Immediately, he felt a wave of drowsiness wash over him, clearly the effect of a Mistergang's sleep spell.
"You can do that too..." Rod was surprised and fell into a deep sleep.
A smile appeared on Mila's face as she whispered, "A sleep spell of this level would only work if the target is off guard."
She tugged at Rod's cheeks, this mischievous person... Despite his heightened vigilance, he was completely off guard around her.
Recalling how Rod was on guard even against the carriage driver during the day, Mila's smile grew wider.
The pinching of his cheeks turned into a gentle caress.
She leaned down, her cheeks lightly brushing against Rod's face. "Good night."
...
When Rod woke up the next morning, he realized he was holding something soft and fluffy.
Opening his eyes, he confirmed it was indeed Worm.
Worm seemed to have been awake for a while, and as soon as Rod opened his eyes, its long tongue immediately licked Rod's face, giving him a quick wash.
"You're not a dog," Rod pushed Worm away slightly and sat up.
Mila was sitting in front of the mirror, fixing her hair, with a black hair scrunchie in her mouth, part of it already braided.
"Good morning," Mila said, holding the finished braid with one hand and removing the hair tie with the other. Through the mirror, she gave Rod a bright smile.
Rod had seen this smile before, when he woke up in the guild.
But her gaze was clearly different now.
Rod's joy quickly reflected on his face, "Good morning."
Suddenly, Rod felt something was off about this scene, a strange sense of deja vu.
A few seconds later, he realized what it was, hugging the blanket tightly and feigning fear, "You, what did you do to me?"
Mila froze, her face turning red. She turned around and glared at him, "You... won't get any breakfast!"
"Sigh~" It seemed like something had happened, yet nothing had happened.
A hair tie landed on Rod's forehead, and he got out of bed with a smile, "Do you want me to help you tie your hair?"
"No!" Mila stood up, rummaged through her suitcase, and took out another hair tie to finish off her ponytail.
It was a beautiful hairstyle, especially with the dragon whisker fringe framing her cheeks, which Rod particularly liked.
He took a closer look, realizing the hair tie she had just used was the one he had given her.
Mila was pleased with the way he looked at her, a sign that her efforts hadn't been in vain.
But she was also annoyed that he was just staring like that...
"Hurry up and get ready," Mila urged.
"Okay." Rod handed her the hair scrunchie, but his hand was caught, and the scrunchie ended up on his wrist. "Hey..."
"Be quick, we have work to do later," Mila didn't let Rod finish and pushed him towards the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
Rod opened the door, poking his head out, "Let me finish. This hairstyle looks really good."
He retreated and closed the door again after speaking.
Mila couldn't help but laugh, "Silly."
...
Of course, she didn't really mean it when she said he wasn't getting breakfast. After a meal at the Village Chief's house, the two prepared to head out.
Mr. Jasper and his wife both had dark circles under their eyes, but they were in high spirits.
Rod asked, and as expected, they had been busy late into the night dealing with the aftermath of yesterday's events.
In fact, most of the villagers had worked late, and although they were a bit tired, and the smell near the crematorium was hard to describe, everyone was in good cheer.
"Today, we'll search for traces of the rats and try to eliminate as many as possible, but it might cause a lot of damage to the farmland, just like yesterday's road."
Jasper said, "No problem! Go ahead and do what's necessary."
After all, the crops they had planted were already ruined, and the most important task now was to get rid of the rats.
As for the farmland being blown into pits, it was as good as tilling the soil.
Rod nodded, "Then let's go."
"Please."
Mila laughed and said, "You should also take some time to rest, sir."
Along the way, the villagers they met were all tired but greeted the two enthusiastically. The children ran up to them, sweetly calling out, "Big brother, big sister!"
They might not have seen the two's faces clearly, but these were the only new faces in the village—two Archmages.
The pits Mila had blown up on the main road at the village entrance had been filled, but some on the side hadn't been taken care of yet.
A few crematoriums in the distance were still smoking, and the fences damaged by the worms hadn't been repaired.
"Summon, Crimson Mark Treant!"
"It's up to you." Rod patted the Treant's claw and pointed to the ground traces, gesturing, "Build a new fence along these traces, about this wide and this tall."
The Treant let out a low sound, "Hmm," and walked along the edge of the village.
Vines grew rapidly, weaving together like fabric, following the height and thickness Rod had indicated.
The villagers, seeing that this was a monster summoned by Rod, weren't too scared. But once they saw what it was doing, they exclaimed in surprise.
This wasn't just a fence; it was a wooden wall!
"Is this a new technique you came up with after destroying the guild that day?"
Mila linked arms with Rod, smiling, "Now I understand why the Council Chamber holds you in such high regard."
Rod couldn't help but show off a little, "I, the so-called 'New Era's Fairy Strategist,' have always dedicated myself to reducing the guild's negative reputation. What I've done so far is but a trifle, not worth mentioning."
Mila spoke as if soothing a child, "Yes, yes. The Fairy Strategist is the strongest."
Rod bumped his head against hers in dissatisfaction.
Mila just laughed; this bump was much lighter than their previous headbutts when she and Elusa argued.
It wasn't until the Treant had circled the village, building the wall, that the two mounted the River Crab and officially began their work for the day.
(End of Chapter)
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