Chapter 322: Adorable, Wanting to Take Her Away
Chapter 322: Adorable, Wanting to Take Her Away
"Of course, I learned it in school during classes."
"Do they teach this in schools?" It was somewhat sad to think about, but in reality, Mira had never attended school.
Not just her, but many members of the guild had never received a proper education.
Most learned to read and write from their elders, some at home before their parents passed away, some after joining the guild, and others at church.
Natsu was probably the most impressive, as he claimed Igniru taught him how to write.
But upon joining the guild, he realized the writing system was different, and it seemed like Elusa had to reteach him from scratch while holding his head.
Rod once wondered if dragons had their own language and writing system, but Natsu said there wasn't much difference in the language, just the script.
Unfortunately, seven years had passed, and now he couldn't even write it anymore.
Magical classrooms and regular schools had been established in Magnolia, but they didn't seem to be very popular.
Most people believed that being able to read and do basic calculations was sufficient. There were some who wanted to learn more about magic, but very few aspired to become scholars.
Someone like Reby, who loved reading and had extensive knowledge, would probably be considered an oddity among ordinary people.
Mira learned her reading and arithmetic from her parents before they passed away, and she had also taught Elfman and Lisana for a while.
None of the three siblings had ever attended school, so Mira wasn't sure if the curriculum Rod mentioned existed.
She had learned about personal hygiene on her own, and there were some incidents she didn't want to recall, moments when she thought she was going to die.
Rod thought of many things, and for a moment, he felt a pang of sympathy for her, as well as for his guildmates.
"They teach it in our schools, around the age of twelve or thirteen..."
At twelve or thirteen, Mira was already working hard to support her younger siblings.
Suddenly, Rod hugged Mira. Growing up without ever worrying about his livelihood or going hungry, he found it hard to imagine the hardships Mira had endured since childhood.
"Why are you acting like this?" Mira wondered if she had misread the situation, as she sensed a hint of affection in his eyes.
"In the future..." Rod wanted to say, 'I'll take good care of you,' but the words that came out were, "I'll tell you more about my past."
Mira placed her hand on Rod's shoulder. "I thought you didn't want to talk about the past."
Rod rubbed her hair. "I want to talk about it now."
Mira nodded lightly. "Okay."
Falling for someone, wanting to know more about them, and then wanting them to understand you better. Rod wasn't sure if this was normal or if the sequence of events was wrong.
Anyway, it didn't seem to matter to the two of them at this point.
Or maybe it did, as Mira seemed to be in a better mood.
...
They had taken ferries, carriages, river crabs, and even raced on magic quad bikes, but this was probably their first time riding a train together.
The trains here seemed to always have spare capacity, as Rod had never seen a full carriage in his limited experience of train travel.
Logically, the railway company should reduce a carriage or two, but he couldn't understand the operator's thinking. Weren't they afraid of going bankrupt?
However, this wasn't something Rod should worry about. The spacious carriage was quite nice, allowing him to snuggle up with Mira and enjoy the scenery.
When he got tired of sitting, he would lie down on her lap and continue admiring the view.
It was evident that Mira was in a great mood, as she had specifically changed into the outfit Rod had chosen for her before they left.
She wore a white one-shoulder T-shirt, with the hem tied at the side, transforming the originally waist-covering shirt into a crop top.
On the bottom, she wore a pair of blue denim shorts, secured with a white belt that hung loosely, not actually holding up the shorts.
Rod lay on his side, his hand reaching for Mira's emblem, but he was slapped away and ended up rubbing her stomach instead.
With no one around, Mira let him do as he pleased, finding it quite comfortable.
In return, she repeatedly stroked Rod's head.
Rod felt that this was more of a cost than a reward.
During the latter half of the journey, they switched positions, and Rod played with the small tuft of hair on Mira's head, occasionally removing the hair tie and retying it to practice his skills.
In this position, Mira lying down was fine, but when she lay on her side, it looked a little too intimate.
So, Rod took out the mission documents. With such a beauty before him, it was a good opportunity to test his willpower. Perhaps after this trial, his mental strength would improve...
That was nonsense; he was mainly concerned about not letting his guard down.
Although the previous incident wasn't caused by negligence, he couldn't afford to be careless this time either.
"Violet Town, they say the scenery there is as beautiful as its name... and so are the girls. Ouch... don't pinch me, that's what an uncle in the guild who's been there said."
Rod rubbed his waist and continued, "This might be the reason why it's being targeted. Criminal gangs abduct underage girls, 'cultivate' them, and then sell them abroad."
Mira also became serious. She had already read the basic information, and now she was looking at the key points marked by Rod.
Rod pointed to a line on the simple map, "Violet Town has a main road leading directly to the port. It only takes two hours for a carriage to reach the port at full speed, and then it's impossible to find them."
Mira nodded, "And those ships won't necessarily dock openly at the port. We can't just sit and wait for them."
"The southern coastline is so long, and we can't monitor so many places at once. We can't just lay worms along the coast and have them bite every time a ship appears."
"We can only go to Violet Town and wait for them to commit another crime, but we can't just watch as children are abducted. We'll have to capture and interrogate them."
Mira flashed her Devil Hand and quickly changed it back. She didn't mind turning into a demon to deal with such people.
Rod frowned, "But... that way, we can't confirm we'll get real information. If we encounter a tough one, they might become alert and it'll be troublesome."
Mira thought for a moment and said, "So the best way is to find a little girl who isn't afraid of danger and let them capture her, then we'll follow."
Fishing for criminals... Rod immediately thought of Wendy, but quickly rejected the idea.
That girl had said she wasn't good at fighting, and if she got hurt, Rod would feel guilty for a long time.
"What I mean is..." Mira waved her hand, and her figure shifted, suddenly shrinking significantly. With her high ponytail, large bow, and a deliberately pitiful expression, she asked, "Big brother, can I be the bait?"
"Isn't this how you looked when you were little...?"
Mira made a mischievous expression, "Well, will anyone want to kidnap me?"
Rod spoke honestly, "I want to kidnap you right now."
Mira pretended to be scared, "How scary, will big brother protect me?"
He wanted to kidnap her even more.
Rod sighed, "If you keep acting like this, I'll be the one tied up by the law enforcement after we get off the carriage."
---
Book Recommendation: I Can Foretell the Future, But the Hints Are Wrong?
Introduction: During the Sheng Qian period.
Chu Jingnian was born as the second prince of the Daxia Dynasty.
At the age of six, he awakened the Luohe Library in his mind, allowing him to simulate his future. He gradually discovered that his background was not simple.
[In your sixth year, your mother, Empress Dowager Wan, tampered with the third prince during a bone divination, arousing the queen's suspicion and sowing the seeds of conflict in the harem. Stop this from happening and gain a 4th-grade opportunity: Demon Heart Dao Bone.]
[At thirteen, your maternal grandfather presided over a cheating case, stripping the fourth prince of his title and rank. The top scholar position became an empty dream, offending the Confucian and Taoist sages and disrupting the world order. Find the true cheater and gain a 3rd-grade opportunity: Sage Sword Embryo.]
[At eighteen, your childhood sweetheart, jealous of the Duke of Beixiang's daughter marrying you, lured her to her death and framed the emperor, leading to the Duke's rebellion and the invasion of the Demon Race. Save the Duke's daughter's life and gain a 2nd-grade opportunity: Great Resolve Martial Armor.]
A beautiful but venomous mother, a powerful statesman grandfather, sycophantic retainers, a self-centered sweetheart, and a divinely gifted younger brother.
"The five criteria for a great villain: good looks, prestigious background, bullying, unscrupulousness, self-interest, and I have them all?"
However, Chu Jingnian looked at his kind-hearted mother, upright and towering Confucian grandfather, loyal and honest brother, and naive childhood friend, falling into deep thought and hesitation.
"Should I listen to this hint or not?"
(End of Chapter)
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