ALL NOVEL Chapter 94: Home Sweet Home
The warm, cozy light of the candles illuminated the room, with a pot of cooling porridge indicating that the two little creatures had just eaten not long ago.
Even when Athena set them down, they remained just as excited, happily bouncing around.
Their owner’s appearance was rather shabby—tattered clothes, a face covered in dust, and disheveled hair. This messy sight was enough to make the cleanliness-obsessed Mikmik bristle with irritation.
Noticing the gazes of Witty and Paopao, Athena flicked each of their foreheads lightly.
Mikmik, however, wasn’t so gentle. It slapped both of them hard, annoyed at their stares. Mikmik cared a lot about its image and being scrutinized by Witty and Paopao made it uncomfortable, so it gave them a good beating to stop them from looking at it.
Athena opened the door and headed to the workroom to check on Grey's progress. After knocking for a while, she realized Grey wasn’t there. She must have gone out.
Unable to bear the sticky, grimy feeling any longer, Athena went to the washroom to clean up.
After a long time, she put on her pajamas, feeling refreshed and comfortable. Her semi-wet hair hung down her back as she headed straight for her little vegetable garden. The vegetables had all been harvested and were no longer growing; only the trees bore plump fruits.
The plant fairies were playing among the trees, but when they saw Athena, they quickly hid, afraid.
Athena didn’t mind. She reached up and plucked a mutated orange from the tree. It felt heavy in her hand.
Peeling it gently, she placed a juicy segment in her mouth. The sweet juice exploded, filling her mouth with a fresh, delightful flavor that soothed her weary body and mind.
She picked a few more and strolled over to the low wall. The thorny vines, noticing her arrival, instantly came to life, dancing joyfully and blooming with five-colored flowers.
Just a gentle touch from Athena on the petals made them so happy that they could hardly contain themselves.
On her way back, Athena tried offering the oranges to Prince and Princess, but they both shook their heads, refusing the fruit. They just stayed close to her.
Athena wondered if Prince and Princess were of a lower rank than the other three little ones; otherwise, they wouldn’t be unable to eat and would just stay by the door.
After comforting them as well, she felt she had greeted everyone in her little home.
She sat by the fire, peeling an orange for herself while watching the flames dance in the stove.
Her system backpack had returned to normal, filled with countless items exchanged from the yellow giant bee. She wasn’t in a hurry to sort through these things.
As she sat by the fire, watching the three little ones play, Mikmik, noticing her cleanliness, also wanted to wash up. Athena let it go and asked it to take Witty and Paopao along. Although Mikmik seemed reluctant, it honestly took both of them.
Athena could already imagine the three of them playing with water.
"Clean up after you're done!" she called after them, making the three little ones pause briefly before they continued running out without a care.
Sitting by the fire, Athena felt like something was still missing. Suddenly, she remembered the lounge chair she had made earlier. She looked around the room and found it in a corner. Dragging it over, she placed a thin blanket on top and lay down.
The comfortable warmth gradually dried her hair. Meanwhile, she opened the regional chat channel.
It was as lively as ever.
|
- What the heck? Why did it suddenly end? What about my ranking? |
Seeing the noisy chatter in the chat channel, Athena closed the system panel, gradually closed her eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.
Mikmik, along with Witty and Paopao, were splashing around in the water, showing no signs of the typical cat's fear of water. In fact, among the three grassballs, Mikmik was having the most fun. Witty and Paopao, now soaked, couldn't match Mikmik’s energy.
Paopao, feeling wronged, curled up into a ball, sulking and turning away. But it couldn’t escape the water's assault and eventually turned back, pouncing down and sending a huge splash that soaked the other two from head to toe. Mikmik grinned widely, pleased with itself.
Once they were done causing mischief, Mikmik finally left the water, shaking itself dry. Each of them carried a small bowl, using the water from the pool to water the plants and trees, leaving only what they couldn't scoop up.
After cleaning up, they dared to return to the room. Standing obediently at the door, they waited for Athena to scold them, but hearing no sound, they carefully approached the fire and found her already asleep.
Without returning to their own nests, they curled up around Athena by the fire and fell asleep.
A small figure darted through the darkness, glancing back now and then. Several monsters were chasing her, eyes filled with greed.
Her greenish skin and small stature belied a sense of steadiness and experience. She was dressed in a simple grass skirt, and while running, she swiftly pulled three arrows from the quiver at her waist.
In a fluid motion, she turned sideways, drew her bow, and shot all three arrows simultaneously, each one streaking towards the pursuing monsters like lightning.
The whole process was seamless and impressive. Two of the arrows were dodged but managed to slow the monsters down, while the third hit one monster directly in the eye, making it stop and howl in pain.
Grey seized the opportunity to speed up, rushing back until she saw the familiar shelter, finally allowing herself to relax.
But her relief was short-lived as she quickly grew wary. Someone had been here; there was an unfamiliar scent in the yard.
After a careful sniff, she realized it was Athena and was a bit surprised. Knowing it was her, Grey felt reassured.
"I really shouldn’t go out during the dark hours."
She had delayed her return while gathering supplies and ended up being surrounded by monsters as soon as darkness fell, only managing to return now.
Dragging her wounded body back to the workroom, she hastily bandaged herself and passed out before she could properly tend to her injuries.
