Brain bloom

"neither."

"Can you give me specific instructions? I don't like being played." This salt elf was very upset about having received two orders before, only to go back on them both times.

"Fufu, since you're so fast, could you help me delay that tree demon for a few minutes? Try to drag it outside the grapevines."

"That's no problem... Well, I'll go then."

Fufu was very confident because its belly was full of seawater and the enemy was a big guy who only knew how to hit things with tree branches.

It flew away instantly, uttering some nasty provocations, such as, "You have no salt on you, how pathetic," and "I wouldn't even deign to eat you, you don't even have bark."

The tree spirit couldn't understand, but it was still enraged by the seawater that Fufu spat out, and the battle between the salt spirit and the tree spirit began—although it was a one-sided battle where the tree spirit was being toyed with by Fufu.

Relieved, Dandelion immediately ran towards Senshi's room. She knew she had no chance of defeating the tree spirit now. But Senshi had deliberately left a newly made robe, which he hadn't immediately given her, here, nor had he taken the new staff…

"It seems you planned this all along to test me..." Dandelion sighed. "I understand, Mori. You wanted to pass this on to me in this way... Thank you for your thoughtfulness, I will not let you down."

Every second counts, so Dandelion hurriedly pushed open the door and immediately saw what she wanted.

The robes, gloves, boots, and two pairs of black and white stockings were all neatly laid out on the table. Just by getting close, she could feel a powerful energy emanating from them; it was the first time she had ever seen such beautifully crafted equipment.

Dandelion casually took off her dress, grabbed her socks, and started putting them on.

She plopped down on the edge of the bed, not caring about the color of the socks, and put on one black and one white. Although they didn't match, she was quite surprised by these over-the-knee socks, because the size, tightness, and the comfort against her skin were all perfect, the most comfortable things she had ever worn.

She then put on her robe, two pairs of fingerless gloves, and slipped her feet into ankle boots.

Each piece was perfectly sized, without a single gap, and without any feeling of restriction. This filled Dandelion with genuine pride, for the person with such exquisite craftsmanship was right beside her; she was truly a blessed princess.

I won't let you down!

In an instant, the equipment's effects were activated. Dandelion felt as if she were not in a small house, but standing under the sky and on the earth, because everything was so vast. Her spiritual power reached an unprecedented level, as if she were transcending the world.

With unwavering confidence, she strode directly to the rooftop and grasped the still slightly foul-smelling staff in her hand.

Even though we're missing a magic book, it doesn't matter—we can still win.

She stood on the rooftop, completely focused on the battle outside, the outcome of which would be decided by her own staff.

After spitting out all the seawater, Fu Fu was left with no means of attack. It could only occasionally harass its opponent with its speed, but it couldn't inflict any damage whatsoever. The tree spirit was also very annoyed. It wanted to catch this annoying fly and smash it to death, but it couldn't. It was just too cunning.

Just as the tree spirit was about to launch a special attack by consuming its own growth rings, its body suddenly stiffened.

—Because, at this moment, the tree spirit sensed immense danger, as if two pairs of eyes had arrived here.

One pair came from the east, sending chills down the tree spirit's spine.

Another pair, from the West, brought an unexpected warmth.

These two pairs of eyes seemed to have traversed an extremely long distance to survey the entire battlefield.

For the tree spirit, while this was far less terrifying than the battle with the ghostly Four Seasons, it still puzzled it. What on earth was looking this way? And what were they looking at? Strange…

It seemed that it was the only one on the entire battlefield who had noticed this.

The salt sprites were biting it like mosquitoes, causing no pain or itching. Meanwhile, the princess of the Four Seasons stood on the rooftop chanting some strange cryptic chant—a sight that terrified the tree spirit. It stopped fighting the salt sprites and rushed towards the dandelion, trying to stop their magic.

“Drum bleib in unserm Zaubergarten!

(Stay in our magic garden!)

nur um dich zu beschützen

(There is a tall wall)

ist die Mauer so hoch

(The eternally locked city gates)

Ich geb' dir Sicherheit

(I can keep you safe.)

The spiritual energy surged with unprecedented agitation, transforming into wisps of crimson that coalesced on the staff, completely absorbing even the original stench. The power even summoned a gale, causing the leaves of every grapevine to rustle.

It's a very rare feeling, as if you hold the whole of nature in your hands.

What surprised her even more was that even while preparing for advanced nature magic, her mental energy remained abundant. This was the first time Dandelion had realized that such powerful energy was hidden within her body, and that it had been activated by the equipment made by Sen Shi.

Preparations for the magic were complete, and the dandelion shouted out the name of the magic.

"Advanced Natural Magic - The Eternal Scarecrow"

This was precisely the trump card she hadn't been able to use since the fall of the Kingdom of Flowers.

……

(As for spells... let's stick to the old ways! Although it's a completely different magic system now.)

Also, there's something I need to mention. My concept for the Four Seasons is actually quite complex. After all, the country just disappeared, so it's normal for them to occasionally show some negative traits... So, how about adding Shiba Inu?

Volume 1 #065 Under the Dawn

Copper coins had very little value and were practically defunct, which was true in any region.

Instead of spending tens or hundreds of coins to buy a bunch of vegetables, it's better to carry a silver coin and buy more things at once. Even conservative old men are getting more and more used to using silver coins to settle accounts.

Therefore, copper coins became synonymous with poverty, and fewer and fewer merchants were willing to settle accounts with copper coins.

But the devil will always gladly accept those copper coins stained with blood and mud.

……

West of the coastline of Frozen Bear Town lies a stretch of farmland, about a ten-minute walk from the end. Then, following the muddy road and navigating the filthy area piled with livestock manure, you'll find the outlying villages of Frozen Bear Town.

The area is relatively prosperous, with most crops being high-yield grains. However, being a coastal region, fishing is far more important. Because of this, tragedies occasionally occur, often alongside storms or sea monsters.

Recently, another fishing boat sank.

They were neither swallowed by storms nor hunted by wild beasts, but died at the hands of humans.

The cargo ships dispatched by Frozen Bear Town were carrying large quantities of gold coins and goods, intending to trade with the Peda Empire and buy peace.

But while sailing at night into waters teeming with monsters, they encountered a sea fog. In the fog, the cargo ship happened to run into a fishing boat, mistook it for a monster, and sank it with its cannons.

Only a few fishermen, with the help of the sea monster, made it back to the village alive. In this situation, the monster was more benevolent than the lord; having obtained a few corpses enough to fill its belly, it sent back the survivors it couldn't finish eating, as a token of gratitude for the frequent provision of corpses.

As for the fishermen who perished at sea, they can only lie quietly on the ocean floor.

"So you summoned me, child?" a devil asked.

The devil sat on a simple and dilapidated altar, surrounded by dead fish and shrimp, their blood barely covering the array patterns.

Across from her, a girl of about eleven or twelve years old sat outside the array, hugging her knees. Her clothes were tattered, and her eyes were like a pool of stagnant water. She had summoned the demon, for she had even lost her only family member.

The practice of summoning the devil was widespread among the poor, as it was a last resort when people had nowhere else to turn. The devil would grant the summoner some wishes, although the price would be extremely heavy and the risks enormous—but they really had nothing to lose and didn't care.

The girl looked at the devil before her and thought he wasn't as terrifying as the lord had claimed. He was a handsome but sinister man with long, sharp nails and teeth—he had a pair of horn-like things on his forehead, but that was about it; he wasn't too scary.

There were several copper coins stained with blood and dirt on the summoning circle; these were the coins that were needed to make a deal with the devil.

"What do you want me to do for you, child?" the demon whispered, stepping out of the summoning circle, picking up the copper coin from the ground, and trying to approach the summoner.

The girl was a little scared, so the devil stopped.

"Do you want me to resurrect your father?" the devil asked again.

"……no."

"Oh, so you know that life is hard to reverse, that's a good thing. In that case, what you crave is revenge, isn't it? That's quite simple."

"No."

"Ha, I really can't figure it out. Wealth? Power? A safe and happy home?" The devil listed the things humans wanted.

But no matter which one you asked, the girl still shook her head.

She mustered her courage and whispered her request: "Take me away... I want to end my life in a painless way. I want to be with my dad and mom, but... I'm afraid of pain."

“Child…” The devil still approached her, sat down beside her, and placed his hand on her shoulder. “Listen to me, you have a long life ahead of you, a beautiful face, and a healthy body, so live it to the fullest.”

"No."

"After death, nothing remains; living is better for both of us."

"Are you really a devil? You make it sound so nice." The girl finally looked up, glaring angrily at the devil. "People say that devils don't care about anything, as long as they can get human souls... Doesn't that mean taking me to my death?"

“Yes, we need souls…”

The devil hesitated, but in the end, he told the truth according to his own beliefs.

"However, your pure and innocent young soul is of no use to us. We need dirty and muddy souls to provide us with greater strength."

"don't know."

The devil considered his words for a moment, then lowered his tone.

"I want you to live on and become an ordinary, filthy adult, which is in my best interest. For this, I can give you wealth, beauty, and power, and you can live a very happy life in the future... Just give me your soul after you die."

"But I don't need those things, I want to die now."

"Alright, I understand... Sigh." With a sigh, the devil stood up helplessly. "I know you don't want to live, so I can't help you. I'll give you a comfortable way to die."

The girl couldn't understand the devil's words before, but now she does, and she can finally be freed from her painful life...

She closed her eyes, trying to suppress the fear in her heart and hold back her trembling.

Death didn't come; instead, a soft little hand was placed on her dirty hair. Who was it? It wasn't the devil's hand... She wanted to open her eyes, but she couldn't.

"Life is interesting, and your deceased parents thought so too. Besides, they certainly don't want you to come looking for them. So embrace your destiny, be an interesting person, and keep living."

It was a warm, girlish voice, seemingly imbued with magic, like the rising sun, melting away all the despair in the girl's heart. She felt incredibly warm, and then... quietly fell asleep.

If she woke up one morning, perhaps she would be able to face life with equanimity? she thought.

Before she fell completely asleep, she felt herself fall into someone's arms, and then heard the devilish uncle's astonished voice—

"Um, um, it's you! Is something going to happen here? You actually came..."

"Don't worry so much. I just accepted the messenger's summons on behalf of my lazybones at home. After finishing my business, I happened to be traveling here, and it was just a coincidence that I ran into you."

"Lazybones?" He covered his mouth and muttered under his breath, "That's your father, the strongest ancient demon king in history..."

"Just a foster father. Alright, I won't eat you, don't be so scared. But I'd appreciate it if you could settle this little one in; I can sense a powerful spiritual force." She carried the girl to the demon and patted the girl's hair with a smile.

"Having a difficult fate might be a good fit to become a magician."