Brain bloom

Wait a minute, it said there was a sacred aura? So, if it really was summoned by the dandelion, then it seems she chose white silk. Hmm… it certainly suits the princess very well… Mori made a mental note of this, then immediately blushed slightly and shook her head to banish these wild thoughts.

"Such speed! What if it crashes down..." Huanlong exclaimed.

Upon hearing the word "smash," Mori felt a chill run down his spine, as memories of his past life still flashed before his eyes.

The meteor shower that blotted out the entire sky still haunts her. To calm herself, she let out a long breath, releasing all the panic in her heart.

"Fire element, shaping."

A condensed fire arrow appeared in Morishita's hand; it was a flame constructed from her spiritual power, and it would never harm her. She hid behind a large rock and nocked the fire arrow onto the bowstring.

She raised her bow, staring intently at the light, and aimed the arrow. This was merely a precaution and a test; if the other party truly wasn't a monster, the bow of debt collection wouldn't react at all. That way, she could breathe a slight sigh of relief.

The light was getting closer and closer.

That's why Mori was able to confirm that it wasn't emitting light on its own. It was a small, square box, seemingly made of crystal. But these crystals reflected the sunlight, sparkling so brightly it hurt the eyes.

For the first time, Sen Shi's arrow followed the trajectory of the box's flight.

Great, no response.

The bow used for debt collection neither changed its attack power nor gave any strange judgments, which was enough to prove that there was no monster in the box. Sen Shi put down the bow with relief, thinking that it was really strange that such a thing could fly around.

It could be some kind of pseudo-technique, something Silvermoon City is experimenting with, or perhaps some legendary alchemist somewhere is just playing around.

“That box… uh…” The Phantom Dragon was still looking up, seeing more than Sen Shi did.

"what happened?"

"It looks like there's a skull inside."

"what?"

The box passed overhead without stopping, its near miss incredibly swift. Then, it froze in mid-air—Senji and Huanlong's hearts leaped into their throats, utterly bewildered by this bizarre turn of events. Was it about to crash down? That speed was sure to be a formidable opponent.

But the box wasn't targeting them. Just like when the plane returned, the box lowered its altitude and flew towards a spot on the edge of the island.

Having identified the direction—"Wine, wine, wine...the winery!!!"

A panicked scream from a young girl of the Four Seasons echoed through the valley, louder than even the roar of a phantom dragon.

……

Meanwhile, Dandelion was still basking in the joy of victory. She had won, wiping out the damned lord in one blow and taming the tyrannical tree spirit.

"Advanced Natural Magic - Eternal Scarecrow" is a magic that is only passed down among the Four Seasons. It was originally created by a certain Flower King to protect the fields.

As its name suggests, it's a scarecrow erected in flower fields and farmlands, a reliable and trustworthy companion for farmers, but the method of setting it up is a bit unusual. Instead of being woven from straw, it's woven from enemies who dare to invade the farmland.

These scarecrows possess a soul and can move their bodies to a limited extent, making them ideal for protecting fields. However, outsiders, aside from those who observe the seasons, believe they are more like some kind of dark magic that imprisons souls.

In the winery's fields, a scarecrow stands among the grapevines, appearing to be about the same height as a human.

On the other side, the tree spirit's enormous body lay sprawled on the ground, like a centuries-old giant tree in someone's village that had been uprooted and carelessly tossed aside by the roadside. The tree spirit had fallen on its own; after all, its soul was imprisoned within the scarecrow.

Even wearing the four-piece set specially made by the Forest Spirit, Dandelion still expended a lot of mental energy; it would be difficult to imprison a monster of the Tree Spirit's level. However, it was definitely now completely submissive.

Dandelion, with the air of a victor, walked up to the scarecrow and poked its face with its staff.

In Dandelion's view, she had completed the test given to her by the forest, and even exceeded expectations. After all, this magic didn't require killing the tree spirit; it allowed it to return unharmed.

"You've lost. Nature is always more extreme than you think, and we, the seasons, are part of it. Rest assured, I'll keep you, because I need your branches... If you can accept that, I'll let you go—"

Before the victor could finish his triumphant declaration, a flash of light suddenly appeared on the horizon.

Immediately afterwards, a strange crystal box smashed the scarecrow and became deeply embedded at the foot of the dandelion.

Volume 1 # Taking a day off today... I'll make it up tomorrow

cluck cluck cluck

Today, Moon Raven mastered a highly difficult bird-specific magic spell, the Transformation into a Pigeon. However, the effect was so good that it might not be able to transform back until tomorrow. We'll finish the transformation tomorrow.

——————Divider Line————

By the way, I'll be a picture thief for once and share this image to help you imagine the little house of a dandelion.

Image: "", Location: "Images/214816-87861.jpg"

See you tomorrow…

Volume 1 #072 - Vanished Without a Trace

The dandelion and this strange box met unexpectedly—it lay beside the dandelion's foot with the white silk thread.

Then, after about a breath's time, the dandelion jumped up in fright.

The ground cracked from the box's impact, and her prized soil splattered everywhere. The straw from the innocent scarecrow being smashed flew about, giving Dandelion every reason to believe that this was an attack!

Her fingers gripped the staff tightly, and she had already fled more than ten steps away.

She also subconsciously summoned a large number of plants to entwine around her. These thorny plants, like sharp swords with leaves, were watching out for any danger for their owner.

However, apart from that initial smash, the box became much more obedient, simply lying motionless on the ground.

"...What exactly is it?"

Dandelion patted her chest; she'd been quite frightened, and her heart was still pounding. The dandelion hairs on her head were also ruffled and needed calming. She gasped for breath and pulled up the hood of her robe.

Perhaps it was some kind of attack launched by Mori? Was it aimed at the scarecrow?

No, it's not.

A strange, sacred aura was emanating from the box. This was from the Holy Coffin Kingdom; it certainly had nothing to do with Mori.

The presence of this aura can only mean one thing! Dandelion gritted her teeth, convinced that this was an assassination attempt targeting the princess of a fallen kingdom... and it seemed to have failed.

"Just you wait, I'll show you that nature is not to be trifled with..."

However, the method used in this assassination was truly bizarre.

"Tree vines".

Dandelion raised her staff and tapped it lightly. A vine obeyed her command and slowly stretched towards the box. The tip of the vine, like a cat tentatively exploring a new toy, tried to touch the box—but nothing happened.

The dandelion grew bolder and waved her hand, summoning several vines to join her. She herself remained hidden behind the grapevines, peeking out cautiously.

No strange noises occurred again until the box was dug out of the ground by the vines.

It was a box made of flawless, transparent white crystal—but not pieced together; it was carved out from a single piece of extremely high-quality crystal. The lid on top was even more exquisitely crafted, fitting together perfectly.

For some reason, there was a skull inside.

It was clearly human; it didn't appear to have any injuries, and judging from the outline, it should be male? Dandelion wasn't quite sure.

She wanted to go up and pick it up to investigate, but she was also a little hesitant.

The dandelion suddenly remembered that it still had a companion: "Fufu."

"exist."

The salt sprite's voice was very soft.

The puzzled dandelion looked in the direction of the sound and found its own salt sprite hiding in a corner of the rooftop, peeking out. If it weren't for a sliver of azure light, the dandelion would never have noticed it.

She hesitated for a few seconds, then abandoned the idea of ​​using Fufu as cannon fodder, and changed her mind:

"If I get blown up or some monster comes out, go find Mori immediately and tell her everything."

"...No, I do not accept this order. Princess, please hide. I will handle this."

"No need, I'll do it myself."

Dandelion smiled awkwardly, because she really had no intention of digging a hole for Fufu to jump into. On the contrary, she felt a little bad, so she raised her hand to indicate that it wasn't necessary. Salt sprites are truly a strange species. Have they already developed such loyalty after knowing each other for so long... or is it just simple?

She mustered her courage and, protected by the plants, stepped forward to observe.

The skull was unusual; unlike typical symbols of evil, it evoked a sense of peace. The box itself didn't exude a chilling aura, and given the bright afternoon sun, even a powerful demon wouldn't choose such a time to emerge.

So she moved closer and reached out to try and pick it up. Even after she did, the box and the skull inside didn't cause any further trouble.

"Well?"

After observing for a while, Dandelion tilted its head, feeling that this thing looked somewhat familiar.

Since it's very likely something from the Holy Coffin Kingdom... uh, could it be that?

She gave a few dry, muffled laughs, then immediately ran into the house with the box and Fufu. Entering the fourth small room on the right, Dandelion knocked on the wooden plank storing miscellaneous goods until a distinct echo was heard.

There's a hidden compartment here, but I haven't even had a chance to tell Mori about it yet.

The dandelion used magic to open it—there was a room inside.

"Fufu, lighting."

"Um……"

The light Fufu illuminated revealed a strange room filled with scrolls, boxes, and odd objects. An intensely rich forest fragrance permeated the space, as if a vast forest had been compressed into a small room. At first, Fufu enjoyed the scent, but soon became frightened.

There's also a strange, sinister undertone hidden within.

"Where...where am I?"

"Just as a great tree needs to take root in the soil, these are the foundations of the land of flowers. I need to find them; follow me and let me light the way..."

She walked to a box that wasn't very dusty, opened it deftly, and took out several books. Using her flashlight as a cover, Fufu saw that the books were titled "The Kingdom of the Holy Coffin Trilogy," and the author was "Tokai Apple."

"...What is this?" it asked again.

"To destroy the enemy's information, you must first understand it thoroughly. This contains detailed information about the other side."

She turned to the third volume, and Fufu also looked over out of curiosity. It felt that this book was more like a novel than information. It could occasionally see humans carrying books to the beach to read, so it could tell the difference to some extent.

"Where is the Kingdom's sacred artifacts section again...?"

……

at the same time--

The site of the sinking coffin, the foremost of the thirteen churches of the Holy Coffin, hailed as a "divine creation," is being plagued by an unprecedented disturbance.

This group of devout believers, consisting of coffin bearers, grave fillers, and those who announced the death, did not crowd into the church to pray to God today, but instead gathered around a large tree that was probably hundreds of years old.

"...Incredible."