r18novel Page 277
Page 277
Strange cries came from near the campfire. The elves circling the campfire didn't mind that he had disturbed their chorus; instead, they deliberately egged him on and cried back.
"Hey-yo!"
The elves' cries were naturally much higher-pitched, and they added the melody to their cries with laughter. The remaining elves, who hadn't yet realized what was happening, were still singing their original songs. With these more lively elves disrupting them, the entire chorus became a complete mess.
"Hey—whoosh!"
Before the elves could even fix their tune, the tourists who had been there earlier, eager to stir up trouble, encouraged their friends to join in the strange shouts. Many smiling passersby also joined in the now chaotic chorus.
The elves exchanged glances, shook their heads helplessly, and then abandoned their proper singing, shouting at the top of their lungs.
"Hey-yo!"
……
"What is that...?"
Little Art yawned, confused about what these adults were doing for no reason. She thought that so many people were gathered together to put on some interesting show, but they were just wailing... Of all the parts of the Homecoming Festival, she still preferred the performances with some traditional customs.
Of course, it would be best if there were fewer people so she could quietly enjoy the wonderful performances.
However, at this altitude, the firelight shining from the city was just right, and when it fell on me, it seemed to bring me a sense of warmth without me even realizing it.
With this thought in mind, she gradually began to doze off.
……
“Miludo, thank you for your love. I would dedicate the rest of my life to becoming the stars, shining upon you and gazing upon you… If the Mother Tree still exists, I will make a solemn vow before it: a thousand years… that will be the duration of my love for you…”
Little Artemis groggily opened her bright blue eyes and looked at the stage in the city.
The fairy playing the role of Miludo is standing on a giant rock, with more than a dozen branches stuck in her back, each branch covered with leaves of various sizes.
Those were letters exchanged between elves, filled with messages from lovers, stretching outwards like the props on the backs of human actors, rustling in the wind.
"We've reached this point... Is the Homecoming Festival almost over...?"
Little Arte sat up, tightened her coat, and smoothed and tied her long silver hair.
The Homecoming Festival lasted for a very long time. In this cold and desolate autumn and winter, people seemed unwilling to let this lively festival end. Whenever songs were played in the city, tourists who were about to leave would subconsciously stop in their tracks.
Things on the mainland can be put on hold for now. If this festival of reunion could be a little longer, a little longer, long enough to get through this cold winter, that would be wonderful.
Of course, the tourists knew this was just a beautiful fantasy. Herod City might be able to hold a homecoming festival that lasted for months, but the tourists couldn't. They had many other things to do, so after a reluctant final tour of Herod City, they quietly left without disturbing others.
"Why are you making that face? Homecoming Day happens every year."
Little Ate looked at the sad expressions on the faces of the departing tourists with some confusion, completely unable to understand that feeling.
She thought about it and realized that she had spent a lot of time watching the Homecoming Festival this year, which made her miss the chance to dig for the lucky rabbit. As a result, she couldn't make any souvenirs for the tourists. Fortunately, the adult elves in the city should be able to help.
Little Arte, unusually, ventured into the city. After observing for a while, she stopped an adult elf wearing a hat woven from bird feathers and asked:
"Sister, are there still any lucky bird eggs left?"
"A lucky bird egg?" The adult elf paused, instinctively touching his hat, and said:
"The distribution was completed two months before the Homecoming Festival. At that time, many people found it boring, so it was little elves like you who collected them. Didn't you go back then?"
"Ah... I completely forgot!" Little Ate blinked and looked away somewhat embarrassedly.
"Alright, alright..." The adult elf sighed helplessly, patted little Arte's head, and was about to comfort her when suddenly, as if remembering something, her eyes lit up, and she raised a finger and called out:
"Oh, right! I suddenly remembered that a nest of long-browed finches that settled here the year before last should be laying eggs by now. I think I saw them expanding their nest to breed around the start of the Homecoming Festival. You can go and take a look!"
"Huh?" Little Arte's eyes widened, and she instantly turned and ran outside, shouting, "I know, thank you, sister!"
……
Lucky bird eggs, like lucky rabbits, symbolize good fortune. However, lucky rabbits are pure magical condensate. They are called lucky rabbits simply because they move very fast and live in burrows like rabbits. Generally speaking, receiving a lucky rabbit symbolizes an unimaginable harvest for the whole year to come.
Lucky Bird Eggs, on the other hand, come from real birds. When the elven population is very prosperous, birds in nature will choose to settle near the population. In gratitude for the vitality brought by the birds' settlement, the elves will use racial magic to help the birds enhance their breeding ability and expand their population.
In return for this assistance, the birds would give a small portion of each batch of eggs to the elves. These eggs contained very powerful magic, more like magical essence products such as lucky rabbits than living creatures. Under the nurturing of the elves, they could give birth to magical essence birds, which would assist the mage's meditation for a season.
However, this is of little use to adult Pokémon, and hatching the Lucky Bird Egg also takes some effort, so it is basically the energetic young Pokémon who go to receive the Lucky Bird Egg during the "Invite the Egg God" segment of the Homecoming Festival.
In short, receiving such a gift should fill tourists with anticipation for the future...
Little Arte was searching for the nest of the new "long-browed finches" in the woods outside the city when she suddenly realized that she seemed to have forgotten to ask the older sister where the new "long-browed finches" lived.
However, as a little kid who spends her days wandering the wilderness at night, she is very confident that she can find the new residents described by the adult elves through her interactions with the animals.
……
"Hey, I've finally found you guys!"
After some twists and turns, Little Ate finally found the new Longbrow Finch colony in a dense thicket and, after negotiations, successfully obtained more than thirty lucky bird eggs.
However, when she returned to Herod, she found that all the tourists had left, leaving only the elves quietly tidying up the messy streets.
She immediately recalled that after a certain day in the depths of winter, the days would no longer decrease, and the temperature would begin to rise from a low point. Through long observation and calculation by the elves, they gradually determined the time of this day and regarded it as the end of the Homecoming Festival, as well as the dividing point between years.
But now, as the New Year approaches, the tourists have all gone far away.
Little Arte held more than thirty lucky bird eggs, and a complex emotion suddenly welled up in her heart.
Will tourists come again next year for the homecoming festival?
……
……
"It's that time of year again for returning home."
Artemis sat on a branch of a broad-leaved tree, examining the lucky bird egg in her hand, and let out a long breath.
Herod's territory flourished, attracting many birds from afar to settle there within just a few months. Nourished by the magic of the elves, these birds also rewarded her with lucky eggs.
However, seeing the lucky bird eggs again now evoked different feelings in her.
"I thought the Homecoming Festival would continue like this, but it disappeared in an instant... Can those former travelers on the mainland still recall the Homecoming Festival and the New Year?"
She put away the lucky bird eggs, intending to give them to Latis later.
"Homecoming Festival..."
"Ate ate ate, do you think I'm awesome?"
Upon hearing Latis Latis's name, the half-elf couldn't help but reveal a rather amused expression, looking towards the burly man who had been watching him.
"Big brother, what's wrong? It's almost time for dinner... huh?"
Artemis opened her mouth, staring at Latis wearing a leaf bikini and swirling a large grass skirt, and was instantly stunned.
"How was it? Pretty cool, huh?" Latis flapped his magical wings, performing a giant swing in the air as he jumped, saying as he did so:
"I wove this out myself, stem by stem and leaf, based on the ceremonial robes of the elves. Doesn't it feel familiar?"
"..."
The half-elf snapped out of her daze, her cool face instantly flushing. Her eyes widened, and she weakly reached out her hand, stammering:
"Big brother... this outfit is what female elves of small tribes wear when they mate with their lovers in nature! You, you, you take it off right now!"
"oh oh……"
Latis scratched his head, thought for a moment, then plopped down next to Ateliers, put his arm around her waist, and grinned:
"It doesn't matter, anyway, today is the last day of the Homecoming Festival, and I plan to stay with you all night."
“…Eh?” Ateliers leaned against Latis, slightly startled, then looked up at Latis’s face and said:
"Brother, how did you know? Even I'm not entirely sure which day is the last day."
"Just a little Eastern shock for you, a simple application of the seasonal calendar." Latis stroked Ateliers's shoulder-length hair, leaned close to take a deep sniff, and then said with a smile:
"My little angel is so cute whether she has short or long hair. I wonder what your hair, which was almost as tall as you when you were little, actually looked like."
“That was so long ago, I can hardly remember it myself.” Ateliers leaned her head against Latis’s chest, letting him stroke it, then took out a Lucky Bird Egg from her pocket and said, turning her head to the side:
"Brother, this is for you."
"Oh, so this is the legendary lucky bird egg?" Latis quickly took the egg, held it up to his eyes to examine it, and muttered:
"Thank goodness we didn't catch and eat those birds... Speaking of which, is this Lucky Bird egg... edible?"
"...Why is all you thinking about, big brother!" Artemis scolded, raising her fist to punch his chest twice, then hesitated for a moment before saying:
"Well, it might be okay... but the Lucky Bird Egg is mostly made of magic essence, so it probably won't taste very good... But big brother, after blowing up the kitchen a while ago, you still have a passion for cooking?!"
"What do you mean, 'exploded the kitchen'? That can't be right. I just accidentally tossed the wok away while practicing flipping it..."
Latis chuckled twice, took a deep breath, and decided not to continue discussing this embarrassing topic of the Eastern Kingdom. He accepted the lucky bird egg, wisely changed the subject, and said:
"We could collect more for the birds to incubate their eggs... Ahem, Arte, aren't you going to explore the inner city? Lundia is still very lively today."
Artemis hesitated for a moment, then stood up beside Latis, gazing at the dazzling lights of Skysea Street. After thinking for a while, she shook her head.
"You idiot, how can you see the whole picture from standing twenty or thirty meters up here? At least go up to the top and take a look!" Latis complained, reached out and grabbed the half-elf's legs amidst her screams, and flew up to the top of the tree in a flash.
"Big brother, you're so mean..."
The half-elf helplessly hugged Latis's head, and Latis lifted him up by his thighs, so he sat on Latis's shoulder.
Although the winter wind was cold at night, it didn't make her as sensitive as it had when she was a child. She was held firmly on Latis's shoulder, and subconsciously stroked his hair, gazing into the distance.
Tianhai Street was bustling with people. Even in the dead of night, close to midnight, many mages who had just finished their research were having a late-night snack in the restaurants. Some shop owners, hoping to attract customers in the cold night, were using illusion magic to depict all sorts of scenes in front of their doors.
Illusionary magic is indeed very convenient. In this winter, some old illusionary comedies are still being replayed in front of some shops, attracting many nostalgic mages who watch the comedies while enthusiastically enjoying hot pot.
"...Lundia is ultimately not as lively as Herod City, eh...lively?"
For some reason, Artemis repeated the word "lively". The illusion magic she now possessed perfectly met her childhood desire to see the performance clearly, but she could no longer recapture that feeling of liveliness.
"Yes...that's true."
"Huh?" She turned to look at Latis, who had inexplicably exclaimed, and asked curiously:
"Big brother?"
“It definitely feels different now than before,” Latis said, stroking the half-elf’s leg on his shoulder.
"After all, the things in our memories can't come back. Whether things are better now or before, everyone has a different answer. Maybe for some people, things are better now! But in the end, time can't be turned back."
"I know."
Artemis sighed helplessly, glanced once more at the brightly lit Lundia through Latis's perspective, and whispered: