Ch 209: What Happens When Someone Who’s Never Seen Popcorn Tries It Fresh?

After school, after Bal and the students left, he had Philia use Teleportation Magic to go home together.

“Phew, home is still the most comfortable.”

As soon as Bal got home, he prepared to lie on the sofa. Xiaoyue, seeing Bal covered in dirt, directly grabbed his collar from behind.

“Master, you are too dirty. Please take a bath before sitting on the sofa.”

Then Xiaoyue looked at Philia, who was preparing to sneak onto the sofa.

“Young Miss as well.”

After being supervised by Xiaoyue into the bathroom, Bal and Philia each lay in the bath tubs of the men’s and women’s bathrooms.

“I love taking a bath, my body feels so good, la la la la~”

Bal hummed a song leaning against the edge of the bathtub, when suddenly a voice came from behind.

“Oh? You sing so well?”

After hearing the voice, Bal turned his head sharply, and Phia stood behind him wrapped in a bath towel.

“When did you come in?”

Phia unwrapped the bath towel and stepped into the bathtub.

“I came in a few minutes after you entered the bathroom. You didn’t hear a thing.”

“Hehe, the bath is too comfortable.”

Bal hugged Phia to his side and kissed her, then continued.

“Speaking of which, are you free tomorrow?”

“What’s wrong? Want to go on a date with me?”

“No, it’s that several holes were dug in the maze beneath the school by a Giant Earthworm. I want you to come with me to see if there are any earthworms left unkilled, and fill in the holes by the way.”

Phia gave Bal a disdainful look.

“You really have no romantic cells at all.”

Bal pinched Phia’s cat ears.

“But…”

“But what?”

Phia slapped Bal’s hand away, tilting her head to look at him.

“After we deal with the holes in the maze tomorrow, you can have me do whatever you want for the rest of the time.”

“Really? Don’t go back on your word!”

“Absolutely won’t go back on my word.”

Bal gently bit Phia’s cat ear, then picked her up to dry her off.

Early the next morning, the two people were standing in front of the maze.

“Should I get you a set of Wind Armor?”

Phia linked arms with Bal.

“Can it protect against dirt?”

“A small amount, but not too much.”

“Okay, let’s put one on.”

Phia poked Bal’s forehead with her index finger, and the Wind Armor was put on.

“Wow, is it that amazing?”

Bal rubbed Phia’s head in praise.

“Humph, don’t you know who I am?”

After getting ready, the two entered the maze. The maze actually has pre-installed lighting, not ordinary oil lamps, but a kind of crystal that can store light. When the maze is open, in order to maintain the atmosphere, the crystals are hidden inside the earthen walls. During inspections or modifications, someone will use Earth Magic to float the crystals on the earthen walls to ensure lighting.

“Although I was present when the maze was decorated, every time I see the Light-Storing Crystals light up, I feel amazed.”

“Simple-minded.”

Phia held Bal’s hand and walked to the pit where Bal had fallen before.

“Is this where it was discovered?”

“Yes, at that time, Falkwar and I walked through the passage in the pit for more than three hours before we got out. If it were another student who fell, they might have had an accident.”

“Indeed, wait for me.”

Phia took out her spear and stuck it in the ground. After a while, Phia opened her eyes.

“Fortunately, there are no other pits, only this one.”

“Are there any other creatures in the hole?”

“Although it’s a bit far away, I can still detect two humans.”

“Huh?”

Bal was stunned. How did his maze trap people? He immediately jumped into the pit, then reached out to catch Phia. Phia was caught by Bal’s two hands, and she gently rubbed against Bal’s chest.

“Meow~”

“Huh? You just meowed, didn’t you?”

“You heard wrong.”

“Really?”

Bal was very confident in his hearing; he was sure Phia had “meowed”. However, Phia walked in front of Bal, her tail wagging.

“If you don’t hurry up, you’ll be late.”

Bal had no choice but to follow Phia. Phia walked straight down a passage, ignoring other branches.

“Shouldn’t we repair it?”

“We can repair it after we find those two people.”

After saying this, Phia continued to walk forward, and Bal had no choice but to follow. After walking a long way, Phia stopped and made a silencing gesture, signaling Bal not to make a sound.

“This earthworm is so unreliable. It’s bad enough that it digs randomly, but it also dug itself to death. Now the Fertile Soil will be sold out.”

After hearing the humans’ voices, Bal walked behind them.

“Oh? Tell me more about the Fertile Soil.”

The two people, startled by Bal, quickly jumped back a distance, then turned to face him.

“Who are you?”

“Me? Hmmm, I’m just an Adventurer commissioned by the school to investigate this passage. I’m a little interested in what you said about the Fertile Soil.”

“Who knows if you’re here to steal our Trade Secret? Go, go!”

“Hey, you can’t say that.”

Bal turned his back to the two.

“I’ve already seen your faces and memorized your appearances. If I leave now and report this to the school, and the school reports it to the Council Hall, what will you do? I heard that the Council Hall is very concerned about the school’s affairs.”

“Stop, stop, Older Brother, we’ll tell you, we live in the same place, it’s not good to hurt our feelings.”

“Oh? So what’s the deal with this Fertile Soil?”

“This goes back to last year. In the middle of last year, my brother and I accidentally discovered that plants grown in soil eaten and excreted by Giant Earthworms grew exceptionally well, so we caught a Giant Earthworm to mass-produce this soil. Unexpectedly, this earthworm was blind; it dug randomly and died here suddenly.”

“Oh, so you wanted to make a profit from this earthworm, and accidentally dug into the school underground?”

“That’s right, Older Brother, please don’t tell anyone about this!”

“Alright, then find a way to fill in the passages under the school. If the school collapses because of these passages, neither of you will be able to escape.”

“Yes, yes, we understand. If there’s nothing else, can we leave?”

Saying this, the two wanted to turn and run away.

“Wait.”

“Is…is there anything else you want?”

“This is for you.”

Bal handed the two a Business Card.

“How much Fertile Soil do you have? I’ll take it all.”

“Really?”

“Transport the soil to the address on the Business Card, and I will arrange for someone to collect it. Also, if I can get you another Giant Earthworm, can you produce this soil while ensuring that the earthworm doesn’t dig randomly?”

Hearing Bal’s words, the two knelt before him.

“Older Brother, who exactly are you?”

“I’m just an ordinary Adventurer. So, can you do it?”

The two looked at each other and nodded.

“Yes, absolutely! We’ve figured out the earthworm’s habits, and we can definitely use it next time.”

“That’s good. Go back and prepare. Come to the school Gate to meet me in three days.”

“Understood!”

After watching the two leave, Phia walked behind Bal.

“Looking at you like this, what are you planning?”

“Give the soil to Rea. I think he’ll like this soil. And it’s my personal wish, I hope to grow this before Nia’s Marriage.”

Bal took a few seeds from his Waist Pouch. They were a kind of flower he had brought back in the past.

“You’re quite thoughtful.”

Phia linked arms with Bal.

“Things are settled; it’s time to accompany me.”

“Okay, at your command, my Princess.”

After Bal rubbed Phia’s face, Phia used Teleportation Magic to transport them to a Dark Alley.

“Where is this? Why did you hide your ears and tail?”

Bal looked around; he felt unfamiliar.

“This is a Human city. I came here to buy some Magic Stones.”

“Can’t you buy Magic Stones in town? Why do you have to come here?”

“Humph, come with me, you’ll find out then.”

Phia held Bal’s hand and walked out of the Dark Alley. They walked through the crowd and came to an Auction House. Phia went to the counter to ask.

“Excuse me, is auction item number 3171 still available?”

“Yes, it will be auctioned in Auction House number 2 in half an hour. Are you bidding?”

“Yes, both of us.”

“Okay, please pay a Deposit of 10 Gold Coins.”

After paying the deposit, Phia received a token from the Cashier. The number on the token was 1031, which was the date of Bal and Phia’s Marriage.

“Let’s go get something to eat.”

After handing the token to Bal, Phia took his hand and walked to the nearby street vendors.

“What’s that?”

Phia pointed to a device that looked like an iron bottle. Bal smiled knowingly.

“That’s a thing for making Popcorn. Do you want some?”

“Yes!”

“Then wait for me here.”

Bal went to the popcorn stand, paid, and walked back to Phia.

“Where’s the Popcorn?”

“Just wait and see.”

Bal hugged Phia. The vendor grabbed a handful of corn kernels and put them into the iron bottle. After putting on the lid, he put the bottle on the fire and roasted it.

“Huh? What are you doing?”

Phia tilted her head to look at Bal, and Bal put his index finger to Phia’s lips.

“Don’t make a sound, watch carefully.”

After Phia watched intently for a while, the vendor took the iron bottle off the fire. He pointed the bottle at a Cloth Bag, and with a bang, fresh and delicious popcorn came out.

“Meow! What was that sound!”

Phia was startled by the sudden sound. She burrowed into Bal’s arms. After the sound subsided, she looked around. Bal was looking at her with a mischievous smile, and Phia was a little angry.

“What do you mean?”

“Wait a minute.”

Bal let go of Phia’s hand and went to the vendor. The vendor filled a paper tube with popcorn and gave it to Bal. Bal walked back to Phia and offered a piece of popcorn to her.

“Try one?”

Phia, still a little angry, opened her mouth and bit Bal’s finger along with the popcorn.

“Ouch, gently.”

After pulling his finger out of Phia’s mouth, Bal blew on it a few times, then asked Phia.

“Delicious?”

Phia’s eyes sparkled. She took the Popcorn Bucket from Bal, grabbed a few kernels, and put them in her mouth.

“So delicious!”

Bal put his arm around Phia’s shoulders.

“Good, let’s go, the auction is about to begin.”

“Give me your hand first.”

Bal offered the hand that Phia had bitten. Phia used her free right hand to gently caress Bal’s finger. A faint green light appeared. When Phia removed her hand, the bite marks on Bal’s finger had disappeared.

“Don’t do that again next time, you hear me!”

“Yes, my Wife.”