"Come on Little Wende, guess which of big sister's hands has the yummy Cycrane skewer"
March hid two Cycrane skewers behind her back, strode over to little Wende on her long legs, and then bent down, beaming at him.
Little Wende looked disgusted and used his small hand to push away March's face, which was getting way too close to his own... Oh, right, he was the one with the small face now...
"Aww~ Why are you acting like this, Little Wende? You're not being a good boy at all!"
March turned her back, pouting with puffed-up cheeks, feigning a fit of pique.
Seeing her chance, Stelle quietly swiped a skewer from behind March. Her face slightly flushed, she looked at little Wende. Then, parting her pearly teeth, she bit off half of the red fruit at the tip of the skewer before offering it to him, her eyes full of anticipation.
Wende, who either didn't notice Stelle's little maneuver or simply didn't care, just smiled and nodded, taking the skewer from her.
See! My eldest daughter is the one who really loves me!
Without a shred of suspicion, he then ate the very piece of Cycrane fruit that Stelle had just bitten.
"NICE!!!!!"
Stelle watched Wende with a harmless smile, but internally, her mind was already flashing red.
"Ehehehe..."
Watching the red-faced little Wende munching on the fruit with his cheeks puffed out, Stelle's hand unconsciously began to stroke his head.
Little Wende: "?"
Struck in the neck by a dozen lightning needles simultaneously, Stelle collapsed to the ground with a thud!
Crunch...
Wende expressionlessly chewed on the skewer in his hand, looking down at the twitching Stelle on the floor without a shred of mercy.
He only got smaller, he didn't get amnesia! You rebellious child!
After wandering around with the two of them for a while longer, amidst March's resentful glares and Stelle's foolish grin, the trio returned to their inn at the Alchemy Commission.
---o---
"So... why am I the one cooking again?"
Little Wende uncomfortably tugged at the large pink apron he was wearing. March had even thoughtfully found him a small stool to compensate for his current lack of height.
"Hehe, we've just been craving your food! And we just finished up with things on the Xianzhou. Don't you want to make us a celebration feast, Wende?"
March pouted, shamelessly nuzzling her face against little Wende's. Heehee, Wende is still tiny right now, so it should be fine if I play with him a little, right?
"Woah! Alright, alright! I'll cook for you!"
Little Wende struggled to push March's face away from his. Seriously, he had only shrunk in size; inside, he was still a 1.9-meter-tall, muscle-bound tough guy! Damn it all!
No, I have to get out of this power-saving mode as soon as possible. Otherwise, I'm afraid one of these rebellious kids will lose their mind one day and put me in a little dress!
"Well then~ Good luck, Wende! I'm going to go check on Mr. Yang and Miss Tingyun!"
March waved at Wende, leaving him in an awkward predicament... alone with a star-struck Stelle.
"..."
Wende looked at Stelle, whose face was slightly red, her hands fidgeting nervously...
He felt he was in grave danger!
But... he might as well find a way to get this silly girl to help him. Otherwise, with his current tiny arms and legs, what could he possibly accomplish?
And so, under Wende's skillful guidance, Stelle put on a pink apron and began to cook under his direction.
---o---
"Oh? Tingyun is awake?"
Inside the Sky-Faring Commission, Yukong, who had been deeply worried after hearing about Tingyun's actions, expressed her surprise upon hearing the report from her subordinate.
"Yes, Miss Tingyun has successfully recovered with the help of that miraculous doctor. However... she's changed quite a bit."
Mr. Yanming looked a bit embarrassed. When Tingyun had sent a message to inform them she was safe, they had, at first glance, assumed someone had stolen her Jade Abacus to commit online fraud...
"Lady Yukong, she should have sent you a message as well, but you've been so busy with work, you probably didn't notice."
Seeing the tension in Yukong's brow finally ease, Yanming also breathed a sigh of relief.
Truth be told, they were all terrified when they heard something had happened to Tingyun... Thankfully, the Reignbow Arbiter had blessed them, allowing his young colleague—who always seemed to be at odds with him—to survive...
"Is that so?"
Hearing Yanming's words, Yukong took out her phone. Seeing Tingyun's message reporting her safety, along with her worries about her new appearance, a faint smile reappeared on her usually stern lips.
"This child... she really knows how to make people worry."
Shaking her head with a smile, Yukong decided to go see Tingyun for herself.
"Yanming, I'm stepping out for a bit. I'll have to trouble you with the Sky-Faring Commission's affairs for now. When Qingni returns, you can hand some of the work over to her."
"Yes, Lady Yukong."
---o---
"Um... Sister Jingliu? Perhaps I should go to the kitchen to help Benefactor? His body is frail right now, and his strength hasn't recovered. Even though Stelle is helping in the kitchen, I'm still a little worried..."
Tingyun spoke awkwardly to Jingliu, who was currently stroking her large white tail.
"Mm, go ahead. That little one is indeed too busy to handle things on his own right now."
Jingliu smoothed out the fur on Tingyun's tail, nodding with a smile as she saw Tingyun's blushing face.
As she watched Tingyun's figure leave the room, Jingliu's smile vanished.
I wonder how that former 'colleague' of mine is doing now?
---o---
In the Prison of Shackling Song, Jing Yuan looked at the unconcerned man before him and shook his head with a sense of helplessness.
"I wonder what the General's decision is?" Luocha asked, the corners of his mouth hooked into a smile that suggested victory was already in his grasp.
Ignoring Luocha's question, Jing Yuan simply gave a cold wave of his hand to a nearby Cloud Knight, signaling for them to take the man away.
"Haha, it seems the General still doesn't quite believe me," Luocha said with a laugh, cooperatively walking ahead of the Cloud Knights and smiling back at Jing Yuan.
"But that's fine. After you meet that former colleague of mine, I'm sure you'll let me go."
"..."
Jing Yuan paid Luocha's words no mind and simply walked away in the opposite direction.
"Yanqing, we're returning to the Alchemy Commission."
"Yes, General!"
---o---
"Little Wolfie, you're back so soon?"
Kafka looked on in some surprise at Silver Wolf, who was chewing on bubblegum. Was changing the Astral Express's route really that simple?
"Pop~ What are you surprised about? I just hacked into their system and changed a name. That fluffy conductor won't even notice."
After popping her bubble, Silver Wolf shot Kafka a look that said, "Are you underestimating me?"
"Alright, alright, our Wolfie is the best, isn't that right, Blade?"
Kafka tilted her head slightly, smiling at Blade, who had just walked in.
"Tell her not to use cheats next time."
"That's a game feature! Not a cheat!"