Chapter 173 Cohabitation Agreement, Morning Market, Daily Life

Neil went back upstairs on his own. He felt that their conversation might touch on some things that Seyia didn't want to talk about, so it was better for him to avoid it. What he needed to know, his brother would never hide from him.

Ray and Seymour went to the bedroom, a rather enclosed space. Ray spoke frankly, without any pretense.

“Gug has already told me everything.”

Lei paused, and Seyya sat upright in his chair, like a primary school student awaiting judgment from his teacher.

“I sympathize with your situation and I know who you are. But Guge is old and unable to take care of you. You can stay at my house temporarily until you are fully recovered.”

Hearing Lei's words, Seya felt relieved; at least for the next few months, he would have a safe place to live.

"Thank you, Lei. You are the most generous and kind human being I have ever met."

"However, since we're living together, there are some things that can't be kept secret forever, and I don't intend to keep them from you forever. But I hope you know that there are some things you shouldn't reveal to outsiders."

"That's what Lei said seriously."

"Don't worry, I will never reveal a word of it. I swear to the Mother Tree that if I do anything to betray Lai, I will never be able to return to the Mother Tree's embrace."

As Sayya finished speaking, a golden-green light flashed, proving that the oath had been witnessed by the gods.

Whether God exists in this world or not has always been something that Ray couldn't understand. Sometimes, some things really can't be explained by common sense.

"Tata, come here."

Hearing Lei call her name, Tata immediately squeezed through the crack in the door.

"Awooo, awooo awooo."

Lai, are you looking for a beast?

Seya's race is elves, and they naturally possess the ability to understand animal language, so they naturally know what Tata is saying.

Based on his knowledge, he initially only had doubts. He didn't think that Lai, who came from the countryside, was capable of capturing and abducting a high-level magical beast cub. Perhaps it was just a long-haired cat that looked similar. But now he was absolutely certain of Tata's identity.

“Speak, I don’t understand animal language.”

“Lai, Li doesn’t allow beasts to speak, does he?” The little monster remembered every word Lai had said.

"It's alright, Tata. You've already been exposed. He's an elf, not a human, and can understand animal language."

"Ah, so he's one of the Four Elves! No wonder Ryan said that..."

Ryan, who had developed a wicked sense of humor at some point, often teased Tata until he was furious, enjoying watching the little monster scratch its head and ears.

Lai ignored Ryan; he didn't intend to let Saiya know about Ryan's existence. Ryan, the wood elementalist, was the biggest secret in the family.

“That’s all I have to say. It’s just Neil and me at home,” Tata jumped onto Lai’s lap to get his attention. “And Tata, I hope we can get along well from now on. I’ll lie and say you’re Gug’s cousin. Don’t reveal your identity to the villagers; they’re all just ordinary people.”

Lai scratched Tata's chin, and the little monster raised its head contentedly, making Seya envious. He had never seen a monster cub so easy to pet and hug.

"Okay, although I've said it many times, I still want to thank you. Once I find a way back, I will leave as soon as possible."

"Focus on healing your injuries first, we can talk about other things later. This used to be my bedroom, you can stay here from now on, I'll bring you a change of clothes tomorrow."

"OK, thanks."

"You rest first, I'll pack my things and move upstairs to live."

Lai took a quilt and some clothes from the bedroom. His important belongings were stored in the pendant, so even if he moved them abruptly, it wouldn't make much difference. But he couldn't stay in the living room forever; the small living room upstairs should be able to fit a bed, and he wanted to move there.

He carried the bedding up to the second floor, followed by Tata, who kept asking him all sorts of questions.

"Lay, is he going to live with the beasts?"

"Yes."

"When will he leave?"

"He left when it was time for him to leave."

"Awooo!"

knew.

"Brother?" Neil came out of the bedroom when he heard the noise.

"You're going to stay here?"

Neil looked at Ray, who was tidying up the small living room, and strongly disagreed.

"Brother, you shouldn't have given up your bedroom to him. Your forehead injury hasn't healed yet!" Neil's anxiety was like that of a mother hen protecting her chicks.

"What nonsense are you talking about? My head injury has long since healed."

"Brother, you stay in my room, I'll stay in the small living room!"

“Neil, you’re a big kid now, stop fooling around.”

"Brother, you can stay in this room!"

Neil took out the key and opened the dusty door on the second floor.

"Your parents won't mind, this room was originally yours."

The two brothers stood in the doorway, quietly looking into the small bedroom. It was covered in dust and had a musty smell because it hadn't been opened in a long time. Sunlight streamed through the glass windows, casting streaks of light on the wooden floor, in which dust motes danced.

"Brother, I'll help you clean!"

Neil broke the silence, hurriedly ran downstairs to get water and a rag, then went downstairs again to get a broom and a mop.

The two of them silently cleaned the small bedroom, neither of them saying a word. All of Victor and his wife's belongings were locked in several large wooden crates.

"Brother, open the windows to let in some fresh air."

"good."

At dinner, to help Saiya recover, Lai stewed some pork ribs. After dinner, when eating watermelon, he didn't dare let him eat too much, only giving him a small piece.

After waking up, Seyar didn't need any assistance except for his legs, which still couldn't walk. Lai was finally freed from caring for him. To make it easier for Seyar to move around, he whittled a cane for him out of a stick that afternoon, and Seyar adapted very well.

After dinner, Danny carried a package and went to Ray's house with Luna. The three children played cards for a long time until it got dark and Lamb came to pick Luna up, and then the house returned to quiet.

Because she wasn't familiar with the place yet, Saiya stayed in the bedroom and didn't come out. Maybe things would get better if they spent more time together.

That night, Neil and Danny slept in one room, while Ray slept in the bedroom opposite theirs.

The musty smell lingered in the room. Lying on the unfamiliar bed, Lai looked at the large trunks and felt a sudden, inexplicable sadness welling up inside him. He didn't know if it was the lingering influence of "Lai" or something else entirely.

He has completely adapted to this place; it is his home, the place he built from scratch.

The house was quiet, while outside came the noisy chirping of insects; it was an ordinary night.

As dawn broke, Lai got up, put on a long-sleeved shirt, and went to the living room to put the green beans into a bag. Not long after, Saiya came out of the room leaning on his cane, and didn't look like he had just gotten up.

"Did I disturb you?"

"No, I probably slept too long before, and I'm having some insomnia."

Seyya walked up to Lai and helped him hold up the sack.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"What are you trying to do?" Seya asked Lei.

"Pack up the vegetables and take them to town to sell. Do you want anything?"

Seyia hesitated for a moment, but then shook her head.

"No."

The two stopped making small talk and quietly finished packing all the green beans. Then, Lai went upstairs to wake up Neil and Danny, who were still fast asleep.

The two children came down and first helped move all the vegetables onto the truck bed and arrange them neatly before they started washing up. Saiya sat in the living room watching them busy themselves.

"Brother, we're done cleaning up!"

"Okay, you can get in the car first."

"Hello, my name is Neil, and this is Danny. We study at the Knight Academy in town."

Hello.

"We're leaving now, goodbye."

"goodbye."

Saiya arrived at the door and watched as the two children nimbly jumped onto the truck bed and sat down. A glass lamp hung at the front of the truck.

"We're heading out now, we'll be back in the morning. If you're hungry, make some oatmeal to tide you over, I'll make you something when I get back," Lai instructed.

“No need for that,” Sayya waved his hand repeatedly. “I’ll just have cereal.”

"I'm leaving now. Close your door and get some sleep."

"good."

Ray cracked his whip, and the mule cart slowly pulled out of the gate.

The glass lamps illuminated the stone road of the small mountain village, and Neil and Danny, each wrapped in a small blanket, sat on either side of the front of the car.

The entire village was quiet; even the insects had fallen asleep and stopped their chirping. Only the hooting of owls echoed in the air, sounding eerily strange.

"Are you scared?" Ray asked.

"I'm not afraid!" Neil answered quickly.

“I’m not afraid,” Danny replied immediately.

Children who grow up in the village often wander around with older children, so they are naturally bolder.

"It's good that you're not afraid."

Once they left the village, the two children finally relaxed and started talking loudly about what had happened at the academy recently, showing no signs of sleepiness despite being up so early.

The warm light from the glass lamp illuminated the path ahead and warmed people's hearts as well.

After passing through the dark tunnel, you reach the main road, where you can occasionally encounter donkey carts or oxcarts also transporting vegetables. At the market outside town, there are large numbers of vegetable farmers selling persimmons, cucumbers, and loofahs; the place is bustling with activity, like a harvest festival.

This was the first time Danny had ever seen such a sight.

“I told you the early show was fun!” Neil nudged Danny with his elbow.

"Fun!"

Because Lei had a glass lamp, he found a spot to park in a relatively dark place, and soon a group of people gathered around him.

"Brother, can I borrow a lamp? I have some persimmons for my child to eat."

The old man sitting next to them scooped up about twenty persimmons in his jacket and gave them to Neil and Danny, who politely thanked him.

You're too kind.

"I should thank you. With the lights, they'll sell much better, and I can go home sooner!"

Neil grated a few persimmons, handing one to Danny and another to Ray. The persimmons were crisp and refreshing, with a sweet and sour taste that was especially delicious.

"Your persimmons taste good, they'll definitely sell out first."

"Haha, thank you for your kind words!"

The morning market was bustling, and despite getting up very early, it didn't dampen anyone's spirits. Some buyers, unwilling to disclose prices, would reach into the bags of sellers to negotiate hidden deals, leaving Danny quite bewildered.

The green beans at Lai's house looked quite good, attracting many passersby. One person who wanted to buy some complained that the beans were too plump in order to lower the price, but Lai thought the price was too low and refused to sell them to him, silently grumbling for a while before finally managing to coax the person away.

"Our green beans are so good, yet he still picks and chooses. He doesn't know what's good for him."

Neil wanted nothing more than to roll his eyes at that person.

"It's alright, there are a lot of people at the morning market. We came early, so we'll be able to sell our goods sooner or later."

After that, the two baskets of chili peppers that Lai brought were bought by an orc without any haggling, very quickly.

The market is bustling with people, full of the lively atmosphere of everyday life, which is one of the reasons why Lai likes to sell vegetables.

After selling the vegetables, Lai left the mule cart at home, treated Neil and Danny to a good meal, and bought them some daily necessities before sending them back to the Knight Academy. They wouldn't be back for another ten days, so he bought everything they needed, saving them from having to use their own pocket money.

Afterwards, Lai went to a clothing store and bought clothes and towels, as well as seasonings and meat before turning back to the village.

Lai carried the things into the house, and Saiya had already tidied up the living room to the best of her ability.

"You're back."

"Yes, I brought you some bread. I ate out."

"Thanks."

Lai handed a bag of clothes to Seya.

"Wash it before wearing it. I'm going upstairs to change."

"Um."

Saiya opened the cloth bag; inside were two sets of ordinary clothes, two face towels, and at the bottom, several pairs of shorts. These were exactly the things he'd hesitated to mention that morning; Ray had bought them for him directly, which relieved him.

The fabric of these items was of average quality, arguably the worst that Seyia had ever used, but it made him feel very comfortable.

He packed up his clothes and vowed to repay Ray for his help in the future.