"Come lie down, sweetie."
I felt a gentle breath suddenly close to my ear, a voice that was deliberately lowered and became somewhat sweet, like tiny hairs gently tickling my ear canal, creating a wonderful chemical reaction deep in my brain.
Then came the feeling of a gentle tug on my sleeve. Although the force wasn't great, it was enough to make me sway for a moment.
Unable to resist turning her head to look behind her again, Hikari patted her legs together once more, deliberately puffing out her cheeks and pouting, displaying a coquettish and angry demeanor.
My sleeve was tugged twice more. I couldn't argue with her, so I could only slightly adjust my posture, leaning to the side on her lap, being careful not to hurt her.
"That's right."
A soft laugh came from behind me, and I felt delicate fingers inserting into the ends of my hair, stroking downwards from the roots. A tingling, itchy sensation rose from deep within my spine, and I couldn't help but flinch, but was quickly pressed down gently.
"Don't move, I'm combing your hair."
“…I can comb it myself.” I tried to distract myself with conversation. “Besides, my hair isn’t that long, I can just comb it a couple of times with my hands.”
"That won't do. Even if it's just short hair, it needs to be well-maintained to make you look more energetic." Her exposed earlobe was gently tugged, but it didn't hurt. "Besides, combing your hair has other benefits, such as giving your scalp a simple massage to prevent it from turning into a male pattern bald patch or something."
“We don’t have that kind of gene in our family…” I muttered softly, feeling my tense body gradually soften as I was being combed. I could feel the soft warmth more clearly against my face, which was pressed against my thigh. “Besides, isn’t this the same comb you used to comb the Pegasus before?”
"How could that be, Mr. Yumi, are you an idiot! Girls always carry a lot of gear with them just in case! Even if I like those kids a lot, I won't allow you to share a comb with them!" A disgruntled complaint and a gentle tickling of her ear came at the same time. "This is clearly the comb I use every day!"
It seems I said the wrong thing.
I quickly apologized and offered a few words of comfort, which finally helped me escape the torment of the itching.
Annie, who had heard the noise, came skipping over and sat down opposite me. Then she excitedly showed me the things she had collected.
"Hey lazybones, look! Look! There are so many beautiful seashells and conches here!"
Indeed, they are truly beautiful seashells and conches.
The porcelain-white shell reflects a subtle light, and the light blue conch not only has beautiful wave-like patterns on its surface, but also shimmers with alluring iridescent light as the light changes.
The only problem is... well... never mind, it's not appropriate for me to bring this up.
I tried to give a few perfunctory replies and then half-turn around, but my left ear accidentally brushed against something soft, and my body instantly froze in mid-air.
Hikari, looking down in confusion, blinked. As if noticing my awkwardness, she gave a sly smile and deliberately bumped into me.
I only have one option to make in this situation—
"Stop! Stop! Stop! I give up! I give up!"
I hastily stopped this childish harassment, and while Hikari was distracted by Annie's curious questions, I quickly got up from my knees with my eyes closed, finally feeling like I had regained some of my melting sanity.
No way! Seriously, does this silly girl's circumcision have a seductive effect? I've never seen her this proactive before!
Holding the black cat that had snuggled into my arms, stroking the little guy's smooth fur, I quickly left the somewhat dangerous area to calm myself down and returned to the place separated by the transparent film.
Without a doubt, this is the last question on our journey. After crossing this inexplicably exhilarating barrier, we will officially leave the Abyss Mountains, leave the area covered by magical turbulence, and step onto that fiery red land.
I squinted and gazed into the distance.
Fortunately, the membrane itself did not obstruct the view, allowing me to clearly see the scenery not far away after leaving the canyon.
Desolate, hot, and ancient.
This was my first impression after seeing that barren land with my own eyes.
On the reddish, parched, and cracked earth, withered and shriveled grass and trees swayed, and even from a high vantage point looking into the distance, there were hardly any obvious signs of human habitation.
However, if you look a little further away, in the depths of the scorching, illusory red earth, you can vaguely see a large triangular building made of countless piled-up boulders. A stone statue, also made of piled-up boulders, stands beside it, revealing a human face, a beast's body, and eagle wings.
"It looks like the product of a chimera experiment."
I muttered to myself subconsciously, then shook my head to shake off this suspicious thought.
We can't just start doubting every time we see something with similar suspicious points, can we? The Crimson Flame Land is so far away from the main area where those forbidden experimenters were active, and the entire Abyss Mountains separate them. In addition, the statue was clearly erected much earlier than the forbidden experiment. Talking about this kind of doubt again would be a bit neurotic.
Perhaps it was just a fictional existence haphazardly piled up by the people here?
Shaking my head to dispel unnecessary doubts, I watched the sandstorm gradually rising from the barren land, and then I thought of the other side.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
