Then, she watched as Lin Xiaolu swallowed the glutinous rice balls with a happy face.
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She felt as if she were like a bird in nature, feeding its chicks. Although she brought the food, all the chicks in the nest were begging for it, competing against each other and seemingly about to steal the other’s share. She had to feed them while trying to maintain a balance as much as possible.
After feeding Lin Xiaolu, she went back to feed Bai Jingxuan. Having fed Bai Jingxuan, she had to feed Lin Xiaolu again. Unbeknownst to her, the other Magical Girls had also brought their bowls to the same table. They gathered around to watch how Emerald Sparrow fed the other two their glutinous rice balls. Find your next read at Freewebnovel
Aside from Emerald Sparrow herself, neither Bai Jingxuan nor Lin Xiaolu seemed to care about any embarrassment. They were just enjoying eating the glutinous rice balls. Not only that, if it were not for the fact that there were no more seats, Hong Siyu looked as if she wanted to join in as well.
This torturous process for Emerald Sparrow lasted for more than ten minutes. Only when she had distributed all the glutinous rice balls in her own bowl did she finally take a long breath.
However, before she could make her next move, she saw Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan almost simultaneously pushing their bowls forward, pushing their remaining glutinous rice balls towards her.
"Try some of mine too!"
"You can have some of mine!" they said, almost in unison again.
Emerald Sparrow’s already numbed expression didn’t change at all.
She looked at Asou Haruka sitting across from her, who gave her a thumbs up with a grin; she then looked at Hong Siyu, who also pushed her bowl forward a bit; finally, she looked at Xia Liang, but Xia Liang just gazed back at her with a slightly resentful look, mouthing two words.
"Deserved."
As the girl’s silent complaint drifted away, fireworks slowly rose in the night sky not far away. After several streaks of silver crossed the sky, they blossomed like flowers, stunning the entire night.
"Boom," "Thud"!
The dazzling, noisy, shimmering, and splendid fireworks captured the attention of everyone present and signaled that the festival was reaching its climax. The atmosphere on the scene also intensified to the extreme.
People gathered together, eating snacks while looking up at the distant fireworks and the night sky. On a stage not far away, there was a series of entertaining performances. Even though it was a cold night with temperatures below freezing, the overly enthusiastic atmosphere made people forget the cold, and they could even feel a warmth from within.
Finally, it was only thanks to the fireworks distracting everyone that Emerald Sparrow managed to excuse herself from the dining table with a "I’m full" to avoid an even more embarrassing situation.
Then, as if to divert attention, she unusually initiated the idea of participating in a ring toss game together.
Naturally, no one would reject this proposal. Plus, Lin Xiaolu had planned a gaming session involving everyone, so the idea was an immediate hit.
Lin Xiaolu and Bai Jingxuan were both very competitive as if they planned on resolving the contention at the dining table in the games; Emerald Sparrow, seemingly wanting to change her mood, was just focused with a straight face. Soon, the Magical Girls were asked to leave the place by the owner, who smiled helplessly as they nearly swept up the most valuable prizes in just a few rounds.
The square, the stage, the lantern displays—the group made their way along the pre-planned route, covering almost the entire temple fair. They continued until they were as tired as their Magical Girl physiques allowed, finally reaching the last event of the day.
— Prayer.
Or rather, this was precisely the function that Bai Temple was supposed to serve.
It wasn’t until this moment that the bundle of sandalwood sticks Moke had been holding all along finally came into use. The Magical Girls followed the crowd of worshippers, lighting their sticks with the other pilgrims and entering the temple amidst swirling smoke.
In the smoke, the scent of incense burning pervaded the air. In front of the main hall, the massive bronze body of the censer shimmered under the candlelight. It was supported by three thick legs, with a mountain of incense ash piled up and emitting wisps of white smoke. The worshippers held their burning sticks of sandalwood, some with three sticks together, some with nine sticks in a bundle, forming a long queue slowly moving forward. As they reached the censer, they inserted their sandalwood sticks solemnly into the ash, bringing their palms together and murmuring their prayers.
The throng of people was unrelenting; some worshipped alone while others brought their whole families. Couples held hands, and groups of friends joined together. In the crowd of varied appearances, the Magical Girls were still the most conspicuous group.
Fortunately, after a whole night of being the center of attention, everyone was almost used to it.
For the Magical Girls, coming here to pray was most appropriately timed with the upcoming assessment of the kingdoms.
— They hoped that the trip to the kingdom would go smoothly, or at the very least, they would return safely without any mishaps.
As they placed their incense in the censer and gazed distantly at the bronze statue symbolizing "White Elder" in the main hall, Emerald Sparrow bowed her head slightly, silently reciting in her heart.
Imitating her, the juniors did the same, and then they all brought their palms together, silently making their wishes.
No one would speak their wish aloud, for to do so would make it lose its power, and this was an unspoken rule throughout the Donghua Region.
"I hope I can be promoted directly to Flower Level this year..." Mu Baihe, the only one who actually uttered a wish, stopped talking after Asou Haruka tapped her on the head.
Lin Xiaolu, Bai Jingxuan, Xia Liang, Hong Siyu... even the usually irreverent Asou Haruka and the clueless Moke all bowed their heads, silently praying.
After a while, Emerald Sparrow looked up amidst the smoke and opened her eyes.
She never believed in gods or the power of prayer, but even so, with the journey to the kingdom ahead, she couldn’t help feeling tense about everything she needed to do.
Forge identities, infiltrate the kingdom, heal injuries, and even regain strength... Would everything really go as smoothly as planned?
She didn’t know, and there was no way for her to know, but now the arrow was on the bowstring, and she had no choice but to shoot.
"Queen’s Year..." she murmured, feeling increasingly heavy-hearted, yet the light in her eyes never dimmed.
She was ready.