After resolving the sudden event involving Eilush, Violet and her companions temporarily stayed under the enthusiastic hospitality of the puppets.
Naturally, Eilush was taken away by Ini for further examination and questioning, a matter that they would handle themselves. Miss Priestess didn’t plan to intervene too much for the time being.
They didn’t return to Ini’s cabin either, as it was the clan leader’s solitary place with limited space.
The Spirit Puppet Tribe had a special area set up for hosting esteemed guests, deep in the forest, at some distance from the Spirit Spring. It was an exceptionally elegant three-story villa, predominantly made of wood and stone.
It must be said that the Spirit Puppet Tribe was truly skilled in artistic creation. As long as it was a field they were interested in, they could excel even in areas like “food preparation,” which they didn’t necessarily need to study.
Although the ingredients were mainly gathered from the forest and some game hunted by the puppets, after being excellently cooked by an unnamed puppet girl, Violet found the dinner to be quite satisfying. In fact, if she were to say, the taste was no less than the royal cuisine she had once tasted in a queen’s palace.
However, it’s worth noting that the ingredients for royal cuisine were incredibly expensive, highlighting the gap in culinary skills.
The other girls also praised the food endlessly. Even the dragon girl, who usually only demanded “meat,” tried many of the vegetables on the table for the first time, much to the delight of Miss Priestess, who had been somewhat troubled by her picky eating habits.
Later, as night fell, following the planned arrangement, everyone left the villa and headed to the Spirit Spring for a bath.
During dinner, Violet also intentionally inquired about the spring water from the puppet girl responsible for their hospitality. As Imeng had mentioned earlier, the Spirit Spring was excavated by the puppets as a special facility to maintain and enhance their bodily functions.
It contained a gentle yet potent magical energy within, and although its base was water, it couldn’t be measured solely as a regular hot spring. Prolonged immersion in it could be harmful to ordinary people.
For individuals without magical energy, their bodies couldn’t regulate or adapt to it. Consuming large amounts of similar substances would accumulate and block within the body, leading to a gradual dysfunction of physiological functions, and in the most severe cases, could even be fatal.
However, for beings like puppets, which were driven by magic, the Spirit Spring would improve and activate their organs. Although other magical beings might not experience such a perfect fit, occasional soaking in the spring water would still be beneficial to their bodies.
Among Violet’s group, there were no ordinary people without magical energy. Even relatively weaker individuals like Theresa, or the wolf cub Novia Moon Shadow who slept all day, had magical energy. Soaking in the Spirit Spring was therefore safe for them.
With that settled, they arrived at the edge of the Spirit Spring under the cover of night. The treetops around them were already lit up with luminous decorations that emitted a faint glow in the darkness, resembling the flickering stars in the night sky.
Of course, these were not temporary decorations. Violet had seen them when they arrived in the afternoon. They just weren’t as noticeable back then, during the daytime.
It seemed that the decorations were made of materials like nightstone. Though the glow emitted by each decoration wasn’t particularly dazzling, when they were hung all over the treetops, combined with the ethereal radiance emitted by the Spirit Spring itself, it created quite a fantastical and otherworldly atmosphere in the darkness of the night.
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The sparse chirping of insects echoed in the distance. Miss Ini, the clan leader whom they had briefly parted ways with in the afternoon, and Eilush, the short-haired girl who claimed to be the third in command of the Spirit Puppet Tribe, were already waiting by the spring. However, Imeng, the somewhat shy one, was nowhere to be seen. She probably didn’t come.
“You’re here. Are you all satisfied with Ruier’s cooking?”
Ini, who had changed out of her daytime dress and was now only wearing a white bathrobe that wrapped around her puppet-like figure, smiled as she walked up to them, with Eilush beside her, similarly dressed.
However, Eilush seemed to lack interest in bathing and such activities. Her lively eyes would occasionally flicker mischievously towards Violet, indicating that she was looking for something.
Pretending to ignore a certain inventor’s gaze, Miss Priestess naturally gave a thumbs-up and returned a satisfied smile for the delightful things.
“It’s fantastic. Her skills are truly impressive. The food we had earlier, even in human kingdoms, would be considered rare delicacies. To create such deliciousness from ordinary ingredients is truly turning decay into magic.”
“Mmm, it seems Miss Violet is quite knowledgeable about tasting. I’ll pass on these words to Ruier.”
Ini gracefully covered her mouth, making a coy expression. Although the praise wasn’t directed at her, it was clear that the clan leader was still very pleased.
One might have thought that Ini’s anxiousness when Eilush went missing was due to a close relationship between the two, but now it seemed that Miss Ini probably valued every member of the clan equally.
Engaging in lengthy discussions by the bathing pool was undoubtedly very impolite, as Ini had mentioned earlier. Since everyone present was girls, there was nothing to be embarrassed about. They simply changed out of their clothes in the simple wooden changing rooms set up nearby and put on the prepared uniform bathrobes.
Although the Spirit Puppet Tribe were just puppets, they were clearly more attentive and considerate than most creatures. The bathrobes they prepared for Violet’s group were obviously carefully selected to perfectly fit each person’s body shape, and there was no discomfort when wearing them.
However, as she felt the soft fabric snug against her body, Violet couldn’t help but feel a bit puzzled. When did Ini and the others manage to obtain the body measurements of everyone here?
Oh well...
The style of the bathrobes they wore was very similar to the classic standard style that Violet remembered from Earth. They were predominantly white, with a drawstring tied in the middle. Removing this single restraint would allow the loose one-piece garment to be easily taken off.
Because the 【Feather Robe Graria】 was a bound equipment, it could be directly released or hidden with just a thought, making it very convenient. Therefore, Violet was the last to enter the changing room.
Coming out from what was essentially just a few wooden boards, and even without a roof over the changing room, everyone had already comfortably settled in, soaking in the Spirit Spring, which was emitting a misty haze under the star-like decorations and moonlight.
As they immersed themselves in the water, their bathrobes must have already been taken off, neatly or haphazardly placed in dry spots nearby to avoid getting splashed by water. This prompted Violet to suddenly think, “So what exactly did we change into these clothes for?”
Although she had bathed with a certain queen many times in the Courage City, and no longer felt the initial shyness of crossing over, the experience of enjoying a hot spring with so many girls at once was undeniably a first for Violet. It was undoubtedly a fresh and stimulating experience.
Perhaps deep down in someone’s heart, echoes from another memory were still lingering.
As she walked slowly to the edge of the Spirit Spring in her bathrobe, Violet couldn’t shake the feeling that everyone soaking scattered around the pool seemed to glance over at her, intentionally or unintentionally.
This made the usually nervous priestess, who was already a bit tense due to the white skin surrounding her and some unspeakable things floating on the water’s surface, even more uncomfortable.
“Lady Violet, aren’t you coming down? It’s quite chilly, and you’ll catch a cold like this,” Leila said in a completely uncharacteristic and awkward attempt to persuade her.
She even lifted her damp wings and patted the water’s surface. Rene, who was originally sitting next to her, immediately shifted aside, leaving space in the middle, implying her intention quite explicitly.
Theresa seemed a bit shy, not only hiding in the farthest corner but also burying almost half of her body in the water. However, she still watched the priestess’s movements quietly with a hopeful yet uneasy look in her eyes.
Edwina, on the other hand, was more direct. She almost seemed to be staring over with a serious, expectant, and nervous expression, as if she were on a pilgrimage.
If the situation were suitable, Violet truly doubted she wouldn’t pull out something and start sketching on the spot.
The glossy and vibrant long hair of the young dragon floated in the spring water, shimmering like waves of golden light. She leaned against the poolside with her eyes closed, maintaining her aloof demeanor.
But Violet knew that most of the time, Xiao Guang didn’t need to rely on her eyes to see. Contract communication was more convenient than anything else, and indeed, a certain dragon was doing just that.
As the hosts, Ini and Eilush, the sister duo of tree spirits, sat together in a distant spot. Although the latter clearly wanted to lean over and do some indescribable things, she was constantly suppressed by Miss Ini and never succeeded.
Esther, from the Moon Shadow Clan, was slightly more normal. She sat alone in a corner, using a soft brush to groom the fluffy sleeping wolf cub, Novia, which looked quite heartwarming. However, for some reason, Violet always felt that the concentration of magic over there was unusually high.
Taking a glance around, Violet sighed helplessly.
“I get it, I get it. Can’t I get down now?”