In the garden, Luolin squatted in front of the golden tomato trellis, checking on the ripeness of the fruit. Miya ran along the path with the rabbit in her arms, chasing a yellow butterfly. The treasure-hunting rabbit's ears flopped wildly as it was bounced around, looking entirely used to it.
Ryan's shadow swept overhead.
Miya looked up, her mouth wide open. “Big sister! What a huge bird!”
“Mr. Chen Mian is back,” Luolin said, standing up. She watched the slowly descending behemoth, her expression a mix of anticipation and obvious nervousness.
Ryan landed steadily on the open ground in front of the apartment, folded his wings, and crouched down to let the people on his back dismount.
The wolf-eared man was the first to jump down, followed by the other four demi-human men and girls. Melo was the last to descend, and as soon as she touched the ground, she saw a figure running over from the garden.
“Sister Melo!”
“Luolin!”
Melo was half a head taller than Luolin. Because of their flight over this period, Melo hadn't taken a bath, and her long black hair was a messy, tangled mop. But Luolin didn't care at all. She just hugged Melo tightly, her eyes turning red.
Miya also ran over, burying herself in Melo's arms. “Sister Melo!”
“Little one!” Melo held Luolin with one arm and scooped Miya up with the other.
“Sister Melo, I thought I'd never see you again.”
“It was Uncle Sari and the others who rescued me from the slave traders.” Melo's rabbit ears drooped as she held them both. Her voice was soft, but it was visibly trembling. “But we couldn't find you guys. I thought you, like the others, had already...”
“We're fine, Sister Melo,” Luolin wiped her eyes and smiled. “We were saved by Miss Loviki, and Mr. Chen Mian took us in.”
Miya, still in Melo's arms, looked up with a wide grin. “Sister Melo! I missed you so much!”
“I missed you too, little one.”
The other demi-humans gathered around, sincere smiles gracing their faces as they watched the sisters reunited.
“Uncle Sari! Brother Mick! Sister Tina!”
“Little Miya, it's so wonderful that you're safe!”
Luolin looked at the familiar faces before her. Uncle Sari, Sister Melo, Tina... these were the people she saw every day. Yet, so many others would never stand before her again.
Luolin took a deep breath to suppress her grief. Now was not the time for this. She was already incredibly fortunate to see so many of her fellow villagers again. Releasing Melo, she stood up straight and looked at the faces of those who had survived.
“Mr. Chen Mian is willing to take us in and let us make our home here.”
Hearing Luolin's words, everyone looked up at Chen Mian, who was leaning against the wall. He smiled and nodded.
Seeing this, Luolin continued, “I want to explain the situation here to everyone.”
The meadow fell silent.
“This is Mr. Chen Mian's territory. We can build our own houses near this clearing. The magical beasts in the forest won't approach this area, and slave traders from the Sairen City-State won't be able to come in and capture us.”
“But in exchange, we have to help him tend to this land. The crops here grow incredibly fast. Although the area doesn't look very large, we need to harvest and store them frequently. There will be mana grass in the ranch for feed, so feeding the animals is relatively simple, but when harvest time comes, everyone will get very busy.”
She looked at the hopeful faces of the villagers and continued, “Harvesting, transporting, sorting, and storing. Once everything stabilizes, we will also help Mr. Chen Mian manage these agricultural products. The crops grow too fast, and without trade, a vast amount of resources would go to waste. In return, we can eat the crops produced here for free.”
Having finished, Luolin looked at the villagers. “These are the conditions for Mr. Chen Mian taking us in.”
Sari scratched his head and said, “He provides food, safety, and a place to build our homes, yet only asks us to manage a small plot of land... is this really okay?”
“Yeah.” Melo wiped the tear tracks from her face with the back of her hand and smiled. “It sounds like we're getting the better end of the deal.”
“Well, Luolin wasn't lying when she said the crops grow fast. You'll have plenty to keep you busy when the time comes. If there are no objections, then it's settled,” Chen Mian said with a smile.
“No objections!” Sari and the villagers bowed deeply and sincerely to Chen Mian. “Thank you, Mr. Chen Mian! We will definitely take good care of this farm.”
As a small, wandering tribe that had just experienced the turmoil of the Sairen City-State, they knew all too well how precious a conflict-free land was.
They were filled with hope for their future life.
“Mr. Chen Mian, you're a good person,” Melo said to him with utmost sincerity.
Leaning against the wall, Chen Mian's lips twitched slightly. “Someone else said that once too. Well, it's settled then. Since it's not dark yet, let's build some houses.”
Sari nodded, then turned to the crowd. “You all heard him, right? Come with me to chop some wood.”
A few men who still had strength left followed Sari toward the edge of the forest to look for suitable timber. Carrying their hopes for the future, they were full of energy despite their physical exhaustion.
The demi-human men were responsible for finding and felling small and medium-sized logs.
Meanwhile, Melo led several young women to make ropes out of vines and tree bark, dragging the felled logs to the edge of the clearing. They had to stop and rest several times just to drag a single log, yet not a single trace of annoyance showed on their faces.
Leaning against the wall by the apartment entrance, Chen Mian watched the scene from afar.
There was no magic here, only raw strength and shouts rising one after another.
“Aren't you going to help?” Loviki's voice came from beside him.
She had just finished her morning training, and fine beads of sweat still clung to her forehead.
Chen Mian looked at the busy figures. “It's their own home. Let them build it themselves.”
“This is their first step to taking root here. Every log is chopped by their own hands, and every house is built by themselves. When they move in, the feeling will be completely different compared to if I had just quickly built them a house to give to them.”
“What's the difference?”
“They won't feel like they're living on charity.”
“Tsk, you really are too considerate sometimes,” Loviki said, pursing her lips.
“Is that so? After all, someone once doubted herself over this exact kind of thing,” Chen Mian teased, looking at her.
“I did not! You're remembering it wrong!”
“Eh? I didn't say it was you, did I?”
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