Amy's delicate, slender eyebrows curved into a slight arc as Michelle's words gradually persuaded her.
"All right then, I'll go ask Mother for the crystals."
"Mhm, good girl." Seeing her scheme succeed, the smile on Michelle's lips deepened.
Loki merely pressed his lips together and said nothing to stop her.
Inside the stone house, Ophelia and Taylor were having dinner. The orange firelight flickered in the room, making the atmosphere increasingly cozy.
"I can't finish this much rice; help me share some."
Seeing Taylor only gnawing on roasted meat, Ophelia frowned slightly and scooped half the white rice from her bowl into his stone plate.
"Princess, males are not qualified to eat white rice." Disapproval flashed in Taylor's eyes.
Ophelia feigned anger, her sapphire-blue eyes filled with coquettish annoyance. "What did you just call me? I didn't argue with you during the day, but you're still calling me that now. Do you not like me anymore?"
Seeing her angry, Taylor abruptly stood up and shook his head repeatedly. "Princess, no—Ophelia, I didn't mean that."
The little female bit her bamboo chopsticks with her white, pearly teeth, her bright eyes twinkling with teasing mischief. "You didn't mean what...?"
The male instinctively avoided the brilliant light in the little female's eyes, lowering his head to reveal his blushing ears instead.
"I—I don't dislike you."
"Oh, you don't dislike me, which means you like me then."
Flustered even more, Taylor knocked over the stone plate containing half a portion of white rice on the stone table.
"I—I..." He stammered, feeling his cheeks burn with intense heat.
The more shy he became, the stronger Ophelia's urge to tease him grew.
"Mother! Mother!" Just at that moment, a "little cannonball" dashed in from outside the house.
She stood on tiptoe and sniffed lightly. "Mother, you're eating white rice? I want to eat it too."
"If you want to eat it, have your father make it for you. I don't have any extra here to give you."
"But you're my mother! Why won't you let me eat?" Refused, Amy pouted and stomped her foot.
"Speak, what are you trying to do this time?" Ophelia certainly didn't think this ungrateful daughter of hers had missed her "useless mother."
"Mother, I haven't eaten fruit in ten days. I want to eat fruit."
"If you want fruit, go find your father; you shouldn't come to me. After all, you hate me the most, don't you? Since you hate me so much, why would you eat fruit given by me?"
Amy opened her mouth, not knowing what to say.
She lowered her head and twiddled her fingers. "Auntie Michelle said that since you're my mother, no matter what I say or do, you'll forgive me."
"You should be unselfishly good to me. I want to eat fruit right now, so you have to give it to me."
"If you don't want to go get it, just give me an orange crystal and I'll go to the Trading Market to exchange it myself."
The more Amy spoke, the more confident she felt. She reached out her hand with a demanding expression.
Ophelia laughed. She really had a lot of nerve, asking for an orange crystal right off the bat. How bold.
Amy was still young and had no concept of crystals, so this idea must have been instigated by either Loki or Michelle.
Loki would likely not bring it up himself due to his pride, which left Michelle.
She remembered that in her past life, after Loki ascended to the position of Snow Wolf Tribe chieftain, the very first thing he did was send a team of clansmen to the rainforest to pick fruit for Michelle.
He even unconditionally satisfied her every demand, exhausting the entire tribe's strength just to make her happy.
Therefore, Michelle, that little female who outwardly appeared as pure as a white lotus, actually loved luxury, extravagance, and pampered wealth above all else.
Taylor frowned slightly, feeling somewhat displeased with the little female cub's attitude.
"Hey, hurry up and give me the orange crystal! I know you got a lot of crystals at the Trading Market today, don't think you can trick me." Amy's momentum was fading, but she put on a show of arrogance, baring her teeth and brandishing her claws.
"Give up hope. I am not going to give you any crystals. From the very moment you made a wish at the Wishing Pool wanting Michelle to be your mother, my obligations to you ended."
"You are no longer my daughter, and don't ever expect to get anything from me again."
This time, Ophelia's words were merciless and straightforward.
Sense of her firm attitude made panic flicker deep inside Amy. She tried to reach out and pull her mother's hand, but the pair of frost-covered eyes belonging to the little female froze her in place.
Crystal tears slid down the little female cub's delicate cheeks. With red-rimmed eyes, Amy turned and sprinted out of the stone house.
The next morning, Michelle woke up early. After getting herself sorted, she found five Snow Wolf Tribe males to help Taylor transport 300 pieces of prey back to the Golden Dragon Clan.
As a reward, she gave each Snow Wolf Tribe male a bag of rice—a very generous token of gratitude indeed.
Farm Space: Level 3, area 200 square meters.
Points: 0
Warehouse: Level 2, capacity: 500 catties, current storage: 195 catties of rice
The group of seven departed from the Snow Wolf Tribe in a grand procession with 300 pieces of prey, a magnificent spectacle that caused quite a sensation.
When Solo, the Snow Wolf Tribe chieftain, rushed over, all he saw were rows of neatly arranged hindquarters of prey.
He beckoned to the male beside him and whispered, "Go follow them and see where they're taking the prey."
The male acknowledged the order and quietly trailed behind them.
The Snow Wolf Tribe was not far from the Golden Dragon Clan, only a two-hour journey.
Laxus was somewhat puzzled when he heard his clansmen's report, but when he truly saw the mountain of prey piled up at the tribe's entrance, his jaw practically dropped in shock.
"Wh—where did all this come from? You didn't do anything bad, did you?"
Ophelia scolded playfully, "Brother!"
"I exchanged for this at the Trading Market using rice. I couldn't finish it all by myself, so I thought about bringing it back to the Golden Dragon Clan. To think you'd actually think that of me."
"Hmph! Since Brother doesn't appreciate it, Taylor, let's take the prey back to the Snow Wolf Tribe!"
Seeing his younger sister grow angry, Laxus hurriedly pulled her into an embrace and coaxed her with a smile, "It was your brother who spoke wrong. Don't be angry, Sister."
"Mother has been looking forward to you coming back. If you just leave like this, Father's going to lecture me again."
"Fine then." Ophelia waved a hand, letting her oaf of a brother off the hook.
"Distribute these prey to the members of the tribe, but I still have use for the animal skins. Once they're tanned, I want to take them back."
"Tanning animal skins isn't a job of just two or three days. If you need them, I'll have the clansmen give you already-tanned skins as payment for the prey you brought them."
Not expecting things to turn out like this, Ophelia beamed with joy. "Well, that sounds wonderful."
"All right, I'll have them prepare it so you can take them when you leave. For now, I'll accompany you to see Mother."
"Mhm, mhm."
Taylor was talking with a Golden Dragon Clan male, but seeing Ophelia getting ready to leave, he hurriedly ended the conversation.
"No need to rush. We won't return to the Golden Dragon Clan until tonight. Taylor, go see your family and friends; the Golden Dragon Clan is very safe, you don't need to stay by my side."
Taylor lowered his gaze. "All right."
After the two left, the Golden Dragon Clan male who had just been talking to Taylor walked up.
He nudged Taylor with his elbow. "Does the princess still hate you that much? She's always looking for a chance to drive you away."