Chapter 50: Children’s Clothing
“Where are the two dwarves who stayed?” Chu Feng asked.
“They’re with Sterling.”
Chu Feng raised an eyebrow. “Sterling? That tiger guy?”
Ilya nodded. “Yes, they’re staying at his place.”
Chu Feng thought to himself: The dwarves sure have guts — staying in a tiger’s den like that?
“Why Sterling’s place?”
“His house is bigger, and lately he’s been helping out over at Duvean’s, so he hasn’t been home.”
“Helping out at Duvean’s? With what?”
Ilya answered matter-of-factly, “Chopping wood, of course.”
Sterling wasn’t great at fine carving, but he was capable of rough-processing wood.
That rough processing took a lot of effort, and since Duvean had trouble walking, Sterling’s help saved him a lot of work.
“Duvean never liked others helping him before, but lately he’s become more open. Sterling even helped him repair his house recently.”
“Really?” Chu Feng asked.
Ilya nodded. “Yes! And it’s all thanks to you.”
Chu Feng thought for a moment and mused to himself: Sterling probably used to feel self-conscious because of his lame leg, but now that he has a ‘high-paying job,’ he’s become more confident.
“You mentioned earlier that you’d bring Duvean some sketchbooks — did you bring them?” Ilya asked.
Chu Feng nodded. “I did.”
Ilya let out a sigh of relief. “Good, good. I visited Duvean twice — he’s very concerned about those sketchbooks. He asked about them every time. If you had forgotten, he’d probably be really disappointed.”
Chu Feng: …Is that so? He had indeed almost forgotten, only to remember at the last minute. Thank goodness he did.
“Among the dwarves who stayed, one of them is an ability user, right?”
“You mean Hughes? He really wants to meet you,” Ilya said.
Chu Feng looked a little puzzled. “He knows me?”
Ilya nodded. “You’ve been here quite a while. It’s not strange that word has reached the dwarves.”
Especially since the changes in the village were impossible to hide.
Chu Feng nodded and gave a noncommittal “Oh.”
“Anything happen while I was away the past few days?” he asked.
Ilya thought for a bit. “Nothing major, really. Just that Shaya came by, made a big fuss, insisted I give him a jar of honey paste, and said if we ever need help moving things, just say the word — he’ll handle everything flawlessly.”
Chu Feng tilted his head. “That dumb bear?”
Ilya gave him a sideways glance. “He’s a grizzly bear, not a dumb bear.”
Chu Feng: …He’s definitely a dumb bear!
As if a bear wouldn’t love honey. Last time that guy even refused it — guess that sugar slap finally hit home.
“Why did he suddenly want honey now?”
Ilya thought for a second. “Probably because he tasted it at Duoduo’s place. Duoduo had invited a few friends over to share some honey, and a bunch of village kids went. Shaya, shameless as he is, tagged along and managed to bum a cup of honey water — and instantly regretted not accepting it before.”
Ilya glanced at Chu Feng. “Did you bring rice and pickled vegetables this time? The Highland Tribe has already run out…”
Chu Feng nodded. “I did. I brought ten bags of rice — send eight over there. Also, send two crates of pickled mustard greens.”
Ilya tilted his head. “Alright, I’ll get someone to deliver them.”
“Will we have enough manpower to carry eight bags of rice?”
Ilya shook his head. “No need to worry — there are plenty of people willing. Just offer a little instant noodles and mustard greens, and everyone will fight to help.”
Chu Feng: …Labor is seriously cheap in this world.
“Do you think eight bags will be enough?” Chu Feng asked.
Ilya smiled. “Don’t worry. The Highland Tribe still hunts — they’re not relying solely on what you bring. And the salt you provided earlier already covers a good part of the cost.”
Chu Feng nodded. “That’s good, then.”
Ilya continued, “Those seeds you brought — they’ve already sprouted. The priest said they’re growing quite well.”
Chu Feng was surprised. “They’ve all sprouted?”
Ilya nodded. “Every last one. The priest personally oversaw the planting. All the seeds were treated using his abilities.”
Chu Feng thought: So the priest’s powers also work on plants from our world? I wonder what the harvest will be like — maybe they’ll mutate.
Ilya looked at him and asked, “Did you bring any seeds this time?”
Chu Feng shook his head. “No. I’ll bring some next time.”
Ilya nodded. “If those crops really are as high-yield as you say, then the village won’t have to worry about food shortages much longer.”
Chu Feng nodded. “As long as nothing goes wrong, they should grow well.”
“What’s in those boxes?” Ilya asked curiously.
Chu Feng glanced at them. “Children’s clothes.”
Ilya nodded. “Oh.”
Back when Duoduo and Gray returned wearing new clothes, it made a lot of village kids jealous. If the others found out Chu Feng had brought clothes this time, they’d go crazy.
“How many sets?”
Chu Feng shook his head. “A little over thirty.”
There were only about twenty-something kids in the village, but Chu Feng wasn’t sure about sizes, so he bought extras. If there were leftovers, they could be stored for later — at least one set per child should be guaranteed.
Chu Feng figured that if he was going to give out clothes, he should treat all the children equally — one set per kid, with any extras kept in reserve.
Ilya thought for a moment and said, “I’ll have Gray round up all the village kids.”
Chu Feng looked at Ilya. “I’ll leave it to you.”
Ilya nodded. “Got it.”
Gray called out in the village, and once the kids heard there were clothes to be had, they came rushing in all at once.
The clothing boxes were all opened, and the kids began sorting through them, eyes sparkling with excitement.
“These are so pretty! This one’s nice, and that one too!”
Some of the kids were having a hard time choosing, and Chu Feng thought: So even here, kids get decision fatigue.
Ilya patiently helped the ones who had picked out their outfits to change into them.
Duoduo’s little rabbit let out an excited, warbling sound — surprisingly intense.
Chu Feng thought: The rabbits here really are strange — this one sounds like a wolf. Maybe this one is just special, considering it spends so much time with its natural enemy.
Duoduo held the rabbit and gently comforted it.
Chu Feng looked at her and asked, “What’s wrong with him?”
That rabbit was howling like crazy — was it sick? Some kind of rabid rabbit?
Duoduo stroked its round little head. “My brother hasn’t learned to shapeshift yet, so he can’t wear clothes.”
Chu Feng nodded and said, “Next time I come over, I’ll see if I can find something suitable for him.”
Duoduo asked excitedly, “Really?”
Chu Feng nodded. “Of course.” They make clothes for cats and dogs, so there should be clothes for rabbits too, right?
Soon, the little kids all finished changing into their new clothes. Each one looked completely different after the change.
Suddenly, Chu Feng thought of something and waved Duoduo over.
Duoduo walked over holding the rabbit. “Brother Feng, what’s up?”
Chu Feng took two large red bow ties out of the box and tied them to the rabbit’s ears.
With two bows on its head, the little rabbit flapped its ears happily.
“Chu Feng.”
Chu Feng turned to Ilya and asked, “What is it?”
“Are those clothes from your world?” Ilya asked, pointing to someone nearby.
Next to Ilya stood a half-elf child wearing a layered princess dress adorned with big flowery bows. It looked very pretty.
“Looks great, right?”
Chu Feng thought to himself: Elves really are beautiful — that little elf in the dress looks like a fairy come to life.
“Why didn’t I see you wearing something like that?”
Chu Feng rolled his eyes. “That’s a dress — it’s for girls. Why would I wear it?”
Ilya looked a little surprised. “Oh, so it’s for girls?”
Chu Feng nodded. “Yeah.”
Ilya looked at Tiantian. “So if it’s for girls, then Tiantian, you should take it off and change.”
The little elf immediately darted away.
Chu Feng: …Wait, what does that mean? That super cute kid is actually a boy? And he likes wearing dresses? A future cross-dressing king?
Ilya glanced at Chu Feng and asked, “Can’t boys wear dresses?”
Chu Feng scratched his head. “Well, it’s not that they can’t… it’s just not common.”
Ilya looked at Tiantian. “Tiantian, let me help you change into something for boys.”
The little elf clutched the dress tightly, eyes filled with a dramatic defiance — as if Ilya tried to force him, he’d immediately flood the whole village with tears.
Ilya sighed. “Forget it. Just let him wear it.”
Hearing that, the little elf twirled around in joy.
Chu Feng took a deep breath and thought: Ilya really spoils these kids. But then again, the kid’s only about three or four — wearing a dress isn’t that weird, maybe even cute. I’ll work on his sense of style later.
The dress Tiantian wore sparkled with sequins and looked rather fancy. Chu Feng noticed the other kids were staring at the dress with envy.
He thought: Kids really are the same everywhere — they love flashy, pretty clothes, even if they’re not practical. When did I even buy that dress?
Tilting his head, Chu Feng remembered: when he was shopping for girls’ clothes, he got a bit embarrassed and just grabbed a few randomly. That dress probably got mixed in by accident.
“Tiantian’s dress is so pretty!” Gray said, eyes sparkling as he looked at Chu Feng.
Chu Feng: …What’s with this kid? Does he want one too? Though honestly, Gray would probably look pretty cute in a dress too.
“Why didn’t you bring more dresses like that?” Gray muttered regretfully.
Chu Feng: …There are way more boys than girls in Moonlight Village — why would I bring that many dresses?
