Chapter 437: Fool's Dream and Fool's Dream Drink
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 437: Fool's Dream and Fool's Dream Drink
After chatting with Sofiri for a while and indulging in a bit of gossip regarding Dongli Yiren’s situation, I prepared to take my leave.
With her permission, I took the well-preserved fruits with me before departing.
As I walked, I pondered how to establish a connection with the Witch Cat Cafe. Should I just go and speak directly to the shop assistant? I had a feeling they wouldn't be very receptive to a cold approach.
Actually, I knew the Witch Dinah—the Transcendent Shopkeeper of the Witch Cat Cafe. Reaching out to her would certainly work, but our relationship was... hard to define. I suppose we were on good terms?
But we had only met a handful of times in total.
Still, there was the barrier of our roles as student and teacher. After much deliberation, I decided I would try to get in touch with her.
After all, based on her treatment of the Fool's Dream creatures, her love for cats was clearly heartfelt. Perhaps it wasn't just the feline race she loved, but the concept of "cute cat-like things" as a whole—including cat-girls and even the Fool's Dream creatures, whose specific race was hard to pin down.
Before that, however, I wanted to make a trip to the Witch Cat Cafe itself. My contact with Mentor Dinah could wait, but I had previously promised those Fool's Dream creatures that I would teach them how to prepare the Fool's Dream Drink. I had delayed it for so long that I hadn't even seen them much lately.
Furthermore, I sensed that this craft shared a deeper connection with the Fool's Dream race, so I placed this task at the top of my priority list.
With that thought, a composite rune flickered into existence in my hand. This was the rune I had condensed after receiving a revelation from the Fool's Dream Drink. It wasn't the preparation ritual for the drink itself, but a deeper form of revelation ritual.
Upon arriving at the Witch Cat Cafe, I glanced around but didn't see any Fool's Dream creatures.
"Excuse me, I wanted to ask where the Fool's Dream creatures are?" I asked, stopping a waitress sporting cat ears who was passing by.
"Hmm? Does the guest wish for Fool's Dream service?"
"Yes. Why? Has Fool's Dream service become a paid feature now?"
"Oh, it's not that. It's just that the Fool's Dream creatures haven't been in a very good state lately. The Shopkeeper has given many of them time off to rest and recover. It's been about... a week now, happening one after another. We only have two Fool's Dream creatures currently on duty. As for whether they can serve you, that depends on your personal charm. After all, in the Witch Cat Cafe, no one can force the cats to do anything. The consequences for doing so are very serious."
"I see."
Hearing this, my heart sank.
"Would the guest like to order something?"
"Oh, a coffee. Just bring it here," I said reflexively.
I stood up and began to walk.
The Witch Cat Cafe wasn't particularly large. After doing a lap, I found two Fool's Dream creatures lying listlessly on cushions in a designated rest area.
They looked completely drained of energy, their cat ears drooping atop their heads.
The two of them were so synchronized that even their lethargic poses were identical. Sensing someone approaching, they slightly turned their heads.
"Mmm... a guest... Huh? Sister Xiao Han?!" The one closer to me had looked over out of habit, only to see the figure they hadn't encountered in a long time.
She couldn't quite believe it, sitting up and rubbing her eyes as if she feared she was hallucinating.
"That's right~ it's me. What's wrong with you two?"
I hurried forward and asked with concern. It couldn't be that they weren't adjusting to the environment of the Witch Academy, could it? Or was the Witch Cat Cafe exploiting its employees?
But I had just heard that no one could force the cats here, so the Fool's Dream creatures shouldn't be suffering from any abuse.
"Sister Xiao Han, we haven't seen you in so long. Many of the sisters were saying they hadn't seen you either... Sniff, sniff... Sister Xiao Han has a very fragrant scent on her..." The Fool's Dream creature came over and hugged my forearm, her tone so pitiful it was as if I had abandoned them.
"I'm sorry. I couldn't come because of some unavoidable circumstances. See? Haven't I come to visit you now?"
"Mhm! I knew Sister Xiao Han wouldn't abandon us!" The other Fool's Dream creature shuffled over as well.
"Of course. If you run into trouble in the future, you can come find me directly. But has something happened to the Fool's Dream race? I heard many have gone back to rest, and you two don't look well either."
"Ugh... we don't know either... our bodies just feel so tired... we want to sleep... and whenever we sleep, we dream..."
"Dreaming?"
I quickly realized the implication. The Fool's Dream creatures were originally dream creatures. Although my previous efforts had severed their connection to Nightmares, allowing them to exist in reality, they only did so because the Academy Dean had shaped these physical bodies for them.
Could it be that they were instinctively beginning to reject reality and were being pulled back into the dreamscape?
But they were perfectly fine back in Fool's Village. There was no reason for this to happen just because they came to the Witch Academy. It couldn't be that the Senior Sisters at the academy were cuddling them too hard, could it?
"Mhm..."
"Can you describe the dreams you're having?"
"That... we mostly forget them after we wake up. But they're pretty much like daily life..."
"Did you encounter anything special in the dreams? Like a nightmare?"
"A nightmare? I don't think so..."
"No, it's just that the dreams feel very oppressive. When we wake up, we're very sleepy but can't fall back to sleep. And after dreaming, our mood becomes very bad..."
"I see..." My brow furrowed deeper. This provided no clear breakthrough. Should I ask the Academy Dean?
She should be familiar with this situation... and even if she wasn't, she certainly had the ability to find out.
"Let me ask, what do you eat every day? Could it be a dietary issue?" I continued. Perhaps I should prepare a cup of Fool's Dream Drink on the spot for them to try?
After all, the Fool's Dream Drink seemed to hold secrets—secrets specifically related to their race.
"Umm... little dried fish..."
"Desserts fed to us by guests, and... water."
"Occasionally we eat staff meals with the big sisters here."
The two Fool's Dream creatures took turns listing everything they had eaten recently.
"That's quite a variety..." I commented.
Back in Fool's Village, they ate specific fruits, drank from clear springs and fruit brews, and, most importantly, had the Fool's Dream Drink.
"By the way, I promised to teach you how to prepare the Fool's Dream Drink. Do you know about that?" I asked tentatively. I had only mentioned it to one of them last time, and I wasn't sure how information flowed within their group.
"Fool's Dream Drink? I know that! We've all heard about the thing Sister Xiao Han promised us!"
"Sister said that it's related to our past, right?"
"Yes. It was delayed for a long time due to various reasons, but the fruits related to the Fool's Dream Drink have finally matured, so I came to find you," I explained.
"Then... has Sister Xiao Han prepared the Fool's Dream Drink before? Just now... I smelled a faint fragrance on you. It smells so comfortable..."
"Yes, I did try preparing it once just now."
But I hadn't drunk any; Sofiri had finished it all. At most, a bit of the scent had lingered on me. I hadn't expected the Fool's Dream creatures to be able to detect such a faint aroma.
Or was it an instinctive attraction to the power of that Transcendent ritual?
Since they found it fragrant, it meant they were instinctively craving it. So... the problem really did lie with the Fool's Dream Drink?
Was that too much of a coincidence?
But if I were to ask where the fruits for the drink came from, likely no one would know. Perhaps the Academy Dean knew, but I felt bad about disturbing her over such a small matter.
"Come~ I'll take you to prepare the Fool's Dream Drink." I pushed those idle thoughts aside.
There was no point in just thinking. Rather than raising so many questions, it was better to just take action.
I would see if there was any improvement after they drank it.
If the problem really was here, then I would truly need to ask Sofiri for help in accelerating the growth of a large batch of fruits. There were over a hundred Fool's Dream creatures; my current stock wouldn't be nearly enough.
I reached out my hands, scooping up one Fool's Dream creature in each arm. They curled up obediently in my embrace.
They trusted me completely, which was why they showed such vulnerability.
When I carried them to the front desk, even the shop assistant showed a look of surprise.
"Help me open a themed cat room. Any will do. Just charge it to my Cat Card."
"Certainly, guest. I'll register that for you... Uh, you also ordered a coffee. Should it be sent to your original table or the cat room?"
"The cat room."
"Understood. This way, please. I'll lead you there." As she led the way, her eyes kept drifting to the two Fool's Dream creatures in my arms. "You're truly impressive, guest, to be able to move these two."
"This is Sister Xiao Han! The one I mentioned when I was chatting with you, Big Sister!"
"Mhm! Mhm! Sister Xiao Han is the best friend of all Fool's Dream creatures!"
At this moment, the two creatures forced themselves to perk up and speak. Or rather, now that they were closer to me, the faint fragrance was clearer, and they instinctively felt much better.
"Ah? You're Xiao Han?"
"Yes. I've been busy lately, so I haven't been around for a while. Are you a new part-timer here?"
"Yes, that's right. Sorry, I didn't realize you were..."
"It's fine. Just treat me like a regular guest. And... thank you for showing me the way." I interrupted her with a smile, then pushed open the door to the themed cat room.
Once the door was closed, I surveyed the room. It was filled with feline elements—warm, cute decorations and various cat toys. It lived up to its name as a themed room of the Witch Cat Cafe.
I only gave the decor a cursory glance before heading straight for the table. I needed to prepare the juice, and while bringing outside drinks wasn't strictly forbidden at the cafe, it wasn't encouraged either. It wouldn't be good to be seen, and I didn't want to attract attention in the public area with all my bottles and jars.
With this setup looking like a laboratory experiment, I was afraid the cafe staff might kick me out.
After waiting a moment for my coffee to arrive, I shut the door completely. Then, I took out the bottles and the peculiar fruits.
However, when I brought the fruits out, none of them seemed to have a scent that the Fool's Dream creatures particularly liked. This meant they really weren't interested in the raw fruits; they only cared about the finished Fool's Dream Drink.
I didn't waste any time. Having successfully prepared it at Sofiri's place, I was now well-practiced.
As the Fool's Dream Drink began to take shape, the two creatures pressed themselves close to my side.
"Alright, alright, don't get too close. I'll give you the first taste once it's ready." Given their almost instinctive behavior, I couldn't bring myself to be too stern about them getting in the way.
My gaze sharpened. As the final step was completed, the Fool's Dream Drink underwent its final ritual. With a sharp clink of the long stirring spoon against the rim of the glass, the crisp sound caused the two creatures to shudder with excitement.
"It's finished." I swirled the enticingly colored juice in the bottle and poured it into two small cups.
"Thank you, Sister Xiao Han!" they chirped in unison.
They couldn't wait to pick up the small cups with their tiny hands.
First, they took cautious, tiny sips. Then, their eyes lit up with expressions of pure bliss. They raised the cups and began to gulp the drink down.
"Slow down, slow down. No need to drink so fast."
"Gulp... Mmm~ it tastes so good!" The one who finished first instinctively licked her lips, her eyes full of longing for more.
The listlessness from before had vanished instantly.
This recovery is a bit too fast, isn't it?
I couldn't help but think to myself. But as long as they were better, that was all that mattered. It seemed the problem really was the lack of the Fool's Dream Drink.
At the same time, a wave of lingering fear washed over me. If I hadn't taken a whim to learn the craft of preparing this drink, and if I hadn't thought to bring some seeds back to plant... would the Fool's Dream creatures have been helpless right now?
But there are no "ifs" in life. Fortunately, I had done it all. How should I describe this?
Perhaps the Fool's Dream race wasn't meant to perish yet.
I picked up my coffee and took a sip. It had gone cold; the lukewarm liquid was bitter with a hint of sourness.
"Do you feel better?" Seeing that they had finished and were even looking like they wanted to lick the cups, I put down my coffee and stopped them.
"Mhm... Sister Xiao Han's Fool's Dream Drink is truly magical! I feel... not so sleepy anymore."
"Me too! Me too!"
"The preparation of this drink is a craft your people once mastered. You were the ones who taught it to me. Now, I am teaching it back to you. Perhaps this is a form of salvation originating from yourselves."
"But no matter what, if it weren't for Sister Xiao Han, we wouldn't have recovered so quickly!"
"Right, right! This is all thanks to Sister Xiao Han!"
After the two creatures finished speaking, they hesitated, looking as if they wanted to say more. Now that they had recovered, they immediately thought of their other companions who were suffering the same fate.
Some of the others were in even worse condition than they had been.
"What is it? Why the sudden hesitation?"
"Um, Sister Xiao Han, can you make more of the Fool's Dream Drink? Everyone... not just the two of us, but the other sisters, they..."
"Don't worry. I still have some fruits left to make more. I won't leave you all hanging. Once I've prepared enough, please take me to where you live. This sort of thing shouldn't be delayed."
"Mhm! Mhm!" The two Fool's Dream creatures nodded vigorously, the excitement in their eyes beyond words.