Chapter 26

The Elf Festival usually lasted a week, with elves selling or trading at the Elf Market in the heart of the Elf Forest.

Since Rao Ke was an outsider, she had to leave the reservation of a stall at the Elf Market to Xue Jiali.

Although the task was to promote clothing, promoting only clothing at the market felt a bit monotonous, so Rao Ke planned to mix other goods with the clothes and sell them together in blind boxes.

To make packaging easier, Rao Ke had Sesame Paste send over a blind box packaging machine.

On the first day of the Elf Festival, Rao Ke got up early to dress up.

To blend in better with the elves, her outfit was simple and forest-inspired. The weather was just right, so she chose something moderate.

She wore a pure white silk inner shirt under a thin matcha-colored outer garment, paired with a skirt in the same color, and tied her long black hair with a plain matcha-colored headscarf.

“Good morning!” Rao Ke came downstairs with a smile, and Xue Jiali complimented her, “You look great.”

Rao Ke accepted the praise with a light smile. “Thanks.”

“I'm really sorry. You took leave to come back, and now you have to work with me on this promotion.” Rao Ke took a bite of a soft croissant and then a sip of rich milk.

Xue Jiali said calmly, “It's fine. I had nothing to do anyway.”

“I'll make you a permanent employee when we get back. You've really worked hard.”

Xue Jiali didn't care much about becoming permanent, but she still nodded.

Watching the girl enjoy her breakfast, Xue Jiali again recalled Ningfuer's divination.

“Xue Jiali, through divination, you may meet the most important person in your life during this trip.”

At first, Xue Jiali paid it no mind, but the divination came true after all.

“Hey, Xue Jiali, what are you thinking about?” Rao Ke's puzzled voice broke through.

Xue Jiali replied instinctively, “I was thinking about how amazing my teacher's divination is. She actually…” Xue Jiali stopped herself in time, but Rao Ke noticed something else.

Rao Ke was intrigued. “Ningfuer knows divination?”

“Yes. Across the entire Kaqisha Continent, my teacher's divination is the most famous.” Xue Jiali nodded, full of confidence.

Rao Ke became even more interested. She had always been fascinated by things like astrology and fortune-telling.

“So, is there any chance I could ask Ningfuer for a reading?”

Xue Jiali answered honestly, “My teacher says that divination itself is a way of revealing the gods' will, so unless she's willing to do it for someone on her own, it's very difficult now."

Hearing that, Rao Ke dropped the subject. Some things were better left to fate.

“By the way, let me introduce what we're selling.” Rao Ke pulled out a blind box and handed it to Xue Jiali.

It was a rectangular wooden box, marked with the icon and name of the Keke Shop.

Thanks to the special material, shaking the box produced no sound, and even if the items inside differed in weight, you couldn't tell by holding it.

“What is this?” Xue Jiali took the box and examined it curiously.

Rao Ke began to explain, “This is a blind box. Different items are placed in identical boxes and sold at the same price. Even we don't know what's inside. What do you think?”

“Sounds interesting. It's a pretty novel way to sell.” Xue Jiali thought it over seriously.

Rao Ke smiled and urged her to open it. “Give it a try.”

Xue Jiali opened it and found a tutorial book on making Chinese pastries.

Rao Ke had bought it before, when she wanted to learn to make snacks. Back then, she'd bought a whole pile of tutorial books, but never read a single page. Now most of them were in Xue Jiali's room.

“Do you like them?” Xue Jiali asked quietly, looking at the book.

Rao Ke thought for a moment. “I like all kinds of pastries. Chinese, Western, Japanese—they're all great, but Chinese ones are really both delicious and beautiful.”

Xue Jiali silently remembered that.

“Today, besides that one, I've prepared a hundred more. Each sells for thirty gold coins. And remember to remind everyone that the contents are random—you might get something worth less than what you paid, or something worth more.”

Once ready, Rao Ke and Xue Jiali strolled over to the Elf Market.

The market was lively enough. Though the elves weren't numerous, there were still five or six hundred of them.

Xue Jiali led Rao Ke to pick up a wooden sign and then to their stall.

It had a great spot, right in the middle of the market.

The stall was clean. Rao Ke spread a red-and-white checkered picnic cloth over the wooden table and arranged fifteen blind boxes on top.

Rao Ke stood out among the elves—black hair and green eyes were a witch's hallmark, and the Elf Forest had hardly seen any outsiders in nearly a century.

The elves gathered around, curious.

“What's this?” one elf couldn't help asking first.

"This is a blind box. You can get any random item from it. Thirty gold coins each," Rao Ke explained with a smile.

The elves were generally well-off, so the price was just pocket change to them. One by one, they each bought one to try their luck.

The lucky ones might pull a high-quality silk shirt; the unlucky ones got a bottle of mineral water.

Rao Ke watched with a smile as the elves opened their boxes.

The real thrill of a blind box was that mix of tension, surprise, and disappointment. Miss Rao, who had fallen into the blind box trap herself, now showed a gratified smile as she watched the elves of another world fall into the same trap.

Looking at what they'd gotten, the elves grew even more curious and crowded around the stall, snapping up the boxes.

“Is that all?”

“What? I haven't even tried one yet!”

…

Facing their complaints, Rao Ke smiled gently. “Sorry, since this is the first day of the trial run, I didn't prepare many–just a hundred. I'll bring more tomorrow.”

“Alright, but you'd better bring extra!”

The elves were a bit disappointed, but they didn't push further. They just left with a few extra reminders for Rao Ke.

“It was a total success!”

Rao Ke and Xue Jiali high-fived. “But it sold out so fast, in less than twenty minutes.”

“Want to look around the market?” Xue Jiali asked, seeing that Rao Ke had nothing to do.

Rao Ke thought for a second, then nodded. She was curious about the Elf Market.

The two walked through the market. Since it was the annual Elf Festival, everyone had taken special care with their appearance.

Walking through the crowd, Rao Ke felt like her eyes were getting a spa treatment, as if she were watching models on a runway.

“Want to try stone cutting?” Rao Ke turned to Xue Jiali. The daily activities on this continent were fairly simple, and the market mostly offered all sorts of fruits, materials, and cloth.

Of everything she'd seen so far, the magical stone stall was the most interesting.

“Sure.” Xue Jiali had already explored the market thoroughly, so she was really just taking Rao Ke around.

The two crouched in front of the stall and carefully picked out magical stones.

A kindly old woman ran the stall. She smiled at the two of them.

With her enthusiastic pitching and explanations, Xue Jiali and Rao Ke ended up buying half the stall.

“Want me to cut them for you, or will you take them home and cut them yourselves?” the old woman asked with a smile.

Rao Ke thought about it, had the old woman cut a few, and watched and learned beside her. The rest she planned to take home and try herself.

When Rao Ke moved to pay, the old woman said, "Xue Jiali already paid."

Rao Ke froze, then looked at Xue Jiali, who turned away. "I paid on the way. Let's go."

“But…” Rao Ke tried to say something.

The old woman just smiled. “That's right. It's only proper for Xue Jiali to do that.”

Rao Ke looked at the old woman's smile and felt something was off, but before she could figure out what, Xue Jiali dragged her away.

“So many berries!” Rao Ke marveled at the dazzling array of berries.

The elves were especially skilled at growing plants, flowers, and berries, so outside, expensive magical plants and berries were piled here like roadside weeds.

“This one looks good, and I want to try that one, too." Remembering Chrisley, Sesame Paste, and Xue Qiu at the shop, Rao Ke bought a bag of each.

Then, looking at the pile that had grown into a small mountain, she stored them in her space ring.

“Let me handle it.” Seeing Xue Jiali trying to pay again, Rao Ke quickly paid herself.

“You paid for the stones, so let me take care of the berries.” Rao Ke looked at Xue Jiali seriously.

Xue Jiali didn't argue.

The two strolled around the market, but they soon got a bit bored, so they headed back to Xue Jiali's cabin.

Rao Ke returned to her room and set the blind box machine to produce six hundred boxes.

“Is this how the teleportation spell works?” Rao Ke held the spellbook, gave her wand a light wave, and a black vortex appeared in front of her.

She carefully placed one fruit inside, then opened the Astrolabe and asked Chrisley if she'd received anything.

“Yes, I got a Flame Fruit," Chrisley replied.

After confirming the teleportation spell had the right destination, Rao Ke sent all the berries through.

“Did you buy out a berry shop? How did you end up with this many berries?” Chrisley was nearly buried by the fruit waterfall.

“No, I just saw so many kinds I'd never seen, so I thought I'd bring some for you. Maybe a bit too many, haha." Rao Ke laughed without a shred of regret.

“By the way, while you're away, that Miss Kalisa keeps coming to the shop looking for you," Chrisley brought up the serious matter.

Rao Ke knew the woman must have a mission. “If she's not affecting the shop, just ignore her.”

“She came to apply for a shop assistant position,” Chrisley said with a smile.

Rao Ke raised an eyebrow. “Teacher, do a first pass. When I get back, I'll check the rest."

Chrisley nodded.

“Oh, and that noble who caused trouble is dead. They say he died from a heart-devouring evil spirit. His corpse was a terrible sight.” Chrisley casually picked up a fruit and wiped it clean.

“With his attitude, he must've made plenty of enemies. It's not surprising.” Rao Ke wasn't shocked.

Chrisley smiled. "Who knows~"

“Did I ever tell you that Miss Kalisa has a special disguise spell on her?” Chrisley said mysteriously.

Rao Ke's attention was immediately hooked. "What? What?"

"She's probably made a deal with a demon," Chrisley said, not drawing it out.

“A demon?! Then are there angels?” Rao Ke asked, curious.

Chrisley was a little amused by Rao Ke's odd focus, but after knowing her this long, she was used to her wild imagination.

"There are, but angels mostly live in Heaven and don't deign to mix with outsiders," Chrisley explained.

Rao Ke didn't dwell on it. “Alright. I'll probably head back soon, so I'll leave things to you for now, Teacher."

The two chatted for a while, then ended the call.

Rao Ke took a shower, came out feeling refreshed, and grabbed her tablet for some downtime.

She was occupied until evening, when Xue Jiali came up to call her down for dinner.

Back in her room, Xue Jiali took out the stones she'd secretly bought from her space ring.

She'd once read in an ancient dwarf master's spellbook about an incredibly difficult necklace called the Heart of the Forest.

The Heart of the Forest required a thousand kinds of magical crystal shards inlaid together, and then attack or defense runes could be placed on top.

To that end, Xue Jiali had even consulted Ningfuer.

Ningfuer strongly supported her and had provided half of the magical crystal materials.

Xue Jiali looked at the pile of stones in front of her, sighed, and began cutting them.

Over the next few days, Rao Ke's blind box business was a hit at the Elf Market.

The items inside—especially the food—were a revelation to the elves, and the name of the Keke Shop gradually spread.

Rao Ke's promotion mission was a huge success!

[Promotion mission complete! Mansion Shop Upgrade Card has been added to your inventory!]

The Elf Festival was nearly over, and it was about time for Rao Ke to head home.

"Xue Jiali, have you not been feeling well lately?" Rao Ke noticed her dark circles getting worse.

“I'm fine." Xue Jiali shook her head.

Ningfuer smiled. "Don't worry about her. She probably has something to take care of."

"By the way, Keke, the Elf King wants to see you," Ningfuer said casually, swaying her wooden fan.

“Huh?! When?”

“Tomorrow.”