Chapter 40: Time Stops
With the help of Forest Magic, the scattered and mysterious text transformed into a language Leon could understand. He read it carefully, then compared the gift icons on the scroll with what he remembered from the offerings list. When he confirmed that nothing had changed, he let out a breath of relief.
If there had been any changes, and some new, reality-exclusive item had appeared, he would have had to go through a lot of trouble to find it.
Looking again at the scroll, he saw that the first row depicted four types of wild spring plants—Leek, Wild Horseradish, Dandelion, and Daffodil. No quantity was indicated, so Leon simply took one of each from his System Backpack and placed them into the basket.
The moment the items landed inside, there was a muffled pop. Four apple-sized Junimos appeared at Leon’s side, bouncing around him before all of them dove under the basket. Their bean-sprout-thin hands lifted the basket together, and they hopped their way toward the exit of the Community Center’s Crafts Room.
The sight brought a smile to Leon’s face. These Junimos were actually quite adorable. Their voices were a soft, musical hum—indescribable yet pleasant—that made Leon want to catch them and keep them in a cage, just to hear all the different tones they could make.
Following them as they carried the basket, Leon was just stepping out of the Crafts Room when he noticed the Junimos suddenly startle. With another pop, they vanished, leaving the basket of spring forage behind.
He blinked in confusion, but the next second, he spotted Haley. She was tiptoeing toward him, clearly more concerned about keeping her shoes and clothes clean than about where she was headed. Leon instantly understood why the Junimos had fled.
Her fussy expression at the sight of the slightly dirty surroundings made Leon sigh inwardly. He had ignored her earlier, but she’d spotted him anyway and, driven by curiosity, had followed—uninvited—interrupting his offering.
A mischievous idea struck him. Since Haley’s eyes were fixed on her footing and she hadn’t seen him yet, Leon slipped back into the Crafts Room and waited, listening for her footsteps.