"Ah hahaha, I'm ticklish!" Ray laughed with his face beaming, but didn't try to push away Nixie who was nuzzling his head. The young man's body shook with laughter.
The elegant red bird obediently pulled back her beautiful beak. She flapped her shimmering wings and flew out from his arms, soaring gracefully through the sky amid white clouds.
Then she used the skill "Phoenix Heal," sprinkling golden light particles down.
Bringing the forest back to life.
The trees and grass that had been burned slowly recovered to fresh green from being completely incinerated. Grass that had withered grew back into swaying blades dancing in the wind once more. The butterflies that had died came back to admire the flowers again.
Everything returned to beauty along the flowing waterfall.
"Wow, you have such a good nature," Ray's eyes sparkled brightly. This was even more beautiful than when he first saw snow.
The atmosphere that had looked gloomy returned to being lush once again. The massive burn marks from earlier seemed like they had never happened at all.
**Geed leveled up to 5**
**Learned new skill: Dig**
"Yeah! Congratulations, Geed!" Ray beamed and high-fived the little Fluffy on his shoulder properly.
The phoenix swooped down with her red flame wings, landing on his right shoulder, then turned her head away when a grumbling sound came from her stomach.
"Oh, are you hungry?"
Nixie nodded sulkily in response to Ray, but wouldn't look him in the eyes.
So Ray pulled out some cheap bread from his bag. The legendary bird made a disgusted face. Nixie shook her head rapidly, refusing it.
"You don't like eating bread? What do phoenixes eat anyway? That's fine, I'll go buy something you like to eat later," he beamed. After he finished speaking, the proud red bird nodded rapidly while the half-rabbit, half-squirrel that wasn't picky about food just gnawed on the bread in Ray's hand instead.
"Alright, let's go to the beast food store!"
-----
*Ding* The shop bell rang as the beautiful wooden door opened. Ray's shoes stepped into the store.
"Aunt Olivia, I'd like to buy some beast food please."
"Oh my, not the usual this time, Ray? That means you have a new friend now!"
A middle-aged woman in casual clothes replied while organizing items on wooden shelves in the shop behind the counter, not looking over at him.
Ray looked around the food store, searching for suitable food for Nixie.
On the summer shelf there were glowing seeds, on the winter shelf were frozen mice, on the spring shelf was pure mineral water. Tons of beast food was displayed throughout the store, surrounding Ray as he walked around touching this and that playfully.
"Yes, Aunt. So I'm looking to buy food for a fire-element winged beast. I want something really good. Have you gotten anything new in recently?"
"What now? Don't tell me you caught a legendary creature, Ray! You're talking like some Heatbird from the Lugana forest area is a phoenix!"
Aunt had just finished organizing and walked casually past him, grabbing a food bag from the back shelf that Ray had just walked past, then came back and placed it in the young man's hands. Ray smiled back.
"Well yes, I actually got a phoenix as a friend now, Aunt. Hahaha!"
"Sure, sure, I believe you," Aunt thought Ray was joking with her and smiled knowingly, continuing:
"Well then, let me explain. This here is Heatwheat, grain seeds that stay hot and fragrant all the time. Grown in Navana fields. Fire-element winged beasts' favorite food. Eat it and grow bigger day and night. Eat it and get beautiful, glossy feathers and a strong body. This bag is 1,000 G, can be split into fourteen servings. Buy two bags right now and I'll give you twenty percent off. Will you buy it?"
Ray took two bags, paid, and put them in his three-dimensional magic bag. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it. You've helped work in my store for several years. This discount is nothing. But really, that Uncle Roger, using a kid to work until the last day before exams? That's terrible." Aunt put her hands on her hips and shook her head.
"Who could be as kind as you, Aunt? You let me take time off to prepare for exams a whole week early. And you paid my full salary too. Hahaha!" Ray laughed cheerfully.
"Sigh, focus on your entrance exam. A good kid with determination like you can definitely do it, dear." The golden-haired aunt patted his head gently. If only Ray wasn't short on money, he would probably work here exclusively instead of taking multiple jobs.
Aunt Olivia had taught Ray many things, which is why he understood why her store sold so well.
"Yes, thank you. But Aunt Olivia, what do phoenixes normally like to eat?"
Aunt widened her eyes and shrugged, then turned and gestured toward the mini waterfall in her store.
"Pure mineral water from the peaks of Firefel Ice Mountain. High-class beasts' favorite. Very rare to obtain. 2,000 G per liter. Want to buy some?"
"Wow, that's expensive. Should I really buy it for her?"
"What now? Are you telling me your new friend really is a phoenix?"
Ray felt cornered, freezing up when pressed with the question. He smiled as an answer. Either way, he wasn't good at lying, especially to someone who had given him work and been kind to him since childhood. So all he could do was smile back.
"Huh! Don't tell me!? Ray, did you really catch a phoenix, a legendary creature!? That's crazy!"
He closed his eyes, put his finger to his lips and told aunt, "Please don't tell anyone," speaking softly.
Then he opened his bag. "Come out, Nixie!"
When he opened the bag, the beautiful-feathered, red-winged legendary bird flew flapping around the store, creating shock for the golden-haired aunt whose eyes widened and jaw dropped at seeing a real legendary creature.
"This is unbelievable… Is this real!? So magnificent. I never imagined I'd see it this clearly, this close. Am I dreaming?"
Nixie swooped down to the pure mineral waterfall, then gracefully bent her neck to drink water from the stone pool with the elegant mannerisms befitting a high-class creature.
"Aunt, could I put it on tab? I definitely won't have enough money for tuition if I have to pay for Firefel pure water with my current funds," he made a pitiful face.
At first he thought he wouldn't buy it because it was too expensive for him. But seeing Nixie eating so happily, he couldn't refuse that he had to buy it.
While Ray was worrying and about to walk over to Nixie to tell her he'd buy her proper good food later, Olivia blocked him with her hand, telling him to stop and watch the phoenix drink water first. "You already have enough money, Ray."
"I do?" He furrowed his brows.
"If nothing goes wrong… if the legends are true…" She gestured toward the phoenix.
While Nixie was peacefully drinking water from the small waterfall, suddenly her feathers began glowing and flickering, before she shed many phoenix feathers that piled up on the floor there, while she grew new fiery feathers for herself.
"At minimum, phoenix feathers sell for 10,000 G per feather," Aunt Olivia told him.
Ray's eyes widened in shock at the message that appeared before him:
**You received Phoenix Feathers 32 ea.**
Ray calculated quickly and immediately realized that was his entire year's salary from working multiple jobs.
"And phoenixes molt every two weeks. If You consistently takes good care of her and feeds her well…" Aunt said.
Ray was even more speechless, except to say:
"Am I… am I going to be rich…?"