Chapter 40: You Smell So Good (Please Keep Reading)

Wang Xi was not overly surprised.

Using "Photosynthesis" to disguise himself as a goblin was full of loopholes, so it was hardly unexpected that the youth saw through it.

Still, he asked, "How did you know?"

"Because you smell so wonderful."

Pinocchio put his hands behind his back, circled around Wang Xi, and said earnestly.

"Smell wonderful?" Wang Xi grew vigilant.

Come on, bro, what are you trying to do?

Pinocchio stepped forward and sniffed closely, causing Wang Xi to retreat repeatedly.

The youth continued:

"Father used to let me interact with humans, but I only learned the surface without ever grasping the true essence."

"Goblins will water mushrooms, but they can never grow roses, let alone hold a rose and claim they created it... The biggest difference between humans and monsters is that humans know how to lie."

"Of course, what I mean is not a selfish lie, nor an evil lie... but a lie full of goodwill, gentle, just like a rose."

"A rose-like lie?"

Wang Xi raised an eyebrow, finding the youth rather poetic.

Pinocchio nodded, his expression sincere.

"Just like Your Excellency Gaji, although you deceived the goblins, you did not hurt them; instead, you stepped in to help them defeat the corrupted monster..."

"Even though you clearly disliked the crystal I gave you just now, you still accepted it simply because you saw the disappointment on my face and didn't want to make your new friend sad."

"Your Excellency Gaji is so gentle."

"I saw the radiance of human nature in you and smelled the fragrance of roses it emits."

Wang Xi was taken aback.

He truly hadn't expected that while Pinocchio seemed innocent and naive, he was actually extremely sensitive and adept at observing and catching emotional shifts.

"Am I right?" the youth asked expectantly.

"Close enough," Wang Xi coughed. "Though I must correct one thing: I didn't dislike your crystal at all, in fact I love it... If possible, please give me a bit more."

"Really?!"

Pinocchio asked in pleasant surprise.

Yet shortly after, he put on a troubled look.

"However, I don't like to talk... I don't like my emotions to fluctuate too much, so I cannot give you any more crystals."

"Pinocchio."

Wang Xi's gaze sharpened as he said in a deep voice.

"Hmm?"

"Your pants are bulging again."

"Ah!" The youth hurriedly turned around, his explanation accompanied by a crisp crunching sound: "Sorry, sorry, it's my first time making a friend, I was just too excited!"

"Hey, hey! They're growing so fast!!"

Crunch, crunch...

Before long.

The youth turned back with a blushing face, holding several light purple clustered crystals in his palms, and whispered:

"A-A gift for you, Your Excellency Gaji."

"Thank you."

Wang Xi took a deep breath and reached out to take them.

This time there was about three pounds, which could be exchanged for 150 energy points.

"Hehe, I have a friend now too."

The youth broke into a brilliant smile, akimbo.

...

...

Early the next morning.

As the first rays of dawn filtered through the gaps in the branches and illuminated the peaceful Guru Tribe,

Gurusha's exclamation suddenly rang out, quickly drawing the attention of the other goblins.

A commotion arose, growing increasingly intense.

"Oh dear! The little donkey bestowed by Lady Witch is gone!"

A little goblin stood by the fence, pointing at the collar and chain dropped on the ground, shouting and screaming with a terrified expression.

Another little goblin fell flat on its backside in fright, bursting into loud tears and screaming:

"We're doomed! If Lady Witch finds out, she'll definitely throw a fit!"

At that moment, the great goblin chieftain Guruqi led others over, while the tribesmen gathered around in discussion, their faces full of worry.

"Chieftain, what should we do?"

Gururu the vanguard asked with a grave and heavy expression.

"This is a bestowed item from Lady Witch..."

"Go search the surrounding area first. If we truly can't find it, we'll figure out another way."

The elderly goblin remained quite calm as he gave orders.

Gururu and the other goblins nodded, grabbing their spears as they prepared to leave the settlement to search for the donkey.

Just then, a voice came through:

"I let the donkey go."

"Huh?!"

The goblins turned their heads to see Guruyi walking out of the wooden hut. Behind him followed a luxuriously dressed yet "hideous-looking" black-haired youth.

"Eek! It's a human!"

The goblins' expressions changed drastically. Gururu brandished his spear and stepped forward to interrogate Wang Xi:

"Guruyi! Why are you hanging out with a human?! Where did he come from?"

Seeing the group of goblins showing shared animosity and preparing to throw hands, Wang Xi quickly reached out to shield Pinocchio behind him, fearing the two sides might actually start fighting.

He wasn't worried that Pinocchio would get hurt; rather, he was afraid Pinocchio would slaughter all these goblins... After all, seemingly frail as the youth might look, he was actually a four-star hero unit.

Moreover, Pinocchio's purpose in coming to the Magic Forest this time was precisely to purge monsters.

Yet Wang Xi's action instantly caused a misunderstanding on both sides.

The porcelain-doll-like youth wore a look of shock. Looking at the figure blocking in front of him, warmth surged in his heart.

Your Excellency Gaji...

He actually lied for my sake, claiming he was the one who released the donkey, and didn't even hesitate to make an enemy of this goblin settlement.

He truly regards me as a friend!

"Guruyi! You?!"

Gururu the goblin vanguard wore a shocked expression, his ugly features twisted together as his brain worked at maximum capacity, utterly failing to understand why Guruyi would protect a human.

The rest of the goblins looked at each other in dismay.

The atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point.

"I am Lord Guruyi's servant!"

At that moment, Pinocchio suddenly spoke up in a loud voice.

He actually used the goblin language, bubbling and gurgling away so that everyone could understand him completely.

"Lord Guruyi saved my life, yet refused any reward. I felt terrible, and deeply admired him, so I chased after him through the night!"

"None of you are allowed to hurt him!"

"Otherwise, don't blame me for beating you up!"

Pinocchio's feigned threatening shouts caused an uproar among the goblins. Far from being afraid of this weak human youth, they looked remarkably astonished.

"Guruyi actually has a human servant!"

"He's so amazing!"

"Even humans admire us goblins!"

"No way, it's admiring Guruyi!"

"It's all the same!"

"..."

Wang Xi remained silent. Feeling something hard pressing against him, his face darkened.

Immediately afterward, a crisp crunching sound came from behind.

"Gaji, my good friend."

Pinocchio's ethereal voice echoed in his ear, and at the same time, a light purple crystal was handed over.

"A gift for you."

"......Thank you."

Wang Xi accepted it out of habit.

Another 100 energy points credited.

"So it was just a misunderstanding, everyone needn't be tense."

The elderly goblin flashed a benevolent smile, waving his single remaining arm.

Then, stepping forward, he asked with puzzlement:

"Little Guruyi, you said just now that you let the donkey go? Why?"

Wang Xi let out an "hmph," following along with Pinocchio's lie as he casually fabricated an excuse. He explained that while riding the donkey out for a stroll last night, he happened to encounter the pursuing black-haired youth, and during their casual chat, the donkey seized the opportunity to run off.

It was such a loophole-ridden lie that even a three-year-old wouldn't believe it, yet it successfully convinced the gathering of goblins.

"So that's how it was!"

Guruqi was startled, then sighed:

"But now that the donkey is lost, we have no way to answer to Lady Witch..."

Hearing this, Wang Xi frowned.

If the Guru Tribe were annihilated by the witch because of him, his conscience would weigh heavily on him.

"Will that lady witch kill you all?"

He asked in a deep voice.

Instead, the old goblin shook its head.

"Lady Witch is very kind to us, and she never slaughters monsters unprovoked. But precisely because of that, we don't want to disappoint her."

Guruqi's yellow pupils were filled with reverence.

Lowering its voice, it continued:

"Actually, that donkey is of no use to us, and we have to spend time and energy caring for it... It eats so much, even more than Gururu eats, but since it's a bestowed gift from Lady Witch, we were unwilling to discard it."

At this point, Wang Xi finally understood.

Judging by the goblin chieftain's description, the "Candy Witch" they served did not seem to be a bloodthirsty and terrifying evil entity; rather, she was quite benevolent, differing somewhat from the witch image Wang Xi had anticipated.

Furthermore, based on Pinocchio's account, he appeared to be the one unilaterally beaten and captured by the "Candy Witch." All his talk about fighting hundreds of rounds, being ambushed when the opponent feigned surrender, and suffering beatings and insults was utter nonsense blurted out purely to save face.

In the end, the "Candy Witch" hadn't killed Pinocchio at all; she simply let him go...

Yes, she let him go.

In Wang Xi's view, the witch could not possibly be unaware that the Guru Tribe had no actual use for a donkey. Her intention could only be to make Pinocchio suffer a bit.

The ultimate result was most likely that the donkey would be abandoned by the goblins.

'That witch probably never expected, however, that these goblins' reverence and admiration for her far exceeded her expectations; even if it meant feeding a donkey for nothing, they wouldn't actively throw it away.'

Wang Xi sorted out the sequence of events in his mind.

Instantly, he felt a sense of assurance.

"Chieftain Guruqi, don't worry."

Wang Xi said with absolute certainty.

"Since I let the donkey run off, I will find it for you. Even if I can't find it, I'll have my servant go to a human town and buy a new one, so Lady Witch won't blame you."

"That couldn't be better!"

The old goblin instantly grinned from ear to ear, revealing jagged, uneven fangs.

"Little Guruyi, you're a good goblin!"

"Guruyi! Good goblin!"

The surrounding green-skinned goblins cheered in unison, sweeping away the gloomy looks on their faces.

At that moment, Wang Xi glanced at the sun in the sky and decided it was time to set off. Bidding farewell to the goblin chieftain under the pretext of searching for the donkey, he left the settlement with Pinocchio.

After the two of them had walked a considerable distance.

"Gaji, are you really going to buy a new donkey back?"

The aristocrat-like black-haired youth asked, walking with his hands behind his back and kicking pebbles along the road as he turned his head.

Wang Xi glanced at him and let out an affirmative grunt.

"Why?" Pinocchio seemed somewhat puzzled. p

"Even if we just leave like this, they wouldn't know nor would they be able to track us down, so why make things unnecessarily complicated?"

Wang Xi thought for a moment, then smiled.

"Because they all called me Guruyi, and even praised me as a good goblin."

"Huh?"

Pinocchio's confusion only deepened.

Humans...

Really are so hard to understand.