Chapter 326

Chapter 327: On the Day She Turned Eighteen

What happens on the day you turn eighteen?

For more than ten years, Little Red Riding Hood tried hard not to think about it. She always acted like the most mature one in Fairy Tale, the big sister that all the younger ones trusted. She often spoke lightly about becoming an adult and a future that might or might not come. But if someone really asked how she planned to spend her eighteenth birthday, she would say: “It’s no big deal.”

She believed the day would be like every other birthday she had ever had, because the last Little Red Riding Hood had taught her that. She would go to class, talk to people, look at the world, then go home before dark and return to her brothers and sisters. They would get her cake and gifts, but this time she probably wouldn’t make a wish.

At the very end, before curfew, she would go to a special room in the west wing, lock herself inside, and open her birthday presents one by one. King or Snow White would stand guard at the Door, or some other child good at fighting.

If she had any real plan, it was this: she must hold on and unwrap the very last gift, then place them all carefully around her.

But now, that special room in the west wing no longer existed. It vanished when Anka Aila fell, like a bubble that pops when you wake from a nightmare.

Everything else, though, went about as she had imagined.

She went to school and saw her teachers and classmates. She didn’t tell “outsiders” it was her birthday, but a few well informed or sensitive classmates still brought her small gifts. There weren’t many, because seniors don’t have much energy to spare, and she had very few friends at school.

Today’s lessons were not hard. Half the time was review. In the last class she almost fell asleep-actually, she did nod off-and only woke when her desk mate sprang from the chair and raced for the cafeteria.

She ate well at lunch and even got braised pork. During the hard days at the Orphanage, she rarely ate food like that. But now, thanks to the big drop in Sanity Blocking Agent use and because a certain person very good at milking budgets kept finagling funds from the Special Affairs Bureau for the Orphanage’s Cursed Children, life was much better. None of the “guardians” had to live as tightly as before.

The afternoon classes were even more boring, and all things she already knew. So she spent half the time sneaking onto Border using Wolf’s Perspective to scroll posts. She saw that the Special Affairs Bureau had just put out a warning to all Spirit Realm Detectives and Investigators, asking everyone to watch for abnormal signs in mirrors and any clues related to “the fog.”

Three days ago, the Special Affairs Bureau had publicly announced the existence of Mistbound City. In today’s bulletin, they added the exploration progress and a set of safety rules they had confirmed. The comment area below was lively. Among many serious replies, an absurd post with a humidifier set in front of a mirror got upvoted to the front page, and the replies were all asking the brand of the humidifier. Mermaid also used a burner account to write: “Please follow Fish Fish official meow~” The replies were full of curses. She liked every one of them.

Right before the final bell, an admin took down Mermaid’s post. Little Red Riding Hood found it embarrassing but not surprising. That Salted Fish had been posting nonsense for a long time. People joked she spent every night on a ship playing a merfolk version of Werewolf with a bunch of sailors.

Then the school day ended. The teacher didn’t hold them late. The bell rang, and class was over.

Little Red Riding Hood packed her books with care, stuffed the homework she needed into her bag, then stood at the classroom Door and drew a deep breath.

She would come back to class tomorrow.

Leaving the school, she found a quiet spot, mounted a Shadow Wolf, and with the Wolf Pack dove into the world of shadows. In moments, she went from school to the ruins of the Old Orphanage. The entrance to the Valley lay on the Orphanage’s old site. It had been cleared into an Open Ground, with a single Little House standing at a corner of the old wall. She greeted the Door guard inside the Little House, then pushed open the Door into the Otherworld.

She stepped through-and two sharp pops sounded at once.

But Little Red Riding Hood knew her pack of big and small gremlins far too well. She was tense before she crossed. The instant the pops went off, she leaped forward. Confetti and glitter fell behind her and didn’t stick to her hair at all.

Rapunzel, standing sentry at the Door with party poppers in both hands, yelled as soon as she saw her dodge: “Hey, that kills the fun! What about ritual vibes, huh?”

Little Red Riding Hood looked up and saw a crowd of familiar faces, Yu Sheng among them, while Rapunzel stared over with puffed cheeks.

She smiled and opened her mouth to answer, but as soon as she relaxed her guard, Rapunzel’s golden hair suddenly flared out. More than twenty party poppers popped out from that shiny mass. Little Red Riding Hood only had time to mutter “Oh no,” before a chain of bangs went off and confetti pasted her face.

“Happy birthday!” “Sister Red Hood, happy birthday!” “Eighteen at last!” “Bonfire tonight! A big Bonfire!” “Roast meat-and Fireworks!”

Everyone shouted at once. Little Red Riding Hood clawed the colorful paper from her hair, flustered and a bit helpless. She tried to say something that would show a proper grown up’s authority, but the brothers and sisters swarmed around her, lifting and pushing her forward. In the middle of the crowd, she struggled and yelled: “Hey! My backpack! Can I put my backpack away first… If you keep this up, I’m letting the wolves out!”

Yu Sheng walked along with a bright smile, checked the time on his phone, and gave the sky a light wave.

Clouds began to gather. Tonight would come a little earlier than usual.

Little Red Riding Hood saw the huge Bonfire already stacked on the Open Ground outside the town and the barbecue racks being rolled out from storage. Overhead, clouds pulled together, while a bunch of Court Musicians in bright costumes formed up on the Plaza. As she arrived, cheerful music burst into the air.

“This is too much for a birthday…” the girl said, overwhelmed by the spectacle. She knew they had been planning something, but this was far beyond her guess. “Isn’t this way over budget?”

Dorothy shouted from the side: “Sister Red Hood! This isn’t just any birthday. You’re the first among us to turn eighteen since the curse ended. It’s a big deal! I even wanted to set up eighteen Door salute cannons around the Plaza, with a Flying Squadron doing stunts above and my Lionheart Armored Regiment marching below, but our brother didn’t approve…”

Yu Sheng patted Little Red Riding Hood on the shoulder and said: “From now on, every Fairy Tale member’s eighteenth birthday gets a grand celebration. Adulthood deserves it-especially yours. Though yes, Dorothy’s plan was a bit much.”

Little Red Riding Hood listened in a daze. Before she could answer, the huge woodpile caught and the Bonfire roared to life.

The streetlights in and around the town came on. In that mixed glow of lamps and fire, a few more familiar figures stepped onto the Plaza-staff from the council, Teacher Su among them.

They pushed a giant food cart bearing the largest cake Little Red Riding Hood had ever seen in her life.

The cake was decorated like a Forest, with chocolate Shadow Wolves running between the trees. A big placard on top read: “Happy Birthday to Wang Jia Jia.”

“The cake is from the Special Affairs Bureau,” Yu Sheng said beside her. “The words were written by Bai Li Qing herself. She said she once wrote a similar card years ago but could never give it. Today, she finally fulfilled that wish.”

Little Red Riding Hood’s face went still. From a moment ago, she looked as if she might burst into tears.

Rapunzel, who always broke heavy moods at the perfect time, bounced over, pinched Little Red Riding Hood’s cheek, and said: “Cake later! First, gifts!”

“Oh right! Everyone brought you presents!” Snow White hurried up, bright eyed, and said: “I took forever to choose mine!”

“I brought one too,” Yu Sheng added with a smile.

Little Red Riding Hood stood staring as house retainers carried the gifts to the Open Ground beside the Bonfire until they piled into a small hill.

She didn’t have to open them alone in that special room anymore. She could open them right here.

“Open them, open them, let’s do it live and see what everyone gave you,” Cinderella urged, clapping.

After a small pause, Little Red Riding Hood walked to the “hill.”

She picked up the box with Rapunzel’s name first. It was heavy, and she had no idea what was inside.

Rapunzel lit up and said: “Oh oh! You picked mine first!”

“Because you’re the one most likely to cause trouble,” Little Red Riding Hood said, wiping her eyes and giving Rapunzel a sideways look. “If I open yours first, I can be at peace after.”

She tore off the wrapping and opened the thick, sturdy carton.

Inside was another box: a brand new boxed set of Gaokao Sprint 90 Days.

A chorus of “Oh-” rippled out. People praised the gift as wickedly clever. Rapunzel grinned like Irene, spun, and said: “Thank you, thank you-just normal level for me, you flatter me…”

Little Red Riding Hood rolled her eyes and reached for Yu Sheng’s present, hoping to comfort herself.

Yu Sheng’s face looked a bit awkward as he said: “Well…”

She didn’t notice. She had already opened the second heavy box.

Inside sat Gaokao Sprint 120 Days, also boxed.

Little Red Riding Hood froze and said: “…?”

After a long silence, she slowly raised her head to look at the two of them and snapped: “Are you sick?!”