High School of Demon Hunting

Chapter 836: Chapter 184: The Bird Workers Association’s Congratulations Gift

Flapping and rustling.

Listening to the sound of a group of birds of varied sizes and species chirping and flapping their wings as they flew out of the store, Doctor Xiao from D&K immediately smashed his head onto the counter and let out a long sigh:

”Finally, they’re gone... Those creatures were too noisy, every second they stayed, I felt like I was losing ten days of my life!”

”You could feel ten days?” Li Meng lifted her head, surprised, and looked at Xiao Xiao.

Because she had just used a Fresh charm, the store’s atmosphere was very refreshing, and the Little Witch didn’t hurry to leave the shop. Instead, she crowded in front of a cage, playing with a peanut while teasing a mouse the size of a deciliter. The little mouse clung to the cage with its front paws, its nose close to the Little Witch’s hand, rapidly sniffing, its face full of longing.

”Is exaggeration too hard to grasp?” Xiao Xiao didn’t look up but rested his head on his arm, turned his face toward the Little Witch, and emphasized weakly, ”Ten days is an example of hyperbolic rhetoric... It’s one of the basic uses of language you still need to learn.”

Before he finished talking, accompanied by a flurry of flapping wings, the lead Green Skin Parrot flew back, circled around, and perched right in front of the counter, its curved beak narrowly missing Doctor Xiao’s nose.

The Warlock was startled, jerked his head back forcefully, barely catching his breath and nearly broke his neck from the strain, which made him grimace in pain, crying out continually.

”Oh no, I was so busy admiring your new store that I almost forgot the gift!” the Green Skin Parrot cackled, lifting its paw to reveal a small brown leather pouch tied around its ankle.

The pouch was secured with a shiny brass buckle.

Without asking the young witches and wizards for help, the Green Skin Parrot lowered its head, deftly flicked at the leather pouch with its beak, and unbuckled the clasp. Then it stuck its beak inside, picked and chose for a moment, and fished out a Feather Pen.

Red, white, pink, green, yellow, blue, and so on, the multicolored Feather Pens, long and short, were bunched together, tied with a red ribbon, and looked like a blooming, fluffy flower, particularly festive.

”Ahem,” the Green Skin Parrot brought its wing to its mouth and coughed twice.

When it saw that everyone’s attention was focused on it, the parrot calmly flaunted the other small paper piece hidden underneath its wing—seemingly stuck there— and then, with its small black eyes round and solemn, it declared word by word:

”The winter wind blows, the war drums beat, who fears opening a small store!”

”Good goods aren’t afraid of being in the dark, good news flies high and far!”

”First University Bird Workers Association congratulates Ding Ding Finance and Pest Control Company on its establishment, bringing a modest gift! Sending a kilometer’s worth of feathers, a light gift with deep affection, wishing your company great luck on its opening, thriving and prospering more with each passing day!”

The strange congratulations were recited by the Green Skin Parrot with such emotion and force that it left the young wizards utterly baffled.

”There’s a Bird Workers Association at First University?” Leaving the mouse cage, the Little Witch, startled by the Green Skin Parrot’s words, couldn’t help but tug at her cousin’s robe sleeve and whispered.

Jiang Yu sighed without lowering her head and subconsciously brushed the loose hair by her ear, softly replying, ”I’m not a parrot, how would I know... For this kind of thing, you should ask Xiao Bai.”

Li Meng scratched her ears, feeling that this answer made a lot of sense.

On the other side, after giving the gift to Xiao Xiao, the green-skin parrot stretched out its claw asking for a red envelope while nostalgically remembering the bird food it wanted: ”I just remembered something... Isn’t your store a pest control company? Your main business deals with killing bugs, right? Bugs are good food for birds, and we aren’t picky! So, you do have bird food in the store, don’t you?”

This peculiar reasoning caught Xiao Xiao off guard. She adjusted her glasses for a while before figuring out the right words to say:

”The ’pest control’ in our store name doesn’t specifically mean killing bugs, but generally refers to all harmful organisms, or maybe the more encompassing term ’Bug’.”

”Moreover, the store has just opened and is still in the trial operation stage. Whether it’s finance or pest control, neither has officially launched yet.”

As she spoke, Xiao Xiao had already stuffed several sealed red envelopes into the leather pouch on the parrot’s ankle and thoughtfully fastened the brass buckle. Lastly, she carefully patted the thickened pouch and added emphatically, ”...I assure you, if there are any bugs killed in the store, I will definitely have them fried by the Absolution Hunting Team Leader and send them over to you!”

The green-skin parrot raised its claw, glanced at the pouch whose brass buckle was now secured, nodded in satisfaction, then tentatively reminded, ”Hmm... Fried bugs are unhealthy, we’re getting old, don’t like that. Just mix them with rice vinegar and cooking wine, and if you could add some mustard, that would be even better.”

Wow, who knew these birds were also food enthusiasts?!

Xiao Xiao twitched her lips and without dwelling on the birds’ peculiar tastes, she nodded emphatically: ”No problem, consider it done!”

Finally, the green-skin parrot stopped chattering, guffawed, and started flapping its wings. Using the short wooden table by the counter, it took a few steps to run and then glided into flight. Without looking back, it flew straight out of the store, chasing after its already distant companions.

Only when that green figure had completely vanished from sight did Xiao Xiao murmur, ”This time... it’s really gone, right?”

Li Meng listened by the side, laughing so hard she clutched her stomach.

Then, she trotted to the door, stepping on the threshold and looking around before turning back and confidently telling Xiao Xiao, ”Gone! Not a single bird in sight!”

Xiao Xiao collapsed back onto the seat behind the counter, her head thudding onto the table again.

Next to her, Jiang Yu hesitated for a few seconds before finally asking: ”I’ve always been curious... how did these birds know your store was opening? How did you attract them here?”

”Me? Am I capable of attracting these little ancestors?” Xiao Xiao didn’t even lift her head, grumbling, ”Besides our dear store manager, who else would attract a flock of birds!”

The store manager was Zheng Qing, who, as the representative of Absolution Hunting Team, was ’uncontroversially’ appointed to this role.

Thinking of their team leader’s unreliable plans and actions, the strategist of the Absolution Hunting Team couldn’t help muttering, ”Tonight I must propose holding a criticism meeting... Absolutely, we cannot let Zheng Qing continue his nonsense next time. Who opens a store by sending invitations to a flock of birds! Even if we’re all witches, that’s no excuse.”

”And yesterday, he didn’t come to Qingqiu Club last night, he didn’t handle that properly either!” Li Meng remained upset about a certain scholarship student’s absence yesterday, and even though Zheng Qing had provided a very reliable and reasonable excuse, she was still unsatisfied.