Chapter 388

Chapter 388: Untitled

After Ji Qiao regained consciousness, Lin Yu helped the blushing little ant rinse off before settling into the bathtub.

Considering Ji Qiao’s petite frame, she let the small daughter recline against her chest.

“This feels so nice…”

The little ant sighed contentedly with closed eyes, though it remained unclear whether she referred to the warm bath or the comfort of resting against something soft.

“Comfortable? There’s an enormous bathhouse in the castle that Little Qiao hasn’t tried yet.”

Lin Yu spoke while stroking her daughter’s head, fingers combing through silken white hair that, though equally snowy, fell much shorter.

Had it been her other daughters, Lin Yu might’ve hesitated to bathe together, let alone share such intimate proximity.

“Aside from Orna, are there signs of other Earth Dragons awakening?”

“Mmm… the remaining four max-level Class A Earth Dragons seem nearly ready.”

“Ah, those.”

Orna’s four loyal brothers.

There was Aier, the towering Earth Dragon; Kekui, the smallest with his Smooth Body technique; Jon, the quill-covered hedgehog-like one; and Fire Dragon Fan, who had also fallen to Darkling Stalker.

Formidable foes they’d been, but the thought of their potential allegiance brought unexpected reassurance.

As they soaked, Lin Yu and Ji Qiao drifted through conversations—occasionally touching upon the Earth Dragons, but more frequently discussing the ant clan’s daughters. Through recent interactions, Ji Qiao had grown familiar with her sisters, and true to Lin Yu’s expectations, bonded most with the equally timid Weak Sound.

When the bath’s warmth had sufficiently soaked into their bones, they retreated to the bedroom.

Just as Lin Yu reached to extinguish the lamp, a sudden thought stayed her hand.

She closed her eyes.

Her consciousness plunged inward, finding the glowing mote representing Darkling Stalker residing in the villa’s second-floor guestroom before withdrawing.

Really now—what had she been imagining?

Her hand absently grazed her waistline.

“What’s Mama thinking about?”

The little ant, noticing the shift, tilted her head curiously.

Post-bath and lacking sleepwear, the small girl remained bare-skinned beneath the sheets.

“It’s… nothing. Time to sleep.”

“Oh.”

Little Qiao nodded, then fidgeted with unspoken words.

“What is it?”

“Mama… I actually knew about yesterday. What happened with sister upstairs.”

After prolonged hesitation, the words finally tumbled out.

“My sisters have mentioned these things to me before.”

“Eh?!”

“These things? What things?”

“Did Red Pupil and the others tell you that?”

“…So? What are you trying to say?”

“I… I want to be like Sister too!”

“…”

“What does that mean…”

“Setting aside whether you even _can_, with your current size… you couldn’t possibly manage anything!”

“Hiss—wait…”

The silver-haired girl abruptly stared at her own slender jade-like fingers, then shifted her gaze to the tiny daughter before her.

“Could it be…”

“But… even then, wouldn’t it still be too _large_?”

Lin Yu regarded her with an odd expression.

Yet the little daughter didn’t notice her mother’s peculiar look, instead lowering her head to murmur softly,

“Though your daughter is like this now… what I mean is… could Mommy perhaps…”

Little Qiao fidgeted uncharacteristically, cheeks blooming crimson. Memories of sharing meals with the silver-haired girl and the blush-inducing bathroom incident resurfaced. Summoning courage, she lifted her face toward Lin Yu.

“Could Mommy… eat your daughter?”

“Eh?!”

“Eat you?! I don’t even eat ants!”

“N-no! Not like that! Just… holding me in your mouth would suffice!”

The tiny girl’s gaze fixed abruptly on the girl’s lips—no, more precisely, on the cherry-pink mouth slightly parted in shock, revealing pearly teeth and a delicate tongue…

If her entire body could be “eaten” into that warmth…

A tremble of anticipation coursed through Little Qiao.

“…No.”

To her dismay, the white-haired girl refused without hesitation.

Lin Yu pinched her daughter’s cheeks between two fingers.

“We’ve just bathed, and this sort of thing… it’s simply not happening.”

_How absurd! Stuffing my daughter into my mouth… what madness!_

_Don’t misunderstand—I’m still an innocent maiden!_

_Such bizarre requests… I can’t possibly—_

…

Over subsequent days,

Though assigned as an impromptu task, the tailor Encore proved Simon’s praise justified. Mere days after Lin Yu’s crude dress attempt, she produced a palm-sized black-and-white maid outfit.

Accounting for spring’s warmth and scarce Snow Silkworm reserves, the design featured short sleeves. Lin Yu instructed Encore to keep the skirt modest—revealing only knees and a sliver of thigh. Even at Ji Qiao’s miniature scale, the hem boasted exquisite lace detailing.

When presented with the maid outfit, the ant daughter radiated delight. The perfect fit enhanced her doll-like charm—motionless, she resembled a porcelain figurine.

Underwear posed no challenge for Encore after this triumph. Liberated from silk constraints, she enthusiastically crafted numerous sets, promptly distributing them to all humanoid ants—Lin Yu included. Finding them superior to town-bought garments, Lin Yu accepted them graciously.

The maid outfits required more care—Encore worked meticulously, precious Snow Silkworm threads permitting no errors.

Meanwhile,

Orna’s “Regeneration” skill fully restored her original form: a majestic ice-blue Earth Dragon armored in frost-kissed azure scales, gaze piercingly regal. The renewed scales retained their adamantine hardness, internal organs functioning flawlessly—her senses of taste and hearing remained keen as during her draconic prime.

Notably, any attack penetrating her scales would prove futile… unless it struck bone.