Chương 330: Revealing it to Flor And Ignatia.

Flor was tapping the table with her finger in a rhythmic manner, her eyes scanning the four Sylvans sitting formally in front of her. She had discovered, or well, been told by Liu Shu about most things that have happened, making her heart feel a complex array of emotions. The first one was the typical one for most parents.

'My baby is so young, and I have not pampered her enough yet! You dare try and take her away for me!?' Of course, while those thoughts crossed her mind and her expression showed the feelings quite clearly, she didn't voice them. Still, the four Sylvans felt like they were sitting on pins and needles. The glare of the Flower Fairy was really scary, making them want to cry but not having any tears to do so.

'Mommy, Flor is too scary!' Harmonixia cleared her throat and looked at Flor.

"What?" That word felt more like a threat, which made Harmonixia almost swallow what she wanted to say. Still, she steeled her heart and blurted out what she wanted to say.

"Ahem. Didn't you say to us that you won't interfere?" Flor's raised her eyebrow threateningly.

"Oh? Am I interfering?" An urge to cry overcame the Sylvans.

'You are not directly! But I feel that my head will be separated the second I relax!' At the side, Ignatia finally couldn't hold back her laughter and exploded.

"Hahaha! Oh, Flor, you look so adorable! Look at your little angry face~. Hahaha, being jealous of your daughters-in-law is not quite healthy, eh?" Flor's face flushed red.

"W-WHO IS JEALOUS! YOU EMPTY-HEADED ANT QUEEN!?" The four Sylvans blinked a few times.

'Jealous?' Ignatia smiled and hugged the fuming Flower Fairy into her arms.

"Ah, don't worry. She is just upset that Liu Shu didn't tell her first about the <Avatar>, and instead, she delayed it a few days, eventually learning about it from you instead of Liu Shu." The Sylvans felt a lightbulb turning on in their brains.

"Ohhh!" That coordinated exclamation fueled Flor's embarrassment, and she started summoning two balls of pure light in her hands.

"What? Are you four also going to make fun of me!?" Cold sweat filled their foreheads as they quickly denied it. Flor humphed and sat back down on her chair, escaping Ignatia's embrace.

"Anyway, let's speak about the most important things. What is this Petal Door you've spoken about? Also, why did it grow the first time you each visited Liu Shu but stop growing the other times?" Cinderielle spoke up.

"We don't know, Flor. Currently, I am at 77 percent, Verdantia is second at 75 percent, Tempestria is third at 72 percent, and Harmonixia is last at 70 percent. Harmonixia's growth is the highest among us, but the reasoning is unknown. We are still unaware of what those percentages even represent." Flor tilted her head and hummed.

"Such a door… Liu Shu, you said that you can't see it, right?" The voice of our adorable World Tree spread.

"Yup~. That's right!" Flor nodded and sighed.

"Well, another mystery to the mystery list of my silly girl."

"Hehehe~. Another one!" Ignatia smiled faintly and commented.

"It doesn't seem to be a bad thing. Can you girls think what was the trigger that increased the percentages the first time? Cinderielle, yours went up twice, right?" Cinderielle nodded and got thoughtful.

"Well, the first time it went up I…" She paused, her face getting red.

"I was quite intimate with her for a while." The other three glared at the Fire Sylvan with jealousy. CInderielle ignored their gazes and commented.

"The second time… It was the day Liu Shu confessed her love for us." Flor's became thoughtful for a few moments, and then, her eyes flashed strangely for a small moment. Only Ignatia noticed, making the Ant Queen curious.

'Did she guess it already?' Flor smiled at the Sylvans and nodded.

"Well, don't worry much about it. It seems that it will take a while before any of them get completely filled. I don't think that we should worry before they reach a much higher completion percentage." The Sylvans agreed with that assessment, and following that, Flor told all of them to leave and do their own thing. She had planned to give them a long chat about taking care of Liu Shu, but now, she felt it was unnecessary.

These four were so devoted that they were willing to allow other people into the harem even when, deep inside, they would all want to have a monopoly. After they left, Ignatia leaned on her hand and smirked at Flor.

"So? What are those petals?" Flor blinked twice and chuckled.

"Was I that obvious?"

"No~." Ignatia's lips arched seductively.

"I am always looking at you, so it was easy for me to discern that look of realization." Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Flor's face gained a healthy reddish tint, and she shyly leaned forward, kissing the Ant Queen.

"I love you."

"I love you too, my pretty fairy~." Ignatia chuckled. Then, Flor crossed her arms and looked around.

"Liu Shu, can you do me a favor and not listen to our conversation? We'll go out of the room when we are done talking, okay?"

"Huh? Why?" Flor hummed and commented.

"What I am about to say is something that might be wrong, but it can affect you quite deeply. So, I would prefer if you didn't learn about it." Flor smiled gently.

"I think that it is better for you not to know if my guess is correct."

"Really?" Liu Shu pondered and then sighed.

"Okay… I agree." Flor felt Liu Shu's presence retreating from the room and nodded. Ignatia was curious.

"Aren't you afraid that she will listen sneakily?"

"Oho~? Madam Ignatia doesn't know her eldest as much as I thought." Ignatia pouted.

"I know my biggest baby very well, okay!? I am a super mom. Don't you dare doubt that!" Setting jokes aside, Ignatia smiled.

"It was just a question. I know that the big girl listens to us very closely. Anyway, shoot!" Flor smirked and commented.

"Affection." Ignatia tilted her head, making her long antennae swing.

"Affection?"

"Indeed." Flor nodded with a big smile.

"It measures Liu Shu's affection toward the Sylvans. This would explain why she can't see it. Seeing such a thing would only harm her. After all, if it drops, she might get nervous and escalate matters that are just temporary fits." Ignatia hummed and frowned.

"What about the Sylvans?"

"If the intent is to make the Sylvans aware of their lover's mood, then it makes sense. Imagine that you knew that my affection toward you suddenly dropped. What would you do?" Ignatia didn't answer straight away and gave it a good thought.

"I would try to make amends and reflect on what I did wrong?"

"Exactly. The Sylvans might eventually understand it, but until then, it doesn't matter much. Let them be themselves." Ignatia chuckled at Flor's suggestion. Then, she muttered.

"So, our big girl's current favorite is Cinderielle~. I was not expecting that, to be honest."

"Oh?" Flor blinked and smiled.

"I was actually expecting such a result. Who did you think Liu Shu would love the most?"

"Verdantia." Ignatia smiled. Flor got thoughtful and then nodded.

"I can tell why you would think so. Verdantia is probably the most single minded of them all. While their obsession with Liu Shu manifests differently, Verdantia can be labeled as a very emotional person. Her Life attribute increases the effect that Liu Shu has on her compared to the rest as well." She shrugged.

"However, if we speak about who had spent the most time wooing and trying to gain Liu Shu's affection, it must be Cinderielle. I've seen them on dates more than with any of the other Sylvans. She has sometimes even neglected a bit of work to pay attention to our big girl."

"Now that you put it that way… I see where you are coming from. The other three are too focused on doing the most they can for Liu Shu, while Cinderielle is more focused on doing all she can with Liu Shu. Hence, the difference maker." Flor smiled faintly.

"Indeed." Ignatia changed the subject as she walked outside with Flor so that Liu Shu knew they were done talking.

"How is the exploration of the Wall Forest going?"

"Slow but steady," Flor commented.

"The Wall Forest is honestly much larger than I expected. Most of it has threats that don't really go over Level 30. However, there are some locations alongside it that make you feel like stepping inside is a death sentence. So, we are slowly and carefully mapping the area while using the accumulated information Eila had." Ignatia sighed and commented.

"Why don't you let my ants explore it? I can even send two Ant Princesses to expand a sub-colony there. That place's resources are good, and a colony with two Ant Princesses should be powerful enough to survive and slowly take over the Wall Forest." Flor shook her head.

"Too many of your babies would die in the process. While we've had a few fatalities, the number doesn't go over 40 in the five years of exploration that we've been doing. You should focus on the underground world as you've had until now. Have you managed to spread throughout the entire province?"

"Not yet, but we are not that far off. Give it four more years, and I will be able to cover everything with a complex tunnel network." Ignatia said confidently.

"Moreover, with Lakeborn Forest's assistance, we can much easier detect underwater caves and use them as resting sites or satellite bases." She then added.

"Speaking of which, I heard that Liu Shu has started her advance into the Wall Forest…" Flor sighed in awe. The Ant Queen was truly terrifying. How long had it been since she started expanding? Less than fifteen years. And yet, here she was, about to dominate an entire province. Her numbers were also increasing at a ridiculous pace. In Flor's conservative estimation, there should be around 400, 000 ants roaming all around. Most of them were around Level 10, but that was not a real problem.

Soon, Ignatia was going to cross the Level 50 barrier. Once she did so, her ants would have a terrifyingly easy time leveling up beyond Level 10 due to her <One With The Forest> title. <One With The Forest>: Egg-laying efficiency +30%. All ants that descend from you will have a 50% increase in Experience Point gain until your previous <Energy Cycle> (Currently until Level 10). Flor's descendants also developed without problems.

After transforming into a Flower Fairy, the seeds she planted would give birth to Fairies that carry one of her many elements. Light Aether Fairies, Life Aether Fairies, Earth Aether Fairies, and even some Space Aether Fairies had already been born. While most of them were young, a few had matured enough to start laying seeds themselves. Flor chuckled to herself.

'I don't know whose idea it was to leave us alone. However, the next time we face against a force, they better have enough strength, or they will suffer badly.' Ignatia patted Flor's butt, reading through her expression.

"Don't be overconfident, silly girl. There will always be a bigger fish. Always!" Flor blushed and sat on Ignatia's shoulder with a humph.

"So what? Can't you let me enjoy the fruits of our labor for a little bit?"

"Nop~. All my predecessors failed because of overconfidence. I am not going to do the same!" Then, the Ant Queen turned serious as she stated.

"Until Liu Shu's roots spread around the entire world, I won't relax my guard." Flor looked to the side at the serious Ant Queen and blushed deeply.

'Ahhh! She is so cool! My wife is so cool!'