Chapter Sixty-Nine: Silk Stockings

“As expected… it’s exactly as I imagined…”
Mo Fangyuan’s mood was abysmal at this moment.
Because now, in the Block Kingdom, a certain “source of all evil” had emerged.
This so-called “source of all evil” was exceptionally perilous; a moment’s carelessness could alter the entire fabric of society. It was not simply bad—it was wickedness taken to its utmost extreme.
And this “source of all evil” was called stockings!
“Your Majesty, this is my synthesis design!”
The young mother respectfully presented Mo Fangyuan with two pairs of stockings, one black and one white, held in each hand.
“This is the synthesis design I obtained after advancing to apprentice tailor!”
Mo Fangyuan no longer bothered to even look at the young mother.
His gaze was fixed—unblinking—upon the black and white pair of “sources of all evil.”
“Your Majesty! I believe this is a divine gift from the heavens! How beautiful it is! How comfortable it feels to wear…”
“And I’ve also discovered that stockings made from spider silk are white by default, but can be dyed any color using pigments!”
“If you place black dye and white stockings on the workbench together, you can synthesize black stockings!”
“Similarly, you can use other dyes with white stockings to create stockings of any color!”
Fearing Mo Fangyuan might not understand, the young mother began explaining in detail.
“No, no, no, I probably know even more about this than you do!”
Mo Fangyuan was shouting internally.
He finally understood why Aria had been so excited.
Everyone has an appreciation for beauty, but Aria was a young woman—
Anyone with the slightest sense of aesthetics would be captivated by the beauty of stockings…
He let out a long sigh, feeling utterly helpless.
What kind of era was this, to have come up with something like this!
If left unchecked, who knew—soon enough, even more risqué garments might emerge!
“Minister Aria, here are the three pairs of white stockings you requested. If they’re not enough, you’re welcome to come to me anytime…”
“Ah, thank you!”
Aria had been yearning for the kind of stockings Lin Ye wore for a long time, and now that she could finally wear them herself, she was overjoyed.
With the white stockings in hand, Aria decided to try them on immediately.
“Wait! Aria, what are you doing!”
Mo Fangyuan, whose face had been frozen in a daze, snapped to his senses the moment Aria, right in front of him, began pulling down her leather trousers.
“What are you doing!”
Mo Fangyuan felt this was too much—he was still just a kid, how could he handle this?
“Uh, Your Majesty, I’m just changing into the stockings…”
Seeing Mo Fangyuan so flustered for the first time, Aria was startled as well and replied timidly.

It seemed as though this was all perfectly normal to her.
“It’s not a question of changing clothes or not.”
“It’s… well…”
Mo Fangyuan found himself at a loss for words.
“Aria, come with me and change over here…”
Lin Ye, seeing the situation, immediately stepped in to help Mo Fangyuan out of his predicament.
“Let’s go to Aunt Yue’s workshop to change. There are all sorts of other colors of stockings there—black, yin-yang, whatever you like…”
Mo Fangyuan gave Lin Ye a grateful thumbs-up.
“What’s up with Aria? Does she not know the difference between men and women? I have every reason to suspect she’s trying to seduce me!”
After Aria left, he wiped away imaginary cold sweat and sighed.
Little did he know that Aria truly didn’t understand these things. When she was young in the village, the old chief had only taught her how to survive and how to fight—nothing more.
Moreover, Aria had often gone hunting in the forest with her grandfather, rarely interacting with others, so she didn’t understand the relationships between men and women.
She had no concept of what behavior was appropriate and what was not.
Now that she was in the Block Kingdom, her subordinates—the Night Watchmen—were all very respectful, never overstepping boundaries. She had her own home, handled most things privately, and had never needed to change clothes in public.
All of this led to the absurd situation Mo Fangyuan had just witnessed.
“Your Majesty! I admire you so much!”
Just as Mo Fangyuan was preparing to sneak away, the little girl appeared out of nowhere.
Her hair was braided into two neat plaits, her cheeks still round with baby fat, and her lively nature made her irresistibly adorable.
“Really?”
Few could resist the charm of a cute little girl.
“Of course it’s true! I want to be someone useful to the kingdom!”
She gazed up at Mo Fangyuan with sparkling eyes, brimming with admiration.
“Then you’d better work hard! Bring honor to the kingdom! Become someone like me in the future!”
Mo Fangyuan, himself little more than a child, was now encouraging a girl five or six years his junior—a somewhat comical sight.
“Yes, Your Majesty! I’ll work hard! I’ll become a warrior! I’ll slay monsters! I’ll defend the kingdom!”
The little girl struck a determined pose, her gesture full of spirit and cuteness.
However… from this innocent child’s lips came the wish to slay monsters—a jarring ambition.
“Little one, what’s your name?”
Mo Fangyuan had assumed her dreams would be more idyllic—perhaps to be a painter, or a musician.
Oh! He nearly forgot—there were no painters or musicians in the Block Kingdom yet.
But even without those professions, surely there were other noble pursuits.
Yet it never occurred to Mo Fangyuan that this little girl wanted to become a warrior.
It was as if the sun were rising in the west.
Unbeknownst to him, after his own fervent fan declared her dream in school some time ago, the ambitions of many children had shifted toward militaristic pursuits.
Some had even directly set their sights on becoming warriors to defend the nation.

“Well now, the Block Kingdom truly is a land of martial valor!”
Mo Fangyuan smiled.
“Your Majesty! My name is Yue Jingjing! I am a girl determined to become a monster slayer!”
The little girl proudly puffed out her flat chest.
“Very good, Miss Yue Jingjing! Keep it up! I hope to see your name among the defenders of the realm one day!”
“I’ll become a great hero and bring honor to the kingdom!”
With that, the two of them—one big, one small—clapped their fists together.
Those very words would one day become the battle pledge of the future Seventh Cavalry Regiment Commander of the “Magic Legion.”
“Um, Your Majesty…”
Just as he turned around, a pair of beautiful legs encased in white stockings came into Mo Fangyuan’s view.
Aria was still clad in armor on her upper body, her lower half dressed in a specially made iron battle skirt, under which the white stockings were dazzlingly conspicuous. The little cowlick atop her head swayed gently, completing the image of an exquisite “warrior maiden”—utterly enchanting.
“This…”
Mo Fangyuan felt his nose grow slightly damp.
He reached up reflexively.
Yes—a smear of red…
“Your Majesty, your nose is bleeding!”
Aria reminded him.
“Ahem… Well… It’s a normal physiological reaction for Block people! You’ll experience it yourself someday!”
Mo Fangyuan explained with a straight face.
Lin Ye, standing beside them, couldn’t help but laugh.
“What are you laughing at! You’ll go through this too, and your nose will bleed even longer and more profusely than mine!”
Mo Fangyuan flushed red and sharply rebuked Lin Ye.
“Just look at Zhang Lingyun a while ago—that’s your future!”
Knowing she couldn’t win against the king, Lin Ye wisely fell silent.
“Well, since everything’s settled, you all carry on—I’ll be off.”
After a few awkward coughs, Mo Fangyuan glanced at Aria in her white stockings, and then gave Lin Ye a meaningful look.
His expression clearly said: tonight, you’re in for it.
Leaving that heartbreakingly chaotic textile factory, Mo Fangyuan hurried back to the central castle to make arrangements for the use of the catapults.
“Today really has been a disaster!”
“But…”
“Those white stockings truly are something special!”
“Maybe someday I can make them part of the students’ uniforms…”