Chapter 290

Chapter Nineteen Mishap

“Sa…”

Xiao Shui Hu (little water pot) — Carefully opening the special lid, Lei aligned the small pot at the non-pouring section and poured the cool water onto the closed plant.

As the water scattered over the soil, the emerald roots started stirring and absorbing the moisture. The leaves that were closed during the day began to unfold, revealing charming flowers. A tiny branch slowly swayed from behind as if greeting Lei.

“Oh, how cute~”

“Lei really has a soft spot for this flower.”

Sitting beside her friend, Erika let her upper body slump on the table, watching Lei with curious eyes gleaming.

Ever since Ash put the flower in the shop and entrusted it to Lei, who loved flowers and had a keen understanding of plants, Lei quickly took a liking to this “Qijiera” plant. She even jotted down observations in her notebook, wishing she could be by its side all day long.

“How come Lei cares so much about this flower when her grandmother is already the director of a botanical garden? She’s even ignoring me…” Erika, sprawled on the table, continued pouting.

“Erika, you might not know, but I went back to check!” Lei straightened up with a stern expression, pushing her glasses up.

“The owner calls this flower ‘Qijiera,’ but I haven’t found any records of such a plant in any book. Not even my granny, who has seen countless species as director of the botanical garden, has ever seen one like it!”

“No similar plant exists even by appearance contrast, right?! And get this, Erika! Do you know what this means?!”

Lei’s eyes glimmered, excitement building up!

“This might be an unknown discovery never seen by humans before! It could be a unique existence in the world—I can’t help being thrilled!”

“Huh, really?” Erika shrugged indifferently, cleaning her ear. “But I heard yesterday someone mentioned a flower called Qijiera.”

“What?” Lei froze. “Could it be my research isn’t extensive enough… Where did you hear this, Erika?!”

“In the Sunday TV show,” Erika stated calmly. “I asked the kid next door; he saw a flower called Qijiera in some series.”

“Erika… I’m exhausted by your wide-ranging speculations,” Lei also slumped onto the table. “How could something on TV be real?”

“But that Timons claimed to be a Kamen Rider, hmm!”

Frustrated and irritated, Erika tapped Qijiera’s transparent outer wall with her finger.

“Come to think of it, where are Lily and the boss? They should be here by now…”

“Special broadcast! Special broadcast!”

The TV, which was showing an animation earlier, suddenly switched to a local news channel.

“A bizarre creature has attacked civilians at Hope Flower Station. Citizens, please go home and stay away from the station!”

The girls immediately understood the situation from those silly-looking black-and-white figures—they were the minions of the Desert Apostles—and realized what it meant…

“Lei!”

“Yeah, Erika, let’s go!”

———At the station’s dividing line———

Chaos erupted among the crowd due to the sudden appearance of the monster. Large numbers of white-and-black bags, referred to as “Snakies,” shouted “Ghi—Ghi!”

Ash watched the “Snakies,” those who kicked stalls over, shoved people around for mockery, grabbed people’s bags, snatched children’s lollipops, and laughed at their cries.

Dark Pretty Cure faced away from Ash, quietly observing it all.

She wasn’t there for a date; she always aimed solely toward Moonlight Cure!

“Hmph, watch this. This is human nature. We Desert Apostles can never be compared to them!”

Seeing the chaos, Ash covered his face with his hand.

“Oh no, I messed up.”

‘Whoa, boss, this is getting worse.’

Through Ash’s eyes, the Timon Driver in his pocket started fluctuating nervously.

“Though not weak, they can’t match Zako soldiers. Why fret? Heroes will handle it eventually,”

Lily’s route included passing by the station, he had to warn her—meeting the Dark Pretty Cure wasn’t ideal.

Build phones, convenient for riding and calling, were truly helpful; thanks to Build Rabbit.

“Hello, Lily? It’s me.”

“Yes, Manager… What?!” Hearing what he mentioned, Lily’s expression changed instantly, rushing out in a hurry.

“Yeah, the station has Desert Apostles. Take a detour. Let Lei and the others take care of it…” Hearing footsteps, Ash frowned. “Lily, what are you doing? I told you to take a detour. You’re no longer CureMoonlight. You can’t fight.”

“But!” Lily sounded anxious. “My mother is working at the station!”

“Even if I’m not CureMoonlight anymore, I have to go as Yuki Kaguya!”

Hanging up the phone, Ash watched the Snakies start smashing windows with stones, his face twitching awkwardly.

“Boss…”

“Oh wow, I’ve really screwed it up now.”