Ch 67: Guide to Running a Shop in Another World

Lu Yao sat down, took out paper and pen, and began to break down Edward’s original nail design, adding annotations beside each part.

Edward and Ambrose, despite having racked their brains over the magic concept they couldn’t realize, were skeptical that Lu Yao could come up with a solution. Yet, unwilling to give up, they dragged chairs over to watch the store owner at work.

Edward’s initial design for Mumu’s nails incorporated many lavish elements favored by vampires. When Lu Yao saw it, an idea struck her: she suggested incorporating transformation magic to make those elements three-dimensional, creating wearable nails for Mumu.

Edward thought the idea was brilliant and stayed up all night modifying the design. He and Ambrose discussed it and began experimenting. In theory, this wasn’t a particularly difficult concept to achieve. In Alexander’s continent, skilled weapon forgers had already created magical weapons that could transform, such as the knights’ holy swords, which could be transformed into dark wands for necromancers by chanting specific incantations.

Edward and Ambrose developed the design along these lines, combining Lu Yao’s light and dark magic formations designed specifically for magical nails. They expected the process to be straightforward, but reality proved otherwise.

The nails were too small. After shrinking the materials down to fit, they became ornamental but couldn’t actually transform into wearable armor for the user.

Frustrated, Edward simplified the design and tried injecting magic to make the nails transform. The transformation itself worked, but taking it further—turning the nails into full-body armor—was beyond their capability.

Lu Yao broke down the elements of the nails, redesigned them, and drafted a new layout with notes before heading to the materials room to gather supplies. Ambrose and Edward crowded around the desk, staring at the breakdown, baffled.

“What’s the point of breaking these elements down?”

“This feels the same as what we did—no real progress.”

Lu Yao returned with materials and asked Puxiu to fetch Mumu.

A few moments later, Puxiu carefully carried Mumu’s small, soft paws, and the two little cuties slowly made their way in.

Mumu looked up at Lu Yao. “Chirp.”

Lu Yao said, “Mumu, transform into your human form. I need to take your measurements.”

Mumu, being jelly-like and soft without any hard protection or nails, could only wear removable nails like Ambrose. Edward, unaware that Mumu had eaten some of Lu Yao’s hair, was shocked to see the blue, round slime suddenly transform into a little boy who bore a striking resemblance to Lu Yao—nine-tenths similar, to be exact.

Edward was stunned. “Mumu, why didn’t you transform into Daddy?”

After living together for so long, Mumu had never once thought to eat part of Edward’s body to transform, leaving the old father heartbroken.

Not only had Mumu taken on Lu Yao’s appearance, but he also spoke: “…Daddy, stop whining. I just like how the store owner looks.”

Edward: “…”

The vampire progenitor fell into a state of dismay, realizing his beauty had been outdone by an ordinary human.

Ambrose, stroking his chin, remarked, “Slimes can talk? I thought they only went ‘chirp chirp chirp.’”

In fact, Mumu had spoken the first time Ambrose came to the store, but back then Ambrose had been too focused on the nails to notice, so now he found it quite novel.

Edward, still sulking in the corner, twitched his ears before getting up, and eagerly scooped Mumu into a hug. “Wait, son, you can talk now?”

Mumu pointed at Lu Yao. “The store owner spent 100,000 gold to get my voice from the gods.”

Lu Yao had spent 100,000 popularity points to give Mumu a voice, casually explaining it to him as paying the gods, and Mumu had believed it.

Edward set Mumu down and looked at Lu Yao with softened eyes. “Store owner, you’re really a kind person.”

A seal of approval from the vampire progenitor himself.

Lu Yao: “…Thank you.”

Puxiu returned to the table, looking at Mumu with envy gleaming in his lemon-yellow eyes.

Merulu walked over and poked Puxiu, saying, “Don’t forget our mission. You’re always like this, easily swayed by humans after just a few words. You never learn.”

Puxiu lowered his head, fidgeting with his fingers, and softly replied, “I think this place is great. I like the store owner. Merulu, I want to stay here.”

After saying that, he closed his eyes, bracing for Merulu to scold him for being weak.

Fairies, despite their powerful magic and petite size, are simple and compliant by nature. This made them easy to charm and often led them to be kept as familiars by humans and other powerful beings. While some fairies found kind owners, many were tricked into subservience and lost their lives on dangerous adventures.

As a result, fairy populations dwindled significantly, and those who survived retreated deep into the forests, rarely interacting with other species. Puxiu, like most fairies, had a soft heart, was loving, and was easily moved.

When they were young, they lived in a secret realm. Puxiu was once captured by a demon lord while collecting honey, and Merulu chased after him to save him, only to be caught as well.

In a time when fairies were becoming scarce, a pair of twin fairies with light magic was incredibly rare. The demon lord originally intended to present them to the Demon King, but on the way, they encountered the Empire’s High Priest, Carlos.

Back then, Carlos was young and hadn’t lost his sight yet. He killed the demon lord and saved the twin fairies. Ever since, Merulu and Puxiu became infatuated with Carlos and entered the Holy Temple, serving as holy light knights.

However, ten years ago, Carlos was injured while creating an elixir for the emperor and lost his sight. When he returned to the temple, something had changed. The kind and gentle Carlos became bloodthirsty and evil. Only the twin fairies noticed the shift, but before they could expose the truth, the evil Carlos tricked them with honey, locking them in a golden cage for ten years.

Puxiu had always been naive, and even after all these years, he hadn’t changed much. But this time, he spoke his mind and felt a rare sense of calm, free of anxiety.

He waited for a long time, expecting Merulu to scold him. When the scolding didn’t come, Puxiu opened one eye to sneak a peek.

But there was no sign of Merulu. She had already flown over to the store owner and was lying on a plastic nail tip, watching her draw designs.

Puxiu hurried over, plopping himself down next to Merulu, hugging his knees and leaning toward her. Merulu, pursing her lips, quietly fiddled with the little purple flower in her hair without saying a word.

Lu Yao had already finished measuring Mumu and handed the materials and sketches to Edward and Ambrose. These two had lived in the Iron Needle Forest for centuries, spending their time studying magic and concocting potions. Creating special items was nothing new to them.

Next to the lab was an alchemy station, and Lu Yao had marked the requirements and measurements clearly. With their skills, it was no difficult task. Curious about how Lu Yao would bring these scattered components together, Edward and Ambrose got to work without complaint.

Lu Yao, meanwhile, took advantage of this time to complete the first layer of Mumu’s nails, following Edward’s initial design.

Mumu stood by, watching curiously. “Store owner, why are you finishing the nails first? Aren’t you going to add what Daddy made?”

Lu Yao nodded, “Yes, but that’s for the second layer. The first layer needs to be drawn first.”

Second layer?

Mumu didn’t quite understand.

The parts that Lu Yao requested were small and intricate, and they didn’t finish the work by the end of the day. Ambrose and Edward stayed up all night in the lab, and by early the next morning, they finally delivered everything.

Lu Yao, together with Merulu, helped Puxiu with his nails, then spent the entire night adjusting the magic arrays without returning to her residence.

When she received a large box of small parts from Edward, Lu Yao began piecing them together and had Mumu try them on.

It turned out to be a black suit of armor.

Ambrose’s red glowing eyes flickered as he realized, “You modified Edward’s nail design into a suit of armor, and now you’re planning to break it down into components to attach to the nails?”

Edward also found it incredible. The idea was complex but seemed likely to succeed. He realized then that they had completely overlooked one key element—realism.

As they spoke, Mumu had already put on the black armor, custom-made to fit perfectly.

Mumu conjured a water mirror in mid-air and stepped closer to it. In the reflection, the figure staring back had Lu Yao’s face, nine parts identical to her, clad in a formidable black suit of armor. His light blue eyes were full of disbelief.

This was exactly how Mumu had always imagined himself—his soft body encased in sharp, cool armor, looking dashing and powerful.

No one would ever guess that beneath this fierce armor was a squishy little slime.

Mumu turned around and hugged Lu Yao tightly. “Mumu loves the store owner the most!”

“…,” Edward clutched his chest, looking pained, as if his heart had been pierced by a silver needle.

Harold, who had been sleeping in the break room all night, was awakened by the commotion. He pushed open the door to see Mumu acting all sweet, frowned, and strode over, peeling Mumu off of Lu Yao. “Go, go, go. Your dad’s about to cry. You’re so ungrateful.”

Lu Yao: “…”

With the armor and nail tips complete, the final step was to attach the armor to the nail tips.

This step wasn’t particularly difficult; Lu Yao could use the magic array she had previously created to affix gems to the dragon’s claws. The crucial part was ensuring that when Mumu recited a special incantation, the armor components affixed to the nails would properly and accurately assemble onto his body.

The inspiration for this armor-transforming nail design came from Lu Yao’s childhood love for magical girl transformation animations.

When she saw Harold use his outfit-changing magic, the idea resurfaced from deep within her memories, instantly taking over her thoughts.

Later, when she saw Edward adding miniature cloaks and coffin elements into his nail designs, Lu Yao casually suggested the idea of transforming nails.

But after watching Edward and Ambrose’s tests, she realized that magic alone couldn’t bring the dream to life. The key to completing this magical nail transformation was using physical elements.

Transitioning from nails to full armor was quite a leap, but in a world of magic, anything was possible.

Lu Yao incorporated the outfit-changing magic Harold had taught her, adapting it into a new magic array, which she then used to bind the armor pieces to the nail tips.

Each piece of the armor corresponded to a specific magical array with precise coordinates, and weaving this all together took a lot of time.

Since only Lu Yao knew the coordinates for each part, no one else could assist her. She worked in the lab until noon, and finally, it was done.

Holding the freshly made magical transforming nails, Lu Yao emerged from the lab and shouted, “It’s finished!”

At that moment, there weren’t many customers in the store, but there were a few students from the Magic Academy, including the familiar face of Annie.

With the academy’s centennial celebration approaching, Joan, as one of the top students, was required to assist the academy’s teachers. She had been waiting for a long time and finally found some time to visit the nail salon to get the manicure she had postponed last time.

Since Lu Yao was busy, Edward and Ambrose told her not to disturb her, so Joan requested Tina to do her nails.

Annie and Audrey, who had accompanied her, didn’t plan to change their nail styles, so they were sitting in the lounge area, reading comics and snacking.

Hearing Lu Yao’s excited voice, they paused what they were doing and turned to look.

Mumu reacted first, walking toward Lu Yao.

Lu Yao handed him the box of nail tips, and Mumu opened it.

The base of the nail tips already had a magic array drawn on them, so there was no need for glue. Like magnets, they adhered seamlessly to Mumu’s chubby fingers.

Although Mumu hadn’t transformed, as a slime, he could freely shape his body, making it easy for the tiny nail tips to fit perfectly on his soft hands.

At first glance, it appeared to be a somewhat eerie, dark-themed nail set, with little coffins, capes, and bats — all sorts of strange elements. Yet, it wasn’t exactly ugly, just a bit avant-garde in its aesthetic.

Mumu lifted his fingers, recited the special incantation, and the next moment, a black mist enveloped his body.

The components attached to the nail tips flew off, assembling onto Mumu’s body.

As the black mist cleared, standing there was a handsome young boy in full armor, his blue hair flowing. The boy stood tall and straight, his light sky-blue eyes gleaming, and his appearance bore a striking resemblance to the shop owner, Lu Yao. The armor fit him perfectly, making him look both regal and spirited.

Edward rushed over, embracing Mumu. “No wonder you’re my son, so handsome and extraordinary!”

Despite the armor transforming from the nail tips, Mumu’s nails remained adorned with the original intricate design, unchanged even after the armor pieces detached.

This was because Lu Yao had designed the nails with two layers — one for aesthetics and one for practicality. The magic transformation nails successfully combined both.

The other staff and customers were astounded by the transformation.

Harold was the first to come closer, gazing at Lu Yao with hopeful eyes, silently conveying his desire — “I want one too.”

Soon, the store staff and customers gathered around Mumu, tapping on the armor in curiosity.

“Is this really from the nail transformation? This armor feels so solid.”

“How did the shop owner come up with this design? This nail set is stronger than some magical weapons.”

“If it can become armor, can we also add offensive magic or weapons to it?”

…

Among the spectators was Annie, who marveled at how far Lu Yao had pushed the boundaries of nail art.

An idea struck her, and she stepped away from the crowd, approaching Lu Yao. “Shop owner, I’d like to commission a set of nails. In ten days, I’ll be competing in the Silver Rose Emblem competition at the centennial celebration. Please design the most powerful magic nails for me. Here’s a down payment.”

Lu Yao didn’t expect business to come so quickly and invited Annie to discuss the details in the workshop.

Edward and Ambrose noticed the conversation and quietly followed along — they couldn’t resist joining in on such an interesting nail project.

Annie wanted a set of combat magic nails that included both offensive and defensive capabilities, as well as healing properties and backup weapons. It was a demanding and ambitious request, but Lu Yao accepted the challenge, taking the deposit and beginning to discuss the specifics with Annie.

…

By the seaside, Dumanine stretched out her blue fishtail, lounging on a rock to bask in the sun.

Using the gold coin Lu Yao had given her, she rented a carriage and safely returned to her home in the Mofu Sea.

Not far away, a group of young mermaids swam over, chatting excitedly about going ashore.

Dumanine stopped them, asking where they were heading, warning them that the land wasn’t all that interesting.

The young mermaids chirped back that they were going to a magical nail salon that could create stunning nails, and they couldn’t wait to try it.

Dumanine inquired about the name of the shop and pulled out a small shell from under her tail. Inside the shell was a slip of paper given to her by a human. To her surprise, the name written on it matched the place the little mermaids were talking about.

With a splash, Dumanine dove into the deep sea.

She had lost too much power on land. She needed to wait a bit longer, recover her strength, and then she’d venture out again.

Meanwhile, back at the nail salon, Lu Yao had just completed Mumu’s nail set. Only one symbol on her magical creatures’ catalog remained unlit.

After asking the staff, she learned that the last species was the merfolk.

Mermaids, who lived in the deep sea, were known for their talent in divination.

Hearing the word “divination,” Lu Yao remembered the beautiful fortune teller she met in Onorton City.

Harold had the nerve to claim that the fortune teller was a mermaid!

When Lu Yao found out, she was so upset she ignored Harold for the rest of the night.

Harold, completely clueless about what had offended her, felt utterly wronged.

The next day, however, a group of four or five mermaids came to the shop together, drawn by the fame of the nail salon.

With the merfolk’s arrival, the entire catalog was lit, and Lu Yao’s anger dissipated.

But just then, the nail salon’s ultimate mission was unexpectedly triggered.

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