61. Intent After their talk, XiaoYu and HereticKing decided to walk back to the little alley they first met in only to find out someone else beat them to it. A few unknown players were sitting together on the street…playing cards =_=.
Thus, they turned around. HereticKing pulled XiaoYu into the nearest motel and asked for a normal room.
The moment the door closed, XiaoYu was pushed back until he was stuck between the door and HereticKing. To be honest, XiaoYu still didn"t know what happened. However, he did know the other wasn"t feeling happy.
Frankly, HereticKing himself didn"t know why he was angry either. So even if he was the one who dragged XiaoYu all the way here, he didn"t know what to ask or to say. An intimidating sort of silence loomed between them.
"Um…did I do something wrong?" XiaoYu cautiously asked. His skin was p.r.i.c.kling at how HereticKing was staring down at him at such a close distance.
"Why does Glory know your name?" They had been chatting on the party channel the entire time they were grinding at the Derelict Ruins. Even if ZhuGe was sneaking along next to them, he wouldn"t have heard anything they said. But the moment the words left HereticKing"s mouth, he regretted it. It was XiaoYu"s freedom to inform anyone of his real name. The rather jealous tone that question was asked in now sounded as if he was interrogating XiaoYu.
"Oh. We talked about names the last time we met in Serica, so I told him."
"…" XiaoYu"s frank and straightforward answer made HereticKing feel dejected instead. Just what was he angry about?
"???" XiaoYu really didn"t get it. Was it because he didn"t tell HereticKing his full name first? "Um…Actually, you know my full name is Bai XiaoYu from the incident before we went to the ruins. Are you angry I told someone from Wings first?" he asked.
"No." HereticKing drooped. He let down the arm held against the door. He instantly curled XiaoYu into his embrace, his chin resting on the tiny round hat on the other"s head. A soft sigh escaped his lips.
XiaoYu didn"t find it weird at all. He was probably used to being hugged now after so many times of being pulled into one.
"Were you worried about me?" XiaoYu asked.
"Yes, but I know you"re not a child either."
"Okay. I"ll pay more attention."
"Are you good friends with Glory and ZhuGe now?" HereticKing had to admit it. He did mind it. A little. Just a little.
"Yes, but…not really good friends." XiaoYu had always been honest about his feelings. While he added Glory as a friend, the other man felt different in some way to the friends he made in the Heretic Demons. "We should just be normal friends. Erm…I can"t really name it. It sort of feels weird."
"Weird?"
"I don"t know how to interact with them." XiaoYu paused and thought about it. "That is," he added, "I don"t know how I should continue the conversation with them."
"Do you feel that there"s another meaning hiding within their words? To the point where you don"t even dare to answer without thinking hard?"
"Ah, yes! Just like that!" XiaoYu was so excited that he immediately looked up. As he did so, his head bashed into HereticKing"s jaw.
"Ouch." The other man nearly bit his tongue off from that hit.
"Ah, I"m sorry."
"It"s fine," HereticKing said.
XiaoYu forced his restless head down again.
"Then…what about us?" HereticKing asked. "I mean, do you feel that strange feeling when talking to Poor_Man and me?"
"No," XiaoYu replied without hesitation. He himself was shocked too that he didn"t have to think on that question for a single second.
"That"s good. Does that mean we"re good friends?"
"Not really."
"Hm?" HereticKing was a little surprised at that answer. Were they only just average friends too?"
"You feel more like…family to me." Rather than using good friends to describe the unconditional trust XiaoYu felt for the Heretic Demons, he felt like family was a better term. "I…I"m sorry. I might be overstepping myself to use that term for you." XiaoYu felt like berating himself the moment he said that. His feelings seem rather one-sided.
"No. I"m honoured." Rather than friends, family felt much more heart-warming. "That means you fully trust me?"
"Yes." XiaoYu finally understood why he"d tell HereticKing and Poor_Man all about his pet and his secret job now. It"s because he could tell they were truly concerned about him and not just for some benefit he could provide.
"I will cherish this trust." HereticKing vowed.
HereticKng had already thrown the Wings to the back of his mind. XiaoYu"s simple but honest words were a clear display of what he thought. Glory and ZhuGe didn"t hold as high a place in the other"s heart as he did.
It wasn"t a sign of how cunning HereticKing was. When talking about mind games, Glory"s ability to be the guild leader of one of the top three guilds in Asgard Online was proof that he"s not weak in schemes and in strength. However, the key to interacting with XiaoYu was not to use any schemes or tactics, but to use one"s heart.
From the moment HereticKing met XiaoYu, he"d been silently caring and protecting the other as if XiaoYu was a younger brother. There was no difference between how XiaoYu was treated before and after he turned into a Bishop. There were no intentional attempts to curry favour. No extreme care and concern. An appropriate amount of personal s.p.a.ce. All of these made XiaoYu feel at ease.
XiaoYu might be a naive blank piece of paper that was easily bullied most of the time, but the more reserved a person was on the outside, the more sensitive they were to whether the other was being truly kind or being a schemer. Perhaps he didn"t realise it consciously, but these feelings would affect his subconscious. He"d slowly grow to trust and rely on those who treated him well from the bottom of their hearts and gradually drift away from those whose true intents he couldn"t detect.
Still, HereticKing was in a tiny dilemma. He didn"t like watching XiaoYu being too friendly with other people. Particularly today when Glory acted like they were the best chums in the world. A wild fervour built into a swirling storm in his heart. But he too realised he really like embracing XiaoYu. The teensy satisfaction from having an armful of XiaoYu pacified the storm, bit by bit. Faintly at the back of his mind, he even thought that it was even better if he could keep hugging the other like this forever.
HereticKing had never felt these two emotions before in his life, not even towards his older brother who raised from a child. How should he describe it? Possessiveness? Why would he be possessive of XiaoYu?
"Erm…" XiaoYu gently jabbed HereticKing, snapping the other out of his thoughts.
"What is it?"
"I"m hungry." When Hunger levels reach over 80, the game would remind the player to eat via the simulating how it felt to be hungry.
"Hehe. True. I"ll treat you to a feast. What do you want?"
"Anything." XiaoYu"s not picky anyway.
"Then, I"ll decide?"
"Yup."
"Let"s go then."
"You"re not angry now?"
"I was never angry with you." Even if he was angry, HereticKing would be angry with himself for not know how to clean up this mess. XiaoYu didn"t do anything wrong.
"Oh." While XiaoYu still had his doubts, he wasn"t the kind who liked excavating every single secret from another person. The most important matter at hand were his and the tiny cat"s bellies.
"Meow meow~" The kitten was starving too, but it was in a superb mood. It was its first time having its paws go wobbly on it from how hard they"d pounce at all the gold.
Translator"s Note:
Sorry for how late this was!
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