Princess Carried by a Sister

Faced with Xiao Ru’s words, which sounded more like a mafia oath of brotherhood than a friendly offer, I could only nod dazedly in agreement. A subtle sense of joy, however, still bloomed in my heart. After all, this was the third-ranked martial arts powerhouse in the entire school, a formidable backing indeed!

Yet, if my mood at that moment had soared to the heavens, Xiao Ru’s next sentence was a literal brick that smacked me back to grim reality.

She chuckled again. “Come on, junior sister, I’ll take you to see the dorms first,” she said. “It’ll also be a good chance for me to see just how good your light-body martial arts truly are, you rare special recruit to Tianwu University.”

As she spoke, she took my hand. With a swift movement, she prepared to activate her light-body technique and dash back to the dorms.

Considering the considerable distance between the administration building and the East District’s female dormitories, using light-body techniques to travel swiftly wasn’t really extravagance or showing off. I still recalled how, with Guo Hao and the others, we once jumped out of a window and used our light-body techniques to race like the wind to the First Cafeteria, all for the limited-edition *shaomai* at breakfast.

During that mad dash, countless trays and several bystanders were knocked over, a truly astonishing spectacle for all to witness. Naturally, the consequence was that the old Shaolin monk from the Academic Affairs Office dragged us back for a good scolding.

The very next day, a supplementary rule was added to the student code of conduct: a ban on using light-body techniques to snatch food inside or outside the cafeteria during meal times!

Times had changed, however. Recalling those wild days filled me with a tragic sense of a hero past their prime, for I no longer possessed the martial arts prowess of those days.

“Um, Xiao Ru, junior sister, I, I, I’m sorry, I, I don’t know martial arts…”

I had thought it over thoroughly. It was imperative to tell her the truth, lest Xiao Ru drag me around school like a dead dog, making a complete spectacle of me.

However, my previous experiences were far too bizarre and truly not something I could easily explain to an outsider. So, I decided to simply go along with the misunderstanding and claim I couldn’t use martial arts. Besides, with my internal energy completely gone, there was little difference between me and someone utterly unskilled in martial arts—merely fifty paces compared to a hundred.

This truly took Xiao Ru by surprise; she had already been poised to dash off, riding the wind. She whipped her head around, her beautiful eyes wide, and scrutinized me for a long moment, as if I were some curious anomaly. Then, she finally asked in astonishment: “Junior sister, are you saying you don’t know martial arts? Then how were you accepted into Tianwu University as a special recruit?”

“Ah, about the specifics, please allow me to keep them hidden for now, junior sister. When the time is right, I will tell you, Xiao Ru. There are still some… unspeakable difficulties at the moment…” I offered Xiao Ru a somewhat apologetic cupped-hand salute. In truth, I felt quite conflicted deep down, for the twists and turns of my experiences, coupled with the complex and delicate nature of my current situation, were simply not something that could be explained in a few words.

She gazed at me for a few more moments. Then, with a helpless sigh, she said, “Alright. Since Principal Dugu personally arranged this, he must have his reasons. But since you’ve said so, junior sister, you absolutely must tell me when you get the chance!”

Seeing her expression, a mix of curiosity and helplessness, I could only offer a wry smile and nodded in agreement. “Absolutely, absolutely…”

However, before I could open my mouth to suggest we walk to the female dormitories, Xiao Ru’s figure suddenly flickered, moving like a phantom. A gust of wind erupted behind me, and then I felt my body lighten.

My vision involuntarily shifted from the surrounding green belts to the dusky, fiery-red sky. From above, I could see Xiao Ru’s breathtaking face, tinged with the colors of the sunset, and the small stretch of her neck, as white as jade and as smooth as congealed fat.

“Junior sister, what… what are you doing…?” I asked in astonishment, my words tumbling out. Suddenly, the wind whistled sharply in my ears, and from the corner of my eye, I saw objects on both sides rapidly receding, flowing past like water.

“Junior sister?” I called out again, unable to resist, and finally received her reply.

“What else could I be doing?” she retorted. “This wretched administration building is a hundred thousand miles from the female dorms, and it’s mealtime! If we walked back instead of using light-body techniques, the cafeteria would probably only have dishwater left. Where would I get my black rice porridge then?” As she spoke, her feet never stopped moving, the wind rushing past us, swift as time itself.

“But, but this is too much trouble for you, junior sister, and… and I’m really too embarrassed…” It was only then that I finally understood the swift, long-striding posture she was using to carry me.

Heaven is unkind, the world is cold, and the gods are blind! I never thought I’d be princess-carried by a girl one day!

Oh, Heaven! Oh, Earth! Linghu Ruoxu, my third brother, who was the only one to ever carry me like this before, I’m so sorry!

But honestly, being held like this by such a beautiful girl with bright eyes and pearly teeth, it felt absolutely wonderful!

****

‘Well, in my current appearance, even if others saw us, they’d probably think it was a diligent older sister carrying her petite, mischievous younger sister, wouldn’t they?

****

Lost in these thoughts, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of complacent peace. Coupled with the subtle, sweet fragrance unique to a girl’s body emanating from Xiao Ru, my inherently male mind couldn’t help but be utterly enchanted and overjoyed.

In a daze, I fantasized about how, given the chance, I absolutely had to brag about this incredibly alluring encounter to the three old bachelors in my dorm.

****

Just as I was sinking blissfully into this gentle reverie, I suddenly felt a slight tightening around me, and then the rushing wind abruptly ceased. Drowsily, I lifted my head and looked around, realizing that Xiao Ru and I had arrived below the female dormitory building.

Standing directly opposite the female dorms, side by side, was Dorm Building 322—the very building I had lived in when I was still a boy.

At this moment, the golden sun was setting in the west, painting the sky with red clouds. It was the dinner hour after the fourth period of classes. The walkway in front of the female dorms was a constant stream of students. Some were in pairs, some walked alone, and others were in groups of three or five, all chatting and laughing boisterously as they headed to the cafeteria or the water station.

That familiar scene suddenly gave me a sense of distant unreality, as if a lifetime had passed. Though only seven or eight days had gone by, I felt separated by mountains and seas from such an ordinary Tianwu University student life, given the earth-shattering changes that had occurred within me.

She slowly lowered me to the ground. Noticing my expression, Xiao Ru immediately asked, “Junior sister, is something wrong?”

I shook my head gently, my gaze lowered, and then slowly replied, “It’s nothing. I just suddenly felt a bit like I was coming home.”