Sub-title: Hey girl, move aside~ I want to take a look too.
Night was dark and the wind howled as a bonfire blazed.
Qiweiya, a slender branch in hand, poked at the burning charcoal, her expression one of a master feeling the pangs of solitude.
As Qiweiya gazed at the bonfire, she felt an inexplicable sense of something missing.
Under William Turner’s Aqua-like gaze, she unslung her greatsword from her back and plunged it directly into the heart of the flames.
Qiweiya nodded, a satisfied smile gracing her lips. ‘Mm~ perfect! Though I can’t read a rebirth novel here, this cosplay is passable, I suppose.’
William Turner waved his hand, scattering the sparks that flew from the impaled sword.
He looked at the bonfire, now resembling an avant-garde art installation, and felt a wave of utter helplessness wash over him, his heart heavy with weariness.
Stare—
William Turner mechanically turned his head, his gaze falling upon Qiweiya, who was now watching him with another mischievous glint in her eyes, no doubt concocting some new bizarre scheme.
‘Just tell me… what do you want me to do? I’ll comply,’ William Turner sighed.
Qiweiya walked over, placing a hand on his shoulder. ‘Nothing much~ I just want you to switch places with me and mimic the pose I just made. That’s all!’
William Turner was utterly bewildered, unable to fathom what strange whim had possessed this girl today.
Why was she so intent on striking poses?
Though deeply reluctant, he complied with her request, if only to preserve his sanity.
‘Nice! Just like that! Wait a moment! Don’t move, let me capture this!’
After a flurry of activity, Qiweiya peered at the image projected by her recording stone, a grin akin to that of a pervert spreading across her face.
William Turner subtly shifted his position, creating a distance of over five meters between himself and Qiweiya.
He genuinely feared that her ‘idiotic aura’ might somehow infect him.
Qiweiya crawled closer.
William Turner continued to retreat.
Qiweiya persisted in her crawl, and William Turner kept moving away, Qiweiya…
Bang… bang… bang-bang… bang-bang-bang-bang…
Qiweiya began drumming out a rhythm, a percussive rendition of ‘Gokuraku Jodo,’ urging him to ‘eat chicken, eat chicken~’
William Turner looked at Qiweiya with a pained, wronged expression. ‘My Lord, have I, your humble subordinate, done something wrong?’
Qiweiya merely stared back. ‘You know perfectly well. If I were to elaborate~ you probably wouldn’t want to know the consequences.’
William Turner shivered. ‘Yes, yes, yes! It’s entirely my fault, a mere novice like me~ How could someone as wise and mighty as you ever be wrong?’
Qiweiya chuckled. ‘To acknowledge one’s mistakes and be able to correct them is the greatest virtue~ You’re still salvageable. However, I need to discuss something serious with you now.’
Seeing Qiweiya’s suddenly erratic demeanor, William Turner grew tense.
He glanced around, then whispered, ‘Is something important happening?’
‘Don’t you feel two pairs of eyes watching us?’
William Turner released his divine sense, scanning the surroundings for a moment before shaking his head. ‘No, I don’t.’
Qiweiya looked at William Turner with an expression that clearly labeled him an idiot. ‘Are you unaware that my divine sense is stronger than yours? You moron…’
William Turner instantly turned ashen, as if his very soul had drained away. ‘Called a moron by an imbecile… can I even be saved?’ he thought desperately.
Qiweiya, somewhat baffled by William Turner’s reaction, nevertheless leaned in, her face alight with excitement. ‘Don’t you think this is a fantastic recreational activity? Catch the peepers, lop off their heads. Their flesh is hundreds of times richer in protein than beef! First, we should do this, then this~’
William Turner realized the conversation had veered off track beyond all redemption.
He quickly slapped Qiweiya, waking her from her drooling reverie. ‘Hey, hey! Can you please stop getting sidetracked! Shouldn’t we be apprehending those ill-intentioned peepers right now? Why are you…’
Qiweiya wiped a trace of saliva from the corner of her mouth. ‘Hmph~ You wouldn’t understand! This is a declaration of action I learned from a powerful, world-devouring entity! It grants us an Agility UP buff and a Stealth UP buff~ making our hunt much more convenient and swift~’
William Turner clutched his face, utterly exasperated. ‘So, you’re treating the peepers like rabbits? Once you catch them, are you planning to make a rice-braised rabbit dish?’
Qiweiya grinned. ‘Only William Turner truly understands me~ You are indeed my kindred spirit!’
William Turner disdainfully patted the spot Qiweiya had touched. ‘Go on, shoo! Who’s your kindred spirit? My intelligence would surely plummet into negative numbers! Only a nine-brained idiot could possibly comprehend the thoughts of another nine-brained idiot!’
‘What did you just say? I didn’t quite catch that~ Could you repeat it?’
William Turner, seemingly courting death, repeated himself. ‘Isn’t it just an idiot? Isn’t it just a nine-brained idiot? I’m fine repeating it a hundred times.’
Qiweiya stared at him, a strange, eerie smile playing on her lips. ‘Why have I never noticed how delicious William Turner looks?~ I can barely resist taking a bite of your flesh with a knife right now!’
‘Ah! Ahhh! What are you doing?! I’ll have you know, I’m an enforcer of the Divine Legion! You’ll regret it if you eat me!’
Qiweiya continued her actions. ‘Scream all you want! Even if you shout until your throat is hoarse, no one will come to save you~’
‘Ah—my life is forfeit! Heaven seeks my demise!’
****
A maiden with long, flaxen hair, clad in a white gauze dress, gently patted her peeping companion, a worried expression on her face.
‘Yana, we should return to our clan quickly. Those two have already confirmed our presence; it would be wise to leave at once! After all, they are an Origin God and a Divine Being. The fact that we haven’t been discovered yet is already quite fortunate.’
The adorable, pink-clad girl named Yana, with twin pigtails and long, straight white hair, whose figure hovered between that of a loli and a maiden, impatiently swatted away her companion’s hand.
‘Don’t bother me! Can’t you see I’m enjoying the show? Do you really think such a dim-witted Origin God could possibly detect us? Besides~ when have our Dragonkin ever cowered?’
The girl in the white gauze dress grew anxious. ‘But…’
Yana spun around in exasperation. ‘Are you unaware of your own status? You lowly attendant!’
The attendant girl lowered her head in dejection. ‘Yes… Your Highness.’
The attendant girl looked at her Highness, whose emerald eyes had suddenly widened in panic, and asked curiously, ‘Your Highness, is there something behind me?’
‘Oh~ hey girl, could you make some room so I can take a peek too? What you’re watching looks quite exciting; you wouldn’t mind if I joined in the fun, would you?’
The attendant girl stiffly turned her head, only to discover that the two figures behind them were none other than the very deities they had just been watching like a monkey show!
Qiweiya’s gaze bypassed the poor attendant, fixing directly on the Dragonkin princess named Yana.
‘A Sacred Dragon, you say? A descendant of Zhuolan… How troublesome~ I’ve been deliberately avoiding any beings connected to that scoundrel, and yet, at this crucial moment, I run into one? What a karmic curse.’
William Turner remarked with a chuckle, ‘Has Lady Qiweiya recalled that infatuated dragoness again? Does it feel particularly… exhilaratingly awful?’
Pfft!
Qiweiya ground her heel down viciously, her gaze chilling as she looked at William Turner, whose face had already cycled through several shades of fear.
‘My feelings are indeed far from pleasant, but I think, to ensure I don’t appear lonely, perhaps you’d like to experience it with me?’
She then lifted her foot.
William Turner pitifully rubbed his foot, which felt on the verge of becoming a second-degree disability. ‘Does Lady Qiweiya still fear that Ancestral Dragon God so much? It’s already been tens of thousands of years~’
Qiweiya’s face darkened with vexation. ‘If you had someone publicly declare, “I’ve set my sights on you!”… and then add, “I’m going to claim you for myself for this entire lifetime…” Wuwuwu! Why does such a shameless creature exist? Is there something wrong with that guy’s brain? Or do I, by some godforsaken curse, possess an aura that attracts lunatics?’
William Turner cleared his throat twice. ‘I believe I am perfectly normal~ and I am certainly not attracted to you.’
Qiweiya cast him a frigid glance. ‘Only someone as lacking in self-awareness as you would believe themselves normal. Such a vow, like never finding a partner in this lifetime, is something only a DINK like you would conjure up~ How many normal people harbor such overtly unconventional thoughts?’
William Turner bristled. ‘As if you’re normal? The Goddess of Imbecility is world-renowned~ yet you haven’t even realized it.’
Ding—
Qiweiya’s gaze, heavy with suppressed fury, turned icy cold as she stared at him. ‘Are you certain what you’re saying is true? Quickly, tell me who spread these rumors! This old lady will directly smash their coffin lid and destroy all traces of their existence!’
William Turner wiped a bead of cold sweat from his brow. ‘Uh… about that.’
Yana impatiently interrupted their exchange. ‘Just how long do you two intend to make us watch your performance? Such a pathetic drama should be reserved for a circus, to entertain the melancholic and mentally ill~ I certainly have no need for it.’
Qiweiya abruptly turned her head, her eyes sparkling mischievously as she gazed at Yana.
‘Oh, right! Isn’t there still a descendant of that old pervert here? Why shouldn’t I do something interesting to vent the depression caused by that old maid! Hehehehehe…’
Yana shrieked in terror, immediately dropping into a defensive crouch, clutching her head. ‘Don’t come any closer! Attendant, save me! I want to go home!’
The attendant girl, looking down at the special dragon-hunting rope that had somehow appeared and bound her, said helplessly, ‘Your Highness, I’m tied up; I can’t help you…’
Qiweiya high-fived William Turner, who was still tossing the coil of rope. ‘Well done~ Finally, we can play without any worries! Hehehehe,’ she chortled.
‘Help! Someone save this dragon! There will be a hefty reward!’
‘Quack quack quack~ Even if you scream until your throat breaks, no one will come to save you.’