The Pursuer’s Doubts

“That child has been yammering on all night,” Chen Jiao accused Yuan Anqing, pointing at the guest bed. “Do you have any idea how annoying that is? You two might not hear it over your own drama, but he’s been driving me crazy. I’m fifty-one years old!”

Zhuo reminded her dryly, “You can live to be over six hundred. Fifty-one is just the very beginning of a long adulthood.”

“Mention my age again and I’ll kill myself on the spot,” Chen Jiao warned.

Zhuo wisely shut his mouth.

Later, Zhuo’s soothing and frantic distractions had successfully diverted Yuan Anqing’s attention from the existential dread of his memories. Yuan truly hadn’t remembered that the teenager, Zheng Xiao’an, was still waiting for them at the hospital ward.

“That kid thought you two had met with a fatal accident… He really cares about you,” Chen Jiao added offhandedly, sipping her tea.

But she overlooked one crucial detail: Yuan Anqing wasn’t like the typical, loving parents she’d dealt with in her teaching career. Upon hearing this, his brow furrowed involuntarily. “How about I discuss it with Bai Tian and the others? We’ll let you take care of this child permanently.”

“What do you mean by that?” Chen Jiao grew wary. “That’s way too heartless of you.”

“I don’t think it’s a good thing for him to develop emotional attachments to me. I can’t reciprocate those feelings, and in the end, it will only disappoint him.” There had been people who wanted to befriend Yuan Anqing in his past life, but without exception, they all left disappointed by his coldness.

“You can’t reciprocate emotions?” Chen Jiao laughed as if she’d heard a hilarious joke. She lifted her chin toward Zhuo, who was currently draped over Yuan Anqing’s shoulder like a giant, purring cat. “Say that again while looking at your little boyfriend.”

“It’s not the same.”

“What’s different? Your little boyfriend didn’t force you to like him. Who can control your preferences?” Chen Jiao thought Yuan Anqing was being incredibly hypocritical. “You have the time and energy to respond to this massive, high-maintenance boyfriend of yours, but you can’t spare a moment for one quiet teenager?”

Yuan Anqing considered this seriously, then stated that he genuinely didn’t have the extra energy to look after another person. “I’m in the middle of a passionate romance right now. I have even less free time.” The emotional bandwidth he could provide was already minimal, and Zhuo currently demanded operating at overcapacity.

“This is probably the most emotionally positive period of your entire life,” Chen Jiao scoffed. She didn’t believe Yuan Anqing didn’t have the capacity for one more child, especially since his mental state had visibly improved lately. His facial expressions might still be limited, but they were much gentler than before.

At this point, Yuan Anqing should be at his most emotionally abundant. So, Chen Jiao had reason to suspect he simply didn’t want to take on the responsibility of a parent-child relationship.

“Do we have to send him away?” Zhuo asked, his tail drooping. He was a bit reluctant.

“What?” Yuan Anqing didn’t understand. Did Zhuo have such deep, paternal feelings for Zheng Xiao’an?

“He’s like a souvenir of our relationship,” Zhuo sighed romantically.

“He is a human being. You can’t treat him like a soulless prop for your roleplays.” Yuan Anqing was exasperated.

“You’re not even as good as your monster boyfriend,” Chen Jiao said, rolling her eyes. “To that child, you’re much colder than he is.”

“I know.” Yuan Anqing simply didn’t care. He didn’t see anything wrong with setting boundaries.

“Yuan Anqing~” Zhuo tugged at his sleeve, his red eyes wide and pleading. “Don’t send him away, okay?”

Yuan Anqing sighed, feeling his resolve crumble. “Fine. Anyway, he’s a high school student. He can’t stay with us forever.” Once Zheng Xiao’an’s inferior differentiation period was stabilized, he’d have to go back to a boarding school. Their high school had monthly breaks, so he’d only come back to the apartment for three or four days a month. After college, even less.

In any case, it wouldn’t be too troublesome.

Chen Jiao: “…Can’t you at least stick to your principles for a bit longer?” Yuan Anqing had clearly been too deeply influenced by Zhuo’s puppy-dog eyes. Love was truly terrifying.

“I don’t really have strong principles to begin with.” Yuan Anqing had always gone with the flow, doing whatever his bosses thought was good, but he never felt happy doing it. Now, he’d just changed to a different way of going along—one that made Zhuo happy. Watching Zhuo beam with joy made Yuan Anqing feel content too. Why not?

After Yuan Anqing explained his passive logic, Chen Jiao sneered. “If you were an emperor, you’d definitely be a fatuous, despotic one ruled by his favorite concubine.”

“If you say another bad word about him, I’ll bite you,” Zhuo threatened immediately, feeling he’d held back his temper long enough for the old lady.

In the end, the two of them were unceremoniously kicked out of the ward by Chen Jiao.

Zheng Xiao’an was waiting in Bai Tian’s office. Yuan Anqing went to pick up the teenager. Remembering what Chen Jiao said about emotional neglect, he offered an awkward, offhand explanation. “Yesterday’s mission was a bit… bloody. I didn’t fully come to my senses after the mission and accidentally left you here with Chen Jiao overnight. I’m sorry.”

Zheng Xiao’an shook his head. He felt yesterday had been quite fulfilling—doing math problems while a captured assassin cried in the corner—and didn’t think he’d been neglected. He looked up at Yuan Anqing. “Are you feeling better now?”

“Much better.” Yuan Anqing reached out and awkwardly ruffled Zheng Xiao’an’s hair. “I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Zheng Xiao’an pursed his lips and nodded happily.

“You should pat me on the head too,” Zhuo demanded, pointing at his own horns.

Yuan Anqing reached out and obediently patted Zhuo’s head. He didn’t see anything wrong with it, nor did he think that just because Zhuo was older and vastly larger than Zheng Xiao’an, he should act like a dignified “adult.” He didn’t feel his actions were at all out of place, but the scene looked completely different to outsiders.

Early that morning, a street sweeper had discovered the pile of twisted, mangled human bodies hanging in the abandoned warehouse. The brutal display had nearly wiped out the middle and upper ranks of the extremist organization.

But the authorities hadn’t made any move to investigate. The only anomaly was the Savior, who had inexplicably taken a sick day on a weekday.

A spy from a rival faction watched from the shadows. The spy wasn’t an inferior Differentiated Being—just a normal human. Zhuo had sensed his malicious intent early on but had dismissed him as just a scrawny, powerless guy. After all, a normal human couldn’t pose any threat to them. He looked down on the man.

The bloody massacre in the warehouse must be related to the Savior, but whether it was actually the Savior’s doing and how he had accomplished it without leaving evidence—these were all burning questions for the rebel factions.

Determined to follow and uncover the truth, the spy didn’t know what kind of terror he would face, but he held on to his ideals. With that thought, he followed Zhuo and Yuan Anqing to the government building. He trailed them all the way out, watching the two of them act lovey-dovey on the sidewalk.

It wasn’t enough that they held hands. While walking, they had to nudge each other, bump shoulders, and act utterly domestically. The giant, terrifying man even insisted the Savior stop walking so he could take aesthetic photos of him by a fountain.

The spy even suspected they had noticed him and were deliberately putting on a rom-com display to torture him.

Eventually, the Savior pinched the tip of the giant’s scaled tail, and the tall monster actually blushed. That blushing and shyness didn’t look like something an ordinary person could fake. There was no trace of affectation; it was completely, disgustingly natural.

In short, it didn’t seem like an act.

Wait. What was up with this guy? the spy thought. With such a chiseled, aggressive face and massive stature, why does he act so spineless and submissive?

Ah… The spy hated useless pretty boys like this the most.

He watched as the giant Zhuo got his head patted like a dog, and then, out in the open street, in broad daylight, the monster pointed to his own cheek, childishly indicating he wanted Yuan Anqing to kiss him.

Yuan Anqing complied effortlessly.

How annoying. Why did this massive guy have to cling to the Savior every single second?

After the kiss, the three of them planned where to hang out. The weather was nice, so they decided to take a walk through the park.

Zhuo was very happy. He was finally experiencing the joy of taking paid time off during work hours. Along the way, he hopped and skipped, teased stray cats and dogs, and eventually got scratched by a feral mother cat protecting her kittens.

Terrified, the two-meter-tall Zhuo squeaked and immediately hid behind Yuan Anqing’s back.

“Dogs that people keep can be petted after getting permission,” Yuan Anqing said helplessly, acting as a human shield. “But don’t just pet feral stray cats. When you approached, it was already hissing at you, but you still insisted on reaching out.”

“It meowed at me first! When I wanted to pet it, it changed its mind!” Zhuo pouted, rubbing the back of his hand where he was scratched. He didn’t feel any actual pain, but he was genuinely startled when that tiny cat suddenly puffed up its fur and swatted him.

The spy following from a distance: “…”

His burner phone vibrated with a message from headquarters: [What’s the situation?]

[Very boring,] the spy replied quickly. [The Savior doesn’t look like someone who just slaughtered twenty people. He’s all lovey-dovey with that tall guy, planning to take the kid out to play in the park…]

[Kid?]

[Seems like a special inferior Differentiated Being from another organization they adopted.] The spy generally knew Zheng Xiao’an’s information. He was absolutely sure this brat didn’t have the kind of terrifying and powerful strength needed to twist grown men into pretzels.

The handler replied: [The Savior’s facade is very deep. You can’t see any problems just by looking at him casually. Otherwise, so many of our colleagues wouldn’t have fallen into his hands so easily.]

The spy exhaled. The handler was right. He felt himself letting his guard down: [I understand. I will remain vigilant.]

[What about that bodyguard named Zhuo? Could he be the muscle?] the handler asked.

The spy immediately scoffed and typed: [What bodyguard? He’s just a big, delicate flower. A pretty boy. A gigolo.] A grown man who could jump back in terror from being scratched by a kitten was no threat.

[I suspect his impressive physique was developed purely with cosmetic steroids to cater to the Savior’s visual preferences.] The spy thought Zhuo was just a pampered “trophy wife” tool deliberately trained by the authorities to keep Yuan Anqing happy in bed.

[Are you sure? Could he have hidden special powers?]

The spy looked up at Yuan Anqing and his group ahead.

They were standing in front of a park vending machine. Zhuo handed a plastic bottle of iced tea to Yuan Anqing, who effortlessly twisted off the tight cap before handing it back to the monster.

It wasn’t that Zhuo lacked the physical strength to open a bottle; it was just that earlier, in front of a passing couple, a petite girl couldn’t open her water bottle and helplessly gave it to her boyfriend to open. Zhuo had seen that. He was a bit envious of the pampering. He wanted that treatment too.

The passing girl also noticed him.

“I can’t open it either,” Zhuo said quite naturally, batting his red eyes at Yuan Anqing.

The girl, who was just over 160 cm tall, had to crane her neck all the way up to meet the eyes of the muscular, over-two-meter-tall Zhuo. “Huh?”

The spy following them typed his final assessment: […]

[Let me put it this way. The likelihood of him being a threat is zero. This guy is a complete drama queen. Clingy, submissive, and incredibly high-maintenance.]

[He’s just a romance tool. What kind of weird taste does the Savior have anyway? At the very least, I’m ruling out the possibility of this Zhuo being the culprit.]

A drama queen who gets scared by a stray cat and pretends he can’t open a water bottle would probably have screaming nightmares for a whole year after seeing a real corpse.