Awkward Explanations

Qianwei let out a startled cry as she yanked her hand back and dropped her skirt. After calming down a bit, she glared at the white-haired big sister standing at the door with a dumbfounded expression. Behind her, a jumble of discordant noises drifted faintly.

“…What are you doing?”

“Of course… uh.”

Telling the truth was definitely not an option. And being seen in that situation… The only reasonable explanation seemed to be the one he was being misunderstood for? As soon as he realized that, Qianwei shifted her gaze in embarrassment and decisively changed the subject.

“You came way too late. I thought I was going to die…”

“The front lines all withdrew, so I couldn’t find anyone to ask about this base’s location… Hmm… If you have that desire, I can help you?”

“?”

Damn! he thought. Can’t you read the room? Can’t you see I don’t want to talk about this? Dammit! And what does ‘help you’ even mean…

Qianwei couldn’t help rolling her eyes, but when she saw Qiuyue Han lean in, a flicker of panic crossed her face. She clutched her clothes and scooted deeper into the sofa.

“I’m warning you, no touching…”

“Alright, stop fooling around. Explain to me what really happened.”

“Oh…”

Pity~ he mused. He had hoped to use this to get closer, but Qianwei was also scared and conflicted. He couldn’t just do this so casually. And when she saw that Qiuyue Han indeed didn’t make any further moves, he felt a hint of disappointment.

Then she roughly explained how she had been dragged along. As for the hypnotic domination ability, she presented it as a new effect that unexpectedly emerged after being subjected to a mental attack. Since such things could indeed occur under high stress, Qiuyue Han didn’t suspect anything. She just asked in detail about the trigger conditions for this ability.

“Eye contact for ten seconds allows you to influence and control those weaker than yourself… With external support, you can even affect the strong. It seems your ability has a very high rank. Perhaps as you cultivate, you might develop other effects…”

“Really~”

After all, it was that damned woman’s ability, he thought. But inheriting a Soul Crystal’s ability, according to that b*tch, meant complete reception, so it was already highly developed and complete. There probably wouldn’t be any new effects later.

Raising her eyebrows in feigned surprise, Qianwei spoke while various thoughts flashed through his mind. At this moment, Qiuyue Han’s expression suddenly turned serious, and she continued.

“Didn’t I tell you before to avoid unnecessary contact with Hongye and the others? You completely forgot my words and chatted with her in your room for over two hours?”

“Uh…”

Damn! I forgot about that… he realized.

“It was Hongye who noticed I was pregnant and came to talk to me. It’s not my fault. Besides, she’s so talkative, I couldn’t just kick her out. Who knew those little ones would launch a surprise attack…”

After explaining pitifully, Qianwei asked her in a low voice. “Besides, it was just a little contact and a chat. It shouldn’t be a big deal, right…”

“…”

Qiuyue Han looked at the pink-haired girl who clearly didn’t understand her meaning. She rubbed her forehead in frustration. After a few seconds of silence, she couldn’t help reaching out to pinch Qianwei’s cheek.

“So if Hongye were captured again and you had a chance to save her, would you?”

“Hmm… If I had the chance, of course I would. Since I have the ability to save her, it shouldn’t be a problem to help out.”

“Although it’s good that you’re so kind-hearted, I’ve warned you: humans and Yao think very differently. If doing this ends badly, you’ll only hurt yourself.”

“How could that be…”

And what’s with ‘it’s good that you’re so kind-hearted’? That sounds weird, he grumbled internally. Dammit, I’m inherently honest, kind, and helpful, okay?

Qianwei pouted. She was about to speak again, but Qiuyue Han beat her to it and continued asking.

“Do you know why the Hidden Eagle tribe attacked the Flame Serpent tribe to plunder people?”

“As for that, I already asked~”

After successfully hypnotizing Bai, she had asked out of curiosity and learned the reason that Hongye had refused to tell her before. The Hidden Eagle tribe’s true form was birds. They chose to enter this underground space to capture snakes because their race needed other species to reproduce. The larger the partner’s body, the smaller the child they would bear. And for the Hidden Eagle, a smaller body meant higher talent.

Given that their abilities strongly countered each other and the tribes were mismatched, the Flame Serpents became the prime target. According to their invasion plan, they intended to capture all Flame Serpents. This forced the Flame Serpents to seek help from humans, asking for protection for their children to preserve their lineage.

“Though there’s this special reason, you can’t invade other species just for reproduction. It would be better to communicate peacefully and normally…”

“That’s why I say humans and Yao think very differently… Anyway, you’ll have to take responsibility for this matter in the end. You’ll understand then.”

“Huh?”

What does that mean? he wondered. Isn’t everything over? How do I take responsibility…

Qianwei tilted her head in confusion, but Qiuyue Han didn’t continue explaining on this topic. After chatting casually for a while, a knock came, and Hongye walked into the room with a cheerful expression.

“The teleportation is working now. Let me take Lord Baidi back to rest.”

“I’m counting on you…”

“Lord Baidi, no need to be polite.”

Qianwei blinked from the side, looked at Hongye who was also smiling at her, and really wanted to comment on why her tone, style, and even aura were completely different when speaking to Qiuyue Han compared to when talking to herself. Just nervousness? That didn’t seem to be the case, he noted.

“By the way, tell your people that I’ll stay here for two more days before going back.”

“Eh?”

Qianwei was stunned. He didn’t understand why she wanted to delay their return to human society. On the other side, Hongye was also puzzled, but she didn’t ask further and just replied respectfully.

“Alright, it’s our Flame Serpent’s honor to have Lord Baidi stay two more days!”

Then Hongye activated the teleportation, sending both back to their respective rooms to rest. After quickly washing and drying off, Qianwei lay down on the soft bed for the first time in ages. She hugged the fluffy little blanket and rolled twice before remembering he had forgotten to tell Qiuyue Han about the phone and wanting to learn to read.

With a slightly nagging sense of regret, she drifted off to sleep. This time, at least, she didn’t have nightmares and slept soundly. Early the next morning, a knock woke her up. She groggily got up and opened the door to find Hongye delivering breakfast.

“Good morning~ Hmm… is it actually morning right now?”

The Flame Serpent’s base is deep underground, without any windows. There’s no light, and there’s no clock in the room. I have no idea what time it is, he realized helplessly.