Who’s More Powerful?

‘Oh god, what have I done?’

To be frank, Xie Shenhong didn’t believe he harbored any particular sentiments for Lyte at this moment.

He simply trusted Lyte.

If he had to categorize it, he considered Lyte a true and good friend.

Even if Lyte were to reject or deny him, he wouldn’t feel anything.

The issue, however, was that while he could tolerate it, his peculiar self, the one who emerged as Xie Hai Zhu, was not one to exercise such restraint… He was suddenly at a loss for how to proceed.

Lyte, too, was stunned.

But only for a fleeting moment.

“Shenhong, are you worried I’ll become overly infatuated with Lady Hai Zhu?”

‘Ah?’

Xie Shenhong hadn’t anticipated such an interpretation.

Yet, it made sense; only he knew about his gradual transformation into a woman.

From Lyte’s perspective, he was merely a boy with a penchant for cross-dressing.

It was already the utmost limit for Lyte not to be repulsed by his ‘hobby,’ so how could he possibly think otherwise?

Thus, Xie Shenhong nodded, deciding to follow this line of reasoning.

“Yes.”

“Honestly, you worry too much… I wouldn’t disturb Lady Hai Zhu because of this.”

“I’m not worried about Lady Hai Zhu; I’m worried about you.”

“Thank you, but I haven’t seriously considered such things yet. I’ll think about it when I truly like someone…”

Mid-sentence, Lyte suddenly grew hesitant.

“Enough. We’re good friends; there’s no need to confess everything.” Xie Shenhong shook his head, uttering the words he’d previously held back, intending to end the conversation there.

He had a vague suspicion of what Lyte intended to confess.

He didn’t want to hear it.

However, Xie Shenhong failed to realize one thing.

That his change in attitude was, in Lyte’s eyes, a source of immense joy.

“It’s not a big deal anyway, just the usual. I found myself thinking of Lady Hai Zhu again… Shenhong?”

“I have something to do; I’ll be leaving first.”

Xie Shenhong said, without turning his head.

He didn’t know what expression he wore at that moment.

‘Shy? Angry? Disgusted?’

But no matter which it was, it wasn’t something he could show Lyte; he could only make a swift escape.

Of course, he was confident in his ability to compose himself; by the time Lyte returned to the classroom, he would most likely have reverted to his usual demeanor.

Yet, this was not a long-term solution.

He needed to make Lyte abandon this notion as soon as possible.

****

Watching Shenhong’s hurried departure, Lyte couldn’t help but sigh.

“I hope I didn’t make him angry?”

Honestly, Lyte had never imagined Shenhong to be the type whose attitude would do a complete 180-degree turn once their mindset shifted.

He was happy, of course.

But Lyte didn’t quite trust himself.

For the unclean power within him was simply too wicked, too formidable.

He used to be able to suppress it with sheer will, but as his cultivation advanced, this power grew increasingly potent.

It wouldn’t be strange if he suddenly lost control one day, transforming into a monster capable only of slaughter.

Therefore, his confession to Shenhong, besides the reasons stated earlier, was also driven by the hope that Shenhong could prepare in advance and promptly restrain him should he go berserk.

However, Shenhong’s transformation was too profound; now, not only was there no trace of aversion, but it even gave Lyte the impression that Shenhong felt indebted to him.

The current Shenhong wouldn’t be able to strike him down when things became irreversible, would they?

Of course, Lyte hadn’t given up yet.

And in the worst-case scenario, there was still Lady Hai Zhu.

But for a knight to go berserk to the point of needing their liege to eliminate them, that would be a complete disgrace.

Asking himself honestly, he truly didn’t want to be personally killed by the object of his affection… A self-deprecating smile touched Lyte’s lips at the thought.

He finally understood why Shenhong was worried about him.

To consider Lady Hai Zhu as an object of affection was simply too sacrilegious… especially without knowing if Lady Hai Zhu already had someone she liked, or if she truly had many children and even grandchildren, as Shenhong had implied.

The most terrifying part was that, during their conversation just now, there were several moments when he had perceived Shenhong as Lady Hai Zhu.

Even though the two looked nothing alike… Well, he admitted that their facial contours and features were somewhat similar, and their heights were also quite close.

But their distinctive hair and eye colors, body shapes, genders… all were different.

As for their personalities… he conceded that Shenhong, when not feigning, occasionally displayed a gentle expression much like Hai Zhu’s, but there were still many differences between them.

“Honestly, what am I thinking?”

To debate such obvious facts within himself, he must be possessed… Lyte shook his head with a smile, heading in the direction Shenhong had vanished.

****

Upon returning to the classroom, Lyte found Shenhong surrounded by a throng of people.

This wasn’t due to any incident, but rather the news of Shenhong successfully joining the Deep Sea Crimson Knights had spread, and everyone was congratulating him.

Shenhong didn’t panic, humbly explaining that he had earned his spot through merit and disclosing his use of the most advanced magic musket.

“Even so, Princess Shenhong, you’re incredibly formidable!”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

Shenhong’s usual conduct was exceptionally graceful, much like a true noble young lady; such a scene posed no challenge to him whatsoever.

The problem was that with all this commotion, Lyte realized the need to guard against potential subtle maneuvers.

After all, many students aspired to join the Deep Sea Crimson Knights.

Now, with Shenhong, a magic-less individual, having gotten a head start, it was inconceivable that the number of people secretly envious, jealous, and resentful would be small.

Moreover, there were also—

“Lyte, that’s not fair of you! Why didn’t you call me when something good happened?”

“Lyte, how about you take me as your squire too?”

After learning that Lyte had assisted in Shenhong’s merit evaluation, a portion of the students could no longer sit still.

“Lyte chooses his helpers based on their abilities, of course.”

However, before Lyte could explain, Bai Wanhua stepped forward and scoffed, “Princess Shenhong achieved first place in the theoretical exam for her entire grade, and her proficiency with the magic musket broke all training ground records. Can any of you do that? I won’t mention anything else, but are you sure you won’t get cold feet in actual combat?”

Many people were instantly speechless, quietly moving away from Lyte.

“Everyone should just follow the normal path. To be honest, the situation we encountered the day before yesterday was extremely dangerous.” Shenhong glanced at Lyte. “Imperial spies suddenly attacked us. If not for General Sima and Lady Hai Zhu, we would likely have perished there.”

Lyte immediately understood and chimed in, “Indeed, we can only say we were fortunate this time. The normal method of accumulating merits is quite slow; it might not even be enough in two or three years…”

Considering that many students in the school came from noble and wealthy backgrounds, the truth would surely not remain hidden, so the two of them had discussed this official narrative yesterday.

“Wow, that sounds so dangerous!”

“I guess I’ll just stick to the normal assessment route.”

Hearing this, both of them breathed a sigh of relief.

Of course, there were still ambitious and confident individuals, but their plans mostly involved gaining experience with adventure teams or armies, rather than specifically seeking out Imperial spies, so it didn’t matter.

Just then, someone else curiously asked:

“Then Lyte and Shenhong, have you both met Crimson Hawk?”

‘Ah?’

‘Has even this been exposed?’

Lyte secretly glanced at Shenhong, seeing that the latter was also momentarily speechless, about to offer a hastily conceived excuse, when unexpectedly, the students had already begun excitedly discussing the matter—

“Speaking of which, I heard Crimson Hawk is transferring to the Royal Academy of Magic next door!”

“I heard that too! It seems the Royal Family decided to recall him because of this incident!”

“Not only that, I heard he’ll also be visiting our academy for an exchange!”

“Wow, that’s amazing! We’ll actually have a chance to see the hero of the Eastern Campaign with our own eyes!”

Lyte grew increasingly confused as he listened, but when he looked at Shenhong again, he was surprised to see the latter wearing an expression of sudden realization, even chiming in:

“I only briefly met him then, but as a fellow magic musket user, that esteemed individual is far more skilled than I am.”

Lyte was somewhat bewildered.

‘What was going on?’

‘Was Shenhong pretending not to know?’

‘Or had President Dongfang deceived him?’

‘Was Crimson Hawk not Shenhong, but someone else entirely?’