Chapter 28 You never thought your life would be ruined by muscular men...
You never expected that Bai E would actually drag you out of bed for morning exercise.
I initially thought he was just joking... After all, your previous routine involved playing games with Silver Wolf until the early hours of the morning, then watching videos, browsing the Star Peace Company's shopping website, and you'd be fast asleep the moment your head hit the pillow, barely getting to sleep until noon.
After arriving in Onfaros, I shared a room with Teacher Danheng. No matter how I hid it, he would always spot the light from my phone.
For example, last time you were hiding under the covers and laughing to yourself in the middle of the night, Danheng caught you red-handed when he got up to get water. He didn't say anything, but you were terrified just looking at his face. So you've managed to quit staying up late, but you still can't break the habit of sleeping until noon.
When Danheng woke you up this morning, you were still quite dazed. Danheng said Bai'e was waiting for you outside for your morning run, and for a moment, the word seemed a little unfamiliar to you.
What... a morning run...? What is a morning run? What is running?
"Can you bear to see me being tortured like this, Teacher Danheng? Waaaaah—" You clung to Danheng's arm, refusing to let go. "This isn't running, it's killing me!"
Dan Heng, who usually advises you to keep your distance from Bai E, is unusually silent.
"Exercising more is good for your health," he said coldly.
At this very moment, you and Bai'er have already run three full laps around the Marble Market – yes, such a large market, such winding roads, and you've already run three laps.
The morning air was still shrouded in a thin mist, but the morning light was as dazzling as ever. Bai E ran ahead to reduce wind resistance for you, leading the way and carefully matching your running pace. When you slowed down, he slowed down too; when you sped up, he sped up too.
"I feel... I can't run anymore..." You gasped for breath, and the figure of Bai E in front of you began to sway.
"Come on, partner!" Bai E stopped to wait for you, encouraging you while pacing in place. "Just a little bit left! Let me see... five more laps!"
He didn't look tired at all. Even when you were leaning against the wall, panting heavily, he still had the energy to greet passersby.
"Five more laps?" Your vision went black. "Aren't we running with weights? How come there are still so many...?"
Bai Er had sandbags strapped to both of his feet. He was dressed in a simple tracksuit, with a bandage over his forehead to prevent stray hairs from hitting his eyes and obstructing his vision.
As for you, since it was your first time exercising at such a high intensity, you didn't wear sandbags for weights, but you were still exhausted after running three laps. You casually tied your hair into a small bun at the back of your head, and beads of sweat kept falling, flowing down your collarbone and soaking into your collar.
Need a helping hand?
"No." You wrinkled your nose in disgust. "You're covered in sweat."
Bai E paused for a moment, then laughed, "Perfect timing, let's go take a bath together later?"
Seeing the distrust in your eyes, and recalling being besieged by Wan Di and Dan Heng in the bathhouse, he quickly tried to argue:
"Don't look at me like that, I definitely won't splash water on my partner."
"Then swear an oath."
"Haha, what kind of image do I have in your heart? Okay, I swear."
When you think of those posts on the internet, you'll often see dog owners complaining about how their dogs have too much energy.
At the time, you were still puzzled. Dogs are so cute, why do you feel tired playing with them? Plus, you are good at fighting, so your physical strength is definitely better than the average person, which is why you don't feel it so deeply.
...But now you understand. Alan, you work so hard every day playing with Peipei, you're truly amazing...
Are you feeling tired?
Bai'er won't force you to continue, after all, your health is definitely more important than training.
"Let's go get breakfast first! There's a famous fruit jelly stall on the street—"
You stared at his untroubled smile, momentarily lost in thought.
...Do you have to run eight laps with weights every day, Bai E?
That darn athletic, popular guy!
*
In short, I encountered Wan Di in front of the shop selling honey fruit jelly.
You were somewhat surprised to see him. After inheriting the flame of [Conflict], Wan Di was about to set off to garrison Suspended Peak City. He had been busy dealing with the remaining issues of Ohema these past few days, so... it had been a long time since you had seen each other.
The last time I saw him was at Cecilia's house. After you finished that glass of honey, you saw a hint of sadness in his golden eyes.
Goergo… a great mother, a valiant warrior, a hero worthy of being etched in history books. When Wan Di was young, he did not know how heavy this name was. In his little eyes, Goergo, compared to all the great names mentioned above… was simply his mother at that moment.
As he was swept along and tossed to the shore by the churning River Styx, he thought, "I am Goergo's child, I cannot fall here."
When he was forced to cook fish and shrimp that were hard to swallow in order to make a living, he thought, "I am a descendant of the builders of Xuanfeng City, and I cannot be defeated by this hardship."
He'd tasted the sharpest blades, and no painful memory could deter him. Yet, facing the people who genuinely supported him, he felt a pang of emotion. You, in truth, are somewhat unsure how to face a sea of enemies.
This is his past, and his scar. But I'm still quite happy to have met him, because after this parting, I don't know when we'll see each other again.
You admit that during the time when Naksha forced you to study and when Laikushi and Katniss made you so angry... Wan Di was practically an angel.
Upon seeing you, the tall crown prince greeted you, saying, "Oh, what a coincidence."
He didn't know that you were already showering him with praise and singing Hallelujah in your heart; he just glanced at the shop, then at you:
"Want some honey fruit jelly? This shop is really popular, the wait can be quite long. How about trying mine instead?"
Bai Er had already gone to queue over there, and you were just waiting for him here, so you wanted to politely decline, "Thank you, but it's not necessary..."
"Don't worry about it too much." Wan Di shoved the portion in his right hand directly at you. "I come here to buy every day, and I just happened to buy a little extra today."
"...Is it because I inherited the fire and became a demigod that you feel uncomfortable?" he asked tentatively. "There's no need for that. In any case, I will always be invincible, and that will never change."
Since he's already said that... you stop refusing, thank him, and start eating.
With your mouth stuffed full, you mumbled:
"At first, yes, because the demigods I've encountered so far—Ms. Aglaia and Teacher Tibo—are both figures with strong leadership qualities. But I've come to terms with it since then. My opinion of Wan Di won't change because of your status. But I'm a little curious, what's it like to become a god?"
Wan Di considerately handed you a spoon. "To be honest, there are some differences. From the perspective of the gods, all living beings do seem much smaller. In the past, the Suspended Peak Clan was always following in Nicardoli's footsteps, but now I have finally understood some truths. It's never too late. If you want to come to Suspended Peak again next time, just come find me."
You responded and began to focus intently on scooping out the remaining bits and pieces of the honey fruit soup, afraid of spilling it. You were so focused and tense that it seemed like a very important matter.
—A familiar hand reached out and handed over a brand new, whole serving of honey fruit soup.
Bai E's clear voice rang in my ears:
"Have this. Wan Di, you're so stingy, you won't even give me a few servings of honey fruit soup. You're making my partner suffer like this, can you handle the consequences?"
He lowered his head again and smiled at you. After so much time, a few strands of white hair on his forehead had broken free from the headband and fallen down, like a piece of morning mist being cut off and landing on his eyelashes.
"..." Wan Di's face clearly said, "Listen to what you're saying, is that even human?" He continued, "Seriously, you should get your head checked. Besides, it was clearly you who was too slow in line, preventing her from getting the first serving in time, right?"
...Wan Di, putting aside everything else, his ability to make sarcastic remarks has certainly improved since becoming a demigod.
Behind you stands Bai E, who is returning from queuing, and in front of you stands Wan Di. Unfortunately, they have both just finished their morning exercise. With two hot bodies sandwiching you in the middle, you can neither move forward nor backward.
What to do... Seriously, what do these two eat to grow so tall? Even with high heels, you're still much shorter than them, and your figure is also... cough cough.
"Oh my god... cough cough."
You catch a fleeting glimpse of the abs and pecs of your seemingly insurmountable foe right in front of you, then quickly turn your head away, pretending you didn't see anything.
It's so big... Oh no, the red patterns are so rough... No... Why isn't he wearing a shirt?!
To prove that you are truly a gentleman, you silently recited the proverb "Do not look at what is improper" and turned your gaze to the flower bushes beside you.
—But she forgot that Bai E was right behind her, and unconsciously took a step back, bumping directly into his chest.
So soft, this kid must have practiced a lot... Ugh... What the hell are you saying!
"partner?"
Naive Bai'e thought you were annoyed by their arguing and wanted to go quietly to eat your honey fruit pudding, so she blinked at you:
"Did we disturb you...? It's all Medmos's fault, he has no sense of priority."
Wan Di simply couldn't be bothered with him.
Having spent his entire life either battling enemies or engaging in abstract concepts, the Star Core Spirit had never seen anything like this before. You lowered your head, feeling the heat rising up your cheeks to the top of your head, almost bursting out like a locomotive with a "boom."
To avoid losing face in public, you closed your eyes and carefully took another step to the side.
Haha, that should do it now. There are people standing in front and behind you, but no one to your left or right. You just need to sneak a little step to the right when they're not looking, and you can move away without anyone noticing. Nobody will be embarrassed...
"Where are you going, partner? Don't you want to eat anymore? How about we go for a bath instead?"
Bai Er grabbed your arm.
...That kid! What a rascal!!!
Take a deep breath.
At times like this, you're actually thinking, "March 7th really doesn't need to send you those abs videos anymore; you've actually gotten the real thing." And Pera, don't just grin like an idiot in otome games when this happens; who knows if it might actually happen to you someday…
But you know that at this moment, no one but yourself can understand this bittersweet happiness.
Because if you actually bring up this kind of thing with your remaining group of fair-weather friends, they'll just treat it as a joke and reply:
[catch. ]
"...I'm a bit full right now, I don't want to take a bath for the time being," you said with difficulty.
However, Bai E understands social etiquette, but he doesn't understand your little girlish thoughts—he really has no experience.
He was smug, thinking: "My partner didn't object when I said we were going to take a bath together, which means she wasn't against it. Now she suddenly says she doesn't want to go, she must have eaten two servings of fruit pudding and is too full."
I'm so thoughtful. Is there any partner in the world more considerate than me?
So upon hearing this, he simply tilted his head and readily agreed, "Alright then. I'll accompany you for a walk, and we can take a bath together after we've digested."
Wan Di nodded, "I'm going to the bathhouse too. If you don't mind, would you like to come along? ... Bai E passed out in the hot bath earlier, he was so careless, I'm worried about you going with him alone."
You know perfectly well that you can't escape this time.
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