Chapter 121: Xia Mi in a Dream

Just as Lu Mingfei stared at his phone screen in anguish, Lu Mingze, lurking in the shadows, smiled. It was a very feeble smile, however—so feeble that he looked as though he might suddenly drop dead at any moment.

Although the previous night had been thoroughly enjoyable, he had genuinely been doing two things at once: entertaining Focalors while also “playing” with the Doctor. Operating on two fronts for a short while would not have been a problem, but Focalors was simply too clingy, constantly forcing Lu Mingze to divert his attention to her.

He was truly afraid something might happen!

Earlier, he had looked away for only a brief moment, and Focalors had immediately seized his arm, taken hold of his hand, and leaned against his shoulder. If he ignored her for any longer, who knew what earth-shattering disaster might occur?

Under that kind of pressure, Lu Mingze had spent the latter half of the night operating on both fronts. He was capable of it, but it was extremely difficult even for him. By now, nearly all his energy had been exhausted.

“Ah, I want to sleep for an entire day.”

Lu Mingze stretched vigorously, his head feeling heavy and foggy. But when he saw Lu Mingfei’s agonized expression—caused by Norton’s imminent arrival and the possibility of Constantine becoming a jailbird little brother—he could not help wanting to laugh. He wanted to see what else Lu Mingfei might encounter.

Unfortunately, if he stayed awake all day now, he would probably be drained dry that evening.

And that was assuming Focalors did not start eating. If she happened to get the urge and began eating outright, the rate at which Lu Mingze consumed his mental energy would increase even further.

Forget it. Time to sleep.

“What? Constantine has entered the revival match!” Furina of Teyvat cried out in shock.

She stood by the balcony, biting her lip as she gazed out at Fontaine beneath the light rain. Her thoughts gradually began to grow chaotic.

If something truly happened to Constantine, then Norton, the Dragon King, would certainly not let Lu Mingfei off easily. Although Norton’s strength was insufficient to kill Lu Mingfei, forcing him to fight his former friend to the death would still cause him considerable pain, would it not?

“Are you certain the information is accurate?” Furina asked again.

“I’m certain.” As he spoke, Lu Mingfei transmitted the image on his phone to her. By now, they had already come clean with each other and could see the details of one another’s worlds. There was no longer any point in hiding things.

“When will Norton arrive? Do you still have a chance to stop Xia Mi?”

“He should arrive in about three days. I’m afraid I can’t make it to the Three Gorges and back in such a short time. Never mind whether I could reach my destination—even if I did, Kassel Academy would notice that something was wrong with me, which would only make matters worse.” Lu Mingfei sighed.

“Could it be that Kassel Academy already knows what is hidden in the Three Gorges? If they knew in advance, Xia Mi and the others’ journey might not go smoothly.”

Halfway through her sentence, the light-blue glow in Furina’s eyes gradually brightened once more. She continued, “Kassel Academy may have been watching from the very beginning, just as they have been monitoring you and Norton. So it would not be easy for Xia Mi to take Constantine down in such a short time—unless she is willing to reveal her hand openly. Have you received any information to that effect?”

“No.”

“Then that’s good. As long as Xia Mi and Chu Zihang don’t reveal their intentions outright, they can’t openly go to the Three Gorges and seize Constantine. Under Kassel Academy’s surveillance, Constantine should remain relatively safe for the time being.”

“Relatively safe...?”

Lu Mingfei’s expression turned somewhat grim. He could tell that Furina was trying to comfort him. He understood what “relatively safe” meant. Put plainly, Constantine might be fine—for the moment. If the time frame stretched even slightly, Constantine might be finished.

What should he do? What could he do?

After a brief moment of worry, Lu Mingfei decisively opened his conversation with Chu Zihang and sent a message:

“Norton has now joined Kassel Academy.”

Lu Mingfei: [Forwarded Image]

Meanwhile, inside the travel hotel—

Chu Zihang had risen early that morning and quickly noticed that his junior brother had sent him a message. The special notification sound was distinctive; he could never have mistaken it.

However—

His phone was currently with Xia Mi. Ever since the journey began, Xia Mi had kept control of his phone. She did let him use it when they went out, but most of the time she kept it herself.

The phone was not particularly important to Chu Zihang, so he had never made an issue of her taking it. He merely felt that Xia Mi was somewhat controlling.

There was nothing to be done. She was his girlfriend. He would simply indulge her.

“Mm...”

Chu Zihang looked at the phone nestled in Xia Mi’s arms, and his brows drew together slightly.

Xia Mi was still asleep. It should not be difficult for him to retrieve the phone, but what if she suddenly woke while he was taking it? Would that not be awkward? Besides, even if he managed to get the phone, it was being held against Xia Mi’s chest, making certain touches impossible to avoid.

Although she was small, she was also very cute. Touching something so adorable while a girl was asleep was undeniably stirring, but it would still be improper.

“Hmm.”

Chu Zihang looked at Xia Mi and fell into deep thought. Several times he raised his hand, only to lower it again. A rare look of embarrassment appeared on his usually expressionless face.

Xia Mi slept quietly.

Her long, silky hair spilled naturally around her. A few strands brushed her cheeks, while her gently trembling eyelashes seemed like butterflies beating their wings. Her lips were slightly parted, and her breathing was even and low. Her consciousness appeared to be wandering through a beautiful dream.

She held the black phone against her chest. Beside it was a charming curve, and her already tender skin appeared even fairer against the dark phone, beautiful as finely crafted porcelain.

She was so beautiful.

In a daze, that thought suddenly rose within Chu Zihang’s heart. He quietly gazed at Xia Mi’s exquisite face. Even such a simple act of watching her brought him happiness and comfort—a sense of discovering peace within his heart, and a warmth akin to salvation.

Some people were a thousand times cuter asleep and silent than they were while awake.

“Ding~~”

And just as the moment reached its most tender point, the notification sound for Lu Mingfei’s special alerts rang out once more.

Chu Zihang shuddered as if awakening from a dream. His rationality reclaimed the high ground, and his expression once again returned to its former impassivity. He looked at the phone Xia Mi held against her chest. After a brief hesitation and struggle, he finally made up his mind and reached out for it.

For Lu Mingfei—for his junior brother—he had to take this risk.

Very soon, a fair little hand seized his wrist. That soft hand held an unimaginable force, and its owner, Xia Mi, slowly opened her eyes.

She looked at Chu Zihang, who had instinctively drawn back, his eyes as adorably timid as a hamster’s—at least through the filter of personal bias. The smile on her face gradually grew brighter.

Xia Mi’s gaze moved from Chu Zihang’s face downward to his arm, then to the wrist she had caught, and finally to her own modestly curved chest. With a faint smile, she murmured, “Senior, aren’t you being a little too eager? That isn’t very proper, is it?”

Chu Zihang’s cheeks flushed slightly. With his wrist caught, he was like Louis the Sixteenth on the guillotine, while Xia Mi was his personal executioner.

He opened his mouth and said softly, “I—I only wanted to check my messages on the phone. That’s all.”

(End of Chapter)