Mo Chuan: Ju, aren’t you going to get up? At this rate, you’ll end up sleeping through the entire morning.
Di Qi Ju: Haah…Lying on the bed feels so gooood…
Mo Chuan: You’re starting to sound like an infirmed patient.
Di Qi Ju: You know what they say, your blanket is like your girlfriend, once you lie in her sweet embrace, there’s nowhere else you’d rather be.
Mo Chuan: You have a girlfriend?
Di Qi Ju:……
Di Qi Ju: While I don’t have one, that reminds me of an unpleasant experience I had.
Mo Chuan: …I got it.
Di Qi Ju: —-What did you get? You better hide that face which screams “Ah…he must’ve been dumped by his girlfriend”!!
Mo Chuan: I see your imagination has been working overtime again…
Di Qi Ju: What about you? Don’t tell me you’re a winner in life.
Mo Chuan:……
Mo Chuan:…
Mo Chuan: During my first frenzy period upon reaching maturity, there was an incident in the clan. Because of that incident, I ended up committing a series of mistakes.
Mo Chuan: In the end, these mistakes got me kicked out of the seasonal wolves’ society.
Mo Chuan: Other than that one fortuitous encounter in the ravine, I have nothing that qualifies me as a winner in life.
Di Qi Ju:…
Di Qi Ju:…I’m sorry.
Mo Chuan: Instead of your apology, I would rather know where your wish points came from.
Mo Chuan: If you were born with that much wish points, you should’ve been picked out at birth by the Divine Hall to be a candidate for their clergymen.
Mo Chuan: There might even be some countries with a culture of individual heroics, who are willing to fight over you.
Mo Chuan: The fact that you’ve been able to hide this up till now, means that you must’ve had some complicated circumstances as well.
Di Qi Ju:…
Di Qi Ju: I don’t wish to recall those memories.
Mo Chuan: …forget it. It was just a casual question, I didn’t mean to pressure you.
Mo Chuan: Wait, that’s not right…
Mo Chuan: —–Thank you.
Di Qi Ju:…
Mo Chuan: It seems like I’ve never had the chance to formally thank you. Spending that much wish points must’ve been a hard decision to make.
Di Qi Ju: It’s nothing, saving you was entirely voluntary.
Mo Chuan: I knew you would say that.
Mo Chuan: By the way—are you really going to spend your entire day in the bed? Isn’t that such a waste.
Di Qi Ju: Mhm. I don’t have any intention of going out today.
Having said that, I searched through my bag and took out a tattered set of clothing.
Mo Chuan: What’s that?
Di Qi Ju: That’s the clothes that I previously wore, they were ruined by the beastial wrath.
Di Qi Ju: I wanted to get them patched up today.
Mo Chuan: …why?
Di Qi Ju: These clothes…were from the village I was “born” in. They were modified from another person’s clothes.
Di Qi Ju: I don’t know why but I suddenly got the urge to get them fixed and to wear them once more.
Di Qi Ju: Let’s check out the streets tomorrow.
Mo Chuan: …Alright.
Mo Chuan: It’s just that I’m not that good at reading books so we should probably get room service to bring us playing cards or board games.
Di Qi Ju: Mhm.
As he finished saying this, he got off the bed and prepared to leave.
However, just as he opened the room door, he was greeted with a light headbutt to the chest.
Mo Chuan: …huh?!
Alvin: Save…save me…
Di Qi Ju: Alvin?
Mo Chuan: What’s going on? Did something happen?
Alvin: Someone wants…wants to kill me!
Mo Chuan: Who??
Mo Chuan’s eyebrows jumped at the stunning revelation as he surveyed the corridor cautiously.
Alvin collapsed onto the floor in a sitting position, his hands cupping his ears as his pale face trembled violently.
I immediately put down the clothes in my hands and jumped off the bed.
Alvin: It’s that person’s voice…I can hear it! She’s coming!!
Mo Chuan: What voice? I don’t hear anything.
Di Qi Ju: I don’t hear anything either…calm down, Alvin. This is a busy inn, if there’s anyone suspicious, they would be discovered in an instant.
Di Qi Ju: Exactly what’s going on? Who’s trying to kill you?
Alvin: It’s that person…that lady! Her features must’ve been faked! She must be in disguise! She’s here to get me!
Mo Chuan: Lady?
Di Qi Ju: Don’t tell me…could she be one of the companions of those adventurers?
Mo Chuan: I’m not sure, but how did they manage to find Alvin?
Alvin: I can hear her! She’s coming! The sound of her strangling my neck! The sound of her ripping out my tongue!!
Di Qi Ju: Relax, Alvin, relax…that lady isn’t here, there’s no one strangling you and your tongue is fine…
Alvin’s trembling finally lessened as he lifted his head and stared right into my eyes with eyes as wide as saucers.
Alvin: Di Qi…Di Qi Ju…
Alvin: —–I’m sorry!! Di Qi Ju!! I’m to blame!! Please forgive me—-!!
Di Qi Ju:…didn’t you just apologise to us in the morning? Calm down, just calm down first.
Alvin: I’m the one who lured that beastial wrath to you!! I’m sorry!!
Mo Chuan: …..??
Alvin: During the initial scouting, I was the one who helped the scouts lure that beastial wrath away from the path of the expedition!
Alvin: But—-that night, in a fit of drunken rage, I decided to set a trap for you guys. I lured it back to the route with some food and my wish ability!
Di Qi Ju: Ha…so anyone who has been serviced by you counts as a “guest”, even animals?
Alvin: I just wanted to give you a scare!! I thought its obvious movements would be enough to warn and scare you away!! I didn’t intend to kill you!
Alvin: I’m sorry—it’s all my fault—please forgive me…
Mo Chuan: What’s he talking about?
Di Qi Ju: Huh, I’ve already heard about this matter from Breman and Ethan. It’s nothing much, look, am I not standing in front of you right now?
Di Qi Ju: But…why did you suddenly bring this up?
Alvin: —-Ah!! She’s coming!! I can hear it! I can hear her voice talking to me!
Alvin: No!! Someone, save me!
He suddenly got to his feet and started heading towards the stairs, his eyes all the while fixed on the railings as if he wanted to jump off!?!
This is the fourth floor for God’s sake!
Mo Chuan: Hold it right there!!
Mo Chuan grabbed onto his arm and with his other, sent a fist flying at his face.
Alvin: Hrggh!
Alvin: ……
Mo Chuan: It’s better if he takes a nap for now.
Di Qi Ju: Mhm. I think so too…
Di Qi Ju: Thank god, it’s day right now. If it was night, I would’ve honestly thought that ghosts were involved.
Mo Chuan: So now what? All I got from his ramblings was that a lady was trying to killing him.
Mo Chuan: Judging from his reaction, she must have some criminal method of messing with his psyche.
Mo Chuan: If this was a crime committed using some unknown wish ability, he is eligible for protection by the Divine Hall’s security forces.
Di Qi Ju: Isn’t this country really far from the Divine Hall? By the time they get here, Alvin would be dead already.
Di Qi Ju: What about the police? Is there something like a police post nearby?
Mo Chuan: The city’s security duties have been handed over to the military. If there’s a situation, you can only find the military for help.
Mo Chuan: Should we stay by his side and fight off this killer?
Di Qi Ju: Give me a moment to think about this.
This is like those scenario questions I saw during the exams…
My testing taking mentality started to kick in immediately.
This was one of the most important treasures that I brought over from Earth. With this, I should be able to find the right answer.
Wish ability…a murderer chasing him…
A wish ability that messes with your psyche and can even kill you…
Hold on, doesn’t that mean that if I get caught up in this—
Di Qi Ju:…let’s bring him to the hospital first. The doctor can prescribe some psychiatric drugs to calm him down.
Di Qi Ju: I’ll report this matter to the expedition forces stationed in the east. Mo Chuan, you’ll be in charge of bringing him to the hospital.
Mo Chuan: What if we get attacked in the hospital?
Di Qi Ju: Hmm, that’s true. There is that possibility. However, I feel that you’ll be able to replace Alvin till I come back with reinforcements.
Mo Chuan: …”replace”?
Di Qi Ju: Don’t the two of you have a pretty similar build? It’s about to come in handy now…
Mo Chuan: ……
Mo Chuan: Got it. I’ll swap clothes with him once we get to the hospital and act as his body double.
Di Qi Ju: You can do that right?
Mo Chuan: As long as you don’t dawdle along the way, I should be fine.
Mo Chuan: While I’m still kinda pissed with him, I definitely don’t want him to die because of such a grudge.
Di Qi Ju: Then it’s settled.
We made the required arrangements and quickly left the inn.
Who would’ve thought that we would encounter such a problem even during our vacation. And here I thought that only the wicked had no rest.
??: ……
??:…
??: That’s…
??: Impossible…
??: Huh…that’s not right…
??: Isn’t this even better?
……
The afternoon in this city wasn’t as lively as expected, instead it seemed like the entire city of Honor was busy working.
Compared to the amount of pedestrians on the roads, there were a lot more carts transporting goods around the city, not to mention the constant banging of construction works.
I ran along such a road at full speed without any intention of stopping even for a second.
Person driving a wagon: HEY—kid, don’t wreck my goods!
Person pushing a cart: Are you rushing off to get reincarnated or something? Or did your wife elope with another man?
Being more of the studious type in school, running definitely wasn’t my forte, you could tell just from the odd rhythm my feet was making but even so, I ran like my life depended on it.
Before I set off, I made sure to check the map on the inn’s wall. Based on the map, the inn was located at the western district while the expedition was located east of the inn.
As long as I kept to the main road passing through the central plaza, the amount of detours should be minimized.
However, if my memory serves me right, cutting through the smaller lanes in a roughly straight fashion till I get to the northern gate’s main road is even faster than just taking the central main road.
With an abrupt turn of my body, I stepped into a dreary looking alleyway.
There shouldn’t be a dead end here right?
Well if there is, I’ll just have to create my own passageway.
Because…even being a second late might cost Mo Chuan his life.
Killing people with wish abilities…even if I was the one beside Alvin, I would’ve probably been in danger as well.
After all, I don’t have the ability to prevent others from wishing me to death!
I…that decision I just made, don’t tell me it’s because…
…I’m afraid of dying?
I’m already more resistant to death than most of the people in this world…but just the mere thought that something can potentially kill me, makes me that scared?
No…this isn’t me running away from danger…
I’m not a coward, I made the right choice.
Even if I’m resistant to the reaper’s advances, that doesn’t mean I should be reckless.
That’s right…there’s nothing wrong with my decision making.
—-As I took the last detour through the alleyways, the light from the northern gate gradually filled my vision.
I’m almost there!
—BAM!!
Something hit me.
My head was enveloped in darkness as I collided head first into a person.
Then something surprising happened. After stabilizing himself, she stretched out with both her arms and hugged me??
Di Qi Ju: Err…please excuse, I was in a hurry…
Di Qi Ju: Can you let me go please? I’ll compensate you later…
Due to the heavy collision, I was pretty much buried in her chest at this moment. As I mumbled those words, I felt her body tremble slightly before those arms wrapped themselves around me even tighter.
??: You seem to be in a rush…exactly where are you headed off to?
Di Qi Ju:…??
This voice…
??: Furthermore…with such a scared look on your face…
??: What’s wrong with just staying with Sister Poppy…
Di Qi Ju:……
Di Qi Ju:That…
??: Mhm?
Di Qi Ju: Miss…Poppy?
??: Mhm.
There’s no mistaking it.
This warm voice. This light fragrance. It’s exactly the same as what I experienced in that hut.
Di Qi Ju: Miss Poppy…
Poppy: Mhm.
Di Qi Ju: Regarding that…actually, I have a friend who’s in mortal danger right now. I need to get help for him.
Poppy: —Those matters aren’t that important right…
Di Qi Ju:……
Poppy: There’s nothing…more important than you being alive right now.
Di Qi Ju: But…
Poppy: —I don’t want to!
The arms hugging me tightened even further. If this had been the previous me, I would’ve probably be in pain right now.
Di Qi Ju: You…you’ve changed…
Finally, she let go.
I lifted my head and stared at that familiar pretty face.
It was just as I remembered: that elegant face reminiscent of a flower, that placid and warm smile. But there was something different about her; there were tears dripping down the corners of her eyes…
Poppy: Even though it has only been a few days, but…it feels like we’ve been seperated for an eternity.
Di Qi Ju:…Yes…I feel the same way as well.
Poppy: I didn’t expect to meet you here…my business hasn’t even been settled.
Di Qi Ju: Miss Poppy…are you going to leave again?
Poppy: Probably…
Di Qi Ju:……
I don’t know why…but this sadness made me bury my head in her chest once more.
Poppy: But…
Poppy: Even if it’s just a couple of days, can you keep me company?
Di Qi Ju:—Mhm, definitely.
Poppy: That’s great. You’re my Little Ju after all.
Di Qi Ju:…
That sense of loss seemed to have retreated.
Why do I feel such a strong need to rely on her?
The previous me was a sole child so I had never gotten the chance to experience this feeling.
Perhaps, it’s kinship one feels towards a family member of the same generation; the kinship one feels towards a sister.
Or perhaps…it’s a different kind of affection?
Di Qi Ju: —–Ah, that’s right! I still have to save someone!
Di Qi Ju: Miss Poppy, can you help me as well?
Poppy: Hmm…sounds troublesome. Sounds like the kind of trouble that will waste our precious alone time.
Di Qi Ju: Don’t be like that, it’s a matter of life and death…
……
……
In a certain hospital, a certain seasonal wolf, dressed up as a human, was currently lying atop a hospital bed staring blankly at the ceiling.
Mo Chuan: …
Mo Chuan:…..
Mo Chuan: What happened to the enemy attack?
Mo Chuan: What happened to my reinforcements?
Mo Chuan:…why are neither of them here yet?
Footnotes:
Credits:
Special thanks to Steve Granger, Ichitsuzen, and LaRue Martin!!
