Chapter 282

Chapter Sixty-Nine A Friend’s Stay

I didn’t even want to open the iron gate; I leaped over the wall directly and kept running toward the neighboring house. As I was about to reach the front gate of the second mansion, I suddenly remembered some things from last night, and my pace gradually slowed down.

…Is it really okay for me to go find her like this?

If Victoria is truly who she is, wouldn’t she misunderstand something…

She’s so smart; she must have noticed something from my reaction last night. She knows that I’ve figured out she likes women… If that’s the case, then going to see her now would be like tempting her!

Thinking this, I stopped in my tracks, looking at the iron gate right in front of me, suddenly feeling hesitant.

…What if she really thinks that way, what should I do…

I have no idea how to face this… I don’t want Victoria to dislike me.

Because I really like her. I like her reliable character, her indomitable spirit. I want to talk to her often, to become very good friends with her. But…百合, although it seems happy in novels, in reality… such things, I never considered them at all.

How long have I been in this world?

Almost a year… maybe close to a year.

When I first woke up in Woodward’s Forest, I understood nothing. I faced a terrible battle, but fortunately survived. Later, I entered a small village and lived a peaceful and comfortable life for a while.

That time, I was really happy. There was no pressure, almost feeling that life should be like this, until the Abyss destroyed everything.

So I hate them, those monsters like me.

Since then, some emotions have been deeply buried in my heart. I desperately want to kill as many monsters from the Abyss as possible… That’s why I left Santel Fort, left my mother who was reluctant to let me go, and came to the capital with Carlos.

Then that guy abandoned me and left… What a jerk! Thinking of him makes me angry.

I originally came here full of anticipation to learn, but now I’m a bit disappointed… The order course will probably start in the latter half of the year. The famous Royal Academy Library had little information on the Abyss. Looking back, only Teresa’s class actually helped me… It’s really not funny.

Now a new Abyss has finally appeared. Although it’s not far from the capital, Margaret keeps hindering me from going there, I—

Forget it.

I’ve thought too far ahead.

I’m just full of these thoughts, neglecting an important point—perhaps subconsciously, I never cared, but now I indeed have a female body and I’m still underage.

Although I’ve always been a strong man.

I could never like men, just thinking about it gives me goosebumps… But if it were a woman, what should I do?

Could I accept it…

My mind instinctively imagined tightly hugging Victoria, then closing my eyes and kissing… Then…

“Oh!”

I gently stomped my foot, covering my face.

It’s a bit embarrassing. But it seems… not so unpleasant…?

Well, if it really is like that…

My cheeks flushed slightly, and I started to daydream. Imagining myself lying next to Victoria, what would happen next… if we did such and such things… us… uh…

The sudden inexplicable emotion was instantly cooled down by cold water, making me uncomfortable inside.

No.

I can’t accept it…

What should I do? Maybe I should just go back…

I glanced back at my little house still lit by candlelight behind me, stood there for a moment, then shook my head vigorously.

No way!

But I’m scared…

If I don’t go find Victoria, who else could I find… Sarah? Sophia? I don’t even know where they live…

“Are you coming in or not?”

“Eh!”

A clear female voice from above startled me, almost making me jump, but I quickly looked up.

Victoria, dressed in a red dress, hovered quietly in the sky, her golden hair dancing without wind. She held a wide-mouthed incense cup in one hand and pressed her skirt with the other, hovering not far from the mansion wall, looking down at me with indifference.

My heart suddenly panicked.

“Why are you here!”

Damn… I was so engrossed in my thoughts that I didn’t notice her at all. When did she get there? Did she see all my reactions… Did I do anything embarrassing?

Hopefully not…

“That’s what I should ask you. What are you doing here?”

I rolled my eyes: “I, I couldn’t sleep… so I went out for a walk.”

“A walk? You’ve been here for nearly twenty minutes.” Victoria mercilessly exposed me, “Walking back and forth in front of the mansion, occasionally stopping to sway. You look silly, as if you’re worrying about something. If you have something to say to me, come in. I don’t like seeing you always worrying over trivial matters, it annoys me.”

“Uh…”

She really saw it, and said I was swaying… Did I sway my waist? Completely unaware, why did I do such a thing! So embarrassing…

Act like it doesn’t matter and cover it up.

“Victoria.” I glared at her angrily.

“What?”

“You… in the future, don’t scold me.”

After saying this, I was actually prepared for her to criticize me further, but unexpectedly, Victoria

I nodded decisively.

“Okay.”

She turned and drifted toward the courtyard.

“Don’t stand there, come in.”

“…Oh.”

There was a click as the maid opened the iron gate a crack.

I glanced once more toward my own house, hesitated for a moment, but still walked inside.

The courtyard of House No. 2 hadn’t changed much from when I last visited. The lawn seemed even more lush, appearing vibrant yet chaotic. Clearly, Victoria hadn’t put much thought or effort into its maintenance.

At this moment, she was lying half on a rocking chair in the gazebo, holding a wine glass and gazing at the moon. Her fiery red dress fanned out beneath the chair like a blooming rose in midsummer.

I hesitated, then walked over and sat down opposite her. I grabbed a thumb-sized orange fruit from the fruit platter in front of me and swallowed it whole, chewing quickly.

“Lez fruit… Ah, phew!”

I grimaced, spitting out the contents of my mouth onto the ground.

“Ew, ew… This is so bitter.”

What is this? So sour and bitter…

Victoria took a small sip of her wine, her eyes looking over at me calmly.

“Lez fruit can be eaten or used to make alcohol. You need to peel it first.”

“…Why didn’t you say that earlier?” I complained somewhat.

“You didn’t ask.” She swirled the wine in her glass, her cheeks flushed with a captivating rosy hue. Raising her glass, she invited me, “Rum, do you want some?”

A faint aroma of alcohol wafted into my nose, and I frowned slightly.

“Why are you drinking again…”

As I spoke, I reached out for the fruit platter once more, picked up another fruit, and began peeling it obediently.

Seeing that I had no intention of drinking, Victoria stopped urging me and leaned lazily back into the rocking chair, half-closing her eyes. “Well, what brings you here?”

I immediately looked away from her and focused on the fruit in my hand. “Nothing, just bored…”

How should I tell her? It feels so hard to say… It’s such a simple thing to say.

…Maybe, I’ll just stay for a while and leave?

“You said you couldn’t sleep?” Victoria asked.

“Mmm…” I responded absentmindedly.

“You’re going to bed so early?”

“I’m tired.”

After peeling the fruit, I sniffed it and threw it into my mouth, taking a big bite.

The sweet and sour juice burst in my mouth, and I couldn’t help but squint. My lips curled up, but froze in the next second.

So sour!!!

“Ptoo, ptoo—”

I was so sour that tears almost came to my eyes. My saliva dripped down my chin like a string, and I shivered uncontrollably, spitting out everything in my mouth and glaring up fiercely.

“Victoria! What is this!”

She must be playing a trick on me! Ugh, I’m so annoyed!

“Lez fruit, usually used for cooking or making cocktails, like this.” Victoria’s tone was slightly teasing.

She grabbed a Lez fruit, used her fingernail to peel off a bit of the skin, held it above the wine glass, and squeezed gently. The transparent juice dropped into the glass, blending with the wine. Then she raised the glass and swirled it lightly, watching me with interest.

Seeing this made me even angrier. “You said it could be eaten!”

“Some people eat it directly.”

“How can you eat something so sour!”

This is even more sour than a lemon, sour enough to make my teeth sensitive.

“I thought you could eat anything.”

“You think I eat anything! You try eating one!”

“I won’t.”

“Why not?!”

“It’s too sour.”

“…”

I glared at Victoria fiercely, turning my head away and refusing to talk to her anymore.

Annoying… Argh, I hate this so much!

I was angry.

So I stared at the pillar of the gazebo beside me, challenging it. Soon after, I smelled an unusually strong smell of alcohol and suddenly turned my head to see Victoria’s face close by.

Her body leaned forward slightly, her head leaning in, her golden eyes unblinkingly staring at me, her breath carrying the scent of alcohol blowing against my face.

“Alcohol stench!”

I frowned and pushed her away.

The smell of alcohol is really strong… Has she already drunk half a bottle? How much has she had!

My eyes flicked to the rum bottle on the table, noticing it was nearly empty…

I snatched the bottle and hugged it tightly. “You can’t drink anymore.”

Victoria reclined comfortably again, sipped the last drop from her cup, and her crimson lips curved slightly.

“Sure. But first, tell me why you came here tonight.”

“Uh…”

I hesitated for a moment, feeling embarrassed and closed my eyes. “It’s just…”

“Just?”

“Just… I had a nightmare earlier.”

Ah… I said it.

“Mmm. And?”

“I… I’m scared.”

Since I’ve already said it, I might as well be bold. No matter what, I don’t want to go back, to sleep alone in the vast mansion…

“Can I… stay here tonight?”

I tried to act as natural as possible, like staying over at a friend’s place… Silvia, this isn’t a big deal, it’s completely normal. The more nervous you are, the more Victoria will sense something is off. She might get the wrong idea and imagine all sorts of things.

But I still felt a bit nervous, my fingers under the table intertwining.

Victoria looked at me indifferently for a moment.

“Sure.”

She placed the empty glass on the table, nodded slowly at me, and her lips seemed to curve even higher.

“But I don’t have a guest room.”