The Monk and the Water

Your dad's about to cry.

On the way back, Kang De looked back at the desolate figure peeking out from the Shadow and couldn't help but chuckle. Grand Duke Reknos was quite a character, in every sense of the word.

He turned to Tina and asked, "Is this alright?"

Tina walked to Kang De's right, very close. Their shoulders and arms occasionally brushed against each other as they walked, a gentle and warm sensation that was instantly felt. A faint fragrance wafted from them, making them feel refreshed and their hearts flutter. Meeting his gaze, the princess raised her hand and tucked her golden hair behind her ear, the sun-like radiance concealed behind her crystal-clear earlobes. The movement was graceful and alluring.

Instead of answering her father's question, she asked, "Is Kang De happy?"

"Um?"

"I mean, my father respects and appreciates you in public matters, values your interests, and respects your opinions, but on a private level, he suspects you, targets you, and resents you for stealing my heart..."

"You stole my heart," and so on—such shameful words of love flowed effortlessly from Tina's lips, like flowing water, perfectly complemented by her hesitant, unspoken gaze. It was simply irresistible.

She said softly, "So he harbors quite a grudge, often blurring the lines between public and private matters, and always targeting you, saying strange things. Although he doesn't mean any harm, over time, it will inevitably make you feel dissatisfied. So every time he targets you, I stand on your side and give him a good whack. Kang De finds it amusing, so he won't mind, right?"

"This..."

Kang De was speechless for a moment, never expecting that Tina's actions had such a purpose.

But this little trick isn't annoying at all.

Tina tilted her head and asked, "What's wrong?"

"No, I was just caught off guard," Kang De shook his head. "I didn't expect you to tell the truth so directly."

"Why lie? I bullied my own father for Kang De's sake. I'm good to Kang De, so naturally I should tell you so you know how much I care about your feelings. That's why I did these things for you. If you know how good I am, then if my father targets you again, you won't be upset. Instead, you'll look forward to how I'll get back at him. That way, our family will be harmonious. So why not tell him?"

She smiled sweetly and blinked her left eye, "Right?"

What you said makes a lot of sense.

Kang De was speechless again. "Actually, even if you hadn't done that, I wouldn't have done anything to your father. You're right, he separated public and private matters. As Archduke Goth, he treated Kang De, Cathayan, with utmost care and respect. As a father, all his words and actions stemmed from his love for you. Not all rulers act like a father. Although his behavior was somewhat naive, even unqualified as a ruler, I find it interesting."

He turned back to look at the furtive shadowy figure and called out loudly, "Your Highness, go to sleep early!"

The dark figure darted back like a startled rabbit.

Kang De smiled at Tina again, "It's a simple choice. A ruthless monarch who is extremely cunning, shrewd, and willing to sell his daughter without batting an eye, versus a somewhat sentimental monarch who values family but is ultimately unqualified—as an ally, which one would I rather deal with? The latter, of course."

"So, it's okay if you don't bully your father; he won't be able to sleep at night."

His tone was tinged with amusement.

Tina looked at him intently, then shook her head and said, "No, Father thinks you've taken me away, so his feelings towards you are complicated—a bit hostile and resentful. But in reality, Kang De didn't do anything, nor did he gain anything. It's too unfair for him to be hostile towards Father..."

As she said this, a smile played at the corners of her lips. She slowly leaned towards him, resting against Kang De, her bright eyes sweeping over him with a gentle glance. "How about I make it up to you first?"

The princess tiptoed and slowly leaned closer to Kang De's cheek, her sweet breath washing over him.

The next moment, a merciless iron hand reached out from the other side, covering Tina's mouth and Kang De's face.

A Xing poked its head out, its eyes filled with menacing intent.

Tina just chuckled.

--Having this idiot as the controller is actually quite useful, preventing things from going too far.

A Xing's gaze was somewhat complicated.

After the attack, she was determined to stay by Kang De's side. She had just been walking to Kang De's left, listening to Kang De talk to the Big Goldie, listening to Tina's sweet words, listening to Tina express her feelings, listening to those gentle words, watching her graceful and elegant posture, every glance and smile... the feeling...

It's like a bronze-level noob watching helplessly as a top-tier player climbs the ranks like crazy.

She felt the difference in their skill levels, which was overwhelming, just like the difference in their fighting abilities. A Xing felt both envious and jealous, and thought that she would never be able to learn to say such things in her entire life.

Especially Tina's smiling face now, which made her even more unhappy.

Although the A Xing had only recently become human, it still retained its animal instincts and animalistic way of thinking.

Her instincts told her that she had to do something.

In a flash, A Xing reached out and turned Kang De's body so that he was facing Tina. A Xing hugged him from behind, resting his chin on Kang De's right shoulder, and then pulled Kang De back two steps.

"You just tried to kiss him?"

She saw the look of surprise and disbelief on Tina's face, and a smug smile appeared on her face. This method really worked. At this moment, she recalled the teaching videos provided by Horus. The people in the videos spoke unfamiliar languages, but she could still feel their souls in them.

One of the most memorable stories was about a swordsman dressed in black carrying two swords. She felt that the current situation was like a scene from a video, only with the genders reversed.

She hugged Kang De tightly, gently rubbing against him with an expression of enjoyment. As she did so, she glanced at Tina's expression, her tone becoming strange. "You just tried to kiss her?"

As she spoke, she slowly stuck out her tongue, drawing circles in the air, and slowly brought it closer to Kang De's face, revealing a bewitching look and a wicked smile.

--Tina's eyes showed even greater hesitation.

Success! At this moment A Xing finally understood her advantage. She could completely do this and that to Kang De in front of Tina, and the other party could only watch helplessly.

The thought of this filled her with a strange sense of joy.

That was so exciting!

This feeling.

She understood the true meaning behind the images Horus showed her.

At this moment, the hair color of A Xing and Tina was swapped on a spiritual level.

The next moment, she felt her body lighten and her feet leave the ground.

Kang De bent down, lifted A Xing, who was hugging her from behind, and then grasped A Xing's thighs with both hands, pulling them to her sides and patting her lightly. "Silly girl, who taught you that?"

A Xing first let out a scream in surprise, then hugged Kang De's neck tightly. The moment Kang De carried her on his back, all the strange thoughts and resentment in her mind completely disappeared. Lying on his broad back, she could smell his scent, and she instantly calmed down.

On the island, she carried Kang De on her back; now, it's Kang De's turn to carry her.

It feels completely different.

Kang De shrugged, glanced at Tina was still standing there in a daze, and shook his head, saying, "Let's go, it's time to rest."

Tina glanced at Kang De, then at the A Xing clinging to Kang De like an ostrich, and smiled.

Isn't that fine?

Under the moonlight, the girl on Kang De's back, with short, fiery red hair, walked beside him like an elegant princess, graceful as the moon. The three of them walked together, their silhouettes intertwined on the stone path, inseparable.

Tina chuckled softly, "It's like a family of three."

A Xing, who had been lying silently on Kang De's back with a flushed face, muttered, "Who says we're family?"

The princess chuckled and said, "Can't I even be a daughter?"

"..."

As expected, A Xing showed signs of wavering.

Fine.

Tina breathed a slight sigh of relief—she really was a fool; she had just gotten lucky.

Go back to your room.

This is Tina's room.

After Kang De's attack, the princess made an incredibly firm decision. Given that an unknown enemy was spying and probing, she had to strengthen her defenses. She had already lost once; she couldn't afford to lose a second time.

Therefore, it is essential to be with Kang De.

"So this is your room..."

The maids opened the door, bowed, and retreated. In the meantime, they had moved all of Kang De's personal belongings into the room, and it didn't feel crowded at all; Tina's room was quite large.

This was the first time a man other than her father and brothers had entered her room. Tina's face flushed, and her fingers unconsciously twitched. Since the night of Glittering Sand, the princess had undergone a transformation. Her temperament had been honed during the months-long war against the elves, making her decisive, efficient, and highly capable, no longer the shy girl she once was.

"From today onwards, this is your room too." She made a bold statement, then added somewhat uneasily, "Won't it look a little strange?"

The most abundant thing was books. On the desk, on the floor, and on the bookshelves, stacks of books were neatly piled up. Before the war, Tina was famous throughout the continent for her beauty and erudition. After the war, Goth's budding rose was watered with steel and blood, and blossomed with new colors.

Kang De saw his fire axe hanging on the wall. Famous paintings on the wall surrounded swords and shields, and the princess's pink gauze curtains and dreamy bed were surrounded by books, flowers and weapons, like a rose protected by thorns, sharp and aggressive, but able to bloom brilliantly.

Her eyes silently conveyed to whom the steel rose blooms.

Kang De smiled and said, "Very good, I like it very much."

"The bed is very comfortable, isn't it?"

"..."

Let's sleep together tonight.

"..."

So, they slept together.

Although he didn't intend to go this far, Tina's eyes made it impossible for him to refuse. When she made her request, the girl held his hand, and Kang De felt that Tina's hand was very cold. Looking into her eyes, he could still feel the girl's lingering unease, fear, and lingering dread. She must have been terrified tonight.

The bed is quite big.

Lying in bed, it was indeed very comfortable. An alluring fragrance filled the room; I couldn't tell if it was perfume or body odor, a subtle scent or the aroma of flesh.

Tina was close at hand, lying on her side. In the darkness, her starlight-like eyes were visible as she stared at him without blinking. Her loose nightgown revealed a deep cleavage, making Kang De want to sing a song about the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Yes, right before her eyes, a graceful curve lying on its side, with undulating peaks and ridges, appearing as a mountain range from the side and a sharp peak from the front, vast in both distance and height. Noticing Kang De's gaze, Tina smiled softly in the darkness, her right hand slowly moving upwards, gently hooking, her bosom lowered, and the true face of Mount Lu became clearer and clearer.

Kang De sighed.

Tina's playful chuckle reached my ears.

A beautiful woman shares a bed with him, so close they could touch.

At that moment Kang De recalled that beastly joke, the story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, and many upright gentlemen. He remained unmoved like the sages of the past, for one reason only.

--A slender, green hand reached out from behind and gave Tina the middle finger as she distributed the benefits.

This is a story about a monk and water.

There were three monks inside the house.

"... Is this necessary?"

"Have."

From the sofa came the calm voice of the Sword Saint Cascading Snow: "I must protect your safety and uphold Teldrassil's honor. If the three of you are willing to risk it, then do it."

The A Xing behind Kang De let out a smug laugh.

The enchanting atmosphere and the stalemate were like a nimble hunting A Xing, guarding its territory and the clear boundary between Tina and Kang De. Whenever Tina made a move, she would see the middle finger raised by the A Xing as a warning. Even if Kang De pretended to be asleep and moved his body, the A Xing would gently put him back in his place.

Moreover, an older woman was watching closely from not far away.

Unable to do anything, Kang De lay there for half the night, returning to the White Mist World several times to cool his body, then came back with a saintly smile, and finally fell into a soft sleep.

Unbeknownst to the sleeping Kang De, in the darkness, Tina and A Xing's eyes met. While Kang De was doing his pre-sleep exercise in the White Mist World, time continued to flow in the other world. Some kind of agreement was secretly reached in his absence, and he was completely unaware of it, just like a Czechia representative.

When he woke up early in the morning, he opened his eyes and was met with beautiful eyes as blue as the sky. Tina's eyes were like water and light, as if they could speak, gazing at time with full affection.

The princess remained lying on her side, gazing at his face.

"Good morning."

Her smile was as warm as spring, like a hundred flowers in full bloom.

Kang De firmly believed that smiles could heal people.

His ex-wife, a Japan surnamed Aragaki, had that ability.

"Good morning."

He sat up and looked back. On the other side, A Xing rubbed his eyes, yawned, and squinted as he sidled up to him.

A figure sat up on the sofa not far away and stretched.

Kang De, twenty years old, is a student who now lives a harem life surrounded by beautiful girls.

What should we have for breakfast?

In Tina's room, breakfast was made back in the White Mist World. The atmosphere was quite harmonious, but the presence of the Sword Saint Cascading Snow made it seem somewhat out of place.

To this, the Sword Saint's expression turned stern, his face full of disdain. "If Reknos hadn't begged me with tears streaming down his face, I wouldn't have bothered with such trivial matters. Hmph, do you think I would care about this?"

Tina looked at her aunt with a strange scrutiny in her eyes, then her gaze met that of A Xing, and finally, a smile appeared on the princess's lips.

The biggest rival is A Xing. As long as this problem is handled well, everything else is nothing to worry about. Because the growth of feelings requires time spent together and maintenance. As long as she is by Kang De's side day and night, the feelings will grow deeper and deeper. She will be the one who wins. Phoenix King and everyone else are no match for her.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. The maid stood respectfully by the door, and after receiving permission, stepped forward and said to Kang De, "Your Highness, people from Valentan have arrived. Leading them is your compatriot, named Hong San."

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PS1: I woke up with a headache, sore throat, and a cough... I've caught a cold again.