The next morning, Ye Lang was having breakfast with Xiao Rui at the restaurant, and Little Black, no, Edward, also appeared in the restaurant and sat with Ye Lang.
"Xiao Rui, aren't you eating again? Still on a diet?" Edward greeted her and asked casually. He didn't need to know the answer, and he knew Xiao Rui wouldn't answer him.
"Waiter, give me a salad, a fried egg... wait, and like him, soy milk and fried dough sticks..." Edward saw Ye Lang eating breakfast and suddenly wanted to try it too.
"Ye Lang, I have something to ask you!" Edward said to Ye Lang, his expression suddenly turning serious.
"What?" Ye Lang asked, his mouth full of fried dough sticks.
"When will my skin color return to normal?" Edward asked, pointing to his face.
Ye Lang looked Edward up and down and replied, "Your condition should improve in about two months. You've gotten much fairer!"
"White my foot! I'm still as black as coal!" Edward said, slightly annoyed.
"No, you used to be called Coal!" Ye Lang shook his head and said.
Edward continued, "And now?"
"Now, you're like slightly bleached coal!"
"..." Edward remained silent, then said weakly, "It's all the same, it's all coal!"
"Oh, right, even white coal is still coal. You are still coal. You need to continue being coal for ten days or so, and then you will become..." Ye Lang stopped here because he needed to find something suitable to describe it.
"..." What do you mean by constantly mentioning coal...?
Oh right, and then what does it become?
"Turn into what?" Edward asked.
"Chocolate!" Ye Lang replied when he saw someone eating a chocolate snack.
"..."
"I want to kill you!!" After a while, Edward said to Ye Lang through gritted teeth.
"Why? I haven't offended you." Ye Lang said calmly, as if to say—I don't understand, I'm innocent.
"You still say you didn't!! You bastard, isn't my condition due to your poison?" Edward roared, taking a big bite of the fried dough stick and tearing it off!
"Yes, but I accidentally took the wrong one!" Ye Lang said nonchalantly, showing no remorse for his mistake.
"It was an accident!! I was barely alive when you gave me poison. I wonder how I even survived!!" Edward feels both relieved and furious whenever he talks about it.
"I'm wondering the same thing. Maybe you're destined to be like Xiao Qiang!" Ye Lang replied, still indifferent.
"...Anyway, you have to help me get this sorted out now, I want to become white!!" Edward said.
"Why would you want to become fair-skinned? You're not a woman. Being dark-skinned is actually quite nice. Besides, it hasn't been that long. What's wrong with a man?" Ye Lang asked casually.
So many days have passed, Edward hasn't asked about it at all, clearly the kind of person who doesn't care. But now he's suddenly showing concern for it, so there must be something going on.
However, Ye Lang never cared about these things, and he continued to leisurely eat his breakfast!
"It didn't matter before because nothing was wrong, but now something is wrong. I need to turn white!" Edward said with a sigh as he looked outside, seemingly preoccupied with something on his mind.
"What's wrong?" Ye Lang stopped and looked at Edward's dark face, Edward's melancholy eyes seemed to become even more pronounced.
"Do you know why I'm here?" Edward asked Ye Lang, seemingly waiting for his answer.
"How would I know if you don't tell me!" Ye Lang replied directly. Edward hadn't mentioned this, nor had he asked, so it would be strange if he knew.
"..." Edward hesitated for a moment, "Ahem, well, let me tell you now, I didn't come here to have you lead the way..."
"I know, once we leave the mountains and get a carriage, I won't need you anymore!" Ye Lang interjected.
"..."
Damn, even if you don't need it, you don't have to be so direct!
"Alright, I'll be frank. I'm here for my sweetheart!" Edward chose to be straightforward this time because he was afraid that if he said anything more, Ye Lang would drive him crazy.
"Oh..." Ye Lang nodded, and then there was no more sound.
Edward was a little embarrassed. Why didn't this kid know how to respond or ask about the situation? For example—
Don't you want to know who my sweetheart is, and why I came here?
"What does this have to do with me? I'm leaving soon. I'm going to the Holy City. I don't have time to see your sweetheart." Ye Lang finished the last of the fried dough sticks and drank the soy milk, then prepared to pay the bill.
As Ye Lang said, he was about to go to the Holy City. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't care about Edward's sweetheart, let alone at this time.
"Wait a minute, you caused this mess, so you have to take responsibility for me. Otherwise, you're not leaving!!" Edward started to act shamelessly. He guessed that Ye Lang wouldn't care about his life or death, so he grabbed Ye Lang's hand and wouldn't let go.
At this moment, almost everyone stared at Ye Lang and Edward, completely stopping in their tracks, their mouths agape in disbelief!
It seems that everyone has misunderstood the relationship between the two, thinking that Ye Lang and Edward are buddies, and that Ye Lang started something and then abandoned it!
It's not just "seems," it is! Holy crap!!
"Don't get me wrong, we're not in that kind of relationship!" Edward quickly realized what everyone was thinking and then explained.
"What relationship?" Ye Lang asked, puzzled.
"... Hurry up and turn me back to normal! How can I face Kasha when I'm this dark?!" Edward didn't want to explain anything to Ye Lang, but this sentence was enough for everyone to understand.
So it turns out it was because he turned dark, and he was going to find Miss Kasha. He's just a normal man, but Miss Kasha wouldn't be interested in this charcoal-faced guy!
They all shook their heads and continued eating their breakfast. Their answer to whether Edward could successfully win over Miss Kasha was unanimous: absolutely impossible!
Miss Kasha is the daughter of the Lord of Alexandria City. She is a pampered and beloved young lady. She is beautiful and noble, and is the most desirable woman for all the men in Alexandria City. She also has suitors and admirers throughout the entire Aila Empire.
How could such a beautiful and privileged woman possibly fall for a dark-skinned guy like Edward? Unless she's blind!
"If you can't see him, then don't go. Will you die if you don't see him soon?" Ye Lang said casually. Since it wasn't him who was in a hurry, he was naturally very relaxed.