Star Rail, Single Draw Acheron at the Start

Qiong almost jumped out of his chair in shock. He never expected Firefly, who had separated from him, to appear here. If she were his wife, Qiong might have said, "It's about time you're here." But as it was, her arrival was anything but good.

"Oh, and who is this?" Robin asked, her voice filled with curiosity.

"Hey there, you! Big star, I'm Qiong's girlfriend. I was so happy to see you all that I just had to come over."

Firefly smiled at Robin, then moved from her seat to sit next to Qiong, hugging his arm tightly as she introduced herself.

Qiong felt his arm sink into something soft and large. He hadn't expected Firefly to be the type of girl who looked slender even when dressed. Just as he was feeling happy, he noticed Robin's scrutinizing gaze on him.

"This, this is, hahaha, what a beautiful day."

Qiong was already sweating profusely. Firefly's appearance here wasn't entirely unexpected, as this was her favorite shop. But her timing seemed too coincidental. He was pursuing Robin, and this unexpected appearance felt like sabotage, especially with how intimate she was acting. Firefly had blushed just from holding hands before; how had she become so bold after just a short separation?

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Chapter 61: The Wingman Arrives

"You scoundrel, you swore eternal love to me before, and now you've moved on to another woman. How much of what you told me was actually true?"

Firefly leaned against Qiong, gazing at him affectionately. Her every charming complaint made his bones go soft, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl up.

"Of course, it was all true. But I'm a bit busy here. Perhaps we could talk about this later..."

Qiong said with a troubled expression. He had only just confirmed his relationship with Firefly, and it was difficult to distance himself from her. But Robin was more important right now. It wasn't that Qiong favored her, but this was supposed to be Robin's time.

"What do you mean 'later'? Are you saying I can't compare to her? Just because she has two extra wings, she's trying to steal my man."

Firefly's eyes widened with anger upon hearing this. She grabbed Qiong's cheek and twisted it fiercely, giving off a vibe of a physically aggressive girlfriend. Qiong grimaced in pain but could only endure it silently. He had decided to have a harem, so he couldn't always have the good parts; sometimes, he'd have to take a beating.

"Miss Firefly, I think you might have misunderstood something."

Robin, who had been contemplating the ice cream in front of her, couldn't pretend not to hear Firefly's aggressive words.

"What misunderstanding?" Firefly asked, displeased.

"There's no comparison between the two of us. Regardless of your relationship with Qiong, he chose to ask me out, not you."

Robin said with a smile. Qiong was surprised by her swift counterattack and glanced at her, but he quickly remembered Robin's status within the Family. She wasn't some delicate flower; she must have learned things beyond singing, otherwise, how could she be the younger sister of the Family Head?

"Instead of trying to trip me up now, why don't you think about why Qiong chose me instead of you?"

"You, you this!"

Firefly's face turned red. She pointed at Robin, but for a moment, she couldn't say anything. After all, she was already at a disadvantage. Her intention in barging in and confronting Robin was to drive her away, but instead, she was being mocked.

"Firefly, Firefly, don't be angry. How about a bite of your favorite oak cake roll?"

Seeing Firefly upset, Qiong quickly speared a slice of the oak cake roll with his fork and offered it to her. Seeing her favorite food presented before her, Firefly opened her mouth and took a bite.

"So, are you saying you're siding with her? Between her and me, who do you choose?"

Firefly chewed the oak cake roll, swallowing it down as if it were Robin's chicken wings, and then asked Qiong resentfully.

"Only children make choices; I want them all."

Qiong never made choices. Many people had asked him this before, but his answer was always that he wanted everything.

"Robin, did you hear that? Qiong is a super flirtatious scumbag. Are you willing to be ruined by him with your noble status?"

Firefly changed her tune and spoke to Robin. Although it seemed like she was trying to sow discord, she was Qiong's girlfriend now. It could also be seen as her not wanting her boyfriend to be snatched away, so she was badmouthing Qiong to make Robin retreat.

"I don't think my status is that noble. Whether it's my status in the Family or as a singer, I just want to be myself. As for Qiong's affairs, this is just the beginning. Who knows how the story will end?"

Robin said with a smile. The more Firefly wanted her to leave, the more she didn't want to. The word "sensible" could also be interpreted as cowardly. If she retreated now and gave Qiong to Firefly, wouldn't that be a complete loss? As one of the leaders of the Family, she naturally had her own principles.

Qiong's face lit up with a happy smile. He smugly raised an eyebrow at Firefly, implying that his charm was indeed effective and had already captivated Robin.

Firefly, meanwhile, gritted her teeth in frustration. She felt that things were not developing as she had expected. Whether Qiong had issues was another matter, but Robin definitely did. This was completely different from the Robin she knew.

"Ah Qiong, will you go shopping with me later? What emotional value do you get from being with this dull bird? You can only feel happy with me."

Firefly quickly came up with another plan. She tightly hugged Qiong's arm, pulling him closer, and said in a soft, pleading tone.

"This is bad, this pressure is too much..."

Qiong felt the pressure from Firefly's chest up close, confirming once again that she had a great figure. He was already feeling giddy.

"In that case, I also have a place I want to go later. Could you perhaps lead the way, Qiong?"

Robin's calm voice cut through, like a bucket of cold water dousing Qiong. He immediately sobered up.

"Of course, I can."

"If you come with me, when we get to a place where no one is around, I'll give you the reward you like. You can have anything you want."

Firefly's expression was one of disdain. Her bargaining chips were far more numerous than Robin's. The benefits that the little bird dared not give, she could give freely. She then whispered into Qiong's ear, her words full of innuendo.

Robin remained silent this time, only looking at Qiong with her clear eyes. She wanted to see what choice this man would make. Rather than seeing it as a spat between her and Firefly, it was more like a test for Qiong.

"I'm sorry, Firefly, but I still need to accompany Robin."

Qiong said, pulling his arm out of Firefly's embrace. Firefly was stunned. She couldn't understand why. Even with her throwing herself at him, she wasn't as appealing as Robin, who wasn't cooperating with Qiong at all.

"Is it that the easier something is to obtain, the less value it holds?"

Firefly asked sadly. Honestly, this was quite a blow to her confidence as a woman. She was doing everything to please Qiong, yet he was disregarding her. It was simply unfair.

"No, I want to be close to you too. But first, this is my date with Robin, and second, I genuinely care about you. I hope you can also cherish yourself a little. It's not too late to talk about these things once our relationship improves."

Qiong held Firefly's hand and replied to her seriously, which made Firefly's expression very complicated. She wanted to say something, but it was difficult to speak given their situation.

"Alright, that's all I wanted to say to Firefly. Now, I have something to say to you."

Qiong changed the subject with a smile, and Firefly looked somewhat taken aback. She didn't understand what Qiong meant, but the next moment, she was pulled into his embrace.

"What?"

Just as Firefly tried to struggle, she found Qiong leaning in and kissing her lips. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she was speechless for a moment.

Chapter 62: This Is Too Joyful

"Mmph mmph!"

Firefly raised her hand and tapped Qiong's shoulder. Robin, standing beside them, covered her mouth in surprise, her two ear-wings fluttering slightly, indicating her inner emotional turmoil.

"Have you kissed anyone else? No, right? Your first kiss belongs to me, Lord Qiong!"

After kissing Firefly, Qiong separated from her, pointing to his own face with his thumb triumphantly.

"You despicable fellow, when did you find out!"

Firefly's eyes turned red with anger, her irises shifting to a wine-red color, with a butterfly shape beneath her pupils. It was clear she wasn't Firefly, but someone impersonating her.

"I knew something was wrong from the moment you approached me. Since I know there's a being who can shapeshift into anyone lurking by my side, how could I not be on guard?"

Qiong spread his hands, explaining. His understanding of women was profound. The biggest mistake this person made was impersonating a woman Qiong knew. Even if every detail was imitated perfectly, many things couldn't be replicated, such as tone of voice and certain behaviors.

"And you, before you disguised yourself, you should have paid attention to the character. Firefly isn't the type of girl who would be jealous or play with her own purity. Even if she likes me very much, she wouldn't initiate something like this; she'd wait for me."

"There's something I find strange, Masked Fool. Why do you keep targeting me? Is it because the people you mentioned are all hiding behind the scenes, and you're here to help me specifically?"

Qiong asked the Masked Fool before him. He hadn't known her identity before, but after talking with Acheron, he realized this ability was likely unique to the Masked Fool, and she was one of the invited guests.

"That's not it at all! It would be great if a despicable and shameless person like you died. Why would I help you?"

The Masked Fool exclaimed in exasperation. She had suffered a huge loss this time, having already been greatly disadvantaged by the groping incident, and now she had even lost her first kiss. She had never suffered such humiliation since she started her career.

"Could it be because I'm also partly a follower of Joy? This thing is still with me."

Qiong opened his Dream Journal, rummaged through it, and pulled out a red metal mask, tossing it out.

The Masked Fool recognized the Fool's Mask. This was the invitation to enter the Path of Joy. She had one herself, but Qiong's had not been used yet.

As soon as the Fool's Mask appeared, it let out a silent scoff at the Masked Fool. It had been thoroughly entertained watching Qiong's antics from the sidelines. Seeing other Masked Fools suffer was, in a way, a form of joy.

"Indeed, I've been watching you for so long, and you truly seem like someone who builds happiness on the suffering of others."

The Masked Fool said through gritted teeth. No matter how she looked at Qiong now, he seemed like a scoundrel. All her suffering was caused by him, while the aura of pleasure around him only grew stronger.

"I'll let you win this time. Next time, I will definitely get my revenge."

After uttering this threat, the Masked Fool threw down a fox mask, identical to the previous one, and disappeared before Qiong's eyes. Qiong collected it as a trophy, feeling as though he had collected three and could exchange them for a grand prize.

"You knew she was fake all along?"

Robin asked curiously. She hadn't met Firefly before, so she only felt this girl was impolite, even calling herself chicken wings. Knowing she was fake, she was no longer angry.

"Something like that. Actually, you can't really blame the Masked Fool for being too foolish. My friend has a complicated background. To imitate her behavior, one must first get close to her and understand her. But this Masked Fool probably sensed that if she got too close, she'd be utterly annihilated, so she could only use the most primitive method: disguising the body but not the mind."

Qiong nodded and explained to Robin. Robin became interested, finding the existence of Masked Fools in dreams to be quite colorful.

"Does that mean she could also impersonate me or my brother?"

Robin frowned. She could see that the Masked Fool had a rivalry with Qiong, which was fine, but she was afraid that person would repeat the same trick, disguising herself as Robin and doing something embarrassing like what just happened while Qiong was interacting with other women. Robin was also worried about paparazzi finding out, which would truly cause a huge scandal.

"It's certainly possible, but I think with how well you and Brother Sunday understand each other, you'd see through any disguise at a glance."

Qiong nodded. He didn't know where the Masked Fool's true form was, so this was just a matter of being constantly vigilant and keeping his eyes open.

"Why are you calling me brother like that? When did I become your brother?"

Robin asked Qiong with a displeased expression. It was the first time she had heard someone call her brother like that, but she secretly smiled, deciding to try calling him that informally next time.

"Oh, don't mind those little details. Isn't it only a matter of time?"

Qiong covered his ears, pretending not to hear Robin's complaint. Robin didn't dwell on the matter and began to eat her ice cream in small bites. In the dream world, the ice cream wouldn't even melt, always remaining at its best texture.

Sunday, sitting at another seat, felt his blood pressure surge again upon hearing this. Qiong dared to call him brother now; he couldn't imagine what he'd call him later. What was even harder for him to accept was that his sister had simply defaulted to it. Shouldn't she have been angrier? Had all her anger been redirected to him?

"By the way, where did you want to go before?" Qiong changed the subject.

"The Clock Boy specialty merchandise store."

"Huh?"

Qiong's mouth fell open as he looked at Robin. He suspected he had misheard. He had expected Robin to want to go somewhere romantic, high-class, or with special significance, but this merchandise store was completely outside Qiong's knowledge base.

Seeing Qiong's dumbfounded expression, Robin couldn't help but laugh. She actually wanted to pick a berry from her ice cream and pop it into Qiong's mouth; he looked perfect for it right now. However, the thought was immediately suppressed. Their relationship wasn't that close.

"Don't you know Clock Boy? He's Penacony's biggest star! His story has aired for over ten thousand episodes..."

Robin said, crossing her arms and speaking with an adoring expression about her love for Clock Boy. It was only then that Qiong realized... that Clock Boy hadn't been bragging; he truly was a household name.

"Did you grow up watching the Clock Boy cartoons?" Qiong asked.

"Yes, I was born in Penacony. Clock Boy accompanied me through my entire childhood."

Robin nodded. There was nothing to hide; everyone in the universe knew where she was born. With the Clock Boy animation being popular for so many years, it had naturally accompanied hundreds of generations through their childhoods.

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Chapter 63: Grandpa Clock

"If Clock Boy appeared before you and told you that I was the most important man in your life and wanted to set up a red thread, what would you think?"

Qiong tentatively asked Robin for her thoughts. Pursuing a girl, of course, meant using any means available. Coincidentally, he really did know Clock Boy.

"That's a strange question. If Clock Boy really existed, I think I would listen to its advice."

Robin tilted her head at Qiong, not quite understanding him as before, but she was getting used to it.

Upon hearing this, Qiong immediately perked up. He bent down and crawled under the table, searching everywhere for the short figure.

"Grandpa Clock, Grandpa Clock, come out quickly..."

"What are you doing? This is so embarrassing."

Robin was mortified. They were having a perfectly normal conversation, and Qiong suddenly started performing performance art. Although no one knew her identity now, watching him scurry around under the table made her feel like she couldn't take it.

"I'm looking for Clock Boy. From now on, it's my grandpa!"

Qiong explained sincerely. Robin was momentarily lost in thought. Being as intelligent as she was, she understood Qiong's intention. Combining it with his previous words, he was going to find Clock Boy to help them connect.

"Sigh, can't you be more serious? Instead of pinning your hopes on a fictional character, can't you just try harder to be good to me? At least I'm real."

Robin said with a wry smile. She grabbed Qiong's arm and pulled him out from under the table, starting to reason with him.

"Hahaha, sorry, I really didn't think of that. In that case, are you willing to accept my kindness?"

Qiong chuckled awkwardly after hearing Robin's words, but her change in attitude made him very happy. Didn't this mean she had feelings for him?

"I never refuse the cheers and gifts from my audience. Accepting them is something that gives positive feedback to both parties, so why refuse?"

Robin said with a smile. She wasn't really a big star. The biggest obstacle to getting close to Robin wasn't how to make her happy, but how to bypass Family and Sunday. Even though they hadn't known each other for long, Qiong could feel that Robin was a gentle, kind, and good girl.

"Robin, you're so good. I knew I was attracted to you not just for your looks, but also for your pure heart."

Qiong grinned and reached out to grab Robin's hand. It was the perfect time to make a move, but Robin was already on guard. She raised her hand and dodged Qiong's grab, looking at him scrutinizingly.