Is This a Date This Time?

"Oh, then I'll start."

Looking at the alluring Mei in front of him, Dong Moxuan quietly swallowed.

"Mm..."

Mei nodded lightly, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

Seeing this, Dong Moxuan took a breath and forcibly calmed himself down.

"Eek~"

A little nervous, Dong Moxuan accidentally touched Mei's fair back, making her cry out in surprise.

"Miss Mei..."

Mei's overly intense reaction left Dong Moxuan torn between laughter and exasperation. He said helplessly, "Could you not make such strange noises? Honestly... it sounds a little risqué..."

"Mm~"

Upon hearing the word "risqué," Mei became so embarrassed she nearly fainted. All she could do was urge him on.

"M-Mr. Xuan, hurry, hurry up..."

"Bear with it a little longer. It'll be done soon."

"Eek~"

"What is it this time?"

Mei's sudden cry made Dong Moxuan's hands tremble, and he nearly tore the dress open.

"The zipper, the zipper caught my flesh..."

Mei's voice was incredibly timid, and she looked utterly pitiful.

Seeing her like that, Dong Moxuan found it difficult to say anything more.

He coughed twice and said, "I'll be careful on my end. Just bear with it a little longer. It'll only hurt for a moment. It'll be done soon, very soon."

"Mm..."

Mei nodded lightly.

Dong Moxuan had not been lying. He only had to pull up the zipper, and in less than a minute, he had finished his task.

"All done!"

Dong Moxuan wiped at the nonexistent sweat on his forehead and felt slightly relieved.

On the other side, sensing Dong Moxuan's hands moving away, Mei's rapidly beating heart gradually calmed down as well.

"It's really very th—whoa!"

Mei turned around with a faint blush on her cheeks, intending to thank Dong Moxuan.

However, she was perhaps too nervous. She accidentally stepped on the hem of the white dress and fell straight toward Dong Moxuan.

Seeing this, Dong Moxuan instinctively reached out and caught Mei before she fell. Then...

"Bang!"

Accompanied by a dull thud, Dong Moxuan slammed directly into the wall of the fitting room.

Mei, meanwhile, fell straight into Dong Moxuan's arms, her soft and curvaceous body pressed firmly against him.

"M-Mr. Xuan..."

Hearing the somewhat muffled impact, Mei had no time to care about their ambiguous position and hurriedly asked with concern, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

With one arm around Mei and the other braced against the wall, Dong Moxuan straightened up. It had only been a bump. With his physique as a deathsworn, it was nothing at all.

"Speaking of which, are you all right, Mei?"

"I'm fi—"

Hearing Dong Moxuan's question, Mei was about to look up and answer.

However, Dong Moxuan happened to be lowering his head to look at Mei at that moment, and then...

Nothing as clichéd as an accidental kiss happened, but the distance between their cheeks was less than a centimeter.

Mei had never been so close to a boy in her entire life.

Feeling the hot breath coming from Dong Moxuan's mouth, Mei's body stiffened, and her mind instantly went blank.

On the other side, being so suddenly close to Mei, Dong Moxuan was also stunned by the girl's beauty at such close range.

However, he was far more composed than the inexperienced Mei. After staring blankly for only a few seconds, he gently released her and coughed.

"Ahem. It looks like you're fine too, Mei. I'll head out first."

With that, Dong Moxuan opened the fitting-room door and left.

"..."

For a long while after Dong Moxuan left, Mei stood there in a daze.

It took nearly a minute for Mei to come back to her senses.

Then...

"Wuu~"

She covered her face with both hands and crouched directly on the floor.

"I can't face anyone anymore..."

Feeling the astonishing heat in her cheeks, Mei moaned in shame and embarrassment.

Outside the fitting room, Dong Moxuan waited for a long time. The shop assistant, who had disappeared somewhere earlier, eventually arrived late, yet Mei still showed no sign of coming out.

Still, he had no intention of urging Mei. After all, she had just gone through something so embarrassing, and it was perfectly normal for someone as inexperienced as Mei to need time to adjust.

After waiting a few more minutes, the fitting-room door finally opened slowly.

Mei had been very nervous at first, but when she saw Dong Moxuan's calm expression, her earlier nervousness and embarrassment eased.

"Mr. Xuan, what do you think of this dress?"

As the saying went, a beautiful outfit lost half its color if no one admired it. Since entering middle school, this was the first time Mei had gone shopping for clothes with someone else accompanying her.

What was more, the person before her was her only friend, a trusted elder, and the man toward whom she felt the slightest hint of affection. Naturally, she felt a little nervous and expectant.

"Mm, it's definitely very cute, but..."

Although Mei looked incredibly beautiful and pure beneath the white, gauzy dress, and even the cute shop assistant beside them was dazzled, Dong Moxuan was not about to lose his composure over it.

He looked at Mei, stroked his chin, and wore a thoughtful expression.

"It feels like something's still missing..."

As he muttered softly, a pure-white sun hat caught Dong Moxuan's attention, making his eyes light up.

"That's it! This is the feeling!"

Dong Moxuan placed the sun hat on Mei's head and nodded lightly.

"Mr. Xuan?"

Feeling Dong Moxuan's movements, Mei's cheeks reddened, and she looked at him questioningly.

"Mm, super cute!"

Dong Moxuan took a step back and gave an expressionless thumbs-up.

Mei: "..."

"Mr. Xuan, honestly..."

Mei rubbed her temples, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

Then, while paying, Dong Moxuan was once again given a thorough look of contempt by the shop assistant.

So what if I'm living off a woman?

Being able to live off such a cute girl as Mei surely proves how outstanding I am, doesn't it?

After buying the clothes and leaving the clothing store, Dong Moxuan asked Mei, who was walking beside him, "Shall we head back now?"

"Mm, we've bought all the clothes..."

"Speaking of which, what are you going back for?"

"To review... my studies?"

Mei's expression was somewhat uncertain.

Dong Moxuan: "..."

Are you serious about reviewing your studies, Miss Mei?

Speaking of which, are you really a high school student from Wa Kingdom?

Shouldn't the main occupations of Wa Kingdom high school students be becoming idols, writing novels, drawing manga, making games, joining supernatural gangs, exorcising demons, exorcising witches, or saving the world?

Who studies like a normal high school student?

"Speaking of which, Mei, don't you spend all your free time studying?"

Dong Moxuan asked casually.

"Mr. Xuan, don't treat Mei like some kind of bookworm!"

Having understood the implication behind Dong Moxuan's words and feeling that he was looking down on her, Mei became a little indignant.

"I do occasionally watch television for a while!"

Dong Moxuan: "..."