To Sasha, who was viciously tearing into the bread, Krista seemed to be glowing with holy light from head to toe, radiance flowing around her like a goddess fallen into the mortal world.
"Are you a goddess?" Sasha asked emotionally.
"Uh..."
Krista awkwardly waved her hands. She had not done this just to earn Sasha's gratitude, but Potato Girl's utterly undisguised thankfulness still gave Krista a small sense of joy at being acknowledged.
"You're right. She really is a goddess who couldn't possibly exist in this world!" Lianye clapped and laughed, though his deliberate questioning made it sound as if he were mocking the very idea that a true "goddess" could exist in this world.
Unprovoked kindness was almost as unsettling as unprovoked malice. Please forgive Lianye for being a suspicious, scheming boy—he did not believe Krista had simply been born with the personality of a reincarnated goddess.
So what Lianye really meant beneath his words was—Krista's Saintly Cancer was an illness, and it needed treatment.
End of Chapter
Prey and Hunter Are Together
"Um, it was only because she'd been running since the afternoon and hadn't eaten anything, so I brought her a little food. It was nothing..."
Krista hurriedly explained. Wasn't that obvious? Knowing Potato Girl's situation was one thing, but being willing to help her was another.
Most people chose to stand by and watch. Someone like Krista was not merely rare among the rare—she could practically be called extinct.
"Do you sincerely want to help this Potato Girl for no reason at all? Without any other motives?"
Lianye raised an eyebrow and asked curiously.
"Didn't she say thank you? That's enough." Krista lowered her head and smiled softly. That contented smile did not seem fake.
In a sense, Krista's words were completely correct. Extending a helping hand and receiving nothing more than a thank-you was enough. Once a good deed became entangled with expecting repayment, it could no longer be called pure kindness.
"I really lose to you..."
Lianye shook his head helplessly and tossed the bread in his hand to Sasha as well.
"Tha—urp... thanks..." While wolfing down the bread in her hands, she swiftly caught the bait with sharp reflexes. Nice catch! Then Potato Girl quickly stuffed the next piece of bread into her mouth too. After swallowing the food at top speed, she could not catch her breath and fainted on the spot.
This single-celled foodie might actually be pretty fun.
Lianye had originally intended to tease Sasha a little and see whether he could squeeze some value out of this single-celled idiot, but Krista had beaten him to it. However, this goddess apparently had no intention of making use of Sasha.
"Weren't you helping her too?"
"No, I only wanted her to owe me a favor. A favor from an easily understood single-celled foodie has terrifyingly high returns." Lianye bluntly refuted Krista's claim. He was investing—investing in a promising hunter with powerful physical abilities. Therefore, this was vastly different from selfless "help."
"..."
Tsunderes really are hard to understand!
Another strange term could not help surfacing in Krista's mind. Fortunately, since she did not really understand it either, she did not say it aloud. Otherwise, an embarrassed and furious Lianye would probably have pinned her to the ground and beaten her up. Even considering that one should not be so rough with a goddess, a spanking would still have been unavoidable.
The evening's farce ended there. After helping carry the unconscious Sasha back to the girls' room, Lianye returned to his own dormitory. Starting tomorrow, the formal training for the "ODM Gear" would begin. Lianye's next goal was to combine the flexible mobility of the "Pride Stalker" with the wall-running effects of the "ODM Gear."
With the "Void Predator," lurking in the Void and still nowhere to be seen, as his ultimate hypothetical enemy, this ability was extremely important to Lianye.
After all, Kha'Zix had clearly evolved "Insect Wings" a year ago—the thin, membrane-like wing cases Lianye had accidentally discovered during a hunt.
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