And... was there someone in front of Master Xiao?
He You was puzzled.
Because Master Xiao was talking to someone.
He looked at his little senior brother again.
Gu Xiao Tang gestured for He You to be quiet.
For now, all they could do... was wait and see.
A question mark appeared on He You's face.
But he had never been especially curious.
Since his little senior brother wanted him to stay quiet for now, he shut his mouth.
He looked down at the quilt half-wrapped around him.
He had tripped over it just now.
But thanks to the quilt, he hadn't fallen too hard.
He barely felt any pain.
He couldn't help smiling.
Some of the pallor faded from his face.
The Hundred Illusions Butterfly paused in surprise.
Soon, a cool, mint-like voice sounded in Xiao Xiao's mind.
"I'm granting his wish."
Though its tone was mild, its matter-of-fact confidence made Xiao Xiao's eye twitch.
"Granting his wish?"
"A You likes all sorts of strange things."
"Like aliens, fortune-telling, ghosts... and monsters."
Gu Xiao Tang's words from the hot pot restaurant came back to Xiao Xiao.
He paused in surprise.
Could it be...
The feeling in his heart was rather strange.
But he thought he might have found the answer.
"You scared him."
Xiao Xiao stated the obvious.
"Mm."
The Hundred Illusions Butterfly admitted it so frankly that Xiao Xiao raised an eyebrow.
"It's fun."
A hint of laughter slipped into its mint-cool voice.
Like notes dancing across strings.
Ethereal and lilting.
Xiao Xiao: ...
So it really was a prank.
Scaring people was fun, huh...
"Granting his wish" had only been the initial reason.
After that, it had been purely for its own amusement.
Xiao Xiao shook his head slightly.