Skadi, My Wife

"Isn't that a smile?"

Talulah tugged at Ch'en's cheeks, helping her make a comical smiling face. Talulah smiled too, her cheeks relaxing and her eyes curving slightly, her smile gentle and beautiful.

"Just as I thought, you're really cute when you smile."

Then she softly added, "I came back to see you, little sister."

Staring at Talulah's face, Ch'en suddenly burst into tears, letting out a choked sob.

She said, "Welcome back, big sister."

After many years apart, the sisters bound by blood were finally reunited.

Warning: Love Triangle Battlefield!

Thanks to Talulah, Chernobog's diplomatic delegation was unemployed before its work had even begun—Wei Yenwu was Lungmen's governor, but he was also Talulah's uncle.

He had killed Talulah's father and abandoned her for Lungmen. Though he had his reasons, just as Talulah had once told Alina, he still owed her.

He had reviewed the cooperation agreement long ago, and there were no clauses harmful to Lungmen. The reason he had yet to approve it was simply that he could not determine Talulah's current condition after she had been abducted by Koschei, nor what exactly she meant by seeking cooperation with Lungmen.

Now that it had been confirmed that Talulah bore no hostility toward Lungmen and that her desire for cooperation concealed no schemes, why make things difficult?

Thus, not long after meeting Talulah, Wei Yenwu, who had already reviewed Dawn's cooperation agreement, waved his pen and approved all of Dawn's cooperation plans.

Old Wei being willful.jpg

There was no need to mention the Dawn diplomatic delegation's movements after becoming unemployed before work had even started... Anyway, they were either shopping or shopping.

The focus shifted to Red Skadi.

Red Skadi was shopping as well, with Nightingale beside her.

Unlike the other members of the diplomatic delegation, Red Skadi had come to Lungmen purely because Shining and Nightingale were worried about leaving her in Chernobog. They persuaded her with the reasoning that Lungmen was a bustling major city with a large population, and Chen An might possibly appear there, which was why she had come along.

So she had only one reason for coming to Lungmen: to find Chen An.

Thus, after arriving in Lungmen, Red Skadi immediately left the delegation and began searching for him alone throughout the city.

Nightingale was with her because she worried Red Skadi might run into trouble alone in an unfamiliar place... Well, there was another reason too. She wanted to find Chen An as well.

The two had spent most of yesterday wandering around Lungmen without finding anything, but neither was discouraged. Lungmen was so large that even if Chen An really was here, they would not run into him easily.

So early this morning, after informing Shining, Nightingale once again left the delegation with Red Skadi and started wandering around Lungmen.

They did not revisit the places they had gone yesterday. They made their way to the city center, spent half the morning looking around there, then headed for the Lungmen Guard Department—Nightingale had suddenly thought of it. In a large city, the best way to find someone was to start with the authorities. Chernobog and Lungmen were currently cooperating, so perhaps a visit to the Guard Department might get them some information.

Red Skadi thought it made sense, so she agreed to Nightingale's proposal.

Just as the two arrived at the Guard Department's headquarters and before they could enter, someone hurried out from inside.

Blonde hair, green eyes, long curls, black stockings, short boots, and a hip-hugging skirt.

Wearing a hat and carrying a bag, with adorable beast ears and a tail, it was none other than Swire.

As Swire hurried out of the Guard Department, she happened to see Red Skadi and Nightingale approaching to enter. She froze, her eyes widening as her irritable expression instantly became one of immense surprise.

"Skadi, you're here! Where's Chen An?"

"Chen An!?"

Red Skadi and Nightingale froze at the same time.

Meanwhile.

Ch'en brought Talulah, Shining, and FrostNova to the Lower District.

Dawn's cooperation with Lungmen included helping treat Lungmen's Infected, but Dawn did not know much about Lungmen's Infected. So after the cooperation was confirmed, Shining, whom Talulah had specifically invited to join this diplomatic mission so she could assess the situation of Lungmen's Infected and facilitate future cooperation, decided to visit the Lower District.

Originally, only she and two assistants were coming, but Talulah was very concerned about it as well. FrostNova was unwilling to be separated from Talulah, so she came along too.

As for Ch'en? She was the guide.

Actually, she should have been Dawn's diplomatic delegation guide yesterday as well. But like Wei Yenwu, she had been unable to determine Talulah's reason for coming to Lungmen personally. At the same time, when Talulah had been abducted years ago, Ch'en had promised to leave with her, only to flee in fear at the end. Feeling she did not dare face Talulah, she had handed yesterday's guiding duties to someone else.

But after meeting Talulah last night, she learned that Talulah had come to Lungmen as Dawn's representative merely because she wanted to see her hometown and family again, and that she had never blamed Ch'en. So Ch'en stopped running away.

As they walked, Ch'en said, "If this had been more than half a year ago, even if you said you didn't need protection in the Lower District, I would definitely have called Hoshiguma and some old comrades along. But now, since you insist that you only need one guide to explain the situation, I'll go along with it."

The Lower District was a slum, full of all sorts of people and chaotic situations.

Outsiders could easily run into trouble there. Even officers from the Guard Department might be attacked by crazed Infected if they were unlucky while handling business there—only crazed Infected would do that, though. Ordinary thugs and gangs did not dare provoke Guard Department officers.

But now?

Ever since Chen An began offering free medical consultations in the Lower District, there had almost been no more cases of Infected going mad. The occasional ones were swiftly beaten into submission by Skadi when she heard the news, then restored to health and sanity through Chen An's treatment.

Physical treatment: orca edition.jpg

The biggest contributors to the Lower District's disorder had been the Infected—Oripathy was regarded by everyone as a terminal illness, and the people of the Lower District already lived difficult lives. Once they contracted Oripathy, it was easy for them to lose their minds, become lawless, and act recklessly.

But with Chen An helping treat them, those Infected who had once been ready to explode at the slightest provocation saw hope for survival. Naturally, they no longer lost their minds and acted recklessly as easily as before.

Besides that, thanks to someone's tiny, insignificant efforts, he had swindled investment funds from Swire and the Swire family, talked Wei Yenwu into having Lungmen issue some encouraging policies, and the Lower District gangs had also been very cooperative under the warnings of gang leader Lin Kohrui.

Those unruly civilians who were hard to control, poorly educated, short-sighted, and prone to causing trouble were also mostly grateful for Chen An's kindness and willing to cooperate—while the few who did not want to cooperate could not cause any trouble either, because gang members and Infected would enthusiastically pay them visits for friendly conversations.

At first, it might not have been obvious, nor had people been particularly proactive. But as time passed and the Lower District residents discovered that the district really was changing and their own lives were improving, they suddenly developed a passion for life.

No one needed to persuade them anymore. Everyone began cooperating of their own accord. Not only did they cooperate with Lungmen's policies, but they also stopped resisting the Swire family's capital investments.

Quite a few idle thugs found jobs and settled down. It was hard to say about the larger gangs, but the smaller gangs found they could not survive as they had before. They either disbanded on the spot and went their separate ways, or started going legitimate and took up other businesses.

Even the orphans who could only barely survive through petty theft were gathered together and sent to newly built orphanages.

As for their futures? Those of school age were all kicked into school. Those who were not were helped to find work, or stayed at the orphanage as helpers, with food and lodging included and some pocket money.

In short, any honest job was fine, but if they still stole and caused trouble like before, they would be hung up and beaten!

Caring for orphans was everyone's responsibility in the Lower District—the orphanages' construction funds partly came from donations by Lower District residents.

—We're using our hard-earned money to raise you, and you still dare misbehave? Do you really think becoming respectable means we're good citizens now? Do you not know how to write the word "death"!?

Before this trip, Shining had looked into Lungmen, but the materials she had read had only briefly mentioned the Lower District.

Hearing Ch'en say this, she could not help feeling curious. "What do you mean? Is Lungmen's Lower District different from before?"

Like her, Talulah and FrostNova were curious as well. Talulah in particular showed concern, since Lungmen was her hometown.

"Of course it's different. But not merely somewhat different—it's vastly different."

Ch'en was their guide, Talulah was her sister, and beyond that, Talulah was also the leader of a city that had already signed a cooperation agreement with Lungmen. Shining and FrostNova were both Dawn's upper ranks as well. Naturally, Ch'en would not brush off their questions.

She organized her words and began recounting the Lower District's changes over recent days.

But halfway through, Ch'en suddenly noticed that Shining and the others looked strange. All of them wore expressions of surprise and disbelief, making Ch'en frown in confusion.

Just as she was about to ask what was wrong, a frivolous unfamiliar voice came from behind her.

"Excuse me, miss, did you just mention the name Chen An?"

Ch'en subconsciously turned around. A frivolous silver-haired woman, a cold black-haired woman—Nian and Dusk entered her sight.

Mars Collides with Earth (Not Yet)

"Miss, I didn't hear wrong just now, did I? You really said the name Chen An, right?"

Ch'en frowned at Nian, realizing she had no impression whatsoever of either her or Dusk beside her.

The silent Dusk was fine. Though she was icy and looked like an unapproachable cold beauty, there was nothing particularly off-putting about her.

But Nian was different. She was slovenly, and her tone was so flippant, like some street punk. Ch'en, serious and conscientious by nature and a police officer by profession, disliked her greatly.

She clearly did not look like a decent person. Since when did Chen An know someone like this?

Ch'en said displeasedly, "Who are you? How come I don't know Chen An has a friend like you? And speak more politely. You don't look that much older than me."

Nian froze, then burst out laughing exaggeratedly.

"Hey, Dusk, did you hear that? This little girl says I'm the same age as her."

She bumped Dusk with her elbow, looking immensely pleased. "I told you, didn't I? You have to keep a young mindset to stay young. Look, isn't this little girl proof?"

Nian's careless manner made Ch'en extremely unhappy, while being called "little girl" over and over made her mood grow even worse.

If she had been on duty today and had brought her handcuffs, she probably would have already pulled them out and cuffed Nian.

Though Dusk and Nian were sisters, their personalities were actually fairly alike—in terms of being self-centered.

As long as they themselves were happy, they did not care what others thought.

But compared to the slovenly, unserious-looking Nian, who looked like someone who lived only for fun, Dusk's image was indeed much better, even if she gave off a cold, keep-your-distance air.

Ignoring Nian's bragging entirely, Dusk looked at Ch'en and seriously asked, "I'm Chen An's wife. My name is Dusk. I..."

"Oh, come on, don't leave me out every time you talk to someone. Sure, Chen An running away was my fault, but I still brought you here from Great Yan. Even if I get no credit, I deserve some credit for the hard work."

Nian suddenly interrupted Dusk with a complaint. Crossing her arms, she said boldly, "My name is Nian, and she's Dusk. We sisters are both Chen An's wives. We came all the way from Great Yan to find him. Now that you know who we are, miss, could you please tell us where Chen An is?"

Nian and Dusk were lying. They were not really Chen An's wives, because the wedding had barely begun when Chen An realized something was wrong. He immediately made an excuse: 'The weather's nice, but the day isn't. Everything is inauspicious today, and Talulah next door sent word that she needs me for something. I need to go see what's happening first,' then slipped away.

They had not even bowed in the hall. How could they count as wives?

Of course, from a certain perspective, they were not exactly lying. Although the wedding had not been completed, they had indeed already embraced the role, especially Dusk. Otherwise, she would never have left her world of paintings and traveled all over with Nian to search for him.

—That wedding had not only been for Chen An and Dusk, or Chen An would not have been fooled so easily.

"!!!!" *n

Talulah was enraged.

FrostNova was enraged.

Shining was enraged.

Ch'en was enraged.

The two unnamed medical assistants were shocked.

"—Impossible!!"

After the fury of I haven't even made my move yet, and the person I like already has wives!?, Talulah declared firmly, "You absolutely cannot be Chen An's wives. I've known him for a long time, and I understand him. If you really were his wives, then if something happened to you, there's no way he wouldn't know about it and leave you to ask us where he is. Besides, Skadi has always been the only one by his side. If he really has a wife, it should be Skadi."

"That's right!"

FrostNova's tone was harsh, and her gaze toward Nian and Dusk was full of hostility. "Chen An is incredible. We once ran into trouble, trouble that only we ourselves knew about, but Chen An still hurried back with Skadi because his intuition told him we might need him, so he came back to check on us. We were only his friends, yet he did that much. If you were his wives, you wouldn't need to look for him, because he would come find you himself."

Ch'en, who had also wanted to question them, looked at the intensely reactive Talulah and FrostNova. She hesitated, stopped, then hesitated again, utterly bewildered.

No, what exactly is your relationship with Chen An? How do you not only know Skadi, but even know Chen An's traits?

Hadn't Dawn always been active in Ursus before? Chen An isn't from Ursus, nor did he come from Ursus.

And also, Talulah, last night, was that "him" you mentioned with that lovestruck expression whenever you brought him up—the one you called an idiot—Chen An?

It'd be fine if he wasn't, but if he was... I wanted to tell you where Chen An is, but you're making this very difficult for me.

Shining frowned and rebutted them without courtesy as well. "Chen An is not from the Yan Nation. Before leaving Chernobog, he had never been to the Yan Nation either. He told me all of this himself. And just as Talulah said, we all understand Chen An. With his personality, how could he have gained two wives in less than two short years after leaving Chernobog? Where does that leave Skadi?"

She scrutinized Nian and Dusk, focusing especially on Dusk.

If it had only been Nian, Shining would have suspected that the Chen An she called her husband was not the Chen An they knew, because she was far too frivolous.

Like some delinquent girl, she clearly did not look like a decent person.

Chen An was a good person. Even people with strange personalities whom others found difficult to approach could become his friends. It was not strange for him to befriend someone with such a frivolous personality. In fact, it was perfectly normal.

Dawn's W, that bizarre, constantly sarcastic, bomb-crazed Sarkaz woman, was someone practically everyone in Chernobog, not just Dawn, found unpleasant. If she had not been strong enough, she would have been bagged and beaten who knew how many times already.

Yet Chen An still became friends with her. Although W, who could never win against Chen An in a battle of sarcasm and was often angered by him until her ahoge stood on end, treated him much like everyone else did—wanting to put a bag over his head and beat him up.

But they really were friends. Even W herself did not deny that... though she did not admit it either.

But wives?

Don't underestimate Skadi!