I like obedient puppies

Of course the young man knew what that supposed "debt" was.

They had reached an agreement in the instance. He had helped the man kill Guan Wenyue without implicating the Dark Night Guild.

Now it was naturally time for Mo Yu to keep his promise and answer the young man's questions one by one.

But there was no need to make such a production of it.

Besides, Mo Yu was not the one in a hurry. Shen Ru was.

Even with the man's virtual image on the other side of the light screen, Shen Ru could still feel the intense malice and interest wrapped in his gaze.

Inside the instance, he had severed the connection between the Dark Night Guild and Shen Ru. Outside it, he was openly painting their lingering ties in the most suggestive light.

Shen Ru sneered inwardly.

He was simply using the light screen to remind the players that Mo Yu himself was backing Shen Ru.

And the man's message was clear: if he refused to join Dark Night, he could forget about joining any other guild, too. After all, who would take the lead in crossing Dark Night?

He had completely lost interest in looking up information. Before the man could say anything else, Shen Ru reached out and shut off the light screen.

Fuck you. I'm done with this shit.

The Dark Night Guild.

Even after the livestream was cut off, the man showed no intention of getting up. His dark eyes remained fixed on a shadowed corner as he savored the symphony's final movement with a faint, inscrutable smile.

A strange emotion suddenly welled up in his chest.

When he first met Shen Ru, he had merely found him interesting. The slightest provocation would make him bristle and strike back viciously.

The young man's subsequent actions had surprised him again and again, like a preprogrammed AI suddenly developing a will of its own.

Mo Yu felt that their current relationship ought to be a step closer than that of strangers.

"Changming."

The man's index finger tapped lightly against his glass in time with the music. His languid tone seemed to toy constantly with the fragile threads of reason.

Gu Changming was still pondering Mo Yu's intentions. Hearing the man call his name, he hurried to answer:

"Brother Mo, what is it?"

Mo Yu frowned slightly. After a brief pause, he said, "He reacts strongly to the things I do, gives me emotional satisfaction, and I really enjoy this relationship. What would you call that?"

Gu Changming froze.

What kind of description was that?

Could that back-and-forth interaction be understood as teasing a cat or a dog?

Gu Changming had no particular insight into emotions, but before entering the game, he had kept a poodle at home. The way he and his dog had interacted was indeed much as Mo Yu described.

So he swallowed and ventured, "Brother Mo, do you want to keep a dog?"

Mo Yu said nothing. Warm light shone down on him from above, a scorching heat and interest passing through his eyes as he carefully considered the suggestion.

A pet and its owner?

That might work.

This rose was covered in thorns. One careless move could leave a person bleeding all over, but to the man, his behavior so far amounted to little more than minor antics and harmless tests.

Keeping him close would be far more interesting than having a doll that could not speak.

Once the man had worked this out, the strange feeling in his chest instantly dissipated. His boredom and lack of interest in everything around him vanished along with it, replaced by an unchecked, burgeoning desire to possess the young man.

Mo Yu rose to leave. "Send me Shen Ru's location."

Hearing Shen Ru's name from the Guild Leader's mouth, Gu Changming immediately understood why the man had said all that. His expression turned as grim as if he had been struck by lightning.

No way...

Surely he didn't mean what I thought he meant?

What did I just say to Mo Yu?

Did I ask the Guild Leader if he wanted to keep a dog???

"Um... Brother Mo, I think what I said just now wasn't quite appropriate. You..."

Gu Changming wanted to explain the difference between people and animals, but the man cut him off.

"You were absolutely right. I think it was very appropriate."

Mo Yu stopped at the guild entrance and looked at Gu Changming with a smile, his eyes full of impatience and unmistakable delight.

Gu Changming: "..."

It wasn't appropriate. Let me explain...

Watching the man leave, Gu Changming felt certain that Shen Ru would be blacklisting the Dark Night Guild from now on.

Mo Yu wore an expensive suit, without a single crease in his immaculate jacket.

Shen Ru felt that the man did not belong on his doorstep. He belonged at some glittering banquet or nightclub rife with intrigue.

The droplets in his hair had yet to dry, and a loose bathrobe hung carelessly around him. The young man leaned lazily against the doorframe, watching the man in silence.

He was not particularly surprised. If anything, he had expected this.

After all, he had kept that S-Rank Card for himself. Come to think of it, this was already the second time.

"Have you come in person to clear up my doubts, President Mo?"

Shen Ru stepped slightly aside, smiling as he let the man in.

Mo Yu did not stand on ceremony. He found somewhere to sit, his answering voice low and deep.

"Of course. After all, you're so very much to my taste."

The suggestive words rolled off the man's tongue just like that. His deep eyes fixed on the young man, as though they were lovers exchanging lingering, flirtatious glances.

Shen Ru laughed aloud. His vivid red eyes concealed wild excitement and a shiver of anticipation. Pressing his tongue lightly against the roof of his mouth, he bent down and spoke gently beside the man's ear:

"Then, sorry for the trouble, Teacher Mo, but please explain your abilities and your motives."

With that, the young man straightened and made an inviting gesture before sitting opposite Mo Yu.

The first step to becoming a competent pet owner was satisfying his pet's needs.

So Mo Yu said, "After I use Plunder on a talent, I do retain the right to use it indefinitely. But the game imposes restrictions on its use to keep things fair."

The man paused briefly before continuing, "Guan Wenyue had been trying to merge streamers from different channels. The Mrs. Leon's Tears you obtained is an item essential to breaking down the barriers between channels, so I couldn't let the card fall into his hands."

Shen Ru's eyes lit up, and a breathtaking smile curved his lips. "Stop bullshitting me. That's not why you wanted to kill him."

Mo Yu narrowed his eyes, then suddenly laughed, sounding both helpless and utterly indulgent. "So clever."

"Because he wouldn't obey."

The moment those words fell, the tenderness in the man's eyes gave way to dark brutality.

His tone was so casual that Shen Ru might have thought he was merely disposing of a toy that did not work very well.

"Will you obey?"

For the first time, Mo Yu examined the young man's appearance this seriously. He was unquestionably beautiful, far more so than the countless people Mo Yu had seen.

Especially Little Rose's feeling-laden eyes. That bold, unrestrained look could drive anyone mad.

Shen Ru's gaze slowly swept over the man twice. Then he drew a deep breath, raised his fist, and swung hard at Mo Yu's eminently punchable face.

But the outcome was predictable.

Dark Shadow held the young man's pale, fragile hands tightly in place. Ignoring the malice in his eyes and his angry protests, he said gently:

"I like obedient puppies."

Shen Ru's gaze was icy, the murderous intent in his dark red eyes laid bare:

"But I don't like perverts."