Environment

The campfire burned slowly in the night, but Sajyou Manaka, lying in her tent, was not sleepy at all. She put her ear to the outside of the tent and heard the sound of the campfire burning and the conversation between Bai Mo and Arcueid.

"It's not nice of me to say this, but you really do look quite pitiful."

With words of sympathy and an expression of schadenfreude, Mery enjoyed her double sleeping bag alone while watching Sajyou Manaka.

"What are you talking about? This is communication between lovers. After all, there are some things that are difficult to say face-to-face, so this way we can communicate without affecting our relationship."

Glancing at Mery behind her with a sympathetic smile, Manaka made a "shh" gesture, then lay down directly on the edge of the tent, pressing her ear against the crack in the door.

Outside the tent, Bai Mo glanced expressionlessly at the tent that clearly bulged out in the shape of a human, and sighed deeply. He lay on the grass, gazing up at the Starry Night. In the silent night, the stars twinkled, painting a picture beyond human comprehension.

A rustling sound came from beside him. Arcueid lay down next to him, gazing at the same night sky. After a while, she seemed to get bored and turned her head to look at his face.

Without realizing it, just by gazing at him, her heart began to race. Her mind started to wander uncontrollably; if she were to pin him down right now, would she be able to suppress his strength?

Her breathing quickened, and Arcueid unconsciously reached for Bai Mo's neck. Bai Mo abruptly turned her head, and the sudden eye contact left her mind blank, completely at a loss.

"Hungry again?" Bai Mo asked, getting up. It took Arcueid a while to realize that Bai Mo had misinterpreted her behavior as Bloodsucking Impulse. She nodded rapidly, knelt down, and quickly came behind Bai Mo.

Ah, I messed up. I should have used the pretext of sucking blood to try and approach it from the front.

Arcueid felt a pang of regret as he slowly pierced Bai Mo's neck with his teeth. With a touch of remorse in his heart, he made this blood-sucking process much faster. Compared to before, when he couldn't bear to eat it all and savored it repeatedly, this time he could only chew and swallow it slowly.

Just as she was feeling unhappy, Bai Mo spoke up and asked:

How have you been feeling these past few days?

"It's really interesting! This experience is quite novel. It makes me realize that before I met you, I was living like a machine. I guess luck is conserved after all. After enduring so much loneliness, I've finally been rewarded."

Arcueid paused for a moment, then smiled and said that she never hid her feelings from Bai Mo. Although she had only been in Uruk for a few days, the unique scenery and experiences she had seen were things she had never dared to imagine before.

"By the way, Bai Mo, why are you suddenly asking me that?"

"It's nothing. After all, it's because of me that you had to adapt to a new environment. If you feel unhappy about it, I'll feel somewhat guilty. Since you say so, I'm relieved."

Seeing that Bai Mo seemed genuinely relieved, Arcueid nudged his back affectionately with her head and asked playfully:

"I see. After all, Bai Mo, you said you hoped I could be happy. Is it because I'm with you that you're a little worried?"

There was no sound; the silence itself was the answer. The only sound came from the tent, as if a wounded leopard inside was tearing at the innocent tent with its claws, enduring the pain of its wounds.

Arcueid thought the voice was really nice, and suddenly felt that Manaka might be worth teasing. She hugged Bai Mo's neck, feeling his calm heartbeat intertwined with her own rapid heartbeat, as if they were playing a melody together.

I'm so happy that you think that way.

Just after she finished speaking, a low, beast-like growl came from inside the tent. Bai Mo, while lowering Arcueid's arm, said with a headache, "You just wanted to see her angry, didn't you..."

She answered with a smile, then changed the subject:

"To be honest, I don't dislike her. After all, she did help out a bit. If Bai Mo likes her, I really won't mind."

For Arcueid, the joy of her lover is her joy. Besides, she is True Ancestor, and ordinary ethical and romantic views cannot be strictly applied to her. This is why the Great Saber left her alone before.

Of course, this was all on the premise that she was the priority, but Arcueid knew very well that Bai Mo was not the kind of person who would give up everything for love. Even if it were her, he would show no mercy if she did anything to harm humanity.

Such a person cannot be completely filled by love. Both parties understand this, which is why Bai Mo feels indebted to Arcueid. He does not regard other people's love for him as happiness, but as a responsibility.

Upon hearing this, Sajyou Manaka immediately sat up straight. Beside her, Mery smiled and said, "I really didn't expect this. What I thought was impossible has unexpectedly turned out well. Well, after all, we can't judge True Ancestor by human standards of love."

So what do you want to do?

Manaka scoffed, "Huh? Do you think this is some kind of harem game? Princes and princesses can only have each other; how could a third person be allowed to interfere?"

Outside, after Arcueid finished speaking, Bai Mo's expression remained completely unchanged. He simply gestured for Arcueid to come closer, and the golden-haired cat curiously nudged its head in. Then, a muffled thud was heard.

"It hurts! Before, it was just two fingers, why did it have to be a hand chop this time?" Arcueid cried, clutching her head, but her voice softened as she looked at Bai Mo's somewhat serious expression.

"Because I realized you're far dumber than I imagined, like trying to administer strong medicine to a seriously ill patient." Bai Mo sheathed his hand and said coldly. Arcueid immediately lowered his head in grievance, revealing a pair of golden cat ears.

"How could you, an idiot, come up with something like this? Do you think this is a game? Or have you watched too many movies and lost your mind? How could you say something so stupid? It's so stupid, I feel like I'm suffocating, you moron!"

Bai Mo sighed deeply. He pressed his hands against the idiot's head, as if trying to shake her brain to restore her to normal.

Bai Mo sees his feelings for Arcueid as nothing more than a ray of light that happened to shine into her life. If one day Arcueid encounters a better life, Bai Mo will feel relieved and offer his blessings.

After all, he knew very well that he was definitely not a good choice, and Arcueid absolutely deserved the love of a guy of Guanyin's caliber.

But now, having learned of her views on love, Bai Mo's thoughts completely changed. He placed his hand on Arcueid's shoulder, met her gaze, and spoke as if in judgment:

"Listen, I absolutely will not allow you to think like that, Arcueid. You are a person who deserves to be loved and respected. The person you love must be a very lucky guy, but your kind of love will only allow others to unilaterally benefit from you."

Love is a right, but also a responsibility. All you're thinking about is pursuing pleasure. If you were a calculating person, that would be one thing, but you're such a fool; you only give others the right to hurt you.

Arcueid, never let anyone do anything to hurt you.

After Bai Mo finished speaking, all three parties felt a chill run down their spines.

Inside the Martial God Space, the Great Blade Martial God pressed his palms to his head and then sighed deeply. Yes, why did I think that Bai Mo would approve of the idea of a harem? Thinking about it carefully, compared to the naive Arcueid, Bai Mo is the one who has received a proper education and has the right values.

"Ha, the ideas from the Martial God Era should have been discarded long ago." Great Saber shook his head helplessly, leaned back, and lay down in the hot spring, not wanting to say anything more.

Inside the tent, Manaka smiled, secretly pleased. If Bai Mo had agreed with Arcueid's words, Manaka would have felt a pang of displeasure, though she might have ultimately accepted them. But right now, she was even more captivated by the person outside.

"No, I have to get him. No matter how long it takes, I have to have him..."

She clenched her fist secretly, while Mery, who was beside her, had already curled up in her sleeping bag, laughing so hard she was almost cramping up.

"Oh my god... what is this? Have I cut off my only way to resolve this peacefully? No, I have to see this drama through to the end, even if it means dying."

Meanwhile, Arcueid felt a buzzing in her head, and she stiffly began, "But you..."

"Not even me, not anyone else."

Before Arcueid could speak, Bai Mo cut her off. She could feel her heart pounding wildly, and a somewhat sickly smile gradually appeared on her face.

No, I can't let go at all. I'd go crazy if I lost him, maybe I already am. But... I'm so happy, so incredibly happy. I want him so badly, I want to have him.

Being treated like this, simply being hugged from behind and sucked dry is far from enough...

Unconsciously wanting to channel his power, just then, an explosion came from the distant dense forest, releasing a powerful magical force that instantly drew Bai Mo's attention.

"Is there a firefight? I didn't think there would be any violence. Arcueid, and those in the tents, rest time is over." Bai Mo raised his hand to extinguish the campfire, then sped off towards the direction of the firefight.

Arcueid stood frozen in place, unconsciously channeling her power as well. But her gaze remained fixed on Bai Mo like a needle, her power not for traveling, but for fighting.

"Don't even think about it. With your current strength, you can't win."

As Crimson Moon's voice echoed in his mind, Arcueid raised his hand and slowly lowered it.

"Don't worry, he's constrained by some things. Judging from the current situation, you'll surpass him one day, of course, with my help."

You're going to help me?

"Of course, your strength is my strength." Crimson Moon, who shared the same body, spoke slowly. Then Arcueid took a deep breath, suppressed his rapidly beating heartbeat, and followed Bai Mo.

But before Crimson Moon could finish speaking, she thought to herself:

After all, what's yours is mine.