Chapter 38: Roland Veit

Chapter 38: Roland Veit

You are wavering.

-

Sometimes, the impact of a single sentence can be as powerful as a weapon of mass destruction.

Yun Huai suddenly shook off Lu Rin'an's hand, dropped the bite inhibitor, and quickly turned to leave the poolside.

Iliad only caught a glimpse of a churning black tail; in the blink of an eye, the merman that had just emerged was gone.

Panicked, it asked, "Are you alright?"

Yun Huai, with a stern face, hastily replied and didn’t forget to drag the group of mechanical beings away with him.

Behind him, there was a sound of pleased splashing water.

For the next three days, he didn’t visit the poolside again.

Xie Ye, hearing that Yun Huai hadn't consumed the merman, came to inquire specifically. The royal attendants said that although the king hadn’t eaten the merman, he forbade anyone from approaching that pool.

This was a rare, stern command from Yun Huai, so the Ita people within and outside the royal court dared not disobey.

Xie Ye frowned slightly, his gaze drifting toward the direction of the pure white archway.

Yun Huai’s order to stay away from the pool was partly to conceal Lu Rin'an's whereabouts and partly to protect the Ita people.

Lu Rin'an was a creature that even consumed mechanical energy spheres; if he truly became hungry, neither AG-0781 nor the royal attendants would suffice.

Although he hadn’t approached the pool in the last few days, being so close and having met Lu Rin'an several times in the fluctuating psychic sea.

Perhaps it was also the reason he never forgot Lu Rin'an; their connection success rate was incredibly high.

Sometimes Lu Rin'an just watched him from afar, and more often, he bragged about dreaming of Yun Huai again.

Lu Rin'an still didn't realize he was engaging in psychic links with Yun Huai.

After all, the fact that an outsider could seamlessly link with the King of Ita was too shocking.

So one morning, unable to bear the itching sensation any longer, Yun Huai went to find Lu Rin'an with great indignation. Even Iliad sensed his murderous intent. But when he arrived at the pool, his steps halted, for Lu Rin'an was floating on the water, eyes tightly closed, as if dead.

Yun Huai rarely saw Lu Rin'an so fully exposed. Even transformed into a fish, Lu Rin'an lacked the fragility typical of merfolk. His tail, which extended from the gradually golden waist down, was very long and dark, exuding an intimidating power.

Additionally, Lu Rin'an didn’t have the fins of a typical fish. His hard scales armored him right to the tail's end, but the split tail had a misty, gauze-like material aiding in swimming.

This gauze-like material was a dark, silky black and very long. It currently floated on the water surface, mixed with gold flecks, resembling the majestic trailing robe of a ruler.

Yun Huai took a deep breath: “Lu Rin'an!”

The figure on the water remained still. Usually, Lu Rin'an would at least make a splash in acknowledgment of Yun Huai's presence, but now, despite Yun Huai standing right there, Lu Rin'an showed no reaction.

Yun Huai suddenly understood why Lunen's escort thought the merman was dead; he really did look like a serious incident had occurred, floating on the water surface.

But when he connected with Lu Rin'an in the psychic sea, he seemed capable of consuming three AG-0781s in one breath; even a planetary explosion wouldn’t affect his appetite.

Yun Huai picked a Roland Veit flower and threw it towards him. Overripe petals scattered across the water surface, and a larger, heavier bud was about to land on Lu Rin'an's head.

However, as if reflexively responding to danger, the person in the water suddenly reached out, grabbing the fragrant bud with such force that the purple juice flowed down his fingers.

It was at this moment Yun Huai realized Lu Rin'an wasn't fully conscious. He seemed forcibly pulled from a deep nightmare, causing agitated black scales to rise along his neck.

He half-opened his eyes, looking up at the sky of the pure white main star, then extended his tongue to lick the juice dripping onto his lips.

Lu Rin'an's voice was slightly hoarse and damp, as he swallowed the juice and remarked, “...Tastes good.”

No exaggeration.

In that instant, Yun Huai felt a shiver run through his body, as if empathizing with Lu Rin'an's pleasurable taste sensation.

He suddenly realized that due to their frequent psychic links, their powers had been rapidly clashing in the short term. Not only did he wake up each time with a dry throat and a dazed mind, but Lu Rin'an was also experiencing similar, even more severe symptoms.

It was a sensation more frequent than Iliad’s electric shocks to Lu Rin'an, causing an uncontrollable itch throughout their bodies due to their deep-seated connection.

Yun Huai exhaled deeply, his subconscious telling him something was very wrong, yet he couldn't quite articulate it.

Lu Rin'an’s dazed state lasted only a few seconds. Soon, he noticed Yun Huai standing beside him. In a swift movement, Lu Rin'an turned over, and in the next instant, he was lying at the edge of the pool, having covered a great distance almost instantly.

"Your garden is beautiful, but not as beautiful as your eyes. If only I had known earlier that Roland Veit was this color," the creature remarked, "Are you in a bad mood today? You seemed quite agitated when you arrived."

Yun Huai took a deep breath, "Don't you feel that something is off?"

Lu Rin'an: "Hmm?"

Yun Huai: "Did you have a dream again last night?"

"Yes," Lu Rin'an nodded, reminiscing, "I've been dreaming of you these past few days. I never want to wake up from them, but then I remember you're also in reality, which makes waking up not so bad." He raised his eyebrows and smiled, "Your presence is both inside and outside my dreams. I feel extremely comfortable."

You're a little too comfortable!

Yun Huai's face was a blank slate, recalling the scene from last night where he couldn't stand Lu Rin'an swimming around him and impulsively kicked him away.

To enter his psychic world, one must first connect their myriad flowing psychic energies with his. Thus, whatever happens in that world, both are highly sensitive to each other's feelings.

The difference is that Yun Huai still feels embarrassed by it, while Lu Rin'an seems like he can't get enough of the dream.

Even if Yun Huai, as the world's master, could expel Lu Rin'an, Lu Rin'an's overwhelming power allows him to reconnect again.

Shouldn't be so greedy.

Yun Huai thought.

Frustrated, he plucked another Roland Veit flower and threw it at Lu Rin'an, who didn't dodge this time, allowing the action. After Yun Huai took a few deep breaths, Lu Rin'an finally said, "You've grown taller and also more temperamental."

Yun Huai thought Lu Rin'an was dissatisfied with him, but then he added, "That's a good thing."

"Only a loved one has the privilege to be temperamental," Lu Rin'an reassuringly looked at Yun Huai, "Seeing you so spirited makes me feel at ease. Want to throw another flower? I can take it."

……

Iliad was the second in the Ita Empire to discover that Lu Rin'an had successfully infiltrated.

In the moment Yun Huai threw the flower and turned to leave, it caught a glimpse of the foreign merman's face.

Lu Rin'an and Iliad locked eyes briefly, then Lu Rin'an slowly curled his lips into an extremely malevolent smile, even suggestively flicking his sharp fangs with his tongue.

Iliad: "—————"

Ahhhhhhh!!!

Xie Ye, Xie Ye, Xie Ye! Something strange has infiltrated the royal court!

No matter how shocked and angry it was, Lu Rin'an’s presence here was with Yun Huai's tacit consent. Before it could sound the alarm, Yun Huai had already disabled its warning privileges.

Iliad despairingly realized that this merman was becoming increasingly "bold" under the king's indulgence.

He even played arrogantly with the bite inhibitor Iliad had brought, then quickly and obediently put it on when Yun Huai looked his way, pretending to be harmless.

Iliad: "————————"

Ahhhhh! So frustrating!

After about a week of such bizarre yet harmonious days, Xie Ye noticed through daily reports that the fish in the Roland Veit garden were disappearing unusually quickly.

Initially, the attendants noticed that many beautiful fish visible one day were gone the next, not even a bone left. Then they discovered a strange pattern: the more a fish was observed by the king, the faster it disappeared.

Xie Ye, aware that the foreign merman was kept in the pool, approached Yun Huai to ask, “Do you need to move the merman? He seems a bit dangerous.”

Moving him would be the greatest threat to Ita! Yun Huai immediately refused the chief executor, showing a rare moment of strong “protection,” sparking ambiguous rumors among the outsiders.

It was said in the main star that a foreign merman had arrived at the royal court and was greatly favored by the king. Since the arrival of the merman, the king rarely left the garden, even refusing Xie Ye's suggestion to separate the merman.

Consequently, a merman craze swept through the empire, with ambitious Ita nobles advising Xie Ye to have the second star system send more mermen to win the king's favor.

Anything related to Yun Huai was a top priority for Xie Ye. Remembering the recently silent Gashu, his expression turned slightly cold as he entered the royal court.

Outside the pure white archway, all the royal attendants who were originally in the garden stood outside, along with the guard squad.

Seeing Xie Ye, the group was visibly stunned, for before the new king's birth, Xie Ye was the highest executive officer on the main star, and his authority was still intact.

The somber young man frowned and asked, "Why are you all standing here? Where is the king?"

Lunen replied, "Just woke up, changing clothes."

Xie Ye inquired, "Then why are you all outside? Is breakfast ready?"

An attendant quietly said, "The king asked us to leave, saying he wanted to be alone this morning."

Xie Ye's expression relaxed slightly, and he approached the door, saying to the attendant, "Open it, I have something to discuss with the king."

Xie Ye, highly esteemed by the king, had made similar requests to the attendants in the past, so no one objected. The king was very accommodating; if it was an urgent matter, he would not blame them.

Thus, the attendant opened the grand doors of the royal court, and a hint of Roland Veit color spilled out. The figure of the young man with long white hair quickly vanished behind the door.

"Xie Ye is probably going to inquire about the merman."

"Only the second star system has this species. If the king really likes it, Xie Ye will have to communicate with Gashu, but the second star system..."

Lunen suddenly spoke up to stop them: "Don't discuss excessively. The king has his own decisions to make."

Everyone around fell silent immediately.

On the matter of vying for the king's attention, the first star system was unusually united. They all knew they were in a historically advantageous position. The king's emergence would eventually reach all territories of the empire, and the less people knew now, the better their chances of entering the main star.

Thus, even at this point, the second star system hadn’t heard a whisper, suggesting the first star system's influence might be hindering the spread of information.

Xie Ye didn’t immediately mention Gashu to Yun Huai, but it wouldn’t be forever. Using the merman incident as an opportunity to educate the growing king about other star systems was an excellent strategy.

The nobleman's expression was cool and detached. He often visited here and glanced at his cyber-brain for the time before heading directly to the royal court's side hall.

Usually, at this time, Yun Huai would be in the hall, reviewing languages while waiting for breakfast to be prepared.

Perhaps because the attendants and guards were all outside, the royal court was exceptionally quiet today. Xie Ye could hear the sound of fully bloomed petals falling and feel the withered branches rejuvenating rapidly due to the king's power.

As long as the master of the garden was present, it would never wither.

Xie Ye’s mood, initially soured by thoughts of Gashu, improved slightly. He adjusted his breathing and stopped in front of the side hall.

In that moment, the nobleman’s sharp ears twitched.

From inside the side hall, the king's voice came low —

"That’s too much! I’ll only eat a little!"