Chapter 18: Rose Earl 18

Suddenly, the world spun around him, and Xia Qi let out an "Ah" as he fell into the Count's embrace.

To be more precise, he fell into the arms of the Count, who was currently in a state of negative IQ.

The Count held Xia Qi's knees with one hand, while the other, now transformed into a giant blade, supported his back, cradling him in a princess carry.

Xia Qi's back and head rested on the cold blade, remembering that this same blade had once decapitated a large chicken and crushed a cripple's skull, he froze, not daring to move.

"Roar..."

The Count bounced Xia Qi in his arms, seemingly very happy, his roar rising several octaves higher than before, almost ready to howl a wild beast disco.

Excitedly, he spun around a few times on the ground and then jumped up. Just as Xia Qi was about to say, "Are you done playing yet?" he realized he was slowly ascending.

Initially, he thought it was because the Count had stood up, but when the sound of rushing wind reached his ears, he realized he was flying away from the ground at incredible speed.

As the houses and people below shrank, Xia Qi's heart raced, and he clung to the Count's neck. Then, the Count's bat wings flapped again, carrying Xia Qi toward the moon in the sky!

"Whoosh—"

The fierce wind roared past his ears, and the scenery gradually faded into the night sky. Watching the Count soar through the clouds, Xia Qi dared not breathe.

Another intense burst of speed, and they broke through the dark clouds, emerging above them!

Perhaps due to the reduced oxygen, Xia Qi felt short of breath.

He took deep breaths, feeling more exhausted than ever.

Finally, his master, the Count, stopped.

"Hmm?" The Count lowered his head, rubbing his forehead against Xia Qi's and calling out to him in a gibberish-like manner.

Xia Qi had kept his eyes squinted during their ascent, but now that they had stopped, he slowly lifted his eyelids, meeting the Count's sparkling eyes.

The Count looked at him expectantly, like a well-behaved dog waiting for its owner to feed it.

"What did you bring me up here to see?" Xia Qi asked.

The Count continued staring at him, almost panting with excitement.

Looking at the Count, who seemed like a silly dog, Xia Qi sighed and tried to guess.

He looked around and realized they were above the clouds, with gray mist beneath their feet. Above them, countless scattered stars glittered like shattered diamonds across the night sky, centered by a huge, round moon that seemed too large to be real.

Such a massive moon could only be seen in imaginative paintings, reminding Xia Qi of the VChat login image, except instead of a boy gazing at the moon, it was him and the Count.

If someone had a chance to look up, they might even see their silhouettes against the giant moon.

However, Xia Qi's position was awkward, being cradled in the Count's arms like a woman.

"It's beautiful," Xia Qi said after thinking for a moment.

Unexpectedly, this time, the Count understood him.

Like a big child, he flew around in circles with Xia Qi, leaving him bewildered.

Xia Qi sighed and spoke to him in a tone akin to talking to someone with a mental disability: "Can you take me down?"

Although he didn't have a fear of heights, being suspended in mid-air still made him uneasy.

However, the Count seemed to ignore him, continuing to spin and play, sometimes making holes in the clouds or rolling around in them, behaving like a playful child on the beach.

Xia Qi seriously suspected he was pretending to be stupid.

They played around in the clouds for what seemed like an eternity, and Xia Qi was getting dizzy and sleepy when suddenly, the Count spread his wings and dove downward in a headfirst spiral, carrying him in a steep descent!

This time, the descent was face-first, like bungee jumping without a safety harness!

"Ahh—!!!"

Even though Xia Qi was usually calm, this sudden "flying pterodactyl" roller coaster dive, without any safety restraints, nearly made him bite his lip.

Swallowing his scream, Xia Qi clung tightly to the Count's neck, his nails digging into his flesh.

It felt like an eternity until the Count finally sat down, and Xia Qi regained his composure.

...Too thrilling.

So thrilling that he felt like he was going to vomit.

Even after landing on the ground, Xia Qi still clung to the Count's neck, fearing another tumble-dryer-style pendulum swing.

Xia Qi gasped for air, and as he caught his breath, he realized he was surrounded by a familiar scent.

It was the fragrance of roses.

Xia Qi looked down and saw the roses blooming romantically around him, like night-blooming cereus.

Clearly, they had returned to the Rose Garden.

The Count placed Xia Qi beside him and then lay down.

Sitting among the rose bushes, Xia Qi wondered what the Count was planning to do next.

Just as he was pondering, the Count suddenly sat up, raised his hands, and pressed Xia Qi's shoulders, forcing him to lie down.

What a waste.

Originally, Xia Qi had been heartbroken over sitting on and damaging a few roses. Now, lying down, he was causing even more damage to the roses. However, when he turned his head to look at the Count, he saw that the Count, without any concern for his tall stature, plopped down onto the ground with a loud thud...

The roses beneath him were likely crushed into pulp.

Xia Qi didn't know what lying down was supposed to accomplish and didn't dare to ask. He yawned and after lying there for a while, he felt drowsy again.

Rarely did he actually close his eyes and fall asleep in the wild.

By the time dawn approached, Xia Qi suddenly jolted awake.

He had actually slept through the night next to the boss!

When he looked at the Count beside him, he saw that the Count's eyes were closed as he slept. However, his body had now returned to human form, and the giant blade on his right hand had transformed back into a normal hand.

Xia Qi got up to look at the Count's face. At this point, the Count's complexion had returned to a normal person's healthy color, and the small fangs by his lips were gone.

Xia Qi couldn't help but feel a surge of joy and called out softly, "Count?"

As long as he could wake the Count and use the Contract Ring to fulfill the Count's wish, he could then lead the old man and his sister through this game level...

Hearing Xia Qi's voice, the Count beside him suddenly stirred. Just as Xia Qi was about to push him, a faint sound of wind came from behind him.

"Whoosh!"

Xia Qi sidestepped to avoid it, but a sharp arrow grazed his shoulder, leaving a wound.

The metallic scent of blood instantly filled the air. Xia Qi realized the danger and quickly raised his hand to cover the injury.

However, it was already too late.

Suddenly, the Count lying on the ground opened his blood-red eyes and looked at him with the gaze of one eyeing a delicious meal.

Xia Qi cried out in alarm, but it was too late. The Count let out a low growl and swiftly pounced on him, aiming to bite his neck—

"Calm down!"

Xia Qi raised his hand to block his neck, and the Count's sharp fangs bit into his wrist instead. Xia Qi felt a sharp pain in his wrist and looked up to see a trickle of bright red blood flowing down his pale wrist.

At that moment, a beam of blinding sunlight slanted across, illuminating Xia Qi's face and the Count's eyes.

Exposed to the sunlight, the Count's eyes suddenly lost their bloody glow and slowly returned to normal.

Daybreak had arrived, forcing the boss's berserk state to end.

"Calm down..." Xia Qi said, panting.

The Count's eyes gradually cleared, and upon seeing the scene before him, he froze.

His mouth was still clamped on Xia Qi's wrist, filled with the sweet taste of blood. When he looked down, he met Xia Qi's frightened expression, filled with fear.

Even though the blood tasted sweet and tempting, Xia Qi's wound was glaringly red, causing the Count immense pain and regret.

"I... I've finally hurt you." The Count's voice choked with emotion, his lake-blue eyes brimming with tears. He dared not look at Xia Qi or the wound on his wrist. With a heavy punch to his own chest, he painfully said, "I am guilty."

Without waiting for Xia Qi to speak, the Count suddenly grabbed him and flew out of the Rose Garden.

After taking Xia Qi away from the Rose Garden, the Count rushed off without looking back.

"I..."

Watching the Count's retreating figure, Xia Qi's right hand hovered in mid-air, slowly clenching into a fist.

He quickly realized who was behind all this.

After waiting for a while, Xia Qi spotted the culprit on the hillside.

He should have fled, but now he only wanted to teach them a lesson.

The three members of the Red Side walked over unharmed, with Cha Gong and the Red Side woman showing no signs of injury.

What surprised Xia Qi even more was that the old Count was also with the Red Side trio. Their united front suggested they had completely forgotten the principle that humans and NPCs were supposed to be enemies.

Never would he have thought that the Red Side and the NPCs could align their goals!

Fortunately, he had waited a little longer and learned of the shift in the game's dynamics.

The old Count's bat wings fluttered happily as he slowly lowered his crossbow and glared at Xia Qi sinisterly: "Xia Qi, where do you think you're running to?"

Facing the four-person team, Xia Qi unhesitatingly pulled out his True Love Magic Wand and chanted, "You are the wind, I am the sand; we'll wander together forever."

After chanting, he waved the magic wand toward the trio.

Perhaps due to the openness of the Rose Garden, the magic wand emitted a dazzling pink light, creating an even more violent yellow sand tornado than before. It swept fiercely towards the trio and the monster.

"Ahh—!!"

"Holy shit!!"

The three members of the Red Side, being human, were caught off guard by the Siberian-style Russian tornado. They were immediately blown backward, disappearing without a trace, entangled in some distant corner of the world.

Having dealt with the annoying trio and the monster, Xia Qi headed in the direction the Count had disappeared.

After chasing for a while, he heard the calls of the old man and his sister from behind.

Last night, the two had followed Xia Qi and the Count, eventually reaching the Rose Garden and staying nearby in secret.

Unexpectedly, the Red Side had joined forces with the NPCs and sneaked into the garden unnoticed. The old man sighed, "Judging by the direction the Count fled, he must be heading towards the East Hall."

Xia Qi didn't have time to chat and sprinted towards the East Hall. Then, a familiar and comforting line rang out behind him—

"Xia Qi, I'm going to kill you!!!"

Damn it, the old count is back!

The old count instantly appeared at the entrance of the East Hall, forcing the three members of Blue Side to climb upstairs. Just as they reached the third floor, the old count pounced on them like an obstinate dead dog, clawing Xia Qi's back.

Xia Qi frowned inwardly and turned around, intending to make the old count taste the holy water again. However, at that moment, a woman's scream echoed nearby.

In front of Xia Qi, Margaret stood by her room door, her gaze piercing through Xia Qi's shoulder, glaring furiously in his direction.

"You filthy and disgusting devil!" Margaret's entire being trembled; her red lips parted and closed, emitting an angry roar, "How dare you hit my daughter-in-law! I'll fight you to the death!"

Without waiting for Xia Qi to react, Margaret screamed and waved her hands, charging at the old count like a small cannonball. Then, with a crisp "slap," she slapped the old count across the face, causing his head to snap to the side.

Old man: "..."

Sister: "..."

Xia Qi: "..."

Watching this prime-time family drama of a ghost mother-in-law beating up a vampire father-in-law, the three members of Blue Side fell into an eerie silence.

Author's note: Yesterday, when the count was in human form, I forgot to increase Xia Qi's true love value. Today, I've made the adjustment. Those who have already read it don't need to go back; it's added to the 999 consumption in this chapter.

Finally, it's the holiday again. Everyone, have a good rest! Wishing you all a pleasant reading experience~

Cha Gong: In the end, I drank the regeneration liquid. In the next instance, I might become the emperor's right-hand man in the palace.