Chapter 89

Chapter 89

After interrogating Josephine, Ning Chan also interrogated all other prisoners.

He didn’t sleep a wink all night.

The interrogated individuals watched as Ning Chan either ate hotpot or fiddled with plants, feeling like a cat facing a hedgehog—completely at a loss. How could he remain so calm? Didn’t he fear they would stubbornly refuse to talk?

As it turned out, their willpower wasn’t as strong as they imagined. Without Ning Chan resorting to threats or violence, they gradually spilled their guts.

“Y-you… what did you do to me? You manipulated my mind! You devil! Those words just now weren’t mine—I was bewitched! I didn’t even know what I was saying!” After recounting the events, Owen fell silent for a moment. As the fading sweet scent lingering around his nose faded, he finally snapped out of his dazed state and stared at Ning Chan in terror.

Hearing this, Ning Chan wasn’t angry—if anything, he found it amusing. Why did wrongdoers always call him a devil? Shouldn’t he be the righteous deity meting out justice?

“Yes, yes, I controlled your mind. I also made you do all those things. I know everything about you—even the key tucked in your bedframe's crevice, how many meals you eat a day—I see it all clearly.” Ning Chan smirked coldly at Owen, who was still struggling, then signaled for the next person to be brought in.

Owen’s face turned ashen, his expression grim. No matter what method Ning Chan had used to make him talk, one fact remained undeniable—everything he had just confessed was true.

After interrogating everyone, Ning Chan deliberately sensed Ai Mi and Kane's emotional states, finding no resistance from them. Instead, they maintained a high level of fondness for him—though Kane’s burned far brighter than Ai Mi’s.

Leaving the prison, Ning Chan gazed at the moon still hanging in the dim sky, stretching his arms with a yawn before turning to the still-wide-awake young man beside him. “Do you want to know why they confessed so easily?”

Kane met Ning Chan’s lightly blinking eyes, his breath tightening. He wanted to say, *I want to know everything about you, no matter what it is.* But the words that came out were more restrained: “I’m curious… Would you tell me?”

“Of course you can. But aren’t you afraid of what that man said—that I can control minds, that I’ll expose all your secrets?” Ning Chan mused that if he truly had mind-reading or manipulation powers, it would indeed make people wary.

Kane stared at him intently, his mouth curling into a radiant smile. “I’m not afraid. If you wanted me to do something, you wouldn’t need to control me. I’d do anything for you. As for secrets… I have none from you.”

*Kane thought:*

*If you could read minds, would you see my secret? Would you permit my feelings for you? Would you realize how depraved my desires are?*

*I want to kiss your lips until you can’t breathe, until your eyes redden. I want to hold you close until you’re gasping, until tears glisten in your eyes. I want to kiss every inch of you. I want to hear you sob my name, pleading for me to stop.*

Ning Chan tilted his head, studying Kane’s devouring gaze. “Really? No secrets at all?”

With that, he reached out and placed a hand on Kane’s chest, feeling the rapid heartbeat beneath his palm. He leaned in curiously, resting his ear against Kane’s chest. “But your heart seems to disagree. It’s beating so fast—is it arguing with you?”

Kane felt his heart wasn’t just racing—it was about to leap out of his throat. “Then… what is it saying?” His voice was hoarse, the words vibrating through his chest, low and heavy against Ning Chan’s ear.

Ning Chan didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he straightened up, pulling away to study Kane’s face before finally locking eyes with that burning gaze.

“It’s saying… you like me.”

Ning Chan hadn’t originally intended to address this so soon. But whether it was humanity's dark nature he witnessed last night or the enchanting moon this morning, he suddenly couldn’t hold back.

Of course, he knew words alone weren’t enough—they carried responsibility. Now that he had brought it up, he had to give Kane a proper answer.

Whether he accepted or rejected Kane’s feelings, he couldn’t treat this as a joke. Kane had laid his heart bare; Ning Chan couldn’t keep him hanging or pretend not to see it.

He'd practically raised Kane. He knew his personality well. Though Kane seemed docile and accommodating in front of him, once he set his mind to something, he wouldn’t easily change it.

Ning Chan had simply failed to notice before. So many details had slipped past him unconsciously.

But after hearing Kane’s whispered words last night, those hidden truths were like treasures buried in sand, revealed by the receding tide, laid bare before his eyes. Ning Chan couldn’t even bring himself to ask if Kane had misunderstood.

Ning Chan had never been in love, but he had seen others in love. He recognized the signs—he just never thought to apply those signs to Kane.

Now, laid bare, Kane stood transfixed, staring at Ning Chan, his mind blank. He had no idea what to say.

"Why is this so sudden? He didn’t know... did he? Wait, did he know all along?! 'You—you... since when did you know?'"

"Yesterday. I caught everything you said." As the words left his mouth, Ning Chan suddenly felt a bit embarrassed by his own obliviousness. If he hadn't overheard, it might have taken him much longer to realize.

Kane, recalling how Ning Chan hadn’t reacted much differently toward him afterward, grew uneasy. "Then... then what do you think of me? If... if you don’t like me acting this way, let’s just pretend it never happened, okay? Please don’t hate me."

His eyes brimmed with hope, desperately searching Ning Chan’s expression for a favorable answer. But seeing the other’s unsmiling face, panic set in, and he hurriedly backtracked, trying to prevent things from spiraling into the worst possible outcome.

As Ning Chan remained silent, Kane wanted to smack his own head in frustration. This man was so perceptive—he shouldn’t have blurted out those words so recklessly. What if Ning Chan grew disgusted with him? Maybe in a few days, he’d leave and never see him again.

Watching Kane’s initially excited expression stiffen, his eyes half-lidded and lips downturned, looking on the verge of tears, Ning Chan couldn’t maintain his serious demeanor any longer. He chuckled and ruffled Kane’s drooping head.

This guy—way too easy to mess with!

"This is all a bit sudden. Give me some time to think it over. No matter what happens, I could never hate you. It’s just... I’ve always thought of you like a little brother, and now that the dynamic might change, I need to adjust. I don’t know if I can give you the response you want."

Ning Chan, with zero romantic experience, showcased his painfully lacking emotional intelligence. Had he put himself in Kane’s shoes, recalling how decisively he’d rejected others in the past, he might have realized how this would play out.

"Then... when can I get an answer? Please don’t make me wait too long—I’ll lose my mind waiting." Kane’s eyes widened abruptly, locking onto Ning Chan with an intense, hopeful gleam, betraying no sign of his sleepless night.

Clearly, Kane’s sharp emotional radar had picked up on the crucial fact: as long as Ning Chan didn’t outright reject him, there was still a chance.

Ning Chan had no idea how long it would take for him to sort out his feelings. He almost suggested half a year or even a year, but couldn’t bear to make Kane suffer. Scratching his head, he answered uncertainly, "How about... once we’ve wrapped this whole thing up?"

"This mess? Do you mean dealing with 'Pleasure City,' or everything in Babylonia?" Just the first one would take forever—if the latter was included, it wouldn’t be resolved in just a year or two.

"'Pleasure City.' Once we’ve handled all the people and matters related to it domestically, I’ll give you my answer." Hearing Kane’s voice grow heavier, Ning Chan hurriedly patted his shoulder, urging him not to lose heart.

"Okay, I’ll wait. But before then... can you hug me? You’ll be busy again soon, and we won’t see each other for a long time." Kane stretched out his arms tentatively, testing whether Ning Chan would deliberately keep his distance now that his feelings were out in the open.

"A hug? Seriously? You’re a grown man—why so needy? If I didn’t know better... I’d think you’ve mistaken a lack of familial affection for romantic feelings." But his pounding heart wasn’t lying. The warmth flooding his senses didn’t lie. And those eyes, gazing at him like fallen starlight, didn’t lie.

Used to Kane being clingy, Ning Chan instinctively pulled him into an embrace, even patting his back reassuringly. It only hit him afterward that this might not be appropriate at this stage. But when he tried to pull away, Kane held on tightly, so he let it be.

Holding Ning Chan close, Kane was overwhelmed with joy. If not for the lingering reverence that barely kept his rationality intact, he would’ve thrown caution to the wind—kissing Ning Chan, capturing those soft lips, tangling with that warm tongue, leaving vivid marks on that slender, pale neck...

Too bad this sweet daydream got cut off by Ning Chan’s utter lack of romantic awareness. "Oh, right—I never explained how I got those people to talk. I don’t actually have mind-control powers. Anyone could pull it off with the right gadget. Hand it to you, and you’d manage just fine."

Pushed back abruptly, Kane felt the emptiness in his arms and a deep dissatisfaction in his heart. Faking interest, he sighed, "Really? How?"