Chapter 108: Forever and Always

Chapter 108: One Life, One Lifetime

Meng Shu arrived at the shop and looked around. "Boss, what flowers do you use to confess your feelings to someone around here?"

The boss looked up at him, somewhat surprised. "Lord Hero is going to confess to someone?"

Meng Shu rubbed his nose and smiled sheepishly. "I'm finally almost at 80 affinity. He told me to come buy flowers."

"Who's the target you're pursuing?" the boss couldn't help but gossip a little. "Is it that fox living on the mountain? Or that kid from the Xu family?"

Meng Shu was genuinely surprised. "Why would you think I'm after either of them?"

"That Xu kid is always hanging around you, isn't he?"

Meng Shu waved his hand dismissively. "Him? I already told you, he's just a kid. He has nothing better to do and loves following me around."

"Then is it the fox?"

"He asks me for money every single day. I can't even avoid him fast enough." Just mentioning Jia Zhao gave Meng Shu a headache.

He thought he was already quite greedy, but Jia Zhao was ten times more avaricious.

Jia Zhao was the kind of miser who would snatch coins right out of a beggar's bowl.

"So who are you after, then?"

Meng Shu stated matter-of-factly, "Ling Qingjue. I stayed here because of him."

His face lit up with a beautiful smile as he said this; his usually sharp features softened, the kind of involuntary smile that appears when talking about someone you like. "He's really cute. No matter what he does, he's all awkward."

The boss looked at him incredulously. "You mean you're pursuing the only healer in our town?"

Strictly speaking, Ling Qingjue counted as a healer.

Meng Shu nodded.

"The stuff he asks for must be pretty bizarre, right?"

"It's not that bad. I somehow managed to piece it together." Meng Shu looked to be in a good mood, his pitch-black eyes like two black pearls. "He's soft-hearted. I coaxed him until he helped, and he helped me collect everything."

To this day, Meng Shu still didn't know how he had succeeded in the pursuit. He seemed not to have fought any of the high-difficulty bosses at all.

Ling Qingjue never even gave him a chance to fight.

The boss clicked his tongue in wonder and sighed. "If you ever leave Moon Bay in the future, he wouldn't follow you, would he? Then our town would be without a healer again."

Meng Shu was stunned for a moment. "He... why would he follow me?"

"If you marry him and you're a member of the Knights' Order, would you really stay in this small town forever?" The boss shook his head with a laugh. "You'll definitely end up at the royal palace sooner or later!"

Moon Bay was a slow-paced little town, nestled by the sea and mountains. Most of the people here were tired of the hustle and bustle of the outside world. Though they might look young, many were over a hundred.

Meng Shu, at twenty-eight, was considered just a kid here.

He thought for a moment, then shook his head. "He likes it here. I won't leave."

The boss breathed a sigh of relief. "So, you're buying flowers? The affinity is already at eighty?"

"Almost there." Meng Shu let out an awkward laugh. "It should be at eighty by the day after tomorrow's dance."

"Are you inviting him to the Spring Gathering? Are you planning to confess at the dance?"

Meng Shu hadn't figured out how to confess yet. "I'll see when the time comes. For now, I'll just buy the flowers."

Since it was his personal business, the boss didn't pry further. Suddenly, the boss—a burly, bearded man—looked up at him and said with deep affection, "5201314."

Meng Shu swore he couldn't process it in time.

He was too stunned. The boss stared at him with a tender, shy gaze and repeated, "5201314."

Meng Shu nearly lost his balance.

So cringey.

He held onto the counter to keep from falling and forced a smile. "Boss, I want to love you too, but... we're not really a match, are we?"

The boss gave him a mock-scolding glare. "I'm saying 5201314."

"I know you love me for a lifetime, but we're really not suitable. You're already married. It's not polite to keep loving me."

Meng Shu couldn't even manage a smile. He didn't have the courage to look the boss in the eye. "What exactly are we loving for?"

Two grown men, what's there to love?

Do you think you're Ling Maomao or something?

"Oh, I'm talking about the price of the flowers. What are you going on about?" The boss gave him an odd look. "Of course I don't love you. My wife is prettier than you."

Meng Shu couldn't laugh anymore at that.

"You're saying... that bouquet costs 5201314?"

The boss's eyes grew even more passionate, full of love for money. "Yes, 5201314."

Meng Shu still wouldn't give up. "Are you really sure it's 5201314? Is there a decimal point? Are you kidding me?"

"This flower, called the Everlasting Flower, when it blooms, it requires a drop of blood from each of the two lovers. Once it blossoms, as long as the relationship lasts, this bouquet will stay in bloom forever."

The boss carefully explained how to use the Everlasting Flower. "This flower is very hard to obtain. Only the witch has it. It's hard for us to stock it, and the price is the same nationwide."

Meng Shu put on a shy and embarrassed expression. "Boss, actually, I love you for a lifetime too. Can you move the decimal point two places to the left for me?"

"Spending money on your partner is a basic quality of a decent man. Because it costs a lot, it ensures your sincerity. It also protects the character you're romancing."

The boss suddenly grabbed his hand and said seriously, "Lord Hero, I don't want to deprive you of the right to express your love."

Is this what they call karma?

Meng Shu's heart ached.

If only he hadn't put on a generous front and returned the storage bag before leaving. Ling Qingjue was not short of money—that cat had a huge stash of private savings, more than he could ever spend.

And Meng Shu was already so broke he only had a pair of underwear left.

Trembling, he checked his balance. After working so long in the Knights' Order, taking countless commissions, and hunting many high-level magical beasts, after a year and a half of hard labor, his savings only stretched to one bouquet.

When he paid, Meng Shu's hands trembled.

But the boss mercilessly snatched his card, swiped it without hesitation, and handed it back with a cheerful smile. "Good luck with your confession!"

Heh heh... Th-thanks.

Meng Shu could have sworn he heard his wallet crying.

He must be hallucinating; how could a wallet suddenly speak?

The bouquet was to be delivered to his address later. Meng Shu left the delivery address, and when he walked out, he tripped over the threshold, stumbling, his legs so weak he could barely stay upright.

In this world, most prices were normal, but anything related to magic immediately skyrocketed hundreds of times.

He walked around in a daze the whole way, and still had his daily tasks to complete.

He couldn't even remember what had happened today, and before he knew it, he had arrived home.

Ling Qingjue leaned against the second-floor balcony railing, still lounging lazily, a malicious smile on his lips. "How come you can't even walk steadily?"

It was sunset, and the twilight gently settled on his features, the sunlight about to be swallowed by the mountains and sea.

Such beautiful scenery—green leaves and dappled shadows, red bricks and blue walls, a strikingly elegant youth, and clouds ablaze like wildfire.

But when Meng Shu looked up, he saw only him.

Nothing else could enter his sight.