Luo’er carefully slid his arm out of Tangmo’s embrace and got out of bed, then tucked her blankets around her.
His night terror had left him drenched in cold sweat, leaving him uncomfortable and sticky. Seizing the quiet of the early morning, he went to the well downstairs and drew a bucket of cold water for a much-needed bath.
The icy well water seemed to shock him back to clarity, and he felt much livelier afterward. After changing into fresh clothes, he headed upstairs. Cheng Ziang was already awake, standing in the hallway, rubbing his eyes and yawning.
"Good morning!" Luo’er greeted him.
Cheng Ziang continued to yawn, then turned his sleepy eyes towards Luo’er and smiled at him, a smile that was difficult to describe.
"What’s with you?" Seeing his bizarre smile, Luo’er felt his scalp tingle again.
"Luo’er, congratulations!" Cheng Ziang reached out and grasped Luo’er’s hands, speaking earnestly.
"Congratulations for what?" Luo’er was utterly at a loss.
"Congrats on reaching a new milestone together," Cheng Ziang said with a mischievous grin.
"What the hell, we didn’t do anything!" Luo’er paused for a moment, understanding what Cheng Ziang was implying, then spoke with a laugh and a shake of his head.
"Stop denying it. Look at you, all worn out. We’re all adults here; it’s not a big deal, it’s just about making it official," Cheng Ziang said, giving him a knowing smile and patting his shoulder.
"Do you see me as that kind of person?" Luo’er asked, blushing till his face felt hot.
Actually, Cheng Ziang knew that Luo’er wouldn’t do anything like that given his character; he was just teasing their adorable captain.
"When did that guy come?" After their raillery, Cheng Ziang pointed at the room and asked in a serious tone.
"After midnight, why?" Luo’er asked.
"Why? His snoring went all night long, drowning out Hu Daoke’s. It sounded like a choir!" Cheng Ziang complained, grinding his teeth and making a face.
"Sorry, there were no rooms available late last night, so I let him sleep in ours." Luo’er explained.
"Never mind, it was just one night. Since he has returned, go wake the girls, so we could hit the road early. The sooner we get this over with, the safer it will be. Less time for things to go wrong." Cheng Ziang rubbed his eyes and made his suggestion.
"Alright, I got it!" Luo’er nodded. As the vice captain, Cheng Ziang was competent. At times, he was even more effective than Luo’er himself.
Luo’er stepped into the girls’ room. Hesitating for a moment, he didn’t knock and instead walked right in. Once he did, he saw Baiyue sitting on her bed, clutching her blanket while fuming at the sight of Tangmo sleeping soundly on Luo’er’s bed.
Regretting her modesty, she wished she could be as bold as Tangmo, to seize the opportunity to make a move on Luo’er during the night.
When Baiyue saw Luo’er enter, she panicked and instantly pulled a stoic face, buried her face into her blanket. Her ears started turning red gradually.
"Err... Moumou crawled into my bed at some point in the night." Luo’er coughed awkwardly, scratching his head.
"Hmm!" Baiyue grumbled softly, her face still hidden in the blanket.
"Well, you should get up. We need to hit the road," Luo’er continued.
"Hmm!" Baiyue nodded her head slightly.
"Then, I’ll head out first." With the atmosphere growing awkward, Luo’er found an excuse to make an early exit.
After Luo’er shut the door behind him, Baiyue made a disgruntled noise. Clearly, she had once again missed an opportunity.
The team was very efficient; they quickly got ready, cleaned up, and went downstairs for breakfast. Although the meal was still a simple flatbread and starch soup, no one minded; they were leaving this place today.
Yalunte joined them at the table, but ordered two glasses of fruit wine and drank alone. Luo’er wouldn’t let the team drink on an empty stomach, so Yalunte was the only one to drink.
"Just as I thought, taking the horse was a bad idea. Look at how tired our brother here is." Hu Daoke patted Yalunte’s back and spoke loudly.
"Not a big deal. It’s better you took them, otherwise those guys would have stolen them." Yalunte waved a hand dismissively.
Tangmo didn’t seem too interested, he lacked an appetite and quickly lost interest in his food, a gloomy expression on his face.
"What’s the matter, Moumou?" Asked Luo’er, concerned.
"My stomach hurts!" Tangmo looked up at Luo’er, speaking pitifully.
For some reason, at her words, everyone’s gaze turned demurely to Luo’er. Hu Daoke stared at her, shocked, and finally couldn’t help but say, "Isn’t this...too soon?"
"Is there a misunderstanding?" Luo’er said with an innocent face.
"Here, Sister Moumou, stretch out your hand. I’ll take your pulse!" Cheng Ziang said to her with interest.
"?" Tangmo extended his hand onto the table, showing his delicate wrist.
Cheng Ziang placed his fingers on her wrist, pressed it a few times as if pretending to take her pulse, and then nodded affirmatively, "Congratulations, Sister Moumou, you have a pregnant pulse!"
Upon hearing his words, Tangmo widened her eyes in disbelief, shaking her head and saying, "We... we haven’t done anything yet!"
"Moumou, ignore these guys!" Luo’er could not stand to watch further and pulled her hand back.
Seeing Cheng Ziang pretend to take the pulse, Yalunte’s gaze suddenly focused. Something seemed to have been opened in his deep memory, causing his body to tremble violently and spilling the fruit wine in his hand.
"What’s wrong, big brother?" Seeing Yalunte’s predicament, Hu Daoke couldn’t help but ask.
"Oh, nothing," Yalunte waved his hand and said casually, "I’m getting old, and my movements are not as smooth as before."
"Oh, be careful then!" Hu Daoke said while handing him a cloth.
Just as everyone was busy helping Yalunte, Luo’er, who was eating, could not help but cough violently. He instinctively lowered his head, spitting the contents of his mouth onto the ground.
"What’s wrong Luo’er, did you choke?" Seeing this, Tangmo asked with concern.
"It’s nothing, it’s probably because I took a cold shower in the morning." Luo’er looked up and smiled, but everyone noticed that his face began to pale.
Hearing his cough, Yalunte sat up and looked at Luo’er. Noticing his complexion, he frowned, but after looking around, he chose not to voice his concerns.
Baiyue and Cheng Ziang, of course, knew why Luo’er’s complexion was so pale. The two exchanged glances. Baiyue slowly moved closer and patted Luo’er’s back gently to help him feel better.
"Really, who told you to take a cold shower early in the morning?" Hearing his words, Tangmo began to scold him angrily.
"Sorry, I made a mistake." Luo’er smiled reluctantly.
Seeing the two of them, Cheng Ziang stayed quiet. But for some reason, he felt a fire in his heart he wanted to vent, but just couldn’t.
After breakfast, the group packed up and rode off towards Golden Port. From there, they would board a ship directly to Yazhi City. Barring any accidents, they should arrive in Yazhi City within two weeks.
The group rode on, quiet during most of the journey as everyone had their own troubles. Cheng Ziang, with Arya’s Blade wrapped and carried on his back, moved to the back of the team. Yalunte rode his horse slowly next to him and patted Arya’s Blade on his back.
"What are you doing, trying to steal the sword?" Cheng Ziang asked.
Yalunte smiled and shook his head, "Even if I wanted to steal the sword, you wouldn’t be able to beat me with Arya’s Blade."
"We’ll see about that!" Cheng Ziang retorted.
After the jest, Yalunte stared at the back of Luo’er for a while before turning back to Cheng Ziang, seriously asking, "I’ll ask you, you know about your captain’s illness, right?"
Upon hearing his words, Cheng Ziang was taken aback, then turned to him and asked in confusion, "What are you talking about?"
"I’m talking about your captain’s illness, the Magic Power Erosion!" Yalunte pointed at Luo’er as he said.
"Keep your voice down," Cheng Ziang anxiously glanced at his companions up ahead and then whispered, "How did you know?"
"One of my close ones died from this disease, so I have a deep impression of it." Yalunte said with a saddened expression.
Cheng Ziang looked at him, then at Luo’er in front of him and lowered his head. After a moment of silence, he said, "Luo’er doesn’t want others to know about his condition, so I hope you can keep it a secret for him."
"Is that so? He really is a stubborn captain," Yalunte looked at Luo’er’s back, shook his head, then added, "But I’ll warn you, his condition is severe. If you don’t want him to die, try not to let him touch magic, or be hit by magic, otherwise he really won’t make it."
"I know..." Cheng Ziang lowered his head, gritting his teeth.
"And," Yalunte sighed before saying, "When we reach Golden Port, we should part ways. You should be able to bring Arya’s Blade back by yourself, right?"
"Where are you going?" Cheng Ziang asked in surprise.
"I am a wandering swordsman, so of course I will wander." Yalunte smiled and said.
"Didn’t you say you were coming back with us? Don’t you want your reward?" Cheng Ziang asked anxiously.