“No!” Sera, knowing exactly what that meant, yelled angrily.
“Huh?” Alex frowned slightly, giving her an annoyed look.
He really disliked people who didn’t listen.
Sera shrank back nervously but forced herself to glare back, trying not to look weak. “Even if I agreed, Riley wouldn’t!” she said, trying to sound tough even though she felt scared.
She and Riley went to the same university. Even though they weren’t in the same major or school department, both were known as campus beauties at Dawson FamilyUniversity, and each was considered the prettiest in their respective departments.
So, Sera knew a bit about Riley. Not a lot, but enough to know that while Riley looked soft on the outside, she was actually very strong-willed deep down. It was just part of who she was.
Otherwise, with so many rich guys chasing her at school, why hadn’t she said yes to any of them?
Even though she clearly needed money and worked several part-time jobs, she never asked for help, even though plenty of rich guys would have jumped at the chance to pay her way.
But she never did.
How could a girl like that agree to Alex’s shameless request?
Sera felt very sure about this.
“She’ll agree,” Alex said, just as sure.
The Riley now wasn’t the simple, sweet girl from the original story anymore. Alex had… unlocked many hidden sides of her in different places and situations.
Especially after her grandma’s illness was cured, she had started taking the lead instead of just going along. She was becoming the way Alex wanted her to be.
There wasn’t a female lead he couldn’t handle.
Sera bit her lip, feeling torn. When Alex first brought this up, she was certain Riley would never agree to something so crazy. But now… it seemed like she might have been wrong.
How could that be?
How could a girl like Riley agree to something so ridiculous from Alex?
But strangely, even as Sera struggled with this, a tiny part of her felt a little… excited? The thought scared her so much her legs felt shaky.
But… but facing Alex alone was exhausting. She didn’t have the stamina to keep up with him the whole time.
Maybe that stubborn girl, Riley, was close to giving in because she couldn’t handle Alex’s intensity alone either?
Perhaps… two would be better.
At least they could get breaks in between.
Still, she was a woman, and naturally shy. She couldn’t just say yes as easily as Alex could suggest it.
She was too embarrassed to nod in agreement.
Alex understood immediately. Without needing her to say anything, he picked her up and carried her towards the bedroom, thoughtfully helping her out of her nightgown.
….
In a Secret Mountain:-
Flowers bloomed everywhere, filling the valley. Among the flowers grew many valuable medicinal herbs, clearly quite old.
Towards the south side of the valley stood a row of bamboo houses. Thin smoke curled up from one, showing someone was cooking inside.
An old man with a full head of white hair sat cross-legged before a stove, mixing herbs. The water in the pot was already boiling. The old man scooped a spoonful of green liquid from a nearby jar and poured it into the pot.
Instantly, green bubbles popped (‘glug glug glug’) in the boiling iron pot, releasing a smell that made your mouth water.
Noticing the firewood under the pot was running low, the white-haired old man sighed. “I wonder how that brat Eric Vaughn is doing down the mountain? Is anyone bullying him?”
“We should be thankful he’s not bullying others! That kid learned everything from us three old guys. Who down the mountain could bully him? Besides, who would dare bully our student?” A bald old man wearing a black robe walked in through the doorway of the bamboo house, chuckling.
Seeing the green bubbling liquid in the iron pot, the black-robed old man’s smile widened. He couldn’t help licking his lips, a look of pure craving on his face.
The white-haired old man put the lid on the pot. “But these past few days, I’ve felt really uneasy.”
“What’s there to be uneasy about? You’re just worrying for nothing. Eric’s talented, sure, but he’s too stubborn and doesn’t handle pressure well. Sending him down the mountain is meant to train him, toughen him up, and smooth out those rough edges,” the black-robed man said, sitting down casually on the pile of firewood. He rolled a pair of blood-red walnuts in his hand.
Outside, the setting sun cast long shadows, bathing the entire valley in brilliant, colorful light. It looked incredibly beautiful.
“But…”
Before the white-haired old man could finish, the black-robed man cut him off. “No ‘buts’. I’ve noticed you’ve been acting weird ever since you visited Pavilion a few days ago. Did that old trickster Oren tell you something again?”
The white-haired old man nodded. “Oren did a reading for Eric. He said the boy is destined to face a deadly danger on this trip down the mountain.”
“Deadly danger?” The black-robed man scoffed dismissively. “When has that old liar ever told the truth? Doing too much fortune-telling and revealing secrets of fate invites trouble from the heavens. Oren doesn’t even do readings for himself. You really think he’d risk shortening his own life to do one for Eric?”
He paused, then stood up, lifted the pot lid, scooped up half a spoonful of the green soup, sniffed it, and put it back down. “I bet that old ghost Oren is still trying to snatch Eric away from us. This ‘deadly danger’ stuff is just an excuse he made up to try and get Eric as his student.”
Deadly danger? More like Oren himself is in deadly danger, the black-robed man thought. He decided he needed to pay a visit to Pavilion soon himself. He had unfinished business with that old fortune teller – they’d fought hard over who got to teach Eric years ago, and he’d ended up poisoning the guy so badly Oren couldn’t get out of bed for three days.