The backrests of the compartment seats couldn't recline flat, nor were they particularly comfortable to lean against, so the most suitable posture for passengers was to keep both hands resting on the tabletop. Yaxiu, however, took up two seats all by himself. Folding down all the armrests, he slung his legs across them and reclined halfway, propping his cheek on his left hand. His eyes were glued to a show on the light screen, and he let out a chuckle from time to time, as thoroughly indolent as a pampered Lalafell.
Who would ever imagine that such a fellow was preparing to challenge the supreme hegemony of the Divine Lord of Stars? If he succeeded, he would become the supreme sovereign of sorcery standing at civilization's apex, the undisputed ruler of the world. And yet, only last night, he had been doting on his lovers...
Felix pretended to watch the scenery rushing past outside, tracking Yaxiu's movements solely through the corner of her eye. Daedalose finished flipping through a magazine and rested her chin on her hand, peering sideways at Felix. Because Felix's attention was entirely consumed by her peripheral vision, it took her three full seconds to notice Daedalose's subtle glance.
Still, Daedalose wasn't one of the four reapers in the adjacent compartment, so Felix wasn't flustered in the slightest.
Acting nonchalant, she stretched her arms, bowed her head, and resumed browsing the magazine, pretending nothing was out of the ordinary.
At that moment, Daedalose tapped her spatial ring and produced noise-canceling headphones, a pitch-black sleep mask, and a neck pillow. She poked Felix in the small of her back, slipped on the headphones, eye mask, and neck pillow, then turned outward to sleep. Her message was clear—do whatever you want; I can't see, hear, or know a thing.
Felix made a show of flipping through the magazine a bit longer before lifting her head to gaze back at the view outside. The sun shone bright over Blood Moon Country today. She watched the sunlight slant through the train window, sliced into neat rectangular bands of illumination draped over Yaxiu. His earlobes took on a translucent sheen under the light, the fine hairs along his arm shimmered with golden luster, half his face was bathed in radiance, and a gentle smile curved at the corner of his lips.
She had only intended to steal glances from the corner of her eye, but the longer Felix looked, the more entranced she became. In her mind, Yaxiu had always been unreliable, shiftless, insatiably greedy, and brazen—practically a supreme-tier trash bin of sorcery. The Sword Princess and the others had clearly leaped into the fire in a momentary lapse of sanity; the day they woke up would be the day of Yaxiu's reckoning. Yet at certain times, she couldn't help thinking... he was actually rather pleasant to look at.
She took a remarkably compact camera from her pocket. Having secretly snapped photos of him several times before, Felix skillfully used the magazine as a shield. She adjusted the aperture and focal length, snapping seven or eight shots before feeling satisfied. Just as she was about to put it away, Yaxiu suddenly stirred.
Felix gave a full-body shudder, thinking the subject had caught her red-handed in unauthorized photography. But Yaxiu merely took a sip of water and went back to watching his show; evidently, he was entirely lost in the drama on screen and hadn't noticed his surroundings at all. Because Yaxiu had shifted postures, Felix thought the current composition was even better than before and couldn't resist snapping a few more.
Whatever show he was watching, his small movements never ceased, shifting into a new pose every dozen seconds or so. Whenever she came across a good angle, Felix snapped a picture. Before long, she wasn't bored in the slightest—in fact, she even began looking forward to what pose Yaxiu would strike next.
After taking thirty-six photos, Felix finally noticed something amiss.
She watched as Yaxiu deliberately brushed back his bangs, then hooked a finger into his collar to reveal a suggestive glimpse of his collarbone, striking an utterly unnatural, self-consciously handsome pose.
Felix took a huge gulp of water to calm herself down, but after holding it in for three seconds, she lost all control and sprayed a mouthful of water straight across the table, catching Yaxiu right in the face.
"What are you two doing?" Weise and Vichy poked their heads out.
"I'm sorry," Felix gasped, covering her mouth, though tears of laughter squeezed from her eyes. "The pose he just struck was so corny... I really couldn't hold it in..."
"Oh." Weise understood at once. "Completely normal. His sense of aesthetics leans toward teenagers. We've spent ages trying to coach him out of it, but he never changes. Leave his wardrobe unsupervised for just one day, and he instantly drags down the entire team's fashion sense."
"Leans toward teenagers?" Vichy looked slightly puzzled.
"Meaning the aesthetic taste of someone sixteen or younger," Weise explained. "Do you remember that black shirt of his with chains and skulls?"
"Wasn't that a ritual vestment? I don't really understand your era's ceremonial styles... but surely no one would wear that as everyday clothing!"
"That's exactly what he wore on our date," Sonia said placidly. "Those days were freezing and everyone was wrapped in winter layers, but to show off his cool shirt, he deliberately only wore two thin layers... When I dragged him to the mall to buy clothes, he was even reluctant!"
"Uncle Harvey and Father have certainly expanded my horizons regarding aesthetics," Diya couldn't help chiming in. "Always obsessed with elements like darkness, death, graves, and ruin, and especially fond of utterly incomprehensible symbols. It's truly..."
Once the topic turned to Yaxiu's catastrophic fashion taste, everyone shared their thoughts freely, filling the compartment with cheerful laughter.
Wiping the water off his face, Yaxiu glared across the table at Felix with a face full of dark lines, gritting his teeth in a low voice. "Don't you have something to say?"
"I'm sorry..." Felix covered her face. "I just couldn't help it..."
"You're still laughing right now! You haven't stopped!" Yaxiu stared at her trembling shoulders, his composure nearly cracking as he grumbled petulantly, "If I'd known, I wouldn't have helped you!"
With great difficulty, Felix finally choked back her laughter, took a deep breath, and looked at the pouting man before her. After noticing her secret photography, Yaxiu hadn't complained at all; instead, he had proactively struck all sorts of dashing poses—at least, poses he considered dashing—to cooperate with her, looking rather pleased with himself... A dignified supreme sorcerer was actually secretly thrilled that a girl was snapping candid photos of him... Then again, that was precisely his style.
Now Felix didn't even bother pretending. Cupping her cheeks with both hands, her eyes curved with bright, brimming smiles as she gazed at Yaxiu. It was Yaxiu whose composure gave way first: "If you're really that bored, you can go take pictures of the pretty girls over there."
"Isn't your hair getting a bit too long?" Felix asked suddenly. "I noticed you keep brushing your bangs aside."
"I haven't had time to look after it." Yaxiu swept his bangs back. "It is getting a bit long. It can even be tied into a little tail in the back."
"I have a hair tie. Let me help you."
"I can do it myself—"
"Tying someone else's hair is different from tying your own." Felix rose and leaned forward across the table. "Consider it my apology for spitting water in your face."
Yaxiu bowed his head. Felix gathered up all his front and back hair, revealing the smooth nape of his neck, which gleamed with dazzling radiance in the sunlight.
"Do you use hairpins?"
"No."
"I happen to have some styling pomade here, so don't move."
Felix slicked the hair at his temples straight back, cupping his face to inspect him for a moment. "Your eyelashes are quite messy. Let me curl them for you."
"Is that really necessary?"
"After they're curled, you can ask the Sword Princess what's different about you. If she can't guess your eyelashes, you can seize the chance to accuse her of not loving you enough, and then—"
"Deal!" Yaxiu understood instantly.
"You really are something..." Felix giggled, taking out an eyelash curler. "Step one, lift your brows; step two, squint; step three, shift. First lift your eyebrows, then squint your eyes."
Yaxiu obediently complied. Felix's hands completely blocked his line of sight. He felt his lashes being gently tugged and straightened, and then...
A pair of soft lips pressed gently against his, the fresh fragrance of jasmine brushing the bridge of his nose.
"All done."
Felix sat back down, saying with an air of complete composure, "Now we're even."
Yaxiu touched his lips, staring at her blankly. She blinked, then added as if just remembering, "My finger brushed your lips just now. Sorry about that."
"Your finger?"
"Mm-hmm. The back of my finger."
Yaxiu glanced at the back of his own fingers and was about to kiss them to test the sensation when Felix caught his hand.
"It was the back of my finger," the second young mistress of Vosloda said, fixing her gaze upon him, her voice trembling ever so slightly. "What else could it possibly be?"
From the other compartment came Diya's frustrated groan over losing a card round; it seemed their wager match had entered a fever pitch. Wearing her headphones and eye mask, Daedalose swayed gently with the motion of the train, apparently fast asleep. Yaxiu felt the nervous, conflicted tension radiating from Felix's palm, and let out a sigh. "Fine."
Felix exhaled in relief and casually asked, "What show are you watching anyway? You were laughing and crying over it."
"*Wild Speedsters*," Yaxiu said. "A love-hate story between an outlaw bandit male lead and a sheriff female lead. It's quite interesting, especially the female lead. Even though her sense of justice puts her at odds with everyone, in moments of crisis, she's the one everyone trusts the most."
"Oh—"
The two drifted into easy banter. Felix's demeanor became much more natural; even when Weise glanced over on occasion, she could converse with Yaxiu openly, as if she had cast off some shackle—or perhaps gained some measure of courage.
Suddenly, an announcement rang through the train car:
"Attention passengers, the dining area in Car 10 is now offering the Ultimate Weapon Three-in-One Blazing Lalafell, in limited supply on a first-come, first-served basis!"
Blazing Lalafell! And the Ultimate Weapon Three-in-One at that! Yaxiu's appetite was instantly whetted. Knowing full well how much Yaxiu loved Lalafell cuisine, Felix asked, "Should I go fetch a portion for you?"
"No, forget it." After a brief hesitation, Yaxiu decided against it. "It feels weird if I'm the only one eating... Besides, train meals can only be so good no matter what. Better to save that anticipation for fine dining in Kaimeng."
They assumed such announcements would only play on rare occasions, but a few minutes later, the speakers crackled to life again—
"Will any passengers with healing capabilities please report to Car 10."
"Looks like someone is injured or fell sick," Felix guessed.
Yaxiu nodded and remarked casually, "There are quite a few healing sorcerers around, so it shouldn't be an issue. If they call a second time and you're free, Felix, go take a look."
"Okay."
A few minutes later, the broadcast sounded for a third time, but the message had changed once more:
"Will any passengers who have traveled through three or more nations please report to Car 10."
Chapter 1252