CH 33

faced with this outcome, lucifer appeared deeply saddened. he walked gracefully over to prince harry, who was still coughing and handed him a napkin.

then, he looked at the bowl of nourishing soup in front of him. with his hands clasped in front of him, he furrowed his brows slightly, his emotions swirling as he said: “ah, why did it turn out like this? pei xia, it’s such a pity. but please believe me, i have already accepted your heartfelt gesture.”

pei xia hurriedly waved his hand and went to help clear the table. “please don’t say that, your holiness. there’s more in the pot, and i’ll bring you a fresh one right away!”

suddenly, lucifer’s body swayed, and he staggered to the sofa, his head hanging slightly.

“your holiness?!”

ignoring prince harry for the moment, pei xia rushed over and knelt beside lucifer, carefully looking at him.

through his long, flowing hair that hung softly, pei xia saw tears in lucifer’s eyes. he raised a hand to cover his lips gently, his gaze filled with sorrow and reluctance. “pei xia, actually…”

“what’s wrong, your holiness? are you feeling unwell?”

lucifer sighed and said, “actually, i’ve always felt guilty about eating meat.”

he clasped his hands together, as if in prayer, and looked up at the distant sky as if he were praying for unknown souls: “i pray for the cattle and sheep every day because they give their lives for us. but even so, i still feel guilty when i eat meat. especially when it comes to animals of other races, i just can’t bear to consume their lives!”

the kind and gentle-hearted lucifer turned back to pei xia and reached out to hold his hand. his hand was trembling slightly, cold to the touch, and he perfectly conveyed his guilt and pain to pei xia.

while sighing, lucifer shook his head. his long hair swayed like golden tassels as he looked at the distant sky as if he were praying for unknown souls: “pei xia, my heart aches so much! i’m sorry, but i might not be able to eat the nourishing soup you prepared for me.”

as he spoke, he grew weaker. when the last word fell, a crystal-clear tear rolled down from the corner of his eye, slowly tracing his fair and tender cheek, reaching his chin, and finally landing with a soft sound on pei xia’s hand.

pei xia was deeply moved and speechless. he held lucifer’s hand in return, touched by the moment.

pei xia was moved because lucifer had this quirk but had been enduring it in front of him, even finishing all the previous nourishing soups. he was speechless because he didn’t expect lucifer’s inner world to be so fragile. however, it was understandable why he couldn’t bring himself to take lives.

pei xia sighed, realizing that he needed to continue exploring lucifer’s inner world.

holding lucifer’s hand tightly, pei xia said, “i understand, your holiness. you’re too kind and compassionate, and it was my oversight not to notice this before. from now on, i will make sure not to make this mistake again!”

lucifer nodded.

in the warm, dim afternoon sunlight, the priest and his knight clasped each other’s hands. their gaze towards each other was filled with genuine emotion and deep affection.

he truly was a kind-hearted man. despite his quirks and physical weakness, at least his soul was as beautiful as his face.

pei xia looked into his deep, ocean-like blue eyes and couldn’t help but think that.

“ahem, ahem!”

prince harry’s coughing interrupted their gaze. pei xia quickly released lucifer’s hand, and his heart skipped a beat. he took a step back, feeling a bit uncomfortable, and shifted his gaze from lucifer to prince harry.

“your highness, how are you feeling now?” pei xia belatedly remembered to check on the prince.

prince harry wiped his mouth with a napkin. his face was pale, and he appeared weak as he stood up. he looked at lucifer and pei xia with a complex and almost indescribable expression, filled with fear and complexity.

“i-i’m fine.”

since lucifer had moved to the sofa on the side, prince harry felt a bit neglected. pei xia thought he might have inadvertently hurt lucifer’s pure and delicate soul, so he stepped forward to attend to prince harry.

“your highness, please have a glass of water to soothe your throat. are you still hungry? do you want me to bring you a fresh bowl of soup?” pei xia asked, looking at him with concern.

prince harry: “no need!”

he chuckled awkwardly, taking a couple of steps back. “i suddenly remembered that it’s almost dusk, and the monster tide is about to arrive. oh no, i have to rush over to inspect the city walls with everyone. your holiness, knight, we’ll see each other later!”

with that, he turned and hurried out of the room.

pei xia couldn’t help but sigh. prince harry indeed had a good character, but his constant presence around lucifer could be quite annoying at times.

now, a solemn-looking priest is sitting on the couch, praying for the souls of the departed little creatures, while a prince, due to urgent matters, had to leave his food behind.

pei xia started to clean up the table, looking at the two bowls of wasted food. he felt a bit regretful and decided not to make this kind of tonic soup in the future to avoid making lucifer sad.

“my lord, i’ll be back in a moment.”

pei xia tidied up the table and then poured away the contaminated food. he remembered that there was still some left in the kitchen. however, he had no intention of drinking it himself. after all, if he were to drink the five-whip soup in front of lucifer, he might inadvertently reveal his desire for his beauty.

but when pei xia reached the kitchen, he was surprised to find that the pot was empty, completely devoid of any soup. he asked the kitchen staff and the servants, but none of them knew what had happened.

‘oh well, if it’s gone, it’s gone,’ he thought to himself.

on the other side, at the feet of the pure-hearted priest, a shadow blended seamlessly with the couch, and something within it was slowly wriggling. suddenly, the shadow shivered, as if it had hiccupped.

as dusk arrived, pei xia, lucifer, and several holy knights returned to the city walls to participate in the ongoing battle. perhaps the mischievous blackhearted goose demon had been eliminated in secret, as this time the monster tide was much more normal compared to the previous day.

after the battle, prince harry looked at the pile of monster corpses on the ground and breathed a sigh of relief. “that’s great; it seems we’ll have a peaceful summer after all.”

lucifer approached slowly, gazing into the dark forest, which seemed even more mysterious in the dim light. he spoke with a serious tone, “no, i think things are not that simple.”

pei xia nodded discreetly. indeed, lucifer was right. the next part of the original story involved the protagonist’s group venturing into the sapphire forest.

however, he still cooperatively asked, “my lord, have you noticed anything?”

lucifer nodded and replied, “the prime minister informed me that this year, not only did demons participate, but the number and strength of the monster tide have also increased. now that the demons are eliminated, and there are still many monsters left, it’s likely that something has gone awry inside the sapphire forest.”

pei xia immediately applauded in agreement, “my lord, you are absolutely right!”

lucifer responded with a faint smile.

prince harry looked concerned and suggested, “you make a valid point. so, after the monster tide, let’s go in together. the sapphire forest is the territory of the elves, and we can inquire with them.”

lucifer shook his head and gazed ahead at the night sky with a resolute expression, “although the largest demon has been eliminated, i can still sense an evil presence lingering within the sapphire forest. my powers are limited, and i cannot take care of so many people. prince, please stay here with princess and protect the people. leave the task of exploring the inner part of the sapphire forest to us, the followers of the light god!”

prince harry was still not convinced, “my lord, you are my dearest friend. how can i just stand by when darkness lies ahead?”

his voice abruptly stopped as he saw lucifer’s body swaying weakly, leaning towards a nearby holy knight.

lucifer quipped, “ah, the performance is over, it’s time for me to faint.”

pei xia instinctively reached out to support the lord, but he remained facing prince harry, and lucifer leaned against his shoulder with his face buried in his neck.

prince harry suddenly realized something and quickly blinked. he continued, “how can i just care for myself? my lord, allow me to lead the troops and accompany you. if you don’t say anything, i’ll take that as your agreement!”

pei xia was shocked internally, ‘why is prince harry so cunning? does he use these shameless tactics to get close to the ladies as well?’

no, he couldn’t let him succeed!

pei xia thought for a moment and discreetly stepped back, supporting lucifer’s ribs and placing him in front of himself, facing prince harry.

“let me protect the fragile heart of my lord. to prevent my lord from waking up and realizing that he has unintentionally agreed to accompany prince harry, i have no choice!”

prince harry: “…”

pei xia shook his head slightly, signaling lucifer to do the same.

pei xia appeared regretful, saying, “i’m truly sorry, prince harry. it seems that lord lucifer is quite determined. you should stay in atna city with princess.”

prince harry: “…”

pei xia supported lucifer, allowing him to lean against him. then, he crouched down, lifting lucifer onto his back, and they began to descend toward the city wall.

pei xia had grown accustomed to lucifer occasionally fainting due to excessive magical energy consumption.

prince harry watched their retreating figures and couldn’t help but comment, “sir knight, the lord has clearly fainted!”

pei xia, carrying lucifer on his back, didn’t look back and responded, “in that case, the lord didn’t agree earlier; he had already fainted!”

prince harry attempted to argue, “no, he was awake just now; he only fainted now.”

pei xia replied, “if that’s the case, i will inquire with the lord after he wakes up!”

finally, prince harry stopped arguing.

on their way back to the rear resting area, lucifer regained consciousness. he leaned against pei xia’s back and breathed softly into his ear, “pei xia, return to the bak family’s side.”

pei xia felt an itching sensation in his ear and instinctively tilted his head to avoid it.

“yes, my lord. just now, you fainted, and prince harry still wants to accompany you to the sapphire forest. for the sake of your energy and health, please hold out and don’t agree to him!”

pei xia couldn’t resist being a little petty while also subtly brainwashing lucifer.

“alright.”

lucifer, leaning on pei xia’s back, smiled and spoke in a low, seductive tone into his ear. with each breath, he tickled pei xia’s ear, causing him to shiver.

unable to bear it any longer, pei xia involuntarily twitched his shoulder to rub his ear.

there was a muffled sound.

pei xia froze.

a moment later, lucifer covered his chin and said, “pei xia, i think i may have bitten my tongue.”