Chapter 380: The Little Rascal and the Old Timer
"You're going to make her mad doing that, you know?"
"If she wouldn't get mad, then what's the point of drawing on her!"
"You're just trying to get back the frustration you suffered earlier, aren't you? Are you a child?"
"What are you talking about? I'm not mad. Why would I be angry at myself from fifty thousand years ago? I've always known what kind of old timer I used to be back then! I'm just…"
In her sleep, Elysia gradually regained consciousness as the nearby conversation drifted into her dreams.
Inside the lounge—which had been switched from bar-counter mode to a balcony-restaurant setting—Senti was chatting with Book of Fuxi perched on her shoulder while slowly moving a black marker toward Elysia's sweetly sleeping face.
A sudden slicing sound cut through the air.
Smack!
Senti's wrist was instantly seized by a pale, deceptively delicate hand possessing frightening strength.
Elysia opened her light-blue eyes, smiling like a blooming flower at Senti.
"Well well, good evening, my dearest Hua!"
"A-ah… good evening. Ahem! I came to wake you up for dinner. No need to thank me—since you're awake, just hurry up and let go!"
"Oh? Then how do you explain the pen in your hand?"
Elysia kept hold of Senti's wrist and leaned close to her ear, her breath warm and fragrant. Senti froze, her expression stiffening as her eyes darted around guiltily.
"T-this… that… it's just a toy! A little toy! It's meaningless, really. Don't mind it!"
"Is that so? Then I want to play with it too~~"
Still smiling, Elysia tugged hard on Senti's arm just as the girl panicked.
"Ah!"
In an instant of spinning vision, Senti found herself pinned beneath Elysia on the sofa.
Meanwhile, the marker had already switched to Elysia's hand, inching toward the area around Senti's eyes.
"Wait—don't do anything crazy! This brand is really hard to wash off!"
"Ara~ how would we know unless we test it? Come now, let me draw something super cute on you~~"
"Uwaaaa!!"
Senti tried to struggle, but Elysia's soft, fragrant, seemingly fragile body held her down with irresistible strength.
As a fusion warrior, Senti physical strength was indeed high—but only compared to normal Valkyries. Among fusion warriors themselves, a mentally-aligned type like Senti lacked advantage, especially against someone like Elysia, whose physique leaned toward raw physical power.
And so, with Senti panicking too much to use her martial arts, the counterattack failed disastrously. Her forehead soon bore a little turtle, one eye was decorated with a silly spiral, and numerous random doodles adorned the rest of her face.
Then came dinnertime.
Fu Hua, wearing an apron, brought several homemade dishes to the table. She looked around at the diners—Sigurd, Little Xuan, Elysia—then tilted her head.
"Where's Senti? She's usually the most enthusiastic about meals."
"I'm coming! Leave the sour bamboo shoots with cured pork I ordered!"
A whirlwind of recklessness shot out from the restroom, appearing at the dining table like she had teleported.
Fu Hua blinked at her—and her fragrant shoulders trembled as her bright eyes curled into laughing crescents.
"Pfft! What happened to you? You were perfectly fine before I started cooking. Don't tell me… Sigurd dunked on you again?"
Fu Hua's gaze drifted from Senti's doodle-covered face to Sigurd, who was calmly patting Book of Fuxi's little head.
Sigurd gave her a sideways glance and declared solemnly:
"Not my doing. …Though I did provide the pen. It won't fade for three days, it's skin-safe and non-irritating. If you need more next time, just ask."
Sigurd patted Senti on the head—and immediately pulled his hand back just as she tried to bite him, earning a hilarious chipmunk-cheeked glare full of gritted teeth.
Book of Fuxi rolled her eyes at the perfect moment and added lazily:
"Those who prank others will be pranked in turn. You brought this on yourself. Don't mind her—finish what you're doing and come eat."
"…Fine."
Fu Hua shook her head with a fond smile. When she saw Elysia blinking innocently, she instantly understood. Under Senti's embarrassed, wronged gaze, Fu Hua headed back into the kitchen to remove her apron, then returned to take her seat at the table.
"My cooking isn't very refined, so please forgive me, Elysia."
"Don't be silly. It's been so long since I've had such a lively meal. And it smells wonderful! I won't hold back, then!"
Elysia licked her lips, her dainty pink tongue flashing adorably for an instant.
She reached out with her chopsticks, aiming straight for the sour bamboo shoots with cured pork—only for another pair of chopsticks to intercept her.
Clack!
The two pairs locked in midair, a sudden breeze sweeping across everyone's hair.
On one side, Elysia's smile remained elegant and sweet; on the other, Senti's eye twitched as she forced an unnatural grin.
Elysia spoke first.
"My dearest Hua, what might you be doing? Is this some new dining etiquette from fifty thousand years in the future?"
"T-this… is… MINE."
Senti spat the words out one by one, eyes blazing like fire beneath her ridiculous doodled face.
Whoosh!
A sharp whistle cut through the air. Focused and alert now, Senti shot out her free hand like lightning and caught a toothpick aimed straight at her forehead between two fingers.
She turned toward the source of the attack—and met Book of Fuxi's narrowed eyes.
There was killing intent.
Senti quietly set the toothpick down, retracted her chopsticks, and resigned herself to silently shoveling rice.
Book of Fuxi sat on the table atop a tiny, soft cushion. With a huff from her little nose and her hands gathered together, she declared:
"Hmph! You're a grown adult and yet still this rude. No wonder the old blockhead from the past didn't trust you. If it were me, I wouldn't believe my future self would turn out like this either!"
"Kh—!"
Senti choked a bit, then hurriedly resumed eating with grim determination, lifting the bowl high enough to hide from Book of Fuxi's icy stare.
Fu Hua picked up a small piece of meat and held it to Book of Fuxi's lips.
"Little Xuan, say ahhh~"
"I'm not a child… mm. The heat's well controlled. Looks like your travels with Sigurd really helped your cooking!"
Book of Fuxi chewed happily and nodded, finally easing her death-glare at Senti.
Senti lowered her bowl and cautiously peeked at the now-gentler expression, letting out a huge sigh of relief. She shot Fu Hua a pair of sparkling, grateful eyes.
Old Timer, you're still the best…
Hey! Don't look at me with that face—I'm going to burst out laughing.
Hmph! ╭(╯^╰)╮ I take back what I said!
Eat properly, you little rascal!
Fu Hua's soft laughter echoed gently in Senti's mind—like sinking into a warm spring, melting away every tight knot in her heart. Senti instantly relaxed from head to toe.
Her cheeks flushed.
The Old Timer was always like this. Just a small smile from her could wash away every unpleasant feeling—an ability more overpowered than the Authority of Consciousness itself. It really was the present-day Old Timer who was the best; the her from fifty thousand years ago always had that suspicious, distrustful face. Truly not cute at all—Senti grumbled internally.
Yet without realizing it, a smile crept onto her own face. Cheerfully scooping up food, she happily dug into her meal, ignoring everything else.
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