---o---
"Orcs will never be slaves!"
This is a famous line from the plot of World of Warcraft's 6.0 expansion.
Grom Hellscream, the chieftain of the Warsong clan, led his men and was the first to drink the blood of demons in his thirst for victory, turning his skin green.
By drinking the demon's blood, he gained immense power, but it also meant he was being manipulated by demons, becoming their slave.
But Warlords of Draenor is an altered timeline. Persuaded by his time-traveling son, Garrosh, Grom saw through Gul'dan's plot, poured out the demon's blood, and led the orcs to kill the pit lord.
In the explosive cinematic where the Hellscreams, father and son, fight side-by-side, Grom roars on behalf of all the true, brown-skinned orcs.
"Orcs will never be slaves! But we will be conquerors!"
In the world of fishing, there exists a saying that is strikingly similar to the roar of old Hellscream.
"A fisherman never goes home empty-handed!"
Doesn't it sound just like the cry of "Orcs will never be slaves"?
Good. Very spirited.
But in reality, many orc clans are still slaves to the Burning Legion.
And fishermen often go home empty-handed.
The youth, holding the big dog's spear, sat beside a bucket containing only one or two small fish and sighed.
What was the principle of never going home empty-handed?
If I can't catch a big fish, I'll catch a small one. If I can't catch a small fish, I'll catch some shrimp. If I can't catch shrimp, I'll pick some wild vegetables. If there are no wild vegetables, I'll take a couple of sips of water before leaving...
Still, catching only one or two small fish in over an hour was arguably better than a good portion of fishermen, but...
Li Zihan looked at the few small fish, probably no bigger than Kiana's palm, and couldn't help but sigh at the hardships of life.
With this little meat, once he got back to the temple and made fish soup, there wouldn't even be two mouthfuls per person.
"Life is hard."
Realizing it was almost time to send Kiana back to Ishtar's temple and then head off to kidnap the doctor, the youth tilted his head slightly to look at the other person here.
She was a girl who looked identical to Sirin.
White hair, blue eyes, dressed in a princess-like gown.
It was Kiana Schariac.
This girl, who had finally been willing to step out of her comfort zone under her lover's guidance, had been sitting quietly beside the youth after they had finished admiring the scenery.
"We finally got to come out. Is it really okay for you to just keep staring at me instead of having fun?"
The youth, who had noticed Kiana watching him the entire time they were fishing, asked.
"I just... simply wanted to look at you."
The girl lifted her head, looking at the youth with her beautiful, azure eyes, her cherry lips slightly parted.
The devotion in her gaze was like water, the affection in her eyes like aged wine, intoxicating.
Is she really pouring her entire heart and soul into love?
The youth, who had been flirting with another girl last night after Kiana had fallen asleep, felt his gaze drift away.
Making an expression like that was a bit of a foul play.
It was making his almost non-existent conscience ache!
No, I have to change the subject.
"What do you think we should have for a midnight snack tonight?"
The youth, who would most likely be eating Miss Kiana as his own midnight snack after they finished the actual food, asked cheerfully.
"Whatever you like is fine."
The girl sat beside him, thought for a moment, and then spoke with great seriousness.
"Right, Han, can you teach me how to cook?"
"I think preparing things like midnight snacks is something a girl should do, right?"
Is she adapting to her new role?
The youth, who remembered that Kiana's attitude towards him had been quite cold before last night, was lost in thought.
Was Kiana, unexpectedly, a girl like Mei—the "good wife and wise mother" type?
She really was a good girl.
The youth, who had already won over many good girls, felt his gaze drift even further away.
He was suddenly reminded of many things.
Sirin would always give him the larger half of any snack she bought.
Seele, because of him, had been asking other girls how to apply makeup to make herself look prettier.
And Mei... she had always been supporting him in her role as his fiancée.
...
No, I can't think about this anymore.
Li Zihan shook his head forcefully.
If he kept thinking about it, his free-as-the-wind pace would be tripped up.
He was a man who still had the Chaldea Paradise Plan to carry out. How could he be so easily tied down by a few women!
Even if they were all good girls, it wouldn't do!!
"You don't have to make me a midnight snack."
The youth, who clearly intended to continue down the path of a scumbag, chuckled, his intensely predatory gaze sweeping over his lover's skin.
"I already have a midnight snack for tonight, don't I?"
The girl froze for a moment, then a faint blush rose on her cheeks.
"Do as you please. Just remember to leave me some medicine afterward."
Perhaps because of her extreme devotion, Kiana was actually quite obedient at night.
Except for one thing: she would demand that Li Zihan take protective measures.
Even after Li Zihan explained that his situation was special and the probability of getting a girl pregnant was very low, she still insisted.
The youth, who vaguely remembered that Kiana was quite fond of biting at night, and didn't even mind letting her lover take her from behind, but absolutely forbade him from finishing inside her, narrowed his eyes.
She was afraid of something.
Afraid of getting pregnant.
Or rather...
She was afraid that her lover would be an incompetent father, just like her own.
She was afraid that her child would have an unhappy life, just like her.
It seems Kiana's emotional issues still haven't been resolved.
Li Zihan sighed inwardly.
It made sense. Being stuck with such a top-tier father—one who would sacrifice everything for his lover, fight to the death for the people, and risk his life for his adopted daughter, but would not dare to fight for his own daughter—it was only normal to have psychological scars.
And those scars would probably last a lifetime.
Back when he had no real relationship with Kiana, the youth had thought he could try to reconcile the father and daughter. But now, recalling the girl's almost pathological devotion to him, his mood soured.
If he killed Siegfried, Kiana and Sirin would definitely be heartbroken, and it would be difficult to explain to his future mother-in-law, whom he had to resurrect later.
But leaving him in the world would be a constant thorn tormenting Kiana.
Tsk, tsk. I might as well just exile Siegfried to outer space to search for the precursors who carried out the Teyvat (Ark) Project.
Having become Kiana's lover, the youth's feelings had shifted slightly, and he began to consider the possibility of sending Siegfried to find the precursors who had lost contact around King Arthur's time.
So, he would just have to tell a little lie.
Completely forgetting that Dr. Romani was still waiting for him in the ruined city of Babylon, the youth made up his mind.
"By the way, Kiana, when you get back, do you want to try and talk to Lord Siegfried, who's on a mission in outer space?"