"Ah, that feels good. Home really is the best."
Wu Ling lay back on a lounge chair in the courtyard and stretched. Behind him, Blair Lockehart smiled as she massaged his shoulders.
After bringing the Breaking Clan under him the day before, Wu Ling had explained Victor Lance's assignment to him, then used Ember back in Spirit City as a transfer point and returned home. After more than a month of constant travel, he could finally stop and rest for a little while.
He picked up an apple from the table and took a crisp bite. After chewing twice, he suddenly stopped. He held the apple in front of his eyes, examined it, and tried another chew.
"Not good. This apple is kind of bad. Is it because it is out of season?"
Flames flared violently around the hand holding the apple. A few seconds later, no trace of the apple remained. Wu Ling calmly picked up an orange instead.
"Right, Blair. I ran into someone while I was out this time."
As he spoke, Wu Ling passed a file to Blair.
Blair's hands paused. She took the file and flipped through it casually. When she saw the photograph of Alban Regis with an arm around two women, disgust flickered through her eyes.
She returned the file to Wu Ling and said in her usual calm tone, "Lord Wu Ling, what is the meaning of this?"
Wu Ling took it back and burned the file to ash in one burst of fire.
"I happened to run into him, so I wanted to see your reaction. I did not expect you to be that calm."
After hearing that, Blair put a little more force into her hands and said with a trace of resentment, "I have had nothing to do with the Star Stripe Empire for a long time. Right now, I am only Lord Wu Ling's small maid."
"Ha ha ha. Having a level thirty-eight genius Spirit Elite call herself my maid. I might be the only person in the world who has managed that."
Wu Ling laughed and teased her.
"But no matter how talented your maid is, you still left me behind for more than a full year," Blair said. For once, she was openly acting spoiled.
Unlike the original story, Blair had not endured the same isolating atmosphere inside the imperial household. Her personality was still cool, but in front of Wu Ling she could calmly show her softer side.
As someone born into an imperial clan, she also understood political matches and personal positioning better than most people her age. In the past, her position had been Alban Regis's fiancee. Because of that, when Alban abandoned her, she had felt as though the road ahead had vanished. In the original story, no matter how hard she worked early on, she still eventually became attached to Alban's path, and that deep-rooted idea was a major reason why.
Now, her position was Wu Ling's maid. She knew very clearly that everything she had now had been given to her by the man in front of her. Even though her own talent had drawn Spirit Hall's attention during the past two years, that had also happened because of one word from him.
So during the year-plus when Wu Ling disappeared, Blair had not felt relief or freedom. She had suffered through another kind of torment. She was afraid Wu Ling had "thrown her away" again.
That was why, ever since Wu Ling returned, Blair had stayed close to him. At times, she even did things bolder than usual.
Like now. She leaned close behind him, closer than she normally would.
"What is it, Blair? Are you planning to spend the night here?" Wu Ling teased.
Blair pressed her lips together. Her face flushed red. She was already thin-skinned by nature, and taking even this much initiative had pushed her to her limit. In the past, Wu Ling's teasing would have made her leave at once. This time, though, her response surprised him.
Her arms circled lightly around his chest. Her voice trembled beside his ear.
"If... if Lord Wu Ling truly wants that, then it is not impossible."
Wu Ling looked at her in surprise. Blair's cheeks were already bright red, and she could not meet his eyes. Being able to say that much was clearly the limit of her courage.
Wu Ling stayed silent for a long while. As the atmosphere sank, Blair's shy expression slowly turned uneasy.
"Mm. Forget it."
Blair's face went pale. She tried to keep massaging his shoulders as if nothing had happened, but her trembling hands gave away her mood.
"May... may I ask the reason, Your Highness?" Blair asked carefully. Even her form of address changed from his name to his title.
Wu Ling smiled and patted her hand.
"Relax. It is not that I do not want you. From the moment I bought you back, you were already one of my people.
"But you should know how strong my body is now. You are still too young, and your current physique cannot safely handle that kind of closeness with me.
"Besides, even if I held back, the result would be awkward for both of us. Better not to rush it.
"Wait until you are older and reach Spirit Leader. If you still insist then, it will not be too late."
Just as Wu Ling said, under the passive reinforcement from many Heroic Spirits, his body alone was enough to defeat most Spirit Kings and even some Spirit Emperors. If converted into the standard of Soul Beasts, his physique was already close to that of a seventy-thousand-year or eighty-thousand-year Soul Beast, and an assault-type one at that.
So what he said was true. If he was careless, he could hurt Blair. If he restrained himself too much, it would be frustrating instead. In that case, it was better not to start.
Of course, there was another reason. Blair was still only twelve.
Soul Land considered sixteen adulthood, and people here matured early. Ash Flynn Hawke and Alban Regis had visited brothels around ten or even earlier. But Wu Ling was still a somewhat traditional person at heart. He could not bring himself to cross that line with Blair.
After listening to Wu Ling's explanation, Blair thought of the terrifying strength he displayed during training and quickly understood that it truly was not something she could withstand yet. At least now she had a clear target, and that target lit up her determination.
"Spirit Leader, then. Lord Wu Ling, you are not allowed to go back on your word."
Seeing Blair's calm yet slightly playful expression as she tried to lean closer, Wu Ling reached back and pinched her cheek.
"You little cat. Since when have I gone back on my word?"