OVPBM 29

Chapter 29 – “Your Kiss Was Too Childish.”

Chu Xuanzhou closed the distance between them with quiet purpose. Even his eyelashes seemed to tremble lightly from nervousness, like petals quivering in the breeze at the end of spring.

He was exceedingly cautious.

At the very instant he was about to draw near Lu Yunwan, Chu Xuanzhou followed his instinct and closed his eyes.

The merman’s cold yet soft lips gently pressed against the corner of Lu Yunwan’s eye.

His movements were extraordinarily gentle, even restrained and reserved.

But the moment Chu Xuanzhou leaned in, Lu Yunwan still felt as though he had been locked onto by a dangerous beast. A dense sense of crisis surged toward him.

Almost reflexively, Lu Yunwan tilted his head slightly.

With that small movement, his temple, thin eyelid, and lightly fluttering lashes brushed past Chu Xuanzhou’s lips within those few short seconds.

In the end, the kiss landed on Lu Yunwan’s cheek.

A trace of warmth unfurled across Chu Xuanzhou’s lips.

Human skin was soft and warm, written all over with fragility.

An unspoken impulse tempted Chu Xuanzhou to continue kissing downward along his cheek. For some reason, he simply could not resist wanting to move closer to Lu Yunwan.

Just as human blood and a heartbeat could soothe Chu Xuanzhou’s emotions, he discovered that touching his skin and feeling his body temperature could likewise confirm Lu Yunwan’s existence.

Realizing what Chu Xuanzhou intended to do, Lu Yunwan stepped back before he could think. The young man’s embrace instantly fell empty.

Chu Xuanzhou clenched his palm tightly, faintly regretting that he had not held Lu Yunwan more firmly.

That way, the Regent would not have been able to avoid him.

The next second, their gazes met. Lu Yunwan faced Chu Xuanzhou’s slightly puzzled eyes.

“Your Excellency?”

Lu Yunwan: !!!

Holy crap, what just happened?

Chu Xuanzhou’s gaze was clear, as though even the desire within that kiss had been washed away.

Unaware that Chu Xuanzhou’s bloodline had already awakened, Lu Yunwan froze for a moment. After seeing the young man’s expression, he chalked everything up to instinctive dependence.

But regardless of why Chu Xuanzhou had suddenly kissed him, as the main villain, obsessively in love with the protagonist, and as a “human more merfolk than a merfolk,” this absolutely should not have been his reaction!

Lu Yunwan gritted his teeth and, in the next second, turned the tables.

He lowered his head and laughed softly, as though he had discovered something amusing, and looked toward the young man.

Unlike Chu Xuanzhou’s clear eyes, the depths of Lu Yunwan’s gaze were filled with emotions so thick they could not be dissolved.

He raised his hand in an unhurried gesture and stroked Chu Xuanzhou’s cheek. Then he lowered his voice and deliberately said to him, “Your Highness, that is not how one kisses.”

Lu Yunwan’s voice was brimming with laughter. After deliberately lowering it, the sound felt like a feather brushing across Chu Xuanzhou’s heart, catching him off guard.

His fingertips pressed slightly harder, grazing across Chu Xuanzhou’s lips and drawing forth a tingling numbness mixed with faint pain.

As soon as he finished speaking, without giving Chu Xuanzhou time to react, Lu Yunwan immediately turned around and, leaning on his cane, walked toward the other side.

At the end of the corridor, buried deep beneath the ocean, stood a floor-to-ceiling window. From Chu Xuanzhou’s perspective, Lu Yunwan looked as though he might be swallowed by the ocean in the next second.

The Regent’s back appeared especially carefree, yet in truth his heart was incomparably tense.

Lu Yunwan was terrified that if he walked even a little slower, once Chu Xuanzhou recovered his senses, he would come to ask what a kiss was actually supposed to be like.

Help! How would I know!

Fortunately, until they boarded the starship again, Chu Xuanzhou never brought up the matter.

Lu Yunwan felt that this time, he should be safe.

* * *

The Regent was burdened with official duties. Even during the investigation period, Lu Yunwan still had endless affairs to handle.

Two days later would be the anniversary celebration of the Imperial Military Academy.

As the Regent and a legendary graduate of the academy, Lu Yunwan was also invited to attend the ceremony.

The Imperial Military Academy was very close to the Capital Planet. In just over ten minutes, a deep blue planet appeared outside the viewport.

Alongside it were more than a dozen mecha arranged in neat formation.

According to the plan, Lu Yunwan would review them here.

Just like the last time he had gone to the Capital Planet for a meeting, Lu Yunwan put on his military uniform. However, this time he wore only the dark red medal symbolizing the Yanwei Legion on his chest.

Standing by the viewport, Lu Yunwan watched the performance. Then the mecha flew in through the open hatch of the starship and landed in the open space.

The pilots, dressed in dark blue training uniforms, stepped out of their cockpits and stood beside their mecha to welcome the Regent’s arrival.

Following the procedure, Lu Yunwan accepted their salute and greeted them one by one.

Everything had been very simple. But just as Lu Yunwan reached the end of the line, something unexpected happened.

“Good morning, Your Excellency the Regent.”

After completing his salute, the young man standing before Lu Yunwan straightened his back, then snapped his gaze upward to meet his.

Those pale violet eyes were filled with anticipation.

…He looks somewhat familiar?

Lu Yunwan had always possessed an excellent memory. After pausing for only a few seconds, he realized that the young man before him was the pink-tailed merman who had been presented to him at the Emperor’s birthday banquet!

Last time, it had been this very merman who told Lu Yunwan that the chaos in the hall was connected to “Miliuya.”

He’s actually a student of the Imperial Military Academy?

Lu Yunwan silently suppressed his surprise and nodded as though he had not noticed the expectation in the other’s eyes.

“Your Excellency,” unexpectedly, just as Lu Yunwan was about to turn away, the merman gathered his courage and called out to him, “You, you… still… um, you are our… pride.”

It was obvious that he had originally wanted to ask, ‘Do you still remember me?’ But in the end, because of timidity and nervousness, he changed his words.

When the merman first called out to Lu Yunwan, the people around them had all revealed shocked expressions.

And when he corrected himself, the group lowered their heads and laughed in open disdain. They were mocking their companion, who had overestimated himself and dared to disturb the Regent.

Seeing this, Lu Yunwan, who had originally intended to leave, allowed his gaze to settle on the young man once more.

He cast a faint glance at the surrounding crowd, then made his way toward the young man with measured steps.

Lowering his gaze, Lu Yunwan read out the name engraved on his medal. “Shi Jiayue.”

“Yes, Your Excellency the Regent!” The young man, by force of habit, saluted again.

The surroundings instantly fell silent.

Standing behind Lu Yunwan, Chu Xuanzhou also recognized the merman at this moment.

His gaze darkened.

Lu Yunwan lowered his head and smiled slightly, seemingly amused by Shi Jiayue’s reaction.

Before everyone’s eyes, the notoriously eccentric Regent stepped to Shi Jiayue’s side and personally adjusted the crooked medal on the young man’s chest.

Within the legion, this was an honor beyond compare!

“My pleasure,” Lu Yunwan said softly, raising his brow just a little.

Could it be that the Regent truly knew him?!

Lu Yunwan’s words dropped into their hearts like a stone, stirring ripple after ripple.

Especially for Chu Xuanzhou, the scene was unbearably glaring.

* * *

After the inspection concluded, the mecha flew away from the starship one by one. Lu Yunwan and Chu Xuanzhou, along with the others, also walked toward the hatch.

Outside the viewport, the deep blue planet drew ever closer. Just as the starship was about to land, Chu Xuanzhou closed the distance to Lu Yunwan’s side.

The appearance of that merman a moment ago had reminded him of the scene at the banquet.

Along with it came memories of the chaos there, saturated with desire.

Merfolk who lived on lower-class planets could casually tumble together without restraint.

Even those royal family members who prided themselves on being “noble” were no different from them, perhaps even more unrestrained.

In Chu Xuanzhou’s eyes, all of this was perfectly normal.

…Only Lu Yunwan was different. He had clearly said he liked him and had even done so much for him, yet he was almost never intimate with him.

This realization made Chu Xuanzhou feel unusually uneasy, even restless.

The young man could not help but seek confirmation of whether Lu Yunwan’s feelings for him were truly as he claimed.

“Your Excellency.” Chu Xuanzhou could not stop himself from calling out to him.

“What is it, Your Highness?” The Regent’s gaze carried a trace of puzzlement.

The second their eyes met, Chu Xuanzhou seemed slightly embarrassed and lowered his head, the tips of his ears flushing faintly red.

Then the young man took a deep breath, as though he had steeled himself with great effort.

At the very moment the starship landed steadily on the docking platform, Chu Xuanzhou finally summoned the courage to raise his head slowly.

“About that kiss earlier…”

Lu Yunwan smiled and nodded at him. In truth, upon hearing the protagonist bring up the matter again, Lu Yunwan, who had thought he had successfully muddled through it, grew tense all over once more.

He could not help gripping his cane tightly, his heart pounding wildly.

“Did you… dislike it very much?” The young man’s tone was cautious and filled with dejection.

Wait, what is this situation?

Did my earlier evasion unintentionally hurt the protagonist?

Lu Yunwan froze for a second, then immediately decided to explain himself properly.

“Of course not.” Lu Yunwan’s gaze drifted to the azure sea outside the window. He slowly closed his eyes, struggling to recall exactly what he had said earlier.

That’s not how one kisses?

“Your Highness,” Lu Yunwan smiled as he glanced up, turning to look at Chu Xuanzhou. His voice was soft and faint, “Your kiss was too childish.”

There was a hint of helplessness in his voice, along with a touch of vexation.

The young man frowned slightly, unable to understand his words.

At last, the hatch of the starship opened. Cold, faintly salty sea wind poured into the cabin, and Lu Yunwan’s voice was carried away with it.

Just as he stepped out of the hatch, Lu Yunwan turned back with a smile and said to him, “There was no desire, no possessiveness. It was like… plain water, or children playing house.”

“I think you should first learn what a real kiss is,” the Regent said, tregret threading his tone, as he made his unhurried exit from the starship.

The sunlight outside was somewhat dazzling, making Lu Yunwan’s figure appear especially slender in silhouette.

At that very moment, Chu Xuanzhou lowered his head once more, his gaze drifting toward the sea below.

No desire, like plain water?

Lu Yunwan’s voice seemed like threads of silk, gently winding around Chu Xuanzhou’s ears, effortlessly drawing out from the depths of his heart those memories of the lower-class planet that he had once tried to forget…