After enjoying a simple yet delicious and filling dinner, Qin Yu and Luo Shangyu washed the utensils and cleared away the remains of the meal.
“I can’t believe we actually ate so much!” Luo Shangyu said, looking at the fish that had been stripped down to its skeleton.
“We must have been starving, right?” Qin Yu said, rubbing her full belly.
“Maybe.” Luo Shangyu smoothed out the sleeping bag on the ground.
“Hurry, get ready for bed.”
Qin Yu looked at the two sleeping bags lying on the ground and hesitated, “I want… to sleep with you…”
“Huh?” Luo Shangyu was a bit taken or surprise, “Why?”
“Because…” Qin Yu fidgeted, trying to think of a good reason.
However, things didn’t go her way; no matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t come up with a decent excuse.
Should she say she was afraid of the dark?
‘Actually, that doesn’t seem like the real reason.’
To be honest, Qin Yu felt that she had already grown used to the feeling of being held by Luo Shangyu as she fell asleep over the last few days, especially during these times on the run when she lacked any sense of security.
“All right.” Luo Shangyu saw the difficult expression on Qin Yu’s face and quickly guessed her inner thoughts.
“Great!” Qin Yu was very excited.
She and Luo Shangyu crawled into the sleeping bag.
The sleeping bag had originally been designed for Lu Zhen, so its dimensions were quite spacious.
Combined with Qin Yu’s petite frame, the two of them lying inside together was actually a perfect fit.
“I’m turning off the light,” Luo Shangyu said as she used her staff to extinguish the fire.
The tree hole returned to darkness.
The autumn wind blew in, and without the fire, it was slightly cold.
However, Luo Shangyu and Qin Yu used their body heat to warm each other.
They didn’t feel cold at all; in fact, it felt like they might even start to sweat.
“Qin Yu?” Luo Shangyu called out in the darkness after an unknown amount of time had passed.
“Yeah?”
“Not asleep yet?”
“How did you know?” Qin Yu was a bit surprised.
“I can tell whether you’re asleep or not just by listening to your breathing,” Luo Shangyu said, stroking Qin Yu’s head.
“You observe me that closely?” Qin Yu was shocked and felt a bit ashamed at the same time.
‘I don’t seem to observe Luo Shangyu quite that closely…’
“Of course!” Luo Shangyu said with a smile, “Are you worried about something? Is that why you can’t sleep?”
“Well…” Qin Yu paused before saying, “Will we run into any pursuers tomorrow?”
“You’re worried about that?” Luo Shangyu acted as if it were of no consequence.
“Lu Zhen and his men all brought sleeping bags, which means they already expected to stay out for a night. Therefore, when they don’t return tomorrow to report their mission, Lu Han certainly won’t be suspicious.”
“By the time he sends people to confirm that Lu Zhen and the others are dead and then sends out new pursuers to chase us, it will be a long time from now.”
“That makes sense…”
Qin Yu’s heart settled slightly, but the internal situation of the Chengji Empire remained a source of anxiety for her.
If she returned this time and the power had already been seized by Qin Yi, what should she do?
If she lost the political struggle, would Luo Shangyu still stay with her?
“Luo Shangyu…” Qin Yu turned around to face her.
In the cramped space of the sleeping bag, Qin Yu was almost pressed against Luo Shangyu.
The warm air from her nose tickled Luo Shangyu slightly.
In front of Luo Shangyu, Qin Yu was able to shed all her disguises and treat her with total sincerity.
This wasn’t just because Qin Yu had no close friends within the palace and Luo Shangyu happened to be the person she was closest to in the Phantom World.
It was more because Luo Shangyu, as her enemy, had seen her at her most pathetic and disheveled state.
She had seen her composure while commanding thousands of troops and horses, but she had also seen her utter confusion when she was taken prisoner.
Because of this extreme contrast, Qin Yu was able to let down all the guards in her heart around Luo Shangyu.
She couldn’t help but feel a bit melancholy.
‘It’s a bit sad that as the Crown Prince, the person I can open my heart to is a general from an enemy nation.’
“Tell me, if I’m no longer the Crown Prince, will you still follow me?”
Perhaps because the topic was a bit heavy, Qin Yu’s voice was somewhat raspy.
“So that’s what you’re worried about…” Luo Shangyu pulled Qin Yu in, cradling her in her arms.
“Aren’t we best friends? Why would I abandon you because of that? Besides, I’m following you because of who you are, not because you’re the Crown Prince of the Chengji Empire.”
“Thank you…” With Luo Shangyu’s assurance, the heart that had been hanging in Qin Yu’s chest finally settled.
Even if the world outside was a raging storm, she and Luo Shangyu would still be best friends.
“All right, go to sleep,” Luo Shangyu whispered.
“Mhm…” Qin Yu closed her eyes.
A moment later, she opened them again and asked, “But if things really turn out that way, what should we do?”
“What should we do?” Luo Shangyu looked indifferent.
“If you’re willing to let it go, we can go to my old house together and live in seclusion. If you’re unwilling to give it up, I will carve a bloody path to the throne for you.”
“Really?”
“Really.” Luo Shangyu’s emerald eyes were full of sincerity, “From now on, my wings will be yours!”
***
Morning in the forest arrived quickly, but both Qin Yu and Luo Shangyu were still fast asleep.
After a day of running for their lives, they were both exhausted to the point of collapse.
By the time Qin Yu opened her eyes, Luo Shangyu had already prepared breakfast.
Qin Yu took the bowl, which contained meat soup.
The meat was what they hadn’t finished eating yesterday.
“Let’s just have a simple breakfast,” Luo Shangyu said, “Since there are no pursuers behind us, I don’t need to conserve my mana. I can fly now. Based on my top flying speed, we should be able to make it out of the forest and reach a town today. We can have dinner there.”
“That would be wonderful!” Qin Yu said while drinking her soup.
Even though these two meals had plenty of meat, Qin Yu found herself missing the taste of rice.
After finishing breakfast, the two of them packed their sleeping bags and washed the utensils in the river, getting ready to set off.
The weather had cleared.
After the autumn rain, although the sun was shining brightly, the temperature was still a bit cool.
“Can we walk along the river for a while?” Qin Yu suggested, looking at the beautiful sight of the clear river water reflecting the sunlight.
“All right.” Luo Shangyu looked at the sky and calculated the time.
“But only for a little while, otherwise we won’t make it out of the forest before dark.”
With no pursuers behind them, Qin Yu could walk slowly and focus on enjoying the surrounding scenery.
The massive trees were unlike anything from her original world, and marvelous little animals leaped through the forest.
Qin Yu only cared about moving forward, but Luo Shangyu had much more to consider.
She was constantly sensing her surroundings.
Through the distribution of various mana traces, she identified that this river was the boundary line for the territories of many powerful magical beasts.
Luo Shangyu remained alert at all times, fearing that some monster might jump out and kill her and Qin Yu in an instant.
According to Luo Shangyu’s estimation, it was only around 8:00 AM, and the forest felt a bit chilly.
Luo Shangyu zipped up her jacket and tucked her neck into her collar.
Seeing Qin Yu walking in front of her wearing the exact same clothes, Luo Shangyu felt that the two of them looked more like a couple.
‘I still need to buy some clothes…’ Luo Shangyu planned.
After a day of fleeing, the clothes she was wearing were already quite dirty.
Luo Shangyu felt that she should change them.
Suddenly, the sound of wings flapping appeared in the sky, catching Luo Shangyu’s attention.
She held her staff and pulled Qin Yu behind her, assuming a defensive stance.
“What’s wrong?” Qin Yu, who had been enjoying the scenery, was caught off guard by the sudden movement.
“There’s an enemy attack!” Luo Shangyu pointed at the sky.
Qin Yu looked up and saw a black dot approaching them at high speed.
Luo Shangyu’s expression turned grave.
The thing was moving incredibly fast — so fast it startled her.
However, before Luo Shangyu could take any real action, the object had already landed on her shoulder…