“Your Majesty, shall we find a place to sit first? There’s a pavilion over there…”
Luo Tiantian struggled to support Shen Xixi, who was slightly taller than her, as they shuffled toward a nearby pavilion.
“A pavilion? Boring…”
Shen Xixi grunted in dissatisfaction, her arm sliding deeper into Luo Tiantian’s embrace. “Your body… it’s cool. It feels good. Let me lean on you for a bit…”
Luo Tiantian didn’t dare move.
“One after another… everyone wants to arrange my life. Going abroad? An arranged marriage? By what right? Why does my life have to follow their script?”
“Can’t I even do what I want in a game? Isn’t this a place where… I can do whatever I want?”
“In reality, you all control me, and I can’t do anything… like a wooden puppet… no freedom…”
Shen Xixi mumbled.
Luo Tiantian felt a slight stir in her heart.
‘So this King You, who commands the wind and clouds in the game, is actually just a young person forced by family pressure in the real world.’
‘We are both helpless in reality, though one is for survival and the other is for freedom…’
“Your Majesty is naturally free to do as she pleases here,” Luo Tiantian comforted her softly. Although the words were a bit hypocritical, it was never wrong to coax a little drunkard.
Shen Xixi lifted her head, her hazy eyes staring at Luo Tiantian’s face, which was inches away.
“Then… if I want to kiss you now, is that okay too?”
As she spoke, she actually lowered her head, leaning in toward Luo Tiantian’s lips.
A strong scent of alcohol hit her face. Luo Tiantian’s mind went blank, and she squeezed her eyes shut, turning her head away.
She didn’t like the smell of alcohol.
The expected kiss did not fall.
Shen Xixi’s lips only brushed lightly against her cheek.
Then, she let go of her hand, staggered back a step, and sat down with a thud against a thick, ancient tree in the garden.
“Forget it… it’s boring.”
Luo Tiantian froze on the spot, touching the place on her face where she had been kissed. For some reason, she felt a bit uncomfortable.
‘What was that? Was she just playing with me?’
She looked at Shen Xixi, who was sitting on the ground hugging her knees, looking somewhat dejected and lonely. The small temper that had flared up from being teased dissipated, replaced by a trace of helplessness.
‘Forget it.’
‘She is the Sponsor Mom, after all.’
Luo Tiantian sighed and resigned herself to her fate, walking over to squat beside Shen Xixi.
“Your Majesty, the ground is cold. Shall we return to the palace? Or… I can sit here with you for a while until you sober up?” Her voice unknowingly softened even more.
Shen Xixi lifted half her face from between her knees; the flush hadn’t faded, and her eyes remained misty.
She looked at Luo Tiantian, who was squatting beside her with a worried expression, and suddenly reached out to pinch her cheek.
“You… you’re quite obedient sometimes.”
Luo Tiantian: “…”
She would endure it.
“You just don’t like to smile.”
“Does Your Majesty want to see me smile?”
“I do. You’re already this beautiful; you’d definitely be even more beautiful when you smile. It would be much easier on the eyes than that miserable look you have now. However…”
Shen Xixi reached out a finger and tapped the space between Luo Tiantian’s eyebrows. “I don’t want a fake smile meant to please me. It has to be truly from the heart.”
Luo Tiantian propped up her face with her hand.
She was a bit curious.
‘Does she really want to see me smile that much? Because of my serious illness, most times I smile are just moments of silly joy, like how I was just smiling at the flowers in the garden earlier.’
“Why is Your Majesty so obsessed with this?”
Shen Xixi didn’t answer immediately. The night wind blew past, bringing the scent of flowers and slightly clearing the alcohol from her mind.
She spoke in a low voice, as if talking to herself.
“Probably because… I haven’t truly smiled in a long time myself.”
“Looking at you is like looking at another trapped version of myself. If I can make you smile, does that… prove that some things aren’t actually that bad?”
The words had no beginning or end.
But looking at the little drunkard beside her—someone usually arrogant and domineering but currently showing a rare sense of confusion and vulnerability—Luo Tiantian felt for the first time that the distance between them wasn’t so vast.
“Your Majesty, you would actually look very good when you smile, too.”
Shen Xixi turned her head, looking at her with some surprise.
Luo Tiantian felt a bit embarrassed under her gaze. She looked away and whispered, “I mean, you don’t have to be so tense all the time. Isn’t the point of being here to escape those annoying things? There’s nothing wrong with relaxing once in a while, right?”
Shen Xixi stared at her for several seconds. Suddenly, the corners of her mouth slowly curled up.
It wasn’t her usual controlling or playful smile, but a very shallow, faint, and even somewhat awkward smile.
The light happened to pass through the gaps in the leaves, falling on her face and coating that smile in a warm glow.
Luo Tiantian blinked.
‘It really is… very beautiful.’
Sitting against the tree, the smile on Shen Xixi’s face suddenly froze. Her eyes became even more unfocused, and her body slumped to the side.
“Ugh… my head is so dizzy…”
She mumbled unclearly, her brow furrowed, losing even the strength to sit upright.
**[System Notification: Abnormal physiological state detected (excessive alcohol intake, blurred consciousness). To protect the player’s physical and mental health, the Forced Safety Log-out Procedure will be executed.]**
“Who wants to log out… I haven’t…” Shen Xixi struggled to say something, but her voice grew fainter.
In the next second, under Luo Tiantian’s startled gaze, Shen Xixi’s body vanished.
**[System Notification: Assistance target “King You” has logged out. Current status: (Weakness). It is recommended that you also log out and rest as soon as possible.]**
Luo Tiantian felt the dizziness and heart palpitations become even more pronounced.
She chose to exit.
***
When she opened her eyes again, she saw the familiar and old ceiling of her rental apartment.
“Ugh…”
Luo Tiantian couldn’t help but groan.
She felt as if all her strength had been drained; even moving a finger felt laborious.
Her head throbbed, her throat ached, and her entire body was freezing. She only felt a bit better after wrapping the nearby blanket around herself.
‘It’s so cold. Did I catch a cold?’
‘I should go get some medicine tomorrow…’
‘How did I suddenly catch a cold?’
Luo Tiantian curled into a ball like a quail during winter.
‘I should go buy some medicine now. In case it’s the flu, it’ll be more serious by tomorrow, and seeing a doctor will be more expensive…’
Money!
At the thought of that word, she suddenly found a bit more strength.
She threw on a loose hoodie and long pants, put on a mask, grabbed her phone and keys, and staggered out the door.
The night was deep, but the light was still on at the twenty-four-hour pharmacy on the corner.
“What do you need?” The pharmacist on duty was a middle-aged man who was slightly balding.
“Cold medicine… I might have a fever, a sore throat, and dizziness.” Luo Tiantian’s voice was thick with nasal congestion.
With most of her face covered by the mask, only her eyes were visible—moist and hazy due to her illness. Her long eyelashes fluttered, and her brow was slightly knit.
“Take your temperature. There’s a thermometer over there.”
Luo Tiantian took an electronic thermometer and leaned against the counter to wait.
Waves of cold washed over her body, and her head grew heavier. She was almost falling asleep while standing.
*Beep beep.*
The thermometer displayed: 38.5℃.
The pharmacist took a look. “I’ll get you some fever reducers and cold granules, and I’ll add some throat lozenges. The seasons are changing, so a lot of people are getting sick. Do you live alone, little girl? Remember to drink plenty of water and get some good rest.”
“Okay… thank you.”
Luo Tiantian paid, took the small bag of medicine, and staggered back.
When she reached the stairs of her apartment building, she nearly tripped over a step, only steadying herself by leaning against the wall.
‘So tired…’
‘I just want to lie down on the ground and fall asleep.’
Her phone rang.
Was it a call?
“Tiantian? Are you there? I came to see you, but the door wouldn’t open. Do you just not want to open the door for me…? I know I was wrong before, but that was in the past. It’s been so long; can’t we just meet and talk?”
Such a familiar voice.
‘Who is it?’
Luo Tiantian rubbed her forehead.