Chapter 41: Pull Your Collar Down a Little

His thought for a moment, then nodded.

“Fine, but don’t drag it out too long.”

“Three days! Within three days, I’ll definitely forge something decent for you!”

“Good.”

His patted Old Huoke on the shoulder with satisfaction, then turned to face the other workers and said loudly:

“For these three days, the blacksmith shop doesn’t need to do any other work. Go all out to help Old Huoke forge the weapon. If you need anything, just tell Molis.

If you succeed, I’ll treat the brothers to a drink on the evening of the third day!”

“Alright!!!”

After leaving the blacksmith shop, Molis followed behind His, his excitement almost overflowing.

“Young Master, I never imagined that after smelting, Gray Crystal could be even harder than refined steel. If we can make weapons and sell them, they’ll definitely fetch a sky-high price!”

“Don’t get too happy too soon.”

His had already calmed down by now.

He turned and seriously instructed Molis:

“Listen, until everything is stable, I don’t want anyone to know about the existence of Gray Crystal weapons.”

“Un… understood!”

Molis quickly restrained his joyful expression and nodded firmly.

“Also, this is a list of materials needed for the decomposition agent. Arrange for someone to purchase them.”

His pulled a piece of paper from his chest.

“Don’t buy too much at once. Try to spread it out among shops in various towns. Whatever you do, don’t attract attention!”

“Yes, Young Master. I’ll go arrange that immediately.”

Watching Molis’s retreating figure, the corners of His’s mouth lifted slightly.

You see, the reason he believed Gray Crystal had significant strategic value was not just because of its hardness, but because of the metal’s special anti-demon properties.

There had been no news from the Church of Light in the past two days.

As things stood, he had a very good chance of monopolizing Gray Crystal.

As long as his technology didn’t leak, he would be the only one in this world capable of making Gray Crystal weapons.

***

Back at the Duke’s Mansion, just after His finished washing up and wanted to take a nap, Li Nuo Er appeared before him like a shadow, giving His quite a start.

“Didn’t I tell you not to suddenly appear in my bedroom?!”

“Young Master, there’s a situation at the mine.”

The expressionless girl said flatly.

“Ah, go ahead.”

His straightened his clothes.

“The Dawn Trading Company sent people over again, and this time there are a lot more than before.”

“Oh? They still want to prospect for ore?”

“Not just prospecting. Recently I’ve noticed they’ve started setting up tents near the mining area. It looks like they plan to stay long-term.”

“Hmm…”

Sure enough, he knew the Church of Light would make another move.

“Keep an eye on them. If they make any further moves, come tell me immediately.”

“Yes.”

Li Nuo Er nodded.

“What if Young Master is sleeping then?”

“Then go find Rafina first and have her come wake me up. In short, don’t suddenly appear in my bedroom like this again.

If it happens a few more times, I’m afraid my heart won’t be able to take it!”

Before His could finish, Li Nuo Er had already disappeared from the bedroom.

“Hey, you…”

Looking in the direction the girl had vanished, His shook his head helplessly.

He wondered if she had taken his words to heart.

***

After a very comfortable afternoon nap, His arrived at the study and found Ni Wei already standing at the door.

Come to think of it, ever since they returned from the Royal Capital, Ni Wei had been showing up at the study door every afternoon.

Although His always teased her about whether she missed him, the girl would never admit it.

“I came to clean!”

“Just came to find a book to read!”

“I… I’m just taking a stroll and happened to end up here.”

Her excuses were different every day.

It must be tough for her.

Today would probably be no exception.

“Ahem, what’s the excuse today?”

His took the initiative to ask.

“Elder sister asked me to ask you what you want to eat tonight.”

Ni Wei seemed to have already thought of an excuse and answered without hesitation.

“Oh?”

His walked over to the girl and looked at her with interest.

“Rafina didn’t come to ask herself, but sent you?”

“Elder sister is busy…”

Ni Wei turned her face away.

“I saw how busy she was, so I offered to help share the burden.”

“Then that’s really hard on you.”

“Hmph ╭(╯^╰)╮”

His pushed open the door to the study, and Ni Wei “naturally” followed him in.

Looking at the pile of documents on the desk, Ni Wei asked curiously, “What have you been busy with these past few days?”

“Adult stuff. Kids shouldn’t meddle.”

“Hey?!”

Ni Wei put her hands on her hips and puffed up her cheeks, glaring at His.

“We’re about the same age! Why do you always treat me like a child?!”

“See? Would an adult care about something like that?”

“You!”

“Alright, alright.”

His changed the subject.

“Speaking of which, after the treatment ended, is there any discomfort in your body?”

“Um…”

Thinking about the last treatment, Ni Wei couldn’t help but feel a flash of shyness.

For many days after that, whenever she closed her eyes, she would feel His’s big hands pressing against her back again.

It was so… embarrassing!

“It… it’s fine, probably nothing wrong.”

“Are you unsure whether you’re comfortable or not…”

Sensing a hint of guilt in the girl’s voice, His stood up, walked around the desk, and stood in front of Ni Wei.

The distance between them suddenly shortened.

Ni Wei instinctively stepped back.

“Uh…”

“Don’t move.”

His reached out and pressed down on the girl’s shoulders, his voice calm.

“First, open your collar a little bit.”

“Wh… what are you saying!”

Ni Wei’s face flushed bright red, and she tightly clutched her chest with both hands.

“No, I just want to look at the area below your collarbone. Just pull it open a little.”

“No way!”

The girl’s voice was urgent and fast, her ears red as if they were about to drip blood.

“Then turn around with your back to me. I’ll take a look from behind.”

His’s voice turned serious.

“If there really is a problem, the previous treatment would have been in vain. We might even have to start over.”

“Huh?”

Thinking about those embarrassing treatment sessions, Ni Wei lowered her head.

“F… fine.”

Saying that, the girl slowly turned around.

With slightly trembling fingers, she pulled open a corner of her collar, revealing the fair skin from the back of her neck to her shoulder blades.

His took a deep breath and reached out to press his hand against it.

“Eep!”

The moment His touched Ni Wei’s body, the girl suddenly trembled violently.

“Relax a bit. Don’t tense up.”

“I… I am already relaxed!”

His’s palm was very warm.

When it pressed against her back, she could feel the heat seeping into her body through her skin.

Moreover, it seemed that in order to sense the flow of Dark Attribute more accurately, His’s fingers slowly moved down along the exposed part of her back, even slipping into her maid dress and sliding all the way to the middle of her back.

At every spot he touched, Ni Wei’s back would slightly contract.

“Here… do you feel anything?”

“No… no.”

“What about here?”

“Mm!”

Ni Wei’s back suddenly tensed, and a suppressed moan still escaped from her throat.

“Does it hurt?”

“Doesn’t hurt…”

The girl’s voice was squeezed out through clenched teeth.

“It’s just a little itchy…”

“Okay, as long as it doesn’t hurt, there’s no problem.”

His’s hand slowly moved up along her back, finally stopping at the back of her neck.

Ignoring the girl’s trembling, he gently pressed his thumb into the hollow at the back of Ni Wei’s neck.

“!”

The girl’s body suddenly went limp.

Her knees seemed to lose all strength, and she uncontrollably fell backward.

His was quick to react.

He caught the girl around the waist, steadying her firmly.

“Hey, are you okay?”

Ni Wei’s head rested against His’s shoulder, her face flushed.

Her lips were slightly parted, and her rapid breaths sprayed onto His’s neck, carrying a faint fragrance.

“I… I’m fine…”

Ni Wei desperately tried to stand up straight, but her legs felt like lead.

After struggling a few times, she could only helplessly lean against His’s embrace.

“That spot is the core node of the Dark Element. Normally, stimulating it would cause some reaction, but I really didn’t expect such a strong reaction from you…”

Looking at the girl in his arms, His scratched his head apologetically.

“If I had known you’d react like this, I would have used less force just now.

Uh… take a good rest today. Don’t do any work for now.”

“Mm…”

Ni Wei responded softly, no longer struggling.

She quietly leaned on his shoulder and closed her eyes slightly.

The afternoon sunlight streamed in through the window, casting light on the girl, making Ni Wei look especially beautiful today.

After a while, the girl’s breathing gradually steadied, and she fell asleep in His’s arms.

“Hey… I did say you could rest,” His said, frozen stiff as the girl slept so peacefully in his arms. “But I didn’t mean you should sleep right here!”

“Hey! Wake up!”

“Ni Wei?”

“Miss Ni Wei?”

After calling out several times, His finally confirmed that the girl couldn’t be woken up today.

So he simply picked her up in a princess carry and, under the shocked expressions of the other maids in the mansion who looked like they had just heard huge gossip, carried her to her room.

After covering Ni Wei with a blanket, His let out a long sigh and left the room.

The moment he left, Ni Wei, who had just been unresponsive, suddenly opened her eyes, turned over in bed, buried her whole face in the pillow, and kicked her legs against the bed repeatedly.

After a long while, she lifted her head from the pillow, revealing her still-flushed face.

“You idiot…”

She muttered softly, but a happy smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.