Chapter 391: Knowing When to Advance and Retreat
"Why are you joining the fun too? Don't tell me—you also came to check on my mood because the invitations today didn't go smoothly?"
Sigurd looked at Fu Hua as calm as ever, one hand tapping lightly on the desk… while the other hand—beneath the desk—was pinching Kiana's cheek.
And not gently.
But the situation was so overwhelmingly awkward that Kiana, panicking and flustered, didn't dare resist or make a sound.
She could only cover her mouth desperately, tears welling in her eyes from the pain.
"'Also'?"
Fu Hua stepped in unhurriedly, eyebrow raised slightly.
Seeing this, Sigurd waved his hand casually, materializing a chair in front of the desk.
Fu Hua sat down gracefully, smiling faintly.
"Looks like I'm a step late?"
"Indeed. Bronya and Kiana beat you to it."
Leaning back in his seat, Sigurd casually glanced under the desk—at Kiana, whose teary eyes were screaming silent accusations at him, and at Bronya, who stared blankly in stunned resignation.
A slow, satisfied smile curved his lips.
Good grief.
One was a perpetually troublesome gremlin, and the other—normally obedient but capable of going completely off the rails when she did misbehave—was a full-throttle racer when it came to certain things.
And today, the two had collided spectacularly.
How could he not toy with them a little?
Sigurd's meaningful smile made both girls tremble, immediately offering him identical pleading looks.
At that moment, Fu Hua complimented him with a gentle smile:
"To receive so much concern—it shows our esteemed Majesty is deeply loved."
"Mhm, well put. So you really only came to express concern?"
"Half, I suppose."
"And the other half?"
"The other half is your fault. Didn't you send Little Xuan an entire mountain of teaching materials? Recently she started making Senti take lessons. And you know what Senti is like—she can't handle that kind of tedious curriculum. She's been tormented to no end. Then…"
Fu Hua sighed, looking exhausted, massaging her temples with a weary expression.
Sigurd thought for a moment, then finished for her:
"And then she ran to you for help. You've always been softhearted with her. You probably couldn't resist her begging for long, so you pleaded with Little Xuan. But such coddling is exactly what Little Xuan can't stand. If I'm not wrong… you got scolded too?"
"…You guessed perfectly."
"So now, caught between poor Senti and a furious Little Xuan, the esteemed Immortal Shenzhou herself has encountered a rare unsolvable dilemma—and has no choice but to flee here for shelter?"
Sigurd laid it out smoothly, logical yet casual.
Under the desk, Kiana covered her mouth tightly, her shoulders trembling as she desperately tried not to burst out laughing.
Fu Hua could only give a helpless smile as her predicament was exposed.
Then she glanced toward the desk and sighed lightly.
"Sigurd… I feel like there are some things we don't need to say quite so directly, don't you think?"
"Want me to send Little Xuan a message?"
"Whatever pleases Your Majesty—please, send as many as you like. Do not worry in the slightest about my dignity!"
"Heh… jade must be polished to become a gem. And you know what Kiana is like in private. Without my strict discipline in the past, do you think she'd behave like a proper person outside? If you're softhearted, just close your eyes. On this matter, I side with Little Xuan."
Fu Hua sighed again and nodded. She agreed with Sigurd's reasoning.
Senti really was too unruly and needed proper discipline. Fu Hua understood that well.
But as Sigurd said—when that child looked at her with tearful, pleading eyes, she simply couldn't harden her heart.
Somewhere along the way, Fu Hua began to see in Senti a reflection of her own once-innocent, once-fragile self.
She just wanted to see the girl smile.
She couldn't bear seeing her upset.
As Fu Hua drifted into thought, under the desk—only an arm's length away—Bronya quietly slid a dimly glowing virtual screen toward Kiana.
[Bronya: Good evening.]
[Kiana: Good evening my ass! Why the hell are you here!?]
[Bronya: However Kiana came, Bronya came the same way.]
[Kiana: BRONYA!!!!!!!!!!]
[Bronya: Calm down. If Fu Hua-sensei discovers us, Sigurd's image—and ours—will be completely ruined. Speaking of which, can Kiana use her spatial powers to get us out of here? Bronya feels like Sigurd is already starting to enjoy this. Staying here is very bad.]
[Kiana: …I can't. Fu Hua-sensei is way too sharp. The moment I use my powers, she'll sense the fluctuation of Honkai energy.]
The two exchanged silent stares, then slowly turned to look outside.
Sure enough—Sigurd was already gazing at them with a faint, amused smile.
There's no doubt about it.
He was definitely enjoying himself.
Fu Hua, returning from a brief trance, glanced at the desk again. Then she stood up.
"All right. I see you're in a good mood, so I'm relieved. It's already late, so I'll take a short walk and then head back to rest. You two as well—affection is good, but remember moderation. Good night."
Fu Hua smiled, her eyes curved like crescent moons, giving Sigurd a knowing look.
"Tsk."
Sigurd clicked his tongue, waving his hand dismissively as though shooing her away.
Fu Hua bowed slightly, nodded in farewell, then turned and left with her usual gentle smile.
No one noticed the fleeting complexity in her eyes as she turned around.
The door closed.
Silence instantly swallowed the room.
In that deathly quiet, Sigurd lifted a foot and nudged the two girls under the desk.
"Still not coming out?"
He asked lightly.
The two crawled out, standing to Sigurd's left and right, heads lowered in embarrassment.
After a long moment, Kiana blushed fiercely, fidgeting with her fingers as she asked in a tiny voice:
"Um… did Fu Hua-sensei notice us?"
"With two unfamiliar scents suddenly appearing in my room, you think she's as dull as you? She probably noticed long ago."
"Uh, didn't I sniff out Bronya's scent too and ask you about it?"
"Not noticing means not noticing. Your perception abilities are too weak for a Herrscher."
Sigurd's merciless criticism made Kiana's face turn even redder—yet she couldn't refute him.
Fortunately, he was only saying it casually. He knew very well that Kiana wasn't truly unperceptive.
On the contrary—she often had a wild, instinctive intuition.
It was just that Bronya's scent was too familiar to her, and she'd misjudged it.
Sigurd stood up.
"I'm going to take a shower. Do as you like."
With that, he headed for the door.
Bronya then placed her Homu pillow on the desk, as if marking her spot, and calmly followed after him.
"Hm?"
"Bronya is currently in a developmental period. Every few days her body enters a new stage. Bronya believes it is necessary for Sigurd to conduct a deeper examination—for safety purposes."
Bronya took Sigurd's hand earnestly as she said this… while tracing faint, teasing circles in his palm—a wordless invitation.
This girl…
She was getting bolder, and Sigurd felt a dangerous thirst stir.
Kiana froze, once, twice—then suddenly bolted forward and leapt onto Sigurd's back.
"You—!"
"I realized that as a complete Herrscher of Flames, my body temperature can get extremely high. Sigurd definitely wants to study that closely too… right?"
"…"
Sigurd tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling in speechless exasperation.
Good grief.
One was using "development" as an excuse.
The other was using "body temperature" as bait.
And the worst part—he was curious.
A slow grin tugged at his lips.
With Kiana clinging to his back, he reached backward to grip Bronya's wrist—pulling both girls alongside him, cheeks flushing pink, as he strode toward the bathroom.
At this point, there was no turning back for either of them.
Details need not be stated.
Suffice it to say—the amount of water used in Sigurd's bathroom tonight was… abnormally high.
<+>
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