Zhu Zhuqing was full of excitement. She stretched out her little fist, signaling Lin Xia and Larvitar to put out their "hands" as well.
Lin Xia extended his palm, while Larvitar raised its small claw.
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
Zhu Zhuqing: Scissors (two little fingers)
Lin Xia: Paper (open palm)
Larvitar: Rock (claw clenched into a ball)
"Ah! Brother Lin Xia, you lost!"
Zhu Zhuqing cheered, pointing at him.
"You're 'it'! You have to cover your eyes and count!"
Lin Xia couldn't help but laugh, he had lost in the very first round.
Cooperatively, he took a clean soft cloth from a nearby rack, folded it, and tied it over his eyes. Then he stood facing away from them.
"Start counting! One, two, three…"
Zhu Zhuqing's crisp voice rang out, accompanied by faint rustling sounds and Larvitar's soft "Larvi, Larvitar" noises—clearly, the two little ones were quickly finding places to hide.
With his eyes covered, Lin Xia smiled faintly and counted unhurriedly.
Although his powerful spiritual power was deliberately restrained, he could still clearly sense the fluctuations of aura around him.
He could "hear" Zhu Zhuqing slipping like a nimble little cat into the corner of the room, hiding behind a large floor vase draped with thick brocade, even trying to hold her breath.
As for Larvitar, its presence was even more concealed. It seemed to have merged directly into the shadows beneath the bed, its breathing becoming extremely faint, almost blending completely with the environment, clearly an instinctive improvement in aura concealment brought by the trace of dragon blood it had recently gained.
"Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred!"
After finishing, Lin Xia pulled off the blindfold and called out:
"I'm coming to find you!"
His sharp gaze swept across the room.
Instead of heading straight for the known hiding spots, he deliberately made searching noises and walked in the wrong direction.
"Hm? Not here?"
Lin Xia spoke loudly on purpose, moving to the desk and shuffling some papers.
Behind the vase, Zhu Zhuqing covered her mouth with both hands, her big eyes blinking rapidly, her body tense.
Larvitar, on the other hand, remained completely still, like a true statue of shadow.
Feeling it was about time, Lin Xia suddenly bent down as if he had just discovered something and looked under the bed.
"Ha! Found you, little guy!"
"Larvitar…"
Larvitar let out a slightly dejected cry and crawled out from under the bed. It seemed a bit unwilling, but rules were rules.
"Alright, now it's Larvitar's turn to be 'it,'" Lin Xia announced with a smile.
Larvitar immediately perked up.
Lin Xia helped tie the cloth over its eyes again (adjusting the size slightly), though for a creature with such keen perception, the blindfold was mostly symbolic.
Then Lin Xia took Zhu Zhuqing's small hand and quickly searched for a new hiding place.
This time, instead of choosing a corner, he led her behind a set of large, heavy curtains that hung down to the floor.
The two of them stood close together in the shadows by the window.
Zhu Zhuqing tightly clutched the corner of Lin Xia's clothes. Her little face was flushed with excitement and nervousness, and her bright eyes peeked through the gap in the curtains.
"Larvi! Larvitar!"
Larvitar began counting. Its voice carried a peculiar rhythm. After reaching one hundred, it pulled off the blindfold.
Its crimson eyes gleamed. It didn't move immediately but tilted its head slightly, as if carefully listening and sensing.
Its small ears, covered with magma-like armor, twitched slightly, and its nose sniffed gently.
The dark golden dragon-pattern mark on its chest faintly flickered for an instant as it focused, this trace of ancient dragon blood from the Dragon Tomb had not only strengthened its body but also seemed to grant it a sharper instinct for sensing space and life aura.
It first walked around the room like it was searching properly, tapping here and scratching there, building suspense.
Suddenly, it turned sharply toward the curtains, pointed with its claw, and let out an excited cry.
"Larvitar! (Found you!)"
Then it dashed forward like a streak of dark red shadow, swiftly pulling aside the curtain and revealing Lin Xia and Zhu Zhuqing, who had been holding their breath behind it.
"Ah! We got found!"
Zhu Zhuqing happily jumped out, her face showing no frustration from losing, only the joy of the game.
"Larvitar is amazing!"
"Larvitar!"
Larvitar proudly shook its little head, the dragon-pattern mark on its chest seeming to glow faintly.
"Your turn to hide, Zhuqing," Lin Xia reminded her with a smile.
"Mm!"
Zhu Zhuqing nodded vigorously, her little face full of excitement.
"This time I'm going to hide somewhere you absolutely won't find!"
She ran around the room, searching, until her eyes lit up. She pulled open a low cabinet used for storing bedding and tried her best to curl her small body inside.
Lin Xia and Larvitar exchanged a smile and both turned around, waiting for the next round to begin.
The laughter from hide-and-seek had long faded.
Lin Xia leaned against a corridor pillar, watching Zhu Zhuqing in the distance as she clumsily patted the dust off herself.
The little girl's face was flushed from a day of playing, fine beads of sweat dotting her forehead, a few strands of black hair sticking to her skin. Her small mouth panted slightly, yet her expression still carried lingering excitement.
Larvitar lay at her feet, its small tail lazily sweeping the ground, its crimson eyes showing both satisfaction from play and a hint of fatigue.
The dark golden dragon pattern and crimson-gold phoenix pattern on its chest shimmered faintly under the light.
"Zhuqing, tired?"
Lin Xia asked with a gentle smile.
"It's time to head back and rest. Otherwise, your sister will start to worry."
He had intended to naturally end this pleasant afternoon, perhaps ask what she wanted to play tomorrow or remind her to sleep early.
However, before he could finish speaking, he saw Zhu Zhuqing, her back to the light as she adjusted her little dress, suddenly freeze.
Her small shoulders began to tremble, faintly at first, then uncontrollably.
A stifled sob broke the quiet of the courtyard, soft yet piercingly clear, like a string that had been stretched too tight finally snapping.
The smile on Lin Xia's face instantly stiffened, his heart sinking.
"Zhuqing?"
He straightened and stepped forward, his voice filled with obvious surprise and concern.
Under the dim yellow light, Zhu Zhuqing slowly turned around.
The face that had been full of pure joy just moments ago was now streaked with tears.
Her clear black eyes brimmed with tears like shattered stars, rolling down one after another.
The innocence of a carefree child was gone from her gaze, replaced by a dense confusion, helplessness, and a kind of despair that made Lin Xia's heart tighten.
"Brother Lin Xia…"
Her voice was thick with tears, as soft as a mosquito's hum, yet like a cold spike that pierced straight into Lin Xia's heart.
"Will I die?"
---
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