https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-522-Lanchi-Feels-Like-He-s-Going-Crazy-Too/12584739/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-524-Lanchi-and-Hubertian-s-Return-to-School/12584741/
Chapter 523: Talia Believes the Embarrassment Will Pass
Chapter 523: Talia Believes the Embarrassment Will Pass
At the end of the corridor on the second floor of Boss Cat's restaurant, the air was heavy with silence. It was so quiet that one could almost hear the beating of their hearts.
The two Great Demon Clan members at the door couldn't help but be astonished. The new king and the former princess were bold and playful, continuing their antics right in front of them and seemingly enjoying themselves even more.
Wait, why were there two Great Demon Clan members?
Antanas and Sinora glanced at each other and surveyed their surroundings.
How did Pranay end up by the stairs already? With a faint smile, he waved at Antanas and his sister, pointing to his watch to indicate that it was time to start the restaurant's service for the day.
"...I have to say, how does your brother manage to be so elegantly timid every time?" Antanas muttered to Sinora.
Sinora shook her head.
At that moment, she was biting her fingers, feeling jealous to the point of grinding her teeth. If she had been in Talia's position in that room, she would have rather died. But just imagining being told such lines by a super-perfect handsome guy made her cheeks flush and her heart pound wildly.
No, she might even faint.
As Antanas and Sinora whispered to each other, time seemed to stand still inside Talia's room, with the mutual torture and agony between Lanchi and Talia lingering.
"..."
Talia covered her face with her hands. Now that she was gradually coming back to her senses, her mind kept replaying the absurd things she had just done.
If Lanchi felt socially mortified, she felt even more so that she couldn't face the world.
Why did things always end up like this whenever she was with Lanchi?
The worst part was that her door was now broken, and she couldn't even close it to be alone.
"Err..."
Hepburn turned her head back and forth, sensing that something was wrong.
She might have arrived a little too late, or perhaps she had arrived just in time.
Both Lanchi and Talia needed to calm down.
Or perhaps they had just recovered from their frenzied state and were now rationally savoring the aftermath, feeling each other's presence more intensely and regretting their actions.
Hepburn quietly tiptoed and reached out to grab Lanchi's wrist, slowly pulling him towards her.
They silently inched closer to the door.
"Lanchi and I have something to take care of at school, we'll be back!" Hepburn called out, making sure she had a firm grip on Lanchi before running off with him in tow.
Antanas watched the room and then the corridor as the two disappeared at the end.
As she had expected, her instincts hadn't failed her.
There was something amiss with Talia and Lanchi, as well as Hepburn and Lanchi!
It seemed like Talia and Hepburn could get along peacefully, but the closer they became, the more twisted their emotions would be when they eventually clashed! And when Ifateya witnessed all of this, her expression would be the most fascinating!
Antanas clenched her fists, praying that the new king would bring back the second princess, Ifateya, soon. Although the Great King was cruel to his enemies, he had a pure heart when it came to his own people, and he especially admired his sister. She had probably never seen anything as stimulating as this.
After a long while, Sinora cleared her throat softly. "I'll go help my brother."
"Oh." Antanas nodded.
She also realized that they had been standing outside Talia's room for too long. She quickly nodded to Talia and turned to leave.
And so, Talia was left alone in the empty room.
She felt like a deflated balloon, putting away the fruit knife and picking up the book that had fallen to the floor. She slumped into the armchair and lay down.
Staring at the ceiling, she covered her face again and started rocking back and forth, almost writhing like a worm.
"You were so cute today, Talia... So cute that I wanted to eat you up instead of breakfast."
"What I meant to say was, the adorable way you eat has captivated me as well. Before these memories fade, I want to be by your side like a lucid dream, forever."
These words were like a curse, echoing relentlessly in her mind and refusing to leave.
How could anyone say such things?!
And how could Lanchi bring himself to say them?!
What's more, she had forced him to say those lines.
And she had responded to every one of them!
"Ahhhhh!!!" Talia let out a muffled scream, her voice filled with anguish.
She felt that if she stayed any longer with Lanchi, she might go crazy. It would have been better to explode together with him!
Time ticked by as the clock on the wall made its rounds.
Finally, Talia returned to her usual self, lying expressionlessly in the armchair.
"If only you could have made me angry the first time we met, then we could have ended it all then and there." She picked up a magazine from the table next to her with a resigned sigh.
She seemed to be able to concentrate, or perhaps she was just using the magazine to hide her still-agitated heart.
After some thought, she slipped 'Holy War Romance' at the bottom of the stack of books, making it less noticeable.
There was a knock on the door.
Since the door had been knocked down, the knocker had to rap on the door frame instead.
Talia looked over. It was Antanas, who had broken the door earlier, now holding a toolbox as she came to fix it.
"I'll fix the door. Sorry about this," Antanas said skillfully as she took out a set of stainless steel bearing hinges and matching hardened screws.
"Trouble you," Talia said, sitting in an armchair in the room, feeling conflicted as she watched Antanas.
She never expected that there would come a day when she would meet Antanas again, and here she was, fixing her door.
Watching Antanas work skillfully on the door frame, Talia put down the magazine she was holding and went to the door.
"Let's fix it together," she said, squatting down and speaking to Antanas.
"But you're a princess. How can I let you do this?" Antanas asked, looking at Talia in surprise.
"I'm no longer a princess," Talia replied with a resigned shake of her head as she picked up a screwdriver.
"......You've really changed a lot," Antanas said, staring at Talia in astonishment.
The Talia of yesteryear would have looked down on most creatures with contempt, casting a condescending glance their way. But now, she seemed as human as any commoner.
More importantly, the sense of distance she used to exude was gone.
"By the way, what's your relationship with Lanchi?" Antanas asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. She was extremely curious about Talia's and the new king's opinions of each other and the story of what had transpired between them.
Every time she asked the new king, he would just smile and remain silent, denying her the juicy details she craved.
She wondered if Talia would be more forthcoming.
Antanas just couldn't contain her curiosity any longer.
"I guess we're friends," Talia replied, a hint of hesitation in her voice.
Initially, their relationship had been purely that of employer and employee.
Later, until he paid off his debt, she had needed to protect him and ensure he repaid what he owed.
Now, setting aside all the desirable things Lanchi had brought her, she felt that being with him wasn't too bad.
"Don't you think he's a special person?" Antanas asked tentatively.
"......"
Talia recalled that Cat Boss had once asked a similar question.
After a long silence, during which she tightened two screws, she finally answered:
"To be honest, I find it hard to understand."
Even after living in the Kingdom of Hutton for so long, Talia still couldn't wrap her head around the question she and Cat Boss had discussed earlier.
She knew that when Antanas said "special," she wasn't referring to it in the literal sense of the word, but rather in the context of the human concepts of "love" and "partner."
She had pondered this question before and even sought advice from Cat Boss.
His answer was—this person always brings you happiness, and you gradually become inseparable from them. You start to care about their thoughts, and your once calm self begins to experience emotional fluctuations because of them.
Talia had struggled with these confusing feelings for a long time, and it seemed like Cat Boss had hit the nail on the head with every point he made.
Back then, Lanchi had brought her many things she desired, and because of his debt, she couldn't let him go. She wanted to figure out what he was thinking, and sometimes, his slightly mocking polite words and expressions would make her extremely irritable.
It was as if he had known exactly what to say to push her buttons, and yet, she still couldn't understand any of it.
But now...
For some unknown reason...
It felt a little different.
"How should I get along with him from now on...?" Talia's voice was filled with uncertainty.
She had intended to thank Lanchi, but now, after yet another ambiguous encounter, she didn't know how to face him or what expression to wear.
"What you two did earlier was indeed quite outrageous," Antanas agreed, nodding.
The Great Lover's Poem that Lanchi had recited was indeed fearsome. In normal circumstances, it might not have had any effect, but when one's emotions were running high, it could turn them into a drunken mess.
Especially in battle, once one crossed the Great Lover's killing line, even the Bishop of Extinction, Askesang, would lose his wits.
Just now, not only had Talia gone crazy, but even Lanchi himself hadn't been in a normal state of mind.
"......"
Talia turned her head away, feeling embarrassed.
Indeed, from an outsider's perspective, what she and Lanchi had done that morning had been rather abstract.
"But it can't be helped," Antanas continued. "Before time smooths over the awkwardness between the two of you, just continue interacting like this. If it feels uncomfortable, try to avoid each other for a while."
Antanas sighed. Sometimes, when something awkward happened between two people, the more they tried to explain it away and force themselves to interact, the wider the rift grew. In such cases, the best solution was to give each other some distance and space.
"On the bright side, there's nothing more embarrassing that could happen between you two. After all, you can't spend every day locked up together in Boss Cat's restaurant, can you?" Antanas added, lifting the door and trying to align it with the bearing hinges.
"I guess so," Talia nodded.
Everything would pass with time.
Indeed, having friends around made a world of difference. Talia felt her mood lighten considerably, and she even started feeling hungry.
(End of Chapter)
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