Evelyn seemed to have made up her mind, but the moment she declared she was leaving, Su Zhao felt as though she had been scalded by fire. Startled into sudden alertness, she sprang straight to her feet.
Without even thinking, the words slipped past her lips: “No!”
With lightning-fast reflexes, just as Evelyn was about to leap off the seat, Su Zhao scooped her right up. Finding herself suddenly suspended in mid-air, Evelyn froze in shock.
Before she could react and extend her claws to scratch her, Su Zhao had already neatly and decisively brought Evelyn’s two front legs together, pulling her tightly into a warm embrace to completely extinguish any thoughts of escape.
Su Zhao looked utterly aggrieved.
“Sister, you already promised me. How can you go back on your word after making a promise?”
Evelyn remained silent.
The Persian cat used all four limbs to push against her in resistance, demonstrating with its actual actions just how much it loathed being held like this.
It struggled far too violently, making it difficult for Su Zhao to keep it under control. Since sheer strength wasn’t enough, she had to rely on technique: with one hand, she grabbed its front legs, and with the other, she snatched the scruff of its neck.
Fast, accurate, and ruthless, she seized its fatal weakness and hoisted it straight up into the air with a sudden jerk.
The cat in her arms instantly went as rigid as a wooden carving.
The cat finally quieted down.
Only then did Su Zhao resettle herself, looking down at the cat with a voice laced with equal parts genuine and feigned sobbing: “Sister, why do you think I insisted on inviting you?”
Evelyn’s favorability value had dropped, making the five favorability points rewarded by the upcoming dating quest exceptionally crucial.
Things had already progressed this far, and Su Zhao had invested so much painstaking effort into this. Even if it were just for the sake of these resentful, unwilling emotions, she would never allow Evelyn to back out at the last second!
She wasn’t going to accept it!
She wouldn’t allow it!
She had to successfully capture her!
This had already escalated into a matter of a player’s dignity! A true woman must never say she cannot do it!
Thinking of the dropped favorability points, Su Zhao’s heart bled. Her eyes reddened, and tears instantly welled up to fill her vision.
“Sister,” she didn’t even need to act, tears rolled down her cheeks in heavy drops, “how can you say such hurtful things?”
Bright light pierced through the sheer curtains, casting a golden halo over the Persian cat’s flowing white fur.
Su Zhao said through a sob, “Could it be that you truly do not know how much I need you?”
Evelyn’s sharp claws extended from her paw pads, resembling a pair of unsheathed blades flashing in the cold night.
Staring fixedly into Su Zhao’s eyes, her chest heaved violently as if she were forcibly suppressing an urge to erupt in anger.
She said slowly, “Liar.”
Even in the grip of furious rage, the Saintess still held the teachings of the Holy See as her supreme guide, keeping every word and action strictly aligned with doctrine.
The accusations and interrogations were perfectly buried beneath a calm, even tone.
Word by word, she stated, “I do not believe you.”
“Sister does not believe me.”
Su Zhao bit her lower lip slightly, the excessive force turning her lips a pale, delicate red.
Unable to think of a comeback on the spot, she simply cast all caution to the wind and leaned in close, putting on a pitiful, pleading tone.
“Does Sister want me to carve out my own heart and show it to you?”
“Glossy words and clever speech.”
Evelyn’s ear-tips twitched, her tone completely flat. “Is this how you coax Cynthia as well?”
Cold as ice, Evelyn seemed completely unmoved.
She refused to be fooled this time.
She glanced once more at the glaring favorability score.
Su Zhao felt the urge to shed little pearls of tears all over again.
Silently pumping herself up, perhaps even the system pitied her tragic plight; the favorability points halted at fifty and finally stopped dropping further.
Su Zhao let out a quiet sigh of relief, her dejected spirits finally perking up a fraction. Evelyn’s subtle hesitation offered her a turning point, prompting her to press gently against the cat’s paw pads.
“Sister harbors too deep a prejudice against me; these words truly come from the bottom of my heart.”
Pulling Evelyn closer, Su Zhao placed her paws directly against her own chest, gazing earnestly into her eyes.
“Sister, can you feel it?”
“My heart is beating so fast, as though a little fawn lives inside my chest, desperate to break through my body and carry my full measure of care for you straight into your heart.”
Evelyn snapped her head up. A trace of imperceptible emotional wavering flashed across her features before vanishing as quickly as it came, replaced instantly.
Her eyes flared with an overwhelming, piercing anger, utterly devoid of her previous indifference.
Every single word was heavily emphasized: “Even at a time like this, you are still lying to me!”
Clearly, she had said the wrong thing.
She had completely provoked her.
Su Zhao didn’t even know how Evelyn had broken free from her restraint. With just a fleeting moment of distraction, she looked down only to find the warm, fluffy bundle in her arms had vanished.
Her hands hung empty and awkward in mid-air. Overwhelmed with bewilderment, she instinctively scanned her surroundings: “Sister?”
A flash of white caught the corner of her eye, and Su Zhao hastily looked over. Evelyn’s paw pads pressed silently against the carpet as she closed in without a sound.
Snow-white long fur brushed past Su Zhao’s bare ankles, sending a shiver running up her skin.
“Sister, you must believe me.”
Before she could finish her sentence, her lap grew slightly heavy. As the cat stepped onto her arm, Su Zhao struggled to support the sudden, weighty burden, causing her arm to tremble.
There was no time left for explanations; her other hand hurriedly came up to offer a weak, protective guard around the creature.
Nervously, she stammered, “Sister, please be careful, don’t fall!”
Just as she finally managed to steady the little ancestor in her arms and prepared to coax her, a cat’s claw suddenly pressed against her throat.
Su Zhao felt a genuine, bone-chilling intent to kill.
Evelyn’s voice was freezing: “What Cynthia swallowed was honey-coated arsenic. Did you think I would…”
The sharp tip barely grazed through the surface of her skin, and before the sentence could finish, Su Zhao cut her off.
“Sister’s claws, moving forward just half an inch further, would completely save us the trouble of needing any healing spells.”
“Sister, think carefully: what possible reason could I have to lie to you?” Su Zhao looked up at her with tear-filled eyes.
“I lack any right of succession, nor do I harbor any improper ambitions. I gain no practical benefits whatsoever from you.”
A fine bead of blood slowly oozed from the shallow wound, sliding down her collarbone into the fabric of her blouse, where Su Zhao carelessly wiped it away.
“Befriending you not only brings me zero profit, but instead invites endless trouble. You and I know this better than anyone else.”
Curling her fingers, Su Zhao gently stroked Evelyn’s fine, soft fur.
Catching sight of that startling streak of red, Evelyn’s pupils contracted. Her fingers trembled slightly, and her claws retracted back into her paws.
“Besides, Sister would never pursue selfish interests at the expense of others. If I didn’t truly cherish Sister, why would I bother entangling myself in such a complex relationship?”
Lowering her gaze slightly, Su Zhao pressed her trembling fingertips against her eyelashes to slowly wipe away her tears, letting out a soft sigh.
“Sister’s accusations are entirely unjustified.”
Evelyn was left speechless.
Her body remained stiff, and her eyelashes fluttered continuously. She was wavering, trapped in a loop of skepticism, resembling a butterfly caught in a spiderweb, slowly suffocating.
Naturally noticing her struggle, Su Zhao curved the corner of her lips upward before quickly smoothing them into a neutral expression.
Guiding Evelyn’s paw, she lifted it away from her own throat and pressed it firmly against her chest.
Su Zhao’s voice grew even softer, her gaze filled with sincere earnestness: “Sister, come and feel it for yourself, are my words true or false?”
Evelyn’s paw pads suddenly clenched, her claws trembling under Su Zhao’s challenge, yet turning completely powerless the moment they touched her steady heartbeat.
“Sweet-talking words.”
Turning her head away, her tail honestly wrapped around Su Zhao’s wrist as she grumbled unwillingly, “The flowery words you spoke to Cynthia were at least a hundred times sweeter than these.”
Su Zhao couldn’t help laughing. “Why is Sister still eating her jealousy?”
Lowering her head in silence, she pressed her cheek against the cat’s forehead. Her lips nearly brushed against the sensitive cat ears as her voice dripped with the sweetness of honey.
“Sister clearly knows how much I care about you, and knows how uniquely special your presence is to me.”
“How can you still feel so insecure?”
Evelyn’s pupils constricted into thin slits. Su Zhao could clearly feel the cat paw pressed against her chest growing warmer.
Knowing she was caught in a tangle of hesitation, Su Zhao acted like a stray kitten lured in by candy only to be pelted with stones, too accustomed to being deceived to easily hand over trust again.
Seizing Evelyn’s front paws to prevent any escape, Su Zhao resolved to take full control of the rhythm in this relationship.
“Come listen, Sister, to how much I need you.”
Holding her rigid hands, together they listened to the rhythm of her heartbeat.
Steady, powerful, and resolute.
The familiar scent of roses bloomed at the tip of her nose, and she watched as the cat’s spine instantly went rigid, exactly as she had anticipated.
“Why is Sister’s heart beating so fast as well?”
Smiling softly, Su Zhao leaned closer, her warm breath turning the cat’s erect, pointy ears a flushed red.
Dragging her fingertips slowly down the curve of the cat’s spine, she murmured, “Sister, won’t you tell me what you are thinking right now?”
Evelyn: (She remained silent).
A startled bird darted past outside the window, the beating of its wings tearing through the frozen air. Snapping back to reality, Evelyn yanked back her paws, abruptly transformed back into human form, and attempted to make a hasty exit.
Her steps staggered; the usually poised and composed Saintess showed a rare three-point wretchedness today: “I shall take my leave first.”
The next instant, she was caught by the hem of her sleeve.
The expensive fabric gave a faint tearing sound under the tug. Refusing to budge an inch, Su Zhao kept her eyes locked entirely on her.
As the balance shifted, Evelyn’s resistance weakened steadily.
Finally, before her ceremonial robe could be completely torn apart, Evelyn conceded.
With a helpless tone, she asked, “Your Highness, what on earth do you want?”
“I want to keep you here.”
Gazing straight into her eyes without the slightest evasion, Su Zhao spoke the words aloud.
Taking advantage of Evelyn’s momentary daze, Su Zhao hooked the back of her neck to narrow the distance between them, burying her face straight into Evelyn’s white hair.
Her speaking speed was rapid, leaving Evelyn zero opportunity for refusal or reaction.
“I want Sister to stop misunderstanding me, to know how much I care about you, and to realize that you already occupy a very special place quietly hidden in my heart.”
“I want Sister to know that no matter what happens, I will always stay by your side.”
Evelyn froze. Su Zhao could feel her hands trembling. The resisting force melted away section by section, like metal scorched by roaring flames.
No further words were needed.
She knew she had won.
Clasping those hands tightly and gazing deep into her eyes, Su Zhao asked in a gentle murmur, “Sister, what about you?”
Evelyn gave no reply.
With a flash of light, she transformed back into a cat once more.
A low, soft whimper escaped the Persian cat’s throat.
“Does Sister still remember the night my love curse flared up?”
Su Zhao scooped her up with satisfaction.
“My noble Knight descended from the heavens, pulling me out of the abyss of suffering and rescuing me from the depths of disaster.”
Tracing the edge of Evelyn’s ice-blue eyes with her fingertip, Su Zhao smiled.
“At that time, gazing at my proud Knight, the only thing running through my mind was…”
Su Zhao abruptly pinched the tip of her ear, causing Evelyn to shudder uncontrollably. Tightly wrapping her arms around Evelyn’s neck, she leaned in right beside her ear and whispered:
“If such a pretty tongue were willing to kiss me, how wonderful that would be.”