“Ow—! That really hurts!”
Felix Ravenholt cried out on the spot.
His body bent instinctively in the direction Evelyn was twisting his finger, and whatever noble composure he had vanished immediately.
All he could do was clutch at his hand while begging for mercy.
“Help! It seriously hurts! Let go already!”
The white-haired old man hurried forward as soon as he saw what was happening.
He was genuinely afraid that Evelyn might use too much force and actually injure Felix’s finger.
“Young Lady, please show some mercy. He is still the second young master of the Black Tortoise Clan. It’s better not to create unnecessary trouble, so perhaps you should let him go first.”
Evelyn shot the old man an annoyed look.
Although she was still far from pleased, she eventually released Felix’s hand.
Felix immediately pulled it back and held it against his chest, rubbing his finger over and over again.
The expression on his face was full of grievance, as though he had just suffered some terrible injustice.
“Don’t act so familiar with me. I don’t know you.”
Evelyn looked at him without the slightest politeness in her tone.
Ten years ago, they had only met once.
To be more precise, none of them had even asked each other’s names at the time, so they could hardly be considered acquaintances.
Yet after ten years apart, Felix had walked straight up, grabbed her shoulders, and started talking as though they had known each other forever.
He was far too familiar for someone she had barely met once.
After hearing his younger brother mention what had happened ten years ago, Lucian Ravenholt finally managed to connect the young woman standing before him with the little girl who had once held a fire fox in her arms.
So it really was her.
He glanced down at Felix, who was still rubbing his finger against his chest, then looked back at Evelyn and found the whole situation somewhat amusing.
The girl before him was bright and attractive, with a face that still carried a little of the softness of youth.
At first glance, she looked like the kind of young lady who ought to be gentle-tempered and soft-spoken.
Who would have guessed that the moment she moved, she could make Felix shout for help in the middle of the street?
Appearances really could be deceiving.
“I’m sorry. I just got too excited.”
Felix continued rubbing his finger as he explained pitifully, “Even though it’s been ten years, we were still worried about you afterward. You suddenly fainted that day and wouldn’t wake up no matter how many times we called you, and we never found out what happened to you after that.”
He glanced at Evelyn, and when she didn’t respond, his eyes shifted slightly.
Without hesitation, he dragged his older brother into the conversation.
“If you don’t believe me, ask my brother. He was the most worried out of all of us back then.”
After saying that, Felix quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
At least now he wouldn’t have to face Evelyn alone.
Lucian gave his younger brother a calm sideways glance.
He was clearly used to Felix pulling him into trouble whenever things became inconvenient.
Even so, he did not deny it.
“We were worried at the time,” Lucian said with a slight nod.
“But that was ten years ago, and you were still very young. It’s perfectly normal if you don’t remember us. Felix was too careless just now, so don’t take it to heart.”
Only then did Evelyn’s expression ease slightly.
“I’m not angry.”
She did remember them.
She simply didn’t think meeting someone once ten years ago meant they were now close enough to casually put their hands on her.
Her gaze slid toward Felix.
The corner of Felix’s mouth twitched.
Dirty?
How was he dirty?
He had cleaned himself properly before leaving the house that morning.
There wasn’t even dust on his clothes, yet somehow, after a few minutes with Evelyn, he had become “dirty.”
Lucian’s lips moved slightly as though he were suppressing a smile.
He understood almost immediately what Evelyn meant.
Whenever Felix became excited, he completely forgot about keeping a reasonable distance from other people.
A moment ago, he had leaned so close to Evelyn and talked nonstop right in her face.
No wonder she had finally lost patience.
Lucian looked at his brother with faint amusement.
“You heard her. Apologize.”
The moment Felix saw the almost-smiling expression on his brother’s face, he immediately straightened up.
The pitiful look he had been wearing disappeared, replaced by an extremely sincere expression.
“My lovely young lady, I was wrong. I got carried away just now and didn’t pay attention while I was talking, so I probably sprayed you with spit. Please be generous and forgive me this once.”
His apology came so quickly and naturally that the white-haired old man and the guards nearby stared at him in surprise.
They had not expected the second young master of the Black Tortoise Clan to admit fault so easily.
There was no hesitation and no noble pride whatsoever.
Only Lucian remained completely calm, as though he had seen this exact performance many times before.
Evelyn looked at Felix.
She had originally planned to remind him to keep a little more distance next time, but before she could say anything, Felix stared at her for another moment and suddenly added,
“Still, you really do look like a honeyberry.”
The street went quiet.
Evelyn’s expression, which had only just relaxed, immediately froze.
She slowly lifted her eyes toward him.
Unfortunately, Felix didn’t seem to notice anything wrong and continued with obvious enthusiasm.
“Round, soft-looking, and really tasty.”
Evelyn’s mouth twitched.
A honeyberry?
Was one bent finger not enough for him?
The white-haired old man looked from Evelyn to Felix and suddenly had no idea what to say.
The guards beside him were equally speechless.
No one had expected Felix to apologize one moment and immediately say something even more dangerous the next.
There was indeed a fruit in this world known as the honeyberry.
It was extremely rare.
Once ripe, it turned a beautiful crimson color and remained fairly small, with a plump, rounded shape that made it look especially appealing.
Despite the word honey in its name, however, the fruit was hardly sweet.
Its flesh was both sour and slightly bitter, and the taste itself wasn’t particularly enjoyable.
Still, honeyberries were incredibly valuable because they could help cultivators increase their strength.
Ordinary people rarely even had the chance to see one, let alone taste it.
Even so, no matter how valuable the fruit was, comparing a young woman to something round and plump was hardly the sort of compliment most girls would appreciate.
Especially when the girl’s expression was already starting to darken.
Evelyn had not grown up learning about honeyberries the way people in this world had, but she certainly knew what they looked like.
She silently repeated Felix’s words in her head.
Round.
Soft.
Looks tasty.
Her expression darkened even further.
Was he serious?
What kind of person compared a beautiful girl to a round little fruit?
Her face might still look slightly younger than her actual age, and she did have a little softness left in her features, but she certainly wasn’t round enough to resemble a fruit.
What exactly did he mean by “round and soft”?
Was this idiot secretly calling her fat?
Lucian watched Evelyn’s expression become worse and worse, and even he began to feel the faint beginnings of a headache.
He genuinely wanted to drag Felix aside and ask what was wrong with his eyes.
Evelyn’s face was small and soft, with a trace of youthful roundness that had not completely faded.
How did that somehow become a round, plump fruit in his brother’s mind?
Felix finally noticed that the atmosphere seemed slightly strange.
He looked at Evelyn, who had gone completely silent, then glanced at the people around them and hurriedly waved both hands.
“Don’t be angry. I was complimenting you!”
Evelyn said nothing.
She simply stared at him without expression.
Felix immediately became more anxious.
“Really! I was just saying you’re cute. I didn’t mean anything bad by it.”
Evelyn felt the corner of her temple twitch again.
Wonderful.
Then perhaps she should compliment him by saying he looked like a monkey and see whether he appreciated the praise.
Unfortunately, Felix clearly believed he still had not explained himself properly.
“You have to think about it this way. Honeyberries are adorable, aren’t they? They’re small, round, pretty, and everyone likes looking at them. So when I said you looked like a honeyberry, I meant that you’re cute.”
He sounded completely serious, as though once he explained his reasoning clearly enough, Evelyn would definitely understand his good intentions.
Evelyn’s fingers moved slightly.
The moment Felix noticed, he instinctively hid the right hand she had bent earlier behind his back.
Unfortunately, while he had learned to protect his hand, his mouth was still completely out of control.
“My point is really simple. Honeyberries are small, and you’re small. Honeyberries are cute, and you’re cute. Doesn’t that fit perfectly?”
At that point, Lucian slowly turned his face away.
For the first time that day, he had no desire whatsoever to admit that Felix was his biological younger brother.
The white-haired old man opened his mouth, originally intending to help smooth things over, but after listening to Felix’s increasingly detailed explanation, he suddenly realized there was nothing left to save.
The guards nearby had already lowered their heads in perfect unison, clearly afraid that if they looked up, someone might notice the expressions they were struggling to hide.
Felix, however, continued talking, determined to prove that he had genuinely been offering a compliment.
What he failed to realize was that every additional sentence only made Evelyn’s expression a little darker.
By the time he finally stopped, almost everyone nearby had arrived at the same conclusion.
The second young master of the Black Tortoise Clan, Felix Ravenholt, might be young— but there was probably something seriously wrong with his head.