The system was rendered speechless.
It neither fully approved nor actively discouraged him.
It didn’t approve because the risks were enormous.
Xiu Jixin was young.
Yet his strength was terrifying.
He had killed a demon effortlessly and without hesitation.
There had barely been any emotional fluctuation throughout the entire process.
Moreover, it was obvious that the demon had already undergone punishment before its execution.
The system wasn’t sympathizing with the demon.
Any creature willing to possess children barely seven or eight years old couldn’t possibly be anything good.
Still…
The young priest standing before them wasn’t exactly harmless either.
And yet…
Judging from everything so far, Xiu Jixin genuinely seemed to hold favorable feelings toward Xue Zhao.
That made him an extraordinarily valuable resource for completing missions.
Not making use of that advantage would be a waste.
Besides…
His affection was increasing ridiculously fast.
One point yesterday.
Three points today.
At this rate, wouldn’t they reach romance-level affection within half a month?
Xue Zhao still hadn’t completely recovered from the shock.
He looked timidly at Xiu Jixin, trying his best to read the expression on his face.
He felt relieved.
But at the same time, he remained afraid that perhaps he had already been exposed and would be thrown into a cage the very next moment.
He was hungry too.
His Life Value had just increased by one point.
The sweetness of the food-like energy eased his anxiety ever so slightly.
And since the affection level had increased anyway…
Xue Zhao thought for two seconds.
Then he simply hugged Xiu Jixin tighter.
Lowering his head, he buried his face against his chest.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t allowed to hold on for very long.
“Let’s go.”
Xiu Jixin’s voice sounded above him.
“I’ll take you home.”
Reluctantly, Xue Zhao loosened his grip and stepped away.
“Mm.”
They left the dungeon and exited the small building.
The outside world was completely deserted.
The assistants had already gone.
The night had grown darker.
Xiu Jixin carried a white lantern that illuminated the path beside the church.
Xue Zhao followed closely behind him.
Several times, he wanted to reach out and grab Xiu Jixin’s sleeve.
Each time, he restrained himself.
The entire journey passed in silence.
Xiu Jixin never once mentioned the demon from the dungeon again.
[System] : See? Everything’s fine.
[System] : I told you one demon wouldn’t be enough to cause trouble.
[System] : Since you’ve decided not to change targets, we’ll continue with the original plan.
[System] : Gather information about Xiu Jixin and look for opportunities to spend more time with him.
[System] : Just take things slowly and be careful.
Gradually, Xue Zhao relaxed.
Sneaking a glance at Xiu Jixin, he nodded.
“Mm.”
The more contact they had…
The more food he could obtain.
Although, after hugging him for so long earlier, he’d only gained a single Life Point.
When they finally reached his residence, Xiu Jixin stopped.
“Get some rest early.”
He turned to leave.
But Xue Zhao grabbed his sleeve.
Xiu Jixin lowered his gaze.
His eyes silently asked why.
Xue Zhao had cried earlier.
His eyes remained slightly red.
A trace of reluctance appeared on his face.
“I…”
At that moment, every strategy the system had painstakingly planned disappeared completely from his mind.
All he could think about was spending more time together.
His voice became soft.
“Can I see you tomorrow?”
Warm light spilled from the upstairs windows and bathed the steps below.
Xue Zhao didn’t explain why he wanted to see him.
Xiu Jixin remained silent for a moment.
Then he answered.
“You can.”
“I’ll be at the church assembly hall tomorrow afternoon.”
His expression remained calm.
His tone was steady.
Cold.
Distant.
No trace remained of the man who had wiped away Xue Zhao’s tears only moments ago.
If not for the affection notifications, Xue Zhao might have thought he’d imagined everything.
Slowly, he released the sleeve.
“Mm…”
Hearing voices outside, Aunt Huai looked through the window.
Seeing that Xue Zhao had returned, she hurried downstairs.
“Zhaozhao?”
She greeted him before turning toward Xiu Jixin.
“Father, you’ve come as well…”
She invited him inside.
Xiu Jixin declined.
Nor did he explain why he had summoned Xue Zhao.
He merely informed her that the demon imprisoned in the dungeon had been dealt with.
Then he turned and left alone.
Since Xiu Jixin had personally escorted Xue Zhao home, Aunt Huai asked no further questions.
She guided him upstairs and poured him a cup of hot water.
Holding the warm cup, Xue Zhao returned to his room.
A message from the system arrived.
[System] : About that…
[System] : Suddenly asking someone to meet you usually doesn’t have a very high success rate.
[System] : It’s generally better to take things slowly.
[System] : But since he agreed, we need to prepare for tomorrow.
The system racked its brain.
What topics should they discuss?
How should they gather information?
What hobbies did Xiu Jixin have?
Where did he usually go each day?
Once their relationship became closer and the affection level reached the next stage, they could start considering how exactly to “seduce” him.
In short, every plan the system designed favored caution and gradual progress.
After reading everything carefully, Xue Zhao nodded obediently.
“Mm.”
The trip to the dungeon had unexpectedly completed the reconnaissance mission as well.
A pleasant bonus.
After finishing his hot water, washing up and preparing for bed, Xue Zhao lay down unusually early.
The lights were off.
Wrapped tightly in his blanket, he stared through the narrow gap between the curtains into the darkness outside.
Thinking back on everything that had happened tonight, he still felt dazed.
The demon was dead.
His identity remained hidden.
The problem that had worried him for days had somehow been resolved just like that.
And then there was Xiu Jixin.
Without the affection notifications, it was almost impossible to tell that he liked him at all.
That was what it meant, right?
Liking him?
Xue Zhao wanted to imitate the system and determine the exact reason behind every increase in affection.
He thought about it seriously.
For a long time.
Yet he reached no conclusions whatsoever.
Instead, sleepiness gradually overtook him.
Before he realized it, he drifted off.
The next morning, the system continued refining its plans.
It treated the upcoming meeting with Xiu Jixin almost like a mission in itself.
[System] : You’re the one who asked to see him this time.
[System] : A little preparation is always a good thing.
Its seriousness made Xue Zhao nervous too.
Dizzily, he nodded.
“Mm!”
By the time afternoon arrived, however, Xue Zhao had fallen ill.
He had already seemed listless that morning. The system had noticed, but after disguising himself as a human, Xue Zhao’s constitution had always been somewhat frail.
It wasn’t until after lunch that his body temperature suddenly began to rise. Before long, he was running a fever.
Fortunately, Aunt Huai was home. She hurried to the clinic to fetch medicine for him and insisted that he rest properly.
The system analyzed the situation.
“It’s probably because your vitality is too low and you went out again last night.”
The weather had been getting colder lately. Strong winds blew through the town at night and Xue Zhao had been frightened several times over the past few days. It was no surprise that he had become sick.
After taking the medicine, Xue Zhao still remembered his appointment with Xiu Jixin and wanted to go.
Aunt Huai immediately stopped him.
“Lie back down already. Just look at yourself.”
She pressed a hand to his forehead.
“Your fever is so high you can barely stand.”
Xue Zhao forced himself to stay awake and tried to explain.
“But I already promised… I was going to the church…”
“To see Father Xiu?”
Aunt Huai guided him back to the bedside.
“The Father is hearing confessions in the church hall this afternoon. He’s very busy.”
In the end, Aunt Huai promised she would go inform Xiu Jixin personally that Xue Zhao was unable to keep their appointment.
Only then did Xue Zhao reluctantly nod.
“Alright…”
He truly felt terrible.
His head throbbed and spun constantly, while the tail coiled around his arm felt hot to the touch.
Xue Zhao had fallen sick before, but never like this.
Being ill as a human was genuinely miserable.
After drinking several more mouthfuls of hot water, he burrowed beneath the blankets and lay down.
He drifted in and out of sleep throughout the afternoon.
By evening, the fever still hadn’t broken.
He managed only a few spoonfuls of plain porridge before being forced to drink another bowl of medicine, this one even more bitter than the last.
Afterward, he went back to sleep.
The lights in the room were turned off, leaving only the glow of the small brazier beside the bed.
At some point, rain began to fall outside.
Listening to the patter of raindrops, Xue Zhao murmured drowsily,
“How long does being sick usually last… Can I go out tomorrow?”
“Probably not,” the system replied.
The system silently sighed.
Thankfully, no new mission had appeared at a time like this. In Xue Zhao’s current condition, even walking downstairs would be difficult.
Yesterday, he had worked so hard just to gain one point of vitality.
Today he had lost two.
Xue Zhao was simply too weak.
If he wanted to recover quickly, he would still need more “food.”
The system was worrying over this when it suddenly heard Aunt Huai speaking outside.
She seemed to be talking to someone.
Footsteps approached from far away.
Then, with a soft creak, the bedroom door opened.
The person who entered, however, was not Aunt Huai.
The system immediately exploded.
“Host! Wake up!”
“Host! This is your chance!”
Xue Zhao didn’t see the messages.
Not until the room’s lamp was lit and the approaching footsteps drew closer.
The brazier was pushed aside.
Someone sat down beside the bed.
Still sluggish from the fever, Xue Zhao finally caught a familiar, sweet scent.
A scent he knew well.
Xiu Jixin.
His eyes slowly opened.
He stared blankly for several moments before sitting up beneath the blankets.
“You’re still running a fever?”
Xiu Jixin reached out and lightly touched his flushed cheek.
The contact lasted only a moment.
Yet the instant Xiu Jixin withdrew his hand, Xue Zhao suddenly hugged his arm.
The warmth was real.
The scent was real.
Everything was undeniably real.
Staring dazedly, Xue Zhao murmured,
“So it wasn’t a dream…”
Xiu Jixin looked at him.
“You didn’t come to the church this afternoon.”
The system couldn’t help thinking that sixty-five favorability points wasn’t actually that high.
Yet he cared enough about a casual appointment to visit personally.
“Mm.”
Xue Zhao nodded obediently.
“Because I got sick.”
His mind was still foggy.
Thinking required too much effort.
So he simply answered whatever was asked.
Xiu Jixin studied him quietly for a moment before withdrawing his arm from Xue Zhao’s grasp.
“Keep the blanket on.”
As the scent moved farther away, Xue Zhao let out a small,
“Oh…”
Then he clutched his blanket and instinctively scooted closer.
At this moment, he looked remarkably like a clingy kitten.
His gaze remained fixed on Xiu Jixin, unable to leave him for even a second.
The joy at his arrival was obvious.
After wrapping the blanket securely around himself, Xue Zhao rubbed his eyes.
Then he heard Xiu Jixin say,
“Your fever still hasn’t gone down. You need more medicine.”
“I’ve already taken medicine three times…”
The mention of medicine immediately dampened Xue Zhao’s mood.
Then he noticed Xiu Jixin taking out a small medicine case.
Opening it, he removed a single pill.
A faint herbal fragrance drifted into the air.
Curious, Xue Zhao leaned closer and carefully sniffed it.
Unlike the bitter medicine from before, this pill didn’t smell unpleasant at all.
More importantly, it carried traces of Xiu Jixin’s scent.
The two aromas blended together.
Xue Zhao considered the matter for exactly one second.
Then he grabbed Xiu Jixin’s hand and lowered his head to swallow the pill directly from his fingers.
The pill wasn’t very large.
He swallowed it easily.
But he couldn’t stop himself.
Afterward, he lightly licked the fingertip that had held the medicine.
Having spent most of the day asleep, Xue Zhao had barely eaten anything.
Combined with his critically low vitality, illness had intensified his craving for “food” to an unprecedented degree.
And so, after the first lick,
He slowly licked the finger again.
The fingertip smelled faintly of herbs.
Yet somehow, on his tongue, it tasted like sweet pastry.
At the same moment, two notifications appeared before his eyes.
[Vitality increased by 2 points.]
[Character Favorability Changed.]
Xue Zhao was still staring blankly when Xiu Jixin lowered his gaze.
“Let go.”
His voice was calm and detached.
Xue Zhao looked up.
Xiu Jixin’s expression seemed colder than before.
As though he disliked what Xue Zhao had just done.
Flustered, Xue Zhao immediately released him.
Then he opened the favorability notification.
“Character [Xiu Jixin] Favorability increased by 2 points.”
✦ ✧ ✦
Cresvynia
[Translator]
☕ A LITTLE SOMETHING FOR THE TRANSLATOR
You read the chapter. They wrestled with the words. Seems fair, no? (￣▽￣)
☕ BUY THEM A COFFEE →
✧ (づ｡•ㅅ•｡)づ ☕ ✧
✦ thank you for reading ✦
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ChaptersChapter 1 · [Mission Identity]: SuccubusChapter 2 · Let him copy the scriptures fifty more timesChapter 3 · Can I seduce him?Chapter 4 · Can I have a bite?Chapter 5 · I wasn’t full at allChapter 6 · This is its original formChapter 7 · Xue Zhao slowly licked it againChapter 8 · If something is discoveredChapter 9 · Because he is… a succubusChapter 10 · Are you trying to seduce me?Chapter 11 · That’s right, a cage to lock up the devilChapter 12 · Can I keep you company for a while?Chapter 13 · Only one kiss a dayChapter 14 · Uncomfortable?Chapter 15 · Day of RepentanceChapter 16 · It’s the last bit left, silver halideChapter 17 · Current Form: SuccubusChapter 18 · This is your… original form?Chapter 19 · What would you like to eat?Chapter 20 · I’ll show you my tail… okay?Chapter 21 · The premise is that he didn’t lieChapter 22 · It has a light, pleasant fragranceChapter 23 · Demons typically have a limited dietChapter 24 · Don’t touch me…Chapter 25 · MaturityChapter 26 · Touch What?Chapter 27 · I never imaginedChapter 28 · “I’ll feed you until you’re fullChapter 29 · You’d better keep having this kind of luckChapter 30 · Anyway, I’ve already touched it onceChapter 31 · Like a kitten begging for extra food.Chapter 32 · [Skill “Charm” in effect]Chapter 33 · [You have entered the “Mature Stage”]Chapter 34 · He wanted Xiu Jixin to feed him….Chapter 35 · You’re trying to seduce me againChapter 36 · He seems… even more off now.Chapter 37 · Xue Zhao blushedChapter 38 · The fallen Holy SpiritChapter 39 · [Health points have reached maximum]Chapter 40 · [Corruption Value]: 63%Chapter 41 · Besides seducing me, what else can you do?Chapter 42 · Can we take the NPC with us?Chapter 43 · Horror Comics: The Murder DollChapter 44 · [Task Details]: Find a new owner for your itemsChapter 45 · The skill “Entering Dreams”Chapter 46 · The thought of making him cryChapter 47 · With a rather wicked interest.Chapter 48 · I’ll buy you new clothes, little bunnyChapter 49 · I should say, thank you, MasterChapter 50 · Do toy bunnies go into heat?