Chapter 9: Eating Ice Cream

“Not bad aim. Your rank in my heart just went up to T4.”

“What are you talking about? I’m going to be a Sword Immortal in the future! Who cares what T-tier I am? In my own heart, I’ll always be T1! Right, Little Fu?”

“Sword Immortal-senpai is T0! The T0 of all T0s!”

Xinghui’s blind confidence made Lingling Lan suspect there was something really wrong with her brain.
Just from how she handled things earlier, it was obvious Xinghui was reckless and impulsive.

Smashing a local security robot in the middle of the street—without even trying to de-escalate—and insisting it must have been malfunctioning?
Normal people would think of running away. She, instead, thought of how to knock them all down.

Forget it. Best to just pretend nothing happened.

“Huuh, moving around got me all hot and dry-mouthed.”
Xinghui sheathed her sword and fanned herself with her hand, fully aware it was pointless but doing it anyway.

“I told you to bring some water, but no—you said it was too heavy.”

Lingling Lan rolled her eyes.
Watching Xinghui suffer like this gave her a strange, indescribable pleasure.
Hmph, serves you right for tying me up in court before, making me your prisoner. What now—want me to be your ‘Star Wrath’?

“Xinghui-sis, there’s a café over there! Let’s go sit down!”

Wilf tugged at Xinghui’s sleeve, pointing at a little café tucked into the street corner after studying her map carefully.

Lingling Lan’s sharp instincts started to doubt the girl.
A supposed local, yet she looked totally unfamiliar with the area, needing to rely on a map.
And whenever Lingling Lan looked at her, she reacted like a startled cat, deliberately avoiding eye contact in a way that was way too obvious.

Could it be… she discovered her identity as an Outer God’s daughter?

That would be bad.

Lingling Lan immediately activated Eye of True Sight to identify Wilf’s race.
This skill, innate to the descendants of Outer Gods, didn’t consume any spirit energy and allowed her to peer directly into the soul.

The result? Just an ordinary human little girl.
If anything seemed odd, it was a faint earthy scent. Not like the soil of this planet, but more like Blue Star’s distant soil.

By contrast, Xinghui’s soul was marked with a heavy, oppressive Outer God curse.
It matched her mother’s chaotic aura exactly.
At least it proved Lingling Lan’s probing hadn’t degraded—she could still trust her ability.

If that was the case, then this was strange.
So the girl was just… timid and shy?

“Xingling, ice cream time. What are you staring at?”

Xinghui’s voice yanked Lingling Lan out of her spiraling thoughts.
Looking up, she saw Xinghui holding a bowl of rainbow ice cream, spooning mouthfuls into her mouth with little munch-munch sounds.

Vanilla and strawberry—the flavors Lingling Lan liked most.

She wanted it so badly…

Noticing the drool Xingling couldn’t quite hide, Xinghui scooped up a big spoonful, deliberately mixing the two flavors while leaving out the durian she knew Lingling Lan hated.

So fragrant—was it the ice cream, the girl’s scent, or just the vanilla…?

“If it melts, it won’t taste good anymore.”

Xinghui… I’m sorry for calling you stupid just now.
You actually thought of me—that’s so touching…
Even if it’s just basic courtesy, who cares? Xinghui, you’re the best! Dumb and smart at the same time!

“Be good, close your eyes~ It’s a big spoonful. If Xingling can eat it all in one bite… the whole cup is yours! Little Xingling~”

So gentle… gentler than even Mother…
Suddenly, Xinghui as a mom didn’t sound so bad—if she was willing…

Nyala: ???

“Open wide, choo-choo train into the tunnel!”

“Mm—!”

Eh?! Why does it feel like I bit my tongue… ow! Xinghui, you—!

Xinghui moved her mouth teasingly, wearing the most insufferably smug expression as she laughed at the sight of Lingling Lan clutching her tiny cherry lips, teary-eyed.

Hmph! So the curse from Mother really made you just as awful as her! Xinghui, you meanie!

“Tricking me with empty promises? I’m not talking to you!” Lingling Lan huffed, turning her head away.

“Hahahaha… you’re so cute even when you’re mad~ You just look like someone begging to be teased. Here—take the whole cup!”

Xinghui handed her the ice cream.

“Don’t want it!” Lingling Lan puffed her cheeks angrily.

“I only had the last bite. Don’t be mad, or it’ll melt and taste bad.”

“No! You lied to me, you big meanie!”

“Then I’ll just eat the rest myself.” Xinghui pretended to pull the cup back.

“Eh! Give it to me! You said it was mine!”
Lingling Lan dug up a huge spoonful and shoved it into her mouth.
“Mmmph… no take-backs! Hmph. It’s good. See, if you’d done this earlier, everything would’ve been fine.”

She was like a child—a stubborn tsundere child.
Xinghui, watching her devour the ice cream, felt almost like a gentle mother.
With such a little companion by her side, life suddenly felt fun, no longer dull.

Yes, the plan was clear now—make Lingling Lan her little girlfriend!
As long as she stayed by her side, she wouldn’t go around causing chaos.
Not only would they win the battle to protect the world, but she’d win in life too. Double win!

“Since you look so pitiful, I’ll give you a bite.”
Lingling Lan scooped up an ice cream ball she had already bitten and held it to Xinghui’s lips.

“I’ve got plenty. I’m sharing with Little Fu.”

Wilf, who had been scarfing down ice cream while sneakily watching the sweet scene unfold, froze mid-bite.
“If Xinghui-sis wants some, I’ll give you all of mine.”

“See, even Little Fu says so…”

“I offered out of kindness, and you dare refuse? Are you looking down on me?” Lingling Lan’s tone was displeased.

In truth, she just didn’t want the durian flavor herself.
But admitting that outright would look bad, so she used this excuse.

“I wouldn’t dare look down on you. I’m grateful, really. Give it here.”

“Hehe~ Who said I’d give you the spoon? Open up—this time, I’m feeding you!”

“You’re not trying to get revenge, are you?”

“Of course not. I’m not as bad as you. Close your eyes, no peeking!”

“Fine.”

Xinghui obediently shut her eyes and opened her mouth.
But what greeted her wasn’t just one flavor—it was a chaotic blend, like someone tossed vanilla, strawberry, blueberry, mango, and durian all into a blender and froze the result.

“That’s for bullying me. Now you know how strong I am~”