Chapter 239, Like Love (4700 words)
For girls, having messed hair is a capital offense punishable by death.

Only Uesugi Eri would shake her head without any emotion and continue to look at him with a look of confusion.

Zhuo took a deep breath, put away those random thoughts in his mind, and said.

"What if the whole world wants to kill me?"

Uesugi Eri reacted calmly, blinked once and went to write.

【Then just kill them all. 】

Of course, there was no pause or hesitation.

Eri is different from Zero. Although she rarely shows expression, it is only rarely. She still has it occasionally, like now... After she said that as a matter of course, a look of sadness flashed across her face.

It's not that she wasn't sad about the murder, it's just that she felt very sad.

"..."

The clouds in the sky gathered into a messy shape, half of them were inky black and half of them were red.

long silence.

"Hey, Uesugi Eriri." Utsunomiya Shuo retracted his gaze from the distance and turned to look at her with a blank expression: "What did Kazama Ruri say to you that made you do this for me."

In any case, Zhuo and Uesugi Eri had only known each other for two days.

Even if Ruri Kazama was behind this, and she herself was a simple-minded person who didn't have much guard... Even so, Zhuo didn't think he was familiar with her to such an extent that he could make Uesugi Eriya do something she didn't like, that is, killing people, for him.

There must be something that Zhuo didn't know, including what the phrase "Santa Claus brother" meant, which he still didn't understand.

"..."

Uesugi Eri's raised face slowly lowered, her hair falling down in front of her forehead, hiding her expression. Her deep red eyes lowered, as if staring at his feet, avoiding his gaze.

"……never mind."

Zhuo stared at the dividing line of her red hair and said calmly, "Killing them is fine..." Zhuo turned around and continued to walk towards home. "Although dealing with the person who raised the question is also a solution, I'm not sure now and it may hurt ordinary people."

Even though he couldn't see it, Zhuo could feel that the girl behind him had raised her head again, and her gaze was very clear and direct.

Zhuo's footsteps did not stop.

Private cars kept starting on the left side, first slowly then faster, turning into the main road and then speeding up again.

There were students from central universities on the bus, some of whom were leaning against the windows to kill time by looking backwards at the scenery on both sides.

"Can you help me scare them?"

Zhuo suddenly stopped and turned to look at Uesugi Eriya.

Uesugi Eri was indeed looking at him. After hearing Zhuo talking to her again, the sadness in her eyes gradually disappeared. She hurriedly took out a pen and paper.

[Scary?]

"Scary." Zhuo's eyes quickly swept across her face and fell on the paper again. He said, "Just point at them with your pen."

The girl picked up the pen in her hand and looked at it, then looked at him blankly.

"That's all." Zhuo answered prophetically.

……

"…That's how it is. Although I had expected this day to come, it was still unexpected that it would come so soon."

After returning home and getting rid of his tiredness, Zhuo didn't even stand for a second and immediately "fell" on the sofa, and also told Fengjian Liuli about what happened today.

"Hmm~? Are you being followed?"

in the apartment.

The sound of stewing meat gurgling could be heard from the kitchen. The iron lid of the curry pot was lifted up by the steam rising from inside, and under the action of gravity, it hit the wall of the pot, making a crisp sound.

The sound sounds delicious.

"It should be the Eight Snake Clans, of course, we can't rule out the Fierce Ghosts... At least they are people who know the identity of the little mute, and they ran away in fear when they saw her raise her hand."

Utsunomiya Shuo was lying on the sofa playing with his mobile phone, sliding his index finger up and down on the iPhone touch screen.

There was a red head lying behind the sofa, sometimes standing up and popping up above the head, sometimes lying on the sofa back and looking over the shoulder. It rose and fell, and the height fluctuated with the finger on the touch screen.

This made Zhuo feel like he could control her with his cell phone.

"So what should we do now..." Feng Jian Liuli showed half of his body from the kitchen. He had the pink apron that Zhuo had only used once wrapped around his waist, and he held a spatula in his hand. There was no sense of disobedience at all. "...Do you want me to go with you and kill those people?"

"Ha." Zhuo sighed without tone, "Should I say they are indeed brother and sister? They have the same ideas."

"Haha," Feng Jian Liuli laughed softly, "Zhuo Jun, please don't confuse me with my brother. She is my brother's sister, and I am my brother's younger brother. We are not brother and sister."

"……Yeah."

"That's it." Fengjian Liuli turned around and disappeared behind the door. "The meal will be ready soon, please look forward to it."

"Ah, looking forward to it." There was no tone in the reply.

Zhuo was very grateful to Fengjian Liuli for cooking for him, and it was obvious that he had specially studied for this for a period of time.

The beef soup is very rich, and it is cooked just right after adding potatoes and curry powder. It is thick and goes well with rice, and can even be said to be a magical dish for bibimbap.

The cooking time is also well controlled, the potatoes are fragrant and soft, and the beef is so tender that you can chew it with your tongue.

All in all it was great.

But... maybe time was too tight, so Feng Jianli only learned this one dish. Eating the same dish for two consecutive days, and the taste was exactly the same, it was as if it was cooked in the same pot, there would always be some taste fatigue.

Look, even Uesugi Eri has a wooden face and doesn't show any expectations at all.

Mobile phones are full of gossip, and the mobile app market is not yet mature. However, with the advent of Apple’s smartphones, many people have realized that a new era is about to begin, and capitalists have begun to shift their focus to app development.

But that is in the future.

Currently, mobile phone news can only be browsed on Google.

"Neon chastity idol **** divorces, is love really worth believing in..."

A very eye-catching title - it is quite interesting that Japan has selected many chaste actresses, but it seems that these stars all have problems in their marriages.

Zhuo was preparing to row over.

The familiar white notebook came from the left, parallel to the iPhone in his hand.

【What is love?】

Zhuo squinted his eyes, read the sentence, and continued looking at his phone.

Without looking away: "This word is too corny."

[What is marriage?] I put the notebook away, and after a while I put it back in the same place. It would allow him to notice it, but it wouldn't affect him from playing with his phone.

Zhuo glanced at it sideways again, thought about it, and took the notebook in his hand.

He stood up from the sofa, turned back to face her, spread out Eri's hand, and returned the notebook to its owner with a "click".

"Don't always ask these sensitive questions. I would be shy too," he said expressionlessly.

Uesugi Eri looked at the notebook in her hand, slowly took it back and held it in her arms, and also looked up at him.

Same expressionless face.

Come to think of it, Zhuo knows a lot of people like this who have no expression, including himself, Sakura Yabuki, Zero, and Eri Uesugi.

He is simply too lazy to make facial expressions, and his emotions are usually indifferent and he doesn't like to express himself, so this is the case.

Uesugi Eri's expressionless face is different from Zero's.

Zero did it on purpose - meaning he had a cold face.

But Eri is dull, she is like a tree, her leaves sway when the wind blows, and she is as quiet as a stone when there is no wind.

During these few seconds, Uesugi Erii didn't say anything and had no expression, she just looked into his eyes seriously.

【I caused trouble for Brother Christmas. 】

When Zhuo wanted to turn around, Uesugi Eriya wrote to him: [I am too willful and I had to come here.]

【I am very happy to see that Santa Claus really exists. 】

Utsunomiya Shuo watched her continue writing without making any sense of the words. Every time she raised the notebook, she looked nervous and stared into his eyes, as if she was afraid that he would be angry.

[I have been very happy these days, thank you...]

Uesugi Eriya was still lying on the back of the sofa, writing furiously. She was writing very seriously, and it always gave people the feeling that she was leaving a last will - was it his illusion? Zhuo didn't like this.

Zhuo sighed in his heart and reached out to hold her pen.

Uesugi Eri raised her head and met his eyes.

Uesugi Eri seemed to be frightened by his actions. This unprecedented situation made her very panicked, and her dull yet beautiful eyes trembled uneasily.

During these two days, Zhuo had been very patient and kind to her. No matter what she asked, he would patiently explain it to her bit by bit. His tone was always gentle, without any impatience.

But now she was interrupted while writing, which had never happened before.

She felt that she must have said or done something wrong, but before she could figure it out, she lowered her head to grab the hem of her skirt.

She bought this nightgown with Utsunomiya Shuo at Daimaru Department Store. It was a black nightgown that was loose and mature. This was Shuo's suggestion. Uesugi Eriya took a white and a black one for him to choose. Shuo said that the black one was better because it would make her look mature, and mature people are not easily bullied.

She hugged the blue rectangular pillow and lowered her eyes, like a cat that had done something wrong.

Zhuo has always known that Uesugi Eri is not really ignorant, but the previous conversation with Kazama Ruri obviously overlooked this point, and then let her imagine it - although what she thought was not wrong, Zhuo did not want to put all the blame on Uesugi Eri.

He knows his own situation. Even if it doesn't happen this time, there will be a next time, and the next time... There's nothing we can do about it.

He hasn't found a way to solve this problem yet...unless he dies, or they die.

But here's the problem.

He has cheats and knows the script... The problem is that his cheats are limited and he only knows a little about the script.

Unless he risked his life, he would not be able to defeat those bosses head-on; but if he risked his life and luckily killed a boss, he would not gain anything and would only leave his parents and friends sad for him.

He knew the general direction of the future, but he didn't know where Herzog was hiding, nor did he know how to deal with Odin, Lu Mingze, and Kungunir...

My horizons have been broadened and I have gained some abilities.

This ability was enough for him to walk to the door of the sacred temple, but it was not enough for him to push open the tightly closed door. He tried his best but failed. He could only sit on the floor in front of the door exhausted and hear the sounds of drinking and playing chess from inside the house through the crack of the door...

That's why it's like this, neither advancing nor retreating is possible.

I can only wait for the day when I reach my limit, like a wild dog that is repeatedly prodded with stones.

"...I just didn't explain love to you. It's not that serious. It's really not that serious."

Uesugi Eri's situation is very similar to his. She is the strongest hybrid and very capable. She can be said to be invincible among humans - but this ability can neither allow her to break free from the shackles, nor help her kill the Dragon King.

Because of this bloodline, he was targeted as a sacrifice.

Insufficient than above, more than below.

The end result is that you can't go up or down, and you're stuck in the middle, with nothing but impotent rage.

"Okay, I lied to you. I'm not shy, okay?" Zhuo continued.

No matter how much he was thinking, at least his expression was always calm.

A calm group.

Zhuo has no other advantages except that he is generous.

This open-minded optimism also infected Uesugi Eryi. She slowly raised her head and carefully glanced at Zhuo's face. Seeing that his face was as gentle as always and there was no anger or other bad emotions on it, she breathed a sigh of relief.

…He reached out and touched Eri’s head. The little face that was looking at him seriously in the sunset was shrouded in a warm halo.

"How can I put this? Okay, I was wrong. It's a bit embarrassing to say it out loud... ahem..." Zhuo cleared his throat to calm down, looked at Uesugi Eri, and asked, "Remember the boy who followed you on the road?"

Uesugi Eri nodded in agreement and immediately wrote "Remember." for him to see.

"Don't be so nervous. Just like before, you can do whatever you want. This is how friends should be..."

【friend? 】

"One by one, one by one..." Zhuo raised his eyes to recall what he was talking about before, and continued, "That boy just likes you. Liking is different from loving. When a person has desire for you, that is liking; when a person resists the desire for you, that is love."

【desire?】

Uesugi Eriya held up the notebook and looked at him blankly.

Zhuo just glanced at it and pretended not to see it: "Liking is indulgence, and love is restraint. We are together because we like each other, and we are not together because we love each other. We like each other only when we are together, and we don't like each other only when we are together. There are many possibilities here, and I can't explain it clearly."

What is being together?

Without saying a word, Uesugi Eriya had her own questions. Although they were troublesome, it was obvious that she was really listening carefully.

There are not many people in this world who will sincerely warn others, but there are also not many people who will listen to others seriously.

Zhuo usually doesn’t talk much and is too lazy to talk.

But he happened to meet Uesugi Erie, and he could no longer be a quiet handsome man.

"This is what you will have to learn in the future." In fact, he was suffering from advanced laziness.

And Uesugi Eriya was like, no, she was just a simple little girl, with her thoughts written all over her face, and she immediately showed her frustration. But she didn't make a fuss, and lowered her head obediently.

But this makes you look pathetic.

Zhuo sighed helplessly in his heart, then spread out the palm that was on top of the girl's head and pressed it on the back of her head.

Hard.

Their foreheads touched.

"Learn as much as possible, try your best, travel as much as possible, eat as much good food as possible, and life will be better. It's that simple."

After saying that, Zhuo rubbed her chubby face with great force.

Get away.

"This is what my mother told me... Don't ask [Mom]. Today's question-and-answer session ends here. Go wash your hands and get ready to eat."

Zhuo didn't give her time to continue writing and spoke continuously like a machine gun.

Uesugi Eriya looked at her notebook again, read the words she had written one by one, then nodded and went to the kitchen.

And I don't know when, Fengjian Liuli had left the kitchen... It's not really leaving. He leaned on the door frame of the kitchen, looking at this side with a smile on his face. He didn't interrupt from beginning to end, so Zhuo didn't notice him.

When Uesugi Eri passed by him, he left the door frame and stood up to make way, then walked into the living room and leaned against the nearest wall.

"what."

Zhuo rolled his eyes in annoyance. His smile made Zhuo very unhappy.

Because it's shameful.

It is too arrogant for a guy who has never been able to truly love someone in his two lifetimes to give a long speech teaching others the difference between love and liking.

It is even more shameful when the whole process is witnessed by others.

"No," Feng Jianli smiled and shook her head, "I just think... bringing her to you is indeed the right choice."

"Are you trying to bury me? Do you want to fight?"

Because he was so embarrassed, Zhuo didn't care about the huge difference in fighting power between the two of them, and blurted out the words "challenge to fight".

"I'm saying that I can't do what Zhuojun does. I don't mean to laugh at you... On the contrary, I admire you very much. Zhuojun is really an incredible person."

"You just want to fight... Come on, I'm going to fight you, let's draw a line."

"It's time to eat. Zhuo-jun, go wash your hands."

　Thanks to brother 20220703153922263 for the 100-point reward.

　　Thanks to brother Shanji Ding'er for the reward of 1500 points.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)