Watching the livestream, everyone stared at each other in silence.
"…Awesome."
After a long pause, Valerius finally spoke.
The current Kujou Sara was unbelievably fearless.
She was saying absolutely anything she wanted, completely ignoring Raiden Ei's dignity.
"I'm rather curious."
"What kind of punishment will the Shogun of Inazuma hand down?"
Phantylia's eyes sparkled with anticipation.
She really wanted to know how Raiden Ei would deal with Kujou Sara if she kept this up.
"Heh."
"She's not that unreasonable."
Valerius rolled his eyes at her.
In his opinion, Ei might be a little absent-minded, but she certainly wasn't someone who acted without reason.
Everyone knew Sara was only saying those things because of the punishment.
There was no way Ei would actually punish her for it.
The real problem…
Would be Sara overcoming the embarrassment afterward.
Knock, knock, knock.
A knock came from the front door.
Phantylia got up to answer it.
The moment she opened the door, her pupils shrank.
What was she seeing?
Bronya had arrived…
Along with Yukong and Tingyun.
"My, my."
"To have the Lord Ravager herself answer the door…"
"This little fox is truly honored."
Seeing Phantylia, Tingyun immediately bowed politely, though her voice carried a teasing tone.
"…Please come in."
Phantylia felt a little awkward.
After all…
She had put Tingyun through quite a lot before.
Meanwhile, inside the house…
The moment Valerius saw the three women walk in carrying several large bags, he immediately stood up.
"Oh my!"
"You really didn't have to bring gifts."
"This is far too thoughtful!"
Even though he said that…
His hands moved much faster than his mouth as he grabbed the bags from Tingyun.
"…"
"…"
Bronya covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.
Shameless.
Did he really think those were gifts for him?
Those were Tingyun's belongings.
Seeing Valerius's eyes fixed on the luggage with obvious curiosity, Tingyun quickly explained,
"Mr. Valerius…"
"Those are my personal belongings."
"…Huh?"
Valerius froze.
So…
They weren't gifts?
…This was embarrassing.
"Heh."
Jingliu turned her head away.
Even someone with as little emotional expression as she had almost burst into laughter at Valerius's awkward expression.
Fortunately, Yukong stepped forward and handed him another package.
"These are some specialties from the Xianzhou."
"Please accept them, Mr. Valerius."
"…Thank you."
After accepting the gifts, Valerius finally led everyone into the living room.
"So…"
"Your negotiations are finished?"
"We've reached a preliminary agreement."
Yukong nodded.
If you hadn't kept launching games…
We would've finished much sooner.
"That's good."
"Really good."
"Belobog's scenery is wonderful."
"You should stay a few more days."
"The snowy landscape won't last much longer."
Now that Belobog's eternal ice had begun melting…
Valerius wanted to help Bronya promote the city's tourism a little.
"It certainly is beautiful."
"But unfortunately…"
"I still need to find a place to settle down."
Tingyun lightly tapped a finger against her lips, looking troubled.
"A place to settle down?"
"Aren't you already living on the Xianzhou?"
Why would she suddenly need a new place?
"…Sigh."
At the mention of it, Tingyun let out a long sigh.
"Thanks to Her Excellency's care…"
"I disappeared for quite some time."
"Lady Yukong believed I was no longer among the living…"
"So she packed up all my belongings and shipped them back to Qingqiu."
"…Huh?"
Valerius glanced at Yukong, who looked rather embarrassed.
Something didn't seem right.
Hadn't everyone already known Tingyun was being treated by Ruan Mei?
Why pack up her belongings anyway?
Just how convinced had Yukong been that she wasn't coming back?
"So…"
"Have you found somewhere to live?"
"Mhm."
Tingyun nodded before smiling.
"Right next door to you, Mr. Valerius."
"From now on…"
"We'll be neighbors."
"…What?"
Valerius was genuinely surprised.
He and Tingyun as neighbors?
Seeing the expression on his face, Yukong coughed awkwardly.
"Ahem."
"With trade now established…"
"Tingyun will be our liaison between the two sides."
That made everything clear.
She was effectively the Xianzhou's ambassador to Belobog.
Only Phantylia…
Upon hearing that Tingyun would be staying here permanently…
Quietly frowned.
She had a bad feeling.
This fox…
Was definitely here because of her.
After chatting for a while…
Valerius finally understood the arrangement.
Tingyun would remain in Belobog.
Yukong would return to the Xianzhou.
Any future negotiations between the two worlds…
Would be handled by Tingyun.
"Then…"
"We'll be neighbors from now on."
"Please take care of me."
Valerius stood and extended his hand.
"You're too kind."
"I should be the one asking for your guidance, Mr. Valerius."
Three days later…
"Mr. Valerius really does have quite the sense of humor."
"Hehehe…"
"Oh, you're flattering me."
Watching the two chatting happily in the living room…
Phantylia wore a thoroughly miserable expression.
Ever since Tingyun had arrived…
Valerius barely paid attention to her anymore.
Worse still…
That fox deliberately took every opportunity to remind Valerius about everything Phantylia had done to her in the past.
She silently cried inside.
Bronya…
Do something…
Your Valerius is practically turning into a fox already!
"Ahem…"
"Lord Valerius."
"There are lots of people asking in the livestream…"
"When are you starting the next game?"
Left with no other choice…
Phantylia forcibly steered the conversation toward the game.
As long as Valerius started another event…
He wouldn't have time to sit here listening to the fox's endless chatter.
"It really is about time."
Valerius nodded before turning toward Tingyun.
"Miss Tingyun."
"I'm afraid I'll have to excuse myself."
"Of course."
"Go ahead, Mr. Valerius."
Tingyun pouted slightly.
Phantylia…
Why interrupt now?
Can't you see I finally got Valerius laughing?
Forget starting a game.
The game should begin after I've won Valerius over.
"Heh."
Watching Valerius leave…
Phantylia shot the fox a smug glance.
Trying to compete with me?
She ignored Tingyun's irritated expression and walked over to Jingliu.
"Is it really alright…"
"Letting Lord Valerius spend so much time with that fox every day?"
Her meaning was obvious.
That fox wasn't here with good intentions.
"Valerius isn't stupid."
As the person who had lived with him the longest…
Jingliu wasn't worried in the slightest.
It might seem as though Valerius was getting closer to Tingyun…
But he understood everything perfectly.
Little tricks like these…
Would never truly fool him.
Opening the system interface…
Valerius arrived inside an indoor basketball arena.
"Huh?"
"Another sports stadium?"
The first thing he saw was a basketball court.
Could this be another sports competition?
He looked toward the system panel.
"…Hm?"
"Hide-and-seek?"
It didn't take long before Valerius realized…
This wasn't a sports game at all.
It was…
Hide-and-seek.
After reading through all the rules…
He smiled.
This time…
He could participate personally again.
"System."
"Start the game."
"We're doing this one."
[Understood.]
[Attention. The Game Arena has opened.]
[This game's theme: Hide-and-Seek.]
[Rules are as follows:]
[1. Each faction will send one player to participate. Before the game begins, players may spend points to purchase special abilities from Valerius. Note: The special abilities you purchase will remain unknown even to Valerius.]
[2. All players begin as Hiders. The entire sports complex may be used for hiding, though certain areas require corresponding keys to unlock.]
[3. Numerous special missions are scattered throughout the arena. Completing them grants powerful rewards that greatly increase your chances of survival. Likewise, Valerius, as the Seeker, may also complete missions to obtain special rewards.]
[4. Total game duration: 5 hours. The first hour is the hiding phase, during which Valerius will not appear. The remaining four hours are the seeking phase. When time expires, all players who have not been found are declared winners. The first three players caught will receive punishments.]
[5. The play area is limited to the entire sports complex. Any player who leaves the designated area will be eliminated immediately.]
As the rules were announced…
Countless eyes lit up.
Hide-and-seek?
That could actually be turned into a competition?
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