After work, start to speedrun the other world-Chapter 95 - 13: The Underground Kingdom
The performance ended.
Xi Mu set down the leaves and smiled at the little mare beside him, "How was it?"
Naturally, the little mare couldn’t respond, but Xi Mu seemed to understand her thoughts through the exchange of glances.
He smiled and said,
"I’m glad you could enjoy it."
The little mare: "..."
Why could this human understand her thoughts when she and this human weren’t even the same species?
Afterward.
The handsome knight smiled gently, offering an explanation: "Your expressions are rich and lively, like a girl who can’t hide her thoughts."
His tone was mild.
"Among the monsters, you must be a special existence."
"..."
The little mare began to wonder if she was really that easy to read or if this human had the ability to read minds.
And his comment about her being like a girl, was he serious?
"Hehehe... Do you have little contact with people?" The handsome knight chuckled, looking at the full moon reflected in the lake, flicking the leaf in his hands, which perfectly splintered the moon’s reflection in the water.
"If you had regular contact with people, you would find that your thoughts are very easy for others to read."
"..."
The little mare began to harbor doubts.
In fact, ever since she was created by the Monster Witch, she’d always avoided contact with anyone. Coupled with her remarkable speed, she’d hardly had any interactions with people.
Even when there were interactions, they were unpleasant, either because they tried to hunt her due to her identity as a monster or wanted to tame her into a mount.
Most of the witless humans who attempted this ended up kicked to death by her hoof; and if she encountered someone she couldn’t beat, she would have escaped long ago.
"A mare like you... is quite easily deceived," Xi Mu observed the little mare’s skeptical expression and shook his head lightly.
The little mare snorted at this.
Over the years, she’d lived well, maintaining high alertness, ready to flee at the slightest sign of danger.
Thus, she’d never been successfully deceived or captured.
"..."
Seeing her reaction, Xi Mu smiled helplessly and soon shifted the topic: "By the way, I don’t think I’ve introduced myself yet, have I?"
A twinge of curiosity flickered in the little mare’s eyes.
Why had this knight come alone to the lakeside in the middle of the night? Was there some untold story?
"Call me Ahtal... or Xi Mu is fine too." Xi Mu introduced himself, then smiled confidently once more.
"If one day you hear my name from the wandering bards, by then I might already be a dragon-slaying hero."
Upon saying this, he sighed.
"But by the time you hear my story from the bards, I will probably be dead."
"..."
The little mare gently swished her tail. In fact, she often used her incredible speed to eavesdrop on the bards’ stories, maintaining just the right distance, and with her extremely sensitive ears, she had overheard many tales.
With a better understanding of heroic stories and epic legends than most humans, if Xi Mu managed to create his own heroic and epic tales, she would certainly be among the first to know.
Xi Mu, seemingly unaware of her thoughts, began to recount his past in a calm, steady tone, reminiscent of a bard telling a story.
Through this man’s narration, the little mare learned what sort of person the knight was. After learning about his legendary rise, she believed that this knight would surely become a hero spoken of by the people.
However, when she heard that Xi Mu had been afflicted with the Sulter’s fire and was living on borrowed time, she felt regret.
The knight could have created so many more heroic deeds.
"I might not necessarily die now," Xi Mu seemed to sense the little mare’s regret and shook his head.
"What if I find a way to suppress the Sulter’s fire?"
"..."
The little mare fell silent and then nodded lightly.
She chose not to believe in the knight’s self-reassurance; in this world, there was no cure for Sulter’s fire.
Those infected to become kindling either fell into madness or were consumed by the fire, draining all life until death.
There was no second outcome.
"Ah~ speaking out makes me feel much better." Xi Mu stretched leisurely and said with a beaming smile:
"You are a very suitable confidant."
Making fun of me because I can’t speak, aren’t you?
The little mare glanced at the knight, speechless. The knight could be so candid with her only because he thought she was incapable of human speech; therefore, he discharged all his pent-up negative emotions to her without reservation.
"Sorry~ sorry for using you as a confidant without permission," Xi Mu laughed heartily, without a hint of remorse.
He gestured with his hand.
"You seem to like stories. I’ll tell you something interesting."
This human must know the Mind Reading Technique.
Thinking this, the little mare nevertheless settled in to listen quietly to the knight’s tales. They were all stories she knew by heart.
But watching the handsome knight’s face and hearing his unhurried, gentle voice, she somehow felt she could listen forever.
Under the moonlight.
The knight in shining silver armor sat on a stone by the lakeside, telling some clichéd stories to a fine horse.
After a while, the knight’s voice grew softer until he leaned against the stone beside the lake and fell asleep, his serene sleeping face too endearing to disturb.
The little mare looked at the knight who leaned against the stone and peacefully drifted to sleep, feeling somewhat incredulous. Did this human not realize that she was a monster, an extremely ferocious and dangerous being?
