Chapter 36: Gift

The second floor of the mall.

In front of the arcade.

Ye Lu hesitated at the door, glancing around, but this time there was an extra doll in her bag to keep her company.

‘Right… I bought another one.’

‘Wah… but I couldn’t help it!’

‘So cute, that fluffy texture… and it looks just like the adorable Prince.’

‘Well… she was happy when she bought it, but now she wants to strangle herself.’

‘This damned consumer urge…’

‘Was she always this restless before?’

‘And looking at it again, she never thought she would buy something like this—a doll that only girls would like.’

‘The kind of cute doll you can hug and sleep with.’

‘Instinct… it’s instinct.’

‘After thinking for a long time, she decided to give it to the Prince. That’s a good idea. Rather than hugging it to sleep, she’d rather see his satisfied expression.’

‘Hmm… even though it’s cheap.’

‘But if it shows my feelings…’

“Lost again!”

Suddenly, a voice from inside the arcade shattered her fantasy.

Ye Lu was stunned.

‘This voice… no way?’

Driven by a strong urge to confirm, she walked into the store.

She scanned the surroundings.

The source of the voice seemed to be in the corner… yes.

In the corner, two men sat side by side, monopolizing the arcade machines.

Huh?

Her gaze fixed on the straight back, perfect and flawless.

Under the cap, dark golden hair cascading like a waterfall…

A cap?

His body movements were exaggerated, as if he was having a great time.

Every hit on the buttons made a dull thud.

There was no doubt the machine would fall apart any second.

‘Prince…?’

No.

But… he doesn’t have the Prince’s scent.

Worried, Ye Lu pressed her hand to her chest, hugged the shopping bag, suppressed her pounding heart, and sneaked over.

The clerk selling game tokens called out to her, but she had no time to listen.

Soon, she was standing behind the two.

After hearing the first words and the tone, she confirmed it.

“Hmph…”

Ye Lu smiled.

Behind her, the black tail with a heart-shaped tip wagged happily.

But on the screen, the Prince’s character seemed to have fallen.

On the other side, his friend’s character hadn’t lost a single hit point and was doing a victory taunt.

Angry!

The Prince was troubled and complained, “Mr. Bell, why does my character get knocked into the air every time and can’t move?”

“It’s too strong. How do you do that? Can you teach me?”

Bell scratched the back of his head and smiled faintly.

The vampire’s sharp fangs were exposed in the air.

“Prince, you’re too modest. I’ve never seen such amazing gaming talent as yours.”

“At this rate, I won’t even be able to block one of your moves before long.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

They were getting along better and better.

These two.

Ye Lu’s happy mood inexplicably dimmed.

She hooked her finger on the shopping bag’s string, crossed her arms, and a hint of worry appeared between her brows.

She wanted to see what these two were up to.

‘How come the Prince can be this happy? Bell is amazing. I can’t do that, can I?’

After all, when he’s in the classroom, he never pays any attention to her.

He still wears that cosplay, and the normal Prince rarely appears in front of her alone.

The second and third days after the kiss, he didn’t even come to ask about her situation, show concern, or check if she got pregnant or how her body was doing.

He’s always been that cold.

If you didn’t know, you’d think he didn’t recognize the poor girl he got pregnant and promised to take responsibility for.

Even today’s holiday was arranged with Xiao Ye to go to the streets.

And now she sees him casually playing games.

Ye Lu bit her lower lip, very angry…

She decided not to say a word.

She would stand right here and see when the Prince would notice her.

‘Speaking of which… if he notices, maybe… he’ll panic and call out “Miss Ye Lu!” like before…’

‘Then, to apologize, he’ll take the initiative, hold me in his arms, kiss me, and suck all my saliva dry.’

‘Will he?’

…

She pinched her own palm.

‘Anyway, that’s enough.’

‘Let’s start watching.’

One minute passed.

The Prince lost again.

His expression collapsed.

He rested his arm on the table and cupped his face in disappointment.

Ye Lu just watched him, and without realizing it, she felt his pain and her heart ached for him.

Her fingers curled.

She raised her hand, then lowered it.

Her eyes softened…

‘I really want to hug the poor Prince and comfort him.’

She turned to look at his friend, and her expression changed instantly.

She gritted her teeth in anger.

‘Hmph! Damn Bell! He’s making the man I love like this! And that leisurely way he tilts his head back to drink blood from the bottle—why don’t you go easy on him like you did when you fought me! Bastard!’

“Impressive. You’ve improved again, Prince.”

“It won’t be long before you crush me.”

“I hope so…”

And so, they played for another ten minutes.

Ye Lu waited the whole time with anticipation.

But the two of them never showed any desire to turn around.

She stomped her foot, growing impatient.

Her dress and bag had already been carelessly thrown on the floor.

She was even more angry for the Prince.

In the game, the Prince had almost no chance of winning.

He was completely suppressed.

Bell modestly comforted him with words, but his face was full of proud smiles that exposed his disgusting nature.

‘Damn it!’

“Want to keep going?”

“Continue.”

‘…Stop already…’

Fifteen minutes.

Her legs were about to go numb from standing.

“Impressive! You actually defeated one of my characters.”

“Hmph.”

Twenty minutes.

“Continue…”

Twenty-five minutes.

“Continue!”

Thirty minutes.

In this round, Ye Lu clearly saw that Bell was going easy on him.

Every time he started a move, he purposely failed to maintain his combo.

The Prince won and was happy, but she couldn’t be happy.

Bell let out a breath and stretched.

“I lost. As expected of the Prince.”

“The counterattack is just beginning, Mr. Bell.”

Bell suggested, “Hmm… speaking of which, Prince. Want to try somewhere else?”

“Somewhere else? What better things are there in this city than game machines?”

“Of course.”

“On this point, the Prince might know less.”

“For example… the hunting ground, the claw machines, killing heroes—many, many things.”

He began to introduce them one by one.

“If we go outside, joining the Adventurer’s Guild is also a good choice. Activities… basically go to the forest to hunt the human armies that accidentally step on the teleportation array and intrude.”

“Oh?”

The Prince looked interested.

Bell continued, “There’s a loot mechanic. Not only can you turn it in for a bounty, but you can also use it yourself. For example, the blood I need.”

His slender fingertips traced the edge of the cup, gently swirling it.

When he reached this point, his emotionless pupils constricted sharply, suddenly flashing with bloodlust.

“Actually… sometimes I can’t afford it, and when no one contributes to me, I’ll…”

“But the Prince doesn’t need to worry about that. It can bring you fun, though.”

“There are activities this interesting?”

“Hmm. The Prince might not go out much, so he doesn’t know, but…”

…

…

Without realizing it, they chatted and laughed for another ten minutes.

Ye Lu’s face darkened.

Her chest nearly swelled with anger.

She stepped forward!

Gently… cautiously…

She tugged at the Prince’s sleeve.

Before he turned around, she lowered her head and whispered, “Prince… I didn’t expect to see you here. I… I…”

The Prince slowly turned around.

When he saw the timid her, his hand resting on his waist stopped.

“Miss Ye Lu, what are you doing here?”

Ye Lu: “?”

…

“No.”

The Prince nervously glanced at Bell.

Bell didn’t speak.

After a moment, he patted his forehead.

“I forgot…”

The Prince suddenly apologized.

“I’m sorry, Miss Ye Lu.”

“…I didn’t mean it, Prince.”

“Wh… why are you apologizing?”

Ye Lu’s chest heaved, but she was puzzled…

She thought of something.

She knelt down and, with trembling little hands, rummaged through her bag.

Finally, she pulled out the doll with a crown on its head that she had impulsively bought earlier.

Then, holding it with both hands, her cheeks flushed red, and with full anticipation, she offered it to the Prince.

“Th… that… Prince, this is a gift…” she said softly.

She didn’t dare to look.

After a moment, the doll in her hands was taken away by him.

He received it.

Great!

The Prince raised it in the air and examined it.

But then he handed it back to her.

Disappointment…

“Giving it to me? But this is a girl’s toy. I don’t like it.”

“Huh… why are you crying?”

Ye Lu sniffled.

She shook her head.

Her arms hung limply.

She casually grabbed the returned doll, its fluffy head almost dragging on the ground.

“It’s nothing… wu…”

“So troublesome.”

“Women.”

“?”

!!!

Ye Lu stared at him with teary eyes, almost dumbfounded.

‘He’s not going to comfort me?!’

‘Is this… disdain?’

She buried her head.

‘As expected, he’s still the same Prince… the same emotionally inept Prince. I’m hurt, but I understand…’

“No, no, no!”