Chapter 89: Derek, Who Loves Crouching in Pits

Nolan heard the familiar voice and quickly pulled his head out of the dirt, sitting down on the ground.

He probably didn’t want Vivian to see his disheveled state, so he wiped his face sloppily with his hands.

But his efforts backfired—instead, he smeared his face into a complete mess.

“What kind of performance art is this, my dear husband?”

Vivian looked at Nolan’s smudged face, unable to hold back a chuckle behind her hand.

He was actually quite cute, like a novice actor on stage in a play.

“Absolutely not. I was just trying to give you a surprise…”

Nolan straightened his face and spoke to Vivian with feigned seriousness.

“Really? It’s not like you got lonely in the warehouse and came looking for me, right?” Vivian teased with a smile.

“How could that be? I have Cabbage to keep me company.”

“Really not?” Vivian kept staring at him.

“Really not!” Nolan answered without a second thought, decisively.

Vivian clasped her hands behind her back, her eyes curving with amusement, and silently stared into Nolan’s eyes.

After a moment.

Nolan’s cheeks flushed slightly, and he couldn’t help but turn his head away from Vivian’s gaze, muttering softly.

“Fine, actually I…”

Before he finished speaking, his nose caught a cool, faint, elegant scent.

Then, a cold yet soft touch landed on his face—slightly plush.

“Mm, I know. How about I give you a hug as a reward?”

Without waiting for Nolan to finish, Vivian spread her arms and pulled his face into her embrace.

Since he was sitting on the ground, he was exactly at her height.

It gave Nolan a chance to enjoy a faceful of softness, even though Vivian was flat as a board…

Nolan closed his eyes, tightened his arms, pressed his palms against Vivian’s back, and wrapped his arms firmly around her slender waist.

He sank entirely into Vivian’s cold yet reassuring embrace.

It felt like a dream—like my mother turned into a living corpse and crawled out of her grave to hug me…

“Are they always like this?”

Feilin lightly elbowed Derek and asked in a low voice.

“Yeah, completely ignoring everyone around them, making out anytime and anywhere.”

“Wow, how shameless!” Feilin cursed, then muttered quietly, “Have they been apart for even half a day? They act like it’s a life-and-death separation. So dramatic.”

Derek stroked his white beard and said with a smile, “You wouldn’t understand. As the saying goes, ‘One day apart feels like three years.'”

“By that calculation, they haven’t seen each other for a year and a half. Truly a life full of twists and turns, fate’s cruel joke.”

“What the hell are you talking about!?” Feilin’s eyes widened as she stared at Derek, demanding loudly. “Is that even a saying from around here!? I’ve traveled half the world and lived for centuries without ever hearing that!”

“Limited experience, old lady,” Derek shook his head. “I learned that from an ancient text. Looks like your centuries of life have been wasted on squid and carrots—you’re far beneath me.”

He mercilessly mocked Feilin.

Feilin’s face flushed red instantly, reaching a boiling point.

“You show off just because you’ve read one more book than me!”

“Take this!!”

She clenched her left fist and punched Derek.

Derek didn’t dodge or raise a shield; he took the punch solidly.

“Heh, doesn’t hurt~” He muttered in an irritating tone.

“I’ll kill you!!”

Feilin exploded, her fur standing on end, tail raised high like an angry cat.

“Oh, hissing? So scary~” Derek pretended to be frightened, hugging his chest and speaking in a high-pitched voice.

“Moo~”

“Whoa, damn!!”

Before Feilin could strike, the horned bull, which had been ready, charged and sent Derek flying.

Derek tumbled through the air several times, then with a slap, plunged headfirst into the dirt, leaving only his butt sticking out.

“Good job, Cabbage!”

Feilin nearly jumped with excitement, cheering for the horned bull from behind.

“These reckless priests need a good beating, or they’ll forget who they are.”

She cursed as she walked toward Derek.

Smack, smack, smack.

Feilin added a few kicks to Derek’s exposed butt, but it still wasn’t enough.

She bent down, picked up a thick branch, and ruthlessly lashed Derek again and again.

“Stop! Stop! I surrender!”

Derek somehow pulled out a white flag, slowly raising it from the pit, even though his head was still buried in the dirt.

“Surrender or not, we’re still hitting! Abusing prisoners is our guild’s favorite daily activity!”

“Your Scavenger Guild is terrifying…” Derek’s voice came intermittently from the bottom of the pit.

Feilin wasn’t about to let this arrogant priest off just because he begged.

Instead, she swung the branch even harder.

A series of smack sounds echoed, like she was spinning a top.

“Are they always like this?”

Vivian and Nolan had recovered from the joy of their reunion.

Nolan looked up at Derek’s situation and asked Vivian.

“I don’t know. I’m not even sure when they met.” Vivian rolled her eyes at Nolan.

“But their activity looks really fun.” She pressed a finger to her lips and whispered.

A scorching desire slowly seeped from the bottom of her heart, causing her heart to burn faintly.

A hazy mist gathered in her eyes; she felt restless.

“How about we play something like that? You whip me?”

“I’m really good at screaming~” Vivian blinked playfully and looked at Nolan with anticipation.

“Are you a pervert?”

Nolan turned his head sharply, staring incredulously at Vivian’s slightly reddening face.

What on earth is Vivian thinking! Scandalous!!

“Tch~ No fun.”

The enthusiasm faded instantly.

Vivian shot Nolan a bored glance, her eyes full of disappointment.

“Hey, you two, stop fooling around. It’s time to discuss serious matters.”

She turned and called out to Feilin and Derek not far away.

“Hmph, I’ll let you off today.”

“Next time, stay out of my sight, or I’ll beat you every time I see you.”

Feilin let out a cold snort, picked up a branch as thick as her forearm, and gave Derek one final lash.

Crack—the branch broke in half.

Then, with a pop, she pulled Derek out of the dirt.

“Thank you, kind old lady.”

After getting out, Derek patted the dirt off his clothes and then turned to Feilin with sincere gratitude.

Smack!

Then Derek was shoved back into the pit by Feilin.

“Alright, Big Tail Rat, let our Pastor Derek off. He just wanted to play with you—he’s still a child.”

Vivian walked up to Feilin and stroked her big ears.

“He started with me first.”

Feilin pointed at Derek in the pit, sounding aggrieved.

“I apologize on his behalf.” Vivian said.

Then she grabbed Derek by the thighs and pulled him out of the pit.

“Thank you, aged vampire.” Derek said flatly.

Smack!

Derek plunged into the pit again.

This time, only his feet were left sticking out.

“Uh… maybe we should let Pastor Derek out.”

Feilin saw Derek being forcefully shoved into the pit by Vivian and felt a little reluctant.

Maybe I went too hard…

“This kind of unprofessional priest is better off staying in the pit.”

Vivian walked away without looking back, not wanting to deal with the two of them anymore.