Ethan Chu and General Nee spent half the day wandering around Endless Indulgence Kingdom, finally confirming this place was the legendary, mysterious realm everyone talked about. What really blew Ethan’s mind, though, was how the locals didn’t seem to care at all about outsiders—no hostility, no suspicion, no endless questions. It was almost... unsettling.
"Emper—cough, cough, Young Master Chu," General Nee quickly corrected himself, "Young Master Chu, it’s one thing for people here to dress and act weird, but isn’t it even stranger that they’re totally unbothered by strangers like us? Shouldn’t they be more cautious?" He kept glancing around, hand glued to his sword hilt, clearly still on edge.
"Weird? After you’ve seen enough weird stuff, it just stops being weird. Maybe it’s just normal for this place," Ethan replied, strolling along.
"Young Master, where are we heading now? Should we look for Young Master Hua?" General Nee’s eyes darted everywhere—curious, but still totally on guard.
"It’s getting dark. Let’s find an inn and rest up first, then figure out our next move." The street was still lit up by all sorts of strange lamps, so the two of them just kept walking, not even noticing how late it was getting.
"Alright! Leave it to Little Nee—I’ll find us the best inn!" General Nee piped up, way too excited.
"Nope. Let’s just pick a small, out-of-the-way inn. First time here—I don’t want us making a splash at some big, fancy place. If we stay somewhere remote, we can gather info without anyone noticing."
"Got it, Little Nee’s on the case! I’ll go ask around." With that, General Nee hustled over to a vendor, scoping out the crowd before deciding the old lady looked the friendliest.
"Hey there, young man, want to buy some chili peppers?" The old lady pointed at her basket of fiery red chilies.
"Uh... sure, I’ll take the rest." General Nee knew you had to pay for info, so he bought the last of the chilies and used the chance to ask, "Which inn around here is the cheapest and most ordinary?"
"Oh, kid, you asked the right person! Illusion City only has one truly cheap inn—the Fated Inn. It’s a bit out of the way, tucked down a little alley, but the staff are super friendly and the price is unbeatable. Just don’t expect it to be in the bustling part of town!" The old lady grinned, looking pleased with herself.
"Excuse me, which direction is it?" General Nee quickly asked, leaning in.
The old lady waved her hand, enthusiastically describing the directions as if sketching a winding path in the air.
"Young Master, I found out! This place is called Illusion City, and the cheapest inn is the Fated Inn. It’s way off in a small alley—the granny showed me the way, but it’s kinda far. Should we go, Young Master?" General Nee reported, eyes wide and eager for approval.
"What’s that in your hand?" Ethan raised his brow, eyeing the half-basket of chili peppers.
"Young Master... you gotta pay for info, you know! We don’t know anyone here—what if we get tricked? So I bought the chili peppers, just to be safe. This way, nothing can go wrong!" Nee explained, earnest and a bit silly.
"Not bad! Didn’t think you had it in you to be clever," Ethan teased, a smirk tugging at his lips.
"Hehe, thanks for the praise, Young Master!" Nee scratched his head, bashful and a little goofy.
"That basket of chilies is your reward—you get to eat them all," Ethan said, striding off without another word.
Nee froze, staring in horror at the half-basket of chilies. He gulped, then dashed after Ethan, wailing, "Young Master, no! I’m scared of spicy food!"
*** Scene Break ***
Fated Inn
"Wind, I really am her fifth husband—seriously! I’m the real, genuine, one and only fifth husband!" Butterfly Rogue whined. How could Wind be even more stubborn than an iceberg? He’d been at it for three hours and Wind hadn’t cracked—totally stone-faced, not giving up a single clue. Butterfly Rogue was losing his mind.
"Mm." Wind nodded, calmly scooping up more food, eating at his own slow pace. He hadn’t talked much with Butterfly Rogue before, but he knew the guy liked their Mistress. Still, Ivy’s letter had been clear: only mention Adrian Night, Lucian Vane, and Liam Willow. The rest was strictly off-limits, so Wind kept his mouth shut.
"Hey, don’t be like that! We’re family now, right? You’re so loyal to Xin’er—you must’ve known her since you were kids. I didn’t, but I’m totally devoted to her! Believe me, I’ve searched everywhere and haven’t seen Adrian, Lucian, Liam, or Xin’er. I’m worried sick!" Butterfly Rogue blurted, desperate to show how much he cared.
"I really don’t know. As for Adrian, Lucian, and Liam, I’ve seen them—they’re perfectly safe." Wind offered, tossing out a tiny bit of info but keeping most things close to the vest.
"You’ve seen them? Are they okay? Are they together?" Butterfly Rogue asked, trying not to sound too jealous. Sure, those three were official husbands, and he was the latecomer, but he couldn’t help worrying about them too.
"They’re not together, but they’re all safe, just like Liam Willow. I keep telling you, everyone’s fine." Wind repeated, not interested in chatting further.
Butterfly Rogue huffed, "Seriously? I’ve been pouring my heart out and you just sit there like a rock! I’m Xin’er’s husband, you’re her loyal guard—we both care about her! I’m worried sick, okay? Can you please just give me a hint about where she is? I’m scared she’s out there all alone!" His voice rose, drawing glances from the few other patrons.
Wind frowned. "Keep your voice down."
"I..."
"Young Master, look—isn’t that Butterfly Rogue over there?" As soon as they stepped inside, Nee’s sharp ears picked up that familiar voice. He pointed straight at Butterfly Rogue’s table.
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Both men turned at once, eyes lighting up with shock and joy. Ethan rushed over to Butterfly Rogue like a long-lost brother.
"Are you two staying the night?" The waiter hurried over to General Nee, all polite smiles.
"Yep, two rooms please." General Nee replied briskly, heading off with the waiter to get things sorted.
Butterfly Rogue shot up, staring at Ethan in disbelief. "Old Six, what are you doing here? How’d you even know about this place? Weren’t you supposed to be ruling Chu?"
"Why am I here? I came looking for you!" Ethan said, bubbling with excitement. Finally, the team was back together! He’d found his family again!
Seeing more people arriving, Wind gave a little yawn. "Since you’ve got company, I won’t bother you anymore. Been busy all day—time to get some rest." With that, he headed upstairs.
"Hey..."
"Butterfly Rogue, how’d you end up here? And how do you even know about this place? And that letter you sent me—why didn’t you explain everything?" Ethan grabbed Butterfly Rogue, firing off questions rapid-fire. There were way too many mysteries left unsolved.
Seeing this, Butterfly Rogue had to give up grilling Wind and turned to Ethan instead. "How did you find this place?" He’d followed Wind, but how did Ethan manage to get here too? Was this secret kingdom really that easy to stumble into?
"Me? I followed you here, obviously!" Ethan sat down, poured himself some tea, and took a sip.
"Huh? You followed me? How’d I not notice?" Butterfly Rogue sat down too, totally baffled. Sure, his martial arts were nothing special, but how could he get tailed without even realizing?
Ethan explained how he’d been so worried about everyone, especially after getting Butterfly Rogue’s letter. Then General Nee had accidentally spotted him entering the stone forest, so Ethan followed the clues and ended up here, hoping to get to the bottom of things.
Butterfly Rogue then recapped everything that had happened lately, including his suspicions that Wind must know more than he was letting on.
After a while—
"How could things end up like this?" Ethan’s hand clenched his teacup tight, his worry only growing deeper.
"Don’t worry. We all trust that Xin’er will be fine. There’s no way someone as important as Wind would show up in Endless Indulgence Kingdom for no reason—he must be here for her. Oh, and he said Adrian, Lucian, and Liam are all safe too." Butterfly Rogue reassured Ethan, repeating Wind’s earlier news.
"He’s got a mouth like a steel trap. What are we supposed to do?" Ethan grumbled.
"Wind’s martial arts are top-notch, but I bet his lightness skill isn’t unbeatable. I’ve been grilling him all day, so he’s bound to be on guard tonight. I’ll tail him after dark and see what he’s up to!" Butterfly Rogue declared, determined to get answers.
Ethan nodded. "Sounds good. I’ll stick with you."
"No need. Your qinggong isn’t as good as mine—if you follow too close, he’ll spot you for sure. Just hang back and wait till we leave; I’ll scatter flower petals along the way as markers. You follow the trail, okay?" Butterfly Rogue grinned. Now that Old Six was here, he was sure the two of them could handle Wind together.
"Alright!" Ethan agreed, though his heart was still full of worry. Did Wind really not know where Xin’er was? If not, where could they even start looking? Butterfly Rogue’s story about her cliff fall made Ethan’s heart clench with dread—just imagining what she’d gone through was almost too much to bear.
*** Scene Break ***
PS: Thanks to everyone for your gifts and support! Extra updates coming soon—today’s a bit busy, so I’ll be heading home. See you next time!