Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 181 - 177: Change of Power

Chapter 181: Chapter 177: Change of Power

Without the airboat to ride, everyone had no choice but to walk to Ronisca. Before setting off, Tangmo gave the Headquarters a brief update on the team’s current situation. Faced with the plight of the Advance Team, Wang Xu also felt quite helpless. A mission that was going smoothly was suddenly disrupted by the Zhuyan people who blew up the airboat. Fortunately, no one from the Advance Team was injured, which was some consolation in this misfortune.

However, without the airboat, the Advance Team had to walk to Ronisca. This completely disrupted Wang Xu’s rhythm; he had originally intended to complete the task in about a month and a half. Now, with the delay, it was estimated that it would take one to two months.

The multi-nation military’s advance plan was still being formulated. The Headquarters was pressing for speed, urgently needing detailed intelligence to assess whether or not to send troops.

The pressure was now mounting on the frontline command. The usually unflappable Wang Xu had now become irritable, so much so that he was getting mouth ulcers from swearing at the Zhuyan people every day.

The road along the river was fairly smooth, so the group arrived at the entrance to the Lining River gorge in less than ten days. If they followed the canyon, they would reach the confluence of the Lining and Valan rivers in about a week’s time. From there, taking an airboat from the airport could bring them to the capital of the High-peak people, Helros, which is perched on the mountainside.

It was quite frustrating for everyone that a short-term mission had been extended for so long. Ever since Luo’er returned, Tangmo seemed to have grown up overnight. She started taking on Luo’er’s duties as Captain and taking care of the team members, which was a bit challenging to handle for Luo’er, who had already become accustomed to doing so.

Tangmo wasn’t yet fully accustomed to handling these responsibilities, so she was often clumsy at them. But that didn’t mean Luo’er should have any difficulty adjusting. He is used to taking care of the team members and always has patience, no matter how difficult they are to handle. But now, Tangmo has completely replaced him, which is causing him to question his place for the first time. Whenever he saw Tangmo struggling to take initiative, Luo’er felt a sudden unexplainable heartache.

Ever since the last incident, Baiyue had become possessive, sticking by Luo’er’s side all the time, which made Luo’er feel somewhat at a loss, given he had grown accustomed to her original character.

Before entering the canyon, they decided to set up camp near a lake by the river to take a break. After a simple dinner, Luo’er was about to discuss the next steps of the mission with Cheng Ziang.

Baiyue was still closely following him, but strangely Hu Daoke and Tangmo were nowhere to be found. Just when Luo’er was about to start the discussion with Cheng Ziang, Hu Daoke emerged unexpectedly and called out to him, "Boss!"

"What’s up?" Luo’er looked at him full of doubts, not pausing what he was doing.

"Well, about that..." Utterly out of character, the nearly two-meter-tall Hu Daoke started stuttering. After a while, as if he had made up his mind, he said to Luo’er, "Well, Sister Moumou wants you to go find her. She is waiting for you by the lake."

"Understood," Luo’er nodded, looked at him again, and asked with a puzzled expression, "Why do you seem to be acting strange?"

"No, no such thing. You better hurry, or Sister Moumou will get mad." Hu Daoke waved his hands repeatedly to deny it.

"Got it." Luo’er sighed softly. He had no idea what Tangmo wanted with him. So he stopped the handwork he was doing, lightly dusted off his hands, got up and headed to the lake.

"Um, Yue’er, could you perhaps not follow him this time?" Seeing that Baiyue was also about to follow Luo’er, Hu Daoke stopped her and stutteringly suggested.

Baiyue glanced at Hu Daoke, then at Luo’er, probably already knowing what was happening. So she gritted her teeth and decided to let Luo’er go alone. Cheng Ziang held his chin and looked at the awkward pair, shaking his head and sighing helplessly.

The moon on the Aels Continent was much larger than on Earth, and the gleaming moonlight scattered over the lake, glimmering beautifully. Even at night, visibility was still rather good all around.

Luo’er stepped out of the forest and onto the grass by the lake. A petite figure with her back to him stood by the lake. The soft white moonlight delicately washed over her dark red hair, making her look tranquil and beautiful.

Upon hearing the footsteps behind her, Tangmo turned around. When she saw that it was Luo’er who had come, she froze on the spot, her big eyes looking at him.

"So, I heard from Little Ke that you..."

Before Luo’er could finish, Tangmo suddenly ran towards him, threw her arms around him tightly, then buried her head in his chest. Just as Luo’er was about to react, she started to sob.

"Moumou..." Luo’er gently called her name.

Tangmo clung tightly onto his clothes. Her breathing grew more and more frantic until she finally burst into tears. Luo’er knew she must have been having a hard time these past few days, so he hugged her gently, allowing her to vent freely in his arms.

Tangmo never imagined that losing Luo’er would hurt so much. She had gotten used to Luo’er’s caring attention, Luo’er planning and strategizing for the team, and Luo’er being there for her whenever she needed to vent. As captain, she had never felt any pressure because she never had to carry out the responsibilities of a captain. Therefore, she didn’t understand why Luo’er made those seemingly heartless orders, she didn’t understand why Luo’er compromised for the unity of the team.

When Luo’er disappeared with his fate unknown, she had to assume the responsibilities of the captain. When she had to reunify the team that was on the brink of disbanding, she experienced the pressure Luo’er had once shouldered for the first time, she understood Luo’er’s sacrifices for them for the first time, she understood the despair of not being able to vent emotions as the captain for the first time. For the unity of the entire team, she had to mediate every conflict among the members and compromise when necessary. To minimize casualties, she had to think of the best combat plans and had to execute some orders that she once thought were cruel to make sure the team’s safety.

She had never experienced any of these when Luo’er was still around. She didn’t know how she could be so shameless, sitting in the captain’s position, doing nothing, and letting Luo’er do everything.

As if she wanted to pour out all the pressure that had been building up inside her for some time, Tangmo’s cries grew louder and more hysterical. In them were not only her remorse towards Luo’er but also her longing for him.

After crying for an unknown amount of time, Tangmo felt her throat getting sore. The stress that had accumulated in her body over the past few days had all been poured out onto Luo’er’s clothes through her tears. She lifted her head and found Luo’er looking at her silently and tenderly.

"Why did it take you so long to come back?" Looking at Luo’er, Tangmo asked aggrievedly.

"I’m sorry to have kept you waiting." Luo’er gently stroked her hair, his gaze on her full of tenderness.

Looking into Luo’er’s eyes, Tangmo felt her cheeks suddenly turn red. She lowered her head and snuggled into his chest. After a while, she suddenly made a sound.

"Luo’er."

"Huh? What’s up?"

"I... I don’t want to be captain anymore."

Luo’er was taken aback for a moment and then released a soft smile.

"Then don’t be, it’s been hard on you these days..."

"Luo’er." Tangmo looked up at him and called out.

"Yes."

"I mean... thank you for always looking after us and..." he trailed off, his gaze shifting, revealing a rare moment of embarrassment, "If... if I were to marry you, would you always look after me?"

Luo’er was taken aback at first, though he’d become accustomed to Tangmo’s strange logic after all this time, he was still surprised. A bitter smile crossed his face, unsure whether Tangmo was merely joking or if he was serious.

"You wouldn’t want to?" Tangmo tilted his head, questioning Luo’er.

"I haven’t thought that far ahead yet, so I can’t give you an answer, sorry." Luo’er answered honestly.

"Then I’ll reserve my spot!" Tangmo said with a willful grin.

"You... " Luo’er was at a loss for words. He wasn’t some rare treasure, this sudden reservation unexpectedly left him feeling, strange.

"Just to prevent you from finding someone new in the future!" Tangmo stated firmly.

"When did I ever switch up on anybody." Luo’er felt both amused and exasperated, "If I ever stop liking you, I will tell you."

"So you do like me then." Hearing his words, Tangmo laughed with delight, her eyes curving into appealing crescents.

"Let’s talk about it when we’re no longer part of the Advance Team," Luo’er said, coming down with a wave of sentiment.

"So that means once we’ve both retired, we’ll go back to Earth and get married!" Tangmo stated earnestly.

"Isn’t that a bit premature?" Luo’er rebutted unexpectedly.

"Also," Tangmo continued, ignoring his retort, "I’ll allow you to keep liking Yue’er too!"

Upon hearing this, Luo’er stumbled, almost toppling over. He’d noticed that something was amiss with her for a while, but he hadn’t expected her to seriously contemplate being the main wife.

Luo’er’s feelings for Baiyue were conflicting. He never denied his affection for Baiyue, however he always felt something was missing from their relationship. Furthermore, Tangmo’s advances had become increasingly difficult for him to manage, leading to a sense of guilt about his wavering feelings.

He remembered that Hu Daoke also mentioned this when they chatted. It seemed that everyone in the team was aware of his affection for both girls. But the shocking part was that they were all surprisingly supportive, making it even more difficult for him to accept.

"Why aren’t you saying anything?" seeing Luo’er deep in thought, Tangmo couldn’t help but ask in a cautious manner, worried that her words had upset him.

"Right now, my mind is full of our mission and finding my mother, I don’t have time to think about all this. So, can I have some time to think things through? The pressure of you all forcing me to make a decision like this makes it hard to accept." Luo’er answered honestly.

"Sorry." Tangmo apologized as she lowered her head.

"It’s okay, thank you for liking me!" Luo’er responded with a gentle smile.

"If you ever stop liking me, you must tell me." Tangmo said with complete sincerity.

"I guess..." Luo’er didn’t really know how to answer.

"Then, I’ll chase after you and make you like me again!" Tangmo said with confidence.

"You..." Luo’er was stunned for quite a while before he finally burst into laughter.

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