Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 402 - 395: Shangguan Jiu’s Thoughts

Chapter 402: Chapter 395: Shangguan Jiu’s Thoughts

"Why, why? I was the first, the first to know you and the first to like you. I can stand not winning against Tangmo and Baiyue, but why can’t I even compete with those from Otherworld?"

Shangguan Jiu suddenly stopped in her tracks, standing still with her head bowed low. Luo’er braked suddenly, nearly crashing into her. Seeing her downcast figure, Luo’er didn’t know what to say, feeling as though his heart was in chaos.

"Are you okay?" Luo’er tentatively asked.

"When you all went on your mission, I was alone in the academy worrying about you. From the moment I heard gunshots to the moment you returned, my heart never eased." After a moment of silence, Shangguan Jiu murmured, her head still bowed low.

"You did a great job." Luo’er didn’t know what to say, so he could only reply in agreement.

"I’m worried about everyone, but the person I’m most worried about is you!" Shangguan Jiu continued, her voice becoming choked with tears.

"Uh, thank you..." Luo’er scratched his head, not knowing what to say, feeling completely overwhelmed.

"I don’t want your thanks." Shangguan Jiu sniffled, tears instantly welling up in her eyes and streaming down her face onto the ground below.

Luo’er stood behind her, covering his face and remaining silent. At that moment, he wished he could headbutt a wall. He had previously rejected Shangguan Jiu’s confession. Why wasn’t she getting the message? As a captain, he might have been able to deal with the situation with a show of authority during missions. But in everyday life, he had no way of maintaining his captain’s demeanor.

"Uh, so, um, Jiu’er, about last time..." Luo’er coughed, starting to speak hesitantly.

"Is there really no chance at all?" Shangguan Jiu asked in a tone of unwilling resignation.

"Huh?" Luo’er blinked, not quite following her train of thought.

Shangguan Jiu suddenly turned around, looking up at him. Her charming eyes, filled with tears and reflecting the moonlight, revealed the deep purple color of her pupils, which emitted a captivating and enchanting glow.

Shangguan Jiu was a half-Night Elf, with pointed ears and deep purple pupils. Her black hair contrasted sharply with her fair skin, appearing striking under the moonlight.

Luo’er had always felt that the term ’Night Elf’ was a fitting translation, likely among the best translations by the United Nations survey team. Under the moon’s illumination, the charm radiating from Shangguan Jiu, a half-Night Elf, seemed to multiply exponentially.

"Please, don’t do this, I might...not be worth your affections." Afraid that eye contact would steal his soul, Luo’er averted his gaze, coughing before speaking again.

"You are worth it!" Shangguan Jiu insisted stubbornly.

She looked at Luo’er quietly before saying, "We both have Elf blood, and we’re both going to live for a long time. I don’t want you to be with me forever, I just hope you can stay with me for a human’s lifetime of a hundred years. Is asking for that too much?"

"What is it that you want? Companionship, or love?" Luo’er asked.

"What I want..." Hearing his words, Shangguan Jiu lowered her head, murmuring to herself.

"If you want companionship, I...I can be with you. But is that really what you want? If it’s love you want, I’m sorry, but I..." Luo’er began to speak, then choked on his words.

"Did you already give your love to someone else?" Shangguan Jiu looked up at him and asked.

"No." Luo’er looked away, speaking somewhat evasively. He was telling the truth, but deep down, he felt uncertain. He admitted that over the past year, he had developed feelings for several girls. But up until now, he hadn’t made any promises to any of them.

For Luo’er, until he found his mother, he couldn’t possibly spare the energy to consider love. If he allowed himself to be easily swayed by these girls, all the hard times he had endured over the past 20 years would have been for naught.

"Then why can’t you look at me?" Shangguan Jiu asked passionately.

Avoiding her gaze, Luo’er wound up asking after a long silence, "When did you start to feel this way about me?"

"From the moment I saw your photograph," Shangguan Jiu replied.

"Ah, a photograph?" Luo’er stammered, suddenly remembering the embarrassing pictures of him dressed in girls’ clothing from his childhood.

When Luo’er was a young boy, he inherited his mother’s refined features. His uncut long hair and delicate face made him an irresistible subject for the nurse’s and female officer’s camera. Lured by treats, the young Luo’er dressed in girls’ clothes for the camera countless times, his innocence utterly exploited by their games.

"Those pictures..." Saying this, Luo’er’s face turned red with shame.

"That was the first time I had seen such a beautiful girl," Shangguan Jiu continued.

"Stop talking..." Luo’er covered his face, feeling utterly mortified.

"From that day, I carried on looking for that girl at the academy. When I saw you, I realized that you were that girl!" Shangguan Jiu declared.

"So you were disappointed, weren’t you?" Luo’er asked, his face in his hands.

"No," Shangguan Jiu shook her head, then earnestly said, "I thought I liked girls and was always questioning my sexual orientation. But then I realized, it’s simply that I like you."

"What you like...is just this face of mine, isn’t it..." Luo’er murmured.

"At first, I thought I liked you just because you are good-looking. Later, when you were chosen to be part of the Advance Team, everyone began blaming you, and I began to hold prejudices against you. After that, when we arrived in Otherworld and spent a month together, I finally understood that what I like is you!" Shangguan Jiu said while looking at him.

"You..." Luo’er raised his head to give her a glance, not knowing what to say, so he just silently closed his mouth.

"But why didn’t I have any chance at all? Those girls from Otherworld, they have advantages over me, simply because we can’t always be together, is that so?" Shangguan Jiu asked him, looking at him closely.

"You..." Luo’er looked at her, about to speak but holding himself back. After a long silence, he finally said, "I’ve made no promises to anyone. I admit, I have had feelings for some girls, but I didn’t choose to accept them."

"Why?" Shangguan Jiu asked.

Letting out a deep sigh. Luo’er said, "Until I find my mother, I wouldn’t consider anything regarding romantic relationships."

"Just now..." Shangguan Jiu asked in a daze.

"As I said, you misunderstood. Feliz wanted to go to Yazhi City to study Earth culture, but her family disagreed. So, she asked me to take her with me after completing my mission." Luo’er said with a gloomy face.

"I thought..." Shangguan Jiu lowered her voice and it faded until it was barely a whisper.

"Didn’t you say that you heard everything?" Luo’er asked.

"As soon as I saw your fingers intertwined, my mind went blank, and then..." Shangguan Jiu placed her head low, not wanting Luo’er to see her blushing face.

"Unbelievable..." Luo’er sighed while rubbing his forehead, exasperated.

"Since you two didn’t make a lifelong pact, why did you interlock fingers then?" Shangguan Jiu asked, with a hint of complaint in her voice.

"She is from Otherworld, she needs to swear to the Goddess of Light. She said that we, Earthlings, have no gods, so I have to swear to her." Luo’er explained.

"Taking advantage..." Shangguan Jiu lowered her head, her voice growing fainter.

"Sigh, you girls, what do you always think about?" Luo’er said, relieved.

"So, what I just said..." Shangguan Jiu twirled on the same spot while twisting her fingers nervously.

"I know everything." Luo’er nodded and said.

They exchanged a glance and immediately looked away, not speaking another word. The atmosphere turned awkward in an instant.

"Let’s go back... to the infirmary, and have a look!" After a long silence, Luo’er broke the silence.

"Hmm!" Shangguan Jiu nodded, lowering her head, not daring to look him in the eyes.

"So..." Just as Luo’er was about to turn and leave, Shangguan Jiu suddenly grabbed the back of his clothes.

"What’s wrong?" Luo’er asked, looking at her.

"When you find your mother, can you come back and tell me?" Shangguan Jiu asked, lowering her head.

Luo’er looked at her, knowing what she was thinking, so he sighed and nodded. "I promise you. Once I find my mother, I’ll come back and tell you."

"Thank you!" Shangguan Jiu’s voice was joyful, though she kept her head down.

"Let’s go. We’ll go back and check on them!" Luo’er said.

"Hmm!" Shangguan Jiu nodded.

The two set off together towards the dorms. Upon reaching, Tangmo and Baiyue were still struggling on. When Luo’er entered, the patients, Xuzhong Qi and Wu Tairan, appeared more excited.

"Captain, you’re here. Please get them to stop, we are fine now. They can’t keep going on like this!" Wu Tairan yelled urgently.

Luo’er could see they were indeed recovering well. Despite being shot twice, Xuzhong Qi looked much better now. He walked over to Tangmo and gently held her hand that was wielding the Magic Wand.

Tangmo instinctively stopped casting magic as soon as Luo’er’s hand reached out. She knew that Luo’er’s body was severely damaged and could not withstand the strain of magic.

"They have recovered quite a bit. Go rest now!" Luo’er advised with a heartache.

"Hmm!" Tangmo finally stopped, seeing that Luo’er cared for her.

"And you," Luo’er turned and caught Baiyue’s hand, saying helplessly, "Are you two competing with each other?"

Seeing Baiyue’s downtrodden expression, Luo’er reached into her hood, stroking her soft, drooping rabbit ears. Baiyue instinctively shrank her neck, feeling goosebumps all over her body.

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