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Chapter 242 Her Pink Thoughts
Chapter 242 Her Pink Thoughts
Chapter 242 Her Pink Thoughts
"Heloise...?"
Tyler looked at the trembling girl in his arms, slightly puzzled.
In a situation like this, one would expect Heloise to question him first, "Why did you lie to me?!"
Instead, it's as though she bypassed the most stomach-churning misunderstanding in romance dramas and went straight to the sweet parts.
"The Apostle of the Nefarious Tiger King may need a moment... Messenger of the Benevolent Deity, please, stay as you are for now."
Heloise spoke without raising her head, her words muffled by Tyler's chest. Barely audible, Tyler could hear her sobbing.
— (It seems that... I don't know you well enough yet, Heloise.)
Tyler relaxed, gently holding the girl in his arms.
.
During his recent encounter with the Earthly Ghost, Tyler's mind-reading was primarily centered on the ghost, occasionally checking on Heloise's mental activity for any abnormalities.
Therefore, while Tyler triumphed over the Earthly Ghost, he lost control of Heloise's emotional state.
Now, he carefully read Heloise's inner thoughts to ascertain his next move.
.
Heloise's mental state had undergone three stages.
Initially, she felt despair because she and her tribe were deceived and exploited by the "Earthly Ghost," and disappointment that Felix had not told her the truth.
Heloise even considered fleeing the scene, but the indomitable nature of the tigermen race compelled her to stay.
As she listened to Felix's conversation with the Earthly Ghost, she began to understand.
It turned out the Earthly Ghost had been scheming to kill Felix, and the talk of "Banning being a demon" was merely a ruse to deceive their tigermen tribe.
The only constant evil from start to finish was the Earthly Ghost, and Felix had only lied to Heloise about his relationship with the Earthly Ghost and its true identity.
"Why didn't Felix tell me the truth from the beginning?" This thought lingered in Heloise's mind for a while, but she didn't believe Felix was mocking the tigermen tribe. Instead, she gradually understood Felix's good intentions.
— (Felix was afraid I wouldn't believe him, afraid I wouldn't be able to accept it, so he didn't tell me directly.)
Realizing this, Heloise felt a sudden sense of clarity.
She now understood that everything Felix had painstakingly planned was to minimize her pain when learning the truth.
— (Felix went to such lengths for me, a stranger... All these things... they had nothing to do with him...)
"Blood Serpent" was the term Heloise heard from the Earthly Ghost.
Even though it was merely an instant, Heloise immediately recalled the "Parasitic Blood Serpent" that Felix had been inquiring about these past few days. Such striking similarities could not be chalked up to mere coincidence.
This meant that, while keeping Heloise in the dark, Felix had been tirelessly seeking a cure for her.
Heloise distinctly remembered that in the Quest Guild, Branch Chief Pamela had asked Felix who had been infected by the "Parasitic Blood Serpent". At that time, Felix's response was...
— "It is a dear kin of mine."
For a moment, Heloise was not even afraid of the fact that she had only a year left to live. Her heart was filled with gratitude towards Felix.
— (Felix, he truly is a messenger of The Benevolent Deity. He is an angel descended upon the mortal realm.)
.
"Felix, the Messenger of The Benevolent Deity, you need not apologize for your benevolent deception. Also, this Apostle of the Nefarious Tiger King would like to express her heartfelt gratitude and offer you the highest respect."
Heloise ceased her sobbing. She left Felix's embrace, and then knelt on one knee facing him, lightly kissing his knee.
The "knee-kissing ceremony" represented respect and loyalty within the tigermen tribe and was their highest form of etiquette.
"Er... There's no need for me to explain anything to you, is there?"
Felix seemed quite taken aback by Heloise's change in attitude, which secretly amused her.
"With regard to this matter, The Nefarious Tiger King indeed needs your explanation. However, as for me, all I need to know is that you are helping me."
Heloise slowly stood up, wiped the tears from her face, and showed Felix a teary smile.
"But if you insist on explaining something, then tell me, Felix, why are you helping me?
Heloise was confident at this point. She knew that Felix, who was too shy to express his feelings, must have liked her, which was why he was so dedicated in helping her.
"This question... you... do you really want to know the answer?" Felix appeared somewhat embarrassed, which further solidified Heloise's speculation.
"Mm-hm! Tell me quickly!"
Heloise was eager for the answer.
She had even planned out her response if Felix's answer was "because I like you". She would throw herself into Felix's arms and tell him that she liked him too.
But instead, Felix's answer was…
"Because if I see evil deeds and don't lend a hand, I would be failing in my duty as the 'Messenger of The Benevolent Deity', and I might even lose my divine powers forever."
With every word Felix said, the smile on Heloise's face diminished.
By the time Felix finished speaking, Heloise's face was expressionless.
"Oh, that's so like you, Messenger of The Benevolent Deity."
Feeling disappointed, Heloise turned around and walked towards Delis Town without waiting for Felix.
Felix chuckled softly behind her before catching up.
.
In actuality, Tyler had already discerned that Heloise was on the verge of confessing her feelings.
With his astute psychological insight, even if he didn't take the initiative to confess, a gentle nudge would suffice to prompt Heloise to express her affection for him.
However, Tyler refrained from doing so.
Given that there were still 16 days left on the "Countdown to Confession Death," he felt no rush to receive a confession. As the ensuing period promised to be exceptionally hectic, Tyler planned to postpone Heloise's confession as much as possible to buy time for his next tactic.
Yet, this time, Tyler didn't make any substantial effort to attract Heloise.
Her fondness for him was primarily due to his ever-improving competencies, and secondly, this particular event was a textbook romance trope—the rescued maiden falling for her savior, a near certainty.
.
On their return journey to Delis Town, Tyler seized the opportunity of Heloise's silent treatment to analyze the information he had gleaned from his dialogue with the Earthly Ghost.
Indeed, Tyler's confrontation with the Earthly Ghost yielded some unexpected gains.
Prior to their conversation, Tyler didn't anticipate that his mind-reading ability would come into play, considering the Earthly Ghost communicated through remote control.
However, upon seeing the green snake controlled by the Earthly Ghost, Tyler was nearly moved to laughter: the Earthly Ghost's thoughts and feelings were transmitted to the green snake, enabling Tyler to discern them clearly with his ability.
— (Who would have thought there would be a 'Heavenly Ghost' in addition to the 'Earthly Ghost'...)
— (No wonder I've felt watched by various bird species recently...)
Looking up at the nocturnal sky, Tyler indeed spotted an owl circling above.
Yet, he did nothing and merely lowered his gaze to continue his journey.
Now was not the time to stir the "bird" in the "sky".
Tyler intended to employ this hard-earned "information asymmetry" to make the Earthly Ghost and the Heavenly Ghost regret ever antagonizing him.