Chapter 451 - 395: So, This Is Your Taste?
Chapter 451: Chapter 395: So, This Is Your Taste?
Gu Ning’s gaze fell on the large bed in the room. The two beds were about the same size, but this one had a semi-transparent white canopy hanging over it.
Looking at the canopy hanging from the ceiling, she was a little perplexed. Why hang a canopy in the winter? Besides, the 12th District was a cold region. It wouldn’t get very hot even in the summer, so there shouldn’t be any trouble with mosquitoes.
Gu Ning, holding the hairdryer, went to sit on the edge of the bed to dry her hair. Pushing aside the canopy, she discovered some things lying on the bed.
She picked up one of the items, a pink bottle, and looked closely at the words on it. "Slippery... water..."
She couldn’t quite understand it.
She put the bottle down and picked up a piece of fabric neatly folded beside it, even more transparent than the canopy. She shook it open out of curiosity—
It was a pair of... briefs.
Judging by the size, only a tall and sturdy male Beastman could wear them.
Philinos hadn’t expected these things to be in the room either. After a moment of stunned silence, he snatched them from Gu Ning’s hand, threw them back on the bed, and then bundled everything up—items and bedsheet together—and tossed the whole lot into a corner.
After throwing it, he braced one hand against the wall and pressed the other to his forehead.
’Ah Mo...!’
He didn’t even have to ask. He knew Ah Mo was behind this!
He had run into Ah Mo outside the police station, and Ah Mo had even asked for his room number.
’Who else could it be?!’
Gu Ning looked at the Little Fairy Bird’s tense, reddened profile, realized what those things were, and awkwardly walked around to sit on the other side of the bed.
’This is a hotel, so it’s normal to have these things...’
No one spoke. The only sound in Gu Ning’s ears was the WHIRRING of the hairdryer, occasionally punctuated by the voices of a few Beastmen outside the door.
She didn’t look back at Philinos, not wanting to embarrass him further.
"I didn’t prepare those."
After a long silence, Philinos walked over to Gu Ning’s side and said.
Gu Ning turned off the hairdryer and looked up at him. "Oh, right. I know."
’Of course the Little Fairy Bird wouldn’t have prepared them. He looked like he wanted to throw them outside just now.’
’He doesn’t seem like the type to prepare those things at all, even if he is...’
A certain thought flashed through her mind. Gu Ning froze, then quickly pushed it away.
Philinos cursed Ah Mo again in his heart, took the hairdryer from Gu Ning, and turned it back on. He raised his hand, intending to touch Gu Ning’s hair, but paused just as his fingers were about to brush against the strands.
Gu Ning glanced at his movement, met the Little Fairy Bird’s eyes for two seconds, and lowered her head.
’Forget it. Refusing him would just make things more awkward. Getting along with the Little Fairy Bird isn’t easy, so it’s better to just go with the flow and keep things harmonious.’
Seeing that Gu Ning didn’t refuse, an imperceptible hint of relief appeared in Philinos’s eyes. He gathered a lock of her hair and began drying the still-damp ends.
Another long silence fell.
Philinos’s movements were gentle and meticulous, but every muscle in his body was tense. Before long, beads of sweat had formed on his forehead, as if he were performing an extremely difficult task.
Gu Ning’s body was tense as well. She soon found the atmosphere unbearable and took the initiative to break the silence.
"Philinos, I thought of another... question."
Philinos: "What question?"
Gu Ning searched for the right words, then pointed toward the living room and asked, "Is that... legal?"
It took a moment for Philinos to process what Gu Ning was asking before he understood her meaning. "As long as they’ve signed a work contract, it’s a legitimate job."
Although it doesn’t violate the laws of the Beast Alliance, many Beastmen dislike those who work in this profession. He didn’t like them either.
These Beastmen are single-mindedly focused on pleasing females, hoping to use the opportunity to win their favor. That way, they might have a chance to secure a place by a female’s side without going through the lengthy partner application process.
Even though the success rate is low, there are always some who succeed.
And even if they don’t succeed, just being able to strike up a conversation with a female is a win for these males.
"Do you like them?" Philinos sat down beside her, gathering another damp lock of her hair as he continued to dry it.
Gu Ning tilted her head to sneak a peek at him. With that tone of his, how could she dare to answer?
Compared to Barto’s loud and boisterous personality, the Little Fairy Bird had an intensity that felt like a hand closing around your throat.
It felt like if she said she liked them, he would pull out a knife and cut them down on the spot.
"Do you?" Philinos pressed nonchalantly, but to Gu Ning, it sounded like a death sentence.
She shook her head repeatedly.
Noticing the corners of Philinos’s mouth turn up slightly, Gu Ning suddenly felt the urge to tease him. "He’s... good-looking."
Just as she expected, the corners of the Little Fairy Bird’s mouth fell again.
"Who?" he asked.
Before Gu Ning could answer, he said, "The one with the flashy hair that looks like a big rooster?"
Gu Ning almost couldn’t stifle her laughter at his description.
"Mhm," she said, pressing her lips together.
Philinos frowned. "You like that type?"
Gu Ning didn’t answer that, instead delivering her prepared line: "Not as good-looking as you."
Philinos’s hand, toying with her hair, froze. His gaze shifted from her hair to her face. "What... did you say?"
Gu Ning blinked, looking at the Little Fairy Bird.
Philinos’s throat bobbed. His voice was lower, softer. "Say it again."
It was as if he was trying to confirm that he hadn’t misheard.
Gu Ning: "He’s not as good-looking as you."
Philinos stared at her, the frost that seemed permanently settled in his eyes gradually melting away. The fallen corners of his mouth lifted again, this time uncontrollably.
Glancing at the smile on his lips, Gu Ning thought, ’The Little Fairy Bird is pretty easy to please...’
At this thought, she felt around her waist. Right, she still hadn’t given him the doll she’d bought.
Seeing how happy he was just from being called good-looking, she suddenly became very curious to see the look on his face when he received this little bird doll that bore such a striking resemblance to him.
The little bird doll was in her coat.
"My coat..."
Gu Ning started to get up to grab her coat, not noticing the Little Fairy Bird suddenly leaning closer. She bumped her head right into his... lips.
Gu Ning froze, feeling the warm, soft touch on her forehead.
However, what made her freeze wasn’t the accidental kiss, but the fact that just as she was about to sit back down, Philinos’s hand wrapped around her waist, stopping her movement.
She was left suspended in an awkward position—not quite standing, not quite sitting—with her forehead pressed against Philinos’s lips.
After holding this strange pose for two or three seconds, Gu Ning jerked her head up. "Philinos, you..."
Seeing the look of surprise on her face, the rush of heat that had surged through Philinos instantly went cold. He immediately let go of Gu Ning.
He let go so abruptly that before Gu Ning could react, she plopped right down onto the floor.
Philinos scrambled to pull her back up.
The two of them just stared at each other, wide-eyed.
Philinos: "I..."
"WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF WOOF!!!"
Cook’s frantic barking came from outside. Gu Ning hastily pulled away from the Little Fairy Bird’s arms. "I’ll go check on Cook!"
Philinos licked his lips. Turning, he saw Gu Ning about to go out without covering up and quickly hurried after her.
"AWOOOO!"
His fur painfully tugged, Cook barked furiously at the rough Sea Clan Beastman. ’How many times has it been! How many times!’
"Your fur is all tangled, ya know. I can’t get the knots out without using a little force."
The sturdy Sea Clan Beastman held his tail and brushed it wildly with big, sweeping strokes.
"AWOO!" Cook raised his paw to swat at him, but a hand slapped down from behind first. "Sit still," a voice said low in his ear.
Cook glanced back at the Beastman behind him, lowered his raised paw, and sat back down with a whimper.
*SWOOSH—* The door to the inner room was pushed open.
Seeing Gu Ning, Cook bolted to her side and hugged her pitifully. "Ningning, no... no brush..."
Kaper looked up. Seeing Cook burrowing into the female’s embrace, a corner of his mouth twitched.
’That little mutt is pretty good at finding himself a long-term meal ticket.’