Chapter 281: Disfigured!?
Inside the inner world of Cosmic Juggernaut, the sky was blue with scattered white clouds, and the meadows stretched endlessly.
Sigurd, Kevin, Fu Hua, and Su were sitting around a stone table.
Su wore a warm and gentle smile as he poured tea for everyone.
Fu Hua, who had arrived merely as a consciousness, ordinarily wouldn't have been able to enjoy the scent or taste of tea. However, since Otto had managed to store his consciousness within the body of the Herrscher of Thousands, it wasn't a big deal for Sigurd to create a temporary Soulium body for Fu Hua.
Sip~
Fu Hua took a light sip of tea, a soft and springlike smile blooming on her face.
She seemed to be in quite a good mood.
In fact, she should have returned to her own body earlier. However, first, these two people here were old friends she hadn't seen for a very long time; second, after Kiana unleashed her special technique, there were inevitable problems with the consciousness domain—on this front, she was even more authoritative than Sigurd; third, her physical body was stored safely deep within the Anti-Entropy headquarters, guarded by Book of Fuxi and Ji Xuanyuan, so there was no fear it would run off on its own.
Considering all these factors, Fu Hua stayed on for a few more days,not only to ensure Kiana's full recovery, but also to catch up with her old friends and exchange insights on consciousness power with Su, who was something of a master in this area.
Sip~
Fu Hua continued drinking tea, feeling a deep sense of comfort simply from seeing her old friends alive and well.
"Ahhhh!!!"
At that moment, a shrill, agitated scream came from a villa not far away.
Bang!
A young girl in a white patient gown kicked open the door and rushed over to the group.
"Sig! I've been disfigured!"
Kiana, holding the bandages she had just ripped off herself in one hand and a mirror in the other, showed a face marred by burn scars and scorch marks, crying out in utter despair.
Sigurd gave her a sidelong glance, leisurely sipped his tea, and said:
"What did you think the extent of your injuries was? I prioritized repairing your internal organs and genetic damage. I didn't have the time to deal with the superficial skin issues. Once your body's functions fully recover, your skin will gradually heal."
"But appearance is a girl's most important thing! You big idiot, Sig!"
Whoosh!
Kiana, waving her arms frantically—whether intentionally or not—sent the mirror flying.
The stray mirror hit Sigurd squarely on the forehead.
Bang!
Sigurd remained seated like an immovable mountain, but his expression grew visibly colder.
Meanwhile, Kiana had already dashed back into the villa and slammed the door shut with a loud bang—whether out of despair over her disfigurement or because she realized she had just made a huge mistake was unclear.
Sigurd touched his forehead, which actually didn't feel anything, lowered his eyes, and saw the shattered mirror at his feet.
Slowly, expressionless, he set down his teacup.
At the same time, Fu Hua and Su both reached out and placed a hand on Sigurd's shoulders.
"Sigurd, you must stay calm. She's still young. Try to be more understanding."
"Sigurd, Kiana is still recovering from her injuries. At least wait until she's healed."
"...Mm."
Sigurd glanced at the two, stayed silent for a moment, then gave a slight grunt of acknowledgment and picked up his teacup again.
The two peacemakers exchanged a look and both quietly breathed a sigh of relief, ready to resume their previous leisurely conversation.
But then Sigurd suddenly turned to Kevin and said:
"Can I have a vial of your blood?"
"...Sure."
Kevin nodded emotionlessly and extended his arm.
Sigurd decisively drew a vial of blood—holding the syringe with both hands. The syringe was so large that both Fu Hua and Su couldn't help but twitch at the corners of their eyes when they saw it.
Actually, even Kevin panicked a little inside. But since he had already agreed, he could only maintain a stoic face until the end.
When Sigurd gently placed the syringe—so big it almost didn't fit on the table—by his feet, Kevin nonchalantly asked:
"What do you plan to do with it?"
"To fix that idiot's genetic defects and optimize her constitution. Oh, and next time you see her, tell her this for me—'I acknowledge your name, Kiana Kaslana.'"
"...I'm not your subordinate. Stop coming to me with all these weird requests."
"I helped you save Su, and Fu Hua was also saved by me. Don't you think you owe me a favor?"
"Fine, but just this once."
"Mm."
Everyone knows that "Mm" doesn't mean "okay."
Their conversation ended, and Su couldn't help nudging Fu Hua's elbow, sending a mental message:
"Uh, is Sigurd always this... this..."
"You want to say 'ruthless to the bone'?"
Fu Hua's smiling voice rang gently in Su's mind.
Su nodded, feeling a little guilty about badmouthing someone right next to them.
Fu Hua, still smiling, silently replied:
"That's pretty much how he operates. If one day Sigurd treats you unusually well or gives you a gift, be very cautious. Every favor from him comes with a clear price—you'll have to repay it sooner or later."
Su clicked his tongue inwardly.
Fu Hua continued:
"Just kidding...sort of. As for what kind of person he really is, you'll have to experience it for yourself. All I can tell you is, Sigurd is someone truly worth trusting. That's all."
Su then looked toward Sigurd.
The young man was frowning over a complex design diagram, fully absorbed, not distracted at all.
Su quietly sipped his tea, but inwardly, he already agreed.
Facilitating peace between two major organizations, quietly promoting social advancement, spreading scientific knowledge, boosting civilization's technological level, suppressing the Honkai outbreaks—one thing after another. With someone like this, his personality and methods were secondary. He was obviously worth trusting, and worth everyone giving their all to support.
Especially since, in the near future, this young man would bear the heavy burden of leading the entire civilization. He would become more important than anyone else—and there must be no mistakes with him.
"Sigh..."
Su let out a long, meaningful sigh, then picked up the teapot and refilled Sigurd's cup.
Sigurd glanced up at him, then continued to immerse himself in analyzing the diagrams, casually tossing back:
"Thanks."
"Of course."
Su responded warmly with a smile.
...
Inside the elegant villa, in Kiana's bedroom, the door suddenly swung open, and Sigurd walked in carrying a tray of food.
"Get up. Time to eat."
He stood there, face stern, addressing the lump under the white blanket on the bed.
The blanket squirmed a little, and Kiana's muffled voice came from inside:
"Just leave it and go."
"...Have I gone too long without beating some sense into you?"
"Ahhh!!! I've been disfigured! I don't want you to see me like this!!!"
Kiana's voice, from under the blanket, was almost hysterical.
Suddenly, the weight covering her disappeared, and her vision brightened.
Sigurd had pulled the blanket off her in one swift move, standing by the bed, looking down at her expressionlessly.
What Sigurd saw before him was a small, completely unclothed white-haired girl, her body covered in scars. Though her figure was slender and beautiful, the grotesque and ugly burns completely ruined any sense of aesthetics. She stared at him with big, watery eyes, looking both pitiful and a little frightened—in short, a clumsy kind of cuteness.
Sigurd's lips curled into a slight smile as he said:
"Lie flat. Hands down."
"I don't want to!"
"Which part of your body have I not laid my eyes to?"
"That's not the point! I'm ugly now! I don't want you to see me like this, you idiot!!!"
"Three, two—"
"I'm lying down already."
All her stubborn resistance instantly vanished under Sigurd's cold countdown.
Miss Kiana had, once again, maxed out her survival instincts today!
Sigurd reached out and began to press and examine various points on the girl's body: her forehead, side of the neck, chest, abdomen, waist, thighs, soles of her feet... After a thorough check, he finally nodded in satisfaction and tossed the much-longed-for blanket back to her.
"Your body's recovery is going well. Just don't use any Honkai energy for now, and let it heal slowly."
"..."
"Why go silent? Feeling wronged?"
"╭(╯^╰)╮ Hmph!"
Kiana huffed, raising the blanket and covering herself completely again.
The room fell into a long minute of silence.
After a while, upon not hearing any further sound from Sigurd, Kiana cautiously pulled down the blanket a little, revealing a pair of sparkling, curious eyes.
"If... if I never heal properly and stay ugly like this... would you dislike me?"
"...No."
Sigurd answered after a slight pause. It wasn't that he hesitated about the answer itself—he meant what he said.
It was just that, knowing Kiana's personality, once he replied, she'd definitely start pestering him endlessly.
Honestly, it was going to be a hassle.
But that brief pause didn't escape Kiana's sharp perception. Her eyes immediately reddened. She threw the blanket off and shouted:
"You hesitated! You would dislike me, wouldn't you?! You shallow man! You big dumb pig! You colossal idiot—mmph!!!"
Three minutes later, the white-haired bundle of frustration had her face completely covered by the blanket again, with only a pair of flustered eyes peeking out.
Eventually, her gaze met Sigurd's smiling face.
Kiana took a deep breath, thinking it over.
While sneaking glances at Sigurd's expression, she slowly began to lower the blanket.
The whole time, Sigurd maintained the same gentle smile.
When the blanket was almost completely down, Kiana's face flushed even redder. She hesitated for a moment—then panicked and yanked the blanket back up again.
At that moment, Sigurd reached out, holding the blanket to stop her movement.
"U-uhm, I'm feeling really shy... Can I cover back up?"
"Didn't you want to know if I would dislike you?"
"Can we... maybe talk about that another time?"
"What do you think?"
"I don't look pretty right now, it'll ruin the mood—mmph!!?"
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