Noticing the boy's evasive attitude in front of her, Xixi lost her patience.
"What is wrong? Is it so hard to tell the truth?" Her voice was cold.
She had never been treated that way by anyone.
Raising his gaze and locking onto her bright blue eyes, Roman swallowed hard.
Then, a confident smile spread across his lips.
"You see, I have a particular talent," he said, crossing his arms and puffing out his chest. "It makes every skill of mine absurdly powerful, to the point it could destroy the entire world."
If you are going to tell a lie, make it big! He thought, mentally high-fiving himself.
The hall fell silent.
His three friends stared at him, stunned.
The curious crowd had their mouths agape, listening to everything.
Xixi, on the other hand, had a deep frown on her face, her cheeks red with anger.
This was an insult to her. Being mocked in front of everyone was something she had never experienced.
"Wow, she is even more beautiful when angry—" Zun's voice echoed in the deafening silence that had formed, making the scene even more awkward.
Xixi let out a low growl, raising her hand and clenching it into a fist.
Then she exhaled a sigh.
"Let us go, I do not care," she said, her face a mask of indifference.
The guard beside her and those behind simply nodded.
They were there only to prevent any attack attempts, not to make their young mistress's life easier.
With a swift but determined step, Xixi left the scene, heading toward the portal that would lead to the Rift.
On the other hand, Roman…
"What a temper…" he muttered, slightly dissatisfied.
Everyone described her as a goddess, and it was true, but her personality made her detestable.
In one word, spoiled.
"F-friend—" Zun's voice was faint, like a whisper, as he approached Roman, trembling. "You really treated Goddess Xixi like that?! Do you not have a shred of dignity, of pride as a man? Did you not say your life depended on her? How could you—"
"Zun, relax—" Golia stepped in to stop his friend, who was this close to lunging at the boy. "Roman did nothing; it was she who came here and demanded things."
Tobias glanced at Zun and Golia before turning his head toward Roman. "Why did you not do as she asked, anyway? I get not wanting to indulge someone, but there should be a reason behind it…"
Roman let out a sigh heavy with helplessness. They could not understand…
"What I said is true," he said finally, feeding his lie further. "With the talent I have, I could accidentally destroy this world. No, maybe not this world, but the entire universe."
His serious face, paired with his thoughtful gaze, made the three doubt.
Could he have told the truth?
"Bullshit!" Zun said, visibly shaken. "If it is really as you say, why not show us in the Rift? You can unleash all the destruction you want there; it is an infinite space."
Golia, ready to silence his friend, was struck by his words. They made sense!
"I agree," Tobias said, nodding slightly. "If what you say is true, we will apologize. But if it is not true…"
The air filled with slight tension, the three staring at Roman sharply, very sharply.
"If it is not true, we will not accept you as a friend! Friends do not lie to each other. They might tell bullshit, maybe even lies, but they do not lie…"
The tension was palpable; you could have heard a pin drop. Also because Tobias's phrase made no sense…
If not for the noise around, of course. After all, they were not alone; they were in a crowded place.
Roman made a slight grimace but managed to mask it quickly.
"You see," he pressed on with a calm voice, "Right now, I am not feeling well; I need to go to the bathroom."
The excuse was perfect!
Or at least, in his old world, it always worked. He had avoided plenty of school quizzes this way.
The three stared at him like one stares at an idiot.
But before they could even speak, Roman turned and ran to the bathroom.
"…"
"…"
The three looked at each other, their expressions a mix of amusement and resignation.
"Anyway…" Golia spoke, breaking the awkward silence with his voice. "He seems like a decent guy. He is very friendly and not a simp like you two, at least."
Tobias could only nod. "He has balls, I will give him that. None of us could have acted like that toward Miss Xixi, after all, not even you, Golia. It is useless to accuse us."
Zun stayed silent. He had not yet digested Roman's words toward his goddess, but he could not deny the boy had a backbone.
"I need to blow off some steam…" he spoke with a serious tone.
"Yeah, let us go. Let us kill some monsters, then we all go play Cubeblock World!" Tobias added with enthusiasm. "We have a legendary dragon to kill, remember?"
With a laugh, the atmosphere relaxed as they headed toward the Rift.
Meanwhile, Roman…
He was sitting on the toilet in the Meteorite Hall's bathroom, elbows on his knees, holding his head in his hands.
"Damn, they really do not want me as a friend?" he muttered with a hint of sadness. "My personality has always been prickly toward women, I admit… but only because I have never talked to a girl in my life—"
He let out a breath he did not know he was holding.
"Plus, I could not even do as that girl said… it was too risky, I am not strong enough yet." He grumbled, flushing the toilet. He had not actually used it; it was just for show.
"This is only my second day here, damn it! I really want to kill some goblins to blow off steam…"
With these words, Roman left the bathroom area. Of course, he had washed his hands; they now smelled of fresh flowers.
"This scent suddenly reminded me that I should buy a bunch of new things." A bitter smile curved his lips.
"Like a bed. I do not want to sleep in the one where the old Roman died…"
"And clothes too…" he added, looking down. "I may not have had women, but in my past life, I was stylish!"
Suppressing a melancholic smile, Roman headed toward the counter.
The same girl from the day before was there, scanning IDs for other awakened ones who wanted to enter the Rift.
When it was his turn, the girl's smile widened as she looked at him with strange eyes…
Are they sparkling?!