Chapter: 16. Insomnia?
One person is afraid of the dark and can’t sleep.
Those two are huddled closely together on this small bed, so they should be able to sleep soundly, right?
Xiya felt that it was hard to say.
Let’s put it this way.
If there was a clingy little kitten in the bed, perhaps holding it close would help her sleep, maybe even have a nice dream.
But what if this “little kitten”…
Is actually a soft, fluffy silver-haired loli that emits a faint milky scent at all times?
At first, Xiya was very happy; she was glad that Xue Fei still trusted and depended on her like this.
But as time went on… things seemed to slowly become not so simple.
No matter how Xiya changed her lying position, she could not avoid feeling drowsy. After a while, she would inadvertently touch Xue Fei’s small legs or her shoulders and arms.
Every time she made contact, the drowsiness that was hard to come by would be swept away!
She could only try to accumulate drowsiness all over again.
And then she would become extremely alert again.
— This was a dilemma that could not be broken, a vicious cycle!
The rustling sound of her nightgown brushing against the blankets when she turned over inexplicably tugged at her heartstrings, making it hard to stay calm.
Damn… Even if I touch Xue Fei, I shouldn’t be this tense! What’s wrong with me today…?!
The hero’s thick-headedness made it difficult to figure out such a complex problem, so she could only toss and turn in bed, unable to sleep.
But listening to Xue Fei’s evenly adorable breathing… she seemed to have fallen asleep.
But this can’t go on like this…!
In a fit of extreme anger, Xialet mustered the courage to suddenly turn over, facing Xue Fei while maintaining a side position.
Let me see if Xue Fei is really asleep. If she is, then I might just take my blanket and sleep on the floor.
As a result…
With this turn, she happened to gaze directly into Xue Fei’s large eyes, which shone with a faint dreamy glow even in the darkness.
Those big eyes blinked, making Xiya feel dazed.
“……”
“……”
Okay then, it seems she isn’t sleeping.
No, actually Xue Fei had just woken up after falling asleep.
“I say, Xue Fei… it’s this late already, why aren’t you asleep?”
“That’s strange.” Xue Fei reached up to feel her own cheek, looking confused, “I was definitely asleep just now… but do you know what I dreamed? I suddenly woke up.”
“What did you dream about…?”
“I dreamed that two slimes suddenly came running and hit my face really hard; it hurt a lot, and then I woke up. Can the sensation in dreams be so real? Ah, wait… it seems to hurt a bit now, strange?”
“Slime? Hitting your face? That’s quite a bizarre dream… uh…?!”
“Xiya?”
Xue Fei was feeling her cheek where the strange sensation lingered, puzzled.
Xiya seemed to suddenly remember something and switched from her side position to lying flat on her back!
Only now did Xialet realize…
That when she suddenly turned toward Xue Fei just now, some soft part of her body must have hit her cheek like a slime, waking her up!
Xiya quickly crossed her arms to press down on her chest wrapped in her nightgown, secretly scolding it for causing trouble at a critical moment!
Xue Fei had no idea about this; she simply wanted to express her admiration for the incredible softness of the “slime” and that fierce impact.
Following Xiya’s movement, Xue Fei also shifted from her side position to lie flat.
With her hands resting on her belly, she looked very peaceful.
“Oh no, now that I’m awake, it seems I can’t sleep anymore. Xiya, were you also awakened by the slime?”
“I…! Ahem… of course not, you just got confused while sleeping! There’s no slime at all.”
“Yeah… perhaps it’s because I exploded too many innocent slimes in my super fireball experiment, so this is my retribution. I should go to the church to pray and drive away the evil spirits; maybe that’ll help.”
“……”
There were too many points to criticize, leaving Xiya unsure where to start.
Xue Fei, as a member of the demon race, are you really going to worship the gods in the human race’s church to drive away evil?!
In their silence, the wall clock’s hands ticked away with each passing second.
That was a countdown as the sun continually approached dawn, a sorrow felt by every insomniac.
Honestly, at this time, even the horses in the stable by the lake are asleep.
Xiya squinted her eyes and stared at the ceiling, completely unable to feel sleepy.
Tentatively.
Xiya lowered her voice and spoke slowly.
“Xue Fei…? Are you asleep?”
“Slime.”
“!”
You’re still thinking about that slime!
Xiya tilted her head to look at Xue Fei’s profile.
The moonlight spilling in from the windows illuminated her delicate and finely crafted face, like a masterpiece of the gods, causing Xiya’s breath to momentarily hitch.
At the same time, Xue Fei coincidentally turned her head to look at Xiya.
The two gazes met in mid-air.
And quite in sync…
Their voices almost rang out simultaneously after a moment of silence.
“Can’t sleep.” “Shall we chat?”
““……””
After being silent for so long and then speaking at the same time, both of them couldn’t help but chuckle.
Now, the possibility of sleeping had decreased even more~
Since they’ve decided to talk a bit at night, there should at least be a topic to start with.
Just in time.
Xiya had something in her heart that felt like a heavy stone pressing down on her, something she couldn’t move for an entire day. Now was a good opportunity to communicate calmly.
So, let’s try to shift this “stone” just a bit.
Xiya slightly leaned her head closer to Xue Fei, her soft voice clearly articulated as she gently parted her lips.
“By the way… Xue Fei, are you really okay leaving the Demon Territory like this?”
“What do you mean?”
“Because I remember… besides the Demon King and Queen, you have a younger sister, right? The second princess of the demon race.”
“Oh…？ Oh, it seems there is such a thing.”
“Don’t use the phrase ‘seems to be.’!”
“Wow!!!”
Xiya had learned to be smart; she knew that Xue Fei always played tricks on her. So even though Xue Fei shrank into the blankets, she still had to give her a light chop through the covers!
The silver-haired puffball quieted down, slowly peeking her head out from the duvet.
Looking at Xue Fei, who was obviously pretending to be hurt, Xiya propped herself up and touched her head, asking.
“Alright, alright… I should have known this is your nature. Hmm… so about what I just said, is it really okay?”
“Ah… it’s fine, my head doesn’t hurt.”
“I meant your sister!”
How dare you insult me!
To improve the efficiency of their dialogue, Xialet simply expressed her thoughts more specifically this time.
“Xue Fei, you decided to leave the Demon Territory without telling the Demon King and Queen; I can understand that. After all, you came here as a captive… it involves many issues. But, did you not tell your sister either? Normally speaking, sisters should be quite anxious if they don’t know the real situation, right…?”
Xiya asked this knowing it probably didn’t mean much.
Since Xue Fei decided to leave, she definitely wouldn’t tell anyone. Leaving home quietly and disappearing on her own.
But Xiya felt that saying this would make Xue Fei too pitiful.
Even if she couldn’t explain to her parents, if she could trust her sister and had a good relationship with her, she could definitely tell her the truth and ask her to keep it a secret. Wouldn’t that be a form of psychological release?
Bearing so much pressure on your own is exhausting, but if a trusted family member can help share some of that pressure, it would surely be much easier!
But Xiya didn’t expect that Xue Fei’s somewhat absent-minded response was a gentle refusal.
“Ah… that’s okay.”
She was saying it’s okay.
But Xue Fei’s expression… was a mix of her usual playfulness suddenly tinged with a bit of wistful helplessness.
“It doesn’t matter if I don’t tell that child… She usually quite dislikes me, probably because I always steal the limelight and take the glory that should belong to her as the second princess of the demon race? Anyway, when she’s face to face with me, she always acts indifferent.”
As she spoke, Xue Fei let out a rare heavy sigh.
“Hey, she used to be quite clingy to me when she was younger… I don’t know why suddenly she started to dislike me. Since she dislikes me, I can’t do anything about it~ So I guess it’s fine not to speak about this. I guess, even if I tell her, she wouldn’t help me keep it a secret. Perhaps she would actually be quite happy that I’m leaving the Demon Territory? After all… this bothersome person of mine is finally gone.”
“Xue Fei…”
“It’s okay, it’s okay, don’t worry, just to clarify, I’m not feeling sad, just slightly complaining!”
Xue Fei also leaned against the wall and sat up, tilting her head to look at Xiya with a grin.
Her silver hair cascaded down like a waterfall to the side.
She laughed fearlessly.
However… even so, Xiya could still read the layers of helplessness within.
Xue Fei is the genius daughter of the demon race, admired by many, but this admiration is more of a reliance.
The Demon King and Queen care about her because she is the proud daughter of the demon race — but this pride is built on the premise that she was born a chosen one, a responsibility that can suffocate someone.
Even her sister… cannot open her heart to her.
It’s hard to imagine how many burdens her small body has to bear to get through these twenty years of changing seasons.
Fortunately… all these burdens should be lifted now.
Let it be said as a comfort.
At least, this is something Xiya wanted to express.
“Everyone says you only understand to cherish after losing… maybe Xue Fei’s sister, now that she has ‘lost’ her sister, will regret her previous indifference.”
“No way! You don’t know, that child used to point swords at me in the Demon Palace! She was so fierce!”
“What kind of experiences did you sisters go through to reach this point…”
“I can’t really say… perhaps it started when I liked to call her shorty when we were kids?”
“……”
This… is indeed an unconventional beginning of a sibling feud?
