Chapter 62: Even the Dragon Maiden Has Feelings

Celia stood gracefully before the bar, and behind her rose a towering ancient tree. The tree soared high into the sky, with countless thick branches stretching outward from its massive trunk. On every branch rested a small room, and as the branches climbed upward, it was impossible to tell just how many rooms there were.

“Mr. Edward, may I ask what brings you here?”

“I’m looking for a place to stay.” Xie Jing grinned at Celia. “I’ve heard your inn is the finest on the continent.”

Celia’s expression remained cool, with only the standard polite smile on her lips. She glanced at the Dragon Maiden behind Xie Jing, whose bold, voluptuous figure made Celia’s face twitch involuntarily.

She glanced down at herself; though she was not lacking, she was nowhere near as striking as the Dragon Maiden. No matter how old a woman is, she always pays close attention to these things—those who lack wish they had more, those who have wish they had more still, and those with plenty wish for even greater.

Xie Jing waited for a while, noticing Celia seemed lost in thought—though in truth, she was staring at the Dragon Maiden—so he shifted his posture and asked again, “Miss Celia? Celia? Are there any rooms available?”

“Ah! Yes, of course!” Celia snapped out of her reverie, a faint blush coloring her cheeks.

“One night costs two hundred thousand gold coins.”

Xie Jing paid without hesitation, then fixed his gaze on Celia’s lovely face.

“Miss Celia, I came to Dark City just for you. As it happens, I brought a bottle of fine Elven wine from the tavern. Would you do me the honor of joining me in my room for a chat about life?”

“Apologies, Mr. Edward, but we’re not that well acquainted,” Celia replied, still smiling.

“Oh, alright.” Xie Jing backed down. He hadn’t really been serious about Celia; he simply couldn’t help himself around a beautiful woman.

His whole body still ached. With a graceful wave of her hand, Celia summoned a massive vine from the tree above, which promptly wrapped around Xie Jing and whisked him upward with a whoosh.

“Ahhhhh—” Xie Jing’s startled scream echoed as he was whisked away, vanishing into the leafy heights.

The Dragon Maiden followed, floating upward and likewise disappearing among the branches.

Celia, who saw hundreds of thousands of players pass through her inn each day without ever showing emotion, this time watched the spot where Xie Jing vanished, a trace of—excitement?—in her eyes.

She had spent who knows how many years here, yet had never encountered someone so direct, even bordering on roguish. Always showered with praise from players and protected by her companions, Celia suddenly found herself looking forward, just a little, to seeing Xie Jing again.

Of course, Karkun didn’t count. Celia didn’t like Karkun’s purple skin or his rakish manner—not at all.

The vine deposited Xie Jing in a treetop room. Inside, a lamp glowed softly. There was a bed, a table, a washroom—everything one could wish for in a cozy space.

The Dragon Maiden floated in after him, sticking close to his side.

Xie Jing eyed the Dragon Maiden’s impressive armored right hand and asked, “Can you take that armor off?”

Bang!

A pile of armor clattered to the floor, revealing the Dragon Maiden’s delicate rose-colored hand and her shapely thigh.

—

After a long day, and having worked up another sweat during GSD training, Xie Jing headed to the bath. There, within the room, was a clear spring—he had no idea how it was stored up here.

The Dragon Maiden wanted to follow him in, but Xie Jing quickly stopped her. To him, she was not a pet, but a living, breathing person.

Though the Dragon Maiden had an extraordinary figure and he was by nature a bit of a flirt, the idea of bathing together without any emotional connection unsettled him.

The warm spring water, kissed by sunlight, soothed him as he lay back and let his body relax.

Half an hour later, Xie Jing emerged in a bathrobe to find the Dragon Maiden still standing patiently at the door.

“I thought you had an emotional system? Why do you seem so vacant?”

The Dragon Maiden fixed her gaze on him, her clear voice answering, “My emotional system is centered around my master. All my feelings exist to serve you.”

“And if I don’t want you anymore? What then?”

She pondered for a moment, her cool expression turning quietly plaintive.

“Master, if you abandoned me, I think I would be very sad. I would cry.”

As she spoke, a shimmer of tears appeared around her eyes.

“Alright, alright! There’s no way I’d abandon you!” Xie Jing took her hand and led her to the bed.

“You must be tired from floating around all day. Come, lie down and rest.”

“Master, I’m not tired.”

“I order you to be tired! Lie down!”

“Yes, Master!”

“Master, please don’t hold me so tightly—I can’t breathe!”

“Master, should I take off my clothes so your touch won’t be impeded?”

“No… that won’t be necessary!”

…

The night passed in silence.

—

In the morning, well-rested, Xie Jing returned to his stall, yawning as players bustled by.

He opened his streaming platform. With only one video posted, his follower count had grown slowly, so he quickly edited a new clip and uploaded it:

“Shocking! My Dragon Maiden pet seduced me of her own accord!”

Satisfied with the title, Xie Jing used a shot of the Dragon Maiden sleeping peacefully as the cover image and hit upload.

—

On the platform, the company was in utter chaos from early morning.

As soon as Xie Jing’s second video went live, a group of men in black appeared in the boss’s office. Orders quickly followed: delete every video posted by the user “Edward Shett.”

This should have been a simple task—any internal staff member could have done it with a few keystrokes.

But when they opened the user’s profile, they found there was no ban button. In fact, nothing they did had any effect on the user or his videos.

The network team was summoned, but their efforts proved fruitless. Even high-paid experts, roused from sleep at home, could do nothing.

In the end, the office received new orders: stop interfering. Only then did the matter drop.

Meanwhile, across the nation, every user who opened the platform found the video featured on the homepage.

Gentlemen, naturally, were drawn by the alluring title and the beautiful woman sleeping on the thumbnail, while the players who had already followed Xie Jing eagerly clicked to watch.

The screen showed a simple little inn.

Then appeared a scantily clad, long-haired girl floating in midair.

A male voice asked, “Can you take your armor off?”

The next moment, a pile of armor fell to the floor.

Then, the girl was led by the hand toward the bed.

In the next instant, she looked up with wide eyes, emotionless, and asked if she should take off her clothes.

The video ended with a fade to black.

Then appeared the towering tree on the screen, and a shy, adorable Celia…

Howls of excitement filled the comment section, and the video spread like wildfire.

On forums, social media, chat groups—players sent it to bystanders, who then passed it on to others.

They marveled at the realism of the CG, and cursed the scoundrel who dared call such a beauty his pet.

He was famous now. Xie Jing was truly famous.