Didn't you go to Teyvat to earn money to support me?

Even this... even the only thing worth mentioning, the extraordinary strength of a man...

Are we not as good as others?

How ridiculous and pathetic!

However, Shen Liang did not intend to pursue the matter relentlessly. Faced with the heartbroken Ye Xiao, he felt that his brother had already suffered enough and there was no need to continue to attack him physically. So he looked at the tall, mature woman with short dark gray hair next to him.

"Sister Raven, since Brother Night Owl is so heartbroken, please take him back. What happened today was very cruel to Brother Night Owl, and I am very sorry. But things must be faced. Please keep what happened just now a secret and don't let it get out and cause unnecessary misunderstandings."

His attitude returned to his well-behaved and sensible persona, but this time, in Raven's eyes, this well-behavedness carried a hint of coldness.

But that makes sense, this is... what the only young master of the Shaniat family should be like. Raven even felt that this was the Pandora she imagined—a boy with eyes like a tiger cub, how could he possibly be an innocent and cute Hello Kitty?

And the repeated use of "Brother Night Owl" and "Sister Raven" made Raven's body go weak with pleasure.

She quickly grabbed the arm of the missing Night Owl and pushed him away, putting on a peacemaker smile. "Okay, okay, Pandora is so good and sensible. We won't bother you anymore while you're with your sister. Bye-bye, bye-bye, we're leaving now to call off the engagement."

Shen Liang watched their figures disappear around the corner of the corridor before sighing, rubbing her tense face to soften, and then returning to her room.

Anna, who had just come out of the bathroom, was wearing a cool white shirt. Because of her well-developed bust, she couldn't button it up and simply didn't bother to. She was tiptoeing out onto the wool carpet, her wet little feet leaving wet footprints on the carpet.

"The matter is resolved." Shen Liang plopped back into the sofa, finally letting out a sigh of relief. "Sister Anna, your plan really put me in a difficult position. Now my brother Night Owl must be holding a grudge against my boss."

"What hatred?" Anna sat down on his lap with a gentle smile, making no attempt to hide her feelings.

Shen Liang hugged his girlfriend's waist, resting his chin on her cheek, "The hatred of having your wife stolen."

"Then Pandora can be left alone."

"Then I am the one who feels the hatred of having my wife stolen."

Anna turned around and gently looked at the boy. "So that means you're acknowledging Anna as your 'wife'... Yes, Anna won't be taken away by anyone. Anna will always belong to Pandora. This vow will remain valid even if Anna dies."

"I never expected that Anna, who is usually so aloof, would actually say such sweet things."

"I've read a lot of books, and if Pandora wants to hear more, I can tell you more."

The two sat facing each other on the sofa, both with smiles on their faces. Shen Liang was so close to sinking into the sofa that he was almost slumped in, while Anna knelt on top of him, pressing on his shoulders.

As they talked, they both gradually fell silent. Shen Liang stared intently at Anna's delicate, luscious lips and tongue, his breathing becoming slightly heavier.

“I saw something strange in Pandora’s eyes again.”

Shen Liang brushed the hair from Anna's face and kissed her. Although Anna was delicate, as a Valkyrie, her physique was not much worse than Shen Liang's, and she still held the upper hand. She quickly seized the initiative, and the situation instantly reversed.

But when the boy tried to push her down, she quickly broke free, her face flushed, and said, "No, Pandora, you have to take care of yourself."

"Oh? Really? Is it because Sister Anna wants to take care of her health?" Shen Liang smiled strangely.

"You still said that!"

Just as the two were laughing and joking, the suite door was suddenly pushed open, and Kiana, wearing the same white dress as Anna before, barged in without saying a word!

"Junior brother, are you alright? I heard Night Owl yelling your name from downstairs! You guys didn't already fight..."

Then she saw two people embracing intimately on the sofa.

The two of them stared at her blankly.

The black-haired, red-eyed boy had a complicated expression, while the girl, who was only wearing a white shirt, looked panicked.

Shen Liang finally understood the meaning of "extreme joy begets sorrow." In that instant, he knew he had no reason to explain himself anymore. Although he had managed to fool Night Owl and Night Owl certainly wouldn't tell anyone, he forgot that he had to keep it a secret from others.

What are you doing up here, Kiana?! Shouldn't you be on the first floor keeping an eye on Night Owl's annulment for us?! Your presence is useless, it's too late! It's over! Ana is mine now, don't even think about it!

Oh, something feels off.

Shen Liang and Anna both wanted to explain, but at this moment, one was wrapped in a bath towel and the other was wearing a men's shirt, so their disheveled appearance was quite obvious.

In addition, Kiana's gaze swept over other places and saw the dress that could no longer be worn, the stockings and high heels that were carelessly discarded—even if you wanted to argue, you couldn't argue. This was evidence that even someone as unwilling to admit reality as Night Owl had to admit!

"Um, senior sister, as you can see..." Shen Liang prepared to confess first and then have Kiana join the confidentiality layer as well.

But he didn't expect Kiana to suddenly clap her hands, her eyes sparkling with starlight!

"How come I never thought of that! I never knew it could be done like this!" Kiana said happily. "Yeah, even if I fail, I still have my junior brother. It's amazing that you guys came up with this method to persuade Night Owl to give up! The fake couple is still up to you guys. I'm not saying this to say Anna, you're really uninhibited. Junior brother may be young, but he's still a boy. You hugged him without any psychological pressure. I would have been shy for a long time if it were me!"

"You're not ashamed at all, you're talking nonsense." Shen Liang still remembered that just a few days after they met, she dragged him to the rooftop pool to swim. She didn't just hug him, she also hit and kicked him!

However, Shen Liang breathed a sigh of relief. He glanced at Anna, who had already hidden on another sofa, and she looked away shyly. Clearly, she had also survived the ordeal.

Although I feel a little sorry for Kiana, it's best to keep it a secret... Although I've never hidden my true nature as a scumbag from Kiana, she is, after all, her friend, and even her best sister.

They'll keep it a secret as long as they can.

Even if Kiana didn't care about this, her idiotic personality meant she wouldn't be able to keep it a secret forever, and then the whole Shaniat family would know... and then everyone would—

so awkward.

He didn't want his daily life in the Shaniat family to turn into a melodramatic coming-of-age story or a petty national drama filled with trivialities.

He explained in detail to Kiana how he used information asymmetry to trick Night Owl into believing that he and Anna were having a secret relationship, while omitting the part where he and Anna turned their "fake" relationship into a real one. However, during their conversation, he suddenly saw Anna walking out of the room, already dressed in a new dress.

Because she hadn't brought a change of clothes, Anna was only wearing a fitted purple and white strapless long dress, which was also a formal dress with an inverted V-shaped opening from the chest down, revealing her slender waist and cute little belly button.

However, Shen Liang was surprised to find that a faint red mark was visible on her fair waist. The lines were intricate and gorgeous, and Shen Liang was very familiar with the pattern... it was a balance scale.

Stigmata!

In Teyvat, the Coral Palace also has a similar stigmata, also featuring a scale pattern! Although he didn't know why it was this pattern, Shen Liang was certain that it represented his stigmata!

But on Earth...

There's no system causing any trouble at all!

At this moment, Kiana also noticed the pattern visible at the opening of Anna's clothes. She paused for a moment, then said shyly in a low voice, "Anna, you should change your clothes."

Anna followed her gaze and looked down, slightly startled, then looked at Shen Liang with a puzzled expression. After thinking for a while, she changed into a dress that didn't show her belly.

Does this mean we can't wear crop tops anymore...?

Shen Liang suddenly heard Anna's confused and frustrated voice in his mind.

A communication based on consciousness?

This is exactly the same as the system's description of "Stigmata Eligible Person".

Shen Liang tried communicating with Anna in his mind. Anna looked at him with utter astonishment before realizing it was mind communication. At first, she was scared, but then she got used to it and found it very convenient, chattering away in her mind for a long time. After all, chatting privately with Shen Liang in front of Kiana felt really great.

However, the sudden appearance of the Holy Mark and mind communication forced Shen Liang to re-examine his system.

The system remained silent and offered no explanation. It seemed that the system did not want him to be involved in anything unrelated to Teyvat at this time, even though he had already been involved.

Chapter 229 Catherine from the Adventurers' Guild, are you...?

The engagement ceremony ended in a rather farcical manner, under the watchful eyes of countless guests.

Night Owl placed the necklace that represented his marriage proposal—supposedly given to him by Anna—in the priest's baptismal tub without any explanation, and dissolved the engagement in front of dozens of members of the Shaniat family.

Surprisingly, neither the bride's family nor the person in charge of the engagement ceremony raised any objections, and Maria, as the representative of the Shaniat family, didn't even show up. The joyous occasion was abruptly interrupted, and the invited guests watched in bewilderment as Night Owl left the hotel without looking back.

The astute reporters had already begun sniffing out clues. This grand operation had ended so abruptly, clearly indicating something was amiss. But then they were subjected to "friendly exchanges" by the members of the Shaniat group. Many of the dishonest reporters were ushered into suites, and when they emerged, they were often disheveled and dejected, clutching their cameras with missing memory cards, crying and saying they would never do it again.

Behind them are the sweet, friendly smiles of the Shaniat girls.

"The mission failed. Think of a way to explain this to the Lord."

In the sports car heading to the Geisel Hotel, Raven gripped the steering wheel with one hand, glancing at Night Owl in the back seat through the rearview mirror. Night Owl's face was still pale as he bent over, replacing a spare part in his left hand.

"Because of your promise, we've wasted a lot of time. We still haven't caught her. Tell me, how do we capture the Herrscher of Ice?"

“Don’t use the word 'capture' to describe Anna!” Night Owl growled.

"Are you still clinging to your delusions?!" Raven wasn't about to back down, and snapped, "Wake up! She's never had a thing for you. She's been in a passionate relationship with her 'Pandora's brother' for three years! While you were sulking, they were cuddling and making love, you know what I mean!"

"Say that again?" Night Owl raised his eyes, his eyes filled with rage.

"I'm saying those two siblings are hugging! Kissing! Dating! Sleeping together!" Raven couldn't stand it anymore, her voice rising even louder, "Three years! Living in the same castle would make things a little more convenient at night!"

The owl was enraged, but the raven glared back at him, and the two faced off.

After a long while, Night Owl's momentum weakened. He closed his eyes, looking as if he had aged several years, and then whispered, "Look ahead, drive your car, don't crash."

His personal strength is no match for Raven, who is already an A-rank Valkyrie, and he no longer has the confidence to argue against it.

withered.

Raven glanced at him in the rearview mirror, her feelings equally complicated. As a colleague, Night Owl's failure meant all her work had been for nothing, and she definitely wouldn't get her month-end bonus. But as a colleague herself, seeing Night Owl so dejected, like a withered autumn leaf, she couldn't bring herself to say anything more sarcastic.

“We have a Siberian saying, ‘Which patch of frozen ground doesn’t have a radish underneath?’” Raven shifted gears. “Why fixate on Princess Anna? There are plenty of good girls in the world. Well, I don’t know how to comfort you, since I’ve never been in a relationship, but that’s the truth.”

"Different."

"What's the difference? Or do you prefer the well-behaved, pampered type? I'm just as pretty as her, and I'm even better off with an F-cup, while she's probably only a D-cup," Raven said casually. Then she suddenly realized, "Wait, to avoid any associations, let me make this clear: I don't like your type. If you're looking for a new girlfriend, don't even think about me. I'm a carnivore, and you won't meet my minimum requirements."

The owl opened its mouth, then got stuck.

Is this some kind of consolation or a devastating blow?

But after being mocked by the raven for a while, his mood wasn't so bad anymore.

"Heh, I know you like young men like Pandora."

"Hey, wishful thinking is one thing, but we're from two different worlds, we can't go the same way." Raven gripped the steering wheel. "Let's not talk about that anymore. Since the 'deception' plan failed, how about we consider 'robbery' instead?"

“We missed the opportunity to act with Aisha. Now we’re in Germany, right under the noses of the Schariacs. It’s too dangerous to have designs on Anna again.” Night Owl was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, “The Holy Maiden might still be able to make a move, and St. Mary is also staying in Munich. The Schariacs are in too much danger right now. Let’s go back and report first… There’s no rush to take Anna away.”