Love, Gun, Cupid

Do you crave to collect, plunder, and possess? Do you feel an uncontrollable fire burning within you?

"What...did you do?" Jasmine asked.

"Don't worry, I'm just teaching you the true nature of the dragon race ahead of time. Your passion is many times stronger than that of the descendants of upright apes."

Du Juan held up a finger and said earnestly, "This is the joyful part of love. It makes people's emotions rise and their thoughts wander. Culture can castrate the narrative of love, but it exists eternally."

So, dear Jasmine, come and face your heart.

After tallying the votes from the bullet comments and the group chat, the book lovers' chosen team was Real Madrid.

Chapter Thirty-Two: The Pervert Was Actually Me

Jasmine's hot breath sprayed onto Lin Jiade's chest, and Lin Jiade felt that Jasmine was enduring immense pain rather than experiencing pleasure.

He looked at Du Juan, then at Jasmine, and said, "I think we have some misunderstandings. Can we stop fighting and clear things up?"

Dujuan replied, "Actually, it would be faster for you to take advantage of the situation here—no, the dragon's—to accomplish this fait accompli. In Jasmine's race, as long as the male is willing to help the female incubate the eggs, the female will generally forgive the male."

Lin Jiade heard Du Juan speak to him, and he looked at her blankly because she didn't open her mouth. Cupid blinked, put a finger to his lips, and then pointed at Jasmine.

Lin Jiade shook his head; taking advantage of someone's misfortune wasn't his style, and taking advantage of a dragon's misfortune was the same principle. Du Juan pointed to his pants, and Lin Jiade looked down, his cheeks instantly turning as red as apples.

“This is an uncontrollable reaction,” he whispered. “Help me.”

"Help with what? Is it dealing with this pendant you're wearing, or dealing with..."

Lin Jiade didn't give the other party a chance to spout inappropriate content for children, and shouted, "Deal with the add-ons!"

Cupid pulled the dragon girl off the stage, because Jasmine had hugged the young man too tightly, causing his shirt to become tattered.

Du Juan said she needed to talk to Jasmine, so Lin Jiade waited in the living room outside. He gulped down two glasses of water and sat for another five minutes before the House of Lords finally managed to secure a sufficient blood supply from the House of Commons.

Then, the previous scenes begin to play in reverse, and the segment where the young man is very interested in Jasmine's inhuman structure is played on a loop.

Am I the pervert?

After reaching a conclusion, Lin Jiade covered his head with both hands and put on a mask of pain.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, Jasmine confronts her memories with movements 100% synchronized with Lin Jiade.

She remembered the pet she had when she was a child. Before it was spayed or neutered, it would always be clingy to its owner during its heat cycle... just like what she had just done to Lin Jiade.

She looked up, her gaze filled with resentment as she looked at Dujuan. Dujuan scrutinized Jasmine with the same eye one would use to appraise an antique, and finally asked, "Red Dragon?"

"..."

"Silence won't help. My colleagues in Swan Sea have already figured out the tragedy that happened there five years ago. That's why I was worried that Lin Jiade would mess things up, so I sneaked into your house and made a hole in the barrier."

"The first thing I saw when I came in was you riding one of my people. No wonder you're a dragon; riding people is truly a racial talent."

Jasmine was silent for a moment, then asked, "Are you a lackey of the Empire?"

Du Juan gave a disdainful smile: "We chose the Empire."

However, this is irrelevant. Let me introduce myself first. I am Cupid, and here I call myself Cuckoo. I am currently working to find a partner for the person outside the door.

You mean?

"Because of certain events, Lin Jiade's marriage is related to my future, and for my future, he is also trying his best to find a spouse, which is you."

To facilitate your marriage, you were twice drawn into Lin Jiade's dreams. You were conscious then, but pretended to be unconscious while observing him. Did you ever conclude that he was harmful to you?

We are not White Dragon's people, and have no reason to harm Red Dragon's offspring. Whether it's Lin Jiade or myself, all we expect from you is love.

Cupid pulled out a series of documents from her storage-functional wings to prove her identity. She then logged into the Universal Empire's magical household registration system and showed Lin Jiade's household registration information to Jasmine.

Jasmine dislikes the universal empire that exists solely for humanity, but she acknowledges its authority. The information above indicates that Lin Jiade only became a junior magic researcher, or what is known in ancient times as a mage apprentice, last Thursday, and only possesses fourth-grade C magic.

Humans possess numerous spells capable of killing young dragons, but they are all categorized under Level 1 (modern-day standard) and Level 2 (modern-day standard) magic. Level 4 (primitive-society standard) magic can at most kill ferocious beasts like lions and elephants, posing no threat to Jasmine.

Cupid had even less reason to harm the dragons; on the contrary, the dragons were always Cupid's valued customers. Unlike the apathetic diamond elves, the dragons were never single and were also cross-species lovers, making Cupid's business boom and allowing the dragons to enjoy their cross-species interactions to the fullest.

This relationship was even written into a sacred covenant, passed down through the descendants of both races. To this day, there has never been a fatal battle between the dragons and Cupid.

Therefore, for Jasmine, Cupid is someone she can trust.

Jasmine pondered silently for a while, and all the information pointed to the same conclusion—she had misunderstood. But it's difficult for any race to admit their mistakes.

So she said, "Then why did he use a detection spell on me?"

“Because he’s attracted to appearances, he’s worried that your physical appearance exceeds his tolerance level.” Du Juan smiled. “However, I guarantee you, in Cupid’s honor, that after using the detection spell, he likes your appearance even more.”

Jasmine was silent for a moment, then asked, "Where is he?"

"Sitting outside, he's probably questioning the meaning of life."

"Because he found himself preferring...the non-human parts of me?"

Du Juan replied with a smile, "That's right. Before, he kept emphasizing that he liked ordinary people."

What is your relationship?

"After I explained the pros and cons of our relationship as friends and a win-win situation, Lin Jiade chose to cooperate with me based on his own will."

Du Juan advised, "Once this misunderstanding is cleared up, it's over. We can continue our relationship as before, how about that?"

I'm not forcing you to like anyone, but if you like someone, admit it; if you don't, say no. Don't be hypocritical and toy with the feelings of an innocent young man, making everyone unhappy, okay?

“Even if you didn’t say it, I would still do it,” Jasmine replied.

Du Juan reached out her hand, and Jasmine's fingers touched hers briefly before parting. After reconciling, the two went to the door and saw Lin Jiade sitting on a wooden chair, staring blankly at the ceiling with a dazed look in his eyes.

"Do you mind if he likes the parts of you that aren't human?" Du Juan asked.

"do not mind."

Jasmine walked up to Lin Jiade. Lin Jiade came to his senses and saw Jasmine, who had returned to human form, reach out her hand. To him, she said, "Just now... it was my fault. I shouldn't have suspected that you came to harm me."

"No, it was my fault for using detection spells on you and spying on your privacy. If you put yourself in my shoes, I would be angry too in this situation."

Lin Jiade hesitated for a moment before saying, "We can... continue to see each other in the future, right?"

Jasmine nodded and took Lin Jiade's hand. Lin Jiade closed his fingers and wrapped them around Jasmine's small hand.

To be honest, after seeing Jasmine's beautiful appearance with her hooked fingers and scales on the back of her hands, holding a human-like hand made him feel utterly uninterested.

Seeing through his thoughts, Jasmine asked, "Would it be better if I transformed back into my true form?"

“No,” Lin Jiade hurriedly shook his head, “This is fine, I really don’t have any perverted thoughts.”

Chapter Thirty-Three: Drinkwater (Bonus Chapter for Winning the Game)

"Trying to cover up only makes things worse," Jasmine said. "That's the idiom you taught me last time, and I've remembered it."

Lin Jiade looked at Jasmine expectantly: "So I can still..."

"I'm really looking forward to today's explanation of the exercises."

"Great! You can look forward to it. I've remembered even more of what I learned in high school, and I'll teach it all to you, not a single drop will be left behind!"

Lin Jiade became excited, and to Jasmine, this invisible sun became even more dazzling, forcing her to take a step back. Otherwise, she might have been infected by his excitement and done something that was out of character.

She looked at Du Juan, who waved goodbye and mouthed, "Have fun."

"Keep dreaming," she mouthed in response.

Although the misunderstanding was cleared up, Jasmine still disliked Du Juan, both because Du Juan was a habitual liar and because Du Juan constantly hinted at Lin Jiade's ownership.

What's worse, she realizes that Lin Jiade trusts Du Juan more—a Cupid he's only known for a few days. Jealousy gnaws at her heart, making her sullen.

Finally, despite Du Juan presenting irrefutable evidence to prove her identity, Jasmine still felt something was off, making her uneasy. It wasn't that she was paranoid; after things were cleared up, she hadn't felt that way with Lin Jiade.

Lin Jiade had just breathed a sigh of relief at his reconciliation with Jasmine when he saw Jasmine glaring at him with fierce eyes.

"Uh, is there anything else you're unhappy about?" he asked cautiously.

“No,” Jasmine turned her head to the other side, “I’m angry with myself.”

If only I had spoken to Lin Jiade sooner… before this woman. Jasmine thought.

Aside from necessary conversation, the two remained silent throughout the lesson, creating an awkward atmosphere for the young man. As the lesson ended, he heard Jasmine's voice behind him—

See you tomorrow night.

He turned around and smiled, "Okay, see you tomorrow night."

Jasmine waved to him, and Lin Jiade's smile grew even brighter, which in turn made Jasmine's lips curl up.

After clearing up the misunderstanding and overcoming the awkwardness, their relationship progressed further.

At the same time, under the cover of night, a tall man in a trench coat took out his key and turned the doorknob of the rented room. A cool breeze and moonlight rushed into the room, and a second later, the room returned to darkness and gloom.

He pulled a short sword from his pocket and plunged it into the ground. The next second, the Nordic-style conference room replaced the dark room.

He sat in the head seat, and the other four empty seats were quickly occupied by the arriving figures. An elderly man with white hair, a girl wearing cat-ear-shaped headphones, a frivolous woman with heavy makeup, and a middle-aged man exuding an air of melancholy all looked at him.

"It's just a level two spell, there's no need for you all to be so surprised."

The man said, "I suppose you have already received the employer's instructions. Let me explain: I took on the employer's task, and then the employer helped me recruit four companions."

Therefore, you are my subcontracted partners, and I have the authority to evaluate performance, calculate commissions, and decide how the tasks are completed.

"What's this? Giving someone a hard time first?" the girl with cat-ear headphones asked.

The man explained, "It's about clarifying roles. We're all meeting for the first time, so there's no trust to speak of. I don't want to cause internal conflict by vying for control of the team. If I mess up, you won't get your commission either."

So, does anyone have any objections?

No one objected. The man nodded slightly and introduced himself, "During our collaboration, you can call me Drinkwater."

"Water Drinker?" The heavily made-up woman chuckled. "Is it really okay to use such a perfunctory codename?"

"This is our first collaboration, there's no need to use an official code name."

The man opened his suitcase, took out a thermos, and unscrewed the cap. White steam billowed out, but he didn't care about the temperature of the water and gulped it down.

He looked at the woman and said, "Your turn?"

"What, it's my turn?"

"Introduce yourself."

The woman exclaimed in surprise, "Do people in our line of work need this? I have 45 identities; which one do you want to hear?"

"This is the employer's requirement, and don't lie. I have the authority to decide how the bounty is distributed."

"Tsk, I knew money wasn't easy to earn."