Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei Returns from Sekiro

"I'm going to the Arctic Ocean next January."

"January next year?" Su Enxi was stunned. "Dean, you can see the future?"

"It's not the future, it's fate. The future is uncertain, but fate cannot be changed."

...

In the ward.

Erii suddenly stood up and walked towards the door.

Mai, who was enjoying the air conditioning, looked over and saw Erii open the door, but there was no one outside.

"Meow, meow, meow." A cat's affectionate meow rang out.

Erii carried the two fat cats into the house, a rare smile appearing on her face.

How did they get here?

These two cats were once fostered at the Black Stone Mansion by Mai Shude and Enxi Su. Later, at the wedding of Mingfei Lu and Erii, they were given to the newlyweds as a wedding gift on a private plane.

Erii and Lu Mingfei only kept them for a month before they were sent back to Kimura's housekeeper as samples.

It wasn't that they didn't like them or couldn't take good care of them; it's just that they went to the Arctic Ocean to look for the Moniach during that time, and they really didn't have time. Later, they had even less time, and a series of things happened, so it was better to let them stay obediently with Butler Kimura.

The two cats were very affectionate with Erii, rubbing against her face.

Erii placed the cats on the hospital bed. They rubbed against Lu Mingfei's neck, purring softly, their pink paws profusely.

They even brought over cat toys themselves, so Erii could play with them—oh, no, it was them playing with Erii.

These two cats are truly intelligent and perceptive; Mai Satoshi found the scene quite amusing.

Not long after, Su Enxi also came in.

"The matter is settled." Su Enxi handed Erii a bag of cat food, which she opened.

Erii shook some cat food into her palm and stretched out her hand. Takanashi and Dekomori immediately leaned over and licked her palm, making it itch.

She laughed, put down the cat food bag, and stroked the heads of Takanashi and Dekomori.

"Has the Dean woken up?" Mai asked, staring at Su Enxi.

"Hmm." Su Enxi nodded. "He invited us to the Regent Hotel. What do you say? Do you want to go work at SAP, or have dinner with him?"

"Is it more than just having dinner with him? He's giving us a mission as soon as he wakes up?"

“We don’t work under him anymore. He said it’s been a long time since we’ve had a get-together, and we’ll just have one meal tonight.”

“Then why should I refuse?” Mai Shude laughed. “It’s a pity that Sanwu isn’t here, so we still can’t all get together. She’s the one among us who loves eating and drinking the most.”

"Soon, we'll meet her soon." Su Enxi crossed her arms, leaned against the door frame, and tossed the car keys over. "Let's go, you drive."

Mai grabbed the car keys. Although she knew Erii wouldn't leave, she still turned around and asked, "Erii, are you leaving? Do you want to have dinner with us tonight?"

“I’ll stay here with Sakura.” Eri shook her head, hugged Kotori, and scratched its soft belly.

“Then we’re leaving,” said Mai Shude.

"Mm," Erii replied.

The door closed, and Erii got up and drew back the white curtains, letting in brilliant sunlight streaming in from the azure sea.

She leaned against the bed, holding the little bird, and rubbed her face against the fat cat's fat face.

"We meet again." She stretched out her hands from the front legs of the little cat and raised it high. The grayish fur was dyed golden by the sunlight, and her dress was also tinged with gold. Her eyes sparkled, like an angel descended to earth.

...

Hamburg Port, Germany, Kassel Estate.

A wide, protruding rock wall rises from the ground, extending upwards in an arch shape, and finally connects at a height of several tens of meters, resembling a giant arched bridge.

Under the bridge arch, a giant dragon was lying in the shade; it was Fenrir, the king of the earth and mountains.

"Sister, I want to sleep."

A long water pipe extends from the Coca-Cola tower to its mouth, providing it with ice-cold Coca-Cola even in the sweltering heat.

"Sleep? What do you mean, sleep? You eat and then sleep, you sleep and then eat? Are you a pig?"

A delicate shout came from beside the dragon's forepaws. Xia Mi sat beside Fenrir's forepaws, holding a small Coke and a beef hamburger, taking small bites.

There was another woman sitting next to her; that was Susie.

Susie's right hand hung limply to her side, while her left hand held a wooden stick, poking at the fire in front of her.

It was a simple outdoor stove, with piled-up stones on both sides. The stones were separated in the middle, and a wire was fixed to the middle. A small pot was hanging on the wire, and white steam was coming out of the pot.

The food in the pot wasn't anything fancy, just simple instant noodles.

There was another figure standing behind Susie and Xia Mi. His body was covered with bluish-gray scales. He stood there quietly and motionless, like a wooden stake.

Xia Mi looked at Susie beside her and sighed: "Senior Susie, why are you doing this? Do you want to follow us like this for the rest of your life? Is Chu Zihang becoming a Deadpool really that much of a blow to you?"

"Go home already. Look at your right hand, it's paralyzed. You should go home and retire. Even if I gave you my blood to make your right hand move again, what good would it do? You'd soon become Deadpool, you won't live much longer."

Susie didn't say anything. She picked up the small pot with one hand and placed it on the small table made of stacked stones. She then used the fork she carried with her to eat the instant noodles with gusto.

"Look how many days you've been eating instant noodles."

Xia Mi took a chicken leg burger out of the lunchbox, unwrapped it, and waved it in front of Susie.

"Want some meat? Want a hamburger? If you promise me you'll come home tomorrow, I'll give you this hamburger, okay?"

Susie remained unmoved and continued eating her instant noodles.

Fenrir squinted at the two of them and tentatively said, "Sister, why don't you say yes to this sister? She's so nice to me and she plays with me."

"What do you know? Children shouldn't interrupt adults!" Xia Mi glared at Fenrir.

By this time, Susie had finished eating her instant noodles.

She used the stick to stir the mud onto the fire, extinguishing the flames, then knelt down in front of Xia Mi and bowed her head.

“Your Majesty Jormungandr, I earnestly beg you to grant me your blood, even if it means becoming your servant in death, I will not regret it.”

"You won't regret it, but your parents will," Xia Mi continued to persuade. "The world is about to end. Instead of going back to be with your parents, you're just wasting your time here with me. It's so pointless."

Susie remained kneeling, stubbornly refusing to speak.

Xia Mizhen was at her wit's end; this was already the third month.

That day, Angers brought her over, said "You two can discuss it yourselves," and then ran off.

So, was Susie really determined to die?

Judging from her behavior, it seems to be true.

After that battle, her right hand was crippled and her left foot was permanently damaged, but she still stubbornly insisted on going to the front line.

There is no greater sorrow than a broken heart. Xia Mi couldn't tell whether she came because her heart was dead or because she truly wanted to sacrifice herself for humanity.

She sighed deeply and asked again, "Are you really sure?"

"It's decided," Susie said.

There's no turning back.

"I know, but this is the only thing I can do."

Chapter 450 Erii Uesugi (Part 3)

December 31, 2011, year-end, Binhai City.

Scattered fireworks flickered in the night sky, briefly illuminating the night.

The bustling atmosphere of previous years is gone; now every household keeps their doors and windows tightly shut, and there are hardly any people to be seen on the streets.

It was late at night, and Erii sat by the hospital bed.

Lu Mingfei was still asleep in bed. His cheeks had become somewhat thin due to long-term reliance on intravenous nutrition.

Erii looked at him, with Kotori curled up on her lap like a big round cat cake, letting her stroke his forehead and scratch his chin. Another fat cat, Tokimori, was curled up next to Lu Mingfei's pillow, fast asleep.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Erii grabbed Takanashi by the back of the neck and his bottom, moved him to the bed next to Dekomori, and got up to open the door.

The newcomer was Giovanni, dressed in a black trench coat, carrying a custom-made oversized sniper rifle and the sheathed "Gluttony" on her back. She wore fingerless leather gloves, carried a bouquet of flowers in her left hand, and a box of small cakes and a plastic bag containing chilled beer in her right hand.

Her original long curly hair had been cut into a neat short haircut at some point, only about an inch long, and she still had a faint smell of gunpowder on her.

"Didn't you say you were going to have a party? You didn't go?" Giovanni handed the bouquet to Erii, and placed the cake box and plastic bag on the table.

"After dinner, I had Mai-nee bring me back." Erii helped remove the heavy weapons from Giovanni's back.

“Actually, you don’t need to be with him all day long. Couples need to have some personal space too. Lu Lincheng and I have been married for so many years, and we only spent every day together during our honeymoon. After a few years, I got annoyed. Sometimes I don’t even want to see his grumpy face or listen to his endless nagging, like Tang Sanzang chanting in my ear.” Qiao Weini said as she took off her trench coat and hung it on the hanger. Underneath, she was wearing an ordinary white vest.

“I just miss him,” Erii said.

"Are you alone? Didn't anyone else come?"

“They came to visit during the day.” Erii pointed to the bedside table, where a bouquet of white and yellow flowers lay quietly under the light.

"How could I have given birth to such a stupid son?"

Jovie shook her head, walked to the bedside, and poked Lu Mingfei's face.

"That brat has been sleeping for almost a year and still hasn't gotten up. I'm ashamed of him."

Giovanni silently looked at her son's face, while Erii took the opportunity to gather up the bouquet and pile it together with the other bouquets.

Although she was over forty, Giovanni was still decisive and efficient. She picked up a can of beer, pulled off the can, tilted her head back, and gulped down a few mouthfuls. The pale yellow liquid flowed from the corner of her mouth, down her chin, and soaked her vest.

Erii stood quietly behind her, without making a sound.

She hadn't seen Giovanni for six months; the last time they met was on July 17th.

On Lu Mingfei's birthday, Mai Jiude indeed threw a birthday party in this hospital room. Not many people came that day, as acquaintances were scattered all over the world, busy dealing with dragons. But Jovie came over, saying that she hadn't attended her son's birthday party in seven years, so how could she miss the eighth one?

That day, Giovanni also looked travel-worn and hadn't even had time to change her clothes.

After the party ended, everyone left, leaving only Erii and Giovanni in the hospital room. The two chatted all night, with Giovanni mostly telling Erii about Lu Mingfei's embarrassing childhood stories, while Erii just listened and didn't say much.

When Jovini left, she gave Erii a hug and said that since Erii and Lu Mingfei were married, Erii was now her daughter, and she should treat her like her own mother. She told Erii to call her if she felt sad, and not to keep it to herself.

Erii remembers that hug as warm and comforting.