Arc 1: Mira in a Doomsday World [8]

Xu felt that he was about to go crazy with Mira's constant teasing. He let out a flustered sigh and quickly pulled his hand back, trying to pretend as though nothing happened.

Mira only blinked innocently, looking pure and virtuous.

Wei Lin and Amir witnessed their full interaction, making Wei Lin feel as if her lungs were being scratched.

Seeing as Xu only continued to flirt with Mira without even giving them another glance, Wei Lin tried to contain her resentment and instead chose to take the initiative to speak.

"Captain, we still need to complete the task..."

Xu heard this, and his first reaction was to look at Mira and ask for her opinion.

"Do you want to go back?"

When Xu asked this, Wei Lin's calm expression finally cracked.

As the team leader, other than following Jake's route arrangements, Xu never had to obey others or let others make decisions for him, but now... their captain was actually letting this woman decide whether they should return or not! How could Wei Lin bear it?

She pursed her lips and glared at the back of Mira's head.

Mira seemed to feel it, so she turned her head and met Wei Lin's gaze, startling her. Mira's eyes curved, and she circled her arms around Xu's neck, as if to taunt Wei Lin.

"Okay~ You carry me back~" Mira's sweet and coquettish voice only made Wei Lin's anger rise, and she almost couldn't stop herself from pushing Mira away and separating her from Xu.

Xu, on the other hand, remained oblivious to Wei Lin's inner turmoil. He hummed in agreement and directly carried Mira in his arms as he stood up. Mira took the bowl of strawberries, looked at Amir and Wei Lin, then smiled.

"Do you want some?"

Wei Lin looked at the white and delicate outstretched arm in front of her. Anger filled her immediately, and she didn't even get to think about where the strawberry came from. She had to clench her fists just to resist the urge to smack that arm away.

"No," Wei Lin spoke through gritted teeth.

Mira raised her brows, shrugged, then turned to Amir, "How about you, do you want some?"

This was the first time Amir saw Mira up close. He had always paid little attention to everything else whenever Wei Lin was present, so although he vaguely felt that Mira was attractive, her beauty never actually sunk in. Now that he met her up close and face-to-face, he finally realized why a man as cold as Xu would fall in love at first sight.

A beauty exuded not just from the skin, not just from the bones, but from the soul itself...

One couldn't help but want to reach out and try to keep her—lock her up, and never let her go. It's the sort of beauty that could evoke the deepest greed in a person's heart with just a glance, shrouding one's mind with unexplainable dark thoughts.

Amir wondered whether Xu felt the same way when he first saw Mira, or whether he was just too dark and twisted, actually harboring such thoughts for someone he just met.

Mira saw Amir's expression and instantly knew his thoughts.

She had met many people from many worlds. Both men and women, young and old, would be unable to resist the charm that came from the soul, which actually caused Mira quite a lot of trouble before. Most of her admirers would gradually become obsessive, and there were even those who tried to lock her up in a little black room.

Amir's eyes at this moment were exactly like those people's. Piercing, yet dazed, as if trapped in a fantasy, without taking notice that a little greed was already spilling out of their eyes.

Mira's mood brightened.

Actually, she would sometimes find some of those people cute. Moreover, they also usually helped Mira complete her tasks, so as long as they stayed obedient and not too greedy, Mira didn't mind playing with them once in a while. For those whom she especially liked, she would even accompany them to death.

These people had long since lost their minds. For them, even Mira's lightest caress would be worth getting stabbed. Her dying alongside them would simply be considered an honor.

In fact, Amir was wrong.

Mira had three things she was proud of: her beauty, charm, and her very existence. It was not Mira's beauty that would evoke greed—it was her entity itself, and what she truly evoked was not greed. It varied from person to person. Greed, obsession, love, desire, madness... these were all just a few examples. Being able to bring out the truest thoughts and feelings, to the point of eroding the mentality of any being, was Mira's real ability.

This was why Mira could easily make Wei Lin lose her demeanor—the little jealousy and anxiety that Wei Lin felt would be greatly amplified when facing Mira. No matter how negligible, the fire in Wei Lin's heart would only burn stronger, until the time comes when she burns herself entirely.

The same goes for Xu. His calmness would always disappear whenever being teased, all because of his own inexperience. Even if the so-called aloof team captain had many life and death experiences, when it comes to romance, he was still quite clueless. This cluelessness resulted in his clumsy responses and uncontrollable awkwardness to Mira's flirtation.

On the other hand, Amir clearly had a preference for extremity. A man who had always guarded his beloved, silently enduring while she was smitten with another, would naturally develop a certain paranoia, especially under the current harsh environment. His deep longing for affection made him obsessive and just seeing Mira brought out this hidden side of him that he wasn't even aware of.

Although he hid it quickly, it was still there, and since the darkness had already been exposed, it would completely come out sooner or later.

The so-called madness would stem from these seemingly trivial feelings.

Amir, who has yet to understand what was to come, took a piece of strawberry from the bowl without even noticing Wei Lin's ugly expression.

"Thank you," he spoke lowly.

Mira gave him a sweet smile, then continued snuggling comfortably in Xu's arms.

Xu let her adjust her position before walking back to the team's location with Wei Lin and Amir.

Seeing the four of them return, Sakura glanced at the intimate figures in front and immediately came to Wei Lin's side, "That little bitch must've done something to the Captain... Before, he wouldn't let anybody touch him so casually, but now, he even carries that slut wherever he goes."

Wei Lin responded coldly, "It doesn't matter, they would have to be separated sooner or later."

Sakura raised her brows, "What do you mean?"

"An oil bottle with no use... in the apocalypse, how could such a person survive?" Wei Lin trailed off ambiguously.

"That's right," Sakura looked at Wei Lin with some understanding, "As long as the captain leaves her side, she is bound to get killed."

Wei Lin also gave her a meaningful gaze, "You should know what to do."

Mira looked in the direction of the two women who were secretly whispering far away.

Of course, she knew about Wei Lin's plans. But will Mira stop her? No. She planned to let Wei Lin do as she wanted, otherwise, there wouldn't be any good show.

"Do you want to accompany us to the warehouse?"

Xu suddenly asked.

"Don't you want me to go with you?" Mira raised her brows.

"I just thought that you'd prefer to stay here alone," Xu explained.

Mira shrugged, "It would be boring to stay here alone... although, if you'd keep me company, I won't mind staying here."

Seeing Mira's playful smirk, Xu only smiled helplessly while feeding her another strawberry.

He inadvertently caught a glance of Mira's pink lips, and he couldn't help but remember what happened earlier. Xu's ears reddened, and he immediately forced himself to get rid of these thoughts.

"Will we be heading to your base after this task?" Mira asked.

"Yes... we'll take the mountain route this time. We can't risk any more ambushes."

"How long will it take to get to your base then?"

Xu thought for a while, "...five days, this includes the breaks in-between."

Five days.

Mira tapped her fingers thoughtfully.

Well, a lot can happen in five days~

°°°

It didn't take long for the group to finish their planning and preparation. Upon double-checking everything, they immediately exited the mall and headed into their respective vehicles.

Mira and Xu went to the off-road vehicle that they brought earlier. In the backseat were the backpack and the large duffel bag containing weapons. Xu beckoned Jin to come over.

He took the bag of weapons and handed it over to Jin.

"These are...?" Jin asked with a puzzled expression.

"Mira gave it," Xu explained, "There are many guns there. You pick a few for yourself and give away the rest to everyone else."

Xu naturally gave their most capable sniper preferential treatment when it came to distributing guns and ammunition, not to mention that Jin was also his best friend.

Jin was surprised, "Mira?" he glanced at the soft-looking girl clinging to Xu, "Where did you get these?"

Mira shrugged, "I got lucky and found them in the room I was originally staying in."

"You're very lucky indeed," Jin shuffled through the contents of the bag and looked at Mira with appreciative eyes, "Thank you, this is a lot of help for the team."

"You're welcome," Mira smiled sweetly, "Xu's friends are my friends. I'm weak, but I'm very lucky. I'll do my best to help you guys too!"

Jin smiled back sincerely, "Don't worry about everyone's attitude, we're just not used to getting along with new people. They'll soften up eventually."

Mira still appreciated such a gentleman, "Thank you for your encouragement, brother Jin~"

Jin rubbed the back of his neck embarrassedly.

"No need to thank me..." he caught a glimpse of Xu, who was standing beside Mira, and immediately cleared his throat, "You are our future sister-in-law. It's only natural to encourage you."

Mira's smile deepened, and Xu blushed uncontrollably.

When Jin left to give others the weapons, Mira turned to Xu.

"Your friends aren't as bad as I thought," she poked Xu's reddish ears, "Since he called me 'sister-in-law', should I call you 'husband'?"

Xu's grip on her hand tightened. He looked away to avoid her playful gaze.

"Don't take his words seriously..."

"Husband~"

Xu pulled Mira into the car and immediately sat down in the driver's seat.

"Don't shout," he sighed helplessly.

Mira pinched his ear playfully, "Husband, are you embarrassed?"

Xu turned redder, "I- No, I mean... Please don't call me husband..."

"Why not?" Mira leaned back in her seat, "Don't you call me 'master'? What are you still ashamed of?"

After being reminded of this matter, Xu only wanted to find a hole to bury himself into. He had a tangled expression as he tried to defend himself, "That's different..."

"Okay," Mira waved her hands, "I won't call you husband anymore."

Xu sighed in relief, but not even three seconds later, Mira spoke again.

"I won't call you 'husband', I'll call you 'hubby' from now on, okay? Hubby~"

Xu drove the car with a red face and booming heartbeat.

×××

Mira: Husband~

Xu:  ⁄ ( ⁄   ⁄ • ⁄ - ⁄ • ⁄   ⁄ ) ⁄ 

Mira: Hubby, call me wife~

Xu: *shy* ...wife~ (/ω＼)