"What about Moze? How's his condition?" Stelle asked from the side.
"Moze was in the worst condition—his life was in danger," Lingsha replied, glancing over and waving her hand at Stelle. "But don't worry, thanks to the Xianzhou Luofu's miraculous Healer Lady..."
"Under her treatment, Moze is completely out of danger now."
"He's currently resting in the infirmary, just like General Feixiao and Mr. Jiaoqiu."
"I see... so that means..." Stelle nodded thoughtfully, a mischievous smile tugging at her lips.
"..."
Before Stelle could finish her sentence, everyone already guessed what she was about to say.
But March 7th reacted far faster than Stelle's mouth. Before Stelle could utter another word, March 7th lunged forward, clamping a hand over her mouth to silence her.
"Shut up!" March 7th snapped. "Next time you spout some outrageous nonsense in an inappropriate situation, I swear I'll tear your mouth off!"
"Mmmph?! Mmmph!" Stelle struggled against March 7th's restraint.
March 7th's resolve was unwavering, her grip tight, leaving Stelle no chance to struggle.
Unfortunately...
March 7th had underestimated Stelle's sheer audacity.
Realizing March 7th's determination and her unwillingness to let Stelle speak, Stelle gazed at the small hand clamped over her mouth, hesitated for a moment, then knew exactly what to do.
She stuck out her tongue and licked the palm of March 7th's hand.
March 7th: ?!
"Ah?!"
Feeling the sudden wetness on her palm, March 7th instantly wanted to kill Stelle.
As if electrocuted, she yanked her hand back, glaring fiercely at Stelle. The fury in her eyes burned with an intensity that could incinerate Stelle for forty-nine days straight.
"Hm?" Unfazed by March 7th's murderous glare, Stelle stood tall, raised an eyebrow, and wore an utterly smug expression.
"Aaaaaaah!"
"You jerk!"
"Honestly..."
Stelle's smug look drove March 7th to the brink of madness. Her lips parted slightly as she prepared to unleash every insult in her vocabulary in a furious verbal assault.
"Seriously..."
"Seriously..."
"Um..."
"Seriously... you big pervert!"
March 7th's small mouth hung slightly open, suspended in the air for an eternity. Ignoring the endless repetitions and stammering in between, her brain whirred at lightning speed, finally producing what she considered a fiercely "intimidating" insult.
"Ah, 'big pervert'?" Stelle murmured, repeating the words.
"What? Scared now? Hurry up and apologize to me!" March 7th, oblivious to the odd expression on Stelle's face, took her response as proof of her insult's devastating effectiveness.
March 7th planted her hands on her hips, her small face radiating the smug delight only a victor could possess.
She seemed immensely pleased with her choice of vulgarity.
But then... Stelle's next words shattered March 7th's smug, triumphant expression completely.
"The title 'big pervert'...? I actually think it suits me quite well. Thanks for the compliment, ha!" Mimicking March 7th's pose, Stelle planted her hands on her hips, a smug, victorious grin spreading across her face.
"March 7th, thank you for bestowing upon me this new title."
If you're thick-skinned, you naturally have thick-skinned solutions.
Besides, I'm a total pervert anyway—what can you even do to me?
What else can you do but praise me with that phrase?
March 7th: ...
March 7th's face stiffened, her joyful expression vanishing instantly as her hands slowly lowered from her hips.
Though Stelle stopped speaking after her words of gratitude, March 7th couldn't shake the feeling—the certainty—that Stelle was still silently taunting her in her mind.
"You—!"
"Alright, March, Stelle, stop squabbling," Lumina interjected, sensing the two were about to erupt into another argument.
Beautiful girls arguing, beautiful girls fighting—these were exactly the scenes Lumina longed to witness.
In her heart, she was practically chanting, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
But to maintain her virtuous image, Lumina had to step in and mediate the conflict.
Hmm... if they hadn't noticed her, Lumina would definitely have stayed out of it.
Lumina would find a hidden spot to crouch down, then raise her Image Stone to record their beautiful life together.
And then...
Then she'd display the Image Stone before them, reveling in their flushed faces!
Such were Lumina's shallow thoughts, never delving into any deeper considerations.
"Hmph, just wait until I beat you next time, you'll see!" Despite March 7th's fury and her burning desire to beat Stelle senseless, the moment Sister Lumina spoke, her body and her agitated, anger-fueled mind would instantly calm down—a remarkable phenomenon.
It was like a miracle drug: no matter how severe the injury or illness, a single dose of this potent medicine would immediately restore her to normal.
March 7th was no exception, and neither was Stelle. The moment Lumina spoke, Stelle also regained her composure.
She retracted all the harsh words she had been preparing to make March 7th cry and, after responding to her final taunt, reverted to her rarely seen, normal self.
"I'll be waiting."
"Hehe, their bond is so touching. I'm almost envious," Lingsha chuckled, covering her mouth as she watched March 7th and Stelle interact.
Though their earlier exchange had seemed like they were about to come to blows, they were actually nowhere near fighting.
How far apart were they, exactly?
As far apart as March 7th's strength was from General Feixiao's.
"Who's close to her? All she does is say outrageous things to annoy me," March 7th retorted irritably at Lingsha's comment.
Then, as if struck by a sudden thought, she added, "You know, Stelle reminds me of that Scott guy—always pulling off the most illogical, mind-boggling, downright heaven-defying stunts!"
"Thanks for the compliment, ha! I do think I'm pretty heaven-defying myself," Stelle grinned, her cheerful smile returning to her face.
"See! See!"
"Who in their right mind would take 'heaven-defying' as a compliment?!"
March 7th shouted triumphantly, a "knew it!" expression spreading across her face.
"Heh heh heh, defying the will of the heavens and going against the flow—how could that not be considered praise?" Lingsha chuckled, offering her interpretation.
While the term "defying the heavens" also had other meanings, referring to someone exceptionally extraordinary in a metaphorical sense, Lingsha knew March 7th meant the internet slang definition—but she couldn't resist teasing her.
"Of course I know that, but 'defying the heavens' has taken on a whole new meaning online," March 7th retorted, pulling out her phone to show Lingsha the term's modern usage.
"Alright, little March, have you forgotten what we came here for?" Lumina interjected before March 7th could complete her search.
"Oh, right! We're here to visit our Masters and General Feixiao," March 7th exclaimed, instantly remembering. She slapped her forehead in self-reproach.
"Where are General Feixiao and the others' rooms? We should go see them."