Nic woke up first and saw Qian still sleeping soundly.
"Yawn... I'll go for a morning run first and see what the morning is like here."
Nic went out, and there were already many people passing by, but what surprised him was...
"BOOMMMM!" Cecilia immediately jumped onto Nic's back and hugged his neck.
"WHOA! My god, I thought it was something else!!" Nic was startled.
"Hehe, I've been waiting for you to come out," Cecilia said while being carried by Nic.
"Sigh... so you're really going to follow me everywhere..." Nic said resignedly.
Finally, Cecilia got down, and they had a relaxed morning run together.
Nic asked about yesterday, about the Southern Country being called terrifying and chaotic by people.
Cecilia explained that as long as people behaved well without committing violations or crimes, they were safe and sound. But if they caused trouble even once and acted arrogantly, especially if it was excessive, the gangs in their respective territories would step in and give a punishment commensurate with their actions, without exception and without mercy.
What made it chaotic was when one of the gangs had a dispute; that could lead to war, and that's what made the citizens scared because they clashed with each other.
There were a total of five dominant gangs whose members were spread across each territory:
1. Deadly Poison: Territory at the seaside, all beaches, and forests also belonged to the Deadly Poison area.
2. Southern Hell Forest: Military territory and the country's border, as well as important areas like the president's residence.
3. Weapon of the Devil: Territory of all armament shops and city malls.
4. Death for Death: Territory of parks, entertainment areas, and all types of workplaces.
5. Angel of Death: The capital city territory, and the Angel of Death had eyes everywhere.
"How about that, Nic? Do you understand now?" Cecilia looked at him.
Nic nodded. "They're not dangerous as long as we don't cause trouble?"
"Yup, that's right."
Nic then stopped and looked at Cecilia. "What if... I cause trouble here? Will the snake in front of me finish me off?"
"..."
Cecilia was silent, staring at Nic, then the sun slowly rose.
"Ahahahahahaah, good question... that's up to you~ Do you want to try to start a war? I'm on your side~ Wahahahaah!!" Cecilia laughed like a maniac, her long tongue sticking out, giving Nic the chills.
Then Nic covered her mouth. "Shhh, enough, I was just joking!"
But Cecilia's long tongue made Nic's palm tickle, and Nic immediately ran away, with Cecilia chasing him.
From a distance, the fisherman from the Angel of Death members witnessed this and took a photo of the two of them.
---
After the chase went on for quite a while, Cecilia finally left because she had business to attend to.
"Huft, finally that flirty snake is gone. Hey, are you awake?" Nic said, seeing Qian in front of the door with a gloomy face.
Qian just stood silently and pointed across the street to the bakery. It turned out that was the girl Qian liked, and she was with Qian's friend.
Then Qian recounted what had happened earlier.
Initially, Qian was called by the girl he liked, named Belina, to go for a run together.
"I was so excited, but..."
But it turned out his friend, named Ken, also joined, and it made Qian the third wheel throughout the exercise.
Qian's face looked full of fake smiles, and he stared at Nic desperately.
"I have no hope, Nic... what do you think? I really like Belina... but ugh, damn it!!" Qian immediately left and returned to the dorm.
Nic, feeling sorry for him, went to the bakery by the roadside where Belina and Ken were eating bread together.
Nic pretended to buy bread while activating the Listen to the Heart skill on Belina.
The content of her heart showed that she felt bad about Qian. Belina was aware that Qian liked her, but she only considered Qian as a childhood friend, nothing more.
After knowing that, Nic asked, "Excuse me... do you know Qian?"
Belina immediately looked up and nodded. Then Nic pretended to ask her to take him to Qian's place.
"Sure, it's not far from here. Ken, wait here, okay?" Belina said.
Ken nodded, and Belina escorted Nic to Qian's place.
On the way, Nic immediately asked, "Do you have no intention of being honest with Qian about your feelings for him?"
Belina was shocked and immediately stopped. "What do you mean?"
"It's better to tell him now if you don't like him. That will make him realize sooner and prevent him from hurting longer if you don't tell him," Nic said.
The two of them talked on the road for a while, and finally Belina understood what Nic meant. She went there alone while Nic waited.
Belina knocked on Qian's dorm room, and Qian opened it.
"Huh?? B-Belina...? What's wrong?" Qian looked surprised.
"Hey, don't be so surprised. Um, I just want to tell you something," Belina said, playing with her fingers.
"So... what do you want to talk about?" Qian asked.
Belina took a deep breath.
"I hope that after I say this, you still want to be my childhood friend... Honestly, I know you like me, Qian, but I'm sorry, I only consider you as my childhood friend and nothing more... And about Ken, he helps me a lot and supports me. I'm sorry, Qian, I like Ken. Thank you because of you I got to know him, and I hope you still want to be good friends with him and me, okay... I know this disappoints you. Again, I apologize, bye..." Belina explained, then hugged Qian briefly and left with a smile.
Qian stood frozen, clenching his hands tightly. He bit his lip and held back his emotions.
"I know... in your eyes, I never helped or supported you, huh... I'm really useless... hoping to still be good friends? Yeah, fine, F*CK fine, what are you talking about? Do you know what I'm feeling right now? Damn it..." Qian covered his face with his hands.
Then Nic came in.
"Don't be so weak."
Hearing Nic's voice, Qian immediately became emotional.
"Weak... IT MUST BE YOU, NIC, WHO TOLD HER I LIKED HER UNTIL SHE CAME HERE? BECAUSE OF YOU, MY HEART HURTS EVEN MORE NOW!!!!" Qian yelled at Nic's face.
But Nic remained calm. "I did ask her to come here so she would express her feelings now. As for her knowing you like her, she already knew that on her own."
"I don't need her to express her feelings... I'm even more embarrassed by this kind of rejection," Qian said.
"WAKE UP!!" Nic grabbed both of Qian's shoulders and stared intensely at him, surprising Qian.
"Do you know!? Loving someone who won't love you back is pointless!! No matter how much effort you put in, if someone else is in their heart, it's useless! Are you hoping she'll pity you and love you back because you fought so hard from the beginning!? No!! You will only hurt yourself more without realizing it..." Nic said.
Qian fell silent.
"Listen, you can't determine someone's heart yourself. If you are not loved back, just admire them and let go... Life isn't just about the person who doesn't acknowledge us. Look forward, because there is still a lot of other love you might get, far more than this... True love is real, and you will find it later, trust me! The point is, don't wallow in sadness just because of a woman who doesn't love you... understood?" Nic said deeply.
Hearing Nic's words, Qian began to realize.
"Actually, I don't mind her liking someone else, but what annoys me is that she likes my own friend... but never mind, I understand what you mean, Nic... thank you for making me realize," Qian said with a smile, regaining his determination.
"How about we go to an entertainment place to refresh your heart?" Nic suggested.
"Entertainment? Oh, let's go clubbing," Qian said, which surprised Nic.
"Eh? Why? Have you never been to a club?" Qian asked.
"No, I haven't," Nic replied.
Qian explained that clubs in the South are common for its residents, and the clubs here are different because the security is tight, so no perverts will often force people, as they are supervised by members of the Death for Death gang.
Nic understood and agreed to go there, but suddenly Cecilia appeared.
"Weeeee, where are you going..." Cecilia's voice emerged from behind Nic.
Qian was immediately startled and bowed respectfully in fear. "Please, Miss Cecilia!!! We just want to go to an entertainment place!"
"Huh, entertainment place? Heeeee!! Do you want to find a girl, Nic???" Cecilia said with a pout while pressing her face against Nic's cheek.
Seeing that, Qian was shocked that Nic was close to Cecilia. In his heart, Qian thought, "What... so Nic is close to The Snake!? Most people around The Snake are terrifying, which means I yelled at a Deadly Poison member earlier!!!! WAGHH!!"
Qian immediately broke into a cold sweat.
Nic immediately asked, "So you want to join because you're done with your business?"
But Cecilia shook her head. "Huh, unfortunately, I don't feel like going there. More accurately, I'm not in the mood for the Death for Death members. Be careful, okay? If anything happens, call me, mweheh, bye."
Cecilia immediately left.
Qian breathed a sigh of relief because Cecilia didn't hurt him, and they immediately headed to the club.
To be continued...