Author's Note: This chapter is... the calm before the storm? With an extra dip of Veau!
Everyone stared at the unexpected guest among them, their expressions a mixture of emotions. Xue placed his hand on his forehead, sighing in frustration before he tossed Veau’s arm away and grabbed his drink.
He took one big gulp, slamming the drink down on his table.
“Ah! It’s you!” Haru pointed at Veau, chuckling a little. “The weird partner that proclaims himself as the devil! And the creator of dark magic!”
K’xug walked towards Xue, putting his hand on Xue’s shoulder.
Xue shook his head, sighing as he waved K’xug off.
Veau pointed to himself, still smiling. “It is a fact.”
“He’s weird, right? Who goes around calling themselves the devil?” Haru laughed, looking at his comrades. “If he is the devil, then I am the Supreme God from the legends himself!”
Veau and Xue looked at Haru with raised eyebrows.
K’xug snorted.
Cecil widened her eyes at Haru.
If there’s one thing in common among the self-proclaimed pirate crew…
It’s how gutsy they are.
Cecil felt a drop of sweat sliding down her face.
Yun rolled his eyes at his captain, sipping at his drink.
“There he goes again,” Kiyae gulped down her drink. “Just watch him laugh proudly next.”
True to Kiyae’s words, Haru placed his hands on his hips, throwing his head back as he guffawed proudly.
“Bow down before me, you peasants! Hahaha!”
Kiyae mimicked those same words being said with her mouth, shrugging as she gulped down her drink once more.
Meanwhile, Shin was staring at Veau the entire time, a dubious look in his midnight black eyes.
Xue frowned at Haru’s words.
Those were words he would never say.
Kai: “This Haru fella...he’s got guts.”
Zasiok: “He’s annoying.”
Leonaut: “For someone so annoying, he has many connections.”
Alric: “Ye-yes, renting out an entire inn like this for a banquet...it’s something only the wealthiest merchants are capable of.”
Sid: “The food looks good.”
Isleif looked at Sid drooling over the food, making a disgusted expression.
Isleif: “Disgusting.”
Ryo blinked sleepily at Veau.
“Ah, captain,” Ryo yawned, scratching his head. “Isn’t he the one who sunk your stolen ship too?”
Haru paused in mid-laughter.
“Took you long enough to realise.” Kiyae smirked.
Yun seemed to be talking to the owner of the inn, asking him to bring out more dishes.
“That’s right, you destroyed the ship too! You weird back-stabbing partner!” Haru rushed towards Veau, grabbing him by the collar as he extended his hand out. “Pay up! For my ship!”
“Did you not say it was stolen?” Veau answered lazily.
“It’s my stolen ship! So it’s still my ship! Pay up!”
Veau simply plucked Haru’s hand off his collar, throwing it aside before he smoothened his robes. “What do you desire?”
Haru rubbed at his nose, grinning before he threw his arm around Veau’s shoulder.
“Join us!” Haru guffawed. “The more the merrier!”
Xue and K’xug widened their eyes at Haru.
Cecil was horrified.
Did he just invite Veau to join us in this banquet?!
Xue and K’xug are clearly here too!
Hana blinked back and forth between her friends, giggling. “You guys have funny expressions.”
Veau glanced at Xue, K’xug and Cecil. In their eyes, they were clearly expecting him to say “no” and leave after satisfying his curiosity of observing the new soul fragment of Xue, Shin.
Alas, the devil was truly the devil.
Why would he listen to others?
“Of course,” Veau shrugged. “I was feeling bored anyway.”
Cecil gaped openly at Veau.
Xue and K’xug wore an ugly expression on their face.
“I knew it,” Kiyae nodded to herself as she continued drinking. “Whenever someone pops in our party, he just drags the person in.”
“It means less drinks for me…” Ryo noted sadly.
“Oi, Yun! Tell the owner to--”
Yun and the owner appeared from behind, placing more dishes on the table.
“Here you go, captain.”
“That’s fast.”
Shin continued staring at Veau, his eyebrows furrowed.
He looks similar to that person that appeared in the alley.
The one who offered me more power…
Shin was growing suspicious of Veau.
Hence, the banquet to celebrate Shin’s return commenced in such a strange atmosphere.
***
“Shin…”
“Oi, Shin!”
“Shinnnnn!”
Shin turned to look at Haru, his orange blonde hair highlighted under the lights. His face appeared slightly red, and he seemed to be tipsy.
“Shin, can you still...draw?”
Shin swallowed the food down in his mouth, tilting his head at Haru. “What do you want?”
“You still can?” Haru grinned, settling down beside Shin and throwing his arm around Shin. “Greeeeat!”
Shin exhaled sharply at the arm weighing heavily on his tiny body, narrowing his eyes.
“Think you can draw a rough sketch of all of us here?” Haru continued grinning, leaning down. “I dare ya! To finish it by the end of tonight!”
Shin was intrigued at the challenge, and Yun was observant enough to pick up on the anticipation in Shin’s eyes.
“Rough sketch.” Shin nodded.
Once again, Yun went on a mission to find the owner but this time, it was to provide paper and ink for Shin.
“What’s this? Little Shin is drawing?!” Kiyae squealed, rushing forward to tackle Shin in a hug. “I want to see, I want to see it too!”
Ryo collapsed on the wooden floor, holding an empty cup in his hands as he snored away.
Haru stopped Kiyae before she crushed them both, glaring at her. “You’ll suffocate him to death before he can even draw at this rate.”
“Boooo.”
“Oh, Shin is going to draw,” Cecil smiled softly, standing up from her seat and walking towards Shin. “I am going to have a look too.”
“Me too!” Hana chirped.
Xue was currently enjoying the parfait that Hana had promised to make for him, since he liked it back on the cruise ship. He carried the parfait in his hands, putting a spoonful of it in his mouth as he trailed behind Cecil, the spoon hanging from his mouth.
K’xug was beside Hana, enjoying another dish that Hana had contributed in making as well.
“So this young soul fragment of yours can draw well? That’s surprising.” Veau appeared beside them, turning to Hana. “By the way, Hana Katae, I never knew you were such a good cook.”
Hana rubbed at her nose, beaming. “I trained hard for it! So I can enjoy good food too!”
K’xug covered Hana’s mouth, glaring at Veau.
It was as if K’xug was warning Hana to not talk to Veau.
Hana blinked rapidly, looking at K’xug.
Meanwhile, Xue only glanced at Veau, an inscrutable look in his eyes but he did not respond to Veau’s words.
Cecil did not know what to make of the situation.
This is such a strange party...no matter how I look at it.
Eventually, all of them crowded around Shin, observing intently as he started drawing. His movements were swift yet relaxed.
***
Shin was still drawing, whereas, the self-proclaimed pirate crew was already completely drunk except for Yun who was still accompanying Shin in his drawing.
Ryo and Kiyae were sleeping next to each other, mumbling incoherently.
Meanwhile, Haru was nodding off sleepily with an empty cup in his hands. He was seated in between Cecil and Veau, and Cecil leaned forward, looking at Hana seated beside K’xug.
Surprisingly, Hana found the taste of the sweet wine irresistible, hence, she had been constantly drinking cup after cup. She was blinking sleepily, staring off into space with a blank gaze, not saying a single word.
“Somehow, I expected Hana to giggle endlessly,” Cecil mused, looking at Hana with a small smile. “But to think that Hana was those quiet types when she is tipsy…”
Xue looked at Hana, frowning to himself. “If I recall, this is the first time I have seen Hana tipsy. She did not drink much in the past.”
K’xug nodded.
“Impropriety is taken very seriously in the heavenly realm,” Veau observed the drink in his hand, taking a sip before nodding in approval. “Hana Katae would not dare to be drunk right in front of the Supreme God.”
“That’s...logical.” Cecil mumbled out, surprised that for once, she found herself agreeing with Veau’s words.
Xue scoffed.
K’xug remained indifferent.
Cecil could feel the tension in the air once again, and she sipped at her drink nervously.
“This is something we will all agree on, don’t we?” Veau rested his chin on his palm, smiling lazily at Xue and K’xug. “Even your beloved Cecil Lan is agreeing with me.”
Cecil spit out her drink, coughing harshly as she looked at Veau with wide eyes. “Be--be...beloved…”
“Unfortunately, yes.” Xue growled out, patting Cecil on the back.
K’xug shrugged, impropriety was something he couldn't be bothered with.
Cecil swivelled her head to Xue, her eyes still as wide.
He...he is not even denying it!
Xue noticed Cecil’s eyes on him, and he softened his expression. He grabbed the napkin from the table, wiping her mouth.
Cecil felt her heart skipping a beat, her face growing red.
Beloved…
Cecil ducked her head down, and Xue leaned in, trying to meet her gaze as she grew shy.
Veau witnessed their loving scene, his smile dropping slightly as he appeared somewhat disgusted, shaking his head.
“K’xug!” Hana exclaimed.
Her loud outburst shocked everyone on the table, including Haru who was startled awake.
K’xug looked at Hana beside him with wide eyes, and Hana grabbed his face with both of her hands without warning, squishing his cheeks.
His different-coloured eyes remained on her, the bewilderment apparent in them.
“You are so handsome! And cute!”
K’xug blinked rapidly, his cheeks still being squashed.
Hana smiled at K’xug, releasing his face and proceeded to wrap her arms around him. She giggled, leaning in and kissing his cheek.
Xue raised his eyebrows.
“Oh my…” Cecil whispered out in shock.
Veau scoffed in disbelief.
K’xug was frozen.
Hana hugged him tighter, snuggling into him with her eyes closed as she smiled. “K’xug...K’xug…”
The copper brown-haired man immediately blushed all the way up to his ears.
Haru pointed at them, laughing. “They are cute!”
The next second, his eyes closed and his head fell towards Cecil, landing on her shoulder. Seeing this sight, Xue reached forward and shoved Haru away.
Veau was preparing to drink his grape wine when he felt an impact on his shoulder, and he saw Haru leaning on his shoulder.
He gave Xue a look, and Xue simply disregarded him.
“...”
Veau lifted his hand, his finger coated in black magic as he flicked Haru on the head.
Haru gasped awake, looking around in a daze. “Huh? What? What? What?”
“Ah, the self-proclaimed devil!” Haru pointed, blinking sleepily. “Don’t think...I forgot about my payment for destroying my stolen ship!”
“Payment…” Veau placed his drink down, reaching into his robes as he procured a small glass bottle. “Here you go.”
“What’s...what’s this?” Haru took the bottle from his hands, shaking it. “There’s nothing inside of it…”
“Open this bottle, and everyone within the area would be rendered unconscious,” Veau explained. “Including yourself.”
Xue and K’xug looked at the bottle, and absorbed Veau’s words, their expression twisting with dread.
Cecil noticed their suspicious glance at the bottle, feeling apprehensive.
“Ah? Including me?”
“Yes, including you.”
Haru looked at the empty bottle in his hands, his hand flying to the cap. “Sounds interesting! Let’s try it out now!”
“The stench of a Qouling is divine,” Veau added on nonchalantly, sipping down the grape wine. “Just like this homemade grape wine.”
“I knew it!” Xue hissed out, reaching out to Haru as he barked out. “Oi, you idiot! Don’t open it!”
K’xug paled, trying to stop Haru only to realise Hana was still clinging onto him.
“You telling me not to open it makes it wanna open it more!”
“Don’t you dare--Cecil, make sure he doesn’t open it!”
“E-eh? O-okay!”
“K’xug...you are so warm and fluffy and handsome and cute, hehehe…”
K’xug was in a flustered mess, not knowing whether to push Hana off or to allow Hana to continue hugging him.
“If you really open it, it’s not only people fainting that you have to deal with!”
“Haha! Is that so?”
“You bastard!”
“Xu-Xue! I can’t reach him if you are squeezing me like--this!”
Veau smiled lazily to himself, enjoying the chaos around him.
Yun was watching the chaos from the corner, smiling to himself.
It’s rowdy.
“Oh, captain?” Kiyae yawned, snatching the bottle out from his hands. “What’s this you are holding--ah.”
The bottle slipped from Kiyae’s hands, and everyone knew the moment it touched the ground, it would break into pieces.
Xue and K’xug blanched.
Hana rubbed her face against K’xug’s chest, smiling.
Cecil gasped, trying to reach out to the bottle.
Haru still continued grinning.
All of a sudden, a hand reached out to catch the bottle and the person brought the bottle closer to him.
“I lied, there’s nothing inside this bottle,” Veau revealed, his tone light-hearted. “Though, I have to say, I enjoyed the spectacle.”
Xue grabbed onto Veau’s collar, flaring up. “Veau, you bastard! You and your tricks again!”
Veau let out a relaxed chuckle, raising his arms up in surrender.
Haru laughed and Kiyae only scratched her head in confusion.
Cecil found herself laughing softly as well, making Xue stare at her.
“Why are you laughing too?”
“I don’t know, it just...somehow...a little funny.”
“Ah, look here, your beloved shares the same humour as me.”
Cecil went still, glancing down shyly. “Beloved…”
“Don’t think you can change the topics like always,” Xue tightened his grip on Veau’s collar, annoyed. “I won’t fall for it this time.”
“Fine, fine,” Veau sighed, before whipping out the bottle and placing it in front of Xue’s face. “You can try smelling it to see if you do not believe me.”
Xue recoiled back in terror.
It was very unlike the gloomy and indifferent Xue that everyone knew.
Everyone started snickering at Xue’s terrified expression, including Cecil who was trying to hide her laughter.
“Why do you look as if that bottle holds all your worst fears in the world?” Haru questioned. “It’s just a damn bottle!”
“Don’t--don’t believe this blue-haired bastard, he can lie about everything,” Xue growled out, recalling the horrible memories as he shuddered. “That damn Qouling stench haunted me for days…”
“Still want to open it?” Veau probed.
“Yes--”
“No!”
“Big brother Haru.” Shin suddenly called out, tugging onto his shirt. “I...am done.”
Shin handed over the rough sketch that Haru challenged him to do, and everyone crowded over him except for Hana and Ryo who were passed out on their seats.
K’xug had finally managed to slowly pull Hana off of him, and laid her down gently on the seat.
Everyone observed the rough sketch that Shin did, and a few of them gasped in amazement.
“All of us are drawn in a few hours?”
“Even if it is a rough sketch, it looks great!”
“As expected of our little genius Shin.”
Shin ducked his head down shyly, drawing circles with his feet.
The drawing had actually captured the essence of the banquet, along with the appearances of everyone.
Cecil and the group were sitting together, laughing.
Ryo and Kiyae were asleep on the floor.
Haru was the life of the party.
Yun stood aside, adjusting his glasses as he wore a small smile.
Veau was seated next to Cecil’s group, observing the entire scene with a lazy smile.
“Even though you only just met Veau, you still manage to draw him really well,” Cecil noted, amazed at Shin’s drawing capabilities before she lowered her voice. “Well, I can’t say you just met him, actually…”
“I met him before.” Shin admitted.
Everyone turned to Shin in shock, including Veau.
“I do not remember meeting this small version of you.” Veau said, his words confusing some people.
“Not you,” Shin stated, looking at Veau. “But someone similar.”
Veau furrowed his eyebrows at Shin, dropping his smile.
“He...offered me something, like an orb. He said if I absorb others like me using that, I would become stronger.”
In an instant, everyone except for the self-proclaimed pirate crew understood what Shin meant. Xue and K’xug turned to look at Veau, summoning out their weapons and aiming it at Veau.
“Veau, what’s your reason for coming here?” Xue questioned, narrowing his eyes.
“Like I said,” Veau gestured to Shin. “To celebrate the reunion--”
“Your real reason!” Xue barked out, moving his spear closer to Veau’s neck. “Your...real reason. For coming here.”
Veau smiled lazily.
***
Pt. 1
《 start 》
Get.
Off.
Her.
Shoulder!
《 stop 》
***
Pt. 2
《 start 》
On the cheek…
She kissed me.
On the cheek.
She kissed…
No, I cannot waver now.
I cannot waver now.
I cannot waver now...
《 stop 》