Dragon Clan: Lu Mingfei Returns from Japan

Chapter 657 My Favorite Evening Breeze

Guderian was unaware of his protégé's colorful love life; he only heard Ye Sheng mention during the interview that Su Xiaoqiang was Lu Mingfei's girlfriend. Therefore, he naturally assumed the other girls were Lu Mingfei's friends.

Selma didn't find anything wrong with Professor Guderian's choice of words. Erii was also present. The head of the Uesugi family was merely staying at Lu Mingfei's house; what relationship could he possibly have with Lu Mingfei?
Therefore, Lu Mingfei's group naturally consists of a boyfriend, girlfriend, and friend combination.

Lu Mingfei didn't seem inclined to correct the mistake. Instead, he looked at Aki and asked, "Professor Guderian said you weren't feeling well and went to the hospital today, Aki? What were the results of the tests?"

"It's nothing, the doctor said it's just a bit of a change in environment," Aki said.

“It’s normal to experience acclimatization issues.” Professor Guderian nodded. “When a person is suddenly in an unfamiliar environment, their body may have a rejection reaction. I recently went to a Gypsy settlement near Lake Baikal to conduct research. I drank a witch’s soup cooked by a Gypsy girl, and my stomach was upset all night.”

Selma thought to herself, "You're not suffering from water and soil incompatibility; you're just craving too much witch's soup."

She absentmindedly cut the Iberian lamb chops on her plate, observing Lu Mingfei across from her and Aki beside her. There seemed to be nothing special about them; the interaction between these two senior and junior students was just so unremarkable.

Selma began to realize she had been worrying too much; the scene of Lu Mingfei and Aki's reunion didn't seem as worrisome as she had imagined. The sky hadn't fallen.

Selma didn't notice any more details.

For example, when Lu Mingfei looks up, Aki will subtly shift her gaze to Professor Guderian's direction;
For example, Aki would participate more actively in Professor Guderian's discussions, while she would mostly just listen quietly when Lu Mingfei spoke.

For example, even though everyone was sitting at the same table, it felt like Aki was very close to everyone except Lu Mingfei.

It wasn't that the interaction between the senior and junior students was uninteresting or too ordinary; rather, it was that one of them was consistently and subtly avoiding the issue. That was all.

"Then I'll go back to my room to rest first," Aki said after chatting for a while.

"Are you going back already?" Professor Guderian asked. "Aki, have you had dinner? Would you like the waiter to bring you a menu?"

Aki stood up and shook her head: "Thanks, Professor. But I already ate out before I came back."

Selma watched Aki's retreating figure. She didn't know why, even though this situation couldn't have been better—nothing had happened, Aki was in good spirits and stable, and a weight had finally been lifted from her heart—she still felt…

The long-awaited reunion between Junior Brother Lu and Aki ended in such a bland way.

"..."

She immediately shook her head, banishing these inexplicable thoughts from her mind. A peaceful life is definitely a good thing! It would be best if Aki and Lu Mingfei continued to live like this, with little interaction!
It seemed that Aki had truly let go of Lu Shidi. Selma felt happy for Aki and even cut the lamb chops a little faster.

The dinner party ended quickly after Aki left. Mainly because dinner was already nearly finished before Aki arrived. At this point, once one person left, the dinner party would quickly disperse.

Professor Guderian offered to put the bill on his tab, as the college would reimburse it, so Lu Mingfei also got to eat dinner with Professor Guderian for free. This gave Lu Mingfei a rare feeling that Professor Guderian was still a decent teacher.

The two sides parted ways at the elevator entrance. Lu Mingfei and his group took the downward elevator downstairs, while Professor Guderian and his group took another elevator back to their respective floor.

However, Selma didn't return to her own room. Instead, she went to Aki's door and knocked cautiously. Although she knew Aki hadn't gone to the hospital that day, as a good friend, Selma felt she should still check on Aki's condition.

Strangely, Selma waited at the door for quite a while, but no one came to open it.

She was a little confused: "Is Aki taking a shower? Or has she already gone to bed? So early?"

Hmm...it seems Aki hasn't completely let go of Junior Brother Lu yet. Seeing Junior Brother Lu with his girlfriend still really hurt Aki.

……

Aki wasn't taking a bath, nor was she asleep. She was simply not in her room.

The city lights were all on, their outlines obscured by the lights and the darkness. Half the city was still young, the other half was already aging. In the distance, a not-so-wide river flowed, like a rope stringing bells together, connecting the new and old parts of the city.

Aki rested her hands alternately on the edge of the rooftop, watching the city lights flow across the river. Suddenly, she remembered that she seemed to recognize that river, from the night she met Lu Mingfei at the night market. She and Selma had walked along the riverside path together.

She knew that Lu Mingfei had lived with his uncle and aunt before high school. Lu Mingfei had walked that road countless times, and she had walked it once as well.

The wind was strong, blowing her somewhat long hair wildly, but it wasn't particularly cold, because it was the height of summer. Even the evening breeze felt warm.

The wind stopped, and Aki crossed her arms. She was unaware that Selma was currently pacing anxiously in front of her room, wondering if she had truly let go of Lu Mingfei.

How can I let it go?
Liking is not like the evening breeze, because it has no origin or source. That's why it's hard to notice when it comes, and even harder to stop once it's here.

"It's about time I went back to my room," she thought.

The city's night view isn't actually that great; it's just average, certainly not as good as Tokyo's.

But for some reason, her feet remained rooted to the spot, her hand supporting her chin, her gaze fixed on the city. Perhaps she simply wanted to linger a little longer in the city's evening breeze?
Aki suddenly paused for a moment.

Because amidst the sound of the evening breeze, a rather inappropriate sound suddenly broke the silence. It was rather inappropriate because the metallic clanging sound, like friction, seemed quite jarring against the howling wind.

She instinctively turned her head, and then her pupils suddenly flickered, her eyes widened silently, and her heart began to pound wildly in her chest.

"How did you know I was here?" The girl's clear and melodious voice was tinged with surprise and bewilderment, like a wind chime pausing slightly.

Instead of asking "How did you get here?", she asked "How did you know I was here?" because Aki's intuition told her that the other person had come to find her.

Lu Mingfei scratched his head: "If I said, 'I didn't know you were here, Senior Sister Aki. I just came to the rooftop for some fresh air and I didn't expect to run into you, Senior Sister,' would you believe me?"

Aki pursed her lips into a thin line and stared silently at Lu Mingfei, clearly not believing his explanation.

Lu Mingfei raised his hands in a helpless gesture: "Okay... but I'm not sure if you're definitely on the rooftop, Senior Sister Aki. Mai often likes to go up to the rooftop to get some fresh air, so I guessed that you might not have gone back to your room either, and might have come up to the rooftop instead. Although there's an element of luck involved, it seems like my luck is pretty good?"

"Mai." Aki's beautiful eyebrows furrowed slightly as she noticed Lu Mingfei's somewhat intimate way of addressing her.

Although she already knew that Lu Mingfei called her sister that way, for some reason, hearing Lu Mingfei call her "Mai" directly made her feel a little... depressed.
"..."

Lu Mingfei coughed lightly, thinking to himself, "Why does Senior Sister Aki always pay attention to these trivial things? Shouldn't she be more focused on his presence?"
But even setting aside the ambiguous relationship between him and Mai Shude, their relationship could be considered that of seasoned comrades-in-arms. After all, they had gone through several dangerous missions together. Therefore, calling her Mai Shude directly would seem a bit too formal and distant.

However, Mai Shude wasn't a student at Kassel College, so he couldn't add a "senior sister" suffix like he would with Aki. After thinking it over, it seemed that simply calling her Mai was the most appropriate. In Japanese anime, close friends often call each other by their first names. Moreover, Mai Shude seemed to tacitly approve of him calling her that, because he had addressed her by her first name during their last phone call, and she hadn't objected.

He subtly changed the subject: "Senior Sister Aki, the edge of that rooftop isn't very high, it's a bit dangerous to lie down like that."

"Are you still afraid of danger?" Aki surprisingly pouted.

This sentence is a pun.

Firstly, it refers to the fact that Lu Mingfei often did dangerous things in various missions before. For example, he faced Father Bernardo alone after being injected with dragon blood, and he also fought Samson, a second-generation dragon, one-on-one.

Secondly, it refers to Lu Mingfei's audacity in handling relationships with women, having affairs with four women at the same time.

Having done so many outrageous things, how could he possibly worry about the danger of lying on the rooftop?

Lu Mingfei said, "I'm not afraid of danger, I'm just afraid that you, Senior Sister Yaji, will be in danger."

"..."

That statement was rather ambiguous. Aki felt a sudden pang of panic and immediately looked away, turning back to lie down on the edge of the rooftop.

"It's alright, the view is pretty good from here. And I didn't sit on the edge of the rooftop. There are probably far more dangerous things you don't encounter when you're on a mission, right?"

"That's true."

"Where are Junior Sister Liu and Junior Sister Su?"

"Strolling around the nearby pedestrian street."

"Isn't it something a boyfriend should do to leave his girlfriend behind and come to the rooftop for some fresh air?"

Aki tilted her head: "Let's go back quickly, we can't keep our girlfriend waiting. One of the responsibilities of a boyfriend is to carry his girlfriend's bag when she's shopping, right?"

Lu Mingfei nodded: "Leaving your girlfriend behind is definitely not something a boyfriend should do."

As Lu Mingfei spoke, he walked to a spot next to Aki, and like her, placed his hands on the edge of the rooftop. He turned his head to look at her and said, "That's why... I came to find you, Senior Sister."

Aki's breathing suddenly froze.

She could hear her already pounding heartbeat become even more chaotic. If heartbeats were like raindrops, then her heart was experiencing a torrential downpour.

After a moment of stillness, breathing became as rapid as a heartbeat.

Aki stared blankly at Lu Mingfei in front of her. What exactly did Junior Brother Lu mean by that sentence just now?
That sentence sounded far too ambiguous, as if it said everything, yet also as if it said nothing at all.

"zen... hiss... wait a minute."

She frantically waved her hands in front of her and hurriedly spoke, but accidentally bit her tongue because she was too nervous.

When Lu Mingfei saw the flustered Aki, he realized for the first time that this mature and composed senior sister also had such a cute and adorable side.

Aki felt her face burning. No matter how she analyzed Lu Mingfei's words, they seemed to only have one meaning, but she clearly...

"Wh-what girlfriend? Junior Brother Lu, what are you talking about..." Aki averted her gaze from Lu Mingfei's face, feeling her voice getting softer and softer, completely drowned out by the wind on the rooftop.

But her gaze was forced back to Lu Mingfei, because the boy's fingers had hooked her chin, lifting her head back up. Their eyes met.

"When you confessed to me back then, I didn't look away from your eyes."

Lu Mingfei lowered his gaze and said in a somewhat domineering tone, "So when I reply to your confession, you'll have to keep a close eye on me."

"..."

Aki's cheeks were already flushed, and she was unsure how to answer. Should she say "okay"? Or would a nod be enough...?

Before Aki could answer, she saw Lu Mingfei continue speaking:
"Actually, I wanted to give you an answer sooner, but it seems like you've been deliberately avoiding me."

Lu Mingfei said, "When I saw Senior Sister Selma at the night market that day, you should have been there too, right, Senior Sister Aki? But you didn't even say hello. You weren't there for the school interview either. I don't know if you regretted confessing to me or something. After all, I also felt that I wasn't good enough for your feelings. You're so wonderful, beautiful, academically excellent, and of such high caliber, while I'm a bit too fickle..."

"You know you're a womanizer..." Aki bit her lip and subconsciously chimed in with a sarcastic remark.

"...Of course I know."

Lu Mingfei coughed lightly: "But regardless of whether you regret it or not, I think I should give you a formal reply to your confession."

Aki suddenly held her breath, only to see Lu Mingfei's Adam's apple bob: "Aki, you told me back then, 'It would be better to fall in love with you sooner rather than later.'"

Lu Mingfei continued, "But to be precise, I've liked you for a long time."

The words "senior sister" have been quietly deleted without anyone noticing.

Aki bit her lip gently, her heart pounding wildly, but she still spoke in a calm tone, "Really? You're not just trying to make me happy by lying, are you?"

"real."

"Then tell me," Aki looked up, her eyelashes fluttering, "when did you start liking me?"

Lu Mingfei tilted his head: "Hmm... it probably started when you were giving me CPR underwater in the Three Gorges, senior sister?"

……

(End of this chapter)