Guild Boss's Ambition

"Well, of course I hope that Senior Annie can be happy and joyful!"

"I say, Gu Shan, why are you blushing on this issue? And it's as red as a monkey's ass?"

“Please don’t pay attention to these details!”

Xiao Lan looked at me suspiciously and said, "Well, I don't know what kind of dirty things you have imagined, but if you want Senior Annie to face us humans calmly again, this will probably be a very time-consuming and huge project, because what you will have to face is survival itself."

The twelve-year-old black-haired girl said like a ghost: "Death is terrible, but living is not necessarily a good thing. There is even a saying that people come to the world to suffer. But let's not talk about these religious subjective things. If we want Sister Annie to accept humans again, then we have to come up with a reason for Sister Annie to be willing to endure the pain."

Yes.

Because of her lifespan, every time Sister Annie makes a human friend, she has to endure the pain of loss once more.

But if you refuse to get to know others because you are afraid of losing them, wouldn’t that be extremely lonely?

"Put yourself in her shoes, Gushan. If you were Sister Annie today, would you want friends?" Xiao Lan asked.

I immediately answered, "Of course I do! Having friends is a happy thing! If I hadn't come to the Stone House, I wouldn't have met Xiao Lan and the others. If I hadn't encountered such a frustrating situation, I wouldn't know where to find someone to discuss it with or where to find someone to help. I would have to face it alone!"

"In other words, are friends just tools to solve problems?" Xiao Lan proposed a hypothesis.

"Of course not! I can't believe that you, Xiaolan, would have such a cold thought. Although it is said that friends should help each other, so-called friends will also share sadness and happiness with each other, like yesterday and the past, and create beautiful memories together day after day, like now, they will unconsciously worry about each other's difficulties and want to help her get out of every difficulty."

"However, Gu Shan, you are now suffering because of friendship."

At this time, Xiao Lan half-closed her eyes and spoke as sharp as a silver needle: "If you had never known Annie from the beginning to the end, you could go home now to accompany your poor orphan brothers and sisters. If you were not distressed because of Annie, you could read your favorite ghost story novel now. But because of Annie, a half-elf, you lost these precious time."

"But I am willing to do so! It is a great honor for me, Gushan, to be able to worry about Senior Annie!"

"But what about Sister Annie? In Sister Annie's mind, is it her honor to be able to grieve for her friends? If we think more bluntly, for Sister Annie, is the value of a friend worth the sadness caused by the death of each friend? If the harm is far greater than what you can gain, then who would be stupid enough to make this transaction called friendship?"

"Friendship is not a transaction!"

"Okay, friendship is not a transaction, but it can be avoided. Sister Annie is a living example."

At this point, the role played by Xiao Lan is obvious. She is guiding me to find the answers to the questions through one question after another. However, when it comes to Senior Annie's questions, I was unable to show my usual patience. What I focused on was the answer behind this difficult problem, rather than using this problem as a stepping stone to promote my own progress.

So I complained: "Xiao Lan, if you know the solution, can you just tell me?"

Unexpectedly, the all-knowing Xiao Lan also shook her head and said, "I'm sorry, I don't know how to deal with this situation this time. Sister Annie is not stupid. She can see what we see, and she knows what we know. She has even reflected on it thousands of times, but to no avail."

"Xiao Lan, I...I don't quite understand what you mean."

What exactly was the dark-haired girl in front of me trying to tell me?

Xiao Lan raised two fingers, with a serious expression on her face: "In my opinion, there are two possibilities that make Annie reject making friends with humans. The first one is what I just said. In Annie's heart, she always believes that the value of friends is not as good as the sadness that comes with it. It is precisely because the effort and reward are not proportional that she rejects humans."

"So, what about the second one?" I asked anxiously.

Xiao Lan closed her eyes, as if she was organizing her thoughts, and then she opened her eyes and answered, "The second situation is the one I think is most likely to happen. It is the fear caused by trauma, an unforgettable fear."

"Fear from trauma?"

Xiao Lan nodded and asked, "Gu Shan, are you afraid of the snakes in Doris's family?"

Recalling yesterday's experiences, I nodded vigorously: "Scared! Terrified!"

Xiao Lan asked again: "Then why are you afraid of snakes? Did the snake bite you? Did it hurt you?"

“Even if they don’t hurt me, I’m still afraid!”

As soon as I finished speaking, I realized what Xiao Lan wanted to express -

I suddenly realized something and widened my eyes: "Huh? You mean..."

Xiao Lan didn't say anything, just shrugged her shoulders and gave me a smile as light as the breeze, a smile of affirmation, and a smile of regret.

If I were to transform my fear of snakes into Senior Annie's current mood, that would be the worst case scenario, because it is a fear that is ingrained in our instincts. Even if we clearly understand each other, or even have had intimate physical contact, the fear will not disappear. It's like a person who is afraid of ghosts, even if he knows he has seen a ghost, he will be even more afraid, but he will still light a small lamp on the bedside in the dark.

"However, after talking so much, my analysis is all based on what you said, Gu Shan. I will go to talk to Sister Annie again in the next few days to understand her situation accurately and give her some psychological counseling to see if I can help."

I replied in surprise: "Then I'll trouble you, Xiaolan!"

Hearing this, Xiao Lan narrowed her eyes and looked at me like a fox: "What do you mean by thank you for your help? It's as if Senior Annie is just your senior, not my employee and elder. Or, are you, a perverted young fujoshi, planning to take advantage of her psychological trauma and realize your lesbian fantasy?"

A white lily delusion?

Thinking of Senior Annie's beautiful and sexy appearance, my face immediately became hot.

"Who is so dirty like you, Xiao Lan? You only know how to look at girls' private parts all day long."

Unfortunately, my attack couldn't shake Xiao Lan at all.

"Sorry, I always look at the legs first. Anyway, if you want Sister Annie to do something to you, you can just get her drunk while she's mixing drinks. As long as she gets drunk by accident, Sister Annie will unleash her hidden attributes."

"Hidden attributes? What hidden attributes?" I was immediately filled with curiosity.

Xiao Lan blinked innocently, put her finger on her lips, and said seductively in a devilish tone: "Generally speaking, it seems that my first kiss in this life was taken away by Sister Annie. At that time, Sister Annie was very strong. If it weren't for Berlani suddenly breaking in, I'm afraid I would have become Sister Annie's person~~"

"Xiao Lan, why do I always feel like you are showing off something to me like a bitch──" I said speechlessly.

"Because Gushan, you just seemed to be showing off something to me, a single woman—" she said with an ambiguous tone.

Somehow, after hearing Senior Annie kiss Xiao Lan, I felt a little angry.

I glared at Xiao Lan, threw her onto the bed, and gave her a good beating.

……

……

58. Annie's Heart (Little Blue)

(Ulu-Lannon)

"Regarding the matter of the Midwinter Games, have you made your choice, President?"

"Yes, at this stage, we are almost done with the master-apprentice system, midwinter competition, and the sign language book. I believe that in the near future, we will all see the results that come with it. I have a meeting to attend in the Water World later. In order to save time, I will not do morning exercises today. I will go directly to the Water World for breakfast."

The next morning, when I took Lian'er to President Meng'er to attend a martial arts interest class, I was told that there was a temporary holiday today. Perhaps all children were looking forward to the holiday. When Lian'er heard that she didn't have to practice horse stance, she jumped and danced with joy. Seeing how active she was, I thought she should not be spoiled, so I left her to Branney and let her learn painting.

Ha ha.

When he heard that he still had to go to class in the end, his energetic little face immediately collapsed in disappointment.

After leaving the president's office, I started my day's work mode.

The first thing I had to do was naturally to go to the third floor to help Mr. Hai. My persistence over these days was not in vain. The old man was finally willing to give me more work. It was not just miscellaneous work, but also some important tasks such as intelligence compilation. It also meant that he recognized my abilities.

However, this level of recognition is still far from enough.

I believe I can do more.

Just take part in a few more adventures, just go through a few more life-and-death situations...

I will definitely be able to...

You must understand the meaning of adventure...

You can definitely see the world through the eyes of Ebi...

At a moment when there were no guests, I asked him: "Ebi, do you like this world?"

He was bored as he read the photo album and replied, "I don't hate it. At least, God gave us women."

"Even if the world is so broken?"

"Even if this world is as broken as a flower."

"Ebi, do you like the stone house?"

"..."

Ebi did not answer. It was unclear whether he did not want to answer or he did not know how to answer.

As for me...

I think the Stone House is a great place.

But it shouldn't exist.

It exists because of the wrath of nature, because of war.

"Let's calculate the time. Even if Sister Annie is a bit sleepy, she should wake up eventually, right?"

"It's better to go see her as soon as possible."

giggle.

I knocked gently on Annie's door.

"The door is unlocked, come in."

Every time I knocked on the door, I would hear Sister Annie talking like this, as if she was either in the bar area or in her own room. It was as if she didn't go anywhere, like a big tree with roots in the stone house. Now, after hearing what Gushan said, I realized that this was an almost pathological lifestyle, and not just a little bit of a "homebody".

I put on a smile and walked in cautiously.

Sister Annie in the room was sitting at the desk reading a book that ordinary people would not read, nor did it seem to be a book that a half-elf bartender should read. Instead, it was a book with "Introduction to Mechanics" on the cover. It's not that no normal person would read such a profound book, but the content inside was as professional as you can imagine, and it was definitely not something light-hearted or interesting.

"It's you, Xiaolan. Did Gu Shan tell you about me?"

Anne didn't seem surprised to see me. Besides the teapot and cups filled with hot tea, there was also an empty cup with a lid upside down on the desk. It was as if she had been waiting for someone to come from the beginning, but she didn't expect who would come, and she didn't expect when the door would be opened.

I closed the door gently and nodded to her.

"Well, I heard from Gu Shan that you don't want to interact with humans."

There was no need to turn the corner, I got straight to the point, after all, the person in front of me was the gentle Anne.

Anne is a good and sensible person.

However, Anne was extremely haggard at this moment. It was not because she did not sleep well that she looked haggard, but she looked haggard in her mentality, appearance, and spirit, just like the haggardness of a withered yellow flower.

She closed the book without marking it, and said, "Humans are fragile creatures."

"Half-elves aren't necessarily that strong. After all, we all die."

I tried to refute her point.

However, she also seemed to have refuted herself countless times.

She gave a faint, wry smile.

"The truth always sounds good, but the reality is different, completely different..."

Judging from the situation, things are probably just in line with the second prediction I made to Gushan. The reason why Annie rejects interacting with humans is because of that kind of ineradicable fear. Just like autistic patients and patients with ADHD, they become ill not because they don't understand things or because they are evil, but because they can't control their emotions.

I thought about it and asked, "Annie, what are you afraid of?"

"I don't know what I'm afraid of." Anne replied calmly: "Would you like some tea?"

"Oh, okay, help yourself." I poured myself some tea and asked, "Annie, are you upset or are you sick?"

"Can't think straight? Are you sick?"

Anne hesitated for a moment, then laughed at herself: "I guess I'm sick?"

I smiled and said, "It's rare for someone to take the initiative to admit that they have a mental illness."

"I'm not crazy or stupid, what's so hard to say?"

Annie sighed and said, "In fact, I have discussed this matter with Miss Bai Ye privately."

"Bai Ye also knows?"

I asked hastily, "What did she say?"

"She said she had no solution. The results of the examination showed that there was no damage to the soul or body. However, it is not ruled out that Bai Ye's ability is limited, so he cannot find the root of the fear. However, you should also understand that Bai Ye is already the most professional scholar in this field. If even she said there is no solution, I think it will be difficult to find a useful treatment method elsewhere."

Talking about her situation in a calm tone, Anne no longer felt like a senior at work, nor a friend in the same boat. She was like a wounded and lonely bird, singing a song about the pain that others could not empathize with. Her sad voice seemed to be calling for help, but more importantly, she had already accepted the current reality.

"I will help you and heal you!"

I can't say such big words. Even Bai Ye couldn't cure the patient. How could I, an outsider, be qualified to judge her current condition, or even be irresponsible enough to prescribe medicine for the patient?

however……

Should we really just leave Annie alone and not try anything?

Anne was like this three years ago, and she is still like this three years later.

Or will unsystematic changes only bring more unnecessary pain to the parties involved?

but……

"Annie, do you have the courage to take risks?"