I'm in Mota, and they all want me to confess my feelings!

However, in the end, curiosity prevailed over the girl's heart.

She hesitated for a moment, but finally reached for the stick.

While underwater, Phoebe never saw what kind of staff Duanmu Yan used to fight; he always used a crystal swift blade.

"So what... exactly is this?"

"Why does it feel hard and a little warm to the touch..."

Even through the thin blanket, my fingertips could still feel the hard, warm touch; the temperature was almost scalding.

At this moment, Duanmu Yan, who was in his sleep, suddenly relaxed his tightly furrowed brows, revealing a contented expression. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly, and he even couldn't help but hum softly.

"Hey, that's weird... why is it getting harder and harder?"

Suddenly, Phoebe stopped abruptly. As if she instantly understood something, she jerked her hand back as if electrocuted, her once fair cheeks flushing crimson.

She stood up hastily, her back to Duanmu Yan, her hands tightly covering her burning face. Her lips trembled slightly, her mind a complete mess, unable to form a single coherent sentence.

"That...that thing is..."

"What...what am I doing?"

"I actually touched Mr. Duanmu's..."

"If he found out, he'd definitely think I'm a shameless bad kid..."

"By the Lord of the Year..."

The blonde girl clasped her hands tightly in front of her chest, bowed her head deeply, and even the tips of her ears were burning red.

She muttered something under her breath, her voice fragmented and incoherent, making it almost impossible to understand what she was saying—in fact, it was just a series of broken, incoherent prayers.

After realizing what she had touched, Phoebe was completely stunned.

My brain seemed to stop working, leaving only burning cheeks and a blank heartbeat.

Just then, Duanmu Yan groggily opened his eyes.

He yawned as he sat up from his cot, rubbing his eyes as he greeted Phoebe: "Good morning, Phoebe... You're praying so early?"

Phoebe trembled violently upon hearing the sound, and her whole body became even more flustered.

She didn't dare turn around, afraid that Duanmu Yan would see her flushed face and flustered expression.

"Good morning, Mr. Duanmu... I... I was praying. Yes, it was you: my neighbor was praying..."

"Really?" Duanmu Yan scratched his head, looking at her stiff back with some doubt. "Why does your voice sound a little strange... Am I still half asleep?"

"First, Mr. Duanmu must have misheard!" Phoebe hurriedly interrupted him, her voice rising slightly. "Please go wash up quickly! Don't forget we're going back to Laguna today!"

"I know, I know."

Duanmu Yan got up and walked towards the restroom, his mind still lingering on that brief yet incredibly vivid dream.

How to describe that feeling?

It felt as if I was gently enveloped in a warm halo, with a lingering, firm touch...

Alas, beautiful dreams are always fleeting. If only they could linger a little longer.

He quickly finished washing up and tidying up his luggage, only to find Phoebe still standing there in a daze.

"Ready? Let's go. Phoebe? Phoebe?" he called twice. "What are you daydreaming about?"

The girl snapped back to reality, her ears turning slightly red, and her voice sounding a little unnatural: "N-no! I know... I'm coming."

"Are you feeling unwell today? You seem a bit strange." Duanmu Yan gazed at the girl's flushed cheeks, his tone filled with concern.

Phoebe unconsciously clenched her fingers and gently shook her head: "It's nothing... I'm just a little worried that the Kuroshio Current might still have residual effects on the whales that travel upstream."

"Don't worry, it's already been cleaned up." Duanmu Yan patted his chest with a smile. "Trust Abu's stomach! If it says it's finished, then there's absolutely no problem."

"Yeah... I understand."

The girl responded softly, lowered her eyes, and said nothing more.

However, her gaze kept drifting to a certain part of his body, only to quickly look away as if burned, her cheeks growing increasingly flushed.

Book 1: Chapter 74 Koletta, listen to me.

"...Cat's eye stone, this mixed and scattered, another chess piece, 2 si-pa (four) eggs."

At the Laguna pier, Coleta, wearing sunglasses, almost gritted her teeth as she uttered the name.

The misunderstanding caused by that previous phone call was like a thorn stuck in her heart, making her furious with Duanmu Yan—what's even more infuriating is that the misunderstanding has not been resolved to this day.

The reason he didn't explain was simple: Duanmu Yan and Phoebe were having so much fun on the island that he completely forgot about explaining.

Besides, in his heart, his relationship with Phoebe was completely innocent. Since he had a clear conscience, he naturally didn't feel there was any need to explain, so he forgot about it.

But what about Koleta?

The voice on that phone call was like a haunting, inescapable whisper.

Even without seeing it with her own eyes, whenever she closed her eyes, those embarrassing images would uncontrollably surface in her mind—just imagining them was enough to make her grit her teeth in anger.

I'm clearly his girlfriend in name only!

—Although it was all an act.

But even if it's just acting, Cat's Eye Stone can't just openly cuckold me!

Koleta stared at the terminal screen—which displayed Duanmu Yan's attendance records, bonus applications, and year-end evaluations for the entire year.

With just a flick of her finger, all his hard work for the past year would be for nothing.

"It seems I really have to control you!"

Koleta was filled with rage and her anger was about to flare up. She was about to strike, but her fingertips hovered in mid-air. In the end, she sighed and withdrew her hand.

Forget it, that would be too cruel for him.

Moreover, what if there's a misunderstanding?

Cat's Eye Stone shouldn't be so repressed as to call me while doing "that kind of thing," right?

Yes, it must be a misunderstanding.

Koleta nodded vigorously, trying to convince herself.

"But... what if..."

"Does he really have that strange fetish?"

The moment this thought crossed her mind, the girl's amber eyes dimmed, and she froze on the spot as if her soul had been ripped away.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she slowly reached for the terminal screen once more.

"With just a light swipe, that cat's eye guy..."

"Second miss!"

A familiar call pulled Koleta back to reality from her daze. She looked up and realized that Duanmu Yan was standing in front of her at some point, with the nun Phoebe by his side.

Just as Coleta was about to speak, she noticed Phoebe's cheeks were flushed, and her expression and movements were extremely unnatural; she was acting as if she were...

Her eyes widened suddenly as a terrible thought flashed into her mind: Could it be that they were also on the ship returning...?

“You—” Koleta’s eyes remained empty, and even her voice was filled with a deathly aura.

"I...I really didn't do anything with Mr. Duanmu!" Phoebe interrupted hastily. "Right, right! I have to hurry back to the guild to report! Miss Koleta, Mr. Duanmu, goodbye!"

Before the two could react, Phoebe grabbed her staff and practically fled the scene.

This reaction, which seemed to imply something was amiss, only made Coleta even more certain—there was definitely something fishy going on between these two!

"Strange, what's wrong with Phoebe today? She's been acting all mysterious since she woke up this morning..."

Duanmu Yan watched Phoebe's hurried departure, then turned around with a puzzled look, only to be met with Koleta's resentful eyes—a gaze that almost nailed him to the spot, leaving him speechless for a moment.

what happened?

Is it my misunderstanding?

The second young lady's resentment is even stronger than the Kuroshio Current in the Rijoli Islands...

What did I do to offend her recently?

He quickly reviewed his actions over this period of time, but after thinking it over, he realized that he had handled everything properly, and there was no reason for him to make her angry.

"Um, Second Miss?" Duanmu Yan called out tentatively, his tone tinged with caution.

Koleta's lips curled into a forced smile as she said, "You've been having a lot of fun lately, haven't you?"

The resentment that almost solidified made Duanmu Yan's breath catch in her throat: "I... I don't consider this a vacation... Besides, didn't you agree, Second Miss?"

“Yes, I agreed to let you take a vacation.” Koleta took a step closer, tilted her head back, and locked her gaze on him. “I didn’t ask you to work all the time. I’m not a devil. But… what’s the deal with going on vacation with other girls? What’s wrong with your sense of chastity? Have you forgotten who you are now?”

Duanmu Yan blinked, his mouth open but no sound came out.

The second young lady suddenly emphasized her identity...

Could it be...

Are you jealous?

"Um... if I said that being with Phoebe was purely accidental, would you believe me, Miss?"

“Keep making this up,” Coleta scoffed. “I’m listening.”

"...I really didn't make it up." Duanmu Yan rubbed her temples helplessly. "How about this, Miss, shall we find a place to eat and talk? I'll tell you everything that happened in the Rijoli Islands, okay?"

"Hmph, you'd better make your story more believable." Coleta tossed him the car keys, turned and got into the passenger seat. "Same place, let's go."

……

……

The restaurant was dimly lit, and soft music flowed through the air, creating an ambiguous atmosphere.

However, at this moment, the Second Miss's icy gaze almost pinned Duanmu Yan to his chair.

So...she's really jealous?

Although he was nominally her boyfriend, it was just an act to confuse the public. Why would she take it so seriously?

Why would she take it so seriously?

Could it be that he has fallen in love?

Sigh, being handsome brings a lot of troubles.

But then he thought again, things might not be that simple.

As the second daughter of the Motari family, her reputation is of utmost importance.

Even if their current relationship is a pretense, in the eyes of outsiders, they are a loving couple—they have even met each other's parents.

If others knew that she had been cuckolded, and by someone from her family's arch-enemy order no less... no matter how good-tempered she was, she probably wouldn't be able to bear such humiliation.

It seems best to tell the Second Miss everything that happened in the Rijoli Islands.

Koleta picked up a sugar cube and gently placed it into the coffee. She stirred it slowly in the cup with a silver spoon until the last sugar granule had completely dissolved in the dark brown liquid.

She picked up the cup and took a small sip.

"Begin your explanation."

Duanmu Yan sighed softly, considered his words carefully, and then recounted his experiences over the past few days in detail.

"What did you say?" Koleta's eyes widened slightly. "The Kuroshio Current? In the Rijoli Islands?"

"Yes." Duanmu Yan nodded. "If it weren't for Abu, I probably wouldn't have been able to come back this time."

"Abu?" Coleta put down her coffee cup, a hint of doubt appearing between her brows. "Who is Abu?"

Volume 1: Chapter 75 Abu Meets a Master [First Update]

Who is Abu?

This is a good question.

Abu was a warrior of the Absolut people...

"Well... why don't we let Abu talk to the Second Miss himself?"

As Duanmu Yan spoke, he looked down at the sound marks on the back of his hand and called out softly.