Chapter 18: Chapter 18 - Does this count as flirting?
Haruki could almost feel the invisible daggers piercing Baili and Xuzhan's skin. Fearing the situation might escalate and the soldiers might not stop themselves from enacting their own brand of justice, he stepped forward, his face radiating innocence.
"Excuse me, I'm not bewitched. Also, Lanling, I have something to tell you, but I have no proof!"
It was as though flowers bloomed around his smile, instantly curbing the soldiers' bloodlust. His words were meaningless under the suspicion of bewitchment, but that disarming smile, coupled with his innocent demeanor, struck a chord with the spectators. Instead of anger, curiosity gripped them, leaving them dying to know what he wanted to tell the general.
"You have no proof?" Lanling's calm voice traveled effortlessly across the field. The laughter he tried to suppress seemed louder in the stillness, prompting some soldiers to pick at their ears, unsure if they'd heard it correctly.
"Nope!" Haruki chirped.
"And you believe you are not bewitched?" Lanling asked, amusement barely concealed.
"Totally! My mind is as clear as day!"
Lanling's eyes narrowed slightly, his tone unshaken. "What about that? Can you prove it?"
Haruki's momentum came to an abrupt halt as he held his chin in deep thought. "What can I do to prove it?" he murmured aloud.
Kang Xi, clearly at his limit, snapped. "Nothing. With the Entropy Mirage at work, combined with whatever tampering Baili did to the mind-clearing potion, it's impossible for your words to be trustworthy."
Haruki blinked, his confusion almost comical. "But I didn't drink the mind-clearing potion."
"As I said, your words are not trustworthy. You might have drunk it without your knowledge," Kang Xi retorted sharply.
"So magical?! Are you saying my memories have been tampered with?"
"Yes!" Kang Xi's irritation flared, though inwardly he wondered why he was even engaging with this fool.
Everything was falling into place for Kang Xi. Even the soldiers who had been skeptical now found themselves at a loss, unsure if it's even possible to turn the situation around.
Amidst everyone's gazes, Lanling raised his right arm and casually beckoned Haruki to come closer.
Haruki, naturally, beamed.
Before he could step forward, however, Kang Xi moved to block his path. "General, I implore you to think twice. This man might very well stab you from behind!"
"Kang Xi," Lanling's voice cut through the air, sharp and commanding. It left no room for argument. "Move."
A crack of lightning split the silence, and instinctively, Kang Xi stepped aside. The moment he did, a small crater formed where he had just been standing, scorched by a sudden strike of thunder. His hair stood on end as goosebumps rippled across his skin.
Before Kang Xi could fully grasp what had happened, Haruki had already arrived within Lanling's reach.
"What did you want to say?" Lanling asked steadily, his tone exuding a calm that gave the illusion everything was under his control.
"Oh, it's about Kang Xi," Haruki said, mirroring Lanling's nonchalance. "He's the one who bewitched Xuzhan into attacking me."
The words hung in the air like a spark waiting to ignite. To some soldiers, they sounded like proof of Haruki's unsound mind.
"You heard him, General," Kang Xi said, seizing the moment. "He's speaking nonsense! Baili must have told him to say those words!"
Xuzhan looked like he was about to erupt. He stepped forward, fists clenched and ready to throw hands, but Baili quickly grabbed him. Shaking his head, Baili gestured subtly to the soldiers surrounding them—their every move was under intense scrutiny.
They couldn't afford to do anything that might rouse more suspicion.
Lanling didn't spare Kang Xi a glance. His gaze remained indulgently fixed on Haruki, locking onto his bright, unwavering eyes.
"Can you fly?" he asked softly, his voice low enough that only Haruki could hear. As he leaned forward slightly, Haruki froze, his heart hammering in his chest.
"I can jump really high," Haruki whispered back, his voice rigid as he struggled to keep it steady.
"Good enough." A sly grin tugged at Lanling's lips as he placed his left hand on Haruki's shoulder, stepping even closer until their bodies were only inches apart. Being roughly the same height, their breaths began to mingle.
"Then take me up high."
Haruki stopped breathing.
When he finally regained control of his lungs, his arms were already wrapped firmly yet gently around Lanling's waist, his hands burning with the contact. The winds seemed to sense his mood, instantly swirling beneath their feet. In a rush of air, they were propelled straight upward, leaving the crowd below stunned, their eyes wide with disbelief.
Haruki wondered if Lanling understood the state he was in.
The winds embraced them closely, holding them just beneath the clouds. Gentle yet insistent, they seemed almost intent on melding their bodies together.
Haruki had no way to stop the blush creeping up his neck and settling on his cheeks.
Lanling laughed freely, the sound rich with amusement and joy. He stretched out a hand, as if to caress the wind. "How convenient. I wonder what kind of stimulation you need to fly."
In response to his teasing, the winds began to move them up and down, like a giddy child playing with its toys. Haruki was utterly helpless in controlling them. "Mercy, Lanling! I don't want to drop you from this height."
Lanling's smile widened, his eyes curving with delight. "With how tightly you're holding me, I doubt I'll fall."
Below, the soldiers watched in confusion as their general and Haruki began to move erratically through the air. The more innocent among them assumed they were weaving some kind of spell. Those who knew Haruki better deadpanned, silently concluding that the brat was just getting too excited.
It took a full minute for Haruki to regain control of the winds, though his heart continued to thunder in his chest.
Thankfully—or perhaps not—Lanling had stopped his teasing. Instead, he retrieved a scroll from his ring. It glowed faintly gold, and as he unfurled it, three circles of golden runes materialized and hovered in the air around them.
In a language Haruki couldn't understand, Lanling began to chant. The scroll responded immediately, the golden runes expanding and replicating until they formed a shimmering enclosure over the entire encampment. The center of the barrier glowed just an arm's length above where they floated.
Haruki's eyes widened as realization dawned. So that's why he wanted to be brought up here. But the exact effects of the barrier eluded him.
"What does this barrier do?" he asked, his curiosity tinged with nervousness.
Lanling's eyes gleamed with a flicker of laughter and mischief. "As long as I will it," he said, his voice calm yet laced with power, "nobody can leave this place."