Free Web NovelChapter 101: Chapter 101: Coaxing Her
She didn’t dare to look any longer and got to her feet.
"Lanlan."
Yan Huoshui’s gentle, husky voice called out from behind. Shi Lan answered instinctively, but before she could ask what was wrong, she turned to see a figure suddenly falling backward toward her.
"Lord Yan?!"
Shi Lan frantically raised her arms to catch him. He was so tall—if the back of his head actually hit the ground, there was no telling what might happen.
But Shi Lan knew she wasn’t strong enough. Her gaze fell to a vase by the wall, and just as she was preparing to manipulate the plant inside to help her, Yan Huoshui had already collapsed into her arms.
At the same time, nine tails fanned out, bracing against the floor.
It looked as if Shi Lan was supporting him, but in reality, her hands bore almost no weight.
Yan Huoshui’s head hovered between her arms. His fiery red hair, long enough to brush his neck, floated in the air like an exceedingly dangerous flame.
He looked up, the cinnabar mark between his brows as vivid as blood. His red eyes watched her with a lazy, wild arrogance, and his crimson lips curved into a teasing, self-assured smile. "I knew Lanlan would catch me."
He didn’t need to say more.
Beastmen were naturally resilient. The moment he began to fall, he had already envisioned two possible outcomes involving Shi Lan. ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
If she didn’t catch him, he would let himself fall and get injured, playing the victim to win her sympathy.
If she did catch him, he would use his tails to break his fall, ensuring Lanlan wouldn’t be harmed in the slightest.
The bud that had just peeked out from the vase shrank back. Shi Lan looked at the man in her arms, her heart still racing, and couldn’t help but frown. "You’re too reckless."
’He should have at least given me a warning. What was I supposed to do if I hadn’t noticed him just falling like that?’
The smile on Yan Huoshui’s lips deepened. His cool cheek brushed slowly against her arm as he retracted his tails and stood up. "All that matters is that Lanlan caught me."
Shi Lan’s expression remained disapproving. "And what if I hadn’t caught you? You’re so tall. Weren’t you afraid you’d knock yourself stupid, falling like that?"
’I’ve even seen videos of people dying instantly from hitting the back of their head in a fall like that.’
Yan Huoshui chuckled softly. "Is Lanlan worried about me?"
"Don’t worry. Nothing serious would have happened."
At that moment, looking at his still-carefree smile, Shi Lan was suddenly reminded of what Jiang Yan had told her about Yan Huoshui.
She had said he was dangerous—a madman. That she should stay away from him.
Shi Lan had always thought of him as a beautiful, empathetic fox, but after spending more time with him today, she felt as though she was glimpsing another side of him.
Dangerous and unrestrained, with no regard for his own safety. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
’He really is a little crazy.’
She was silent for a moment, then said suddenly, "Let’s stop the test here for today."
’She was actually a little angry. Although she knew her current position didn’t give her the right to tell him what to do, from a doctor’s standpoint, she couldn’t bear to see a patient abuse their own body like that.’
’Not to mention, she wanted all of them to leave the prison in one piece; that was her whole motivation for offering treatment in the first place.’
Yan Huoshui’s smile faded. His gaze swept over her tightly pressed, rosy lips. The room must have been a bit warm, as her cheeks were faintly flushed and fine beads of sweat dotted her temples. But beneath the surface of her gentle, calm black eyes, a suppressed vexation simmered.
He keenly sensed Shi Lan’s displeasure and realized he had just gone too far.
’He shouldn’t have ignored it. Lanlan was soft-hearted, and he had taken advantage of her kindness, pushing his luck.’
Yan Huoshui’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His inky lashes cast a shadow on his porcelain-white face as he instinctively lowered his head to apologize. "I’m sorry, Lanlan. I won’t do it again."
For once, Shi Lan was curt, offering only a cold, "Mm."
He silently drew closer, his tall frame casting a shadow over her. Lowering his head, he let his warm, moist breath ghost over her ear and continued to coax her in a whisper, "I was wrong. Don’t be angry, Lanlan."
’He was standing too close,’ Shi Lan thought. ’And he was just talking, so why did his lips have to be practically touching her ear?’
Feeling the warmth on her ear, she took a step to the side, her face hardening as she retorted, "I’m not angry. I’m just a little tired today. Let’s do the test tomorrow."
The light in Yan Huoshui’s eyes dimmed. He narrowed them slightly, and a dark glint flashed in his crimson pupils.
Shi Lan was starting to feel hot and flustered in the room. She decided to open the door and step out, but just then, she felt a soft, slightly damp sensation on her exposed ankle.
She looked down to see a red tail rubbing against her ankle, as if trying to placate her.
Tiny water droplets clung to the surface of the red tail, but the fur beneath was still perfectly dry. The touch was smooth yet fluffy, like a bolt of the finest silk sliding past her leg.
Shi Lan looked at him, bewildered. "What are you doing?"
"Are you still angry, Lanlan?"
Yan Huoshui was still fixated on the question.
"No," Shi Lan said.
More tails wrapped around her arms, while another two—one on each side—began to knead her shoulders as if giving her a massage, the pressure just right.
Shi Lan was instantly enveloped by Yan Huoshui’s nine tails. Maybe it was because he always bathed in fresh flowers, but the breeze stirred by the tails dancing beside her face carried waves of floral fragrance. It wasn’t a singular scent; she couldn’t identify what it was.
’In any case, it smelled better than the rose scent in her own hair.’
It was light and lingering.
As this was the first time she’d enjoyed the kind of treatment she’d always dreamed about, Shi Lan felt a bit overwhelmed by the attention.
She freed one hand and, unable to resist, reached out to stroke the tails wrapped around her other arm.
’They felt incredible.’
Especially the fur on the underside of the tails, which was dry but not hot, and felt as comfortable as sinking into a cloud.
Shi Lan couldn’t help but squeeze her hand and pet them a few more times.
Yan Huoshui’s body trembled slightly. A beautiful, inexplicable flush crept into the corners of his eyes. One of his tails lost control for a moment, wrapping tightly around Shi Lan’s wrist.
She looked at him, and he asked the question again. "Lanlan, are you still angry?"
This time, however, his voice seemed even deeper, resonating like the low, magnetic hum of a cello being tuned.
It was low and husky; though not perfectly clear, the sound seemed to shoot from her ears straight to the crown of her head, raising a tingling itch from the very marrow of her bones.
Shi Lan felt her own ears start to itch, and she couldn’t help but rub them. She knew she couldn’t just ignore his question.
But if she had been a seven out of ten on the anger scale before, his tails’ placating had easily brought that number down to zero.
She deliberately kept her expression stern. "I’m not angry anymore."
"But you can’t just go around doing dangerous things like that again."
’She probably couldn’t control everything he did, but he could at least not do it in front of her.’
"Mm, okay."
Yan Huoshui carefully studied her eyes and could tell that this time, Shi Lan really wasn’t angry anymore.
He let out a small sigh of relief. Glancing at his nine tails, a smile touched his eyes.
’They were pretty useful, after all.’
