Chapter 469: Done teasing

"Don’t worry, he won’t die," Lian said. "He’s just a bit unsightly for the time being."

Nix looked at Paros with genuine sympathy. "Lian, hurry up and cure him. If you’re short on beast cores, just say the word and I’ll give you mine."

Young males cared immensely about their appearance. When Paros woke up and saw himself looking like this, how heartbroken would he be?

In a whole household of calculating and scheming beasts, having a pure, sweet dummy like Nix actually made Lian feel a bit embarrassed. He said to Nix, "Rest assured, I will definitely heal him."

Rory had Vangar carry the still-unconscious Paros back to his former room first.

No sooner had Vangar set Paros down than the dragon woke up. Looking at the familiar layout of the room, he turned to Rory standing beside him and opened his mouth, saying immediately, "You shouldn’t have brought me back."

Here he goes again.

Nix’s eyes widened in sheer disbelief as he stared at Paros. "Paros, how can you say such a thing? Rory was worried about you, so she skipped her rest late at night just to chase you down and bring you back!"

Not only did this guy fail to show a shred of gratitude, but he actually dared to say Rory shouldn’t have brought him back!

Xarion crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe. "His brain must be diseased and his mouth broken. Why not just have Lian drug him back to sleep? Poison him mute while he’s at it, too." That way, he wouldn’t spit out such infuriating words.

Nix nudged Xarion quietly and whispered, "Isn’t that a bit too vicious?"

"What?" Xarion pretended not to hear clearly. "You’re saying that’s too gentle?"

No, he didn’t say that at all!

Lying on the bed, Paros’s face looked slightly contorted—unclear whether he was in physical distress or simply provoked by Xarion. Fearing a relapse, Rory signaled for Nix and Xarion to stop talking, then asked Lian to examine him once more.

"Don’t worry, Rory. He’s fine," Lian said, producing another vial of potion and feeding it to Paros.

Paros didn’t want to drink it, but Lian pinched his jaw and forced it down his throat.

Watching Paros’s miserable state, Rory took a deep breath and turned to the others. "The rest of you step out for a bit. I need to speak with him in private."

Leaving things like this with Paros was no long-term solution. Some things were better laid out in the open.

"Rory, I’ll go check the kitchen. Breakfast should be ready soon," Nix was the first to dash out.

The others shot a glance at Paros on the bed, said nothing, and followed suit. Soon, only Rory and Paros remained in the room.

Paros’s complexion was still somewhat poor, but having swallowed Lian’s potion, a faint flush of color had returned to his pale face.

"Paros, why didn’t you want to come back with me?" Rory stood by the bed, looking down at him. She actually had a fair idea of the reason, but she needed to hear Paros say it himself. Problems could only be solved when brought into the light.

Paros looked at Rory, weakly propping his arms against the mattress to sit up and lean against the headboard. A self-deprecating expression surfaced on his face. "You see what I look like right now. Rory, I told you, I don’t need your pity."

"When did I ever say I pitied you?" Rory countered. "You’ve been insisting that I pity you—now tell me properly, how exactly am I pitying you?"

"You..." Paros bit his lip, his face flushing a few shades redder, whether from anger or embarrassment.

Rory took a step forward, sat on the edge of the bed, and looked at him earnestly. "Paros, speak up! Where exactly did I pity you?"

Paros: "..."

Seeing him remain silent, Rory gave his arm a gentle nudge. "Hurry up and say it."

Pushed lightly, Paros’s body swayed a bit. Looking at Rory, his heart suddenly beat faster. If... if only things could remain like this between them forever. What a pity...

Paros bit his lip and said, "You said so on the warship. You said... you hated me."

So he remembers that clearly.

Rory nodded earnestly. "I did say I hated you. And right now, I still want to say that your stubborn mouth really makes me hate you."

Paros lowered his head, biting his lip, refusing to look at her. Since she hates me so much, why did she bring me back?

Seeing his combination of indignation and aggrieved hurt, Rory couldn’t hold it in any longer and burst out laughing.

"Alright, I’m done teasing you." She reached out, gently cupped Paros’s chin, leaned down, and planted a soft kiss on his lips.

The gentle sensation on his lips caused Paros’s eyes to snap wide open in utter disbelief. He quickly turned his head away, breaking free from her hand, not daring to look at her.

"You don’t have to do this," Paros’s tone was flustered. "I helped you, but not so you would force yourself to mate with me out of obligation."

"Who said I’m forcing myself?" Rory reached out, taking his face in both hands to make him look directly at her. "Paros, listen to me carefully. No one can force me to do anything I don’t want to. If I weren’t willing myself, even if you saved me ten times or a hundred times, I would never wrong myself for your sake."

"I went after you and brought you back because I want to mate with you," Rory admitted openly. "I admit part of the reason I want to mate with you is that you saved me. But that’s not the whole reason. The other reason is that I genuinely want to mate with you. Do you understand now?"

"Paros, I want you to stay by my side and become my mate. What about you? Are you willing?"

Having said her piece, Rory looked at Paros intently. If he dared say a single "no," Rory swore she would turn on her heel and walk out—and if Paros wanted to seek death, she’d let him go right ahead.

Paros looked into Rory’s eyes, his gaze trembling violently. "You... you don’t hate me anymore?"

"I never hated you in the first place," Rory answered.

"But you said earlier, when you first met me..."

"That was just to provoke you," Rory explained. "Who told you to be so stubborn with me?" She reached out and poked his cheek, which had flushed red from anger. "You still haven’t answered me. Do you want to mate with me or not?"

With that, Rory glared at Paros fiercely. "I’m warning you—if you dare say ’no’, you’re dead meat."

Looking at her, Paros suddenly took the initiative to press his lips against hers. "Whatever you give me, whether good or bad, I’ll take it all."

Rory looked at him with a smile. "So your mouth isn’t so tough anymore?"

Paros’s face flushed even deeper. "I’m sorry."

"I don’t like you saying sorry—I prefer you saying you like me." Rory poked Paros’s chest twice.

"Mm?" Paros let out a soft muffled grunt, catching Rory’s hand. His eyes locked directly onto hers. "Do you want to mate with me right now?" Once the matter was settled, Paros was no longer one to hold back.

"Not right now," Rory said. "I have to accompany Nix to the Lion-Tiger Clan in a bit, so I don’t have time to mate with you today."

Her eyes swept over Paros. "Besides, in your current state, I’m afraid mating with you right now would leave you too exhausted to get out of bed tomorrow. Let Lian treat you for a few days first."

"Once your body recovers a bit, then we’ll mate."