Love from the Male Protagonist’s Harem

Chapter 11-Held Spellbound

Translated by Snowfall77

“Quickly go!”

Pulling at Xia Ge’s shoulder was a 18 or 19-year-old boy, his voice apprehensive, dressed in hemp, with long hair held back by a blue headband: “It’s a demon puppet!  We’re no match for it, we need to retreat and wait for the people to come down the mountain—-”

Before he could finish speaking, his wrist was suddenly gripped.

The agitated teenager was startled into silence.

Holding a wrapped sesame pancake to his chest with his left hand, the careless boy with a green ribbon in his hair had grabbed the teenager’s wrist with the right hand.  Although the glance the boy swept the teenager with was mild, it was also strangely frightening.

The boy went: “Hey……kid.”

Being called a ‘kid’ by a 12 or 13-year-old-boy should have felt ridiculous, yet Li Liu had no ready retort.

Xia Ge said: “There……there’s a child there, don’t you see them?”

“Wha—-”

Cloaked in black, wearing a tusked mask, a demon puppet stood before the bawling child.  The puppet raised its sharp sickle, the setting sun glinting off of it, making the edge of the blade gleam blood-red—-

Xia Ge’s gaze was also penetrating, instantly stabbing Li Liu like a dagger, rendering him momentarily speechless—-

Was the boy questioning Li Liu?  Asking why Li Liu wasn’t rescuing that fallen child right now?

“I know!”  Li Liu found his voice again, his cheeks flushed, “But—”

Before he could finish his words, the pressure on his wrist had already withdrawn, a dark shadow flashing across his line of sight.  The little boy with the sesame cake and green ribbon was gone!

Clang—–

The harsh sound of the sickle striking something resounded in the air!

[Urgent Warning!  Puppet Strength Far Outranks!  Asking Host To Promptly Dodge!!]

[Blue Warning!  Host, Please Act According To Capability, Do Not Be Rashly Bold—-]

Quickly turning around, Li Liu had taken only one step when his pupils abruptly shrank to the size of a needle-point, “Hey—-”

That boy……was too fast!

It felt like there was something under his foot, but Li Liu couldn’t be bothered to look.  His eyes were glued to the sight of the green-ribboned boy who had his back the Death Puppet, a right arm around the crying child, while his left hand was seemingly holding the sickle that’d aimed at the child’s neck between thumb and fingers.

—–He……did the boy not care about his own life?!

Shock waves from the impact rolling through her left hand, Xia Ge felt the sickle blade ruthlessly scratch the edge of her palm.  Ignoring the trivial pain in her hand, Xia Ge found the child in her embrace had apparently been scared into silence, even forgetting to cry, as it stared with wide eyes.

Over on the other side, Li Liu held his breath.

The boy had stopped that sharp sickle with just a hand?

Of course, the answer was no.

Xia Ge slightly tilted her head, taking in the demonic puppet behind her with gleaming ice-cold black pupils, the sickle blade cushioned in her palm by her dragon-shaped jade pendant.

Or rather her pendant appeared to be jade.  However it was neither jade nor gold nor stone.  What it was was invulnerable to swords or spears, and water and fire could not invade it.

This body’s sole weapon.

A scene so quiet one could’ve heard a pin drop.

While pervading the air was the metallic fragrance of blood.

[Host, Impulses Are The Devil.]

In Xia Ge’s head, the system’s voice was calm and rather detached.  [You Are Going To Pay The Price Of Following Your Impulses.]

Paying no attention to the system’s admonishment, the light in Xia Ge’s eyes softened.  Nonchalantly she put her right hand about the child’s neck: “Hey, little girl, whaddya say, you close your eyes and brother will play a game with you?  Alright?”

The child was a little girl, about 5 or 6-years-old, her hair in two little meatball buns on either side of her head.

Held in Xia Ge’s arm, her chin resting on Xia Ge’s shoulder, the little girl gaped at the tall demon puppet behind them.  To the little girl, the puppet loomed like an insurmountable obstacle.  Frightened to death, the little girl was filled with despair, unable to hear to Xia Ge’s words.

Xia Ge: “This kid is really scared.”

System: [I Think You Should Worry About Yourself.]

Xia Ge: “Little puppet is very clever, little puppet is always right.”

System: [……]

Under the darkening sky, the demon puppet could see no blood flowing from its strike.  Impatient, it drew back its sickle, raising it high in the air before slashing it at Xia Ge’s neck once more!

Swift and fierce as the wind!

Eyes cold, disregarding the ache from her hand, Xia Ge held onto the little girl and rolled away quickly.  The edge of the sickle blade brushed by her ear, separating a few hairs from her head.  Immediately activating her {ghost and shadow} skill, Xia Ge’s figure replicated several times, dodging here and there.  The demonic puppet, unable to catch them all, paused its blade mid-swing.  Xia Ge hoped to escape this way, yet there was an unexpected ‘bang’—–

Xia Ge had slammed right into another demon puppet!

She was like a baby smashing against a body made of iron lumps.

Like an egg attacking a rock—-

Then Xia Ge realized it was the same puppet…its speed was three points faster that her own {ghost and shadow}!

[You Have Sought Death.  This Is A C-Level Puppet!]

Dazed enough to be seeing stars, deaf to her system’s anxious voice, Xia Ge shot back in an instant, tenaciously clutching the child to her chest protectively—

Fast as lightening, Xia Ge lifted her gaze, staring at the puppet face to face!

Wearing a terrifyingly ferocious mask, the eyes were two hollows holding swaying blue flames.  Attention fixed on Xia Ge, in a flash it again raised its sickle high.

Xia Ge’s pupils slightly dilated.

—–She could rescue this child without being injured any further.

At the cost of……exposing her identity.

—-Becoming the street rat once more, and the object of everyone’s scorn.

—–Starving, evading those who’d want to kill her, wandering destitute.

—–A homeless vagrant.

The sickle’s sharp blade was already whooshing near!

She was out of time—–

Every action has its price.

But Xia Ge didn’t know the meaning of giving up halfway!

Maybe she wasn’t one to make great efforts.  However, once she’d made up her mind to do something, she would do her best and see it through to the end!!!

“Hey……look, little girl, brother will do a magic trick for you……”

Previously watching from the sidelines, Li Liu subconsciously closed his eyes as his legs shook in fright.  He couldn’t bear to directly witness the pitiful sight that was about to unfold—-

Why was the rescue from Jianfeng so slow?!

All around villagers were shouting—-

“Help is coming—-hurry—-”

“Why is there only one person……”

“It’s Sister Chu!”

Help had finally arrived?  But…it’s too late—-

Xia Ge’s pure black pupils suddenly turned a deep violet!

Puppet cheat code—-{soul capture}

The two pits of blue spirit flame within the fearsome mask met the deep violet eyes of the teenager for a beat, the sickle in the puppet’s hand abruptly stopped mid-swing—–

“Clang—-”

Amid the sparkling fire, a blue and white cloak swept a beautiful, graceful arc, covering the puppet’s flaming eyes that had morphed from blue to violet, while a fluttering light blue headband was painted blood-red by the light of sunset.  With one hand, a black-haired young lady resisted the blade of the puppet’s sickle with her long sword, the collision of metals making a sonorous tintinnabulation, sparks flying!

The double-edged sword was like autumn water, the pupil of the eye showing the staunch fervor of a patriot.

In front of Xia Ge stood a girl in a short-sleeved blue and white outfit, including that blue and white cloak, the clothing emblematic of the sword-wielder’s identity.

“Hello.”  The young lady’s voice was a little mocking as she cast a sidelong look at Xia Ge holding the little girl.  Her beautiful round eyes were rather provocative, the long sword in her hand forceful—

“Such poor strength……a student shouldn’t pretend to be a hero.”

Huff—

As soon as her voice fell away, the young lady’s long sword effortlessly cut through the puppet’s sickle blade like it was made out of sludge!

One half of the sickle blade flew out, embedding itself straight into the head of another puppet that had been trying to rush over!

(—A whole gaggle of shitty puppets.)

Chu Yao’s every gesture and motion had been like ‘moving clouds and flowing water,’ and her expression was unchanged.

Seeing Xia Ge spellbound, the mockery in Chu Yao’s eyes was almost overflowing.

However, just as Chu Yao wanted to go fuck up some more of those puppets causing trouble, she inexplicably found that she couldn’t tear her gaze away from the green-ribboned boy’s eyes.

—She was caught in a momentary trace.

……what captivating eyes.

Violet?

Upon a closer look, it was the rash boy from that night?

……had his eyes been like this then?

Returning to her senses, Xia Ge realized that the ‘heroic saver of the damsel in distress’ was staring fixedly at her.  Without thinking, Xia Ge patted her face.

Maybe she had some sesame seeds stuck to her face from her pancake……

Ask if you don’t know.

“……What are you looking at?”  Xia Ge enquired of her brave rescuer.

Staring into those soul-stealing violet eyes, Chu Yao was a little unwilling to move.

At the same moment, Xia Ge received a sharp warning from her system!

[Orange Warning!  Host, Close Eyes Immediately!  Once {soul capture} Is Activated, It Will Be Forcibly Maintained For One Day!  Anyone Who Looks Into Host’s Eyes Will Then Be Unconsciously Controlled by Host!]

Xia Ge: “Fuck!”

The goods had been so cool a moment ago, Xia Ge had actually forgotten she’d just activated {soul capture}!!!

The author has something to say:

Xia Ge: What’re you looking at?

Chu Yao: Looking at you.

Xia Ge: Stop it.  I know I’m good-looking. (very pleased with herself)

Chu Yao ponders: “Will he still look good if I gouge his eyes out?

Xia Ge: ……you actually said that, asshole.

Sparkling fire

Dianguangshihuo, a Chinese idiom, is diàn guāng shí huǒ in pinyin, meaning the light of lightning and the fire of flint ; originally a Buddhist language, it is a metaphor for things that are fleeting; now it often describes things like lightning and stone fire that disappear in an instant. From “Five Lantern Meeting Yuan”. Synonyms: electric light morning dew.

Chinese name-Sparkling fire

Foreign name-anything that vanishes in a flash

Synonyms–A flash in the pan , in the blink of a finger , a glowing glow, fleeting

https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E7%94%B5%E5%85%89%E7%9F%B3%E7%81%AB/3929490

秋水[qiū shuǐ]

autumn water — limpid eyes

limpid autumn waters (trad. description of girl’s beautiful eyes)