Chapter 13

Wen Xi roasted him internally—but honestly pulled the towel down and wiped his face.
The sprite sniffed, broken words: “Id noth curu…”
【I didn’t mean to cry.】
Wen Xi didn’t get why he cried—he’d been fine a second ago; mood flipped fast.
Then a small box flashed on the right: 【Must-read—vain succubi can’t stand humans seeming to reject them. To succubi, looks and body are what they’re proudest of.】
Who rejected anyone? Nobody.
Had the sprite misread him?
Whatever—the quest was done; next.
The box vanished; the phone icon buzzed with an unread dot.
The phone UI was realistic—opening showed contacts.
The new message was from Dr. Fei Yili.
Fei Yili: 【Beloved human—I left in a rush. Forgot to say—the pills I left can be fed after Siran wakes—every three hours—and we’ll have a healthy little Siran back soon.】
New quest stretched the timeline.
Wen Xi didn’t fuss—pressed a pill to the sprite’s lips until he swallowed.
Even mid-“tantrum,” he obeyed the medicine.
After taking it, bruises on Wen Siran faded visibly.
Fei hadn’t lied—the kid would heal fast.
To fight boredom while recovering, Wen Xi took two books from inventory and set them by his pillow.
If he was reading—afternoon tea wasn’t weird, right?
He went to the mall for a high table, fruit teapot, and a fancy slice of cake.
Smug about his thoughtfulness—then the system alarmed.
System: 【Warning—your familiar is self-harming—stop it now.】
Self-harm?
Who—big head?
Wen Xi rushed to the hut—and froze.
The kid who whimpered at shots was now yanking his own tail—hard.
Pain made him wince—but grip didn’t slack, like the tail wasn’t part of him but baggage to rip off.
Wen Xi remembered Fenrir: tail was sensitive and vital for succubi.
What he was doing was basically suicide.
Angry, Wen Xi grabbed his wrist and forced him to stop.
He’d meant to swat palms like scolding a child—teach a lesson.
Before he could, the sprite lifted his head, innocent: “Ydu noth vosuo, Id byo nowei.”
【If you don’t like it—I don’t want it either.】
Wen Xi’s heart slammed.
He stared a long moment—then firmly pried his hands away and covered the tail himself—stroke after stroke.
The designers weren’t human.
Using self-destruct to force intimacy between player and succubus.
Dirty—so dirty!
Was fondling someone’s ass something honorable—worth repeating?
Only adult games pulled stunts this absurd!
The “suicidal” sprite went limp under petting—shaking lightly, ears red.
Wen Xi pinched the tail tip with the virtual hand—his heart thumped wild again—a big red heart popped over his head.
Okay—that should be enough.
Seeing the sprite cheer up, Wen Xi set the high table bedside, teapot and dessert on top.
Tap the teapot—it filled with tea; the warmer candle lit.
Wen Xi touched his face, tucked the book in his arms; the sprite looked down shy, stammering: “Si…ren…guai…ting…hua.”
【Siran will be good and listen.】
Good.
With a promise he’d behave—and no more surprises—Wen Xi logged off.
_
The room stayed quiet a long time. Wen Siran pretended to turn pages—ears pricked for sound.
No table scrape, no big hand ruffling hair—he tested, “Polin?”
No answer.
He threw the book off the bed with an exaggerated “A ya～”
He hung over the edge, short arms straining for the book.
Naturally couldn’t reach—eyes sneaked up—would the transparent hand appear?
Nothing for ages.
Wen Siran was sure the human was really gone.
He slid off the bed. On the floor lay Human Language and Civilization—he kicked it lightly, then scooped it up fast, hugging it like treasure: “Id vosuo kuowei～”
【I love reading.】
Still quiet—Wen Siran exhaled secretly.
He found his bag on the coffee table, shoved Human Language and Civilization in hard, then fished out the City of Succubi’s current bestseller—The Domineering Human Falls for Me.
Fenrir had given it when sending him home—a gift.
Fenrir said: to keep a human, learn the tricks inside—secret between Siran and him—human must not find out.
Book swapped, Wen Siran sat on the bed again and opened page one: succubus and human meet in a bar—private room, first passion—she tasted his essence.
Teacher Eric had said—once they had adult form, food would change.
Then the human who raised them would bond—become keeper.
With a keeper, succubi could truly enter human society and live long with their person.
Wen Siran smiled reading.
So human bars looked like this.
So humans “drove” without wings.
So to eat human essence—you had to take his pants off first.
He yearned for life with a human.
He was still too weak to meet those needs.
But Teacher Eric said—once charm skills were fixed, the human would be obsessed—would feed him nourishing food every day.
He couldn’t wait.
-
That afternoon Wen Xi took Fuzai to the supermarket—fresh shrimp, chicken breast, beef, plus yogurt and energy drinks for himself.
Home—groceries in fridge—hands washed—editing in the study.
Lately he’d shift stream hours—instead of one long night block, 2–5 p.m. and 7 p.m.–midnight.
More balanced—body could handle it.
He posted the schedule to the fan group and homepage.
Fans liked two blocks—not everyone could stay up late.
After dinner—forty minutes before stream—Wen Xi remembered Fei’s orders and logged in for the second pill.
Loading in—idyllic scene.
Sprite reading under warm orange light—hawthorn tea bubbling beside him.
Left of the teapot—a glass cup, pink-red tea steaming.
Next to it—strawberry mousse with one bite gone—spoon streaked with pink cream.
Head down, absorbed—smile he couldn’t hide.
Really loved studying.
Wen Xi almost hated to interrupt.
Medicine still had to happen.
He offered the black pill.
Hand neared—the sprite’s hair shot up like a hedgehog; book shoved under covers; exclamation marks circled his head.
Why the panic?
Loving books was good—why hide?
Half a minute later he calmed.
He wiped forehead sweat, rattled a long string.
Translation: 【Sorry—I didn’t know it was you—I got scared. The book you gave is so good—I love human culture—I want to study hard—I wasn’t doing anything bad.】
Wen Xi found him off—guilty.
Especially the last line—classic “three hundred taels of silver buried here.”
When kids go quiet—they’re plotting.
To learn what Wen Siran was up to, Wen Xi opened the recorder—slowly.
Author’s note:
【Wen Siran read one minute, tested if you were there—called for you.】
【No answer—Wen Siran threw the book on the floor for no clear reason.】
【Arms too short—couldn’t reach—got off bed, kicked the book.】
【Wen Siran looked around, picked the book up fast, hugged it, said he loved reading most.】
【Wen Siran swapped another book from his bag.】
【Wen Siran read with relish.】
Oh—he’d just switched to a book he liked—nothing to fear.
Learning was learning—any book worked.
Wen Xi didn’t push—pinched his cheek, pulled the hidden book from the covers, handed it back himself.
Read what you like—it’s a game sprite—why jump at shadows?