Yelan held the thin copy of 'for whom the love trap is set' between his fingertips. The cover design was elegant, with silver threads and crane shadows outlined against a deep blue background. He paid the Mora and didn't linger at the Bookshop, instead taking the book to a private room in a tea house he often frequented nearby.
It was quiet here, conducive to thinking and free from distractions.
After the tea was brewed, he unhurriedly opened the pages.
The character introduction at the beginning made his eyebrows twitch slightly.
"A-Lan... Ningguang's subordinate... lazy and elegant, with unfathomable depth... strong desire for control..." He read softly, the smile at the corner of his mouth taking on a hint of playfulness.
The author's description was indeed precise, as if someone had observed him for a long time. And the setting for 'Nickname' was highly consistent with the characteristics of the Adeptus disciple Shenhe he knew.
Interesting.
Yelan continued reading.
First meeting at the Jade Chamber, joining hands to break the formation in the bamboo forest, conversation under the maple leaves, testing each other in the tea shop, protecting each other in the mine... until the exchange of clothes and the pledge of love with sky lanterns during the Lantern Rite Festival.
Reading about fighting side by side in the bamboo forest, when A-Lan used silk threads, Yelan raised an eyebrow: "Silk threads... Hmph, the characteristics are captured accurately, but this tacit understanding in battle is written too idealistically. In actual combat, how can cooperation with a stranger be so seamless?"
Reading about the danger in the mine, when A-Lan blocked falling rocks for Nickname, Yelan couldn't help but complain in a low voice: "...A subconscious reaction? Heh, in that situation, prioritizing the assessment of environmental risks and one's own endurance is the instinct. Taking a hit from falling rocks for a near stranger... this is less my logic of action and more the creator's romantic fantasy."
Reading about the exchange of clothes during the Lantern Rite Festival, when A-Lan wore immortal garments.
"...Exchanging clothes to experience each other's world? The idea is... unique. But why would I give up my accustomed, action-oriented clothing to wear those cumbersome wide-sleeved immortal garments? Unless there's an extremely specific mission requirement. To 'experience the mortal world through her eyes'? This reason is too sentimental."
Reading to the end, when A-Lan released a sky lantern with a pattern and wrote 'My heart delights in you'.
Yelan's fingertips lingered on that line of text for a moment, and the corner of his mouth curled into an arc, seemingly mocking, yet also carrying a trace of clear interest.
"A trap... 'love trap'? Linking intelligence methods with emotional entanglements so bluntly is certainly easy to understand. Unfortunately, a true 'trap' is often more hidden, colder, and more purposeful. Declaring one's feelings so ostentatiously is more like a carefully planned performance than a trap."
During this time, Yelan read very quickly, but whenever he saw those passages describing the interaction between the two, especially those involving subtle touches, eye contact, and psychological activities, his gaze would linger slightly.
[A-Lan smiled at her, the look in her eyes carrying an unusual warmth...]
[When A-Lan took it, his fingertips once again brushed against the back of Nickname's hand as if unintentionally.]
[A-Lan whispered in her ear, the warm breath brushing past her ear, sparking a fine tingle...]
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