Peter tilted his head.
Those words really left him stunned.
He instinctively looked back and remembered that after the crisis in Asgard ended, Sif had made a similar request in much the same way—to follow him back to Earth.
Only, Sif back then was clearly more direct, coming right out and saying she wanted Peter to be her husband.
In comparison, Mantis was much more subtle, only asking for a place to stay.
But thinking about it carefully, she clearly had a biological brother in the Guardians of the Galaxy, yet she chose not to go with her own kin, opting instead to ask a man she had known for less than a day to take her in.
This in itself spoke volumes, didn't it?
Turning to glance at Sif, who was leaning against the control panel with her arms crossed and a "watching a good show" smile on her face, Peter truly didn't know how to answer for a moment.
In the end, he could only choose to be as impartial as he was back then:
"Why aren't you going with Star-Lord? Isn't he your brother?"
"He actually already invited me," Mantis's voice was soft and sweet, her large eyes filled with naive and direct innocence, "but I turned him down."
"Why?"
"Because..."
Mantis hesitated for a moment, then extended a finger and lightly tapped Peter's forearm.
"I can feel your heart."
As she spoke, a bright smile suddenly bloomed on her face, as if she were describing something that she herself found incredible.
"There is so much love in your heart—for your friends, for your family, and..."
At this point, she tilted her head, seemingly unable to understand the emotions she was sensing for a moment:
"A romantic love, and... a lustful love... for her!"
She suddenly pointed her finger at Sif, causing Sif, who had been prepared to enjoy the show, to blush, looking somewhat flustered.
"This kind of emotion," she looked up at Peter, her eyes clearly reflecting his image:
"I lived by Ego's side for so long, yet I never experienced it."
Good grief.
Peter took a sharp breath, suddenly feeling that he had underestimated the young girl before him.
Who said this girl was subtle!
This direct hit... caught him completely off guard!
While feeling such sentiment in his heart, Peter couldn't help but take a serious look at the girl in front of him.
He hadn't paid much attention back on Planet Ego, but looking now, Mantis's appearance far exceeded his expectations.
In the movies he saw in his past life, Mantis's eyes were entirely pitch black, with pupils so large they almost filled the entire eyeball; while she had her own unique cuteness, it was ultimately quite far from normal human aesthetics.
The Mantis before him was completely different.
Her eyes were a deep emerald green, and they were so clear and bright they contained not a single impurity.
Her pupils were only slightly larger than a normal person's, which didn't feel strange at all; instead, it gave her a sense of purity like that of an infant.
Her long, straight black hair reached her waist, and paired with two slightly pointed elf-like ears, she didn't feel like a Mantis at all, but more like a butterfly fairy from a fairy tale.
The only thing that ruined the overall aesthetic was the two antennas on her forehead.
Peter really found those a bit hard to accept.
They indeed greatly detracted from Mantis's beauty.
Thinking of this, before Peter could even say anything.
Mantis's expression suddenly changed:
"You don't like my antennas."
It wasn't a question, but a statement.
"It's not that I don't like..." Peter instinctively tried to explain, but stopped halfway through.
Dammit, how could I forget—Mantis's spiritual perception is comparable to Scarlet Witch's!
As long as this girl has physical contact with someone, she can accurately capture all of their current emotions and thoughts.
And right now, her finger was poking his chest!
In other words, all those stray thoughts he just had about her looks—
She had perceived every single one of them exactly as they were.
Facing such a situation, even Peter, who was used to great storms, couldn't help but feel awkward for a moment; his toes could almost carve a three-bedroom apartment into the deck of the destiny.
"Uh..." Peter scratched his face awkwardly and said unnaturally:
"Sorry, I don't think you're ugly, really. It's just those antennas of yours... for Earthling aesthetics, they're a little bit... ahead of their time."
Hearing the words "ahead of their time," Sif couldn't help but turn her head and give Peter a "you've got to be kidding me" look.
Doesn't her man usually have one smooth line after another when coaxing girls?
Why was he suddenly acting like such a clueless straight man now?
Just when she thought Mantis was definitely going to be angry, or even burst into tears.
Mantis herself didn't seem offended at all; instead, she tilted her head cutely, thought for a moment, and then nodded seriously.
"Ahead of their time... I think I understand what you mean."
"If I go to Earth looking like this, it would definitely cause trouble for Earthlings!"
As she spoke, Mantis lowered her head.
At the same time, the two antennas on her forehead slowly shortened.
Just like the two tentacles of a snail retracting after being touched, her antennas completely vanished beneath her skin within a few seconds, disappearing without a trace.
When she looked up again, her forehead had become smooth and flat, no different from a human girl's.
"This should be fine now, right?" Mantis looked at Peter expectantly.
"How did you manage to retract them?" Peter couldn't help but ask curiously.
"It's a biological instinct of mine," she answered frankly, "but when I retract the antennas, the range of my emotional perception shrinks significantly, and my spiritual influence on others weakens."
At this point, she paused, her voice becoming a bit downcast:
"Ego felt that this would affect the speed at which I help him fall asleep, so he never let me retract them."
This was said nonchalantly, but Peter could hear many things behind it.
That so-called "Father of the Celestials" merely used Mantis as a humanoid melatonin.
Not only did he never give her an ounce of love, but he treated her entirely as a tool.
This damn old geezer, he truly deserved to be drained dry!
Thinking of this, Peter couldn't help but take her hand and say:
"If you don't like retracting your antennas, you don't actually have to force yourself."
"You are free now; there's no need to force yourself into a form you don't like just to please others."
Hearing this, Mantis couldn't help but show a lovely smile:
"It's okay, actually, if I could, I wouldn't like to keep the antennas extended all the time; they are very fragile and consume a lot of my physical energy."
"Also... thank you for calling me cute."
"And thank you for caring about me; this is the first time anyone has ever cared about me!"
"This feeling is truly wonderful."
"Ah?"
Peter looked bewildered.
When did he call her cute?
Then, he suddenly slapped his forehead.
Well~ she read my mind again!
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