"Cold, calculating, and resilient beauty of a female lead vs. the arrogant and handsome heir of a noble family—a love-hate relationship, divorce before love, momentary cruelty leads to a desperate chase to win her back."
Moses flipped through the pages rapidly, his lips twitching more and more as he read. What a melodramatic, angsty romance—and of course, it had to have a perfect ending.
Seriously?
Click!
The bathroom door opened, and Makino stepped out in a pink short-sleeved shirt and shorts. Spotting Moses, she tilted her head in confusion. "What are you reading?"
As she approached, her eyes landed on an illustration of a man and woman embracing. Her expression froze.
Her lips parted unconsciously, her face suddenly burning red. "Ahhh!!!"
After an ear-piercing shriek, she bent down and snatched the book from Moses' hands.
Clutching it tightly to her chest, she took a quick step back, glaring at him with flustered, evasive eyes as she stammered,
"Y-you—why are you reading this?!"
"Isn't the point of putting it on the shelf so people can read it?" Moses gave her a deadpan look. "And why are you so worked up?"
"It's just some cheesy romance novel, isn't it? Girls your age love this stuff—no big deal. I don't even care, so why are you so nervous?"
Moses rolled his eyes, tossing out his complaints before standing up and walking past her toward the bathroom.
"I'm going to shower."
With another click, the bathroom door closed.
Makino, still red-faced, turned around and gritted her teeth.
"Damn brat! What do you mean, 'girls your age'? You're younger than me!"
Her expression twisted in frustration, the sheer embarrassment of having her guilty pleasure discovered sending a wave of shame shooting up her spine.
"Ughhh—ahhh!!!" Makino let out a few more agonized screams before finally slumping her shoulders and sighing in defeat.
"Insufferable, precocious little brat..."
Listening to the sound of running water from the bathroom, she shot another fierce glare in its direction—only to freeze again, as if remembering something she'd forgotten.
With another resigned sigh, Makino silently prayed, Please tell me he didn't notice...
She then went to her room, grabbed a change of clothes, and placed them on the stool outside the bathroom door.
"I left fresh clothes outside. Don't forget to change when you're done," she called out.
"Got it. Thanks," Moses replied casually.
After a quick rinse, he also washed his grease-stained shirt, dried himself off, and cracked the door open just enough to grab the clothes Makino had left for him.
The blue short-sleeved shirt and shorts were clearly too big for him. Spotting the frilled cuffs in the mirror, Moses couldn't help but twitch his lips.
But then he glanced at his freshly washed clothes in the basin and shook his head. Whatever. I'm just a kid—why should I care so much?
Dismissing the thought, he stepped out of the bathroom—just in time to see Makino sitting on the couch, watching him with an amused smile.
Moses remained completely unfazed. He turned in a slow circle in front of her, then faced her again with a calm expression, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.
"Had enough of a look?"
"Ahem, who's looking at you?" Makino turned her face away guiltily. "I wasn't looking at you at all. I just happened to be looking that way when you came out."
"Oh, where can I hang my clothes at your place? I just washed them," Moses asked her.
Makino blinked before realizing what he meant, then suddenly covered her mouth to stifle a giggle. "Hehehe, Moses, so that's what this is about."
A vein popped on Moses' forehead as he stared at her silently. When she finally stopped laughing, Makino's eyes sparkled mischievously:
"I just did laundry too and was about to hang them. I'll help you with yours while I'm at it. Yeah, that's settled."
Makino jumped up and ran past Moses, darting into the bathroom where her eyes immediately went to the bamboo basket in the corner.
She suddenly relaxed and patted her chest—everything was exactly as she'd left it.
"He probably didn't notice," Makino muttered to herself. "Yeah, surely not."
"If you're talking about your clothes in the laundry basket, I saw them," Moses suddenly spoke up from behind her. "Don't worry, I didn't touch anything."
Watching Makino's body visibly tremble, Moses teased with a smirk: "The colors were quite pretty. Big~ sis."
Chuckling, Moses then walked back toward the sofa.
Hearing his footsteps fade away, Makino's expression turned deeply resentful, her face burning scarlet.
Her heart was pounding wildly.
Her lips parted as if to scream, but realizing he was already gone, she knew it would be pointless.
The trapped breath stuck in her throat, neither going in nor out, made her unbearably uncomfortable as her lips began trembling violently.
Using the Breath technique Moses had taught her, she took several deep breaths. After a few seconds, she silently picked up the bamboo basket and prepared to leave.
But after some thought,
She finally grabbed Moses' clothes from the nearby basin too. Pausing at the bathroom door, she only managed to say:
"I'm going to hang the clothes."
Then hurried toward the entrance.
Just as Makino reached the door, Moses' voice rang out: "Need any help?"
"No," Makino instantly replied. "I can manage. You rest."
With that, Makino stomped out "thump thump thump," turned right, and ascended the stairs to the rooftop.
Shaking his head, Moses sighed: "Didn't expect her to be such an innocent maiden."
"An innocent maiden who loves cheesy melodramatic romance novels, no less."
Just then, "ding ding" sounds came from tapping on the living room window. Moses turned to look—none other than Crow Dabao.
Opening the screen window, Crow Dabao hopped inside with his distinctive waddling gait.
"Mei, I saw, that dumb girl, on rooftop," Crow Dabao said haltingly. "Clothes, bamboo pole."
Moses closed the window and returned to the sofa, pouring Crow Dabao a cup of cold tea.
"Drink first," Moses said while watching the crow sip his tea. "I know, Makino went to hang the laundry."
"Where, this?" Crow Dabao asked hoarsely, curious. "Dumb girl's, home?"
Moses nodded, smoothing down a stray feather on Crow Dabao's head before using his fingers to groom the bird's plumage.
Crow Dabao closed his eyes contentedly, emitting low, raspy "caw caw" sounds.
A moment later, Makino returned and saw the interaction between the man and the crow as soon as she entered. Her expression had now returned to normal.
She walked over and sat beside Moses on the sofa.
Gazing at Moses, Makino suddenly said:
"Little Moses, why don't you stay at my place tonight? Your clothes won't be dry by then, and I doubt you want to walk around town in my pajamas."
Moses glanced at her and suddenly chuckled, "No worries. Crow Dabao can fetch me some clothes later. He's quite capable."
Makino paused, then looked at Crow Dabao, whose eyes were filled with disdain as he stared at her. She couldn't help but twitch her lips. "Stupid bird."
Crow Dabao let out a "caw," the contempt in his eyes deepening.
Stupid female monkey.
Does she think Crow can't do it? Crow can carry iron nets—how could two pieces of clothing be a problem?
Makino didn't want to engage with him to avoid getting annoyed again. She turned back to Moses and said:
"Sleeping on a boat can't be as comfortable as sleeping in a proper house. I doubt you'd enjoy rocking back and forth all night, right?"
That struck a chord with Moses. It was true—sleeping on land was far more comfortable than on a ship. Maybe he could go to Mt. Colubo and stay with Ace?
But after some thought, Moses wasn't too keen on staying at the bandits' hideout. Too many people—it wouldn't be restful.
He glanced at Makino, who noticed his hesitation and was about to speak when Moses asked:
"Are there any inns in Windmill Village? I could stay there."
Makino froze, then scowled. "No."
"What? Is my place not good enough for you? You'd rather stay at an inn than here?"
"That's not it. I just don't want to impose."
"You ungrateful brat," Makino huffed, puffing her cheeks in frustration. "I see you as a little brother. If I really thought you'd be a bother, would I have invited you into my home? Would I have offered you a place to stay? You heartless little devil."
Moses looked at her in surprise, not expecting her to feel that way.
"See? I knew you had ulterior motives."
Makino blinked, confused by his words, but before she could respond, Moses continued:
"Latest updates on 6-9-book-bar-first-release!"
"You still haven't given up, have you? You're still trying to make me your little brother. Didn't I already say it? I won't—and can't—be your brother. It doesn't suit my personality. You should drop that idea right now."
Makino was momentarily speechless, torn between laughter and exasperation. The next second, she turned and pinched Moses' cheek.
At the same time, a sharp glint flashed in Crow Dabao's eyes as his beak darted forward to peck at her.
Noticing the crow's movement, a faint red light flickered deep in Moses' eyes. His right index finger deftly flicked the underside of Crow Dabao's sharp beak, tilting it upward. The crow tilted his head in confusion and asked:
"Meh? Why stop Crow?"
By then, Makino's fingers had already pinched Moses' right cheek. Hearing the crow's words, she froze.
Staring at the raised beak, she muttered, "Was he going to peck me?"
"I stopped him. Don't worry, Crow Dabao meant no harm," Moses explained. "At worst, you'd have gotten a little scratch. He knows his limits."
"Oh!" Makino looked at Moses' pinched cheek and couldn't help feeling a bit embarrassed. She quickly let go, rubbing the spot with her palm as she hurriedly apologized, "Sorry, sorry! My fingers got itchy and I couldn't resist."
A glint flashed in Crow Dabao's eyes as he croaked hoarsely, "Crow... also sorry. Beak itchy... couldn't resist."
Moses immediately laughed, "Well since everyone's apologized, let's consider it settled."
Makino's eyes sparkled as she shook her head with amusement, "Anyway no harm was done - he didn't actually peck me. I'm fine."
"Oh right, we agreed you'd stay here tonight. You can take my room while I clean up my parents' old room for myself," Makino declared.
Moses shook his head at this, patting the sofa. "I'll just sleep here tonight. Actually, I'll sleep here during my entire stay. Is that okay?"
Makino hesitated, feeling bad about making Moses sleep on the sofa, and was about to persuade him otherwise when Moses smiled and said, "Any place to sleep is fine. Your sofa isn't small anyway. I insist on staying here - wouldn't want to trouble you further."
Seeing Moses' determination, Makino relented, "Alright then. Let me get you a blanket."
As Makino went to prepare bedding, Moses gazed at the night sky where stars had begun appearing.
"You should rest early too, Dabao."
Crow Dabao nodded, hopping onto another sofa where he comfortably sprawled out, his bird legs stretching lazily.
Moses turned over and lay flat on his sofa.
Soon, Makino returned with a blanket and pillow, smiling helplessly at the sight of the already settled human and bird.
Handing the items to Moses, Makino said, "Rest well. Goodnight."
"Mm, you too."
Makino turned off the hallway light before retreating to her room in the corner of the house.
The night passed uneventfully.
...
Next morning.
At dawn.
After changing into his own clothes, Moses jogged a steady lap around Windmill Village - about five kilometers - before washing up on the marine ship.
In the mess hall, breakfast consisted of meat buns, plain congee, and stir-fried greens. He and Crow Dabao enjoyed a hearty meal before packing another portion - a bowl of congee, a plate of greens, and five meat buns - to take away.
At Makino's house, Moses retrieved a thermal container from the first-floor kitchen to pack the breakfast. After placing it on the second-floor table, he left again.
About twenty minutes later, Makino woke up.
The enticing aroma greeted her as she stepped out of her room. Noticing the thermal container on the table, she tilted her head curiously.
Opening it, she found a note inside:
[Makino, remember to eat breakfast. Don't worry about washing the dishes. No need to wait for me at lunch - I'll be back by evening. - Moses]
Taking out the breakfast, Makino picked up the chopsticks inside to nibble on greens between sips of congee, then took a big bite of meat bun.
"Damn you Moses!" she mumbled through a full mouth, her words barely intelligible. "Couldn't even wake me up before leaving, you idiot!!"
Meanwhile in the lush mountain forest...
Moses arrived at the Dadan Family Home on Mt. Corvo.
The wooden door stood open.
Entering, Moses immediately spotted Dadan cleaning.
"Hey there, Dadan. Where's Ace?"
"Mo... Moses?" Dadan was stunned at first when she saw Moses after so long, then delighted, but soon her face twisted into a pained expression as she complained:
"You finally came! Go deal with that little rascal Ace, will you? He's running wild, going into the mountains every single day. We can't stop him no matter what, it's downright terrifying."
Moses rubbed his temples helplessly, though this was hardly unexpected. At nearly six years old, it was normal for Ace to explore the mountains. Moses was certain Garp must know about this too.
"Which direction did he go? I'll look for him."
Dadan's face lit up as she quickly pointed the way. Moses compared it to the path he'd taken to get here. "The royal capital area?"
With a smile at Dadan, he said: "Alright, I'll go find him. Don't worry, Ace isn't the type to die easily."
Hearing this, Dadan's face darkened as she blurted out: "Better safe than sorry! There are giant tigers in those mountains!"
"And yo
u be careful too when you go after him. If anything seems wrong, run first and ask questions later. You hear me?"
"Don't be as dumb as Ace is."
"Alright, alright, I got it. I'm plenty smart." Moses gave a wry smile at Dadan's motherly fussing as he headed out the door. "Don't worry, I'm not stupid."
With those parting words,
Moses took the forest path Dadan had indicated and disappeared among the trees.