Three.
Wen Jiang counted down in his mind, feeling the bones and muscles on either side of the other’s cheeks shift subtly beneath his hand. His fingertips brushed against a slight protrusion—Wen Tianlu had clenched his molars.
Two.
A chill surged up from the floor. The other’s pupils contracted for an instant, his instincts kicking in for self-defense, but the resistance wasn’t strong.
“Behave.”
The Dramatic Stage spread through the darkness as well. Wen Jiang kept staring into Wen Tianlu’s eyes, tightening his grip on the other’s chin until Wen Tianlu’s spine curved downward another notch, inverting their original height difference.
You’re so tired, aren’t you? What’s in front of you isn’t danger—it’s something softer, more comfortable… Why fight it so fiercely?
One.
A faint struggle, a feeble resistance—Wen Tianlu’s taut body finally relaxed.
The chill dropped back to safe levels. In the thick, silent darkness, Wen Jiang sensed a quiet submission emanating from the other.
As expected, Wen Tianlu was just about at his limit.
The darkness was like ink that stained and wouldn’t wipe off, like the deep sea harboring colossal monsters, like a suffocating coffin… like a bottomless mysterious abyss, like a warm embrace granting peaceful sleep… like Wen Jiang’s eyes, which once locked onto, were impossible to look away from.
Back at the Bohr Hotel, even with the lights on in the room, Wen Tianlu had felt darkness closing in from all sides, his thoughts stalling briefly until a slap snapped him back to awareness. External darkness from the environment had never been a necessary condition for Wen Jiang.
That said, everything before had indeed drained Wen Tianlu’s energy greatly; otherwise, he’d have been much harder to handle now. If Wen Jiang had actually been frostbitten by the other’s Supernatural Ability, it might have affected his performance on stage tomorrow.
What next? Wen Jiang thought lazily, his fingers pinching Wen Tianlu’s chin like he’d seized a snake’s vital spot.
To be fair, Wen Tianlu would probably hate hearing this, but Wen Jiang truly believed the other had done more than enough.
He hadn’t shown any obvious loss of control, reacted swiftly, and even managed to chat normally with others like nothing was wrong—good enough to fool most people. To pull that off seemed to rely on…
Wen Tianlu twitched his head slightly, as if trying to break free from the darkness Wen Jiang imposed. Wen Jiang tightened his grip and wrenched the head back into place. “Don’t move.”
…seemed to rely on pride.
Xie Qi had far worse Supernatural Ability instability issues, but Wen Jiang rarely saw him truly unstable—though he’d noticed it more lately. Xie Qi never said it outright, but he’d often let annoyance and dejection slip through, letting his powers riot unchecked. For S-Grade Combat System espers like them, losing control like that felt like utter humiliation, a massive loss of face.
Wen Jiang, whose own powers were always stable, pondered it and figured it was like botching a major line on a formal stage—terrifying indeed.
Strong pride wasn’t a bad thing, especially when it fueled concrete action and results. That deserved praise. If it were Xie Qi, Wen Jiang would pat his head and go with encouraging education right now. But with Wen Tianlu, a gentler approach probably wouldn’t fly.
His Supernatural Ability didn’t lie—the “preference” he’d sensed at the hotel was real. Wen Tianlu might fit the newbie tutorial video’s description even better than Xie Qi, but whatever it was lay buried deep. After all this hassle, a hint was finally emerging.
“Do you want me to scold you?” Wen Jiang lowered his gaze and asked coolly.
Wen Tianlu didn’t reply—couldn’t muster a sharp retort right now. Wen Jiang felt the other’s breathing hitch for a moment.
Beneath the darkness’s veil, his Adam’s apple bobbed with a clear swallow.
Wen Jiang let out a soft chuckle.
At the very least, he hoped that after tonight, the other wouldn’t keep digging pits for himself to jump into. Wen Jiang didn’t like strolling along only to get randomly bitten.
As he thought this, he felt a faint tremor where his fingers touched. Wen Tianlu’s eyes stared straight at him—seeing him, yet also gazing at something distant, nonexistent here.
With his mental defenses crumbling, certain things enveloped Wen Tianlu again. The other’s lips parted in a thin slit, moving almost inaudibly twice.
…ma?
Ma? What was that?
Scold?
…Mom?
Oh. Wen Jiang caught on quickly, realizing Wen Tianlu’s “fear of darkness” might stem from family issues.
The reaction to darkness was abnormal indeed. If he delved deeper with the Dramatic Stage for more physical cues, cross-referenced with psych cases, he could probably infer the root cause… Nah, that wasn’t something to pry into casually with his powers.
“I’m not your mom,” Wen Jiang drawled lazily. He didn’t really expect the words to register, but Wen Tianlu blinked, and Wen Jiang sensed a fleeting confusion from him. He paused, then added, “Or your dad.”
This time, zero reaction. Seemed Wen Tianlu had never linked his father to Wen Jiang, not even for a second.
…Looks like Mom’s the dominant one over Dad, Wen Jiang concluded silently.
Wen Tianlu shifted shallowly again—the most restless under his hand, yet his range of unrest was pitifully limited, never escaping Wen Jiang’s palm.
“Be good.” Wen Jiang held firm, correcting the slight deviation. He’d found a rhythm for dealing with Wen Tianlu, softening his tone as he murmured, “I’m not going anywhere.”
Wen Tianlu’s fingertips quivered lightly. He still clutched the coin, but after a moment of stalemate, his hand loosened around it and fell naturally to his side.
The chill dissipated unnoticed. The theater’s temperature gradually normalized. In their locked gazes, deep in Wen Tianlu’s pupils, Wen Jiang sensed calm joy and attachment.
If he let this ride, Wen Tianlu might sleep soundly in the darkness. But this wasn’t therapy—it was a deal, a gamble, a game.
Unless Wen Tianlu clearly knew who he was dealing with and acknowledged the final outcome, everything prior would be meaningless.
“Who am I?” Wen Jiang asked, his syllables evoking a midnight piano melody, laced with hypnotic cadence. “Get it right, and I’ll reward you.”
The breath under his fingers trembled faintly. The answer came without hesitation.
Wen Jiang… The best possible outcome. Wen Jiang silently praised him again—the other’s rationality was well above average.
If it’d been another “ma“… well, not impossible. But if it wasn’t some niche kink and instead overlapped perfectly with his real psychological trauma-mom, then he’d just be a stand-in. Far better for Wen Tianlu to know exactly who he was and obey on that basis.
“Correct.” Wen Jiang released his chin. Per the deal, time for the reward—to end the struggle against the darkness.
“Wake up.”
With that indifferent command came a sharp, frosty aura unlike Wen Tianlu’s own chill.
Smack—!
A crisp sound echoed through the hall as Wen Jiang delivered a hard slap to Wen Tianlu’s face.
