Chapter 42: Deceiving Brother
Regarding the Sentinel’s clothes, Xu Xunyue had actually paid attention.
The coastline here was very long. Some places were piled with debris and furniture washed up by the waves, and a small part was contaminated with the remains of cataclysmic creatures. But Zhu Hui’s things were the only ones with nothing around them, making it the cleanest place on the entire coast.
Gun, magazine, dagger, safety bracelet, belt, clothes and pants, shoes and socks, gloves.
All were neatly arranged on the shore.
Some time had passed since Zhu Hui had walked into his trap. It was probably late at night now.
But the surrounding environment had not changed at all. In front was an endless sea, and behind was an endless snow.
The depths of a cataclysm zone were like this. Not to mention a few hours, even after many years, it was difficult for there to be any change.
Staying in an unchanging place for a long time, one would eventually feel bored. Xu Xunyue used his spiritual power to survey the snowfield and felt that raising a Sentinel to accompany him was not a bad idea.
Having agreed to the other’s request to put away his ears and tail, Xu Xunyue simply became patient and observed how his Sentinel got dressed.
Since he had said he was not allowed to get dressed on the shore, then he was not allowed to get dressed on the shore. The young man approached the place where his clothes were placed, with only his upper body above the water.
The image underwater was somewhat blurry due to refraction, and the scene on the water was impossible for the human eye to distinguish carefully at night.
However, at this time, Xu Xunyue’s vision was not the vision of a normal human.
He could see very clearly, even more clearly than the Sentinel. He would not hide his gaze, so the observed target would feel a strong and open sense of being watched.
As Xu Xunyue watched, he recorded the first entry of his Sentinel observation diary in his mind.
First, he put on his lower garments, then his belt, then his upper garments…
Why is he getting dressed so slowly? Even his fingers are trembling.
He buttoned up his shirt with trembling hands, then put on his shoes and socks.
Why are even his fingers turning red? He had to know, the things he had done to him were all in the spiritual landscape. His body in the real world had not been tormented at all.
After putting on his shoes and socks, he bit his lip and put on his gloves, then began to put on the bracelet.
He has so many accessories on his hands—gloves, a bracelet, and a string. He’s probably a refined Sentinel.
He had finally finished putting on the bracelet. Now only the weapons were left.
Hmm, the weapons…
The Sentinel’s movements paused. He turned around, his face red, and asked with a lowered gaze:
“Brother, can I bring these?”
“What are you bringing these for?”
“I can fight for you.”
Xu Xunyue said, “You are mine. I am the master here. I don’t need you to fight.”
The Sentinel’s eyes drooped, his expression looking a little dejected in the moonlight.
“Alright. You can hunt for fun if you want.”
Xu Xunyue relented.
He’s so obedient, he even knows to ask me. I’ll just let him bring them.
At this time, the shadows floating in the deeper water began to urge him.
[Let’s go.]
[Hurry up.]
[We’ve already given up on you making him turn into a wolf for us to play with. Let’s go.]
[I really want to go down and see what’s there.]
[It seems very attractive.]
[The city under the sea, is it our territory?]
[There’s a familiar feeling there.]
Xu Xunyue took in all the shadows’ thoughts and didn’t feel there was anything wrong with them, because the shadows’ feelings were his feelings. He also thought the same.
Seeing that the Sentinel had his gun and dagger, he pulled him, preparing to dive again.
“Brother, wait.”
Being interrupted again, Xu Xunyue stopped, a little impatient.
“What is it?”
“Brother, can you take a look at this?”
Zhu Hui’s left forearm was held by Xu Xunyue, so he used his right hand to carefully tug on the corner of his clothes.
“Just a look. This is the last thing.”
Xu Xunyue turned his head, his gaze falling on the hard, paper-like thing in the Sentinel’s right hand.
His gaze paused.
It was a photo. The person in it had an elegant and smooth low ponytail and was leaning back, reading a book.
On the table next to him was a bookmark made from a leaf specimen, with a delicate tassel tied to the bottom. The warm yellow light shone on this person’s side profile, creating a peaceful and beautiful scene.
This was very similar to the image that had flashed through his mind before.
A familiar stabbing pain came, but this time, his thoughts were not immediately interrupted.
He remembered the Sentinel’s fluffy ears that he had just put away, and a very white wolf appeared in his mind. It was circling around in that small place with a stove and cabinets, whimpering at the cup in his hand.
The cup was filled with a liquid, colorful and steaming, like a freshly made drink.
He had passed the cup to another hand that had been waiting on the side, saying that the spiritual body probably couldn’t drink this.
There were more images.
This image was slightly yellowed, as if it were very old. He was with a little girl, sitting in the back seat of a small car.
The car gradually slowed down and finally stopped under a sweetgum tree. As the sweetgum leaves floated to the ground, the doors of the driver’s seat and the front passenger seat were opened, and two adults got out.
The little girl immediately closed her eyes. Then, the adult opened the back seat door, and seeing this, he asked in a whisper, his lips pressed together, “Are you asleep again?”
He also pressed his lips together and said yes, so the little girl was carried out of the car by the adult.
The image gradually blurred, and the stabbing pain gradually became clearer.
Xu Xunyue heard the Sentinel beside him calling him.
“Brother, brother, do you remember anything… How do you feel?”
The young man had leaned in front of him at some point, his eyelashes almost brushing his face.
He was gently shaking the corner of his clothes, his brows furrowed, his expression anxious. If you looked closely, you could even see a hint of regret in it.
He’s worried about me, Xu Xunyue thought. I think I know him. He seems to be my Sentinel.
Strange. He should be my creation.
My blood flows in his body, and my brand is in his spirit. This should be my creation, my property, my subordinate. If I say east, he can’t go west. My will is his will.
But he felt that there was more to it than that.
A few hours ago, when he had tied him up in the spiritual landscape to punish him, the image of the other crying until his nose was red flashed through his mind.
…It seems a little excessive.
Twenty times was enough. Fifty times, a hundred times, that was indeed too much.
Luckily, he didn’t break.
“Brother? Are you feeling unwell?” The Sentinel was still clutching the corner of his clothes.
He was clearly very anxious, but his movements were still so light, as if he were afraid of startling him.
“I’m fine, just a bit of a headache,” a warmth that had not been there before appeared in Xu Xunyue’s voice. “I did… remember some images.”
And he himself had also noticed this warmth.
More accurately, after this Sentinel had come to his side, he had produced many fluctuating, bright, and lively emotions.
This was something he didn’t have when he “awakened.” When he first “awakened,” he had no emotions, no feelings, no memories, and no goals.
This Sentinel was human.
Was he, too, human?
At the very least, he was not the kind of creature that had been on this land since he “awakened,” as he had originally assumed.
He seemed to have many pasts.
“That’s good… Brother, do you remember me?”
Zhu Hui relaxed, but he was still clutching the corner of Xu Xunyue’s clothes.
After he had shown his brother the photo, his brother had fallen into a period of silence, with no other movements or words, but his face had turned a little pale, looking uncomfortable.
He had panicked at that time, and even regretted his rash action, wishing he were a Guide who could help his brother. But he was a Sentinel, so he could only keep calling his brother to get his attention.
Luckily, his brother had responded.
When his brother looked at him, the golden eyes, which had been golden since he had found him, had changed a little. They were no longer a cold gold, but a bluish-light gold, very beautiful.
His brother had also said that he remembered some images.
The next moment, Zhu Hui’s rising emotions fell again.
Xu Xunyue said, “Some, but I don’t remember your name.”
Zhu Hui pursed his lips.
He doesn’t remember my name.
That sounds like a serious case of not remembering. Does that mean he only remembered a little, or was it a slightly recovered brother comforting me?
Of course, this is already very good. Memories can be gradually recovered. As long as it’s positive feedback, it’s fine. I can stay here with brother until he completely remembers.
If only I had a photo with brother…
If only I had a photo, would the effect be better? Would brother remember a little more?
Zhu Hui was sulking to himself, angry that he had forgotten to take a photo with his brother before, while reaching for the ice surface where his clothes had been placed.
Only ice that was thick enough could become a shore, instead of being immediately melted and disappearing into the vast wilderness. Zhu Hui prepared to write his name on it.
Just as his fingertip touched the ice, he heard Xu Xunyue say again:
“But I remember that you are my Sentinel.”
Zhu Hui’s hand trembled.
In the relationship between a Guide and a Sentinel, this kind of statement was different from “you are mine,” “you belong to me,” and so on. Only a Sentinel introducing their partner would say “this is my Guide,” and only a Guide introducing their partner would say “this is my Sentinel.”
This was a statement that could be very formal, or very ambiguous.
Then, his brother still remembered a lot about him.
His fingers pressed a dent into the solid ice. Zhu Hui gently shook the corner of the clothes in his hand.
“This is my name, brother. My name is Zhu Hui.”
“Zhu Hui…” Xu Xunyue looked at the words written on the ice and read them once.
Familiar.
Why does it feel sweet when I say it?
He thought for a moment, and another question suddenly popped into his mind.
“Why do you call me brother?”
He hadn’t even noticed this form of address before. This Sentinel—Zhu Hui—Zhu Hui had called him that as soon as he ran over, and for some reason, he had directly accepted it.
In his vague memory and perception, this form of address was used between relatives, or between two people who had a good relationship but with a bit of an age gap.
The young man in front of him blinked, as if he hadn’t expected him to say that.
“Because… you are my brother. I’ve always called you that.”
Xu Xunyue pondered for a long moment and said, “Then what do I usually call you?”
Zhu Hui was stuck.
Wh-what do you call me?
There’s… there’s no special name, right?
Oh right, why not?
Zhu Hui quickly went through it in his mind and confirmed that there really wasn’t one. At most, when they were joking, the other would say a teasing “Student Zhu.”
But…
His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly.
But brother is asking me.
Should I tell a little lie?
Now brother is in the stage of recovering his memory. I don’t know when he’ll completely remember. It might only take a few days, or it might take a long time.
If I lie to him a little, he might believe me.
In that case, I can hear brother call me by an intimate name.
And brother probably won’t punish me for this lie afterward, right?
Zhu Hui had completely discovered Xu Xunyue’s indulgence toward him, both before and after his memory loss. In short, he actually cared about him and was unwilling for him to be hurt or wronged.
Zhu Hui swallowed and said in a low voice, “You, you you… by the way, we’re married.”
Guilty conscience, not daring to say it directly.
First, I’ll use the marriage as a foundation.
“Oh?”
“We have a very good relationship.”
Another foundation.
“So…”
Zhu Hui took a deep breath.
“You, you sometimes call me by my nickname, which is the second character of my name.”
“I see.”
“Yes, um… and.”
“What?”
Zhu Hui tried to even his breathing, putting on a serious expression as if he were just stating a fact.
“Just, just for example, sweetie, darling… something like that. That’s what brother calls me.”
