As soon as Yu Deng's words fell, the space around them fell into a dead silence.
Anders and Qin Jun, who had been competing for Yu Deng's attention, were stunned by his words.
What? Someone else had kissed the little vampire before? Was it that annoying vampire butler or someone else?!
This unknown rival had even received praise from the little vampire! Jealousy twisted the wolves' faces.
Yu Deng, oblivious to the impact his words had caused, blinked in confusion as he looked at them. "What's wrong with you two?"
Why did they look so hurt? Even Anders' tail had stopped wagging.
[Oh my, baby, you're way too cute! You just blurted that out so honestly. They're absolutely losing their minds with jealousy!]
[Deng Deng really knows how to reel in men! Just a casual comment, and these two troublemakers are now filled with insecurity, probably desperate to prove themselves.]
[The ex and the step-son must be having a blast overhearing this.]
[But, baby, saying that might earn you a round of trouble! Jealous men can be terrifying when they lose control...]
Yu Deng looked at them with concern. "You both look so strange." They looked so fierce.
Anders took a deep breath, unsure whether he should explain or ask who this unknown rival was.
The little vampire looked up, glancing back and forth between them.
Anders and Qin Jun stood on either side of Yu Deng, while Qin Jun, still frustrated, tried to find an angle to pull Yu Deng away from the other wolf.
The tension between the two wolves subtly charged the air, making the surrounding brambles quiver slightly. The system picked up on this disturbance, immediately on alert.
Yu Deng pouted, noticing his lips were still a bit swollen. He turned to scold Anders, "Next time, don't just kiss me without warning, and don't kiss so hard."
The little vampire's voice was soft; his "scolding" sounded more like a plea.
Qin Jun: "…" Great. He was the only one who hadn't kissed the little vampire, and his favorability level was lagging behind.
Anders, however, felt slightly better.
An unknown rival might cause some anxiety, but seeing other competitors fail so miserably was undeniably heartwarming!
"Understood. I won't hurt you next time," Anders replied, submissive, and he even went as far as to imply a next time in front of Qin Jun.
Qin Jun closed his eyes, then whispered to Yu Deng, "I can meet all your requirements too, including just now."
So, could he have a chance too?
"I know I upset you before with some things I said. That was my fault, but I never intended to treat you poorly." The tall man looked down, like a pitiful dog pleading with its owner not to abandon it. "See, I even put medicine on your wound."
Yu Deng turned to look at him, blinking, and then glanced at his arm.
The scraped skin from earlier, caused by the ground shaking, was now fully healed, with no trace of injury or pain.
Oh right, this guy had treated his wound... Maybe he wasn't that bad after all? And his attitude had improved a lot lately.
Though Yu Deng could be moody, he was still fair. "T-then, thank you."
Qin Jun was momentarily stunned, not expecting to receive such genuine thanks.
Seeing Yu Deng's sincere gratitude left him feeling like his heart was running on empty.
In just two days, Qin Jun's boundaries had retreated significantly. He now felt differently than he had yesterday.
So what if the little vampire was spoiled? Such a beautiful and adorable vampire should be indulged, shouldn't he?
Taking advantage of Anders' distraction by Yu Deng's cuteness, Qin Jun swiftly pulled Yu Deng into his own embrace.
Yu Deng let out a small sound as he was lifted off his feet. "Eh?"
Anders found his arms suddenly empty. "…Damn it."
With Yu Deng held in his arms, Qin Jun felt his previous restlessness and frustration dissolve into a deep satisfaction. An answer had begun to form within him.
He wanted to be the center of the little vampire's attention and wanted Yu Deng to look at no one else.
...
At this moment, there was still an hour left until the end of the maze side quest.
A few more players encountered NPCs at the crossroads, each putting on a performance to bluff their way through.
[Haha, that's hilarious! Did you guys see that player? He's already sworn brotherhood with one of the NPCs.]
[Actually, this maze is pretty fun. Every movement follows a pattern, and even the environment details change. There's more than one way to clear it.]"
[Honestly, looking for patterns in this maze reminds me of the aptitude test questions from Huaguo on Blue Star I saw a few days ago...]
Meanwhile, the butler Wen Luo, along with a little bat and a crow, was crossing the entire maze, getting closer and closer to Yu Deng's location.
The crow was the first to find Yu Deng. From a distance, it saw Yu Deng surrounded by two werewolves and became furious, cawing loudly in rage.
The little bat, Qiu, lagged behind but followed the crow's calls and flew over, only to see their delicate, beautiful young vampire master surrounded by wolves. It let out a piercing screech, though unfortunately, no one could hear its ultrasonic sound.
Wen Luo gave these two lively creatures a glance, then moved quickly and arrived at Yu Deng's location within seconds.
The butler then stopped in his tracks, the smile in his eyes disappearing.
Yu Deng turned his head to greet him, "Oh, Wen Luo, you're here too."
"Yes, young master."
At that moment, Yu Deng was still sitting on Qin Jun's lap, with Anders holding his shoulder, seemingly in a contest. The two tall werewolves surrounded Yu Deng, making him look like a beautiful little lamb who had wandered into a pack of wolves.
Wen Luo coldly looked at the two werewolves, questioning word by word: "What were you two doing to our young master?"
Qin Jun answered indifferently: "Obviously, we're having a friendly conversation."
"Is that so?" The butler took a few steps forward, standing right in front of the two werewolves, looking down at Yu Deng.
The delicate young master's eyes were rimmed red, his mouth was swollen, and his clothes were torn.
Wen Luo, though inexperienced, wasn't stupid. He could tell at a glance that the young master had been kissed, maybe even subjected to something more inappropriate.
This was a friendly conversation?
Meanwhile, Anders added fuel to the fire: "Oh, by the way. The young master just said that someone kissed him very comfortably before. Was it you?"
Anders' thoughts were simple.
If the vampire butler was the one, then he'd identified a hidden rival to deal with. If not—well, even better. How could he be the only one irritated by this?
Wen Luo's expression darkened. He didn't answer the werewolf's question directly, but said: "The young master of the vampires is the future prince. The young master is not an object of your impoliteness."
Wen Luo's tone remained gentle as ever, but his words carried a veiled warning.
Anders clenched his fists, muscles tense. Wen Luo's bat wings spread, flapping rapidly, as if about to attack the next second.
Qin Jun glanced at the two non-humans, his gaze dark and unreadable. However, he didn't choose to join the battlefield; instead, he held the little vampire in his arms more securely.
Yu Deng was stunned.
Wait, are they really about to fight?
The main system couldn't hold back anymore.
[Beep—Beep—, Detecting strong energy fluctuations, detecting strong destructive desires from all mission targets present. Player Yu Deng, please note, your special mission needs to be completed to the highest standard.]
[Please complete the mission as soon as possible!]
The highest standard, that means signing a contract to restrain power.
Yu Deng was startled by the main system, looking up at the two tense non-humans, quickly struggling out of Qin Jun's arms: "What are you two doing, don't fight!"
The werewolf and vampire suppressed their fighting urges and looked at Yu Deng.
Wen Luo extended his hand to Yu Deng, his tone gentle. "Young master, I'll take you to the exit."
"Hey, I can take him too!" Anders objected, blocking Yu Deng.
Qin Jun walked over silently, conveying the same intent.
Yu Deng was practically tearing his hair out in frustration.
It seemed like choosing any of them would lead to a fight... This was so annoying! Why couldn't they just get along peacefully?
"All—stand still, no moving!" Yu Deng raised his little face, trying to put on an intimidating look as he gave the command.
Despite the strong emotional waves and immense power present in the other three, Yu Deng's single command was like a leash on a pack of fierce dogs, quieting them as they waited for his decision.
While Yu Deng was still hesitating, the maze began another shift. The thorns behind him, seemingly sensing his hesitation, opened a hole in the wall and pulled Yu Deng inside.
Wen Luo, who was closest, immediately followed, stepping into the wall. As soon as Wen Luo entered, the thorn wall instantly returned to its original state.
The two werewolves left standing in place: "…?"
The little vampires were gone, so what were they still arguing about?
The expressions on both werewolves' faces darkened. They glanced at each other, clearly disgusted, not bothering to hide the murderous intent toward one another.
In the next moment, they started fighting, using all their strength and creating an earth-shattering uproar.
Main System: [...]Warning! Alarm blaring!!
...
Yu Deng was being carried away from the thorny walls by the butler, feeling faint and being cradled in Wen Luo's arms, gazing at him.
[The baby keeps switching between different men, hahahaha.]
[From the moment I saw my wife, I knew this infinite channel would become a battlefield of male rivalry.]
[It was so enjoyable to watch just now, three bad men putting on a show, all using every trick to win the baby's favor!]
[Each bad dog turns into a green tea expert in front of the baby.]
"Are you alright?" Wen Luo's gaze lingered on Yu Deng's lips for a moment, his fingertips gently brushing over the swollen lip.
Yu Deng instinctively pulled back, letting out a small "mhm" sound: "It hurts a little."
"..." Wen Luo's voice grew a little deeper. "Young master, werewolves are very cunning and brutal creatures, you must be careful of them."
Yu Deng slowly nodded: "Oh..."
After the reminder, Wen Luo seemed to no longer care about the matter, softly asking, "Young master, are you tired?"
Yu Deng nodded: "Mm, I'm really tired."
"Then let me carry you."
While carrying Yu Deng and hurrying on, Wen Luo explained the rules of the maze. Yu Deng, dazed, listened and finally understood that the maze was a derivative of the forest surrounding the castle, magically connected to the castle.
They hadn't walked long when they heard a strange screeching from the end of the road. Yu Deng focused his eyes and saw a frog-like green creature oozing pus, unsure if it was a wizard's spell or just a player's item.
In any case, it looked disgusting. Yu Deng's small wings immediately retracted.
Luckily, the maze shifted again, and the weird creature disappeared from his sight.
After being carried by the butler for about ten minutes, Yu Deng spotted a light ahead.
It was the exit of the maze.
Outside the exit, there were already about ten people gathered. Soon after the fight, Anders and Qin Jun, both looking somewhat disheveled, appeared at the exit and squeezed in next to Yu Deng.
Half an hour later, the maze ended.
[Ding, congratulations to player Yu Deng for completing the side quest: Maze.]
[Ding. No players were killed in this side quest. Surviving players: 8.]
The players had used both their wits and strength in the maze, and all survived. Unfortunately, the winner of the night was a werewolf. Unlike the firm and toned muscles of Anders and Qin Jun, this werewolf's muscles were so exaggerated that they nearly burst out of his clothes.
Yu Deng couldn't tell if the werewolf was a player or an NPC... perhaps he would know by dawn.
It was already early morning.
The vampires were lively, chatting loudly about the interesting things they encountered in the maze. The werewolves, stimulated by the blood moon, were also quite excited.
Most of the attention was focused on Anders and Yu Deng, with some occasional glances at Qin Jun.
Of course, the vampires were enjoying the spectacle, while the werewolves seemed in disbelief.
Anders was open about his affection for Yu Deng, not at all hiding his feelings and seeing nothing wrong with acting as a mount for him. Qin Jun stood not far off, watching Yu Deng with a calm expression, quietly plotting ways to increase the little vampire's favorability.
Although these people had just played a three-hour game, they didn't seem tired at all. But Yu Deng, unlike the vampires, was already feeling exhausted.
"Wen Luo," Yu Deng tugged at the butler's sleeve, "I'm so tired, why don't you all want to sleep…"
"If we were to classify based on strength, you are still a cub, so it's normal to have less energy."
Wen Luo coaxed gently, "Since you're tired, then go rest. You've worked hard through this game."
— Being surrounded by so many ill-intentioned men, of course, it was tiring.
The diligent butler accompanied the young master back to his room and prepared warm water for him to bathe.
Yu Deng's mind was filled with thoughts of tonight's hunters and the disgusting green monster.
He looked at the butler and asked, "Wen Luo, aren't you tired tonight?"
"Yes, I'm not. Fully grown vampires can go five days without rest."
Yu Deng wasn't being polite and immediately gave an order, "Then you'll stay in my room tonight and watch over me as I sleep."
If something happens with the hunters, he could seek protection from the butler! Yu Deng thought this plan was really a good one.
Wen Luo was a little surprised, pausing for a few seconds before smiling and replying, "...It's my honor."
Yu Deng felt much safer with that assurance.
Yu Deng, now dressed in a short-sleeved shirt and shorts, climbed into bed. Just as he was about to sleep, he felt an invisible force and a strange sensation.
It was as if something was calling to him, evoking a subtle desire.
"What's going on... Wen Luo! I feel strange."
The black-haired butler knelt by the edge of the bed. As a vampire, he knew very well that this was the prince's power fluctuating.
However, their young master was still confused and slow to understand many things.
For example, he had no hesitation in drinking the blood of other vampires, or how the cunning werewolf had kissed his lips until they swelled, and now, this...
Their young master was the prince's first embrace, transformed by the prince's power. When the prince showed signs of awakening, the young master would naturally be the first to feel it, developing a sense of closeness and dependence.
They naturally shared the deepest bond.
But it seemed that Yu Deng wasn't aware of this.
Wen Luo's hand, resting by his side, moved slightly, pressing his finger firmly into his knuckles.
"Wen Luo? Why aren't you saying anything?"
Yu Deng, still waiting for the butler's explanation, couldn't help but urge.
The black-haired butler patiently reassured, "Young master, this is not something important, don't dwell on it."
Yu Deng hesitated before asking, "Ah, so it's not important?"
But the feeling was still strange.
Yu Deng's words, "not important," caused Wen Luo's heart to skip a beat, feeling an indescribable excitement.
"Yes, your understanding is correct," Wen Luo said, his smile deepening in his eyes.
The foolish little vampire hadn't noticed anything odd and believed the butler's words.
"Alright then, I'm going to sleep. You're not allowed to sneak away when I fall asleep!"
"Don't worry, I won't."
The black-haired man was gentle and polite, like the most loyal knight watching over his charge.
"Don't trouble yourself with insignificant matters. Good night, young master."