Chapter 6

"Who is that?" one of them directly asked out loud.

Xu looked down at Mira, who was still pretending to meek and timid. He felt her move closer to him amidst the confused and suspicious eyes, arousing some sort of protectiveness in him despite knowing that it was all an act.

He looked back at the group and said in a loud voice, "She's my girlfriend. Her name is Mira."

The person who asked was Sakura, someone who could be considered as Wei Lin's closest friend. She looked at Mira with disbelief, before shifting her gaze to the quiet Wei Lin beside her.

She frowned, retorting quickly, "You obviously never had a girlfriend before. You only disappeared for a few days, how come you suddenly have a girlfriend?"

Many others had the same doubts in their hearts. Most of them had been in the team for a long time, and they couldn't accept such a strange announcement. How could their leader, who had always been cold and distant, suddenly announce that he had a lover that came from out of nowhere?

Xu expected their questioning, so he calmly responded as planned.

"We just met three days ago," he explained, "She saved my life."

"—so she asked you to be her boyfriend as repayment?" someone suddenly interjected.

This time, it was Wei Lin. She had her arms crossed across her chest, her eyes looking coldly at Mira's direction.

"Feelings and favors shouldn't be mixed. Even if she saved your life, she had no right to demand a relationship out of it," Wei Lin spoke righteously, and a few immediately echoed their agreements, casting Mira disapproving and disdainful looks.

However, most remained calm and only watched Mira silently. In fact, looking at Mira's otherworldly appearance, it was not impossible for Xu to suddenly fall in love with her and decide to take her back to the base.

Although, even if the others had these thoughts, they obviously wouldn't voice them out. Even if they knew that Wei Lin was making trouble irrationally, they would still give some face to her. While they had nothing against Mira, they were still much closer to Wei Lin, who had accompanied them for almost a year.

As a result, nobody spoke for Mira, which made her look helpless against the accusations.

Like a scared white rabbit, Mira immediately shrank into Xu's arms. Her watery eyes looked up at Xu, as if seeking for help. Xu also stared down at her, getting a clear view of the tears that spilled out of her red-rimmed eyes, the red nose, and the lips that were flattened due to being wronged. Seeing all these, Xu couldn't help but feel distressed. Even if he knew that this was only Mira's facade, his heart still throbbed, and he immediately took her into his arms, as if to shield her away from those people.

He looked up at those people again, regaining his previous poise, "She didn't ask me for anything. It was me who fell in love with her at first sight. I insisted on taking her with me to the base. She only agreed because she was all alone and had nowhere else to go," Xu gave Wei Lin a hard stare, "She did nothing wrong. She made no demands. Next time, don't draw such conclusions so suddenly."

Hearing Xu speak up for Mira without hesitation, as well as seeing him embrace the other party in front of the entire team, everyone could only exchange disbelieving glances.

Although they found it hard to believe, the facts were right in front of them. Xu himself announced their relationship, and even told everyone that he fell in love with Mira at first sight. Even Wei Lin, the person whom everybody originally thought to be Xu's future partner, was scolded in front of the entire team. Nobody dared to raise any more doubts.

Meanwhile, Wei Lin was also having a hard time digesting the current situation. It was the first time that Xu publicly reprimanded her. It was also the first time for a woman to be so close to Xu. She clenched her fists hard, feeling as though the world was playing a joke on her.

She just killed her sister, and now, there was another 'Mira' who appeared.

While her sister took away the family and the status that was supposed to belong to her, the new Mira was trying to steal her most special person. Watching her cower in Xu's arms and Xu protecting her firmly, Wei Lin immediately felt immense hatred and unwillingness.

It was obviously she who was reborn... Her second life was given by God himself so that she could exact revenge and reach the pinnacle of life... Why do people kept getting in her way?

Wei Lin gritted her teeth. She would never allow anybody to take anything away from her ever again!

°°°

Xu took Mira to a secluded corner, then gently pulled back to see her face. Her long lashes turned darker due to the tears that wet them, and there were still some obvious stains on his shirt where Mira was pressing her face against. Every once in a while, a few whimpers would escape from her mouth, sounding particularly distressing.

Looking at Mira's pitiful appearance, Xu rubbed the tears away gently.

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"Okay, don't cry," he murmured softly, "They're gone now... Everything's fine..."

Mira sniffled and opened her eyes. Her mouth was still flattened aggrievedly, and she glared at Xu accusingly.

"Your friends are so mean," she hiccuped.

Xu smiled helplessly. If he didn't witness her previous display of strength, he would only think that Mira was a delicate lady that needed protection 24/7.

"I'll tell them to be nicer next time," Xu reassured.

"You better," Mira pouted, "I don't like to hear people talking bad about me. I might get mad and accidentally... you know, blow up their heads..."

Hearing what she said, Xu froze, and the softness in his face dissipated a bit.

Her words reminded him of her real nature... Even if she acted weak and delicate on the outside, she was still someone with the ability to kill people within seconds. Even if she saved him and kept him by her side, she could still decide to end him or the people around him with just a thought.

Thinking of these, Xu suddenly felt a bit lost.

He was aware that Mira only treated him as a pet of some sort. Perhaps she would be willing to reward him when he did something to please her, but if he offended her... of course, she was most likely to punish him accordingly.

"Are you worried?" Mira's voice interrupted his thoughts.

Xu looked down at Mira, who was also staring straight at him with clear eyes. Upon meeting those emerald orbs, he suddenly felt a bit panicked. His ears warmed up, and he immediately forced himself to look away.

Mira placed a finger underneath his jaw, tracing all the way to his chin.

"Don't worry," she smiled, before circling her arms around Xu's neck and placing a soft kiss on his chin, leaving him stunned, "As long as you stay obedient and cute, I won't harm you."

Xu's mind was in a mess. He could hear his heart beating loud and fast, and even his breathing was disordered.

Although he had gotten used to skinship with Mira, they never did anything more than hugging. Being kissed for the first time, albeit not on the mouth, almost made his mind go blank. It seemed that ever since he met Mira, he would be blushing and fumbling every few minutes, as if he wasn't himself at all.

Xu tried to look unbothered, but the conspicuous blush on his face already betrayed him.

"...Don't hurt them."

Mira raised her brows, "Like I said, it would depend on your performance."

Xu's lashes fluttered as he averted his gaze. He hummed lowly, acquiescing to her words.

Mira smiled in satisfaction and pulled back, allowing Xu to feel a little less tense.

"Well, I know you'd be a great boyfriend~"

°°°

The two of them returned hand in hand to where the others were at. Mira still acted scared and shy, her red-rimmed eyes only making her look more pitiful.

On the other hand, Xu seemed to focused all of his attention to Mira, giving everyone else the impression that Xu indeed cared a lot for her.

Xu asked everybody else to introduce themselves first, and because the team respected him quite a lot, even if some of them disliked Mira, they still did as told.

Not counting Mira and Xu, there were eleven people in total. Jia and Jin were the first to speak.

This pair of siblings were actually Xu's most reliable companions.

Originally, it was Xu and Wei Lin who had the idea of setting up a base, however, it was Xu's friends, Jin and Jia, who made it possible. The two were siblings and came from a very prominent military family. Their grandfather was a reputable general that was very much trusted by the current president.

Due to Xu's relationship with these siblings, they were able to relay Jun Xie's inhumane deeds to both the military and the government weeks before the apocalypse started. They disguised Wei Lin's foreknowledge as a suspicion of how these experiments could affect the country.

Although there were some doubts at first, with the idea of not losing anything by preparing anyway, it didn't take much convincing for the authorities to agree on making some degree of arrangements, for example, stocking up on ammunation and summoning more soldiers into the current stronghold of X City.

As it turned out, their preparations paid off.

Because of their contributions and connections, all four of them gained high status in X City's base.

Of course, Jin and Jia also played major roles in the team. Jin was a sniper, and Jia was the group's doctor.

There was also Alex, the previous Mira's ex-boyfriend, and Sakura, his current girlfriend. The two didn't have much strength, but because they were close to Wei Lin, they were considered to be important members of the group.

The other six were all people that Xu and Wei Lin met later when the base started to accept more people.

Jake was a foreign ex-military officer who used to be crippled. His paralyzed legs recovered after the apocalypse broke out. He was one of the people who was picked out by Wei Lin to join their team. In Wei Lin's previous life, Jake became a respected ally of their country because of his real identity.

Ling Yu and Tang Kun were another couple. They previously worked for a secret organization, but followed Xu after he saved their lives.

Amir, Kai, and Lian Hui were all military officers who joined the team to make more contributions for the base. They were also picked by Wei Lin. In her past life, the three of them became very capable generals.

Most still had lukewarm attitudes towards Mira, but she wasn't too worried. In this team, only Sakura and Alex could be considered as Wei Lin's solid allies. Ling Yu was a good friend, and Amir was one of Wei Lin's admirers.

Mira still had the confidence to turn all of these people against Wei Lin.

One by one, the group introduced themselves.

Wei Lin watched this with cold eyes.

When it was finally her turn, she pressed her lips together and spoke unwillingly, "I'm Wei Lin."

Mira didn't expect her to be friendly, after all, Xu was the object of Wei Lin's admiration, and someone like Mira would naturally be seen as a rival in love.

"I'm Mira," she smiled sweetly, as if she hadn't noticed Wei Lin's cold attitude at all, "It's nice to meet everyone... I hope to get along with you all."

Alex and Sakura frowned visibly. Although Xu already introduced Mira earlier, hearing that name still made them uncomfortable.

The dead Mira used to date Alex, and Alex, while in a relationship with her, chose to cheat with Sakura. Similarly, Sakura seduced Alex despite knowing that he was in a relationship, and even damaged Mira's reputation numerous times. What's more, both were aware of Wei Lin's hatred for Mira. They also knew that she died in Wei Lin's hands, but, as Wei Lin's trusted friends, they naturally hid the matter. In a sense, they were accomplices.

Clearly, both held guilty consciences, so just hearing Mira's name would bring them unease.

Wei Lin was not much better either. It had only been a few days since Mira died, and hearing that name was like shaking the sleeping ghost in her heart awake.

Her face changed only for a fraction of a second, but that was enough for Mira to see clearly. She chuckled in her heart, feeling that Wei Lin was not as aloof as other people thought.

How could someone so jealous and resentful be truly aloof? It was obvious that she could so easily be affected by her emotions, it's just that she could still hide it. Her facade was the 'cold goddess' in other people's hearts, and if Mira decided to tear that apart...

Mira looked forward to her reaction when that time comes.

×××

Mira: You call me 'master' when we're alone, and 'darling' when we're in front of others, okay?

Xu: Yes...

Mira: *smiles* Yes what?

Xu: *blushes* Yes... master...