"I am so... so incredibly sorry," Ji’an panted, waving a trembling hand toward the red-haired rogue who was standing a few feet away. "I just... I accidentally kidnapped you. That is a crime. I’m confessing to a crime."

Blue did not look winded.

He didn’t even look mildly fatigued.

He stood in the dappled sunlight, his breathing perfectly steady, his dark leather robes unruffled.

He looked down at his own hand, the hand Ji’an had just been holding in a vice grip for the last two miles.

He slowly clenched and unclenched his fingers, a completely unreadable emotion swimming in the depths of his bottomless dark eyes.

"You didn’t kidnap me," Blue murmured, his voice a smooth, low hum that vibrated pleasantly in the quiet clearing.

He lowered his hand, turning his gaze to her. "You merely accelerated our departure. I must admit, I was unprepared for the... theatricality of the capital’s populace."

Ji’an groaned, letting her back slide down the willow tree’s trunk until she was sitting on the mossy ground.

She buried her face in her hands, the crushing embarrassment of the gigolo accusation finally setting in.

"They are insane," Ji’an muffled through her fingers. "They are completely insane. I can’t believe they called you a gigolo. You don’t even look like a gigolo! You look like a highly competent, terrifying mercenary! I am so sorry your reputation was slandered in my vicinity."

Blue walked closer, his boots silent on the moss.

He stopped in front of her, looking down at her hunched, miserable form.

A faint, exceptionally subtle curve touched the corner of his lips.

"I am unbothered by the slander of fools, Ji’an," Blue said softly. "Words don’t draw blood. And in the borderlands, a reputation as a dangerous paramour might serve as a viable deterrent against bandits."

Ji’an peeked up at him through her fingers, surprised by his calm response.

She had spent the last three days dealing with Lin Feng’s protectiveness.

Every interaction in the capital had felt like navigating a minefield blindfolded.

But this guy?

This fiery-haired rogue named Blue?

He had just been publicly accused of being a homewrecking male prostitute, physically dragged through a cabbage cart, and sprinted a mile out of the city.

He was completely chill about it.

He wasn’t yelling, nor demanding explanations.

He wasn’t threatening to execute anyone.

He was just standing there, offering a quiet, steady, and surprisingly comforting presence.

Ji’an let her hands drop to her lap, letting out a long, heavy sigh of relief.

When was the last time she felt so relieved and carefree?

The tension that had been keeping her shoulders coiled tightly near her ears for the past week finally, slowly began to unravel.

Ah, she only ever felt quiet and peace like this in the Drunken Peak, while sitting beside Wangchen and resting.

"You are a remarkably well-adjusted individual, Blue," Ji’an praised, offering him a tired, genuine smile. "I usually attract people who react to minor inconveniences with mass murder. It is incredibly refreshing to meet someone who doesn’t possess a god complex."

Blue stared down at her smile.

His dark eyes flickered, the faint curve of his lips vanishing, replaced by a focus that was entirely at odds with his relaxed posture.

He looked at her as if she were the only object of color in a monochrome world.

"I possess many flaws," Blue murmured, his voice dropping into a ragged whisper that the wind almost stole. "But I assure you... I’m very good at keeping the people I travel with safe."

Ji’an didn’t notice the undertone in his voice.

She was too busy luxuriating in the silence of the forest and the absence of screaming fujoshis.

She pushed herself up from the ground, dusting the moss off her gray robes.

She adjusted the leather straps of her pack, feeling a renewed surge of energy.

The capital was behind her, and the mission lay ahead.

For the first time in days, she didn’t feel entirely alone.

"Well, Blue," Ji’an declared, clapping her hands together, her arrogant, capable Head Chef persona snapping back into place. "Since we have officially fled the city as wanted fugitives of gossip, I suppose we are stuck together. The Eastern Coastal Wastes are a two-day hike from here. Do you like spicy food? Because I’m not eating dry rations on this trip!"

Blue looked at her bright, silver-flecked eyes.

He looked at the way the sunlight caught the determination in her stance.

He slowly reached up, adjusting the tie of his fiery red ponytail, his dark eyes never leaving her face.

"I am at your disposal, fellow brother," Blue replied smoothly, offering a flawless, elegant bow that seemed slightly too refined for a wandering rogue. "Lead the way."

Ji’an grinned, turning on her heel and marching down the dirt path leading toward the eastern horizon.

’He is a nice guy,’ Ji’an thought happily, adjusting her spatulas, feeling a profound sense of camaraderie. ’He is calm, reasonable, and didn’t freak out when I dragged him through a market. He’s the perfect travel companion. Finally, the universe throws me a bone!’

As Lin Ji’an marched blithely toward the treacherous swamps, oblivious to the reality of her situation, the red-haired rogue fell into step right behind her.

He didn’t look at the path or the trees.

He stared at the back of Ji’an’s neck, his dark eyes burning with a silent promise that would have frozen the blood in her veins if she turned around.

The Eastern Coastal Wastes were not merely a geographical location; it was like a highly active biological weapon.

Located at the very edge of the Azure Empire’s jurisdiction, where the continent fractured into a labyrinth of saltwater swamps, jagged obsidian cliffs, and primordial jungles, the Wastes were designed to kill the unprepared in a thousand different creative ways.

The air was a suffocating, humid, smelling of rotting vegetation, sulfur, and the sharp, metallic tang of ozone.

The mud beneath their boots sucked and squelched, occasionally hiding sinkholes deep enough to swallow a carriage whole.