The next day, at four in the morning.
Keqing, lying in the guest room, woke up clutching her forehead.
She first looked around the unfamiliar surroundings in a daze, then frantically fumbled around the bedside.
"Keqing? Are you sober?"
The familiar male voice made Keqing breathe a sigh of relief.
Good, all three of them were here.
Wait! Three people?
Keqing rubbed her eyes and, by the moonlight, looked at Lisa, who was hugging Jack's left arm. Her curvaceous figure made even Keqing, a woman, feel a bit jealous.
Well, they're already sleeping together?
Keqing pouted, feeling like the green grassland on her head was getting bigger and bigger.
So she lay back down angrily, hugging Jack's right arm, staring at him with a pair of beautiful big eyes.
Ever since he awakened his grass element god's eye, Jack had been particularly sensitive to mental and emotional environments, and vision was included.
So, being stared at by Keqing like this was like having a girlfriend constantly holding a cleaver over his head, making his neck feel chilly.
"Why are you staring at me? Is something wrong?"
"Nothing."
"Nothing? You look like you're about to bite someone. Here's my hand, feel free."
Keqing looked at Jack's well-defined biceps, and a question mark slowly appeared on her forehead.
Biting this would probably break her teeth.
Then she looked at Jack's soft mouth.
Hmm, this looks easier to bite.
So she tilted her neck and bit Jack's lip.
But just before her teeth truly closed, she felt a little soft-hearted, so the aggressive action turned into a gesture of affection.
After the kiss,
Keqing asked in confusion: "Why does the taste feel a little different today?"
"Pfft, cough cough, wh-what's different? Maybe it's because of dinner."
"Is that so?"
Keqing was only momentarily confused and didn't think much more about it.
But when she lay down again, she closed her eyes but couldn't fall asleep.
"Sigh."
Jack sighed helplessly, then sat up.
"I'll get up and keep you company too. Anyway, sleeping is just my daily habit to maintain being human. MC people don't have a mandatory sleeping rule."
"Hehe, I got drunk a bit too early yesterday afternoon, didn't I?"
Keqing giggled and also got up, then prepared to put on her clothes.
But just as she was getting out of bed,
Her eyes caught sight of a familiar piece of fabric in the corner.
Isn't that my nightgown?
Keqing walked over, picked it up, and sniffed it critically.
A familiar scent of roses entered her nostrils.
It was the same scent as when she had just kissed Jack.
And then…
"Jack, come with me for a moment. I found a nice training ground in Lisa's backyard yesterday."
"This… it's the middle of the night, before dawn. How about we have breakfast first?"
"What's the rush? A day's plan begins in the morning. You seem to have neglected your sword practice for a long time. I'll check your Yunlai Swordmanship progress."
Seeing Keqing's icy cold face, and the nightgown forgotten in the corner after having fun with Lisa last night,
Jack knew that this beating was unavoidable.
...
A false full moon hung high.
Scattered starlight sprinkled down, adding a mysterious veil to Mondstadt at four in the morning.
Lisa's villa backyard.
Jack lit two torches, then stood with Keqing, swords in hand, about ten meters apart.
"This battle is to correct your sword-wielding habits, so no use of elemental energy, and no use of the Creator's brute force."
After entering teaching mode, Keqing seemed to have forgotten the irritating scene from earlier and fought seriously.
But is this rule meant to teach someone, or simply to punish someone?
"Okay!"
Jack took a deep breath, his casual gaze becoming firm. Anyway, he was thick-skinned and could heal, so taking a few hits was fine. He raised his longsword and rushed towards Keqing like an amateur.
His first move was a diagonal slash.
"Your intention is too obvious!"
Keqing reacted faster, placing her wooden sword about 2/3 of the way up Jack's blade, easily deflecting Jack's attack direction, then following the momentum, she kicked Jack in the abdomen.
Bang!
Jack slid back a few meters in a receiving stance, neutralizing the impact of the kick.
With that kick full of resentment, Keqing, you still dare to say you're not venting your anger.
Jack sighed, then picked up his wooden sword and charged again.
This time it was no longer a straightforward sword technique, but a thrust. Mid-way, his footwork changed, driven by his core strength, adapting with the flow, ready to change the thrust into a slash at any moment.
"This sword strike looks somewhat decent."
Keqing stepped back, while her wooden sword followed Jack's attack direction like a maggot on bone.
Bang, bang, bang!
The two figures intertwined, wooden swords clashing.
After several exchanges, Jack was drawn into Keqing's rhythm, showing signs of fatigue.
Another long leg came flying, and Jack was kicked away again.
Jack propped himself up with his wooden sword and asked in confusion, "Why is it that I clearly saw your moves and reacted, but I just couldn't keep up?"
"Because of habit."
Keqing twirled her sword, and in the moonlight, she had the demeanor of a female knight.
"You didn't practice set forms and moves from a young age, so it's inevitable that you'll carry some bad habits in your attacks."
"For example, when you make a cleaving motion, your foot habitually takes a few extra steps, but that won't strengthen your next attack. Instead, it will make you slower. In a battle, I just need to guide you into a few more bad habits, and then soon enough, without me even attacking, you'll lose your composure."
"Is that a subconscious habit?"
Jack looked at the wooden sword in his hand.
It was indeed as Keqing said.
He was merely an amateur who had been learning cold weapons for less than a few months; his combat mainly relied on brute force.
In the early stages, dealing with ordinary elite monsters or small bosses was not an issue.
But a person cannot always stay in the same place.
If he wanted an easy life, he could just stay in the MC World forever.
There would be no need to load the dragon's adventure integration pack, nor would there be a need to explore other worlds.
Everything in the future was uncertain.
Once an ordinary person, he also had his own spirit of adventure and romance.
It was just gradually worn down by society.
Now, standing at an unknown starting point again, he found himself at a crossroads.
To the left was a broad road leading to a life of pleasure.
To the right was a muddy path leading to the endless universe.
"It seems that the recent smooth sailing has made me a bit carried away."
Jack was someone who listened to advice.
So, just from Keqing correcting his sword stances, he knew she was reminding him not to be too indulgent.
Did Keqing truly care as much as she showed about his ambiguous relationships with multiple women?
Not entirely.
After all, Keqing lived in an ancient patriarchal society with a background of extraordinary abilities.
Polygamous families were not uncommon in her eyes.
And Jack was a dignified God of a realm, even the Ancestor of all Gods; having more confidantes was actually a good thing.
Compared to himself, Keqing was actually the one who cared more about Jack's career.
So she would urge him to practice his sword, urge him to improve himself, and urge him to move forward on the path of a complete Creator.
"...I understand, Keqing, continue."
Jack voluntarily took off his diamond armor, preparing to remember the pain with his pure physical body.
Only by being hurt now would he not bleed when facing disadvantaged situations in the future.
In a place he hadn't noticed.
The originally two-colored god's eye tore open again.
An indelible orange-yellow directly occupied one-third of the space.
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