Chapter 115: Consoling Origami Tobiichi

“Ye Chen, help me.” After leaving the white-haired girl’s side, Kanade Tachibana tugged at Ye Chen’s sleeve. Her calm voice held a rare note of pleading. She truly had no idea how to comfort others. It was just like back then, when she had wanted Yuri and the others to enjoy their youth and experience a fulfilling adolescence, yet, unable to express herself properly, had resorted to violence instead.

“What is her name?” Ye Chen could not possibly refuse Kanade’s request for help. Looking at the girl whose eyes had almost lost all their light, he asked Kanade.

“Origami Tobiichi.” Tilting her head slightly, Kanade gave him the girl’s name.

“Origami?” In Ye Chen’s eyes, Origami Tobiichi was also a pitiful girl. It was hardly strange that she had aroused Kanade’s sympathy. Origami seemed utterly unresponsive to everything around her. Even when Ye Chen walked up beside her, her eyes showed no sign of moving.

Gently supporting Origami’s head, Ye Chen lifted her face. She made no movement at all, like a doll being manipulated at will. Yet at last, a faint reaction appeared. Her vacant eyes met Ye Chen’s starry pupils—and in the next instant, she froze. His eyes seemed to possess a strange magic, drawing Origami’s mind toward them.

The fact that she had finally shown some reaction allowed Ye Chen to relax a little. If she had remained completely unresponsive, he would have had no choice but to let Little White, the psychological expert, treat the girl who had fallen into utter despair. Imitating Shiori’s actions with Kotori, he gently placed Origami’s small head against his chest.

“Go ahead and cry. Let out all those negative emotions. Once you’ve cried it all out, you won’t feel quite so miserable anymore.” Stroking Origami’s hair, Ye Chen comforted the fragile girl in a gentle voice.

His words seemed to provide her emotions with an outlet, and everything she had been holding inside suddenly burst forth.

“Waaaah—!”

Origami weakly clutched at Ye Chen, burying her face against his chest as she sobbed. She cried loudly, as though she wanted to pour out every emotion in her heart for him to hear. Ye Chen said nothing. He simply held her quietly and listened to her weeping.

They remained that way for a long time. The sobs in his arms gradually grew softer and weaker, until at last they ceased altogether. Exhausted from crying, Origami fell asleep in Ye Chen’s embrace. He carefully laid her back on the bed and gently tucked the blankets around her.

After instructing several maids to take good care of Origami, he left the room with Kanade and the others. The moment he turned around, he saw Bai Ji wearing an amused, knowing smile. She softly took Ye Chen’s hand, pressed her petite body against him, and whispered into his ear, “Ye Chen, you’ve done something rather terrible. Judging by the circumstances, this girl may very well come to regard you as the person most important to her, taking the place of her parents in much of her heart.”

Though he felt helpless about it, Ye Chen knew the possibility was quite high. Not wishing to dwell on the subject, he changed the topic. “Little White, thank you for the hair ribbon. I’ll give you another one.”

“Is that all?” Bai Ji did not seem entirely satisfied with his answer. Her flawless, adorable cheeks puffed up as she pretended to be angry.

“How would you like me to thank you?” Ye Chen asked indulgently, used to Little White’s occasional bouts of childish temper.

“From now on, you’re responsible for brushing my hair and tying my ribbons every day! You have to learn properly, too. Even if you do a terrible job, I won’t fix it for you, and no one else is allowed to help you either. Only you can do it!”

Little White knew that Ye Chen would certainly agree once he spoke that way, and she declared it with a bright, delighted smile.

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll ruin your hairstyle so badly that you won’t dare show your face outside?”

It was not as though Ye Chen had never brushed anyone’s hair before. However, he had never actually learned how to do it, so the results could easily be imagined. After a few attempts, he had abandoned the idea altogether.

“What does that matter? If you can’t do it well at first, you can learn gradually. If you make it look too awful, I’ll simply wear my hair loose until you’ve mastered it.” Little White was strangely determined about this, as though she would refuse to give up until Ye Chen agreed.

“All right, all right. I’ll do as you say!” Ye Chen patted Little White on the head. In truth, her hair was exceptionally fine and smooth, remaining silky no matter what. Even when left loose, it was breathtakingly beautiful.

“Then let’s go now!”

Unable to wait any longer, Bai Ji pulled Ye Chen away. After saying goodbye to Kanade and the others, she returned to her room and placed a comb in Ye Chen’s hand before sitting upright in a chair.

Ye Chen had not expected Little White to be in such a hurry. Holding the comb, he slowly worked it through Bai Ji’s hair with somewhat clumsy movements. He gently gathered a lock of her long hair between his fingers. It was so smooth that it hardly needed brushing at all, but that was not what Bai Ji cared about. What mattered to her was the time she could spend alone with Ye Chen.

So Ye Chen brushed her hair slowly and carefully. After a while, he suddenly began to laugh. Bai Ji, who had been sitting there enjoying the sensation of him brushing her hair, asked in confusion, “What are you laughing at?”

“Nothing. I just suddenly remembered how I used to love stroking your back and smoothing your fur. Back then, you were still a tiny Nine-Tailed Celestial Fox. Brushing your hair now reminded me of those days. It’s pretty much the same thing, anyway.”

Even after explaining himself, Ye Chen continued laughing.

Bai Ji gave him an coquettish glare. Turning around, she lightly pounded his chest with her little fists and complained petulantly, “How is it the same at all? You completely ruined the atmosphere with one sentence! I’ll teach you to smooth my fur! I’ll teach you!”

In her irritation, Little White allowed her fluffy fox ears to emerge. They stood straight up, clearly revealing their owner’s anger. Ye Chen instinctively reached out and caught the pair of adorable ears. The instant they were seized, all traces of anger vanished from Little White’s face, replaced by a deep blush.

After teasing Little White for a while, the two of them seemed to return to the carefree state they had shared in the past. They played around for quite some time before finally beginning to discuss serious matters.

The system had currently issued two missions. One required Ye Chen to enroll at Haoling Academy, while the other required him to save the Spirits. Neither mission had a time limit.

Spirits possessed tremendous abilities, and both the time and place of their appearances were highly unpredictable. At present, the only person who could be confirmed as a Spirit was Kotori. Searching for them would depend entirely on luck, making the task far too difficult. For now, that mission could be set aside. Sometimes, it was best simply to let nature take its course.

As for the mission requiring him to enroll at Haoling Academy, it was obvious at a glance that it would lead to further developments, perhaps even an entire storyline. Ye Chen would also be sent there to study for a period once he reached the appropriate age, so there was no need to rush.

After discussing the matter together, the two discovered that they did not need to pay attention to any missions for the time being. When they had nothing else to do, they could go out for a stroll and see whether they happened upon any opportunities, then simply carry on with their own affairs.