Chapter 5: Bending over

“Mr. Bartender, please get us two bottles of Sarani, medium quality, thank you.”

Wei Bai politely called out to the busy uncle behind the counter, slapping a few Copper Coins given by the manager onto the counter.

The busy bartender uncle glanced up at Wei Bai, then dropped a word.

“Alright, wait over there.”

He pointed casually to an empty spot, then lowered his head and went back to work.

Following the bartender’s finger, they found an empty two-person seat and sat down facing each other.

As soon as Mida’s butt touched the chair, the Storybook in her hand was opened.

Wei Bai glanced around the tavern, feeling a bit noisy.

A dozen drunks gathered around a round table playing drinking games, dozens of bottles of unfamiliar alcohol scattered on the table.

On a wooden platform slightly elevated from the floor, several people in suits shouted excitedly. Almost every seat was filled.

Only a few solitary figures sitting alone in the corners were relatively quiet, ignoring the surrounding noise and drinking in silence.

After looking around, Wei Bai lost interest.

He saw no subtle gestures exchanging information, which meant this tavern was mostly used to serve ordinary people.

Turning his gaze to Mida, who was sitting across from him reading the Storybook with her head down, Wei Bai spaced out.

In fact, for an ordinary person, Mida was quite good-looking. Normally dressed casually, she seemed just slightly pretty.

Now, wearing Wei Bai’s clothes, she radiated an irresistible charm.

Even if it was a Waitress’s uniform, it was of the standard and craftsmanship reserved for serving the ruler of a nation in the Palace, naturally incomparable to the fabrics sold on the market.

Feeling Wei Bai’s burning gaze, a blush appeared on Mida’s pretty face, but she didn’t lift her head.

Instead, she seemed to enjoy being stared at by Wei Bai.

Perhaps even Mida herself didn’t realize that a strange feeling had already formed in her heart toward the boy in front of her.

However, Wei Bai had no idea what was on Mida’s mind.

He found her lowered head cute, and couldn’t help but want to pat her head.

So cute, just like a little sister.

Yes, Mo Baiwei, who was locked in the Palace by the wretched Queen all year round, had never seen anyone other than the Queen.

She’d heard she had a sister, but didn’t even know her name or what she looked like.

All she could see every day was that cold Queen’s face.

Every time the Queen appeared, Mo Baiwei would inevitably end up lying battered on the floor of her bedroom.

Elves were highly exclusive.

Even the Queen couldn’t accept her own sister being with a lowly short-lived human, much less the fact that they’d birthed a strange little half-blood.

Not killing her was already the Queen’s mercy for her deceased sister.

Abusing her was merely to vent her own anger.

The long-imprisoned Mo Baiwei desperately longed for a moment of freedom to interact with others.

This pathological desire even unconsciously affected Wei Bai in his human state.

Looking at Mida’s body trembling slightly in front of him, Wei Bai couldn’t help but reach out.

“Hey! You two, your Sarani’s here. Take it.”

A voice broke the tense atmosphere.

The bartender uncle, standing before them, glanced at their movements with a look that said he’d seen it all, then placed two deep red bottles on the table.

Wei Bai, interrupted, quickly withdrew his hand, awkwardly hiding his earlier lapse in self-control.

Mida, who’d been keeping her head down, pouted unhappily and glared fiercely at the bartender’s back.

“Alright, let’s go. Mission complete. Everyone back home. I just want to sleep.”

Wei Bai grabbed the bottle, sweeping away the earlier awkwardness and regaining his composure.

Mida closed the Storybook, still keeping her head down as she followed behind Wei Bai.

As the two passed by a round table near the exit, a drunken Youth noticed Mida behind Wei Bai.

“Hey! Little lady, come sit with me.”

The Youth exuded a roguish air, staggering to his feet with a lecherous grin, wobbling over to Mida.

A strong, almost tangible stench of alcohol hit them, making Mida—who had a powerful mint candy in her mouth—frown and shrink behind Wei Bai in fear.

At this moment, the Youth seemed to notice Wei Bai for the first time.

Seeing Mida hide behind him, he raised an eyebrow.

“Kid, is she… your girlfriend?”

The drunken Youth looked at Wei Bai with a teasing expression, then smirked even more, pointing a finger at Mida.

“Let me play with her for two days, I’ve got plenty of money for you.”

After speaking, he pulled a Gold Coin from his pocket, waved it before Wei Bai’s face, then tossed it to the floor.

The clear sound drew many gazes.

In an instant, countless greedy eyes fixated on the Gold Coin spinning on the ground, and not a few gazes stared blatantly at Mida behind Wei Bai.

Surrounded by a pack of men with lustful eyes, Mida felt completely uncomfortable, shrinking even more behind Wei Bai.

“All of you, turn your heads! Anyone who dares look at what I fancy, do you want to die?!”

The Youth noticed the stares from the other drunks and shouted at them, emboldened by the alcohol.

The tavern fell silent instantly.

The once-noisy crowd now looked at each other with varied expressions.

Some, more sober, recognized the Youth and shivered, turning their heads away.

“So, kid, want to think about it?”

The Youth continued to look at Wei Bai—no, at Mida behind him.

“Your woman, let me have her for two days. Whatever you want, I can give it to you.”

“Just this?”

Wei Bai looked contemptuously at the Gold Coin on the floor and kicked it back to the Youth’s feet.

“Oh? Seems you’re not just some nobody, pretty ambitious, huh?”

The Youth glanced at the Gold Coin, then kicked it back, and as it bounced off Wei Bai’s slipper, he reached into his pocket.

A large handful of shining Gold Coins tumbled from his pocket, the sound of coins falling echoing through the silent tavern—by rough estimate, nearly several dozen.

Everyone stopped what they were doing, staring at the bouncing coins.

Even the bartender behind the counter paused, frowning at the three.

But none dared approach to snatch them.

A single Copper Coin could buy a loaf of bread.

One Silver Coin equaled a thousand Copper Coins.

One Gold Coin equaled a thousand Silver Coins.

This Youth had casually pulled out a sum a family couldn’t earn in years.

His status was self-evident—either a wealthy merchant or a noble…

Feeling the small body trembling violently against his back, Wei Bai slowly bent down.

Seeing the boy bend, the Youth’s face showed a contemptuous smile.

Mida froze, her body no longer trembling.

An icy feeling spread in her heart as she watched the boy bend down, finding him utterly unfamiliar.

The Youth, ignoring Wei Bai’s lowered head, confidently walked toward Mida, his triumphant grin growing wider.

“Yo, miss, seems your companion isn’t that loyal. But that’s alright. I’ll cherish you more than he ever could.”

At this moment, Mida was still dazed, unable to hear the Youth’s mocking words.

In her eyes, all that remained was the scene of Wei Bai bending down.