Rufus (Arc 4)

"...You prefer for them to rob you?" Feng Yongrui asked, incredulous.

"Well… I don't WANT them to rob me, but between having sore legs and losing some money, I'd prefer to lose some money," Rufus said, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly.

Feng Yongrui: "…"

Was this the mentality of a Crown Prince? Was that why he was so… so… frivolous?

Feng Yongrui was struggling with himself when Rufus opened his mouth to speak.

"By the way, how are you able to run so fast? Are you used to running like that?" he asked.

Feng Yongrui wanted to joke and say that he had just been injected with adrenaline, but Rufus interrupted him again.

"Well, it doesn't matter. I guess for cowards like you, running away is considered normal," he shrugged, looking at Feng Yongrui with a 'don't worry I understand you' look.

Feng Yongrui's patience snapped and he resisted the urge flicked Rufus' forehead with his finger.

"You're annoying, you know? I just saved you from getting robbed by those guys, and now you're going on and on complaining about your sore legs... You should have your priorities!" Feng Yongrui cried in frustration.

Rufus looked blankly at "Harold" and blinked innocently.

"Well, my priority is to not get injured," he said.

"My body is the most important ah," he added.

Feng Yongrui: "..."

This time, Feng Yongrui could not hold back and he directly flicked Rufus' forehead. Once he put down his hand, though, he stared at Rufus in shock.

Uh-oh, what did he just do??

Rufus also stared at "Harold" incredulously, the shock displayed on his face was extremely obvious.

Feng Yongrui felt like crying inside his heart. Argh, of all things that he had to do, why did he flick the Crown Prince's forehead like that?? Was he tired of living?? That person was a Crown Prince, a Crown Prince!

As for Rufus, he stared at the other boy with a mixture of frustration and amazement. Wasn't it just because he wanted to protect his precious body? He would rather lose money than feel pain, alright? The money he had was endless, but once he felt pain, he would remember it for a long time!

For a moment, the two boys stared at each other awkwardly. Feng Yongrui managed to break the silence by pretending to cough.

"That... I was too hasty..." Feng Yongrui muttered.

"Yes," Rufus nodded his head. "You were. You shouldn't have done that. Now, not only will I have sore legs tomorrow, my forehead will also become painful."

Feng Yongrui, once again, reminded himself to be patient and restrain himself.

Seeing how the muscles on Feng Yongrui's face was twitching and how he suppressed himself, Rufus suddenly burst into laughter.

"I'm joking, hahaha~ Don't worry, I don't mind," he giggled.

Seeing Feng Yongrui's stupefied face, Rufus continued laughing.

Feng Yongrui felt himself blushing, but he soon joined in and laughed along with Rufus.

After this incident, the two were obviously more comfortable with each other, so they started walking together while chatting. Feng Yongrui "indirectly" told Rufus that he was the illegitimate son of a noble and that he had run away from home.

As for Rufus, he also claimed to be the son of a noble who had run away from home because he felt cooped up inside. Feng Yongrui knew that he was lying, but he thought it made sense.

No matter how silly the Crown Prince was, it wasn't as if he would outright tell him that he was the crown prince.

After walking for a while, the two found themselves in front of a small restaurant. Feng Yongrui looked through the window and noticed that the light was still on, so he motioned for Rufus to look inside.

"It seems pretty okay. Are you hungry? How about we go inside and eat?" Feng Yongrui suggested. After all, the two of them were still young, so after walking for so long, they were bound to be tired.

Rufus looked at the restaurant's exterior. It seemed pretty old, but it was tidy and neat. In fact, it gave him a warm and comfortable feeling. The problem was...

"I didn't bring money," Rufus said, rummaging through his pockets.

Feng Yongrui looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"You really didn't bring money? Didn't you say you're the son of a noble?" he asked.

Rufus frowned and looked at him seriously. "Yes, well, didn't you say you're the son of a noble too?"

"An illegitimate son," Feng Yongrui stressed. "Where was I supposed to find money?"

"Well, I was running away," Rufus shrugged, "How was I supposed to bring money?"

Feng Yongrui: "..."

Rufus gave him an innocent and sweet smile, making Feng Yongrui's eyes twitch slightly. When Feng Yongrui was about to say something, he heard a familiar "Ding~" and his surroundings turned still.

[The Crown Prince, Rufus, is feeling hungry after wandering around in the city for such a long time. However, you don't have money to buy him a meal. What do you do?]

[Buy him a meal in the restaurant by using yourself as collateral.]

[Refuse to buy him a meal, after all, you both don't have money.]

[Exchange your points for some cash so that you can buy a meal.]

...When Feng Yongrui saw the third option, his face turned stiff. He always called the System a money-grubbing System, but now... It seemed like even the higher ups were greedy for points.

Feng - stingy - Yongrui wanted to choose the second choice, but as his finger hovered above the second option, he felt a moment of hesitation.

He... he wanted to leave a good impression on the Crown Prince, so that he could get to know him better and influence the Crown Prince so that he didn't become a BUG.

Since that was the case... Feng Yongrui wanted to choose the first option.

Haha, he was willing do anything except use his beloved points.

"Host, what are you doing?" a sudden voice broke Feng Yongrui from his thoughts.

"System!" Feng Yongrui cried, pleasantly surprised. He hadn't heard the System's voice for some time, and he missed him quite a bit.

"Host, were you about to choose the first option?" the System asked.

Feng Yongrui gritted his teeth and his feelings for the System evaporated in an instant.

"...So what if I was?"

"Hahaha, Host, you're such a cheapskate," the System giggled happily.

Feng Yongrui: "..."

"No, how are you able to see the choices? Can you see me?" Feng Yongrui asked.

"Correct, Host~~ Long story short, I recently finished doing one of my punishments, so I was given a special skill. Since I'm staying apart from you, I have a skill that allows me to see you and whatever you're doing in real time~"

"...So it's like a live broadcast?"

"Correct, Host~~ Also, I'm able to see the choices that the higher ups give you, and I can see the choices that you choose~~ I can even give you advice~~"

Feng Yongrui snorted, "Who needs your advice?"

He did say that, but inwardly, Feng Yongrui was rather glad to have the System back. After all, it had been offline for so long that he grew to miss it terribly.

Ahem, of course, he wouldn't admit it.

Who would miss that grumpy System, who always managed to enrage him?

"Host, just listen to me, but it would be better to choose the last option," the System began to speak quickly in a businesslike tone.

"...And why should I choose that option? Heh, because if I exchange my points to get coins, you'll get some sort of commission?" Feng Yongrui asked sarcastically.

"That's right, Host~~"

Feng Yongrui was stunned, and the System also realized its mistake and hurriedly tried to fix the situation.

"H-host, it isn't what you think..." the System said in a small voice.

"Heh, then what DID you mean?" Feng Yongrui sneered.

The System decided to reply with silence.

Feng Yongrui sighed and put this matter aside for the time being. Anyway, he couldn't delay this any longer and he had to make his choice now...

Feng Yongrui clicked on the third option, and he saw the system's notification. 10 points had been deducted from his profile, and in his pockets there were 10 gold coins.

The System was pleasantly surprised when it realized that Feng Yongrui had chose the third choice. It couldn't help feeling curious and asked Feng Yongrui why he chose the third option.

Feng Yongrui shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly an mumbled a random reply. Seeing that Feng Yongrui didn't want to talk too much about it, the System tactfully became quiet and didn't ask anymore.

Since Feng Yongrui had already made his choice, his surroundings returned to normal and Rufus was no longer a statue.

"Since we don't have money..." Rufus said sadly, "I guess we'll have to..."

"I have money," Feng Yongrui interrupted him.

Rufus raised an eyebrow and looked at Feng Yongrui questioningly.

"Didn't you say you didn't have money?"

"I suddenly remembered that I do have money," Feng Yongrui said, thickening his skin and ignoring Rufus' confused gaze.

He opened the door and entered the restaurant with Rufus. The restaurant was brightly lit and gave people a warm feeling. Since it was very late, there were no other customers inside the room.

***