Little Alpaca – Chapter 10

Volume 1: Little Alpaca

Speak Properly, Don’t Whine.

When people are frightened, they easily lose their ability to think rationally. This was precisely the case for Yi Qiu at this very moment.

She felt as if countless question marks had suddenly appeared in her mind, but they were all stirred together into a paste, and not a single one could be pulled out to be examined.

“Come here,” You Yan commanded from inside the room.

The path to leave was still blocked by that spirit wall. Yi Qiu timidly glanced around, then secretly wiped away a tear with the fur on her leg and obediently walked into the room. She watched helplessly as the door behind her was closed by an invisible force, completely extinguishing her vain hope of escaping this place.

You Yan didn’t seem to like the light; all three times Yi Qiu had come here, the surrounding windows had been tightly shut. The room’s furnishings were simple, looking clean and comfortable, yet the dim light gave it an added sense of oppression.

After entering the room, Yi Qiu curled up into a ball by the doorway.

For safety’s sake, she decided to be an alpaca that only moves when poked. It didn’t matter if she looked a bit foolish; what was most important was not to provoke the Lord Demon Lord before her.

You Yan walked to the table and sat down. On it were a pot of wine and a single cup; it wasn’t hard to see that she had never considered having visitors.

Truly reclusive. No wonder she’s so moody.

Some unlucky kids have no other skills, but their ability to brainwash themselves has always been first-class.

For instance, at this moment, the unlucky kid was shrinking her neck, quietly observing You Yan pouring and drinking by herself. Seeing that You Yan had no intention of paying her any mind, she couldn’t help but harbor a sliver of hope.

She thought that perhaps You Yan just felt there was no atmosphere drinking alone. Then, she happened upon an unobservant little pet who had accidentally barged in and, on a whim, decided to keep it here to serve as an atmosphere crew member¹. Once she finished her wine, she would let her go.

To successfully survive until that moment, Yi Qiu didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly, trying her utmost to play the part of a fluffy ornament and reduce her presence as much as possible.

But she had, after all, just been scared into a little crying spell. The tears had stopped, but other things were not so easy to stop.

And so, something awkward happened.

Just as You Yan was drinking alone, in this bedchamber that was neither large nor small, the sound of the little alpaca involuntarily sniffling echoed again and again.

The little alpaca didn’t want to be so noisy, but the snot that came with the tears was truly awkward. She was afraid she’d get a beating if she wiped it somewhere in You Yan’s room, but she refused to wipe it on her own fur, so she could only keep sniffling it back in.

As she kept sniffling, You Yan could no longer stand it. She turned to the side, her gaze sweeping darkly over her.

Yi Qiu instantly froze on the spot, her beady black eyes wide as saucers, wishing she could write the word “innocent” all over her face.

Just like that, the person and the pet stared at each other for a long while, the staring contest ending only when You Yan let out an unconscious, soft chuckle.

“You, come here.” For once, You Yan’s tone wasn’t cold.

Yi Qiu blinked. After a moment’s hesitation, she mustered her courage and stood up, slowly walking step by step toward You Yan. She finally stopped by the table and buried her little head, her gaze wandering.

A clean, white silk handkerchief floated down from above, landing on her head.

Yi Qiu quickly pulled the silk handkerchief down from her head with her two front hooves, gave her nose a good blow, then carefully folded it. She sat down on her haunches and pressed it under her hoof, her posture impeccably well-behaved.

This time, Yi Qiu buried her little head even lower.

If alpacas didn’t have fur, her old face would surely be redder than the Great Sage’s butt².

You Yan lowered a hand and gently kneaded the back of Yi Qiu’s head. Seeing the way the little one wanted to shy away but didn’t dare, she couldn’t help but tease, “Are you really that afraid of me?”

The feeling of being afraid of someone is impossible to hide.

The little alpaca trembled even more fiercely.

“Stop trembling.” You Yan suddenly pinched the scruff of Yi Qiu’s neck. After a violent shudder, Yi Qiu’s trembling actually began to subside, little by little.

This reaction made You Yan unable to stop the corners of her lips from turning up.

She smoothed Yi Qiu’s fur and asked with great interest, “Write your name for me.”

Yi Qiu froze for a moment, then looked up at You Yan.

“Can you write?” You Yan asked, pouring a cup of wine onto the ground.

Yi Qiu hesitantly extended her little hoof and, under You Yan’s unwavering gaze, dipped it in the wine and wrote the two characters for “Yi Qiu” on the ground, stroke by stroke.

“Yi Qiu.” You Yan gazed at the still-fading marks on the ground, seemingly lost in thought.

Her fingers gently toyed with Yi Qiu’s ear, her wide sleeve drooping down, almost completely blocking Yi Qiu’s line of sight.

Yi Qiu waited and waited, and waited and waited. After a long time with no reaction, the curiosity she had suppressed for so long could finally be held back no more.

She asked weakly, “Can you read it?”

You Yan replied coldly, “Obviously.”³

Startled by the sudden sharp reply, Yi Qiu couldn’t help but shrink her neck.

She had written for the demon slaves before, and they all said they couldn’t understand it. She’d thought the writing systems of the two worlds weren’t compatible. Turns out the demon race is just full of illiterates.

Yi Qiu took a deep breath, buried her head, and said no more.

But it seemed You Yan suddenly had no intention of letting her off the hook. Her fingertips exerted a slight pressure, giving the small ear a light pinch.

Yi Qiu couldn’t help but let out a hiss of pain and began to complain in her heart.

You Yan: “You suddenly ran over here. It couldn’t have been just to tremble for me, could it?”

This question was like an anointing of the head with the purest cream⁴.

Yi Qiu snapped back to her senses. Her two little hooves pawed at You Yan’s sleeve, and she poked her head out from behind it to look up at You Yan. Her brain, which fear had filled with who-knows-how-many catties⁵ of paste, finally cleared up a little.

“Of course not!” She really had been so scared she’d forgotten why she came. This trip would have been for nothing, and she would have been scared for nothing!

You Yan lightly tapped Yi Qiu’s little nose with her index finger. Seeing her subconsciously shrink her head back, she couldn’t help but give a perfect smile. “If you have something to say, just say it. I don’t like turning corners and rubbing angles⁶.”

Yi Qiu thought for a moment, then asked timidly, “Um, De… Master, you said before that you would take me to the Human Realm to have a look… Is… is that true?”

You Yan said, “I just said it casually. Don’t take it seriously.”

Hearing this, Yi Qiu immediately grew anxious. “I took it seriously!”

You Yan asked coolly, “Is this how you speak to your master?”

Yi Qiu was at a loss for words.

It was true she had been yelling, but the trip to the Human Realm was related to the main storyline; she absolutely could not miss it.

“Master, I want to go to the Human Realm and have a look…”

After speaking, Yi Qiu saw that You Yan had no reaction. She couldn’t help but grit her teeth, and as if having made some sort of resolution, she slowly scooted her body forward a little.

The next second, like every pet she had ever seen that knew how to curry favor with its master, she started whimpering and nuzzling her little head against You Yan’s calf—although this was truly humiliating, how much could the face of a grass-mud horse be worth?

“Take me to have a look, please, just a look…” Yi Qiu said, pausing her fruitless effort of nuzzling the calf. She switched to grabbing You Yan’s sleeve with her little hoof, trying hard to put on an expression that was harmless to humans and animals, transforming into a milky-voiced repeating machine. “A look, just a look, just a little look, please…”

You Yan impassively pulled her sleeve back. “Speak properly, don’t whine.”⁷

Yi Qiu: “…”

Her attempt at selling cuteness⁸ had failed. The little alpaca, feeling wronged, shut her mouth and gradually shrank into a big white ball.

“You can go back,” You Yan said.

The big white furball didn’t move, the pair of small eyes peeking out were exceptionally reproachful.

You Yan: “Being difficult?”

Yi Qiu: “…”

You Yan stood up and lightly kicked the alpaca’s fluffy little butt with the tip of her foot.

The short tail on the alpaca’s butt trembled, and somehow, it suddenly tickled her strange sense of humor.

【You Yan’s Favorability +50】

The moment she saw the system notification, Yi Qiu raised her eyes in astonishment.

After an almost inaudible chuckle, You Yan squatted down, grabbed Yi Qiu’s two little legs, and shook them up and down playfully. “Alright, I’ll take you.”

Yi Qiu: !!!!!

Holy crap, for real?

This mysteriously doting tone from the big villain… was it really something a mere “food ingredient” like her was worthy of hearing?

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