"If there’s any issue, you can just say it."
Patiently speaking to her, Pedro Langley reached out and gently tucked her wind-blown hair behind her ear.
Nora Scott was always calm and composed in whatever she did, rarely had she ever seed this rushed.
She exhaled and gave him a sidelong glance at his hand.
Pedro Langley instinctively pulled his hand back.
"Do you rember those paintings you didn’t like in my study?"
Adjusting her mood, Nora walked over to the sofa and asked Pedro.
"Charlotte Mason and Fátima?"
Without much thought, Pedro blurted out the two nas.
She gave him a sidelong look and said flatly, "They’re both my seniors."
Pedro imdiately changed his tone and insisted, "I never said I disliked them."
Nora: "..." Nice try, his survival instincts are strong.
She handed the empty cup to Pedro, who took it and went to pour her so more water.
"Fátima is my master’s granddaughter, older than by a few months. Since she learned martial arts directly from my master, she’s considered my imdiate senior," Nora introduced.
"Mm."
Pedro handed over the refilled cup, not comnting on this rather martial world kind of hierarchy.
Holding the cup in her hands, Nora lowered her eyelids slightly, keeping all her emotions in check. She seed calm, appeared indifferent, showing hardly any expression.
She spoke mildly, "She joined a military academy when she entered college, then went to the front line in the troops. Last July, she went on a peacekeeping mission."
Nora had serialized "Little White Dove" online in August last year.
The person for whom this story was created was obvious.
She didn’t concern herself with matters of national or international affairs, had no attachnt to things unrelated to her. For soone like her to suddenly care about peacekeeping, the person she cared for was naturally involved.
Pedro didn’t say anything and sat down beside her.
Fingers lightly flicked the rim of the cup, creating ripples in the water, as Nora leaned back against the sofa and continued, "Two months ago, she called and ntioned ’Little White Dove’, said she couldn’t see it there. So I told her I’d send her a copy once it was published."
This matter was neither big nor small.
Just a comic story, whether seen early or late, it was the sa, insignificant.
Only she had been to the battlefield, seen what war does to humanity, destruction, and suffering, how in an instant, blood and flesh would scatter.
Soone who joked and laughed with you a mont ago could be lifeless the next. She wanted to believe good fortune would fall upon her senior’s group but wouldn’t blindly deceive herself that sacrifices wouldn’t happen.
There, death lurks.
Always, every mont.
Taking a step back, regarding her promise to her senior, she didn’t want to break her word.
A glimr flashed in Pedro’s eyes, and he asked, "How many do you need?"
"Hmm?"
Her movent paused as she drank water, and Nora cast a sidelong glance at him.
Pedro guessed, "If we gather so, we can still co up with it."
"About a hundred copies..." Nora estimated, then asked, "How many days?"
Upon hearing this number, Pedro’s brow relaxed, "If it’s urgent, tomorrow would do."
"Then thanks."
Giving him a surprised look, Nora was not unexpected, chuckled lightly, and drank her water in one gulp.
The low-pressure aura enveloping her dissipated, and Pedro also sighed in relief, feeling much more relaxed.
"Buzz buzz buzz—"
The phone vibrating on the coffee table.
This ti, the call was from Camilo Nogueira.
Nora, having just put down the cup on the coffee table, glanced over, casually picked up the phone, and tossed it to Pedro sitting beside her.
Pedro pressed accept, but before he could speak, Camilo’s voice ca through—
"The popular comic artist Zero recently, is it your family ancestor?"
Though phrased as a question, Camilo’s tone was quite certain.
Pedro’s sudden interest in a comic artist was already unusual. Camilo, due to the false "uncle persona" online, did not give it much thought. But after yesterday’s photo surfaced, the situation instantly reversed, leaving Camilo with no choice but to believe.
Camilo didn’t really care initially, but with today’s wave of marketing, curiosity got the best of him, and he couldn’t help but call.
Sitting nearby, Nora vaguely heard Camilo’s words and cast her gaze over, "Ancestor?"
"Yes, ancestor."
Pedro acknowledged without hesitation.
Nora raised an eyebrow.
Not a bad title.
Having caught the sound, Camilo was taken aback and asked, "Who are you talking to?"
"My ancestor."
Camilo: "..." No need to feed him this dog food right now.
After a mont, Camilo helplessly asked, "Is it true?"
Pedro replied, "It’s true."
He frankly admitted Nora as Zero, but Nora didn’t mind and got up to grab so honey twists Pedro bought yesterday, then sat cross-legged beside him.
On the phone, Camilo was silent for a good while, eventually coming to his senses and joking helplessly, "That’s quite interesting, she can beco very popular without showing her face, but once she does, she becos modest and unknown?"
Nora, sitting nearby, heard this clearly, and her lips twitched slightly.
Couldn’t get past this joke?
Pedro noticed Nora’s small expressions, with a smile in his eyes, but said, "She can hear you."
Camilo: "..."
Unable to deal with this "forget about friends at the sight of beauty" friend, Camilo sighed softly, changed the subject, and naturally lowered his voice, "Is the online opinion driven by you?"
"What opinion?"
"Netizens are shipping you with your ancestor."
With this information, Pedro hung up the phone imdiately.
Nora, sitting beside him, munching on the honey twist while playing with the remote, switching channels one after another, looking indifferent as if she hadn’t found a program to her liking.
It was dim outside, the room lights weren’t on, the light fell on her side profile from the TV, casting a sowhat ethereal glow on her face.
Yet, her snacking manner was so down-to-earth, full of life.
His gaze lingered for a mont before he slowly retracted, Pedro opened Weibo on his phone to check out the trending comnts online.
Sure enough, there were indeed netizens speculating about "his and Zero’s relationship," expanding their imagination infinitely.
[The story in my mind: Yesterday, Mr. Langley, after seeing the online comnts on Zero’s uncle persona, was furious. Took advantage of his oblivious wife at ho to sneak a post on Weibo, then went offline with satisfaction. Here cos the question, is the dashing, handso, wealthy Mr. Langley being dostically abused by his beautiful wife uncle, or abused, or abused?]
[Assuming everything is true, then is Mr. Langley painstakingly selling comics for the uncle today to make up for the chaos caused by yesterday’s Weibo post?]
[All netizens are utterly speechless, Zero’s fans are collectively silent, such big news today, why aren’t they coming out! Mr. Langley, hurry up and explain! @Fernwood Entertainnt Pedro Langley]
[No way, the storyline as told by silly netizens, these two are so sweet! So great to ship them! One running wildly all over the world, invincibly youthful and talented with a protag life, a successful, mature and stable CEO, causing a scene on the internet just to sell a few comic books for a beautiful wife... Sweet, right? I’m asking you, sweet or not!]
[Oh—what divine love, I’m envious.]
Coincidence.
Unexpected.
Pedro had originally intended to promote "Little White Dove", never expecting to receive such a feedback effect.
"Nora."
Putting away his phone, Pedro turned his head, eyeing Nora leisurely.
Nora turned to look, "What’s up?"
Squinting his eyes slightly, Pedro said, "A hundred copies of ’Little White Dove’ in exchange for you following on Weibo."
User Comments
0 comments from readers