Hua Mu also despised Derek. If it weren’t for the sake of so-called royal harmony, she wouldn’t even deign to speak to her cousin.

“I knew it. Derek is just spouting nonsense. The novels I read don’t describe it that way at all.”

Bai Zhen knew Hua Mu often attended book clubs, but she was never permitted to accompany her into gatherings filled with aristocratic young ladies. As such, she had no idea what types of books they usually read.

Surely, those young ladies with their refined and noble tastes read collections of poetry or essays by great literary masters? Or perhaps classical literature and opera? Their discussions must revolve around profound subjects like philosophy.

Bai Zhen completely understood why Hua Mu never brought her along. A crude person like her would surely embarrass the Young Lady.

“Miss, are you by any chance reading that book, Mary, by Mr. Mondella?”

Bai Zhen also enjoyed reading, though mostly just for leisure. But if she were fortunate enough to have read the same book as Hua Mu, she would be overjoyed.

“Oh, you’ve read Mary too?”

Mary was a vampire novel written by the famous nineteenth-century author of strange fiction, Mondella Lei. The story was told from the perspective of a Guide named Leila, a young woman of noble birth. It described her entering the Tower and becoming roommates with a female Sentinel named Mary, and the series of bizarre, supernatural, and slightly ambiguous events that followed.

Mary’s spirit animal was a vampire bat, and because she couldn’t control her desire to drink blood, she kept everyone at arm’s length. The protagonist, Leila, was an innocent and passionate Guide who, from the very first day she met Mary, was deeply captivated by her aloof, cold personality and her sexy, melancholic appearance.

In the nineteenth century, the union of same-sex Sentinels and Guides was still considered taboo, so at the end of the story, the author merely used the word “friendship” to define their relationship. However, its subtle, ambiguous, and even slightly erotic descriptions deeply appealed to many female readers. The recent, inexplicable surge in popularity of female Sentinels, in particular, had elevated the novel to the status of a masterpiece.

An endless stream of fanfiction and derivative works appeared, and there was no shortage of devotees among the aristocratic young ladies—though Hua Mu considered herself only a casual fan.

After all, while she had read a fair amount of fanfiction, she had only read the original novel once, which set her apart from the more rabid fans.

Still, she had never imagined this blockheaded Sentinel would read such a novel.

Bai Zhen was a little embarrassed, as she had only read it after hearing Hua Mu’s personal handmaiden mention it on occasion.

“Mm…”

Hua Mu’s heart pounded. Feigning nonchalance, she asked, “So, what did you think of it?”

Bai Zhen spoke with great earnestness, as if she were submitting a book report.

“I think Mr. Mondella’s writing is excellent, and the plot and character development are very compelling. It’s just that he probably didn’t understand the system within the Tower very well. Unbonded Sentinels and Guides can’t be roommates. Also, a Sentinel’s room needs to be equipped with a white noise generator…”

Hua Mu was getting a headache listening to this. Who wanted to hear about that!

“I was asking what you think of Leila and Mary’s relationship!”

“Ah? Oh, I think their friendship is very sincere and moving. Whether it was Leila offering her own blood to soothe Mary, or Mary forcibly suppressing the turmoil of her binding heat to refuse her, both were incredibly noble acts. You see, besides Dark Sentinels, no Sentinel can truly resist a binding heat. On another note, while I’ve never seen a Sentinel influenced by their spirit animal to the point of wanting to drink blood, I’ve heard the Leader say that some spirit animals can temporarily alter their host’s physical structure to ensure the continuation of their bloodline, so it’s probably not entirely impossible. But a Sentinel would absolutely never harm their own Guide…”

Hua Mu felt like she was going to have a breakdown over Bai Zhen’s earnestness!

It was just a novel! Why was she trying to find realism in it?

“Although Mr. Mondella’s descriptions of the Tower and of Sentinels and Guides have numerous inaccuracies, considering the Tower was still a secret organization in the nineteenth century, one really can’t fault him too much…”

“Oh.”

Hua Mu didn’t want to hear any more of it!

She just wanted to know which pairing Bai Zhen shipped, and whether it was the opposite of her own! Who wanted to hear about the novel’s literary significance and value? Hadn’t she heard enough of that from her tutors?

“…Miss, was I wrong?”

Bai Zhen sensed Hua Mu’s waning interest and asked cautiously. “No, not at all. I think what you said is very reasonable. It’s given me a new understanding of this novel.”

“Really?”

Bai Zhen had gotten carried away and said too much at once. Afterward, she realized she had just been showing off her meager skills before an expert, exposing her own ignorance. She was overcome with shame.

“Yes. I’d never even considered whether it was realistic or not. After all, I’ve never been to the Tower… So, based on what you’re saying, the story couldn’t have happened?”

“Not necessarily. Guides and Sentinels have collaborative courses, so I think the story still could have happened. People like Mary and Leila were destined to meet and destined to form a deep friendship.”

Just friendship?

Was this Sentinel really that dense… or just naive?

They didn’t just trigger each other’s binding heat—they kissed and even drank each other’s blood!

And in the fanfiction, it was pure fireworks—a single glance was enough to set off sparks, wasn’t it?

Just friendship?

No wonder she was twenty-four and still hadn’t found a partner. She deserved to be single!

“You said you have a lot of good friends in the Tower. Are any of them as close as Leila and Mary?”

But seeing that kind of relationship as mere friendship… wasn’t that incredibly dangerous in its own way? In her eyes, was this how she behaved with all her friends?

Bai Zhen froze, sensing this was a difficult question to answer. She certainly had many friends with whom she had forged life-and-death bonds, and their deep friendships couldn’t be summed up in a few words.

But comparing her friendships to the bond between Leila and Mary… something didn’t feel quite right.

Of course, it wasn’t that the feelings between the two in the novel weren’t deep, nor that her own friendships couldn’t withstand scrutiny. It was just… a different kind of feeling.

“Um, p-probably?”

But she couldn’t quite describe the difference, so she could only give Hua Mu an ambiguous answer.

Of course, to Hua Mu, it wasn’t ambiguous at all.

She actually had Guide friends she was so close to—friends who could trigger a binding heat, friends she could kiss!

Shameless! Unfaithful! Outrageous!

“M-Miss?” Bai Zhen felt a pinch on her shoulder and was momentarily confused.

“A mosquito.”

But she had her barrier active.

“…Oh.”

The two fell into a brief silence. Thankfully, Bai Zhen soon led Hua Mu back to their temporary camp by the river.

She spent some time digging a fire pit in the sand and getting a fire started. After peeling and slicing the breadfruit and setting it by the fire to roast, she went to catch some fish and shellfish for a soup.

The pot made from a coconut shell was quite inconvenient. Not only did the shell have to be shaved thin, but the water could never be brought to a full boil. Of course, adding heated stones directly to the water would solve the problem, but to the fastidious Hua Mu, that was a disaster. Bai Zhen had wrapped the outside of the coconut shell in a layer of sheet metal, which finally extended the lifespan of each shell and allowed the water to get hotter.

Hua Mu sat by the fire, watching Bai Zhen move with clean, efficient purpose, and found herself lost in thought.

“…If you have so many close Guide friends, why haven’t you found a partner yet?”

Hua Mu told herself she was only asking such a question out of sheer boredom. After all, she had no one else to gossip about at the moment.

Besides, as her direct superior, wasn’t it perfectly normal to show concern for her guard’s future happiness?

Bai Zhen clearly hadn’t expected such a question. The knife she was using to turn the breadfruit slices trembled in her hand, and a piece fell into the fire.

“M-Miss?”

A faint smell of burning wafted from the fire. Hua Mu gestured, and Bai Zhen hastily plucked the slice from the flames.

“I recall that Sentinels and Guides in the Tower start going on arranged dates at eighteen, don’t they? Every month when you return to the Tower, isn’t that part of it, besides debriefing? Why are you still single?”

Bai Zhen grew flustered and uneasy.

It was true. A Sentinel her age who had found a compatible Guide would normally have bonded long ago.

“I-It’s because of… c-compatibility ratings…”

It had always been more difficult for female Sentinels and male Guides to find suitable partners. Ordinary pairs usually only bonded with a compatibility rating of over eighty percent, but for them, they would risk it for anyone over sixty percent.

Hua Mu felt a sour taste in her mouth. “So, you’re saying that as long as the compatibility rating is high enough, you’d be willing to bond with anyone?”

For Bai Zhen, that should have been a matter of course. It was incredibly difficult for a female Sentinel to find a suitable Guide.

“As long as they’re not a foreigner…”

But she was lying, and she felt too guilty to look Hua Mu in the eye. She kept her head down, fiddling with the breadfruit slices that were now roasted soft.

She had once met a suitable male Guide whose compatibility rating with her was over seventy-five percent. Not only had that Guide inherited a viscountcy, but he also had a boundless future in the military, having already reached the rank of naval Major before the age of thirty. By all accounts, he was an impeccably outstanding individual.

The two had spoken briefly and were a good match in every respect—save for one.

While bonded Sentinels and Guides weren’t completely tied to one another, working together undoubtedly maximized their value.

A personal guard was a highly private position. If she bonded with this Guide, she would almost certainly have to resign from her post and transfer to the navy.

Bai Zhen had thought long and hard before finally turning the Guide down. From then on, she had kept her distance from the Tower’s matchmaking.

She had originally just been going through the motions, attending the arranged dates as required. But at that moment, she realized she couldn’t bear the thought of letting someone else serve as Hua Mu’s guard.

Yet, from another perspective, such a thought was exceedingly arrogant and disrespectful—not just to other Sentinels, but especially to the Young Lady.

That was why she didn’t want Hua Mu to know.