Wanderer of the Zerg

Chapter 12: Bookshelf

After waiting for several days, they finally moved into their new home.

This two-story small villa was located in the southeast of the new district, a few kilometers away from the Siming River.

In front of the villa was a neatly trimmed lawn, surrounded by a waist-high white picket fence. Near the fence grew a large tree, lush and green.

Xi Tian liked this lawn. He had always had a special attachment to having his own garden, planning to build a small flowerbed someday, so he could see a bloom of beautiful flowers next year.

Xi Tian selected some furniture from the apartment to be moved to the villa by a moving company. All the book boxes, the desk, and the ergonomic chair from the balcony were placed in the study.

Ellis had already started organizing in the study.

He had taken off his jacket, revealing the shirt underneath, with sleeves rolled up to his wrists. He was taking books out of the boxes and placing them on a custom-made bookshelf that Xi Tian’s contact had specially designed.

Although Xi Tian had a lot of books, they were all sorted and categorized, so Ellis only needed to place them in the existing order.

Xi Tian wandered around the house several times, taking photos of bare, less refined corners with his terminal, and recording notes in his electronic notebook on what decorations to add.

Xi Tian turned into the study to check on Ellis’s progress.

As soon as he entered, he saw Ellis rushing out of the study and heading to the washroom.

After the sound of running water, Ellis emerged, his face still wet, with droplets trickling down and soaking his shirt front, while his damp bangs stuck mischievously to his forehead.

Seeing Xi Tian, Ellis instinctively wiped his face with his hand and shook it off.

Xi Tian asked, “Why did you rush to wash your face?”

Ellis replied, “I just opened a box and dust flew out, it was quite choking.”

Xi Tian pulled Ellis closer. Ellis obediently stepped forward.

Upon closer inspection, Xi Tian noticed that Ellis’s shirt had some dust on it. Then, Xi Tian’s hand got hit by a water droplet from Ellis.

The sound of the droplet hitting was particularly loud.

Ellis covered his mouth and coughed lightly, turning his face to the side.

Xi Tian didn’t mind and pulled out a handkerchief he carried with him, handing it to Ellis. “Wipe yourself off, I’ll take care of the books.”

Ellis took the handkerchief, stunned, and stood there watching as Xi Tian rolled up his sleeves, ready to start working.

Ellis hastily wiped his face and, before Xi Tian could pick up a book, tried to take over.

No way, he thought, letting a male do hard work while a female was around.

Caught off guard, Xi Tian didn’t expect Ellis to move so quickly, and the book he was holding—actually a notebook—fell to the floor, with two physical photos slipping out.

“Hey!!”

Ellis panicked, quickly picking up the notebook and photos, handing them to Xi Tian, feeling as if he had made a huge mistake, and stood by waiting for reprimand.

Seeing the photos, Xi Tian’s voice filled with nostalgia. “These are from my university days.”

He carefully examined the background of the thin photos, recognizing the youthful faces, and smiled as he pulled Ellis closer.

In this highly digital and information age, physical photos were rare. Most households displayed switchable scenes with electronic photo albums that never faded and were hard to damage.

Xi Tian pointed to the photo where a young Xi Tian stood with hands on hips, proudly lifting his head in front of a red building.

The red building was a distinctive mark of the Male Protection Association.

“Back then, I was just a freshman, the youngest in my class, and quite headstrong. I participated in a departmental debate competition. I don’t remember the debate topic, but I remember winning. The fourth debater on the opposing team was a small male, shorter than me, but very sharp-tongued. After the host announced the winner, he claimed we won unfairly and then turned to say his female teammates let us win on purpose because they found me attractive. His words were quite nasty.

I couldn’t swallow my anger and argued with him on the spot. When he couldn’t win the argument, he tried to use force, but a female teammate of his pulled him away. Later, in my sophomore year, I found out that teammate was his betrothed female servant.

Someone nearby called the Male Protection Agency, and an older male, who clearly knew him, arrived. He arrogantly demanded that I apologize and was very aggressive.

There was no way I would apologize, so I continued to argue with the Male Protection officer. The argument escalated to the headquarters, where the head of the agency apologized to me.

Xi Tian flicked the photo in his hand, smiling. “I felt so powerful back then. I had my classmates take a photo of me and even paid a high price to have it developed and stuck it on the dorm wall. But later that year, as my middle school syndrome faded, I found the photo so embarrassing that I tucked it into an old notebook.”

Ellis listened silently for a long time before patting Xi Tian’s shoulder in comfort. “…Master, you were very impressive.”

After their first night together, Ellis naturally started calling Xi Tian ‘Master,’ formally stepping into the role of a quasi-female lord.

Xi Tian held his hand. “What’s so impressive about that? If you said it was blackmail, I’d believe it.”

Xi Tian unconsciously rubbed Ellis’s hand.

After that night, Xi Tian found the experience unforgettable and slept with Ellis every night. With their mutual understanding, they intuitively discovered some teasing techniques.

Xi Tian’s body reacted faster than his mind. Before he realized what he was doing, Ellis’s breathing had already deepened.

“Master…”

Ellis called out softly.

The influence of an adult male on a female was incredibly strong, especially since Xi Tian felt an emotional connection growing between them.

Ellis hugged the male, burying his head in Xi Tian’s shoulder and rubbing his chin against it, repeatedly calling him ‘Master.’

Xi Tian sensed Ellis’s urgency and wrapped his arm around his waist, gently soothing him.

Passion surged fiercely, but without the Master’s permission, Ellis dared not take further action. The male, not yet fully aroused, remained calm and composed.

Ellis was burning with heat, unable to bear it, and sought comfort from the male. Gathering his courage, he kissed Xi Tian’s face.

“Do you know what you look like right now?”

Ellis paused and kissed Xi Tian again. Seeing Ellis’s bright, watery eyes, Xi Tian laughed. “Like a little puppy.”

“No, I’m not…”

Ellis’s attempt to argue was interrupted.

Xi Tian held Ellis’s head and kissed him deeply.

Ellis leaned on the bookshelf, causing it to creak and sway. Books tumbled from the half-filled shelves, some landing on the floor and getting dusty.

In the past, their owner would have quickly picked them up.

But now, neither of them could leave each other.

Creak, creak.

Bright sunlight streamed through the uncovered window.

Outside, the large tree rustled its leaves, pretending nothing happened, quietly listening to the chirping birds and insects.