Ch 82: Nia’s Confession

Bal and Phia, having finished their vacation, were squatting at home when they suddenly remembered Grey, so they went to Grey’s room.

“Hey, Grey! My good brother, look what I brought you!”

Bal took out one of the ornaments Phia bought and gave it to Grey. However, Grey’s eyes were resentful.

“While you were gone these past few days, I’ve been completely driven crazy by your sister.”

“Ah?”

Phia happened to run in and hear Grey’s words, and her Gossip Soul ignited.

“Tell me everything.”

“You all know that Nia does alchemy, right?”

Bal and Phia both nodded; they were very curious to know what happened next.

“The day you left, she dragged me into the Secret Chamber, and then gave me two choices. One was to be beaten half to death by her and then have restorative potions tested on me.”

“I don’t think she’s that cruel.”

Bal interrupted Grey. In his memory, Nia was mischievous but not violent.

“I thought so too, so I chose the second one.”

“What was it?”

Phia and Bal were full of curiosity, but Grey didn’t seem very happy.

“The second choice was to take poison and then have the antidote tested.”

“…”

For a moment, Grey’s room was silent, their silence deafening.

“You’ve had it rough, good brother.”

Bal was the first to break the silence. He patted Grey on the shoulder, his face showing sympathy.

“Hmm? What are you all doing together?”

Nia passed by the corridor. Seeing people gathered in Grey’s room, she went in to ask. Grey saw Nia enter and immediately shrank into a corner of the room.

“Nia, I have something I want to talk to you about. Let’s go outside.”

Bal took Nia out of Grey’s room, and they went to the study.

“What did you do to Grey while we were out these past few days?”

Bal looked at Nia with a serious expression, but Nia had a different story than Grey.

“What do you mean, what did I do to Grey? It was clearly Grey who was disobedient first. I already said it was just a test of the efficacy of the medicine, and he started to cause trouble. I had no choice but to tie him up. He even broke a lot of things when he was causing trouble!”

“Then what did you do afterwards?”

Faced with Phia’s questioning, Nia softened a little. She admitted to testing the antidote on Grey. Bal and Phia sighed helplessly. It seemed they should find something for her to do; if this continued, Grey would be in danger.

At this time, Phia hummed a song, a little tune she learned from Sera and Katerina. Listening to Phia’s beautiful and melodious voice, Bal was captivated.

“Wow! Sister-in-law sings so beautifully!”

After Phia finished singing, Nia started to praise her, and Phia was very pleased.

“Humph, of course.”

“Have you ever sung for my brother?”

Nia’s question silenced Phia. She thought back to the time since she met Bal, and it seemed that she had never specifically sung for Bal. At this time, Bal spoke.

“Of course she has! Since our marriage, your sister-in-law has been singing every night!”

Phia’s expression was first puzzled, then after a moment of thought, it turned red.

“You shameless scoundrel!”

Phia punched Bal in the chest. Bal took advantage of the opportunity to grab Phia’s arm, and then he put his other arm around Phia’s waist, so Phia was smoothly embraced by Bal.

“Darling is so proactive~”

Bal whispered to Phia’s cat ears, occasionally blowing on them.

“Nia is still here, be careful.”

Phia was rendered weak by Bal’s breath, and she could only shyly lean against Bal’s embrace to remind him that Nia was still there.

But Nia didn’t mind at all; her eyes lit up.

“It’s okay! Don’t mind me! Just continue, as if I don’t exist!”

It seemed that Nia really wanted to know what Bal meant by Phia singing every night. Watching Bal start to kiss Phia, her face involuntarily turned red.

But Bal stopped. He sat Phia on his lap and then hugged her, starting to pet the cat. Nia didn’t see what she wanted to see.

“What are you thinking about? Mind your own business, child.”

Bal now showed the ease of a married man. Nia was irritated by this.

“It’s just a few months older, what are you so proud of!”

“Even a day older counts as older. As long as you don’t have a partner, you’re a child in my eyes.”

“You’re too much, you stinky brother!”

Nia, angered by Bal, stormed out of the room. Bal sighed.

“At least return the door to me.”

Nia casually threw the door panel of the study away; she was very angry.

“Humph, miser Bal, may you choke on your water from now on!”

After venting her anger, Nia began to think. In fact, she also knew that treating Grey like that was not good, but having no dating experience and lacking love, she really didn’t know how to express her feelings. She could only dejectedly go back to the study to consult Phia.

“Kneel down! Next time you act so freely again, I’ll break your hands!”

As soon as Nia reached the door, she saw Phia scolding Bal. Phia had her arms crossed, her legs crossed, sitting on the sofa. Bal was kneeling before Phia, his head bowed.

After seeing Nia return, Phia had Bal stand behind her and give her a shoulder rub. At this time, Nia went in front of Phia and knelt down to bow to her.

“Sister-in-law! I want to express my feelings!”

Seeing this, Bal consciously left the study. After seeing Bal leave, Phia asked Nia to stand up.

“Sigh, you… I’ll just ask one question. Do you really like Grey?”

Hearing Phia’s question, Nia sat on the sofa and pondered. She actually thought that Grey met her preferences the first time she saw him. Later, Grey’s single-handed defeat of the casino thugs made her even more hopeful for Grey. She had been thinking, Grey is so weak, yet he is willing to stand up for her to avoid being accused of intentional injury. She liked Grey’s courage, and she wanted to know more about him. So Nia looked up, firmly meeting Phia’s eyes, and she spoke her mind.

“Yes, I like Grey.”

Outside the study at this time, Bal was holding the door panel that Nia had thrown away, and Grey was standing beside him. Hearing Nia’s confession, Grey knew he couldn’t escape, so he went into the room.

“Then we must establish three rules.”

“Grey? You… heard…?”

Nia was somewhat surprised; she didn’t know when Grey had come.

“I only heard that you like me.”

Grey scratched his head, standing awkwardly behind Nia. Just as Nia was about to get up and hug Grey, the sound of hammering nails came from the door. It was Bal repairing the door. Nia, Phia, and Grey looked at this atmosphere breaker with black lines on their faces, speechless for a moment.

“Come, get out with me!”

Phia pulled Bal, who was still hammering nails, out of the study. She pulled Bal outside the room to listen to the sounds inside.

“But the door…”

Bal was a little wronged; he really wanted to repair the door.

The door: What sin have I committed?

“Is the door more important, or your sister’s life event?”

Seeing that Bal was no longer obsessed with repairing the door, Phia continued to lean against the wall and listen.

“Is it true that you said you like me?”

Grey broke the awkward atmosphere, mustering the courage to ask the little fox before him.

“Yes, I like you.”

Little fox Nia showed a shy expression, but in Grey’s eyes, this expression was ominous. The last time he saw Nia look at him like that, he was forced to take poison and almost left this world.

“Then why did you use me to test the medicine?”

“Because I want to use medicine to protect you, to prevent others from poisoning you. Actually, testing the medicine on you was just my excuse; I just wanted to protect you…”

Hearing Nia explain the reasons, Grey ultimately chose not to blame Nia.

“Then we’ve agreed, if there’s anything in the future, you need to discuss it with me first. Don’t just act without my consent; it will hurt me.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Nia was now like a child who had made a mistake. She stood in front of Grey with her head down; her fox ears drooped. After receiving Nia’s answer, Grey continued.

“And don’t do dangerous things. Giving others poison, beating others half to death, and destroying doors are not things a girl should do. If you have any ideas, speak them directly, don’t keep them bottled up.”

“Yes…”

“And…”

“And?”

“I like you too, Nia.”

After receiving Grey’s clear reply, Nia’s expression instantly brightened. Her originally drooping ears stood up straight, just like her tail. Seeing the little fox happy, he hugged Nia.

“Uh?!”

“Don’t move, let me hug you for a while.”

“Okay… okay.”

Nia, who had received affection only from Bal since childhood, seemed to understand the meaning of love at this moment. Her hands passed under Grey’s armpits, hugging his shoulders, rubbing her face against Grey’s chest, her tail lightly stroking Grey’s leg—this was Nia’s unique way of acting cute.

Bal and Phia, hiding outside the door, breathed a sigh of relief. Just as they were about to leave, Grey called them from the room.

“Where do you think you’re going? Eavesdropping couple.”

The two of them were startled. They remembered Grey’s Detection Magic. Before Nia could react, the couple ran away.

When Bal and Phia reached the living room, they bumped into Xiaoyue, who had just returned from buying groceries. Seeing the two of them in a hurry, she subconsciously asked.

“Master and Madam, where are you going?”

“Ah, Xiaoyue. We won’t be eating at home tonight. You cook for them. We’ll go first!”

After Bal finished speaking, he immediately carried Phia on his back and ran. He already felt the oppressive feeling from his sister approaching.

Seeing that the two had disappeared, Nia calmed down and returned to the study. Grey was sitting on the sofa leisurely drinking tea.

“Grey, to make amends, I’ll cook for you tonight.”

“Oh? Is that so? Then I won’t be polite.”

Nia happily ran to the kitchen. She made a sumptuous meal of God’s Country-style delicacies. Only Selena didn’t know what had happened.

“Is it some kind of holiday today?”

“No, today is just an ordinary day. It will only become special in a few years.”

Hearing Nia’s words, Selena was full of question marks, but the delicacies still defeated her curiosity, so Selena didn’t think much about it and continued to enjoy the food.

Meanwhile, Bal and Phia, hiding in the inn, were waiting for Gu’er to cook for them.

“It seems Nia’s matter is settled.”

Phia propped her head up with one hand, speaking playfully. Only Bal was still worried about the broken door.