Davis’s eyes were wide as he watched her cry. Tears fell out her eyes as she just stood there trembling, not doing anything other than glaring at him as if she eyed him to stay away from her.
However, he took a step forward and neared her, closing the distance again as he grasped her wrist, holding her in place.
However, Esvele didn’t seem to swat his hand away or push him.
"What’s wrong? Why don’t you call for help? Perhaps your senior sister can help you."
Esvele’s entire body trembled as she gazed at him.
"Why? So you can turn senior sister Shirley against me?"
If she called her senior sister, she was aware that this man would play innocent, framing her that she tried to seduce him instead. If he can be two-faced all this while deeply hiding his true character until this moment, then she was convinced that he would play the fool.
Davis deeply smiled as if he as found out.
"I’ll still give you a chance. You can submit, or in case if you forgot, you can call the Grand Elders outside. They would rush here to kill me and save you. You’re a top disciple, you know..."
"If I did that, senior sister Shirley would kill me by her own hands." Esvele’s lips quivered as her tears stopped falling. Her expression turned rather wry, "I always wondered why senior sister Shirley saved me from Schneider’s grasp at that time. Turns out that it was to be dishonored by someone two-faced like you. I deserve this for my mistakes, but can you go die somewhere out of senior sister Shirley’s eyes and leave her alone?"
"You bastard!"
Esvele’s expression twisted into one of hatred, her wide eyes looking as if she could kill the man a thousand times over and over again!
"Pfftt!~ Hahahahaha~"
A burst of laughter began to echo that abruptly stunned Esvele.
The laughter was naturally from Davis.
However, Esvele’s expression severely trembled.
Over... She knew that it was over when she called him trash, but when now looking at him crazily laugh, she knew that it was completely over. Her life was probably no more.
However, a vial suddenly appeared in her hands, causing her to flinch, thinking it was an aphrodisiac, but then, she recognized it as the same vial he gave to senior sister Shirley.
The Million Emerald Vines Calamity’s nectar...
"Congratulations, you passed the trust test and gave me the substantial proof that I needed. You earned this for yourself."
An amused voice echoed from Davis.
"..."
Esvele’s expression was blank. She looked as if she couldn’t understand what had happened before light once again appeared in her eyes.
"Why...?"
"Huh?" Davis looked confused, "Didn’t I say that I won’t tolerate any mistakes?"
"Mistakes...?"
Esvele sounded doubtful while Davis finally stopped his laughter, seemingly shaking his head.
"First, if you had moved to kiss me even after being forced, well, congratulations, you betrayed your senior sister by becoming intimate with her man behind her back. Second, if you had agreed to give me your body, well, congratulations again because you backstabbed your senior sister by sleeping with her man!"
"In these two cases, even if I force you, if you were truly loyal to Shirley, you would’ve naturally chosen to refuse me."
"Lastly, it’s just as you said. If you had refused both but decided to call the Grand Elders for help, you would’ve once again betrayed, breaking your senior sister’s heart by killing the love of her life."
Esvele became stunned as she heard his words.
All this time, was it truly nothing more than a test?
"More than all of this, in the heat of the moment, you actually forgot that I was a soul body. Did you honestly expect a soul body to pounce on you?"
Davis’s expression became a bit caring and concerned, as if he was looking at a retard.
Esvele’s expression was completely crimson that she found her vision turning blurry from shame and embarrassment.
"See, I often notice you are afraid of me. You keep running away from me that I had no choice but to confront you like this today."
"Before, it seemed like you suffer a severe fear of men, but after seeing you battle, I am convinced that you feel scared of me because you cannot slight your senior sister’s man in any way. But now, it seems that you can slight your senior sister’s man, calling him trash and whatnot, mhm?"
Davis raised his brows with a contemplative look.
"Growing in courage, are we?"
"Ah... I... I’m sorry..."
Esvele’s lips quivered as she raised her hands, "I truly apologize. I didn’t mean to-"
"Don’t get me wrong." Davis interrupted her as he raised his hands, "I indeed hate betrayers, but there are also rare second chances in life, and my Shirley decided to bestow that to you. I’m not going to overturn her decision just because my vision is filled with pre-conceived notions because sometimes, even I am not right, especially when I was not there by her side to see what had happened."
Esvele still looked stunned, unable to form the right words to convey her feelings of shock right now.
Moreover, she was in a state of confusion, her thoughts still wondering if this was an illusion cast upon her, but before long, she truly understood what had happened as she recalled the conversation they just had.
She was truly just being tested!
"Are you for real, senior brother? What if I had really called the Grand Elders?" She trembled, realizing the untoward consequences of her possible actions.
"Like I said..." Davis smiled, "You would’ve hurt Shirley as only my soul body would’ve been killed, but you would’ve permanently lost my trust because if your priority is to not assist Shirley, then you have no need to be here. I would have you leave no matter what Shirley says."
Esvele blinked. His words were so blunt that they hurt her heart a little more than a bit. She feared exactly this, driven out by either one of them because she understood that Shirley was really in love with this man. She wouldn’t say no to something if he said yes.
That was why she was also scared that if Davis put the blame on her that she was seducing her, she believed that Shirley would choose to believe Davis rather than her. At that time, recognizing that she had no chance to come out of that situation, she despaired, but to think that it turned out to be a wretched test to grasp her loyalty, twisting her heart and mind in these few moments.
However, her mind couldn’t help but tremble at the fact that he truly held her over the shoulders. It was otherworldly and overbearing. It was the first time a man held her like that so close, and his face was so near that when she recalled, her face couldn’t help but become redder by the second!
"Other than all this, I felt that if you passed the first two tests, you still would’ve called Shirley for help, but it seems like you do not want to be hated by her as you feared that I would put the blame on you."
Davis raised his brows, looking skeptical, "Do you like her that much, enough to love her in that way?"
"What-? I d-don’t..."
Esvele’s expression stayed bright red as she shook her head.
"Mhm..." Davis gave a drawn-out stare before he chuckled, "You say so, but the gaze you look at her with is completely suspicious."
"Ah! I’m not one of those women I hear about in those all-female sects in the Dual Lotus Manor Territory! Stop associating me with them! I’m normal!" Esvele screamed.
"I’m not buying it..."
"No, really...!"
"Then you’re saying that you like men... like me?"
Davis looked taken aback that Esvele exasperatedly shook her head.
"Wah...! Senior brother, you’re a bully..."
"No, no, no..." Davis looked terrified, "You’re completely suspicious. You are to stay five meters away from my Shirley from this point onward."
"Ummm...."
Esvele’s lips quivered as she pursed her lips, looking as if she was going to shed tears of grievance when suddenly the door at the other end opened and a woman clad in fiery crimson robes, newly designating the utter importance of her current status, walked out.
"What’s going on here...?"
Davis and Esvele cast their gaze at Shirley, the atmosphere suddenly becoming awkward for the both of them.
Shirley narrowed her eyes, noticing the tears on Esvele’s cheeks before she noticed the vial she was holding. She blinked, her expression suddenly contorting.
"You...! Davis, you actually tried to use that nectar to take advantage of her?"
"No...! Senior sister misunderstood! It wasn’t anything like that..."
"Hey, don’t make it worse...!"
Esvele shook her head before Davis glared at her. The way she sounded would invite more suspicion that clear the suspicion.
"Davis, you actually don’t need to do that..." Shirley looked sorrowful as if giving away the vial was a loss, "You can just take her to the bed and have your way with her..."
Esvele’s expression froze before she looked as if she were going to really cry again.
"I now know why you’re both madly in love with each other. It’s because you’re both bullies..."
"Hehe..."
She sounded aggrieved, to which Davis and Shirley grinned in amusement as they laughed.
Who was Shirley kidding? When she uttered that crazy line, Davis realized that she knew that he was a soul body, so how could he take advantage of Esvele? He still could, but that was unlikely unless he wanted to abuse her.
"So you were giving her some that potent nectar of yours, but why is she crying? Because she was moved?"
"Nah, I put her loyalty to the test, and she passed alright..."
Davis shook his head, ignoring the sexual insinuation in her words as he felt that he had bullied Esvele enough.
"I see..." Shirley’s ruby-like red eyes glowed, "I told you that I know her enough to know that she won’t betray me."
"You were right."
Davis nodded, turning to look at Esvele with a smile as he reached out his hands and wiped the remnant tears.
"A quick apology after being a jerk is the trait of an even more of a worse person, but still, I’m sorry that I messed you up today."
"Please don’t make it sound as if you had really done something to me...!"
Esvele cried out, but she finally smiled, looking at him with clear eyes for the first time in her life rather than simply being afraid of interacting with him.
Shirley smiled as she felt heartened that they are getting along, but any more tear wipes, she was afraid that they might find romance in their superficial touches.
"Alright, stop touching her. You’re mine..."
"Okay..."
Davis took his hand back, wiping his fingers off of Esvele’s tears on his robe as he innocently whistled. His reaction was a bit adorable that Shirley couldn’t help but giggle in happiness.
Truly, these were times that she hoped that would stay forever.