AHEIAID Chapter 34: Some People Laugh and Then They’re Gone
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Exhausted, Joey panted heavily and plopped onto the ground, waving his hand weakly.
"No, no… I can’t… I give up…"
"Just do whatever you want with me…"
There was no point in running—he was completely out of energy.
While Joey was gasping for breath with his tongue nearly hanging out, Crown Prince Joseph remained calm and composed, his breathing steady. Not a single trace of exhaustion showed on his face as he squatted down, knees spread apart, resting his arms on them.
With his long legs and close proximity, Joey—who was leaning against the wall—was trapped between them in an unexpected "knee wall slam"!
Joseph, with his sharp, fierce-looking eyes and small pupils, tilted his head back slightly, resting it against the wall. His intense gaze bore down on the tiny human, who was shrinking against the wall, staring up at him in terror.
From a distance, Joey looked like a small kitten cornered by a massive Doberman.
"You are Lord Heine’s pet?" Joseph asked.
"I—I…"
Joey stammered, unable to form a proper sentence.
Under the man’s piercing stare, he gulped nervously.
This was way too familiar.
Damn it! This is exactly how that psycho talked to me before!
And from what he overheard… these guys are brothers, right?
Holy crap, can yanderes be passed down genetically?!
Joey's imagination ran wild, slapping an evil filter over the prince’s already intimidating face. No matter how he looked at him now, he seemed up to no good.
But in reality, Joseph was simply a gentle, straightforward guy.
Seeing that the little human wasn’t responding, he assumed it couldn’t speak.
So, he casually reached out and picked up the sign hanging from its chest, glancing at the writing.
The moment he read the words, Joseph couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
"Hah."
Joey’s eyes widened in horror.
What’s so funny?!
Oh—I get it now!
He’s mocking me!
This is 100% one of those villainous, arrogant chuckles!
Joey’s black, round eyes were stretched wide in disbelief, his pupils shrinking in fear.
Joseph, noticing the reaction, tilted his head in curiosity.
To him, the little human just looked even cuter now—so cute that he suddenly wanted to reach out and poke it.
Joey shuddered violently, his trauma alarms blaring once again.
Wait, wait, wait—why is he reaching toward my face?!
Oh god, is he going to—
IS HE TRYING TO DIG OUT MY EYES?!
His bad luck was off the charts—he was literally just minding his own business in his own home, yet somehow still ran into a lunatic.
And it wasn’t just Joey who was panicking—his system was glitching out in pure terror.
"SOMEBODY PLEASE SAVE OUR HOST—"
But this was a quiet, empty floor—no one was coming to help.
Joey had specifically chosen a low-traffic area to avoid embarrassment.
Now, ironically, he was trapped with no one around to rescue him.
Realizing this, he squeezed his eyes shut in despair.
Alright… just get it over with.
Wuwuwu… Garius will definitely avenge me…
You beast!
But the expected pain never came
instead, Joey only felt a rough fingertip brush against the corner of his eye.
Then, a sudden tightness around his waist—before he could react, he was lifted off the ground, dangling face-down, back-up, clamped under the man’s arm like a sack of flour.
"No, no, no—spare me, hero, please spare me!"
"Wuwuwu, where are you taking me? I have a family! Can you at least leave my father a complete corpse before you eat me…?"
Are psychos really this cruel nowadays?!
Not only were they killing their victims on the spot, but now they even took them to go?!
The man strode forward with powerful steps, completely unfazed by Joey’s frantic kicking and struggling. He carried him all the way back to the room from before, pushed open the door, and finally smiled—a faint but noticeably smug expression.
"Kent, look."
He shifted Joey’s position a few times—nearly shaking him into nausea—before finally lifting him up by the armpits for display.
"Joseph! W-Where did you find a human?!"
A pleasant, gentle male voice exclaimed in shock from inside the room.
So… it wasn’t just a takeout order—he was about to be a shared meal?!
Joey’s heart pounded wildly in terror.
No way. If I’m going to die, I at least need to see my killer’s face!
Summoning his courage, he lifted his head—ready to stare death in the eye.
But when he finally got a clear look at the person lying on the bed…
Joey’s eyes slowly, slowly widened in disbelief.
His breath caught in his throat.
Before, due to the angle, he couldn’t see the face of the person in the room.
But now—
Someone, please tell him—what the hell was this?!
This person had a beautiful voice, sure…
But why did they have a fish head, a human body, and seaweed-green skin?!
"Big bro…"
Joey murmured blankly.
"Which page of the Shan Hai Jing are you from…?"
T/N: "Classic of Mountains and Seas"
At the District 13 Docking Station,
Garius, who hadn’t rested all night, didn’t stop for a break.
At 1:00 PM, he arrived at the District 13 with Saxis and his team.
After disembarking, Garius ordered the team to go rest.
But the four of them… hesitated.
They looked at each other, fidgeting awkwardly, not making a move to leave.
Garius glanced at their captain, Saxis.
"Something else?"
"Uh…"
Saxis looked embarrassed, but his teammates nudged him insistently from behind.
"Say it, captain! Hurry up!"
"Our happiness depends on you!"
Saxis cleared his throat. Under the hopeful gazes of his team and the sharp eyes of his superior, he finally spoke hesitantly:
"…Sir, actually, we wanted to apologize to little Joey."
"And also…"
"Shululu has been… neutered."
"Could you please let him know? If he’s still willing to play with us, we’d be incredibly grateful!"
"Not happening."
Garius coldly shut down their hopes.
The incident that frightened Joey still bothered him deeply.
Especially since just yesterday, Prince Harry had also scared him.
For the time being, he wasn’t letting the little human out of his sight.
"Oh…"
Disappointed, the team slumped their shoulders and trudged away.
Garius watched them go, then turned back to head for the signal tower—accompanied by a smiling Amon and his serious, loyal bodyguard.
"Where’s Joey?"
Truthfully, Garius would never abandon his post without reason.
But what truly drove him to rush back wasn’t any classified documents…
It was a small creature with bright black eyes.
His gloved fingers rubbed together slowly.
Garius thought to himself—
He really missed that fluffy little ball of curls.
Amon chuckled.
"Don’t worry, sir. Little Joey is freely exploring the District 13 right now."
"I specifically instructed all staff—they can look but not touch. His safety is guaranteed."
"Just a few minutes ago, he ran into Crown Prince Joseph. The prince is trustworthy."
Kind-hearted, honest, a bit clumsy but meticulous, and a huge animal lover.
Because of his overly righteous nature, he’d been tricked by his younger brother countless times.
But ironically, it was this very personality that made him surrounded by sincere, loyal friends—friends who, in turn, protected him through every crisis.
Besides, on their boss’s first meeting with Joey, he accidentally broke the poor human’s ribs.
Yet, Joseph had just carried him without a scratch—proving how gentle he truly was.
A certified "dog-type" good man!
Amon was completely at ease.
But Garius’s brows furrowed.
The closer Joey became with others, the more his Empire-ruling control freak tendencies started shifting toward his little pet.
Seeing his exclusive treasure in someone else’s hands…
Lord Heine suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.
"Forget the office. We’re going to the Crown Prince’s place."
His steps veered in the opposite direction.
Amon blinked in confusion but followed along toward the lower levels of the signal tower.
When they reached the temporary guest room, they immediately heard a bright, carefree human laugh floating through the door.
"Hahaha, so you’re from Bilusad Star? My bad, my bad—I thought you were a discount mermaid!"
"And you, Prince? Damn, you scared the hell out of me at first! But turns out you’re all good guys!"
Inside, Joey was excitedly patting people on the arm and shoulder, looking like a dog happily making new friends.
Even though there was a language barrier, he gestured wildly and relied on his system’s translations to understand their conversation.
Upon learning that the Crown Prince was simply fond of humans and wanted to please Garius out of gratitude, Joey instantly relaxed.
"Hahaha! So it was all just a misunderstanding!"
"Humans really are adorable."
Watching the chattery little human greet them so cheerfully,
Joseph’s fierce face softened, his eyes filled with warmth as he spoke to Kent.
"They are. Too bad they’re endangered."
Kent nodded with a sad smile.
The lively, joyful atmosphere made him forget his injuries for a moment.
Joey, meanwhile, grinned shyly at the compliment.
"You’re not bad yourself! You may look scary, but you’re actually pretty handsome!"
"Look at these arms, this chest—now this is what a real man looks like!"
To prove his point, Joey patted Joseph’s chest.
Of course, he had no ulterior motives—it was just pure admiration.
"You like chest muscles?"
Joseph blinked and pressed Joey’s hand against his chest.
"You can leave it there longer."
"Hehehe… that’s a little… embarrassing…"
Just as Joey was about to enjoy the perks of being a shameless flirt, his system glitched in horror.
Because outside the glass door, stood Garius.
With a cold, black expression.
And gold-green eyes locked onto Joey’s treacherous little hand.
System: …Host, you’re in danger.
Joey: …Huh?
System: LOOK. AT. THE. DOOR.
Joey: Psh, what’s so interesting abou—
His eyes lifted lazily—
And met Garius’s deadly gaze.
Joey: …
System: DANGER.
Joy: …
Danger? Heh, not a chance.
At worst, just close your eyes, get buried, and let the whole village wait for the feast.
T/N: Please give support on my ko-fi page, thank you🍊🍊🍊
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