CHAPTER 52: 52 "GUARDING THE HOME, LOYAL DEFENDER!

"Hey hey hey!!!"

Valentina was jolted awake from her slumber by a loud shout. She shivered all over, suddenly flipped over, and ended up on all fours on the ground like a big cat.

"Huh!?"

She arched her back high, her hair turning fluffy as if bristled, baring her slightly sharp white teeth and making a threatening sound.

Hiss——

Her already large eyes widened even more, the crimson pupils turning into vertical slits as she quickly scanned her surroundings.

Who is it!!?

Then — she locked eyes with the white-haired boy smiling outside the bars.

"?"

"Good morning~"

"???" Valentina blinked forcefully, a bit groggy from sleep, and shook her head vigorously.

Herbert, seeing Valentina like this, felt quite surprised.

Before this, in his impression, Valentina had always been... well, another type of animal image that is good friends with humans.

But her recent actions suddenly reminded Herbert of a certain orange cat that loves to nap on the roof of his car.

The way that guy first got startled and then bewildered after being poked awake... hmm, exactly the same.

So, are you actually a big dog or an orange cat?

Valentina stared at Herbert for a moment, then her expression instantly became sharp.

"Hmph!"

She remembered how Herbert had fooled and teased her before.

"... What do you want again?"

She glared at Herbert with some irritation, then haughtily turned her head aside, not wanting to look at him.

Don’t want to deal with you.

But... well...

Though Valentina was currently showing such a wary stance, she’d actually decided not to stoop to this guy’s level.

Initially, she was indeed a bit angry, the kind that would take a lot of food to appease.

However, not long ago, she somehow encountered a bizarre Slime that appeared in front of her cell out of nowhere.

After casually beating up the unfortunate fellow, her unpleasant mood was released, and Valentina’s mood became significantly better right then and there.

As expected, lying down isn’t living, only fighting is truly living.

Fighting, awesome!

Although that guy eventually got away, the long-lost battle made her feel alive again.

She wasn’t even that mad when she saw Herbert, still immersed in the aftertaste of the battle.

Fighting, how wonderful...

"Valentina, I’m here to thank you."

Huh?

Hearing Herbert’s words, Valentina’s ears twitched. Miss Hungry Dragon, who intended to keep ignoring him, was genuinely curious at this moment.

Thank me?

Thank me for what?

"If it weren’t for you helping me resolve the danger, I might have perished. You saved me!"

Miss Hungry Dragon’s ears twitched and twitched again, already half-turned towards him, but her face stubbornly faced the wall.

Danger? I saved you?

What’s this all about?

Ummmmm...

I’ll just ask, I’ll ask what he’s up to, nothing more.

This time I won’t be fooled again!

After pondering for quite a while, Valentina ultimately couldn’t resist her curiosity and slowly turned her head back.

She scrutinized the boy, looking him up and down thoroughly, finding no hints of injury on him: "Are you trying to trick me again with these words?"

"How could I deceive you?"

Herbert knew she had taken the bait, laughed heartily, and asked earnestly, "What benefit would I have in tricking you? Why would I deceive you for no benefit?"

"Benefit? I don’t know, probably not..."

Valentina suspiciously stared at Herbert, mumbling uncertainly, "But I have this feeling, that after you trick me, you’ll be... happy?"

Herbert: ?

"This... this is a pure misunderstanding, Miss Valentina."

Herbert shook his head with a wry smile, somewhat helplessly spreading his hands: "How could you think of me that way? Am I such a person in your heart?"

Would I be that kind of person!!?

Am I?

... Hey, what a coincidence!

I am.

Tsk.

Herbert couldn’t help clicking his tongue in his heart, barely managing to keep his expression in place.

That’s why I dislike those intuitive little brats.

Although Miss Hungry Dragon almost saw through his mischievous essence, Herbert could never admit it.

Admitting is impossible, impossible in this lifetime.

"Hmph, stop with the nonsense, I know what’s going on in my heart."

Valentina also knew this unproductive topic couldn’t reach a conclusion, so she rolled her eyes and asked, not very friendly: "So, what are you after this time?"

"Hmm? I said, you saved me, I’m here to thank you!"

Herbert coughed once, beginning to narrate a tense and exciting story to Valentina.

The general storyline was —

The protagonist, Handsome Boy, is a good-looking but weak Prison Chief. On this day, the Lust Demon XiangBiao sneaked into the prison, intending to harm Handsome Boy!

But XiangBiao was coincidentally encountered by Prisoner Beauty on the way to committing his crimes, and with a burst of jealousy, Beauty defeated him with three punches.

His evil plan was thus thwarted, Handsome Boy’s purity preserved, ending the story happily.

Congratulations, joy for all!

"And now, to thank you for your heroic intervention, I’m planning to grant you a wish! As long as it’s within my abilities, I will fulfill it for you!"

Herbert waved a big hand, saying with great flair: "Go ahead! What is your dream?"

Valentina blinked rapidly at Herbert, momentarily a bit dazed.

"Eh?"

Of course, she wasn’t confused about who Handsome Boy, Beauty, or XiangBiao were; she understood that much.

She might seem a little dim-witted, but she’s not stupid...

What drew Valentina’s attention was — Was that Slime really dangerous?

No way, right?

Seeing her hesitate, Herbert thought it wasn’t enough, so he gritted his teeth and stomped his foot, adding:

"Besides, I plan to award you with a banner!"

"It’ll say: ’Home Guard, Loyal Sentinel! Humans’ Best Friend, Jail’s Best Prisoner!’ What do you think? Doesn’t it match your aura?"

?

"Hmm? Who’s loyal to you?"

Valentina glared at Herbert, and he awkwardly promised to remove words like "loyal" before she scoffed.

Hmph, that’s more like it.

Still, why does it feel a bit strange?

By the way, what’s a "banner" anyway?

"Alright then, just tell me what you want to eat, and I’ll do my best to satisfy you!"

As Herbert was discussing the reward with Valentina, suddenly his foot slipped, and he plunged freely into his own shadow.

Whoosh!

"Food? Let me think... hmm?"

Valentina sniffed, looking up but couldn’t find any trace of Herbert.

?

She glanced around, confused:

"Where is he?"

Such a big person...

How did he disappear just like that?