The Gloomy Paper-Man Came to My Door to Pursue His Love - Chapter 4

Before Xi Li’s furious roar could even settle, a crisp “ding” echoed. In an instant, before anyone could react, everything in the vicinity froze. The sea breeze ceased its turbulent clamor, the waves remained standing on the surface in curled arcs, and the golden morning sun and the emerald green of the island became a still life against the horizon.

Aside from Xi Li, who could still stiffly clench his knuckles into a fist, everyone else around him paused at that exact moment. Breath that was about to be exhaled, syllables that had not yet landed, and emotions that were not yet hidden were all pressed into a collective pause.

He looked up, and the person who had been standing face-to-face with him just a moment ago suddenly vanished from his field of vision.

The surroundings were deathly quiet, even more silent than the interior of the mecha cockpit at the very end. At that time, Xi Li could at least hear the sound of his own breathing. Here and now, his breathing was merely a realistic simulation; when no player was present, it did not even make a sound.

In truth, when Xi Li had read that message from his fiancé on the terminal, he had experienced a momentary flash of sentiment. He had not expected the final person he interacted with in his life to be his fiancé.

Then, in the few seconds that followed, Xi Li recalled his fiancé’s appearance and remembered how some media outlets described him: “Possessing a pure and kind heart.” The reason for this praise was that his fiancé had once wept so bitterly over the withering of sand-fixing vegetation on a desert planet that he nearly fainted, subsequently calling on everyone to protect the interstellar environment so that the tragedy of the desert planet would not be repeated.

Only Xi Li discovered that this person used the exact same crying style at his funeral. The rhythmic shaking of the shoulders, the specific shade of crimson at the corners of the eyes, and even the moisture level of the tear tracks on his face were a perfect replica.

The silence persisted until a game notification arrived, explaining that Qin Fei had saved the game progress.

Xi Li reined in his memories and exhaled a breath of turbid air. “Heh.”

Because of the stillness, the sound of his own voice drifted clearly into his ears. Xi Li snapped his mouth shut instantly. He wanted to strangle himself. It sounded hideous! The voice in his throat was incredibly grating. Compared to his original voice, this version was not even worth a single strand of hair.

Outside the game, the starship performed a spatial jump, causing the terminal to go offline briefly.

Qin Fei rose from the soft individual sofa and went to the bar to get some water. The walls of the glass provided in the cabin were a bit high, and as the soft stream of water poured into the ceramic cup, it made a rhythmic sound like percussion. Qin Fei’s fingers tapped the counter in time with the water. While he waited, he glanced at the glass wine cabinet next to the bar.

The cabinet was only half the height of the bar and was divided into two narrow tiers. Two bottles of red wine sat on the top shelf, while matching goblets occupied the bottom. This was wine prepared specifically for first-class passengers. It was not top-tier, but the LED strips inside the cabinet made it look expensive.

Qin Fei hesitated for two seconds. Ultimately, he could not suppress his curiosity and took out the red wine displayed in the cabinet.

He had never drunk alcohol, not once. At the banquets he was forced to attend, the liquid in his goblet was never wine but a similarly colored soft drink with a taste that defied description. This was because alcohol causes people to lose their composure, and as a product of the Qin family waiting for the highest bidder, his public image could afford no flaws. He was required to be cold, noble, reserved, and elegant, the perfect personification of a Qin family Omega.

He knew the production process of every famous wine; he knew their scents and flavors; he knew which wine to choose for which occasion and for which person. Yet, he had truly never tasted it.

He wanted to try it now.

Qin Fei leaned down, quietly opened the cabinet door, and took out one of the bottles. He looked at the label. He did not recognize it, but that did not dampen his desire for a secret taste.

The stopper was not a natural cork but a screw cap. As Qin Fei twisted it, the cap made a clicking sound in his palm, as if providing a soundtrack for his mischief. He poured himself two glasses: one to breathe and one to taste immediately. He was not just curious about the taste of red wine; he was curious about its raw, un-decanted flavor.

Both glasses were a bit astringent upon entry. The aftertaste was sweet, though Qin Fei could not tell the difference between the two. Just as he intended to taste them again to find the distinction, the terminal reconnected.

The terminal vibrated on Qin Fei’s wrist and spoke, “It is easier to get drunk on a starship, and since this is your first time tasting it, I do not recommend excessive alcohol intake.”

The feeling of being restricted returned. Qin Fei felt in his heart that interstellar technology had progressed too far. He pursed his lips and set the glass down.

The terminal added, “I do not intend to control you. I understand your joy and anticipation on the road to freedom, but you have not yet passed the main quest.”

Qin Fei was willing to listen to reason. “I know that, of course.”

He looked at the two wine glasses, savoring the sweetness on his palate. Once he was free, he would taste every kind of wine, red, white, strong, or mild. Not only that, but he would try everything he had ever been forbidden from doing.

The starship sailed smoothly through space. A pleasant broadcast reminded passengers that the next jump would occur in four hours.

Qin Fei sat back down on the sofa, and the terminal projected hundreds of millions of photons into the air. The gentle singing of a female voice filled the room, and the login animation showed a hand reaching out from the screen.

The terminal noted, “This is the initial login animation. Once the opening plot ends, you can customize it.”

Qin Fei nodded to show he understood.

After the animation, the scene returned to the sunlit coast. The vegetation covering the island was lush, and the pier was crowded with people.

Qin Fei asked softly in confusion, “Where is my Paper Lover?”

In the main quest screen he had just saved, almost every character was present except for his Paper Lover.

The terminal replied, “It is likely that the network fluctuation during the starship jump caused a bug in the save file. Log in and see. If the save is corrupted, you will have to start over.”

Qin Fei gave a soft “oh.” He was not impatient. In fact, he was quite happy to play the game, as he had never been allowed to play games before. Furthermore, his Paper Lover was sculpted entirely according to his personal tastes; looking at him was a pleasure in itself.

The only two regrets were accidentally giving the Paper Lover his dead husband’s name and being unable to use a gaming pod for now, which took away some of the fun.

Qin Fei continued the game. If possible, he wanted to finish the prologue before the next jump.

As Qin Fei operated the terminal, the game resumed. The sea breeze surged again, the sun moved slowly across the horizon, and the noise of the crowd returned.

“Now, groups of ten, assign yourselves freely. Once you have a team, follow your teacher,” the Captain of the Elvis Royal Guard repeated.

The plot had rolled back slightly, but Qin Fei still did not see his Paper Lover. Just as he looked into the distance, his Paper Lover finally appeared in his field of vision.

The Paper Lover’s face was ashen. He approached Qin Fei with a stiff, dragging gait and stopped before him once more. Just like the previous attempt, the Paper Lover looked livid. In a tone so angry it seemed he wanted to devour Qin Fei, he said, “Welcome to Elvis Island. I am pleased to see you all. For the next few days, I will teach you the etiquette of the Elvis family. I hope we can get along well.”

Qin Fei was puzzled by the tone, but his gaze was once again drawn to the man’s chest. The Paper Lover’s upper body was mostly soaked, looking as if he had just submerged his head in the ocean. His hair was wet, and droplets fell from the tips, sliding down the smooth lines of his neck and into the folds of his complex cravat. The rising and falling chest and the sexy, protruding veins of his neck appeared before Qin Fei once more.

The terminal remarked, “Your Paper Lover looks like a man with quite a story.”

Qin Fei nodded in agreement while admiring the view.

The Paper Lover gritted his teeth and said, “I will take you to your quarters. Please, follow me!”

Without Qin Fei needing to move, his character automatically followed the Paper Lover. More of the island’s scenery appeared on the screen as the ancient castle hidden deep within the island came into view. The stone walls were a damp brown, and the Elvis family crest was deeply carved into them.

They entered the castle. Tens of thousands of candles flickered in the hall, painting the walls a warm, fiery hue. After passing through a long, quiet corridor, they were led to a large room. The room contained ten neatly arranged beds and a table for ten in a partitioned area. This was where the group of prospective brides would stay.

As Qin Fei surveyed the new environment, he heard the Paper Lover’s voice again, still carrying that stiff, resistant tone.

“Everyone, you must be tired from the journey. Please rest for a while; lunch will be delivered to the room. The sunlight is lovely today. After eating, you may choose to nap or walk around the island. Our etiquette lessons will officially begin tomorrow morning.”

Qin Fei looked up and saw that the Paper Lover’s eyes seemed ready to spit fire. His expression was distorted beyond recognition.

Before Qin Fei could investigate further, the [Quest] icon in the top right corner lit up.

[New Quest]: Etiquette Teacher? You immediately realize he might be the key to staying here. Therefore, you plan to leave a deep, positive impression on him. You must complete this before anyone else.

[Main Quest 1]: Kill the Viscount.

[Main Quest 2]: Become the Viscountess.

After Qin Fei read the new quests, he heard a loud “bang.” The door was slammed shut with great force; the Paper Lover had already left.

The terminal said, “According to player shares on the forums, the prologue has only one quest. Once you complete this, you can finish the prologue and enter the normal game interface. There are two hours, thirty-five minutes, and seven seconds until the next jump. Given your skills, you can definitely finish the prologue quest before then.”

The terminal knew its master well. Leaving a deep, positive impression was what Qin Fei had been trained to do day and night. According to the data the terminal held on Qin Fei, there were twenty-six Alphas who had an excellent impression of him. Without exception, these Alphas came from prominent families and held significant influence in their fields, ranging from finance and high-tech R&D to media and energy. Some even controlled interstellar routes. They had all expressed a strong desire to get to know Qin Fei better, but the report of his 100% pheromone compatibility with the Little Prince had shattered their fantasies.

For Qin Fei, playing these Alphas was as easy as training a dog. With this data, the terminal assumed that the only reason Qin Fei had not won over the Little Prince was simply that they had never met in person. Otherwise, the Little Prince would have been another dog at his master’s feet.

Just as Qin Fei closed the quest window, someone knocked gently on the door in the game. The attention of the other prospective brides was drawn to the sound. The door was pushed open, and a Beta dressed as a butler stood there. He performed a standard greeting before saying, “Good afternoon. I am one of the butlers of the Elvis family. I have brought your lunch.”

After stating his purpose, the butler stepped aside to let the servants with food carts enter. The lunch was quite lavish, and the brides took their seats one by one.

Qin Fei did not join them. He looked at the butler and asked, “Excuse me, do you know where the teacher is?”

The butler asked, “Which teacher are you looking for?”

Qin Fei pursed his lips and waited a moment before saying, “Teacher Xi Li.”

The butler gave Qin Fei a long look. Instead of answering immediately, he asked with a hint of suspicion, “Do you have business with Teacher Xi Li? You can tell me; I will do my best to help you. Or, if you have a message, I can convey it for you.”

Qin Fei looked at the feast on the table. “I need to ask the teacher about dining etiquette.”

The other brides were stunned. The etiquette they were currently using was not Elvis etiquette.

The butler said, “Oh, I see. I saw Teacher Xi Li head toward the beach.” He turned and pointed out the way. “Leave the castle and follow the path lined with marigolds to reach the shore.”

“Thank you,” Qin Fei said.

Without delay, Qin Fei left the room. He followed the marigold path and, upon reaching the beach, saw his Paper Lover punch a rock. The sea breeze carried over fragments of the man’s speech.

“I, Xi Li, never, would rather die!”

Then, he dove headfirst into the sea.

Qin Fei stood there. He was becoming increasingly curious about what kind of backstory his random questionnaire answers had generated for this character. Waves crashed against the reefs. The area where the Paper Lover had dived soon became calm. Qin Fei stood on the shore, careful not to let the water soak his trousers, and waited for the man to resurface.

After a while, the terminal spoke, “If you do not save your Paper Lover soon, he might drown.”

Qin Fei was surprised. “Can a Paper Lover actually die?”

The terminal explained, “Based on game data, they can indeed die. There are two types of death. The first is dying in the main plot, where the player can just reload a save. The second is death in daily life. There are many reasons for this, such as a player not logging in for a long time, causing the character to die of a broken heart, or a player deleting their account, which is essentially the player killing them.”

Qin Fei’s last save was at the pier. If the Paper Lover drowned, the prologue would revert to that point. Qin Fei did not want to waste time, nor did he want to watch the character he had carefully sculpted die before his eyes.

The terminal added, “Your Paper Lover jumping into the sea at this time is likely a plot point set by the game to help you complete your mission. It is time for the beauty saves the hero trope.”

Qin Fei looked out at the sea. The surface was calm with shimmering green ripples. However, looking closely, he could see a slight disturbance in the area where the Paper Lover had jumped.

Qin Fei walked forward, stepping onto a reef as waves splashed against his soles. He leapt to another rock, the sea breeze catching his clothes. When he reached the highest rock, his character was breathing slightly hard, and the screen shook slightly. He looked down into the water. Because the Paper Lover was submerged, a patch of water under the rock appeared darker.

Once he confirmed the location, Qin Fei did not hesitate. He leapt, and the camera followed his rapid descent.

Splash! Qin Fei fell into the sea.

The vision became blurry. The game simulated the buzzing sound of water pressure against the eardrums, and the realism gave Qin Fei a slight sense of suffocation. He continued to dive, searching for his Paper Lover. The water transitioned from light blue to deep blue, looking as though it were painted with a layer of dark indigo.

Finally, in the deep blue, he found him. The Paper Lover was alive and had noticed his presence. The water refracted the sunlight into sparkling spots like stars scattered on the ocean floor. His Paper Lover looked through the stars like a lurking shark, staring at him with a dangerous gaze.

The scene was eerie. Qin Fei wanted to ask the terminal if he was hallucinating the emotion in the character’s eyes, but as soon as he opened his mouth, seawater poured into his throat. The gurgling sound in the audio immediately interrupted him. Since his voice was recorded and affected the plot, he had to keep quiet. However, that gulp of water made him lose his balance. Due to the limitations of the device, he could not regain his equilibrium for a long time. He kept falling deeper into the indigo void, accompanied by the stinging sound of pressure in his ears. He felt as if he were truly being swallowed by the sea.

“Can the main character die too?” he asked curiously. Because he spoke, he swallowed several more gulps of seawater. The screen flashed black, simulating the character’s eyes closing due to the exhaustion of drowning.

The terminal replied, “There is currently no data on main character deaths. According to players, their Paper Lovers always appear at the critical moment to save them. Falling in love during a crisis is the charm of this romance game.”

The screen continued to flash black, and the intervals of darkness grew longer.

Qin Fei asked, “I feel like I am dying. Will my Paper Lover save me?”

The terminal was certain. “He will.”

Qin Fei was skeptical. “Even if it is a tragic love storyline, will he save me?”

“He will,” the terminal insisted.

“He seems to have a grudge against me. Will he still save me?” Qin Fei had spent hours in the prologue; he could see the man’s attitude clearly.

The terminal began, “Even though the main plot…”

Suddenly, an arm reached across the screen. The vision flashed black once more, and when it recovered, an incredibly handsome face was inches away. Sharp eyes, a high nose, and those distinctive lips. He was pulled into a firm embrace. The harsh noise in the audio was gradually drowned out by a powerful, steady heartbeat.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

The terminal said, “See? I told you.”

The sound of the heartbeat filled the cabin. Qin Fei smiled. He rose with the Paper Lover, leaving the dark blue depths behind. Finally, they broke the surface. The muffled sounds of the water and the heartbeat vanished instantly. Before Qin Fei could feel any regret, he was roughly thrown onto the sand.

Immediately, a voice full of rage hit him, “What exactly do you want?”

Qin Fei looked up. The Paper Lover stood over him, looking down with unquenchable anger.

The terminal sighed, “The warmth was fleeting. This is the punishment for randomizing the questionnaire.”

Now that they were out of the water, every word would be recorded. Qin Fei looked up and said sincerely, “I wanted to save you.”

Xi Li gritted his teeth. “Do you take me for a fool?”

Qin Fei gauged the man’s attitude and said, “I think there has been a misunderstanding between us.”

Xi Li knelt down, squinting at him. His voice was low and heavy. “Was it not you who put me in here? What could I possibly misunderstand about you?”

Qin Fei saw water droplets roll off Xi Li and disappear into the golden sand. He frowned slightly. Did his Paper Lover being on Elvis Island have something to do with him? He opened the [Quest] window again, but the prologue quest was simply to leave a positive impression. If there was already a history of love and hate between them, the quest made no sense. His background introduction mentioned nothing about this man.

Sensing he lacked the full context, Qin Fei asked tentatively, “Do we know each other?”

This caught Xi Li off guard. His gaze darkened as he stared intensely at Qin Fei. “Say that again?”

Qin Fei felt more confident now. There was no way he could fail even the prologue quest. He said firmly, “We do not know each other.”

Xi Li stared at him for a long time in silence.

Qin Fei stood up and said with a hint of regret, “You have likely mistaken me for someone else.”

Xi Li stood as well. He was a full head taller than Qin Fei, looking down at him with a heavy gaze. “What kind of trick are you playing now?”

Qin Fei met his scrutiny. “Teacher, my name is Qin Fei. You have no reason to doubt the truth of my name; otherwise, I would not have been able to reach Elvis Island.”

“What is your point?” Xi Li asked.

Qin Fei looked at him. “Do you not find my name unfamiliar?”

The air went silent for a few seconds. Xi Li ground his teeth. It was incredibly unfamiliar! Everyone else referred to Qin Fei as “Your Fiancé.” He rarely heard the name Qin Fei directly. Only the messages Qin Fei sent repeated the name constantly.

“Prince Xi Li, hello. I am Qin Fei. I would like to discuss the compatibility report with you. I look forward to your reply. Sincerely.”

“Your Highness, I am Qin Fei. Today is your birthday. Happy birthday.”

“Your Highness, I am Qin Fei. I heard you successfully took the Arlan Fortress. Congratulations on your brilliant victory! You are the pride of the Empire and myself.”

“Your Highness, I am Qin Fei. The temperature has dropped at the border; please take care of yourself. I will wait for your return at the Capital. I miss you.”

Every so often, his blocked inbox would be filled with messages from his fiancé. Sometimes Xi Li would delete them immediately; other times, he would leave the trash in the box.

Xi Li stared into Qin Fei’s eyes. He realized that Qin Fei seemed unaware that his conscious data stream had entered the game. However, he did not dare let his guard down.

“I do indeed know someone named Qin Fei,” Xi Li said, taking a step back. He did not let Qin Fei see that his body was numb with pain. After Qin Fei introduced himself, the game program had sent instruction after instruction, demanding he leave a deep, positive impression of Qin Fei.

Unfortunately, he had no positive impressions of Qin Fei.

He stared at Qin Fei’s unforgettable face and tested him in a low voice, “The Qin Fei I know is as beautiful as you, but he is hypocritical, calculating, and treacherous. You never know when he might bite you.”

Qin Fei was not surprised that the Paper Lover knew someone named Qin Fei; that explained the hostility. He nodded and shared, “I also know someone named Xi Li. He is an idiot.”