Mary Sue Chapter 52: The gentle doctor and his cold-loving stray (Part 3)

Translated by J.

Editor: Addis

 

Xuanyuan secretly scanned Dugu from head to toe.

Not only was Dugu wearing the same clothes as the day before, all the medicine he was given yesterday had been taken out and crammed into a single box, then stuffed into Dugu’s pants pocket, making his pocket burst at the seams.

He’s carrying everything around with him. Doesn’t he have anywhere to stay? Xuanyuan furrowed his brow as he thought of this distinct possibility, but he quietly changed Dugu’s dressing without asking any questions.

After his dressings had been changed, Dugu pulled up his pants with lightning speed – so fast that his balls got caught in the zipper. However, since he did not feel any pain, his expression remained calm and composed…

Feeling both amused and speechless, Xuanyuan lowered his head to breathe warm air onto his cold stiff fingers, but a gleam flickered in his dark eyes under the warm glow of the ceiling light.

Dugu glanced at Xuanyuan, his face cold and stony, after a moment’s pause, he finally whispered in a low voice, “Thank you.”

Xuanyuan curved his eyes into a smile as he replied, “You’re welcome.”

Wh-Why are you smiling at me like that? Dugu glowered at the doctor.

So, with heartfelt gratitude, the awkward little kitten walked up and licked the palm of the vet’s hand. But when the vet smiled back, it furiously bared its teeth at him.

“Wait here, I’ll be back.” Xuanyuan commanded, confident that Dugu would wait for his return like a good patient.

“No way.” Dugu opened the window with an impassive face.

But Xuanyuan ignored him and left the study.

Did you think I didn’t mean what I said? That I’d actually wait for you? How naïve… Dugu sneered as he placed one leg outside the window.

However, after straddling the window sill for the next three seconds, Dugu did indeed eat his words and withdrew his leg. With an icy expression, he stood in the middle of the doctor’s study and waited for his return.

The proud little kitten wanted to escape from the window, but once it had caught the scent of milk and cat treats, it withdrew its little paw and waited like a good kitty.

Xuanyuan did not take long to return. Handing a stack of neatly folded clothes to Dugu, he instructed, “You need to keep your clothes clean, otherwise your wounds may become infected.”

His voice was gentle and calm, as if he spoke purely out of concern for a patient. Dugu hesitated for a moment before finally taking the clothes. But once the clothes were in his hands, he found no reason to loiter. So, with a stiffened face, Dugu jumped out the window like the evening breeze. However, as he vanished into the darkness, the corner of his eyes seemed to be a little moist.

The small kitten ran away with a mouthful of treats, because if it had stayed, it might not be able to help itself from rolling over and letting the vet scratch its soft little belly…

The same time on the following night, Dugu punctually knocked on the window of the doctor’s study. That’s right, he insisted on climbing through the window and refused to use the front door.

As Xuanyuan opened the window to let Dugu in, he noticed Dugu wearing the clothes he had given him yesterday, clothes that used to belong to himself. Since Dugu was roughly the same size as the doctor, maybe only two or three centimetres¹ shorter, the clothes seemed to fit him well. For ease of movement, Dugu rolled up his sleeves, exposing a pair of pale lean wrists.

Apart from his chilly expression and the frost that sometimes formed on the objects he touched, Dugu looked no different from an ordinary person in his leisure wear.

Xuanyuan arched his lips, “You look good in these.”

Having never worn anything other than his standard-issue black uniform from the assassins’ guild, the comment made Dugu blush, so he scolded with a menacing scowl, “You really talk too much.”

“I do.” Xuanyuan admitted to the accusation in good humour. Then he gently, and very naturally, placed his hand on Dugu’s forehead, “Good, your temperature is okay. I saw your face flush just now and thought you might be burning up…”

Dugu was so stunned by the doctor’s behaviour that he looked like he had just witnessed the end of the world.

“Don’t touch me.” Dugu’s face stiffened as he slapped the doctor’s hand away. The barely perceptible colour on his cheeks deepened at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Caught off guard by the vet tickling its furry chin, the little kitten furiously swung its fleshy little paw to scratch at the vet.

Not looking displeased at all, Xuanyuan grinned as he languidly replied, “It would be really unfortunate if your wounds become infected. You should be more mindful of your body temperature.”

Dugu looked away with a tightened jawline.

Actually, his blush did not entirely stem from the doctor’s praise, the other reason was… he had found a thin packet of cash in the pant pocket of the clothes Xuanyuan gave him. The notes were brand new and folded into a neat stack. It was obvious that they were not left behind by mistake.

Young Master Huangfu’s face was printed onto each and every one of the notes, with every pixel screaming cool, handsome, arrogant, domineering and badass.

Though that no longer held any significance, because Dugu realised that for some reason, he no longer felt an urge to harm the young master. It was actually kind of odd since Dugu’s every thought was filled with murdering him only a few days ago…

When Dugu discovered the cash in his pocket, he was standing in the small garden outside Xuanyuan’s residence. With the notes scrunched up in his fist, he looked up at the warm glow radiating from Xuanyuan’s study. The notes became damp very quickly from the light perspiration in his palm, which then swiftly turned into ice.

Dugu decided not to return the money, mostly because he was destitute. Being hungry was detrimental to his recovery, and as a bona fide assassin, he was too proud to resort to stealing or burglary.

So, he fed himself with the cash Xuanyuan had given him. Like the nutrients from the food he bought with Xuanyuan’s money, Xuanyuan’s kindness seemed to have dissolved into his blood and quietly circulated around his body. The scorching palm Xuanyuan had placed on him earlier seemed to have triggered tiny hot-water bubbles to explode in his bloodstream with a crackle, then flowed throughout his body like a warm current, making Dugu blush.

Tsk, why would he be so nice to me? I’m just a bloodthirsty monster that dwells in the darkness – a cold-blooded killer who cannot laugh and does not feel pain. What an idiot…

At a loss for what to do, Dugu covered his burning face with his icy cold hands, trying to lower the temperature… He was completely oblivious to the fact that holding his face in his hands made him look like a young maiden in love… The sight was almost unbearable!

Xuanyuan almost chuckled aloud from the scene before him, then quickly collected himself when he saw Dugu’s murderous gaze.

The little kitten was quite moved by the vet’s kindness, but as it wallowed in self-pity over its lowly status as a stray cat, it could not accept his kindness with open arms, so it pretended to be extra ferocious.

Hmph, I’m going to return your kindness with my vicious scowl. That’ll teach you to be nice to me! Dugu thought as he glowered at the doctor.

“Don’t forget to come back tomorrow at the same time…” Once Xuanyuan had dressed all of Dugu’s wounds, he looked up and met Dugu’s gaze, then continued in a gentle voice, “You’re recovering surprisingly fast. You should be able to move normally after a few more days of rest.”

Dugu’s ferocious gaze did not trigger the response he had expected, it was like his fist had hit a soft pillow instead. So, he stubbornly let out a cold humph, then nimbly jumped out the window and vanished into the night.

The darkness is where I belong!