003. I Never Felt Happy Playing the Guitar

Nanun Yuyue lowered his head, carefully observing Mutsumi Wakaba, who lay flat on the sofa.

Her breathing was steady, her chest rising and falling rhythmically, and the blank expression on her face had returned, making her look as if she had drifted into a light sleep.

Yet, the image of those golden eyes suddenly snapping open remained etched in his mind, refusing to fade.

What on earth was going on?

Countless questions churned in Nanun Yuyue’s mind. Just as he leaned in to take a closer look, the next second—

"Thump!"

A sharp pain shot across his forehead. His head was jolted violently, and his vision went blank for an instant.

"Hiss—!"

Nanun Yuyue clutched his forehead, gasping in pain, while opposite him, Mutsumi Wakaba let out a small, soft moan.

Their foreheads had collided with a resounding crack; Nanun Yuyue was nearly stunned into a stupor by the impact.

Before he could regain his senses, he saw Mutsumi push herself up into a sitting position. Her eyes were hazy, like a cat startled awake from a nightmare.

But soon, her gaze met Nanun Yuyue’s. She froze for a second, the panic on her face vanishing instantly, replaced once more by that vacant, wooden expression.

Then—

She actually lay back down, completely unguarded.

The posture was as if she had accepted everything, lying flat and quiet, her eyes hollow, her expression devoid of emotion, as if waiting to be harvested.

Nanun Yuyue: "..."

This, this, this...

He was completely speechless.

Shouldn't a normal girl, in this situation, be so embarrassed and furious that she would pelt him with a pillow?

How did it reach the point with Mutsumi Wakaba where it felt like an NPC had finished loading a script and simply chosen the "continue sleeping" option?

Looking at it from another angle, it actually looked quite like he was the one bullying her.

Was this girl... truly a descendant of the White King?

Nanun Yuyue felt a moment of existential doubt.

He rubbed his forehead, hesitated, and finally asked:

"What just happened... to you?"

Only then did Mutsumi sit up, her eyelashes fluttering:

"The song. I was immersed."

Nanun Yuyue understood.

While listening to him play the guitar, she had desperately tried to grasp the concept of "emotion," attempting to understand how to express her feelings through music.

Then, her brain had "short-circuited."

Like a program crashing from processing excessive data, her consciousness had paused for a moment, causing her to lose consciousness.

Nanun Yuyue stared into her eyes, trying to discern something from her gaze: for instance, did she even know she was a hybrid?

If he hadn't seen those golden eyes with his own eyes just moments ago, he might have suspected she was just an introverted girl who wasn't very good at expressing emotions.

But Mutsumi merely sat there blankly, clutching her guitar, the corners of her mouth slightly downturned, radiating a natural sense of dullness.

Nanun Yuyue was genuinely worried she might blurt out something like, "I've never felt happy playing the guitar."

He raised a hand and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

Mutsumi is truly difficult to communicate with.

A strange silence descended upon the room.

Nanun Yuyue sat where he was, his eyes drifting toward Mutsumi from time to time, while she sat on the sofa, motionless, head bowed over the guitar strings, like a mute statue.

Right now, there was no communication between them at all.

Nanun Yuyue looked calm on the surface, but inside, he was in turmoil.

This was the world of *Dragon Raja*.

Through the system interface and the transformation of Mutsumi’s eyes, he had confirmed the setting beyond a doubt.

Hybrids, Spirit Words, the Dragon Race...

Mutsumi Wakaba, of all people, was one of them.

He couldn't help but recall how in the original story, Mutsumi’s mental state was always unstable, frequently slipping into her own "Hall of Consciousness."

What if she suddenly lost control?

Would he be torn to shreds on the spot?

Although Nanun Yuyue wasn't sure of the strength of her bloodline, with his current life-skill-based stats, he wouldn't be able to handle even an ordinary hybrid.

Nanun Yuyue subconsciously swallowed, his body tensing slightly as he began calculating how to escape if things went south.

However, just as his mind was spiraling into wild fantasies, Mutsumi suddenly spoke.

Her voice was soft, like frost falling on a windowsill on a snowy night—slow, yet clear.

"Could you... when you have time, teach me to play?"

Nanun Yuyue’s heart gave a violent jolt. He looked up, his gaze fixing on Mutsumi.

She remained in her previous posture, still clutching the guitar.

Looking at her, Nanun Yuyue realized she was genuinely trying to understand "music."

In her childhood world, there was too much "role-playing" and too little "emotion." But she had just heard his performance, heard those notes carrying "emotion," which was why she wanted to try, why this thought had arisen.

Nanun Yuyue took another look at the girl before him.

The girl holding the guitar had a pure face and a delicate frame, her long eyelashes casting a faint shadow under the dim light.

She sat there quietly, like an elf sitting alone in a forest.

But... her bloodline was far more complex than it appeared.

She was a hybrid.

This wasn't just a matter of having a "special bloodline."

Nanun Yuyue’s thoughts swirled endlessly.

To cope with various social situations, Mutsumi had begun attempting to play different roles from the age of three. But ever since she encountered the guitar—the one thing that was "truly hers"—the taciturn "Mutsumi" in her family became her primary personality, while the other roles she played hadn't disappeared; they were simply locked away inside her.

If you looked at it another way, Lu Mingfei at most had a little demon, Lu Mingze, hidden inside him. But Mutsumi Wakaba? Her personality reserve could assemble an entire band, and adding a manager and support staff wouldn't be an issue either.

Although this was merely an adaptation mechanism Mutsumi had developed since childhood to deal with different scenarios, the question remained:

To be able to control such a massive "doll system," how powerful must her bloodline be?

Nanun Yuyue’s hands tightened slightly, his heart filled with complexity.

He looked up at Mutsumi again, finding that she was still in the same position. Because he hadn't responded for a long time, the corners of her mouth seemed to droop even further, as if she were a bit disappointed.

Nanun Yuyue realized he had been silent for too long.

He gritted his teeth, preparing to speak:

"Click."

Suddenly, the basement door was pushed open.

Nanun Yuyue’s back muscles tensed instantly, his body straightening instinctively as his eyes shot toward the doorway.

A slender, elegant figure appeared there, with the light spilling from behind her, highlighting her silhouette.

It was Mutsumi’s mother, Minami Wakaba.

Her voice was as gentle as ever:

"So, this is where you two are."

Minami’s gaze lingered on the two of them for a moment, her tone unhurried:

"I looked everywhere upstairs and couldn't find you. It turns out you were hiding down here."