Little Pink Starfish

Early in the morning, Gu Bai woke from sleep, feeling dazed.
Damn it, what was up with that whole rack of gaudy clothes lined up in front of the bed!
And the man standing before it, who looked gentle but gave off a wrong vibe—what was up with that male lead no.2!
There was a faint sense of danger approaching, okay!
It was just a matter of changing clothes, did it need to be this dramatic…

Gu Bai sat up with a blank expression and listened to male lead no.2’s chatter.
Qiguan Rui’s expression was gentle: “Carlo, these were all carefully prepared by the butler. Pick a set to change into, so we can attend the banquet together.”

Gu Bai nodded, glanced at the clothes rack… and looked away in despair.
Truly an eyesore.
What kind of illusion had that serious butler gotten, to make him think Gu Bai liked this kind of tacky punk style? He may be a dead-indoors type, but his aesthetic taste was still salvageable!

Qiguan Rui said softly, “Carlo doesn’t like them?”
Gu Bai answered decisively, “Yes.”
Qiguan Rui smiled slightly, and somehow pulled out a different set of clothes: “Then, wear this one.”

Gu Bai hesitated as he looked over… and then didn’t.
See? Not everyone in this world had distorted aesthetics. Even if he was a sub-beastman (just thinking about it twisted him inside—he really wasn’t a gender-bent being, okay?), there was no need to dress so flamboyantly.
What bothered him even more was—wasn’t this a beastman world? Never mind eating raw meat, but did everyone have to go full European stylization? And even with that, everyone had a man’s face but dressed like girls, tightly wrapped to highlight slim figures—what was up with that! Could they not use chest binders, please!

Luckily, the outfit Qiguan Rui brought was pure white, subtly patterned, with minimal decorations.
Perfect. Just right.
—He even felt that this style was strangely familiar and comforting.

With swift movements, Gu Bai began changing into the formal attire.
Since they were both men, he didn’t ask male lead no.2 to leave—after all, they’d already slept together, what parts hadn’t they seen? No need to be shy! He was just that bold.
Of course, he absolutely didn’t have any seductive intentions! Definitely not!

Qiguan Rui’s throat bobbed.
Gege…
Hold it in.

He turned away.
If not for…
Hold it.
Today’s event was too important, he couldn’t…

While he kept restraining himself, Gu Bai had already suited up.
Yes—suited up.
Only after putting it on did he realize: snug-fitting! Slightly tight! A bit stiff!
But, since it didn’t squeeze like other sub-beastmen’s clothes, it even had a shaping effect.
Instantly his temperament got a boost!

Gu Bai glanced at the mirror.
He couldn’t help but think—he really did look kinda cool, didn’t he~

Meanwhile, Qiguan Rui had long finished dressing himself. He looked especially dashing today—at least to Gu Bai’s eyes. Though he couldn’t rule out the possibility of rose-tinted glasses, the appearance of Qiguan · Cecil-shell · Rui was indeed quite charismatic.
Especially those peach blossom eyes—despite hiding all sorts of twisted emotions in their shimmering depths, they still emitted undeniable charm.

Gu Bai was full of jealousy: If he hadn’t fallen for this guy, he’d definitely be his number one anti-fan!
Qiguan Rui (entranced): Gege looks… so beautiful.

So yeah, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder wasn’t a one-sided thing╮(╯▽╰)╭

---

Soon the two of them set off in a carriage. As nobles of a duke’s house, they held high status, so even if they encountered others headed the same way, all made way for their carriage.
And at a crossroads, another carriage had long been waiting—that was the one shared by Noyce and Zhu Ning, who would be entering together.

That’s right—this was exactly how it went in the original novel.
Whenever the duke’s house needed representatives, it was always the main gong Noyce and male lead no.2 Cecil, the two first heirs. The supposedly powerful dukes and other successors never showed up.
Even at the very end, they were still kept mysteriously off-screen.

Thinking of this, Gu Bai couldn’t help but roast: Where’s the logic! Did those two dukes really just drop dead? Was it just for the sake of showcasing the youth of the male leads that the older generation got completely ignored? They’d definitely feel wronged!
Also, didn’t this world’s beastmen have long lifespans? Top-ranked beastmen could even reach level twelve! Even if those were gone, there should still be plenty of elevens—so where were all those powerful old timers, huh?

Spooky when you think about it too much.

Gu Bai cringed for a moment, then decided to stop thinking.
—Wasn’t this just a rebirth revenge romance starring a harem-attracting shou? The revenge was secondary; the romance was the main point. Why was he taking a love story so seriously!
Just get on the road already!

While thinking this, Gu Bai happened to look up—and his eyes met a pair of teary, watery ones.
Damn! It was Ya’an!

His eyes were full of longing.
Gu Bai’s mouth twitched.
He just didn’t get it—how did this little white flower type even come about… and why was this one even mutated?

Then Gu Bai’s gaze shifted slightly and met Zhu Ning’s.
Zhu Ning had a friendly expression.
Gu Bai: “…”
He nodded, then turned his face away.

Love rival, heh.
Friendly love rival, heh.
Gege was still as dark-hearted and ruthless as ever, heh.

…Forget it, he was a generous man.

Then everyone entered the palace smoothly.

---

This world was European-style: the nobility, the palace architecture—but the people inside… were Chinese-style.
Of course, not that the Beast Emperor looked Chinese—he was still styled European—but his ruling manner in this beastman kingdom was like that of a feudal Chinese emperor. Just swap officials for nobles.

Gu Bai sat beside Qiguan Rui, looking at the long European banquet table arranged with Chinese seating principles, and cringed again.
Yep, this was Chinese-style seating logic with European furniture designs.

As dukes, the four of them—two on the left, two on the right—were arranged like ancient left and right ministers. Even their alliances were in pairs.
Noyce had a good relationship with Cecil, so naturally he sat beside Qiguan Rui. Plus, the Imman family was slightly stronger than the Cardinorn family, or maybe the author just wrote it so the main gong’s power was higher than the devoted second male lead. Thus, Qiguan Rui sat a little behind Noyce.

Qiguan Rui had no pressure.
His gaze circled the Beast Emperor.

Level eleven beastman?
Barely passable. Strong, yes, but…

Heh.
After secretly cultivating for some time, he had already reached this world’s peak: level twelve!
A legendary level twelve beastman easily crushed a level eleven.
Not to mention, Cecil’s body was younger than the Beast Emperor’s, and with Qiguan Rui’s original soul’s experience—from stamina to skills to mental power—he was a full-on crush.

Of course, for now, let’s enjoy the feast.

Gu Bai also looked at the Beast Emperor.
Brawny, tall, not young anymore.
The last part was the key.

Why did the Beast Emperor summon so many top stone-gamblers?
The main reason—he was looking for a specific miraculous stone that could help him break through the level eleven ceiling and extend his lifespan.
Only a uniquely gifted “fated one” could find it.

Gu Bai’s dead-fish eyes swept over the other excited guests and silently lit a hundred candles for them.
—These candles, may they illuminate your future. You’re welcome.

Obviously, in a world where the shou was a harem-attracting main character, how could there be any other “fated ones”?
Though called a harem-magnet, it wasn’t just “people” he charmed—even magic stones fell for him too!
There was only one destined person—and that was him!

In the original novel, when the Beast Emperor carefully brought out forty-nine stones and asked the gamblers to find the special one, only Zhu Ning found it with precision.
To boost Zhu Ning’s prestige, the story said there was a rule: if the first nine failed to pick it, the stone would disappear forever.

Tone shift alert?
Well, the author’s settings were always this fantasy-like.

Anyway, the event hadn’t started yet.
Everyone was still eating and drinking.

The Beast Emperor was being quite amiable—perhaps to ease the stone-gamblers’ tension, he was unusually warm and friendly tonight, chatting and laughing.
Once everyone had eaten their fill and the mood was lively, he finally brought up the main event with great gravity.

Of course, the Beast Emperor wasn’t dumb enough to tell his subjects that he was seeking life extension—how could a monarch show weakness?
More importantly, stones that extended life were incredibly rare! He’d never underestimate people’s greed, okay!

The Beast Emperor declared: “Well, since we’ve all eaten well, I’ll prepare a little entertainment. In a moment, I’ll bring out forty-nine raw stones. Whoever can pick out the most special one among them will be handsomely rewarded! But~ if the first nine fail, I will issue a punishment~”

Hearing this, though no one knew what he was really planning, everyone understood—this wasn’t just a fun game.
So they all buckled down to avoid angering the Emperor.

None of the nobles were fools. Everyone calculated in their minds, casting fervent looks at their stone-gamblers.
The gamblers were also ready to showcase their skills.

At this point, the Beast Emperor was satisfied.
He excused himself to go retrieve the forty-nine stones from his private vault, escorting them personally…

Which meant—he was now alone.

Qiguan Rui’s gaze darkened.