It's not so much overconfidence that's the risk as Xie getting a little flustered. He's not sure where the compliments are coming from, and his suspicion is warring with the part of him that laps up any kind of praise and ultimately distracting him from the game.
He makes a couple of mistakes, usually just after Kevin has said something nice, though he recovers quickly enough that sometimes it's hard to tell he's made them. But he knows.
He tries for an air of smug superiority, accepting the compliments as fact and returning taunts that, really, have absolutely none of his usual bite and are just a sign of his enjoyment, as much as he tries to use them to goad Kevin into... well, into not saying nice things that he doesn't know how to handle.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2023-10-20 02:24 pm (UTC)It's not so much overconfidence that's the risk as Xie getting a little flustered. He's not sure where the compliments are coming from, and his suspicion is warring with the part of him that laps up any kind of praise and ultimately distracting him from the game.
He makes a couple of mistakes, usually just after Kevin has said something nice, though he recovers quickly enough that sometimes it's hard to tell he's made them. But he knows.
He tries for an air of smug superiority, accepting the compliments as fact and returning taunts that, really, have absolutely none of his usual bite and are just a sign of his enjoyment, as much as he tries to use them to goad Kevin into... well, into not saying nice things that he doesn't know how to handle.