I’ve been looking forward to posting this chapter for so long! It’s one of the most hilarious chapters in the series that never fails to make me laugh no matter how many times I read it. XD
Translated by: TaffyGirl13
Chapter 3: My roommate cannot be this cute
Fu Xing dragged his heavy feet back to the dorms.
Although nothing had happened on the haunted house adventure this time, he was still physically and mentally exhausted. Brad had been bored on the trip back and had constantly played around with him, such as suddenly picking him up from behind or abruptly giving him a push while walking along a rugged path, then yanking him back up right before he fell.
He would die from this large dog’s fooling around sooner or later!
Upon entering his warm room, Fu Xing let out a sigh of relief. Leon was not in the living room; Fu Xing figured the other was likely resting in the bed area.
“I’m back!” Fu Xing took off his jacket as he said, “There are many historical sites in Sunset Forest. We also found Countess Lee Kirst’s castle. Though the course of events was a bit scary, there wasn’t anything inside.”
He grabbed his towel and pyjamas, stepped into the bathroom, and took off his shirt. Just as he was about to brush his teeth and freshen up, a snow-white face appeared out of nowhere in the mirror.
“Holy crap!”
After his panic, Fu Xing realised that the person in the mirror was his roommate, Leon. “You scared me to death!” This was his second time being frightened tonight!
Leon did not speak as he quietly looked at Fu Xing.
“Do you need to use the bathroom?” Seriously, you just have to give me a heads-up…
Leon shook his head. Suddenly, he did something that terrified Fu Xing even more than Kirst’s castle—
That mouth that had been turned downwards for millennia actually turned upwards and the cold eyes formed crescents—Leon was smiling. Moreover, it was the type of smile that was extremely obvious and very bright!
Heavens! A supernatural event!
“Le-Leon?”
“You’re back,” Leon said. It was not his usually cold tone, but a voice so warm that it made Fu Xing tremble.
“Ye-yes!” Was he still in Sunset Forest? Could this all be an illusion?
“Going to bathe?”
“Mn.”
“I’ll help you—” Leon reached out to attack Fu Xing’s pants.
“No need!” He didn’t want any service from a man!
“Don’t be modest.” However, Leon still did not stop and pulled down Fu Xing’s pants without any explanation.
“Enough!”
Leon’s actions came to a sharp halt, as if he had stopped working. He stood motionless as he stared at Fu Xing.
“What-what are you doing?!” Constantly staring at that place!
“Fu Xing.”
“What?” Why did you suddenly turn so serious?
“You’re eighteen years old?”
“Ye-yeah!”
Leon let out a light sigh, an unbearable expression morphing onto his face like a doctor that had just diagnosed cancer. “You need medical treatment.”
“Bastard! Argh! There’s a limit to how low you can go when humiliating others!”
“I had no ill intent—”
“Is this a new way to mess with others that you came up with?! You—” Huh? The scent of alcohol? “You drank alcohol?”
“Seems so.”
“How much did you drink?”
“There was water in the mug on the table. That’s my mug…”
Taeharu had filled every cup with alcohol. Leon had likely drunk Taeharu’s alcohol, but that was only a single cup!
“I don’t feel very well…” Leon rubbed his forehead with his hand and let out a soft sigh. “Many stars are beckoning my soul. I must remove my body from the mortal world and advance towards the distant river of stars to return into the embrace of the pure and holy spirit…”
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
Now what! Is Leon’s brain broken—Ah! Don’t tell me that this is why Leon can’t drink alcohol? He not only has low tolerance, but he goes crazy too.
“Lia…” Leon’s hand brushed past Fu Xing’s ear. “Why is your long, black, velvet-like hair missing?”
“I’m not Lia!” Heavens! It’s getting more serious!
“Oh. Sorry.”
“Mn! It’s fine if you know!” Hm, communication is still possible. Seems like he’s not too badly drunk…
“Then, charming lady with short hair, has anyone ever told you that your eyes are beautiful?” He tilted Fu Xing’s chin up. “Like Baghdad’s night sky, with brilliant stars glittering there…”
“I’m not—” Ugh! This is terrible! Who is this?
“Sorry, I’m a bit dizzy…and a bit hot…”
“It’s February right now; it’s even snowing outside!”
“But my body is as hot as Provence,” Leon pulled his collar open. “Longing for the moisture of the Aegean Sea.”
“Stop it, ah—!”
Fu Xing desperately struggled free and exhausted his words to just barely placate Leon. Taking advantage of the spare moment, he hurriedly used the dorm phone to call Zhu Yue.
Zhu Yue had quite a few typical medicines, so he planned to ask for one that could dissipate the effects of alcohol. While Emerald also had many things, he did not want to ask them from Emerald and end up being requested for a bunch of favours in return.
“Zhu Yue?” Fu Xing urgently asked when the line connected.
“She’s not here.” A cold yet familiar voice gave him a reply.
“You are…?”
“I’m Flora, I came to borrow her computer.”
“Oh. Um, there’s a bit of a problem here, could I ask for you to come help?”
“Is it a problem with you?”
“No, it’s Leon. He’s drunk and his actions are really weird.”
“What does that have to do with me.”
“I was trying to bathe earlier and he actually barged in to take off my clothes!”
“Oh. Doesn’t seem to be anything worth seeing.”
Fu Xing heard some movement behind him, and he looked back. “Now he’s starting to take off his own clothes!”
An unusual inhale came from the phone, then a few seconds of silence. “I’ll head over immediately.”
Twenty minutes later, after Fu Xing had gone through the struggle of convincing Leon to put his clothes back on and obediently sit in the chair, a series of knocks came from the balcony door.
Fu Xing glanced over to see Flora standing outside.
“Why are you coming in from there?”
Fu Xing opened the door and discovered that her get-up was not any different from what it had been while going through Sunset Forest. “What did you bring a camera for?” Moreover, it looked more professional than the one earlier! The previous one had been a digital camera, and now it had been changed into a single-lens camera!
“To capture the scenery.” Flora calmly entered the room. “The dorm’s visiting hours are long past.”
“So you climbed the wall? What happens if you’re discovered?!”
Flora shot Fu Xing a sideways look. “It’s not a problem if you have the ability to enter.”
“What do you mean?”
“Shalom emphasises ability and discipline. But discipline is just a standard of testing ability. If you have a means to surpass the scope of the boundaries, then you won’t be confined by the restrictions.”
Fu Xing wanted to continue asking, but when Leon saw Flora appear, he began to grow restless again.
“It’s Flora, huh.” Leon leaned forward on the chair, his shirt open and his hands propped his head up. His attitude was exactly like that of a king of the night.
“Come here,” he said quietly, his voice low and rich as he gave this alluring command.
Flora slowly walked over as if possessed.
“Fl-Flora!” Now what! He had sought Flora to come help, but why did it now seem like he had instead tossed her into the lion’s mouth?
Flora strode up to Leon, her expression calm. “You’re drunk,” she coolly stated.
Fu Xing inwardly felt a wave of relief. So close. Looks like Flora can still overcome this situation.
Leon smiled and reached out to caress Flora’s ear, gently rubbing it. “Your ears are adorable; they’re pointed on the top.”
Flora froze. Fu Xing seemed to hear something being switched on.
“Fl-Flora?”
“Why do you have such cute ears?” Leon asked.
Flora grabbed Leon’s wrist and moved it away from her ear. She then smirked and murmured, “To better hear your voice with…”
Fu Xing stared blankly. What kind of performance are they acting out?!
“Your eyes are also beautiful.” Leon reached to hold Flora’s face and push at her glasses. “Why do you wear glasses?”
“This is to better see you with,” Flora quietly replied, her amber eyes already turned into a cat’s, with the pupils turning as thin as needles.
Leon’s finger slid down a few centimetres. “Your lips are a brilliant red too, they’re very enchanting.”
Flora’s eyes changed into the colour of moonlight as they flashed with an unknown emotion. She licked her lips and bared her sharp cat teeth. “This is to—”
“Flora!” Are you guys acting out Little Red Riding Hood right now?! Why can’t I tell who’s the big bad wolf?
Fu Xing shook Flora hard by the shoulders. She returned to her senses then hurriedly leapt away, putting distance between her and Leon.
“This guy is too dangerous! He can’t be let out before he sobers,” Flora urged.
Leon was normally a very aloof darkblood; no one would have expected him to suddenly turn into a man that was a powerful seducer.
“Oh?” Is it that serious?
“His strength is enough to create a baby boom.” Flora gasped from her palpitations. “There are two methods now. One is to make him sleep, the other is to help sober him up. This is simply a biological phenomenon and not an illness or curse, so there isn’t any effective medicine that can treat it.”
“What should I do?”
“Look it up on the Internet,” Flora frostily stated. “Go seek help from acquaintances.” With this, she pushed open the door and walked out to the balcony.
“You’re leaving?” What the heck is that?! “You’re making me face him alone?”
“Don’t worry.” Flora nimbly jumped onto the border of the fence as she smirked, “Not like you’ll get pregnant either way.” She then flipped down into the darkness.
Fu Xing saw Leon’s expression that seemed to just be full of ellipses as it surveyed him with an empty smile. “It’s just me and you left. There are still four hours until sunrise, what do you want to do?”
Fu Xing’s lips twitched and he forced out a laugh. “Why don’t we count backwards?
Mr. Sun, hurry up and come out!
Meanwhile, as Flora and Fu Xing were feeling pressure because of Leon—
There was a faint disturbance coming from the female dorms in the middle of the night.
An unknown invader snuck into the room. After creating panic and chaos, it left a mess behind and disappeared instantly.
That day Leon got drunk, Fu Xing did not get any sleep the entire night. On the one hand, he had needed to prevent Leon from going out; on the other hand, he had also needed to prevent Leon from making a move on him while being unable to recognise even family members or distinction between genders.
With much difficulty, Fu Xing lasted until sunrise. Due to the darkblood’s instinct to avoid light, Leon obediently went back to his bed area to sleep. Poor Fu Xing got less than three hours of sleep before having to wake up for his first class: mathematics.
During class, a female classmate exclaimed in horror that a departed soul had snuck into her room last night. But no one believed her and assumed she had gotten retribution for someone she might have offended.
“It’s true, a massive shadow appeared in my room!” The fairy named Ruby solemnly vowed.
“You probably saw wrong?” Someone questioned.
“I didn’t!”
Fu Xing shot the female classmate an impatient look. After the night adventure the previous night, he was already numb to the topic of spectres. Now that the same subject had appeared again, he just felt fed up with it.
Leon had no memory of what had happened after getting drunk. Although the exhausted-to-death Fu Xing was annoyed, he inwardly rejoiced about the fact that Leon couldn’t remember those things, or else he might end up being killed to keep his mouth closed.
Once Thursday’s classes ended, Fu Xing returned to his room only to receive a notification from Aquarius. The following day, the first meeting for the intern reserve members would be held. Thus, after the last class on Friday finished, Fu Xing and Isaac headed together to the Aquarius headquarters in the main bailey.
The inside of the main bailey was quite gorgeous, though it was older in age than other buildings. The offices for the upper levels of the academy, important document records, and valuable objects were mostly all set up to be stored here. In addition, most of the major meetings related to special animate beings were held here.
The Aquarius headquarters were located on the second floor. When they opened the main door, they were met with a spacious conference room that had staircases on either side connecting to the meeting room and other offices.
By the time Fu Xing and Isaac had arrived, there were already a decent number of people sitting in the meeting room. Every person there had “elite” written all over their faces, their every movement giving off a high-class air.
Fu Xing and Isaac chose seats in the corner. Fu Xing scanned their surroundings and felt extremely out of place. When the other first year students saw them, they first showed confusion, then clear disdain, and finally ignored their existences entirely.
He did not like this type of feeling.
The waiting period was much too dull. Fu Xing could only start chatting to his sole companion.
“Um, where are you from, Isaac?”
“St. Petersburg.” Isaacs voice was deep and low, yet as faint as a mosquito. “I moved there from Hungary.”
“Ohhh.” His geography was horrible; he had no idea where those were. “Isaac, could it be that your physical condition is poor?”
Isaac was silent for a moment, then nodded.
“Oh, me too!” Now that he had finally found a common topic, Fu Xing grinned as he continued, “My past health condition was very bad and I had to frequently stay at the hospital, isolated from my typical classmates.”
Isaac paused, then quietly muttered, “For their sake, isolation is necessary.”
“Yeah.” It would be bad if the sickness was transmitted to people otherwise.
“Isolation brings fear, more isolation…”
“Ah?” Fu Xing had not heard Isaac’s self-mumbling, but his attention was drawn by a familiar figure walking through the door. “Flora!”
When Flora spotted Fu Xing, she gave an indifferent hum in reply. After scanning the area, she walked over to take a seat near Fu Xing.
“You’re an intern reserve member too?”
“That’s what I wanted to ask.” Flora crossed her arms over her chest and coldly inspected everyone in the meeting room. “Becoming an Aquarius member isn’t easy.”
She had put in a great amount of effort before the last semester had even started to secretly investigate her classmates’ backgrounds. Then, after much difficulty, she had finally been able to win over this position by using blackmail.
“Yeah…” Grod had not been wrong. It seemed that people from other classes truly did view entering Aquarius as a rare honour.
Flora noticed Isaac and asked out of curiosity, “This is?”
Isaac quietly stared at Flora with a blank face.
“Isaac Nyeva,” Fu Xing replied in his place.
“Darkblood?”
Yes.”
Flora shot Fu Xing a sideways look. “I wasn’t asking you.”
“But he didn’t answer you either.”
“Can he speak?” Flora sized up the tall figure. “Where’s his power switch?”
“He’s a real person!”
“Is that so.” Flora’s jade-green cat eyes remained fixed on Isaac’s face. Then her vision gradually lowered like a scanner to scrutinise him carefully.
Isaac let out a quiet mutter, his body shifting slightly.
“Um, you’re being a bit rude.” Isaac won’t get mad, will he?
Flora shifted her gaze away and nodded as she gave an inexplicable comment. “His aptitude isn’t bad.”
“What?” In what respect?
“Never mind.”
As people gradually arrived, the clamour around them rose. Every person carried excitement and self-confidence in their expressions. Amidst insincere conversations, they flaunted their own superiority while feigning indifference, calmly belittling others’ value.
Honestly speaking, this cream of the “elite” made for a nauseating atmosphere.
“Flora, why does everyone want to join Aquarius?”
“Most are trying to squeeze their way into the tight space for superficial reasons. Aquarius’s original members were from the royals and nobles of various races that simultaneously possessed status, influence, and wealth both among the realm of special animate beings and human society. Moreover, they carried many ancient spell and enchantment books that apparently can boost others’ abilities. If these people can become formal members, they can typically receive quite a few benefits from past seniors.” Flora chuckled. “Simply put, they just want to make connections.”
“Then what reason did Flora have to enter Aquarius?”
“A small part of it is for the influence. Upon becoming an Aquarius member, one can have many special privileges that most typical students do not have.” Flora snorted smugly, then opened her backpack to pull out a super thin cellphone with a high-resolution camera. “Of course, the bigger reason is out of personal interest.”
Before Fu Xing could ask anything, the noise in the room suddenly went silent.
A youth with long golden hair and a monocle on his face stepped into the room. Without batting an eyelid, Flora raised her hand to silently take a photo of the person’s looks.
So that’s what the personal interest was….
“Welcome, everyone. I am the vice-president, Shiran, a wind-type elf.”
Delicate facial features, including pale-blue eyes, along with the air of elegance his entire figure emanated, matched perfectly with the image of the “wind elves” from legends.
Fu Xing then thought of how Emerald was also a wind-type elf. Upon closer look, he discovered that Shiran and Emerald had some similarities between their appearances.
“It’s a wind-type elf!” The first-year student in front of Fu Xing excitedly murmured. “The most respected race among the elves!”
Most respected race?
The image of Emerald carrying his various-sized bags of merchandise to peddle appeared in his mind.
…Doesn’t seem like it.
If wind-type elves were a noble race, then why did Emerald appear to be from a deprived family?
Shiran continued to speak. “Aquarius is not only an important group in Shalom, but one of the influential organisations in the world of special animate beings as well. I’m sure that every person sitting here entered this place because of this realisation.”
Fu Xing and Flora exchanged glances, smiling at each other in tacit agreement. As if.
“Aside from assisting the academy’s student affairs, Aquarius will hold private activities outside of campus. Everyone is currently an intern reserve member and will only come into contact with school-related affairs. Through means of evaluations this semester, Aquarius will select suitable members amongst you. As a result,” Shiran smiled brightly. “Perform well.”
Shiran imparted some more information before introducing the important officers in the organisation. He then passed out some materials and dismissed the meeting.
“Weird, why didn’t we see the president?” Fu Xing asked inquisitively as they walked back towards the dorms.
“The president is someone that already graduated and isn’t on campus.”
“They already graduated, yet still act as president?”
“Yes. The situation has been like this since the fourth elections. It’s said that the president is an elf with very powerful abilities and influence – the greatest force supporting Aquarius – so the current students can at most become vice president. Aquarius graduates can also impact school affairs through the group.” Flora shrugged in annoyance. “They’re still running the whole ‘ruling from behind the curtains’ act even in this day and age.”
“The headmaster doesn’t mind?” During elementary school, even peddlers selling ice cream at the school entrance would have their heads shouted off by the principal.
“No. After all, up until now, Aquarius has contributed more than it has harmed. Currently, more than half of Shalom’s funds come from Aquarius graduates.” Flora stopped in her tracks and smirked mockingly. “We special animate beings are turning more and more human, huh.”
“Ah, yeah.” He did not know how to refute. “Flora dislikes humans?”
“Don’t really like them.”
“I see…” Fu Xing wore a dejected expression.
Despite not being human, he had lived eighteen years as one, so he could not help but feel crestfallen upon hearing humans be criticised.
“It’s not like I was talking about you, what are you so upset about?” Flora shot Fu Xing a strange look. “Besides, most jingguai don’t have any favourable impressions of humans. To be accurate, all special animate beings shouldn’t like humans.”
If it were not for the sake of survival, they would never want to understand humans, let alone enter the world that humans had defiled.
“Is that so…” Fu Xing quietly took a few steps, but a question suddenly popped into his mind. “But, it’s so weird.”
“What is?”
“If humans are so hated, then why does every single special animate being change into a human form?”
Beastmen and jingguai had turned into human forms through cultivation. Why did elves, darkbloods, and other races use human-like appearances their entire lives if they were not human?
“Flora also only changed into this form after cultivating for a long time, right?”
Flora froze, seemingly having not pondered this question before.
“Isn’t it painful to turn into the creature you hate?”
“Shut up!” Flora frowned and flew into a range from humiliation. She roared out, “Those are two different matters! What does an out-of-place, amateur jingguai like you understand?!”
Crap, I said something wrong again! “It was just a casual question, I didn’t have any particular meaning!” He seemed to be a genius at parading on others’ thunder, able to irritate others from just a simple chat.
“I’m truly very sorry! I apologise! I’m really absolutely no good – clumsy, stupid, moronic – and blindly said a bunch of brainless, offensive words. I’m so sorry…”
Based on his experience since he was young, the foolish him would always upset female classmates. However, he had later realised that if a female was irritated, regardless of whose fault it was, he had to first put the blame on himself, then enumerate his own shortcomings. The stronger words he used, the better. Typically, this would be able to incite the other person’s maternal instincts and then give rise to pity in their hearts, which would dispel the conflict and turn hostility into friendship.
Flora crossed her arms in front of her chest and coldly watched Fu Xing fumble to apologise. She then huffed in annoyance, “Indeed. It’s fine as long as you know, idiot!” She then quickened her own pace to head into the path towards the female dorms.
Fu Xing watched Flora from behind and let out a sigh.
Does this count as making up?
Women were already very difficult to comprehend; he had not expected for female jingguai to be incomprehensible in a different way.
Don’t tell me I’m doomed to have bad luck with the opposite gender for my entire life…
During the first few weeks of the semester, there were still many random matters that needed to be dealt with. By the time everything had finally stabilized, it was already February.
Fu Xing took some free time in the noon breaktime to head towards the gardens in the southern corner of campus. When he neared the lawns around the Forbidden Tower, he saw from a distance a familiar figure reading under a tree.
“Hey!”
Fu Xing happily bounded forwards. “Long time no see!”
“Long time no see.” Youny put his book down and smiled. “It’s already been nearly a month since school started, yet you’re only coming to find me now. What have you been busy with?”
“There were a few difficult things I had to handle.” Fu Xing sat down next to Youny and pulled out the cupcakes he had brought from the dining hall. “Do you want one? Chocolate or vanilla flavour?”
“No thanks.”
“Don’t worry, they’re free!”
Youny smiled thinly at Fu Xing. “You’re becoming more and more like your friend.”
“Eh!” Fu Xing was stunned. He was shocked to discover that his actions just now had been exact imitations of Rocort and Emerald. “Sorry.”
“No, it’s a good thing.” Youny reached out to take a cupcake. “You’ll gain a lot from interacting with them more.”
“Mhm.” He did not quite understand Youny’s words. However, he was used to this too.
Fu Xing liked chatting with Youny. He felt a particular intimacy with Youny, as if they were good friends that had known each other since a very long time ago.
Thinking of this, he suddenly recalled something else. “Oh right, Youny, which class are you? I previously went to the second year and third year classrooms, but I didn’t see you.”
Youny paused for a moment, then lifted his head to grin at Fu Xing. “Has anything interesting happened recently?”
Fu Xing stared at him blankly for a second. Then he quickly replied, “There has! A while ago, I held a hotpot party at my dorm! And we also went exploring in Sunset Forest! Plus, I was selected to be an Aquarius intern reserve member!”
“Really?” Youny chuckled as he took a bite of the cupcake. “Tell me more.”
“Oh, okay! One night a few weeks ago…”
Fu Xing excitedly told about everything interesting that had happened since the start of school, not sensing anything strange. The question he had originally brought up was erased without a trace.
“Sounds like these past days have been pretty packed for you.” Youny smiled as he licked off a crumb from his fingertip. “Sunset Forest is indeed not very safe. It’s best not to go there in the future.”
“Is that so.” Fu Xing scratched his head. “Speaking of which, I broke some things in Countess Kirst’s castle. I ripped her painting with a kick…I wonder if anything bad will happen?”
“There shouldn’t be.” Youny paused as he seemed to recall something. “However, I’m not certain. Perhaps some situation might occur?”
Oh…I nearly forgot that some things had indeed snuck in.
Although it was insignificant, it appeared that they had no intention of staying silent. Shalom would not be peaceful in the coming period.
However, that was none of his business.
“I see.” Fu Xing gulped. “I hope nothing goes wrong.” He hated those weird spirit things the most!
“Don’t worry, nothing will happen to Fu Xing.”
“You look quite happy. Did you enjoy your break?”
Youny’s mouth opened to form a wide smile. “I guess.”
Indeed, he had been very happy, and he was in a great mood. That was why he felt like leisurely observing the farce.
The annoying hypocrite was not here. This place, and even the entire northern hemisphere, was his territory.
Come and entertain me, Shalom! Give me something enjoyable while I am waiting in boredom!
The compulsory Special Ability Application course was a large class that the entire grade took simultaneously.
As usual, the students were all chatting with each other before the professors arrived. Rumours flew around everywhere to kill the time.
However, the atmosphere today was not quite the same. Everyone seemed to intentionally speak in lowered voices, filling the large classroom with a resounding buzz of murmurs. They wore expressions that were a complex mix of anxiousness and excitement.
“Is something the matter?” It felt as if something major had happened. Fu Xing quietly asked, “Is it about the school ceremony? Has it been confirmed to be held?”
“No. The news of the school ceremony hasn’t been announced yet. We’ll only know in April once the headmaster returns from the southern hemisphere’s campus.” Zhu Yue looked uneasy. “Some things happened in the female dorms last night.”
“Oh? What happened?”
Based on Zhu Yue’s expression, it couldn’t be an underwear thief, right? Or did some pervert sneak into the female baths? Ah! It sounds like I accidentally just insulted myself…
“I’m not too sure either…”
“A second-year snake spirit was ambushed in the public baths and was injured.” Emerald was using his iPhone as he casually explained, “It happened this morning at two. Currently, she’s still in the medical centre.”
Then, Emerald automatically began to explain the news he had heard.
2 AM.
With no classes arranged over the break, the instruction building area that took up a third of the campus was silent and empty. The buildings were filled with darkness, like a fish tank holding black ink.
The dark space was strange an eerie. However, to the couple, it was filled with warmth and was a secret lovers’ rendezvous.
The second-year snake spirit, Qing Lin, went on a date with her lover. She lost track of time and only reluctantly parted [with her lover] in the early morning. By the time she returned to the dorms, her roommate was already asleep. In order to not wake them up, she quietly took a change of clothes and headed towards the public baths on the first floor.
The baths were already closed, so only the shower rooms were open. Light reflected off the snow-white ceramic tiles and the blue stalls that were flawlessly clean.
A seductive figure casually pulled open the glass door to enter. After twisting open the faucet, a pillar of water rained down, making clear splashing sounds against the floor. The noise from the water echoed through the large space.
The sounds quieted and the door opened. Done with her shower, Qing Lin wrapped a towel around herself and walked out, about to head over to the lockers to don her clothes. Her footsteps were light as she casually hummed a song, thinking back to intense sweetness from having been with her lover.
Pop! The lights instantly went out. The dark shadows dyed the white space black.
Is that the manager?
“There is still someone here, please turn on the lights.”
All that responded was her own echo.
What the hell…Qing Lin walked forwards by feeling the walls. The snake race’s vision was poor, and she could not move quickly in the darkness. She could only try her best to determine her position with the faint moonlight coming through the vent.
Clatter. The sound of an object falling rang out from the side. It was not loud or soft, but it was extremely clear in the silent darkness.
“Who’s there?” Qing Lin advanced towards the noise. A moment later, she touched the doorknob.
Is the exit here? She gripped the knob and pushed forwards. What welcomed her was still endless darkness. The faint smell of sandalwood assailed her senses. This was the unique scent of the closed and open-air public baths. She was in the bathing area, not the exit.
Something is wrong.
“Who’s there?!” Qing Lin raised her guard and slowly entered. Her eyes transformed partially into her monster form, turning a firefly-yellow.
Thunk. A noise sounded out once again. It came from pretty much the same spot, near the drainhole for the baths.
“Come out!”
It was absolutely silent.
The unsettling atmosphere leaked into her consciousness bit by bit, eroding away her rationale and courage. Qing Lin stood in the darkness, nervously scanning the surrounding environment. However, all she saw were blurry outlines in the black space.
Who exactly is playing this prank? Don’t tell me it’s a stupid monster from Class E that’s purposely playing with me!
Thump! Thump!
“There!” Qing Lin shot a sharp blade formed from hardened snake venom in the direction of the sound’s source.
Quiet fell once more.
Qing Lin panted lightly and gazed in the direction of her attack.
Is it alright now?
No matter who it is, after taking my attack, they shouldn’t be able to—
Thump. The noise echoed again.
It was behind her.
Qing Lin looked back in shock, only to see two ghostly lights floating in mid-air behind her.
“Ah!” She immediately shot backwards in retreat, but tripped over a low platform and lost her centre of gravity, falling down.
Crash! The noise split the air. The ice-cold surface of the blade left a deep cut in her long and slim leg.
“Ugh…”
Scarlet blood spilled down through the cracks between the ceramic tiles, flowing towards the baths below, dying the bath water red.
After Emerald finished his tale, their surroundings feel into an abnormal silence.
“That’s it. Some rumours say it was trouble caused by a departed soul. Although most people are just scoffing at this, a portion also believe in it.”
It did sound rather bizarre. However, Fu Xing was more curious about something else.
“Why do you know about something that happened in the female dorms so well?” Fu Xing sniggered evilly. “I thought you were only interested in money.”
“That’s indeed true.” Emerald looked up and smiled. “Thanks to this incident, I’ve already sold five evil-warding necklaces.”
As expected…
“Using fierce souls to earn money…are you not afraid of them coming after you?”
“If they can help me earn money, they’re gods of fortune. Even if their identity is a departed soul.”
How amazing!
“Besides, how could there be fierce souls?” Emerald objected. “This is Shalom!”
“That’s true too.” No matter what, this place was the headquarters for monsters!
~Taffy Translations~ 