Ex-Girlfriend – Chapter 25

Volume 1: Breaking the Cage

Escape 25

Legal Hunting

Xin Lan seemed to have reached a dead end, why say “seemed”? Because that’s how it appeared on the surface.

            

A straight corridor where you could see to the end, with black doors on both sides.

The space was cramped and narrow, making one feel as if trapped inside something, unable to breathe.

When first encountering this predicament, she didn’t move, just waiting for the system’s response in her mind, though she felt it might be useless.

            

Ling Jiu lowered her head shamefully in the system space. In this world, her abilities were too limited, just like how a compass would malfunction during supernatural events, she once again failed to scan anything beyond this space.

Xin Lan showed little reaction to this, as expected.

She didn’t rashly open those doors, instead thoughtfully examining the walls.

            

Ling Jiu: Host, what are you thinking about?

The gravity disappeared from Xin Lan’s face as she regretfully touched the wall.

Xin Lan: If I had all my power, I would definitely break through the wall to get out.

            

But the mission world wouldn’t allow her to do something like breaking walls with one punch, unless she was in some power-based world.

How regrettable.

Ling Jiu fell silent, acknowledging this method was indeed too simple, brutal, and overly straightforward.

            

Though Xin Lan said she wouldn’t consider it, she still kicked the wall – using her foot, not hitting it with her hand.

But the moment she kicked it, she felt a familiar sensation, like the feeling of stepping on a human skin ghost in that punishment game.

When touching it with her hand earlier, it felt solid, but after kicking it several times, it felt like stepping on doll skin – slightly indented, yet not excessively soft.

            

Breaking through by kicking was impossible, so Xin Lan pulled out a folding knife from her pocket.

Meanwhile, Shen Shuiyan was in a standoff with Anna.

She held a razor blade threatening Anna’s head, while Anna’s body lay in a straight line not far away. Xu Deng stood beside her, her eyes vigilantly darting between the two.

            

Anna, threatened by Shen Shuiyan with both tongue-cutting and face-slashing, kept her mouth tightly shut.

“Let her out.”

Shen Shuiyan moved the blade closer to Anna’s lips, and Anna’s lips twitched slightly.

            

The next moment, her body lunged forward. Seeing this, Xu Deng knocked her aside, and both of them fell to the ground.

When Xu Deng looked at the headless body, she felt dizzy – seeing it up close was quite shocking.

She tried to get up, but the body moved faster, attempting to attack Shen Shuiyan again.

            

Seeing this, Xu Deng grabbed the body’s foot, getting dragged along for several steps, scraping across the ground for a few meters.

Enduring the pain, she picked up a razor blade and stabbed the body forcefully.

Anna’s body paused for a moment due to this action. Xu Deng seized this opportunity to counterattack, pinning the body beneath her, limbs entangled, preventing it from moving.

            

Anna glared in anger – her head was held captive, and her body was pinned down.

Although Anna couldn’t move, she could still control floating objects. The steel bars from the audience platform seats were pulled up and flew towards Shen Shuiyan, striking at the hand holding the knife.

Shen Shuiyan hurried to block it while still firmly gripping Anna’s hair with her other hand.

            

The knife blade was double-edged, and as Shen Shuiyan blocked, she didn’t release the blade, causing it to cut her hand. Bright red blood dripped down her palm.

Shen Shuiyan frowned but still didn’t let go, roughly shoving the knife tip into Anna’s mouth.

“If you don’t let her out now, I’ll really cut it, making you just like the real Anna – a thing that can’t speak.”

            

Shen Shuiyan couldn’t worry about anything else; Little Tiger was indeed formidable, but who knew where she was now? Her heart was racing with anxiety.

Anna mumbled something unintelligible. Shen Shuiyan barely understood her meaning and removed the blade from her mouth, pressing it against her cheek instead.

Shen Shuiyan waited for Anna’s next move, but suddenly Anna’s expression twisted as she let out a scream of agony.

            

She looked at Xu Deng, who looked back at her.

They exchanged glances, both expressions showing confusion.

Shen Shuiyan realized Anna’s screams weren’t related to Xu Deng. The head in her arms started struggling again, and Shen Shuiyan threw away the blade, needing all her strength to prevent the suddenly frenzied Anna’s head from flying away.

            

The body pinned under Xu Deng also kept moving, nearly throwing her off.

Anna’s agonized screams echoed around them, creating an extremely eerie and terrifying atmosphere.

Meanwhile, Xin Lan discovered something interesting inside the wall, so she wasn’t in a hurry to cut the wall anymore, instead turning her attention to those doors.

            

If she hadn’t guessed wrong, this place was actually Anna’s body, and each door might represent an organ.

Xin Lan was searching for the heart. After entering the liver and stomach, she finally found the heart’s location.

The room was filled with intersecting blood vessels, with a beating heart in the center.

            

In the middle of the heart was a doll with round eyes and a beautiful face – it was Anna, whom she’d been looking for.

Xin Lan opened her folding knife and cut through the blood vessels blocking her way.

Suddenly, there was a violent shake. Xin Lan steadied herself and continued cutting the vessels ahead.

            

Anna felt the pain and screamed, but something else terrified her more. She wanted to merge back together, which would give her full power, but these two people kept stopping her.

Hurry up and get out of her body!

Xin Lan felt the place shaking more violently, and a powerful suction force came from the doorway, trying to pull her away.

            

Xin Lan held onto nearby blood vessels to maintain her position, just ten centimeters away from the beating heart.

The previously cut vessels lay scattered nearby without any blood, like damaged pipes. Xin Lan’s other hand continued cutting the vessels surrounding Anna’s heart while resisting the suction from outside.

The Anna outside probably didn’t know the ancient saying: “Inviting spirits is easy, sending them away is difficult” (meaning it’s easier to start something than to end it).

            

After about a minute, Xin Lan got hold of the doll, and simultaneously, she was involuntarily ejected from this place.

In that moment of ejection, she wondered how Shen Shuiyan was doing.

Outside, Shen Shuiyan watched the head in her hands transform, startled at first but quickly realizing this change couldn’t be random – it must be the work of Little Tiger who had disappeared somewhere.

            

The head in her hands gradually lost its original beauty, the skin turning blackish-blue. Its eyes became thin and long, lips darkened, looking somewhat like a mutated animal.

Its features changed instantly, and Shen Shuiyan instinctively knew holding onto it would no longer serve as a threat.

The head let out a piercing cry, and a long, thin tongue extended from its dark lips, trying to lick Shen Shuiyan, who immediately threw it away.

            

“Xu Deng, get up!”

Xu Deng quickly scrambled up, no longer pinning down the now-transformed body.

What was once a wheat-colored female body had turned blackish-blue like the head, with strange appendages growing from it, looking ugly and bizarre.

            

This must be the terrifying monster that the dolls spoke of.

When Xin Lan was ejected, she felt dizzy. Seeing her sudden appearance, Shen Shuiyan quickly went to support her.

In Xin Lan’s hands was Anna, covered in red bloodstains, her round eyes open, mouth agape but unable to make a sound.

            

She looked extremely gray and decayed. Although she was an inanimate object, she shouldn’t appear so lifeless.

The moment the monster’s head and body were freed from Shen Shuiyan and Xu Deng, they merged together.

She was about 1.8 meters tall, while Xin Lan was only 1.76 meters, standing vigilantly at a distance watching her.

            

“Give it to me.”

The monster’s voice hadn’t changed much – still that female rocker’s voice, just deeper and more hoarse.

“You two get out first.”

            

Xin Lan had no time for chitchat, signaling her two teammates to leave.

Shen Shuiyan hesitated for a moment, exchanged a glance with Xin Lan, clenched her fists, and grabbed Xin Lan’s clothes from the seat before leaving through the light point. Xu Deng followed closely behind her.

The monster ignored them, its thin long eyes fixed on Xin Lan, or rather, on Anna in Xin Lan’s hands.

            

When Xin Lan tried to move toward the light point, the place suddenly began to shake violently.

“Give it to me!”

As the monster approached step by step, Xin Lan held up the doll and waved it – an action that was nothing short of provocative. The monster lunged forward suddenly.

            

Xin Lan dodged by bending down, and when the monster’s claws came at her, she unhesitatingly used the doll as a shield, holding it in front of her. Seeing this, the monster quickly withdrew its claws.

Anna in front seemed shocked, wooden-faced with tears streaming down.

Xin Lan felt wetness on her fingers and found it quite fascinating – though since dolls could talk, tears weren’t that surprising.

            

“You scared it!”

The monster stopped, looking at Anna with greedy, yearning eyes while reproaching Xin Lan.

Xin Lan found the monster’s behavior amusing as she wiped away the doll’s tears.

            

“Anna, why won’t you stay with me? I’ll keep you company, we can sing and dance and be big stars together. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? You’re so beautiful, and I sing so well.”

The monster was no longer frenzied, instead speaking rather ingratiatingly to Anna in Xin Lan’s hands.

But she didn’t know that Anna’s fate wasn’t up to Anna herself, but rather up to Xin Lan.

            

“Anna was always bullied but could only cry, Anna was beautiful so others were jealous, Anna’s voice was ruined by everyone, everyone said Anna was a bad child who needed punishment, Anna wanted to escape and one day succeeded, where did it go, where did it go, it’s in my heart.”

The monster sang this song, looking at little Anna with pitying eyes.

“Weren’t you one of those who bullied it? You imprisoned its freedom and stole its appearance.”

            

Xin Lan had no intention of reasoning, just using this to distract the monster.

For Anna, both sides were hell – being a doll yet forced to live like a human.

Xin Lan wasn’t listening to what the monster was saying, as she kept backing away while picking up something random.

            

“Never mind, I just came in to check on Anna. I think you’re right – rather than letting Anna be bullied over there, it’s better to stay with you. Here, take it.”

After speaking, Xin Lan threw what she was holding in another direction.

The monster pounced toward it, realized it was just a lamp decoration, and quickly reacted, but Xin Lan was faster, having already touched the light point and left.

            

Though Xin Lan enjoyed fighting, she knew when to pick her battles. This clearly wasn’t the time for a fight; it was better to leave quickly.

After Xin Lan came out, those originally lifeless dolls suddenly seemed to ‘come alive.’

“The bad child is back!”

            

“It wasn’t eaten by the monster!”

“Punish it, punish it!”

“Gouge out its eyes!”

            

The dolls spoke one after another in innocent childlike voices, but their words carried obvious malice.

“Anna always says no but loves to cry, Anna is pretty but loves to be jealous, Anna’s round eyes we want to gouge out, we’re so happy Anna can’t speak anymore, Anna cried about leaving and one day disappeared, where did it go, where did it go, bad child Anna is back.”

The dolls spoke in unison, identical smiles revealing something sinister, their pure clean voices full of malice.

            

Anna cried again, tears falling one by one onto Xin Lan’s hand.

Shen Shuiyan looked at its eye sockets, thinking that if Anna could speak, it must have so much to say.

“You should come out now, we’ve found Anna.”

            

Xin Lan spoke to the air, looking at the hourglass that hadn’t finished draining.

Anna was lifted by some unknown force, and Xin Lan released her grip, watching as Anna floated in mid-air.

Anna remained silent, though her tears had stopped flowing.

            

“I never knew my little Anna was bullied so terribly.”

When that voice rang through the air, all dolls seemed to be choked, unable to make a sound.

Anna’s tear stains were wiped away by invisible hands, while all the dolls trembled in terror.

            

“Twenty clue fragments for you all, congratulations on completing the game.”

When the voice disappeared, Xin Lan and the others reappeared on the stairs.

“Finally back.”

            

Xu Deng looked at the school corridor, suddenly feeling a deep sense of familiarity.

Shen Shuiyan also breathed a sigh of relief; after everything that had happened, the campus seemed more appealing than ever.

Xin Lan felt her pocket and found a small bag. She took it out to find it filled with fragments.

            

“Can we leave soon?”

Xu Deng’s eyes shone with anticipation.

“Soon, tomorrow or the day after at the latest.”

            

Xin Lan put the small bag back in her pocket as she spoke.

“Let’s go back to the dormitory.”

After speaking, Xin Lan instinctively reached for Shen Shuiyan’s hand, but noticed her hand flinch and something felt wrong with her palm.

            

“What happened to your hand?”

Xin Lan frowned, released her grip, and held Shen Shuiyan’s wrist, spreading her palm under the light to reveal a long wound across her palm.

“It’s nothing, just accidentally cut myself earlier.”

            

Shen Shuiyan shook her head – Little Tiger had managed to escape on her own, and she hadn’t been much help at all.

Under the dim light, a trace of complexity flashed through Shen Shuiyan’s eyes. As she allowed Xin Lan to examine her palm with concern, she felt an unexpected pleasure.

“Was it that monster who did this? If I’d known she hurt you, I would have kicked her a couple times before leaving.”

            

Xin Lan said seriously, feeling like she’d missed an opportunity.

Shen Shuiyan was amused by her words, gently patting Xin Lan’s hand that held her wrist.

“Let’s go back.”

            

Xu Deng had long grown accustomed to this dynamic – a trio when there was trouble, a duo when there wasn’t – and followed behind as Xin Lan left.

After bringing Shen Shuiyan back to the dormitory, Xin Lan asked Ling Jiu to look for medicine that could prevent infection.

They actually found some in Xiao Chun’s drawer – a Yunnan Baiyao spray (a traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) formula used for wound healing, as a pain reliever, and to stop bleeding).

            

Come to think of it, they hadn’t seen Xiao Chun all day.

Perhaps something had happened to her.

Shen Shuiyan obediently extended her hand, letting Xin Lan apply the medicine.

            

When the spray touched her wound, she couldn’t help but furrow her brows, but made no sound, watching the girl whose eyes were focused intently under the light.

She’s really gentle, Shen Shuiyan thought.

That gentleness lay hidden beneath her fierce and beautiful exterior, rarely glimpsed unless she allowed it.

            

Though roses have thorns, when held in one’s palm, their petals are dewy and gorgeous, soft and fragrant.

Comparing Xin Lan to a rose might not capture even a thousandth of her outward beauty, nor describe her dangerous allure.

Roses are brilliant but also delicate, tempting people to pick them, but Xin Lan wasn’t like that.

            

She was the ruler of the forest, every movement carrying unhurried elegance and composure. When she revealed her presence, some would cower in fear.

She would extend her claws and bare her sharp teeth, so no one would imagine how adorably she might react when someone gently scratched under this fierce beast’s chin.

Shen Shuiyan was fortunate enough to experience her gentleness, watching Xin Lan under the white light, her eyes as deep as a bottomless lake.

            

After Xin Lan finished spraying medicine on Shen Shuiyan’s hand, she looked up to find Shen Shuiyan lost in thought, staring at her.

“Come back to earth.”

Xin Lan waved her hand.

            

Shen Shuiyan blinked, returning to her usual demeanor.

“What were you thinking about just now, so lost in thought?”

“Just spacing out.”

            

“Should we go out now?”

There were still three hours until midnight, plenty of time.

“I’ll go with Xu Deng, you wait here and lock the door.”

            

Xin Lan was thinking about Shen Shuiyan’s injured hand, which would make it inconvenient to help.

Hearing this, Shen Shuiyan’s previously bright mood instantly darkened.

She had just been thinking that being injured wasn’t so bad since it made Little Tiger worry about her, but the next moment she became a burden.

            

Shen Shuiyan understood the priorities of the situation, and though she wanted to go along, she nodded obediently.

Xin Lan took out all the fragments from her pocket and placed them in front of Shen Shuiyan.

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll run away with all your assets?”

            

Shen Shuiyan joked.

“These belong partly to you all anyway, and besides, you’re my person now – even if you wanted to run, where could you go?”

Xin Lan lifted her chin, not seeing the light in Shen Shuiyan’s eyes as she turned away.

            

Shen Shuiyan’s heart skipped a beat at hearing “my person,” and her previously dampened mood instantly brightened.

Xu Deng pushed up her glasses, feeling something odd about the atmosphere.

In the system space, Ling Jiu rubbed her cowlick, also sensing something wasn’t quite right.

            

Xin Lan closed the door, Shen Shuiyan locked it, staring ahead as if in a daze.

Outside, Xin Lan walked ahead while Xu Deng didn’t stand beside her but followed behind. Xin Lan seemed to move with her own background music, walking with such presence that Xu Deng felt safer following behind rather than beside her.

Today was different from yesterday. Yesterday was chaos, but today everyone had quieted down, doors tightly shut.

            

As Xin Lan walked down the corridor, doors were either wide open with no one inside or tightly closed. She tried pushing one but it wouldn’t budge.

“Is everyone hiding because there are too few people left?”

Xu Deng speculated, remembering how pitifully few people were in the cafeteria during lunch today.

            

At that time, there were only about fifty people in the cafeteria, excluding those she hadn’t seen.

Split between males and females, spread across five floors.

There should have been more people originally, but during afternoon PE class, the required twelve deaths per class, across ten classes, meant one hundred and twenty people died this afternoon.

            

Except for the first two people, everyone else was killed by their classmates.

Xu Deng suddenly felt chills down her spine; this wasn’t something to think about too deeply – the more you thought about it, the more terrifying it became.

“They won’t all hide.”

            

Xin Lan said with absolute certainty.

Prey would hide, but hunters wouldn’t.

There must be others like her, prowling through the campus, waiting to hunt.

            

And Xin Lan wasn’t afraid of being attacked by a group – everyone was scattered like loose sand (disorganized and lacking unity), all suspicious of each other.

Suddenly, something occurred to Xin Lan, and she turned back.

She came to the dormitory next to hers, and Xu Deng immediately remembered the bloodbath she’d seen that day, along with the bodies lying on the ground.

            

There must be some fierce characters inside, Xu Deng’s heart tightened slightly, but seeing Xin Lan, she relaxed again.

Xin Lan tried pushing the door – good, it wouldn’t open.

Ling Jiu: Two life forms.

            

Xin Lan knocked twice, very politely.

Unless necessary, Xin Lan usually followed the principle of courtesy before force.

When no one answered, she knocked twice more.

            

Alright, courtesy was done, time for force.

Xin Lan stepped back a few paces and began methodically kicking the door.

With a loud bang, Xu Deng instinctively flinched.

            

The door lock loosened a bit, and Xin Lan examined the lock’s condition before continuing to kick.

The dormitory doors weren’t of high quality, being wooden, which made it easier for Xin Lan to kick them in. If it had been an iron door, she would have chosen to climb the balcony for a surprise attack instead.

The door was kicked open, revealing two girls inside.

            

Xin Lan remembered their appearances – the one holding the knife that day was a short girl, and the one she was protecting, whose face couldn’t be seen clearly then, must be the one standing beside her now.

The short girl was nervous; though her knife-holding hand appeared steady, Xin Lan could sense it trembling slightly.

Was she afraid? Perhaps.

            

Xin Lan approached, and the knife-wielding girl waved her blade in the air a few times.

“Don’t come closer, or I’ll attack.”

Xin Lan stopped, and the girl slightly relaxed, but the next moment her eyes widened as pain shot through her wrist, the knife kicked away.

            

Xin Lan had executed a cool spinning kick in those few seconds, then retracted her foot.

Xu Deng quickly picked up the knife, holding it while standing sideways, watching both inside and outside the door.

The shorter girl, seeing her weapon gone, felt her heart tighten, but appeared more composed.

            

The slightly taller, delicate-looking girl beside her had maintained a cold expression throughout. They held hands tightly, appearing to be very close.

“You know why I’m here. Hand them over.”

Xin Lan flexed her wrist, remembering several people had fallen here – these two girls must have collected quite a few.

            

Xin Lan’s meaning was clear: give them up or they’d be taken by force. Her hands were already loosening up, ready to fight at any moment.

Xu Deng stood behind with the knife, making a few gestures too. Though she looked somewhat comical with her broken glasses, her stern expression was still intimidating.

“Why should we give them to you? Do you think we’re easy to bully?” the short girl said, appearing fierce, but then her expression crumbled, revealing a rather friendly smile. “But everything’s negotiable. How about teaming up? Your team probably isn’t full yet. We’re all classmates with no past grievances, why not leave together?”

            

This classmate performed the ultimate face-changing act and sudden cowardice, very cleverly starting to negotiate.

The girl beside her gave her a helpless look, and her expression toward Xin Lan also carried a hint of pleading.

“How many do you have?”

            

“Six.”

Xin Lan rubbed her chin, nodding.

“Alright, fine, but once you’re my teammates, don’t try any tricks. Even if you swallow the clue fragments, I’ll cut open your stomach to get them out.”

            

Xin Lan spoke with a warm smile, while delivering her merciless threat.

“I’m Qi Xiao, and she’s Zhou Chun.”

“Xin Lan, Xu Deng.”

            

Xin Lan pointed to herself, then to Xu Deng.

Thus, they were acquainted and teamed up.

Though they were teammates, Qi Xiao and her friend maintained a certain distance while following behind Xin Lan.

            

Xu Deng walked alongside them, observing the two from the corner of her eye.

She shared a life-and-death bond with Xin Lan and Shen Shuiyan, having survived the death stairs and doll house together, so she took it upon herself to watch the newcomers.

With Ling Jiu’s scanning ability, Xin Lan could accurately identify which rooms were occupied and which weren’t.

            

She had the others try doors while she headed straight for places where people were definitely present.

That night, Xin Lan kicked down dozens of doors, collecting many spoils.

Her actions were swift and decisive, without any hesitation.

            

Xu Deng, Qi Xiao, and Zhou Chun initially wanted to help, but after watching Xin Lan kick one person flying, knock another unconscious with a desk lamp, and brutally slam a third against a cabinet with a shoulder throw – all within one minute – they quietly backed off.

Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun had planned to be wary of Xin Lan, fearing she might take their fragments and kill or abandon them, since their classmates had all gone crazy. But after witnessing her combat ability, they decided to be sensible.

Just the two of them, without weapons, probably wouldn’t be enough for Xin Lan to even break a sweat.

            

Xin Lan had excellent stamina, and since most girls were physically weak, and she picked them off one by one, she quickly swept through the girls’ dormitory, collecting fragments from everyone.

Xin Lan wasn’t deranged enough to kill the girls, just knocked them unconscious with enough force to keep them out for a day, then had Xu Deng and the others tie them up with ropes, belts, and whatever they could find, securing them with tight knots and gagging them with cloth to prevent screaming when they woke up – essentially creating a kidnapping scene.

Even though Xin Lan’s team worked quickly, this still took an hour.

            

When Xin Lan returned to the dormitory, Shen Shuiyan noticed the two people following behind Xu Deng, narrowed her eyes, and searched through her memories.

“Teammates.”

Xin Lan said simply.

            

Shen Shuiyan nodded, and after confirming Xin Lan was unharmed, gave Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun a faint smile.

Xin Lan sat in the chair, crossing her legs.

Shen Shuiyan handed her water, which Xin Lan drank heartily with several gulps, then let out a sigh of relief.

            

“Big harvest.”

Xin Lan said with smiling eyes, pulling all the spoils from her pocket to show Shen Shuiyan, the sheer quantity leading to Shen Shuiyan’s speculation.

“Everyone in this dormitory building?”

            

“Yes.”

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Feet hurt.”

            

Xin Lan thought for a moment, wiggling her feet.

“What’s wrong, are you injured?”

Shen Shuiyan immediately became worried.

            

“From kicking doors,” Xin Lan withdrew her extended foot, “Good thing they were wooden doors, otherwise they’d have been much harder to kick down.”

Seeing Little Tiger’s grumbling expression, Shen Shuiyan felt both amused and helpless.

“Are they always like this?”

            

Qi Xiao whispered to Xu Deng beside her.

Xu Deng nodded, calmly pushing up her sliding glasses.

“You’ll get used to it.”

            

This atmosphere of being lost in their own world, talking as if no one else existed – you just get used to it.

A trio for serious matters – no, now a quintet – but a duo when nothing’s happening.

She often felt out of place.

            

Xu Deng was briefly happy to have teammates to feel out of place with, but she quickly realized these two were also inseparable like conjoined twins.

What should have been double the joy became just one person’s loneliness.

Xin Lan took off her sweater, revealing a white undershirt beneath, and shook out her collar.

            

“Hot?”

“Yes, sweated a lot. Planning to take a shower and get a good sleep. Are you going?”

“Yes.”

            

Of course she would.

Shen Shuiyan felt she’d been running around all day too. Though she wasn’t sweating now, she felt sticky, and more importantly, since Xin Lan was going to get clean and fresh, how could she lie in the same bed feeling dirty? She wouldn’t even dare to put her hands on Xin Lan at night that way.

Xin Lan didn’t ask if others wanted to go, just mentioned she’d temporarily dealt with everyone in the building, though she couldn’t be sure if others would come in later. Anyone who wanted to shower could.

            

The remaining three teammates all planned to shower – being girls who valued cleanliness, few would miss the chance to bathe.

Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun returned to their next-door room to get their things. Xu Deng had already brought some undergarments, and since it was winter, outer clothes didn’t need changing. She didn’t want to return to her original dormitory alone – though those people might be unconscious, just thinking about that scene made her scalp tingle with fear.

Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun naturally entered one bathroom together, Xu Deng took the one next to them, Xin Lan was already in the first one, and Shen Shuiyan was beside her.

            

Though she wanted to shower together, there was no good excuse. If it were dangerous, she could claim it was safer to bathe together, but under these circumstances, she couldn’t bring herself to squeeze in – Xin Lan would probably give her a strange look.

Xin Lan showered and washed her hair quickly, half-dried her hair with a hairdryer, but didn’t leave, instead leaning against the wall waiting for her teammates.

Though everyone felt safe going in together, standing alone blow-drying hair without hearing what’s happening behind might be scary.

            

Shen Shuiyan came out second, seeing Xin Lan leaning there waiting, and smiled.

What to do? This kind of gentle reliability felt so comforting that she wanted to vigorously ruffle Little Tiger’s head and bury her face in it for a deep inhale.

Shen Shuiyan could only dare to think about it – now wasn’t the right time.

            

She thought, perhaps after they got out and became more familiar with each other, she could make such intimate gestures.

After all four girls finished, the five of them returned to the dormitory like a group of schoolchildren and locked the door.

Xin Lan and Shen Shuiyan shared one bed, Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun another, while Xu Deng silently climbed into bed alone, shivering slightly from the winter cold.

            

The bell rang, announcing the end of a hunt.

By then, Xin Lan was already sleeping sweetly, and Shen Shuiyan, after staying awake briefly, hugged Xin Lan and drifted into sweet dreams.

This game, though cruel, was gentle to players in certain ways – at least it allowed them to sleep well and avoid the torment of hunger.

            

Perhaps this was the “student” benefit.

The next morning, Shen Shuiyan’s alarm rang. She reached out to swipe it off, rubbed her eyes, and yawned.

She gazed at Xin Lan’s sleeping face just inches away, thinking her skin looked so good it must feel wonderful to touch.

            

Though she had hugged her waist before, she’d never touched her face. When awake, there was no good excuse, and while sleeping, she didn’t dare, fearing Xin Lan would wake up angry.

Xin Lan opened her eyes, finding herself very close to Shen Shuiyan.

She got up naturally, casually smoothing her messy long hair, and stepped over Shen Shuiyan to get out of bed.

            

Shen Shuiyan caught her fragrant scent as she passed, feeling momentarily dazed.

While putting on clothes in bed, she happened to glance over and saw Qi Xiao kiss Zhou Chun’s cheek, the two childishly starting to pinch each other’s faces, appearing very close.

Shen Shuiyan felt a moment of envy – she also wanted to kiss Xin Lan’s face and pinch cheeks with her.

            

Xin Lan, busy putting on clothes and shoes, was unaware of her companion’s inner thoughts. After washing up, she waited for everyone to go to breakfast together.

The dormitory building was almost deathly quiet, with some still unconscious in their rooms, and others perhaps awake but struggling with their bound hands and gagged mouths.

They began discussing, and Shen Shuiyan took out all the clue fragments, counting them one by one – there were over eighty, and with Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun’s pieces, over ninety.

            

Qi Xiao and Zhou Chun quietly watched them piece the puzzle together, thinking they’d struck gold with this deal.

Qi Xiao made faces at Zhou Chun, indicating how clever her actions were yesterday. Zhou Chun smiled and nodded, pinching Qi Xiao’s nose tip. The two acted incredibly intimate, and since they weren’t needed for the puzzle and knew they could leave, their faces showed relief and joy.

Xu Deng, who watched the whole process, and Shen Shuiyan, who occasionally looked up, suddenly felt their stomachs twist – there was something oddly cloying about the scene.

            

Shen Shuiyan felt something was off, but couldn’t quite place it, so she returned to seriously piecing the puzzle together with Xin Lan.

If Xin Lan had looked up, she would have understood the scene immediately.

A typical sweet moment between two Betas or a Beta and an Omega.

            

The eighty-plus fragments formed a map.

Some parts were incomplete, but it didn’t hinder understanding.

“Can we leave now?”

            

Qi Xiao asked excitedly, but Xin Lan and Shen Shuiyan exchanged a glance.

They still had unfinished business.

Xu Deng, knowing their plans, fell silent. Though she desperately wanted to leave immediately, she hadn’t forgotten who had helped them succeed so far.

            

“I’ll go, I’ll be back quickly.”

Shen Shuiyan planned to give Zou Yunfei hope, then let him wait there, only to discover they’d already left, leaving him to wait hopelessly for death.

“I’ll go with you. Let’s deal with him now.”

            

Xin Lan felt that a slap in the face hurts more in person (direct confrontation is more impactful) – better to let Zou Yunfei face reality sooner rather than later.

They left immediately, telling the others to wait at the bottom of the teaching building.

Qi Xiao wanted to ask why, but Zhou Chun pulled her sleeve, so she stayed quiet, obediently waiting below with Xu Deng.

            

Zou Yunfei sat in the classroom, his face bearing several wounds and his body significantly injured from last night’s hunting battles.

Last night, though he couldn’t kill his two attackers, they hadn’t fared well either. He’d spent the latter half of the night locked behind doors, giving himself breathing room.

Someone softly called his name at the door – it was Shen Shuiyan.

            

Shen Shuiyan waved to him, looking somewhat anxious.

Zou Yunfei hurried out, asking what was wrong.

“Xin Lan collected many fragments and found the way out.”

            

“What?”

Zou Yunfei was shocked.

“I told her I had terrible stomach pains and needed the bathroom, then snuck here to tell you. I’ll take you now, we need to leave before Xin Lan.”

            

“Good!”

Zou Yunfei was overwhelmed with gratitude, quickly agreeing to follow behind Shen Shuiyan.

But at the stairs, they saw Xin Lan standing with crossed arms, wearing an ambiguous smile.

            

Zou Yunfei froze, involuntarily shuddering.

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LP: Re-translated on November 25, 2024

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