The image came into focus.
When he opened his eyes again, Lin Du saw the bright chandelier above him.
The previously blurry light slowly stabilized in his vision, sharpening into clarity.
With a faint warmth radiating through it. Whatever he was resting his head on was soft, something like cotton, and yet—
“What am I…?”
His arms wouldn’t obey him. They felt too heavy to lift. Lin Du blinked, trying to raise a hand to rub his temples, but his arms refused to cooperate.
“Oh, you’re awake.”
A face leaned over from above, blocking the chandelier’s glow.
Silver-white hair cascaded down, the ends brushing against his forehead. Bai Li looked down at him, her azure eyes like starlight, shimmering under the lamp.
She was close—close enough that he could feel the warmth of her breath against his face.
Lin Du instinctively averted his gaze, propping himself up on his elbows to sit, his head shifting against that softness beneath him.
“Mmm…”
Bai Li let out a soft hum, her thigh trembling slightly.
Only then did Lin Du realize—he was resting on her lap.
The black skirt was spread smooth beside his cheek, lace trimming brushing against his ear, the warmth of her thigh reaching him through the thin fabric, soft as clouds.
The tips of his ears flushed red, but he didn’t sit up right away.
“How did I… end up lying on your lap?”
Her hand.
Black lines seemed to appear above Bai Li’s head as she pointed at his hand.
“Take a look at your hand, why don’t you?”
Something fluffy.
It seemed to greet him. Lin Du looked down and noticed his arm was wrapped around a mass of silvery-white fox tail, its tip twitching gently, as if waving hello.
“Sorry…”
Lin Du let go as if electrocuted. The tail swayed in the air for a moment before quickly retreating behind Bai Li, disappearing beneath her skirt.
“I worked so hard to drag you onto the sofa. You were standing at the door, then suddenly your nose started bleeding and you passed out.”
Bai Li sighed and shook her head.
“I was about to leave when you suddenly grabbed my tail. I didn’t even have time to react.”
She gestured with her hands as she spoke.
“Just like that—smack. It was so fast.”
Lin Du touched his nose. It was stuffed with napkins, the edges soaked through with dried blood, stiff to the touch.
He pressed gently, confirming no fresh blood was coming out, and let out a relieved breath.
“I had no choice but to sit back down.”
Bai Li pinched Lin Du’s ear.
“And then you, this guy, just naturally leaned right into me. So many moves! I thought you were being hostile!”
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”
Lin Du apologized immediately, and only then did Bai Li release his ear, lifting her leg to nudge the back of his head.
“How much longer are you going to lie there? Keep it up and I’ll start charging!”
Lin Du sat up reluctantly, shifting his position.
A faint, lingering sense of disappointment crept up from the back of his neck. He began to wonder if he should pay a little to lie back down.
No, wait—that would make him a pervert.
Lin Du shook his head, then glanced over the girl beside him.
A black maid outfit with white accents, silvery-white long hair draped over her shoulders, fox ears trembling slightly behind her headband.
“Why are you wearing that?”
Lin Du asked.
“What’s wrong? Didn’t you buy it? If I don’t wear it, are you going to?”
Bai Li tilted her head, her tone unapologetically confident.
Lin Du ran through his memory—this was the outfit Xiao Yu had strongly recommended when they went to the shopping mall.
“I did buy it…”
At the time, she had been waving the hanger in front of his face, muttering things like “This one really suits her, nya” and “Trust me, just have her try it on, nya.”
He’d glanced at the price—not expensive, and the size seemed right—so he bought it, not even looking carefully at the style when he checked out.
Now that he looked at it, she did look cute wearing it.
Actually, she looked cute in everything.
“I was actually planning to work part-time at the cat cafe where Xiao Yu works.”
Bai Li rolled her eyes, tapping her chin with a finger.
“I was just practicing my customer-service lines earlier.”
She paused.
“I originally just wanted to lend a hand and work for free, so Xiao Yu could take time off to rehearse. But the boss lady turned out to be really nice—she’s paying me casual-worker rates, and meals are included!”
When she said “meals included,” her eyes lit up.
“That’s a cat cafe, not a maid cafe…”
Lin Du frowned.
“They’re not going to be saying… ‘Master’ or anything.”
“Oh—”
Bai Li froze for a moment. She’d watched too much anime in her previous life—the moment she saw the word “cafe,” her mind automatically conjured images of beautiful maids calling customers “Master.”
“Besides, Xiao Yu really doesn’t have time. Why don’t you ask some classmates to help out?”
Lin Du added another comment.
“No, no,”
Bai Li shook her head.
“Xiao Yu hasn’t been feeling well lately—she keeps taking sick leave. And I’m not close with anyone else.”
She lowered her head, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.
“Besides, everyone seems pretty resistant to performing on stage. I don’t want to put them out.”
“…Up to you, then.”
Lin Du nodded, stood up from the sofa, and pulled the two wads of napkin from his nose, tossing them into the trash.
He paused, lowering his voice a little.
“If Xiao Yu comes, she won’t need much makeup, so that’s good. And don’t wear that outfit outside—the cat cafe should have employee uniforms, right?”
Perhaps it was some strange possessiveness at work, but Lin Du’s tone came out unexpectedly firm.
It wasn’t until the second half of his sentence left his mouth that he realized his words didn’t sound like a suggestion—more like an order.
“I think there is… probably…”
Bai Li shrank her neck slightly, feeling oddly guilty for no clear reason.
Lin Du’s gaze was intense, as if it could burn her. She instinctively leaned back.
“I understand. I won’t wear it outside.”
She nodded, responding obediently.
“Mm. I’ll go make dinner.”
Lin Du nodded, his calm demeanor restored.
He turned, about to head toward the kitchen.
“Hey—um—”
Bai Li hopped off the sofa, bare feet padding across the floor as she hurried after him, tugging at the hem of his shirt.
“What’s wrong?”
Lin Du stopped and turned his head.
“Is your body okay?”
Bai Li looked up at his pale profile.
“You’ve seemed off all day. Your voice sounds weak when you talk, and you walk like you’re floating.”
“I feel a lot better.”
Lin Du lowered his head.
“Don’t worry about me.”
“How about you don’t cook tonight? Let’s order takeout?”
Bai Li held up her phone—the delivery app was already open on the screen.
“Haven’t you been overworking yourself lately? Don’t push it. Just pick whatever you want to eat and we’ll order it.”
Lin Du looked at the colorful food images on her phone screen, was silent for a moment, then nodded.
“…Porridge, then.”
“Got it.”
Bai Li tapped a few times on her screen, then looked up to find Lin Du still standing there, staring blankly toward the kitchen.
She walked over and gently pushed his back.
“Go rest on the sofa for a while longer. I’ll call you when the delivery gets here.”
She guided him to the sofa, and he sat down, sinking into the cushions.
The two of them sat at opposite ends of the sofa, a single cushion’s distance between them.
Bai Li smoothed her skirt and tucked it beneath her thighs.
After a long while, Bai Li broke the silence.
“Hey… the boss you’re stuck on—is it still Chi Yu’s game boss?”
Lin Du nodded.
“Yeah. He’s actually the dragon on the distant mountain. I… can’t beat him.”
“Is it because you don’t have a weapon?”
Bai Li turned her head, her gaze landing on the schoolbag beside the TV cabinet.
The bag was open at the seam, a golden sword hilt peeking out from the gap.
“Do you… know how to use a sword?”
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.