Chapter 29: The Collar

“Thousands upon thousands!”

“Without a single mistake,” Serafica blurted out.

“Lost and regained!”

“Uniquely favored by heaven.”

“Hmm… I’m not playing anymore. You must be cheating with your authority.”

“Hey hey, wasn’t it you who wanted to play idiom chain?”

“I didn’t tell you to cheat,” Su Wanyue argued.

Just then, the door opened again.

Chitian Ai walked in carrying a bowl of porridge.

“Teacher, time to eat~”

Porridge, huh. Ai did prefer light food.

Su Wanyue remembered that when she had just rescued Chitian Ai, although the girl wasn’t picky, she clearly had little interest in heavy flavors and preferred the taste of the ingredients themselves.

Back then, cooking for Ai was one of the few moments in her cold and cruel life as a hunter where she could truly feel warmth.

While Chitian Ai was feeding Su Wanyue, Su Wanyue keenly caught a flicker of abnormality in the depths of her eyes.

“Xiao Ai, did something happen?”

Upon hearing this, Chitian Ai helplessly sighed.

“I can’t hide it from Teacher after all.”

She placed the bowl of porridge on the bedside table, then casually sat on the edge of the bed, her skirt spreading soft folds on the sheet.

“Teacher, there might be a witch appearing in neighboring Dongchuan City. They’ve already sent someone to ask me to go help.”

‘Isn’t that a good chance to get rid of these shackles?’

Thinking of this, Su Wanyue immediately put on an extremely pitiful expression.

“Xiao Ai, feel free to go~ Teacher here isn’t lonely at all, and definitely not uncomfortable…”

Chitian Ai looked at the loli selling her misery with her appearance, reached out and pinched Su Wanyue’s soft cheek.

“Teacher, actually, I came this time to ask you to come with me.”

“Then I’m wearing these shackles; I can’t even get off the bed.”

Su Wanyue deliberately raised her hands and shook them in front of Chitian Ai.

“Teacher, didn’t I tell you before that soon you won’t need to wear these anymore?”

As she spoke, Chitian Ai leaned close to Su Wanyue and unlocked the shackles.

‘Freedom!’

The moment the shackles were removed, Su Wanyue immediately stood up.

“Hahaha, Xiao Ai, haven’t I taught you that ‘all is fair in war’? You were too careless! Now, I’ll properly teach you what it means to respect your teacher!”

Then she tried to use a space jump spell to escape.

“«Super-Dimensional Magic: Space Jump»!”

…

But the air was dead silent. Nothing happened.

“What’s going on?”

Su Wanyue looked down.

She found that at some point, a delicate black leather collar had been placed around her neck…

The texture was fine, soft, and glossy.

In the very center hung an intricately crafted silver openwork bell.

Even if Su Wanyue didn’t move, the bell seemed to emit a crisp sound that could bewitch hearts.

“What is this thing?”

Wearing this, she felt like someone’s pet?

Chitian Ai watched her stunned expression and couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

She approached again and flicked the bell with her fingertip.

A light ring instantly sounded in the room.

“Teacher, isn’t it pretty? This collar not only acts as shackles but also prevents other bad women from setting their sights on you.”

Su Wanyue’s eyes widened as she said, “Xiao Ai, are you saying I have to wear this and go to Dongchuan City with you?”

“That’s right.”

Chitian Ai nodded matter-of-factly.

“Teacher, didn’t you already agree to date me? These are perfectly normal things in a relationship.”

Su Wanyue looked at the collar around her neck.

‘Normal?! Do young people nowadays play this wild?’

“Alright, alright, Teacher, let’s go out together first.”

Chitian Ai took her hand gently but irresistibly.

“That new apprentice of yours, Fang Yao, hasn’t seen much of you these past few days. She looks scared whenever she sees me, as if I would eat her.”

Su Wanyue detected a hint of sourness in Chitian Ai’s voice.

“Xiao Ai, Fang Yao isn’t my apprentice. She’s just my junior, so I gave her some pointers.”

“Teacher isn’t even a hunter anymore… yet you still care so much about others.”

Su Wanyue and Chitian Ai entered the Hunter Association’s meeting room one after another.

Fang Yao, who had arrived early, looked as if she had seen a ghost when she saw Su Wanyue.

She rushed over and circled Su Wanyue several times.

“Squad Leader, are you alive?”

“Nonsense.”

But seeing that Fang Yao was still as energetic as ever after not meeting for a long time, Su Wanyue felt relieved.

Just then.

“Ring—”

A clear sound suddenly rang out in the meeting room.

Fang Yao’s gaze was drawn to the conspicuous collar on Su Wanyue’s neck.

She was stunned at first, then her expression quickly shifted from shock to exaggerated astonishment, her mouth forming an “O”.

“Squad Leader, I thought you would rather die than keep your dignity, but in the end you’re willing to be someone’s dog for survival?!”

Su Wanyue froze instantly, her earlobes turning red.

She subconsciously raised her hand to cover the collar but stopped embarrassingly midway.

“It’s not what you think. There are unspeakable reasons for this.”

Chitian Ai heard this and pressed closer to Su Wanyue somewhat unsatisfied, reaching out to slide her hand to Su Wanyue’s nape, gently massaging that sensitive area.

“Teacher, isn’t it just what Fang Yao said? What unspeakable reasons are there?”

Su Wanyue only felt her nape go numb, goosebumps rising.

She gritted her teeth and endured without dodging, but her ears burned even hotter.

“Squad Leader, indeed, boohoo~ I never thought you’d be this kind of person,” Fang Yao also added insult to injury.

‘This is completely ruined now.’

‘I can’t even wash it clean if I jump into the Yellow River.’

“Fang Yao, you don’t need to go on this aid mission to Dongchuan City.”

The transition was so jarring that even Fang Yao was stunned for a moment.

“Your topic change is way too obvious.”

‘Tsk, Squad Leader, you just stay silent when you encounter a tough question.’

“Alright, alright, you two go enjoy your beautiful private time.”

After saying that, she suddenly leaned close to Su Wanyue, stood on tiptoe, and pressed her lips almost to Su Wanyue’s ear, saying, “Squad Leader, since she’s also a great beauty, you might as well stop resisting and obediently live off her. Maybe it’ll even be quite comfortable.”

“I told you it’s not what you think…”

Fang Yao then looked at the collar again.

“No, no, no, no matter how you look at it, Squad Leader, you’re like a pet cat carefully dressed up by its owner—the kind that would be caught immediately if it ran away.”

“Are the whispers done?”

Chitian Ai laughed, unceremoniously wrapping her arms around Su Wanyue’s waist from behind, pulling her entire body into her embrace.

“Fang Yao, inform Miss Lin Shi. We’re setting off now.”

Fang Yao quickly left.

“Looks like there’ll be a good show now,” Serafica appeared at the wrong time again.

“It’s all your fault,” Su Wanyue said viciously.

“I’m so sad. Just go and be with your dear disciple.”