Although the city center at night was still brightly lit and bustling with people, as soon as one walked into the residential areas, the streets immediately quieted down.
Except for neighbors coming out for a post-dinner stroll, you could hardly see anyone.
Despite this, I still walked with extreme caution.
After all, my current posture was unusual: a grown man carrying a comatose beautiful girl in a princess hold in the middle of the night through residential areas. I felt like I was just missing handcuffs and a wanted poster.
Fortunately, I'm a native of this place, and I know every street and alley like the back of my hand. I skillfully took several detours and managed to sneak all the way to the entrance of my building.
But I still didn't dare to let my guard down.
The neighbors around here all know me. They watched me grow up, and if they saw me going home in this state, the scene wouldn't be any less embarrassing than being arrested.
Finally, after successfully avoiding all potential "square dancing aunties" and "uncles peering from windows," I arrived at my front door.
Besides the traditional keyhole, the door was also fitted with a fingerprint lock.
I left in too much of a hurry today and didn't bring my keys at all, but thankfully, my door lock is user-friendly. It can be opened with just a fingerprint.
I looked down at my right hand, which was currently curved in a semicircle, carefully cradling the upper half of the girl's body.
Although the angle was a bit tricky, it was manageable with a little effort.
I took a deep breath and gently extended my finger towards the scanner, carefully controlling the angle, for fear of accidentally bumping the girl's head against the door.
"Beep—"
With a soft sound, the lock disengaged.
I entered the house, took off my shoes by shuffling my feet together, and went upstairs in the dark, into my room.
I gently placed the girl on the bed, took off her shoes for her, and then put her shoes under the bed. After finishing all this, I finally breathed a sigh of relief, stood by the bed, and examined the sleeping beauty.
Can you believe it? I woke up and there was a beautiful girl next to me.
We were chased together, we fled together, she covered my retreat, I went back to save her, and in the end, we formed a contract, and she became an Apostle of the Demon King from another world.
Our relationship went from strangers to surviving and dying together, sharing hardships.
And then we even had dinner together in the evening... I think it was the first time I had dinner with such a beautiful girl, although I didn't eat much in the end.
This half-day was more thrilling than the first half of my life.
Late at night, the clear, cold artificial moonlight streamed through the window, casting a hazy glow on the girl's form.
"Mmm..." she softly murmured, shifting slightly in her sleep to adjust her position.
She lay on her side, her right hand curled like a cat's paw in front of her chest, her left hand resting gently on her lower abdomen. Her legs were crossed, and her lower legs were slightly apart from the knees down, bent naturally.
My gaze involuntarily swept from the top of her head to her toes, passing over her near-perfect curves, and a hard-to-describe warmth gradually rose in my heart.
Although her true identity was a "Demon King" from another world, and her true form was very likely some kind of chaotic, distorted, and unnamable entity. Moreover, her current body was created from the "donated" excess fat from my own body.
But then again, when this fat was on me, it didn't have such a beautiful face, nor such alluring curves on her left and right hemispheres, nor such shapely buttocks and long, well-proportioned legs.
Since she came from me... touching her a little... should be okay, right?
My thoughts began to drift in a dangerous direction, and I couldn't help but recall the soft, springy, and warm feeling when I accidentally grabbed her before...
"Ahhhhhh no no no no no!!"
I shook my head violently, desperately trying to regain my sanity. "Liǔ Yuètiān! You are a sunny, upright, and morally sound young man! You can't take advantage of someone's vulnerability!"
To suppress the urge that was starting to stir, I simply sat on the floor by the bed, crossed my legs in meditation, closed my eyes, and chanted to myself: "Justice, fairness, order, respect the old... diligence, responsibility, NZ!"
"...?
I blinked, did something strange just slip in there?
I quickly shook my head and continued meditating: "Justice, fairness, order, respect the old... NZ!"
"Damn it!!!"
I slapped my thigh hard, almost jumping up in pain. I don't know how many times I chanted it before I finally fell asleep.
In my dream, I transformed into a crayon-drawn monkey, running on somewhat abstract grass. Above, a sun made of swirling lines and red dots bounced in the sky.
As I ran, I saw two prominent peaks. Happily, I ran towards them, laughing, and under a peach tree, I contentedly gnawed on a large, white peach with a slightly reddish tip...
When I opened my eyes, it was already morning.
I could hear some faint sounds from downstairs. I twitched my ears, and it sounded like someone was walking around and tidying up in the living room.
"This child, why didn't she eat the food in the fridge last night?" Mother's familiar muttering faintly reached me.
Then, I heard footsteps on the stairs. "Son, son, are you awake? You need to go to the Further Studies Department starting today!"
"Further Studies Department? What Further Studies Department?" I sat up groggily, scratching the back of my head, my gaze unfocused as I looked at the pigeon clock on the wall.
"6:45 AM."
"Right!" I jolted, instantly sobering up. "Today is the day I report back to the Further Studies Department after being discharged from the hospital!"
I looked down at the clothes I was wearing; they were a messy pile, completely unsuitable for going out. I quickly took them off and threw them on the bed.
Then I opened my closet, pulled out a cultivator robe in a flash, and quickly put it on.
After changing, I didn't even bother to look back to check the state of my room. I immediately charged out of the room.
"Good morning, Mom!" I greeted my mother, who was coming upstairs, as I went downstairs, then executed a beautiful knife-edge sidestep to pass by her.
"Mm, good morning," Mother replied, not asking any further questions, and continued towards the second floor.
I went into the living room, where Dad was sitting on the sofa, holding the remote control, with the morning news playing on TV. "Good morning, Dad!"
"Mm!" Dad nodded at me. "Don't rush. I'll drive you later. Sit down and have some breakfast first."
"Thanks, Dad!" I breathed a sigh of relief and quickly sat down at the dining table, taking a sip of the milk on the table.
Next to the milk was a familiar paper bag, containing the egg bread I had eaten countless times.
This was probably bought by Mom on her way home from her night shift, as she doesn't have time to cook in the morning. It's a regular routine.
As I chewed the bread, I listened to the news report on TV:
"Yesterday afternoon, in the downtown area of the city, there was a rupture of the ground for unknown reasons, partial destruction of buildings, and damage to public facilities such as streetlights and traffic signs. According to witnesses, the destruction seemed to occur out of nowhere, as if an invisible knife was slashing wildly through the streets. The incident has so far resulted in at least three deaths and multiple injuries. The specific cause is still under investigation..."
This news was talking about the chase me and the Mysterious Girl were in yesterday, right? It made it to the news.
I looked up at the TV, and then I sat bolt upright.
Oh no!
She's still lying in my room!
And my mom just went upstairs!!!
I jumped up from my chair, and the next second, I dashed towards the stairs, running faster than I ever had in my life, shouting as I went, "Mom! Mom! Wait a moment!"
My mother, who was just about to open the door to my room, heard me shout and turned back, looking at me with surprise.
I seized the opportunity to accelerate into a sliding tackle, rushing forward and blocking the entire door with my arms spread wide in a star shape. "Mom! Can you not go into my room today!"
I smiled nervously.
"What's wrong?" Mother blinked, looking puzzled. "I was just going to tidy up a bit and open the window to air out the room. It feels so refreshing early in the morning."
"In our Underground Metropolis, the environment is centrally managed by the system. It doesn't matter what time we change the air, right!" I forced a smile, my tone rapid. "Really, Mom, I have some... things in my room that aren't suitable for you to see. I'll clean it up myself!"
"Oh... okay." Mother looked me up and down. Despite her suspicion, she turned and left.
I watched her go to the top of the stairs and finally breathed a sigh of relief, only to hear her murmur softly, "It's just used tissues, it's not like I haven't cleaned that up before."