"..."
Upon hearing An Le's words, a faint trace of displeasure surfaced deep within Ye Shiyu's eyes.
However, after turning her head to glance at An Le beside her—who wore a shy smile and looked so harmless that she might as well have "zero combat power" written across her face—she ultimately said nothing.
First of all, this girl was a complete pushover with no presence. She couldn't compare to the likes of Spencer or Sakuramiya Hitomi, and she was not even on par with a typical glass cannon like Bai Yi.
As long as An Le did not harbor any inappropriate intentions, Ye Shiyu would not even consider her a threat.
Secondly, Xiao Huan was right in front of them, so there was absolutely no need to act aggressively.
Thus, she simply nodded, agreeing to An Le's request to sit down.
It was just sharing a slightly crowded space with her, after all.
"Thank you, Senior Student Ye."
But just as Ye Shiyu moved her chair closer to Yan Huan, intending to let An Le sit near Bai Yi...
An Le beat her to it, wedging her chair right between Ye Shiyu and Yan Huan and claiming the spot for herself.
While Ye Shiyu was caught slightly off guard, An Le blushed and shyly took her seat.
Bai Yi blinked. She bit down on her straw, too afraid to speak, terrified of startling the immortals currently warring above her paygrade.
Only Yan Huan reacted quickly, actively taking over the conversation.
"Sister Shiyu, what would you like to drink? I will order for you."
"..."
Ye Shiyu glanced at An Le beside her. The girl was lowering her head and pursing her lips, looking exactly like a shy little yellow flower. Surprisingly, Ye Shiyu could not tell if An Le had done it on purpose or by accident.
However, since they were already seated, she had no choice but to accept the way out Yan Huan had offered.
"Anything is fine, Xiao Huan. Thank you."
"Alright, then we will order the sa thing."
Yan Huan smiled faintly. While ordering milk tea for Ye Shiyu, he wanted to turn his head toward An Le to figure out what she was trying to do.
But he had not expected An Le's gaze to be fixed steadily on him.
To be precise, she was observing the delicate atmosphere surrounding the table.
'Is it just my imagination?'
'Xiao Huan seems...'
'To be very afraid of Senior Student Ye.'
'However, the smile on Xiao Huan's face is completely flawless.'
An Le could sense that Yan Huan was constantly catering to Ye Shiyu's mood, seemingly terrified that she might lose her temper.
But An Le did not know that Yan Huan possessed the ability of 100% Expression Managent, so she could not tell that the smile on his face was feigned.
Therefore, in her eyes, Yan Huan's bright smile severely contradicted his instinctual fear of Ye Shiyu.
'There is only one reason for such a contradiction...'
'mory Correction.'
'The only possibility is that Ye Shiyu used her superpower on Xiao Huan, and during that process, she did sothing that left him deeply terrified.'
'Afterwards, even though Xiao Huan's mory was corrected so he would not rember, his body still retained the instinct of fearing Ye Shiyu...'
'Just like what Little Finger did to Park Seo-moon before.'
And as she imagined that Ye Shiyu might have done sothing similar to Xiao Huan as she herself had done to Park Seo-moon—perhaps even worse...
A terror even greater than Ye Shiyu's presence began brewing in An Le's eyes.
'As expected, just like Spencer, you have also done sothing to Xiao Huan...'
"...An Le, what about you? What would you like to drink?"
"I..."
Hearing Yan Huan's inquiry, An Le lowered her head a little more and sheepishly pulled out her phone.
"I-it is fine, I can order it myself..."
"Let's just order together. Why bother scanning the code again?"
An Le pursed her lips, suddenly tucking a strand of her black hair behind her ear. Blushing, she whispered,
"Because... when we were little, Xiao Huan always helped
with everything, whether it was buying things for
or coaxing
to sleep... So... I cannot keep relying on Xiao Huan like that forever..."
"..."
As soon as she said this, the other three people at the table instantly froze.
Bai Yi's bite on her straw gradually tightened as she asked in a daze,
"Yan Huan coaxed... coaxed you to sleep?"
That simple question was like tossing wet vegetables into a calm pan of hot oil, instantly causing the entire pot to violently boil over.
Yan Huan went completely numb. On his shoulder, ow-chan manifested its form, ghostly and sudden, tilting its head to stare at An Le.
'An Le, are you trying to destroy Far Moon Academy and ruin this entire world?!'
Although...
Everything she said was the absolute truth. Yan Huan really had done all of that when they were kids...
But did that an she could just casually blurt out the truth like this?!
Watching Ye Shiyu stare blankly at An Le beside her, Yan Huan was genuinely terrified that this hypnosis master might pull out a knife and threaten An Le on the spot.
Thus, he feigned a perfectly natural expression and interjected,
"That was a very long ti ago when we were little..."
He had originally intended to add, "I barely even rember it," to cool Ye Shiyu down, but eting An Le's gaze...
Yan Huan ultimately could not bring himself to finish that sentence.
"I... I have placed my order, Xiao Huan."
An Le shyly raised her phone to show him. After Yan Huan finished placing the order for Ye Shiyu's milk tea, the atmosphere finally stabilized a bit.
However, Bai Yi remained intensely fixated on what An Le had just said.
She had always thought that "childhood sweethearts" were nothing more than re playmates when they were little.
The type who would yell from downstairs for you to co out and play before you even finished your howork.
Or the type who occasionally borrowed fifty cents to buy a popsicle, went to your house to play on the computer, and fought you for the letter keys on the keyboard during two-player gas.
'What the hell is this about coaxing soone to sleep?!'
'Is that even normal?'
"..."
Bai Yi glanced at Ye Shiyu, who had narrowed her eyes upon realizing the hostile intent, yet after waiting for ages, this terrifying but inarticulate powerhouse had yet to speak up and ask a single question.
'You are good at being scary, but you are completely useless at gathering intel!'
Bai Yi glared at her temporary ally, utterly disappointed in expectations. She had no choice but to take matters into her own hands.
"An Le, it sounds like you and Yan Huan were really close when you were kids. I am so jealous. I did not have many friends when I was little."
'This is bad!'
Yan Huan had just finished ordering the milk tea and set his phone down, only for Bai Yi to forcefully steer the topic right back.
Without even leaving a gap for anyone to interject, An Le instantly rose to the challenge.
"Mhm, actually, I was pretty much the sa. No one wanted to play with ; only Xiao Huan always stayed by my side..."
"Oh, is that so? Then what did you guys usually do together?"
"Playing house, catching bugs, playing computer gas, and things like that..."
As she spoke, An Le's expression brightened even more.
"Back then, I was really good at catching all kinds of bugs, but Xiao Huan was absolutely terrified of them. Because of that, he really admired ...
"It was the sa with singing. He said I had a wonderful voice and the potential to beco a pop star when I grew up. He even said he wanted to be my very first fan... or sothing like that."
'Admired you...'
'Fan...'
Hearing this, Bai Yi's expression stiffened.
'Haha, it is fine. It was just mindless chatter from when they were kids...'
'Why would I...'
'Why would I take it to heart...?'
Bai Yi desperately tried to maintain her smile, but in reality, she was gritting her teeth so hard her molars were about to shatter.
"Oh, and there was playing house too..."
Bringing this up caused An Le's cheeks to flush, and her expression turned incredibly shy.
"At that ti, we even pretended to be a married couple, a family... Looking back, I truly felt like Xiao Huan was my actual family..."
Listening to all this, Yan Huan felt so thoroughly exposed that he wanted to bury himself in the ground.
Turning its head to see his reaction, ow-chan imdiately knew: every single thing An Le had just described was one hundred percent true.
Heaven only knew what other embarrassing things Yan Huan and An Le had done when they were kids...
"You truly are a man of heavy sins, ow."
Yan Huan could not refute the facts, just as Ye Shiyu's attention had been sharply snagged by a specific keyword in An Le's story.
'Family...'
'So, you think you are Xiao Huan's family too, huh?'
Ye Shiyu stared blankly at An Le beside her. Even though she made no extra movents, she sohow exuded the nacing aura of soone eagerly sharpening knives in preparation for slaughter.
Yet An Le seed utterly oblivious, completely unaware of the looming terror next to her.
"Back then, I even told my mama that I wanted Xiao Huan to co live at our house.
"Mama laughed for a long ti and said I only wanted Xiao Huan to move in so he could take care of ...
"But now I have figured it out. A relationship where you only ever demand things from soone else... that cannot truly be called 'family', right?"
Hearing this, Bai Yi nearly spat out her milk tea.
She let out a soft cough, hastily covering her mouth and mumbling "Sorry" as she lowered her head again.
'An Le, I absolutely agree with you on that one.'
'Did you hear that, you pervert who goes into heat for her sworn younger brother?!'
'An Le is calling you out directly!'
"..."
Bai Yi did not care in the slightest about preserving her temporary ally's dignity. After all, by comparison, that silly childhood admiration did not hold much weight anyway.
'But look at you, Ye Shiyu.'
'The bond An Le and Yan Huan share as family is visibly so much deeper than anything you, a latecor, have!'
'When Yan Huan was all alone with no one to look after him as a child, it was An Le and her family who constantly took care of him.'
'It is fine if you, Ye Shiyu, track him down after all these years and declare yourself his "older sister"...'
'But at least try not to lust after your own younger brother!'
"Ladies, your milk tea. Please enjoy."
A nearby server walked over with a bright smile, carrying two cups of milk tea. An Le turned to accept hers and politely thanked the woman.
But Ye Shiyu remained entirely motionless, simply sitting silently in her seat.
The server hesitated slightly before dutifully placing the milk tea directly in front of Ye Shiyu.
Catching a brief glimpse of Ye Shiyu's terrifyingly blank expression, the server instantly broke out in a cold sweat.
Clearly, Ye Shiyu had already completely overheated from An Le's veiled mockery, though she tried to suppress it from showing on her face. With just those few subtle jabs, An Le left Yan Huan completely dumbfounded.
The version updates were happening way too fast. Yan Huan, whose impression of An Le was still stuck in a decade-old mindset, could not keep up with the rhythm at all.
'Wait, An Le, is soone else playing on your account today?!'
'Did you not used to be all "Gummy Bear" and "I don't eat cilantro"?'
'What is this?! Did "Hard Candy Bear" log in today just to choose violence?!'
"..."
Ye Shiyu's grip on her phone tightened significantly. If there had been no outsiders present, she absolutely would have gone for a zero-fra activation.
Even so, her tense muscles twitched, barely holding back the urge to lift her arm and close in on An Le.
But a second later, a massive wave of goosebumps erupted across Ye Shiyu's arms...
As if warning her that taking another step closer would result in sothing utterly horrific.
"!!"
Ye Shiyu faltered slightly and looked down.
Beneath the table, hovering right above the hand gripping her phone, she saw that An Le's hand had quietly opened, aid perfectly at her arm.
If Ye Shiyu moved her arm up even a fraction, An Le's hand would brush against her.
And her instincts scread at her...
That making physical contact with An Le would trigger sothing incredibly dangerous.
Remaining expressionless, Ye Shiyu withdrew her gaze and looked at An Le beside her.
An Le was already looking at her. eting Ye Shiyu's gaze, she offered a bashful smile.
Yet, she did not avoid eye contact for a single second.
"..."
Ye Shiyu narrowed her eyes, the gaze she directed at An Le becoming increasingly inhuman.
However, beneath the table, her hand resting just below An Le's palm never lifted.
Seeing that Ye Shiyu had stopped moving, An Le finally raised her hand, gently rubbed the warm cup of milk tea, and said softly,
"Then I will head back to study now. Xiao Huan, Senior Student Ye, Bai Yi, good luck with your exams."
"Ah... you too. Good luck, An Le."
"..."
It was not until An Le grabbed her milk tea, stood up, and headed for the door that Yan Huan finally began to recover from his astonishnt over her uncharacteristic behavior.
He glanced at Bai Yi, who was sipping her drink, and then at Ye Shiyu, who was narrowing her eyes while surrounded by a dangerous atmosphere.
After a mont of hesitation, he stood up and chased after An Le.
Step, step, step.
"An Le!"
"Y-yes!"
Hearing his voice just outside the shop, An Le's body imdiately stiffened. Then, she awkwardly ducked her head slightly, turning around to see Yan Huan chasing after her.
Seeing this deeply familiar reaction, Yan Huan suddenly felt as though the assertive An Le from monts ago and the soft, sweet An Le of the past had finally rged back into one person.
"X-Xiao Huan, what is wrong?"
Seeing this, Yan Huan smiled helplessly.
He originally wanted to say, "Let's find so ti to talk in private," whether about Spencer or the years they had spent apart.
But thinking about it carefully, being so blunt would feel rather strange.
So, when the words reached his lips, he changed his approach.
"An Le, are you free this weekend?"
"Ah... y-yes, I am. Xiao Huan, you..."
"Do you want to go see Bai Yi's charity concert at the hospital this weekend? She invited
earlier, but I am worried it will be quite boring sitting offstage all by myself."
Yan Huan smiled faintly and used his thumb to gesture toward Bai Yi back inside the milk tea shop.
"We could sit in the audience and chat, then grab dinner together afterward."
An Le blinked, her face growing even redder.
She lowered her head, but without a second of hesitation, nodded in agreent.
"Okay..."
"Then we will figure out the exact ti and place on Plane. See you then."
"Mhm!"
An Le nodded happily in agreent. Then, with her head still lowered, she practically skipped away in joy.
But after taking a few skipping steps, she seed to rember through her joy that Yan Huan was still watching from behind.
So, she shrank her shoulders in embarrassnt and gradually transitioned her skips back into a normal walking pace.
That adorable sight made Yan Huan stifle a laugh. After a few seconds, he turned to ow-chan on his shoulder and asked,
"ow-chan, do you feel like An Le is sohow different from before?"
"Emm... is it possible that An Le is exactly the sa as before, ow?"
"Huh?"
Faced with Yan Huan's sheer confusion, ow-chan tilted its head and said sothing he could not quite understand,
"It is just that you never fully understood the An Le of the past, so you mistakenly think she has changed."
"..."
Yan Huan remained noncommittal, but he had no ti to ponder further.
Because right then, behind him, Ye Shiyu and Bai Yi also walked out with their milk teas.
The lunch break was almost over.
Ding-dong...
The lodious chiming of the Far Moon Clock Tower rang out, reminding everyone to quickly return to the teaching building.
Yan Huan cast a worried glance at Ye Shiyu, afraid that she would soon pick another fight with An Le, causing the two of them to spiral into an all-out modifier clash that would escalate out of control.
Therefore, he spoke up to excuse An Le.
"An Le has never had any other friends since she was little, so she can sotis be a bit insensitive to how her words sound... Sister Shiyu, please do not take it to heart."
Ye Shiyu snapped back to reality slightly and looked at Yan Huan.
Then, she shook her head and replied,
"I will not, Xiao Huan."
In her hand, her grip on her phone grew deathly tight.
"Little Finger, do you think Senior Student Ye will take the bait?"
"Oh please, stop calling her 'Senior Student'. Save the honorifics when you talk to ... Call her Ye Shiyu!"
On An Le's shoulder, Little Finger rolled its eyes, the tail dangling behind An Le's back flicking back and forth.
At the sa ti, it continued to explain to An Le,
"Index Finger prefers choosing hosts with strong possessiveness and a desire for control because it inherently possesses that sa obnoxious personality... or rather, instinct.
"What Index Finger loves most is playing with lifeless and dull things that belong completely to it. What it hates the absolute most is anyone daring to lay a finger on its possessions.
"Provoking her like that was essentially telling Ye Shiyu and Index Finger that you claid Yan Huan long before they did. That is sothing they can never accept.
"So, as long as Index Finger remains bound to Ye Shiyu, she will definitely not be able to resist coming after you to settle the score."
However, as it spoke, Little Finger cast a sowhat nervous glance at An Le.
"But I am warning you, Index Finger is incredibly powerful!
"If your plan fails, you will not be the only one in danger. I will probably lose a severe layer of skin myself!"
Compared to the visibly unconfident Little Finger, An Le's reaction was remarkably flat.
At this mont, she had already walked back into the teaching building, planning to grab her school bag from the classroom. She just so happened to bump into Park Seo-moon at the doorway.
"Ah..."
As soon as Park Seo-moon saw An Le, her face flushed red. Looking deeply entranced, she stared blankly at her as if she could no longer walk.
"An... An Le..."
"..."
An Le rely glanced at her without saying a word, and walked right past her into the classroom.
"Speaking of which, Little Finger, what did you think of Bai Yi who was with us earlier?"
"What do you an by that?"
"When I provoked Senior Student Ye just now, Bai Yi's reaction was also very intense. Moreover, the way she looked at Xiao Huan was not right."
"I do not even know how you figured out that her look was not right..."
Little Finger had no idea how to assess that statent. It blinked, but still provided An Le with a crucial piece of information.
"Well, raising your vigilance is never a bad thing. After all, Yan Huan is a massive prize, so my kin will absolutely flock to him without fail."
"Which ans..."
"Which ans the hosts chosen by the other two unaccounted-for modifiers... are highly likely to be within Far Moon Academy as well, and they are probably people close to Yan Huan."
Hearing this while packing her school bag, An Le felt increasingly convinced that Bai Yi was highly suspicious.
It was perfect timing. Xiao Huan had just invited her to watch Bai Yi's charity concert this weekend.
'Maybe I can use this chance to get a little closer to her and gather so relevant clues?'
As An Le thought this, she suddenly pulled a cloth-like eye mask from her school bag.
Staring at the eye mask, An Le paused for a second before carefully tucking it away into her pocket.
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