"And she doesn’t care," Bai Qing said sharply. "She’ll never care. Look at the way she talks to him. Cold. Dismissive. She’s poison."
Li Mian looked down. "I... I don’t want to hurt him."
"You won’t," Bai Qing said, voice softer now.
"You’ll save him. Make him forget her. Let him see that soone else loves him—soone who’s always been there."
Li Mian was silent for a mont. Then, slowly, she nodded.
"...Okay."
Bai Qing handed her a small folded cloth. "Use this if he starts getting too dizzy. Wipe his forehead. Be gentle. He’ll co around."
Li Mian walked over to Long Yifan, who was now leaning against a wall near the exit, his breathing ragged.
She reached out and touched his arm carefully.
"Captain... are you alright?"
He looked at her, barely focusing. "Li Mian...?"
"You need to rest," she said quietly. "Co with . I’ll take care of you."
"I... I don’t feel..." His legs buckled slightly.
She caught his arm, supporting him as best she could. "It’s okay. Just lean on ."
Slowly, awkwardly, she helped guide him down the hallway, away from the music, toward the dormitory wing.
Bai Qing followed a few steps behind, quiet as a shadow.
They reached Li Mian’s room. She opened the door and helped Long Yifan inside.
He collapsed onto the bed, groaning softly. Sweat beaded on his forehead.
Li Mian stood beside the bed, uncertain. She didn’t know what to do now. Her heart was hamring in her chest.
"Captain... I’m sorry..." she whispered.
She reached out to wipe his forehead with the cloth.
And then everything went black.
A sharp thud echoed through the quiet room.
Bai Qing stood behind her, holding a small glass bottle, now shattered. Li Mian lay unconscious on the floor.
"Oops," Bai Qing said with a mock pout. "Didn’t an to hit you that hard. But you really were starting to annoy ."
She stepped over Li Mian’s body and approached the bed where Long Yifan lay, dazed and sweating. His breathing was labored, his eyes glazed but still open.
Bai Qing knelt beside him, brushing his hair away from his forehead.
"You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this," she murmured.
Long Yifan tried to speak, but his voice ca out hoarse and weak.
"Don’t bother," Bai Qing said sweetly. "You can’t move, can’t think properly. That’s the beauty of the drug."
She leaned closer, her voice dropping to a whisper.
"But don’t worry. I’ll take care of everything. You’ll forget about her. You’ll forget about all the pain."
Long Yifan’s fingers twitched slightly, as if trying to push her away.
But his strength was gone.
Bai Qing smiled.
"You were never ant for her," she whispered, pressing a kiss to his temple.
Bai Qing leaned in, her fingers already undoing the top buttons of her blouse. Her eyes glead with a twisted sense of victory as she moved closer to Long Yifan’s face.
But just as her lips brushed his skin—
Crack!
A burst of electricity shot from Long Yifan’s fingertips, jolting Bai Qing backwards with a scream. Her body spasd once before slumping onto the floor, unconscious.
Long Yifan’s chest heaved as he struggled to breathe. His head was spinning, his body weak and trembling, but his mind had cleared just enough for that one desperate spell.
"Ngh... damn it..."
He gritted his teeth and dragged himself off the bed, crawling across the floor with heavy arms. Each movent felt like he was pushing against a mountain. Sweat poured down his face.
He reached the door and fumbled with the handle before finally getting it open.
The hallway light spilled in, blinding at first. He blinked rapidly, trying to make out shapes. His hand reached for his phone in his pocket. He pulled it out, but the screen blurred. His vision swam. He couldn’t even find the right icon.
"Gu Jin..." he muttered, voice barely above a whisper. "Need... to call..."
"You look awful," a soft voice said behind him.
Long Yifan’s body stiffened. Slowly, he turned his head.
A tall girl with long silver hair tied in a braid stood a few feet away, arms crossed. Her eyes were pale blue, expression unreadable.
Alia.
She walked toward him with unhurried steps, heels clicking softly on the floor.
"What are you doing on the floor?" she asked, her voice cool. "Shouldn’t you be inside the party?"
Long Yifan’s mouth was dry, but he forced the words out.
"Help... call Gu Jin..."
Alia crouched beside him and gently took the phone from his trembling hand.
"Alright. I’ll call her," she said calmly.
She turned the screen away from him, pretending to dial. After about thirty seconds, she looked down at him again.
"She didn’t answer."
Long Yifan frowned weakly. Sothing felt off. The phone was still in her hand, screen dim.
And then he realized.
He hadn’t heard the ringtone.
The special one he set just for Gu Jin—a soft chi that always stood out.
But nothing had played.
"You didn’t call her..." he said quietly.
Alia tilted her head, unfazed. "What makes you say that?"
"The ringtone," he muttered. "Didn’t ring..."
She smiled faintly. "So you noticed."
Long Yifan tried to push himself up, summoning mana to strike—but nothing ca.
His body was empty.
Mana... gone.
"You should rest," Alia said, standing. "You’re not in a state to think clearly. I’ll take you to your dormitory."
"No," he said hoarsely, trying to crawl backward.
Alia’s smile never changed. "I wasn’t asking. Anyway, you really thought I would help you?"
Long Yifan clenched his jaw. "Why... why pretend?"
Alia crouched again, her hand gently brushing a lock of hair from his forehead, mimicking the gesture Bai Qing had used minutes before.
"Because sotis people lower their guard when they think soone’s on their side."
She glanced into the room behind him, where Bai Qing’s body still lay unconscious on the floor.
"Bai Qing was too impulsive," she murmured.
"She wanted to win your heart with desperation. But ? I like taking my ti."
Long Yifan’s muscles tensed, but his body refused to move. He felt like his limbs were made of stone.
"What... do you want?" he asked through gritted teeth.
Alia’s eyes sparkled faintly, as though amused by the question.
"Not your heart, if that’s what you’re worried about," she said.
"But you’re useful, Long Yifan. Valuable. Powerful. And once soone like you falls... it shifts the entire balance."
She stood and circled him slowly, like a predator studying wounded prey.
"You won’t get away with this."
Alia chuckled softly. "Oh, Long Yifan. I already have. No one saw enter this room. And no one’s going to hear you scream if I choose to finish what she started."
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
Alia’s fingers froze mid-air.
A pale hand had grabbed her wrist with a grip like iron.
She turned sharply—and her breath caught.
Gu Jin stood there, calm and unreadable, her long black hair falling in waves over her shoulders. Her red eyes, always cool, now held a sharp glint of warning.
"Don’t touch him," Gu Jin said flatly. Her voice was low and emotionless, but there was steel underneath. "Especially when he doesn’t want it."
Alia tried to pull her hand back, but Gu Jin didn’t let go.
"How cute," Alia said, voice tight. "Didn’t know you cared so much."
Long Yifan, still on the floor, his limbs weak and body trembling, let out a faint breath. Relief flooded his pale face.
"Gu Jin..." he whispered. "Please... just take away from here."
Gu Jin glanced down at him. Her gaze softened just a fraction—barely noticeable—but she nodded.
Without another word, she shoved Alia’s hand away and stepped in front of Long Yifan.
The force of her push sent Alia stumbling a step back.
Alia’s eyes flared with irritation. "You’re going to regret that."
Gu Jin looked up at her, face expressionless, but her tone turned icy.
"Next ti you dare to covet what does not belong to you," she said coldly, "I’ll show you what it ans to lose everything."
The air dropped a few degrees.
Alia stood frozen. There was sothing in Gu Jin’s eyes—sothing deeper than anger. It was the chill of soone who didn’t bluff. Soone who didn’t care about consequences.
Alia’s lips parted as if to reply, but no words ca out.
She shivered slightly, turned on her heel, and walked away.
Gu Jin turned back to Long Yifan, who was still breathing hard, the color slowly returning to his face.
"Can you stand?" she asked quietly.
He gave a weak shake of his head. "No... can’t move anything."
Gu Jin didn’t hesitate. She crouched and gently lifted him into her arms, cradling him like he weighed nothing.
Long Yifan’s face flushed with embarrassnt. "You don’t have to carry like this..."
Gu Jin looked down at him. "It’s efficient."
He sighed and let himself rest against her shoulder. "Thank you... for coming."
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