Lin Fang's eyes widened in surprise, seeing that Li Liu's eyes turned wet and realizing that this wasn't just so cute jealousy. It's an intense outburst… "It's just… I couldn't sleep all night… You almost died once… if sothing happens to you again, I..."
Lin Fang didn't let her finish and pulled her into his embrace. "Sorry for making you worry."
He understood that she had rely tried to suppress her feelings earlier, when they t. That's all.
Caressing her hair, he softly said, "But it is an unavoidable circumstance. can't do anything about it. Anyway, I'm here. Ain't I… Shush..."
Watching them from the door, Zhi Yan looked away while crossing her arms. "Get so room, you two..." She muttered.
*
Later that evening, the hotel room was bathed in the soft glow of the television.
Lin Fang sat on the couch with Li Liu tucked against his side, her fingers naturally interlaced with his. The program playing was so overly dramatic romance, the kind neither of them was really watching, but it filled the room with voices that made the silence feel less heavy.
From the other side of the room, Zhi Yan leaned against the table, arms crossed, eyes flicking between the screen and the pair on the couch.
"So," she said casually, "where are we going for dinner?"
Lin Fang didn't even look away from the TV. "Why go anywhere? There's a restaurant on the first floor."
Zhi Yan frowned. "We already ate lunch there."
"And?" Lin Fang replied in a lazy tone. "It was good. I thought you liked it."
"I did," she said, raising an eyebrow, "but eating twice at the sa place on the sa day feels wrong. Don't you think you're being a little too cautious?"
She tilted her head, eyes sharp. "Or are you still worried about Shadow Guild?"
Li Liu's fingers tightened around Lin Fang's hand as she leaned closer. "If you're uncomfortable," she said softly, "we can just go ho. Huaxi City is safer."
Lin Fang finally turned away his attention from the television and sighed. His gaze drifted to the bed, where Xuan Hei slept curled into a fluffy black ball, chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm.
"Yan'er, I'm not afraid of Myra or her Shadow Guild," he said calmly, facing Zhi Yan. "I just don't want unnecessary attention. Nebula is fine, but Xuan Hei…" He paused. "She draws too much attention. A Spirit King walking in the streets, in public places… I don't think it is a good idea."
As if Zhi Yan had sothing against him or was determined to get him out of this hotel, she followed his gaze and humd thoughtfully. "Don't need to be worried about that problem. I have a beast-suppressing collar with ," she said. "No one would recognize it as anything special, let alone a Spirit King."
Lin Fang hesitated. "Eh?"
Li Liu noticed the change in his facial expression imdiately. "If you don't want to go," she said gently, "we really don't have to."
Before he could answer, Alpha's voice echoed in his mind, steady and familiar.
"Don't be a coward. I'm here."
Lin Fang frowned inwardly. "The system is offline. If I die right now, that's it."
And as I told you earlier, Alpha replied calmly, "You won't. Xuan Hei is already strong enough to deal with an average Overlord-tier threat. And you have less than six hours left. Are you really going to hide in a room for six hours because of fear?"
Lin Fang leaned back against the couch, staring at the ceiling.
Six hours.
That was all.
He exhaled slowly, then looked at the two won beside him. "Fine," he said at last. "Let's go out..."
"Okay, Cool. Let's go..." Zhi Yan answered with a quick nod, already turning toward the door.
"Babe… if you don't want to stay long, we can co back early." Li Liu hooked her arm around his without hesitation, leaning into him as if this were the most natural thing in the world. Lin Fang didn't pull away. He shrugged, "It's alright. I have been staying inside for 2 days in a row, anyway. I could use so fresh air..."
Xuan Hei, in its harmless puppy form, climbed onto his shoulder and settled there like a warm scarf, its tail swaying lazily.
They didn't dress up too much. Lin Fang threw on a casual jacket and cap, Li Liu changed into sothing comfortable but flattering, and Zhi Yan looked like she always did, sharp and confident without trying. Nebula followed behind them quietly, her oversized clothes making her look awkwardly out of place among ordinary people.
Outside, the city lights were already alive.
They ate dinner at a nearby restaurant, one of those places that was always half-full, half-noisy. Lin Fang took the seat against the wall out of habit, eyes flicking around before he caught himself and relaxed a little.
Despite himself, Lin Fang felt the tension ease as the food arrived. The sll alone grounded him. They talked about trivial things, movies, business, and Zhi Yan's complaints about so flirty custors. Nothing important. Nothing dangerous.
After dinner, they wandered into an arcade.
Lin Fang hadn't realized how long it had been since he'd done sothing so pointless and fun.
Zhi Yan dominated the shooting gas with frightening accuracy, Li Liu laughed herself breathless at rhythm gas, and Lin Fang found himself absurdly competitive over claw machines. On this night, he didn't feel like a hunter who killed a King-tier monster. He is just a normal young man who was enjoying the outing.
By the ti they checked the ti again, they still had eighty minutes before the movie they had booked.
"Shopping," Li Liu suggested, eyes lighting up.
They ended up in a large, pet-friendly mall nearby. At the entrance, a sign listed the rules in bold letters. Monsters under fifty centiters only. Must be in a stroller or carrier. No exceptions.
They exchanged glances, then looked at Xuan Hei.
She fit perfectly.
A nearby staff mber even smiled at the sight of the tiny black pup curled inside a stroller, ears twitching as people passed. Lin Fang pushed it slowly while Li Liu walked beside him, occasionally bending down to whisper nonsense to Xuan Hei, who responded with soft, pleased noises.
Monts later, Lin Fang was pushing a stroller with a very unimpressed-looking black pup inside with lots of fur. Passersby smiled, so pointing, so whispering about how cute she was.
Halfway through the mall, Zhi Yan stretched her arms and yawned. "I'm going to take Nebula with ," she said casually. "I want to look for sothing decent for her later. You two take your ti."
Before Lin Fang could respond, she was already walking away with Nebula, who followed obediently, tall figure drawing curious glances.
The world narrowed after that.
Li Liu disappeared into fitting rooms one after another, stepping out each ti in a different dress.
"What about this one?"
Lin Fang leaned against the wall, arms crossed, answering honestly every ti.
"That one suits you." "Too stiff." "That color's dangerous."
She laughed, cheeks warm, clearly enjoying his attention.
Then it was his turn.
Li Liu crossed her arms and squinted while he changed outfits. "Turn around."
He did.
"Hmm. That one's decent."
"Decent?"
She smiled. "ans it's good."
They even picked out a few tiny accessories for Xuan Hei, who tolerated the attention like royalty.
Eventually, arms full of bags, Lin Fang joined the line at the counter while Li Liu was with the stroller, waiting for him.
The mall lights humd softly above them. Music played. People chatted. It felt normal. Almost too normal.
Then everything changed.
The lights flickered once.
Twice.
And then the ergency lights snapped on, bathing the entire floor in pulsing red.
A sharp alarm echoed through the mall.
ALERT. This shopping center has been designated as an Instant Dungeon. Grade 3 detected. Please follow safety protocols imdiately."
People froze. The buzz of excitent that had filled the mall evaporated in an instant, replaced by panic.
Behind Lin Fang, a boy clutched the cart who was with an older person. "Uncle… what's going on?"
Soone else, an adolescent girl in the line nearby, on the other hand, clenched his fists. A smile could be seen on her face as she turned around and said to her friends. "Girls… It's an instant dungeon. Just a while ago, we wanted to go to a dungeona dn now, the opportunity fell right into our lap."
At once, the people started rushing as the standard 90-second tir started on their smartphones. Once it is over, the barrier will be materialized, and everyone will be stuck inside. From then on, only the entrance will be possible until the dungeon boss is defeated.
Pushing his own cart away, not intending to care about those dresses anymore, Lin Fang also acted in instinct. "Let's go now…"
He made a run for it. Reaching Li Liu, he grabbed her hand, "Quick, let's go…" He looked at Xuan Hei, "Co, climb to my shoulder."
"Wait, what about Zhi Yan?" As Li Liu asked, Lin Fang replied, Zhi Yan is a seasoned fighter. You are not. Let's first get out of this place. We didn't have much ti...
"Please stay calm! Hunters are en route. Please move orderly!" A young employee nearby directed the traffic and tried to manage the rushing crowds, although his own voice was shaking in panic.
Around them, shoppers ran frantically, not heeding his calls at all. He got pushed by many, but he tried to manage, using his voice as loudly as possible.
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