*Ding-dong.*
The doorbell of fate rang once more.
Opening the door as usual, a voice greeted her. “Xiaojue! I’ve come to see you again!”
Su Yaqing shed her Camouflage and opened her arms wide.
This time, Lin Jue did not struggle to break free from Su Yaqing’s embrace. In this moment, she truly felt the soft yet firm strength of another girl.
There was also a scent, like fabric that had been dried in the sun—warm, dry, and reassuring.
Lin Jue looked up, finally noticing that Su Yaqing was wearing light makeup today. Her upturned eyes looked heroic, and her slender eyelashes trembled slightly.
Her emerald eyes showed a hint of confusion, followed by a flash of worry. She lifted a delicate hand, brushing aside Lin Jue’s bangs to touch her forehead.
“Xiaojue, what’s wrong? Do you have a fever?”
“No, I don’t.”
Lin Jue looked away, her tender little face filled with unease. She had originally intended to be direct and ask Su Yaqing about her feelings before the other girl could speak.
But after thinking about it for a long time, she still couldn’t find the words. She could only stare blankly at Su Yaqing’s beautiful face.
“Well, alright then. Today, I’ll make those fried pork cutlets you like. Wait for a bit in your chair; I’ll have them ready soon.”
“Don’t treat me like a child!”
“Oh? But the current Xiaojue is just like a child, even when she’s angry.”
Su Yaqing smiled as she gestured at Lin Jue’s height, then picked up her bag and headed toward the kitchen.
Time ticked toward noon. The two of them chatted idly, though both seemed distracted from the topics at hand. Even after lunch ended, Lin Jue remained restless, stirring her soup spoon aimlessly.
The glistening soup reflected her soft, delicate face. The spoon circled again and again, but Lin Jue still hadn’t spoken.
A bit of wishful thinking even cropped up in her heart. ‘Maybe if I don’t say anything and just maintain the relationship like this, it would be for the best?’
‘But how is that any different from being a scumbag?’
“Xiaojue, what is really wrong with you today? You’ve been distracted this whole time.”
As Lin Jue was still lost in thought, a hand as white and smooth as suet jade rested on her fingertips.
“Aaah!”
Lin Jue instinctively let go, and the spoon clattered into the bowl.
Bewilderment, shock, and even a tiny sliver of desire crossed her mind, manifesting as a complex expression on her face.
‘Why did I… react like that just now?’
Lin Jue couldn’t believe it. From just a brief touch, she had such a massive reaction. Even the previous hugs had been fine…
Looking at Su Yaqing’s worried face, Lin Jue thought for a moment and decided to discuss it tomorrow instead.
She couldn’t say it now. She wanted to weigh it again, to think it over, and find a better way to phrase it.
‘Yaqing, I’m feeling a bit unwell today, so I’m going to my room to rest first…’
That was what Lin Jue intended to say, but the moment the words left her mouth, they betrayed her.
“Yaqing, actually… actually, I’ve always liked you! So, so, can you…” Lin Jue lifted her face, her tone bashful. “Can you… date me?”
“Eeeeek—”
As soon as she finished, Lin Jue immediately covered her blushing face.
This was too embarrassing.
‘This isn’t how it goes in a galgame at all!’
Even though she was the protagonist, she had suddenly turned into a junior confessing to the main lead. Thinking about it that way only doubled her sense of shame.
When the girl on the other side remained silent for a long time, Lin Jue’s heart began to thump with anxiety.
‘Perhaps she… doesn’t actually like me? Did I overthink it? Was the person Yaqing wanted to convey her love to not me?’
At the thought of such a terrible outcome, Lin Jue’s increasingly feminine mindset uncontrollably slipped toward an abyss. She looked up, trying to confirm her fears, but Su Yaqing remained expressionless, as if frozen in time.
A sense of inferiority flooded her heart like a tide.
‘That’s right. A Great Lady falling in love with me…’
‘It was probably just a delusion.’
Whether it was a glance or a single word, no matter how much she tried to confirm it from fragments of conversation, she would be crushed by the actual response. Lin Jue couldn’t help but clench her hands, bowing her head.
‘I’m so narcissistic. This is truly embarrassing.’
However, if this didn’t trigger a Death Ending, how was she supposed to face Su Yaqing in the future? She couldn’t imagine it.
Lin Jue instinctively stood up, turning to leave.
“Xiaojue, wait!”
Just as she was about to go, a sobbing voice came from behind, and a hand as warm as jade grabbed her. Lin Jue turned her head to find Su Yaqing covering her mouth and crying.
“Yaqing…”
“Xiaojue… Actually, I’ve always! I’ve always liked you too!”
She stood up and pulled Lin Jue into a tight embrace, and the two of them huddled together.
“Let’s get married!”
“Ah, okay. Wait, what?!”
Mar-mar-mar-marriage?
Lin Jue felt as if she had accidentally agreed to something monumental. No, she should be called Lin Xiaojue now. Because the name “Lin Xiaojue” was written on the Marriage Certificate.
‘So this is what the Forged Resume was for?!’
Not only that, but Su Yaqing also slipped a ring onto Lin Xiaojue’s finger. Like a lion marking its prey, she gave it a delicate lick.
“Wait… have you been waiting for this day all along? No… did you have this ready from the start? So that’s how the Forged Resume was used?!”
Lin Xiaojue was speechless before this person who suddenly seemed like a stranger. She couldn’t find the right words.
However, her insults carried no bite; having been a Magical Girl for so long, she had lost the ability to use foul language.
The warm sensation on her hand made her flush even more. She couldn’t even bring herself to pull her hand away.
“Mmm, now it’s clean.”
As the little “dumpling” before her withdrew her hand as if struck by lightning, Su Yaqing wore an enchanted smile.
“Does Xiaojue think it’s too early to get married? We are already in our twenties; getting married now isn’t considered late.”
“If Xiaojue doesn’t want to get married right this second, we can go on a trip first. As for other people, it’s fine. I have many ways to hide our tracks.”
“That’s not the issue! Shouldn’t you first answer why we have to get married right now? Also, where did these rings come from? How did you manage to get a Marriage Certificate for me?”
Su Yaqing tilted her head, her emerald eyes reflecting confusion. “Did Xiaojue forget? Years ago, you took the initiative to give me your ID card. You specifically told me I could do whatever I wanted with it.”
‘Did… did I?’
Lin Xiaojue remembered that there was indeed a time when she was worried about not being able to return.
‘Yaqing, I’m leaving my ID card with you. Keep it safe for me. If I don’t come back, at least my old man will be able to identify me.’
‘I think I did say that?!’
“It seems Xiaojue really doesn’t need my help anymore. In that case, I should return everything Xiaojue entrusted to me. As for a gloomy person like me, it’s probably better if I’m just thrown into the trash can.”
Su Yaqing looked despondent as she handed the documents over with both hands. It felt as if a Sinner were seeking atonement after desecrating a Saintess.
Lin Xiaojue never expected Su Yaqing to have such a huge reaction before she even spoke.
If she accidentally stepped into a forbidden zone and triggered a Death Ending, wouldn’t Su Yaqing be even more dangerous than Rong Buqiu?!
‘I only have one Simulation chance left!’
“No, it’s not like that. If it weren’t for Yaqing’s help, how could I have lived until now? Besides, Yaqing isn’t a gloomy person, and you definitely shouldn’t compare yourself to a trash can.”
“So, please stand up.”
“And… and,” Lin Xiaojue realized there was no escaping this marriage, “I haven’t thought it through yet. It’s still a bit too early to get married. If we travel, it’ll definitely be a hassle for Yaqing to have me following her.”
“So, let’s start by being friends who are a bit closer. Not exactly lovers yet, just… a bit closer than before. Um… is that okay?”
The big “Golden Retriever’s” eyes lit up, and she lunged forward to pull Lin Xiaojue into her arms.
“Absolutely!”