The air froze in that instant.
“You wouldn’t want your Senior Brother to know that you treat his important friend this way, would you?”
After saying this, Shen Ye released the man’s collar.
She stepped back two paces, her movements light.
A smile like a kitten that had stolen a fish played on her face, as if to say—
Now you can’t kick me out, right?
Lin Xiangyi, on the other hand, wore a dazed expression, staring blankly at the girl who looked back at him with an innocent face.
Wickedness and purity.
Those were the two melodies interweaving in Lin Xiangyi’s mind at this moment.
They were naturally incompatible, like water and fire that refused to mix, yet here they were, tangled together, made manifest in the girl before him.
Faced with Shen Ye*’s aggressive provocation, he couldn’*t even figure out how to react internally.
Shame, or anger?
Lin Xiangyi could no longer tell.
Or rather, at this moment, his mind was nearly incapable of processing anything at all.
Lin Xiangyi only felt the flow of time nearly come to a standstill, Shen Ye’s somewhat overstepping “threat” echoing in his ears.
…Senior Brother?
She knows my relationship with Senior Brother, and she thought to use his status to pressure me—credit where it’s due. That also proves her relationship with Senior Brother from another angle.
But.
He swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
Actually, there was nothing about Shen Ye’s words that felt wrong to him.
Hosting Senior Brother’s friend and extending some special courtesy was, after all, part of his duty.
But she was different.
The girl before him had known him for less than half a day, and already their relationship had shifted from cold confrontation to somewhat boundary-crossing banter.
The dissonance of the whole process was dispelled by the warm aura she carried, dragging him into an ambiguous proximity before he could even build up his defenses.
This was dangerous.
Whether as a Spirit Being or as a woman with a deep connection to Senior Brother.
As Executor Shen Ye*’s Junior Brother, he shouldn’*t become too involved with her.
All he needed to do was help Senior Brother treat his friend and probe this woman’s true nature within his capabilities.
Nothing more.
Besides.
His hand unconsciously moved to his chest.
The real reason he was stunned was something else.
He had realized, a beat too late, that the Cat-Eared Girl’s strength was very small.
The force gripping his collar was something he could have easily broken free from with his abilities.
But he didn’t.
It was as if he’d been struck by a binding spell, letting that small, girlish arm pull them into a dangerous distance without any resistance at all.
Lin Xiangyi hung his head, his pupils hidden beneath his bangs contracting slightly.
Why?
Why did I let her grab me so easily?
It*’s like I’*m being toyed with in the palm of her hand.
Or perhaps…
A thought he shouldn’t have sprouted in his mind.
—Was I expecting something?
How could I harbor such a base thought?
He ran his fingers through his hair in anguish, fingertips digging into his roots, messing up his troubled strands.
On the other side.
After delivering that “threat,” Shen Ye stepped aside and quietly waited for Lin Xiangyi’s response.
She appeared calm on the surface, but her heart was pounding.
After all, it was a tactic she’d learned from a game.
W-Will this actually work?
But the characters in those stories always got what they wanted after saying this line.
The girl bit her finger in agitation, her tail swinging wildly, slapping against the sofa behind her with sharp “thwap thwap thwap” sounds.
Did I mess up?
She stole glances at Lin Xiangyi’s face, trying to read something from his expression.
His head was slightly lowered, bangs covering his eyes, making it impossible for her to see the emotions in them.
The Junior Brother isn’t talking again.
Is he angry?
Shen Ye’s heart skipped a beat, involuntarily reflecting on her actions.
I mean, it was a desperate move to stay here.
But using Senior Brother’s status to pressure him.
Did I go too far?
Shen Ye grew even more uneasy, her fingers unconsciously twisting together behind her back, her tail swaying restlessly.
Junior Brother, please say something…
The silence following their brief clash stretched on for a long time—so long it started to scare Shen Ye.
She began to regret it.
I shouldn*’t have said that. Even staying at a hotel would’*ve been better than making Junior Brother hate me, right?
The silence fanned the flames of the girl’s panic, and just as that unease was about to overflow—
Lin Xiangyi suddenly started clawing at his hair.
“Aaaaaah!”
His sudden shout shattered the dead silence of the living room.
Shen Ye flinched, tucking her neck in, her cat ears flattening into airplane mode.
What*’s wrong? What’*s wrong? What’s happening?
“Um… Xiangyi?”
She spoke timidly, her voice small like a kitten that had done something wrong.
Lin Xiangyi calmed down, letting out a long breath, and apologized to Shen Ye:
“My apologies, I lost my composure. I’m fine.”
He paused, looked at Shen Ye, and spoke with a calm expression and a relieved faint smile:
“You’re right. Stay, then.”
“Huh, what?”
Shen Ye blinked, then processed it.
Junior Brother is… agreeing?
“Really? That’s great!”
Her eyes sparkled, her pupils turning bright and shining.
Seeing Shen Ye suddenly brimming with excitement, Lin Xiangyi didn’t react much, only saying flatly, like still water:
“I’ll clear out a room for you. No matter what, making a guest sleep on the sofa is too improper.”
He spoke politely, courteously, yet there was a hint of forced restraint in his tone.
“Uh, okay.”
Shen Ye looked at the sofa with some reluctance, as if the sense of security she’d felt sleeping on it was still lingering.
She turned back and answered cheerfully:
“Then I’ll leave it to you, Xiangyi.”
At that moment, as if his heart were dancing along with the girl’s liveliness, Lin Xiangyi suppressed the flutter in his chest and replied coolly:
“Mm. Rest in the living room for now. I’ll get things ready and tidy up for you.”
“Okay~”
He turned and walked toward the inner room.
And those bright, joyful eyes followed him the whole way, until he closed the door.
Thud.
Shen Ye stared at the shut door, froze for a second, then—
Won!
She clenched her little fist and pumped it hard in front of her chest.
Sure, I used a little trick.
But Junior Brother is still Junior Brother. He listens to me best.
Now I don’t have to go to a hotel and face strangers!
Yay!
And behind the closed door.
Lin Xiangyi leaned against the door, slowly sliding down to sit on the floor.
The composure he’d forced himself to maintain collapsed in an instant.
He raised a hand to cover his face.
Remembering how he*’d mocked Senior Brother in his mind earlier, he couldn’*t help but let out a self-deprecating laugh.
What a high-ATK stat monster…
“Senior Brother, truly, it’s not your fault.”
He closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.
“I’m about to break too.”