The person outside the door was none other than Li Zhi Ran.
Her silver hair still cascaded down as always, but the witch hat was no longer on her head.
Looking downward, a stretch of snow-white skin extended from her neck on both sides, eventually disappearing into darkness, only to re-emerge from the other end and continue all the way to her fingertips.
She was wearing a light, off-shoulder black halter dress with delicate lace at the cuffs.
Upon closer inspection, the lace patterns were all magic-related motifs.
The dazzling white that had caught his eye earlier was her bare shoulders and arms exposed to the air.
“Young Hero?”
Li Zhi Ran’s voice called out.
Only then did Xu Lin snap out of his daze.
He had thought she wore that heavy gothic dress at home all day long. So she does change into something lighter.
It was just that the design of this outfit was still very much in her witch style.
“Young Hero, please follow me.”
Seeing that Xu Lin had come back to his senses, she turned and led the way.
Xu Lin followed behind.
From ahead came the slap-slap sound of slippers.
His gaze drifted downward and saw that Li Zhi Ran had also changed out of her long boots into slippers.
As expected, the pattern on the slippers was still magical in theme.
Her feet in the slippers were flawless and jade-like. Moving upward, a pair of beautiful legs were brazenly exposed to the air until near the thighs, where they were finally concealed by the lace hem of the dress.
With every step, the hem swayed lightly, teasingly revealing and hiding what lay beneath.
?!
Xu Lin hurriedly pulled his gaze away and silently recited the Calming Mantra.
…
The entire way was shrouded in darkness.
Yet Li Zhi Ran moved through it without the slightest hindrance. Xu Lin could only stay close behind her to avoid bumping into anything else in the apartment.
Soon, far ahead, he saw an area illuminated by an orange-red glow.
Within the light, he could make out the silhouettes of a table and chairs.
Arriving at the lit area, Li Zhi Ran stopped.
At the center of the glow was a slightly antique square dining table.
Three identical portions of food had already been laid out.
Beside each portion stood a candlestick, and atop each candlestick danced the orange-red flames.
They were the only light source in the room.
A candlelit dinner?
But why did these candlesticks look so strange?
Upon closer look, he realized the candlesticks were shaped like some kind of demonic creature, raising its arms to hold the burning candles.
And those candles were anything but ordinary. The melted and re-solidified wax on them had formed screaming ghostly faces.
No, no!
They weren’t real candles at all—they were candle-shaped ambient lamps!
The eerie feeling that had just risen in Xu Lin’s heart was instantly washed away by this discovery.
“Young Hero, please have a seat.”
Li Zhi Ran stood beside one chair and gestured toward the seat across from her.
Though the flames were just fake ambient lights, it seemed Li Zhi Ran intended to commit fully to the act.
Thinking this, the earlier image of a witch brewing potions in her cauldron once again surfaced in his mind.
He didn’t move, wanting to claim he wasn’t hungry.
Growl~
Unfortunately, his stomach let out a protesting wail at the worst possible moment.
“Kid, you’re already starving. What are you standing around for? Sit down and eat!”
A voice that resembled Li Zhi Ran’s but was slightly sharper and laced with impatience rang out.
Xu Lin instinctively looked toward Li Zhi Ran.
“Noxis, the Young Hero is simply unaccustomed to the new environment.”
She was looking at another spot on the table as she defended Xu Lin.
All that followed was a low purring from a cat. Noxis said nothing more.
Following her gaze, Xu Lin saw Noxis already placed on the table, with an identical portion of food set in front of the plushie.
When it had spoken earlier, Li Zhi Ran’s face had been turned slightly away from Xu Lin, so he hadn’t seen her mouth move.
“Young Hero, Noxis can be a bit sharp-tongued, but she’s genuinely good at heart.”
Li Zhi Ran looked back at Xu Lin, this time defending Noxis.
“I know, I know.”
Xu Lin laughed it off and walked toward the seat she had indicated.
Fine, eating it is. I’m already hungry anyway.
And all three portions look the same.
She wouldn’t poison herself too, right?
Xu Lin sat down in his place.
Finally able to face the food directly, his expression froze the moment he saw what was in front of him.
Before him was a bowl of pitch-black mush piled high like a grave mound.
A bowl of deep purple liquid—under the dim candlelight, it was impossible to tell what lurked inside.
A plate of meat chunks scattered across it.
The meat was red tinged with purple, purple tinged with green—just like the poisoned meat often seen in games.
And he had no idea what animal the meat came from.
Beside it was another plate, entirely dark in color, filled with long strips topped with round discs that spread in all directions like claws.
It looked as if some bizarre monster were crawling out of the abyss.
Upon closer inspection—they were octopus tentacles.
The final plate was a vibrant green, yet for some reason wisps of faint black smoke drifted above it, like a forest hiding unspeakable evil.
The presentation of these dishes was absolutely shocking—straight out of an AI-generated recipe nightmare.
He could only hope the taste was better.
Xu Lin’s face was already filled with dread.
Moreover, the portion in front of him was clearly much larger than the ones beside Li Zhi Ran and Noxis.
At the far right of the meal lay a pair of chopsticks and a spoon.
So this is Chinese food? How was I supposed to tell?
Everything looked so alien.
But soon, above the dishes, Xu Lin spotted something familiar.
A row of semi-transparent system text.
‘Witch’s Dinner’: Increases mental power. Duration: 12 hours.
It actually has a positive effect!
Increases mental power?
Well, anyone brave enough to eat food that looks and tastes unknown must indeed have strong mental fortitude.
He tapped it to view the detailed explanation of mental power.
Mental power includes resistance to mental attacks, mental attack power, and mental endurance.
Xu Lin still had some questions and wanted to read further, but Li Zhi Ran’s voice interrupted him.
“Young Hero, don’t be shy. Eat.”
He looked up at her and saw a hint of confusion in her cool, clear eyes.
She seemed to have noticed him staring blankly at the food.
Shy…
It wasn’t about being shy—the appearance alone was simply too hard to swallow.
“Hehe, kid, is this your first time eating at a girl’s house? Too nervous?”
Noxis’s mocking laugh, as if it saw right through him, came from the side.
“Noxis.”
Li Zhi Ran glanced in Noxis’s direction. The plushie let out a whimpering mewl.
Watching this scene, Xu Lin felt a strong sense of dissonance as he recalled what had happened that afternoon.
After disciplining Noxis, Li Zhi Ran turned back to Xu Lin.
“Young Hero, the food will get cold. Eat quickly.”
With that, she picked up her own grave-mound bowl and used her chopsticks to take a piece of the mysterious meat.
Then she ate—one bite of meat, one bite of the mound.
Her eating motions were simple, yet somehow carried an inexplicable elegance.
Seeing her enjoy it so much, Xu Lin’s stomach rumbled again in betrayal.
But looking at the food before him, he still couldn’t muster the courage to dig in.
“Kid, this is the dinner Minerva made especially for you. Don’t you dare waste it.”
Noxis’s voice sounded again, low and threatening, as if it would scratch him with its claws if he disobeyed.
Now it’s even threatening me?