“You mean you wanted me to climb out the window in broad daylight and cling to the wall like some human spider?”
“Trust me, if I did that, tomorrow’s news would have a story about it, and your director would haul you in for a talk.”
“And your friends would find out about the identity you’ve been trying so hard to hide.”
Emerging from Xia Mo’s wardrobe, Luo Shuangyue gave her a helpless look in response to her confusion.
She’d initially planned to slip out through the window, but after glancing at the blazing sun, her all-black outfit (save for her white hair), and the snow-white wall outside, the choice was obvious.
Might as well hide in the wardrobe!
Xia Mo’s wardrobe was a bit cramped.
Luo Shuangyue had to kneel to avoid bumping her head, and when Luo Shuangxing entered the room, she held her breath, not daring to make a sound.
She was supposed to be a cold-blooded villain, yet here she was, playing the part of a sneaky homewrecker caught in the act.
The irony wasn’t lost on her.
Thankfully, Xia Mo’s unintentionally convincing act had temporarily dispelled Luo Shuangxing’s suspicions, letting Luo Shuangyue crawl out and give Xia Mo a surprise.
As she emerged, brushing past one of Xia Mo’s dresses, Xia Mo briefly got the absurd notion that Ming Die might actually be a delicate girl.
No, no, no—Xia Mo quickly shook off the thought.
Ming Die was dangerous, and she couldn’t let her guard down.
She absolutely couldn’t treat her like the fragile, cute girl her appearance suggested.
“Ahem, back to business. I came to warn you not to think it’s over just because you caught a small fry. Snake Fang’s real leaders are still lurking in the shadows, waiting to strike,” Luo Shuangyue said, sitting on Xia Mo’s bed, swinging her legs.
She was worried Xia Mo would think nabbing a low-level goon meant the job was done, ignoring the real big boss.
That black serpent summoned by the small fry last night was likely the work of Snake Fang’s cadre, Mad Python.
That meant the cadre in Star Ocean City was almost certainly Mad Python.
His physical strength was formidable—even Luo Shuangyue wasn’t 100% sure she could beat him.
“I know. And if it’s just for this, couldn’t you have messaged me on Penguin?”
Xia Mo waved her phone. They’d added each other as friends last night, after all.
Even if Ming Die thought messaging wasn’t clear enough, she could’ve called.
They had each other’s numbers, didn’t they?
“Some things are better said in person. You never know if someone’s just paying lip service while doing nothing,” Luo Shuangyue said, then quickly added, seeing Xia Mo’s aggrieved look, “Don’t give me that face. I wasn’t talking about you.”
“…Oh.”
Xia Mo knew Ming Die probably didn’t mean her, but the subtle jab still stung a bit.
Couldn’t she have a little more trust?
Sure, they were enemies, but she was a magical girl!
Magical girls don’t play two-faced games!
“Message delivered. I’m leaving,” Luo Shuangyue said, hopping off the bed and heading for the door.
“Wait!” Xia Mo grabbed her wrist.
“One more thing!”
To cover for Luo Shuangxing earlier, she’d lied, saying Ming Die’s boots were hers.
If Luo Shuangxing came back tonight and didn’t see those boots, wouldn’t that expose her lie and prove something was off?
So, “Give me your shoes, please!”
Pressing Luo Shuangyue’s shoulders, Xia Mo blushed and pleaded loudly.
Then she saw Ming Die, who always seemed unflappable, show a complex expression—shock, confusion, and a hint of “you’re that kind of person?”
Luo Shuangyue couldn’t be blamed for breaking character.
Listen to Xia Mo’s request!
She, a villain who came to intimidate Xia Mo, was about to leave, and now Xia Mo was begging her to leave her shoes behind.
Huh?
Those shoes were just some cheap pair she grabbed.
If you like the style, go buy your own.
Why ask for the ones she wore?
Was she planning to frame them as a collectible or something?
“I know my feet might stir some weird impulses in certain perverts, but I didn’t expect you, Rosemary, to be one of them…”
“It’s not like that! I’m not a pervert!”
Xia Mo shouted, her face red.
With no one else in the house, she could yell freely.
“It’s your fault for leaving your shoes at the door where Shuangxing saw them! I had to come up with an excuse to throw her off!”
Dragging Ming Die to the door, Xia Mo pointed at the boots sitting prominently in the middle.
“What else could I do? Admit there was someone else here? I had to say they were mine!”
“That makes sense. But what am I supposed to wear back?”
Luo Shuangyue conceded the logic, but there was a problem.
If she left her shoes, was she supposed to walk back barefoot?
“Can’t you transform and fly back?”
“I only have this one pair of shoes. Even if I fly back this time, what about after?”
Hearing Ming Die’s reason, Xia Mo was genuinely stunned.
So you really only have one pair of shoes?
And probably just one outfit too?
Your life is that rough…
Why not ditch the dark side and join our Magic Department?
The salary would buy you a whole closet of clothes!
“You’re… that poor?”
“Not poor. I just spend my money on more meaningful things,” Luo Shuangyue replied, expressionless.
As Ming Die, she rarely used this identity, so there was no need for multiple outfits.
More clothes would just be harder to hide.
To Xia Mo, though, it sounded like stubborn pride.
Ming Die, big sis misunderstood you.
You’re living that miserably.
Xia Mo, who’d been wavering, made up her mind.
She opened the shoe cabinet, pulled out a pair of barely-worn black leather shoes she’d bought, and handed them to Ming Die.
“If you don’t mind, wear my shoes back. Our sizes should be the same.”