Xu Lin’s mind flashed with the barrage comments he used to see all the time.
Whenever an anime beauty took a bath, those exact lines would flood the screen.
“I’m Kua Fu, first in line.”
“One spoon per person, no cutting.”
Back then he only found them funny, but now it was his turn to live it.
Was it good?
Honestly, it didn’t feel real.
It was like drinking the northwest wind, except there was some indescribable power mixed in.
“That’s exactly what I wanted to say earlier.”
Just as Xu Lin was questioning his entire existence, Li Zhi Ran’s voice rang out again.
“The effect of the potion feels different from what I experienced during my own experiments. A good kind of different—the effect is much stronger now. Young Hero, did you do something?”
Her voice sounded a little excited.
After taking a moment to steady himself, Xu Lin finally nodded.
Then he recounted everything he had just seen and heard, of course still wrapping it in magical terminology.
“So that’s really how it is.”
“As expected of the Young Hero—always full of surprises!”
Saying that, she stepped closer to him again.
Xu Lin hurriedly changed the subject in fright.
“It’s getting pretty late, isn’t it?”
After rambling about random things for a while, he quickly brought up the time.
“You’re right.”
Li Zhi Ran snapped out of it, turned around, walked under the showerhead, and turned on the water.
“Young Hero, I’ll head out first. You should come out soon too.”
She rinsed herself under the shower for a bit, then left the bathroom.
This time Xu Lin didn’t look at her at all.
Only after the sound of her footsteps had completely faded did he finally let out a huge breath of relief.
Perfect timing—he had pretty much recovered by now.
He stood up, walked under the showerhead himself, and took another rinse.
The warm water cascaded over his body, relaxing his mind.
Immediately, some strange and outrageous scenes popped back into his head.
He quickly shook them off, lest he need even more time to recover.
After drying himself off, he walked out of the bathroom and into the changing area.
He took off his swim trunks, intending to put on the pajamas he had brought, but his hands suddenly froze.
In the basket for used clothes, he noticed something extra.
A swimsuit—the same style Li Zhi Ran had just worn.
And another set that was clearly even more revealing, trimmed with lace.
It looked extremely bold.
Xu Lin instantly averted his gaze.
He hurriedly changed into his pajamas and fast-walked out of the bathroom.
“Young Hero, shall we move on to the next step?”
The moment he reached the doorway, a voice spoke.
He looked up and saw Li Zhi Ran.
She had changed back into a black halter dress, only this one seemed much lighter than the previous; beneath the fabric, her skin was faintly visible.
Still, the important parts were properly covered.
Had she been waiting right outside the door this whole time?
“…Alright.”
Xu Lin withdrew his gaze and nodded.
He followed Li Zhi Ran back to his room.
“Sorry, Young Hero, I forgot something.”
The moment they entered the room, Li Zhi Ran seemed to remember something, greeted him, then left the room again.
Suddenly, he was alone once more.
Xu Lin’s nerves relaxed a little.
“Kid, your face is glowing…”
Li Zhi Ran’s voice sounded again, and his nerves instantly tensed.
That was fast?
But he quickly realized something was wrong.
No—this was Noxis!
He looked toward the source of the voice—his bed.
A black cat was lying on the edge of the bed.
The sight made his eyes widen slightly, his heart filled with disbelief.
Wait, this is Noxis?
Right now, Noxis no longer wore the stiff expression of a plush toy; instead, she showed a playful look.
The eyes staring at him were no longer plastic but moist and lively—extremely vivid.
She came alive?
Or was it because of that potion that I can now see what only Li Zhi Ran could see before?
“Something good happened to you, huh? Well, taking a bath together with Minerva is definitely an occasion worth celebrating. You’re the first, you know.
“Happy? Excited?”
“W-What are you talking about?”
This was Xu Lin’s first time properly speaking with Noxis, and her tone was just as sharp as ever.
Combined with the lifelike expressions on her face, it gave him a completely different feeling.
“You know exactly what I mean.”
Noxis spoke ambiguously.
From her face, Xu Lin caught a meaningful look.
His heart went thump-thump.
Although she didn’t say it outright, Xu Lin already understood what she meant.
The bathroom scene with that outrageous position flashed through his mind.
Is Li Zhi Ran sending me a message through her? Or is Noxis threatening me?
He couldn’t tell anymore. The fact that Noxis had suddenly come alive left his mind in total chaos.
Noxis looked at Xu Lin and let out a cheerful laugh in Li Zhi Ran’s voice.
The laughter stopped abruptly as the door behind them made a click.
Xu Lin immediately turned around.
Li Zhi Ran pushed the door open and walked in.
“Young Hero, you seem to be having a very enjoyable chat with Noxis.”
She glanced at Noxis and then at Xu Lin.
“…Lady Witch, did you come back for your thing?”
Xu Lin’s expression was a little unnatural.
At this point, he really couldn’t figure out Li Zhi Ran’s attitude toward what happened in the bathroom.
After asking, he focused on her face while sneaking glances at Noxis out of the corner of his eye.
“Mm.”
Li Zhi Ran nodded, her expression perfectly normal, and Noxis showed no movement or sound at all.
He quietly pulled up the system interface and checked her tag status.
No change…
Li Zhi Ran’s figure drew nearer; Xu Lin withdrew his attention from the system, his body tensing as he focused on her.
She brushed past him and walked to the bedside.
Only then did his body relax a little again.
And only now did he notice something extra on her head.
She had put that witch hat back on.
Other than that, her outfit was exactly the same as what he saw outside the bathroom door.
So the thing she forgot was this?
Is this the true form of the witch Li Zhi Ran?
Standing by the bed, Li Zhi Ran didn’t pick up Noxis; instead, she lifted Xu Lin’s pillow, opened it, and slipped a strip of paper inside.
“Lady Witch, this is…?”
“It’s the activation array for the pillow. This pillow is specially made by me for the upcoming dream battle against the Gravity Witch.
“Of course, it needs to be used together with something else. The other item can only be used after you’re ready to sleep.”
With that, she finally picked up Noxis.
In her arms, Noxis had already reverted to her usual plush-toy state.
So everything earlier was an illusion?
Xu Lin was now completely confused.
Something occurred to him; he opened the system and checked his status window.
Under positive statuses, a new one had appeared.
【Mind Link】: Able to communicate heart-to-heart with the linked target
Linked target: Li Zhi Ran
So that’s what the medicinal bath gave me?
Heart-to-heart communication?
Is that why I could see Noxis come alive?
But why can’t I see it now?
“Young Hero?”
Li Zhi Ran’s voice pulled Xu Lin out of his chaotic thoughts.
He quickly looked at her; it seemed she wanted to ask something.
“…So, should I lie down and sleep now?”
To stop her from probing further, he hurriedly changed the topic.
Li Zhi Ran shook her head.
“No, we still have to wait.”
“Wait for what?”
“For a message from the Gravity Witch.”