Chapter 8: Demon Clan Food?

As expected, the worst-case scenario had arrived.

In front of KFC, the gazes of passersby made Xu Lin feel like needles were pricking his back, leaving him utterly uncomfortable.

This was the busiest mall, filled not just with students but also regular citizens.

Even though it wasn’t a weekend, there were still plenty of delivery workers around.

If being at school was torture, this was like enduring all ten of the Qing Dynasty’s cruelest punishments at once.

“Um, Li…”

“Young hero, we are partners in fighting the witch. Such a formal address is too distant.”

Li Zhi Ran’s face remained expressionless, but her brows and eyes were noticeably more relaxed than before, hinting at some joy?

“Then I’ll call you… Your Witch Excellency…”

Xu Lin gritted his teeth and forced the words out, keeping his voice as low as possible.

“Still too distant. Just call me by my name—”

Zhi Ran? A bit intimate, but at least it was a normal name.

Xu Lin felt a slight relief.

Even a witch cared about people’s feelings, it seemed.

“Minerva.”

Li Zhi Ran looked at Xu Lin, her gaze inexplicably intense.

That’s still an embarrassing name!

Xu Lin’s budding expectations were drowned in the urge to retort.

Calling someone by a foreign name wasn’t inherently shameful. In the nearby coffee shop, formally dressed people often addressed each other that way.

But paired with Li Zhi Ran’s outfit, he’d definitely be seen as her fellow cosplayer!

The only difference was that he wasn’t in costume.

Xu Lin gave an awkward smile to ease his mood.

“Min… Minerva, let’s talk somewhere else.”

Whatever, he’d drag her somewhere less public first.

“Isn’t this place fine?”

Li Zhi Ran’s gaze shifted to the KFC behind Xu Lin.

“It’s been a while since I’ve had demon clan food.”

“Demon clan food?”

Xu Lin’s voice rose slightly, almost breaking at the edges.

“Yes. Noxis loves it. She says it’s not quite the same as the demon clan food in the demon realm, but she still enjoys it because it reminds her of home.”

Xu Lin was speechless.

So it’s Li Zhi Ran who likes it?

But that didn’t add up. He’d heard she grew up in the country—where would this “taste of home” come from?

Did her family run a burger shop?

“Come, let’s go in.”

Without giving Xu Lin a chance to refuse, Li Zhi Ran pulled him into KFC.

Once inside, she led him to a corner table by the window.

Though it was a corner, the floor-to-ceiling glass offered a clear view of the outside. And conversely, they were fully visible to passersby.

After sitting, Li Zhi Ran’s brows furrowed slightly.

“Is this place not good?”

Xu Lin ventured to ask. If it wasn’t, great—they could move further inside. Even if people stared, it’d only be the customers inside.

“I think I sensed the Gravity Witch’s aura.”

“What?”

Xu Lin’s heart skipped a beat, and he scanned the surroundings.

“Where?”

He didn’t see Lin Shen Xue.

“It’s gone now.”

Li Zhi Ran’s brows relaxed again.

“How about we go somewhere else?”

Xu Lin tried again.

“This is fine.” Li Zhi Ran’s tone was firm.

Xu Lin resigned himself to his fate.

“Witch… Minerva, aren’t you ordering?”

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Xu Lin tried to start a conversation.

He noticed Li Zhi Ran hadn’t moved since sitting down.

“I already did.”

Li Zhi Ran replied calmly.

“You already ordered?”

She hadn’t gone to the counter, used the machine, or even taken out her phone to order.

“Of course.”

Li Zhi Ran’s expression was natural.

“Young hero, contacting me so soon—you must have made up your mind?”

Ignoring Xu Lin’s confusion, she shifted to another topic.

Caught off guard by the change, Xu Lin nodded.

“I’ve decided. I need to work with you.”

“I knew you’d make that choice, young hero.”

Li Zhi Ran gave a slight smile, her eyes filled with affirmation.

“So, young hero, what’s our next step?”

A hint of hope glimmered in her eyes.

“Uh, what?”

Xu Lin was stunned.

“You don’t know?”

“No.”

Li Zhi Ran answered instantly, her face full of sincerity.

“Then what about all those things you said before?”

“What I know, and what Noxis knows, I’ve already told you. As for the rest—how to save you, me, and the world—that’s for you to figure out, young hero.”

“If I had the answers, I wouldn’t need to find you, would I?”

“Ha…”

Xu Lin had hoped to learn more from her, but she was just as clueless.

“Still, young hero, if you have any thoughts, share them. I can offer some insights, and Noxis says she’ll help as best she can.”

That wasn’t a bad idea. She was a genius, after all.

Xu Lin considered it and soon agreed.

Her speech was odd, but her mind was sharp. At the very least, her <Super High School Genius Girl> tag guaranteed that.

But should he tell her about the system?

Forget it. Better wrap it in magical terms—she might accept it better that way.

Xu Lin was about to speak.

“My demon clan food is ready.”

Li Zhi Ran stood up.

She returned with a tray.

It was piled high with two meals!

“She really ordered already! Magic?”

Xu Lin wondered.

No, she probably ordered before coming and chose dine-in!

Xu Lin recalled that option.

“But how did she know I’d be here?”

“And two meals—surely one isn’t for Noxis?”

“Here, Noxis, your portion.”

She took out the black cat plushie and placed it on the table between them.

Then she pushed one of the meals toward Noxis.

Well, okay…

Xu Lin was “curious” to see how Noxis would eat.

Li Zhi Ran unwrapped the burger, revealing a juicy beef patty between the buns.

She took a bite, leaving neat teeth marks.

Not a dainty nibble or a ravenous chomp—just a normal bite.

After swallowing, her eyes softened, and her brows relaxed. She really did love eating… demon clan food.

She looked at Xu Lin.

Xu Lin noticed some patty sauce at the corner of her mouth.

He was about to point it out when a pink tongue flicked out, wiping it away.

“Young hero, go on. I’ll listen while I eat.”

Xu Lin gave an awkward smile, reminded by her words that he’d been staring.

Indeed, only in that moment of eating did she seem like a normal beauty.

If you ignored her outfit.

“Well…”

Xu Lin steadied himself, organized his thoughts, and explained what he knew in magical terms to Li Zhi Ran.

“…I can extract a witch’s magic and turn it into my own power.”