Outside the residential complex, Shaya and Xueji sat on the ground, watching the footage transmitted from the recorder.
Shaya immediately stood up, intending to go back and kill “He Qiang.”
But Xueji quickly stopped her, asking, “What are you planning to do?”
“Obviously, take that guy out and then rescue everyone,” Shaya replied. As the Wolf King, she had never been one to show mercy; decisive action was her creed.
“Don’t be hasty. This isn’t your forest. Calm down.”
“I—”
“Still want to eat barbecue?” Xueji cut her off, using the barbecue as a threat.
Shaya, provoked by this, got worked up. She stood on her tiptoes, glaring fiercely at Xueji, and growled, “You dare threaten me?”
She only came up to half of Xueji’s height, her face still youthful, and a large tail now emerged, making her look incredibly soft and adorable. She then bared her teeth, tiny fangs that were quite eye-catching.
Xueji couldn’t help but laugh and reached out to pinch her fluffy tail, causing Shaya to shudder, her face flushing red as she jumped back.
“What are you doing!” Shaya looked at Xueji with disdain, as if regarding trash.
“I just thought your tail looked fluffy and couldn’t resist touching it. What’s wrong?” Xueji asked, genuinely confused by Shaya’s strong reaction.
Shaya, her face still red, stammered, “The tails of our kind are very sensitive. Gently biting the tail is, is…”
Xueji, seeing her hesitate, pressed, “Is what?”
“It’s a courtship ritual…” Shaya’s face turned as red as a ripe apple, steam practically rising from her head.
“Is that so? Then I’m sorry, I really didn’t know. I accidentally offended you, Lady Shaya. My apologies.” Xueji smiled apologetically, her tone as calm as ever.
Xueji’s apology was like a gentle rain, extinguishing the shame and anger in Shaya’s heart, leaving only a lingering sense of loss that slowly rose like fading smoke, filling her entire being.
‘Xueji seems to keep everyone at a distance.’
Xueji watched Shaya staring blankly at her, unsure of what was wrong. Tentatively, she said, “How about I let you eat all the barbecue you want? Forgive me, okay?”
Xueji clasped her hands together, looking apologetically at Shaya.
‘Her heart is unconsciously pushing people away,’ Shaya thought.
“Wh-why are you apologizing to me?” Shaya asked, feeling inexplicably unsettled. She didn’t want an apology, but she didn’t know what she truly wanted either.
Xueji had no idea what she was thinking and asked, puzzled, “What’s wrong with you? I offended you, so isn’t it right for me to apologize?”
Shaya didn’t understand why her heart ached faintly.
After becoming human, her emotions had become more sensitive, allowing her to see the loneliness emanating from Xueji.
Shaya wanted to get closer to this human, even if she didn’t yet understand why.
Since words failed her, she would let actions speak instead.
Shaya walked straight toward Xueji, tears glistening in her eyes. An unfamiliar emotion drove her to do this seemingly meaningless thing.
She took determined steps, one after another.
Xueji was taken aback, unsure of how to react.
Just as Xueji was about to ask, Shaya tightly embraced her.
Xueji had been sitting on the ground, halfway to standing up when she was hugged, resulting in her kneeling posture. This serendipitously erased their height difference, making their heartbeats unmistakably clear.
Xueji’s pupils trembled at the sudden embrace, her hands hovering in the air, unsure what to do.
Under the moonlight, the two felt the rhythm of each other’s heartbeats.
What Shaya felt was a heartbeat that remained calm beneath the initial fluctuation, and an unprecedented sense of powerlessness filled her heart.
Gathering her courage, Shaya said with determination, “I originally wanted to say this is our tribe’s way of apologizing.”
She looked directly into Xueji’s eyes. Under the moonlight, her small figure seemed to overlap with a more mature silhouette.
For the first time, Xueji’s heart felt flustered.
“But now, I want to tell you—”
“Ahhhh! Stay away! Help!!!” A cry for help erupted from the phone nearby, interrupting Shaya.
“There’s trouble. Let’s go!” Xueji hurriedly stood up, grabbed Shaya’s right hand, and activated a teleportation spell.
Shaya’s left hand pressed against her own chest, suppressing this unfamiliar impulse.
……
At the door of unit 2003, a delivery driver was being dragged inside by He Qiang.
Suddenly, the elevator door opened. The delivery driver, seeing a lifeline, desperately cried out to the people inside.
But the person who stepped out seemed not to hear him, greeting the one dragging him before heading home.
The delivery driver watched in disbelief as the person walked past him. His strength fading, he was gradually pulled into the apartment.
But then, the feet of the last person stopped in front of him. Hope ignited in the delivery driver’s heart, and he quickly looked up.
What met his eyes was a face as pale and gaunt as He Qiang’s. The person smiled with an elegant, gentlemanly grace, but his eyes were as cold as if assessing prey.
Despair completely consumed the delivery driver. As the second strange man entered the apartment, the door began to close completely.
“Let him go!” A girl’s voice cut through the darkness like a beam of light.
With a loud thud, the door to unit 2003 was kicked open. The vampire closing the door was sent flying into the living room, door and all.
Shaya pointed Fenrir’s Winter straight at the vampire who had been closing the door. With one thrust, she pierced its skull, then released a fierce cold energy, completely freezing it.
Seeing the situation turning dire, He Qiang transformed into a bat and fled toward the door.
Shaya leaped to catch him, almost succeeding when an invisible force suddenly knocked her off course, slamming her into the wall.
Xueji wasn’t in a hurry to chase. Instead, she rescued He Zhixin from the refrigerator.
Relying on her incredibly powerful spiritual control, Xueji used flames to quickly thaw him out from being frozen by liquid nitrogen.
Fortunately, his异能 (supernatural ability) was strong; otherwise, the liquid nitrogen alone would have been fatal, let alone the thawing process.
He Zhixin’s voice trembled uncontrollably as he said, “Run! Get me out of here now! Almost everyone in this building is one of them!”
Shaya smacked him on the head impatiently. “Stop yelling. You’re annoying.”
The slap made a metallic clang, and Shaya’s hand was actually repelled.
“Huh? Pretty tough.”
“A-rank异能, Indestructible Golden Body. It’s a simple yet powerful ability,” Xueji remarked, seeing the strength of this ability firsthand—an almost impervious physique.
He Zhixin found Xueji’s face somewhat familiar but didn’t have time to dwell on it before being yanked to his feet.
“What are you standing around for? They’re coming,” Shaya and Xueji said, their expressions grave as they watched the elevator door about to open.
“Shaya, there are still many controlled ordinary people in this building. Try not to cause too much damage,” Xueji instructed.
He Zhixin, seeing that the two had no intention of running, grew frantic.
There were at least hundreds of these monsters in the building. Fighting was suicide. These two idiots.
He couldn’t die here. He had been a prodigy since childhood—how could he die in a place like this?
He glanced toward the balcony in his apartment, gulped, and gave up, deciding the risk was too great.
Then he saw the delivery driver still lying on the floor and looked at the two girls blocking the way. Suddenly, an idea came to him.