Chapter 4: The Drenched Delivery and a Disturbing Encounter

“Hey, we agreed you wouldn’t laugh!”

Bai Chen bristled, then quickly clapped a hand over his mouth, ensuring he hadn’t disturbed anyone else.

The Midsummer Night restaurant, an establishment adorned with elegant decor, had reportedly begun as a small takeout joint struggling to stay afloat.

After its current manager took over, she renovated it according to her tastes, transforming it into its present state and attracting a loyal clientele, making it infinitely better than its previous, half-dead existence.

Since autumn had arrived, it had been a long time since such a heavy rain had fallen.

Unable to return home, customers could only wait, chatting and gossiping amongst themselves.

With no one able to enter from outside and no one able to leave from within, Bai Chen and the other staff found themselves with time to chat.

“No, I’m not laughing… *Pfft!*”

“You clearly are laughing, you haven’t stopped at all.”

Bai Chen’s mouth twitched.

“I’m not kidding, I feel like this whole thing is really eerie. Even if I were to stumble into a romantic encounter, it shouldn’t happen like *this*, right?”

His colleague stroked their chin, looking pensive.

“Is she very beautiful?”

“She’s my classmate…”

Bai Chen recalled the scene from that evening, the doll-like beauty of the young girl flashing through his mind.

“She’s definitely very good-looking; at least among the girls I’ve met, she’d easily rank in the top three. Especially those eyes…”

“Her eyes?”

“It’s nothing.”

The colleague listened, nodding along like a master in their field. Only after Bai Chen finished speaking did they finally say:

“Don’t overthink it; there aren’t that many good things happening in the world.”

“But I’m certain it wasn’t a hallucination.”

“Perhaps she was bullied and her mind hadn’t quite caught up yet.”

The colleague paused at this, lowering their voice.

“Is it possible… she likes you?”

“Huh?”

Bai Chen froze, his voice rising with excitement.

“You mean, a slender, delicate, beautiful, and charming young girl, with vacant eyes that make me uncontrollably excited just by seeing them, who happens to be my classmate, has pledged her heart to me because I helped her? And from now on, she’ll bring me lunch every day, only show her vulnerable side to me, miss me when she’s home alone, and hum softly while indulging herself?”

The colleague was dumbfounded.

“You… do you really need to be *that* detailed?”

Even Bai Chen himself didn’t believe what he’d just said, rolling his eyes.

“You might as well say she’s a demon, deliberately putting on an act for me.”

“I think that’s far more believable than your fantasy.”

Before Bai Chen could say anything more, the manager behind the counter suddenly called out to him:

“There are a few important deliveries here, Bai Chen. Could you go deliver them?”

“Now?!”

Bai Chen looked outside; though the wind and rain had lessened, they were still howling.

“I’ll give you overtime pay, you know.”

“How much?”

“This much.”

Bai Chen had been working at this restaurant for over a year. Although he was just a part-timer, tonight’s delivery was considered overtime, and he initially didn’t want to take it.

However, the manager was simply too generous with her offer. In this day and age, bosses willing to pay overtime were a rare sight. Bai Chen found it genuinely hard to refuse the extra pay, so he gritted his teeth and agreed.

Before he left, the manager even lent him an umbrella, claiming it could withstand a level ten gale. Bai Chen actually believed her outrageous claim.

And so, Bai Chen set out full of fighting spirit. By the time he returned, night had fallen, the torrential rain had gradually subsided, and the waiting customers in the restaurant had begun to leave one by one. The lively restaurant quickly grew quiet.

*Bang!*

The door was forcefully pushed open, and Bai Chen, drenched to the bone, appeared at the entrance. He looked towards the counter, only to find the manager’s figure long gone.

She had claimed the umbrella could withstand a level ten storm, yet it had broken shortly after he stepped outside.

“You’re back… Why are you so drenched? Hurry and change your clothes; there are spare uniforms in the storage room.”

A passing colleague’s eyes widened, and they quickly urged him to the back room. Bai Chen left a trail of water everywhere he walked, which his colleague then had to mop up.

After changing into a clean set of clothes in the toilet cubicle, Bai Chen’s mood significantly improved. He looked at himself in the mirror; though his hair was still wet, his face remained bright and handsome.

Bai Chen had engaged in physical training since childhood, possessing the typical ‘muscular when unclothed’ physique, so a mere rain shower wouldn’t cause him to catch a cold.

‘If I get sick, I’ll have to take time off…’

Ever since his parents passed away, Bai Chen had supported himself through part-time jobs. Even with financial assistance from others, he believed the right path was to prosper through his own efforts.

Bai Chen reached into his collar, pulling out a pendant and resting it on top of his shirt. This pendant had been with him for many years; after enduring countless winds and rains, it had long lost the luster a gem should possess, yet he still treasured it as a precious artifact.

He had received this pendant from someone else when his parents died. Whenever he felt overwhelmed by stress, seeing it reminded him of that kind stranger from long ago.

‘If possible, I’d like to meet that person again.’

Bai Chen squeezed the pendant, let out a soft laugh, and exited the restroom.

Sitting at the counter, he casually asked the colleague beside him:

“Where’s Manager Cheng?”

“She went to a meeting. She left for the branch office right after you went out.”

“Tsk, she managed to escape this time.”

Bai Chen had intended to have a serious talk with her about tonight’s events. His colleague chuckled upon hearing this.

“She guessed you’d be that angry. You can have free drinks tonight, but don’t overdo it.”

“At least she has some conscience.”

After work, returning to his empty home, Bai Chen wasn’t in the mood for a proper meal, so he simply cooked some noodles to fill his stomach.

Once he finished eating, Bai Chen allowed himself to lie on the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Outside, the road was quite lively; vehicles drove by, pedestrians chatted, and after the heavy rain, Fengling City had returned to its usual state.

The house wasn’t large, with only one bedroom and the kitchen facing the living room. With a few pieces of furniture, it felt a bit cramped.

Since entering high school, Bai Chen had lived alone. When he was a child, he could still be with his parents…

‘Demons, truly damnable.’

Enemies of humanity, monsters of unknown origin, they had been causing all sorts of trouble for humans since ancient times.

Bai Chen remembered clearly that the day his parents had their accident was his birthday. They had originally planned to go on a trip together.

However, his parents were suddenly called to duty, leaving Bai Chen to wait alone at home. He hadn’t slept that night, and by the next day, he received the news of their deaths.

A disaster that swept through half the city had claimed his parents’ lives, and the culprit’s whereabouts remained unknown to this day.

Bai Chen still remembered his mother stroking his face before they left, gently reassuring him:

“We’ll be back soon. The train tickets are booked; we’ll definitely go on that trip with you.”

At this thought, Bai Chen couldn’t help but close his eyes, clenching the pendant until the flesh in his palm ached.

No matter how he thought about what happened this evening, the behavior of the girl named Mo Qiu was just too strange. Despite her striking beauty, she possessed eyes as lifeless as a corpse’s.

And I merely saved her life, yet she wanted to offer herself in marriage?

Bai Chen raised his hand, looking at his finger, and the girl’s actions reappeared before his eyes.

His finger, having been used during sports class, was smudged with dust from playing ball, yet she hadn’t shown any disgust, her movements gentle. The girl’s small mouth had been moist and warm; the sensation of being held was very comfortable.

Especially those eyes—still, unrippled, like a lifeless object. For some reason, girls like Mo Qiu, with eyes lacking that ‘sparkle’, particularly appealed to him.

Bai Chen couldn’t help but cover his face, grateful that no one had been watching at the time, every time the memory resurfaced.

After lying down for a while, Bai Chen heard his phone ring, so he got up and grabbed it.

Looking at the screen, it was the manager.

Bai Chen answered, speaking impatiently:

“Hello, what is it?”

“Bai Chen, we’ve received a report.”

The manager’s tone was very serious.

“Now?!”

Bai Chen checked the time; it was already late.

“The police station contacted us directly. The location is Wanhua Plaza, which is quite close to your home. Go and check it out quickly.”

“Is it a demon?”

“We can’t be sure yet. Be careful. I’ll call Su Wanghai to hurry over.”

“Alright.”

Recent news had been constantly reporting on that murder case; the demon culprit still hadn’t been caught. Bai Chen had initially investigated very actively, but unfortunately, he couldn’t find any clues.

Thinking he might run into the culprit, Bai Chen brought the memento his parents had left behind—

A pair of pure black gloves.

The gloves, which initially seemed ill-fitting, automatically contracted and conformed to his palms once he put them on.

Bai Chen opened and closed his hands; dangerous electric arcs flickered at his fingertips, illuminating his stern face.