Chapter 10: Chapter 10 entanglement

Once her clothes had dried, Du Xuan asked the small snake demoness to turn her back again, before swiftly getting dressed.

“Young Mistress, you should sleep beneath this damaged temple statue,” she suggested. “I’ll take the other end.”

“Alright.”

Traveling in the wilderness offered no luxuries; sleeping on the ground was a common occurrence. Du Xuan unbuckled her sword, placing it within reach, and lay down, preparing to drift off.

Then.

Yin Luan also lay down beside her.

“Hey! What are you doing?!”

Du Xuan was startled, even forgetting to use the polite address of ‘Young Mistress.’

“Sleeping,” the small snake demoness replied, resting her head on her hand as she lay on her side. “I’m afraid of the cold, so I have to sleep in the warmest spot.”

“Fine then… I’ll sleep at the other end.”

Du Xuan quickly got up and moved to the space beneath the damaged statue.

The small snake demoness followed her.

“What is the meaning of this?”

The corners of the Demon Suppression Bureau official’s mouth twitched.

“The warmest spot,” Yin Luan stated with a straight face, “is right next to you. If we sleep together, we can better resist if evildoers appear.”

“I retract what I said earlier,” Du Xuan muttered, her mouth twitching. “You truly ought to have more self-respect…”

Sleeping together was absolutely out of the question. To protect the reputation of a ‘pure young woman,’ Du Xuan even resorted to exclaiming, “If you push me any further, I’ll sleep outside!”

There was no other choice. Although the small snake demoness was somewhat displeased, she reluctantly agreed to Du Xuan’s demand.

Lying down across the fiercely burning bonfire, Du Xuan looked towards the enchanting beauty who preferred to curl up into a ball.

‘Had she been too harsh on her?’

‘Putting herself in Yin Luan’s shoes, having lost all her family and friends, she must be… incredibly lonely, mustn’t she? She probably yearned for someone to talk to.’

‘Alas, if only she were in a different capacity, perhaps she could offer some comfort…’

The warmth emanating from the fire gradually enveloped her weary body, and amidst her scattered thoughts, Du Xuan slowly drifted into sleep.

****

The following morning, the heavy rain had ceased.

“W-what are you doing?!”

A sharp, indignant cry erupted, startling the birds perched on the eaves, sending them scattering in all directions.

“Mm,” Yin Luan mumbled, rubbing her eyes as she groggily replied, “I’m sleeping…”

“I knew something felt off last night,” Du Xuan exclaimed, her hands trembling with indignation. “When did you secretly move closer?!”

“I don’t know, maybe sometime in the latter half of the night. It was too cold, and I automatically seek out warm places… You don’t mind, do you?”

“I-I mind very much!”

****

Yin Luan believed she had done nothing wrong.

Sleeping pressed against someone was indeed much warmer than lying alone on the ground, and she felt more invigorated upon waking.

“While it might make you feel a bit cold, think of it this way… holding a beautiful young woman like a blooming flower would also make your body warm up. The two effects would cancel each other out, meaning your body temperature wouldn’t change, right?”

“Nonsense, that’s all utter nonsense…”

Du Xuan fumed inwardly.

What the devil! She was someone who had passed the Demon Suppression Bureau’s rigorous assessment, meaning even three to five ordinary bandits couldn’t get close to her. When on solo missions, she maintained constant vigilance.

How, then, had someone managed to sneak up beside her in the middle of the night without her noticing?

‘It was fortunate that Yin Luan was also a young woman. What if it had been a…?’

“Enough,” Du Xuan said, smoothing her clothes and composing herself. “Let’s consider last night as if nothing happened. Young Mistress, please be more careful in the future. Not everyone can maintain their composure, especially with your… Well, I’ve said my piece. Take care.”

Outside the temple, the rain had stopped, and the muddy country path was difficult to traverse. She needed to hurry to Huaicheng. Even a slight delay could mean another murder case.

Du Xuan intended to leave.

But someone disagreed.

“You slept with me,” the small snake demoness said, tugging at Du Xuan’s clothes and tilting her head. “And you just want to walk away? As a public official of the Great Zhou Kingdom, isn’t that a bit too much?”

“?”

Upon hearing this preposterous accusation, Du Xuan froze.

‘Was she serious? Who was truly being excessive here?’

‘Who was it that crawled into someone’s space in the dead of night and lay down beside them?’

‘Was there no longer any law in the Great Zhou Kingdom?’

“I don’t care, I’m sticking to you,” Yin Luan declared. “Take me with you; I’m all alone anyway.”

“Young Mistress, I don’t have the time to continue this game with you…”

Du Xuan felt a splitting headache, yet she had to patiently explain.

“The Huaicheng murder case is my responsibility, assigned by the Demon Suppression Bureau. I truly don’t have the leisure to waste time squabbling with you.”

“I’ve also practiced martial arts,” the small snake demoness asserted, throwing two punches into the air. “I can easily protect myself if trouble arises; you don’t need to worry about me!”

“Is self-preservation really the issue here…?”

Du Xuan gazed at the woman before her, utterly speechless.

‘If only she had known, she wouldn’t have sought shelter from the rain yesterday… Yin Luan had kindly shared her fire and food, so now Du Xuan couldn’t possibly hit or scold her, could she? One couldn’t be ungrateful.’

‘However, the cases handled by the Demon Suppression Bureau were rarely ordinary; they weren’t something that could be resolved with a few punches and kicks.’

“I have some silver here,” she offered. “Perhaps you could…”

“Can a young woman’s purity be bought with money? If you were a young woman and someone offered you money, would you accept it?”

Yin Luan crossed her arms, turned her head to the side, and pouted as she spoke.

“My apologies…”

Du Xuan knew Yin Luan was twisting the facts, yet, in a certain sense, what she said wasn’t entirely wrong.

‘No wonder her master had told her to venture out and gain more experience… One simply couldn’t predict what kind of peculiar people they would encounter!’

“Alright then,” she reconsidered, after a moment of thought. “I can take you to Huaicheng, but after that, you must stop bothering me.”

She didn’t quite understand why Yin Luan was so persistent in following her.

‘Was it because Yin Luan had simply met someone she could talk to? Or perhaps she felt exceptionally safe staying by the side of a Demon Suppression Bureau official?’

Still, leaving a seemingly delicate young woman to travel alone in the wilderness felt, honestly, a little heartless.

Escorting her into the city, and then using her connections to help her settle into a decent place, would be a way to repay this ‘favor of half a biscuit,’ wouldn’t it?

“Yay!”

Yin Luan’s face lit up with a wide smile.

‘When to arrive was her decision. But when to leave? That wouldn’t be up to just one person’s opinion.’

Seeing Yin Luan’s jubilant expression, as if she couldn’t wait to pack her bags and depart immediately, Du Xuan felt both helpless and amused.

“Once we reach Huaicheng, I’ll treat you to a grand meal.”

“Alright!”

“And when we sleep at night, you’re not allowed to secretly snuggle up to me again.”

“Alright!”

“On the road, you must listen to me.”

“Alright!”

‘One ‘alright’ after another, but who knew how much good it would do when the time came…’

Having formed a companionship, the two set off together, focusing on their journey.

Five days later, they arrived in Huaicheng.

With the Demon Suppression Bureau’s token, Du Xuan easily brought Yin Luan into the city, yet the gazes from the city gate guards seemed rather strange.

“What’s wrong?”

Du Xuan asked, puzzled.

“Begging your pardon, Milady,” the guard whispered. “You may not be aware… but currently in Huaicheng, young women are no longer seen on the streets.”

“Why is that?”

“There’s a rumor in the city, or rather, it’s not just a rumor… That malevolent entity… the Face-Devouring Monster… it targets women who openly appear during the day. The more ostentatious they are, the more likely they are to suffer a terrible fate… Only women who stay quietly at home are spared…”