Chapter 134: Just a Little Fantasy

Evran sat on the sofa, holding Su Xiaoxiao in her arms,
her hands kneading the fluffy cat ears on top of the girl’s head.

For a moment, she seemed completely lost in thought.

Su Xiaoxiao, meanwhile, wore an utterly lifeless expression,
resigned to being hugged and head-petted,
waiting for the moment Evran finally got tired of it so she could escape.

Suddenly — as if a lightbulb had just gone off in her mind —
Evran stared blankly out the window and murmured dreamily:

“Xiaoxiao… did you dye your hair yesterday?
How come it’s all green and shiny?”

“No. It’s still silver-white.
You’re the one who’s colorblind.”

Su Xiaoxiao reached up and stroked her own silky silver hair,
her tone dripping with sarcasm.

“Eh— ehehe… ehehehehehehe…”

Evran’s fingers kept pinching the cat ears,
and the longer she pinched, the more that creepy, delighted giggle escaped her lips.

Su Xiaoxiao jolted.
She suddenly felt that escaping from Evran’s arms right now would be an excellent idea.

“Are you really that happy about the new girl liking you?”

Su Xiaoxiao tossed out the question casually,
without any deeper meaning.

“No no no! I’m just thinking about the future!
Xiaoxiao pouting cutely, cheeks puffed out,
clinging to my arm while glaring jealously at your love rival —
ahhh~ is this heaven?
I feel like I’m going to faint from sheer happiness!”

Evran clenched her small fists against her chest,
lost in her own sugary-sweet delusion,
and unconsciously hugged the girl in her lap even tighter.

Su Xiaoxiao stared at her with the deadpan look one reserves for complete idiots,
then spoke in a flat, emotionless voice:

“Stop fantasizing about things that will never happen.”

“Eh?! But you just said the new girl, Little Night, likes me!
Doesn’t that automatically make you two love rivals?!”

Wow.
Talk about a quick change in attitude.
Just moments ago she was ready to start a life-or-death battle,
and now she was already calling her “Little Night-chan.”

“What love rivals?
I don’t even like you.
I’ve never confessed.
I’ve never pursued you.
On what grounds am I suddenly supposed to be someone’s love rival?”

“Here we go again~ My little tsundere~”

“Tch————”

Several thick black lines instantly dropped down Su Xiaoxiao’s face.
Her soft pink fist clenched so tightly it trembled.
She very much wanted to deliver a Dream-Wake-Up Punch straight to Evran’s face right now.

No longer willing to serve as a hugging pillow,
she struggled free from the embrace,
leapt off the sofa in one smooth motion,
slipped on her cotton slippers,
and headed straight toward the study.

A new Exterminator had arrived.
That would surely bring new information.

The previous attack by the Rose Legion on Tantan City
didn’t feel like something that could be so easily resolved.
There might still be hidden dangers lurking.

It would be best to listen in and gather as much intelligence as possible.

Seeing Su Xiaoxiao heading toward the study,
Evran’s eyes suddenly sparkled like stars.
With an expression full of anticipation she asked:

“Is Xiaoxiao going to fight your love rival to the death
so you can claim exclusive rights over me?”

“I already told you — that’s not happening.
Stop making up delusions.
I’m just going to listen to the situation.”

As Su Xiaoxiao’s figure disappeared behind the doorframe,
Evran clutched her own chest with both hands,
looking deeply wronged, and muttered to herself:

“Ah… so hurtful…
Xiaoxiao is so cold to me…
but I love this side of her the most.”

Su Xiaoxiao: Who (meow) is insulting you?!

Evran: Hurry up and act like a love rival already!!!

Su Xiaoxiao: I’m telling you I really don’t care!
Who even likes you!!!

Inside the study, the atmosphere was completely different from the nonsense happening outside.

There was a computer in the room,
storing a large amount of information related to Su Xiaoxiao.

After Tina and Butterfly Night finished their introductions,
the mood turned… strange.

Serious.

“After the Rose Legion’s defeat,
have any unusual phenomena appeared in Tantan City?”

“For the time being, no strange incidents have occurred.
The Orderly Enclosure has also been repaired.
Enemies of the Bloodkin should no longer be able to enter the central city.”

“On the surface, it looks peaceful…”

Butterfly Night placed the large cello case containing her weapon on her left side,
biting her thumb while staring downward in deep thought.

“On the surface? What do you mean?
Has Headquarters discovered some crisis that hasn’t been resolved yet?”

“Yes.
According to last night’s urgent intelligence,
a very serious latent threat still exists inside Tantan City.
In various districts of the central area,
there have been fluctuations of Abyssal Beast aura.”

“Various districts?!
But I haven’t heard of any incidents!
What’s going on?”

Su Xiao Zi stood up from her chair and glanced at Tina.
Tina immediately understood and quickly checked recent surrounding reports —
no records of casualties or similar incidents.

Butterfly Night shook her head and answered:

“For now, neither I nor Headquarters personnel have figured out the truth.
We only discovered it last night.
It will take some time to investigate.
We can sense the Abyssal Beasts’ aura fluctuations…
yet we can’t find even the slightest trace of them.
From the aura alone, it feels like the entire city is already occupied by them.”

“Then that’s extremely dangerous.
It means Abyssal Beasts could appear anywhere in the city at any moment.
How can we sense them everywhere yet find no trace?”

“I don’t know either.
I personally went to the central commercial district midway to investigate.
The aura is definitely present there,
yet the streets are bustling and peaceful as usual.
I searched every alley — nothing strange at all.”

This kind of situation had never happened before.
To sense the aura but be unable to touch the entity itself —
it was an unprecedented anomaly with no known solution yet.

All the Exterminators stationed in this city were currently tearing their hair out.
They had to remain constantly ready for battle,
open Imaginary Space in the shortest possible time after an attack,
and annihilate the enemy with minimal collateral damage.

“Moreover, I discovered that the Abyssal Beast aura can only be sensed in the central urban area.
The range isn’t very large.
In other districts — such as right here — there’s absolutely no fluctuation.
At least we can delineate the threat zone for now.
That makes things a little easier to manage.”

Butterfly Night tugged the brim of her cap downward.
She already had a plan in mind:
tonight, she would head to the central commercial district and stay on high alert.

Who the enemy was,
where they would appear from,
what they were plotting —
everything was still unknown.

The only thing they could do was prepare for sudden changes,
so they wouldn’t be caught completely off guard.

“If there’s anything you need, Tina and I will fully cooperate.
After all, protecting this city is also my responsibility.”

“Mm. I heard about it, Instructor Su Xiaoxiao.
During the battle against the Rose Legion last time,
when the gap in strength was so overwhelming,
you still bravely stepped forward to buy time for reinforcements.
I greatly admire that.
I will also do everything in my power to protect this city.
For now, the priority is to figure out the cause of the Abyssal Beast aura as soon as possible.”

“Yeah… you’re right.
What exactly is going on…?”

At that moment,
Su Xiaoxiao — who had been eavesdropping outside the study door the entire time —
pushed the door open and walked in.

She crossed her legs, folded her arms across her chest,
and leaned lazily against the doorframe in a very casual pose.

“Indeed, Big Brother still needs to continue my training plan.
That posture is way too unladylike, come on!”

Then, without any warning,
she spoke a single sentence that struck like thunder from a clear sky,
causing both Butterfly Night and Su Xiao Zi to freeze on the spot.

“You people…
have you organized anyone to investigate underground?”