Lu Xiaoxiao walked up to him and gently waved her hand in front of his face. A hint of apology colored her expression.
“There was… originally a less bloody way to resolve this. But for your safety, shooting her first to take away her mobility was the safer choice…”
It took Lin Cheng several seconds to snap out of his daze. He shook his head. “It’s fine. I’ve watched plenty of gory, twisted movies before. It’s just… I might have nightmares tonight…”
Lu Xiaoxiao crooked her finger, and an ice lance floated over to Lin Cheng. It promptly melted into clear water, washing the bloodstains from his cheeks. The blood had soiled not only his face but his clothes as well. Lu Xiaoxiao looked at him, her voice softening considerably. “Take off your shirt.”
Lin Cheng obeyed like a good boy. He pulled off his shirt, still lost in the horror of what he’d just witnessed. He watched as a floating globe of water enveloped his T-shirt. The bloodstains soon separated from the fabric and were rinsed clean. Lu Xiaoxiao handed the shirt back to him. Lin Cheng peered at her cooperatively, curiosity lighting his eyes. “Is this your ability?”
“Mm. I control water elements and extremely low temperatures.”
“Sounds cool.”
Lu Xiaoxiao’s gaze lingered on him. Lin Cheng had always seemed fairly slim, but his bare torso—scars aside—was surprisingly well-proportioned. On a sudden whim, she reached out and ran her hand over his abs. Lin Cheng jumped back a step, clutching his chest with both arms. “What was that for?”
“Nice body.” The corner of Lu Xiaoxiao’s mouth curved up.
“Skinny guys get abs easily.” Lin Cheng hurriedly tugged his T-shirt back on. Then he glanced at the woman frozen solid nearby. After a moment of silence, he asked softly, “She’s dead… right?”
“Once the bloodsucking bug parasitizes someone, they’re as good as dead. For the first three months, they might retain fragments of human consciousness. But as it feeds on blood, the bug seizes control of their mind. Everything you saw and heard was the bug mimicking human behavior, learned from her memories. When the bug leaves her body, she dies. So… yes, unfortunately.”
“If the bug inherits all her memories, doesn’t that make it her?”
“That’s a philosophical question… not one we need to dwell on. If she were still alive, there would be another victim. Even a single small bloodsucking bug like this one has killed thousands on record. The instant it parasitizes a host, killing the bug kills the host too. There’s no way to separate them.” Lu Xiaoxiao’s lashes lowered slightly. She understood Lin Cheng’s point, but she had no answer for him.
She had wrestled with similar questions herself in the past. But they were pointless to ponder. Most everything about Catastrophes remained a mystery.
As they talked, several Adjudicators in Alliance uniforms came running toward them. Lu Xiaoxiao turned to give them a report on the mission. The exchange took nearly ten minutes. Afterward, she returned to Lin Cheng’s side and patted his shoulder. “Come on. They’ve got it from here.”
“Oh… right.” Lin Cheng came back to himself and followed Lu Xiaoxiao out of the park. He muttered suddenly, “One of those guys who showed up… felt like he was staring at me the whole time.”
“He’s after me,” Lu Xiaoxiao said flatly.
“What? A rival in love!” Lin Cheng’s eyes flew wide in exaggerated shock. Lu Xiaoxiao blinked, then let out a sudden laugh. “What, you want to chase me too?”
But when she turned to look at him, she saw his horror was pure theatrics.
“…Pass.” Lin Cheng shook his head. “What if you catch me stepping out one day and turn me into an ice sculpture too?”
Lu Xiaoxiao reached out and pinched his waist. “As if I’d say yes even if you tried.”
They had already exited the park, and the street was far from deserted. Lu Xiaoxiao glanced up at him. “You helped me out a ton. For assisting on this mission, the Alliance can award you a badge if you want one.”
Lin Cheng shook his head. “Nah. Any real rewards?”
A badge held no appeal for him.
“You want money?” Lu Xiaoxiao studied him.
“Eh… Money’s only good up to a point. Not that meaningful.”
“Then what do you want?” Lu Xiaoxiao tilted her head up to meet his eyes.
“I have a feeling I’ll be too wired to sleep tonight…”
“Go die.” Lu Xiaoxiao’s voice turned frosty in an instant.
Lin Cheng stared at her in bewilderment. “Why tell me to drop dead out of nowhere?”
Lu Xiaoxiao crossed her arms, which only accentuated the generous curve of her chest. She fixed Lin Cheng with a cool gaze—the kind that said, You think I don’t know what was running through your head?
“I just wanted to ask…” Lin Cheng hesitated. “Could you give me a hug?”
“Why should I?” Lu Xiaoxiao lifted her chin. “Give me a good reason.”
“Hugs… make people feel safe.” Lin Cheng’s voice was small.
Lu Xiaoxiao paused, looking at him. Gone was his usual playful smirk; now he sounded almost timid, like a lost little boy. For some inexplicable reason, her heart softened.
Maybe it was her maternal instincts kicking in.
“Fine… one hug.” Lu Xiaoxiao turned her face away.
Lin Cheng stepped up to her.
They stood right under a streetlamp amid a thinning crowd. He took one more step forward, and their shadows merged on the pavement.
His embrace was feather-light, his hands resting chastely on her waist. He dipped his head slightly, resting his chin on her shoulder as he inhaled the faint scent of her perfume. “You still haven’t told me… what perfume you wear.”
“If fate lets us meet again, I’ll give you a bottle.”
“Fate-dependent, huh?”
“Didn’t you say… we’re fated? So we’ll see if there’s a next time.”
“Okay.” Lin Cheng nodded softly. A long moment passed before he reluctantly pulled away. He looked at Lu Xiaoxiao. “Night snack? Food street’s just ahead.”
“You’ve got an appetite?” Lu Xiaoxiao eyed him curiously.
“I usually watch gore videos over meals.”
“You looked pretty spaced out back there.”
“Like I said, movies are one thing—reality hits different. First time seeing that stuff up close… big impact.”
The sight of the blood had triggered a flood of flashbacks for Lin Cheng, leaving him dazed for a moment. He’d been actively treating his PTSD for years now, and it had improved a lot.
Chatting as they went, they reached the food street. Lu Xiaoxiao grabbed some cold noodles, while Lin Cheng returned with two cups of lemon water. They claimed a relatively clean table and ordered some grilled skewers.
“Speaking of…” Lin Cheng took a bite of his pork belly skewer and mumbled around it. “Why are you dressed so… youthful?”
Lu Xiaoxiao drew a deep breath, then flashed him a smile.
“What do you mean by that?”
Crap. Landmine.
“No, wait—I just remember… JK uniforms are high school girl stuff, right…?”
“I’m twenty-one. Can’t I wear one?” Lu Xiaoxiao bit into a pat of butter, though her tone came out gritted.
“That’s not—I mean, you look… really good in it.” Lin Cheng course-corrected on a dime. “I see tons of girls rocking JKs with black stockings, and they give off this sleazy vibe. But on you… it’s super cute.”
Calling a girl sexy could backfire, but cute was usually safe.
Lu Xiaoxiao’s irritation ebbed a little. “Pervy rating guy. What I wear is none of your business.”
Lin Cheng gave a helpless laugh and chugged a big gulp of his lemon water.
They polished off some barbecue at the stall and downed their iced lemon waters. By then, it was well past midnight. They reached the crossroad, where they were supposed to grab separate taxis home.
“You go ahead. I’m not heading home.”
“Hm?”
“Mom will just lecture me. Too annoying. I’ll crash at the Esports Hotel.”
“Oh…”
Lin Cheng nodded but fell silent. Lu Xiaoxiao felt a flicker of surprise. She’d half-expected him to smoothly invite himself along.
Not that she’d have said yes.
The taxi pulled up.
Lin Cheng called her name softly. “Lu Xiaoxiao.”
“Hm?” She turned her head.
Lin Cheng stood a short distance away. He clasped his hands together and rubbed them furiously, his face a mask of dramatic sweatiness. But in a motion too quick for her eyes to catch, a single red rose appeared in his hand.
He held it out to her.
Lu Xiaoxiao’s eyes flashed with sudden panic. She whipped her face away and refused to take the rose. “The bet’s over. You lost…”
“I know. Just saw some flowers roadside and grabbed one for you.”
The taxi had arrived. Lin Cheng flagged it down and added, “A whole bouquet would’ve been too pricey anyway.”
He opened the door. “Heading home first. See you again if fate allows.”
Lu Xiaoxiao stood at the roadside, her fingers lightly clutching the red rose. She watched the taxi drive off, lost in thought for a moment. Then she tucked a wind-tossed strand of hair behind her ear and broke into a smile.
Ten minutes later, the taxi came to a stop.
Lin Cheng arrived at the edge of a lake.
It had once been a scenic spot, but this section lay abandoned. Waves slapped rhythmically against the steps. Lin Cheng stood there, as if waiting for something.
He waited perhaps ten minutes, maybe twenty.
Then he turned to face the men and women emerging one by one from the shadows. He counted: seven in total.
These were the prey marked by the bloodsucking bug that had latched onto him earlier. After all, a meal like Lin Cheng was too much for one bug alone. Bloodsucking bugs were a communal species, generous with their shares.
They could share visions and prey marks. Those facing him now were bugs that had either completed one evolution or were on the cusp—only they qualified to partake in this mark. Lin Cheng’s mind drifted back to that earlier question. If the bugs inherited every last memory, what truly separated them from their original hosts? Memories were the proof of a person’s existence.
“They can no longer be called human. They’ve lost the ability to suppress their urges.”
In his reverie, Lin Cheng seemed to hear the faint words of a departed friend, soft as a dream whisper, soon lost to the wind.
That friend’s little sister had been parasitized by a bloodsucking bug. Before she could fully evolve, he’d ended her himself.
Lin Cheng touched the small ear clip on his left ear— a storage earring crafted from Lemon’s spatial powers. From it, he drew a pitch-black handgun, its magazine loaded with exactly seven explosive bullets.
Humans parasitized by bloodsucking bugs possessed more than three times an adult’s strength and speed. But all Lin Cheng did was raise his arm, fire, raise, fire. Seven muffled shots rang out. Each explosive bullet struck true, obliterating the bug in every brain. Blood pooled across the ground. He holstered the handgun, pulled out his phone, and called Litchi.
“North City, Mandarin Duck Lake. Send a cleanup crew.”
