“Ahhhhh! What is this?!”
Ange’s scream nearly blew the roof off, a world apart from her usual lazy or stern demeanor.
She flailed her hands in a panic, as if what had splashed on her was not a liquid, but some kind of flesh-melting acid.
Her delicate face was scrunched up in utter disbelief and terror—a look that hadn’t appeared even when she faced the most monstrous demons.
She swore, she’d rather take on the Seven Demon Kings of Hell all at once than face this…
Huayin, who had just finished “giving birth” and was now weakly lying on the bed, witnessed the scene and somehow managed to squeeze out a mocking, cold smile on her pale face.
“Heh… cough cough… it’s just… some body fluid… Look how scared you are… With guts like that… still calling yourself the number one Demon Hunter?”
She was panting, her words broken and halting, but her disdain remained undiminished.
Ange snapped her head around to glare at her, not even caring about the sticky liquid still dripping from her face, and shot back angrily.
“Body fluid?! Easy for you to say! Do you have any idea which part of your body this stuff just sprayed from?! How is this the same?!”
She cradled the still-warm, milky Egg as if it were a scalding hot potato, hurrying to place it gingerly on a prepared bath towel—the speed of someone disarming a bomb.
The next instant, she all but stumbled into the Bathroom in the room, slamming the door shut behind her and immediately starting to wash up.
Splash—splash—splash.
A fierce stream of water sounded from inside, and it didn’t sound like she was washing her face, but rather scrubbing away some incriminating evidence.
Huayin could even picture Ange burying her face under the running water, desperately wishing she could scrub off a layer of skin. Heh, it must look hilarious.
After a long while, the sound of water finally ceased, and the door to the Bathroom creaked open. Ange emerged, silver hair drenched and dripping.
Water droplets trickled from the tips of her hair down her cheeks, soaking the collar of her shirt.
With no towel in sight, she could only swipe a hand roughly across her face, but stubborn strands of hair still clung to her cheeks and neck, getting in her way.
With a hint of impatience, she clicked her tongue, then simply thrust both hands into her bangs and swept all the damp silver hair back, exposing her face completely.
She did it with a casual, almost imperceptibly roguish air.
In that instant, Huayin’s heart thudded as if something had knocked against it.
Without the cover of bangs, Ange’s smooth, full forehead and flawless facial lines were revealed in their entirety.
Her wet silver hair, slicked back, made those violet eyes of hers all the more striking, as if they hid some unfathomable abyss.
Droplets traced the elegant arch of her brow and the bridge of her nose, falling at the corner of lips still tinted with a shy, embarrassed flush.
Usually, that slightly messy silver hair gave her a laid-back, decadent vibe, but with it all swept away, she radiated a sharp, pure beauty—an androgynous, nearly predatory allure.
…What the hell…
Huayin stared blankly, her mind a blank slate, and she subconsciously muttered aloud.
“…A person who used to be a man, turned into a woman… actually looks this… what a waste… If you don’t become a succubus, it’s a real pity…”
Her voice was soft, but in the silence of the room, it was more than enough for Ange to hear.
Ange froze, her hands still in her hair, and looked at Huayin in surprise, as if she hadn’t expected such a comment.
A deeper awkwardness and helplessness colored her face.
She let her hands drop, allowing a few strands of hair to fall back over her forehead, trying to mute that blinding brilliance.
“Enough nonsense…” Ange turned away, her voice a little hoarse.
The storm seemed to have passed for the moment. Huayin took a deep breath, summoned what little strength she had, and pointed to a refined Wooden Box in the corner of the room.
“Put the Egg… in there.”
Ange did as she was told, carefully wiping the Egg clean with a bath towel, then gently placed it into the Wooden Box lined with soft silk.
Huayin watched her silently, her gaze complicated and unreadable.
That Egg could contain her child, or it could contain nothing at all.
But whatever the case, everything that happened this night could never be taken back.
Once the Egg was safely stored, Huayin struggled to get out of bed.
Ange instinctively stepped forward, reaching out to steady her swaying body.
“Don’t touch me.” Huayin sharply shook off her hand, her tone biting, though the movement made her stagger even more.
She steadied herself and lifted her head defiantly, her eyes burning like twin flames, staring straight into Ange’s.
Ange grew flustered under that gaze.
There was so much in Huayin’s eyes: anger, grievance, stubbornness, and something else—something muddled, born from the momentary lapse they had just shared, that Ange dared not probe.
This number one Demon Hunter, who’d once faced armies without blinking, for the first time in her life, looked away when meeting someone’s eyes.
She… couldn’t bring herself to meet Huayin’s gaze. That stare was just too intense…