The sound, carried by the cold wind, drifted into the room.
Xia Xiaoling stood at the doorway, staring at the two of them tangled together, her mind momentarily blank.
Vivi jolted, her sense of shame nearly exploding, her face flushed red down to her neck.
Wu Menghan only then slowly woke up, and upon seeing her current state, she too blushed slightly.
She hurriedly got off Vivi, quickly put on her clothes, and tried her best to keep a calm expression, as if nothing had happened.
“Ahem, Teacher Xia, please don’t misunderstand, I tend to move around in my sleep.”
Xia Xiaoling nodded suspiciously, strange images from certain books flashing in her mind.
She gave an awkward cough, trying to keep her composure, then glanced at the little loli on the bed, whose expression was one of utter despair. Xia Xiaoling’s heart softened a little.
“Vivi, let’s eat first, you… just rest for now.”
“Mm~”
Vivi replied weakly, not moving at all, really looking as though she’d been completely drained.
Seeing her like this, Xia Xiaoling gave Wu Menghan a complicated look, and quietly asked, “Wu Menghan, what did you do to her last night?”
“Ah? Ahem… nothing, really.”
Wu Menghan’s cheeks flushed a bit, looking rather bashful.
Once again, strange plotlines floated through Xia Xiaoling’s mind.
With a helpless sigh, she felt a bit out of touch with this generation.
Not wanting to dwell on it, the two of them simply ate breakfast and hurried out.
Today’s classes were pretty heavy, and it was also Friday.
Xia Xiaoling felt that Vivi staying in her house forever wasn’t a good solution.
She was still so young, she should be going to school.
But this was something she’d need to discuss with Vivi—she couldn’t handle another runaway episode.
“Teacher Xia, what are you thinking about?”
Wu Menghan noticed Xia Xiaoling deep in thought and asked curiously.
“Oh, it’s nothing. I was just thinking about what to do with Vivi going forward.
After all, she can’t live at my place forever.”
“I see…”
Wu Menghan understood Xia Xiaoling’s concerns.
She frowned, thinking for a while, then tentatively suggested,
“How about letting her live with me? I can take care of her. I’m the only one at home anyway.”
Xia Xiaoling’s gaze turned odd as she remembered that scene from this morning, and immediately shook her head. “Let’s not. I don’t think Vivi could handle it.” “?”
Wu Menghan slowly typed out a question mark, a bit confused by Xia Xiaoling’s meaning.
“Don’t worry about it, I’ll think of something for Vivi later.”
Xia Xiaoling tried to reassure her. Her own family was doing pretty well—fairly well-known in the old city, actually.
Maybe she could ask her family for some help.
After they left, Vivi took a long time to recover before she got up.
It wasn’t that she’d done anything with Wu Menghan last night; it was that she couldn’t accept what she’d been like last night.
It was just too embarrassing, so she didn’t dare go eat with them.
Now that things were quiet, she finally had time to think about the voice deep inside her heart.
That voice had only appeared after she’d come into contact with Eno. It shouldn’t really be her own thoughts.
“Not quite~”
Suddenly, that familiar voice sounded again, as if in response to Vivi’s inner doubts.
Vivi shivered, glancing around, but saw no one.
“What exactly are you?!”
She demanded, and the space before her twisted. A small figure suddenly appeared before her.
She looked exactly like Vivi, but her aura was completely different.
If Vivi was a fairy fallen into the mortal world, this girl was a demon from hell.
A pitch-black Lolita dress adorned with traces of blood, paired with those bewitching blood-red eyes, gave off an extremely chilling air.
A smile played at her lips as she reached out as if to cover Vivi’s hand.
Vivi took a step back, warily eyeing the little loli before her. “Who are you, really?!”
She demanded again. This time, the figure finally spoke.
“I am you, Vivi. We are one and the same.”
“Nonsense! I’m nothing like you!”
Vivi clenched her little pink fists, ice magic already gathering in her palm.
“Come now, don’t get so worked up. The magic essence in this world is awfully scarce anyway, and you can’t hurt me.”
Vivi didn’t reply. She flicked her wrist, and an ice crystal shot at the little loli.
A perfect strike, but the ice crystal passed right through her.
The figure slowly faded, as if everything before her had been a mere illusion.
For a moment, Vivi felt a deep chill. Her attack had no effect. Just what was that thing?
A ghost? Or perhaps her own hallucination?
Almost as if answering Vivi’s question, the voice suddenly sounded from behind her.
“I told you, I am you, and you are me. We’re just separated by Big Sister.”
A chill ran down Vivi’s spine. She spun around, launching an elbow behind her.
Yet it hit nothing—there was nothing there.
Powerlessness surged in her chest, and a trace of fear appeared in Vivi’s eyes.
“Stop! Don’t talk! I am NOT you!”
The shadow appeared once more, gazing at the startled little loli with a hint of pain in her eyes.
This time, she didn’t speak. She simply moved beside Vivi and pulled her into a gentle embrace.
“Don’t be afraid, I won’t hurt you.”
Vivi didn’t say anything, but she knew what she meant—referring to those tempting thoughts from before.
A strange smile curled on the shadow’s lips as she spoke softly.
“I’m actually you, fully slimesized. Those humans are nothing but food to us.”
“Shut up!”
Vivi shook her head wildly, breaking free of her grip and rushing to the door—just as someone knocked.
Her expression froze, then shifted to one of delight.
At this time, it had to be Irena. The blood-red Vivi watched, shook her head helplessly, and finally faded away.
***
The door opened, and a breeze lifted the silver hair of the girl entering the room.
She glanced at the delighted Vivi, frowning slightly. Something felt off.
“Vivi, what were you just doing?”
“N-nothing, just… there’s a voice in my head telling me to eat you…”
Vivi looked away, a bit guilty. Irena seemed to understand.
Vivi hadn’t been completely taken over yet, but if left unchecked, she might be swallowed up by her own instincts.
“Don’t worry, that’s why I’m here.”
As she spoke, Irena took a bag of candies out of her pocket.
“What’s this?”
Vivi tilted her head, curiously eyeing the contents of the bag.
“Something to suppress your instincts. Just eat one.”
Vivi took the bag of candies, opened one up, and saw a half-transparent little piece that looked just like the cheap candies sold on street corners.