Nangong Wuyue adapted to her new environment even faster than Kevin expected. In fact, she had already become friends with Lily by the second day. Of course, the Husky's inherent naiveté and highly sociable nature also played a significant role.
Early in the morning, Kevin, as usual, was lounging on the living room sofa with a magazine in hand. Vivian was in the kitchen preparing breakfast for everyone, and Lily was already chatting with Nangong Wuyue about their travels. The two of them were as harmonious as could be. Lily held up a thin, age-looking book and pointed to an old photo. "Look, this is a photo of me wearing a cheongsam. It was all the rage back then!"
Kevin leaned in curiously to take a look. Sure enough, on the yellowed pages was a blurry black-and-white photo. It was one of those nostalgic, round-framed photos. A short-haired girl in a cheongsam stood neatly in the center of the frame, a sweet smile on her face. Her quiet demeanor radiated a scholarly air. It was exactly like Lily in her silent state: a literary young woman when she was quiet, but a husky when she spoke. Kevin stared at the old book, practically a relic, in amazement. "Wow, it's almost invisible."
"I'm quite impressive," Lily licked Kevin's finger and turned her head with a smug look. "May, May, did you take any souvenirs from your travels? I haven't been abroad much..."
Nangong Wuyue smiled faintly and shook her head slightly. "Sirens just like to travel, but they don't like to take anything away from a place. No matter how beautiful a scenery is, it's enough to just see it. There's no need to keep it with you forever. It's exhausting."
Kevin was still stunned. He glanced at his drool-stained index finger. It seemed that since Lily knew he was a Husky, she had become less and less willing to hide her instincts, a bit like a broken jar. He had just seen Lily squatting on the ground, scratching her face with her toes... Kevin wouldn't be surprised if she went to catch a mouse one day. At that moment, Vivian's voice rang from the kitchen: "Wash your hands! It's time for dinner!"
Lily, clutching Nangong Wuyue's hand, bounded towards the kitchen. Kevin and Y'zaks watched from behind, unable to resist muttering, "Looks like this idiot has finally found a new friend besides his dog."
At the dinner table, Nangong Wuyue marveled again at Vivian's cooking skills. She'd already marveled last night, and it still seemed a bit incredible: as a siren with a normal outlook, she found it hard to imagine how Vivian, a high-ranking vampire, had mastered so many human food preparation techniques. Lily, on the other hand, gnawed at a bone, the crunching sound remarkably loud: this was simply the result of her letting loose after getting to know everyone. She'd been a bit reserved during her first few days here, trying hard not to make any noise while eating. Now that everyone in the room knew she was a Husky, Lily felt free to let her true nature shine. "Would you like to go over to Raven in a couple of days?" Vivian bit her chopsticks. "Ask about the witchers."
Kevin was about to nod. A chair creaked from Nangong Wuyue's side, and the siren lurched, nearly falling. "Demon hunters?! You said there are demon hunters here?"
Vivian suspected Nangong Wuyue was frightened, so she quickly reassured her, "It's okay. We're strong here, and with a goddess backing us, demon hunters won't cause much trouble."
"But I got in a fight yesterday and nearly got killed," Lily mumbled, chewing on a bone. "It was the first time I'd ever seen a real demon hunter. They seemed so terrifying... Have you seen them before?"
Nangong Wuyue's expression was certainly grim. "Uh. How should I put it... I've dealt with them before, quite a few times. This is a real problem... So, are you really safe here? Are demon hunters going to show up?"
As the landlord and guardian of the place, Kevin felt a surge of responsibility. "Don't worry about it! After all, I'm a professional apprentice in the temporary staff of the village office of the Spacetime Administration. How can I guarantee your safety?" Kevin's words were so powerful that the entire roommates almost decided to check out for safety...
"Don't worry," Yzaks, the big brother figure, finally spoke to reassure them. "I have a rough idea of the power behind the landlord. While we're still unclear how they'll handle the planet's problems, they'll at least protect the safety of everyone in this house. Haha. Honestly, I think the demon hunters here are just a bunch of minor troublemakers, much easier to deal with than human warriors."
"Yzaks... Brother X, right?" Nangong Wuyue always had trouble remembering the strange names of the great demons. "I heard you're from another world? And the landlord. You said you're backed by the Space-Time Administration? And Vivian and Lily, you seem to have quite a story... I'm actually quite curious. What kind of group are you all?"
"You're asking this now?" Kevin was stunned. "Raven didn't tell you anything before?" "I didn't explain it clearly," Nangong Wuyue scratched her head. "At first, I just wanted to stay. I thought your place was just a small base like the Alien Sanctuary. I've encountered small societies like this before in America, but after talking to Lily and Vivian last night... it feels so complicated."
"...Raven 12345, that unreliable guy!" Kevin slapped his forehead. "You're a talented person, but you're so clueless and not afraid of falling into a fire pit. No wonder those sirens were either seduced or sold over a hundred years ago. Okay, let me take this opportunity to introduce you to the Space-Time Administration..."
Kevin was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly heard a clamoring voice in his head: "Kevin, Kevin, got this, please reply. Is this the number? Got this reply!"
Speaking of the devil, Raven 12345 suddenly contacted him. "I'm eating," Kevin said, shutting up and conversing with his boss in his head. He pointed upwards to remind everyone that a certain goddess was calling. "By the way, what's the meaning of suddenly throwing a siren here?"
"Siren? What sea... Oh, yeah, I remember. It was Nangong Wuyue, right? She finally wandered over to your place. What a stream-of-consciousness girl. Let me tell you, this siren is incredibly useful. It'll be perfect for your next mission. Come over to my place right away. I have an urgent mission. I'll tell you the details. You have to leave tomorrow!"
With that, Raven 12345 irresponsibly and unilaterally hung up the phone. "Goddess-sama is looking for you?" Y'zaks, despite being a demon, always respectfully added the word "sama" when referring to Raven 12345. Seeing Kevin's unhappy expression, he guessed, "Another sudden mission?"
"How can I live my life properly?" Kevin slapped his thigh. "I was beaten half to death yesterday, and today I haven't recovered yet, and you're saying there's an urgent mission. How inhumane!"
"There really is a mission!" Lily's head suddenly perked up a pair of silver-white animal ears, trembling with excitement. "Where are we going this time?"
Ever since her last trip to England, Lily had equated missions with the Space-Time Administration with going out, even though this was a strange place where she couldn't even adjust to the jet lag. "I don't know yet. She asked me to come over and hear the mission details. It seems urgent, and we're leaving tomorrow," Kevin sighed. Noticing Nangong Wuyue looking at him with curiosity, he shrugged. "I haven't had a chance to introduce them. Y'zaks can tell you about the Space-Time Administration and the multiverse later. He's quite knowledgeable about it."
"Oh," Nangong Wuyue nodded, her eyes brightening. "I feel like I've met a very interesting group of people! I'm looking forward to my future life!"
That's the straightforward Siren.
After finishing his meal, Kevin rushed out the door. There's no need to go into detail about what happened. After meeting Raven 12345, he hadn't had a chance to speak before he heard about the mission: "There's a new tenant, and this time... the landing site is off again. It's quite far off."
A sense of foreboding suddenly washed over Kevin: "...how far off?"
"Eight hundred and ninety-five light years."
"Holy crap..."