"Um, let's go to the shopping mall,"
Yu Zhou quickly said to the taxi driver.
After all, Camearra didn't know the exact location or the name of the place. No matter how anyone asked her, she couldn't have answered.
"Oh."
The taxi driver glanced at the beautiful girl in the back seat who hadn't responded to him, then at the young man beside her—who looked to him like some pampered pretty boy. He gave a cold "oh" and stepped on the gas.
It was as if the driver wanted to vent his frustration at not being able to talk to the beautiful girl—so he pressed the accelerator hard, and the taxi shot forward like a bullet.
To make things worse, he rolled down Yu Zhou's window without warning.
The rushing wind howled into Yu Zhou's face, whipping his hair into a mess.
Although Yu Zhou was long used to speeds far faster than this, the driver's petty behaviour was clearly a provocation.
Just as Camearra's patience reached its limit and she was about to act, a thin blade of light silently shot out from Yu Zhou's side of the window. It spun outward, then arced back—shattering the driver's window into pieces.
CRACK—CRASH!
The driver slammed the brakes, tires screeching, and the taxi came to a sudden halt by the roadside. Sweat beaded on his forehead—he had no idea what had just happened.
"H-how did the glass just break?!"
"Did something hit the car?!"
He got out, trembling slightly. There was even a thin cut on his cheek where the glass had grazed him, but he was too shocked to feel the pain—he just stared blankly at the shattered window.
Yu Zhou and Camearra got out of the taxi as well.
The driver barely looked at Yu Zhou; his attention was entirely on Camearra. After one more glance at her flawless face, he seemed to think to himself that even if the window broke, it was worth it.
"Let's switch to another car," Yu Zhou sighed helplessly.
It seemed Camearra's appearance really did attract trouble everywhere they went.
Still, to Yu Zhou, such small incidents were nothing worth worrying about.
With his sharp eyes, he soon spotted another taxi nearby—this one driven by a woman—and waved it down.
To avoid further unnecessary attention, the two of them got in.
"You're such a pretty little sister!"
The female driver smiled warmly at Camearra after they sat down, though there was a trace of envy in her eyes.
"Young man, is she your sister?" she asked Yu Zhou curiously.
"Uh… no."
Yu Zhou froze, not expecting that kind of question, and answered awkwardly.
"Then you're really lucky," the driver teased, her smile deepening as if she understood something.
After Yu Zhou told her their destination, the car started off again.
Nothing else happened along the way, and the two soon arrived at the shopping mall safely.
As they entered the clothing area, Yu Zhou and Camearra's presence immediately drew attention.
Most gazes naturally fell on Camearra.
Under those curious stares, Yu Zhou helped her pick out a few sets of clothes.
The colour pink—of course—was her choice.
Even dressed in something as simple as a light pink T-shirt, Camearra's unique charm couldn't be hidden.
Her noble, mature beauty was replaced by the youthful radiance of a young girl.
No one there could have imagined that behind this lively, innocent appearance was a soul that had lived for thirty million years.
"…That's terrifying," Yu Zhou murmured before he realized it.
"What did you say?"
Camearra leaned close, her tone carrying a dangerous edge.
"N-no, I said… you're too cute!" Yu Zhou quickly covered up, forcing a grin.
"Hmph."
Camearra placed her hands on her hips, puffing up her cheeks in mock anger like a schoolgirl.
Yu Zhou nearly ascended to heaven on the spot.
"Well? Don't you think I'm cute?"
Seeing his dazed expression, Camearra gave him a knowing smile.
"Y-yeah… you are," Yu Zhou admitted, still slightly stunned.
Around them, several men were frozen as well, staring at Camearra as though struck by lightning.
"Judging by the clothes you picked for me," Camearra said as she slipped her hand into Yu Zhou's, "I can tell exactly what you're thinking."
She then placed her shopping bags into his other hand.
Yu Zhou gave a helpless laugh. Even when dressed like an innocent girl, Camearra was still… Camearra.
Her personality hadn't changed a bit.
The men who had been staring finally snapped back to reality when they saw Camearra holding Yu Zhou's hand. Each silently cursed Yu Zhou for being a "lucky pretty boy" before walking away.
Some of them, who were accompanied by girlfriends, earned sharp pinches for their wandering eyes—yelping in pain on the spot.
"There's a car dealership nearby," Yu Zhou said as they walked hand in hand through the mall. "Let's buy a car."
After the taxi incidents, Yu Zhou figured it was best to have his own transportation from now on.
There was another problem—his train ticket home.
Today happened to be the school's start-of-holiday day. He had only bought one ticket before, but now that Camearra was here, it obviously wasn't enough.
Opening the train app, he saw the worst—no tickets available.
He could try the "rush ticket" option, but it rarely worked.
Besides, Camearra had no legal identity in this world. She couldn't buy a ticket even if she wanted to.
"This is such a headache…" Yu Zhou sighed, scratching his head.
Driving home after buying a car? Possible, but it would take far too long—the university was quite a distance from his hometown.
Flying back in Ultraman form? That would definitely get spotted by satellite, and once this world's people learned about Ultraman's existence, chaos could follow.
Even though Yu Zhou knew this world's crisis was fast approaching—and that soon, he would have no choice but to reveal himself—
right now was not the time to expose the truth.
"It seems… I'll have to use that method," he muttered finally.
Later, after buying a decent-looking car, Yu Zhou drove Camearra back to his small, run-down house.
He was no longer just the tenant—he'd bought the place outright.
The reason he couldn't abandon it was because the location of the spatial vortex remained uncertain.
Camearra lay on Yu Zhou's narrow bed, casually scrolling through her new phone.
Of course, the SIM card had been registered using Yu Zhou's ID.
Yu Zhou lay beside her, arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling—lost in thought.