Outside, the world was completely swallowed by a thick curtain of night. Cold winds whistled softly, slipping through narrow cracks in the door and sneaking into the house. Yet that chill only seemed to heighten the rich appeal of the steaming bowl of egg noodles placed right in front of Lia.
The irresistible aroma of golden fried scallions and garlic blended with the sharp bite of ground chili made her swallow hard, her eyes glued to the bowl as if afraid it might disappear. Only when she saw Long pick up his chopsticks did she hurriedly scoop up a spoonful of the deep red, piping hot broth. She blew on it gently, then drank it in one go. The gentle sweetness of the egg mixed with the tingling heat on her tongue sent a wave of pleasure through her entire body.
Lia lightly shook her leg, her hands fidgeting beneath the table like an excited child unable to sit still. Long looked up and caught sight of her wriggling with anticipation like an overeager caterpillar. He could not help but chuckle. In a moment of carelessness, he blurted out,
"You're really cute."
As if an antenna had locked onto the exact frequency, Lia's brain reacted instantly. She slammed her hand on the table and shot to her feet, shouting to cover up her embarrassment.
"Hey, what do you mean by that, brat?"
But her aggressive front fooled no one. Her cheeks were flushed red like ripe tomatoes, her small shoulders trembling slightly. Long understood immediately. This was not rejection but a system overload caused by sheer embarrassment. Not only did he not take back his words, he calmly added another sentence.
"I just think you're cute. Can't I compliment you?"
Lia froze completely. Her lips moved, but no sound came out. Her face burned bright red, unclear whether it was anger or overwhelming shyness, as she plunged into a fierce internal battle.
"Ahhh, this little punk dares to mess with me. I should teach him a lesson. But hitting him would be weird, and doing anything else would just make things even more awkward. Oh no, what do I do?"
"But… he actually is kind of cute. Thoughtful, gentle, kind, and even handsome. Wait, Lia, what are you thinking? No, no, no. There's no way he means anything by it, and I definitely don't either. It's just a naive compliment. Yes, that must be it. He was way too well behaved from the very beginning."
After that long and exhausting struggle, Lia was practically sweating bullets. She straightened up, pointed at Long, and put on the most serious expression she could manage.
"Listen carefully. You should know that saying things like that to a girl can easily make her misunderstand. So…"
"I do mean it," Long replied. "And you don't like it?"
His decisive answer hit like a delayed explosion, shattering Lia's entire worldview into pieces and flinging her mind into the empty void of the universe.
She collapsed back into her chair, her head spinning as if she had just taken a heavy blow.
"Uh… where am I, and who am I?"
Before she could recover, the warmth of the noodles drifted right up to her face, neatly held between the chopsticks Long was offering.
"Here…"
Lia startled and leaned back slightly, her flushed face staring at the food in disbelief.
"You… what are you trying to do now?"
Long smiled gently and explained in a soft voice.
"You don't know how to use chopsticks, right? Let me help. Eat quickly, or the noodles will get cold."
Lia fidgeted, her hands unconsciously twisting the hem of her shirt as her eyes darted around, trying to avoid his gaze. But the seductive aroma of the noodles quickly defeated her pride. In the end, she opened her mouth and accepted the noodles in reluctant surrender. Yet deep in her sparkling eyes, a small, blissful smile quietly bloomed.
…
A few minutes later, the bowl was completely empty. Lia sprawled comfortably on the sofa with a look of utter satisfaction. Long stood at the sink washing dishes and asked,
"Was it good?"
"So good. Seriously amazing. I usually never eat, who knew I'd been missing out on something this wonderful?" Lia replied lazily.
"So your race doesn't need to eat?"
"It's not that we don't need to. We absorb mana from the environment to survive, so things like taste and digestion never really developed like they did for humans."
Long suddenly recalled how she had shown almost no reaction when she ate the strawberry candy in the dungeon, completely unlike her colorful expressions while eating the egg noodles. Curious, he asked,
"Then what about your current form? Why do you look human?"
Lia hesitated before answering.
"Probably because I ran out of mana. Back in the dungeon, I used mindless casting to push you away, then used the last of my strength to restrain that giant serpent."
She gently touched her back, where a magnificent pair of wings should have been.
"Our wings are like mana cores," she sighed. "I had just awakened from hibernation and hadn't absorbed enough energy yet. Using even a little magic caused them to shatter completely."
Her gaze drifted into the distance, her expression growing solemn.
"And it's possible that the Demon King's Gate affected me while I was weakened, transforming me into this human form."
Long flinched, nearly dropping the bowl in his hands. He turned around in shock.
"What? That was the Demon King's Gate?"
Lia nodded slowly.
"Yes. If I'm not mistaken. The gods once told my group that the Demon King possessed a gate capable of sending people to any world."
She paused, her voice lowering.
"That's also why Alex gave everything he had to defeat him. Just to find a way back home."
She looked toward the portrait, smiling gently with a hint of sadness.
"You finally found peace, didn't you, Alex?"
Long quietly sat down beside her, staring up at the ceiling, feeling that everything was far more insane than he could have ever imagined. His gaze drifted to her slender back as he asked with concern,
"So… will you lose your wings forever?"
Lia shook her head softly.
"No. It's only temporary. For my kind, absorbing mana from the environment is enough to restore them."
She glanced around the room.
"But I can't sense any mana here at all. So for now, I'm no different from an ordinary girl in your world."
As she spoke, she gave Long a meaningful look, then quickly looked away.
Lia yawned, her exhaustion clearly showing.
"I'm sleepy. I'll tell you the rest tomorrow."
Only then did Long realize he had not prepared a place for her to sleep. He rushed off with a vacuum cleaner and launched an emergency cleaning operation in the guest room. By the time he led Lia inside, the room was filled with the soothing scent of eucalyptus wood, comfortable and cozy, no different from a hotel.
He fussed around attentively.
"I made you some honey tea. It'll help you sleep. My room is right next door, so just call me if you need anything. There's a lock on the desk, you can lock the door if you're worried about me sneaking in. Oh, I'll turn on the air conditioner too. Do you need an extra blanket? I…"
A soft kiss landed on his cheek.
Long's legs nearly gave out. His heart pounded like a war drum, his entire face turning red. Lia placed a finger on his lips and spoke sweetly.
"Good boy. Sleep well."
She pushed him outside and closed the door. With his heart racing this violently, there was no way Long was getting any sleep tonight.
…
In truth, that night, there were not one but two people who lay awake, unable to close their eyes.