The bathroom door opened with a click.
Himeko walked out in her slippers, flip-flop, flip-flop, wiping her still-dripping hands.
Although she had mostly sobered up, the headache from the hangover clearly left her with little patience.
As soon as she looked up, she saw the scene in the living room—
Su Yu was handing a pen to the white-haired girl, and the girl was lying prone on the sofa, solemnly signing that crumpled piece of paper.
No matter how one looked at it, the scene resembled the signing of some unequal treaty.
"Yo-ho." Himeko raised one eyebrow, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall. "What play are we singing this early in the morning? Signing a deed of indenture to pay off debts?"
"Cough, cough, cough—"
Su Yu almost choked to death on his own saliva.
"Sister Himeko, can't you wish me something good?"
He helplessly put away that "Project Proposal," his movements so fast it looked like he was hiding contraband.
"This is... um, a labor contract! It's legal."
"Tch, I was just saying whatever. What are you nervous about?"
Himeko rolled her eyes, but her gaze did not shift away from Kiana.
She took two steps closer, her line of sight landing on the girl's exposed wrists and neck.
Because it was too chaotic just now, she hadn't looked carefully. Now that she was closer, she discovered that this girl was covered in old injuries everywhere.
Those sections of pale wrists exposed outside the cuffs, and the bruises faintly visible under the collar, looked shocking under the bright fluorescent light.
Some wounds had formed dark brown scabs, while others still glowed a bleak purplish-red, like a ruined oil painting smeared onto this girl who should have been like a porcelain doll.
"I say..." Himeko frowned, her tone becoming serious. "What on earth is going on with these injuries? Don't tell me they're from falling. Can falling give you a battle-damaged skin?"
Kiana's hand holding the pen trembled violently. Her whole person was like a hedgehog that had been poked in a sore spot, stiffening instantly, and then she quickly shrank her hand back into that oversized sleeve.
She lowered her head, staring deathly at the gaps in the floorboards beneath her feet. Memory fragments regarding Honkai Beasts, mechs, and the dark corners of Arc City churned in her mind.
Yet not a single word could be spoken.
"Um..." Su Yu took a step over, calmly blocking the space between the two. "She is... a martial arts practitioner."
"Martial arts practitioner?" Himeko froze for a moment.
"Right, just like my junior Fu Hua from before."
Su Yu spoke nonsense with an open mouth, his face not red and his heart not beating fast, starting to spout drivel.
"She's from that... hidden sect. You know, those ancient sects have particularly strict rules and strict discipline. They use corporal punishment at the drop of a hat, and she has to fight wooden dummies every day..."
"Good lord." Himeko's eyes widened. "So there really is such a thing as a junior sister coming down the mountain? But this handiwork is too ruthless, right? This is catching up to a domestic violence scene."
"It's precisely because it was too strict that she couldn't stand it and ran out."
Su Yu sighed, wearing a bitter smile that said, "I have no choice either."
"I saw she was pitiful and had nowhere to go, so I let her hide here with me for now."
Himeko looked at him suspiciously, then looked at Kiana.
Although this reason sounded a bit like roadside stall literature, thinking about Su Yu's usual virtue of being a goody-two-shoes, plus the precedent of Fu Hua who looked frail but could kill a cow with one punch...
"Alright then." She scratched her head, messing up that red hair even more. "Anyway, it's your business. Handle it yourself. Just don't cause any deaths, and don't let the police come knocking on my door in the middle of the night."
Just as Himeko turned around preparing to leave, Kiana, who had been acting like an ostrich the whole time, moved.
She leaned out from behind Su Yu and bowed deeply toward that retreating figure.
Her waist was bent very low, as if facing a respected elder.
"I have caused you trouble."
Her voice was a bit hoarse, but very earnest.
Himeko was thrown off by this act.
She couldn't stand this kind of solemn politeness the most; she felt like she was getting goosebumps all over.
"Alright, alright, don't do this empty stuff." She waved her hand carelessly. "I just live across the door, so we count as neighbors. If this brat Su Yu dares to bully you, just shout loudly. This old lady will come over in minutes to shave off his skull cap..."
Halfway through her words, her gaze fell onto the pile of solid wood dining table fragments that had been smashed into slag on the floor.
Silence for two seconds.
"Okay." Himeko's mouth twitched. "Looking at this posture, I feel he doesn't have the capital to bully you either. It'll be a great fortune if he doesn't get dismantled by you."
Su Yu: "..." Haha.
"Fine, I can't be bothered to manage your mess." Himeko yawned, turning to walk toward the door. "This old lady is dying of sleepiness. Going back to catch up on sleep. Don't bother me if it's nothing."
"You reek of alcohol, go back and wash up before sleeping." Su Yu couldn't help but retort. "Careful you'll be late for class tomorrow and get your wages deducted, then you'll come to mooch off my food again."
"Windbag!" Himeko didn't look back but raised a middle finger. "I know, you brat! Why are you more annoying than my parents? Even bossing me around?"
The main door closed with a bang, shaking the dust on the doorframe into the air.
The living room returned to silence.
Kiana maintained the bowing posture for several seconds before slowly straightening her waist.
Her gaze seemed to be sucked by a magnet, sticking deathly to that closed security door, as if wanting to look through that layer of cold metal to see that red figure on the other side again.
That look was too complex. It was like looking at a dream regained after being lost, yet also like looking at an unreachable phantom.
"I..." She turned her head to look at Su Yu, her eyes carrying a little careful probing. "In the future... can I go find her?"
Su Yu looked at her appearance, which resembled a stray cat wanting to beg for food but afraid of being beaten, and his heart inexplicably softened a bit.
"Of course you can." He walked over and set upright the trash can that had been kicked over. "But you have to be mentally prepared. That guy is a hopeless alcoholic. Once she latches onto you, it's endless."
"When the time comes and she drags you to drink all night, and you vomit until the sky goes dark and the earth goes dim, don't come crying to me for help."
Speaking of this, he paused, looking Kiana up and down.
"By the way, according to the laws here, minors shouldn't be allowed to drink alcohol, right?"
Kiana's face flushed red instantly.
"D-Don't look down on me..." She retorted in a small voice. "I... I am no longer a child."
Although she said this, the sharpness that kept strangers away was gone from her tone.
That layer of hard ice that had been wrapping around her seemed to have finally been melted at a corner by the residual smell of alcohol and the noise in this room.
Su Yu looked at her, the corners of his mouth rising slightly.
"Okay, okay, okay, Miss Kaslana is the most amazing, a Valkyrie who can tear apart Gundams with her bare hands."
He glanced at the messy living room.
The shattered wooden table, the overturned chairs, the milk and glass shards spilled all over the floor—this miserable state simply looked like a small typhoon had just passed through.
The plan to cook some home-style dishes to show off his skills was thoroughly ruined; the kitchen was now a restricted area covered in dust.
"What do you want to eat for lunch?" Su Yu scratched his head helplessly. "Cooking is a no-go. The kitchen is a no-fly zone now. Let's order takeout."
"...Anything is fine."
"Then Braised Beef Noodles again? Or... order you a pizza?"
Hearing that word, Kiana's ears seemed to twitch.
"...Pizza." Kiana's voice was tiny. "The kind with cheese."
"No problem, add double cheese."
Su Yu took out his phone and started placing the order, while pointing at the wreckage on the floor.
"Let's clean this up first. Otherwise, when the delivery guy comes later, he'll think we just finished brawling and call the police backhandedly, which would be troublesome."
Kiana did not refuse.
She bent down, picking up a piece of shattered wood board.
Because of the existence of the "One-Meter Restriction," the two had to maintain a subtle synchronization.
If Su Yu went to get the broom, Kiana had to shuffle two steps along.
If Kiana went to pick up glass shards, Su Yu had to squat down and hold the trash bag to catch them.
The breathing sounds of the two intertwined in the quiet living room.
There was a faint smell on Kiana's body, like dust after rain, mixed with the sweet scent of the milk that had splashed on her earlier.
It wasn't unpleasant; instead, it had a desolate feeling that made one's heart ache.
"Be careful, don't cut your hand."
Watching her hands, covered in tiny scars, touching the sharp glass edges, Su Yu couldn't help but speak up.
"This is tempered glass. It hurts a lot if it pricks you. Then I'll have to waste my Band-Aids."
"I know." Kiana lowered her head, that lock of white bangs hanging down to cover her eyes. Her fingers carefully pinched a shard glistening with cold light and put it into the bag. "I'm not a idiot."
"Yes, yes, yes, you aren't a idiot." Su Yu looked at that ahoge on top of her head swaying slightly with her movements, and couldn't resist holding back a cheap shot. "You are a Paramecium."
"...Ha?" Kiana's movements paused. She raised her head, looking at him with a face full of confusion.
"Nothing."
Su Yu tied the trash bag tight and stood up.
"Praising your single-celled organism vitality for being tenacious. It's cute."
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