It was just dawn, and a faint glimmer of morning light was barely visible over Saint Martan, but the abandoned factory remained shrouded in deep night.
Zoya and Billie, who ran between two places, had their biological clocks completely messed up.
At this moment, both of them had just woken up, their hair disheveled, looking like they hadn't slept well.
Kuchiha, however, was energetic; she had used the pocket money Billie gave her to buy a new set of clothes and new black-rimmed glasses, and was now wearing pajamas and white rabbit slippers, sitting cross-legged on the sofa.
Kuchiha was petting a Unicorn Rabbit with one hand and stroking Little Carrot, who had reverted to the appearance of an ordinary rabbit, with the other—evidently, she hadn't slept at all.
Billie was facing the dark factory outside the window, brushing her teeth intermittently.
She wore an oversized rainbow pony T-shirt, with only underwear on her lower body, barely covered by the T-shirt's hem, her two slender, straight white legs unconsciously swaying back and forth in Zoya's sight.
The light bulbs in the factory were dim and yellow, barely providing enough illumination.
The conditions in this place were far worse than those at the Black Queen's headquarters.
Billie had thought more than once about moving directly into the Emerald Coast villa that the Black Queen had just taken over, but Serie disagreed, and Zoya also disagreed.
Firstly, they didn't want to be too deeply tied to the Black Queen, and secondly, the villa was now packed with people—all the elderly parents of the Black Queen's young Soldiers, their young children, and their pregnant wives.
Only by taking care of the Soldiers' worries would they be willing to shed blood and sweat for you.
Chloe's approach was almost unopposed within the Black Queen's ranks.
After all, the benefits went to the people they cherished most.
Even the few bachelors who didn't receive any benefits, seeing Goluthos and Chloe, the Black King and Black Queen, dutifully staying put at the air-raid shelter headquarters, didn't have the face to voice their complaints even if they had them.
If, as the Black King and Black Queen, they sought pleasure and privilege as soon as they tasted a little sweetness, what would become of their talk of resisting tyranny for the people?
Naturally, Serie and Zoya both strongly discouraged Billie's desire to live in a big house. Zoya even explicitly stated that if Billie wanted to live in a villa, she could just go home; her family was so wealthy, it was no worse than Emerald Coast.
But Billie still didn't want to live with her parents, finding them too clingy.
However, when she had nothing to do, Billie would often chat with Riley, go shopping, or watch movies.
Billie's disdain for her parents made Kuchiha's face turn from green to white, her mood complex for a moment, and she pursed her lips without speaking.
Since Serie had almost figured out the details of the euphoria rose, Billie and Zoya decided to venture into the Abnormal Contamination Zone once more.
The goal was to dig out the Joy Witch root and all.
The book clearly stated that water and meat could only keep her barely alive; to make her fully bloom into a Joy Witch, merely watering her wasn't enough—she also needed to be fed meat and placed in a pleasant environment.
If the Joy Witch were left in the Abnormal Contamination Zone, these conditions naturally couldn't be met?
Feeding her meat? She would likely be devoured by the Smile Rose as soon as she was placed near the Joy Witch, and there was even a chance that if they weren't careful, the Smile Rose might swallow her, the little seedling, whole.
As for the plan, it was both simple and difficult.
It involved having a Witch maintain an extremely joyful mood, entering the zone, and then, before the other roses noticed, taking the Joy Witch, root and all.
So, who would be chosen for this task?
Zoya and Kuchiha's gazes simultaneously fell upon the figure by the window, still brushing her teeth and shamelessly swaying her pale legs.
Billie, with her toothbrush in her mouth, looked bewildered: "Why me?"
"Why not you? Don't you know?" Zoya rolled her eyes, "You're always so giddy and excitable, like a mare in heat. This job is practically tailor-made for you, isn't it?"
"Besides, even if something goes wrong, can't you escape with those two legs of yours?"
Billie's speed could indeed allow her to move freely within the Contamination Zone, but she also needed to breathe.
In fact, with every increase in speed, Billie needed to breathe hundreds or even thousands of times per second.
But no matter how fast you ran, you would still be affected, even more severely than ordinary people, not to mention the radiation field inherent to the euphoria rose.
Now that there was a way to mitigate the pollen's effects, the most suitable person to test the waters was naturally Billie.
Billie was so choked up that she couldn't speak for a moment; what Zoya and Kuchiha said... seemed to actually make sense.
Her eyes darted around, and she mumbled, "I can't do it alone! I can't get High by myself!"
As she spoke, her gaze directly shifted towards Zoya.
Zoya instantly understood her thoughts, and her scalp tingled: "Don't even think about it!"
"You promised me!" Billie immediately turned around, yelling indistinctly with the toothbrush in her mouth, her big eyes instantly filled with tears, fluttering as she leaned closer to Zoya, her voice carrying a cute little nasal sound from just waking up.
It had to be said, in terms of charm, she was second only to Serie, who possessed the two divine skills of "Feigned Pity" and "Desire Amplification."
If Zoya hadn't been so aware of the twisted, dark thoughts in Billie's mind, she might have actually been moved.
"You tricked me!" Zoya retorted grumpily.
"But your favorability towards me clearly increased, didn't it~"
Billie chuckled teasingly, "I think you enjoyed it too. You clearly like being deceived, don't you~"
This statement left Zoya speechless for a long time.
This was the downside of being Serie, with interconnected thoughts.
Tsundere behavior had nowhere to hide; their bodies were more honest than each other.
Serie had thought before that Zoya and Billie were actually very similar at heart, but their attitudes towards their deepest selves were completely different. Billie embraced herself with glee, while Zoya was very resistant and would suppress her instincts.
This was also the root cause of their constant bickering.
But it could also be said from another perspective: no matter how much Zoya resisted, that inherent quality couldn't be erased.
Among their own kind, that natural attraction ultimately existed.
"Alright," Zoya rubbed her throbbing temples, finally giving in, "but you're not allowed to go too far."
She knew too well the "shamelessness" of this girl, Billie.
That beautiful face was simply a natural weapon—even if caught red-handed after deceiving someone, she could still grin and come over to act spoiled and play dirty, and you truly couldn't do anything about her.
With such thick skin and quick changes of expression, no wonder she could be an internet celebrity.
"Don't worry~ I know my limits!" Billie immediately beamed, made a playful 'V' sign, and even winked at Zoya.
Her cunning and smug look made her seem like a little fox who had just stolen something savory, and Zoya's unreliable feeling in her heart grew stronger.
Moments later, in a bucket at the edge of the Saint Martan New Reclamation Area.
The light flickered from dark to bright as Billie was the first to emerge from the Rabbit Hole, with Zoya close behind.
The two once again stood at the edge of the Abnormal Contamination Zone, polluted by the euphoria rose.
The sweet, bloody smell in the air was still thick and stifling, lingering persistently.
From afar, intermittent singing drifted, hidden in who knew which flower, sounding particularly grating in the deathly quiet morning.
Billie listened, her eyes gleaming, as if she had received a wonderful party invitation.
She grabbed Zoya's wrist: "Hey, Zoya."
Having learned from their last mistake, she hadn't completely blocked Billie's thoughts and guessed what the girl wanted to do, but she truly couldn't understand: "Dancing? The two of us? In this godforsaken place? Are you serious?"
Billie pulled Zoya's hand, making Zoya wrap her arm around her slender waist.
Zoya didn't refuse, lightly embracing Billie.
Their faces were close, almost touching, and Zoya couldn't help but avert her gaze, appearing somewhat flustered.
Billie was a head shorter than Zoya, looking up at her with a slight smile.
Clearly, she was serious.
------------------------
I've posted 70+ chapters in advance on Patreon.
Webnovel updates will still be daily, as usual.
It might not seem tempting right now but who knows what the future holds?
[email protected]/SolyuraMT
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"