From the expression on Seigetsu Zhu's face, Sunny Xu could see her inner confusion, but the girl still silently followed his instructions and helped him up the stairs of the teaching building.

Sunny Xu had already recovered halfway through the journey and let go of the hand on her shoulder, climbing the stairs with the help of the handrail.

"Are you okay?"

Seigetsu Zhu's eyelids drooped, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, looking somewhat worried.

"Yeah."

Sunny Xu answered decisively.

Actually, of course, he was not okay. Not only did he have a headache from the "aftermath" of using telepathy on the possessed, but he also had several abrasions and bruises from struggling and fighting on the ground.

The human body is fragile without training. Although the injuries were far from serious, as an ordinary high school student, it was really uncomfortable to feel pain all over his body. The last time he felt this much pain was probably when his fingernail was broken while playing basketball.

He glanced at Seigetsu Zhu and noticed that she had rolled up the cuff of her left leg to above her knee.

As the two climbed the stairs, moonlight occasionally spilled in from the windows on the side, revealing the graceful curves of the girl's calves, with her skin sparkling like jade, as if there was a faint light flowing in a dim field of vision...

So, he saw more clearly that there was already a bloody gash on her snow-white knee.

Actually, Seigetsu Zhu was also injured, and she was not very mobile. Although the girl still had her usual gentle smile on her face, her delicate eyebrows had unconsciously furrowed due to the pain, making her look pitiful.

In this situation, it would be shameless to let an injured and fragile girl take care of him without any worries.

...

The two climbed the stairs and arrived at their destination along the corridor.

After opening the door, under Seigetsu Zhu's puzzled gaze, Sunny Xu walked decisively towards one of the desks.

High school students have busy schoolwork, and everyone has piles of reference books, textbooks, and test papers, which would be exhausting to carry around all day. Therefore, the desk often becomes a transit station between home and school...

"Hey."

Sunny Xu took out a pen from this desk.

"What...what are you doing?"

Seigetsu Zhu's pupils widened slightly, and she became more and more puzzled.

Sunny Xu didn't answer, but instead clasped his hands together and placed the pen in his palm.

He closed his eyes and tried to exclude all the distractions from the outside world, focusing all his attention on the pen, entering an unprecedented state of concentration.

...

The class monitor girl quietly watched from the side and gradually figured out what was going on.

This desk didn't look like it belonged to Xu, she thought. I remember when I passed by this classroom before.

I remember, wasn't it Starry Lin who was sitting here?

Did Xu come here at this time just to take a pen from Lin's drawer?

I thought he was going to take out a self-defense weapon. Considering Starry Lin's usual style and the reputation in the school, it wouldn't be surprising if she had hidden something in the desk. However, an item that could fit in a drawer might not be able to withstand the monster that can fly and walk on walls...

Moreover, Xu didn't take anything, just a pen.

Could it be that he thought he should take something from a friend as a memento before he died? The girl's mind was filled with various thoughts. Wasn't this approach a bit too romantic?

It seems that guessing alone cannot lead to the correct conclusion.

Seigetsu Zhu shook her head helplessly and even felt that she should go back to Class 5...

However, she didn't have such close friends.

It's really enviable.

Seigetsu Zhu's gaze fell on the window. The boundless night reminded her of the ocean. After the lights disappeared, the pitch-black ink-like seawater submerged the entire campus, beating against the glass, leaving a pitch-dark darkness where one couldn't see their fingers.

At some point, the howling from the school gate gradually subsided and became inaudible.

It seems that the monster has regained its senses from the strong light stimulation, Seigetsu Zhu judged, so she couldn't help but remind:

"Sunny Xu, um... let's find a place to hide quickly, okay?"

Sunny Xu opened his eyes, put down the pen, and gave a brief answer:

"Okay."

Seeing that he had a relieved expression, Seigetsu Zhu couldn't suppress her inner doubts and couldn't help but ask:

"Sunny Xu, what did you just do?"

"...Nothing."

His answer was calm.

"Let's leave it to fate."

...

In fact, the two had nowhere to go. If they ran in the dark school, they would easily be mistaken for prey. If they wanted to hide, it felt the same no matter where they hid. If they tried to move to another place, they might be caught on the way.

So, they simply hid in Class 2 of the second year.

Behind the blackboard in every classroom, Sunny Xu and Seigetsu Zhu hid in the corner closest to the window.

Sunny Xu tightly held a flashlight in his hand, his palms slightly sweaty.

"I shone the flashlight directly into his eyes while he was caught off guard. It might not work the next time," Seigetsu Zhu reminded, "Even wild animals remember painful lessons. If he really has the intention to kill us..."

"Yeah," Sunny Xu nodded.

With the agility displayed by the possessed, it wouldn't be difficult to dodge the beam of light after thorough preparation.

Moreover, the intent to kill that was directed towards them was genuine. Even if the possessed feared the light, a mere flashlight might not be very effective once his ferocity was triggered.

But he still firmly held onto the flashlight.

Like a hero about to challenge the final boss demon king, knowing that the odds of winning were slim, but with no way to retreat, he could only anxiously grip the sword in his hand, his heart filled with a sense of tragedy.

"...As long as we can hold on for a little longer."

The girl sitting beside him, her hands hugging her knees, spoke softly once again.

"I asked them to make a phone call for help. Even if they forgot at that time, they would think of calling the police now if they are still outside. Maybe we just need to hold on until the adults arrive."

"I hope so."

"Sunny Xu, how much longer do you think we need to wait?"

Sunny Xu remained silent for a moment before answering.

"I'm not sure. It could be five minutes, it could be ten minutes."

The school gate was closed, and the power went out again. So even after someone arrived, they would still need to find a way to open the door or jump over the wall to get inside. And in this dark campus, there were monsters lurking in the shadows.

Even with the most optimistic consideration, if they wanted to survive, they still needed...

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"Ten minutes..."

Seigetsu Zhu repeated.

"Thud, thud, thud."

It seemed like she could hear that footsteps again.

Ten minutes could be very long or very short.

Long enough to feel like a person's lifetime, short enough to be a matter of life and death.

The boy and girl sat shoulder to shoulder in the empty corner of the classroom, both looking up at the ceiling, silently as if they had made an unspoken agreement.

*

"Try it."

A young woman with a ponytail and wearing an apron walked out of the kitchen with a smile on her face, placing two steaming dishes in front of Starry Lin.

Tomato and egg, fish-flavored eggplant, and pickled vegetable shredded pork soup, all common home-cooked dishes.

Taking off her police uniform and changing into casual clothes, Li Qinglian no longer exuded the heroic aura that Starry Lin had always associated with her. The soft yellow halo from the light bulb above her head gave a warm feeling of home, adding a touch of gentleness to the woman's cool facial features.

Starry Lin didn't speak, her expression somewhat dazed as she looked at the scene in front of her. It wasn't until Li Qinglian urged her again, "Eat quickly, or it'll get cold," that she snapped out of it, quietly said thank you, and started eating with small bites.

"How is it?"

Li Qinglian sat in front of her, resting her chin on her hands, smiling as she looked at Starry Lin. She felt like she had gained another younger sister.

"Um..."

Starry Lin covered her mouth, trying to come up with words to praise the taste, but she heard Li Qinglian's hearty laughter.

"Haha, I know, I know. My cooking skills are no match for Little Sunny, right? Ah, after all, I haven't cooked in a long time, but he cooks every day, so he must be more skilled than me."

"No, Sister Lian... your cooking is delicious too!"

Starry Lin swallowed a mouthful of rice and quickly said.

"Thank you for the compliment. Anyway, that kid learned his cooking skills from me..."

While Li Qinglian was speaking, she suddenly reached out and touched the girl's cheek.

Starry Lin widened her eyes but didn't dodge.

"Eat slower." She gently wiped it away and then smiled, spreading her fingers, "Look, there's rice stuck on your face."

"Um."

Starry Lin didn't say anything and lowered her head to eat a few more mouthfuls of rice from her bowl.

Li Qinglian silently watched the girl with long hair sitting across the table, her gaze never focused, a smile on her face, as if lost in thought. The woman silently contemplated for a while before preparing to speak.

But just then, Starry Lin raised her head and asked in a slightly strange tone, "Sister Lian, aren't you eating?"

"Oh... um, I'll go get a bowl."

Li Qinglian snapped back to reality, putting her hand down and getting up to walk towards the kitchen.

Starry Lin blinked her eyes and suddenly felt a strange sensation as if someone was watching her from behind.

She turned her head abruptly.

Behind the dining table were shoe cabinets, a sofa, a television... With the room door closed, it was impossible for anyone to come in.

There were only the two of them in the room.

"What's wrong?"

Li Qinglian's voice came from the front.

"Nothing..."

Starry Lin instinctively replied.But there was indeed a moment when she truly felt as if someone was "watching" her.

More importantly, this gaze gave the young girl a sense of familiar warmth, as if she had encountered it somewhere, sometime before—

With this thought, Starry Lin could no longer sit still, immediately standing up from her seat.