Chapter 21: Is Little White Sick?

"I've finished eating!" While Yechen and the members of the Battlefront were grumbling about their behavior, Kanade Tachibana had quietly polished off the mapo tofu—including Yechen’s portion. She stared in a daze at the empty plate before her.

"Didn't you say I could eat your share as well?" Kanade tilted her head and asked.

"I did say that, but I never expected you to actually eat two whole plates of mapo tofu. Looks like you really do love it!" Yechen affectionately patted Kanade’s head. Her silky hair yielded a soft sensation under his touch, and Yechen suspected he might develop a habit of patting people’s heads.

"I like eating mapo tofu? This is the first time I've noticed," Kanade mused as Yechen stroked her hair, her locks remaining neat and unruffled. She pondered Yechen’s words—so this is what liking something feels like?

Night fell. After a day of lively operations, even the energetic Battlefront members grew weary and retired early to their dorms. With Yechen’s reminder, Kanade finally understood what kind of emotion could be called liking, and she earnestly nodded her little head at Yechen, declaring, "I like eating mapo tofu!"

Yechen realized completely now just how clumsy Kanade was in expressing her feelings toward him. Even when she had thoughts, she didn’t know how to act on them, nor how to express them. No wonder Yuri had described her as emotionless, expressionless, and basically silent. If only Kanade were a bit more lively and cheerful, Yuri wouldn’t have mistaken her for an angel!

Returning to his dorm, Yechen found himself alone. Normally, the academy assigned two students per room, but his roommate was nowhere to be seen. Searching the dorm, Yechen found a roster and saw it listed Yechen and Xiao Bai as occupants. So the academy even counted Xiao Bai, the nine-tailed fox, as a dorm member?

He honestly didn’t know how to complain about this. If they were going to assign Xiao Bai a room, she was a girl after all—shouldn’t she be in the girls’ dorm? But it was just a passing thought; if he were separated from Xiao Bai for long, he’d miss her dearly.

Unusually, Xiao Bai hopped down from Yechen’s shoulder, curled up by the pillow, and prepared to sleep. Yechen stroked her fur and asked worriedly, "Xiao Bai, are you feeling unwell? Should I channel some more star energy for you?"

Star energy was the power Yechen cultivated through the Night Shadow Star Technique, which he called star force. Using it now would mean drawing on the technique’s energy, and after this, Yechen would face a sealed ability—unable to respond to emergencies. All he had left in the system was the hundred good karma points he’d earned for stopping Kanade from clashing with the Battlefront.

"Mm..." Xiao Bai was deeply moved, wanting Yechen to save his last chance. She communicated her drowsiness to Yechen in a sleepy voice.

Although Xiao Bai explained she was simply tired and wanted to sleep early, Yechen still couldn’t rest easy. He called out, "Ruoxing, Ruocheng, can you help me check Xiao Bai’s health?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Ruocheng drifted out of the Twin Fantasy Swords—a faint, translucent figure floated before Yechen. It was Ruoxing, the lively little girl, radiating youthful energy and gazing at Yechen with a hint of grievance, as if blaming him for not summoning her sooner.

From Yechen’s perspective, seeing Ruoxing floating two or three meters above him, he couldn’t help but think, I can see your underwear under your skirt! Of course, Yechen knew better than to say it aloud. Once, when C.C. accidentally exposed herself for a moment and Yechen pointed it out bluntly, she immediately responded, "Your something is showing."

After that, Yechen’s head sported several swollen lumps. He learned not to say such things carelessly, and C.C. earnestly warned him that if it happened again, he should remind her—but use more tactful language.

Remembering C.C.’s advice, Yechen carefully composed his words in his mind and tried to be as subtle as possible: "Ruoxing, from my angle, I can see the scenery beneath your skirt!"

Ruoxing was stunned at first, then her cheeks flushed visibly red. She covered her skirt with her hands, and, embarrassed and angry, pummeled Yechen’s head with her little fist. "What are you looking at!"

Bang! Yechen was slammed to the ground, a rare, huge bump swelling on his head. C.C., still thoughtful, stuck two giant band-aids crossed over it. Yechen muttered with aggrieved heart, "C.C., you lied to me!"

"Ruoxing, where’s Ruocheng? Why didn’t she come out?" Seeing Ruoxing’s angry face and realizing she wasn’t letting him off, Yechen quickly changed the subject.

"Of course, Ruocheng and I agreed to take turns on duty, one day each. Otherwise, we’d be exhausted scanning your surroundings every day!" With Ruoxing’s plaintive tone, Yechen felt like a heartless boss exploiting these twins.

"But wait! Ruoxing, didn’t you say you’d only appear as a phantom? Only I can see you—so how come you can hit me?" Yechen felt wronged. He never asked them to scan nonstop, and as he clutched his aching bump, a sudden insight struck him.

"There’s nothing odd about it! Can’t you see I’m just a phantom now? I’m somewhat transparent! Go ask someone else, they’ll just look at you like you’re crazy!" Ruoxing swung her fist again.

"But then how can you hit me—twice, even! Do you think I can’t feel it?" The pain was even sharper the second time, and Yechen stared at her with plaintive eyes.

"Of course! Since you can see me, you can touch me! Did we ever say you couldn’t?" Ruoxing replied matter-of-factly. Thinking carefully, Yechen realized Ruoxing and Ruocheng had never actually said that. The misunderstanding stemmed entirely from their differing interpretations of ‘phantom.’

Since when could phantoms touch people? Feeling the gap in his worldview, Yechen reached out and pulled Ruoxing down, placing his hand gently on her head. The sensation was pleasant—he really could touch her!

"Don’t just touch my head!" Ruoxing protested with an adorable pout, her large, watery eyes glaring at Yechen in embarrassment and anger.

"Alright, I won’t touch you anymore. Now hurry up and help me check Xiao Bai’s health!" Yechen withdrew his hand and urged Ruoxing.

"Hmm?" Ruoxing shot Yechen an annoyed glare but began examining Xiao Bai. Soon, she sounded intrigued, a mischievous smile appearing on her face. "So that’s it. You don’t need to worry about her; she’s perfectly fine. In fact, it might be a good thing. But remember, don’t act impulsively! I’m going back to sleep now~~~"

Before Yechen could ask anything, Ruoxing hurried back into the Twin Fantasy Swords. Yechen smiled wryly. "At least tell me what’s going on!"