From the moment she kidnapped Erii, she became a roadblock.

The corridor lights were on.

Orange light streamed in from the corridor, extending from the doorway to the edge of the bedding.

Guan Luo lay on the floor, covered with a thin blanket, breathing evenly.

Eyes closed, not asleep.

The sound of rain was much quieter than in the evening; it was no longer pounding on the eaves, but had become a soft, background noise.

Guan Luo heard the sound of bare feet stepping on the wooden floor. It was very light, with the balls of the feet landing first, followed by the heels, and the sound became clearer and clearer.

One step, two steps, three steps...

He walked down the corridor to his room door and then stopped.

Guan Luo squinted, able to vaguely make out the outline of the figure at the door and smell a very faint scent of shower gel.

Erii stood at the doorway and did not come in.

Guan Luo could sense that Erii was looking at him.

Erii was checking something; she was probably checking if he was asleep.

About ten seconds passed, or maybe fifteen seconds.

Erii walked in, her steps even lighter than before, as if she were walking on tiptoe.

Then Guan Luo felt Erii stop beside him.

Very close.

Right to his right, at the edge of the bedding, Erii's scent became even clearer.

A rustling sound.

It was the sound of Erii kneeling beside the futon, her knees pressing against the edge of the futon, causing the tatami to sink slightly.

Guan Luo kept his eyes closed. Erii, holding a pillow, knelt beside him and looked down at him.

Her hair hung down, the ends almost brushing against Guan Luo's face.

Then Erii placed the pillow to the right of Kanro, right next to his pillow.

I was afraid the pillow would make a sound when I put it down, so I did it very gently.

Then Erii lifted a corner of his blanket, trying to squeeze in.

Guan Luo's body stiffened for a moment.

The blanket was pulled back, and the cool air from outside rushed in, clinging to his arm.

Guan Luo felt Erii's knee touch his arm; it was a little cool through the thin cotton fabric of her nightgown.

Erii seemed to feel that something was amiss as well.

She squeezed in awkwardly, paused for a moment, and seemed to be reassessing the terrain.

Then she picked up the pillow from Guan Luo's right side and hugged it to her chest.

Guan Luo breathed a sigh of relief. Was he leaving?

He slept on the outer side of the tatami mat, leaving not much space for one person to sleep. Just when Guan Luo thought Erii would give up,

Erii stood up, gently stepped over Guan Luo's body, and went around from the right to the left.

Guan Luo felt her shadow move past his face.

Erii walked to the side against the wall, where it was darker and the light from the corridor couldn't reach.

She put the pillow down against the wall, next to Guan Luo's pillow, with about a hand's width between them.

Then she lifted the covers and lay down.

Her movements were much more natural than before, and with this side against the wall, she felt much safer.

The blanket fell down and covered her body.

She was facing away from Guan Luo, with her back to the wall, curled up in a ball, her knees slightly bent, and her hands on the pillow.

The light from the hallway seeped in through the crack in the door, drawing a soft band of light across the room.

The light fell directly on the back of Erii's head, where her tuft of hair was still sticking up, casting a long, thin shadow on the pillow.

Erii's curled-up posture made her look even smaller than usual, like a small animal that had crawled into someone else's nest, curling herself into the most space-saving shape.

Her breathing was very light; with each inhale, her shoulders would rise slightly, and with each exhale, they would slowly fall back down.

Then he heard her sniff lightly. Erii was sniffing, smelling Guan Luo's scent. Her nostrils twitched slightly, and then her body relaxed.

The breathing sounds began to become even and long.

She really fell asleep.

Guan Luo turned his face back and stared at the ceiling; his heartbeat was only now slowly calming down.

……

12 points!

Guan Luo opened his eyes.

Main Quest

[Phase 1 (Completed): Prevent Erii from returning to Genji Heavy Industries.]

[Stage Quest Reward: Brain Pontic Connection Recovery Potion + 1000 Paradise Coins]

The task reward arrived instantly, and a small space was created to store it.

1m×1m×1m.

A small, three-dimensional space containing an syringe that glows with a blue light.

[Pontal Connection Restoration Agent (Special)]

【Origin: Tianqi Paradise】

[Quality: Blue (Special Story Item)]

[Rating: 69] (Blue quality rating: 30-69 points)

[Category: Consumables/Medicines]

[Item Effect: Permanently repairs structural defects in the "pontine connection" caused by experimental damage. Permanently increases Intelligence attribute by 1 point and permanently restores resistance to mental abnormalities.]

[Summary: You might need this.]

Price: Not for sale

Guan Luo was a little excited. With this, Erii could finally break free from the control of the clapper sound.

If Erii hadn't been sleeping, Guan Luo would have given her the injection right away!

Phase Two (Not Yet Available)

[Please explore on your own to begin the second phase of the mission.]

At the same time, the task assigned by the talent was also completed.

[Stage Obstacle Mission (Completed): Prevent the target from returning to Genji Heavy Industries.]

[Reward for blocking the road: One-tenth of the target's bloodline.]

Meanwhile, out of Guan Luo's sight, another strand of hair quietly turned white.

Just as Guan Luo was about to merge, he suddenly heard a sound that shouldn't have been heard.

The faint creaking of the wooden floorboards, the kind that only makes when under weight, came from the direction of the corridor.

Guan Luo kept his eyes open, his breathing slowed.

The words of the coffee shop owner from earlier that day suddenly came to mind.

The landlord's asking price was so much lower than the surrounding area...

These words were like a fine needle, pricking Guan Luo's head.

Guan Luo stared at the ceiling. Haunted? He mentally went over those two words.

At this moment, Guan Luo's mental perception was clearer than ever before.

It's not a ghost!

There was a smell in the air that didn't belong to this house, even though Guan Luo had only moved in recently.

But he had a special intuition, as if something had invaded his mental field.

It was a very faint smell, like the smell of damp clothes left in a closed room for a long time.

That thing was moving, from the hallway to the entrance hall, and then from the entrance hall to the living room.

Something has broken into this house!

It is not some kind of small animal.

That thing stepped in the rain with every step it took.

Guan Luo slowed his breathing even further, his chest barely rising and falling. His fingers, hidden under the blanket, slowly clenched into a fist.

Hearing the creaking of the tatami mats, the thing stopped at the door of Guan Luo's room.

Guan Luo's spiritual power clearly outlined the contours of that place; there was a spot in the air that was emptier and darker than the surrounding area.

The opponent's ability can interfere with perception, allowing one's own presence to slip out of the target's consciousness.

But Guan Luo is no ordinary person.

The other party was clearly unaware of this.

Guan Luo slowly opened his eyes, moved his eyeballs, and looked in the direction of the paper sliding door.

The instant his gaze fell upon it, a sense of disharmony arose between his brain and eyes; there was an outline in the crack of the door, transparent…

Guan Luo's eyes told him what was there, but his brain told him there was nothing there!