Love, Gun, Cupid

Gladiolus's blatant threat left Henrietta's expression uncertain, but she ultimately chose to accept Gladiolus's proposal. Just as she was about to take the ice cave away, Gladiolus pointed to it and said, "This one too."

"Who do you think you are, to extort the guardians of the Holy Land at will?"

"This is a deal. If you keep her, I'm willing to exchange other resources for her. Or, we can have a talk at the police station tonight to finalize this deal?"

Henrietta and her men simply vanished from the spot. Lingard handed the woman in his arms to Jasmine and rushed to save his friend. He swung his sword and cut the golden spear in half, only to find that the part of the spear embedded in the ice cave had fused into her body.

Chapter Twenty: The Pain of Losing Jill

"I seem to be... fine?" Ice Cave said uncertainly.

Lin Jiade helped her up. She moved around a bit, and although the strange golden substance embedded in her chest looked odd, she didn't feel affected by the ice cave.

“Really? I suggest you go to the hospital for a thorough check-up,” Lin Jiade said.

"Ah."

Now that the ice cave was temporarily safe, Lin Jiade turned his attention to something more important. He looked at Jianlan, who shook her head: "He got away. He moved to another place, using a method similar to how you were sucked in by that black cat."

Jianlan stayed behind to clean up the mess, while Xuanling drove people to the hospital. They had only brought one car, and now with Teacher Yang and Bingdong added, the back seat became crowded.

Looking at the quiet night scene, Lin Jiade asked, "Is your problem that your nemesis, Bai Long, came looking for you?"

Jasmine nodded: "I originally thought he wouldn't be able to come so quickly, but it's probably just as you guessed, he used that black cat monster to achieve a secret and rapid crossing."

"Fortunately, he will be on the wanted list tonight... I really don't understand. It's not hard to understand his desire to kill you, but why does he have to take the risk himself?"

"If we could eliminate you without leaving a trace, we wouldn't say anything. But Fuxing City is our territory. If you can't beat us, you can call in reinforcements. Even if you can't kill him, we can label him a terrorist. Who gave him the courage to start a raid here?"

"Perhaps it's related to what happened to the Kapok family. He might have concluded that our backer is finished, so..."

Needless to say, Xuanling and Kapok were sitting in the driver's seat and passenger seat, respectively. In the back row, from left to right, were Bingdong, Lin Jiade, Jasmine, and Teacher Yang. Teacher Yang was pressing down on Jasmine, so Jasmine had to lean on Lin Jiade to talk to him. Bingdong had already closed his eyes, looking drowsy, and could fall onto Lin Jiade's shoulder at any moment.

Jasmine glanced at the other person warily, watching as the other person pressed against Lin Jiade without any precautions, with the decorations on the hem of her skirt even draped over Lin Jiade's thigh.

“We all need to be careful,” Lin Jiade said.

"And her?" Jasmine gestured with her lips.

“She… I have to keep it a secret, after all, the exposure of her true identity is tantamount to social death.”

Jasmine stopped talking and closed her eyes. The ice cave finally gave way and she slumped against Lin Jiade. The silky fabric and the heavy feeling of it wrapped around Lin Jiade's elbow spread, but he had no mind to think about that.

Half an hour later, they arrived at West Ham Hospital. Xuanling drove Jasmine back to rest, Mumian took Teacher Yang to see a doctor first, while Lin Jiade waited for Ice Cave. She went to the men's restroom first, intending to deactivate her Holy Land Guardian form and revert to her male form.

Lin Jiade stood guard outside to prevent his classmate from dying. The hospital was eerily quiet at midnight. The lights in the corridor gradually dimmed from near to far, creating a depressing and terrifying atmosphere.

Therefore, when the person behind him called his name in a gloomy, trembling tone, Lin Jiade shuddered. He turned around and assumed a defensive posture, seeing the pitiful expression on the ice cave's face, clutching his skirt in a flustered manner.

"what happened?"

"I can't turn back," the ice cave said.

"?"

Ice Cave flipped up his collar and pointed to the abrupt golden pillar of light between his two brows, saying, "This thing has locked my state, keeping me in the state of a guardian of the holy land."

"The Holy Land's punishment for you?"

Ice Cave didn't speak, her expression one of near tears. Lin Jiade understood perfectly; any man who lost Jill would feel utterly devastated. He wanted to pat Old Mu on the shoulder to encourage her, but then awkwardly withdrew his hand.

"Anyway, check it out first. If you can dig this thing out, maybe you can turn back into your real form," he said.

Old Mu bowed his head and responded, but after taking only a few steps, he clutched his stomach and squatted down, his face deathly pale. Lin Jiade turned around, and she covered her skirt, saying, "Please don't look, please..."

Lin Jiade saw the blood where she had just squatted down and immediately understood what had happened. He first helped Old Mu to the women's restroom, then rushed to Hehuan's ward.

In theory, Hehuan's visiting hours had passed, but since she wasn't sick and was only seeking refuge, she had a certain degree of freedom of movement. When Lin Jiade visited, she sleepily opened the door for him and heard the man anxiously say, "Senior, lend me my menstrual supplies!"

"what?"

Hehuan thought she was dreaming. She squinted and dozed off on the spot. Lin Jiade had to shake her awake. Although she didn't understand what was happening, she trusted Lin Jiade, so she handed the things over to him.

She pulled Lin Jiade aside and gave him a few more instructions, teaching him how to take care of the woman who was visiting for the period. Lin Jiade nodded. He did indeed lack experience in this area. As a dragon, Jasmine did not have the concept of menstruation, and as a deceased person, Gladiolus had energy flowing through her veins, so this concept was also removed.

After thanking him, he put the things into a basin and found the ice cave. A faint sobbing sound came from the women's restroom, which made Lin Jiade sigh – after losing Jill, his period came again, and even the strongest man couldn't bear it.

He knocked on the door, brought the things inside, then went to the hot water room to fetch warm water, wrapped a towel around it, and handed it over. Bing Dong took it, while Lin Jiade waited foolishly outside until he encountered Mu Mian.

"How come you..." Mu Mian sniffed, her expression changing, "smell like a relative."

"As you can see, it was just a coincidence that a relative came to the ice cave, and I borrowed some of Hehuan's things."

"Borrow? There's a supermarket nearby, you can just go and buy it."

Lin Jiade slapped his forehead: "Too many things to do, and they're urgent. My IQ has dropped to offline. Can you help me keep an eye on things? I'm going to the supermarket."

He ran a couple of steps and then turned back: "Where's Teacher Yang?"

"She is undergoing examination."

Lin Jiade nodded and jogged away from the hospital. When Bingdong came out, leaning against the wall, Mumian was staring blankly in the direction of the gate. Hearing the sound, she glanced over, and Bingdong clearly felt the coldness and jealousy in her gaze.

She was already afraid of being exposed as a man and revealing her weakness. Now, with the added blood loss debuff, she didn't say anything. She just bowed her head in front of Mu Mian, like a mistress meeting the wife.

“Lin Jiade went shopping,” Mu Mian said.

Ice Cave sat halfway down in the chair, holding onto the armrest, and replied softly, "Ah, thank you."

How are you feeling?

"I'm fine."

"What's your relationship with her? He seems to care about you a lot, even more than his official girlfriend (because she doesn't have her period)," Mu Mian asked.

“I am…his friend.”

Ice Cave glanced at Kapok and sensed that she was angry. She didn't want to be seen as a rival by someone who liked Lin Jiade, so she whispered, "And what about you?"

Kapok was silent for a moment, then answered softly, "I am also his friend, but more than just a friend."

Chapter 21 Unfeasible Solutions (5→4)

When Lin Jiade returned carrying a stack of girls' belongings, he noticed the atmosphere between Mu Mian and Bing Dong was a bit stiff. He said, "Go and keep an eye on Teacher Yang. I'll stay with Bing Dong."

To prevent his classmate from suffering social humiliation, Lin Jiade had no choice but to accompany him the whole time. Mu Mian gave him a surprised look, which he avoided. He then felt that he was the one who gave Mu Mian the three marks, and shouldn't feel so guilty. But by the time he glared back, Mu Mian had already walked away.

"I'm sorry, she probably misunderstood our relationship," Ice Cave said. "Why don't you go and explain?"

"No need, let's take care of your matter first. Are you alright?"

Ice Cave managed to say, "My stomach hurts, I'm dizzy, my hands and feet are freezing, and I have no energy at all. It's more tiring than playing football with you guys."

"Come on, when you played as a defender, you were basically just standing in the center circle slacking off. Sometimes you wouldn't even break a sweat after a whole game... Okay, okay, I won't say anything more. Don't look at me with that pitiful expression."

"But it's just uncomfortable," the ice cave said.

Old Mu's female form was already quite adorable, and now, with her sickly aura, Lin Jiade found the guardian of the holy land before him even more endearing, and he treated her with even more gentleness.

"Rest for a while. I'll take you to see a doctor once you've regained some strength," Lin Jiade said.

"I'm not a child."

Lin Jiade plopped down next to the ice cave and handed over her underwear and sanitary napkins. The ice cave paused for a moment after receiving them, then blushed and ran to the toilet again.

When she came out, Lin Jiade handed her hot brown sugar water, draped a newly bought blanket over her, and gave her a hand warmer.

Ice Cave reached out from under the blanket and took it. Her clothes were too troublesome to take off, and it took her a while to finally stick them to her stomach. The warm feeling spread, dispelling the cold and making her hands and feet feel even softer.

“Don’t fall asleep,” Lin Jiade said. “Once you feel you can move again, we need to schedule your check-up. You need to become a man again as soon as possible.”

The ice cave felt as comfortable as being in paradise, and she didn't want to move around. She mumbled in a daze, "It's okay to stay put and go back for now."

"But you're a man, what kind of behavior is this?"

Ice Cave opened her eyes. In this unusual time, she was emotionally unstable. Lin Jiade's words immediately angered her. She grabbed Lin Jiade's shoulders and said, "I am a girl now! No doubt about it!"

She grabbed Lin Jiade's hand and pressed it against her chest. Lin Jiade wasn't the kind of person who would be tempted by his brother's looks. His hand froze in place, and no matter how much she pulled, he wouldn't budge. The ice cave weakly let go of his hand, letting it hang down at his side.

"To me, Mu Xiu is real, and the Ice Cave is real too, but everyone is just watching Mu Xiu. His classmates ask him to play football, his family tries to connect with him, and his girlfriend seeks warmth from him. The only place the Ice Cave is needed is the sacred place on the night of the full moon, but even the guardians of that sacred place have abandoned her, and there's no going back..."

As Ice Cave spoke, it began to sob: "You all see Old Mu, but does no one see Ice Cave? There's nowhere for me to go. Maybe my existence is a mistake?"

Lin Jiade patted her head, and Bing Dong looked up, her eyes lifeless, and said, "So, Mu Xiu is still me?"

Lin Jiade frowned: "This is not a multiple-choice question."

“What Mu Xiu won’t give you, I can give you, as long as you acknowledge me, acknowledge that you need me, that I am valuable to you, right? Give me a place to stay, and I will do everything I can to repay you.”

"Oh, your period might make you feel dirty, but that's okay. Once I've rested, you can do whatever you want with me. I have the memories of boys, so I know better than women how to please boys."

With a sense of urgency, Bingdong reached for her collar, and a light suddenly appeared in her eyes, but her tone and expression were utterly sickly.

Lin Jiade turned and hugged her. It was absurd to be hugging a woman who had turned into a man, but he had no choice but to do so in order to stop the woman from doing something even more absurd and to avoid hurting her.

"So you agreed, right? The ice cave really exists; she's not an illusion, is she?"

The woman buried her face in Lin Jiade's arm, her long, curly black hair brushing against the back of his hand, while her tears soaked the fabric of his arm.

She cried and cried, letting out all the grievances, loneliness, confusion, and helplessness she had experienced since she was twelve. Was Lin Jiade her lifeline? She didn't care; it was just that the dam of her heart had broken, and the suffering accumulated within needed to be released.

She cried until she had no more tears left. Her head was spinning, but her mind felt clear. At that moment, she finally regained a sliver of clarity and remembered how she had fawned over Lin Jiade. She covered her head with the blanket.

"Don't look at me, just pretend I'm dead," she said dejectedly.

Old Mu is a quiet guy, and his personality is like a noodle. He's incredibly soft both on and off the court. Lin Jiade didn't have a very good relationship with him before, because he didn't really like his personality.

Old Mu would be quite distinctive after being gender-swapped, but it's a pity he's a girl... Thinking of this, Lin Jiade couldn't help but laugh.

A muffled voice came from under the blanket: "I'm like this, and you're still laughing."

"Everything will be alright, don't worry. Everyone makes silly mistakes, but when we look back on them in the future, they will enhance our friendship."

"You won't stop playing with me just because I'm a girl, will you?"

"How could that be? But I do need to change the way we interact. For example, putting my arm around someone's shoulder won't work anymore."

“Actually, even when I was a boy, I felt that you were a bit gay,” Ice Cave whispered.

"?"

"But now I understand that I am actually the gay man. You treat me as a normal friend, but I feel that you have feelings for me. The power of the guardian of the holy land has really affected every aspect of my male self."

Lin Jiade swallowed hard: "Don't talk about such scary things, I'll have nightmares."

"Pfft, just kidding."

A hand emerged from the blanket: "This is my third self-introduction. I am Ice Cave."