Kurosawa Eiko actually had no idea how she had just escaped danger. One moment she had nearly been sucked into that bottomless pocket, and the next she was being carried off at a run by Lin Ye.
And now,
the appearance of the second monster's figure made her instinctively feel that she and Lin Ye were about to face the danger of death.
A single monster was already so hard to deal with—
how were they supposed to handle two?
At this moment the female yoga instructor's mind was a complete blank, filled only with terror and fear.
Her one comfort was the solid, supporting strength of the one carrying her, which set her heart at ease and made her understand that she was still safe—that Lin Ye had not abandoned her to flee.
The female yoga teacher's gaze fell on Lin Ye's cheek,
that resolute face which, in her eyes, grew ever more handsome and captivating.
A man—this was exactly how a man should be, the kind of man who would not give up on a woman even at a moment of danger.
In that instant the female yoga teacher felt only a powerful surge of warmth and excitement welling up inside her.
She yearned.
And just then, Lin Ye halted his steps.
Earlier, when he had first discovered the long-haired monster on the first floor, he had thought he could exploit a time gap and, before the long-haired monster reacted, successfully lure the monster from the third floor into the first-floor jewelry store ahead of time.
But the way things were developing now had exceeded his expectations.
Clearly,
it would take a bit of extra effort.
It wasn't that Lin Ye hadn't considered luring both monsters into the jewelry store,
but could they be trapped at the same time? That probability was zero,
and it might even cause the third-floor monster to avoid being trapped like the previous one and instead manage to escape.
Therefore,
Lin Ye knew he could not take that risk; he needed to play it safe and steady.
If the chance came only once,
then it would not be worth it.
Having made his decision, Lin Ye immediately turned and ran.
The moment the long-haired monster saw this, it instantly responded; its black hair came 'whistling' forth, blotting out the sky and covering the earth, as if to conceal everything.
Compared to the start, this time the length of the monster's hair far exceeded its previous reach by several times.
Lin Ye had long been mentally prepared; otherwise, he would have been touched by the long hair and bound up like a sticky rice dumpling.
The female yoga teacher stared with wide eyes, until in the end terror seized her heart and she chose to close her eyes, her hands and feet drawn taut. Now, she would resign herself to fate, trusting that Lin Ye could carry her out along a path to survival.
'Pitter-patter…'
The third-floor monster had also begun to move.
The two of them raced after Lin Ye, charging at him with an overwhelming momentum that meant they were determined to bring him down.
At one corner,
Lin Ye used Invisibility.
He and the female yoga teacher entered the state of Invisibility.
At the same time, he covered the female yoga teacher's mouth to avoid making too much noise.
The two monsters, one in front and one behind, rounded the corner and appeared within Lin Ye's field of vision.
But the two of them quickly slowed their speed,
they had not discovered Lin Ye, and a brief confusion arose at the empty expanse ahead.
Finally,
after the two monsters had wandered about for a while,
the long-haired monster was the first to leave.
Only the third-floor monster seemed unwilling to give up, still lingering nearby.
Lin Ye felt the set of clothes in his left hand that belonged to the third-floor monster.
The reason this monster had not departed was probably because of these clothes.
The method was already in hand,
what came next was timing—
how to avoid the long-haired monster on the first floor and lure this third-floor monster into the first-floor jewelry store!
Lin Ye looked toward the female yoga teacher; now was the time for the female yoga teacher to exert herself.
He would be responsible for drawing away the long-haired monster, while the female yoga teacher would use these clothes to successfully lure the monster into the jewelry store.
A short while later, Lin Ye brought the female yoga teacher to the other side,
and by this time the state of Invisibility had already been lifted.
The female yoga teacher now also knew what had happened to her,
Invisibility, Invisibility!
This was a superpower.
She had already felt that Lin Ye was extraordinary, but she had never imagined he was extraordinary to this degree.
He even possessed a superpower like Invisibility—just how strong was this man's power!
This time, by clinging tightly to Lin Ye's thigh, she would surely be able to survive.
So the female yoga teacher believed.
"Lin, Student Lin, afterward we…"
"It's very simple,"
A single sentence filled the female yoga teacher with anticipation.
"I'll go move that long-haired monster on the first floor away,"
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm."
"And you will use these clothes to lure that monster from the third floor into the first-floor jewelry store."
The female yoga teacher: ???
This was practically asking for her life.
How would she dare!
This was a task in which one careless slip meant death; she instinctively refused.
"Got a problem?"
Lin Ye's single counter-question made the female yoga teacher's heart instantly hang in suspense.
If she refused, Lin Ye would be displeased.
"Lin, Student Lin, I… my legs are a bit weak right now, and in such a short time… I might not be able to do it."
"I believe you can do it, Miss Kurosawa,"
"I, I…"
As she spoke,
Kurosawa Eiko pulled over Lin Ye's hand and placed it on her own buttocks. "Let me rest just a little while longer, all right?"
She knew full well that Lin Ye particularly liked this part of her.
The corner of Lin Ye's mouth twitched; he thought of Haruno—that woman's doing.
"All right,"
Lin Ye agreed, and he held up a single finger. "One minute,"
The female yoga teacher was stunned,
how was one minute enough?
She didn't feel it was nearly enough at all.
"Make good use of the time to rest,"
As he spoke, Lin Ye also walked away to the wall panel, sat down on the floor with his back against the wall, and began to rest.
His Constitution was good, but that did not mean he had no need to rest properly.
The female yoga teacher watched for a moment and then sat down beside Lin Ye as well, beginning a brief rest.
The one-minute rest period in the end became three minutes.
Lin Ye rose to his feet,
he looked toward the female yoga teacher,
and the female yoga teacher, no longer hesitating, also stood up. "I'll do my best."
By this point she also realized she no longer had the right to refuse; her refusal would surely meet with Lin Ye's distaste, and that would not be worth it.
"Lin-kun, guide me in what to do. If I'm in danger, you absolutely must come and save me."
"All right,"
This much of a promise, Lin Ye could still give.
Very soon,
Lin Ye had arranged everything for the female yoga teacher.
And the female yoga teacher obediently began the preliminary preparations.
Meanwhile, Lin Ye headed toward the direction in which the long-haired monster had disappeared.
The only thing he could not be certain of was whether he alone could draw the long-haired monster out.
According to the pattern he had observed thus far, the long-haired monster ought to appear.
Lin Ye did not continue to dwell deeply on the matter, but simply walked along slowly by himself.
Suddenly,
he saw a figure appear up ahead.
He instantly confirmed that that monster's figure was the long-haired monster.
'Swish, swish, swish!'
In the blink of an eye, the long-haired monster launched its attack.
The black hair came madly down like a curtain of rain,
Lin Ye turned and ran, absolutely not staying a single second longer.
One man and one monster, one in front and one behind, the two of them chasing.
And on the other side,
after following Lin Ye to the designated spot, the female yoga teacher gripped the monster's clothes in her hand.
Once Lin Ye had drawn the monster away, the female yoga teacher also sprang into action.
"A monster that has lost its clothes won't be so terrifying."
"You can do it. What that Yukinoshita woman can accomplish, I can too,"
"Believe in yourself,"
...
...
The female yoga teacher pumped herself up, using all sorts of methods to motivate herself.
Suddenly, she saw the monster wandering toward her.
"Over here,"
She summoned her courage and shook the clothes in her hand.
The monster's eyes contracted, fixing intently on the clothes in the female yoga teacher's hand.
'Thud, thud…'
The monster came charging at full speed.
The female yoga teacher immediately carried the clothes and ran toward the first-floor jewelry store.
That was the hope of survival; as long as she successfully lured the monster in and then successfully escaped, everything would end, everything would be fine.
'Pat-pat-pat…'
The female yoga teacher ran wildly, running with all her strength.
And the monster behind her ran fast too, completely unlike the feeling before.
The instant the orange-yellow light appeared,
she was wild with joy; hope was right before her eyes.
The female yoga teacher glanced back and immediately discovered that the monster behind her was already not far from her. At this distance and speed, she would soon be caught up to.
Run, run faster,
if she didn't run she would be caught,
this time,
she slightly adjusted her direction, charging toward the stone pillar on the other side,
and at the final moment, just before colliding, she immediately sidestepped with one foot and kept charging.
'Thud…'
The monster's reaction was clearly a beat too slow; with a thud it crashed into the stone pillar, letting out a dull thudding sound of impact.
The female yoga teacher was secretly delighted. A monster was a monster after all—it couldn't compare to human intelligence, falling for even such a simple trap.
Closer,
even closer.
The female yoga teacher silently lamented how much trouble the monster was, but she knew this one was in the bag.
In no time at all, she dashed into the jewelry store.
The dazzling array of pearl jewelry and gold held no attraction for her whatsoever.
'Clatter-clatter…'
She placed the tattered clothes she carried in the innermost yet most conspicuous spot.
In a few seconds,
the monster arrived and entered.
The female yoga teacher turned and moved away, skirting around.
She was very worried that the monster would come straight at her first.
If that were the case, she would be finished.
But the result was just as Lin Ye had predicted and told her: the monster paid her no mind and instead headed straight for that set of clothes belonging to it.
In a couple of quick moves the female yoga teacher immediately left the jewelry store.
A few seconds later,
having retrieved the set of clothes belonging to it and put them on, the monster roared and screamed.
It turned toward the female yoga teacher and charged straight at her.
In this moment, it was utterly enraged; in this moment, it wanted to vent the emotions within it.
'Thud, thud, thud…'
But,
no matter how it struggled, an invisible wall held it firmly trapped inside.
"Hahaha…"
The female yoga teacher laughed out loud,
she had won.
She had succeeded.
"I'm worn out,"
She panted, wiping away her sweat.
This counted as her having dealt with one monster.
"I've made a contribution too, so I shouldn't be casually abandoned,"
The female yoga teacher was already fantasizing about what would happen after they returned.
Have a good meal, get a good sleep,
and then…
Lin Ye surfaced in her mind, along with that sturdy body.
The sensation of having been taken advantage of resurfaced,
a warm current instinctively welled up in her body, and a flush of crimson rose to her cheeks.
Her heart had stirred.
Her heart had stirred.
"Roar, roar…"
"Aooo, aooo…"
Not long after the green light appeared, the monster's body, like melting ice cream, rapidly vanished.
Soon, only a puddle of liquid was left, and there was nothing else at all.
The female yoga teacher wiped the sweat from her forehead.
"Now all that's left is to wait for Lin Ye,"
She looked toward the deep gray first floor, her gaze finally falling upon the fourth floor.
If nothing went wrong,
Lin Ye would lure the first-floor long-haired monster up to the fourth-floor real estate agency.
Once Lin Ye finished, everything would be over,
The female yoga teacher looked forward to it.
This mall held nothing more to be afraid of.
...
...
Lin Ye successfully lured the first-floor long-haired monster into the real estate agency.
At this point,
it was already ninety percent complete,
all that remained was to leave this place.
Even in that final stretch of distance, Lin Ye clearly sensed that the long-haired monster's strength had grown,
he realized that was the signal of the female yoga teacher's success on the first floor.
But this was not much of a problem for him.
Others might not be able to handle it, but he could.
"Roar, roar, roar…"
The long-haired monster's hair scattered and drifted about, each strand seeming to possess a will of its own,
Lin Ye stepped back,
the long-haired monster advanced a step.
Lin Ye continued to retreat.
Until he confirmed that the long-haired monster had already cleared the position of the exit, he had finished preparing to leave.
"This is where it ends. I've got no intention of being melted along with you,"
Lin Ye was rather curious whether staying here would cause him to be melted along with it, but he had absolutely no intention of trying.
"Roar…"
It launched its attack toward Lin Ye,
and as Lin Ye dodged, he once again used Invisibility, entering a completely transparent state.
The long-haired monster lost its target in an instant once more; it began to attack chaotically and wildly, trying to find Lin Ye.
And Lin Ye, with nimble footwork, drew closer and closer to the entrance step by step.
Finally,
at the critical, hair's-breadth moment, he leapt out and successfully left the real estate agency.
'Thud, thud, thud…'
Countless strands of hair tried to pursue, but were blocked. That invisible wall was an insurmountable chasm, cleaving the two of them into two separate worlds.
The monster howled and roared, but there was nothing it could do.
Outside,
Lin Ye watched, observing the light of the real estate agency turn green and the monster's body melt into a puddle of liquid.
"It's over,"
Haruno and the male High School Student had been observing from a distance the whole time. Now, seeing the light change color, they came over too.
"Lin-kun, how do you feel?"
Haruno asked with concern.
"I'm fine, no need to worry,"
Lin Ye waved his hand.
"What do we do next?"
The monsters had all been wiped out; what was left to do?
Haruno didn't know, the male High School Student didn't know,
and Lin Ye didn't know either,
"Wait for the mall to change,"
It was impossible for there to be no change at all.
"Mm."
"Come, let's first go to the first floor and meet up with that yoga teacher."
Haruno followed along. The male High School Student only wanted this fight for survival to end as soon as possible. From the excitement at the start to the fear of now, after he successfully made it home this time, he would never again consider anything to do with Strange events.
The first-floor lobby had grown even brighter.
In the distance,
both sides saw each other and began to converge.
And at this moment, a cat's cry rang out.
...
...
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