Bang.
The villa's front door was shoved open with brute force. Backlit by the sun, Ch'en Hui-chieh stood in the doorway, staring coldly at the two figures in the living room who were still holding each other.
"Talulah. The first thing you do after returning to Lungmen… is wallow in the past?"
Who…?
The person who stepped into Talulah's view against the sunlight was so dazzling that Talulah actually stopped stroking Chen Mo's horn, murmuring without thinking—
"Hui-chieh…"
She really had grown up.
That commanding, imposing presence was nothing like the little girl she remembered…
"It's Ch'en. Long time no see." Chen Mo immediately slipped behind Talulah like smoke the moment he recognized her, poking his head out from behind his sister with a crooked grin. "Weren't you told you can't interact with us lately? How about we find somewhere more discreet—"
"My situation doesn't require your concern, Brother," Ch'en said flatly. "On the contrary, your situation—after this, the two of us will have plenty of time to talk. Slowly."
Chen Mo choked on his words. He retreated behind Talulah again, fell silent, and started fiddling with her tail as if he'd suddenly become deeply interested in the scales.
Say more, mess up more.
He could only hope Talulah would talk Ch'en down—because right now, Ch'en's expression was an icy, stone-cold mask.
Talulah, meanwhile, was trembling from head to toe for a completely different reason.
A Draco's tail, when relaxed, was exquisitely sensitive. Aside from family and a spouse, no one was allowed to touch it casually.
Anyone who dared cross that line usually met flames capable of reducing a city to ash.
Of course, Xiao Mo was her most beloved little brother. A tail was just a tail—if he wanted to play with it, let him. She'd already noticed he had an odd fondness for draconic tails and similar features.
What Talulah needed to deal with now was Ch'en Hui-chieh—walking toward them step by step, face cold, eyes fixed on Talulah like she was being inspected.
Talulah cleared her throat, forcing what she believed was a gentle smile.
"It's been a long time, Hui-chieh. You've grown up."
"It's been a long time, Talulah," Ch'en replied. "And you've only gotten worse with age."
Click.
Arms crossed, Ch'en stopped directly in front of Talulah and studied the sister she hadn't seen in over twenty years.
"In your eyes, am I really that insignificant? Or are you so overjoyed by Brother's sudden appearance that you forgot I exist at all?"
…That was, unfortunately, kind of accurate.
Talulah shook her head, throwing the thought away, her tail swaying left and right in Chen Mo's hands. "How could I? Just like Xiao Mo said—I was worried I'd bring you unnecessary trouble."
"I saw you stroking Brother's head just now, looking completely at ease," Ch'en said, tone sharp. "If you two weren't siblings, I would have almost arrested you for molesting a man."
Ch'en's eyes lingered on Talulah's gentle face—so similar to Chen Mo's—before her thoughts involuntarily compared it to her brother's habitual teasing smile.
The contrast was striking. And…
"Xiao Mo… You've only been together a few days, and he's already warmer with you than he's been with me—his sister—after months."
Ch'en flicked her gaze toward Chen Mo, who was peeking from behind Talulah and blinking innocently at her. Then she looked back at Talulah, expression blank again.
"Well? Not going to say anything else to me, your little sister?"
After being separated for so long, were a few perfunctory lines really all she was going to get?
Seeing Ch'en's stiff expression and that pointed, mocking tone, Talulah's initial awkwardness faded.
The nervous excitement in her chest gradually settled. With a soft smile, she stepped forward—just like she had with Chen Mo—and pulled Ch'en into a firm embrace.
"I'm sorry I made you wait so long, Hui-chieh. I'm back."
"…Hmph. That sounds like something an elder sister should say."
The face that always looked like someone owed her millions of Lungmen dollars finally softened into a smile. Ch'en hugged her back.
"Welcome home, Sister."
The sisters' reunion was so heartfelt that Chen Mo watched for a moment before clearing his throat and ruining it with perfect timing.
"So… how about we go eat? A proper catch-up. That Shu hotpot I mentioned—sound good?"
The atmosphere of emotion evaporated on the spot.
But neither Talulah nor Ch'en had it in them to be annoyed at Chen Mo.
With both her elder sister and her brother right here, the joy swelling up from Ch'en's chest was so overwhelming that, for the moment, she didn't even pick a fight with Chen Mo for having forced his way out of Lungmen earlier.
The two sisters exchanged a glance and smiled. Talulah stepped back and—still smiling—rested a hand on her flat abdomen.
"Perfect. We can talk properly. Hui-chieh, why don't you—"
"No."
Under Talulah's surprised gaze, Ch'en shook her head. "Brother was right before. I really shouldn't be in contact with you two right now."
"This villa district is sparsely populated. That's the only reason I took the chance to see you."
Then Ch'en turned her head to Chen Mo. When she saw his confused look, she let out a cold little laugh.
"And also—those people who sold Brother a vehicle back then, helping him flee Lungmen… they're back."
Talulah froze. She turned to Chen Mo—who was wearing a painfully awkward grin—and immediately understood what Ch'en meant.
"Then you're planning to…"
"I'm grateful they sold Chen Mo the vehicle and that he brought you back," Ch'en said, voice sharp and absolute. "But that doesn't change what they did."
This was the first time Talulah had seen Ch'en in full, professional, law-enforcement mode—cold enough to cut.
She really had… grown up.
"I will pursue their responsibility," Ch'en continued. "This time, they will not escape right under my nose."
Those words carried such killing intent that Talulah frowned, then quietly leaned back to ask Chen Mo for details.
"Who exactly are they, Xiao Mo? Selling you a vehicle to help you leave Lungmen shouldn't be enough to make Hui-chieh this furious."
Chen Mo, still helping Talulah wipe a bit of grime from her tail, thought for a moment—then chuckled.
"Maybe it's because Penguin Logistics' Exusiai finally wore Ch'en out. She's been chasing me for ages."
"…Huh?"
Talulah went completely still.
She stared at Chen Mo's face—so dear to her, so easy to dote on—her thoughts drifting despite herself.
She had assumed before, but she hadn't wanted to think too deeply about it.
And yet—
There really were girls… pursuing Xiao Mo?
3:46 p.m.
Penguin Logistics Dormitory
Thump—
"Ugh, we're finally back."
Croissant dove onto the sofa like a collapsing building, rubbing her face all over a soft pillow. "Siesta was great—music, swimming, all that—but you can't stay soaked in water every day!"
"And the Boss too—seriously, how did he keep up concerts for almost half a month straight?"
Remembering Emperor's "sudden death and immediate revival," Croissant shuddered and shook her head hard, throwing the horrifying image away.
"Oh, right. Texas—where's Exusiai? Don't tell me she ran off the moment we got back to go find her 'male god' again?"
Texas, changing clothes, glanced toward Exusiai's room. "I heard she and Sora are working on some… 'surefire weapon' to make Chen Mo's heart race. They should be outside preparing."
"Preparing?" Croissant yawned, then grinned at Texas with a mischievous look. "Ha. Not gonna happen. A man like Chen Mo? Exusiai's challenging him way too early."
"Or Texas, you could go provoke her," Croissant continued, wiggling her eyebrows. "Like… right in front of her, you do something to Chen Mo and—hehe—"
Bang!
"Ow! That hurts! I was just joking—no need to hit that hard!"
Ignoring Croissant clutching her head and whining, Texas shoved her aside and sat down on the sofa, expression calm.
"I'm not optimistic Exusiai can take that troublesome man," Texas said flatly. "Sora's method is a bit too… fanciful."
She recalled Sora's smiling face back in Siesta, proudly showing Texas and Exusiai the "special equipment" designed to win Chen Mo over, and couldn't help feeling a trace of helplessness.
She could only hope Exusiai wouldn't get bullied too badly by that man.
....
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