Lin Xue wore her trademark smile—the kind that was impervious to reason, serene, unconcerned, and allegedly calm and demure. If you ignored what she had just said, you might have thought Miss was simply making conversation.
But what she said had nothing to do with that expression.
"I died. Got killed on the front line."
Miss Lin said it with a cheerful grin, watching my face with curious anticipation.
My face? Let me tell you, at that moment, I didn't even know whether I still had an expression. Lin Xue had genuinely scared the hell out of me with one sentence. I admit, Lin Xue had always had a talent for making people jump. Ever since I'd known her, whether we'd been bitter rivals in the past or lovers... and bitter rivals now, this tsundere Miss had constantly been finding ways to make trouble for me and occasionally doing something shocking. But I felt that every scare she had given me over the past three years was complete nonsense compared to this moment. All of them added together couldn't possibly compare to the impact of that one sentence.
"What did you say?" I practically leaped straight up, and my shout echoed for at least half a mile. The two Fuzzy Monsters brushing their teeth and washing their faces by Fairy Lake were so startled that they dropped their toothbrush cups into the lake. The Little Monsters cursed in this direction while raising their nearly invisible middle fingers, then dashed into the forest.
Suigintou, who had been hugging a doll and dozing nearby, blankly glanced over here. She looked pretty badly frightened too—by me.
"Quiet, quiet!" Lin Xue grabbed me and yanked me back down, rolling her eyes at me with an unfriendly tone. "You scared me! You can trade fire