One Kiss, and I'll Let You Out

"Could you... kiss me?"

As soon as she said it, Kachi's impossibly delicate little face turned red as a ripe apple.

She snatched up the cloud-shaped pillow beside her and buried her whole face in it, leaving only the tips of her flushed ears exposed. Even her short silver hair seemed to be giving off heat.

Watching her hide like a bashful ostrich, Chu He couldn't help finding it a little funny.

Who would've thought that an overwhelmingly powerful SSS-Class entity would be like this in private?

The contrast was almost too much.

Honestly, looking at the petite silver-haired girl before him, with her delicate features and eyes that seemed to hold an entire galaxy, acting so shy yet hopeful, Chu He's heart really did skip a beat.

Who could possibly resist that?

But Xia Yao's bold, genuine face immediately appeared in his mind.

The girl who would happily squint her eyes at a plate of pork floss, who would shamelessly hang on him to declare her claim, who treated him like he was her whole world.

Here, Xia Yao had given him her unwavering trust and protection.

Chu He took a deep breath and pushed down the ripples stirring in his heart.

Looking at Kachi, who was still pretending to be dead behind the pillow, he spoke in a gentle but firm voice. "You're really cute. Honestly, I like you a lot."

Kachi's body stiffened almost imperceptibly beneath the pillow, and the tips of her ears turned even redder.

Chu He continued, "But I'm a very devoted man."

"Xia Yao has been so good to me. I can't do anything that would betray her."

At his words, Kachi's arms tightened around the pillow, and the whole room fell quiet. Only the faint light of the slowly turning galaxy remained.

After quite a while, she finally lifted her head from the pillow. Her galaxy-like eyes were full of obvious disappointment and hurt, and even shimmered with tears.

Chu He's heart clenched. This is bad.

The next moment, Kachi rose from the big bed and crawled over to him.

She tilted up her heartbreakingly adorable little face and looked up at Chu He. Tentatively, she reached out a small hand to touch his broad chest, then whispered in an almost pleading voice, "Just one kiss. Really, just one. We won't do anything else, okay?"

"Thump, thump, thump!"

Chu He felt as if a small hand had gripped his heart, squeezed it tight, then sent it racing wildly.

That unbearably cute expression was like a nuclear bomb to him!

Holy crap!

Chu He had nearly given in and kissed her right there!

He secretly congratulated himself on having met Xia Yao, a top-tier beauty, first. At least he'd built up some immunity to beautiful girls.

If Kachi had been the first person he'd met in the dungeon, and she'd looked at him like this and touched him with that little hand...

His mind would probably have gone completely blank by now, and all his principles and limits would've been thrown to the winds!

Chu He bit down hard on his tongue, using the pain to force himself to calm down.

He reached out and gently moved Kachi's little hand away, then sprang to his feet and took two quick steps back, putting a safe distance between them.

"Ahem."

He cleared his throat. His trousers were getting uncomfortably tight because of his body's honest reaction.

What an undisciplined body!

Chu He cursed himself silently, then put on a calm front and said, "It's getting late. I have to go back. Xia Yao's probably waiting for me. If she starts worrying and comes looking for me, things could get pretty ugly."

That was absolutely no exaggeration.

With Xia Yao's straightforward nature and possessive streak, if she saw him alone in a room with her best friend—and her best friend making advances on him...

Chu He had no doubt Xia Yao might tear the whole library apart on the spot.

He didn't want that to happen!

"Let me go," he said at last.

But Kachi acted as if she hadn't heard him and stubbornly shook her head.

"No."

She took a step forward, closing in on him again, her eyes filled with unshakable resolve.

"Just one kiss. Kiss me, and I'll let you go right away!"

Chu He frowned. Seeing how she wouldn't give up until she got what she wanted, his tone grew stern.

"Woman, you're playing with fire!"

He stared into Kachi's eyes and spoke slowly, word by word. "I wasn't exaggerating earlier. My kisses are 'poisonous.' If you try one, you'll be unable to stop yourself from..."

"Falling for me!"

With that, he ignored Kachi and turned toward the little door he'd come through.

All he wanted now was to get out of this mess as fast as possible, go back for a cold shower, and then find Xia Yao to "cool off."

But when he grabbed the doorknob and pushed the door open, he froze.

Beyond it wasn't the information desk he'd entered through.

It was a vast, brilliant starry sky, identical to the one in the room!

Unwilling to believe it, he stepped back, shut the door, and opened it again.

The same deep galaxy stretched out before him.

Chu He's heart sank. He immediately activated [Eye of Nirvana]!

But the eyes that could see through illusions now seemed veiled in mist. The starry sky in front of him warped ever so slightly in his vision, but he couldn't find a single flaw or exit!

Behind him, Kachi's voice rang out, tinged with smugness.

"Don't bother."

At some point, she had sat up, swinging her legs as she watched him at her leisure.

"This is my bedroom, so of course I used the most advanced Spatial Secret Technique. It's nothing like those low-level dreamscapes used against humans. Not even you—or Xia Yao, for that matter—could get out easily without putting in some effort."

She tilted her head. A hint of slyness flashed in her galaxy-like eyes.

"With your eyesight as it is now, you can't see through it."

Chu He slowly turned around, his expression darkening completely.

He finally understood. He'd been imprisoned.

"So today, I really have to kiss you?" he asked.

Kachi nodded firmly, her face utterly serious.

"That's right. You absolutely have to!"

Chu He stared at her for a full three seconds. Then, suddenly, he smiled.

It was a smile tinged with helplessness, amusement, and a touch of reckless resolve.

"Fine."

He said the word, then started walking back toward the big bed, toward Kachi.

"I hope you don't regret this."

With that, he actually leaned down in front of Kachi, puckering his lips toward her delicate face, now just inches away!