Blocked at the Door

"Finally, you're back, Jiang Mian! I've been waiting forever!"

Li Hao?

How had he found her here?

The greedy look in Li Hao's eyes made Jiang Mian feel sick. Her good mood vanished in an instant.

"Didn't you say yesterday that you'd 'think it over'? Why aren't you going to school today? Were you playing me?!"

Seeing Jiang Mian dressed head to toe in her delivery uniform, Li Hao narrowed his eyes dangerously.

"Delivering takeout?"

He gave a sneer, his superiority plain in his voice.

"Jiang Mian, you acted all high and mighty yesterday, then turned around and took a job like this? Running around town in that yellow getup—aren't you embarrassed?"

He stepped closer, his expression especially grim.

"I told you, if you were with me, you wouldn't have to put up with this. Just look at you now..."

Jiang Mian's scalp prickled. He'd actually come right to her door. How had he found her... No, now wasn't the time to dwell on that.

She already had a plan. If she could choose Gale at the second stage, she could more or less imitate the effects of Sequence 48, Eye of the Storm.

But fighting him head-on would not only risk exposing her, it would also ruin her character.

Jiang Mian made her decision almost instantly.

If a woman living alone encountered a thug who coveted her body, how would she react?

Seeing the "fearful" look on Jiang Mian's face, Li Hao reached out to grab her.

She abruptly sidestepped. Taking advantage of her relatively petite build, she darted past him and ran out of the building without looking back!

"Fuck, you still think you can run?"

Li Hao froze for a moment, then flew into a rage.

In his eyes, now that he'd awakened, his physical abilities far surpassed those of ordinary people. Catching Jiang Mian should have been easy.

Jiang Mian didn't head for the main road. Instead, she plunged into a narrow alley between the buildings.

The cramped alley was piled high with junk, and its twisting layout let Jiang Mian put some distance between them for a while.

"Shit! Get your ass over here!"

Li Hao's roar echoed through the narrow space.

He was strong and fast, but seemed reluctant to shove aside the surrounding trash cans and other obstacles smeared with filth. His movements were awkward and constrained, leaving him thoroughly frustrated.

As she ran, Jiang Mian pulled her slightly cracked phone from her pocket and called He Yi.

"C-Captain He! Help! Someone... someone's chasing me..."

She panted, letting her voice catch with a few sobs. She sounded terrified.

"What?! Where are you right now?"

"West District, Minghua Road, in the alley by number 114..."

As she gave him her location, Jiang Mian gauged the distance between herself and Li Hao, making sure not to leave him too far behind, but also not to let his filthy hands touch her.

She slipped her phone back into her pocket. He Yi's voice came through in broken bursts.

"Good! Don't be scared. I've already notified the nearby patrol officers to head over, and I'm coming right away! Try to run somewhere with more people..."

During the chase that followed, Li Hao nearly caught Jiang Mian several times, only for her to dodge him by the skin of her teeth.

He couldn't help wondering if his awakening had been for nothing. How could he not catch even a little short-legged thing like Jiang Mian...?

Jiang Mian felt she'd bought enough time. If she kept this up, her body was going to "give out," so she started heading toward the alley's exit.

But as soon as she ran around a corner, she spotted several flashy-dressed figures leaning at the mouth of the alley, puffing away.

They were the same thugs who'd kept staring at her when she'd left earlier.

Just my luck...

Jiang Mian's expression stiffened. After this, she'd definitely have to find somewhere else to live.

What a shame about the cheap rent—only three hundred a month. It had to be the cheapest place in the West District.

The thug leading the group clearly recognized Jiang Mian—or, more precisely, the eye-catching yellow jacket she wore.

When he saw her uncovered face, his eyes lit up. Grinning, he stepped forward and spread his arms to block her path.

"Well, well! Long time no see, little yellow-hat girl. Where are you rushing off to? How about we go with you?"

A flash of viciousness crossed Jiang Mian's eyes. Sometimes she really wanted to blow these idiots away.

Why was every last one of them lusting after her? Was everyone in this world so pent-up...?

She calmed herself down. These guys... they weren't even Awakened, just cannon fodder. Maybe she could find a way to use them.

Jiang Mian's eyes instantly filled with tears. In a trembling voice, she said:

"B-Big brother... help me... The man behind me, he keeps chasing me. He's so scary. Please, help me..."

Her voice made her sound like a desperate girl with nowhere left to turn, fragile in a way that tugged at the heart. The thug leading the group couldn't have been more delighted.

The kid chasing her looked like a student, too. Even if he was Awakened, he couldn't catch a little girl like Jiang Mian... Tsk, tsk.

Wasn't this the perfect chance to play the hero and rescue a beauty?

"Jiang Mian, get over here!"

Just then, Li Hao caught up. Seeing that Jiang Mian would rather ask these thugs for help than give in to him, his anger surged.

The thug boss straightened up, tossed his cigarette butt to the ground, and planted himself in front of Jiang Mian. He shouted arrogantly:

"Hey, kid! Didn't you hear the girl say she's scared? If you know what's good for you, get lost! Quit bothering us while we chat with her!"

"What the hell are you barking about? You pieces of trash think you can stand in my way? Get the hell out of it!"

Li Hao didn't take the thugs seriously at all. He strode forward, reaching to grab Jiang Mian where she hid behind them.

"Fuck! You won't take a kind offer, so you can take a beating!"

The thug boss saw that Li Hao had completely disrespected him and felt his face burn with humiliation. He cursed and waved his underlings forward.

"Get him, boys!"

The clash erupted in an instant.

Idiots...

The corner of Jiang Mian's mouth lifted in a barely noticeable smile. Set tigers on wolves, and everything was under control... No, these thugs weren't tigers, and Li Hao was, at best, a horny wolf.

Whatever. She'd got them all dancing in the palm of her hand, and... it felt pretty good.

She'd been on edge for so long. She deserved a little fun, didn't she?

As she watched the chaos, she put on a frightened expression and quietly edged toward the exit.

Seeing Jiang Mian about to get away, Li Hao panicked and slapped the thug boss across the face. The latter's world spun; with a thump, he fell to the ground and promptly passed out.

"Stop! Public Security Bureau! Nobody move!"

Just then, a black sedan bearing the Public Security Bureau's insignia pulled up at the mouth of the alley.

Two security officers jumped out quickly and drew the Stun Guns at their waists.

They swept their eyes over the chaotic scene: the unconscious thug, several of his underlings cowering in fear, and Li Hao, looking like a fierce god.

And, of course, Jiang Mian at the alley's entrance, pale-faced and trembling.

"Officers! He—he hit them..."

Jiang Mian spoke at just the right moment, pointing at Li Hao with a trembling finger.

Li Hao froze.

His family was well-off, and as an Awakened person, he enjoyed considerable priority. That was enough to make him arrogant, but attacking government personnel was practically asking to die.

With that thought, Li Hao could only raise his hands in reluctant surrender and crouch with them over his head.