A Well-Intentioned Lie

Chen Shouyi felt his hair stand on end. He dared not stay any longer and decided to leave immediately.

Before leaving, he untied the rope, scooped up the Shell Girl along with her shell, and hurried toward the exit.

Leaving the Shell Girl here—if she died or escaped—would be a waste.

In no time, he left the Unfinished Building.

Looking at the bustling street, crowded with people and traffic, Chen Shouyi let out a small sigh of relief.

Compared to the eerie and unpredictable Otherworld, Earth gave him a much stronger sense of safety. There were no strange, mysterious creatures here, no ghosts or specters—everything put him at ease.

Then he glanced at the shell in his hand. The magical, multicolored haze that had been shimmering around it was now completely dimmed. Its vivid colors had faded, and the surface had become mottled and patchy.

Chen Shouyi froze for a moment, then understood.

No wonder this shell was so beautiful. No wonder the Shell Girl had chosen it as her home. It wasn't ordinary.

Unfortunately, once it reached Earth, its supernatural qualities had faded, and it had become mundane.

Still, he felt no regret.

From start to finish, he had no idea what the shell was even for.

He thought of the Shell Girl inside and gently pried the shell open a crack.

Fortunately, she was still alive—just curled up inside, her face full of terror, trembling nonstop. Clearly, the change in environment had frightened her badly.

Seeing she wasn't dead, Chen Shouyi felt relieved.

Passing by a accessories shop, he had a sudden idea and walked in.

It was the first day of National Day, and the shop was fairly busy. Most of the customers were women, along with a few men accompanying their girlfriends. Someone like Chen Shouyi, coming in alone, was rare.

He browsed slowly and soon picked out a roll of tape, a coil of nylon rope, a pair of small scissors, and several sets of small-sized Barbie doll clothes. Unfortunately, he couldn't find any underwear or bras, so he had to make do.

When he paid, the cashier gave him an extra look at the five or six sets of Barbie clothes.

Half a minute later, Chen Shouyi walked out of the accessories shop with a blank expression, then went to the supermarket to buy **honey.

He had noticed earlier that the Shell Girl seemed to feed on nectar, so honey should be fine. Given her small appetite, she should be easy to keep.

After leaving the supermarket, it was only three in the afternoon. The sun was still blazing, and Chen Shouyi suddenly felt he had nowhere to go.

Looking at his still fair skin, nearly half a day of exposure in the Otherworld seemed to have had little effect. His 13.5 physique had made him almost immune to UV damage.

He opened his phone, chatting with Zhang Xiaoyue while wandering aimlessly, until nearly nightfall before deciding to head home.

"Mom, I'm back." Chen Shouyi said, then slipped upstairs quickly while Mother Chen wasn't paying attention.

At this hour, the restaurant was at its busiest. Mother Chen, who was carrying dishes, only caught a flash of movement before hearing footsteps thumping up the stairs. She shouted after his retreating back, "You're not eating?"

"I ate at a classmate's place." He suddenly stopped, thought of an idea, and decided to tell a white lie.

The stairwell had no lights, and the darkness was his best cover. He turned around confidently and said, "Oh, by the way, Mom. I've already passed the physical fitness requirements for the Martial Apprentice assessment. I'm just a bit behind in swordsmanship and archery."

"Really, son? You passed the physical test?" Mother Chen was overjoyed. She had always worried that her mediocre son would end up with nothing, but she never expected that after starting his senior year, he'd give her such a pleasant surprise.

"Mom, haven't you noticed I've gotten a lot stronger lately? So I'm planning to take a leave of absence from school. I looked into it these past few days—there's a tutoring center that offers intensive pre-exam training. I heard their success rate is pretty high, so I want to sign up."

"If it's useful, then of course you should sign up. How much does it cost?" She was frugal in some areas, but when it came to anything that could help her children's studies, she was always astonishingly generous.

"About eighteen thousand, for fifteen days." Chen Shouyi hesitated and then gave a number. There were plenty of such pre-exam training programs, and this price was standard. Any lower, and it would seem suspicious.

"But I'd have to stay outside," he added, pretending to hesitate.

"You're this old and still afraid of staying out? When do you sign up?" Mother Chen was in a good mood and scolded him with a laugh.

"Tomorrow morning."

"That soon? Good thing there's still some money in the card. I'll transfer it to you after I finish up here!"

In the darkness, Chen Shouyi watched his mother's face, full of smiles and relief. His eyes suddenly stung, and he felt like crying.

In his memory, there had never been a single thing he'd done that made his parents feel proud—only one disappointment after another.

"But that'll never happen again. You'll be proud of your son." He wiped his eyes, turned, and went back to his bedroom, locking the door behind him.

He sat at his desk, rubbed his face, and stared blankly for a while, his thoughts drifting.

Suddenly, he remembered something and quickly took the shell out of the plastic bag.

The Shell Girl lay inside, motionless. Her eyes were red and swollen, hollow, completely devoid of life.

Her mouth was sealed with tape, and her hands and feet were tied together.

Chen Shouyi let out a dry laugh. After a moment's thought, he scooped her out of the shell. He picked up the small scissors and, under her numb gaze, cut the nylon rope binding her hands and feet.

Then he tore off the tape over her mouth.

He picked up the Barbie doll clothes he'd bought earlier and decided to change her into them.

Her naked body was far too distracting—it made him uncomfortable every time. It would be more natural if she wore clothes.

He carefully pinched her arm and slipped the top over her, afraid that even a little force might break her.

In truth, he didn't need to be so careful. She was tougher than she looked—after all, she was a creature from a place with triple gravity, not nearly as fragile as she appeared.

During the process of dressing her, Shell Girl remained motionless, letting him do as he pleased, as if her heart had died.

She didn't cry—her tears had long since run dry. Nor did she scream; it would have been futile.

By the time she sensed the change in her surroundings and realized she had lost all her abilities, no longer able to fly, she had fallen into utter despair and numbness.

After finally managing to squeeze her into the Princess Dress, Chen Shouyi couldn't help wiping the cold sweat from his brow and letting out a soft breath.

"Oh, right, there's still honey."

He quickly took the honey from his bag, grabbed the Metal Spoon, scooped up a shallow spoonful, mixed it with some warm water, and placed it in front of her.

This spoon was longer than she was tall, and the bowl of it was three times the size of her head.

Shell Girl's nose twitched slightly, then she turned her face away and stayed still.

Seeing her passive resistance, Chen Shouyi couldn't resist poking her a few times with his finger, rolling her body back and forth across the desk, but she still refused to make a sound.

Chen Shouyi finally gave up and decided to leave her be—after all, starving for a day probably wouldn't kill her.

He took the Wooden Sword from under the bed and resumed his sword practice.

But he had only just performed a Forward Lunge Stab.

The Wooden Sword cut through the air with a sharp, piercing whistle, and he quickly stopped.

A moment later, there came a rapid knock at the door.

"What is it?" Chen Shouyi pressed his body against the door and asked in a low voice.

"Bro, you're back? What was that sound just now in your room?"

"Nothing, it came from outside. I don't know what it was either."

"Oh, it startled me!"

His sister left quickly, and Chen Shouyi breathed a sigh of relief.

He looked at the sword, then at his own hand. In the Otherworld, he hadn't had a clear sense of just how strong he had become, but only now did he realize he had reached this level.

That last thrust must have been close to the speed of sound.

He suddenly realized how wise it had been to make up an excuse about going away for a while. If he kept living here, setting aside everything else, even practicing his sword would be troublesome.