But...
The Heavenly Maiden thought of that girl who had hiccuped nonstop.
One had hiccups, and one was coughing...
Was there a difference?
Oh.
The Heavenly Maiden nodded as if she understood.
That girl had gone on to have more bad luck.
This boy, it seemed, hadn't had any more bad luck...
That was why it hadn't sensed anything from him.
Xiao Xiao chuckled.
From the Heavenly Maiden's tone, she seemed rather disappointed that someone had suffered bad luck right in front of her, yet she hadn't sensed a thing.
He was just about to say something.
Hm?
He turned around, sensing something.
Xu Qizhen was still bent over.
He had been coughing so hard.
Without meaning to, he had ended up in that position.
But—
Xiao Xiao quickly noticed something was different.
There was no more coughing.
"Better?"
Xiao Xiao raised an eyebrow.
"..."
Xu Qizhen didn't respond.
"Xu Qizhen?"
Xiao Xiao was a little puzzled.
"What's wrong?"
He noticed that Xu Qizhen's body had gone rigid.
His expression turned serious.
"Are you feeling unwell?"
Xu Qizhen's hand tightened its grip on the front of his shirt.
The fabric was all wrinkled.
Just now...
His heart had suddenly fallen out of rhythm.
It was beating fast and hard.
He'd almost felt like he couldn't catch his breath.
"...Just now..."
Xu Qizhen struggled to speak.
But his voice was so hoarse that even he was surprised.
Just now?
Xiao Xiao didn't interrupt Xu Qizhen.
He could vaguely sense how agitated Xu Qizhen was.
Had he noticed something?
If Xu Qizhen had noticed something that could make him this agitated...
The companion he'd played hide-and-seek with?
Xiao Xiao immediately arrived at the answer.
So once it had happened for the first time, it