Token of Loyalty

By the time he got home, it was already the middle of the night.

There could be no concept of day or night underground—or rather, there was none aboveground either—but out of old habit, several large clocks still hung high along the streets, marking the current time.

When he opened the door, the unfamiliar stench of rot flooded his nose and mouth.

This place never saw wind all year round, and its ventilation and drainage systems were far from good. Mold, decay, and rampant fungi had practically become the defining features of the place.

The houses, beds, roads, and every visible and hidden corner were covered in gaudy traces of growth.

In real-world terms, this place was only fit to house certain sewer-dwelling creatures.

And yet now...

It had become the final refuge of tens of thousands of people.

It was especially absurd.

The room was much cleaner than when he had left. It seemed Sansan had tidied it again while he was gone—even the stove had been scrubbed spotless. She had gone to all that trouble seemingly just so her "brother" could live a little more comfortably. Yes, "brother."

Zhou You silently let out a breath and looked inside by the fading glow of the streetlights.

Sansan was sitting beside the dining table. An open Braille book lay at her side, but her little head was resting on the tabletop. She seemed to have grown tired from reading and had dozed off.

Zhou You did not wake her. Instead, he walked over to the table, casually picked up the book, and took a look.

Then his expression became extraordinarily colorful.

...The Prince? What the hell is this?

Though he found it a little strange, he did not dwell on it. These Braille books were clearly relics from the old