Returning to Campus

Chen Xi stirred her coffee, teasing her. "Haven't found a Legend you like, Miss Lin?"

She already had a rough target in mind—the Stitched Monster at the school.

But given what she'd experienced in this loop, there was no way she could know about it, so she couldn't just tell Lin Yue outright.

Lin Yue answered listlessly, "If you want me dead, just say so."

She seemed to be lying face-down on the table, but to keep her face from getting dirty, she had secretly propped it up with a shadow tentacle.

"Are you planning to go back to school?" Chen Xi asked casually.

"I don't feel like it." The blonde girl's words came out muffled.

School... Right!

Lin Yue suddenly had an idea. She remembered the Stitched Monster that had appeared at the school.

She sat up straight with exaggerated seriousness and nudged up the thick-rimmed glasses she'd just put on.

"My precognitive ability has already told me the answer."

Was that part of her setup, too? Chen Xi had thought Lin Yue had forgotten all about it.

She had to admit, it was a convenient excuse for just about anything. Lin Yue could make things up, and all she had to do was nod along.

"Then, Prophet, what did you foresee?" Chen Xi found her coffee a little bitter and added two more sugar cubes.

"There's a Stitched Monster roaming the school at night." Lin Yue didn't speak too definitively. "But I'm not sure what conditions make it appear, or when."

After all, the Stitched Monster hadn't appeared during their battle against Wu Xin in the third regression—the previous loop.

So there was a good chance it had come for the Shadow Dweller.

As it happened, the aura of the shadow armor she'd fashioned was extremely similar to the Shadow Dweller's.

But now that she thought about it, it was chilling. A monster capable of slaughtering people at will had been roaming openly around the academy, killing them.

And because it had a domain, its victims' bodies never appeared in front of ordinary people.

On top of that, the victims' families were affected by a distortion of their memories. They never realized what had happened to the victims, assuming they'd simply gone missing.

Lin Yue clasped her hands over her head, a chocolate lollipop between her lips. "The more you know, the more you live in fear."

Ignoring her usual muttering, Chen Xi pressed on. "How strong is it?"

The image of the two of them getting their heads smashed open suddenly flashed through the blonde girl's mind. "Uh, we can't beat it."

"Then let's call Zhu Li." Chen Xi had already drafted the message.

Lin Yue hesitated. "Isn't it bad to keep asking other people for help..."

"It's not asking for help. We both get something out of it." To help Lin Yue evolve further, Chen Xi launched into her double-standard spiel.

"From the time you've spent with her, you can tell Zhu Li is kind and always willing to help, right?"

"Getting rid of a monster that's killed who knows how many lives would be a good thing for Zhu Li, too."

"...You think so?" Lin Yue blinked in a daze.

While she was still hesitating, Chen Xi put an end to her deliberations. "Don't overthink it. I've already sent the message."

Of course, the most important thing was that she and Lin Yue could regress through time.

With that ability, they could afford to loosen just about any moral standard.

Chen Xi figured that with Lin Yue's insight, she'd understand this truth after dying another time or two.

"But..." Lin Yue tried to say something, but Chen Xi cut her off without mercy and held up her phone for her to see.

"She's already agreed."

[Zhu Li: Sure.]

"Over here!"

Under the night sky, Lin Yue waved to the red-haired girl who had just arrived by car at the school gate.

Today, Zhu Li wore a long, elegant black dress that made her look poised and graceful.

"Sorry for the trouble, Zhu Li. When we're done, we'll go grab some late-night food."

Zhu Li shook her head slightly and took out a sticker. [It's no trouble. For the next seven days, just call me whenever you need anything.]

Seeing that, Lin Yue instinctively thought of Wu Xin.

But after thinking it over, she abandoned the idea.

If they couldn't have a "fair duel" to raise her Rank, Wu Xin would most likely hide and wait for a chance to strike.

As things stood, both sides were headed straight for each other, each determined to kill the other face-to-face.

"Then I'll take you up on that." Lin Yue tried to keep her tone light so she wouldn't bring up Zhu Li's painful memories.

Beside them, Chen Xi examined Zhu Li's outfit and remarked coolly, "The black dress is very flattering. It suits you."

Zhu Li froze for a moment. Then she smiled and took out a fresh sticker to write on.

[I had more than a dozen stickers ready beforehand, but I didn't use a single one. You're still full of surprises.]

"Am I?" Chen Xi said noncommittally. She didn't dwell on it and laid out their next steps. "The school's security is lax, so just follow us inside. The Stitched Monster seems to have some kind of regenerative ability, so watch out in case it gets back up. We don't know what its domain does."

The three walked together, with Zhu Li between Lin Yue and Chen Xi.

Chen Xi changed the subject. "By the way, do you have a domain ability?"

Zhu Li silently took out another crumpled stack of stickers. The other two leaned their heads in to read.

[The Resentful Fire That Ends All. That's the name of my domain. Once activated, it burns every living thing inside without distinction.]

[So I only activate my domain when absolutely necessary.]

"I see..." Lin Yue paused. "Don't worry, Zhu Li. You can just toss out some flames and burn that ugly thing to death."

Amused by her earnest expression, Zhu Li didn't write anything else.

The three walked openly onto campus and headed straight for the classroom building.

As they went, Chen Xi was idly admiring the scenery when she suddenly spotted Ye Min, one of Lin Yue's former friends.

Ye Min was walking back to the dorms alone, carrying some freshly bought skewers.

When she saw the blonde girl deliberately trying to hide herself, Chen Xi's lips curled into a smile.

"Lin Yue, isn't that your friend? Aren't you going to say hello?"

Looking at Ye Min's lonely figure, Lin Yue hesitated, then declined. "I'm afraid I'd drag her into this. It's better this way..."

The real world was far crueler than she'd imagined.

Compared with learning the truth and living in constant fear, it was happier to remain lost in a beautiful dream.

The three reached the classroom building and stopped to pet a cat for a while.

It was already eleven at night. Lin Yue used shadows to weave armor for Chen Xi.

"It's missing a greatsword." Chen Xi's voice sounded muffled from inside the shadow armor.

Lin Yue rolled her eyes. "You're so demanding."

Despite that, Lin Yue continued manipulating the shadows until they formed a huge, heavy sword nearly as tall as her shoulder.

Chen Xi took the greatsword from her and hefted it in her hand. "Not bad."

Zhu Li watched the two of them bicker like a pair of goofballs and smiled.

While they were fooling around, a harsh scraping noise came from a shadowy corner, as if something heavy were being dragged across the ground.

"Rrr..."

Accompanied by that rasping sound, the Stitched Monster's bloated body appeared before the three of them.