The soft click of the doorknob turning was especially clear in the room. Xia Mi rose alertly from the sofa. She had not made many friends in Beijing yet, so no one should have been visiting her.
Could it be a burglar? She narrowed her eyes, a cold smile curling across her lips. What blind little thief dared steal from her? Heh, she would make sure they paid dearly.
Xia Mi cracked her knuckles, already prepared to give this uninvited guest a standard Brazilian jiu-jitsu welcome.
Then she saw a man wearing an absurdly ugly mask sneak in through the door.
Xia Mi lunged forward, knocked him to the ground in a few swift moves, and locked his neck tightly in a classic triangle choke.
"Wah... It hurts, it hurts, it hurts... It's me!" A muffled wail came from beneath the mask, the voice distorted by the chokehold.
That voice sounded a little familiar.
"Damn it! It's me!"
"Brother?" Xia Mi hesitated for a moment, then quickly released him. "Why are you here?"
"Wasn't our old home about to be demolished? I talked to the developer and exchanged the relocation apartment they offered for cash, then came over. I don't have a steady job anyway, so I thought I'd come to Beijing and find you." Amon got up, rubbing his neck. "I came all this way, and this is how you welcome me?"
"Who told you to wear such a ridiculous mask?" Xia Mi yanked the cover off his head.
"This is a Gatanothor mask I specially bought! I went to several stores before I found one!"
Xia Mi turned the vicious-looking mask over and over for a long time before finally recognizing the Evil God from the final episode of Tiga by its upside-down mouth.
"Here, your little turtle."