No Loose Ends

Lin Hao knocked on the door. Sensing the silence inside, he pressed his ear against it and listened carefully, then felt his heart sink a little.

Dead? Or mad?

Although he had magazines tucked into his clothes and a pot lid in hand for this scavenging trip, Lin Hao had brought no other "baggage."

His remaining food was still locked in his room, keeping his load light.

His body was already as fragile as any ordinary office drone's. Reducing his mobility further would undoubtedly increase the risk.

He would scout outside first, eliminate any danger, and find somewhere cleaner to stay. Then he could move over some useful things and build up a stockpile.

Under these circumstances, if he headed out lightly equipped and his roommate came out and locked the front door behind him, he would lose even his route of retreat.

That was why Lin Hao had come back to check on her before leaving.

But no matter how he knocked or how gently he called to her, there was neither an answer nor any reaction from inside.

This roommate had left quite an impression on Lin Hao. She was a gorgeous woman two years older than him, apparently a yoga instructor who also livestreamed.

Her sculpted figure had near-perfect curves and contours. One particularly memorable time, while getting something from the kitchen refrigerator, he had seen the cleft outlined by her yoga pants as she bent over. It had kept him awake for half the night.

However, Lin Hao had watched too many online videos about sealing one's heart in concrete, along with the increasingly pervasive hostility between the sexes. Although he knew that did not represent everyone, he still tended to keep his distance from women in everyday life.

Women had pursued him both at school and after he started working, but Lin Hao always felt they harbored some ulterior motive. Though he indulged his secret desires in his room and enjoyed watching pretty girls in videos, he always presented a rather cold front.

So even though his roommate was a beautiful single woman who occasionally struck up a conversation with him, he had never intended to grow closer to her. Life alone suited him just fine.

He was perfectly happy to admire her, feast his eyes, steal a little visual ice cream, or even conjure up a few scenes in his head. But for now, that was where it stopped.

Thus, both Zhao Xiaowen and the young couple were merely roommates he exchanged nods with.

After the couple went mad, killing them with his own hands had stirred little particular emotion in him. At a time like this, he was far more concerned about having his retreat cut off!

After all, even madmen probably knew how to unlock and lock doors.

After a few more unanswered knocks, Lin Hao stopped knocking and said calmly,

"Xiao Wen, I don't know whether you're in there, but you know what things are like now. There are madmen everywhere. I'm heading out, and I don't want to leave a potential threat behind..."

Inside the room, Zhao Xiaowen huddled in a corner with her arms around her legs. Hearing the coherent voice outside, she felt a flicker of doubt.

Could a madman string together that many sentences?

Regardless, as a woman alone in a world like this, she naturally did not dare open the door.

She had ready-to-eat chicken breast, protein powder, spicy konjac snacks, oats, and tap water she had collected beforehand stored in her room. Given how little she ate, she could hold out for quite a few days. She did not want to take a risk now.

Thinking about her current circumstances, Zhao Xiaowen felt another wave of despair.

Naturally beautiful, she had enjoyed a fairly comfortable life thanks to her looks. Without making any particular effort, she found doors opening for her everywhere.

If she wanted, she could even find a wealthy patron to keep her immediately. Her top donor had hinted at it many times.

It was just that her upbringing had taught her to reject such things. She already lived comfortably on her own, free and at ease. There was simply no need.

Because of harassment at the gym, she had begun focusing more on livestreaming. Although competition was fierce, her outstanding personal assets had slowly helped her gain traction. She had over a hundred thousand followers, and the number was steadily growing.

Yet just as life was getting better and better, she had run into this hopeless situation.

Years of disciplined exercise had given Zhao Xiaowen greater mental resilience than most people, but she felt that if this continued, she would probably go mad before starving to death. She could see no hope at all.

As for the roommate outside, Zhao Xiaowen knew him fairly well. He was a handsome, puppy-faced young man. Though she had never intended anything to happen between them, she sometimes took the initiative to tease him a little. He had always been aloof, however. This was the most he had ever said in one go...

"Xiao Wen, I'm coming in..."

His voice rang out again, interrupting Zhao Xiaowen's thoughts. She stared nervously at the wooden door barricaded with a cabinet and her bed.

What was Lin Hao trying to do?

What about those two lunatics? Why couldn't she hear them anymore?

While Zhao Xiaowen's thoughts ran wild, bang!

A heavy chopping blow struck the wooden door, making the entire thing shudder.

Bang!

The second blow!

Crack!

A distinct bulge began forming in one section of the thick door's inner surface!

Zhao Xiaowen's heart went cold. A fire axe?!

She was kind of dead...

She immediately scrambled to her feet and hurriedly called out,

"Wait! Hold on! Hao, stop chopping! I'll open the door! It's barricaded. Let me move things first!"

Bang!

After the third blow, splinters burst from the bulging section, leaving a vertical gap through which half of Lin Hao's face appeared.

Seeing the panic-stricken Zhao Xiaowen inside, Lin Hao nodded in satisfaction.

"So you were in there, Xiao Wen. Sorry about chopping up your door."

"It's fine, it's fine. Heh, hehe... I was asleep before. I didn't hear you. Sorry, sorry."

Zhao Xiaowen forced a smile, her voice carrying a nasal quaver as though she were about to cry.

Looking at Lin Hao's face through the gap, she felt her heart pound with terror. The moment the door had been breached, she had felt the strongest fortress in her heart shatter too. Vast as the world was, there was nowhere left to shelter her.

Under Lin Hao's stare, Zhao Xiaowen began tremblingly dragging aside the clutter blocking the door, moving at a painfully slow pace.

"Want me to help?"

Lin Hao's words made Zhao Xiaowen flinch. She sped up, quickly asking,

"Where are those two? What's happening now?"

"I took advantage of them messing around and beat them to death. It's pretty filthy here, so I'm going out to find somewhere better. I'll need you to watch the place for now."

Lin Hao had also confirmed that Zhao Xiaowen had not become a madwoman.

As the door opened, Zhao Xiaowen stood before him, half a head shorter than he was.

Even without makeup, her delicate features were evident. Her fair skin held a healthy pink glow, and a faint mist of frightened tears clouded her eyes. Her gaze darted about evasively, giving her the look of someone badly shaken.

With her naturally generous assets and the figure sculpted by years of exercise, she truly had what it took to carve out a place for herself in today's white-hot competition among streamers without a team behind her.

If beauty filters could be removed from livestreams and videos, she would certainly rise even further.

Several days without bathing had left the skin around Zhao Xiaowen's chest and neck, as well as the flat midriff beneath her yoga outfit, looking as though it had been coated with a sheen of oil. Her nervous breathing made everything rise and fall, trembling.

While watching Lin Hao cautiously, Zhao Xiaowen also surveyed the living room from the corner of her eye. Seeing the young couple lying on the floor, she finally relaxed and believed what he had said.

It seemed she didn't have to die.

Noticing that Lin Hao's gaze remained fixed on her chest, Zhao Xiaowen forced another faint smile.

"I really have to thank you. If it weren't for you, who knows how long they would've kept harassing me? You're amazing, taking down two madmen."

Zhao Xiaowen did not ask exactly how he had dealt with them. The reality was right there. Although she trained regularly, the physical gap between men and women was plain to see, and she understood her own vulnerable position.

Then she tugged at the stretchy fabric of her yoga outfit and fanned herself with one hand. The sight she exposed was so overwhelming that Lin Hao gave a muffled grunt and turned away.

Realizing that her movements had been too broad, Zhao Xiaowen blushed and quickly said,

"This outfit stretches quite a lot, and you're not that bulky. If you want it, I can give it to you. It'll make moving around easier. I'll definitely help watch the place!"

Yes, Lin Hao had kept staring at Zhao Xiaowen partly because she was certainly easy on the eyes. More importantly, once he got closer and concentrated, he could see a faint white glow on her yoga outfit.

[Authentic Yoga Outfit]

[Value: 38 wish power]

[Weight: 0.3 kg]

[Additional affix: Enhanced physical training effects (white)]

[Extra additional affix: Enhanced agility (white)]

[A beautiful woman's natural-scent yoga outfit, coveted by many fans of her videos. Its stretchy material supports the muscles and enhances agility. Snug and breathable, a sniff refreshes the mind. Has many uses.]

Zhao Xiaowen also stole a glance at Lin Hao's handsome face. Though she had been a little embarrassed earlier, showing off her signature weapon had been a calculated move. But her nerves seemed to have made her movements a little too broad. She had overdone it.

Although she was careful about her chastity, Lin Hao was equally good-looking. At this moment of life and death, he had killed the madmen and rescued her. She owed him her life...