Castorice's innocent question about a "girlfriend" made Luo Li's cheeks heat up again, just when he had finally managed to calm down.
He stammered, trying to gloss over it as "a very close kind of friendship." Fortunately, Castorice did not press him. She merely nodded with only a vague understanding, then turned her curious gaze toward the two spare rooms piled with clutter.
"Just staying here temporarily has already caused you so much trouble."
Her voice was gentle, filled with sincere gratitude.
"I told you, it's no trouble."
Luo Li waved a hand, trying to get the atmosphere back to normal.
"You've only just arrived, and everything is unfamiliar. It's only right that I look after you.
This will be your temporary home from now on. We'll take things slowly."
He checked the time. Outside the window, the dark red daylight was gradually giving way to deep twilight. The Cloud of Blood Erosion looked even more oppressive at night.
"It's getting late. We'll make do for tonight-you can sleep in my bed."
At that, Castorice immediately shook her head slightly. "How could I? That's your bed. I..."
"Don't stand on ceremony!"
Luo Li cut her off, his tone leaving no room for argument, and strode toward his bedroom. "I'll sleep on the couch. The one in the living room is pretty wide. I often fall asleep playing games on it, so I'm used to it."
The moment he pushed open the bedroom door, a faint, fresh scent drifted out.
The room was far tidier than his streaming workspace. The clean, light gray sheets lay smooth without a single wrinkle, and the fluffy pillow looked inviting.
"See? It's very clean!"
As though trying to prove something, Luo Li even gave the sheets a deliberate pat, stirring up a little nonexistent dust.
"I change and wash the sheets regularly. There's definitely no smell."
Even he felt a little embarrassed after saying that, and hastily added, "Anyway, you can sleep here without worrying."
Castorice stood in the doorway, looking at the tidy bed that seemed so out of place amid the rest of the cluttered rental apartment, then at the insistence on Luo Li's face that allowed no refusal. A trace of complicated emotion flickered through her purple eyes.
She lightly bit her lower lip and finally stopped refusing. "...Thank you, Luo Li-sorry for the trouble."
"I told you, stop saying it's trouble." Luo Li smiled, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief.
Stand by and watch Castorice sleep on the couch or clean out that dust-filled storage room? He couldn't do it.
With the sleeping arrangements settled, Luo Li returned to his computer, intending to deal with the mess left by his interrupted stream.
The moment he opened his social apps and streaming dashboard, a barrage of notification sounds followed.
The fan group had long since erupted, with all kinds of speculation flying around.
[Did Li Dog really get carried off by Yuan Ge's puppet?]
[Could vampires have raided his apartment complex? I heard they just cleared out a nest in the neighboring district yesterday!]
[I bet fifty cents his motherboard burned out! That's what he gets for practicing Yuan Ge so hard every day!]
Luo Li gave a wry smile and posted an announcement in the group: "I'm fine, don't worry. Unexpected equipment failure. I'll make up the stream tomorrow." That temporarily placated the crowd.
Next came a flood of private messages.
Some asked whether he was safe, some urged him to start streaming again, and quite a few were... confessions from female fans.
[God Li, God Li! Your Yuan Ge was so cool today! Your hands moved so fast I could barely keep up! Make sure you rest! (Heart)]
[Hey, Luo Li, your voice is so nice, and you look so focused when you're gaming-could we... get to know each other? (Shy emoji)]
[Li Bao, Mommy won't let you work this hard! Did you end the stream so early because you're feeling sick? Take care of yourself! (Crying)]
Luo Li had long since grown used to messages like these. With his face and reasonably good skills, he had indeed accumulated some "girlfriend fans" and "mom fans."
Usually, he either ignored them or playfully replied, "Thank you for the love, but Yuan Ge is my one true love."
Today, however, for some reason, he instinctively swiped quickly across the screen, scrolling past those clearly well-intentioned messages. He even glanced a little guiltily at Castorice, who sat quietly on the edge of the bed, curiously examining the "glowing slab" in his hand.
"Um... they're messages from some viewers."
He offered the stiff explanation.
Castorice nodded without asking further. Her attention seemed to have been caught by the way Luo Li's fingers moved rapidly across the screen. "Your fingers move so quickly."
"That's about all they're good for." Luo Li gave a self-deprecating smile and put down his phone.
As night deepened, the city's clamor did not entirely subside. Instead, it carried a faint unease unique to an apocalyptic setting.
Occasionally, indistinct sirens sounded in the distance. There was no telling whether they were drills or actual incidents.
Closer by, the footsteps of the upstairs neighbors, the muffled television next door, and even the faint bustle of the night market downstairs all filtered through the poorly soundproofed walls.
Luo Li dug a brand-new, still-packaged pair of noise-reducing earplugs out of a drawer and handed them to Castorice. "Here. If it's too noisy when you're trying to sleep, you can put these in your ears.
Our building isn't very soundproof, and outside... it's always a little noisy, too."
Castorice took the little, soft earplugs and curiously squeezed them between her fingertips. "Put them in my ears? That will block out sound? What... marvelous creations."
She tried putting them into her ears, her movements somewhat clumsy, but the effect was immediate. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise. "It really is... much quieter."
Seeing her look as though she had discovered a whole new world, Luo Li couldn't help smiling. "Glad they work."
After washing up (Luo Li patiently taught Castorice how to use a toothbrush and toothpaste again, watching her look in wonder at her reflection with a mouthful of foam), they said goodnight to each other.
Luo Li carried his blanket and pillow to the living room couch, while Castorice went into his bedroom.
Lying on the not particularly spacious couch, Luo Li found it hard to sleep. Everything he had experienced today was far too fantastical: a game character crossing worlds, a system, lifting a curse, living together... It was a huge amount to take in.
He rolled over. He seemed to still catch the lingering trace of Castorice's unique scent in the air, cool and clear yet carrying a hint of warmth.
Just then, faint sounds came from the bedroom next door.
They seemed to be Castorice's light footsteps as she moved around the room, along with... an extremely faint whisper, almost like chanting? The voice was ethereal and indistinct, carrying a rhythm that did not belong to this world. It came intermittently, too faint to make out.
Luo Li held his breath and listened closely.
The whispering soon disappeared, replaced by an exceedingly faint sound, like ice crystals forming and then shattering. Accompanied by a barely perceptible chill, it seeped through the gap around the door, making even the living room's temperature seem to drop a degree or two.
Was she trying to use her power? Or... was she uneasy in unfamiliar surroundings?
Luo Li felt a little worried, but he also felt it would be inappropriate to knock and ask without warning.
He could only suppress his questions and force his eyes shut.
It seemed this saintess from Amphoreus still harbored quite a few secrets.
And in this apocalyptic world overrun by vampires, what sort of future would her presence, and the "strange phenomena" she brought with her, ultimately lead to?
Luo Li tossed and turned on the couch. Only in the latter half of the night did he finally drift off, amid the searchlight beams that occasionally swept past the window and the faint background noise of the city.
Meanwhile, in the room just one wall away, Castorice sat propped against the headboard, still awake.
She opened her palm. An exceedingly faint, ghostly blue glow, like the waters of the River of Souls, curled and danced around her fingertips, illuminating her thoughtful purple eyes as she murmured:
"The aura of 'death' in this world... is very chaotic. And it seems to be calling out to something..."