The changing room curtain was gently drawn aside, and Hoshimi Miyabi and Alice walked out side by side, carrying their clothes.
But when they saw Vivian's distraught state by the chair, their hearts skipped a beat.
Vivian stood rooted to the spot, her fingertips white and her face pale. Shopping bags lay scattered across the floor, and her eyes were red and wet, full of panic she could not hide.
Alice: (*ﾟﾛﾟ)!!
Hoshimi Miyabi: (●_●)
Alice hurried over and called softly, "Vivian, what's wrong? What happened?"
Hoshimi Miyabi frowned slightly, her cool expression growing more serious. "You don't look well."
Vivian's throat tightened, and her voice trembled as she could no longer maintain her composure:
"I can't reach Brother Yingheng... I sent him a message a long time ago, but he still hasn't replied."
At those words, Alice's heart sank.
She was always gentle and soft-spoken, but now panic welled up in her eyes.
"How could this be... Brother Dragon Emperor has never done this before."
She knew all too well how gentle Lu Yingheng was. No matter how busy he was, no matter how troublesome the Hollow disasters or the affairs of the financial conglomerates he had to deal with, he always found time to respond whenever they messaged him.
He had never been completely out of contact before. This silence, without a word from him, was far too unusual.
Hoshimi Miyabi's fingers paused as her cool, rational mind raced. After a brief moment of thought, she spoke in a low voice:
"Don't panic. We'll split up. Each of us will return home and use our own contacts and channels to search for any trace of Lord Dragon Emperor. The moment any of us hears something, we'll inform the others."
The three exchanged glances, all gripped by unease. They hurriedly said goodbye and each headed home.
A black car came slowly to a stop, and Vivian climbed in, distraught.
All the way home, she clutched her phone tightly, refreshing the chat over and over.
The familiar chat window remained silent and cold, without the slightest response.
Vivian was frantic with worry, wishing she could fly straight home.
The car finally stopped in front of the two-story house she shared with Lu Yingheng.
When Vivian was young, she had fallen into the clutches of the Order of Glorification. Lu Yingheng had personally rescued her from hell and taken her in.
This house was the home Brother Yingheng had given her after she escaped the darkness, the only place she belonged in this life.
Vivian stumbled through the door, the crisp sound of it opening jarringly loud in the quiet house.
Everything inside was as usual. Their familiar tableware sat in the tidy, cozy kitchen.
The clean coffee table still bore traces of the tea he had drunk yesterday. Signs of his life were everywhere, but he was nowhere to be found.
She rushed upstairs and went straight into her own room. The bedding was neatly arranged, and the desk was clean, but a thin layer of dust coated the corner.
Vivian's nose stung, and bitterness flooded her heart.
She rarely stayed in her own room. Most nights, she selfishly slipped into Lu Yingheng's room and slept beside him.
The room was always empty and dusty.
But now Lu Yingheng's room, warm and bright all year round, where someone had always been waiting, had also fallen completely silent.
The bed was neatly made and empty, and the desk was bare. Sunlight streamed through the sheer curtains, yet brought no warmth.
The large house was as cozy as ever, its furnishings unchanged, but the man who had saved her from suffering in the Order of Glorification was utterly absent.
Vivian's legs gave way, and she slowly sank to the floor in the middle of the empty room, her eyes red as tears fell silently.
To her, Lu Yingheng had never been merely someone to rely on.
He was the salvation who had pulled her out of the Order of Glorification's purgatory, the entire meaning of her life.
From that day on, Brother Yingheng had been the only one in her world.
Her happiness was because of him, her sense of security was because of him, and every reason she had to keep living was tied to him alone.
Meanwhile, the grand, elegant Thymefield Family residence was quiet and serene, the scent of books and a faint fragrance of tea lingering in the corridors.
Alice hurried down the corridor, her steps urgent, her skirt fluttering and her rabbit ears drooping.
Her heart hung in suspense, pounding wildly, and even her fingertips trembled slightly.
Her heart was filled with hidden apprehension. The secret love she had buried deep inside her now surged forth, tugging at her emotions.
Brother Dragon Emperor was the benefactor of her entire family, and the person she had secretly held in her heart since she was young, admiring and cherishing him with all her heart.
She had long since fallen for him in secret, but had always obediently hidden her feelings, never daring to reveal the slightest hint.
She hurried straight to the study and pushed the door open.
Inside, Lionel Thymefield sat upright at his desk, his manner refined as he brewed tea at a leisurely pace. Steam curled through the tranquil room.
"Father!"
Alice's voice trembled almost imperceptibly as she hurried over to him.
Leoniel looked up and, seeing his daughter's panicked expression, paused in surprise.
"Why are you in such a hurry? What happened?"
Alice bit her lip, suppressed her panic, and asked urgently:
"Father, do you know where Brother Dragon Emperor went? I... I can't reach him. There hasn't been any response at all."
At her words, Leoniel's smile vanished. His brows knitted tightly, and his expression grew puzzled and grave.
"His Excellency the Dragon Emperor?"
He thought back carefully, then spoke in a low voice:
"I don't know. All the Hollow cleanup and the work of eliminating the remaining forces of the financial conglomerates were completed yesterday.
Today should have been a quiet day with nothing to do. He had no reason to go out on a mission."
The peace Thymefield enjoyed today was entirely thanks to Lu Yingheng's intervention back then.
Leoniel had always remembered that enormous debt of gratitude. He knew the Dragon Emperor was dependable and would never lose contact without reason.
Alice grew even more distraught. Her eyes reddened slightly, and her voice was full of urgency.
"This has never happened before... Brother Dragon Emperor always responds to us, no matter when.
Today is so strange. Father, could something have happened to him?"
Her hands clenched tightly at her sides. Worry mingled with the bitterness of her secret love, and a relentless tide of fear swept through her, leaving her restless. All she wanted was to find the person who made her feel safe.
Hoshimi Miyabi chose not to take a car.
As a gifted martial artist trained by the Hoshimi Family, she was swift on her feet, moving like the wind. A car was far slower than her at a full sprint.
The cool young woman moved swiftly through the streets of New Eridu, her posture straight and agile, her expression composed.
Yet deep in her usually calm, unruffled eyes, a rare panic and anxiety lay hidden.
She was always rational and restrained, almost machine-like in her composure. Her emotions rarely fluctuated, and she always conducted herself properly and observed the appropriate boundaries.
When the old capital fell, Lu Yingheng had saved her mother, who had been on the verge of becoming corrupted. The Hoshimi Family would remember that debt forever.
It was also from that time that respect and affection had taken root in her heart. Whenever Lord Dragon Emperor was involved, all her rationality would quietly give way.
Moving at great speed, she soon reached the Hoshimi Family's old residence, a place of austere simplicity.
Inside the hall, Hoshimi Souichirou sat upright. The head of the Hoshimi Family carried himself with a steady bearing, but a complicated thought had always lingered in his heart:
He wanted to beat up the "yellow-haired punk" who had stolen his daughter away. Yet that very man was the benefactor who had saved his wife and the entire Hoshimi Family. He could raise his fist, but he could never bring himself to strike.
"Father."
Hoshimi Miyabi hurried forward, her voice more urgent than ever before. "Can you contact Lord Dragon Emperor? I can't find him. He's been completely out of contact today."
Hoshimi Souichirou froze at her words and looked up at his daughter, who was usually composed and indifferent, never letting her emotions show.
He knew his daughter all too well.
Hoshimi Miyabi had been cool by nature since childhood, disciplined and restrained like a precise, cold machine. She never panicked or lost her composure, and almost nothing and no one in her life could make her visibly anxious.
But now, her features were tense and her expression anxious, her extreme concern plain to see.
A sense of helplessness welled up in Hoshimi Souichirou's heart. The man he wanted to teach a lesson was the one who had saved their lives, and the daughter he had raised had given her whole heart to him. There was simply nothing he could do.
He let out a long, silent sigh. I really can't do a thing about him.
Though full of helplessness, he could not bear to watch his daughter suffer in anxiety. He could only nod in resignation. "I'll try for you."
He immediately took out his communication device and mobilized all the Hoshimi Family's private channels and contacts, reaching out and checking them one by one.
But after several attempts, every signal disappeared without a trace, without a single response.
At last, Hoshimi Souichirou put down the communicator. Looking at his daughter's increasingly tense expression, he shook his head helplessly.
"I can't find him. There's no trace of him through any channel. His Excellency the Dragon Emperor... is out of contact."
The hall fell silent in an instant.
Hoshimi Miyabi, always calm and composed, her emotions never fluctuating, stiffened slightly. For the first time, her eyes took on a vacant, bewildered look.