NFM Chapter 15

Stared at by Lin Huai’s pitch-black eyes, Peng Xuan involuntarily shivered.

Only then did she notice… Lin Huai’s eyes were a deep black, devoid of pupils.

The next moment, Lin Huai’s gaze shifted away from her, turning to chat and laugh with a young man beside him. When he laughed with others, he appeared polite and amiable, his amber eyes shimmering like lake waves beyond the black pupils.

…It must be an illusion.

…That person.

She swallowed her speculations and turned her gaze to Ye Xian and the others.

As for those who had purchased the Lucky bags, she didn’t spare them any attention.

Because in her view, these people, misled, had abandoned their only chance of survival, walking down a path to certain death.

At 7:50 PM, everyone arrived at the entrance hall as per the rules.

“I just spent a fortune in FGO and got nothing but failures!!” the Scene Kid said to Ye Xian, “According to the law of conservation of luck, I should…”

Everyone was chattering noisily, but Lin Huai paid no attention. He sat on the sofa, looking utterly disinterested.

“What are you doing here?” Ni Xiao asked him.

“Wrestling with a dilemma.”

“What dilemma?”

“Whether to defend the legitimate work rights of my former kind or to uphold my own sense of belonging to the group…”

Ni Xiao: …

She couldn’t understand what Lin Huai was saying at all, so she took her water and went to the other side. At the other end of the sofa, Chu Tian was there, wiping a wrench with a tissue, his eyes wandering. Tang Wen sat beside him, half-admiring, half-ingratiating: “Brother Chu Tian.”

“Hmm.”

“Brother Chu Tian, what brings you to the beginner’s arena?”

Without looking at him, Chu Tian said, “The Buddha says, it’s unspeakable.”

Tang Wen “…”, then asked again, “Brother Chu Tian, why did you leave Morning Star? With your abilities, staying there would surely lead to great achievements…”

Still not looking at him, Chu Tian replied, “Our worldviews don’t align.”

“Worldviews?”

“Life views, value views, scientific development views.”

Tang Wen “…”, once more. Despite having his warm face pressed against a cold butt, he wanted to keep probing. Chu Tian waved his hand and added, “Actually, it’s four views that don’t align, including the view on love.”

“View on love?”

“Yes,” Chu Tian said, putting down the wrench and looking at him, “Actually, I…”

Tang Wen swallowed hard.

“…am a dead gay, the kind who would have designs on wealthy men, so you better keep your distance from me,” Chu Tian smirked, “Or else you know what I mean.”

Remembering the bathroom scene, Tang Wen: …

Tang wisely left. Chu Tian made himself comfortable on the sofa, playing with his phone.

But his gaze lingered on Lin Huai’s back, who was yawning.

He tilted his head, his deep eyes seeming to ponder something.

Just then, there was a commotion at the door.

Eleven packages were delivered into the villa in order. Everyone held their own, swallowing hard, their hands trembling as they began to draw their cards.

Ye Xian held his package, his head spinning. Lin Huai came over and asked, “Aren’t you going to open it?”

“It’s all your fault…”

“Oh,” Lin Huai felt a bit guilty, “Then give it to me, I’ll open it for you.”

With that, he reached out to Ye Xian. Ye Xian stared at the slender, pale fingers with rounded nails for a long time, then firmly shook his head.

“Forget it, it’s my own stuff…” Saying this, he steeled himself and began to tear at the packaging with his fingers.

The more anxious he got, the harder it was to open. Lin Huai then turned his hands, allowing his nails to grow long and blood-red, gently scratching the package as Ye Xian went to get scissors.

“Eh… it’s open,” Ye Xian, holding the scissors, didn’t think much of it and used them to open the package.

He picked up the package, and from the opening, a letter fell out.

…a pink letter.

The handwriting was delicate, resembling that of a beautiful girl, with a few elegant words written on it.

“Tonight, I’ll come to date you”

The letter had no signature, clearly a letter filled with pink bubbles, but Ye Xian’s hair stood on end.

A date… what kind of date!! I really don’t want to date a terrifying female ghost!!!

Screaming this in his heart, Chu Tian leaned over, “Yo, got a love letter, huh.”

“A love letter from a female ghost is nothing to be happy about!!”

Lin Huai: “Receiving too many love letters is also a kind of trouble.”

“Stop talking in Diaochan’s tone!! It’s super weird!!”

While Ye Xian was still complaining, the others had already opened their Lucky bags.

At first glance, everyone’s received items seemed unremarkable. The Scene Kid hugged his basketball, weeping with joy: “Buying a Lucky bag was definitely the right choice!”

Ni Xiao got a mirror, Ye Keke got a pair of red high heels. Yu Fu received a keyboard, all of which seemed like ordinary everyday items.

“Is there anything wrong with the Lucky bag items?” Huang Lu asked them.

All three shook their heads.

After repeated confirmations, Huang Lu finally felt relieved. Everyone went upstairs to sleep, Ye Xian glanced at the love letter in his hand, swallowing hard.

Just as he was about to go up, Chu Tian tapped his shoulder: “Here, take this.”

What he handed over was the packaging from the express delivery, inside was a red seven-day no-reason return card. Chu Tian held the packaging, staring at Ye Xian, his face unusually serious: “You might need this tonight.”

Ye Xian’s heart suddenly panicked: “Need what?”

“If what comes isn’t a beautiful female ghost but some cross-dressing dude, you might need the return card to send them back,” Chu Tian said lightly.

“…That’s not how it works.”

Despite his complaints, Ye Xian still took the return card and headed upstairs alone.

It was 11:30 PM.

Now, in the living room, only Lin Huai and Chu Tian remained.

The young man with messy hair sat on a chair, wiping a wrench with a tissue. He lowered his head, shadows falling on his face, making his nose bridge stand out.

Lin Huai stood on the other side, hands behind his back, watching him. Noticing the sudden change in the other’s demeanor, he narrowed his eyes.

He stepped closer, his footsteps light. Even when he reached Chu Tian’s side, the other didn’t look up.

Lin Huai slightly curved his lips, waving his hand in front of Chu Tian’s eyes: “Time to sleep.”

“Not staying?”

The other asked. Lin Huai smiled again: “But I’m not like you, I’m just an ordinary person.”

Only then did Chu Tian stop his movements, his sharp eyes looking at him. Lin Huai narrowed his beautiful peach blossom eyes, smiling softly as he met his gaze.

In the end, it was Chu Tian who relaxed his expression, reverting to his lazy demeanor. He waved his hand: “Alright, alright, go to sleep then, good night.”

“And you?”

“Staying up to fight the ghosts.”

Lin Huai: …

Lin Huai climbed the stairs to the top, leaning on the railing to look down: “Didn’t you say you’re a materialist?”

The other waved his wrench, nonchalant: “…Yes.”

“That’s why I need to physically smash their ghost heads.”

They gazed at each other across the long staircase. One sat on a chair, the other leaned on the railing.

It was reminiscent of their first meeting, only the positions were reversed.

Lin Huai leaned on the railing, straightening up: “Then I wish you success.”

With that, he turned off the staircase light, stepping into the darkness.

In the corner where the light didn’t reach, the snow-white sleeves of his clothes gradually turned blood-red from the ends.

 

Author’s note:

*On the use of censored memes:

Wealthy old men: A mysterious new species capable of making men pregnant, already added to the SCP Foundation research menu.