Chapter 35: The Unexpected Guest
A small thing.
Easily overlooked, just a shadow in the corner of the room, perhaps just a flicker of movement.
The shadow of the camphor tree outside the window, the shadow of the desk under the moonlight, the shadow of her own heart, suddenly lurching, trembling in her throat.
A choking sensation, like a duck force-fed with air, like the branches of a tree snapping in the wind. Xiang Er’s scream caught in her throat, unable to escape, quickly fading.
She became unusually calm.
Her fingers gripping the edge of the desk, she stared at the small thing in the corner, observing it closely.
Black, viscous, rolling, trembling, the slime seemingly blinking with hidden eyes.
Numerous tiny tentacles extended from it, short and thin, pressing against the wall and floor, slowly exploring.
Like a seed sprouting countless tiny roots and leaves.
Or like a baby bird that had fallen into tar, its body dripping with viscous fluid.
Black slime, tentacles, eyes. These characteristics all pointed to the name that filled Xiang Er with despair: Akhe.
This was a part of Akhe!
Hadn’t It left? Hadn’t It promised to disappear completely? Why was It back, and at such a crucial moment…
Xiang Er stared intently at the thing.
She reached out and slowly groped across the desk, her movements careful and quiet, trying not to alert it.
Her fingers found the tissue box, and she pulled out several tissues, clutching them in her sweaty hand.
She walked towards the corner, slowly, quietly, trying not to be noticed. The small thing was rolling in place, its tentacles occasionally probing the walls and floor, leaving thin trails of slime.
It was like a newborn infant, curiously exploring the world, unaware of the human approaching.
Xiang Er narrowed her eyes, dismissing the inappropriate analogy. What newborn infant? This was a piece of the Evil God, a remnant of its pollution, a piece of trash left behind by a god who didn’t keep its promises!
Only a few steps remained. The small thing continued to sway in the corner, its body moving rhythmically, a few tentacles extending upwards, like branches reaching for the ceiling.
Xiang Er was now many times larger than the small thing.
Her shadow slowly crept over it, almost completely obscuring it, and the small thing suddenly moved.
It… opened its eye.
Its entire spherical body was its eye!
The black eyelid opened, revealing almost half of the sphere, the tentacles around it like countless eyelashes, the inside a smooth, black surface with a blood-red, circular pupil, the pupil filled with thin, intricate black lines.
Identical to the giant eyeball that hung in the sky in Akhe’s domain! Just… much, much smaller!
Xiang Er quickly raised her hand and covered her mouth, suppressing a scream. She stared at the eye, her gaze fixed on the pupil.
A sharp headache instantly pierced her brain, countless whispers and screams, cries of pain and anguish, threatening to overwhelm her, but Xiang Er was prepared, she had experience.
She braced herself against the wall with one hand, the other raised high, clutching the tissues.
Gritting her teeth, she slammed her hand down!
Through the tissues, she felt the spherical object in her palm. Black slime exploded outwards, staining her hand, arm, and chest.
Xiang Er exhaled, her hand tightly gripping the object, trying to prevent herself from collapsing.
Her head still throbbed, the whispers still echoing around her, tiny tentacles wriggling in her palm, the eyeball still pulsing, like… a trapped, incredibly resilient cockroach.
It made her skin crawl, goosebumps rising all over her body.
She hadn’t yet figured out what to do with this thing. Should she put it in a jar? Or wrap it tightly in a garbage bag and throw it away? But wouldn’t that contaminate the entire city through the garbage system? That wouldn’t be good.
Should she keep it for now, and try to contact Akhe, ask It to come back and retrieve it? But the thought of contacting Akhe filled her with dread. What if It came back and refused to leave again?
Xiang Er thought and thought, but every option seemed wrong.
And to make matters worse, the water in the bathroom stopped, and the door opened.
Xiang Er froze, the tentacles in her palm scratching at her skin.
Shen Yuhe’s voice, languid and warm from the shower, called out:
“Xiang Er? Where are you? Can you bring me some pajamas?”
Xiang Er took a deep breath, telling herself to just answer normally, ask her to wait a moment, and then she would find somewhere to put this thing… it would be fine.
But when she spoke, her voice was unusually hoarse:
“I… you… cough!”
Shen Yuhe’s voice immediately approached the door:
“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? I’ll come in and check on you!”
Xiang Er quickly screamed:
“No! Don’t come in! Cough, cough, cough!”
A violent coughing fit doubled her over, the scratching in her palm intensifying, the eyeball pulsing even more forcefully. Fortunately, the black slime on her hand had dried, providing some friction, otherwise, the eyeball would have jumped out already.
Xiang Er stood behind the door, her body covered in dried, black, foul-smelling slime, a pulsating eyeball clutched in her hand, tentacles emerging from beneath the tissues, extending along her skin and veins.
She couldn’t see herself, but she absolutely didn’t want Shen Yuhe to see her like this.
Absolutely not!
She had finally achieved a normal life, she finally had a normal roommate… This couldn’t be ruined!
Shen Yuhe’s voice came from behind the door:
“Are you sure you’re okay? Do you need any help?”
Xiang Er could almost picture Shen Yuhe pressed against the door, peering through the crack with concern, and a warmth spread through her, but her body trembled with tension.
She suppressed the scratching sensation in her throat and said, trying to sound calm:
“I’m fine, just wait a moment, I’ll get your pajamas.”
There was no time to hesitate. Xiang Er turned and went to her desk, glancing around, but there was nothing useful there.
Shen Yuhe continued speaking from outside:
“If anything’s wrong, you must tell me, we’re good friends. There don’t seem to be any blankets or sheets in that room? Can I sleep in your bed tonight, share your quilt? Don’t worry, I’m very clean.”
Xiang Er didn’t want to hear what she was saying.
The tentacles in her palm scratched relentlessly, and Shen Yuhe’s concerned voice only fueled her anxiety. Her mind raced, and she frantically opened her closet, her drawers, anything that could be opened, her gaze scanning, searching for a solution.
Then, something in the closet caught her eye.
A translucent green storage box she had bought for her socks, an impulse buy, mostly empty.
She grabbed the box with her other hand, carefully opened the lid, and dumped the socks out, scattering them on the floor. Her palm itched and ached, and she bit her lip so hard that it bled, the metallic taste filling her mouth.
Shen Yuhe’s voice followed her:
“Xiang Er? Little Ears? My good friend, are you still there? Are you busy?”
Xiang Er managed to reply:
“Mm!”
The metallic taste of blood in her mouth intensified. Xiang Er placed the storage box on the table and raised her right hand. The small thing in her palm, now mixed with the tissues and dried black slime, had formed a thick, hardened black mass.
Numerous tiny tentacles, like black capillaries, extended from the sides of the hardened mass, crawling up her wrist and arm, clinging tightly to her skin, like a bizarre tattoo.
Xiang Er used her left hand to tear away the hardened black mass, the cracking sound of the slime breaking into pieces, leaving sticky residue on her hand, but she didn’t care. She grabbed the small eyeball, along with the black mass, and shoved it into the storage box.
The small eyeball let out a “squeak,” like a squeezed balloon, immediately trying to crawl out of the box.
Xiang Er held it down, tearing away the thin black threads clinging to her skin. Each time she pulled one off, a sharp pain made her gasp, leaving a deep red, almost cut-like mark on her arm.
Xiang Er’s heart turned cold, her movements numb and ruthless, as she continued tearing.
But the small eyeball cried out in pain, a sound like a howling wind, impossible to ignore. Xiang Er stopped and looked at it. The small eyeball huddled in the corner of the storage box, its large eye wide open, filled with tears.
Transparent tears, like a human’s.
Xiang Er murmured:
“Did I hurt you?”
She froze. Why did she care if it was hurt?
But she did.
She sighed, reached out, and said in a low, almost resigned voice:
“Then go in by yourself, and I won’t pull you.”
The tearful eyeball let out a whistling sound, its source unknown. It moved towards the edge of the storage box, the tentacles clinging to Xiang Er’s arm retracting one by one, curling up inside the box.
The eyeball looked at Xiang Er and huddled in the corner, looking utterly wronged and aggrieved.
Xiang Er stared at it in surprise. It understood? It was actually obedient? Was this really a part of Akhe? Not some other kind of pollution?
She asked:
“Are you Akhe?”
Hearing the name, the eyeball immediately perked up, rolling around in the storage box, its large eye blinking, the box filling with black slime and transparent tears.
Judging by its reaction… it was definitely Akhe.
But a smaller, obedient, communicative Akhe, an Akhe she could keep in a box.
Well… for now, this would do.
Xiang Er exhaled and carefully closed the lid of the storage box, pressing it down firmly.
She turned to grab some clean pajamas from her closet, and when she looked back…
The small eyeball was pressed against the lid of the storage box, its red pupil fixated on her every move, its gaze fervent and eager, its tentacles covering the entire box.
Shen Yuhe’s voice echoed from outside:
“Are you done yet? I’m cold, ah—achoo!”
Xiang Er looked away and rushed to the door, pulling it open, her breath catching in her throat.
Shen Yuhe stood at the doorway, wrapped in a towel, her shoulders and collarbones exquisitely beautiful, her skin glowing, water droplets clinging to her, her wet, black hair draped over her shoulders, her face breathtakingly beautiful.
Steam still rose from her body, making her look like a goddess descended from the clouds, her skin even whiter, her hair even blacker, her red lips the only splash of color, captivating Xiang Er’s gaze.
The white towel was loosely wrapped around her, her body leaning against the wall as if boneless, yet even so, her slender waist and long legs were on full display, her curves more beautiful than any Renaissance sculpture.
Xiang Er felt her eyes had been cleansed, especially after the ordeal she had just endured…
“Ah! What happened to your hand?”
A jade-white arm reached out and, without hesitation, grabbed Xiang Er’s left hand, pulling it out of her pajama sleeve.
Her left hand was covered in deep red, swollen, fresh marks, like whip marks or cuts, a shocking sight.
“It’s nothing, I accidentally fell earlier…”
Xiang Er tried to pull her hand back, but she couldn’t.
The next second, a warm, wet sensation, like an electric shock, shot through her arm, spreading through her entire body. Her eyes widened in surprise!
Shen Yuhe licked her hand.
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