Little Pink Starfish

Today, the tavern was a madhouse.

Yuan Yuanyuan felt like a spinning top, desperately wishing she had learned how to clone herself on the spot. If they had time, Sister Lizi might really make her go learn it.

Even before the Hundred Demon Parade outside had ended, Yuan Yuanyuan was already running around inside the tavern like crazy. The place was packed—probably the busiest day since she’d started working here.

The demons themselves were fairly laid-back. The sky outside was filled with them, drifting along in clusters. The tavern had been filled to capacity early on.

At first, Yuan Yuanyuan managed to stick her head out a window to sneak a peek. She had originally fantasized about relaxing at the window, watching the show, maybe snapping a few pictures and posting them with a faux-innocent caption like, “Why are the clouds so thick today?” But when the moment came, she realized—yeah, no.

All the tavern lanterns were lit, and chatter filled every corner. Yuan Yuanyuan used to complain that this place was too quiet, but now she finally understood what the tavern looked like in full swing.

No wonder it was the biggest demon tavern in the area. Even after taking a serious hit a while back, all the major events were still held here—and judging by the turnout, tonight was a raging success.

The walkways were full of elegant-looking demons. Demons really could be stunning. Even in the middle of rushing around, Yuan Yuanyuan couldn’t help but steal glances. One demon girl passing by was so beautiful that Yuan Yuanyuan couldn’t resist secretly tailing her for a bit, admiring her face.

Just standing there, she was a work of art.

There were plenty of such demons—male and female—who could stop traffic just by existing. Yuan Yuanyuan felt like her soul was getting sucked out just from looking. She suspected this might be due to some kind of enchantment. Normally she wasn’t so easily swayed, but today, she couldn’t tear her eyes away.

If even a half-demon like her was this affected, full humans would probably be lured away at a single glance.

The main hall downstairs had large banquet-style tables and wide benches. A terrifying-looking demon, only half-transformed, sat on one bench drinking. Even with his monstrous face, people crowded around him. Some of the girls from the tavern—ones Yuan Yuanyuan recognized—were pouring his drinks.

His bowl was massive, basically the size of a cooking pot from her house.

Yuan Yuanyuan watched the girls pour entire jugs into that bowl—two or three at a time just to fill it.

She hefted her own wine jug, took a deep breath, and headed down. As she descended, people parted to make way. Someone even shouted, “Hongxiu is here! Make way!”

Step by step, Yuan Yuanyuan carefully walked down the narrow stairs. Her long skirt dragged behind her, and she had to walk sideways with her feet pressed against the side of the stairs, afraid of slipping.

If she missed a step and fell… forget the humiliation—she’d probably wreck her face. And that demon? He looked like the kind of guy who’d smash the tavern in a rage.

After an agonizingly slow descent, she finally reached the bottom and fixed her expression. Navigating through the crowd, she approached the hulking demon and gently lifted her wine jug to pour into his empty bowl.

The pour had to be smooth and elegant, arm slightly raised, not too slow but not rushed either—graceful and steady.

As the wine flowed, Yuan Yuanyuan’s mind went completely blank except for Lizi-jie’s endless nagging, echoing in her head.

When the jug was empty, she swapped it for another handed to her, only then regaining her senses.

Holy crap—I actually did it.

People crowded back in around the demon. Even a blind person could tell he was someone important. Yuan Yuanyuan quickly poured the second jug while she had the chance. Any thought of going outside to watch the parade was long gone.

The lively tavern bustled with all kinds of folk brushing past each other. In a place like this, no one knew who was who—an absolute mix of the three religions and nine schools of thought.

Outside, heavy clouds pressed down on the city. Today’s weather was bizarre, and many humans poked their heads out to look at the sky, snapping photos of the uncanny cloud cover. Most still had no idea what was really happening.

“Is Yuanyuan-jie not coming back tonight?” Xiao Ying asked. “You think she’ll get caught in the rain?”

“No idea…” Li Xin looked up at the sky. “Hurry up and finish your homework. Let’s write until midnight so we can read the update before bed.”

Meanwhile, the tavern was in full swing. Though the city’s unusual sky had made it onto trending searches and left many humans feeling anxious, the demons were positively delighted.

Yuan Yuanyuan checked the time—almost update hour—but she clearly had no chance of sneaking away to read manga right now. She was hauling another jug of wine to a room that had specifically requested “Hongxiu.” Yuan Yuanyuan really didn’t want to go—what if they realized she wasn’t the original Hongxiu and caused a scene?

As she made her way there, her steps slowed. Something familiar had drifted past her nose.

For a second, she froze. That scent—it was familiar. Very familiar. But she couldn’t quite place it.

While she was lost in thought, a cold hand suddenly touched her neck.

“Don’t turn around. Walk forward.”

…Yuan Yuanyuan didn’t look back. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something silver pressed to her neck. It wasn’t a knife or dagger—it was something she knew very well.

A Taoist sword.

Taoist swords were small—not like the ones in martial arts dramas. From a distance, they could be mistaken for mere daggers.

Clutching the wine jug, Yuan Yuanyuan followed the man’s instructions. This felt absurdly like a scene from a wuxia film: ancient-style décor, a girl in traditional red robes, and someone threatening her from behind with a sword.

She racked her brain trying to remember if she had a weapon on her. Then she recalled—it was still in the kitchen, with her jeans and shirt. Great.

So… barehanded it was?

The man behind her never let her see his face. She could tell by his voice he was male—taller and stronger than her. For a Taoist, that was impressive.

He led her to a secluded corner and said, “Open the door ahead.”

To be honest, Yuan Yuanyuan was still completely lost. She had already cooked up half a dozen possible scenarios in her mind. Where the hell are the tavern’s guards? How did a Taoist even sneak in? This guy has balls of steel…

But if it really was a Taoist…

After all this time in the city, she only knew of one Taoist who’d dared enter this place.

Thinking back to that familiar scent from earlier, her kidneys twinged. That aching feeling stayed with her even as she opened the door—and felt a heavy blow land behind her.

There were so many things she couldn’t afford to reveal. Like her red vines. And without a weapon, she definitely couldn’t fight this guy.

In that split second, she clenched and unclenched her fists several times inside her sleeve before deciding to play weak and collapsed on purpose.

Because, according to the manga… the protagonist was a sucker for damsels in distress. He always went easy on girls—even demon girls.

If Ji Qiu hadn’t drawn that trait into him, Yuan Yuanyuan might’ve gone full MMA and kicked him in the nuts by now.

But no—she remembered that detail and let herself fall. She’d expected to hit the floor face-first, but just before she landed, someone caught her.

His hands… were kinda soft.

When Yuan Yuanyuan woke up again, she was lying in a small wooden bed in a quiet room.

She sat up groggily. Her red robes were gone—replaced by her thermal underwear.

Yeah, red gown over thermals… It was almost winter, and demons liked cold places. She had layered up for the parade.

“Wait… what’s the protagonist’s name again? Fa Ning?” Yuan Yuanyuan glanced around. There was a note on the table saying the tavern was in trouble, bad people had come, and she—a weakling—should stay hidden. The tone was pure Lizi-jie. She’d even written it in traditional characters.

“Why the hell did Fa Ning come here? This place is crawling with demons. Is he suicidal?” Yuan Yuanyuan mumbled. She checked her phone—still no signal—and only half an hour left till the update.

She got up and spotted a spare tavern uniform hanging nearby. She tossed it on and crept downstairs.

The clock ticked closer and closer to midnight.

In the distance, a figure stepped out from the shadows. His steps were quick. Though his face was hidden in the dark, the sword in his hand gleamed silver under the faint light.