Little Pink Starfish

Even though things had calmed down a little, Yuan Yuanyuan still felt a stuffy pressure in her chest when she went to the bathroom to wash her face.

She looked at herself in the mirror after rinsing—eyes red and bloodshot, nose pink from crying.

She turned off the tap and walked out to see Fat Cat on the sofa, licking away happily at the catnip stick she’d tossed him earlier. Yuan Yuanyuan recalled how expensive it was—over twenty yuan—but clearly, Fat Cat liked it a lot.

Yuan Yuanyuan had this bad habit—once she started crying, she often couldn’t stop. It wasn’t even something she did intentionally. Sometimes she’d cry while thinking how embarrassing it was.

She sat down next to Fat Cat, still thinking about her meltdown. Part of her felt utterly humiliated, and the other part tried to rationalize it: Come on, relax, you probably flushed out some unnecessary stress hormones… this is actually good for the body… nothing to be ashamed of…

Then Fat Cat turned and went, “Phew! You finally finished crying. That was terrifying. I’m never telling you a tragic story again—you cry way too hard.”

Yuan Yuanyuan turned and gave him a deadly glare.

Well, it was getting late. Yuan Yuanyuan cleaned up the apartment and went to bed.

Lying there, she thought about a lot. What stuck most in her mind were Fat Cat’s words that night.

He’d said he thought Yuan was brave. That he wasn’t afraid of any rumors or darkness.

Yuan Yuanyuan rolled over. She wasn’t sure how she felt.

Bitter? Sour? A little sweet?

Mostly, it was just… oppressive.

She didn’t fall asleep until daybreak, and even then she only managed a short nap before she was awoken by scratching at the door. Opening it, she found a starving Fat Cat pawing to be let in. Still half-asleep, she poured him some kibble and collapsed on the couch to scroll through comments.

【…Never would’ve guessed, huh. Turns out the final boss is Yuan? I never really shipped him, but somehow I’m not surprised…】

【So Yuan’s the boss. The face of bloodline theory. Wait, is bloodline theory basically just about slaughtering humans? Was that why he was on trial earlier?】

【Then his character’s kinda fun—bloodline supremacist who saves human girls… A wild-card, impulsive rogue with chaotic charm?】

【Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve seen a character like this. He used to seem so “demonic,” now this style is also kinda unique.】

【Yeah, and he still talks about having a clear conscience… Definitely a very “alternative” villain. I’m not a fan though—feels way too cold.】

【What is wrong with you people? Why are you hyping this kind of guy? I don’t get it.】

Yuan Yuanyuan clutched her chest. Oh great, this crap again…

Fat Cat came over and said, “If it upsets you, just don’t look. Cut yourself off from the internet for a while. All this is just gonna make you feel worse.”

Yuan Yuanyuan looked at him. In the end, she had to admit he was right. She turned off her phone.

After this chapter dropped, Yuan Yuanyuan deliberately stopped keeping up with Demon Note. Fat Cat had been right—she wasn’t in the right state of mind, and reading it would just push her to the edge.

As for how the story would unfold… Yuan Yuanyuan told herself that as long as she’d acted with a clear conscience, there was no reason to fear, or to hide.

Let the others think what they want. Right now, they didn’t understand—and wouldn’t care. Until the full truth came to light, no one was qualified to judge.

She had been anxious at first. But after that night’s talk with Fat Cat, she’d oddly calmed down. These days, she stayed home practicing her demon arts, watched TV at night, and occasionally went out for walks. But one time, when she overheard two kids discussing Demon Note in the plaza, she immediately turned and left—even though they hadn’t mentioned Yuan at all.

Time passed slowly. A week went by.

Tang Shi turned to Gao Ling and said, “I can’t reach her. Boss still isn’t picking up.”

Yuan Yuanyuan’s phone was off. Naturally, she hadn’t received any of Tang Shi’s calls.

Gao Ling thought for a moment and asked, “Do you have anyone else we could ask?”

“I’ll think about it,” said Tang Shi. “I have some classmates from influential families…”

“Forget it. Don’t involve more people,” Gao Ling waved her hand. “I just wanted to ask you two. If you don’t know, then so be it.”

“Actually… you’re the first to ask me something like this,” Tang Shi said. “I hadn’t thought about it much. But personally, I think Yuan’s character is really compelling now. If you still feel something’s off, I can ask my dad. He’s coming back tomorrow.”

After Tang Shi skipped off in her usual carefree way, Gao Ling suddenly blurted out, “Wait, I didn’t see this coming?!”

“Still, the character design’s fine. As long as the face is good,” Qiu Ling said, hesitantly.

Gao Ling rolled her eyes and shut off her phone.

【I don’t think this bloodline stuff fits him.】
A girl from the convention had once said.

【Maybe he just wasn’t feeling violent that day?】
A guy replied.

【We were watching him for a long time. He didn’t attack us. You all were in the bathroom—we saw it with our own eyes, so don’t pretend you know.】
The girl shot back.

The chat quieted.

Gao Ling thought about how much blood Yuan had coughed up back then. She couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d been wrongly accused—but she had no proof.

She was just waiting for Tang Shi’s dad’s response now. She hadn’t met him before, didn’t even know what kind of demon he was. But apparently, he was very powerful. Nearly on the level of a Great Demon.

Someone like that… might know something useful.

The next evening finally came.

Tang Shi’s dad was said to always have a drink first thing upon returning. Tang Shi had suggested sneaking questions in then, but Gao Ling and Qiu Ling both vetoed that. Just ask him directly. If he didn’t answer, that was that.

Tang Shi took the mission with glee.

Gao Ling and Qiu Ling stared at each other afterward, feeling like letting Tang Shi handle it was possibly the dumbest decision ever. She was way too excitable. But they didn’t know any other demons.

How tragic.

From 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., Gao Ling dozed off on the sofa. Qiu Ling was getting dressed for school. Gao Ling woke to the noise.

“You didn’t sleep much either. You okay going to school like this?”

“I’ll manage,” Qiu Ling said. “Been too anxious lately—insomnia anyway.”

“You have the college entrance exam coming up,” Gao Ling nodded. “Hurry up, don’t be late.”

She poured herself a glass of water. Where’s Tang Shi? she wondered. She’s been gone so long… maybe she found something?

She was just about to head out for breakfast when Tang Shi finally walked in, looking otherwise normal—but with panda-level dark circles under her eyes. Gao Ling jumped.

“Jeez! You okay? What happened to your eyes?!”

“I… heard something from my dad last night,” Tang Shi said. “Wanna hear now or over breakfast?”

“Let’s eat first.” Gao Ling grabbed her wallet and headed to the local bun shop.

Sitting down, Gao Ling had an uneasy feeling. She figured she was about to hear something huge. Between her longtime affection for Yuan and the sight of Tang Shi’s haunted face, she was nervous.

When Tang Shi started talking, Gao Ling could hear her own heartbeat.

“Well…” Tang Shi stirred her porridge. “I’ll start with what you care about most. Yeah, Yuan’s life was pretty tragic…”

“How did you ask him?” Gao Ling asked, wanting to know how the topic had come up.

“I asked my dad what kind of guy Yuan is. He said he’s a good man. I asked how that could be. Dad said, ‘Kids don’t understand, don’t talk nonsense.’”

Tang Shi sipped her porridge and mumbled, “Then I asked if Yuan was Seventeen. He said, ‘You already know?’ I said, ‘Yup.’”

Gao Ling felt a little lost but pushed on, “So… was Yuan ever a supporter of the bloodline theory?”

Tang Shi looked up at her and said:

“No.”

And over the next hour, Gao Ling heard the most unbelievable, bizarre, worldview-shattering story she’d ever been told.

They talked for a long, long time.

By the end, the other customers had all left. Only they remained. Gao Ling’s porridge was cold. Tang Shi nudged her and said, “Are you gonna eat that? Don’t waste food. If our stingy boss saw that, he’d scold you for two hours.”

Gao Ling downed the now-cold porridge in one gulp, then stared into space before finally exclaiming:

“Holy crap.”

That was all she could say. Just, “Holy crap.”

“I skipped school today,” Tang Shi said, looking like a raccoon. “Eh, it’s whatever. Teachers aren’t really watching us anymore.”

Gao Ling sat there a while longer, then suddenly burst out: “Why doesn’t Ji Qiu draw this stuff?! Why isn’t he saying any of this?!”

Her voice spiked and she immediately toned it down.

“My dad said… it touches on all kinds of interests. And the balance between demons and humans…” Tang Shi said, “Even I didn’t understand half of it.”

“Still! This is so frustrating! Ugh—I’m so pissed! I didn’t sleep all night, look at these circles under my eyes!”

Other customers turned to look at them. Tang Shi’s face was red with indignation. Gao Ling, embarrassed, dragged her out of the shop.

Outside, Gao Ling let out a long sigh. She’d been feeling stifled before, but somehow, this ridiculous scene helped her relax. She asked, “Hey, Tang Shi… wanna take a nap?”

“I can’t sleep! AHHHH—”

Gao Ling thought… Tang Shi’s demon form must be some kind of groundhog. People on the street thought she’d gotten dumped.

Gao Ling finally got her back home and collapsed onto the sofa.

She’d found the answer she wanted—but instead of relief, she felt even more suppressed.

Still… she knew one thing for sure now.

Yuan hadn’t let her down.

He was a good person.

Gao Ling sat on the sofa, feeling a strange emptiness.

Was this the outcome she wanted? Or not?

She pulled out her phone, scrolled through the countless discussions in the group chat, thought for a long time, and then finally found that one girl from the convention.

She had something… she wanted to talk about.