Little Pink Starfish

Fa Ning had already left early that morning.

When Yuan Yuanyuan heard the news, she wasn’t sure whether to sigh in relief… or disappointment.

She picked up a small wooden comb from beside her and gave herself an elaborate hairstyle—then looked in the mirror and combed it back down.

No good. That look didn’t match the weak-and-sickly vibe she was going for. She was still planning to “cough up blood” later—how could she go out looking so glam?

City C was in a fully armed state right now, and Yuan Yuanyuan was a little worried something might happen. But after waking up, everything outside was bathed in a soft, bluish glow… She poked her head out for a look—oh, that egg-shell thing again.

That painfully bright color again. Yuan Yuanyuan rubbed her eyes, rolled over, and decided to go back to sleep rather than look at that eyesore.

The tavern, as always, was lively no matter what time it was. Even if the sky fell, the monsters here would still be cheerfully drinking.

Yuan Yuanyuan got up and wandered around the tavern, listening in on what people were chatting about. The monsters in City C didn’t seem too worried—once the blue egg-shell barrier rose, they were more concerned about the city’s internal conflicts than anything outside.

Yuan Yuanyuan suspected the Li family patriarch might be stirring something up. City C’s stance remained murky—it hadn’t clearly declared allegiance to either side. Even if the upper echelon had once privately contacted Yuan, they also seemed to maintain decent relations with the Li family.

In short: neutral.

Yuan Yuanyuan figured that neutrality was City C’s long-honed survival tactic. After all, this was Yuan’s hometown. If they hadn’t learned how to navigate chaos, they probably wouldn’t have survived the wars either—they’d have been wiped out along with Yuan.

Now, she felt like City C’s temperament was just like the tavern’s—flexible, strategic, always hiding its true cards. Still… the higher-ups had kept Yuan’s survival a secret all this time, which made them seem relatively trustworthy.

Maybe it’s time for a visit? Yuan Yuanyuan thought.

Two hours later, Yuan Yuanyuan had changed into a plain black shirt and given herself a “kidney-deficiency” makeup look—pale lips, pale face, pale everything.

Standing in front of the mirror, she nearly startled herself.

Damn, that contrast. Terrifying.

But… she actually liked this skin tone. It fit the image she had in mind.

Wearing this makeup and a big cloak, holding a handkerchief in hand, she headed out, a mysterious aura trailing behind her.

But pretending to be sick was like cheating—if you don’t do it often, it makes you guilty. Yuan Yuanyuan started off acting reasonably natural, but the longer she walked, the more exaggerated she became with her fake coughing and blood-spitting. Eventually, even she thought, Anyone watching me right now must think I’ve lost my mind…

She made her way to that little building she used to visit often back when she was still a civil servant. To her surprise, only one person was on duty—it was usually four or five at least.

Then it occurred to her: maybe the rest had been sent out. With City C on edge, they probably didn’t want to leave too many people here.

She approached the desk. The one on duty was a small demon she vaguely recognized, but he didn’t say anything.

Yuan Yuanyuan wasn’t worried.

She stepped closer and gently knocked on the table with her knuckles, prompting the little demon to look up at her.

As soon as he did, he froze.

She was wrapped head to toe in a black cloak, with only a single pale hand exposed—ghastly pale. The whole figure had a grim reaper vibe…

He was the only one on duty here—a minor task dispatch center. Already feeling jittery, he now saw this shadowy figure before him and naturally panicked.

He started to discreetly move his hand under the table, trying to trigger a monster spell to call for help—but just then, the figure said,
“Don’t bother calling anyone. They won’t make it in time.”

The demon’s eyes went wide in shock. The cloaked figure took out a small wooden plaque and passed it over. “I’m here to turn in a task.”

“…You scared the life out of me. Why are you dressed like that? Things aren’t exactly calm right now—next time show your face, will you?” The little demon took the plaque and looked at the number carved on it. It didn’t exactly ring a bell… but somehow it felt familiar.

He read it again under his breath, then suddenly paled and scrambled to his feet. “P-please wait here! I—I’ll go get someone for you!”

Yuan Yuanyuan watched him run off, thinking: Let’s see if he brings one person… or a whole crowd.

About five minutes later, a figure hurried in. Yuan Yuanyuan looked up and smiled—it was that lotus girl she hadn’t seen in ages.

Still in flowing white robes, as elegant as ever, like a fairy in the wind.

But her face looked anxious. She paused at the door in surprise.

“…Lord Yuan?” she said cautiously.

“It’s me,” Yuan Yuanyuan replied.

“You—you’re so thin! Your eyes…” the girl stared wide-eyed.

Well, yeah. A good girl doesn’t go over a hundred pounds. Yuan Yuanyuan had precisely controlled her weight down to 99 pounds—dropped about ten pounds, give or take.

Had to match the current persona. If she’d come out cheerful and rosy-cheeked, she’d never have pulled off this fake-death route.

“Is the city lord in? Take me to him,” Yuan Yuanyuan said without wasting time. She still remembered that little old man—the kindly-looking one. The lotus girl stared for another second, dazed, until Yuan Yuanyuan repeated herself. Then she finally snapped out of it with an “oh” and led her out quickly.

The little demon inside was still standing there dumbfounded when the lotus girl popped back in, now looking serious.
“Don’t tell anyone about tonight.”

“Not a word! I swear!” He shook his head like a rattle drum.

The lotus girl led Yuan Yuanyuan to the city lord’s residence and watched her go in. Standing outside the door, she peered in. Lin Bone arrived a moment later, looking a little confused.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“Lord Yuan just went in,” she said, pointing at the building.

Lin Bone’s eyes widened. “When did that happen?”

“About a stick of incense ago.”

“He’s here to ask about the Li family patriarch, isn’t he?” Lin Bone guessed.

He looked at the white-clad woman and noticed she seemed distracted—like her mind was elsewhere. Curious, he nudged her.

“Hey, what are you thinking about? Zoned out?”

“Huh?” The lotus girl blinked back to reality. “I was just… Lord Yuan looked like he’d wasted away.”

“Wasted away?” Lin Bone frowned. “No way. I saw him just two months ago—he was totally fine.”

“You forgot about what happened a while back?” she whispered.

That incident? Lin Bone thought for a second—then it clicked. The Li family patriarch’s stunt…

“…Still, would he waste away that badly?” Lin Bone asked. They’d all wondered before how Yuan had managed to avoid the Gu-smoke. At first they were worried something had happened, but then the little demons who’d contacted Yuan still brought back occasional updates, which reassured them a bit.

Eventually Lin Bone convinced himself that Yuan must’ve had some incredible way of avoiding the smoke. It didn’t make logical sense—but hey, this was Yuan.

Lin Bone had completely bought into that theory. He always imagined Yuan sitting somewhere now, watching the chaos unfold, smirking smugly to himself. After all, the guy was always so composed, never anxious.

But now, standing at the door and listening to the white-robed woman, he started to doubt.

“You’ll see when he comes out,” she said. “I think that Gu-smoke did affect him. He didn’t avoid it like we thought… He just pushed through it.”

Neither of them had experienced Gu firsthand, so they didn’t fully understand it.

They stood there for a while, until suddenly—the door opened.

A figure stepped out. Without even glancing at them, he walked straight ahead and disappeared into the night.

Lin Bone stood there, staring at the retreating figure, finally understanding what the lotus girl meant by “wasted away.”

In the distance, Yuan Yuanyuan made a little mental check mark in her “fake-death” notebook.

City C’s upper echelon had basically been bluffed successfully.

So far, Yuan’s hometown still seemed reliable. Even though they maintained a neutral stance on the surface, the city lord had just promised to quietly open some escape routes for the anti-war camp.

…Yuan Yuanyuan wasn’t sure if the city lord had agreed so readily because of political strategy…
Or because she looked like a walking corpse, triggering some kind of family sympathy reflex.