Chapter 31: The Mother Only I Can See

Chen Ziang confirmed, “Are the people taking part in the demonstrations demanding that the truth about the Nishikawa Miharu incident be made public?”

“At first, yes.” Tsukimiya Rina gave a cold laugh. “But before long, the slogans had shifted to promoting equal rights.”

“Promoting equal rights?” Chen Ziang found it unbelievable. “Seriously?”

Were these people so idle and well-fed that they had nothing better to do than take to the streets for a stroll and aid digestion?

“Yes, it’s that absurd.” Tsukimiya Rina chuckled. “If there isn’t some power organizing this behind the scenes, I’ll eat my phone.”

“Human Rights Watch?” Chen Ziang asked warily.

“No. Worse.” Tsukimiya Rina sighed. “Supposedly it’s the Federal Intelligence Bureau. In any case, Senior, you’d better not go out tonight. Everything outside is already in complete chaos, and traffic is practically paralyzed.”

“Apparently, the Public Security Bureau is also completely overwhelmed. Even personnel from the transportation and fire departments have been temporarily reassigned there, and no one knows how long they’ll have to work through the night… All I can say is, thank goodness we were separated from the public security system ahead of time.”

“All right, I understand.” Chen Ziang pondered for a moment. “Take extra care of yourself too.”

Only after ending his call with Tsukimiya Rina did he look back at Xia Zili.

Her emotions had settled considerably. She was merely sitting there in a daze, holding a cup of hot milk.

“Xia Zili,” Chen Ziang said considerately, “there are demonstrations outside now, and traffic has already ground to a halt.”

“Are you planning to have your manager come pick you up, or would you rather stay at my place for the night?”

“If you want to go home, I’ll call her now and have her arrange for someone to come get you.”

“But if you’d like to stay, you can use the guest room on the second floor. Xiaozhu has extra bedding.”

Xia Zili was silent for a moment before saying, “If cars can’t get through outside, then even if I tell Sister Jixiang, she won’t be able to send a vehicle, will she?”

“In theory, yes.” Chen Ziang nodded. “But we can’t rule out other means of transportation. Perhaps… your agency has a helicopter?”

“And then it can land in the river outside.” Xia Zili forced a smile, apparently trying to ease the atmosphere with a joke, though her expression remained somewhat strained. “Would it be too much trouble for me to stay here?”

“Not at all.” Chen Ziang waved a hand. “The circumstances tonight are unusual. If I refused to let you stay, that would be rather unreasonable.”

“Then I’ll be imposing on you.” Xia Zili nodded.

After settling Xiaozhu in, Chen Ziang led Xia Zili to the guest room and explained, “I’ve changed the bedding for you. The bathroom is on the first floor. The key is in the outside doorknob. Remember to remove it tonight and lock the door from the inside. And don’t forget to let your manager know, so she won’t worry.”

“Mm.” Xia Zili nodded obediently.

Chen Ziang returned to his room, washed up, changed into his pajamas, and lay down on the bed to read through the messages on his phone before going to sleep.

The night shift of the intelligence team had already located the four thugs and was hurrying over to deal with them. Because of the traffic paralysis, however, they had not yet arrived.

Xia Qingyu had forwarded an official notice to the work group. In short, it said that things outside were chaotic tonight, and everyone was to avoid going out, refrain from posting anything online, and keep their phones charged and powered on, with airplane mode disabled, so that they could remain reachable at all times.

Tsukimiya Rina had not contacted him, probably because she was still busy. Chen Ziang did not disturb her. He placed his phone on the cabinet to charge, then pulled up the covers and went to sleep.

He had no idea how much time had passed.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door outside.

Chen Ziang opened his eyes groggily and asked, “Who is it? Xiaozhu?”

“It’s me.” Xia Zili’s voice came from outside. “I can’t seem to fall asleep.”

Miss, it’s fine if you can’t sleep, but I have work tomorrow!

Still, considering that the girl had acted bravely to save him the previous night and had even accidentally killed someone in the process, it was perfectly normal for her to be unable to sleep tonight as well. Suppressing his drowsiness, Chen Ziang climbed out of bed.

When he opened the door, Xia Zili was indeed standing outside in her pajamas.

Her brilliant golden hair curled slightly as it fell in a smooth cascade over her shoulders. Beneath the light, thin silk pajamas were slender arms as white as polished jade—not the healthy, vibrant fairness of Tsukimiya Rina, but a hazy, dreamlike, almost translucent cold pallor, so exquisite that she seemed less than human.

The clothes he had provided earlier had been too small, so this time Chen Ziang had not underestimated her figure. He had given her the largest size of pajamas, which perfectly concealed the contours of her body.

Only the hem of the nightdress revealed a pair of smooth, adorable little feet.

“Where are your slippers?” Chen Ziang asked in confusion.

“I forgot to put them on.” Xia Zili looked embarrassed.

Chen Ziang went to the guest room and brought them to her.

“Put these on. The floor gets cold at night. Be careful not to catch a chill.”

After putting on the slippers, Xia Zili followed Chen Ziang downstairs to the living room. He asked, “Why can’t you sleep?”

“Chen Ziang.” Xia Zili sat down on the sofa and asked cautiously, “Aren’t you going to ask where that ‘Mimi’ came from?”

“My usual principle is this,” Chen Ziang replied. “If someone has something sensitive going on and doesn’t want to talk about it, I won’t be tactless enough to pry.”

“Oh.” The half-elf girl sounded somewhat disappointed.

“But since you brought it up yourself…” Chen Ziang sat down on the sofa beside her. “I suppose I can ask. What exactly is it?”

“Mimi is the name I gave it.” Xia Zili immediately gathered her courage and answered. “Its true name is the Black Youngling.”

“It… was a gift from my mother.”

“Ah?” Chen Ziang froze for a moment. “So your mother was also someone with special abilities?”

“No.” Xia Zili shook her head. “My mother has passed away.”

“I’m sorry.” Chen Ziang rubbed his hands uneasily. “I shouldn’t have brought that up. Would you like something to drink?”

“No, thank you.” Xia Zili continued, “My mother died not long after I was born, so I don’t really have many memories of her.”

“But not long ago, she appeared before me again… in a form that only I could see.”

Chen Ziang fell into thought.

“Doesn’t it sound a lot like a mental illness?” Xia Zili sighed. “Just as before, perhaps something is wrong with my mind…”

“No, no.” Chen Ziang interrupted her. “Your mother may not have been a hallucination. I really shouldn’t be telling an ordinary person about this, but since you already possess a special summoning authority, there are things that would actually be more dangerous for you not to know.”

“Xia Zili, have you ever heard of the Abyss?”

End of Chapter