Chapter 35: Gotten a Love Bite, Meow?

Exhaustion Takes Its Toll

“Ugh, I’m so tired.”

Back home, Xiao Xi let out a sigh. Perhaps because today had been so hectic—dealing with monsters and working her shift—she felt her limbs grow heavy, her vision slightly blurry.

“You okay, Xiao Xi?” Ye Xinglan asked. “If you’re exhausted, let’s order takeout tonight. No need to cook.”

“No way. I promised to make you dinner. What do you want to eat?”

“Just whip up something simple. You’ve had a long day~”

Ye Xinglan slipped behind Xiao Xi, wrapping her arms around her and resting her chin gently on her shoulder. Feeling the warmth of the person behind her, Xiao Xi’s heart stirred. Sometimes, Ye Xinglan was far gentler than she expected.

Despite her usual rich-girl attitude, Xiao Xi could sense Ye Xinglan’s kindness in the little details.

“Ahem… I’ll go cook!”

But the embrace felt too intimate. Xiao Xi quickly broke free and headed toward the kitchen.

Barely two steps in, darkness clouded her vision. Everything spun wildly.

“Xiao Xi, what’s wrong?”

The floor loomed closer in her sight. The last thing Xiao Xi heard was Ye Xinglan’s panicked voice.

Waking to Suspicion

When Xiao Xi opened her eyes again, she found herself lying in her bed. Ye Xinglan sat on a chair nearby.

“What… happened?”

Her voice came out hoarse. Had she fainted?

In an instant, Xiao Xi pieced it together—the scratch from that daytime monster was to blame.

Monsters were pure aggregates of magical energy, but their negative magic varied, giving them unique traits reflected in their forms.

Take today’s scorpion-like monster. Its tail likely carried venom.

Xiao Xi had been careless. After the injury, she’d checked herself, felt fine, and brushed it off. She hadn’t expected the venom to kick in so late.

She’d been so busy since the injury that she hadn’t had time for a proper check. To think Mu Xingge was right—the mighty Eternal Star, infected by a mere C-grade monster’s magic.

Neglecting the injury was bad enough, but suppressing her magical power to D-grade level during the fight hadn’t helped. In her full Eternal Star form, a C-grade monster’s magic couldn’t have touched her.

“You’re finally awake, Xiao Xi. You scared me half to death.” Ye Xinglan exhaled, brushing back her hair to feel Xiao Xi’s forehead. “Spill it. What happened?”

Xiao Xi knew exactly why she’d collapsed, but she lowered her eyes, feigning ignorance.

“I’m not sure. Probably just overworked these past few days? I’ll be fine after some rest.”

“Lying again?” Ye Xinglan’s face hardened. “I called a private doctor to check on you. She’s already treated you and left.”

“The doctor told me you’ve got traces of magical infection. A subway scratch can cause that?”

Ye Xinglan firmly pulled Xiao Xi’s arm closer. The bandage from earlier was gone, and the wound showed only slight inflammation.

A private doctor? Xiao Xi blinked. Ye Xinglan, ever the wealthy heiress, had gone all out. But now she owed her even more.

“Tell me the truth, Xiao Xi. What did you do today? Signing a contract causes magical infections now?”

Ye Xinglan’s expression was stern, but she hadn’t actually called a doctor. She’d handled the infection herself.

As the Blood Moon Witch, Ye Xinglan had spotted the issue quickly. A magical infection was no big deal for her—she simply extracted the tainted magic from Xiao Xi’s body. If it had been a regular illness, she’d have needed a real doctor.

A Reluctant Confession

Seeing no way to dodge, Xiao Xi sighed and gave in.

“Alright, I admit it. The scratch came from a monster. I… ran into a monster attack while out signing that contract and got nicked.”

“You saw the news, right? Five monster attacks hit at noon. I was unlucky enough to stumble into one.”

Xiao Xi spun a plausible lie on the spot.

“Why didn’t you say something about getting scratched by a monster?” Ye Xinglan’s tone was sharp. “Do you know how serious untreated magical infections can be?”

“I was rushing to work, so I didn’t have time to deal with it. I figured magical infections were rare and wouldn’t happen to me.”

“Sorry… I didn’t tell the truth at the café because I didn’t want Keke worrying.”

Ye Xinglan frowned, staying silent for a long moment.

She was frustrated by Xiao Xi’s disregard for her own health, but she had no real ground to scold her. After all, she wasn’t actually Xiao Xi’s girlfriend.

Because of that, the words “Are you so desperate for money you’d risk your life? If you need cash, just ask me!” stayed stuck in her throat.

An Unexpected Mark

Just then, a knock came from outside. Ye Xinglan sighed, muttered, “I’ll get the door,” and left the room.

Xiao Xi fumbled to sit up. That private doctor Ye Xinglan found must’ve been skilled—she felt no discomfort now.

Truth be told, even without a doctor, she could’ve handled it herself. Transforming into Eternal Star and purging the infected magic would’ve done the trick.

Stepping out of bed, Xiao Xi checked herself in the mirror. Her complexion looked fine; she could probably write tonight without issue… Wait, what’s this?

Squinting, Xiao Xi noticed a small row of teeth marks on her neck, along with a red strawberry-like patch.

Had something bitten her?

For some reason, those teeth marks brought to mind Ye Xinglan’s bright smile, her sharp little tiger fangs peeking out when she grinned.

Did Ye Xinglan… take advantage of her while she was out cold?!

Xiao Xi’s face flushed, the heat spreading down to her neck, blending with the strawberry mark.

Though the thought crossed her mind, she didn’t dare confront Ye Xinglan. As her thoughts tangled, Ye Xinglan’s voice came from outside.

“Xiao Xi, the takeout I ordered is here. I got you lean pork congee. Come eat.”

“Oh… coming!”

Xiao Xi hurriedly tugged her collar to cover the mark and stepped out of the room.

“Xiao Xi, why’s your face so red?”

“N-Nothing… probably just from getting up, right?”