Chapter Seventeen: Vacation Villa

After leaving that remark, Zhou Yan vanished without a trace.

When he appeared before Su Man again, he was covered in wounds and blood.

“Manman, I’m back.” With a cheerful smile, he uttered these words, then relaxed into Su Man’s arms and lost consciousness.

Su Man pushed him toward Xiao Liang. “Bandage him up.”

“Ah, so much blood again? He’s going to die, definitely going to die—what should I do? When he wakes up, will he kill me?” Xiao Liang’s simple face was full of anxiety; whenever he fixed his gaze on Zhou Yan’s outrageously handsome face, he recalled those murderous eyes of his.

“First, he won’t die, and he won’t kill you. Second, if he does die, he couldn’t possibly kill you. Either way, it’s no harm to you.”

Su Man stopped his wailing. “Enough, hurry up and bandage him.”

Resigned, Xiao Liang went to work, but the more he thought about it while bandaging Zhou Yan, the more uneasy he felt. He glanced over at Su Man, who sat far off on the sofa, and muttered quietly, “I was supposed to be the senior here, the one in charge. When did that change?”

It must be said: Zhou Yan was a monster. Such severe injuries, yet within an hour, he regained consciousness, acting as if nothing had happened, grinning at Su Man. “Manman, you saved me again.”

“What was that?” Su Man ignored his playful smile and asked what concerned her.

“What was what?” Zhou Yan feigned ignorance.

“The black smoke.” Su Man refused to play games.

Zhou Yan shifted the topic. “Manman, did you bandage your wounds? Is it serious? Does it hurt?”

Su Man stared at him in silence.

“Alright, alright, what did you ask?” Zhou Yan spoke, but his gaze was evasive.

Su Man still said nothing.

“…That was a Destined One.”

Destined One? Su Man gestured for him to continue.

But Zhou Yan suddenly became evasive. “What’s a Destined One again? Ah, I forgot.”

He watched Su Man’s reaction as he spoke; seeing her displeased expression, he feigned pitifulness. “Manman, I really can’t tell you. Destined Ones aren’t something you can handle right now; they actually have nothing to do with you.”

“But I nearly died at his hands. Is that what you call ‘nothing to do with me’?” Su Man asked him with utmost seriousness.

Zhou Yan’s expression grew solemn for a moment. “Manman, he’ll never have another chance to hurt you. I promise you.”

Su Man gave no reply, only looking at him.

The next instant, Zhou Yan’s seriousness evaporated, replaced by a bright smile as he coaxed, “Manman, are you hungry? Let me cook for you. My cooking is really good.”

He was a man of action; as soon as he said it, he got up to make her a meal.

Su Man watched his retreating figure in silence for a long while, then raised her hand to touch the skull pendant around her neck.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Zhou Yan was preparing a heartfelt lunchbox for Su Man, but unexpectedly, he encountered Skinny Monkey, Fatty, and two others who had come looking for food.

The four had been too frightened by Su Man’s threats to leave their rooms for quite a while; after finally overcoming their mental barriers, they ventured out, hoping to eat their fill and put on a show for Su Man. By coincidence, they met Zhou Yan, and as soon as they saw him, bad ideas began to take shape.

“Well, isn’t this the pretty boy we beat half to death? What’s wrong? That tigress isn’t here to protect you?” Skinny Monkey’s words dripped with sarcasm.

With a thud, Zhou Yan’s knife plunged into the cutting board, piercing right through the stone countertop below.

“Th-this…” Skinny Monkey shuddered, then tried to muster bravado. “Getting angry already?”

Fatty encouraged him. “He was helpless against us before, so what’s there to be afraid of?”

Fatty’s urging made Skinny Monkey selectively erase the previous scene from his mind. “I’m not scared, just teasing him!”

“That tigress—ah!!”

Skinny Monkey had barely mentioned Su Man when he suddenly felt suffocated, as though a pair of huge hands were squeezing his throat, making it impossible to breathe.

Zhou Yan’s gaze was icy cold as he stared at him. “Manman is the gentlest, kindest person. Don’t let me hear you speak of her like that again.”

Fatty didn’t know what was happening to Skinny Monkey, but it was clearly connected to Zhou Yan. Spotting some scattered props nearby, he quickly grabbed one and slashed at Zhou Yan’s neck, his beady eyes full of malice. “You damned thing, I could beat you senseless before, and I still can now!”

But his actions lacked the force of his words. A black mist emanated from Zhou Yan, slowly lifting Fatty off the ground.

“You thought I was really helpless?” Zhou Yan sneered. “If I didn’t want Manman to worry about me, you’d have died at my hands long ago.”

The terror in Fatty’s eyes intensified as the black mist began to engulf him.

But Zhou Yan frowned and paused.

He looked toward the wisps of black smoke drifting outside the window, his gaze deepening. He couldn’t continue; it would only attract more Destined Ones.

He withdrew the black mist, glancing down at Fatty with a voice as cold as ice. “You got lucky this time.”

With that, he vanished once more. Fatty and the others took two seconds to react, then fled in terror.

When Zhou Yan returned to the kitchen, fresh blood seeped through his clothes, but he cared nothing for it, happily carrying the lunchbox to find Su Man. “Manman will have to worry about me again. My sweet Manman… but what a pity.”

Entering the room, he called Manman’s name over and over. “Quick, come eat! My heartfelt lunchbox, it tastes amazing.”

He placed the tray in front of Su Man, then kept waving it before her.

Su Man picked up and put down her dining knife, finally looking impatiently at Xiao Liang. “Go bandage him. Don’t let him wave things in front of me.”

“Manman, Manman, is my cooking good?”

With his wounds freshly bandaged, Zhou Yan paraded around her like a peacock, chattering incessantly.

Su Man ate in silence, while Zhou Yan carried on, entertaining himself in a state of bliss.

Since Su Man had completed her task early and no new missions had been issued, the evening was safe and uneventful.

She and Xiao Liang took turns guarding at night, so Su Man retired early to rest.

In the deep quiet of night, Zhou Yan suddenly appeared in Su Man’s room.

He was incredibly calm, making almost no sound as he paused by her bedside.

“Manman, I’d love to stay by your side, but you’re too weak right now. If I stay, I’ll only add to your burdens. I promised, I won’t let the Destined Ones hurt you. They follow me—when I leave, they’ll leave too.”

“Manman, here’s some money. Keep it; it’ll be useful.”

Zhou Yan spoke with extraordinary gentleness, his voice soft as a caress. “Manman, I’m greedy again. I really hate to part from you. Come find me soon, alright?”

He tenderly stroked her hair, then took the skull pendant from her neck and vanished.

He didn’t see, in the moment after he left, Su Man opened her eyes, clear and lucid.