Night.
In a small courtyard, a frost-white figure stood with hands behind her back, her eyes gazing at the full moon above, exuding an ethereal aura.
After standing like this for who-knows-how-long, she slightly turned her head. At the courtyard's entrance, a figure sneakily slipped in.
"Hey, I'm here."
Jing Yuan walked up to Jingliu with a cheerful grin. "I thought about it all day and came up with a plan you'll definitely understand. First, do this, then that, and finally… Huh? What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"
He sensed something off about Jingliu's demeanor. How to put it… she didn't seem as clueless as she had during the day?
The Jingliu before him now—her aura, her demeanor—matched her appearance perfectly. Especially her gaze, which seemed to regard him like he was trash.
"Hey, let's be clear, we had an agreement. If you don't want to help, that's fine. I-I won't force you," Jing Yuan said hurriedly.
Jingliu said nothing, merely taking a step toward him.
Jing Yuan: ???
What's going on?
Why does the atmosphere suddenly feel off? And why is the air getting colder?
Jing Yuan took a step back, and Jingliu advanced a step closer.
This continued until Jing Yuan was backed up to the courtyard gate. Swallowing hard, he said nervously, "Uh… actually, I'm not the kind of person who takes advantage of a small favor to push for more. On second thought, maybe we should just forget it, haha…"
As he turned to leave, Jingliu suddenly waved her hand, and the courtyard gate slammed shut, cutting off his escape.
"Heh, where are you running to?"
In the deathly silence, Jingliu finally spoke. Her tone carried a hint of playfulness and a touch of charm she hadn't shown during the day, leaving Jing Yuan utterly confused.
Why did it feel like Jingliu had become a different person?
"I-I'm not running," Jing Yuan said stubbornly. "So, as we agreed, you're supposed to help me join the Cloud Knights. You remember that, right?"
"Mhm~ Not bad."
"Then… then let's get started." Jing Yuan handed her a plan. "Here are the specific steps. Since there are fewer Cloud Knights around at night, let's act quickly."
"You don't have any connections inside, so we'll have to take a risk and alter the roster."
Jingliu took the plan, glanced at it disinterestedly, and then, right in front of Jing Yuan, tore it to shreds.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jing Yuan frowned, questioning her.
Whoosh—
Jingliu's eyes narrowed, and an invisible pressure radiated from her, overwhelming Jing Yuan to the point he could barely breathe. "Joining the Cloud Knights? Sure. But I have a simpler method."
"W-What method? What are you planning?" A bad feeling crept into Jing Yuan's heart. "Big sister, let's keep this friendly and part on good terms. If you don't want to help, I'll leave right now—"
Smack!
Jingliu struck out with a palm, sending Jing Yuan flying several meters. His body traced a perfect arc through the air before crashing to the ground.
"Hee~ Backdoor? That's the worst approach."
Jingliu's ruby-like eyes gleamed with excitement, a stark contrast to her daytime self. "If you ask me, the simplest, most direct way to join the Cloud Knights is to fight your way in with sheer strength."
"Since we're fated, and you helped me out, I'll make an exception and take you as my apprentice."
"I'll personally… train you well~"
Jing Yuan struggled to his feet, his young face filled with fear. "Wait, hold on! No, no, no! I'm done, okay?!"
Bang!
Jingliu struck again, sending him flying.
"Wait, big sister, let's talk this out! I know I was wrong…"
Bang!
"No, no more! If you keep hitting me this hard, I'll die…"
Bang!
…
The next day.
(Poke poke.)
(Poke poke poke.)
(Poke poke poke poke.)
Jing Yuan groggily opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was Jingliu's stunning face, filled with confusion and puzzlement. "Why are you sleeping in my courtyard? Didn't we agree you'd come last night to teach me what to do?"
Jing Yuan: !!!
Ignoring the fact that he was still on the ground, he scrambled away in a spider-like crawl, shouting in terror, "Y-You stay away from me!!"
He would never believe this woman's cute, clueless act again!
Jingliu: ?
She tugged at the strands of hair on her forehead, utterly perplexed. "Uh… what are you talking about?"
Jing Yuan: !!!
Demon! A pure demon!
She tortured him all night, and now she was pretending nothing happened, acting all innocent… Liar!
Seeing Jing Yuan's terrified expression, Jingliu felt equally confused. She hurried forward to reassure him. "Don't be scared. I won't do anything to you. I'm just really curious—what happened last night?"
"You… you did that to me last night…" Jing Yuan pointed at her, trembling, tears welling in his eyes. "And now you're asking me? Are you humiliating me?"
"Fine, fine, my bad! I'm done with you, okay? Just open the gate and let me go!"
Seeing Jing Yuan ready to cut ties completely, Jingliu felt a bit wronged. She didn't know anything—how did things turn out like this after a single night's sleep?
In the end, at Jing Yuan's insistent demand, she helplessly opened the gate and let him leave.
…
"What's the deal?"
Bailu was dumbfounded, forgetting the piece of meat at her lips. "This senior named Jingliu… does she have a split personality?"
Jing Yuan snapped his fingers with a pop. "Exactly. You nailed it."
"Later, I found out she has two personalities. By day, she's adorably clueless and silly as can be. By night, she's side-eyeing people and ready to snap at any moment," Jing Yuan said with a tragic tone.
"But how did you find out?" Guinaifen asked.
Jing Yuan: "Heh, because she came looking for me again, of course. Can you imagine waking up in the middle of the night to see a white-haired woman standing at your bedside?"
The three imagined the scene and shivered in unison.
Until they knew what the girl looked like, they'd picture her as a ghostly figure.
"So, she came to train you every night after that?" Bailu asked.
Jing Yuan's mouth twitched. "Do you even need to ask something so obvious… Anyway, after just a week of… uh, special training, my combat skills reached the Cloud Knights' basic standard."
"But she still came to me every night, saying she'd 'take responsibility until I got into the Cloud Knights.'"
"Wow, sounds like she's pretty complicated, even if she's a bit… uh, not quite normal," Guinaifen said with a laugh.
"Heh."
Jing Yuan shook his head bitterly. "During that time, I went to the Cloud Knights' recruitment office every day, but every time, some random reason would prevent me from taking the entrance test."
"Later, I found out that woman was using her authority in the Cloud Knights to deliberately keep me from testing, all to satisfy her own desires."
"So, that went on for a whole year."