404: 8.4 Very Cute

8.4 Very Cute

Lu Yizhou squared his shoulders and tried to use only his lower body to walk out, his long skirt swishing around like flowy clouds. Ugh, he couldn't imagine having to press against other people with his current body...  1

But as it turned out, he did not need to worry at all because when he came out of his private berth, everyone kinda… made way for him??

The corner of Lu Yizhou's lips twitched as a smooth path opened up in front of him without any preamble. A man in a gray suit closest to him, unable to help himself, tipped his hat and spoke out, "My Lady, is everything fine? Do you need some help carrying your luggage?"

Lu Yizhou's teeth ached at being referred to as 'My Lady', goosebumps flaring out along his arms. What did the man mean by that? Lu Yizhou's luggage was only a medium sized briefcase, it did not even strain his muscles at all! 

'Sheesh, Daddy, he's trying to pick up a conversation with you! Or in other words, he is hitting on you!' Ozzie poked his cheek with the tip of her tail, exasperated. 'Don't tell me you haven't been hit on by anyone before!'

Lu Yizhou: "..." He really had not. 

With the kind of life he had, where did he have the time to meet someone normal? And with Zeke… well, somehow they just came together naturally. Lu Yizhou did not remember ever having to flirt or being flirted with when he was with Zeke. He might tease his lover and rile him up once in a while, but that was because he had known him very well!

Hence, this so-called 'hit on a stranger' event had never happened to him. At all.

In an attempt to shake the man off, Lu Yizhou coldly said, "No thanks." 

Without pausing to wait for an answer, he turned and stalked away with his long blonde locks swaying behind him akin to a waterfall of silken gold. Utterly unaware that behind him, the man's face was flushed crimson, eyes growing even more starry at Lu Yizhou's curt response. And the worst thing was — the man was not the only person affected.

***

Two large carriages bearing the insignia of the Knox Family had been waiting for them. One was already huge enough to accommodate five or more people. Master Knox was really giving them a face when he sent these two carriages to fetch seven people — wait that's not right, Lu Yizhou and 666 was counted as one so there would only be six people. 

Lu Yizhou did not care which carriage he took, thus he casually chose one and climbed in…

…and found a snoring, chubby middle aged woman sprawled messily inside. 

"...Excuse me." He lightly kicked the woman's shin that was dangling on the floor, causing the other to be startled awake. 

"Pu–ah? Is it time already…?" She slurred the words out. When she did not get any answer from Lu Yizhou, she finally sat herself up properly, still bleary eyed and clearly disoriented. 

Lu Yizhou wrinkled his nose when a strong odor of alcohol blasted his face. Exactly how many bottles had she drank to be this smelly? Lu Yizhou gingerly sat down as far away as possible from her, fearing that the scent would stick to his clothes along the way. Oh how he could get back to ten seconds ago and choose the other carriage! 

While the woman was still trying to sober herself up, the door to the carriage opened once again and another woman bounced in. She had brown shoulder-length hair that was tied in two braids, slightly tanned skin and light freckles on her face. Somehow, she really reminded Lu Yizhou of poodles. 

"Hello—woah, what is this smell?" Grimacing, she waved her hand in front of her face before her gaze finally landed on Lu Yizhou. Then she let out another, "Woah…" this time a little breathless and dazed.

The carriage started to move as she sat down right opposite Lu Yizhou, leaving the drunk woman in the far corner. Her brown eyes sparkled like two pieces of topaz under the sunbeam when they looked at Lu Yizhou. "Hello, pretty lady." She tucked her hair behind her ear, a flush coloring her cheeks. Her lashes fluttered shyly. "What is your name? I am Ji Yan."

Lu Yizhou: "..." What was with this strange sense of déjà vu? These goosebumps that crawled all over his body, it was so similar to the time when he was hit on by the man on the train! 

What? Was he being hit on this time too?! What was with the people in this world? Or was it… him? Lu Yizhou had not looked at his own reflection anywhere to spare him from the heart attack. It couldn't be… Was 666 not exaggerating when he said that the body Lu Yizhou was in right now was a rare, mature cold beauty?

[666: Sheesh, 666 has always been an honest system, okay?! How can you doubt 666 like this?!]

…Wait a moment. Lu Yizhou couldn't be the only male player, right? The system had said it. All male players would be given female bodies so this woman in front of him could just very well be another man! Lu Yizhou narrowed his eyes and scanned her micro gestures. 

The awkward shifting of her legs, the way she rubbed the back of her neck in a nervous reaction, uncaring that her braids were soon coming apart… Lu Yizhou might not interact much with the opposite gender but he knew that women cared about appearance the most, especially in the public. 

He was 80% certain now. Unless this Ji Yan was a tomboy, she was the same as Lu Yizhou! If that was so, then all this flirting suddenly made sense!

Lu Yizhou did not realize that he had been staring at Ji Yan's face intensely whilst he was thinking, making the latter's face grow redder and redder by each second. 

She rubbed the back of her neck even rougher and her braids finally came loose to frame her hair wildly. Still, she did not seem to realize a thing. "Um… excuse me, is there something on my face? Please…" She pleaded weakly, covering her flamed cheeks in utter shyness befitting of a maiden. "Can you please not stare at me like that? It's umm… very intimidating. The good way of intimidating. Not that I mind! It's just…" She buried her face into her palms and let out a sound like a dying whale. 

Lu Yizhou's left eye twitched and he averted his gaze away. "My apologies." He said. "I am—" wait, what should he say? His name 'Lu Yizhou' would undoubtedly be a dead giveaway of his real gender. For some inexplicable reason, he did not want anyone to know that he was a male…

'Daddy, your name in this world is Irene meow!' 

"—Irene." Lu Yizhou finished. He asked Ozzie in puzzlement, 'How do you know that?' 

'Hehe, I was going through the certificates in your briefcase before you woke up meow~' She nuzzled her head against Lu Yizhou's cheek affectionately. 'Am I a good girl? Am I a good, good girl?'

'Yes, you are. Good job.' Lu Yizhou scratched her chin with a gentle look on his face.

Ji Yan, who was watching the breathtaking proceeding, had her eyes and mouth open so wide that it was almost comical. Her face was as red as a boiled lobster now, so hot that it could sizzle out smoke. "You… Is this your cat? It's so cute…" she mumbled out, eyes switching back and forth between the cat and Lu Yizhou's face, uncertain on where she should focus her attention.

Every parent would be happy to have their child complimented and Lu Yizhou was not an exception. This woman's (man?) eyes were not bad, he thought. He finally deemed Ji Yan worthy of a faint smile as he cradled Ozzie in his arms. "En, Ozzie is the cutest." 

"Meow~" Ozzie purred so loud she almost resembled a motor engine.

"Ugh!" Ji Yan clutched her chest with a stricken look on her face. "Y—Yes, she's very cute. I agree." 

It took only less than ten minutes for the carriage to smoothly glide to a halt. 

At that moment, the drunk woman who was dozing off all throughout the journey suddenly sat up straight. "We have arrived!" Then with a movement so fast that it almost resembled a blur, she barreled out of the carriage. 

Before Lu Yizhou or Ji Yan could even react, the drunk woman had stepped down and stretched her body with a loud groan.

Lu Yizhou's sharp gaze trailed after the woman's back. Despite her chubby figure, she had a very thin presence that almost made Lu Yizhou lower his guard. Not to mention how fast she was moving even when she was so wasted… Lu Yizhou's eyes narrowed in contemplation. Could it be that her drunk persona was just an act? If that was so, then… this woman was quite something else.

Lu Yizhou got down after that, Ozzie cradled in one arm and his briefcase in another hand. The moist scent of petrichor greeted him, the remnants of the rain that had just stopped falling. 

In front of him stood an enormous manor. The building had been weathered by the passage of time, crawled with thick vines over its walls with its paint peeled off. Rather than giving off a vintage aura, Lu Yizhou thought it looked oppresive instead, or perhaps it was just because he had no idea what he would face inside. Judging from the name 'Nightmare Game' and 'Terror in the Knox Family', he could conclude that it wouldn't be anything pleasant. 

'Is your Mommy inside?'

'Yes, yes, I sense Mommy!' Ozzie let out a soft meow of confusion. 'But something is not right. I can't pinpoint the cause for certain but she feels a little off…'

Before the last note of Ozzie's sentence even faded away, Lu Yizhou's scalp suddenly tingled and he snapped his head up in time to see a thin ghastly face staring down at him from one of the rooms on the fourth floor. When he blinked again, the face had disappeared as if it was never there before!

Lu Yizhou sucked in sharp breath. Who was that…?

.

.

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Mini theater

Ji Yan's internal scream during the carriage journey: oh my God, oh my God, she's a literal Goddess. So cold and domineering! I want her to glare at me, order me around and step on me aaaah!!! How can someone be so cold and cute at the same time?! Look at her, look at her cat! Her cat! She's carrying a cat in her arms! So cute! I'm going to dieeee…

A/N: be careful Ji Yan, don't let a certain someone know how hard you are simping for LYZ!

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