Defeat the system! Kiss my little monster!

He Lan hugged Bai Sanhua tightly from behind. He opened his eyes and looked outside. The water droplets on the window were small and dense. It had started raining again without him noticing.

This small world, which was revived by absorbing the energy of the main system, constantly reveals Bai Sanhua's inner world.

"Bai Sanhua, I want to go out." He Lan lowered her eyelashes, her tone half threatening and half questioning, "Will you let me out or not?"

Bai Sanhua wiped the corner of her eye.

"...Will you take me with you?"

He Lan smiled: "No, I won't bring it."

Bai Sanhua's arm stiffened.

You said before... before that you would take me with you.

“The past is the past, and the present is the present.” He Lan released his grip, looking directly into Bai Sanhua’s eyes and said, “You never told me before that you were a man.”

I am not.

"Is that so?" He Lan's smile faded. "Then what are you?"

I am a machine...

The answer was almost out of her mouth when Bai Sanhua keenly sensed something unusual.

He changed his tone before he could finish his sentence and continued.

I am a dragon, just like you.

As he spoke, he raised the black dragon tail behind him.

[Male, infertile.]

He Lan: "..."

[It poses no threat and can be carried.]

“That’s right, I don’t like the same sex. If you were female, there might be a chance between us,” He Lan said calmly. “Right now, I just want to go out alone.”

The white calico tail fell to the ground. His slightly silvery eyes gleamed, and after a long while, he continued.

We need to get it back.

He Lan didn't say anything.

We need to get it back.

Bai Sanhua repeated it again.

"What will happen if I don't come back?" He Lan asked. "Will you strike me dead with lightning?"

Bai Sanhua's expression remained unchanged. His thin lips were pressed into a thin line, and his eyes were filled with turbulent emotions as he stared intently at He Lan.

He Lan remained unmoved, continuing to look back at Bai Sanhua with the same ambiguous smile as before.

【……Won't.】

Bai Sanhua spoke in a calm tone.

I respect all your decisions.

He Lan raised an eyebrow; Bai Sanhua's words were unexpected: "You said it yourself, don't go back on your word."

【Won't. 】

He Lan narrowed his eyes. The person standing in front of him had a body that was a mixture of dragon and machine, and possessed everything that was a fusion of rationality and sensibility... He was no longer just a simple silver ball.

Main system...

He Lan extended her hand to him: "Let's go, let's go down together."

Bai Sanhua lowered his head, took He Lan's hand, and obediently followed He Lan down the stairs.

He Lan's image was imprinted in his pupils. Bai Sanhua lifted her eyelids and looked at him for a while, then lowered her eyelashes again.

*

He Lan chose to leave very soon. After talking with Bai Sanhua for a short while, he packed his luggage and prepared to leave the castle.

Bai Sanhua sat on the sofa without saying a word.

The weather has been pretty good lately. Bai Sanhua has kept its word. Although a few dark clouds drift by from time to time, Bai Sanhua has refrained from letting the heavens rain. There have only been a few strong winds, and the sun has remained shining.

After packing his clothes, He Lan dragged his suitcase downstairs. Bai Sanhua sat on the sofa with his knees drawn up, the TV on, his pupils fixed on the constantly changing figures on the screen.

"Sanhua, there's food in the fridge. Help yourself if you're hungry." He Lan changed into his sneakers, glanced at Bai Sanhua, and said, "I'm leaving."

Bai Sanhua didn't even glance at He Lan, and simply changed the TV channel with the remote.

【Um. 】

He Lan opened the door and stopped at the entrance, not even looking at Bai Sanhua: "Where's the farewell kiss?"

Bai Sanhua kept pressing the remote control with his hand. He paused when he heard He Lan's voice, raised his eyelashes, and suddenly stood up from the sofa.

He walked with large, steady steps, and soon reached He Lan's side. He Lan was waiting for him. He tilted his head slightly, about to speak, when suddenly Bai Sanhua grabbed his chin and pressed it against the ancient stone door behind him.

"Hey……"

A sharp pain shot through his neck, and He Lan squinted in pain. He grabbed Bai Sanhua's collar, frowning, and said, "That's not how you do it, Bai Sanhua—"

Bai Sanhua had already bitten four or five wounds on He Lan's neck. He marked them and then affectionately kissed He Lan's cheek.

A farewell kiss, and best wishes for a safe journey.

After he finished speaking, he respectfully stepped aside.

He Lan vigorously rubbed the wound on his neck. Bai Sanhua's sharp white teeth had even drawn blood from his bite. His breathing became heavier, and he turned to look into the room.

Bai Sanhua had returned to the sofa and was sitting there, continuing to watch TV with a blank expression, as if nothing had happened.

He Lan slowly massaged the wound on his neck with his fingertips, pressed the tip of his tongue against his palate, sneered, and then turned to close the door.

The sound of the door being locked could be clearly heard in the empty house. Bai Sanhua rolled up the white clothes next to her with her fingertips and turned down the volume of the TV.

A moment later, he heard the sound of suitcase wheels turning. The footsteps were very faint and soon disappeared from Bai Sanhua's ears.

He Lan has already left.

Bai Sanhua lowered his eyelashes and took out the monitoring board hidden under the sofa. The small red dot on it moved slowly, gradually moving towards the sea.

Bai Sanhua watched for a while, then turned off the monitoring panel. He continued watching the melodramatic soap opera on TV, his fingertips tapping the sofa surface as he slowly counted the passing time.

Three minutes and twelve seconds have passed since He Lan left.

*

He Lan ultimately did not leave the coast.

This world was reshaped by the main system after it exhausted its energy. Everything in it was replicated one-to-one according to the requirements of the previous dragon world, including the dragons living outside the isolated island.

He Lan remembered his final fate; he was regarded as an omen of bad luck by this group and was eventually shot to death by a hail of bullets.

He may have once longed for the world beyond the island, but his physical deformity prevented him from doing so. Now that he possesses this perfectly healthy body, he has suddenly lost interest in the outside world.

There was nowhere left for him to explore.

There were no humans worth getting to know again.

He Lan sat on the shore, the cold wind howling from the middle of the sea was biting, and it blew on He Lan's face like some ancient pain.

He never told Silverball that he had wanted to go to the coast, to go to those faraway places, mostly because of Silverball.

Bound to such a frail host, unable to go out, unable to meet new humans and creatures, and only able to accompany He Lan in such a tiny place as the Dragon Clan Castle every day... Silver Ball must be feeling bored too.

He Lan covered his face, which was stiff and numb from the cold. He smelled the sea breeze and frowned uncomfortably.

Just like after his death, the main system guarded his body in that small space. For hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of years...

He Lan had heard him sobbing before, just like Yin Qiu, which made him happy and sad at the same time.

He Lan felt a sense of vengeful pleasure at that time, but what lay deeper inside was still more and more unspeakable repression and sadness.

How can he accept the existence of the main system?

He was the silver ball, but not entirely the silver ball. He loved Helan, and he killed Helan.

He Lan, I'm returning Su Hui to you... I'm returning him to you...

I won't make you angry again, I'm sorry... I'm so sorry...

He Lan felt a stinging pain in his eyes, so he closed them and stopped looking at the boundless sea.

What a load of rubbish about the main system! So clever, so rational, yet in the end, it was blown to pieces.

My body is gone, my memories are gone, all that's left is this state of complete ignorance.

It made He Lan hate it, and it also made him sad.

The wind blowing on my face had become softer, losing its biting chill from afar and gaining warmth from the sun.

He Lan leaned against the stone wall without moving. His eyes curved slightly, and he asked in an ambiguous tone, "How did you know I was here?"

The heavy coat draped over him pressed against He Lan's back. Bai Sanhua didn't say a word. He sat down next to He Lan in his pajamas and pressed his cheek against He Lan's neck—a gesture of longing.

He Lan chuckled, letting Bai Sanhua get closer, and said casually, "You planted a surveillance camera on me, didn't you?"

Bai Sanhua opened her eyes.

Who are you thinking about?

He Lan paused, then asked, "What did you say?"

You're thinking about someone else.

Bai Sanhua covered He Lan's hand with her palm.

【Going upstream.】

You're thinking about him.

He spoke slowly and deliberately, his hostility subtly rising.

He Lan didn't expect Bai Sanhua to say that. He had called out Su Hui's name when he was unconscious, and Bai Sanhua probably remembered Su Hui at that time.

“What’s wrong with me thinking about him? Can’t I think about him?” He Lan found it amusing and emphasized, “Before you came, he was always the one with me.”

Bai Sanhua's face gradually stiffened.

【you……】

“I like him.” He Lan said bluntly. After he finished speaking, he gave a self-deprecating laugh and put a distance between himself and Bai Sanhua. “But he died young. Now… all I can do is think about him.”

As He Lan spoke one sentence after another, Bai Sanhua secretly clenched his fists. He pursed his lips and only felt a huge weight lift from his heart after hearing the news of Su Hui's death.

...Dead?

Actually died?

Bai Sanhua never expected such a good thing. It's always better for something to be dead than something to be alive, otherwise he would have needed to spare extra effort to eliminate and erase Su Hui.

He used to be there for you, now I'm there for you. I'm better than him.

Bai Sanhua offered a few words of symbolic comfort to He Lan, and then began to recommend herself.

He Lan paused for a moment: "For example?"

I can make the sun never set.

He Lan: "..."

I can also make night never fall.

He Lan: "..."

"That sounds impressive, but how do you sleep? This isn't normal at all." He Lan put his hands behind his back and said, "Say something normal."

Bai Sanhua tilted her head slightly, seemingly not understanding He Lan's words.

Controlling the sun, moon, and stars to prevent them from falling was a very romantic idea to him, but He Lan was clearly not very interested.

He thought for a moment before continuing.

I planted a lot of irises on the back hill. They're not wild; I grew them myself, and they'll all be in full bloom in a few days.

I'll take you to see it.

He Lan's gaze froze: "You planted all these irises?"

【Yes. 】

Why are you planting these?

Bai Sanhua hesitated for a moment.

The hill behind is bare; planting some flowers would look nice.

He vaguely remembered that He Lan liked this variety of flower, but he couldn't recall the specific reason why Bai Sanhua liked it.

He only remembered that He Lan liked these flowers.