Night

Su Mian had classes all day today, but he still met up with Qi Chuan for lunch at noon.

Perhaps because the shadow left by yesterday was too large, Qi Chuan refused to go to the Sixth Canteen under any circumstances. Since the Second Canteen was predictably packed, Su Mian went with him to the nearby Fourth Canteen instead.

The food at the Fourth Canteen wasn’t exactly terrible; it was just… relatively terrible. Fine, there’s no other way to put it—it was just bad. Then again, it might just be that Su Mian was back to that state where everything tasted like cardboard.

In any case, Su Mian only ate a small portion before he truly couldn’t force down another bite. Sitting opposite him, Qi Chuan’s appetite was clearly poor as well; his face even looked a bit pale.

It was understandable. After all, he was just an ordinary university student. People brag on the internet as if they could witness a murder without blinking—claiming they could hack their way from the South Street to the North Lane with a watermelon knife— but in reality, they probably wouldn’t even know how to start when faced with slaughtering a chicken.

The scene of that head bursting yesterday would have nauseated even a seasoned criminal, let alone a civilian. Many of the people there would likely have nightmares for days, and Qi Chuan was no exception.

Seeing his pitiful state, Su Mian eventually gave up on his idea of playing a prank—he had actually considered ordering some soy milk a moment ago.

The reason he gave up was definitely because he felt sorry for the guy, not because the canteen had run out.

Cough!

Anyway, neither of them ate much during that meal. Qi Chuan didn’t suspect anything, likely assuming Su Mian was in the same boat as him.

After finishing lunch, they went their separate ways. Today was the reverse of yesterday: Qi Chuan had no classes in the afternoon, but since he had exams coming up, he decisively headed to the library.

Su Mian attended his classes as usual. Nothing strange happened; all in all, it was a very ordinary and mundane day.

At least, it was during the daylight hours.

Returning home that evening, the full day of classes had left Su Mian slightly fatigued, mostly on a mental level. However, as night fell and he prepared to head out, he immediately snapped back into state.

Tonight, he had decided to go out using his other identity!

Standing in the bathroom, Su Mian looked at himself in the mirror. “You’re sure there won’t be any problems?”

The silver-haired, blood-eyed succubus rolled her eyes. “We practiced several times earlier. What could go wrong?”

“Is being at home the same as being outside?” Su Mian insisted he was being cautious to ensure he was prepared for any situation. He spoke as if it were common sense: “At home, it’s just me. Outside, there are temptations everywhere. What if I run into someone like that strange police officer again and lose control?”

“Then don’t go out.”

“But I need to confirm if there are actually other demons nearby.”

“Then get out the door!”

“But I’m worried about an accident…”

“…”

The girl in the mirror wiped her face, her gaze becoming slightly dangerous. Seeing this, Su Mian quickly cleared his throat. “Just kidding! We can start now!”

The succubus snapped her fingers expressionlessly.

Instantly, the youth standing before the mirror transformed into a girl.

Fiddling with the black hair falling over her forehead and touching the “small buns” that were barely protruding, Su Mian still found it magical every time, even though it wasn’t his first time.

Demons… what exactly are they?

Unfortunately, no one could answer her.

“This look is much easier to accept than the previous one…”

After “posing” in front of the mirror for a bit, Su Mian felt a slight sense of wonder, then leaned in closer to compare heights. She frowned. “Wait, why did my height shrink? I’m at least five or six centimeters shorter!”

“Because you’re only utilizing a tiny fraction of power. Think of it as… developmental stunting.”

“…”

Developmental stunting, my ass.

Su Mian was speechless, but she didn’t dwell on it; after all, she could change back whenever she wanted.

Once the transformation was complete, the girl changed into a simple outfit to head out. While she was changing, her other self didn’t forget to remind her: “Why aren’t you wearing that set from before?”

In response, Su Mian simply showed her the middle finger.

A shirt on top, jeans, and sneakers. Because the rain yesterday had left today a bit chilly, she added a jacket. Of course, she didn’t forget the ultimate “holy relic”: band-aids.

Why didn’t she wear that previous set of lingerie? It wasn’t really a matter of being shy; the key was that her current figure was “poached eggs,” while that lingerie was designed for “watermelons.” The sizes didn’t match at all!

Two band-aids would suffice.

After confirming her appearance in the mirror, Su Mian put on a baseball cap and a mask. Like this, it was hard to tell if she was male or female just from looking. Ready, she hesitated no longer and decisively stepped out.

The rainfall from yesterday had been truly staggering; quite a bit of standing water remained on the roads. However, for most people, this wasn’t an issue, nor could it dampen their internal heat.

At eight o’clock in the evening, it was peak time for office workers to find some fun after work, and students had mostly finished their classes. People were everywhere. Orange and white lights illuminated the night, losing the busyness of the day but gaining an ambiguity and passion that the day lacked.

After stepping out, Su Mian had no specific destination and simply wandered aimlessly. Her ordinary clothes allowed her to blend into the crowd without attracting any attention.

This state was indeed much better than before. Previously, even if she had wrapped herself like a mummy, she still would have turned heads—a succubus’s charm isn’t something a mere layer of fabric can fully hide. But now, using only a tiny bit of her ability and with the cover of night, Su Mian felt no different from the other students wandering about.

She walked past a supermarket, passed a plaza where she watched some aunties and young men dancing together, and sat somewhere to play on her phone for a bit. When she left, she saw a mobile snack cart nearby and bought a stick of grilled squid.

Pulling down her mask to eat, Su Mian moved through the crowds and streets, appearing relaxed and carefree.

But beneath the brim of the hat where others couldn’t see, her eyes were glowing faintly. Through eyes infused with demonic power, she could easily capture abnormalities that would normally go unnoticed.

Along the way, she saw plenty of “strange” things—like a girl who seemed to be wearing only a jacket, or two “cross-dressing masters” she passed whose clothes were making a buzzing sound—but none of that mattered.

Where are the demons?

“Or maybe there aren’t any, and I’m just being paranoid?”

Su Mian hadn’t forgotten the purpose of her trip. However, after searching all the familiar spots, she found no valuable clues. It seemed as though the Fiend who got his head popped before was just passing through and happened to run into her.

But was that really the case?

After thinking for a moment, the girl pulled up her mask and changed directions. This time, she chose a path she rarely took—one with fewer people—and quickly turned into a pitch-black alleyway.