Huh? Isn't This A Galgame?

Wen Nan was stunned. For a moment, getting up didn't feel right, and lying down was even less appropriate. He ended up sitting on the ground, staring blankly ahead.

The owner of the Fasting, who had been bent over, focusing intently on a complicated swan-neck distillation flask on the table, heard a stir from the passageway behind her. She furrowed her brow, turned around, and saw a strange man sitting on the ground behind her.

The two of them, one standing and one sitting, silently locked eyes for a while.

Standing in front of Wen Nan was a stunning young woman—her double eyelids were deeply creased, her brows prominent, her nose bridge high and defined. Her long brown hair was pinned up with a wooden hairpin at the back, giving her features a slightly exotic flair.

Her cheekbones, collarbones, and chest were all covered with different colors of chemical powders. A few strands of fringe hung down on either side of her face, and the messy strands stuck out from her bun, giving her a somewhat disheveled look. Yet, even so, her exquisite facial features were undeniable.

A slender neck bore a gemstone necklace, the apple-shaped ruby nestled between her collarbones, emphasizing the delicacy of her fair skin.

Wen Nan's gaze slowly drifted down from the egg-sized ruby, only to lock back onto it again—

Aside from staring at the gem, Wen Nan really didn't know where else to look, especially since, currently, the woman was wearing nothing but that one accessory…

After a brief standoff in silence, they both spoke at once—

Wen Nan: "Why are you… not wearing clothes?"

The woman opposite: "How did you… get in?"

Upon Wen Nan's question, the woman slightly furrowed her brow, a hint of puzzlement in her eyes. She looked down at herself, then chuckled softly, crossed her arms over her chest, stepped back half a step, and leaned her rounded hips against the edge of the lab table.

Then she tilted her head slightly, looked at Wen Nan, and raised her eyebrow with a knowing smile.

Hearing her question, Wen Nan realized that his question might have been inappropriate—this was her private room, and how she dressed was her own business. Wen Nan, having barged in, was obviously the one at fault.

"Sorry." Wen Nan propped himself up with his arms, turned around, and quickly headed for the passageway he'd fallen through. "I was being rude, I'll just leave now."

He had taken only two steps when a white figure, taller than Wen Nan by half a head, suddenly sprang out from beside the exit, "Squeak, squeak squeak!"

Wen Nan halted his steps, looking up at the massive creature before him—

It was a fluffy, white, long-haired being. It looked somewhat like a rabbit, yet somewhat like a mouse, with pointed ears and a long, bushy tail.

Could it be… a chinchilla?

"…Little W.?" Wen Nan called out instinctively.

"Squeak!" The white chinchilla placed its short forepaws on the ground, its head nearing Wen Nan, sniffing him forcefully.

Wen Nan quickly pulled a [Little W.'s Chew Stick] from his backup equipment inventory and tossed it out.

The chinchilla immediately pounced on it, its row of teeth biting into the wooden chew stick, its eyes squinting pleasantly, "Groan, groan groan groan…"

"You sure have a comprehensive collection of tools." The woman behind him spoke again.

Wen Nan turned back to look at her, smiled, and said, "I must thank the villa for its warm hospitality."

The woman stretched out a hand towards Wen Nan with a smile, "Yu Shouling, you can call me Miss Ling."

Wen Nan hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward to shake her slightly cool hand, "Ye Jiu."

After they let go, Yu Shouling leaned her arms on the table's edge and repeated the earlier question: "How did you get in?"

Unlike the first time, her tone now carried only pure curiosity. It seemed she had already fully accepted Wen Nan's unexpected intrusion.

Wen Nan answered truthfully: "The two little princesses gave me the key."

Yu Shouling nodded knowingly, then smiled again, "Leng Leng and Qingqing rarely show such kindness to strangers. It seems… you are quite special."

Saying this, she lightly sprang up and simply sat on her lab table, her legs wide open.

Wen Nan's breath caught, his gaze once again locking onto the apple-shaped ruby at her collarbone, "Miss Ling—"

"—Just call me Miss Ling."

"Miss Ling, chatting like this, wouldn't you say, is a bit… too candid?"

Yu Shouling tilted her head slightly to one side, "In this room, besides you and me, there's only Little W. around. What's wrong with a bit of candor?"

Wen Nan found himself speechless.

Yu Shouling leaped down from the table, strolled leisurely to Wen Nan, leaned forward, and looked up at him closely, "Mr. Ye Jiu, are you blushing?"

She straightened up again, her fingers twisting the apple-shaped ruby at her collarbone, fiddling with it as she continued, "I am wearing something, you know."

Wen Nan looked at the gem twirling in her fingers and felt as if she had told a Titanic joke, so he cooperated with a smile.

At that moment, Yu Shouling raised her arms and spun around before Wen Nan, then asked, "How do you like my newly crafted sorcerer's robe? Does it look good?"

...The emperor's new clothes?

Seeing the teasing look in Wen Nan's eyes, Yu Shouling laughed, "This robe's material is my latest concoction. I call it—'A Thousand Faces.'"

"…A Thousand Faces?"

"Yes, this fabric changes its texture and color according to each person's perception. A thousand people would see a thousand different styles.

"Why you see it as this… Yu Shouling raised her hand, supporting her chin, looking at Wen Nan, "I think this question should be asked by me, not you."

With that, she moved closer to Wen Nan, pointed a finger at his chest, "Mr. Ye, what exactly is on your mind all day? Why do you see me this way?"

Wen Nan chuckled helplessly, this time not backing away or trying to play the honest guy. He raised his hand, caught her slender wrist, and said with a smile, "Want to know why?"

Yu Shouling was startled by his sudden action, momentarily dumbfounded. She raised her eyes to look at Wen Nan, her long eyelashes trembling slightly.

Wen Nan, from who knows where, pulled out a small paper box and placed it into Yu Shouling's palm, "I think, because of this."

Yu Shouling received the rectangular small box, puzzled, and stared at the words on it, "0.01? What is this?"

Where she couldn't see, golden light radiated from the paper box's edges, slipping out from between her fingers.

In Wen Nan's mind, a system notification sounded—

9527: [Detected significant contact between your portable tool and target Ling, successfully locked onto the target for you.]

9527: [Matching detection between target and your strategy object underway...]