Turns Out I'm the Real Monster?!

The faint blush on the woman’s cheeks gradually deepened, like red plum blossoms in the snow.

Under the candlelight, she looked even more unearthly beautiful.

Jiang Mu stared, momentarily lost in thought, and praised her from the heart:

"Sister Ling, you’re so beautiful."

Hearing this, Ling Ye’s pretty face flushed crimson, like a ripe apple.

She shot the man a reproachful glare.

But her heart, which had felt empty from the burning alcohol, seemed to be gently soothed by this simple compliment. A trace of secret joy, one she hadn’t even noticed herself, began to blossom within.

The moment the words left his mouth, Jiang Mu felt they were inappropriate. He gave a dry cough and hastily, awkwardly changed the subject:

"Sister Ling, you... seem to enjoy drinking?"

Ling Ye turned her head away, avoiding his burning gaze. She stared at the flickering candlelight, her voice melancholic.

"Not really. It’s just... in my early years, I was out slaying demon fiends alone. In the desolate mountains and wilderness, the nights were long and lonely. I’d drink a little now and then to pass the time. Over the years, it became a habit."

Looking at the fleeting desolation on her cold profile, Jiang Mu felt as if he had glimpsed the lonely silhouette of this ice queen who had walked the world alone for so many years.

She was used to being all alone.

Whether facing the dangers of demon fiends or living amongst the hustle and bustle of the mortal world, she had no one by her side, no one to talk to.

Perhaps only the contents of this cup could offer some small comfort for that loneliness.

His heart softened, and he blurted out words of comfort:

"If I really become a Patrol Envoy in the future, I’ll keep you company. We... we could at least have each other’s company."

The moment the words left his mouth, the atmosphere in the room instantly turned strange.

It was suffocatingly intimate.

Jiang Mu also realized his words had crossed a line and quickly tried to explain:

"Uh, what I mean is... we could team up to slay demons. When we have free time, we could eat watermelon, have a few drinks, watch the stars and the moon together..."

’It’s over.’

’The more I explain, the worse it gets.’

’This sounds even more like a couple’s package deal.’

Ling Ye had already turned away, leaving him with only her slender, straight back. He couldn’t see the expression on her face.

Only the tips of her white jade-like ears were now a rosy red.

Peeking in and out from between her dark hair.

She was silent for a moment before issuing an order to leave. "It’s... getting late. You should go back for now. We’ll talk tomorrow."

"Oh, okay."

Jiang Mu thought she was angry and didn’t dare say more. He sheepishly picked up the wine pot, tilted his head back for another big gulp, and then scurried out of the room.

Listening to the man’s footsteps fade away.

Ling Ye slowly raised a hand to cover her burning cheeks.

’What nonsense is that boy spouting!’

’Eating watermelon together, watching the stars and the moon together...’

’So childish!’

’It’s not interesting at all.’

She chided herself like this in her heart, but her mind disobeyed, quietly conjuring up the scene he had described.

A courtyard on a summer night, sweet melons and fruits, the light fragrance of wine, a brilliant starry sky, and the two of them sitting side by side...

’It seems... it might not be entirely uninteresting.’

As she thought about it, Ling Ye suddenly let out a soft sigh.

The faint glimmer in her eyes, born from her reverie, gradually dimmed. It was torn apart by the coldness and rationality of reality, then tossed back into some unrealistic corner deep within her memory.

’Just as I thought.’

’When you’re lonely for too long, you become fragile.’

’It’s even making me start to have these absurd, baseless thoughts.’

’Ling Ye, oh Ling Ye, have you forgotten how your master was damned beyond redemption because of a man?’

’Although Xiaojiang isn’t the same as that Great Demon... love hurts. Don’t you understand that yet?’

’Besides.’

’I just see him as a little brother.’

’That’s all.’

Ling Ye warned herself over and over in her heart.

She found a seemingly reasonable and safe justification for the extraordinary care and protectiveness she felt for Jiang Mu.

To dispel the strange heat and turmoil in her heart, she got up and went to the back room to heat some water, preparing to bathe and cleanse herself.

She shed her clothes.

Her skin was fairer than snow, her curves exquisite.

She subconsciously glanced at the bronze mirror.

Reflected in the mirror was a perfect, delicate body that could drive any man in the world to madness.

Especially those two...

Ling Ye looked down, her delicate brows furrowing slightly. She sighed softly, ’Xiaojiang... he must really hate it when they’re this big, right?’

As if possessed, she suddenly rose onto her tiptoes and gave two light hops on the spot.

In an instant.

The image in the mirror shook violently.

A majestic tremble,

a trembling majesty...

’How annoying.’

...

...

「Chief’s Seal Room.」

The room was brightly lit.

Tian Wenjing had his head down, flipping through a thick register in his hands. It recorded all the recent affairs of the Demon-slaying Bureau, big and small, especially the parts concerning Jiang Mu.

His brow was perpetually furrowed.

Ran Qingshan sat across from him, sipping his tea at a leisurely pace. He appeared calm, but in reality, a dull ache was throbbing in his head.

Before Vice Director Tian had even arrived at the Bureau, a trusted subordinate had already reported the full details of the evening’s conflict on the long street to him.

Strangely, when Ran Qingshan learned that Jiang Mu and Tian Wenjing had clashed, he wasn’t surprised at all.

He even felt a sense of fatalism, as if thinking, ’It’s finally happened.’

After all, when you put two stubborn mules together, it would be strange if they *didn’t* start kicking.

He just hadn’t expected it to happen so soon, and so intensely.

One was a veteran of the Bureau, deeply experienced and rigid in his ways. The other was a rising star, exceptionally talented and unrestrained in his actions.

’Neither of them are pushovers.’

But if he really had to pick a side, it would definitely be Jiang Mu.

"Everything recorded in this register... all these deeds of Jiang Mu’s, are they all true?" Tian Wenjing closed the register and couldn’t help but ask. "Without the slightest exaggeration?"

’It’s too exaggerated.’

’Even a storyteller wouldn’t dare make up tales this wild.’

Ran Qingshan put down his teacup and said with a serious expression:

"Every word is true. If Elder Tian doesn’t believe it, you are free to ask anyone in the Bureau."

Tian Wenjing fell silent.