“Mm... is this the spot?”

Guided by an address inked in memory, Zixin finally found Winter Leaf Road.

Plants lined the street; green branches swayed like river grass, a forest corridor braided into the city.

She’d never come here, but classmates had sketched the place with gossip and hints.

Moon Post Bookstore—that should be the name.

“Found it!”

On the back half of the street, near the bend, she spotted the Moon Post Bookstore sign.

Glass cases, chalk notices on a blackboard, a dustless sign—this had to be Dongfang Chen’s home.

But...

Why is there a girl walking toward the door?

Zixin froze, her breath catching like a snagged kite string.

She was very cute, a little spring swallow of a girl.

Azure hair floated, sleek as melted chocolate.

She stood half a head shorter than Zixin; big blue eyes, doll‑bright and precise.

She carried a meal box and hopped with eager steps—too urgent to be a customer.

She felt like a thread in the shop’s weave, one of its own.

One of them...?

Zixin’s steps stopped cold.

She remembered: Dongfang Chen had said there were adventurer companions at his place.

She hadn’t pictured the partner as so small and sweet, soft and unguarded.

So... maybe Dongfang Chen is a lolicon.

Her mood dropped, a stone slipping into still water.

The scene spelled it out: without a close bond, a girl wouldn’t live in a boy’s home.

So this cute bluebird must be his intimate partner.

She didn’t know why the ache bloomed first, but the task still had to be done.

She cupped her nerve like a small flame and spoke.

“Little miss, please wait.”

If Dongfang Chen had a partner, barging in felt rude; it could spark needless misunderstanding.

Better to pass the message through the blue‑haired girl—woman to woman, no thorns.

“Eh...? Eh!!!”

At her voice, the girl whipped around, eyes wide as moons, surprise flooding her gaze.

Shy of strangers? Looked like Dongfang Chen sheltered her like a bird under eaves.

“Hello. I’m Zixin, an old classmate of Dongfang Chen. Are you with Moon Post Bookstore? I need to tell him something important.”

The blue‑haired girl froze on the spot, words swallowed like rain.

Her small hands pinched her skirt; her soft cheeks flushed apple‑red, ready to drip.

Her eyes pooled, on the verge of tears—seen by an outsider, it might look like bullying.

But that reaction told Zixin more than words.

This little girl was surely Dongfang Chen’s partner—maybe already a lover.

Otherwise, why would his name set her aflutter, shy and helpless, a face that hinted at closeness too tender to name?

(So that’s how it is...)

Even the thin strand of hope she’d held evaporated like morning mist.

(Just classmates, after all...)

She steadied herself inside; since it’s come to this, she would act open and calm.

“Sorry to trouble you. What I need to discuss with Mr. Dongfang Chen is formal work, so it has to be face‑to‑face.”

“Um... uh...”

The blue‑haired girl’s voice came mosquito‑soft, trembly as a reed.

“This is my card. Don’t worry—I won’t disturb Mr. Dongfang Chen’s life.”

“Ah—sorry! Mr. Dongfang Chen is upstairs. I’ll go get him...”

She sprang in place, turned in a blush, and dashed into the bookstore in a whoosh.

To Zixin, it was pure shyness—she even left the meal box on the step.

I’ll hand it in to Dongfang Chen in a bit.